#rafa can handle it! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

melzula · 6 months

Text

The Search

part three

pairing: Zuko x Princess!reader

notes: we finally made it to the end of the search! hope you guys enjoy :) and as always i suggest reading the comics to better understand the series

summary: Zuko finally finds his mother, and the Princess is faced with complicated feelings for Azula

~ part of the fire lilies series ~

Your heart pounds rapidly in your chest as you will your legs to continue their sprint for as long as they can. The sun is beginning to set and the valley is growing darker, and you desperately hope Misu’s shortcut will get you to Noren’s soon before you’re too late.

So much had happened since your arrival to Forgetful Valley. From meeting the water tribe siblings Rafa and Misu to the Mother of Faces, it seemed your group was one step closer to finding Zuko’s mom. But after Azula had used the Mother’s one favor to uncover Ursa’s whereabouts, things had gone awry. She’d ruined Misu’s only chance of helping her brother and run off to confront Noriko, whose true identity had been revealed to be none other than the missing Fire Lady.

Now, you and Sokka found yourselves accompanying Zuko as your trio rushed to Hira’a in hopes you’d reach Noren’s house before his malevolent sister could.

“I can’t believe your mom was right under our noses this entire time,” Sokka says breathlessly.

“We couldn’t have known,” you reply from beside him. “All that matters now is getting to her first before Azula does.”

“We should be there soon,” your boyfriend assures you both. “I just hope we’re not too late.”

“We won’t be,” you comfort him with a reassuring smile, “you’re going to be with your mother again, Zuko. Sokka and I will help you see this through.”

“We’ve got your back, buddy.”

He flashes you a grateful smile, but he doesn’t have time to say much else as your trio finally reaches Noren’s house. The surrounding area is dark save for the warm light that floods out from the windows, and you cautiously approach the home with your guards up in case Azula is inside.

“It’s so quiet,” Sokka notes, club in hand and at the ready.

“Too quiet,” Zuko agrees before pressing himself against the wall of the home and peering into the open window.

“Do you see anything?” You whisper to the fire bender as you position yourself beside him.

“What’s going on in there?” Sokka presses. “Noren’s family… don’t tell me Azula-“

“No, they’re fine,” he breathes out in relief, “they’re eating dinner.”

“Thank spirits,” you exhale, the tension in your nerves immediately leaving your body once you know they’re safe. You were especially worried about Kiyi, so it relieved you to know no harm had come to her or her family. “It looks like Misu was right about that shortcut.”

The three of you peer in at the family who share smiles and food in the comfort of their home. They looked so normal, it was almost hard to believe that the woman inside was the lost Fire Lady.

“I’m going inside. Can you two keep an eye out for Azula?” Zuko asks.

“Sure, anything you need, Zuko” Sokka happily obliges.

You gently grab hold of his hand to halt his movements as he passes and give it a comforting squeeze. “Are you going to be okay?”

“I will be,” he says. “Will you?”

“Don’t worry about us, Sokka and I can handle Azula easily.”

“I know you can, Princess” he replies with a fond smile, gifting you an affectionate kunik before releasing your hand and heading inside.

“Good luck, my love,” you murmur quietly, turning your attention to the empty fields before you once the door is shut.

“How’re you holding up, Chief?” Sokka asks while surveying the area in search of any danger. “I overheard that nasty argument you had with Azula last night.”

“I know better than to let her get to me,” you reply thoughtfully, “but that doesn’t make her words any less hurtful. I’ve been dealing with Azula’s wrath since I was four, and it hasn’t gotten any easier.”

“I bet, but you’re one of the strongest people I know. If anyone can stand up to Azula, it’s you.”

“I’m not sure if I agree with that,” you sigh, and Sokka doesn’t miss the way your eyes fall scrutinizingly to the scars on your hands. Though the pain has faded and the physical damage has healed, you’ll never be able to forget what she’s done to you.

“Hey, you’re doing your best,” your friend consoles. “You’ve been nothing but supportive for Zuko this whole trip, that counts for something.”

“Thank you, Sokka,” you say with a meager smile. “I guess you’re right.”

“I always am,” he agrees proudly. “Besides, now that Zuko’s found his mother this whole thing will be over soon and we’ll never have to deal with Azula again.”

“Are you sure about that, peasant?” A mocking voice chimes, catching you and Sokka off guard. You’d been so engrossed in your conversation that you hadn’t even noticed the fire bender’s looming presence, and now there Azula stood before the two of you with a crazed look in her eyes and an itch to take you both down.

“You’re not hurting that family, Azula,” you warn her with a glower to which she merely chuckles slyly in response. “Leave them be.”

“Don’t you remember what happened the last time you fought me, Princess?” She mocks while gesturing to her hands. “Zuzu isn’t here to protect you, and Mother won’t be able to stop me from fulfilling my destiny, but I’m willing to show you water rats mercy if you get out of my way.”

“Fat chance,” Sokka retaliates, “you’re going down!”

“Suit yourself,” the Fire Princess hums with a meager shrug. “It’s more fun for me this way anyhow.”

A blast of flames is immediately shot in your direction, forcing Sokka and yourself to drop and roll out of the way to avoid being burned by her strike. Pushing yourself up off the ground, you spot a well in Noren’s backyard and quickly begin a sprint towards the water source. “Sokka, cover me!”

“I’ve got you covered, y/n!” the Water Tribe boy calls as he hurtles his boomerang unsuccessfully towards Azula. In the meantime, you peer inside the well to ensure it’s full of water before pulling out a long stream from within. With Azula’s back turned and her focus on Sokka, you use a water whip to sweep the girl off her feet so that she lands on the ground with a harsh thud.

“I don’t want to hurt you,” you utter desperately, sincerity clear in your tone as you stand over her. Despite the hateful scowl on her face, you urge, “Let us help you, Azula. I know there must be some ounce of goodness in your heart, you can change!”

“Whatever you and Mother are planning against me won’t work. I will not be fooled!” She cries indignantly before kicking her feet out to send a burst of flames towards you. “Zuko may be foolish enough to fall for your tricks but I’m not.”

“Princess!” Sokka exclaims, rushing towards you and tackling you to the ground to prevent her flames from hitting you. “Are you crazy?! Why are you trying to reason with that psycho? You could have gotten yourself hurt.”

“I had to try,” you murmur to yourself, “I had to see for myself if there was any chance of redemption left for her.”

“We don’t have time for that now,” he urges while helping you up off the ground. “We have to stop her before she gets inside!”

Spotting her figure on the roof, you quickly create a blast of snow to propel Sokka and yourself onto the top of the house with her. Your sudden presence startles her, but she quickly regains her composure and begins to form a strike of lightening to hurtle at you both. However, before she can complete the move you send a blast of water across the roof that quickly freezes over into ice and traps her feet to the surface. Sokka promptly hurries over to the fire bender and grabs hold of her hands before maneuvering them behind her back so she can’t try to strike you.

“Let go of me, peasant!” She growls, thrashing violently in his grasp in an attempt to break free. With her feet stuck to the ice and her hands restricted Azula’s attempts at freedom are futile.

“He’s not a peasant,” you correct her firmly, “and you’re not getting out of this. I’ve done all I can to help you, to try and understand you, but it never seems to matter what I do. You’ve never liked me, even though for Zuko’s sake I hoped that one day you might.”

“Mother sent you to distract Zuko, to take my brother from me,” she remarks adamantly. “Everything was perfect after Ba Sing Se, but you made him weak!”

“I still don’t know what you’re talking about!” You exclaim in exasperation. Ever since your trip had started she’d thrown strange accusations your way that you couldn’t comprehend, and you didn’t understand why she perceived you as someone who was out to get her. If anything, you had always felt it was the opposite when it came to your relationship with Zuko’s sister.

“I should have finished the job when I had the chance,” she utters lowly, and as her eyes begin to hone in on your scarred hands a shiver of fear crawls down your spine. “I won’t make that same mistake again.”

A breath of fire blasts from her mouth straight towards you, and when you use the ice to form a barrier to block her attack she takes the opportunity to release herself from Sokka’s grip now that her feet are free. She shoves the boy backwards, and with lightening jolting between her fingertips she strikes a hole through the roof that causes the entire structure to cave in.

“Sokka!” You cry out, falling through the broken roof along with Azula. In a last ditch effort you send a blast of snow in his direction to break his fall, but you aren’t left with enough time to do the same for yourself. You slam onto the ground below you with a loud thud that has both Sokka and Zuko wincing. Your head hits the wood on impact and you’re knocked out cold, prompting Zuko to rush towards you only for Azula to send him flying across the room.

“I said get out of my way!”

“Check on y/n!” Sokka demands while helping the Fire Lord up from the floor. “I’ll deal with Azula.”

Disoriented from his sister’s attack, the boy stumbles over to your unconscious form and carefully pulls you out of the rubble. A small trickle of blood rolls down the side of your head as Zuko scoops you up into his arms and holds you carefully against his chest, making sure to be mindful of any possible injuries you may have from your fall.

“This is all my fault,” he murmurs quietly into your hair as he presses a careful kiss to the top of your head, “I shouldn’t have brought you into this.”

“Zuko!” Sokka calls, rushing over and carefully taking your sleeping figure from his friend’s arms. “I’ve got her, you take care of your mom.”

“Keep her safe,” he pleads, watching as Sokka rushes Noren and Kiyi out of the house.

Your still face is the last thing he sees before your group disappears into the cover of the night, and it’s what urges him to finally face off to his sister once and for all.

~~~

The waves that crash against the shores of Ember Island bring a sense of peace to the woman who stands with her feet in the sand and her eyes focused on the endless expanse of water. A quiet coo pulls her attention away from the sea and back to the newborn girl who lies nestled in her arms. Her beautiful golden irises stare up at her in awe, and the woman smiles warmly in response.

“Are you enjoying the family beach house, little fire ferret?” She hums, watching fondly as the child grabs onto her outstretched finger.

“Azula!” A voice calls from the balcony, and now her attention is fixed on the water bender who peers down at her from above. “Dinner is ready, won’t you come inside?”

“Of course, sister,” she smiles sincerely at the girl she had once hated with her entire being. “Elza needs to be put down for her nap anyhow.”

“She always sleeps better in her Aunt Azula’s arms,” her sister-in-law notes fondly. “I’m so happy you’re here.”

“As am I, y/n.”

“Azula,” you gasp the moment you wake from your dream, sitting up in bed only to immediately trigger a pounding ache in your head.

“It’s alright,” a voice shushes you as gentle arms carefully push you back down into bed, “you must be careful now. You took quite a fall.”

“Is Sokka alright?” You ask quietly, noting the dryness of your throat. “Zuko?”

“They’re both fine,” she comforts as you begin to adjust to your surroundings. The sunlight that shines through the windows doesn’t ease the ache you feel in your head, and it takes a moment for your eyes to focus on the person in front of you. “Zuko’s asleep, but he hasn’t left this room since we brought you in here.”

“Fire Lady Ursa?” You murmur as your eyes finally take in the sight of a woman’s gentle smile and kind features. “It’s really you, isn’t it?”

“It is,” she replies thoughtfully, but the look in her eyes seems to suggest that she isn’t sure of her own answer. “It’s nice to finally meet you. Zuko has told me so much about you.”

“Same here,” you reply with a meager smile. “It’s nice to finally put a face to the name I’ve heard in all those stories.”

“I can’t begin to express how grateful I am for all you’ve done for my son,” Ursa expresses earnestly while gently pushing back the hair from your face. “Thank you for taking care of him when I couldn’t.”

“You don’t have to thank me for that. I love your son more than anything, and there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for Zuko.”

“He’s very lucky to have you,” she notes with a gentle smile, and once you’re able to carefully sit yourself up in bed she offers you a cup of water that you greedily finish in a matter of seconds. “I’ll fetch you some more water, but in the meantime you rest. You don’t want to hurt yourself any further.”

You watch with a careful smile as Ursa leaves the room, but a quiet call of your name has you turning to look at the chair across from you. You’d been too engrossed and in awe of Ursa’s presence to notice Zuko at first, but it’s hard to miss him now that he’s at your bedside quickly checking you over for any wounds or injuries.

“Are you hurt?”

“I have a bit of a headache and my limbs feel a bit sore, but I’m alright,” you assure him. Sighing, he carefully allows his forehead to fall gently against yours in search of comfort and reassurance that you’re really okay.

“It’s my fault this happened to you,” he utters dejectedly. “So far every time I’ve asked you to help me deal with my sister it hasn’t ended well. I shouldn’t have stopped you from returning home and asked you to come to Hira’a.”

“Zuko, this isn’t your fault in the slightest,” you argue with a frown as you gently take his face in your hands and prompt him to look at you. “I came with you to Hira’a because it’s my job as your girlfriend to support you. You’re my other half, and when you need my help I’m supposed to be there for you. Your sister is unpredictable, but I knew the risk I was taking when I agreed to travel with her, and what happened to me was just one of those risks come to fruition.”

“I just hate seeing you get hurt,” he laments quietly before carefully pulling you into a hug.

“I know, but I’ll be okay as long as you’re there to look after me.”

“I always will be,” he promises, nothing but pure love and adoration in his eyes as he looks upon your tired face.

“So what happened while I was out? Where’s Azula?”

“She ran away. Sokka, Aang, and Katara searched Forgetful Valley for hours while I watched over you but there’s no sign of her. We’ll just have to keep looking.”

“And your mother? How did she get her face back?”

“The Mother of Faces returned it to her and restored all of her old memories. I told her she didn’t have to, she had a peaceful life here as Noriko, but she did it anyway.”

“Well I’m sure Azula will turn up at some point or another. I don’t think she’d give up that easily,” you say thoughtfully. “As for Ursa, I’m glad you finally have your mother back Zuko. I know how much this all means to you, and I know how much more peaceful life will be for you now that you’ve found her.”

“Thank you, but I couldn’t have found her without your support,” he expresses earnestly before leaning in to give you a loving kiss.

~~~

“Please, please, please do it again, y/n!” Kiyi pleads while tugging at the skirt of your dress. With delighted laughter spilling past your lips, you can’t help but relent to the little girl’s pleas.

“Alright, just for you,” you tell her before taking the cup of water she eagerly hands you and concentrating on your next move. Drinking the water from the cup, you take your time swishing the liquid around in your mouth for dramatic effect before using the coolness of your breath to transform it into snow and blow out a flurry of snowflakes into the air. Kiyi’s shrieks of delight fill the atmosphere as she runs around trying to catch the snow, and from the shade under the tree Zuko and Ursa watch the scene with matching smiles on their faces.

“She’s wonderful, Zuko,” Ursa compliments, a small laugh leaving her at the sight of Kiyi and yourself catching snowflakes on your tongues.

“She is,” he agrees with a fond smile.

You’d never been able to get along with Azula no matter how hard you or Zuko tried to force it, so it was a nice change of pace to see you get along with his other little sister. He finally felt that sense of family he’d been searching for all this time since becoming Fire Lord, and he was grateful to have you as a part of it. He only hoped that with time you could grow your family together.

“It warms my heart to see you’ve found your other half. I hope you’re able to cherish your love forever.”

“I will,” he says earnestly, and it’s a promise he makes to himself and to his Princess.

You are his other half, and your love will stand the tests of time forever.

| zuko tag list: @thebluelcdy @royahllty @the-firebender-girl @coldlilheart @ilovespideyyy @yiyibetch @eridanuswave @lammello @a-monsters-love @knaite-solo @taeeemin

| fire lilies taglist: @titaniafire @emberislandplayers @kikaninchen-2 @music-geek19 @thia-aep @thyunnamed @haylaansmi @nataliahaslosthershit @idkdude776 @aangsupremacy @thirstyforsometea @ihaveaproblem98 @brown-eyed-thang @xapham @misnmatchedsox @chewymoustachio @that-bucket-hat-gal @chilifrylizard2 @kyomihann @kaylove12 @kiwihoee @freggietale @moon-spirit-yue @bubblegum-bee-otch

| atla taglist: @sirkekselord @chronic-daydreamer-blog

#fire lilies #the search #zuko #zuko x reader #zuko imagine #prince zuko x reader #prince zuko imagine #prince zuko #zuko x princess!reader #atla #atla x reader #atla imagine

215 notes · View notes

oneshotnewbie · 7 months

Note

Hey! Hope you're okay! I wonder if you could do an addison montgomery x reader where she finds out you self harm? And maybe even a Rafa Barba/Alex Cabot one? Don't worry if it's too triggering. Keep being amazing ❤️

⚠️Trigger Warning⚠️ This one-shot includes the topic of self harm. The plot is presented. If this triggers you too easily or you just can´t handle the subject, I urge you NOT to read this work. I am NOT embellishing this topic under any circumstance. Read at your own risk.

ᕚ---ᕘ

The sun was slowly dipping towards the horizon as Addison made her way to your house. She had not seen her best friend in a week, and that made her spontaneously stop by to check on you, her concern growing with each passing day without contact. The redhead knew you had been under a lot of stress lately, often withdrawn and thoughtful and she just wanted to make sure you were okay.

When she reached your well-kept house, she rang the doorbell and waited patiently. But even after the second ring and subsequent knock, she did not hear any footsteps or a key being inserted into the lock to open the door. It was quiet. Too quiet for her liking.

A little uneasy, she stumbled down the terrace and shuffled around the house, hoping that she would find you there. When the certified gynecologist entered your garden and walked towards the terrace, she could already see you from afar. You sat on one of the lawn chairs, staring at the ground.

Your hair, which had once been so soft and shiny, seemed dull and unkempt. They lay disheveled on your head like a bird's nest. She could clearly see that you did not look well - your eyes were puffy, with deep circles under your eyes while your skin had taken on a pale tone. You seemed absent, not even noticing her, your vision was clouded and your eyes had a shadow that the redhead had never seen in you before.

“Y/n?” Addison called out quietly so as not to scare you. Still, you jumped and turned your head to look at her, nervously tugging at the sleeves of your sweater. Your eyes seemed empty but you still tried to force a smile at her. "Addy. What are you doing here?"

Addison Montgomery walked closer to you, sat down on one of the comfortable lawn chairs and placed her bag in her lap. "I am worried about you, sweetie. You do not look well. How are you?" she asked carefully, reaching out her hand. She carefully took your cold fingers and intertwined them with hers, the redheads thumbs twirling tender circles over the pale skin.

The gynecologist felt her heart beat faster as she looked at you and was met with total physical coldness. You sighed deeply and looked past her into the distance to avoid her gaze. She noticed that you were acting strangely, you were usually like an open book to her, but now you seemed to be hiding something. "I am fine."

With a short tug, you pulled your hand away from her and for a brief moment your sleeve, which you had previously placed above your upper knuckles, slipped up. Fine red lines decorated your wrist and Addison swallowed hard. Her heart sank when she realized what was going on and how bad you were feeling. Some of them were still quite fresh while others had already turned a purple color and were trying to close up in order to heal.

With shaking hands, she grasped your hand again, pulled it towards her and stared at it for a moment before gently pulling the material up and seeing the full extent of your feelings. She stared at you, stunned. She could not believe what she was seeing. "Oh darling.. You could have spoken to me. I am here to listen to you and help you when you need me."

You finally let the tears you had held back for weeks flow and let out all the emotions you had suppressed for so long. "Your job is so stressful and your relationship with Derek is at a dead end. I did not want to be an unnecessary burden on you." you whispered and Addison immediately jumped up from her seat and hugged you tightly as she rocked you back and forth.

"I am here for you. We will get through this together," she whispered soothingly and you sniffled loudly, trying to calm yourself down. She sensed the eerie tension in the air, but still encouraged you to continue. You hesitated for a moment before you continued speaking with a hiccup between each word, all your worries and fears flowing out of your system. "I feel like I have lost myself."

Addy smiled softly and stroked your hair lightly, listening to you carefully and reassuring you that she would stand by you. She struggled for the right words when she saw how fragile and vulnerable you seemed and was afraid of saying the wrong thing. "You are not lost. You just went astray and we will find the right path again. We will find a way to deal with this."

You nodded, your tears not stopping falling. You sat in silence on the terrace for a while, holding each other in your arms and feeling your friendship grow even stronger. The evening sun bathed the place in warm light and painted a sad picture on the white wall of the house. "Thank you, Addy."

Addison knew it would be a long journey to bring you out of your darkness, but she was determined to be there for you and support you through this difficult time. She had discovered that her best friend had been in a moment of despair, and she knew that together you could overcome any challenge because your friendship was strong enough to overcome anything while finding your way back to the light together.

This was just the beginning of a long and painful process, but together you were able to overcome it. Albeit with a lot of time.

225 notes · View notes

antianakin · 2 months

Text

@theneutralmime

I've gone over a lot of my thoughts on the sequels in my responses to the last two asks you've sent me about them, so I'm going to skip ahead to my thoughts on Luke at this point since I think my feelings on the Sequels in general are pretty clear. I'm glad you enjoyed them, but I've seen the entire trilogy through twice now and I WAS trying to be more generous the second time around to see if my opinion would change and it uh. Didn't. I still don't like them and I still find them a massive mess of squandered potential.

Luke's quotes about the Jedi in the sequels (which are really ONLY in TLJ, he never has anything bad to say about them in TROS) are pretty clearly intended to be seen as symptoms of Luke being traumatized and letting that pain and loss and fear consume him to the point that he's placing the blame on an easy target rather than actually acknowledging what happened and how he feels about it and the part he played in it. Luke in TLJ is hiding from his fears, hiding from his own reality, refusing to step up and do what needs to be done and face his own mistakes. So he turns to "the Jedi were weak and need to die" as a way of basically excusing the choices he's currently making. He's not RIGHT, the things he tells Rey aren't TRUE, and that's the whole point behind his arc in TLJ. His last words are to say that he won't be the last Jedi, and he's clearly not upset by that, he says it like it's a TRIUMPH, which indicates that he no longer believes the Jedi need to all die out. Even earlier, he's upset about losing the Jedi texts, indicating that even though he was arguing for the Jedi to die and about to burn them himself, he didn't ACTUALLY believe any of those things he said or want the things he said he wanted, he was just desperately trying to convince himself that he did because it was easier than doing the emotional work of facing what he'd done wrong.

I will say that I think this was a ridiculous and foolish arc for Luke to even HAVE, I think it's unfortunate that most of Luke's screentime in this trilogy is dedicated to him bashing the Jedi and blaming them for their own genocide, and I don't think that the storyline is handled very well in general. But the point of the story IS that Luke is wrong and the Jedi SHOULDN'T die out, so, you know, credit where credit is due here.

Getting into your question about the Jedi, though. I THINK you're asking me what the Jedi actually DO. Which, fair question, it's not something they discuss very much in the films or show (and the show is focused on them during war which makes it harder to figure out what they'd normally be doing during peacetime). I imagine there's a LOT of things the Jedi probably did before the war, it wasn't one job that they all did. But the general idea I got is that the Jedi work as a branch of the Republic Senate that can be called upon to provide aid like treaty mediation and conflict resolution for planets and systems that ask for it. I'll list off as many examples as I can think of where we see Jedi doing work that isn't related to the war in high canon.

In TPM, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon are sent to try to NEGOTIATE with the Trade Federation about the blockade of Naboo, but they end up having to quickly adjust when the Trade Federation tries to kill them and sends in armed forced to INVADE Naboo.

Once that happens, their primary goal switches to getting Naboo's leader to Coruscant so she can make her case and plead for aid directly to the Senate because it just became a LOT bigger than two Jedi could actually do anything about.

In AOTC, it's mentioned that Obi-Wan and Anakin just got back from some kind of border dispute.

In TCW, Obi-Wan mentions that he spent a year on the run with Satine during the Mandalorian civil war, presumably called in by Satine's father to just... protect her until the war was over and Satine could take up peaceful leadership or something.

In TCW season 7, Trace and Rafa sort-of imply that the Jedi used to do a lot more work ON CORUSCANT to help poorer people on the lower levels.

Also in TCW, we hear that the Jedi once managed to basically overthrow the Zyggerian slave empire, something the Zyggerians still hold against them.

In TOTJ (if we choose to take that as canon), we see Dooku and Qui-Gon sent to help resolve a dispute where a senator's son has been kidnapped by his people (Dooku ends up siding with the kidnappers when he realizes why they did what they did and how corrupt the senator has become).

In AOTC again, we see Obi-Wan and Anakin act as bodyguards for Padme when an assassin comes after her.

We also routinely see the Jedi doing their own investigations that seem completely independent of the Senate, like Obi-Wan going off to find Kamino and Jango. When he makes his reports, he is clearly reporting directly to the Council, not the Senate or the Chancellor. During TCW, we see Plo Koon, Obi-Wan, and Anakin get involved in an investigation into the clones' creation and Sifo-Dyas's involvement in it and reported death, something that clearly isn't being run by the Chancellor or the Senate.

So what do the Jedi do? They keep the peace, whether that means acting as a temporary bodyguard for a planetary leader, taking down slave empires, or negotiating treaties and conflicts of varying kinds. Presumably, before Palpatine took power, the Jedi had enough time and independence that they were able to do a lot more work of their own that didn't necessarily directly involve the Senate, too, which could be anything from investigating corruption in the galaxy to providing aid and services to the poorer populations on planets in the Republic.

I don't think it's made clear whether the Jedi actively SEARCH for Force sensitive children or if they're just so established as a group that they're often MADE AWARE of Force sensitive children by parents calling for help somehow. That list they have of children is of presumably people whose parents have said maybe or not yet (rather than parents who have firmly said no) because I believe Mace refers to the holocron as the future of the Order. These are children who could potentially become Jedi or who are PLANNING to become Jedi but whose parents wanted to wait a year or something. This doesn't indicate to me that the Jedi actively sought them out, but that these were probably children whose parents sought out the Jedi themselves when it became clear their child was Force sensitive. We see something like this happen in TOTJ when Ahsoka disappears off with a massive wild cat and comes back RIDING said wild cat and the entire village is made abruptly aware that she's Force sensitive and meant to be a Jedi. If the Jedi come and confirm those suspicions, but the parents are uncertain or just explicitly ask for more time, the Jedi seem inclined to give it to them (up to a point, presumably, they obviously usually don't accept kids over a certain age so they can't wait forever).

The reason the Jedi have that rule about training children early is because the Jedi lifestyle requires certain sacrifices that can be difficult to adjust to if you weren't raised in it. For a lot of people, their friends and family are always going to be their first priority because they care about them more than any random stranger. And this is totally fine, this is natural and normal. The Jedi cannot do that, though. They can't prioritize the people they care about above their duty to the galaxy at large. This is the promise they make by choosing to be Jedi and it is generally incompatible with the promises you make to people like spouses and children (this is for a myriad of reasons like the amount of time a Jedi would have to spend doing work vs being with their family and the ways this would ultimately impact their relationships with people who are relying on them). The Jedi have to be willing to sacrifice the people they love for the greater good if it becomes necessary. And while the children who are raised among the Jedi can still ultimately decide this lifestyle isn't for them and walk away from it (and can do this at any age, even after they've made their oaths and become an adult), it's a lot EASIER to life this way if you ARE raised in it from a young age and don't already have a bunch of connections with other people to overcome.

This is why Anakin struggles so much. He was raised with his mother until he was nine and so he has this connection with her where the two of them were always going to be more important to each other than anybody else. That's just how that relationship worked and that's fine. But when he became a Jedi, Anakin had to stop thinking of his mother as more important than anybody else, and he CAN'T. He ultimately abandons his duty as a Jedi, his duty to protect Padme, in order to go protect Shmi because Shmi is more important to him than anyone else. Had Padme gotten assassinated as a result of him abandoning that duty, it could've had some repercussions for a lot of people, but Anakin DOES NOT CARE because Shmi is more important. And of course, we see him then make the exact same mistake with Padme herself after Shmi is dead. He prioritizes Padme above everyone else because he legitimately just CANNOT live any other way, he CANNOT not prioritize Padme more than everyone else, ESPECIALLY when she is his wife, and he ultimately is willing to sacrifice the Jedi, the clones, and the Republic to save her.

We even see him blatantly TELL Padme this in TCW where he says that ideals are important, but they'll never be more important to him than how he FEELS about Padme. He clearly tells Padme that he EXPECTS her to prioritize him as her husband more than once, something Padme usually TRIES to push back on but ultimately usually capitulates to. Even Padme ends up getting jealous and upset once when Anakin can't stay the night with her upon returning from the war because he has to go make a report to the Council. Padme and Anakin have clear expectations of each other as husband and wife that seem to be in contradiction to what their respective careers require of them that cause them distress in their relationship more than once.

Anakin struggles with this and my personal interpretation of Anakin is that he'd ALWAYS have struggled with this because he wants to be able to prioritize the people he loves, even before it gets to the point where he's willing to murder millions of people to do it. His desires are just incompatible with the way the Jedi choose to live, but if he'd been adopted by the Jedi before he was old enough to really make that kind of connection, he'd have had an easier time managing that because he just wouldn't necessarily have ever HAD those kinds of desires. He would've grown up learning about love and family in a very different way that would allow him to prioritize his duty to the galaxy because he WANTS to prioritize his duty to the galaxy and no one person would be more important than that. But in canon, Anakin WANTS to be able to prioritize the people he cares about, more than anything else this is what he wants. And he wants those same people to also prioritize HIM in return (it's one of the reasons his relationship with Obi-Wan is both one of his healthiest ones, because Obi-Wan refuses to do this and expects the same of Anakin, but also one of the ones most easily discarded and replaced because Anakin knows that Obi-Wan will never give him what he wants).

So yes, it's GOOD that the Jedi insist on training their children early because it helps them be better Jedi with fewer struggles, even as they always keep the door open for their members to make a different choice as they grow and change if this life isn't one they want to live still. It's why they let Ahsoka walk away after the Wrong Jedi arc even though they also brought her into the Order when she was young. Being raised a Jedi gave Ahsoka a really great foundation, but things changed as she got older and she ended up deciding she had to leave the Order, even if temporarily, to figure out some things for herself and manage her mental health. The Order was happy to support her no matter what she chose, whether she chose to leave or stay, and would've supported her if she'd chosen to return, too.

The Jedi take children whose parents give them up so they can have a better life, they take children who might not HAVE parents anymore, they take children whose parents don't WANT them, and they give them a wonderful supportive life that gives them incredible amounts of education and resources so they can live their life in service to the galaxy and the Force, using their abilities to help others. They provide the children they take in with everything they could need or want to be able to live a happy, healthy life, whether that life ends up being as a Jedi in service to the Republic and the Force or not.

There's also what's been called like a "call to destiny" that the Jedi have, where becoming a Jedi is, in some ways, a destiny for them to fulfill. But much like Anakin's prophecy, it is choice they have to make, not something entirely predestined and chosen for them. The path is THERE, and it calls to them, but they can absolutely ignore that call or misunderstand it or have circumstances keep them from it. But it means that nearly everyone who becomes a Jedi makes that choice because they hear and feel that call to this destiny and have chosen to ANSWER IT. Helping people, serving the galaxy, this is what they were meant to do, and they know it and find joy and satisfaction in that knowledge.

So when the war starts, they obviously know something has gone wrong, they've known it was going wrong for YEARS, at the very least since Maul popped up as the first confirmed Sith in 1000 years, but they are 10,000 people (and whether this number referred to only those Jedi that were in the field and the actual total was much higher or whether this was in fact the ENTIRE TOTAL of Jedi is unconfirmed, but either way they're a small group so the point remains) in a galaxy of TRILLIONS. People have done the math on what this would mean adjusted to the population of the Earth and it's like expecting a church group of 70 people to somehow solve the whole planet's problems. There's only so much they can do. So while they're very cognizant of the growing issues in the Republic even before the war starts, they can only put out so many tire fires at once. Once the war DOES start, they're immediately required to try to put out this one raging wildfire and all the other regular tire fires have to go by the wayside until the wildfire is dealt with. So what are they doing? They're putting out the damn wildfire as quickly as they can with as little loss of life as they can and just hoping the rest of the galaxy can keep itself together long enough for them to DO THAT.

I don't even necessarily agree that they should've been "more involved in politics" because, quite honestly, they seem more aware of how bad things are getting politically than ANYONE ELSE IN THIS STORY (aside from the dude making the situation worse to begin with). It's the JEDI who are actively arguing with the Chancellor about not sending them to war and saying they're not supposed to be an army, it's the JEDI tracking down Kamino and Geonosis and figuring out some of what's actually happening there, it's the JEDI who continue to investigate that even while the war is going on and actually figure out that the clones are a Sith trap, it's the JEDI who ultimately figure out Palpatine is too corrupt to stay in office and then actually DO something about it before anybody does. They might not be active politicians, sure, I'll grant you that, but they're very very clearly aware of what's happening politically and are responding to it more than anyone else we ever see. I'm not sure what more they could've done besides, like, BE politicians which clearly just isn't the role they want to play in the galaxy anyway and wouldn't be good for the kind of work they want to do.

A lot of people like to say things like that, that the Jedi should've been more political and whatnot, but what would that actually have accomplished? What could they have done if they were "more political" than they were already doing? At BEST, the Jedi might be able to get a representative into the Senate and provide one more person capable of speaking out against the Chancellor and the corruption in the Republic, but Padme at a delegation of 2000 Senators with her that were apparently willing to at least recognize Palpatine's corruption and that STILL wasn't enough to stem the tide. One more politician wasn't going to make that big of a difference. So could they have been more political? Yeah, sure, they could've more literally been politicians I guess, but how does that help them more than what they were ACTUALLY doing? Would this somehow have prevented Palpatine from enacting Order 66 or starting the war at all? Or would it have led to the same conclusion no matter what they did because the Jedi's genocide wasn't about the choices the JEDI were making at all?

#star wars #jedi #pro jedi #luke skywalker #anakin critical #anakin skywalker critical

35 notes · View notes

applejuicefruit · 11 months

Note

Hey,Can i Request a Rafael Leao fic where him and the reader are bestfriends and the reader is insecure about being chubby and Rafa asks after a bad game if he can take a nap on her chest or tummy and she says no and covers it up.And from then is just Rafa complimenting her and just basically a small love confession🫶🏻🫶🏻

rafael leao x reader

TW : insecure and self conscious reader, angst and fluff

Perfect

you knew you weren’t perfect. no, you kept comparing yourself to all the models and influencers that appeared on your instagram feed. you couldn’t help it. but things got worse when your best friend rafa kept introducing you all his conquests he made during parties. it was just too much for you to handle. you always had a crush on him but you knew you wouldn’t be the type he would date, you were just the type he would go to when he needed some comfort or when he wanted a chill night watching netflix and eating popcorn. it’s always been like this and you got used to it. you went to his games and supported him no matter what, looking so proud for what he achieved.

usually everytime rafael came to your place it was almost like a habit that he would ask you if he could lay his head on your stomach or your lap because you were comfortable. at first you didn’t mind, not at all, in fact, you liked the attention he was giving you but as the time passed by you got more self conscious about it. the way he would express his wants to you like “please let me lay on your tummy, it’s so comfortable” you started to hate it.

hate that your tummy was comfortable and not flat. hate that you weren’t as the girls he was used to date. you just started hating yourself even more and you didn’t know how to stop that feeling.

you were currently on your couch watching rafael playing as you told him before you couldn’t make it to his game because you had a late work meeting and you got lucky you got out of the building at the start of the match.

so now, you were eating popcorn and cheering for rafa and his team from the comfort of your couch.

the match wasn’t good at all. his team lost and you felt rafael sadness through your tv. you already knew that in an hour you would find rafael on your door, begging to be comforted and of course - who are you to say no? he was your best friend after all.

and that’s what happened.

“come here” you said opening the front door and letting him in “how are you?” you asked him, wanting to be sure he was doing well.

“i’ve been better…” he said sitting on your couch. you could tell he cried before coming here, it was an important match and he didn’t want to lose it.

“i’m really sorry rafa…i saw the match and you did all what you could, you even scored…” you tried to cheer him up.

“yes but it wasn’t enough” he said.

“that’s football…sometimes you win, sometimes you lose” you said and he let out a sarcastic laugh. you knew him too well and you also knew that it didn’t matter what you said to comfort him, he wouldn’t listen.

“can we watch netflix?” he asked and you couldn’t say no. you were currently watching together modern family so maybe it was a good idea for cheering him up.

“yes” you laughed and turned netflix on.

a few minutes into the episode he asked if he could lay on your stomach but something snapped inside of you.

“y/n…” he called for your attention “can i lay on your tummy? it’s always so soft and comfortable and warm…” he asked, thinking you were going to say yes like you always did but this time he was greeted with a cold no.

“why not?” he asked.

“i don’t want to rafa”.

“but why?” he continued “you never said no”.

“because i don’t want to, okay? i…i don’t feel comfortable doing it so drop it” you said, eyes back on the tv and ignoring the questioning look on rafael’s face.

but he didn’t ignore how you covered your stomach with a pillow and how you kept hugging it, almost as if you wanted to hide your body.

he pretended to see nothing so you could continue with the show.

four episodes later you both fell asleep on your comfortable but uncomfortable couch.

when you woke up you were greeted with the delicious smell of coffee and pancakes and you couldn’t help but smile.

“good morning beautiful” rafa said when you got into the kitchen.

beautiful? he never called you beautiful.

“i made some breakfast for us…i hope you don’t mind but we’re out of eggs” he smiled.

“it’s okay, as long as those pancakes are good” you joked.

“here you go gorgeous” he said handing your plate with the pancakes.

gorgeous? and beautiful? in less than ten minutes? what was going on?

and that day wasn’t the only day he complimented you.

he started with texting you good morning beautiful or good night pretty girl. he started complimenting every outfit you wore on your days out, every time you style your hair in different ways or every time you did your make up in a different way. but it was too weird.

“i never meant to make you uncomfortable” he said one night while you were both hanging out at his place.

“uh?” you asked.

“that night…at your place…”

“it’s been over a month rafa” you smiled.

“i know but i saw the look on your face and how i made you uncomfortable…i’m sorry, i never meant to hurt you and your feelings in any way possible…” he said truthfully.

“it’s okay…really”.

“no it’s not…i…okay don’t hate me for what i’m going to say but i know you, i’ve been knowing you for years and i know how you feel uncomfortable in your own body…” he started talking.

“rafa” you tried to stop him.

“let me finish please…i just, i just wish you could see yourself the way i see you y/n, you’re beautiful, your eyes, your face, your body, everything about you is beautiful” he took your hands in his big ones “i’ve always wanted to say it to you but i never wanted to make things uncomfortable between us because you’re my best friend but maybe we could be something more?” he asked, too scared of being rejected.

did he just confess his love to you?

“do you really mean it?” you asked.

“of course, come here” he said, his hands grabbing your face and your lips meeting his softer ones. it was a gentle and loving kiss but you felt on fire.

“is this real?” you asked him and he laughed.

“very real”.

“i like you…and i mean a lot” you joked and he kissed you again.

“we can take things slowly…i just want to be with you” he said looking into your eyes and you said yes, completely forgetting about the show you were both watching and melting into rafael’s arms.

143 notes · View notes

nicosraf · 5 months

Note

Hey Rafa!!! Will God still be a character that we hear speak throughout a&m? Your depiction of Him is both terrifying and Almighty— and its so refreshing to see the way you approach His Omniscience. Especially because I often felt (growing up) both a fear and awe at the way God is written in The Scriptures. I really enjoy that you write him the way that you do.

I wonder how strained His relationship is to the angels in Heaven after Lucifer’s debacle. I’m particularly interested in how Michael handles his faith, and how this is reflected in his servitude towards God. Poor fellow </3.

Also— one more thing I wanted to add while I’m here. One of my favorite books is George Orwell’s 1984, because of the intense themes of personal identity, free will, and self expression in the face of totalitarianism. Reading your book was so cathartic in the way that it had a lot of overlap in these themes but on a religious level…. And as a queer narrative. Let me just tell you I was SHOOK. How you disguised a hauntingly bleak Orwellian plot with so much beautiful prose is honestly beyond me. I highly doubt I will ever write anything as incredible as what I’ve read from abm. I’m honestly so surprised you don’t have like. A million followers!!!

Hello! Of course! I love writing God, like genuinely I do. I feel really similarly that the God of the Bible really horrified me, but in some kind of awe-inspiring way – especially because, to me, a lot of the horror comes from God's omnipotent nature; he can do whatever he likes, and there is nothing you can do. I'm really glad some of that comes through in ABM itself!

There are less scenes with God being actively there in A&M given that most of the story takes place on Earth, but he's still very present. He's the one giving out orders, though Samyaza and Azazel might not understand what he's really up to. Coming up for a motivation for God for this book was incredibly fun.

I think one of the big "issues" with writing God is that since he knows everything, you have to give him a reason to allow for everything. (I do play around a little with the question of whether he really does know everything, whether he really is all-powerful, but I think regardless of the answer, he still knows much more than you/angels and has so much more power that he may as well be all-knowing and all-powerful). So, God is going to allow the Watcher thing to happen. But why? What is his end goal? Maybe, who is his end goal?

I love Michael in this book. His faith is strained but it's the only thing he has. It's like he's holding onto old ropes over a pit of fire. In simple words, the Michael of ABM is dead – the sweetheart, doting Michael. You might find him unrecognizable, at least initially. I don't want to say much, but he's gone through quite a bit — the immediate aftermath of ABM's ending and what God does with him afterward. He's changed really radically from who he was, but so has Lucifer, of course.

It's fun that you bring up 1984 and totalitarianism, since I get to touch on what becomes of angel society after the fall. This isn't a spoiler because it'll be on the back of A&M, but Heaven becomes oppressive and intolerant. In the aftermath of sin, the angels have to reckon with the now eternal threat of evil in society. How will they deal with this fear? Who will they blame?

I always think ABM Heaven is more of a Brave New World of dystopia fiction; they both even have an orgy at the end (both books involve sex/sexuality as a means of control for the authoritarian power, though so does 1984). The ABM angels love their servitude. When they revolt, it's not out of this feeling that they're all secretly being heavily oppressed. I mean, they have everything. They live in paradise. When Lucifer shouts about how they don't need God and how God is denying them certain love, they go ballistic. It's almost a spoiled rebellion – at least on the surface it is, but as the reader knows, there is something deeply sinister about God, his behavior, and what he's already done. And angels needed a release for grievances, their long, meaningless existence, etc

I think A&M gives me a little more room to work with a more 1984 type of angel society, but themes of hyper-centralized power and limits of self-expression are already there. I actually love to write about fascism sksksjd, nearly all of my WIPs talk about fascism. Even the final Angels book is (planned) to say a couple things about it pretty explicitly, if I can make it not sound silly. You know, one of my personal grievances with these famous utopia-dystopia books is that they're not gay! Not trans! Almost always white. Queers are policed because of their self-expression (limp wrists, deep or high-pitched voices, gender deviance) and sexual activity; you'd think queerness, at the very least, would be at the forefront of considering the policing of identity and self expression in totalitarianism. And yet !

(One final point on Brave New World and 1984 is that they both have their own takes on religion. BNW replaces Christianity with capitalism; 1984 basically replaces Christianity with the leader of the party. I think these are both good takes for their respective books, but Abrahamic religions (really, most monotheistic religions) are unique in that they introduce the idea of a single all-powerful ruler whose sin is, quite literally, "don't do what I tell you not to."

God can kill, after all, so killing is fine, but only when he does it. Only he is allowed to be violent, or when you have his blessing. I can go on another tangent here on how Max Weber defines a state as having the monopoly on violence, and God, explicitly, has the monopoly on violence. So there's a really parallel allusion between the Christian God and states. It's interesting, isn't it !)

ANYWAY, thank you very much for liking ABM! I would take it down, frankly, if I got that many followers. That would be way too many people looking at me. Also don't say that you'll never write anything incredible. I think that you will, but you won't with that attitude!!!!! Good luck writing !!! sending u love and all

#<3 #mine #ask #sorry for the essay #i havent read 1984 and Brave New World in like 4 billion years but this is what i remember

26 notes · View notes

coffeecities · 9 months

Text

um, i have a snippet of day 6 of @lestappenweek? 🫣 i thought about posting this independently but then i saw this would fit right in lestappen week 😶 so here you go, i guess

EDIT: was tagged by @xiaoluclair so i’m tagging her back (and now am looking through my other wips and looking for snippets to post) + also tagging @f1-giuki and @fueledbyremembering to post snippets from their wips to tide us over spa this weekend 👀

“That last ace serve was incredible,” Charles said as he began talking with his hands again, “but the backhand in the second set—the one before matchpoint?—was my favourite. It was very much like Federer, non?”

And really, Max had no choice but to be smitten. And once again wonder why he never bothered keeping up with Formula 1.

“Being compared to Federer is too much high praise,” Max replied, a little shy to being compared to a legend. The media could paint him arrogant all they want (and he really was arrogant sometimes, to be quite honest), but being compared to legends—especially those that recently retired—still was too much for him to handle.

“But it’s true, yes? It was like watching Roger Federer fighting with Rafa Nadal,” Charles said as he continued to praise him, “ah, but your opponent is not too much like Nadal. Perhaps we will find out in Paris.”

“Will I see you in Paris then?”

Charles gave him a small, amused smile, and Max had to wonder if it really was time to get himself updated with Formula 1. He could hear Christian in the background conversing with Charles’s companion, and wondered if he could pull his coach and save him from embarrassment.

“I would like to,” Charles began, but Max could feel a little apprehension (disappointment?) at the tone, “unfortunately, I—we—have races on some of the dates. Perhaps if you made it to the finals?”

“I always make it to the finals,” Max joked, peacocking a little as he found himself enjoying the conversation he’s having with Charles.

“Ah, but that is true,” Charles conceded with a quiet laugh, “then perhaps I’ll get myself a ticket to the finals?”

Before Max could answer, the staff interrupted them and told them they needed a photo together for their social media. Max was quick to put his arm around Charles’s waist, blaming the redness of his face from the energy he exerted while playing. Christian was already making their goodbyes and Max was a little panicked at having their conversation cut short.

“Can I have your number?,” Max asked, surprising both himself and Charles at his bold question, “I can get you an all-access pass in Paris for the finals, of course. Just so you’re not inconvenienced.”

#this was sponsored by copious amounts of kombucha #and me replaying fed vs nadal matches because i miss them a lot????#um pls be gentle #lestappen

45 notes · View notes

rafamybelovednadal · 11 months

Text

The only way I can handle this is if rafa starts a retirement blog

#rafael nadal #rafa nadal

59 notes · View notes

atonalginger · 2 months

Text

WIP Wednesday

thank you for the tag @therealgchu!

Today's peek has been chilling in my Libertatia project. Not sure where exactly in the fic it will be but it was a funny idea I got after an eventful survey in the game...

---

“Sure the scans shows a lovely beach but Becker’s already confirmed that beach is heavy rock stalker territory,” Bella said as she gently bounced little Rafa in her arms, “She said they barely made it a dozen paces from their landing bay before a whole herd of them came rushing their location and they had to retreat, that big model-A Constellation loaned Jay giving cover fire while they climbed inside.”

“There were only two of them,” Del said as he stepped close, giving Bella a kiss followed by a kiss on the top of Rafa’s head, “I’m bringing a whole team. We’ll be fine.”

“I don’t think numbers are going to help,” Bella looked out the windows of the cockpit at the moving stone in the distance, “honestly I think it’ll just piss them off more.”

“We survived Suverov, we’ll survive this,” he kissed her cheek.

“Not everyone did,” she looked back at him, “I vividly remember there being only me and you when that whole trip was over. I’d prefer to not lose all our rooks before we’ve even dug in roots, Gran Jefe.”

“Please stop calling me that,” he sighed and started walking for the fuselage.

“Lo siento, mi Rey,” Bella sassed her husband.

He glanced over his shoulder, trying to look irritated but a grin gave him away.

“Just be careful,” Bella said as Rafa started to fuss, “don’t do anything reckless.”

“I can handle some hostile xeno, Bella,” Del assured her as he walked toward the ladder down, “we’ll be fine.”

*Spongebob narrator* Several hours later

“It’s just a few rock stalkers, I’ve got a whole team, how hard could it be?” Del grumbled at himself as he sat atop a large boulder leaned up against a smaller rock. He was reloading his rifle and listening as another unlucky rook cried out in agony before the gnashing sound of rocks rubbing against one another drowned him out.

“It’s not like we didn’t come prepared,” Rokov said from the other side of the rock, “Jazz and I split a small crate of impact grenades thinking that would shatter the fucking things.”

“Yeah, look how that turned out!” Jazz stood up and overhand pitched a grenade at an oncoming cluster of rock stalkers. It exploded on the middle rock stalkers, kicking up dirt and sand, and when the air cleared only the middle xeno was dead, “Luckily they can’t climb.”

“Shhh, chitón!” Del hissed at her, “don’t fucking jinx us.”

“Hey Boss!” Seumas called over from other boulder, “Wrecker got a headcount, we’ve only lost three bastards, everyone else managed to scramble up to high ground.”

“Well that’s good to hear,” Jazz sat back down next to Del, “now we just need the fucking things to leave.”

“We’re going to wait for them to leave their house,” Rokov asked, clearly amused, “we’ll be sitting here a while.”

“Maybe we should radio The Siren’s Song,” Jazz started.

“No,” Del and Rokov both said in unison.

Jazz looked at them both, a wild goofy smile lighting up her face, “you’re scared of Bella, aren’t you?”

“Shut up,” Del snapped as he took aim at a nearby rock stalker camping their boulder.

“She has enough on her plate,” Rokov was looking through binoculars back toward the landing spot, “plus it’s clear of anything rock stalker shaped once we clear that hill. If everyone is smart with their boosts we should be able to make a collective break for it and run back to the ship.”

“She’s still going to find out what happened,” Jazz was busy packing up her gear.

“Not if we don’t tell her everything,” Del snapped.

“She’s going to find out when three rooks don’t make it back,” Jazz said before shouting moving orders over to Seumas.

“Oh come on, it’s a dangerous planet, that won’t tell her anything,” Rokov said as he chucked an impact grenade at the remaining rock stalkers.

The grenade exploded, followed by a larger explosion that rippled out into smaller explosions. A dense cloud of dirt and sand filled the air, causing everyone on the boulders to begin couching and choking.

“What the fuck did you throw?” Del shouted at Rokov.

“Same as all the rest!” Rokov insisted.

“Howdy, howdy, howdy,” a familiar voice called out over a helmet speaker, “got word of a missing scouting party so I came out to see what help you needed.”

“Missing?” Rokov mumbled between coughs, “we haven’t been gone that long.”

“Eh, it’s been most the day,” Jazz had pulled on a respirator and held out one to Rokov, “told you she’d know.”

Del had pulled on his own respirator and called up the newcomer on a private channel. She answered simply, “yes?”

“Who called you? And why are you in your Mantis gear?” he asked sharply.

The dust had settled enough for him to see Jay standing there in her Mantis helmet and matching gray spacesuit with green trim. She held her ridiculous coachman, Hornet’s Hymn, with it’s hornet’s nest exploding shots. That explained the show.

“Sophie called me while Beck and I were trying to scan another location for you,” Jay sounded annoyed, “She said Papa went out before lunch to walk the beach without her and hadn’t come back yet. When I checked her location Becker took us down immediately: I thought we told you to stay the fuck away from this stretch of land?”

“I don’t need shit from you,” Del snarled.

“I remember you telling Bella and me a few weeks back that you wanted Cassiopeia I because of everything you gleaned from that nature doc Sophie was obsessed with. Were you not paying attention at the twenty minute section talking about how ruthless and relentless these fucking rocks were?”

Del spoke through clenched teeth, “I said I don’t need shit from—“

“Get moving before more show up, Becker and I cleared the path but more will be here soon,” the Mantis was motioning for those on the other rock to come down, “you’re welcome, Delgado.”

“We didn’t need your fucking help!” Del snapped, “we had everything under control.”

“Which is why your surviving crew are up on boulders and not exploring the beach?” Jay tilted her head to the side, “keep going and I’ll leave you to explain yourself to Bella alone, Mr. How-Hard-Could-It-Be?”

“I’m not afraid of my wife,” Del insisted as he jumped off the boulder, boosting down to the ground.

“Mhmm,” Jay was looking around, her shotgun at the ready for any incoming xeno, “which is why I picked up chatter about you not wanting to tell her about your ass being stuck up on that rock?”

“How did you…” he stopped next to the Mantis and looked around with her, “Did you find any better spots?”

“Yeah, three or four,” she sighed, “I still can’t believe I let you two talk me into this.”

“Oh, come on, the arrangement is perfect for you and your brother,” Del clapped her back and ignored the unseen glare under her helmet, “enemy of my enemy and all that shit. Plus how many old Earth artifacts have the Liberated gifted to Constellation since we started.”

“Just get moving, the girls and Rafa await your return.”

#starfield #starfield fanfiction #fanfic #the coemancer crew #atonalginger writes #crimson fleet #wip wednesday #Starfield Delgado #Doc Melody #Rokov #Jazz #Bella and baby Rafa #very much a work in progress

10 notes · View notes

tmnt-obsessed-ace · 1 year

Note

At what age were they allowed to go topside? Cause i feel leo would be much more over protective and strict compared to og!splinter in the show

Well there are a lot of factors in it.

First of all the turtles are different ages. If he kept them underground until they were all fifteen like his father did that wouldn't exactly be fair. (That would mean that Rafa goes up to the surface first and the other three dont or they all have to wait till Michel turns 15 which wouldnt exactly be fair either)

And theres also the fact that the people of this New York are denser than a bag of rocks. (Considering the sheer amount of times Leonardo got called a furry/scalie is extremely high)

If the turtles are mostly covered up majority of people wont pay too much attention to them.

Unlike in Leonardo's dimension where most people scream at the sight of mutants.

So...he can work with this.

There are rules of course. The boys have to stay covered up, do not talk to anyone, stay in the shadows, stay close to him, etc

He takes them up to the surface one by one when they hit the age of 10. Its a test to see if they will be able to handle the surface.

Rafa obviously goes first, and despite getting distracted by several pigeons and crying when they passed by a Mrs Cuddles display in the toy store window, Rafa passed with flying colors.

Leon was next the following year. He kept running off too many times so it took a few more tries for him to pass. (He almost ran into the busy street at one point, Leonardo swears his heart stopped for a moment.)

Dani's time up on the surface was two weeks after Leon's. It was marginally alright until the poor boy got sensory overload from the busy city (too bright, too loud, too much happening) and he ran away. It took Leonardo almost an hour to find him in a dark alley, head buried in his knees and hands clamped over his ears. Another pair of hands were also pressed over his. That pair belonging to an eleven, almost twelve year old girl named April O'Neil. That test was a bit of a train wreck but nothing a pair of noise canceling headphones and sunglasses couldnt fix. Dani passed his next test with flying colors.

(And he got a human bestie out of it too)

Lastly was Michel.

If he passed this test, Leonardo would let them all go to the surface by themselves.

Michel's test was the one that somehow went both horribly wrong and yet he passed on the first try.

Michel got lost. The crowd had got him separated from Leonardo. He could see his father anymore among the sea of people. He was alone. When Leonardo finally noticed that his youngest wasnt next to him anymore (maybe doing this test while he had a massive migraine was a bad idea. But he had promised Michel that they would do the test that night) he panicked. He panicked badly. He was running through the crowds, trying to find his baby, until he was kicked into an alley by a yokai of some kind

Meanwhile Michel was wandering the city streets, until he saw a very familiar piece of graffiti on one of the walls. And once he tapped it he saw a very familiar Skeleton yokai.

Back with Leonardo he tried to fight the offender but it was difficult. (Highly stressed plus bad migraine)

And suddenly he has a knife to his throat, the perp demanding his money and Leonardo wouldn't be harmed.

The voice is familiar. One he hadn't heard since the fire ten years ago. Leonardo rips the yokai's hood off, revealing it to be Splinter. Now a homeless mutant rat.

"Its you." They both say, having not expected to meet each other again.

And then Splinter is smacked in the head and knocked unconscious. Señor Hueso pulled Leonardo to his feet, Michel wrapping his arms around his papa.

He went to go get help in uncle Hueso. Which made him pass the test.

Leonardo hugged his baby boy and started dragging Splinter home. Michel passed the test. He handled the stressful situation like a champ.

Until he was safe in papa's arms. Then he bawled his eyes out.

Leonardo didnt blame him.

On the plus side they got another uncle out of the situation.

#tmnt 2012 #rottmnt

25 notes · View notes

tblsomedoodles · 1 year

Note

so, i haven't been keeping up on the lore behind raph's shapeshifted form and what your plans for it (if they've been revealed) are but i wrote a little thingy about it because i had an idea.

anyways.

~~~

Mikey ends up being the first one to notice it.

They'd all been a bit distant lately, what with the strange aches and pains that left them all consistently bedridden for hours on end, but Raph had repeatedly promised that what he was experiencing were just normal headaches.

But then again, Mikey had thought that what he was feeling were 'normal headaches' and now his forehead was wrinkling strangely and feeling itchier than ever.

So he, of course, took slow steps into the serenity of his big brothers bedroom.

And found Raph curled in on himself in his bed.

"Rafa?" He asked hesitantly. "You okay?"

"N... nightmare. It doesn't matter."

Mikey slowly approached his brother's bed, not really sure how to handle the situation. "Nu-uh. You have to deal with all of our bad dreams, someone's gotta handle yours. You wanna, uh, talk about it?"

Raph groaned as he tried to roll slightly, patting the space next to him on the bed which Mikey gladly occupied.

"I just... sometimes I wake up and my body... don't feel right. My hands look wrong, like... like human hands. And of course, I know it's not real, but I never really... register? Waking up after those nightmares. It's like I blink a few times and then it feels more right. I 'dunno, it's stupid."

"Not stupid," Mikey retorted instantly.

"I'm pretty sure you three haven't woken up in a panic thinking you've somehow turned human."

Mikey took in a deep breath. "Donnie and Leo have woken up to literally be growing new limbs. I'm pretty sure that a few nightmares are well within the area of something we can handle, alright? Just because you're our big bro doesn't mean you gotta keep the act all the time. You're a person, too."

"T... thank you."

"I can stay here for a bit, if you want?"

"Yeah. Th... that sounds good."

Aww! this is so heartwarming! Mikey's such a good little brother! : )

And no worries, i haven't come up with much past design and some shenanigans as far as Raph's shifting goes. (I'll probably be sitting down with this AU and ironing out things like that pretty soon, before i accidentally write myself into a corner or something lol.)

Thank you! This was really cool!

#asks #tmnt #rottmnt #family web au #ficlet

38 notes · View notes

alrightbuckaroo · 8 months

Note

Hello 😃 I binged all of lone star and I’m now fully in the Tarlos hole 🕳️ with no way of getting out 🥹 anyways as I rewatched their scenes again and again, I noticed how Carlos really works on himself, makes so much progress and is such a layered character (FUN! That’s how it’s suppose to be to keep the audience attached to the plot and character). But / and I also noticed how in season 1 when we met him he (came across as) more light, smiley, more carefree in a way. Now season 4 Carlos ofc had his goofy moments and teases TK still etc. but it seems more subdued and he seems more…reserved in a way? Less smiley, less happy. Not with TK, just a general vibe.

Do you think it’s the writers / Rafa considering how much shit went down since season 1, like so many deaths of family members, and nearly losing TK many times, almost dying himself etc. that definitely leaves trauma and can really do you in mentally. Or is it cause he older now or?

Mhhhh trying to understand the shift, and although it makes sense given the circumstances, I do hope we get some carefree, smiling from ear to ear, serene Carlos in S5 with his husband again, at least here and there. Very excited to see where they and Rafa are going with it ♥️

Love your gif sets!

First, welcome! Happy to have you :)

I was just thinking this the other day, but I feel like Carlos has always been kind of reserved, and part of me thinks that's due to his background.

I definitely think he's a bit more open in season one and I think that's to counteract TK's casualness and somewhat guarded demeanor.

That said, when we learn that he thinks his own father thought he would be "too soft" to be a cop, it really made me wonder how Carlos handles his emotions; especially knowing his relationship with his father.

That mixed with the way his parents reacted to him coming out, his own struggles with his sexuality and (in my opinion) his need to kind of be this rock for both him and TK. (I also hope we explore his relationship with his faith at some point but that's probably a long shot)

We see him shed a single tear (if Rafael Silva is going to do anything, it's shed a single tear and know how to look good when doing it) when TK's in his first coma; but it isn't until halfway through season two when the loft burns down that we see him fully give in to his melancholy.

It wouldn't shock me if Carlos' more reserved nature was born out of everything that's happened to him that hasn't been explored. I mean, the guy was abducted, technically died, and was brought back to life all in one episode and the next week they were just back to wedding planning like it was nothing 😭

Anyways, I'm saying that because while I don't think the writers necessarily planned to have Carlos come off as more reserved, it wouldn't surprise me if Rafael is playing him as such. (It is a Ryan Murphy production after all, the actors are only given so much sometimes.)

I understand that it's an ensemble show, it's less than an hour long and the show isn't about TK and Carlos ; so that does leave a lot of blanks for us to fill in ourselves.

It could also be that he's older, I'm pretty close in age to Rafael and I think he's pretty close in age to Carlos and your late 20s are definitely a time where you're kind of like, "I'm an adult but I'm not grown up." I agree, I would love to see much more lighthearted interactions, which might be wishful thinking seeing it's a labeled a drama. I was saying that I hope there's an episode where the gang goes to the beach and their biggest emergency is that the snow cone machine is broken.

#thanks for being a breath of fresh air after that last anon hahah #rambling wreck #asked and answered

8 notes · View notes

alan-duarte · 9 months

Text

TIMING: January 25th 2013 LOCATION: Rafael and Alan’s town house, Oldtown PARTIES: Alan and Rafael SUMMARY: Rafael and Alan share a few words at the kitchen table. CONTENT WARNINGS: sad gay men

Alan woke up in the middle of nowhere, dirt under his fingernails, mud smudged over his calves and elbows. He must have crawled for a bit, before he collapsed here, on the icy floor. God only knew what he had been up to last night. He didn’t remember much. In his dreams, he ran through the woods. Fast. Strong. He hunted everything. Everyone. Not tonight though. He didn’t recall seeing a human face in his dreams. There was progress. The first few times this happened, he didn’t remember anything at all. Yeah, there was progress. This had been happening for the past 6 months.

Alan wanted it to stop.

It was cold out here. His cheeks were warm.

He swallowed down his sobbing, but he couldn’t keep the tears in.

Blurry eyes took a look around. Where was he this time?

Looked like Gatlin Fields. He was a long way from home. He had sold a place around here, not too long ago. Nice people. They’d never know why it was so cheap, but it really got him a nice bonus, getting the agency rid of the murder house. His supervisor couldn’t believe it. It felt nice, being congratulated like that. The other salesperson was either disgusted or envious. That, he could live with.

Knowing where he was wasn’t much of a relief. He knew where he wasn’t.

_______________________________

He stopped by the office for a change of clothes. It was early. No one saw him sneak in stark naked. No one saw him leave.

_______________________________

It was around 7 am when he finally got home. He had picked up danishes at the bakery downstairs. Rafael would probably be in bed, he didn’t start work at the cabinet until later and Alan knew him to have a sweet tooth. When they first started dating, he’d cherished the love handles on his husband’s waist. He thought it quite funny, a dentist with a thing for sweets. Lately, he was starting to grow similar ones. He didn’t like those quite as much.

He knew Rafael would give him that same look he’d been giving him for the past couple of months. He didn’t ask for explanations anymore lately and that terrified Alan.

He found him seated at the kitchen table, nursing a mug of coffee between his hands.

Knots in his stomach, Alan had greeted him and set down the paper bag on the table. As he leaned in for a morning kiss, Rafael looked up. His eyes were red, tired, swollen, like he had been crying for a while. Fuck. "Can you sit down?" Alan didn't register immediately. Rafael had been less affectionate lately, turning his cheek on him, shying out of hugs. They hadn't had sex in 3 months. Yet, what he must have missed the most was the inflections in his husband's voice, the loving name calling, the ridiculous pet names and the small ways he showed him affection. Alan recalled being randomly offered knick knacks because they reminded Rafael of him, his husband folding napkins into a dog, or a heart, because he was cheesy. He hadn't been cheesy in a long while. That pained him the most.

But he had never cried. He was not one for crying.

Alan sat down.

He looked down at the mug in Rafael's hands. His hands fell to his lap.

"I'm not gonna ask you where you've been," his voice was even, and Alan wondered how long his husband rehearsed what he was about to say, how much of it he had written out in his head. Worried eyes glanced up from the cup of coffee and Alan noticed his husband had his warm brown eyes set on him. "Rafa-" he began, but something in the way he looked at him made him pause. Not pause. Stop.

"I think we've reached the end of the road here, Alan."

Alan shook his head. He wasn't doing this. He wanted to flee. Run. Something within him, burning, clawing, seemed to be begging him to do just that. Run. Quench that burning feeling away. Quench the pain away. Instead he sat there, making his wedding band turn around his finger. He nibbled on his lip, and tried to contain his sorrow within him. What was he supposed to say? But he always had something to say. And he always had the same reaction when he hurt.

"So you're gonna throw away a decade of our lives because…" He took a deep breath. "This is bullshit," with a scoff he ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry, Rafael, but this is such bullshit," tears pricking at his eyes again he stood up. He didn't want to be seen like this. And so he turned his back on him, stepping away urgently. Hands clasped against the edge of the kitchen island, he didn't pause to attempt making sense of his feelings. He should have. He should have taken a moment, grabbed a glass of water, seen that perhaps he was burning up, not because he felt betrayed, abandoned, or scared, but because, maybe, there was something else. Anything else.

"I can't. I won't accept it." He shook his head. "I won't accept it." Another shake of his head. "No. I… no. We've been through…" a lot. Storms, raging tempests of emotions, of sorrow, mourning, deaths, long discussions on parenthood, short ones on getting married. Very short ones. His face should have brightened up as he thought of their wedding day, but today, and from now on, it would no longer do.

"Alan, you need to sit," but he shook his head again, and his knees gave in. Once again, Alan swallowed down a sob. Why did he bother hiding his pain right now? Why was he always hiding his fucking pain? His shoulders were now shaking with grief, and still he covered his eyes. If he couldn’t see a thing, maybe no one would see him either. His cheeks were warm again. He heard the tears falling onto his collar. Why were they fucking loud. Why was everything fucking loud.

Rafael’s chair scraped against the floor. At last, he let out a sonorous gasp. At last, he felt his husband’s hand on his shoulder. He felt him pulling him up. Alan refused to move, he refused to accept the comfort of Rafael’s arms, the warmth he had longed for.

He sat down on the floor. Rafael did the same. He could feel him next to him, and even though his stomach was churning, his eyes were burning and everything seemed to fall apart, he didn’t budge. “I didn’t do anything. I’d never do anything to you,” the words were getting out uneven, broken, stammering out of his mouth. “Please, you… I don’t know what’s wrong with me and I…” And he was fucking scared. “Please. Wait for me. Please. Please. I’ll figure it out, I’ll fix it. Please. I…” He smeared his tears onto his temples and looked at the other man. “I love you, and I’m so sorry.”

There was silence. Then, Rafael nodded. “Okay,” he softly said. Covering his face with both hands, he sighed. “Okay, but you have to pull your shit together.”

Alan didn’t budge when the other stood up and left the room to get ready for work. For a moment, he sat there, sitting at the bottom of the kitchen island, thinking about how he was going to make things right.

_______________________________

He tried. He never made things right.

#wickedswriting #under blue moon threads #solo

10 notes · View notes

cantstayawaycani · 1 year

Text

Can’t Stay Away’s Fic Rec Friday Posts

My ao3 Bookmarks (if it’s bookmarked, it’s usually a completed fic)

Can’t Stay Away’s Fic Rec Friday #1 (04.14.23)

Can’t Stay Away’s Fic Rec Friday #2 (04.28.23)

Can’t Stay Away’s Fic Rec Friday #3 (06.30.23)

Hello! Because of my love for Wakanda Forever in all of its GLORY, I have been sucked back into the world of fanfiction!

Formerly known as @krockafella, I actually came back to Tumblr after I left all social media over a year ago, because I am truly hyper-fixated on Tenoch Huerta after his turn as Namor in BPWF. Also the performances that Letitia Wright and Angela Bassett gave in this film deserved all of the awards! Those women, along with Danai Gurira and Lupita Nyong’o are the backbone AND the meat of the film, no question. This film, more than even the first, has me thinking about it and consuming content/media about it almost obsessively now days. Y'all know how it goes.

So now, during this phase of hyper-fixation, I am interested in exploring these characters and reading the ways in which others interpret their motivations and arcs in their writing.

Fic writers in this fandom have been FEEDING me, with such amazing content! Every day I am amazed at the creativity and skill people are demonstrating with the fruitful motivation the film provided.

So! Because I’ve been reading and enjoying so many of these gems, I decided that I would do this Fic Rec Friday post every other Friday (that’s what I can commit to right now) where I post the fics that I have read, that I’m currently reading, or re-reading with a brief comment on why I love it.

These will Include, but not limited to:

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Fic

Namor x Shuri

Namor x Reader (preferably Black/of color/Indigenous)*

Namor x OFC (preferably Black/of color/Indigenous)

Namor x Shuri x Attuma

Namor x Ramonda (generally platonic character study, but I’m open to read anything good)

Okoye x Attuma

Okoye x Namor

Okoye x Attuma x Namor

Shuri x Riri Williams

Shuri x Fem!Reader (preferably Black/of color)*

Shuri x OFC (preferably Black/of color)

Aneka x Ayo

Aneka x Ayo x Namora

Namora x Fem!Reader (preferably Black/of color/Indigenous)*

Namora x OFC (preferably Black/of color/Indigenous)

M’Baku x Reader (preferably Black/of color)*

M’Baku x OFC (preferably Black/of color)

Tenoch Huerta Character Fic

Rafa Caro Quintero x Reader (preferably Black/Latina)*

Rafa Caro Quintero x OFC (preferably Black/Latina)

I will read other things, but this is what I am mainly interested in right now, and it’s already a lot.

*If I specify that Reader fic characters be coded as Black or a Character of Color, it's because a lot of Reader fic tends to be coded white. If the reader fic is written in such a way as to truly be devoid of indicators to race/ethnicity, I will read it.

A few things to know:

I ship both Nashuri and Attoye (among other pairings, some of them are rare pairs). I DO NOT engage in fandom wars or discourse. I do not argue with strangers on the internet at my big age. If either of these pairs doesn’t make sense to you, or weirds you out or makes you uncomfortable or upsets you, it’s OK, but we don’t need to argue about it. If you are an author and your fic is on this list, but you do not wish for it to be included because you don’t want it on a list with the other pairing, just let me know (cordially please, without attitude) and I will remove your fic from the list. No harm, no foul.

That said, if there is anything on the list that you feel is beyond simply nonsensical, but problematic, genuinely offensive, discriminatory, et al, please let me know. I do my best not to read or recommend things that fall on that spectrum, but if you have a genuine concern I of course want to know if there's something I overlooked or didn't consider.

These recs will be posted with the link to the fic on ao3 and if the author has a Tumblr, their @handle. If the author has no Tumblr, but is on some other social platform, I will post that instead.

If the fic is posted on Tumblr, I will ❤️ it first, and then it will be queued to reblog on Fridays. I will usually comment on it, but my comments can mostly be found in the tags. If that is unacceptable to you, I’m sorry, that’s the way I like to run my blog. I like to do a rapid scroll, like, and then go through my likes some time later (days maybe weeks depending on how busy I am) and queue them up for reblogs. If you’d rather I’d reblog as soon as you post your fic or not at all, let me know (cordially please, without attitude) and I will do my best. I have a full time job, and sometimes all I have time for is to scroll and like quickly. Then on the weekends, I sit my old ass down, go through my likes and queue them up. I’m saying this multiple times so that there is no misunderstanding.

If the author has more than one work, not all of them will be listed in one post. I may not have read the others yet, and spreading them out will help keep the list fresh.

I will only recommend what I have read. I can’t recommend something I haven’t read myself, for obvious reasons. If you want me to read something, please ask. However, if it doesn’t end up on this list, please understand. I am open to giving feedback, but I probably won’t recommend something I don’t like.

This is mostly for me to organize the fics I like in a way that’s easy to find for anyone who is interested that may stumble across this blog. It’s useful, but it’s not that serious. If you want to interact with me about it, please do! (be nice tho)

Just to reiterate, SO THERE IS NO MISUNDERSTANDING: if I haven't reblogged or commented on your fic it's for one of these reasons:

I legit haven't seen it.

I haven't had the chance to read/formulate an opinion on it.

I gave it a ❤️ because I'm bookmarking it for later.

And now I have decided the "later" will be Fic Rec Friday.

It may not be what I'm interested in. I hope you understand.

Here are my current fic sources on Tumblr that I personally follow:

@attoye (fics) <- a treasure trove of Attoye "juice"

@tvreadsandsleep (fics) <- one of the most prolific attoye fic writers in the fandom

@namorslutfanfiction (fics) <- Namor and Tenoch goodness abound, take a swim, get wet

I haven’t read everything on these blogs yet. If I’m missing a fic source and you think it should be included here, please let me know.

These posts will be tagged with their respective fandom pairing tags so people can find the fics. As I said before, I am a multi-shipper and I do not engage in negative fandom discourse or ship wars. Please don’t interact with these posts with any of that. Thank you.

Tags: #ficrecfriday #csaficrecfriday #fiction reccommendation #fic rec friday #fic rec #can't stay away's fic rec friday

I will also tag the date I make the posts so you can find it that way as well.

Enjoy!

16 notes · View notes

wixhavenwizes · 6 days

Text

JAN LUIS CASTELLANOS, HOMOSEXUAL, CISMALE + HE/HIM →» RAFAEL CRUZ? they’ve been spotted around the CROSS common room. i hear they’re 24, and a THIRD YEAR at wixhaven, with an interest in SPELLCRAFTING AND MAGI TECHNOLOGY. they’re originally from PHOENIX, ARIZONA. rafael is gifted in ANIMAGUS, LEGILIMENCY, OCCLUMENCY, WANDLESS, NONVERBAL MAGIC, APPARATION/DISAPPARATION. they seem to be creative & intelligent & idealistic, but also impulsive & proud & vindictive.

name: Rafael Cruz nicknames: Rafe or Rafa date of birth: December 3rd height: 5'11 dominant hand: Right

parents: Sophia Cruz (mother), Gabriel Valencia (father) siblings: ---- cruz pets: Mirabel (Mimi) Owl

astrological sign: sagitarius (sun), libra (moon), gemini (ascending) positive traits: adventurous, nurturing, loyal, courageous negative traits: chaotic, brash, self-centered, spiteful habits: Cracks his knuckles when he's deep in thought or anxious, eats incredibly fast, will try to pet every dog or cat he comes across, bounces on the balls of his feet when he's feeling impatient or anxious. quirks: Has a very short attention span if he's not directly engaged, makes inappropriate jokes to ease tension, takes on more jobs and responsibilities than he can handle, hates saying no to people when they ask for help. The way to his heart is absolutely his belly, you cook for or feed him and he will be your #1 fan. Because of a broom accident when he was 14, he's terrified of heights, and can't fly on a broom for shit. pet peeves: People saying or insinuating he isn't capable of doing something. Having to be vulnerable or "weak" in front of people. Being pitied or coddled. hobbies: Reading, Hiking, watching Quidditch, Partying, scamming poor sweet 1st years, slaying. animagus: black cat sexuality: homosexual position: bottom verse

clothing style: He tends to lean more toward the sporty side, gym shorts, sweatpants, hoodies, tank tops. If he's dressing up, he tends to lean toward fitted button ups with a few buttons undone up top, skinny slacks (if they aren't too tight around the ass, then what's the point?). If he's really feeling himself, he will bust out the tailored three pieced suit. prominent features: His very prominent jawline, his nose, and his big brown eyes. Bio:

In any other world, Rafe should not be at Wixhaven. Born in a lower class non-magical family, or at least what he assumed was non-magical, he had always figured he was destined for mediocrity at best. His father was out of the picture before he was even born, and his mother, with two kids, was... not meant to be a mother. Her chronic drug abuse made caring for herself, let alone her family next to impossible. Needless to say, him and his brother entered the foster care system at a very young age, and if it wasn't for the letter inviting him to magic school, he probably would have been stuck.

Being introduced to magic as a kid was what fundamentally changed Rafe's life. He'd always been surprisingly bright given his roots. School came so easy to him it actually bored him, so when he was asked to leave a mundane school to become a wizard, it was as if he'd won the lottery.

As easy and normal school had been for Rafe, magic school seemed to come just as naturally. The difference was, he found himself actually passionate about it. Learning about charms, potions, spells to transform objects and even himself into other things, was fascinating to him. Granted, he did garner a reputation at his school for abusing his affinity for spells. Sneaking off campus, sneaking into other boys' dormitories passed curfew, breaking into other houses common rooms to prank them, figuring out how to concoct potions to inebriate you without needing to use or obtain alcohol. Yeah he was incredibly smart, but had knack for being problematically chaotic. It had gotten to the point where he'd almost gotten himself and his friends expelled from school for trying to steal an artifact from his headmaster's office. Luckily he was given grace by the professor who caught him, and was only punished through chores and school labor.

As great as magic school was, it was only nine months out of the year. Every summer, after school, Rafe was forced to go back to the mundane world, and since he had no blood family to take him, he was always forced into another foster home, another family to "care" for him while he waited to return to his real life. As either a blessing or a curse, he very rarely returned to the same home twice, and as time went by it only solidified his attachment to the people he knew in the wizarding world. Even still, he tried to hide the fact that he was essentially homeless from his friends at school. He didn't want them to pity him, or to think that magic was his only means of survival. Still, despite his insecurities, his friends from school were his family, his brother was his everything, and as time went on he only felt connected to those people even more.

Graduating from school was not so much of an accomplishment as it was a right of passage. He was a wizard as far as society saw it, but he wanted more. He needed more. He couldn't go back to the mundane world knowing what he knew. When he was given the opportunity to go further with his education, when Wixhaven invited him to study, of course he accepted on the spot. The first few years have been a blur for him. He's still found a love for spell work, for arcane deconstruction and then reconstruction. That being said, he's still as chaotic as he was as a teenager at times, and just wants to have fun.

#&. Rafael #&. bio

2 notes · View notes