#guess which song has been stuck in my head to the point i felt the need to make this

[agentravensong]

hello, fellow hatchetfield fans! here are my stray nerdy prudes must die thoughts, which i'm going to try to keep brief (she said, before spending an hour writing this)

the production level of the show as a whole really blew me away. the lighting; demon!max's costume and makeup; even the way it was shot and edited felt even more electric than past shows

this is the only one of the full-length hatchetfield musicals to have one consistent antagonist throughout (black friday has linda but half the leads don't know about her at all until the climax, plus there's wilbur and wiggly). and i gotta say, max's actor really killed it. hilarious, terrifying, and even with moments of nuance. he repeatedly stole the show.

some of the songs are already stuck in my head. off the top of my head i can't think of any that stood out in a bad/unmemorable way (though i could just be forgetting them, lol). ruth's song in particular i think is gonna really stick with me once i listen to it a few more times.

and i love the way the "i'm not a loser" motif gets used throughout the show. the closest any of the songs got me to having the visceral reaction i have to "did you know that i wanted to live with you" in "not your seed" and the bridge + ending of "let it out" ("i've never been happy...") was when richie sings that line right before... well.

speaking of richie: as a paul stan, what this show proved to me more than anything is that when jon matteson plays a sympathetic lead (or side character - hi daniel/stopwatch), he will always break my heart. he's just. really good.

thinking about how in the last of the originally planned 3 hatchetfield shows, initially conceptualized as the first, jon's character is the first one to sing, whereas in the first of those shows, conceptualized as the last, the whole crux of the musical is him refusing to sing, the audience essentially waiting for the moment he breaks and does it. thinking about how the opening of npmd tells us richie is going to die, already dying, already dead, while the opening number of tgwdlm tells us paul is the target, the Doomed Hero, the "star of the show" "destined to go viral" [read: get infected], whose story is going to be told, already written.

thinking about how singing dooms paul, and how richie singing "i'm not a loser", reigniting max's ire, is the final nail in his coffin.

...i'm normal.

there's a lot of meta jokes and nods of that sort throughout the show. maybe a few too many? like, at a certain point, as a fan, i do feel like i'm being pandered to a bit.

i liked the lords in black's scene, it was a lot of fun! it's always great to see jon get to let loose with crazy characters, and the others were great too. but i do wonder how it plays for people who haven't been following nightmare time stuff. like, i get that in one world this was our introduction to these characters, but even in that world, i wonder if including all five of them with their specific names and allusions to their individual deals is a bit too much for what the plot of this show needs. there's something to be said for not showing all your cards right away.

on the other hand, i feel like the paulkins coffee scene actually fully earned its inclusion: because when pete comes in asking for his hot chocolate, it reads differently when we're coming at it from having followed his perspective up to this point versus having been following paul in tgwdlm, in a way that strengthens both scenes. it's a nice reminder that emma and paul can be... rude, i guess. assholes, even (she really didn't need to spit in it). that idea of perspectives affecting how we categorize people arguably even plays into the themes of this show! how about that.

ah, yes, Themes. there are Themes to be drawn out of this show about the experience of high school, especially in an intertextual comparison to how tom and becky talk about their time in high school in black friday. something about how the two of them see it as this idealistic time they want to go back to, whereas the teens (the nerds/outcasts) in npmd sing that they'll "still despise it when [they're] gone". something about how in ruth's solo number, the fantasy future she imagines for herself (even in the context of it being a performance for an audience of no one) is of a standard, arguably dreary, middle-aged existence. there's definitely stuff there to be dissected.

and also there's arguably a theme of continuing cycles of cruelty, brought into focus by the ending, but also implied with the way the adults failed the kids (see max referencing his dad belittling him).

...but also, i feel like they could have done more with that.

that's my one big thing with this show, and it could very easily just be that the genre of this show isn't as much my jam, but i'll say it anyway: i wanted more from the characters, and more emotional weight in regards to certain things.

like, between this and tgwdlm, i think tgwdlm is still the better written show. there's just, a subtly to the characters there, a grounded human-ness, that i didn't quite get from all of the teens here.

as much as i clearly have a soft spot for richie, that's mostly on jon; as written, there really isn't much there, beyond "anime nerd" and "generally nice kid who wants to be liked". the scene right before he dies is comedic in how obvious it's setting things up, but its obvious-ness also makes it feel kind of cheap in terms of pulling on the heartstrings. similarly, ruth is initially just a gimmick (though hers at least ties into a deeper insecurity) and only gets her real moment of depth right before she dies. neither of them feel like they have much affect / haunting presence on the surviving teens once they're dead, past the initial shock of the reveals of their deaths.

and steph and pete are good, but... idk. i wanted a bit more from each of them. if they got to have a talk like paul and emma before "join us and die" - not even for the sake of the romance, but just for the sake of giving us more on each of them outside of their basic stereotypes and the romance - that would've helped, i think.

grace was great, though, no qualms. initially there was a part of me that was disappointed that the stereotype max was pushing on her about her being secretly repressed and horny was in fact true, but the way it gets used makes up for it, and in between max's death and when that specific thing comes up again in the climax, she gets to do a lot with the two conflicting sides of her personality, wanting to be good but having a capacity and arguable instinct for scheming and ruthlessness.

(also, as i mentioned earlier, max has a surprising amount going on, especially once you get into the Implications)

it could just be that i see those depths in the tgwdlm cast because i've had more time to chew on that cast, and that in time i'll see these teens in the same light. but i don't think it's just that.

i think part of it is how there are so many jokes about the teens being nerdy prudes (really, mostly just nerds). and like, that's part of the point, obviously, that they were being forced into those boxes and that they were still people with the potential to be more. but... i don't know if the show does enough to really make that point. again, richie doesn't really get to be more (and it's not for lack of time - there's a good amount of show before max comes back as the demon and kills for the first time).

in tgwdlm, the mains are all arguably based on stock characters, but they have more depth through their relationships. look at ted, the stock asshole sleazeball, who's shown to feel genuine remorse when he loses people he loves, in a way that contextualizes his bitterness. and there's a lot less highlighting of the stockness of them in their show than there is of the teens in npmd.

and the thing is, i think the cast of npmd at their foundations are more likable than the cast of tgwdlm (see the earlier point about emma and paul being assholes at times). they had a lot of potential. but i don't think enough of it is realized for the majority of them. the edges the tgwdlm cast has are part of what makes them compelling, and it's something the teens (minus grace) are largely missing.

the thing is, i know the fandom is going to see that potential and run with it. i know that they're gonna develop the teens' characterizations and relationships. i know they'll get into the trauma and the implications from everything that happened to them in the show. i know they'll get into... pete's survivor's guilt, and steph losing her dad(!!!), and what richie and ruth could have been, and all that. i know that they'll fill in the gaps. because that's what fans do. i guess i just wish there weren't so many gaps to fill. or, that the gaps wouldn't take so much effort from them to fill.

again, i acknowledge, maybe i'm expecting too much from the genre of show this is. it doesn't need to have A Point, i guess, it can just be fun, a comedic horror slasher in musical form. and it is fun, a lot of fun! ...but, tgwdlm was also a lot of fun. not as bombastic, for sure, but i'd say just as humorous. and it was also incredibly tightly written, and satisfying, with strong character arcs for multiple leads. it had commentary on musicals, on what makes a protagonist and what it means to be one, on conformity and institutions of authority, on romance even (you could do a very interesting aromantic reading of this show, trust me). and with a show that's titled nerdy prudes must die, that is About high school, there's, similarly, a lot you can do. and there's a fair amount of seeds planted there. but i don't think it all quite coheres. and it could've, if they really wanted it to.

...i did not keep that brief. ah well. i might disagree with half of this by the time i wake up tomorrow, i just needed to get it out of me. tl;dr, in my opinion, this show is stronger than black friday, but tgwdlm is still my favorite. all the cast and crew put a lot of love into this production and it really shows. i had a great time! :D but i'm always going to overanalyze things i care about as much as i care about the hatchetfield universe, and hence, here we are.

#starkid #nerdy prudes must die #tgwdlm #npmd spoilers #nerdy prudes spoilers #if people have deeper reads of the teens based on stuff in the show itself that i didn't pick up on #i'd love to hear them! #for reference if anyone's curious: my absolute fav hatchetfield characters are #paul - hannah - lex - and ms halloway

[staygoldwriting]

Cousin Buckley: Part 5

Summary: You’re Robin’s cousin, and you might be falling for Eddie Munson... or will it be Steve Harrington?? 🖤💜

Please see my masterlist for Parts 1-4!

Warnings: mention of blood and a skinned knee, otherwise it’s pure fluff!

Word count: ~1.4k

A/N: AHHH I’m getting so excited about what will happen next even though I’m the one writing it 😂 Again, THANK YOU for the love--I’m sending it right back 😍 Please enjoy this one--it’s getting good 🙊

Taglist is still a WIP but I’m messaging those whose usernames won’t work!

“Okay, I’ve got to work from one to closing tonight, which is a total drag and barely feels legal, but I’ve got to save up. Do you have any plans?”

You were sitting on Robin’s bed as she fixed her hair for work. Robin had warned you that Thursday was her longest shift day, so you needed to make some plans so you wouldn’t be stuck in the house all day. You envied the day before; you two met up with the guys again and had lunch at the park.

“Actually, I was thinking about hanging out with Eddie,” you said, picking at your fingernails.

“Ahh,” Robin turned around with a smirk on her face. “Has the lady chosen her true love? I would have guessed it was Steve based on your interactions yesterday.”

You blushed; you and Steve had been playing around at the park yesterday. He pushed you on the swings, swung with you on the monkey bars, and then played out in the field, ending with you accidentally falling and skinning your knee as you dove for the frisbee.

✨

“Oh my gosh, are you okay?” Steve had rushed to your side. “Shoot, you’re bleeding!”

“I’m fine,” you tried to relieve him. “It’s just a skinned knee. Man, they do sting, it doesn’t matter how old you are.”

“Here, let me help you up.”

Steve lifted you up, wrapping your arm around his shoulder. He then walked you over to a bench, swinging your leg up on it. He grabbed a napkin, then squatted beside you to dab your knee. As you winced in pain, he looked up at you sympathetically.

“I’m sorry,” he said, rubbing your arm.

“Don’t worry about it, you’re helping,” you half-smiled, half-grimaced.

“I’ll be right back, I think I have some bandaids in my car.”

He came back with some bandaids. As he dabbed your knee a little more, you continued to wince. He gently applied the bandaid, making sure it wasn’t too tight. 

“Good as new,” he smiled then kissed his finger, pressing it lightly to the bandage then to your nose.

“Thanks, Dr. Steve, what do I owe you?” you joked, trying to hide the way your heart raced as he looked at you admiringly. He tapped his cheek playfully, making you roll your eyes. 

“You can also build up a line of credit,” he winked, pointing to his lips.

✨

You looked down at your knee and lightly touched the fresh bandaid. Steve was sweet, that was for sure. He felt like Hawkins, like those summer days full of popsicle stains, collecting fireflies, and freshly grilled burgers. He was the type of person you could dance with if a great song came on the radio while you were cooking. 

But something about Eddie made you feel different. Eddie wasn’t the typical all-American boy next door; he was softer, a sensitive soul covered by leather and tough patches and bands. When you thought of him, you thought of late nights gazing at the stars, of staying up all night just talking, of leaning on him the way you did two days ago, but this time with his guitar in his hands, strumming a song he made just for you. 

“Hello-o-o, Y/N,” Robin waved her hand in your face, snapping you out of your trance.

“Hey, sorry,” you shook your head. “What were we talking about again?”

“You possibly seeing Eddie today?”

“Right, sorry. Yeah, I think I’ll call him.”

“Go ahead,” Robin smiled. “I gotta go, but I’ll see you later, okay?”

“Okay. Bye, Rob, have a good day at work. Let me know if you want snacks or something, okay?” you hugged her as she nodded. 

“Seeya, Y/N/N.”

After Robin left, you got ready for the day and went to the kitchen to use the phone. Robin had written down both of the boys’ numbers in case you needed something while she was at work. You dialed Eddie’s number, and soon, a man picked up. 

“Hello?”

“Hi, this is Y/N Buckley. Can I please speak to Eddie?”

“Sure, one second, Y/N.”

“Hello?”

“Hey, Eddie, it’s Y/N. I was wondering if you’d like to hang out today.”

You heard a crash and Eddie cursing to himself.

“Sorry,” he said.

“What happened?”

“Oh, nothing, just dropped the phone. Yes, let’s hang out. What did you have in mind?”

“Do you wanna get some lunch?”

Within fifteen minutes, you saw Eddie’s van pull up into the driveway. As you were walking to the front door, he hopped out of the driver’s seat and rushed up to the door, ringing the bell. When you opened it, he beamed and brought a small bouquet of wildflowers out from behind his back, holding them out to you.

“Hey, these are for you,” he smiled as you grabbed hold of them.

“Oh, Eddie, these are so pretty!” you smiled. “Thank you.” 

You moved to hug him, and he accepted it, your arms around his neck and his around your waist. He rested his head in the crook between your neck and shoulder, and you could feel him smiling. You also smiled as you held him closely. He smelled like cigarettes and floral shampoo, a weird but not entirely unwelcome mix. As you pulled away, you looked away, trying to hide your blush.

“Did you know that wildflowers are my favorite?”

“I could say yes,” he scratched his head, a crooked smile on his face, “but I can’t lie to a lady such as yourself. In all honesty, they’re from behind my trailer.”

“Even better,” you said, and Eddie’s eyes sparkled. “I’m just going to put them in a vase quickly. Here, come in,” you moved to let him in.

As you found a vase and filled it, Eddie leaned on the countertop, gazing at you. He smiled as he saw the genuine joy the flowers brought you. As you arranged them, you narrowed your eyes to make sure the flowers fell evenly.

“You’re so cute.”

“What?” you looked up in surprise, a blush spreading quickly across your cheeks.

“What?” Eddie mirrored, eyes wide. 

“You think I’m cute?” you asked slowly. Eddie’s face didn’t change.

“I… said that out loud. Okay, um,” he shuffled a bit, snapping out of his daze. “I just need to be honest with you, Harrington and I decided that we weren’t going to ask you out, but, to be honest with you, we both really really like you and we’ve wanted to ask you out since the first moment we saw you. I don’t know how he feels, but every single time I see you, I feel like my heart is gonna burst out of my chest, and I know that sounds cliche, but honestly, Y/N, this doesn’t really happen to me. I’ve been labeled as a freak all of my life, so girls avoided me like the plague. When I met you, I felt like you were just being nice like nice people do, you know? But I feel like we actually get along and enjoy each other’s company, right?” he looked at you, breathing a little heavily.

“Right. I enjoy spending time with you, Eddie, honestly,” you said softly.

“Okay, so you like hanging out with me and I like hanging out with you,” his arms were flailing as he spoke, “but, Y/N, I feel like there’s something more, but I don’t want to make a single move before I hear how you feel. So, Y/N,” he held your arms, “please be honest with me and tell me the truth. I’d rather you reject me and we just stay friends than you say yes and be uncomfortable. How do you feel about me?”

Before you could answer, you heard a knock on the door. 

“Eddie!!” 

It was a boy’s voice. Eddie looked at you, a heartbroken look on his face, and turned to get the door. A rush of emotions filled you to a breaking point, and you grabbed his arm to stop him and kissed his cheek, quickly but sweetly. 

“We can talk later,” you said quietly, and Eddie nodded, his face softening. He opened the door, but when he saw who was in front of him, he groaned and dragged his hands down his face in exasperation.

“What do you want, Henderson?”

To be continued!!

🖤

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#staygoldwriting #eddie munson #stranger things eddie #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson imagine #eddie munson fluff #steve harrington #steve harrington x rea #steve harrington fluff #stranger things steve #steve harrington imagine #stranger things #st4 #joseph quinn #joe keery #eddie munson x female reader #steve harrington x fem #stranger things season four #eddie stranger things #steve stranger things

[evandarya]

Ghosts Dont go to High School

Chapter 10

<Read on Ao3>

D.F. 👻:

Still want to know about ghosts?

Danny sent the message halfway through patrol while Tim was in the middle of breaking up an attempted burglary. He sent back a quick message while blocking a punch with his staff.

Red Robin:

Yes

A quick sweep of his staff landed the last of the thugs on his back.

Red Robin:

Did you talk to Phantom?

While waiting for a reply he zip-tied the thugs together for the GCPD to find and made his way to the nearest rooftop

D.F. 👻:

He agreed to meet you at Old Gotham Cemetery tomorrow at midnight.

Tim frowned at the time and place. Talk about cliche.

Red Robin:

I can be there.

Tim landed on the roof of a building across from Gotham Cemetery at 11:30 pm Sunday. His comm crackled in his ear.

“Are you sure you don’t want any backup?” Nightwing asked.

“I’m sure. Phantom is flighty. If a pack of vigilantes shows up it will scare him off. There’s no telling when or if he’d agree to meet again.” Tim said. Gotham Cemetery stood empty, the large iron gates were chained shut. It didn’t look like Phantom was there yet. Good.

“If Drake allows the ghost to get away again, someone else should be in charge of this case,” Damian said. Tim could almost see the sneer on the demon brat’s face.

“Codenames,” Batman said over the comms. “Red Robin is the only one who has been able to get close to Phantom. We need information on ghosts to be prepared if anything happens, but Phantom is not our enemy.” There was a pause as Batman allowed those words to seep in. “That being said, I can be there in three minutes.”

“It will be fine.” Tim stood to get a better view of the cemetery.

“Isn’t it a bit on-the-nose for a ghost to hang out in a graveyard?” Nightwing asked.

“It’s a cemetery, actually,” Tim said, switching from the regular vision in his mask to infrared. If Phantom had ice powers, maybe he could see him as a cold spot.

“What’s the difference?”

“Graveyards are attached to churches,” Tim responded, “Cemeteries aren't.” There wasn’t anything on thermal vision.

“Did Phantom tell you that?” Damian asked, his derisive tone clear even over the comm.

“No, actually. Da- uh… someone else did.”

“It was your physics partner, wasn't it?” Damian asked.

“Your boyfriend knows the difference between graveyards and cemeteries?" Dick asked. "That’s kinda creepy.”

“He’s not my boyfriend.” Tim shot back.

“Not yet,” Dick sing-songed.

“Chatter on comms,” Batman warned.

“Oh, come on, B. You have to admit, he’s the son of ghost hunters, is in regular contact with ghosts, and hangs out in cemeteries. That’s creepy. All he needs is fangs and he could be a full-on vampire.”

Tim felt his face flush as he was reminded of the sharper-than-human teeth he knew Danny sometimes had. “He’s not a vampire.”

“You wouldn’t be talking about me, would you?”

Tim spun around and found himself face to face with Phantom. Tim wondered if he had had a bad night since the ghost was looking rough. His white hair, which usually floated around as if blown in an invisible breeze hung limp, and there were dark blue bags under his eyes that showed in sharp contrast to his paler-blue-than-normal skin. Even his pointed ears seemed to droop. He had a lumpy black duffle bag thrown over one shoulder and it sat heavily against his hip, or where his hip would be if his body didn’t end in a wispy tail.

“No, of course not,” Tim answered quickly. Phantom hummed, looking unconvinced, and shifted the duffle higher onto his shoulder. “What's in the bag?”

Phantom set it down and pulled out a thin silvery rod, about a foot long and covered in green markings and copper wires. Tim took it from the ghost. “What is it?” Tim turned the rod around in his hands. If he had to guess, it was a lightning rod of some kind.

“Let's head into the cemetery and I’ll tell you about it.” Phantom took the rod back and stuck it into the bag. He floated over to the edge of the building. “After you.”

Tim eyed Phantom; the ghost looked like a strong wind would blow him away, but he gestured for Tim to go first, so he shot off his grapple and landed inside the gates to the cemetery. Phantom joined him just a second later.

“So, what are those rods?”

“It’s why I wanted you here.” Phantom was digging in his duffle bag again. “I’ve been waiting for a natural portal to open between here and the Infinite Realms so I could send Cindy home, but it’s been weeks and there hasn’t been one, which is odd.” Phantom finally found what he was looking for, a device with a small radar dish on the front. He powered it up and a green grid popped up on the screen. “See?” Phantom turned the device so he could see it better.

Tim squinted at the device. There was a line that was rotating and a steady slow beep, but nothing on the screen stood out to him. “I don’t see anything.”

“Exactly! There is supposed to be ectoplasm everywhere," Phantom said, pulling the device back to himself. "It gathers in certain places: ley lines, graveyards, cemeteries, battlegrounds, war zones."

"Places where there is a lot of death," Tim supplied, trying to figure out the line of thought Phantom was on.

"Yeah. Gotham should be an ectoplasm hot spot, what with all the…" Phantom waved his hand in the air in a vague gesture before he shrugged. "Everything about this place." He stopped his explanation long enough to tap some buttons on the device. "But it isn't."

Phantom continued to fidget with the machine but didn't continue his explanation. The cemetery grew silent around them, the only sound was the breeze in the yellowing leaves. Tim shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

"Any ideas why that is?" Tim raised his eyebrow in question.

"Theories, not anything concrete." Phantom studied the device in his hands and ran a thumb along the surface. "Most likely, there is a– well, it doesn't translate well from ghost speak, but a kind of natural ectoplasm filter here."

"A filter," Tim deadpanned.

"As I said, it doesn't translate well.” Phantom floated away from Tim a little until he was settled cross-legged on the top of an old headstone. “They form naturally when there is a high concentration of ectoplasm in one spot in the mortal realm. It's part of the natural ectoplasm cycle."

“Ectoplasm Cycle?” Nightwing asked over the comm. Tim ignored him.

"If they form in places high in ectoplasm, why are the levels in Gotham so low?"

"Because they soak up all the ectoplasm like a sponge and filter it back into the infinite realms.”

Chatter exploded over the comms about the Lazarus pit somewhere in the caves under Gotham, but surely not. The pits were mysterious, but they didn't have anything to do with ghosts, surely. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to ask. “What does this filter look like?” the comms went silent.

“I don’t know. I’ve never actually seen one, just read about them.” Phantom put the device back into the bag and pulled out a rod. “In any case, to send Cindy home, I need to force a portal to form. That’s where this comes in.” Phantom held out the rod. He looked pleased with himself, so much so that Tim hated to ask.

“Right." Tim crossed his arms over his chest and nodded toward the rod. "You still haven’t told me what that is.”

“It’s an ecto-rod.” Phantom turned the rod around in his hands. “It gathers ambient ectoplasm and channels it to a single spot. Once the ectoplasm levels in the area get high enough, a portal forms. Then I can send Cindy home.” Phantom tapped the end of the rod twice on his shoulder. “So, that’s my deal. You let me put these where I need them to go, and I’ll answer any questions about ghosts you may have while I’m doing it.” Phantom held the rod in his lap and watched Tim, waiting.

“Is it safe? We aren’t going to have zombies running around Gotham cemetery, are we?” Tim asked. The last thing they needed was more zombies, Solomon Grundy was enough.

“Oh, yeah, no, yeah,” Phantom waved his hand in the air, “it’s perfectly safe. Ectoplasm doesn’t create zombies, only ghosts and the occasional overly aggressive food item.”

"Aggressive food items?" Dick asked.

“What do you mean, aggressive food item?”

“Hmm. That falls under ‘questions about ghosts’" Phantom gave him a fanged smirk.

“If there isn’t any ectoplasm in Gotham, how are the rods going to gather it to form a portal?” Damian asked and Tim hated that he made a good point, but he repeated the question anyway.

“Oh, in a few weeks, it will be Samhain. The barrier is thinner then, so more ectoplasm than usual is going to leak across. The filter won’t be able to keep up with it and there will hopefully be enough to make a portal big enough for Cindy to slip through.”

“And if there isn’t enough?”

Phantom grew still and his voice was nearly a whisper when he responded. “I can supplement if there isn’t enough.”

“What does that mean?” Tim and Dick asked at the same time.

“That falls under ‘questions about ghosts'," Phantom repeated. There was no grin this time.

“Let him set them up. We can increase patrols in the area until we know there isn’t a threat,” Batman growled over the comms.

“Hood isn’t going to be happy about that. This area is right on the edge of his territory,” Dick responded.

They kept talking, their chatter an annoying buzz in his ear. Tim reached up and turned off his comm so he could focus on Phantom. The ghost had his head cocked to the side, watching him curiously. With his glowing green eyes and black-and-white coloring Tim was reminded of a tuxedo cat.

“Okay, you can set up the ecto rods.” Tim hoped they weren't going to regret trusting Phantom.

Phantom smiled brightly and floated down from the headstone. “Great! This way.”

Tim walked beside Phantom deeper into the silent cemetery. The older ornate headstones gave way to smaller stones and placards. The light from the crescent moon shone down in mottled spots, ever-shifting due to the cloud cover. It was still early enough in the season for the leaves to start changing colors but not late enough for them to fall. A cool breeze ruffled his hair bringing with it the scent of fresh-cut grass and gasoline, along with the ever-present stench of the city. He was quiet for a bit, mulling over his thoughts. To his surprise, Phantom broke the silence first.

“So, before you get started interrogating me about ghosts, I have a few ground rules.” Phantom rubbed his shoulder and looked up toward the moon. “Don’t ask about a ghost's death. It’s…rude.” Phantom paused. For a long moment, he was silent, but Tim could tell he wanted to say something else, so he kept quiet until Phantom continued. “You have to understand, ghosts don’t form from nice deaths.” The hand that had been gripping his shoulder that had been on his shoulder came down to squeeze at his hand, his thumb digging into the meat of his left palm.

“Is that-” Tim caught himself asking about Phantom's hand, but the subject of conversation was painting a picture of his days, a death that Tim didn't like the look of. He switched gears instead. “Okay. Anything else?”

“Some things aren’t my secrets to tell. Don’t push for answers if I tell you ‘no’.”

“Okay,” Tim said. “Can I ask you to elaborate on what you meant about supplementing ectoplasm?”

“Ghosts are mostly ectoplasm, in the same way, humans are mostly water. If there isn’t enough ectoplasm to trigger a portal, I can use some of my own.” Phantom held up his hand with the palm facing up.

"Isn't that like using your blood?" Tim felt sick at the thought.

Phantom shrugged. "Sort of."

“There has to be another way.” The last thing he wanted was for Phantom to have to use his own blood, or life force.

Phantom sighed, a thin mist forming from his breath. “Not without sneaking into a highly secured vault with advanced anti-ghost defenses, twenty-four/seven armed guard, and a one-way trip to a holding cell If I'm caught.”

“Maybe I could–”

“No.” Phantom stopped in front of Tim and pinned him with a sharp look. It was the most serious he had ever seen the ghost look. “I don’t want you any more involved than you already are. It’s hard enough keeping Cindy out of danger, I don’t need you poking your nose in where it doesn’t belong. Okay?”

"Okay," Tim said. Phantom nodded and started down a smaller path. He was starting to get an idea of where they were going.

“Speaking of Cindy," Tim spoke up after a few minutes of silence. "Where is she?”

“She’s with me.” Phantom looked over at him and his eyes trailed down toward his left leg. “Or, she’s with you right now.” Tim looked down but he didn’t see anything. He tried switching to infrared, and even ultraviolet views.

“I don’t see anything.”

“Yeah, most people can’t see ghosts when they want to stay hidden.” Phantom stopped to dig into his bag and pulled out a large copper ring wrapped in a thin green wire. The ring could easily fit on Tim’s finger. “Try looking through this.”

Tim took it and held it up to the sky, squinting one eye to peer through the hole. “What is it?”

“It’s like a hag stone but it actually works.” Phantom crossed his arms and waited. Tim sighed and pressed the metal to his eye and immediately pulled it away.

“What the hell?” Tim blinked at the stone in confusion while Phantom smirked at him. He put the ring back to his eye and tried to make sense of what he was seeing. Phantom was still Phantom, same blue skin and white hair, but there was a mist surrounding him, green like his eyes. It seemed to pulse, growing brighter and dimmer in a steady beat. Most of the mist swirled around his torso, but some of it was floating toward Tim. He followed it and found himself looking into the face of a child who was clinging to his leg like a toddler. She smiled and Tim noticed a few missing teeth. Where Phantom was in full color, Cindy’s color was muted grays and pinks.

“She used up a lot of her ectoplasm in the fire. She’s been subsisting on mine since then, but it’s not a permanent solution.”

“Why is she on me?”

Phantom smiled down at the girl and when he spoke his voice was fond. “She likes you, says you feel familiar.”

Phantom made a strange chirping sound and Cindy reluctantly let go of Tim’s leg and settled on the ghost’s shoulders. Her small size reminded Tim of how young Cindy must have been when she died. He didn’t have to ask how she had died, he could guess. Her mother had died in a house fire, and Cindy’s ghost was haunting the burnt-out remnants of an apartment building. Tim clenched the ring in his fist and closed his eyes.

A child had died scared and in pain and his first instinct when meeting her was to think of her as a monster.

“Can she hear me?” Tim asked. At Phantom’s nod, he put the ring back up to his eye. Cindy was still on Phantom’s shoulders watching him with interest. She was much less defined than Phantom, sort of fuzzy around the edges, though no less there. “I want to apologize for the way I acted when we first met. I will help Phantom get you back to your mom if I can,” he said, speaking directly to her.

Cindy’s face broke into a large grin and she flew off of Phantom’s shoulders and crashed into him. Tim could actually feel her. He was surprised by how warm she was for a ghost, how tightly something non-corporeal could squeeze.

“Aw, that’s nice. Well, we’re here.” Phantom turned to the small grave marker. Someone had put fresh white lilies on the grave and it had been recently cleaned of leaves. Tim knew without looking that the grave marker would say ‘Michelle Howe’. Cindy’s mother.

Tim felt Cindy shift her hold on him until she was settled against his back. “What’s the plan?”

Phantom set the duffle bag on the ground and pulled out one of the rods. “I’m going to put these around the grave.”

Phantom floated to the headstone and sunk the rod far too easily into the ground beside it.

"How did you do that?" Red Robin asked. "Density shifting?"

"No,” Phantom pulled another rod out of the bag before answering. “Phase shifting." He pushed the second pole into the ground on the other side of the headstone.

"What's the difference?"

Phantom gave him a look like he should know the answer before shaking his head. "Density shifting is changing the distance between atoms so the atoms in object A pass between the atoms of object B. Phase shifting is moving object A out of phase with the current reality."

"That sounds complicated."

Phantom snorted a laugh. "Ghosts exist on a different plane of reality. The complicated part is staying on this plane." He sunk another pole into the ground several feet away from the first two and in line with the second one. "I can't tell you how many times I fell through the floor before I got the hang of it."

“According to the Fentons, ghosts can control their powers instinctively, but you can't?” Tim asked. Phantom shifted uncomfortably and Cindy seemed to hold onto Tim’s shoulders tighter.

“Most ghosts can, but not all.” Phantom fiddled with the fourth rod. “I can send you some actual research on the different types of ghosts.”

He turned away from Tim and pressed the rod into the ground, completing a large rectangle around the gravesite. There was no evidence of the area being tampered with at all. Phantom pulled the last rod out of the bag.

"How do you know so much about density shifting?" Tim asked.

"Popular Mechanics did an article on some of the Justice League's powers a few years back. I always liked Martian Manhunter the best, before… well, before." Phantom gestured to his wispy tail and pointed ears. Red Robin could finish the thought himself. Before Phantom died.

Which opened up a whole new avenue of questions. According to the Fenton's research ghosts couldn't remember their lives before they died. But Phantom remembered that he liked Martian Manhunter, and Cindy certainly remembers who she was. If they were wrong about that, what else could they have been wrong about?

"What about Martian Manhunter did you like?"

Phantom's eyes lit up, "He's from Mars. He's an actual real-life Martian. We only just developed sustainable space travel, and Martians had that technology before humans even existed. We could have learned so much about space, technology, and the history of the universe from them!"

Red Robin could swear he saw literal stars in Phantom's eyes as he continued to talk about Martians and space travel and the universe at large, and was it his imagination, or was his glow getting brighter? Phantom had started to talk about the formation of the Crab Head Nebula when he suddenly stopped and gave Red Robin a sheepish look. "Sorry, I got carried away. You don't care about any of that."

"You don't have to stop on my account. You seem to really love space."

"Yeah." Phantom fiddled with the last pole in his hands. "I wanted to be an astronaut. Before. I used to read scientific journals about space for fun."

Tim remembered the first time he had seen Phantom, eating a burger and staring up at what little of the stars he could see. "You spent your life studying aeronautics." Red Robin couldn't help the grief welling up like a spring in his chest. For maybe the first time he realized Phantom had been alive once. A human with passions and dreams and hobbies. He had a goal and was never able to achieve it because he had died.

Phantom's hand clenched around the pole, his white gloves made no sound, even though they were made of some sort of rubber. Neoprene, or a chemical-resistant PVC. In fact, his whole suit was a kind of rubberized hazmat uniform similar to the ones the Doctors Fenton had been wearing.

A thought, half-formed, flitted through his brain, and the spring of grief in his chest turned to ice. "When did you meet Danny?"

Phantom turned to face him. The guard that had dropped while he spoke of space was back up, reinforced with wariness. "A long time ago."

"Did you know him before?"

Instead of answering, Phantom narrowed his eyes and sunk the final pole into the center of the grave. "I'm all done here. I shouldn't need your help again."

"Wait!" Tim yelled, reaching out to the ghost. If Phantom disappeared now he may never have the opportunity to speak to him again. But it was too late. Phantom was already gone.

#danny phantom #danny fenton #dp x dc #dc comics #batman #crossover #tim drake #fanfic #brain dead #dead tired #ghosts dont go to high school #evandarya writes

[sanfangirl-cynicalromantic]

How You Get The Girl

In (late) honor of Taylor Swfit's version of 1989, I felt compelled to write a short fic inspired by one of my favorite songs from that album (all the songs are favorites).

Read on AO3 here

It had been two weeks, but whatever crap people spouted about being able to move on was a complete lie. He hid in his room - or more accurately, he hid in his awful generous cousin’s guest room, since his own apartment held too many reminders and before he had met Minden he had spent most of his time here anyway.

He stumbled downstairs, intending to steal the last carton of ice cream (again). He was pretty sure the only reason Astrid hadn’t come up to kick him out and kill him for continuously finishing off her ice cream was her fiancé keeping her at bay.

The rest of the gang were gathered in Hiccup’s living room talking quietly, which was unusual in itself, and everyone abruptly stopped talking as soon as he entered the room to get to the kitchen.

“Snotlout,” Hiccup greeted him with forced ease. “There you are. It’s, uh, it’s good to see you, um, out and about.”

“We were just talking about you,” admitted Fishlegs. Ruffnut threw an elbow into his substantial gut and he squeaked. “What?!”

“Actually, this is the perfect opportunity to talk. Why don’t you sit down?” Astrid suggested firmly. Her voice was honestly gentler than Snotlout would’ve expected, but there was still the threat of painful things to come if he didn’t obey.

“What’s up, Snotlout?” Heather asked. She was lounging on the couch with her boyfriend, Eret. “You’ve got us worried, honestly. We’ve never seen you down like this.”

Snotlout relented and collapsed into the last remaining armchair, hoping his dried tear tracks weren’t too obvious.

“I messed everything up,” he uttered despondently.

“I’m sure you did,” Ruffnut agreed. Then she frowned. “Wait, are we comforting you or saying it how it is?”

“What happened?” Hiccup addressed his cousin, ignoring Ruffnut. “I caught the part where you and Minden broke up, but I mean, why? You seemed really happy together, and no girl has ever stuck around this long. I thought you guys were kinda . . . it.” Snotlout stared stonily at the inch of space dangling between the floor and his heel. Damn Hiccup and Astrid and their long legs.

“You said you messed up,” Astrid remembered. “How’d you do that?”

“I guess it was kinda inevitable,” Snotlout spat bitterly. He spotted Hiccup’s thumb brushing absently over Astrid’s hands. The display of affection shot a pang straight through Snotlout, even though he hadn’t had physical closeness like that with Minden.

“I - I got scared,” he admitted. “I realized what she meant to me and - I wasn’t expecting it and then I freaked out because I’m, well, me,” - Ruff nodded solemnly in agreement - “and she’s, her so I pulled away and then I messed something she’d been working towards by forgetting about it and then she missed it and then when I called to apologize, she just yelled at me and hung up the phone. And then she blocked me. And when I went to her house to see her I found the door locked with my stuff in a box.” Normally, Snotlout was never this candid, but he was in a bad state, and it was strangely cathartic to spill all his woes onto others to share, even if they might judge him.

“Well, that sounds pretty final, mate,” Eret grimaced.

“Shut your mouth, Eret,” Snotlout groaned and let his head fall back against the chair.

“Shame,” Tuffnut interjected. “I totally thought she was the one a month ago.”

“She was the one,” Snotlout burst. “God, she’s - she is the one, guys. And I’ve lost her.”

“If she is the one, you should get her back. Are you gonna fight for her?” Astrid demanded.

“How would I do that?” Snotlout pouted.

“Grovel,” Hiccup offered. “Groveling does . . . it does wonders.” Astrid sniggered and leaned over to kiss his cheek.

“What does she like?” queried Fishlegs reasonably. “For example: Astrid is straightforward, so she appreciates getting straight to the point and groveling, as Hiccup put it.” Astrid crossed her arms and smirked in confirmation. “Heather likes big speeches followed by promises and presents.”

“Am I that easy!” Heather exclaimed, sitting up from under Eret’s arms slung around her shoulders. “Am I that easy?” she asked her boyfriend.

Eret grinned and pecked her temple. “Yes about all those things, but the speeches and presents are neither easy nor cheap.” Heather rolled her eyes.

“Guess you shouldn’t fight with me,” she said demurely.

“I like people to indenture themselves to me and do my bidding for a set amount of time after they apologize and grovel,” Ruffnut stated. Snotlout shuddered. Fishlegs also looked uneasy at that announcement. Snotlout had no idea how close those two were, but he wondered if it were too late for Fishlegs to back out.

“So what would she want?” Fishlegs stressed.

Snotlout cast his mind back through those four months. Blurs of fumbles and giggles. Shy smiles and mistakes. Doing each other’s nails and Mindy’s cooking. Snotlout showing her his embroidery. Her love of pink and silver and honey. Her showing him her extensive album collection.

“She likes that singer!” he remembered. “Taylor Swift. And she never sweetens her coffee with sugar, only honey, and she does yoga and shows me how to do her hair . . .”

“Oh man, you’ve got it bad, br;o,” Tuffnut chortled. “A girl that hot with taste? Pff, no way you deserve her, Snotman.” Ruffnut flicked her brother’s ear, hard. “Oww, what did I do?” he whined.

“I don’t deserve her,” repeated Snotlout despondently. Oh God, he knew that, but hearing it out loud was making everything worse and more real.

“That only means you have to fight twice as hard for her,” said Hiccup encouragingly. “It doesn’t mean you can’t try, especially if she’s the one.” Astrid smiled softly at her fiancé and nodded at his cousin.

“You’ll want to do a big gesture, like out of a movie,” Fishlegs counseled.

“She’s a Swiftie, right?” Heather checked, “Well, that’s just my department. There should be a song.”

“Excuse you,” cried Tuffnut, “but I am a Swiftie too.”

“But Heather knows this particular Swiftie in question best, other than Snotlout,” Astrid cut in.

“Yeah, I go to advanced yoga with her and her roommates,” Heather reminded them.

“Honestly, ‘Swiftie’ wise, Dagur would be the best option. He’s the most devoted to the whole - thing - than anyone,” Hiccup contemplated. Heather looked up from her phone and gasped in outrage.

“Astrid, smack him for me!” Her friend laughingly complied.

“Hey!”

“We’re all appreciators of Taylor Swift here,” Eret soothed.

“Okay, so I’m looking for a perfect song, but we need more of a plan,” Heather directed them back on track.

“Tuffnut has a boom box,” Ruffnut volunteered.

“Maybe write a speech?” Fishlegs suggested.

“Oh my God,” said Eret, looking over Heather's shoulder at her phone.

“Oh yes,” Heather replied triumphantly.

“What?” Astrid craned her head over the armrests between them.

“I found it guys,” Heather announced. Everyone quieted and she pressed play.

Snotlout’s eyes widened. “Oh no.”

---

"I can't believe you guys are serious," Snotlout grumbled. "We don't need to go this hard."

“You absolutely do,” Hiccup assured him, biting back a laugh. “She’s worth it, remember?”

“There’s no guarantee this will work,” Snotlout pleaded.

Hiccup’s face grew sober. “No, there isn’t. But you are gonna do your best and put your heart out on the line because not doing that is what caused you to lose her in the first place. And if after this, she can’t see your sincerity, then she’s not the one for you, okay? You got this, cuz.” He clapped Snotlout’s shoulder cheerily.

“Everyone in position?” Astrid called softly. It was two o’clock and sunny on a Saturday morning and the gang was gathered on the lawn of the big, nice, expensive house Snotlout’s ex Minden shared with her two roommates. Heather checked her phone.

“Okay, they know we’re here. Ruff, Nadia will meet you by the window over there.” She pointed at the window. “Fishlegs, get the hose ready to throw. Eret! You’re on the left!”

“I am on the left!”

“Snotlout’s lefts. And practice the moves in sync.”

“What were we doing all day yesterday?” Snotlout asked sarcastically under his breath.

“Trying to keep up with me,” Tuffnut answered primly. “Now, don’t be afraid to move your hips and keep your body loose.” Snotlout pinched the bridge of his nose.

Astrid checked the old boom box. “Bluetooth is connected,” she reported. “Is the song in the right position?”

Heather switched apps to check. “Yep,” Heather verified.

“Camera’s all set up,” Hiccup added. “We are never letting him forget this.”

“Make sure you record it well; Atali wants a copy of the footage as payment for helping us.”

Ruffnut popped her head out of the first story window and waved her arms. “You wouldn’t believe it, but they’re already playing some Taylor Swift songs,” she called down. Fishlegs chucked the hose up to her. An indistinguishable pulse of sound drifted out the window.

“Quiet!” Heather hissed. “We really don’t want them hearing us before we’re ready.”

“Jeez, fine.” Ruffnut rolled her eyes exaggeratedly. “Fishlegs, this hose isn’t on; turn the nozzle.” Heather yelped and jumped out of the way as a jet of water squirted at her.

“Ruff!” she screeched. “The setting is shower and you’re supposed to be pointing it at Snotlout, not me.”

“Sorry!” the female twin called down.

“We really don’t need the hose,” Snotlout interjected.

“We should probably use the hose. The first lyrics are ‘stand there like a ghost, shaking from the rain,” Fishlegs spouted.

“It’s a nice touch,” Astrid agreed, hiding a smile.

“Besides,” Eret nudged him, “Your shirt’ll be soaked and you can flex your muscles at her.”

“Just don’t go flexing your muscles,” Snotlout grumbled.

“I have a girlfriend,” Eret reassured him.

“Yeah, but my - I mean, Mindy - she’s hot.”

“So is Heather, but don’t worry, I won’t go flexing any muscles.”

Ruffnut directed the hose and cold water splashed onto Snotlout, Eret, and Tuffnut. Hiccup sniggered and pressed the record button.

“Ring the doorbell!” Heather instructed him urgently, fingers typing furiously. Snotlout did.

He stood there, soaking the cold water droplets while the hot sun beat down on his back, trying not to panic and reviewing the dance steps in his head to calm himself down.

After what seemed like forever, the door finally opened, revealing Minden’s beautiful dark face. She blinked a few times, like she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Snotlout sopping wet and fully clothed in the middle of the day on her doorstep was probably the last thing she was expecting.

He took her in greedily, from her glossy unbrushed brown hair and her olive skin and the tired crust in her light eyes. He was pretty sure he wasn’t imagining the old tear tracks down her face. She was wearing no makeup and a ratty old T-shirt with a smear of strawberry ice cream down one side. There was no way he deserved an angel like her.

“Snotlout?” Girls thought Eret’s British accent was hot? Minden’s Aussie accent was the hottest thing he’d ever heard. “What are you doing here?” she asked, perplexed. “I-”

“It’s been a long six months,” Snotlout recited carefully. This was such a bad idea; she’d just think him more of a fool.

“Are you insane?” she asked, concerned. “It’s only been-”

“Minden, I was - I was too afraid to tell you . . . to tell you what I want.” He spat hose water out of his mouth so he could keep talking. He knew the hose was a bad idea. “But I’m telling you now . . .” continued Snotlout heavily. Astrid turned up the boombox’s volume and picked it up. Minden jumped, startled, taking in everybody as if for the first time.

“I want you for worse or for better . . .”

“I would wait forever and ever,” Snotlout sang along earnestly, Tuffnut and Eret dancing with him.

“Broke your heart I’ll put it back together,” he made a heart with his hands and shimmied alongside Tuffnut, trying not to cringe. It was easier than he thought though, being silly, if he just focused on Minden’s baffled face.

“I would wait forever and ever . . .”

Wait, wasn’t she supposed to be jumping into his arms by now?

“And that’s how it works, that’s how you get the girl,” sang Taylor Swift on the speakers, but it wasn’t working. Not for him, because he was Snotlout, the one guy who always messed up.

He tried to shut down the lump in his throat at the thought. He wouldn’t cry - his dad had drilled that lesson into him thoroughly enough. Leave the girly crying to his wimpy cousin Hiccup instead.

Now would be his cue to start laughing uproariously and yell ‘kidding’ and an I-can’t-believe-you-fell–for-that like he always did. Tuffnut kept dancing even as the choreography ran out and Eret cast a concerned glance at him as he struggled to stay in sync with Tuffnut. Snotlout didn’t keep dancing.

“Look, Mindy,” Snotlout bowed his head. “I understand if you have no interest in seeing me, and, you know, I wouldn’t blame you. I know I messed up.” He chanced a glance at her but she was looking at him steadily with a blank expression on her smooth face.

“I’ve never had anything like this,” Snotlout admitted. “I’ve never had a girl who saw enough in me to stick around - or even truly give me a chance. And then you came along and at first I thought ‘the joke’s on you because I’m not that guy,’ and then I realized that maybe I kinda wanted to be him.” He resisted the urge to shiver as the hose water ran down his back.

“I’ve been an idiot - you can ask anyone. And I’ve been a muttonhead too. But I miss what we had, Minden. I miss painting your nails and gluing sequins with you on picture frames. I miss our spa nights and face masks and rom com marathons and I would do whatever it takes to get that back.”

Minden’s mouth parted as if she was going to speak but nothing came out so Snotlout continued in a panic.

“I would do whatever it took,” he swore. “Even if it means standing here soaking wet trying to pull a Lloyd Dobler or waiting for as long as you need me to. I’d do it. Whatever you want. Even if . . . even if you just wanted to never see me again, I’d do that too.” He gulped, suddenly certain she would choose the last option.

“I . . . I think, no I know, I just, I’m pretty sure I love you, okay?! There, I said it! And I was so freaked out I withdrew and hurt you, and I’m sorry.” He shrugged and looked at Minden impleadingly.

“I’m also, um, running out of things to say, so if you just give me an answer that’d be-” he was cut off by Minden throwing herself into his arms, hugging him tightly and nearly toppling Snotlout over.

“You love me?” she asked thickly. Snotlout swallowed and looked around in a panic in an attempt to not meet her eyes, but since she was taller than him he had nowhere to look.

“I . . . yeah,” he sighed. “And I . . . I don’t really . . . um,” his hands rested hesitantly on her waist.

“I love you too, Snotlout,” she half-laughed, half-sniffed. “I really, really do.”

---

“Awww,” squeaked Fishlegs adoringly. “I just love true love!”

“It was about time,” Atali announced from the doorway. She walked over to Hiccup. “Did you get that all on camera?”

“Oh yeah,” Hiccup said, grinning. “It was surprisingly sentimental, a truly phenomenal thing to get on camera when it comes to Snotlout.”

“I also got a good angle of his face when he was apologizing,” the redhead grinned. “Want me to send it to you?”

“Oh yeah,” Hiccup said eagerly.

“Thanks again for agreeing to help us,” Heather said as she came over, pocketing her phone. Atali waved a lazy hand.

“Honestly, it was about time,” she admitted. “If I had to listen to “All Too Well” for another minute I would have gone mad.”

“Or any other Taylor Swift break up song,” Nadia, Atali’s girlfriend, chimed in.

“Guess it was more serious on both their parts than we thought,” Astrid said thoughtfully, setting the boombox down carefully. “I’m happy for them.”

“Ruffnut!” Eret called. “You can turn off the hose now!” The female twin cackled and turned the hose on Fishlegs, who yelped shrilly and tried to run away.

“Help! No - Stop!” he cried, perturbed. Ruffnut just continued to laugh. Heather’s eyes widened as she quickly realized what was about to happen.

“Look out!” she called a second too late as Fishlegs barged into Hiccup and Ruffnut’s hose, which had been following him, sprayed onto everyone. The girls shouted while Hiccup groaned pitifully from underneath Fishlegs. Eret walked over and wrung his hair out onto Heather’s face.

“Eret!” Heather shrieked, outraged. Her boyfriend just laughed. Atali took off towards the house to try to wrestle the hose from Ruffnut while Fishlegs scrambled up and tried to hide behind Tuffnut, who was bent over with laughter. Hiccup wheezed on the ground, not bothering to try to move. Astrid chuckled and helped him up.

“Thanks, milady,” he said gratefully before shaking his head like a dog, spraying water droplets all over her.

“Hey - Argh!” she cried, swatting him away and backing over to Heather.

“What do you say we even this game out?” she murmured. “We brought water guns.” Heather looked askance at her.

“You brought water guns?” she asked. “Why?”

“Have you ever known me to not bring a weapon for every occasion?” Astrid pointed out.

“That’s fair,” Heather acquiesced.

“C’mon,” Astrid grabbed her friend's hand. “We have to get there before Hiccup does!” Heather turned to look at the reunited couple, who was retreating into the house, a dopey smile with just a hint of anxiety on Snotlout's face, and a determined look on Minden's.

"Can you believe this actually worked?" Heather nudged the blonde. She turned to follow her friend's gaze.

"Honestly?” she shrugged, “I'm a little surprised, but I guess it's about time Snotlout finally got a girl."

#Snotlout/Minden #we need more of these two honestly #Snotlout is hopelessly in love #Literally everyone just being stupid #Hiccup is a supportive cousina . . . kinda #the HTTYD gang being themselves #Snotlout Jorgenson #Minden #Hiccup Haddock #Astrid Hofferson #Heather #Atali #Fishlegs Ingerman #Eret son of Eret #Ruffnut Thorston #Tuffnut Thorston #HTTYD #RTTE #httyd fanfic #HTTYD modern au

[totaldramafan-lauri]

Thoughts on Queen Bee

It was good. I enjoyed myself. Definitely one of the weaker episodes, but it wasn’t TRYING to be anything groundbreaking, so it’s fine. I was able to adjust my expectations in just the right way after Viv tweeted about it. She reminded us that this was gonna be a style-over-substance episode, and that’s what we got! A LOTTA style, and not much substance.....(unless you count the ones Blitzo was running on all episode)

The only thing groundbreaking is Kesha, who it turns out, is a pretty good VA? And having a song actually written by her, and performed by a DARN GOOD sound-alike. The lyrics of “Cotton Candy” aren’t amazing, but it SOUNDS great, and that’s what matters for party songs. XD I’ve had it stuck in my head all day.

It’s cool to have another complete song outta Helluva. We need more of those in season 2. “House Of Asmodeus” spoiled me XD

As for Bee herself, I didn’t really like her design all that much at first, cuz she didn’t look anything like I’d imagine Beelzebub to look in Helluva (compared to Ozzie who I thought was a good interpretation of how people usually envision Asmodeus). She’s not ugly or anything, and I love her color palette, but it felt like Viv was more focused on the Die Young callback than making her look like the Sin when designing her. But apparently, there ARE some things that she’s kept in mind and played around with (such as “Lord of the Flies” becoming “Queen Bee” - even though she should technically be a princess since the other Sins are princes, it rolls off the tongue better here), and she has a more monstrous form that we get to see. I’m pretty sure I’ll like her more as I get used to her. She just wasn’t what I expected.

There’s not really a lot to talk about story-wise. Like I said, style over substance. “Visual spectacle” to cap the season off. I like that it’s a happier second half to Ozzie’s. Both have parties run by a Sin, both have big songs, but the mood is completely different, like they’re symbolizing the different parts of Helluva’s first season - the dramatic, character-driven part, and the fun, humorous part. It’s a shame that the legal issues held this episode back so long that it can’t be considered Ozzie’s second half anymore, cuz I really do like the idea of the two episodes being foils to each other.

But uh, anyway! The only real meat in this story is just a few sweet moments between Loona and Blitzo. And also Loona being SUCH a mood. Me at parties. Always. XD It was also cool to see Tex again, since I like him, and Bee gets points for actually seeming pretty chill, especially compared to Ozzie. But that’s really it. The comedy wasn’t even really that amazing. The Dennis scene was the only time I really laughed, but I’ll take what I can get.

The delays also screwed the episode over slightly. I DO still feel bad for Blitzo, but if the episode had been released in order, I would’ve been a lot more scared for his mental state. It does lose a LITTLE impact when we know he’s gonna recover (or at least, mostly recover).

A teeny bit of woldbuilding here too- It was also cool to see a bit of the Gluttony ring - yeah, just one location, but it gets me curious to see more of it someday. We also get references to Satan and Belphagor, which means that.....there’s only one left. Only one Sin we haven’t heard from. The one who’s, fittingly, from the one ring we haven’t been to yet - Envy. I wanna see the Envy ring now. What’re they gonna do with that place? It can’t even be green! Greed is green! How does a place run by envy look? I guess the ring will be.....aquatic-themed? Maybe? I’m worried that we probably won’t be meeting the man himself due to involvement in Hazbin, but I wanna see the ring at least. Surprise me, Helluva! You already did that last episode with Sloth looking actually neat and appealing, pfffff- But yeah, that’s a long-term hope. Let’s actually get to Mammon first. One thing at a time.

S-sorry for the tangent, but yeah, this episode really doesn’t have a lot to talk about. I’m done now. XD It was fun to watch, but not one of the best I’ve seen from the show!

#helluva boss #helluva boss spoilers

[shikonstar]

9, 11, and 18 please!!

Thanks, @elkonigin !

9. Do you prefer to write AUs, canon-divergent, or canon-compliant fic? When I first got into reading fanfiction, I stuck 100% to canon-compliant. And then I ran out of material, so I edged into divergent. You can probably guess what happened next. Once I started writing, it was just whatever struck my mind. Entire plotlines hit me like a sledgehammer, so I have to write it to get it out of my head.

11. If you could only write angst, fluff, or smit for the rest of your life, which would it be? I would have to choose smut, because I always add at least one of the other two. I can do pure angst or fluff, but wouldn't want to be limited to one flavor.

18. What is a line/scene you're really proud of? Give us a director cut of that scene.

Professional smile firmly in place, Kagome folded up her emotions with Marie Kondo-like precision. Painfully sharp creases created a tight little bundle for her to tuck away in her mental closet, back in the section devoted to storing items that would never see the occasion for which they had been intended.

I really love the emotional gut punch of that part; I think we’ve all been in a situation where we’ve felt like our throat has been slit and we have to sit there politely while we bleed out.

The cellphone taunted him from it's spot on the counter. Was it weird that he had become obsessed ever since he had discovered that Kagome chose personalized ringtones based on her feelings? Yeah, probably. Did I change the fact that he was, though.

He knew she had the wolf’s number.

She had to for work, same has him.

He knew it was none of his business what happened when this farce of a marriage was dissolved. Kagome would end up with someone at some point, but it twisted his insides to think it would be that fucker.

His eyes narrowed. Screw this. He was going to get to the bottom of this so he could stop thinking about it. Picking up his own phone, sending off a text to the idiot that Kagome was waiting for him to call so they could discuss training. If he had read the wolf right, it wouldn't be long. Holding his breath, he waited on edge for the song that would reveal Kagome’s feelings.

No one's slick as Gaston

No one's quick as Gaston

No one's neck's as incredibly thick as Gaston

For there's no man in town half as manly

Perfect, a pure paragon...

His lips twitched as something rusted unlocked in his chest, long unused parts shifting into gear as a sound started to emerge. It was raspy and quiet at first, filling out into a rumble as it became louder.

Outside, two passing servants halted, stricken expressions on their faces.

“Lord Touga?” One whispered, saying the name of their fallen master reverently.

Tears formed in the corners of the eyes of the other as she began to smile.

“No. That's the young lord....praise the kamis, our lord is laughing again!”

This comes from a fic that I started thinking with last summer. It's one I'm holding back because it's something like my baby, and I want it nicely polished before I start releasing it. But this scene was one of those ideas that come to you when you're perfectly comfy and about to enter deep sleep, and I'm super proud of myself for actually rolling over and writing it down. Plus, could there BE a more fitting ringtone to capture Kouga? No. There isn't.

I also really, really love the entirety of Heart in Hand and Code Hanyou, which for me is amazingly rare.

#ask game answers

[klaineownsmysoul]

Am loving the positive reviews for D.. esp the ones saying they were surprised.. like most of his performances be it song or acting many people don't know but are genuinely surprised at his talent ( like how have they not heard of him before) which is of course what we have been screaming that he has talent in every fibre of his being if only he had the right team ( of course i also lold at the tags tagging someone distinctly not on stage 🤦🏻‍♀️ or how cute she is to support D 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️🤷

I absolutely love when people who aren't familiar with D are pleasantly surprised when they seem him perform for the first time, be it acting or singing. It gives me a "ha, told you so" smug feeling of satisfaction. That was one of my favorite things about the ACS era: people who either never watched glee or did and thought he was nothing but "one of those damn glee kids" were always so "oh holy shit this kid can actually act" in their reviews. As someone who hung on Blaine's every move, I always knew it was there; he just needed the material to be able to show everyone else.

I'll keep saying this til I'm blue in the face: the entire vibe around D changes when its just him. Just him performing on a stage somewhere and everything is right with the world. I think we've all imagined how high he could climb if he had even an inkling of a competent team behind him. Instead he's saddled with a lazy and totally inept manager who has no interest in growing D's career past where he's been for the past 4 years while playing up the "teenage dreamboat" image concocted for him like a decade ago as he markets him to the tiktok teens who weren't around when glee was airing in the first place and have zero concept of who D actually is. The only thing he's been consistent at is pushing the straight happily married now family man facade that those kids have latched onto and believe in with a fervor that scares me sometimes. Oh wait, let's not forget he's also good at taking free vacations at places he's pimped D out to and ruining his Xmas album by completely botching the tour and seemingly feeling no remorse over it whatsoever. How and why this man still has a job is beyond me. He's got a stylist who make some head scratching choices when it comes to dressing D sometimes, most especially when she puts him in clothes 3 sizes too big so he looks extra tiny and like he's trying on an adult's clothes. She's also good at making sure to tag her once a quarter bff the little wifey in things while ignoring her actual client. What a lucky guy D is.

And like you, I too LOL'd at that post I saw of someone who felt the need to tag her in a pic of D playing. I swear my eyes are going to get stuck in my head one day from how hard I roll them at these pathetic antics. Why? Just why? Why do you feel the need to involve her in something that so clearly has nothing to do with her? What purpose does it serve to needlessly insinuate her into D's professional life? She's in the audience so that means she deserves to get tagged? There were lots of people in the audience, I didn't see you tagging all of them. All that does is point out how much of a professional life she doesn't have and how much any kind of name recognition or relevance she has is solely dependent on his career. I don't recall anyone tagging him in pics of her and shitty cover band at their once a year show, but we're always treated to pics of him wearing one of their branded t-shirts. Funny how it only seems to work one way, isn't it? And yes, it was so nice of her to take time of her busy schedule of doing nothing to come to his show and bring their baby along as a prop. I guess mom of the year didn't have time to pick up headphones for said baby to protect her little eardrums. Who brings an infant to a concert? And then promptly hands her off to what I am assuming is some sort of live-in nanny so she can go do important things like partying in her tacky awful strip bar and clutching onto her spouse in a pic with him and the guy who made her fake engagement ring and that loud awful jewelry D's loser manager has him advertise. #winning

D belongs on a stage because he truly comes alive when performing. What he doesn't deserve is the never-ending circus that surrounds him when he comes off it.

#anonymous #lather rinse repeat #same old same old

[ferusaurelius]

tag 10 people you want to get to know better! I was tagged by @bluerose5 and @bonksoundeffect -- both wonderful fellow creative people. thank you for thinking of me!

relationship status: SINGLE AND FERAL (like my name don’t you know)

favorite color: wine (a slightly purple-y maroon, in some lights) and/or warm reddish brown

favorite food: lentils if I had to choose one thing to eat on a desert island, otherwise trout

song stuck in your head: Ferrari (james hype, miggy dela rosa)

last thing you googled: movie times at the local theater.

dream trip: unsure? I’ve been a bit of a mess over the pandemic and I travel semi-regularly for various conferences. there are a few remote things I’d like to do and/or arrange with outfitters so I don’t have to do the logistics. nothing too extreme...

time: 9:43 pm

last book you read: technically graphic novels the ‘March’ trilogy - John Lewis with Andrew Aydin (currently reading ‘embrace fearlessly the burning world’ ... and like three or four others, including a biography called ‘Boyd’). 

last book you enjoyed reading: the left hand of darkness - ursula k. le guin; I enjoyed reading it but in the end did not end up liking it. just got sad over the ‘ace’ relationship and felt a bit fridged as a person. yes I know that’s not the philosophical point.... just. -shrug- it is what it is. the writing was lovely and the outcome was Not For Me.

last book you hated reading: the curious incident of the dog in the nighttime (lol). apparently there was a reason it was in my ‘to read’ pile for so long. I have no idea what all the big fuss was. at least it was a speedy read and now I can move on with my life.

Bonus:

favorite thing to cook/bake: doesn’t really count since it’s cold and I just mix ingredients together but ... smoked trout dip. NOM NOM NOM. I found a recipe I like and it’s great with white wine. can’t say I bake or cook that much since my favorite food is fish and I just settle with various canned or tinned preparations because cooking for one is um. hope you like leftovers. I am pretty good at roasting things or being patient with sauces. love savory flavors.

favorite craft to do in your spare time: writing? I guess. when I was a kid I built model rockets and that kind of kit work can still be diverting. I once whipped up a scale model of a chance vought f4u corsair (with a working propeller!) made out of nothing but printer paper and wood glue. sadly it got water-damaged or I’d still have it around. I don’t make much in my spare time since my actual job has pretty tangible outcomes.

most niche dislike: pumpkin pie. my hatred is endless and nonsensical. I cannot stand the texture or the flavor. I have tried. I cannot.

opinion on circus(es) now and in history: with non-domestic animals not so much. human performers who chose the life and are well-paid? cool.

do you have a sense of direction and if not what is the worst way you ever got lost: my sense of direction is so bad that most people don’t believe how bad until they witness it for themselves. it is generally common knowledge that if I tell you to go some way you should do the exact opposite. if I go into a store I cannot tell you from which direction I have entered. even when I have lived some place for more than 10 years I can get turned around and/or in the wrong lighting get so disoriented that I miss a turn. back in the days before good GPS maps going anywhere was terrifying because I was just moving through space while driving ... I had no or very little sense of orientation. while active mapping and other experiences have helped me over time, I still ask friends and coworkers to help me orient while I’m driving.  it would be funny if it were not so pathetic.

No pressure tag: @c-rowlesdraws @vampirepunks @pip-n-flinx @datsonyat @expertmakodriver @andersonsbiceps

I only apologize A LITTLE for the spam but you’re all lovely people and I am a bit harried with life so.

#tag games #ferus chats

[lobster-tales]

Beat the Daylight

Sequel to Face the Noise, an Arcane Rock Band AU

Rating: M

Chapter 10: The Studio

Summary: The bands make changes for next round | Viktor opens up

This work is available here on AO3. Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9

Fissurefolk should have been celebrating their victory, but Finn spent the next practice acting like they lost.

“That was sloppy,” he said with a scowl. “Sevika, you were off tempo on the third song. Clean it up.”

She scoffed. “I was only off because Jinx was off.”

“That was on purpose,” Jinx said, twirling her butterfly knife in her hands. “It’s a stylistic choice.”

Viktor added, “There’s actually a word for it: rubato. It means ‘stolen time’.”

“See?” Jinx pointed to him. “I’m a fucking virtuoso.”

Finn interrupted, “You’re a disaster, that’s what you are. You almost crashed into me four times during the set. If you’re going to dance, do it on your side of the stage.”

She stuck her tongue out at him. “What’s up your ass, Finn? Did you miss the part where we won?”

“I told you, I have high standards.” He hoisted the guitar strap over his head. “Now get up.” He nodded to Margot, who was working behind the glass of the control room. “Margot printed new chord sheets. We’re going through as many as possible today.”

Hours later, when practice ended, Jinx threw on a big coat and headed to the door, eager to jump in the car with Viktor and escape to her studio together. But a soft voice stopped her.

“Hey.” Margot was leaning against the door frame of the control room. “I feel like we haven’t really hung out in a while. How are you?”

She was so unassuming, but Jinx knew better than to let her guard down. “Good. You?”

“Good. Busy, but good.” Margot considered her. “Where you headed?”

“My studio.”

“Alone?”

Is that what this was about? Jinx picked her answer carefully. “I guess. I think Viktor needed a ride.”

“Right… I’ve noticed you guys ride together. A lot.”

“Yeah, well we both live at the fucking hotel.” Jinx didn’t mean to get so defensive. Her tone had bitten too hard, and Margot sensed that she was hiding something.

Margot was gentle, but firm. “Of course. But it seems like you never just drop him off. You both always get home… late.”

Ohhhhhh. “Ew, we’re not fucking, Margot,” Jinx gagged. “Gross.”

Relief flashed in Margot’s eyes, but she still held her ground. “But you are spending a lot of time together.”

It wasn’t a question, and even if it was, Jinx wouldn’t answer anyway.

Margot cleared her throat. “Look, I’m glad you have a new friend, Jinx, especially considering how busy the rest of us are. But you were the one who suspected Viktor the most, and with good reason. I mean, you were right: it’s too convenient to be a coincidence. That’s why we’re so surprised you’re spending that much time with him.”

We. So Silco did put her up to this. Jinx felt a knot in the pit of her stomach. She knew that Fishbones was in her studio for surveillance. She knew the glassy stuffed animal eyes had hidden cameras. Silco had been watching them, this entire time. But only in the studio: at least he hadn’t seen her sleep in Viktor’s room. Unless a member of his hotel staff saw her leave Viktor’s room hours later.

Paranoia set her hands to shaking, but she stuffed them into her coat pockets to hide it. She had to calm down. Silco hadn’t approached her yet, which meant that so far, she hadn’t done anything wrong. And if he did confront her…

“Well,” she shrugged. “You know what they say. Keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer.”

Margot wanted to say more, clearly. She was hard to read sometimes, always towing the line of diplomacy and deceit. But she said simply, “I just want to make sure you’re being careful.”

“Ha!” Good thing the studio was already empty. Lightning flickered along Jinx’s nervous system, eliciting a sudden rage. “That is so fucking rich, Margot.”

She was still, waiting for Jinx’s reaction. “What is?”

“You’re the one who brought me to all those night clubs. How many shots have we done together, Margot? How many lines? You sure didn’t give a shit about my safety when we’d go out partying, and now you want to act all high and mighty now that I’m doing at-home espionage?”

Her expression was… sad, but Jinx couldn’t tell if it was a performative sorrow or not. “I was always in control,” Margot murmured. “You were never in any danger.”

“And I’m not in danger now. I know what I’m doing. And you can stop pretending that you care.”

Margot closed her eyes, breathing deeply. If this was an act, she deserved an award. “I… I’m sorry, Jinx. I do trust you. I know you know what’s really at stake here, and you would never do anything to jeopardize what we stand for.”

An itch of guilt. Jinx was so wrapped up in the band, she kept forgetting about her inheritance, that this whole thing had a higher purpose. So much had changed so quickly. She hadn’t even considered what would happen after the contest. Would Viktor stick around, become one of Silco’s scientists? Would Lux return back home with her swoopy hair boyfriend?

It was too overwhelming to think about now. She had to focus on the present. Viktor was waiting for her in the car, she had a call scheduled with Lux later tonight. She could put off her destiny for another day.

“Good,” Jinx said. “I’ll see you later.”

When she turned away, Margot’s soft voice followed her. “And this might be hard to believe,” she whispered. “But I do care.”

Jinx didn’t respond, just let the studio door close behind her.

                                                       ☆ ☆ ☆                                                        

The first few practices after Progress Day’s debut performance were rough. The tension between Vi and Ezreal hung heavy in the air, and the overall discouragement was affecting their sound quality.

After a few listless rehearsals, Ekko finally put his foot down. “Alright,” he said, addressing everyone. “That’s enough. Let’s get it out in the open. Ez, that was a shitty thing you did.”

Ezreal muttered, “I apologized already.”

Vi scoffed. “That was barely an apology.”

“Well it’s hard to be sincere when you’re attacking me.”

“Well maybe if you respected people’s boundaries, you wouldn’t get attacked.”

Ekko said, “Enough. Ez, apologize. For real this time.”

Ezreal shifted uncomfortably under their scrutiny. A small nod from Jayce encouraged him, and he said, “Vi, I’m sorry for overstepping your boundaries. I won’t do that again.”

She wasn’t completely satisfied, but still said, “Thanks. Appreciate it.”

“Alright, that’s done,” said Ekko. “Next order of business. We tried once, we failed once. So the question is,” He swept his gaze over the room. “What are we going to do about it?”

A few feet shuffled. Lux finally said, “I liked their outfits. They looked more like… well, rockstars. Compared to us. No offense or anything.”

Ekko pointed to her appreciatively. “Yeah, good one. We need more of a look.”

“Agreed,” said Vi, and Jayce nodded.

“Eh, I don’t know,” Ezreal said. “I think our look is more wholesome. Makes us stand out from them.”

“Then what do you suggest we do differently?” Ekko asked, cocking an eyebrow.

Ezreal nodded towards Lux. “I think you should let Lux sing a few songs.”

She gasped as all eyes landed on her. “Wh-what?”

“Come on, babe,” Ezreal prompted. “You have an amazing voice.”

“But- but so does Ekko! And Vi…”

Jayce asked, “Do you want to sing, Lux?”

But Ezreal chimed in, “Of course she does, she’s amazing. You should hear her.”

Vi’s voice was patient. “He didn’t ask you.”

“It’s okay!” Lux said, trying to keep the peace. “I mean, I wouldn’t mind singing, if you’re both okay with that?”

“Sure,” Ekko said. “You mind if we hear a sample?”

The room went quiet. Lux asked permission from everyone’s faces, standing when she felt sure.

La la-la La la-la la-la

She cleared her throat. “S-sorry, I’m not totally warmed up yet.”

“That’s okay,” Jayce said with a grin. “Keep going.”

Lux took a deep breath, and sang,

Gales of song Guide me through the storm

She collected herself, slowly getting into the rhythm of the song.

On the wings of a small, simple melody Words take flight and soar They carry me, a world we'll see Looking for a farewell, I pull the threads A life without you I cannot accept I can't tell that lie, I can't let go

With each line, her confidence increased. Her voice rose and fell, a breathy soprano that could be surprisingly powerful. As the song crescendoed, so did Lux, her eyes closed as she breathed in the music, a smile playing on her lips.

I walk alone, there's more to life I have to know It's just me, lost so far away from home Alone I shut myself in Still the winds howl, they call and their voices lead me Gales of song, guide me through the storm

Her voice rose on the final notes, carrying them effortlessly.

Let the melody lift me hiiiiiiiiiigh, I'll be meeeee

They all just stared at her, mouths agape. Lux squirmed. “Um, was that okay?”

Vi breathed, “What the fuck, Lux.”

The boys made noises of approval. Jayce said, “You’ve been holding out on us, Crownguard.”

“Told ya,” Ez crossed his arms triumphantly.

Ekko was already planning, coming up with different songs for her to sing. “You know, you’d have a good voice for like gothy, ethereal metal. If you’d be down.”

“Metal?” Ez scoffed. “No way. She’s more of a pop-”

“Ezreal,” Vi said. “Respectfully, shut the fuck up.” She locked eyes on Lux, ignoring his shocked indignation. “It’s your voice, Lux. What do you want to sing?”

This time, Lux avoided Ezreal’s gaze, focusing instead on the rest of the bandmates. They gave her the space to speak, and when she understood that she was in full control of the situation, she squared her shoulders and said quickly, “I want to sing gothy, ethereal metal!”

Everyone but Ezreal cheered, though he stopped protesting.

“Alright,” Ekko said, placing a hand on her shoulder in comfort. “We got our gameplan. Let’s get to it.”

                                                       ☆ ☆ ☆                                                        

“That’s right, Ezreal,” Jinx murmured. “She’s mine now. And if you ever want to see your little girlfriend again, then you better forfeit the contest. Your choice.”

Her hand lifted a crude doll with swoopy boy band hair. She did a poor impression of Ezreal. “Noooooo! Well, I guess you win, Jinx. You’re just too smart for me.”

She picked up two dolls: one of Lux, and one of herself. Her Lux voice was lighter, more breathy. “Thank you, Jinx! You’re my hero!” She pressed the dolls together and made a “Mwah!” sound.

Back in her normal tone, imitating herself. “Let’s get outta here, Starlight.”

There was movement at the studio door, followed by Viktor’s amused tone, “Am I interrupting?”

Jinx panicked, scooping the dolls under the counter. “N-no!”

“Interesting strategy,” he noted, taking his seat beside her. “Though, I don’t know how effective it will be in practice.”

“Shut up,” she grumbled. “It’s just my writing process.”

“I have no doubt,” he chuckled under his breath. “Ah, I don’t envy your situation, pupsik. But at least things seem to be going well?”

“Yeah.” She fidgeted with a dial on the soundboard. The conversation with Margot still haunted her. The last few times she had seen Viktor, Jinx was careful to keep it to just work. Especially under the scrutiny of Fishbone's glassy eyes.

She wondered how much Silco was paying attention. He didn’t care about the dolls: she had run through countless situations with them, hypothetical scenarios. Once, verbatim, he had told her he always skipped through that part of the feed, in an attempt to save her from embarrassment. This time would be the same, without a doubt.

But Viktor was different. She told Margot that she was doing at-home espionage, but that wasn’t really true. If she was supposed to be spying, she was doing a shitty job. She didn’t even know what happened between Viktor and Jayce that caused the fallout.

An idea struck her, something Lux had mentioned last night on the phone. Jinx considered him. “So are you and Jayce, like, broken up broken up?”

“We’re not together right now. Why?”

“Well, I’ve heard… and I know it’s none of my business, but a lot of people are saying that he and Medarda are… dating now.”

“Oh, I know,” Viktor said, unbothered. “They were seeing each other when Jayce and I were still together.”

Jinx started. “Wait. He cheated on you?”

“No! No, we had an open relationship. He and Mel have been involved for about a year now.”

“... Is that why you broke up?”

She could practically see the gears turning in his clockwork brain. “The reason was mostly because of… well, work was putting a big strain on our relationship. We had different ideas of how to improve the company. But I can’t deny that she was… a small part of it.”

Fishbones grinned in the corner of her vision. She did feel a little guilty for investigating, but she was also curious for her own reasons. “Because you were jealous?”

“No, not really,” he said. “I’ve always known Jayce was bisexual, and I never felt negatively towards any of our other opportunities, or even when we shared partners.”

“Ew. TMI, Vik.”

“But,” he continued, “Jayce has always approached men and women differently. With men, and especially in my case, he burns hot but it takes a long time for him to catch feelings. But with women, he falls hard and fast. And of course, Mel was the same. Not that I blame him: she is beautiful, and I’m certain that if I was attracted to women in any capacity, then I would be taken with her too.”

To say Mel Medarda was beautiful was an understatement. She was physically attractive, sure, but she was also elegant, diplomatic. The woman could charm a snake. Even Jinx had her celebrity crush phase, in early middle school when Mel first joined the senate. It was a parasocial relationship, of course, one of Jinx's romantic awakenings. The irony that Mel ended up sponsoring Ekko was not lost on her.

Viktor said, “She’s a busy woman, so he made sure he was available any time she was. And because of that, our schedule began to revolve around her’s.” His voice lowered just slightly. “And our home… she felt that our space was messy and disorganized, which it was, but… it was our space. And she took it upon herself to redecorate. I know she had good intentions, but…”

“... but it didn’t feel like home anymore.”

He didn’t say yes, but his sigh did.

“Did you ever talk to him about it?”

“Why would I? She’s our investor. Hextech wouldn’t exist without her. So instead of confronting him, when I saw an opportunity to step away, I took it.” He seemed to realize his own vulnerability, and shrugged it off. “That’s all.”

Jinx tried to think of what to say. People never really opened up to her. Probably because she was so unpredictable, which was fair. But when she came up with a way to talk to him, it was Vi’s voice that guided her words. “But if he doesn’t know, then how is he supposed to fix it?”

Instead of answering, Viktor said, “Perhaps it’s for the best. Jayce has always been more physically affectionate, more emotional. He deserves someone who can meet his needs, someone who is better off, someone… healthy.”

Jinx had felt that pain so many times before. She had fought it off for years after the accident, that feeling of being a burden to her family, that she was just in the way. They were words that she had accepted from herself thousands of times, but now, hearing Viktor say them, she found them unacceptable. “No,” she said. “That’s not true, Vik. You’re not less valuable just because you’re different.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“I don’t know what’s going through Jayce’s head, man,” she said honestly. “But I know that he cares about you. A lot. I didn’t really get a chance to hang out with you guys before… all this… but I know that the way he looked at you…”

She knew what she felt, it was just a matter of collecting it together into a coherent sentence. “Like, for example, Sky. When she was really down bad for you, she always looked at you differently. It was like… she wasn’t seeing you, the real you. It was like she was seeing the person she wanted you to be. But when Jayce looked at you, Vik, he saw you. Like, no offense, but you’re really fucking weird.”

“Thank you,” he said brightly.

“And when Jayce looked at you, he clearly knew you were really fucking weird. But he also really liked that about you. And I remember���” Her cheeks warmed at the thought. “I remember really envying that.”

The words were coming, too fast. The only person she ever shared these thoughts with was Silco, and even then, it had been years since she last said them out loud. “I always felt like Ekko and Vi wanted me to be a certain way, you know? They had this idea of who I should be, and they didn’t want me to be so weird and intense. But ultimately… That's who I am. And that’s why Silco was such a relief. You know, he accepted me, crazy and all.”

Viktor’s expression had dimmed. Probably because she was rambling, getting off track. “What I’m saying is,” she said. “Don’t just assume that Jayce doesn't like you anymore. Obviously right now isn’t the best time with the contest and everything, but when this is all over, just… talk to him. Maybe he’ll surprise you.” She cracked a grin. “And if he doesn’t, his loss.”

Viktor’s smile was thoughtful. “I’m the older one, shouldn’t I be imparting life lessons to you?”

Jinx rolled her eyes. “I can be emotionally intelligent. Sometimes.”

Viktor said, “I… I don’t know what your situation is exactly, with Vi and Ekko. But I think they could surprise you, too.”

Panic laced itself along her spine, though not as intense as usual when Vi and Ekko were brought up. “No,” she said. “No, I can’t. At least… not right now.”

“That’s fine, pupsik.” Viktor made sure not to overstep. “If you need time, you need time. I know I certainly do.”

She watched as he pulled up the recording software. “What does pupsik mean, by the way? You call me that a lot.”

“Eh, it’s like… baby. Or doll.” At her horrified expression, he said quickly, “It’s different! It’s a term of endearment, that’s all.”

She eyed him suspiciously.

“Really, it’s because of your-,” he indicated her hidden stash of dolls under the counter. “Your um… ‘writing process’.”

Her face flared red. “You know what, let’s-let’s get back to work.”

Viktor played the track they’d been working on, listening and altering the beats. Jinx tried to focus, though it was difficult with Fishbones murmuring in her mind. A weakness to exploit. Well done, Jinx.

#arcane #lightcannon #jinx #viktor #vicait #rock band au #battle of the bands au #face the noise #beat the daylight #my fic #okay I'm caught up on posting now lol

[lacrimosathedark]

I’m just thinking about this right now because I’m seeing Undertale and Deltarune on my dash but like

As a teen I was (gasp) a filthy Homestuck fan. And all the pathetic shit that came with it. I loved the Striders and Karkat and Nepeta. I loved the weird and random and crazy storytelling and the simple replicable art style.

Most of all, though, I loved the music.

Weird part to like about it I guess, but gosh is Homestuck’s music awesome. I’m the type of person who needs background noise at All Times, and at one point that led me to listening to Homestuck’s soundtracks as I did chores.

I’d notice, “Huh. This ‘toby “Radiation” fox’ dude shows up a lot.” And that apparently stuck with me. Because when I heard there was a game coming out with music by toby fox, and the game itself made by him too? I immediately needed to see this game.

To say Undertale is important to me is a major fucking understatement. I love all of the characters. All of them. The music is, of course, absolutely gorgeous. The game is both hilarious and heartwarming.

And this was my first game with a nonbinary protagonist. Or any other nonbinary character (which there are a few others). This was when I was just figuring out that I was nonbinary (you can imagine how I flipped when I found out ‘there’s a word for that feeling!?’) and my character(s) and other characters being referred to as they and them with absolutely no fanfare...it meant a lot.

And the characters? I really can’t talk about how much I love them. Toriel is my mom in my heart. I have made her Butterscotch Cinnamon Pie and it makes me so happy. Napstablook is just the friggin cutest and their shy awkwardness was so relatable I love them. Sans and Papyrus can always make me laugh. Sans got my lore-brain spinning and Papyrus was always there and always supportive. Monster Kid is the most precious little doof and they deserve the world. Undyne is a fucking badass and when she realizes you aren’t awful she is just the most fun to be around. Temmie is great (and also check her animations out on Youtube she’s so frickin cute and amazingly talented just do yourself that favor) and the music reminds me of Rugrats for some reason. Alphys is a fucking weeb with social anxiety and boy do I ever relate to that. Muffet has the coolest design and one of the more challenging and fun battles and she’s just so gorgeous to my love of the gothic lolita aesthetic. Mettaton is a fucking romp. That reveal of the EX form is magnificent. Asgore--I admit I’m not the biggest fan of him, but I always felt bad for him. He was a good guy trying to do what’s right for his people and it was hard and it hurts that you have to fight him (also that was a fucking twist gotdam).

And Asriel...my frickin baby. He is my brother and I love him. I just want to give him hugs and snuggles and pet his head and make everything better and just ow my heart.

This man, this dog, made a whole-ass game. Not alone, but like, he did so much of it.

And he just keeps frickin going.

When Deltarune came out as a “Survey Program” I downloaded it and was blown away. I cannot tell you how much I loved it. I fell in love with Seam and I listened to The World Revolving and every possible remix on loop.

(Unfortunately I haven’t played Chapter 2 yet because right after I got Chapter 1, my computer died!

and the executive dysfunction didn’t help either. But I’ll get to it I swear)

AND THEN

So I hate SWSH for a number of reasons, (*coughdexcough*) but Pokemon has always been part of my life. And while not the best song in the soundtrack (which is Battle! Gym Leader and you can fight me on that) his contribution, the Battle Tower Battle Theme, is a bop and I love it.

AND THEN A-FUCKING-GAIN

I legitimately CANNOT WAIT for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet and to have toby’s music in my ear while my Fidough wrecks everyone with it’s Flower Power.

And then on top of this, this fucker plays into the meme culture because of course he does

SERIOUSLY

(in case the first pic is hard to read)

But just...idk man

He just keeps amazing me and every time I think about it I’m just...blown away.

I trust the dog.

I can’t wait to see all the things he’s still going to do.

#toby fox appreciation post #toby fox #Annoying Dog #Homestuck #Undertale #Deltarune #Pokemon #Pokemon SWSH #Pokemon ScarVi #tumblr sexyman

[kerra-and-company]

@just-eyris-things​ Okay, we’re trying this again asl;kdjfasdf--the original ask posted before I was done with it, and then I couldn’t edit the post properly. So! Round 2!

Thanks so much for the ask!! :D <3 <3 This is from a bit ago now, but I am choosing to cash in my free ask :) You get some assorted songs that correspond with characters, with brief explanations, because I feel like talking about that for a bit. Hope you enjoy!!

This one is for Kerra and her Wyld Hunt, but also her and herself/her trauma in some ways. To pick out a couple key bits, this first verse is Baby!Kerra:

The first day that we met I saw you out of the corner Of my eye, I was 5 You're still the thumb that I'm under

This bit is LWS1 Kerra:

On the wall I was 10, you were more than a feeling By my side, unwanted The sun would see you come creeping Made of fear I was strong There's no shame to have you here Where you belong

And last but not least, this bit is Kerra at the end of HoT:

I see it's only me needing You back there behind me In my soul I feel like Maybe we'll be friends But you're holding me back Yeah, you're holding me back And I just want to run Dear shadow

This song is very Cal--to the point that when I heard it for the first time, I immediately put it on their playlist. First of all, the first line is "Create with me a work of art", which is perfect for them. Second, there's a couple more bits that I'll highlight.

This gives me vibes for how they felt leaving Ascalon and heading to Kryta over two years after the Searing:

Sitting here stuck in my head while the sun is just rising Come on, it's late, and we know we're the lone survivors

This bit just is...kinda how they are as a leader, and (in the first couple lines there) a bit how they are as a romantic partner to Daisy:

You're all that I've got, when it's dark, I have a light I finished the line, but my heart's on my own time Don't you wanna push, don't you wanna fight, don't you ever talk to your mind? You can make that come alive

And overall, it's just very them. "Let's see what we can do", indeed.

This one is Nabi, and though it's kinda bouncy, it's related (to me) to the fact that she chose to fight a lifelong battle against the Ministry of Purity and made a huge impact on the world by doing so, even if she couldn't stop them completely. Anyways, my point is that this is her:

You could give me hell You could give me death Right before I bend I will have revenge

Fire through my veins I will fan the flames Until my dying breath

'Cause I will never go down Any other way

I mentioned this one the other day, but this is a song for Brook and Casca--they're both the couple that's distanced from each other according to the lyrics and the couple meeting in the music video for the song. They find each other after years apart and thinking that the other is most certainly dead.

Nobody gets me like you do I'm not the same, not after you So many things that we've been through I'm not the same, not after All that's been said and done I don't even feel like I’m back at one Nobody gets me like you do I’m not the same, not after you

This song is the reason that Daisy's mother's name is Grace. She has a very close bond with her mother, who more-or-less raised her alone from the time Daisy was five.

Guess I got it from her, no I’m not sorry for it

Yeah I’m my mother’s daughter So glad I get the honor Yeah I’m my mother’s daughter Turns out I’m a little like Grace

This one goes out to all the Secondborn sylvari :)

See, I was born the second child With a spirit running wild, running free And they saw trouble in my eyes They were quick to recognize the devil in me See, I was born a restless child And I could hear the world outside calling me And heaven knows how hard I tried But the devil whispered lies I believed Can you hear it hanging on the wind? Can you feel it underneath your skin? You've got to go on, further than you've ever gone You've got to run far from all you've ever known

One of the songs that I think was originally intended to mean something slightly different, but it's on Nisha's playlist, because in the context of xem, it sounds like a Nisha-falling-in-love song. Letting down walls, being willing to get hurt, letting others in.

Maybe I'll crash into you Maybe we would open these wounds We're only alive if we bruise So I lay down this armor I will surrender tonight Before we both lose this fight Take my defenses All my defenses

I lay down this armor for you

I'll be your escape I'll be your safe place I'll be your shelter

Now, this song--this song I would make an animatic to if I could. It's very accurate to Casca's anger towards Weylon for his betrayal of their warband, as well as each of their individual struggles with forgiveness. Casca never intends to forgive him, so she doesn't take on the burden of forgiveness. Weylon struggles for years, after fully taking in how wrong his actions were, with forgiving himself. He's the one who needs to forgive here, not her. She's done.

They say the truth will set you free But it shackled me like chains

Some trust the law to guide them Some trust in the divine I am neither I have never been I have only been myself

Did you come for absolution? I have got none left to give You must find your own solution Find a reason to forgive You came looking for atonement You came looking where I live I can see right through your intent I have nothing to forgive

And because this is already long, one last song for you:

This one is for Cio and Ari! They're different but really similar at the same time, and honestly I think this song is a good encapsulation of that. So many of the back-and-forth bits could be either of them, but I've picked out the parts that seem the most like them:

You hurt I heal we cry But I'ma love you still You bail I dwell but we try So I'ma love you still

You're calm I rage enough But I'ma love you still You're scared I've shared too much But will you love me still

I'ma love you still I'ma love you through it all

#gw2 #kai speaks #just-eyris-things #thanks a bunch for the ask! :D #and sorry it took a sec to get to it!! but i hope you enjoy my assorted music ramblings #time to tag everyone: #kerralind #cal vereo #daisy llew #nishannai #seong nabi #casca shadowstorm #brook splitstorm #splitshadow #cioffi #ari stormshield #ciari #weylon stormblade

[anyways-wonderwall]

Album of the Week #30

Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too

(1998)

by New Radicals

Overall Rating: 5.5/10 TL;DR: Oh my god will you shut up already.

(a little full of himself isn't he. I like the color scheme though 6/10)

Finals week is finally over, which means I finally have time to write a review. That also means that I wrote the notes for this album during finals week, so it is crafted from a place of pure anger at the world. Maybe I was a little mean to New Radicals, but it was therapeutic so I don’t regret a thing.

Overall Thoughts One of my biggest pet peeves in music is the whiny white guy voice, and this album is completely full of it. When you start the album its okay, but as the album continued (its almost an hour long) I felt like I was losing my mind. Truthfully the instrumentation is fine, but the vocals reminded me of every guy I have ever hated. All he sings about is the manic pixie dream girl that he wants and drugs. By song three I was sick of it and wanted a song to be about anything, ANYTHING, other than getting high and wanting a girl that would get high with you. Most of the songs blur together in a stream of electric guitar and whining, and this is usually the part where I would point out which parts stuck out but honestly? Nothing did except the song that everyone knows by them (which is so good I don’t even think it counts as being in this album). Every song is painted by unnecessary falsettos and “huuuuuuhhh” sounds that are weirdly like moaning, and lyrics that make me wish I didn’t speak English. My personal favorite (and one of the few that is not drug related) is from “Someday We’ll Know,” where he sings “did the captain of the Titanic cry” like that is so deep I’m shaking, I’m crying, I’m pissing my pants. Honestly apart from the lyrics that song might be my favorite off of the album (other than the obvious) and it is deservedly the second most famous song of theirs. My least favorite was either “I Hope I Didn’t Give Away The Ending” or “Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too,” with both of them being the epitome of what I ranted about earlier. The first is literally just noice for a minute in a half before the song kicks in, which of course is about doing drugs with some girl. I guess the random noises that hurt my head at the beginning were because they’re high? I don’t care that you smoke weed dude and I really don’t want to listen to you mumbling for a minute and a half. The second is just them mumbling about #deep things while using an echo filter on the vocals and then for the outro doing some “do do do do” sounds. I didn’t like. But wait, there is one good song on this album, the obvious one. “You Get What You Give” is a masterpiece and there’s no way around that. If you are reading this there is an 100% chance you know the song, even if you didn’t know the band or the album it was from. It’s the perfect sing a long song and it has just enough different sections to keep you guessing. It’s just such a shame that it appears on an album with so many annoying duds.

Final Verdict This was kinda therapeutic to write so I guess I’m glad that I ended up reviewing this album? I truthfully can see why someone would like this album, but I can’t stand the mumbly stoner singing and the king of all whiny white guy voices. “You Get What You Give” is a great song though, so I’ll recommend that to anyone who has ever liked a song.

#album 30 #album of the week #album review #album recommendation #music review #90s alt rock #new radicals #alt rock

[legally-blonde-ish]

JOURNAL 4.26.22

There have been so many points in my adult life where I felt like I was spinning uncontrollably toward rock bottom. A few of those times I crashed HARD and on others, I managed to divert my trajectory before it was too late. Luckily, this feels like the latter...

I'm 100% one of those people who, despite what they show the world, is hopelessly in love with love. For better or for worse, I've had some of the best and worst experiences because of this. I've been lucky enough to love quite a few of my partners but I've only really been truly, deeply, head over heels in love with 4 people.

AM - This was my foolish, reckless first love. I gave my whole heart to him for years. He was so sweet and a great first love but as adults, our relationship was still stuck in high school. He's that guy that always has to have me blocked or unfriended because he can't trust himself not to reach out when things are hard. I guess that's the problem with growing up and going through all the teenage angst with someone... you know they will always know the real you, the deep dark raw you that the world can't touch.

DW - This was my first adult love. We met my second year of college and still have our on and off moments to this day. This love is one that makes me feel safe. It's the best and the worst. I know he will always be there unless I cut it off but he's never going to make a move without me pushing him. This love is safe because it's predictable and he's been there through every ugly, painful moment my 20s have thrown at me. The only part I hate about this love is that sometimes I feel like we're too comfortable. For example, this time around, we've been TALKING for almost a year and he doesn't seem to think we need to move this in any direction... I'm not even his girlfriend. I'm ready to build a life and he's comfortable playing it safe.

AN - This is the love that destroyed me. We all know that song "10 Things I Hate About You"? Yeah, all signs point to this guy. I gave him my whole world and he proposed. It was magical and perfect and I thought I was so completely, madly in love, which I was until he crushed my heart into a million little pieces and left me after flying me 3,000 miles to visit him. This love was a whirlwind and looking back now I can see that it was everything I told myself I'd never get myself into. It was toxic and controlling and crushed every part of my insides. When I was in the thick of it you couldn't tell me anything. I was more than happy to spend the rest of my life with him.

DB - This love is the most real love I've ever felt in my life. It's messy and imperfect. He's honest even if I don't like what he has to say. Yes, I've ended up sad or hurt but never on purpose, and nine times out of ten I've hurt my own feelings by being in my head too much. This love lives in my head and my heart rent-free. It's that romance movie, epic novel kind of love that sets my soul on fire but like anything good in my life, there's a catch. This love is one-sided. He knows how I feel and he's not completely without feelings toward me but it's complicated. No matter what happens this love will always be the love that showed me that true love is real and showed me that what I felt with that ex wasn't it. This love pushes and challenges me to be the best I can be. This love has changed my life in so many ways. This love is the love I hope I can hold on to for the rest of my life and if I can't, at least I'll know what to look for.

I can be the biggest most heartless bitch in the world if I think it's going to protect me because I give all of myself way too easily. This one is for the girls that love with reckless abandon... May we find someone worthy of that love.

XOXO - E

#journal

[bisexualreginaldpeters]

He’s a gem in a black leather jacket!

Reggie Peters Moodboard

#guess which song has been stuck in my head to the point i felt the need to make this #hint thats a line from it 👀 #reggie himself doesnt fit the lyrics i literally just needed to do something with the song it just plays on loop in my head #not my most top tier board but its cute i think! #julie and the phantoms #jatp #reggie peters #moodboard

[blueskrugs]

never be sorry (for loving you) | Nathan MacKinnon

would you believe this is my first nate fic since some people do? I'm not sure this entirely went the direction I planned for it to, but i like it anyway. title from an old dominion song, because apparently it's not a nate fic unless i exclusively listen to old dominion while writing. this is also a winter exchange fic that takes place in summer...which.

this is for @luvsherleafs for @antoineroussel's winter fic exchange! so, so sorry it's a few days late, but life has Not been my friend lately. I hope you like it!! no beta on this one except for @poltoncarayko who read the first couple thousand words and talked me down from deleting the whole thing with less than a week until the deadline lol

length: 8.2k words

You forgot about the wedding.

Well, you tried to forget about the wedding, tried to ignore the Save the Date still stuck to your fridge door. Sam and Jacklyn’s happy smiles seemed to taunt you every time you closed your fridge door, bright and real and in love.

It didn’t work.

You thought about calling and saying that something came up with your family, making up some excuse so you didn’t have to go, but you could never quite bring yourself to do it. It was only delaying the inevitable, the hard, awkward conversation about what had really happened.

And then, a week before the wedding, your ex-boyfriend showed up at your front door.

You should have seen it coming, really. You hadn’t spoken since you’d gone your separate ways at the beginning of the summer, but you had RSVP'd to the wedding together all those months ago, and you had a dress in your closet and a plane ticket to Quebec that you couldn’t return.

“Don’t hate me,” is what Nate opens with as you let him in, hands shoved deep in his pockets.

“Nothing good has ever come from those words, Nate.”

“I need you to be my date for Sam’s wedding,” Nate said in a rush, shouldering his way through the doorway.

You were confused. “We already RSVP'd together, Nate. I thought we’d still go together.” Just as friends, because that’s all you were now. You'd make it work.

Nate shook his head. “No, I need you to be my date,” Nate repeated. “Like, be my girlfriend and shit. Everyone thinks we’re still dating, and some of the guys might believe that I’m thinking about proposing.”

“Say that last part again?”

Nate ignored you and kept talking. “Besides, it wouldn’t be fair to Sam and Jacks to show up with all our drama, it’d be all anyone would talk about all weekend.”

He had a point there, because his teammates were some of the nosiest and most meddling people you’d ever met, but you were still trying to process the “proposal” part of the sentence before that. Nate wouldn’t meet your eyes.

“So, what, we just pretend like everything’s fine for the weekend and hope no one notices?” you asked.

Nate shrugged. He had wandered into your kitchen, poked at the Save the Date still stuck to your fridge. “I mean. Yeah, I guess? It’s not like it’ll be hard, we did date for a couple years there.” Nate hesitated. “You are good with this, right?” he asked. “I guess we could come clean, or make up a family thing and you could skip, or-”

“Nate,” you said, cutting him off. Nate looked up from the picture of Sam and Jacklyn, looking at you for the first time since he’d barged in. “We’ll be fine, I promise.”

You weren’t actually so sure of that yourself, but the way Nate beamed at you made you think you sounded a lot more reassured than you felt.

Nate was still grinning at you. You couldn’t remember the last time he’d directed that bright of a smile at you. “How bad could it possibly be?” he asked, coming back over to smack a kiss to your forehead.

Famous last words, you thought wryly, watching the familiarity with which Nate still moved through your space.

You turned out to be right, though sooner than you thought. Neither of you had even boarded a plane before you started running into problems. Nate was originally going to fly into Quebec City from Halifax, not Denver, but with only a few days left until the wedding, there was no point in him flying back into Halifax. Nate had to cancel that flight, but then there weren’t any seats left on your flight from Denver to YQB. There weren’t a lot of last minute options available, either, which meant Nate’s only options were to fly in several days early and chill in a hotel, or to miss the wedding entirely (which wasn’t really an option at all).

“This is fucking stupid,” Nate said with a sigh, throwing his phone onto the couch beside him. It bounced off and landed on your rug with a muffled thump. Nate stared down at it, betrayed. He’d been on the phone with airlines and hotels all morning, juggling reservations. It hadn’t sounded like it was going particularly well.

You didn’t know why Nate insisted on handling all of this from the little couch in your apartment.

“You could always just drive up,” you said casually.

Nate turned his betrayed look on you. “Dude, that’s over a day’s drive.” You knew that, because you’d just looked it up, and apparently Nate had too. You shrugged.

“Road trip.” Nate shook his head at you. “C’mon, it would be fun,” you teased. “Anyway, what the fuck are you going to do to kill time for three days in Quebec?” Nate shrugged at you. “Work out, probably.” You snorted, and Nate shot you a look. “I don’t know, isn’t Quebec one of the oldest cities in North America or something? There’s probably some touristy shit I could do.” You were still laughing at him a little bit. “And you’ll be up Thursday, anyway, and then Friday starts wedding stuff, it’ll be fine.”

You weren’t sure which of you he was trying to reassure more.

“Whatever you say, Nate,” you said.

Nate leaned over the edge of the couch to pick up his phone. “Wanna order lunch?” he asked.

“Only if you’re paying,” you said. Nate stuck his tongue out at you, but passed you his phone for you to put your order in.

You dropped Nate off at the airport two days later. For all that Nate had seemed comfortable barging back into your life and taking up space on your couch, he was quiet in the car, mostly watching out the window as the city passed. You didn’t know how to ask him what was wrong, didn’t know what you’d do if he said that this was a bad idea after all.

Nate hesitated as you sat idling in the drop-off lane. Neither of you said anything. You wished, for the first time, that your breakup had been less amicable than this. You certainly wouldn’t be stuck in this situation if it had been, somewhere between friends and exes, but you also wouldn’t have to be stopping yourself from leaning over the gearshift and kissing him goodbye.

“Uh.” Nate cleared his throat. He was looking carefully at his knees, hand on the door handle. “Thanks for driving me out here, I guess,” he said.

“Yeah, of course,” you said softly, but it was lost as Nate opened the passenger door and slammed it behind him. You waited for him to pull his bag out of the trunk, but you didn’t wait any longer, didn’t watch him go through the doors into the airport.

It all felt more final than it should have, for some reason.

You didn’t really hear much from Nate the days he was in Quebec City by himself, aside from a few Snapchats. You tried not to feel any particular way about it.

He did still pick you up from the airport. You found him waiting for you near baggage claim when you finally made it through arrivals, hands deep in his jean pockets, looking awkward. He wrapped you in an equally awkward hug when you approached him.

“You could’ve waited in the car,” you told him as he let go of you. “I can handle my suitcase by myself.”

Nate shrugged, sheepish. “Wanted to see you,” he mumbled.

You didn’t know how you were supposed to respond to that.

Nate was leading out of the airport and towards his rental car when he said, “So, I figured we could do some sightseeing today.” When you hesitated, he rushed to add, “Only if you want, obviously, I just thought, since it’s a pretty cool city and stuff, and neither of us have ever been, I just thought it would be fun.”

“Nate, I don’t know, I had to be up pretty early for this flight, and I always feel pretty gross after long flights…”

You were at Nate’s rental. You let him take your suitcase and swing it up into the trunk before making his way to the driver's side. “Jesus, what all did you bring, you’re only here for like three days," he complained. He paused. “EJ and Jackie want to come, too,” he offered.

You looked over at Nate. He wouldn’t meet your eyes, focused on turning the car on and putting it in reverse. You saw it for what it was, a peace offering of sorts, a buffer. You hesitated again. “Let me take a shower first, okay?”

Nate shot you a small smile and focused on the roads. Neither of you said much as he drove, but the silence wasn’t stifling for once. Nate had his phone connected to the car’s speakers, music playing softly to fill in the gaps left by Nate’s quiet swearing at other drivers. It wasn’t until you recognized the opening notes of a Luke Bryan song that you realized it was your old date night playlist, the one you’d listen to while getting ready or on quiet dinners in with Nate. You reached to turn the volume up; Nate swatted your hand away halfheartedly.

“I meant to delete this playlist,” you commented. You didn’t have much use for it as your relationship with Nate started to crumble, and certainly not after you’d gone your separate ways at the beginning of the summer. Besides, it was wrapped up with too many memories of Nate.

Nate winced but didn’t say anything. You didn’t know what to say, either. You stayed quiet for the rest of the drive to the hotel.

Your hotel room was…small. A queen sized bed, a dresser, and the bathroom were pretty much all that were in the room. Nate rubbed the back of his neck nervously as you dumped your carry-on on the unmade bed and surveyed your home for the next few days.

“We had a bigger room booked, but when I had to change my flight, we lost it and this is all they had left on short notice,” Nate explained. He was still standing by the door awkwardly. “I thought about trying to get separates, but that would be too hard to explain,” he added.

“Nate, it’s fine,” you told him. And it was. “We’ll hardly be in here, anyway,” you reminded him. Nate shrugged, seemingly unconvinced. You rolled your head on your shoulders, trying to crack your neck. You were still stiff from a couple hours on a plane. “Can we get lunch before we go sightseeing?” you asked. “I’m fucking starving.” Airplane food was never very satisfying.

Nate grinned at you. “Yeah, of course. I found a good place yesterday you’ll like.”

You forgot for a moment that you and Nate were no longer dating, lost in the familiarity of it. You could see the moment Nate remembered, too, watched as his smile fell.

“I’m just, uh, gonna shower and change real quick, yeah?” you said. It didn’t really require an answer, and you turned to root through your suitcase for clean clothes.

You faintly heard Nate flop onto the bed as you shut the bathroom door behind you. You leaned against the door for a minute, taking a deep breath. This was going to be a long weekend. Especially if you and Nate never figured out how to get past all the awkwardness. You’d never convince all your friends that you were on the verge of getting engaged if you continued to act like this, like you barely knew each other.

You shook your head and turned the shower on.

When you came back out of the bathroom, still tugging your shirt over your head, Nate was still sprawled across the bed. He locked his phone and dropped it facedown on his chest, but didn’t make any move to get up. His eyes dropped to the sliver of skin still showing at the hem of your shirt. You snapped your fingers at him, and he shook himself out of it.

“Lunch?” you asked.

“Right, yeah. Yeah,” Nate said, shaking himself again. “EJ and Jackie said they’d meet us after, is that okay?”

“Yeah, sure,” you said, digging through your suitcase again for a pair of shoes. Nate watched you with a small smile on his face. As you pulled your shoes on, Nate slid off the bed with a groan. “You ready?” Could you ever really be ready for the prospect of awkward small talk over lunch with your ex?

Nate patted his pockets, swiped his phone from where it had fallen into the sheets. He held his hand out to you; you hesitated for just a second before placing your hand in his. He squeezed it once before leading you to the door. You had no choice but to follow, carefully stepping over the chaos of your exploded suitcase. Nate squeezed your hand once more before letting it drop as the door shut behind both of you.

You followed Nate into the elevator, out through the lobby, and onto the street.

“What, no valet?” you joked, as Nate led the way onto the crowded sidewalk. You hurried to keep up with his long strides.

Nate noticed you two steps behind him and slowed down. “Nah, you can walk pretty much everywhere around here,” he said over his shoulder. Your hands brushed as you caught up with Nate properly. Nate flinched, but tried to hide it by shoving both hands in his pockets. Neither of you bothered to say anything more until you reached the restaurant.

Nate held the door for you.

He’d been right about the restaurant. The menu had been full of things you liked, but when Nate raised one eyebrow at you across the table, you let him order for you. He was right about that, too.

And you’d been right about the awkward small talk, too. Lunch was filled with aborted conversations and stilted silences, and you hated every second of it. It had been like this towards the end, too, where you and Nate never quite seemed to know what to say to each other. You missed the days when you felt like you could talk about anything with Nate.

Nate’s phone vibrated on the table as you were finishing up. He ignored it in favor of continuing a story about Sid back home earlier in the summer, until it vibrated twice more.

“EJ?” you asked.

Nate rolled his eyes at you. “Who else?” He squinted at his phone. “Says he and Jackie are ready to meet us whenever. You ready?”

Nate didn’t hold his hand out to you again as you slid out of your chair, but he did walk close behind you as you made your way out of the crowded restaurant, his hand hovering over the small of your back. You imagined you could feel the warmth of it through the thin jacket you wore.

It wasn’t long until you caught up with EJ and Jackie, and you gladly grabbed ahold of the buffer. Literally. You looped your arm through Jackie’s and pulled her close to you, even though the early summer sun was warm overhead. She shot you a sidelong look, but didn’t comment, which you were thankful for. Ahead of you, EJ had his arm slung around Nate’s shoulders and was chattering away. Nate glanced over his shoulder at you a couple times, and you offered him a small smile back.

The four of you wandered around Old Quebec for a while, looking pretty half-heartedly at some of the landmarks. It was nice to catch up with EJ and Jackie, though, and it was definitely better than being cooped up in the hotel all afternoon with nothing to do.

“I’m bored,” EJ announced. Jackie elbowed him in the ribs.

“Uh, there’s an aquarium in the city that’s supposed to be pretty cool?” Nate said, in a voice you recognized, that meant he had definitely already planned this. “It’s probably not too far.”

EJ lit up and pulled his phone out. He poked at it for a moment, tongue sticking out between the gap in his teeth as he focused. “Uh, how far is ten kilometers?”

“Like, six miles,” you said.

“Why the fuck do you know that?” EJ said at the same time Nate said, “Okay, maybe it’s a little farther than I thought. But we’ll just catch a cab or something, yeah?” His face was red, flustered. It was a little cute.

You did catch a cab, you, Nate and EJ crammed in the backseat with Jackie up front with the driver. It turned out to be almost a twenty minute drive.

“And you wanted to fucking walk this,” EJ snorted.

Nate smacked EJ’s thigh, which meant EJ had to retaliate. You could tell this was only going to escalate. You could only imagine how Twitter would twist “Nathan MacKinnon and Erik Johnson get into a fight in the back of a cab” into something it wasn't.

“Boys,” you and Jackie scolded at the same time.

They settled down, but not before EJ got one more smack in for good measure.

You all tumbled out of the cab in front of Aquarium du Quebec a few minutes later.

“Don’t do anything that’ll get us kicked out,” you told EJ, following Nate towards the front doors.

EJ huffed, mock offended.

Watching Nate pay for your ticket, you realized for the first time all day that this might have been a mistake. Lunch had been awkward, but fine. Friends got lunch together all the time. Walking through Old Quebec had been a good time to catch up with some people you hadn’t seen in a while. This? This was a date.

You and Nate didn’t do that anymore.

Nate draped his arm across your shoulders as you walked through the entrance. The touch was casual, familiar, proprietary. The weight of it was comforting and oppressive at the same time. If Nate noticed the way you went tense underneath his arm, he didn’t show it. He didn’t move his arm, either, not as you stepped aside to wait for EJ and Jackie, not as the four of you made your way into the aquarium.

The afternoon spent in the aquarium passed in a blur. You smiled and laughed at the right times, especially after EJ started naming various sea creatures after his teammates, but you probably couldn’t have recounted to anyone which animals you actually saw, or who was a clownfish versus a seal. (EJ had defenses for each of them, you were sure, just not paying much attention.) At some point, Nate’s arm slid from around your shoulders, but you only had a brief moment of reprieve before his hand was sliding into yours. You glanced up at him. Nate squeezed your hand once, an unspoken question clear in his eyes. You squeezed back. Nate swung your hands between you before racing off, tugging you along after him to look at the next exhibit. You followed, helpless.

It was late when you emerged back out onto the street. Nate was still holding your hand, and you leaned into him, too tired to fight it, trying to remind yourself it was all an act for everyone else’s benefit.

“Dinner?” EJ asked, already pulling out his phone, probably to look up restaurants.

Nate nudged you with his elbow. “Nah, I think we’re gonna call it a night, just get room service or something,” he said. “I think this one will fall asleep at the table if we keep her out any longer.”

Nate wasn’t wrong about that one. It had been a long day, made even longer by having to act like you were in love. As if on cue, you stifled a yawn.

EJ shrugged. “Suit yourselves. See you at breakfast in the morning?”

Nate groaned. Gabe had insisted on a team-and-significant-other breakfast, a chance for everyone to catch up without all the craziness of the wedding itself. You’d forgotten about it, and apparently Nate had, too. EJ raised an eyebrow at both of you.

“Yeah, yeah, we’ll be there,” he said, waving a hand at EJ. He tugged you away gently. There was already a car waiting by the curb for you, and you tumbled sleepily into it, Nate right behind you.

You were quiet on the ride back to the hotel, and then in the elevator and down the hallway to your room. You let Nate unlock the door, but you slid past him and into the room first, flopping face-first into the bed with a groan. You felt Nate tap your ankle.

“No shoes on the bed,” he said absently. You could hear him pick up the room service menu and flip through it. You turned your head enough to glare at him as he settled near the head of the bed. You kicked off your shoes without moving, letting them fall to the floor. Nate rolled his eyes at you and swatted at you with the room service menu. “Don’t fall asleep before dinner gets here.”

“‘M not hungry,” you complained, but you scooted up the bed to settle against the headboard and peer over Nate’s shoulder at the menu. It was a lie, and your stomach chose that moment to rumble, but you really were looking forward to passing the fuck out. Nate gave you a look.

“You want pasta?” he asked.

“Depends, is it real pasta, or the shit you call pasta?” you asked. Nate opened his mouth to argue. “Yes, I want pasta,” you hurried to add. You didn't have the energy for a stupid argument. Nate stuck his tongue out at you anyway. “Wake me when food gets here.” You started to slide down and rest on your pillows. Nate poked you in the ribs. “Nate,” you whined.

“No sleeping,” Nate mouthed at you, already on the phone to order. You laid down anyway.

Room service order placed, Nate turned on the TV and started flipping channels. There wasn’t much on, and half of the programs that were on were in French, which neither of you spoke. You poked at Nate with your toes as he cycled through the channels for the third time. He stopped, settling on a show you didn’t recognize. It was only a few more minutes before someone knocked on the door.

“Food,” Nate said, which you thought was fairly obvious, but didn’t point out. Nate rolled off the bed and padded to the door.

You ate in silence, somewhere between stiff and comfortable, shoulder to shoulder, propped up against the headboard. The TV was still on, volume up just enough to fill in the gaps and cover the sounds of chewing. When you’d both finished, Nate cleared your dishes and left them out in the hallway. You watched him go, curled up and cozy on top of the duvet.

You weren’t expecting Nate to lean in for a kiss when he came back to the bed. He went easy when you pushed him away, both hands on his shoulders, but you didn’t miss the look of hurt that washed across his face.

“Nate, I can’t- we don’t do this,” you said quietly. Your voice came out steady, but your hands were shaking.

Nate was sitting as far away from you as he could get, perched on the edge of the bed. “I’m sorry, I thought-“ Nate broke off, running a frustrated hand through his hair. “I don’t know what I thought, actually.”

“I think this was a mistake,” you whispered.

Nate flinched. You rolled off the bed and stumbled the few steps to the bathroom, locking the door behind you with still shaking hands. The small bathroom felt claustrophobic, but you couldn’t go back out there, not right now. You slid to the floor and tried to steady out your breathing.

It was quiet on the other side of the door. Nate must have turned the TV off. You wondered for a moment how long you’d have to hide in the bathroom, what you’d even say to Nate when you came out. You didn’t have to worry about that for long, though. Distantly, you heard the door to the room open and shut again as Nate left. You stayed where you were for a few more minutes, but Nate didn’t come back.

You were in bed when Nate returned to the room later. He paused at the foot of the bed, watching you in the dark. You pretended to be asleep. You listened to the sounds of Nate getting ready for bed—changing into a pair of shorts, brushing his teeth in the bathroom, plugging his phone in on the other side of the bed— with your eyes still shut. You didn’t dare to move.

Nate hesitated again before climbing into bed next to you, but eventually he did, carefully peeling the sheets back and sliding under, doing his best not to disturb you. You could feel him settle behind you, as much space between you as he could make without falling off the edge of the bed. He let out a long sigh.

It was a long time before you actually fell asleep.

Nate wasn’t in the room when your alarm went off the next morning. You hadn’t heard him leave, but his side of the bed was cool; he’d been gone for a while. You rushed to get ready, not wanting to be late for breakfast. It was going to be hard enough to try and explain why you and Nate had come down separately, when you were usually waiting on Nate to finish getting ready.

The private dining room was loud when you walked in, filled with rowdy hockey players. Nate was sitting alone at a table, and you made your way over to him. He offered you a small smile as you settled in the empty seat next to him. He slid a mug of coffee in front of you, still warm and made exactly how you liked it.

He jerked his head in the direction of the buffet line, where most of his team had gathered. “I’ll grab us some plates as soon as the rest of the heathens over there finish.”

“I can get my own plate,” you tried to protest, but Nate shook his head. You were too tired to fight it more, so you just settled in to sip your coffee.

Andre and Johanna started to make their way over to you, trailed closely by EJ and Jackie. EJ took one look at the bags under your eyes and gave you an appraising look, but ultimately didn’t comment. Nate pushed his chair back from the table and stood up, dropping a kiss to the top of your head as he went. You felt your cheeks warm and buried your face in your mug again to avoid EJ’s raised eyebrows.

Nate dropped a full plate of breakfast food in front of you a few minutes later. His hand brushed across your shoulder as he resettled in his own chair. You imagined you could still feel the ghost of his touch, even as you watched him pick up his fork and dig into his own food. His foot nudged yours underneath the table, and you shook yourself, turning to your own plate of food.

Across the table, Andre was talking with his mouth full. You reached to snag a piece of fruit from EJ’s plate, and you let the normalcy of it all, the noise and the chaos, settle you a little bit.

You didn’t see much of Nate for the rest of the day. The boys split off from the group after breakfast, all yelling about something, while the girls went off to the hotel spa for some pampering and mani-pedis. Nate was in your hotel room when you stopped in to change, but Mel had decreed a girls-only dinner, too, so you only had a few minutes to put on something cute and fix your hair before dashing out the door again.

You had to admit that Nate had been right about one thing: it was far easier to let everyone think you were still dating. Well, it was easier for everyone else, you supposed. It felt a little bit like every minute spent in Nate’s presence was torture, but you were able to laugh and enjoy all the attention being on Jacklyn and Sam, rather than everyone worrying about you.

(Except for maybe EJ, who definitely thought something was off, weirdly perceptive fucker that he was.)

The other shoe dropped over dinner.

Mel nudged you with her elbow with a sly smile. “How’s your summer been?” she asked, pointed. If only she knew. When you hesitated, her smile grew sharper. “Got something to share?” she pressed.

Well. You took another drink of your wine. “Nate and I broke up,” you said quietly.

Mel choked on her sip of sangria. “What?” she hissed. A few heads turned your way, too many.

“Shh,” you hissed back, but it was too late.

Susanna, who was on your other side, leaned forward. “What happened?” she asked.

You grimaced and downed the last of your glass. “I need more wine,” you said instead of answering, half-standing to reach the bottle in the middle of the table. Mel snatched it from you and held it out of your reach.

“No way,” she said. “What happened?”

You shrugged. “Nothing really.” You got some skeptical eyebrow raises at that, but at least Mel surrendered the wine. You refilled your glass before continuing. “I mean it, there was no fight, no drama, we just grew apart. We just kinda fell out of love, it just wasn’t the same anymore.” You shrugged again. “We agreed to take a break around the All-Star break.” Someone let out a small gasp across the table, and you stifled a laugh. “We kinda officially split at the beginning of the summer.”

Mel was looking at you with something like pity.

“And why did you decide not to tell any of us this?” Jacklyn piped up.

You gave her an exasperated look. “This weekend was supposed to be about you and Sam, it’s not fair to you two to distract everyone with our drama.” Not that it was even really drama, other than the fact that you and Nate were both struggling big time with this weekend.

“So, what, you both just suffer all weekend and pretend like everything is fine?” The other girls were all starting to talk over each other now.

“Whoa, who said anything about suffering?” you tried, but everyone knew you were lying. “I promised him it would be fine, and it will be,” you said. You weren’t sure who you were trying to convince at this point. Either way, it wasn't working very well.

You took the stairs back to your hotel room after dinner. You walked slowly, trying to process everything. To be honest, you hadn’t expected to miss Nate so much after you’d broken up. You hadn’t really realized you did miss him, not until you were spending time together again. You hadn’t been lying to everyone: the spark had really just faded between you and Nate. Between your work schedule and all the traveling the team did, somewhere along the line you’d both stopped putting in the work.

But then he’d burst through your front door and made himself at home on your couch, and you started to fall in love with him again.

It had been Nate’s idea to take a break after the halfway point of the season had come and gone. You didn’t move out of his house at first, just into one of the spare bedrooms. With the end of the season approaching, you barely saw each other anyway, and it had been easy to fall into a routine of roommates. You moved out in April.

And now you were here, attending a wedding with your ex-boyfriend who you were maybe still a little in love with, pushing him away at every opportunity. You’d thought you were saving yourself heartbreak, but it was starting to look like you were just breaking your own heart this way.

Nate was still awake when you quietly opened your door, leaning against the headboard and playing on his phone, and you stopped short. You’d been hoping he’d be asleep. You still weren’t sure you could handle talking about what had happened the night before. Nate offered you a tired smile, and you found yourself returning it without having to force it.

“You gonna come to bed?” Nate asked, shaking you out of your thoughts.

You stuck your tongue out at him and kicked off your shoes. You left the door open as you went into the bathroom, and Nate watched you as you carefully took off your makeup.

“What?” you asked.

Nate shook his head, still smiling softly at you. “Nothing,” he whispered. He reached a hand out to you. “Come to bed.”

You did, after pulling on a pair of shorts and an old Mooseheads T-shirt you’d stolen from Nate once. Nate plucked at a hole near the hem with a laugh.

“How old is this fuckin’ thing?” he asked. You snuggled in, facing Nate tonight, closer together than you were last night.

“You tell me, it’s your shirt,” you shot back.

Nate laughed again and flicked off the bedside lamp, plunging the room into darkness. You blinked a few times to get your eyes to adjust, and then Nate was there, lying on his side, facing you. He reached out and brushed his thumb across your cheekbone, gentle. You squinted at him in the dark.

“Eyelash,” he said, by way of explanation.

His hand had come to rest on your waist, and you didn’t tell him to move it. You pressed the top of your foot to his shin. Nate scooted a little closer to you. You both fell asleep still touching.

You woke up late the next day, late morning sun already filling the hotel room. You’d forgotten to set your alarm when you came in the night before. Nate’s side of the bed was empty again, but you were less surprised, and a little less hurt by it this time.

“Shit,” you said, fumbling for your phone.

Just then, the hotel room door clicked open, and Nate shouldered his way into the room. He was sweaty like he’d been working out, and clutching two Starbucks coffees. “Ah, good you’re alive,” he said, passing you your coffee.

You made a face at him. “You should’ve woken me.”

Nate shook his head. “Nah, you looked like you needed the sleep,” he said. You huffed. “I ordered breakfast, it should be here soon.” He took a long drink of his coffee. “I’m gonna shower, okay?”

You made a point to wrinkle your nose at him as he squeezed past you and into the bathroom. Nate pulled off his sweaty shirt and threw it at your face before he shut the door on you. Asshole, you thought fondly.

Nate had been right about the food arriving soon; it was only a few more minutes before there was a knock on the hotel room door. You pushed the sheets back with a groan and padded over to the door to retrieve your breakfast.

You were almost finished with your breakfast when Nate emerged from the shower, still toweling off his hair. He tossed the dirty towel back into the bathroom, where it landed in a heap on the floor, as he dropped back into the bed next to you. You raised an eyebrow at him.

“I’ll pick it up later,” he promised. You both knew he wouldn’t.

“Food’s getting cold,” you told him, half-heartedly swatting at him as he swiped a piece of bacon from your plate.

Nate shrugged and turned to dig in to whatever healthy crap he’d ordered for himself. He was still munching on his stolen bacon. It was quiet in the room while you both ate, but for the first time, it wasn’t awkward. When you finished your plate, you settled back against your pillows with the last of your coffee.

It was clear something had shifted between you and Nate last night, but you weren’t sure exactly what it was, or where it left you now.

Nate peeked at the time on his phone, then at you making yourself cozy again in bed.

“You plan on getting up any time soon?” he asked. You shook your head, snuggling in deeper. Nate stared at you for a moment. Then he ripped the sheets and blankets off of you.

“Nate!”

Nate was laughing. You kicked out at him, but he grabbed onto your ankle and started tugging you down the bed. You were laughing, too, now, trying desperately to keep ahold of your coffee. Nate stopped pulling, but didn’t go of your foot, his hand a warm bracelet around your ankle. You took a moment to catch your breath, trying to ignore Nate’s eyes on you, intent, searching. Searching for what, you weren’t sure.

Finally, you pulled your foot free of Nate’s grasp and made to get off the bed, moment over. Nate’s towel was still on the bathroom floor, and you kicked it out of the way with a shake of your head. You were actually running a bit late, after you’d slept in and your lazy breakfast, so you did have to rush a bit to shower. You were never going to admit that to Nate, though.

Nate leaned on the bathroom doorway to watch you carefully do your makeup. You grinned at him in the mirror. When you were still dating, he’d always liked to watch you get ready for dates. Some things never change, apparently.

“I’ll never understand how girls can put eyeliner on without poking themselves in the eye,” Nate commented.

You had to move your hand away from your eye so you could laugh at that without making a wobbly line or, well, poking yourself in the eye.

“Lots of practice,” you told him.

Nate checked an invisible watch on his wrist. “C’mon, we’ve both still gotta get dressed, I need the sink.”

You rolled your eyes at Nate but let him bump you out of the way with his hip to get to the sink. You twisted your hair into a quick updo and pinned it in place while Nate brushed his teeth, eyes on you the whole time, brow furrowed.

“How do you do that,” he complained.

“Not all of us can run their fingers through their hair and call it a day, Nathan,” you said.

Nate pulled his hand away from where he was fixing his hair. He glared at you in the mirror, but it was ruined by the tiny smile at the corner of his mouth. He pressed a quick kiss to your cheek as he brushed past you and back out of the bathroom. You stood there blinking for a second before Nate’s “Let’s go!” snapped you out of it.

Nate huffed impatiently when you ducked back into the bathroom one last time to do a final once-over of your hair and makeup after you were fully dressed, but he still handed you your purse and held the door for you so you could make your way down to the hotel lobby. The valet already had pulled Nate’s rental car around, and Nate opened the passenger door for you, too, his hand briefly pressing against the small of your back as you climbed in.

“Why do you always have to drive such a big car,” you grumbled as Nate settled behind the steering wheel.

The wedding venue was a little ways outside of the city, and you had a bit of a drive ahead of you. Nate scoffed as you kicked off your heels and made yourself comfortable—as comfortable as you could get, at least. Music started playing over the car speakers when Nate’s phone connected. It was the same playlist Nate had been playing when he’d picked you up from the airport.

“Hey, what did you mean when you said you’d meant to delete this playlist?” Nate asked.

You shrugged, though you weren’t sure Nate really saw it, focused on the road. “It was just our playlist, y’know?” Your favorite songs, your memories. “I couldn’t really listen to it anymore, didn’t have any real reason to, anyway.”

Nate made a face you couldn’t read. You wanted to poke at it, goad him into saying what he was clearly thinking, but this wasn’t the time or place for it. You settled for swatting Nate’s hand away from where he was trying to skip the Old Dominion song that had just started.

The venue parking lot was filling up by the time Nate’s tires crunched over the gravel, wedding guests streaming towards the venue itself.

“Told you we were going to be late,” Nate complained under his breath, carefully pulling into a parking spot.

You hurried to pull your shoes back on. “Oh my God, we’re not even close to being late, shut up,” you said back.

Nate wasn’t listening, though, because he was scrambling to open his door and rush around the car to open yours. He was grinning as he pulled it open.

“I can open my own door, you know,” you said, letting Nate take your hand to guide you out of the car.

You expected him to drop your hand quickly, but instead he pulled you into his side, pressing a kiss to your temple.

“Smile, there’s cameras,” he murmured.

You elbowed him. Nate didn’t let go of your hand until you’d both settled in the seats Mel and Gabe had saved for you.

While you waited for the ceremony to start, you stared around at everything. It was a cute little venue, open air. The afternoon sunlight made everything seem to glow, and the early summer breeze was nice. You couldn’t help but think about how you’d once thought you’d be planning a wedding like this with Nate one day.

Like Nate could read your mind, he leaned in and whispered, “Used to think this would be us.”

You spent most of the ceremony blinking back tears, and they weren’t always happy ones. Nate let you lean on his shoulder the whole time.

Your plan for the reception was to get drunk. Not messy, not really, just enough over the line between sober and tipsy that you could get through this night with Nate by your side. You probably could’ve done it, too, except Nate saw right through you. He sidled up to you while you waited in line at the bar before speeches started.

“My company isn’t so terrible that you’re already avoiding me with alcohol, is it?” he teased, hand pressed into the small of your back. You let yourself lean into him. Even in your heels, you had to tilt your chin up to look straight at him.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” you said. The line moved forward, and you both stepped forward, too. Nate’s hand was still warm against your back.

“I’m not carrying you to the car later if you get too drunk to walk in those heels,” Nate said. He was lying, and you both knew it. Nate would do almost anything for you.

“That was one time!” you protested. Nate’s face was close to yours, close enough you wouldn’t have to move much to kiss him, if you’d wanted to. You did want to, a little bit.

You were next in line now. Nate slid his hand around to rest on your hip instead. To anyone else, you probably looked like any other couple in love. You realized you didn’t know what you were even going to order, but Nate had that covered, just like he always did. The bartender slid you a glass of your favorite drink with a wink and handed Nate his beer.

You let Nate lead you to your table. They’d placed all of the tables of teammates near each other, and you couldn’t tell yet if that had been a good idea or a mistake. Already, as people were still filtering in, Avs players and their significant others flitted in between the tables, sliding in and out of seats that weren’t theirs. Nate immediately got roped into an argument between Andre, who was across the table from you, and Mikko, who was at the next table over. You rolled your eyes at them and grinned at an exasperated-looking Susanna over the rim of your glass.

Nate reached over and rested his hand on your thigh, squeezing once, before turning around again to continue arguing with Mikko. They were all talking so fast you couldn’t even begin to figure out what they were even bickering over. Nate left his hand there on your thigh, his thumb absently rubbing back and forth over the bare skin where your dress had ridden up some, even as the lights dimmed, the wedding party streamed in, and the speeches began.

You would admit that you were rather distracted throughout the speeches and Sam and Jacklyn’s first dance. Every little casual touch Nate gave you made you feel like you were spiraling. You could no longer tell what was an act for everyone else’s benefit and what was real. Had it ever been an act, or was this what Nate had wanted all along? You didn’t know which was better.

You’d finished your first drink and two glasses of wine by the time you ventured out on the dance floor. Nate followed you, though he wasn’t much for dancing. You lost track of the amount of time you spent on the dance floor with your friends, laughing and yelling the words to songs, all of you tipsy and carefree and happy. Nate never strayed far from your side the whole time. (Except for when “Friends in Low Places” came on, and he fled the dance floor.)

You collapsed in a chair at a table later that night, shoes kicked off. You were going to have to make sure you didn’t lose those. All around you, the night was winding down. Nate made his way over to you, a glass of water in his hand. He handed it to you without a word, though he did raise his eyebrows at your bare feet. You took the water gratefully, gulping some down before regarding Nate properly. He was hovering awkwardly in front of you, shifting his weight from foot to foot. You squinted up at him.

“Nathan, what did you do.” As you spoke, the song that had been playing faded out, and a new one started. You narrowed your eyes more. You recognized that song, an *NSYNC song that was nearly as old as you. Nate had drunkenly sung it to you once, years before, at a karaoke party at Gabe’s house. It had immediately become “your song.”

Nate held out his hand to you. “Dance with me?” He looked shy, and you weren’t sure you’d ever seen Nate shy in the years you’d been together.

You took Nate’s hand.

You were still barefoot, and the dance floor was nearly empty. Nate led you to the middle of it and pulled you close, free hand resting gently on your hip as he started to slow dance to “This I Promise You.” You smiled at him. In the dim lighting, you could tell he was blushing.

“You’re a sap, MacKinnon,” you told him, all fondness.

Nate’s nose bumped your ear when he leaned down to respond. “I miss you.”

You should’ve seen that coming. You moved your hand from Nate’s shoulder and placed your fingertips against his jaw. He leaned into the touch, eyes closed, like he wasn’t ready for your response.

“Me too,” you whispered. Nate’s eyes opened, searching your face. This was so not the time or place for this conversation. “I miss you, too, Nate.” You just hadn’t realized how much until this weekend.

Nate broke into a grin. His chin was still in your hand, and you guided his face down to yours so you could kiss him, something you’d been dying to do since he first showed up at your place, only a few days ago. You didn’t realize that until now, either.

You heard some wolf whistles and jeers from the players that hadn’t left yet. You were pretty sure you could hear EJ specifically.

“When we get married, none of them are invited,” Nate told you, deadpan. His hand left your hip, and you were pretty sure he was flipping his teammates off behind your back.

"Getting a little ahead of yourself there, aren’t ya, Nate?” you said with a laugh.

Nate leaned down for another kiss. “We’ll see,” he said against your lips. He wrapped his arms around your waist and lifted you, spinning you once. “We’ll see.”

Nate did end up carrying you back to the car that night, cutting off your complaints that your feet hurt. They didn’t really, not bad enough that you couldn’t actually make it to the car, but it was worth it for the way he kissed you before he shut the door.

#cait writes things #nathan mackinnon fic #nathan mackinnon imagine #colorado avalanche fic #hockey fic #hockey imagine #nhl fic #nhl imagine #nhl fanfiction

[junko-and-riri-domain]

warm embraces & sudden kisses | ot7

↬ ᴘᴀɪʀɪɴɢ: ot7 x reader ↬ ɢᴇɴʀᴇ: fluff | requested | drabbles/headcannons ↬ ᴡᴀʀɴɪɴɢs: none ↬ ʀᴇQᴜᴇꜱᴛᴇᴅ ʙʏ: anon ↬ ʀᴇQᴜᴇꜱᴛ ᴡᴀꜱ: “ENHA REACTION TO YOU KISSING THEM OUT OF NO WHERE OR JOW THE CUDDLE WITH YOU PLS AND THANK YOU 🙏” ↬ ᴀ/ɴ: 

since this is the 100th post on this blog I decided to do an ot7 one

simultaneously, this was a request so it worked out !!

anon said or but I decided to try & write both in here :$ so there’s kinda 2 mini scenarios for each member

also i wrote this on my phone in my notes while i was out today which is why everything’s lowercase :)

anon if you’d like me to rewrite this less as scenarios and more as bullet points just lmk!

Lee Heeseung

[a light’s on in the kitchen]

you wake up with the feeling of warmth no longer around you. looking around, you see that heeseung’s no longer in bed with you. your hand makes it way to your phone on your nightstand, 3:07 am greets your eyes and you hear faint sounds from outside the room. you get up with a yawn, the haze of sleepiness still on you as you make your way around the apartment the two of you share, a light’s on in the kitchen. he’s making ramen, you think to yourself. he stands tall by the stove, your footsteps are quiet as you hear him singing a song. when you get to him, your arms arm around his waist as he turns around to greet you, you jump up to give him a quick kiss, intending to meet his lips but because of how tall he is, your lips meet his cheek. he smiles, pulls you in closer to him, tilting up your chin but teases you by pressing a kiss to the top of your head.

[finally home]

you’re nestled up on the couch while a movie plays on the tv. today wasn’t a good day, to say the least. you woke up late which didn’t give you a chance to eat breakfast with heeseung, when you ordered lunch the fries were burnt and the food undercooked, and when you got home heeseung texted you to let you know that practice was running a little late which meant he wouldn’t get to have dinner with you. your eyes stayed settled on the tv until the sound of the apartment door greets your ears, bringing you out of that movie marathon haze you were trapped in. heeseung smiles as he sees you, makes his way to you, as he hands you a takeout bag.

“i bought some food on my way home, i’ll change and then we can eat, yeah?” he notices that you’re sad but doesn’t press you on about it. you nod, taking the bag from him. when he comes back, the two of you eat while a new movie is running. when you’ve finished all the food, his arm wraps around your shoulders and his head rests on top of yours.

“you ok?” he asks. his embrace is comforting and safe, similar to what it feels like when a blanket is draped over you just before you fall asleep.

“i am now that you’re finally home.”

rest of the boys under the cut !!

Park Jongseong / Jay

[flustered and red]

jay’s making dinner in the kitchen while you’re setting the table. you hear him chattering, more to himself than anything as he tries to make dinner the best that it can be. with how busy his schedule was and how much you’ve been swamped with your own work, the two of you haven’t had much time for each other. so, the you both having a free day today was something you were definitely going to take full advantage of. after setting the table, you head into the kitchen to see him slicing up lettuce for a last minute salad. you let out a smile as you see him make a honey based dressing and decided to surprise him by hugging him from behind. usually, he does it to you. despite his confident appearance and composure, you can already tell that he’s getting all flustered and red.

“Yah, who said you can sneak up on me like that!” he says, but makes no effort to pull away. You move so that you’re in front of him,

“If that’s how you react when I hug, how will you react when I do this?” Going on your tiptoes, your arms make their way around his neck as you feel the softness of his lips on yours. Guess honey was good as moisturizer…

[i built us a house]

jay was sitting in his gaming chair, his gaming set up in its own room while you were in the living room doing your own thing. while you were typing away on your laptop you hear your name being called, causing you to look up.

“i wanna show you something,” he said.

“i’m busy, hon,” you reply.

“real quick, i promise.” you sigh, knowing damn well jay wasn’t going to leave you alone until you went with him. so, following him into his game room he sat on his chair.

“why am i here?” you asked. he patted his lap, motioning for you to sit on him. as you did, one of his hands moves your hair to the other side while an arm stays settled on you. you can feel his breath on your neck, the butterflies in your stomach now doing somersaults.

“i built us a house.” your eyes look at the screen to see it on his minecraft server as his character walks around. you smile, turn your head so you’re looking at him,

“this is our house?”

“one day i’ll make it happen in real life.” despite the large promise, deep down you knew jay was going to find some way to make it a reality.

Sim Jaeyun / Jake

[just a little more]

you were on the living room couch, layla’s head on your lap while you pet her. as you do, you’re typing on your phone with your free hand. jake makes his presence known by sitting next to you, his head popping into your line of sight. you set your phone aside, smiling as you pat his hair. he frowns,

“you’ve been giving layla your attention all day, what about me?”

“layla’s cuter than you,” you reply with a teasing smile. he frowns, sighing slightly as he looks at the sight of all your attention on layla. jake heads to your room, glad that you loved layla as much as he did but wished you loved him just a little more. you head to the room, seeing jake seated by the edge of the bed, you settled yourself so that you were sitting on his lap, your legs around his waist.

“i want your attention too.”

“someone’s jealous.”

“naur, i’m not jealous,” he says, looking away. you lean forwards, pressing a kiss to his lips that lingers on for a few seconds longer than it should.

“yaur, ya are,” you tease. he smiles, kisses you again as his grip on you tighten slightly,

“it got you here, didn’t it?”

[a pair of fuzzy socks]

you’re half asleep when you feel warmth to your feet and suddenly a pair of fuzzy socks have been placed over them. you say nothing, wanting to go back to sleep more than anything. a few seconds later, you feel a dip on the bed, two actually, and you’re aware of both jake and layla around you. jake lifts up your head gently. you hear him whisper,

“layla, don’t wake up your mother,” and the feeling brings tingles to your heart, fireworks spreading throughout your body. he snuggles closer to you, intertwining his legs with yours as he traces random patterns on your back just before falling asleep.

Park Sunghoon

[cold]

for as long as he could remember, park sunghoon has lived life cold. on the ice he was cold. towards people he acted cold. you entering his life was like the sun rising after a freezing winter night. you were the heat that rid himself of the icicles stuck to his cold exterior. you melted the snowflakes of winter and turned them into roses of spring. you were the warmth he never knew he was missing. he was in your apartment, washing the dishes after you made lunch. you headed to him placing your hand on his arm. he looked over to you, smiling as you hugged his side. you leaned up as you kissed him, he couldn’t hold back his small laugh. as he felt your lips on his, heat rose to his cheeks. but despite the shyness in him about to take over, he fights it, leaning into you and kissing you once more.

[cold hands]

sunghoon has always had cold hands. and whenever he cuddled with you, he made sure that you knew it. the two of you were joking, running around the apartment when you and sunghoon both ended up on the bed. a glint appeared in his eyes, a plan forming in his head. the tips of his fingers met your stomach as you started bursting out in laugher.

“HOON WHY DO YOU HAVE COLD HANDS,” you yelled as you tried to fight him off. he smiled, vampire teeth showing in all their glory as he settled next to you in bed. his hand rested on your stomach as he brought you to him, his cold feet pressing to yours.

“you’re my personal heater,” he said, pulling you closer to him.

Kim Sunoo

[a little too close]

sunoo has always been clingy around you. some days, he’ll grab your hand out of nowhere and start fiddling with your fingers. at the most random times, he’ll play with your hair and think about how to style it. being in sunoo’s embrace is something that you’ve always welcomed. you were sort of the opposite, accepting and welcoming his touch but never really initiating it. until, today that is. you noticed someone talking to sunoo getting a little too close to him. you didn’t think much of it knowing how friendly sunoo was towards people and how others naturally gravitated to him. but, you couldn’t help yourself when you made your way to them and held onto sunoo’s hand, practically staring down the other person. sunoo smiled, intertwining your hands together while bringing you into the conversation. unsurprisingly, the outsider moved closer and without even thinking, you kissed sunoo’s cheek. his eyes slightly got wide as he looked at you, but it was an action he was glad for. in return, he kissed your cheek with a smile and couldn’t stop talking about it for the rest of the day.

[a tough day]

you were having somewhat of a tough day, having cramps, on and off headaches, and an annoying ringing in your ears that you just couldn’t get rid of. sunoo came home to find you layed on the couch, his heart breaking at the sight. he got some things and brought it to the living room,

“what are you doing?” you asked.

“spa day!” he replied excitedly. he rubbed lotion on your hands, placed cucumbers on top of your eyes, and combed out your hair. the night came to an end with you and sunoo laying on the couch together, him patting in the face mask then rubbing soothing circles on your stomach. with sunoo came a bubble of warmth you never wanted to leave.

Yang Jungwon

[make me]

jungwon’s in a playful mood today and with that playful mood comes teasing you. you’re in the living room where he decided to grab your sketchbook and hold it up above your head.

“won, give it back!” you exclaimed in annoyance, glaring at him. he has the audacity to look amused and he tells you,

“make me.” he’s always found joy in teasing you for your height and right now was no different. a plan forms in your head as you take some steps backwards. as you practically run to him, his eyes widen with fear as he’s forced to let go of your sketchbook to catch you and you end up latched onto him like a koala. you kiss him, in those few seconds the entire world stops and it’s as if no one but him exists. the kiss lingers on a second or two longer than you intended as jungwon’s grip on you tightens so that you don’t fall. on his face you see him smiling and those dimples that you’ve always loved appear. jungwon was never good at hiding his emotions, his love for you no different. you close your eyes as he leans down, you expect a kiss returned but instead, he kisses the top of your head. lightly flicking your forehead gently,

“that’s what you get for being short,” he says.

[i'm here]

with all his responsibilities and the things jungwon needs to take care of at such a young age, coming home to you is the one constant in his life. to him, the second he’s able to wrap his arms around you, revel in the scent of your shampoo, and gets to hold you, everything is just complete. at 1:06 am, he came home. it was late, he was exhausted and all he wanted to do was sleep. he headed into the room you two shared, only to see you still awake.

“you’re up?” he asked.

“no, i’m asleep,” you reply sarcastically. he sighs, setting into bed next to you, “someone’s tired,” you said.

“i want cuddles,” he mutters unable to hide his need for your affection. you shift and his head lays on your shoulder. you run your hand through his hair while you kiss the top of his head,

“i’m here.”

Nishimura Riki / Ni-ki

[bungeo to his ppang]

more than anything, ni-ki liked to be by your side. whether it was while he was watching something on his phone, showing you a new dance routine, or asking you to dye his hair, as long as you were just with him, he was happy. sleeping is something that ni-ki has always enjoyed, how could he not when it grants him a few moments of peace before a busy day? the two of you are in the car, he rests his head on your shoulders. unlike normal, he doesn’t fall asleep this time. he pretends to, he closes his eyes, stays still while enjoying your warmth, but he’s not actually asleep. you didn’t seem to notice, he feels you messing with his hair a bit, something he’s never minded as long as it was with you. he hears you talking about how cute he is, practically fangirling over him. he feels you kiss the top of his head lightly,

“sleep well, ni-kitty,” he hears you whisper. he doesn’t move, doesn’t show any sign that he’s affected by your sudden actions of love. but deep down, he feels a happiness around you that’s greater than how he feels when he’s on stage. when he performs he enjoys the thousands of eyes that watch him but all he thinks about are how your eyes look at him with adoration and pride. it was in this moment that he knew, you were the bungeo to his ppang.

[take a break]

after dinner, you’re sitting on the floor of the table in front of the tv, trying to get some work done. suddenly, you feel a weight on your lap. you look down to see ni-ki’s head on your lap, his eyes closed but he’s clearly still awake.

“yah, get off,” you said, slightly lifting up your leg.

“no.” you roll your eyes, deciding not to pay attention to him as you go back to sleep our work. it seems that ni-ki had other plans as he took your one of your hand and starting fiddling with it.

“ni-ki, i’m busy.”

“take a break,” he said. you look down at ni-ki… how could you refuse? you put away your things, shifting so that your full attention was now on him. he smiled up at you, fiddling with the edge of your clothes while saying the most random things that made you laugh.

↬ ᴀ/ɴ pt. 2:

if anyone’s read up to this point pls lmk how it was, i’m not really good with ot7 scenarios typa things 😭

❦ written by riri @enhykkul | blog masterlist

requests are currently open! rules can be found here | anon emojis

#enhypen imagines #enhypen fluff #enhypen headcanons #enhypen drabbles #enhypen x reader #enhypen reactions #lee heeseung imagines #park jongseong imagines #park jay imagines #sim jaeyun imagines #sim jake imagines #park sunghoon imagines #kim sunoo imagines #yang jungwon imagines #nishimura riki imagines #lee heeseung x reader #park jongseong x reader #park jay x reader #sim jaeyun x reader #sim jake x reader #park sunghoon x reader #kim sunoo x reader #yang jungwon x reader #nishimura riki x reader