#and I presume youre here for art so IM JUST CURIOUS.

[surlifen]

#for those mystified by the third option I have mutuals who like. I'll be refreshing my feed bored and nothing #ill have caught up on the entire day #then go to their blog specifically and scroll down and lo and behold they posted a piece today that simply did not appear #and then I'll keep looking and there's 15 posts I've never seen by them #that show up on their blog and not my dashboard #ive got a Lot of followers. but almost never get even one percent of that number of notes on my posts #and I presume youre here for art so IM JUST CURIOUS.

[ughscara]

THE COLUMBINA THEME/?!?!?>!>D QWJDKWBQQ OH MY GOSHHHHH IM BKFBEFE I DID NOT KNOW YOU WERE A BINA FAN AHHHH YOU HAVE IMPECCABLE TASTE AS ALWAYS... it is so so pretty i am eating it up... i am going to miss Kuni with the otter but this is just *chef's kiss* (i also hope you are doing well, your reblog made me 🥹❤️❤️❤️)

AND YESSS THE KUNI BDAY ART ARGHHH,, i can just imagine reader being a few possibilities with him... 😭 either you're the one who tagged along with him to the House of Daena just to see what he's up to all the time but then your brain just dying (like Paimon 😭) from all the long texts overload (me tbh). And Kuni would be rolling his eyes at your dramatic self and be all like i told you so... 🙄 Or you're just peacefully reading those long books and your lover is just like... huh. I know he'd scoff and mumble under his breath but he'd drape some of his clothes over you if you fell asleep... ❤️ (ignoring the presence of his sort-of admirers on the other side of the room)

(this was all over the place and probably very messy but it just came to me ❤️ luv you!!)

AAA SUZU !! 🩷🩷

thank you thank you thank you!!! omg i am figuratively kicking my feet and literally smiling so big rn okay — first and foremost, YES (⁠つ⁠≧⁠▽⁠≦⁠)⁠つ i am a 'bina fan since the day she showed up in the winter night's lazzo trailer~ as for kuni and his little otter buddy, don't you worry my dear mutual; here's the screenshot for your perusal alongside another one <3 ( as for me doing well, i am indeed doing well! i hope you are too dear 🩷 )

now that you presented me with his second mini illustration.......... i have brainrot to share in correspondence to yours ( LISTEN my brain is always cooking i'm not sorry )

when i was just inspecting every little thing about his second mini illustration and literally giggling at how cute it was and all — it kinda threw me back to the time i first thought about my academic rivals + roommates concept with kuni .. but now that you presented me with your side of the brainrot which thank you btw it's so *chefs kiss and totes adorbs*

so here's to another episode of 'yame and suzu cooking kuni brainrot ~

“what even...?”

you uttered under your breath, a book in hand as your eyes continued to skim through a lengthy page after another. honestly, you're skipping through almost everything you read through — some part of you admiring the amurata darshan for being able to understand all of this. maybe you should have listened to your lover's recommendation and read something else.

curious, you eye him from the side to see how he's faring. of course, you were aware that this wasn't as much of an issue to him as it was to you, and you envy the ease he found in being able to read through his share of research without complaints.

the wanderer's eyes were quick to meet yours, and he was just as quick in raising a brow at you in what you presumed to be curiosity on his end as well. but that wasn't the case...

“having difficulty?” he murmured with a subtle smirk of amusement. he was aware, not when the confusion practically clouded the light of curiosity in your eyes. yet you affirmed anyways. “i won't shy away from admitting that i am ‘having difficulty.’” you parroted his words with a little smile, deciding it's best for you to just put the book down. you could hear him chuckle a bit dryly at your affirmation, uttering a barely audible ‘i told you so’ only for you to hear. the amusement that adorned his face softened a bit as he heard you hum in response.

“actually — love, can you pass me the book you recommend at first?” the moment he heard that endearment, a rush of warmth rose up to his porcelain cheeks as he hung his head slightly lower to allow his hair do the covering for him. “mhm.” the wanderer hummed in response whilst reaching over to said book next to the small box you brought with you for him. his pinky finger coming into contact with the ocean blue colored gift box for a moment before he took the book and passed to you all the while avoiding your gaze.

with a simple thank you on your end, the area fell silent once more. just the distant sound of students coming and going, chatting about their deadlines or some who were studying in solitude. it's a kind of quiet that allowed you to focus in a way, especially while the wanderer remained by your side; it felt ideal. staying alone together in his favorite corner in the house of daena.

surprise surprise, what he ended up recommending you wasn't a book. but a collection of research papers from the vahumana darshan — researches trying to pinpoint the mystery behind tatarasuna's sabotagement, researches investigating the ancient civilization of the sumeru desert... it felt like skimming through a collection of reports. you gave him a threat-less glare upon seeing that accomplished smirk on his face. but you digress.

you spotted a familiar handwriting shortly after however, his handwriting, and you were quick to begin reading the first research paper simply and straightforwardly titled ‘societal issues in inazuma.’ it was the commentary he mentioned he wrote out of boredom while he was occupied with cooking lunch for you. a smile crept up to your lips at the resurgence of the memory.

that style... how much of a reliable yet unreliable narrator could he be? certainly the former when it came to discussing anything regarding what was once his homeland. and you adored every word spoken in this research paper. sure, it was harsh at some points, but that was just how your wanderer was; straightforward and to the point. hence the reason you felt such immense joy reading the commentary he wrote.

this time around, it was his turn to eye you from the side. indifference fading into a very slight surprise as he saw you smiling whilst reading his research paper, but he paid it no mind. at least you were having some form of fun like you usually tend to.

a while would pass, the once distant sounds of the students became more and more prominent as at long last, he finished the forsaken paper he was writing. and from the corners of his eyes; the wanderer spotted your left forearm on the table. naturally, he was quick to turn to face you and be greeted with your arms on the table and resting your head on your arms, the research papers you read neatly yet messily set aside... sleeping here of all places?

“idiot,” he mumbled whilst getting up from his seat, carefully not making a sound as to not disturb your peace. “this is exactly why i told you to stay home.”

but even then, as he complained to your sleeping self with his ‘i told you so’s, he didn't hesitate in slowly taking his white haori and gently draping it over your sleeping figure, watching you as you breathed in and out softly. and for a moment, he stood there; simply watching you. his anemo vision that now hung over your shoulder began to shine and dim at a familiar rhythm that resembled the same sweet melody he'd sleep to in your shared home, the sight allowed for a subtle smile to adorn his face that if one were to look closely, would be greeted with a softness that'd seem uncharacteristic.

whispers could be heard from behind him, the contentment and softness dissipated in an instant as he shot a glare to those students whispering behind his back, and that was enough to have them scurry away to someplace else.

a sigh escaped the wanderer's lips afterwards as he turned to look at you again. perhaps he'll let you have your little nap whilst finishing up the second thesis he had.

yes, that's a decent enough excuse to have you stay by his side for a little longer.

OMG please don't worry about the ask being messy or all over the place, seeing you here genuinely brought a smile to my face! ( what a delight to wake up to too 🤭 ) and of course, love you too friend! 🩷🩷 remember to take care, stay safe and i wish you a wonderful and kind day ~

#( ❀ ) ── passerby. #( ❀ ) ── over tea with; smooches. #shit ayame when you said you were gonna cook .. #seriously though — THIS !! SUZU YOUR BRAIN IS SUCH A GENIUS I'LL KISS BOTH OF YOU ( platonically ) #scenarios like this have my whole heart :(( combine such scenarios with we all know who and you /know/ i've melted into a puddle #minimal tags because i poured my heart out this time 🤭

[ghosthan]

hello!! i saw that you made a lot of stuff for 1872 and i was wondering if 1872 tony is similar to regular comics tony?? i know mcu and comics tony are different and i want to get into 616, but if 1872 comics are more easy to read i might try those first! 😅

Hello, hello! 

Thank you for asking, and sorry it took me so long to get back to you! I wanted to think about it and put together a thoughtful response because I am desperately trying to convert MCU fans to 1872. Or comics fans who just haven’t gotten into 1872.

This post will contain some 1872 spoilers, but not the Big Spoiler that you probably already know about anyways. 

Anyways, let’s get into it. Yeehaw.

What is 1872? It’s Steve/Tony in the wild west.

1872 comics are very easy to read, very short, and you need absolutely no prior knowledge to get into them; I highly recommend these as a start point for MCU fans who are curious about dipping their toes into some of the other Steve/Tony universes. And 1872 is, indeed, a Steve/Tony universe. It’s really gay, (and dramatic.) Uh. So gay, in fact, that one of the comic artists who drew pages even occasionally shares Steve/Tony shipping memes. So.

Marvel 1872 is a four issue series released as a part of the Secret Wars event; you really do not need to know anything about this to enjoy 1872, because it is a self-contained alternate universe in a “pocket dimension”, meaning it’s totally separate from the 616 cannon but technically exists in the expanse of the multiverse!

Here’s the summary:

In the Battleworld zone of 1872, Sheriff Steve Rogers faces corruption and fear in the boom town of Timely. Can Anthony Stark pull Rogers' fat from the fire? Probably not, since the only thing he seems capable of pulling is a cork from a bottle. Things in Timely are bad, and getting worse — and when a stranger arrives in town, Timely will be changed forever.

Now, to compare “regular comics Tony”, or 616 Tony, with 1872 Tony.

The main difference? 616 Tony wears this sexy little under suit (or nothing) under his armor, like this:

And 1872 Tony wears dirty, stinky one-piece pajamas under his armor (not sexy):

He’s so gross, he’s a mess. I love him. You’ll love him, too. 

No, okay. Being serious.

 616!Tony’s backstory is a lot more complicated just due to how long the character has existed, and the decades of cannon (much of it self-contradictory at points.) Like MCU Tony, 616 Tony used to manufacture weapons, experiences something life-changing, and becomes who he is as a result of this as a catalyst. 616 Tony’s backstory has been rebooted a few times, and I’m definitely not the definitive source on Iron Man lore compared to people who have read all of his comics, but I’ll try to touch on the basics.

Originally, 616 Tony Stark is shaped by his experience in the Vietnam War. This is later rebooted and changed to war in the middle East (we see this in the MCU when Tony is held captive in Afghanistan.) In both circumstances, he is taken captive after being in the air for war technology, and then he creates the suit to save his own life (losing a beloved mentor in the process, the guilt of which stays with him after.)

Tales of Suspense #39

In 1872, Tony’s formative event is the Civil War in some ways, but in other ways, this is only half of it, because this is not the event which causes him to build armor or set him onto his “become a better person” trajectory, like in the other comics. Mainly, the Civil War functions to cause Tony to stop weapons manufacturing and throw his life away down a bottle.

We get a flashback of Tony in the year 1862 with his female companion, picnicking and about to watch a battle, (rich people from the North did this in real life. If you’re interested, read more here!) We don’t get much of his past, but we discover that he is a rifle manufacturer and that he has created something called the ‘Stark Repeating Rifle’, and it seems that he has done so with the hope of encouraging a cease-fire, more than a slaughter.

Well. We don’t always get what we ask for.

Tony vows to actually never touch a weapon ever again, and this personal oath means so much to him that he gets creative at times during 1872 when he’s being chased by baddies:

Witnessing the extreme bloodshed of the Civil War, and feeling responsible for a huge amount of deaths, Tony turns to drinking, (and presumably moves to the west to escape the Pain of his Past, but this is not shown explicitly on panel; I have assumed, though, that Tony’s weapons manufacturing company was in the East, probably Boston or New York, since he comes from family money and because the American West was still “young” at this point in time so it would be unlikely that an established business would be supplying a war from lawless territory with little infrastructure.)

In 616, it’s worth noting that Tony builds the armor to save himself from danger in a war scenario; this is not the case in 1872, things unfold a bit differently. The Civil War certainly sets in motion the chain of events that eventually lead to the creation of Tony’s armor, but he’s not in physical danger or physically traumatized by the war in this verse as he is in other verses, and 616 Tony seems to have a stronger sense of duty than 1872 Tony, but this might be a complication of the depression/apathy related to the alcoholism.

What I mean by this is that both iterations of Tony struggle with alcoholism, but differently. Mainly, while 616 Tony has several alcohol themed arcs, and hits rock bottom with his alcoholism to cope with his trauma, he is sober more than he is drunk in the comics. His drinking almost kills him, and he almost loses everything because of the drink. It’s a source of enormous shame for him.

In fact, during this time in 616, I think Tony at his lowest reminds me a lot of 1872 Tony; 616 Tony is not an apathetic person and he holds himself accountable for an obscene amount of responsibility, but during what is referred to in fandom as The Second Drinking Arc, Tony basically gives up. This is the most “like” 1872 Tony, at least at the start of his arc. Rhodey takes over the mantle of Iron Man, and 616 Tony spirals, not caring whether he lives or dies, not hero-ing certainly.

We see both versions of Tony express similar sentiments, a certain cavalier attitude about their lives (and outright suicidality at other points) with nothing left but the drink.

Iron Man Vol. 1 #182

Compare with:

And you can certainly see a resemblance between this set of panels from IM v.1 #176 and in 1872:

Iron Man Vol. 1 #176 and Marvel 1872 #1

It’s a little different in 1872, where his drinking really is purely a result of his existing despair, and it doesn’t cause enormous problems for him, (minor problems, sure. He spends a lot of time drunkenly singing to Sheriff Rogers, or bothering him from the inside of a jail cell.) But this Tony lives at rock bottom, whereas 616 Tony only stays at rock bottom long enough to get his life back together (as many times as it takes.)

This Tony really doesn’t show any outward shame about his drinking; presumably, the people he knows in Timely have only ever known Tony as a drunk, and none of the people from his old life are here to see him like this. 

This is a Tony who has essentially given up on himself and has moved out West to hide from his shame and his past; this is not a Tony who is scared of letting down his friends by drinking, or scared of shirking his “duty”, because this Tony has moved away from all of his friends and has given himself no duties. He’s a bit more apathetic, but I would argue that this is not because he inherently is a less moral version of Tony, but because in this verse, he was drinking for a very long time and circumstances unfolded differently so it took him a longer time to find that sense of purpose and responsibility (beyond just shutting down manufacturing guns,) which is awakened in him by Steve Rogers. 

616 Tony’s sobriety is a major part of his character, and a conscious choice that he makes, even during some lowest points:

Civil War: The Confession

He takes some amount of pride in his sobriety, and when he does fall off the wagon at times (or magic makes everyone think he did,) it absolutely tears him up because 616 Tony cares very, very much about his sobriety and does not like who he is when he’s drinking. We do not know if 1872 Tony’s father had been a drunk or not, but we know 616 Tony’s father was, and that the drink lead to him treating Tony abusively.

Iron Man Vol. 1 #285 

Avengers Disassembled #1 (This was when ~magic~ made Tony drunk and it wrecked him breaking sobriety without ever having actually drank. Oof.)

616 Tony’s long struggle with alcoholism is a major part of his character and he has had relapses over the years and throughout the reboots, but in general, he does not drink.

1872 Tony starts drinking in 1862 and doesn’t stop until the last pages of the story, so in terms of the cannon we have for him, he is a current drunk, rather than a former drunk. This isn’t to say he doesn’t stop; but since it’s in the last page or so, it sets the reader up to imagine his sober future, rather than exploring his sobriety as 616 does. (Calling all fanfic writers!)

Anyways, both Tony’s are excellent. Both are damaged and traumatized, both are Iron Man in their own ways, both (eventually) find sobriety, both have some cute, quippy dialogue (though 616 Tony tends to be more reserved/polite for sure, in general). 

The last thing I’ll point out, is that both Tonys’ narratives are intertwined with and influenced by their respective Steve Rogers. I’m not saying soulmates but I’m saying soulmates.

Anyways. Sorry this post got super long, and I apologize if any of it is confusing or redundant, I am not functioning at my highest capacity currently. Please read 1872. Let it rock your world. Create & consume the fanworks, I would love to see a boom of 1872 content (more than the fics and art I keep making!) And my ask-box is always open!

#Anonymous #anon #ask #1872 #1872 stony #stevetony #stony #616 stony #616 #han reads comics #my post #idk how to tag this my brain is fried sorry if this post is all over the place #tw suicide mention #suicide mention #tw alcohol #alcohol #tw abuse #abuse #long post #comic panels #han speaks

[cottoncandyjester]

Now Im curious what happened with Carlos??

I see y’all are curious as hell

Warning this contains: death

Joining Ernesto’s group was like having a little family, fritz and Luis made Antonio feel like he was going to be okay. He found himself slowly growing comfortable with those two and it wasn’t long til he found his own skill to help the gang.

Carlos and Ernesto were married, the thought of marrying a man made Antonio feel strange. When they were together it was truly like a family but when Carlos was alone with them he was worst than a military sergeant.

Carlos was Antonio’s personal trainer, teaching him mixed martial arts and forcing him on a high protein diet to bulk him up. Carlos wasn’t like Ernesto, he wasn’t nurturing or kind or even loving, he was hard and cold. “Crying again Toni?” Carlos sneers out as he knelled down grabbing the boy by his hair looking at his bleeding face.

“It hurts..” Antonio hissed out in pain as he held his bleeding nose with tears rolling down his face. “If I catch you crying again I’ll punch you harder. We don’t cry here. Turn your emotions off when you fight it’s a weakness. ” Carlos hissed out lowly. “Now get up you still can’t fully dodge my punches so we are gonna keep going til you do”

Antonio worked harder than the others, he was supposed to be their tank..whatever that meant. As he grew older, he got stronger and stronger.

They all remembered when Ernesto became boss, the old boss died but before he did he deemed Ernesto the new boss, the celebration party was huge. Countless men congratulating him and offering him a drink, Ernesto was grinning and laughing so much Antonio thought he would pass out.

“You should lighten up, you are staring hard” luis told Antonio as he handed him a cup of horchata. “I don’t feel good about everyone being so close around Ernesto” Antonio mumbled out as he took a sip of the drink, spitting it out when fritz came and slapped his back harshly.

“You jealous of people around papa Ernesto? Papa’s boy Eh?” Fritz chimed out with a grin swiping the drink from Antonio and chugging it down, nearly throwing up when Antonio elbowed his stomach hard. The two started to rough house just a bit, stopping when Ernesto called them.

“Boys! Play nice” Ernesto chimed out as he watched Antonio put fritz in a headlock. “He hit me!” Fritz huffed out “snitch.” Antonio sneers out glancing away at Ernesto’s stern stare “tonio..” he said in a scolding tone making toni let go.

Throughout the celebration fritz and Luis would drink, Antonio was still on high alert. He had a horrible feeling that wouldn’t leave. He watched Carlos and Ernesto slip Away presumably to get intimate. Antonio glanced over at the table where luis and fritz were passed out from drinking to much.

“You idiots” Antonio mumbled out before he reached out taking luis’ glasses off and ruffling Fritz’s hair softly before moving to where Ernesto and Carlos vanished to.

He expected to hear certain sounds but the sound of Carlos talking made him stay outside the door.

“Will killing me make you feel better? Stabbing me and leaving me to die..” Ernesto’s voice had defeat in it, the utter sorrow made Antonio’s chest hurt.

“It isn’t fair. I’m better than you, I should be boss. So yeah killing you will make me feel better, after all you’re cursed if I stay with you long enough I’ll die.” Carlos sneers out, Antonio peeked into the room seeing Carlos pressing the blade against Ernesto’s throat with his back turned to the door.

Antonio didn’t want to lose Ernesto, he didn’t want to lose another father figure. The thought of losing someone important made Antonio move without thinking, he grabbed Carlos the two of them scuffling.

“W-when did you, get so strong?” Carlos wheezed out as Antonio put him in a chokehold. “Probably the day you beat me to a pulp for having feelings” Antonio said calmly, hissing in pain when Carlos stabbed him but Antonio’s grip tightened until he heard a loud crack feeling Carlos limp in his arms.

Antonio let him go, panting softly before feeling Ernesto rush to his side. Antonio had a massive feeling of guilt, he killed Ernesto’s husband..he was going to be thrown out now wasn’t he?

“Ernesto, I’m sorry I know you loved him but he was going to kill you and I just-”

“Toni..”

“ you probably hate me but o couldn’t lose you. Are you hurt? Did he stab you?” Antonio ranted out flinching when Ernesto yelled his name.

“Your eye Toni! How are you still standing without being in pain?” Ernesto snapped as he cupped Antonio’s face. Antonio reached up, feeling the blade handle sticking out from his eye…oh.

In that very moment all the pain came rushing at him, causing him to lean forward resting his body against Ernesto’s as he hugged him close. “I’m sorry, about Carlos” he whispers out making Ernesto simply hug him tighter as he gazed at the body on the floor. “It’s okay, let’s get you medical aid,okay?” Ernesto said softly making Antonio tense up

“But are you okay?”

“Toni…you have a knife sticking out of your face, let me help you.”

A huge silence fell over the two as Antonio got his eye bandaged, his eyesight in that eye was faint but thankfully there was no damage to his brain. “You’ll have a scar..” Ernesto cooed out softly making Antonio smile “I’ll grow my hair out..” he said softly as he reached up and touched the bandages.

“Do you hate me for killing Carlos?” Antonio asked softly with a worried gaze. Ernesto gave a long sigh moving to sit at his side “I have a curse on me Toni, any love I get is destined to die..you didn’t do anything wrong. You saved me, my boy” Ernesto said softly before leaning against Antonio. “So I’m your favorite?” Antonio asked making Ernesto laugh as he stood up

“I love all my sons equally, but..you’re up there. Now come on, we have a party to get to” he cheered out watching Antonio lead the way. Ernesto made sure to have grunts dealing with the body claiming that he killed him himself. He didn’t want Antonio to worry about anything else that night

#yandere imagines #yandere ocs #yandere #mafia ocs

[hiraemy]

Lumine and The Goblet of Fire

Word count: roughly 2.7k for this part

disclaimer: first of all, this au was heavily inspired by @majunju 's incredible art! she made chilumi as beauxbatons and durmstrang students and my brain went brrr so i had to write something for them??

both Genshin Impact and Harry Potter are not created by me. However, i took the liberty to mix a lot of concepts in this AU, so have that in mind when reading. 

for sake of plot, lets pretend that Durmstrang is located in Russia. Lumine, Paimon and Aether are the only ones from Beauxbatons, while the rest are from Hogwarts unless mentioned otherwise. All the characters that have adult models, like Jean, Lisa, Kaeya and Diluc are presumed to be adults, with Childe being the only exception. Also, all the characters that use children or teens’ models are students, with a few exceptions like Venti and Scaramouche [mihoyo pls stop giving us confusing ages and body models i never asked you anything]

(please, have in mind that english is like, my third language, if you notice a spelling or grammar error, feel free to message me!)

Act One: Lumine and her stupid impulse control

“I’m going to put my name on it.” Aether broke the silence suddenly

“What...? No! Oh god, I expected that from Paimon, but you’re just as bad as her!”

There were a lot of things that Lumine hated. 

Open shoes. A very specific type of silk-flower based perfume(Aether once tried it because he wanted to impress a girl, but it ended stinking for two weeks straight). History of Magic. Condensed slime— those that Paimon loved, but she couldn’t even see it without being sick—, potions that took more than one single day to brew. But the worst, certainly was—

“C’mon, Lumine! You’re just afraid that you’re going to get your ass kicked in the tournament!”

...when Aether was being dumb. 

“No, I’m not!” She countered quickly, ignoring the way Aether smirked like he knew exactly what buttons to push. Actually, it wasn't that far from reality, if she was being honest. She eyed the paper carelessly torn from his notebook that had his name as if she could burn it only with the power her heavy gaze. “You’re being dumb! Are you deaf or something? DIdn’t you hear them saying that the Triwizard Tournament has a high death count?”

“Paimon is sure it isn’t that bad!” The half-fairy smiled at her, eyes twinkling in greed and mischief. Lumine narrowed her eyes at the way she happily jumped in her steps, staying afloat in air for more time than it was normal to common humans “After all, they're opening it again, right? I’m certain that the ministry has done something to make it safer!”

“You’re the one to talk! You don’t care about anything other than the mora!” Lumine was quick to shut her down, sending a glare that didn’t affect any of the two. In that moment, the three of them entered the hall which had the Goblet of Fire in its full glory, a bunch of Hogwarts students surrounding it like curious birds, eager to know which students were applying for the tournament. 

“Have a bit of faith, wont’ya?” Aether smiled boyishly, flicking his wand from his sleeve and hitting it slightly at the top of his head, also giving a wave to a bunch of ravenclaw girls that awed at his presence. He continued in his confident stride, each step leaving him closer to the Goblet “Arent I the best of our school when it comes to Charms? Besides, I have my beautiful, great and awesome sister which of course, will give her full support and use her full knowledge to—”

“Shut up, you know it's not that what I’m concerned with!” Lumine hissed, grabbing her brother’s wrist and tugging, lowering her voice. In the corner of her eye, she saw the Dumstrang guys eyeing her, Aether and Paimon like wolves, ready to pounce on them. “You heard the rumors, right? Please, don’t tell my you’re that reckless-”

“What rumors?” Paimon squeaked, her eyes going wide for a fraction.

“The Fatui. You know them, right? The Tsaritsa’s pawns.” She whispered, narrowing her golden eyes and not daring to let her guard down when she was in the same room as the Durmstrang and Hogwarts students. “There are rumours that they are at the move. Some say that her personal minions, The Harbingers, are also involved in some dark scheme around Hogwarts.”

“Nah. You’re just being paranoid, there’s no way someone of that caliber would be here" Aether raised his eyebrow and Lumine wanted to tug her hair out in pure frustration. “Besides, it’s not like I'm some helpless dead weight. I know I already said it before, but I’m really confident it’s going to be fine.”

“Aether is right, Paimon thinks you should relax!” The white-haired girl smiled brightly, nodding her head to herself. “Or even better, you could enter the tournament too! It would make our chances of representing Beauxbatons even higher!”

“Don’t you ever listen to me? Why would I—” Before she could complete her nagging, Aether quickly threw his paper into the Goblet, the flames flickering aggressively before consuming his entry. Her mouth fell open in disbelief, but the crowd around them didn’t seem to notice her reaction as they gave a round of applause for her twin.

“What, Lumi? Are you afraid of losing?” He made a point of taunting her with the most infuriating shit-eating grin he had “Or… Maybe you’re not up to the challenge…? Y’know, it’s really okay if you feel too scared to face some bad guys—”

Ah. Right.

Aether knew how much she loathed being underestimated.

“Shut up!”

"Aww, there is no need to be this angry! I'm your big brother, of course I'll know when you feel too scared to put your name on the Goblet! It's okay to feel insecure, and I think it is better for you to not enter as you might not be able to—"

The crowd cheered again as the Goblet of Fire consumed another entry from Beauxbatons Academy.

“Lumi—”

“Shut up, im still mad at you.” 

Aether smiled sheepishly under his sister’s heavy glare and Paimon giggled. Lumine also sent her a heated look, making the half-fairy squeal childishly. 

“Luuuuumi!” Aether whined, making her sigh. “Don’t be mad at me! You were the one who put your name on the Goblet, right?”

“Don’t act like you’re innocent! You know damn well what you did—” She hissed like a annoyed cat. Aether pouted and tried to trap his sister into a hug, but she slapped him away on pure instinct. 

“Chill, chill! At least we’re getting a feast tonight, right? Not like we don’t eat well in any of the other nights, but a guy told me that Hogwarts’s food is really amazing on these special days!” Aether pleaded, the bright grin revealing how amused he was with his sister’s grumpiness. 

“Free food is great, but free great food is even better! There is absolutely no way you can be mad after you eat, right?” Paimon tried, and Lumine let out an even more tired sigh. “Besides, a lot of students applied for Beauxbatons! What are the chances of you being chosen, especially since you don’t actually want to do it?”

“Shut up Paimon, you just jinxed it,” Lumine scolded half heartedly, tucking her notebook under her arm. 

The bunch of Hogwarts students were a handful. Even with the merged classes to accomodate the Beauxbatons and Durmstrand delegations, it seemed like the hosting school’s own students were never going to be used to see them in the classrooms and corridors of the castle. Everywhere they went, their blue uniforms made the crowds stare them down with admiration, suspicion, curiosity or even anger in some cases. 

Aether and her were somehow getting even more stares than the other Beauxbatons students. Her twin shined under the spotlight, offering a gentle smile to the brave girls who tried to talk to him sometimes —how strange it was to see her brother gathering a bunch of fangirls—, but she felt uncomfortable under the attention.

“You’re too tense, Lumi” Her brother chimed, as if he could read her thoughts. His arms were carelessly fold behind his head and he shot her a gentle smile. “No one is going to bite your head off if you smile a bit, right? Just relax!”

“Now, the moment you all have been waiting for...! The Champion Selection!” The Headmaster, Barbatos announced, his voice carrying in the big hall and being able to shush all chatter. With a swoosh of his hands, the lights on the walls dimmed down, leaving the Goblet of Fire as the main attraction.

Lumine felt a shudder in her spine, knowing that despite seeming like a simple gesture, the skill level required to perform a wandless and also wordless spell was higher than everything could even imagine herself doing. Deep inside her gut, the respect she had for the Hogwarts Headmaster was raised to the roof, especially since his appearance was nothing but of a kind and carefree young boy. 

Below the table, her hands were connected in a silent prayer. Her luck couldn’t be that bad, could it?

If everything went well, neither her or Aether would be chosen.

“Mr. Alberich, would you like to do the honors?” Barbatos asked a blue-haired man, who Lumine vaguely recalled being a member of the Ministry of Magic named Kaeya. As he nodded and approached the Goblet, she felt her shoulders getting even more tenser.

The flames flickered aggressively, but Kaeya didn’t seem to be intimidated by it. He slowly extended his hand, the fire spiking suddenly and changeling from blue to a menacing pink as it spat a piece of paper.

“From Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Albedo!”

The crowd— majority being from Hogwarts itself, the hosting school— cheered loudly, the most excited ones being from Ravenclaw. A boy dressed in blue rose from his seat, his ash-blonde hair styled in a braid at the back of his head and teal eyes immediately catching Lumine’s attention. He quickly went to the front and was guided by one of the teachers to a backroom, disappearing from everyone’s view. Mr. Alberich waited until the cheers died down to announce the next Champion, the flames shaking as if the own Goblet was impatient. Finally, with a burst of green, another paper flew into his hands

“From Durmstrang Institute, Childe!”

This time was the turn of the students seated at the end of Slytherin’s table to scream, a lot of figures rising at once and making it almost impossible to pinpoint who exactly was Childe. However, Lumine could see how a tall guy with a slim build was receiving some strong pats on his back, his messy ginger hair being attacked by another short guy who was too enthusiastic. His eyes still glinted with pride and excitement, even if the neatness of his red uniform was entirely ruined by his peers.

She clapped politely, lowkey still distressed about the next Champion. She was suddenly startled when the guy, who was definitely Childe as he finally went to the front, made unexpected eye contact with her. His eyes lingered a few seconds more than she would be comfortable to admit, making her even more anxious.

Mr. Alberich approached the Goblet again for the third name. For some reason, Lumine thought that the man was being slow on purpose, or that the Goblet was being too indecisive, as the flames flickered between blue, yellow and orange aggressively for a few seconds. Everyone else seemed to notice this too, a few curious whispers breaking out between the students. Kaeya narrowed his eyes and then, not a second too late, the Goblet spat the last entry.

“From Beauxbatons Academy…”

Her stomach dropped and she thought she would throw up on the spot.

 “...Lumine!”

Aether screamed the loudest, right beside her ears. Paimon came to a close second though, shaking her by her shoulders like a ragdoll as if there wasn't a tomorrow. 

"Lumi! Lumi! What are you waitin' for? Go to the front!" She got up, feeling her stomach do all the kinds of flips and lowkey dizzy. Her head couldn't even register properly the cheers, her mind too busy shouting all the bad words she knew at her mental images of Paimon and her brother. 

She took in a deep inhale, keeping her breath until she was in the front of the whole hall, right in front of the teachers. Lumine saw the Beauxbatons Headmaster’s eyes take her in with slight tension in his slender fingers and she couldn’t help but to feel out of place.

"Mr. Zhongli…" She greeted quietly at the man, his tiny nod being the only thing to indicate his acknowledgment. He quickly led her into the backroom she saw both Champions go before, his brown cape flying elegantly behind him with every step.

"Miss Lumine, what a pleasant surprise… I must admit I didn't expect you to put your name in the Goblet." Zhongli started as a matter of fact, even if his eyebrow had a curious arch, as if expecting her to explain this turn of events.

“Yeah, neither did I, if I’m being honest.” She sighed, her hand wrapping around her stomach to hopefully help with the nausea and anxiousness

“Be assured, I’m sure the Goblet of Fire made an excellent choice for our school.” Zhongli said, his voice acquiring a softer tone, probably noticing how the blonde fidgeted a lot. Lumine clenched her fists, taking a deep breath. The man didn’t say anything else, and both of them reached a room decorated with Hogwarts’ trophies from the many tournaments held before.

She immediately saw Childe in a corner, poking a shiny statue that seemed to react at his mean touches, his eyes shining with some kind of rush and impatience she really didn’t want to explore any further. A tall woman, with elegant white hair that reached at her waist and ice blue eyes, slapped his hand harshly, freeing the poor statue from the Dumstrang’s clutches. Lumine didn’t know who exactly this woman was— It was common knowledge that Durmstrang Institute’s headmaster couldn’t be bored to attend the tournament personally—, but she could assume safely that she was at least a teacher.

With his distraction taken forcefully from him, Childe finally seemed to notice Lumine, turning on his heels with hands on his pockets. The witch felt another chill, incredibly uncomfortable with his heavy gaze analysing every feature, but she prayed to every god that she could at least maintain the stoic features she was quite infamous for. His blue eyes stopped carefully to analyze her face— a fact that she pretended to not notice by looking away—, with a satisfied(?) smirk appearing on his face that screamed bad intentions.

It took more than she would like to admit to pretend she wasn't the least affected by his heavy gaze on the side of her face. Her arms crossed around her face, her hand resting discreetly above the hidden pocket in her blazer that had her wand. Golden eyes searched the room again for another distraction, until they landed on the figure of the ash blonde boy chosen for Hogwarts.

He was pretty, no one could deny that, but even if he had those stupid charming eyes of his, there still was something about him that really threw her off. She couldn't exactly pinpoint it, but Lumine was sure that Albedo had some kind of deep dark secret kept hidden in himself. Was the whole Harbinger thing making her paranoid? 

Before she could answer her own question, Barbatos entered the room with other Hogwarts teached in tow. The three of them— her, Childe and Albedo— came closer to the fireplace where everyone gathered, eyeing the teachers and the Headmaster who stood in front of them in a neutral position, except for mr. Zhongli, who was behind her, and the mysterious woman she supposed was Childe's teacher behind him. Occupying the vacant space, a pretty woman immediately went to stand at Albedo's back. She had light-brown hair and alluring green eyes, but the most iconic feature was her curvy body accentuated by her purple dress.

If she had to guess, she would assume that she was Ravenclaw's house head. Technically, Barbatos had to be a neutral party, as the hosting Headmaster, even if everyone knew his favouritism towards his own school.

"Well, now that we're back here, far from prying eyes, guess I can finally drop the formalities!" The small man suddenly said with a big smile, catching her off guard. In the corner of eye, she saw that Childe had a similar reaction, but Albedo seemed exasperated. "I must say, this year's competition is going to be tough. But I'm sure you three will be able to handle it just fine, hehe!"

Oh god. Was Barbatos like this in real life…? Suddenly, the previous mighty and ruthless image she had of the Headmaster was shattered. All the books talked about him as one of the seven great wizards of the last war, so she expected something more… Aggressive?

"Venti, please." For a greater surprise, Mr. Zhongli seemed used to his attitude, poorly hiding his smile behind a fist.

"Yeah, right. The Triwizard Tournament" He forced a cough, hardening his expression and straightening his posture. "From now on, Mister Childe, Mister Albedo and Miss Lumine will face difficult trials to determine which one of you is the greater wizard. I should also mention that the prize will be eternal glory and ten million mora, of course." 

"We already warned you before, but let me repeat it. If you don't take these challenges seriously, you'll probably be squashed to the ground." Mr. Alberich stated bluntly. 

"Is there a chance of dying?" Childe asked, the way his head tilted indicating that he wasn't asking just because he was scared. 

"There were a few casualties some years before, but this time, the Ministry is making sure to bring some precautionary methods." He answered cooly, his expression not changing the slightest. "That being said, we still stand on the recommendation that you take extreme caution."

He didn't deny it. The fact didn't pass above any of the students' minds, Lumine tensing her shoulders, Childe grinning madly and Albedo pressing his lips.

"Anyway, about the first task," Barbatos took the lead again, a satisfied smirk on his lips. "The three of you will face an ability challenge. In other words, you'll be facing magic combat right from the start."

"Against each other?" Lumine asked, not wanting to fight Childe even in her dreams. He exhaled some mad, maybe sociopath vibes if she looked at it from a certain angle, and she certainly didn't want to test her theory. 

"Nope," Barbatos said easily, tilting his head in fake innocence "Where's the fun in that? I can't say anything else, since it's supposed to be a secret until the trial— Ah, by the way, about the test, it will be on November 24th. You have two weeks to prepare, so have fun!"

Forget every good thing she had thought of him before. He was a Madman. She was surrounded by a bunch of madmans.

Oh dear lord.

#genshin impact #genshin #genshin lumine #paimon #aether #genshin childe #Chilumi #fiction #wow look at me again #brain go brrrr #getting into another fandom be like #brainstorming for 30 hours #and then regretting all life choices #aether is dumb but we love him anyway #paimon is a half fairy sorry i dont make the rules

[castiels-majestic-wings]

HISTORY - PART 2

Paring - Loki x Reader

Word Count - 2,262

Warnings - None

Ever since you returned from Asgard, Tony has been less than happy with your decisions. He refused to let you be alone with Loki, he didn't trust him. Whenever you would go to the Library to show Loki your favourite books, Tony sent someone in with you. Everyone agreed except for Thor, he had seen you get along before. He knew Loki meant no harm to you. Tony on the other hand, was getting under his skin, and the only reason he hasn't been harmed is because you had asked him not to.

Loki showed great interest in the midgardian ways of living. He asked many questions while reading your books but not as many as he was asking now. You were showing him the museum that wasn't that far from the Tower. You had left without informing Tony so you could finally be at peace without being watched like a hawk.

It was peaceful looking at the exhibits. You had attempted to answer all of Loki's questions to the best of your ability. He was such a curious soul. So full of knowledge and craving for more. He seemed to enjoy himself, his eyes were sparkling with curiosity and infatuation. You had gone through half of the museum before you heard the black sabbath ringtone Tony had set for himself. You rolled your eyes as you answered the call placing the phone next to your ear.

"Hey Tony I-"

"Where on earth are you? I can't find you or Loki anywhere? Did he hurt you? Are you okay?"

"We went out as per my request. No he didn't harm me, yes I'm fine. But I'm a little irritated now that you've disturbed my peace." Loki had looked towards you knowing exactly who you were talking to.

"I've told you (Y/N) you can't be alone with him!" You rolled your eyes again. He's so predictable.

"Why?! He's really nice Tony. He's changed, if you just got your head out of your ass you would see that! You need to learn to accept people. Thor has changed a lot since you first met him right? Why is Loki any different?! You would see that he's a great person if you actually gave him a chance! Im hanging up now, and don't you dare look for us" You hung up and placed your phone back in your pocket finally returning Loki's confused gaze.

"Honestly Tony has no idea what he's talking about. I was there in New York too and I've looked passed that I don't see why he can't." You sat down on the bench close by, needing to sit before you get too frustrated.

"I presume the cause of his mistrust is my actions. I did try to kill him, but I never tried to harm you." He spoke matter of factly leaning on the wall next to you.

"Whether you tried to harm me or not, I've was terrified of you until i asked for your help in Asgard"

"Yes I do recall your reaction to seeing me in the Library. I always stay in there but my Brother had told me that you feared me so I left. Started reading in my chambers instead. I can't complain though, it was a nice change." You frowned at the thought. He had known of your fear of him before you saw him in Asgard.

"Is that why you avoided me then? Because you knew I was scared?"

"Well yes. You intrigued me when I first saw you in Midgard. I hadn't expected someone to be at the tower. I could tell you were scared of me. The fear in your eyes. And the shaking in your hands. You never once looked away. I knew you wouldn't be a threat to me. So when Thor had asked me to avoid you I didn't take it lightly."

"Well thank you for- for that. I was scared. I was terrified to ask you for help but I'm glad I did. Otherwise we- we wouldn't be here right now. Not in this situation at least." You smiled towards him standing back up. His eyes were full of hope and admiration. The way he looked down at you was different now. You couldn't quite tell what it was. He was good at concealing his feelings. His eyes lingered on your lips before they flicked back up to your eyes.

"I'm glad also. You're a glorious companion to have, you're such a beauty." You're face flushed at the compliment. Not just because of the compliment, but because it came from a god. A man who had grown up with plenty of beautiful and strong women, you were merely average compared to them. Plus you were just a human -a midgardian- in his eyes at least. He was higher than you, in authority, power. You had never thought he would look at you the way he is now.

"You're flushed my darling. Would you like to get some water?" The smirk on his lips confirmed that he knew what you were thinking. Over the past couple of months you've become closer. And over time you had caught feelings for the god in front of you. And he just found out.

"N-No need. It's fine. Shall we continue the tour? We can look at the artwork next"

"My I would love to but the best piece of art is right here" He became more bold after he confirmed his suspicions. He wanted to make you a blubbering red-faced mess. And he was successful.

"Lets just- Lets just go then. We can go back home and tell Thor all about the new knowledge you received. I doubt he remembers anything I explained to him when we came here together."

"So you brought him here too?"

"Yes he was curious about us midgardians. But he didn't hold on to the information like you have. You enjoy the knowledge you possess but Thor just needs his power to be satisfied." Loki stayed silent. Stuck in a thought he didn't want to share. So you didn't pry.

"Come on let's head home, we can come back here another time." He nodded without saying another word. It wasn't often Loki was silent when he wasn't reading a book. But you let him be. You walked towards the exit Loki not far behind you. You had found a cafe nearby and asked if Loki wanted to join you. He smiled and accepted your invitation.

It was a small place, only 6 tables. Four of them being able to seat four people and the rest could hold two, maybe three if a chair was placed on the outside of the table. The smell of coffee and pastries filled the air, making you inhale deeply to take in the scent.

Loki had noticed how calm you were in this setting, he took note of that for next time you were upset, he could perhaps bring you here himself. You ordered your usual beverage and a muffin while Loki looked at the menu above the baristas.

"Have you tried midgardian beverages Loki?"

"Not really, Thor tried to give me coffee but it wasn't to my taste." His face showed disgust at the memory.

"I'd say to try a cappuccino, Thor takes his coffee black and that's so bitter compared to a cappuccino."

"I'll take what you recommend." He smiled.

"I'll take a cappuccino and a blueberry muffin too please" The barista nodded as she wrote down the rest of your order. You paid before she left to make your drinks. You went to sit at the two-seater by the window. You cupped your chin within your palm leaning on it for support. Looking out to the streets of New York. Loki took notice of the way your hair fell onto your shoulders, small strands parted in front of your eyes.

He didn't know when he started caring for you, but knowing that you liked him made him wonder if he felt the same way. He wasn't exactly sure what it meant to love someone. He had never felt it before, except his love for his mother. He cared deeply for her. But she had told him that loving a parent, and loving a partner are two very different things. Just then your order had arrived. You thanked the barista before giving her a warm smile as she turned to tend to the other customers.

You took a sip of your drink letting out a small moan of delight. It had been a while since you enjoyed drinks at a cafe. Loki hesitated before taking a sip of his coffee. He paused, letting the taste linger before judging it.

"I have to say this is a delightful beverage. You have great taste (Y/N)."

"Well I've always enjoyed Cafe's, I always tried to taste every type of coffee, tea, even the seasonal drinks. I enjoy most of them, but I don't like them if they're too bitter." He hummed taking another sip of his drink.

"I see why you would enjoy it. It's peaceful here"

"I always thought it was the perfect date spot. But I never dated anyone who wanted to come to a place like this."

"Well they must have terrible taste not to enjoy this. I must say though. I would rather enjoy it if you called this a date." There he goes again, being bold. Your cheeks turned red at his comment. You looked down and played with your cup not knowing how to respond before he chuckled making you look up swiftly.

"You don't have to call it that darling. It was just a suggestion."

"No. I- I'd like that." You gave him a smile. You never thought that day you asked for help, would result in you going on a date with a god you feared in the past. But you enjoyed it. You continued talking until the barista came to tell you they were closing. You apologized and collected your things before exiting the premises. It was darker now. The cold air of the night getting to you as you rubbed your hands together.

Loki took your hand in his and began walking to the tower not giving you a chance to respond. He didn't even look towards you. His boldness made it seem like he was experienced in relationships, but the way he avoided your gaze made you think the opposite. Had he not loved before in his long life? God's live for millennia while humans live for 80 years at average. You didn't know what was going to happen next, but you hoped you could start a new chapter in your life. One with Loki by your side, not as a friend. But as a lover.

When you made it to the tower Loki didn't let go of your hand. Tony didn't notice either, he was preoccupied. He started yelling explaining that you can't leave for a whole day with a 'war criminal' because it's unsafe. You let him finish before you picked up your joined hands.

"He is anything but unsafe Tony. Plus he will never harm me. He never even tried to. I trust him so should you." His breathing went heavy in fury.

"Youre dating him? How can you do that after everything he did?" Tony became aggressive. Of course he would, he's very overprotective of you, he's known you for years and saw you as his own daughter. Everyone became aware of the situation and tried to calm him down. Thor was happy knowing his brother found love. But the rest of them weren't so sure about your relationship. They aren't aware that you had your first date today or the fact that it became official just 20 minutes prior.

"Well if you listened to me for once in your life you'd know why! Tony I'm not going to argue with you okay. And I'm not going to break up with him just because you disagree with it okay!" You dragged Loki with you to your room and avoided Tony for a while.

"I wasn't aware you felt so strongly about me." Loki smirked.

"My reactions to you calling that a date was enough of an answer for you. But, what are we now? Are we dating? Or are we just-" At that moment he silenced you. With his lips pressing against your own, his hand rested on your cheek while the other was on your waist. You froze but soon melted into the kiss. Placing your hands around his neck pulling him closer than you already were. It felt like hours before you finally pulled away gasping for breath. You rested your forehead against his own giggling at his previous action.

"You are so bold my king." Knowing how much he wanted to rule a kingdom, you thought that would be a fitting name to give him. He pulled away to look you in the eyes, shock washing over his face. He didn't know how to react to you calling him that, but he liked it. He smiled at you, glancing down at your form.

"Of course, I cannot hold my tongue in most situations darling" You smiled happy at where you were. It took Tony a while to accept the fact that you were indeed dating, and you were so glad you found the courage to speak to him that day. Because now you were where you needed to be. By his side. Ready to take on anything as long as you were together.

@prepareforsomestrangethings

#loki #mcu loki #loki x reader #loki lafeyson #loki odinson #loki fluff #mcu #mcu fic #cazza writes

[thespianbooks]

A Court of Nightmares and Starlight //Chapter 16//

Masterlist

(tags: @thron3ofbooks, @df3ndyr, @courtofjurdan, @art-e-mis, @herondamnn, @the-third-me, @im-still-trying-here, @emikadreams, @paytin77, @mis-lil-red, @sleeping-and-books, @lucieisabooknerd, @amandaraey-sunshine, @easy-p-lemon, @azymondias05) *bold tags don’t work ;-;

Happy Winter Solstice everyone! In honor of this day, and our girl Feyre’s birthday, here is chapter 16 to celebrate! I hope you all have a fantastic week celebrating the holidays! Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, and an overall Happy Holidays! ❤️

X

"Rhys?"

My soft whisper was met with silence; my mate remaining in the depths of slumber, an arm draped over my waist as we lay entangled in our plush sheets. It was still dark outside, only a couple of hours having passed since we turned in for the night and yet I awoke; overcome with an urge I had never felt so intensely before.

"Rhys?" I whispered again, touching his cheek gently and saw a flicker in the muscle of his jaw.

"Rhysand…" I pressed, my heart racing in hopes I could coax him into consciousness as tenderly as possible.

"Yes…?" He muttered, voice thick with sleep and eyes remaining closed.

"Rhys…" I hesitated, moving in a little closer to him as I murmured sheepishly. "I'm...hungry,"

His dark brows pulled together in confusion, "Hungry?" he asked.

I nodded, my head rubbing against his shoulder with the motion. "Starving, actually," I admitted as I traced circles along the dark whorls of his tattoos.

I grinned as he opened his eyes, still perplexed as he turned to me. "You didn't eat at dinner?" He asked, concerned, and I giggled.

"I did. You were there remember?"

"That's right," he closed his eyes again with a sigh of relief, the hand on my waist drifting to my rounded stomach pressed against his side. "We went to Sevenda's with the others and you had the prime rib special."

My stomach growled at the memory, and I choked back a rising sob. "Yes…"

He opened his eyes again, alarmed at the sound of unshed tears in my voice. "What's wrong, Feyre?" he asked, fully alert now as he shifted onto his side to look down at me.

I felt my eyes burn, suddenly overcome with guilt for making him worry and for waking him up, but I couldn't resist the ache in my stomach.

"I want more," I whispered.

He blinked, taken aback as he stared at me. "Of the prime rib?" He clarified.

I nodded with a hiccup. Cauldron damn these hormones. "I need it Rhys. We need it." I said, placing my hands on my stomach.

Rhys breathed a sigh of respite, laughing breathily as he dropped his forehead against my collarbone. "Oh Feyre, you scared me."

"I'm serious, Rhys, I'm so hungry and that prime rib was so good. I need more of it, or else-"

"Of course, my love, whatever you want," he hurriedly reassured me, kissing my cheeks before pulling back to meet my gaze.

I sniffed as I stared into his violet eyes, sparkling with amusement. "Really?"

My heart lifted at the feline grin on his lips, "Yes. Would you like everything that came with it too?"

I brightened and nodded, "Yes. Please."

He chuckled and pressed a chaste kiss to my lips before pulling back and climbing out of bed. "I'll be right back, then."

I beamed as I pushed myself up slowly, a month of growth on my abdomen now weighed me down and I required a little more effort when rising from any laying or sitting position. In the month that passed since the summit, since Eira's birth, we had all fallen into a sense of ease. Prior to the summit, Rhys and I did our best to compose our nerves over the rising coup, but now with the full support of our friends at our back, we finally felt a sense of solace. We were still in a period of waiting—of gathering more intelligence on Keir, Kallon, and now Beron. Thanks to Azriel's continued spy work, we were assured that no advancements were being made on either front, so we all allowed ourselves to breathe easier—for now at least.

The only wild card that remained was Eris, but after a brief meeting with him at our moonstone palace above the Court of Nightmares, things seemed...placated, for the time being. The eldest of the Vanserra sons, and heir to the Autumn Court, assured the earlier theory Rhys had—that the male wanted our support in overthrowing his father. What surprised me, however, was that it was all he wanted. He swore he played no part in his father's plans with Keir, and to prove it he provided us with detailed, secret, reports from his father's general; whom he had rallied to his side as well. The reports accurately lined up with the intel Azriel's network of spies had collected, and as of recently divulged a lack of movement as well.

It seemed the trio of traitors were biding their time, presumably attempting to adjust their plans now that the entire continent was aware of my pregnancy. We knew better than to assume they would reel back on the coup because of this; instead deciding to strike before my child had a chance to be born. The threat still haunted us all, but until we had news of any change in plans, we had to wait. In the meantime, Rhys, our family, and I were making the best of it. True to the promise I made myself, having seen how curious and eager Cassian had been in learning about my pregnancy, I spent as much time with them as I could. To aid in our efforts, Rhys and I hired a personal assistant to help balance our workload as High Lord and High Lady; agreeing that we needed the help while we transitioned into preparing for parenthood. That assistant was Clotho, the mute priestess who served in the library of Velaris, and one of the only other fae Rhys or I could trust outside of the inner circle. The priestess humbly agreed and now split her time between our estate and the library. Despite not being able to outwardly express herself, Rhys assured me that she was ecstatic to hear of my pregnancy and wanted nothing more than to help us balance our work between ruling and parenting.

In the month that passed, not only were we able to de-stress a bit and enjoy leisure time with our family, but I had also observed a notable change in myself. While my belly, now an impressive, rounded mound that was pronounced no matter what I wore, continued to grow with the promise from Madja that our son was still as healthy as ever; I noticed a myriad of developments in my emotions. While I did find myself with more energy than I had in the early days of my pregnancy, that frequency in fatigue now seemed to trade places with erratic mood swings. One minute I would be as happy and content as ever, and in the next beset with unexpected gloom. However, everyone seemed to take it in stride—especially my mate, who simply smiled and listened to me rant or just held me when I needed to cry.

Along with my renewed energy, my appetite returned with a vengeance. The same three meals I ate everyday no longer sated me, and I found myself snacking on various things throughout the day. There had been an incident a few weeks ago where I watched in total envy as Azriel snacked on dried meat in between training with Cassian and Rhys—something the brothers had picked back up in part due to the looming threat, but also as a means for entertainment. It wasn't until Cassian noticed me on the verge of tears and snatched the meat from Azriel, casually offering it to me, that I realized I had officially started with pregnancy-related cravings. The cravings hadn't been so intense; until tonight, when I had been ripped from sleep by my growling stomach and the desire to have another helping of dinner had me waking my mate from his sleep.

"Do you think she still has those leftovers?" I asked as I watched him dress.

"I'm sure she has plenty left reserved for you, Feyre darling. She saw how much you loved it," he replied with a knowing grin.

My face warmed as I recalled how the restaurateur offered to pack up extra servings for me to bring back to the estate, but I had been too embarrassed at the extra helpings I already consumed during our stay and politely refused.

"I didn't want to look like a glutton," I admitted sheepishly.

He walked over, resting his hands on the bed as he leveled our gazes. "No one would think that. You're pregnant and feeding the heir to the Night Court. They know he needs to eat, even in the middle of the night," he said and gave me another chaste kiss before stroking a hand along my stomach affectionately.

I smiled. "That's true. It's just hard to keep up when I feel absolutely ravenous every few hours."

He smirked appreciatively as he rubbed my stomach again, "Is there anything else my son wants?"

"Strawberries," I answered quickly. "With chocolate, or whipped cream."

Rhys laughed and pressed a kiss to my forehead. "Whatever you want, my love," he repeated and stood upright.

I waited for him to return as patiently as I could, pacing between our bedroom and balcony every few minutes before finally pacifying myself by sitting with a book on the cushioned bench of the balcony. In order to keep myself distracted, I read a book of plays aloud in hopes that my growing baby would be patient in his insatiable appetite. The sound of my voice must have appeased him, because as I continued to read, my hunger seemed to dull a bit. However, after a few minutes passed, I felt his kicks of protests and rubbed at the spot.

"If you have such a problem with my reading, then talk to your father. He's the one that taught mama how to read," I said, and my heart warmed at the memory of my lessons with Rhysand in my early days at the Night Court. "Maybe he'll teach you to read too."

"We both could," I heard Rhys say from behind me and I whipped my head around to see him holding a bundle of food.

I pushed myself up unceremoniously, eager to eat as the smells hit my nose. "That's so much food!" I exclaimed as he walked over and placed the bundle on the small table we kept on the balcony.

"Sevenda might've given us some more food she thought you might enjoy," he answered with a laugh before snapping his fingers and the food instantly displayed out before me.

I gasped in admiration before Rhys pulled out a chair for me and I happily sat, digging into my meal immediately and moaned with relief as the savory juices of the prime rib hit my taste buds.

Rhys sat next to me, casually grabbing a strawberry from the bowl he had also laid out and snacked on it as he regaled me while I indulged myself. "You truly are a sight to behold, Feyre darling."

I felt my face warm and dread filled my chest as I swallowed a mouthful. "Do I look like a pig?" I asked, that dread beginning to ebb into shame.

"No, no." He quickly reassured me, moving closer until our knees were touching. "I meant the sight of my expecting mate enjoying herself, of nourishing my growing child, is one I never dreamed I'd see," he explained. His hand came to rest on my stomach again as those beautiful amethyst eyes grew tender.

I squeezed his hand gently, "You deserve it Rhys. This child is a culmination of everything that is good about you; of all the good you've done in your lifetime."

His eyes were lined with silver as they met mine, and I moved my hands to cup his face. "He will be all the best parts of you, Rhysand."

"And of you," he swore. "You brought out the best in me Feyre. Everything that I am, that I have now, including this child, is all because of you."

My heart pounded with joy as I beamed and pulled him in for a kiss. He returned it with just as much fervor and heat began pooling in my core. When he pulled away too soon for my liking, I kissed him again-slowly, and nipped at his bottom lip.

I felt the fiendish smirk of his lips on mine as he muttered, "I thought you were hungry?"

"I'm hungry for something else now." I whispered, staring at him with half-lidded eyes.

I shrieked with a laugh as he scooped me up in his arms, my legs easily hooking around his waist as the food from the table suddenly disappeared and he carried me over to the nearest wall.

XXX

The following morning, I was pleased to see Rhys still in our bed and even more delighted to still be wrapped in his arms. He had a tendency to wake before I did these days and often got a head start on his work, allowing me the opportunity to sleep in and get the rest my body needed. However, after the night we had, I wasn't too surprised to see him needing the extra sleep. I smirked mischievously as I lightly traced along the tattoos on his chest with my own tattooed fingers, relishing in his scent as I recalled the details of our night that extended into the early hours of the morning.

It was a welcome change of pace after the stress that weighed on us; one we needed now more than ever with a youngling on the way. The days of just the two of us were set to expire in a few months; soon to be filled with a new life we would have to work together to sustain—all while balancing our duties of presiding over the Night Court. I often tried not to let the weight of that responsibility stress me out; knowing we had our whole family to rely on, but now that I was nearly halfway through my pregnancy, I wanted more of this time alone together.

I felt dark talons gently caress my mental shields and I smiled as I lowered them enough for my mate, who kept his eyes closed despite now being conscious. I allowed him into my thoughts; letting him know of my yearning for the quality time we had just experienced together as a lazy hand caressed my stomach.

"Let's go to the Cabin for a few days," he said after a couple of minutes passed.

I pushed myself up on an elbow, staring down at him as his sleepy violet eyes met with mine. "Really?" I asked, already keen on the idea.

He nodded in affirmation. "Cassian and Azriel are keeping the appropriate tabs on everything, and Clotho is set to meet with Mor and Amren today to go over some paperwork from the Palace Lords in Velaris," he explained.

I nodded. "My sisters also have their own agenda," I added. "Elain plans to drag Nesta to the market, or one of the palaces, today."

"So, we can get away," Rhys said. He brushed a stray lock of hair out of my face and I nodded again.

"Let's go now." I said, eager to escape with my mate.

It had been months since we set foot in the Cabin together. There were times he or I visited alone to let off some steam, sometimes meeting each other by the end of the day, but it was the first time we would go together since Winter Solstice; the first time since I fell pregnant, and I couldn't help but feel a little nostalgic.

Rhys smiled languidly. "Right now?"

I nodded and pushed myself up carefully, staring down at him with a grin. "Right now," I confirmed.

His smile shifted from lazy to determined as he sat up in the bed. I reached over to pull on my silky dressing gown and robe as he climbed out of bed and dressed. I laughed as he scooped me up in his arms and I wrapped my arms around his neck.

"We'll have to bring the baby too," I said in mock disappointment.

He chuckled as he walked over to the balcony. "That's all right. We'll consider it our first trip as a family."

The next thing I knew, we were in the sky, Rhys's powerful wings easily propelling us from our balcony and into the air in a matter of seconds. I held onto him as I felt the warm breeze encircle us and whoosh through my hair as he took us to our destination. I watched his wings as they moved; strong and beautiful, and felt a kick from inside my stomach.

"Do you think he can tell we're flying?" Rhys asked.

"Maybe," I said as I felt another swift kick and rested a hand on the spot. "It's okay baby, daddy won't drop us."

"Never," Rhys affirmed.

I looked up at him, "Do you think he'll have wings?"

The corner of Rhys's lips twitched upwards. "Of course he will. Maybe not at birth, but they'll come."

"Were you born with your wings?" I asked, admiring how the sun reflected off the iridescence of them as they moved in unison.

He shook his head. "My mother was hopeful they would develop as I matured, and a day after my eighth birthday they appeared," he said.

"Just like that?" I asked with a smirk.

"Magic."

I laughed and traced a finger along the membrane of one as it moved within my reach. He stiffened at my touch and I grinned playfully.

"Illyrian baby," I teased.

"If it weren't for my son in your belly, I would demand you fly us to the Cabin and see how you fare while I stroke your wings," Rhys taunted.

I giggled and pecked his cheek, keeping one arm draped around his neck while the other rested on my stomach. I paused as realization struck.

"Is that when your mother brought you to the mountains?" I asked.

Rhys nodded, already knowing what I referred to. "I think she was going to bring me regardless, but she was eager for me to fly and learn the Illyrian traditions."

The silver in his violet eyes flecked with a hint of sadness as he recalled the memory of his mother. The current status of our relationship with the Illyrians put a strain on his heart. He grew up with them, found his brothers amongst them, and their participation in the coup was the last thing he ever wanted. I laid my head on his shoulder in order to provide him with some comfort, not wanting either of us to dwell on that heartache during our little getaway.

His fingertips brushed the side of my stomach lightly as he held me closer. "I want him to learn, to train, like I did," he said.

Although he didn't ask, I heard the question in his words and I nodded. "He's Illyrian, just like you."

He pressed a kiss to my temple and landed on the steps leading to the Cabin, setting me on my feet carefully and I smiled reassuringly at him before taking his hand as we both walked to the entrance. As soon as we walked in, the fire in the hearth ignited and the rest of the house sprang to life with a wave of Rhys's hand, immediately accommodating us. A second later, platters of food appeared in the kitchen and I beamed.

"I love it here," I said as I strolled over to the counter, picking up a piece of perfectly crisped bacon and took a bite.

Rhys smiled roguishly as he joined my side, taking a slice of bacon for himself. "It's just what we needed, especially after your ravenous cravings kept me up all night. In more ways than one," he said with a wink.

I threw my hand up in a vulgar gesture. It's not like you were complaining. I said through the bond.

Indeed not, my love.

I sat at one of the raised chairs beside the counter, looking over the paintings I had filled in the room all those years ago—when I escaped here for the first time after learning he was my mate. I ate as I reflected on the last decade; at how it had brought us here, with our son now growing inside of me.

"I want to give birth here," I said after a comfortable silence had befallen us.

Rhys paused. "Really?" he asked.

I nodded, resting a hand on the apex of my belly. "It feels right. This is where I accepted our mating bond; where we decided to start trying for a baby, and I'm pretty sure this is where he was conceived too," I said with a smile, having done the math in my head. By the time I realized I was pregnant, on Starfall, I was already a couple of months along; meaning our attempt to conceive on Winter Solstice—as we did every year, had been successful

He smirked in return at the memory; it was somewhat of a tradition he made of bringing me here on my birthday. "My mother gave birth to me, and my sister, in this cabin," he said. "With the help of some Illryian midwives and some camp-mothers."

"Then it's perfect," I said softly.

He reached down to stroke my stomach gently. "I want to be there," he said. "In the room, while you give birth. Through all of it actually. I know it isn't traditionally done, my own father waited outside the room both times, but I want to be there and hold your hand when my son comes into the world. Just the thought of you going through labor, of enduring all that pain alone," he shook his head as if to erase it from his mind. I squeezed his hand reassuringly.

"I wouldn't want you anywhere else, Rhysand." I said, not at all surprised at his declaration.

A week after Eira's birth, Viviane and Kallias had both sent us letters-informing us of their daughter's arrival, fawning over her beauty and detailing how infatuated they already were, but also informing us of their own accounts of what the birthing process had been like. At the summit, Viviane expressed that she knew what to expect, but in her letter, she elaborated just how excruciating it really was. Luckily, Kallias had also been there with her, providing her with whatever support she needed and relieving as much of the pain as he could through back massages, also letting her clutch onto him for dear life as she suffered through pain after pain. I wasn't sure what Kallias had told Rhys in his letter, but shortly after my mate had summoned Madja and asked the healer to guide us through exactly what to anticipate.

"Are you nervous?" He asked.

I chewed on my lip in thought, recounting the gruesome details that both Viviane and the healer had laid out for me. The pain alone would come in constant, violent waves, and could last as long as a day.

"A little," I admitted. "But I know I'll be much more comfortable here; with you there."

"I'll be there every step of the way and do whatever I can to ease the pain." He promised, taking my hand and pressing a lingering kiss to it.

I smiled. "It'll be just the two of us, Madja, and the midwife."

The healer had told us that she worked with her sister, who served as a midwife for just as long as she had been a healer, when delivering younglings. Rhys and I readily agreed to have her along and made a plan to meet with her once I came closer to the end stages of my pregnancy.

I squeezed the hand that held mine, staring at the new tattoo that had formed from his renewed vow he made at the beginning of my pregnancy—when he promised not to let his male-bonded instincts shelter me unnecessarily. I ran my thumb over the crescent moon design.

"Do you think," I hesitated, mulling over my words. "Do you think...I'll be good at it?"

He paused. "At what? Giving birth?"

I laughed humorlessly, "No, not that. At...being a mother?"

I avoided his gaze, feeling the weight of those smoldering violet eyes as I continued to stare at the blue-black ink of his tattoo. After a few seconds of silence, his other hand came to grip my chin gently, tilting my head up so that I could meet those beautiful eyes.

My heart skipped a beat at the sincerity in them. "You will be an amazing mother, Feyre," he swore, his voice earnest.

My eyes burned as I thought of my own mother; of how imperious and cold she had been towards her daughters. I often wondered how she had felt when she was pregnant with us, because once we were born, she hardly bothered caring for us at all. Did she ever love us? She worshipped my father, her "one true love," but how could she not dote on the fruition of that love? Perhaps she had loved my father for what his wealth provided her instead, and the lavish lifestyle she lived-before she died.

"You are not your mother, Feyre." Rhys said, his hand moving from my chin to my cheek. "I already see the love you have for our son in your eyes, in your actions, every day."

I sniffed as I looked down at my stomach, heart swelling as I thought of my son—of how eager I was to hold and cherish him, and I couldn't fathom pushing him away. I nodded lightly as I wiped at the few tears that managed to escape.

"I just worry sometimes," I admitted.

Rhys nodded in understanding. "I worry about myself too," he said, and frowned. "I worry about being like my father; that I might be too hard on my son, and that I might age as cold and calculating as he did."

I shook my head, taking hold of the hand still on my cheek. "You could never Rhys," I said with the same smile I had given him last night—the same emotions in my eyes as I reminded him what this child meant for us.

I felt the tension leave as he sighed in content, resting his brow against mine as we both stared at my stomach; our thumbs caressing either side of it, holding our baby. I felt him move, sending kicks at both our hands, and we laughed; my chest swelled with hope that perhaps he could feel the love between us—at the love we shared for him.

#feysand #feysand babies #feyre x rhysand #feyre archeron #feyre cursebreaker #high lady Feyre #High Lady of the Night Court #high lord of the night court #rhysand #high lord rhysand #illyrian #illyrian babies #acotar #acomaf #acowar #acofs #acofas #sjm fandom #winter solstice #velaris #a court of thorns and roses #a court of mist and fury #a court of wings and ruin #a court of frost and starlight #a court of silver flames #court of dreams #a court of nightmares and starlight

[lesbiancarat]

Haha its fine! Im book anon for a reason so take all the time you need! Before I start, I wanna apologize for the possible asks you got about the merch and hybe in general. I didn't intend to cause stress and need to be careful bdjahdsj so slap me with a fish!

Onto the ask! But agreed, I mean before the big kpop boom we saw, this was very common. Build a decent fanbase and then move to Japan or China. (Of course sometimes you see INSTANT movement in other countries but that depends on the company and such but you know what I mean) but since we do have the more global kpop era, we may see more companies do America which isn't a bad thing. It makes sense buisness wise so they will jump on it after debut or something. Thus I don't see it a bad thing for kpop groups to promote in America because hey, if in Korea they do sell western artist music who also tour there, kpop groups can also do the same ya know?

Now onto the hybe comment, I will try not to speak too much on it so I will try to summarize. I think my theory is due with merch from their main artist, they think maybe it could work with svt which maybe could but svt has a different fanbase so throwing on random merch won't make fans really want to buy (not saying some won't which kudos to you! As a fan you are allowed to consume what you please except not be a bad apple about it) so thus like the infamous water bottles which was done for bts, they thought why not do it for svt because bts fans sold it out apparently for a 2nd wave of it being sold again. (Which to this day idk why someone in the hybe team thought this was smart. Like...this is just in bad taste imo) I do wanna agree that it appears that hybe doesn't seem to have a proper art team for svt because while sometimes wild, I do know for their main artist they do have thoughtful merch based around say an album concept I recall. Kf course they will make mistakes i.e. the water bottles. I do wish it can improve because even though it is capitalism, I think fans do want decent merch. We have seen interesting ideas like svt making their own magazine and selling it lol. Of course it is hard to please because some fans want subtle merch ideas while others don't mind the vibrant pastel colors we got or some want wild ideas like svt figurines or something. Overall I hope I didn't drag this too much as I just wanted to respond back to you, I agree with many points you said so yeah cx I say let's also wait as this is barely what, a year or even less of svt being under hybe properly. Especially when hybe had its rebranding and expanding so things are being changed, I know fans are worried about this which is valid but let's not panic just yet. Let's come back in a year to this and see what has improved and what hasn't. (OK but peldis sold the boys rings!? :o since when!? I haven't heard of this actually, when did this happen if I may ask?)

Oof yeah sadly with streaming, many view "oh you don't stream it means you aren't a fan" when isn't the case (which is why I personally don't like when certain companies also do "listening parties" which seems a bit ???) I do remember this popped up big in 2017 but many fans called it out so it quiet down a bit. Like we didn't see it so often where fans were causing problems over it so idk why this returned nor what the cause of it was.

But thank you!! It really was a nice closing chapter, I think when I have personal stuff settled I will try maybe get a new bunny? And oohh congrats on the album! (Note to hybe or pledis. Please make the us store a more common thing, it makes things so much easier! Am happy it was at your place quick so kudos to the us store. Oohh wonderful choices! I think for many fans anyone or heaven's cloud seems to be the popular picks? For me, I may have to say game boi or heaven's cloud as well! Those songs make me just so happy? Like game boy is just so creative with the way it was made. As a video game nerd, it is perfection. I could make an essay about this song lol and heaven's cloud is just...wow. I feel so at ease with the song, comfortable and soothed. Like you are on a cloud lol. Also that is totally fine! Rtl was a grower for me (I blame the mv, it didn't do the song jusitice) but it is a bop and can't stop humming the chorus at random moments. Overall a great summer album. Just imagine any of these songs performed live ndjansns

lol don't feel too bad about it! honestly they weren't that bad + i can always delete asks if i really don't want to answer them, i just always get a bit paranoid that things will get out of hand so i may end up getting more serious in those situations OTL

and yeah i agree! i don't think it's a bad thing for groups to promote in the US, as you said, it's similar to groups expanding their fanbase by promoting in china or Japan or other asian counties, it makes sense from a business standpoint and there's nothing wrong with promoting in different countries. i just wish that some kpop stans understood that western and/or global popularity is a bonus and not a requirement for success. while they do have a global appeal, at the end of the day kpop's main audience is korea, and groups that achieve popularity in Korea have already achieved what they set out to do. but there's unfortunately a decent chunk of international fans that prioritize western popularity over anything and can't fathom that a group can be successful without being popular in the US. or they just talk as if their groups western achievements are more valuable than their Korean ones and to me that starts to look like xenophobia... (sorry if I'm repeating anything i said before in regards to this, i feel like i am but I'm too lazy to go back and check OTL)

since you sent this ask hybe released the caratland merch which was actually really nice, and today they also announced that there will be birthday merch for cheol (and presumably all members from here on out). we don't know what the bday merch is yet but some carats are already a bit miffed that hybe is even thinking to capitalize off the boys' birthdays... i bring both of these up bc i feel like the caratland merch proves your point that hybe is capable of designing good and thoughtful merch, and honestly this does reassure me a bit. but on the other hand them trying to capitalize off the boys' birthdays also proves that they still don't fully understand carats wants and priorities as a fanbase. which, if the future of seventeens merch is gonna be quality merch with some shitty cash grabs in between, i can live with that. I'm not gonna like the shitty cash grabs and i think it would be in our best interest as a fandom to not go crazy buying those shitty cash grabs, because if we don't then hybe will hopefully stop wasting their time and put more effort into /quality/. but if we get quality merch for important events like concerts and fanmeetings, i can live with it. as you said too, it can take time for these things to change, and we should all recognize that. but at the same time merch specifically is market driven, so i don't think it's a bad thing if people like @ hybe on twt about any bad merch that comes out in order to drive that change dhfkfj

but also on a maybe more fun note in regards to the merch... with some carats being upset about the bday merch i was thinking about what hybe could do for merch instead that would fill the niche of being at intervals throughout the year that could still be limited time drops but that carats wouldn't be mad at them capitalizing on and then i was like duh! they could literally just make merch off of going seventeen! honestly I'm surprised they haven't yet. maybe not merch for every episode, but they could have a line of permanent gose merch w a basic logo or something and then release limited time merch themed around some of the more popular episodes at various points during the year. I'm actually kind of obsessed with this idea now and for once I'm like hybe/pledis please capitalize off of this!! dhfkgjg

they never actually sold them, but for seventeens 3rd anniversary, pledis planned to sell replicas of seventeens rings. after it was announced carats were understandably upset since the boys worked so hard for those. luckily pledis heard carats concerns and put out an apology and didn't manufacture them in the end. I'm glad that at least they listened to carats even though it would have been better if they had never considered the idea in the first place :(

oh yeah listening parties are definitely just another marketing technique to boost streams. i think like with a lot of marketing techniques, it just depends on the execution. imo if they're done well it can be a good way for fans to connect while listening to an artists music, which is mutually beneficial for the company, but i can totally see a situation where companies get greedy and push it too hard. i don't know anything about what happened with them back in the day, but if you're curious why SVT had listening parties leading up to your choice, they were set up by UMG, the American distributor that SVT worked with for this cb. in this case the listening parties weren't just for boosting streams, but also likely for UMG to gauge interest. SVT isn't officially signed to a US label yet, but UMG's data from the listening parties could be used to show US labels whether or not there's enough interest for them to be signed. which if that happens we'd almost definitely see a more permanent US shop!

ahh yes, once you're ready I'm sure it would be great to have another bunny companion 🥺

yes! heavens cloud and gam3 bo1 are both such feel good songs! my sister actually added heavens cloud to their Spotify after i made them listen to the album in the car dhfkf it's now one of 6 kpop songs they have saved (4 of which are SVT... my influence 💅 DHFJFH) I'm certain we'll see some of the songs from your choice at caratland this year, hopefully it's all of them but I'd especially like to see heavens cloud and wave 👀 I'm also still crossing my fingers for an i wish live performance bc i can't believe my favorite SVT b-side is one of the TWO tracks they haven't performed live not including the new album (the other one being network love, which i would also like to see live!)

#melia.ask #📖 anon #long post #it always takes me so long to answer these bc i am incapable of shutting up OTL

[stabletwooriginals]

CHAPTER FOUR: Perspective

LittlePip had the bright idea of looting a building she is way too underleveled for. That's not really a Gamer Joke, as FoE really does seem to take a lot of rules and mechanics from the Fallout games. But it's also funny.

Her opponents are the classic brain-bots we know from the games, made more horrifying with the simple detail of sounding like children. "Come on out. We only want to kill you for trespassing!" also reminds me of the turrets in Portal.

This is also where we get our first reference of the zebras as the enemy, via the intercom playing an ancient, automated message. Oh, and the first mention of the Minstry of Technology too!

The Mr. Handy equivalent of a plasma weapon is said to look like a unicorn's horn. That's cool.

While trying to escape on collapsing catwalks we get the first instance of self-levitation! That's a creative use of the canonical ability unicorns in the show possess. I'm not even sure if a unicorn levitaed *another* pony in season 1. But I think they never levitated themselves? This also gave me flashbacks (or rather flashforwards) to all the cool stuff LittlePip can do later with her levitation, I'm excited to get there.

 Oh fuck me with Celestia's forehooves!

The first instance of a PipSwear! Now, I love them. They are iconic. But heck, gosh, darn it if they don't sound awkward when said out loud. Which kinda makes them not work as swears, in my opinion. But for me, they are dumb fun and sometimes that's enough. Her remark that she picked these exploitives up from the raiders is a nice touch. That she keeps them up and builds on them is all her, though.

IRONSHOD FIREARMS How do you like *them* apples?   I didn't get it.

So, I am not a native English speaker. I know this saying, but I was curious where it comes from. *Apparently* that's not really known, but according to this article the phrase was used like this in 1895 already. However, it was also used to refer to anti-tank granades in World War I, for their apple-like appearence. Since granades also look like apples in FoE, I will take the risk and say that I think I do get Ironshod Firearms' slogan.

The anti zebra propaganda found in the factory overmare office is both creative and glossed over. The slogan ("Better Wiped than Striped! Join the Equestrian Forces Today!") is heavily reminicient of the German rhymes of similiar racist nature from the world wars. And the depiction of the zebras as some dark creatures with evil glowing eyes is over the top, but only a reread might reveal this as the neon sign it is, as the zebras have not yet been introduced as the enemy force properly.

In the overmares office Littlepip finds a ton of useful items, from spark batteries , a StealthBuck and gum (which could be the first instance of MintAls, altough not called such, as LittlePip doesn’t know them yet (and if they aren’t, she finds some later in this chapter in an abandoned camp under a bridge), to the one, the only: little macintosh. This revolver will become LittlePips iconic weapon that she keeps until the very end of the story. Presumably made for or at least by Applejack, so this also gives Littlepip a neat little tie to one of the original shows main characters.

Hacking the terminal LittlePip discovers that she could have opened the safe she picked with a bobby pin remotely from there. Intentionally or not, this is a dig at Fallout 3′s design philosophy of giving you several ways to open locks, making only learning one of them enough, while skilled characters are left feeling a bit overqualified.

Leaving Ironshod Firearms, LittlePip admits to having given up on finding Velvet for now and being set on just exploring the world instead. Again, very Fallout 3 in my book.

Past a playground that became a graveyard for little ponies (dark!), she finds a “Sparkle~Cola” vending machine. This becomes LittlePips favorite drink and when I first read it, I was super happy about that for some reason. The book keeps mentioning how she sipps on carroty cola sometimes and every time I remember thinking it was a fun detail. I have no idea why.

Resting on a bench closeby we get a description of this poster:

(Art by Droakir - DeviantArt)

First mention of the Ministry of Morale, first instance of Pinkie Pie and a really fun description of how her graying mane makes it look like a candy cane. Like the poster on the zebras, this is also great, classic propaganda writing. Obviously it is a reference to the episode Green Isn’t Your Color, but while I feel that it is referencing some real life propaganda, I do not know a specific one.

Watcher suddenly is back, helpfully explaining that the MoM is “another well-meaning idea that was so much better on scroll.” What a fitting description of pre-war politics in FoE.

Getting jumped makes LittlePip call back to the slaver, that complained about sprite-bots sneaking up on ponies. If I recall correctly this will be one of the biggest sources of fun in FoE: Callbacks like this, that help paint the world in your mind by connecting the dots for you. Im certain some find this aspect annoying, as they rather enjoy doing that work themselves, but as a casual reader (of a very long story) I always welcomed it. I will also stop pointing them out from here on, unless they strike me remarkable in other ways.

A quick reminder of the raider armor she is wearing and some foreshadowing how it makes her look like “a nightmare pony”, before Watcher offers that she needs to find her virtue. This will be as important as in the original show, but also almost take LittlePip until the end of the story to really figure it out. Right now, she doesn’t quite believe him and his connection to the sprite-bot drops. Now we get a different voice from the radio the sprite-bots play, when Watcher is not in control of them. Similiar to President Eden of the Enclave in Fallout 3. This however, is Red-Eye, altough not named yet, giving a motivational speech about the posibility of rebuilding Equestria. Naturally, this confuses LittlePip even further, having seen no trace of any leaders or reconstruction efforts.

Well, technically she has seen slavers, so, unbeknownst to her, she actually has seen a part of Red-Eyes plan.

But it gives her the idea to look for settlements and actually finds one in the distance. A undamaged looking caravan is moving away from it, all in all a great disovery.

While a fun and memorable scene in itself, what follows is meant to reflect a corner stone of LittlePips character. As she approaches the settlement she gets mistaken for a raider by her barding and shot at. Remembering the caravan she collects her strength and stands up to her agressor, threatening to kill them if they attack the others. This reveals the misunderstanding -- her attacker thought she was endangering the caravan -- and LittlePip exits the chapter loosing consiousness from her insuries.

Footnote: Level Up. New Perk: Egghead -- You will add +2 skill points each time you gain a new experience level.

What a chapter! While it might feel like not much happened, so many pivital and iconic elements were introduced here. Even if a lot weren’t named yet. Like Calamity! It does feel weird that LittlePip just admits on giving up on Velvet like that, though. On my first read I didn’t mind, because I just enjoyed how similiar the experience felt to playing Fallout 3, which I liked more than any other entry at the time. Now it seems odd, but there are a lot of other things to focus on and enjoy in this and the coming chapters.

#fallout equestria #fallout #mlp #my little pony #littlepip #ironshod firearms #reread #reading #calamity #red-eye #ministry of morale #ministry of technology #applejack #pinkie pie #braeburn

[sineala]

Hi Sineala ♥ I adore your writing and your character insight is always A+++. I'm not nearly as up on comics as I would like to be - I'd be curious to see a general breakdown of Tony's past exes and what they were like (how they were terrible to Tony)? I'm only ever familiar with Ty, but I see Sunset used a lot in 616 fic too and I know there's others. If you have the time and spoons to break 'em down for me, I'd love it ♥

This is a very big question, so here is the short version plus links to some resources. Also, thank you. ❤️

Technically Ty never canonically dated Tony; everyone just likes the idea. There is, however, confirmation from (IIRC) the artist for one of the Ty arcs that they intended them to be dating, and there’s some penciled-in commentary about it in the gutter of one of the original art pages.

As for the breakdown, that is a WHOLE LOT of people, and if I may, I would like to point you to lucrezianoin’s Timetable of Tony’s Dating Life which has a little capsule synopsis of every relationship he’s been in, in chronological order. It’s current through Bendis’ run, which means that the only thing it’s missing is Tony taking up with Jan again during Slott’s run, although Cantwell has broken them up again already.

If you’re looking for the worst of the worst, my picks on that front would be:

Sunset Bain: She steals Tony’s technology, and whatever their relationship was like, something must have gone really, really wrong because he is visibly afraid of her and goes out of his way not to be in the same room with her. I have some panels here.

Whitney Frost: Explaining Tony’s relationship with Whitney would take more than one sentence, so, uh, have this essay. Also at some point there will be 150,000 words of fanfiction from me on the theme of why Whitney is not someone Tony should be dating.

Indries Moomji: She caused Tony the most psychological pain of any of his exes (with the possible exception of Sunset), I would say, as her dumping him in an incredibly cruel manner ended up being the last straw that led Tony to start drinking again. However, she was hired by Obadiah Stane to do precisely this, so I feel like that puts her in a different class from people who were presumably at least trying to have actual relationships with him.

Kathy Dare: She definitely caused Tony the largest amount of physical injury, by which I mean that after Tony broke up with her, she shot him, paralyzing him from the waist down. She then claimed that Tony was abusing her and that this was self-defense. I have some panels here.

There are other women he sleeps with who are probably by anyone else’s standards Bad Choices, but Tony himself does not seem to class them as such. For example, back in Tales of Suspense, Stephanie de la Spiroza kidnaps Tony in an attempt to find out who Iron Man is, and when Tony meets her again much later in IM v3, he sleeps with her and is totally fine with this. They were both so young back then! It’s water under the bridge! What’s a little kidnapping between friends, right?

Anyway, that’s not a complete answer by any means, but I hope that gives you someplace to start.

#gigacat #replies

[fandom-trash-xl]

One-Shot: The Small and the Shiny

Timeline Placement: Age 784 (The 28th World Martial Arts Tournament!)

______

"Now, don't get into too much trouble, you two."

Today was the day of the twenty-eighth World Martial Arts Tournament and the two Saiyans, Goku and Vegeta, weren't the only ones who were ecstatic. 

Five-year-old Pan, granddaughter of Goku, was finally ready to participate in her first tournament. Due to her Saiyan genetics, she was a combat prodigy, allowing her to easily hold her own amongst adults. She had even flown around the planet in the span of minutes just that morning.

However, it would be a while before the main event would begin and Pan was dead set on perusing the various activities around the area with her grandpa.

"We won't, dad!" Pan assured her father.

"Hey, don't sweat it, Gohan! She's in good hands." Goku gave a reassuring smile.

"With you, that's debatable." Chi-Chi sighed.

“Ah, come on, Chi-Chi...” The Saiyan looked back at his wife almost pleadingly. “You’re always saying how I should bond with her, and I promise we’ll only buy a few sweets...”

She only sighed, a small smile forming across her lips, still ever amused by her husband after all of the years of worry. “Just go.”    

On that note, Goku and Pan soon took to the heart of the lanes of vendors, looking to find at least something to occupy the time before they were called back for their matches.

"Where do you want to go first, Pan?"

"Ice cream!" Pan cheered, pointing to a nearby stand.

"Great choice! I was thinking that too." Goku entered a running stance. "I'll race you!"

"You're on, grandpa!"

After a brief count of three, the pair began to rush towards the ice cream vendor. However, it didn't take long for Pan to lose her pace.

She saw something. A tail from around a corner, lazily batting about in curlicues.

"Hey, why'd you slow down, Pan?"

"Look over there!"

Pan pointed to the tail around the corner. It was rather small, a dusty rose color and striped. Dangling from it was what appeared to be a small pendant keychain with a circular charm.

"It's a puppy tail, grandpa! There's a puppy over there!"

"Well, I think that's kind of a weird color for a puppy..." Goku tried to explain, but Pan had already bolted.

"PUPPY!" She squealed as she ran towards the tail. 

"Pan, wait!" Goku tried to chase after his granddaughter, but she was already prepared to pounce on the tail. When Goku could finally see around the corner and realize that the tail's owner was in fact not a dog, Pan had already jumped and grabbed on.

"Gotcha!"

The tailed creature appeared to be a bipedal reptilian. The jewel that made up his skull was a brownish maroon shade and resembled a chestnut. The creature's species was familiar to Goku, but he couldn't place it in this rushed instance. He was clearly upset that his tail was grabbed and tears were forming.

The reptilian stumbled back as he freed his tail from Pan's eager grasp, not noticing the pendant dropping from it.  He started to bolt in the other direction, mumbling something panicked and incoherent. He didn't get very far before tripping. He picked himself up and continued to run, this time holding his tail to stop it from dragging on the ground. He finally managed to cry out a word that was understandable: a wailing cry of "Papa!"

"Pan, that wasn't very nice of you to pull on that little lizard boy's tail." Goku looked at his granddaughter with disappointment. 

"But, grandpa, I didn't know!" Pan whined.

Goku sighed. "Well, we should try to find him, so you can apologize." Noticing the fallen keychain, he retrieved it from the ground. “And we should probably return this to him too.” He grabbed Pan's hand and led her through the crowd. "Come on." 

______

Several minutes had passed and the two had no luck with finding the lizard boy. It was rather unusual. How hard was it to find a boy with a tail in a place like this?

Pan was scanning among the legs of passing people to try to spot the boy with no luck. 

Goku turned to look in the direction that Pan was searching while continuing to walk. “You see ‘im yet, Pan?” He inquired.

“No, not yet, grandpa, but...”

“What is it?”

“I think you should be paying more attention to the path!”

“Pan, it’s fine.” Goku assured his granddaughter. “I’ll be fine, I’m not going to bump into anyone!”

Just at that moment, as if jinxed by his words, Goku immediately bumped into someone. He jolted back, almost letting Pan’s hand slip out of his.

“Woah, sorry, sir. Didn’t see you there!” He apologized.

“You’d better be sorry, monkey.” A snarky and sarcastic voice responded.

The sound of the voice resonated with Goku. Only one person he knew had that certain flourish to his voice and that same person was the only one who called him by that name.

Goku’s eyes turned downward to see a familiar reptilian figure with white scales and violet jewels. Unlike the lizard’s usual attire choice, he wore a loose-fitting button-up shirt, dark enough violet to pass for black, and Force-standard spandex shorts, as well as a pair of sunglasses- somewhat feminine in design, likely not something he picked out himself- that his ruby red eyes peeked over, giving the Saiyan his signature glare of condescension. This clothing was probably to help him blend in with the surrounding crowds and avoid suspicion, but Goku felt that his tail was somewhat of a dead giveaway. 

“Frieza?” Goku looked in confusion. “I didn’t expect you to be at the tournament!”

“Well, I didn’t expect myself to be here either.” The Arcosian removed his sunglasses and folded them. “But, Vegeta’s woman insisted since it’s been almost five years since I helped you save the universe, or whatever sappy excuse she used.” He rolled his eyes. “And apparently there are no admission returns, so...”

“Yeah, Bulma’s quite the master of persuasion, isn’t she?”

“I wouldn’t call it persuasion. More like coercion.”

Meanwhile, Pan slowly glanced around her grandfather’s leg to get a better look at the figure before her. Frieza’s tail swished back and forth, almost pattern-like, but the young girl noticed something else. Flicking almost in sync with the white tail was another tail of a familiar dusty rose color. Could it be that lizard boy?

Pan eagerly tugged on the leg of Goku’s gi. “Grandpa, grandpa!”

“What is it, Pan?” Goku asked.

“This guy’s got a tail!”

“Yes, he does, Pan.” The Saiyan explained. “Mr. Frieza’s from space, so he has some body parts that humans don’t have.”

"Oh?" Frieza seemed curious about the small girl. "Who is this? Another one of your hellspawn I presume?"

"Actually, Pan's my granddaughter. She was at that post-tournament party we had, remember? She was just a baby then."

"You do remember I left before all of these festivities, right?" Frieza's eyes narrowed. "I could barely stand being on your team for forty-eight minutes, so I definitely couldn't stomach a full-out party."

“Oh, right!” Goku remembered and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. “Almost forgot you’re not a party person.”

Frieza gave a displeased sigh at the Saiyan’s ignorance. His tail flicked about faster and the second tail behind him seemed to be having difficulty matching the speed. This attracted Pan’s attention yet again, prompting her to give another tug.

"Grandpa, grandpa!"

"I'm afraid you'll have to advise her that this is hardly the time or place for me to explain my entire anatomy..." The Arcosian rolled his eyes.

"Pan, Mr. Frieza's right. Maybe another time-"

Pan interjected. "But, he's got two tails!"

Goku looked shocked. "He has what?!"

Frieza's eyes practically flew open. "I-I can explain, don't get too over-excited now-"

But, Goku had already started rambling. "I didn't know you could grow another tail! Can you grow three tails? Do you think Saiyans can do it too? Can-"

"Silence!" Frieza barked, ending the rant. His own tail stiffened and the second one seemed to fidget, uncertain of how to mirror the other. He sighed. "The second tail isn't mine."

"So, you ripped it off another guy and surgically attached it to yourself?"

The Arcosian was starting to lose patience more rapidly. "No, I mean that there's someone behind me, you imbecile!" He pinned his folded sunglasses to his shirt collar. "Just give me a second." Frieza turned around and bent down. His voice seemed to mellow as he near silently spoke to the small being behind him. “Come on, Kuri. Don’t be scared...”  After a brief hesitation, the pint-sized figure flinched forward into Frieza's embrace, allowing him to scoop up the tailed creature. "There we go..."

When he faced them again, he was holding a smaller lizard being. Their form seemed to be similar to Frieza's first form, but it was missing horns. Their jewel skull resembled a maroon chestnut. They donned Frieza Force-regulated battle gear. The armor seemed to be of a model similar to Vegeta's, as it lacked the shoulder pads present on Frieza's usual armor. A black silk scarf, somewhat large on them, was tied at their collar and draping along their shoulders.

"It seems that some introductions are in order." Frieza finally managed a smile for once. "This is my son, Kuriza. Born two years after my revival." 

Kuriza, clearly bewildered, briefly glanced over to Goku, then to Pan. After his analysis, he quickly averted his gaze and attempted to retreat back behind his father, who quickly stopped him. He must have been rather shy.

"Wow, never thought you had it in you, Frieza!"

Frieza hesitated for a moment. "What are you implying here, Goku...?” His eye twitched angrily. 

“Well, um... It’s just... You’re Frieza and all, and I didn’t really think you were interested in-”

Pan interjected with her own question to spare her grandfather from Frieza’s wrath. “Who’s the mum, then?”

Frieza stammered as a red color spread across his face. He refused to look either of them in the eye. “That is... none of your concern, child...”

Goku laughed a little. “Same stubborn Frieza! But, anyways, it’s nice to meet you, little guy!” He held out his hand for Kuriza to shake or, at least, grab onto. To the Saiyan’s surprise, the young lizard’s already frightened expression seemed to further sour, shortly afterward attempting to snap his small fangs at Goku’s hand.

“Kuri! Manners!” The older Arcosian scolded him through gritted teeth.  

“Woah! What the heck was that for? Did you set this up?”

Frieza seemed shocked as well. “I swear, I didn’t. I know that vengeance has been in the cards for quite some time now, but I’ve never trained him to attack you specifically.” He let out a small chuckle. “I guess it’s only natural for him to attack what he considers a threat. Just my luck that you automatically fit the bill~” 

Emerging from the brief silence, Kuriza suddenly started to mumble something. It was hard to decipher at first, but even Goku was able to deduce what he said. “He’s... with... her.” He seemed to be referring to Pan and was clearing speaking about her with fear in his tone.

“This is because of Pan?” Goku looked surprised before the emotion was quickly overshadowed by fear. Frieza was glaring at him. 

“Alright, monkey,” The Arcosian growled. “I don’t know what your little spawn did that traumatized my son, but you’d better explain... now.” 

Goku started to sweat as he tried to once again hide Pan behind his leg. “I-I honestly... don’t know what happened...”

“Sh-she...” The young lizard stuttered. He eventually gave up on trying to work out the words and grabbed the end of his dusty rose tail. He made a tugging motion lightly enough to not cause himself discomfort. Goku’s eyes widened with realization. Kuriza was the lizard boy from before!

Frieza looked to his son with a gaze of concern. “Kuri, did that girl pull your tail?” Kuriza simply nodded. “She did?” His eyes turned back to Goku and his concerned look turned to an infuriated scowl.

“Um, Frieza, I can explain!”

“What is there to explain here? This little mutt pulled on my son’s tail because she doesn’t know how to keep her paws to herself...”

“She didn’t really pull though, she was only grabbing on for a few seconds-”

“Well, the tail is very sensitive! She could have hurt him!”

“Frieza, I’m honestly very sorry for all of thi-”

Goku’s defense of his granddaughter was cut off by Pan herself stepping up, her voice reduced to whimpering. “I didn’t wanna hurt him! I thought it was a puppy tail because I like to grab puppy tails, I didn’t know. I won’t do it again, don’t hurt me, Mr. Frieza!” She was almost diminished to an emotional puddle faced with the angered emperor. 

Thankfully for the trembling quarter-Saiyan, Frieza’s temper cooled with a sigh. “I guess if you promise never to do it again, I can let it slide. Fortunately for you both, Vegeta’s woman also forced me into a ‘no violence’ agreement, so I, unfortunately, can not destroy you if the mood strikes me.”

Despite the positive news, Goku’s shoulders seemed to slump in disappointment. “Aww... So, does that mean you won’t be fightin’ in the tournament today?”

“Violence clauses or no, I am much too powerful to safely fight the normal Earthling combatants. I could quite literally tear up the competition while holding back.” The Arcosian’s expression turned into a cocky smirk. “Besides, I can’t trust any of your questionable companions to watch my darling Kuri.” At mention of his son, his scarlet eyes darted over to Kuriza, who was further attempting to bury his face by snuggling into his father's embrace, the gesture met by a brief cheek nuzzle.

"Speaking of watching over and such," Goku added with mild confusion. "How come the little guy was out and about without you? I figured you'd be watching him like a hawk with how protective you are."

Frieza sighed. “I try to stop him from wandering off, but he keeps trying to scavenge anyway. The boy has a mind of his own some days.”

“Scavenge?”

“Yes, for coins- and, before you try to give me any money, we’re fine on that front. He simply adores shiny objects like that... I even had to buy him a shiny little trinket in the hopes it would keep him occupied for a spell, but it seemed it didn’t work that well. It’s this little medallion charm from a little vendor back there.” He turned to Kuriza, who finally peeked back out of his reserved hiding. “Show them your little charm, Kuri.”

The smaller lizard looked back to his tail, only to find no such object dangling from it, letting out a small gasp. Frieza’s eyes narrowed. “Where did your charm go, Kuriza?” He was met with a mumbling response that Goku couldn’t make out but Frieza somehow could. “I told you not to put it on your tail, you know that’s how things get lost.”

“What’s the matter?” Goku inquired.

The lizard emperor sighed yet again. “It seems that Kuriza lost his little trinket while he was out scavenging. It must have slipped off his tail while he was up and about, it could be anywhere in this place. Such a shame that-”

"Shiny..." A small sad whimper came from Kuriza. He depressedly tried to slide down out of his father's arm, only for him to be scooped back up.

"Aww... Poor guy... Are you going to go look for it now?" Pan asked from behind Goku's leg.

"I'm afraid that will not be an easy thing to accomplish, little- Gkk!" Frieza was cut off by a sudden pain: a small kick from Kuriza, right in the upper ribs. The little lizard's mood had greatly soured and he was now resorting to kicking to fuel his agenda.

"Goku!" Frieza interjected, still being given small jabs in the ribs from his son's silent tantrum.

"Yes?" Goku perked up. Frieza had no snarky nickname for him, so he knew he was serious.

"By any chance, do you know someplace private I could go for a minute or so?" He spoke through pained grunts. "Preferably one nearby?"

"Wait, why?"

"Well, you know how he likes shiny things? Seeing my Golden Form helps calm him down and I don't want to attract any undue attention. So, if you would-" A single harder kick made Frieza's eyes widen mid-explanation to near the size of saucers. "Please..." He turned Kuriza around in his carrying, getting his legs to face outward and redirecting his frustrated kicks, unfortunately trying to find ways to swing backward.

"Ahh... Gotcha..." The Saiyan nodded understandingly before briefly shooting him a casual finger gun. "I think there should be bathrooms off around the outskirts- Maybe around the konpeito booth?"

"Much appreciated..." Frieza grunted through his teeth as he turned in his tracks off towards the other direction, redirecting his attention and softening his tone towards his son. "It's okay, Kuri... Papa will do the pretty shiny thing for you soon..."

However, before he could get too far, Pan suddenly chipped in, her voice still somewhat stuttering in fear of potentially upsetting the short fused emperor. "Wait... Umm, Mister Frieza?"

One iris darted back to look at the petite partial Saiyan, Frieza's default look appearing like a glare. "Yes? What do you need, little mutt?"

"Well, umm..." She hesitated. "If you tell us what it looks like, we could try to find the little charm for him..." After her initial nerves, she perked up, confidently cocky like her grandpa. "I'm good at finding things!"

The emperor was resistant to accept the offer, especially one from a five year old, but he eventually let out a begrudging sigh. "Very well, but don't get your hopes up about finding it. It's a small circle shaped pendant- Two sides to it. One has a picture of the sun, the other has a crescent of your planet's moon- and it's very shiny as you could presume." He rolled his eyes as he turned back around. "Now, if you don't mind..." He trailed off, grumbling.

Not long after Frieza had only taken a few steps ahead, all while trying to reign in the silently fussing little lizard in his arms, a thought caused Goku's shoulders to lurch up, like a jolt coursed through him to turn on the metaphorical lightbulb. He turned to Pan, fetching something from his belt as he did- the small keychain that had been dropped from earlier. Of course, it appeared a touch less shiny than hoped due to the dirt on it. "Hey... Pan, do you think this might be it?"

"Yeah!" The young quarter-Saiyan piped up. "After all, we did find it when the little guy ran off."

"Well, Mister Frieza's not too far, so do you think you could-"

Goku was barely allowed a chance to finish before his granddaughter yelped out to cross the few feet gap between her and the father-son pair of lizards. "Hey! Mister Frieza! We have it!"

The lizard emperor flinched in his tracks from the volume of her voice, pivoting back around on a dime and returning back to the two Saiyans. "What?! How the hell did you find that so fast?"

Pan briefly flinched as well, sensing hostility in his tone, but quickly recomposing herself. "Well, we think he lost it when I pulled his tail. It was on the ground where he was, so..." She held out the keychain, Frieza's eyes nearly lighting up in relief, only for his expression to remain the same typical disgruntled.

"It's all dirty, monkey..." His glare shot up to Goku, who quickly understood what Frieza meant by it, letting out a brief "oh!" before taking the keychain from Pan, hastily wiping it clean with the edge of his top, then handing it back. "That's better."

Upon seeing its glimmering beauty reflecting the light of the sunshine, the once stubborn little Kuriza's expression seemed to melt into stunned wonder, a matching glitter in his eyes. "Shiny..." He let out an awestruck whisper, his tiny hand now attempting to reach out toward it, only to be limited by the length of his arm and the hold his father, who was smiling for once, kept on him.

"Yes, yes, I see it, my little chestnut." The emperor sighed. He knelt down to a shorter level, closer to Pan's, as he set Kuriza back onto his two feet and quickly snatched the charm from the Saiyan child's hands. "Now, so you don't lose this again..." He untied the knot of the boy's scarf before quickly retying it again, this time making the knot around the looped end of the keychain. "We'll tie it here."

Kuriza almost immediately looked back down to admire it, fumbling with it in his tiny hands and flipping it between sun and moon, continuing to do so even as his father scooped him back up and rose to his feet. The smile remained on the older lizard's face even as he shot a glaring look with his eyes at Pan. "Don't expect any sort of 'thank you', mutt. You were part of the problem, after all."

"Well, she was part of the solution, to be fair."

Frieza simply scoffed. "Water under the bridge, monkey..." He shifted his son in his arms, transferring him to his backside and, no sooner after the small being had securely latched himself into his new position, his eyes progressively lowered, already tired. It was interesting to see how Frieza seemed to mellow around his son- was it parental hormones or did he actually have a sweet side?- yet his characteristic cold nature seemed to remain beneath.

"Now, if you have nothing further to contribute... I'll continue perusing this overly sappy human carnival until the main event starts." As the lizard turned around, precious cargo slumbering on his back, it wasn't long before his route forward was cut short by another voice calling out toward him, this one feminine, but not belonging to Pan.

"Hey! There you are, Frieza!" He looked with a cold glare to find that the approaching voice was tied to the woman who had roped him into this mess herself- Bulma, waving towards the group ahead on the path. Of course, she was not alone, having her clearly disgruntled Saiyan husband dragged along with her, as well as an unfamiliar pint-size presence, her hair distinctly matching Bulma's in color.

"Great... The woman..."

Alerted by this commotion, Kuriza's attempted nap was instantly halted with an alarmed squeak. His panic amplified upon seeing the approaching Briefs family and, not wishing to confront even more people, released his hold on Frieza's back, dropping to the ground and preparing to bolt away in the opposite direction. However, a stark white tail pushed him back. "No running off again!" Having no other escape option, he defensively kept a firm hug-like grip around his father's legs.

While Frieza remained aloofly looking away, Goku was all smiles to see the group approaching, waving towards Vegeta in particular. "Hey, 'Geets!" His greeting was met by the other Saiyan letting out a small grunt and simply addressing him as "Kakarot".

The emperor only rolled his eyes at this overly sappy "buddy-buddy" display, not finding any interest in whatever sort of bonding ritual the two Saiyans had to share, nor any of the human ones Bulma would force onto him. However, before he could make his discreet exit from the situation, the woman's eyes locked with him. "I thought I saw you around. Thankfully nothing in utter chaos." The smile on her lips was hesitant, even though dragging him here was her idea, and Vegeta held her back with a defensive arm, as if he were a zoo exhibit.

"Your lack of faith in me to 'behave', as you put it, is insulting, Bulma." Frieza scoffed, half-humoring her. "Anyway, thank you for the... human disguise you loaned me." He motioned to the collar of the button-up shirt, speaking of it like it was a burden forced upon him. "And, if you don't mind, I was just about to continue my rounds until you appeared." As he turned around, he unpinned the sunglasses from his shirt and covered his glaring red eyes back up with them. "Without further interruption, I must bid you ta-ta, woman~"

The lizard dismissed the group that had formed around him with a flick of a wave, but, when he tried to continue his trail through the grounds, he was halted, as his legs didn't seem to want to move. Looking down to see what was the matter, he noticed that Kuriza was still stubbornly grabbing him by the legs in defensive attachment, his grip keeping the two legs squeezed together. "Gkk! Kuri- please-"

Of course, it didn't take Bulma long to notice. "Aww... Who's that little fella you've got there?" Once the woman drew attention to the little lizard, his father let out a disgruntled sigh, his shades slightly falling and once again revealing a peek of unamused red irises.

"Oh, didn't you guys know?" Goku started answering on Frieza's behalf. "Frieza had a kiddo of his own the whole time!"

"Ah, that explains why you were asking about child admission when I got in touch with you! I just thought you were trying to pass one of your short minions off as one to get a discount or something."

Vegeta added a begrudging "Him procreating? Tch..."

The emperor continued through gritted teeth. "Yes, his name is Kuriza and he doesn't like new people, so could we just move on-"

Before he could finish, Bulma's curiosity had already overtaken her, passing Vegeta's arm barrier to her husband's dismay. She had already made her way uncomfortably close to the lizard, kneeling down to reach the further fearful Kuriza, his grip tightening and his face becoming more obscured. "That's okay. He just hasn't come out of his shell yet." Her voice became a coo. "It's okay, little guy... Miss Bulma won't hurt you!"

"Woman, please back off. He doesn't want your company." Frieza, raising his sunglasses up to his forehead, urged her, not being heard.

"Aww... Poor guy... Don't be scared!" She reached forward, further triggering the boy's fight or flight, and carefully examined the little charm tied to his scarf, flipping the token in her fingertips. "That's a cute little charm you have there, Kuriza~ Did your dad get that for you?"

"You may not want to touch that-"

"I'm not going to take it away from him, I'm just looking at it."

"Bulma!" Frieza, at the end of his rope, finally used her real name. "I really wouldn't. He-!"

He looked back down too late as the human woman let out a panicked yelp. "Oww! He bit me!" Sure enough, little Kuriza's fangs were clamped onto Bulma's finger, the other four fearfully releasing his pendant. The small creature, frightenedly unsure of how to react, was between moods, letting out a soft growl and tearing up at the same time.

"As I was trying to explain..." Frieza grumbled. "He bites when he feels threatened- and you were being quite threatening in his mind." He reached down and planted a reassuring hand on top of his son's head. "It's okay, Kuri~ Let her go now." While the younger lizard hesitated briefly, he acquiesced and allowed Bulma to withdraw her hand, shortly after transferring his hug hold by springing up onto his father's arm.

"Well, that's a lesson for later... Heh..." With a forced smile, Bulma tried to brush off the incident, rubbing at her sore finger. "I guess I'll leave you two to your business! We'll see you later at the main event!"

While both lizards were relieved in their own ways that the Briefs group was leaving, another voice, finally piping up, was not quite enthused. "Aww... But, I wanted to play with the lizard boy!" The tiny source was the small girl by Vegeta's legs, the color of her hair, tied up in a ponytail, a mix of purple and robin's egg strands.

"I know you did, Bulla, honey, but little Kuriza's not quite in the mood to play right now." While Bulma rationally explained the situation, Vegeta was taking the more protective route, trying to prod Bulla away. Perhaps it was fear of her being bitten too, or of her being 'contaminated' by an evil emperor's son.

"Okay..." Bulla disappointedly whimpered. As she was urged ahead on her way by her stubborn Saiyan father, she raised her hand to wave goodbye. "Bye-bye, then!" Her hand waving overenthusiastically at the same time rattled a small bracelet around her wrist, a few gemstone-like beads making it up- hopefully play-pretend plastic, unless they trusted a four-year-old that much. However, no matter what material it was, what mattered was its surfaces caught glimmers of light in their motions-

As well as Kuriza's attention.

The Saiyans, partial and full, and Bulma parted to one direction, while the solitary emperor and his boy went to the other. However, Kuriza, now reclaiming his prior position playing piggyback, couldn't help but look behind him as the others headed off- though the people themselves were of less interest to him than the real treasure. The bracelet continued to jangle around on its little girl owner's wrist, further tempting him with its glittering allure. "Shiny..." He near silently whispered. His movements were quiet and stealthy, taking some time before Frieza even noticed him dropping down from his back.

Bulla, past her initial disappointment of not having a new playmate, was now busily chatting with Pan, walking to the side of her. Her braceleted hand was held behind her back while her father protectively held the other one. The surrounding footsteps that formed the ambience of the tournament ground made her miss the tiny and quickly approaching patters- that was until she felt the wrist behind her being suddenly grabbed.

"Oh!" She turned around to see Kuriza attempting to take a hold on her bracelet and suddenly frozen in his tracks, realizing he had to deal with the person attached. "Hey, it's you! Hi!" The lizard wanted to draw back, but also refused to leave his prize.

Kuriza hesitated. "...Hi...?"

"It's okay. You like my bracelet, don't you?" He nodded daintily in response, just as his father worriedly approached.

"Kuri, what did I tell you about scampering off again?! That shiny thing already has a home..." The young Arcosian's attention was still diverted, continuing to be subjected to Bulla's small talk.

"My mum got me this for my birthday. It's my favorite, but I really like your little shiny thing too!" Surprisingly, Kuriza did not grow defensive of his trinket when she pointed at it, his more important goal being the new object before him. "Oh! I just remembered! You don't know my name. My name's Bulla, nice to meet'cha!"

Since the lizard's hand was already joined to her, Bulla simply grabbed his wrist in exchange to complete the handshake, causing him to slightly flinch. He knew he couldn't run away now- especially since the treasure was in close range.

Stammering, he suddenly spoke up again, his murmur making him harder to understand. "I- 'm... K-Ku-reeza... Nice to... mmm..." He mumbled, failing on the last word and looking up at his father for guidance, who simply sighed.

"Don't hurt yourself... It's an earth thing... Just say 'meet you'."

"Oh... Meet you! Nice to meet you..." He finished, suddenly triumphant but still hushed.

"Very good, Kuriza. Now come along please. This little one has other places to be- as do we." Frieza bent down to his knees to reach the young boy's level again, attempting to gently disconnect his hand from the girl's wrist. Though he was resistant to do so, Kuriza submitted to his father's grab and returned to his embrace.

"Aww, so soon...?" It wasn't the young girl who was whining, but rather her mother. "The little fella was just coming out of his shell. Didn't you see it, Frieza?"

"I did." Frieza glared. "And it was probably only because of her bracelet, so don't read too deep into it." He rose to his feet, Kuriza in tow, preparing to continue turning the other way- a simple task that he would have completed minutes ago but, with more pestering from Bulma, it became increasingly difficult.

"That's because you're not giving it a chance! Why don't you just come with us then? You'll still be able to see the grounds and the little guys can have their time together. Sounds like a win-win!"

The older lizard looked back with skepticism. "I'm not sure if he'd be... comfortable..." His vision then turned to the boy, who was trying to return to burying his face.

"It's okay!" Bulla responded with her mother's chipper and boundless enthusiasm, the arm with her bracelet raising at the same time and jangling the beads. "I'm lots of fun! I'll be his friend!"

Once shy Kuriza almost instantly popped out of his reclusion upon hearing the little beads clatter and, again captivated like a magpie to its shininess, leaned forward to get a closer look, dropping himself out of Frieza's arms in the process. He skittered over to Bulla and latched onto her braceleted wrist yet again like a magnet. "I see someone agrees!" Bulma, noticing the action, smiled.

This further hardened Frieza's glare, the action proving his argument in favor of this being the bracelet's fault and nothing else. Kuriza appeared happy, probably only because he was faced with a new shiny trinket to eye up. As he was about to make his rebuttal, surprisingly, someone else had an objection.

"Bulma, what are you trying to do?!" Vegeta's brow furrowed, trying to tug Bulla back to his side by her other hand. "Why are you setting up my-" He corrected himself. "Our princess with this little... tyrant?!"

"Vegeta, you're being ridiculous." Bulma's look equally soured. "I know he's Frieza's kid, you had some bad blood, but he's three at most." She looked down to where the children were standing, Bulla figuring out that her bracelet was like a laser pointer and moving her arm around to see if Kuriza's eyes followed- sure enough they did and his tail waggled gently. "He's not going to blow her up or anything."

"No, all I'm saying is-" The Saiyan attempted to protest further, only to be silenced by a quick peck to the cheek by Bulma, the love behind it covered by frustration.

"Just trust me, okay...?" She muttered under her breath before readopting her excitement. "Now that that's settled, shall we be on our way?" Bulma shot Frieza another sickeningly sweet smile, the lizard only folding his arms and sighing disgruntled as he followed them- skepticism in ever step.

Young Bulla seemed to be leading Kuriza along by her bracelet, making her own side of the conversation, all rather earthen topics, some of her favorite things and where to find the best snacks in the city, while he, probably not understanding most of it and playing along to remain tied to the shiny thing, let out occasional nods and mumbles of agreement. His father continued to watch the two closely to make sure they didn't get into any mischief, glaring at the girl with an air of distrust whenever she looked back up at him.

Hopefully, he wouldn't have to keep up this act for long. Soon enough, this charade would end with the passing of the tournament and he wouldn't need to set foot on this dirtball again, unless he made plans to claim its Dragon Balls- and that was a note he could relax a bit on.

Unfortunately, for him, what he didn't realize was that unfolding before him was the beginning of a long friendship that would persist for years to come.

So much for that idea...

#dragon ball #dragon ball z #dragon ball super #one shot #Kuriza #Frieza #Goku #Pan #Bulla #Bulma #Vegeta #A little AU bit I did #Since Frieza's alive now (for now? I think Granolah's up to something in the manga) we have the possibility of Kuriza! #A lot of my other concepts flow back to this event here #So its basically the little framework for my KurizaxBulla/Kurla nonsense #They're cute kids for now that will grow into the rarepair that's solely based on headcanon because one does not canonically exist #Woot

[sabraeal]

OH OH, some hakizana jealousy, modern, or not whatever u want. and you can choose which party is jealous. maybe both are. ;)

Haki would like the record to show that despite what some people might say, she was not trying to start trouble.

She’s just so bored.

Introductions have been made (this is Haki, my daughter, he father says with an open gesture, as if she’s one of the Gould up on the wall; you remember my fiancée, Izana drawls, hand warm on the small of her back, right above where the deep vee of her dress ends, Haki), and she’s summarily abandoned at a cocktail table as her father and fiancé work the room. She presumes her purpose must be to spice up that particular corner, which only holds a sad potted plant nearly her height and what she assumes is a modern sculpture, but looks like an uncooked, oversized, marble piece of penne.

She’s not the only one to have been abandoned as table dressing; there’s more than a few women standing around like cosmopolitan-drinking gazelle, left by their much more important dates to go gladhand and make money. She sees Medina’s wife among them, holding court with a bunch of doe-eyed girls that can’t be much more than eighteen and are probably here on visa. She should try to talk to them, she knows; that’s her job, to winnow information from wives and girlfriends, to smile in all the right places, leverage all the right friendships. She knows this. She was raised for this.

But she can’t be that person, not tonight. Makiri’s face keeps surfacing in her mind, hair shorn to a finger’s worth of bristle, his features grainy on the SATphone’s display. He’s happy now, but she remembers when this was a problem that needed fixing, when every phone call was we need to talk about that brother of yours. Tonight he’s just a talking point for when someone asks after the American flag pinned on her father’s lapel.

That’s the thing about Pandora’s Box, isn’t it? Once you let something out, it never fits back in again.

She needs a minute, Haki thinks, catching Izana’s back as he traverses the room, deep in conversation with some of her father’s associates. She just needs to get herself collected.

The bathrooms at the venue are spacious private stalls, complete with well-lit vanities. She wants to splash water on her face, but she spent an hour making her face look photoshop-flawless; its the sort of effort that can’t be recreated in a public bathroom, no matter how nice. Instead she digs into her clutch, pulling out her phone, connecting dots to get through her lock screen.

She’s not supposed to use her phone at these things; it’s been drilled into her since her father bought her a rhinestone-studded Razr for her thirteenth birthday that a girl who drags out her phone at a formal function for entertainment is vapid and petulant – two things that aren’t part of the persona they’ve agreed on. But she’s not a child now, and if she wants to feed small virtual kitties in the privacy of this public stall to retain some of her chill, she’s going to fucking do it.

Or at least, she is until she sees she’s got a missed text.

u gt th thing rt?

Haki blinks, trying to translate garbage into human speak.

YesSorry ObiI meant to send you a thank you emailI can definitely use that

She doesn’t expect an immediate text back; the timestamp places it a few hours ago, and Obi is mercurial in his texting etiquette, but she’s hardly put it down when the phone begins to buzz against the marble.

n e q?

She stares at the text for a moment longer than she has any earthly reason to, and groans.

Only why you text like a garbage person

aesthetics

Your aesthetic is the garbage?

i prefer to think of myself as a performance artist and terrible garbage texting is my medium

It certainly engenders the same feelings as when I view modern art

rage at your own mortality and frustration at the futility of life?

NoNausea

His only response is a line of indecipherable emoji – she thinks half of them are semaphore flags –and she assumes she at least made him laugh.

“Haki.”

She turns at the unfamiliar voice, smile bright on her face even though she just missed the bacon-wrapped scallops again. It’s an older man she’s never spoken to, but she recognizes him from Izana’s notes as one of the men he’s courting for investment capital.

DeLeo, forty-five. He’s into sustainable living close communities.

“That’s your name, isn’t it?” he asks, suddenly unsure. Humility is charming in a man with a nine-digit net worth. “I heard Izana introduce you.”

“It is.” She smiles. Even without the notes, she’s familiar with his work. A fan, even. She’s been trying to get her father to look into his designs for the past year. “I don’t think we’ve met.”

He hurries to put out his hand, wincing when he realizes how firmly he’s gripped hers. “Mark,” he says, “Mark DeLeo. I’m –” His eyes run over her once before he settles on. “I’m an associate of his.”

It’s only training that keeps her mouth from going rigid. “You build sustainable communities, don’t you?”

His eyebrows go up at that, like he’s surprised to see she can do more than stand around and look nice. “I do. Has Izana talked about my work?”

He pitches forward, curious, but she sees the lift at one side of his mouth and – ah, that’s his game. He’s hoping to get information out of the girlfriend. He wants leverage, wants to know how bad Izana needs him.

“No,” she lies smoothly. “I just read about your work in Wired. I liked your idea for recycling water for hydroponics.”

“Oh.” He pulls away, disappointed. “You don’t happen to know where he is, do you?”

She feels her smile pull tight. She’s not the one with the money, she reminds herself, there’s no reason for him to want to talk to her.

“Of course,” she says, so cordial.“I think he just ducked onto that balcony.“

Now that she knows there could be a text waiting for her, she feels more of an impulse to check.

She’s stealthy at least, making sure neither Izana or her father are looking when she slips around the corner to the bathroom.

speaking ofdon’t tell me you’re staying in tonightare all your besties at promises?

Haki coughs at that, wishing she hadn’t chosen that moment to try to sneak a drink of water.

Please, no one goes to Promises anymoreIt’s like you don’t even read the gossip column

vile slanderi know all the hot celebrity gossipi even know which olsen twin is which without googlingthat’s why im shidan’s favorite

I didn’t realize he was such a fanI’ll get him an autograph the next time they’re in town

okay but only mary kateshidan says ashley is a hackshe was really phoning it in on it takes two

“Haki,” croons one of the women by the bar. All of them are looking when she turns to them, but it’s Medina’s wife that continues, “Are you all right?”

“Chantel.” She keeps her voice even, almost friendly. Medina is old enough to be her father and Chantel is close enough to her age to be her sister, but that’s not her business. “I’m just fine. Thank you for asking.”

She hopes that’s the end of it, but of course it’s not. You don’t get on a reality show by being the sort of person who doesn’t create conflict.

“I just see you’re going to the bathroom a lot.” She leans in, mouth canted smugly. “And out with that fresh new fiancéof yours.”

Haki can’t help the way her gaze shifts to him, deep in conversation across the room, DeLeo and Medina both gesturing with some passion. What she wouldn’t give to trade place for even a moment.

“Maybe you’ll need to consider letting out the waistline of your dress.,” Medina’s wife presses. “Or maybe buying in an ivory?”

She has been drinking champagne half the evening, but this is what Chantal comes up with? She scans the crowd for cameras – usually there’s paperwork if they’re filming, but there’s no reason to take the chance – and Haki gives her a smile that is all teeth.

“Oh, Chantel don’t worry,” she coos, laying a hand on the woman’s shoulder. “I’d never wear something that looked so fake as a white dress.”

Haki plucks the cosmo right out of her hands and downs it, handing her the empty glass with a smile. “It looks like we have a good bartender tonight, doesn’t it?”

She’s eyeing her next opportunity for escape when she feels a hand at her back, a warm breath in her ear.

“Are you feeling all right?” Izana asks, sounding as if she could be bleeding on the floor and he would still be flagging down the server for a canape.

“Perfectly,” she purrs back, flashing him a smile. “Is something wrong?”

“No.” His tone very clearly says yes. “It’s only that Chantal was saying she’s seen you taking frequent trips to the lavatory.”

Chantal Medina is not getting a Christmas basket this year. “Oh no. Just a little too much champagne.”

The look he gives her now is earnestly concerned, his hand sliding around to palm her hip soothingly. “If you don’t feel well, we can leave.”

“No, no.” She flashes her teeth at him. “I’ll just switch to water.”

The balcony is the safest place,as long as she stands just beside the doors, obscured by fronds.

And just where are you tonightIf you’re judging me for my plans

under my roommatenot as exciting as you would thinkalso youre at a GALA of course im gonna judge that shit

Under your roommate?If you’re texting me then you’re really good at what you’re doingOr excessively bad

wouldnt u like to know

A picture loads on screen of a red head buried in his side, both of their legs tangled on the couch. Haki’s half tempted to tell Izana to break out the champagne, since his devious plan is well on its way to working.

Not to be crassBut perhaps you should consider waking the girl with your clothes onAnd suggesting she give them back

intriguing ideabut still not interested

Come on, didn’t they teach you how to handle girls in your boyband days?

yeah but all those chastity agreements really harsh the whole player vibe

Just bend down in front of herI’m sure everything will work itself outYou have that Park Jimin ass

how dare u utter the name of my bitter rivalPark Jimin has MY ass

She hesitates.

You two look cute, though

don’tpls

“Ah,” drawls a voice right next to her ear. “Here you are.”

She stiffens guiltily, but the phone is already being lifted from her hands. Izana thumbs off the screen, not even glancing at its content. His smile is wide and fake; he must think someone is watching them.

He slips her phone back into her clutch, palm brushing against her waist. “You don’t want your father catching you with that.”

She shakes her head, watching him with wide eyes. She doesn’t think she’ll ever quite be used to how he talks low like that, how he makes her breath come short.

His fingers band around her wrist, gentle but stern. “I think,” he says, with no humor at all, “That you and I should have a talk. Privately.”

#anonymous #hakizana #the wide florida bay #100 days of obiyuki (and more) #my fic #ans #modern au #The Wide Florida Bay #worry not #there shall be a sequel to this later #during the prompt-a-thon #which i'm sure will answer all your burning questions

[doumekichikara]

hello, sorry in advance if im intruding into anything but i couldnt help but see your tags about ravenclaw victor and i found that quite interesting. i have never actually thought about it so it kinda got me curious since victor sorting into a specific house is kinda hard to pin down for me and i was wondering about your reasons for seeing him as a ravenclaw. anyways, thank you :)

victor is very hard to pin down! honestly i can see a case for gryffindor victor or hufflepuff victor too, and under the primary/secondary system, victor with a slytherin secondary, so this is by no means the only way to read him, but here are some reasons for ravenclaw victor:

victor is curious and constantly seeking. i see him as someone who studies the world around him and interprets it analytically. in canon we can mainly see this in how he interacts with people, but i think it can also be extrapolated from his art and his approach to life.

we don’t see a lot of him skating, but we know he commissions his music and does his own choreography, making each one a story of sorts. we know he had already come up with both the eros and agape arrangements before he came to hasetsu, presumably planning to skate only one of them, and imo this speaks to an exploratory and extremely considered decision-making process. if you consider the inspiration for eros, it seems like such a distancing way to process that experience, especially if you factor in a whole second arrangement exploring the concept from a different angle.

we aren’t explicitly told when victor decided to take the season off (whether coming to hasetsu was what decided it or if he’d already decided not to skate, just not what to do instead), but i definitely think he spent the entire time between that moment and episode 12 thinking about what he wanted to do next. comparing each option, weighing each phase of his life against the others, imagining alternative trajectories past this grand prix with yuuri. we do get some pretty revealing glimpses at his pov but that doesn’t mean what we saw was the entirety of his thought process, or even the bulk of it. the introspection we saw felt to me like the result of months of reflection and even some restructuring of how to interpret the world.

(from how the creators have talked about it it was intentionally left open to interpretation, which i know some people see as weak storytelling bc it seems to render victor’s arc incoherent, but i think if you pick a reading and watch the show with it in mind it works just fine. like, i personally don’t think he came to hasetsu hoping yuuri would inspire him and he’d return to competition refreshed after the gpf, but it’s a valid reading. what i’m clumsily segueing into referencing is that one post pointing out that victor probably already had two programs choreographed to use this season in case he came back, given that he said he’d be on track to participate in the russian nationals; it’s possible he didn’t, but i think it makes more sense that he did—he had two full short program options for the next season right after worlds!—and that his decision in the finale wasn’t quite as spontaneous as it seemed.)

considered as a pair with yuuri (branching off from this), i think victor is caught up in his head and trying to find his heart, and yuuri’s heart is what draws victor to him so irresistibly. there’s the line about victor feeling new emotions flowing into him through yuuri, for example, but from early on we can see that yuuri’s emotions and honesty intrigue victor; i think victor is fascinated in part because performing emotion is something he has done for so long and this lack of performance is something he doesn’t currently understand but very much wants to.

i’m new to the sortinghatchats system but read through their posts on the basics while thinking through all of this and decided i see victor as a fallen ravenclaw who builds a new system, and then i saw someone’s already written about this, and i’ll add that i think what can look like a gryffindor primary is victor trying to construct a new way of finding truth. his decisions (around yuuri especially) seem more to me like looking for an external truth than connecting to an internal one.

in a more superficial sense of what makes a ravenclaw, consider victor with an apartment full of books and photographs (in the dvd/blu-ray version), three languages and counting under his belt, and a habit of experimentation and transformation. not quite as stereotypical as a studious bookworm, but a pretty straightforward match.

#(and no you're not intruding in the least anon!) #victor nikiforov #yuri on ice #yoi text #sorting #anonymous #answered