#lyra is the one who gets into the tower first and she helps a lot of innocent people get out including kris's mom | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

foxys-fantasy-tales · 3 months

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hi hi! what can you share with someone who's new to your blog?

This is a VERY wide net, but I'll do my best to be thorough yet succinct as possible. -Deep Breath- I am in my 30's and self published my debut book just over two years ago. Arigale: Spite in the Spirit, and the rest of the upcoming series I'm working on, is very dear to me as these characters have followed me since college for the most part. I also have another four projects brewing with some closer to completion than others. The second of the Arigale series and the first Made to Taste book should be out this year after having to have been delayed throughout last year due to my chronic health issues. As for what I post, it's mostly about my WIPs listed above and re-blogs for other writers in the community, though I do also post about some of my interests like anime, DnD, cosplay, and gaming less frequently. I just like my page feeling personable and relaxed if I can help it. Links section! I have my own website and (usually forgotten) newsletter you can get to at ArigaleFantasy.com. Here you can find a lot of info about the Arigale series in particular, though when other WIPs get closer to release I will be putting a section for each of those up as well. You can get character art and bios, book summaries and links to purchase, and some free short stories. I also had the first five chapters of Arigale right here on Tumblr, but since the recent link debacle with this site they aren't showing. Sad. If you want any sent later just let me know and that goes to anybody who sees this really.

There is also a trailer!

Made to Taste will be getting a trailer at some point too, though it probably won't have so much nice art since my artist is having trouble with her health and a deep backlog of art. I'll likely find a way to manage something still on Canva I hope. WIP Summaries Section! Arigale: Spite in the Spirit Judith and Chit are called to the lonely tower outside their city with little explanation. The one who summoned them is an old, elven wizard named Maleth, who will send them on a quest to lower their floating city of Arigale to where it once resided. Maleth is intrigued by Judith’s strange form of necromantic magic, yet he is also certain of the anxious young man in training to be a spearman and scholar.

Judith, a bubbly yet mysterious young woman, is eager to accept. Chit remains withdrawn and cautious, a remnant of being raised by the Order that presides over their land. Soon, both discover their meeting with the wizard carried dire consequences. Can they accomplish what has been asked of them and save Arigale by exploring the land below, no matter the lengths they must go to? Arigale: Bond in the Blood (2024) Judith and Chit's journey across the seas to Galavarn was not as smooth as they had hoped for. The standard of living here is much different than what they encountered on the mainland, and the newfound bond between them will be tested. Enigmas run rampant here, along with a woman from Maleth’s past who claims to hold the key to defeating them for good. Unfortunately, this woman has an unruly and strangely apathetic nature to her, along with a profound hatred toward their distant companion on Arigale.

Meanwhile, back on the mainland, those left behind must bear their own struggles as a stranger appears and insists on taking one of their number with him. This man with red, sunken eyes bears a sharp grudge against Stemoss and worse obligations to a certain deity.

Secrets of the past will come to light on this desolate isle, and the friends left behind will struggle to not become a cog in a plan devised long before they were even born. Made to Taste (2024) When Lyra Morley accepted a rough and tumble new hire from her bar, she didn't think he would end up her new roommate in a week. Noel Akatash brings his own debts, and the people holding the accounts aren't to be trifled with. Magical home invasions aside, Lyra is more worried about her business serving the city nightlife any food she can handle all made to order.

Cooking with a halfbreed's sense of smell comes with its perks, and one of them is that she can hide her skills in the kitchen so no one is any wiser about her true nature. The night-only diner called Made to Taste is meant to be a haven for those the city would rather keep buried. Lyra, the pacifist and abstinent dhampir, would fight to keep it safe. Good thing Noel knows a thing or two about being scrappy. Dream Escape (2025?) Emma Reed, 26, has a Master of the Arts and no place to put it but in her desk drawer. Once proud of her accomplishment, the lights quickly dimmed when she ended up living back in her old childhood bedroom at her parents place and flat broke. Helping Adrien with graphics for their streaming or Sarah with banners for her pet business is all well and good, but it's not at all how she imagined scrapping by. When her newest piece is rejected from the gallery she had finally convinced to give her a chance, Emma hits a downward spiral.

When she awakens, she finds herself in a strange new world with a strange man hovering around her. He calls himself Jasper, a dream painter, and quickly proves his prowess at sculpting others' dreams. Emma was in his care, but though he's petitioned her to wake up, she can't. Neither knows how she ended up in this place, but surrounded by the dreams of others quite literally brought to life around her, Emma makes the decision to stay.

Jasper won't let her. For one, if she stays there is no telling how badly that could go for her, or for his hopes of a promotion. Emma goes along with his plan to cart her across this new place, more as a sightseeing tour than the arduous task he finds it to be. Along the way, a bit of the light comes back into her eyes, and he can't help but remember how bright they both used to shine. Dulled and muddied palettes that they both became, can they start over? Bloodlines (2025?) Blood was her first memory. Not many can recall birth, but Gwyar is a special case. Though she looks like any old elf and had once been instructed to act as such, in her heart she knows that isn't true. Elves aren't born fully formed. Elves don't have memories spanning hundreds of lifetimes or more. Elves surely don't have her terrible taste in company. Until one does. A half-elf, half- orc bard shows up in town going by a name she would choke trying to pronounce. After he follows her and she threatens him and forces a blood oath of silence about her little vigilante hobby, or perhaps because of it, he sticks to her like glue. A vicious songstress with an even more intimidating old tree in her backyard meets a half-blood who loves sweets and suppresses his own inner rage. Together perhaps they can take on the mysteries in her heritage, whether Gwyar wants to or not.

Otherly (Future Trilogy only in planning stages) Daphne Bennet has been waiting her whole twenty-two years for someone to notice the strange events that follow her must be more than just her imagination. She’s never caught a cold, can follow the wind to find lost friends, and the one time she was in a photograph only her area of the picture bore smudges in the background. Believing she may be haunted afterwards, her parents take her to the witch at the edge of their town, only to discover their daughter is not their own.

No, Daphne is actually a fae. Shocking revelations of child exchanges aside, now Daphne is enlisted at once to upend her life and attend a prestigious magic school to learn to control her burgeoning powers before they control her. Upon initiation day, Daphne is given a bitter drought with all the new students, which will prevent any of them from wandering off school grounds. Everyone is also given a diary to record their thoughts and experiences as a daily exercise, which will magically respond to provide advice and companionship. However, Daphne’s diary seems to be more on the condescending side. As she reluctantly writes, the diary begins to sound as scared as she feels. Every teacher looks less than enthused to be there. Strict rules for curfew, magic containment, and other safety precautions often hinder learning. When her snooping leads to a thinly veiled threat from staff, Daphne resolves to uncover the school’s mysteries within the pages of her diary. Only to watch the words “I’ll help” appear.

All in all, I have a lot going on and need to be more frequent posting on here and getting the word out. I like ask and tag games, but sometimes it can take me a bit to get to them. I hope all this helps and let me know if I fudged it or if you have any other questions! <3

#thanks for the ask!#indie author #introduction #writeblr

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mountmortar · 2 years

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Favorite johto headcanons?

OH buddy i have. A Lot. so many. here are Some of them stuck under a read more because i wrote a paragraph for each of them oops

when looking at like. the games as a whole. since johto is in the unique position of introducing a new protagonist with each set of games i like to think that each new protag introduced Are the protags for their specific set of games. like ethan is the protag of gold/silver, kris is the protag of crystal, lyra is the protag of hgss, yknow. it seems to make sense in my brain. (since ethan got remade in hgss i like to think of a happy medium between the two where both lyra and ethan go for the championship. like a friendly rival sort of thing. hgss is already so different from gsc anyway so why not lmao)

this is an observation made by just looking at all their in-game sprites but lyra's the only one out of all of them that actually looks friendly. like i think she would be the only one who wouldn't push you down and call you a fucking loser. she looks like she gives good hugs and would also be the only one allowed in the daycare because she can actually handle baby pokémon

this one is not an observation it's an actual headcanon but i feel like ethan has a strong sense of duty. like idk if i'm getting the vibe from his stone-cold serious in-game sprite faces or what but he just strikes me as the type to have something like that. i feel like he's just a chill fun guy in general but once you give him a job to do he literally will not quit until the job is done yknow

kris grows up and retires the championship to be johto's battle tower boss. because it's the only battle tower in the games that doesn't have an actual leader and it was introduced in crystal so it's like FATE yknow. as a side note i think it was so goddamn unfair that hgss included aspects of crystal but literally removed JOHTO'S OWN BATTLE TOWER (the first fucking battle tower in the GAMES) to put in. SINNOH'S FUCKING BATTLE FRONTIER. that was so fucking lazy goddamn

i can see silver sticking with his wandering lifestyle when he gets older but i can also see him (maybe) taking up the mahogany gym after pryce eventually retires. maybe lance offered him the position maybe he applied himself. but i think whether he does or not he would struggle a little with the decision because yknow. mr shitty dad giovanni was a gym leader too.

since the pokéathlon was introduced in hgss i like to think of lyra as growing up to be a star pokéathlete. because i think it'd be fun and also because she seems like she has a lot of energy so it'd be good for her. kids come up to her all the time asking for autographs and she's too nice to say no so her hand always hurts by the end of the day sdkdskjfkdjn

honestly who the fuck even knows what ethan grows up to do. i think he'd take up an offer of researching pokémon in the wild for professor elm sometimes just to have the excuse to wander around in the woods with a bunch of pokémon for a while. is he scientific? no, but he's good with pokémon and honestly if he applies himself he's really good at noticing little details about them that others might not. he also pissed off a bunch of donphan one time and they chased him all the way down mount silver but that's beside the point

since kris grew up by herself with no friends i think she'd have a rough-around-the-edges sort of feel to her. in that she's used to doing most things by herself so she's not very good at accepting help from others and can come off as rude or overly blunt sometimes when she declines offers for said help. but i think she'd appreciate the company. just not the help! and along those same lines just based on her in-game flavor text i feel like she's constantly desperate to get out of her house because it feels...sort of empty there. like she cheers up a bit around her mom but both her room and her flavor text in her room seem so desolate and she's so so much more talkative when she's traveling around and it's always been interesting to me. lonely kid syndrome to the max

this is a surprise to no one but since he's homeless and initially grew up surrounded by team rocket members i think silver knows. things. that other kids his age wouldn't necessarily know. like how to pick locks (learned off of rocket grunts) or how to track bug-type pokémon to find berry plants for food (learned from being homeless. he's a clever kid!)

#some of these are subject to change at any time because my mind. like water. nothing sticks one way for very long #ANYWAY! here you go :>#pokémon #asks

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bwbatta · 3 years

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four - believable

Abstract: Draco and you are just friends so doing him a favour and pretending to be his girlfriend wouldn’t effect your friendship right?

Pairing: Draco Malfoy x reader

Warnings: this is super fluffy beware

Word count: 3944

A/N: well, I’m back and BOY do I have a good one for you! Christmasy vibes are at 100% as I’m struggling to believe Christmas has actually been and gone, hopefully this will fulfil your Christmas Draco cravings!

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist | Part 3

If you thought people gossiped too much about the rumour of Draco and you being in a relationship before it was even confirmed, the gossip that was instigated from your kiss in the middle of the Great Hall was on another level.

No one said it to your face but everyone thought the chemistry between the two of you surely couldn’t have been faked.

Little did they know though, right?!

Whispers died down after a couple weeks of seeing the two of you walk around holding hands or with Draco’s arm over your shoulder pulling you close in his grip.

In fact the two of you touching in some way became such a constant that it almost felt odd when his hand wasn’t resting on your leg while you were together.

The one thing that wasn’t so weird to come from the game you two had going on, was how Pansy had dialled down her desperate attempts to seduce the blonde Malfoy heir.

Sure she still tried when you weren’t around, but it was a lot less than before and all her attempts were rebuffed and ignored by Draco.

After about a month, her attempts had dwindled and come to a halt.

Not that the two of you noticed that much.

You both had to admit, you enjoyed how things were with each other right now, not that you’d tell the other.

“Hey Sweetheart”

Broken out of your thoughts you looked up to see the familiar blonde approaching you with a grin on his face.

The two of you saw each other earlier that day for breakfast and then later for Potions, but since you both chose different courses, you didn’t have the time to cross paths again until later that evening.

You had been flicking through an astronomy textbook, attempting to finally finish your essay in the Library. Christmas was fast approaching which meant so were final deadlines for the term. Mostly you were fine with the workload you had, thanks to a specific muggleborn Gryffindor who had kept you on track, yet astronomy was kicking your arse.

As hard as you tried, you couldn’t tell your constellations apart from your galaxies.

“Hi” you sighed in reply causing the boy to frown

“That doesn’t sound very happy”

“That’s because this Astronomy essay is making me want to knock myself out with a telescope” you rested your head on your arms dejectedly. “It would be less painful.”

Draco didn’t stop the snort escaping his lips as he rolled his eyes at your dramatics and grabbed your excuse of an essay. With a snicker he shot you an amused look at the last line you’d written on the parchment, aka when you’d really given up all hope.

“’The Sirius constellation looks like a dog but you can’t really tell which breed’?! You’re honestly going to give this in?!” he laughed

“You can’t tell though!”

“Well first, Sirius is a star not a constellation and second the constellation it’s in is obviously a terrier.”

“How helpful”

His grey eyes shot you an amused look before gathering up your books and papers and put them away in your bag. Grabbing your hand he pulled you up and out of the Library which you groaned at, complaining you needed to finish your essay.

“I know” he just responded, pulling you close to him by your hands before detaching them and dropping his arm around your shoulder, pressing a kiss to your forehead in the process as he saw a gaggle of Ravenclaws pass you on their way to the Library. “Let’s grab some dinner and then I’ll help you with your essay.”

The kitchens weren’t as busy as usual as dinner was already happening, but still busy enough to have three house elves approach the two of you asking what they could get you.

“Two plates of roast beef, one with extra roast potatoes, the other with extra yorkshire puddings.”

Immediately your stomach growled at the thought of the food to your embarrassment. You really hadn’t realised how hungry you’d gotten.

Almost in no time at all, two steaming hot plates of food were given to you and the two of you made your way to the astronomy tower, taking a seat on the floor so you could take in the view of the setting sun.

“Why are we here? I thought we’d go back to the Library or common room to finish the essay?”

“How else am I gonna teach you the constellations if you can’t see them?!”

You were taken aback a little.

“You’re teaching me by pointing them out? How do you know astronomy?”

“The entirety of my family are named after stars and constellations on my mother’s side. It was something I just knew growing up because she taught me from when I was young.”

“So there’s a star called Draco?”

“A constellation actually” he mused, “it’s suppose to look like a dragon.”

“Suppose to?”

“Looks more like a snake if I’m honest”

The subject changed over dinner to other things you’d each thought of or heard throughout the day, when you hadn’t seen each other. Apparently the head boy and head girl had been caught by McGonagall in a broom closet getting frisky.

There had also been a fight which had broken out in the Herbology greenhouses which resulted in a mandrake pot being shattered and everyone fainting because of the screams from the young plant.

The real highlight of the day however, was the rumour of the Ancient Runes professor showing an interest in one of the sixth year Hufflepuffs.

“Contrary to popular belief, those Hufflepuffs aren’t as innocent as everyone might be led to believe” Draco snickered as you slapped his arm jokingly.

“I can’t believe a professor here would do that thought!”

“We’ve had worse teachers, lets be honest” he laughed. “Lets recall our last five years shall we?!”

“First one was killed by Harry after having You-Know-Who on the back of his head, the second was a complete moron and obliviated himself- one was a werewolf! Then lets not forget the disguised death eater and then finally this year we’ve been delighted to have the pink toad as a teacher.”

“I feel like we’ve really lucked out if I’m honest” Draco snorted as you snickered at the humoured sarcasm you shared.

A cold breeze shifted through the open tower when the sun finally set, causing you to shiver involuntarily. Deciding to only wear a thin jumper, forgoing your robes whilst you studied earlier may not have been the smartest idea once the two of you decided to eat at that destination.

Draco noticed and immediately leaned back against the wall, holding his arms out to you.

“Come here”

With a shuffle, you were under his arm, pressed against him as you settled into his side, his body heat being a welcoming factor.

“Merlin, you’re freezing” he frowned pulling you closer before conjuring up an emerald green blanket.

“Winter doesn’t really agree with me,” you joked “now tell me about these bloody constellations.”

“Well you’ve got the northern constellations and the southern ones. The northern include some such as Andromeda, Cassiopeia, Lyra and Pegasus. The southern have ones like Ara, Orion, and Canis’ Major and Minor.”

“Which one is Draco in?”

“Northern” he grinned down at you as you reciprocated his smile. “You then also have the zodiac constellations which are the 12 most commonly known ones.”

“Like Sagittarius, Aquarius and all that?”

“Yep. Within all those constellations, you’ve then got your stars.”

The blonde boy explained the basics of the stars to you almost effortlessly as your gaze flicked back and forth from him to the sky, when he pointed out which section he was talking about.

He talked non stop about the stars and you couldn’t help but admire the Slytherin as he spoke of the subject. Draco wasn’t arrogantly top of the class like Hermione was, but he was in no way lacking in knowledge when it came to subjects he knew about like it was second nature.

Time passed you both by like the cool breeze that surrounded you, and before you knew it, hours had passed just being in each others company as he easily gave you enough clarity to finish off your essay, without even having to resort to drastic measures.

You also learnt so much more than any astronomy professor had taught you in all your years at Hogwarts.

Maybe that was just because they weren’t as captivating as the blonde beside you.

You wouldn’t say it out loud, but you knew exactly what your favourite constellation was after that evening, and it just so happened to look like a dragon.

Christmas drew closer and Draco was adamant on sticking to his side of the deal, so with a sigh he set off to Hogsmeade in search of the extensive list of Christmas gifts he had promised to get you.

He had to appear like the perfect boyfriend after all.

Something was nagging at him though and it was constantly circling his mind as he trudged down in the frost to the village.

It had been that evening when the two of you were in the astronomy tower and he was teaching you about the stars, when it had happened.

In the midst of his talking, he pointed out the Orion constellation before glancing down at you and pausing a second to catch his breath, not because he was chatting too much, but because in the vivid light of the moon, you were ethereal.

He had whole heartedly planned to carry on talking, but the sight of you, curled up against him, with the moonlight highlighting your features, his breath was stolen from him.

Almost in a trance he brushed the back of his fingers against your cheekbone causing you to snap your gaze to him, eyes wide at the delicate gesture.

Your wide eyes shocked him out of his state and immediately he paused awkwardly, racking his brain for some kind of excuse.

“Um... eyelash” he murmured, grey eyes not breaking from your own.

“...thanks.”

His mind was screaming at him to just carry on talking, yet no words came out of his mouth.

Instead, almost like his body had a mind of it’s own, his fingers continued to move to brush away the lock of hair which had fallen out of it’s place.

Finally gaining control of his actions again, he dropped his hand and pulled you closer to him, effectively breaking your line of sight. Draco began to talk about Orion again but his mind wasn’t 100% paying attention to the facts that came out his mouth.

What the hell was that?

Shaking those questions from his head, he pressed his lips to your temple and continued his rambling about stars.

It had been quick, fleeting, but Draco hadn’t missed it and he really hoped you had. The affection which was suppose to be scripted for everyone else’s belief had reared it’s head like it was second nature to the pair.

You hadn’t said anything or brought it up so Draco definitely wasn’t going to.

He agreed with himself it was probably best left unspoken about. It was a slip up, something which felt right to do at the time but it wouldn’t happen again.

Attempting to convince himself, he muttered about how you probably didn’t even notice. It was nothing.

After all, whatever was happening affectionately between the two of you wasn’t real.

In short, you’d noticed.

Draco showing you affection was nothing new, yet Draco showing it when no one else was around, okay, that was new.

The kiss he left on your temple could of course be in a friendly manner, right? The brush against your cheek? The way he looked at you?

Friends are affectionate to each other, it was probably nothing more than a friendly endearment. Like a hug.

So why did it feel like there was so much more unsaid?

With a groan of annoyance, you shut it from your mind. There was no use in overthinking something as small as a simple affection. You were smarter than that.

The truth was, the two of you were so hellbent on making everyone around you believe you were in a relationship, you failed to noticed how neither of you denied how believable it was to each other.

Your stomach grumbled loudly, catching the attention of the witch opposite you who eyed you with annoyance.

“Are you just going to sit there, starve yourself and annoy me, or are you going to get some food and leave so I can work in peace?”

“Merlin, Hermione, it’s almost like you don’t want me around.”

“I don’t when you’re distracting me”

“Charming as ever, I see”

With a huff, the bookworm turned her attention back to her books.

Completely bored with your homework, you fidgeted with your quill between your fingers.

“Hey, Hermione? Are you going home for Christmas?”

“You couldn’t ask me this later?” she sighed as she paused in her writing and shot you an irritated look. At the shake of your head, she rolled her eyes. “Yes, My family and I are planning on going skiing again. Are you heading back?”

“Not this year, my parents are off visiting my cousins in America so I said I’d stay at Hogwarts.”

“You’re staying here for Christmas?”

A new voice entered your conversation from behind you and at the look of Hermione’s scowl, you knew immediately it was your blonde boyfriend.

Turning in your seat, you greeted him with a smile. Pecking a kiss to your lips, more for Hermione’s purpose than your own, he took the seat next to you, placing his own stack of books on the table next to you.

“Yeah, like I said, parents are going to America, it’s just easier if I stay.”

“Not many others are planning on staying though, not even the Weasleys” Draco frowned.

You shrugged at his insinuation, knowing exactly what he was getting at.

“I’ll be fine, might actually get some peace and quiet to be honest.”

He didn’t look convinced.

“I’ll write to my parents and tell them I’m staying for Christmas”

“Draco-”

“Nope, I’m not going to let you spend Christmas alone,” he was adamant, “Can I borrow a piece of parchment, I’ll write to them now.”

“Go ahead, I’m not using it” you replied which earned you an exasperated look from the Gryffindor opposite you, which you ignored.

Hermione took the time to observe the two of you and how effortlessly you interacted around each other. It was like a cleverly choreographed piece.

You looked down at your work, Draco looked up at you. Draco looked down at the letter he was now writing, you looked up at Draco. You rested your hand on his arm when you were talking, he leans into your touch.

The Granger witch couldn’t help but almost admire the chemistry between the two of you and how easy it seemed it was to be with the other. Sure, she had doubts at the very start when you’d just begun dating, yet getting a front row seat to seeing the two of you bounce off each other, Hermione Granger believed wholeheartedly the two of you loved each other.

Even if you didn’t know it yourselves yet.

Draco had followed through with his promise and as it seemed every other student had journeyed down to the train a couple days ago. The two of you were sat happily in the Astronomy tower, basking in the silence of the castle and embracing how relaxing it was.

Since the first time the two of you had sat around the tower before, it seemed like this was the place you both chose to come every time when it was just the two of you.

Neither of you had brought up the small affection from the previous time, but acting like it didn’t happen seemed like it was working for the two of you.

“What’s the best Christmas gift you’ve ever gotten?” Draco asked you after a few moments of silence.

You had to think for a moment before a grin rapidly grew across your face at the exact present you knew you loved.

“Snitch socks,” you chuckled “I was given a pair by my grandma when I was like 10 or something and they were the fluffiest, comfiest pair of socks I ever owned where there was a little charm with made the snitches fly around the design. They must’ve cost a knut or something as they fell apart after I only wore them for a few days! Young me was so heartbroken about her socks, she cried for three days!”

“You cried over socks?!”

“The best socks! I don’t think I’ve even known real joy since”

Draco snorted out a laugh into your hair as he wrapped an arm round your shoulders.

“That’s so stupid”

“Don’t be such a jerk, I was 10” you scowled at him playfully “besides, my grandma passed away a couple years later and I have no idea where she got them, so I’ve made my peace with it.”

“Would you still wear them now if you got another pair?”

“Oh 100%, but either way, like I said, I’ve made my peace with it.” You shrugged nonchalantly before turning to the boy next to you, “go on then, what’s been your favourite Christmas present ever?!”

“A pocket watch” he grinned reaching into his pocket and pulling one out, passing it over to you to look at. “It’s a Black family heirloom - my Mother’s side of the family, and it’s suppose to keep you on time for everything. It used to belong to one of my great uncles or someone but I’ve never been late to anything when I have this on me.”

“Really?” you asked sceptically

“Really”

“What about that time you were late to potions?!”

“Left it in my dorm accidentally. Actually that whole day was kind of a disaster. Bloody Pansy and her love potion.”

You snorted as you admired the watch and flipped it over in your palm to examine the back. Cursive words were engraved in the back in another language- probably latin, which had something to do with keeping the owner on time, all the time.

It was silver and about the size of a large golf ball in diameter, yet surprisingly light as you played with it between your fingers.

“It’s pretty”

Draco hummed in agreement as he watched you trace the intricate details with your fingers before smiling and handing it back to him. With a fond look at the watch, then you, he slipped it back into his pocket.

“I just pray I don’t lose it, wouldn’t hear the end of it from my Mother”

“For good reason probably” you snorted, “if it’s a family heirloom it probably means a lot to her.”

Draco hummed once again and pinned his warm gaze on you. He wouldn’t say it out loud but he rarely let the things that meant a lot to him out of his sight.

“God rest ye merry hippogriffs-”

“I’m begging you to stop”

“-ye are A BIRD OF PREY!”

“Y/N-”

“We come in all our splendour, to lead ye ast--”

A hand covered your mouth as you laughed heavily at Draco’s attempt to quieten your singing. You had purposefully tried to make it the worst edition of the Christmas carol possible to annoy the blonde that Christmas morning, yet you hadn’t planned on being tackled into the Slytherin sofa as an attempt to be shut up.

“Did you just lick my hand?!”

You shook your head innocently, not fooling Draco for a second.

The two of you had gathered in the Slytherin common room, as most of the house had gone back for the holiday.

Only a couple of students remained, but after the wizard had glared at the couple of second years, they scattered somewhere else for the time being.

“Okay, presents!”

You almost dived under the tree as you caught sight of a carefully wrapped gift with your name on it. However, finding the label attached to a rather large bundle of Honeydukes chocolates, the smile you shot Draco was almost blinding.

“You did get me the chocolates!!”

“I promised, didn’t it?!”

Draco watched you with a fond grin as you rifled through the basket picking out a couple of chocolate frogs and chucked one to him. He caught the small packet quickly, thanking his seeker reflexes as he did, and looked at you questioningly.

“What, you didn’t think I’d be able to get through all these myself?! Plus I know chocolate frogs are your favourite.”

Draco felt his smile grow wider.

“I got something for you too” you matched his smile

“You did?”

“Of course!”

Pulling out a long rectangular box from under the tree, he kneeled down next to you as he pushed it along the floor so it wasn’t obstructed by anything.With a wary look towards you, he paused slightly.

“It’s not anything that will bite, right?”

“Oh shut up, of course not, now open it!”

With a roll of his eyes, the Malfoy ripped off the wrapping paper and pried open the cardboard box to see the broom he had been envying Harry Potter over for the last year.

“You got me a Firebolt?!”

“Couldn’t have you whining about Harry’s broom any longer, could I?!”

“Merlin, Y/N! This is fantastic, thank you!” He grinned at you before his eyes snapped to the tree and back. “There’s some other things for you still under the tree.”

It was your turn to pin him with a questioning look, eyebrows pulled together in a frown.

Turning back to the tree, you pulled up a few branches and spotted another large box at the back. With great effort, to which the Malfoy just found great entertainment in, you managed to retrieve the box. Pulling open the top flap, the boots and jacket he had also promised you, sat inside.

With a laugh you pulled the boots out first and then the jacket, before spotting a smaller bundle at the bottom. Reaching in, your fingers came in contact with something soft which you pulled out, only to gasp at what it was.

A pair of fluffy green socks sat in your hand as golden snitches whizzed round the design. Not being able to find your words, you looked up at Draco with the softest look you were sure you’d ever looked at him with.

“Draco... you got me snitch socks?!”

“I may have mentioned about the socks to my Mother and she just so happened to know where they were sold. I picked the green ones because I couldn’t have you wearing red ones now, could I?”

“Merlin, they’re perfect! Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

Pretty much launching yourself at him, you pulled Draco into a warm hug, arms around his neck, as he instinctively wrapped his own arms around your waist in return.

“You are the best boyfriend ever, oh Merlin!”

“If I knew it was this easy to please you, I would’ve bought you them ages ago” he snickered.

You pulled away, only to move to put the socks on as you chatted non stop about how great they were, and in turn, how great he was. Seeing your entire face light up because of a pair of socks made Draco smile even more.

Again, he wouldn’t admit it out loud, but seeing that smile on your face, which he had 100% been responsible for, made his entire Christmas so much better.

#Draco Malfoy #dating Draco Malfoy #draco malfoy series #draco x reader #draco malfoy x reader #Draco Malfoy Headcanon #draco malfoy imagine #draco imagine #Harry Potter #harry potter series #harry potter headcanon #harry potter imagine #harry potter x reader

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avengerscompound · 3 years

Text

The Tower: Happily Ever After - 23

The Tower: Happily Ever After An Avengers Fanfic

Series Masterlist | Character Reference PREVIOUS //

Pairing: Avengers x OFC, Bruce Banner x Bucky Barnes x Clint Barton x Wanda Maximoff x Steve Rogers x Natasha Romanoff x Tony Stark x Thor x Sam Wilson x OFC (Elly Cooper)

Word Count: 1782

Warnings: none

Synopsis: Almost 40 years after Elise Cooper first crashed into Natasha Romanoff outside the library at Columbia University, she and the Avengers are adapting to a near-immortal life together with their large brood of children. Yet things aren’t perfect. Life is moving on without them and they’re starting to discover who isolating being immortal can be.When Angela comes and asks Thor to take the throne of Asgard once more, the group leaves Earth in the hopes that they will find their Happily Ever After there.

Chapter 23: Laughter is the Best Medicine

Things had been going along fairly well for everyone. The twins were getting bigger. Everyone had settled into their classes. There had been nothing to upset Thor’s rule. Edwin had been talking about coming to stay with Lyra and Rory for an extended period as a trial run. The plans for Billy and Teddy’s bonding were coming along well. It was all smooth sailing and there was very little to report.

I was alone with Zac and the twins when Rose and Paul knocked on the door. It was a rare moment. Normally our family group stayed in at least pairs of adults, and that would have been true now, but Bruce had gone to ask about getting food sent up and Wanda had felt a call from Billy about some fashion choice and she had gone to help him out, saying she’d be back shortly.

I wasn’t worried. It wasn’t like I’d never been alone before and I was in the palace with guards at the door. I was as safe as I’d ever been and just enjoying the time with my infant children and my youngest grandson. I sat on the floor beside the babies as they lay under their play gym cooing and trying to reach the toys over their heads. The Vulparev were out on the balcony eating and Zak was watching cartoons. It was calm and felt normal. It was nice to have that even if it was just briefly.

A guard stepped in, reminding me that no matter how normal I felt, I really wasn’t. “My lady, Princess Rose is here to see you,” he announced.

“Thank you, send her in,” I said, thinking about how I’d have preferred it if she had just come straight in herself.

He stepped out and Rose, Paul, Ziggy, and Anna came in. Ziggy went and flopped on the couch next to Zak while Anna beelined for me. I held out my arms to her and she threw herself in them. “Grandma,” she said.

“Hey, princess,” I said, squeezing her tight. “Why aren’t you in school?”

“Lunchtime, Grandma,” Anna said, in her best world-weary voice, as she pulled back and crawled over to the babies.

I laughed. “I’m sorry. I forgot.”

“You all alone, mommy?” Rose said, sitting down on the floor beside me as Paul took a seat on the couch. Rose still called me mommy a lot, particularly when she was feeling very affectionate, which was also a lot. “That’s not like my dads.”

I laughed. “Bruce should be back with food soon. And Daj shouldn’t be too far away.”

“Oh good,” Rose said, picking up Thour and bouncing her on her knee. “I was worried for a second there.”

“You’d have thought I didn’t spend almost ten years completely on my own,” I teased. “Now I always need an escort.”

Rose bumped me. “Hey, I can’t help that I’ve grown up seeing you guys travel in packs.”

“Grandma, where’s the foxes?” Anna asked.

“They’re on the balcony,” I said. “You can let them in if you want.”

She got up and ran over to the balcony door, throwing it open. Icy and Inky ran inside making happy little chittering sounds. They dashed to the twins and when they seemed happy the babies were fine they went and sniffed everyone else and ran back over to Anna deciding she was the one who was most likely to play with them. Zak jumped off the couch and toddled over to Anna giggling. “Wanna pway,” he said.

“Okay, Zakky,” Anna said. “Let’s get their toys.”

The two kids went off together with the Vulparev on their heels to the drawer we kept the pet toys in.

“How come I was the one lucky enough to get the visit?” I asked. “Don’t you all usually have lunch as a group in the banquet hall?”

“That or we need a break and go back to our own places and have something set up,” Paul said.

“Which reminds me,” Rose said. “I miss cooking so much. Do you think I can have a kitchen put in?”

“You might want to go to the kitchens here and try something out there first,” I said. “The food is different here. The way they cook it is different. You might need to be shown. But I know for a fact that Magnus would be delighted to teach you.”

“That’s a really good idea,” Paul said, stroking the back of Rose’s neck.

She leaned back into his touch and hummed softly. “Yeah, it would be nice to do some cooking with Mags. He’s really talented.”

Bruce came in wheeling a cart piled high with food and stopped in his tracks, a huge smile breaking out on his face. “Rosie! Paul! To what do we owe the pleasure?”

“Grandpa!” Anna and Ziggy said at once, Ziggy jumping down off the couch and running to Bruce, as Anna abandoned her game with the Vulparev and charged at Bruce.

They both slammed into his legs and he lifted them both, one in each hand, and held them up over his head as they squealed with delight. “Little ones!” Bruce cheered. “I’m so happy to see you!”

Paul came over to take over pushing the cart. “Are we going to eat here or in the dining room?” he asked.

“Here, please,” I said. “The babies are happy on the floor and I’d like to stay with them.”

“Can I get you a plate, mommy?” Sarah asked.

“Yes, please,” I said. “That’s really nice of you.”

“Don’t worry, I can get you both one,” Paul interjected. “Are you both happy with a random selection?”

We both agreed we were and as Paul began filling plates and Bruce sat down with the twins perched on his shoulders, Rose got to the reason they’d come.

“So we’ve been thinking,” Rose said, as she put Thour back down with her brother. “We want to do the bonding too. I mean, I don’t want to lose Paul obviously.”

“Oh that’s great news,” I said, rubbing Rose’s back. “Daj is going to love helping you pick out a dress.”

Rose laughed. “I know she will. But…” she said and looked back at Paul. “We already did the wedding and it was big and wonderful and I was the sole focus of everyone’s attention. We don’t want to steal the spotlight from Billy and Teddy. We were wondering if there was a way to do it… smaller?”

I grimaced. “I’m not sure, Rosie,” I said. “I think given who you are, and just the process needed for the magic to work, it’s going to be big. But -” I paused and looked over at Bruce. “- I think we could maybe keep it under wraps? Have things planned and then after the boys have their ceremony you can announce yours and have it a couple of months later. That way you won’t steal their thunder and because it will be just one and then another - people might not get quite as hyped up.”

“I think that would work,” Bruce agreed. “We’ll have to run the idea past Thor and Loki though.”

“I don’t know if I like the idea of keeping it a secret from everyone,” Rose frowned.

“I mean it’s up to you, honey,” I said. “If you don’t like being a total secret you could tell Billy and Teddy what you just told us. And then just rather than announce it to everyone, go ‘oh yeah, we’ll be bonding so that I don’t lose Paul. No big deal.’ And we’ll just make sure the preparations happen behind the scenes so as not to steal the thunder.”

“Yeah, I like that better,” Rose agreed. “Then I don’t have to lie to them.”

Paul handed me a plate and the Vulparev raced over in the hopes I’d feed them some people-food, something I was a very soft touch about. Icy did a flying leap over the babies, while Inky jumped, landing on Nova’s tummy before bouncing over to me.

Nova burst into laughter.

Neither of the babies had laughed yet and the sound of the baby giggles was like music. They were pure and innocent and full of complete joy. I put down my plate on the coffee table and leaned over him. “Oh my goodness, Nova! Was that funny? Did your Inky bounce on you?”

He squeaked and kicked his feet and I looked back at Bruce. “You heard that too, right?”

“I did!” Bruce said. “Oh wow, I have missed the sound of baby laughter. It just gets you right here, doesn’t it?” He added, tapping his chest above his heart.

Zak toddled over and plopped down next to his infant aunt and uncle. “Nova, Nova!” He said excitedly, tickling the baby’s tummy. Nova squeaked and laughed again which made Zak laugh too.

‘Wanda!’ I sent. “Wanda you have to get the others here now!’

‘Coming!’ I felt pressed back at me. ‘Oh god, I hope I don’t miss it.’

“Hey, Zakky, Nova thinks you’re so funny,” Bruce said. “He loves you so much. Do you think you can get Thour to laugh too?”

“I twy,” Zak said, quickly crawling around to Thour. He tickled her tummy and then lifted her t-shirt and blew a raspberry on it.

Thour burst out laughing and kicked her feet excitedly, which made Nova laugh again. “Oh my goodness,” I said, clapping my hands over my mouth. “I love that sound so much.”

“Oh god, mom,” Rose said. “It’s making me all clucky.”

“Oh my god,” I said. “More grandkids? Yes, please!”

“Maybe we should be thinking of the bonding before we start planning more kids, honey,” Paul teased.

The door burst open and Wanda practically flew inside. “Did I miss it?”

“No,” I giggled. “I don’t think so.”

Before the door closed, Steve caught it and he, Bucky, and Sam spilled inside. “They’re laughing?” Bucky asked.

“Yes,” I said. “Zakky, get them to laugh again.”

Zak blew another raspberry on Thour’s tummy and she cracked up laughing again, flailing her limbs and setting off Nova too.

“Oh my god,” Sam said as the small group gathered around them. “That sound is the best sound ever.”

Very quickly the others arrived too, first Clint and Nat, then Tony and Thor, and everyone gathered around to hear our children’s first laughter. The sound of their laughter was something I think we all needed. Things hadn’t been easy with their arrival and now I was feeling better and they were laughing. It felt almost poetic. The best part was we were all together for this milestone and we would be for all of them.

// NEXT

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shepherds-of-haven · 3 years

Note

Hiii Lena how are you? Okay now I have a FEW bebé-adjacent questions. Fist off: Anything you can tell us about Arainia and Blade’s kiddo?? I’m so soft for the thought of babies born into the Shepherds 🥺🥺(or just soft for beebies in general) Also is there like,,,any precedent set for pregnant Shepherds? Paid family leave 😅? I’m assuming they’d have to be upfront to their superior about it if they choose to carry to term and are probably put on desk duty? What about the other parent, assuming it’s a Shepherd-Are they like,,able to request assignments close by/shorter assignments later in the pregnancy? (for example I’m guessing all ROs would be pretty adamant about sticking nearby) In the original novels, were there separate setups in the compound for married shepherds/ ones with kids ? This is a LOT lololol 🙈

Hi kingdom, I’m doing great, and I hope you are, too! And yes, I’m all for bebé questions!!!

Anything you can tell us about Arainia and Blade’s kiddo??

Yes, their first child was a boy named Tamwyn, Tam for short! He was the spitting image of his father, but with Arainia’s eyes and Elvish ears, and he was a very serious little baby, peering around at the world with silent gravity befitting a Bronwyn. Arainia was kind of like “...is our baby okay” but it turned out that Uncle Chase and Uncle Trouble could always make him laugh! Thus, they were always on babysitting duty whenever both Arainia and Blade had to go out of town for a mission...

(This isn’t necessarily canon because it was written when I was like 15 maybe, which was before I knew Riel was going to blast off and commit treason and I’m pretty sure it’s an AU where Junoth didn’t die or I hadn’t done it yet RIP)

Anyway, as you can tell, it was a slightly chaotic but very loving infanthood for him! The official books stop when Tam’s about six months old, but I always had plans for him to grow up to become a strong Battle-Mage like his mother. He’d be a quiet, sensible, somewhat sensitive boy who had to dig deep to access his latent power in his youth. As a young adult, he would have been more confident and possibly headstrong--I feel like he would have had an intense teen rebellion phase--and eventually would grow into a powerful leader with a measured way of seeing the world, but still with a strong sense of empathy and emotional intelligence! He would have been very close to his uncles; would have had a teen crush on Kana, Halek and Wintry’s kid, that probably would have faded quickly; and I feel like he would have an academic side and would want to help Uncle Red with his magical research as a kind of intern, which would annoy Blade deeply, though of course he’d never say so!

There was also always the plan for them to have a second kid, a daughter four years younger than Tam named either Lyra or Amaya, who would have been more Ket like her dad and would have had an unusual mix of both arma and a little magic! She would have been more spunky and energetic than her brother and probably would look totally different from the rest of her dark-haired family due to the weird Mage genetics!

Also is there like,,,any precedent set for pregnant Shepherds? Paid family leave 😅? I’m assuming they’d have to be upfront to their superior about it if they choose to carry to term and are probably put on desk duty?

In the books, relationships were very strictly forbidden within the Shepherd’s Order, more so than they are in the game; it was a rule that had been carried out for hundreds of years, since the founding of the Order, so there wasn’t really a precedent set for both parents being Shepherds when one got pregnant! In the old days, you’d most likely be fired if you revealed that you got another Shepherd officer pregnant... 😅

Prior to Blade assuming command, there was paid family leave for a Shepherd officer to take time off and raise their children, but it was always expected that their spouse, partner, or what have you was from outside of the Order. Most were put on desk duty until closer to their due date, but some chose to take time off immediately upon discovering their pregnancy. Lunar Corps division officers (those who took on more urgent, specialized, or dangerous missions) were paid both a base salary as well as extra for most missions, which were graded according to risk. (The higher the grade, the more you’d get paid for taking that mission.) If you got pregnant and planned on having the child, you could take time off pretty much indefinitely and just keep the base salary, with bonuses thrown in if your superior liked you and thought you deserved it, of course. However, it was considered unethical to collect this money if you didn’t actually plan on resuming work with the Order after your baby was around three (though of course you could request to extend leave); so long as you actually came back to work afterwards, this was all legitimate.

However, things got messy once Shepherd couples got into the mix. Could both parties take leave, and for how long? Couples weren’t even allowed until Blade assumed command: he immediately changed the policy so that couples were allowed within the Order, but typically placed on different teams or missions, to avoid distractions during fights or work in the field. (This also applied to him and Arainia, though there were sometimes exceptions that had to be made.) He also allowed both parties paid leave with base salaries, but with the stipulation that one party should return to work after ten months to one year, unless they requested to extend that leave.

Halek and Wintry’s child, Kana, was the first real “Shepherd baby”. Wintry chose to take the paid leave for the first year and a half of Kana’s life; they had also bought a restaurant as a side investment for whenever they retired, so there was income coming from that while Halek continued work as a Shepherd. And they were already on separate teams, so when she returned, it wasn’t that much of an issue!

What about the other parent, assuming it’s a Shepherd-Are they like,,able to request assignments close by/shorter assignments later in the pregnancy? (for example I’m guessing all ROs would be pretty adamant about sticking nearby)

If the Shepherds in question are Lunar Corps agents, it depends on their ranks! Lower-ranked agents were always placed on squads of seven and were assigned 80% of their cases and missions by higher-ups. But there were always missions placed on a roster that were “up for grabs” until a certain date, at which point they would be assigned to whatever team was available at that deadline. 20% of team missions could be one of those free missions, and if you were a higher-ranking agent no longer grouped into a team, you could also take on those missions of your own volition about 50% of the time. In short, you could choose about 50% of your own missions, because there were so many requests and petitions floating around all the time, so a Shepherd parent could just choose the missions that were close to home and pass on the ones that weren’t.

For the missions that they couldn’t choose and were assigned, you could always put in an unofficial request to your superior; they would usually do their best to accommodate you, but there were simply some times where there wasn’t any choice, especially if you had a specialized position that few others could replace. That duty comes with being a Shepherd, and I imagine it would be the same in the game! You can make the request and people will try their hardest to accommodate, but it's not a guarantee and if you can't meet the demands of the job, you'll probably be moved over to Solar Corps, which handles things like local patrols.

In the original novels, were there separate setups in the compound for married shepherds/ ones with kids ?

The Shepherds’ Tower in the books was actually more like a workplace and police precinct, so there were actually no living quarters or dormitories there! It was more like a skyscraper, and Shepherd officers lived in their own personal apartments or occasionally shared houses in Haven. There were some buildings that the Order rented out entirely just for Shepherd officers to live in, but these were few and far between.

In the books, most of the protagonists lived in small apartments in the Market Quarter; Blade and Arainia lived on the same floor of their apartment and the other team members lived close by or even on the same street; there was an ill-fated move where all seven (ten?) of them shared a big house in Whitestone (which in the books wasn’t just for aristocrats, it was just a nicer neighborhood) for like a year for some reason; and then Blade and Arainia lived in a house in the Market Quarter (I even remember their address, 771 Bomba Street) after they got married!

Thanks for your questions, I had fun answering them! 🤗

#Shepherds of Haven #<3 #original novels #original novel #novels #novel #novel MC #marriage #pregnancy #pregnant #worldbuilding #child #parent #Tamwyn #kingdom-dance

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celestialvoid-fanfiction · 4 years

Text

Get Well Soon

Harry gets the magical flu and he’s laid up in bed for a week. The only reason he doesn’t fall behind in classes is because he gets notes from a classmate, but he doesn’t know who it is.

For @loveyprophet

(You can read it on AO3 here)

Magical flu – who would have thought that’d be a thing? Unfortunately for Harry, it was.

He’d been laid up in bed for three days now, swaddled in blankets and sleeping through the day.

The first few days he had spent in the hospital wing, but once his fever broke the matron agreed to let him rest in the Gryffindor dorms.

The first letter came that evening. Harry watched as it fluttered through the open window of the dorm room, fluttering wings keeping it afloat as it gracefully circled the room, the paper crackling with the movement.

Harry cupped his hands and held out his arms, watching – mesmerised – as the enchanted paper bird landed in his hand and fell still.

He carefully unfolded the paper, feeling a strange warmth settle in his chest as he looked down at the elegant scrawls of lettering across the page.

There were pages upon pages of notes, each titled by which class they were for. There were notes for the past three days of lessons—about what they had learnt in class as well as observations the writer had made and doodles and illustrations along the edges of the paper.

Among the notes for Herbology, there were illustrations of the plants as well as notes on the side about how to tend to them, what potions and medicines they were used in, and their own magical properties.

There were more notes on Transfiguration, Charms, History of Magic, and Defence Against the Dark Arts. The notes for Astronomy were covered in illustrations of stars and constellations that sat alongside the lesson notes: Canis Major with a brilliantly vibrant star—Sirius; Cygnus, Lyra, and at the bottom of the page Draco.

For Potions, there were detailed notes on what the potion was used for and step-by-step instructions. In the columns were small illustrations of the ingredients – herbs, beetles, flowers; all beautifully drawn – and an animated drawing of a potion blowing up in Seamus’ face—a common enough occurrence that seeing the animated sketch play through made Harry smile.

Harry read the notes avidly, finding himself smiling more and more as he read through the pages. But what caught him off guard was the final page; it was empty except for one sentence, the beautifully elegant handwriting making the words seem all the more meaningful.

Get well soon.

The next day, another enchanted letter appeared, fluttering through the open window. It landed in Harry’s hand, stretching its wings and slowing before falling still.

Harry felt his heart flutter with anticipation, shocked to find himself looking forward to seeing that beautiful handwriting again.

He unfolded the notes, letting out a small sigh of relief as he looked down at the elegant scrawls of ink.

He first few pages were Herbology notes, the boarder of the pages beautifully illustrated with drawings of fungi—bundles of enoki, rows of hiratake and oyster mushrooms that grew likes rippling shelves on the side of a towering tree, rounded toadstools with bright tops, and clusters of honey agaric. There were notes of which fungi were edible and which were not.

The next page were notes from Potions class. Harry read through them all, turning the page over. He couldn’t help but laugh as he looked down at the illustrtion at the bottom of the page; a rather unflattering animated doodle of Snape blathering on with a seach bubble that read ‘blah, blah, blah’.

When he finished laughing, he drew in a deep breath and read through the rest of the notes, feeling his heart sip a beat as he read the message on the final page—the one line of elegant writing.

Get well soon.

Harry stared at that one sentence for a while.

Finally, he let out a measured sigh and laid the rest of the notes on top, reaching over to his bedside table and picking up one of his notebooks. He opened the cover and set the pages of notes inside, setting them aside where they’d be safe.

The next day, Harry was starting to feel a lot better, even more so when another enchanted letter flew through the windows and into Harry’s hands.

His heart fluttered as he read the beautiful script.

He turned through the pages, reading the notes.

The third Herbology class that week was about flowers, the pages of notes decorated with beautiful illustrations of lilies, jasmine, dandelions, and hawthorn as well as notes on how they could be used for healing and potions.

Among the notes was a pressed hawthorn flower.

Harry gently picked it up off the paper, turning it around in his fingers.

It was beautiful, delicate. The crisp white petals seemed enchanting on their own.

He set it aside carefully, turning his attention back to the letter.

The pages of notes from Potions class were filled with silly jokes and mocking doodles of Professor Snape.

He couldn’t help but smile as he read through the pages, feeling a warmth settle in his chest as he read the elegant handwriting.

“What are you smirking at?” Ron asked as he made his way into the dorm and flopped down on the end of Harry’s bed.

“Nothing,” Harry said dismissively.

He picked out one of the pages and handed it to Ron.

“Does his handwriting look familiar to you?” he asked.

Ron looked down at the page.

“No,” he said, turning the piece of paper over and bursting into laughter at the crude doodle of Professor Snape. “But whoever they are, they’ve captured Snape perfectly.”

Ron passed the letter to Neville.

Neville looked it over, snickering at the illustration before passing it to Seamus who then passed it to Dean, but they all had the same answer: no one knew who wrote the notes.

“Whoever it is, they’ve got to be a Ravenclaw,” Seamus said. “No one else pays that much attention in class.”

“Hermione does,” Ron countered, looking at another page he’d picked up off the bed. “But that’s not her handwriting.”

“Is that so?” Dean said, his voice drawn out in a suggestive tone. He smirked and arched a brow as he looked at Ron.

“Shut up,” Ron replied.

Harry chuckled. He took the pages back, sliding them in place with the rest of the notes.

He flicked to the last page, the same as the last page of all the others.

Get well soon.

The others began to talk about their day but Harry wasn’t listening though; his attention was focused on the pressed flower in his hand. He turned the hawthorn around in his fingers, looking at it with wonder.

“Who are you?” he mused, his voice a quiet whisper.

He carefully set the flower back among the pages, reaching for his notebook and setting the notes aside.

Days later, Harry was finally well enough to join classes, and as happy as he was about being able to leave the dorms and spend time with his friends, there was something that weighed on him. The thought of never receiving another letter broke his heart.

That morning, before breakfast, Harry opened the notebook where the letters had been stored, picking up one of the final pages that read ‘Get well soon’. He stared down at the curves of the lettering, feeling his heart flutter in his chest. He folded up the piece of paper and stowed it in his pocket.

Throughout the day, Harry and his friends would compare the elegant scrawls of writing from the letter to the penmanship of their classmates, but none of the girls’ handwriting matched up.

That evening, Harry, Ron and Hermione were gathered in the Gryffindor common room. Ron was stretched out across the couch in front of the fire while Harry and Hermione sat on the floor.

Harry had brought out the letters in order to show Hermione the notes, hoping she would recognise the handwriting.

“It almost looks like…” Hermione’s voice trailed off. “Never mind.”

“What?” Harry asked, hopeful.

“Forget it,” Hermione said, shaking her head as she handed the page of Potions notes back to Harry.

“Hermione,” Harry pleaded.

Hermione let out a sigh.

“When Malfoy takes notes in Herbology and Potions, he sometimes draws the flowers, herbs and whatnot beside his notes,” she said. “It almost looks like his drawings.”

“Malfoy?” Ron repeated, his voice a mix of shock, disbelief, and disgust.

“But I don’t know what his handwriting looks like and I doubt Draco Malfoy would be sending you letters, let alone ones that say ‘get well soon’,” Hermione pointed out.

Harry let out a dejected sigh, looking down at the page in his hand.

“Oh no,” Hermione said. “I know that face.”

“What?” Harry asked, looking up at her.

“Harry, you can’t seriously tell me you’ve fallen for someone you don’t even know because they sent you a letter,” Hermione said.

Harry let out a heavy sigh, but he didn’t deny it.

“Harry,” Hermione said, her voice soft but scolding.

There was a heavy thud as a stack of paper dropped between them.

“Bloody hell,” Ron gasped, looking up at his brothers. “What’s this?”

“Samples of handwriting from every house,” Fred answered.

“You’re welcome,” George added.

Harry stared at the pile, his eyes wide with shock. “How did you—?”

“We called in a favour from Cedric Diggory,” George explained. “He put together examples of everyone’s handwriting from the Hufflepuff dorms—guys and girls alike.”

“Ginny talked to Luna and got her to ask everyone in Ravenclaw to write something down,” Fred added.

“We had to bribe Pansy Parkinson to get examples of everyone’s handwriting in the Slytherin dorm,” George said, his voice a little tense.

“How did you know—?”

“That you were looking for who wrote the letters?” George finished Harry’s question. “The whole dorm knows.”

“The whole of Hogwarts knows,” Fred countered teasingly.

Harry looked down at the stacks of paper and then back up at the twins. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” they said in unison.

A couple of others joined them, sorting through the mountain of paper – pages of notes, scraps of paper with things written on them, etc – and comparing the handwriting to the elegant script of the letters.

There were a lot that came close, but weren’t quite right: the slant of the writing wasn’t the same, there wasn’t as much of a curve on the upwards stroke of the “d”s or the downwards stroke of the “y”s.

Harry was about to give up hope when he picked up another page of writing.

His heart stopped, his breath catching in his throat.

He help the page up to the letter.

It was an exact match.

His eyes drifted to the name at the top of the page.

Without a word, he held the page out to Ron.

Ron took it, comparing the writing. He opened his mouth to say something when he noticed the same thing as harry—the name at the top.

“Bloody hell,” he muttered.

“What is it?” Hermione asked.

Ron passed the age to her, letting her see for herself, but Harry couldn’t get the name out of his mind.

Draco Malfoy.

The next day, Harry sat alone in the library.

He watched as the light outside the large windows of the library began to dim and the sky lit up with a brilliant display of colours.

He turned his attention to the blank piece of parchment before him, staring at the paper as he tried to figure out what to write.

He jumped at the loud thud of someone dropping their books on the table.

He turned to see Draco pull out a chair a few seats down from him. He sat down and opened the large text books, pulling out his notebook as he set to work writing things down.

Harry looked down at the piece of paper in front of him. He picked up his quill and began to write.

He wrote down two words before sketching a paper crane below it.

He set aside his quill and pushed the paper across the table.

Draco looked up from his work, his brow furrowed slightly as he picked up the piece of paper and read it.

‘Thank you.’

Draco looked up at Harry, puzzled. Thoughts swirled like storm clouds in his grey eyes, but he didn’t say anything. He just looked back down at the letter and smiled.

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omgrachwrites · 3 years

Text

The Book of Love - Chapter Four

Pairing: Remus Lupin x Ravenclaw!Reader

Summary: After a breakup leaves you heartbroken and miserable, things start to change for the better when you begin exchanging notes in a library book with a mystery boy.

Warnings: fluff!!

Words: 2293

A/N: Hope you guys enjoy this part! Please let me know what you think and let me know if you would like to be tagged! I love you all!

Chapter Four

The morning of the first Hogsmeade trip dawned with a beautiful clear morning but there was a blustery wind that caused leaves on the trees to rocket to the floor. For once, you were up early, sketching the beautiful landscape. It delighted you to see the shades of amber and burnt orange everywhere. Hagrid’s hut was almost blanketed by the hulking trees of the forest and when the weak sunlight sparkled through the remaining leaves, it cast the hut in a heavenly orange glow.

You felt like there would be great promise for the day and you knew that it would be a fantastic day. Maybe it was because Hogsmeade was an exceptionally beautiful village, or maybe it was because you know that you would see Rem- your friends again. You weren’t quite sure what had been happening to you for the last few days. Before you went to sleep, unbeknownst to you why, your thoughts went to Remus and it made falling asleep all that much easier.

When you woke up in the dark of night he was the first thing on your mind, almost like you had just had a dream about him. You refused to feel that way about anybody – well apart from your mystery boy – you couldn’t give someone else a chance to hurt you, especially not Remus. You didn’t think your heart would be able to take it.

With a sigh, you put your sketchbook down and you decided to get dressed in warm clothes and you combed your hair. About ten minutes later, Lyra woke up running her fingers through her fluffy hair and you smiled over at her.

“Are you coming to Hogsmeade with me and the others?”

She groaned as she threw an arm over her eyes and shook her head, “no, I can’t bear to face Sirius, his favour changes like the wind,” she removed her arm and pouted and you were sure that you could see tears sparkling in her eyes. She looked so hurt.

You bit your bottom lip, you weren’t going to tell her that you told her so. She had been seeing Sirius for a few weeks before he broke it off and started sleeping with someone else. Seeing the same person for a few weeks was equal to a serious relationship for Sirius, “I’m sorry Lyra,” you sighed, it was the only thing you could think of to say that wouldn’t hurt her.

She smiled brightly as she got out of bed and walked over to you to give you a tight hug before she kissed your cheek affectionately, “don’t apologise, you told me so and I should have listened to you but I just wanted to have hope. Have a good day today Y/N, with Remus,” she added with a smirk as she got back into bed.

You rolled your eyes as you threw your pillow at her causing her to laugh, “Remus and I are just friends,” for now, that little voice in the back of your mind spoke and you immediately shut it out. You wouldn’t think like that, “see you later, I’ll bring you back some sweets,” you grinned.

Lyra narrowed her eyes as she spoke in what tried to be a menancing voice but it didn’t really work because she was so tired, “yeah, you’d better.”

You shook your head in amusement as you left the common room and went to have breakfast at the Gryffindor table with your friends. After a hurried breakfast, you and the gang walked up the lane that led from Hogwarts and into Hogsmeade. You huddled into your scarf as the cold autumn wind picked up.

You smiled up at Remus, though you could hardly look him in the eyes, not when you were sure that you were having dreams about him. He looked much better compared to how he looked when you saw him last, “are you feeling better Remus? You really do look much better.”

Panic flashed in his eyes for a just a second before he looked at you with a dimpled smile, “I’m feeling much better, thank you for asking Y/N.”

You smiled back at him as you looked over Remus’ shoulder and saw Sirius grinning at the both of you. When Sirius noticed you looking over at him he gave you a thumbs up, causing you to roll your eyes as you turned away from him. The rest of the walk up to the village was rather uneventful as you chatted with Lily and Peter.

When you got to the beautiful village you noticed that it had been lavishly decorated for Halloween and there was the matter of where to go first.

“Well, I want to go to Zonkos,” Sirius spoke up first and James and Peter both nodded in agreement while Remus groaned.

“I’m voting for Honeydukes,” Remus said and you supposed that pulling pranks got a bit tiresome after a while.

You also spoke up before you could stop yourself, “I’m with Remus, I second his vote for Honeydukes.”

Lily looked between the two of you with a conspiring look on her face, “well, how about we split up? You guys can go to Honeydukes and we’ll go to Zonkos. We can meet up later on in The Three Broomsticks for a pint of Butterbeer,” she smiled innocently but you knew what she was trying to do.

You glared at her before looking up at Remus who was peering down at you with worried eyes, quickly you transformed your face into a smile, “sounds good.”

Remus nodded and smiled at you, looking thoroughly relieved, “yeah it does, come on Y/N.”

Off the two of you went in the direction of the sweet shop and you refused to look back at your traitourous friends. As soon as you walked into the warm sweet smelling shop you inhaled the toffee scented air. Remus made a beeline for the chocolate section, his face lighting up like a child’s and you smiled at how excited he was.

“Chocolate, seriously?” you giggled as you walked over to the Sugar Quills to find they had brought out a limited edition strawberry flavour.

Remus let out a little gasp of mock offence, “chocolate makes everything better, seriously, everything,” he looked over at you with a warm smile, “but I’m guessing that you’re more of a sweet person?”

You nodded in confirmation as you grabbed a handful of boxes, “I do, particularly Sugar Quills,” you loved the way they made your lips numb with sugar and you loved the sickly sweet taste of them.

Remus snorted out a laugh as he grabbed a huge assortment of chocolate bars, “I bet that you’re one of those people who snack on them in class,” his voice was distracted but he looked at you with sparkling hazel eyes.

Grinning at him, you nodded as you picked out some sweets for Lyra, “I am one of those people, I especially like eating them in Potions. Slughorn definitely knows but turns a blind eye which I’ll be forever grateful for.”

Something flickered in Remus’ eyes, something that looked like hope with just a dash of longing, it was gone as quickly as it had come so you must have been imagining it, “you eat them in Potions class?”

You raised an eyebrow at him as you nodded, you weren’t sure why that part was so important to him, “yeah but I’m sure lots of other people do too.”

“Of course,” Remus sighed, looking a little disappointed but you just couldn’t understand why, “are you ready to go?” he asked and you nodded without speaking a word and the both of you went to buy your sweets.

There was still some time before you had to meet the others so you went to the post office, you wanted to look at the different array of owls and you marvelled at the miniscule owls and you had to send some post. Your grandmother had always been very supportive of your art and she had always wanted you to send her some of the drawings you had done. Today you were finally granting her wish.

All the way through your time at the post office, Remus was silent and it seemed like the whole mood had changed. You were worried that you had done something wrong, “Remus, are you okay? Have I done something to upset you?”

Remus looked over at you with alarm plain on his face, he smiled warmly at you and you almost felt better and he reached down to squeeze your hand gently, “of course you didn’t Y/N. I’m fine, just in a bit of a weird mood, it’s nothing that you’ve done, I promise,” you nodded but couldn’t help feeling he was only saying this to ease your worry but you were sure that you had done something.

---------------------------

It had been one hell of an evening for Remus because James and Sirius had been arguing all night over a prank that had gone wrong and landed them in detention. They didn’t normally argue but when they did, it was really bad and everyone seemed to suffer as a result. As a result of their arguing, Lily and Alice went up to the dormitory to spend the rest of their evening up there. Remus had soon started to get tired of their endless fighting so he went for a walk around the castle.

The velvety night sky was so clear that Remus could see the stars for miles so he decided to go where he could see them better. When he walked up to the Astronomy Tower, he found that he wouldn’t be alone.

Y/N was standing against the railings with a sketchbook and she turned around when she heard Remus coming and she smiled at him. She was beautifully gleaming in the starlight.“Hi Remus,” she smiled as she put the tip of a Sugar Quill into her mouth.

Remus gulped and watched the movement of her lips with flushed cheeks, “sorry to bother you Y/N, can I join you?”

Y/N grinned, “you’re not bothering me at all! Of course you can join me. What brings you here?” she asked as she went back to her sketchbook.

Remus huffed out a sigh as he sat on the steps, running a hand through his hair, “James and Sirius are arguing and it’s complete hell, they manage to make everyone suffer. What are you doing up here, did you just come up here to draw?”

“Oh Merlin, aren’t they awful when they argue? They got into a really bad argument when Sirius first moved in with James so he had to come and stay with me for a little while. And yeah, I just thought that I could use the practice and Lucius is on his shit again,” she sighed and Remus could hear the sadness in her voice.

“I’m sorry Y/N,” he said biting his lip.

Y/N shrugged as she shot a smile over her shoulder at him, “it’s really no big deal, thank you though.”

Remus nodded and they fell into a comfortable silence as Y/N drew and Remus caught up with the book he was reading. It felt really nice to know that they could spend time together but do their own thing. After a little while, Y/N shut her sketchbook and Remus closed his book as he followed suit.

For a good amount of time Y/N and Remus sat around the Astronomy Tower watching the stars and pointing out all the different constellations as they munched on Sugar Quills.

Remus looked over at Y/N as she looked up at the sky with wonder and joy on her face and all he wanted to do was lean over and kiss her but he thought that that would probably scare her off, and he really didn’t want to do that.

His heart jumped in his chest as Y/N let out a contented sigh as she rested her head against his shoulder and Remus wrapped an arm around their shoulders as they watched the stars together. Is this what it would feel like to be hers? If so, then he wanted to be with her even more.

As it got later, the clouds covered the stars and the magical spell that had been cast over the teenagers seemed to shatter as Y/N sat up, her fingers pulling through her hair with a nervous look on her face, “it’s getting late. Maybe we should head back before we get into trouble, I really don’t fancy getting detention,” Y/N smiled.

Remus nodded, feeling a little deflated and disappointed, he wished that he could spend more time with her, “I’ll walk you back to your common room.”

“Thanks Remus,” she beamed at him.

As they walked through the moonlit corridors they managed to avoid Peeves and Filch’s cat Mrs Norris, “Merlin, that cat is so annoying,” Remus almost growled and Y/N laughed as she nodded in agreement.

Too soon, they were outside the Ravenclaw common room and Remus swallowed as Y/N looked up at him beneath her eyelashes, “thanks for walking me back Remus, I really appreciate it. I really enjoyed spending the night with you. Maybe we could study together sometime this week?”

Remus smiled and jumped at the chance to spend more time with her, “you’re welcome, I had a good time too and of course, I’ll let you know when I’m free.”

Y/N beamed as she gave Remus a tight hug before she kissed him on the cheek, “night Remus,” she waved at him as she disappeared into the common room.

“Goodnight Y/N,” Remus muttered though he knew that she couldn’t hear him as his fingers ran over the place she had kissed him.

---------------------------

@hp-imagines-07 @smiithys @pregnant-piggy @unexpectedurl @siriusblackspam @elayneblack @amelie-black @hxrgreeves @roseyrams @blackpinkdolan @yuptha-tsme @reylo-hope

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too-attached-to-fiction · 4 years

Text

Love Illustrated | Steve Rogers

Masterlist here

Word count: 2447

Requested: no

Prompt: I doodle on napkins between orders and i leave them for every regular that comes in and one day you leave a drawing for me

a/n: not doing any sequels for this. I just wanted some fluffy Steve Rogers content.

REQUESTS ARE OPEN, JUST SLOW!

~~~

Your best friend picked up another doodle you had left on the counter, observing it carefully. Above the hum of the espresso machine, he called out to you.

“Have you ever considered doing this as a job?” He held up the drawing you had made of them earlier in the morning, just after you had opened up the cafe. “You’re better at this than talking to people.”

You rolled your eyes, glaring at him. “That’s what I’m going to college for, dumbass.” You said.

Lucky Cafe was a small building, just a few blocks from Stark Tower and right next to a subway entrance. Taylor, your best friend, had opened up the shop the minute he was out of college. You, on the other hand, had been working in the shop since high school, and had started taking community classes a year ago. Due to your anxiety, you found it easier to hide behind the cash register and make whatever low-fat soy chai was ordered.

“Well, Edith is starting to move toward the counter. Better start on that London Fog,” Taylor said, taking his rightful place at the cash register.

“On it.” You mumbled, just as the old woman reached the counter. You quickly grabbed the milk to start steaming it and a teal mug from the shelf above you.

“Hi Edith, London Fog?” Taylor asked in his cheerful, my-smile-is-always-this-wide tone.

“As always.” Edith said, making amicable chit-chat with Taylor. You smirked to yourself. Kiss up.

As you waited for the milk and water to heat up, you grabbed a pen and started doodling on a spare post-it note. Today, Edith wore a purple sweater, something you’d seen her knitting for the past few weeks.

You were finally satisfied with the doodle when the water and milk were ready, and once everything was assembled, you took the mug and the post-it to her. She beamed up at you when she saw the small drawing.

“It’s beautiful, (Y/N).” You smiled back shyly before walking back to the other side of the counter.

Just as you returned, Taylor’s eyes widened as he looked through the glass doors. “Holy shit.” He mumbled. “New customer, (Y/N)!” He tugged on your apron, and you looked up. Holy shit was right. There was a blonde man coming closer to the doors of your cafe, wearing a brown leather jacket and jeans.

“He’s a fucking Adonis.” You mumbled, barely coherent. Still, you rolled your eyes. “We get them all the time. Stop ogling him and get ready to have a human conversation.” You sat on your stool, trying to figure out what to draw next.

The bell over the front door rang, but you didn’t bother to look up. You could still feel Taylor’s nervous energy practically radiating from him.

“Hi, welcome to Lucky Cafe! What can I get you today?”

“Just a black coffee.”

“For here, or to go?”

“Here, please.” The man said, and you glanced at the empty coffee pot.

“We’ll bring that out for you in a few minutes.” Taylor said, knowing exactly what you were thinking.

As soon as the man left the counter to find a seat, you leapt up, starting a new pot of coffee. While you waited for it to filter, your hands found the pen and post-it, and you sketched a basic outline of the man.

“Looks more rough than usual.” Taylor observed, making you jump. You swatted his shoulder gently.

“Shut up.” You shot back, too lazy to think of a proper insult. Taylor only laughed, and the front door rang again.

The machine beeped, and you carefully poured the coffee into a mug, grabbed the light blue post-it and a small plate. You tucked the post-it underneath the mug and plate in hand before walking out and delivering the drink.

“One black coffee.” You said, the two of you exchanging polite smiles. “If you need anything else, we’ll be at the counter.” You ducked your head as you walked off, palming the back of your neck.

Anyone who wasn’t Taylor made you nervous. You were surprised you had been able to get those two sentences out to this new customer. Normally, you could barely utter one.

Your shoulders instantly relaxed as you got behind the counter again, and carefully, you eyed the stranger as he found your drawing of him. He smiled at it, folding and tucking it in his pocket before he opened the sketchbook he had brought with him.

Steve knew you were watching him. He’d seen the way you and Taylor had looked at him from across the street. Still, not wanting to embarrass you, he chose to brush that off.

The drawing you had given him was nothing short of a normal sketch - and yet, it was undeniably him. You had gotten his features down perfectly within a few strokes of your ballpoint pen.

This continued on for a week or so, with Steve coming into Lucky Cafe and receiving a sketch of himself every day. He kept all of them in his nightstand, safely tucked away from Tony and the rest of the team.

By now, he had worked up the courage to say something. He knew you were painfully shy, because you never stood behind the register. You were always behind the espresso machine.

So if he couldn’t talk to you at the counter, he’d have to figure out how to communicate with you.

He started bringing his own post-it notes. He wondered how you made sketches so effortlessly in between customers, when he disliked everything he drew for you.

It took another week for him to be happy with his own sketch of you. He had been sitting near the take out counter, where you normally sat on your stool while you doodled. Without thinking too much about it, he drew you - your hair tied up, the black apron over your (F/C) t-shirt. When he left, the post-it note stayed where he had been sitting.

You made quick work to pick up the empty cup and the tip he’d left, but underneath it all was his drawing for you. You stared at it, wondering how he’d known all this time that you had been sketching him.

Just below the drawing, he’d scribbled out his name and number.

Steve Rogers, you thought, you’re going to be the death of me.

~~~

For the next few days, you didn’t see him. Taylor and Lyra, the other part-timer, had both promised you that they’d tell you if he came in. By the time he came back, he had almost left your mind completely.

Almost.

When he entered the coffee shop for the first time in days, you gave him a small wave from behind the espresso machine. He grinned and waved back after ordering his usual.

You were up in a flash, bouncing behind the counter as you waited for the new pot of coffee to finish. Lyra smirked at you.

“Ready to talk?” She teased, and your face went hot. “Relax, I’m just teasing you.”

Steve sat in his usual spot, in the corner of the cafe. You brought the steaming mug over with the post-it tucked into your apron.

“Thank you, for the drawing. That was really nice.” You said quietly, bringing out today’s drawing.

“I figured I should return the favor. What’s your name?”

You pointed to your name badge with a raised eyebrow. “(Y/N).”

“When do you get a break?”

Twenty minutes later, you were walking along Steve through the crowded streets of New York City. Summer was dying down, and the leaves had started to turn color everywhere. “So, Steve, what do you do?”

“I work for the government.” Steve said carefully, trying not to act suspicious. “Is the coffee shop a full time gig?”

“I’m a full time student at CCNY. The cafe just pays the bills.” You adjusted the bag on your shoulder. “I’m actually studying to be an animator. Well, trying to, anyways.”

“How long have you been drawing?”

“Longer than I can remember.” You replied, a soft smile gracing your features.

Steve listened as you walked, your quiet voice flowing nervously. It had been a long time since you went out with anyone that wasn’t Tyler.

Eventually, you made him talk about his past. He picked bits and pieces from his childhood carefully, which made you all the more curious.

When you reached the community college, you looked at Steve. “Thank you for walking me. I’ll, um, I’ll text you. I-if that’s okay.” Your fingers unconsciously fiddled with the hem of your sweater.

“Have a good class.” He said, raising a hand in greeting before going into the crowd of New Yorkers and students leaving CCNY.

A month passed, with Steve walking you to class after your shift most days. Sometimes, he didn’t come into the shop for no more than a week. Taylor and Lyra did their best to distract you during those times, knowing that he brightened your day every time he walked in.

“Are you free on Thursday night?” Steve asked one day as you served him his coffee. You stuck the post-it on the table, avoiding his eyes.

“I think so. Even if I was scheduled for work, Taylor would probably make sure I’m free.” Your face warmed. “What do you have in mind?”

“I wanted to take you out to dinner. A date, if you will.”

Your eyes met his hopeful ones. You couldn’t help but nod, too speechless. In no universe did you ever think that you’d be going out with Steve Rogers.

“Is that a yes?”

You nodded again. “Um, I-I’ll t-text you my address.”

He watched as you rushed off, amused as you practically raced behind the counter and whispered something into Taylor’s ear. His smile only grew as Taylor high-fived and hugged you tightly.

“I’m so happy for you.” Taylor mumbled as he hugged you. “God, that took way too long.”

~~~

That Thursday evening, Steve appeared at your apartment door, with a small bouquet in hand. You smiled, promising come back after you had placed the flowers in a vase.

Three subway rides later, the two of you were sitting in a tiny Italian restaurant in Brooklyn. The waitstaff seemed to know Steve well, offering you warm smiles and earnestly telling you only good things.

“Do you come here often?” You said after you’d ordered.

“Enough.” Steve laughed. “My coworkers and I helped them out of a tough spot a year or two ago.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, we helped a lot of places rebuild after the whole alien thing.” You nodded. The invasion of 2012 was a huge deal in New York. You remembered ushering at least twenty people into Lucky’s basement, where you all crouched around the crank radio. Taylor was somewhat of a survivalist, and for once, you were glad that he was over-prepared.

“That’s incredible.”

Another two months passed, with Steve going away more and more often. Even though you missed him, you got caught up in work and school often, distracting yourself. You passed your winter finals with ease, and found refuge in Lucky Cafe. If Taylor and Lyra noticed Steve hadn’t been around, they didn’t say a word.

Your phone buzzed as you were walking home from work. You stopped on the sidewalk only to find Steve’s name on your phone screen.

Steve

3:45 PM

Can you come over?

3:45 PM

Yeah, of course.

In your two months of dating, you’d only been to Steve’s apartment once or twice, and both visits had been extremely short. He was generally private about his work, and there was a part of you that always felt like he was holding his breath around you.

Still, you navigated through the streets of New York with ease, as you had done for years, and appeared at Steve’s doorstep.

He greeted you with a warm hug that made you practically melt. When he was away, there were usually a few texts back and forth, but no calls. Both of you avoided calls like it was the plague.

“Is there something wrong?” You asked when he finally let go of you, ushering you inside. “Or am I just overthinking everything?”

“I have something to tell you.” You raised an eyebrow as he sat across from you in the small living area. “We’ve been invited to Tony Stark’s annual Christmas gala.”

“O...kay?” You looked at him in confusion. “And that’s a problem because…”

“Promise me you won’t freak out or tell anybody what I’m about to tell you.”

“I won’t!”

Steve gave you a meaningful look. “I’m Captain America. I’m the leader of the Avengers.”

You opened your mouth, at a loss for words. “Steve-”

“I know it’s a lot to take in, but Stark’s my teammate and he’ll probably make some dumb jokes at the gala and I wanted to tell you before he beat me to the punch.” Steve rushed. “They know about you. Do you… do you want to come with me to the gala? As a date?”

“Um… can I think about it?” You asked weakly, trying to wrap your head around the news. Looking back, it made sense. Steve was certainly built to be Captain America, and his “work trips” were probably missions for the Avengers.

A grim look crossed his face. “Yeah, of course.”

As soon as you stepped out into the cold, you bit your lip. You knew that you should have said yes. That’s what you wanted to say when he had first told you, but all of the new information made your head spin. What if he put himself in danger in the next mission and got himself killed?

Even with this new information, he was still Steve. Steve, the guy who always ordered black coffee and left drawings as tips. Steve, who made you feel less invisible and didn’t care about your anxiety.

When Steve walked in the next morning, you perked up as usual. But this time, instead of your usual post-it note, you brought over a larger piece of paper. You shyly presented it to him.

“I, um, made this. For you.” He opened the folded paper to find a picture of himself, split down the middle. Half of him was him in his civilian wear; the other half was him in the suit, complete with the helmet.

Down in the corner, in small writing, you had written the following: The world may know you as Captain America, but I know you as Steve Rogers.

“I love it.”

“Is it too late to RSVP for that gala?” He grinned, leaning up to kiss you.

“Not at all.”

#steve rogers #steve rogers imagines #steve rogers x reader #avengers imagines #avengers being happy #avengers being a family #not requested #captain america imagines #steve rogers fluff #steve rogers angst #fluff with a little angst

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melodyalanaroster · 3 years

Photo

All I Want For Christmas Is You

When Halloween ended, it didn’t take long for the people in the Black Tower to begin their holiday preparations. The Senior Staff were already discussing what acts of good will they would commit during the season, and Alana had begun overseeing the decoration of her family home. “Why are you doing this so early?” Nora asked her. “You know its one of the only times that the family home is full. So, I want to make it to where my family won’t need to do much of the decorating. As Agatha and I are the ones closest, she and I will decorate the tree on Black Friday.” Alana replied. “It’s good that your family follows traditions like that.” Nora grinned. “I’m very thankful that The Red Death allowed me to continue that tradition even during my ascent to power. He didn’t have to do that.” Alana commented. “Because The Red Death still has a soul.” Nora stated. Alana shook her head. “Not just that. He still has his heart.”

★

Throughout the days leading up to November twenty-seventh, the Senior Staff gathered together in the main Recuperation Room. “I think we should give to local homeless shelters!”, “I think we should donate toys to needy kids!”, “Let’s take care of the bills for a few families this month!”, the ideas for acts of kindness poured out from the various members like a waterfall. Alana was deep in thought as everyone else talked. “What do you think Melody?” The Red Death asked. “I think we should make a list of all the needy families in the area, each of us choose at least a couple of them, then provide them with relief and goods this month. I also think that we should get the children more than just toys, but clothes, shoes and books as well. Perhaps, for every child on our list, we get them an outfit, pair of shoes, new book, and a toy. We can even take in to effect the non Christian population and still provide to them, simply for an act of goodwill. That way, everyone gets help, and needy children get a little cheer. They are a lot less fortunate than us, we should give them a bit of what they need and want. Oh, and let’s not forget the children in the hospitals around the area. At least one toy for each of them, and a meal sent to their families.” She suggested. “Do we have the budget for that, sir?” Veronica asked. The Red Death looked at Veronica with an eyebrow raised. He grabbed a tablet, tapped on it for a couple of minutes and handed it to her. “I see. We have more than enough.” Veronica replied. “I think it’s a fantastic idea!” Renee called. “We can even get the Paladins in on this! That way, we can help more people!” Nora cheered. “I’m in.” Derek chimed in. “Here here!”, “Let’s do this!”, “Huzzah!”, the room boomed with approval. “So, it’s unanimous. Melody’s idea wins.” The Red Death chuckled. “We deal with so much death, this is a lovely idea that can help people across the board, even if it is just for a little bit.” Lyra stated.

After much more discussion, each member of the Senior Staff was given a family to spoil. As they left the Recuperation Room to begin their missions, The Red Death held Alana back. “I know you’re going home for Christmas. When will you be leaving here?” He asked. “Probably the morning of Christmas Eve. Sam and Ken will get to the house the night before, and Mom and Nate are set to come home that day as well. Don’t worry... I’ll be back the day after Boxing Day.” She replied. “You know you don’t need to worry about when you’ll be back. I just want you to have fun.” He grinned. “Thanks for this. Although, I know that, if I’m not back in time for the New Year’s Party, all hell will break loose.” She chuckled. “When it comes to your missions, just buy the stuff for the kids. I’ll buy the food and deliver everything. After all, you are the only person in this tower who is leaving it for the holidays.” He ordered. She looked at him, puzzled. “Are Brandon and Jack not having Nora over?” She asked. “They’ve decided to spend the day here.” He replied. “Ah.” She nodded.

★

“Melody are you ready? It’s time to decorate the tree!” Agatha called from the living room in the main Roster family home. The family matriarch, Margaret, sat in the rocking chair next to a big box of ornaments. Alana dashed into the room. “Sorry, I was working on something.” She huffed. “You’re always working on something. It’s time to have fun!” Margaret stated. “I know, but Oma, you know I’m a busy woman.” Alana explained as she stood next to her grandmother. “I know, but, you need to slow down a bit.” Margaret replied. “I’ve been saying that for over a year, Mom, but she won’t listen.” Agatha commented as she turned on Christmas music. “Sweetie, you can’t be running all the time. Sometimes, you have to sit back and enjoy the view.” Margaret smiled as she held Alana’s arm. “But the view I want to see is almost within my sight! I’m almost to my ultimate goal!” Alana excitedly protested. “It’s not good for you to always be running. Even Nathaniel has been saying that.” Agatha stated. “I know... But still...” Alana sighed. “Alright, let’s get to the tree!” Margaret ordered.

As the three women took decorations and ornaments out of boxes and put them on the tree, they talked about memories. Margaret picks up a purple heart ornament with a pink decoration on it. Agatha: “Awe! Mels! It’s your Hannah Montana ornament! Remember your pop star phase?” Alana: “I’m trying to forget about it...” Margaret: “I don’t see why. You have a lovely singing voice.”

Margaret picks up an ornament that looks like a playing card. Margaret: “Sam’s card ornament! What game was that that she was so obsessed with?” Alana: “YuGiOh! That’s her Blue-Eyes White Dragon. She put it in a card protector and turned it into an ornament for safe keeping.” Agatha: “I thought you all were in to Pokemon...” Alana: “We are. But, we all prefer the games and anime over the cards.”

Margaret picks up an ornament that looks like Merida. Alana: “Mom’s Brave ornament!” Margaret: “We were singing “Noble Maiden Fair” before Disney popularized it.” Margaret picks up a metal ornament that’s in the shape of a cat. Margaret: “Sylvester’s ornament.” Alana, who tears up and begins to sniffle: “I miss him...”

★

“Mels! This is a wonderful idea! I’m glad the R.D.R is doing this! I wanna take part! If there’s a family that I can do that to, let me know!” Severina cheered. “Well, there are a couple of families that are on the list that the Senior Staff and I can’t get to... I’ll send you the details later today.” Alana smiled as they walked around the shops. “Fantastic! I can’t wait to put a smile on their faces!” Severina beamed. “Have you finished your shopping?” Alana asked. “Not yet. I haven’t quite decided on what to get you. Do you know what you want?” Severina asked. Alana shook her head. “The item I want most is on its way... I hope.” She replied. “That book you’ve been talking about for months? What was it called again? The Toll?” Severina asked. “No. The Toll is a book I’m still waiting on. It’s The Living that is on its way. I’ve waited two years for that book. I preordered it when Isaac Marion said that it was available. It’ll be a signed, hardcover, first edition, fresh off the press, copy. It’s that zombie book I’ve been waiting for.” Alana replied.

As they went through the shops and Alana purchased the items for the needy kids on her list, Severina kept talking about how great the holidays were gonna be. “We’ll play games and eat ourselves sick!” She cheered. “And your dad will get mad like he always does.” Alana commented. Severina stuck her tongue out at her. “This year, I don’t care if my father gets angry with me! I wanna enjoy myself!” She scoffed. Alana smiled. “Not to mention, how, if everything goes well, you won’t have to deal with your father any more soon.” She added. Severina hugged her. “Yeah! After that’s all over, my father won’t have any power in my mom’s and my life! I still don’t see why this investigation is taking months to do....” She replied. “Because you and your mom need time to build up your lives so you two won’t fail after he’s gone. I’ve told you that for weeks. Make it to where there is no way that you two will ever need him. During this time, the police and I are getting every ounce of evidence we need to lock your father away for good.” Alana explained.

A few minutes later, they had wandered into a bookstore. “Are we gonna have a snowball fight?” Severina asked. “Probably.” Alana grinned as she looked over the books. Suddenly, a book on a shelf in the book caught her eye. She walked over to the shelf and gazed at the book. It was an old detective novel by Agatha Christie. She picked the book up, looked closer at it, and smiled. A first edition. “I’m sure he has a copy of this one, but he doesn’t have a copy like this.” She thought. She took the book to the counter. “Either you’re a hardcore Agatha Christie fan, or you’re a fan of rare books.” The girl commented. “The man I love is a major fan of Hercule Poirot. I’m sure he has a copy of this one, but it’s not a first edition. This will be a perfect Christmas present.” Alana explained. “Would you like it gift wrapped?” The girl asked, smiling as she rang the book up. Alana shook her head. “No, I like wrapping presents myself.” She grinned as she slid her card in the card reader. “That’s so sweet. I hope he likes it.” The girl handed her the book in a bag with her receipt. “I hope so too. Thank you.” Alana took the bag, looked at it hopefully and began looking for Severina. “Have a great day! Merry Christmas!” the girl called as Alana walked off. “So, find anything good?” Severina asked. “Yeah, Nathaniel’s Christmas present.” Alana replied.

★

“Get in assholes, we’re going light looking!” Alana cheered as Castiel, Priya, and Nathaniel stood before a van. “Why do I have to drive?” Nora asked. “Because it will be good for you.” Alana replied. “Why are we doing this?” Nathaniel asked. “Because! Light Looking is a fun holiday event! We get hot chocolate, fast food, blankets and pillows and listen to Christmas music while we drive around and look at everyone’s light displays! Come on guys! Please?” Alana cheered. Nathaniel, Castiel and Priya looked around at each other and sighed. “Alright, if it’ll make you happy.” Nathaniel slightly grinned as he got into the van. “And why are we here?” Priya asked. Alana looked at them blankly. “Because its more fun with more people and you guys are my friends.” She stated. Priya looked at Castiel, shrugged, and got into the van. Castiel looked at Alana and smiled. “Is this what you really want?” He asked. “Yes.” Alana cheerfully cooed. “Alright, I’ll do it.” He chuckled as he got in the van. “Fantastic!” Alana cheered as she got in.

“Does your family decorate the outside of the main house in Weathering at this time of year?” Priya asked as they drove through the suburban sections of the city, listening to Christmas music, eating snacks and drinking hot cocoa. “Yeah. It’s tradition that the closest family members are required to do it. This year, Agatha and I had that task. There are lights in the trees and along the fence. We even have metal Santa hats for the dragons on the gate and the mailbox. Its not much, but people like it. We used to always get comments from local kids and our postmen before mom, Sam and I moved.” Alana explained. “Why don’t you stop, now that you don’t live there anymore?” Priya asked. “Because that house has been in our family for several generations. It’s been my family’s primary home since my great, great, grandmother bought it when my great, grandmother was a child. Typically, the next head of the family inherits it. It’s going to mom. Then, even though I’m mom’s successor, it will be going to Sam. Decorating it is a tradition that my family follows because, at it’s core, even though most of us don’t live there anymore, it is still home to us.” Alana continued to explain. “That’s really sweet.” Priya cooed.

As they drove through the city they saw many beautiful displays. Lights, music, beloved characters, it all made them feel warm. “Are you all gonna see family this season?” Nora, innocently, asked. Nathaniel and Castiel looked down. “I’ll be seeing my parents, but only for a couple of days.” Priya piped up. Alana put her hand on Nathaniel’s arm. “You could spend the holiday with me. I’m sure my family will happily welcome you.” She whispered into his ear. “I’m not ready for that. Besides, I’ll spend part of that day with Amber.” He whispered back. “Oh.” Alana looked down. “Thank you for the offer.” Nathaniel whispered, lovingly.

★

“Calm down, everyone!” Rayan called as he stood before his class. When the class became silent, he gave everyone a grin. “Now, I know that some of you will be starting your winter break after this, but I want you all to remember, learning does not stop at that door. Take in the beauty of the season, and appreciate the art that comes with it. Have a good break.” He announced as the class ended. Alana walked up to the podium. “You gonna watch the BBC’s rerun marathon of all the Doctor Who Christmas specials during the break?” She asked. “Maybe. You know Christmas isn’t my favorite time of year.” He replied, a hint of sadness in his voice. Alana looked down and attempted to be cheery. “I get that. But, hopefully, something will help you feel better.” She replied as she took a package out of her backpack and set it on the podium. “Merry Christmas Rayan.” She smiled as she walked out of the auditorium.

Rayan looked at the package, curiously, and began to open it. Inside was a DVD copy of Matt Smith’s era of Doctor Who, a Deadpool comic, a set of Batman shaped chocolate, and a note.

“From one geek to another. I hope this adds some cheer during this season.

- Melody Alana Roster”

He read the note and smiled. “Thanks Alana.”

★

The hustle and bustle throughout the Black Tower became more celebratory. The Jewish members celebrated Hanukkah and invited Alana to join in on their fun. She took part in at least one night of the celebrations. “If you ever wanna join in on our holiday, please feel free to!” The girl who invited her smiled. “Yes, thank you so much for giving us some of your time!” a boy beamed. “Thank you for the invite! It was a lot of fun!” Alana smiled as she left the room. The other members of the Senior Staff were continuing their work on their missions. Alana had dropped off her mission purchases in the Red Death’s office.

“Severina talked to me about the mission. I gave her three families to help out and she went above and beyond. I’m impressed.” The Red Death commented. “She really wanted to help and she loved our mission.” Alana smiled. “That’s amazing. I’ll be sure to give her credit for all the work she’s done.” He replied. “Thank you, sir.” Alana bowed. “Alright, go get ready for your holiday.” He ordered.

★

The morning of Christmas Eve, Alana had been walking through the city, getting the last items she needed before she had to leave for Weathering. “Alright, got the treats from that local bakery that I like. Got all the presents loaded into my Mini Cooper, the Tower won’t fall into ruin while I’m gone. Nathaniel and everyone here know when I’ll be back. Sam and Ken got to the house last night. Mom and Nate should be getting there right about now. The shops should all be closing in the next couple of hours. I even got myself some yummy treats for breakfast! I’m still waiting on The Living to come in.” She thought out loud as she made her way back to the Black Tower.

When she got back to Death’s Domain, she saw Nathaniel standing outside her door. “My, my!! It really is Christmas. It’s just a damn shame I don’t have any mistletoe around!” She cheered when she saw him. “I wanted to see you before you leave.” He said, nervously. “I’ll only be gone a few days. I promise I’ll be home in time for New Years.” She cooed as she opened the door and let him in. “Would you like something to eat? I guarantee I bought too much for myself.” She offered as she set her purchases on the table. “Are you sure?” He asked. “I wouldn’t have offered if I wasn’t sure. Come on, let’s eat.” She insisted as she pulled out the food and a couple of plates. “Thanks, Alana.” He smiled as he sat down. Alana noticed him placing a package on the ground next to him. “What’s that?” She asked. He looked at her and nervously blushed. “I-I got you something.” He muttered. Her heart skipped a beat. “That’s really sweet! I’ve got something for you too.” She mused. He looked surprised for a second. “Really?” He asked. Alana got up from the table, walked over to the Christmas tree, picked up a present, brought it over to the table and sat down. “Do you wanna do this, then eat? Or do you wanna eat first?” She asked, lovingly. Nathaniel looked at the gift, then at the food, and his stomach growled. “Can we eat first?”

After eating their meal, Alana cleared the table, took the present she had gotten for Nathaniel to the couch, sat down and motioned for him to follow in her stead. He picked up the present at his feet, walked over to her and sat down. He sat the package on the table next to hers. She picked up the small package and handed it to him. “You first.” She beamed. He took it in his hands and began to open it. When all of the paper was off the book, he looked at it. “Its a first edition. Where did you find this?” He asked, shocked, a smile making it’s way onto his face. “There’s a bookshop in the more aristocratic part of the city. I was there with Severina one day and I found it in the back on a shelf.” She explained. “Thank you Alana. I love it.” He blushed. Nathaniel laid the book on the couch next to him, picked up the remaining present and handed it to her. She unwrapped the present, opened the box and looked at the item in shock. “Nathaniel, you remembered!” She choked as she pulled out a blue and white teddy bear. Nathaniel put his hand on his neck and nervously looked away. “Amber dragged me to the mall one day... I saw that in that bear building store and thought of you...” He explained. The bear was a deep blue with white spots all over it, resembling snow. It had yellow pajama’s and a deep blue robe on. On it’s wrist was a large plush bell. Hanging from it’s ear was a tag that looked like a golden train ticket. “Nathaniel, you didn’t have to get me anything...” Alana smiled. “I know, but I wanted to.” He replied. She set the bear down on the coffee table, got closer to him and kissed his cheek, sweetly. “Thank you so much Nath. It means the world to me.” She cooed. He scooted away from her, nervously, and his blush became more prominent. “M-Merry C-Christmas A-Alana.” He stuttered as he grabbed the book. She chuckled, grabbed the bear and stood up. “Merry Christmas Nathaniel.”

A couple of hours later, the gate at the main Roster family home in Weathering opened and Alana’s car pulled into the driveway. Sam opened the door as Alana got out of her car. “Welcome home, asshole!” Sam called as she walked towards the car. “Merry Christmas jackass!” Alana called as she started pulling stuff out of the car. “Good to see you, sis.” Sam patted Alana on the back. “You too, Sam.” Alana smiled. “Mom and Nate aren’t home yet. A package was sent here for you. The Red Death directed it to come here.” Sam explained as they walked into the manor. They walked to the kitchen and sat the goodies on the counter. “Mom and Nate will be home this evening. As for what he sent here, I’m not sure what it is.” Alana replied. “Well, he’s not the type to send gifts like that, is he? He typically gives you guys stuff directly, or sends messengers, right?” Sam asked. “Typically... Unless...” Alana began as her eyes shot up and she bolted to her room.

Alana threw open the door, ran to the bed, pulled out a knife and opened the package. “FINALLY! TWO YEARS OF WAITING AND IT’S FINALLY HERE!” She called as she picked up the book. Two years of waiting patiently, watching out for Isaac Marion’s email updates, a hint of despair when one update said that it might not get finished, hope when the emails began talking about the looming completion, and utter joy when preorders became available had all lead up to this. She opened the book and smelled the pages. “Ahhh... Freshly printed!” She sighed. She turned to the title page and saw the signature. She closed the book, looked in the box, pulled out the two packets and smiled. “The signed bonus stories!” She cheered. She quickly placed the book on the bed, sat down, and delved into the stories. After a few minutes, she placed the packets on her desk. “Those were lovely.” She sighed as she grabbed the book and went back downstairs.

“He must have seen that it would come in while I’m here!” Alana cheered as she walked into the living room and held up her book for Sam and Ken to see. “Isn’t that the book you’ve been waiting on for a while?” Ken asked. “Two years, yes.” Alana confirmed. “Well then, good for the Red Death. Although, you’d better understand, you can’t tear into that book the entire time. I know you’ve been waiting forever for it, but you need to stay in our world for a bit.” Sam chuckled. Alana rolled her eyes. “I know. I’ll just read in my free time.” She sighed. “Good. Mom texted me, she’ll be home in a couple of hours.” Sam announced.

Hours later, while Sam, Ken, Margaret and Alana were in the kitchen preparing the meal for the following day, the front door flew open, allowing some of the snow to come in to the manor. “Mom!” Sam and Alana cheered in unison as they sauntered towards the entryway. “We’re home!” Lynne announced as she and Nate walked into the entryway and shook off the snow. “Welcome home mom.” Alana smiled as she hugged her mother. “Hey Nate.” She cheered as she hugged her step-father. “Welcome back guys.” Sam smiled as she hugged them. “My babies! I’ve missed you two so much!” Lynne cheered as she looked at her daughters. “Is Nathaniel not with you?” She asked Alana. “No. I invited him, but he’s spending tomorrow with his sister. He came to Death’s Domain this morning and we ate breakfast and did our gift exchange.” Alana clarified. “What did he give you?” Nate asked. “The Polar Express bear from the bear building shop.” Alana blushed. “Awe, he must have remembered your favorite Christmas movie!” Lynne smiled.

It didn’t take long for everyone to eat dinner and get settled into the living room. The Christmas Eve movie that was chosen was Hogfather. As the movie progressed, and Death did the Hogfather’s job, Alana couldn’t help but be reminded of why she chose the Grim Reaper as her R.D.R avatar. It was, of course, an homage to her favorite incarnation of him. She never got over the part of him saving the little match girl in Hogfather. The scene in the movie was playing. “You’re not supposed to do that.” Alfred said as Death refilled the little match girl’s hourglass. "The Hogfather gives presents. There's no better present than a future." Death pointed out as he picked the little girl up off the street. Terry Pratchett’s version of the Grim Reaper was what she wanted to resemble when doing her job.

After the movie was over, and everyone had gone to bed, Alana made sure to leave a pork pie and a glass of sherry for Santa with a note saying “The Hogfather likes this, maybe you’ll appreciate something different.”. She knew that no one would come for it, but she giggled at the principle of the thing. She went back to her room, put the bear Nathaniel gave her in her lap, texted Nathaniel “Goodnight”, and began reading her book. “I’ll just read a couple of chapters, then I’ll go to sleep.” She mused as she read.

★

The morning of Christmas Day was always a fun one. With no little kids waking up early to make a ruckus, it was up to Sam and Alana to wake up and begin the festivities. As Alana descended the stairs in her pajamas, she smelled bacon being cooked in the kitchen. “Merry Christmas fuckface!” Sam cheered as she stood over the stovetop. “Merry Christmas you overdeveloped cum shot!” Alana mused as she walked into the kitchen, pulled out a griddle and began preparing pancakes. As the pancakes cooked, Alana pulled out her phone and sent a “Merry Christmas” message to Nathaniel. He quickly came back with a “Merry Christmas” message. As the smell of the girls’ cooking became stronger, Ken, Lynne and Nate wandered into the room. “Smells delicious!” Lynne mused. “Can I have some?” Nate asked. “We’re eating good today!” Ken cheered.

Not long after breakfast, there was a knock on the door. Everyone had gotten dressed and was beginning to work on the next preparations for the evening feast. “They’re here early.” Sam smiled. “At this rate, they might as well spend the night here!” Alana commented as she went to open the door. “MELS!” Severina cheered as she threw her arms around her. “Hey Rini!” Alana mused as she hugged Severina. She looked at the people behind Severina. “Hey Viktor, aunt Verity!” She called. Viktor came into the manor holding a large stack of gifts. “Hey Mels!” He smiled as he did his best to balance the stack in his arms. “Do you need help?” Alana asked. “I’d appreciate it.” He sighed. She chuckled and took some of the packages away from him. “Thanks.” He smiled as they walked to the living room and set the presents around the tree.

Throughout the day, the manor filled with the Roster clan and close friends. Agatha, Seraphina, Kirk, Kai and Ravenna had all shown up. As soon as Kai had entered the living room, he was met with sharp glares from Viktor, Severina, Ken, Sam and Alana. “Already judging, I see.” Kai commented as he sat down in a chair in the corner. “If you weren’t so disrespectful, you wouldn’t be receiving this treatment.” Sam spat. “The least you can do is be a good little boy and remain silent.” Severina shot. “Oh, and don’t forget to thank OUR FAMILY for making sure your daughter doesn’t turn into a wretched disgrace like you!” Alana added. Ken and Viktor looked at each other, then shot Kai disgusted looks. “Come on? Nothing from you two?” Kai asked them. “The girls have got it covered.” Viktor stated as Ken nodded in agreeance. Kai then scoffed and left the room. He could be heard muttering the phrases “fucking assholes” and “no respect” as he walked out. A minute later, Ravenna ran into the room, Seraphina following suit. “MELS! SAMI! RINI! KEN! VIKY!” Ravenna cheered as she made her way around the room, giving everyone hugs. “Hey kiddo.”, “Hey Kid.”, “Merry Christmas Ravenna.”, “Good afternoon little one.” they all greeted. “Hey kids.” Seraphina smiled. “Hey Sera.” Alana grinned. “I see you’ve all instantly jumped on Kai.” Seraphina commented. “I know Christmas is about “Peace on Earth” and “Good will towards men”, but he’s been an insufferable prick the past few years, so, we’ll ignore peace and good will in an effort to show him that.” Sam explained. “Not to mention how he’s disrespected mom, Sam and me A LOT over the past few years!” Alana commented. “Sera, he has become a selfish, self centered, overly entitled, fool.” Severina stated. “Okay, I get it. But, can we please tone that down for the holiday? I’ll tell him to do the same.” Seraphina requested. Sam and Alana rolled their eyes. “Fine, I guess.” Sam sighed. “Whatever.” Alana shot.

It wasn’t long before the ham was in it’s final hours of cooking and everyone could gather in the living room to open presents. “Did you get something from Nathaniel?” Severina asked. “Yeah, that Polar Express bear that just came out.” Alana replied. “Awe! He remembered!” Severina cooed. Lynne began passing the presents out to everyone. Ravenna had gotten a bunch of toys from various genres. Superheroes from Alana, Anime from Sam and Ken, Sci-Fi from Lynne and Nate, and Princesses from everyone else. “Looks like her villains are up a creek without a paddle!” Alana joked. “Oh yeah! They won’t know what hit them!” Ravenna cheered. “Mels? Sam? Did you two not get Kai anything?” Seraphina asked. “Nope.” Alana replied. “Why would I?” Sam asked. Seraphina, and Lynne sighed. Kai opened the three presents he received. “Thanks guys.” He sheepishly grinned. Ken, Viktor, Agatha, Seraphina, Kirk, Margaret, Harold, Nate, Lynne and Verity opened their presents. “Thanks everyone.”, “This is so sweet!”, “You all know me!”, “This is lovely!”, “Thanks fam!”, “This is amazing!”, “So cute!”, “Fantastic!”, “I love it!”, “Divine!” they all cheered as they put the trash in the bag. Severina began to open her presents. “Oh my gosh! These are amazing!” She cheered. Alana had gotten her a collection of all of the Pokemon movies. Sam had gotten her a bunch of Sailor Moon items. Viktor had gotten her Disney stuff. The family got her various other things that was on her wish list. Sam opened her presents. The pile of items around Sam looked like an explosion of Batman. “This was awesome!” She beamed. Alana began to open her presents. Agatha gave her filaments for her 3D printer. Margaret gave her a Sailor Moon plush. Seraphina gave her a set of Stewart Semple’s paints. Lynne gave her figures of Death from the Discworld Emporium. Nate gave her Doctor Who items. Verity gave her a black, Doctor Who, long coat. Viktor gave her a Rowlet plush from Pokemon. Severina gave her a set of Sailor Moon Funko Pops. Then came Sam’s presents to her... Alana unwrapped the gift and instantly became awestruck. “Sam, this is a Hong Kong exclusive.” She commented. “Yeah, I got a contact to get it to me.” Sam replied. Alana picked up the item and showed everyone. In Alana’s hand was a portable power bank shaped like the Cosmic Heart compact from Sailor Moon. “There’s more in that box.” Sam smiled. Alana pulled out a Spiral Heart Rod selfie stick and a Cosmic Heart popcorn bucket from Universal Studios Japan. “See, it matches the Crystal Star and Cutie Moon Rod stuff I got for Rini!” Sam beamed. Tears came to Alana’s eyes. “Sam.” She sputtered. “Awe, come on! You know I love you!” Sam chuckled. “Awe!” A bunch of people smiled.

After the trash from the presents had been cleared away, and all members who didn’t live in the house had put their presents in boxes and bags, Sam, Ken, Lynne, Seraphina, Agatha, Viktor and Alana put the food on the table. The dinner consisted of a massive brown sugar glazed ham, turkey, two different dressings, green bean casserole, yams, mashed potatoes, white gravy, cranberry sauce, carrots, croissants and rolls. The desert table was covered in beautiful snacks brought by several members of the family. Several Christmas themed cakes, snickerdoodles, several variations of sugar cookie, shortbread cookies, gingerbread cookies, divinity, home made hard candy, truffles, pumpkin pie, pecan pie, candy canes, and cheesecake. “I see the feast is a little extra cheery this year!” Verity beamed as everyone sat down. “Yes, this is a major year for our clan! We must celebrate it properly!” Seraphina smiled. “Let’s hope that the table will have more next year!” Agatha cheered. Alana smiled. “Hopefully, it will!” She cooed. Margaret whispered something to Lynne and Lynne stood up. Everyone turned their attention to Lynne. “Family, dear friends, each Christmas, our clan celebrates another year of love, life, and the pursuit of happiness. As the stories tell, this season is for “Peace on Earth” and “Good will towards men”. Our family is no different. The past few years, we have been through many hardships, and, while I know the hardships have yet to end, and I can say that, this past year has brought us many victories. That being said, this is a time to be thankful for what we have, and look forward for what’s to come. I know you all are working hard to achieve your dreams, just as I have. Thank you all for everything you are, and everything you do! Merry Christmas!” Everyone raised their glasses and toasted to Lynne’s speech. “Merry Christmas!” They all cheered.

When dinner ended, they cleaned everything up, got everyone’s “to go” boxes ready and the kids went into the living room. “Mario Kart or Super Smash Bros.?” Sam asked. “Either way, someone is getting their ass kicked!” Alana cheered. “Let’s play Mario Kart! We played Smash last year!” Severina suggested. “I’m in.” Viktor cheered. “I’m out, I’m too full. I’ll sit and watch.” Ken sighed as he laid on the couch. Viktor, Severina, Sam and Alana proceeded to play video games for a couple of hours. Each match ending in cheers, someone groaning, and plenty of jokes and laughter.

Alana’s head had begun to hurt from the games, even with her glasses activated to “videogame mode”. “I’m gonna go to bed.” She yawned. “Okay, do you need help upstairs?” Viktor asked. “Nah, I’ll leave my presents down here, I’m just gonna go to sleep.” Alana smiled as she left the party and went to her room. Suddenly, her phone was vibrating. She took it out of her pocket, looked at it, and answered the call. Alana: “Good Evening Nathaniel.” Nathaniel: “Hey, Alana.” Alana: “I get a present and an evening phone call? It really is the most wonderful time of the year!” Nathaniel: “You sound like you’ve had fun.” Alana: “It would have been more fun if you had been here.” Alana put Nathaniel on speaker phone while she got changed into her pajamas. Nathaniel: “Alana....” Alana: “I know, I know.... You’re not ready for this yet. It’s a big thing to come to the Roster Family Christmas. Especially considering you’d be meeting Viktor, Severina and my aunt Verity. Oh, and we’re not officially back together yet.” Nathaniel: “You know...” Alana: “I know, it’s dangerous. You keep telling me that. But, you’re worth the danger. Not to mention, I’m me. I’ll survive.” Nathaniel: ... Alana took the call off of speaker phone and got into bed. Alana: “So? How was your holiday?” Nathaniel: “It was alright. I hung out with Amber for a while, then she had to spend time with our parents.” Alana: “So, for the most part, you just spent Christmas with Blanche?” Nathaniel: “Yeah.” Alana: “Well, next year, how about you spend Christmas with me?” Nathaniel: “Next year?” Alana: “Yeah. Amber can come too. We can even bring Blanche!” Nathaniel: -chuckles- “Maybe. When we get closer to that point.” Alana told Nathaniel how her Christmas went. Nathaniel: “Wow, you did have a lot of fun!” Alana: “It’s always a bit of a party around here at Christmas!” Nathaniel: “Would your family be okay if I came next year?” Alana: “Mom asked me why you didn’t come this year. Don’t worry, I told her that you and I aren’t fully official yet, and that you’re not comfortable.” Nathaniel: “Thanks Alana.” Alana: -yawns- “Of course. Hey, I’m really tired, I’m gonna go to sleep. Goodnight Nathaniel. Merry Christmas!” Nathaniel: “Okay. Goodnight and sweet dreams my Melody. Merry Christmas.” Alana ended the phone call, put her phone on the charger on her bedside table, grabbed the bear Nathaniel gave her, and curled up in bed. Viktor and Severina lightly knocked on her door, telling her that they’re staying the night and they’ll see her in the morning. Slow, calm, Christmas music rang through the house. Sam knocked on the door. “Mels! Don’t forget! We’re all having a snowball fight tomorrow! Rest up and prepare for battle!” She called. “’Night Mels!” Ken called. A couple of minutes later, Nate and Lynne called through her door. “Goodnight kiddo!”, “Sweet dreams sweetie!”. When the only thing that could be heard from outside her bedroom door was the Christmas music, Alana rolled over and muttered to herself. “He called me “his Melody”. She smiled.

As the calm took over the Roster Estate, the area felt an air of peace. The snow was still falling, the music was soothing, and everyone in the home felt warm and cozy. Sam and Ken snuggled up in their bed. Nate and Lynne cuddled in theirs. Kirk picked Ravenna up off the floor and took the child to bed. Harold had fallen asleep in a chair in the living room. Seraphina told Kai to quit complaining and go to bed, before having a cup of tea with Agatha and Margaret. Verity, Severina and Viktor took refuge in guest rooms. And Alana fell asleep without the fear of her nightmares waking her up in the middle of the night. Just as it should on Christmas, peace and love won, and for one night, all was well.

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I have been wanting to write this one for a couple of years now. It was originally going to be a lot like the first Christmas event for MCLUL, but I ended up taking a lot of liberties.

Oh, for context.... Kai gets a lot of harsh treatment in this one... You might wanna read the Cousin Mels specials.... You’ll find out why the girls can’t stand him. He’s an entitled asshole. But, hey, every family has one of those.

Credit: @candysweetposts for Lynne’s sprite, and most of the components used to make Sam’s and Severina’s sprites. andanguyen for the background of the Roster Family Home

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nellie-elizabeth · 3 years

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His Dark Materials: Malice (2x06)

This was by no means a bad hour of television, but it felt like a lot of setup, a lot of spinning wheels, and maybe less of an epic feel than the same moments I remember from the book. Let's dive in.

Cons:

There are many ways in which it feels like the scope was shrunk down for the show, from what was portrayed in the books. Since this was filmed before COVID, I don't really understand why some of these limiting choices where made. In the books, when Will and Lyra are attacked by the child citizens of Cittagaze, it's a protracted chase sequence and they end up climbing a tower and the witches swoop in at the last possible second. Here, it's just the two sisters instead of a whole gang, and they scramble up to the roof, then the witches arrive. In the book, there are a dozen or so witches, and here we see three or four. In the book, Boreal's death comes at a campsite where Mrs. Coulter is staying with him in the nicest tent, and they are surrounded by a whole crew coming with them on the hunt for Lyra, thus showing the influence and power that Mrs. Coulter is giving up by abandoning her supposed protectors. Here, it's just the two of them. All of these things combined make the scope feel smaller, the world feel smaller, in a lot of ways.

And then on the flipside, the episode somewhat has the opposite problem as well. Instead of telling a focused, narrow story, we're spread far and wide, checking in with Lee and Jopari, with the witches, with Coulter and Boreal, Will and Lyra, and... the Magisterium. I want the Magisterium scenes to work for me, but they have consistently been the least interesting in the whole show. When they were drawing out the reveal of Lyra as "Eve" I was rolling my eyes, just waiting for them to get through all the slow, sonorous speechifying and back to the action.

Oh, and another thing... I can't remember from the books, but don't Serafina Pekkala and Lyra meet before this moment? When she showed up and they talked, and I realized they were seeing each other for the first time in the show, it didn't have the impact that it should have. Frankly, the witches overall have been the biggest disappointment for me, in terms of translating what I liked about them from the books. See, the vibe is supposed to be that they never get involved in political and human affairs, and this is a moment when they're making a big exception. The way it comes across here, they seem like bit players, and every time we check in with them, I'm not as gripped as I want to be.

Pros:

I'll keep saying it, but if they were only able to get one thing right this season and it was Will and Lyra, they would have chosen correctly. I love the friendship and care between the two of them. Serafina tells Will that Lyra is his responsibility, just as Lyra thinks of Will as her responsibility. But they also genuinely trust and respect and care for one another, and they're in this shit until the bitter end. So good.

While I might have wished for some changes to the Mrs. Coulter and Boreal stuff, I did ultimately still think this was a clever and intense continuation from where we left them last week. When the monkey and the snake approached each other while Coulter and Boreal spoke, it was just such a great building of tension. And Mrs. Coulter revealing, once again, that Lyra is her only true priority, worked as such an expression of her power. See, Boreal offers her tepid "equality" here, claiming to think of her as his equal in all things. He definitely picked up on what was bothering her in the last episode. But Mrs. Coulter doesn't want what a man can hand her, magnanimous, and motivated by lust. She just wants her daughter, and Boreal's limited ambitions and poor planning made it harder for her to achieve that goal. Hence... she doesn't need him anymore. Time to get him out of the way. So chilling.

I'm getting vibes from Lee and Joe Parry lol. I mean, not really, but kind of. They have this funny, nearly flirty, energy to them, that adds a lot of comedy but also heart to their scenes together. I loved the moment when Lee, a jovial man who is nevertheless in a stressful position, asks if the Shaman can magic them up some fire. Jopari pauses, closes his eyes as if to call on magical forces, and then produces a box of matches, tossing them to Lee, who smiles and rolls his eyes. It's just fun, okay?

And like... knowing where it's all going, I will say that the "elements converging" stuff worked best for me with Lee, his balloon whirling through a storm, while Andrew Scott makes the bad guys explode behind them. That made me hyped for the thing that's going to happen in the finale, at the same time as I am of course dreading it.

This is a departure from Mary's character in the books, that she's sticking around to help the kids instead of heading straight for another world, but I think it works really well! The scene where the feral child asks Mary for a hug, and both of the girls just want someone to tell them to wash and look after them... that was really heart-twisting, and it works so well for Mary, a woman who has so much love to give, who was so nurturing to Lyra immediately, but who also has a bigger mission that she shouldn't ignore. What a great addition!

So that's where I'll stop for now. This episode wasn't as good as the last. I definitely think when the plot threads get spread too thin, we start to lose some of the magic of the show. Fortunately, the performances are enough to ground me and keep me coming back time and again. I can't believe next week is already the finale!

7/10

#review #his dark materials #his dark materials review #hdm

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moving-blogs-dm-for-new-one · 4 years

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T*cc* Toby character and story redesign :D

Toby and his family moved across the states after the accident. They were moving to West Virginia, a more rural town surrounded by forest. He didn't want to be there, but he didn't have much of a choice. Really didn't help his mood when his father basically screamed at his mother for the entire three day trip. He was slumped in the back of the car, ticcing uncontrollably, one hour to go on the drive. He winced when his father yelled at him to shut up, sighing and trying to hold his vocal tics, again. Maybe he could make it until they reached the new house.

They reached the house, and he quietly helped unload the car, gently helping his mom climb out. Sighing, he patched her up quietly later in the bathroom, and let her cry on his shoulder, ticcing quietly.

For the next two and a half weeks of summer, Toby pretty much just laid in bed. He didn't have much energy or will to do anything. He would pull out his computer and play some games, but his father broke hit before their trip even began. He pulled out his old ipod from his 14th birthday, and laid back in bed, staring at the ceiling and looping the same playlist on shuffle endlessly to block out his father. Same old, same old.

When school started, he absolutely did not want to be there. His Tourette's was neigh uncontrollable, and he couldn't help but tic through every day. Of course, the other kids in class were horrible to him about it. He was bullied relentlessly, and was beat up on the first day of school, and many days after that. He went home, his mother patched him up, his father mocked him, and he went to lie in bed again. It went on like this for a few weeks. It was August second when his dad broke his mothers nose. They got into a fight and he slammed her head on the counter. Toby was furious, but he quietly patched her up, ignoring his father egging him on.

That night, he had sleep paralysis again for the first time in a month or two, but it was different this time. His eyes opened, and there was a being standing at the end of his bed. He couldn't tell who or what it is. Could have been his father if it wasn't so tall. They stared at each other for around three hours before Toby fell back asleep. He was afraid, yes. But not much bothered him since Lyra died.

He mourned her every day. He never stopped. His mother mourned in silence, afraid, and his father cursed him to move on, but he didn't. He was never one to pray, but he lit candles for her the way she used to, prayed to a god they'd both loved, Dionysus. He cried for her at night. She never left his mind. He missed his sister more than anything in the world. He had a small alter in the back of his closet so his Father wouldn't find it, candles, pictures of her, foods she loved and special items.

Over the course of the next few weeks, Toby began having hallucinations of the creature he saw. It was everywhere. It was in the reflections of mirrors and windows, across the school yard while he was being kicked, at the end of the street when he pulled down his blinds, and behind his eyelids every night when he tried to sleep. He couldn't understand why it was haunting him.

His mother noticed his extreme paranoia, depression, and unrelenting tics/tic attacks, and scheduled him for a meeting with a local psychiatrist. She talked him up for the whole drive, and he smiled and nodded, not wanting to be there but not wanting to further sadden or worry his mother. Her arm was in a sling today. It was bad enough she was driving him.

He met with the psych, sitting down in the office. She asked him how he'd been. He didn't know how to respond, but suddenly felt bitter.

"Fantastic. Obviously that's why mom brought me here."

"I'm sorry, Tobias. I thought I'd let you give your own input." He felt bad for a moment, before wincing at the usage of his full name, getting more frustrated. He hated this already.

"Don't call me that. It's Toby. I'm Toby." He was fighting his vocal tics as he spoke, but his physical tics were getting worse in response, and he saw her flinch and lean a bit further away in his chair. He felt a pang through his heart, immediately angry. But he wouldn't blow up. He wasn't him.

Then he saw the figure behind her.

He didn't even hear what she was saying. He just stared at it. For some reason for as much as he'd been seeing it, he'd never seen it in such clarity, and it was still fuzzing around the edges, almost as if it wasn't fully there. It towered over the back of her chair, slowly leaning down to him.

"Toby," It spoke, and he could barely comprehend its voice. It was garbled, layered, echoed over itself endlessly and buzzed and burned inside his ears. "I want to help you. Let me help you."

He screamed, grabbing a lamp off the side table next to him and whipping it at the creature. He heard the psych scream and froze, whipping his gaze to where she was holding her arms over her face, ceramic and glass sprawled on the floor behind her at the base of the wall. They made eye contact, and he felt sick. He didn't understand. He wanted to say sorry. He suddenly wanted to explain everything. He wanted to say he wasn't him. He wanted his mother. He wanted Lyra.

He passed out.

Toby awoke later in his room, still feeling sick. The lights were out, his room only illuminated by the moonlight casting in through the blinds and the yellow light seeping in from under his doorway. (tw heavy abuse and murder after this) He could hear his parents screaming downstairs. There was a smash, his mother was crying. He jolted upright, tics coming back harshly as he tried to quietly make his way to the top of the stairs, peering down. His father was screaming about him.

"We have to get rid of him, Evelyn," He screamed, furious. "He's a disaster. He's dangerous and annoying and he's a fucking nuisance anyways!! And now I owe that stupid fucking psychiatrist so much goddamn money!! What is wrong with you!!" His mother cowered away from him, shaking, but angry as well.

"We are NOT getting rid of our SON, Greg! He's just scared and sick!" Toby winced at the phrasing of "sick", but continued watching, listening. He felt static pulling at the edges of his vision, but ignored it, honing his eyes in on his father.

"He goes. Tonight, or tomorrow, your choice, Evelyn, but he's fucking going. He's young enough to get thrown at the orphanage." He took a large swig of beer, stumbling slightly, and Toby twitched, hands tightening so much on the railing bars he thought he might splinter them.

"No. He is not." His mother shook, standing up to him, fists clenched. He stopped, and both Toby and his mother held their breath.

"Excuse me?"

"He's not going. No."

The next few minutes were a blur. His mother was hurt, and hurt bad. She was crying, and his father was screaming at her. The living room was trashed. Toby ran down the stairs and his father heard, spinning around and screaming after him as he darted into the garage, heart thumping almost as loud as Greg's thundering footsteps. He found his fathers old hatchets in the back of the garage, his blood pumping in his ears. Everything was hazy and the static crept further into his vision.

"Let me help you."

He spun around, hatchets gripped tight in his hands as he shook and ticced. His father tore into the room, drunk and furious. He saw Toby bearing the hatchets and laughed deliriously.

"Now what are you gonna do with those, boy?" Toby almost blacked out at the name, screaming and sprinting forwards. A mass fight ensued, the two of them struggling against each other to gain headway, Toby's mother screaming in the background. Toby pinned him down. He spat curses and slurs and all kinds of horrible things about him, his mother, his sister, Lyra. He raised the hatchet, and brought it down on his skull. Blood sprayed and his mother distantly screamed in horror, but he didn't stop. Another swing, another, another, another, another. Tears poured down his face, but he didn't feel it, notice, or care. His arms stopped swinging. He looked up. His mother was holding his arms gently, but securely, the creature standing behind her, looming over the both of them. He was towering.

"Toby," She whispered. "That's enough. He's dead, love." He looked down, sniffling and ticcing, and he was.

She helped him up quietly, and he whimpered.

"Are you gonna turn me in?" She stared at him, then shook her head.

"You're my son. I'm not getting rid of you."

She cleaned him up quietly in the bathroom, and held him close as he cried, openly, for the first time in months. He clung to her, whimpering and ticcing and sobbing, and told her everything. She listened quietly, gently soothing him and brushing his hair. Eventually, she shushed him gently, making him look at her.

"We have to go, love. Quickly. You can tell me more once we're gone, okay?" He nodded, sniffling and taking her hand. They gathered their things, climbed into their car. She paused. Got back out. They lit the house together, and watched it burn for a moment. He felt the presence behind him, and saw his mother take his hand.

"Come on honey," She whispered. "Lets go."

They never looked back.

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Toby: (notes)

- 6'3", 17 years old, tall and broad. Always been heavier set and naturally slightly chubby, and decently strong.

- Has a nerve issue from birth where he can't feel a good 70% of his body, mostly the upper half and patches of the lower.

- Nonbinary (He/they/it), and pansexual. Gender dysphoric. Occasionally tucks and wears bras and other things sometimes.

- Has Tourette's, OCD, BPD, PTSD, Manic, ADHD, depression, s/icidal tendencies, struggles with compulsive sh, and has mild paranoid schizophrenia.

- Sees the Slenderman more than his mother, but she can see it on occasion. It doesn't hurt them. Guides them more or less. Helps Toby target similar individuals to his father.

- Stims a lot by cracking his knuckles, flapping his hands, tapping his foot and cracking his neck. (I also have a list of his tics!!)

- Loves his mother and Lyra so goddamn much

Evelyn: (notes)

- 43 years old, 5'2", small but definitely not frail. Will fuck you up if needed. Doesn't take shit anymore after leaving her husband. Also bisexual queen

- Huge soft spot for kids, and Toby. Loves Toby so much and lets him basically get away with everything (not that he uses this for any harm to her or those who don't deserve it)

- Knows Toby is a serial killer, assists him with some cleanup/travel/medical care/etc. Reminds him to take care of himself/cooks for him/helps drive him around/etc

- Takes up cooking and martial arts as hobbies

- Loves her son so so so much he's so stupid and crazy but she adores him and would do anything for him

- Do NOT fuck with power duo Evelyn and Tobias Rodgers they WILL destroy you

#creepypasta #cp ticci toby #ticci toby #toby rogers #tobias rogers #evelyn rodgers #cp toby #my writing #my universe #cloud talks #tw blood #tw abuse #tw abuse ment #tw murder

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galarianace · 3 years

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Vision For The Future

Their relationship starts after the events of post-game, and shortly before Kira sets out to get some training done on the isle of armor. Still, neither is in a particular rush and– that shows, really.

They both have fairly busy lives : Kira is still Galar’s Champion, running all over the place to keep it safe, while Leon’s focus is mostly on running the Battle Tower, and fixing the mess that had been left behind by Rose. Still, they try to spend as much time together as they can, and Kira makes sure to stop by for a quick visit whenever she’s near Wyndon ( or just whenever she wants to see him, really. she’s not picky )

One of Kira’s favorite things is to watch Leon battle, so whenever he has a notable challenge lined up you can be certain that she’s there, to watch it! … Unless it’s against her, then you’ll find her at the opposite end of her field.

On the other hand, she’s still petty about when he tried to have his Charizard attack her Aegislash when they were doing a double battle as partners, and she ensures he NEVER lives it down.

After dating for roughly 6 years, they FINALLY move into a house together, in Wedgehurst. It’s close to the station so Kira walks Leon to the train every morning to see him off for work, packed lunch and all. After that she heads over to the lab to make sure there aren’t any odd readings and to see if she needs to help Hop and/or Sonia with anything. If she’s in the clear? She’ll go on her way.

From then on, it takes two years before Kira actually proposes to Leon, dinnerdate and movies and all, with a floette holding the ring on a flower. Just because it takes him by surprise doesn’t mean Leon doesn’t accept – even if she’d kinda stole his thunder, because he’d been wondering about how he should propose to her.

Because of their busy schedules and their upcoming wedding being the biggest thing Galar talks about with it being between the current, strongest Champion and the previously unbeaten Champion Leon, it takes almost a year for them to actually have their wedding. They keep it relatively small, friends and family, but also publish a few photos to the many fans across the region – Leon hasn’t lost his flair for satisfying the crowd just yet.

It doesn’t really surprise anyone when, a few months later, it turns out Kira is pregnant. She’d certainly been moody enough for it.

When Leon finds out? He faints on the spot. Kira still denies kicking his leg while complaining SHE should be the shocked one, being the one carrying, even though Hop claims he DEFINITELY knows what he saw.

They have two children, two years apart : Killian and Lyra.

The kids grow up happy and healthy, surrounded by Pokémon and plenty of ‘extended family’. Considering their parents, everyone is also counting on them to have some serious battle strength and can’t wait to see what happens when they start their challenge.

Once the kids are seven and five years old, Kira opens a small school for trainers right there in Wedgehurst. Or at least, that’s the idea : it becomes a LOT more popular than originally expected, and she soon has to expand it and hire additional teachers.

Kira still walks Leon to the trainstation and still kisses him goodbye. Only now, the kids are also there to hug them goodbye and wish them a good day at work. Kira still sends him off with a lunchbox, but half the time it just looks like a bigger version of the kids’ lunches. Kira then takes the kids to class and heads for work herself.

The one who finishes work first picks up the kids from school. If Kira finishes first, she heads to the station after if Leon is already on his way back, so they can all head home together. If Leon finishes first, he picks up the kids and then takes them wait outside on the playground for her to come out.

Either way, life is fairly peaceful, and they most certainly make the most of their ‘retirements’ after the many, MANY years of excitement and hero-ing about the two have done throughout their lives. Now it’s them-time, and fam-time. Someone else can save Galar.

#⟡♛ let's have ourselves a champion time 「 kira && leon 」#⟡♛ doodle me darling 「 mun art 」#⟡♛ the best is yet to come 「 future 」

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chaoswillfallrpg · 3 years

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LYRA BURKE is TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OLD and an UNSPEAKABLE in THE LOVE CHAMBER at THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC. She looks remarkably like MADISON ISEMAN and considers herself NEUTRAL. She is currently TAKEN.

→ OVERVIEW:

Wealthy and advanced are two words that KRATISTA FLINT would want to eventually use to describe her daughter, and Lyra herself would also want to use those words, but sadly not in the same way. The youngest child of Kratista and EELIS BURKE Lyra was the apple of her fathers eye and the perfect pawn for her mothers schemes. Once a Flint her mother had aspirations for the Burke name to hold the same weight as that of her maiden one and to her the way to do it was through advantageous marriages for both Lyra and her older brother CAIUS. By the age of six Lyra was fluent in French and Latin, knew how to play both the piano and the harp and had a collection of custom designs so large she needed a separate room in their Bloomsbury townhouse to house them all. Although Lyra was happy to better herself and understood her privilege well and accepted it she felt as though she was born for the sole purpose of advancing the family name, almost like a pig for slaughter, the slaughterhouse being the alter with a Pure-Blood prince. Much to her mothers dismay Lyra had an infinity for the Burke side of the family over the Flint side, and although Lyra did want to better the Burke name she saw the path to do so through hard work and excellent job prospects rather than marriage. Kratista blamed this element of her otherwise perfect daughter's personality on her husband's father CARATACUS BURKE. When Lyra and Caius are not having a multitude of lessons they spend their time with their grandfather in his shop, a weird and dark place Borgin and Burkes would frighten most children but the pair loved spending hours amongst the dark artifacts the shop contained, asking their grandfather about each one and the stories behind them.

It was at Borgin and Burkes the siblings first met ERIK BORGIN, the great nephew of the shop's co-owner CALLISTHENES BORGIN and an intriguing boy the same age as Caius. The trio quickly became inseparable, gawking over each new piece brought in to the shop and Lyra found another older brother in Erik, however, much to her dismay the pair headed off to school together leaving her behind with her mother and her schemes. After Caius and Erik had left for Hogwarts Kratista’s plans for Lyra’s life started to fall in to place when they began visiting the Black family as often as they were invited. Karista’s determination to move up in the world once again meant that she had her sights set on a marriage between Lyra and a member of the most noble house of Black, so much so that she had actually named Lyra after a constellation, as was the Black tradition, in the hopes it would give her a leg up in the race for their hand. Although Karista initially had planned for REGULUS, the jewel in the Black family crown, as Lyra’s name was in fact Burke rather than Flint she was instead offered the hand of SIRIUS BLACK who was the eldest Black brother but had alas already been marked as the black sheep of the family. On these visits the once friendly boy would keep his distance, Sirius would often escape to his room or fly on his broom in the garden of his townhouse. Thinking that Sirius was avoiding her because he thought he was too good to marry a lowly Burke, Lyra would instead spend her time with Regulus, teaching him French or listening intently to the stories he had read much to her mothers delight. Kratista thought she was rubbing off on her youngest child and that Lyra was in fact setting her sights on the more sought after Black, which of course was not the case.

Leaving for Hogwarts was one of the happiest days of Lyra’s life, no more did she have to keep her mother happy and could instead explore her own interests. Finding her cousin ROSALIE FLINT on the train the pair clung to one another for support and only hoped that they would follow in the family tradition and be sorted into Slytherin together. Watching Rosalie get sorted immediately into the correct house had Lyra nervous for her turn and correctly so, the hat took what felt like hours choosing between Slytherin and Ravenclaw but ended up deciding her determination to prove her mother wrong was a very Slytherin trait to possess. Dorming with Rosalie the pair fell into a friendship group with their roommates ANDROMEDA BLACK, ADRASTEIA GREENGRASS and AALIYAH GOSFORTH and found a home with them for the next seven years. Determined to explore all she could of life whilst away from her mother Lyra threw herself into her school work, her curiosity often getting the better of her the girl would spend hours after curfew reading and researching in order to get answers. Lyra particularly shone in Herbology and Potions, spending a lot of her free time in the greenhouses and potions classrooms creating concoctions well beyond the capabilities of a normal student in her year. Her intellect being a well known fact amongst her house led to her brother's friend RABASTAN LESTRANGE asking for help in subjects he struggled in and Lyra being as kind as she were, potentially too kind for her house, agreed happily. Rabastan was far more clever than he believed and if only he spent half as much time studying than he did having mood swings he would be top of his class which Lyra openly told him. Rabastan helped Lyra as much as she helped him, he brought out a more humorous and adventurous side to her that she was happy to see, instead of tutoring him in the library or common room instead he would persuade the girl out after curfew to study by the lake or astronomy tower.

Spending a lot of time with Rabastan opened her eyes to lots of new things, one being the world of Quidditch which she enjoyed immensely. He taught her the rules and how to play and soon enough she tried out for the position of Keeper and was accepted, making new friends in her teammates such as LUCINDA TALKALOT, EMMA VANITY and her own cousin DECIUS FLINT. Also amongst her teammates was Regulus, reigniting their friendship from childhood she spent a lot of her time with him and his friend SEVERUS SNAPE who shared her passion for potions. On the occasions where she would have the unfortunate luck to bump into Regulus when he was with his other close friend, NARCISSA BLACK Lyra would quickly end the meeting. A girl who clearly didn't have the time of day for Lyra although she couldn't for the life of you say why Narcissa served as a reminder of all the things she hated about what her mother wanted her to become so wasn't that interested in befriending the girl anyway. Her later years of Hogwarts saw Lyra’s more fun and playful side come into view, already being established as an academic and an excellent Quidditch player it was also time to assert herself into the funner side of life and she had the perfect friendship group to help her. On many occasions you would find the group of Slytherin girls sneaking in the Marauders parties in the Gryffindor tower and partying with all sorts of students. It was at these parties that Lyra started to hold a candle for her ex-betrothed Sirius, who had indeed been the black sheep and defied his family. Now with the freedom it allowed Lyra noticed how Sirous had come into himself and decided to admire him from afar, never being brave enough to approach him as she would only serve as a reminder of the life he left behind.

Using her academic success in potions to hers and other peoples advantage Lyra teamed up with Adrasteia who was also gifted in the subject to create concoctions perfect for these Gryffindor parties. Being personal favourites of the Potions master PROFESSOR SLUGHORN allowed the girls to use the potions labs whenever they wanted and so spent much of their free time creating drinks that could do almost anything. They made butterbeers that could sober you up, cocktails that gave you the courage to dance to the songs being played and even dabbled with shots that could get you to the right level of drunk in one gulp. It was however with this very drink that one of Lyra’s worst memories had been made, she had entered one of the many parties with a first draft of the shot in hand when she offered one to Rabastan - at his own risk - and had one to herself. The shot worked perfectly for her, and seemingly worked for him too, the pair having enough dutch courage in them to actually share a kiss. However it all turned south when the shot must have reacted to something Rabastan had already drank and he became so drunk he couldn't stand, the next day she apologised profusely and it became quite obvious, much to her dismay that the boy didn't remember anything from the night before. Hiding her new found feelings for the boy in the same place within her heart as she did with those for Sirius Lyra graduated Hogwarts at the top of many of her classes and was flooded with Job offers.

Deciding that a job as an Unspeakable in the love chamber was an excellent way to show her mother advancing did not necessarily mean marriage and to also fix the wounds of unrequited feelings Lyra moved away from her mothers clutches and in to a flat in Carkitt Market above the Hopping Pot with Andromeda and Adrasteia. Being extremely proud of her job Lyra spent a lot of time there, becoming close with ANNABETH PEBWORTH who was a Muggle-Born witch with the same kind-heartedness Lyra herself possessed. The pair got on swimmingly at work despite the difference in blood status, Annabeth never once expecting Lyra to be cruel for her blood and Lyra never once expecting Annabeth to be below her for hers. With blood status becoming increasingly more apparent in their society Lyra is becoming more and more aware of the people around her to all intents and purposes choosing sides. Not yet ready to admit that she will likely have to choose herself, she has buried her head in the sand looking for anything to distract her. The perfect opportunity came along however in the most terrible way, her cousin Rosalie went missing at the Yule ball just gone and popped up again two weeks later with no recollection of what happened. Caring wholeheartedly for Rosalie and not wanting to see her like this Lyra has made it her mission to use her researching skills to their advantage and is working with Rosalie to figure out what has happened to her.

→ ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Blood Status → Pure-Blood

Pronouns → She/Her

Identification → Cis Female

Sexuality → Up To Roleplayer

Relationship Status → Single

Previous Education → Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (Slytherin)

Societies → Pura Sorores

Family → Eelis Burke (father), Kratista Burke (mother), Lyra Burke (sister), Caratacus Burke (grandfather/boss), Dionysus Flint (uncle), Lotte Flint (aunt), Decius Flint (cousin), Rosalie Flint (cousin), Elijah Yaxley (uncle), Ismena Yaxley (aunt), Eleanor Yaxley (cousin), Victor Yaxley (cousin)

Connections → Andromeda Black (housemate/best friend), Adrasteia Greengrass (housemate/best friend), Aaliyah Gosforth (best friend), Regulus Black (close friend), Rabastan Lestrange (close friend/potential love interest), Erik Borgin (close friend), Annabeth Pebworth (colleague/close friend), Sirius Black (friend/potential love interest), Lucinda Talkalot (friend), Emma Vanity (friend), Severus Snape (friend), Narcissa Black (advesary)

Future Information → N/A

LYRA BURKE IS A LEVEL 6 WITCH.

#Lyra Burke #madison iseman #harry potter roleplay #new rp #marauders era rp #taken #taken neutral #taken witch #ministry #department of mysteries #magic

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bobasheebaby · 4 years

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Grabby Hands & Frosted Dresses [Wacky Drabble #33]

Pairing: Liam x Ellie (MC)

Word count: 1,626 (whoops)

Warnings: cursing, bratty kids and the names they are called

Summary: Ellie teaches Bradshaw and Isabella about respect.

A/N: This is a rewrite of the scene in the courtyard with Bradshaw and Isabella and their little brats. I have used a lot of the dialogue and added my own flair. I’m borrowing Ellie from my Falling For You series, she is Olivia’s bestie and takes zero shit from ANYONE. (She bounced around in foster care for eight years before aging out.) This does not fit into the FFY timeline, but she’s the best MC for this shit show.

A/N: this is my submission for @emceesynonymroll Wacky Drabble challange 33- I think it’s time I teach you about respect! Prompt will be bolded.

Disclaimer: I don’t own the characters, I’m just borrowing them from PB.

“Wait, her dress is better than mine.” Lyra said balling up her little fists. “I’m the princess of Auvernal!” She stomped her foot. “I should have the best everything! Gimme!” She lunged forward, her sticky frosting covered hands fisting Kyah’s dress.

Kyah scrunched up her face as she let out a loud wail. Ellie pulled Kyah closer to her chest as she instinctively reached out, slapping the girl’s hand from her daughter.

Lyra’s face twisted as she burst into petulant tears. “Moooom!” She screeched turning towards her mother. “Why are they being so mean to me? I’m Auvernal’s only princess!” She sniffled looking up at her mother expectantly. “I should get what I want!”

“Now, now, darling.” Isabella said patting her daughter’s head. “I’m sure Kyah will share everything she has.” She looked pointedly at Ellie. “She’s only a baby, after all.”

Lyra sniffed wiping her tears on her arm, looking at Ellie with a sneer.

“Why, you could probably take anything from her and she wouldn’t even notice as long as you give her something shiny to play with.” Isabella said with a smug smirk. Cordonia owes us everything after all.

Kyah cried turning her head into Ellie’s chest.

“Shhhhh, baby girl.” Ellie said rubbing her daughter’s back. “You’re not sharing a damn thing!”

Kyah hiccuped as she rubbed her face into her mother’s chest.

“These people are stupid!” Issac shouted his foot coming down hard on the paved stone. “I don’t even want to marry this dumb baby.”

You won’t be marrying her, you spoiled little shit! Ellie thought as she cradled Kyah close to her chest, gently swaying her body to soothe and comfort her crying child.

Liam stepped forward, his broad chest blocking the twins from Kyah.

Isabella laughed awkwardly. “Our children just have so much spirit.” She smiled sweetly. “You can’t really blame them, can you?”

Liam straightened his back, his body appearing impossibly tall as he towered over the twins, his face stern as he glared at Isabella and Bradshaw. “Believe me, I can.”

“Oh, come now, King Liam.” Bradshaw said, his eyes narrowing in warning. “They’re only children.”

“Don’t worry, I place a large share of the blame on the parents too.”

“Kids will be kids.” Isabella said sugary sweet, her body tense. “They just need to get to know each other before the official betrothal in a few months.”

Liam placed a protective arm around Ellie and Kyah. “I hope things go better … whenever they eventually see each other again.” He said coolly.

“About that.” Isabella said, her smug grin widening. “We’ve reconsidered. After everything tonight … clearly we need to be closer at hand.”

Oh hell no! Ellie glanced over at Liam who wore the same surprised look. “You already went through all the trouble of packing …”

“Of course,” Bradshaw smiled widely. “We wouldn’t want to impose on your hospitality any longer … we’ve purchased an estate here.”

“Isn’t that wonderful? Now we never have to leave!”

This is not happening! “I’m so happy you’ve fallen so in love with our country that you would consider moving here. I just worry that with all your constant attention here that your own country may begin to suffer and possibly be invaded, I mean your honor guard is currently in Cordonia and not Auvernal, is it not?” Ellie said her words dripping with disdain.

Bradshaw tensed. “What exactly are you suggesting?”

“I’m suggesting that you and your royal brats are no longer welcome in Cordonia.”

Bradshaw’s face hardened. “You need to start showing us some respect, we can be enemies as easily as we can be allies.”

Liam blocked Bradshaw as he took a step towards Ellie.

“I’ve got this Li.” Ellie said as she shifted Kyah to her left hip. “Respect? You want respect? I think it’s time I teach you about respect!

Ever since you showed up to our palace unannounced and uninvited while we were on our honeymoon and demanded our presence you have shown nothing but disrespect.

To have the audacity to show up to another country with demands is bad enough but then you tried to strong arm us into an alliance we didn’t want.”

Ellie turned towards Isabella. “Your little ‘girl's trip’ was no better. From the moment Hana, Olivia and I stepped foot in your country all you did was try to embarrass us.

First you tried to guilt me into buying a gown. Then you decide I must lead an inspirational speech for your honor guard, you tried to set me up to fail but I. Don’t. Fail.

The little stunt in the steam room though. That was really going too far, but I endured as I always do. I didn’t flinch, even as you tried to burn me.

I wish that I could stop there, that your list of transgressions didn’t continue. Hell, I wish I could say you were good people who cared about their country and that you were just a little over the top with the way you approached people, but you aren’t.

You have spent more damn time in Cordonia than in your own country and it shows! Your children clearly don’t know you and don’t have respect for you or anyone else. They are nothing more than misbehaving spoiled brats!”

“You wait here —”

“NO! I’m not done yet King Bradshaw!

You keep waltzing into my country like you own it and you don’t!”

“You aren’t even from Cordonia.”

“I said I wasn’t finished Isabella!

Though I don’t know why I expected more from a woman who came to my baby shower and thought it was appropriate for her to lay her hands on my stomach without asking. Newsflash, it’s isn't!

I possibly could have overlooked all of that if you hadn’t brought your entire honor guard to The Last Apple Ball as a threat.

I don’t take threats lightly, Cordonia doesn’t take threats lightly.

But what really pisses me the hell off is the way you two despicable humans behaved when the Queen and heir’s lives were at risk.

Had you helped us out of the goodness of your heart we would have been thankful. We possibly would have even spoken about an alliance without a betrothal.

Of course you couldn’t possibly do anything out of the goodness of your heart because that would imply that you actually have one!

Instead of helping you took advantage of my husband. You used his fear of losing me and our daughter to get you what you wanted. Well I am telling you right here and right now; Kyah isn’t marrying either of your demon spawn!

So you can go ahead and take your packed bags, honor guard, and your snotty little bastards and return to Auvernal!”

“You obviously don’t know who you are speaking to! Isabella was correct in saying you are too hormonal.”

“Excuse me?” Ellie said stepping closer to Bradshaw. “Do you want to try to say that again?

And by the way Bradshaw, I do know exactly who I am speaking to. You are nothing more than a tiny little man with an over inflated ego!”

“How dare —”

“Oh I know all about you, and how you haven’t ever stepped foot on a battlefield and that every ‘honor’ you’ve achieved has been won from behind a desk.” Ellie smirked as Isabella’s face paled. “I also happen to know that the only reason you want this goddamn alliance is because you’ve misappropriated your funds and you have nothing. Auvernal is broke, all you have is a few shiny medals, an army you couldn’t begin to actually lead, and the bravado to appear scary and threatening.

I’m not scared, I’m not threatened.”

“You’re making a mistake.”

“No Bradshaw, you are the one who made a mistake!

You thought you could come in here and bulldoze us like every other country you’ve ‘allied’ with. You underestimated my country, my husband and me.”

“We could end your country in a second.”

“I’d surely like to see you try. You seem to be forgetting a few things.

First, Cordonia has friends. We have allies who actually respect us. We have more than enough friends that we would be able to take out your little country with no problem if you tried to invade us.

Second, I don’t sit behind a desk. I’m from the goddamn streets, I had to fight for myself. Hell I fought assassins on the day of my wedding in my wedding gown, and in heels.

I fought back to back with my husband with our friends by our side. We took out those who underestimated us before, what makes you think we couldn’t do the same with you? Because from where I’m standing you are sorely lacking in resources, allies, and skill, all of which Cordonia has in spades!

If you want respect you have to earn it! And all you’ve earned from me today is a reality check.

So get the hell out of my country, teach those hellions some goddamn manners, and stay the hell away from my family, because I’m telling you right now if either of your little uncivilized, ungrateful, spoiled hoodlums touches my daughter again I will show you just how scary I can be!

One more thing, if you even think about invading my country I will call up every single one of our true allies and end you!” Ellie turned towards Liam ignoring the sputtering and gaping royalty behind them. “Let’s go back inside because we are done here.”

“Have I told you how much I love you?”

“All the time, the feeling is mutual.” She lightly bounced Kyah on her hip. “Come on baby girl, let’s go talk to people we actually like.”

Feedback fuels me, please like, comment or reblog to let me know how much you like it. I can handle the screams, so scream away.

Masterlist can be found in my bio.

@speedyoperarascalparty @liamxs-world @annekebbphotography @cocomaxley @fullbeaumonty @hopefulmoonobject @hhiggs @itsalliepg @smalltalk88 @littlegreenmoo @tornbetween2loves @mynameiskaylabella @bobbersb @blackwidow2721 @endlessflame @innerpostmentality @imma-winchester-addict @itsstillnotwhatyouthink @riseandshinelittleblossom @kadencantarella @ao719 @texaskitten30 @leelee10898 @katurrade @stopforamoment @blackcatkita @gardeningourmet @bella-ca @sirbeepsalot @bbrandy2002 @mrskamilxh @dcbbw @alicars @mfackenthal @bhavf @indiacater @janezillow @drakesensworld @kingliam2019 @walkerswhiskeygirl @ladyangel70 @jovialyouthmusic @edgiestwinter @rainbowsinthestorm @jared2612 @desireepow-1986 @debramcg1106 @loveellamae

#wacky drabbles #liam x mc #trh au #king liam #king bradshaw #queen isabella #the royal heir #choices the royal heir #liam x ellie #ellie matthews #queen isabella and king bradshaw need to watch out cause ellie is about to put them in tjeir goddamn place #god I hate them and the royal brats #ellie isn’t taking anymore shit #grabby hands & frosted dresses #wish PB would give us something like this but we know they wont #long post #read more

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avengerscompound · 3 years

Text

The Tower: Happily Ever After - 5

The Tower: Happily Ever After An Avengers Fanfic

Series Masterlist | Character Refrence PREVIOUS //

Pairing: Avengers x OFC, Bruce Banner x Bucky Barnes x Clint Barton x Wanda Maximoff x Steve Rogers x Natasha Romanoff x Tony Stark x Thor x Sam Wilson x OFC (Elly Cooper)

Word Count: 1601

Warnings: Pregnancy

Chapter 5: Farewell to Our Old Life

It was kind of strange how little there was to organize for us regarding our move. There was packing, but we couldn’t exactly hire a moving truck so it needed to fit in bags that we could carry or it had to stay behind. That was difficult. We had had a long time to collect a lot of things we considered precious to us. The glass artwork that Thor and I had inadvertently made on our honeymoon was the thing I wished we could bring the most. It would stay in the fountain in the entry and hopefully, we’d come back sometimes and see it.

Thankfully, most of our things were fairly portable. We also wouldn’t need a lot of clothes because Asgard would provide things more fitting for the palace, and it’s not like we would need any furniture. Mostly it was just personal effects and tech that Tony wanted to use there.

Other than that it was just letting the doctors know I was leaving, pulling Marya out of school, and organizing the party.

It was still leaning on the stressful side though - especially considering we were still waiting to hear what the rest of the kids were going to do.

Even though Rose and Paul had appeared closest to deciding to come, it was Billy and Teddy who came back to us first with a yes. They had also said they wanted to do a bonding ceremony when we were there, which added another level of excitement and another level of stress.

Rose and Paul came next. They said that they would try it out and see. The concern about their children’s lifespan was a big issue for them, but Paul also said he’d be crazy to give up at least trying to live on Asgard as actual royalty.

As expected it was Eddie who took the longest to decide. He really did love his job, and I think even with his talk about having children, he, Lyra, and Rory were still right into the rich, young party lifestyle. He was worried about what they’d lose going to Asgard, rather than focusing on the things he might gain.

No one pressured him though. Any questions the three had were answered as honestly as we could and if we didn’t know we’d send word back to Asgard and Loki would come and give the answers they were looking for if at all possible. Eventually, he decided that he’d give it six months for us to settle and make sure things with Stark Industries and the Avengers was transitioning smoothly given our sudden departure, and then he and his family would join us there to try it out. He mentioned maybe doing six months on each planet or returning to Earth for a month or two every year, but we were all just glad he was willing to try it out, and his delayed departure from Earth was a good idea. He even promised to come and visit when his new siblings were born.

When our goodbye party began, the whole family was excited for this new chapter in our lives and sad to say goodbye to the last.

Many of our friends were elderly or had passed on, so the party was going to be a mixture of different people. Clarke was still around, though Jax had passed a few years ago. We’d lost Rhodey and Fury, though Hill was still running the day-to-day operations of the Avengers, even in her old age, and Coulson had retired after years as successfully being director of SHIELD. Vision was the same as ever, and people often came to him for direction when it came to the Avengers. Carol also hadn’t changed though she still spent more time in space than on Earth. A lot of the people we had met that had seemed so young when we met them, were all not officially middle-aged. Even Peter Parker who was only fifteen when I met him was now pushing fifty and had a wife and daughter of his own.

They would all be at the party, including a lot of the new Avengers lineup. Most of whom were much heavier hitters than any of us, even when we were wielding Mjolnir. It was definitely going to be sad to say goodbye.

“It’s going to be okay, you know?” Wanda said, snapping me out of my mini-trance as she ran a brush methodically through my hair.

“No, I know,” I said, tilting my head back.

“Then tell your brain that,” she teased.

I giggled and leaned up and pecked her lips. “I’m sorry. I would if I could. Just hormones I guess. Feeling stressed.”

“Well, stop it,” she scolded playfully. “It’s bad for the babies.”

She began to braid my hair and I hummed as her fingertips grazed over my scalp. “Imagine it though, Elly,” Wanda said. “All the kids nearby - the new babies.”

“You’re a baby-oholic,” I said, laughing softly.

“It’s true,” she says. “I am.”

She ran a hand around my side and pressed it on my stomach. “I can’t wait to meet them,” she said. “They already have such busy thoughts.”

I looked up at her and I’m not sure whether it was the look of pure and complete love in her eyes or the way the light caught in her hair, but I was struck by how beautiful she was and how much I loved her. She smiled and pressed a kiss to my forehead. “I love you too,” she said and picked up a strand of silver wire with black opal and threaded it into my hair. “All done.”

I stood carefully and straightened out the skirts on my blue lace cocktail dress. “How do I look?” I asked.

“Perfect as always,” she said. “Let's go say goodbye to our friends.”

We made our way down to the party deck where the party was only just starting up. Bruce, Steve, and Clint were all already there, but there was no sign of Tony, Natasha, Clint, Sam, Thor, or Bucky.

Some of our kids were there and their kids all played out in the garden atrium that was built on the protruding wing of the tower and the party deck opened out into. I greeted everyone and as I made my way around the room more people arrived.

Clarke came over and tapped me on the shoulder. I turned and smiled, hugging her tightly. She had aged well, not as well as I had obviously, but while her face was lined and she was a little frailer looking, she had kept in good shape and she continued to color her hair. It would be easy to think she was in her early fifties rather than her mid-seventies. Her eyes were what gave it away. What had once been vivid violet had faded to pale lavender and were slightly cloudy. They were heavily lined at the corners, the years having carved deep crevices to mark each time she was happy or sad or angry or worried. It was still my Clarke though and I was going to miss her.

“I can’t believe you’re not going to be here when these two are born,” she said, indicating to my stomach as we pulled apart. She was one of the select group of people I would be totally fine with touching my stomach unasked - but she never assumed. “Where am I going to get my baby kisses from?”

I laughed and shook my head. “I guess you’ll have to visit me on Asgard.”

“You can do that?” She asked.

“I mean… I’m the Queen. I think I can pull some strings,” I teased.

She laughed. “God, thinking of you as a Queen is such a trip.”

“Hey Auntie Clarke,” Billy said, appearing behind us. “I haven’t seen you for a while.”

Clarke hugged him and looked around. “It’s been too long. Where are those kids of yours.”

“Come on, I’ll take you to them,” he looked over at me and narrowed his eyes. “You go sit down, mom. You know you’re supposed to be taking it easy.”

“I am taking it easy,” I argued, holding up my hands. “I’m just standing here.”

“Go on,” he said. “Don’t make me page Dad Tony.”

“Heaven forbid,” I laughed and he wrinkled his nose at me and led Clarke out to the atrium. I got myself a little plate of appetizers and a glass of punch and went and took a seat.

It wasn’t long until the whole room was teeming with people. The Avengers had gotten to be a rather large collection of people since the original six had been reluctantly dragged together all those years ago. Having so many of the people who meant so much to all of us here at the same time couldn’t help but make me think about how I’d first joined this group that would one day be my family.

All those years ago I had been a traumatized woman in her mid-twenties, just trying to get by. I didn’t have many good friends, because it took a lot for me to trust people. It took a superhero to get through and with her, so many other people flooded in after. I was so grateful to them, and so in love with each of them to this day. It would be hard letting this life of ours go, but it was inevitable. I still had my 9 chosen people though, and I always would. I was glad to be taking this next step with them at my side.

// NEXT

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