#I lived in Queens for five years as a kid and did four years in Manhattan (and a semester in Tokyo) for college

[phoenixyfriend]

[extreme frustration] I wanna move back to the city

#nyc #personal #vent post #I don't actually LIKE living in suburbia but it's been my life for like. Uh. most of it #I lived in Queens for five years as a kid and did four years in Manhattan (and a semester in Tokyo) for college #and spending three months in Novi Beograd recently just reminded me how much better my life is when I'm in a WALKABLE CITY #[frustration] #(also this doesn't count as NYC but does count as tempting mockery of it: I've spent a decade on LI which means two hours to nyc) #So I've basically been either in the city or in its suburban metro area for all except infancy (20 months) #and six years in Colorado for middle/high school #other than that. NYC and LI #and I *miss it* #*I need a good job*

[riyva]

nutella on you. | j.jh

pairings. jung jaehyun x fem!reader (ft. johnny & yuta) genre. fluff, romance, angst (if u squint?) warnings. explicit content, minors don't interact, food play, oral (m), implied sex summary. you were pregnant with twins, and cravings are kicking in.

you purred when you woke up. you glanced at the clock; it was already 4 p.m. hmm.. ‘kay! time for snacks. you stood up and went to the body mirror. you admired how big your tummy was. you’re carrying twins. your husband, jaehyun, was in bliss when he found out you’re pregnant with twins. it's been a year since you were married, and you’ve been trying to conceive a child, and finally, you guys made it, making love three times a day, didn’t know you’ll be having two. and, in four months left, you’ll be carrying them in your arms.

you went straight to the kitchen to look for something. when you wake up, you already think of having nutella with a banana. on your disappointment, you didn’t see one in your pantry. you thought of your husband; he’ll be home in an hour from now. you immediately texted him to buy some.

you: hey, honey! would you mind if you could buy me some nutella and bananas? jaehyun: hello to my beautiful wife, mrs. jung! how’s your nap? jaehyun: yeah, sure. i will get it before going home to you. you: i slept for three hours you know. gladly, our babies didn’t do anything complicated to me. you: alright, take care! i love you. jaehyun: i love you more, mi amor.

on the other hand, jaehyun was smiling all through his eyes, showing his deep and cute dimples. he's always excited about going home to you. nothing could complete his every single day without you in his arms. for the five months of your pregnancy, you don't always send off your husband to work every morning due to morning sickness. it always makes you awful.

but jaehyun never forgets to bring you on dates, travels with you. to spend time with you even though he has lots of work on his hand, and he always makes you feel loved every day. he always brings you your favorite flowers, tulips & lavender, with or without any occasion. well, he is treating you like a queen, pampering you every day. you're his other half, the only person he's inlove and growing old with. you're his wife. you know, he is a perfect husband and will be an ideal father to your children. he always wanted a kid since he was a teenager, but now, he's having two.

since your cravings can wait, you eat wheat bread before going to the living room to watch movies while waiting for him to get home. for dinner, you heat the food that you cooked for lunch. as you sit on the couch, you caress your big tummy, and you felt your babies movements, “woah.” as you felt a twitch inside you. they must be having fun.

minutes to an hour have passed; you heard his car parked in the garage. "i'm home, mi amor!” he shouted from the door. "i'm here, jay!” the moment he heard your voice, he immediately went to you with a smile, showing his adorable dimple, and he put you in a warm hug. he kissed your forehead, nose, and lips.

"how's mommy, hmm?” you pulled away from the hug and you sat in between his legs on the couch. you took his hands to caress your belly. “can you feel them right now?” as your babies moved it left him in awe. few months left, he will carry his little angels. “i see. they were behaving.” he went to your tummy and whispered, “please be good angels, okay? don't make it too hard for mommy, okay?” they moved as their reply earned giggles from both of you, and he captured your lips. damn, i miss my wife so bad. he broke the kiss and stood up, "c'mon, momma. let's prepare your cravings.” and you followed him into the kitchen. “you miss me that much, huh?” he dramatically acted and giggled. “so bad!”

he did prepare your nutella and bananas, and viola, cravings satisfied! but you still want more… what if i try it on him? you shook your head with the thought. nope, he's busy.

the night has come, and you're prepared to sleep but you saw jaehyun in glasses was still working in his office. you knocked, “hey, come on. time to bed.” he took a glance from you. “you go first, mommy. i'm still finishing some reports.” you walked towards him, and sat on his lap. he welcomed your warm hug to give him the energy to finish the reports. “am i heavy?” you're curious as your fingers ran through his blonde hair. “nope.” he immediately said. "don't lie, silly! three were sitting on you, three.”

jaehyun shut his eyes as he felt his member getting hard. he can't help it because his beautiful wife was sitting on his lap. “hmm, wife? can you ahm..” jaehyun can't continue as you slightly moved and you felt something under his boxers. “are you?” you asked to confirm. “yes.” he breathlessly replied.

instead of removing yourself from his lap, “do you want to—” you took his fingers to your lips, “—put it here?” he gulped as he nodded to your question. you carefully stood up, phew, my body felt so heavy, and gave him a kiss. “alright, i'll just go get something.” you giggled as you were on your way to getting the nutella.

your eyes twinkled at the thought of eating nutella with his raw banana. you slightly tapped your tummy. “hey, babies. mommy and daddy might do something tonight.” you whispered. might need some space, lol.

you took a pillow from your bedroom before going into his office, and to your surprise, his boxers were gone. “wow, who's excited?” he just smiled sheepishly as you shyly raised his right hand, you dumped the pillow on the floor and kneeled between his legs; you saw his hard dick sprung free reaching the top of his belly button. jaehyun saw the nutella that he bought. “what are you going to do with that, momma?”

you didn't say anything but you took a spoonful of nutella and wrapped it around his cock. his eyes widened a little as he felt the coldness, and he muttered a curse. fuck. "gonna eat nutella with your raw banana, lovey. you up?” it was messy but jaehyun don't have any other choice but to give in. he doesn't want to take a cold shower either.

you've wanted to do this since he got home, and finally, he's sitting in front of you. "bon appétit!" it was messy, but for you, your sight was mouth-watering and you didn't waste any time devouring him. his head fell back as you licked the tip. you took him whole careso as fully not to scratch your teeth on his v, and thick length. no wonder we made twins, lol. his hand went to grip your short hair as he help you to move your head.

“fuck, mi amor. grow your hair, please.” you just hummed as you continued licking and sucking him off, leaving no nutella in waste. his hips thrust carefully not to gag you. his movements were slowly given that you're pregnant. as much as possible, he doesn't want to hurt you. after a few pumps, you pulled out leaving a popping sound.

“dad, sorry. i can't make you cum like this. my jaw and knees hurt.” his brows furrowed.

"you're gonna leave it like that?” you giggled as you stood up, removed your underwear, and bent over his desk. “you and your hormones are insane.” i know, jay. i know. lol!

“well, at least i left no nutella on your cock. now, fuck me please.”

after 4 months, you’re already giving birth to your twins. jaehyun walked back and forth outside the delivery room to calm his nerves as a soon-to-be dad. “dude, seriously, can you sit down?” johnny said. “i can’t, shit. i think i’m going insane.” he tried to sit down but he can’t. “it’s okay, bro. they will be fine.” then, there's yuta who tapped his shoulder to comfort him. fuck, self. calm down. your wife and babies will be fine.

a nurse came out and called him, “hello! mr. jeong! you can now go inside.” he took a glance to johnny before going in. “gotta, go!”

the moment he entered the delivery room, he went directly to you. he kissed your forehead and he told you, “you did well, momma. thank you & i love you so much.” you smiled weakly as you answered him back. “i love you, too, and our babies.” jaehyun never fails to put you first, it's always you.

you gave birth to a girl and a boy. you and jaehyun named them as yoonah & yoonoh. you both can't explain the happiness that you finally carried them in your arms. jaehyun held you as your babies were sleeping sweetly in your chest. what a loving sight to him, and he's more than thankful.

“i will love you forever & ever until the day i die, and i will be a good husband, and a father to yoonah & yoonoh.”

i love you, always remember that.

© riyva

#riyva #nct jaehyun #nct jaehyun smut #jaehyun smut #jaehyun imagines #nct 127 smut #nct 127 scenarios #nct jaehyun x reader #nct 127 x reader #jaehyun fluff #nct 127 imagines

[ophelieverse]

⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰Dragonhearts.

Aemond Targaryen x fem!reader.

Your and Aemond kids are just like him,they absolutely love their dragons.

This is my first fic,so be kind to me.Also english is not my first language,so i’m sorry if there is any errors.

•••••••

It was a quiet sunny day in King’s Landing,the long summer was at it end but the golden rays of the sun still shined through the clouds above the city.

Y/n was sitting on a blanket on the green grass of one of the hills out of the Red Keep,besides her was her sister in law Helaena and Queen Alicent,all three of them enjoying the warm sun and the beautiful weather away from any political issues just for one day.

«He looks so much like Aemond did at his age.»the Queen voice was sweet and tender,her brown eyes sparkling while she looked at one of her grandchildren playing in the green field with his cousin.

Aedion was Y/n and Aemond second child and just like his grandmother said,he was the perfect copy of his father.From his pale blonde hair,his lavander curious eyes and his way to prove himself in everything he did,he reassemble Y/n dear husband in everything.

Y/n smiled,looking softly at her son who was just eight years old«He also acts like Aemond.That creature is the only thing he talks about.»the young princess said,pointing with her free hand towards where the children where playing.

Aedion and Jaehaerys,Aegon and Helaena first son,we’re holding a little wooden stick and using it as a fake sword,similar to the ones they used during their training with Ser Criston in the yard.Besides them two dragons,no bigger than a horse,were watching them like guard dogs in case something happened.

Y/n had met Aemond when she was just a young Lady and she immediately fell for the charming prince.It was no secret that her husband was very enthusiastic whenever the topic of their conversation shifted to dragons,she remember during their courting time that she had listened to him talking for hours about the little adventures that he lived with Vhagar.She also remembered the first time he introduced them to each other,his old favorite girl to his new favorite girl like he once said,and the first time he took her on a fly with him.The way she held him close,the wind between her hair and the euphoric feeling that washed over her.

That day Y/n nderstood why her husband was so passionate about dragons and it was clear that the trait passed down to their children.

«Oh no»Helaena said with a little smile«my brother was so much worse.He was just like little Visenya.»said the princess now turning her head to look at her son and nephew.

Y/n smiled sadly,a hand caressing her growing belly where her fourth child was and thinking about her daughter.Visenya,only five years old,the girl Aemond prayed so much for and that he named after Vhagar first rider was dragonless.

Unfortunately,at her birth there was no left dragon eggs at Dragonpit.Both Rhaenyra and Helaena promised the young princess that if one of her dragons laid eggs again one would have been for her.It’s been four years and her little crying face made both Y/n and Aemond’s hearth clench.

Alicent gave Y/n a firm squeeze on the shoulder and a reassuring smile«I know how powerless you must feel,but it’s not your fault.»she told her,with the loving voice that only a mother could have.

«I know»Y/n nodded«Aemond feels terrible every time that he have to console her.I just wish i could do something,anything to help her.»seeing her daughter that way always made her asking herself if this was the same way her husband felt when he was a kid.

«Visenya will a dragon one day»Alicent told her and it sounded more like an affirmation,like something she knew would been destined to happen«Just like Aemond did.»

«But then she’ll have nine fingers.»Helaena murmured quietly under her breath.

The girl besides her did register her words,because she was too focused on hearing what was coming from her son mouth.

Aedion and Jaehaerys where playing in front of them,pretending to be soldiers on a battlefield,laughing and attacking each other when Jaehaerys accidentally hit Aedion across his face.

«Children,careful!»Alicent called them out.

Y/n was getting up with Helaena help,holding her stomach and making her way towards her son to see if he was hurt or injured.When Aedion took his hand off his face,a blank stare was all he gave to his cousin before commanding his dragon who seemed hurt just like the young prince was.

«Hyperion»Aedion called his dragon close to him,the creature walked slowly besides him waiting«Drac-»

«Aedion!»Y/n shouted immediately before he could finished.

Helaena ran towards her son that,crying,throwed himself into his mother safe embrace.Alicent stood beside them,soothing her oldest grandson with sweet phrases,while Y/n walked fast to her own son.

«What where you thinking?»she asked her son,her heart pumping furiously in her chest fearing what could have happened if she didn’t stopped him in time.

Aedion had a little red sign on his face,right below his left eye where Jaehaerys hit him with his fake sword«I was taking revenge on my enemy.»he stated,trying to escape his mother accusing gaze.

«Thats not your enemy!Thats your cousin,we are a family and we don’t hurt each other like this!»Y/n was trying to not yell at her son to not scare him even more,but she was absolutely mortified about what happened and furious.

Aedion lower lip trembled just like Aemond did when he was about to cry«But he-»

His mother didn’t let him finish«I’m sure that Jaehaerys didn’t wanted to hurt you on purpose.But what you were about to do to him would have hurt him permanently.»she explained to him.

Aedion looked over at his dragon«Father says that i have to use my dragon because i have one.»

Y/n sighed,he was just like Aemond«Dragons are not objects,but since you and your father think this way you will be the one telling him why i forbid you to go at Dragonpit for the next two weeks.»she warned him with stern voice,she knew that she couldn’t keep her son away from that place for long but he had to lear his lesson and so will have his father.

The young prince cried in his mother arms,sobbing his eyes out while she caressed his hair«I’m sorry»he whispered.

Y/n shook her head,looking at Helaena and Alicent with the same tired smile that the two women gave her«You should apologize to your cousin,and then your aunt and grandmother.»she told him freeing him from her loving embrace and guiding him towards them.

«You did the right thing.»Alicent told her with a gentle smile,while Aedion continued to cry in her hug.

It was late evening when Aemond returned from his morning fly with his oldest son,Rhaegal,the young boy was now thirteen and his dragon was big enough to let him ride him.Aemond was more excited that his own son to teach him how to fly for the first time.

He didn’t have his father for that,actually he didn’t had anyone,all that he learned about a dragon he did on his very own and he didn’t want any of his children to have the same.

Y/n was sitting in their shared chambers a hand on her belly,stroking it with love,while she was sitting on a duvet waiting for her husband and son to come home.

«Mother!»the joyful sound of Rhaegal voice echoed through the walls.

The woman smiled,her oldest son white hair were a mess all over his head,his purple eyes were sparkling and his pale skin was sweaty.

Carefully Y/n stood up«Welcome back,sweetheart.How did your fly went?»she asked kissing him on the forehead.

«It was amazing!Darksmoke is even faster than Vhagar.»he stated proudly,his smile brighter that the sun.

Aemond came him a second later,his eyes immediately falling on his wife pregnant belly,before putting his hands on his son shoulders«What i told you was that “Darksmoke might become faster than Vhagar once she will not be able to fly anymore.”»he said playfully with a teasing smile on his beautiful face.

Rhaegal laughed a little«We went to Dragon Stone and there i beat father at a race.I even made Darksmoke turn upside down!»the young boy reminded Aemond of himself the first time he had Vhagar.

All his excitement to finally being able to fly with his siblings,all the little things he discovered with the time passing by,the feeling of being bonded some one other than himself.Some one he shared a mind and a piece of himself.

Y/n watched the two of them bicker with each other for a little,Aemond could sense the discomfort coming from his wife while she pretended to smile and being happy for the oldest son.

«Your mother and your little sister need to rest,»Aemond said his son«Go and take a bath,you smell like dragon.»he watched his son nodding his head,giving his mother a quick kiss and then leaving closing the door behind him.

«I promise that we were careful.»Aemond came closer to her,taking Y/n in a loving hug and pressing his cold lips to hers for a tender kiss.

Y/n smiled a little«I don’t know if i should believe that.»she teased her husband a little«But its not him that i’m worried for.»she added with a worrying voice.

Aemond brows furrowed in confusion,a slight spark of panic lighted in him,his hands immediately going to his wife belly«Did the Maester told you something about her?»he asked her.

«You still think it’s a girl?»Y/n asked her husband covering his hands with hers.

Aemond smiled«Helaena said it’s was another girl.»he told her sweetly.

Y/n heart seemed to be exploding in her chest,she knew about Helaena foresight and whenever she was expecting her sister in law was right about the gender every time.

«Another girl»Y/n breathed out,her eyes were glassy at the news and all those emotions started to overwhelmed her.

She was happy to have another baby girl after two sons and Visenya,but right now she had to discuss other important matters with her husband.

«Well,i thought you would’ve been more happy to hear it.»Aemond said going to take a cup and filling it with wine.

«I’am,but right now we have to talk about your son.»she stated firmly.

Aemond looked over her,confusion on his face«What happened?»

Y/n took a deep breath,she already knew what this was going to«He won’t go to Dragonpit for the next two weeks and he won’t see his dragon for that time.»she explained slowly.

Aemond froze,his hand resting the cup on the table,looking at his wife«What did you said?»he asked hoping he heard wrong.

But his wife stood firm before him«You heard him.No dragon for Aedion.»

«Not if i have a say on the matter.»Aemond said«He needs to stay with his dragon if he want to have a bond with him!»his voice was now raising.

«I think he bonded with that thing enough!A little time apart won’t hurt them!»now it was her time to raise her voice at her husband.

«You say that because you don’t-»

«Don’t what Aemond?Because I don’t have a dragon?Your son shouldn’t have one at his age,he’s eight!He doesn’t know what his doing!»her face was red,her breath short and being six months pregnant didn’t helped her at all in this moment.

Aemond walked to her again«All his cousins have dragons,in this family we put dragons eggs in the cribs once the babe is born and you know it.Aedion know what he’s doing and you won’t take away his birth right.»this topic always had a solid grip on her husband and Y/n could seen it in his eye,in the way the pure fire burned through it.

Y/n rolled her eyes«Your son almost killed his cousin this morning.I’m surprised that Aegon is not here to beat your ass for it!»she informed him.

In a second Aemond seemed to calm down,his shoulder relaxed and he started to breath through his nose again«What?Hows Jaehaerys?»he asked sitting down on the duvet.

Y/n took place next to him,holding his hands in hers«It was a mistake,i know he did not said in on purpose.»she started with soft voice.

«Y/n»Aemond urged her«What did he said?»

The woman breather in and out«They were playing when Jaehaerys accidentally hit him and Aedion…»

«Did the dragon followed his order?»Aemond voice was unsure,laced with concern and fear of what would have happened to his nephew.

His wife shook her head,that made him release the breath he was holding and closing his eye«Luckily i stepped in before he could finished his sentence.But still-»

Aemond nodded«But still he did the wrong thing.I can’t even imagine what would be doing now if you weren’t there.I will talk to him tonight,after i apologize to my sister and brother.»he said,pressing his forehead to hers.

«You don’t have to worry now,my love.We are fine and Aedion already feels horrible after what happened.»Y/n stated caressing her husband cheek before kissing it.

Aemond smiled,a genuine a loving smile that he reserved only for the woman that he loved with all his heart and that gave him the most precious things in this world,not dragons but his children.

«I know»he told her kissing her nose lovingly«thank you for being here,no matter what.»

#house of the dragon #hotd #aemond targaryen x reader #aemond x reader #aemond targaryen imagine #aemondimagine #house of the dragon x reader #hotd x reader #hotd imagine #house of the dragon imagine #game of thrones x reader #game of thrones imagine #x reader #hotd season 1 #hotd spoilers #hotd s1 #house of the dragon season 1 #house of the dragon spoilers #alicent targaryen #alicent hightower #helaena targaryen #imagine #x yn #dragonhearts

[gunterfan1992]

Episode Review: "Destiny"/"The Winter King" (Fionna & Cake, Eps. 5–6)

Airdate: September 14, 2023

Story by: Anthony Burch, Adam Muto, Hanna K. Nyström, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang

Storyboarded by: Hanna K. Nyström, Anna Syvertsson, Jacob Winkler, Sonja von Marensdorff

Directed by: Ryann Shannon (supervising), Hans Tseng (art)

One of my favorite moments from Adventure Time comes at the very end of season four's "The Lich" when we are introduced to "Farmworld" for the first time. When the episode aired, this reveal was positively huge, adding as it did a brand new reality to the already complex world of Ooo. The show would go on to expand our understanding of Farmworld in the season five premiere "Finn the Human"/"Jake the Dog" and the season seven episode "Crossover," but even with all those episodes, I never could shake the feeling that there was so much more the series could have done with Farmworld. You can thus imagine my surprise when I learned that Fionna and Cake of all people would be journeying to this strangely normal alternate dimension!

"Destiny" picks up with Fionna, Cake, and Simon landing in Farmworld, roughly 10 or so years after the events of "Crossover." Following the destruction of the Farmworld crown, things returned to their (post-apocalyptic) normalcy, and Ice-Finn (or, as the people in Farmworld call him, "The Snow Man") has grown into a strapping Man-Finn who is busy raising three children (his wife, it seems, has died). One of Finn's kids, Jay, overhears Fionna, Cake, and Simon asking around about the Farmworld crown, and so he steals them away to meet his father. Once Man-Finn discovers what it is Simon and Co. seek, however, he bids them to leave. Going against his father's wishes, Jay sneaks Fionna, Cake, and Simon to the crater where the Farmworld Bomb had detonated, where they all discover the charred remnants of the crown. At this point, Jay reveals that previously when visiting the crater, he had discovered one of the crown's jewels. The final act of the episode is a sees Fionna, Cake, Simon, Man-Finn, and Jay square off against the Destiny Gang and Scarab, who we learn has been trailing our heroes this whole time. After securing the jewel from Big D's turncoat daughter, Simon fuses it with Prismo's remote, zapping himself, Fionna and Cake to another reality just as Scarab stabs(?!) Man-Finn in the head.

First and foremost, I must stress that "Destiny" feels very much like an episode of the "original" Adventure Time. This is likely a result of the Farmworld setting: as a world, it is overflowing with an absurdist energy and out-there characters (e.g., Big D!) that I intimately associate with the adventures of Finn and Jake. And let me know emphatically state: This is not a bad thing. Not at all. I love how the producers have been able to weave the Adventure Time "feel" into something new. It is like meeting an old friend after a long time apart (only for that old friend to get stabbed in the head by a space-god).

OK, but seriously… did Farmworld Finn die? I hope note. If he did, that would mean that Jay's actions were directly responsible for his father getting killed. That's pretty dark. And considering all the bad dads in the Oooniverse, it would be nice if one of the good ones was allowed to live a (relatively) happy life.

Airdate: September 14, 2023

Story by: Anthony Burch, Adam Muto, Hanna K. Nyström, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang

Storyboarded by: Iggy Craig, Graham Falk, Jim Campbell, Lucyola Langi, Nicole Rodriguez

Directed by: Steve Wolfhard (supervising), Hans Tseng (art)

After zapping away from Farmworld, Simon, Fionna, and Cake teleport to a reality ruled by the "Ice Prince"—an alt-universe Simon Petrikov who has somehow managed to avoid the madness that plagued Ice King. Simon quickly tells his fellow Petrikov the group's goals, and the Ice Prince gallantly agrees to help them by duplicating his own crown. Things are going swimmingly until the evil "Candy Queen" swoops in and snatches away both Simon and the Ice Prince. Fionna, Cake, and Ice Prince's guards dart to their rescue, brutally (but humorously) massacring dozens of hideously mutated candy citizens. Fionna and Cake rescue Simon and the Ice Prince, but once Fionna and Ice Prince share a kiss, the awful truth is revealed: Ice Prince is not some gentleman who overcame the madness of the crown through sheer will. No, he was a self-centered "wad" who used magic to deflect his madness onto the poor Candy Queen… who, as we quickly learn, is just an alternate universe version of Princess Bubblegum. Thanks to fairy tale logic, Fionna's kiss breaks Ice Prince's magic spell, which causes his crown to lose power. He subsequently crumbles to dust and everything he has created melts away.

So far, of the episodes we've gotten, I think "The Winter King" has been my favorite, largely because of the way it explores Simon's psychological character.

One thing that made Ice King’s story so tragic was how Simon, in his original form, was fundamentally a good person, buried deep within the mind of an outwardly "evil" wizard. "The Winter King" neatly conveys the opposite of this situation by showing us an Alt-Simon who, while outwardly "good," had long ago squandered his sense of morality for selfish gain. Not to get too analytical, but all of the good/bad talk reminds me of what the psychologist Carl Jung called the "Shadow." Put in simplest terms, the Shadow is a part of the unconscious human psyche in which repressed, rejected, or unrecognized aspects of the Self are contained, far from the light of conscious thought. The Shadow tends to seal away attributes of the Self that we wish to downplay or dismiss, making it "the home of the suppressed monsters of our inner world," in which "the energy of [our] dark side" bubbles (to quote Christopher Vogler). Furthermore, the Shadow exists as the inverse of our conscious Ego (meaning that, as Jung put it, "when one tries desperately to be good and wonderful and perfect, then all the more the shadow develops a definite will to be black and evil and destructive"). And because it is unconscious, the Shadow eludes easy detection. Nevertheless, its contents can often be ascertained by keeping an eye out for psychological “projection,” wherein a person denies their own foibles and instead recognizes those defects in others.

Now consider this topic in relation to "The Winter King." Let us start with Ice King, a hyperbolically crazy and "evil" wizard. I would argue that Ice King is a textbook of Simon's Shadow made manifest: He is everything that Simon consciously does not want to be brought to the surface in its entirety. The tragedy of Simon is that, while he doesn't often talk about it, he knows deep down that Ice King, while corrupted and warped by the crown, was an aspect of himself. In fact, this entire series feels very much like Simon’s journey to fully recognize his own Shadow.* And the fact that he starting to do this despite it being a painful process is, in my opinion, the clearest evidence of his ethical/moral character. Conversely, Alt-Simon is not like this. When presented with his Shadow, he does not choose to begin the painful recognition process. Instead, he projects it onto an innocent person; he builds up an elaborate "nice king" persona while literally condemning someone for his own sins. It is important to note that psychological projection is a pretty normal occurrence and thus not a surefire marker of "evil" or anything like that. What makes this instance of projection so bad is that Alt-Simon does this fully aware that it will cause someone to suffer for crimes they did not commit. Alt-Simon is like the "pious" archbishop who burns the "evil witches" at the stake all because he cannot come to terms with his own inner demons.

Now that is messed up!

But you know what isn't messed up? The voice acting in this episode. I do not say this to be hyperbolic: "The Winter King" may very well be Hynden Walch's finest performance to date. Her take on the Candy Queen is truly horrifying in a decidedly blursed way. So fundamentally different is her performance that at first I thought it was someone else! Also stealing the spotlight in this episode is Brian David Gilbert, erstwhile writer for Polygon and maker of many a wacky YouTube video. Gilbert's Ice Prince exudes the perfect amount of over-the-top flamboyance and faux chivalry. Both Walch and Gilbert get a song apiece in this episode, and both do a stellar job. (As an aside, have we ever had a true-blue PB song? Does the Candy Queen's song count?)

Oh, and as a quick aside: "The Winter King" features a few short scenes set in Fionna's non-magical world that follow Marshall Lee and Gary Prince as the latter tries to bake something that will earn him greater renown. Going into these scenes, I thought I would have found them a bit dull, but they were quite endearing. It's obvious that these scenes are a way for us to explore how Marceline and Bubblegum got to know one another, but from the parallax angle of a genderbent world, and I am here for it!

Final "Destiny" Grade: A

Final "The Winter King Grade": A

* My Prediction: Simon will attempt to become the Ice King, only to realize that a full-on transformation is not just necessary but ultimately dangerous. Recognizing one's Shadow does not mean you become synonymous with; it simply means that you know it's there.

#adventure time #atimers #fionna and cake #fionna campbell #cake the cat #simon #simon petrikov #ice prince #candy queen #princess bubblegu

[ghostxrose]

One Life After Another, Forevermore | Bakugo Katsuki x Reader

Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four | Part Five (final)

Note ~ Just want to say thank you all so much for the love on my fic so far, it literally brings tears to my eyes seeing people enjoy my work. I love and appreciate you all so much! Also this part is nearly 8k words, just a heads-up.. Enjoy, Lovelies!! <3

Tags/Warnings ~ Fem!Reader, Reincarnation, Soulmates, Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Fluff, Emotional, Temporary Character Deaths, Depictions of Injuries, Potentially Triggering Content, No Use of Y/N, Hurts So Good (let me know if I should tag anything else <3)

Your eyes opened up to another new world and your cries proved to those who were in the room that you were a strong and healthy baby. You weren’t sure what life you were on now but you did remember the last few were different types of animals. You and Katsuki had found and lost each other in each life before being able to be together for any significant amount of time. It was in that new life as you screamed your lungs out as a tiny infant that your innermost consciousness wondered if you and Katsuki would ever get to fully live out any of your lives together.

In that new life, you were born a human. A royal human, as you would come to learn, a Princess to the Kingdom of the North. Other humans took care of you, served you, and did things for you. You lived in a grand castle amongst lavish things but not everything was as luxurious as they may have looked.

Your mother, the Queen, had died giving birth to you, and your father, the King, made sure that you were kept out of his sights. After his wife’s death, he had been grief-stricken and disappointed. His disappointment had been in you, a female, being his first and only child. He would have no heir to his throne unless he remarried and tried for a male child. He paid no regard to the way that Eternal Loves worked, he only cared about his reputation which seemed to be a recurring theme throughout your lives.

So that is what the King did; he informed the entire kingdom that the Queen and their child had both died during the birth, he ignored your existence, remarried, and a few years later a male heir was born. Your father, his new family, and the kingdom’s subjects rejoiced while you were hidden away in your room.

The years went on of you being ignored by your father and his replacement wife and kids. You were at least still treated like the rightful Princess you were by the servants in the castle. And they didn’t mind doting on you, talking to you, or fulfilling any requests you made. Many of them had told you that they much preferred when your mother was Queen and they spoke of how kind, beautiful, and lovely she was. It made you happy to hear but also left an ache in your heart that yearned for your mother’s love.

Not long after you had turned seventeen, you had decided that you were sick of the oppressive walls of the castle. You were sick of your father and his replacement family. You wanted to see more of the world, you wanted to exist in the world. But most of all, if you had stayed in that damn castle your whole life then you would never find Katsuki.

Your most trusted servants, and quite frankly your best and only friends, helped you to gather items and pack. Tsu had given you a cloak and a map of the country. Itsuka packed you a bag of clothes and dried fruits and even managed to get you some of your mother’s jewelry. Lastly, Reiko had been able to get you a decently-sized pouch of coins. You thanked them for all of their help and hugged the three of them tightly.

You laid in bed that evening but you didn’t sleep. You waited for Tsu to come by your room once your father and his family were asleep. When she did come to get you, the both of you quietly made your way to the kitchen. Waiting for you there was Itsuka, Reiko, and your favorite two cooks; Hanta and Rikido. Hanta smiled warmly at you as he handed you a bag with bread, cheese, and dried meat, and Rikido wished you luck as he handed you a bag of sweet baked goods. You gave them both a teary smile and thanked them quietly.

As you said your last goodbyes to your friends one of the castle’s guards, Mezo, silently entered the kitchen. You wiped your tears, straightened your back, and flipped the hood of your cloak up. You nodded to Mezo in silent communication then smiled, wide and warm, at your friends as you waved to them and walked away.

You quietly followed Mezo through the castle and outside to the royal garden. He led you to the back edge of the garden where a secret exit had been hidden away in the vines that covered the barrier that surrounded the castle grounds. He pulled the vines away and opened the door for you, standing back so that you could go through.

“Good luck on your journey, Princess. Please be safe on your travels.” He said quietly while he held a small sword out to you.

“Thank you, Mezo.” You said with a warm smile and took the sword from him.

You went through the door, sending Mezo one last wave as he closed the secret door behind you. You took a moment to slide the sword's sheath onto your belt and re-fastened it before quietly sneaking away from the castle. You were a bit scared to be on your own but knew that this was what you needed to do and you had prepared well.

Over the past couple of months, your friends had taught you various skills that would help you survive on your own. Itsuka taught you how to read a map, a compass, and the sun. Tsu had shown you how to sew which was beneficial towards clothing and wounds alike. Reiko had written you a journal full of information and drawings of different herbs and plants and their uses. Most importantly, Mezo had shown you how to use the sword on your hip and had trained you how to fight.

You silently made your way to the edge of the forest where you had one more person to meet. As you neared the trees the light of the full moon illuminated the figure of a person on top of a horse, another horse patiently standing next to the pair. 

“Hello? Koji?” You quietly called out as you approached.

The person’s head whipped in your direction as if spooked and you smiled sheepishly, “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you!” You quietly apologized.

“I-it’s a-alright, Princess. Y-yes, I-I a-am Koji. Th-this i-is y-your h-horse, M-Mira.” Koji told you and you smiled at him, then at your new horse companion. Koji taught you everything you needed to know about caring for and riding horses.

The moon was low in the sky and you knew the sun was due to begin showing itself soon. Koji asked where you headed first and you pulled out your map. You pointed to the Kingdom of the West and explained you would go there first since they were allies to the Kingdom of the North. Koji nodded, warned you to stay away from the South as he reminded you of the Barbarian kingdom that ruled there, and wished you luck on your travels. You thanked Koji with a warm smile and wished him well then set off on your journey to find your Love.

When you arrived at the Kingdom of the West you were in awe at how different it had seemed from your home kingdom. You bought yourself a room at a nice Inn that also had stables to keep your horse in. The Innkeeper was a nice round-faced girl about the same age as you by the name of Ochaco.

You had mentioned to Ochaco that you would probably be staying for a few days and she had cheerfully offered to show you around. You excitedly accepted her offer and couldn’t wait to experience what this kingdom was like.

True to her word, the next day Ochaco had come by your room to take you out and about the capital of the Kingdom of the West. As the two of you walked down the main streets of the capital, Ochaco talked about their king. Supposedly, he was a kind and gracious ruler by the name of King Yagi. Ochaco also talked very highly of Queen Inko and Prince Izuku. 

According to your new pink-cheeked friend, the whole royal family was very kind and on any given day you could find the Prince out and about the capital offering help to anybody who needed it. It made you feel a bit envious hearing about how nice the royal family was not just to their subjects but to each other and other kingdoms. They were even kind to the Kingdom of the East despite King Enji’s one-sided rivalry with King Yagi.

“Oh, oh! Look! There’s Prince Izuku!” Ochaco had practically squealed as she pointed to a green-haired boy helping out an elderly shopkeeper. Ochaco took hold of your hand and dragged you over to the Prince, eager to introduce you to him.

“Izuku! Izuku!” Ochaco cheerfully called out and captured the Prince’s attention. The Prince blushed a bit when he saw you both approaching but smiled brightly.

“G-good a-afternoon, Ochaco! Who is this?” Prince Izuku greeted her, then turned to you with a kind smile. You smiled shyly and introduced yourself, not bothering to make up a fake name since practically no one knew of your existence. But apparently, Prince Izuku was smart and well-educated about his kingdom’s allies.

“Your family name sounds familiar, are you related to the royal family of the Kingdom of the North?” Prince Izuku asked curiously and you hesitated slightly.

“M-maybe we could talk about that somewhere more private..” You said nervously.

“Of course, we could talk in the royal garden if you’d like?” Prince Izuku offered but before you could answer a tall knight appeared by the Prince’s side.

“My Prince, I am not sure if it is a good idea to invite a stranger into the castle grounds!” The knight said, one of his arms chopping the air to accentuate his point.

“Iida, I’ve told you that you can just call me Izuku, and I don’t believe that she has any malicious intent, not if she is from our ally’s kingdom.” Prince Izuku said in a light tone.

“Prince Izuku is correct, I do not wish to harm anyone here. I am simply just trying to experience life outside of the kingdom I grew up in. If you would like to know my story then I do ask that we discuss it in private.” You said reassuringly as the knight, Iida, assessed your words.

“Very well then, I will escort you all to the royal garden,” Iida announced, his face and tone serious as ever. Prince Izuku smiled brightly then led you and Ochaco to the castle grounds.

When you got through the gates to the royal garden you were once again in awe of your surroundings. The Kingdom of the West’s royal garden was filled with plants and flowers different from the ones in the garden back in your kingdom. However, you did recognize a couple of kinds of flowers that seemed to have been gifted to the Kingdom of the West from your home kingdom.

Prince Izuku led you and Ochaco over to a very nice outdoor furniture set where a boy with half-red, half-white hair and a girl with long black hair had been sitting. You were curious as to who they were since Ochaco hadn’t mentioned that Izuku had any siblings. Prince Izuku kindly asked Iida to inform the servants to bring out some tea before greeting the other boy and girl.

“Good afternoon, Shoto and Lady Yaoyorozu!” Prince Izuku said cheerfully as he invited Ochaco and you to sit.

“Good afternoon, Izuku, Ochaco.” The two-toned boy, Shoto, greeted in a neutral tone.

“Good afternoon, Izuku, Ochaco! I thought I told you to just call me Yaomomo, Izuku.” The girl, Yaomomo, told Prince Izuku with a kind smile.

“O-oh, right! S-sorry, Yaomomo!” Prince Izuku stammered out with a sheepish smile.

“It’s alright, Izuku. Now, who is your new guest?” Yaomomo asked and smiled at you warmly while Shoto stared intently at you as if he were trying to read your thoughts.

You introduced yourself and caught the slight shift in the look in Shoto’s eyes when you gave your family name. But he didn’t say anything further so you just brushed it off. Tea was brought out shortly after introductions and you mentally prepared yourself for the conversation that you were about to have.

“Alright, if you’re comfortable enough to share your story, I would like to hear about it. I can promise that you can trust Shoto and Yaomomo as well as Ochaco and myself.” Prince Izuku said in a warm and inviting tone after he took a sip of his tea.

You took a deep breath, then told them about your life back in your home kingdom. You told them that your mother passed away giving birth to you and that your father made sure that the rest of the kingdom never knew about you. How he remarried and had other children while you were left to yourself in the depths of the castle. Then you told them about your decision to leave the castle and see the world instead of just rotting away in your room.

You left out the part about wanting to find Katsuki because you weren’t sure how that would play out. In all of the lives that you had lived so far you hadn’t met anyone else who remembered their previous lives the way that you and Katsuki did. You just hoped that a life wouldn’t come where you and Katsuki forget all of the good times from your previous lives.

“Wow, that sounds truly lonely, I’m so sorry,” Yaomomo said with a sympathetic and sad face.

“I do wish I could have known my mother but the castle staff had become my family when my father and his new family wanted nothing to do with me.” You said with a small smile.

“Well, please know that you are welcome to live here at the Kingdom of the West or visit any time you like! You said you wanted to continue your travels, right?” Prince Izuku said with a warm smile and you nodded.

“Thank you very much but yes, I do want to travel a bit more before settling somewhere.” You said with a grateful smile.

“Where do you plan on going next?” Ochaco asked excitedly. You got a bit nervous because even though you were warned against going there, you wanted to check the Kingdom of the South for your Love.

You decide to play it safe and tell them a small lie, “Oh, well, I was thinking of going ea-”

“Do not go to the Kingdom of the East,” Shoto spoke suddenly, his voice was full of bitterness and he was staring angrily down at his tea. You sat in your place shocked by the outburst and unable to respond.

“Shoto.. Maybe explain a little bit? You’re scaring her..” Yaomomo said quietly as she rested a hand on his shoulder.

“I apologize. I did not mean to frighten anybody. It’s just that.. My father is King Enji of the East. He is already an instigating bastard, but if he hears word that you are from the Kingdom of the North then I do not see it ending well for you.” Shoto explained with his eyes full of worry as he looked at you.

“Oh, I see. Well, thank you for the warning, then. I’ll be staying here for a few days so I will just take a look at my map and figure something else out. I’m.. I’m sorry, Shoto.” You said and shared a look of understanding with the runaway Prince.

The topic had changed to something lighter after that and you were fascinated by some of the stories your four new friends had shared. Prince Izuku had even managed to convince Ochaco and yourself to stay for dinner to which you felt incredibly honored. Even though you were a Princess you had never had dinner with your father and his family, let alone ever had dinner with any other royal families.

Returning to your room that night you felt a true happiness that you weren’t sure you had ever felt in that life. If you hadn’t known that Katsuki was out there somewhere waiting for you then you probably would have made the Kingdom of the North your new home.

When you woke up the next morning, you decided to go out and explore more of the capital since you and Ochaco didn’t get very far yesterday because of seeing Prince Izuku. You dressed yourself in one of the skirts Itsuka had given you, a flowy button-up half-sleeved shirt, and slipped on your shoes. Once you grabbed your pouch of coins and your room key, you locked up and headed out.

You stepped into a small bakery near the Inn and immediately melted at the scent of baked sweets and coffee that swirled through the air. A tired-looking boy with purple hair around your age wrapped up the goods you bought with a bored look on his face. You wanted to make a comment about him also having purple eyes but the boy seemed pretty stand-offish so you only thanked him and went about your exploring.

You wandered in and out of shops for a while until you came across a blacksmith shop. You went inside, curious as to what weapons they might have that you could use. You found an area in the shop where the smaller swords were on display and were fascinated by some of the designs on some of the handles and blades.

“Oh, hello there, Miss Beautiful! I don’t think I've ever seen you in here before!” A cheerful and slightly flirty voice greeted you from beside you.

“I’m just traveling and decided to rest and restock here in the capital.” You explained as you smiled hesitantly at the boy.

As you looked at the boy with dark hair that had been tied back with a cloth around his forehead, you wondered how many more people around your age you were going to meet. Was it common for people your age to work in shops and such? All of your friends back in your home kingdom were about ten years older than yourself, how soon in their lives had they started working?

“You traveling by yourself?” The boy asked and you started to grow nervous. Before you could answer him, a different and more gruff voice called out to the boy from the back.

“C’mon, Yosetsu! We have to get the materials that the Bakugo family ordered loaded up before the journey tomorrow!” Another boy with slightly unruly silver hair and oddly sharp teeth came into view from the back with an annoyed look on his face. The first boy, Yosetsu, grumbled as he disappeared into the back of the shop.

“Sorry, if he was bothering you, miss! I’m Tetsutetsu! Did you need help with something?” Tetsutetsu kindly asked you with a smile.

You stood there slightly frozen as the name Bakugo replayed over and over in your head. These guys were going to wherever Katsuki was and they were leaving the next day! You could almost feel the Goddess of Fate smiling at you.

“Uhm, miss?” Tetsutetsu questioned with slight concern.

“Oh goodness, I’m so sorry! Uhm, what would you say is best for someone traveling? I already have a small sword about the same size as these but I figured it couldn’t hurt to have another one? Or maybe something smaller?” You nervously rambled a bit but it worked out.

“Ah, let’s see.. Since you said you already have a sword, why don’t you take a look at the daggers? That way you aren’t too weighed down while you’re traveling!” Tetsutetsu happily suggested as he led you to where the daggers were displayed.

“I’m sorry but I really have to go load up some materials. Just shout when you’re ready to buy something or if you’re leaving!” Tetsutetsu said before he disappeared into the back of the shop.

You took your time looking at the daggers, testing the weights of them, and looking at the intricate designs. You eventually decided on a decently weighted dagger that had a simple dark-colored handle that was easy to grasp in your hand. What truly sold you on it were the intertwined dragons on the sheathe. Both dragons were silver in color but one had a red ruby for its eye and the other had a purple amethyst. Once again you felt the eyes of the Goddess of Fate upon you.

You wandered up to the counter and hesitated before shouting Tetsutetsu’s name. You awkwardly waited for a few moments then before you could shout again, Tetsutetsu bounded in from the back.

“Find something you like?” He asked with a grin.

“Yes,” You said with a small smile as you put the dagger on the counter.

“A fine piece you have chosen there, miss! Simple but definitely reliable!” He happily exclaimed then told you the price.

You paid him the amount but didn’t turn around to leave like he assumed you would. “Did you need something else, miss?” He asked, kind as can be.

“I.. uhm.. You mentioned earlier that you would be traveling tomorrow? If I may ask, where to?” You nervously asked.

“Oh, uhm, we’ll be running some materials to the Kingdom of the South. They’re allies of the Kingdom of the West and occasionally buy metals from us.” Tetsutetsu explained.

“I see.. W-would you mind if I traveled with you? It’s just my horse and I.” You asked, hoping that he would say yes.

“Are you sure you want to travel to the South, miss? They may be our allies but the people there are a bit.. Rugged.” Tetsutetsu very hesitantly explained to you while he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Yes, I’m sure. We will both be traveling there anyways, so I just thought I’d ask if we could travel together, but if you do not wish t-”

“No, no! It’s not that I don’t want to! I was just making sure that you realized where exactly you would be traveling to,” He said, slightly panicked at having thought he offended you. “Yes, you absolutely can travel with Yosetsu and me! Though, the back of our wagon will be completely full of materials, so you’ll have to ride your horse.” He finished.

“That’s not a problem! Thank you so much!” You gratefully exclaimed then formally introduced yourself.

“Alright, we’ll be leaving at dawn tomorrow! We’ll meet you at the southern entrance of the capital!” Tetsutetsu said with a happy, sharp-toothed grin.

You thanked him once more then headed out of the shop. You wandered around the capital a bit more before your feet became tired and you made your way back to the Inn. When you got there, Ochaco was behind the counter and cheerfully greeted you. You asked her if it would be possible for anyone to come wake you at dawn the next day and she gave you a confused look.

“I thought that you said you would be staying a bit longer?” Ochaco asked confusedly.

“I did, yes. But there is a group leaving tomorrow and they said I could travel with them.” You poorly and vaguely explained why the situation changed.

“Where are they traveling to?” Ochaco asked, her tone slightly suspicious but mostly worried.

“Uhm.. to the Kingdom of the South..” You nervously admitted.

“The South?!” Ochaco exclaimed then rubbed a hand across her forehead as you nodded sheepishly.

“Well, I have no right to stop you from going but please be careful! We may be allies with them but Barbarians are people who are rough around the edges!” Ochaco said and sighed.

“I promise to be careful, Ochaco. Will someone be able to wake me a bit before dawn?” You assured her then questioned hopefully.

“Agh, yes. I’ll be sure to let Kyoka know to wake you.” Ochaco said in a resigned tone.

“Thank you very much, Ochaco! It’s been really great meeting you and thank you for helping to show me what life is like outside of the walls of a castle.” You told her and gave her a warm smile.

Ochaco let out a small noise then ran around the counter and hugged you tightly. She made you promise to come back to the capital at some point either for a visit or to stay. Even though you knew it was only a promise to visit again, it was a promise you had no problem making.

A firm knocking on your room door woke you from your sleep the next morning. You opened the door and thanked a shy but kind girl, Kyoka, for waking you. Once you tipped her a few coins she left and you set about lighting the lanterns in your room so that you could get ready for the day.

You got dressed, combed through your long dark hair, braided it, and tied the end off with a red ribbon. You packed your bag, slid your sword and dagger onto your belt before fastening it, and donned your cloak. You slipped on your boots and blew out the lanterns then left the room.

Sitting comfortably on the back of Mira, you made your way to the southern gate of the capital. You ended up getting there a bit early but you didn’t have to wait too long for Tetsutetsu and Yosetsu. They both greeted you with cheery smiles when they arrived and the three of you set off for the Kingdom of the South.

The two asked you many questions during your travel together and you tried to answer as vaguely as you could. You didn’t know them so you didn’t want to tell them too much about who you were or where you came from. You never even told them your family name, so at least they couldn’t connect you to your father.

In turn, you asked them about their lives. How they came to work as blacksmiths. If they had ever traveled for anything besides work. Anything that took the focus off of you for at least a little while.

Finally, as the sun had neared being low enough in the sky to be considered the beginning of sunset, your small group was approaching the borders of the capital of the Kingdom of the South.

You saw that large spiked logs stuck up from the ground and formed a tall wall around the Kingdom of the South’s capital. You huffed a quiet laugh to yourself at the thought of Katsuki’s family believing that spiked logs would seem more intimidating than a normal stone wall. If you were to see them, that wouldn’t have been the first lifetime you “met” Katsuki’s parents, so you already knew what kind of people they were.

Your group got up to the entrance and was stopped by some.. not-very-kind-looking guards.

“What is your reason for entry?” One guard demanded.

“We have the metal that the royal family ordered,” Tetsutetsu answered calmly.

“And what about the girl? She’s never been with you guys before.” Another guard questioned.

“Oh, she’s not from the Kingdom of the West! She just traveled with us because she wanted to visit the Kingdom of the South!” Yosetsu dumbly answered before Tetsutetsu could say anything.

Both you and Tetsutetsu cringed at Yosetsu’s poor explanation and for good reason..

“A mystery traveler, huh? You’re coming with us, little girl! The King and Queen can decide if you can stay or not,” The second guard stated harshly and grabbed the reins from your hands.

“Metal workers, go on through! Mystery traveler, get off the horse and follow me!” The first guard commanded.

You quietly cooperated, a bit of fear filled your stomach but you knew you would be okay when you saw Masaru and Mitsuki. The first guard came over to where you were standing with the second guard and he took your bag along with your weapons. Tetsutetsu and Yosetsu rode past you and Tetsutetsu shot you an apologetic look before smacking the back of Yosetsu’s head. A small smile graced your lips before it was wiped away after a harsh yank to your arm told you the guard was taking you to the King and Queen.

The guards walked fast and you kept up with them fine except for the few times you got tripped up on rocks. The guards seemed to not care about your well-being seeing as the one dragging you by your arm had a grip so tight you wouldn’t be surprised if it bruised. You really wanted to stop showing up to Katsuki with injuries in the lifetimes where you seek him out.

You became very confused when the guards led you through a side entrance of the castle, then proceeded to practically drag you down a flight of stairs.

“Wh-where are we going? S-sir, I thought you said I would be seeing the King and Queen?” Your shaky voice questioned.

“You dumb little girl! Why would a random stranger such as yourself just automatically get a meeting with the King and the Queen? What right do you think you have to that, huh?” The first guard taunted.

“That isn’t how we work around here, sweetheart. You’re gonna sit in one of these lovely cells and wait your damn turn.” The second guard said with a harsh laugh afterward.

You get stopped in front of a cell and shoved unceremoniously into it, the guards slamming the door shut and locking it behind you. As you sat down on the cold stone bench you let out a defeated whimper. You prayed that they wouldn’t go through your things or steal your mother’s jewelry. You prayed that they would even let the King and Queen know that you were here.

You weren’t sure how long you had been down in the cold dungeon cell but when you heard the door unlocking you lifted your head from your knees. One of the guards from earlier walked in and looked at you with disdain, “C’mon, get off of your pathetic ass and let's go! The King and Queen are waiting!” He said in the same harsh tone he had earlier and grabbed your wrist.

Unfortunately, your legs had fallen asleep from sitting in the same position for so long, so when the guard pulled on your wrist, your knees buckled. You let out a small cry when your knees hit the stone floor but the guard didn’t stop. The guard dragged you out of the cell, the rough stone floor tearing through your pants and scraping your skin. The pain made you grit your teeth and you tugged your arm back towards you in an effort to help yourself back onto your feet. Your attempt was successful, though it did earn you an irritated growl from the guard who just yanked your arm again.

The guard didn’t let you go the whole trek through the castle and only stopped dragging you when you stopped at a pair of fancy-looking doors. The guard sent you one last glare before he straightened up and knocked on the doors. You heard Mitsuki’s voice call out from inside and the guard opened one of the doors.

You were once again unceremoniously shoved and you stumbled into the grand throne room. You straightened up the best you could and tried to resist the urge to rub your wrist. You kept your eyes down towards the floor mostly out of shame over the disheveled appearance you wore. You could feel the pull of Katsuki’s soul and the knowledge that he was in the room gave you comfort.

“Good evening, young traveler. We sincerely apologize for any misunderstandings that may have occurred since you arrived-” Masaru’s gentle voice started.

“Misunderstandings? Jesus, Pops, look at her!” Katsuki yelled, coming to your defense, and your face flushed as your chest filled with appreciation.

“Shut it, brat! What is your business here, traveler?” Mitsuki demanded though she sounded more tired than anything else.

“I-I just wanted to see new lands, your highness. I come from a very small and sheltered village. I apologize for causing any trouble, Your Highnesses.” You said then finally looked up. Your eyes automatically connected with Katsuki’s and you pushed down the urge to giggle as his widened in surprise.

“You didn’t cause any trouble, young traveler. As for the matter of you st-”

“She can stay.” Katsuki’s statement cut off Masaru and earned him a glare from Mitsuki.

Mitsuki’s glare quickly turned into a smirk when she saw the look on her son’s face and you, once again, had to refrain from giggling.

“I suppose we can allow her to stay as long as Katsuki is with her at all times to keep an eye on her,” Mitsuki said with a teasing lilt to her tone.

“Fine. That’s fine.” Katsuki agreed quickly, making both of his parents look at him like he was a complete stranger.

“Alright.. Now that that’s settled... Katsuki, get the guards that brought her in to give her back her things and show her to a room.” Masaru said with a warm yet slightly hesitant smile.

“Thank you very much, your highnesses.” You said with a grateful smile and a curtsy.

Katsuki quickly got up from his throne and made his way over to you, lightly grabbing your arm and leading back through the doors you had entered through. He didn’t stop to talk to the guards though, he just kept pulling you through the castle wordlessly. After going down a couple of hallways you were finally pulled through a door into a bedroom that you assumed was his.

Katsuki closed the door behind you then immediately wrapped his arms around you and buried his face into the crook of your neck. You wrapped your arms around his bare torso equally as tight as giggles-turned-sobs left your mouth.

“I thought I told you to stop showing up to me injured, Violet.” Katsuki’s voice rasped against your skin.

“I tried this time, Kats. I really tried not to get hurt, but.. the guards that brought me in weren’t so kind.” The words spilled from your lips before you could stop them.

“And you’re going to point out who those guards were and I’ll punish them accordingly, starting with the one that pushed you into the throne room earlier,” Katsuki told you in a calm and even-toned voice but you could feel his hold become tighter from anger.

“Actually… the one that brought me to the throne room was one of them.. I don’t even care that they hurt me, Kats. I just want my stuff back and to finally just be with you.” You said quietly then kissed his neck once.

Katsuki let out a heavy sigh then nodded and pulled away from you reluctantly. His hands came up to your cheeks and gently wiped away your tears, a sad smile forming on his face.

“What’s wrong, my Love?” You asked softly as one of your hands came up to cup his cheek.

“I was just remembering the lifetime when you.. when you were a Mermaid and you didn’t know what tears were.” He said quietly as his eyes went slightly glassy.

“Aw, Kats..” You whispered before you leaned up and pressed your lips against his.

Remembering that lifetime was always really rough on both of you. It had been the one where you were together the longest, even if it had only been a few months. And it was the only one where you two had a child, even if the child hadn’t been born yet. The memories of how that life had ended still hit you both pretty hard.

“C’mon, my Love, let’s go get my stuff, maybe snag a meal because they didn’t give me any food while I was waiting for the meeting, and clean up my injuries, then we can cuddle all night long while we tell each other about this life. Sound good, Prince Katsuki?” You said softly with a warm smile.

“Yes, my Violet,” Katsuki murmured before kissing you deeply one more time, then leading you out of his room.

You slid the strap of your bag over your shoulder and re-sheathed the sword and dagger while Katsuki glared menacingly at the two guards that had brought you in. After he was finished silently threatening them, Katsuki took you to the kitchen where he cooked you a simple meal and sat with you while you ate. Finally, the two of you went back to his room for the night.

You were sat on the edge of Katsuki’s bed with your pants rolled up as he cleaned the scrapes on your knees and shins. He was grumbling about ‘killing the fucking bastard that did this’ and you were carding your fingers through his hair. When he finished bandaging you up he kissed over each knee then stood up and gently took your hand in his. He raised your arm and kissed over the bruise forming on your wrist then leaned in to kiss your lips.

You giggled into the kiss as Katsuki slotted himself between your legs and brought a hand up to the back of your neck to deepen the kiss. You ran your hands up his bare torso and a groan left his throat. You pulled back from the kiss to catch your breath and rested your forehead against his.

“So.. no shirt and just a cloak? You don’t believe in shirts in this life, my Love? All the girls in the kingdom just get to see what’s mine?” You teased as you walked your fingers over his defined abs and chest.

Katsuki chuckled and moved his head to bite your cheek before straightening up again, “I don’t know, Violet, this is just how I was raised. And let all of the other extras look, you’re the only one who gets to touch, Violet. You’re the only one I want to touch, my Eternal Love.” Katsuki explained, a smirk on his face when he finished talking.

He chuckled when you tried to cover up your flushing face. You always blushed whenever he would go all sweet and lusty. You poked at his chest as you stood up then went over to your bag and pulled out your nightgown. You both faced away from each other when you changed simply because there was a silent agreement that you wouldn’t have sex tonight but if you saw each other naked then there would be no going back.

Katsuki made sure that you were lying down before he put out all of the lanterns, then joined you. He snaked one arm under your head while the other curled over to pull your body into his. You both let out a sigh of contentment and he kissed your forehead.

“Kats?” You mumbled sleepily.

“Yes, Violet?” He questioned quietly.

“C’n we talk ‘bout our lives t’morrow? ‘M tired.” You said, your words slurred from exhaustion.

“Yeah, baby. It can wait til we wake up.” Katsuki said, his voice low and raspy from being tired.

“ ‘mmkay. Love you, Kats.” You whispered on the edge of sleep.

“Love you too, Violet,” Katsuki mumbled as his consciousness gave into the call of slumber.

At breakfast the next morning, Katsuki was informed that he would be excused from any princely duties he would’ve had for the day to show you around the capital. Queen Mitsuki had a servant fetch you some of her old clothes to wear and you gratefully thanked her. You and Katsuki finished eating and returned to his room to change.

You both managed to change without tearing each other's clothes back off as much as you both- but mainly Katsuki- had wanted to. You could feel his hungry gaze on you the whole way out of the castle. When you first put on the new clothes, you felt kind of exposed by the sleeveless and strapless top that barely covered your chest and ended just above your belly button and the low-rise pants that ended mid-shin. But your Love was quick to put your worries to rest as his eyes hardly left your body and he murmured sweet and lusty compliments into your ears.

As the both of you walked around the capital you got many stares cast your way and it felt like you could hear everyone’s whispers at once. Katsuki took your hand and squeezed it reassuringly while glaring at anybody who continued to look your way. You pushed your anxieties away and continued about your tour, Katsuki taking you to different shops and buying you small gifts and new clothes.

When you returned to the castle, you and your Love’s arms were full of enough clothes to fill a wardrobe along with some traditional jewelry and a few pairs of shoes. Katsuki was very determined to get you everything you would need to start feeling comfortable there in what was to be your new home kingdom.

“I truly did not need all of these things, Kats.” You said with a sheepish yet appreciative smile as you helped him put your new things away in his room.

“Of course, you needed all this damn stuff! I finally have you in my arms again and I don’t plan on letting you go, Violet!” Katsuki grumbled back to you with feigned annoyance.

“And I wasn’t planning on going anywhere, my Love. Though, your parents are under the impression that I will only be here for a few days.” You said as you wrapped your arms around his torso and rested your chin against his chest, looking up at him.

“We’ll figure something out, Violet. Not our fault if nobody else remembers their previous lives.” He rasped gently then kissed your forehead.

In one swift motion, Katsuki scooped you up bridal style, took a few steps to his bed, and gently dropped you onto it. You giggled at his actions then let out a quiet ‘oof’ when he laid on top of you with his full weight. You took comfort in his warm weight squishing your body into the mattress and brought a hand up to run through his hair.

“So, you gonna tell me about your life this time around or what?” Katsuki mumbled into the crook of your neck and you smiled at the tingly shiver that ran down your spine from the feeling of his lips brushing against your skin.

“Well, believe it or not, I’m actually royalty just like you in this life.” You started, then proceeded to tell Katsuki about your life up until that point.

He had been shocked to find out that you were a Princess, then angered over how you were treated by your own father. He was also annoyed that you ended up in Prince Izuku’s company before his but was easily soothed by some head scratches and kisses. When you were finished with your tale, Katsuki told you all about his own.

From that day forward, you had remained in the Kingdom of the South and made it your new home. It hadn’t taken much to convince King Masaru and Queen Mitsuki to let you stay as they had witnessed how much of an interest their son had taken in you. They had allowed Katsuki to court you and Mitsuki had treated you like the daughter she never had.

As time went by, you and Katsuki had become increasingly happy that things in your lives had seemed to be going very well. But along with the happiness and joy, there was also the anxiety that sat in the pit of both of your stomachs of something going wrong.

Your time together had reached a new record as you approached three years past finding each other in that lifetime. When your time together had reached two years and nothing happened to bring about either one of your deaths, you and Katsuki had decided to get married. Not long after marrying, you and Katsuki had been crowned the new King and Queen of the Kingdom of the South.

Soon after you both crowned the new rulers of the Kingdom of the South, you found out that you were with child. Though you had planned for it, after much discussion between the two of you, it was still a bit scary to discover that you had been sick not because of an illness. You and Katsuki still had nightmares from the memories of your lifetime as a Mermaid but you both shoved away the fears as your new life seemed to be going just fine.

As the months had gone by it was not just you and Katsuki who were excited about the baby. The kingdom’s subjects were very excited and happy for you as well, and many of them had sent gifts to the castle. You spent a lot of your time going through said gifts and appreciating the hard work that had gone into them. Many times Katsuki had found you blubbering over handmade baby clothes, small pairs of shoes, hand-stitched quilts and blankets, and even pieces of jewelry for yourself.

Then the day had come for your and Katsuki’s baby to make their arrival and, oh, what a long day that was. You labored for many hours and Katsuki was there for you the whole time. He had endured your pain-filled screams and bone-crushing grips on his hands and even a few insults thrown at him from your pain-driven rage. He did it all with excitement in his heart, amazement in his eyes, and encouraging words pouring from his lips.

Finally, as the sun was setting that evening, the loud cries of a new life echoed off of the castle walls. With your husband, your Eternal Love, by your side, your dark-haired and crimson-eyed baby boy was put into your weak and shaky but waiting arms. You looked to your Love, saw his shiny eyes full of love and amazement and the few tears rolling down his face, and smiled tiredly.

Suddenly, the room had begun to spin and you told Katsuki to take the baby because you feared dropping your new son. Katsuki’s joy quickly turned to fear and his panic-filled voice started asking what was wrong. You weakly told him that you weren’t feeling good as the castle doctors were now scrambling as they tried to get your bleeding under control.

“Please, Violet, please don’t leave us.” Katsuki pleaded in a broken voice, his few tears becoming streams down his face.

“I’m s-sorry, Kats.. Do y-you th-ink w-we are g-getting closer to o-our pe-peaceful f-forever to-gether? O-or are we g-going t-to have to k-keep s-suffering?” You asked weakly as you cried and held a hand out to brush against your baby’s cheek.

“Damn it, Violet! You fuckers better keep trying to help her, damn it! Just hang in there, my Violet, please!” Katsuki shouted before crying into your shoulder as he carefully hugged you close.

“T-take c-care of Ka-Kazuki.. H-he is g-oing t-to be s-so str-str-ong j-ust l-ike h-his papa i-is.. I.. l-love.. y-you.. both..” You weakly whispered out as final tears left your eyes and your vision faded to a familiar blackness.

The shattered and pain-filled shout Katsuki let out as you fell limp in his grasp echoed throughout the castle and around your dark void.

Author's Note ~ Okay, so.. don't judge me for Katsuki and Violet's child's name.. I wrote this fic months ago and I liked the name at the time (it means strength if I remember correctly) and haven't changed it to anything else since, haha.. Also, I'm sorry for yet another tear-inducing ending but it hurts so good doesn't it..? *smiles nervously* <3

Tag List ~ @damnirina @queenpiranhadon

#One Life After Another Forevermore #katsuki bakugo x reader #bakugou katsuki x fem!reader #bakugou katsuki x you #bakugou katsuki x y/n #mha bakugou #bakugo katuski #bakugo brain rot #bnha bakugou #mha bakugo katsuki #mha #bnha #reader insert #x reader #fanfic #royalty

[ericdeggans]

Reckoning with the long shadow of TV dads on Fathers Day

As a longtime TV critic, I have written a lot of pieces about dads and television for Fathers Day. Some of them have felt a bit contrived, like this piece on TVs Dumb Dads, which is an evergreen subject; television loves taking characters who actually have the most agency and power in society and making them look vulnerable for storytelling purposes.

But TV’s relationship to the subject of fatherhood and parenting is far more complex. I’m much prouder of this piece I did five years ago on how I mostly learned about being a father from watching characters on film, TV and theater.

A sample: “My own father isn't with us anymore, and I loved him a lot. But he and my mother split before I was born, and during my formative years, it was mostly me and Mom against the world. Any sense of what it might feel like to have a father close by came from the first sitcom with a father who felt like he could live in my world: James Evans on Good Times. These days, when TV shows like Black-ish and Queen Sugar offer lots of different takes on black family and fatherhood, it might be tough to imagine how rare and important it was for a young black kid to see Good Times in 1974.”

Hear the NPR story by clicking here.

After raising four kids of my own, I’ve learned that fatherhood is such a big job, it’s tough to find one portrayal on the small screen that does it justice. In the real world, it’s a job defined by trying to provide everything your children require to have the best life possible. It means knowing when to encourage their passions, meet their needs and satisfy their desires and when to save them from their own excesses, inexperience, lack of judgment or impatience.

It means soaring when they succeed and feeling crushed when they fall short. It also means understanding that your own actions always serve as example and model – it’s up to you whether that conduct is something to emulate or avoid like a cautionary tale.

On the subject of fathering and TV, I also like an essay I wrote for IndieWire a few years ago; basically, a slightly different version of the piece I did for NPR. Here’s an abridged version of that essay below.

And have a Happy Fathers’ Day.

“For a long while, I thought most married couples were like Rob and Laura Petrie in “The Dick Van Dyke Show”; sleeping in two twin beds separated by a nightstand. So when I saw John Amos as James Evans Sr. on the legendary sitcom “Good Times,” I felt like I finally saw a dad who was something like the other fathers on my block, and something like the dad I could have had.

Yeah, he was often angry and threatened corporal punishment WAY too often for my tastes, especially back then. But he worked hard, loved and valued his kids, encouraged them to get educated and take advantage of every opportunity and wanted nothing more than for them to do far better than he ever would. It wasn’t just that James Evans was black; it was that he was a black man whose primary goal was taking care of his wife and kids. All these years later, I’ve seen other TV dads who also taught me lessons.

John Goodman’s Dan Conner on “Roseanne” taught me how to make space for a strong wife and mom, but assert yourself when circumstances require.

Bill Bixby’s Tom Corbett on “The Courtship of Eddie’s Father” taught me the power of a parent paying attention.

I like fathers who show that being a dad takes effort and intention, like Michael Rapaport’s Doug Gardner on Netflix’s “Atypical.”

And even though Milo Ventimiglia’s Jack Pearson is modern TV’s best dad on “This Is Us,” I identify a lot more with his adopted son, Sterling K. Brown’s Randall Pearson.

In the same way Randall, as a black man raised in a white family, had to learn what being black meant to him, I had to learn what being a father meant to and for me. In the same way he found and reconciled with his biological father shortly before his death, I reconciled mostly with my dad before he passed. And Randall has a goofy earnestness mixed with a capacity to work a little too hard on stuff that takes him outside the family, which I also – sadly — can relate to.

My four kids are mostly grown now. But seeing a dad on TV who still struggles, despite having had the best example of fatherhood in his life, means a lot. Even now.”

[dulltoned]

Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter Three | Chapter Four | Chapter Five | Chapter Six | Chapter Seven

Living with his brothers is strange after all these years. They hadn't seen each other since they were kids and now suddenly they were all under the same roof again. Bruce didn't mind the quiet. Over these past few decades he'd gotten used to the loud hustle and bustle of work and the chaos of a home full of kids. It's been nice getting to wind down and it felt good knowing that Brandy was fully behind him in his decision to stick around for a bit longer. He had to admit that he missed his kids and he longed for his loving wife every day but there's a different kind of happiness nestled deep in his very bones when he watches his little brothers laugh around the dining table.

Getting along with John Dory has been a bit more of a challenge but not impossible. Even now they clashed like they did when they were kids, old resentments sparked back to life and their vastly different priorities making it difficult to find common ground sometimes. Still, even then, it was really nice to see him again too.

They're gathered now in Branch's small kitchen, awkwardly trying to stay out of their youngest brother's way while he goes about making lunch while all being equally unwilling to leave. Branch grumbles as he easily twists and steps around them but makes no move to tell them to get out. It makes Bruce smile and Branch very blatantly ignores him. Branch sighs for the umpteenth time as he grabs a pan from a low cabinet and spins around Clay to get to the stove. It was nothing fancy, just a few sandwiches to keep them running until dinner, and Bruce was proud to see that it wasn't the sweets he's sure Queen Poppy would've offered.

Branch grabs the butter dish from his counter and drops a dollop into the heating pan before bending over to open another cabinet. He curses under his breath and swiftly curses again. "Damn it," Branch huffs, eyes flitting around the small space one more time before he lets the doors fall shut with a heavy thud.

"What's up?" Clay prods, curiously looking between Branch and the disappointing cabinet like he could piece together the issue off that alone.

"I thought I'd restocked," Branch sighs, running a stressed hand over his hair absentmindedly. He crosses his arms and frowns, tapping his foot while he thinks in a way that Bruce finds adorable but would never dare say out loud. Or rather, not until it was the right moment. "Hey, Bruce, you know where the carrots are?"

Bruce startles when he's singled out but nods quickly, offering a thumbs up and a lazy smile, "Yep! Want me to go grab some for you?" He guesses, already peeling himself away from the table to head off towards the towering shelves lined up on the lower floor.

Branch sags a bit with gratitude and returns the smile hesitantly, "That'd be great, thank you." It's interesting, Bruce thinks, the war that appears to constantly be waging inside of his grown baby brother. He's far from the little bundle of nervous, excited energy he'd been back when he was a baby but there still seems to be some kind of uncertainty that never leaves him. Branch always looks like he's caught between throwing himself back into the family and keeping them all at a safe distance. Admittedly, ashamedly, Bruce thinks that had he reunited with his brothers only a few years ago he'd have been bitter about it. One of his kids, Brandon, was an anxious kid. Even though his siblings had always been welcoming and encouraging he was still hesitant to ask for what he needed or say no when his siblings pushed a boundary he hadn't communicated yet. Brandon had taught Bruce a lot about how fundamentally different people could be and that some were introverted and wary even around people they loved. He can't begin to imagine what was going on in Branch's head after all these years, experiencing who knows what on top of Grandma's death and the apparent Rock Apocalypse. Bruce was more than happy to offer up a little patience in return. The last thing he wanted now after everything was to push Branch away.

"You got it, little bro!" Bruce beams, stretching an arm around Clay to ruffle Branch's hair just to see his brother's face scrunch up in annoyance as he bats his hand away. He doesn't stick around to face Branch's wrath, whether that be in the form of a disgruntled glare or a few sharp words, and instead spins on his heel and makes for the hall.

"Don't eat all the rations!" John Dory calls teasingly just as Bruce slides into the hallway and slips out of sight. Bruce freezes. He knows it's a joke. None of his brothers had been anything but kind after seeing that he'd lost his iconic figure and John sounded nothing but fond. On top of that, Bruce has never been happier since he's given up on those strict diets and workout routines! Still, despite that, there's a spike of anxiety that shoots through his chest hearing those words. John Dory has said similar things to him plenty of times when they were younger, pushing Bruce to keep up the grueling work lest he disappoint the fans. Disappointing the fans always meant disappointing his brother and when he was a boy that had been crushing. Anything to keep that perfect image. It had tainted Bruce's love for fitness and twisted it into something that could break him. If he didn't do enough sit-ups would the band lose its fame? If he ate too much would they lose popularity? Would his family resent him?

It's been a long, long time since Bruce had felt any sort of discomfort about his body. Nearly fifteen years now since he'd shed those insecurities and found love and acceptance in Brandy who'd helped him more than he could ever hope to express to her. He loves who he is now and the man he's become. Yet somehow he still feels that telltale hurt stir up inside of him. He feels more resentment towards those feelings themselves than he does John Dory. He wishes it didn't bother him at all.  

He has half a mind to storm back in there and tell John Dory off but he reminds himself that starting a fight while he's angry would never go well, especially when it came to his older brother. A skill that parenting has given him is an almost unnatural level of patience and calm combined with a self-awareness that lets him know that he should cool down before he does something he'd regret. He takes a deep breath and squares his shoulders, letting the tension bleed from his body as he raises his head up high. He takes a few more steps down the hall towards the elevator but he's once again stopped in his place. This time by Branch.

"What the hell was that?" Branch hisses, seething with a simmering fire that Bruce was starting to associate him with.

"What was what?" John Dory asks, sounding genuinely confused and instinctively on the defensive.

"That was kind of uncool, man," Clay pipes up. He's wary. Rightfully so, Bruce thinks. Both Branch and John Dory were forces to be reckoned with and stepping between the two was dangerous. Bruce thinks Branch has snapped at all of them at least once since they've moved in and it wasn't at all what he had ever imagined his sweet little brother would grow up to be. He figures that was what happened when you had to raise yourself though. It only serves to highlight his regrets when he thinks about it.

"What?" John scoffs, his defensive tone overtaking his initial confusion. Bruce can sense a fight brewing but he still can't seem to unglue himself from that spot. He wants to know where this will go.

"You already gave him one eating disorder, you want to give him another one?" Branch snarls. He sounds more like he's facing a threat than talking to his brother and the tone itself is enough to send chills down Bruce's spine. It takes a few seconds for the words themselves to register but when they do Bruce's whole body tenses right back up. What? 

"..what?" John Dory echoes Bruce's thoughts. He's starting to sound like a broken record but his voice is something weak and shocked now. The mask John had been raising was knocked aside with ease. Had he really not known? Had little Branch, maybe only four at the time, really seen something that John Dory hadn't? Had their eldest brother really been so blind?

"What? You think nagging someone every damn day about their body wouldn't make them hyperaware of it? I was the one who would sit in the dining room waiting for Bruce to finish eating, you know. Sometimes it took hours." Branch snaps, entirely unimpressed by John Dory's sudden meekness. Bruce remembers those days too. There had been times, way back when he was a teenager, when he'd been stuck at the dinner table pushing his food around trying to convince himself to clear the plate. Grandma had always had a rule about not leaving their seats until they'd finished their dinner and for a few years Bruce had greatly struggled to do so. He hadn't known that little Branch had lingered so often because he was waiting on Bruce. He had been so focused on trying to get the courage to just put the food into his mouth that he'd thought maybe Branch had just wanted to stick around. Kids could be weird. He thought it was just one of Branch's little quirks that he'd be able to tease him about when they were older. You were always just sitting around in the kitchen, he would say, you were so weird. He'd never known it had been for him. "Maybe, instead of being an ass, you could just-- oh, shit--" The smell of something burning reached Bruce's nose and he took that as his sign to make a break for it. He finally makes it to the elevator in time to hear the loud clangs of the pan being thrown into the sink.

He doesn't know what he'd expected. His brows furrow and his hand feels heavy where it pushes down the lever. He doesn't know why he just assumed that his other brothers would've brushed off John Dory's comment or even laughed along with him. He thinks, maybe, that he had some residual insecurity lingering in his head somewhere that he never had a reason to address before. The idea doesn't weigh on him. Instead he feels lighter than he had when he'd left. They stood up for him. Branch had gotten angry on his behalf and told John Dory off without hesitation and Clay had backed him up without much thought. He could even perfectly picture the disapproving expression that might have crossed Floyd's features.

The elevator rumbles to a stop on the lowest floor and he swiftly steps off and makes a beeline for the shelves holding most of Branch's food storage. He didn't want to take too much longer if he could avoid it, he doesn't know what he'd say if anyone asked him why he took so long. He knows they probably knew he stayed back, especially since the elevator itself wasn't exactly silent, but he wanted to have plausible deniability at least.

It doesn't take him too long to find the crates of carrots tucked away and he quickly hefts one into his arms before someone clears their throat. He admittedly startles at the sudden sound, nearly dropping the crate before he barely manages to regain his grip. He whips around to see Branch leaning up against the wall, arms crossed, and watching him carefully. Branch must've taken the stairs down but damn was he fast. Bruce didn't think he had lingered too long but maybe he'd been a bit more lost in his head than he thought.

"What's up?" Bruce asks after a few beats of silence when Branch makes it clear that he isn't going to start. "Was I taking too long for you?" He jokes, wiggling the crate still held in his arms to prove he'd completed his task.

Branch's eyes narrow just so and he hums noncommittally. He clearly finds whatever it is he's looking for because he pushes off the wall and strides up to Bruce, reaching out to place a comforting hand on his shoulder, and says "You don't need to change yourself for us." Warmth thrums through Bruce's veins, amazed by Branch's kindness despite his prickly exterior. Branch seems to hesitate for a brief moment, a blink-and-you-miss-it sort of thing, before he visibly steels himself. "We love you." He assures. A dopey smile spreads across Bruce's face.

Branch is scurrying off before Bruce can really get a word in but that doesn't stop him from brightly calling after him, "I love you too!" and he takes a sick pleasure in seeing the tips of Branch's ears turn a dark blue before he disappears around a corner.

Bruce still carries the carrots up to the empty kitchen and places them into the cabinet that Branch had been looking for them in earlier. He sees the pan still in the sink, a few drips of butter turned black pooled at the lip, and grimaces. They end up going out for lunch suspiciously devoid of Branch. John Dory pays for their meals.

#| Game Plans | #{ isolationist } #{ the heartthrob } #{ the leader } #{ the fun boy } #trolls band together #trolls fanfic #trolls branch #dreamworks trolls #trolls spruce #trolls bruce #trolls john dory #trolls clay #hurt/comfort #angst #eating disorder #// eating disorder

[xyvyl]

𝐹𝒶𝓂𝒾𝓁𝓎, 𝒷𝓊𝓉 𝓃𝑜𝓉 𝒷𝓎 𝒷𝓁𝑜𝑜𝒹 | Modern Family x teen! M! reader

Summary: Lily bonks her head on the door frame, Cameron and Mitchell aren't sure they're good parents.

A/N: Does not follow the events completely. Want to be notified when a new chapter comes out? Let me know by replying to this, or any, chapter and I'll add you to the taglist!

Word count: 1,348

Warnings: Lily bonking her head on a door frame

Pronouns used: he/they

Type: Part four

Prologue | Part one | Part two | Part three | Part five

MasterLink

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"Are you still baby proofing?" Cam stood in the living room with Lily in his arms dressed like Diana Ross.

"Everything we own is pointy- Why is our daughter dressed like Donna Summer?" Cam looked very offended by that statement, "She's clearly Diana Ross from the RCA years." Cam and Mitch both looked up when I walked in the living room, Cam looking very shocked that I knew knew who Diana Ross is.

"Y/N! Come here! I want to take pictures with you too!" Cam got over the shock pretty quickly and rushed me to do the photoshoot.

After some pictures, I went to take a seat on the couch.

"Ever since we brought Lily and Y/N home you've been tense." Cam picked up Lily, "All you do is put child locks on things, read parenting books. Would you please stop and- here, just hold your daughter" Said Cam in a very judgey way. "Hold her and relax, just relax." Cam handed Lily over to Mitch.

"Oh sweetheart." Mitch takes Lily from Cam's arms and notices a scent coming from the wig. "Did you put hairspray in this?" "Just a little bit, yes." Cam whispered and I shook my head, knowing that it's not good for kids.

"I'm going to put some music on." Cam walked over to the music box while Mitch tried to protest. "Dance with her! Put a little boogie in it." The music started and Cam started dancing towards Mitchell and Lily. "Just dance, you know you love this song. You too Y/N!" I smiled and got up from the couch and moved along to the music.

"This is actually a really good song, alright okay." Mitch started moving along to the music as well. "Who's the dancing queen, huh?" Mitch whispered to Lily. "Put a little boogie in it!" Cam encouraged him.

When Mitch started bouncing Lily up and down near the doorframe, is when I got worried.

I stopped dancing and watched Mitch and Lily carefully.

"See? Fun, right?" Lily was giggling, until Mitch did in fact bonk her head against the doorframe.

Cam and I rushed towards them. "Oh my, was that her head?" "No because if it was her head she would be." Mitch got cut off by Lily starting to cry.

I took Lily from Mitchell's arms and took her to the couch to take off the wig to see where she was hurt. "Could either of you take Booboo bear from the freezer and can the other get the stroller while I calm her down?" Cam went to get Booboo bear from the freezer and Mitch went to get the stroller.

Once I got Lily to calm down a bit, Mitch came back with the stroller. "Do you think she will be okay?" "Don't worry, she will be." I answered Mitch as I put Lily in the stroller.

"I got Booboo bear from the freezer." Cam came running in with an ice-pack. "Why do you have chocolate on your face?" Mitch took the ice-pack and gently put it on Lily's head. "It was under a pie." "So you ate your way to it?" "I made a judgement call, you weren't there!" Cam and Mitch were arguing, so I decided to step in. "Ladies, ladies your both pretty. Now can we get back to making sure Lily is alright?"

Both men looked at me and then at each other. "You're right, do you think she'll be alright?" Mitch asked, again. "She didn't cry that much." "Maybe that's a bad sign, you know. We should try to make her laugh." Mitch proposed the idea. "Why?" "'Cause that way we'll know she's okay. Where's, um, where's Doggy?" Mitch and Cam started searching for 'Doggy' while I stayed with Lily.

Cam was repeating the name 'Doggy' as if it would actually come to him.

Eventually he did find it and handed it over to Mitchell.

"Okay, there you go." Mitch started making cow sounds and Cam and I looked at the man as if he was the first alien on the planet. "You know that's a dog, right?" I questioned his knowledge of animals. "Yeah, I know that's why it's funny."

"I don't think it's as funny as you think it is." I trailed off a bit at the end, but thankfully Cam stepped in. "Can we please just call your sister?" "No, no." But Cam already ran to the kitchen to call Claire.

"Cam, Cam. Why, so she can be all judgmental and condescending like she's the expert and I don't know how to take care of a baby?" Mitchell tried to make Cam not call Claire, but he was already typing in the numbers.

"Mitchell, she is your family. Of course she's gonna be judgmental and condescending." Cam handed Mitchell the phone and left the kitchen.

"Dad just call Claire, she'll probably know what to do." I told him and Mitchell looked at me with shock over his whole face and then clicked the call button.

"Hey, hi, um, not a big deal just wondering. When your kids were small did you ever, I don't know, uh, smack their heads into a wall?" Mitch just blurred it all out at once and a small pause followed.

"Oh no, no. Accidentally, um, we just kinda bonked Lily's head and she. It really wasn't very hard, she isn't acting any differently, but I just worried that." Mitch stopped talking again and looked over at me and Lily.

"Okay, all right, thank you. Thanks it helps, okay, okay." Mitch put his hand over the microphone of the phone and whispered to Cam, "We got to take her to the doctor, load up the car."

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

The doctor came in, "Hi, I'm doctor Mira, I'm on call today. Looks like we have a little head bump." "Oh, yeah it happened a couple of hours ago. On a, on a door jam."

"Ouch." The doctor got a little closer to inspect Lily's head. "There doesn't seem to be any mark." "Well her head was somewhat protected." Cam whispered that last part. "Protected? Was she wearing a hat?" Doctor Mira asked. "Yes, yes, it's like a hat." "It was a wig, actually. Sort of a ghetto fabulous afro thing." Me and Mitchell looked at Cam as if he was insane. "I thought it might be medically relevant." Cam defended himself.

"Really? You thought ghetto fabulous might be medically relevant?"

"Maybe let the doctor finish the exam?" I stepped in, noticing the slight annoyance coming from the doctor.

Doctor Mira nodded her head to me and continued the exam while Mitchell let out some small apologies.

"You be pleased to know that Mitchell and I intend on raising Lily with influences from her Asian heritage." My head snapped over to Cam the second that sentence came out of his mouth. "That is fantastic. Have you noticed any vomiting since the head bump?" Deciding to not let those two speak as much anymore, I answered, "No, we have not." "We've hung some art in her room, some Asian art and then, when she's ready for solid food, there is a fantastic pho place, right around the corner from our house. Am I pronouncing that right? Is it pho?" I threw my hand to my forehead and shook my head, I'll have to apologize for them when we leave.

"I don't know. I'm from Denver, we don't have a lot of pho there."

After Mitch hit his head on the door multiple times, doctor Mira assured that Lily is doing fine. When she got up to leave I made my way towards her.

"Excuse me, I'm so sorry about my dad. He's just really nervous about taking care of a baby. Both of them are." I apologized, but she put her hand on my shoulder and told me, "I take no offence, I get it, they're really stressed. Maybe tell them how good they are doing, once in a while. It'll make them feel more confident with raising Lily." We smiled at each other and parted ways.

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Taglist:

@enby-jellyfish

@ilse235

@kingcalamity

#modern family x teen male reader #modern familiy #modern family x male reader #modern family x reader #lily pritchett #male reader #cameron tucker #mitchell pritchett

[therhythmafterthesummer]

Purple Flame (M) ~Bang Chan

Pairing: Dokkaebi!Chan x Dragon!F.Reader.  Themes: Fantasy AU | Established Relationship | Smut Warnings: world building/context, swearing, mentions of war, mentions of torture and abuse (not that explicit, but itʼs there), graphic depictions of intercourse (smut warnings under the cut). Word Count: ~6k | AO3 Summary: The Firelands’ Gifted Tribes hated each other, especially the Goblin Children and the Dragon Children, but they were willing to work together against a common enemy. Thanks to the war, a pair of star-crossed lovers find the opportunity to end the decade-long feud between the two Gifted Tribes, a goal they’ll strive for whether the Goblin King and the Dragon Queen like it or not.

Due to all the abovementioned warnings, this story is intended for an adult audience only. Minors please do not interact.

Author’s Note: I have no excuse. I’m just weak.

Smut Warnings: oral sex (M.&F.Receiving), fingering (F.receiving), spanking, nippleplay (F.receiving), rimming (F.receiving), unprotected intercourse (piv), there’s one (1) titty slap, creampie

Disclaimer: the story represented in this work does not represent Stray Kids in any way; anything described in this story and all actions performed by the characters are purely fictional, this was created just for good fun.

The realm of Nyaldra was divided into six nations, the Waterlands, the Firelands, the Airlands, the Earthlands, the Woodlands, and the Thunderlands. For centuries, these nations had lived in peace among one another, fair trade flourished, and magic flowed between each nation freely. They lived peacefully. 

Until they didn’t.

Five years ago, after the tragic passing of Her Majesty Queen Lyandal of the Thunderlands, her son, Lyen, was crowned King of the Thunderlands. With his coronation, the amicable relationship between the six Nyaldran nations wavered. The man proclaimed himself the ‘Supreme Ruler’, alleging that the Gods had chosen him for the divine task of unifying all nations into one.

Feeding his people lies and false promises, luring those devoted to the Gods into believing him, Lyen procured an army of Gifted from the Thunderlands–all people of all ages and genders who harboured the power of Lightning.

Lyen and his kin had decided that taking the Firelands first would be the smartest move, considering it was the biggest and most powerful nation among the others. Upon their first attack, Her Majesty Queen Nimrae of the Firelands seeked the leaders of the most prominent Gifted Tribes of her nation, requesting their assistance in the upcoming war. 

It was said that children from the Gifted Tribes got their powers–or Gifts, as they liked to call them–from creatures of old no longer roaming this world. Dragons, phoenixes, salamanders, and goblins trained magic-sensitive Firelander children for centuries, their Gifts flowing through their veins, for them to later be passed down to their children. 

There was a problem with Queen Nimrae’s plan, though. The Gifted Tribes of the Firelands were somewhat autonomous, living separately from the Ungifted, and they did not take kind to one another. After big promises and even bigger payments, it took Her Majesty four months to get the four tribes to agree to work together.

It had been five years since the war started. The Thunderlands had been able to take a handful of territories from the Firelands, but clearly not at the pace they had wanted; it was widely known that they had not expected for the attack on the Firelands to last this long, the Gifted Tribes had managed to resist so far, and even push them back and reclaim a few territories.

Chan was the current war leader of the Goblin Children. The title was inherited from his mother, becoming his own right after she had died in battle two years ago. Being appointed as war leader meant he had to plan and take part in all the attacks and counter attacks to the Thunderlands, a task he was outstanding at carrying out, since his mother had trained him for battle from a young age. 

His mother had persuaded his father, the current Goblin King, to accept Queen Nimraeʼs offer, and help her defend the Firelands. Admittedly, she had not disclosed all the conditions of their treaty with Her Majesty to her husband, but she had managed to convince him to agree by telling him it would extend his domain. Which was a half truth. 

The full nature of their specific treaty was a secret, kept only between Queen Nimrae, Chan, and his mother. Something that Chan was not going to bring up to his father until the end of the war, after the agreement had been fulfilled.

A week ago, Chan received information from an unexpected source of a hidden Thunderlander post near their borders, the man had promised he would provide any details he had on the operation, as well as on King Lyen himself, as long as Chan took him in and kept him as far away from King Lyen as possible.

“Tell me, Yongbok of the Waterlands… Why should I believe you?” Chan had asked him then, bringing his hand closer to the manʼs face, his blue fire shining bright in his palm.

“Yongbok is the name I use to hide, and it is what I gave your guards, but you might know me by a different name. I’m Felix of the Selkie Children”. 

The Selkie Children was one of the most powerful Gifted Tribes in the Waterlands, but most importantly, it was known among the war leaders that Felix of the Selkie Children was King Lyenʼs betrothed.

Felix told Chan stories about King Lyen, how mad he had become, how abusive he was–the numerous wounds and scars littering Felix’s body more than proof of that. Felix knew things that no regular person would know, and after hours and hours of prying and questioning Chan had reached an agreement with Felix–if he helped them take down the hidden post, as well as any other, Chan would take him in. 

Felix had provided enough information on five hidden posts along the Firelands’ border for the Goblin Children to take them all down in the spawn of five days, so Chan kept his promise, providing the safe place to hide Felix had requested.

Which took Chan to this moment, standing in his war room, planning their next attack on King Lyen’s forces with his right hand, Changbin, Felix of the Selkie Children, and his weapon expert, Minho.

“We still need some resources to start the siege to reclaim the southern territories”, Minho was impassive, bored even. “But if pretty boy here really manages to get us those numbers we need then we’ll be able to start in a week’s time”, he pointed to Felix, who simply rolled his eyes at him. 

“It’s almost done, I have spoken with my contact in the west, she’ll–” Felix’s words were cut off by the loud sound produced by Chan’s palm suddenly hitting the table. Chan felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up, and he knew exactly what that meant. 

“Shit. Not this again…” Chan couldn’t help but let out a frustrated sigh as he saw the red flames pooling in the middle of the room.

Felix was clearly terrified as he moved away from the whirlpool of fire suddenly appearing next to him. He looked at the three Goblin Children in alarm, only to notice Changbin rolling his eyes, and Minho holding his mouth shut tightly, clearly making an effort to not laugh. 

The fire finally dissipated, leaving only a woman behind. An angry looking woman. 

You. 

“We had an agreement, Christopher”, was all you said as you moved towards the table, slamming your hands on it.

The war leader of the Dragon Children herself. You had a habit of making your way into the Goblin Children’s quarters, something that any other time, and at any other place, Chan would have really not cared about. Sometimes all you wanted was to quickly go over plans with Chan, sometimes you just wanted to annoy the shit out of him. Right now, you were clearly here just to complain about something. 

“How many times do I have to tell you to not come into my war room unannounced? This is ridiculous”, Chan brought two fingers to the bridge of his nose, pinching there to ease some of the frustration building rapidly within him at the sudden intrusion.

“How many times have I told you I don’t care?” You looked Chan dead in the eyes, with your eyebrows scrunched together–you were clearly upset and it made Chan sigh instantly. 

He moved around the table, coming to stand in front of you. Chan was annoyed by the intrusion, sure. But he would lie if he said he was not feeling his heart thump aggressively in his chest. It had been a month since he last saw you, which made it even harder for him to stay mad for long. 

“What do you need?” Chan tried his best to sound intimidating, to sound angry and inconvenienced. He wasn’t sure it was working. 

“I need an explanation. Why is there a Waterlander roaming freely within the Goblin Tribe?” Your eyes had not moved away from Chan since you appeared into the room, Chan wondered if you even noticed the other three men in the room. If you did, you clearly didn’t care about their presence at all.

“Did you have to interrupt an important meeting for this?” Chan’s eyes moved to land on Changbin, only to move back to yours. Changbin was… Not entirely fond of the Dragon Children’s war leader, something Chan wanted to change, but was not sure how to even address it with him without giving away too much to his second in command. 

You seemed to have noticed then, your eyes moving from Chan to scan the room, looking at Minho, then Changbin… The moment your eyes landed on Felix, Chan saw your eyes ignite as your hand moved up, your red fire quickly pooling in it. He registered the danger instantly, his own blue fire pooling in his hand as he moved it to catch yours before you casted your Gift towards Felix, both flames mingling into a bright purple flame as Chan held you tightly in place. 

“Leave us”, Chan ordered his men, his eyes not leaving yours for one second. This was dangerous, he knew you could become irrational around Waterlanders. After all, it had been some Waterlanders that had been persuaded by King Lyen that had killed your father, leaving you in his position. 

Changbin left the room instantly, Minho moved a bit slower, taking a hold of Felix’s elbow to tug him towards the door, since Felix had been stuck on the spot staring at the purple flame burning bright between your joined hands.

As soon as the door closed behind them, and you two were alone, Chan’s shoulders slumped slightly, relaxing only a bit now that you were on your own. It was much easier to talk to you when he didn’t have to pretend–when you didn’t have to pretend.

There was silence for a while. Chan didn’t let go of your hand. Red fire staring into blue fire, while the purple flame burnt warm and welcoming where your hands met. There were many things he wanted to say, but he knew you were trying to come up with something to say yourself–even if he couldnʼt see your eyes behind the fire, it was almost like he could hear the cogs turning inside your head. 

After a few more moments of silence, your stance relaxed a bit, too. The fire dissipated from your eyes and your hand, Chan’s dissipating right after. After a sigh escaped your lips, you spoke again. “You promised, Chris. You promised there would be no arrangements with the Waterlands”, you were genuinely hurt, it was clear in the expression of your face and the almost defeated tone lacing your words, and it pulled at his heartstrings immediately. 

“I know, little dragon”, taking a step closer, Chan wrapped his arm around your waist, releasing your hand from his as he pulled you to him for your bodies to be flush to one another. You let him pull you to him, resting your hands on his shoulders. “I’m sorry, but there’s a good reason. I was going to tell you after you came back from the siege in the east. Thought it would be tomorrow”, one of his hands cupped your cheek, his thumb drawing circles there, trying to soothe you.

“We came back earlier than expected”, you shrugged. “Had to find out from Jisung that you had taken in a random guy from the Waterlands…” Your eyes darted around his face, while your fingers tapped on his chest. Chan had told Jisung–your right hand, another Dragon Child–of the unexpected guest, but he hadn’t disclosed the man’s identity, Chan was sure that the moment you knew who he was, you would understand. 

“He’s not some random guy, he’s Felix of the Selkie Children”, the movement of your fingers against Chan’s chest stopped, your eyes snapped up to meet his once again, going wide in surprise as his words registered in your brain. “He escaped Lyen’s fortress, where he had kept Felix to mistreat and abuse him. He offered information for safety… I couldn’t say no”, Chan’s thumb continued to draw circles on your cheek, looking deep into your eyes as he let you digest what he was saying. 

After a moment, you exhaled, your eyes closing as you relaxed your body in Chan’s hold. “I really hate when you make sense. Especially with something like this… So annoying”. 

Chan chuckled, feeling relieved that you understood his decision, that you knew he wasn’t doing it to break your agreement, nor to hurt you in any way. That’s far from what he wanted.

When you opened your eyes again and looked at him, Chan couldn’t hold back any longer. It had been too long. Sure, you both would often not talk for days at a time, but you tried to meet at least once a week. A whole month without you proved to be absolute torture for him, so he finally leaned in, connecting his lips to yours as he had done countless times before.

Your lips moulded to his instantly, pressing soft pecks as an appreciative hum resonated from deep within you. You clearly had missed him, too. It was obvious to Chan in the way your hands fisted his shirt, and the way you swiped your tongue on his bottom lip to get him to open his mouth. If there was something he enjoyed in this world, it was moments like these when you two kissed and your tongues finally reunited. It always made him giddy, made him pull you closer to him, and made him want to show you how much he liked it.

Removing his hand from your face, he sneaked it behind you, resting briefly on the small of your back only to dart lower a few seconds after, finding your bum and squeezing. Chan liked your ass, he really did, so he tried to get his hands on you whenever he could, especially if you were kissing.

With a giggle, you broke the kiss, looking at him straight in the eyes with a smug smile on your lips. “So much for being mad at me for bursting into your war room��. 

“Iʼll get my payback later”, a loud smack resonated within the space as Chanʼs hand landed on your bottom, squeezing the flesh tightly over your trousers right after as he bit his lower lip. “Since you’re already here, why donʼt you stay for dinner?”

“Only if we can have it in your room”, you chuckled, leaning in and pressing a kiss to his lips. 

Chan would never forget the day he met you. He was only eighteen years old when he found himself running around in the Grand Fire Forest. It was stupid, really. Some routinary disagreement he had had with his father that made Chan lose his temper and run away to the forest trying to find some semblance of peace.

He hadn’t expected to run into someone, much less someone like you. You had almost pushed him to the floor when you appeared from between the trees, your bodies colliding almost aggressively for a loud ‘oof’ to escape your lips as you stumbled back from each other slightly.

At the time, Chan could tell almost instantly that you were a Dragon Child, it was obvious to him by the way his hair stood on the back of his neck in your presence. The Goblin King had always told him Dragon Children were not to be trusted, that those who descended from the dragons were dangerous, evil, and scheming. That day in the forest as you looked at Chan with panicked eyes after stumbling onto him, you looked neither of those things.

You seemed to have had a similar reaction to the encounter, and the moment you both decided you were not a threat to each other you discovered you were under similar situations–both of you running away from a resentful and absent parent. It had taken you both fifteen minutes only to realise that what the Goblin King said about the Dragon Children, and what the Dragon Queen–your mother–said about the Goblin Children was not true. 

Your forbidden friendship had started that day in the forest. You both found time to meet at that same spot almost weekly, using your time together to chat, play some games, or train your abilities together–which is how you discovered the purple flame. It was basic colour theory, really. Red and blue would produce purple, and it seemed to be true also for your magical fire.

By the time Chan was nineteen, he had developed a raging crush on you. He hadn’t meant to, but it was hard when you were the smartest and most beautiful person he had ever met. Chan found out much later that his dear mother noticed something was up immediately, Chan’s father was absent from most of his life, always putting the Goblin Children first over his own child, but his mother cared deeply about Chan, and she knew him probably more than he knew himself at the time.

Shortly after his twentieth birthday Chan realised he didn’t care about his father’s hatred towards the Dragon Children, that he didn’t care about your mother’s hatred towards the Goblin Children, all he cared about was you. And you seemed to have a similar view, considering you had kissed him one day, effectively starting your secret relationship. It was risky, but you were both young and in love and willing to fight even the Gods themselves for it.

You both had been careful, you didn’t even tell your best friend Jisung about Chan, nor did Chan tell Changbin about you, but deep down you both knew it would only be a matter of time until someone found out. To this day, Chan was grateful that, at least, that someone had been his mother, for she had been fully supportive, and entirely understanding of Chan’s feelings. She hid the relationship from her husband, knowing what could happen if he ever found out. 

She confessed to Chan one day that she didn’t support the Goblin King and the Dragon Queen’s feud, that she knew it was all pettiness and stubbornness on both parts. Which is why when Queen Nimrae came to the Goblin Children to ask for help against King Lyen, his mother saw it as an opportunity for her son to finally be happy, even if it meant hiding the truth from the Goblin King.

All these things would often pop up in Chan’s mind whenever he got pensive or whenever he looked back to the past. Right now, though, as your arms looped around his neck and you pulled him to you, your mouths moulding to one another and your tongues dancing against each other, it was hard to think about anything other than your bare upper body pressed against his right there in the middle of his room.

You sunk to your knees, leaving kisses over his chest, his abs, and his pelvis on your way down. The sound of metal clanking against metal filled the room as you unbuckled Chan’s belts, fumbling slightly with both items as you huffed out an annoyed ‘are two really that necessary…’ which made him chuckle.

“I have an aesthetic to keep, darling. Of course they’re both necessary”,  the comment made you chuckle, the sound falling from your lips as you shook your head slightly in fake disapproval.

With both belts unbuckled and out of the way, you got to work on the row of buttons down his crotch, swiftly flicking them open as your knuckles dragged over the length of his hard cock in his underwear. Chan was trying his best to appear unaffected, but he wasn’t sure it was working. After so many years together, you knew him like the back of your hand, and you knew perfectly well the effect you had on him. 

The second you pulled his pants down and pressed your lips on the outline of his covered cock, your teeth dragging slightly over the fabric, and your tongue darting out to lick the wet spot that had formed on his underwear, he knew it was useless to pretend, so he brought his hand to your face, his thumb lightly stroking circles there as you looked up at him while your lips pressed to him, flashing him that look in your eyes that showed him how much you wanted him, how much you missed him, how much you loved him, and it made him weak in the knees.

You finally took mercy on him, pulling his underwear down enough for his length to spring free and for you to wrap your lips around his tip for your tongue to land firm swipes against his frenulum. Bringing his other hand to your face, he pushed your hair away, tucking it behind your ear to get the fully uncensored view as you started to bob your head around him.

Chan had expected you to tease him. You would normally drag this out by dotting him with kisses all over his length or his thighs while your hand lazily pumped around him, but today that didn’t seem to be your plan. Your lips caught on the ridge of his head repeatedly as your mouth moved up and down around him, and the moment you sunk further down his length, taking him into your throat with ease he couldn’t help but groan, carding his fingers through your hair, softly dragging them over your scalp.

“Fuck…” Chan couldn’t help but curse, the sight of you sinking fully down his length continuously, coupled with the wet sounds your mouth produced with the movement were too sinful, too alluring, and they were steadily clouding his senses. “Look at you, so pretty gagging around this goblin cock, huh…”

You stared deeply into his eyes as you took him in your mouth, a metaphorical fire shining bright in your eyes as you seemed to challenge him. You were clearly in some type of mood. Sometimes when you came back from a particularly taxing encounter with the enemy you wanted to relax, to have some slow and passionate sex to ease some of the constant grief and pain that clung to you. Other times, you begged him to ruin you, as if you were trying to let go of your leading responsibilities and hand them over to someone else, hand them over to Chan. He knew how to identify these moods well, not only because he had seen and actively participated in every single encounter, but also because he went through them himself, too.

Chan knew what you wanted him to do, he had seen this look in your eyes while your mouth went down his length many times in the past, but he wasn’t going to fuck your throat raw when you had just had dinner–he had learnt his lesson. Instead, he reached a compromise with himself, wanting to give you something else to focus on that would satisfy you nonetheless.

Pulling on your hair–softly, carefully–he got you off his cock, taking a hold of your chin after, angling your face to look up at him. “Strip, love. And on the bed”.

You got on your feet and did as asked, removing what was remaining of your clothes and laying on his bed, eyeing him up and down as Chan got himself bare as well.

Whenever Chan got to slot his body between your legs, with his hands roaming your body and his lips pressed a trail down the length of your neck, he always felt lucky. Lucky that you both had survived another day to enjoy each other once again. Even more so when he got to hear your sighs of relief, and your soft whimpers when his hands finally settled on your chest, teasing and pinching your nipples to get you to moan against his mouth when his lips returned to yours.

“Chris…” You mumbled against his mouth, your breathing labouring further the longer his fingers continued their attack on your chest. “Help me forget…”

Clear fluid spilled from his tip as he pulled away from your lips, bringing his left hand to your face, your chin resting comfortably in his warm palm as his fingers lightly dug into your cheeks. Your gaze was loaded as you stared back at him, and there was no doubt in his mind that he was ready to give you anything you asked him for.

After one final twist of your nipple, he brought that same hand close to your face, pushing two digits past your lips, feeling the way your cheeks hollowed under his grasp as you sucked on them with a moan, your tongue diligently lapping them up and getting them wet with your saliva. 

“It’s been a rough month, hasn’t it, little dragon?” In one swift movement, Chan removed his fingers from your mouth, bringing them down to your heat and starting to press circles on your clit. 

“Y–Yeah”.

Chan’s hand moved from your face to the back of your head, pulling you to connect your lips as his fingers sped up. “It’s okay”, Chan whispered against your mouth. “You’re back with me now. You’re safe”.

A small whimper came out from your mouth, whether it was for the movement of his fingers on your bundle of nerves or for what he said, Chan wasn’t sure. You were exceptional at what you did, your father had trained you well for war, for leading, and you carried yourself high, mighty, and imposing when you were around your people–truly the living image of confidence. Chan knew, though. He knew the real you, the you that hated the entire thing, the you that simply wanted for all this to be over once and for all, the you that yearned for a peaceful life, a life where you didn’t have to hide your true nature, where you didn’t have to hide your love.

Chan’s fingers moved, dipping from your clit to coat themselves in the wetness spilling between your legs, only to push them into you right after. His thumb pressed on your clit as he kissed you, enjoying your soft moans against his mouth and giving you some time to adjust to his digits. After all, it had been a while, and he wanted any pain you felt to be a source of pleasure, not discomfort–another lesson he had learnt after a few failed encounters at the beginning of your relationship.

“Babe… Want your mouth…”

Who was Chan to deny you when you sounded so needy? 

His fingers stayed buried to the knuckles in you as he moved, letting you get used to him as his mouth descended from yours, leaving wet, open-mouthed kisses on  his way down–your chin, your neck, your chest, even briefly sucking one of your nipples in his mouth only to release it immediately after to continue his path. Sneaking his free arm under your leg for it to lay on his shoulder, Chan wasted no more time, finally attaching his mouth to that bundle of nerves between your legs where you wanted him most. The reaction was instantaneous, your sigh of relief at the first swipe of his tongue on your flesh encouraging him to start moving his fingers in and out of you, taking special attention to rub that area within your walls he knew would make you produce all those sounds he wanted to hear.

The room filled quickly with your soft moans and whimpers, groans and grunts of his own mingling in the mix as he got lost in your cunt. There was nowhere else Chan wanted to be in this world more than here, with his face buried between your legs and your hand tangling in his hair. You had asked him to help you forget, and in the process, he was starting to forget, too. All worries and responsibilities replaced by the feel of your clenching walls around him, your hand on his where it gripped your thigh, and your flesh on his tongue.

“Missed you so much…” You mumbled between heavy breaths as you looked at him between your legs.

Chan stared right back, slowing his hand movement briefly to bring a third finger to your entrance, carefully easing it in with the other two as he removed his mouth from your heat briefly. “Me too… So much”.

“Shit… Curse your goblin tongue and your goblin fingers, too”, you let out a breathless chuckle, cut short by a whine as his tongue resumed his attack on you. The comment made Chan chuckle, too–the absurdity of it all always threading in every fibre that created the mantle of your relationship both amusing and devastating when he thought about it too deeply.

“You’re talking too much, too coherently”, Chan removed himself from your clit, his fingers now moving faster and harder within your walls, coaxing a satisfied moan to fall from your lips. “Means I’m not doing enough”.

“Fuck–” 

His mouth returned to your heat, his tongue diligently moving against you as his fingers fucked you open, preparing you for what was to come. Chan loved to feel your walls wrap snugly around his fingers, the stretch made his imagination wander, made him think how good you would feel around his cock, how warm and wet you would be when he got to ease himself in you, it excited him every single time without fail.

“I’m… I’m close, darling”, your voice was barely a whisper, but Chan heard you anyway. Not that he needed you to say it to know that you were. Your heel pressed on his back, your thighs trembled slightly, and your walls had a vice grip on his fingers–he could see the signs clear as day, and it was right when he knew you would come crashing down that he removed himself from you completely, pulling his fingers and his mouth away, making you whine in frustration. “Babe–”

“On all fours, love”, Chan left no room for argument, you had started something and he had to get his payback for it.

You moved, doing as you were told and settling on your hands and knees, looking back at him–expectant. It was clear you knew what was to come by the look you gave him, and by the way you stuck your bum up in the air. It almost made Chan laugh, he would’ve if he had not been hard, leaking, and ready to give you exactly what you wanted.

A loud smack resonated within his room as his hand came down on your bum, gripping the flesh tightly right after. “How many times do I have to ask you to not appear in my war room?”

You were going to say something, but whatever it was it got caught in your throat, the sound replaced by a moan as another smack landed on your rear. “It’s dangerous”.

Another smack, another moan. “We could get caught”.

Chan was not stupid. He knew his closest men must know about him and you, he wouldn’t be surprised if they had heard you fucking each other’s brains out in this same room many times throughout the past five years. Chan didn’t care much about his men knowing–although he did want to tell Changbin, since they had been friends for the longest time–but he worried about the Goblin King finding out. His father was aware of the alliance between the Dragon Children and the Goblin Children, but his relationship with you could jeopardise the entire arrangement–it was one thing to join forces with your sworn enemy against a bigger threat, but it was another thing to have your own flesh and blood join said sworn enemy, especially so intimately.

With one final smack, Chan gripped your buttcheek, a poor attempt at soothing the sting. “Are you going to stop doing it?”

You licked your lips, staring into his eyes as you looked back at him with a smug smile on your lips. “Of course not”.

Chan couldn’t help but laugh this time, an incredulous laugh. “So fucking shameless, fuck. What am I gonna do with you?”

“Don’t act like you don’t love it when I–Oh!”

There was one only effective way to shut you up, by having his mouth and his hands on you. His thumb found your clit, rubbing tight circles on it as his teeth sunk on the tender flesh of your buttock, returning you to a moaning, trembling mess. His mess.

Chan kissed, licked, and bit your buttcheeks as his fingers worked you up, leaving purple markings wherever his mouth fell and sucked the flesh. It’s not like he could do it anywhere else, people could see and question the marks if they were on exposed areas of skin, so he always enjoyed leaving these for only you to find later when he wasn’t there.

Returning his face to your heat, he licked a stripe from the place his thumb rubbed against your skin to your entrance, dipping his tongue briefly for a taste of your essence, only to continue his path further up, finding the ridged skin of your ass. Your reaction was immediate, moaning loudly as he licked the tender flesh, spreading you open with his free hand.

“F–fuck!” You were cursing a lot, moaning a lot. Your hands gripped the bedsheets under you while your hips pushed back against Chan’s face to get as much contact with his tongue as possible. 

Chan didn’t know how long he spent working you up, the pace of his thumb picking up slightly by the second, his tongue licking the sensitive skin of your ass as you trembled under his touch and your juices leaked on his chin. He knew you were close again, you had warned him about it already, but he was not ready to give you that satisfaction yet.

“Fuck, Christopher!” You whipped your face to look back at him, annoyed, as Chan removed his face and his hand from your core, landing a weak smack on your rear with a smug smile on his face.

“Beg”, was all Chan said before he kneeled behind you and stuffed you full of his cock in one swift motion, starting a hard, fast pace for curses to fly past your lips. 

“P–please…” You sounded weak and whiny, taking ragged breaths as his hips collided repeatedly with your rear.

With his left hand, he pushed on the junction of your shoulder and your neck, pushing your upper body to the bed, getting your lower back to arch for his cock to reach deeper within your walls. “More”.

“Please, darling. Please…”

“Shit… You’re so fucking pretty, you know?” Chan felt lightheaded, the sound of skin slapping against skin mingling with his thumping heart in his ears as he pounded you to the bed. His free hand sneaked around your hip to find your clit, rubbing tight circles there in tandem with his cock entering you repeatedly to steadily build your release once again. 

Admittedly, Chan was on the edge, too. The whole month away from you as well as all preparations for the attack on King Lyen’s posts taking a toll on him, enough for him to not even touch himself the entire time. But he would be damned if he blew his load right now before you got your relief.

With one particularly harsh thrust of his hips, you cried out, your whole body trembling with your release as you repeatedly clenched around him, almost, almost sending Chan over the edge, too.

His hips stilled, his fingers on your clit stopped their movement, but stayed on your clit applying pressure as you came down from your high. Leaning over you, Chan pressed soft pecks on your shoulder, your nape, your upper back, all while you took in heavy breaths, your knees barely keeping your lower body up and pressed to him.

“You okay?” Chan whispered against your shoulder, his hand finally moving away from your clit to instead press on your lower belly, softly caressing the flesh there. 

Your head turned, finding Chan’s lips and pressing a kiss to his lips. The angle was awkward, and it was hard to do anything other than peck the other’s lips, but Chan’s heart soared regardless. “M’okay”, was all you replied after kissing him, with a satisfied smile on your face.

“Good. Now fucking ride me”.

You laughed at that, pushing your upper body up as Chan removed himself from your space. He missed the warmth of your walls around his cock instantly, but the feeling was short lived, as you straddled his hips as soon as his back hit the mattress. Taking his length in your hand, you lined him with your entrance, sinking down on him immediately after in one swift motion.

“Shit…” Chan couldn’t help but curse. 

He could do a number on you, but so could you on him. His hands came to grip your hips as you started bouncing up and down his length, your pace relentless as your entire presence engulfed him, making it hard for him to think of anything other than you on him.

“Look at you… Enjoying this dragon cunt”, his attention was drawn to your tits, bouncing with each one of your movements, tempting him.

Moving a hand from your hip, he brought it to your bouncing chest, slapping one of your breasts softly before grabbing it, pinching a nipple between his index finger and his thumb. “Caught red-handed. I do love your dragon cunt”.

You bit your lip, the action almost involuntary as you looked down at him, the movement of your hips not stopping as you braced yourself on Chan’s chest, letting you tilt your hips slightly for a different angle. Chan’s skin felt like it was on fire, especially anywhere your skin touched. Grabbing your rear tightly, he bounced you up and down, bringing his hips up to meet you halfway, urging you to go faster.

“G–Good to know I’m not the only needy one today”, you chuckled softly, your words slightly breaking off between moans and whines. “Come on, Goblin Child. Wanna feel your warm seed fill me up”.

“Shit…” Chan didn’t know how much he had cursed since he came into his room with you, but he also didn’t care. His head was spinning, his abs clenched tightly, and he felt his orgasm threatening to breach the surface.

It took only a few more moments for you to finally send him over the edge, all the tension leaving his body with a grunt as he spilled inside of you, your hips stilling once the last spurt of his orgasm left him. Leaning in, you pressed your lips to his forehead, his cheeks, his nose. You liked to do this often, especially right after he came while he could still hear the ringing in his ears as blood rushed back to his head. It always brought heat to his face, making him blush slightly whenever you doted on him like this.

Once you were satisfied with your work on Chan’s face, you rested your body fully on him, hiding in the crook of his neck as his arms came up to wrap around your waist and hold you tightly against him. You stayed like this for a while, enjoying the feeling of each other pressed to one another, enjoying the comfortable silence that fell in the room.

Chan’s hands moved after a while, coming up your back to tangle in your hair, massaging your scalp softly with his fingertips. “Feeling better?”

You hummed in agreement, further burying your face into his neck, pressing a soft peck on his skin. “You?”

“Hate to give you the win, but I do feel better now that you’re here”, Chan chuckled softly, the hand that was resting on your waist now drawing patterns on your lower back. “Wish you would marry me already”.

It was your turn to chuckle now, moving from the comfort of his neck to look him in the eyes. “I would do it if I could. Can’t wait to win this stupid war and get what was promised to us”, leaning in, you pressed a soft kiss on Chan’s lips.

Chan, too, couldn’t wait for the war to be over. When his mother had told the Goblin King that Queen Nimrae would help him expand his territory she hadn’t mentioned certain details deliberately. More specifically, the part where the Queen herself would officiate the wedding of his son Chan, the Crown Prince of the Goblin Children and you, the Crown Princess of the Dragon Children, an unbreakable ceremony that would effectively join your tribes once and for all.

if you want to read more on this couple, check out this sort of pt 2: The Beginning of the End

© therhythmafterthesummer 2022-2023. all rights reserved. do not repost or translate my stories.

Constructive feedback is always welcomed. Feel free to let me know if any typos or grammar errors if you feel like it (politely, please).

#stray kids fantasy au #stray kids fanfiction #bang chan fanfiction #bang chan smut #bang chan x reader #bang chan fic #chan x reader #skz fanfic #skz fanfiction #stray kids fanfic #✨🌙✏

[the-amber-fox]

Young Royals Fic Rec List 2022 Edition

To tide you over the last four weeks of waiting for season 2 I have been making my way through the last months on AO3 and recommendations to bring you this part 2 of my fic rec list. All fanfics in this list have been published in 2022. 

Categories for this list are:

Canon

Canon-divergent

Post-canon (pre season 2)

Fix-Its

AUs

Slightly Unhinged but worth it

E-Rated

The dark stuff.

So there should be one for everyone here

Canon

My Youth is Yours (Not Rated) by evakayaki Simon wants to give Wille "firsts" that every kid should experience, but missed out on because he was prince. OR: Five times Simon gives Wille a first experience and one time Wille surprises Simon.

Canon-Divergent

Hope Against Hope (M) by demeterfics What happens when Simon doesn't follow Wille after his panic during Horror Movie Night? Simon has regrets, Simon frets, Simon thinks that was his one chance. Wille has a bit more of a sexual crisis, but luckily Erik is there to give some brotherly advice. Boys need to figure out how to communicate. Screwed (T) (WIP) by fandom_commitment_issues Erik lived, but things are still Royally screwed up.

Post Canon (maybe)

Wilhelm & Simon: An Interview with Sweden's Young Royal Couple by cali-chan (girls_are_weird) On the heels of Queen Kristina's announcement that she will be stepping down as monarch once her son and heir turns 35, Crown Prince Wilhelm and his longtime partner, Simon Eriksson, sit down with SVT's Signe Karlsson, for the first time since the future King publicly came out as queer and confirmed their relationship, to discuss their future and dispel any lingering misconceptions about their romance. His Royal Fucking Highness Prince Simon of Sweden (he will take none of your shit) (T) by notalotgoingonatthisinstant Simon had gone through most stages of grief over the past two days since that meeting, and his head would split open if he didn't sit down with his family and friends to let it out. He should be jumping at the opportunity to refuse the titles, so why was he so conflicted? whenever we're together (M) by waitingstar He does yoga, then shirtless yoga. He times his downward dogs for when Wilhelm is passing the lounge room, pretends he doesn’t smirk at Wilhelm's strangled “Morning”.

My Youth is Yours (Not Rated) by evakayaki                      Simon wants to give Wille "firsts" that every kid should experience, but missed out on because he was prince. OR: Five times Simon gives Wille a first experience and one time Wille surprises Simon.

Fix Its

always something left behind (T) by eleanna99That’s what love is, after all, he thinks. Always leaving something behind. or All the times Simon and Wilhelm almost call each other through the years, and one time they do.

A Royal Intervention (T) by AnxiousAnaconda Erik has made it his mission to call Wilhelm regularly and check up on him. The whole family seems to be in agreement that he is in a tumultuous and dangerous phase, that he could easily be steered in the wrong direction and cause perhaps unforeseen levels of PR damage, but Erik wonders whether his parents truly grasp how sensitive this life phase is for Wilhelm. It is a gut feeling, an inkling, that tells him to watch out for his little brother. Now more than ever. That broken piece, let go (T) by cali-chan (girls_are_weird), TheAmberFox Or five times Simon didn't communicate his true feelings + one time he did. OR Therapy Fic.

AUs

The greatest story never written (T) by NerdGirl07 writer! simon and reader wille: simon always has to try to not spontaneously combust whenever wille rambles about HIS OWN book to him

Play my song (G) by Elin98 It is 12.15 am and you’re listening to Late night Vibes with Simon on The Vibe FM, 104.6. I’m your host Simon Eriksson and I will be here with you all night. So for all you night owls, insomniacs, night shift workers, let me keep you company. I promise to only play good music and that we’ll have a good time.

Bloom where you are planted (T) by Cl0udyM1lk Wille is a plant boy, Simon has a black thumb. They both run semi-popular Instas.

There's a song in my heart (I feel like I belong) (M) by cali-chan (girls_are_weird) Concert pianist Wilhelm Berwald had no idea his entire life would change when he was paired up with pop star Simon Eriksson for a charity concert.

the way you look at me (T) by strummerjoe After spending his whole life in Bjärstad, Simon is excited to go to university. He wants to embrace all aspects of student life and he's ready for anything.Anything, except finding a disgruntled crown prince in his new bedroom.

Dancing Through Life (M) by pagegirlintraining After getting into a club fight that paints him in a less than ideal light, Wilhelm is forced into a living nightmare: being a contestant on Swedish reality tv. As if that wasn’t bad enough already, he’s supposed to dance on national television.Aka Wilhelm goes full Dancing with the Stars with Simon as his pro partner.

yellow paper daisy (T) by darlingdreamer21 Or: Wille and Simon meet in Bjärstad, under the most unnatural circumstances. Wille, who seeks solace in the sleepy town. Simon, who once escaped from the suffocating town.But with Simon's face plastered everywhere around the world in association with his successful music career, and Wille's own internal conflict and blissful solitude, they don't know how to deal with their mutual attraction.Inspired by the movie Notting Hill because these two dorks deserve their cheesy romcom story.

The Boy and the Bartender (M) by Spidaya Simon is a bartender at a local bar with a sunny smile and confident attitude that hide the darker side of his life he wishes to keep hidden. Wilhelm, the prince of Sweden, is a lonely boy with too much love to give and not getting much love in return.After they meet at a bar in not the most Prince-Charming way, their hearts are forever intertwined with each other, but not before going through the hurt, trials, and love that come with both of their lives.

Slightly unhinged - but worth it

Through Felle’s eyes (G) by crownedmoon Wille & Simon’s love story, witnessed by one of Simon’s fishes.

The Sound of you, an outlasting vibration (T) by TheAmberFox What if Wille joins the choir to be close to Simon? Only problem - he can’t sing to safe his life.

a whole new scandal (T) by EngelK Post? Wilhelm thought. He then remembers the notifications from his phone. Shakingly, he unlocks it. He saw tons of messages. Tons from Minou. He doesn’t even know what he has gotten into.

Open heart open mind never know who you will find (E) by simonscrown Wille deliberated whether he should be thanking the universe or cursing at it that a literal angel was standing in front of him, while his testicles were being tortured by a pair of objectively horrible booty shorts.

E - Rated

i hate accidents except when we went from friends to this (E) by cl0udy_mi1k Simon is Wilhelm's best friend, so when he confesses that he's insecure about his lack of experience Wille offers to help him. After all, it's what any good friend would do, isn't it?

Addicted to You (E) by yr_bb Simon missed him, of course he did. He knew nothing had really changed. But this forced separation was a new kind of torture, and he hated it. Hated that he wanted him still, but even in his whole setting boundaries thing, he hadn’t actually wanted to move on. He didn’t, he couldn’t, not if there was still a chance. Being this close was only bringing that all up again.

sorry about the blood in your mouth (i wish it was mine) (E) by witchjeons In the aftermath of the video, Simon falls apart. Wilhelm is there to put him back together.

There all along (E) by stretchoutandwait Kristina's death brings Simon back into Wilhelm's life after years apart. Wilhelm has to negotiate learning to become king and starting (or restarting?) a relationship at the same time.

The dark stuff

The spare (T) by Hannakin Erik can’t imagine anything worse than losing his little brother. He lives through his worst nightmare when Wille is horribly injured.

right where you left me. (M) by YourDemiurge When Crown Prince Wilhelm died at the early age of 18, he left three legacies behind: a video that he'd denied being in; a precautionary tale of young love; and a statue outside an otherwise unknown public school. **** Auhtors mentioned: @girls-are-weird @pagegirlintraining @simons-purplehoodie

@cl0udy-mi1k @ishotforthestars @cinnamoncoffees  @hanna-kin  @zee-has-commitment-issues @yourdemiurge

*** If you want to re-read the fic rec list part 1, you can find it here.

#young royals #young royals fanfic #fanfic rec #young royals fanfic rec #wilmon #simon x wille #wille x simon #something for everyone #season 2 countdown #lgbtq fic

[arc-misadventures]

Jaune Got Isekai’d

Jaune burst through the door, weapon held at the ready as he levelled it towards the Demon Queen who sat high upon her throne.

Jaune: Defend yourself foul, Demon Queen! For I am, Jaune Arc! The summoned hero brought to this world a year ago to save it from your vile villainy! So I may return home to my family, and loved ones! Now, prepare for the coming reconning!

: Return to your loved ones…? How funny… For that is exactly why I seek to destroy this world, and avenge my beloved!

She rose frm the throne before, Jaune, allowing him to her in all her radiance, as she prepared to duel to the death, the summoned hero.

: I am the Demon Queen, Griselda! I have waged a bloody war to avenge the death of my beloved! And, none shall stop for avenging his departed soul! Prepare do die foolish hero! In the Name of my beloved, Ivan Caliphate! Perish you foolish hero!!!

Jaune: …

Jaune: I’m sorry, what did you say his name was?

Griselda: Ivan, Ivan Caliphate.

Jaune: …

Jaune: Did this guy have a more athletic build, and was about say… 6ft tall?

Griselda: Yes, he did… My dearly beloved, oh I miss you so…

Jaune: Okay… Umm… Did he have a chiseled jaw, sharp nose, hawkish deep green eyes, with black hair. And most importantly, did he have a sort of roguish smile that for some inexplicable reason seemed to make his teeth sparkle, on command…?

Griselda: Y-Yes he did? Wait… do you know him…? Does he live, is he well?! Tell me! I beg of thee, tell me!

Jaune: One l-last question… W-When did you meet him…?

Griselda: I thought I had lost him five years ago… But, with your news I may finally be able to reunite with my beloved!

Jaune: (Sharp inhale!) oh fuck…

Griselda: What is wrong…? Did something happen to him…?

Jaune: Well… Uhh… I’m not really sure how to…?!

Griselda: Grrrr!!! Quit stalling for time, and tell me foolish boy!!!

Jaune: I met him, and his wife about four months ago, at his son’s birthday party…

Griselda: W-Wait…? He’s married?! And, he has a son?!

Jaune: Technically he has two sons, and two daughters, of which the oldest of whom is eight years old…

Grisleda: He was married, and with kids when I met him?! A married man cheated on me?! ME?!

Jaune: Technically, he cheated on his wife, with you. B-But, that’s just a semantic argument; A cheater is a cheater, right…?

Griselda: Wait?! Did he fake his death… J-Just because the little bastard didn’t want to dump me in person?! Face-to-face?!

Jaune: Yes…?

Griselda: That gutless coward! He shall pay! He shall pay for his insolence towards me, The Demon Queen! That whoring bastard shall pay!!! Or, the world shall pay!!!

HE WILL PAYYYY!!!!!

The Demon Queen rose up, dark purple flames burst from her raven wings, as the pointed towards the sky, a huge plume of fire surrounded her body as ig shot into the sky blasting a whole straight through her castle lightening the night in its purplish hues.

Jaune: …

Jaune: Oh fuck…

~~~

Jaune: So after… that happened… Griselda, attacked, Ivan’s home, told the whole story to his wife, who filed for a divorce then on the spot! Of which after the king heard what his nephew had done, and he was furious with him. So he agreed to the annulment, so Ivan, was disowned, disinherited, and cast out from practically everything! And, then a peace summit was held, and a white peace was made, where the only thing, Griselda wanted was, Ivan, which the Kingdom agreed to, so she took him, and created a special demon to torment the cheating bastard for all of eternity. And, after that, there was this party…I dra k too much wine, I honestly have no idea what happened… Then the Demon Queen kindly sent me back Here, and you guys showed up, and asked me if I have been up to anything. And, that’s it.

Pyrrha: …?!

Ren: …?!

Nora: That sounds so awesome!!! Did you get me anything, did you, did you?!

Jaune: I’m sorry, Nora, I tried, but I couldn’t bring anything back with me.

Nora: Naww… I never get anything fun…

Jaune: Maybe next time.

Pyrrha: J-Jaune?

Jaune: Yes?

Pyrrha: W-We’ve been gone for an hour…?

Jaune: Yeah, so?

Ren: You said you were there for over a year?!

Jaune: Yeah, time flows differently here, and there. But, I’m still here! So, what did you three do, it’s been so long since we last spoke.

Pyrrha: Jaune, again, we’ve been gone for an hour.

Jaune: True, however, I haven’t see you in over a year, so you can forgive me for forgetting what ever it was you were doing.

Nora: We we’re getting chocolate!

Jaune: Ohh~! Did you get me anything?

Ren: Jaune?! You haven’t gone anywhere! You’ve been here the whole time!

Jaune: Pfft! Says you…

Ren: Jaune?! There is no way you left the building, the travker on your scroll says you’ve been here the whole time!

Jaune: Oh that’s just because I forgot to take my scroll with me. I left it in Its charger on my desk, see?

Pyrrha: Okay… I think we should take you to the doctor, you need a check up.

Jaune: I’m fine you guys! Perfectly fine!

Ren: Jaune, you’re talking about how you went to this magical fantasy land for over the space of a year, while we went to get some chocolate. Nothing like that could have possibly happened in the space of an hour.

Jaune: Gods! You’re such a kill joy, Ren! Is he always like this, Nora?

Nora: Yes, he is. I think its that green sludge that he likes to drink, it does something to his mind. Something sinister, and dark…

Jaune: We should get that checked out.

Ren: Grr! Jaune! There is no way anything happened to you, while we were gone!

Jaune: Says you, you buzz kill…

Nora: yeah, buzz kill!

Ren: Hey!

Pyrrha: But, this is all a little far fetched don’t you guys think? I mean this couldn’t possibly have hap…?!!

(Bathroom door opens)

Griselda: Okay, just finished up in there. I have to learn how the pumping works, it is just…?! Oh? Hello!

Jaune: Pixy, You’re here, sit down please.

Nora: Pixy?!

Jaune: It’s just a… It’s just a nickname…

Griselda: Oh… I thought it was my pet name~?

Nora: Nice!

Jaune: So… These are my friend I was talking about, Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora. Guys, this is, Pi… Griselda, The Demon Queen.

Griselda: Hello, everyone! Jaune, has told me so much about all of, I’m so pleased to finally meet you!

Nora: Wow! Nice wings!

Griselda: Oh, why thank you~!

Nora: So, what’s the, Queen of the Demons doing in a dump like this?

Griselda: Oh, I just need a vacation. After all the problems with my ex… Haa… I needed a break from it all, and Jaune so kindly offered that I could stay with him for a spell~!

Jaune: It was just an offer, I didn’t think you’d actually take it…

Griselda: Well, it was a nice offer, besides I could spend some time with my new… Lover~!

Pyrrha: L-Lover…?

Jaune: W-What?! Since when?!

Griselda: Since you beded me on the day of your departure~! Twas quite unexpected night, but I was more then willing to accept your blade into my sheath~!

Jaune: W-W-What?!

Nora: Whoo! You got some Fearless-Leader, great job!!!

(Thud)

Nora: And… Pyrrha fainted… oh boy…

Jaune: J-Just one moment, Pixy!

Griselda: Take your time, Love~!

Jaune: So umm… Do you now believe me that I was isekai’d now, Ren? Does this look like a lie to you?! DOES IT?!

Ren: …

Jaune: Ren…? Hello, Remnant to, Ren?

Ren: …

Jaune: Uhh… Nora…?

Nora: …

Nora: He’s dead, Jaune.

Jaune: …

Jaune: Those damn smoothies!!! I knew they were deadly!

Nora: I can’t even gloat about it…

Jaune: So why didn’t you take the shortcut like I told you?

Nora: They wouldn’t let me!

Jaune: Those fools! Will they never learn?!

Nora: Probably not.

Jaune: Curses upon their ancestors!

Nora: Curses!

Griselda: I can do that if you want?

Nora: REALLY?!

Jaune: Oh no…

///

I know its Mercy from, Overwatch, I just like that picture/Skin.

#rwby #jaune arc #pyrrha nikos #lie ren #nora valkyrie

[euphoric-melancholyy]

Silent Night (Nothing Feels Right) - An Irondad Fanfiction

A/N: I wrote this fanfiction in December of 2020 and I guess…never posted it here? Maybe I did but I can’t find it. But since I can’t find it, here it is! I wanted to play with the idea of Christmas being really hard for Peter while Tony loves it. Title from The Worst Christmas Ever by Sufjan Stevens. Rated T for the use of one curse word. What's Infinity War and Endgame? We don't know her here. Also note that I remembered Peter was Jewish after writing this. I apologize - maybe I’ll write a more accurate version someday.

Summary: "It’s just I, I hate Christmas, okay? Like the fact that people buy you presents is nice and everyone talks about getting together with family but I don’t have that. I did and all Christmas does is remind me that I don’t. My mom and dad, they loved Christmas, lived for it. It was a two month holiday and it was so magical and perfect and then they died right before Christmas and now Christmas just hurts, it really, really hurts."

or

A look at grief during the holiday seasons throughout the years as Peter and Tony grow closer.

Also on Ao3

Peter’s first five Christmases are the best, though time has made them fuzzy and grief romanticized their imprint on his mind. He sees it in flashes: at the Christmas market around Rockefeller, where Richard and Mary would take him every year to buy new decor that littered the tiny apartment the week following Thanksgiving. In a classic clear lit Christmas tree whose top bends at the ceiling, it’s height too high for the space it’s confined, in science toys and loving looks, and “Merry Christmas, our little genius. You’re gonna change the world someday,” his mom would say. The tables were an explosion of glittered tinsel and forest garland, accenting the edges and corners. while Harry Connick Jr crooned “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” In the smell of gingerbread wafting from the oven after a hard day at school, after some kid named Rodrigo called him a four-eyed-freak and pushed him down, scraping his knee. In how he would curl up on the couch with his parents every evening the month of December, an old Christmas movie playing on the TV. Ben and May would join them every Christmas morning, and the five of them would spend the day drinking eggnog and dancing, May snatching the crimson ribbon from the tree and waving it around as her hips swayed. She’d reach out her hand to Peter until they were all dancing and singing, quite horribly, from the top of their lungs. He knows there were things he didn’t see, or his mind chose not to remember that might crush his idyllic five-year-old heart. But it was perfect, in his mind’s recollection. It was perfect.

Until it wasn’t.

Until a plane crashed in the Pacific and his world imploded and crashed with it. He went home with his Uncle Ben, and never returned to the apartment twelve blocks over in Queens. Dancing on Christmas felt wrong; everything, including Christmas itself felt wrong - a stabbing, overwhelming void he drowned in. (At least Rodrigo was nice to him now.) His sixth Christmas Eve, he cried until sleep claimed the remainder of his energy and Ben and May cried with him. The day was met with little fanfare, and he didn’t care about the presents under the too small tree, with colored lights instead of clear. Maybe if today didn’t happen, if he just laid in the Captain America comforter until it was dark outside again, it wouldn’t be real. He could forget the wet grass by the graveside where his parents' names were engraved into stone less than a month ago. The void hurt, his chest constricting with every breath.

“Peter, honey, it’s Christmas,” May said, her eyes just as swollen and red as his own.

“No, it’s not!” he protested, turning his face away from her and burying it further into the pillow. “It’s not Christmas without mom and dad. They...they loved Christmas. It can’t be Christmas without them.”

“You know..” May starts, choking on the words and letting it trail off.

“You’re right, Pete.” Ben said “It’s not Christmas without them. Come on, bud. Grab your coat. We’re going on a field trip.”

And that’s how it started, how they ended up stomping through the dark, gross, mush of snow, presents in hand, to spend Christmas morning with Richard and Mary once more. He didn’t know if he believed in heaven, but he hoped it was real, because it was very cold and sad there, Peter thought. But it’s the only way he knew to be with them.

It became tradition after that, and even on years that Peter didn’t want to visit, they’d brave the weather and sit around the graveside, exchanging presents and stories and highs and lows of the year. A morbid, oddly comforting reminder of everything he lost and everything he still had.

The year that Ben died, gunned down in a bodega over some petty cash, May didn’t sleep Christmas Eve. Peter stayed with her, curled up on the couch with a blanket and Ben’s favorite Christmas movies playing in the background. The grief eclipsed any remaining joy the “happiest season of all” supposedly carried. When morning came, it was Peter who coaxed May from her despair with hot chocolate and a sad smile.

“Come on May,” he whispered. “It’s not Christmas without the family.”

Ben was buried next to his parents. Neither Peter nor May did much more than cry and say “Merry Christmas” that year.

-/-/-

2016

Tony Stark loved Christmas, in a sort of nauseating, over-the-top way that Tony Stark does everything. He hired four dozen decorators to deck his house, the compound, and the rebought tower in different themes. It reminded Peter of his parents, in the way that you couldn’t turn a corner without seeing a tree, or garland, or some sort of Christmas memorabilia. And though the season brought a sharp sting with it, Tony’s joy and love for it was contagious. Peter couldn’t help but smile when he saw a Christmas hat resting on top of an old Iron Man suit, or an entire wall covered in high-tech Christmas lights. It reminded him of Christmas as a child, especially since he had started getting closer to Tony. Which was some whole other childhood dream, weird thing he was still figuring out how to navigate, come to life. After May had found out about Spider-Man, she called Happy, who called Mr. Stark and spent an hour ripping him a new one. Peter thought he would die of embarrassment right then and there. But to his surprise, it ended with Tony taking a more active role not just in the superhero antics, but Peter as well. Tony had even gone as far to invite Peter and May to his annual Christmas party a few months later.

Even May’s lingering fury was not enough to turn down the opportunity. The party is extravagance at its finest, overwhelming in its lavish embellishment. May abandons him three glasses of champagne in, leaving Peter to wander around looking for any familiarity with a growing sense of feeling out of place. He fidgets with his hands, adjusting the purposefully ugly Christmas tie May had bought him for the occasion, declining offers of the fancy cocktails, when he spots Happy. He basically sprints over to him.

“No, nope I did not sign up to chaperone you tonight kid. I’m security.”

“I’m 15,” Peter whines. “ I don't need a chaperone. Besides, May is here.”

“May, your single aunt May?” Happy inquires with a raise of his brow.

“Ew. No, no no no no. Do not ruin this for me. Please stop.” He covers his ears, as if that could help him unhear where Happy’s thoughts are.

Happy just shrugs. “Wanna be my, what do you call it? My guy in the chair.”

“As long as it doesn’t involve my aunt, sure.” Just then, Peter hears a crash, cringing as an ice sculpture shatters to the ground about forty feet away, onto the fake snow covering the floor.

“Okay kid, you’re on watch. Use that peter tingle of yours and super senses to make sure no one steals shit. We better split up though, it’s better for security if I cover one end and you the other. I’ve got Frozone over there.”

“Yes Mr. Happy, sir. Tha- Thank you!”

With Happy gone, Peter feels the loneliness return. It’s interrupted with the touch of a hand on his shoulder. “Ah, Underoos! You made it.” Tony says. “I see your aunt is hitting it off with Pepper.” They turn to the right and Tony waves. May’s head is thrown back in laughter and Pepper is pointing to her fiance. “Actually, wait this might have been a terrible idea.”

Peter laughs at that, and for the first time that night, he feels at ease. Mr. Stark’s hand on his shoulder is an anchor tethering him in this unfamiliar environment. As if he could sense it, Mr. Stark lifts up his completely unnecessary sunglasses, leveling him with a smirk. “You okay? I know these can be pretty overwhelming. I ordered some eggnog and apple juice just for you, you know since you can’t enjoy the adult beverages. I mean, I was at your age but this is why you are better than me.”

“I’m okay, Mr. Stark. Thank you for inviting me. And everything.”

“I couldn’t not invite my favorite young adult. Aren’t you youngins supposed to be the epitome of Christmas spirit and all that jazz?”

“I mean, look at my tie. It’s got Christmas spirit.”

Tony opens his mouth to respond, but closes it. “You know what, here.” He reaches into his inner coat pocket, pulling out a small, red wrapped package. “You seem like you could use some Christmas cheer.” Tony hands it to him, turns on his heel and calls out “Merry Christmas, Pete” as he walks away.

The following weekend, Peter sits on a ratty quilt in a deserted graveyard on Christmas morning. May is standing back, giving him some semblance of privacy. “Hey mom, dad, Ben. I...This year has been surreal. I saved New York. And Mr. Stark got me a Christmas present. It’s a watch that turns into web shooters and it is possibly the coolest thing ever and I think we’re like, friends? It’s nice, really weird, but…” Peter sighs, pulling at the grass around the stones. “I miss you all. And Mr. Stark really loves Christmas and sometimes it’s hard, because I don’t. But he makes me want to love it too. And this little girl told me that Spider-Man is better than Santa Clause, which is insane, right? I wish you could see me. May said you’d be proud of me, but. I just really wish you all were here.”

-/-/-

2017

When Thanksgiving rolls around the next year and starts off the holiday season, it brings the ache of grief with it. He doesn’t have the time to dwell in it like he has in years past, too preoccupied with AP tests, the SATs, Spider-Manning, and bi-weekly training and lab days with Mr. Stark. So when the billionaire invites him to his personal, small family, Christmas, he’s really confused and surprised when the main emotion that surfaces is one of overwhelming sadness for the family he’s lost. Ned would probably have a conniption if the roles were reversed, passing out on site of elation. And it’s not that he isn’t excited, it’s just…

A guilt, he’ll realize later. But naming it doesn’t make it any easier. He knows he isn’t replacing them, he knows that, but it feels almost paternal, how Mr. Stark looks after him, knows his schedule, and worries over his safety to an overbearing extent. And now he’s somehow a part of his family Christmas.

“Are you sure you want me to come to Christmas dinner, Mr. Stark? I don’t want to intrude on your family-”

“I wouldn’t invite you if I didn’t want you there, Peter.” He says. The use of his actual first name stops him in his tracks, only reserved for moments of seriousness. It’s enough to quell the insecurities for now. He’s not going to ruin anything about his mentor’s favorite holiday.

“Okay.”

It’s only Tony, Pepper, Rhodey, Happy May and Peter Christmas Evening, though the amount of food could feed triple that amount. Peter’s excited, but drained from the earlier holiday festivities, so he takes the time to admire the decor around the house. It’s elegant, obviously Pepper’s doing, and he tries to force some of the magic of the season into his bones. There’s a tree in the corner whose tip caresses the ceiling, and it unlocks a memory that Peter had forgotten:

Peter sits atop his fathers shoulders at age four, reaching as high as he can to put the star at the top of the tree. When he leans forward, his glasses slide to the tip of his nose. “Daddy, my glasses!” he calls, but it’s too late and they fall to the floor. In the commotion, he drops the star too, and it breaks. Peter begins to cry.

Richard bends down to retrieve the fallen items, and swings Peter back around to his front. “It’s okay, your glasses are fine.” He holds them out to him. “See?”

“But,” his lip quivers. “But I broke the star. I’m so sorry daddy.”

He shushes him gently, pulling him in a hug. “The star doesn’t matter. What matters is you’re okay. You didn’t fall. It’s okay. I’m gonna put you on the couch while I clean up this glass,” Richard kisses his head. “I think it looks better without it, anyway. It’s too tall for a topper.”

“You’re not mad?” Peter asks, voice cracking.

“Mad? No, of course not. It was an accident.”

Rhodey’s laughter brings Peter back to the present and he forces a smile. Peter looks around and even Happy looks happy, animatedly gesturing as he retells an embarrassing story from Tony’s past. He tries to focus on the story, fingernails digging crescents into his palm, but it only draws blood and heightens the constriction on his heart. Peter excuses himself, racing off to the bathroom and locking the door.

He expects it to be May who finds him, but to his surprise it’s Tony who is knocking on the door a couple minutes later. “Pete? You okay in there?”

“I’m fine, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to worry you.” Peter replies, opening the door and refusing to meet his mentor’s eyes.

“Care to talk about it?”

“About what?”

“Come on, kid. I know you. You’ve been off. And not just today, this whole month. What’s going in that head of yours?”

He feels a single tear roll down his cheek and the words spew fast. “It’s just I, I hate Christmas, okay? Like the fact that people buy you presents is nice and everyone talks about getting together with family but I don’t have that. I did and all Christmas does is remind me that I don’t. My mom and dad, they loved Christmas, lived for it. It was a two month holiday and it was so magical and perfect and then they died right before Christmas and now Christmas just hurts, it really fucking hurts. And I know you love it and I don’t want to ruin it for you because no one should have something they love ruined, you know? I’m just, I’m just so tired. And it’s hard every year and I try to pretend that it’s not but. I just. I miss my family. I miss Ben and my parents and I really appreciate all that you’ve done for me and I don’t want to make this about me because you deserve to have a good Christmas. I’m sorry. I - ” He sighs deep, closing his eyes tight to keep the emotions at bay, and slides down the wall to sit on the floor. Tony joins him, sitting criss-cross-apple-sauce in front of him.

“I, I’m not great with this emotional stuff, and I think, well my therapist would say my way of coping is doing everything in excess. My parents died just before Christmas, and my dad was not the ideal father and my mom, I don’t know how she put up with him, loved him even. But I have three good memories of my parents together, and one of them was on Christmas.” Tony pauses a moment, lost in the recollection. “And I love Christmas because I’m just trying to get that feeling back. Sometimes I can. Most of the time I can’t. You don’t have to pretend to like Christmas for me, or for anyone. But you do have to pretend to like Pep’s cooking.”

“She’s a great cook!”

“Your comparison is your aunt who I’m pretty sure destroyed your taste buds with her date loaf.”

“At least I don’t eat gross rich people food that no one can pronounce.”

Tony gently elbows him. “Tell me about them, your parents.”

Peter smiles, and it feels genuine for the first time in two weeks. He doesn’t usually talk about them, and he wonders now if it’s because no one ever asks. As he begins to talk, he feels a weight lifted from his chest he hadn’t realized was there. The grief is still there, but it’s sting is subdued, and he feels himself actually appreciating the holiday for the moment. Tony’s a better listener than Peter would have expected and it isn’t long until he’s sharing his stories with everyone. May’s anecdotes add character and details he only remembered from the times she would tell him. It feels nice, sharing this part of himself with the people he now considers family.

-/-/-

2018

It’s stupid how it happens really. One second he’s singing to himself to the tune of Jingle Bells “Thwipping through the streets of New York every night. Wrapping bad guys up in my web so tight. Crawling up the walls, making villains fight. What fun to make the holidays free from crime tonight. Oh-” And the next his body slams full force into a crane and through a building. He will never live this down, as Karen reminds him now that he’s conscious and recovering in the Tower’s medbay. Mr. Stark, sympathetic at first, has now played the video for all of the Avengers. This is death by mortification, and if he doesn’t live until Christmas, his obituary will read “killed by quick wit in an attempt at holiday spirit gone wrong. His untimely demise is the fault of mentor and fellow Avenger, Iron Man, who thrives off Spider-Man’s constant embarrassment.”

The super drugs Dr. Cho has him on keeps him wired and restless. In the three days since he has broken his leg and fractured his ribs, he’s eaten copious amounts of food, mostly cookies because “it’s Christmas. Don’t deny me these joys”, played hours of video games, Facetimed Ned, binge watched the first season of Chuck, and begged Tony to let him work in the lab. He’s met with a no everytime, with Tony, May, and Dr. Cho saying he needs to rest instead of work.

“I’m tired of resting. I want to do things.”

“You should have thought about that before you didn’t pay attention to where you were swinging, Tarzan.” Tony replies.

Peter groans, overly dramatic. Christmas Eve is tomorrow and he can’t even walk. May’s staying with them, both her and Peter not wanting to be separated so close to Christmas. She’s been burying herself in books, and Peter knows it’s just a distraction from the grief that resurrects this time of year. He couldn’t be more grateful she’s here with him though, her presence a balm keeping him from tearing at the seams. And no matter how energetic he acts, the seasonal anxiety still thrums just beneath the surface, worsened by his injured state.

He needs to move. He needs to do things. He needs -

“Tony, can I fly your Iron Man suit? I don’t even need to walk and-”

“Absolutely not.”

Christmas Eve is quieter than normal. They play Christmas movies all day, different Avengers rotating in and out. It’s the first prolonged period of time he’s really got to spend with them since Tony and Steve made up a few months ago. Things are still tense, especially between the aforementioned heroes, but Tony seems more content and Peter was more than ecstatic to meet everyone. Natasha is the one that’s surprised him the most: she’s kinder than he would have thought, taking an immediate liking to her “fellow Spider”. It’s still surreal to see her lounging around in her pajamas, eating cereal, doing normal people things. She’s made it a game to throw random things at him to see if he’ll catch or dodge it. He usually ends up getting hit with two pillows a day when he stays at the Tower.

It’s late Christmas Eve night when he realizes he won’t be able to visit his family the following morning, and the anxiety he’s been fighting explodes to the surface. Friday alerts Tony to Peter’s change in vitals and he’s there in fifteen seconds.

"Breathe with me Pete. Come on, you’re okay. In and out, feel that?” Tony grabs Peter’s hand, pressing it into his chest. “Mimic me. You’re safe. Breathe. You’re doing great.”

Minutes pass before Peter’s breathing returns to normal and he leans into Tony’s shoulder. “Thank you,” he whispers.

“Anytime. . .Wanna talk about it?”

“I-” He sits up and opens his mouth to refuse, but something stops him. Maybe this is something he can fix. “I spend every Christmas morning since my parents passed at the cemetery with them and Ben and I - I can’t tomorrow.” he gestures to his casted leg. “I just, it’s the only way I know to...honor them. Be with them. Christmas was their favorite day, I just, I have to spend it with them.” There’s a pause, the weight of Peter’s words syncing in.

“Wow kid, that’s really fucking sad.” Tony responds, squeezing his shoulder gently in a sign of comfort. “But, what kind of billionaire, philanthropist, superhero and mentor would I be if I ruined your depressing Christmas tradition because of a broken leg?”

“Wait, you - I can go?”

“Yeah, get some sleep. We’ll go in the morning.”

They wheel Peter to the headstones the next morning. He thinks it’s a little dramatic, but he knows that his fractured ribs will be thankful. It’s surprisingly warm for a December 25th, and Peter’s just thankful to have May, Tony, and Pepper there - the new and old truly blending for the first time. Pepper had brought three sets of flowers, and the gesture warms Peter from the inside out.

He tells his parents and Ben about joining the Avengers, defeating the Green Goblin, and how he’s about graduate high school. Tony even speaks up, talking of the more embarrassing moments on missions and in training. May talks about wine nights with Pepper, and the new office job she started in September.

Peter doesn’t realize he’s crying at first, not until May is bent down in front of him, wiping a tear from his cheek.

“I’m sorry. I don’t - I don’t know why…”

“Shhh, it’s okay baby,” May says, misty eyed herself. She grabs the handle of the wheelchair and turns him around. “Let’s go get some tissues from the car.”

It gives Tony a moment to himself and he sighs, sitting on the ground between the stones.

“Hi, I...I haven’t even done this for my own parents, so it feels a little weird.” Tony sighs, putting his hands in his pockets. “I just wanted to meet you and say that… God, I don’t know what I’m doing. But Peter is such a good kid. His heart is so kind and big. He makes me want to be better. To be a better man, maybe a father someday. He’s a little reckless at times, I blink and he’s injuring himself or doing some teenage superhero bullshit, which also makes me second guess the whole father thing…” He trails off, clearing his throat. “But I wanted to thank you for raising him. For making him the man is. He told me a little bit about you all last year. I wish I could have met you. All of you. . . I’ve made too many mistakes to count, some even with Peter. But I will do everything in my power to protect him. And I just wanted you to know that.” He claps his hands, rubbing them together to break the tension he feels. “Okay, well. . . Rest easy Richard, Mary, and Ben.” He touches their gravestones in farewell, and walks back to the car.

#tony stark and peter parker #spider man #my writing #irondad and spiderson #ironman #irondad fic #iron dad #Ironman and Spider-Man #the avengers #peter parker #tony stark #may parker #christmas #christmas fanfic

[ancelineonline]

I posted about my hat hyperfixation, and promptly forgot to tell you all about my other little hyperfixation, where I made four duvet covers in four days like a maniac. It might have been five days? I can’t remember.

Anyway, my kids have these sets of flannel sheets that are very cozy and good for fall/winter but they literally never use the flat sheets because they are kids. I got the sheet sets at Costco last fall and I had the bright idea of going back this year to see if they had them again, and if they did getting a second set for each kid. Then I would have six useless flat sheets that could be sewed together into three duvet covers. (And also, bonus, replace some of the fitted sheets we have that are… ready to shuffle off this mortal coil.) Not only did Costco have the sheet sets, but they also had the queen size sets on sale so I decided to get those and make a duvet set for me and technically also my husband. (I say technically because he does not care about bedding. I do because I like to be Cozy.)

And then I spent the next several days shoving all the furnishings in our living room to the side and laying out sheets and duvets on the floor to make sure things were sized right while my children looked on in mild confusion.

Anyway, if you know how to sew a straight line and gave unused flat sheets, making duvet covers is a fun and easy project!

Honestly, the ones for the kids turned out pretty well in terms of matching patterns.

White with blue floral pattern and white with green leaf pattern for my four year old.

Solid grey with grey plaid for my six year old, and the greys match really well.

Two different plaids for my twelve year old, but since one is a big bold plaid and one is a small subtle plaid, it works out well.

I don’t super love the combination my husband and I, but I was limited by what Costco had in stock. And I adore the cozy flannel.

White with green floral and plain blue is… fine but it would have been nicer if there had been a solid green or if the floral had been blue. But it is peak cozy and I’m here for it.

#anceline crafts #sewing #diy projects #duvet covers #we love non standard fabric sourcing #flannel is so cozy

[soeuntv]

hi guys!! i'm liv and this is my cocky, shittalking tennis queen, cha soeun! ‪v v v excited to write with everyone (but also am an absolute noob at tennis. i literally know nothing about it. i had to chatgpt so many things so i apologize if anything is not the most accurate!!!) but anyways, u can find her condensed intro below - apologies if her characterization is still a little bit of a WIP because i tend to build my character as i plot & write, but anyways, please hit like if you'd like to plot!! i'm also good with dc or ims!

key info

cha soeun, twenty four (jan 11 2000)  national team tennis player capricorn sun, capricorn moon, aries rising entj  

personality

label: the spitfire, the heel alignment: lawful evil positive: ambitious, undeviating, tactical, confident, resilient, ebullient negative: cocky, irreverent, brash, volatile, impatient, fiery neutral: unapologetic inspirations: heavily inspired by novak djokovic. other inspirations include succession’s shiv roy, gossip girl’s blair waldorf, the seven husbands of evelyn hugo’s evelyn hugo

career

turned professional at 15

rose to prominence at 16 after defeating the world ranked 50 and made it to the finals of the miami open where she ultimately lost (and threw somewhat of a fit. she broke her racquet and smashed a ball into the crowd. you can watch it on youtube. probably included in one of her many ‘cha soeun's worst behaviours’ videos) - earned praise for her resilience, but also got shit on a lot for how “unprofessional” she acted 

played tournaments regularly following that but failed to win any major titles, although she did walk away with a few runner-up medals & won some smaller competitons

was still enough to get her called up to the national team at 18 (though not without a warning to get her shit together. she behaved for like three matches)

won her first major tournament, australia open at 21

hit her career best at 23, winning 3 grand slams in a year

off the court, she has been scrutinzed a lot for her lack of sportsmanship and irreverent attitude to most things. very polarizing to the public; some of the criticism is valid, but others not so much

the kind to chat shit before a game to mess with her opponent’s head. the kind to play with a demoralizing style, forcing opponents to play more impatiently, hit harder and take more risks. will pull out of a tournament if she thinks she will lose (her most infamous excuse was having a sore throat. was spotted at a karaoke bar the next day - she was very heavily criticized for this, and even soeun admits it was shitty of her to do that) 

undeniable that she’s very talented and very hardworking, considered one of asia’s top tennis players but she just has a horrible attitude that makes it hard for some people to support her 

background

wont add much but crazy, uber competitive family. father is ceo of a fintech company, mother is a healthcare cfo (i’m thinking her dad is some cocky tech bro who you love to hate. el*n musk dupe??) 

basically raised their kids on steroids - find something you’re good at and stick with it. be the best at it. anything less than #1 is not accepted  

soeun got lucky at five and realized that she liked tennis! and she was pretty fucking good at it.

her younger sibling was not as fortunate and spent their whole lives trying to find something they were good at and ultimately failing. soeun holds them as a reminder of why she needs to always keep trying and always be the best because there's no way she'll let herself end up like her younger sibling.

anyways yeah she just kept training and playing tennis. signed away her childhood but the fame and glory and attention was always more fun anyways 

trivia

shes messy but it’s not like she actively tries to be? when you’re raised in a crazy competitive family where shit talk is the normal way of life.. it’s just how you live life

she’s very much an entertainer. invited to a few variety shows, which she excels at because she’s just loud and bright and funny (but she’s not allowed to go on anything live. she’s a tad too unpredictable for that) 

genuinely believes in herself. the cockiness isn’t an act, she is genuinely and truly believes that she is the greatest and she can do anything. she doesn’t think that she deserves all the gold just because she's cha soeun - but because she knows that she’s talented and she works her ass off. 

on that note, she is very, very, very dedicated to her sport. incredibly hard worker. will stay till dawn. will practice till her fingers are calloused and bloody!!

potential plots

first love! shes bi so i would love something where your muse has trained with her all their lives and you broke up but now you’re friends and she’s forcing herself to laugh around you and everything thinks it’s SO cool that exes can be friends but truth is it hurts!!! alot!!! 

enemies!! someone who thinks soeun should shut the fuck up or that she’s ruining the beautiful sport of tennis or the olympics in general 

besties <3 or unlikely friends!!! a soft spoken sweet person to match soeun’s fiery nastiness 

enemies to fwbs… on the contrary, two very similar hot-heads! always at each other’s throat, sexual tension, you know the likes

pr friendship. she’s lowkey a pr mess and her team wants to “clean her image up” before the olympics so they pair you two together! idk they can end up being friends or beefing whatever works

the only other person who stays as late as she does. doesn’t have to be a fellow tennis player but someone who understands the #grind. sharing late night protein shakes after practicing till 3am vibes?? 

other tennis players!!

we can brainstorm!! i’m just vomiting cause as everything with life, i have procrastinated writing this intro until the very last minute! hehe

#gtvintro #. . ˚ . ⌗ ooc.

[theyaresogay]

Willow memes I found on Pinterest that I cackle at (I’m just to going keep adding to this)

one

Kit: Man it sure is dark in here…

Jade:

Kit: I'm not scared or anything.

Jade:

Kit: I mean, who is afraid of the dark these days, anyways?

Kit: Not me. No sir.

Jade: …Do you want me to hold your hand?

Kit: Yes please.

two

Elora: Start with some light flirting, okay? Subtlety is key.

Kit, nodding: Sure, I can do that.

—Later—

Kit: Hey, Jade! High Five!

*they high five*

Jade: Okay?

Kit: *interlacing their fingers* I'm in love with you.

Jade: *smiling confusedly* What?

Elora: *face palms*

three

Kit: *does something ridiculous*

Jade: Great, like I needed to get anymore attracted to you.

Kit: ... What?

Jade: ANNOYED. ANNOYED BY YOU. That’s what I said.

four

King Hastur: So, Queen Sorsha, what is your daughter like?

Sorsha: Well, she's-

Kit: Full of sass with a really cute-

Sorsha: Kit!

Kit: ...Lass. *winks at Jade*

Jade: *smitten eye rolling*

five

Graydon: Why are Kit and Jade sitting with their backs to each other?

Elora: They had a fight.

Graydon: Then why are they still holding hands?

Elora: *shrugs* Kit gets sad when they fight.

six

Kit: Mom, I understand now why you arranged a marriage for me. As a princess, and heir to the throne, it is my duty to form alliances to protect our kingdom.

Sorsha: I am so happy to hear you say that. I know it's a great sacrifice, and I am so proud that you are willing to go through with it.

Kit: ...And since Jade turned out to be essentially a Bone Reaver princess, I decided to marry her.

Sorsha: .....

seven

Elora: Do you ever want to talk about your emotions, Kit?

Kit: ...No.

Graydon: I do!

Elora: I know, Graydon.

Graydon: I'm sad!

Elora: I know, Graydon.

eight

Kit, joking around: When are you going to go out with me?

Jade: I don't know, when are you going to ask me?

—Later—

Elora: AND YOU JUST RAN AWAY?!

Kit: I DIDN'T EXPECT HER TO FLIRT BACK!

nine

Elora: Every family has a gay cousin

Kit: I don't have a gay cousin

Elora: Maybe you're the gay cousin

Kit: Holy shit, I'm the gay cousin

ten

Madmartigan: Kids, I'm sorry I had to leave, and wasn't there for you both growing up. I an so proud of the people you have become. Kit, you are one of the finest, bravest knights this world has ever known. Kit: Thanks, dad.

Madmartigan: And Airk... you've got great hair, son.

Airk: (overcome with emotions) Thanks, dad.

Willow: Really?

Jade: He's always had really low expectations.

Elora: Tell me about it. Before we started dating I once gave him a cupcake I stole from the kitchens. He thought I'd made him a birthday cake. He cried.

eleven

Elora: I give up. I am so tired.

Kit: Get the emergency supply!

Jade: *carries Graydon and places him in front of Elora*

Graydon: *smiles*

Elora: AND I’M BACK BABY, LET'S GOOO

twelve

Airk: Hey, Kit? Can I get some dating advice?

Kit: Just because I'm with Jade doesn't mean I know how I did it.

Kit: *turns to Jade looking curious* How did I do it?

Jade: I think it’s definitely the hair.

Kit: *smuggly smirking*

thirteen

Kit, messaging Jade at 2 am: lmfao

Kit: guess what?

Jade: Bitch, with the way you live, I have no fucking idea.

fourteen

Kit: Look at that! The statues smirking at me.

Elora: You’re right, that’s weird.

Boorman: It’s art, it isn’t weird.

Graydon *turns to Jade*: Why isn't the statue smirking at me?

Jade: It isn't smirking at anyone, they're all just imagining it.

Graydon: Three of us saw it, Jade. How do you explain that?

Jade: *points at Elora* Sleep deprivation, *points at Kit* Severe paranoia, *points at Boorman* Delusional personality disorder.

fifteen

Kit: Let's watch Sharkboy and Lavagirl.

Jade: Okay.

kit: And make out during the scary parts.

Jade: Th-

Jade: The scary parts.

Jade: Of Sharkboy and Lavagirl.

sixteen

Jade: You know what I learned from years of being friends with Kit?

Graydon: There's no such thing as too idiotic?

Elora: Never let your friends know for sure if you like them?

Boorman: Always hold a grudge?

Kit: I don’t know what you learned, but I learned to never steal your socks.

seventeen

Airk: Oh you travelled across most of the known world and nearly died multiple times to reach me? What a wonderful treat! Oh, those guys who've been trying to kill you the last few months? They're fine, don't worry about them, they're my mates. They still want to kill you though. Let me give you the most awkward hugs in existence and be really creepy and spacey then start spouting the most cultish speech ever.

Kit: What are you on?

Airk: Wyrm's milk.

Kit: Forget I asked.

eighteen

Elora: Sonetimes I drink milk straight out of the container.

Kit: The cow?!?!?!

Elora: What?

Jade: Elora, W H Y?

Nineteen

Kit: *Kicks the door down looking panicked*

Jade: What did you do?

Kit: Nobody died.

Jade: WHAT KIND OF ANSWER IS THAT?!?

twenty

Kit: Jade, you deserve an award for putting up with me.

Jade: You are my reward, Kit.

[meanwhile]

Boorman: Scorpia, you deserve an award for putting up with me.

Scorpia: Hell yeah I do; you're a real bitch sometimes. Scratch that, all the time.

#jade claymore #kit tanthalos #elora danan #graydon hastur #thraxus boorman #sorsha tanthalos #willow 2022 #memes

[unhonestlymirror]

It's a shame that I, as a Ukrainian, never wrote what I think about russia's name in hetalia.

Because it's so damn lifeless. XD I see plenty of people referring to Ukraine as Katyusha (nickname made from russian Yekaterina, has nothing to do with Ukraine) and to Belarus as Natasha (russified nickname, which appeared, according to russian sources, in the 18th century, and according to American sources, in 1965, has nothing to do with Belarus) - but, for some reason, Great Russia doesn't want to have 100% russian name:

Ivan is the name of ancient Hebrew origin, which translates as "Mercy of God." It is formed from the ancient form of Ioann. This name is definitely older than russia itself. This name is commonly used in Ukrainian and Belaruthian folk songs, this name is used to refer to Ivana Kupala celebration: the name arose at a time when the Christian church wanted to replace a pagan holiday with a new religion.

Not even England has such an average name: it's like if they used John Brown instead of Arthur Kirkland.

Now about the surname: and I will use quotes from russian(!) sources:

The surname Braginsky belongs to a common type of Jewish surnames.

The Jews of the Russian Empire began to be given surnames at the end of the 18th century, after the western regions of Belarus, Ukraine and the Baltic states were annexed to the Russian Empire - after the partition of Poland.

Then Catherine II "acquired" along with the western regions a huge number of Jews who historically did not have surnames, but only a first name and patronymic, for example, "Moishe, son of Shmelke."

And my favourite:

"So, the surname Braginsky owes its origin to the urban settlement of Bragin - at present, it is the regional centre of the Gomel region of the Republic of Belarus. The settlement was founded in the 16th century."

Gomel region? The region from which locals like to joke that they use Ukrainian with Belaruthian letters? (Lots of my relatives are from there, and some of them even identify themselves as Ukrainians).

What an interesting name for personification of russia to have. Especially considering how much russia hates both Jews, Ukrainians, and Belaruthians. This name literally screams: "Look, I am not a nazi." And I really doubt Hidekaz Himaruya, who clearly isn't versed in never-soviet countries' culture, would choose this name without influence from his sponsors.

If russia loves its culture so much, why did they choose what they chose? Why doesn't its personification have a perfectly russian name? I will even translate some of the greatest examples for you:

Dalis - Да здравствуют Ленин и Сталин!Long live Lenin and Stalin!

Delezh — Дело Ленина живёт! The deed of Lenin lives!

Deleor — Дело Ленина — Октябрьская революция! The deed of Lenin -- October Revolution!

Dazdrasen — Да здравствует Седьмое ноября! Long live November 7th!

Avtodor -- Общество содействия развитию автомобилизма и улучшению дорог. Society for the Promotion of Motoring and Road Improvement

Agitprop -- Отдел агитации и пропаганды при ЦК ВКП (б). Department of Agitation and Propaganda under the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks

Glasp -- гласность печати. Publicity of the press.

Karmiy -- Красная Армия. Red Army.

Kid -- коммунистический идеал. Communist ideal.

Kravasil -- Красная армия всех сильней!The Red Army is the strongest of all!

Kukutsapol -- "Кукуруза — царица полей!" Corn - the queen of the fields!

Piachegod -- "Пятилетку — в четыре года!" "Five-Year Plan - in four years!"

Revvol — революционная воля - revolutionary will

Revdar — революционный дар revolutionary gift

Yurgoz -- Юрий Гагарин облетел Землю -- Yuri Gagarin circled the Earth

Zamvil — заместитель В. И. Ленина -- Deputy of V. I. Lenin

Idlen -- Ideas of Lenin

Vidlen - Great ideas of Lenin

Vinun — "Владимир Ильич не умрёт никогда" -- "Vladimir Ilyich (Lenin) will never die"

Lunio – "Ленин умер, но идеи остались" - Lenin died, but the ideas remained!"

Lelud — Ленин любит детей -- Lenin loves children

Lengenmir -- "Ленин - гений мира!" -- "Lenin - the genius of the world!"

Lestak - Lenin, Stalin, communism!

Pofistal – Победитель фашизма Иосиф Сталин -- "The winner of fascism, Joseph Stalin."

Yausyaukh – "Я устал, я ухожу" - "I'm tired, I'm leaving."

Porof - Позор российскому футболу - Shame on Russian football.

Motevsor - мочить террористов в сортире - kill terrorists in the toilet.

Dogzeb -- "Догзеб – Доллар – грязная зеленая бумажка" - "Dollar is a dirty green paper"

And it's only a little part of what exists. If there are so many great, purely russian names, why to name russia after "stupid khokhols" (russian slur about Ukrainians) or "bulbashi" (russian slur about Belaruthians) or "zhydy"(russian slur about Jewish)?

#hetalia #tw: hws aph russia #hws ukraine #aph ukraine #hws belarus #aph belarus