#me and the diamond of the day episode are looking at each others intensely

[sxnbleachedfiles]

arthur “where you told me even if we died tonight, that i’d die yours (so i died there under you every night, all night)” pendragon

#a house in nebraska is their song #me and the diamond of the day episode are looking at each others intensely #dont die arthur ur so sexy ahahaha pls . #i’ve had arthur fot two?? months and if he dies im joining him #rip arthur pendragon u would have loved preachers daughter #family tree and hard times are ur songs babygirl #arthur pendragon #bbc merlin #merthur

[mandu-17]

Christmas gift | Kim Yoohyeon x fem! reader

Warnings: G!P Yoohyeon, unprotected sex, scratching, biting

Genre: Smut, fluff, kinda mafia au

Wordcount: ~ 1,606

A/N: this is my christmas gift for you since i don't have lingerie (after you read it, it'll make sense). it's kind of an episode of mafia au actually, that i might have already written a whole story about in my note book, if you're interested i can post it one day. anyway i hope you'll enjoy this piece:) as awlays thank you for sticking around, it means the world to me

Snow was falling outside, covering everything with its’ pure color. It seemed as if the whole world stopped for a moment. Streets were empty, as if there was no one left. It was Christmas. After spending and celebrating the whole day with your family, Yoohyeon and you finally had a moment to yourselves. It was the first time the two of you were spending Christmas together.

You had hard time trying to find the perfect gift for your girlfriend. Every time you asked her about what she’d like, Yoohyeon would simply grin at you affirming that you’re everything she’s ever wanted.

So no, she didn’t make it easy on you.

Nevertheless you wanted to surprise her, she definitely deserved something for treating you like a princess these past few months. And it was Christmas after all, everyone should get at least one gift!

You gulped nervously while eyeing your reflection in the mirror. It didn’t remind you that much though. You put on black, lace lingerie. This was your gift for Yoohyeon. The satin fabric of the bra hugged your curves nicely, you had to admit that it was doing its’ work incredibly. You felt very attractive and was sure that your girlfriend would think the same.

With one last, deep breath you quietly opened the door to your bedroom. It was cozily lightened up with yellow Christmas lights. There were also few candles on the chest of drawers. The atmosphere was great for some romance.

Yoohyeon was laying down on the bed with her back resting against the headboard. In her hands she held this psychology book she got from your parents earlier that day. You thought it was adorable of them to get Yoohyeon a gift as well. You knew she also appreciated the gesture.

Leaning against the door frame, you eyed Yoohyeon’s black outfit which made her look so elegant and gorgeous. Gosh she was so hot.

"Are you sneaking up on me?” Amusement present in Yoohyeon’s voice quickly left the moment she looked up from the book. Her eyes traveled, taking everything in.

"Yes, Kim Yoohyeon. I was sneaking up on you in order to deliver a message from Santa.” With a chuckle you took slow steps in her direction, enjoying her intense gaze set on you the whole time.

"And what is the message from Santa?” Yoohyeon smirked, putting the book on the bed table.

She turned to you, setting her feet on the floor. You took it as a clear sign to straddle her, which you gladly did. Familiar heat of Yoohyeon’s body welcomed you bringing this beautiful feeling of belonging. Smoothly, Yoohyeon wrapped her arms around your waist while still admiring your figure in that divine lingerie.

"Merry Christmas.” You whispered against her lips before kissing them sensually. "That’s the message.” You shared a giggle not being able to take eyes off each other.

"I’ve got something for you.” In a quiet, soft tone Yoohyeon murmured after analyzing your features lovingly.

The way she was looking at you knocked all the air from your lungs. Slowly she reached to the pocket of her jeans and pulled out a small velvet box. Your eyes widened once she opened it revealing the most stunning necklace you’d ever seen. Its’ diamonds shone brightly almost as if smiling or winking at you.

"I- You can’t be serious, Yooh. It’s so beautiful.” Mouth hung open, you met her hopeful, sincere eyes.

"I’m glad you like it, babygirl.” She pecked your lips happily before putting the necklace on you. "It looks great but can’t even compare to how breathtaking you are.”

Her words caused your cheeks to flush, you bit your lip shyly. Excitement and happiness rose in your body, all thanks to the girl you were sitting on. Speaking of which.

"Thank you, Yoohyeon.” One kiss. "I love it.” Another kiss. ”I love you.” And another one.

"I love you too, my sweet girl.” Shivers ran down your spine at the husky voice of hers.

In the next second her lips were on your neck, leaving open mouthed kisses meanwhile her hands began exploring the skin on your back, as well as the satin material that still covered some parts.

"Yoohyeon-ah.” You moaned loudly when she sucked on your pulse point. She had your body melting already.

Your response to her actions got her going even more. She harshly grabbed your hips and grinded them against her hardening length.

"I love this lingerie on you, but you won’t mind me taking it off now, will you?” Yoohyeon growled into your ear before grazing it with her teeth.

"Take it all off.” With a whine you let your eyes close in bliss. Your bra was gone in a moment giving Yoohyeon another opportunity to please you - something she’d never ever deny.

While she was massaging and sucking on your breasts you did your best to unbutton her shirt. It did take you lot of time and effort since Yoohyeon’s touch felt so good. Once your girlfriend was also topless in front of you, you caressed her skin with love, admiring the lines of her collar bones, muscles and warmth.

Her dark eyes somehow shined at you.

She let you take control for a moment. She let you do whatever you wished. So you lowered your hand to the belt of her jeans. Yoohyeon sighed in relief once her member was standing tall freely. You began to stroke it gently at first before speeding up and pumping her member up and down. Your girlfriend moaned, her whole body relaxing. The way her eyes darkened with lust made you squeeze your thighs in anticipation.

You truly couldn’t wait to have her.

Passionately, you pressed your lips against hers, short before you trapped her bottom one between your teeth.

"I need you, baby.” You sounded desperate, but were far from caring. Besides, Yoohyeon didn’t need to be told twice.

She got rid of your underwear causing you to stand up. Using the situation right away, you also took off the remaining parts of her clothing. Once both of you were nude, Yoohyeon took your hand and pulled you back onto her lap. Humming you kissed her again, enjoying the feeling of her skin directly against yours.

As Yoohyeon’s tongue was exploring the inside of your mouth her hands grew impatient. She lowered your hips a bit signaling that she was indeed ready. You pulled away a bit in order to look into her eyes. It was one of your favorite things when it came to being intimate with Yoohyeon. Watching her and keeping eye contact.

First entrance was smooth, relieving. Almost like putting two fitting puzzles together. You let out a shaky moan feeling Yoohyeon’s shaft deep inside you. She was filling you incredibly while stretching out just right. The two of you didn’t even need words. Yoohyeon’s quiet groans were more than enough to let you know that you were moving your hips in a very good rhythm. It wasn’t fast though, you took your time while enjoying the sweet love making to the maximum.

"Just like that. Don’t stop, baby.” Your girlfriend leaned back to get a better view at you. The sight was deliciously sinful. No one ever made her feel this way. She watched you move your body and ride her, as if hypnotized. Yoohyeon husked, her nails digging into the skin of your hips. "You’ve been such a good girl. Taking all of me in so well.”

"Fuck, Yoohyeon.” You weren’t even able to form a logical sentence. Your eyes rolled in pleasure when you angled your hips differently, hitting that spot perfectly.

Despite the burning spreading through your thighs, there was no way you’d stop. Especially when Yoohyeon finally started thrusting into you, bringing even more pleasure to both of you. Then you felt her hot breaths fanning your neck and her teeth sinking in your skin. Like a hungry vampire she marked you with long-lasting love bites.

If there only was a way to make it possible, she’d stay between your thighs days and nights.

The pleasure was overwhelming, you let out small gasps as you scratched Yoohyeon’s back leaving long, red traces. In response she groaned against your neck sending warm vibrations through your body. Getting a hold of her nape, you raised her head to smash your lips against hers in another lustful kiss. Both of your arms remained wrapped around Yoohyeon, as your tongue was dancing freely with hers. She hugged you closer, her hands assisting your hips while they chased after blissfulness so desperately. A beautiful bubble was created around the two of you, nothing else mattered.

“Yoohyeon, right there.” You suddenly whimpered, your whole body shaking and feeling sore already, yet you were so close. You just needed a tiny little push.

And Yoohyeon knew what it was. She always knew how to satisfy you.

She squeezed your hips and smashed them down on her shaft one last time, aiming for that special spot. You cried out loudly at the sensation, back arching your juices started covering Yoohyeon’s cock and choking it for its’ dear life. With eyes tightly shut you rode out your high.

The unholy sight itself was enough for Yoohyeon to come as well. Your sweet moans built her ego, yet ruined her at the same time. The warmth and tightness of your walls around her member truly felt like heaven on Earth. She was weak for you. Gladly, she let herself get lost in your body as waves of pure pleasure washed over her.

She didn’t lie to you when she said you were the perfect gift yourself.

#kpop #kpop x reader #kpop scenarios #kpop smut #kpop imagine #dreamcatcher #dreamcatcher x reader #dreamcatcher smut #dreamcatcher imagine #dreamcatcher scenario #yoohyeon #dreamcatcher yoohyeon #kim yoohyeon #yoohyeon x reader #yoohyeon smut #christmas smut #kpop christmas #christmas time

[famedbase]

base tv: crowned, round 3

project type: competition show

project duration: june to august (airing july to august)

limitations: none

participation: all muses in the roleplay

deadline: august 27, 2022, at 11:59pm edt / august 28, 2022, at 12:59pm kst *

for the final round of the show, all of the groups will have one final chance to show why they deserve to leave the show crowned winner above the others.

in-’verse info

filming for the second round will take place from august 8 to august 28.

the mission for the final episode is “original song". each group will have to rehearse and perform an entirely original release for this round.

the groups will have from august 8 to prepare their stage for filming of the final stages, which will be broadcast live on august 28.

groups choose and prepare all elements of their song by the time of their final performance. this is likely to be the most intense rounds for the groups, as they have to learn a new song, record it in the studio, learn the choreography, attend fittings and conceptual meetings, rehearse their stage, and more, in the span of three weeks.

on august 11, a few days into rehearsals for the final round and after voting for the second round closes, groups are informed of the final ranking for round two as follows:

1. polaris 2. calypso 3. catalyst 4. selene 5. candy 6. arcadia 7. equinox 8. cloud 9. lily 10. platinum 11. ultraviolet 12. titan 13. quantum/phase

the unit ranking results were as follows:

vocal units:

1. equinox’s suji & candy’s yerin 2. titan’s duri & lily’s yuri 3. equinox’s minjung & selene’s hyojung 4. titan’s haru, polaris’s min, & catalyst’s rioh

dance unit:

1. equinox’s kiana 2. platinum’s haon

rap unit:

1. calypso’s lux 2. selene’s kami

in addition to the rankings, everyone is informed that calypso won the most votes from other groups as the strongest performance while titan earned the most votes from other groups as the weakest performance. 

no benefits or penalties are doled out at this time, but everyone is told that all thirteen groups will be going on a two-night, one-day trip from august 26 to august 28, to have “a vacation to reflect on the memories made during crowned”. off-camera, information is given to managers to pass onto the idols about exact times of the trip and what they should pack, but idols are kept mostly in the dark about whether anything will happen on the trip other than a filmed vacation.

the original songs each group will end up performing are as follows:

titan: "checkmate” lily: “you think” cloud: “hit” candy: “so bad” calypso: “whistle” polaris: “basquiat” [line distribution here] quantum/phase: “the real” (including mingi’s verses) arcadia: "pose” selene: “destiny” platinum: “finale (show and prove)” equinox: “dazzle dazzle” catalyst: “wolfgang” ultraviolet: “me”

** several of the management teams have decided to release music videos this round, in hopes of improving their chances. lily, cloud, candy, equinox, and ultraviolet will film music videos for their songs in addition to the rest of preparations. polaris will film and release a performance video.

each group’s song will be digitally released onto streaming platforms on august 22.

on august 26, the groups will travel (by separate van) to a small lakefront community of four vacation houses that have been rented out for the filming. the groups will arrive that evening in the order of their ranking from last round and when they arrive, they’ll be told which house they’re staying in, based on ranking.

note: the general vibe of the area would be something like this, with all of the houses lined up around a central yard. houses vary in size based on ranking, but all are considered luxury vacation homes. examples of what they might look like are this, this, this, and the houseboats being something like this.

each house is given a status-signifying ‘name’ they are referred to as to the idols.

polaris and calypso will be staying in the ‘house of diamonds’. this house is the largest one, housing five total bedrooms. they will stay two to a room (with each room having two beds) and only members of the same group can room together. they will have meals prepared for them by a private chef during the whole trip and will have a cleaning service come in every morning to clean the house. they’ll be able to practice at any time of day they wish and may kick another group out of a practice room if they’re all full.

catalyst, selene, and candy will stay in the ‘house of gold’. this house also has five rooms. they will stay three to a room except for the master bedroom, where four members of either candy or selene will stay. each room will have two bunk beds. selene and candy members may stay with their own group members or members of the other group, but catalyst members must share rooms within their group. they will have a cleaning service come in every morning, but will have to cook their own meals. they’ll be able to practice any time from 9am-3pm.

equinox, arcadia, and cloud will stay in the ‘house of silver’. this house also has five rooms. cloud members will stay in two rooms of three members and must stay with their own group members. equinox and arcadia members will stay in either one room of three roommates or one of two other rooms of four members. they may stay with their own members or members of the other group. they’ll only be able to practice at any time from 3pm-9pm.

lily, platinum, and ultraviolet will stay in the ‘house of bronze’. this house has three rooms and each group will stay in one room together with four sleeping bags. they will be expected to keep their house clean as well as prepare their own meals. they’ll only be able to practice at any time from 9pm-3am.

quantum/phase and titan will each be ‘exiled’, which means they each stay in one of two much smaller two-room houseboats on the lake during their stay. all members of each group will share the two rooms of their respective houseboat (one intended to be a bedroom and one intended to be a social area) sleeping in sleeping bags. they will be expected to keep their houseboat clean as well as prepare their own meals. each houseboat has only a microwave, no stove or oven. they’ll only be able to practice at any time from 3am-9am.

as the mvp winner of the first round, @fmdduri is informed that he will trading in his oversized prop key for a key to a house he will stay in dubbed the ‘house of rubies’: a one-bedroom cottage complete with all the amenities he could need, including a fully-stocked kitchen, a bathroom with a jacuzzi bath, and a private garden area. like the ‘house of diamonds’, he will have access to a private chef and personal cleaning services during his stay. he also gets a ‘pass’ allowing his group one time to practice outside of their designated practice hours. they may kick out any currently practicing group to use this if they have to.

cameras will be set up in each room inside of each house except for the bathrooms. cameras will also be affixed outside of the houses. additionally, camera operators will be present to film anything of particular note. there is a warehouse nearby set up for groups to practice their performance, which the groups can be driven to by their managers (with times decided by house / previous round’s ranking). idols may visit houses they are not staying in, but they may not spend the night there or use their benefits (ex. the private chef). if they don’t have it at their own residence.

on the night of august 26, there will be filming of a bbq party where each house (diamond, gold, silver, bronze, quantum/phase’s houseboat, and titan’s houseboat) will be expected to bring a dish (or multiple). the ‘house of diamonds’ may choose to have their private chef cook the dish they bring, but the rest will have to cook the dish themselves from what is in their kitchen. duri may not use his personal private chef to cook to represent titan.

on the afternoon of august 27, the groups will compete in a competition on the lawn connecting the houses. they’ll compete in their groups to guess songs by the other competing groups based on song lyrics. (groups cannot try to guess their own songs or they’ll be penalized.) the winning group will switch places with the losing group for the final day. (note: this means the losing group could move into a better house while the winning group moves into a worse one, not just the other way around, so trying to lose could be as much a strategy as trying to win.) in the end, ultraviolet wins and polaris loses. for that night, polaris will move into the ‘house of bronze’ and ultraviolet will move into the ‘house of diamonds’.

the live broadcast of the finale will be held on august 28. the groups will leave around 10am that day (after all houses without a personal cleaning team clean up to leave their houses in top shape). they will drive back to the broadcast station. this performance will be live on a slight delay (~5 minutes).  the groups will perform in order from last place last round to first place last round. they will perform in front of a live audience of fans of all groups and a group of ‘special judges’’. the ‘special judges’ for round three will be a group of production crew who have worked on various mnet idol productions, such as mcountdown, the mnet asian music awards, and crowned itself. they’ll evaluate the performances as well as their personal experiences with the idols.

performances will be scored for this round through a combination of live votes from the audience and viewers at home, performance on digital charts, and the special judges’ votes. 

mun info

participation in final song

muses may be involved in the production, choreography, and styling for their original song. starting at midnight edt on tuesday, august 9, (24 hours after this post goes up) muses with specialties in music production, dance & choreography, or fashion & modeling may make claims in these areas respectively. beginning at midnight edt on thursday, august 11, any muses, regardless of specialty may make claims in these areas.

muses may only work on the production, choreography, or styling for their own group’s song, since this is a competition.

note that due to the timeframe, production and choreography would have needed to have been completed before the round began and styling would have to be completed early in the round.

8/9 update: final song participation claims can be submitted here.

claims made:

titan’s checkmate: lyrics & melody by duri (closed) candy’s so bad: partial choreography by sun (closed) calypso’s whistle: partial styling by yenny (closed) polaris’s basquiat: partial lyrics, partial melody, & partial arrangement by taeyong (closed) selene’s destiny: lyrics, partial melody, and arrangement by kami (closed)

pre-made plot points

muns may reserve pre-made plot points for crowned round 3. these plot points can be found here. a muse can only have one claimable plot point for the duration of the show, but no muse is required to claim any. there will be claimable plot points for each round of the show. if pre-made plot points went unclaimed, they may have been carried over to the this round or removed.

claimable plots can be applied for here on a first-come, first-served basis and are entirely optional. if someone gets to your muse’s desired plot before you, you may resubmit for a different plot.

rankings

please note that rankings and special awards that will take place during crowned will be decided through a mix of randomization, influence through muses’ own development, and pre-planned plot points/moments. there are no pre-determined final rankings for any round or for the winner of the show, but randomization will play the biggest role in them. muns should not be focusing on trying to make their muses’ group win, as this is not something that is entirely within any muns’ control and is not the focus of this event. muses may be driven by the desire to win, of course, but that isn’t what should be important out-of-character! please turn your focus to development of your muse through this instead.

initial rankings for the second round was randomly generated and then a rank rise up or down was randomly generated for each taken pre-made plot. additionally, one one spot rise bonus was randomly generated from all groups that had at least one member compete in a unit stage to reflect extra earned fan votes. all groups who had a member or members participate in the unit stage got only a spot rise, regardless of how many members participated. the group named the most as the strongest performance in interviews (calypso) earned a one spot rise to reflect the portion of voting that is allotted to ‘other groups’. due to the set plot point from the last round, arcadia was also brought up one spot to place within the top half of groups. for units, results were entirely randomly generated with no outside effects.

for the song-guessing competition, both the winner and the loser were randomly generated. 

screenshots of this random generation and data can be provided if requested, but as it would be quite complicated/long and image-heavy and ranking is not supposed to be the OOC-focus, it won’t be linked unless requested for transparency!

airing schedule

the airing schedule of episodes using footage from first round filming will be as follows:

episode 7: august 14 (round two rankings, rehearsals) episode 8: august 21 (special episode recapping the season) episode 9 & episode 10: august 28 (’bonding’ trip, live final performances, final ranking reveal and announcement of season winner)

any further questions should be directed to the main’s ask box!

points roundup

total available points for muses involved: 34 points (none of the prompts count toward monthly limits.)

+3 points each: a thread revolving around filming for this filming block of at least eight posts (four for each muse) by the deadline (up to twenty-four points / eight threads maximum).

+2 points: completion of in-character interview #1

+2 point: completion of in-character interview #2

+3 points: up to two self-paras of at least 400 words revolving around filming for this filming block (up to six points total)

please specify whether an interaction or solo is on or off camera and an exact date (or as exact as possible, ex. ‘first week of rehearsals’) at the top of the first post in the thread / the post of the solo. content that does not explicitly state it is on-camera will not be used for episodes to avoid unintentionally overstepping mun intentions.

please remember to tag with #famedcrowned3.

#famedcrowned #famedcrowned3 #queued post

[quaranmine]

a pair of yellow lives

Mumbo and Grian have a talk in the cave after collecting their diamonds.

An angsty Last Life fic I wrote last night. Contains spoilers for Grian and Mumbo's Last Life episode 2. TW for mentioned (canon) suicide and implied self harm; both very brief.

Words: 1139

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After they’d laughed themselves silly and found a bunch of stone and only a few diamonds, Mumbo and Grian found themselves sitting next to each other on a rock in the cave. The air deep below ground was cool and damp, and Grian could feel the cold from the rock he was sitting on deep in his bones. But mining was hard and hot work, and it was a pleasant place to take a breather.

Mumbo needed the rest. He wouldn’t admit it, but Grian could tell he was tired and had suggested they rest before going to the surface again. He had died twice today, so close together, and Grian had been friends with him long enough to know when he was putting on a brave face. Mumbo had always been a bad liar.

His armor and pants covered it, but Grian knew that his legs were burned from the lava. The Boogeymen kills leave scars. Grian knew that too. Mumbo had been walking with a not-so-subtle limp for the last few hours as well--the injury should have healed when he respawned but Grian supposed the damage was enough that it required adaptation.

“Look at the two of us,” Grian said, breaking the silence. “We’re both on yellow now.” Wish you hadn’t joined the club, he left unsaid.

“Yeah . . .” Mumbo replied with a sigh. “I’ve had a proper bad day, haven’t I?”

“Are you alright?”

Mumbo was quiet, and didn’t meet Grian’s gaze. Instead, he was intensely staring down a cave passage to the right like he was waiting for a mob to walk out and start attacking them. They’d lit the place up already; there were no mobs. But Grian understood the paranoia--he’d placed twice as many torches as necessary.

“I’m okay.”

“You don’t have to lie to me, you know,” Grian said softly, I understand. Mumbo had always been a bad liar.

It seemed to break something in Mumbo, like Grian had given him permission to let his guard down. Mumbo’s eyes welled up with tears. He quickly wiped them away. “It hurt,” he whispered. “Why does it still hurt? I-I’ve died a hundred times on Hermitcraft, but this time it just-”

“It’s different in this world.” Everything was different in this world. With only a few precious lives, it’s like everything was amplified--everything meant so much more, and the stakes were so much higher. Everything felt fervent and desperate, intensely alive with the knowledge you might not be for much longer. Unfortunately, death was intensely powerful as well.

Respawn was supposed to fix everything, but fate was cruel in this world and the marks from the Boogeyman remained. Grian gently brushed his hands against the scar on his neck. He had caught Mumbo looking at it a few times, and each time it felt like it burned under his gaze. They were even now, he supposed, both in scars and number of lives.

“It feels like I can still feel it,” Mumbo said softly. “Like when I close my eyes I’m still burning. How do I--how do I stop it? I don’t want to live like this.”

Grian scooted closer to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “I’m still figuring it out. But you have us, you have the Southlands. We’ll help you. I’ll help you.”

“I don’t think I like lava anymore,” Mumbo said dully.

“Has anyone ever?” Grian tried to joke, but it fell flat. “Well . . . I don’t think I like disc 13.”

“Has anyone ever?” Mumbo shot back, drawing a small smile from Grian. “It’s a creepy song.”

“So awful. Like, what were they thinking?”

Mumbo chuckled, and they fell into a heavy silence. After a moment, Mumbo leaned and rested his head on Grian’s shoulder, and even though the height difference made it an awkward position, Grian let him stay.

“I’m sorry you’re here. I don’t know why you’re here. I don’t know why any of us are,” Grian confessed suddenly. “It was supposed to be over.”

“How do you get used to it?” Mumbo asked after a pause. “Killing your friends . . . being killed by your friends.”

“You don’t,” Grian answered. “But . . . this isn’t home. It’s not the same. We just have to survive and sometimes that brings out people’s worst sides. Nobody is themselves right now.”

“Even you?”

It was a good question, and Grian suppressed a flinch. Mumbo hadn’t been there last time--he didn’t see Grian kill three people with a bomb and rig a whole desert to explode and laugh with glee. He didn’t see the grief people felt when their partners were killed. He didn’t see the betrayals. He didn’t see Grian throw himself off a cliff to give up his final life. He didn’t understand how the world brought out the worst in everyone.

Or, maybe he did. Grian remembered Mumbo’s face as he held up his bloody stone sword in triumph after killing Joel, just seconds before disaster struck and he cried and burned. Mumbo, collecting redstone explicitly for traps and building a bunker instead of a tower. Mumbo, whose legs were burned and causing him to walk with a limp. Mumbo hadn’t exactly been sheltered from anything.

The totality of it seemed to hit him again suddenly, that this was definitely real and he wasn’t dreaming. It had consequences and they were seeing them already. It wasn’t over, and he’d have to do it all again, and this time more of his friends were here and he was helpless to stop it. Maybe he did understand why Ren had set himself on fire earlier.

When Grian didn’t reply, Mumbo spoke again with a hint of desperation edging his voice. “Please don’t kill me if you’re the Boogeyman. Promise me that at least, please. I need to know you’re safe.”

He didn’t know if he could make that promise. He didn’t know if he trusted himself with that promise. But a little deception went a long way in this world, and Grian couldn’t bear to break Mumbo’s heart more than necessary. “I promise,” he said. “But only if you promise back.”

“Of course I do,” Mumbo answered steadily. “Now, can we get out of this cave before something goes wrong? I feel we’re pushing our luck as it is the longer we sit here.”

Grian nodded, and they stood and gathered their things. Grian was careful to pocket his diamonds somewhere safe, since he’d worked so hard to get them.

“Oh, and Grian?” Mumbo asked. “Please don’t tell the others what I told you. I, uh . . . I don’t want them to worry about me.”

“I won’t, I promise,” Grian said, and that time he meant it.

“Now, where is the exit?”

“Well Mumbo, you’re in luck, because I actually hid my diamonds over by the exit-”

“Stop it!”

#last life smp #grian #mumbo jumbo #last life fanfic #last life grian #last life mumbo #3rd life smp #last life spoilers #quara fanfic #self harm tw #suicide tw #traffic series

[laceymorganwrites]

Shallow love

Word count: 2,128

Pairing: Nacht x reader

Warnings: SPOILER ALERT, swearing, teeny bit of gore, insecurities, I probaby butchered his character >.< I´m so sorry, baby

A/N: NACHT APPEARS IN TODAY´S EPISODE SO OMG I HAD TO POST THIS!!!!

okay so

Nacht is my second favorite Black Clover character and yes, I am currently: freaking out. also he has Dabi´s VA so: perfection. 

I will definitely post more about him in the future! I just wanted to get this out today since it just fit so well <333 I´ll be back to regular posting in April

You didn´t think that you would ever be able to feel peace again and go back to your normal life after the attack of the Diamond kingdom.

And yet here you were, in the calm after the storm.

It was weird. Everything was in chaos, the villages and overall buildings were even more destroyed than when the eye of the midnight sun attacked.

Everything was as per usual at the Black Bull´s base, nothing out of the ordinary except for Yami forcing Nacht to stay now.

You´ve known him for a long time now, being the first member of the squad, and you never could read him. He always intrigued you.

And yet he also always made you distance yourself from him.

Nacht was the type of guy who was too blunt for his own good. You appreciated honesty, but he just always made it hurt.

You knew full well that you weren´t an innocent little lamb, but who was?

What irked you most about him was how badly he thought and spoke about his own squad, to this day you asked yourself why he even joined in the first place, he could´ve just as easily denied Yami´s order.

Sure, Yami could be persistent, but that wouldn´t stop someone like Nacht.

There had to be more to the two of them but over the years you learned that you just didn´t want to know.

Every time you approached Nacht about it he just shut you off and reminded you of all your flaws again.

Like he always did. With everyone.

Except for Asta, like everyone, he took a liking to the little guy.

Though, you had to admit Nacht seemed more open and approachable after the war. And yet you didn´t.

Instead you watched him at first reluctantly, over time without any hesitation, becoming rather friendly, talking to the rest of the squad.

In all those years you have known him you always asked yourself whether you really did. You highly doubted it.

You just couldn´t figure him out. Did he just wear a mask? Were all of his infuriating smiles for show? Was it all a game to him? What were his goals?

And why…

No. You didn´t want to think about that.

What was the point anyway? Anyone got a crush at some point, the only difference was that crushes usually didn´t last this long.

Especially if said person didn´t pay you any mind unless they were insulting you.

Nacht mostly stayed to himself, making it known he didn´t want anything to do with the rest of the squad.

Though like anyone else who stayed with them for a long amount of time, he warmed up to everyone. Still, he had his moments and didn´t exactly change his opinion. Because in his world people couldn´t change, they just didn´t.

And that made you sad.

Because deep down you just wanted him to acknowledge you, to tell you that you weren´t as bad as he thought, that you were a good person.

But at one point being around him just hurt. You cared too much, thought too much about him, it kept you awake at night.

If only you went out of your room into the kitchen where he would stay because of the same problem.

Especially since that day…

You were surrounded. Everywhere you looked you saw black, greedy eyes. The devils were everywhere and all hope seemed lost. You couldn´t rely on Asta only anymore, he already went through enough. He shouldn´t fight your battles for you just because he had strong powers, he was just a little boy.

And yet there he was, fighting ferociously, once again defeating the devil that came to slay everyone that day all those centuries ago.

It was hard to keep at least somewhat of an overview, everything seemed in shambles and the screams and cries of everyone were deafening.

You really shouldn´t be focusing on Nacht right now, now was not the time. Not that there ever was an appropriate time for that anyway.

But of course you just couldn´t help yourself, your eyes wandered to him frequently even as you told them to stop.

Though in this instance it might have not been that bad. Your eyes went wide as you realized what he was about to do, everything around you faded away, you felt numb and your body moved on its own to prevent him from going through with his plan.

“Please die with me” were the last things that left his lips that shut your brain off and made you move automatically. They weren´t uttered to you, Nacht didn´t even look in your direction, it was none of your business.

Even still you couldn´t just stand by idly and watch him die, watch one of the only chances you had at winning die, watch the man you hated to love die.

The little devil on his shoulder looked scared as your gaze met him and honestly, you could understand it all too well.

You were scared too but now wasn´t a time for fear, you needed to stop him at all costs.

“That´s the stupidest thing you ever said!” you screamed out as you were still running towards him.

Finally his head turned to you, he still had that infuriating smile on his lips, though it was so sad this time.

“It´s the only way…” he replied.

“You don´t know that! You can´t know that! You can´t just throw you life away like that, it won´t change anything! In fact it will… we will lose. We will lose so much more than just the fight, don´t you understand that? You´re not more or less important than the rest of us and you´re our vice captain, so it´s my duty to stop you from sacrificing yourself!” you said, grabbing his shoulders and frantically panting, you looked at him aghast, shocked, eyes wide and searching for something...anything in his eyes that wasn´t dull.

“Then we´re all going to die, but it´s so typical of you to be so selfish” he told you, his tone as entitled as always.

“You´re selfish too, you know that?” you whispered, averting your eyes.

“You can´t just run away from your responsibilities. It isn´t right” you stood your ground, balling your fists in anger and frustration.

“It´s the only way, why do you even try to stop me?” he sighed, looking at you. He was feeling quite frustrated now too, what were you trying to achieve? If he didn´t make this sacrifice so many more people would die, didn´t you care about them? Wasn´t it your job to protect everyone? So why were you trying to desperately to save him out of all people?

“Because I care. A lot. We all do. And yes it´s selfish, you´re right about that. We´re all selfish losers and assholes but you know what? We do it best and we´re goddamn proud not to be as picture perfect as all the others. That´s what defines us. And you don´t have to agree with that, but I´m fucking stubborn so don´t think for even a second that I´ll let you go through with your stupid plan!” you looked at him with such emotion, such passion, it made his heart ache with a foreign familiarity.

Nacht never paid you any more mind than he did the others, just thinking all of you were useless. That was why he was so surprised that someone would voluntarily want to save him.

He treated you like shit, sure it was more out of a defense mechanism cause he couldn´t bear leaving people behind, having people worry about him, he already had enough guilt to carry.

But hearing your words was like a revelation to him.

Maybe he still had a role to play in life, maybe his story wasn´t over yet and just maybe could he live his life without having to fulfill anything, but solely for himself and the ones he cared about.

Maybe it was finally time to start caring more than he was ready to admit, to take a step into the unknown and discover it with…

You.

It had always been you, he realized as he saw your desperate face, your hands on his shoulders, all dirty from fighting and yet feeling warmer than any fire ever could.

“Yes, maybe living might not be that bad” he tilted his head, smiling at you.

You felt an intense amount of relief wash over you as you gave him an exhausted smile back.

That was the first time you ever smiled at him, Nacht would never forget that moment, the moment in which you broke down his walls without even knowing it.

He would have to thank you later for that, when he fully comprehended what that meant.

Asta and you were training together again outside while the others were inside going on about their daily ruckus. Some were on missions already but some, like Asta, who were wounded and exhausted still needed to rest properly.

Though it was no use. Asta would never rest like he should unless he was knocked out.

And you tried that the first week, you each took turns but eventually you just couldn´t keep up anymore and let him train like he wanted.

Nacht also kept training with him, though he himself was new to everything going on and needed time to properly accommodate to things.

You stretched a bit, sitting down to just enjoy the sun for a moment.

“I can´t wait to go on missions again! I´m as good as new, I´m ready, I promise!” Asta beamed and showed off a bit but you only sighed.

“It´s not my call, kid” you apologized.

Asta pouted and kept training.

“You got a mission” Yami announced as he joined you outside and Asta practically jumped up and down with excitement and energy.

“Just the usual, rebuilding a town and fighting some magic beasts that escaped” he explained and Nacht slowly appeared behind him.

Asta´s eyes were beaming right now, he was excited to learn even more about the devil´s powers although he got quite the hang of it and even made a new friend.

Nacht smiled and waved at you, you just looked away as always and stood up to go back inside.

Nothing had changed anyway.

Until Yami stopped you in your tracks.

“If you get going now you´re gonna return by nightfall” he said and you nodded.

Asta sighed in frustration.

“I wanna go on a mission too!” he cried out.

“Not happening” all three of you said at the same time, shutting him up for a bit.

Both you and Nacht didn´t say anything as you made your way to the town in question.

Nacht because he didn´t know how to approach you and you because you thought there was no point in it, he wouldn´t think of you any differently.

And so you started your mission, once again fighting alongside each other and even though the task was dull Nacht´s presence gave you an energy that was unmatched, you just couldn´t help but smile.

When you were done you went deeper into the town to help the people rebuild it.

“Do you wanna go on a date with me?” he said out of the blue, making you turn around in confusion.

“Why would I go on a date with a guy who hates my guts?” you asked, making him sigh sadly.

“I´m sorry if I left that impression on you. I really don´t hate you… it´s quite the opposite actually” he explained.

“Did you just… I swear I never heard you apologize in all those years I´ve known you” you chuckled, not quite processing the second half of his statement.

“I never saw the point in it. All my life I always watched from afar, I always wanted to save people but you know, I´m just operating in the shadows. I´m good at spying and gaining information, saving people. Not so much making friends with them. I never saw it as my role. After all I lived my life for the kingdom and its people and not for myself. Why would I care if anyone liked me? In fact it would be the worst thing that could happen… death was always part of the job description and I was always willing to take that risk if it meant you could live longer. But now… ever since that day, I just want to live with you” he confessed, leaving you at a loss for words, so you did the only logical thing to you in this moment: hug him tightly.

“Of course I´d like to go on a date with you, Nacht. And I will keep protecting you” you smiled.

#black clover #black clover reader insert #black clover imagine #black clover oneshots #black clover spoilers #black clover scenarios #black clover drabble #black clover fanfiction #black clover fic #black clover fluff #black clover x reader #black clover x y/n #black clover x you #black clover nacht #black clover black bulls #nacht faust #nacht faust imagine #nacht imagine #nacht oneshot #nacht faust oneshot #nacht faust scenario #nacht scenario #nacht faust drabble #nacht drabble #nacht faust fluff #nacht fluff #nacht faust fic #nacht fic #nacht faust x reader #nacht x reader

[twstarchives]

Deuce Spade・Voice Lines

Additional Voice Lines

Star Send-Off Garments event card

Scary Dress event card

School Uniform - R

Unlock Card “An honors student needs to be able to balance both their studies and their club activities.”

Groovy “It’s nice to have friends where you both can lift each other up.”

Home Setting “I’m going to be an honors student.”

Home Transitions “Even now, there are times when I still can’t believe I’m a student at the prestigious Night Raven College.”

“It’s not that I hate the uniforms. It’s just that, uh... in the past, I used to rip my clothes a lot, so wearing them the way they’re supposed to be worn feels uncomfortable.”

“What class do you have next? I’m not that good at doing work... but I try my best because of that.”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “Are you ready? We’ll be in trouble if the teachers notice we’re late.”

Home Taps “If you haven’t gotten any food yet, want to go together? I recommend getting the cafeteria’s fluffy omelettes.”

“My dream...? Someday I want to become a powerful mage. That’s why I’ve got to study my hardest now.”

“It might seem daunting being in a place you’re not familiar with, but as long as you set your mind to it, things should turn out okay. It’s an experience.”

“Ace ran off somewhere skipping out on his class duties, huh? ...He really is a handful.”

“Stop it, I don’t like being prodded at so much. ...Hey, are you sure you heard me?”

PE Uniform - R

Unlock Card “I feel really sure about my strength. If you don’t believe me, wanna test it out?”

Groovy “You can’t be a mage unless you’ve got muscles! ...That’s what Coach Vargas told us.”

Home Setting “I gotta show off the best sides of me.”

Home Transitions “Moving around feels so nice. I also like that you don’t have to think too hard about it.”

“I heard that Jack hates hanging out with people. He never talks during club meetings either, but... weirdly, we hit it off.”

“Flying is actually pretty hard. I thought it’d be something more like riding a Magical Wheel.”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “Oh, you wanna go for a run together? Alright. I’ll wait here; you can go get changed.”

Home Taps “You’re bored? Then let’s go on a Magical Wheel ride somewhere... er, I forgot we’d need permission to go off-campus.”

“I was in charge of setting up our landline back home. I hope my mom hasn’t been having trouble with it...”

“Coach Vargas is the supervisor of the Track & Field club. Usually he’s a very passionate, respectable teacher, but when he gets started talking about muscles, he’s kind of...”

“Mud stains usually won’t come off on their own, so you need to hand-wash them before putting them in the washing machine. ...Everyone knows this kind of stuff, right?”

“...Hey! You don’t have to keep poking me; if there’s somewhere you wanna go, I’ll come with you.”

Lab Coat - SR

Unlock Card “There’s a lot of things I don’t know yet. I’m going to learn everything I can little by little.”

Groovy “I’ve made more progress since yesterday! ...I think.”

Home Setting “Alright. I’m gonna put in all I’ve got!”

Home Transitions “The stench of this potion I messed up won’t come off me... I smell like I just stepped out of a medicine box.”

“Diamond saw the grade I got on my test earlier. He wouldn’t stop laughing at it...”

“How is Grim able to hold that thin test tube with his paws? It’s a mystery.”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “Oh, glad you’re here. I was just thinking I’d like to take a break for a while. Want to walk with me to the Botanical Garden?”

Home Transition (Groovy) “I’m not good at studying. I wouldn’t want to do it if I had the option, but... I can’t run away. I’ve made up my mind.”

Home Taps “It’s nice there’s always something new to learn in our classes. ‘Cause when I was in middle school, I, uh... was absent a lot... ‘cause of this and that...”

“I promise I’m not that awkward, but when people are saying so many things at once, I start freaking out.”

“The best thing I can cook are fried eggs. They can be really complex if you’re picky about them. I like mine over-easy.”

“If you’re stuck on a problem, you should ask Professor Crewel for help. He’ll explain it to you for hours until you completely understand it.”

“Huh?! Did I say something wrong!? ...Oh, it’s nothing? Don’t scare me like that.”

Home Tap (Groovy) “Listen to this! I got some nice feedback on my test just now! It’s thanks to you studying with me earlier.”

Ceremony Robes - SR

Unlock Card “I can’t afford to look away. ‘Cause I’m going to become a powerful mage!”

Groovy “This is the pride of a student of Night Raven College.”

Home Setting “You want to hang out with me? You’ve got a good eye.”

Home Transitions “This academy is way too big! It’d be so much easier if we could move between classrooms through a mirror like how we get to our dorms.”

“Where are you going? Seriously... A teacher will yell at you again if you just wander off for no reason.”

“I’m going to study lots of things, and memorize lots of spells, and then someday I’ll... Ah, it’s exciting, isn’t it?”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “Every time I wear these ceremony robes, I think about the entrance ceremony, and how nervou——er, ahem!”

Home Transition (Groovy) “Hey, could we take a picture together? I think it’d put my mom at ease too if she saw I made a friend.”

Home Taps “Night Raven College is a prestigious school anyone would kill to get into. The fact that I’m here is a huge honor.”

“Clover knows so much about everything, and he’s so dependable... I want to be like that someday too.”

“The ceremony robes represent this school. It makes sense that they added this classy embroidering so that other schools can’t make light of us.”

“People say that the amount of magic power you can have is determined at birth. But you wouldn’t have any at all without working hard for it in the first place.”

“Hey, don’t get a single speck on these clothes, alright? My ceremony robes are important to me.”

Home Tap (Groovy) “When I see you, someone who can’t even use magic, trying your best at this academy... it makes me not want to lose either.”

Dorm Uniform - SSR

Unlock Card “I’ll become a committed man, just like a card soldier. That’s what I made up my mind to do.”

“Common sense doesn’t work at our dorm. You need to be prepared.”

Groovy “I would never abandon my friends. You can count on me!”

Home Setting “How are you? Have you gotten a little more adjusted here?”

Home Transitions “Does this outfit look good on me? I’ve never worn something like this before, so I feel a little awkward.”

“Just between you and me... I still feel kinda uncomfortable with the dorm’s tea parties. I’m not used to fancy things like that.”

“Trust me with playing croquet! So you just swing as hard as you can, right?”

Home Transition (Login Greeting) “Be careful not to break any of the Queen of Hearts’ rules. Especially not when you’re on Heartslabyul.”

Home Transition (Groovy) “Isn’t it lonely being at the Ramshackle Dorm by yourself? ...Huh? Oh, my bad. By yourself with one animal.”

Home Taps “Heartslabyul’s rules are strict, but a lot of them really do benefit you. ...Probably.”

“I swear my loyalty to this dorm, just like a card soldier. ...That’s what this button is supposed to mean. It’d be bad if I lost it, huh?”

“That force Dorm Leader Rosehearts has when he gets angry...! He’s a dorm leader alright—he’s not like anyone else.”

“Ace always cheats me when we play card games together, so they’re not fun. If I could just see through his trick...”

“Oh, actually, I’m in the mood to just go off and something too. Let’s go conquer the rose maze!”

Home Tap (Groovy) “If you were in Heartslabyul, it’d be a lot more... Nevermind. The Ramshackle Dorm really does suit you well, though. Haha...”

Duo Magic Deuce: “Ace! We’re gonna teach these guys a lesson!” Ace: “There it is—Deuce’s tough guy talk!”

Tutorial “Now, it’s starting.”

Lv Up “Alright, I think I did well.”

“Yeah, I feel like I got something.”

“I don’t wanna lose to anyone.”

Max Lv Up “I’ve never had anyone join me for intensive training as persistently as you have. I feel like I’ve been steadily making progress ever since I met you.”

Episode Lv Up “Heh... You and I are BFFs. ...Huh? ‘What does BFF mean’? You don’t know? Um... b... best friends, like... really close friends... Nevermind!”

Magic Lv Up “Heh... Maybe a day will come soon where I can start summoning something other than cauldrons.”

Limit Break “It’ll reflect badly on my role as a honor student if I don’t live up to your expectations.”

Groovy “My power is surging through my whole body. This is what it feels like to advance, huh?”

Lesson Select “You’re going to class, right? Let me know if you need anything. I don’t know if I’d be able to help you with your work, though...”

“C’mon, if you take your time choosing, you’ll be late to class. Let’s hurry to the classroom.”

“You just have to jump in and give it your all for whichever class you take. Make sure you’re ready for them.”

Lesson Start “Alright, let’s get started!”

Lesson End “It’s finally over. There’s a lot we have to remember.”

Battle Start “I’ll take you on all at once!”

Battle End “You see? This is the difference between our resolves.”

Other

Profile Quote “Today we’re having an Unbirthday Party. It’ll be off with our heads if we’re late.”

January 2020 Trailer “Hurry up and get over here. If you’re late to the tea party, you’ll lose your head.”

Countdown Poster “I’ll become a committed man, just like a card soldier. That’s what I made up my mind to do.”

Login Bonus “It’s important to just put in a little effort everyday. You know what they say—from little acorns mighty oaks grow.”

Player Birthday Wish “Oi, I heard it’s your birthday today. Don’t be a stranger; you should just tell me. I want to give my friends a huge celebration for their birthdays. Come on, I’ll get you something from the cafeteria.”

Valentine’s Day Gift Letter (2021)

These letters were originally in English. I didn’t translate or edit them in any way. They came with official merch from Aniplex, and are not present in-game.

Friend, Thank you for the present. You surprised me a bit with that since we don’t often get chances to give our classmates gifts. I’m so happy! Today is going to be a great day. I’ll thank you again when I see you in class later!

#twisted wonderland #deuce spade #voice lines

[novantinuum]

Contact (Ch. 3/4)

Fandom: Steven Universe

Rating: T (No TW this chapter, but keep in mind this involves major character injury)

Words: 3.0K~

Summary: The first (and with any luck, only) time it happens, he’s almost 16.

Chapter Summary: Amethyst, Greg, and Pearl struggle to keep it together.

So this fic is Steven and Amethyst centric, set during the 2 year time skip. It’s also kinda in conversation with An Indirect Kiss, and explores the idea of what could happen to a hybrid with a cracked gem. This chapter has no specific trigger warnings. 

If you read this and enjoy, I’d greatly appreciate your support through reblogs here, or kudos/comments on AO3 as well. AO3 link will be provided in the reblogs. Thank you! <3

~

Chapter 3: The Fountain

Discounting extreme circumstances, (such as diamond mind control or flaws in incubation), Gems are designed to have perfect memory.

It’s one of the many aspects of their culture that surprises humans, and all too often one that makes them jealous. But Amethyst doesn’t understand why there’s anything to be jealous about. Sure, maybe it means she can learn a skill once and be done with it, or hold on to cherished moments in crystal clear recollection, but it also means that in some part she’ll always be haunted by everything boring, everything bad. It’s an unavoidable facet of her life: that every passing second of all those years she spent alone in the Kindergarten waiting for orders she’d never receive is forever etched into the baseline circuitry of her gem like ink on a human’s skin, that she can remember every rotten fight she and Pearl ever had with picture perfect clarity, each instance ending with her feeling like absolute garbage for days and days. That... no matter how hard she tries to escape the untimely reminders... deep down, all those selfish, immature versions of herself she wishes she could dump in the past forever are still a part of her coding.

In comparison, humanity has it lucky. In time, they forget. They move on. Even the most traumatizing memories seem to eventually fade by the end of a life, leaving behind only feelings... only scars... just whispering impressions of those experiences.

She desperately hopes Steven takes after his dad and not Rose in this aspect.

The four of them exit the ship in a hurry, Amethyst still helping Greg carry his son, and Pearl advancing ahead to check on the state of the water supply.

As always, Rose’s fountain is a time capsule. The shrubs and trees surrounding the inner pool are tame now, a stark difference from the first time she had the untimely pleasure of visiting, but the cold, staticky sensation rising within her as she steps off the boarding ramp of the Roaming Eye with Steven’s legs secure in her grasp is the same. Amethyst only barely holds back a shudder. She recalls the disorientation she felt in this place so vividly she may as well be cracked all over again.

The world glitches violently within her sights, ashen sky and charcoal stone phasing into each other. Left is right and up is down, hard light stretching out from her broken gemstone like clawing, yearning fingers... forming and reforming, taut at one moment and pliable at the next, and her words are jumbled and backwards, and deep within she knows this with an intense clarity but she can’t help it, she can barely even think, she ca—

“Amethyst, no more roughhousing, you'll exacerbate your crack!”

“Doog m’I, gnihtyna ro yrrow t’nod.”

“This isn't right... the fountain isn’t running.”

“WHY CAN’T I CRY?!”

The thin little circuits of light running throughout her projected body jolt in remembrance of that afternoon, indelible phantom pangs of a sliver of time she can never forget for anything. With a dull huff and a grimace, she adjusts her hold on the boy she’s long come to see as her baby brother. Best to not become lost in the flood of the past when she’s got a mission to uphold. That’s... that’s all this is, ch’yeah? A mission. Just a mission. Retrace your steps, meet your goal, get it done. Easy-peasy. No problem.

Ignore the stakes. Ignore everything that isn’t right here and right now. Ignore the sharp cries of pain that escape his lips intermittently, that stab at you so deep you feel like you should be poofing.

“Amethyst?” a voice comes to her softly. “You okay?”

But don’t ignore Greg. Whatever you do, don’t ignore the people around you, don’t lose yourself to that awful disorientation again, don’t make everything worse, don’t push, don’t roughhouse, don’t—

“She’s been cracked like this before,” Pearl explains as she walks in a frantic pace ahead of them. “And we Gems, well... we remember things vividly, shall we say.”

She scoffs, still inwardly cradling her gem in response to what happened in the Roaming Eye. Sheesh. It’s so typical of her to launch headfirst into other people’s business before she can open her own dumb mouth to explain on her own, huh?

“Wow,” she bites back on jerk instinct, “thanks for the announcement, Pearl. ‘S not like I could’ve said it better myself, or anything.”

The slender Gem snaps upon her bait with a piercing, annoyance-filled gaze, and frankly, Amethyst would’ve doled out another snide comment in return had Steven’s hoarse voice not chosen that moment to hitch in panic, derailing all other thoughts in an instant. Her arms grow just as stiff and locked as the muscles in his calves, be it from sympathy or as a mirror into the bitter past, to a time where she suffered just as much as he is now.

The weight of this realization settles like lead at her core. Her favorite guy in the whole galaxy is in earth-shattering pain, and she’s wasting precious seconds of his life taking cheep shots at Pearl?

Not the time, she growls at herself, shedding her petty feud to the wind. Focus!

“Uh, y’guys? I-I think it’s happening again!” his father says, exhausted arms quivering under the strain of carrying the boy for so long.

“Damnit,” she hisses, and follows Greg’s lead on easing his body closer to the ground before the worst of his fits arrive. This time, Steven lacks the energy to mask his broken sobs, split between desperate gasps for breath. Nothing, not gentle whispers or even his father’s calloused hand delicately brushing through his curls, seems to soothe his anguish now. She doesn’t consider herself much of a crier, but she’s close to tears herself just watching him. As she glances up to check how far they are from their destination, she catches a flash of ivory and blue disappearing between the shrubbery. “Pearl!” she bellows, her shout echoing across the entire garden. “Slow down, would ‘ya? He’s seizing again!”

Her features contort as she whirls around to glance back, unmaskable stress now nearly tearing her apart at the seems. She jabs her finger at the narrow path between the shrubs. “But we’re almost—“

“Fine, fine, never mind! You’re right!” Amethyst blurts, waving her off. “You go run ahead. Just...”

Her voice grows thick as she roughly wipes away the moisture accumulating at the corner of her eyes. She forces herself to drink in the stark reality of their immediate situation, taking note of the injured teen’s hiccuping cries as he recovers from his latest seizing episode, as he continues to ride through the unimaginable torment of a cracked gem left too long without healing... his dad, kneeling amongst dirt and stone, no doubt pressing harsh indents into his knees as he freely offers his lap as a headrest, panting with exhaustion, absolutely wrecked with anxiety and terror despite doing everything within his power to mask it for his son’s sake... and her. Her. Amethyst, Facet-5 Cut-8XM, a Gem who’s become downright traumatized by this place, by this precise scenario, barely able to retain a handle on her own emotions and eidetic recollections to where she actually feels she can be of reliable help.

“I don’t think we can’t follow you anymore, ‘kay?” she says, hoarse. “Greg’s tired, Steven’s flat-up in tears, and... an’ this place is startin’ to really mess me up, y’know? S-so...”

She tugs at thick clumps of her hair as the thought trails off, fingers fruitlessly searching for a clue that might direct her out of these darkened, murky waters and back to shore.

But as always, if you put in the work to look for them, there’s leading lights scattered amongst the mist in places you’d never expect.

“Bring the fountain to you,” Pearl completes, gaze softening within that moment. She nods in wholehearted acceptance of her duty. “I’m on it.”

Thank you, she mouths in earnest, the dull buzzing running throughout her form dropping to a blessed minimum as she— lips parted— watches her longtime friend disappear between the shrubs and vibes, every arc of her movement accentuated by unerring grace. Amethyst flushes, and mentally pushes such sentimental distraction away.

Right. Okay. One problem solved. Back to Steven.

The hybrid in question is cradled in Greg’s care, his head laying in the man’s lap and his limbs twitching without repose. She hasn’t checked the state of his gemstone recently, but given the minutes ticking away since his injury and his steadily deteriorating state, she’s almost too scared to look. Greg continues to whisper thin reassurances to him, wiping the sweat off his dampened forehead.

“He’s getting really warm,” he comments, stress coating his tone, and damn does she wish she could do something, anything, to help, but there’s simply nothing they can do without that healing water.

As the trio waits for word from Pearl, inevitable waves of dread collapsing upon them heavier and heavier with each uneven heartbeat that passes, Steven’s wobbly gaze falls upon her.

“Ah... Amethyst,” he gasps, barely able to attain a full breath.

She snaps to attention, clasping his hand tight in hers. “Yeah? I’m here, buddy, I’m here! Whatever you need.”

“I’m- I’m s-suh—“

Sorry, she realizes he’s trying to say, remembering how he struggled earlier trying not to stumble over the ‘s.’ She swallows hard.

“You don’t gotta be sorry for anything, ‘kay?” she says, rhythmically rubbing the back of his palm with her thumb. “It’s my fault, this is just- I should’ve been looking out for you, I should’ve protected you and I failed. All this is on me.”

“B-but I—“

To her utter horror, his next words are so slurred in his disorientation they’re all but unintelligible. All attempts on his part to communicate are then broken as he gnashes his teeth together and writhes in his father’s arms. Greg’s brokenly calling his name as he loosens his hold, vying with every slice of will he has left to help him not hurt himself further, help him find any shred of relief, but it’s of little use. The boy is all but unresponsive right now. She tries her best not to internalize the sound of his broken wails, least they be carved upon on her gem forever. Her form flickers in the height of her distress, hard light veins pulsing with unparalleled intensity.

The memories are impossible to dodge now. Those fragments strike like barbed arrows.

The cliffside. The fall. The rock. The audible crack as her fate is sealed. The immediate static rising in her mind as she stands up, only halfway alert, feigning casual indifference as her body quite literally begins to fall apart. I’m fine. I’m fine. The worry, the brambles, the panic, the fountain, the strained tears, c-can’t think can’t feel, can’t —

“It’s empty!” Pearl cries from the distance, voice shrill and laced with panic.

Her eyes split wide as she snaps her head towards the ivory Gem’s call, dread clasping ahold of her like a physical hand to her gem. “What??”

She emerges from between the shrubbery to enter the clearing again, emphasizing her doom-spelling news with a sharp flourish:

“I said, the main fountain is empty!”

“Empty?" Greg repeats, all the blood draining from his face. He squeezes his injured son’s hand with the grip of a man lost at sea, clutching to a life preserver.

But while he freezes upon processing this information, Pearl can’t seem to stop pacing. Her lithe fingers twitch rapid fire as she passes back and forth in front of them, brimming with an infinite supply of nervous energy that’s befitting of their perilous situation.

“Stars, the water we left behind after healing all those corrupted Gems must have completely evaporated...” she mutters to herself, clutching at the lapels of her jacket as if this garment is the last tangible thing holding her form together. “I knew we shouldn’t have left it open to the elements!”

“But then- what the hell are we supposed to do now?!” he says, voice breaking in all his fearful anguish. His gaze snaps from her to Steven laying prone in his lap. “My only son is in agonizing pain! He’s- he’s got a high fever! We can’t just give up! There has to be something!”

“I- I’ll check in the inner chambers!” Pearl says with dawning realization, one last ray of hope penetrating the glossy surface of her gemstone as she jabs her index finger into the air. “Surely there has to be some remnant of Rose’s healing magic left, right?”

Steven shudders in his dad’s arms, sloppy tears streaming down his pale cheeks.

“Tluaf ym lla si siht...” he blubbers, and for whatever reason something about his unintelligible speech seems... different from before. Her brow creases as she searches the infinite wilds of her stored memory for answers, for patterns, anything that might provide the slightest hint of clarity in this fraught situation, and sure enough...

Dawning truth stings like a fist to the jaw as she recalls her own experience and realizes his slurred words are far more than unintelligible; this injury has scrambled his mental processes to such a degree that his speech has slipped backwards. And that can only mean... Lip quivering, Amethyst pushes through the dread tugging at her soul and yanks up the hem of the teen’s shirt. The deep gouge running diagonal across his gemstone has lengthened— edging ever closer to the edges of the pentagon— and threatens to partition it in half. Pearl’s soft “oh no” and Greg’s strained sob tell her everything she needs to know. The consensus is clear: time is not their ally anymore.

“Pearl, HURRY!” she yells, pointing towards the fountain’s heart.

Her fellow Crystal Gem doesn’t even pause to comment on the matter, and instead, water brimming at the corner of her eyes as she spends her last second in their company lovingly gazing upon the boy as only a surrogate mother could, hurriedly disappears between the shrubs to seek out Steven’s last chance of salvation. Left alone in the throes of their mutual panic, Amethyst and Greg place comforting hands upon his head as— huddled together on the cold stone of the fountain’s doorstep— they’re assailed by the terrifying possibility that his life may very well slip between their fingers before Pearl can ever hope to return. Gone, in an instant.

Shattered.

Her shapeshifted stomach churns at the mere thought, like she’s finally eaten something her hard light system refuses to break down. She clutches tight at her own gem, gasping as she rides the sharp wave of distress. In all these years, though every fight and struggle... she’s never seen someone shatter before. Fresh, hopeless tears cut a raw path across her cheeks as her hand trails across his overheated forehead.

Stars, not today. Not him, please not him.

The teen barely restrains a hiccuping sob as he cries out again. “Thgir gnihtyna... od t’nac I, syug yrros m’I!”

Greg’s breath hitches, gaze briefly trailing from his son’s strained face to his still-exposed gem. Whirling to face her, he roughly grabs ahold of her shoulders, his expression downright pleading now. “Pearl... Amethyst, if she doesn’t find anything, if the fountain’s empty, please tell me there’s somewhere else we can go, something else we can do...!”

She frantically shakes her head. “I- I don’t know, we—“

Desperately, she wishes she could give him reassurance. Desperately, she wishes Rose had thought ahead, secured a sum of her essence in another location for redundancy’s sake, but the truth is a bitter pill: they’re all but useless in this place, stripped of their agency and forced to rely on the mercy of the dead. If they can’t find any remnants of Rose’s healing tears here, then Steven’s gem will splinter into shards and he will die. She clenches her teeth together, once again feeling those phantom pains rip through her form, faint impressions of a near-tragedy long abandoned to the past, it’s over, it’s over, get a hold of yourself, keep it together, keep it together, keep it to—

“Yaw siht leef annaw t’nod I- I, deracs os, os m’I, Dad, deracs os m’I... I!”

The boy’s father clutches his hand in his, arm trembling just like Steven’s frail body as— after his long, valiant attempt to mask it for everyone else’s sake— he finally crumbles, failing to swallow his fear.

“Oh- oh god,” he chokes over his words, eyes puffy and red, “I’m... I’m gonna lose him, aren't I? He’s gonna—“

“Eid annaw t’nod I—!”

And then, at the apex of the storm, Amethyst finds what she’s always been searching for: their leading light, burning faithfully through the dark.

“I’ve got it, I’ve got it!!” Pearl cries from the near distance, voice growing louder with each and every syllable. “I’m coming!”

She emerges from between the shrubbery like the first ray of light breaking an eclipse's totality, clutching a thin vial in her grasp. At first glimpse the vial almost looks empty, but after the ivory Gem drops to her knees beside them in the clearing and pops the cork stopper out, sure enough— it holds a few pink-tinged drops of fluid, Rose’s coveted magic. And all they need is one.

They all watch expectantly, blood and hard light alike pulsing through their forms at a unified pace as Pearl tips the vial, allowing the tears to careen downward towards its mouth.

When the single droplet finally slips from the edge of the glass, it hangs in the air right above his cracked gem for what feels like hours, scattering the ambient sunlight across their tear-stained, expectant faces like the dizzying patterns of a kaleidoscope. In an intentional echo of all the once-alien experiences she’s long come to cherish and genuinely respect, Amethyst— despite having no lungs of her own— takes a deep, anticipating breath, her mind running through every what-if as she waits. The futures where he dies. The futures where he lives. The futures where... where she still has a chance to tell him how much he means to her. Where she’s not too late. Not a failure. Futures where they can laugh again, where they can finally begin to move on.

Time creeps forward. The healing tear plummets downward, directly towards his center facet. She exhales.

Contact.

#su #steven universe #amethyst #greg universe #pearl #su fanfiction #my writing stuff

[papermoonloveslucy]

MEET THE PRESS

August 3, 1969

You are clued into the frank and tough talk to come by the way Lucille Ball swipes away with her handkerchief at the flies threatening the hors d’oeuvres The kerchief almost snaps like a wet towel. 

The scene is the pool patio of her home on Beverly Hills’ Roxbury Drive and a cocktail party is in progress for visiting television editors. 

Lucy has just emerged from the main house. She wears a powder blue double-breasted slack suit and saucer-sized sun glasses. In the blazing sun her orange hair has the color intensity of hot coals. 

She has counted heads. Husband-producer Gary Morton is there. So are Desi Arnaz IV her son, and Lucy her daughter. And her TV side-kick Gale Gordon with his wife. Plus a half-dozen of her staff and CBS emissaries. There have been introductions all round to the newspaper types. It is time, she announces, to talk and she waves everybody into the big and comfortable pool house. A table has been positioned so that she can sit there presiding as she used to do at the stockholders’ meetings of the old Desilu Studios. 

Almost immediately some wag fields her the question: “Lucy do you run the show?” She flashes him that big innocent TV look of hers. A staff member jumps up “Let’s all answer that one for her” There is a resounding “YES” from family-and-cast. Everybody laughs uproariously.

Very few questions are required to prime the pump. Lucy, it seems, has some matters of personal irritation on her mind and as far as she is concerned they come tumbling out without any prodding from her would-be interrogators. 

First of all, she asks rhetorically, what’s all this business about whether she would retire? “I never said I wanted to quit or retire. There was a time when I was willing to quit but nobody asked me. Now I’ve set a date when I’ll retire” 

A lot of ears perk up Somebody asks slyly — when? She’s waiting for that. Her answer is smilingly emphatic: “When I drop dead in my tracks.” 

She turns then without anybody’s questioning to the matter of her longevity in television. This is her 18th year on the tube and it used to be talked about that she traded her popularity to CBS in return for its buying other shows produced by her company. This evokes an almost visible jet of steam out of the top of her carrot locks. “I never at any time sold any of the 20 shows our company produced on the basis of my returning each season. I’ve said that literally hundreds of times and nobody believed it.” 

She went on to make it clear that she also dislikes the “big business” image which has adhered to her over the years. “I never like to talk about big money. I make my deal and that’s all. It’s been mostly a matter of legal procedures.” 

As the star wades into these fiscal subjects your eye roams over the assemblage. Young Desi in tennis togs impassively studies the smoke curling up from a cigarette. Young Lucy clutches her hands around her knees and stares intently at her mother. Husband Gary sitting on a ledge at the back of the room swings his legs and smiles. 

There has been no mention of Desi the elder the former husband Lucy’s co-performer and co-founder of Desilu Studios (now sold). Earlier this writer had chatted briefly with young Desi. He said he saw his father off and on and spends his summers as a rule at the father’s beach home at Delmar, south of Los Angeles. 

The youngster asked if I knew his grandfather Dr. Desiderio Arnaz who lives in Coral Gables.  (1)

But back to Lucy She’s telling us how many years it took to realize that as Lucille Ball she had attained V.I.P. status.

She reviews the years she spent trying to make it in show business, first on the stage, then as a model, and finally in the movies. Much of the time she says she stagnated. Until television came along. 

“I never had any sense of importance. I was very pliable always willing to do what I was told It wasn’t until one day I saw in print somewhere some actress described as a ‘Lucille Ball type’ that I knew suddenly I was somebody and a part of the business.” 

From there on the interview jumps from subject to subject. 

I ask her whatever happened to the project Dean Martin’s producer Greg Garrison had for starring Martin, her, and Jackie Gleason in a revival of the musical “Guys and Dolls.”  (2)

“I never said I would do it. Garrison kept publicizing it, but he never cleared it with me. I do still want to do ‘Diamond Jim’ with Jackie It’s just a matter of finding the time.” (3)

A lady editor wants to know how Lucy keeps her sinuous figure. 

“I don’t particularly like food. I’m not very fond of meat, for example, except in the morning.” 

Which brings a snort of disgust from her husband. “Can you imagine what it’s like to have to watch her eating corned beef or hamburger at 6 o’clock in the morning?” 

The questions now go to the children. What are Desi’s plans? Does he want to make acting his future? “I want to be an actor for awhile but I don’t think I ever want to be one certain thing.” 

Young Lucy, who, at 18, is two years older than her brother, is more sure of her future “I’ll go to college for awhile but I like acting. I’ll stay at it if I can.” 

Would she somebody asks join the campus protest and carry a sign? Only if it says ‘wet paint’ quips she. 

Lucy now introduces her cast veteran, Gale Gordon. He pays her extravagant compliments and talks a bit about his radio and early television days. 

The interview’s late arrival is venerable George Marshall, who is now the show’s director. Lucy introduces him as “our sexy senior citizen.” Marshall goes back to the dawn of movies and is filled with fascinating anecdotes about his years in the business. (4)

The conversation turns to TV’s talk shows. Somebody suggests to Lucy that she would be a highly likely guest for Merv Griffin’s new show starting on CBS Aug 18. (5)

Lucy's answer comes lancing back “That’s what you think. I don’t like him.” Which rocks everybody back. Why not? “Because he doesn’t know how to interview. He’s rude to his guests and he monopolizes the conversation.” 

She doesn’t wait for the next question. “I’m wild about Dick Cavett (on ABC) I think he’s great And I told Bill Paley (board chairman of CBS) he should have him on our network. But Bill said ABC got him first and we’re out of luck.” (6)

Everybody is suddenly distracted by three teen-age girl fans leaning over a fence way up front. They’re begging to be allowed on the grounds. Morton jogs forward to shoo them away. 

“This happens all the time,” says Lucy. “My God they used to picnic right in front of the house until our police department stopped them. Jimmy Stewart, who lives up the street, finally told me how to keep them away. Turn on the lawn sprinklers.” 

Morton returns and takes everybody for a tour of their luxurious but very lived-in home. Lucy tells us a funny story about how Jack and Mary Benny had once been their next door neighbors sold their home then asked her to try to mediate a re-sale of the place back to them. Then we take our leave.

#    #    # FOOTNOTES FROM THE FUTURE

(1) Dr. Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y Alberni II (1894-1973) was a Cuban politician and the father of Desi Arnaz. He graduated from the Southern College of Pharmacy in 1913 in Atlanta, Georgia. Desiderio Arnaz II was the youngest mayor of Santiago de Cuba (1923–32). When president Machado was overthrown in August 1933, Arnaz was arrested and jailed. Six months later, he was allowed to go into exile. He married Dolores "Lolita" de Acha y de Socias in 1916 and had one son, Desiderio "Desi" Arnaz III. He later had a daughter, Connie Arnaz (1932), with Anne M. Wilson, whom he married in 1941.

(2) Guys & Dolls was a 1950 stage musical by Frank Loesser, based on the stories by Damon Runyon starring Robert Alda, who appeared on several episodes of “The Lucy Show” and “Here’s Lucy”.  It was filmed by MGM in 1955. During that time, Lucy and Desi were also under contract to MGM, so they prevailed upon “I Love Lucy” to insert a clip from the film into “Lucy and the Dummy” (ILL S5;E3). After its initial airing on October 17, 1955, the clip was removed from the film print, and for legal reasons, has never been restored. It is unclear whether Garrison’s project with Martin, Ball, and Gleason would have been a film revival, or a stage production. Whatever it was to be, Lucy wanted to have no part of it, perhaps remembering the rigors of performing on stage in Wildcat (1960). During her film career, Ball was in two films based on Damon Runyon material, The Big Street (1942), a film she claimed as her favorite, and Sorrowful Jones (1949). She also did a radio version of Runyon’s “Tight Shoes” in 1942. Ball and Gleason would have been cast as Miss Adelaide and Nathan Detroit, while Dean Martin would have played Sky Masterson, the romantic lead. Those roles were played by Vivian Blaine, Frank Sinatra, and Marlon Brando in the film. Obviously, the project never came to be. 

(3) “Diamond Jim” was a project that Lucy dearly wanted to make with Gleason. He would play Diamond Jim Brady (1856-1917) to her Lillian Russell. Ball even went so far as to have a script written to further grab Gleason’s attention. Despite their best intentions, Gleason and Ball’s schedules never allowed for enough time to make the film. 

(4) George Marshall (1891-1975) had directed Lucille Ball in Valley of the Sun (1942) and Fancy Pants (1950).  He was considered an expert at location shooting, so when “Here’s Lucy” wanted to spend the first four episodes of Season 2 on location, Marshall was hired as director. He stayed on for seven more episodes of the sitcom before bowing out. 

(5) Despite Lucille Ball’s rather harsh public assessment of Merv Griffin (1925-2007) at this August 1969 press party, Ball appeared on “The Merv Griffin Show” four times between 1971 and 1980! During her first appearance, the aforementioned George Marshall was also a guest! 

(6) Lucille did seem to enjoy doing the talking to Dick Cavett, although she only got to do his chat show once, on March 7, 1974, in conjunction with her press tour for Mame. 

#Lucille Ball #1969 #Press Party #Dick Cavett #Merv Griffin #TV #Here's Lucy #Gary Morton #Lucie Arnaz #Desi Arnaz Jr. #Guys and Dolls #George Marshall #Jack E. Anderson

[vanchlo]

The Partner / Chapter Seven, "The Recovery"

Word Count: 7.6k words /  Story Masterlist /  Read The Assistant /  Read on Wattpad / Song: Bloom by The Paper Kites (click to listen)

P.S. Please ignore any weird formatting stupid Tumblr did to the chapter. I just copy and paste from Google Docs and for some reason, Tumblr doesn’t like it. Sigh. 

"He touched her face gently with the back of his hand. 'You disappear so completely into your head sometimes,' he said. 'I wish I could follow you.' 'You do,' she wanted to say. 'You live in my head all of the time.”

- Jace and Clary, City of Ashes

“Ree, you need to eat something.” 

I had heard it again and again, and still, I was ignoring it. For better or for worse. It comes again, and another time as the bleep of the car locking behind us sounds. 

“You know what he’s going to say,” she continues. Of course, I do, it’s going to be if I’ve eaten breakfast, but he’s not himself right now. Yet, he’s still there, deep down. So is the way I don’t want to disappoint him, or our baby. 

“Fine, give me the damned granola bar then,” I relent, swiping the object from her hand and tearing it open. Luckily, my stomach doesn’t roil at the sight of it or the taste, and I chew hungrily. 

“I’ll just be out here then- well, in the waiting room, but not the same one, of course.” 

“Yeah,” I mumble absently, listening to her departing footfall. They echo in my ears amongst the busy sounds of the hospital floor, the Surgical Intensive Care Unit, or something like that. Only a minute off the lift and I couldn’t remember. 

The tips of my ears still felt numb with cold, another sensation nudging against the hammering of my heart in my chest. It grew faster and louder when I reached his door, the number still burned into my memory. This time, I don’t linger, walking right into the sounds and sights I didn’t miss. But there’s the man lying in the hospital bed I ached and longed for all night and this morning as I moved around our house without him. Thought about our baby without him, and saw the memory of him proposing on the balcony by myself. 

My heart slows its ticking and swells when I find his face, only to have it squeeze at the remembrance of the stitches and colors interrupting his beautiful skin. A pallor still clings to him and within moments, my lips are singing from kissing his warm forehead. Soft breaths escape his lips and sitting down in the chair beside him, my heart falls at his absence. There hadn’t been a second since the last time I was here that my thoughts didn’t overrun with missing him, wanting him. It’s unsuccessful when I attempt to nudge the disappointment away, trying to tell myself that he needs the sleep, no matter how much I want to see those eyes open and be warmed by his sunshine smile. 

It’s a few episodes of some Gordon Ramsay show on the telly before my eyes lull shut, awakened sometime later by something stroking my palm. Yawning, I open my eyes regrettably, that is until I see the tired pair looking at me. Searching for me, just like I do with him. 

“Becks . . yer back.” 

“Harry,” it’s a rushed sigh, and so are my movements that bring me to hug him. 

“Mmm, careful, bug.” 

“I’m sorry,” I apologize, pulling away to look at his glassy eyes through my wide-awake ones. 

“‘s okay, c’mere,” he almost smiles, surprising me with the strength he uses to pull on my arm until I’m back in his. “Missed you.” 

“I missed you more.” 

“You sleep okay?” he murmurs against my hair, lips sponging a kiss to my temple. 

My lips part with the buzzing excitement I feel to get to talk to him, feeling as if I missed him all over again sitting in that chair. They fall with a doubt, and I’m grabbing for words, not knowing what to say. 

“Fine,” is what I decide on, albeit the fact it’s a lie, but his comfort is more important. The last thing I want to do is worry him, and I try not to think about if that’s what he would want, because once I start I know it’d be a slippery slope. 

“Happy t’ hear.” 

“How about you?” I wonder aloud, stroking my fingers through his hair, unable to ignore the way strands are caked together with blood. The sleep had left my body at once, and suddenly, all I wanted to do was to take care of him. Bathe him. Feed him. Make him all better. 

“Alright . . didn’t wake up as much . . How’s baby?”

“Good. I didn’t get sick this morning.” 

The happiness is clear as day in his little wheeze, and the words that follow, “Makes me so happy . . Don’t like seein’ you sick.” 

I have to blink hard and long to push them away when I hear those words, knowing that not an ounce more of truth could stick to them in my head. I don’t like seeing you sick either, but that doesn’t even begin to cover it. It passes, but I don’t know for how much longer. I have shed how many tears now, how can there be any left? Then, I remind myself that I had thought we’d climbed the mountain and gotten to the other side, but no, it still felt as if we were on the peak, unable to know how to find flat ground again. 

“Skye told me . . ,” they’re out and unable to be dragged back in. Neither am I after he coaxed me into bed beside him, his neck warm against my forehead. 

“Told you what?” he murmurs, a raggedness still abrasive in his wonderful voice. My lips still, not knowing how to say it, but that’s not it, as I lace my hand with his. Imagining a gold band on his ring finger, or whatever material Mr. Creative would come up with, surely with diamonds inlaid and all. He’d said silver one day and then gold the next, so it beats me what he’ll end up picking. 

“About giving you my letter.” 

His eyebrows squishing together still was as adorable as could be, despite the way it’s slower and so is his blink. It pains me each second the cogs slowly spin behind his eyes until the wrinkle between them smooths. 

“Ya, I remember now,” Harry admits, lips spreading into a smile that imbues me with light. “Ya didn’t know?”

“No, she didn’t tell me until the night . . of your accident and . . “

“What, bug?” he hums, sending goosebumps down my arm when his thumb begins to draw circles against my knuckle. 

The words are there and I know how to say them, but they refuse to line up nicely. No, they won’t gather on the tracks that guide to my lips, because I know how they’ll sound. Silly as can be. I know the way they’ll make him feel, and with the rock in my gut, I think that’s what I fear most of all. The last thing I’ve ever wanted to do was to hurt Harry, and those words couldn’t ring truer as I lie in the hospital bed beside him. 

“Becks? What ‘s it?” his question comes in a hushed whisper, one marked by a sigh when a wetness meets my cheek. 

“I told Skye th-that-,” I stop and he waits, patient as ever before, perhaps even more so. “I was afraid you didn’t know how much I loved you a-and how badly I wanted a family with you-.” I can’t get any further before my voice is entirely swimming with the dryness of tears, and the subsequent sob. 

“Buggie,” Harry huffs with a voice likened to mine, struggling for breath and a reprieve from the pain. I find my relief in him when he presses me against his front, and already, I’m tired of being careful. I wish things didn’t have to be this way, and that it could come true just that easily. “Ya never need t’ worry . . I know, always have.” 

“B-But what I said-.” 

“It don’t matter . . know ya love me so much. Know you’ve always had tha biggest crush on me,” at that, I think I hear the smallest of titters grace his lips. With it, one almost leaves mine at seeing that slice of him. “Had tha biggest one on you since ‘bout day one . . don’t worry . . I know.” 

“Thank you,” it’s a whisper that I’m sure he hears. A quiet sigh makes its way out when I feel his lips against my wet eyes, once and then twice. “Did it surprise you at all, the letter?”

“Sure did,” he rasps with a slight nod, taking care to rid my cheeks of the tears riddling them. “‘s ‘bout tha sweetest thing ‘ve ever read . . . saddest too . . and flatterin.’” 

“And you kept it?”

“‘Course . . How’d y’know?” he asks with his eyebrows, like always. His expressions lack originality though, because they just won’t move that way. They’re likened to a dough that’s too tough and won’t mold how you’d like it to, but once it has a good rest, it’s ready to. 

“Skye said she saw it in your wallet the other day, it looked like you’d read it a few dozen times.” 

The faintest of light shines in his eyes before the slightest of nods comes, “Sure did . . Befo’ I proposed . . When we broke up . . While you were in hospital still . . I couldn’t lose that, but . . ‘s one o’ tha hardest things . . ‘ve read. Cried loads tha first time and afta that . . . hearin’ all tha pain ya went thru’ ‘cos o’ me.” 

“Harry-,” I begin, urgency on my tongue. 

“Doesn’t matter now,” he shushes with a finger to my lips, hand still laced with mine. His blinks are growing longer and eyes glossier, I can already tell his cues. 

“I’ve made you tired again, you should rest.” 

His lips are lazy in their smile, but beautiful as can be. They’d benefitted from the lip balm I’d found in my purse, or what Harry called ‘lathering that crap on his lips,’ which I admittedly probably overdid. Now, at last, they were supple and him, again. 

“Hate t’ agree, but I am . . wanna stay with you, but . . need sleep.” 

“I’ll be here when you wake up.” 

“Good,” he grins, pressing his lips to mine before I slide out from under the covers. The faint dimple in his cheek melts away as the covers reach his shoulders, a calmness draping over him. 

I sit there at first for just a moment, one that slowly turns into a few, and then many more, just watching him. He stirs at first to get comfortable until a sigh drops from his lips. The tense space between his eyebrows relaxes as the rest of him does, and for a second, I think that I couldn’t be happier. That is until every reason that I have to not be happy comes rushing back to me. Until I tell myself that’s not true, because for the longest of time, all I had wanted- needed to be happy was to get to love him, and to have him love me back. Something I had spent so many tears and time on, and now, it was mine. The weight on my left-hand tells me so, first with the knot ring secure on my middle finger, and the handed-down coils of gold and diamonds to its left. A calm settles over me when my hand comes to lie on my stomach, and my lips turn up into my cheeks as I watch the first snores leave his lips. 

Harry. 

My Harry. 

My Sunshine, because we’ve been through thick and thin, and I know that he’d always be that for me. A light in the darkness. He hadn’t failed to be one, yet. 

The skin above his brows is silky as a ribbon and saved from the ruin of the bruises and the like that clung to him in other places. It was hard to decide whether or not he was looking like himself again. As the bruises deepened, this swelled and that went down, and as his stubble grew, it was hard to find him in there, but I did. 

A scuffle met my ears, lifting my head up and around. Freezing in my shoes, everything stills as I stare ahead, my fingers in Harry’s hair. Across from me , their lips wobble and still, parting just a second later, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-.” 

I automatically stop him with a terse shake of my head, already recognizing his cues of worry blur in front of me. They shake with more uncertain words as he holds up the vase of yellow daffodils. 

“I hope he likes flowers,” he insists with a shrug of his shoulders, but I can tell there’s more. First, by the way his Adam's apple bobs, and then the way his eyes the same color as mine grow wet. “I’m so sorry, Ree,” Robbie sighs in a choked voice. I never knew how much I had needed a hug from my brother until my arms were around him. 

“Thank you,” it’s a whisper regretful of words I don’t know how to say. 

“‘Course, Ree. God, when Dad told me-,” this time he cuts himself off, but we’re both shaking our heads when he pulls away. He’s chalk full of surprises, starting with his appearance and what I see in his eyes. It may not be the same, but there’s a reflection of the misery that wrenches my insides. 

“It’s okay- well, it’s not, not what happened, but . . .” 

His usually shaggy locks barely move as his head shakes quickly, covered by a maroon beanie. 

“I had this feeling something was up with you, and I tried to call but I didn’t get an answer. I was worried, but then Dad came by to stay and told me.” 

“I haven’t been answering my phone much, sorry,” it’s unremarkable, the sound of my voice and how I try to hide everything sitting inside of it. It’s for nothing when I look over my shoulder, assured Harry’s still sleeping. 

“Shutup, you have nothing to be sorry about,” Robbie tuts, growing quiet. Without looking, I know that his eyes are on me, and on Harry. “How is he?”

“Okay, now . . But it’s still an uphill battle. Concussion, managing pain, therapy, being bloody shot twice . . Everybody is so happy and I just- I don’t understand- of course, I am th-that he’s still here, but-.” 

“It’s okay to feel that way, Ree, whatever way,” he says, not interrupting. A dryness swallows any words in my throat. His hand on my arm startles me, pausing the way I wring my own, but probably for the better. “Maybe it’s because people don’t know. They don’t have to be here every second, knowing how it really is. I don’t mean that-.” 

“I know you don’t mean it that way, Robbie. He’d never be a burden, but it can be s-so hard,” it comes out in a stammer, lips wobbling as Harry’s breaths grow in volume with my proximity. “I’d never wish this upon anybody, t-to go through what Harry did when I had . . my accident- for him to get hurt like this. H-How could somebody do that to another person, Bee?” he smells like the indescribable scent of tears. No, not like the real vanilla extract my grandma would use when we baked, or those woodsy candles I’d see at the shops. Harry’s breaths remain even and slow, despite my lips pressing to his cheek, painting his skin with my tepid tears. The anger burns behind my eyes, filling my being like it has whenever that thought invades my mind, until it melts away unspent. “M-My person.” 

“Ree . . I wish I knew.” 

“Me too,” the whisper rebounds off of Harry’s still lips. I’m only reminded of the way my own taste metallic against the vice of my teeth. “We s-should let him sleep.” 

I barely hear his hummed reply, watching how Harry’s eyelashes flutter against his skin. His color was starting to come back, but it was slow, and I think I was the only one who’d noticed. Was it because I wished it so badly, or because it was the truth? I wouldn’t put it past me to see things that weren’t there, because I wanted so badly for him to be better- no, if I was being honest, I wanted this all to be over. But as I combed his hair back with a feather of a touch before leaving him, I wasn’t sure of the next time I’d ever feel okay again. 

“Ree,” the voice begins behind me, but I’m already turning around. They were the arms I ran to when I was hurt, the pair I pushed away after a fight, and the ones that were always there. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there.”

“It’s okay. You didn’t know.”

“Still, I should’ve. I’m sorry.”

Hiccuping, words seem like an impossibility whilst it ravages my body again. The ‘it’ that is never that far away, always ready to strike when I think I’m starting to feel put together again. 

“Stop apologizing,” I barely manage, surprised that I allow him to lead me from the room. Out in the hall, he spots a familiar head of rainbow hair, just seconds before I do. 

“Heya, Bee. I didn’t see you come in,” Skye announces in a hushed whisper, sharing a hug. My eyes wander over their shoulders and to Harry. “I can keep an eye on him, if you want.”

I get by with a nod, savoring one last glance of his matted curls and peaceful face before following Robbie down the hall. 

“If something happens, text me. Okay?” I manage at the last second, turning around, making her do the same. 

“Nothing will, Ree, but sure thing.” 

A shiver courses through me as I turn back around, pulling my hands back into the sleeves of this jumper, one of Harry’s. The line between our clothes had bled into the other long ago, and it was hard to remember whose jumper or shirt was whose anymore. He notices, rubbing circles into my back as an almost awkward silence settles around us. 

“I’d ask how you’re holding up, but-.”

“Not good,” it’s a frog-like croak, making me wish for water. His nod can be seen from the corner of my eye, passing nurses and visitors too.

“Damn, have you two been through the ringer or what.”

All my lips can produce is an agreeing hum, but they begin to buzz from his next words. 

“I’m glad you two have each other to hold on to during shit like this, though.”

“Yeah, me too. I don’t know what I’d do without him, I really don’t because . . I’m pregnant too.”

“Wait, what?!” his exclamation is short and brings his feet to an abrupt halt. It’s there, the wanting to laugh at the astonishment freezing his features but I can’t. Instead, I let myself be happy for a moment, because I want that more. 

“Yeah, just found out . . a few days before Harry . .”

“Well, holy shit, you really do beat me to everything. God, would you come here and give your big brother a hug?” I think I feel it coming, and when his arms come around me excitedly, I think maybe I could laugh so I try. “Bloody hell, I’m gonna be an uncle, imagine that. Uncle Robbie. I like the ring to that.”

It dances on my lips, but it’s stolen away by a thought that blossoms into a sentence, “It’s not how I wanted to tell you,” I admit quietly before he releases me, wiping a hand over each of my cheeks quickly. “Or thought I would be.”

“It’s still pretty fucking exciting. You’re gonna be a mum, Ree, you’ve always wanted that. You must be so happy,” Robbie coos, squeezing my arm. I wasn’t aware of where we were going, seeing as how I didn’t know the place either, even Harry’s floor. “Well, would you look at that. Aren’t they something?”

“Harry’s over the moon,” I murmur, stopping at his side. 

“Figured that much. You still haven’t told me if you are, but I’m assuming so seeing as how you played with bloody dolls until we were nearly  thirteen.”

My snarky comment is overdue, but then again, so is his. I’m not sure if I have any left in me nowadays. They’re especially miles away as I watch the squirming pink faces on the other side of the glass before us. 

“I am, but . . “

“Which one ya reckon?��� Robbie speaks up, nodding his head.

“Back right corner.”

“Evidence, Attorney Styles?”

“Dark curly hair and chubby cheeks. They’re the cutest one, and they’re not crying, even though the rest are. That would be my baby. And you?”

“No, this was you and Skye’s game, picking out which baby was yours in the nursery and naming them. I just watched you two goofs dreaming of being mums one day . . Where’s it gone, Ree, that dream of yours?”

“I’m scared to be a mum, Robbie. Not as much as when I first found out- I mean, it still doesn’t seem real, but I’m afraid . . afraid that I’ll be a bad one. Especially after Mum told me so.”

“What?” I already know they’re there, waiting on me, even with my eyes fixed on the few rows of squirming babies behind the glass partition. 

“Yeah, she always just has impeccable timing. Called the other day to bitch about me not showing up for lunch, then about not telling her I got engaged, and that I was such a terrible person because of it all that I shouldn’t be a mother,” my voice caught on the last word, like a sock on a loose nail head on the floor. Gulping, I take a moment to breathe before going on. “I haven’t answered a text since I’ve been here or a call, but I see them. I told her to never talk to me again and she keeps texting me. I guess I forgot to block her number, but I don’t really feel like I know how to do anything anymore, but worry about Harry and think about him. And throwing up.”

“Give me your phone,” he doesn’t need to say it twice and nor do I ask, handing it over. Trusting him, I look back to the nursery. 

“God, they’re so tiny. Look at that one, Bee, she’s going to give them a bath . . I can’t believe they’ll be that small- mine and Harry’s baby.”

“Don’t listen to Mum, she has no place to speak. I’m on my last straw with her too.”

“You don’t have to drop her just because of me, you know. I know you two were different, she was nicer to you and didn’t have a piano to abuse you with too,” the nurse unwraps the wailing baby, exposing their small pink body to the cold air. My heart clenches at the sight, amazed at how small they are, and cute. I already for the hundredth time wonder what Harry and I’s baby will look like, just half of those times being in the last few days. 

“How do you not know I can tell when you’re lying? Been able to since we were like, four. Here, I blocked all of her numbers that I know of, work and otherwise, and emails too. Complete radio silence, which is what you need right now . . And I mean it, Ree, there was never anything there with Mum and I. After a while, I figured out she just used me to get to you and Dad, and I’ve had enough of giving her third and fourth chances.”

“Welcome to the club,” I chirp, feeling a corner of my mouth raise watching the little fists of the baby clench and fingers spread. 

“You’ll be a great one, there’s nothing else for you to be. Bloody hell, we were in nursery, not even in school quite yet, and you’d already decided you’d wanted to be a mum,” Robbie remarks, swinging an arm around me. I lean into him, eyes glued to the newborn baby the nurse was washing up. 

“You better not tell Harry about the baby dolls.”

Glancing up, I look into his eyes, watching his lips spread mischievously.

“Thanks for the idea, and you best bet I’ll be getting that kid on a motorcycle before Harry can.” 

“Good luck with that. I doubt he’ll let you beat him to it,” my remark comes. 

My lip burns when my teeth press down into it again, reminded of my old habit once again, the way I tend to take my stress out on it. Just like somebody I know. The thought of Harry on a motorcycle scares me for just a split second, until I remind myself that he’s rode one for how many years? How many times had I ridden on it with him too? Regardless, it doesn’t calm the flare of worry inside of me, not wanting to worry about Harry getting hurt ever again. 

God, please no. 

I wasn’t sure how long we had been away when our feet brought us back to the room, and there I found him awake. 

“There’s me girl,” he whispers with a warm grin, eyes finding me first. They continue to brighten softly when Robbie appears behind me.

“Hey, Harry,” my brother greets softly with a weak wave. 

“Hey t’ you too.” 

“How are you doing?” Robbie asks, stepping up to him and patting him on the shoulder gently. 

“Been better,” Harry suffices. “Think tha worst me ‘s me wrist ‘s fractured . . Can’t have a good wank now.” 

The laugh I’d grown up hearing floats around the room now, and like always, mine joins it. I’m shaking my head in the doorway, watching two of my favorite guys in the entire world. 

“Harry, you’re right handed, silly.” 

“I know, but sometimes ‘s fun t’ change it up . . Right, Robbie?” my fiance quips, somehow his humor is still so present. My brother murmurs a confirmation, and then the room grows silent. 

“I hear you two are going to be parents next year.”

“I see Becks ‘s havin’ fun . . tellin’ ev’rybody,” Harry comments. Walking around Robbie’s side, it takes a moment to catch those green eyes. They raise an eyebrow at me in question. “‘ve only got t’ tell Myles so far . . no fun.” 

“You can take the credit, if you want, mate,” Robbie snickers, stuffing his hands into his pockets awkwardly. 

“Sure can, ‘s me swimmers that won tha race.” 

“Oh my god, Harry,” my words collapse into a laugh. I almost stop when I hear his, wanting to savor his trademark wheeze that I’ve always found so endearing. 

“It’s good to see you’re still giving everybody a run for their money.” 

“There’s no stoppin’ me,” Harry comments, meeting my eyes and winking. Too soon. 

/

All of the Halloween films had been gone from the telly for a few weeks now, but one or two lingered here and there. I had found one of The Addams Family’s on the tv in Harry’s room. It was welcomed, the respite from reality for a little longer. Visitors had been in and out of his room all day, hence why he was fast asleep when I looked over to check on him. Again. It was the family who hadn’t come the day before, an auntie and uncle of his I’d only met once. The hardest of them all was his grandma Claire, because her tears came as soon as she saw Harry, and so did mine. It had gotten easier to talk to his mum and sister, but it was still difficult to talk at all. Even to Harry, who still wasn’t all of the way there. 

I wasn’t sure how long it’d been since the movie finished, except that the clock was ticking faster than I thought. He wasn’t waking up any time soon by the sounds of his loud snores, and I was conflicted about wanting him to. It had grown dark outside long ago and the halls were growing quieter. An anxious warmth was building inside of me, knowing that with each dreaded tick of the clock, I was closer to having to leave. I thought that if maybe, just maybe he didn’t wake up for a while that I could talk my way into staying the night here. Still, part of me knew that I couldn’t do that- that I shouldn’t do that to him. Harry was right that I needed the sleep, we both did, but a heavy knot formed in my stomach when I thought about leaving his side for longer than well, ten minutes. 

A hushed sound pulls me from my thoughts, and I lift my head to find what it is. The image before me roots me to the spot and I don’t dare blink. For what reason, I don’t know. A hiccup spreads through my chest as I stare back, suddenly aware of the wetness gathering on my cheeks. 

“Buggie.” 

“I’m sorry, didn’t mean to wake you,” my whispered words came in a hasty string. My quick work of the wet trails on my cheeks is next, wondering why I’m suddenly self conscious. 

“Don’t gotta apologize,” he insists. There isn’t a smooshing of his brows together or a glazed look to his eyes. His jaw isn’t clenched and if anything, I fill with happiness at finding him waking seemingly without pain, for one of the first times today. “C’mere, Becks.” 

His hand is firm around mine and so is his tugging, but the shake of my head is even more. I try not to dwell on the disappointment lingering in his eyes, knowing that I couldn’t handle that among everything else. I can’t. No, not when I’m going to have to get out of that bed to just get into another, one that’s empty and cold. I know too well that I wouldn’t be able to leave it once I slide under the covers with him. 

“Ev’rythin’ will be okay again,” he hums, voice still thick with sleep. From the corner of my eye, I can see his there, vying for my attention. What I focus on instead is my hand enclosed in his, and the feeling of his skin under my circling thumb. Then, there’s the still shocking appearance of his naked fingers, instead covered with scrapes and crusty cuts. To my surprise, they lift and he struggles to wipe at my cheeks. I can’t stop the smile that lives on my lips for a moment. 

“I don’t wanna go home. I don’t . . want things to be like this anymore.” 

“I know, bug . . Me too.” 

“I don’t want to worry about you getting hurt again, l-like this,” the words are a jumble flowing from my lips. “I-,” struggling to articulate well, anything, my words are lost in another pool of tears. 

“Becks,” Harry coos but I’m shaking my head. 

“I don’t wanna do all of this without you . . any of it, Harry,” lifting my head, I find his tired greens with my own. My heart squeezes at the invading thought of when will there be a time when they’re not glassy and full of exhaustion? “I can’t.”

“Neither do I, Becks . . ‘d never wanna leave you . . and our baby,” his reply arrives in a sigh, and my head is nodding up and down. His words are felt in my heart and in the way he squeezes my hand emphatically. 

“That case it . . it was too high profile, Harry. Neither of us knew it at first until it was too late, but-.” 

“But was too risky, I know . . Whole world was watchin’ . . Nasty people involved, obviously . . I won’t do it anymo,’ Becks.” 

The alarm paints my body in seconds, and then my voice, “What?” He only looks back at me, blinking long and slowly. “Harry, you don’t mean stopping practicing.” 

“God, no,” he disagrees quickly, swiping his tongue out across his lips. “‘d never, y’know that . . I won’t be back fer a while from tha sounds o’ it . . But, ‘ll make a promise t’ you . . No mo’ big cases like that, dangerous ones . . No, we’re startin’ a family now, and I wanna be ‘round . . fer ev’ry second o’ ours kids’ lives . . yours . . . my whole life with you.” 

He had gotten me where he had wanted me by now, close enough to kiss and I couldn’t resist. The last place I wanted to be was away from him, and afterwards, I found my head resting on my arm laid by his side. 

“Thank you.” 

“‘Course, my bug,” his smile warms me like sunshine on a brisk winter day. That and the way he pinches my cheek between his fingers, bringing a similar lift to my lips. It’s moments before I speak again, a few blissful ones of watching him. 

“Does this still mean I have to go back home tonight?” 

The regret comes in a sour wave when I watch the happiness fade from his face, guilt arriving inside me soon after. My eyes fall from his when his answer doesn’t come right away, telling me it then and there. 

“You should, bug . . ‘s fer tha best,” his words still smell of the orange jello he’d had with his dinner, something he had made so many jokes about. He was almost as bad as me, making me spoon feed him and cut his food up like a little baby. But he was my baby, my first one, I guess. “They say ‘ll be able t’ go home in a week or so, that’s good news . . We’re one day closer . . You’ll be okay, ‘ll see you ‘gain in tha mornin.’” 

“Yeah, it’s fine,” I murmur, my head lowering to rest my chin on my arm, replicating the action of my heart. But I’d be lying if I said it hadn’t fallen into the pit of my stomach long ago, unable to find a way out yet. 

/

“Please?”

    “No,” he huffs, a high pitched whine attached to his words. “‘m full, can’t eat another bite.” 

    Clutching his tummy, Harry stares back at me with eyebrows furrowed. 

    “Don’t you pout at me, mister,” I challenge him, waiting for a flicker of something across his face. “Just one more bite, Harry.” 

    “No.” 

    “Harry,” I sigh, dropping my hand and giving him a look. His head slowly shakes from side to side. “God, I hope our baby isn’t this stubborn.” 

    “With you as ‘s mum, I dunno.” 

    “Hey!” I exclaim, words pouring into a laugh when I catch his playful eyes. If I look close enough, I can find the dimple there in one of his cheeks. The little shit. “Eat your jello, for God’s sake.” 

    “Fine, woman,” he relents, face relaxing when I guide the spoon towards his lips. The sound of his chewing fills the quiet room. “Yer gonna be a wonderful mother, y’know.” 

    I don’t know why, but it pulls my head up in surprise. His dimple falls deeper when I find the sage shade of his eyes again. 

    “‘m so happy yer gonna be tha mum o’ me kids.” 

    “Stop it, you’re going to make me cry,” it’s an almost whisper, but the dryness of my throat speaks truth into the words. 

    “I mean it, bug.” All abashed, I feel the heat paint my cheeks as I fold the napkin to stuff into the empty Jello tin. “Who’d have thought it’d be you and me . . Huh, Becks?” 

    “Yeah, talk about mad,” I sniffle, lifting my head as a tear falls down my cheek. “My old boss, Mr. Styles, the best lawyer in all of London.” 

    “Tha lawyer and tha assistant,” his voice is soft as a feather against my skin, and so is his thumb against my palm. Glancing down, the tears stuck to my eyelashes blur the sentiment of his thumb drawing circles on my skin. 

    “And their baby.” 

    “And tha baby,” he almost giggles, it’s so close. But there it is, his trademark wheeze, and I couldn’t be more thankful. “Not sure I can keep it from me mum anymo’ . . ‘s almost came out a few times.” 

    “I know, me too. When do you think we should tell your mum?”

    “What’s this you have to tell me?” somebody says from the doorway. A prickly warmth spreads across my insides at their voice. It disappears within moments when my eyes glide over to his, and he’s calm as a cucumber. 

    One of his eyebrows raises with that always tired smile, and I nod. “C’mere, mum, ‘ve got somethin’ t’ tell you.” 

    “What’s that?” Harry’s mum says, and we meet eyes when I turn to watch her walk in. She sets down a soda cup from the cafe downstairs, and I watch a look of Harry’s come over her face. “Everything alright? You two are crying, it’s scaring me,” she tries to laugh but it doesn’t go very far. 

    “Would you like to do the honors?” I nearly croak, bringing my attention back to Harry. Despite the energy he was slowly getting back, he still looked pooped. But for a second, the sunshine glowed across his face, and because of that, on us too. 

    “‘Course,” Harry smiles and with a clearing of his throat, announces the news. “Yer gonna be a gran again . . well, in ‘bout eight months or so.” 

    “What?!” at her exclamation, I’m suddenly not sure who to be looking at, and there I find myself glancing between the two. My almost mother in -law and soon to be husband. “Harry- Becky-,” she struggles with the words, turning to look at the both of us before a hand comes to her mouth and she’s crying. 

    “Bloody hell . . why d’you women cry so much?” he says, and we both turn to find his eyes welling with tears too, making all of us laugh. 

    “Oh, loves, I’m so happy for you. You’re both going to be wonderful parents,” she blubbers, almost squeezing the air out of me when it’s time for a hug. Her familiar floral scent and trademark coffee smell surrounds me as I laugh through the tears. “And, Harry, it took you long enough.” 

    “Hey!” 

    “That’s what I told him, he’s getting old,” I snicker, finding his perturbed look makes me laugh, again. I’d laughed more in the last few minutes than I had in days, and it felt . . good. 

    “Double hey! Watch it, wifey.” 

    It comes with a grin and a drink of sunshine, “Okay, husband.” 

    I feel it fill me when the annoyance on his face is washed away by a content smile, one that only grows bigger when his mum turns to me with questions, and a notch wider when her hand comes to my belly. His not too far away. 

/

    I finally packed a bag, but you couldn’t have gotten me to go in our bedroom for any other reason besides that. Not even Skye could for more than the five minutes that took me. It had to have been a packing record, and one Harry would have been proud of. It didn’t get easier, the leaving him every night and coming back to him every morning, but we found a routine. That didn’t mean the difficulty disappeared at having to unwrap my hand from his at nine o’clock when he was already sleeping, knowing that I wouldn’t be able to once I slipped under my covers. It was the hardest thing I’d ever done, and I did it again and again, day after day. 

    The tears crept up on me at times, like when Myles brought Rose and Jennings to see him, and Harry cried the second they walked in. They painted my cheeks like a waterfall when Asher showed up in the first few days, and once again when my dad returned before going back home. I wondered if they’d ever stop as I sat hunched over the toilet for what, a tenth morning in a row, wishing he could be there to rub my back like before. 

But we were so far from before, and still lengths away from the after. 

I still didn’t know if I could do this, despite the instructions, both printed and oral, and that I wasn’t alone. It felt like a rerun, knowing that I was supposed to be happy, but knowing nothing besides fear. Finding its place the second I got in the car, I doubted myself through and through. Not even reminding myself to be happy had helped, because the fear stole it away. 

He was home. I got to bring Harry home, snuggle him up on the sofa where the new headquarters was, and never have to go back to that hospital again. Well, not for a while, anyway. 

“Whatcha thinkin’ ‘bout?” a voice murmurs, yanking me from my ever-consuming thoughts. Blinking, I find myself back in the present and in front of the television. Harry’s feet were cold in my hands despite the fuzzy purple socks I put on them before we left the hospital this morning. 

“Nothing,” I lie, leaving my eyes set on the news channel where I’d left them before zoning out. 

“You lie,” he sighs with a slight giggle, shifting on the sofa. “You look tired, bug. Why don’t we go and take a nap?”

“I’m fine.” 

“Again, you lie,” Harry huffs, his toe brushing against my hand. “I know ‘s already been a long day, Becks. Tha throwin’ up this mornin’, all tha instructions, and you haven’t had much t’ eat- well, that you’ve kept down,” Getting the cue, I drag my eyes over to him, failing to ignore how heavy they feel. 

The splashes of color across his face, and entire body, had faded in the last nine days. A few stitches had already been removed for more superficial cuts, but others still remained as well as the bandages taped to his shoulder and thigh. I’d been shown time and time again over the course of his hospital stay how to change them, and somehow, I still dreaded it. His mum had volunteered to do it if I couldn’t, but that only made me feel worse, as if I can’t say no. 

His name for me tickles my ears and I blink, his tired face focusing in my view. His cheeks were pink again, but only a dusty shade and so were his lips. It confused me, how they could send him home and he still didn’t look like himself. Yes, he did, but not really. I almost wanted to tell the doctors that they couldn’t, and what if I mess up taking care of him, but how could I say any of that? 

“Bug,” he tries again, voice holding more fervor now. 

“What?” I mumble, massaging my thumb against the arch of his foot. 

“I wanna go and take a nap with you.” 

There was another thing. He took care of me when I had my car accident, before I even came home. But, I’m smaller than him, and well, he’s quite larger than me. Getting him up off the sofa and to the downstairs guest bedroom took two of us, his mum and I. She had been cooking and cleaning since the minute we got Harry settled after coming home. I still didn’t know how to talk to her after everything, especially now with the baby at the front of my mind. It’d opened this door to tell her about them, but I felt as if it closed for me now with this new hurdle in the way. I had a feeling it wasn’t going to get any better with her staying in the upstairs guest bedroom. Don’t even get me started on how it was driving me up the wall the way the both of them worried about me and the baby. 

“I like tha name Renley. What d’ya think o’ it?” 

Slowly, he was coming to do most of the talking. For the first time in ever, I’d grown annoyed with it and how he wouldn’t shut up sometimes. But then I reminded myself that means he’s getting better and was improving. Guilt leached any happiness anyway when a thought came from nowhere, telling me I should be happy that he’s talking, that he’s alive. He sure was, making strides during physical therapy and being able to walk on crutches unassisted. It frightened me more than it excited me, and I wasn’t sure why. I felt as if there was a switch inside of me that I needed to turn on, flick it back to ‘normal’ instead. 

“I know yer not sleepin’ yet,” his voice is warm and slow against my cheek. “Rebecca.” Opening my eyes, they find him only a kiss away. 

“I think it reminds me of Renley Baratheon from Game of Thrones.” 

His breathy laugh dances across my cheek, and somehow, I smile. I think I manage one at seeing the dimples fall into his cheeks. 

“I think ‘s unique and pretty. Fer a boy or a girl.” 

Nodding replaces my voice and closing my eyes pulls me away from the eyes that I can’t lie to. 

“I thought you wanted to name them Annie if it’s a girl, like after your mum.” 

“I do, but what if ‘s a boy, Becks? We need some boy names too,” Harry muses, words swallowed by a yawn. “Mmm, think I like Eleanor too. There are so many nicknames you can make out of it, and I like those old names.” 

“Me too,” it’s a lazy murmur as his fingers start to comb through my hair, and then I know that I’m screwed. But I think for one of the first times in a long time, I fall asleep feeling safe, because of him beside me, with the smallest inkling of being okay. 

/

The night is still and so is the darkness that sounds of Harry’s soft snores. I’d woken up every night since that nightmare of a call, and even now, when he was finally back in the bed beside me, it happened again. Sure, it was the same bed I’d called my own for the last week and a half, but why now? That one word had been popping into my head often recently and punctuated with a question mark that was never answered. Why? My stomach was fine, so it wasn’t that, but what was it then? I hadn’t even had a nightmare- well, not yet, anyway. 

It was taking me awhile to believe that maybe my life didn’t have to be one anymore. Just maybe. 

#harry styles #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles wattpad #harry styles au #harry styles fic #wattpad #fanfiction #fanfic #harry #harry fanfic #harry fic #one direction fanfic #lawyer!harry #boss!harry #asshole!harry #ceo!harry #attorney!harry #enemies to lovers #friends to lovers #slowburn #love #romance #fic #writing #chapter book #new chapter #update #hecky #becks holte #harry x becky

[austarus]

Nash Wells x Reader The Beguilement of Barry Allen

**A/N: The picture/edit/gif does not belong to me. It belongs to @moonymartell​

*Yes, I’ve finally gotten around to writing for Nash. Ya’ll are really in for a treat~ Back to studying for my Medical School Admissions exam. Wish me luck

Word Count: 3870

“Ah!” Nash yelped, recoiling from your touch.

“Sorry,” You cringed at his wincing, placing the H2O2-soaked cotton ball back on the cuts on the side of his face. Ragdoll really did a number on the geological explorer earlier that night. You proceeded with patching Nash up with the first aid kit that you kept at home. Sanitizing the cuts on his arm, you made sure to roll up his sleeves to remain comfortably around his elbow. “I told you it would sting.” I mean, hydrogen peroxide is a powerful liquid formula to eradicate bacteria on cuts and wounds. The pain just means that it’s working.

“Anything from Barry on Joe?”

“No, last I heard was that Joe was transport safely out of the city.”

Nash ran a hand through his brown hair, his body aching with every movement. You handed him some pain medication and a bottle of water to help alleviate the pain reverberating throughout his body. “Good, I’m just happy that- that contortionist meta’s put away. I don’t know what I would have done if I knew he got away.” You knew what he was referring to.

“Tonight, you did your best- protecting her from Ragdoll.”

“He still ended up getting to Allegra, knocked her out and everything. If only-”

“Nash,” You cupped his face gingerly to get him to fully look at you. He stopped rambling at the softness in your voice, “that mind of yours can go on for years on the ‘what if’s’ of every situation with Allegra and her safety, but the results will end up being the same.”

“Did… Did I not do enough?”

A heartbroken look crossed through his blue eyes as he lowered his face slightly in your gentle grasp. His sullen expression crushed your heart, but you stood strong. For him. “No, Nash. You did everything in your power. Allegra… She just needs to recognize that she can’t just judge or be angry at you without understanding your reasoning on why you kept her doppelganger a secret.”

“I-I want to explain everything to her, but she-”

“I know. You just… need to give her some more time, I guess. As frustrating as that sounds. Patience just seems to be the key now. Allegra will have to look at this like an adult.” Rather than acting out every time he tried to interact with her. Honestly, it frustrates me.

“Not gonna stop?”

“Never.”

“You Wells men and your stubborn attitude.” You started putting the equipment of the first aid kit away, mentally noting that you’d have to bandage him right before bed as to not waste supplies. “Have you asked Harry?”

“For what? About Allegra?”

“Yeah? Has he not told you about Jesse?”

“I don’t- really like hanging around Harry too much… in my mind. If anything, it’s a miracle if I can get some peace and quiet. They’re all so rowdy.”

You giggled at his quieting voice with each statement he made. “Jesse was Earth-2’s own Flash. Incredibly bright and determined like her father, but so high-spirited. She was truly a force to be reckoned with, especially with all of us with her.” You sighed, retracting your hand as you spoke about the young speedster. Nash gingerly held your hand, knowing that you were close with the two Earth-2 beings. “Harry’s a father too. You never know when his advice can actually swing things around for your approach to handling Allegra.”

“I know she’s not Maya. Allegra’s her own person, but… I can’t help but feel the need to protect her. I wasn’t able to protect Maya, even after all those years of taking her in and keeping her around.”

“This is your penance for Maya?”

Nash nodded, you gave him a sympathetic smile as he answered you, “I can work through the fact that Allegra can hate me, but I will never be able to live it down if I let anything happen to her.” His blue eyes seemed to pierce right through you, rubbing his thumb over the patch of skin on the back of your hand. “Or you.” Your breath hitched a bit.

“Don’t worry you about me. I can handle myself just fine.” You grinned with twinkling eyes and rouge cheeks. “Besides, a charming adventurer gave me one of these in case I needed to make a hasty escape.” You pulled out the smoke bomb he had given you. Nash smiled proudly to himself that you opted to keep what he had given you.

“I should teach you how to make them, it’s fairly easy.”

“Maybe when we don’t have a secret organization backed by one of the biggest and richest labs in the city trying to kill us. Then you can teach me whatever you want.”

You pecked his lips causing the brown-haired man to cheekily smile down at you. “As long as I get more of those, precious.”

“Deal.” You stood up and stretched out both hands to the taller man, curling your fingers to him. Nash took your hands and allowed you to pull him up, towering over you. You tilted our head to the direction of your bedroom. “Now let’s go get ready for bed. I think a shower and beauty sleep is long overdue.”

“Babe, you shower every night though.” Nash quirked a confused eyebrow at you.

“I know. Want to shower with me?”

“No,” the Wells doppelganger deadpanned. Never again. “You turn up the water all the way and it made me feel like I was swimming in one of the deep, rocky pockets of lava within the pits of Hell. I thought my skin was going to melt off my body.”

You blinked at Nash as the both of you entered your bedroom. “I’m not even going to ask why you know and vividly described the environment in Hell. Anyway, I get really cold and the heat helps with it.”

“How do you not feel like you’re getting suffocated from the steam?”

You shrugged. “I don’t know, the heat just feels really nice on my skin.” You pointed to the bathroom connected to your bedroom. “Why don’t you shower first?” You normally take quick showers anyway.

“With pleasure,” Nash padded towards the drawers that kept some spare clothes he leaves at your place when he plans to sleep over. You flopped onto your bed, mentally pulling out your change of clothes while he had entered the bathroom for his shower. The days that Nash doesn’t stay the night usually ends up with you cuddling up to a pillow in bed while wearing his shirts or long-sleeves. Goodness, you love the way his cologne and earthy musk mixed together to cling on his clothes. Nash, of course, knew of your secret guilty pleasure, but makes no complaint of it.

You blinked your eyes languidly a few times, the sounds of rushing water soothing you. One thing you noticed was that Nash doesn’t really wear any suits or dress shirts, a stark contrast to the other Wells doppelgangers you’d met. Curiosity fluttered around within you as you attempted to conjure up an image of him in a suit tailored to his own tastes. Nah, that won’t work either. Maybe formal wear just isn’t for him? I mean, I’ve yet to actually see him in casual wear either. Getting bored, you started flipping through your phone before settling on Netflix. You knew you shouldn’t be starting a new series with Nash over, but damn were you tempted to start ‘The Umbrella Academy’. And that’s exactly what you did while Nash showered.

In less than 10 minutes, Nash had finished up. Upon exiting the misty bathroom, he found you laying on your bed with your legs kicking in the air as your upper body inclined on a pillow with your phone propped up on another. Hair mused up messily than it had been all night. A soft smile plastered itself onto his face as he dried his hair. The taller man could only guess that you gave into Cisco and Barry’s whining on starting a new TV series. Tapping on your screen, you paused the pilot episode. You turned your head when you noticed his figure step into the room from your peripheral. Cheeks automatically heating seeing him adorn a fitting short-sleeve shirt that wonderfully showed off his biceps and pajama pants.

“Like what you see, precious?” He called in a low voice, intentionally doing a little arm flex as he continued to dry his hair. Nash knew you had a thing for his muscled arms… And literally everything else about him.

“A dork in his pajama’s? Yeah, I guess the view’s alright.” You teased him, earning a playful scowl.

“You wound me.” You just smiled cheekily at him, heading to take up the rest of the hot water for the night. Bumping into him on purpose before silently indicated you wanted a kiss, Nash leaned down and kissed your forehead. Before entering for your shower, you had already instructed your boyfriend to apply a bacterial ointment along with bandaging himself up. To which the brown-haired man pouted, wanting to watch you do that for him instead. What a dork. Smiling happily, you shut the door behind you with a content sigh. You started up Spotify, the song Diamonds by Megan The Stallion and Normani played before stepping in under the hot water. “I’m super shero bitch, don’t try me hoe-” You hummed heatedly in the shower, escaping into a music video of your own. Nash snickered to himself as he heard you sing through the thin walls.

***

Padding out of your heated shower, heart appeased with the intense temperature of your shower. You had a towel turban on your head and another one wrapped around your body like a dress. Your eyes spotted Nash, his eyes moving back and forth between two areas in your room before he let out a rough sigh and shut his eyes tiredly. “Nash?”

“Hm?” The blue-eyed man cracked his eyes open and tilted his head towards you as you stood by the door-frame.

“Where you with the boys? Do I need to-” You gestured to yourself.

“They just left to respect your privacy,” I, however, will not look away.

“Oh, okay.” You shrugged, stepping over to the other side of the bedroom as you slowly shed off the towel. Nash’s eyes followed you, eyes darkening a bit and a wily smile on his face. You knew he was watching you. Nash did every time, so you decided to give him a bit of a show. Swaying your hips as you started to lowly hum a song that came to mind, bending over when you needed to get something before fully getting dressed in your sunflower-printed pajama shorts and shirt set. Turning around, you gave him a seductive wink before re-entering the bathroom to commence with your skin-care routine.

“You know,” Nash spoke up as he stood and strode up beside you. He crossed his arms and leaned against the door frame. “I still think you’re a beauty without all those skin-care products, right?” He pointed to the corner of the skin filled with dermatologist approved products.

“As flattering as that is, you won’t be thinking that when you see me with dry and cracked skin all over my face like a dried-up zombie from those old movies.”

“Bet.”

“I’m not taking that bet.” You frowned, shaking the bottle before pausing. Then you shook it more vigorously. Nash inwardly laughed at your frustration to get what seemed to be the last remnants of the skin care solution.

“Do you need me to go get you that hydrating cleanser tomorrow?”

“Yeah… I think I’m out.”

Nash snickered before pulling you to bed with him after the two of you washed up for bed. You beamed up at the geological myth-buster when he had followed your instructions to bandage himself up. Your eyes caught Nash staring, going off into his mind and wandering thoughts.

“Nash.”

“Hm.”

“You’re thinking about it again.”

“I-I can’t help it. I…” He trailed off. “I should have been better. Done more. For her and Maya.”

You ran a hand through your damp hair before pushing him onto his back and straddling his hips to fully draw his attention away from his thoughts momentarily. His blue eyes widened slightly as his hands gently grasped your hips. “What do I need to do to make you think that you’re enough? That what you’ve done is enough?”

“I can think of a few things currently.”

“…You’re an idiot.”

“That I am not.”

“Yup, you are,” you tapped his nose before cupping his face and giving him a couple of sweet kisses. The Wells doppelganger hummed cheerily against your lips. “What’s done is done. We can only look to the next day and focus on how to better ourselves. It’s just a hard lesson we all need to learn.”

“Speaking of hard-”

“-Let me finish, then we can continue what we started earlier.” By earlier, you meant this morning. You glanced over at the clock. You meant yesterday morning. You had gotten the smart- and by smart, you mean dumb- idea to sleep over at the labs with him. That morning the two of you were… feeling particularly frisky with one another. Bottom line, the two of you almost ended up almost getting caught thanks to Nash biting down a particular sensitive spot on your neck while thrusting himself in. The both of you had to stop when your phone went off which caused you to push Nash off you and accidentally off the bed while you attempted to silence your phone. They can never know, or they’d hold it over my head forever. Especially Iris and Cisco. “Living in the past won’t do you any good, ok?” Nash reluctantly nodded, bringing one of your hands up to kiss.

I’ll try to be good. To be better. For Maya, Allegra, and You. My precious gem. Nash sighed through his nose as you saw raw emotion take over, darkening those baby blue eyes with a certain haziness. “Now can we bang?” The blood rushed to your cheeks at his imminent question before nodding subtly at your horny boyfriend. Well, I mean I’m pretty horny too. Especially since we both never got to finish and today just happened to become the longest day ever. A wide, mischievous grin laced itself onto his face as he pulled you down for more than a couple of kisses.

***

Vrr, vrrrr

Who the fuck needs me up this late? You scrunched your nose grumpily, shutting your eyes even tighter until your mind registered the sounds from your phone. Laying on your stomach, your leg was hooked over a fluffy pillow while your arm was under the pillow beneath your head. “Mmm,” you groaned in annoyance at the noise, haphazardly reaching for your phone from on the bedside counter and cracking an eye open at the sudden brightness of the screen. The phone revealed Barry’s number and goofy pic on the caller ID that you had set. You blinked a few times before swiping on the screen. Um?

“Barry?” You croaked, wincing at the hoarseness of you voice from… earlier activities with your boyfriend. You were greeted by a somber-toned voice, one that didn’t match the happy-go-lucky speedster’s persona.

“(Y/N), C-can you open the door? Please.”

“Yeah, give me one second.”

You heard his soft sniffling as you ended the line, you brain kicking into overdrive as you tripped in the dark to find something to put on. You ignored the echoing dull ache of your body as you moved. Luckily in the dim light that your phone had provided you were able to find Nash’s shirt.

“Hm, what’s wrong?” Nash groaned, waking from the movement and noise before turning to lay on his back. He rose his head to look at you as you got dressed, blinking a few times to fight back the haziness of sleep.

“I don’t know but stay put.” You padded over to leave your room, closing it behind you. Please go back to sleep. You had to make sure Barry didn’t find any trace of the myth-busting explorer.

You hurriedly went to unlock your front door and opened it. What you saw broke your heart. Barry, your closest friend, in tears and puffy, red eyes. “Oh my god, what’s wrong?” You pulled the Scarlet Speedster into your humble abode as you turned on the lights. Locking the door, you brought him into your living room area.

“Did I come at a bad time?” 

“No, of course not. I’m here whenever you need me.”

“Are you sure? You look...” Barry trailed off, subtly gesturing to you causing you to look down. Your cheeks flushed at the amount of marks visibly littering your body.

“D-don’t worry about that”

Barry awkwardly nodded. “It’s Iris, she-”

“Babe, who was at the door?” Nash yawned as he ran a hand through his brown locks, walking in sleepily and shirtless before freezing in his spot. You froze at the voice. The taller man blinked a few times, his mind starting to work now. Your eyes widened as the two men made eye contact. You were screaming internally at the awkwardness that had filled the air between the three of you. “Hi,” Nash did a subtle wave.

“Wells?”

Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit~ “I can explain-” You started. Oh my god, I want to crawl in a hole and die. The thing is, with everything going on you and Nash decided to stay a secret because it’s really irrelevant with the Carver situation and Barry trying to deal with his lack of speed.

“You and Nash? What? When? How long??” The speedster was mind-blown, giving you an incredulous and stunned look. “Why didn’t either of you say anything? How did I even miss this?”

To be fair, you are pretty oblivious at times Barr. “Barry, focus. Iris first.” You stopped the speedster in his tracks before he rambled on a series of other questions. Turning around, you pointed at Nash with a finger and frown. “And you, we are so going to have a talk later.”

“I welcome it.” Nash grinned cheekily and took a seat next, watching you face-palm in response.

This smooth fucker. “Of course you do-

“-Ew-” Barry cringed at the two of you.

“Ignore him. Anyway- Barry, what happened?”

Barry went on to explain what happened that night. How he did his best to protect Joe and Cecile. How Iris had went off at him for not doing enough for Joe. About his powers and Carver. That he wasn’t there to protect her. How her words had carved a hole in his heart as she kicked him out of their home. “I’m barely hanging on with my powers. She- She said I wasn’t her home anymore. But… that’s the abnormality. Iris- We’d work through it. We’d try to talk it over. She- she wouldn’t do that to me.”

“I’m sorry Barr,” You patted his shoulder as he was seated beside you. You shook your head, mind mulling over everything he had just told you. You were essentially Barry’s confidant when it came to things like this from Iris because he knew he needed another person’s point of view so he wouldn’t be jumping head into anything and risk screwing things up even more. “I fucking knew something was off.”

“What do you mean?” Nash questioned beside you.

“The odd behavior towards you, starring off into space at oddly random times, encouraging you,” you gestured to Barry, “to do things you’d normally never do, the cooking all of a sudden-”

“-Thank you!-”

“-Barry, that’s not your wife. I don’t know who or what that is or why they’re doing this. But that’s not your Iris, Barr.”

“I don’t- I don’t know what to do. What am I going to say to the others? How do I act? Where do I go from here? How am I going to protect the others if I can’t even see the anomaly in front of me? I mean, what if she intentionally sabotages our work to stopping Carver.” Barry started rambling again, his speed gauge watch starting to blink.

“Barry-” You tried to stop his train of thought.

“How did I miss the signs? I was living with an imposter for God knows how long. How am I so gullible?”

“Barry, Nash finally called out. The speedster looked up at him and pursed his lips from his rapid-fire free fall of worrisome thoughts and guilt. “Slow down. Take a deep breath and calm down.”

“Tonight, you need to need to rest. This took a lot out of you, and your anxiety is fueling your speed to be use up.” His speed gauge watch was blinking an orange-scarlet color. “I have a spare bed in the guestroom, you can spend the night here and the three of us can brainstorm. How does that sound?”

Barry nodded at your words, avoiding your eyes as he wrung his fingers together in anticipation.

Nash spoke up, “Allen, I have some clothes you can-”

“Ah-I-I’m good. I’ll just sleep in these and get some clothes from Joe’s tomorrow morning.” You watched with a look and raised eyebrow as Barry walked into a random direction of your home before coming back to where you and Nash were seated. Smooth, Flash. A sheepish look was on the speedster’s face. “Where’s your guest room?”

“Down the hall to the left.”

“Right.”

Once you both heard the door shut Nash leaned in close to whisper in your ear, “It’s a good thing we decided not to keep our nightly activities an all-night this time. Love the new look, who’d you steal it from?” His veiny, but prominent hand had reached over you, lightly trailing the tips of his fingers on your hip under his shirt.

You lightly hit his shoulder, as he snickered at you, “I told you to stay put.”

“I didn’t hear you,” Nash pouted slightly before smirking, “And it’s not like he wasn’t going to find out. My bag is sitting right there by the couch. I mean I’m not much of an artist, but-” The Wells doppelganger trailed a hand over the love-bites on your neck, causing you to shiver. “Even I know that those hickeys were painted beautifully on your skin.”

“And I returned that favor two-fold.” You gingerly grasped his strong jaw with an innocent look on your face. “How’s your back by the way?” You asked him tauntingly.

But Nash didn’t back down, instead his grin widened as he turned his head to kiss the inside of your palm. “Deliciously aching from a precious kitty’s claws. How are those bruises on your hips?”

“Oh hush, you!” Your cheeks burned as the memories of earlier resurfaced. Nash chuckled at you, wrapping his strong arms around you before picking you up and heading back to the bedroom. The multi-versal explorer placed a sweet kiss on top of your head with that smug-ass grin on his face. “Let’s just hope, he doesn’t decide to tell anyone tomorrow,” you muttered to your boyfriend, already secretly dreading what the day will bring.

#harrison wells x reader #harrison wells #harrison wells fanfiction #harrison wells imagine #nash wells x reader #nash wells imagine #nash wells #barry allen #The Flash #the flash fanfiction #the flash imagines #the flash cw #the flash imagine #dc #DC comics #DCTV #dctv fanfic #team flash x reader #team flash #team flash imagine #the flash x reader

[takoyakitenchou]

past sunrise

@j3nnt those drawings deserve the whole damn world so i attempted to do justice for your incredible art (and ryoali lol)

“good morning,” they said simultaneously while gazing into the other’s eyes.

It was thanks to being married to a man who’d lived a lifetime of pre-dawn trips to the fish market that Nakiri Alice could roll straight out of bed in the mornings looking fit for the Met gala, but she only chose to exercise this talent on rare occasions.

Despite her fervent claims that she could sleep past noon on any given day—something to do with beauty rest—Alice’s biorhythm had been finetuned such that she was always up by four thirty, five at the latest. Ryo would do his best to be quiet when he got up to head out to Toyosu, but she’d be watching his wide back as he pulled on his clothes and grabbed his ice chest.

He would always stand looking over his shoulder for a long moment, one hand on the doorknob, and give an apologetic grin as her vermilion eyes opened to meet his in the darkness. Ryo had never once left the condo without glancing back at her figure sprawled across 80% of the bed. It had become something of a tradition between them; then he’d leave and she’d debate cooking breakfast for another hour or so before she finally mustered the will to get out of bed.

But all machines, however well-calibrated, have hiccups.

It was a warm August morning and the sun was high in the sky by the time Alice woke. She was roused more by the blinding rays filtering through the curtains than anything else, and to her surprise, Ryo was still sleeping like the dead, his neck at an awkward angle with the right side of his face pressed into his pillow. Alice stifled a laugh at how uncomfortable he looked, and then took the opportunity to memorize every bit of him — as she’d done countless times. 

To think that they’d met by chance; god, it was horrifying to even think about. But that just went to show how fleeting life was. Alice had no idea if and when he’d flit back out of her life, just as easily as he’d entered with all the pomp and circumstance his bandana could muster, so she supposed all she could do was make the most out of every second she had with him.

She refrained from prodding him awake and instead lay watching him and the meticulous rigidity of his features. His jawline could cut diamonds. Each angular contour was carved like delicate roses into his figure, each shadow an elegant dance routine mapped on his skin. Everything clashing in crude chaos; goddamn did she love this guy.

It was impossible to express, how much she loved the man beside her. There was something in his eyes, those rubies scintillating with telltale signs of all his reserved emotions, that had long since rendered her completely head over heels in love. To be honest, even love was too light of a word to describe the flaming intensity of her feelings for Kurokiba Ryo.

Better left unsaid — nothing would do it justice.

Maybe sensing said passion, Ryo yawned and blinked his eyes open. His smile was soft, all the sharp angles fading into hazy gradients. 

“Good morning,” they said simultaneously while gazing into the other’s eyes.

Ryo grinned and tucked a lock of Alice’s hair behind her ear. “Guess we’re not eating fish today, huh?”

“Obviously not,” she replied.

He must’ve taken that as license to stay in bed for the rest of the day, because he pulled her to his chest and pressed his nose to her forehead. “What would happen if we didn’t go to work?”

Distracted by his musky aroma, some unique blend of his cologne and all of Alice’s beauty products (“Ryo, could you spray perfume on the back of my neck, please? Don’t forget to turn the nozzle in the right dir—or not. You should probably go rinse your mouth. And while you’re at it, bring me my hand lotion, please. Thank you!”), Alice hummed, “Better to ask forgiveness than permission.”

Ryo chuckled. “There might be something to watch on Netflix,” he suggested. “One of your rom-com shows updated yesterday.”

“Sounds good,” Alice agreed. Both of them knew she’d be fast asleep with her head against his chest before they got halfway through the recap of the last episode, but that was the whole point.

#ryoali #ryo kurokiba #nakiri alice

[theliterateape]

The Tragic Genius of Dustin “Screech” Diamond

By David Himmel

The most intense and realistically human scene in Saved by the Bell came in season 4, episode 20, “Snow White and the Seven Dorks.” It’s where Zack and Lisa discover feelings or raw horniness for each other and kiss. Screech, who has loved Lisa since the days of Good Morning, Miss Bliss, finds out about it and with understandable anger, calls Zack out for it, rips his preppy clothes, and challenges him to fisticuffs. Here, the most put-upon best friend in television history is finally taking a stand putting his megalomanic of a best pal on blast for his egregious betrayal. Zack was never to be trusted. But Screech did trust Zack. He was loyal to a to his own detriment. But not this time.

It’s heavy television. It’s a heavier moment than when the gang confronts drug use at the party in season 3, episode 21, “No Hope with Dope” and initially in season 2, episode 9, “Jessie’s Song”—the one where Jessie gets so excited. Heavier than when the duck dies following the oil spil when crude is found under the Bayside football field in season 3, episode 11, “Pipe Dreams.” And it’s more emotional than Zack and Kelly’s wedding in the 1994 TV movie, Saved by the Bell: Wedding in Las Vegas.

That was the power of Samuel “Screech” Powers, played lovingly and long by Dustin Diamond who died on Monday following a short battle with cancer. He was forty-four.

✶

I always wanted to be Zack Morris. I envisioned myself as Zack Morris—confident, handsome, clever. My friends even called me Preppy for a time. But let’s be honest; I was always Screech. Skinny, a little odd looking, goofy, and full of love that was often unrequited. More than that, Screech was not just a gag character or a McGuffin for Zack’s shenanigans. Screech was a progressive television character before we knew what that was supposed to be.

Screech and Lisa’s relationship, though never consummated romantically, was an interracial one. And not once did any of us think it was weird for a white guy to pine for a Black girl. The show never really acknowledged Lisa’s race, though, maybe it should have considering she was one of like, two Black characters on the show: Lisa and Ollie the Nerd. Still, we were all rooting for Screech and Lisa to finally get together and win Prom King and Queen, proving that love is not bound by racial divisiveness. A bigger television couples’ win than even Ross and Rachel. Lisa and Screech never happened, of course, which is part of what made Zack’s betrayal so intense. Bros before Lisas, Morris.

And then there was that Lisa Frank folder Screech carried around. The one with the illustration of a woman tilting her sun glasses down to get a better view at the hunk we see in her glasses’ reflection. A conversation bubble says, “Check him out!” I knew that folder in real life. A handful of girls in my junior high school had it. It was a girls’ folder. Or, it was a folder for those who thought that guy was hot. So, did Screech like guys? Was Screech gay? Bisexual, perhaps. Bi-curious at the least?

We knew he loved Lisa. Then he had a healthy relationship with Violet Anne Bickerstaff. But that folder. It was an odd choice. But Screech was odd. So perhaps that’s why props and wardrobe gave it to him. Maybe it was some meta attempt to show Screech’s level of obsession with all things Lisa.

Or, perhaps, they were telling us more about this intelligent, complicated, and interesting character.

Either way, I dug it. Screech always had me thinking… That wasn’t the character’s intended purpose—Screech was no Jessie Pinkman or Skylar White—but that’s what he did for me. And that onus was all on Dustin Diamond.

His post Saved by the Bell years aside—the sex tape, rumors of him being an insufferable prick, stabbing that guy, etc.—Diamond spent thirteen years as Screech Powers. Screech was the clown, but Diamond gave the clown heart, humanity. We never laughed at Screech, we laughed with him. We rooted for him. And when he was shoved in a locker or was attacked by ants while wearing a mascot costume or when he had his heart broken by his best friend, we ached with him.

Screech was always the good guy. His exploits at the behest of his buddy Zack were not of malice or selfishness or greed. He fell in line as a way to bring joy to his friends. Loyalty, laughter, and love. That was Screech. Heh… Screech’s character description belongs written in a script font on faux distressed wood and sold at Target.

We all wanted to be Zack and Kelly. Maybe some of us wanted to be Slater or even Jessie. But we should have wanted to be Screech. Screech was the best of them all. They best of all of us. And that is solely because of Dustin Diamond.

He died too young. Too soon. A comeback may have been in the future. An opportunity for him to do more of what he loved doing—acting. And maybe not as Screech, but as another character that would no doubt be bursting at the seams with compassion, hilarity, and a humanity. Dustin Diamond was due a third act. Or, at the very least, an encore.

#Dustin DIamond #Screech #Screech Powers #Saved by the Bell #Lisa Turtle #Zach Morris #I'm So Excited #Caffeine Pills #Samuel Screech Powers #Dustin Diamond Death #Screech Cancer

[feminist-propaganda]

The Star Wars Saga Is A Meditation On Single Motherhood

It recently dawned on me that the entire story line of the Star Wars saga is built on the lives, loves and tribulations of 3 generations of single mothers. There are monsters to slay and aliens to find and planets to explore, yes, but if you think about the powerful message in the movies, you’ll come to realize it was mostly a reflection on the status of single mothers, the outcomes of their offspring, and the conflict that lives forever in their descendants.

Each trilogy, once reframed, becomes the story of one woman, who finds herself in a situation that is as old as time. She is with child, but the person who planted the seed in her is not by her side.

Shmi Skywalker or The Good Single Mother

In the Phantom Menace, Jedi Knight Qui Gon Jin meets Anakin Skywalker, a slave boy with a talent for repairing machines. The Jedi knight is impressed with the child’s abilities. He’s knowledgeable, intuitive, and most importantly he’s also kind and thoughtful. When a sand storm threatens the group of travelers, Anakin takes them to his own home and offers them shelter. 

We meet Shmi Skywalker, who in many ways is the archetype of the good single mother. She is not just quiet. She has completely erased herself. She has no personality, apart from being Anakin’s caretaker. She expresses no needs, no desires, no dreams. She simply loves Anakin, and when she sees an opportunity for him to leave the desert planet ruled by the Huts, she doesn’t stand in his way. 

In a now famous scene, Qui Gon asks her about the child’s origins and Shmi famously responds “There was no father”. The line continues: “I carried him. I gave birth. I raised him. I can’t explain what happened”.

The immaculate conception myth refers to the idea in Christianity that Mary, much like Shmi, was impregnated by some magical force, a holy spirit. Both are parabols: images we use to discuss painful topics. Single motherhood has probably always been a part of the human experience. Jared Diamond explains in “Why Is Sex Fun?” that in terms of evolution, it is more rewarding for human males to be “super spreaders “ rather than “good fathers “ . The “good father” gene does not pass down to future generations, because in effect, not sticking around to raise the child is a better strategy for a human man to pass on his genes to the next generation. Not convinced? Just count how many women have been impregnated by a rapper like Future (8 last time I checked). If you’re not into hip-hop, you can think of the offspring of the Mongol Genghis Khan

The purpose of the parabol is to provide an image, to extract ourselves from the technicalities of onr person’s story and to instead talk about all single mothers at once. Indeed, single mothers come in all shapes and sizes. Some are widowed, some are abandoned, others are lied to, and some run away from abusive environments.

Shmi raises her son the best she can, and her love for him is unconditional. She doesn’t bat an eye when he is freed while she is to continue her life as a slave. She doesn’t even seem to mind when Anakin leaves the planet and never returns to free her, even after he marries into some serious money. 

But the story of Star Wars tells us that Shmi’s relationship to Anakin, because it was so fusional, because it was all that he had, led to his undoing. In Episode 2, when he senses she is in danger, he jeopardizes his mission to protect Padme to go rescue her. When he eventually finds her, he is so upset about her ultimate death that he commits mass murder, targeting the Tuskan riders of the sea of Dunes.

When Yoda first lays eyes on Anakin, he senses Anakin’s pain, he is just a child whose been ripped away from the only human that’s ever cared for him deeply. The turmoil inside the boy is palpable, and Yoda advises against training him. 

Padme Amidala or The Bad Single Mother

Anakin develops feelings for Padme, and in Episode 2 the pair decide to secretly get married in the lake district of Padme’s home planet Naboo. Their relationship is very intense. Both share a strong sense of civic duty: Padme was elected queen of the Naboo when she was just 14 &  Anakin is a keeper of the peace. They care deeply about issues such as how the galaxy must be governed, how much action needs to be taken versus when diplomacy must be prioritized. 

Their strong sense of service has made them lonely young people. They’re far away from their families, surrounded by advisors, servants and droids - not friends. 

They jump into their relationship with an eagerness that suggests it is their original caretakers they crave for.

Padme becomes pregnant while the Clone Wars are raging, and immediately Anakin begins to experience trouble with his sleeping. He imagines Padme is dying in childbirth, and the visions haunt him during the day. His fear that she will die ultimately leads to his decision to join the Dark side of the force. Senator Palpatine has manipulated him into believing that Sith Lords have discovered the power to prevent death itself. 

Just like his mother before him, we need to look at Anakin’s story in terms of symbolism. It isn’t really about his specific experience with fatherhood : it’s about the universal conflict that men feel towards their own offspring. Even the way it is announced to him, in the Senate chambers, barely hidden from the rest of the Coruscant elite, implies some sort of entrapment. The columns around them seem to be like a cage that is closing in on his life. He is in the middle of the Wars - he should be celebrating his victory over General Grivious, but instead he is stuck with his wife and he has to absorb her anxiety & reassure her. 

Anakin makes a weird, forced smile and says : “This is a happy moment.” But neither Padme nor the audience believe him. Nothing about him feels happy, he isn’t relaxed: he is tense.

At the end of Episode 3, Anakin attempts to kill Padme when she condemns the mass murders he’s committed against the younglings in the Jedi temple. Hr uses for the first time his “strangling” trick, which becomes his signature move in the original trilogy. 

Palpatine makes Anakin believe that he’s killed Padme, but the truth is somewhat more nuanced. She dies of heartbreak shortly after giving birth to twins. For anyone who thought this was corny, it’s actually been proven by the scientific community that heartbreak reduces your life expectation (it diminishes the size of the telomeres in your body cells, which is the molecule that helps replicate your DNA). 

As Lisa Feldman Barret wrote in How Emotions Are Made: 

Emotional harm can shorten your life. Inside your body, you have little packets of genetic material that sit on the ends of your chromosomes like protective caps. They’re called telomeres. All living things have telomeres—humans, fruit flies, amoebas, even the plants in your garden. Every time one of your cells divides, its telomeres get a little shorter (although they can be repaired by an enzyme called telomerase). So generally their size slowly decreases, and at some point, when they are too short, you die. This is normal aging. But guess what else causes your telomeres to get smaller? Stress does. Children who experience early adversity have shorter telomeres. In other words, emotional harm can do more serious damage, last longer, and cause more future harm than breaking a bone

More severe cases involve patients actually dying of a broken heart, the myocardia just collapses under the weight of the sadness the human feels.

The original trilogy should be re-viewed with all of this new information we have. In the 80s, when Empire Strikes Back came out, the “I am your father” line became instantly iconic. But the plot twist was more like an “Oh My gosh!” moment rather than a profound reflection on fatherhood. The audience sympathized with Luke not because his father had been absent and negligent, but because his father’s job was to serve a fachist leader. It was the actions of Darth Vader as a political servant that were questioned, not his refusal to nurture a smaller being. 

Padme is the opposite of Shmi. She is the archetype of the “bad” single mother. The bad single mother is the single mother who can’t deal with the situation and checks out of it. She collapses under the weight that she feels on her shoulders. She can't get over the heartbreak, she can’t find the will to live. 

Society tends to punish the Padme’s just as much as it praises the Shmis. Television programs like “Teen Mom” are set up to shame the young deviants into adopting the correct behavior. The purpose of the show is to judge these young women into becoming self-sacrificing mothers.

Leia Organa - The Non-single Single Mother

Leia Organa is Anakin Skywalker’s daughter. She is raised by an adoptive frailly on Alderaan after she’s separated at birth from her brother Luke. Much like her mother, she becomes a dedicated public servant, a trusted leader and a beloved public figure. 

She is raised by a wealthy family in the central galactic systems. The Organas teach her the ways of the elite political class. As an adult she serves the cause of the Rebels, and when she meets Han Solo in Episode 4, the mediocre smuggler fascinates her. 

In the now famous scene from Hoth in Episode 5, Leia declares her love for Han Solo right as he’s about to be frozen in carbonite. The ultimate bad boy responds his chilling, because realistic  “I know”.

Han is nothing compared to Leia. He drives a broken down ship, doesn’t have any morals or even a simple code of conduct, much less a cause that he’s dedicated his life to. He has nothing to offer her, and is definitely not in her league. But still, in Episode 6, the pair become an official item.

The last Trilogy was an opportunity to explore Leia’s experience with motherhood. By now we know that Leia’s grandmother was a “Good single mother”, she completely sacrificed herself to protect her son & more importantly she never questioned her status of sole caretaker (remember the “there was no father“ line). We also know that Leia’s mother was a public servant, and a passionate woman who allowed herself to fall deeply in love with a sensitive young man with a non existing support system. Leia’s mother was the “bad” single mother: driven only by her career (Queen of the Naboo, later a Senator of the Old Republic) she did not step up to the task when her destiny revealed itself to her.

Leia seems to share her mother’s taste in reckless young men with a lot of attitude and no emotional security to offer. It’s the excitement she craves, not the tranquility.

Her fate will be the same as her foremothers. She has a child with Han, but when she sends him away to be trained by Luke, she loses them both.

Their dialogue in Episode 7 goes like this: 

Han Solo : Listen to me, will you? I know every time you... Every time you look at me you're reminded of him.

Leia : You think I want to forget him? I want him back.

Han Solo : There's nothing more we could have done. There's too much Vader in him.

Leia : That's why I wanted him to train with Luke. I just never should have sent him away. That's when I lost him. That's when I lost you both.

The last trilogy develops Leia’s character in a way that allows her to be something else than just a single mother. She loses her husband, she even loses her son to the dark side: but she never loses herself. Leia doesn’t allow her condition to define her. She becomes a leader of the Resistance even if it means going after her son’s New order. 

In Episode 9, Leia even destroys her son to protect Rey - the symbolism is that she’s overcome her role as a mother, she’s rejected the notion that she must sacrifice everything for her son even if it goes against her own self interest (like Shmi). She also rejects the idea that her partner abandoning her is the end of her. It isn’t. Unlike her mother, she finds the will to live, and to lead the next generation of freedom fighters and peace keepers.

The saga ends on a hopeful note for all of us single mothers out there. It comes with a message for us : we don’t need to choose between the austere Shmi and the weak Padme. We can instead decide that this “single mom” problem is kind of like beauty : it lies in the eyes of the beholder.

Single moms don’t need to think of themselves as failures, they don’t need to live in modest conditions, they don’t need to beg society's forgiveness for merely existing. They don’t need to be ashamed. 

Single moms don’t need to erase their brains and their lives, and sink into an ocean of denial either. They don't need to be obsessed with their careers or caught up in romantic entanglements that are only going to exhaust them.

Single moms can just decide that they’re women, with beautiful, inspiring personalities and kind, loving hearts. Mothers are first and foremost, the leaders of the young, the protectors of the realm and the makers of the future. It’s not that it doesn’t matter that they’re alone. It’s that they don’t have to be alone at all.

#single mom #star wars #padme amidala #leia organa #shmi skywalker

[doyouever-daydream]

Take me out to the ball game.

A/N So…  This is the result of me being sad over Opening Day being postponed, the MLB livestreaming game 7 of 2016 WS when my Cubs won, and having watched yesterday the episode where Rossi talks about this and puts up the W in his office wall *cries thinking about it* (I thrive everytime David Rossi of Criminal Minds or Nick Miller of New Girl make a reference about the Chicago Cubs lmao) Also in my head the Simmons family are huge Nationals fans just for the sake of the story lmao. Hopefully you’ll enjoy it.

Summary: It’s MLB’s Opening Day and since the Cubs are playing against the Nationals, Rossi invites the whole BAU fam to the Nats Park. (Please remember I suck at summaries)

Pairing: I guess there’s a little Spencer Reid x SSA (y/n) (y/l/n) there but it is mostly bonding time between the BAU fam.

Warnings: None.

Masterlist

“Well, this isn’t Wrigley Field but at least our Cubbies are playing” (y/n) said to David as they got to their seats.

It was MLB’s Opening Day and David had invited everyone to go and see his beloved Cubs playing against the Nationals, he was particularly excited that he finally had another Cubs fan in the team. They were both wearing Cubs jerseys and hats.

“Aren’t you supposed to be on the field playing? There’s enough of you to be a team” Prentiss teased the Simmons family, who were proudly wearing Nationals gear, all six of them had jerseys, even little Rose Mary.

“Very funny, Em, but actually we’re incomplete, there are nine team members on the diamond” Matt said with a laugh.

“Better start working on triplets then” Will said while he and JJ put sunscreen on their boys.

“Not a chance” Kristy was quick to answer braiding Lily’s hair.

The whole BAU family was there, even though not all of them were baseball fans, they felt it would be a good memory attending Opening Day all together.

“I have an extra Cubs hat if anyone wants it, maybe you Luke, come to your senses, come on” (y/n) teased Luke and he jokingly gasped while adjusting his Yankees hat.

“Haha, very funny, (y/l/n)”

“I’ll take it” Spencer, who was conveniently sitting next to her,  spoke and everyone hid their smirks, they knew he was doing it so he could impress (y/n), truth was he didn’t know much about sports, he had been busy with his lectures so he couldn’t do proper research on the sport but he was willing to learn as the game progressed.

“Yes! That’s the attitude, Spence” She happily gave it to him.

“Usually I’m more into hockey and football but this could be nice” JJ thought the weather was beautiful and the atmosphere at the park was nice.

“Wait, till this lasts 4 hours or more” Kristy joked with wide eyes.

“What!?”

“This is the king of sports and now I could finally prove it to you” Rossi was ecstatic being there.

“I love you, Dave but if this goes on for more than three hours I’ll leave you up to it and I’ll go to the house, or anywhere else”

“Yup, I want to tag along if that does happen” Penelope chimed in and Luke laughed.

“Count me in, I’m mainly here for the food and the beer” Emily added with a beer already on her hand.

“Amen to that” Tara was also holding a beer and putting on her sunglasses.

“I want a hot dog!” Michael got hungry at the mention of food.

“Sure, buddy, I’ll go grab you one”

“I’ll go with you, the kids also will want food any second now” Matt was quick to follow Will and soon Tara, Emily and (y/n) joined them to buy snacks for the rest of the team.

Soon they were back with a lot of food and drinks for all nineteen of them.

They all chatted about different things, they were seated in two rows so that they weren’t that far from each other, the game started and Matt, David and (y/n) were immediately lost in the game, the three of them talking about what their teams were doing good and what they could work on.

Kristy noticed Spencer was a little bit anxious, he moved his foot and every other minute he looked at (y/n), probably wishing he knew something about baseball so he could talk to her.

“First game, Spence?” She bounced Rose who was sitting in her lap.

“Uh, yeah” He turned to her and little Rose who was having the time of her life with a foam finger, that was almost as big as her, his uncle Dave had bought for her.

“Do you want to know more about how baseball works?” She offered and Spencer nodded desperately.

“Ok, so…”

And so Kristy began to explain to Spencer everything she had learned of the sport from her dad, brothers and Matt, she enjoyed watching the games before she started dating Matt but when they started dating, Matt’s love for it rubbed off on her.

It was the middle of the fourth inning and the Presidents race was happening, the kids were excited to see it. Soon JJ and Will had their sons on their shoulders, Matt had Jake, Luke had David, Kristy had Chloe and (y/n) had Lily while Penelope carried a happy Rose.

The scene of all of them cheering on the presidents was adorable, Krystall decided to take a video to capture the scene. The race ended and the kids were on their seats again talking about how cool it was to see the presidents run.

“I want my own giant foam caricature head” A tipsy Emily declared “Let’s all make our own foam heads and have a BAU race, woo!” She screamed and everyone laughed.

“It’s a good thing she didn’t drive here” Penelope said still holding Rose.

“I’ll take her home, I’m taking Spence too” (y/n) offered as she noticed a very quiet Spencer “Are you having fun?”

“Uh, yeah, this is nice, it’s my first baseball game but Kristy helped me out understanding the rules” Reid nodded as he ran a hand through his hair nervously.

“That’s great, you should’ve told me and I could’ve explained it to you on our way here”

“Don’t worry, it’s ok” His smile made (y/n) melt, his eyes looked particularly beautiful with the sunlight above them.

“Maybe it was best that Kristy explained it to you, I can get intense as I’m sure you noticed”

“I would say you’re passionate and it’s… It’s- really nice to see you talk about something you’re so passionate about, you know, besides work” He looked at her with a shy smile on his lips and noticed she was blushing, as she was going to say something Lily tapped on her shoulder.

“Aunt (y/n), are you gonna sing with me the baseball song?” She asked with a sweet voice.

“Of course, I’ll do that, maybe uncle Spencer can sing with us too” He looked terrified because he had no idea what they were talking about “We’re going to teach you a song so you can sing it with us during the middle of the 7th, ok?” More than asking, (y/n) was informing him he was going to sing with them and he nodded.

Soon  it was the 7th inning stretch and everyone were on their feet ready to sing, while Emily and Penelope didn’t know all of the lyrics they did their best, the rest of them happily sang “Take me out to the ball game”, Reid had Lily in his arms as she and (y/n) waved their arms in the air to the rhythm of the baseball classic.

“Take me out to the ballgame, take me out with the crowd, buy me some peanuts and crackerjacks, I don’t care if I ever get back, let me root, root, root for the home team, if they don’t win, it’s a shame, for it’s one, two, three strikes you’re out at the old ball game”

At the end of the game the Nationals had won, leaving the Simmons family, especially the kids very happy, so David and (y/n) weren’t that sad their team had lost if it meant the little ones being happy. 

The rest of the gang was also happy at how the day had turned out, as they expected they had a great time, after all, it wasn’t everyday they were able to do this kind of things all of them together.

#criminal minds #cm fanfic #emily prentiss #jennifer jj jareau #penelope garcia #tara lewis #matt simmons #david rossi #luke alvez #spencer reid #spencer reid imagine #spencer reid x reader #criminal minds imagine #criminal minds fanfiction #lizzie writes #kristy simmons #krystall rossi

[bktynes-writes]

Hi friends! Happy Canadian thanksgiving! Sorry this took longer to post than usual, I wanted to give everyone time to enjoy “Last Holiday” and all the wonderful content that came out surrounding that before I posted. I hope you have a wonderful week and, as always, like, reblog, or send me a message if you wanna chat about the story (or anything else)! And please let me know if you want to be tagged in upcoming chapters!

Read on ao3.

CHAPTER 3: The Father

The car ride from Rowena's club to the Winchester estate was silent and even more sobering for Dean than his phonecall with Sam had been. Benny had, of course, answered his call and driven to pick him up without question the moment Dean had said he needed a ride. Now he found himself sitting in the backseat of Benny's SUV staring at the palms of his hands, trying to compose his emotions for what he would be walking into. He hadn't let Sam explain over the phone, just said he was on his way and hung up, immediately dialling Benny's number.

His emotions ranged from fear to rage, and he was doing his best to school himself into some manner of togetherness before reaching his parent's home but was failing miserably. He caught Benny glance at him in the rearview mirror.

"You wanna tell me what's wrong, brother?" Benny asked, his cajun accent filling the cab of the vehicle.

"No." Dean snapped. There was nothing to talk about until he knew what had happened to his father.

Benny sighed. "You can't run from everything, Dean-o."

"Just drive, Benny. I'm not in the mood." Dean said. 

"Fine, fine," Benny shook his head and turned his eyes back to the road. "But you should talk to someone. Spending your nights in the company of Rowena's harlots ain't gonna make the mornings feel any less cold."

Dean shot him a look over the back of the seats, and Benny focussed his eyes back on the road. He felt an immediate pang of guilt. Benny didn't know that he wasn't just pining over some woman with a fake name and even faker tits. He couldn't.

Dean sighed. "It isn't that, man." He curled his arms around himself. "It's dad. Something's wrong."

Benny's eyes snapped up. "John? What happened?"

"I dunno. Sam just called and said I needed to get home." He thumbed at the screen of his phone idly. "Could be anything."

"Well, shit, brother, if I'd've known this wasn't just a drunk Dean episode, I woulda been driving faster," Benny said.

He took a hard left, and the Winchester's estate loomed into view. The old house's stonework visage was enveloped in dark coiling ivy, and the yellow light from the windows glinted like eyes in a dark, expressionless face. The granite front steps led to grand wooden doors, intricately decorated with a relief carving of David's battle with Goliath. Dean scowled at the trees that adorned the side of the drive, casting their looming shadows through the back window of the SUV. They stood like sentinels, stoic and unyielding, daring any who passed to try and shake the Winchester's roots.

The tires crunched on the driveway's gravel as Benny pulled the car around the ornate fountain that sat at the base of the stairs. Dean unbuckled his seatbelt and threw open the door when it came to a stop.

"Thanks for the lift." He said over his shoulder to Benny as he slammed the door.

Benny rolled down the passenger window. "Any time, brother. You want me to wait for you?"

"No, it's fine. Thanks though. Just maybe don't go home yet? No sense keeping the wife awake if I need to call you again in a few hours." Dean said and forced a smile.

"Sounds like a plan." Benny looked at him with sad eyes and gave a final nod before turning back up the drive.

Dean watched the taillights recede into the inky blackness, the fountain's cascading water like white noise to his rushing brain. He quickly walked the few steps up the stairs and heaved open the front doors, light spilling out into the night, and stepped inside.

The front room was just as it had always been, a monument to excess with gilded fixtures and chandeliers that hung like diamonds from the rafters. Dean closed the doors behind him and called out to the depths of the house.

"Mom? Sam?" It was late, and, under normal circumstances, he would never have disturbed the silence.

"Dean." Sam appeared at the top of the grand staircase. "Benny got you here fast." A deep crease decorated his forehead, and dark circles hung under his eyes. His long hair, usually well kept, was sticking up on one side as though he had been running his hand through it for hours.

"Yeah, I told him you were pissed; what the hell is going on?" He climbed the stairs and followed his brother through the winding halls of the second floor, their heavy footsteps muted by the plush carpet underfoot.

"We were all sitting around after I proposed to Jess..." Sam kept his eyes forward, unblinking. "Mom and Dad were so happy. Mom, she couldn't stop talking about colour schemes and napkin patterns. Dad and I were going down to the cellar to get another bottle of wine. He insisted. Said, 'it's not every day your son gets engaged.'" He laughed darkly as they reached the master bedroom, and Sam rested his hand on the doorknob. Dean stopped in his tracks behind him. "He just...dropped, Dean. I didn't even have time to catch him before he hit the floor." Sam looked up, and Dean saw tears brimming in his already red-rimmed eyes. He opened the door to the bedroom, and they both stepped inside.

John lay on the bed, tubes and machines that had never before occupied the room's space hooked to his arms. A plastic mask secured over his face pumped oxygen to his lungs as the rhythmic beep of the heart monitor ticked away the seconds of his life. Jess sat in a chair next to the bed, her arm wrapped around Mary's slumped shoulders. They rose as the brothers entered, and Jess immediately threw her arms around Sam's waist, burying her head in his chest as he stroked her hair tenderly. Dean rushed to his father's side.

"Dad..." He choked out, taking John's hand in his own and gently squeezing it, as though he expected his father to wake from his touch alone. He turned to his mother. "What happened?" He demanded harshly.

"Heart attack." Said a smooth voice from the other side of the bed. Dean snapped his head around and spotted a woman examining one of the machines that snaked tendrils of fluid into his father's lifeless form. "Your father's in a coma as a result of cardiac arrest induced hypoxia." She scribbled something on her clipboard. Her sterile white coat stood in stark contrast to the umber glow of her complexion, the seriousness of her face softened by the low light of the room.

"In English." Dean snapped at her.

The woman fixed him with a stare that made Dean shrink back slightly. Her coal-black mane of hair seemed to crackle with intensity as she appraised him. "His brain couldn't breathe." She replied bluntly.

"Dean, this is Dr. Berry," Mary said gently as the two continued to stare at each other, neither willing to give the other the satisfaction of looking away first. "She agreed to treat your father at home instead of the hospital."

"Call me Billie." Said the woman, finally relinquishing victory of the staring contest to Dean as another machine beeped insistently for her attention. "I wouldn't normally recommend allowing a patient in his condition to remain at home, but what a Winchester wants, a Winchester gets."

"Is he gonna be okay?" Dean growled.

"Hard to say," Billie responded. "The cardiac event has severely weakened his heart, but it's the brain function I'm worried about."

"Meaning?" Dean didn't like this woman. She challenged him, and in a situation where he already had no control, he didn't appreciate the condescension in her tone.

Billie sighed as she placed her clipboard on top of the machine. "He'll probably survive the heart attack, but the fact that his brain was without oxygen for an extended period may mean he doesn't wake up. We'll take it day by day; most patients do recover eventually, but as I always say, pray for the best, prepare for the worst."

"Yeah, well, I'm not much of the praying type." Dean returned his gaze to his father's face, peaceful as he'd ever seen it, and fought to hold back a single tear that threatened to fall.

"Somehow, that doesn't surprise me." Said Billie. Dean glowered at her. She turned to address his mother. "I have to return to the hospital. I'll send a nurse by in a few hours to check on him. If any of these machines readings change from what I've noted here, call me immediately. You have my number." Mary nodded, and Billie swept out of the room, shutting the door behind her without so much as a glance at Sam or Dean.

Dean's stroked the knuckles of his father's hand with his thumb. What kind of son are you? He thought to himself. Out drinking in whore houses, flirting with the enemy? He would be so ashamed of you. Sam is the only good Winchester boy. You don't matter. He'd beat your ass if he knew what you were doing tonight. Remember when he found you and Lee? Imagine if he knew what you were thinking about doing with Castiel...Dean shook the thoughts violently from his head.

"We need to keep this quiet." Dean heard his mother say distantly. "And we'll need to move up the wedding. I can pull something together in two weeks. Jess, call your parents and see what the earliest they can fly out is. Money won't be an issue." Dean whipped around in his seat, rage burning in his chest.

"Really?!" He snapped at his mother and brother. They stood huddled by the door, their expressions resolute, Sam still cradling Jessica in his arms, rubbing her shoulder firmly as she sobbed lightly into his chest. "Dad is a freaking vegetable, and you're worried about a wedding?!" He stood briskly and made to storm out of the room, but Mary stopped him with a firm hand placed on his chest.

"Dean," she said, looking him sternly in the eye. "We need to show that we aren't weak. This couldn't have come at a worse time. With Bela's news about the Novaks, a wedding would prove to our enemies that the Winchester bloodline, the Family, is still strong. Your father is the reason we aren't wallowing in the gutter like rats. Without him, those who would seek to destroy us will move against our empire with the forces of Hell behind them." She dropped her hand and, eyes pleading, stepped back.

Dean's shoulders fell. She was right. The news of his father's illness could be kept quiet, but not for long. Word would eventually spread that their patriarch's health was in decline. He looked to his brother, worry deepening the lines on his face, and Dean again felt the familiar stab of guilt twist in his chest like a knife. It should be his burden to bear, the weight of the family's success or failure, not Sam's.

"Alright." He conceded weakly, stepping back as his mother's facial features shifted into something fierce.

"What about the Novaks?" Sam asked. "Dean and I should deal with them before the wedding."

"Yeah, I uh, I was gonna tell you, Sammy," Dean said, scratching the back of his head idly. "I talked to Rowena tonight. She gave me some intel on the family."

Mary looked at Dean with a mixture of pride and disappointment. "You shouldn't have gone to Rowena's alone." She said, her tone steely. "But the more information we have, the better. What did she say?"

"Something about them being god-fearing Catholics." He wracked his brain for the details of what Rowena had said. "Apparently, they're ruthless. The dad, Chuck, he all but ran Newark through altruism and selflessness if you can believe it. Left a decent trail of bodies him, though." He collapsed back into the chair next to his father's bedside. The sun would be rising soon, and Dean wished for nothing more than a hot shower and fresh sheets. "He built his family from adopted street kids, plus his own four sons and, get this, they're all named after archangels."

Sam snorted audibly. "So, what the hell are they doing here?"

"Beats me." Dean stretched his arms above his head. "But Rowena reckons that Chuck targeted Bela because of her art trade, and I'm thinking that's how we get to 'em."

Mary sat down in the chair next to Dean and laid her hand on his cheek warmly. Dean relaxed into the touch. "My sweet boy," she cooed. "My sweet, brilliant boy. You're so good. So smart." Dean all but glowed under her praise as she gently stroked the side of his face, caressing her fingers through the short hair at his temple.

"I can help with that." Jess piped up from where her head rested sleepily against Sam's chest. "My parents are holding an art auction in a few days. It's a charity fundraiser for some west coast non-profit, but they're expecting a big crowd. If the Novaks are involved in art at all, they'll be there. I could put Sam and Dean on the guest list..." She looked nervously between Mary and Sam.

Mary rose and walked slowly towards her new daughter-in-law before embracing her tightly. She pulled back and, though her eyes were tired, the smile she gave Jessica was warm and welcoming. "I knew you'd fit into the family, my dear." She released her and looked at Sam. "You made a good choice, son."

"Yeah," he said, squeezing Jess's shoulder into his ribs as he smiled sweetly down at her. "Yeah, I did."

"So, it's settled," Mary exclaimed, rubbing her hands together. "Dean, Sam, you two will go to the art auction with Jess and try to identify at least one member of the Novak family."

Dean stiffened. "Uh, actually, mom...there's something else I've gotta tell you..."

Mary's expression when she rounded on Dean was nearly unrecognizable from before. Her eyes, which had moments ago held the icy cold of resolve to protect her family, now burned with a fire of reproach that Dean felt pierce into his soul.

"What?" She asked, her tone too soft to be anything but terrifying.

"I, uh, I met one of them already. Tonight. At Lee's." He gulped as the fire in Mary's eyes flared, then dissipated. "Castiel. I assume he's one of the adopted kids."

"You spoke to him?" Mary asked.

"Yeah, he uh..." Dean hesitated for a split second. While his father may have been the one to teach him the meaning of fear, his mother was no less terrifying. "He helped me out of a tough spot with these two idiots picking a fight. He seemed nice." 

He fidgeted slightly, uncomfortable under his mother's gaze. She knew about his past relationship with Lee, even about the few nights he spent with a man named Aaron after he and Lee had split. While she had never been as violently against his trysts with men as his father, she had never openly expressed approval or support of them either.

"Did he know?" Asked Sam, breaking the tension of the moment. "That you're a Winchester, I mean."

"No." Said Dean, looking away from his mother's eyes. "I told him I was Dean Smith, Sandover sales associate. Didn't give him a reason not to believe me."

"That's good." Mary smiled devilishly at her son. "I assume you were pleasant to him?" The question was a double-edged sword. Dean knew she was asking if he had flirted with Cas, used his looks and charisma to make his knees go weak, batted his eyelashes enough to make the man swoon, but if he admitted that openly now, here, in front of his family, there would be no going back.

He swallowed hard. "If you're asking me if I was polite, then yes." He said curtly. "If you're asking me if I made a move on him," Dean's eyes went dark, lips quirking up at the corners in a twisted grin. "Of course."

The glee in his mother's eyes made Dean's stomach turn. He knew that look. He had seen it once in his youth, moments before she had watched a man hang from a crane after selling out John to the police.

"It seems your proclivity for the company of men is not such a great shame to this family after all, Dean." She stated. There was no warmth in her voice, no notes of approval. Her glee did not come from a place of love for her child; it came from the cold, calculating mind of a mafia wife, willing to risk everything to protect her Family. "Did this, 'Castiel' return your advances?"

Dean let his grin deepen as his mother's intentions became evident in his mind. He could see her plan formulating, even as the gears turned in her brain. "He did."

"Then we can use that." Mary turned to Sam and saw the same sadistic glint in his eyes that filled hers. "Sam, you will go to the auction as Jessica's escort. Dean," she returned her eyes to her eldest son, "you will go as a representative from Sandover. I'll speak to the company and make sure they don't already plan on attending. You will find Castiel and woo him." She approached Dean and laid a hand on his shoulder. "You truly are my son. Your charm, your whims of sexual desire...you will make him fall for you. Make him weak." Mary smiled and removed her hand, moving to sit at John's bedside. She clasped her husband's hand in her delicate fingers and gazed lovingly at him. "And when he is weakened by love and lust, you will destroy the Novak family from the inside out."

"Yes, mother," Dean said through his smirk. He squeezed her shoulder assuringly and looked at his father. I will make you proud, he thought.

Jessica and the Winchester boys left the bedroom quietly, allowing their parents time together. They descended the stairs to the front room, discussing their plans for the art auction. They opened the front door and stepped into the brisk morning, bathed in the golden glow of the sunrise.

"I texted Benny for you." Said Sam. "He should be here soon."

"Thanks," replied Dean. He bent down and placed a light kiss to the top of Jessica's head. "Welcome to the family, sis."

She smiled up at him sleepily as the crunch of tires could be heard up the gravel drive, and Benny's SUV pulled into view. Dean bid his brother farewell as they parted ways. He climbed into the backseat and slumped down against the warm upholstery.

"You seem like you're in a better mood than a couple hours ago," Benny said, handing Dean a still hot take-out cup of coffee over the back of the seat. He glanced in the rearview mirror and, spying the menacing grin that remained hanging on Dean's lips, he groaned.

"What's that for?" Dean asked lazily, sipping at the blessed bitterness of the coffee as it warmed his insides and washed the weariness from his limbs, new purpose infusing his veins.

"Whenever one of you Winchesters gets that look on your face, it means I'm gonna have to dig some poor bastard's grave." He mused, pulling out of the driveway and onto the main road, navigating the car towards Dean's apartment downtown. "I swear you sick fucks enjoy the killing more than the luxury of your lives."

Dean chuckled and closed his eyes to the world for just a moment. "Well, what can I say, Benny?" He smiled despite himself. "It's pure, life and death. It's in my nature."

He let himself drift into a comfortable sleep as they sat in the morning traffic, the radio quietly playing Frank Sinatra's 'My Way' in the background. His dreams were filled with blue-eyed angels and bloody crowns of thorns, piercing flesh and wrapping around bone. How poetic that a family named for angels should be destroyed by a man who once thought he had the devil in his very soul. Dean smiled in his sleep at the thought.

He had work to do.

Tags:

@valleydean @fighterfortheforgotten

#supernatural #supernatural fanfiction #spn fanfiction #supernatural au #deancas #deancas fanfic #deancas fic #destiel #destiel fic #destiel fanfic #destiel mafia au #tw: violence #tw: illness #tag: tbotc

[spitzofseidou]

ace of diamond (season 1) review

Hey there! I have recently finished the first season of Ace of Diamond and I’m going to be reviewing on five categories: plot/pacing, characterization/relationships, voice acting, art and OST. Aaaand because of how much I enjoyed it, I’m going to throw in my favorite character, dynamic and OP/ED. At the end I’ll be adding rewatchability/recc score. 

Genre: Shonen / Sports Subgenres: Comedy / Slice of Life / School  Synopsis: Sawamura Eijun is a unique southpaw pitcher from a small town in Nagano with a lot of potential but unpolished skills. After being scouted to play for Seidou High School (a prestigous baseball school in Tokyo) he is encouraged by his friends and family to go and accept the offer and pursue his passion for baseball at a higher level. Confident to the point of arrogant, he declares that he will be the ace pitcher on this new team and be the best -- but has to grapple with the fact he is surrounded now by extremely powerful, talented players who have been honing their skills for years-- some of whom are better than him, like his rival Furuya Satoru, a pitcher with a wicked fastball. Together, this team aims to be the best in Japan and aim for the Summer Koshien, tackling formidable teams who stand in their way--as well as work on their own goals, dreams, fears and insecurities. 

Plot & pacing: The pacing of this show is very well done. In a 75 episode first season, it is rather long, with many of the baseball games drawn out. But its well worth it, as the writing brings a lot of emotional gratification by “feeling what they feel.” Starting with Sawamura being scouted, going through intense spring training and the selection of the summer starting roster, throughout the highs and lows of the summer season and into the post-summer scrimmages and finally rounding out the season with the third-year retirement game before the fall tournament raffle, every bit is given important narrative attention. 

The reveal of information through the eyes of the protagonist; not knowing about Chris Yuu Takagawa’s injury until Sawamura knows it, not knowing how much the current third years sucked as players until the right moment through flashbacks during the tipping point of the finals game, for example -- is such an important choice that we as an audience feel what he feels. The summer games feel very high stakes, the emotional impact is well-earned; every victory feels like it was earned and not given through plot armor or well ~obviously Seidou is the protagonist team, they have to win.~ Seidou as a team was written as strong but not invincible. SPOILER: This is emphasized at the finals game against Inashiro. Despite losing, while emotionally devastating, it feels like it was a logical writing choice and will be important growth for not just Sawamura but the team as a whole. 

The yips arc that follows the loss wraps up in a very wholesome retirement game, with Sawamura not fully recovering, but beginning to do truly do so, and the hopeful note of beginning the fall tournament, leaving the audience ready and excited for more. 

As a side note, Ace of Diamond very beautifully balances comedy to drama, so it takes itself seriously but is also genuinely comedic. I have two running jokes of “fellas, is it gay to x” and “screenshot of out context being x” as well as actually laughing over some of the planned jokes. But it is truly an emotional carthartic journey.

[Did I cry? yes. so much.]

characterization & relationships: All of the characters feel very well-rounded with diverse ethnic and social backgrounds and personality traits. Some may be static but many of them experience growth to become better people and players. Sawamura is a good “bouncing board” of a character, as someone who goes from arrogant to experiencing several setbacks and a devastating loss that makes him examine his own biases, weaknesses and flaws that also reveals to his opponents their own shortcomings. Several other characters are better players than him, and that’s okay. On the flipside, one of the canon examinations as well as audience reaction is that Coach Kataoka has a team who is a family, a well-oiled machine who works amazingly together because they trust and care for one another, that he encourages growth and inspires them to be the best not just as baseball players, but as individuals as well. The opposing teams are also not just blank slates to fight against, but thoughtful people with their own desires, backgrounds and flaws--Mei Narumiya is cocky and unable to handle criticism once put on a pedestal, Sanada Shunpei has low stamina, etc etc. 

Something that’s extremely important to reemphasize is the relationship the Seidou team has to one another in that everyone affects everyone else. Sawamura chooses to go to Seidou specifically because Miyuki Kazuya, a first year at the time, encouraged him to pitch, so he had one upperclassman who already believed in him by the time he enrolled. Sawamura has both batchmates (first years Furuya Satoru and Haruichi Kominato) that encourage him through rivalry (Furuya) or gentle friendship (Haruichi) and several upperclassmen he admires and multiple times states he adores this team as it is, because he looks up to them for guidance and inspiration-- quiet team captain Tetsuya Yuuki, loud outfielder Isashiki Jun (the namesake of this blog, “the spitz of seidou”), speed demons Ryousuke Kominato and Youichi Kuramochi, and more. 

In particular, he has an exchange of growth with Chris Yuu Takagawa, someone he mistook for being uncaring and hopeless about baseball with a dead-eyed appearance. Chris, after being injured, all but had given up on playing again, but Sawamura’s noisy and blunt personality who kept pushing him encouraged him to return to the field, and have hope again. Chris is a teacher that Sawamura then deeply respects and is there for him when he has the yips, returning the favor to help break him out his funk. The symbolism. *weeps*

Important to note also it that is isn’t just about Sawamura and the effect he has on them, but the relationships they have with each other. The Kominato brothers have their own relationship where Haruichi wants to be like his older brother; Isashiki may act wild and aggressive and cocky, but he is truly humbled by their team captain Tetsu; Miyuki and Chris met years before Seidou and that informs their dynamic and the kind of players they are today. This also extends to other teams; some have similarities like Akikawa Academy revering their pitcher Yang Shunchen and how that parallels with Seidou adoring Tanba even when he was out with an injury, and others juxtaposed with them i.e. how some players at Inashiro seem to resent the spotlight Mei receives or Shirakawa callously telling another player to kill himself. 

I also wanted to note the way Coach Kataoka also sees his team; he is in many ways like a stern but loving father figure who wants the best out of his boys in every way, off and on the field. Other coaches seem to care more about money or fame than their wellbeing (Coach Todoroki or the replacement coach for Seidou), and others have different styles as coaches whether from pro experience or just age. It really emphasizes that it’s not just about the talent a team may or may not have, but how those players are nurtured as people.

(Favorite relationships: Chris & Sawamura, the Kominatos, Miyuki & Chris, .)

[Side note: if you care about shipping, this is a buffet, you’re going to have a great time.]

Voice Acting: The voices of this cast are spot on. Everyone’s voice seems to match their face and personalities and all of the voice actors give 110% to the character. The voices really make it for me, as I’m very particular about the sounds. It feels very realistic and the voices really make them seem like actual people and gives the audience a reason to invest. I’ve got nothing but praise for the voice actors and voice direction of this cast. Art: I could go on and on about the art. The motion is very fluid, the backgrounds are amazing. The character designs are stunning and everyone feels unique and given thought. Style-wise it was very refreshing to see as a lot of modern anime I’ve been watching seems to have the stereotypical “2000s” feel, whereas Ace of Diamond feels like a gorgeous late nineties/early 2000s homage--fitting since, despite airing in 2013-2015, the manga originated in 2006 and it followed the art of the manga nicely. The color palettes are very beautiful and vibrant. I remarked more than once while watching it that it was clear that the artists cared for studying human anatomy, movement and realism (in comparison to how some battle shonen care more for looking cool.) The art is what drew me in to begin with and it never disappointed.  OST: I loved the OST so much. Frying-Pan did such an amazing job delivering gorgeous pieces of music. The beauty of it was just off the charts and went above and beyond to make fitting pieces for character themes, scenario specific pieces etc. Also the OPs by Tom H@ck and Glay were appropriately themed and got me pumped every time. I love the various endings also and their little character revealing bits. I like them all so much I never skipped them while watching.

[Favorite OP: Perfect Hero. Favorite ED: Cloud Nine. I listen to Cloud Nine literally every day.] Can I rewatch? Absolutely! Even knowing what’s going to happen, the emotional journey is worth it.  Would I recommend? 10/10. Even if you don’t like sports, this is a great one. It was my first sports anime and it has set the bar so very high. 

#spitz watches #spitz reviews