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#helping him get his happy ending and being on team raphael basically is helping Raphael get one over his dad really

akesdraws-blog · 1 year

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🎆Showing Traditions🎆

Here where I live, the day of "Los Reyes Magos" is close, which is celebrated on January 6, so far I understand that it is celebrated in a large part of Latin America.

So the idea came to my mind of how they would receive this celebration with the whole turtle team?

💜

Donatello always open to new things to learn.

The moment you mentioned the name of the holiday I research the basics, but it was better to hear from your own experience.

How it originated was probably the most interesting for the knowledge-hungry genius.

You left it for a few seconds and when you came back, even you knew the meaning of the gifts that the wise men gave to the baby Jesus.

💙

Leonardo was the one who helped you when they set up the "nativity scene" in your home, and while they were doing it you told Leo the story.

I even treat one of the figures with absolute care. (One allowed mikey to play any of the pieces).

It ended up being a large decoration of at least two floors, you couldn't stop the leader's enthusiasm when decorating it.

🧡

Mikey loved cooking the traditional “Rosca de Reyes”.

When you told him about that dessert, he was intrigued, even more by the tradition of hiding small figures inside without anyone knowing their location.

He certainly got down to business. (It goes without saying that the kitchen was filled with flour.)

♥️

Raphael felt curious when you prepared the "atole" which was a drink made from corn dough.

Although the consistency was somewhat viscous and Raph assured that it was not to be consumed, the result surprised him.

He couldn't understand how he could taste so sweet, and even though he burned his lips a few times he couldn't stop drinking that sweet drink.

The best thing was when you served it in a huge clay cup, it didn't burn your hand but the drink stayed hot.

🍵

Splinter enjoys the stories you had to tell while he watched the illuminated "nativity."

He undoubtedly praised the decoration work that you and Leonardo had done.

His heart warmed with happiness to see how his children could experience new traditions thanks to your new closeness to them.

🏵️🏒

April and CaseyApril I quite enjoy this new holiday.

She and Raph were fighting over having that hot drink.

Casey was browsing the internet and managed to find some movies inspired by said party.

With donnie's help they were able to project it in the room while everyone gathered with a hot cup of atole to enjoy the show.

🎥

Vern

When you told him about the celebration he felt inspired for a new party.

Although you told him that it was something that was done in the family, that did not limit him.

He rented the entire top floor of a hotel and some officers stayed downstairs so that no unauthorized person could gain access.

He hired actors to dress up as the Three Kings, and even tried to bring some camels for a show (Boss Vincent clearly didn't allow it)

It was one of his most luxurious and enormous parties, although he finished it early for the guests, and once they left he continued it together with the rest of the team, so the turtles could enjoy the festivities in peace.

✨🌠

Once the time came for the "Rosca de Reyes" to be broken, it was the moment of more laughter and fights.Splinter was the first to cut her down for being the head of the family. (I don't take out a doll)

Then they followed the following order:

°Leonardo - Had the first doll

° Donnie-I didn't get a doll (He knew where they were hidden)

°Mikey - He had the second doll (He tried to hide it in his mouth / Splinter discovered it)

°Raph - I don't get a doll

°Casey - Had the third dummy

°April - I don't take out a doll (Actually, I take out but he hid it in Vern's piece)

° Vern- I take out the rest of the dolls (he thought that's how he won or something similar)

Those who take out dolls take the great tamalero commitment. 😋

🌠🎆🌠🎆🌠🎆🌠🎆🌠🎆🌠🎆🌠🎆🌠

And do you have any tradition that you carry out in your country or with your family? ✨

@post-apocalyptic-daydream . @turtle-babe83 . @turtlesmakemehappy . @dilucsflame33 . @thelaundrybitch . @scholastic-dragon . @leosgirl82 . @tmnt-tychou

#tmnt 2016 #tmnt bayverse #tmnt 2014 #reyes magos #tmnt fandom #bayverse leo #bayverse donnie #bayverse raph #bayverse mikey #tmnt leonardo #tmnt raphael #tmnt donatello #tmnt michelangelo #celebration

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thecomfortable · 2 years

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A while ago I posted an AU of teenage mutant ninja turtles. It's been a while and the idea has gone through MANY changes.

Let's blast through it.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Heroes in a Half-Shell

Basic Story

In the beginning Splinter, Hamato Yoshi, and Shredder, Oroku Saki, were like brothers (similar to 2012). The difference is that Splinter was framed for the death of the previous Clan leader and had to flee from Japan to New York, where he worked as a self-defense teacher.

One day, whilst out buying pet turtles for his self-defense class, he stumbled across an ongoing confrontation in the underground subway. Going against his better judgement Hamato tried to deescalate the situation only to be hit by a glowing canister. It broke on impact and he, and the little turtles, mutated.

They were trained to be ninjas like their father. However, as most of them end up saying: Splinter was more of a Ninja Master than an actual father-figure.

Leonardo was trained to be the leader, Splinter's favourite student. This unfortunately meant he was isolated from his brothers on the basis of 'being a leader, not a brother.' Due to this, Leo has a hard time connecting with his brothers. He's trying his best, but it'll take a while. LORE CHANGE: In a rebellious act, Leo tries to understand and support each of his brothers because he is awesome and I said so.

Raphael was trained to be the Tank, but no matter how hard he tried, Splinter always compared him to not only Leo, but Shredder. His anger and brutal fighting style reminded Splinter of his former friend and instead of showing Raph the right path, he treated him as if he could never change.

Mike was trained to be the Scout, the fastest member on the team. Unfortunately this ball of energy has a terrible attention span which was something Splinter never had to deal with. In the end, he was babied like nothing else, represented as "slow" and "stupid" by his own father, but that was never said directly to his face of course.

Donnie was trained to be the tactician, the planner, the smart guy. So why did he get the boot from Splinter? Why he was neurodivergent of course. He was incapable of seeing sarcasm, he was overly blunt and couldn't understand why certain things made his siblings upset. His brothers never blamed him for it, but Splinter did and just like Raph, he was ostracised.

15 years after they were first mutated, a 45 year old scientist named April O'Neil ran into these mutant turtles while trying to capture some runaway Mousers. She worked as an assistant for the famous "Baxter Stockman" (as she was depicted in the very first issue of tmnt). Instead of being shocked by their appearance, she offered to help them find answers surrounding how they came to be.

When they returned to the sewers they realised something was wrong. Their home was wrecked completely and Splinter was long gone. Shredder had followed April into the sewers after some tip off's from multiple sources and had taken out Splinter while the turtles were gone. Now they need to stop Shredder from doing anymore harm to the city and find out more about this mutagen while they're at it.

This is where I will leave it for now.

A few small details

Leonardo (he/him)

Main Facts:

Nicknames: Leo, Blue (Karai), Chief, Boss, Fearless (Rare)

Strengths: Agility and Flexibility.

Species: Soft shell turtle

Role: Leader

Age: 15

Nationality: American

Ethnicity (Human DNA): Japanese

Sexuality: Heterosexual

Second shortest member

Oldest member

Double-jointed in multiple places

A history buff. He knows everything there is to know about the Roman Empire and will go on for hours about it

Likes dogs, likes hugging Casey's whenever they visit

Has bad insomnia

Legitmately watches animes for the plot

Enjoys Mike's company, makes him feel happy but also guilty, feeling as though he doesn't deserve this treatment

Opens up to Raph, both through arguments and casual conversation.

Argues with Donnie a lot over tactics and plans although he gives up after a while (tho they are very close for some reason)

Cannot watch historically inaccurate movies, he will get very frustrated

Literature buff and he has read ALL of War and Peace. No I'm not joking.

Spent ages learning about electrical engineering so Donnie had someone to talk to

Can sing

Listens to Depeche Mode and The Cure

Good at defusing tense situations

Mike (he/they)

Main facts:

Nicknames: Mike, Mickey D (Donnie), Mikey (Renette)

Strengths: Speed and Aim.

Species: Spotted turtle

Role: Scout

Age: 15

Nationality: American

Ethnicity (Human DNA): Japanese

Sexuality: Pansexual

Shortest member

Youngest member

Has ADHD

Really good at drawing

Sees Leo as an idol

Isn't actually dumb, has got an average intelligence but a short attention span

Knows more first aid and health science than even Donnie

Has yellow spots all over his body and shell (species physical traits)

Can speak German for some reason

Gets along well with everyone

Makes the most sex jokes out of all his brothers

Scared of bears because of a nature documentary he watched when he was four

Read 'Dipper goes to Tacobell' by accident

Good at dancing

Donatello (he/him)

Main facts:

Nicknames: Don, Donnie, The Don (Rare), D, Nerd (Raph, Casey)

Strengths: Defence and Tactics.

Species: Tortoise

Role: Tactician, Defence

Age: 15

Nationality: American

Ethnicity (Human DNA): Japanese

Sexuality: Homosexual

Second tallest member

Second youngest member

Enjoys watching April work

On the Autism spectrum (not too severe, but enough to make an impact on his demeanour).

Doesn't like being touched

Doesn't laugh much, sounds like a kettle when he does

Likes French language, can't speak it

Says he likes clever humour but still laughs at dick jokes

Uses scientific terminology

Has a fear of seeing his own blood, makes him feel sick

Gets along well with Raph and Mike

Tends to argue a lot with Leo (tho they are very close for some reason)

Finds it hard to adapt to scenarios that differ from his initial plans

Rarely opens up to anyone

Read the encyclopaedia for fun on multiple occasions

Terrible at gauging other people's emotions

Ends up liking Casey but knows nothing will happen

Can completely ruin someone's social life in a matter of seconds.

Is most likely to take a life for the sake of a mission

Raphael (he/they)

Main facts:

Nicknames: Raph, Red, Tank (Rare), Scar (Casey)

Strengths: Offence and Brute force.

Species: Snapping turtle

Role: Tank, Main offence

Age: 15

Nationality: American

Ethnicity (Human DNA): Japanese

Sexuality: Pansexual, Asexual

Tallest member

Second oldest member

Likes romcoms

Has a scar on the right side of his face. He burnt himself while messing around with the oven.

Has a fear of fire

Gets along well with all his brothers

Opens up to Leo more than with the others, usually through an arguement

Skilled in the art of passive aggressive insults

Can cook

Has a very prominent beak that can break bones if he bites down

Will grow to be a lot taller than everyone else (around the same height as spike)

Was the first member to kill someone

Likes Mona but won't admit it

Had a bad romantic experience with a human girl (who betrayed him the minute she found he was a mutant) and now dislikes humans.

Is surprisingly more understanding than his brothers

Likes Madonna

April O'Neil (she/her)

Main facts:

Nicknames: Neil, Red, Ginger

Strengths: Tactics, Analysis, First Aid

Role: Science guy, place to crash at, back-up

Age: 45

Nationality: American

Ethnicity: Scottish, Danish

Sexuality: Aroace

Her ancestry is Scottish and Danish but everyone calls her ginger

Straightens her hair for work and when she doesn't she ends up looking like Merida from Brave.

She is essentially the turtle's big sister

She's Casey's neighbour and acts as his stand in parental figure while his parents are over in England

She has very good aim with guns and other long range weapons, but is absolutely shit at physical combat.

Plays online multiplayer games, her tag is "sexlord420"

Her best friends are Irma and Edward

Can speak French and Spanish

Nearly got married before meeting the turtles, things ended up going really badly for both parties and they went their separate ways.

She has difficulty forming romantic connections. She realised she had become aromantic from her past relationship shortly after it had ended.

Likes Gin and Tonic

Scared of the ocean

Is in a Nerd group with Irma, Edward, Dr Rockwell and Baxter.

Went to Oxford with the same nerd group.

Is a major in Biology.

Casey Jones (he/him)

Main facts:

Nicknames: Case, CJ, Jock (Donnie), Jones

Strengths: Offence, agility and Brute Force

Role: 2nd - more violent - Tank, Back-up

Age: 16

Nationality: Mexican

Ethnicity: Hispanic, African American

Sexuality: Bisexual

He goes to juvenile detention on a regular basis

Can speak French and Spanish

He's the dumb friend who still doesn't know his times tables

He has stubble and gets away with sneaking into bars

Doesn't have a licence but still drives

Plays Hockey

Dresses like terminator

Parents left him to pay for everything and barely check in to see how he's doing

Is actually really good at math

Scared of heights

Like Donnie, he has and will take a life for the sake of a mission

Karai Osaki (she/they)

Main facts:

Nicknames: Spice (Leo)

Strengths: Stealth, Offence

Role: Spy (turtles), Main Tank (Shredder), 3rd Tank (turtles)

Age: 16

Nationality: Japanese

Ethnicity: Japanese

Sexuality: Unsure

She was forced to take on the role of Shredder's son, even though she was biologically born a girl

They hate him for that

Gets embarrassed when she's complemented on her appearance.

About as intimidating as their father

Knows multiple sign languages

She doesn't talk when in front of other clans

Can easily beat the shit out of the turtles

Got one hell of a death stare

Enjoys classical music

Has never played videogames before

Scared of their father

Will only let Leo refer to her as a woman

Other facts

The turtles can speak fluent Japanese

Shredder is completely apathetic to everything and everyone, he's basically a sociopath who never went to therapy

Shinigami is Shredder's 2nd in command

Bebop and Rocksteady aren't dumb, just oblivious

Rocksteady is German

Baxter Stockman is Sri Lankan and was an engineering student

Stockman is not so much evil, more obsessed with mutagen and what he can do with it

He redeems himself eventually, after April convinces him to give it up.

Irma and Edward are married and April was the maid of honour.

Irma was an art major, Edward was a chemistry major and Dr Rockwell was a Psychological major.

Irma is also Casey's Art teacher and is probably the only teacher he likes.

Both April and Edward work for Baxter

Leo has a rivalry with Alopex (They are besties your honour)

Both Mike and Raph have gamed with their favourite online friend "sexlord420"

They freaked out when April told them she was "sexlord420"

Karai and Leo end up together. It only works because Karai had been so heavily damaged by Shinigami and Shredder that Leo's caring personality is a loving, saving grace that helps her overlook the fact that they are completely different species

The turtles have accepted the fact that they can't beat Shredder, hence Leo saying the phrase "we don't care about winning, all we care about is protecting this city"

The turtles swear and make sex jokes because they're hormonal teenage boys

Donnie forced his brothers to watch Rupauls Drag Race and now they reference almost daily.

Leo and Mike like singing Vocaloid songs though only Mike will admit it.

The turtles aren't common box turtles like in the other shows, since Splinter went to a back alley petshop he ended up getting completely different types

Concept art and stuff

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ducknotinarow · 7 months

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07 Rasey 🍷💖

| send 🍷💖for my muse to drunkenly flirt with yours

Raphael felt so nice and warm, a pleasant cozy feeling took over him. Good for that seeing how fucking cold it was in central park. Even with him wearing a few jackets a scarf and the hat Casey got him years ago. He always sort of refused using anything other then that hat. As he lost count of how many beers he had in his system He'd always been a heavy drinker maybe shouldn't but he took pride in it when it came to any games he get Mikey in on to play with him. So it took a good few to get him in this state. Which felt nice, he could hear the music during the half time of the game. Slightly humming along with it. A collective cheer from the crowd working with the faintly buzzing over the feed of 'we will rock you' He swears the cheering was infectious! Dumb little hockey mask covering his face because Casey claimed it made them look cool to have them on. But also meant it worked to hide Raphael.

Super Slam hockey was one of Casey's favorite events to be held every year basically just hockey so of course he loved it but they had ramps on the ice so they could slam into other players or try and use them to get around. It really was fun to watch but twice as exciting to the drunk turtle so was everyone singing along to the song playing during the half time.

"We will, We will Rock you!" Raph soon joins on in with everyone else cheering on the top of his lungs as he throw in his own voice among the others. Throwing up his arms into the air as she stood up to really just get into it before falling back beside Casey whose shoulder he bumped a little. Casey offering to check on him to which Raph only slumped back in his seat and gave them a thumps up as he continued to sing along to the song. Quirking his beak when the music soon faded out. "hey where's the tunes?"

Head lifting up slightly to look only to see the game was starting back up he suddenly sits forward new about throwing himself forward as the wall at least catches him and stops him from falling flat on his face. "Yeah kick some ass!"

The momentum of the first half hadn't died down the crowd was roaring out in their own cheers. Even Casey besides him who moved to stand up, catching Raph's attention to turn and watch them. No so much look, watch. As Casey pushed his own mask up on to head, hand to his mouth as he cheered out loudly. Raphael found himself far more focused on them now. As the crowd all faded into white noise to him instead. Elbow resting to the edge of the wall, as he held his cheek in the palm of his hand. Mask hiding the way his eye were fixated on Casey in a soft stare, how his smile was relaxed just simply admiring the man beside him as they hollered and cheered on the top of their lungs. Wouldn't be surprised if Casey lost his voice the next day then again Casey was always pretty loud.

Somewhere between half time and him admiring Casey the game came to an end. Time just frozen and speed up in the blink as Raph turned to look back at the ice seeing them clearly off the ramps. Based on the happy tones around them their team seemed to win in the end. Feeling Casey pat his shell Raph looks as just slightly picks up on them saying they should go now. Raph just nods his head taking first chance he has to hold on to Casey as he feels himself stumble the moment he stands. Luckily Casey stable enough to help him even if he hears them laugh and tease Raph for not being able to handle his drink. Raphael just slightly growls under his breath as he hooks an arm around Casey's to better hold on to them. To which he sure he hears Casey tease how scary Raph was when he growled before laughing more. Letting his face rest in against Casey's arm decided he was going to tune them out from being a jerk and instead just rest against their side even if it meant Casey had to walk for the both them at this point.

"What I miss?" Raphael asks "I zoned out after the game started back up." He admits so he listened to the 'Casey recap of the game that soon followed. Trying his best not to pass out with each step they took towards Casey's bike. But he can't help it Casey voice was so soothing right now. Blame it on the alcohol but damn he loved that husky tone of theirs. Casey moved to help Raph stand up to his feet as he continued to talk before sitting down first to get his bike going. Nearly looking disappointed when Raph said he missed the best half of the game cause he got wasted. "nah weren' that. Was ta busy starin' at ya." He admits not missing a beat or the way Casey stopped to look at him. "What ya hot? how 'm not meant to just stare and let 'hat make my mind melt?"

Moving to rest over the front of Casey bike pulling off his own mask since they were alone now so he could better look at them. "Side ya real cute when ya get all into a game." He adds in "But wanna know what else I 'hink ya are Case?" He waits for them to answer someone was clearly eating up his drunken turtles current state. " 'hat ya pretty." he notes the expression on Casey face with that confession as he reaches over to twirl some strands of their hair around in his fingers. "prettest 'hing I evea seen. 'Ike ya hair all long an' how it flows in the air when ya ride on yous bike. How it frames ya face so well, oh an' 'em damn fucking gorgeous eyes of yas? Man I wanna swim in those deep blues Case. Wanna just stare at 'em forever." He continues to ramble on uncaring in the moment yeah the boy was drunk. Which Casey was happy to point out. "Ya but I wanna be drunk on you." Raph only retorted with. "Evea 'hink 'bout how ya got pretty blue eyes? an' I got green ones? er one. Bitch took the other one." He grumbles but forgets it when he looks back at Casey. "An' how's i 'ike the ocean? Cause there green in the ocean? an' ya 'ik green most?" If Casey was following this logic at all it was amazing in it's self because Raphael had no point to this ramble. As he just moves in closer, slightly resting against the front of Casey's bike.

"I got a crazy idea Casey, hows 'bout yous an' me just hop on ya bike see ya? an' drive to fuck knows where. Jus' you an' me run away and get married."

Raphael watches how Casey smile and how they point out they already sort of are. And got a kid who'll be back home tomorrow. In his drunken state though Raphael seemed to forget some details letting his mouth hang open from the shock. "Seriously?! Damn I scored hard." he thinks for a moment before smirking and leaning in closer stealing a sloppy kisses from Casey's mouth, well more their chin since he missed. "Fine 'hen hows 'bout I give ya more kids instead."

#muse| hamato raphael #madamkezzie #aflockoffeathers #[ if you jumped off a bridge its only cause i jumped first -aflockoffeathers]#[07 verse]#drunk flirting meme #tw: alcohol mentioned #tw: raph being gay #(( XD look I know 03 might fit better for the hockey thing but I already did 03s uwu sides i think its nice them still going to this #together cause casey introduced it to raph ;3;))

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spencers-renaissance · 3 years

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A Chronicle of Loss

Summary: 5 people Spencer Reid lost and 1 person he gained. A look at the traumas Spencer faces over the series, and giving him the happy ending he deserves.

Tags: grief, loss, abandonment issues, insecurity, depression, hurt/comfort, angst with a happy ending, getting together, ‘didn’t know they were dating’, protective derek, autistic spencer

TW: self-harm, drug addiction, grief

Pairing: Derek Morgan x Spencer Reid

Word Count: 3.6k

Masterlist // Read on AO3

The Inescapable Unravelling (<)

1. William

Spencer’s only ten years old when he watches his father pack his bags in his parents’ bedroom, watches as he smiles sadly at the sorry sight of him and his mother begging him not to leave, only to ignore their pleas and walk out the door. He remembers the anxiety written on his mother’s face, the shame in her eyes at being left in such a cruel way, the uncertainty as to whether they’d cope without William like it’s branded onto his skin, an egregious mark he can’t ignore.

Just like that, he became the man of the house. He became the voice of reason, the sensible one, the person dealing with Diana’s episodes, all while balancing his school work in a desperate attempt to live a different life to the one he existed in as a child.

He knows it wasn’t solely Diana, or Riley Jenkins, or any average marital issue that caused him to leave, he knows it was partly that William simply didn’t know how to handle an autistic child prodigy. He had a genius son who struggled with communication, had no friends, and refused to engage in any of the bonding activities he came up with. In the end, Spencer being different only compounded his desire to leave and, eventually, he stopped suppressing it and gave in.

He’d never blame his mother, but her confusion in her episodes often sent him flying down half a flight of steps or clutching a stinging cheek or banging his head on a door frame. She called him clumsy and he didn’t correct her. She called him ‘crash’ and he accepted the nickname. Without William there, he was completely and utterly alone, left to deal with the grief of losing a father and a schizophrenic mother who struggled to look after herself, let alone him.

He still thinks about it all these years later. He thinks about what his father said to Diana when he left: “you refuse to take care of yourself.” He reflects on the fact that he was well aware Diana wouldn’t be able to take care of him, that he would be left to fend for himself, that a 10 year old can’t provide adequate mental health support no matter how hard he tries, and he still left. He thinks about what that meant, how little his father actually cared for him.

He still thinks about it, and he still cries. His first encounter with grief, and he was only 10 years old.

2. Innocence

Spencer had joined the BAU at 22: three PhDs under his belt and a lifetime of expectation on his shoulders, but somehow he’d managed to remain the most innocent member of the team throughout the first few years of his job. Until Tobias Hankel had taken it and completely obliterated any shreds of naivete he had left.

Of course, he knew evil. He’d even experienced it first-hand, he’d been viciously bullied growing up and he’d encountered his fair share of violent, deranged serial killers, but Tobias -- or, more accurately, Charles and Raphael -- introduced him to evil on a completely new scale. The pain and fear that had tormented him in that cabin lived in a secluded, festering part of his psyche, reproducing at a terrifying rate in his memory, never resting, never quieting, unless dilaudid was streaming through his veins.

His innocence was gone; there was only darkness, loneliness, corruption, and he was grieving for something he’d never get back. His life was now separated into two distinctly different eras, marked only by his kidnapping, by the cruel torture he’d been subjected to.

Along with his innocence, he’d lost his relationships, he’d lost the family he’d found and loved so dearly. Nobody tried to help him escape the clutches of his PTSD or addiction, he felt like he was drowning right in front of his friends while they talked and laughed among themselves, muffling his desperate cries for help, and the frustration and abandonment joined the pain and fear in their festering corner of his mind.

He eventually gets clean, he eventually recovers. But he’s never the same. He’s forever tainted by the actions of one man -- a man he struggled to blame -- and he can’t help but mourn the life he had before Tobias, the optimistic, brightly coloured world-view he used to hold before it was ripped up, stamped on, and burned to ashes right before his eyes.

3. Gideon

Gideon leaves. Gideon leaves and the blow is almost as crushing as it was when he was ten. His mentor, his father figure, his friend abandons him with no warning, no goodbye. It hurts that he didn’t think Spencer worthy of anything more than a useless fucking letter that he left for him in a cabin because he knew that Spencer loved him enough to drive out there and find it; he knew that Gideon was much more special to Spencer than he ever was to him.

This pain feels almost worse because he’s surrounded by people feeling the same way, if to a less extreme extent. He finds himself comparing himself to Hotch, Derek, the whole team: it makes him feel as though he’s overreacting when even Penelope, arguably the most emotive member of the BAU, seems back on her feet within a few days and Spencer still feels as though he’s been hollowed out and all his insides replaced with the smouldering ashes of grief filling him up, weighing heavy in his stomach, climbing up his throat and choking him.

He drags his feet, he doesn’t sleep, he drinks coffee, he runs on auto-pilot. Others notice, of course they do, but there’s nothing any of them can say to make it better, not even Hotch when he’s pulled into his office and sternly told that he needs to open up. Spencer just looks at him with empty, exhausted eyes and shrugs. Weeks ago, he would’ve cried but there aren’t anymore tears to cry, he’s reached a truce with himself. He isn’t happy but he isn’t crushingly depressed anymore: he feels nothing, an abyss of grey matter circling around inside him as he struggles to perform basic functions.

“It’ll get better, kid,” Derek says seriously one day when he sits down at his desk, dullness settled deep in his eyes and numbness deep in his veins. It doesn’t feel like it.

Rossi joins the team and he’s nothing but cold towards Spencer and the rejection only adds insult to injury, and nobody seems to care. His stomach hurts all the time and he’s losing weight again, he knows, but he can’t seem to put any effort into anything at all, least of all trying to be happy, trying to look after himself.

He’s lost his protector and he’s replaced by another person who sees him as an intentional but irritating robot to be used and discarded, not thought of again until another geographical profile is required, or an obscure fact would help the investigation. The agony of existence for almost a year after Gideon’s disappearance feels almost too much to bear, even if Rossi does warm up to him, even if he does eventually begin to heal and forgive. It’s the first time grief almost kills him, and he isn’t even mourning the dead.

4. Emily

Emily’s death tears him apart. For the first time since the year after Hankel, he considers many things. He buys dilaudid and fiddles with the bottle every evening, torn between the sweet relief he knows would be guaranteed the second it’s flooding his bloodstream and the torment of knowing it was Emily who helped him get clean the first time, how disappointed she’d be if she knew he was throwing away all those hours she put in, disregarding the belief she had in him.

He holds a razor over the top of his thighs and slashes as deep as he can bear, daydreams about burying the blade deep enough to slice open his femoral artery and give up, embrace the darkness that’s been living inside him for years anyway. But he can’t stand the grief it would bring JJ, losing another sibling to suicide, even if he isn’t blood related. He doesn’t want to hurt anyone but himself, but it’s so cripplingly tempting and the frustration at not being able to give in to any of his darker fantasies has him tearing his heart out.

Instead he cries, sobs, weeps, over the death of his best friend, shouts in anger at the unfairness of Emily’s life being taken by a dirty criminal while he gets to live as she’s six feet under, dark and cold in the ground. Images of her beautiful face he loved so much rotting away, turning into something grotesque and mangled roam around in his brain and he berates himself relentlessly for not appreciating her wide grin and teasing eyes more, hates himself for not appreciating every single moment with her that he could.

And when she miraculously rises from the dead, he can’t even appreciate it because he feels as though he’s lost another friend. JJ, the one person he tried every day to live for, pictured in his mind every time he considered ending everything, had deceived him, had held him while he cried, held a cool washcloth to his forehead after he threw up from the force of his crying and the extremity of his grief, had watched him writhe in agony, all while having the power to stop it and doing nothing.

The betrayal dizzies him: he doesn’t know who he can trust and the shock of Emily’s return leaves him reeling. He’s cold to the people he loves, and he can’t rejoice in Emily’s return, can’t sit down with her and chat like they used to, or hug her again, or joke with her, or prank Derek together. Again, he’s drowning and this time everyone’s focus is on him but he’s refusing their hands reaching out to help, stubbornly accepting his fate, too scared to take an outstretched arm in case it lets him go again. Surely the cold darkness of the cruel waters is kinder than another rejection or deception?

Finally, finally, he decides to trust one hand and he’s pulled above the waters again, not quite out of the ocean but at least he can breathe. Eventually, he finds the strength to walk to shore and he’s wrapped up in Emily’s strong arms, burying his face in her hair and swearing he’ll never let go again.

5. Alex

He never, not for a moment, blames Alex for her decision to let go. If anything he admires her for it, he’s proud she made the right decision for her and her family, and at least he saw this one coming. He’s lost enough people by this point that the loss doesn’t ache and burn and fester in the way it used to, and they stay in contact; they have a bi-weekly FaceTime call and she texts him memes that he doesn’t understand and book recommendations regularly.

But that’s not to say that losing his maternal figure on the team, the woman who he’d connected with the fastest out of any BAU member, who had understood him in a way no-one else could, who loved and cared for him like a son, doesn’t stab him in the gut.

He’d take a bullet for absolutely everyone on the team, but he hadn’t taken a bullet for Alex out of some misguided loyalty to a coworker or because she was a member of the BAU, he’d taken a bullet for her because she was the best person he knew, and - plain and simple - some inner, more primal instinct within him wanted to save her life. And she’d stayed with him at the hospital, a little due to her guilt, a little due to her seeing Ethan in him, but mostly because she loved him.

And he loved her. So seeing her walk down those stairs and knowing she wouldn’t walk into the bullpen the next morning - no matter how much he knew that this was the right thing for her to do - left him feeling hollow again, a little broken, a lot sore. He missed her deeply, both because she was an amazing asset to the team, but also because she’s a beautiful person who brought sunshine to his gloomy world. She had an indescribable talent for making him happy, and he felt her absence in his every-day life bitterly.

Although she’s still around, she still finds ways to brighten his day, still has some creepy telepathic ability to know when he’s down and exactly how to make him feel better, it’s another loss to add to the many he’s somehow managed to have collected over the years. And he can’t seem to tell the grief in his heart any different.

At least this time it can be temporarily alleviated by a text message. It’s more than he could have asked for, really.

The Gradual Intertwining (>)

+1 Derek

He falls in love with Derek like the kind of slow and steady drizzle that’s almost indistinguishable from heavy mist; so easily confused for the ordinary, familiar platonic feelings he’s harboured for years. It’s because of this that he doesn’t put up an umbrella, he continues walking as he’s gradually soaked in deep, entrenched yearning, until one day, he finally realises it’s raining.

It’s on the morning of Rossi’s 60th birthday party that it finally clicks and, suddenly, it’s obvious. He let Derek carry him to bed last night after he fell asleep watching a movie, for God’s sake: he’d even woken up on the way but faked it just so he wouldn’t put him down. He’s known for years that a 187 IQ doesn’t mean his emotional intelligence is excellent, too, but this feels ridiculous even for him. He’s practically been in a relationship for years and he had no idea. This must be why he always got that strange feeling in his stomach when Derek talked about literally anybody else.

This is not an ideal realisation to come to when Derek is currently cuddled around him, about to wake up any minute. Spencer tries very hard not to think about the fact that he won’t blink an eye at their entwined limbs and what that means, but he’s not exactly in control of his thoughts right now.

He feels like he sleepwalks through the morning, trying to pay attention to what Derek talks to him about as he cooks him breakfast, but his mind has sort of short-circuited, not knowing how to adapt to this new information. His brain is not equipped to process being in love, and zoning out is as good a coping mechanism as any for now. It’s not until they head back to the bedroom to get dressed and ready for the day that he snaps out of it.

“Hey, pretty boy,” Derek says loudly, clicking his fingers in front of Spencer’s face to get his attention.

“Hm?” Spencer hums, feeling the world fade back into focus despite the haze of confusion still dizzying him somewhat.

“Alright, you’ve been spacy with me all morning,” Derek says, shifting his weight slightly as he levels Spencer with an inquisitive gaze. He can’t help but feel a cool kind of dread pour down his spine at the idea of that look figuring him out. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing, sorry,” Spencer says, forcing himself to snap back into action as he attempts to compartmentalise. “Just… didn’t sleep well, I guess.”

Derek looks doubtful but takes him at his word. “Okay,” he acquiesces. “Better get dressed, though. We’ve got a lot to get through today.”

“We do?” Spencer asks, ignoring the fact that he’s still stood in his ratty, oversized shirt and underwear in front of the man he’s deeply in love with, maybe for the sake of his sanity, maybe because he finds it hard to be embarrassed in front of Derek Morgan, not after all these years.

“Yeah,” Derek says, like it’s obvious, “we gotta run to the grocery store and pick up a present for Rossi - probably some food for this barebones apartment of yours, too - pick up my clothes from the dry cleaners, and swing round Penelope’s to give her the blender I borrowed back. And I know for a fact you have some work to do on your latest paper, as well.”

Spencer, with his new perspective on the situation, considers the fact that Derek has included him in errands that are pretty exclusive to his own life. He also considers the fact that he never would have stopped to think this odd if he didn’t have the knowledge he has now. Unfortunately, simply considering does not shed much light on the situation.

Because of this, Spencer does what he’s always done. He nods and gets ready for his day of driving around with Derek doing very mundane chores and wonders why he feels so excited.

(While they’re out and about, it strikes Spencer why the realisation that he’s in love with Derek feels so paralysing: almost everyone he’s ever loved has left. He’s 34 and he’s never had a loving, committed relationship, and that’s for a reason: there’s only so much grief one heart can take. How could he ever give himself over to someone, hand them the key to his heart, open the door into his life, knowing that they could leave? Forever simply doesn’t exist, not for Spencer anyway. And truly, he doesn’t think he’d survive the loss of Derek, he can’t think of anything in the world that would be more painful.)

Despite the emotional exertion of the day, Rossi’s party is actually fairly enjoyable, probably aided by the glass of wine Spencer had accepted immediately upon entering the garden, he bloody well deserved it after the day he’s had. He gets chatting with JJ and Hotch and he barely even notices the absence of Derek by his side, having been roped into a conversation with Rossi and one of his famous poker friends that Spencer wouldn’t be able to place with a gun to his head.

It’s not long before they reconvene though, programmed with some kind of homing instinct that always leads them back to one another, and Derek’s leaning a bit too close. Spencer finds it a little hard to breathe with his body pressed so close to his own, Derek’s warm, wine flavoured breath on his ear making his insides flip and setting butterflies free to roam his stomach.

They spend the rest of the party like that, pressed away together in a corner, tucked inside one another’s pockets, and Spencer knows that he’s responsible for at least half of the instigation: he’s pressing back against Derek’s side with just as much pressure, leaning in closer, laughing a little louder, not bothering to hide the adoration that must be plainly written across his face.

“Wanna come back to mine for a drink?” Derek asks as the night draws to a close, and how can Spencer refuse? They spend more nights together than apart at this point, and the last thing he wants is to feel lonely tonight, not after today.

“Please,” is all he says.

No-one says anything when they leave together, Derek’s hand loosely placed on his lower back.

Derek’s apartment is warm and tidy, the opposite of Spencer’s, but it feels just as much like home as his own when he steps over the threshold. He’s about to tell him just that, but as he turns around to face him, Derek’s looking at him in a way he’s never seen before and his breath catches.

“Spencer?”

“Yeah?”

Derek steps a little closer, crowding into his space even more. “Can I kiss you?” he murmurs.

Spencer doesn’t bother answering, instead closing the gap on his own and pressing his lips to Derek’s. His hands go to Derek’s side on instinct but as he kisses back, Spencer feels one hand tangling itself gently in his hair, and another cupping his jaw and he gives way, melting into the touch. The whole thing goes right to his stomach, feeling it bottom out as the intensity of the moment threatens to overwhelm him before a small sound escapes Derek’s lips and he’s reminded who’s kissing him, whose hands are on him, who’s making him feel these things. All of a sudden, it’s easier to let go.

Their lips mould together as they collapse into one another, the final piece of the gradual intertwining of their lives and bodies over the last twelve years. A fire lights under Spencer and he feels his world tilt on its axis, except unlike previous life-altering experiences, this time it feels like its tilting into place, as though he’s been off-kilter this whole time, finally returned to his natural state.

“You have no idea how long I’ve dreamed of this,” Derek whispers as they pull away.

“Why didn’t you kiss me sooner, then?” Spencer asks.

“Today is the first day you knew you wanted it,” Derek replies, before he’s kissing him again.

(Later that night, when they’re tucked into Derek’s bed, Spencer lies with his head on his chest, comforted by the steady, reassuring heartbeat as Derek whispers promises of forever into his hair. Spencer knows that nobody can ever really promise anything, but for the first time in his life, he decides it doesn’t matter. They’ll have to part some day, in one way or another - maybe Spencer will be the one to go first this time - but he realises that he’d rather have known Derek like this, to have known how it feels to love and be loved back, only to have him leave, than to have him stay and never know it at all.)

@criminalmindsvibez @strippersenseii

#my writing #moreid #moreid fic #moreid writing #criminal minds #criminal minds fic #derek morgan #spencer reid #Derek Morgan x Spencer Reid #derek morgan/spencer reid #tw substances #tw drugs #tw sh #tw self harm #tw grief #tw depression

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molzies-fanfics · 4 years

Text

Cruisin’

A/N: I’m really glad for my first Leo one shot that someone gave me the basic plot points because honestly writing for Leo is gonna go one of two ways for me, I’m either going to write him super out of character (or base him off of OOTS which might not be the best idea in my opinion) or it will be in character for this type of fic and you guys will like it. But I promise I’ll get better at writing for Leo either way.

Updated A/N: I ended up writing so much for this but I’m so happy with what I wrote even if it is a little out of character. (2979 words)

Leo x female!reader

Requested by: @iamcheese13

Leo had made a habit of trying to leave without anybody noticing and hoping to god they just assumed he was in his room, meditating. But Donnie had knocked on his door and opened it to see if he was there to only come up empty three times this week. THREE TIMES. It was incredibly unlike the fearless leader to just vanish without telling the rest of his team, his brothers, where he was going. Raph knew how brutal he was whenever he came back from a trip to the surface by himself, it was like Leo was the mother hen but no one knew who would tell him off. Splinter? Yeah but it wasn’t like Leo was actually doing anything wrong.

Going up to the surface for a breath of fresh air wasn’t against the rules or whatever. It was the part about not telling his family that stuck out. Eventually even April and Casey started to notice that they saw less and less of the blue banded turtle. Suspicions were starting to grow and it just got to the point where they knew they had to follow him. If he was going out almost five times a week? Something was definitely up.

Following him down to the docks? It was a bit unexpected but it wasn’t like they knew where he was going. Stalking a ninja without being noticed was the hard part, with all the falling behind they did (especially with April and Casey) it was surprising that they hadn’t lost Leo at some point. Watching him walk into an abandoned warehouse was even more sketchy than they thought, so his brothers assumed that he was either being black mailed or he was dealing with crime directly…by himself.

A couple minutes passed and they saw a young girl, around their age, jump down from a boat and make her way into the warehouse with a bright smile on her face. Raph was having none of it, “What if she’s working for the foot?” he whisper shouted to his accomplices. It was a reasonable question, but as far as the brothers knew, Leo was alone with that girl in there.

*Leo’s POV*

I had been meeting up with her for a couple months now, meeting her by accident when I was out by myself one night near the docks. I liked to stare at the water to help me calm down and this was after a particularly nasty fight with Raphael. Next thing I knew, the wooden roof underneath me had gave way and I blacked out. When I woke up she was there, hovering over me and tending to what little wounds I had. She had somehow managed to carry me to her boat and had me resting on her sofa bed.

The way she looked at me wasn’t with fear or hatred, but concern and dare I say kindness. I learnt that her name was Y/N and she had loved the water all her life, when she was a kid she’d tell grown ups she wanted to be a mermaid when she was older. She loves all marine life, she told me turtles were her favorites, which (almost embarrassingly) made me blush. Hopefully I don’t think she noticed.

We became friends and for some reason I wanted to keep her friendship to myself. Which led to the sneaking out, not telling my brothers or my father where I was going, who I was meeting and why I went I meet them so often. You see, Y/N lived by herself, she didn’t have many friends in the city and all she had was her boat and everything on it. I barely fit under the deck so we ended up meeting in a warehouse nearby, it was warmer and had a lot more space.

Seeing her almost every day helped me regain my belief, that what we were doing for the city was worth it. That even when the people we saved ran away screaming, it was okay because they were safe and not everybody was going to be accepting to who we are or what we do. Even if all we did was help from the shadows, at the end of the day it was better than nobody helping at all.

But tonight? I wasn’t expecting things to go differently. I was expecting an easy going conversation with a girl that I considered as my friend…and nothing else! Nope. But no, my family had to step in at some point. I just wasn’t expecting it to be so…awkward.

“So I told her that yes I do live on a boat but that it’s also none of her business!” Y/N was rambling about how her day had went, especially since she’d ran into someone she had known from high school. She had only graduated last year but nonetheless she wasn’t comfortable with people judging how she lived her life. “Good for you.” I chuckled warmly. Watching Y/N talk had slowly became one of my favorite things, maybe it was the way she described things or how she moved as she reenacted scenes but all I did know was that she looked beautiful. Wait, what?

A sharp tone sounded from Y/N’s bag, taking the irritating device out she answered it. “Oh! Hi Mom.” She blushed as she turned to face me, indicating the door she mouthed to me ‘Is it okay if I take this?’. I nodded, as if she had to ask, I knew she didn’t talk to her parents that often so who was I to say she couldn’t take a phone call?

Shooting me a bright smile before she scooted out the door, she gave me a small wave. I was still waving back even after she had closed the door. What was I doing? All we ever did was talk but I found myself wanting…more? God, just having her as my friend was enough and I was grateful for that but it felt like I had known for a long time that I was looking for a lot more than friendship. Maybe this was why I had kept her away from the others?

*Third person POV*

Crawling through one of the many warehouse windows, the others gazed down at Leo. He was alone and looked a bit…sad? Raph couldn’t help but feel like he was right, maybe the girl was working for the foot and had only just revealed it to Leo after he had given her all the information. On the other hand he should probably check in with his brother before jumping the gun, like he had ever done that before? There was something about how Leo was holding himself that made Raph think twice.

Jumping down, the others followed, with Casey falling into a pile of boxes becoming a clear indicator to Leo that he was no longer alone. Shooting up from his makeshift chair (a crate) Leo skittishly met the eyes of his brothers. “Oh-Hey! Hey guys…what’s up?” Blushing all kinds of shades of green, Leonardo internally face palmed at how he handled their arrival.

“What’s up? What’s up! You have been leaving the lair without telling us for months Leo! Months! We’re worried! That’s what’s up!” Raph yelled. He may not have jumped the gun but he still had a right to be angry. “I’ve…I’ve been busy Raph.” He mumbled pathetically, embarrassed. “Busy? How can you be busy? You haven’t got many hobbies besides taking down the foot! So unless you’ve been doing missions by yourself I want to know exactly what you’re doing?! No excuses!” Raph questioned harshly, Donnie and Mikey just looked disappointed with April and Casey awkwardly standing there witness the family argue. Well, one-sidely argue.

“I…met someone.” The leader muttered, hoping it wouldn’t go as badly as it had so far. “Oh you mean that girl? Who is she? Do you even know Leo? She could be working for the bad guys did that even cross your mind?!” The ran banded turtle accused. “She’s my friend and she saved me! If she was our enemy she would have left me! Or she would’ve hurt me by now, she wouldn’t have let it go on for this long!!” He finally snapped, not wanting Raph to turn his anger to Y/N. She didn’t deserve it after all she had done.

“Look bro just because you got a girlfriend doesn’t give you the right to just flake out on us and not tell us.” Mikey rubbed his arm, sad that all of the lying had to lead to this (but realistically how else was it going to turn out). “Mike I never meant for-wait you think she’s my girlfriend?” Leo’s blush returned in full force. The fact that other people saw it too made him think he wasn’t going crazy? “Well she is. Isn’t she?” April perked up.

“Uhhh-” Before Leo had a chance to explain the warehouse door creaked open. “Hey sorry that took so long my mom wanted to tell me about…macarons?” You seemed to question yourself as your eyes met the three other turtle men and two people. “Um…Hi?” You waved awkwardly, making your way over to Leo. “You didn’t tell me there were others like you?” You laid your doe eyes on him and all of a sudden it felt like his legs were made of jelly.

“Um, I didn’t know when to bring it up?” His voice squeaked as he smiled uneasily. “Well anyway, I’m Y/N. It’s nice to meet you!” You beamed as you looked back at the turtles, making eye contact with the one that seemed to be glaring at you. “Huh, I’m sure you’d love for him to tell you everything wouldn’t you?” Raph snarked “Raph don’t.” Donnie finally spoke up. “No, maybe I should because nobody else will, not even Leo! Who’s supposed to be our fearless leader. It’s ridiculous! He’s so distracted he has no idea if she’s gonna stab him in the back or not.” Donatello glared at his brother as he made his argument right in front of you.

“Wait, you think I’m going to betray your trust?” Turning back to Leo, you needed to know if this was true. “My brothers do. I don’t think you would.” You could tell he was being sincere by how he was looking into your eyes. It made you want to melt. “Hey! Don’t group us into Raph’s spiel! We don’t even know her yet. Besides I don’t see why this is so different from when we met April and Casey.” Mikey reasoned. “Mike’s right. I’m April by the way.” She shook your hand, smiling warmly. “I’m Casey.” He introduced by waving behind the reporter.

“And I’m Michelangelo! Leo’s younger brother and the best looking of the group!” He winked as he slung an arm around you. Jealousy flared up in him for a moment, he shoved him off of you. “Sorry about him, he doesn’t know personal space is a thing!” He growled at the orange banded brother. You laughed at the interaction, “I didn’t know they were your brothers! That’s so cool!” Placing a hand on Leo’s arm you watched him calm down at your touch.

“Anyway I’m Donatello, some would say I’m the brains either way I’m far more intelligent than these knuckleheads.” The purple banded turtle quipped before Raph could throw a punch at him. You were still a bit nervous about him, he clearly didn’t trust you and was very protective of Leo and his family. “Don’t worry, if the others are okay, Raph will be too. He just needs time.” It was as if Leo could read your mind. With the amount of time you two had spending together lately, you wouldn’t be surprised if he had picked up on your mannerisms.

*a couple hours later*

“I mean…it wouldn’t be all that bad if Leo brought you by the lair sometime. Maybe even meet master Splinter.” Raph admitted. You’d thought it would take a couple of days, months maybe to earn even a shred of trust. Although the way you treated and held yourself around his brothers convinced him that you didn’t have a malicious bone in your body.

“Thanks Raphael.” You smiled politely, trying your best to not show how tired you really were. The others had called it quits for the night after hanging out for a bit, dawn was almost here and the turtles couldn’t be seen in daylight hours. “I’ll see you all soon, alright?” Patting down your pockets, you started to back away, double checking you hadn’t forgotten anything. “Aw hell yeah! Next time we see you, we’re playing Mario kart ‘kay?” Mikey pointed finger guns at you before bounding away. “Sure!” you giggled.

Donnie nodded, bowing slightly before walking alongside April and Casey who were yawning, leaning against each other. “I’ll walk you back to the boat.” Leo offered, giving you that smile with all the warm feelings behind it. “Thanks.” You grinned back, kicking the snow in your path into the frigid water below. Living at the docks was usually cold, but with Leo around it made you forget how alone you were, how cold reality was. You wish he was around more often but after tonight you realized how much he had given up just to come and see you. Even though what he did was wrong it made you feel…special, like you were special to him.

“Is it true you snuck away from your family just to see me?” Curiosity boiled over, the look on Leo’s face confirmed it. He felt guilty, you know that, but had it been worth it? “Yeah…it’s true. I just, didn’t know how to tell them…how to tell you, I can’t even imagine what master splinter would say if he found out I got knocked out so easily and was rescued by…you.” It seemed a bit back handed the way he had phrased it, like his father wouldn’t like you, but the way he had said it was completely different. His whole demeanor had turned soft and a short walk felt like it lasted an eternity.

When you reached the boat, facing him before saying goodbye, searching for the words you knew you had to say. Leo beat you to it. “I don’t want to make anything awkward between us after tonight. I hope you know that the last couple of months have been really…special, to me. I just want to know if they’ve been special to you too.” He admitted albeit sheepishly. “Of course they have Leonardo. I don’t think I could ever be awkward around you, if anything you calm me down. Even that night when I found you out cold in the shed, I knew I should have been panicking but knowing you needed help, my help, calmed me right down. Somehow I found the strength to get you back.” You let a little laugh, feelings bubbling beneath your words. You just wondered if he felt it too.

“I’m happy to have you in my life and I knew that meant introducing you to my family eventually. I just wasn’t expecting it to be in the form of an interrogation.” You both burst out laughing at that one. Starting to see color in your peripheral vision, you knew the sun was waking up. “Leo tonight was awesome, I don’t mind that you kept your family a secret, for whatever reason. Besides I look forward to beating Mikey at Mario kart.” Chuckling uneasily, you didn’t want to say goodbye, even if you were going to see him the next night. It had become less and less easy as your feelings towards him had grown. He gave you a half smile before stepping forward, the beginnings of sunlight glinting in his eyes. Your heart rate picked up as you realized you were practically chest to chest. “I’ll see you tonight.” He breathed. You could…you wanted to, but was it the right moment? Of course it was, but you could tell he was nervous underneath. His eyes were searching every other part of your fave besides your eyes and…lips. “See you.” You whispered slowly, dragging out the moment.

That was when his eyes met your lips, his head tilted slightly, sun rays creeping dangerously up his skin. All it took was breaking down the last of your resolve and trusting your toes to carry you the rest of the way. It was a brief brushing of lips, eyes meeting before he wrapped his arm around your back, his other hand cupping your cheek. He was surprisingly warm, each kiss told you that, even with your eyes closed you could tell he was smiling. He was buzzing with such happy energy. Wrapping your arms around his head in a prom-esque kind of way, you leaned into him, soaking in all the warmth before he pulled away for air.

You could see the sun rising in the blue, but you knew he was staring at you. “I really wish I didn’t have to go right now. I wish I could stay.” Leaning his forehead on yours, his hands on your hips now. All you could do was smile up at him. “Just think of it as something to look forward to tonight.” You smirked. “Heh, I tried to tell Mikey that I wasn’t ‘cruising’ or whatever but I realized tonight I kind of was.” He flirted back, kind of. “You tell yourself that honor boy, I’m the one who found you in the shed.” You laughed before giving him a gentle push.

“See you.” He pecked your lips again before finally separating from you. “See you then.” Beaming, you stepped onto the boat, watching him jog away with a wide grin on his face. Before you knew it he was out of sight and you were doing a little victory dance.

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mean-green-imagines · 4 years

Text

Mutant Side of the Tracks

Basic Information

The University of South New York, or USNY, is a college about 30 minute north of New York City, and it’s one of the few universities in New York that accepts mutants and will actually allow them to attend classes and live on campus with the human students. Although, the campus is not as happy and accepting as they make themselves out to be. Even though they let mutants to attend, they make it exceptionally harder for them to get in...price-wise.

The majority of mutants grew up in poverty since before they can even remember. There were no good jobs for mutants and the ones they could get would pay the absolute lowest they could without getting in any trouble. So, it’s harder for them to afford college and they usually worked hard to get a scholarship to help pay for most of their expenses.

As for housing, mutants will more often be seen living in apartments or small houses with at least one roommate or more to help split the rent. The campus dorms were simply too expensive, even with the scholarships, so the mutants tended to live off campus, anywhere from five to almost twenty minutes away from campus.

Character info:

Leonardo Hamato: Leo is a fourth year business major and he’s always been very dead set on opening up his own martial arts studio once he’s graduated. He is on the football team as a running back and is also in one of the biggest fraternities on campus. Leo doesn’t live in the frat house though. He lives by himself in a one bed/one bath apartment. He has to work a lot to afford his rent but it’s worth it so he can live by himself. He’s always had to live and share everything with his three brothers and home would usually be chaos and not very relaxing, so this apartment is definitely worth it to him. Leo works part time as a student assistant in the business department. He basically just takes a lot of phone calls, scans papers, and brings coffee to the professors if they ask for it. When it comes to parties, you usually won’t find Leo in the smoke circle like Donnie and Mikey. He’ll be drinking beer and throwing back shots. But maybe he’ll join in the smoke circle if he’s really feeling spunky.

Raphael Hamato: Raph is a fourth year physical therapy major and has been playing with the idea lately of changing it to sports management, but he’s so close to being done with his original major that he can’t bring himself to switch. Raph is also on the football team and is usually the kicker when he’s not on the defensive line. Raph lives in a two bed/one bath apartment with his friend, Casey Jones, who is on the hockey team. Raph and Casey like to throw parties in their apartment, but they tend to get out of hand pretty quickly and the cops usually end up showing up to shut it down. Raph works part time at the school gym, making sure everyone gets checked in and out as well as keeping the equipment clean and disinfected. Raph will smoke with Donnie and Mikey happily anytime, but never at parties. It just freaks him out too much with all the noise and the lights, so he’ll be with Leo taking shots.

Donatello Hamato: Donnie is a third year biomechanical engineering major and he managed to get into school with an academic scholarship as well as a basketball scholarship, so he is also on the basketball team. The coach saw Donnie’s height and his strength and stamina at the tryouts and knew that Donnie would be great for the team. Of course, Donnie jumped at the opportunity and was overjoyed when he received a hefty academic scholarship on top of that. Even though Donnie has a busy schedule with his classes and basketball practices, he still works part time at the movie theater that’s about ten minutes away from campus. When he’s not working or studying or practicing basketball, he enjoys playing video games and smoking with his brother/roommate, Mikey. Donnie is a low-key stoner and doesn’t smoke quite as often as Mikey, but he’ll smoke just about everyday once his day is over and he can relax, but not if he has too much homework or studying to do.

Michelangelo Hamato: Mikey is a second year art major with a minor in photography. He shares a two bed/one bath apartment with his brother, Donatello, and is a very active member of the university’s art club. Mikey has a part time job working at the local pizza place, just downtown from campus. He works in the kitchen making the pizzas and sandwiches and whatnot, but when he knows he has a serving shift coming up, he lets his brothers and friends know so they can come and visit him. Mikey is definitely the stoner of the group and whenever he gets the chance, he’ll gladly hit a bowl and just relax and work on is art assignments or just play video games or watch anime. Donnie loves to partake in the herb as well since his schedule tends to be very stressful and demanding.

Jennifer (Jen) Dahl: Jen is a fourth year medical student and is in the pre-health courses studying Chiropractic Medicine. She’s always had problems with her back and often needed to see chiropractors. So when she was deciding her major, she remembered how much her doctors helped her with her back and decided that she wanted to help people like that too. Jen is also minoring in creative writing, so sometimes you'll find her at the cafe typing away for hours on some days. She works part time at the campus gym with Raph, so they’ve become good work buddies and good friends outside of work as well. She loves to smoke, but has been cutting back so she can focus on her school better and make better grades.

Carol Scott: Carol is a third year architecture major with a minor in interior design. She is apart of rather large sorority, which happens to be Leo’s sister sorority, so the two know each other quite well through sorority/fraternity events and mixers. Although she is planning on leaving her sorority since the events take a lot of her time, she’s also leaving because she hasn’t been able to connect with the other girls and she feels left out the majority of the time. Her personality just doesn’t mix with theirs, and she found that out pretty quickly after joining. Carol is also good friends with Mikey since they both have a lot of art classes together and she got to meet Donnie through Mikey when she got invited to their place to smoke and hang out. Carol, like Mikey and Donnie, smokes everyday. She rarely drinks though since she has a very sensitive stomach and can’t handle a lot of alcohol. So she sticks with a small glass of wine or a hard cider when she does decide to drink. Carol works part time as a student assistant in the art department and does basically the same things as Leo does at his job.

Juniper (June) Ferrari: June is a second year computer science major who got in on a full academic scholarship. She may not exactly act like it, but she’s very intelligent and can fix any computer that you bring to her. Her main focus is learning how to program video games and how to make software for computers so that they can run big PC games that take up a lot of space. June is a bit of a party animal and she's become pretty popular with the rest of the upperclassmen since you’ll see her in the smoke circle one minute and then in the living room or kitchen taking shots the next, and she was always fine the next day. June works part time as a waitress at the same pizza restaurant Mikey works at and she splits the rent with Jen on a small house only five minutes away from campus.

Aurora Giovanni: Aurora is a third year psychology student and she has plans of becoming a mental health practitioner. She used to live a rather lavish life before choosing to come to college, and when her parents fell through on funding, she found her roommate, Carol. The two girls split rent on a two bed/one bath apartment and she always enjoys joining Carol in her visits to Mikey and Donnie’s apartment. Aurora works as a sales assistant at a high end clothing store in the mall about fifteen minutes away from campus. She wears very nice clothing, which usually gets her a good bit of attention, and she’s a bit of a party person like June is. You can find her either in a smoke circle or in another room taking shots.

#tmnt #tmnt fanfic #tmnt au #mutant side of the tracks au #college au #tmnt donatello #tmnt leonardo #tmnt michelangelo #tmnt raphael #tmnt oc #tmnt ocs #tmnt aurora #tmnt jen #tmnt june #tmnt carol #romance #angst #love triangles

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pisang-goreng-ao3 · 4 years

Text

Coming to America

Beta: @sugarandspace

Artist: Amanda

---

Chapter 1: Another beautiful day in Edom

It’s eight in the morning and Raphael makes his way down the hallway, the sun already beaming through the windows. His steps are audible in the empty hallway, briskly moving over the polished marble. Stopping at large wooden doors, ornately with carved flowers, he takes a deep breath, opens them, and steps inside. He taps on a panel in the wall on his left, it opens with a click and he presses some buttons. Looking up, musicians walk in to take their places on the balcony. Once seated, Raphael gives a curt nod to the conductor, silently instructing the string quartet to begin.

The curtains slowly open as Bach’s Air fills the room. As the sun hits his face and the music reaches his ears, Magnus stirs and considers opening his eyes. Is it morning already? He props himself up on his elbows and, like every morning, finds Raphael flanked by two servants standing in his doorway.

“Good morning, your Highness,” Raphael says as he bows.

“Good morning,” Magnus mumbles back.

“And, of course, happy birthday, Your Highness,” Raphael continues.

“…Right, it is my birthday,” says Magnus, as a wave of nausea and dread come over him. Well, he couldn’t avoid this forever, could he? He swings his legs over the edge of the bed and is promptly helped into slippers and a robe by a servant. Said servant bows and retreats, so Magnus can follow Raphael into his en suite.

Magnus is well aware that his bathroom is larger than some people’s homes. The white marble is polished to perfection, the crystal chandelier refracts the light into rainbows and the scent of sandalwood envelops him more with every step.

Raphael stops and turns, claps his hands twice and two more servants appear.

“Good morning, Your Highness, and happy birthday!” as they too bow reverently. After their greeting, Raphael turns around and walks out again, disappearing from their view.

Magnus figures he might as well try. “Good morning, Dorothea, Elliot! Please, would you be so kind and grant me a birthday wish?”

“Anything for you, Your Highness!” they bow.

Magnus takes a deep breath, finds his most charming smile, and says, “Since it is my 29th birthday, would you be so kind to let me bathe and dress myself? Just this once?”

Dot and Elliot chuckle politely. “Oh, Your Majesty, you have such a great sense of humor! Now, let us get started. We do not want you to start such an important day as today by being late for breakfast.”

Magnus lets his mind wander as they move around him doing their daily tasks, from brushing his teeth to bathing him and washing his hair. At some point in his life, he was sure he loved this kind of treatment and would never get enough of it. That he had enjoyed being the crown prince of Edom, and the lifestyle that came with it.

From an early age he had been assured that as the royal he was, there was no need for him to worry about menial tasks such as washing or dressing yourself when there were servants who were honored to do it for you. But the last couple of years it had only added to him feeling useless.

“Your Highness must be excited about tonight,” says Dot, as she applies a fresh coat of nail polish.

Oh yes, and there was that.

“Can’t say that I am, my dear Dorothea. How can a man be excited about being married off to a woman he’s never met?” says Magnus, in between blowing on the drying polish on his other hand.

Dot avoids his eyes. “Oh Your Highness, I am sure it will all be wonderful.”

Magnus takes his hand from the table where Dot was trying to give him a manicure.

“Dot, sweetheart, I know what you’re trying to do. But please, just… At least call me Magnus when you’re trying to reassure me my life won’t be ruined after tonight.”

Dot visibly forces a smile that doesn’t reach her eyes. “Your nails are almost done, Prince Magnus. Now, let’s finish up here so we can get you over to Elliot to get you dressed.”

Magnus looks at Dot and Elliot as they work on preparing his outfit for the morning. He has known them for years now, and had a front row seat watching them fall in love and finally get married two years ago.

“I mean, look at you guys. You make marriage look like a dream come true. Because you both wanted to. You look so happy together, you’re basically glowing! Frankly, it’s a bit unfair to rub that in my face on a daily basis,” he jokes.

They stop fussing with his clothes and whisper something to each other. Finally they turn and look at him with apologetic expressions. “Prince Magnus… We’re sorry. You know we’re not allowed to talk about this. But to be honest, we do feel for you.” Elliot starts. “We care about you. We’ve watched you grow into a man ready to be a king these last few years.”

Dot walks over to him to take Magnus’ hand in hers, and says, “I know you wish this was different, but we believe you’re ready. We know you are. You’re ready to take the throne a few years from now and this wedding is the last step. It is tradition. It’s how your father married your mother – and you must agree that your mother is the most wonderful person, right? Have faith, my Prince. I’m sure they have found you a worthy queen.”

Magnus sighs. He knows there really is no way out of this no matter how much he wishes there would be. The least he could do was pray Dot and Elliot were right.

“Thank you both, I’m lucky to have you in my life. Now, let’s get me dressed.”

---

Magnus gently touches the sides of his head, careful not to touch the hair that’s pulled into an impeccable topknot. They shaved his hair at the sides of his head this morning to look sharp for the ceremony, and he loves the feeling against his fingertips.

Dressed in a burgundy colored linen pants and a loose linen top with ornate golden pattern swirling across, Magnus follows Raphael to the dining room, stopping as he opens the doors for him.

“Presenting His Royal Highness, Prince Magnus!” he proclaims. Servants standing on the side of the doors shower Magnus with rose petals.

Magnus shrugs the petals off his shoulders and walks in the room where his parents are already seated at their ridiculously large table. He shrugs off the rose petals that had landed on his shoulders and walks over to his mother to kiss her cheek. “Good morning mother, father,” he says as he takes his place on the far end of the table that could have hosted a soccer team.

“You are late,” King Asmodeus frowns. “And today is a day where tardiness can not be overlooked.”

Magnus stares at his plate. “Apologies, father. It won’t happen again.”

“Oh Asmodeus, it’s only 15 minutes, no harm done,” his mother says before she turns to Magnus.

“Happy birthday, my dear boy. I’m so proud of the man you’ve become. We are so blessed to witness this day.” Queen Raniya smiles at him, and Magnus returns it. There isn’t a person in this world he loves as much as his mother. “Thank you, mother. You look lovely this morning.”

Breakfast is surprisingly uneventful. Servants put a napkin on his lap and fill his plate with the usual, but he doesn’t enjoy his fresh fruits or coffee at all. He mindlessly pokes at his plate, unable to clear his mind. His parents look at him inquisitively.

“Is something troubling you, my son?” Asmodeus asks, sounding more stern than a father probably should.

“No, father.”

“Son, please. I am more than the magnificent ruler of Edom and all its inhabitants. I am also a concerned dad.”

Magnus can’t help but laugh a little at that. It’s not that he thinks his father doesn’t love him, but he has never been much of a concerned or involved father figure.

“Well, father…” Magnus starts, putting down his fork, before he wonders how can anyone have a serious conversation with three meters of empty table between them. He stands up, ignoring the confused look on his parents faces -and the panicked ones of the servants- and sits down next to his mother.

She smiles at him lovingly. “What is it, my boy?”

Magnus grabs her hand. “Well, first of all, it’s things like this.”

Queen Raniya doesn’t seem to understand. “Like what?” she asks.

“This!” Magnus wildly gestures with his hands to the servants all around the room, feeling mildly embarrassed. “Being announced to any room. Having rose petals thrown at me. I can’t even sit myself down in a chair!”

“What is the matter, dear? You are the son of a king, why shouldn’t you be showered with the petals of roses?” His mother asks him, looking quite confused.

“But mother, if there were no rose petals, I would still be the son of a king!” Magnus counters. “And it’s not just that, it’s everything! The cooking, the pampering, the dressing, the bathing… I’m 29 years old! For once I’d like to cook for myself, take care of myself, dress myself – and why, why can’t I find my own partner?”

“Aha!” Asmodeus smirks. “So that’s what this is about. Don’t worry, my boy. We have gone through a great deal of trouble to select a very fine wife for you.”

Magnus takes a deep breath. “But what if I do not love her?”

“It is normal to be a bit nervous before meeting your queen. Your mother and I… We were quite frightened, to be honest with you.” Asmodeus looks at his wife affectionately.

She smiles back at him, saying, “When I first met your father, I was so nervous, I became nauseous! But… Over the years, I have grown to love your father. Very much.”

“So you see, my son, there is a very fine line between love and nausea,” Asmodeus concludes. Raniya just stares at him. Judging by his mother’s facial expression, that wasn’t the message she had hoped to convey.

Magnus sighs. He realizes there is no time left for subtlety in this last ditch effort to get through to his father. “I understand,” he begins, “But father… When I marry, I want someone to love me for who I am, not what I am.”

“And who are you?” Asmodeus looks at him with an amused expression.

“I am a man who has never tied his own shoes before!” Magnus exclaims, wondering if he could sound any more desperate than this.

“Wrong! You are a prince who has never tied his own shoes before,” Asmodeus looks at his coffee, swirling it in his cup. “Besides, believe me. I have tied my own shoes once. It is an overrated experience.”

“But father, that is not the point -” Magnus begins.

Asmodeus gives him a cold look and raises his voice. “No, Magnus. Let us be clear. The point is that as of today, you are 29 years old. By law you are to be married before the age of 30 in order to remain eligible for the throne. And since your mother and I were not blessed with more children, you are the sole heir to the throne of Edom. We have been more than patient with you as it is. We have humored all of your dalliances, even those male ones, because you were diligent enough with your studies. You have had your time to play and now it is up. A wife has been chosen for you. You will fulfil your duty.”

Magnus tries to swallow, but his mouth has gone dry. It wasn’t anything he hadn’t heard before, but somehow it felt like his last sliver of hope just disappeared. This was real. There was no escape. And he feels guilt, because he knows his mother would have loved to have more children, and here she is stuck with one son who is apparently too pathetic to fulfill his only purpose in life.

Suddenly, the door bursts open to reveal a man in green workout gear, sporting a big grin. “Good morning! It’s another beautiful day in Edom!” he belts through the dining room.

King Asmodeus snaps, “What is it, Ragnor? Why must you interrupt us like this? Have you no manners?” he belts back even louder.

“I’ve come to take the birthday boy for his daily workout! We can’t have him looking out of shape tonight!” Ragnor says, seemingly unaffected as the smile never leaves his face.

He turns to Magnus’ mother. “Queen Raniya, you look exceptionally radiant today,” he says smoothly, as he kisses her hand.

“Is that so, Ragnor?” Her amusement is audible. “Say hello to your mother for me, will you? Tell her we must catch up over tea soon.”

Magnus is grateful for his best friend -who has been hired as his personal servant for a few years now- barging in so he’s able to excuse himself from breakfast.

“Yes, Ragnor, let’s go get me in shape. Excuse me father, mother…” he mutters as he kisses his mother on her forehead. She squeezes his hand as he turns to leave. Ragnor bows to the royal couple, and leads Magnus out of the dining room.

---

“Now let’s see if you can defend your lazy arse at the ripe old age of 29.” Ragnor baits, tossing a staff at him. Magnus shoots him a faux annoyed glare, but isn’t too worried.

Because his father had been dead set on him never leaving the country, Asmodeus had gone through great lengths to bring in people from all over the world for Magnus to socialize with. Ragnor was born and raised in London, where his father worked at the Edomite embassy. The family had moved back when he was 12, and once in Edom, Ragnor was immediately introduced to Magnus. He didn’t know what to think of the boy with the aura of a hundred-year-old, so naturally they had been best friends ever since.

As adults, they had concocted the plan where Ragnor had become his personal servant, after it hadn’t worked out with previous applicants. Apparently he didn’t have other ambitions in life, Magnus was fairly sure he enjoyed the royal lifestyle. Which he was more than fine with, the life wasn’t nearly as lonely with his best friend by his side at all times.

Magnus taunts him with a simple hand gesture and takes his stance. Center. Right. Right. He focuses on parrying Ragnor’s strikes in the most elaborate way, rather than looking for an opportunity to get a hit with his stick himself. He flips and twirls effortlessly, much to Ragnor’s annoyance.

“OK twinkle toes, time for a break,” Ragnor pants as he reaches for his bottle of water. “So what you’re saying is… You got confirmation -again- of the fact that your father and half the court have been going through the effort of finding you the perfect wife, and you’re moping about it?” Ragnor summarizes in his own way. Magnus sighs, grabs a towel and wipes the sweat off his forehead.

“You’re saying that like it’s no big deal at all! How would you like it if you were married off to some stranger? As for perfect, that’s my father’s definition of perfect, not mine,” Magnus took a sip from his water bottle. “I want to marry someone I love. And maybe that someone is a man. But it’s most definitely not someone my father selected for me, that I have never even met before our engagement.”

“No offense, my friend, but maybe this is exactly what you need. You’re 29 and you have not exactly been very successful at finding yourself someone worthwhile.” Something about his English accent made it sound even worse, Magnus thinks.

“I mean, let’s be completely honest here,” he continues, “George, Etta, Farrokh. Did you even catch their last names? What about that son of the previous Peruvian ambassador, what’s his face…” Ragnor stops his rant to think.

“…Imasu. Yeah, you’re right. That was a disaster. Looking back, they were all hopeless.” Magnus feels embarrassed having to admit that Ragnor is kind of right. Even during those relationships, he couldn’t fool himself into believing they were marriage material.

“Can you blame me for hoping they’d eventually see me as more than the crown prince? Maybe it’s just me. Maybe I am doomed. Maybe after Camille I shouldn’t even try any kind of relationship anymore, renounce my throne and just… I don’t know. Sign myself up for a life as a monk in a monastery somewhere up in the mountains.” Magnus gracefully slides down the wall to sit on the floor. He leans his head back and stares at the ceiling, that is frankly way too ornate for a gym.

Ragnor rolls his eyes in such an exaggerated way Magnus fears they might end up stuck in his skull. “Oh, for fuck’s sake, my friend. We talked about this. Camille is a one-of-a-kind sort of evil, she is gone, and you really shouldn’t let the rest of your life be dictated by that vampire.”

“Easy for you to say…” Magnus mumbles, moving his torso forward to stretch out his leg muscles.

He had met Camille at university, in his small class dedicated to teaching the children of the Edom elite. The daughter of a French noblewoman and a high ranking Edomite military official of French descent, she had set her sights on him since day one. And he had let her. She had long wavy hair, a curvy figure, was always dressed to kill and wouldn’t take no for an answer. Magnus had let himself get swept away by this new experience.

Usually his dates were so impressed by dating the crown prince, that they lost every bit of their own personality. They expected him to take the lead on everything, and he was sure they would bark like dogs if he asked them to. The fact that Camille wasn’t afraid to go against him and ask him to do things, to get her things, all while keeping their relationship a secret... It had made him feel alive again. After a year together, Magnus had to stay behind while Camille moved back to France with her family.

She had told him they could make it work if he loved her enough, and he believed her - until her social media was full of evidence of the contrary. He had called Camille to ask her how she could do this to him, she only laughed and called him a fool for thinking she wouldn’t do everything to enjoy student life at the Sorbonne.

Magnus feels like his heart had never really recovered after that particular break up, even though in retrospect he realized how unhealthy their relationship had been.. Again he had been used for his money and royal status, just in a different way from the others.

“…I think it really just might be me.”

---

Magnus overlooks the lavishly decorated ballroom, filled with Edom high society. Rich tapestries were hung across the walls and crystal chandeliers light the room. The ladies and gentlemen, displaying all their gold and jewels like human Christmas trees, walk around trying to outshine one another. This is the world he grew up in and he never realized it was so incredibly fake. He recognizes some of the faces from work – the prime minister is here, the mayor of Edom City, the chief of police, admirals, generals. Everyone who is someone in Edom’s high society apparently got an invite for this circus.

On the dais, his father is seated in his large golden throne, wearing his most formal crown that was designed by his great-great-great-grandfather. It’s a sight to behold and could even put the St. Edward’s Crown to shame - clearly his father wasn’t about to be out-decorated by any of his guests in attendance.

His mother and Magnus himself are sitting on significantly more modest thrones on both his sides. Queen Raniya looks lovely, he thinks, wearing a modest golden tiara on her headscarf that was loosely draped over her head and across her chest. While Raphael had insisted Magnus would wear his military uniform for the night, he had refused. They had apparently felt sorry enough for him to offer an alternative for once. So now he sits here in a traditional Edomite tunic, purple and embroidered with gold with a high collar, and loose black pants. A subtle golden crown is attached to his topknot, because he’s the crown prince, and it’s his engagement party.

He couldn’t remember ever feeling this lonely before. Or nauseous, for that matter; his father’s words about the fine line between love and nausea dancing in his mind. Forcing himself to ignore those words, he lets his gaze roam through the ballroom again.

Finally he finds Ragnor in the crowd, chatting with their American friend Catarina. She was the newest addition to his international entourage: a 25-year-old exchange student from St. John’s University in Queens, studying to be a nurse practitioner. She and Magnus had clicked in a way he hadn’t experienced since meeting Ragnor as a teenager. As for Ragnor... He wouldn’t admit to it, but Magnus was sure he had developed a massive crush on the nursing student since meeting her a few months ago.

He manages to catch their eyes and they both give him an awkward but strangely comforting smile while clutching their glasses of champagne. Magnus takes a deep breath and looks straight ahead again, letting the sounds coming from the ballroom wash over him.

Minutes, or maybe hours, pass. Suddenly, the sound of a gong makes the chatter of the audience die down immediately. Magnus’s stomach flips in the worst way. The ceremony is about to begin.

A man in an imposing military uniform steps forward. “Your Majesty, King Asmodeus! His Royal Highness and benevolent ruler of all of Edom!” he exclaims and bows deep, then stands up straight in a way that suits his garb. “I am Colonel Belcourt. And today, with your blessing, I offer my daughter to your son.”

Asmodeus stands up from his throne. “My blessing is granted. Let the courtship commence!”

The Colonel cleared his throat, “I humbly present my daughter, Miss Imani Belcourt!”

The gong sounds again, and the crowd parts through the middle. Gamelan music begins to play and about 30 dancers in Edom ceremonial dress move into the room. Gracefully the men and women dance in pairs, portraying the courtship rituals and people falling in love.

Asmodeus turns his head and lays down his hand on Magnus’. He squeezes gently along with a curt but pleased nod. Magnus returns a polite smile and brings his hands to his lap instead. The last thing he wants right now is for his father to give these kinds of comforting gestures he has never given before.

Magnus forces himself to focus back on the dancers. He loves all forms of dance, but he can’t find it in him to appreciate anything about this performance.

One by one the dancers take a pose, creating a pathway. The music changes into something more delicate as the flutes take the lead melody, and a figure of a woman in a sparkling golden dress appears at the end of the ballroom. She spreads her arms and seems to float between the dancers towards the throne, the click of her heels muffled by the sound of her train rushing along the floor. As his bride-to-be strides down to halfway across the ballroom, she begins to take a familiar, curvy shape.

Magnus struggles to breathe as he feels his heart pounding. It can’t be, can it? The Belcourts are a military family, surely Imani is a cousin that looks just like her? Right?

His worst nightmare comes true once Imani -well, Camille- stops in front of the dais next to Colonel Belcourt. Who must be her father (apparently, as they never got to the meet-the-family part of a relationship) and puts her hand in his. She lowers her gaze while curtsying the royal family, and shoots Magnus a wicked grin while looking back up again.

Magnus feels the bile rising in his throat. He can’t do this. He can’t. He jerkily stands up from his throne and all but storms towards Camille.

“May I talk to you in private for a moment, please?” Magnus grits out between clenched teeth. He doesn’t give her a chance to respond before grabbing her wrist and urges her onto and then to the left side of the dais, through a door that leads to a sitting room. He feels the eyes of everyone in the ballroom burning on his back, but is too overwhelmed to care. After slamming the door shut, he leans his forehead against it and takes a deep grounding breath.

“What? Am I not all you ever looked for in a woman? I definitely recall you saying so. More than once,” she smirks. Magnus turns to face her, feeling all pain she ever inflicted like it just happened. It rages through him like a tornado.

“I could not have been more mistaken. And you are no woman, in fact, I’m not sure you’re actually human! Do you even have a soul?” Magnus blurts out as he frantically paces along the room. “You know what? Don’t answer that. And what’s with Imani? Did you give me a false name on purpose, just to mess with me?”

“Magnus, darling, calm down. Camille is my middle name, and I always liked the sound of it better. And since we didn’t exactly spend a lot of time talking… I knew you would appreciate the surprise.” As if her tone of voice wasn’t infuriating enough, she throws in a wink with her self-satisfied expression.

He stops pacing, and looks at her. “Why don’t you fuck off back to France? Because I’m sure as hell not marrying you. So get lost.”

“Yes, you are. I’ve been selected. Come on Magnus, we had so much fun, we can get there again,” Camille purrs, seductively making her way over to Magnus.

Magnus clenches his hands into fists at his side as Camille ends right in front of him, disregarding his personal space, while smirking. For a second he is afraid she’d grab him by the lapels and kiss him, but instead she stops when her toes touch his own, the same smirk never leaving her face.

“I will make such a beautiful queen,” she whispers. In that moment, Magnus wishes his glare could literally shoot daggers.

The door flies open and Asmodeus barges in. “Ah! I see the two of you are getting along!”

Magnus rolls his eyes. Of course his father chooses to interpret the mere inches between them as a good sign, conveniently ignoring his body language.

Magnus turns away from Camille and walks to his father, nervously wringing his hands together. “Father, about this wedding…” Magnus begins.

He is interrupted by someone loudly clearing their throat. He looks to the door opening and sees Raphael standing there with an uncomfortable expression on his face. “Your Majesty, the guests are waiting.”

“Let them wait!” Asmodeus barks impatiently. “I am talking to my son.” He turns back towards Magnus. “Come, my son, let’s go for a stroll.”

Camille curtsies and doesn’t break her eye contact with Magnus. “It was an honor to meet you. I will wait for you, my Prince.” She gracefully moves herself towards the ballroom.

“Fine girl, isn’t she?” Asmodeus looks pleased. “I told you not to worry. She will give you much pleasure, don’t you think?”

---

Magnus follows his father into the palace gardens. Ever since he was a boy he loved to go on walks here, through the carefully crafted pathways, looking at the flowerbeds that were planted to form intricate designs. Beautiful birds fly from tree to tree while singing their songs, the soft light of the lanterns make it feel like something out of a fairy tale.

“Time does fly, my son. It feels like yesterday I ordered your first diaper change. And now you’re a man, who’s about to be married,” Asmodeus smiles contently.

“Father, I won’t marry Camille. I refuse.”

“Nonsense, Magnus. We’ve gone through a lot of trouble to select this girl for you. She is from a very respectable military family with foreign ties. Prepared and ready to become a queen, and a mother.”

“But I’ll never be ready for her! Father, please! I’m 29 years old, and I have never even left Edom! I have yet to experience what the outside world has to offer, and now my life is over!” Magnus nearly trips over his own tongue, trying to get the words out.

“So… You want to sow your royal oats?” Asmodeus says with a smirk.

“No, it’s not that, it’s that Camille isn’t who she-” Magnus starts.

“You are right!” Asmodeus laughs. “Now listen. This is the last time I will humor you, Magnus. Get out, see the world, enjoy yourself! Fulfill every erotic desire. And in 90 days you will come back and marry this girl.”

“But father…”

“It is settled.” Asmodeus pats his schouder roughly behoren making a sharp turn and striding back into the palace.

---

Magnus isn’t sure how he found his way back to a study in the west wing of the palace. He stares at a painting of his great grandfather and feels tears stinging in the corner of his eyes. This possibly couldn’t have gone any worse than it did. Right now, he would give anything to be married off to anyone but Camille

“What the hell was that? What is she even doing here?!” Ragnor storms in, closely followed by Catarina.

“Oh, sweetheart…” Catarina must see the tears in his eyes because she immediately moves to wrap his arms around him. He can’t help that some of those tears roll down his face.

“What have I done in my life to deserve this?” he mumbles into her shoulder.

Ragnor looks lost for words. If he wasn’t feeling so miserable Magnus would be enjoying the fact that apparently, there are things that can shut Ragnor up.

“Come, sit with us.” Catarina guides Magnus to the sitting area. As she sits down with him on the loveseat, Ragnor takes one of the fauteuils. Catarina gently strokes his back while Magnus tries to stop his quiet tears.

“I am so sorry, my friend. I don’t know what else to say.” Ragnor finally says.

“It’s OK. I don’t know either.” Magnus’ vision blurs again as his eyes fill up with tears again. “What am I supposed to do? I can’t do this, I can’t!” His voice breaks and he leans into Catarina as she pulls him towards her in an effort to comfort him.

He lets himself be comforted in silence as he cries. After a few minutes, he forces himself to get it together. In an effort to lighten the mood, he says, “Well, at least my father has given me permission to finally leave Edom before my wedding from hell. 90 days. That should give me enough time to go hiking in South America and move to a remote mountain village where the outside world will never find me.”

“Come on, we both know you’re way too high maintenance to survive in a village without electricity or plumbing,” Ragnor snorts. “But I suppose it’s preferable to marrying a random person in Las Vegas or something, because this way, you’ll eventually come back home.”

Magnus shoots up from the couch. “Ragnor, that’s brilliant!”

“Wait, what?” Catarina says, while Ragnor just stares at him blankly.

“That’s exactly what I need to do. I need to find my own spouse! I need to go somewhere, far away where no one knows who I am. That way, I can find someone who’ll love me as me, not as the crown prince of Edom!” he paces through the room, gesturing wildly. “And if we get married in Vegas, I can’t get married to Camille! And I’ll have someone to rule by my side so my father can’t possibly get upset. After all, all he wants is for me to get married.”

“Magnus, I’m sorry, but that is the worst plan I’ve ever heard.” Ragnor interrupts his pacing and firmly places his hands on Magnus’ shoulders. “You can’t just move across the world, find someone, lie to them about who you are, fall in love, get married and then tell them, hey, guess what, you’re royalty now, and we’re expected to rule over a proud island nation soon!”

Ragnor leans his forehead against Magnus’. “You are my best friend and I know you are desperate. But please, this plan is a recipe for disaster. We will find another way to get Camille out of the picture.”

“I can’t… I can’t do this, Ragnor. I need to get away.” Magnus hears his voice breaking again.

“And we will. Your father gave you 90 days and carte blanche. We can travel anywhere you want, in style, while we figure this out,” says Ragnor.

Magnus swallows thickly. “No. I don’t want to travel in style. I wasn’t kidding. I know I shouldn’t go and get married to someone over 90 days, but... I do want to know what it’s like to live like a normal person. Just to be by myself, to take care of myself, just be Magnus, for once in my life.”

Ragnor looks at him sympathetically. “As you wish. Now, where in the world would you like to do that?”

Magnus sighs. “You know, I absolutely have no idea. Preferably somewhere I speak the language, and far from Edom.”

Catarina clears her throat. “You know, I kept my place in Brooklyn, because my exchange was only for a year and a half and it’s hard to find something that nice. I mean, it’s nothing fancy, it only has one bedroom. But one of you can sleep on the couch. If you’d like.”

Magnus looks at Catarina, who plays with her hands nervously. “Are you saying we could stay at your place in New York?”

“Well, yeah, but, don’t expect too much of it. It’s nothing like you’re used to here in the palace, but if you want to, you could. I can send a message to my landlord, saying I met you guys at university here, and you need a place to stay while doing research in America. Luke is great, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind at all.” Catarina looks at him expectantly.

Magnus flings himself into her arms. “Cat, that’s perfect! That’s exactly the kind of mundane, normal experience I’m looking for!” He kisses her cheek and turns around.

“Ragnor, pack your bags. We’re going to America!”

Chapter 2: The mundane life of two ordinary exchange students

Even when flying first class, the journey from Edom to New York is long and tiring. After layovers in Singapore and Amsterdam, they finally find themselves at John F. Kennedy International Airport. Magnus feels the excitement of being here buzzing under his skin like magic.

Ragnor, however, doesn’t feel as energetic after having travelled for about thirty hours. Unlike Magnus, he appears to not be able to sleep on a plane. He drags himself and his suitcase after Magnus.

Packing had turned out to be another fight between him, his father and Raphael. They had insisted on preparing a full set of royal baggage, but Magnus had insisted they wouldn’t need all of that in New York. Of course, he hadn’t exactly told his father about their plan to stay at Catarina’s one bedroom apartment in Brooklyn. Instead, he told them they would get a suite at the Waldorf Astoria, and they would love to go shopping for more clothes.

His insistence that a suitcase and a backpack was therefore enough, was only accepted if he, in turn, took a staggering amount of “pocket cash” and a credit card with him. Knowing this was the closest he’d get to getting his way, Magnus accepted. He planned to spend as little of the money as he possibly could, fully committed to the idea of living the next 90 days as a normal guy for the first time in his life.

Plenty of pocket cash did make it easy to grab a taxi to Catarina’s place. After stacking their suitcases in the minivan, he gave the driver the note where she had scribbled the address on for them. It takes them about 45 minutes to get there and Magnus doesn’t know where to look. He’s never been allowed travel, not even to join his father on formal state visits. Asmodeus had always said that was a privilege he would have access to once he was married, and that hadn’t really worked out for him so far.

Edom City was in no way comparable to New York. He immediately understood what songs meant by concrete jungle. It was December and snow was falling from the sky. Magnus had never seen snow in real life before. The average temperature in Edom was 30 degrees Celsius -86 degrees Fahrenheit, he looked that up before they left- year-round.

With an excited grin on his face he turns to Ragnor, who looks tired and grumpy.

“There’s snow. I forgot all about how much I hated the bloody stuff,” he mumbles.

Magnus punches him playfully. “Oh come now, look at it! It can’t be that bad. It’s so beautiful.”

The rest of the trip he dreamily stares out of the window, thinking of all the mundane ways he could meet someone normal and fall in love.

---

As soon as Magnus steps out of the taxi he understands why Ragnor was so bothered by the mere sight of snow. He has never been this cold in his life and they are most definitely not prepared for it.

As Ragnor pays the cab driver, Magnus turns and looks at their new neighborhood. They have stopped at a small parking lot between two old looking buildings looming over them. There’s a lot of reddish bricks and a lot of doors, and it takes them longer than they are willing to admit to find the right doorbell.

“Hey, you must be Cat’s friends!” A tall man in a police uniform with dark skin and a neatly groomed beard says as he opens the door. Behind him a hallway appears, all brown tiles and aged wallpaper.

“And you must be Mr. Garroway!” Magnus says, holding out his hand. “I’m Magnus, and that’s Ragnor.” he points to where Ragnor is shivering next to their suitcases.

“Please, come on in!” Luke motions. They drag their things up the stone steps and he closes the door behind them.

Magnus clears his throat. “We are most grateful you’re allowing us to stay in Catarina’s apartment for three months,” he says, consciously trying to make a great first impression.

“No problem at all. Cat’s pretty much the perfect tenant and since she’s vouching for you guys, I’m sure we’ll get along fine. And before I forget, Mr. Garroway is my old man! Please call me Luke,” he says with an easy smile.

Magnus grins back, he likes this guy already. They move themselves and their suitcases further into the hallway. There’s a white door, and a wooden staircase going up.

“This door here, that’s me. Don’t hesitate to knock when you need anything.” He glances at his watch. “I really hate to be rude, but I have to get into work soon. So if you’ll follow me I’ll show you to the apartment.” Luke gestures to the staircase next to his front door.

Luke points his hand in the direction of narrow stairs. “You’re gonna have to haul those up here.” He points to their luggage. “This place is kind of old. I don’t think the people that built this all those years ago thought things through properly. I mean, they had furniture back then too, right?”

They smile politely and Luke turns to go ahead of them, scaling the stairs and opening the door. Magnus is glad he and Ragnor have spent years having daily staff fighting practice because there’s no way he would’ve made it in one piece otherwise.

Magnus walks through the door and steps into the room that’s on his left. It’s an open space, a small living area with a couch and a tv, next to a 4-person dining table separating it from a small kitchen. Straight ahead there he sees two doors, presumably leading to the bedroom and bathroom. Everything seems about as big as his en suite palace bathroom and while he feels a little bad about it, he couldn’t be more excited. It’s as utterly normal as he had imagined.

Luke’s voice snaps him out of his reverie. “So, Cat said she met you guys at school on the island? And you’re here to do research?”

“...Yes. Yes, we are ordinary students. Here to do research. At the university.” Magnus nods with a big grin on his face. He can hear Ragnor snorting behind him, and swings his arm backward in the hopes to swat his arm.

“Mr. Garrowa-” Magnus starts, cut short by Luke’s raised eyebrows and unimpressed look.

“My apologies. Luke, we do not know cold winters where we are from, so I’m afraid we are a bit underdressed for the weather we found ourselves in. But we are poor students. Where can we buy winter clothes for our limited budget?”

Luke smiles at them. “Yeah, I remember those times when I was at the police academy. There are some stores at the mall. Two stops on the subway, you can’t miss it.”

Magnus rubs his hands together. “Perfect, we will look into that later.”

Ragnor, who had walked himself over to the radiator in the kitchen, rolls his eyes at him.

“I really have to go now, or I’ll be late. But you know what? I bet you guys don’t have any plans for today after travelling for so long. I’m pretty sure I still have some old winter coats that you could use while you’re here. If you’d like? They’re nothing special, but it’ll save you some money on something you’re not gonna bring home with you anyway.” Luke looks at them for an answer.

Magnus feels a pang of guilt because he’s lying through his teeth and this man is offering him -a prince!- handouts out of the kindness of his heart. But this is what he wanted, right? To be treated like a normal student, and look like one?

He smiles. “Thank you, Luke, that is very kind of you. We would like to take you up on your offer.”

---

The next morning they step out in the coats that Luke brought over. Since Luke is taller and broader than both of them, they are noticeably on the bigger side.

Ragnor huffs. “We look ridiculous. Let’s go buy new ones.”

“We will do no such thing! We cannot insult Luke like that. It was very generous of him to offer this and we will wear them,” Magnus says and twirls. “Plus, look at how normal these make us look! It’s amazing!”

Ragnor rolls his eyes -again- and shivers. “Well, I hate it. And I’m cold. Let’s find that subway station,” he says as he shoves his hands in his pockets.

They walk through the little park in between the buildings in the direction they were told to go. In the middle of the park are a couple of benches, where three elderly people are seated, holding small cardboard cups. A small Yorkshire terrier in a coat hops through the snow around the bench.

Magnus elbows Ragnor excitedly. “Look! Real Americans!” He whispers, as they walk towards the trio.

“Good morning, my neighbours!” Magnus beams.

“Hey! You must be the boys from Indonesia!” the man says and raises his coffee cup to them.

“How do you know it’s them? You can’t just assume these things. That’s rude,” one of the women interjects. She looks quite distinguished in her big, fluffy fake fur coat. Her hair is dyed a dark reddish brown, and she wears it in an impeccable updo.

“We sure are though. And we are very happy to be here!” Magnus can’t seem to wipe the smile off his face.

“Well, we’re very happy to meet you two. You look like good kids,” the last lady nods. She is of Asian descent, but thankfully doesn’t look like she could be from Edom. She wears a much more practical green coat with a big red scarf. Her hair is grey with lighter streaks, tied together in a low ponytail, but the sparkle in her eyes makes her look younger.

“Where are my manners?” The man says, who is grey and balding, and has to put in some effort to stand up and greet them. “I’m Hodge, or so they say. These ladies here are my good friends Imogen and Jia,” he nods, as he clutches his cane.

Magnus moves to shake all of their hands and sternly looks at Ragnor, who begrudgingly takes one of his hands out of his pocket and greets the elderly trio as well.

“Just so you boys know,” Imogen starts, as she puts the little dog in her lap, “We’re the eyes and ears of the neighborhood. So if you need gossip, we’re your source,” she whispers loudly.

Magnus doesn’t really know why he would need gossip, but he wants to befriend his new neighbors either way. “That’s good to know. If you’ll excuse us, we must get going again. We’re trying to find the subway station.”

“Oh! You’re headed in the right direction. If you walk straight through the park, and…” Jia rattles off the same directions as Luke had given them, but they listen and thank her anyway.

The directions turn out to be accurate, and two stops later, they step out at a mall. Magnus has to drag Ragnor away from all the high-end boutiques, determined to find this store called Target, that Luke had recommended to them.

Ragnor walks through the aisles under harsh fluorescent lighting, between racks and tables of clothing. He stops and rubs the fabric of a sweater between his fingers and looks disappointed. Sighing, he looks at Magnus. “Tell me, why are we doing this again?”

“Because we’re ordinary exchange students, we cannot wear designer clothes or no one will believe us. Now pick some things and try them on,” Magnus says as he picks up a few basic t-shirts to wear under the button-downs and hoodies he tossed in his basket.

They get themselves into fitting rooms next to each other as they shrug their own clothes off, and try the new ones on. They’re all hit or miss and nothing in between, but Magnus has never enjoyed anything more in his life. Most of his clothes are custom made traditional pieces. And as he grew older, his father organised for high-end designers to put on private shows at the palace. Magnus would be allowed to pick whatever he wanted, and they would tailor it for him right away. He has never tried on normal clothes before, in a store. And even if they don’t fit his body as well as his clothes in Edom, he’s happy with the result.

He slides the curtain open and steps out in a colorful button-down, dark wash slim fit jeans and a casual blazer. He spins in front of Ragnor, arm stretched out to the side.

Ragnor leans against the wall of his fitting room with his arms folded across his chest and gently smiles at Magnus. “Let’s go out tonight and celebrate your freedom,” he says, as he rubs his upper arms. “Maybe, if we drink enough, we could even forget about how cold we are.”

“Wonderful idea, my friend!” Magnus smirks as he turns to the mirror, quite pleased with himself. Maybe it won’t be that hard to find himself a date in America after all.

---

Walking into the first bar they find, Magnus straightens his new shirt, and looks around the place. He’s feeling good. Instead of his topknot, he had chosen to style his hair in a mohawk, taking full advantage of his father not being here to disapprove of it.

In the middle of the bar is a small dance floor with flashing lights, with people awkwardly trying to move to the beat. Along the sides, groups of guys and girls with a lot of beer are making valiant efforts for their discussions to compete with the music. Ragnor leans in to Magnus. “Let’s go to the bar, I need a drink.”

They walk down towards the far end of the bar, sit down on stools and order two whiskeys. It isn’t long until a girl comes up to Magnus and drapes herself over the bar in front of him. She’s stunning, she has long dark curls and is wearing an all leather ensemble.

“Hey gorgeous,” she purrs. “Are you gonna buy me a drink?”

Magnus looks at Ragnor, who shrugs as a reply. Why not, he thinks. If this works out, the only thing he has to lose is Camille.

“Yeah, sure. Whatever you want,” he smiles, and his smile falters a bit when she proceeds to run her finger over the price list and orders the most expensive cocktail on the menu. How, does she know he’s a prince? But maybe she just really likes this particular drink, he tells himself. Maybe it only looked like she was picking the most expensive drink on purpose?

“So how did you pretty boys get here?” she asks.

“Well, we just flew in yesterday. We’re students-” Magnus starts.

The woman in leather looks disappointed. “So, like, you didn’t drive here?”

Ragnor snorts, “No, you don’t exactly need a car in Brooklyn.”

“Oh, well, too bad you really are cute. But I’m just not into men unless he drives a BMW,” she says and walks away with her cocktail.

And just like that, Magnus is done. He throws back his whiskey in one go, tells Ragnor to pay the bartender and he’s out the door. Ragnor catches up with him outside and squeezes his shoulder.

They go to the next bar, and another one after that, and another one after that. Men, women, none of his admirers looked the same - but all of them wanted something similarly shallow. And Magnus is not looking for a quick hookup. Neither is Ragnor, who had mumbled something about missing Cat after his third drink. The ones that didn’t immediately express their interest in sex seemed completely crazy, and claimed things like the ability to talk to dead historical figures as long as they stared into a candle hard enough.

Right now they’re sitting in a booth at a cozy gay bar, and while he loves the interior and the general atmosphere, he’s not loving this new situation they find themselves in. Ragnor is slumped next to him, staring at his beer, while Magnus tries to listen to a handsome man with auburn hair and blue eyes who spotted him early on and immediately came up to introduce himself as Eddie. And then some.

“...You know right now I’m just working on the videos, but really, I want to star in the videos, you know, become a singer, you know, pop, and some rock, just write my own songs, and produce my own songs. And then I’m gonna try and be an actor, because people keep telling me how talented I am, what a natural I am, and stuff like that. Like movies, of course, like Oscar-worthy dramas, because everyone says I have so much range, and my ability to make people cry with my performance like, all the time. So then, I’m gonna write my own stories, and direct my own stories, and produce the movies I’m doing...”

Magnus is trying to pay attention, he swears, but he can’t get a single word in. The words wash over him like a waterfall and combined with the alcohol and the temperature of the room, he’s starting to feel a bit tired. Suddenly he’s back when Ragnor drops his head against his shoulder and he fears his friend is falling asleep, too.

It did seem to finally shut the auburn-haired man up, and Magnus decides to take advantage of that. “Eddie, I’m so sorry, it was nice meeting you but I’m gonna have to get my friend home now.”

Before Eddie can get another word in, Magnus wraps his arm around Ragnor and maneuvers him right out of the place.

Outside, the fresh air rejuvenates them and they stroll towards Cat’s place.

“Is it my imagination or does everyone in New York have a severe emotional problem?” Magnus wonders out loud.

Ragnor huffs, “I worship the devil? No man has ever satisfied me, you’re cute, do you want to give it a try? I’m only into the group thing?” he summarizes the awful pick-up lines they heard over the course of the night. “If this is what normal people are like I’m not gonna last these next 88 days here!”

In the distance they see a small figure in a fluffy coat approaching, walking an excitable small dog on a leash.

“Miss Imogen!” Magnus greets her politely.

She looks a bit startled at first, until she notices who is standing in front of her.

“Oh, the boys from Indonesia! I didn’t see you there, I was minding my steps because little Church always bounces around my feet! You have to be careful not to fall at my age, you see,” she says, feeding Church a treat once he sits down calmly.

“What are you boys up to tonight?” she asks.

“We were hoping to- ” Magnus doesn’t embarrass easily, but he isn’t sure how to talk about this to a little old grandma.”-where eh, where in New York would you go to, to find some nice people?

Miss Imogen does seem to catch on right away, though. “Well, you’ve got to go out and look, son! They won’t just fall on your lap!” her eyes gleam mischievously.

“We’ve been to a lot of bars in Brooklyn tonight,” Ragnor sighs.

“Well that’s where you messed up, son, you can’t go to a bar to find a nice date!” she swats at Ragnor’s arm.

“You’ve got to go to nice places, quiet places! Like, at a library, or a church. Or, you boys are students, right? Maybe your school hosts nice events. Speaking of events, this place where I’m going tonight - the Rainbow Rally. There’ll be some nice, good youth like yourselves there. It’s a fundraiser for those poor gay kids that get kicked out by their parents. Our local community center does a lot for all kinds of kids. Yes, yes, all good people there,” she nods.

Magnus looks at Ragnor with an excited expression.

Ragnor shrugs, and sighs, “Yeah, sure, let’s go.”

---

The Rainbow Rally festivities had already started once they found their way to The Max Community Center. They step into the room that is unsurprisingly decorated with rainbow colored banners and balloons. The place is packed, but they spot two seats and quickly sit down on two empty plastic chairs.

“My poor butt hurts already,” Ragnor hisses at him. Magnus decides to ignore him.

Up on stage, six girls who all looked in their twenties perform a dance routine to a 90s medley. They all wear black pants with a top in their own color. A girl with long dark hair in red, a girl with dark skin and curly hair in yellow, a pale redhead in green, an Asian girl in blue, a blond haired girl in purple and finally a brown haired girl in orange. They look like they have a lot of fun up there and have obviously put a lot of effort in.

As the medley comes to an end, the group takes their final pose and the audience gives them a standing ovation. Clearly, these girls are popular.

Ragnor claps, leans towards Magnus and mumbles, “Apparently these women are the best that Brooklyn has to offer. Pick one, and let’s go home.”

Magnus snorts. “Patience, my friend. That’s not how this works. Besides, this evening is for a cause we should support. We’re staying.”

The audience sits back down again as the girls move out of their final pose, wave to the crowd, and hug each other. The girls wearing blue and purple have a little moment together, giving each other a quick kiss before putting their arms around each other, smiling brightly.

A man wearing a blue suit and a ridiculous Mad Hatter-style top hat walks onto the stage holding a microphone.

“Everyone, what a performance by our own dance troupe, Rainbow Power! They are some of the best volunteers we have: Isabelle, Maia, Helen, Aline, Rebecca and last but most definitely not least, my lovely daughter Clarissa!”

The redhead’s embarrassed “Dad!” got picked up by the microphone enough to make the audience laugh. “Give it up one more time for our girls!”

The audience claps and cheers enthusiastically as girls walk off the stage waving, leaving Mr. Mad Hatter standing there by himself. Not for long, as behind him a bespectacled young man fusses with microphones and other equipment, as a blond man tries to fix the wires.

The man in the top hat brings the mic back to his mouth. “I have a special treat for you today. She’s six years old and has the voice of an angel. No, scratch that, she is a literal angel. She can be a little bit shy, and she’s a bit nervous about performing tonight. So guys, gals and nonbinary pals, let us gently welcome little Madzie, and Simon Lewis who will accompany her on piano!”

The audience tones the volume of their clapping down considerably, as a little girl with braided pigtails, a little sparkly pink skirt and a little jean jacket walks up on stage. She’s holding the hand of the guy with glasses who set up the equipment, and he has to bend a little to accommodate her.

He sits down behind his electric piano, and little Madzie steps up onto a stool next to him. She stands in front of the mic and they hear her breathing a bit, before Simon asks her softly if she’s ready with a kind smile. She turns her head and nods.

Simon gently plays the intro to the song that Magnus doesn’t directly recognize until Madzie sings the first few lines,

I believe the children are the future / teach them well and let them lead the way / show them all the beauty they possess inside.

She starts off a bit insecure, but gets more confident with every line. Magnus is a big old softie and feels tears coming up. To his side he sees Ragnor looking touched as well. Everything about the performance is adorable.

For a six-year-old, Madzie’s closing notes are surprisingly clear and steady. Forgetting about being gentle, the audience gives another standing ovation. Madzie looks to the floor and shuffles her feet, but Simon takes her hand and together they walk to the middle of the stage and bow to the people. Madzie giggles.

The man in the top hat walks back on stage and whispers something in the ear of the young man. He laughs and pats him on the back and walks off the stage.

“Put your hands together for our little Madzie here, who lives with her Nana here a block away. They sometimes struggle to make ends meet. But, she’s been coming to The Max for two years now and as you can hear, those free music lessons we’re able to provide -thanks to your generous donations- are paying off!”

The audience applauds, and Madzie is still holding the man’s hand and shyly looking down to her feet.

“Hosting free classes and activities for our less privileged kids isn’t the only thing we do here at The Max. And that is what we are here for tonight. And as the founder and CEO of Morgenstern NetTech Innovators I am proud and honored to be the main sponsor of this event. However, this event would not have been a success without the main organizer of tonight’s festivities. Please come on up here, Mr. Alexander Lightwood!”

The crowd immediately starts cheering like he has announced the most famous of celebrities, and Magnus is intrigued. He sees Madzie immediately letting go of Morgenstern’s hand and bolts across the stage to launch herself at a tall male figure, who picks her up and puts her on his hip, holding on to her with one arm.

As the man walks towards the microphone, Magnus’ feels his surroundings slowing down like he’s in a movie. This guy walks like a model, with dark hair and stubble that looks intentional, wearing grey trousers and a light pink dress shirt with his sleeves folded up to his elbows. How are his forearms gorgeous? As a finishing touch, he wears a tie with cartoon clouds and rainbows.

He shakes the host’s hand, smiles to the audience and subtly tries to wave to someone, before speaking. “Thank you Valentine, for that introduction, and for doing a great job at hosting this evening so far. And of course, thank you to my friend Madzie here for treating us to that beautiful song.”

The audience applauds again, and the guy shares a smile with the girl on his arm, as she wraps her little arms around his neck. Magnus can feel himself melting.

“Madzie’s song makes a great point. The children are our future, and it is up for us to provide them the best possible start. For some children, this isn’t a given. And for kids and teens who discover that they’re gay or trans, for example… They face even more difficulties. Sometimes they get kicked out of their own homes. As a gay man myself, I’m sad to say that I know what that is like.”

The audience is very quiet, as he clears his throat to carry on.

“That is why we’ve organized this evening. I’m proud to announce that we, as The Max, are working together with the Trevor Project to provide a safe space for all LGTBQ youth. We’re planning to run special workshops where these youth, regardless of background and orientation, can meet up with each other and share experiences. Or talk to one of our trained volunteers. We want to provide other emergency resources as well, and education to family members.”

He pauses and looks around the room. “As you can see, our volunteers are passing through the aisles with donation baskets. So please, give all you can. Now… We’re happy to get the kind of money that jingles, but we’d rather get the kind that folds,” he adds, with a youthful grin.

The baskets are passing through the rows and the chatter of people fills the room. One of them makes its way into Magnus’, but he can’t seem to take his eyes off the man on stage, who’s still holding the little girl. They seem to have a conversation away from the microphone, while she plays with his rainbow tie.

Ragnor clears his throat and holds up a bunch of 50 dollar bills folded together, that he still had on him after the shopping trip. “You wanted to donate something, right? We only have bills of 50 so it’s gonna be pretty generous I reckon-”

Magnus mindlessly grabs the entire stack and puts it in the basket and hands it off. He can feel Ragnor’s astonishment, but he doesn’t care - this man on stage is perfect and he wants him. In every possible way.

The chatter dies down as the volunteers carry the baskets onto the stage.

Mr. Perfect moves towards the microphone again. “Thank you so much. Without you -our audience- this evening would not have been a success. And we still have some amazing performances for you, so I’m going to hand this microphone back to Valentine!”

Under loud applause he smiles, bows gently, and walks off the stage. The volunteers carrying the baskets follow him.

Magnus whimpers and elbows Ragnor repeatedly in his side.

“Ouch, knock it off! What the hell was that for?” he whispers angrily while rubbing his hand over his ribcage.

“I think I’m in love,” Magnus whispers back, his eyes following this Alexander Lightwood.

Ragnor rolls his eyes. While Magnus is mentally planning his coronation alongside this beautiful man who’s apparently great with children because of course he’s perfect like that, he wonders if after this trip Ragnor’s eyes will be stuck spinning around in his sockets.

“-not able to donate money, maybe you can donate some of your time. At The Max we’re always looking for new volunteers! You’ll be able to make a real difference in the lives of our children. At the exit our staff will answer all of your questions and they’re ready to sign you right up!” Valentine gestures towards the exit, before announcing the next act.

Magnus stops listening after the call for new volunteers. He slowly turns his head towards Ragnor with the biggest grin on his face. “My friend, I just got the best idea!”

“No. Oh no. Definitely not!”

Chapter 3: Bane, Magnus Bane

“I hate you.”

“Don’t be silly Ragnor, you love me.” Magnus says, as he looks into an old mirror on the wall. They’ve been given a stack of polos with the community center’s logo on it, with the apology that most common sizes are sadly out.

Magnus snagged what was apparently the only small adult sized shirt out of the pile, because when he turns he sees Ragnor in a shirt several sizes too big. It hangs on Ragnor’s lean frame, the overall droopy look not helped by his expression. He looks annoyed, frustrated, overall done and everything in between.

“Come on now, just… French tuck it into your jeans. It’ll help.” Magnus suggests. He looks back at the mirror. His own shirt is probably a bit too snug, but if anything, it makes it cling to all the right places. He’s here on a mission, after all.

“Why can’t I wear the smaller size? Your shoulders are broader than mine.”

“Because I’m the prince, and technically, you’re my servant. Plus, I’m here to woo a certain someone.”

Ragnor shrugs his zip-up hoodie over his shirt and walks up to Magnus. He puts his hands on his shoulders and sighs.

“Magnus, I’m going to be honest with you. I love you and you’re my best friend, but this is by far the worst idea you have ever had.” he says, while looking straight at him.

Magnus wants to look away, but Ragnor demands eye contact.

“What do you think will happen? That within 87 days, the pretty boy will fall in love with you, and he won’t be upset when he finds out you’ve neglected to tell him that he’s expected to rule a country? And aside from that, you don’t actually know the guy! Sure, he made an impression up on that stage and honestly, it’s quite unfair how handsome he is, but you don’t know him. Hell, he might as well be in a relationship already.”

Magnus knows he’s right and it stings. The fear of having to go back to Edom and marry Camille feels like a heavy weight that’s crushing his chest. He looks at Ragnor and fights the urge to cry.

He tries to find his voice, and what he says comes out sounding a lot more vulnerable than he intended. “Please… I-I can’t just-I got this feeling when I saw him. Like… You just know, you know? I have to try, Ragnor. I have to.”

He’s thankful Ragnor knows him so well.

“OK. I really don’t agree with this, but I get it. Let’s see what we can do.”

---

They step out of the staff room they were allowed to change in, and one of the girls who performed as part of the dance group is waiting for them.

“Sorry again guys, the new shirts should be coming in soon and we’ll get you better fitting ones.” she apologizes, as she takes the shirts back from Ragnor and puts them back on a shelf.

“So, like I said, I’m Maia. I’m one of the volunteer team managers. I’m here a couple of days a week when school allows it, so, we’ll be seeing a lot of each other!” she claps her hands together and flashes them a friendly smile. “When I’m not here, there’s Clary, and Aline helps out when she has time. They’ll stop before the end of your shift so you’ll get to meet them today. Just so you know who to go to when you have questions.”

Magnus likes this energetic woman, she looks strong and mature despite her youthful face.

“What are you majoring in?” Magnus asks as she leads them to where they’ll be working.

“Marine biology, at Columbia.” she looks proud, and rightfully so. Magnus is impressed, and whistles between his teeth.

“I know,” she laughs, “I worked so hard to get in. I didn’t have a great home situation, I barely graduated high school and I didn’t even apply to any colleges. But then I found this center, I made some great friends and they got me to a better place. I started out taking classes at a local community college and ended up transferring to Columbia.”

She stops in front of cleaning supplies, and grabs hold of the wooden handle of the mop, and rolls the bucket forward.

“You know, people think that we’re exaggerating when we tell our volunteers you're changing lives by helping us out. But it’s true, and I am proof of that. So thank you guys, and welcome to the family,” she smiles, and looks at Magnus as she rolls the cleaning supplies towards him.

“So to start, we like to mop the floor every morning. You know how to mop, right?” she asks, looking at Magnus. He has never even touched a mop before in his life, but how hard could it be, really? So he nods, and she takes Ragnor to another room, who shoots Magnus one last look of disdain.

Mopping the floor turns out to be more work than he thought, but, after getting some help from a blond guy who introduced himself as Andrew Underhill in the small café attached to the center, he finds a good rhythm.

To make the chore more fun, he hums his favorite songs and adds some subtle dance moves. He hasn’t seen anyone other than Maia and Andrew, and they’re busy. Plus, the entrance of the building is just spacious enough, it’s honestly begging to be danced in.

Caught up in his smooth moves, he apparently stopped paying any attention to his surroundings because he dances right into someone, who then grabs his arms to steady him. Magnus spins around to apologize when his breath catches.

It’s him, and dammit, he is even more stunning up close. His eyes are intense and a shade of hazel he has never seen before. He’s tall, and broad-shouldered, and still looks amazing in a suit. His hair is a dark shade of brown and fluffy, like he’s been running his hands through it. Magnus knows he has never felt this kind of instant attraction to someone before.

And, if he’s not mistaken, he sees appreciation in Alexander Lightwood’s eyes, as he catches him running them over his body. Silently he thanks the heavens for this ridiculously tight shirt, because it looks like it’s working. He smirks at Alexander, who flushes a bit pink as he finds himself caught.

Magnus pulls himself together quickly. “I’m so sorry for bumping into you, but above all, good morning. I believe we haven’t been formally introduced?” he says as smooth as he can manage in front of this beautiful man, and holds out his hand.

“I’m Alexander. Lightwood. Well, Alec, really,” he says with a genuine, lopsided smile. “I own the center, together with my mother. I haven’t seen you around before, are you one of our new volunteers?”

“Yes! Your speech during the Rainbow Rally was more than inspiring, I just had to sign myself up!” Magnus flashes him a broad smile. They seem to realize at the same that they’re still holding hands, and they awkwardly let go at once.

“That’s eh, that’s great to hear, we do amazing work here and your time is appreciated,” Alec smiles adorably shy. “I didn’t catch your name though?”

“Oh, my name is Magnus,” he says, cocking his head.

“Just Magnus?”

“Yes?”

“You don’t have a last name?”

Well, shit. He actually doesn't have one. He certainly can’t tell Alexander that it’s not just Magnus, but His Royal Highness Asmodeus Magnus III, Prince of Edom - but no one had asked him for a normal last name, until now. His mind goes blank and he fears his charming expression has now turned into ‘deer caught in headlights’, as his eyes shoot across the room. They land on a couple of framed Batman comics hanging on the wall.

“...Bane?” he blurts out, immediately regretting his choice. Alexander’s eyebrows shoot up, probably because he’s making it sound like he’s asking him a question.

“Yes, Bane. Magnus Bane.” he nods, because there’s no way he can take it back now without making the situation worse.

Alec doesn’t look convinced, as he asks, “Are you sure?”

“Yes, of course I’m sure, I know what my own last name is,” he says jokingly. His heart beats fast and he feels his cheeks heating up, this time it’s not because of his brand new crush standing in front of him, but because he fears he has no choice but to double down. “I know it sounds weird in English, but it’s actually quite common where I’m from.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to make fun of your name, I-” Alec immediately rushes out with a concerned expression.

“It’s quite alright, darling,” he says. He hates to admit it, but Ragnor was right: he already feels awful lying to this man’s face, and this was only the first time. But he himself decided to make this very normal bed, and he’s stubborn if nothing else, so now he’ll lie in it.

Alec gives him a soft smile. “Well, I better get going, I have a meeting to prepare for.”

“Yes, of course. Hopefully we’ll get the chance to talk again. On a professional level,” Magnus says.

Alec rubs his hands together. “I- It was nice meeting you,” he says, still smiling, and turns to leave.

“Oh, Alexander!” Magnus calls out after he’s a few steps away. He turns back around again and looks at him questioningly.

“I have recently been placed in charge of garbage disposal, so… If you have anything that requires disposal, don’t be afraid to call on me. I’ll come take it out most urgently,” he says.

“That’s… Good to know.” Alec says, with an expression between confusion and laughter.

“When you think of garbage, think of Magnus!” he exclaims with the biggest grin he can muster.

Alexander nods, now visibly trying to hold back his laughter, and turns around again to walk towards the offices.

“...Oh, you fucking dumbass.” Magnus whispers to himself, and watches him walk away. He turns to the wall and thumps his head against it. The only thing going for him right now is that Ragnor wasn’t here to witness this exchange.

---

The rest of the week goes by quietly. He and Ragnor volunteer a shift every day, much to Ragnor’s annoyance. Most days he manages to greet Alec, but he hasn’t gotten the opportunity to really talk to him. Yet he is crushing harder and harder on this captivating man with every smile they exchange.

In the meanwhile, he has started to befriend the volunteer coordinators, Maia and Clary. They’re both still in college, which nearly made Magnus blow his cover as a fake student. He’s also getting along well with Andrew, who manages the café, even though he’s very flirty - even for Magnus’ taste.

It’s the weekend, and Magnus has taken up a volunteering shift by himself, letting Ragnor sleep back at the apartment. Although he’s sure he’s secretly planning to video chat with Cat while Magnus is out, which makes him happier than he thought it would.

There’s a lot of kids running around this Saturday, as most classes are held during the weekend, and Magnus spots little Madzie from the rally. He had a coffee in the morning with Clary, who hosts several painting classes today. And also he met her boyfriend Jace, who introduced himself as being in charge of the boxing and judo programs. Jace also turned out to be Alexander’s brother, even though they look nothing alike.

Magnus is helping Andrew out and having a pretty good time. He’s wiping down the counter as Alec walks in, and even in a plain black sweater he looks unfairly good. He’s trying to think of an excuse to go and talk to him, until he sees him sitting down at a table where a sharp -yet boring- dressed Desi looking man had been sitting for a while. The guy smiles, stands up to lean over the table to grab Alec’s chin and kisses him.

Magnus knows he doesn’t have any right to, but he feels like someone kicked him in the stomach. Of course this perfect man isn’t single, what was he thinking? He takes some deep breaths to gather himself and turns to Andrew.

“So… That’s Alexander’s... boyfriend?” he asks, and while he tries to go for casual he knows he’s probably failing. Spectacularly.

Andrew grimaces. “Yup. They’ve been together for a while now. He’s such a douchebag.”

Magnus turns his head in shock. “Who, Alexander?!”

“No, what the hell, of course not,” Andrew scoffs as he finishes polishing a tea glass. “He’s a literal angel. Too good for this world, especially with what he’s been through. We’ve been friends since college, he got me this job and everything after this thing that happened with my ex Lorenzo…” Andrew trails off for a bit. “Doesn't matter. I meant Raj.”

Andrew throws the dishcloth over his shoulder and moves closer to him to mimic Magnus’ pose, leaning on the counter with his elbows. They try to look at the couple as subtle as they can.

“So… what’s the deal with Raj then?” Magnus asks quietly.

“Look. Some details are important to the story, but they’re just not my place to tell you. So this is gonna be vague on purpose.” Andrew looks down at his hands and plays with the watch on his wrist. “Alec met Raj when he was in a bad place. Really bad. He was so vulnerable and Raj… He just swooped in and didn’t take no for an answer, I guess? I don’t think Raj ever takes no for an answer. He always gets what he wants,” he scoffs. “And…”

Magnus looks at him questioningly.

“And he’s why Alec went through a time where he hardly spent time with his friends anymore, me included.” The blond man has now taken his watch from his wrist and fidgets with the strap.

“Raj, he gets jealous a lot. Like, I’m gay too, and therefore I’m obviously trying to get into Alec’s pants. Or so he said. Don’t get me wrong, Alec is definitely the most handsome man I have ever seen but like… He’s my friend. I don’t see him like that, at all. You know what I mean?”

“I do. I’m bi, and I’ve had to deal with this kind of stuff too,” Magnus sighs. “Like because you’re not straight, you’re automatically attracted to anyone you talk to.”

“Right? That’s exactly what I mean. I’m sorry, man. No one deserves that kind of shit, especially not based on their sexuality.” He puts his hand on Magnus’ shoulder and gives him a kind smile.

“Anyway, Alec was so broken and I think at some point, he was glad that Raj was making decisions for him because he was so burned out. About two years ago, his brother and sister, his other two best friends and I, we held some kind of intervention. Told him things were not OK the way they were. And he listened. He got himself some therapy and now he’s smiling again. This past year has been really good for him.”

“So, they must be pretty serious, if they’re still together,” Magnus says.

“I know Raj is. I mean, as serious as you can be about someone you really only want as a trophy husband. But Alec… I don’t know. Of course he cares for him, but I feel like he stays with him out of obligation. It’s hard to break up with someone after being together for a few years. But they don’t live together, like, Alec still lives with his siblings. Every conversation where Raj or Maryse brings up moving in together or getting married… He’s tense immediately, laughs everything off and changes the topic at lightspeed. So if you ask me, he’s not happy and this thing,” he gestures in their general direction, “Is not gonna last. But he won’t talk about it. At least, not to me.”

Magnus feels bad about how hopeful hearing all this gossip makes him, so he tries to ask something less loaded. “Maryse?”

“Maryse Trueblood, his mom, she’s the one he owns this place with. She’s on vacation now somewhere in the Caribbean but she’ll be back next week. Strong, passionate, and honest to God terrifying when she’s angry. But really sweet when you’re on her good side,” Andrew drags the dishcloth from his shoulder and slaps it against the counter. “So that’s that. If anyone brings it up, remember - act surprised, you know nothing.”

“It’ll be like brand new information,” Magnus nods.

“Exactly. And Magnus?”

“Yeah?”

“If you’re looking for a date, I’m single, you know,” Andrew winks and walks to the back.

Magnus laughs and shakes his head.

---

After his shift, Magnus bundles up again and walks home. It hasn’t snowed for the last two days, so the sidewalks are still mostly clear.

Everything Andrew had told him is dancing through his mind. He feels awful for being excited about his crush allegedly being unhappy in his current relationship, and picturing himself as the knight in shining armor who’s going to save him and live happily ever after as kings of Edom.

But what is he going to do, sabotage a relationship? Seduce Alexander and have him cheat on his boyfriend? No, he has been cheated on himself, he won’t make someone else go through that kind of pain. No matter how awful they allegedly are.

And who says Andrew is even right? He might as well be seeing what he wants to see because he wanted his friend back.

But if Alexander is unhappy… It can’t hurt to befriend him and be painfully charming, right? What does he have to lose? His worst-case scenario is having to go back to Edom and marry Camille. Plus, Magnus did always like a challenge… But how is he going to grab Alec’s attention?

“You’re thinking so loud, it’s making my head hurt, son.”

Magnus jumps a little at the sudden interruption from his stream of thoughts, until he sees a familiar old man sitting on a bench by himself.

He smiles and bows his head a little. “Good afternoon, Mr. Hodge.”

“Come, sit. Tell old Hodge what’s wrong. No, wait,” he points his finger at Magnus and squints at him. “Let me guess, it’s girl trouble.”

Magnus sits down next to him and fumbles with his gloves. “...Kinda?”

Hodge nods. “Ah, I see. Boy trouble. Basically the same thing, right?”

Magnus chortles. “Yeah. Yeah, I suppose it is.”

“Tell me about it, and we’ll fix it, son.”

“So, I’m trying to gain the attention of a certain young man, but…” Magnus starts.

“And you’re sure he isn’t heterosexual?” Hodge interrupts.

“Oh yes, very sure,” Magnus says.

“Is this an American boy?”

“I don’t know? I think so?” Magnus has no idea what that has to do with anything.

“You see, son, when you’re trying to attract the attention of a nice American boy or girl, you gotta get in well with their parents! This is a common misconception, it’s got nothing to do with you or what you look like. If you get in good with the folks, you get in good with your sweetheart.” Hodge finishes.

Magnus looks at him. He’s not convinced, and it must show on his face.

“I ain’t lying!” Hodge sounds a little insulted.

“Well, in that case, thank you for your wisdom.” Magnus stands up again and continues his walk home.

---

Hodge’s advice in the back of his head, he finds himself behind the café counter with Andrew next Wednesday. And while he likes Maia and Clary -or Helen and Aline, who he spent time with in between their dance classes last Sunday- he doesn’t feel comfortable talking about this with anyone else.

Not that he tells Andrew about his ulterior motives with Alexander, of course.

The central theme of this week had been the return of Maryse Trueblood. Andrew’s description had been pretty accurate. While mopping the floor, he had heard her talk on the phone with a delivery company who hadn’t held up their end of the deal. None of her rant was directed at him, but he felt put in his place all the same.

And save from an introduction and some greetings, he wasn’t actually able to “get in good” with Maryse at all. In fact, a compliment about her beautiful latest collection Burberry trench coat had only resulted in an expression of which he wasn’t even sure what it had meant to convey. But whatever it was, it wasn’t pleased.

The return of Maryse did make him wonder about Alexander’s father. The fact that he was Lightwood and his mother Trueblood, he assumed his parents had gone through a divorce. To avoid awkward conversations, he figured he should subtly ask Andrew.

It’s a Wednesday morning, and they’re cleaning everything the elderly yoga class has left behind after their post-workout tea party.

“Hey Andrew?”

“Yes, Magnus? Are you finally gonna ask me out?” he grins.

“No, not exactly,” Magnus rolls his eyes. “I was just wondering, is Maryse divorced?”

Andrew’s flirty expression immediately drops to an uncomfortable one. “Why do you ask?”

Magnus feels glad he didn’t ask Alexander or Maryse in person if this is Andrew’s reaction. He clears his throat. “Well, everyone talks about Alexander’s mother and brother and sister but I’ve never heard anyone talk about his father.”

“There’s a reason for that, and I don’t feel comfortable discussing the details of that, either. But yeah, Maryse and his father Robert did get a divorce about ten years ago, and a few years after the divorce he died. It’s still a loaded topic for everyone so… It’s probably best if you don’t bring it up yourself. If one of them wants to tell you at some point, they will.” Andrew concludes and moves to put the coffee cups away.

“Hi guys!” Magnus’ day suddenly gets brighter when Alexander walks past and waves at them. Andrew just waves back.

“Hi!” he replies, a little too dreamily.

His mood dampens when he sees him walking outside where Raj is waiting in his car, smoking out of the window. It’s a very nice sports car. Raj flicks the cigarette on the sidewalk as Alec walks around the car and gets into the passenger seat. Magnus can’t help but sigh a little as he watches them drive off.

“So Raj drives a really nice car,” he states.

“Yeah, he likes to brag,” Andrew scoffs.

“He must work hard if he can afford a car like that.”

Andrew barks out a laugh full of disdain. “What, prince Raj, work? You’ve got to be kidding me. He lives off his parents’ money. You went to the Rainbow Rally, right? You remember the guy hosting, with the goofy top hat?”

“I do,” Magnus says, biting on his bottom lip.

“That was Valentine Morgenstern, he’s Clary’s dad and one of the main sponsors of The Max. Anyway, he and his company developed that 4D-breaking-the-speed-barrier type internet, or whatever it’s called. Raj’s parents were wealthy before they invested in its development, but when that took off... “ he shakes his head. “They’re rich as royalty now. Raj technically works for them, but trust me, he hasn’t worked a single day in his life.”

The first thought that pops into Magnus’ mind is thinking that him being a wealthy prince shouldn’t be much of a dealbreaker for Alexander if he’s ok with this - and immediately kicking himself for it.

“He’s a cheap bastard though, when it concerns others,” Andrew continues, always happy to rant about Raj. “The other night after the Rainbow Rally, when Alexander had sorted out the donations he found out someone put like a whole bundle of 50 dollar bills in. Raj took credit for it, and that was a big fat lie,” he scoffs. “He hates Alec working at The Max, he thinks he’s naive and wasting his talent on something as dumb as a community center. Our friends privately agree with me, that he'd never donate anything, let alone that much. So I’m not making this up because I hate the guy.”

Magnus stills. He knows Andrew isn’t making it up, because it sounds exactly like the stack of money Ragnor handed him that night.

Andrew seemingly takes his silence as encouragement to keep on talking. “Like I said, Raj always gets what -or who- he wants. And he buys him the most extravagant shit. How are guys like us gonna ever compete with that, right?”

His tone is joking, but Magnus… He could. It wouldn’t even be a competition. Raj’s parents might be rich as proverbial royalty, but Magnus? He’s a literal royal. If he can’t follow Hodge’s advice and get in good with the folks, it wouldn’t hurt to try and buy him something extraordinary. Anonymously.

Right?

---

Alec has stretched his legs out on their L-shaped couch, finally reading that book that everyone has been talking about. He’s been so busy with work, and Raj had demanded a lot of attention, so he just hadn’t gotten around to it yet.

Izzy is dancing around the living room with exaggerated moves to the 90s medley she performed to during the fundraiser. He admires her. Often he wonders how someone can be both a technological genius and a social butterfly that knows how to move. He smiles fondly at her but shakes his head when she gestures at him to join her.

He’s not as shy as he used to be, but it takes effort for him to do the things that his job requires him to do - networking, finding new sponsors, public speaking. However he’s well aware of what he was like when he was younger, and has finally managed to be proud of himself and who he is becoming.

Flipping the page, he hears the doorbell as a background noise.

“I’ll get it!” Izzy yells and turns the music down, but still dances her way to the front door.

“Special… -ightwood?” is all he manages to overhear.

“Sure, where do I sign?” Whatever it is, Izzy sounds excited.

He hears the door close and Izzy walks back into the living room with a small, but expensive-looking gift bag. She all but throws herself down on the couch next to him, reaches into the bag and takes out a luxuriously wrapped box.

Alec laughs, this is something that would only happen to Izzy. “What’s that?”

“I don’t know, something for you,” she grins and she wiggles her eyebrows at him.

“What?” Alec says, surprised.

“Yeah, this guy was at the front door with like, security people. They said it was a special delivery for Mr. Alexander Lightwood,” she says.

Alec has no idea what this is about. Raj occasionally buys him expensive gaudy things. But he never gives them in private, because there’s no one to watch him flaunt his wealth - let alone having it delivered to his house when he won’t be there to brag about it.

While he feels a bit wary, his curiosity ends up winning.

“Well, do you mind if I open it, then?” he snatches the box from her hands and sticks out his tongue, like the mature older brother he is.

His hands feel too big for the delicate bows that hold the box together, but after some fumbling he manages to open the box. It reveals a beautiful classic Rolex watch with a moonphase mechanism. He is stunned.

Izzy whistles between her teeth. “Wow, this is the first thing Raj has bought you where he actually had your tastes in mind.”

Alec feels bad, but it’s another reason why he doubts it was Raj who sent the watch. He clears his throat and tries to find his voice. “Did it come with a card or anything?”

Picking the bag off the floor, Izzy rummages through the wrapping paper and finds a card. Her eyes widen comically as she reads out loud: “From an Admirer - NOT RAJ.”

She jumps up and slaps Alec’s arm. “Somebody has been messing around!”

“I am not, you know me better than that! And I don’t even know anyone with this kind of money, other than Raj. Or the Morgensterns,” Alec says, insulted that his baby sister would think that of him.

Izzy puts her hands in her sides and says, “I don’t care how much a man admires you, but no one gets anyone a gift like that unless they think they have a chance to get with you.”

Alec runs his fingers along the gold framing the face of the watch. Someone admires him. Enough to get him a watch that must have cost at least 20.000 dollars. And they did it anonymously.

But that someone also knows he has a boyfriend. Because he made sure that Alec knows it wasn’t a gift from said boyfriend. Is this a test to see if he’s faithful? From Raj? Maybe it’s a crude joke, trying to trick him into thinking someone cares about him.

“...Do you think it’s a real Rolex?” he asks Izzy with a small voice.

She seems to sense his inner turmoil and calms down to sit close to him. He lets her take the box, and looks at her while she inspects it.

“It has to be.”

He takes the box back and takes the watch from it. Izzy leans against him and puts her head on his shoulder.

“Are you gonna tell me what goes on in your head, or am I going to tell you?” she asks.

Alec sighs. Izzy can read him like an open book, in all capital letters. Where some people say it’s best not to push people and let them come to you in their own time, Izzy bulldozes right over his defenses and speaks her mind. Because otherwise he’d never talk, she says.

And she’s probably right. Secretly he’s glad when she decides to put into words what she thinks he’s thinking, because that way he doesn’t have to himself. It makes it easier.

So he says, “Go ahead.”

“I think that you’re not happy with your life right now. I think you don’t love Raj in the sense that you want to marry him and raise a family. I think you stay with him because you feel like you owe him after what happened. Honestly, I think that you’re still thinking you don’t deserve to be loved at all.”

Alec swallows thickly, and doesn’t try to stop her from saying the things he’s been trying too hard to keep down inside.

“And I think that by receiving this watch that has clearly been bought with you -and only you- in mind, you once again realize Raj doesn’t love you for you, he only loves you as an accessory for him. And it’s suffocating you.”

Alec lets out a shaky breath.

“I think you might be right,” he whispers.

---

It’s been another week and New York has been spared more snowfall. This has significantly improved Ragnor’s mood, although Magnus suspects that his early morning video chat sessions with Catarina have something to do with that as well.

Distance really does make the heart grow fonder, and it amuses him to no end. Especially since Ragnor seems under the impression that he’s being very subtle about it.

What Ragnor hasn’t been subtle about however, is his disapproval of the anonymous Rolex delivery. In fact, he has been very vocal about what an awful idea he thinks it was.

Today they have been placed on sanitation duty and they’re cleaning the windows of the lobby on the inside. Outside, Alexander is walking up to the building, accompanied by two women he’s never seen before. He sees Magnus and waves at him with that shy smile that makes his knees go weak.

“Ragnor, there he is. And I’m going to talk to him.”

“Good!” Ragnor tosses his cloth in a bucket. “Tell him you sent him that 25,000 dollar watch, then he can fall into your arms and we can leave this godforsaken place.”

“No, I cannot do that,” Magnus says indignantly.

“Well, do something!”

“Don’t worry, I do have a plan,” he says.

Ragnor throws his signature eye roll. “What are you gonna do, mop your way into his heart?

The comment rubs Magnus the wrong way. “That, my friend, is not fair.”

“What’s not fair is me doing manual labor.” Ragor grumbles and stares down at his hands. “I am badly in need of a manicure.”

Magnus barks out a laugh. “Oh listen to you, I am badly in need of a manicure,” he mocks. “People will think you’re the pampered prince, not me.”

Ragnor turns to him and it looks like he’s debating on punching his arm, or come up with a spectacular rebuttal - but he does neither.

Magnus lifts an eyebrow. “Were you going to say something?”

Ragnor visibly gives up, picks up his cloth again and goes back to cleaning windows.

---

While putting back the window cleaning equipment in the supply closet, he spots Alexander and the two women at the café. He excuses himself to Maia for a bit as he shrugs off the zip-up hoodie to leave him in that snug fitting polo. Confidently he walks in the direction of the café, when he sees Andrew joining them.

It turns out he doesn’t even need to think of an excuse, because Andrew notices him and waves him over. He feels butterflies in his stomach when he comes close to the table and sees Alexander wearing his new watch. It looks amazing on his wrist, just like he imagined it would.

“Guys, this is my new friend Magnus!” Andrew introduces him to the table. “He’s from Indonesia and started volunteering here a few weeks ago.”

“We’ve met,” Alexander smiles. “Please, take a seat.”

Magnus grabs a chair from another table and sits at the head.

The brown-haired girl next to him sticks out her hand, “Good to meet you Magnus, I’m Becky!” She has a contagious smile and bright dark eyes and has a very friendly, approachable energy to her.

She leans her shoulder into the blond woman next to her, who looks very calm and put together. “This is my wife,” she says.

The blond woman smiles and holds out her hand as well. “Lydia, nice to meet you,” she says. Her blue eyes are sharp, like they’re not about to miss anything that’s going on.

“So, Andrew says you’re from Indonesia, what brings you to New York? And The Max?” Lydia asks.

Magnus figured out a while ago it’s easier to just go with people mistakenly thinking he’s Indonesian. He feels like it makes it less likely for anyone to recognize him, even though the odds of someone recognizing the crown prince of a small Southeast Asian island nation are already pretty slim.

“I’m a student, my friend and I are here for our research. And at the Rainbow Rally, Alexander here inspired us so, that we figured we might as well take the opportunity to gain this valuable experience and do some good,” Magnus says. He can feel himself smiling dreamily at Alec, who returns a smile and looks a bit flustered at the praise.

Lydia cuts in with what feels like a rude awakening. “That’s nice, what university do you go to?”

“...The University of-of the United States,” Magnus blurts out.

Becky looks at him with a confused expression. “I’ve never heard of that.”

Magnus finds his most awkward smile again and shrugs. “It is a very small private university. We do not even have our own basketball team.”

Andrew jumps in at that. “Oh, we have an extra ticket for the Knicks game this weekend, wanna come?”

Magnus finds Alexander’s eyes who smiles at him again, with a soft nod and an expression that he feels says why not join us?

“Yes,” Magnus breathes out.

“Great!” Becky claps her hands together excitedly. “It’s a triple date!”

It’s a what now?!

“It’ll be Becky and Lydia, me and Raj, and you can be Underhill’s date,” Alec says.

Andrew grins at him and lifts his eyebrows.

Oh, Magnus thinks.

That took an unexpected turn.

Chapter 4: Learning to walk, run, climb and dance

Magnus has no idea what normal people wear to a sporting event. On top of that, basketball is pretty much a nonexistent sport in Edom. But he has seen movies, and from his limited research, people seem to wear shirts with team logos on it. Since he’s supposed to be a foreign student on a budget, he feels like he can’t go and buy one.

Instead, he dresses like he imagines a normal, casual date to be like. He picks a floral blue button down, and leaves a few unbuttoned at the top. He tucks his shirt into slim fit jeans and lets his feet slide into his boots. He didn’t bring any jewelry, so this’ll have to do. While he usually wears a topknot when volunteering, for this day out he feels like he could pull off a mohawk along with some sparkly black eyeliner.

Ragnor still thinks he’s dumb as fuck for voluntarily leaving the apartment in this weather, but Magnus doesn’t care. It might be a triple date, but it’s still a date. He can show off his good side and if nothing else, experience some more normal real life things, like going to a sports event with friends.

They had agreed to meet each other outside of Madison Square Garden. Magnus has no intention of making a bad impression by showing up late, but when he arrives he is surprised to find Becky and Lydia already standing there.

It is nice getting to know two of Alec’s best friends, to learn about their hobbies and work. Becky talks about how she and Alec were only out to each other for the majority of their teenage years, being the only queer kids at their school. They end up talking about how Alexander had introduced Becky and Lydia during their college years, and how it had been love at first sight. And the time he went shopping for engagement rings with Lydia, and helped her set up the surprise proposal. Magnus didn’t think he could be even more taken by this man if he tried.

Soon after they are joined by Andrew, and the conversation shifts to excitement about the game, and how good their seats supposedly are. Becky and Andrew are throwing player names around like it’s a competition, and Lydia leans towards Magnus and confides in him that she has absolutely no interest whatsoever in basketball, but makes an effort because her wife loves it.

Ten minutes later they are joined by Raj and Alec. Raj holds his hand stiffly around Alec’s waist, who in turn has his hands in the front pockets of his jeans. He smiles when he sees his friends and that’s their cue to head into the venue.

Magnus calmly follows the group, who seem to know exactly where they need to go. He notices that five minutes ago the conversation involved everyone, and it is now dominated by Raj. Who is apparently responsible for these great tickets, because of his amazing connections. He catches Andrew’s eyes, who in turn makes a strangling motion with his hands. Magnus snorts.

They find their section and row and Magnus walks in after Lydia, Becky and Andrew. On his other side he finds Raj, and Alec and his long legs get the seat next to the staircase.

He realizes that he has never actually talked to Raj before. And now that he’s sitting next to him, he doesn’t know what to say. He realizes he’s probably biased anyway, now that Andrew found in him an outlet for all his Raj-related complaints.

The game begins. Magnus sits back, and lets his eyes roam over the circus before him. The action on the court, real cheerleaders on the side, the enthusiastic fans in the stands. He rubs his hands over his upper legs.

“Wearing jeans must be a new experience for you.” Raj says.

Magnus doesn’t know how fast to turn his head to the man in disbelief.

Alec looks very uncomfortable and before Magnus can say anything, he looks at Magnus. “Are you able to follow the game?” he asks with an apologetic smile.

“Yes, I’m able to follow the game quite well,” Magnus gives Alec a polite nod back. He feels Andrew patting his knee in support.

“So what game do you play in the Philippines, Indonesia, wherever the hell you’re from? Chase the monkey?” Raj laughs at his own pathetic excuse for a joke, eyes not leaving the court.

Magnus sighs deep, forcing himself to not take the bait. “No, we mostly play football. I believe you call it soccer.”

“Soccer,” Raj scoffs. “Yeah, that’s a real funny sport, real manly. How y’all bounce that ball off your heads. I’m sorry, but that’s just not a real sport. I don’t watch any sport where men are afraid to use their hands.”

At this point Magnus fears that regardless of what he says, Raj will mock it. He’s never had to encounter anything like this - he’s the sole heir to the throne of a wealthy island paradise. People usually bend over backwards to accommodate him.

He guesses it looks like Andrew might have been right about this guy after all. But right now, he’s had enough and figures he could use a nice long walk to the restrooms. “Will you excuse me for a moment, please…”

Alec’s expression is hurt and looks like he’s about to say something, but Magnus purposely avoids his eyes as he gets up and shuffles out of the row.

“Do you want me to go with you?” Andrew calls after him.

“No, I’ll be able to find the restrooms by myself, don’t worry,” he smiles without meaning it and walks up the stairs out of the arena.

---

There’s an impressive line, even for the men’s room. But Magnus doesn’t mind. It gives him the opportunity to calm down a little, and above all, do some people watching. There’s elderly people in jerseys, parents with young children on their shoulders, adorable teenage couples walking hand in hand.

He sees a concessions vendor walking past him with a tray of goods, their eyes met and he nods kindly at him as he walks past. A few seconds later he hears a man screaming.

“Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness! It is YOU!” the vendor exclaims. “I cannot believe it!”

“Oh!” He falls to his knees and takes his Knicks cap from his head, and holds his hands out to him like he’s his savior. “Greetings, Your Highness!”, after which he starts bowing rapidly, his hands over his heart.

Magnus panics and he feels his entire face flushing.

This man knows who he is.

The entire line to the men’s restroom has stopped and is staring at the scene unfolding in front of them, that must look odd even for New York standards. He leans towards the man and reaches his hands out to him. “Please sir, please stop bowing,” he urges with a fake smile. He looks around him, but thankfully doesn’t recognize anyone standing around.

The vendor grabs his hands and looks up at him and his eyes are full of wonder. “I am a loyal citizen of Edom!” he says loudly, seemingly unaware of the scene he’s making.

“Yes, but you’re going to spill your beverages,” Magnus keeps urging. “Please sir, please stand up.”

The vendor’s mouth falls open. “This is the greatest day of my life,” he says, and based on his expression, Magnus believes him. He feels bad to disappoint his loyal subject, but he can’t be found out.

“Yes, it was very nice meeting you too. Please excuse me!” he puts up his widest smile and smoothly walks himself out of the line and back into the corridor, towards the entrance of where their row was located.

He sees Alexander and Andrew walking towards him, probably worried because he was taking so long. He takes a deep breath and gives them a small wave, letting them know he’s OK.

“Please! Please!” The pleads get louder and he hears someone running behind him.

He turns around and is immediately face to face with the vendor from before. He has a co-worker with him now, who is holding a phone. “May I just have my picture taken with you?” he pleads. Magnus shrugs uncomfortably and the guy moves to stand next to him.

The vendor, in his excitement, wraps his arm around Magnus, takes off his cap again and places it over his heart. They pose, Magnus forces a smile that’s too toothy, and his coworker snaps a few quick pictures.

The guy turns to face him again and beams, “I will cherish this experience for the rest of my life.”

Trying to make the situation seem more natural Magnus offers him a handshake, but instead he bows, and makes sure to connect his forehead to Magnus’ hand.

“The rest of my life,” he seems to pledge, and repeats the motion. After him, the photographer walks up to him and mimics the forehead-to-hand bow.

Giddy like a pair of starstruck teens the two walk away, leaving Magnus alone with Alexander and Andrew, who look gobsmacked. They look between themselves and back at Magnus with open mouths, so he awkwardly scratches the back of his neck and smiles weakly at them gesturing to the entrance to the arena.

But they don’t move an inch. Alexander is the first one to find his voice. “...Who was that?”

“Oh, just… A man I met in the restroom.” he nods with an awkward smile, and decides to just walk back to his seat, eventually followed by his friends.

---

Magnus doesn’t see Alexander around The Max for the next couple of days after the game. Somehow he’s glad, hoping he’ll have forgotten about the whole picture-with-a-random-stranger thing next time they see each other. When he does see him again it’s a Wednesday afternoon, and he’s sitting in the café at a table near the window.

With Raj.

Magnus is mopping a corner of the café where some mothers and unruly toddlers had previously had lunch, with the remnants of said lunch smeared across the tables and floor. Ragnor laughed at him when Maia asked him to clean it, while he got to help her out with some paperwork.

He doesn’t mind though, because from where he’s cleaning he can overhear Raj and Alec.

“Babe, why don’t you quit this job?” Raj asks him.

“Because I love it here,” Alec says defensively. “Mom and I made this place into what it is today.”

“Yeah, but everything runs smoothly now, right? You’re my man, and my man doesn’t have to work. I’ll take care of you. I’ll get you everything you want.”

Alexander’s shoulders are hunched and he’s making himself look a lot smaller than he is, while his hands are in front of him as Raj holds onto them.

“What can I get you?” Raj asks.

Magnus can hear a tired smile in Alec’s voice as he says, “Nothing, Raj, I’m fine.”

Raj doesn’t seem to take no for an answer. “I’ll get you some… Coffee?”

That gets a more genuine smile out of Alec. “Sure. Coffee is good,” he tells him.

“Be right back.” Raj says, as he gets up from the table.

Magnus takes this opportunity to mop his way over to Alec, but pretends he doesn’t notice him.

“Hey, Magnus!” Alec says, and Magnus turns to see him smiling at him from where he’s leaning on the table. “Did you have a good time at the game?”

“Yes I did, thank you very much for inviting me,” Magnus smiles.

“Sit down, take a break for me,” Alec gestures to the chair Raj had been sitting in, and Magnus doesn’t have to think twice.

Alec stares at his hands, and lightly pinches the skin between his thumb and his index finder.

He swallows. “I- I wanted to apologize for Raj’s behavior at the game. I can’t believe the things he said to you, they were extremely offensive. Even for him. He can be quite obnoxious,” he says quietly, looking up at Magnus through his long lashes.

Magnus is captivated by his eyes. He’s never met anyone before whose eyes seemed to take the concept of mirror to the soul so literally. So he shrugs. “I’m sure he cannot help it.”

Alexander gives him a soft, lopsided smile. “You know, you’re a very unusual guy. I’ve never seen anyone mop the floor with so much pride as you put into it.”

Magnus chuckles. “Well, you know what they say… He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to walk and run and climb and dance; one cannot fly into flying.”

The expression in Alec’s eyes is wondrous, and Magnus wants nothing more than to lean across the table and kiss him. But he can’t, so instead he clarifies, “That was not mine, that was Nietzsche.”

“See!” Alec says with unexpected passion, laying his hand over Magnus’, “That’s exactly what I mean. Most of our volunteers don’t go around mopping floors while quoting Nietzsche,” he laughs.

Magnus smiles back, but before he gets a chance to reply, he hears Maia scream.

He twists in his seat to look at what’s going on, and he sees a wild eyed young man with a knife in the middle of the café.

Ragnor has stepped in front of Maia, who is visibly shaking.

“How could you do this to me? You said you would love me forever!” he slurs, clearly under the influence of something. The café has gotten so silent, you could hear a pin drop.

Still, he spins around, holding his knife out in front of him. “Everybody shut the fuck up!”

“Jordan, please, don’t do this,” Maia sobs.

“Well, I have to now!” He stumbles towards her, swaying on his feet. “This is all your fault!”

Magnus feels like he has to do something. So he’s going to do what he has been training for all these years. He twists the wooden handle off the mop he was still holding on to, trying to meet Ragnor’s eyes. When they do, he quietly gestures towards the handle and Ragnor blinks fast, twice. Magnus knows he’s catching on.

“Excuse me for a moment, Alexander,” he whispers, but continues to look at Jordan’s back.

He gets up and holds the handle of the mop in front of him. Jordan hears his footsteps as he swings around, and stumbles a bit to the side, still swinging the knife around. He looks confused.

“Please, it would be wise of you to put the knife down,” Magnus says gently.

Jordan stumbles some more. “Who the fuck do you think you are? Stay out of this,” he shouts, making unsteady stabbing motions.

“Please refrain from using profanities in the presence of these people.” Magnus continues in a voice much calmer than he feels. “This is my last warning. Put the knife down or I will be forced to thrash you.”

“Fuck you!” is all Jordan manages to sputter out, before Magnus grabs his stick and with some swift hits he works him to the ground. Ragnor immediately rushes in to step on his wrist and takes the knife from him, while Magnus keeps him on the ground.

A collective sigh of relief sounds through the seating area. Maia falls into Andrew’s arms and cries as he strokes her back.

---

Jordan, who turned out to be Maia’s ex-boyfriend turned stalker, is swiftly dealt with by the authorities. A replacement is called for Maia, who was immediately taken home by Alexander. He must have stayed with her, because Magnus doesn’t see him return to the center.

Surprisingly enough, Maryse ended up calling him and Ragnor to her office to personally thank them. She shared a bit about how after their break-up Jordan had stopped by The Max before, but never armed and under the influence.

Maryse asks them if they are available upcoming Saturday evening, and if they would like to help her out with a private matter. Magnus immediately says yes for obvious reasons, which greatly upsets Ragnor.

And that’s how they find themselves standing outside in the cold in front of a nice place in the Upper East Side, as waiting staff for a small party Maryse was hosting. She asks Ragnor to stay by the door to welcome people in and take their coats, as she touches Magnus’ shoulder and asks him if he would like a tour of the place.

Desperate to impress, he follows her around and listens attentively. The best part of this tour are the pictures of young Alexander with what must be his three siblings.

Maryse looks at Magnus. “You know, I grew up with a single mother and a few siblings in a house not much bigger than this floor. And look where I am today,” While she makes it sound like an accomplishment she is proud of, she looks sad. She runs her finger along the picture of a little boy, sitting on the floor, reading a comic book. “I just wish the circumstances would have been a little different.”

“You have a beautiful home and family, ma’am,” Magnus smiles.

“Please, call me Maryse,” She breathes out and stands tall again, and smiles back at him. “And thank you. Maybe one day, with hard work, you can have a place like this of your own.”

Magnus thinks of Edom, of their palace, their family mansion up in the mountains, their private beach resort, their many properties around the world but says, “That would be something.”

“Wouldn’t it?” Maryse’s smile is kind and genuine. He figures she means well. “Come, I’ll show you the bar.”

Maryse explains his duties for the evening, which seem to boil down to keeping everyone’s glasses full. Ragnor walks around with a tray full of champagne glasses while trying to sneak himself a glass when he thinks no one is watching.

Magnus fidgets with his black bowtie that’s part of the outfit and is glad he went with the topknot rather than the mohawk. He looks around the room and sees people he recognizes from the Rainbow Rally.

He sees Valentine dancing with a woman who looks exactly like an older version of Clary. Clary and Jace are talking to that guy with glasses who played piano for little Madzie, who in turn has his arm around a beautiful girl with dark hair in a ponytail and a red dress. He recognizes her from the pictures and deduces that she must be Alec’s sister. Mentally he takes a note that he should try and talk to her tonight, as he has never seen her around The Max.

Andrew doesn’t seem to have much interest in anything other than trying to distract Magnus, hanging on a barstool. And Magnus likes the guy, but after several glasses of champagne literally everything that rolls out of his mouth is flirty and suggestive.

Luke walks up to him, looking very sharp. He has had them over for dinner several times now and they get along great. “I didn’t expect to see you here tonight, I thought you had a night shift at the police station?” he says.

“No, not tonight. Can I have some champagne?” He leans on the other side of the bar and nods at Andrew. Magnus hands him a glass.

“So, you’re friends with the family?” Magnus asks.

Luke looks a bit flustered. “Eh, yeah. Yeah. Maryse and I are... Old friends.”

Magnus sees Maryse across the room sneaking glances at him and Luke and he snorts.

“Sure you are. I think your old friend wants your attention,” he winks, as he hands Luke another glass of champagne. Magnus watches him walk over to her, hand her the glass, and they clink. They’re giving each other meaningful looks and soft smiles, and it’s the sweetest thing.

He gets rudely interrupted by Raj, who appears in front of him and nods a greeting and gestures something that Magnus interprets as I would like a glass of champagne, please. He hadn’t seen them come in. He lets his eyes dance across the room as he fills a glass and spots Alexander with his siblings and their partners.

He has his head thrown back in laughter while his brother is bent over clutching his stomach and Magnus feels the butterflies come to life again. He realizes he has never seen Alec look so young and carefree.

Raj audibly clears his throat, and says “As I was saying..” and Magnus has to force himself to pay attention. “I can appreciate how you handled that guy with the knife the other day. I would have helped you out myself except, well, I had a cup of coffee in my hands. You know?”

Of course he gets what Raj is saying and he wishes he could wipe that smug expression off his face. Instead, he forces a tight lipped smile and nods.

“I bet you learned all that by fighting lions and tigers in the jungle and shit,” Raj says, sipping champagne.

There are in fact no lions or tigers in Edom, but Magnus doesn’t want to put any effort into correcting him. He’ll just have to go with whatever this conversation is gonna throw at him. “Yes, where I’m from, we have to be quite aggressive sometimes.”

Raj puts his elbow on the bar and points at him. “I’m all for that,” he says. “Especially in a relationship. You know,” he turns his gaze to Alec, who is still talking animatedly to his siblings. “They may not admit it, but these quiet types, they all want their man to… Take charge. Tell ‘em what to do.” His expression is predatory as he throws back the rest of his champagne and walks away, taking a new drink with him.

It makes Magnus feel very uncomfortable, but before he can do anything, Valentine and his wife Jocelyn walk up to him for a drink and start a conversation. They’re a nice couple who are impressed with his disarming of Jordan and ask all about how he’s liking New York so far.

Suddenly they’re joined by Maryse, who grabs on to Jocelyn and smiles brightly at Magnus. “Make sure everyone’s got their glass kept full, I have a very special announcement to make,” she says and speeds off again.

Jocelyn shrugs at Magnus. “Well, in that case, don’t mind if I do!” she says as she holds out her empty flute for a refill.

Magnus spots Ragnor going around the room with a tray, and suddenly everyone is looking at Maryse. She stands up the few steps that lead into the dining area, so she can overlook the room. She has the biggest smile on her face, clutching a full glass of champagne. Everyone -even her children- look puzzled.

“May I have everyone’s attention, please?” she lets her voice carry through the room easily and the chatter dies down. “Raj, please join me,” she says. He walks the three steps and stands next to her. Someone has turned the music down and it’s impossible to make out what song is playing.

“My dear friends and family. It’s wonderful to see you all this evening and I hope you all feel welcome in my home. But I have just heard some news that makes me the happiest woman in the world. And I cannot wait to share this with you!” she continues. “As you all know, Raj and Alec have been going together for quite some time. So I’m pleased to announce that just a few moments ago, Raj has popped the big question-”

A chorus of oh! buzzes through the room. Magnus eyes are focused on Alec, whose demeanor has changed completely from mere minutes ago. He looks tense.

“-and Alec has happily accepted!” Maryse holds out her glass in his direction. “So, as it turns out, this has become an engagement party!”

Clary and Alexander’s sister cover their mouths with their hands immediately and their eyes have gone comically wide, while his brother has paled like someone punched him in the gut. And Alec looks absolutely fuming.

“To our grooms!” Maryse and Raj hold up their glasses and most of the guests say it back to them.

Valentine Morgenstern, who is apparently terrible at reading body language, steps up to Alexander and pats him on the back. “Congratulations, man! I am so happy that you guys are finally tying the knot.”

“Enough.”

Alec doesn’t even look at Valentine and with his long legs he charges up the small steps in one go. He grabs Raj by the upper arm and grits something through his teeth and drags him out of the room through the dining area.

The exchange has flipped the mood of the guests and everyone looks very uncomfortable. Someone decided to combat the awkward situation by turning up the music again.

He has got to find Alec. Magnus slips away from the bar, to the hallway and stops outside the door that leads into the kitchen. He stands still before turning the corner and he hears Alec’s voice, and decides to listen before making his presence known.

“Next time you and my mother get together to plan my life, I wish you’d let me in on it!” Alec barks out.

“But baby-”

“Don’t touch me! You know what? There will never be a next time.”

“But it’s our engagement party!” Raj says sweetly.

“No, it isn’t. We’re done. Get the fuck out of my life.”

He hears the back door slam shut, and soft footsteps walking back to the dining area.

After a few seconds Magnus peeks around the corner, glides through the kitchen and into the garden. He sees Alec sitting on a swing set, his long legs stretched out in front of him, surrounded by snow.

As he realizes he’s still holding on to a bottle of champagne, he walks up to him and offers it.

“No thanks, I’m really not in the mood to celebrate,” Alec says with a small voice.

“Who says you can only drink champagne to celebrate? It’s still alcohol,” Magnus suggests carefully.

Alec snorts and takes the bottle from him, and Magnus considers walking back inside to give him some space. “Wait,” Alec says, “Sit down. Keep me company. If you’d like.”

Magnus smiles and walks to the other swing. He’s used to sitting with immaculate posture, which is hard on this thing that’s not a chair. Alec laughs at him.

“If we’re gonna be friends, you need to loosen up a bit,” he says.

“Oh, I can be loose,” Magnus slumps against the swing in the most exaggerated way. It gets him one of those lopsided smiles from Alexander, although it looks sadder than his usual. Despite that he says, “Much better.”

He just wants to hold this man in his arms and tell him everything is going to be OK. “Are you alright?” is what Magnus asks instead.

Alec immediately sits up straighter and goes from sad to angry again. “Oh, yeah, I’m fine. But I’m not going to let myself get pressured into marriage by Raj, or my mother, or anybody.”

Magnus thinks of his father and Camille. “I understand completely. Where I’m from, arranged marriages are very common. But I don’t think anyone should get married out of obligation.”

“You’re right! And how would I even consider marrying a guy like Raj. There’s a reason we never moved in together, you know.” He runs his hands that look red from the cold through his hair. “He just made me so furious back there. Guess this was just the push I needed to end things. I never should have let it get this far.”

Magnus doesn’t know what to say. He’d love to hear everything he has to say about the topic, but now is not the time. So they sit, in a comfortable silence.

After a minute Alec softly asks, “Do you think I overreacted?”

Magnus considers his answer. “I think that someone’s first reaction is usually the correct one.”

A pair of watery hazel eyes stare at him. “You know, you’re very easy to talk to,” Alec whispers between them. “I feel like I could tell you anything.”

Magnus leans towards Alec and they stare at each other. It’s so cold, but he doesn’t care. He wants to drown in the swirling sea of browns, greens and blues that are this beautiful man’s eyes.

They are both startled when the kitchen door opens and Andrew leans out. “Oh, there you are. Hey Magnus, we need some more champagne over here,” he purrs.

“I’ll be right there.” Magnus rubs his hands over his arms. “I almost forgot I wasn’t here to party,” he smiles down at Alec apologetically and walks to the door, leaving Alec behind.

“Magnus?” he says just loud enough to hear. Magnus turns around.

“Thank you for listening to me. I appreciate it.”

“Any time, Alexander. Any time.”

Just as he turns around, Alec calls for his attention again. Magnus wonders what’s left to say.

“Be careful. I think Underhill likes you,” he says with a faint smirk. Magnus raises both eyebrows and shrugs.

It’s not Andrew I'm interested in, he thinks, but doesn’t say it.

---

A few weeks later and he can’t get Ragnor out of bed anymore. His phone is in his hands as per usual, so he must have fallen asleep calling or texting Cat again. He probably didn’t get much sleep at all.

“Ragnor, get up! We’ll be late for our shift,” he calls out. “I’ve been doing so well with Alexander and the rest of The Max, you can’t ruin this for me.”

Ragnor sits up straight on his pull-out sofa bed. “I am sick of this. I am sick of living like a peasant and I am sick of having like a twelve hour time difference from home. I miss my life back home and I miss having my favorite things!”

Magnus isn’t impressed. “Are you done now? You’re sick of this and miss home? Fine, go do something fun for yourself, find something that reminds you of Edom. But you are going to volunteer your shift today!”

With a constant stream of complaints, Ragnor makes his way out of bed, takes a shower, and grabs an apple. “I’m so glad we only have one month left to go in this dump.”

It feels like a slap in Magnus' face. Ragnor immediately seems to realize he shouldn’t have said that.

“I thought you understood. Forget it,” Magnus mumbles and barges out of the house.

---

His hurt over Ragnor’s comment and panic over having just one month left in New York fade as soon as Alexander walks up to him and asks him if he’d like to have coffee.

“I’d love that,” he says, as his heart does a little jump.

So they pick up a cup at Andrew’s, who looks a tiny bit jealous. It’s February now, and it’s a lovely cold but sunny day. They sit outside on a bench sipping their drinks.

Alec often talks about his relationship with Raj and how it has affected him. His very public engagement/break-up had an aftermath that kept hurting him over and over. Maryse had been very upset and insisted on several mediating sessions trying to get them back together. That angered Alec’s fiercely protective siblings and had led to a lot of shouting matches after closing time.

It turns out that Andrew hadn’t embellished any of his stories about Raj. Alec had indeed felt trapped and unhappy for years, not allowed to make any of his own decisions and feeling like his opinions didn’t matter.

“I think I stayed with him because people expected me to. You’ve seen my mom’s attempts at mending the relationship,” he starts and sighs. “You know what, I am so sorry. You must be tired of hearing about all my problems with Raj.”

Magnus touches his hand lightly. “No, not at all. It’s important to talk about these things. It sounds like you haven’t been talking at all for years.”

“Still, I feel like I owe you something to make up for it. How would you feel about dinner?” he asks, his cheeks turning pink. “I mean… I can invite Becky and Lydia too. And- Underhill, if you’d like?”

Magnus’ heart is beating out of his chest. “...Or we could have dinner together,” he says.

Alexander doesn't look at him. “You wouldn’t mind, just the two of us?”

“No. In fact, I’d love that.” Magnus smiles. To lighten the mood, he adds, “We can’t have dinner at my house, though. It’s very small and my roommate is Ragnor.”

Alec laughs. “We can’t have dinner at my house either. My brother and sister have never heard of this concept called privacy,” he says with emphasis on the last word. “It’s OK though,” He hesitates. “We can go to a restaurant. It’ll be my treat, don’t worry. I’d love to take you out.”

Magnus grins. “So, is that what it is? A date?”

“If- If you’d like?” Alec looks at him with insecure eyes.

“Yeah. I’d like that. I’d like that a lot.”

“Tonight?”

“Tonight.”

And so they sit together with matching smiles, until they get called back in to work.

---

“Oh my God, Ragnor, you are not going to believe it! I’m going on a date ton-” he’s dumbfounded as he looks through the living room. He finds Ragnor sitting in a pile of shopping bags.

“What the hell happened here?” he demands.

“You told me I should do something nice for myself. Because I’m homesick.” Ragnor looks at him from the pull-out sofa like a dog that has been caught while destroying a pillow in the middle of the living room.

“But what is all this?!” he points at the bags of what may be every single luxury brand sold in New York.

“I bought myself some nice things. And then I saw some things that I thought would look great on you. And Cat,” Ragnor admits. “Actually, a lot of this is for her.”

Magnus is astonished. “So is there any cash left at all?”

Ragnor grimaces. “Yeah, there’s like, about 2000 dollars left? But it’s OK. I have a plan.”

Magnus eyes widen. That’s definitely not OK, but he has about a month left before he has to face the music. “I could strangle you right now. And just so we’re clear, I am not fine with any of this.” He frowns. “But there’s nothing we can do now. And I don’t want to. I have a date to get ready for and I don’t want anything to mess my chances with Alexander.”

“Oh, I bought you this amazing waistcoat, it’s in a black bag somewhere-” Ragnor pipes up.

“No! I’m supposed to be a poor man!” Magnus huffs and storms into the bedroom. He looks at his wardrobe and selects his favorite shirt and his tightest pair of jeans. He puts effort into his hair and make up.

Downstairs, the doorbell rings. He can’t let Alexander see his living room in its current state. One last look in the mirror and he knows it’ll have to do. He grabs the remaining 2000 dollars and stuffs it in a paper bag The Max café uses to put pastries to-go in.

“Clean this mess up, put the bags in the bedroom or something,” he points at Ragnor. “And don’t wait up for me!” he yells at Ragnor before closing the door behind him and rushing down the narrow stairs.

He opens the front door. As soon as Alec sees him, he smiles wide and his eyes shine.

“Let’s go,” he says.

And Magnus feels the butterflies in his stomach multiplying once more.

Chapter 5: First dates, shared plates and motorcades

Magnus had never met anyone who made him open up so effortlessly, and he knew Alexander might feel the same. They stroll through the city as Alec walks them to the place he had in mind. “We’re almost there,” he says.

Magnus sees a homeless couple with a dog, huddled together on the side of the road. He takes the pastry bag with 2000 dollars out of his winter coat and gives it to the woman. She smiles faintly.

“What did you give them?” Alec asks curiously.

Magnus flourishes his hand nonchalantly. “Oh, just some change we had lying around.” And leaves it at that.

They stop in front of the place Alec had in mind. He looks a bit uncomfortable and starts rambling. “I know it’s nothing fancy, but, I really like this place and they have just about everything and the atmosphere is great, and I’ve been coming here since I was a teenager, I hope you don’t mind-”

Magnus looks at the sign saying Taki’s Diner and doesn’t get why Alec looks so conflicted.

“It’s- I don’t want you to think I’m trying to get out of this for as little money as possible, or that you’re not worth a nicer restaurant, or-”

Magnus holds his finger in front of Alec’s lips. He feels his warm breath stutter and tries to not let that distract him. “Alexander, it’s fine. If you love this place, I’ll love it too.”

That seems to calm his nerves, because he walks forward and holds the door open for him. Most tables are filled and 50s music sounds from the jukebox. To Magnus, it looks just like a scene from a movie he’d never thought he would get to experience in real life. They pick a booth in the corner for themselves, and Magnus lets Alec order for him.

It turns out to be a bit of everything: fries, pizza, nachos. There’s bottomless sodas and Magnus knows he’s going to miss everything about this back in Edom.

Alec apologizes again for talking about Raj so often. He tells him it’s OK, but that Alec is obviously not.

Alec plays with a french fry. “So, I’ve never told you -or anyone- the full story. And before you say I don’t have to… I know. But I want to. Just let me talk.”

Magnus closes his mouth again, because he was about to assure him he didn’t have to. He grabs his diet cherry cola and swirls it around the massive cup. “Whatever you want to tell me, I will listen,” he smiles. Alec flushes.

“So, this is a difficult story for me to tell. And it still hurts like hell,” he clears his throat.

“So, during my last year of high school I accidentally came out to my family over Christmas break. We always went to this fancy resort to ski and that year I met a guy my age. Before him I did know I was gay, I told Becky at 13 that I thought I liked guys. But since I never had a real crush before I still told myself that I maybe wasn’t. That I just hadn’t met the right girl yet.”

“But I met this guy from Colorado and I was blown away. He was out and proud and immediately took interest in me, and it was amazing. Izzy noticed right away that we were more than friends, and she lied to our parents for me when we wanted to sneak off to make out. It was great until a few days later when my dad walked in on us. And looking back, it was pretty innocent - all clothes were on and we never went any further than kissing. I was 17 and so inexperienced, having a guy interested in me like that was more than enough.”

“So my dad finds us. He kicks the guy out and I’m grounded for the rest of the trip so I could think about what I did and what I wanted to do with my life. My mom brought me food and sat with me sometimes. I wasn’t allowed to see my siblings.” Alec swallows thickly.

“Anyway, during the trip home you could cut the tension with a knife. And the proverbial bomb just exploded as soon as we came home and closed the front door. My baby brother Max was 6 at the time, Izzy and Jace were like 14 or 15. Basically it was everyone versus my dad. Max started crying and I took him to his room and we cried together. Poor kid had no idea what was going on, they had told him I got sick during our skiing trip.” he runs his hand over his face.

“Apparently my mom and Izzy had figured out I was gay years before and they were just waiting for me to feel comfortable enough to tell them. But my dad… He hadn’t realized and refused to accept it. He kicked me out after Max fell asleep. I disappeared for a few days and it was the worst thing I had ever gone through at the time. When I showed up at Becky’s after those few days on the streets, I found out my mom chose me and my parents were getting a divorce. And soon my dad moved to Los Angeles.”

He pauses and takes a sip of his drink. His other hand is on the table and not wanting to interrupt but still showing his support, Magnus squeezes it. Alec flashes him a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes, but doesn’t pull back his hand.

“So my dad moves to LA. He gets visitation during the holidays. Not for me obviously, he made it clear he didn’t want me as his son anymore. Jace and Izzy were old enough to refuse to go see him. Max didn’t have a choice because he was still so young. I think he felt guilty about going to see him, like he was betraying us, even though we told him we understood.”

“Despite my parents’ divorce, my last half year of high school was actually pretty great. I decided to not give a fuck and be out. Becky and I have been friends since kindergarten and came out to each other at 13 and just stayed in the closet together. So my coming out gave her the courage to do so too. Her mom Elaine, she was so accepting of her, and me. We were the only out kids in our year, but we had each other. We went to prom together. It was amazing,” he smiles faintly.

“So, fast forward. My dad had spent years planning my career for me, and I had already gotten into Harvard on a scholarship. Since I didn’t know what I wanted, I went to business school anyway and graduated early with honors. I got myself a good job at an accountancy firm, owned by Raj's family. Raj was one of my seniors. I knew he liked me, but I wasn’t interested. Life was pretty good at the time. Jace and Izzy got into NYU, and Max was gonna turn 13 that summer. He told me he didn’t want to spend the entire summer with dad in LA, he wanted to hang out with us because he was big enough now and-”

His voice breaks. He takes a few deep breaths and forces the tears back. Magnus keeps stroking his hand on the table in what he hopes are soothing circles.

“We told him that dad had already made plans for this summer, and that next year we would arrange for him to spend a part of the summer with us. He was OK with that. So he went. And two weeks before his 13th birthday… He and my dad got in a car crash and-”

A lone tear runs across his cheek now and he has a tight grip on Magnus’ hand now. With his other hand he rubs his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose. He breathes out and looks back up, getting himself under control again.

“Sorry about that. They were both gone on impact. I don’t remember a lot from the weeks after that. I know I spent a lot of it in bed. I don’t remember the funeral. All I remember is that the day I tried to go back to work I was so fed up with everything, I quit on the spot. After that, Raj started pursuing me, I guess. And I don’t even remember saying yes to him? It just kind of happened. It’s pathetic, I know,” he chuckles.

His laugh is laced with self-deprecation and he avoids looking Magnus in the eye.

“I have felt this... guilt for years. If I wouldn’t have been gay, my parents wouldn’t have gotten a divorce and my brother would still be alive,” his voice sounds raspy.

“Hey, you know that’s not true,” Magnus says softly. “You went through something traumatic. That changes people. It’s OK.” He caresses Alec’s knuckles. “Besides, you’ve been doing really well in taking back charge of your own life again.”

“I guess I have been.” Alec gives him a watery smile.

There’s a soothing silence for a bit where they stare at their joined hands.

“You know, it feels better than I thought, telling someone. Telling you. It feels… Freeing.”

“Thank you for telling me.” Trying to lighten the mood a bit, Magnus raises his glass. “To freedom.”

He looks up to Magnus through his long lashes and smiles. Magnus’ heart sings. Before either of them can say anything, they’re startled by loud knocking on the window. It’s the homeless couple from before, and they’re waving and yelling thank yous, before walking off again.

Apparently the interruption was exactly what Alexander needed. He laughs with an astonished expression. “You have the most amazing effect on people!”

Magnus shrugs, uncharacteristically shy. “No, I really don’t,” he says.

“You do! I mean, look at what just happened. And that guy at the basketball game? People love you.” Alexander stares at him, with those intense hazel eyes of his. Magnus feels his layers of armor being stripped away.

“I bet where you’re from, people just... Throw themselves at your feet,” he says, not breaking eye contact.

Magnus feels his heart beating in his throat and knows he shouldn’t answer, but his curiosity wins out. “What makes you say that?”

“Because you have this inner glow. Like you’re above everything mundane. It’s almost…” he pauses to think. “Regal?”

Magnus barks out an awkward laugh and doesn’t respond. If Alec only knew.

“So what did you do back in Edom?” Alec asks.

“Asides from research,” Magnus thinks for a bit and settles with something close to the truth. “I was in the family business.”

Alexander cocks his head a little. “And what’s what?” he asks, genuinely interested.

Magnus raises his eyebrows and takes a big gulp of his drink to buy himself some time. Well, apparently 'close enough to the truth' is going out the window again. He decides to go with the most common profession in Edom. “Eh, goat herding.”

Alexander chuckles and looks surprised. “Really?”

“Yes! Does this surprise you?” Magnus asks. He realizes he’s testing Alexander a little, to see if anything would change if his family business wasn’t exactly glamorous.

“I don’t mean to offend in any way but it’s just...” Alec pauses. “You seem so educated, so proper, so... Distinguished? I guess I didn’t expect that from someone who looks after goats all day.”

Magnus can’t look directly at him while the white lies flow out of his mouth. “Well, the goats really do take care of themselves most of the time, which leaves a man with a lot of time to read.”

Alexander seems to believe him, and in the back of his mind he feels Ragnor giving him a face that says I told you so. But the soft look Alec gives him makes him shake the feeling.

Should he tell this wonderful man that he’s been a prince all this time?

Taki’s has cleared out for the most part by now, and the lighting is softer. Someone has been going through Elvis’ greatest hits on the jukebox for the last 15 minutes. Before Magnus can blurt out his secrets, a server walks by and brings their bill in a leather booklet.

Magnus moves his hand towards it, but before he can, Alexander moves his hand over it and slides it towards himself. “Please, let me. Don’t worry about it.”

“I don’t want to take advantage of you, Alexander,” Magnus says, meaning it in more ways than Alec could know.

“You’re not,” Alexander says, with a determined expression. “I knew you weren’t well off when I asked you out on a date. I don’t care about money. I care about you.”

And in that moment Magnus knows for sure that this beautiful, honest man is everything he was looking for. As if on cue Can’t Help Falling in Love With You starts playing. Magnus takes a deep breath as he slides out of the booth, stands up and extends his hand. “Care to dance?”

Alexander looks wildly unsure, but places his hand in his anyway. Magnus walks him over to the small, empty dance floor in front of the jukebox.

Magnus turns to face him and runs his hands up his chest, to end up resting over his shoulders. Alec’s breath hitches, and he tentatively places his hands on Magnus’ hips. Together they softly sway to the music, cheeks resting against each other.

“I’ve never danced with another man before,” Alexander’s breathy whisper tickles his ear.

Magnus pulls back to look him in the eyes. “Are you OK?”

“Yeah,” Alec’s eyes flick from his eyes to his lips, back to his eyes. “I think so.”

Magnus feels himself drowning in those hazel eyes, and before he knows it, their lips touch. Once, twice. He rests their foreheads together and feels Alec’s arms moving around his waist to pull him closer, and he lets him all too willingly.

He closes his eyes and feels his heart explode and knees buckle as their lips meet again. Just as he thinks his brain is catching up to what’s happening, he feels Alec’s teeth passionately grazing his lower lip. And who is Magnus to deny him anything? As their kiss deepens he gets lost, and never wants to find his way back.

---

Magnus is ready to go, waiting around Alec’s office while he’s typing up one last email. He’s standing in front of a wall that holds, among his diplomas and children’s drawings, a lot of photos of people and places. Most of the pictures are older, and they make him smile.

He recognizes a picture with his siblings he saw at Maryse’s house, where Max was still with them. Alec and Andrew at a concert. Young Alec with his siblings and Becky, Simon and Clary at a theme park. Alec with Madzie, who is holding up an ice cream cone that’s way too big for such a little girl. 17-year-old Alec and Becky with matching corsages at what must have been their senior prom.

One picture in particular makes him coo. Alec looks up, probably wondering what is going on, and smiles when he sees what Magnus is looking at. It’s a picture of him with Becky and Lydia on their wedding day. The brides are both wearing dresses and Magnus isn’t surprised to see that Alec looks stunning in a tux. They look like they can’t contain their smiles because of how happy they are.

“You mentioned you’ve been best friends with Becky since you were kids, but how did you meet Lydia?” Magnus asks.

Alexander laughs and runs a hand through his messy brown hair. “Lydia is my best friend from college. We met during our first class and we just hit it off. She lived with her grandparents in Florida before Harvard, so I asked her if she wanted to spend some time in New York during summer. She did, and of course my mom had to throw a party for me surviving freshman year, and Becky and her family were invited…” he pauses with a smile on his face. “So I introduced them and I swear I literally saw sparks flying. Two years later Lydia proposed and the summer after that, they got married.”

“That’s beautiful,” Magnus says softly.

“I know,” Alec flashes him one of his lopsided smiles. “I’m so happy for them. It’s the kind of fairy tale romance most people can only dream of,” he adds quietly, looking at Magnus.

They smile shyly at each other and look away. Magnus wonders if Alec feels what he feels as he stares at his shoes, feeling like a teenager.

The sound of high heels walking down the hall comes closer, and Maryse walks into Alec’s office holding a large bouquet.

“Alec, can I talk to you for a bit?” she says.

Her tone of voice makes it clear it wasn’t so much a question as it was a request for Magnus to leave the room. So he puts back the wedding picture, smiles at Alec and says, “I’ll be waiting for you in the lobby. Nice to see you again, Maryse,” he smiles, despite not getting much of an acknowledgement.

As he walks down the hallway, he hears Alec asking her what she wants. And he doesn’t mean to eavesdrop, but he can’t say he feels bad about it either, so waits at a distance where he can just overhear their conversation.

“Just look at these!” he hears Maryse say. “And they smell great too. Raj must be spending a fortune on all of those flowers.”

“And you are free to put them in your office along with the other ones, I still don’t care,” Alec says calmly.

“Where are you going?” she asks.

“To a museum,” Alec’s deep voice travels easily, even though his tone is softer now. “With Magnus.”

Maryse must be making a face, because next thing he hears him say is a mildly irritated “What?”

“You’ve said it yourself, Alec, he’s a goat herder!”

“So what if he is? If I’m OK with that, you should be too. He’s a good, honest man, who obviously knows the value of hard work.”

He hears Maryse’s heels click on the tiles. “Why don’t you just make up with Raj? He dresses real nice, and his family is doing well for themselves,” her tone, despite the message, is kind.

“Mom, not this again.”

“I just don’t want you to struggle the way I had to, growing up,” she says, quiet and vulnerable.

“I’ll be fine, mom. Don’t worry about me.” Magnus hears him give her a kiss, followed by footsteps.

Magnus drapes himself across the wall casually, fidgeting with the chipping polish on the nails of his left hand.

“Hey,” Alec says softly as he stops in front of him. He puts his hand on his upper arm and kisses his cheek. Magnus' stomach swoops like he’s on a rollercoaster. “Let’s go.”

Magnus follows him out of The Max. After Alec’s story, he noticed something he hadn’t thought about before. And since he’s not going to bring up that he overheard the conversation with his mom, he might as well ask. He fixes his scarf as the cold air hits him and says, “I hope you don’t mind me asking, but the center, is it named after your brother?”

“Yes, it is. Don’t know if you’ve ever noticed, but there are these Batman comics, framed up on the wall in the lobby?” Alec asks.

“As a matter of fact, I have noticed those before,” Magnus says. Every time he walks past them, he feels as if they’re judging him for telling people his last name is Bane.

“They were Max’s, he loved comic books in general. When he was a kid he had his own superhero identity - The Max,” Alec recounts, with a broad smile on his face. “We all went along with it, he was so cute. Anyway, after the divorce my mom needed a new project in her life, so she took over a community center. And after he passed away, she did rename it. I think it was Izzy’s idea.”

Magnus smiles. “Whoever it was, it was a great idea.”

They take the subway to the museum. As they walk the last bit, the back of his hand brushes Alec’s and he wants nothing more than to hold his hand. Instead he asks, “So what museum have you picked out for us?”

Alexander’s cheeks turn a little pink and he looks at the trees they’re passing. “I picked this one place that currently has a large exhibit on island nations in the Asia-Pacific.”

Magnus cocks his head, because he feels like that’s not all he wanted to say.

“I mean, it’s where you’re from, and I want to learn more about it,” he says, wringing his hands together like he’s nervous.

Magnus melts a little, it makes him feel brave enough to grab his hand. Alec blushes and grins down at him like he’s been given something amazing.

The exhibit is impressive. They walk through Polynesia and Micronesia, and Magnus loves it. He’s never been to any of these islands, but he has met some of their presidents and monarchs during official state visits to Edom. He tells Alec stories as if he wasn’t part of the formalities, or as if he’s learned about them by reading.

They stroll past Indonesia when he feels Alec tugging on his hand. “Look, Edom!

Magnus smiles and looks at the ceremonial garb up on mannequins. There’s also vases, and decorative plates, and several ornate staffs used for their traditional martial arts style he knows so well. It’s weird to see these things that are so normal to him put up in a display.

“Tell me everything, what’s it like?” he asks, and Magnus is charmed by the genuine interest in his voice.

“Oh, you would love it there. It’s the most beautiful place on earth. The people are so friendly,” he looks at Alec. “And you? They would treat you like a king,” he adds cheekily.

Alec scrunches his nose and gives him a soft chuckle. They walk another few steps, before Magnus sees three familiar faces on the wall staring back at him. He suddenly feels nauseous and he feels sweat breaking out of every pore. It’s an official portrait of the royal family of Edom. His father is standing in the lavishly decorated room that exists for the sole purpose of taking these kinds of pictures in. His mother is on his right arm, and Magnus is standing on his left.

He’s sure that this particular photo is almost ten years old, but he has barely changed. And even if he’s wearing an extravagant tunic and his hair looks different, it’s unmistakably him.

Magnus drags Alec around the corner and kisses him passionately.

Alec breaks it off after a few seconds. “Magnus, people are gonna see us-”

“Let them see,” Magnus says and kisses him again. “What do you say we get out of here?”

Alec looks confused, “Now?”

“Yes,” Magnus stresses, “Now.”

---

Alec seemed surprised by the sudden change of plans, but went with it anyway. They ended up at a small burger place he loved, and Magnus insisted on trying Alec’s favorite. He had to admit, it was pretty good. A few beers later and pleasantly buzzed Alec insisted on walking Magnus home.

“Well, here we are.” Alec says, looking at their intertwined hands.

Magnus considers his options for a bit. He doesn’t want to take things to the next level yet, but he also isn’t ready for this date to be over. “Do you want to come up?” he asks hesitantly.

Alec’s eyes widen, his expression hesitant.

“No, no!” Magnus says, “Not like that. Just a drink. Remember, I live with Ragnor.”

“Yeah, OK.” Alec releases a relieved breath. “Yeah, I’d like that.”

Magnus smiles at him and walks up to the front door and opens it, and walks ahead of Alec up the narrow staircase.

“I’ll have to apologize for the mess, it’s not a very big place. And Ragnor has been extra grumpy lately because he’s homesick and-” he stops, noticing a note stuck to his front door.

It’s from Ragnor. Saying his parents are here. And they have taken him to their royal suite at the Waldorf Astoria.

Magnus pulls the note from the door, crumples it up and sticks it in his pocket. He swallows thickly. What is he gonna do?

“Magnus? What’s wrong?” Alec asks, standing right behind him.

“Nothing, it’s just…” he turns around to face him. “There has been an incident? With the- the plumbing? We’re- we’re not allowed to go inside.”

“Oh, well, we can go to my place,” Alec says. “I don’t live far, if you don’t mind my siblings.”

“That’s perfect, I’d love to.” Magnus smiles faintly, his heart beating fast in panic. He gives Alec a peck on his lips, and they walk down.

He needs to get Alec home, and without coming across as blunt, say good night. And then he needs to get to the Waldorf Astoria as soon as possible before his father causes damage beyond repair. A thousand thoughts run through his mind and he doesn’t know what to say, which seems to worry Alec.

“Are you OK Magnus? I can help you out with fixing the apartment if that's what has gotten you this quiet.”

“I’m fine, it’ll be fine,” he tries to assure him. “So, your siblings will be home? What’s it like living with them?”

And Alec talks. Magnus forces himself to pay some attention, but he can’t. Why are his parents here? How did they find Cat’s apartment? He still has time, they can’t tear him away from his normal life yet. More panic washes over him and he blinks fast to stop the tears. He gets ripped from his thoughts when Alec speaks.

“We’re here,” he smiles. Magnus smiles back and walks through the door. Magnus lets Alec take his coat and they walk into the living room.

“Mom?!” Alec sounds very surprised.

“Alec!” she waltzes over to him and rubs his arms. “And Magnus! So good to see you, my boy,” she says, as she embraces him.

Magnus is glad Alec doesn’t think he’s rude for thinking this is weird, because their eyes meet over her shoulder with the same bewildered expression.

“What are you doing here, mom?” Alexander asks.

“What? Do I need an excuse to visit my wonderful son and his new beau?” she smiles broadly. “I have to make a quick phone call though. Now don’t you go anywhere. Make us a cup of tea, so we can catch up!”

She steps out and closes the door behind her. Alec still looks confused but walks towards the kitchen anyway. Magnus follows him.

“What was that all about?” he asks.

Alec fills the kettle up under the tap. “I have absolutely no idea.”

“Especially since this afternoon she tried to talk you into making up with your ex instead of going out with-” Magnus jolts, realizing he shouldn’t have overheard that conversation.

A pained rather than offended expression crosses Alec’s face. “You heard that?” he asks.

“I apologize, I know I shouldn’t have.” Magnus apologizes. He checks his watch, he really should get to Ragnor as soon as possible.

Alec puts the kettle on and leans against the kitchen counter. “No, it’s OK. My mother was out of line, she is the one that should apologize.”

They hear a door open and close in the living room, and Alec turns to walk back in, so Magnus follows him. It’s Maryse, who greets them with open arms again, gesturing them towards the L-shaped couch.

“I’m so sorry, but I really have to get going, Maryse,” Magnus says.

Maryse dismisses his comment with a flourish. “Nonsense, you can stay for a cup of tea, right?”

So they sit next to each other, awkwardly, like two teens instead of the late twenty-somethings they are. Maryse sits with them, looking ecstatic. “How was the museum, boys?”

“It was very nice, mom,” Alec says, a bit awkward.

“And did you go out for dinner?” she continues.

“Yes, we went for a burger?” Magnus isn’t sure why Alec makes it sound like a question, but he’s certainly not comfortable answering anything right now.

“Alec! You should treat your man better!” Maryse says exasperatedly. “Why don’t you make reservations at the River Café?”

“I-” Alec opens and closes his mouth like a confused fish.

Something beeps in the kitchen and Maryse jumps up. “Don’t you go anywhere, I’ll be right back, with tea!”

Alec lets out a breath and turns to Magnus. “I have no idea what’s going on,” he whispers loudly, eyes wide.

Magnus decides he has to take the opportunity. “Me neither, darling. But I must leave.”

“Is something wrong? Is it because of my mother? Because I’m so sorry about that,” Alec asks.

“I promise I will tell you when the time is right, but right now, I have to go, I’m sorry. Please excuse my leaving to your mother.” He gives Alec a chaste kiss on the lips and lingers a little, running his fingers along his strong jawline, wondering if it’s the last time he’ll be able to do that.

With a weak smile he rushes out the door before Maryse comes back.

---

Magnus sprints towards the main road as soon as he’s on the street. While the weather had been nice during the day, a steady drizzle now comes down from the sky. He hails a cab to the Waldorf Astoria. As they drive up to the hotel he notices that the flag of Edom is flying alongside the American one and his heart rate picks up even more - his father really is here. He pays the driver and doesn’t wait for change.

He barges through the hotel and wonders how he hasn’t been stopped yet looking the way he does when he sees himself in the elevator mirror. Ill fitting clothes, sweaty and his hair is a mess because of the rain. If his father sees him like this he’ll never let him out of his sight again for the rest of his life, he thinks.

He knocks on the door and holds his breath. When it opens, he’s face to face with Ragnor. Ragnor looks relieved and wraps him in a hug. “Oh thank god you’re here. Don’t worry, your parents are out.”

“How did this happen?” Magnus hisses. He walks into the suite and closes the door.

Ragnor looks at him sheepishly. “After I went on that shopping spree and spent all our cash, I may have sent a request for 1 million dollar…?”

"You did what?!" Magnus pinches the bridge of his nose. “I could strangle you right now but that won’t get us any further.” He paces for a bit.

“Magnus, no offense but you’re a mess, your father will strangle you if he sees you like this. Go fix yourself up before they get back. I’ll find you some appropriate attire.” Ragnor points towards the bathroom.

After a quick shower he jumps into a much more traditional combo of an embroidered purple tunic and slacks. He grabs his eyeliner and applies it in a subtle fashion. Ragnor helps him attach crown-like jewelry to his top knot.

Magnus stops to think. “Wait, you said my parents were out. Where did they go?” he asks.

Ragnor pulls back his hands immediately. “They, eh…”

“What?”

“Well, they, they-” Ragnor sputters.

“Spit it out!” Magnus bites, now worried about what he’ll say.

“They went to Alexander’s place, the one that he shares with his siblings,” Ragnor admits.

“What?! Why would they do that?” Magnus yells.

“Because Maryse called them, saying they could find you there.” Ragnor looks guilty, but Magnus is back in panic mode.

“We have to go!” he says, running out of the bathroom. “We have to go right now.”

Ragnor knows better than to go against him, because he’s right on his heels and they grab their coats and they’re back on their way to Alexander’s place in Brooklyn.

---

It doesn’t take them as long as Magnus feared it would. They storm out of the taxi running towards the right apartment. In the distance he sees a man walking that reminds him of Alec but with slouched shoulders, but other than that guy, the streets are surprisingly empty.

They find their way up and on their way through the hallway, they’re greeted with the sounds of a fairly heated argument.

“Asmodeus! Apologize to Ms Trueblood!” an exasperated voice that sounds like his mother is audible through the door. Magnus stops while his hand is already on the doorknob, and looks at Ragnor with a question in his eyes. Ragnor looks equally unsure of what’s going on.

“I will do no such thing!” his father’s voice booms. “This woman is beneath me and so is her son.”

“Well, I don’t give a damn who you are!” Maryse says loudly, in the harshest tone Magnus has ever heard her use, “But if you say one more word about my son I will personally kick your royal ass out of this apartment! There isn’t enough money in the world to buy my son off!”

“Nonsense” Asmodeus scoffs, like it’s the most ridiculous statement he’s ever heard. Ragnor nods that this would be a good time to enter the room.

They step into the living room and are greeted with looks of surprise, their argument forgotten. Queen Raniya lets out a sigh of relief and rushes to Magnus at once.

She cups his face and looks at him. “Are you alright, my boy?”

“Yes, mother, I’m fine,” he chokes out while she kisses his forehead, after which she smothers him in a hug. He has missed his mother more than he realized, and relaxes in her arms.

After she releases him, Magnus looks around the crowded living room. Isabelle is holding onto Maryse’s arms, as if she’s trying to physically restrain her mother from launching herself at his father. She’s looking at Magnus with an expression that’s both hurt and awed, while Maryse tries to look composed but seems ready to combust.

She’s facing his father, who looks every bit the untouchable King of Edom he is. Magnus can read the disdain on his face, he doesn’t like standing in this peasant’s house one bit. He is surrounded by servants who look very uncomfortable, and Raphael is half a step in front of him and looks ready to break up a fist fight.

Raniya still holds on to his hands, and he feels Ragnor’s hand on his shoulder as he realizes that one person in particular is missing.

“Where is Alexander?” he asks.

“Your daddy here just drove him off!” Maryse spits out, eyes shooting daggers at Asmodeus.

Magnus fears the answer to what he’s about to ask next. He takes his hands from his mother and walks over to face his father.

“What did you say to him?”

“That is none of your business. We shall return to Edom at once,” Asmodeus says coldly.

“I will not leave without Alexander. I need to talk to him,” Magnus says, stubborn, determined to not let his father win their staring contest. He will refuse to break this time.

After a moment, his mother softly breaks the silence. “So you do care for him?”

A smile creeps on to Magnus’ face, just thinking of the man that stole his heart without even trying. He breaks eye contact with his father to look at his mother. “Yes. Mama… I think I love him.”

Queen Raniya walks up to him and places her hands on his shoulders. “Then go after him,” she says with a soft smile.

Magnus returns her smile, thankful for his mother’s blessing.

“Magnus! I forbid it!” Asmodeus barks, while gripping his son’s upper arm.

Raniya slaps his hand away. “Oh, shut it, Asmodeus, our boy is in love,” she says, rolling her eyes.

Magnus doesn’t know where his mother’s sudden support comes from and has never heard her go against his father, but he has no time to think about that right now. He is grateful for the distraction she provided and sprints out of the house. He realizes that the slumped figure he saw walking away coming up to the house must have been Alexander, so he runs in that direction. He can’t be far.

He spots Alexander as he’s about to walk down the stairs leading into a subway station. He calls out his name, but if he hears him, he’s choosing to ignore him.

So he runs after him down the stairs, into the station, through the gates and down another flight of stairs that lead to the platforms. He keeps calling his name, and Alec keeps walking.

Magnus spots him making a sharp turn to the right and slipping into a waiting subway train as he’s a few steps away from the platform. The doors are about to close but he’ll be damned if he loses Alexander like this. So he forces the train doors open and squeezes into the train.

The doors close behind him and he’s met with annoyed glares from fellow passengers.

He spots Alexander walking down the train, so he goes after him, mumbling excuses to people he passes.

When he sees Alexander still, because he can’t walk any further, he stops at a distance.

“Alexander, please,” he begs.

Finally Alec turns around to face him, straightens his shoulders to make himself look as tall as he can be and steps towards him. Magnus is afraid he might punch him in the face - and if he does, he wouldn’t blame him. He probably deserves it.

Alexander doesn’t punch him, but his beautiful eyes are on fire as he pushes something towards Magnus. “When exactly were you planning on telling me?” he sounds as upset as hurt.

Magnus scrambles to look at what he shoved at him and his heart is pounding. It’s a crumpled up 100 Edom rupiah bill and he doesn’t know what to say.

Alexander found out he’s a prince because his face is on a banknote.

“I never meant to hurt you,” is the weak excuse he manages to articulate.

“Well, at least I solved the mystery of who sent me that Rolex!” Alec snaps. “You know, I never wanted any of that.” His fists are trembling by his side. “And I don’t want you.”

Magnus feels the eyes of their fellow passengers burning on his back. He wishes there was a better place to discuss this, but he’s going to have to roll with the punches. He needs to make Alexander understand why he did what he did.

“Alexander,” he begs.

Alec raises his voice, “Look, just leave me alone!”

Magnus refuses to give up. “Alexander, please!” he swallows thickly. “I love you.”

“Then what about the woman you’re going to marry?” he bites.

Fuck. Magnus lets out a pained laugh. “She’s someone my father arranged for me to marry, I don’t love her! Why do you think I came to America?”

“Your father told me,” Alec says darkly, “To sow your royal oats. To have some casual fun while you still can.”

“Oh no, Alexander,” Magnus says, “I came to America to lead a normal life for the first time. And then I found you. I- I’ve never felt this way about someone before.”

“So why did you lie to me? Why didn’t you tell me you were a -” Alec seems to have trouble forcing out the word. “A prince.”

“Because I wanted you to love me for who I am,” Magnus feels tears welling up in his eyes.

“I don’t even know who you are anymore.”

“I’m still the same person I’ve been all this time,” Magnus says desperately, “Should it matter that I’m a prince?”

A look of guilt flashes across Alec’s face as he looks down to his shoes. “It shouldn’t, but I -”

“Then tell me you didn’t care for me when you thought I was a goat herder,” Magnus interrupts, “And I promise I’ll never bother you again.”

Alexander sighs deep as he rolls his eyes, but stays silent. Magnus is afraid to speak.

“It just wouldn’t work out,” he starts after a moment, “We’re too different. I am a burned out accountant who works at a Brooklyn community center and you’re royalty, for God’s sake!”

Magnus doesn’t want to hear any of those kinds of arguments. “Do you want me to renounce my throne? Because I will. If you’ll give me another chance, I swear to the Gods, I will.”

Alec stands with his arms crossed, looking torn.

Magnus feels like he has nothing left to lose, so he spreads out his arms, and starts loudly, “From this moment on, I will no longer be the pri-” before Alec interrupts him.

“Magnus, no. I can’t let you do that. That’s not fair to you or your country.”

“I do not care about my crown, I care about you,” he takes a step towards Alec and goes for broke. He knows they’ve only just met, but he wants to be with this man, forever.

“Marry me, Alexander?”

Alexander’s eyes widen and he gasps softly. He doesn’t answer.

“Go on pretty boy, take a chance!” a random passenger yells, followed by cheers of encouragement from others.

Magnus feels sick.

The train rolls into the next station.

“Look, I’m sorry, but I can’t,” Alexander says hoarsely. “Goodbye, Magnus.”

He barges out of the wagon and leaves Magnus behind. He wants to go after him again, but he can’t. His legs won’t move and he can’t breathe.

And Alexander disappears from his view as the doors close and the train comes into motion again.

---

His mother won’t speak to his father anymore, after the latter was unwilling to compromise on anything. Now they’re leaving. Magnus and Ragnor share one of the cars of the motorcade that takes the royal family back to the airport.

“I’m so sorry, my friend,” Ragnor says softly.

Magnus can only choke out another silent sob in response.

Chapter 6: The End

The royal temple is decorated with the traditional wedding colors of Edom. Blue drapes and banners and fresh flowers brighten up the place, and Magnus feels miserable. He’s wearing a blue batik shirt with a high collar and heavy gold embrodings. His pants are solid navy and his feet are bare - this is a temple, after all.

His topknot is pulled together so tight that it hurts his scalp, but it has to, because his hair can’t look out of place in any of his wedding photos.

He feels empty. Crushed. He thought he felt empty during the courtship ritual, but that was nothing. The same important people are probably seated in the temple. It must look like a joyous occasion for them.

Asmodeus and Raniya are seated in thrones on the side of the dais. His parents started speaking to each other again two days after they came back from New York. Now they are holding hands on their shared armrest while they look pleased and proud of him.

It only makes him feel more heartbroken.

The sound of soft gamelan music that slowly swells indicates that the wedding ceremony is about to begin. He looks at the priestess, who gestures that he should turn around now.

And so he does. He faces the crowd and sees the bridal dancers with their big feathery fans covering Camille. The first two dancers hold sticks, and they sternly tap the end on the floor to signal the others. They take calm, confident steps to the rhythm of the music as they begin to move their fans.

The first two move away, to dance ahead of the bridal party.

Magnus closes his eyes.

When he opens them, two more dancers have moved away from the bride.

He breathes. He can do this.

The party stops in front of the dais Magnus stands on.

Who is he kidding, he can’t do this! He wishes he could run away. He doesn’t, because he knows he won’t get far and will only make a fool out of himself and bring international shame to his family.

The dancers shake their fans, so that the bells attached to them chime, a sign that they have reached the end of the aisle. A gong sounds, and one by one the dancers remove their fan to reveal his bride.

Magnus can’t deal with the idea of being eye to eye with Camille, seeing her smug expression, knowing she got her way. But he knows he can’t look away. He squares his shoulders and prepares himself as layer by layer gets peeled away to reveal…

“Alexander?” he whispers.

He turns around and looks at his parents wide eyed to get some kind of confirmation. His father has a private smile on his face and his mother nods with gleaming eyes. Maryse and Luke have joined them without Magnus realizing, and they stand next to his parents’ throne with big smiles on their faces.

So he looks back to Alec, who stands at the foot of the dais, in the same traditional dress as Magnus - except his heavy golden embroidery is set on cream colored batik instead of blue. He shrugs with a shy smile that’s a bit goofy and crooked and genuine and just so him.

So Magnus does the only logical thing he could do in this situation.

He rushes down the dais, grabs him by the front of his shirt and pulls him in for a kiss that is in no way appropriate for a traditional temple ceremony. Alec doesn’t seem to care either, because he kisses him back just as fiercely.

Someone clears their throat loudly over the buzzing of the guests. Magnus pulls back and then they’re just smiling at each other. He feels like his heart might explode

“Your Highness,” Raphael says, “Better save that part for after the ceremony.”

Magnus nods at him with a grin he can’t wipe off his face anymore. He lets out a short breath and pulls himself together. He hops back on the dais to resume his position and holds out his hand for his groom to take.

Alec slides his hand into his, and stands next to him. They step forward and kneel.

The high priestess starts chanting the ancient words, to which the other priests and priestesses chant their reply. And Magnus feels like he’s on top of the world.

---

After the ceremony they’re guided out of the temple back into the bright sun, to an open carriage drawn by four white horses. The people of Edom City are waving flags and cheering for them as they’re being taken back to the palace.

They never stop holding each other’s hand, as they wave to the crowds with their other hand.

Alexander looks a bit overwhelmed, as he leans into Magnus.

“Would you really have given all of this up, just for me?” he asks, his voice full of wonder.

“Of course!” Magnus responds, “We could still give it all up now, if you’d prefer.”

Alexander looks at him pensively. His hazel eyes sparkle as much as the golden thread in his shirt and Magnus falls in love all over again. A smile breaks his thoughtful expression.

“Nah,” he says. “I’m good. Besides, you already promised me they’d treat me like a king here,” he adds, grinning mischievously.

“As they should,” Magnus says, lifting up their joined hands to kiss Alexander’s knuckles.

They’re quiet for a bit.

“What did we just do?” Alexander breathes out as they ride through the palace gates.

“I think we just got married,” Magnus says, still wondering if this is a dream he’ll eventually have to wake up from. “And you’re the prince consort of Edom now.”

Alexander slowly shakes his head with an incredulous expression on his face.

“I’m sorry for how I reacted on the subway,” Alec says, still clutching Magnus’ hand.

“I’m sorry for lying by omission about being a prince,” Magnus apologizes in return.

The carriage comes to a smooth halt. They have a few moments before they’re expected to make a grand entrance at their own party, and they plan to take this moment together.

Shouldn’t they have talked this through before getting married? Alec swallows thickly as he rests his forehead against Magnus’ and holds on to his hands even tighter. As if he heard Magnus’ thoughts, he speaks. “For some reason I’ve never been so certain of anything in my life,” he whispers.

“Me neither,” Magnus says as he caresses his cheek with his thumb. He leans forward, and kisses his husband softly.

“Come on you guys, you’ll have time for all of that later!” Lydia calls out from the doorway, where she’s standing with Becky and Andrew. “Besides, half of New York is in here getting impatient. They want to congratulate the happy couple!”

Magnus barks out a laugh and looks at their faces.

“What?” Alec grins, “Did you seriously think Jace and Izzy and the rest would miss my wedding?”

“Well then, let’s go,” he replies. “We have to start the rest of our lives together with the biggest party Edom has ever seen.”

Alec’s smile is brighter than the sun, and Magnus just knows he has found his happily ever after.

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haydensmarin · 4 years

Text

meet HAYDEN JUDE MARIN, he has been living in milton for three months and is generally known around town for being charming and manipulative. the twenty seven year old, is apparently a night club owner but you didn’t hear that from me. when i think of him i think of: the warmth of the sand under your bare feet, a flirtatious comment followed by a wink, ‘u up’ texts, the smell of freshly baked bread. - tommy martinez, cismale, he/him as written by pepper, 23, est, she/her.

BIO ; cancer tw, death tw

Hayden was born and raised in Santa Barbara, California where he happily spent most of his childhood by the beach. He was raised solely by his mother, Rosie Marin, who did her very best to bring him up on her own despite his father’s purposeful lack of involvement. Rosie owned a small local bakery (aptly named Rosie’s) that she and Hayden lived above. Hayden’s childhood was peppered with memories of waking up to the scent of fresh bread, pushing up onto his tiptoes to ice cupcakes, and of course, always being the most popular kid in his classes because his mom brought the best snacks. Hayden and his mother had just nearly enough to get by most of the time, but Hayden grew up very loved and very happy. His mother made sure of that at the very least.

Unfortunately, Rosie was diagnosed with lung cancer when Hayden was just ten years old. She fought hard against the disease for two hard years before she unfortunately passed away when Hayden was twelve. In all honesty, Hayden has never really quite gotten over his mother’s death. At the time his mother was quite literally all he had. He never knew his overly religious grandparents (who disowned Rosie for having a child out of wedlock) and he had no aunts or uncles that he knew of. All he really grew up with was his mother, and watching her die for two years was incredibly hard for him, and after her death he felt that for the first time in his life he was truly alone.

To everyone’s surprise, but especially Hayden’s, after his mother’s death his father got into contact with him through his godmother who Hayden was staying with at the time. Shockingly enough despite his total absence for majority of Hayden’s life, Hayden’s father wanted to take Hayden in. Hayden was very much against it, considering he had never met his father and was reasonably rather upset with him for abandoning both him and his mother. However, Hayden’s godmother thought that living with his father would be best for him, not only considering that it may be Hayden’s last chance to have a relationship with a parent but also because Hayden’s father, Raphael, was very well off. So despite his (very vocal) protests Hayden was then sent to live with his father, which quickly became a very sour arrangement.

It became very clear very quickly that Hayden’s father wanted nothing to do with him. He spoke to Hayden only when necessary, seemed to forget his son was there most of the time, and left on business trips near constantly. Eventually Hayden learnt (through some rather sneaky eavesdropping) that the only reason his father had taken him in in the first place was to please Hayden’s stepmother. Apparently, Cheryl, or ‘Cherry’ as she insisted everyone call her, was practically begging Raphael for a baby, and seeing as Raphael had very little time or desire for having a child he decided that having a twelve year old around was better than an infant. Hayden was hurt to learn the truth about his father’s desire to take him in, and even attempted to run away in a fit of anger. But he was very quickly found by some of his father’s security and brought back to his father’s expansive home before he could get very far, and every attempt following the first resulted in much of the same thing.

Eventually Hayden gave up on running away. His father was rarely home long enough for Hayden to demonstrate how much he loathed him anyways, and within the walls of his father’s home Hayden was at least clothed and fed. He resented his father and longed to run away back to his godmother’s home but unfortunately his father’s home was a long way away from Santa Monica.

So Hayden started to build a life for himself where he was, and that life started with school. Even without being the kid in school who’s mom brought the best snacks, Hayden was still quite popular in school, and for the most part that was due to baseball. Hayden had always played baseball, ever since he was young and his mother used to bring plates full of orange slices to his peewee games (the Marins had always been a baseball family. Screw football or hockey, if it wasn’t on a baseball diamond they didn’t care about it). Hayden also had the good fortune of actually being very talented. So when Hayden tried out for catcher on his high school team he got the position very easily, and was even bumped up to first string to boot. Although some of the upper year students weren’t particularly happy about a freshman making first string, a lot of the colleges were. Hayden’s talent was noticed and sought after from the time he was about halfway through his sophomore year, and his near prodigy level skill was even featured in some local sports magazines and the local newspaper. Despite knowing that the magazines likely wouldn’t have cared about Hayden’s skill if he wasn’t going to one of the most well known private schools in the state, Hayden’s ego still inflated a bit at the recognition.

For a few years that’s all Hayden’s life was. Playing baseball, hanging out and partying with friends, and occasionally having to deal with his father and stepmother when the situation called for it. It wasn’t the best life, and Hayden wasn’t exactly happy but it was all Hayden really had, so he did his best to make do with it. In all honesty at that point the thing that made Hayden happiest was his team. While Hayden’s home life was broken, his team helped him find the community he craved. Playing baseball and being part of a team made Hayden feel that he belonged somewhere, like he was wanted somewhere, and Hayden clung to that sensation gratefully.

But when Hayden was about halfway through his junior year things rapidly went downhill. You have to be a level 10 friend to unlock what happened there because I honestly don’t think Hayden has talked about it since the night it happened, but basically all you need to know is that a series of events happened one night that led to Hayden basically being thrown out of his home that very same night and disowned, full stop.

Hayden’s only saving grace was that his father was too proud to let his son live on the streets. Raphael set Hayden up with his own apartment near his school, and paid for Hayden’s rent and expenses. However, he did so without communicating with Hayden even once, and it was very clear that Hayden had essentially been disowned. When Hayden was eighteen the money stopped, and Hayden moved out of the apartment. Hayden and Raphael haven’t really talked since.

Hayden got into university on a full baseball scholarship, despite all the chaos. He leaned heavily on his chosen family, his baseball team, throughout that difficult interim between being kicked out and graduating, and during that time he threw himself into baseball with such vigor and intensity that he impressed more than a few of the scouts circling around him. He ended up choosing NYU because it was the school that was the farthest away, and although Hayden didn’t want to be far from his hometown and his mother’s grave, he did want a fresh start away from his father and Cherry.

Hayden university experience was unremarkable but very significant to him. In fact, the fact that it was mostly unremarkable is what made it so special to him. For the most part, Hayden was pretty close to completely happy. He became captain of the baseball team his second year, made lifelong friends in his team and his frat, and eventually achieved his ultimate goal, getting recruited onto a professional baseball team in his junior year. Hayden graduated early with a degree in business, proud of his accomplishments, and finally feeling as if he was breaking through a barrier of tragedy through his life. He was finally approaching his happy ending.

But of course it didn’t last. Hayden played for the New York Yankees for almost two years, (and was damn good at it too) before he injured his shoulder in a game. The injury was serious enough that his future in baseball seemed to just sudden became nonexistent. In a moment, a split second really, all of Hayden’s dreams that he had just barely reached suddenly crumbled in his hands. Disappeared into fucking nothing. It was like god had it out for him. Hayden didn’t take it well.

After the doctor’s final diagnosis (a solemn gaze behind wire rimmed glasses, a fucking clipboard that Hayden wasn’t allowed to see, stainless steel, the smell of death, god Hayden fucking hated hospitals), Hayden stayed in New York because even if he wasn’t living out his dream, well he had nowhere else to go. He went on a bit of a bender though. Drinking, partying, drugs, girls, guys – you name it, Hayden indulged in all of his vices in an attempt to find comfort. Some friends he made through the years tried to get into touch with him (and some very notably didn’t) but Hayden never really did much more than go through the motions with any of it. ‘I’m fine’ quickly became an automated response, one he didn’t even have to think about, one he would give whether drunk or high or completely and utterly lost– Because he was. He was fine. Anyone who thought differently could get fucked.

Hayden bought the club on a whim. His time in the league meant he had more than a bit of money saved, and since the place was for sale and Hayden liked to party, he figured it was a no brainer. He’s owned the place for almost three years now, and it’s actually been surprisingly successful. Hayden’s status of ‘former baseball player’ was enough notoriety to get people to show up, and the fact that the place was actually more than decent kept them coming. Hayden treats the club like more of a hobby than an actual business, too busy with his extracurricular activities to have more than a passing interest in it but… it’s fun. And well. It’s not like he has anything else to do.

He lived by himself for a while but honestly Hayden is a big extrovert, he hates being alone, and living by himself in the huge ass loft he used to own just made him feel more lonely. So he responded to the first ‘roommate wanted’ ad he could find and just so happened to room with a girl he went to college with. It was a weird coincidence that later led to Hayden giving Kitty Dixie a job as a bartender at his club, which pretty quickly led to the both of them running the place together. Despite the fact that Hayden would rather die than admit it, he gives a shit about her so after the fire he not only gave her to time off she needed but also took the very first vacation he has ever took from the Omnia to come to the funeral with her and help her get settled. He has now been in Milton for about three months and he’s still super intrigued by the whole place?? Goes around flirting with suburban moms, and attending their weird ass festivals, and confusing small town people with his general city behaviour. He’s happy to be near the beach again but it lowkey makes him miss his mom big. Yeah I’m gonna stop rambling now but yes that’s Hayden.

PERSONALITY / HEADCANNONS ;

Hayden, is as the kids say… a fuckboi, probably

He is very loyal, like he cares a lot about his own but anyone outside of his circle he’s kind of indifferent to. Like he’s friendly, and almost pleasant but like… he does not really care about them yk, there’s a distinct lack of like sincerity in the way he treats his friends vs randos (or even ‘friends’)

Morally grey to the max

A very good liar, who lies often. Can be very manipulative but he doesn’t have a reason to be lately, so he mostly just manipulates business partners.

LOVES messing with people. It’s like crack to him

Very sarcastic

Will sleep with anyone he’s attracted to tbh. Bisexual, and very comfortable with it by now. Used to be kind of iffy with it when he was playing professionally, but now that he’s got no chance of ever being a pro again and the paps have pretty much left him alone he gives no fucks.

Actually pretty clever, hence the whole actually being able to own a successful business thing.

Might bake for you if you’re nice to him and he’s actually really freaking good at it like he learned from his mom, and honestly baking highkey reminds him of her so he doesn’t do it too often.

Lowkey his dream is to go back to santa barbara and run his mom’s bakery (his dad sold the place but hayden bought it back as soon as he had the money) but since he kind of considers himself a failure and disappointment to his mom at this point his bitch ass doesn’t think he deserves to yet, so he’s staying in new york for a while, and now milton for a bit too.

Is almost always on business calls with his employees or business partners because running a club remotely is a lot harder than you think???

Hates hospitals with a passion. Would rather die than go to one willingly. When Hayden is sick he just voluntarily suffers.

Oh, and Hayden’s club is named Omnia and friends get in for free so feel free to hit him up for a good time if you’re ever going to New York

WANTED CONNECTIONS ;

i would love a bromance for hayden honestly that would be fun

a godsibling! hayden used to be v close to his godmother so this could be fun too

someone who he has a bad influence on? someone who’s a good influence on him?

one night stand! honestly since hayden is just gonna be in milton for a while he is just having a good time, so hit your boi up!

fwbs or ewbs because again,,, what else is he doing here

a secret fling could be a fun thing to play out!

a hateship. like they bicker all the time and they really wanna wring each other’s necks, just give me some good old fashion animosity.

maybe an ex that he was dating during his time playing professionally (can be f/m/nb) that Hayden ended things with when he got his injury and moved to New York? Fun drama potentially

omg that reminds me i have a headcannon that Hayden dated the first and only person he ever loved in college and they broke his fucking heart so if anyone wants to play that out and dive head first into some angst with me then lemme know.

a sibling like relationship, an ex fwb, someone he’s the wingman for, idk everything give me all of it please and thank!

TAKEN CONNECTIONS ;

kitty = work wife / flirtationship / friend from college

#h.m. | bio.

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eternalravendreamer · 5 years

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Fire Emblem Three Houses: School Clubs

(sorry this is so long)

Black Eagles

Edelgard: Debate Team Captain, but she has to remember to keep up her cover; some of those debates hit home and she gets a little too passionate. She’s also a Volunteer Animal Caretaker, showing her soft side for cats.

Hubert: Considers joining Edelgard on the Debate Team, but he doesn't want to seem suspicious so he joins the Paranormal Investigation Club and ends up being unanimously voted Vice President. To everyone’s shock, he’s also a Volunteer Animal Caretaker, having a love for the pegasus.

Caspar: No doubt, he joins the recreational Brawling Team. He and Raphael hit it off and become great pals and rivals, often eating together with...concerning voraciousness.

Lindhart: Philosophy Society, but he tends to just rant and immediately pass out whenever it's someone else's turn to speak. He considers joining the Mindfulness and Meditation group but gets sleepy just thinking of it...and is actually pretty terrible at yoga.

Dorothea: Of COURSE she's in the Theater Department! It's canon! She tries to take a junior director role so other students can have a chance at big roles. She also assists the Choir and Dancer Society

Petra: She's one of the few non-Golden Deer students on the recreational Archery Team. She's excited when the other students ask for her to demonstrate Brigid archery techniques. And when Claude establishes the International Culture Society, she joins to give first hand information.

Bernadetta: She wants to stay in her room clubless, but when she hears about the Crafts Club, she gets a little excited and decides to check it out. Mercedes' comforting aura is perfect for making Bernie comfortable enough to participate, and she even convinces Bernie to check out the Gardening Club despite her fear of Dedue, and even joins the Writing & Literature Club...anonymously, by submitting her work when nobody is around to see her. She wanted to be a Volunteer Animal Caretaker, but was too intimidated by the sheer number of other members.

Ferdinand: Debate Team Vice-Captain...and mad about it. Starts so many "example debates" with Edelgard for the other members that it tends to get out of hand. Also joins the Dancer Society, much to Dorothea’s displeasure.

Blue Lions

Dimitri: At first he considers some of the more intense clubs, like Debate or the Young Knight’s Union, but after encouraging Dedue to be in the club he really wanted, Dimitri joins the academy's Mindfulness and Meditation group. He's kind of nervous at first, but Claude helps him relax. It does wonders for his mental health.

Dedue: With Dimitri's encouragement, he becomes President of the Gardening and Cooking clubs. Just being a regular member of more than one club is usually a handful, but these are both super chill, so his job is easy.

Annette: Another multi-club student, she participates in Choir as well as the Young Mages Society. She also stops in to check on Mercedes in the Cooking Club, but was...discouraged from joining by the dining hall staff.

Mercedes: She’s balancing quite a few clubs! She’s the founding member and President of the Paranormal Investigation Club and Crafts Club, as well as the baking expert of the Cooking Club and a member of the Young Mages Society. And on top of all that, she’s a Volunteer Animal Caretaker.

Sylvain: He jokingly suggests a Singles Club and is immediately turned down by Seteth. So instead he ends up joining the Writing & Literature Club, much to the surprise of everyone. Ends up being Bernadetta’s biggest fan.

Ingrid: Of course she joins the Young Knight’s Union! She loves being surrounded by others who value chivalry and honor codes as much as she does. On that note she also joins the Writing & Literature Club, gushing about her favorite knight tales.

Felix: At first he declares he wants nothing to do with recreational activities, claiming it distracts from training. But then the academy’s recreational Fencing/Dueling (swords) Team tells him that if he joins, he can participate in competitions with other academies from across Fodlan. He becomes their star member in no time.

Ashe: Absolutely the President of the Writing & Literature Club, as well as Vice President of the Cooking Club. He wanted to make an Animal Appreciation Club to help care for all the cats, dogs, horses, and owls on campus, but the number of applicants to join got so out of hand that Rhea decided that it was just gonna be a proper volunteering position instead, called Volunteer Animal Caretakers.

Golden Deer

Claude: As ever, Claude is a busybody, a jack of all trades. He tends to be a regular “drop in” at certain clubs like the Mindfulness and Meditation group and even the Paranormal Investigation Team, but not a proper member, However, he’s a true member of the Writing & Literature Club, Debate Team. Archery Team, Philosophy Society, and even the creator of the International Culture Society. Nobody knows how he manages to balance it all, plus everything else.

Hilda: “Joining a club sounds like too much work”, she said, until she hears about the Crafts Club and immediately joins. It’s refreshing to have some other appreciators of handmade accessories to hang out with! Claude convinces her to join the Mindfulness and Meditation group too, since it’s the perfect place to chill out.

Lorenz: He wanted to make a Young Nobles Society, but was told no clubs were allows to purposely not allow commoner students. So instead be joins the Debate Team, Young Mages Society (even though his magic is pretty average compared to the rest of the group), and the Dancers Society (to Dorothea’s even greater displeasure). He also submits his poetry to the Writing & Literature Club...anonymously, just like Bernie.

Marianne: She would consider being clubless, but the moment she hears about the Volunteer Animal Caretakers she signs up right away. It would be her only club, but it would open her up a little more.

Ignatz: He would definitely join the Crafts Club, which is technically for any soft of craft or art, painting included. It would give him a space where his passion was accepted, which he desperately needed. He’d consider joining the Young Knight’s Union to save face with his family, but feels bad at the thought of not putting genuine effort into it.

Raphael: As mentioned before, he’s on the recreational Brawling Team! He and Caspar are both the stars of the team, but Raph is the one everyone can come to for a bear hug.

Leonie: Definitely part of the Archery Team. She’d be pretty competitive even with her teammates, which Shamir scolds her for straight away. Since she tends to have a narrow focus on only one or two goals, I doubt she’d join anything else.

Lysithea: She joins the Young Mages Society right away, and impresses everyone...as well as becomes the unofficial “mascot” of the group, which she hates but accepts after being bribed with sweets. Stays far away from the Paranormal Investigation Team.

Church of Seiros & Faculty:

Flayn: Once she’s officially a student of the Academy, she’s enthusiastic to join a club. She definitely signs up to be a Volunteer Animal Caretaker, and joins the Writing & Literature Club (which makes Seteth very happy). She considers joining the Dancer Society but takes one peek in on their practice, sees Ferdinand and Lorenz in the dancer outfits, and leaves.

Seteth: He’s the faculty adviser of the Writing & Literature Club, since he himself enjoys writing children’s stories. He also acts as the moderator for the Debate Team, and is part of the Faculty Fishing Group.

Byleth: Along with being a member of the Faculty Fishing Group, they would be the faculty adviser for the Volunteer Animal Caretakers, as well as the Mindfulness and Meditation group. Someone’s gotta give these kids therapy, might as well be the half-feral, weirdo mercenary

Jeralt: All Knights of Seiros are required to help out with the Young Knight’s Union, but since he’s more merc than knight anymore, he spends more time with the Faculty Fishing Group. Though he does pop in on the Paranormal Investigation Team from time to time. His kid’s basically a cryptid after all.

Rhea: While being the Archbishop would take up 99% of her time, Rhea is resolute on wanting to contribute to at least one of the Academy’s student clubs. And she chooses to be the faculty adviser for the Gardening Club. Staff and students alike are shocked, since Dedue is the leader of the group, but Rhea likes flowers and wants to encourage the small collection of students who have chosen to work in the Greenhouse.

Manuela: Of course she’s the director of the Theater and Choir! She’s also the instructor for the Dancer Society. Her former experience in the Opera make these three clubs near and dear to her heart, so she and Dorothea put their all into them.

Hanneman: The faculty adviser of the Young Mages Society and Paranormal Investigation Team, as well as the Philosophy Society. He wants to challenge the students to think critically.

Catherine: As a Knight of Seiros, she helps out with the Young Knight’s Union, and is popular with the students there. After Jeritza...leaves, she takes over for him as the coach for the Fencing/Dueling Team as well.

Jeritza: Coach for the Fencing/Dueling Team, he’s a great teacher but awkward when the students try to talk to him outside of practice.

Shamir: Coach for the Archery Team, and while she’s technically a mercenary she still has to help a little with the Young Knight’s Union. She also decided to be the faculty adviser for the International Culture Society, occasionally telling the students about life in Dagda.

Alois: He LOVES helping the Young Knight’s Union, since he used to be a member himself. He also coaches the Brawling Team and is an avid member of the Faculty Fishing Group...even if he never catches anything.

Cyril: He’s not a student, so he can’t technically be part of any clubs, but Rhea often has him come with her to the Gardening Club, and Shamir has him practice with the Archery Team...and try to reconnect with his Almyran heritage in the International Culture Society.

Gilbert: While he tries to keep a low profile (Seteth pls force this man to pay his overdue child support), he does help the Young Knight’s Union, and is a regular at the Faculty Fishing Group. He also acts as the faculty adviser for the Cooking and Crafts Clubs, since he enjoys cooking and woodcarving himself. Although there are some repeated issues of him not being too keen on working with Dedue.

#fire emblem three houses #fe3h #long post #fe black eagles #fe blue lions #fe gold #fe church of seiros #fe16

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haydenmarin · 4 years

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( samuel larsen | cismale | he/him ) ——— well well, if it isn’t hayden marin coming out of apartment 5.1. i always think of the sweet smell of nicotine clinging to worn leather, the vibration of bass through your rib cage, and the bittersweet freedom of giving up when i see them, don’t you? anyway - i heard the twenty five year old moved out to new york seven years ago to go to school and become a baseball player. that must’ve gone nowhere because they now work as a club owner; maybe that’s because they’ve a tendency to be calculating, libertine and sarcastic. i guess they could’ve been someone… — [ pepper | 23 | est | she/her ]

heyo all, i’m pepper, twenty three, she/her pronouns, and i’m always late dfkjdfkj as you can see, like i literally had everything prepared beforehand i don’t know how i’m still late... honestly rip. a bit about me i guess, i am still waiting for fergie to come back from her hiatus (because no song goes as hard as fergalicious, that’s a fact), i still don’t really understand what tiktok is and i’m okay with that, i’m addicted to pinterest and atm i’m really craving some fries. okey doke, now that that’s over with i’m super excited to PROPERLY introduce you to my trash son hayden! here are some stats on him, here is his pinterest board, and here is his playlist! down below is hayden’s bio which is hella long sdkjdskj i’m so sorry i wrote up a short form but i liked his full bio better. if you read absolutely ANY of it i love you okay.

CANCER TW, DEATH TW

BIO ;

Hayden also moved into 5.1 on a whim just over three years ago, mostly to make sure there were people around him in case he happened to drop dead one day yk, a precaution. He lived by himself for a while before that while he was in the league and after his injury but honestly Hayden is a big extrovert, he hates being alone, and living by himself in the huge ass loft he used to own just made him feel more lonely. So he responded to the first ‘roommate wanted’ ad he could find and now here he is. He honestly has enough money that he doesn’t need to be there, but he likes the company so he’s sticking around.

PERSONALITY / HEADCANNONS ;

Hayden, is as the kids say… a fuckboi, probably

Morally grey to the max

A very good liar, who lies often. Can be very manipulative but he doesn’t have a reason to be lately, so he mostly just manipulates business partners.

LOVES messing with people. It’s like crack to him

Very sarcastic

Actually pretty clever, hence the whole actually being able to own a successful business thing.

Might bake for the roommates of 5.1 if they’re nice to him and he’s actually really freaking good at it like he learned from his mom, and honestly baking highkey reminds him of her so he doesn’t do it too often.

Hates hospitals with a passion. Would rather die than go to one willingly. When Hayden is sick he just voluntarily suffers.

Oh, and Hayden’s club is named Omnia and friends get in for free so feel free to hit him up for a good time.

WANTED CONNECTIONS ;

i would love a bromance for hayden honestly that would be fun

a godsibling! hayden used to be v close to his godmother so this could be fun too

someone who he has a bad influence on? someone who’s a good influence on him?

one night stand! maybe they didn’t even realize they were going to be living in the same apartment complex at first but then they found out and it was like oh shit

fwbs or ewbs

a secret fling could be a fun thing to play out!

a hateship. like they bicker all the time and they really wanna wring each other’s necks, just give me some good old fashion animosity.

someone who frequents his club maybe, perhaps he’s always kicking them out or perhaps they’re always partying together.

maybe an ex that he was dating during his time playing professionally (can be f/m/nb) that Hayden ended things with when he got his injury and moved to New York? Fun drama.

Some friends from college would be cool too if anyone went to NYU.

TAKEN CONNECTIONS ;

dolly = little sister he never wanted / soft spot

kitty = work wife / flirtationship / friend from college

jac = ex fwb / ride or die

art = bad influence / haaaave you met ted?

juliette = good influence / in house nurse

chris = bromance / friend from cali

#h.m. | intro.#dreamed:intro #this took me way too long considering the bio was already written up like?? why am i like this

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hiddlesgirl · 5 years

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SH 315: To The Night Children

This was a great episode and I am glad that the show has got back into its stride after 313; the scenes were full of emotion and there was definitely a theme of conflict between doing what you feel is right and abiding by the system/laws. Magnus is receiving a far from warm welcome which while not surprising is disappointing given everything he has done for Shadowhunters, especially the NY Institute; Maia is struggling with her loss and wants justice for her pack; Clary is battling with the darker urges that the twinning rune is feeding.

We begin the episode with Heidi making a speech to the New York clan about it being their time to rule; what I really don’t understand about this entire situation is that although Heidi is charismatic and manipulative how they hell is she getting all the vampires to go along with her? I know that some will be fed up at how they are treated by the Shadowhunters but surely there are some who don’t want to cause a war or break the accords like Griffin, so why are they not speaking out? It just seems unrealistic that an entire clan of vampires are willingly following the orders of a baby vampire, following her like sheep.

I absolutely adore the Malec morning scene, such a sweet and domestic little moment. Magnus tells Alec that he slept like a rock, this is another indicator of how much not having magic affected him that as soon as he has regained it he is able to sleep. He feels so much more in his own skin and secure when he has magic, to know that he can protect himself and others, and to feel like himself gives him the ability to relax enough to sleep.

It’s very sweet that Alec fetched orange juice and coffee for Magnus so that he could have those extra few minutes of sleep because he knows how little Magnus has been sleeping. Also, the fact that Alec is getting dressed when Magnus wakes up suggests that he went to get the coffee in his sleepwear. I love that Magnus is lying on Alec’s pillow, stretched across the bed, implying that they sleep cuddled together and on each other’s chests (like in the 218 morning flashback).

Magnus is concerned about being at the Institute because he knows that Downworlders are not permitted to live there and the unrest that would cause with the other Shadowhunters. Not only is he worried about causing any trouble for Alec with the Clave or his subordinates but he is worried about their reaction to him. He knows that he is probably not going to be warmly welcomed by the majority of the Institute and he feels very out of place.

Alec wants Magnus to feel welcome and comfortable, he is so happy to be able to provide Magnus with somewhere to live and that they are living together at last that he is not willing to let anything get in the way of that. He isn’t going to let some rules stop his from helping his boyfriend and he will not tolerate anyone treating Magnus poorly, he dismisses Magnus’ concerns about the other Shadowhunters because he is confident in his position of leadership. Plus, I think that he hopes that they have adapted more opens minds when it comes to Downworlders because of his relationship with Magnus and their (Alec, Izzy, Clary) efforts to undo the prejudices.

Unfortunately, it is clear from the moment they step into the cafeteria that the Shadowhunters are not happy with Magnus’ presence, even Underhill who seemed very accepting of their relationship and didn’t seem to have any bias towards Magnus as a warlock. Magnus is clearly very uncomfortable but he stays because he doesn’t want to give them the satisfaction of driving him out, also because Alec seems so confident.

Clary, Jace and Izzy are all happy and welcoming towards him; they all love him in their own way and have not objections to him living with them. When Izzy toasts him Magnus doesn’t drink from the glass, looking around at all the other Shadowhunters who are clearly not as happy as his friends. It seems that he didn’t drink not only because he felt under scrutiny but maybe because he felt out of place, like he didn’t belong. When you toast and drink with someone it is an act of solidarity and togetherness, but Magnus does not feel that in this moment, despite his friends and Alec’s reassurances.

We find out that Luke is going to be pleading guilty to the murders of the pack; you can see that he is so consumed by his guilt that he is willing to do what he deems necessary to atone for what he feels is his fault. He believes that he is responsible for their deaths because he left the pack, that he could have prevented it; now he is willing to face prison to alleviate that guilt. Fortunately for us, the sergeant knows Luke and does not believe his capable of that amount of violence.

Maia seems trapped in the trauma of the massacre which is completely understandable; she witnessed the brutal and unprovoked murder of her pack, she is trying to process what happened while dealing with her grief and anger. They were her family and she needs to make sure Heidi pays for taking them from her. Simon understands some of her hurt and anger after everything Heidi put him through, but he knows he cannot grasp the entirety of it; he wants to help her get the justice she and her pack deserves, and he knows that Heidi needs to be stopped.

Heidi shows up at the Institute to give them the names of the vampires who attacked the Jade Wolf, her entire demeanour is cultivating sympathy and putting up a front of the helpless victim. She is blaming her victims on being a new vampire and her crimes against Simon on Lilith, then bringing up Raphael to cause discourse between Alec and Izzy. Not only is she trying to get the Institute on side, to get a clean slate, but also to get rid of the current clan Leader in order to insinuate herself into the leader position in the clan.

Luke tells Clary that he is pleading guilty because he wants to keep the Shadow World secret and atone for abandoning the pack; he doesn’t want the police to dig deep because when he told Ollie it ended with more people dying and her in danger. He cannot feel responsible for any more suffering or deaths. Through the entire conversation with Clary he can barely look her in the eye, he knows that by doing this he is leaving her behind and cannot bear to watch her cry; he knows that his decision is not completely right and he might break under the pressure of Clary’s upset.

Clary is distraught that Luke seems to be making the decision to leave her, to abandon her; she needs all the support she can get right now and cannot bear the thought of being without her dad, the person who has always been there for her (I admit that I was crying, especially when she called her dad). Although she might understand why he feels guilty, she does not understand his decision to take the punishment and abandon her.

Alec is debriefing the team who are going to be arresting the vampire and wants it to be carried out by the book because they cannot afford an incident like Jordan assaulting the clan leader; and I admit that I wanted to smack Underhill for turning the another Shadowhunter and snidely remarking ‘Now he wants to do thing by the book’ referring to him letting Magnus stay at the Institute. Not only did it annoy me but it also seemed out of character because he professed his respect for Alec in 3A and now he is making scathing remarks and openly disrespecting him to others.

Alec informs Izzy that Raphael needs to be brought in despite her protests and reference for his character, not matter what she feels about him he violated the accords and needs to answer for it. Just because they have a personal connection doesn’t mean the he gets a free pass when he breaks the law, Izzy understands Alec’s view and probably agrees with him, she is just torn because she has lingering affection for Raphael.

Aline is back! And she is not happy. She is furious that they let Jonathan escape when they had such a good opportunity to not only capture him but kill him; she understands the rune but knows how difficult it is going to be to capture him. She is still angry and hurting over Sebastian’s death, she wants justice for his murder; not only that but many Shadowhunters are dying in the pursuit of Jonathan. She is resentful that people are being allowed to die to protect Clary, she feels that her cousin doesn’t matter when compared to Clary.

Maia and Simon are angry at Alec for pardoning Heidi of her crimes; they know that she is the one behind the attack, they had put their hopes on the Institute bringing her in but instead they have fallen for her lies. Alec needs proof before being able to arrest her because she wasn’t at the scene of the crime, he is willing to bring her in but he needs to be able to justify it so that she can’t wriggle out of it later.

Again I am mad at Underhill, he is being very dismissive and rude to Magnus despite him being Alec’s partner, someone Underhill professed to respect and feel gratitude towards. He is taking out his frustration on Magnus which is not right, if he has an issue with the situation he should have spoken to Alec about it instead of becoming disrespectful towards him and Magnus.

Magnus definitely feels uncomfortable because he feels like he has done something wrong just by being there, he is at the Institute out of necessity not choice and he is being treated like a leper. He doesn’t want to live their permanently anymore than they want him there, and after everything Magnus has done for the Institute in his lifetime (including taking in one of their own, Jace) it is disappointing that they cannot even show basic decency towards him.

He seems very surprised and taken aback by Underhill talking about his and Alec’s relationship issues, this is understandable because literally 30 seconds ago this Shadowhunter was telling him he doesn’t want him to live in their building and now he is discussing his relationship issues. It has to be very disconcerting to have someone you don’t know, know about your relationship issues.

Raphael is very happy to see Izzy, despite the circumstances; he understands that he has to answer for what he did and atone for those crimes. He has been trying to atone in his own way by helping at the centre and we saw him burning himself with holy water at the beginning of the episode. He knows that he did some terrible things and is prepared to pay the price for that.

Izzy is clearly upset but she knows that she has a duty to uphold the accords no matter who broke them, she seems a little relieved that Raphael isn’t resentful and understand her position. I like that she helps him finish cleaning up before they leave; they do have good chemistry and many sweet scenes but for me it is all tainted by the toxic past they have shared. Although I do think that they have genuine affection for each other I don’t think they could have a healthy functional relationship because of their previous dual addiction.

I really enjoyed the sparring scene between Clary and Aline, the choreography is fantastic and the actress’ carry the emotion behind the scene brilliantly. Aline’s anger at Clary, and Jonathan, really comes through in not just her moves but her words too. You can feel the tension and hostility rise throughout the scene, keeping you on the edge of your seat until that final moment.

Aline is completely provoking Clary by talking about Jonathan, their connection and not holding back when she strikes her; she wants to hurt Jonathan via Clary but she also wants Clary to understand why she’s angry. Clary is trying to understand but Aline is definitely getting to her and you can see her lose her patience little by little, but her beating of Aline is completely over the top and you can see that in that moment she is acting almost out of body. When Jace breaks them apart you can see how horrified at her actions and the level of violence she has inflicted.

The exchange between Magnus and Alec about Underhill being handsome is hilarious, most especially Magnus’ expression and Alec’s bafflement. Magnus voices his concerns about Alec talking about their problems ‘to the entire Institute’ I think he words it this way because to him Underhill is just another Shadowhunter and he didn’t know that Alec might consider him a friend, which is why it was so out of the blue for him, and why he is a bit uncomfortable. Plus, he was not expecting Alec, who is not known for opening up, to have spoken to anyone outside his family about their relationship.

Alec is confused about Magnus’ feelings because he didn’t see talking to Underhill as an issue because he views him as a friend and because he is the only other gay Shadowhunters that he knows of. But once Magnus begins explaining he understands why he’s upset, he knows that maybe talking to someone who was a completely stranger to Magnus might not have been the best thing, or he should have at least mentioned Underhill to Magnus. Especially when he knows they were bound to interact during Magnus’ stay; he didn’t think it was a big deal but can see why Magnus would be unnerved.

I cannot help but laugh when Alec remarks about Magnus’ being jealous, he is so happy at the possibility because jealousy means that Magnus doesn’t want to lose him and is nervous about Alec finding someone else. He has never had anyone love him that way, and treasure him so much that they are scared of someone else taking them away. Matt played this brilliantly.

I don’t think that Magnus was really jealous though, I think that he was surprised by Alec opening up to someone who wasn’t family and for that person to be good looking too. He wants Alec to have friends, but with his reserved nature Magnus wasn’t expecting him to have spoken to another Shadowhunter about their relationship. I think that there might only have been the slightest bit of jealousy because Magnus knows that their difficulties was caused by their differences in age, experience and culture; and to be faced with a handsome Shadowhunter, who is the same age as Alec who he feels comfortable talking with must be a bit scary.

The rune is continuing to pull Clary and Jonathan together, strengthening the bond between them as time passes because even though she threatens to call the Institute she should have already done it. It seems that although she cannot explain it and despises it part of her cares about him or at least doesn’t want to kill him.

Jonathan is determined that they will be together, convinced that part of her loves him because he is her brother; he so desperately wants her to love him that he is projecting that onto her and he will do anything he can to convince her to join him. It’s a great little scene and they both do a great job of creating tension and showing the push and pull of the twinning rune.

Maia confronts Heidi, determined that Heidi will either turn herself in or die for what she has done; Maia is not going to let her get away with killing her pack. Heidi is convinced no one can touch her, she conveys a real sense of invincibility and is under the impression that she is untouchable, this only makes her more dangerous because if she thinks she is free of consequences she will do anything she wants to.

It was very clever of Maia to use Holy water against Heidi and a vindictive justice that its effects are similar to silver poisoning, which she inadvertently inflicted on Jordan. I am so glad that Heidi is dead, with all the hurt she has caused and all the trouble she was bound to cause everyone is better off with her gone, and if anyone deserved to be the one to kill her it was Maia. But I almost wish that she hadn’t because whether you want it to or not, whether it was deserved or not, murdering someone changes you as a person. I don’t like that in order to get justice for her pack Maia had to become a killer.

Clary goes into some sort of trance and burns herself in the fire, it is obvious that the rune is influencing her behaviour and it would be interesting to find out just how this occurs. Jonathan is pleased that Clary seems to be getting closer to coming to him, that she is being affected. When Jace grabs her she seems to come out of a kind of trance, not aware of what she was doing or the pain until that moment.

The scene of Izzy and Raphael saying goodbye if very sweet, there will always be a part of them that will care for the other. Emeraude and David have great chemistry and they almost portray these emotional moments between these characters really well, but as I said for me their scenes are always shadowed by the past addiction.

I was slightly disappointed that we have had no scenes between Magnus and Raphael, they have both been through so much in Season 3, and they have this wonderful familial bond yet we haven’t has a scene between them or them talking about the other. It would have been nice if we could have seen more of their relationship because they are both at a point where they need more support than ever. Plus, why would Magnus (if he had known) not come to say goodbye to Raphael especially if he doesn’t know when or if he will see him again.

Also, it seems a bit bad that they are sending Raphael to the Gard when they suspect Downworlders are being tortured there, but without proof they can’t do anything and when a crime is committed they go to the Gard. They would not have had any grounds to keep Raphael at the Institute.

Simon is disappointed in Maia, he wanted so much to bring Heidi in the right way and to get justice lawfully; he put everything into getting the proof they need and he probably feels a little bit betrayed that she went behind his back. He hated Heidi but he believes that you should always try to do things in accordance to the law, not take it into your own hands, because by doing that how are they better than her.

Maia is confused by Simon’s behaviour, she thought he would just be glad that Heidi is gone and understand why she did it. Everyone is better off without Heidi and she believes that she has done the right thing by killing her, and she doesn’t understand why Simon doesn’t see it this way.

I know that there has been a lot of talk about Simon being a hypocrite in this scene because he killed another vampire in 2B and I completely understand that. However, from what I remember in that scene the other vampire attacked Simon first when he confronted him about killing that mundane and Simon acted out of self defence. Afterwards he was upset about what he had done, he hates hurting people and it horrified him that he had killed someone.

Whereas with Maia she intended to kill Heidi, yes she gave Heidi a chance to give herself up but Maia knew that she wouldn’t do that. Maia acted in revenge, she goaded Heidi into a fight and when into it with the intention of killing her. Afterwards, she felt no remorse for what she had done and was glad of it; she doesn’t think that what she did was wrong because of all the hurt Heidi caused.

So, I understand why people are upset and think that it looks like people are condemning Maia for killing when most of the other characters have killed too, but all situations are different. Do I think Maia was wrong to kill Heidi? No, Heidi was evil, killed many people and was only going to cause more harm. Was there a better easy to deal with her? Yes, they could have brought her in legally and that way everyone would have been aware of her crimes. As with many situations in Shadowhunters there are lots of sides, opinions and interpretations of scenes; but I do not think Maia is wrong or bad for killing Heidi, was there a better way yes, but I do not blame her for wanting to avenge her pack.

Alec tells Magnus that him living here isn’t a good idea because it is against the rules, throughout the episode with Izzy and Maia he has realised that he cannot forsake certain rules for his own gain; and how can he expected others, especially his subordinates, to abide by the rules if he doesn’t himself. As much as he wants to help Magnus and to live with him, to be a good Head of the Institute he needs to adhere by the protocols. Magnus completely understands, he knows how much Alec values his position and integrity; he would not want to do anything that would cause Alec problems.

Matt portrays Alec’s nervousness in this scene brilliantly; Magnus rebuffed his offer to move in once so he is unsure about asking again. But he loves him so much, wants to be with him and wants to share the same living space as him that he is willing put his heart and pride on the line in the hopes Magnus may have changed his mind. I could scream with happiness when Magnus says yes, you can see the relief and happiness on Alec’s face and it is just such a sweet moment between them.

Then it all snowballs downhill when Magnus’ nose starts bleeding, he turns away from Alec in a attempt to hide it and not worry him; but Alec is scared, he has seen the blood and Magnus is not answering his multiple calls of his name. Magnus collapses, muttering something as Alec very gently lowers him to the ground after catching him.

I found out afterwards that Magnus is mumbling in Indonesian and it translates to ‘My head. Please help me. It hurts’ and I absolutely sobbed when I read this out. Not only is he is so much pain that he has reverted to his mother tongue but he is actually asking for help which we know he doesn’t like to do.

He starts shaking and Alec is panicking, calling for a medic. He is completely shocked about what is happening, scared because he doesn’t know why it’s happening and is desperate for help. I am an absolute sobbing mess. I was so emotional and full of adrenaline after this scene that I literally didn’t stop trembling for about 30 minutes.

So, I did really enjoy this episode; there were some fantastic emotional scenes, we finally got rid of Heidi and I am emotionally destroyed.

In 316, Clary is trying to get rid of her rune and Alec is desperate to save Magnus. We have been repeatedly warned that we are not prepared for the Malec scenes and Matt’s acting, I am screaming at just seeing one screenshot from the Malec sneak peek that I haven’t watched because I don’t watch any sneak peeks. I have stocked up on tissues but I know that there is nothing I can do to prepare myself for this episode. Help.

#Shadowhunters Review #To The Night Children #Shadowhunters #SH 315 Review #SH314 #SH3x14 #Shadowhunters 314 #SH 3x14 Review #Shadowhunters 3x14 #SH 314 #SH 3x14 #this is so late #oops #sorry #I've been busy and then ill #hopefully better this week

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vivalatoons · 6 years

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My Talk: TMNT 2012

Today, 6 years ago, a new TMNT series came into our lives again. Grab a slice of pizza and take a walk down memory lane in a TMNT 2012 reflection. Booyakasha!

During this time, I had finished watching all TMNT series (not including the live action one) and movies. There was one more series that I had to watch.

I admit, I was one of those people when I saw TMNT 2012. Yes, I complain that there was another TMNT reboot. I trashed and bashed it and stated this reboot is going to bomb hard. Understand this. I didn’t hear anything about TMNT 2012 till the year 2015. During that time, I saw bad reboots and Nickelodeon’s “great” cartoons. Seeing that this is a reboot on Nick, this was a recipe for disaster. People were saying that this reboot is better than Teen Titans Go, so I knew this version of TMNT wasn’t going to be horrible. What made me begin to watch the show was the cast of the Turtles and my Turtle nostalgia. I’ll get to that later, but I start to watch the CGI 2012 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

January 11, 2016. I tried not to get attract to the show. I was excited to see these new Turtles, yet I had my doubts. After watching The Rise of the Turtles Part 1 and 2, I was instantly hook on these turtles. I hated myself for being against the reboot. These episodes were brilliant, and my Ninja Turtles love grow three sizes that day.

Flaws. Not every show is perfect, but there were some things that I didn’t enjoy in TMNT 2012. I didn’t like that some of the characters didn’t get their moment to shine at times. Some episodes were a waste of time, and could have been used to answer things TMNT hasn’t address. I also hate how the shippers would go full crazy when they see littlest of things when the ship does something. It got pretty annoying. My leader in blue would fall to the cliché of self sacrifice and going on crazy one man missions. I hated how Nickelodeon kept making random scheduling changes in season 5. This was a bad move in Nickelodeon, because fans missed something because of those random schedule changes and it was a marketing plan for PlayMates to sell those damn toys. Half of the season was pointless and the other half was awesome. Those flaws didn’t stop me from enjoying the series.

Characters. I don’t need to mention characters, but I’ll repeat myself again. Each TMNT series has the basic set of characters. There’s the Turtles, April, Casey, Splinter, Shredder, etc. Some characters are brought back from past TMNT series like Karai, Rocksteady, Bebop, Bishop, etc. In this series, there are some new characters like Tiger Claw, Fishface, Shinigami, and more. I love how the 2012 series have the Turtles be more like teenagers from other TMNT series. Some of the characters I find to be the best in this show.

Animation. 2012 TMNT uses CGI and a bit of 2D animation when it comes to flashbacks and storytelling. It’s weird at first. After awhile, it’s interesting to see. The CGI is incredible when the characters show emotions and action sequences. I’m impressed with the crew and their talents.

Voice cast. Oh yeah, my favorite part of this show. I said the voice cast is what made me decide to watch the show, and here’s why. The voice cast is outstanding and their voice director is Andrea Romano. This woman was a voice director for Batman: TAS, Teen Titans, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Voltron: Legendary Defender, etc. She’s a legend! Jason Biggs voiced Leo till season 2 episode 19, then Dominic Catrambone voiced Leo till the finale. Seth Green voiced Leonardo from season 3 till the end. Rob Paulsen, Sean Astin, and Greg Cipes voiced Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo. Hoon Lee voiced Splinter. Kevin Michael Richardson voiced Shredder. Mae Whitman and Josh Peck voiced April and Casey. Kelly Hu and Gwendoline Yeo voiced Karai and Shinigami. There’s a ton of great voice actors including Eric Bauza, Nolan North, Clancy Brown, Phil LaMarr, Fred Tatasciore, J.B Smoove, David Tennant, Keith David, Corey Feldman, Tom Kenny, Roger Smith Craig, Charlie Murphy, Ashely Johnson, Minae Noji, Mark Hamill, Zelda Williams, and the list goes on and on. I adore the voice cast so much. All of them did a spectacular job.

How is it different from other TMNT series. The CGI is what tells them apart. Hamato Yoshi once lived in Japan with his wife and daughter. Tragedy stuck, and Yoshi goes to New York. One day, he gets four baby turtles. He bumped into someone, following him. Yoshi witness the men meeting, and decided to attack him. Yoshi defeats them, but a canister of mutagen splashes on Yoshi and the Turtles. Yoshi become a rat, and the turtles grew into little turtle tots. April, Casey, and Karai are teenagers in this reboot. The Kraang are a species of talking brain like creatures. Some references from the 1987 and 2003 series show up in this show from characters to arcs. It manages to be silly and dark at times, it’s a nice blend.

Ciro Nieli, Joshua Sternin, and J. R. Ventimilia. These wonderful people helped developed this remake. I thank them for being the right people to be in charge of this project. With great people running a reboot, it leads to the following.

TMNT 2012 is a great remake and best example of doing a reboot right. People can argue all they want about this version of TMNT, but you have to admit this…there was a lot effort put into this show. This show proves to that not all reboots are terrible. This series didn’t dumb down for kids. It manages to be a show for all ages to enjoy. Animation isn’t lazy, same for voice acting and writing. Ok, the writing had dip down at times, but most of the time it’s good. There is some heavy stuff in the show like violence, death, and more death. I enjoy how this show broke some boundaries at times, that makes the show more interesting and groundbreaking.

I’m always impressed about how this series turned out. It has a unique spin in animation, wonderful voice cast, and a perfect example of a good reboot. It really makes me happy that this series will be a part of TMNT universe. I praise the 2012 Turtles for making a few changes and still holds. It’s still the Turtles we all know and love. I still miss TMNT 2012. What I will remember about this version of Turtles is the character growth that the Turtles have. I saw Leonardo from being a nervous leader who doesn’t want to let his team down. He would make decisions and be the best leader ever. Donatello would have fail at times from his creations or inventions. He improves to himself and it helps others. Raphael is still our hothead turtle, but he learns not to his anger consumes him. Michelangelo was seen as a dumb turtle who cared about pizza and made jokes. In the end, he shows the bad guys what’s he made of and he’s not a turtle you don’t want to mess with. These turtles has wowed me and they are the best ninjas in the city of New York.

#my talk #long post #tmnt 2012

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mothcrlost-blog · 6 years

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the headcannon / cannon masterlist as of 11 - 15 - 2017

crescent-rabbit asked: 👑

get to know the people in my muses life | accepting  👑 …someone my muse is jealous of.

O R I T A okay this one is interesting for orita specifically , because she is so quick to adore people . she actually has a deep jealousy of splinter but doesn’t ever really address or show it . she cares about him and her boys too much to do so , she mostly is jealous because of the fact he was the one who got to raise her sons instead of her .

HIKARU hikaru is jealous of a lot of people because of his breathing and leg difficulties but out of everyone he envies it has to be donnie , he adores donnie and he is such an inspiration but the fact donnie has functioning legs but would rather sit in a lab upsets him very deeply . he is a total sweetheart and would never tell anyone but sometimes it can be noticeable .

REI rei is VERY jealous of akane , the youngest sibling . rei constantly practices , strives to be the best and never stops training or practicing , yet her sister is better at , speaking , less fearful , bigger stronger and more skilled even though she uses and fights with ‘ dishonorable ‘ tools and weapons . even though she rarely trains and barely takes being a ninja as serious business . it isn’t fair her little sister is so perfect in her eyes . it does create a hostile dynamic between the two that they struggle to overcome because they learnt how to bottle up emotions from the best .

AKANE akane is different in her siblings that she doesn’t actually envy a person but a side , she would feel more comfortable as an oroku , or a criminal . she has a lot of unchecked emotions and can be VERY soft , however due to her family’s manners she only feels safe opening up to raphael . she gets a thrill out of doing bad things , it makes her feel alive instead of paying so much attention to her depression . in a way it keeps her happy and sometimes alive . she doesn’t have the strongest morals but a robin hood or vigilante lifestyle would suit her best . life is a game to her , she’s not afraid of losing or dying but she is afraid of never having the chance to live it in as many ways as she can .

okay but on character development , weapon choices

rei is all about honor and prefers to use blades and hand to hand combat , she WILL NOT use poisons , bombs or guns in any form . it often lands her in trouble and in tight spots but she refuses to break her unspoken code of honor . she keeps a rules journal for this unspoken code and thoroughly keeps it up to date with any new rules or revisions . her original assigned weapon was a tanto

akane is the team sharp shooter , she has the eyes of a hawk and the aim of a goddess . this girl does not miss , she does strive to be like raph but her mind is very calculated like donnie . she can practically see every trajectory and angle , because of her skill with shooting she prefers more dangerous weapons , like rigged arrows , throwing blades , and her guilty pleasure , guns . she doesn’t see much use in traditional weapons and for close combat she uses her brute and dirty tricks like poison , bombs and occasionally scythe blades or sais . her original weapon was two handled scythe style blades , she did learn the sais from raphael .

hikaru due to his asthma and bad legs does not fight nearly as much as his sisters , he does act as their tactical support through a com line however . he mainly uses a wheelchair but does have specially designed leg braces and plenty of his medication on hand at all times . when he is forced to fight he uses a half bo with a fully electrical ability , & prods he always wears rubber gloves and boots . he has also been known to use his assigned weapon , a kyoketse shoge , the swiss army knife of feudal times .

when orita was mutated she was in pain and emotionally destroyed , mutating was physically painful and devastating emotionally . every moment of her life was rewritten in her mind with a new understanding and sentience . she felt every emotion in her life all at once and with an insane intensity , enough pain to put her into a short coma where she spent the first two weeks of her mutant life absorbing every emotion and memory she’d ever experienced but with a human mind . it messed her up bad . then she woke up and the first thing she saw was saki , he was nice at first tricking her into trusting him before she discovered the truth about her children . she was almost immediately abused and thrown into a cell to rot and constantly tortured for information on her kids and a turtles weaknesses . like she went through a lot to get to her kids and being questioned on her care for them sends her right back to that dark place where she bottles everything up and hides her feelings .

O R I T A actually learns all curses from her kids and basically parrots every new word they teach her , she actually has no idea what their definitions are but she understands how they are used in a sentence and with what emotions , they are used in .

okay so when orita gets angry she huffs a lot , she can’t help it , it’s just one of her mannerisms . only because of her crooked teeth it doesn’t come out as a huff it comes out as a crazy whistle . this frustrated her but she got used to it , that’s until her kids heard it , all of the sudden their mother is pouting , trying to look angry but spewing crazy whistles . then when she gets emotional her lisp starts acting up and now she can’t even talk without whistling . normally when this happens she ends up , laughing with them , getting very embarrassed , or ends up covering her mouth to muffle the whistles while she scolds the kids . only the kids are in stitches laughing because it looks absolutely ridiculous .

she occasionally does get upset by her deformities , she doesn’t view herself as beautiful but at the end of the day because she has her family she’s just happy to be there with them .

okay but , orita trying to wear clothes and wigs and make up because she’s insecure about her sides not matching , and just generally being a mutant and not a human , if she were human she could do so much more for her boys , get a job , get them things , pay for food and supplies so they’d never run out the fact she can’t really bothers her…

samuraijacqueline asked:

character development question~! ; What kind of relationships do they tend to intentionally seek out versus actually cultivate? What kind of social contact do they prefer, and why?

What kind of relationships do they tend to intentionally seek out ?

O R I T A actually seeks out relationships with tender hearted individuals , but she gravitates toward those she can nurture or protect often those who in a sense need a mother , whether they like it or not . she is also very drawn to strong individuals who can or will protect her . she has a tender and fragile heart and needs someone to look after her in a sense so she doesn’t break under emotional or physical trauma , she can be pretty clingy and quick to infatuation but seeks others like herself .

versus actually cultivate?

O R I T A is most likely to cultivate a relationship with someone she is attracted to or has subconsciously adopted . she’ll do anything for them even to her own detriment and harm . this is part of the reason she didn’t leave shredder or fight him until her babies were put at risk , because he was kind and caring enough to get her infatuated then cruelly use it against her .

What kind of social contact do they prefer, and why?

O R I T A prefers close and intimate interactions , she is afraid of being alone for too long and she feels lost and empty in a crowd , in small moments such as brushing up against someone , touching hands or even being close enough to hear a persons breaths makes her the most happy because she knows she’s not alone . this is a reason why she will often place her head on those she cares abouts chests , because listening to a heartbeat makes her feel safe and intimate with another person . she could listen for hours straight & it’s something she will never tire of hearing .

#[ headcanons ]#[ cannon ]#// char tag | orita ! i'm forgetting something aren't i ? //#// char tag | hikaru ! a shell on wheels //#// char tag | rei ! honor in practice . honor in sadness //#// char tag | akane ! heart wrenched . blood quenched //#// mothcrlost | tracking tag //#[ masterlist ]

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furlesspoop-blog · 7 years

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DESTIEL/COCKLES FICS

Destiel/Cockles longer fics rec list (happy endings for all!)

(This is only a short list…only posting fics I’ve actually read so I know how much angst/whump/sex/fluff is contained, should be enough to tide you over for a while though, so enjoy >_<)

(Oh, my rec lists pretty much only ever contain fic NC-17 or above so if you don’t like the sex, the swearing and the violence then this is the wrong place for you my friend)

DESTIEL

300 Things - 76,500 WORDS. Dean’s life at twenty-four makes him feel like he’s forty–he works two jobs to help pay bills for his house and put his genius little brother through private school, and has spent six years (on and off, let’s be honest) working on his mechanical engineering degree at KU. With so much of his life devoted to his family, Dean has little time in his schedule for class and no time for social interaction. Then, while getting his classes together for the fall, he finds himself in a do-or-die situation: He must take his last literature class now, his spring already filled with those left for his major…except that none of the English classes will fit his schedule. A college AU. I generally assume every Destiel fan has read this, but just in case, here it is. It has love and angst and sex and a wonderfully happy ending. Go now. Read.

Tainted Love - 20 CHAPTERS. Castiel finds Dean in a strip club. Dean is surprised to discover he’s more interested in the angel then the strippers. Cash/Dean slash & eventual Balthazar/Sam slash, sexually graphic. This and the fic below are written by the same author, they writes Dean/Cas wonderfully, and the sex is…HOT, and the romance and love is so goddamn fucking perfect, but don’t worry there is plenty of angsting too. You just have to ignore that they think Sam has brown eyes and go with it.

Answering the Prayer - 12 CHAPTERS Cas answers Dean’s prayer. Sam finds Balthazar too tempting to ignore any longer. Slash, sexually graphic. Dean/Cas & Sam/Balthazar. IDGAF I fucking love Sam/Balthazar as a pairing, trust me, read it, you will too. Answering the prayer is one of my favs cause it has a tiny bit of Prayer loving in it and it’s a fav kink of mine.

Hummingbirds - 23,700 WORDS Castiel is rendered mute after being taught a painful lesson, but that enables Dean to learn a few lessons of his own while holding onto something important for him.Hurt/comfort; Castiel!whump; Dean!whump; porn. It’s very gory in places, so please be warned. And it’s also very, very soppy in others, so be warned for that, too. This is a wonderful fic, frustrated Cas is perfect. The whump is quite intense though, but that’s how this author writes, and it’s worth it.

The Melting Verse - 110,000 WORDS. The epic love story of Dean and Castiel told in 110,000 words. Stuffed to the brim with angel!porn, whump, angst, action, wing!porn and occasional soppiness, and Sam doesn’t get neglected either. (Although he doesn’t partake in the angel!porn, I should probably add.) Some of it’s really, really dark (with non-con), so be prepared for that if you’re just looking for a little schmoop. This fic is VERY dark in some places, but in others it is just…perfect, there are all kinds of love and porn involved and it is honestly my favourite, there were lots of tears (happy and sad) and the ending is fucking wonderful. The plot is so full on you’ll feel as though it’s canon.

Kissing it Bitter - 33,700 WORDS. Ever get the feeling the universe is trying to tell you something? This was originally a one-off in which I wanted Dean to save Castiel. And then Castiel ended up reciprocating, and then Lilith got involved, and, well, this happened. Contains much sexin’ and some violence… but, yeah, mainly sexin’. This is essentially an elongated fuck or die with a twist. It is spectacular though, in all the right ways. The past three fics are all by the same author, and there is A LOT more fics on their master listto read (some are just too angst for me…but do check them out, the one shots are fantastic too)

In Out of The Dark - 20 CHAPTERS A brother rotting in Hell, an angel hiding in Heaven, and a hunter consumed by the hunt…Dean tried to have a ‘normal’ life for Sam’s sake, but he couldn’t fight the hunt. It was as much who he was as taking care of Sammy. He’d failed at one; he couldn’t let himself fail at the other.It would take losing himself in the darkness and being dragged back into the light, before he accepted what he already knew …and maybe his angel would accept it, too. Plenty of angst, awesome Gabriel.

The Tripping Verse - 45,000 WORDS. What do you do when the Universe itself seems to have decided you belong with your very stoic, very angelic, very MALE hunting companion? Dean’s about to find out. This one’s wonderful. While the kissing happens pretty early on there is a lot of story before Dean and Cas properly get together, lovely build up. Oh, and the sex in chapter 10…UNF.

The Voice of the Turtledove - 60,645 WORDS Castiel was eleven years old when he first felt there was something wrong with him. He’s twenty-nine, a Roman Catholic priest in a small New England village, before Dean Winchester shows him that there isn’t. Ok, if you’re REALLY religious, and don’t approve of a 32 yo having sex with a 17 yo or priests misbehaving…do not read this fic. I hesitated at first, but honestly it’s a beautifully written (obstinatrix is fucking amazing) story and delicately handles all the issues in such a way that you really don’t feel even slightly irked. It’s only available as a PDF.

How to Destroy Angels - 5 LONGISH CHAPTERS. Castiel is lost and hunted down. There’s a high priced on his head and of course … Everyone has to pay, right ? Except that his brothers want to kill him, and there are no places to hide. Really ? Dean finds broken and hurt, and none of them is ready : Castiel is not ready to fall and Dean is not ready to love. I honestly only started reading this because of the title (and my love for all things Reznor) but it is a great fic, a lot of Cas angst, but still sweet with a happy ending.

The Day the Whole World Went Away - 59, 658 WORDS. After being reunited with Sam and leaving Lisa, Dean is finding that adjusting back into the hunting lifestyle is harder than he thought it would be. When a particular hunt goes badly, he gets knocked out, only to awaken five years in the future. Things are definitely different; Castiel is a hunter, Sam is married and things between Dean and Castiel have gone somewhere Dean really hadn’t expected. And somewhere in all of this there is a lesson to be learned. Ok, never previously one for time travel fic, this completely blew me away. The Sam and Cas in this are to fucking die for. Also can I say how happy I am that Destiel writers love Trent Reznor as much as I do! fucking win.

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell - 31,600 WORDS. Sergeant Dean Winchester expects to hate whatever journalist they assigned to his team. Castiel Adams expects to hate the three weeks spent around nothing but military people. It goes nothing like they thought it would, and they find themselves growing closer by the minute. But will misunderstandings and fear break them apart? AU fic, a lot of Dean being a dick though, one of those ‘true love’ fics where it’s love at first sight…then life happens.

Peanut Butter-Pumpkin Wedding Cake - 31,000 WORDS. The good ones are sometimes assholes and always taken.Dean is a waiter in a strip club to put his kid brother through school. Castiel is dragged to the club as a part of his sister Anna’s bachelorette party. Dean and Cas hit it off, but Dean thinks Cas is the one marrying Anna. A romcom style fic with your classic romcom plot. It is quite wonderful in the end >_<

Face to Face With the Skies - 40,000 WORDS. (Set right after 4.22) Castiel was not killed by Raphael on the night of Lucifer’s release. Instead, he’s sent to the year 1996 and encounters the Winchesters. Unable to return to the present, Castiel resigns himself to traveling with them on their hunts across the state. Meanwhile in the year 2008, Dean has barely gotten used to being back in the land of the living when he gets the biggest shock of his life; the man he fell in love with when he was eighteen has seemingly come back from the grave as well, claiming to be an angel of the Lord. The thing is, he doesn’t have a clue who Dean is. Read this yesterday and fucking loved it. Young Dean and Sam are fucking awesome. Time travel fic done perfectly right.

Burning the Days - 25,000 words. When Dean and Cas show up in time to prevent Lilith’s death, Team Free Will are all set to settle back into a life of saving people and hunting things - but nothing’s perfect. Dean’s a jerk who can’t keep it in his pants; Cas feels there’s plenty of room in his for the both of them. Sam’s sure you can’t be fuckbuddies with an angel and he’s going to prove it - just as soon as he finishes scouring his eyeballs with soap.But when Cas becomes Heaven’s Most Wanted and the cops figure out the boys aren’t as dead as they should be, Dean and Cas may prove to be both more and less obtuse than expected. Basically this is one of those fics that’s main plot point is Dean being an emotionally retarded idiot and taking his sweet ass time to admit he loves Cas. It is great though, has awesome Sam, humor, and some sex too >_<

COCKLES

Worse Than Being Blind - 22,162 WORDS. To cope with the directing on the set of Stonehenge Apocalypse, Misha and his new best friend Hill, spend their nights drinking and trying to forget the fact that they’re on a ridiculous scifi B-Movie. It helps when the director yells that they should all have more intensity in the morning. And then, one night, Torri invites herself to their nightly drinking and Misha does not know that this has bad life plan written all over it because Torri can drink everyone under the table. Now Misha has to deal with an earnest and freaked out Jensen who flies to the set because he wants to talk about “the message” (complete with air quotes) that Misha left on his cell phone. Add a new cast that has made it their mission to make Misha as embarrassed as possible and Jared, who never met an innuendo that he didn’t like, and Misha wonders how his life ever got here. Oh, and they do still have a movie to film. Oh I do love this fic. Misha is so fucking clueless!

Orizuru - 47,000 WORDS. No matter how insignificant the question, Jensen has always craved answers. The origami birds scattered in his path are no exception - each accompanying message more obscure and more pointed than the last. As he slowly becomes the proud owner of a growing paper menagerie, Jensen has to decide whether to follow the clues or follow his heart. This one has a nice looooong ass build up to them getting together, plenty of UST, and to be honest…misha being a dick at times. I enjoy it because it’s from Jensens POV.

A Sort of Fairytale - 14 CHAPTER. Misha loves Jensen. Jensen is … getting there. The Misha in this is fantastic, and Jensen though he takes his sweet ass time is wonderful too >_<

Reconciling Hollywood - 32,000 WORDS, Misha has always prided himself on his mastery of the first impression - both giving and receiving. After all, people are easy enough to read if examined through the appropriate lens. For the last two years he’s stuck to his guns and his assumption that Jensen is just a good guy who made a dick mistake back when he thought Misha was disposable. Pushed him up against a trailer door and took because he could. But now, with Jared overseas with his new bride, Jensen around more than ever, and a decision weighing heavy on his conscience, Misha realizes that truly knowing Jensen might be nearly as impossible as knowing himself. In my opinion the best Cockles fic that currently exists. The characters are so lovable and the romance build is genuine. Must read.

And the North Wind Blows - 32,000 WORDS. Jensen is a ranger in the US Forest Service, on loan to the Canadians with the dual mandate of protecting the Boreal forest and a US logging outfit. He likes his solitary life collecting data and spending time in the luscious green forest that looms around his little cabin, until the day he gets a phone call: an eco-terrorist is protecting a tree the logging company wants to cut down. The terrorist in question, a young activist named Misha who climbs and swings through the trees like Tarzan, is not what he expects. Charged with getting him down and locking him up, Jensen has his work cut out for him, especially when it appears something more sinister is going on. What follows is a whirlwind of forbidden romance, lust and danger that turns Jensen’s once-quiet life upside down. And the most worrying part is he doesn’t think he minds. Fucking spectacular AU. Ranger!Jensen is all kinds of yes!

Usefull Illusions - 6 CHAPTERS. They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Wherein Jared innocently seeks to share his love of Blue Velvet and interesting things happen. Ok. This fic shifts from Jared, Jensen and Misha’s POV. The sex is hot, Jensen is a bit of a dick tbh, and there’s a Jared subplot that gets completely swept under the rug at the end (I feel the verse was abandoned unfinished?) BUT I’d still read it…for the sex haha.

Scotch Verse - 5 LONG CHAPTERS . Jensen loves scotch, but every time he drinks it things happen. Misha encourages these particular things. As he’s wont to do. OK. basically this fic involves a lot of getting drunk on scotch and fucking. There is also a lot of relationship angst and FUCKLOADS of Jensen trust/intimacy issues. I still recommend a read though.

AND. That will do for now.

Here’s a link to the 2010 Dean/Cas bigbang masterlist with plenty of long ass fics there to read (I’m making my way through it one night duty at a time)

And my God am I gagging for the 2011 fics!

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