#let Jane out of his sight and doesn’t give her what she’s due

[softly-and-suddenly]

People are so boring about classic literature sometimes. Like I know it’s cool to be critical of men in books from the 19th century or whatever but it just leads to ripping out all of the nuance in favor of “Uh all of the Brontë men were evil and abusive and that’s all there is to those characters.” Say something interesting. I’m begging you

#yes this is about a class I’m in. what of it #There is a scene in Jane Eyre where Jane approached Rochester to ask him for leave for a few weeks to see her sick aunt #and he protests and makes a fuss out of it and he gives her a bunch of money and then takes it back and gives her less than he owes her #and if you read it in the strictest and least charitable fashion then you could say that Mr Rochester is an evil piece of shit who won’t #let Jane out of his sight and doesn’t give her what she’s due #but if you actually read it in the context of the book it’s so obvious that he’s joking around with her #and she’s ribbing him back in that same scene #because when you start out with the idea the Mr Rochester is an irredeemable monster and therefore everything he does is suspicious #you miss out on the very obvious fact that he and Jane are best friends! Their personalities gel perfectly #which is why they become so infatuated with each other #Saying ‘well Rochester didn’t give her all her money so he’s clearly manipulating and abusing Jane in this scene :(’ #is such an awful boring take that ignores what Charlotte spent hundreds of pages doing with these characters! #try having reading comprehension how about that #wuthering heights #jane eyre #the tenant of wildfell hall

[keepingupwiththevolturi]

That weekend away (F!ReaderxDemetri)

Readers POV:

The incident

It was a quiet night at Castillo Volterra. You were waiting for your mate Demetri to get back to your room, the room you shared with him. As the clock hit a minute past midnight to started to get anxious. ‘Why hasn’t he come back yet?’ he is always here at exactly midnight and never a minute later. Punctuality is one of the things he is mostly known for in his world. That and tracking down the people whom need to be justified for their actions. You checked your phone to see if he texted you to let you know he is running late, but there were no new messages. When you locked your phone you heard a loud BANG!, and then some yelling. The noise seemed to get closer to your room. Hoping it was Demetri you open the door with a force of enthusiasm only to find out it wasn’t Demetri running towards you at speed. You could feel it, with his cold hands around your throat so fast you didn’t even had a second to blink. You saw the tall and lean man in old shredded clothes with his ice cold hands around your throat. Slowly you started having trouble breathing, and in less than a blink of an eye five vampires were surrounding him. Your mate Dimitri, his friend and ‘close-knit coworker’ (as Dimitri himself tried to describe their dynamic and relationship) Felix, the torture twins (his description for Alec and Jane) and one of the three vampire kings Caius, whom was holding a flaming torch, probably ready to burn his body. Due to the lack of air going in and out of your lungs your started to get hazy, the world around you began spinning. “I’ll give you less than a second to let her go” you heard Demetri say. The lean man looked at you with a devious smile that could intend no good, it was the last thing you saw before passing out.

Demetris POV:

Evaluate

“Having a human mate around makes not only you vulnerable!” Master Caius snarled at you. You knew he was right. It makes you and the entire Volturi vulnerable. “Hmm, well what are we going to do now…” Master Aro asked his brothers deviously. He already knew what he was going to do, he was going to make me kill her! Just like the last time I had a mate. He was a vampire with an extraordinary gift but even that didn’t matter to them if it made them vulnerable. “She could come to join us Aro…” Master Marcus said softly spoken. “WE. DON’T. ACCEPT. NEWBORNS. !” Master Caius snarled as loud and clearly as he could. “Normally we don’t no, dear brother. But the ask our dear Demetri to once again destroy his mate, one who's blood is tastes better than any given human could ever provide him, would be horribly rude of us, wouldn’t it?” Master Aro said elegantly. “Brother, are you really suggesting we make an EXEAPTION for our tracker, and his blood-singer, you must be joking me.” Master Caius said as he looked you directly in the eye. His eyes narrowed, almost like he was trying to zoom in on your face. “I vote for the better ending….” Master Marcus said, with a gentle smile directed towards me. “Well, I guess we can always give it a shot, and if it doesn’t work out, we can always do it your way brother.” Master Aro agreed, looking at master Caius whom was without a doubt aggravated by their decisions to keep your beloved Y/N in their guard. “My dearest masters, I am beyond great full for your generous decision. Don’t get me wrong, but there is one thing I would like to asked.” “Well, please do ask, dear Demetri” master Aro said calmly. “To change me beloved Y/N, would be an intense moment for the both of us. And with your permission I would like to make it something special. Y/N has always talked about a place in Venice that she used to go to with her parents as an infant. It used to be a quiet spacious mansion with a calm ‘aura’ as she would describe it” You said nervously. “Get to the your question already” Master Caius said impatiently. “I would like to take Y/N there for the weekend. To change her there in a place that feels safe and with no-one in sight. She’ll leave as a human and will come back a newborn.” “Such a gentleman, Demetri.” Master Aro said with a smile. “I do think Y/N would benefit from a sacred place, very well, you can take her there.”. “I am beyond grateful my kings.” You said with enthusiasm.

Readers POV:

A fun surprise

You woke up with a massive pain in your head, like the migraines you had as a child. Your head was pounding and you felt very dizzy. As you looked around the room you noticed you were in your room, but there was no Demetri in sight. Just a little note, folded in half, on his side of the bed. He didn’t sleep, but he did like to lay beside you in the bed and rest or read a book he later would recommend (more like demand…or strongly advise..) you to read as soon as he finished it. You opened the note that read ‘My darling Y/N, due to the incident that happend last night we are a little behind schedule. But no worries, I will be back around four o’clock. I have a little surprise for you… Sincerely Demetri.’ You immediately looked at the clock, which stated it was ten past ten. “Only six hours to go.…” You sighed. To kill some time, you decided to watch a show on Netflix, your favorite show Downton Abbey. After a few episodes no noticed that is was three minutes to four, Demetri could came back any minute now. You ran to the bathroom and tried to fix your messy ‘just woke up’ hair in to a nice sleek, thoroughly brushed hairdo. As you put your hairbrush back on the dresser you heard the door swing open, Demetri called for you and you ran as fast as you could towards him, hugged him in a tight embrace between your arms. “You have no idea how much I missed you today” you said, quickly giving him a little kiss on his cheek. “Oh darling, I’ve missed you more, believe me.” He said with a calm and soothing tone. You believed him without a doubt. To you it felt like your hearts beat as one (figuratively speaking, of course). As you looked deeply in to his calm red eyes, Demetri placed his cold hand gently on your cheek, and leaned in for a kiss. His nice cold but yet very soft lips were carefully placed on your own lips. His lips softly moved around yours, trying to open your mouth a little bit. When he succeeded he quickly slipped in his tongue, he moved around very quickly, trying to win the battle for dominance. You quickly gave in as you let out a little moan. “Hmm… erm… Dem…what exact….ly … are you trying to do” You cut him off, leaving him a little confused. “Oh, I am so sorry darling, I just got caught up in the moment.” He responded quickly. Besides making out and cuddling, you and Demetri have never gone any further. “It is too dangerous, you could get seriously hurt” he’d tell you, whenever someone would implement the idea of you two having sex. “I almost forgot that I have a surprise for you darling.” Demetri said. “I thought this was the surprise.” You said innocently. Demetri shook his head “No, no love. I have an actual surprise for you”. “Oh, I can’t wait. Do I have to close my eyes?” You teased him. “I don’t see how that would help. No the surprise I have for you is that we are going away for the weekend, to a very special place.”

“Where too?” You asked. “To Venice, I’ve rented out a very romantic mansion which stands in a very specious field. No-one in sight for mile, it will be just you and I my love.” He said with a smooth tone. “Oh Demetri, that is the nicest and romantic thing anyone has ever done for me.” You said with glee and enthusiasm. “You’re a good man, Demetri” You said as you gave him a soft kiss on his cheek. “Let’s not waste a minute, pack your bag. The sooner we get there, the better…”

Arriving at house

Thanks to Demetri’s vampire speed (something you still, very much, need to get used to) you arrived very quickly. It was a quarter past five. You stood at what seemed to be the front door of the mansion Demetri rented. It was a giant two doors entrance, even bigger than Felix. Demetri casually opened the door “Ladies first darling” He said as he held the door open for you. You gave him a little smile as you were mesmerized by the enormous foyer of the mansion. In the centre of the foyer stood a round table with an empty bowl on it, and a binder in front of the bowl. A grand piano in the corner next to the entrance and on the right side were the stairs. A beautiful marble staircase, one with the little curve at the bottom and then completely straightened out. It was gorgeous, the floor was pure hardwood and the white/cream walls did a spectacular effect with the light fall of the house. “Oh wow, Demetri look it is gorgeous.” You said as you looked around the foyer once again. “It sure is.” He said looking at you. “Let’s go upstairs darling, then we can unpack your bags and order you some food”. “Great idea, I can’t wait to see what upstairs looks like!” With full enthusiasm you ran upstairs. You opened the first door on your right, which was a hallway with four doors in it. “The first on your left is the bedroom, the first on your right is your closet.” Demetri said calmly as he stood behind you. He startled you a little bit and you made a little shutter. You didn’t even hear him coming up stairs. “I have my own closet?” You asked surprised. “Of course, nothing but the best for you, my love..” He whispered softly in your ear. “That is amazing, thank you Demetri” You said on a sweet tone, stroking your hand softly over his cheek. “Let me help you with your bags, love.” He said as he took your backpack out of your hand. He moved so quickly, by the time you responded he was already finished unpacking. Everything was neatly stocked in place, the three dresses you choose to take with you hang neatly on a clothes hanger. The shoes were well places on the stands (The closet in the mansion had stands for shoes as well as boots) and your underwear was folded perfectly in the dresser. The dresser was white just like the rest of the closet, only on top of the dresser was a little window so you could see how well placed Demetri has put your underwear. Since it was a romantic weekend away you packed something special in your personal handbag too. Something you were eager to keep as a surprise for Demetri. “So, now that that is done..Let’s order some food I am starving!” You said cheerfully.

Last meal

You sat next to your mate on the patio, a little snuggled up on the couch. The sound of the poolwater made for a very calming vibe. A carton pizza box with eight slices of pizza in it waiting for you to be eaten. The smell of the warm aroma of the pizza made your stomach growl with hunger. “Ohh, it smells so good, I am going to grab a slice.” You said as you reached for one of the eight slices. “It does have a particular scent” Demetri commented on your slice. “You are not the allergic to garlic type of vampire right?” You asked with half a pizza stuck in your mouth. “No darling, I am no, that is just the human take on ‘Hollywood’ vampires.” Demetri explained as you tried to chew your pizza. “Do you wan’t to try a bite?” You asked him. “Hmmm, you know what.. I would actually like to try it, yes please.” You hold your pizza in front of him as he tried to take a bite. “No, Dem.. Like this…” You showed him the way you ate your pizza, holding it at eye-hight and taking a bite. You handed him your pizza once more. Being a vampire makes you a fast learner since Demetri immediately got the hang of your ‘tutorial’ and managed to take a decent bite out of your pizza. “Oh, oh god. No…. This is disgusting… how can you eat this..” Demetri said dramatically as his whole face cramped out of disgust. Seeing his face, you couldn’t contain your laughter and bursted out with tears. “If only you could see your face!” You said with laughter. Demetri looked a little bit ‘off-game’ as he tried to proces his pizza experiment.

As the evening turned in to night, you snuggled closer up to your mate. Only 4 slices of pizza were left and you would completely full. With one arm wrapped around you Demetri softly rubbed little circles on your arm. For a second you closed your eyes. Everything felt so peaceful it was a moment so perfect it was more than romantic. It felt pure and intimate, something only for the two of you. Demetri softly placed a gentle kiss on the top of your head. You looked up at him and gave him a little kiss on his lips. Quickly Demetri kissed you back, a little harder than you did, but it felt okay. Slowly he tried to get you to open you mouth a little bit, and slipped his tongue in to your mouth. Having his tongue move quickly in your mouth he placed one hand on your left hip. Giving you a little squeeze. A let out a muffled moan, and you placed your left hand on the back of his neck. Demetri moved his head from your face to your neck. Continuing kissing you. You softly made little nibbles on the skin of your neck. “Hmmm, Demetri.. stop..” He didn’t respond “Demetri, Stop it!” You shouted, trying to push him away from your neck. He stopped kissing your neck, but he stayed in place. “What is going on with you?” You asked a little upset. Very slowly he moved his head to meet your face once again. With very upset eyes he said “I am so..so sorry.. darling this is the only way.” “The only way for what?” You asked very confused. “The masters… They want me to turn you.. or kill you.. and I can’t do either. But the thought of you dead is far worse than you joining me in internal life.” He said with saddening eyes. “T-t-Turn me or kill me?..Why?.. I don’t understand.” You said with shock and stutter. “the masters agreed that you being a human mate, made me and therefore the Volturi vulnerable. And that cannot happen. So the options were to kill you or to have you join our guard.” Demetri explained. “Well, shouldn’t that choice be up to me then?” You snarled. “I can’t lose you Y/N, please don’t do this to me.” Demetri begged. “There are so many things in live I haven’t even been able to do yet and now I am standing between the choices of eternal life in the shadows or death.” You preached. “Well what is the one thing you always wanted to do before you..” Demetri asked you carefully. “I don’t know Demetri… I always wanted to Skydive or make a big trip around the world and…” you stopped your sentence meeting Demetri's eyes. “And.. what darling?” He asked calmly. “Well, you know I never had sex before….” You said softly. Trying to look away from Demetri. Gently with his hand he lifted up your chin “We can do that after you join me, darling..”He said smoothly. “NO!” You yelled. “I wan’t to do it now! No saying it will be dangerous, you are going to turn me after for there won’t be much pain anyways.” You said loudly. “I guess you have a point, and if it is really something you want.. And we can stop whenever you feel uncomfortable.” Demetri assured you. “Okay then, that’s settled let’s go upstairs!” You said with enthusiasm.

A night to remember

As you rushed upstairs, you told Demetri you needed a second in the bathroom. “Second door on your left” He responded as he walked to the bedroom. Quickly you snatched up your handbag that you left in the hallway. You took out that what was you ‘special surprise’ for Demetri. A red silk and satin mixture outfit that you ordered form Victoria secrets. It was romantic yet very seductive. You quickly undressed yourself and put on the little ‘outfit’. Casually you walked to the bedroom door. Trying to stand seductively in the doorway, you looked upon Demetri who’s face complexity froze at the sight of you. “Hey there.” You said smoothly. He quickly shifted and was now in front of you. “Darling you look delicious.”He said seductively. “I hope it wasn’t expensive.. since I am going to rip it to shreds.” He joked. “I am pretty sure you can afford a couple of more for me.” You winked at him. He quickly pulled you closer and started kissing you. Moving slowly yo your neck. He stopped. Leaving you with a confused look. “Why did you stop?” You asked him. He took a very good look at you and then threw you across the room on to the bed. Making you gasped for air, as you were taken by surprise. As the two of you were lying on the bed he started kissing your neck again. With his cold hand he trailed over your body, along the silk and satin. He stopped when his hand was on your butt, he gave it a little squeeze and looked you in the eyes to see if you were okay with that. You gave him al little smile to let him know it was okay with you and gave him a little kiss. Suddenly Demetri sat up and took off his shirt, shoes, socks and trousers. Leaving him in nothing but his boxers. You reached up trying to ‘help’ him remove his boxers, but he stopped you. “Darling, are you still certain you want to continue?” He asked you. You nodded as you wrapped you arms around his neck trying to get him to lay with you again. “Dem, I am one thousand percent sure I want this.” You told him. Every fiber of your body was screaming for his touch once more. As he lay on top of you he slowly started to rubbed those little circles on you arm again. He gave you little kisses on your arm too. He slowly moved towards you face and gave you one more kiss on your lips, before going in with his tongue again. This time he was a little bit softer but more intense. As the heat of your body made the world feel warmer around you, you wrapped your arms around Demetri’s cold body. You slowly started to rub your body against his and felt little tingles everywhere. Demetri’s placed his hand softly on breast, he moved his thumb over your breast and nipple. “It’s time, I am going to rip that outfit of yours off” Demetri whispered in your ear. As said he slowly move his hand to the edge of the bra part of your outfit and slowly started to ripped it apart with just one hand. He continued ripping it till he was at your butt. He gave you one seductive look, and within the blink of an eye he flawlessly ripped off the entire outfit and tossed it in to the corner of the room. Leaving your body naked and exposed, he softly placed his body on top of yours once more. Taking off his own boxers, he was no as undressed as you were. As he kissed you in the heat of the moment, you felt him moving in between your legs. When he placed his hand on the side of your head he grabbed your other hand and entangled his fingers with yours and placed that one on the other side of your head. A second later you felt him enter you, a loud moan escaped your mouth as the new feeling of a cold pleasure made your body tingly. Demetri looked at you with love in his eyes and made sure you were still doing fine as he placed his face in your neck. He slowly fastened the pace of your bodies colliding. Moving in and out of you faster than he did the first moments. As you felt your climax building up, Demetri started to nibble on your neck. You knew it was time. He was going to bite you the moment you felt the most pleasure. He often told you the proces of a human turning in to a vampire is a painful one, so utmost

comfort and pleasure was essential. As you felt Demetri's hand on your hip, your climax arrived making you scream very loudly. You felt Demetri’s teeth sink into your skin at the same time, you felt the tingly venom rush through your veins. With the rush of the pleasure and the venom, you started to see the world around you spinning. So you closed your Y/C eyes, and fell a sleep.

You might have started this weekend trip a human, but your are surely not coming back one.

#KeepingUpWithTheVolturi #my writing #fiction #twilight #movies #volturi #the volturi #volturi imagine

[the-quiet-winds]

The Gravity of Tempered Grace (part six)

[part one] - [part two] - [part three] - [part four] - [part five]

[Part 6: When We Live Such Fragile Lives]

The Life and Times of Jane the Queen, Chapter 7 - The Maid of Honor

“In 1532, Jane was promoted to maid-of-honor in the court of Queen Catherine, where she had served as early as 1527. The two were quite close - both were devoted Catholics, even as Catholicism in was falling out of favor in England, which brought them together, even as Jane served Catherine.

Jane’s sister Elizabeth also served Anne Boleyn, remaining loyal to her until Anne’s execution. Due to Jane’s own loyalty to Catherine and her daughter Mary, Jane did not bring Elizabeth into her own household when she became queen.”

Cathy and Catherine exchange no words as they race up the stairs and split off different directions down the hall.

Catherine barges into Anne’s bedroom, where the woman was starfished out on the bed, and shakes her awake. “Don’t make a sound,” she whispers as soon as she sees Anne’s eyes open. “Henry is here.”

Anne, still half asleep, looks alarmed. “Here?” She whispers back.

Catherine nods. “He’s here for Jane. I don’t think he would expect all of us to attack.”

Anne clambers out of bed, but keeps her footsteps silent as she follows Catherine into the hall, where Cathy and a somewhat-awake Anna are standing.

Catherine jerks her head in the direction of Kat’s bedroom, and Anne takes the initiative to wake her cousin.

“Kitty,” she whispers, “Kitty wake up. Janey’s in trouble.”

Kat’s eyes shoot open, but no sound leaves her mouth, even though Anne’s shadowed face lingering inches from her own was definitely enough to justify a squeak.

She and Anne return to the hall, and the house is still silent, everyone waiting for the explosion from downstairs.

But they all hear nothing.

No words spoken, no sounds of distress, just nothingness.

On silent feet, they begin to slowly descend the stairs, but the space Jane had occupied at the front door is now empty.

The door is closed, the lights are all off, and it’s almost as if Jane was never there in the first place.

Just as Cathy turns to the others, a small lamp by the couch flickers on.

The sight waiting for them makes Kat almost gag.

Henry is lounging on the sofa, one arm propped on the back cushion, with Jane curled up against him, her head resting on his chest. They almost look like a picture-perfect couple from those romantic comedies the queens sometimes watched when there was nothing else on late at night. They look like they’re just head-over-heels for each other, except when Henry turns to the ones intruding his precious moment, there is nothing but malice in his eyes.

“Do you mind?” He asks, and if he finds the appalled looks of his ex-wives amusing, he doesn’t let it show. “I am having a moment here with my love.”

“We know about the heart,” Catherine says boldly, stepping in front of the others. “We know you’re just controlling her.”

“Controlling her?” Henry repeats incredulously. He laughs. “Dear, you’ve been reading too much of this world’s fiction.”

“Enough of the games, Henry,” Anne warns, trying to seem imposing in her diminutive frame. “Let Jane go.”

Henry turns to the peaceful woman next to him. “Do you want me to leave?”

In her blissful haze, Jane shakes her head.

“Now, could you all please leave? It’s been five hundred years since I’ve seen my wife, I’d like to catch up with her.”

At the way he spat the word ‘wife’, how he possessively holds Jane, and Jane’s nearly drunken demeanor, all hell breaks loose.

It isn’t clear who lunges where and who grabs who, but at some point Jane is wrestled away from Henry and the former king is on the floor.

“Where is it, Henry?” Cathy demands. “Where is Jane’s heart?”

He gets to his feet slowly, almost as if for dramatic effect. The light from the lamp catches his face in shadows, and the womanizing king they all remembered is truly standing before them once again. 

“Now ladies,” he hisses, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Drop the act,” Kat spits, “where is it?!”

“Watch your tongue, woman. You forget who you’re speaking to.”

“You are no more a king than we are here,” Catherine says, stepping in front of Kat protectively. “You are just as mortal as us. So tell us - where is her heart?”

She’s nose-to-nose with him now, and the tension in the room is so thick you can almost taste it.

“Do you really want to test me?” He warns softly. “I may not be king anymore, but I have other ways of putting you in your place.”

Catherine almost smirks. “Is that a threat?”

“Perhaps.”

“You’re outnumbered here, Henry,” Anne says. “It’s five to one. You can’t win against all of us.”

He narrows his eyes at her, and, oddly, he chuckles. “My, my, I always knew you were short-tempered, but now you���re just… short.”

Anna has to hold Anne back at that, and the former king just laughs again. “Wow, I never thought I’d miss any of you, other than Jane, of course.” He glances to the blonde woman, sitting on the floor with Cathy, incredibly vacant. “But I’ve certainly missed your fire, and tenacity, and,” he leans slightly, catching Kat in his gaze, “other talents.”

God above, Catherine wants to strangle him.

“Why are you even here, anyway?” She demands. “You have Jane’s heart, can’t you bring her to wherever you were?”

“Well what’s the fun in that?” Henry asks. “Then I wouldn’t get to see the look on all your faces when you see me take what’s mine.”

“She doesn’t belong to you,” Anna snarls. “This isn’t our time, anymore. Women aren’t their husband’s property. She doesn’t owe you a damn thing.”

“You may be right about that, Anna,” Henry says. “I don’t own her. But you’re all also right about something else. I do have her heart.”

There’s a cloth bag sitting by the couch, nondescript and nearly invisible, which Henry picks up carefully.

He reaches in, and pulls out a heart.

Jane’s heart.

It isn’t nearly what anyone had expected - it doesn’t have veins running all over it, or a faint sheen of blood - it’s just red. Bright red. Almost glowing red.

“You caught me,” he says, but he’s smirking.

“Give that back,” Catherine demands.

“How many times do I have to say no before you’ll stop?”

“As many as it takes,” Anne says.

“You all are quite committed to this,” Henry comments softly, as if surprised.

“Jane’s our family, and we won’t let you torture her anymore!” Kat says, defiant and strong as she stands next to Anne.

Henry regards them all, scanning each face thoroughly, then looking to Jane and Cathy on the floor.

“Jane,” he says shortly, “come here.”

Without hesitation, Jane gets to her feet and moves to his side.

A cold, harsh shiver runs down Catherine’s spine at the sight of her friend, her once trusted confidant, so helpless against the evil man before them.

“These ladies want me to leave you, do you want that?”

Barely, Jane shakes her head.

“Come on, Jane,” Anna pleads. “Snap out of it. Henry’s controlling you. He doesn’t want what’s best for you. He wants to force you into a relationship.”

“Jane, you deserve better than that,” Catherine continues. “You deserve to have your own adventures and be your own person.”

“He says he loves me,” Jane whispers.

Anne pipes in next. “He says that Jane, but all he’s done is manipulate and control you. That isn’t love, no matter how you look at it!”

“Jane,” Kat adds softly, clearly quite uncomfortable with the circumstances, “he doesn’t really love you. If he loved you, he wouldn’t be forcing you into situations without your say.”

“And he wouldn’t feed you lies,” Cathay finally contributes. “We love you, Jane. We want you to be able to feel again, and do whatever weird things you like to do.”

There’s a tense moment, one where the world stands completely still, and smile begins to creep on Henry’s face.

But then Jane inhales sharply, and her eyes are more alert than anyone has seen in this life. 

“Jane?” Anne asks.

“What is happening?” Jane demands, looking wildly between her fellow queens and Henry. Her gaze finds the heart in his hand, and she lunges for it.

He pulls it out of reach, though. “Back up, Jane.”

Unable to resist, even as her face contorts with frustration, Jane complies, taking several stilted steps back until she’s among the others.

“I see being in the same room with your heart has woken you up,” Henry muses. He clicks his tongue. “How unfortunate. Just means that now I’ll have to kill you.”

#six the musical #six the musical fanfiction #jane seymour #catherine of aragon #katherine howard #anne boleyn #catherine parr #anne of cleves #julie writes #the gravity of tempered grace

[mytrashcanlife]

Ashes to Ashes Jasper X Reader Part 3

After a few weeks the two new siblings had settled into the house. Alice was quickly becoming one of your best friends. She took you shopping, constantly, and insisted that even though you no longer had a date you were still going to prom and you were going to be the most sparkly thing there. Jasper on the other hand was never around, at least as far as you could tell. Every time you walked into a room he walked out of it. He didn’t look at you often and you returned the gesture because on the rare occasion you did lock eyes with him he looked like he wanted you six feet under. Alice insists that isn’t true and everyone else says he doesn’t hate you, but he hasn’t shown it at all. Little do you know that when you dance in the living room after convincing Edward to play the entertainer for the one-thousandth time, that he is just on the other side of the pillar in the house. Out of sight but soaking up every ounce of pure joy you give off. Having only felt constant negativity for a long time, your consistent positive emotions were a welcome change, but when you looked at him they turned to discomfort and fear, so he stayed out of your way. There was only one time he really felt you full of fear and concern when he wasn’t around, and it wasn’t a pretty sight.

Rosalie and Emmet had gone hunting and Rosalie had gotten much messier than usual due to Emmet’s hijinks. She thought she was sneaking into the house while you were away, but you saw her come in and go up the stairs. When she reaches the top of the stairs her eyes meet yours in horror.

“Oh my God Rosalie are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Emmet shot a deer and thought it would be funny to throw me at it. You know Emmet. Ha-ha.”

“Rose that doesn’t explain most of this blood are you hurt?”

“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me. Tis but a flesh wound. I’m going to shower. I’ll be fine. Don’t worry”

You let her go, but not the incident. You bring it up to Emmet and Carlisle and nobody’s stories or explanations were adding up. Carlisle was definitely hiding something from you, and you were at your ropes end. You decided to confront Carlisle about all these issues, and it doesn’t go well. Jasper hears you yelling and goes to investigate. Still out of sight.

“Carlisle I am not some stupid little girl anymore. What aren’t you telling me?”

“(y/n) please just leave it alone. You’ll understand when you’re older.”

“When I’m older? Carlisle I’m an adult. I’ve graduated. Soon I’m going to have to go Out into the world by myself. How much older do I need to be?!”

“Much older!”

“Fine if you won’t tell me I’ll just ask aunt Jane.”

“NO. (y/n) please for your own good just drop it.”

“Carlisle Elizabeth Cullen”

“That’s not my middle name”

“It is now. You have dodged every question I have asked you for years. I didn’t press the issue because I assumed you would tell me when I was an adult, but now I’m eighteen, my boyfriend just dumped me because he found out you were my family, though you all despised him before that. And now I have two new family members that I know nothing about, who look nothing like any of you, one of which looks at me like he wants me dead for absolutely no reason, and I just found my sister trying to sneak upstairs, covered in blood that is most definitely not her own. I want answers Carlisle and I will get them if you won’t tell me I will find someone who will, AM I CLEAR?”

Jasper was still hidden out of sight. Carlisle knew he was there but (y/n) was oblivious. He expected emotions to be rolling off of her, Sadness and Fear among them, but despite the tone of voice she held she was completely calm, no rage just minor annoyance.

“(y/n) everything I have done I did for your safety. Now drop it.”

“Unbelievable.” After a brief pause you decide it’s no use fighting with him. “Emmet!”

Emmet appeared in the doorway. (y/n) knew he was there but she never took her eyes off of Carlisle’s. “What’s up (y/n)?”

“I’ll meet you, downstairs in five. We’re going climbing. You down?”

“Always.”

“Good.” You turned around and ran out of the kitchen and upstairs to your room to get ready.

The next few weeks were more difficult for Carlisle than he expected. Jasper as well. Your normal Happy demeanor had been replaced with complete indifference. You were on a strict schedule and you stuck to it. Never speaking to Carlisle, and never even glancing in Jasper’s direction. You were waiting. The other side of the family would be visiting soon, and you were going to get your answers one way or the other. Soon enough you were out in the field with your usual trinkets waiting for them.

“(y/n) child! It’s so good to see you again.”

“You too uncle Aro.” You smile weakly and give your usual hug. When you pull back Aro has noticed your change in demeanor. He knows but he asks anyway.

“What’s wrong?”

“Where do I even begin? Carlisle is keeping secrets from me and I’m worried. I’ve never given him reason not to trust me but so much has happened that doesn’t add up. He’s dodging my questions and insists for my own safety that I ‘drop it’ and just pretend nothing is wrong.”

“How about you go with Aunt Jane and I’ll talk to Carlisle?”

“If you can get him to stop being so weird by all means.”

You and Jane go back to the house up to your room and you tell Carlisle that Aro is waiting for him in the field and wants to talk.

“Aunt Jane I’m worried.”

“About what dear?”

“You have to promise not to freak out okay?”

“Of course.”

“well, I saw Rosalie a few weeks ago, sneaking upstairs covered in blood. She insists nothing is wrong, but it wasn’t her own. I mean I expect that kind of behavior from Emmet, but Rosalie isn’t one to get dirty you know?”

“That is strange. Anything else bothering you?”

“Yeah we have two new kids Carlisle just adopted and Alice is super sweet, she helps me cook, helps with my homework. She even helped me pick out a prom dress, But Jasper…He gives me the creeps. I swear he looks at me like he wants me dead.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know! I haven’t said two words to the guy, but the others insist he doesn’t hate me.”

“Well I’m sure once Aro talks to Carlisle, you’ll get some answers.”

“Thanks Jane. Hey, can I braid your hair?”

“Of course.” While you are happily braiding intricate patterns into Jane’s hair, the situation is much more tense out on the field. Carlisle already knows what’s coming but he’s not happy about it.

“Aro.”

“Carlisle. My niece is unhappy. She seems to think you’re hiding something from her”

“She’s not your niece. I still don’t know how she came up with that idea. You know what I’m hiding, and you know I can’t tell her.”

“I told you that this charade couldn’t last for forever. You will tell her.”

“Aro it’s your rule that we don’t tell humans about us.”

“I know. You will tell her, and she will turn.”

“She will not.”

“She will. I don’t care who does it or when, but she will turn, and if what I’m hearing about your new members is true I’d be willing to bet who does it.”

“Jasper has his issues but he’s doing much better. He won’t hurt her.”

“I Know. I know that he doesn’t want to hurt her.”

“He isn’t going to.”

“He’s an empath Carlisle haven’t you noticed anything different about (y/n)? or him?”

“He’s not controlling her emotions.”

“I know he’s not if he was she wouldn’t be so scared of him. But she is a constant beacon of joy. She makes Jane of all people smile. After the hell that kid has been through I’m sure he’s enjoying every second of relief her emotions can give him. I’m sure when her dog left her she was pretty upset too.”

“The entire relationship lasted a few weeks.”

“Carlisle you don’t think we keep tabs on that girl? She’s the only person to ever make every member of this family smile on a regular basis, and if anyone or anything threatens her we will take every pleasure in destroying that threat.”

“You’re attached to her? You wanted me to leave her for dead!”

“That was a long time ago Carlisle things have changed. Let me make myself very clear. One of you is going to turn her by the time she’s nineteen or I will do it myself.”

“You speak of threats to her happiness and then threaten it yourself. She would never want to be one of us. She would be miserable.”

“I don’t think so. And you may want to keep your voice down Jane is returning with her now.”

Carlisle turns to see her and Jane walking towards the field. Jane as usual with complicated braids throughout her hair. (y/n)’s smile drops as she walks closer to Carlisle refusing to meet his gaze.

“(y/n)! I trust you had fun with Jane?”

“As always.”

“Did you get our gift?”

“Yes. Thank you so much. It’s beautiful. I have it in my jewelry box at home.”

“Good.” Aro turns back to Carlisle “I trust we’ve come to an understanding. I’ll see you next year.”

“Bye.”

The two of them left and Carlisle walked back to the house with (y/n).

“Are you going to talk to me (y/n)?”

“Are you going to stop being so unnecessarily vague and stop dodging my questions?”

“There are things I can’t tell you”

“then no”

After a few more minutes of silence she spoke once more in exasperation.

“Can you at least tell me why Jasper hates me?”

“He doesn’t hate you.”

“Then why does he avoid me at all costs. Or stare at me like he wants me dead?”

“Ask him.”

“fine I will”

They walk the rest of the way back in silence. Once they were home she immediately ran up the stairs to her room and shut the door. Everything was too much of a headache right now. She just decided to go to sleep for now and deal with everything else in the morning. Meanwhile Carlisle decides it’s best to keep his conversation with Aro a secret from the rest of the family. He’d figure it out later.

#jasper #jasper cullen #jasper x reader #jasper cullen x reader #twilight #twilight fanfiction #twilight renaissance #twilight reverie

[imaginepirates]

James going out with some of his men would include...

For the anon who wanted a story about Gillette and Groves dragging James out for a night of fun: I’m all too happy to deliver. (We’re going to assume that he’s a captain, at this point, given everything that happened just after his promotion wouldn’t leave time for much).

@emdrabbles​ @tesserphantom​ @paljonkaikenlaista​ @viper-official​ @wordsinwinters​ @groovyfluxie​ @hellspawn-brownies​

James isn’t even remotely aware that any one of his men would have the idea of asking him to do something with them. He feels socially isolated from them, which is how he figures it should be. He’s their commanding officer; they should be able to look up to him, and he fears that being too close to them will make him lose their respect.

Still, Groves gets up the nerve to ask James to go out with them one day. James, of course, is caught completely off guard. He never expected his men to try and include him in anything, given his station, and given the fact that he hasn’t been particularly friendly with any of them.

James hates the idea. He hates the idea of losing any sort of control over himself, even if in the company of “friends”. He’s afraid to make himself look like a fool in any capacity, and that his presence will make things awkward for the usual company. He knows that he’s stiff, that he doesn’t relax well around others. He figures his presence will dampen the mood.

He tries to politely decline, but Groves is insistent that he comes along. Groves figures that James could use a drink, and that the paperwork isn’t going anywhere. He says as much, too, which James can’t entirely deny, because with his position, he could use a lot of drinks, and he doesn’t particularly want to do tedious paperwork all evening.

“Pardon me for saying, Captain, but I think it would be good to spend some time with your men.”

What Groves means, of course, is that James needs to loosen up before he completely exhausts himself. And that James could use a friend or two.

James figures, at this point, that it might be rude not to accept, so he agrees to come along, if not entirely willingly.

Groves is screaming internally with victory, and he drags James out of his office to tell the others. They’re game for it, of course, having talked the idea over for ages. They’re all trying to hide smiles, and James is trying to hide the growing mortification he feels.  He knows he doesn’t fit in with them, and it shows.

They manage to make it to a tavern without incident, chatting along the way. Groves makes sure that they keep James close, but that they don’t directly engage him unless he wants to talk. James appreciates that he doesn’t seem to be interrupting anything, and for once, he’s not the center of attention. It comes as a relief.

Being at the tavern is a whole different story. Once they arrive, a thousand worries cross his mind. He wouldn’t know anyone, of course, but what if he did, and what if they told anyone, and…… The man has anxiety. He’s afraid that someone will catch him at this, like it’s a crime to be at a tavern.

Groves simply puts a hand on his shoulder as he notices James paling. James still feels awkward entering the tavern. He knows that people will recognize him, of course. He’s a fairly well-known man, and being somewhat in the public eye, he knows that there will be those who are surprised to see him.

The bartender greets the group, being the regulars they are. They probably eye James, but they wouldn’t say anything.

Each man in the group has their roles. Gillette, of course, is the one who regails everyone else with impossible feats and bawdy tales. Groves calls Gillette on his shit, and is, shockingly, the responsible one in the group. Unshockingly, Gillette is the one who drinks the most, though he somehow manages to never make a complete fool of himself, other than by flirting with servers.

James sits there, sipping at an ale, listening to the others, mildly amused by their antics. He starts to relax as he realizes that nothing is expected of him. He doesn’t have to act a certain way, or say anything.

For the first time in his life, he actually learns who his crewmates are outside of the Navy. He never knew about their families--their children and wives and siblings. He doesn’t know their hobbies, or who they were seeing, or who their friends were. It’s refreshing for him to learn more about them, and opens his eyes a little.

He’s shocked that Groves isn’t seeing anyone, given his station and the fact that, to James, he’s perhaps the most tolerable of all the other members of his ship. That there isn’t a woman he has his eye on surprises James, and shocks Gillette, who thinks that Groves deserves a nice young lady because the company of such is lovely indeed.

Those of the table who know shoot Groves sympathetic looks, especially due to Gillette’s interest in women.

Gillette is actually a raging bisexual, but is oblivious, and hasn’t thought that there was any need to broach the subject. This causes Groves a whole lot of unnecessary angst.

I will go down with this ship, I swear.

Groves offers James another drink, and though he tries to refuse on the basis that he’ll be working the next morning, Groves points out that they all will be, so James will be fine.

“How long’s it been since you’ve had a proper drink, anyway?”

James gives in, and ends up telling some stories about his time as a captain while he was stationed in England at Groves’ prompting. Everyone listens, enraptured, to James’ tales. He seriously downplays his own part in them. The group is impressed anyway.

The girl serving the table plays right along with Gillette’s flirting, but she drops teasing remarks at all of the boys present.

James is a little embarrassed, but he’s more embarrassed that he actually doesn’t mind being flirted with. In fact, he rather likes it. He could never, of course, admit to such a thing, but he appreciates the way she looks, and even more the way she looks at him.

Look, sometimes, he needs to know that people are interested.

However, he’s a level of repressed only known to Jane Austen novels, so he makes no advances, and doesn’t flirt back, only accepts her compliments with a gracious smile.

The others notice, of course, but they keep it to themselves. They can see the heat rising under James’ collar.

At some point, a group of drunkards decides, rather loudly, that they won’t be paying their bill. They also decide to be handsy with the server, who clearly isn’t having it.

James lets the farce go on for about a minute before standing, walking over to the table, ripping a man’s hand off the server, and, in his coldest, most commanding Naval voice, hisses at them to pay and leave.

Needless to say, they do. The fact that James can sober up that fast and intimidate an entire group of drunks says a lot. Mostly, it reminds his own men why they have such a healthy respect for him in the first place.

The server is grateful, but also has no problem telling James that she had things perfectly under control.

“I had that covered. You didn’t need to worry about it.”

“It’s the least I can do. There’s no need for you to take care of everything yourself.”

She seems amused, but in a pleasant way. She gives James a little kiss on the cheek, resting her hands on his chest, and he goes absolutely tomato red.

For the naval boys, the scene is an absolute riot, and they love every second of it. They know that they’ll never be allowed to bring it up ever again, but they relish the sight of their commanding officer at such a loss.

James manages to make it back to the fort, a little unsteadily, and dearly flushed. The group is all smiles, even the horribly tipsy Gillette, who somehow managed to understand the whole situation while drunk.

James knows that he’ll never live the moment down, but is secretly glad that he joined his crew. It was a much better way of spending his time than doing paperwork.

Upon return to his office, he finds a small napkin tucked into a pocket of his coat. It says “next drink is on the house”. James flushes even worse at that, glad to be alone in his study. He figures it was planted on him during the kiss.

And the next time the group goes out, James joins them. They’re surprised, but glad to have him along, and he’s glad that accept him how he is instead of how he always forces himself to be.

In the end, it’s a win-win situation for everyone involved. Even, over the course of several visits, the server, who enjoys teasing James greatly.

#potc #pirates #pirate #pirates of the caribbean #James Norrington #norrington #commodore norrington #headcanon #hcs #headcanons #request #drabble #Theodore Groves #andrew gillette

[masterofmunson]

all i ask of you (1)

Harry Styles x Fem!Reader Broadway AU

Summary: You’re forced to work with your famous ex boyfriend on Broadway.

Word Count: 3.7k+

Warnings: language

Author’s Note: Hi everyone! I’m extremely excited for this mini series. I’m still planning it out right now, but it shouldn’t be longer than 7-8 parts if it goes according to plan. I also know next to nothing about theater/Broadway. I was an athlete in high school and I can’t sing to save my life haha. So I apologize for any discrepancies. I’m trying my best here. Please let me know what you think! Enjoy!

here is the playlist to accompany the series!

“Oh my gosh, Harry!” you shout, holding your face in your hands. You grin into your palms and heat spreads down your neck. 

Harry laughs. You hear him walk towards you. His soft giggles touch the shell of your ear. He gently pulls your hands away from your face. He kisses your knuckles sweetly before pouting at you. 

“Pretty, please, baby,” he begs softly. His hands gently hold yours. 

“No. Absolutely not. I’m too embarrassed!”

He frowns, pulling you up from the chair you’re sat in. He sets your arms over his shoulders and you stand in the middle of his small private studio. 

“You’re going to school for music ‘n you’re too shy to sing f’ me? Me? I’m your crazy talented boyfriend. We should be making duet cover albums right now.”

You whine, shaking your head at him. “Harry, this is different! We’ve been friends for so long and now that we’re dating, it’s different. You want me to sing on the back track of your first single as a solo artist. That’s a big deal. I can’t do that.”

Harry kisses you again and smiles. “Sure you can. ‘M asking you to. It won’t take long. The back track is the only thing missing.”

“I’m only doing one verse,” you argue, “and you’re doing the rest. You can’t watch me record it either. I can’t focus when you’re looking at me like that. Take it or leave it.”

Harry laughs, pulling you into his chest and he kisses you warmly. “If it’s the only way I get to hear you sing, I’ll take it.”

… 

Jane had been acting weird since the moment she woke up. She didn’t return your quiet good morning as the two of you drink your morning coffees together. She wouldn’t look you in the eye when you asked if she was okay. It was weird to say the least. It was out of her character. 

The two of you went to Northwestern’s Drama school and have been friends ever since. She was the voice of reason when you nearly turned down your first Broadway performance. She followed you three months later and you’ve lived together ever since. 

It’s been nearly four years since the two of you moved to New York for Broadway. It was a weird transition at first. You moved from California, to Illinois, and finally to New York within five years and you wouldn’t have it any other way. You’re doing what you love and you wouldn’t trade it for a second. It was the prime reason you and your ex-boyfriend broke up. 

It was a short relationship. It lasted the summer following your last year of college. You spent your last summer at home knowing you wouldn’t return. You had no idea you would be dating someone at that time. You broke the news that you would not be returning to California. You thought you’d be able to do long distance due to the nature of his job. You thought he would be thrilled for you. You were friends with his manager’s girlfriend and they were all happy for you. They knew how much you wanted to be on Broadway and away from California. You were meant for New York and everyone knew that. 

He didn’t want to do long distance and you didn’t want to give up your dream, so you broke up. It didn’t matter that he was one of your closest friends before you started dating. He knew you dreamed of being on Broadway and now that it was coming true, he wanted you to choose. It broke your heart, but you wouldn’t compromise and he wouldn’t either. It was okay for you to be selfish. You were following your dream. 

The last you heard, he released a second album that is no doubt successful. You have no desire to listen to it. It would open old wounds. You were too stubborn and proud and didn’t care to listen to what you’ve heard is a great album. 

“Are you sure you’re okay, Jane? You’re being weird and not acting like yourself,” you tell her with genuine concern as the two of you walk down the street towards the back lot of the theater.

“Have you heard the news?” Jane asks you, avoiding your question entirely. You swipe your electronic key to the theater on the keypad attached to the back door. You open the door and step inside. Jane follows behind you and shuts the door behind her. 

Your brows crease in confusion and you turn to look at her. “What news? What are you talking about?” 

Jane’s face noticeably falls. Her brown eyes widen and she nervously scratches the back of her neck. You know that reaction like the back of your hand. She just asked you a question about something you knew nothing about. You were in the dark and she shouldn’t have asked you. She lets out a careful breath before speaking again, “They stunt casted Raoul.”

Your heart drops. Why didn’t the director or the casting director tell you? Why didn’t John tell you? You had grown quite close to your on-stage love interest and he didn’t have the courtesy to tell you he was leaving the show. You worked together on the show for nearly a year and now you have to start over entirely with whoever took his place. 

It wasn’t easy getting comfortable with John. You hadn’t had a big lead like Christine before. You were a supporting character in all the shows you were in up until last year. John showed you the ropes. He helped you gain confidence in your ability to play a lead. Now you’re going to have to rebuild the chemistry with whoever took his place.

Now that she mentions it, you’re going to have to work with a pretentious celebrity. You’ve only been in one other show when they’ve stunt casted a character. It didn’t go over well. He was demanding and hard to work with. It was the longest nine weeks of your life. You hate when shows stunt cast. 

You groan, rolling your eyes. “Great. Do you know who it is?”

Jane laughs nervously. She bites the inside of her cheek. She avoids your gaze and fumbles with her phone. “Unfortunately I do.”

You raise a brow at her. It makes you anxious because of her nervous tone. She doesn’t want to tell you. In the eight years you’ve known each other, she hasn’t kept a secret from you. She won’t start now. “Why do you sound like you’re about to break bad news to me? Who is it?” 

You gently reach for her arm and the two of you stop in the narrow hallway backstage and Jane’s brown eyes meet yours. She takes a careful breath in before speaking, “They stunt casted Harry.”

Your eyes widen and you gasp. The wind is knocked out of you. You can barely breathe. You grab on the wall for support. Jane frowns. “I overheard Frank and Nancy talking about it yesterday when I was in the green room grabbing my phone. He must’ve done a video audition since we’ve been here every day this past week. Today’s his first day. I wanted to tell you last night, but I wasn’t sure how. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier.”

You swallow hard and shake off the shock. You stand up straight and let out a puff of air. You start walking down the hall towards your dressing room. “It’s fine,” you respond. “It’s been years. I’m different and so is he. Besides, he won’t be here very long. Frank will be looking to cast his replacement while he’s here anyway.”

You push open the door to your dressing room and Jane follows closely behind you. Jane nearly steps on your heels when you stop in the middle of the doorway. She peeks around your arm and her eyes widen. 

Your eyes meet Harry’s and it’s clear he’s just as shocked to see you as you are of him. He clearly didn’t anticipate your reunion to be so soon. You swallow hard and step into the room. You drop your bag on your makeup table and turn to face him. You reach for your script and hold it to your chest. Your water bottle dangles from your fingers. Your eyes meet Jane’s quickly as she stands frozen in the middle of the doorway looking between you and Harry. 

You cough uncomfortably and force a smile on to your face as you stare at Harry. “Hi, Harry,” you greet him. “It’s good to see you.”

Harry blinks before standing up from his chair. He takes a small step towards you and you raise a brow at him questionably. He doesn’t take another step. He knows better than to try and hug you. He smiles uncomfortably and rings his fingers together. He fiddles with his rings and you hate that you know that it’s a nervous habit of his. 

“Hey,” he says, biting the inside of his cheek anxiously. “It’s nice to see you. You look good.”

You nod uncomfortably and scratch at your arm. “Well, um, we should go to the stage. They’ll be expecting us and they need to introduce you to the rest of the cast.”

“Right, right,” he nods. His eyes move towards Jane. Her arms are crossed and she’s glaring at him. “Hi, Jane.”

“Harry,” she spat as you tug on her arm and pull her out of the room, leaving Harry behind. 

You let out a careful breath and shake out your shoulders as you make your way to the stage. You ignore Jane’s swears and grumbles as you pull her along with you. You just need to get through today. It will get easier as time goes on. You haven’t seen him in four years. Everything will be fine. 

You sit down on stage and pull Jane down with you. She huffs and Aaron nudges you gently. You turn your attention on him and he nods at Jane. 

“What’s up with Jane?” Aaron asks you, leaning back on his hands. 

“She’s just being Jane,” you answer vaguely, rubbing your hands on your thighs anxiously. Your eyes linger on the side of the stage, anticipating Harry’s inevitable arrival. You hate it. 

Harry walks on stage behind Frank, the director of the show, a few seconds later. The cast murmurs and gasps at the sight of him and all you want to do is shrivel up and die. You avoid his gaze. You stare down into your lap awkwardly. 

Frank claps his hands together and you look up to watch him. “As you may have heard, John has made the decision to leave the show. As sad as it is, it has given us as a company to work with none other than the fabulous Harry Styles in the meantime,” he exclaims. It makes your blood boil and you grit your teeth. “He will be with us for the next six weeks as Raoul. We want him to feel at home while he’s here, so don’t be shy and introduce yourselves. As of right now, however, I want Aaron and Y/n to work with Harry. Everyone else knows what to do.”

You resist the urge to pout and groan. It’s not Frank’s fault. You have to remind yourself of that. No one knows that you used to date Harry. He’s an incredibly private person and it was no exception while you were dating. It’s not like you wanted to broadcast you were an ex of his either. You’re not Kendall Jenner or Taylor Swift, so why would anyone care? You’re nothing compared to the celebrities he’s dated or has been linked to in the past. 

Jane squeezes your hand in silent support before running off to work on her lines. Aaron helps you up from the floor and you walk towards Harry with Aaron at your side. You ignore Harry’s lingering eyes. 

“It’s so nice to meet you,” Aaron introduces himself, shaking Harry’s hand. “Your new album is fantastic. I’m super excited to work with you, and I’m sure Y/n is too.”

“Thank you, I’m excited as well. I’ve never thought I’d be on Broadway. It was always Y/n’s thing, anyway,” Harry replies. 

Your eyes widen and you swallow hard. Shit. Now they know that you know Harry. This is already turning into a disaster. You want nothing more than to strangle Harry. 

“Oh?” Aaron turns to look at you. You wipe your hands against the sides of your jeans nervously. “You never told me you knew Harry, Y/n.”

You laugh uncomfortably. You bite the inside of your cheek and let out an anxious breath. You need to save your ass. You have to for the sake of the show. They don’t need to know that you used to date. They don’t need to know that Harry broke your heart. 

“It’s never come up in conversation,” you respond easily. “I’m friends with his manager’s girlfriend. That’s how we know each other. I haven’t seen him in forever. It’s been four years since we’ve seen each other.”

Your eyes flicker towards Harry. His eyes are trained on you and you can’t decipher the look on his face. You’re not exactly lying, but you’re not telling the full truth either. 

Yes, you are friends with Glenn. Yes, you haven’t seen him in forever. 

No one has to know you used to go to his house and kiss the famous Harry Styles senseless, least of all your co-star and director. 

“Sweet,” Aaron replies. He laughs and turns to Harry again. “You’ll have to give me all the dirt you have on her later. I don’t buy the fact that she doesn’t like New York Style pizza.”

You resist the urge to elbow Aaron in the gut. Harry could potentially air out all your dirty laundry if he wanted to. All Aaron has to do is ask. 

Harry laughs uncomfortably. “Yeah—”

“Not that I don’t enjoy the fact that the three of you are already getting along, but we have a lot to do today,” Frank interrupts, placing a gentle hand on your shoulder. It makes you jump. Your nervousness is out of this world. 

“Right, right, sorry,” Harry apologizes. 

You tune out immediately. Your eyes drift up to the ceiling as Frank talks. Blood rushes through your ears and you have to remind yourself that Harry’s only here for six weeks. It’s just six weeks. You can survive six weeks. He’ll be gone soon enough and you’ll go back to never thinking about him. Hopefully you won’t run into him four years from now. He’ll disappear out of your life in six weeks. It’ll be fine. 

“Y/n, I want you to start from the beginning with Harry. We’ll work our way up to blocking next week and have a dress rehearsal before his debut. It’ll be a very long, tiring week, but I have faith in you. Start with the scenes with just the two of you and we’ll work our way up from there. Let me know when you’ve warmed up so I can be there. Julie is waiting for you in rehearsal room two.”

You nod slowly and you walk off stage towards the rehearsal room. Harry follows behind you and you step inside the room. Harry shuts the door and you hug Julie. 

“Hi, Harry. I’m Julie, one of the vocal coaches on staff. I’ll be helping you get acquainted with Y/n’s vocal abilities so you know when to project. I know this is redundant, but Broadway is an art within itself. It’s much different from what you’re used to.”

Harry nods, shaking her hand before opening his script. You take a quick peek and notice that it’s already marked up. At least he’s prepared. 

“I’m excited to learn,” Harry tells her with an eager smile. “I’m a fast learner.”

“Good, now let’s warm up.”

You set your script and water bottle down before shaking out your hands. You let out a nervous breath and ignore Harry’s lingering gaze. 

In the short time you were with Harry, you were too bashful and insecure to sing in front of him. He’s the rockstar. He’s the celebrity with millions of adoring fans. He’s worshiped and you are not. 

Your insecurities always got the better of you. You knew you were talented. You went to one of the best theater schools in the country. However, you actively avoided singing around Harry while you were dating. It didn’t matter that you could sing circles around him. He was the one with the fame and following. You were a broke college graduate. 

You start to warm up and avoid looking over at Harry as you sing. You stop when Julie says your name. Harry approaches you and you start to warm up together. 

You warm up for another five minutes before Julie stops you. You take a drink of water before grabbing your script. The door opens and you turn to look behind you. 

Frank enters with Aaron behind him. 

“Let’s start in the middle of Think of Me, right before Raoul enters,” Julie states. 

You nod and Harry reaches for his script. He flips through the pages and Julie sits down at the piano. Her eyes flicker towards Harry. 

“Remember, this is the first time Raoul sees Christine since they were children. He’s enamored by her, so you need to convey that in your singing.”

Harry nods and Julie starts to play the piano. You start to sing and Harry’s eyes soften as he looks at you. You’re clearly more comfortable than he is. You’re in your element. He is not. 

Harry misses his cue and you turn to look at him. The piano stops and Harry’s face flushes an embarrassing shade of pink. 

“Sorry, sorry,” he apologizes. “I’m a bit nervous.”

Your brows crease in disbelief. You don’t believe him. There’s only five of you in the room. He’s performed in front of hundreds of thousands of fans and he’s nervous now? You don’t buy it. 

Julie starts the piano again and you start over. He starts to sing and your eyes meet his. You sing again until Frank cuts you off. 

It’s obvious that he notices how tense you are. You’re staring at Harry like you want to kill him. You’re not looking at him like Christine would be looking at Raoul when they see each other for the first time after so many years apart. You don’t feel an ounce of love or compassion for him, and it’s conveyed on your face. 

“Listen, I know Harry’s taking John’s place and it’s only natural that you miss him, but we don’t have time for an awkward stage. You need to be comfortable with Harry. I know you can do it. Let’s try All of Ask of You.”

You grit your teeth, resisting the urge to snap at your director. You force yourself to relax and shake away your anger. You set your script down on top of the piano and turn towards Harry. He flips through his script again and Julie starts playing the piano. 

Harry’s eyes meet yours and he briefly looks down at his script before he starts to sing. It makes you feel weird. You hadn’t sang together while you were dating and now you’re being forced to as exes. 

You relax your shoulders and your fiery gaze as you sing. It makes your heart race as you look at each other and you hate it. You absolutely hate it. You’re singing about love and always being there for each other, something your relationship with Harry lacked in the first place. 

The song ends and you turn to look over at Frank and Aaron. Frank claps, clearly happy with how the two of you sang. It was definitely better than before. You swallow hard and drink your water. 

“Great start. I’m happy with the progress. I know that it’s only day one, but we have ten days until Harry’s debut and it’ll fly by. These next ten days are going to be very long and very tiring, but it’ll be worth it in the end. I want the two of you to spend some time together outside the theater. Aaron told me that you do know each other, but you need to be comfortable enough to sell that your characters are in love. Keep in mind, you kiss about five or six times throughout the show. It’ll help the character’s chemistry if the two of you get reacquainted off stage.”

You resist the urge to scoff. You don’t need reminding that you have to kiss Harry. The last  thing you want is to kiss your ex boyfriend, but you have to. Now it’s your job. 

You nod and so does Harry. Frank and Aaron leave and you tune out Julie again. 

You do as you’re told. You help Harry when you need to as you get comfortable singing with him. It takes much longer than you anticipated and you try your best not to snap at him. Julie doesn’t need to know that Harry is your ex boyfriend. 

When it’s time for lunch, you disappear to find Jane. You find her in your dressing room waiting for you. You pull your coat on and grab your purse. 

“Ready?” Jane asks you. 

“God, yes. I need a drink,” you tell her. 

Jane laughs, shaking her head at you. “It’s only 11:30.”

You roll your eyes at her. “It’s five o’clock somewhere.”

“It was that bad?”

“Don’t even get me started,” you roll your eyes. 

You walk out of your dressing room and nearly run into Harry. You stumble back into Jane and Harry reaches for your shoulders to steady you. You glare at him and pull away from his touch. 

You step around Harry and he says your name softly. “Where are you going?”

“Lunch. I’ll be back in an hour.”

You walk out of the theater with Jane at your side. You let out a loud sigh of relief. “Jesus, this is going to be the longest six weeks of my life.”

Jane laughs loudly as the two of you walk down the street to your favorite deli. 

#pls tell me what u think !!!!! pls pls #harry styles x reader #harry styles #harry styles imagine #harry styles imagines #harry styles fanfic #harry x reader #harry imagine #harry imagines #my writing

[heavencollins]

Top 10 Films of 2020: Part One

2020 was a rough year for a lot of reasons, but even more rough due to the lack of an existent film industry for over half of the year.  Sure, there are small productions happening and movies being released on VOD, as well as some in theatres, but so many great films were pushed back this year—movies I was excited to possibly have on my top ten.  Minari, Promising Young Woman, Zola, The Green Knight, Saint Maud.  Okay most of those are A24 releases but A24 literally released next to none of their slate for this year and it’s one of the most disappointing things to happen in the entertainment industry in my opinion.  

Alas, I still found cinema through streaming, paying $20 for a VOD rental, and those amazing $1.80 rentals from Redbox (remember when they were only a dollar?  because I do).  And honestly?  It was probably the hardest time curating a top ten that I’ve had in a long time; with so much just available through the internet and owning every single popular streaming service, it was both impossible to watch everything I wanted but also since I watched a lot of what i wanted, I ended up loving most of it.  For a year that was so dismal in every other way possible, the films that were released ended up being a shining light more often than not.  Of course, like every other year, a lot of hot garbage came out too, but that isn’t the focus of this—the great, amazing, can’t believe these are real films.  

So let’s start from number ten.  This was my first and only $20 rental this year, starring a man who I personally admire: Pete Davidson.  

10. The King Of Staten Island, directed by Judd Apatow and written by Judd Apatow, Pete Davidson, and Dave Sirus.  

Judd Apatow is one of the first directors who I watched religiously, and hearing that he was doing a film with Pete Davidson that was essentially based on Davidson’s life meant that I knew I’d have to watch it.  Scott, played by Davidson, is a twenty-something with no direct path in life; he lives with his mother, his sister is going off to college—something he never attempted—and he has no real career.  His father died in a large building structure fire, much like Davidson’s actual father, a firefighter who passed away while responding to the twin towers during 9/11.  Scott is emotionally a wreck, plagued with depression and anxiety, a chronic weed smoker, and dreams of being a tattoo artist that he practices by tattooing his group of rag-tag friends, but none of the tattoos are very great.  

The thing about an Apatow film is they border the line between comedy and drama very well, kind of a complicated little dance.  But, King of Staten Island is very much a drama more than a comedy.  Bill Burr plays Ray, the father of a kid that Scott tattoos earlier on in the film.  Ray comes stomping up to Scott’s mother’s house, and Margie, played by Marissa Tomei, opens the door.  It’s essentially love at first sight.  She hasn’t dated since Scott’s father passed, and to make matters worse, Ray is also a firefighter.  This complicates emotions for Scott, as he loves his mother but also doesn’t know how to deal with the feeling that his mother is finally moving on and may face heartbreak again.  

Davidson puts it all on the table in this film.  It’s poignant and realistic; at the start, Scott is driving down the highway and closes his eyes, way longer than you should.  It sets the tone from the start that this man isn’t okay, but also he’s scared of dying because as soon as he opens his eyes again and sees he may be about to crash, he quickly panics and readjusts his wheel.  This struck a chord with me as most people know that Davidson has struggled with suicidal thoughts in the past.  It’s a beautiful film that memorializes both how much Davidson’s father meant to him, but also the cycles of grief and trauma that last throughout your life.  

9: Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), directed by Cathy Yan and written by Christina Hodson.

Suicide Squad is one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen period, fact.  Birds of Prey is one of the best movies I’ve ever seen period, fact.  I never, ever, ever thought I’d see a day where a DC movie was in my top ten, but this year anything is possible.  Birds of Prey is a display of feminism, badassery, and all around perfection.  You jump right into the story, hearing Margot Robbie’s classic Harley Quinn voice laid over an animation showing what we missed in her life so far, which means you don’t have to have any previous knowledge of the other films.  Birds of Prey is meant to stand alone from any other movie preceding this one, and that’s just part of why it’s so great.

This film knows not to take itself too seriously.  Margot Robbie is a dream as Harley Quinn, using just the right amount of playfulness to put a little edge on her, while also maintaining the manic-panic-pixie-dream-girl effect.  Perhaps the best scene is when Harley goes and purchases the perfect egg breakfast sandwich, and then she drops it, causing a dramatic slow motion effect that proves she really does love that sandwich more than anything in the world.  Or her realistic apartment, nothing truly fancy, just a little hole in the wall above a rundown Chinese restaurant.  But then she has an amazing ensemble of other women actors around her, which are what really uplift her performance. 

The funhouse fight scene at the end may be the best in superhero movie history.  I mean, I guess, is Harley Quinn really a superhero?  She’s kind of the anti-hero, which is what makes her so great.  She’s somebody who isn’t even close to perfect but she still succeeds and tries to help and uplift the other women on her team.  There’s just something special about this movie that made me smile and laugh the entire time.  It’s a reminder that it’s okay to have fun every once in a while.  

8: The Assistant, directed and written by Kitty Green.

For those who don’t know, I work as an assistant during the day for a small business here in Vermont.  The work is mundane but it’s a job that’s giving me experience for the future.  In The Assistant, Jane, played by Julia Garner, is an assistant to a “powerful entertainment mogul.”  She gets lunch, answers phones, is the first one into the office, the last one out of the office, finds herself overshadowed by her male counterparts and getting the majority of the “grunt” work, and becomes more and more aware of what’s really going on at this office throughout a day in her life.  

What’s interesting about this film is nothing is ever seen; everything Jane starts to feel is just based on intuition.  Her boss is tricky, finding ways to keep his abuse of women out of the public eye, out of the eye of any female employees.  This is obviously in response to #MeToo, Times Up, and the Harvey Weinstein news from the last few years, and it works surprisingly well as a film that just unnerves you and gets under your skin.  

The reality of assault in the film industry is that until it’s widely public and known, nobody is going to know about it.  You can report it to your company, to other women, to other men, to anybody, and nobody will take you seriously until they either experience it themselves or know somebody else who has.  The Assistant hits the ball out of the park with the ending, even if it doesn’t give a vindictive satisfaction to viewers, because it’s simply the truth of the matter.  

7: Tenet, directed and written by Christopher Nolan.

I really don’t know what to say about this one.  It’s really controversial to like it but I absolutely LOVED this movie, it’s pure fucking vibes.  A lot of people are cinema purists, which I am not, and will never claim to be, which was a huge deal with this film.  Personally, this works way better at home than it ever would in a theater.  It’s slightly long, the sound mixing makes it so it can be hard to hear dialogue over loud noises and the score, and it’s the type of movie you may have to rewind  a few times.  

My partner and I watched this in 4K Ultra HD with subtitles on, and let me tell you, it was amazing.  Everything about the acting, the diversity in the film, the fact that Nolan literally has a character say “Don’t try to understand it, just experience it”???? VIBES.  That’s all I can say about it.  Plus, Elizabeth Debicki plays an actual badass who stands against her abuser and that enough is five stars.  A tall queen standing up against her short joker—absolute feminism.  

Sure, no character gets any development, but is that seriously necessary for every film?  It’s an action flick about time and space and none of it makes sense and you can’t force it to.  Why does everything need to make sense in a time where we are literally living through a pandemic?  Just sit back, relax, and enjoy the experience of Tenet.  It’s more fun when you don’t take it seriously.  

6: The Devil All The Time, directed by Antonio Campos and written by Antonio Campos, Donald Ray Pollock, and Paulo Campos.

I never read the book this was based on, but this film made me want to.  I love a film where multiple plot lines converge into one central story and this one did it so well, all with the same theme surrounding every single character: the guilt of sin and how no matter how much you think you can save yourself, you can’t truly save yourself.  I’m not a huge fan of Tom Holland, but he shines as Arvin from beginning to end.  Pattinson brings a creepy southern preacher to life with an accent that he will never be able to match again.  Keough gives a performance you can only sympathize with as you know she’s being manipulated the entire time.  Every character in this is corrupt in their own way but some in worse ways than others.

I don’t know how much to say about this one without spoiling it, either, because the core of this film is on the characters and what leads to their untimely ends, because pretty much everybody ends up dead.  It’s grim and dark but it’s so beautiful and tells the story in a way that keeps you interested throughout the entire run time.  It surprised me but there’s never truly been a Robert Pattinson starring movie that I’ve hated, so am I really surprised?  I’m a TwiHard at heart even at age 22. 

#birds of prey #harley quinn #the devil all the time #robert pattinson #tenet #christopher nolan #the assistant #julia garner #pete davidson #judd apatow #cathy yan #antonio campos #the king of staten island #john david washington #kitty green #top ten #film #cinema #reviews #film review

[ollieofthebeholder]

leaves too high to touch (roots too strong to fall): a TMA fanfic

Tumblr tag || Also on AO3.

Chapter 37: Martin Prime

It was weird hearing his fiancé arguing with someone who sounded like him but wasn’t, Martin mused idly. Like listening to a tape he didn’t remember recording.

It was also weird, and would probably always be weird, that he could tell the difference between Jon’s voice and Past Jon’s voice, at least when he was paying attention and not overly upset. Theoretically they were the same person. Practically, they were very different, just because of what they’d both been through. Jon’s voice had just the faintest rasp to it, the lightest bit of scarring on his vocal chords from both Daisy’s knife and Jane Prentiss’ worms, and Past Jon’s voice was a tad softer, less hardened by time and circumstance. The distinction in their voices was subtle, but it was enough.

“You knew about the bullet. You should have said something to her,” Jon said, for what was at least the fifteenth time in the last week. Martin could imagine him waving his arms as he did so. “If she gets shot because she didn’t know to avoid it—”

“It wasn’t like I had an opportunity in the conversation,” Past Martin protested. “I did tell her to be careful.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Jon demanded.

From the stress on you, Martin guessed he’d turned the argument on someone else, and it was Past Jon who answered. “What was I supposed to say? ‘Oh, don’t worry, you’ll come back alive but with a ghost’s bullet in your leg that’s going to make you irrationally angry’? I did the best I could. We were recording.”

“I’ve told you before, the recorders aren’t the Eye—”

“Uh, I need to take this back to the library before it closes for the weekend,” Tim said, but it didn’t seem to make an impression on the argument that Sasha was now chiming in to.

“He’s right, you should have told her. Should have warned her against joining the Institute, too.”

“I can do that when she gets back,” Past Martin pointed out.

“I told Basira what was going on,” Sasha said.

“But not in relation to herself,” Past Jon said. Martin could imagine that being accompanied by an accusing jab of the finger,  but he wasn’t going to make assumptions. “Besides, that’s different. Basira is the type to weigh all evidence and theories against her options when making a decision. Melanie’s more the type to give in to emotion, especially anger. It’s impossible to tell which way she’d go if you gave her that kind of information first. It’s very likely to make things worse.”

“Don’t you Know at me, Jonathan Sims.”

Tim made a noise imitative of a supermarket’s tannoy crackling to life. “Manager to Mr. Kettle, manager to Mr. Kettle, there’s a Ms. Pot for you on line two.”

“Would that be the pot calling the kettle back?” Martin asked. He was rewarded with a choked-off laugh from Tim’s direction, but he was pretty sure nobody else in the room heard either one of them. With a sigh, he heaved himself out of the armchair. “Want me to come with you to take that book back? This is going to take a while.”

“Sure. We’ll be back, guys.” Tim evidently directed this at the others, but again, no reaction from anyone. He sighed. “Here, give me your arm. Bringing your cane?”

“Better not, just in case we run into someone. Get me to the stairs and I should be okay.”

The sound of the argument faded into the background as they made it to the steps; Martin let go of Tim’s arm and gripped the railing instead. By leaning forward, he could anticipate when they hit a landing. “Thanks. What’s the book on, by the way?”

“Oh, it’s one of the circus books. I—I know I’m obsessing a little about it. I know the circus itself isn’t the important bit, but…I don’t know. Forewarned is forearmed, I guess.” Tim was silent for a moment. “Unless it is something about circuses that are important.”

“No, not really. Just…an excuse, I guess.” Martin tried to put into words what even Jon had never asked his opinion on; there hadn’t been much of a chance before the Unknowing, and after it there hadn’t been much of a point. “I’ve noticed that’s one of the places the Stranger is drawn to, is the entertainment industry. Not just the circus, but the theater. I-I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s not the only one drawn to it. You know as well as I do the damn things overlap, like the bleed on the edge of colors.”

“Mm…hang on, I have a question, but we’re hitting the main floor. I’m gonna throw my arm around your shoulders like I’m telling you a bad joke, okay?”

“Thanks. And thanks for the warning.” Martin braced himself against the railing.

Tim’s arm came down heavily over Martin’s shoulders, and he turned his face towards him, hoping anyone passing them would assume he was engrossed in Tim’s extremely skewed sense of humor. True to his word, Tim picked up in the middle of a joke as they left the stairwell. “…the Brother Superior stands up as usual and sings, ‘Good morning, broooo-theeers.’ And all the brothers sing back, ‘Good moooor-niiiiiiing,’ except for the one little brother who’s rebelling. He sings out—”

“’Night, Martin,” a sweet, young-sounding voice called.

“Night,” Martin called back. It sounded like Manal, but he didn’t want to risk saying the wrong name and drawing attention to himself.

“Oh, hey, are you heading upstairs?” The voice got closer, and Martin and Tim drew to a halt. “This came in the mail drop for Mr. Bouchard. I meant to bring it up right away, but we got slammed with students and I forgot. Must be the first paper of the term coming up due. Can you give it to Rosie, please?”

“Sure, no problem.” Martin reached out uncertainly and—fortunately—touched a cardboard packet; he was able to grab it before it became obvious that was luck. He hoped. “Have a good night, Manal.”

“You too.”

Tim got them started walking again, continuing as he did, “Anyway, so the brother who’s rebelling sings, ‘Good eeeeeeve-niiiiiiing.’ A hush falls over the whole refectory. Brother Superior stands up, looks around the room, looks each brother in the eye, and then sings, ‘Someone chanted eveniiiiiiing…’”

Martin let out a long, protracted groan. “God, Tim, how long have you been sitting on that one?”

“Years,” Tim admitted sheepishly. “You’ve got to have the right audience for it, you know? Someone who both appreciate puns and knows enough about music to catch the reference.”

“If I could see you, I would hit you.”

“Must be my lucky day. Mind the steps.”

Martin switched the cardboard packet to his other hand in favor of the railing, and was surprised when someone tugged it away from his fingers. “Hey—”

“Sorry, should’ve warned you I was doing that,” Tim said. “I just figured it’d probably be better if I hand it off to Rosie, since…” He trailed off.

Since Martin couldn’t see her, wouldn’t know where to find her, and the last time he’d been in her office it had been…somewhat different. He tried to push the image of the top of the Panopticon out of his mind. “Yeah, probably for the best. If she’s still there.”

“She will be. Always one of the last ones out the door. Not sure how much of it is Elias keeping her to the last minute and how much of it is she doesn’t want to miss anything.” Tim paused. “Speaking of being unbearably nosy, wonder what Elias is getting from one of the Lukases that can’t be delivered in person?”

“They don’t like doing anything in person if they can help it, Tim. It’s kind of their whole…deal.” That close to Elias’ office, it didn’t feel safe to mention the Lonely out loud, or any of the fears, really. “I very much doubt we’ll find out, though.”

The railing didn’t level out—it just stopped, something Martin discovered when he almost pitched forward from abruptly not having something to lean on. He caught himself against the wall with a rather loud slap and thanked his lucky stars he’d always had a (mostly undeserved, to be honest) reputation as a klutz. Assuming anyone was still around, they’d probably just think oh, Martin tripped over his own two feet again, insofar as they thought about it at all. Rosie was probably watching, though.

That was confirmed—more or less—when Tim said in a bright, jovial voice, “Rosie! Good to see you. Can you give this to Elias? Manal asked us to bring it up.”

“Of course.” Rosie’s voice sounded just like Martin remembered it, and he curled one hand into a fist to stave off the memory of her staring up at them, face perfectly blank except for her eyes, somewhere between dazed and terrified, as she blandly asked if they had an appointment…

Not for the first time, Martin wished there had been any other way of protecting him from the Eye than by destroying his vision. Setting aside the usual, mundane difficulties that came with total blindness—difficulties any person faced with complete loss of sight would have to deal with—there was the simple fact that the last thing Martin had seen, live and in person, had been a post-apocalyptic hellscape. The last time he had seen the Institute, it had been a tower of black glass and twisted steel looming up into the stratosphere; the last time he had seen London, it had been swarming with very interested cameras and monitors and paintings of eyes; the last time he had seen the sky, it had seen him back. He could remember the way things had been before, but those last impressions were awfully powerful, and it hurt.

“Was there anything else, Tim?” Rosie asked. Martin frowned slightly. Under her voice was something eager, something…hungry. She wanted something, and he wondered what it was. He remembered Jon’s unwilling statement, where he’d talked about her constant desire for secrets—she could probably give Sasha a run for her money in terms of snooping, and no wonder Gertrude had always talked to her as if she was in the know. Was that all it was? Was she prying for secrets? Or—Martin bit his lip—was it possible she’d been taken over by the Not-Them, that she was drawn to Tim because of his Stranger mark? She sounded like he remembered, but if she were replaced in this past, would it replace his memories of the future, too?

He bit back a groan. Douglas Adams was wrong about the biggest problem to time-travel being grammatical tenses; clearly, the biggest problem was making sense out of the recursive nature of body-stealing, memory-altering creatures.

“Nope, that ought to do it. Gotta get to the library before they lock it up for the night. Have a good weekend, Rosie.” Tim knocked twice on something wooden, probably her desk, then came over and touched Martin’s arm. “Let’s go, Freckles.”

“Night, Rosie,” Martin called, because he would have before and Past Martin would too and there was no sense in making Rosie—or Elias, if he was still there—suspicious. He could imagine the false, charming smile she flashed in his direction, but there was no audible response and he didn’t expect one. Instead, he simply linked arms with Tim, let him lead him down the corridor, and prayed nobody had left a door open for him to run into.

The sensation of stepping into the library was instantly a familiar one to Martin—the feeling of stepping into a soaring, open space, but an oddly safe one—odd because of the sheer number of truly dangerous and terrifying works contained there. Any book with Jurgen Leitner’s bookplate on it was destroyed long before it got this far, of course, but even before he’d gone to the Archives, Martin had wondered if someone would be able to tell one of Leitner’s books if the bookplate was papered over or removed. Once he’d learned the truth, that Leitner had been a collector rather than the author or even the commissioner, he’d wondered how many books of power were actually in the Institute’s library. On the one hand, it didn’t seem likely that Jonah Magnus would allow any genuinely powerful books to get this far; on the other hand, it would certainly explain the library’s asinine and borderline ludicrous lending procedures.

Martin hung back by the door, sliding his hands into his pockets and hoping he was sufficiently out of the way of everyone bustling to get their assigned tasks completed so they could be out the door on time. Idly, he wondered who was on the desk. He’d usually ended up working it on Friday afternoons; everybody else hated it because, as Rebecca had once complained, there was always one person who came back with an enormous stack to return with ten minutes to go before they were supposed to clock out. Every book had to be checked against three different lists, certain inspections had to be made, and the identity of the person returning the book had to be checked twice. And it all had to be done by hand; every attempt to automate and bring in a computer had been met with catastrophic failure. Martin had actually kind of enjoyed it, especially since it usually meant he was left alone at the end of the week and could take his time, lingering over shelves and experimenting with the acoustics. If he thought he could get away with it, he might creep up here some evening after the Institute was closed and throw a few more songs into the darkness. It was different in the Archives.

“Well, hello there, Martin!”

Martin almost leapt out of his skin and whirled around, his heart pounding. “Jesus!”

“Sorry, didn’t mean to sneak up on you.” The voice was coming from roughly Martin’s height, but that was about all he could tell, that and that it was female. It had no distinctive characteristics, nothing to trigger a name in his mind. And yet, whoever owned it knew his name, which meant it was someone he should know. He’d have to bluff. “Haven’t seen you up here in a while.”

“Yeah, just—been busy,” Martin said lamely. He waved in the direction of the desk. “Kind of figured you’d be glad to see the back of me, to be honest.”

“Oh, now, why would you think that?” The woman, or at least Martin presumed it was the woman, patted him on the cheek with a soft, fleshy hand; he tried not to flinch at the unexpected touch, or the unpleasantly dry feel of her palm. “You’re such a hard worker, and always so cheerful. You’ve been missed, but I’m sure Jon appreciates having you in the Archives.”

If this was a joke, Martin didn’t think it was very funny, but he managed a smile anyway. “Well, we all had a settling-in period, but that’s in the past now. I do miss it up here sometimes, but I like being down there, too.”

“And we’re very glad to have him,” Tim said, suddenly right next to Martin. “C’mon, buddy, we’ve got a weekend to catch before it slips away…have a good one.”

“You, too, Tim. And you, Martin. Don’t be such a stranger—come back and visit us more often. We’d love to see you again.”

“Sure,” Martin said softly. “’Night.”

Tim didn’t say anything the rest of the way back down to the Archives, which Martin appreciated. Going down stairs was a hell of a lot more complicated than going up; he couldn’t lean as safely, and the kick-and-drag method was a bit less effective. It took concentration to keep from pitching forward and tumbling down the entire flight, and if he tried to spare any braincells for conversation, Martin was pretty sure he’d end up missing his footing. Tim’s hand at his elbow helped, especially since the main floor was crowded with people leaving for the day. A few called greetings to Tim, but they all ignored Martin, which was fine by him.

There was a sense, when they re-entered the Archives, of an argument put on hold, something that was confirmed when the first thing Martin heard anyone say was Jon’s voice. “What do you think, Martin?”

“Gender is a social construct, Shakespeare is overrated, and paisley is horrendously tacky no matter what color it is,” Martin replied promptly. Someone hastily turned a snigger into a cough.

“I mean, about whether or not you would have told Melanie more about what to expect in India.”

Martin felt around until he located a chair. “I think my opinion doesn’t matter.”

“Of course it matters,” Past Jon protested.

“Not in this.” Martin met Jon’s hand coming towards him and squeezed it gently. “What I would have done doesn’t have a lot of relevance here. It’s not our story anymore.”

“What?” Past Martin sounded genuinely confused. “Of course it’s—”

“I mean,” Martin said quickly, “that you’re not us and we’re not you. What I was like at this point in things isn’t anywhere near where you are, and vice versa. Same with Jon and your Jon. To be honest, I don’t even know if I would have made the effort to be friends. But at this point, things are different enough that telling you how we would do it isn’t very…efficient, I guess? It’s your story, your lives. You’re the ones shaping it. Trying to do things the way we wish we’d done it…well, if the circumstances aren’t the same, it won’t have the same outcome necessarily. You’ve got to do what you think is best.”

“That’s…a good point, actually,” Jon admitted. He sighed. “I apologize for lecturing.”

“’S all right,” Past Martin said. “Gave me a chance to stand my ground and all.”

“Which you need to do more often,” Tim said cheerfully. “Anything to boost your self-esteem.”

“Ouch, Tim, really?” The effectiveness of Sasha’s reproof was lessened by the obvious smirk in her voice.

“Yeah, okay, I probably shouldn’t have said it like that, but it’s true. I’m not completely oblivious, you know. I can put the pieces together, and from the little you’ve said about working in the library, I got the impression you thought they hated you up there. Especially Diana.”

“They did,” Past Martin protested. “The only one who ever even spoke to me directly was Diana, and even that was just to give me orders. It’s hard not to know someone hates you when their method of asking you for help is to wait until you’re in earshot and then tell someone else to ‘just leave that for Martin, he’ll fumble his way through it eventually’.”

“Did they really do that?” Jon asked quietly.

“Constantly,” Martin affirmed. “Speaking of, Tim, who the hell was that who was talking to me while you were checking that book back in? I didn’t recognize the voice.”

“Wait, seriously?” Tim said with an audible frown.

Martin sighed. “Look. Down here it’s pretty easy to tell who’s talking. You’ve all got pretty distinct voices from one another. It’s hard to tell my Jon and your Jon apart if I’m not concentrating, but there’s enough of a difference and I know you well enough to be able to figure it out, usually. But out there? If it’s not someone with a distinctive pitch or accent or speech pattern or whatever, it’s hard to tell. And something like ninety percent of the people who work here speak with the exact same voice. About all I could tell was that I was talking to a woman.”

“I guess that makes sense. Just figured you’d recognize Diana’s voice when you heard it.”

“Pretty sure I would. So who was that?”

There was a half-second’s pause before Tim said, “Diana.”

“Diana?” Martin repeated incredulously.

“You’re sure you didn’t recognize her?”

“No, and it’s not just the accent. I didn’t think the ladders got that close to where I was standing.” Martin rubbed his forehead. “God, my mental map of the library is all off now.”

Jon wrapped an arm around his shoulder and pulled him close. Tim sounded bewildered. “What do ladders have to do with anything?”

“It sounded like whoever was talking to me was around my height. I mean, that could’ve been the way sound bounces in the library, but—”

“No, that’s—she is around your height. She always intimidated the hell out of me.”

Martin sighed. “Okay, I think we’re talking about two different Dianas here. Which Diana was this I was talking to?”

“Diana—what the hell is her last name? The head librarian?”

“Caxton,” Past Jon supplied.

Something cold trickled down Martin’s spine. “Describe her.”

“Uh—tall, broad-shouldered, dark hair that she usually wears piled up on top of her head, looks like a Quentin Blake illustration come to life—?”

“That’s who the artist is! I can never remember his name,” Sasha said, punctuating the remark by—from the sound of it—slamming her open hand against the desk.

“That’s not Diana Caxton,” Past Martin said decidedly. “I don’t know who you’re talking about, or why she would have told you she was, but—”

“It’s the Diana Caxton I know,” Past Jon said. “And you should, too. She was there when I took Melanie up the first time, said they missed seeing your smiling face up there.”

“Look, that’s not Diana,” Past Martin insisted. “I should know. I worked there for ten years, Jon. She’s shorter than five feet tall, her hair’s been completely silver for a while now, and she has a Korean accent. I don’t know who this woman is you’re describing, but it’s not Diana Caxton.”

Jon tensed, his arm tightening around Martin’s shoulders. Softly, he said, “I think it is now.”

There was a moment of horrible silence as that sank in. Martin had to admit that the idea of the Not-Them taking over Diana hadn’t even occurred to him. He’d just…assumed that if it was anyone, either it would be someone in Artifact Storage foolish enough to disregard the warnings or it would be Rosie. And, okay, maybe there’d been a foolish little part of him that had hoped it wouldn’t take over anyone. But somehow, the idea of it being Diana Caxton just felt wrong. It was true that she hadn’t liked him all that much when he’d worked for her, but then, he’d been unqualified and incompetent, bluffing his way along, and she’d likely had to pick up a lot of his messes. And he knew for a fact that the twice-widowed bookworm had a flock of grandchildren who adored her—he still remembered the day her youngest had come to visit, just before he’d been transferred to the Archives, and attached herself to Martin with a thousand innocent questions and bragging stories about “my Nana”. It wasn’t fair for anyone to be taken by that thing, but especially not someone like Diana.

There was a banging noise, like the Archives doors had just blown open, and Martin jumped, clutching at Jon’s arm. His first thought was that it was the Not-Diana, having realized they knew, coming to take them out. His second was that it was Elias, the jig would be up, and they would have to try and implement their plan now, and what if Jon wasn’t strong enough to do what had to be done and—

“Basira?” Sasha said, sounding somewhere between shocked and relieved. “What are you doing here?”

Oh. Martin relaxed, but not much. There was absolutely no hiding his or Jon’s presence. Past Jon sounded nervous as he said, “I can explain about—”

“Save it. I don’t care.” There was a thump and a rattle as Basira—her voice was unmistakable, too—dropped something on the desk in front of them. “Here.”

“Are those the tapes?” Past Jon asked.

“As many of them as I could get,” Basira replied.

“What happened, Basira?” Sasha’s voice was gentle, but—surprisingly—there was no static in it, even though Martin could almost feel it building in the room. It hit him, suddenly, that Sasha’s ability from the Eye didn’t enable her to ask for secrets. Only to take them. He decided to keep that particular unpleasant realization to himself for the moment. “I thought you said you were done with the Institute.”

Basira let out one of those frustrated noises Martin, unfortunately, knew all too well. “They’re covering it up. Altman’s death. Saying he was dirty. That he got stabbed in a drug deal gone wrong.”

“Wait, so the operation you went on—” Past Jon began.

“Doesn’t exist. I mean, I didn’t know Leo well, but…it’s not right. And they seemed happy enough to get me out the door.”

Someone poked at the box, if the rattle was any indication; Martin guessed it was Sasha, since she spoke again. “So why bring us the tapes?”

“Well, they’re sure as hell not going to solve Gertrude’s murder,” Basira said. “And from what you said the last time I was here, they’re probably of more use to you anyway, even if her death’s not in here. Before, I guess I had enough police in me not to steal evidence, but…”

“They’ve rather lost your loyalty,” Jon supplied softly. Martin slipped his arm around his waist and pulled him close.

“You won’t get in trouble for this, will you?” Tim asked, actually sounding concerned.

“Don’t think so. Daisy knows I’m bringing them to you. They won’t know they’re missing until they do inventory, and then only if they check the sectioned stuff.”

“Thanks, Basira,” Sasha said. “I owe you a drink or two. Just say the word.”

“Long as you promise not to talk shop,” Basira replied. “If I never hear another thing about this place…that’ll be enough for me.”

Martin heard footsteps starting to retreat across the Archives floor. Impulsively, he called out, “Basira.”

The footsteps stopped. “What?”

Martin looked in what he hoped was the right direction to look her in the eyes. “Keep her close. You’re her tether, and excuses only carry you so far.”

It was the same thing he’d said to her, once upon a time and simultaneously in a nonexistent future, loitering in the hallway of an abattoir outside an instrument room. She hadn’t wanted to listen then, and if he was honest, he hadn’t really taken his own advice all that well. He could only pray she would listen now, and that she would understand what he was talking about—and what he wasn’t saying. Don’t let your partner turn into a monster because it’s easier than saying stop.

After a moment, Basira said, her voice so soft it almost wasn’t audible, “Right.” With that, evidently, she left the Archives.

Jon pulled Martin around and wrapped him in a tight hug; Martin could feel his face pressing into his shoulder as he hugged him back. He, at least, had understood. They held each other for a moment, both hoping—despite what she’d done to them months ago—that Daisy could still be saved.

There was another rattle as someone poked at the tapes. “Where do we start?” Sasha asked.

“We go home,” Tim said firmly. “It’s Friday, and it’s past quitting time. Let’s just—let’s just go home, take the weekend to regroup, and we can come back and look through these on Monday. Maybe, um, maybe you two can go through and pick a few you think we ought to listen to.”

“Or,” Jon suggested, “we can sort them out. Gertrude labeled some but not others. If I set the blank ones aside, that might be good practice for you to sort out the color muddle. If that’s all right.”

“Either way, Tim’s right,” Past Jon said softly. “It’s late and we’re all tired. Especially…now. Let’s just go home. We’ll see you on Monday.”

Everyone wished one another goodnight, and the team departed, leaving Jon and Martin alone in the Archives. Martin waited a moment, then asked, “Do you want to start looking through them now?”

To Martin’s surprise, Jon hesitated for a minute, then said, “No. I think I want to put these in the Archivist’s office, and then I want to take a walk with my fiancé and maybe go out to dinner. What do you think of that?”

Martin smiled. He could feel himself blushing a little, but he didn’t care. “I think that sounds like an excellent idea.”

#ollie writes fanfic #leaves too high to touch (roots too strong to fall) #tma #the magnus archives #time travel fix it au #jonmartin #gaslighting tw #canon typical stranger content #arguments tw #terrible puns cw

[edgypasta-headcanons]

Villain Action Squad Class S

(Let’s just say this is the secret squad ‘UA’ created for Villain Disasters and they’re the first in line to take care of. Slenderman tweaked this shit up because of getting into UA without arousing suspicion.)

Teachers/Mentor(s)

Dr. Richard H. Smiley

Emitter

Alias

- The Doctor

Quirk

- Science Magik(?)

TBA

Students

Jeff Woods

Emitter

Alias  

- Hodek

Quirk

- Killer Instinct

"Ultimate Killing Machine". Jeff possesses instincts to kill by any means and in the most effective ways possible, use anything at hand to do so and have no mental issues or moral dilemmas either before, during, or after the deed. He is, in short, cold and merciless killer. He can also give off a murderous aura, inducing fear into his opponents.

Benjamin Lawman

Transformer

Alias

- Ben Drowned

Quirk   - Technologic

Ben becomes the embodiment or personification of technology, granting him limitless or near-limitless control overall technology. He can control the flow of intricate machinery, and assemble or disengage their programming at will and operate most technology at distance.

Jack Nicholis 

Mutant-Transformer

Alias 

- Eyeless Jack

Quirk  - Chernobog

He is able to become a demonic creature of unimaginable power. He has innumerable powers that are beyond the comprehension of that of lesser demonic beings. Although it’s rare for him to change into his full-demon form, Jack has the ability to use a good chunk of his abilities with ease without breaking a sweat. 

Tim Wright

Emitter

Alias

- Masky

Quirk

- Thousand-Mile Eyes

Either using himself or with the use of Telesynchronization, he can see a viewing radius of at least fifty meters. It also allows him to also perform accurate calculations, analyze the area at high speeds, and allows for a Soul Perception-like ability to accurately gauge the power of an individual via his soul and to distinguish types of being.

Brian Thomas

Emitter

Alias

 - Hoodie

Quirk

- Guns

Using the metal minerals in his body, he’s able to create any kind of gun and ammunition out of his hands. The more minerals he consumes the more guns and ammunition he can produce

Nina Hopkins

Emitter?

Alias

 - Yandere-Chan

Quirk 

- Chiropteran Blood

Similar to Jeff’s and Stain’s quirk but not quite. Once she gets the smell and/or taste of blood, she’ll go ballistic. Making her into a near-unstoppable killing machine with a deadly blood type running through her veins. Whoever was to ingest her blood, their blood can crystallize and immediately kill them. 

Jane Richardson

Emitter

Alias

- Lady in Black

Quirk 

- Heavenly Garments

Jane as the ability to create either her own or other’s undergarments into deadly weapons. Underwear such as any kind of panties, boxers, or briefs can change into guns, bras change to either war hammers or battle-axes, stockings or knee socks change to bladed weapons, etc.

Jonathan Blake

Mutant

Alias 

- The Puppeteer

Quirk

 - Puppetry

Jonathan has poltergeist-like physiology whereas he can phase through solid surfaces with ease and secrete ectoplasm if given. He is very skilled in handling his strings as a weapon and an overall tool for when needed. They are able to pierce through flesh if needed, but not any other material such as wood, metal, concrete. His strings are fairly strong and will not snap easily. The strings are made from the same ectoplasm as his insides are, therefore he’s able to produce the strings through any other place of his body as well. He’s been seen to produce strings through places like his mouth and nostrils as well, though this surely felt very uncomfortable for him. The strings can reach a length of about 15 meters (50 feet) and hold up to around 200 kg in weight (440 lbs).

Natalie Ouellette

Emitter

Alias 

- Clockwork

Quirk

- Time Loop

She can trap anyone into a reiterating time stream where everything inside the loop is restarted precisely every so often, possibly even backward. She is able to force someone to relive the same minute, hour, day, week, month, year, etc. for as long as she keeps them there. But she’s only able to keep up this illusionary power for the max of 15 minutes to a half-hour before they come back to real-time.

Toby Rogers

Emitter

Alias

 - Ticci Toby

Quirk 

- Vibration Emission

Vibration Emission gives Toby the ability to generate vibrations, or shock waves, which can travel through virtually any medium, most notably he uses this ability to shake things he touches with his hands. It also causes his stuttered speech and body ticks.

Satine Walker

Mutant

Alias

 - Dracul

Quirk

 - Princes of Hell

Satine has the ability to become a demonic entity that has a long-range of capabilities and powers. She can use multiple of these at the same time without causing any damage to herself and uses them to hunt, catch, and/or kill her targets

Darkelle Kimura

Emitter-Mutant

Alias 

- Deimos

Quirk

- Lunar Child

She can create, shape, and manipulate darkness and shadows. By itself, darkness is mostly used to cloud everything into total darkness, but by accessing a dimension of dark energy it can be channeled to a variety of effects, create and dispel shields and areas of total darkness, create constructs and weapons. She also possesses the ability to use dark magic with ease and has an extra mouth on the back of her head that can and will eat anything in sight. 

Misty Mann

Mutant

Alias 

- Dysphoria

Quirk 

- Slenderman Syndrome

She possesses the attributes and ability of the Slenderman.

Seifer Flauros

Mutant

Alias

 - Soul Eater (lmao he didn’t care)

Quirk

 - Darkling

Seifer has a large pair of bat-like wings on his back as a hard staple of his mutation. He has enhanced physiology of a demon and can undergo a full-on transformation with multiple mouths appearing around his body, blacken limbs, claws, sharpen teeth, a pair of horns, and blackened eyes. He’s a Zalgoid, what else to add.

Bill Cipher

Mutant-Transformer?

Alias 

- One-Eyed Demon

Quirk

- Dream Demon

Literally what the name implies with Nigh Omnipotence adding more to his already created Demonic power. One of the strongest students in the class has to hold with all-knowing intellect and witty skill.  

Jason Voorhees (Meyer)

Transformer

Alias

- The Toymaker

Quirk 

- Monster in The Closet

Jason can transform into a state of horror, mostly due to negative influence, in which his darkest intentions, emotion, and powers are fully-fledged. In this form, his powers are greatly enhanced. However, in this form, he is highly aggressive and quick to anger, making him a threat to anyone around him. His red burgundy hair changes to its true color (white), his honey-colored eyes become a growing green color, his arms become rotten and his nails become sharp enough to cut through the skin. When his appearance changes so do his toys, they turn from merely fun playthings to little monsters that can hurt and kill.

Jack Letterman

Emitter

Alias

 - Laughing Jack

Quirk

 - Monochromatic Clown

Laughing Jack is a magical being, with incredible dark magical powers, being able to teleport in an instant in a puff of pitch-black smoke, turn himself invisible, and being able to mutilate the bodies of his victims. Jack is also able to create nightmares and visual hallucinations and can use telekinesis to move objects with his mind, making his victims seem crazy.

Liu Woods

Mutant

Alias 

- Judgement Day

Quirk

 - Undead Voices

Liu possesses the ability to lack physical weaknesses, such as pain, need to rest, vulnerability to environmental effects. He doesn’t feel pain and when attacked, his body can regenerate rather fast. Being clinically dead, his brain and body are immune to most powers that affect living beings. But like his brother, he holds a deadly killer instinct but to the point, it has manifested into a split personality.

Disclaimer: This is an AU we’ve been working on forever and keep putting it on a back burner. Four of these characters are our own original characters along with an extra character we decided to add since we thought was a badass idea. The story may not be posted up for a long while due to it not even close to completion and still in the works of planning. ~ Your Anon Muns

#something is brewing #creepypasta crossover #Crossovers #bnha #story planning #creepypasta #bnhaxcreepypasta

[just-my-fandom]

Brought Back Pt 2 (Billy Hargrove x Elevens Sister! Reader)

Pt 2; A year after the readers disappearance, Joyce finds a book at the library with the readers name as the author, and reunites the reader with her sister and boyfriend who she doesn’t know. The gang finds out that the reader has been living a new life in the city beside Hawkins

Tag list; @truthdaze @bandsandanimefreak @scarletmeii @harduy @kcd15 @superficialfeelings @writer-of-camelot @intheendyouwillalwayskneel @hanoil5 @meaganjm @isistersuck @sweetdayme4427 @noodlenerd101

Comment below if you’d like to be added to the tag list

Long A/N; I am SO sorry I haven’t updated this story. In all honesty I thought no one would like the plot, but reading through the comments I saw a lot of people wanted a part two, maybe three and four. Updating will come slow due to school and life outside of school, but I hope you like this part :)

Previously on Brought Back

“Get her in the van, check for a pulse,”

Dr. Brenner slams the van door shut, looking down at the girl laying in the floor of the van. Burns patterned on her face, blood stained under her nose,

“Alive,” The scientist across from him grunts, hand grabbing your jaw, “Just unconscious. Shouldn’t we take her back to those kids?”

“I lost one of my children,” Brenner looks down at you, “Not loosing another,”

“But sir,” The scientist frowns, “We need both experiments. One won’t help,”

“It’s a good start,” Brenner knocks the seat of the driver, “Drive. Let’s get out of here before those children see us,”

. . .

“I’m heading to the labs today,”

You look up from your book silently, curled against the couch of your two bedroom house,

Dr Brenner hands at the door, lab coat hanging over one arm, “Lock the door when I leave, double check the house for opened windows,”

“Yes, father,” You set your book down to stand, waving to Brenner as you shut the door behind him, quick to secure the knob lock, the slide lock above it, and the big lock above the second,

You move to each window in the living room, tugging for sure of their locks, and when you move to the kitchen, a swift knock hits the front door, your body spinning to stare at the door in confusion,

Had Brenner forgotten something? His keys?

You slowly step up to the door, eye peaking through the peep hole even to you, and you blink at the sight of a woman, with dirty brown hair and an aged look, holding a book tightly in her hand, your book,

“Can I help you?” You ask loudly through the door, watching through the peep hole as she faces the door, almost instantly recognizing your voice,

“Y/N? It’s me, Joyce? I came to talk,”

Joyce? Your brows pinch, fingers holding the top lock, “I don’t know anyone named Joyce,”

Joyce breathes out in disbelief, shaking her head, “Y/N, I’m Joyce, remember? I know your father, Hopper,”

You quickly unlock the door, swinging it open to reveal your figure, your eyes narrowed towards the woman, “Who’s Hopper?” Your eyes scan her form swiftly, “And my father is not Hopper. I live with my real father,”

“Your real father?” Joyce tilts her head, and you nod,

“My father, Dr Brenner. I’m not supposed to be talking to strangers, so please, leave before he gets home,” As you close the door, Joyce catches her hand to the door, stopping it from fully shutting,

“Listen to me,” She pleas, breathless as you crack the door to blink, “Dr Brenner is not your father. You have a sister named Jane but we call her Eleven, your real parents are gone, so you were adopted by a man by Jim Hopper, but after he passed,” She intakes a deep breath, “I was going to take you and Eleven in, but you disappeared the night everything happened,”

“How am I supposed to believe you?” You ask quietly, Joyce frowning through light tears,

“You really don’t remember me?” She asks through a small crack in her voice, and you frown when noticing; she’s severally distressed that you don’t know who she is,

“No, I’m sorry,” You mutter, “Last thing I remember is waking up in the labs,”

“Can I take you somewhere?” Joyce asks quickly, hands up again, “I have people that know you, we can remind you of who you are,”

“But I don’t know you,” You press, irritation in your voice, “Please go away. I’m glad you enjoy my book,”

“Y/N please,” Joyce pleas, and you inhale a deep breath from behind the door, before peeking your head out, nodding,

“Let me grab my jacket,”

“Thank God,” Joyce breathes, hand running through her hair as you move to the couch, lifting your jacket and sliding it on,

“Can I ask where we are going?” You ask quietly, as you move to the front seat of the car,

“There’s a small town just next to here called Hawkins,” Joyce explains, “I think it’d be best to take you to the kids first since you were closer to them,”

“Kids?” You press, and Joyce smiles sadly towards you,

“There’s a group of them, your sister, Eleven, her boyfriend, Mike, Mikes best friends Dustin, Max and Lucas, and my son, Will,” She continues, “Steve is one of your best friends, and Billy,”

“Is my boyfriend?” You question, Joyce smiling and nodding, but she frowns again,

“I don’t really know what to call you two now that you’ve been gone for a year, Max told me Billy hasn’t really been himself after everything with those monsters,” She shivers,

“What monsters?” You tilt your head, and look at the smaller houses that passed by that let you know you were now in Hawkins,

“Right,” Joyce sighs, “I think it’ll be best to explain it once the kids see you again,”

“Why?” You ask, Joyce frowning a third time and stopping her car in front of a small, three bedroom house,

“It’ll all make sense later,” She breathes, smiling, “Come on, everyone’s inside,”

“Shouldn’t I call my father?” You inhale, nervously stepping out of the car, “He’ll be so mad that I left without telling him,”

“Y/N,” Joyce places her hands on top of the car, “Brenner doesn’t care about you. What happened to you, you disappearing and you not remembering? He is the cause of that,”

“I don’t understand,” You whisper, Joyce rounding the car to take your hand,

“Come on,” She murmurs, “Lets get inside,”

When Joyce opens the door to lead you into the living room, your teeth had nibbled at your bottom lip, eyes instantly landing on a group of seven kids, who all turned to look at the Byers mother’s appearance,

“Oh my God,” The red headed girl drops her stack of cards so they flew out in front of her, the boy with black hair beside her gaping at you wordlessly before looking at the other girl across from him, who had only looked up at her friends gasp,

When the kids all stand up and begin shouting questions, Joyce throws up her hands as she steps in front of you, “Take it easy!” She demands, “She doesn’t remember, Brenner did something to make her forget,”

“Brenner?” The male your age, who you guessed was Steve, questions, “You mean the doctor who took El and Y/N to begin with?”

“It’s going to be a lot to explain to all of you,” Joyce calms, “But I think we should do introductions and maybe have Max call Billy,”

. . .

“So I saved everyone?”

You and Eleven sit cross cross in front of each other on the couch, your hands in your lap silently,

“With your powers,” Eleven nods, slowly, “You do know about your powers, right?”

You nod in mock, smiling, “I wish I knew everything Brenner did to us after I woke up in the lab again,” You mutter, “I’m so sorry I disappeared like that El,”

“It wasn’t your fault,” Eleven frowns, but smiles when you pull her forward into a hug,

“Billy’s here,” Max exclaims, sliding up to the door in her socks, “I honestly won’t be surprised if he starts crying like a baby,”

“From what El told me, Billy sounds like an ass,” You stand up, straightening your shirt self consciously,

“I mean, yeah,” Max shrugs, “But he really cared about you, Y/N. Seeing you again will change everything,”

“Let’s hope so,” Eleven takes your hand, when noticing you fidgiting, and Max opens the door to step on the porch, talking swiftly to her step brother,

“Why the hell am I here, Max?” A gruff voice has you looking down at Eleven, and she smiles reassuringly when Max steps back in, her step brother following close behind but stopping when he sees you, his jaw clenching as you release Elevens hand, putting them in front of you,

“Is this a joke?” Billy asks finally, Max pinching her eyebrows as you frown and look down,

“No, it’s not,” Max protests, “Like I told you I’ll explain everything once you saw her,”

“It was my father, Billy,” You speak, so Billy looked from Max to you, “Or the man who pretended to be my father, the man who tested me for my powers,”

“Where’d you go?” He asks, softer, and Max nods to Eleven so they stepped into the back hallway,

“The town over,” You explain, quietly, as he stepped up to you so he was nearly in front of you, “When I woke up I didn’t remember anything. My “father” lied to me and kept me locked in a home, locked doors, locked windows,” You swallow, “I couldn’t even remember you,”

“But do you remember me?” Billy asks, and you can see the pain behind his fiery blue eyes that makes your stomach turn,

“It’s slowly coming back to me,” You sigh, “Eleven had to explain everything with the Mindflayer and what happened to you,”

Billy’s sudden action of cupping your head causes you to inhale, lifting your eyes to his when his lips press hard against yours, and your mind becomes fuzzy when your eyes shut,

“Get away from her, or I swear to God I will fuck you up!”

Your eyes snap open at your distant shout in the sudden memory, your head pulling back to gasp in a deep breath, Billy’s hands now firm on your hips as you raise a hand to your nose, looking down at the red staining your fingers,

“What?” Billy asks, and you notice how he’s calm upon your sudden nose bleed, giving you the note that he’s seen your powers before,

“I saw something,” You exhale, holding a tissue over your nose, “It was us, we were in a mall, I think,” You pause, looking up at Billy a second time,

“I remember,”

#billy hargrove x reader #billy hargrove #billy hargrove imagine #stranger things imagine #stranger things x reader #eleven #eleven x reader #mike wheeler #max hargrove #max mayfield #dustin henderson #steve harrington #lucas sinclair #will byers #joyce byers #joyce byers x reader #joyce byers imagine

[the-quiet-winds]

The Gravity of Tempered Grace (part five)

[part one] - [part two] - [part three] - [part four]

[Part 5: Leave Tonight or Live and Die This Way]

The Life and Times of Jane the Queen, Chapter 12 - The Queen’s Dearest Brothers

“Jane’s brothers, Thomas and Edward, were not subtle in using their sister’s new position as queen to rise through the ranks themselves. Edward, as the Duke of Sommerset, was one of Henry’s most trusted confidants. Thomas became the First Baron Seymour of Sudeley and later married Catherine Parr following Henry’s death.

It could well be argued that every man in Jane’s life - her father, her brothers, and her husband - all simply used her to get what they wanted. Jane’s marriage secured fortune for her aging parents, distinguished titles for her brothers, and, of course, a son who would become king of England. But due to the lack of records from before Jane’s arrival at the court of Queen Catherine, it is unknown how many of her decisions were truly her own, and how many were made for her by the men in her life.”

“He can what?”

Katherine’s face is extremely pale, while the others mostly look a combination of scared and confused. Jane, as expected, doesn’t look fazed.

“He can kill her,” Cathy repeats softly. “He can force her into dangerous situations or to do something stupid-”

“He can crush my heart.”

All eyes in the room fixate on Jane, whose hand has come to rest over her very empty chest as she stares blankly at Anna’s socks.

“He’s telling me right now,” she whispers. “Now… now that everyone knows. He can crush my heart in his hand and kill me. And he isn’t afraid to-”

Her calm monotone is sharply ended by her own piercing squeak. Jane grips at her shirt, gasping for air, almost falling over if Kat and Catherine hadn’t caught her first.

“Leave her alone, dickhead,” Kat hisses, hoping that Henry can somehow hear her through Jane.

Slowly, Jane manages to catch her breath, and genuine fear shines in her otherwise empty eyes as she looks to Cathy for guidance.

“Did he say anything else to you?” Cathy asks gently. “Any idea of what he’s got planned?”

Kat and Catherine help Jane sit on the bed. “He… he said that I’m his one true wife. And that he’ll stop at nothing to have me back.”

“Do you know where he is?” Anne asks.

Jane shakes her head.

“Is he saying anything else to you?”

Jane shakes her head again.

Cathy narrows her eyes slightly. “Did he tell you not to speak?”

This time, Jane nods. Then she winces, hand coming to her chest but receding a moment later.

“Okay, this is what we need to do,” Cathy says. “We all need to keep eyes on Jane. In case Henry shows up or tries to hurt her, we can’t leave her alone. We’ll all take shifts, alright?”

Everyone gives some sort of affirmation, and “Operation Save Jane,” as Kat dubs it, is a go.

Cathy is the first to take Jane-watch, allowing the others to get some much-needed sleep. Gradually, Jane too falls asleep on Cathy’s bed while the bookworm does more research. Of course, there’s very little information about the possession of a heart, but Cathy finds herself reading more about her sister-in-law’s life.

She reads the entirety of “Jane Seymour, The Matron Queen” without much hesitation, and finds herself captivated by the writings of Jane’s life. This book, just as the others about the queens’ lives, focuses primarily on Henry and how Jane entered his life, despite the book supposedly focusing on her.

If they all survive this, perhaps Cathy will just have to rectify that.

She flits a glance over to Jane, who is curled up on her side, sleeping so peacefully one might think her dead.

At that dark thought, Cathy tiptoes across the floor and watches carefully. Okay, good, she’s breathing. 

A few hours later, a still-half-asleep Catherine stumbles into the room, mumbling something about how it’s her turn to watch Jane now, and how Cathy should get some sleep.

“I’m not tired,” Cathy tries to protest. “I can keep watching over her.”

“You need sleep too, love,” Catherine interjects. She looks at her goddaughter, so stubborn and hard-headed, and sighs. “How about I go make us some tea and we can stay up together, alright?”

Cathy seems much more open to that idea, so Catherine tiptoes downstairs into the dark to put a kettle on.

It’s only when she’s alone, in the quiet of the night, that Catherine realizes the gravity of the situation before her. 

There is only three ways this can end: They can either somehow recover Jane’s heart from Henry, they don’t recover the heart and Jane lives out the rest of her days without emotions and being controlled by their vengeful ex-husband, or Jane dies.

A shiver runs down Catherine’s spine at the last option. Jane can’t die. Not when they’ve been given this miraculous second chance. Not when they’ve only just begun to bond.

Not when Jane has barely even experienced life again.

Catherine forces the dark thoughts from her head and brings two cups of tea up to Cathy’s bedroom, where her niece is sitting next to Jane’s sleeping form on the bed.

“Can you believe this is really happening?” Cathy whispers, accepting the mug without even looking at her godmother. “This… this is ridiculous, right?”

“I would say so,” Catherine mumbles. She eases down into the armchair near the bed. “Of all the things I thought I would see in my life, a friend not possessing her heart wasn’t one of them.”

“Well, I didn’t expect to be able to ever walk the Earth again, so the insanity doesn’t stop there.”

Catherine gives half a chuckle and looks to Jane. “How do we do this?”

“All we can focus on now is making sure Henry doesn’t kill her,” Cathy admits quietly. “He could be anywhere in the world right now with her heart. It’s not like we can find him.”

“So what do you suggest we do?”

“Honestly?” Cathy takes a sip of her tea. “We just have to wait. Until he lets slip where he is, until he… I don’t know, shows up here or something. We have to wait for him, but we have to keep Jane safe as well.”

Catherine is silent for a while, then, “this is torture.”

“Agreed.”

“There has to be something-”

“There isn’t,” Cathy sighs. “Not without her heart. And we don’t know where it is.”

They both deflate slightly into their seats, and the lull in activity comes just as Jane’s eyes open suddenly.

Cathy tenses, but doesn’t react at first. Maybe she just woke up.

Jane, without a word, sits up. She doesn’t even flit a glance at either Catherine as she shifts to the edge of the bed and stands. 

Silently, daring not to make the barest hint of a sound, Jane slips out of the room and down the hall.

Cathy and Catherine give her a lead, then follow.

Jane descends the stairs and crosses the living room without disturbing a floorboard or knick knack, headed for the front door.

Her shadows pause at the bottom of the stairs, just out of sight, as Jane unlocks and opens the door.

A tall, large shadow lumbers at the door. Cathy and Catherine are already halfway up the stairs before the shadow even speaks.

But speak the shadow does, a hand gently caressing Jane’s cheek. 

“Hello, love.”

#six the musical #six the musical fanfiction #jane seymour #catherine of aragon #catherine parr #katherine howard #anne boleyn #anne of cleves #julie writes #the gravity of tempered grace

[yourdeepestfathoms]

Cross Poison

(She appears briefly BUT read Anne as Courtney!Anne)

owo what’s this? another gift for @the10amongstthese3s?? yeh. I’ve lost all control hghhhfhghg it’s not even their birthday month yet but 🤟🤟 party hard

me: frantically google searches if luna is in fact moon in spanish (good news gang, it is)

also this is the third fic with a Pokemon move for a title. i am very ashamed of my lack of creativity

Word count: 6311

———————

“Catalina...Catalina...Catalina....”

Her eyelids were glued shut; no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn’t open them. Not that she cared- the lights would be too bright, anyway. She had felt like she was going blind the day before from just her nightlight.

“Oh no. She doesn’t look too good.”

“Stay out in the hall if it bothers you, Jane.”

“Will she be okay?”

“Yeah, I think. It’s just a little bug.”

A soft moan breached her chapped lips. The sound grated against her throat like talons of fire- she needed water so badly.

“Catalina? Can you hear me? It’s Anne.”

There’s a cool touch on her hot forehead. Despite herself, she leaned into it, desperate for the coldness.

“Anne, I don’t think she’s going to be waking up anytime soon. She’s out cold.”

“I felt her move.”

“Still. She’s not going to be performing today. She looks...not good.”

That had to be Kitty. Aragon knew not by the voice, which was muffled and far away, but the choice of words.

“Yeah. We should go get someone to take care of her.” There’s a rustling right beside her ear; acrylic nails tap on a phone screen.

“Who are you texting?”

“Joan.”

There was disbelieving sputtered laughter.

“Joan? Are you serious?”

“Yes! She’s close to Catalina and she has a ton of vacation days saved up. I know she’ll take off if I explain the situation.”

“Yeah, and the minute Aragon sneezes she’ll keel over and die.” Kitty snorted. “You know what’s wrong with her. She can barely talk to people without losing her mind.”

There’s nothing wrong with my girl! Aragon thought fiercely. She tried to get up to rain hellfire on Kitty for saying that, but all of her limbs were heavy and weighed her down like ten ton pieces of lead.

“She just has anxiety.” Anne said dismissively.

“Saying whatever she has is anxiety is an understatement. She worries about EVERYTHING.” Kitty said. “Like— I have anxiety, but I know how to pee in public.”

“And yet you faint at the sight of a hatchet. So don’t even start.”

“It’s—!!”

Anne barked something, but Aragon’s hearing was fading out. She moaned again and then she could feel her head flop to the side on what she’s pretty sure is a pillow. Blackness consumed her—but she doesn’t know the difference from everything else she’s been surrounded by.

—

Freezing water cascaded down Aragon’s face, snaking down her neck and seeping into all of her pores. She jolted awake, breathing harshly, and whipped around to the man trying to comfort her.

She should have known. This was why she always tried to take care of herself—because she KNEW Henry would try and slither back into her life. Long ago, she used to comfort herself with that thought, her husband crawling back to her after realizing all of her replacements were horrible and nobody would ever be able to top her, but now it filled her with nothing but sticky dread that fuels her nausea.

She doesn’t want to feel his hands brushing back her sweaty hair, his lips when he kisses her and tells her how she’s still beautiful, his body when he holds her when chills wrack through her. She wouldn’t let that happen again- not ever. So, even with an illness weighing her down, she gathered herself up to her full size and—

Wait a minute.

Her vision may have been edged with blackness and very blurry, but she knew Henry was not as thin as the person on the floor of her bedroom. And definitely didn’t have blonde hair. In fact, he didn’t even have hair at all.

“Joan?” She said—or tried to. Her voice was so raspy and weak that simply saying a name hurt. The water that had been running down her face cleared her nose for a moment, but her sinuses were already pressing back in. Even in her own ears, she could faintly hear how nasally and wobbly her words were.

“Y-yes?” The girl on the floor responded. “I-I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to frighten you! I-I was just trying to...” She glanced over at the bedside table and Aragon saw a bowl of water and a rag sitting on it.

Oh.

“I see,” Aragon blinked. “That makes more sense than...” She shook her head and pain ricochets through it.

“I’m sorry,” Joan said, looking down at the floor. “I—”

“Hush, love.” Aragon said. “It’s alright.”

She threw her legs over the edge of the bed, and that movement alone jarred her weak body horribly. She took in a shaky breath and put her head in her hands, massaging her pounding temples. She heard Joan scramble to her feet in front of her.

“C-Catalina?” She stammered nervously.

“I’m fine.” Argaon grit, and then her stomach churned audibly. She set a hand over it as Joan grimaced. “Actually- Can you hand me that rubbish bin?” She swallowed thickly. “And then give me some privacy?”

Joan’s eyes widened and she nodded frantically. She gave Aragon the trashcan and then walked out, hearing gagging and coughing a moment later.

—

Nerves were crawling and writhing in the pit of Joan’s gut like snakes. She could almost hear them hissing as they slid past each other, making her stomach roil. But she would not spill her guts, especially with Aragon being sick. She was supposed to be taking care of the queen—she couldn’t act like this!

And yet, her anxiety continued to rise. And it definitely didn’t help that there was flour everywhere.

Joan blamed it on the kitchen. It was, at least in part, responsible, being rather cramped because of the large island. One quick turn and smack! An arm-to-flour-bag collision sent the product flying to the floor, landing in a cloud of white powder.

And it was loud, too, making a rather distinct thump that likely resonated throughout the entire house.

And throughout the entire house meant—

The girl jumped from her position across the kitchen, dropping the measuring cups and spoons she had been carrying to squeak nervously. They clattered to the ground, much to her dismay, but she had to deal with it later. Right now, she had to face the door down the upstairs hallway creaking open.

Joan squeaked again and stumbled up the stairs towards Aragon’s room, tripping over her own feet and a pool of flour in the process. She attempted to urge the disoriented queen back into her room, idly brushing off the coating of flour that covered her entire being.

Aragon’s voice is rough and her accent mixes with the words horribly when she starts asking questions: “What happened? What fell? Are you alright?”

“Nothing! Nothing! It’s fine—everything’s fine so, please, um, go back to your room now! Get more rest, you’re still sick!” Joan yelled in response, voice faltering and increasing in pitch as she went.

“It’s only a slight fever, I’m fine. I don’t understand why you are so—”

Joan, not knowing what else to do, screamed. In surprise, Aragon responded with a sharp yelp. They were probably, most likely, definitely causing a disturbance by now. Joan would write five-page apology notes later.

“What’s wrong? What’s going on?” Aragon asked, frantically now, her voice becoming a hoarse whisper due to illness.

“Um, I, um,” Joan felt her lungs seizing up in the way they usually did when she was about to have a panic attack, but she beat the feeling back. She couldn’t lose herself to her anxiety right now, especially with Aragon in much worse shape. “I-I’m dealing with it, d-don’t worry!”

“But what is it, that’s all I’m asking—”

“It is being dealt with!”

There was a brief pause, leaving the house in silence. Then, Aragon sighed, muttered a soft, resigned, “forget it, whatever it is, I don’t want to know,” and turned around to return to her room. Joan scampered back to the kitchen and braced herself against the sink, struggling to breathe for a moment.

She felt utterly pathetic. How could that simple interaction nearly spiral her into full blown panic? She had to get her head on straight!

After taking a few calming breaths like Aragon had taught her, she stepped back and then began cleaning up. She lost about half of the flour in the fall, much to her dismay, because it was a brand new bag. She made a mental note to pay the queens back for it, then moved on.

Once she finished cleaning up, she set everything she needed neatly on the counter. She glanced several times at the recipe she was going off of as she mixed the specific ingredients together, since she wanted this to be perfect. Aragon must have been feeling miserable- she HAD to make something good for her to hopefully cheer her up.

Several dirty dishes, incorrectly measured ingredients, and one incident where her long hair got caught in the mixer later, she has her treat tucked away in the oven to bake. She smiled proudly to herself, then moved onto cleaning up and making some soup on the stove-

-only to remember that she had no idea how to make soup. Even the recipes she looked up seemed way too complicated for her stupid fish brain. She worried over this for a long time before deciding to just make some porridge. Somehow, that is something she’s able to make.

Her mind whirled as she began taking out the necessary ingredients. The usual voices she heard in her head were, for once, not warbling over her, but rather Aragon.

Hot porridge. I’ll make hot porridge. She’ll like that.

Hot porridge will make her throat worse. It hurts right now. Cold porridge will cool it down and soothe it.

Cold porridge would chill her bones and make her fever worse. Hot porridge is softer on the stomach.

Hot porridge burns tongues.

Cold porridge—

“Aaagh, shut up!” Joan cried miserably, clamping her hands over her ears. It took her a moment to realize what she'd done and she looked around the kitchen bashfully, as if she thought someone had materialized nearby and watched her yell at herself.

“You’re fine, Joan,” She whispered. “You’re okay. You can do this. Just like you used to back then. It’s not that hard.” She paused. “Aaand you’re still talking to yourself. Good job.”

She shook her head and wracked her brain to remember what was needed. Water, milk, rice, seasoning. Easy.

And yet, it still took her three tries to make a simple pot of porridge. First she poured too much seasoning, then she burned herself on the stove and dropped the bowl she was holding, and finally, she somehow managed to turn the food into a gross goop that would only succeed in making Aragon even sicker. After finally getting it right, she sunk to the ground with a woeful noise, wallowing in her own shame.

Pathetic, pathetic, pathetic- Her mind screamed. Can’t even make a simple meal? What an embarrassment.

She whimpered softly, feeling a panic attack rise in her chest, but she stamped it back down. She would not lose herself. She couldn’t.

Think about rain, She thought over and over again. Think about rain, think about rain, think about rain...

There was a crash of thunder- actual thunder. Joan jumped backwards, slamming her body up against the oven and staring with wide eyes as a downpour of rain suddenly came down against the glass back door. She scrambled for her phone, wondering if the queens did something to protect the glass from a storm, and then realized how stupid that was. She put her phone down as a blush blazed over her cheeks.

Stupid, Her thoughts hissed. Can’t you do anything right? Use some common sense.

She tried to think about rain again, but the peaceful drizzle she usually calmed herself with has turned into a raging storm within her head. Lightning slashed the mindscape as thunder rolled through her eardrums. Cracks appeared everywhere, jagged and fang-shaped when they split open like oozing wounds. She wondered if her cranium was being destroyed as the internal storm veered into a baby hurricane.

There’s a loud beep. It lanced through the tsunami and Joan’s eyes snapped open.

She’s on the floor, curled in a fetal position, clutching at her head. She rose slowly, feeling embarrassed.

Pathetic, pathetic, pathetic, pathetic, pathetic- Her mind roared, but she did her best to ignore it as she took the cake out of the oven.

It’s an effort that takes a lot longer than it should, but when she finishes icing the cake, Joan has a brief moment of pride. She was satisfied with the result as she fawned over how pretty it was, even if it was thin and slightly deformed in shape, and the golden-orange frosting was gooey and haphazardly spread across the surface.

Joan cut a generous sized piece for Aragon, grabbed a fork and a plastic bag, and practically bounced up to Aragon’s room, the cake balanced precariously on the plate held behind her back. She was barely able to stop herself from chiming out loud when she saw the queen’s form upon entering.

Aragon was lying on her back, one hand resting over her stomach, the other drooped listlessly at her side. Her eyes were scrunched shut and her mouth was open slightly to breathe- her nose must be too stuffed to get air that way. Beads of sweat clustered together on her forehead. She doesn’t stir when Joan walks in.

“Catalina?” Joan called out softly. She stepped closer. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed vomit in the waste bin. She winced. “Catalina?”

Aragon’s body shuddered in a way that sent jolts of anxiety crackling through Joan’s entire being. She moaned softly, then her eyelids peeled back and she stared blankly up at the ceiling.

“Catalina?” Joan said again, this time much quieter. She edged towards the door slightly, expecting the queen to snap at her for waking her up. But instead, Aragon’s head rolled over the pillow to face her and she smiled weakly.

“Hello, little luna,” She croaked, her voice rough with illness. She sounded worse than she did earlier. “Were you baking?”

Joan blinked. “Ah… You…”

“Smelled it?” Aragon chuckled a little. “Barely,” She snuffled through her stuffy nose then made a very unqueenly face that caused a giggle to bubble up from Joan. “But it’s enough.”

She fell into silence as Joan sat on the edge of the bed, then slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position. She winced as she did so, even letting out a soft gasp of pain, and one of her hands shot to her stomach. Joan nearly dropped the cake reaching for the trashcan, but Aragon stopped her with a dismissive wave of her other hand.

“I’m alright, dear,” She said. “Just some cramps.” She leaned back against the pile of pillows against her headboard, breathing out softly through her mouth.

Joan quickly regained herself from her flash of panic. She pulled the cake out from behind her back and presented it to Aragon, beaming.

“Look! I worked really hard on this! Maybe it’ll cheer you up!” Joan nearly glowed with satisfaction. Aragon gingerly took the plate from her.

“Ah,” Aragon said. “Thank you.” She stared down at the plate as if it were holding a human heart rather than a sweet treat.

Joan continued to give her a look, one of adoration and anticipation, and Aragon has the choice to either swallow down her hopeless devotion to her daughter figure or swallow down the cake in front of her on an upset stomach, risking further nausea...or worse. She cast an uneasy glance to the trash can, but Joan doesn’t notice it through her eyeball-scorchingly bright radiation of bliss and pride.

“I’m sick, you know.” Aragon stated. Joan nodded, about to respond when Aragon continues, “So I can’t… really eat this right now.”

The realization appeared to dawn on Joan rather painfully, and in seconds the girl has apologies spilling from her mouth like a waterfall. Aragon can’t even get a word in edgewise to stop the torrent of despair coming from Joan, who seemed to think that she’s ruined everything— “I’m so sorry, how rude of me, I should’ve known better, oh Catherine, I’m sorry—”

“Joan!”

Joan flinched away, nearly teetering off the bed. Hot shame poured down her throat and set her insides ablaze. At the same time, icy cold dread shoved its way in and the two conflicting emotions clamored for space inside of her until she felt like she was going to be sick.

“Joan.” Aragon said again, clearing her throat. She reached out and gently touched Joan’s cheek; her hand was shaking with exhausted tremors. “Think about rain, baby. You’ve got this.”

Joan closed her eyes. She imagined collapsing all her thoughts about nearly worsening Aragon’s sickness into dozens of raindrops and whisking them into a background storm. It works—for now. She opens her eyes again and Aragon is smiling at her, despite the tiredness and pain very obviously glinting in her eyes.

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, PLEASE just let me sleep, Joan imagined her thoughts crying. You nearly poisoned me with your blasted cake! The least you can do is let me rest!

Joan put that into a raindrop, too, although it was a little harder to shove inside. The tone the internal voice spoke with sounded exactly like Aragon’s- what if she had said that out loud? What if she was upset with Joan? What if she wanted her to leave?

“Raindrops, baby,” Aragon murmured, caressing Joan’s cheek. Her shaking fingers press into the coolness of Joan’s skin, like she was hoping to lower her fever with the touch alone.

Raindrops, Joan repeated in her head, and she shoved the Aragon-mimicking thoughts into one of the shimmering droplets falling from her internal rainstorm.

“Good girl,” Aragon said breathily. Despite having to take a moment to breathe through a wave of dizziness and blink away the black spots that come with it, she’s still able to recognize the way Joan’s face would relax when she successfully blocks out her anxiety. “Good girl...”

Every worried thought suddenly exploded out of their raindrop, splattering icy water throughout Joan’s brain, but she could hardly care because Aragon is tipping over and she has to rush to catch her. Her hands grappling the queen’s forearms seemed to be enough to jar her awake, because her eyes snapped open and she sat up quickly.

“Catherine?” Joan said worriedly. “Are you okay? Can you hear me? Should I call someone? An ambulance?”

Lightning cracked in her internal rainstorm, illuminating a puddle upon the mindscape that she always tried very hard to keep covered. There were three, actually- one wreathed in thorny vines around the edges with brilliant emerald flowers sprouting from the snarls, one with pinkish-green snapdragons lurking around the perimeter, and one that has soft white petals floating upon the surface. As beautiful as they may have been, she dreaded having their contents bubble out of the pools—and that’s exactly what was happening with the third puddle.

Images flashed behind her eyelids- a sickroom, stained sheets, a fretting king and a writhing, gasping queen.

“I’m alright,” Aragon’s voice surfaced through the clamor of noise resonating through her skull. She seemed to be too busy recovering from her near-blackout to notice Joan’s rising anxiety.

“That’s good.” Joan said distantly. The sickroom again, blood oozing down a bedside, half of a placenta sprawled out of a dark red abyss of torn flesh and blood and inflamed vaginal tissue. “I’m...I’m glad.”

She turned stiffly to the edge of the bed, and at first she thought she was moving to vomit in the trash can, but then she reached for the plastic bag she brought in with her.

Oh yeah, She thought. How could I forget? Stupid.

“What’s that?” Aragon asked after clearing her throat again. Her voice was slimy with mucus, but she was still doing her best to hold herself like a regal queen.

“Oh, just some medicine.” Joan pulled out a bottle filled with some kind of dark pink liquid. Aragon squinted at it and curled her nose. “I went shopping before I came over.”

“What is it exactly?” Aragon asked.

“Something that will help you.” Joan informed. “I also got ginger shots, throat coat, Ibuprofen, Motrin, Mucinex-”

“Are you trying to overdose me or something?”

A blush lit up on Joan’s cheeks and Aragon chuckled lightly. She gently touched the girl’s hand; hers is still shaking.

“I’m joking, baby.”

Joan smiled thinly, then unscrewed the lid of the bottle she’s holding and filled the cap up with the thick liquid. She looked at it, smelled it once, and was glad she’s not the one about to drink it.

“That’s probably enough, right?” She looked at the queen.

It was a big lid. A little over the stated amount wouldn’t be that bad, right? The more Aragon takes the better it’ll work! Probably.

“You’re the caretaker.” Aragon said.

Joan inspected the medicine-filled cap for another moment before handing it to Aragon. The queen stared at it like it’s poison. Joan giggled softly.

“Just...take it like a shot!” Joan encouraged her.

“Bold words from someone who has never taken a shot before,” Aragon said, earning a ruffled look from Joan. She flashed a smile at the girl, then punched her nose shut, tipped her head back, and downed the liquid as fast as she could. Almost instantly, she made an ungodly sound similar to that of a cat coughing up a hairball. Joan dissolved into giggles.

“Oh Lord,” Aragon said bitterly. She snatched the water bottle sitting on her nightstand and took a big sip.

“Hang on, there’s more.” Joan said before Aragon could get too comfortable with feeling like she was done.

It probably wasn’t good to take all that medicine on an empty stomach, but Aragon still wasn’t up to eat much, even when Joan told her she also made some porridge. She just shook her head and laid back down after taking several pills and shots of foul-tasting liquids.

Upon peeling herself out of the room, Joan was met with a rush of worry and fear that nearly caused her to spill the trash can she told Aragon she was going to clean out for her. She gripped the edges tightly and trekked into the kitchen, trying not to succumb to her nervousness, but it was so hard with every possible bad situation shoving its way in. Soon, several endings to this sickness were laid out to her- the least alarming one was Aragon recovering, but being deaf for life due to her high fever, but the others were much, much worse: Aragon seizing in the bed, foaming at the mouth; Aragon being dead the next time she checks up on her; Aragon being brain dead because her fever fried her brain; Aragon spewing blood and vomit from her mouth because Joan accidentally overdosed her; the other queens looming over Joan, their faces twisted with hatred and disgust, while Maria and Cathy wail over Aragon’s horribly pale corpse in the background; Joan being shunned and hated and called a killer for the rest of her life.

Then, she blinked and they’re gone, disappearing into the mist of her internal rainstorm and she doesn’t even try to scramble after them. Even if she wanted to, it’s almost impossible for her to pull thoughts back out of the storm once they’ve drifted inside.

She takes to washing the dishes she dirtied from making the porridge, and it took a lot of time because she knew that Jane was sort of a neat freak and would kill her if she left a smudge of rice on one of her pots. Doing the chore eased her mind slightly, got her away from thinking about every worst-case scenario, but she can feel them lurking in the back of her head, waiting.

The storm outside the house hissed. The backyard was turning into a small lake, swelling and churning and eroding the ground into a stew of mud and weeds. Joan walked over to the back door and stared out at the pouring rain. Weather like this reminded her of reincarnation, which was rather strange because she was the only one who didn’t come back when it was raining.

Aragon and Anne had told her about it a few months after everyone was settled. The queens came back first, all on the same day, all during a terrible storm with “thunder so loud it could chip bones”, as Anne had stated, and they all met the same day at the chapel Jane was buried at. Soon after, they got the huge house in ways they still couldn’t really understand, and then, four months later, the ladies in waiting appeared, although they came back in two day intervals. Maria on Monday, Maggie on Wednesday, Bessie on Friday, and then Joan on Sunday. However, they said the storm cleared up the day of Joan’s reincarnation, making them think that nobody else would appear. But that night was one of the brightest they’ve ever seen, and she showed up in their backyard, underneath the glowing moon. Completely naked, too. That part always made Joan very flustered, but she liked the way Anne and Aragon would laugh when she would-

Aragon.

A sudden gush of adrenaline sent Joan careening up the stairs and to Aragon’s bedroom. She nearly kicked the door off its hinges, but she couldn’t care because Aragon-

-was perfectly safe in her bed?

Joan blinked. As much as she loved seeing that the queen was okay, she couldn’t understand the sight. Was she hallucinating? Why did she have such a bad gut feeling all of a sudden?

She waited by the door, thinking that maybe something might happen, but nothing did. Nothing bad, at least. Aragon stirred at one point and sneezed in her sleep, which nearly made Joan fling herself at her and give her CPR (as if that would help even if she WAS dying, anyway—she didn’t know how to give CPR correctly at all).

Her nerves were on fire. Alarm bells were ringing in her ears, screaming, “GO! GO! SHE’S DYING! HURRY! YOU HAVE TO HURRY OR SHE’LL DIE!”

Cleves had once asked her how she managed to be so anxious all the time, and, at the time, she didn’t have an answer. But now she did: she didn’t manage it. Being this nervous was exhausting. And she hated it, but she didn’t know how to turn her brain off or quiet her flurry of worried thoughts that poured through her brain every second of every day.

The pet cat, Tea Cake, strolled by and meowed at Joan. She swore even IT was judging her nervousness. She sighed and finally left the room, despite her brain crying, “NO! NO! GO BACK! SHE’LL DIE!”

She collapsed down onto the couch and put her head in her hands. When she glanced up, she saw that the time displayed on the TV cable box read: 12:04. It was a double show day today, so she probably had another good four or five hours before the queens got back. If she could just keep Aragon alive until they took over, then it wouldn’t be her fault if she died!

She squeezed her temples against her palms. How could she ever think like that? Besides, she would find a way to blame herself, anyway. Just like-

A whimper bubbled to Joan’s lips, which turned into a sob. Suddenly, there’s tears running down her cheeks and she doesn’t really know why, but she does know that she hates them and they make her persistent headache worse.

She cried alone on the couch for a while, at some point flopping over to bury herself against the back cushions in a fetal position. She was planning on just crying herself into a pathetic puddle, but then her phone rang and she had no choice but to pick it up. The caller idea said that it was Jane, and usually her heart would leap in joy to see that her queen was calling her, but, right now, simply seeing her name said spirals of bad, bad things coiling through her brain.

“Hello?” She said in her best not-having-an-anxiety-attack voice.

“Hey,” Jane replied coolly. She sounded nonchalant, but Joan has become good at detecting the annoyance that would edge her voice whenever she talked to her. Even on a phone call, the stinging irritation was bristled around her words like needle-sharp thorns. “I’m just calling to check up on Catalina. How is she?”

Ironically, it was the one afraid of illness doing this. Perhaps it’s to make up for her not being able to physically comfort her fellow queen.

“Okay,” Joan answered. She struggled to keep her voice steady, but she knew it was wobbling treacherously. “She’s- she’s, ah— she’s sleeping. Right now. S-she’s sleeping.”

“I see.” Jane said. Then, she paused. “Are you alright?”

A whirl of new thoughts filled Joan’s head: Jane cares, Jane doesn’t care, Jane is worried about her, Jane is going to tell the others about how pathetic she is and they’ll all laugh at her, Jane knows.

“I-I’m f-ine.” Her voice cracked horribly and fresh tears ran down her cheeks. She has the art of crying silently mastered, but she knows Jane can still hear her sharp breaths and hiccups and whimpers. The fact that the queen isn’t saying anything makes her feel even worse. Scenarios shove their way into her brain faster: Jane putting her on speaker so everyone in the theater could hear her break down, Jane hanging up on her so she doesn’t have to listen to her sniffle and weep like a baby, Jane laughing at her.

“Listen to me,” Jane spoke up. Her voice is firm and hard, but Joan swore she could hear softness seep through the thorns edging her words. “I’m the calmest voice you hear. Use me as your anchor. I’ll keep talking until you calm down.”

Joan was nearly startled into calming down. Was Jane...trying to comfort her?

“Remember that you are safe. Look around you.”

Joan sank to her knees on the hardwood floor. Her chest ached with the weight of her guilt and anguish, which are mixing together awfully inside of her. She whimpered softly.

“You’re okay. We’re okay. Catalina is okay. The cat is okay. Anna’s dogs are, regrettably, okay.”

“Wh-why regrettably?” Joan stammered, sniffling.

“Ah, so you are listening.” Jane said. Joan thinks she may be tipping her head. “Keep listening. I know you can do that, Joan. You’re a very smart girl.”

Jane thinks I’m smart, Joan thought dizzily. And then, those thoughts spiral downwards, That doesn’t make sense. Jane is dead. I know Jane is dead. I saw her— I was— I felt her blood.

Joan closed her eyes and remembered the way she tried to help Jane after she gave birth to Edward. She had tried so hard to stop the bleeding, but there was just too much blood and it wouldn’t stop coming out and the smell was so bad and everything was yelling and Jane wouldn’t stop screaming.

“-my voice.” Jane was saying, a little more frantic. “Don’t let yourself fall in.”

But it was too late. The petal-strewn puddle in Joan’s mindscape frothed over its own edges until every bad thing she tried so desperately to hide within its depths came pouring out: Nurses shoving through the sickroom, midwives clamoring in a panic, blood and birthing fluids and placenta and sweat and tears, a tiny baby soaked in blood- They all flooded her mind with full force.

“Joan? Joan?” Jane called loudly. “Joan, are you there? What’s going on?”

Joan doesn’t answer. She simply dropped her phone, curled into a ball on the floor, and cried.

An unknown amount of time passes. It’s nearly two o’clock when Joan looked up, though. Immediately, a headache crashed into her head like a sledgehammer. Sweat glided down her body, but it felt more like blood to her.

She had to check on Aragon, but she couldn’t bear to see the queen while she was sick. She was too afraid of possibly seeing her as a corpse, so she just half staggered, half crawled to the downstairs bathroom, stripped off her clothing, and stumbled into the shower to scrub off the feeling of blood coating every inch of her skin.

Leaving her to suffer, Her mind hissed. Good job.

———

“Alright, that’s it—”

Aragon had been laying in her bed for what felt like hours, and she couldn’t take it anymore. She threw her legs over the edge and hauled herself out, which nearly landed her face-first on the floor when she put pressure on her numb legs, but she managed to grapple onto the door frame and steady herself. After a moment of breathing, she’s able to start walking.

Joan isn’t anywhere in sight when she finally makes it down the staircase, but she can faintly hear Cleves’ shower running. She chuckled, wondering how her nervous little moon conjured up the courage to use someone else’s bathroom, but was proud of her nonetheless.

She poured herself a bowl of porridge and sat down at the couch to eat. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was until that moment; it was good to eat, especially something so light and easy on her stomach.

Somewhere down the hallway, she hears the shower sputter to a halt. A few minutes later, Joan trudged out, dressed in the same bumblebee T-shirt and sweat pants as she was in earlier. Her hair is still soaked, though, and she had a distant look in her dull grey eyes.

“Hello, little luna,” Aragon cooed over at her. She didn’t know if it was her fever making her delirious or if the girl’s touch starved aura was rubbing off on her or even if it was from her dreams of being with her daughter again, but she’s been itching to hold Joan in her arms. “You took a shower, I see. I’m not THAT contagious, you know.” She winked with a laugh, but Joan doesn’t react. She didn’t even look up at her. Aragon frowned. “Joan?”

Aragon set her bowl of porridge down after one more bite and walked over to where Joan had stopped in the living room. She’s clenching fistfuls of her shirt so tightly her knuckles were turning white. Something was wrong.

“Joan,” Aragon gently touched her shoulder, but even that is enough to make her jolt back. “Hey, sweetie, it’s okay. It’s just me. It’s Catalina.”

Joan looked up at her with wide eyes and there’s something in her gaze that she’s seen in Maria’s before, but much, much worse.

“Joan,” Aragon took her hands. “Think about the rain, baby.”

Joan’s eyes shut tightly and a strangled sob escaped her lips. She shook her head, making a miserable keening noise that sent cracks through Aragon’s heart.

“Think of the mist and wind and distant thunder,” Aragon continued softly, stroking Joan’s knuckles with her thumbs. “The fog and lightning and rainbows.”

“I-I can’t-“ Joan gasped. She shook her head. “I can’t. Y-you— You’re—sick— not okay— just like—”

Suddenly, it dawns on Aragon.

“Oh, Joan,” She murmured. “Oh, baby.” She cupped the girl’s tear stained cheeks. “You’re worried that I may end up like Jane, don’t you?”

With a feeble whimper, Joan nodded and then sobbed again.

“My poor girl,” Aragon guided Joan over to the couch and pulled her into a tight hug. Joan clung to her instantly, burying her face into her chest and clearly not even caring if she may catch whatever the queen has. “You have a lot of pent up anxiety over that, huh?”

Another nod, this one much weaker. Joan’s entire body is now wracked with weeping. Aragon holds her tightly, afraid she may fall apart if she didn’t. She stroked her soaking wet hair and rocked her back and forth.

“It’s going to be okay, honey,” Aragon whispered. “I’m okay, I promise. I’m alright. Nothing is going to happen to me.”

Joan, surprisingly, doesn’t argue against that claim. With a frown, Aragon realized it’s probably because she doesn’t have the energy to.

Joan cried for a long time, and all Aragon could do was hold her and wait until she’s well enough to talk to. However, when the sobs do eventually die down, Joan was already far gone in unconsciousness. She looked peaceful, at least, with her head resting atop Aragon’s chest. The queen closed her own eyes, feeling her illness take control over her once again. She, too, fell asleep, but awoke some time later to someone standing over her. She jumped back, instinctively holding the girl in her arms tighter.

“Sorry,” Jane said. “How are you feeling?”

“A little better,” Aragon answered. She was surprised that Jane was standing so close to her.

Jane nodded. She glanced down at Joan and expression became something that Aragon couldn’t really discern. She pursed her lips.

“Is she okay?” She finally asked quietly.

Aragon blinked, then looked down at Joan. “She...went through some stuff earlier.” She said. “She was pretty freaked out. Had an anxiety attack. She’s been asleep since.”

The flat line set on Jane’s mouth turned into a frown. She extended a hand and gently touched Joan’s head, then pulled back.

“I see.” She whispered. So many emotions were flashing in her eyes. “Well.” She turned away. “Take care of her. Oh— and yourself.”

Aragon watched her walk to the staircase and disappear upstairs, then looked down at Joan in her arms. She pulled the girl closer.

“Will do,” She said, long after Jane was gone.

#im love you duck mama 💕💕 #six the musical #six the musical fanfiction #six the musical fanfic #six fanfic #six fanfiction #catherine of aragon #anne boleyn #jane seymour #joan on the keys #katherine howard #anna of cleves #catherine parr #mamagon #cross poison

[abundantchewtoys]

HS^2 RE: Chapter 13, The Funeral

The Funeral, huh? So, Blaperile thinks it's gonna be Gamzee's, but actually I think Dave's is also likely.

Though I guess they can coincide, since both died on Candy Earth C.

I figure Roxy might play a key part in the proceedings again. But I hope she'd at least be less blasé about everything like she was with Dirk. Jeez, Roxy's win-state really revolves around hosting a funeral every few years, huh?

It started with Frigglish and Rose, 6 months apart. Then fast forward seven years to Dirk, some more years to Dead Jade (and, coincidentally, that was the day she went into labor, right?), and now here we are.

---

> Page 303

Cool. Yeah, that's too fancy a church for it to belong to the rebellion. This page, at least, is about Gamzee's funeral, both image and text.

Nice glass-in-lead windows, I must say.

> Page 304

Lots of trolls. Figures, since he was a figurehead and all.

Blaperile has a good point. There isn't any seggregation between humans and trolls.

... But Jane doesn't really acknowledge the trolls present in her eulogy, it seems. Don't think these trolls are really Human State Citizens, ya know.

Jane's doused in photographer flashes. Such a spectacle she makes of everything. Huh, didn't notice the flowers. I guess it's a nice touch, with trolls giving such importance to blood colour. Guess for Jane it's more about Gamzee personally than acknowledging there's any merit, even in a historical sense, to the hemospectrum, of course.

> Page 305

Can I just say I hope we're not gonna be subjected to all the crap Jane is going to spout?

I hope Dirk and Jake are going to have another heart-to-heart. I won't get my hopes up about Yiffany (I'll- I'll just start referring to her as Fanny, I think) getting a speaking role anytime soon. Although, who knows? She might have a few course words she'd like to share about the whole charade.

Blaperile has a good point, how come Fanny's out in plain sight now? Is Jane propping her up as temporary-heiress, while Tavros is supposedly kidnapped? I mean, when she says "me and my family", you'd kind of think she wants the term to include Fanny, you know?

> Page 306

TMI, Jane. TMI. Jake is right freaking there, too.

Okay, you know. I think Fanny can't hold her tongue for much longer. Magic collar or not.

> Page 307

Hopy shit! Go Jake! Way to show some spine, at last! Well, okay, granted, he got back in Jane's circle specifically to spy, but this situation is really uncalled for.

Here's to hoping Fanny isn't immediately subdued by Jane's personal security. Wreck some shit, girl!

Reeeeeeeeeallly interested in knowing more about her personality. I mean, we've got her squared away as rebel fairly truthfully, I'm sure. But there's a lot of ways for her to behave in that role.

And does she have any powers inherited from the Becquerel side of her genes, I wonder?

> Page 308

Wow, Jane can make anyone sound like a martyr. Really wondering what Fanny's going to do now. She would have been best to do away with the leash right away. I'm afraid she's working on instinct here, though.

> Page 309

Uuuuuh- Is she going to open-? To peak at-?

> Page 310

She is, isn't she? She's going to open the coffin!

Then afterwards, only Harry hasn't manhandled the corpse, out of all Earth C teens. :P

Blaperile posits: what if the coffin's empty? Well, true, Jane could've revived Gamzee, if she felt so inclined. Big IF there, though.

> Page 311

Fanny, dear. What?

She's just making a ruckus for kicks. I don't think she has much of a plan here. This is... quite tame for all I could imagine her doing. Pretty sure her leash is gonna get pulled in quickly, at this rate.

> Page 312

... Eeesh, is she really going to shock her? On live TV? Really, Jane? Have you no shame?

> Page 314

The opposition here, between Jane's words and her actions. It's staggering.

Hey, there are even carapacian mourners in the church? Huh. Didn't think they'd- who am I kidding, they're so easily led astray.

> Page 316

Aww. Okay, so Jake at least was smart enough to lower the voltage a bit on the collar. Still, ugh. Can't believe Jane sunk THIS low.

It seems Jake's conflicted on how to proceed now. Risk his cover, or let an innocent girl be pained much longer? Heh, "Little Red". Cool nickname for a wolf girl.

> Page 317

So! Gamzee was in fact in the coffin!

... Jane, really, you've sunk so low, at this point you don't need a redemption arc, you need a bungee cord.

> Page 318

If that's really Gamzee, and not a puppet placeholder, what's his face look like? Decomposition set in yet? I'm morbidly curious.

> Page 319

Pfffff. Oh bye.

Guess those soccer shoes were due for some good use, right?

> Page 320

Pffffff. That's a surprisingly blasé reaction, it's like a real throwback to Act 1 / Act 6 Act 1.

> Page 321

:/ :/ :/ Jane really doesn't think much of Fanny, and now she's even admitting it on camera!

She's wrong, though. Fanny's parents are worried sick about her, and I'm sure they're trying to mount a rescue operation at the first occasion.

I would LOVE for them to show up here though. Rose and Jade have a lot to account for, but Fanny shouldn't pay their bill in this.

> Page 322

We don't know her well enough, Jake. Who knows what goes on in her head?

Can't blame her for trying to wreck Jane's shit after what she pulled on her, IMO.

> Page 323

Well, okay, Fanny's rounding things up.

She kicked Gamzee's corpse out of the story (we can only hope), so points for that!

And she smacked the remote out of Jane's hands. Now for her parting gift? Give Jane the collar to wear and shock her? Double middle finger adieu? What's it gonna be?

> Page 324

See, here? Jake acknowledging his status as a doormat while admiring his genetic decendant's rebuttal of the role? That's awesome.

> Page 325

Jane's sending in the hounds to capture the... well, the loose hound, I guess. Are the windows gonna get cracked by a SWAT team now?

> Page 326

Oooooh! Nice! It's the cavalry to the rescue!

Cool. Lots more action in this than I'd have figured. It helps that all Strilondes that could have taken the stage were unavailable. (I mean, Brain Ghost Dirk was unavailable in that he's incorporeal and virtually invincible for all but Jake.)

#homestuck #homestuck^2 #reaction #jane lalonde #upd8 #jake english #brain ghost dirk #yiffany lalonde harley #candy earth c

[peace-coast-island]

Diary of a Junebug

Taking in the sights of Golden City

The Golden City sure is bright! Everything about it is so fascinating - the architecture, the roads, the trees - the place doesn't seem real. From traveling via whale taxi to the floating buildings and crystalline gazebos, it's no wonder Golden City is on top of many people's must see places before they die - mine included.

Seeing that Golden City seems to be in a world of its own, I never expected to run across a familiar face there - especially one who's currently in the process of renovating an old building to turn into her very own company. I've heard rumors but to see it actually happen - it seems so unreal.

Who would've thought that Ginko Okabe, director of a big marketing company, would start her own thing? And her business partner happens to be Benji Yoshino, a big hotshot tech genius. They crossed paths when Benji met up with the higher ups at Ginko's old workplace and at the time he happened to be acquainted with Manaka. Throw in Shiran then you've got three unlikely people who somehow ended up being friends with such a high profile figure.

Ginko's been super busy with the move from the metropolitan, strictly business city of Hailstorm Bay to the glowing, almost otherworldly place of Golden City. Now that her apartment's all set, the next step is getting the office building ready. So she and her friends have been busy with that for the past week.

With things moving smoothly, Ginko figured that they could all use a break. After all, it's not easy taking an hour long train to Golden City after a 9 to 5 shift to help clean up an old building as well as move furniture. She didn't expect her former coworkers to step up like that but they wouldn't let her hire a bunch of strangers to put her office together. With her giving them an opportunity to leave their monotonous, unfulfilling, (and sometimes toxic) work environment to be a part of her team, doing the heavy lifting was their way of thanking her.

Before heading out to meet up with Benji and Shiran, Ginko gave us a tour of the office. It's one thing to see snippets of the renovation on social media, it's another to see how much progress has been made in a week. What was once an old, run down building will soon be bustling with activity.

After seeing the office, we headed to the cafe and caught up with Benji and Shiran. They've been dating for a while but it wasn't until recently they were open about it. We all kinda suspected it so it wasn't a surprise when they made it official. First Manaka, now Shiran, what is it about diligent working class accountants that would draw in a wealthy, head in the clouds, tech genius like Benji?

How the former accountant and the eccentric millionaire came to be together is one of those stories where it all came down to chance. Benji first met Manaka through skydiving classes. Then they ran into each other again by chance on the streets around the same time he was installing a new security system for the company. Eventually word got out about their relationship, forcing Manaka to lay low for a while - which is partly why he and Shiran kept things under wraps for a long time. While they got along well, they didn't always meet eye to eye, especially about their futures. Manaka wanted stability while Benji jumped from one thing to another - it wasn't meant to be.

Running into Shiran was also a chance encounter. Shiran was interested in Manaka but the feeling wasn't mutual. The two met in college and ended up working in the same place, but aside from the office, they rarely saw each other outside of that. It took a while but Shiran was able to accept that while he and Manaka grew to become good friends, a romance wasn't in the cards for them.

Shiran and Benji literally bumped into each other on the streets and from there an unlikely friendship came about. Shiran was in awe of Benji at first because of his achievements, then slightly jealous when he found out he was dating Manaka, and then cool with him after the mutual breakup. Ginko was surprised to find them causally hanging out together. Soon the duo became a trio.

Things haven't been the same since Manaka's death. A series of workplace safety violations resulted in an explosion that injured many, even killing a few. Manaka, Shiran, and three other people were trapped in the basement, which was on the verge of collapsing, complicating the rescue. All five were rescued and taken to the hospital, where Manaka later died of her injuries. It happened suddenly, totally unexpected as she was fully conscious, alert, and walking when they found her.

Shiran fell into a deep depression for a while, leading to other problems. Ginko struggled a lot too but did her best to not let that affect her work. She later admitted that trying to do damage control over what happened was the hardest thing she ever did, one that made her completely disillusioned with the company. Benji, Ami and Karrie were grieving as well but kept a brave face in public.

Benji was the one who helped Shiran get back on his feet. He said that his biggest regret was not reaching out to Manaka after the breakup. While they were cool with each other and wanted to stay friends, they didn't do a good job of keeping in contact. Benji was out of town when the explosion happened and flew in as soon as he heard, planning to visit Manaka and Shiran at the hospital the next morning.

Just when all of that was behind them, an investigation of Manaka's death reopened the pain and grief for all of them. Apparently the doctor who treated her is on trial as several of his patients have died due to negligence in the past few years. In other words, the deaths of Manaka and many others could've been easily prevented if they had proper medical care. It's already bad enough that she died in a freak accident that shouldn't have happened, and now we find out that her death could've been avoided all together.

Just thinking about all that - damn. Manaka was sweet and spunky, a bit on the obedient and passive side, but always one to go out and try new things. I never understood why she always got the short end of the stick at work - and she certainly never deserved to have her life cut so short like this. Whenever I think about her, I can't help but wonder why the universe can be so unfair at times.

So with the thing going on with the doctor, people are being questioned and such, like Manaka's parents and Shiran for example. Thankfully Shiran doesn't have to testify or anything but the whole thing brought back painful memories for everyone. Shiran admitted that he's still a bit shaken up but he'll be fine. Benji's been like a rock for him, which is good.

Ginko said that since [redacted], Benji has come down to earth, or so others like to say. He's still got his head in the clouds, though no longer floating aimlessly in the sky - Manaka gave him some much needed perspective. He may be an eccentric billionaire with too much free time on his hands who is constantly daydreaming, but when he wants to make an effort, to make a change, to help a friend, he gives it his all.

It's clear how much he still loves Manaka, how she helped him shape up after spending most of his time doing whatever without much of a care. It's also clear how much he loves Shiran - the dedication it took to get him out of a bad place, he didn't have to put himself out there but he chose to. And from what I heard, it was a rough time all around - blackouts, alcohol, sleepless nights, listlessness, apathy - a continuous downward spiral for Shiran.

Since everyone was so busy with the move, Ginko and the guys didn't really have the chance to really explore Golden City. So I figured that now's a good time since we're all here and can experience the wonders of the city together.

First of all, riding the whale taxis is like floating on a cloud. We can choose to have our taxi act as a tour guide - which we did - and that made things a lot more fun! With public transportation as reliable and entertaining as this, who needs to spend extra money on cars? Our whale taxi was so sweet and informative - I can easily spend a day listening to them ramble on about Golden City - not that we haven't already! Because we enjoyed the tour so much, Benji had us booked with them for tomorrow so we have that to look forward to.

The floating gazebos are a must see in Golden City according to many reviews. Made from the finest environmentally safe materials, these gazebos were all built by hand, created to be enjoyed by all, whether it's to appreciate the architecture, hang out with friends, have some time to yourself or to gaze into the horizon. I think my favorite is the Prosperity Cliff gazebo, which overlooks the ocean, giving you a clear view of the mountains and islands. Prosperity Cliff isn't as busy this time of year because it's kinda chilly so it's nice to have the place to ourselves.

Maybe someday when we make another trip during the fall or spring we can take a trip up to the mountains. We probably won't be able to go far since it's kinda rough up there but I've heard there's some good spots for a picnic, a short hike, and maybe a swim depending on the time of day.

Of course, in between sightseeing and shopping we stopped by to enjoy the local cuisine. There's a lot of Japanese fusion places - including a Japanese-Cambodian one, which is one of Ginko's go-to restaurants for takeout because the sushi is top notch along with the soups - so that was an adventure as well!

Our plan was to get back to the hotel by eleven but of course we got distracted and spent an hour at the park watching the fireworks show. Shiran ended up missing the last train, though it's not a big deal as he usually crashes at Benji's place. By the time Daisy Jane and I got back to the hotel it was past one, which isn't too late by our standards. Good thing we won't be meeting up with the others until eleven tomorrow as that's morning for all of us.

Totally looking forward to more sights and wonders to enjoy tomorrow!

#animal crossing #animal crossing pocket camp #Diary of a Junebug #headcanon ramble

[talkfastromance4]

More-- Chapter 3 (c.h)

Summary: Single dad Calum doesn’t want to leave his son, Kai, while he goes on tour. A nanny accompanies them and Kai isn’t the only one who falls in love with her.

Word Count: 4.8k

Warnings: smut smut smut ahead, only read if 18+

Chapter One || Chapter Two

 Masterlist

____________________________

Calum played phenomenally but he was only half present during the whole show. His fingers played the correct notes and chords, he interacted with the boys and the crowd but his mind was on Holly and Kai. He hadn’t heard anything from her so no news is good news, right?

Finally, when they played the last song he was the first to run off the stage and find his phone. Holly sent him text updates that ended at 10:30 when she said Kai’s fever was gone. He explained to the guys he had to leave and they understood so they let him go.

When Calum arrived in the hotel room, Little Bear was playing on the tv screen and he found Holly and Kai fast asleep on her bed. He was wrapped in his blanket with his thumb in his mouth snuggled into her chest. Calum toed off his shoes and picked Kai up so he can sleep in his crib.

Holly shifts in her sleep then she wakes up to see Calum.

“Oh man, did I fall asleep?” she asks groggily.

“You both did,” he smiles. “Go back to bed, I’ve got him if he wakes up.”

“Kay,” she says thickly.

To Calum’s complete surprise, her arms twisted behind her back and she pulled her bra off through the sleeves of her large sweatshirt. Then she slides off her leggings and slips on some pajama shorts and crawls underneath the covers.

Calum blinks quickly trying to process what he’d just witnessed. She undressed right in front of him. Kai made a noise pulling Calum’s gaze from Holly’s figure under the covers and turned to check his son. He was still sound asleep so Calum changed out of his clothes and put on some joggers and left his shirt off.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

 It’s been a few weeks since Kai’s fever and when Calum witnessed Holly unintentionally undressing in front of him. He’s been trying to push his feelings down and away, he can’t have feelings for his son’s nanny. That’s just not right and would be mixing business with pleasure but when he sees her smile and laugh with Kai, his morals are thrown completely to the wind.

“Okay man,” Michael sighs while they’re out exploring Italy. He wraps his arm around his best friend’s shoulders. “It’s been a few months now since Holly’s been with us and you haven’t asked her out yet.”

 “I changed my mind,” Calum mumbles placing his aviators on his face.

“How can you change your mind? You’ve been pining over her for weeks.”

“It just wouldn’t be a good idea, Mikey,” Calum sighs watching Kai and Holly walking in front of them. Kai has on a small black hat and it makes him look like a little gentleman as he points to different sights in her arms.

“Why not?”

“What if it doesn’t end well? She’s a great nanny to Kai and I don’t want to ruin that.”

“But if it does end well then she could be Kai’s mum for real. I know Jane hurt you bad and your stance on love is just one big ‘fuck it all’ but,” Mikey shakes his head. “I don’t know. You’ve changed since she came into your life.”

Calum, Holly, Michael and Kai ended up getting gelato in a small gelato shop. Kai was sitting in Calum’s lap as he licked off of Calum’s cone and he had strawberry gelato smeared all over his face. Holly thought it was the cutest thing and took out her phone to take photos and videos.

“You’re such a funny little bean,” Holly laughs wiping the frozen treat from Kai’s face.

“Hey Holly, you like The Struts, right?” Michael asks nonchalantly.

“Yeah, they’re a great band,” she nods going to lick her gelato.

“We got free tickets to go to their concert tonight but Crystal and Sierra are flying in and they want to double with me and Luke. Would you want to take the tickets, you and Calum?”

“Ashton doesn’t want to go?” Holly asks and Calum is giving a hard look at Michael knowing exactly what he’s doing.

“He said he wanted to watch superhero movies with Kai tonight,” Michael laughs looking at Kai who had gelato on his face again. “Come on, at least two of us should go, I’ll feel bad if none of us go.”

“Yeah, that sounds fun,” Holly smiles. “I haven’t been to a concert in ages.”

“Not like you’re touring with a band or anything,” Calum snorts taking a lick from his cone. His eyes playful as he looks at Holly.

“I’m watching a little human during said band’s concerts,” she retorts with a smirk and Calum smiles.

“All right, Kai-guy,” Calum says, “I think you’re finished with Daddy’s gelato.” He bounces Kai on his knee.

For the rest of the time there Michael gave himself a pat on the back for setting Calum and Holly up on this date. He can’t wait to tell Crystal about it, she’ll be pleased and will maybe even reward him for his job well done.

 <<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Calum went to Ashton’s room with Kai while Holly was getting ready for the concert. She told him she’d be ready by the time he got back, and Calum’s been around Crystal and Sierra long enough to know that girls don’t typically get ready in fifteen minutes or less.

“Kai-Kai!” Ashton greets Kai with a big smile on his face. He lifts him in his arms when Calum sets him on the floor and tickles his tummy. “You excited for the big date tonight?”

“It’s not a date, Ash,” Calum rolls his eyes setting Kai’s diaper bag on the floor, and places his blanket on the bed.

“You’re going to a concert and dinner, without Kai and none of us. It’s a date, man.”

“If it’s a date then Michael’s the one who planned it. I’ve got his bottle in the bag and some cheerios. His bedtime has been at 8:30ish lately, make sure to change him before then,” Calum tells him.

“Cal, I know what to do with my nephew. He’s in good hands.”

“Thanks. Okay, buddy, Daddy’s got to go now. C’mere and give me a hug.” Calum gives Kai a hug and a kiss on his cheek before handing him back to Ashton.

“Hey Cal,” Ashton calls stopping Calum halfway out the door. “If the date goes well and you and Holly want your room to yourself, I’ve got Kai duty all night.” He casts a wink and Calum just shakes his head before closing the door.

Calum can’t help the thoughts Ashton so generously put into his head of spending the night with Holly. Granted he spent every night with Holly but in different beds and on separate sides of the room, but still. He knocked once on his and Holly’s hotel door before sliding the key card in.

When he opened the door she was standing before him wearing a denim blue button up shirt tucked into white jean shorts. He was met with her perfume and he groaned at the sight of her, this was going to be a long night.

“Wow, you are ready,” he grins.

“Told you I would be,” she smiles stepping out in the hallway next to him, closing the door behind her. “It’s one of my many talents of getting ready in record time.”

“You’ve got other talents?” he quirked an eyebrow looking down at her. “Like what?”

“All in due time, my friend,” she smirks and Calum hears the flirtation in her voice.

The concert is a blast and Holly danced along to every song, even if she didn’t know the lyrics. Calum was impressed with how well she drank her alcohol and loved seeing her have a great time.

“Oh, this is such a good song!” she exclaims when Somebody New begins to play.

“This is for all of you have been heartbroken in the past, if you’ve got someone in your life right now, don’t let them go.”

Calum’s gaze is locked on Holly as he listens to the singer’s words. Holly’s singing along and swaying to the melody with her eyes closed and Calum’s made up his mind. Yes, he’s been hurt in the past, love can be cruel but Holly is anything but. With her eyes closed she looks so tempting just living in the moment.

Calum grabs hold of her hip spinning her to face him, and before she can open her eyes he plants his lips on hers, his palm bracing her lower back. He releases her lips a moment after and looks down at her, waiting for a reaction.

Her mouth is open in surprise and then she wraps her arms around his neck and kisses him again, making sure she kept her drink held up in the air so she wouldn’t spill it. Calum kisses her back eagerly, his arms pulling her close as their lips mold together, he feels her smile against his lips and he uses that opportunity to slip his tongue in her mouth.

They only stop kissing when the song ends and the crowd around them explodes in applause. Their eyes meet with big smiles on their faces, he strokes her cheek and runs his thumb over her bottom lip.

“I’ve wanted to do that for some time,” he admits.

“I’ve been wanting you to do that for some time,” she smiles and Calum feels a warm glow in his stomach at her words.

 <<<<<<<

They share a few more short kisses throughout the night and when they arrive at the hotel at almost one o’clock, she turns to face him when he opens their hotel door for her.

“Are you going to go get Kai?” she asks biting her lip and it makes him want to kiss her again.

“Ash said he’s glad to have him spend the night,” he answers shutting the door with a snap. He watches her kick off her shoes and plop her purse on the table.

“That’s nice of him,” she says pursing her lips.

“Mhm,” he steps closer to her, his gaze never straying from her eyes and her lips. “He’s a swell guy.”

They’re standing extremely close, his breath blows on her face and she lets out a shaky sigh. The alcohol wasn’t as potent and she was nervous being this close to him but something in her made her reach her hand out and skim her fingers over his tattoos that are showing from under his black t-shirt.

“You’re swole,” she bites her lip and he chuckles.

“How’re you so cute?” he holds onto her waist and she shrugs slipping her finger under cuff of his sleeve.

When he can’t stand it anymore, he leans down and presses his lips to hers. She runs her hand up his bicep until she places it on his cheek then threads her fingers through his dark curls. He pulled her closer until their chests are pressed together. Holly stretches up on her toes resulting in Calum’s hands sliding down the curve of her ass and he doesn’t hesitate in squeezing it through her shorts.

A slight moan escapes her and he backs up until the backs of his knees hit the bed. He sits down pulling her onto his lap and his left hand cups her cheek, his tongue swirling around hers. He lowers his hand down her chest and his fingers unbutton her shirt slowly. He untucks it from her shorts then his palms hold onto her stomach, his rings cool against her hot skin.

He drags his lips over her jaw and she lifts her head giving him more access as he sucks on her neck and skims his lips over the swell of her breasts. He opens his eyes for the first time and sighs at the sight before him. She’s wearing a pretty purple bra—now his favorite color—and her chest is heaving rapidly as she slips her arms out of the sleeves, tossing it beside her on the floor.

“I’m sorry, they're not that big,” she mutters and Calum tears his gaze from her chest to her eyes.

“You’ve got nothing to apologize for, darlin’,” he shakes his head while she plays with the curls by his ears. “You’re perfect.”

His hands undo the clasp of her bra, the straps falling effortlessly down her shoulders, and when he tosses the fabric across the room he stands up with her in his arms and turns around so he can toss her on the bed. She squeals at the movement sliding her feet up so her knees are in the air.

“If my shirt’s off, yours needs to be, too,” she breathes.

He grins tugging his shirt up from his neck throwing it behind him before crawling up her body, his knee finding homage between her legs. She smiles at him before they kissed heatedly and her hands roam over his sides and all up on his back. He shivers at her touch and lets out a groan when her nails scratch down his back.

He leaves a trail of hot kisses down her chest, making a pit stop at her breast to kiss her nipple, flicking his tongue and grazing his teeth over her nipple; her fingers pull on his hair as she moans at the sensation.

“Hmm, you like when I bite?” he exhales glancing up at her and she nods, her eyes full of desire. Full of desire for him and he moves to her other breast giving it the same type of treatment, they’re so soft and plush in his mouth, but he wants to explore the rest of her body. He continues his journey down her torso and sucks on her stomach.

“That tickles!” she squeaks sucking in her stomach and they both laugh.

“Sorry,” he chuckles kneeling in front of her. He unsnaps the button on her shorts, pulling the zipper down slowly and pulls them off her body even slower. He wants to relish this moment and tease her along the way as well.

He jerks her towards him by her hips and her hair fans out behind her as she opens herself up to him, her breathing is ragged and Calum’s stomach is a ball of excitement. His pants become too tight so he stands up and disposes of them quickly so he’s just in his boxers.

He takes his place back in between her legs, looking up at her while he kisses down the inside of her thighs, he teases her by pressing a soft kiss above her core as he kisses her other thigh. She lets out a noise of impatience.

“Do you like when I tease you?” he asks nipping at her skin, his finger rubbing her stomach.

“No. I don't like—“

Before she can finish her sentence Calum dives in by sticking his tongue right inside of her, his mouth taking her lips in his. His eyes stay on hers as she gasps at the abruptness of his actions, her back arching immediately and her fingers fist the comforter beneath her. Calum smirks and licks at her center rapidly, darting his tongue in and out.

He removes his right hand from her hip, and does a long swipe of his tongue up her pussy before sliding his finger inside her, curling it when he’s knuckle deep. She gasps and moans, her right hand snatching up his left hand holding it tightly as he pleasures her. Her leg falls down on the bed giving Calum more access and he pumps and curls his finger faster, using his tongue to wiggle on her clit and she’s moaning and writhing under his mouth.

He watches her as her eyes closed, her back arching with a loud moan bursts from her mouth as her body tenses as she orgasms, her mouth open in a perfect little ‘o.’ Calum pulls his finger out slowly and kitten licks her core before sliding back on the bed to hover above her, his boxer covered hard on brushes against where she’s sensitive and her body rolls into him instinctually.

“How was that?” he asks pulling on her bottom lip with his thumb.

“Fucking wonderful,” she sighs dragging his hand back to her mouth. Keeping her eyes on him she takes his middle finger that he used on her and slides it into her mouth.

He stares in amazement as she sucks her taste off his finger, her tongue swirling up and down the length of his finger and he can only imagine what that would feel like around his dick. She moans around his finger and brings her other hand down to his boxers and grabs him. She rubs his dick through the fabric and with her sucking on his thumb and now her hand is slipping into his boxers stroking him gently he could come right there.

He yanked his finger from her mouth so he can crush his lips to hers and she continues to pump him slowly, her thumb making circles over his tip and he rotates his hips with her motion.

“Can I pleasure you now?” she murmurs against his lips.

He blows out a big breath and yanked his boxers down and off his legs, he falls back onto the bed and she kneels next to him. He places his hand on her back, rubbing it up and down as he watches her flip her hair behind her shoulder. She swipes her finger up his shaft, circling her finger around his tip.

“Now who’s teasing?” he grunts pinching her waist.

She flashes him an adorable yet sexy smile leaning up to give him a quick kiss. “That’s my specialty, babe,” she says and flips her hair behind her one more time before pressing a kiss to his head.

Calum bites his lip when her mouth opens around his dick, then her tongue swirls numerous times around his head before she licks from his base to the tip. She does that three more times and spits on his head, he feels it slide down his shaft before she hollows out her mouth and takes him in her mouth.

“Oh,” he breathes at the sensation of her mouth taking him in. He watches her curve her body as she continues to suck him off, her nose tapping his stomach as she moves up and down and then her hand joins her mouth. She spits some more so he’s slick with her spit, and when she moves up so does her hand and she does that movement faster then slow and fast again.

She removes her mouth for a moment but only to spit on his balls, then she takes him in her mouth again and uses her fingers to fondle his balls.

“Shit,” he hisses bucking his hips up in her mouth. He’s never had a girl gives him a blowjob like this before, this was sensational and he loved watching her do it. The faster she worked her mouth, she raised up on her knees and he could see her breasts move with her motions.

The sight alone would make him come in moments, and on any other given day he would have her keep doing what she was doing because it felt so damn good, but he needed to feel her, he needed to be inside her.

He twisted her hair in his fist and pulled her away from him, her mouth coming off his dick with a pop. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips were swollen and she looked so pretty.

“You’re amazing, babe, but I wouldn’t last much longer.”

“That’s okay,” she pants.

“I want to make you come again,” he grins flipping her over onto her back. She adjusts herself so her head is on the pillows and he reaches across the bed to rifle through his wallet trying to find a condom. “Dammit!”

“If you can’t find one,” she says turning his face to hers, his lips plump and so inviting. “I’m on the pill, have been for years.”

His eyes flash at her statement and he tosses his wallet against the wall, making a loud smack. Holly giggles and opens her legs wide for him, he settles in between her, rubbing up and down her entrance. He sticks his tip in and slowly enters her inch by inch until he finally bottoms out and when he does her mouth opens up in pleasure, her nails digging into his biceps.

They both sigh when they’re finally connected and he rocks his hips slowly, his hands on either side of her head so he can use them as leverage. He finds a perfect rhythm because she’s moaning with each thrust he does and he relishes in the feeling of her clenching her walls around him.

“Faster,” she whispers and Calum complies.

He slides his knees wide so he can fuck her faster and harder, their skin slapping against each other, his balls smacking against her. Her moans become more consistent and he attaches his mouth to hers.

“Feels so good,” she pants with each thrust and moans are spilling from her lips. “Mm, right there, Cal, yeah, yeah, yeah!” her voice becomes higher and higher and Calum pounds into her harder and harder. Her arm wraps around his neck as she comes for him again and she kisses him.

They’re both panting and then she sucks on his tongue and Calum is nearing his own orgasm and he pumps into her faster and she’s moaning his name loudly, her walls clenching around him again.

“You feel so good,” he groans slipping his arms behind her back and she presses her body to his until they’re flush.

“Come for me, Cal,” she breathes in his ear, her fingers pulling on his hair. He moves faster at her words and she keeps encouraging him. “Mm, yeah, just like that, come for me, baby.”

His thighs clench and he pulls out just before he releases his load onto her stomach, she kisses his neck whispering sweet praises on his skin as he lets go breathlessly. He collapses onto her, their breathing labored, hearts hammering fast and their bodies are sticky with sweat. Calum lifts his head from her shoulder to look at her, her eyes are wild and electric and she smiles at him with that smile of hers and he kisses her sweetly. He doesn’t rush this kiss, he enjoys it.

“That was . . . wow,” she laughs peeling his dark curls from his forehead.

“Double wow,” he agrees. He lets out a big sigh then clambers off her.

“Where are you going?” she demands.

“Getting a towel,” he chortles flicking on the bathroom light.

Holly collapses in a worn out pile of limbs when he returns. She leans up on her elbows reaching for the towel but he surprises her and wipes up his mess. She didn’t realize how much he released and he gave her half a smile.

“Sorry about that,” he murmurs.

“You’ve got nothing to apologize for, darlin’,” she reiterates his words from before and they both laugh. He tosses the towel in the garbage bin near the dresser and pulls on his boxers, crawling back onto the bed next to her but it’s her turn to slide off the bed.

“Where are you going?” he demands

“Bathroom, it’s a rule of thumb that I always do after sex,” she shrugs but he notices her legs are wobbling slightly. He smiles at that and she closes the bathroom door.

He springs off his bed turning on the bedside light to try and find her a t-shirt of his she can wear and he picks out a black Guns ‘n Roses shirt. Then he pulls open the drawer where she placed her underwear (he accidentally found it while he was looking for his socks) and picked out a cute pair that had little ladybugs on them.

The bathroom door opened and she came out looking radiant, her face has that after-sex glow and it makes Calum happy.

“I uh, thought you’d want clean clothes,” he holds up the shirt and underwear for her.

“Thank you,” she says softly taking them from his hands. She steps into the underwear and pulls the shirt over her head, pulling her blond hair out from the collar.

“Come on,” he takes her hand leading her back to his bed. They crawl under the covers and he flips off the light but he’s not the least bit tired. Holly rolls over resting her head on his chest, his arm wraps around her and he breathes in her hair.

“This is all real, right? This isn’t just a really good dream I’m having?” she asks and Calum can’t help but laugh.

“It’s very real,” he states and tickles her arm.

“So, what do we do now?” she asks slowly.

“Well, we can lay here and talk until we fall asleep. Then in the morning we’ll go get Kai from Ash’s room and the three of us will go get gelato.”

“And act like this didn’t happen?” she asks quietly.

“Of course not! Why would we do that?”

“Because I work for you, I’m your son’s nanny, it’s not ideal and—“

“Holly, let me tell you something,” he interrupts her loudly. “After Jane I thought love was a waste of time, all it caused was heartbreak. I didn’t find a point in trying anymore but then you came into my life, and not just mine, but Kai’s life and it’s like you’re the puzzle piece I didn’t even know I was looking for. I care about you a lot, Holly, and what we just did, I don’t want it to be a one time thing.”

She’s silent for a moment and Calum thinks she’s gone to sleep or thinking about what to say when she sniffles.

“Are you crying?!”

“I’m sorry,” she laughs and sniffles again. “No one’s said anything like that about me before. I feel the same way. I know it’s only been a few months but I’ve got strong feelings for you as well. I’m so comfortable with you, and I love Kai to pieces. I’ve been hurt in the past as well, but I’m glad because it brought me to you.”

Calum reaches for her in the dark and finds her lips with his own. He kisses her tenderly, fingers in her hair and she lays on her back so he can hover over her. With both of their confessions still hanging in the air, the atmosphere changes and the way their bodies are pressed together and with her sucking on his tongue again—he really loved that—their clothes were removed again.

This time, it wasn’t an animalistic need, it was filled with soft touches and a gentle roll of his hips into hers. When she came undone she bit hard into his shoulder to keep from crying out but it didn’t muffle the sound at all. He loved the way she vocalized how he made her feel.

Her moans were music to his ears, and with her palms on his lower back as he thrusted into her, he felt euphoric. Holly’s so different from other women he’s been with, he’s never had sex twice in the same night before but he thinks he’ll be able to do things with Holly he never thought possible before.

When he orgasmed again she kissed his moans as he filled her up. He was so overcome with emotion he forgot to pull out, but he wasn’t worried. If something were to happen, he knew he and Holly would be in it together.

She held his face in her hands and kissed across his forehead, on his eyebrows, his nose and his cheeks before pecking his lips softly.

“I’ve been waiting for you,” she whispers.

“I’ve been waiting for you,” he agrees pulling her into his chest. They lay there for a few moments counting each other’s breaths and then she shifts. “Bathroom?” he asks.

“Bathroom,” she sighs slipping off the bed and heading into the bathroom again. “Where’s my shirt and underwear?” she asks fumbling around in the dark.

“Forget about them, just come back to bed,” he replies.

She falls over him, her naked body making his react to her and he groans at the contact.

“You’re killin’ me, sweetheart,” he sighs.

“Sorry,” she giggles and begins to play with his hair.

“This is probably the only time we’ll be without Kai for the next six months, so I should enjoy this. You and all your naked glory.”

“Me? Have you seen you? You’re the glorious one.” Then she yawns loudly.

“Go to sleep, sweetheart,” he hums.

They fall asleep in each other’s arms, and even in the midst of their sleep when they pull and turn away, a hand is either on her hip or holding his shoulder. It’s the best sleep either of them has had in a long while.

#calum hood #calum 5sos #calum hood 5sos #calum hood imagines #calum hood writings #calum hood smut #calum smut #5sos #ashton irwin #ashton irwin imagines #ashton irwin 5sos #ashton 5sos #luke hemmings #luke 5sos #luke hemmings 5sos #luke hemmings smut #michael clifford #michael clifford 5sos #michael 5sos #michael imagines

[eviesmyspiritanimal]

Glasses Girl

Summary: Audrey has added a new, rather functional article to her wardrobe--- glasses. She’s terrified that everyone is going to think she is a nerd. But with Jay’s help, she becomes confident in her new look and learns that it doesn’t matter what she looks like on the outside. Jaudrey or Jay x Audrey.

  Audrey was sitting at her vanity, looking over some homework that she needed to catch up on. However, at the same time, she was trying out her new pair of shining glasses.

  Not too long ago, Audrey had finally gone to the optometrist after months of blurry vision as a result of mostly Jane’s insistence. Jane was the only one that knew of Audrey’s vision issues, and Audrey aimed on things staying that way. Of course, Audrey only really had issues seeing small print, and just the slightest bits of people’s features were occasionally fuzzy, so it wasn’t truly life-changing vision problems.

  But as a result of her visit to the doctor, she was prescribed glasses so that she could refine these slight imperfections of vision. And as a result of these glasses, Audrey was completely and utterly mortified at the mere idea of being seen in them.

  So Audrey made sure that the only time she ever wore them was in the safety and privacy of her own dorm away from prying eyes and possible hecklers. After all, it didn’t look good for one of the most famous princesses in all of Auradon to be wearing glasses of all things. It made her look like some sort of nerd, and Audrey was not some sort of nerd.

  However, she couldn’t help but admit that she could read much better now, and there wasn’t nearly as much trouble when she examined the fine writing in the captions below photos in her textbook.

  Audrey sighed slightly as she gently flipped a page carefully.

  However, she was soon interrupted from her peaceful alone time by a knock at the door. Audrey read the last of her sentence before getting up from her chair and mindlessly heading over to answer the door.

  Audrey opened it and smiled widely as she realized that it was Jay there, leaning against the doorway casually. He grinned happily at the sight of her, but suddenly looked very shocked and his jaw slackened as he kept looking at her. Audrey furrowed her brow, unsure of what was wrong with him as she reached a hand up to brush her hair out of the way of her face.

  But as she raised her hand before her face and accidentally ran into the frame of her glasses, she immediately realized what Jay was staring at.

  “Oh, no,” she murmured, and Jay suddenly woke up from his stupor, smirking, and she felt her stomach drop to her feet. Jay would probably think that she was ugly or unattractive in these ridiculous glasses, and he’d definitely think that she wasn’t the princess that he had originally started a relationship with.

  “Hey, Foxy. What’s up with the new look?” he casually questioned and she immediately ripped the glasses away from her face in mortification.

  “Nothing! Nothing at all!”

  “I dunno, it kind of looked like you’re wearing glasses now,” he pointed out easily, and she felt that she could nearly die of humiliation as she turned and started into the room swiftly, retreating to her vanity at the speed of light. She could hear his footsteps behind her, and she knew he wouldn’t give up chase that easily.

  “Oh, my gosh, I can’t believe you saw me with these!” Audrey exclaimed in pure embarrassment, hiding her face in her hands as she placed her eyewear on the table. Her face was practically burning right now with the shame of her boyfriend discovering that she wore glasses.

  “Well, I don’t know why that’s a problem. I actually thought you were really cute with them on,” Jay somewhat awkwardly admitted with a smirk and she barely caught sight of his face, and her cheeks grew immediately ten times redder.

  “They’re so nerdy!” Audrey protested, and Jay walked over to her seated form, placing his hands on the table and moving his mouth nearby her ear. Purely against her will, she almost shivered at the ticklish feeling and she felt an irritation rising towards herself for being so easily affected. Of course, it was likely due to the extreme embarrassment she was experiencing.

  “Hey, hey, listen. They’re adorable. Put them back on,” Jay gently commanded, and she shook her head, refusing to do it despite the fact that he didn’t seem as if he thought any less of her now that he knew she was wearing glasses. Jay raised an eyebrow and shrugged, reaching for the eyewear and putting them on his own face.

  “Huh. I don’t know about you, but I think I look hot,” he cockily informed her, and Audrey hesitantly looked at him from between her fingers. Her eyes widened as she caught sight of her large, very much girly spectacles on him. Honestly, at that point she couldn’t decide if he was insanely attractive while wearing them or the biggest dork that she had ever laid eyes on. She finally giggled against her will in a pure expression of her confused feelings.

  “Give those back,” Audrey grinned, extending her arm and trying to take them away from him. Jay laughed at her, moving backwards and using his somewhat greater height to his advantage as he avoided her grasp.

  “No. No, actually I think I’ll keep them. You obviously don’t treat them like the great things that they are,” Jay announced, and Audrey hopped upwards, trying to snag them from his face. He backed up until his knees hit the edge of her bed and Audrey tackled him full force so that they fell in a heap on the mattress, giggling all the way.

   They sat there and laughed for several long moments before they finally sobered just enough so that it was simply small chuckles and giggles here and there.

  Audrey smiled at him somewhat shyly as she actually gazed at him full-on for the first time that day since he first arrived and Jay grinned in response, tucking a strand of brown hair behind her ear as she perched herself upon the boy’s torso. Jay, with one hand on the small of her back, reached for her glasses on his face with his free hand and took them off carefully. He then held them in both hands as he carefully slid them onto her own face.

  Audrey looked away embarrassedly, and Jay carefully took her cheeks in his hands, guiding her so that she would look at him. Jay smiled at her and Audrey returned it ever so slightly.

  He leaned up on his elbow carefully with one side of her face cradled in his grasp, and he leaned in. She closed her eyes as he kissed her nose, her forehead, her cheek, and chin before hovering over her lips.

  “Did you know that you’re the most gorgeous thing I ever laid eyes on?” Jay questioned softly, and Audrey’s eyelids fluttered open so that her gaze met his. Her eyes softened as she looked at his face. The picture she was getting seemed much more crystal clear than it usually was, which would indicate that the glasses were doing their job of magnifying. However, she was still worried about looking like a complete nerd or weirdo in his eyes.

  “Thank you, but let’s just be honest. I look better without the glasses,” Audrey admitted her insecurities as she started to try to remove the glasses. Before she could take them off, he caught her hands in his own.

  “I think you are gorgeous without them, but I meant that you are completely stunning with them, too,” Jay expressed to her, and she ducked her head shyly before bringing her gaze to look back up at him.

  “Really?” she questioned, her voice small as she allowed herself to genuinely hope for the best in this situation, and Jay just eyed her tenderly before nodding to her.

  “Definitely.”

   ………………………………………………………………………………………………………

      The first time Audrey wore them after that in public was with Jay when she was going to study and get books from the library. The only reason she was comfortable with this was because the library was a place where hopefully no one would really see them or recognize them. Audrey honestly was not too scared of the nerds and geeks figuring out about her glasses, but with the way Jay kept joking with her, she could not help but get a little more worried about the entire situation.

  “Hey, you’ve got all the nerds staring,” Jay whispered nearby her ear, and Audrey rolled her eyes, adjusting her glasses a bit as she tried to avoid bringing too much attention to herself.

  “Aren’t you kind of cutting off your nose to spite your face?” Audrey asked, referencing how Jay kept on teasing her about guys liking her when she was already his girlfriend. Jay just shrugged, looking at her mischievously, and she felt her stomach perform that frustrating little flip.

  “No. You think I’m scared of a bunch of nerds taking my girl?” Jay somewhat arrogantly questioned, raising an eyebrow slyly, and she pursed her lips, narrowing her eyes at him as she tried to quell the feelings that glittered inside her as a result of his verbal claiming of her.

  “And how do you know I’m not about to fall head over heels for some geek?” Audrey asked, and Jay just smirked at her confidently in that way that was purposefully geared to make her weak in the knees and that infuriatingly succeeded every single time.

  “Because… I’m pretty sure my rippling pectorals speak for themselves,” Jay playfully flexed his chest muscles, and Audrey rolled her eyes, smacking his chest firmly. However, she did allow her fingers to linger there as she subtly felt the muscle beneath. He just raised an eyebrow at her as he looked at her, and Audrey took her hand away with a stubborn huff.

  “Let’s sit back here. I’ve got to get some reading done for one of my classes,” Audrey informed him, and Jay nodded as they plopped down in opposing chairs at a table in the very back of the library. Unbelievably, Jay had somehow convinced her that all of the nerds were looking, despite what she knew to be the actual truth.

  Audrey withdrew her English textbook and placed it before her so she could flip through the pages.

  She silently worked, and she could practically feel his gaze raking over her as he watched her carefully. She flipped through her book, aiming on studying a bit closer on the intricacies of allegories. After all, that was one of her largest weaknesses. Plus, she was hoping that if she could focus on it well enough, she could perhaps ignore that intense bubbling of her stomach that had recently started as a result of Jay’s staring at her.

  However, after several minutes, it became quite apparent that there was no way she was going to be able to focus. Jay’s gaze hadn’t let up for one moment, so after a few beats, she raised an eyebrow, looking up at him finally as she peered at him over the brim of her glasses.

  “What?” she questioned, and he just smiled at her a bit, showcasing that mostly perfect row of teeth winningly, but an uncharacteristic softness in his eyes as he watched her.

  “Nothing… It’s just that you look like an adorable little scholar. Y’know, like those little owls you see on ads,” Jay told her, and she blushed hotly, shooting him a glare that was severely dulled in effect as a result of her glowing red face.

  “Jay!” Audrey cried in a whisper-yell, her eyes wide as she looked at him, and he smirked in response to her outburst. She just glared in response to him, attempting desperately to regain control of her blushing. Jay studied her for a moment, the softness disappearing from his face in favor of a bit more hungry look.

  “I don’t know, though, you might be like a hot librarian with that look on your face,” Jay informed her, and Audrey immediately knew that there was a whole new round of redness coming her way.

  “Y’know, there’s plenty of books in here, but I’d sure like to check you out,” he flirted, winking, and despite its stupidity and terrible cheesiness, the pick-up line did send electricity coursing through her. Audrey just shook her head at him, completely baffled by his ridiculousness and shamelessness.

  “You are horrific.”

  “Oh, really? Because I’d catalog you under ‘Desirable,’” Jay tried again, grinning widely, and Audrey ran her fingers through her hair as she very unfortunately couldn’t resist laughing along with him.

  “That is awful, Jay,” Audrey informed him shortly, chuckling as she allowed herself to just enjoy his ridiculousness despite her own humiliation as a result of his terrible pick-up lines that were incorrigibly cheesy.

  They laughed for a few moments more before quietening down, and he smiled at her somewhat softly.

  “So, are my suave flirtations and stellar pick-up lines taking your mind off the whole glasses thing?” Jay questioned finally, raising an eyebrow as he sobered significantly. Audrey furrowed her brow as she suddenly realized that all of these embarrassing compliments that he had been giving her were his odd attempt at distracting her.

  All this time, she hadn’t even really thought of the glasses since they sat down. She looked around in surprise, almost as if she were seeing the world around her through a different set of eyes.

  Audrey allowed herself a small giggle as she realized that everything was not at all how she had previously seen it at all. There was absolutely no sign of anyone looking at her strangely, and there were several people passing by and lingering around to look at certain books.

  She slowly looked back at Jay as she eyed him. He just smiled at her easily, and she felt a smile growing on her own countenance.

  Maybe her new glasses weren’t so bad after all.

   ………………………………………………………………………………………………………

      The first time that Audrey wore her glasses in front of her friends was with Jay standing by her side when they had come over to Evie’s place for a movie night.

  She entered Evie’s starter castle nervously, Jay right by her as he guided her in. She had worn them in front of him and she had worn the glasses in public, but never had she worn them in front of her friends. Quite honestly, it was a frightening experience, and she really wasn’t sure if she was ready. However, with Jay’s comforting words perpetually whispered in her ear about how she was definitely going to be fine and no one was going to think she looked weird or nerdy or anything of the sort, she found enough confidence to walk into Evie’s living room with her head held at least a little high.

  There in the house were Ben, Evie, Mal, Carlos, and Jane. Mal was seated between Evie and Ben, and Jane and Carlos were on a couch, and there was an empty space waiting for Jay and Audrey. As soon as she entered the room, everyone’s eyes were on her.

  After only a moment of staring, Evie hopped to her feet, pulling Mal up with her as she rushed over to meet Audrey with that Evie-esque giant grin.

  “Audrey! I’m so glad you came! Wow! And I love your glasses! They look so smart, and really work on you!” Evie immediately complimented, gushing over the sight of Audrey’s glasses, and Audrey flushed a bit at the praise, but nevertheless puffed up a bit as she glanced at Jay. Jay just grinned in response as he squeezed her waist slightly, silently rubbing in that he had been right the entire time.

  “Yeah, Thorn. They’re pretty nice. Be careful, though. I don’t want you rubbing off all that geniusy stuff on me. I have to be the cool one amongst all you smart people,” Mal pointed out with a joking smirk as she nudged Evie’s side, obviously jabbing a bit at the bluenette. Evie just rolled her eyes good-naturedly in response to the faerie, and affectionately threw an arm around Mal’s shoulders. Audrey laughed a bit, knowing that Mal meant no ill will, and the purple-haired girl winked at her playfully as she grinned at the pink princess.

  “Nice, Audrey!” Carlos offered a thumbs-up with a toothy grin and Jane smiled widely at her, nodding with enthusiasm, and Audrey felt a bit more self-assurance filling her form as Mal and Evie returned to their seats. Jay and Audrey then sat down in their proper place, and Ben looked at her admiringly.

  “They look great. I’m glad you finally broke down and went to the optometrist,” Ben pointed out, and Audrey was immediately brought back to the days that Ben had been not only her betrothed, but her best friend that knew everything about her. He obviously had picked up on that part of her as well.

  “Thanks, guys,” Audrey expressed, and they all smiled in various expressions of acceptance and happiness as Evie reached for the remote to turn on the movie.

  Audrey snuggled into Jay’s chest with satisfaction as she took in the movie that was just coming on the screen. It was in surprising clarity, and she knew she had her glasses to thank for the new view on things.

  “Told you it’d be fine,” Jay’s voice whispered softly in her ear, and she couldn’t help but grin as she turned to look at him, her face very close to his own as she pressed her nose against his.

  “Thank you,” she expressed, looking into his eyes, and he smiled at her, his lips grazing her own.

  “Anything for my princess.”

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