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#i could never have predicted that would happen and she’s the most special girl in the world in the WOORRLLD
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Dad!Simon Riley x Fem!reader
Simon Riley: Girl Dad
From the request here ; pic screenshot from this video
“Can I come in now?” you ask, popping your head into the nursery as Simon finishes getting your 3 month old daughter Anna ready for the day. 
She wriggles in his grasp, babbling away as he mutters in a hushed tone to her about keeping still for daddy.
"Ya think this is funny yeah," he teases her, tickling her chubby tummy before trying to wrangle one of her legs in his grasp.
It’s like music to his soul the way the happy talking sounds she makes touches his heart and it only makes him want to do whatever he can so that she will keep making them for him. That’s why it always takes longer than usual to get her dressed when he does it.
You crane your neck trying to sneak a peak, but his voice stops you. “Not yet,” he says and moves his body to block your view. 
He doesn’t want you to see before he’s ready. The outfit is one he picked up the other night on a whim, the moment he saw it he knew Anna had to have it for today, and he wants to get it all on to give the full effect. He finishes straightening her up and tucks her body sitting up in the crook of his arm. She is content as can be being snuggled at the side of his chest, happily clapping her little hands together as they turn to face you. 
“Well?” he asks, brow furrowed and body slightly tense as he waits for your critique. “How'd we do?”
You match your daughter’s vibrant smile as you see the outfit Simon’s bought all on his own: a bright yellow corduroy romper with frill capped sleeves, little socks with suns on them, and a big yellow bow to match. Your heart swells full of emotion at the sight; it’s just an outfit, sure, but it really means so much more than the sum of its parts. You know just how far Simon has come in his journey with her and it truly warms your heart to see him so smitten with the little babe this way.  
When she first came home, there wasn’t a moment when Simon wasn’t on edge around her, nervous that somehow, someway, he would end up hurting her. She seemed so small to him in those first days, so incredibly delicate as she lay sleeping in her bassinet like the most perfect doll, that he was certain that someone as rough around the edges as him would never be able to be near her without breaking her and that was something he was not willing to risk.
She is his gift, his light, a treasure that came from out of all the years of heartache and hardship and he would never let anything bad ever happen to her.
It took some time and a lot of encouragement on your part, but finally Simon found his confidence and never looked back. Any chance now that he can get he is holding her, changing her, feeding her; anything and everything he can do to show her his love by his actions alone. And whether he gives himself the credit for it or not, he is doing a marvelous job.
“How did I know you'd choose something yellow?” you laugh as Simon glares at you, trying not to crack that fake tough facade. 
It is becoming a pattern for him to choose yellow things when it comes to Anna. When she came home from the hospital a few months ago in that yellow onesie, it was like a flip and been switched and that was it; that was her hue from then on. It is strange, Simon never really had a favorite color before that special day and then suddenly yellow was never the same. Now he cannot imagine his life without it.
His face breaks into a smile as he shakes his head, not ready to admit that he is becoming predictable. “Come on, did I do it right or not? Just want to be sure it looks fine on her. We got a big day and I want it ta be perfect.”
Your face brightens as you look her over again. “She looks adorable, Simon,” you reply cheerfully. “You did good, baby. I think you’re really getting the hang of this dad thing.”
Looking down at her in his grasp, he beams with a sense of accomplishment and his tense shoulders ease. Parenting is not something Simon ever thought he could be good at, he never thought he would be the one with the chance at having a family, but each day he is making strides in the right direction to becoming the dad he desperately wants to be.  
“Are you sure you’ll be okay on your own today?” you ask as you watch Simon place a delicate kiss to the top of Anna’s small, wispy-haired head. “Cause I can stay if you need me to. All I gotta do is make a call and let them know I can’t go.”
Simon shakes his head and reaches for you with his free arm, pulling you by the wrist until you step close enough that he can wrap his arm around your hip to pull you against him opposite your daughter. “Ya worry too damn much, sweetheart,” he says as his hand finds your cheek, his thumb stroking across the soft skin before he is leaning his face in towards yours. 
His full lips catch you in their tender embrace, a kiss that is full of emotion, and in an instant your eyes flutter closed as you relinquish yourself to him. You let all those worries fall away as the gentle touch of his lips, the heat from his breath, the passion flowing through his kiss calms your mind. He conveys so much without ever speaking a single word and in a flash you are put at ease.
Slowly he breaks away, already missing your taste the moment your lips part. Eyes still shut, he rests his forehead against yours, rocking all three of you back and forth a moment as he enjoys the feeling of having his entire life resting comfortably in his arms. You both open your eyes after a time and look down at Anna babbling away to herself, before looking back at each other. This is all still new and unchartered territory, so the both of you are working to figure it all out, but so far it has been anything except bad. 
“I promise, I got ‘er. We’re gonna be just fine,” he says quietly. “Isn’t that right, princess?”
At the sound of his voice Anna turns her face to find his and it lights up as it always does whenever her favorite person talks to her. She even employs her recently-learned skill of giggling happily to punctuate that she agrees with whatever it was she was just asked, even though she doesn’t understand a word of it.  
Simon kisses your forehead to be sure the worry is completely gone. “It’s just a couple hours on base and then we’ll be home the rest of tha day,” he says. “Besides, might be nice to show her off to the guys. She does look real pretty today.” 
“That she does,” you agree as you quickly check the clock on your phone and with a kiss to your baby and one more for Simon you are gone, leaving the pair alone.
Simon gets to work double checking everything in his backpack that he has to bring for her: extra diapers, wipes, bottles, toys, anything he could need while he is out. It’s in his nature, years of military training has come in handy as he is prepared for it all. Satisfied, he turns back to the baby at his side. “Alright princess,” he says, “ready to go see where your dad spends all his time when he ain’t at home?”
The moment he’s walking on base, black backpack filled with essentials strapped to his back, tiny baby girl dressed in bright clothes tucked in his arms, he’s drawing curious stares from everyone he passes. This is the first time she has gone to base with him, so of course people are going to be inquisitive about things. How can they not? Simon looks like… well, Simon: intense, stoic, intimidating. Even in just his black t-shirt and jeans, with his lightweight balaclava on, he is still an imposing figure. Never one to be shy per se, Simon still does not like the attention on him, but since he is with his little angel he doesn’t care. He is proud to show off the best damn thing he has ever helped to create.
The contrast between him and his daughter he knows is jarring and Simon laughs to himself at how absurd this must look for someone like him with such a coarse demeanor to be handling such a precious, sweet thing. Who would have thought that the scary skull-masked military officer would have a family of his own? It is a shock he is sure. 
“Seems we’re gonna be the talk ‘round ‘ere today, princess,” he says as he looks down at Anna, secure in his grasp as they continue on towards his office.
She is too busy looking everywhere her little head can turn to be bothered by anything. Being out and about with her father, seeing things she’s never seen before, which is pretty much everything, has her interested and engaged with the sights around her. Those small brown eyes, the ones that are a carbon copy of his, stare on as she silently takes everything in.
He makes it to his office and gets set up, grabbing everything that he needs in one tight spot as he sits Anna up in his lap with a toy for her to play with. She is content for a while as he goes through paperwork, occasionally he gives her a tickle or readjusts her on his thigh, something to show that he hasn’t forgotten she’s there with him. 
Barely an hour has passed before Anna begins to whine and fuss and Simon knows what that means: she’s hungry. He grabs the prepped bottle out of the bag and walks to the small microwave in the corner of the room, warming it and testing it on his wrist before he moves back to his desk and sits back down in his chair, cradling her in his arms against his chest as he places the nipple of the bottle in her mouth.
“There ya are, luv,” he comforts her until she settles into him, “I gotcha. Daddy didn’t forget.”
Unknown to Simon, there is an unexpected guest that has just appeared near his office door, though before the person can even knock to announce themselves, they are caught by surprise at the sight before them. Johnny, who’s come to deliver something from Price, stops right in his tracks and stares at the scene before him.
He stands there, watching as Simon tenderly holds this little infant in his arms, quietly rocking back and forth as she drinks her bottle. Every now and again he speaks to her softly, the skin around his eyes tightening to indicate there is a smile underneath the mask. There is an ease to his movements as if he knows exactly what he is doing and it genuinely shocks the young sergeant. Who could have ever guessed that this would be something Simon would be such a natural at?
As Anna is finishing the bottle, Simon looks up as he feels a pair of eyes on him to see Johnny standing there, obscured by the doorframe, silently watching. He sets the empty bottle down on his desk and moves Anna to sit upright on his thigh, leaning her against the crook of his arm so that he can pat and rub her back until she burps. 
“Can I help ya, Mactavish?” Simon’s distinct voice calls out, catching Johnny off-guard as he realizes he’s been caught staring.
“Sorry, L.T.” Johnny stutters out as he hurriedly steps inside the office, remembering why he is here in the first place, and sets some papers upon his desk. “Price sent these; says he needs ya to look ‘em over.”
Simon nods in understanding, his hand still rubbing the baby’s back. “Will do,” he agrees, thinking this will be the end of the interaction, but Johnny still lingers. “Anything else?”
“I heard ‘round base that ya had your little one here today. Had to come see if it was true fer myself,” Johnny admits with guilt. 
“Well, ya could meet ‘er if ya like, ‘stead a standin’ there just starin’.”  Simon nods his head down at the baby. “Johnny, this is Anna.”
The sergeant observes her as she begins to coo, her eyes catching the tattoos along Simon’s muscular arm, her petite fingers tapping and poking along the lines and patterns with delight as she loves to do when he holds her like this. She’s so engrossed that she hasn’t realized there is another person in the room yet.
Johnny clears his throat. “Didn’t mean ta stare, ya know. It’s just a surprise ta see she’s actually real, I guess.”
The original members of the 141 know about Anna, it wasn’t something that Simon could hide once she was about to make her way into the world, but it’s a bit jarring for the Scot to see someone that he had previously known to be so toughened by the world change so drastically. Anyone who gets close enough can see it in the lieutenant’s soft gaze: he adores the little girl and that is… interesting, to say the least.
Simon chuckles at the clear surprise in Johnny’s voice as Anna is still playing with his arm. “Bit absurd, innit Johnny?” he questions while watching her with a prideful twinkle in those brown eyes as she giggles. “Me with a kid? Doesn’t seem possible, does it?” 
“Ya seem a natural ta me,” the Scot admits in awe of how easily he makes it seem, as if he was given some secret knowledge that made him know exactly what to do and how to do it. “Then again I don’t know the first thing ‘bout babies. Wouldn’t even know where ta start.”
Simon is reminded about how when he first found out he was going to be a dad he had started reading all the books, researching all the things like a good, capable soldier would, but how all of that prep was nothing in the end as the moment she came into the world everything was turned on its head. It’s not like in the books, it’s so much better and it is days like today that make it worth all the worry and fear and anxiety he had to break through to get here.
“Easier than ya think,” Simon replies with a chuckle as he moves Anna around facing forward now. “Once ya get the hang of it.”
“Don’t tell my girl that,” Johnny laughs back. “Can’t afford one right now.”
Anna’s attention is stirred away from Simon’s tattoos and towards the other man standing in the room with them. She looks up at Johnny in awe, not having much experience with others outside of Simon and you, but Johnny shoots her his classic smile and he has her giggling again in a flash. 
“Well hey there Anna, nice ta meet ya,” he introduces himself before turning back to Simon. “I think she likes me.”
“It's your hair she's eyein’,” Simon points out, following her eye line.
Sure enough as soon as Johnny runs his hands over the mohawk cut into his hair her eyes light up. “Can she touch it?” he asks Simon and he nods in agreement.
Johnny falls to one knee in front of the little girl, leans his head down, and lets her put her hand in it. Her short, chubby fingers pull the strands as she laughs, the short, spiky pieces pricking her fingertips. She pulls away quickly before bringing her hand back in again, a sort of game that she repeats a few more times before Johnny gets back to his feet. 
“He’s a funny one, ain’t he, princess?” Simon questions his little one as he strokes his thumb around the smile that fills her tiny, round cheeks. “Ya like him, yeah?”
She coos, her little lips forming an ‘o’ so that she sounds like a dove. That’s the closest to a yes as they are going to get. 
“I sure ‘ope ya do, seein’ as I’m your dad’s best friend,” Johnny picks, looking to Simon to see his reaction. 
He rolls his eyes at the statement, but stays silent and doesn’t correct him. Instead Simon opts to end the conversation there, needing to get finished here anyway so that he can get back home. As much as Johnny’s company isn’t as grating as it first was, he is ready to spend some alone time with the baby before you get back. “Well, if ya don’t mind, I need to get back to it. Say goodbye Anna.”
Johnny agrees, though his mouth twitches like he wants to ask a question, but ultimately decides not to ask it in the end. He turns to leave, but Simon guesses at what he is wanting and calls out behind him so that he stops. 
“And ya can tell the others they can come see ‘er if they want,” Simon assures, “I know they’re probably itchin’ to get a glimpse of her too. That’s why they sent ya, yeah? See if I was up for company?”
Johnny turns around and nods his head. Fuck, they’ve been caught. “Will do, L.T.” he says. “Can ya blame us though? She’s pretty damn cute.”
And with that he turns back around. As Johnny leaves the office with the sounds of Simon and Anna at his back, he can’t help but smile to himself at seeing his friend finally have a bit of happiness; if anyone deserves it, it is Simon. Wait till the others see just how much things around here are going to change.
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swissboyhisch · 9 months
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The Sugar Fix
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Pairing: Nico Hischier x Reader
Summary: After opening your cafe and bar, a familiar hockey player comes in opening day. Seems like he remembers you too.
Word Count: 1942
Warnings: Alcohol
THE MASTERLIST JOIN THE TAGLIST HOCKEY DISCORD
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A new shop was opening near the Prudential Centre called The Sugar Fix. They had been all over social media before they had even opened. People have been talking about it for weeks. By day it was to be a cafe bakery but at night it would transform into a hidden bar. And it was opening this weekend.
The bar theme was to change every month. With events to be held every weekend. But since it was the start of the NHL Playoffs, with the New Jersey Devils one of the top picks for the Stanley Cup, the bar had collaborated with the hockey team. The opening weekend of The Sugar Fix Bar was to be themed Devils & Demons.
But before the opening of the hidden bar, the bakery had to have a successful day. You were in the kitchen early with your best friend and a couple of the other girls you had hired. Music was playing through the store’s sound system. Some Taylor Swift this early never hurt anyone. 
“Do you want to start putting things in the display cases?” Hannah, one of your workers, suggested to you and your best friend/co-owner.
You both agree and start moving the goods to the glass cases. The four shelves in all the cases were filed with many of the cakes, cookies and pastries looking bright, colourful and inviting. From the large selection of cookies to the display of many flavours of cupcakes. Another large display case filled with cakes pre-cut ready for the coffee and cake slice special. 
You walked around the store for the tenth time. Another lap. You had to make sure everything was just how you wanted it. All the greenery in the cafe. The table decorations to the sample boxes you could buy. It needed to be perfect. 
“Everything is fine,” Your best friend reassured.
“We’ll see how it goes.”
“I can assure you we have gone over everything. This will be everything we have ever dreamed of.” They pulled you in for a hug. “Today is going to be great and tonight will be even better.”
Time ticked by and then finally the time came. 6AM. Opening time for the Sugar Fix. Since the bakery was also a cafe, they sold coffees and other drinks. Perfect for the morning on the way to work. 
You greet a couple of people waiting outside the door for you to open. “Good morning, welcome to The Sugar Fix.”
The day got busier as the sun rose in the sky. At around 9, the cafe was bustling with most of the tables full of people. A large group of men walked in. They all looked around, enjoying what they saw. All the sugary treats. One in particular you recognised, the tall brunette with an accent. Nico Hischier. 
The captain of the New Jersey Devils and you had met in the past. Back when you were both 21. He was out with his team celebrating a big win. You on the other hand were out with some friends celebrating one of the girl’s birthdays. Nico had come up to you, kinda drunk, and started to flirt with you. The night was great and you both had a good time. Maybe having a club corner makeout. Sadly you two, in the drunken haze, forgot to exchange numbers. It was a night you couldn’t forget. Well you couldn’t forget him. 
You happened to be serving customers when he and what you predicted were his teammates came up to the counter. A small smile was exchanged between you and Nico before he double checked with his friends on orders. You went through the orders, one by one. Making sure they were correct. 
“If you guys want to take a seat, I’ll bring your drinks to the table.”
After they moved away from the counter, Hannah had taken over serving customers. Allowing you to bring the soon made coffees and drinks to the hockey players. (Y/b/f/n) assisted you with the task. She didn’t know who’s order you were delivering. But when she saw who was sitting at a table, she had a Cheshire grin on her face. Aimed right at you.
“Is that–”
“Yes, and if you say anything, I’ll strangle you.”
They grins and greets the table when you arrive. “Welcome to The Sugar Fix boys.”
You placed the cups you were holding onto the table, specifically the one you remembered was Nico’s. He smiled, grabbing the cup and taking a sip. “Thank you.”
“Congratulations on the playoff spot.”
“Thank you,” Jack grins. “Congratulations on the store.”
Your best friend grinned, “Thank you, it’s a dream come true for the both of us.”
“So you two are the owners?” Nico asks.
“Yes, the creative minds behind everything.”
You both had to be pulled away to help other customers. You were too distracted by another customer that when you turned back to the table the boys were sitting at, it was empty and being wiped down by another worker. 
“Don’t worry,” A voice behind you spoke up. Your best friend sent you a smirk, “You’ll see him again.”
It came time to close the bakery after the successful day. The bakery had been busy all day, customers coming in and out of the store. A variety of comments and compliments from many customers. Now it was to clean and get the bar ready for the night. 
The Sugar Fix, a bakery cafe by day, was now becoming a bar/club. The bar staff had arrived early to make sure the bar was set and the garnishes for drinks and cocktails were prepared for the long night ahead. 
Tonight, well this month’s theme, was Devils & Demons. The room was decorated with New Jersey Devils merch and devil themed decorations. Once a month, first weekend with a new theme, prizes for the best dressed male and female would be handed out. Everyone was encouraged to dress up.
Whilst you were doing some last minute moving furniture, your phone vibrated. A message from an unknown number. 
Can I see you again? I can’t let you slip away a second time - Nico
How did he… “(Y/b/f/n)!”
“What?” They asked as she stood from behind the bar. 
You showed them the message and the biggest grin spread across their face. “He actually did it?!”
“What did you do?”
“Nothing,” They shrugged innocently. A look from you had them laughing. “I just gave him your number after he watched you walk away to help another customer.”
You didn’t bother to reply to your friend, just tried to figure out what to say. Write a message. Delete it. Reword the message. Delete it. Then finally you came up with what you wanted to send Nico. 
You have your last regular season game tonight, do you have training tomorrow?
No, why? Wanna do something tomorrow? - Nico
Well… Are you and the boys planning on celebrating making the playoffs?
Some of them mentioned going out - Nico
I can make you guys an area… Block off a couple booths
I’ll agree if you spend the evening with me in said booths - Nico
“You can do that.”
You jumped at the sudden voice in your ear. “Jesus fucking christ.”
“We open at 8, the boys won’t be here till like 10:30/11 at the earliest. You get to do the open and a couple of hours of serving.”
Tonight’s on duty manager, Tom, leant on the bar beside you guys. “You two, when the team comes in, go join them. Celebrate the successful day!”
“Yes!” Tahlia shouted from the other side of the room. “Do it. You guys have worked so hard, celebrate.”
You relented and sent another text to Nico.
Deal. But my best friend is gonna join us cause we’re gonna celebrate too
Deal - Nico
With the confirmation from Nico, your nerves increased. You had three hours until the hidden bar opened. Then another three until the boys arrive. 
“We need to get ready,” (Y/b/f/n) orders when they realise the time. 
“I did not bring date clothes,” You stress.
They roll their eyes. “I saw what you brought. It’s fitting for a club that’s having a theme night. And it’s hot as fuck.”
“I didn’t expect to have to impress a guy. Let alone him!”
The two of you went into your office at the back, behind the bar. It even had a private bathroom. You both had brought a bag full of everything you needed. Someone had turned up the music in the bar as you all started to get dressed for your shifts. Heartbeat by Childish Gambino started to play so everyone was singing along.
Within an hour of opening, the club was full of people dressed up. Music blasting and the bar was buzzing. The back corner by the bar was empty, the roped off area ready for the occupants to arrive. It made you nervous every time you looked at it. 
“It will be fine.”
It wasn’t fine. You were so nervous you had to hide in the office for a hot moment. The NHL app had informed you that the Devils had won against the Capitals. Their last regular season game. You knew you’d have a little more time since they had to do media and get ready to go out. Meaning 11 was most likely their arrival time. 
Can you text me when you’re on your way? Just so I know
As you expected, you didn’t get a reply straight away. But when you did, it was nerve racking. 
We’re on our way now - Nico
Fuck. Instead of sitting and worrying over the situation, you got a couple buckets of beers and placed them in the booths for the guys. Along with a couple of wine bottles and glasses just in case that’s what some of the partners felt like. Then you got behind the bar. Keeping busy. Keeping your mind from the cute swiss hockey player coming to see you. With it being so busy, you got swept up into serving other patrons and kinda forgot about the VIP guests. 
“Hot date, 11 o’clock.” You glance over in the direction your friend had mentioned and sure enough there was a group of players making their way through the crowd. “Go greet them!”
Nico grinned when he spotted you weaving through the crowd. God you were looking hot. He hoped that tonight would be great, fun. Especially with you. Nico wasn’t letting you slip away from him again.
“Hey, welcome to The Sugar Fix! Congrats on the win boys. I’ll show you guys to your area.”
You lead everyone through the crowd and past the bouncer you had positioned at the entrance of the roped off section. The boys immediately went for the alcohol on the tables. The partners went for the wine. 
“Thanks for this,” Nico smiled, leaning closer so you could hear him over the music. 
“Anytime,” You blush. “Did you just want one of those beers or would you prefer something else?”
You didn’t even have to move because a cosmo was thrusted in front of you. You glanced to see Tom holding it out. “Your favourite.”
The boys all cheer as you two join them at the tables. Everyone had drinks in hand, grinning and celebrating their win. Jack came up to Nico and slapped him on the shoulder. A tray of shots held out to the pair of you. Nico grabbed one and passed it to you before grabbing one for himself. 
“Cheers.”
“To the win,” you grin.
“To the date,” Nico adds. 
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TAG LIST:
@findapenny @mp0625 @hischierhaze @11zegras @lvrzegras @francesfarhadi @cixrosie @daisysthings @jayrami3
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sophie-hatter-jenkins · 4 months
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Teddy
Written for @hinnymicrofic November 2023 - Prompt 9
Ginny sat on a plastic garden chair on the patio at the back of the cottage, nursing a glass of iced lemonade. She took a deep breath, and allowed the June sunshine to warm her skin, stretching her legs out in front of her and lifting her face to the sky. The whole summer seemed to stretch out in front of her - the season was done, the Harpies had finished a creditable fourth. Rest and relaxation beckoned, for a little while at least.
If she listened closely, she could just about hear the sea, gently lapping at the shore, just beyond the hedge at the end of the garden. High overhead, seagulls cawed and wheeled, and there was just the faintest tang of saltwater in the air. It was difficult to overstate just how much she loved this place. Oh, Grimmauld Place was fine, particularly since the renovations got completed, but Ginny had always been a country girl at heart, and there was just something very special about this stretch of the Welsh coast, as far west as you could go. It felt like being at the very edge of the world, a place of big skies and even bigger seas, beautiful in its isolation. That, she thought, was probably what Harry loved most about it. 
No one bothered them here. Yes, of course, they had every ward and protection known to wizard kind, but barely anyone ever ventured out this way anyway, barring the occasional Muggle walking their dog along the beach. Otherwise, there was nothing here but peace and quiet - the perfect refuge from the constant noise, stress and pressure of each of their chosen professions. 
Of course, the moment that particular thought crossed her mind, the peace and quiet was utterly shattered, by the shrieks of an over-excited five-year-old accompanied by his godfather, making their way back from the beach. Teddy’s hair was bright yellow, a sure sign of the heady mix of happiness and excitement that accompanied much of a weekend stay in Pembrokeshire.
“Can I go on the trampoline now, Harry?” he asked. “Please? I promise I won’t bounce too high! Just for a little while?” 
“Okay, okay!” Harry held up his hands in mock surrender, although of course Ginny knew perfectly well his answer had never been in doubt. “Just until Granny comes to take you home.”
“Yay! Best day ever!” yelled Teddy, dashing towards the corner of the garden where Harry had installed the trampoline. “Come on with me Harry! Let’s bounce together!”
Ginny suppressed a laugh. When Harry had explained the Muggle concept of a garden trampoline to her, she had been incredulous, let alone when he insisted on buying one for Teddy. There was, after all, a wide selection of Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes products that would have produced a similar effect, but Harry had insisted. Eventually, after much prodding, he had confessed that he had always been jealous of the one that Dudley had at Privet Drive one summer, which Harry was, predictably, banned from using. Ginny had subsequently teased him repeatedly with the suggestion that the trampoline was as much for Harry himself as it was for Teddy. 
Harry looked up at her, as he trailed after Teddy towards the trampoline. He waved, and gave her one of those crooked grins that still made her heart skip, no matter how many years had passed. Seeing her laughter, he shrugged, wordlessly telling her that yeah, okay. You got me.
Teddy was leaping higher and higher, giggling as Harry joined him, and used his own weight in counterbalance to catapult Teddy into the air. Teddy squealed with delight, though Harry’s own face was no less joyful. Even a perfect stranger would have been under no doubt that he adored the little boy
Just then, Teddy veered just a touch too close to the springs at the edge, and in a flash, Harry’s hand was at his back, gently guiding away before Teddy even really knew it had happened. There was no real danger given the number of cushioning charms that had been cast ‘just in case’, but watching them, Ginny felt a warmth spread through her chest, and a contented smile settled on her lips. 
She remembered being more than a bit daunted at taking on caring for Teddy (albeit on an occasional and very much second-fiddle basis), in the aftermath of the battle. Back then, she was still mourning Fred, dealing with her own trauma and attempting to repair her relationship with Harry, even before adding an actual baby into the mix. It had been a lot. Now, she wouldn’t have it any other way. Seeing Harry with his godson, all the time, energy and patience that he had for the little boy, brought her so much joy that she wondered if her chest could burst with it. 
Checking her watch, Ginny saw it was close to four o’clock; Andromeda would be arriving soon. Harry would be disappointed to have to say goodbye for Teddy, but Ginny was pretty sure she would be able to cheer him up.
She wondered exactly how she would phrase it, when the time came. She didn’t have long to decide - only until the green flames signalling Teddy’s departure died down in the fireplace, she reckoned. If she kept it to herself any longer, she was worried she might actually explode, and she decided just to trust that she would find the right words when she needed to. 
She glanced back down the garden one more time, to see Andromeda at the gate, and Harry helping Teddy down from the trampoline. Without even realising it, Ginny’s hand moved gently to settle on her stomach, and the smile became a grin as one thought swirled into her head with absolute certainty.
He’s going to make a brilliant dad.
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creedslove · 10 months
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DESERVE IT - PART ELEVEN
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Javier Peña x f!reader
Summary: Three conversations. One with Javier, one with Steve and one with Messina help you be more honest with yourself and finally make up your mind on what to do
Warnings: not many warnings, just a little bit of angst, some language, reader being impatient with everybody, but then fluff and fluff and sweetness
A/N: I am in love with his chapter. I really hope you guys like it as much as I did, I am so happy with how this story is going. I can't wait to hear your thoughts, because I am so excited!!!
• PART ONE TO TEN ON MY MASTERLIST
5k words
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Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. 
That was the only word Javier's brain could process when he realized what was happening. 
e was sharp and intelligent, a skill demanded by his job, but at that moment his thoughts slowed down and he wouldn't be able to decide what to do even if his life depended on it. He simply had no action at the fact Gabriela, his… acquaintance was standing there, inside of a cell crying for him. And not only that, that motherfucker of your ex-boyfriend came up with the perfect bait so you would watch it everything. It didn't help when the cell was open and Gabi wrapped her arms around his neck, crying for his help in a dramatic way, probably too dramatic and giving him the pout and teary eyes so he would use his cop privilege to help her. 
And it definitely didn't help his case when he saw you turning your back and walking out the hallway, refusing to watch the scene.
He had expected something along the ambush lines, maybe Manu wanting to beat him up, or worse, beat you up, or some sicario from Los Pepes willing to blabber for a very low price about their deal. His cop mind ran freely through all the horrible possibilities that encounter could bring to him, and well, to you, but not in a million of years could he predict something like that would happen. If it had happened to any other agent, he would be laughing his ass off probably, but at that moment he just found out the hard way it wasn't funny. At all. 
Gabi sniffed and placed her hand on his cheek, stroking it gently as she bit her lips, but Javier's bigger hand wrapped around it and gently snapped it away. He didn't want her touching him like that, it felt uncomfortable and god forbid if you walked in again and saw that, he was screwed up enough as he was. 
The woman smirked and placed her hands on her waist, taking a good look at Javier and nodding "you're still looking so good mi amor, I miss you… did you find someone who does the job better?" She asked with a smirk "that girl seems kinda plain to you, I don't think she can make you feel like I do…" Gabi bit her lips and took another step closer, her hands going for his sides, planning on trapping him in a hug, but Javi immediately held her at arms length and shook his head. 
"Don't talk about her, Gabi, it's none of your business, now if you want my help you'd better shut up or you'll spend the night in this cell" he saw the surprise in her eyes. For all the years she knew Javier Peña, he had never acted like that. He wasn't being rude, per se, but he wasn't being his gentle, soft self either.
She thought it was odd, Gabi had never seen him with a woman nor mention one, so what if that one was special to him somehow? She raised her eyebrow but knew it was best not to screw up her best shot to get rid of that problem. 
You on the other hand, just couldn't watch that scene.
You weren't dumb, you knew about Javier's behavior but it didn't mean it didn't sting to have that reminder of his past behavior. It felt pretty uncomfortable to see a hooker get all handsy and at ease around the guy you liked, as if they had shared a dirty little secret you couldn't be a part of. You couldn't help feeling nauseous at the shredding jealousy you felt. She had touched him, way more than you did, she'd felt him inside of her so many times, she'd known his deepest, most lustful desires. His hand must have traveled her entire body, maybe he had even memorized all of her curves, her details. You hated that. And you hated her for that. 
However, that ugly, poisonous jealousy wasn't enough to change your feelings for Javier. You still loved him just the same, but having to face that woman, the way she whined your boyfriend's name and… 
Wait.
Was Javi your boyfriend? You widened your eyes at the thought, it hadn't occurred to you before. He kinda was, but he also wasn't, you didn't know. But it didn't matter, you hated the way she called his name, you were the one who was supposed to whine, call, scream, cry his name, not any other woman, and definitely not some lowlife skank like that. The way she wrapped her arms around his neck, for a split second you thought she would get on the tip of her toes and would kiss him, and god, if she'd done that, you would grab Javier's gun and shoot her.
Well, not really, but you would definitely feel like doing it. 
So you turned your back to them and went to the reception, what you didn't expect was to see Manu right after you. He had that stupid smug smile on his face and you wanted to punch him for that. You could tell how much fun he was having with that entire situation and you weren't going to be quiet about it.
You folded your arms and stared at him, who just chuckled and raised his eyebrow.
"I can't even imagine what you must be feeling now, Y/N… your boyfriend being called by a fucking prostitute in the middle of the night to come to rescue… in front of the entire team, and someone will definitely tell Colleen who will spread the news first thing in the morning… god that is embarrassing" he laughed "I'm almost sorry for you, Y/N… but you deserve this" he shrugged and you scoffed, if you felt any guilt for betraying him at any part of your day, now it had all gone away, you felt nothing but anger. Towards Manu, Javier and mostly Gabriela.
"I'm not happy about it, I gotta give you that, but since you are into gossip, here's one you can spread through the whole office first thing in the morning, honey" you took a step closer and smirked "remember the night we spent together? Well, you couldn't make me cum because you are a pathetic lover, so all the noise I made that night was because I was picturing Javier fucking me instead" you smiled "and there's more… in the morning, when I woke up, I moaned his name, because he was the one in my wet dream" you winked at him and saw as his whole face went red with anger and the way he clenched his fist made you weary, but before any of you could say anything at all, Gabi walked out the door with Javier. She held some papers and her jacket against her body, while he looked annoyed and angry. 
He immediately picked up the tension in the air and fastened his pace, meeting you in a few seconds, a protective arm around your shoulders as he looked at Manu, who was clearly at a loss of words but looking like he could burst in rage at any point. 
He thought the best would be taking you out of that place, so he placed his hand on the small of your back and guided you outside, without looking back. He didn't know what had happened during that short moment between you and your ex, but whatever that was called for an exit. 
Javier felt the exhaustion in his body, it was just too much confusion for one day, too many things happening all at once and to make things worse he would certainly have to face gossip at work the next day. 
He walked you to his car, but the sound of heels right behind you, made you both turn around. 
Gabriela was biting her lips and looking at Javier with the same dramatic and needy eyes. 
"Javi? Can I get a ride back downtown?" She bit her lips, making sure to whine his name, you felt a cold shiver down your spine, at the realization she probably moaned his name like that during sex. 
Your cheeks heated up and your heart accelerated with anger, you tried keeping that to yourself but quickly gave up as Gabriela took another step towards Javier. 
"Next time you need my services, I won't charge you anything, Javi" she whispered and bit her lips, ready to place a peck on his cheek but you immediately stormed in blocking her and looked at her 
"Oh yeah? You gonna give him that good of a discount?" You lowered your voice, staring coldly into her eyes "too bad he's not gonna take the offer, in fact, Gabi…" you whined her name just like she did when she called Javier "if there's a next time Javier touches you, you can bet your pretty ass he will do it while helping the other cops carrying your dead body out of a crime scene" you said and gave him the same glare "are we going home now or sleeping over at your desk so we won't arrive late for work, Peña?" You gritted your teeth and Javi saw you were not joking. 
He'd seen you angry, frustrated and upset, but he hadn't seen you pissed off like that. It was like something took over you as you seemed so fierce, so strong and there was definitely something sexy to it, which he thought it would be better not to comment on it. He knew a great part - if not all of it - of your anger was caused by his familiarity with Gabi, and he definitely didn't want to spark any other conversations about that. 
He simply looked down, avoiding the prostitute's pleading eyes and got into the car silently, not knowing what to tell you or what to say at all. 
You, on the other hand, just stared out the window as the streets of Bogotá were nothing but a blur as Javier drove fast through the night. A growing headache made you sigh in defeat. Things were not supposed to be going like that at all. According to your first plan, you would be coming back from a date with Javier, he would have given you flowers, taken you out for dinner, maybe even danced a little salsa before heading home to a heated night of passion. 
But then, things changed when you had your traumatic encounter with Manu, still, you and Javi managed to come up with a backup plan, better than you thought you would. You were going to fucking shower with Javi, you were going to be able to touch each other, see each other, kiss each other's skin and with a little luck he would rail you in bed after railing you in the shower, but of course things were just too good and too easy for you, so everything got ruined by that horrible woman, so yeah, you were not happy at that moment. 
You could tell Javi was just as tense, he was probably tired too, from all that happened the past few days, the turmoil of feelings and everything they brought up caused the two of you, the physical pain of being beaten up, not being able to rest and all the damn problems that never seemed to go away. And he was also stepping on eggshells around you, it was obvious. 
You couldn't blame him, you were actually glad he was being extra careful around you, because as bad tempered as you were at that moment, you feared you'd snap at him at any second. 
Getting home then, was an awkward task, but you managed to accomplish it thanks to Javier's great driving skills. He was fast and ran one red light or another, it didn't really matter, and not too long after, you were finally home. Javi was kind enough to walk you to your apartment, he wasn't sure what to say or what to do, but didn't actually want to leave you alone. So he just stood awkwardly in the living room for a couple of minutes before following you into your room. 
You were undressing, kicking off your shoes and getting rid of your sweater. He noticed you were picking from where you left off before you both had to rush to the station, but this time, he was sure he wasn't invited to your shower.
"Are we gonna talk about what happened?" He broke the silence and swallowed. It was quite hilarious Javier had arrested, fought and shot some of the most cruel men in the country without batting his eyes and yet, there he was, anxious and worried about your next move. 
You sighed tiredly and looked at him.
"There's not much we have to talk about, is there? I mean, too much happened in a short span of time, right Javi? Los Pepes, you beaten up, us sleeping together, Manu finding out and now your… friend, asking you for help" you bit your lips "it feels like we lived months, years in just a few days, and it made me very tired… I promise you I am more tired than angry right now. It was embarrassing for the two of us, having Gabriela getting all cozy around you, offering you to fuck her for free… that made sick" you admitted "I never judged you for going out with hookers, but I felt a little humiliated… she knows you more than I do, she has touched you more than I did" you sighed and Javier could see there was more than just jealousy in your eyes. There was sadness in them. 
You two had been on the run for so long, sometimes chasing each other like cat and mouse and sometimes you were just doing that dangerous dance, but it felt like you were stuck. As much as you witnessed and learned things about Javier no one ever had, as much as you were the one who made him want to grow as a man, who made him open up to love and admit he was indeed so in love with you, he still hadn't even taken you out on a date, he hadn't properly touched you, taken his time, given you pleasure and told you about his feelings for you. Of course he had mentioned his little happy ever after fantasy, but you could have easily interpreted it as a joke, which he was sure you had. 
He realized you had assurance of absolutely nothing and you were now second guessing your relationship and he couldn't blame you for that. 
"So… should I stay or do you want me to go?" He asked you unsure of your answer. 
You tiredly shrugged 
"It's up to you, Javi… I'll shower now" 
You wanted him to have stayed, but you didn't say so, whereas he wanted to stay but thought he wasn't welcome.
And when you left the bathroom, Javier was already gone.
      •••
You were finishing your coffee when someone knocked on the door, you were already all set to go to work, and you could hear the heavy rain under the roof, the weather was so inviting to stay in bed and be lazy the whole day, but you knew you had something to do, you just couldn't remember exactly what it was, but after the whole shit storm that hit you and Javier, it was natural your memory wasn't that great. 
You got up and answered the door, growing surprised to find Steve there. 
"Hey Y/N… Peña asked me to drive you to the embassy, he said you and him had meetings scheduled with Messina but she ended up calling him earlier this morning and asked him to go as fast as he could.." 
Shit. 
You had completely forgotten about your appointment with Messina. That's what was bothering you so much but you couldn't wrap your head around it. You had an idea of what she was going to talk to you but you had so much in your mind you couldn't even think of her proposal. You sighed to yourself, already feeling an anxiety creeping up your chest. 
"She's probably got something far up his ass now" he chuckled and took your attention away from your own thoughts. "anyway, it's raining and traffic is crazy, so let's go" 
Steve hadn't said much for about ten minutes, but the silence was awkward and you could just tell he was holding something back. He ran his tongue through his teeth, trying to find the exact words he could use in order to ask you, but they weren't very good. There was nothing better he could think of other than the blunt truth. 
"So… you and Javi?" He raised his eyebrow at you and chuckled at your surprised face "you know, it doesn't take a lot of brains to figure that out, you and him have been in this will they won't they situation for quite a while and it's nice things are getting into the right place" you frowned and shook your head softly, wanting to say something but being at a loss of words, so Steve took the opportunity to continue. 
"Kinda fucked up I took you for a hooker on Saturday night though, but you were loud" 
"Steve?!" You said angrily as you felt mortified at his words, though yeah, he was right and yeah, you were loud. "Can we just not talk about it? I mean, I don't know what's with Javi and me, we haven't talked about anything at all, I still don't know if things will work out or if we should have done it… it's just complicated" 
"Complicated?!" He raised his eyebrow and scoffed "complicated was my relationship when my wife left me!!! That was fucking complicated, Y/N… you and Javi are just two idiots in love who are too stubborn to admit it, there's nothing complicated about that, there's just you playing hard to get and Javier having no balls to actually get you" 
You were shocked to say the least. Steve had never talked to you like that, or about Javi that way, out of all the people in the world, you didn't expect that coming from Steve Murphy. For once, he wasn't one to give relationship advice and you had no idea things were so obvious like that, were you and Javi that pathetic?
He took a deep breath and rubbed his forehead as he parked in front of the Embassy
"Listen, I didn't mean to sound like a jerk, but you gotta stop for a moment and be true to yourself. You like Javi, and he likes you too… he isn't husband material, but what if he can't become one? Maybe he does love you and maybe he does want to do things right, what have you got to lose? Sooner or later this whole Escobar war will end and we will all go back home, and you will spend the rest of your days daydreaming about what could have happened between the two of you?" He asked "just… go with the flow, have fun. If it works you'll end up with the guy you love and if it doesn't work, at least you get to live some days of happiness with someone who makes you feel good" he said and looked outside as you opened the door and exited the car without saying a word. 
Peña looked around uncomfortably as Messina kept talking. He had honestly stopped paying attention to what her boss was blabbering about for at least ten minutes. It was all about Los Pepes and how they could come up with actions to stop them, at the same time they needed to come up with actions to stop Escobar. He was just tiring of that labyrinth, because no matter how much they ran and exchanged turns, they would never find their way out. 
"..and lastly, I asked you to come earlier because I got a report concerning your behavior, agent Peña…" she said opening a file and read out loud the written report about Gabriela's arrest the night before and saw how he uncomfortably shifted in his chair "... Anyway, one unidentified agent made allegations you had paid for this woman's…. Services, with money from the embassy" 
Javier's face felt like it was caught on fire. He couldn't hide his embarrassment and couldn't even look Messina in the eyes. It was obvious Manuel was the rat who made those allegations, which were not necessarily false, there were times Javier did pay the girls with american resources, but only when he was pursuing info on the cartels, if the girls after providing them the information offered their services to him, then he couldn't actually deny it, but he thought he shouldn't actually tell Messina that. 
"It's just that… Agent Peña, I know you have your personal life, but I thought you were dating that young lady… Y/N… and I don't think that's the correct attitude. You two seem like a lovely couple and I know our conversation is highly inappropriate, but you are one of our best agents on the field and I also know how debilitating this job can be…" 
Javier thanked the heavens for the knock on the door that interrupted Messina's lecture. 
Deep down, he knew she was completely right but it was so painfully embarrassing to have to hear her scolding him about that. It felt like his mother had to give him the talk all over again and he couldn't hide his shame.
Messina licked her lips and also looked down at a bunch of paper over her desk, she realized maybe she had gone too far on prying into one of her agent's personal business, but she was just so exhausted of her job's impossible and frustrating demands at the same time she had to handle small, petty feuds between agents like a school teacher would do when her students were bickering. 
Finally, she took a big sip of water and cleared her throat, commanding whoever knocked to come in.
You took a step inside hesitantly, you could feel the thick tension and Javier's expression was indecipherable. 
Messina nodded at him, dismissing him without using any words and you watched as Javier got up as fast as he could, wanting to get away from the woman. If you weren't so anxious about your own meeting, you would have probably laughed at his reaction, he looked like a naughty boy who was caught red handed and needed to get away before getting into trouble. 
You walked towards the chair at the same time he moved towards the door, the two of you definitely not in your best shape, clearly with your minds elsewhere, especially when Javier bumped into you by accident, making you squeal softly and gripped his hands on your hips. 
You locked eyes with him, as your bodies were so close and if you wanted to kiss those lips all you had to do was to move a little further and get on the tip of your toes. 
And God, you did wanna kiss those lips, you could practically feel them on yours already, when Messica cleared her throat, clearly irritated at the scene she witnessed. 
"Agent Peña, can you please close the door on your way out?" 
Javi slowly let go of your sides, though he couldn't look away from you just yet, instead he nodded at Messina quickly and grabbed his jacket. 
You swallowed and tried catching your breath, sitting down and drying the small beads on sweat that formed in your forehead. 
"So, Y/N… I called you here to discuss your transfer to another country, just as you had requested over two months ago and…" Messina eyebrows furrowed 
"Agent Peña, do you mind, please?" She raised her voice, not hiding the anger as Javier stood at the door, listening to the conversation. He couldn't believe you still wanted to move away from Colombia. He knew you had filled that request when you both fell out with each other, but was it possible you would want to leave now? Now that you two were so close to being together?
You turned around and you had the impression that if you had kicked a puppy on the street, the puppy's eyes would look less sad than Javier's. You swallowed and didn't say a word, as he closed the door as quietly as possible and left you and Messina alone to discuss your future. 
Javi waited by the marquee as he lit another cigarette, he was impatient as he watched the raindrops falling just a few centimeters from him. He wasn't sure if you wanted him to wait for you, but he wanted to see you, to talk to you. He had been longing for it ever since the night before. He wanted to have stayed with you, held you until you were asleep but he wasn't sure if you would want the same, so he decided not to overstep things. 
He could have waited inside, so he would catch you as soon as you left Messina's office, but the anxiety was too constant and he needed a smoke to relax some more. No matter how much he tried distracting himself or thinking about another thing, it all went back to you.
What if you were going to transfer… what would Javi do without you? He couldn't just quit his job and go after you, would you even want that? So many things worried him to no end at the same time his heart ached, he didn't have a good feeling about that at all.
You couldn't believe yourself when you left Messina's office. She had offered you the opportunity you had been dreaming about for so long, even before going to Colombia, all you needed to do was to say yes and hop on the first plane to Europe. You would leave that blood splash behind. Escobar, Carlos, Manu and Javier. 
It would all become nothing more than a distant memory, of a turbulent phase of your life.
You could start fresh, in a new city, a new opportunity to live your life. 
But you would be loveless, because you would leave your heart with Javier and you couldn't do that. 
You looked around the Embassy and couldn't find a trace of him, you hadn't asked him to wait for you, but you had a feeling in your guts and a small hope in your heart he would be there. The rain had almost stopped and you thought of going outside, maybe he would be there smoking a cigarette. 
You fastened your pace, your heart beating so fast as you finally found him. You could recognize him like that anywhere. His back, his hair, his tight jeans highlighting Javi's cute ass. It all made you giggle and you rushed to him, you didn't care if you looked like a crazy woman running under rain, you just stopped when you grabbed him by the arms, pulling him slightly as you hadn't quite stopped at the right time and pecked his neck. 
"Morning, agent Peña" you smiled as he threw the cigarette butt away and turned to you. He was shocked to say the least. First, he hadn't expected you being so happy to see him, at all. In fact, his pessimistic tendencies had already convinced you would rush home to pack your bags and go back to the USA as soon as possible. 
However, there you were, smiling, gripping his body. Shit, get it together, Javier. He told himself and immediately placed his hands on your hips, tighter than he did in Messina's office just some moments ago, pulling you closer, he watched your face, wanting to find any clues of what was your final decision.
He licked his lips and felt his heart pounding in his chest. 
"So? Did she offer you the job? Outside Colombia?" He swallowed and you nodded "is it good?" He questioned, seeing you nod again.
"New York, Javi… big deal" you said and saw how his eyes lost the sparkle, you felt guilty as he just assumed you had taken the job, you decided to end that torture, but he was faster. 
"W-when?" His voice broke a little and he immediately cleared his throat, ashamed of showing you some of that gutting feeling. "When are you leaving?" 
You frowned at him and smiled.
"I'm a little confused Javi… I thought I was- actually, we were supposed to leave only when we moved to your dad's ranch… isn't it what we talked about?" You asked and wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him closer "I'm only leaving Colombia when you leave it with me, then we'll go to Laredo, right? You'll take care of your pop's ranch, and I'll get a job at the courthouse or something… that until baby Peña shows up…" you smiled when you saw Javier smiling. 
All the tension in his body dissolved, pulling you even tighter as he couldn't believe his ears at your words. You had actually listened to him, you had liked his plans. You weren't leaving him, you were giving him a chance and he couldn't be more thankful for it. 
"But it feels kinda weird to plan this huge trip without even going on a date first, doesn't it?" You asked and grabbed his left arm, taking a look at his watch to see what time it was. 
"So, you got two hours to figure out where to take me… I'm going home to get ready, and remember, Peña… no date, no happy ending in our ranch with our family" you winked and pulled him for a kiss, his big hand cupped your cheek, but you quickly said goodbye and went home.
You had a date with Javier Peña before you could start your life with him. 
____
A/N: I hope you guys have enjoyed this chapter, I guess we can now finally forget Manu ever existed and I am so happy about how reader treated Gabi because honestly I would have done it worse if a skank wanted to touch my Javi 🔪 and finally, reader and Javi getting together for real, I love it ❤️
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sawyerconfort · 1 year
Note
more winona characters x reader, please!
winona ryder is turning your kids gay 51!
so I decided that, in celebration of that, I would take this old request and make it a special preference for her birthday!
here we go, preferences with my favorite Winona characters (the best known ones too, because it would be easy for everyone to read and recognize the situations), to celebrate her birthday!
Masterlist is pinned on the blog!
Enjoy!
Got any requests? Please send me an ask!
===========
First “I Love You” With Winona Ryder characters 
W H A T  H A P P E N S  W H E N...
(Veronica Sawyer, Joyce Byers, Kim Boggins, Lydia Deetz and Mina Murray)
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Veronica Sawyer
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You were lying on her bed after an exhausting day at school. Veronica was your one and only girlfriend, and all the times you had spent together were your best moments.
But in the midst of it all, there was JD. Jason Dean and his obsession with Veronica, on the sickest level imaginable.
You knew he wanted Veronica, but it annoyed you a lot and you thought you were insufficient when she paid attention to him and fell for her charms. However, he never asked your girlfriend if she had feelings for him.
At least not until now.
“Seriously, (Y\NN), why are you so sad?”, Veronica asked, while you were cuddling on the bed. She was the smallest spoon and had noticed how distant you seemed as you petted her.
"I'm not."
“Yes, you are,” she nodded. "Actually, I think I already know why...", Veronica smiled and took your face with both hands. “Is it because of JD?”
You swallowed hard but didn't respond.
“Oh, (Y\NN), that's bullshit!”, she smiled, still with her hands on her face. "Everyone knows he's a little shit looking for attention, and that I only have eyes for girls... in fact, one girl in particular who is the most beautiful girl in the world..."
Veronica kissed you in a quick peck, and you remained speechless until then. She was still holding her face when she broke the kiss, and close to her lips, whispered a loud, resounding, "I love you," just so you could be sure she was yours, and would never be anyone else's.
Joyce Byers
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It all happened after what happened with Will. It had been a difficult time for Joyce, and you had come along just in time, as the savior of the homeland, heroically returning to the city and helping her and Deputy Hopper solve the mystery of the Hawkins Lab and its shenanigans.
Now the two of you were sitting on the porch of the Byers' house, smoking casually, you amused that Joyce was no longer a smoker. Suddenly, she turned and smiled at you.
“I probably would’ve died without your help, (Y\N).”
“My help?”, you widened your eyes. "I didn't do anything, Joyce, really."
“Yes, you did” she whispered, calmly. “If it weren't for you, I never would have found out where Will was. And I would never have had the courage to go into that horrible place and suffer those psychological tortures with that half-baked doctor, you know?”
Joyce smiled and took you free hand. “Remember how cowardly you were in high school, (Y\N)?” that was funny. “No, I'm serious. You couldn't even kill a fly. Seeing you like this reminded me of something I had promised myself I would forget...”
“What something?”
You dropped the question, knowing you'd regret it later.
Joyce cleared her throat and pressed her fingers through yours. "I used to like you. I loved you. Since high school, when you were a coward,” she sighed. “And since then, I've never been able to love anyone .I love you, (Y\NN), since we were eighteen..."
Kim Boggs
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In fact, the whole thing happened because you were talking to Kim's family after Edward disappeared. She was visibly shaken, because she loved him more than she could have predicted, and she didn't imagine that one day he would leave her for good, despite her faults.
She was casually walking down the hall when she overheard you talking in the kitchen:
"I don't know how I'm going to do it, sir, actually..." You cleared your throat uncomfortable. “I don't know how I'm going to be able to tell her I love her even after what happened. I'm in love with Kim, but she hasn't gotten over the loss of the boy with the Scissorhands..."
Kim cocked her head into a corner of the hallway, hoping you wouldn't see her. And she did, because she was good at hiding.
"And not that I hate it, I understand it more than it seems, because..." you sighed. “I also feel guilty and shaken by his escape. The boy had so much to teach us and he just decides to leave...” You took a step forward. “But the point is, I love Kim, and I'm not giving up on her until I can make her happy again. But for this to come true, I will need your blessing.”
Kim listened for a few more minutes behind the wall, but collected herself when you passed her. In a split second, Kim lost her posture and grabbed you by the arm, kissing you in surprise.
“I'm in love with you too, (Y\N). I love you, sincerely.”
Lydia Deetz
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“Alone again, Lydia?”
“I wish it were like this every day.”
You smiled, sitting down next to her. People used to say Lydia Deetz was just a weirdo, but you didn't think that of her. At least not that she remembered. Lydia had her personal problems and her anger at the world, but that didn't mean it made her weird or mean.
You wanted to do everything to make her happy. You liked the rare moments when her smile lit up the dark environment in which she was isolated.
"If you came here to see me, it's because you're in trouble, right, (Y\N)?"
"You're right, Deetz," you replied, smiling awkwardly. “Not that I expect you to be able to help me, but I wanted to ask you for advice. It's about a girl, one of those girls I'm in love with right now,” you sighed. “She's beautiful, but she doesn't see it. And she lives in her world, she fascinates me day after day. But I don't have the courage to tell her that..."
“What are you afraid of, exactly?” Lydia returned the question.
“Of rejection.”
"Serious? Dammit!” she yelled, a little loudly. “I don't know why you fear. You're one of the nicest girls I know, there's no way anyone can turn you down. Unless he's someone like Beetlejuice.”
"You think?"
Lydia shrugged, and you hoped she'd change her mind, but she just kept saying, “Not only do I think you're one of the nicest and nicest girls I know. No one has ever been as good to me in their life as you have been. They always think I'm weird, weird, out of the ordinary... and you think I'm normal. Someone who rejects you has chicken brains for a head.”
You blushed a little and replied, in the lowest possible voice:
“I think…I'm sure I'm in love with you, Lydia Deetz. Even more so after that declaration of love.”
She smiled, rolling her eyes. “It wasn't a declaration of love, idiot,” but she turned around and pressed a kiss to your cheek suddenly. “It really wasn't.”
Mina Murray
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"MINA!"
You screamed, but it was too late. The woman, now a vampire, stood with her arms out in the sun, waiting for certain death to come. You were trying to save her, but Mina was on the higher side of the mountain, where she was cold—she obviously wouldn't feel that cold.
“I told you to leave me alone. I can bite you,” she said, taking a deep breath, her voice muffled by the noise of the fog.
“I WON'T DO IT!” you yelled back. “AND YOU WON'T BITE ME ALSO, BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO HURT YOU. I DON'T WANT YOU TO FEEL THREATENED BY ME, MINA.”
“Go away,” she pleaded in a scream that was cut off, her voice cracking. “Can't you see I've become a monster now? A demon, like who bit me?”
Suddenly, the sun hit Mina's skin full. She fell, moaning and screaming as you ran to help her. Holding her in his arms, he could see a trickle of blood running down and the fangs showing.
"Are you…afraid of me…are you…" Mina whispered weakly. “It was what I feared, but I knew it would happen. That's why I wanted to keep you out of my existence as one of them..."
You squeezed her closer. “I'm not afraid of you, Mina! I want to save her.”
She was silent, eyes open towards the sun. And then, minutes later, she pressed your lips together in a kiss, which ended with something that felt like a moan, like she was forcing herself not to hurt herself and not to hurt me either.
“I love you, Mina. Vampire or human, you will always be my Mina.”
“I love you more,” the girl breathed. “I love you more than my existence.”
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nataliesscatorccio · 9 months
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Please expand on all of your Season 3 predictions at some point!! Re your first point I wonder if Natalie will remain leader/AQ for the remainder of the Wilderness or will get supplanted at some point....to me she has always been more of a loner/outspoken moral voice and I don't see her qualities translating well to leadership compared to say Tai...I wonder who would join the Tai/Shauna coup as well if it comes down to factions as Lottie/Misty seem firmly in the Nat camp, Mari will follow Lottie, and Van is team Wilderness' Choice
Thanks for saying so! I'd love to expand on them all at some point. I've got to keep myself fed somehow through the hiatus between seasons!
I think you're right to wonder how her other qualities will transfer to leadership. Lottie offered them spirituality and softness, which are things they needed at the time to grieve what was lost and find meaning in their collective pain. I think Nat's morality and strength will serve them for a time but like Lottie's approach will have undesired consequences while also saving their lives, at which point another approach will become necessary.
The truth is NONE of them are especially equipped to lead, not here and not like this. They don't know what they're up against, the stakes are life or death, and they've endured the unimaginable. It's only going to get worse.
I love that you say Van is pro Wilderness' Choice, and I don't think you're wrong but I do think "wilderness' choice" translates for her into "sleepwalking tai".
Over and over again we see the theme of love as veneration. Laura Lee makes a God of Lottie. Shauna makes a Saint of Jackie. We want to believe the people we love are special!!! Whether it's to explain the depth of our feelings for them or because we need something to make the pain of their loss feel like it wasn't in vain. I could see a similar thing happening between Van and Tai. The "it" that adult Tai mentions being this larger than life Love that is less Love than it is Worship. If someone made you feel like a God, it wouldn't end well. It never does. I say this with all the affection in the world but Van sounds like such a child when she points out "but Tai knew where Javi was!!!" and she is a child. She's a child seeing something miraculous happen among a lot of devastation. Of course she's going to worship that. She followed Lottie loyally. Imagine how loyal she can be to someone she already loves. Imagine how dangerous that is.
Watching back the adult scenes between them I... don't think Natalie and Van like each other! Maybe this is why. They seem colder toward one another than they do with the others, in my opinion. I could see that theme of veneration continuing, and Van coming out in full support of Tai over Nat... once Tai begins sleepwalking again. Van will support the Wilderness' Choice, by supporting The Wilderness, the voice of the Wilderness, who she has slept next to and followed into the dark and already bled for. But I think it will come at a real cost to Tai, the same way it came at a cost for Lottie to believe in her delusions and have everyone else believe too. I don't think Tai will be the final leader, either. But that's just speculation.
As for who the other girls would follow through dissension, I think it's less cut and dry. They all just want to survive, and I think they'll back whoever, at the moment, can most likely ensure that. It's amazing who you can betray, what morals of your own you can betray, if you think it might get you through the night to see another day.
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In my mind where a lot of things are more to my liking, Stranger Things is a TV show in the "old" style, that is with seasons of 20+ episodes coming out once a week so that a) the audience doesn't feel pressure to "binge" which just isn't conducive to real enjoyment, and b) the plot has room to breathe, events can develop more gradually, more relationships and conflicts and combinations of characters can be explored, and in between the episodes where Big Plot happens and Shit Gets Real there is more space for lighter material and lower-stakes problems to solve. (You can call this filler if you like but I think it's important.) (And if someone gets injured they can be shown recovering over subsequent episodes and experiencing, you know, pain or discomfort and difficulty doing their normal activities rather than carrying on as if they're still in good condition, or they healed almost instantly like Wolverine or something, because the accelerating plot demands it. I have a thing about that.)
ANYWAY!
Stuff that would be in Better Stranger Things:
There is a local public access TV facility that almost no one is using. Dustin finds out about it. Dustin's eyes light up with the fire of a boy who is going to get all his friends in on this. You can base most of a season on this honestly, featuring:
That's Just My Opinion, a talk show hosted by Robin Buckley and featuring either Max Mayfield or Erica Sinclair as guest in which they discuss and comprehensively criticise a topic suggested by the "live studio audience" (whoever else is hanging around). The levels of smart and disgruntled adolescent girl scorn could punch another hole through into a different dimension.
Attempted music videos from Corroded Coffin with friends roped in as actors (Steve gets targeted for a lot of this).
Investigative news reports from Nancy which range from warning about a door-to-door scammer targeting the elderly to the time she interviewed actual Mothman.
Just basically livestreaming their Dungeons & Dragons sessions. The whole Party is in on this, they take turns to DM, and Will in particular goes all out.
Max does a little skateboard trick.
Steve does movie reviews. Almost exclusively of movies he found confusing and/or annoying.
Dustin's science show with special guest Mr Clarke.
We Lent the Video Camera to Eddie Munson and This Is What Happened, a weekly show whose content can never really be predicted, but damned if Eddie isn't creative and inventive. Usually features at least one very bumpy shot of his legs running followed by a breathless explanation with the camera too close to his face.
Look What I Can Do, a spin-off from Max's little skateboard trick bit where basically anyone demonstrates a trick they can do. Features Steve twirling things, Dustin doing weird bendy things with his arms, Lucas's musical farts, Mike's attempted bike jumps, Eddie turning his eyelids inside out because you know he was that kid, El levitating Steve's car, and Mike again burping the alphabet. The disparity in the trickiness level of these tricks is not commented upon.
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justatalkingface · 1 year
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can I ask you what you think of ochako as a character in bnha? I know that in theory she was 'developed to match toga', with all the things toga has going on with her character and where she is in the plot. But when I think about ochako a little deeper I don't really get her 'goal development' exactly, because don't they kind of conflict with each other rather than evolve together?
Because first ochako wanted to make lots of money for her family, then later it became 'who saves/protects the heroes?' But if she runs with that goal and continues to rock the proverbial boat in hero society, that probably won't lead to her making a lot of money right?
And her third emerging goal likely being something about saving/helping the villains in some way, which is definitely better/more interesting for the overall plot, but even more conflicting with her previous goals.
Which would be cool if it was really focused on in her head about how that all might work out or not but we never really get that with ochako. Can I ask you what you think about all this?
As a series, MHA has reached a point where every character can easily be labeled with 'wasted potential', but Ochako is a special case because she's a main character that was sidelined.
I always knew that, to some extent, 1A as a whole would be sidelined over time (though I couldn't have predicted how fast it would happen), but Ochako was part of the main trio, she was one of the more important characters in the early narrative. Even more, compared to Sakura, for example, or Orihime, she wasn't just the girl teammate, or someone's love interest. She had her own goals and ambitions. Most importantly of all though, and what made her so interesting to me, is that she decided to put aside her own feelings.
Manga is... let's be honest here, manga is broadly sexist. Shonens like this are worse. When a woman in shonen is in love? It defines her character, drives it. Their entire character arcs for the entire time they're in love, if not beyond it, hinge on that basic fact.
Sakura, Hinata, and Orihime are all broadly driven by their love for their men at first, and even when they grow past that being their sole motivation to fight, it still remains a fundamental core of their drives. Sakura's big growth early on, for example, is that she wants to marry Sasuke and become a proper ninja, when before her primary purpose in living seemed to be to unironically to have his babies. It was a good step, but it was kind of an insulting step, is the thing, and she never gets beyond her love of Sasuke even when both of them are trying to kill each other after he abandons her for years.
Ochako, though? She has goals first, then gets a crush, and then weighs being in love with her own ambitions and chooses her ambitions over love.
I shit over almost everything Hori does with anyone that isn't a man, because it's pretty much always shit, and the more I think about it the more I almost want to applaud him, just for this, because this? This isn't just a main heroine uninterested in love. This is one who explicitly rejects it for her own agenda, and as pathetic as it is to phrase it this way, that's a huge improvement for a shonen manga.
I mean, I've seen people say that she didn't need to do that, that she could both train to be a hero and chase her love interest, and when you think about it UA students do seem to have enough free time for her to pursue it, but you know what? Who cares?
Maybe there's actually not that much free time, maybe she just doesn't realize how much time she has, maybe she's exactly right! Does it matter? She decided she's not ready for a relationship at this portion of her life and she'd rather do something else with her time; good for her! Chase your dreams! Do what you want when you want!
And for a time, Hori seemed content to treat her as an actual important character, who develops as a combatant (which, as much as I like to say 'power ups aren't character development', I'm not blind to basic facts that mangas like this orbit around a lot of fighting, and you need to be able to fight to stay relevant to the story line) as well as develop as a person.
Actually, let me stop here and pivot a bit to better handle part of your question: her development.
Early on, Ochika training to be a hero was a basiclly a poor kid going to be a sports star to support their family; it wasn't about the job itself, per say, so much as that the job would pay well, and they could get in without getting crippling debt in the process. She had the talent, so she wanted to use it to support her family because she loved them. This was a lot more modest than, say, Lemillion's goals, but it was still noble, and she'd still do a lot of good while supporting her family. At the same time, though, she also just wanted to help people just to see them smile and what not, and so becoming a hero was really a multifaceted goal for her.
The problem with the later development, though, is the same thing that happened to everything about her post her learning Gunhead Martial Arts or so (let me take a brief aside to kind of laugh at that, because 'Gunhead' Martial Arts, rather than just martial arts or whatever just seems really ridiculously to me, but whatever): she was replaced, then her development was largely just given to her by the author happened off screen so we couldn't really connect with how it happened.
That replacement was bad for a bunch of reasons, really: because Bakugou was being promoted from classroom bully to rival character, he needed more focus with his 'rival' so he replaced Shoto. Shoto, who had all the build up of the rival character at first, needed to be in the story since he was so important to later plotlines, but didn't have a place anymore, so he needed to be put somewhere else still in the audience's eyes. The eventual fallout of all this, plus Endeavor's heavy character salvaging attemptings by Hori, is Izuku's core friend group of Ochiko, Iida, and himself was replaced by New Trio of Shoto, Bakugou, and Izuku.
Or, if I'm being even more honest, The Duo of Shoto and Izuku and then Bakugou is there too for some reason.
Something I want to point out here, while we're on talking about it; then new trio isn't a friend group, like the original one was, they're more... work associates. Shoto and Izuku are friends, by this point (and for some reason Shoto is hanging out with a person channeling the traits of his father he despises the most (cough cough, to try and salvage Bakugou)), but we don't see the three of them, like, hang out: they're together at first because they were all interning with Endeavour (for some god forsaken reason (cough cough, to salvage Endeavour)), then after that because they were heavy hitters and honestly just them being put there by the author. There's every indication that the original three are still friends, we just... don't see it, anymore.
But I'm off topic: point is, with the focus shifting from school life to 'let's save the world as first years!', the friendships took the backseat, and Ochika was just... ignored by Hori.
Eventually, she started being put back into the story, since she was still somewhat important, but by this point we had reached The War Arc (and shit, I don't think there's a post where I haven't dunked on that, is there?), and, well.
Everything Changed When The War Arc Attacked.
Everybody's characterization went to shit after that, not just her, and it's not surprising her story went down the cracks.
So, part of her changes, and part of the reason they're confusing with her original goal, is that at least part of them is mixed with her largely dropped but still weirdly there romance plot. Izuku is the origin of her thinking, 'who saves the heroes', because, well, Izuku needs saving from his own idiot self all the time later on, and he's heroic.
I'll point out that this isn't, fundamentally, a conflict with her original goal of supporting her family: she wants heroes to be treated better, she doesn't want heroes to stop being monetized (because that's too far against the status quo for any hero to support!). Even if that impacted her career (which, logically, makes sense as a possible concern and probably part of why you were confused, yet I don't think she thought about once) she's not Mt Lady; she's not going to be paying thousands in damages everytime she does anything. A rescue hero like her is always, unfortunately, going to find someone who needs to be saved by having heavy things lifted off them. Maybe she'd never be rich if this backfired on her, but she'd certainly be well enough to support her parents, at least, since we've never seen a poor hero (sighs, gestures vaguely in a, 'gee, wouldn't that have been nice to see to help develop the profession in literally any way!' sort of fashion).
The second point of 'development'... now that is honestly shit. I've mentioned before how, after a certain point, MHA's plot started turning more and more from the complex and fascinating topics that they presented to us (and got so many of us engrossed in the first place), to a more cliche format that I fondly call a 'Full Shonen'. Part of a Full Shonen plot is, unless an important villain is truly, absolutely evil (so, basiclly AFO) they aren't beyond redemption, no matter how little sense that makes. If they're not beyond redemption, The Good Guys(TM), are therefore obligated to at least try and save them from themselves. Another typical Full Shonen plotline is, if there's a female bad guy, the female good guy will have to be the one to fight them.
Following that logic, Himko, the crazed female serial killer, is not beyond salvation, and so it fall to Ochako, the female hero, to save her, no matter how little sense that makes on a character or narrative level, because, you know, cat fight or something.
*sighs for forever*
Problem being everything post-War is so quarter-assed that this entire new plot line is built off, and really isn't held together by, the fact they both love Izuku. Or rather, Himiko is vaguely in love with Ochiko because she's cute (or 'cute', by whatever arcane and ill-defined criteria she uses to target people) and feels a bond with her because she also loves Izuku, and Ochiko is just... there, basiclly, and fights her because, you know, she's a villain. The connection is beyond forced, and yet we all know that somehow she'll be essential to 'saving' Toga.
While we're talking about these two, I'm going to point out that people saying Ochaka in the latest chapters wanting to talk about love are dramatically missing the point. She didn't want to go girl talk with Toga about their mutual crush, no matter how hilarious a meme summary that was. Toga was leaving via warp portal, while turning into Twice, and Ochkaka wanted to stop her because, you know, Twice-Toga is going to make their temporary existence everyone else's problem. She couldn't physically stop her from where she was, so turned to the one thing that has always distracted Toga in the past: talking about love. Even a mere thirty seconds of Toga gushing about Izuku, after all, is thirty seconds less of a one man army fucking up the heroes plans, not even mentioning duplicating AFO or SFO or some other nightmare scenario; anything she could do to run the clock on Twice's blood at all is priceless for the heroes.
And before anyone says it, that's not some brilliant insight on Ochako's part, it's not some sign of their 'deep connection'; anyone who spends two minutes around Toga would know that much. Anyways, because of Toga's... random ass character development just before all this happened, she's finally able to control her impulses like a normal person, and leaves instead. Ochaka's comment at the end, 'she didn't want to talk about love', isn't sad that she didn't get to talk about some threesome or whatever bullshit, it's surprise, because that's not how Toga works.
So, yeah, Ochaka's great start early on fell apart after she lost the spotlight, and it's a shame. The evolution to 'saving heroes' could have easily been handled better just by, you know, focusing on her at all, and we could have seen rising concerns about how heroes are treated in their cutthroat line of work (obligatory screaming at failed heroic society development) over time, and grow more organically in her mind and motivation. Saving Toga... Toga is so unreasonable as a character that, barring a drastic redesign of her characterization, or more reasonably, something for Ochika to connect with her and make her care beyond being a female who, gasp, likes Izuku too!!!!!!, that... that was never going to work well. It, and she, are too much of a mess, and Ochaka is too good of a person.
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discet · 1 year
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Hi, Discet. I wanted to offer some of my predictions for how things are gonna shake out.
Now that Marcy and the Planters are no longer held under Newtopian custody, and she knows about the Temples, she'll figure it's time to start searching for Anne. However, Hop Pop will have to resume his duties as governor.
This will give Marcy her own A Day At The Aquarium decision, where she has to decide whether to return to Wartwood with Planters or search for Anne with Sasha. Right now, it could go either way. She might stick with Sasha, believing she owes it to Anne to help find her. She might stick with the Planters, believing Anne would never want to see her. I imagine Polly and Sprig will be tempted to stay too (if Marcy stays).
I imagine Andrias would encourage Marcy to stay with Sasha. Both to stop her from interfering in case he needs to order Hop Pop's death again, and keep her away from her other allies.
If I remember correctly, Marcy already made the connection that the music box gave them powers. In light of this, I wonder if she'll discover that they don't have to charge the stones all the way.
I have no idea how the girls will reunite or what the season finale will look like. I don't even have any theories yet. However, I think Marcy will be the one sent to Earth in season 3. This seems to be the option which makes the most sense narratively (she is the protag, after all), but also the one with most potential. It would present Marcy with the emotional conundrum of having to choose between living with her parents, being homeless, or begging one of the families she tore apart to let her stay with them.
Staying with the Boonchuys would be specially devastating considering Ms. B's Anne Room.
Anyway, love your work. Can't wait for the next chapter.
Ooooh I love getting theories like these!
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts ^-^ Always encouraging to see people thinking over what will happen next :D
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thecollectionsof · 2 years
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Henlo Gi, 67 for the asks?
"I met you in a dream"
hi eli!! sorry it’s hours late, i wrote this at work lol. this was such a fun ask, i hope you’re having a great day today <3
(and it became a small dayasco fic oops)
67. If a fic was titled [insert made up title], what would this story be about/how would you write it?
Daya always knew her dreams were different. She didn’t dream of flying, or adventures, or school. She never woke up in the middle of the night shaking due to nightmares, or had abstract dreams so weird they were unexplainable. Her mom said that this was normal for the people in her family—every child born to her family line had special dreams. Prophetic dreams.
Daya thought these dreams were stupid. They told her interesting things sometimes, yes, but they spoiled movies, ruined surprises, and even predicted her diabetic alopecia. At least they gave her some warning, but still. She wanted to dream like everyone else, to wake up in the morning and laugh at weird things, have dreams be a source of inspiration and comfort. Not whatever this was. Not whoever this was.
Ever since the night of her 21st birthday, she’d been having dreams about a girl. The girl was about her age, maybe a bit older. She had blonde hair, two differently colored eyes, and was only a bit shorter than she was. Daya saw this girl everywhere in her dreams, but most of the time she saw her in her apartment. (And she didn’t want to think too hard about it, but she often saw her in her bed. Their bed, if her assumption was right and the girl was going to move in with her.)
But now Daya was 26, and she was tired of waiting. She had watched the girl grow through these past few years, start transitioning—Daya had to look up what the shots she was taking were, but apparently the girl was on hormones. Daya didn’t daydream about helping her with her shots when she saw how she flinched every time, because that would be weird. (She did. She watched her dream self bend down and kiss her on the forehead before helping give her the shot. The girl didn’t flinch that time.)
She wanted what her future self had. She wanted to love and be loved like she saw in her dreams. She just had to find the girl first.
That led to today, a random day in June. Her sister, Crystal, insisted that the two of them go to a specific department store at exactly 12:04, but she wouldn’t say exactly why—which meant it was a dream. It always was.
“Crys, I get that we’re waiting for something, to happen, but if we keep standing in the middle of the candle aisle I’m going to buy them and use them burn your house down,” Daya complains uselessly, already knowing that Crystal wouldn’t budge until she was satisfied that the thing in her dreams had occurred.
“No, wait, it has to be soon. Be patient,” Crystal replies, staring at her watch. She had worn a watch as long as Daya could remember, obsessed with knowing when her dreams would happen in the real world. Daya was more lax with it, just allowing things to happen to her when they happened.
“But I’m hungry. You made me leave my leftovers from last night at home, and I was so excited to eat them, too!” Daya continues, ignoring Crystal’s request for patience, “And you still haven’t explained what we’re doing here.”
Crystal keeps her focus on her watch. “Two minutes,” she murmurs to herself, and Daya gives up, sitting in the ground in the middle of the aisle with a huff.
What a sight they must be, Daya thinks, One brightly colored idiot dead-staring her watch and counting the seconds, and her slightly less flamboyant companion sprawled on the ground. How fun.
“One minute!” Crystal exclaims, excitement (for what? Daya still didn’t know) visible on her face despite her unwavering gaze at her wrist.
Daya sits in silence as Crystal counts down each second.
60, 59, 58…
Daya wonders what the dream could’ve shown, for Crystal to be this excited.
50, 49, 48…
Last time she was this excited, she met Gigi. Now they’re engaged.
40, 39, 38…
Maybe she’s meeting someone else? But why here, at a department store?
30, 29, 28…
And why bring Daya? That was her biggest question. Why was it so important for her to be there?
20, 19, 18…
Maybe it was a relative. Or someone that Crystal’s wanted Daya to meet for a while, like her friend Nicky who lives in NYC.
10, 9, 8…
But that wouldn’t make sense. She’d just call her up to hang out, like she had in the past.
7, 6, 5…
So this was different.
4…
This was something to do with her.
3…
And Crystal was acting how she acts when she was about to meet Gigi.
2…
Wait.
1.
Daya looks up. And there she was, looking exactly like she always did. But now Daya—the real Daya, the Daya in the present—could reach out and touch her.
“Hi? Why are you sitting on the ground?” the girl asks, and Daya scrambles to her feet. She’s struck dumb, unable to form a coherent sentence that wouldn’t make her sound crazy. She should explain herself, or maybe compliment the girl?
“I met you in a dream,” she says instead, and then turns bright red and crumples to the ground. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to say that.”
“Really? Cool dream, then.” The girl says, seemingly unaffected by Daya’s awkwardness. She holds out one perfectly manicured hand, and Daya fits her hand into it, allowing herself to be hoisted up. She can’t help but notice how her chipping black nail polish contrasts the girl’s perfect blue polish as she lets go of the girl’s hand.
“I’m Bosco. And I’m interested in this dream. Mind telling me about it over some coffee?” The girl—Bosco—introduces herself with a small smile, and Daya is left breathless by the sight.
“Yes! I mean, yeah, that sounds good. Now?” Daya makes a mental note to kill Crystal for giving her no warning that this is what she was waiting for. Crystal, probably predicting this, is nowhere to be found.
“If you’re free, I know a good place a few minutes from here. C’mon.” Bosco grabs her hand and they navigate their way out of the store. Daya feels faint, but she knows her sugars are fine—all she can focus on is Bosco’s hand in hers, the warmth and the weight both familiar and new all at once.
They get out of the store, and Daya catches Bosco looking at her. She grins, squeezing her hand.
“Can I tell you something weird?” Bosco starts, staring at her with some unknown expression. Daya swallows, nervous but emboldened by Bosco’s hand remaining in hers. “I've been dreaming about you, too.”
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General Thoughts on the rest of Berry in the Big City Season Two
Netflix put the entirety of season two up today (I figured they would, but since not even half the season has gone up on the youtube channel, there was the chance that they would hold off on the whole thing), and I managed to watch all the episodes that haven't gone up yet, despite having my long day at work. Overall, I enjoyed it! There were some things I suspected would happen, and some I definitely didn't. And of course, we got some good songs along the way (so seriously, where's that official soundtrack?).
Individual episode thoughts under the cut:
Scaryoke - Like last year, this year's Fright Fall episode is also a song episode, courtesy of Huck. While the song isn't nearly as catchy as last year's song, it does get points for including Bread Pudding this time (he even does a small duet with Huck). And I love everyone's costumes!
Save the Pumpkins - I feel like someone should have mentioned that the pumpkins they had were already picked and thus probably had no preference over being carved or not at that point, but I'll admit, I did like the message (just because something is tradition doesn't mean you have to do it if it makes someone uncomfortable) and the punchline at the end.
Traffic Jam - aka the Money Blueberry/Huck ep. Since I already saw the majority of this one from that preview clip, I don't have too many thoughts on it. It plays out about how you think it will, but Blueberry and Huck's interactions are fun.
Berry Bounty Bolt - the return of the families, and this time Lime's other dad, Dr. Pops, gets actual dialogue. There's a lot of fun dialogue and interactions in this one, and an outcome I did not see coming at all.
Snow-Aisis - Another fun one, but not one that I really have anything to say about.
Mission Unfrostable - The holiday heist from the trailer! As one might assume from that description, this was a lot of fun, with some especially good animation and lots of good expressions. I particularly like Blueberry's SSC ice creams and how petulant the Pieman got when his ruse was found out.
The Magic's In You - Another song ep, but we also get some lore about the Winterswirl holiday, whose Santa analog is Cinnamon Swirl (and thus probably the girl from the concept art on WildBrain's productions page) with Berrykins instead of elves. Which means, once the winter special comes out next year, there will have been Berrykins in all four versions of SSC.
Best New Year's EVER - Out of all the characters who could have returned in this show, Sherry Bobbleberry is not one I would have expected. Granted, in this version she's a pop star with a fairy motif, not an actual fairy, but still. The actual episode is just okay, getting points for the other girls being all "Go, live your dream, we're happy for you" and for some Strawberry/Raspberry bonding time.
All in the Palm - Another just okay one.
Granola Crunch - the titular character is voiced by another BBA alum, Shannon Chan Kent. We learn a little bit more about Aunt Praline's job, and there's a good message. It's an enjoyable watch, but not one that needs a lot of commentary.
Strawberry Nightmare - I suspect that the "advice" the Pieman gives Strawberry is what happened to him in the past, leading to his cutthroat nature in the present. The dream business was predictable, but Strawberry does wear ruthless very well.
LemonLime Back in Time - This episode is the best of this batch, as it's not only incredibly fun, but it also answers a question most of us have had since the beginning of the show, namely Why do Lemon Meringue and Lime Chiffon share a cart when they don't seem to have anything in common? I loved all the 80s fashions, and Lemon and Lime's more extreme counterparts. The only thing that would have made this ep better was an 80s Bread Pudding in the background.
The Case of the Missing Spoon - Good on Strawberry for never doubting her friends. A lesser episode (or maybe just a longer one) would have had some seeds of doubt, but she never waivered on who was the actual culprit, just the how. Also, Captain Cackle is canon to BitBC! Even though he wasn't called by that name, and the ending implied he's going to be Sour Grapes' pet, it still counts.
Strawberry Bake Fail - While I've never tried to make my own macarons, I understand they're really hard to get right, so I feel Strawberry's pain. Best joke of the episode, an image of Huck appearing when Strawberry mentions, in the context of making cakes, density.
Berry Competitive - the Orange/Lemon episode I didn't know I needed, plus Plum Pudding returned! Not sure we needed to see Lime Tart and Lemon Tort again, but they served their purpose. And Strawberry being roped into giving Lemon Meringue's invention validity was amusing, too.
Music in Our Hearts - Most a song ep, but the intro shows a side of Huck we don't usually get to see.
Parking Problems - I've stated before that I'm not crazy about eps with one joke that it follows for the whole run time, and that is still the case here, as Strawberry struggles to find the perfect place to park her food truck at the Poachella festival. The addition of Lime Tart and Lemon Tort helps elevate it, but that's about it.
Find Your Voice - I was right about that singer in the trailer being Cherry Jam! But there are some other returning characters in the band: Peppermint Fizz and Raisin Cane! Who would have guessed?
Fashion Forward - I've been waiting for an episode of Bread Pudding and Lime Chiffon hanging out, and this one did not disappoint, though it was mostly a Bread Pudding ep. But I love when my boy is a huge dork, and this episode fulfills that to a tee. We also get another returning character, Crepes Suzette, who, like her 2003 counterpart, is a fashion designer, though here she's only aspiring.
Slumber Party - Everyone in pajamas! Raspberry being part of the friend group again! A BitBC version of Pride and Prejudice! (Pride and Pomegranates?) Suffice to say, I enjoyed this one.
Legend of the Crystal Cupcake - Slightly misleading title, as that makes you think they're specifically seeking it out, when they find it by accident at the end. I like that this ep shows the Purple Pieman is still a legitimate threat, but after that it's just all right.
Sweet and Sour Grapes - Ever since the first episode, I knew that eventually there was going to be an episode that addressed Raspberry getting added to the main friends group but not Sour Grapes, and while it took most of the season to get there, it was worth it. I liked that the misunderstanding between Sour Grapes, Raspberry Tart, and Bread Pudding was a subtle and understandable one (she felt pushed out by them joining the main friends group, they thought she didn't have time for them because of working for her uncle). And Lemon being the one to relate to Sour Grapes felt very satisfying. A solid ep.
Peculiar Purple Partner, Parts 1 & 2 - The climax of season two's story arc. The Purple Pieman gets a jazzy villain song to seduce Strawberry into joining him, all as a ruse to claim her foodtruck as his own by firing her for flimsy, but contract-bound, reasons. And just like Strawberry, I did not see that coming. I knew he had something up his sleeve, obviously, just not that particular plan. Strawberry's friends rallying around her in the aftermath was super touching, but none more so than Bread doing a meaningful echo of his first words to her back in episode one of season one. As soon as Lemon said she puts mics in everything, I knew that's how the Pieman would get his comeuppance, and while he may not be part of the Berryworks any more, time will tell if he'll be around to cause trouble in season three.
Let's Go to the Movies - While I know it's for the sake of the episode, I kind of have to wonder why so many people got to the movie so early. Episodes about the little annoyances in places like this aren't my thing either, so I'm just glad that the movie itself was good.
Let the Good Times Roll - I 100% appreciate the roller rink being called Starfruit Express, which is no doubt a nod to the musical Starlight Express (where the cast perform on roller skates to portray anthropomorphic trains). As the season ender, I liked that we got to see most of the characters we met over the season, and the song itself was pretty good, too.
Well, it took way longer to write all this up than I expected, so I'm going to close it there.
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galactic-pirates · 1 year
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Ok I’m going to do it. New drinking game (in no particular order):
Personal anti-wishlist aka do NOT want predictions for Picard Season 3 finale
Screentime is limited. Raffi is either not seen or only in background shots. It’s explained she is trying to sabotage the Titan’s engines or something if she is mentioned at all. Seven and Raffi are barely (if at all) on screen together and their relationship is never mentioned.
Seven is shown carting Shaw to sickbay. She uses her Borg nanites (hello Voyager callback) to help bring him back to life. This doesn’t make him a Borg it is just temporary. Shaw is not grateful and chews her out for it. Says she isn’t StarFleet. Seven agrees and resigns.
There is no Saffi spin-off, no Fenris Rangers. Raffi is never seen again. Seven is either never seen again or…
Shaw gets his own show spin-off. Possibly Seven guest stars one episode so he can save her life, and show he is magnanimous while still pressing the point that he was right and she was never StarFleet.
As part of being magnanimous Shaw pays Seven a compliment. Only it’s something backhanded like “you made really good coffee” and the writers think fans will be happy at the nod to Janeway, and completely overlook the fact that in the 25th century a brilliant woman is reduced to being ‘good at making drinks’.
The only assimilated we see get killed/do bad things are aliens, POC or both.
At the end Geordi is seen hugging his two crying girls and Sydney apologises to him and goes home with him. As part of the end montage she is shown handing him tools to fix the battle damage on the Enterprise-D because fuck that she had dreams of her own to be a pilot I guess.
To gain an advantage in battle Picard uses the “Picard manoeuvre”. Bonus points if it doesn’t make sense as to how it would help.
Even though Vulcan, Klingons etc. have a lot of their own ships nobody can/will help them against the assimilated fleet. Only the Enterprise is fighting the good fight. Sort of like an oblique reference to the hopefulness regarding the Federation shown in Prodigy. That was where StarFleet ships were all taken over by an external force and made to attack each other…. wait a minute *deep sigh* but anyway nobody helps because fuck that stupid kid show right? 😔
Somebody very gravely says “we are on our own”. Despite being decades older, and the odds being 50-1, the Enterprise is so special it manages to hold it’s own in battle long enough for Jack and Picard to save the day.
Even though he is assimilated and it should be impossible Jack is ‘special’ and Picard manages to reach him through his special Dad bond (fuck Beverley as the mother who raised him I guess), and Jack manages to sever the connection/put them to sleep/stop all the StarFleet assimilated.
In a parallel to Nemesis the Borg Queen self-destructs. Picard tells Data to get Jack off the ship and he has to stay behind. They both could have escaped given Picard spent a minute monologuing about friendship and family but he has to sacrifice himself like Data did in reverse.
As the unassimilated were murdered the changelings were all killed. Why/how they teamed up with the Borg, what happened to the people they impersonated etc. is never explained. They are dead, the situation is tied up with a bow. And this “they are all dead” is only an off-hand mention in a single sentence.
Despite name-dropping her Janeway neither appears nor is mentioned unless she comes in for a cameo at the end to lead the memorial/give Jack his medal/commission etc.
Hundreds were killed but the big memorial service only focuses on Picard and how he is the most legendary of all StarFleet heroes.
Jack is given command/made Captain of the new Enterprise even though it’s the flagship, he never went to the academy and has no experience. This is possibly done at said memorial service.
Inexplicably Worf is security, Beverley CMO, Deanna counsellor and Riker as first officer. This is seen with “Captain on the bridge” when Jack walks in. They all look very proud.
Kestra is never mentioned. Who is looking after her, where she is etc. is never explained.
The last line reveals Jack has taken the name Picard so he is “Captain Picard” like his dad and he says the legendary ‘Engage’.
I really hope I don’t reblog this next Friday and cross a lot off. I just really hate how damn plausible I think this list is 😭 this is a do NOT want list universe. Don’t get confused now. This is like worst case scenario for where they could go (in my opinion). So let’s really hope not. Unless of course I have had a failure of imagination and it is even worse somehow 😬
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Day five of Jeannes Pokemon Scarlet Nuzlocke
Okay apparently Black Friday/Christmas has decided to kick my ass this year and I have to work between 12 and 15 hours a day so I only have time to play on the weekend but here is the next day of my pokemon scarlet nuzlocke
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I know after the last couple of flashbacks I'm supposed to be sympathetic towards him but... his entire design just makes me angry...
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I'm sorry Ortega but the game wouldn't let me choose a body type... otherwise I would look like one of the (unusually many) buff women that are all around paldea
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Oh... shit... I forgot about obedience levels
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Slightly under leveled and my two main pokemon didn't obey me... but I managed to beat him without any casualties
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Right back at ya kid... right back at ya...
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I can't imagine why... is it because of your stupid bowlcut? Your pink/white suit with blue and gold accessories? The fact that you carry around a walking stick despite not actually needing it to walk?... I could go on...
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That... that doesn't sound like a bad thing
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Yeah Cassiopeia... most bullies are cowards... I feel like you should have predicted that
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Urgh... double battles... WHY?!?
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well... let's hope I don't accidentally kill one of my own team members...
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That wasn't difficult but still... fuck you!
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Look... a rap battle sounds fun... but I'm a basic white girl with no sense of rhythm so let's maybe not...
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Please don't be a double battle, please don't be a double battle, please don't be a double battle...
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FUCK YOU!!!!
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Did it... and I probably should have done it earlier... I was way overleveled
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Little training Session... Hydra, Adrasteia (I accidentally deleted the screenshot of catching her) and Hestia evolved
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Okay that was by far the most fun I had with any of the gym challenges so far
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Ah yes episode two of “let's confuse all the straight people”
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I'm gonna be honest... I didn't pay attention for a minute here so I'm not sure how this happened but Hephaestus died
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Aphrodite still carried the rest of the fight though
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Okay... Ages in this game confuse me... we have Arven, a grown ass man, still going to school... (and I'm pretty sure I've seen a 60 year old trainer that was also a student) and then we have a literal toddler in the Elite Four...
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Exercise... not what I expected in the psychic type gym
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Ahh... there it is...
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Oh hey it's one of the hot teachers (seriously why is every NPC hot? Like obviously the male ones are not my type but with the exception of the toddler I haven't met a single female NPC that wasn't at least a little attractive)
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Don't you specialize in fighting types? And you really thought you had a chance against the psychic gym leader? (also I think the internet has ruined me because when she said “do what the winner says” my mind went to a very different place)
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Final Gym Test...
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Man, that was annoying
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Last gym battle. This time against a supermodel
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Should have done this one before Grusha
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I know I made fun of Nemona a bit but she's genuinely one of my favorite rivals in the entire franchise
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So I'm fighting a wrestler now... wouldn't be the first time... I mean... Crasher Wake was literally a wrestler
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You know... I have a hard time believing some of this team star story... mostly the part about them getting bullied... I mean Atticus and Ortega, absolutely... Giacomo, sure... Mela, I guess... but Eri... that woman is 6 feet tall and looks like she could break a human in half... she would not get bullied... even if she was the nicest person in the world I would be afraid that one day she would snap... then again, bullies aren’t exactly known for being smart...
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Bless her... she tried so hard but her stats are so garbage...
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And that's the last boss defeated
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What? Nooo... I would never have guessed...
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Oh right I somehow forgot to post some of the screenshots of pokemon I caught... so here they are first Ananke the Riolu
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Hemera the Charcadet
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Nerites the Wugtrio
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Ares the Bisharp
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And Apate the Zorua
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That leaves only the Pokemon League (and the Arven and Cassiopeia part but I wanna do the League first) I'm worried
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Okay so Lisa told me that I should have my team at around level 58-60 (she didn't tell me anything about their types or anything but when she looked at my team she said I should train because my highest level team member were Aphrodite and Hydra at level 54 followed by Gaia at level 48) so I decided to do some grinding to level up my team, evolve all of them (well almost all of them... Stupid Hydra won't evolve until level 64) and decide which Pokemon I want to take with me... so here's my final Team...
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Gaia The Meowscarada lvl:60
@ Expert Belt
Ability: Overgrow
Jolly Minted
- Flower Trick
- Night Slash
- Play Rough
- U-turn
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Hecate the Farigiraf lvl:59
@ Expert Belt
Ability: Armor Tail
Quiet Minted
- Hyper Voice
- Psychic
- Thunderbolt
- Shadow Ball
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Ananke the Lucario lvl:58
@ Loaded Dice
Ability: Steadfast
Modest Minted
- Aura Sphere
- Steel Beam
- Vacuum Wave
- Bone Rush (why can't Lucario learn a good special Ground move via TM?)
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Sana the Dachsbun lvl:60
@ Expert Belt
Ability: Well-Baked Body
Adamant Minted
- Play Rough
- Ice Fang
- Thunder Fang
- Fire Fang
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Hemera the Armarouge lvl:59
@ Wise Glasses
Ability: Flash Fire
Modest Minted
- Psyshock
- Flamethrower
- Aura Sphere
- Dragon Pulse
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Hydra the Zweilous lvl:60
@ Muscle Band
Ability: Hustle
Adamant Nature (didn't need a Mint for this one)
- Crunch
- Zen Headbutt
- Thunder Fang
- Tera Blast
...
And that's it time for the league... tomorrow... I'm still nervous
RIP
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Hephaestus the Bronzong (lvl: 39-47)
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Adrasteia the Tinkaton (lvl: 20-50)
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nellie-elizabeth · 1 year
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Grey's Anatomy: Let's Talk About Sex (19x03)
Grey's likes doing its special episodes, and honestly even when they're heavy-handed I still think they're kind of interesting and often quite effective. Let's dive in!
Cons:
I am... extremely torn about Zola being super gifted. It feels like the more interesting conflict for Meredith's personal life would be if Zola was struggling with a learning disability, falling behind in school, and Meredith could have the chance to be the kind of mother she never had, and encourage and nourish her daughter even if she's not going to be "extraordinary" by normal societal definitions. I'm willing to see where this goes, but it feels a little silly to me. Especially as a convenient follow-up to Zola having panic attacks. Turns out they're happening because Zola is a super genius. Okay then. (Also, this plot thread includes Nick, the most Boring Character Ever to Live, so I'm automatically a little biased against it.)
I'm going to have a lot of nice things to say about the main plot with the sex education thing, but I do want to note a few elements I didn't 100% love... for one, the dancing video at the end, and the cheesy thing where Bailey talks about needing to speak the kids' language... I can see how that seemed like a good idea in the writing of the script, and I liked the goofy energy of the dancing, but I wish we had had a moment of self-awareness that trying to plan something to go viral isn't actually how any of this works. Maybe something about Bailey's idea will charm the youths and a TikTok trend will pop off. Or maybe it will be mocked mercilessly. Or maybe it'll fizzle and die entirely. I don't think you can actually predict these things.
Another element that I wish had been explored with a big more nuance... Meredith's voiceover is about how sex can be healing, sex can be medicine. But that there are different benefits, and that sometimes sex without the proper intimacy and connection doesn't work the same way. I wish this idea had been pushed one step further, talking about the fact that non-sexual intimacy can also be therapeutic in various ways. I wish that Link giving Jo a foot-rub hadn't turned into an erogenous zone thing. For several reasons: I don't like the Link/Jo romance potential, but also in general I wish we could have included a purely platonic intimacy example within the sex montage at the end of the episode.
Also, cannot state this enough: Nick is boring and when he and Meredith were smooching I was literally yawning.
Pros:
Overall, I really liked the new baby residents teaching sex ed to high schoolers. This plot thread was honestly charming and funny and gave us more time with the new characters. I like the way the residents taught the high schoolers about sexual pleasure but also kept the safe sex thing front of mind, suggesting masturbation as a good way to avoid getting pregnant, warning against the pull-out method as being effective. We also got to spend some time with Addison, which is always a lovely treat! We have one young girl who discovers that she's pregnant and decides on a medical abortion. Another girl who has a cyst that is causing her extreme abdominal distress. Issues of health that Grey's would like you to know should remain personal between a patient and their physician, thank you very much!
I liked the way Addison spoke about feeling invisible, and afraid, and angry, about the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the way she sees the impact every day in her work. It's important to keep this in mind. It's a societal evil, what is happening in this country right now. It affects everyone, even people who have never been and will never be pregnant.
As a small note I appreciated that the residents used inclusive language, talking about women, or just any person with a vagina. It's a small thing but normalizing it is so important.
Teddy and Owen get a token mention in the "pros" section this week because at least hopefully now that they've had sex to release some tension, they can stop being so gosh dang annoying on my screen every week. Get a grip, you two.
Also featured in the sex montage you've got Amelia and Kai, Kai having turned up as a surprise to see Amelia! I loved seeing their happy reunion, although I am wondering if we're going to pick back up on that drama about Kai not ever wanting kids, and Amelia's identity as a mother. We also see a couple of our newbies, Blue and Jules, hooking up. This could be a fun energy to keep our eyes on.
Probably the most moving part of the episode comes from Simone and Lucas. Simone's grandmother, who has severe dementia, comes wondering into the hospital looking for her daughter, who she believes is about to give birth. Simone tries to remind her grandmother that her daughter is dead, but that only upsets the poor woman. Meredith intervenes and tells Simone that the most humane thing to do is to live in her grandmother's reality with her, something Simone isn't sure she can do. This experience really bonds Simone and Lucas, who both know each other's secrets now. Just as Lucas knows about Simone's rough home situation, Simone knows that Lucas is a secret Shepherd.
Finally, we've got Bailey coming back to work! She wants to take a different approach this time, not taking her chief job back but instead blending attending tasks with teaching. I'm excited she's returning, and hopefully she can finally achieve some of that ideal work-life balance she so deserves.
So that's that. I had fun with this episode, I loved the energy of the sex ed stuff, and I'm still feeling really excited about the potential of these new characters!
8/10
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mondaysjournal · 10 months
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6/16/2023 - Needing // Getting
It's been a relatively uneventful week. On tuesday, I went to magic club and lost a few times, once with your kaza, because I copied a time stretch and hit only the most useless spells off of it. But I did win one game with taigam using the leveler thoracle combo. This was a game where etali (the green red one from march) got at least 8 etb triggers not just from it being played, but from other people copying and cloning it. On thursday, I was able to play with all of the pieces of Shelob (without shelob since she hadn't come out yet) and I predictably lost most of those games given her low power nature. But I did get to win one game off of an ezuri's predation making 11 beasts and then a roar of challenge. I hope I can get an actual shelob soon. And then today I went to hmart to get some stuff. I don't think I got too many interesting things, but I did get shrimp, mangos, and some of those moshi drinks we saw at maruichi that one time. They have frozen rabbit for a relatively reasonable price (compared to wegmans anyway) but I decided against it. They also had duck for $5/lb (which is how much it is at costco, I think) but I also decided against that. It felt kind of indulgent, and I think I want to get one for a special occasion. I don't really know if that will come up any time soon, given that not many people are around, but I might just get one next time I go there. That tenderloin for $12/lb is always tempting...but I will wait for you to come back to do anything with that. I kind of want to do something more interesting with it than a roast, though. I know you think I'm already good at making food, but I hope that by the time you get back, I'll have improved, or at least have found new things to make for you that I couldn't before. I will always try hard to be better for you, because you deserve that much.
A lot of places feel very different without you here. It's not always apparent when I'm there, just walking around, living, but in the reflection and the rear-view it really does feel like something incredibly important is missing. Sometimes I get mad that you left me here, but it's never for very long. Because it also made me realize just how deeply in love I am with you. It made me realize just how much I need to hold you in my arms. How much I need you to hear you breathe as you sleep next to me. How much I need to be able to kiss you whenever I want. I knew that I needed all of this when you were here, but now in your absence I realize how all of that is what gave my life real meaning. I won't go so far as to say that life before you was pointless, or not worth living, but...it really did change everything. I didn't really have this sense of "future sight," where I could say what I was planning to do or where I would be. I just had to keep going for no other reason than to see what came next. I had hope that things would get better, but I didn't know how that would happen. I just had to keep going, living that life I said I would live. I would accept whatever came to me. And then you showed up and gave me something to cherish and protect. It's a lot easier to think about creating a better future when it's one you're going to share with someone else. That's something I always dreamed of having and something I really didn't think I would ever obtain. So if I ever get mad, it's because you came into my life and gave me all these things and made me so happy as quickly as you left. But that's okay, because you're coming back, and every time you tell me you love me, that moment comes closer. I hope it's okay that for a little while after you come back I'll hold you a little tighter, stare at you a little longer, kiss you a little harder, because I'll have missed you so much. For now, I'll just be grateful that I'm in love with the cutest girl in the world, and that she loves me back. It makes me so happy that you're my princess. I love you so much.
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whitneydaniell · 10 months
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by: Kristen Bird Published: Mar 14, 2023 Genre: Thriller, Murder Mystery, Fiction 352 Pages, Paperback
★★★★
GoodReads Synopsis:
Just days before her eightieth birthday, Pearl Williams has the gall to up and die on everyone. Now her granddaughters must make plans for a proper send-off…all while their own lives unravel a little more each day.
Tara, the pastor’s wife, makes a series of decisions that could scatter his flock. Then there’s June, who would do anything to have a baby of her own, even if her husband won’t. Clementine, the youngest, is entangled in an affair with her professor, desperate to ignore who he really is. Finally, there’s Stephanie, the sister-in-law—an outsider who knows all the family dirt.
But Gran won’t be the only one they’ll put in a grave this weekend…because now someone has gone missing in the dark Appalachian woods.
My Review:
Good read! I couldn't put it down.
The Williams Sisters are all but what meets the eye. Tara, the independent second mom -- is the oldest girl, so #IYKYK. June, the unlucky (unloved) middle child -- has a lot to work on and I hope she gets the help she needs. Clementine, the baby of the sisters -- she surprised me. Walker is the oldest and the only boy -- he really gives off that, I was raised around women and have been coddled my whole life, vibe. Stephanie, Walker's wife, is a Williams sister by marriage, and boy, does she fit right in with this band of misfits. Lottie is Tara's daughter and, let's just say, the apple didn't fall very far.
When a visitor goes missing while at their Gran's cabin, it's up to the Sherriff to uncover what has happened. But don't discount the Sherriff, she has a grudge to uphold and is not buying whatever the sisters are selling.
When the sins of Gran's past float up to the surface, they all are forced to shit or get off the pot, and, one thing is for certain, a man will never stand in their way!
My Final Thoughts: I pegged the missing person by Part II because if anyway was to come up missing... it would be them. I struggled through most of June's story because she is mentally unstable and I hated how everyone placated her and went along with it. I just couldn't see that as being realistic, which annoyed me so much.
Clementine (I hate this name, BTW) also frustrated me early on. With everything she knew, how could she assume she would be any more special than the others? I hated that for her but was so glad when she bossed up.
The story jumps between a past and present timeline, with points of view from all the Williams sisters and 1 chapter from Lottie. It's a great whodunnit and an easy read. It wasn't predictable because there are some twists and turns, but it was a good story; with good writing; and a good plot.
My one gripe would be the mention of southern women and how they held up the country and households; that felt flat to me like it was just thrown in there as a sign of "strength" but I don't think it was needed. Also, what's to come with the Confederate cash?
One-Word Summary: Appalachian
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