#it’s like when someone gives you an excellent riddle

[cottagecore-raccoon]

Sometimes if I see a post with two decisions I can’t possibly choose from I think “ah good one tricky bastard” and like the post without voting

#it’s like when someone gives you an excellent riddle #or a pun #and I only do it if all the choices are equally chaotic or right #polls #tumblr pills #makes me feel like I’ve encountered a trickster god #trickster #cottagecore-raccoon

[cheapshrimpysheep]

You Will Stop the Wedding! - Vil Schoenheit

SUMMARY: YOU were the one being kidnapped by Princess Eliza to marry her. How would he react and how would he save you? With the aggravation of he already having a crush on you.

CHARACTERS: Vil Schoenheit x Reader

TAGS: Fluff; GN Reader; Declaration

WORD COUNT: 1.155 words

Riddle Rosehearts / Leona Kingscholar / Azul Ashengrotto / Jamil Viper / Vil Schoenheit / Idia Shroud / Malleus Draconia

Rescuing You - Deuce Spade; Jack Howl; Floyd Leech; Kalim Al-Asim

COMMENTS: What have I done? Why did I commit to writing this? And why did I write so much? Why was I so inspired? There were seven of them! Why do I do this to myself? So yeah, this took me a long time. But I hope it was worth it, for me and for you.

CONTEXT: Someone was kidnapped to marry some ghost princess and might end up turning into a ghost too. And he just found out that someone was you.

Vil wondered who in the entire school would be chosen as the princess's partner instead of someone like him. With someone like him at school, who the heck did they kidnap if they were looking for the perfect person for the princess?

And then he hears your name, and his eyes widen. On the one hand, he now understands. After all, if he himself fell in love with you, who wouldn't? But on the other hand, his pride was still a little hurt. But more importantly, he needed to save you!

When rescue groups are formed, he asks to be in the last one. He knows he will be the best choice for this operation because he is an actor, but to create the perfect “romantic interest”, after all, your life was at risk, he first needed to understand what the princess's “character” was like.

When it's the last group's turn, whenever someone needs to stay behind to tie up the ghosts, Vil tells one of the others to do it. He always displays such confidence and leadership that the others simply followed his orders and stayed behind. One of the boys in the group was Rook, so it was clear that he would follow Vil's orders. Vil ends up being the only one to arrive at the ceremony hall.

Following the plan and after studying the princess's "character", Vil gets into character even before opening the door. He opens the door with a bang and orders them to stop the wedding. And in the first few sentences you already got an uncanny shiver.

“STOP THE WEDDING! Princess! I cannot bear this! My heart cannot bear to see you marrying someone else. Please, my wonderful princess, I beg you to at least give me a chance to prove myself to be a good partner to you!” And he was even being so dramatic talking.

But you couldn't deny that he was an excellent actor. Anyone who doesn't know him, the princess for example, would never realize he was acting. But you knew him, and so you had to try hard not to laugh at how strange that was. He was acting so well it looked like he was possessed. And worse, he was playing... ROOK?

You were controlling yourself not to laugh, but some of the students petrified by the princess's slap weren't. And they burst into laughter, especially Leona and Floyd. “Pay these poor rejects no attention, my sweet princess.” Vil continued “They are merely jealous of whoever is worthy of standing next to you at the altar.” He was even imitating some of Rook's gestures, which only made the others laugh even more.

Vil did everything the princess asked of him. He sang with her, answered her questions with the answers he thought she wanted to hear and which from her reaction seemed right. But it seemed like she was never satisfied. Why did it never end? What was going wrong? And it was then that she said that Vil would definitely be a wonderful prince, but she had already chosen you.

“WHAT?! You can not be serious.” Now, the Vil you knew was back, and he was pissed. “I do all this, I answer all these nonsense questions, I try to act in a way that pleases you and it's all for nothing?!” Even the princess was scared by his change in behaviour. And the guards placed themselves in defensive positions. The princess asks what happened to him, what was going on?

“I tell you what is going on. I'm here doing my best to convince a delusional princess to accept me as her husband so I can save the real person I care about and yet I'm rejected after having so much patience with a spoiled girl.” The princess is horrified to know that it was all just an act, she had really believed it, she even starts to cry. And of course, the guards threaten Vil. “Cry all you want, it doesn't bother me, I came here to save (Y/N) and that's what I'm going to do. One way or another.”

And then, a fight between the ghosts and Vil begins. Which he could have almost won if it weren't for that guard who turned into a giant ghost. He suggested that the princess give Vil the slap to petrify him, but she did nothing for a moment. Afterwards, she said that what Vil did was the most evil thing anyone had ever done to her. Playing with someone's feelings like that.

“I know it's one of the ugliest things I've ever done. But I wasn't just playing. I was trying to save the person you kidnapped.” She asks if he can act so well, how would you know if what he says he feels for you is real? He looks at you, confidently, with a loving look and his soft smile. “They know.” He may be an excellent actor, but you know he’s not a liar.

And, out of nowhere, the princess started to feel sorry for herself and jealous of you. She also wanted someone to do all that for her. Pretending to be someone else just to save you, even if it meant being away from you forever. (In the Vils head he was like: Actually I was going to put a ring on your finger to send you alone to the afterlife, but of course, think whatever you want.) And this was the opportunity that the guard who was in love with her found to declare himself. He said he wasn't that good of an actor, but that if he had to, he would do his best. And that whole ending of the princess realizing that she loved him too happens, they get married and happily ever after.

After everything and while the first-years were getting ready to tidy up and clean the cafeteria, you asked Vil to wait a bit. You leave the room so you can talk alone. He looks at you from top to bottom and started fixing your clothes and hair.

“One thing I must admit, those ghosts had some fashion sense.” When he finishes he takes a step back and looks at you. He smiles. “You sure are beautiful.” You throw yourself at him to hug him. “*Sigh* I just fixed your clothes.” but he still hugged you back. “I should teach you some self-defence techniques. It seems like you are becoming too with my help.” Just in case, you ask him if he is really flirting with you at that moment. “Firstly, you don't seem too bothered by it so I assume I'm allowed to do it. And secondly, I'm not Rook. Do you really think I would praise anyone else like this, sweet potato?”

Vil highly values his face. For this reason, you are probably the only person he would let kiss him, both on the cheeks and lips.

If you would like to read more from me, you can find it in my pinned post: INDEX

#Twisted Wonderland #twst #twisted wonderland x reader #twst x reader #disney twisted wonderland #twst imagines #twst wonderland #twst fluff #Twisted Wonderland Fluff #Ghost Marriage #The Phantom Bride: Love at First Fright #Vil Schoenheit #Vil Schoenheit x Reader #Vil x Reader

[mochinomnoms]

Omg that’s so funny. Like the boys ask you to hold smth for them really quick and you put it in your boobs 😭😭😭

Azul would put you to good use and give you his random little trinkets he carries around

Malleus would be fascinated with how you figured you could hold all that

Leona would start putting his hand in them as a pocket to heat him up 💀💀

-🌑

YEAH TITTY POCKETS quick snippet before I go to bed:

Riddle was walking past the cafeteria when he noticed a small crowd forming around the table that the Prefect, Grim, Ace, and Deuce would normally sit at. A sense of dread filled him as he approached, positive that one of his freshmen was up to some trouble again.

So imagine his surprise when he walks up and sees a bunch of students, from various years and dorms, surrounding you as they handed you items. Imagine his even bigger shock when you, making direct eye contact with Riddle, smile at him as you take a small notepad from a random hand and stuff it into your breasts.

It takes a moment for him to realize that you've undone your tie and unbutton your shirt to reveal a healthy amount of cleavage, the hem of your white lacy (Oh heavens, he thinks it's lace, wait why is he looking!?) peeking at him.

“Oh, hey Riddle—”

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? YOUR SHIRT—DID YOU JUST—GAH!” Riddle launched himself over the crowd to clutch your shirt and tug it closed, face in his signature red.

“Hey! What's the big deal!” Riddle whipped his head over to see Ruggie pouting, holding a handful of granola bars.

“I was gonna see how many granola bars they could fit—”

“This is utterly indecent! Why are you allowing this Prefect? What even led up to this?!”

“Oh!” You perked up, grabbing and gently pushing his arms off you. “I was telling Ace and Deuce how I can fit up to 19 items into my boobs for storage, 10 if they're bigger. 3 if they're really big though, like a cell phone!”

He stared at you with confusion, flushing again as he saw you take three bars from Ruggie, adjust your…boobs, and start sliding the items in. As if this was a normal thing.

“Why are you acting like this is normal?”

“…. Because it is? Riddle, as someone with titties,” you ignored his scandalized gasp. “I gotta take advantage. These girls may hurt my back, but they also make excellent pockets. Look!”

You took a potion bottle from a different hand, smoothly sliding your hand down the side of your right breast. Taking a moment to adjust again, you stood up with your hands on your hips, looking proud.

“Look at my boobs and tell me how many items I have in them. Right now!”

Riddle gasped, “I will not, that is so, so, so indecent—”

“10!”

“25!”

“8!”

You snapped your fingers at a random Ignihyde student, grinning as you shouted, “Correct! You get a prize, lemme just—”

You took a moment to dig through your bra, as Riddle listened in to the students around him make comments.

“Is it wrong to find this hot?”

“Dude, why can't I have boob pockets?”

“Oh my goooood, am I into this? I think I'm into this.”

“That's actually kinda useful, not gonna lie.”

You cried out triumphantly, holding out a lollipop and handing it over to the Ignihyde student, who shrugged and accepted the candy.

“See Riddle? Useful, you can ask me to carry anything you want—”

“I will do NO such thing!” He scoffed, crossing his arms indigently, “I am a self-respecting housewarden of Night Raven College, and I'm offended at the implications that I'd do such a thing with your... you know.”

He gestured as Azul casually walked up, the crowd parting for him and the twins.

“Hello, my dear Prefect, can you hand me the spare punch cards I gave you? We ran out faster than anticipated this week.”

“Oh yeah, here” You dug through your left breast, taking out a small bundle of Mostro Lounge punch cards. “I ended up giving out a few to some guys, so expect a few new customers this weekend”

Azul smiled and nodded at you, taking the cards from your hand.

“That's fine, thank you, Prefect. I come by again later to grab the rest of my items.”

“Okie! See ya, byeee!”

You waved him goodbye, turning back to Riddle, who, once again, looked at you scandalously.

“… What?”

#mochi asks #twst #twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland x reader #twst x reader #riddle rosehearts #azul ashengrotto #ruggie bucchi #poor riddle is losing his mind while ruggie and azul just take advantage of the free storage #🌑 anon

[incorrectbatfam]

The most beloved english/ lit teacher at Park Row High, Mr Todd who inspires many many student is Red Hood. I just think Jason will make am excellent teacher and will really love the job.

All I hear is "give me teacher Jason headcanons" so here you go

Besides English, he also teaches a weekend driving class where he lets teenagers take turns parallel parking the Batmobile

His teacher voice isn't too different from normal (compared to other teachers) but it's noticeable—and more importantly, effective. He confiscates someone's phone at the movies when they wouldn't quit texting

For Jason, the "other duties as assigned" include refilling the soap in the boys bathroom and hanging a rainbow flag on the conservative history teacher's door

He also subs for that same teacher and says "everything you've been learning is wrong" before speedrunning the entire other half of American history

Most kids know him as the cool younger teacher who they can earnestly talk to, but every year there's one person who will treat him like he has one foot in the grave

He records his classes and his TA captions everything. Key word: everything

He starts the countdown to the last day of school on the first day of school

Red Hood discovers a restaurant acting as a front for money laundering but instead of taking them down, he lets them go on one condition. Cue the week-long pizza party at school

He once had a student walk in late because they went to Wal-Mart for a Mountain Dew

His hall pass is a dull batarang with "mrs tods hal pas" written in nail polish

Grading essays is either "this kid is the next Austen" or "please never touch a keyboard again"

Before the students turn their quizzes in, Jason asks each and every one of them, "Did you do the other side?"

Jason makes a copy of the janitor's keys and disables the security cameras so one of his students can sleep in the classroom after she was evicted. Red Hood also sweeps the halls to make sure there aren't any D-list Rogues squatting

Once a month the lesson is just naptime. He turns off the lights and tells them to go to sleep

If someone can solve Jason's Monday riddle then they don't have to do homework for a week. In unrelated news, the Riddler is apprehended after Red Hood decodes a series of cryptic clues

One kid told him "You're so old you look like you already died"

#jason todd #red hood #batfam #batfamily #batman #batboys #batbros #batkids #batsiblings #batman family #dc comics #headcanon #alternate universe #ask #anonymous #tw just in case

[cuntrygirlcallista]

you need him? i could be him

mattheo riddle x reader

Why you should break up with your boyfriend (and get back with Mattheo)

When you and Mattheo broke up, it was civil, an agreement between you both that you were better off as friends, at least for the time being...

This all began when you started dating a French transfer student who was sorted into Hufflepuff—a choice that, in Mattheo's opinion, just wasn't right for you, for obvious reasons, of course.

1. You didn’t even know if you liked him

"Are you sure you like him?" Mattheo inquired, tilting his head while glancing over at the boy walking toward you. "Matty." you warn in a blank tone. He turned towards you, raising an eyebrow. "Don’t look at me like that. You do this every time I’m interested in someone." "Do what?" "Give me reasons not to, and I refuse to let you do it this time." The conversation ended abruptly as your new little transfer student made his way over, shooting a quick “hello” to Mattheo to be polite and asking to walk you to your next class. Mattheo just scoffed inwardly as the two of you walked away. He knows you, and he knew if you really liked frenchy, you wouldn’t care what he had to say.

2. The both of you had nothing in common

Yes, sometimes opposites do attract, but in Mattheo's opinion, the two of you just weren't an ideal match. You enjoyed small amounts of PDA, like hand-holding and quick pecks—simple gestures that brought you joy. However, your boyfriend despised any public displays of affection, creating a noticeable contrast between your preferences. While you excelled as a diligent student, you also relished in the thrill of partying, letting loose, and embracing moments of pure fun, a lifestyle that clashed with your boyfriend's more reserved nature.

"I don’t understand why you're so upset," you said, frustration evident in your voice. "I don’t understand you at all," your boyfriend replied, packing up his things and leaving your dorm room. All you did was ask to reschedule your weekly study date because you’d promised Pansy you’d go with her to Draco’s party. The two of you could study any other time. Expecting your boyfriend to be a little upset due to losing time spent with you, instead, he went on a tangent about how unserious you are about your academics and even mentioned he wasn’t sure how the two of you were even dating because of how “different” you were.

and Mattheo had to agree.

3. He was too jealous, for example

It was a generally nice day at Hogwarts. The school year was winding down, the weather was pleasant, and you were studying with your boyfriend in the courtyard, surrounded by books and snacks on a blanket. You glance up from your books upon hearing the familiar voices of your favorite Slytherin boys. Draco, Mattheo, Theo, and Blaise emerge from Quidditch practice, looking a bit worse for wear but in good spirits, teasing each other. Pansy follows behind them. Spotting you, they hurry over, eager to talk to you. Amidst laughter and half-finished stories, you learn that Mattheo narrowly avoided a bludger to the head in practice and fell off his broom while dodging it. "Matty, perhaps I could offer you a basic broom skills lesson. I've been assisting the first years, and I'd be happy to help you," you playfully tease.

He flips you off, but instead of responding to your teasing, he asks, "Where's your little boyfriend gone off to?" You scan the courtyard, puzzled by his absence. Unbeknownst to you, Mattheo had been observing closely. He noticed the immediate stiffening of your boyfriend's face when the group approached and the sneer he gave when you affectionately called him “Matty” in your normal, all too sweet tone. Eventually, Mattheo observed your boyfriend getting up and walking away, seemingly conceding to your friends.

4. He couldn’t compete with Mattheo

Everyone in your close circle recognized that Mattheo was the perfect match for you, and eventually, your boyfriend came to the same realization.

He observed the softness in your eyes when you looked at Mattheo, how you would relax upon hearing his voice, and the laughter-filled conversations that defined your interactions, with Mattheo always striving to keep you smiling. How you’d scold Draco for mockingly calling your boyfriend “frenchy” but when Mattheo did it, it would conveniently go unheard.

The final straw was witnessing how quickly you rushed to Mattheo's side after the two fought. As the Slytherin boy stood victorious over the fallen figure of your boyfriend, it was Mattheo's well-being that concerned you the most. While your boyfriend lay beaten on the ground, Mattheo's bruised knuckles seemed of little consequence, yet it was his welfare that captured your utmost attention.

Kneeling beside Mattheo, you overlooked the Slytherin boy's smirk, attentively inspecting his bruised knuckles with worry as he reassured you of his well-being, telling everyone involved where your loyalty resided—always with Mattheo.

Though unspoken it was unmistakably clear that your heart had long belonged to from the very beginning.

@cuntrygirlcallista

#mattheo riddle #draco fluff #draco lucius malfoy #harry potter #mattheo riddle headcanon #mattheo riddle imagine #draco malfoy imagine #theodore nott x reader #draco malfoy x reader #theodore nott #blaise zabini x reader #blaise zabini #mattheo riddle x reader #harry pottet gif #harry potter x reader #hermione fanfiction #draco x hermione #severus headcanon #hermione granger #luna lovegood x y/n #lucius malfoy #cedric diggory #slytherin #harry potter x y/n #hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry #draco malfoy fluff #headcannons #ron weasly imagine #ron weasly x reader #mattheo riddle smut

[dotster001]

Period Simulator Part Two

"PLEASE I adore this. Would it be okay to request a part two with the Victorian children? I feel like the prim and proper “I have no emotions” squad would break down so fast" requested by @thesunshineriptide

Summary: Gn! Reader x Riddle/Sebek/Jade/Azul/Trein (I know you Trein simps are out there and I'm coming for your man) You make your boyfriend try a period simulator.

A/N: Part three is in the works, have no fear.

CW:mentions of periods, but no mention of reader's gender. Has reader had a period, or do they just want to torture their boyfriend? That's up to you 😊

Part One Part Three Part Four

"I got something at Sam's shop yesterday," you said as you entered your boyfriend's room. "He literally has everything!" You pulled out a machine from your bag. "It's a period simulator," you gave your best sad puppy eyes, "would you be willing to try it for me?"

Well...he could never deny you anything....

I think as a fandom we all have agreed that Riddle's mom never gave him any talk, let alone the talk. I hc that Trey and Cater had to give it to him after he arrives at NRC and Cater talks about holding hands with a girl, and Riddle worries that he got her pregnant.

All this to say, periods are a new concept to him, so when he agrees he has no idea what he's in for.

His face is red, not from anger for once, but from pain. He's sweating, and he jumps a little when anyone touches him.

He's quicker to behead someone at these pain levels. Ace breathed wrong, and Riddle immediately beheaded him.

Despite his tough exterior, he's still just a gifted child who hasn't reached burnout yet, and therefore isn't great at processing emotion. You take the machine off at the end of the day, and he just curls up in your lap and cries silently. Maybe you should give him a strawberry tart or three. He had a rough day.

Jade planted the period simulator for you to find at Sam's shop. He couldn't justify spending his own money on it, so he played his cards so that you would. He is a man of science and is so excited to learn about a land creature's experience.

He acts like everything is fine for the first hour, but then he disappears. You find him in his mer form in one of Octavinelle's tanks. When he spots you, he wraps himself completely around you, and informs you you will be spending the rest of the time he is on the machine here. He assured you he waterproofed it, so the next 5-7 days should be fine.

5-7 days?!?! It's this moment, wrapped up by your wriggly boyfriend, in a tank, that you realized it was a trap. You love when he's affectionate, but you only were going to leave him on the machine for a day! And he's already not doing great. He had to go to a secondary comfort location! And he wants to do this for 5-7 days?

You're going to have to wait until he's asleep (really asleep. He has a tendency to pretend so that you get more relaxed and lulled into a feeling of safety, predatory instincts die hard) and then you'll have to take the machine off of him yourself. He will punish you, but at least he'll be back to his normal self.

Look, I love Sebek, you love Sebek, we all love Sebek….but that means we are all aware of his ignorance.

He wasn't going to even humor your "mundane human request" until Lilia told him it would be "excellent training for protecting Lord Malleus" and he bought it hook, line, and sinker.

He's much louder when he's in pain, apparently. Even when you aren't in a class together, you can hear him yelling. It doesn't get any better. If anything, he gets louder throughout the day to overcompensate for the fact that his body is feeling shakier and shakier. He can't even grip his pen by the end of the day. It falls out of his hand and fills him with despair.

Gently lay his head on your lap, and run your fingers through his hair. It'll be the softest moment you've ever had with him. He's so innocent looking like this. Give him a heating pad, and that's the moment that he realizes he no longer thinks humans are below fae. He hasn't for a while, but he hadn't noticed til now.

The moment becomes oddly soft for the two of you? He cups your face with his shaky hands and kisses you softly over and over. It's only after an hour of the two of you kissing and cuddling that you remember he's hooked up to the machine, and you should probably take it off of him before he loses his mind.

I know I said in the summary "he can never refuse you" but this is the exception. He thinks it's an absolute waste of time and money. He won't even entertain the idea. He's busy trying to keep this school together. If you want someone to hook themselves up to the machine, you'll have to do it yourself.

He is about to pull a Trein (no time, too busy) but the twins start bullying him so he gives in. 

Like Jade, he disappears. Unlike Jade, it's not a trap to get you to comfort him. He genuinely doesn't want to be found. You can't find him anywhere, and decide to wait until your last class to find him. (Jade finds him and rats him out immediately)

You find him curled up under his bed. (Apparently, with the amount of pain he is in, the lights are too much. He also wanted to hide in his octopus pot, but was too hurt to change forms comfortably. Poor baby) To his credit, he left the machine on, although you have to wonder why if his plan was to hide from you anyway.

You'll have to crawl under the bed if you want to help him. He's not coming out. It'll ruin your impression of him as a strong independent boyfriend! 

Once you crawl under there, whisper sweet nothings to him to calm him down. He won't be able to hear you over the ringing in his ears, but if you use a calm sweet tone, he'll start to come back to Twisted Wonderland.

Once he's back, you'll have to make a lot of promises to get him out from under the bed so you can take the machine off. He won't verbally agree to any of it now, but it will come up at a later date if you forget. He never forgets a deal.

Once he comes out, get him a heating pad and cuddle him close. Make him feel loved and safe. He doesn't function well with pain.

Also, make sure to put his dresser in front of the door to his room, or the twins will get in.

....

Tag list: @shytastemakerthing

#twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland x reader #twisted wonderland riddle #twst riddle #riddle rosehearts #riddle x reader #twst jade #jade leech #jade x reader #jade leech x reader #professor trein #twst trein #mozus trein #trein x reader #sebek zigvolt x reader #twst sebek #sebek x reader #sebek zigvolt #twisted wonderland sebek #azul ashengrotto #azul x reader #twst azul #azul ashengrotto x reader

[twstwonderlandstuff]

This has been all in my mind all day..

May I request us protecting the Dorm Leaders from danger? Like, Malleus with his enemies or something- Like ??? 👀

Strong MC Supremacy 💪

strong mc supremacy! unfortunately, I cannot write for l the dorm leaders, as I have stated in my rules.

so, it will be riddle, azul, kalim and malleus.

requests are open!

pleáse remember to read my rules next time, thank you.

gn reader

tw: use of pet names (rose, ocho, sunshine, treasure), ace slander (for having a flat ass), attempt at kidnapping, implied violence

mentions: reader has a background in martial arts, and is built (strong) [I cannot believe I made that typo]

🍉 riddle rosehearts 🍉

it was a practical joke from one of riddle's underclassmen (not ace/deuce). riddle might have lessened the strictness of a lot of the heartslabyul rules, but it doesn't mean that there aren't some people out there that still hold grudges against him.

during one of the birthday parties, right as riddle's attention was on the hedgehogs, the student made a move. with a swift hand, he easily wove a string of whispered words under his breath that sent riddle flying from his chair.

riddle gasped as he felt the force throw him out and up into the air, and as he saw the grass beneath get close, he could only close his eyes, with no time to react when...

"riddle! are you okay, rose?" instead of the ground, he was met by your soft embrace and a worried look in your eyes. "does it hurt?"

and for a moment everything faded away into the background, and all riddle saw was rose petals wafting off you in pleasant waves, along with romantic music in the background. it was just you.. and him.

that is, until ace started cooing about how cute he was and he suave you were being. "ooh, prefect's lifting the dorm head up, bridal style~ how cute~~~"

then riddle snaps.

(p.s.: he buries himself in his blanket that night, worrying about the perplexingly wonderful vision he had of you for that minute)..

🍉 azul ashengrotto 🍉

azul grits his teeth as he winces at vargas, who had just finished telling him off about his flying. well, excuse him, azul thinks that this is excellent progress, especially to someone who's only started learning to walk a year ago! (jamil will happily disagree.)

of course, this stubborn dorm leader wouldn't even think of asking for help, unless there's a deal involved, so when you arrive to the scene, tasked with the goal of helping azul, it becomes quite difficult.

"oh come on, ocho." you grumble as you watch azul fly a few feet off the ground for the umpteenth time. "let me help."

"and how can I make sure I'm not investing in something that procures a loss?" he asks back. "now shush, I'm trying to concentrate." so stubborn, seriously. you hold the urge to (affectionally) roll your eyes.

"fine, oh my seven. ...oh, I am so dearly desperate for an exchange of woes." you begin with a tone as flat as ace's ass. "please, mr azul, give me a contract."

"that's better." azul gives you a business smile. "what would you like? name your price."

"how about..." you eyes him mischievously. "a show?"

"a... show?" by now, azul's concentration is off his broom and on you, staring curiously at your preposition.

"mhm. in exchange of me helping you- oof!" but alas, he falls off, but it's a good thing you're there to catch him, pulling him close against your body as you, too, fall onto the grass.

"you okay, ocho? man, 's a good thing that wasn't too tall." you brush the stray hair off his forehead. "but, I gotta say..."

"doesn't this make a pretty good show?"

picture azul sitting on top of you, against your stomach as his body heaves with effort, hair sticking against his skin and your impish grin staring at him from below.

you can almost hear the comical sound of his glasses breaking as he realizes his position, quickly scrambling to get his bearings together.

aww, poor thing~ but he does make a good show, doesn't he?

🍉 kalim al-asim 🍉

kalim's told you, with full honestly, about his past experiences with kidnappings. although he doesn't seem bothered by it, deep down, you're pretty damn sure trauma like that doesn't go away.

so when you visit his home town, land of the hot sands, you're on your guard, even if kalim tells you to relax.

"I'm not that easy to fool anymore, you know? just calm down, prefect, I'll be fine!" even if he says it casually, it all but eggs you to protect him.

...which is how it lead to you sleeping on his bed. for protection sake's, even if jamil raised an eyebrow at your reason. shh, what jamil doesn't know won't hurt him, but... it's also partially because kalim's cute. … jamil probably knows, though.

kalim's fast asleep, lightly snoring beside you as you run your hands softly through his white hair. how cute.

unfortunately, the moment's ruined when a number of menacing people appear in the room, clearly looking for a hostage.

fortunately, there's you, and you swiftly woop all their asses silently, where the only sounds are the defeated groans of kalim's possible captures. with the security guards alerted and the goons taken away, you lie back besides kalim, who's still peacefully snoozing away.

"good night, sunshine." with a last affectionate ruffle to his hair, you fall fast asleep.

when kalim hears of your heroic feat, he rushes to thank you, offering his wealth as compensation for your kindness.

"kalim, hey- hey." you mumble, looking at kalim's confused face. "look, I don't want this. seriously. I'm just glad I was there at the right time, or it things could've gone worse. I don't want that happening to you, okay? you're precious, got that?"

"but you helped me, so I should at least-!"

"then give me some of your fun." you shoulder kalim with a friendly smile. "now that that's behind us, won't you show me your country and how things are here, hmm? we haven't a lot of time, right~"

the shine in kalim's eyes appears back, and he quickly loops his arm around yours. "right! you know, I better get started right away! let's go get you dressed up first! there really is a lot for you to explore, and I'll make sure you don't miss anything!"

🍉 malleus draconia 🍉

lord malleus is one of the strongest wizards in twisted wonderland- nay, the strongest. what could a mere human do in his presence? is what sebek angrily barks when you tell him you could protect malleus.

even malleus is amused at your suggestion, and even plays along. "i'll be overjoyed to receive your help, child of man."

days past since that conversation and now, you hold an invitation straight from malleus himself who invites you to his humble abode during vacation. you happily accept- beats running errands for crowley, right?

yeah, too bad it came at an expense of enemies waiting to seize the crown to briar valley. malleus can damn well take care of himself, but with so many things coming at him, there's bound to be a blind spot.

"MALLEUS!" he whips his head around, just in time to see you kick one of his enemies into fatal injury. "be careful! watch for your back!"

well, color him impressed- you can protect him, can't you? even sebek is impressed- not like he'll ever tell you, but eh.

like kalim, he doesn't know what to offer you other than his riches, but again, you refuse it.

"I want to be paid back with time, malleus."

"well..." malleus frowns. "time warping as quite the difficult spell-"

"oh my- I mean with you, treasure." you snort. "I want to spend time with you, I didn't mean warping time."

malleus is stunned to say the least. time, with... him? you want... his company? he asks several times if you're sure and yes, you are positively sure about your choice. he'll laugh, both in amusement and joy.

"very well. my time is now yours, child of man."

#twisted wonderland #twst #twst wonderland #malleus draconia #riddle rosehearts #azul ashengrotto #kalim al asim #malleus draconia x reader #riddle rosehearts x reader #azul ashengrotto x reader #kalim al asim x reader #twst x reader #twisted wonderland x reader #gn reader #gn! reader #gender neutral reader #sugar rush #i don't think this is what you had in mind #but it's so fun to write LOL #riddle bursting into flames of red is never not funny #speaking of. happy bday riddle! #has anyone seen his card like god DAMNNN

[xx-lemon-drop-xx]

Warnings: fem! Reader, mentions of bullying, weight, blood, being punched and getting punched etc.

Request: Yes.

Words: 1,795

-Riddle Rosehearts-

•You dare to bully his s/o? Off with your head! No but literally. Riddle is hunting down the person who did this to you and giving them hell in every way possible that doesn't break the school rules.

•When he'd first gotten a call telling him you were in trouble due to punching someone in the nose, Riddle was seething. Perhaps a suitable punishment would be having you read and write down 400 out of the 810 rules of the queen of hearts. Hmm, yes that sounds excellent.

•His mood got even more sour when he entered the nurses room to see them bandaging your bloodied knuckles with you crying, blabbering about how they said you were fat and how you'd get in trouble with your boyfriend.

•“Who?” It was a simple demand from him for their names or their looks. How dare they hurt his rose. Riddle had grabbed Trey from his activities to sit with you while he tracked down these students to report them to the headmage.

•This red Bakugo had borderline threatened to have Cater post online how bad Crowley was as a principal if he didn't get these students kicked from the school.

•Lesson learned: Don't mess with Riddle's girlfriend.

•In the aftermath, Riddle will pamper you. He’ll make you some tea, make you some sweets (W/Trey’s help) and take care of your injuries himself. There's a lot of reassurance that leaves your usually hot-headed boyfriend's lips. On how perfect you look, or how cute you look despite his embarrassment of admitting it.

•He’s by your side until he makes sure your mental health is fine and your injuries have healed.

-Leona Kingscholar-

•Literally busts down your door asking if you beat their asses.

•Doesn't matter how you answer. He's sending off some henchmen of his to beat their asses a second time if you've already done so. No one messes with his Herbivor. He’ll make sure to visit them for a third beatdown in his own time.

•Leona doesn't go to the teachers in the school or to Crowley for help. This is between him and the assholes that decided to beat you up and harass you about your looks. He’s giving them hell, regardless of if you wanted him to or not.

•He doesn't pamper you as much as some of the other dorm leaders would. But if you want something he'll send Ruggie out to get it for you.

•Leona cuddles you more than he did before. Fuck school, you can get back onto your studies after your well rested and in a better state of mind. He's not going to let you go anywhere without him for a while.

•Congratulations, you've unlocked grumpy bodyguard Leona. You better make sure people don't look at you for too long at one time.

•If you have any leftover injuries from the fight, Leona is surprisingly good at tending to your wounds and patching you up. Of course, he's not the gentlest person, so don't complain to him if he's holding your tiny wrist a bit too hard while tending to you.

-Azul Ashengrotto-

•Have you ever heard of blackmail? Well, he has, and he knows how to do it at an expert level. Perhaps you should start feeling bad for your bullies.

•It certainly wasn't a fun matter to receive letters stating their name, house address, and their Parents and/or siblings names, including their biggest secret. It was a well written threat: Mess with (Name) and get outed.

•Of course Azul did turn to Idia’s hacking skills to find out where they lived. It was a fun little project for him. Especially for Floyd and Jade when they were sent out by him to deal with some “Funny business.” 

•Azul is also someone who reports these kids to Crowley and gets them kicked out of the school. He understands bullying all too well due to going through it himself and he’d be damned if he sat back and watched it happen.

•He creates a potion that's like a cream to help heal your injuries at an accelerating rate. Of course you need to do nothing in return for him for this cream, think of it as your loving boyfriend helping you get better. 

•If it makes you feel better about your looks or your weight, Azul will go out of his comfort zone and crack open the picture book of him as a child. Once again, he knows how this feels and he wants you to know you are not alone in this struggle.

•Azul definitely pampers you in his own way. He takes care of your homework, makes you food, and hell if you want to see his mer form he's all too happy to let you. For the week you're getting better, if you ask he'll lay off his work for you too for a bit.

-Kalim Al-Asim-

•Why’s his little sunflower crying? 

•Hands down, coddles you. Kalim is up your ass from the moment you walked into the room injured. His little feelings can’t take the fact someone would want to hurt his girl just because of weight or looks. He cries. Immediately.

•Kalim doesn’t hold you, you hold Kalim. It's Jamil that reports the bullies you punched while Kalim Hugs you half to death for the next three days. While he does try his best to wrap up and tend to your injuries it's also clear he doesn't know what the hell he's doing.

•In The end it's Jamil that's correctly tending  to your bloodied knuckles and the bruises and scratches on your body while Kalim grabs you some of the soup Jamil had cooked for dinner. After dinner Kalim presents you with desserts before diving head first into your chest to cuddle you.

•When hearing that Crowley wasn't going to kick out the students that bullied you, that's when things got serious. Kalim, with the help of another dorm head (Azul) Confronted the mage.

•It ended smoothly when they (Mostly Azul), had blackmailed the Headmage to the point where he had no other option but to expel the students. That or be outed on magicam about how horrible of a principal he was.

•Kalim throws a party for you at the end of it all. A “Congratulations on getting rid of your bullies party.” What a kicker.

-Vil Schoenheit-

•Someone hurt his little spuddling??

•Oh, This means war.

•Don't you worry, (Name), Rook will deal and dispose of those poor insignificant worms. Vil busies himself tending to your cuts and bruises, Blowing on the anti-peroxide he’d dripped onto the cuts to disinfect them.

•Ngl, Vil curses those peasants. Every day for the next three weeks they'll be waking up consistently throughout the night unable to get the slightest bit of rest. 

•Vil doesn’t pamper you as much as Kalim or Azul would but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t pamper you. Vil gives you gentle massages and checks up on you in between classes, making sure they don’t mess with you again. He gives you lotion and creams, and he does face masks with you. 

•Obviously those bullies didn’t have any style, because to Vil you drip looks just as much as you seem to drip food crumbs everywhere you go. Though, he doesn’t mind the mess in the end, (As much as he seems to.)

•He also has Rook secretly trail after you when he’s not around, just in case something happens again. Vil likes to be in control of the situation.

-Idia Shroud-

•This man has a set of rules. And those rules are to avoid direct confrontation by all means necessary, and to stay cooped up in his room for as long as humanly possible. In none of those rules was Idia prepared to deal with bullies. Much less bullies that are bullying his s/o.

 •When you come into his room with Ortho following you in with bandages and neosporin, he was shocked. “(N-Name) What happened!?” 

•Bullies- Something he was eerily familiar with. Of course, he won’t be addressing them directly, though hacking their devices and uploading a virus is a wonderful option. A wonderful option he follows out with.

•Idia also leaves Crowley a… less than family friendly email, along with a video of the evidence of you being harassed and being hit first. Crowley can’t pin anything on you for punching your bullies- since yours was in self defense.

•Idia games with you sitting in his lap. While making sure you had plenty of snacks and drinks, he also made sure you were getting an adequate amount of sleep and your injuries were tended too before anything else. It would be inconvenient if the cuts were to get infected.

•He forces you to do online schooling in his room with him for the week while Crowley straightens out this issue.

•Idia is happy with the extra time you both get together, all while tending to you during it. Of course, that doesn't mean he’ll stop gaming for you either.

-Malleus Draconia-

•Those bullies dared to speak bad about his s/o? More so they Touched you? Ohhhh this does not fly with Malleus.

•He doesn’t understand how such imbeciles could even dare to look in your direction. They do know you're dating one of the five most powerful mages known in history, correct?  

•Lilia needed to stop him from murdering those scoundrels, so instead, Malleus has them arrested. Yep, you heard that correctly. They were arrested. Malleus simply heals your wounds with the snap of his fingers. 

•He treats you like a princess. You get what you want and exactly what you want the moment you want it. He pampers you like he's the king of pampering. Only him and Lilia get to tend to any wounds you have.

•If you want, he will have Lilia teach you some things about self defense.

•Please lay with him and give him some nice snuggles. He’ll bring out his tail and wrap the appendage around you while you cuddle up to each other. Doesn’t mind if you hold or feel up his horns either. He’s all yours for the taking.

•Malleus will prepare you a fancy bath with petals, wine and lit candles to help relax and soothe you. This man will do anything for you, even if that's running across the world for you.

•Malleus praises you to be brave enough to punch and fight back against your harassers every day. It's something he wants you to feel proud about and know that he’s proud of you for doing so as well.

#twisted wonderland #fem!reader #x reader #fluff #riddle rosehearts #leona kingscholar #azul ashengrotto #kalim al asim #vil schoenheit #idia shroud #malleus draconia #headcannons

[idiacide]

When He's Sick: TWST x Reader Headcanons

Sorry about the long gap between posting. Been very busy teaching 7 classes. I loooove sick fic tropes though so I decided to put together some headcanons for each boy

GN!Reader. TW: Sickness, emeto

Riddle Rosehearts: Riddle has a hard time accepting it when he's sick, and an even harder time accepting help. He takes pretty excellent care of himself. The side effect of being raised by two doctors is you know how to manage a cold or fever. The biggest hurdle is getting him to slow down. Unless he's at death's door he all but refuses to delegate any more work to Trey than usual. He's at least staying away from meetings and class (it would be irresponsible to let someone else get sick because of him) but you will have to pry his homework and paperwork out of his cold dead hands. Offer to at least write for him while he dictates. Its a little easier to get him to fall asleep and then take care of it while he's out.

He's very strict about you taking precautions to avoid catching whatever he has. No snuggling, and sanitize everything you touch together. However, if you want to spoil him a little, bring him some of his favorite treats. His mom always kept him on such a strict diet, never moreso than when he was sick. Having someone coo over him a little and bring him a strawberry tart or two means a lot, even if he doesn't actually feel up to eating it.

Trey Clover: Like Riddle, he's prone to wanting to take care of everything himself. It'll be hard fought to even get him to admit he's sick. He's always pretty insistent that its nothing a good cup of tea and a nap can't fix. Even when forced to slow down he always tries to put a positive spin on it. Look at you getting all worked up over nothing, honestly, that soup you brought by earlier probably cured him. He's fine-

Once cornered into it, Trey actually doesn't mind a little pampering. For as much as he insists you shouldn't go out of your way for his sake he does ENJOY the attention when he has no choice but to accept it. For the most part though, he just wants company, and someone to keep him in the loop so he doesn't stress himself sicker waiting for Ace or Riddle to burn the whole place to the ground.

Cater Diamond: Cater can be a huge baby about being sick but he actually tends to be pretty withdrawn about it. Especially around you. He looks so uncute like this, all snotty and flushed and pukey, and he doesn't want you to see him looking this nasty. Sure, its a silly thing to worry about, but he can't really help it. Honestly the best service you can provide for Cater at this time is finding ways to make him feel a little more human. Help brush his hair, scrub his face so he feels a little less icky, find some nice candles to help aerate the sick smell. It humiliates him that you had to see him in such a gross state of being, but it really means the world to him that he doesn't have to spend the next week feeling like an absolute filthbeast. He'll protest a little bit about you getting sick too, but ultimately he's too much of an extrovert to turn down company. Curled up in bed, his head on your lap as you scroll through his feed, he can't help but think maybe this isn't so bad.

Ace Trappola: Ace has a pretty hearty constitution. His first instinct when he's sick is to celebrate: finally, a reason to cut class that no one can give him any guff for. As it actually starts to set in, though, he's pretty miserable. He gets bored being around the same things every day, and he gets irritable when he feels all achey and nauseous all the time. The main service you can offer to him is your company. Bring him gossip, bring him some snacks, bring him anything to help pass the time. He overheats pretty easily so he's not going to be super down for snuggling or getting cozy. He does like being spoiled, though, and will absolutely play cute and helpless if it'll convince you to spoonfeed him or be his gofer for the the day. Ultimately he's in a rush to get this over with, but he could get used to the side perks.

Deuce Spade: Deuce gets homesick in a bad way when he's sick. His mom always did certain things to help take care of him, even taking time off when she could, and they're some of his most special memories. He always dreads having to take care of himself when he's sick because he feels her absence so strongly during that time. While obviously there's no replacing his mom, you earn points with him in a big way by making an attempt. You can't recreate her special soup but you can make sure he has something hot to eat. He'd feel awkward about you singing him a lullaby but he loves being held, having his hair petted. Deuce doesn't want you to put yourself too far out, or worse, get you sick as well. But these little gestures mean the whole world to him and help ease that loneliness.

Leona Kingscholar: Leona's in a weird place about sickness. He was never NEGLECTED growing up, he had people to take care of him and make sure he had access to the best medicine and care. But as always, he has to compare. When his brother got sick you'd think it was a national fucking incident with the way his family, their advisors, and the staff would all carry on. Its not as though no one cared at all when he was sick. Its just also hard not to notice when your every fever and chill isn't accompanied by hand wringing anxiety and being waited on hand and foot.

All this to say, by this point in his life he tends to sleep through most sicknesses (as he does with everything else he finds unpleasant). He assumes meals will be brought to him but beyond that isn't really asking for much. He plays off his surprise when you do show up, mostly just telling you your fussing is giving him a headache. He's not turning you away though. You find him in general a lot more compliant than usual, eating and drinking what he's given and submitting himself to physical affection without his usual need to dominate it. There's still complaining, of course, if there wasn't you'd assume he was on death's door. But....for as much as he won't admit it. Its nice to have someone worry. Like it matters. Like he...really, really matters.

Ruggie Bucchi: In contrast to his spoiled housewarden Ruggie never really had many people to watch out for him when he was sick. There was his grandma of course, but conditions were always such that he could never really expect a lot of one on one tlc. Best to beat it as fast as possible and get back to work before anyone can worry. He's got a list of home remedies as long as his arm and they're usually enough to get him back on his feet.

Unlike someone like Trey or Deuce, though, Ruggie isn't stupid enough to look a gift horse in the mouth. If you're offering to spoil him then who is he to turn you down. He'll happily eat up any attention he can get and get a little enjoyment out of being the one having things fetched for (rather than the fetcher). He still doesn't like being out for the count to long, it makes things prone to pile up, but for as long as it lasts he's going to enjoy it, damn it.

Ultimately the worst inconvenience of Ruggie getting sick is realizing how many well-oiled machines have come to depend on him. Savanaclaw is in shambles after just a couple of days, not to mention any side gigs he currently has going. While definitely not opposed to taking help where he can get it (as long as it doesn't impact his bottom line)....he's honestly a little flustered and embarrassed if you try to take on ALL his responsibilities. C'mon, no need to go that far...sure, he does it every day but he's USED to it, its different for you...how?....Whatever! Just leave it, alright, your presence is more than enough.

Jack Howl: As a point of pride Jack almost never gets sick. Growing up with a handful of younger siblings means your body works through the common cold like its nothing, and he takes excellent care of his body. Still, he's not untouchable, and when he gets sick its for KEEPS. We're talking barely able to stay awake for more than a couple hours, zero appetite, sneezing like a cannon.

As per usual he does his best to be strict with you. No sleeping over and you better be washing your hands regularly. When he's this zonked, though, he doesn't really have the energy to turn you away. Loath as he is to admit it it feels nice having someone fussing over him a little. Pets and soup are all a good way to help, of course. But if you really want the gold star? Help him keep on top of his schoolwork. It may not be the most romantic thing in the world but its the kind of gesture that hits really deep with him. Suffice to say that if you do get sick you will have the most overbearing nurse in the world once he's recovered.

Azul Ashengrotto: The absolute king of denial. Azul is very, very good at hiding when he's sick. I'm talking makeup to hide fever flush and tucking a cough drop under his tongue so you won't notice, its like he's a political dignitary on an election tour. The tell is always that he'll avoid the kitchens at Mostro Lounge. A plague outbreak is bad optics. Once caught in the act, as per always it turns into a negotiation. X number of bed rest hours in exchange for being allowed to go to the office every day, taking medicine in recommended doses in exchange for being allowed to attend class, so on and so forth.

If you were looking for tenderness you've come to the wrong place. Azul HATES being sick, hates any case when his stupid body threatens to interrupt business hours. Fortunately, you're not alone. With a little collusion from the twins he can be effectively held hostage in his room when he gets really bad. He'll wail and gnash his teeth, try everything in his power to get loose...and then eventually slump into acceptance just to get it over with.

Secretly some part of him does enjoy being a little doted on. But from beginning to end you're going to have a very unhappy camper who is very resistant to any attempts to coddle him. Once he's out of it, he'll make it up to you. At the end of the day, he prefers to be the one doing the spoiling.

Jade Leech: Surface sicknesses are hit or miss for mermen. Sometimes scarlet fever could sweep through the school and leave nary a dent, sometimes a common cold will have them levelled for days at a time. Regardless of which it is, Jade takes care of himself out of habit. No particular tragic backstory reason for it. He just does. While he and Floyd come from very comfortable family backgrounds their father always advised a degree of self sufficiency which Jade in particular takes to heart. He takes his medicine, sleeps, and does his best to not let his responsibilities fall by the wayside.

He's pleasantly surprised when you show up to help, if a little confused. He would never ask...and yet here you are. How curious.

Jade's not really a big cuddler at the best of times but especially not now. In general, his sensory needs are regressing. Its best to help keep his room as dark as possible, and as cold as possible. He'll sometimes accept you laying on top of him to simulate some pressure, but usually with a few blankets in between you. What he appreciates most are being brought meals, and keeping Azul (and at times, Floyd) off his back. Quietly taking the weight off his shoulders is something he appreciates more than he can express, and gives him the time he needs to recover.

Floyd Leech: "Man flu" could never dream of touching Floyd flu. Jade is very used to dealing with Floyd's moodiness and demands, and even he would describe sick Floyd as "a bit much". Being sick is his 8th circle of hell. He feels like total garbage, he can't leave his room to do any of the things he enjoys, and most people avoid him just to avoid catching it. Its the wooorst and not even having a free pass from work can improve it.

All this to say, he is going to be in your dms the second Azul orders him to stay home, practically begging you to at least get on the phone with him for a bit. God help you if you decide to show up, you're never getting out of his room. The second you're in arm's reach he has you on the bed, winding his whole body around yours and whining incoherently about how awful everything is and how you need to be nice to him.

Not to say there are no perks. For as whiny as he's being there's something oddly adorable about how needy he is. He wants you in his arms as much as possible, insisting that the pressure and the warmth helps. He'll pour on the praise for any food you make him (even when you both know he could do better with his eyes closed) sheerly for the novelty of having you feed him. Most of all, though, he's putting in a concerted effort to be sweet and behave. You're not his brother, he knows you can leave if you get fed up with him so he's doing everything in his power to make you want to stay.

All this to say, at a certain point you just have to accept that you're going to get sick too. Don't worry to much about it, though. Once he's all better he promises to take just as good care of you as you did of him~

Kalim Al-Asim: Like Leona, Kalim grew up with access to the best and most devoted healthcare money could buy. Despite that, Kalim is actually really really bad at letting himself be sick, especially if its anything that could take more than a couple days of recovery. He just hates to make anyone worry! His younger siblings especially get so upset if their big brother can't play for a week, really its easier for everyone if he bounces back quickly even if it means he's not QUITE better yet.

This puts him in a rough spot at NRC. He's so used to being looked after that he has no idea how to take care of himself, but he's also really reluctant to stay down for more than a few days. Keeping him confined and resting is an ordeal, one Jamil is more than happy to hand over to you once you get wind of why your boyfriend hasn't been showing up for class.

Kalim feels bad that he made you worry. However, BECAUSE it is you you'll find its pretty easy to get him to comply, at least moment to moment. He'll still try to insist he's all better every morning, but he'll also let you feed him and take his medicine when you ask. Its a weird mix, but it also wouldn't be Kalim if he didn't at least try to make it fun for both of you. Its too bad you're both stuck here, but hey, perfect time to catch up on that show you've been wanting to watch with him! As long as you take some precautions he's pretty content to treat it like a sleepover, and with some cajoling he can be convinced to at least hold out until he actually is feeling better.

Jamil Viper: Is it really any surprise that this is yet another area where Jamil's experience is polar opposite to his housewarden's. His parents were never cruel, of course, they'd never force him out to work while he was honestly ill. But even at a young age he was very quick to catch the little passive aggressive remarks, the prodding comments asking if he was SURE he was still unwell. The young master was asking about him after all....maybe a cup of tea and you'll be fine to go play with him? It wouldn't do to let him get too lonely...

His default mode is still to evade and ignore it. As long as he can still keep himself upright he'll act like everything's fine. It really only takes some gentle prodding from you, though, to make him realize....right. He doesn't have to do that anymore. Letting himself be free of his parents wishes can mean this too. You find him surprisingly quick to acquiesce when you offer to take care of him, as long as you can promise the dorm won't collapse around his ears.

Despite his intentions, Jamil still doesn't really know how to let himself be taken care of. If he wants something he's very instinctively going to do it himself. Still...he finds he enjoys it. Being brought food. Having time to sleep even in the middle of the day. Even a little of the babying, mortifyingly enough. You'll know you've really succeeded when he asks you to read to him. It helps him unwind, and lets him enjoy your company without having to expend the energy to talk.

Vil Schoenheit: For as much of a workaholic as he is, Vil is actually quite strict about taking time off when he's unwell. It helps that it doesn't happen often. He's fit as a fiddle, keeps regular eating and sleeping hours, and is quick to avoid anything seasonal that might be making the rounds. The second he realizes he's not well enough to present himself at his best, though, is the second he's whipping his phone out and making calls. He won't let himself be seen at anything less than his usual perfection, much less risk permanent damage to his throat or lungs by pushing himself past his limits. His father took a lot of pains to instill in him that events come and go, but your body is an instrument you'll have your whole life.

Vil doesn't really need, or want, a nursemaid at this juncture. You'd be competing with Rook for the job anyways, and that's a zero sum game. What he does need, though...is someone who makes it clear its ok for him to be human. For as good as he is about taking care of himself, FORGIVING himself for it is harder. Vil's got a pretty thick skin, but the idea of letting people down (whether that's his fans or his classmates) is a hard pill for him to swallow. Yes, it's important, but it doesn't change the disappointment people would feel having a meet and greet cancelled, or the damage it may do to his brand by last minute cancelling an interview. Don't baby him, but...keep rebutting his negative internal monologue. Even if he rolls his eyes...he does appreciate it. Because he knows you mean it.

As with Cater, helping him look a little less like a snot monster is greatly appreciated. He can comb his own hair and wash his own face, of course. But...well, after all, this is one of those things having a partner is supposed to make more fun. You see a different side of Vil when you're helping him apply a face mask after watching him puke his guts out. It may not be a very cheerful side, but its a very tender one, and it gives you something brand new to appreciate about your ever flawless boyfriend.

Rook Hunt: Though he may not look it Rook catches things pretty easily. A side effect of spending most of your nights perched in a tree or tucked in some underbrush. His immune system's pretty efficient, and he tends to process things quite quickly. Still, once spotted sniffling into a hanky or hiding away to cough you are on him like a woodtick. He submits to it in pretty good humor, even teasing you about his inability to elude your sharp-eyed gaze. Who's really the hunter here, mm?

Though he does enjoy being on the receiving end of your undivided attention, Rook's surprisingly hard to keep still. He gets too restless, eager to slip off and pursue more of his beautiful things. I'd advise getting Vil on your side here. Passion or no, a direct order from his housewarden is something Rook won't violate. He makes up for it tenfold by singing your praises the whole time you're caring for him. You think he starts composing a poem in honor of your thermometer wielding ways at a certain point. He's back on his feet quickly. But rest assured, he'll find some way to demonstrate his appreciation more materially.

Epel Felmier: The thing about a farm is there really isn't such a thing as sick days. You could be coughing up blood; the apples still need brought in, or they'll start to rot and the crop'll go to waste. Epel's used to muscling through most common sicknesses, takes a fair amount of pride in it even. He also HATES being babied. It makes him feel fragile and stupid and useless.

All this to say it actually takes him a while to admit he's sick to you. No chance of going to class, his eagle eyed housewarden confined him to bedrest the second he caught him looking a little too pale. But it takes longer for him to stop acting like he isn't just really busy over text. He doesn't want you to feel like you have to come over and make a whole production of it.

Despite his reluctance to let you know about it and his resistance to anything that resembles mothering, Epel actually finds he's relieved to see you. Sappy or not, he misses you a lot when he can't see you. He puts up a show of being stubborn, but really he hates seeing you worried and will fold like paper at any kind of insistence.

Alright, maybe its not SO bad...but only for a little longer!

Idia Shroud: Shockingly enough I don't think Idia actually gets properly sick often. He takes awful care of himself, eating rarely and sleeping even less, so he usually FEELS like dogshit. But actual escalation into meaningful symptoms, a fever or a cold or a stomach bug, is surprisingly rare. Something to do with not leaving his room to catch anything.

When it does happen he tries to milk the shit out of it, taking it as a free excuse to hole up in his room for a few days and do nothing but game. It quickly backfires, though, when Ortho makes him lie down or take medicine (usually resulting in a very miraculous "recovery" if he's at anything less than death's door).

Its VERY different with an s/o. At first he's mostly just mortified you're going to see him in this state. He's gross enough in his default state, if you see him like this you're gonna run away for sure! Once reasonably assured that you're not going to kick him to the curb over some puke, though, he discovers two things. One: its really, REALLY nice to have an attractive person baby you when you're sick. Two: technically Ortho can't kick him off his games if he just has you working through the notifications. Hope you're ready to take over his gacha management. He drafts up a booklet for you to fill out it would be actually aggravating if he weren't giving you the biggest heart eyes over it.

Mostly he's an easier patient for you than he is for his brother, though when he digs in his heels it can take ages to talk him into anything else. God help you if he's sick in the midst of a project because you are going to have to drag him back to bed kicking and screaming. Ultimately, though, he really just wants to be petted on a little.

Malleus Draconia: Fae health is robust as a general rule which is why Malleus getting the sniffles is enough to send Diasomnia into Defcon 3. Had Lilia not thought to invite you over you think it's possible you might have lost contact with him for a month.

Mostly, being sick isn't a very big deal for Malleus. He takes his medicine, he sleeps, and its done with. He's finding a very fresh novelty in having you around, though. He doesn't want you to trouble yourself too much over him. His constitution is impressive. But he does appreciate the opportunity for some one on one time, and will even put up with a little pampering if you really want to.

If you want to earn his eternal gratitude, keep his attendants soothed and off his back. As much as he might love them its the surest thing to put him out of temper.

Lilia Vanrouge: You're fairly certain Lilia only gets sick when he wants to be sick. Maybe its that with centuries of perfecting his healing magics you know a bacterial invasion is no problem to clear up. Maybe its just that he only ever seems to catch something when he has an assignment he doesn't feel like doing coming up. Who can say really.

As with Malleus how much nurturing you really want to do for Lilia is up to you. He's more than capable of taking care of himself. Unlike Malleus though Lilia relishes letting you play nursemaid and will absolutely play up being a little pathetic and needy for the attention. Its such a silly and childish thing to do, and that's why he does it. Its practically a dare as his eyes flutter pathetically while you take his temperature, or in the moony-eyed look he gives you as you spoon soup into his mouth. You may have to cut him off at some point, he's having entirely too much fun. Rest assured, you will be swiftly repaid.

Sebek Zigvolt: Leans the hell into "the fae are too strong for your puny human diseases!!" but he's really bad at hiding when he's sick. His sneezes and coughs seem to echo through the whole building.

Sebek is an absolute wreck when he's sick, practically begging to be allowed out to resume his duties. Half the reason Lilia asked you to watch out for him is it was the only way to really pacify him. He'll be a total pest the whole time, badgering you to check his temperature every hour or so because he's CERTAIN he's all better now. You're half convinced he's about to ask you to tail Malleus on his behalf and bring him back detailed reports.

Its largely ridiculous, but its also a deeply vulnerable position for him. Sebek never wants to appear weak, especially not in front of you. He's embarrassed that you feel like you need to look out for him. At the same time, though...he's touched that you care to. That you can see him in this state and not think less of him, can in fact even be more affectionate and sweet than usual. It doesn't make him more patient, but it does mean he files it away as yet another thing to admire about you.

Silver: Sick constantly. Turns out there's side effects to dozing off out in the open all the time. He does his best to walk it off but is easily brought in line by you and Lilia. Silver's mostly an easy patient. Sleeping is easy for him, and he submits to medicine and any other care needs with no complaint. The struggle is not to let him turn the tables and try to nurse you. He'll insist its no issue at all, he doesn't mind letting you get off your feet, while casually attempting to take over all the meal prep and the cleanup after to boot.

Silver is quick to express his gratitude, and he does enjoy the opportunity for privacy. While not very prone to PDA he finds he enjoys the reassurance of physical touch, especially yours, when he's really feeling low. In the end, though, he can't wait for this to be over

#twst #twisted wonderland #twst x reader #riddle rosehearts #trey clover #cater diamond #ace trappola #deuce spade #leona kingscholar #ruggie bucchi #jack howl #azul ashengrotto #jade leech #jade x reader #floyd leech #kalim al asim #jamil viper #vil schoenheit #rook hunt #epel felmier #idia shroud #malleus draconia #lilia vanrouge #sebek zigvolt #silver #sickness #emetophobia

[yuurei20]

Riddle Info Compilation part 1: Upbringing

Riddle has a voice line of, “I read that the Queen of Hearts had a very amicable marriage. If there’s a secret to that, I wish I could share it with my parents.”

We do not hear much about his father, though he do know that both of his parents were (past tense?) famous magical healers.

Trey says that “Everyone where we’re from knew their names. His mom was especially talented, and she really wanted Riddle to live up to her legacy.”

We learn from Trey that every aspect of Riddle’s life growing up was planned down to the minute, including what he ate, wore, what soap he used and who his friends were.

Trey says that Riddle obediently completed every task he was assigned in order to please his parents, mastering his unique magic by the age of 10, and turning the enforcement of strict rules into a major part of his own personality.

When asked what job he would like to have in the future Riddle responds, “A…medical mage, I suppose”, saying that he was raised to take up the same mantle as his parents, but after serving as Heartslabyul’s housewarden he has taken an interest in the legal profession.

Riddle has a similar conversation with Azul, saying that becoming a medical mage was his original plan but he has developed an interest in the law. Azul recommends that he gets licensed in every field that interests him, saying, “Wth your talent, you could excel in any field you wanted. It would be a waste to settle for just one!”

Azul says, “It’s frustrating to see so clearly the difference between me and someone who’s worked hard their whole life,” and Riddle responds that he doubt that Azul would have the same ambition and drive that he does to day if he had focused solely on his studies that way that Riddle himself did as a child. 

Azul warns, “One moment of inattention and you might find me giving the valedictorian speech at graduation,” but Riddle responds, I’ll continue to stand at the fore as long as I’m in school—and after it as well. I won’t lose to anyone, ever. Not even you.”

Azul makes a comment on how “one has to make sacrifices to make their dreams a reality” which seems to resonate with Riddle.

Riddle is good at crossword puzzles because they were the only form of entertainment that he was allowed growing up. Riddle says that, as a child, he started creating his own crossword puzzles so that he could give them to Trey and Chenya one day. (He was never allowed to see Trey and Chenya again, however, prior to NRC, which would explain why he now has a collection of over 3,000 handmade crosswords.)

There are occasional references to how Riddle is still learning things about normal, everyday life for a student his age due to his harsh upbringing: he apologizes to Deuce for failing to “learn the appropriate customer etiquette” while purchasing mystery bags during News Year’s, which he heard from Cater is “a popular youth activity.”

Riddle says that he never participated in the Halloween events for children in his hometown so he is not well-informed on what goes on, but he does say that he only ends up drenched when bobbing for apples, so he may have some experience from somewhere.

Riddle says his household “wasn’t overly concerned with holidays” so they didn’t do anything in particular for Halloween.

“In fact, I wasn’t even allowed to walk around outside on days like this. I was a little jealous of kids who could dress up and go trick-or-treating.”

Epel responds, “Your parents sound really strict. But you don’t have to follow their rules now that you’re here at school, right? This is your chance to let loose and have fun!”

Riddle says he will consider it, and Epel invites him to celebrate in his hometown.

#twstriddle #riddlefacts #twstfacts #twisted wonderland #Riddle Rosehearts

[mimi-cee-genshin]

Untimely Obligations - Cyno x f!reader

Summary: Cyno tells you a joke to cheer you up, momentarily forgetting you use any opportunity to flirt with him. That tends to make things a little more difficult for him. He needs to wrap up this investigation soon.

Genre: Fluff, humor, flirting, banter, pre-relationship, a smidge of hurt/comfort

Words: 1.3k

I just wanted to see Cyno with a slightly flirty reader but still somehow show that they suited each other lol. This was the result.

"There is a substance in the world that a person can hold, but the longer he holds it, the more it disappears," Cyno tells you. "What is it?"

You sit across the table from Cyno, staring back at him while your expression remains unchanged. You don't give him an answer.

He sighs before he continues. "It's ice," he says. When you don't utter a word, he gives further explanation. "The ice melts in your hand, changing back to its liquid form."

Your eyes don't move, but he raises his brow when he notices you slightly biting your lip. Perhaps you're still confused.

"It's still water, but it cannot be called ice anymore, which is why you can claim it has disappeared."

He continues to elaborate on the joke, but when he starts getting into the nuances of properties of water, you burst out into laughter.

"I'm sorry," you tell him. "I couldn't hold it in anymore."

Oh? Was this joke successful? Cyno continues to cross his arms as you attempt to calm down from your laughter.

"I didn't want to laugh. I wanted you to keep going."

"And why is that?"

"You're just really cute when you do that," you say with a grin. "Besides, I like hearing your voice."

He lets out a scoff and picks up his spoon. His rice is getting cold.

"Anyway, was that supposed to be a joke or a riddle? Because there's a difference you know."

"I thought it was hilarious," he says. "Imagine a child holding an ice cube and then panicking it has disappeared five minutes later."

"You should have explained it that way then," you laugh.

He crosses his arms and clicks his tongue. Fine. One of his jokes will land someday. Besides, he only told the joke because you seemed sad, so he was at least successful in lightening the mood. Why did someone have to come and ask about your sister? He should've known better.

You slip him a piece of paper and he peeks under it to read your note. It's a lead to the investigation he's currently working on. He looks up at you and you have a large and expectant grin on your face.

"Well? Aren't you going to say anything?" you ask him.

He doesn't reply.

"You know. Something like, 'You're so awesome, sweetheart. What ever would I do without you?'"

You never miss an opportunity to flirt with him. He puts the piece of paper away before crossing his arms again. "Excellent work," he tells you. This will help the investigation move more quickly.

"Aww... You're no fun," you pout. "This is an alternative way you can humour me."

He quickly asks another favour of you, and you're a little miffed he didn't play along.

"Yes, I can do that," you tell him. "Her daughter frequents the tavern and I can casually ask how her family is doing. I'm bound to find a few clues from that."

You continue to eat your wrap as Cyno takes more from his plate. This case needs to be wrapped up quickly. He shouldn't have involved you in this first place.

"But why didn't you ask Lambad for help instead? He knows his customers better than I do," you say. "I've only been here for a year."

He pauses from eating and places his spoon down. Looking into your eyes, he simply says, "I trust you."

It was years ago, but he still remembers both the painful yet determined look in your eyes. He was in charge of the investigation involving your sister, and yet you told him exactly where she was hiding. It turned into a painful memory for him, seeing you so heartbroken by your sister's crimes. He couldn't help but secretly keep an eye on you over the years.

"You wouldn't betray your own convictions," he tells you. "You're not so easily swayed by your emotions nor by others."

You widen your eyes, surprised that he made that observation about you.

"Oh?" you ask. "Have I captured your interest then?"

He sighs. He should really get to the bottom of his current case. "How have things been at the tavern?" he asks, changing the topic.

"Nothing too eventful. Just the same old thing. Gossiping people, students, merchants, the occasional traveler from another nation, more gossiping people…," you explain.

There's a twinkle in your eye before you continue. "Besides, if anyone starts to cause any trouble, I just casually mention that you've been coming here fairly frequently."

He has been coming to Lambad's tavern fairly often to take a break even though he'd typically prefer solitude.

"It's nice having a certain strong and handsome guy around," you tell him with a teasing grin.

Your comment catches him off-guard, causing his cheeks to heat up as well. He's been putting up a wall between you, but every so often, you pull a fast one on him.

Footsteps approach from the stairs. Cyno grabs his polearm.

"Cyno, wait." You take his hand.

He releases his breath when the person is in sight.

"It's only Lambad," you explain.

"I just brought up some more food as requested," he says. Cyno glances at you because he didn't order anymore.

"It's for you," you mouth the words to him.

"Anyway," Lambad turns to you, "your break is almost over. You only have five minutes left to flirt with Cyno here."

Cyno widens his eyes. Just how many people knew about your feelings for him? Although, he really shouldn't be surprised by the way you act around him.

"Should I tone it down?" you ask in almost a whisper. Cyno sits back in his seat after Lambad left you two alone again on the second floor.

Cyno raises his brow, not understanding your question.

"With the flirting," you explain. "Does it bother you that much to have other people know I like you?"

You must have read his expression. He can't deny it's been a source of stress for him.

You hold your wrap in front of you. "Well... Then again, I'd probably tarnish your reputation as the great Mahamatra," you say with lowered eyes before taking another bite of your food.

He watches your face and does not detect any lie from you. You truly believed your own words. "There's no need for you to dissociate with me," he says. "With your character, you wouldn't damage my reputation at all."

You choke on your food and he hands you some water. You're almost a bit bashful at his compliment. But when you see he has gone quiet, a smirk tugs on your lips.

"Does this mean I can keep flirting with you?"

He scoffs. Of course you took this as permission to lavish your feelings on him.

"You know... You've never told me to stop," you tell him with a grin sneaking onto your lips.

He thinks back to past interactions with you and sighs. He knows the reason why he has never asked you to stop flirting with him.

"Are you actually secretly interested in me?" you say with a wink.

Cyno rubs his temple. "I do think you need to stop flirting with me."

"What? Well... I…," you lower your eyes. "I think… I'll need some time to adjust, so…"

"Just stop until I wrap up this investigation." He grabs his polearm and leaves the table. "I've involved you too much with this case," he says. "I need to make sure you're safe first."

He already promised himself to look for you once the right people were behind bars. It's only right for you to get a clear answer from him soon.

"Oh… I see…," you say in a lowered voice. "Alright, I'll stop until…"

Cyno steps down the stairs and heads towards the door.

"Wait! What?!?!?!"

He places a hand on his forehead. Maybe he shouldn't have mentioned that yet, but it's true. He wants you to stay by his side and keep flirting with him in the future.

He just needs to ensure your safety is secured first.

I hope you liked it. :) I have some other fics too so please check out the rest of my blog.

Edit: I have a part two.

#genshin impact x reader #genshin x reader #cyno x reader #cyno x you #genshin cyno #cyno #cyno drabble #cyno scenarios #genshin impact scenarios #genshin impact oneshots #cyno fluff #genshin fluff #genshin impact fluff

[thenightfolknetwork]

Hello,

I need help. Or maybe I don’t. Maybe I need someone to tell me to stop worrying? Oh let’s be honest I have no idea what I need, that’s why I’m writing in.

See, I have a perfectly ordinary job during the week. I work in an office. It’s nice. Spreadsheets, cake on birthdays, quarterlies. It’s a boring existence but my afternoons and evenings are my own and the pay’s good. Sapio-Liminal relations are improving, but by bit. Honestly I’m just impressed my coworker got the time off when they wound up expecting in two of their three dimensional shifts.

So that’s during the week and you’d be forgiven for thinking I’m just about the most sapio a sapio can be. My liminal properties tend to activate on Friday afternoons, when I- travel.

Teleport?

Move. I move. To the same general area of a whole new plane of existence. It’s a known family trait- I’ve got a grandfather who became king of a small nation in my secondary plane, and my sister’s the apothecary for the capital city. She sells the really good potions, by the way, so if you’re in the area of Spirits and Sundries or someone gives you a radiant quest to bring ingredients to Amaranthia in the Bronze Quarter, just be polite and she’ll fix you right up.

Ah, but this isn’t about my sister’s business, it’s about me and what I do. See, this shift is so regular that I went and got myself a weekend job, just to have something to do. So if you’re sent to the Caves of Madness just north of the Foresaken Forest, be ready for the Riddle Master!

I’m in the first room of the dungeon, just after you pass the initial key puzzle. I keep my uniform in a chest in there, and there’ s a nice break room off the back. I like the work a lot! I see lots of new people and I’m always gathering riddles- there are some chat standards but I like to mix it up sometimes. They aren’t supposed to be hard, or else what’s the point of trying to conquer a dungeon? So sometimes, I admit, I give hints. There’s always the rude adventurer who attacks me first but when you take a job like this you don’t die, it’s in the fine print. I don’t like cleaning the blood off my stuff, though. Takes ages.

Anyway now that we’ve walked halfway around the block, my point.

I look very plain. Humanoid, two arms, two legs, a beard. It’s never bothered me but I am very distinctly ordinary which tends to be recognizable and last weekend I was in the village during my break and I saw a coworker. Not from this side, not from the Caves of Madness, no. It was Tina, from accounting. She was picking up a quest by the stocks.

And I realized, she might wind up at the Caves of Madness. She might make it through the puzzle door and be faced with the Riddle Master only to realize this Riddle Master is Jeff. From the office.

I don’t have hangups about my two worlds meeting- it’s hard to, when your sister pops in for Christmas still dressed for the Winterscratch Festival, or your brother’s filing out taxes for a whole kingdom over lunch. I just really like my job in the Caves, and I like to think I do it well. Our rating as a starter dungeon’s quite high, and I’m proud of that. What if my transdimensional adventurer coworkers encounter me and just- aren’t impressed? That’s not the Riddle Master, that’s Jeff. He has a rubber band launcher on his desk. His mug says ‘party naked’ with a balding chicken on it and he won’t let HR throw it away.

I don’t want to disappoint adventurers, especially not ones who work with me in my primary plane. I also don’t want to cause harm to my dungeon’s reputation. But aside from the whole ‘moving planes’ thing I am utterly dull. What do I do if my performance isn’t enough to make up for not being fantastical like Mordrath the end room boss or Reyala the sidequest kobold queen?

Is it okay to just be Jeff the Riddle Master?

Thank you for writing in, reader. Your letter serves as an excellent example of quite a common genre of letter we get through the inbox here at the Nightfolk Network and I think it might be rather illustrative for other followers.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but what you've done here is make up a scenario in your head based on the worst possible interpretations of everyone involved, and then worried yourself sick about that scenario coming to pass.

This may sound a little blunt, but please understand, I don't mean that dismissively. I only hope to offer you a little perspective, and to help you come to a more accurate understanding of the situation as it actually stands.

You enjoy your work in the dungeon, and are clearly doing a good enough job to keep your managers happy. None of your previous visitors have expressed any disappointment at your relatively mundane appearance, and it hasn't been an obstacle in the job so far.

Perhaps your co-worker will end up in your dungeon. Perhaps she'll make it to your section, and perhaps she'll recognise you. So what? I don't see any reason why she should be any more likely to be disappointed by you than any of your other visitors.

And even if she is disappointed, that doesn't have to mean anything to you. She's a co-worker, not a treasured friend whose opinion could make or break your self-esteem. You owe it to her to be a conscientious, respectful colleague. That's all. What you get up to outside of work, and whether she enjoys your efforts, is irrelevant.

You haven't let down your dungeon so far, and I see no reason to believe you will in the future. Stop borrowing trouble from the future, and concentrate on having fun and being the same old Jeff the Riddle Master you've always been. He seems plenty interesting to me.

#answered #the nightfolk network #monstrous agonies

[gigidragonbbxxx]

a personal struggle + an education

this is all just gigi's opinions + thoughts

Reader, I'm struggling with empathy right now.

Don't worry, I'm not suffering from a personality pathology, I promise I am quite sympathetic and empathetic. It's just battling the feeling of wanting to be kind but also seeing a major problem and knowing I need to get it off my chest.

Let me give it to yall straight (with tweaked/paraphrased details to protect privacy and not to out anyone):

I saw a favorite loass coach/twt account/subliminal creator make fun of an "old timey" English sentence either from Neville Goddard or Edward Art. They proceeded to say that they "hate" it and "why can't they just say it simpler". and then someone else commented "they're talking bullshit fr".

The convo thread on twt devolved into an echo chamber that essentially boiled down to the old fool's adage "If I don't understand it, it must be stupid and not worth it."

This really triggered me because

The phrase quoted was not that hard to understand.

It was clear these women were not educated

Why am I judging or mad at people for their ignorance? (this is why I kept quiet on twt and went here to vent. I acknowledge that two things can be true, I can be kind and still be honest.)

I was and currently am still wrestling with these things within me.

On one hand I don't want to judge. I want to be inclusive and welcoming and supportive.

On the other hand - yall don't look educated, yall wind up looking dumb.

I'll say a harsh truth yall and you can go argue with a damn wall but I know I'm right: stupidity is not cute.

My Hot Take (not so hot when you think about it)

The Law of Assumption rewards those who feed their mind with knowledge

Before you argue with me, think about it. Seriously.

I don't want to seem ableist if someone suffers from dyslexia or if someone struggles in school. It's totally okay to have different paths to learning. The importance is still obtaining the information. You can read or listen to the audiobook, etc. The paths to knowledge are varied but in the end the result is the same - THE KNOWING.

The "old timey" sentence that the creator complained about COULD BE READ BY NINTH GRADERS BECAUSE OF SHAKESPEARE EXPOSURE.

That's why I was exasperated. They were complaining about English (the only language in which they are fluent) that is regularly taught to 14 year olds.

Guys. Stand up. Please stand the fuck up.

Who in this world is gonna take you seriously without BASIC COMPETENCY in literature or math?

Lemme roast some of yall if you want to disagree:

Yall wanna be master manifesters and claim to understand the double slit experiment but can't even name the fundamental laws of science or explain them.

Yall wanna be successful in your businesses and don't know how to calculate your profits.

Yall wanna be seen as intellectuals who "understand" more than the majority of the population and yall can't even fucking read Descartes or Shakespeare.

Yall wanna be content creators and don't know how to proofread.

One time I bought an affirmation tape that came with a pdf with all the affirmations listed. The tape itself was excellent but the pdf was riddled with errors! It makes me sad because something that can help change your life, like a sleep tape to saturate, "cheapens" in its authenticity at the price of minor errors. Sigh.

Let me tell you that 100% you can be successful in this world just by going to the end and claiming it.

BUT YOU LOSE A LOT OF TREASURE BY NOT GIVING YOURSELF THE TOOLS TO DIG FOR IT.

THERE IS SO MUCH FOUNDATIONAL INFORMATION WITHIN THESE "OLD TIMEY" TEXTS.

and if you don't like any of it and just wanna watch sammy ingram and manifest like that THEN GO AHEAD BUT DONT CLAIM TO NOT UNDERSTAND A SENTENCE AND THEN CALL IT BULLSHIT.

just be honest and own it!

be honest that you don't wanna read, that you don't wanna be academic and that's 100% okay and you're still beautiful and worth everything but

do not put down the value of what is being said just because you don't understand it

That's why I am frustrated, reader.

I am educated enough to recognize when someone's ignorance is just that - ignorance.

But I am human enough to be annoyed.

So please give yourselves some grace and take the time to appreciate knowledge. Without the knowledge of the law of assumption, we wouldn't all be here interacting with one another.

xx, gigi

p.s. for those of you who are more familiar with reading the Bible via the law of assumption lens - I beg you to think of Solomon. He was asked by God what he would like and Solomon chose wisdom over material things. Why is that? Because through wisdom comes the ability to know how to obtain all one's desires. Food for thought.

#gigiwrites #loassblog #law of assumption #loass #loassumption #manifestation #affirm and persist #affirmations #neville goddard #self concept #manifesting #edward art #master manifestor #law of assumption blog #robotic affirming #subliminal #subliminals #knowledge #wisdom #intelligence #learning #learn #fulfillment

[therealvinelle]

PAUSE? i have never considered the idea that TOM created the room of requirement. i actually never thought abt who mightve made it... but considering he hid the diadem "among years of students' discarded items" it was likely made before his time? damn there goes that idea. actually perhaps ravenclaw made it considering the diadem presumably also has some sort of legilimency powers (gives you "wisdom") and its located on the upper levels too

Anon is referring to this post, where I contemplated the Room of Requirements and put out that Tom might be the creator. And while it's not a theory I'm particularly invested in, I was... surprisingly able to come up with good arguments, at least good enough that Tom gets put on the list of possible creators for that room.

Just for the record, the "among years of students' discarded items" argument proves nothing about the age of the chamber. Harry enters the room where things are hidden, it simply means that Tom once entered the Room of Requirements with the thought "I need a good hiding place".

So, to retrace my thinking:

Somebody, somewhere, created the Room of Requirements

We have two scenarios for when the room was created, and it was either constructed along with the castle or it was made later on.

If it's the former then Tom Riddle obviously didn't create it, however, I will assume it's the latter. This room isn't used as a learning resource, it isn't widely known, and it is... a very strange thing to implement.

A bit about the Room of Requirements

Most of Hogwarts' esoteric features read like they were implemented by someone working to improve the school. The moving staircases seem impractical at first glance but I can imagine some genius thought, "this way the students will save energy as they can wait for the staircase to move them to where they wanted to go! Get fucked, Escher stairs!", the portraits are surely excellent guards for the student common rooms, just as the Ravenclaw tower being guarded by riddles will surely be delightful!

Were the people making these features particularly practical about it, no, but the point I'm making is that the Room of Requirements doesn't seem to have a purpose beyond being the place students can stash their porn.

It is, however, a room that detects students who are concentrating on a need, interprets this need and then to the best of its ability becomes a physical space filled with objects that are best suited to accommodate this need.

It reads to me like something someone created as an academic exercise.

We also know, from the Marauders being able to create a map that tracks every person present at Hogwarts, that Hogwarts is not... locked from students, for lack of a better term. However James, Sirius, Remus and Peter gained access to this kind of information (and I imagine they have the map connected to some kind of ward that does the surveillance for them, whether they erected the ward themselves or made a use of an existing one doesn't matter as either option allows students... an alarming amount of leeway) the fact remains they shouldn't have been able to.

Which goes a long way in indicating that rumors of Hogwarts impregnable wards might have been exaggerated.

Where Tom comes in

We know Tom was in the top tier of students to have attended Hogwarts, if the room's creator was a student then he's automatically on the shortlist.

And since the room is in Hogwarts, it would have to be either a student or faculty creating it. A student is in my eyes the most likely option, as a faculty member wanting to a bit of magical experimentation would have better arenas to do this than the hallway at their workplace.

A student growing up in a Muggle household, however, would not. If that student is also a prefect, later Head Boy, then all the more occasion to do this as it means he'd be able to be out past curfew with no questions asked.

As for why I suspect Tom specifically: the Room of Requirements is, at its core, a legillimency room. It reads your mind, and uses the direction of your thoughts to give itself form. It's a very neat enchantment, and something very few people would be capable of.

We know Tom Riddle was a talented legillimens even before he started Hogwarts, we know he was compelling people. We also know that by the time he was sixteen, he could implant false memories of committing a triple homicide in a stranger's mind. In other words, he'd been developing his talents. We also know Tom had a talent for wandless magic, and that he'd been self-taught for the first few years.

Now, seeing the Sorting Hat read minds and make verdicts but not be able to do anything further than that, and learning to make objects transform, vanish, or appear with the power of his mind in other classes, who's to say Tom Riddle wasn't inspired to create an object that would read the wizard's mind and then do the magic itself?

Last of all, we know he used the room.

What we know is that somebody certainly did this, and I think it is likely that this somebody was a student at Hogwarts, somebody extremely gifted and innovative and with a talent for Legillimency, and who didn't have occasion to create this room elsewhere.

I can't prove it was Tom, but he's on the shortlist.

#tom riddle #harry potter #harry potter meta #harry potter theories #room of requirements

[clementine-writes-things]

Edward Nygma Headcanons

(I am combining both Pre-Riddler and the Riddler era):

He is DEFINETLY on the spectrum. Bro is the definition of autism.

If you are also autistic (shoutout to my autistic ass) you guys will stim together and you both respect each others sensory issues.

He specifically likes 2 marshmallows in his hot cocoa. It is the perfect ratio. Any more and it is too thick for him to drink once the marshmallows melt. Any less and it messes up the ratio.

He loves working at the GCPD and he truly wants to be friends with his coworkers. He just has very bad social anxiety and he doesn't know how to start a friendship.

He hates being ridiculed at work and he tries to stand up for himself a lot, but he isn't that brave.

He is an EXCELLENT cook. Like seriously. Gordon Ramsay would be impressed.

He takes care of the stray cats in the alley next to his apartment. Sometimes he leaves his window open so they can find shelter from the rain when the weather is bad.

He is the SWEETEST soul alive OH MY GOD. He would give you the shirt off his back to cover a puddle for you. And if he for some reason didn't have a shirt, he'd lay across that puddle and have you walk over him. He's just very gentleman like and polite.

If you work with him at the GCPD he will leave riddles on your desk and if you are able to solve them before the end of the day, he will buy you a snack from the vending machine for every riddle you get right.

He may not look like it, but he works out. He goes to the gym regularly and has a very toned body. He has muscle, but it's not overboard. He is toned just enough so you can look at him and think "Oh, he probably goes to the gym often."

Because he is autistic, he is able to deal with serious situations. Hence, why he is so good at forensics. People call him a psycho because of this.

The only people who acknowledge Edward for his achievements is you, Jim Gordon, and Oswald Cobblepot.

He likes to write poetry and read poetry a lot.

He's a huge bookworm

He is also a big history nerd

He gives the absolute best kisses. He likes to gently hold the back of your head and put his other hand on your hip.

When he became the Riddler, if you two were dating, he would keep trying to get with you again. He would always be in love with you. He would make a theatrical statement, like when he spoke to the cadets, and he would use that (if it was broadcasted on tv) to announce his love for you. You tried to ignore him.

If you two WEREN'T dating, he would try and get on a date with you. Again, he is OBSESSED with you.

He is pan. Tell me I'm wrong.

He doesn't like PDA but if he feels like someone is eyeing you, he'll put a protective hand on your shoulder, thigh, etc. He'll also plant a kiss on your head.

He makes you a lunch for your work and writes your name on it. If he's feeling extra happy, he'll even put stickers on the bag.

He is such an ally. He goes to pride parades a lot, even after he became the Riddler. He is DEFINETLY the type of person to write his pronouns and preferred name on a name tag at gatherings. And we love him for that.

He has a tic where he licks his lips and it causes his lips to get chapped a lot. He carries chapstick everywhere.

He will do anything for his friends. He never had friends growing up, so he wants to keep the friends he has now. He likes making people happy.

You're really the only one who hangs out with him outside of work.

He likes karaoke and going to arcades

He will go to Barnes and Noble to get books, and he'll end up reading a whole book at the cafe.

He collects comic books and plays video games a lot.

He LOVES playing piano.

OK, here comes the NSFW stuff guys...prepare..

He is 100% a top. No questions about it. Before he became the Riddler he wasn't quite sure what he was. He liked to be in charge, but he wasn't as confident. After, though, he REALLY liked to be in charge.

He doesn't really have many kinks, he kind of goes with whatever. He does like a bit of BDSM though...and biting...and choking...and spi-

He doesn't believe sex is a crucial part of a relationship. He cares more about trust and love. So, he doesn't get sexual much. But, when he does.... its crazy.

He likes to ask Riddles during sex and if you get them right he uh...use your imagination for this one.

HE GIVES AMAZING ATERCARE LIKE OMG

He'll cook food, take a shower/bath with you, and watch a movie or show of your choice.

#fanfic writer #writers #gotham #edward nygma #the riddler #fanfic #headcanons

[madaboutmunson]

Sweet Home Chicago Series - Stupid Cupid (Part 1)

Summary for overview of the whole fic can be found here

For @eddiemonth Week 1 prompts used Parents, Observant, Bad Reputation - Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Lost, Role Model, Crush, Warm Warnings: None that I could think of, but let me know if you feel any should be added, and I'll do that straight away :) Romance/Fluff Word Count : 13K Ao3 Link

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1959 Little Italy, Chicago

Eddie arrives at night, and unlike Hawkins, this place is still bustling. He can only imagine what it might be like tomorrow. Alive, vibrant and diverse. Everything back home wasn't. Wayne has driven him all the way here. Even though he said several times he had the money and was fine taking the bus alone, his uncle didn't want to hear it. Besides, it would be an excellent opportunity to catch up with Eddie’s Mom.

Eddie knew this was a half-truth. Wayne was a worrier, even though it cost him time and money for gas and food at rest stops. It at least meant that he knew Eddie was safe. It did give him a chance to catch up with his Mom, but this wouldn’t be a chit-chat. Wayne didn’t mean to be judgemental, but Eddie knew he wanted to check the place out, make sure his Mom was okay, and that Eddie would be OK here.

Eddie was eighteen now, a man. He’d often told Wayne he didn’t need him protecting him and his mother henning around him. But he knew that was a lie, too. Eddie was too different to not run into trouble, and they both knew that, even if Eddie had set his mind to starting over and being someone brand new in a place where he had a clean slate. He didn't have to be the loud, weird, bad kid here. He could be the quiet, unassuming budding author, and people would like him for that, not be put off by his previous self. 

Eddie was evolving. He could use this place to settle in and to mault. Rid himself of his disfunctions become healthy and normal. That's how you get ahead in life. An easy life.

He was so nervous. It had been some time since he’d seen his mom in person, though they generally stayed in touch with occasional phone calls, letters or parcels. In the last ten years since she left, maybe five Christmases and three birthdays. But she always called him.

Since he’d hit his teens, Wayne had little to discuss with his mom that Eddie couldn't communicate himself, other than the bad stuff that Eddie always conveniently left out.

Eddie had been a good kid. He just had a less-than-ideal start in life. His father was in and out of life more often than the changes of school term. There was no nice way of saying it. His dad was a criminal. Specifically a conman. His specialities lay in being charming, blending in and rustling up disguises out of basically nothing. Maybe if he had chosen the right path when he hit that fork in the road of life, he could have been a phenomenal actor. He easily imitated voices, sounds, and mannerisms, effortlessly embodying characters like donning or doffing his hat. Which made the rare bedtime stories he told masterpiece performances.

From what Eddie can recall of his parents' relationship, it was very loving, but they seemed to be stuck in the cycle of teenage love and angst over and over. One day, they would be dancing around the kitchen, gazing at one another across the table, hardly touching their food at all, or curled up on the sofa together like two love-sick kids. But the next could be a complete warzone, arguments over the same things, either his dad’s risky next job or his mom’s failure to keep a steady one. Maybe none of that would have been a problem for the two of them, but when the third part of that equation was a young, hyperactive, attention-starved, anxiety-riddled son, it just fueled the fire.

His Mom and Dad never called him a mistake, and they did give him the love they could spare, but they were very young, and Eddie came along before they’d even caught a glimpse of the vague edge of their dreams. Neither of them had great relationships with their parents. His Dad’s were distant. Disowned him for his sinful way of life, being the god-fearing people they were. His Mom doesn't even remember her mom, she only remembers her Dad, who was essentially her best friend her whole life until the Munsons muscled into the scene, and he wanted better for her. When they ran away to get married against everyone’s advice, it broke her Dad’s heart, and they never spoke in person again. Eddie guesses it made sense they would cling to one another when they must have felt like flotsam just bobbing about in the world, lost and alone.

Eddie’s dad, criminally charming as he was, never strayed from his mom. Never looked at another woman twice. His dad said that was because he had never met a girl like his mom before in his life. 

When the Munson’s arrived in Indiana, it was tough. Tougher for outsiders. That was just the way Hawkins always was. Tough as old boots. But thankfully, the Munsons lucked out because the nearest house to theirs was owned by a kind, neighbourly mechanic Widower with an only daughter.

Eddie loved hearing how his Dad’s voice would change when he remembered his mom from their youth. He, his mom and Wayne became fast friends, roaming around Hawkins together. A happy outsider trio, going on adventures, star and cloud gazing together, cannonballing into the lake. He’d recall his mom, Esmerelda, or Em as he liked to call her, was not only fun, but she could shoot better than any he knew. She would have made a great sniper. Plus, she could strip and reassemble a car engine in record time. Only sported a dress for church on Sundays. The rest of her time, she wore pants, a shirt and braces like the rest. Though usually covered with a streak of engine oil, dirt or flour. The cherry on top was just how beautiful she was. Big, piercing green eyes and long, luscious dark waves of hair that bounced around her face as she outran them both through the fields playing tag.

The three of them were thick as thieves, but as they moved into their teens, Al started to peel off into the more real dangerous side of things, which got him kicked out, and that left his Mom and Wayne, still reading stories, and letting their imaginations run riot in the skies above them at the lakeside, or inventing future dream lives for themselves on the tire swing at the Munson’s.

But the day finally came when Al got brought home by the sheriff himself. They banned him from town, so he was plunged back into Wayne and his Mom’s life with a thump. His parents wanted nothing to do with him, so his Mom’s father let him stay in a barn on his land. Though the three spent most of their days together as kids, Al seeing Esmerelda in her everyday home life enabled him to see more sides of her. Not just showing off, being goofy or tough, but kind, careful, generous, and protective. That's when he realised it wasn’t just the friendship he felt for her and decided he should do something about it. So one night, he sent Wayne back to the house for some sodas, which Wayne argued with him over, didn’t want to do at all, nearly ruined the moment, and as soon as he was out of sight. Al made his move. Shuffled closer on a hay bale and kissed her on the cheek, and as he liked to say, the rest is history.

Then he’d turn to Eddie and say, “One day, Eddie, you’re gonna meet a girl, and Cupid is gonna line you up in his sights and pow, it’ll be over for you.” Eddie would be so scared, his dad would chuckle and pull him into his lap, “I’m sorry, son, it’s not that scary, but you’ve got the genes of your mom and me. You’re a hopeless romantic on both sides, but that just means you’ll find your one easily,” he’d tap him on the chest, “Your heart is so full of love it’s gonna shine so bright for them, they’ll see it from miles away.”

Eddie didn’t realise at the time how dysfunctional his family was. When they weren’t arguing, they had the most fun together, but some of the things he thought were games weren’t that at all. They would play the weeks-long hide-and-seek game with his dad, but Eddie mustn’t tell anyone else about it. Otherwise, the game would be over. The scavenger hunts that either they would lay out for his Dad or he and his mom would follow, the prizes always being wads of cash. Or the big box of dress up he and his mom sometimes had to rifle through and take outfits to his dad so he could play too. That was the last game he remembered them playing together.

His dad had told Eddie and his mom that he’d had a vision about work, how something might go wrong. So they were to meet him at a gas station to play pretend. Though Eddie was excited, he couldn’t figure out why his mom was so upset.

His mom had made new outfits, especially for the occasion: a priest, a nun and a choirboy. They parked around the back of the building, already in their costumes, and waited for hours. Until there was a screech of tires, the sounds of yelling and running. His mom had grabbed the brown paper bag and Eddie and ran from the car to the outdoor toilet, and they hid behind the wall. In seconds, his dad appeared with a massive smile on his face, “Look at you, my angels.” he laughed, grabbed the bag, and kissed his mom before disappearing into the toilet.

More cars were pulling up, but there was more yelling and slamming. He even heard someone shouting bad things about his dad until his mom covered his ears with her hands and pulled silly faces at him until he smiled.

Then came the sirens and gunshots. Eddie remembers being so scared until his dad reappeared, “Hey buddy, it’s ok. We’re gonna pretend we’re going to church now. So just put your hands together like when you say your prayers, close your eyes, and we’ll be on our way before you know it.” He beamed a huge toothy grin at him. Eddie could see dark grease in his hair. It almost made it look jet-black. Eddie did as he was told, the other noises continued, but he kept walking until someone lifted him into his seat.

That was the last time he saw his dad. Heard from him a few times and got a couple of things through the post, birthday and Christmas gifts, usually a few months late, but as Wayne would remind him, it’s the thought that counted.

There is something strange in the space between them in the car as they pull up outside the address she’d given them. All the buildings crowded around one another, and looming over them felt like a stark contrast to the feeling within the vehicle.

Wayne kills the engine, “Ed, if you ain’t sure bout this, it’s no trouble at all to drive ya home. I’m going back anyway.” He speaks the words up at the large building.

Eddie does actually think about it, the fear of the unknown creeping up his spine. Then he looks at Wayne. He looks tired, “Yeah,” he replies, trying to hide the crack in his voice, “I’m sure. A fresh start somewhere new, I can be someone else.” He looks up into the night sky as if asking the stars to make it so.

He feels his uncle’s hand on his shoulder, “Eddie,” Wayne’s voice is quiet and full of a soft sadness, “You ain’t gotta be no one else. There ain’t nothin’ wrong with ya. You were just a kid whose life was flipped around. You did the best ya could, son.” Wayne's soulful eyes shine in the darkness.

“I coulda been less trouble,” Eddie says with a sweet half-smile to try and lessen the weight of this conversation, “I coulda been good, made things easier for myself. Coulda not had the sheriff and neighbours knocking at your door.”

“Our door,” Wayne adds and shakes his head, with a huff of acceptance, “Kid, I just want ya to know, I’d take a hundred knocks on our door at any hour, as long as you were there with them. Safe. At home,” Wayne adds, he turns away from Eddie and looks out the window, “The only good thing I ever heard about this city, Ed, was that your mama done well for herself. Everything else was bad news.”

“Uncle Wayne,” Eddie says cautiously, but the word uncle makes Wayne’s head snap towards him. He’d been calling him Wayne mostly, but when he was little, sick or upset, he used uncle as a small plea for his comfort and support. “I came here to start over. I’m not interested in getting into trouble, joining greaser gangs, or getting into drink or drugs. I just want a chance to see more. Experience more without a brand on my forehead telling everyone I'm different. In Hawkins, I stick out, here there are so many differences no one is gonna notice lil’ ol’ me,” he smiles fondly at his uncle, “I'm gonna write a book and illustrate it, and when I make my fortune. I'm gonna come get you outta Hawkins, and me, you, mama, and pa are gonna live somewhere so grand.” His dreams widen his smile at Wayne, who offers a slight shrug of a smile back.

“Well, I ain’t never been one to stand in the way of anyone's dreams, so I reckon we better get up there before your mama falls fast asleep,” Wayne gets out of the car and gets Eddie’s cases.

Eddie shuts his eyes and takes a deep breath before opening the door and stepping out into Chicago. 

He inhales deeply again, letting the city saturate his lungs, with all its good and bad. The buildings around here were so vast and gigantic that it made him feel small, but for once, that felt good. He grins up at the lights still flooding the night, some from apartments and restaurants, some from cars driving by, and the faint sound of jazz on the wind whips around the place. 

He walks around and takes the cases from Wayne, “I got this old timer,” which puts a genuine smile on Wayne’s face as they make their way to the large brick building.

He could clearly see three floors from the sidewalk, though, on approach, it looked like there might be an attic right at the top and a basement down below. On one side of the building was a set of hard stone steps that bypassed the apartment at street level and went up to the main middle floor he could see.

Eddie halts at the two big main doors like this threshold will tear him asunder, let him leave the old bad boy Eddie behind, and only leave behind the good. He sets down one case, but his hand shakes as he reaches for the handle. Soon, he feels Wayne’s hand on his shoulder again. He turns to look at him, “You got nothing to lose. Home isn’t going anywhere. You can always come back,” Wayne smiles warmly at him, and Eddie takes hold of the handle and opens the door. As he steps into the cold, tiled hallway, he feels the warmth of Wayne’s hand leave him. As he turns, he finds his uncle neatening himself up, Straightening his tie, smoothing down his jacket, and rearranging the flowers in his hand, which were starting to look a little sorry for themselves.

Eddie looks at the numbers on the doors, and it seems they have another floor to get to his mom’s place. Eddie notices on the group of mailboxes as they pass that she hasn’t opted to change her surname, and something about that makes him feel good. Despite their distance and his dad's behaviour, it wasn’t so bad she needed to cut them off entirely.

As they reach the door of her apartment, Eddie’s anxiety takes full hold, he feels his breathing shudder, and the muscles in his back burn with a new tension. He thumbs at the ring on his finger that was a going-away gift from Wayne. He’d found it in a hide on a hunt the day after Eddie told him he wanted to leave and said he thought it was a sign. It was a simple silver signet ring that Eddie had to tape up to fit his slender fingers. He kept it on his index finger so his thumb could easily reach it. The repetitive movement, who gave it to him and the gift sentiment all helped bring him back down to earth a little. He’d been using it the whole way here.

“You know what could be fun? If she sees me first, then I step aside to reveal you? Lord knows I won’t get a word in once she’s got holda ya,” Wayne beams at him, and Eddie nods, in the full knowledge Wayne was gonna take this first step for him.

When Wayne had offered to take care of Eddie, it had been because he’d been left at his grandparents for a spell whilst his mom found her footing in the city. Eddie’s grandparents were the first people he met who branded him bad simply because he was energetic and was born of two delinquents, as they called them. Wayne had told his mom, who moved Eddie to her Dad’s, and everything was fine until he started getting sick. So Wayne worked on vehicles with his Mom’s father, cared for him and Eddie and never complained. Eddie couldn’t be that good, not as good as Christian as Wayne, but he tried. He was kind to people and animals, said his prayers, and helped around the house, but school and that kind of life were too restrictive for his imagination. Wayne plied him with fantasy books and art supplies, and they worked for a while until the differences started showing.

He was supposed to like cowboys, not knights. He was supposed to play soldiers, not sorcerors. 

His Mom came back for his grandpa’s funeral but didn’t stay. She took money and trinkets and left the house, land, and everything else for him and Wayne. That’s how it had been for the last ten years. Just him and Wayne in his Mom’s old house.

The combination of grief and being in opposition with his peers had sparked a rebellion within Eddie. He was supposed to like pop music and country, not blues and rock’n’roll. He was supposed to wear his hair short, but he preferred it longer. He should have had a pick-up. He had a motorcycle. He was a one-man gang for a while, glaring at anyone who gave him a second look, spooking locals with sinister tales until he was othered because he wanted to be. Then, a few others flocked to him, and he had his own mini band of brothers. But they got out of control. It took a few sheriff visits and a near fire to reign Eddie back in and ultimately sparked this decision to move.

Wayne knocks gently on the door, the bouquet of flowers held in front of him more like a shield than a gift. The other hand behind his back reaches for Eddie’s arm. 

“Yeah?” A deep, booming voice rings out from behind the door.

“Uh, apologies, we’re looking for Ms, um, Mrs Munson. Must have the wrong place,” Eddie hears the slight tremble in Wayne’s voice and feels his hand grip his arm tighter.

The metallic sound of latches being hurriedly undone fills the hallway, the increase in speed matching Eddie’s heartbeat, until the door is wrenched open and Eddie sucks in a breath in anticipation, but with Wayne in front of him, Eddie doesn't see much at first.

“Wayne!” An excited voice calls out before she leaps into a bear hug squeeze, and Eddie laughs when he hears the faint crunch of the flowers.

“He came?” He hears his mom say in disbelief as Wayne is shoved to the side, and there she is. Older but more beautiful than he remembers.

She’s a small woman, a smirk in the place of a smile, but it radiates joy all the same. On top of her head, her jet black curls are piled on top of one another in an untamed bun, a scarf is neatly folded into a headband of sorts and tied around her head, at the top in a small bow, from under which a set of shorter curls spill out and frame her emerald eyes, rounded nose and delicate jawline.

Her hands reach forward and grab Eddie’s face, and she plants kisses on his cheeks, too many for him to count, leaving them both giggling as she moves her rough hands away and steps back again to get a good look at him, “Oh sweetheart, look at you! You look so grown up with your little suit on,” Her hand raises to her mouth, and Eddie thinks he can see the start of tears brimming, but she quickly averts her eyes to Wayne and waves them inside, “Come in. Come in. I’ll, um, show you to your room so you can drop your bags in,” As she shuts the door behind them, her arm braces around Eddie’s shoulders and pulls him in for a side hug, “I can’t believe you’re finally here sweetie, oh my goodness you are gonna love it. Sorry everywhere is a little empty, I um, I only just moved into this apartment from upstairs. Here we are,” she says excitedly, then stops, gives him another squeeze, and gestures into a plain looking room.

The wooden floor is adorned with a mishmash of rugs, there is a single metal framed bed, a desk which he can see has been stocked with stationary, a full-length mirror attached to a tall wardrobe, and next to a tall chest of drawers, on top of which sits a record player.

“I didn't wanna do too much. This is your room, so you can decorate it as you like, and I can get rid of anything you don't want or like, don't worry about that. Just wanted you to have what I figured might be essentials.” She releases him and opens up the wardrobe, “I got you a set of towels, and um,” she moves over to the chest of drawers, “Some new socks and underwear. I hope I got the size right. I did try to remember the numbers your uncle gave me,” she smiles, and Eddie begins to see how nervous she is.

“Wow, it's so great. Thank you, Mama, I mean, Mom,” Eddie corrects himself, trying to sound a little more grown up. He puts his cases down by his bed and almost removes his hat before looking nervously at Wayne and then his mom.

“What's wrong, sweetheart?” She asks, a little worried, looking between Eddie and Wayne.

“Who else is here?” Eddie asks quietly.

His mom looks at him quizzically, “No one, sweetie. It's just us.”

“But the voice at the door,” he says, pointing back to the hallway.

“Ohhhh,” his Mom says in realisation, cups her hands to her mouth and booms out, “You mean this voice?”

Eddie's shoulders relax, and he nods and laughs, shaking his head.

“Is that what you were worried about, honey?” She asks again, but Eddie shakes his head, unable to find the words.

“Emmie,” Wayne starts and looks at Eddie with a reassuring smile, “The boy doesn't much like the barbers.”

Her worry fades, and she smiles mischievously, gesturing at her hair, “Me neither.”

Eddie carefully removes his bakerboy-style hat that hid his hair and takes the clips out so that his dark waves of hair fall around his face. It’s not long like his mom’s, but it's long enough to reach the top of his shoulders.

His mom lets out a tiny squeal of delight, “Oh my goodness, you look like a little angel. Sorry, I mean, your hair looks very handsome on you, Eddie.”

“I like it this way, but I know it's not what others like. So I keep it tucked away.” Eddie advises.

“Well, no need to do that here, sweetheart,” she beams at him and takes down her hair. This is our home, and you can be yourself here, ok? You’re whole true self,” her eyes dart to Wayne nervously and back to Eddie, “I mean, your Chicago home, you know. Not like your home-home.” She laughs awkwardly, “You know what? I’ll rustle us up a quick supper and leave you boys to it.”

Eddie busies himself unpacking, and Wayne doesn’t speak until his mom’s footsteps fade away. He strolls around the room and looks out of the window, out onto the city.

“Nice view,” he says.

Eddie snorts out a laugh, “Say what you really wanna say, Wayne.”

Wayne turns around and starts picking up the clothes Eddie is laying on the bed and transferring them to the wardrobe hangers or drawers for him, “Just promise me if you wanna come home, you’ll call, ok? Don’t matter the time. I’ll come get ya as soon as I can. It ain’t no failing just ‘cus a place is too much for ya. It’s a big change, Ed, and you ain’t like ya mama. She’s like a damn rubber ball the way she bounces back from every knockdown.”

“I promise,” Eddie smiles at Wayne’s protectiveness, “Maybe you can’t see it, but maybe in a bigger place, I won’t stick out so much? I’ll stand a better chance slipping under the radar here than I did in Hawkins.” 

Wayne hums in that grumbly fashion he does when he knows he has to agree with Eddie but doesn’t want to.

“Let me just try, and I promise, I won’t hesitate to call if things start to go wrong,” Eddie reassures him.

Wayne tilts his head into view to receive the last of his knitted jumpers, “Even if that’s tomorrow?”

Eddie rolls his eyes and laughs, “Even if that’s tomorrow.” 

Once all the clothes are away, they sit together around the kitchen table and demolish the plate of sandwiches between them. Eye-opening stories for each of them, some about baby Eddie, some about his mom and Wayne’s adventures, some tales from Wayne about older Eddie’s misadventures, and even some about his Mom starting out in the city. They laugh and share fond smiles until his Mom lets out a yawn, “I’m so sorry, I’ve been up since five this morning,”

“Sorry, Darlin’, I didn't realise the time. I should get goin’,” Wayne says as his eyes nervously dart to Eddie before focusing back on cleaning away the dishes.

“Now, Wayne, you haven't gotta do that, it’s fine!” “I won’t hear non’ a that. You made the food. I can sort the dishes before I head off,” Wayne says, collecting the plates.

Eddie watches his Mom play nervously with the hem of her shirt, “You know, Wayne, it’s kinda late. You could stay if you want to? I’ve got a camp bed or the sofa. You can take my room,”

“Absolutely not! It's Eddie’s first day in the city tomorrow, and he don’t need a shadow. Needs to make his own way,” Wayne says, clearing his throat afterwards.

Eddie feels that familiar nervous swirling in his stomach as he realises he hadn't spent more than the occasional sleepover or overnight camping trip away from Wayne in the last ten years. 

This was really it.

Suddenly, he felt lost, like he was drifting away from his mooring into the unchartered waters. Nausea was a very real and present sensation. Eddie quickly gets out of his seat to help Wayne with the dishes. He stands shoulder to shoulder with him, sending him an occasional smile while humming one of Wayne’s favourite songs.

Before they know it, the dishes are done, and all that is left is goodbye.

“Don’t wave me off. Stay up here, get a cocoa in ya, and off to bed. That's an order for both of ya,” Wayne tries to joke, but Eddie can hear a slight tremble in his voice, “So um, if anything, call me, ok, doesn’t matter what it is, like I said-”

Eddie pulls him in tight for a tight squeeze as he bites back his tears against Wayne’s shoulder, “Gonna miss you,” Is all Eddie can manage.

“I’m gonna miss you like crazy, son.” He squeezes him back harder, “And speaks into his hair, “And if anything happens to you out here, you have my solemn vow, I’ll raze Hawkins to the ground, cus it’s that stupid fuckin’ town that took you away. I’ll give them hell until the end of my days.” 

“He’s gonna be ok, Wayne. I promise,” Eddie hears his mom attempt to reassure him.

His uncle squeezes him tightly one more time, pats him on the shoulders, and moves back to look at him, tears in both their eyes. Wayne swallows and wipes his eyes before turning to his mom, “Emmie, it was good to see ya. Uh. See ya later, Ed,” he says, shakes his hand, nods his goodbye to him, and leaves.

Eddie rushes to the window of his room. In the dark, he finally lets his tears fall as he watches his weeping uncle drive away.

“Gotcha, that cocoa, you’re uncle suggested, pretty plain, I’m afraid. Tomorrow, I’ll pick up some marshmallows.” he hears her set the mugs down, “May I?” She asks, and Eddie only weakly nods as he finds himself crying in his mother's arms for the first time in eleven years.

Eddie didn’t sleep well that night; he was not used to the noise, and his worries wouldn’t let him rest even if it were as quiet as back home.

He lays awake in bed, waiting to hear his Mom get up. He checks his watch, gives her five minutes, and then joins her.

“Morning Sweetheart, want some coffee?” He hears her call out as he walks to the bathroom.

“Yeah, that would be great, thank you,” he rolls his eyes a little at himself at how formal he’s being, but he’s just trying to be polite.

He makes his way to the kitchen and finds not just a coffee but a plate of scrambled eggs, too.

“You still like eggs, right?” She asks with an awkward smile.

Eddie nods happily, “Yeah. I do. Thank you.” He tucks his pajamaed self in by shuffling his chair forward with a squeak against the floor, and he instinctively winces, “Sorry.” He glances slightly up at her from the corner of his eye. She’s probably regretting this already.

She moves from the counter and sits beside him, “Hey, you didn't do anything wrong. You’re fine, honestly.” He raises his eyes to her piercing green ones, and she gives him that sweet smile of hers, “Listen, sweetheart, I get we don’t know one another too well. That’s on me. I love you, always have, and always will. Even though maybe I didn’t show it in all the ways a mother should,” she cautiously reaches her hand over his, and he pushes his hand into hers, “But I want to get to know you, as you are. Wayne filled me in on a lot, and I just want to repeat, this is our, um, Chicago home, right? And behind this door, you are one hundred per cent okay to be one hundred per cent yourself, even if you can’t do it out there. I know I can’t.”

“You can’t?” Eddie says, and he realises his voice sounds small, unlike the eighteen-year-old man he’s supposed to be.

“No way. Are you kidding me?” she laughs, “I’ve built myself from nothing here. I can do the jobs I wanna do. Manual work that doesn’t involve putting on a full face of makeup or putting up with sleazy guys. Sorry, too much. Uh. What I’m trying to say is if I acted my true, daydreaming, singing, ditzy self out there, even though I do every job I take on extremely well, no one would take me seriously. I wouldn’t be a person to call for people that live around here. I wouldn’t have been trusted to take on maintenance for this building and get this bigger apartment,” she squeezes his arm and softens her voice, “but when I step through that door. I drop all those masks. I’d go crazy if I didn’t,” she smiles at him, “and I don’t need a crazy man in my home. So just be yourself, sweetheart. Wayne has filled me in on some things you’re dealing with, but I won’t make you talk about them unless you want to. I know you want a fresh start. Just like I did when I got here, I want this home to be your springboard to your dreams, Eddie. Everyone deserves to try.”

Something about that sets Eddie more at ease, “Got it, M-mom,” he corrects, and she raises an eyebrow at him, “Mama.” He says with a happy smile, and she nods.

“Better?” She asks.

“Yeah,” he says as he moves his hand on top of hers and squeezes it, kissing her on the cheek, “Tons better,” he says, picking up his cutlery to eat. Against his better judgement, he eats exactly as he would at home, pretty much inhaling the food on the plate, as his Mom laughs and gets up to pour another coffee for herself.

“So I got a few jobs to do today. I know you said you didn’t want me chaperoning and wanted to discover the place for yourself, but I also promised Wayne I’d keep you safe, and obviously, I want that, too. So, I thought maybe you could do some shopping for me, stick to the area. I’ve even put the names of the stores down for you. When you’re done, if you want to roam around, don’t stray too far from Taylor Street, ok. That’s the kind of hub of this area, and it’s the community I know,”

“Yeah, I read about that. Is it just all Italians ‘round here then? Because of the name,” Eddie asks, finishing his last mouthful and picking up his coffee.

“No, not really. There are people from all over. Well, at one point in their family tree, but most of the people your age around here are born and bred in Chicago. It’s fascinating, really. You’re gonna have tons more things to inspire you here,” She smiles and pushes him over a piece of note paper with some money, “Feel free to grab yourself some lunch out of that too. Keep the change for yourself. Don’t wanna deprive my little wordsmith of anything,” She smiles at him in a way he’s seen before somewhere in his distant memories and something that reminds him of Wayne. She’s proud of me, he thinks to himself, and that surges him into action. 

He quickly cleans the dishes and gets ready for the day. His Mom kisses him goodbye, leaving him at his desk for a while, pondering out his window. Watching people come and go, he decides to wait an hour or so for it to quieten down. He spends time sketching out some people on the street and the buildings. His mom was right. This place had so much going on it was impossible not to be inspired, and an urge to get amongst it all sweeps over Eddie. He pins up his hair, hiding it under his hat, grabs his satchel, dumping in his art and writing supplies. Rushes into the kitchen to pick up his keys, money and jacket. 

He gives the door a shove to make sure he’s shut it properly, and confident in that, he tries to step away but finds himself yanked back because he’s closed his jacket in there.  Eddie rolls his eyes at his clumsiness and unlocks the door again, releasing his jacket and closing and rechecking it. He takes a breath, starts over, and makes his way down the stairs to the foyer, tips his hat and smiles at his new neighbours as he passes.

It’s not until he steps outside that anyone stops him. 

“Ey! You new around here, ain’t ya?” a deep voice calls out after him. Eddie’s heart is pounding. This is the first person he’s going to officially meet here as the new him. He puts a friendly smile on his face and turns to greet them.

It’s a guy who looks about his age with blond hair, most of which is slicked back in a pompadour style save for a solitary ringlet that fell down his forehead. A cigarette limply hangs from his lips as he mirrors Eddie's smile and uses his shoulder to push himself from the wall he is leaning against.

“Morning,” Eddie chirps back, “Yeah, uh, just got here last night.”

“Oh really?” He tilts his head and looks Eddie over, “Huh.” He steps forward and grabs Eddie’s satchel.

Eddie feels immediately flustered by the intrusion and how quickly this guy got into his space. He tries to laugh it off, “Hey, easy there,” he says, tugging his bag back and taking a few steps down the staircase from the man.

“Easy there,” he mimics and laughs, “You one of those squares from the university?”

Eddie tries to smile again, even though he can feel his old self just beneath the surface, ready to knock out this guy’s teeth. It must have been some sort of dumb prank, “No, I just wanted to try the city out.”

“Oh, you’re a hick?” The guy asks, narrowing his eyes. His grin grows to something sly as if he knows he’s pushing Eddie’s buttons. He jumps down to the step Eddie is on with a thud, takes a long draw on his cigarette, and blows the smoke in Eddie’s face. Eddie waves it away with his hand, making him throw back his head and laugh.

Eddie bites the inside of his cheek, repressing the urge to retaliate, turns his glare away and starts down the stairs again.

“Hey! I’m not done talking to you!” He shouts after Eddie.

“Oh, I think we’re done here, buddy,” Eddie waves back with a forced laugh.

”Was that your old man last night? Crying in his car like a little bitch?” He shouts louder after Eddie.

That does it. Eddie wipes his hand down his lower face to contain the bubbling rage within him. No one talks about Wayne like that. Not this fucker, not anyone. 

What he wouldn’t give to be able to launch himself back up these stairs and send that dick crashing down them with his fist. But he’s not gonna let this asshole ruin his new start.

He turns back and looks up at him. “Ah, there he is,” the guy says with a weird sort of relief and a satisfied grin.

“You know, friend, maybe you shouldn’t be peering in the car windows or old men at night. You’ll get yourself a reputation,” Eddie shouts back at him and watches the guy’s face drop as a passing group of kids giggle at him.

Eddie smirks up at him and sends him a wink before continuing his day, leaving him standing dumbly on the staircase. 

This place was incredible. Eddie gets most of what his mom has asked for on the list from the locations on the small map she drew him. The grocery shop was the place nearest home and looked like the heaviest order, so he’d save that for last.

He circles back and drops in the light bulbs and various cleaning stuffs, and as it’s nice out, instead of staying cooped up inside, he decides to sit on the stairs and sketch some of the scenes around him as he munches on the sandwich from the deli.

He spots a group of girls over by a bench. Two are sitting down. One a light brown Italian-style haircut, like Sophia Loren, her big blue eyes bore into the pages of the book she's reading. Beside her is another girl trying to get something out of her light, mousy brown hair. Though their purposes seem different, they seem to be conversing, and the third, a girl with red hair, has decided to pretend the kerb is a tightrope and keeps her balance walking along it.

Eddie smiles to himself and gets to drawing. He should be trying to think of a main character for his story and draw that, but the inspiration hasn’t hit him yet. This place has too much he wants to capture. Maybe he should see if his mom has a camera or something.

Lost in the piece's details, he overlooks the shadow looming over him, and he’s too late to grab his sketch pad as it is snatched away from his lap. 

“Hey!” Eddie shouts and tries to grab it back, but the problem quickly becomes evident. It's the guy from earlier, only he has two other guys with him this time.

“Geez, what even is this shit,” he sneers at Eddie's drawing and shows it to his friends, who laugh along with him.

Eddie is so over this bullshit already, “Ok, you don’t like it. Fine. Just give it back, ok? And I’ll get away from your stairs, or whatever it is that's making you so upset,” he sighs and extends his hand towards him.

The blonde glares right into his eyes. He licks his teeth and spits on the ground before looking back at Eddie. A sinister smile spreads over his face again as he holds the pad aloft and turns his attention to the girls, “Hey! Ladies! Did you know you were all being perved on by some creep?” he yells over to them.

Eddie springs into panic, waving his hands in front of him. “Oh my god, no. It's not like that at all. I swear,” he frantically pleads with them as they frown at him and walk away, leaving the guys cackling amongst themselves. Great. Day one, and he’s already a fucking creep. What the fuck was this guy’s problem, anyway.

The guy plucks the cigarette out of the freckled boy's mouth and stubs it out on Eddie’s sketch pad, “Oops, better put that out, hadn’t I?” he drops the pad to the steps, stomps on it, grinds his boot into the pages and kicks it over to Eddie.

Eddie’s blood is boiling with rage, but he also feels like he could erupt into tears simultaneously. This was absolutely fucking ridiculous. Why couldn’t he just have this chance? Maybe he’d been so bad all the gods and the universe decided he doesn't get a do-over, and he has to pay for all the trouble he caused.

He looks at the trio and wonders if this is how Hawkins saw him and his gang. A cloud of terror just drifting to cause trouble and leave. Though Eddie never bullied anyone, he did annoy most businesses in town with his antics.

He picks up the pad and dusts it off, putting it in his bag, and he’s about to walk away, but he just can’t help himself. He turns back, eyes this dickhead with absolute disgust, “What is your problem with me anyway? I just got here. I’m not looking for trouble or trying to muscle in on anything you’ve got going on,”

They laugh, and the freckled one smirks, “How the fuck could you muscle in on anythin’? Look atcha. Nothing but an itty bitty weakling,” he jeers.

The one with shorter, cropped blond hair and narrow, icy blue eyes mimics him, “What's your problem with me anyway?” 

The main guy has a satisfied smirk, “I’ll tell you what the problem is,” he says, grabbing Eddie by the shirt and pulling him in close, but Eddie doesn't cower and does not retaliate, just coldly stares right back at him. 

The guy looks Eddie’s face up and down. Like a closer inspection, now he's only inches away from it, “My problem is, I don’t like creeps on my block,” then he leans in to whisper in Eddie’s ear, “And also…I know what you are…Freak!”

Eddie’s stomach churns at the thought of what this guy could have already deciphered about him so quickly. Could he just be talking about the drawings, that he wasn't from here, or he wasn’t dressed right?

He jolts backwards out of his grip as the guy smugly tilts his chin in the air, the victor.

Not wanting to add to today's problems, Eddie simply gathers his things and decides to get the groceries.

The group blocks his path down the stairs, saying, “I’ve got things to do. So if you kindly let me pass, I can be on my way,”

“Don't be too long, now. We’ll be here waiting for when you get back,” the main stocky guy teases.

Eddie hurriedly bustles his way past them, briskly walking away, and doesn't look back. Not even once, as his pulse thunders in his ears. The city seems to swell and contract as the anxiety starts to weave its way into him, and he might have walked right on by the grocery store if not for the uneven sidewalk.

He manages to get his hands in front of him, preventing his face from meeting the pavement and scrambles to his feet.

“What? Not even a postcard?” A thick Chicago accent rings out. Eddie starts to feel the defensiveness rise in him. He’s going to give this joker a piece of his mind. It's only his first day here, and already, it's going to hell. It's a stupid joke, anyway, which makes no sense at all because he didn't trip. He fell. Couldn’t this moron even see that? He dusts off his new clothes and notices a small tear in the knee. And that might be the final straw. Eddie screws up his face in rage. Fists clenched at his sides, one finger extended, ready to point right at this guy.

“No! Not even-” Eddie begins angrily as he turns to the voice. But all language and oxygen leave him, and all he can do is take one gulp of an inhale like a human goldfish.

Standing in front of Eddie right now is something he can barely comprehend. A miracle has occurred, and it doesn't seem like the rest of the world has noticed because it's carrying on like this isn’t even happening. He can vaguely hear the cars and the shouts of others, but they are all starting to dwindle. It was like someone was turning the volume down on planet Earth, and all he could hear was his own heartbeat and breathing.

Then, almost like a vignette is placed over his vision, blurring and darkening the edges, he can only focus on one thing.

The man of Eddie’s dreams.

Physically, at least.

He is right there.

Like the great animators in the sky plucked him out of his mind and drew him into existence.

Had he not put his hand out in time? Was he, in reality, currently knocked out by the fall, and that's why he can see this guy now?

He’s about the same height as Eddie. His hair is neatly cropped, not shoved away and hidden under a hat like his own. It’s side-parted, with a perfect swoop of brown, neatly combed and styled hair. Save for a few strands that hang over his forehead, rebelling against the pomade. His light brown eyes are shaped with a slight slope downwards, giving them a natural, hooded, adorable sadness, just like Elvis himself. But these are larger, which made them infinitely easier to get lost in. But there isn’t an ounce of sadness in the rest of that face as a cocky open-mouthed smile spreads across it. Tucked in the corner of his lips is a toothpick that rolls, as his tongue is idly toying with from inside his mouth as he looks Eddie up and down. 

Then there are those rose-blushed lips of his. They looked so soft, in direct opposition with the perfectly chiselled jaw they rested above. And all of this with a backdrop of olive skin littered with beauty marks. As if this guy needed any more indicators of how beautiful he was. Jesus.

Eddie dares to give him a rapid look up and down, and it is also awful news because not only did they give him the face of an angel, but they had to provide him with a body that would launch a million classical sculptors across all time into action. His shoulders are broad and sit atop two very pleasantly muscular arms. The white cotton t-shirt embraces them, one tighter than the other as it's rolled a little higher to hold his pack of smokes. The fabric stretches over his chest to reveal the mounds and dips of an anatomical landscape that Eddie is sure he would happily sit and admire for longer than any national landmark this fair country had to offer. Then the killing blow by this everyday garment is struck by how it falls and clings to his stomach, revealing he’s even got a slightly soft tummy. Eddie is starting to feel light-headed. This cannot be real.

Then Eddie notices something else, he’s wearing an apron, and in his arms is a crate of apples. He fucking works here. Oh god. Oh, god, no! Eddie starts to feel like he's overheating, and he’s eyelids flutter unintentionally.

“You ok dere, buddy?” The man’s smile and amusement take an eighty per cent plummet as they look over Eddie with concern.

He’s overwhelmed by everything happening right now, the whole day of mistakes leading up to it, questioning if it was even the right choice to come to the city in the first place. If all of these things were glaring warning signs, pointing him to go back home to Hawkins, stop chasing stupid dreams, and get a job with his Uncle Wayne at the factory. And this…this man at his local store of all places spelt trouble for him. No matter how hard he tried, he wasn’t good at hiding his thoughts or feelings. 

That was it decided. He would turn around now, go pack, and go home. This was a stupid idea. Eddie feels a tightness across his shoulders start to spread, his palms heat up, and he realises he’s been staring into space for the last few seconds. 

He tries to run, but his legs suddenly feel like lead, and though he’s stopped, the world spins around a few more times. Instead of the street being in his eye line, the horizon starts to fall, and all he can see is the sky before he feels his back hit something, but it's not hard like the ground. Soon, the horizon returns, as does the street and the face of an angel, moving him to sit on the ground outside the store, next to a pyramid of oranges.

“I need ya to sit right here, ok buddy. I’m gonna get ya some water, alright?” the angel’s mouth moves, and Eddie watches it seriously to make sure he can hear every one of his precious words.

He pats him on the shoulders, steps toward the store door, and pauses before looking back and tilting his head, “What's ya name?”

He is still a little dizzy, but he knows the answer to that question, “Eddie.” he replies quickly. 

The man smiles hugely and repeats his name like he’s testing it out. He places his toothpick behind his ear, “I’m Stefano, yous can call me Steve. Most do,” he gives him a little two-finger wave and disappears inside the store.

Eddie nods a dopey smile of thanks and then tries to take in his surroundings but nearly snaps his neck, looking back just as the guy goes through the door. Holy heck. Turns out it wasn’t just the front of this guy that was stunning. Eddie blows out a breath and stares at the ground. Yeah, this was bad, very bad. He needed to get his things and go home. Maybe getting knocked out by three guys might be slightly less painful than what this situation could be.

Eddie wobbles to his feet and walks to his bag and drawing equipment strewn across the sidewalk.

“EY! I thought I told you to sit right ‘dere?” Steve orders with a loud authority, and there is a clatter of something wooden.

“I’m fine, really,” Eddie says quickly, avoiding looking at him.

“You ain’t fine, buddy. You near hit da deck twice!” Steve says, grabbing his elbow and pulling him back towards the store. Eddie’s eyes turn to him again, and he feels all resistance leave him entirely and is seated on an upturned wooden container. Eddie notices that Steve has made a makeshift table and two chairs entirely out of crates. 

He can’t resist looking back over at him as he bends over to pick up Eddie’s things from the ground, and an internal battle rages as Eddie has to force himself to look elsewhere. This guy had been kind, so far anyway, so it wasn’t right to gawk at him, and also, Eddie shouldn’t be ogling guys. That was a one-way ticket to getting your head kicked in town.

Eddie’s stomach drops as he sees Steve stand and observe the sketch pad as he walks back over to him, “Oh…er… it's not what you think. I swear,” Eddie quickly defends.

“What? That you ain’t an artist?” Steve looks up at him, confused.

“No, well, kinda. I men. Fuck. I mean, “ As Steve’s eyes meet his own with a smirk, he gets lost in his eyes again, “Shit, I don't know what I mean.” He says finally with what he is sure is the dopiest, enamoured smile on his face.

Steve sits on the crate opposite him and hands him back his things apart from the pad he’s still observing. Eddie follows his eyes as they trail over the paper and watches his beautiful long lashes bat as he blinks. He vows to draw them all night until he has a perfect version and then hide it in an old tome in the national library so they’ll never be forgotten by time.

“OK, first, your soda. Hope dats alright. I thought yous might need the sugar,” he turns and whacks the cap off the bottle against the store window ledge. The muscles in his arm visibly flex as he does so and offers it over to Eddie, who accepts it gratefully and quickly diverts his eyes to the bottle itself.

For a second, Eddie's fingers brush against Steve’s, making the skin tingle like there is static between them, and he finds himself avoiding his eyes again as he drinks.

Eddie has not been shy since he can remember. He’s an all-singing, all-dancing, one-man vaudeville extravaganza, and he was trying to be a quieter, more reflective version of himself, but he wasn’t trying to be shy. But this guy made him feel goofy. Like someone had injected him with pure intoxication. Eddie knows he should stop biting the inside of his lip and stop staring, but he feels like it’s out of his control. The universe had put this heavenly body in Levis before him, and what was he supposed to do? Reject the gift? Force his way out of its orbit? No, but he didn’t want to repay the guy's kindness with his weird staring, so he kept trying to focus on other things. Anything that might save him from the flawless man realising he was appreciating him in a more than friendly way.

Eddie figures he must be doing an okay job. The guy hasn’t exhibited any of the usual aggressive tells Eddie had learned in Hawkins. When you're eager for a kiss or to dodge a fist, you learn to be observant of that shit quickly.

Steve tilts his head into his eye line, and once he has his attention, he moves it back to upright and smiles and asks, “Now I got a coupla questions, alright witcha?” Eddie nods in agreement as his eyes obediently follow him, as does the same smile he can’t seem to wipe from his face.

“You don’t sound like yous from here. You lost?” He asks.

Eddie shakes his head, “Nah, not lost. Not at all,” he means that he feels found when Steve looks at him, “But I did only get here last night,” Eddie offers up freely, and part of his brain is too slow to protest the fact he shouldn’t be telling a stranger more than they ask for.

Steve’s smile widens, “Dat makes sense,” Eddie watches his fingers trail over the paper where the cigarette has burned the pages, and a fresh feeling of embarrassment floods him. He could have taken the three of them. This guy sure wasn’t going to be impressed when he found out he’d effectively run away.

“It does?” Eddie asks, suddenly eager to have Steve look at him again.

“Yeah. I ain’t seen you before. Woulda remembered,” Steve sends him a charming boyish smile as the toothpick in his mouth moves from one side of his mouth to the other, “So, uh-“ he starts but is quickly interrupted.

“STEFANO!! ‘Owa, long is it gonna take for yous to finish the apples, eh? We’ll have a whole orchard ina here beforea you’re done. Amonini!” A woman’s voice rings out loud and clear, bursting the dreamy bubble Eddie was sitting in.

He looks over for Steve’s reaction. His eyes are wide, and a faint blush hits his cheeks and jaw, “‘Scuse me, Eddie,” he pockets Eddie’s pad in his apron and returns to the crate of apples Eddie had seen him carrying. He sets it out on the sloped display and is about to sit back down when he’s stopped in his tracks again.

“Stefano!! Why you no answer me?” The woman’s voice calls out again, annoyed and getting closer. Eddie watches Steve close his eyes slowly and slams down the second crate.

“IM DOIN’ IT, MA!” He yells back at the top of his lungs, goes back inside and re-emerges with another few crates piled up on top of one another.

“Urgh dissa boy, I swear. STEFANO!” Eddie hears the woman very clearly now, even though she isn’t shouting, and he looks up to see an open window she must be upstairs.

“MA! I'M DOING IT ALREADY!” Steve yells back, his beautiful brow frowns petulantly as he roughly shoves the crates into the display in an adorable little tantrum.

“Why you take-a so long? Huh?”

“Ma! I just fucking stepped foot out here! Gimme a fuckin’ chance! I’m only one man! Jesus!” 

“STEFANO EMILIO HARRINGTON, Don-na tell me you takin’ Jesus’ name in vain,” her voice travels around the place until Eddie hears the sound of footsteps and the ring of the bell as the door is yanked open. A woman’s face emerges. Initially, she looks furious, “Listen to how my son talks to me. You heara dat? What kinda terrible mother have I been to deserve that? Oh, the worst!” It feels like she says it to Eddie, but her words could have been for anyone in earshot.

Eddie's eyes turn to Steve, who, though now quite red in the face, probably from carrying all those crates around, is having some kind of absolutely silent conversation with his mother. It was the complete opposite of the yelling match they were just having. They gesture their hands in pointed, stern ways at first. Fingers pinched together, their eyes and faces express some kind of disagreement that soon dissolves to calm, and his mother’s eyes turn to Eddie for a second before she turns back to Steve and drags her thumb down her cheek with a big smile at him. He shrugs and looks a little bashful. She nods and goes back inside.

He watches Steve take a deep breath, and he walks over to sit back down on his crate seat, “Sorry ‘bout dat. So, uh, are you an artist den?” He pulls the pad back out and places it between them.

The sudden intrusion of Steve’s mom seems to give Eddie some of the English language back, “ I, um, yeah, I like to draw, but I wanna write,” he says and takes a swig of his drink immediately after speaking, to prevent himself from waffling too much.

“Oh, like for da paper?”

“Uh, well, maybe,” Eddie cannot bring himself to tell this beautiful being he’s wrong, “But books mostly. Stories and things like that,” now he feels that shyness again. Sometimes, it feels dumb to talk about his dreams out loud. Steve probably thinks he’s an idiot without a real job, but there isn’t a crumb of negativity on Steve’s face, just a broad smile.

“O’ course, you write stories and draw. Course ya do,” he says with a happy shake of his head, “Well ya know, if, er, yeah, I can always put a word in for you at da paper. I knowaguy,” Steve offers kindly, and Eddie can feel himself falling in love with how he talks with every word he says, on top of how kind and beautiful he is.

“Gee, that’d be swell,” Eddie says, unable to hide his gigantic grin.

Steve taps his finger on the pad, “I think. I might know these girls,” though Steve says it with a smile, Eddie freezes. Worried this man’s initial kindness was going to sour quickly now. He probably thinks the same as the guy outside his building. He feels such an idiot for drawing it in the first place, but he doesn’t see anything wrong in it because, for starters, one was an actual child, and the other two were beautiful. He could see that, but the same way he’d feel about a sunset or a lovely tree, not beautiful like attraction, not like he felt about Steve, but he couldn’t just tell someone that, so he plays along.

“Oh yeah?” Eddie keeps it short and tries not to make this worse than it needs to be.

“Yeah, dis one with da book. ‘Dats Nancy, she used to be my girl,” Steve says, not taking his eyes from the pad. Eddie's space rocket of impossible dreams explodes before it even leaves the stratosphere and sends his stomach plummeting. What did he expect, though, really? Steve’s finger moves across the paper, and he taps the heads of the other two girls, “Deez two, my sisters.” Shit. Eddie feels the need to run. This guy is gonna flip out any minute and probably crush his head like a melon between two of these wooden crates. But both through fear and the fact that Steve raises his soulful brown eyes to meet his, he stays put.

He knows he should say something, but he’s struggling to find the right watertight words and has no chance of being misunderstood. But he can’t think straight when he can see almost every small pigment detail in Steve’s eyes and presses his lips together, afraid he might just say something about them instead.

A loud slam of a car door pushes a word out of Eddie, “B-beautiful,” he blurts out.

“Oh,” Steve replies and pushes the pad over to Eddie. The smile fades from his lips, and Eddie hates it, so he just lets his motormouth let rip.

“The scene. I mean. The scene was beautiful. Not the girls. I mean, yes, they are beautiful, but I don't mean in that way. They were together but so different, and when I sat down to draw, they were perfectly framed from where I was sitting. I was inspired by them, you know? Like a nice tree or something. Back home is so different from here. All I had to draw sometimes were nice trees. I don’t know why I’m telling you about nice trees. I’m just saying that I didn't mean any harm. I know better now. I won’t do it again. I swear. This city has plenty more things that are inspiring. I just thought they looked kinda like if a personality was a group of people. I thought that fit this place because it's a huge mixture of cultures, sounds, and sights.”

Steve’s eyes don’t leave Eddie’s, “Da girl holdin’ the book. Dat’s Nancy. We used to date a while back. She’s real smart. I reckon yous two would get along real well. I could introduce ya if you want?”

“Oh god, no!” Eddie says way too quickly, with a laugh, “I mean, no, thank you. I’m not looking for a girl. I mean, I’m not looking to date right now. But thank you.” he awkwardly recovers as quickly as he can. Well, at least hopes he has. He thinks maybe he’s slightly successful as Steve leans forward a little to rest his chin on his fist, and a smile reappears.

“You know, maybe you could do it from here next time you wanna draw or write? ‘Deres normally a table, but I had to take it inside to fix somethin’ on it,” Eddie glimpses through the window of the store and quite clearly can see two elderly gentlemen playing checkers on it, “It’d be nice to have a creative type use it, prob’ly attract more people like ‘dat. If you wan’ I mean,” he says kindly.

Eddie can’t believe his luck. Yeah, sure, today had started off a complete mess, but now he had a movie-star-looking guy, basically saying, spend time with me every day, doing what you love. If it wasn’t for how Steve flips the toothpick around in his mouth, Eddie would have been completely lost in his eyes and swooned clear off the crate in front of him.

“Gosh, that's really kind of you. When are you usually here? Every day?” Eddie asks, maybe a little too enthusiastically, which makes Steve laugh, and it might be sweeter than morning birdsong to Eddie’s ears.

“Well-” Steve starts but is interrupted as the bell above the door rings again.

His mom emerges with a tray of coffee and tiny cups. This time, Eddie jumps to his feet to introduce himself properly and not just sit and stare. He quickly neatens up his clothes and clumsily tries to angle his leg, so it hides the tear in his pants. He almost laughs at his eagerness to impress her. He supposes he is new and wants to make a good impression, but he knows it's more than that. He knows that his fantasy brain is running away with him again, trying to impress the object of his affection’s mother. Like this could ever be a thing.

The small woman has beautifully coiffed dark brown hair, and her eyes look just the same as Steve’s, except her’s are expertly lined with makeup. She beams at Eddie as she sets the tray on the crate, which wobbles, and Steve rushes inside the store momentarily. Leaving Eddie and his mom smiling awkwardly at one another for a moment. Eddie can hear some raised voices but can’t make out any of the words the raised voices are exchanging and figures they must be talking in Italian. The two elderly men from inside emerge, grumbling. One with the checkerboard under his arm storms out first, followed by a second, who flicks his hand under his chin at Steve, who laughs and yells after them, “Well, if yous two ordered more dan a biscotti to share every day, den maybe you’d keep the table!” he shakes his head, “Fuckin’ stunad,”

“Stefano!” his mom reprimands him as he exchanges the crates for actual furniture. He seats his mom first as if that doesn't make Eddie’s heart beat faster with how sweet he is. He looks at Eddie and then down at the tray, and for a second, Eddie can’t do anything except look back like he’s hypnotised or something, but his mom coughs daintily, and Eddie realises what he needs to do and lifts the tray, as Steve swaps in a small table, and goes rushes back into the store and virtually jumps down the steps on his return, puts a chair one side of his mom, and then walks around to where Eddie and set down the last chair.

“Ma, dis is Eddie,” Steve whacks him hard on the back, and Eddie has to pinch his lips together in a smile to stop the oof from being expelled from them, from the sheer force of it, “He’s gonna be a big shot writer, ain’t dat right, Ed?”

Eddie dared not look at Steve right now. He was so close he felt the breath that contained his abbreviated name against his cheek. He keeps his eyes on Steve’s mom and offers an upturned hand towards her. She looks at him strangely but obliges him, putting her hand in his, and he kisses the back of it.

“A pleasure to meet you. I’m sure gonna try to make it at least,” he smiles back as she raises an eyebrow at Steve with an impressed face, and Eddie feels like this is his first shoot and success of the day.

But he’s not ready for feeling Steve’s warm hand slide against the small of his back as he guides him down into his chair and tucks it in for him, “Dere you go, much better, right?” Steve says happily as he returns to his own seat, and Eddie’s eyes obediently follow him all the way there, but when Steve’s eyes catch his again, he quickly looks away.

“You look, uh, wassa the word, similar,” his mom says, pulling his attention from the mosaic pattern on the tiny cups and saucers.

“It’s familiar, Ma,” Steve corrects, gently pouring the coffee into the cups from an odd-looking contraption.

“Ah, yeah, familiar,” she moves a finger quickly in front of her face, “Your eyes.”

“Oh, maybe you know my Mama, I mean mom,” Eddie says, quickly correcting himself again, but Steve and his mom exchange a happy look with one another and then back at Eddie, so he figures maybe they at least found it amusing rather than stupid.

“What's her name?” Steve asks, passing a tiny cup and saucer to his mom first and then to Eddie.

“Esmerelda,” Eddie tries, but two blank faces look back at him, “Uh, Esmerelda Munson, she lives right over there,” Eddie points out the building as he turns behind him.

The clatter of a teaspoon makes him spin around quickly to two now stunned faces.

“You're dat Eddie? Mrs Munson’s boy?” Steve asks hurriedly. 

Though the fear swirls in his gut that maybe his reputation might have preceded him, he’s in too deep to lie, “Yeah, you know her?” he says, swallowing nervously.

Steve’s mom claps her hands together, holds them up to her mouth like she's in prayer, and looks up to the canopy above them with a big smile.

“We sure do,” Steve grins, “She helped us out a lot when Pa passed. She’s a real kind lady.” 

“I’m sorry to hear that. That must be difficult,” Eddie adds somberly as he watches how Steve drinks from the small cup and saucer and copies him. He understands immediately why this stuff is sipped and is in such tiny cups. It's much richer than regular coffee, almost thicker, and sweet too. It's delicious. Eddie can’t help himself and takes another sip immediately and lets out an involuntary sound of appreciation before setting down his cup.

“Si, a real, uh, ball-busta,” Steve's mom says happily.

Eddie nearly chokes on thin air as Steve complains, “Ma! Jesus! You don’t say that!” but Eddie can’t help laughing.

“Yeah, I guess she is a bit,” he beams at Steve’s mom, who pats pinches his cheek.

“Biddicchiu,” she laughs with him as Steve passes her the sketch pad and juts his thumb towards Eddie. Her eyes scan over the paper.

“I said Ed was welcome to work from here if he wants,” Steve says, “Hope dats ok?”

His mom nods, then gestures to the cigarette burn on the paper and the scuff marks. She speaks to Steve in Italian. Eddie guesses that because he can’t understand much, but he recognises her anger when she points her hand sharply at Eddie’s building, frowns deeply, and taps her temple. Eddie stays quiet and watches Steve reassure her.

“Can I have dissa one?” she says, gesturing at Eddie’s drawing.

“Yeah, but I can draw you a better one than that, on nicer-” Eddie starts, but she has already torn out the paper and folded it away in her own apron pocket.

“Ma says you’re welcome here anytime,” Steve smiles at him. Eddie is pretty sure there is more to what his mom said than that, but he doesn't want to press it, “We live just above here, so, uh, it dont matter what da time is, you know? One-a us’ll be here.” 

“Thank you, that's real kind,” Eddie says politely.

Steve's mom grips Eddie’s shoulder, looking at him seriously, “Listen to me, don-a talk widda, those boys over there. They no good. You come here, we not mucha further. Then your mama, no worry,” Eddie nods, and her red lipstick smile adorns her face again, “Besides, we gotta good food, better coffee, and a much nicer view, uh?” Eddie follows her eyes to Steve, who is blushing. Maybe he’s a bit embarrassed because he’s also had a run-in with those guys.

“Yeah, much better,” Eddie agrees, and Steve’s mom pats his cheek.

“Smart boy,” she says happily and looks up at Eddie’s building again, “I think deeza buildings so close you could see Stefano’s window from yours,” Eddie has no idea why she’s blessing him with this information, but his brain rapidly works out that he could probably see it from his own bedroom.

“MA!” Steve says in alarm and nudges her, then hurriedly clears up the tray as she lets out a melodic laugh, clutching her sides. Her eyes trail after him as he goes inside.

She turns back to Eddie, “My boy, he's good. Make you-a good friend. Yes?” She asks and puts a finger to her cheek and twists it around. She looks encouragingly at him, “You like?” She repeats the gesture against her cheek.

“Yes,” Eddie says enthusiastically. Even though he doesn't just like it here. He loves it here. They’d been so friendly and obviously tried to not think about the other things he liked about here.

“Si,” She says, takes Eddie's hand, and makes him mirror her gesture.

She lets go and tries again, “You like?”

“Si,” Eddie repeats and actions the gesture himself this time. She claps her hands together happily.

As Steve rejoins them, she starts talking at him, rapidly gesturing with her hands between himself and Steve. He can pick out his name and cafe, which he thinks must be related to coffee.

“Alright, alright, geez ma,” Steve says, looking a little confused at her and then turns to Eddie, “Before she has some kinda fit aboudit, she wants me to ask if yous liked the espresso,” Steve looking at him with a bashful smile.

Eddie is nudged in the ribs by Mrs Harrington, who nods encouragingly at him again. He cautiously raises his finger to his cheek and turns it, “Si?” he says awkwardly and looks between them.

At first, Steve's mouth parts ever so slightly, like he's going to say something, then his eyes move to his mom, and he shakes his head but can’t seem to wipe the smirk from his face.

The bell over the door rings, and they all turn towards it, and the customer that just entered. Steve stands, but his mother shakes her head at him and gently pushes him back into his seat as she stands up. At the door, she turns back to Eddie, “If your mama worksa late, you come eat with us.” That didn't sound like a question to Eddie, but he nodded anyway. She tuts and tilts her head at him, a playful frown on her brow.

“Si,” Eddie tries again, and she looks delighted as she ruffles Steve’s hair and walks into the store.

“Sorry about dat,” Steve says, picking at the table, “She’s a a lot sometimes.”

“Oh, I didn't mind at all,” Eddie replies truthfully, and suddenly, he remembers why he was coming this way anyway, “Oh god, food. Yeah, I have to get food, that's…” Eddie rummages through his things and finds the notepaper.

“Want some help?” Steve asks, standing at the same time Eddie does.

“No, you’ve done so much already. I couldn’t keep taking up your time like this,” Eddie laughs awkwardly, but all he really wants to do is say yes.

Steve waves his hand, “It’s no trouble for a paying customer,” He says and walks towards the steps to the store with Eddie. As they reach the door, Steve pushes it open for him, “Allow me, Sir,” he chuckles and follows Eddie inside.

Steve guides him around the place, helps Eddie find everything on his list, and puts an extra small box on top as he rings up the groceries.

“What's that?” Eddie asks curiously.

“Cannoli, your Ma likes ‘em,” Steve answers as Eddie places the money in his hand, trying not to let his fingers linger against his palm longer than they should.

“I’ll make sure she gets it,” Eddie smiles, unsure exactly what it was, but he’d be sure to pass it on, all the same.

“Want me to walk you home? I’ll make sure Billy, Jason and Tommy don't give you any trouble,” Steve says, leaning over the counter towards him.

Something about that made Eddie’s heart race, but he didn't want to appear weak, “No, it's fine. I’m used to it, just it was my first day here, and it kinda got to me, is all.” And that doesn't feel like as much of a lie as it seemed. Having this oasis of safety with Steve and his family didn’t make the thought of Billy and his goons seem so awful.

“You still gonna come by tomorrow?” Steve genuinely asks, his eyes big and innocent, scanning over Eddie as he gathers the grocery bags.

“Yeah, course I will,” Eddie answers like Steve asked him the most ridiculous question in the history of all mankind, “I feel pretty inspired again already,” Eddie smiles fondly at Steve, who was rapidly becoming one of his favourite things in the universe.

“Yeah?” Steve says, plucking the toothpick from behind his ear and putting it back in his mouth, “I reckon dis place could maybe be a great beginning…for your story, I mean,” he says, walking around the counter and holding the door open for Eddie again, following him outside.

“Tomorrow then,” Eddie smiles at him, trying not to sigh because tomorrow already felt too far away. Steve nods back, and Eddie catches a glimpse of Steve’s mom in the window. He gives her a wave and starts walking back to the apartment.

As he reaches the corner, he looks back. He can see Mrs Harrington buzzing and fussing around Steve, who looks like he is laughing and pretending to fight her off. He smiles to himself, and with the staircase of the building clear of idiots, he thinks that maybe Steve is right. 

This could be a perfect place for the beginning of his new story.

#steddie #steddie fic #steddie fanfiction #eddie munson #steve harrington #stranger things #eddie month #eddiemonth #madaboutmunson #eddie month week 1 #madaboutmunsonSHC