#i’d love to hear about the festival of the ancestors

[ruminativerabbi]

Shavuot 5783/2023

There are lots of way to think about Shavuot, which begins this Thursday evening. There are, for example, many customs that pertain solely to the festival of Shavuot—the custom of eating dairy foods, for example, or the custom of engaging in nighttime Torah study on the evening before we gather on the first day of the holiday to hear the Ten Commandments read out from the Torah scroll in synagogue. And there are others as well, some widely observed and others less so. The reading of the Book of Ruth is universal, for example, and is part of our observance at Shelter Rock as well. And the chanting of the majestic hymn called “Akdamut Millin,” written in the eleventh century by Rabbi Meir bar Isaac, a contemporary of Rashi who lived in the city of Worms, is a feature of our Shelter Rock worship as well.

But the specific issue I thought I’d write about this week as a way of introducing the festival has to do neither with contemporary ritual nor liturgy, but with the question of inclusivity and exclusivity. For modern Jews such as ourselves, this is a big issue that manifests itself in many different ways. How wide open should our doors be? Should anyone at all ever be deemed unwelcome in our sanctuaries? Should membership in our congregations be predicated on anything other than the wish of an outsider to step inside and take his or her place in our midst? Should Jewishness itself be a criterion…or should non-Jews who are eager to be supportive friends of the Jewish community be permitted to sign on as members too?

Shavuot provides an interesting way to think through those specific issues.

One of the prominent rituals that characterized Shavuot in ancient times was the magnificent procession leading to Jerusalem created by the nation’s farmers bringing their first fruits to the Temple. The Mishnah describes the scene vividly:

[The night before the procession, people] would spend the night in the open street. Early in the morning, an appointed official would say: “Let us arise and go up to Zion, to the house of the Lord our God.” Those who lived near [Jerusalem] would bring fresh figs and grapes, while those who lived far away would bring dried figs and raisins. An ox would go in front of them, his horns bedecked with gold and with an olive-crown on its head. Flutists would join the procession and play until they actually reached the Temple Mount. When they reached the Temple Mount, they would take the baskets and place them on their shoulder, then walk as far as the Temple Court. When they got to the Temple Court, and while still holding the baskets on their shoulders, they would recite the passage from the Torah that begins with the words: "I acknowledge this day before the Lord your God that I have entered the land that the Lord swore to our ancestors to grant to us” (Deuteronomy 26:3), then continue on until completing the whole passage. When reaching the words, “My father was a fugitive Aramean,” they would take the baskets off their shoulders and hold them by their edges while the priests would place their hands beneath them and wave them. Then they would complete the entire passage, deposit the baskets by the side of the altar, bow and depart.

I’ve always loved that description, especially the image of the horns of the oxen covered with gold and the beasts themselves wearing with olive-branch crowns. But the specific issue I want to write about today has to do with the declaration mandated by Scripture in Deuteronomy 26 that requires the person bringing the first fruit offerings make reference aloud to the Land of Israel as “the land that the Lord swore to our ancestors to grant to us.” The Mishnah takes that seriously and concludes that, although converts are obliged to perform all the commandments just like any other Jewish people, a convert bringing the first fruits to the Temple is excused from making the declaration, since to refer to the land as having been given to that person’s ancestors—who were obviously not Jewish people—would constitute a falsehood.

And that offhand ruling sets the stage for a complicated, interesting debate. On the one hand, we have the principle, mentioned countless times in our law codes and legal texts, that converts to Judaism are to be treated precisely as any other Jewish people. They have the same obligations, the same burdens under the law, the same requirements. Yet here we hear the rabbis of old stepping away from that bedrock principle for the sake of honoring the literal meaning of an ancient prayer. It’s an interesting set-up and arguments can be made on both sides: it feels right not to make false distinctions between converts and native-born Jews, but it also feels right to honor converts by not requiring them to recite untruths in prayer—which practice would only debase the larger concept of approaching God through prayer in the context of candor and honesty.

So what should the law be? There were many attempts to answer the question before a final decision was made by Maimonides in the 12th century. So that was a cool thousand years too late to be of any use to actual converts bringing their first fruits to the Temple. But the specific issue here is masking a dozen other ones hiding just behind it, many of which are fully relevant today. Can a convert without Jewish ancestors recite a prayer that references God as “our God and God of our ancestors”? Can a convert who is specifically not descended from the patriarchs and matriarchs of old recite the first part of the prayer in which Jacob is referenced as “my ancestor”? And behind all those details is the largest question of all: if the Jewish people are a family, a blood group, a people in the shared-DNA sense of the term, is conversion even really possible? Even people who marry only become their spouses’ parents’ children-in-law, not their actual children!

Enter Rambam, who is willing to base himself (here and in many other places) on the Talmud Yerushalmi, the understudied and under-respected Talmud of the Land of Israel. And so he issues his ruling:

A convert may bring the first fruits and make the declaration, for the Torah (i.e., at Genesis 17:5) states with regard to Abraham: "I have made you a father to a multitude of nations," which verse clearly implies is that he is the divine Parent of all who would enter under the shelter of the divine Presence. (And it for that specific reason that) God’s promise that Israel would one day inherit the Holy Land was given to Abraham first.

There’s a lot there to unpack, but the short version is that Rambam understand that God meant the change of Abram’s name to Abraham specifically to reflect that, henceforth, the man’s destiny would be to become father to a multitude of nations.  I suppose you could interpret that phrase to reflect the fact that Abraham’s other son, Ishmael, became the progenitor of a mighty nation, as did his “other” grandson, Esau. And as also did all six of Abraham’s children with his second wife, Keturah. That interpretive line would make sense, then, because Abraham actually did become the progenitor of many different nations. But Rambam doesn’t go there and instead imagines the Hebrew phrase av hamon goyim (“father of a multitude of nations”) to mean that the Israelite nation, descended from Abraham through his grandson Jacob/Israel, would not in the end be a simple in-house group of family members linked to each other by DNA or, as the ancient would have said, by blood, but would rather be a faith group tied to each other by common adherence to the covenant with God and by matters of faith. The “nations” in “father of a multitude of nations,” therefore, references the variegated nature of the future Jewish people, a people consisting of natural-born Jews and Jews-by-choice.

It's actually a rather startling to see Rambam, the greatest halakhic decisor of all time, considering a mishnah that could not be more clear and coming down against its plain meaning by insisting that it simply does not reflect the law and that a convert to Judaism may indeed recite the declaration.

As we consider similar questions in our Jewish world, we would do well to consider Rambam’s take on the law regarding the first-fruits declaration seriously. People, he is saying almost clearly, who have traditionally been excluded need not permanently be kept out. Careful study of the Scriptural text can lead to all sorts of entry points for all sorts of people. What is requisite is not unflagging allegiance to the simple meaning of the words of Torah, but a supple intellect capable of focusing the words of the Torah through the prism of our own moral consciousnesses to determine if we have plumbed their depths adequately to take their simple meaning as the law. In other words, the task facing the pious is not to memorize a million verses and then be able to recite them by heart, but to develop a feeling, caring heart capable of interpreting the law so that it ends up fully and totally supportive of what we know to be just, kind, and fair.

That we read Ruth on Shavuot only make this point even more strongly. The book is a good tale, but it’s the end that counts—the last few verses in which it is revealed that Ruth, a Moabite convert to Judaism, became the great-grandmother of King David, the greatest of all Israelite kings and the poet whose psalms left an indelible imprint on Jewish life. What Ruth teaches is that, for all blood matters, faith and commitment matter more.

#Shavuot

[cjstalkingstarwarsagain]

c3po is a good character and a great droid and an all around Perfect Dude, y’all are just mean. i love him,,,, he is very gorgeous to me!!!!

#he’s also so very autistic coded #and i love my autistic robot #it’s okay c3po you can infodump to me #i’d love to hear about the festival of the ancestors #look me in the eyes op #and fucking tell me you didn’t get emotional at the one-last-look-at-my-friends line #that’s a tearjerker #nobody talk to me i’m feeling #star wars #c3po #c3p0 #droid #star wars droid

[anonymousdandelion]

’tis the season to be mourning and hiding from pogroms

I wonder, sometimes, how many non-Jews have ever heard of Nittel Nacht (the Yiddish name for Christmas Eve: traditionally a day of mourning and avoiding Torah study), or are aware of its history.

Generally speaking, people understand if I feel left out or excluded from something, I think. They somewhat get why I object to being pressured to participate in Christianity-centric celebrations or other activities I don’t want to be part of. I can explain how Christian hegemony and the pervasiveness of all things Christmas at this time of year is aggravating... and while of course not everyone gets it, and some take offense, many do understand and sympathize to one extent or another. Whether or not they feel similarly, on some level my discomfort/annoyance makes sense. Maybe it’s even relatable.

And yes, sure, I do get irritated sometimes. Absolutely. Anyone who’s put up with my annual kvetching about so-called “holiday parties” knows it.

But it’s not just that I don’t want to play Secret Santa, or that I’m tired of being asked about my holiday plans, or that I’d like to hear some different music once in a while. I mean, yes, it’s all of that... but there’s another, heavier, more historical aspect that I feel is often missing or missed. And I never know quite how to get that other dimension across when I have this conversation.

How do I explain I wish you a merry Christmas... fyi this is also a time of intergenerational fear and mourning for me.

How do I explain Your tree is really beautiful... incidentally the fact that I don’t have to huddle at home tonight with the lights out and pray that the mobs will pass me by this time is a freedom I cannot fully take for granted.

How do I explain I hope that you have a wonderful, joyous celebration with your family... btw I don’t know how many of my ancestors were murdered on and/or as a direct result of this holiday but the number is undoubtedly much, much too high.

Mostly, I don’t bother bringing this up or trying to explain it. Partly because it’s difficult and stressful to find the right words and I never know how it will be received, partly because it isn’t usually at the forefront of my mind, partly because I do genuinely want my Christmas-celebrating friends and acquaintances to have a great time, a lovely celebration, and a happy holiday. I don’t need to rain on their festive cheer by making it about me, my personal hangups, my people’s trauma and persecution.

So I keep it to myself, most of the time... and yet. It’s still there, hovering in the background of all the sighs and sarcastic comments and wry smiles.

I don’t even observe Nittel Nacht, personally. Never have. But I find myself thinking about its origins a lot around this time. And sometimes I can’t help but wonder who else, outside of the Jewish community, connects the dots. Or if they see the dots at all.

#jumblr #judaism #holidays #christianity #christmas #xmas #nittel nacht #christmas eve #antisemitism #dandelion says #dandelion has feelings #rambles #jewish dandelion #jewish feels

[221bshrlocked]

A Sky Full of Stars

Pairing: The Mandalorian (Din Djarin) x Fem!Reader

Words: 11340 (I know I say this all the time but this really was supposed to be a short one-shot but it got away from me because I just loved this idea so so much. Sorry not sorry.)

Warning: Nothing but fluff. Some kissing that turns into a heated make-out session that turns into a cuddling session.

Inspired by this tiktok by the lovely ameliagonzales who was gracious enough to allow me to use her idea and write this.

A/N: It's been a while since I wrote something that's fluffy slightly angsty and dialogue-centered. I'm not going to lie, this took longer than usual because of the lovely anon that decided to tell me my characterization of Din is hella off and I realized I don't care if it is because it's my writing and I get to do whatever I want with it. Let me know how I'm doing in the comments and reblogs are always always appreciated. You can add yourself to the taglist here. This is not beta'd btw.

“No silly this isn’t green, it’s blue.” The little girl put her toy away and brought out a new one, giggling at your faux pout as she shoves the new object in your hand and asks you what color you thought it was. You turn it around in your hands, trying your hardest to hide the hurt growing in your chest at not knowing what color it is. You think it’s closer to the first toy she gave you but you’re not sure. You’re never sure. You look at the girl and smile at her before setting the toy aside and wiggling your hands at her. She immediately stands up and screams as you run after her, laughing along with her giggles as you chase her around and watch as more kids join in and run away from you.

You’re not sure how long you’re chasing the little ones and you hear some of them gasp and ‘oooh’ when your young friend runs into a solid figure. You stand up and watch as the girl tears up as she apologizes to the man she just ran into. You’re immediately hugging her and assuring her that everything is okay, turning to the side and narrowing your eyes at the man that scared her half to death.

“Shame on you Mando,” you pretend to smack his shoulder three times and watch as the child in your arms sniffles between laughs when the Mandalorian tries to hide away from you.

“I’m sorry little flower, I didn’t mean to scare you.” You watch as the man reaches for a small bottle in his pocket and slowly hands it to the girl. “Here you go, a token of my apology.”

“It’s okay sweetheart, he’s a nice man...even though he doesn’t look it.” You wink at Boba Fett and giggle along with her when he sighs heavily and pushes the flask into her hand. She takes it and shakes it around, her eyes lighting up when the bottle shimmers at her ministrations and illuminates her hands.

“It’s so pretty! How did you know orange is my favorite color?” The girl slides down your arms and quickly hugs the hunter in front of you before running away and showing her friends. You look at her with longing in your eyes, wishing with all your heart that you saw the gift the same way she saw it.

“Still no color princess?” Fett questions and you shrug your shoulders as you make your way towards Slave I and sit on the ramp.

“Yup, same old same old. Who knows if I’ll ever see color.” There is a hint of hurt in your tone but Fett says nothing as he approaches you and stands to the side. He pats your shoulder once as he takes his helmet off and softly wipes at the visor to clean it.

“Don’t give up, kid. You’re still young...you’ve got all the time in the galaxy and you travel everywhere. You’ll meet them when you least expect it.”

“In this line of work? Yeah, I don’t think so Fett. But at least one of us didn’t lose the positive attitude. If I’m being honest, I was hoping to see color before the next supply run. The chances that I’ll live to go to Pasaana during another Festival of the Ancestors are practically non-existent. I heard they wear so many variations of the same color...maker, it would have been nice to experience that.” You pick up a rock and throw it away as you nervously ring your fingers and brush the conversation aside, not wanting to start the journey with a sour mood.

“Well, lucky for us, we have extra help on this run so it should be quicker. Maybe you’ll see color before you go?” Fett looks up and you follow his line of sight as another ship slowly lands just behind Slave I. You stand up and walk behind your old friend, looking back at the crates to ensure they’re still there before you approach the landing ship.

“Oh no, what poor soul did you manage to rope in this time?” You eye the ship and swear there is something familiar about it but you pay it no mind as Fett puts his helmet back on.

“Hey, I don’t always bend people to my will you know. He volunteered actually...he knows his way around the Narvath Sector and he might even tag along with us to the Forbidden Valley. So, be nice and don’t flirt with him.” Fett warns and you throw your hands up in defeat, failing to hide your smile as you respond with feigned offense.

“I’m not going to flirt with him.” You raise an eyebrow when Fett snorts at your high-pitched voice as he makes his way to the landing ship, and mutters something beneath his breath. The ship powers down after a couple of moments and you take a deep breath when the doors to the docking ramp slide and a figure appears at the corner.

“There he is...took you longer to land this time.” Fett yells to the other Mandalorian, not noticing how you take a few steps back as the man walks down towards the two of you.

“Oh well things just got a little more interesting now.” You break the silence and cringe when the Mandalorian struts past your friend and takes out his blaster. You hold your hands up when he points the weapon at your head and you watch as Fett strides to the two of you and stands in between your body and his brother’s weapon.

“You?” The Mandalorian growls and he tries to step aside and Fett holds his chest and pushes him back.

“Me!” You smile nervously and gulp when Fett turns around and looks at you. You swear you can almost see the look he’s giving you but you say nothing and hope that he can handle this situation for you.

“Oh.” You would have laughed at Fett’s response if there wasn’t a bounty hunter standing not five feet away from you and killing you a thousand different ways.

“You two know each other?” Fett breaks the silence and continues to stand between the two of you, knowing his friend’s short temper and your dumb comments might escalate this situation.

“I wouldn’t say we know each other. I’d say we met very briefly on-” You try to explain what happened the last time you saw the Mandalorian but he cuts you off. He pushes his blaster into its holster and you sigh heavily but keep your hands raised, afraid he'll change his mind any second and try to shoot you again.

“You almost blew up my ship!” The Mandalorian yells and you jump at his exclamation. His irritation seeps into your skin and you narrow your eyes at him as you walk around Fett and begin to nudge at the beskar armor with one finger. Your anger at his unfairness outgrows your fear of what he can do to you and you continue to push on his chest plate as you talk back at him and ignore Fett’s whispers to let it go.

“I did no such thing. I merely tried to fix your shitty cooling radiator panels but you scared the fuck out of me when you came up behind me and suggested I switch the parts, hence why I dropped the cauterizer and burned through the wires. So technically, you almost blew up your ship.” You’re breathing heavily and you’re sure your nose is flaring from how annoyed you are by the man in front of you. A few seconds pass between the two of you and it’s not until the Mandalorian tilts his head that you realize what you’ve just said and done. You take your hands away and swallow the growing lump in your throat as you step back and apologize a few times before you walk to the crates.

The Mandalorian stands there in silence, never once looking away from you retreating form, even when Boba Fett comes and stands him.

He’s missed this, and more than he preferred to admit.

“Little princess is fiery today.” Fett comments and notices when his friend turns and stares at him through the visor. The Mandalorian says nothing as he walks away from Fett and follows you. You’re in the middle of counting the supplies in the crates when you hear the crunching of footsteps approaching you. Thinking it’s Fett that’s come to help you move the supplies, you roll up your sleeves and ask him to take the opposite side.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to yell at your brother. I was just annoyed because I was only trying to help and he scared me.” When you look up and see that it was the Mandalorian and not your friend, you drop the crate and stare at him. He says nothing as he picks up his end of the large box and waits for you to mirror his actions before he begins to walk back to his ship. Neither of you say anything as you go back and forth until all the crates are on his ship. You walk out and stand next to Fett, waiting for his instructions to see whether you were going to go with him or with the new member of the crew.

“So what’s the plan?” You avoid the Mandalorian standing next to you and turn your body towards Fett, hoping that he’d say that you were tagging along with him.

“You’re going to go with him.” You cease to breathe at his command and clench your fists when you recognize his tone. He’s not leaving room for negotiation.

“W-why?” The Mandalorian walks back to his ship at your question and you pout when you realize that he may have misunderstood your inquiry. Not that it mattered whether or not he misunderstood...

“Fennec...we’ll meet you at Iktotchon.” You look to the ground and shuffle your feet against the sand, turning back to him and nodding quietly as you follow behind the Mandalorian.

“And princess!” Fett calls for you and you glance at him when you reach the top of the ramp.

“Hmm?”

“Try not to get into too much trouble.” You look at him with annoyance and shake your head when you realize he’s just teasing you. Standing at the large doors of the ship, you glimpse one last time at Mos Eisley before you make your way into the heart of the ship. A few moments later, the ship powers up and you watch as the barrier raises and locks just as light filters through the area. You’re not sure what you’re supposed to do or where you’re allowed to go so you remain standing where you are. Not a minute later, you jump when a voice breaks the silence and booms through the ship.

“Come up to the cockpit.”

You take a deep, calming breath as you set your things to the side and ascend the ladder to the cockpit. You come face to face with a door and you’re about to knock when it slides open and reveals the Mandalorian sitting in the pilot chair.

“Sit down and buckle up.” He says as he flicks on buttons across the board. He turns his head towards you to make sure that you’re buckled in before he raises the throttle levers and begins to take off. You hold back from saying something snarky as the turbulence gets worse, only shutting your eyes when it gets to be too much. You’re not sure how long you’re sitting there with your hands clasping the leather of the chair but it’s only when you hear the seat in front of you turning that you realize you were already in space.

You frown when you open your eyes and see the Mandalorian already looking at you, the tilt of his helmet letting you know that he was silently mocking you.

“What?” You break the silence and watch as he rights himself before he turns around and pushes the auto-pilot button.

“You’re a supply dealer who hates flying.” It’s more of a question than a comment and you can’t help but narrow your eyes when he stands up and continues to stare at you.

“So?”

“Not a good quality of life.” If you’re surprised by his response, you try not to show it as you stand up and face him defensively like before.

“Says the man who wears beskar armor every minute of the day.” It’s a low blow and you know you have no right involving his religion. But you’re fed up with his passive aggressiveness and you want to make sure he knows that he can’t talk down to you.

The Mandalorian turns away and looks at the passing stars of the galaxy, softly whispering for you to follow him as he exits the cockpit. You want to apologize for what you said but you hold back instead, following him down the ladder and standing to the side when you see him moving things around.

“This is my cot, and that right there is yours.” He points to two doors across from each other at the end of the hallway and waits for your confirmation before he walks past them and shows you the refresher.

“Help yourself to any of the rations. We’ll arrive at Iktotchon in four sleeping cycles so there should be enough food for the two of us until we get there.” You’re not sure what makes you reach for his wrist when he turns around to walk away. He stands still and looks down at the hand grasping his beskar before he looks at you.

“S-sorry...I- umm, are you coming to Pasaana?” You ring your fingers nervously as you look at yourself in his visor, taking two steps back when he straightens up and looks down at your hands.

“You’re going to the Festival of the Ancestors.”

“Yes. Well, it’s me, Mando, and Fennec. So I was just wondering, you know, if there was...if you had anything lined up after this supply run. Because if not, you can tag along...it only happens every-”

“42 years. I know.” He cuts you off and you’re not sure if his body-language seems more open or not but within a few seconds of chatting with him, he’s suddenly relaxing and leaning back against the metal wall. He’s silent for longer than you prefer so you force a smile and rub the back of your neck awkwardly as you prepare to tell him to forget that you asked since he probably has more important matters to handle.

“Ok.” It’s a simple response yet you feel your skin heat up as he nods at you and walks to his quarters. He hesitates at the door for a moment before he pushes the button and steps into the privacy of his room.

You let out a deep breath and stand in your spot for a few minutes before you slip back to the docking space to bring your belongings to the room. The ship is surprisingly more quiet than others you’ve been on and you remember what he told you about it the last time you saw him. A faint memory of how he defended the size of his ship makes you giggle. Then again, you’ve heard from Peli about the piece of junk he had before this and knew that it was barely considered as machinery.

“Maker, how am I going to make it four days on this ship with him?” You shake your head as you prepare to go to bed. The twin suns were just setting on Tatooine when you were leaving and you knew it was better to get as much sleep in as possible considering how quickly things sometimes escalated on these kinds of runs.

Surprisingly, things weren’t too bad when you left your sleeping cot the following day. The Mandalorian was already awake and cleaning his weapons. You bid him a quick good morning as you moved past him and looked for some snacks. He didn’t seem like he wanted to converse with you so you opted to stay in your room for the remainder of your waking hours. A voice in your head told you to keep the door open in case he did want to chat eventually but as you thought, he never once disturbed you.

The second day on the ship was perhaps slightly more eventful. Although he continued to pass his time in silence, he did manage to ask you to help him fix something in the cockpit. You were shocked he requested your services with ease and said nothing as he stood aside and watched you tinker away with the radar display screen. He thanked you twice when you finished and told you that he’d let you know if he needed your help with anything else.

The third day, however, made you wish you could open the docking doors and throw yourself out in space. You hadn’t seen him all morning long and you thought it was probably because he wanted some privacy in the cockpit. By the middle of the day, you jumped out of your cot and grabbed some spare clothes as you headed to the refresher, wanting to shower once before you landed on the sand-filled planet the following. As you walked to the door and pushed the button, you were met with a heavy fog escaping the room. When the fog cleared, you dropped your clothes and slammed your hands on your eyes, immediately backing away from the room as the Mandalorian scrambled to wrap something around his waist. You weren’t sure how many times you apologized in the span of one minute but when you heard the familiar sound of a blaster turning on, you stood in silence and waited for him to say something.

“Pfassk, do you have no kriffing regard for privacy?” He growled through the vocoder and you shook your head to try and explain to him that you saw nothing but his back.

“I- maker, I’m so sorry. I swear on my life I didn’t see anything except your back. I didn’t know you were in there...I really didn’t or else I wouldn't have gone in.” You sigh in relief when you hear him murmur to himself as he sets down the blaster and shuffles around in search of his clothes.

“What do you mean you didn’t know I was in there? The red light was on, which usually means someone is in the fucking refresher using it.” Hearing him swear shouldn’t make you shiver and yet you do. When you notice that he’s gone still, you assume it’s safe to look at him again. Taking a deep breath, you turn around and lower your hands as you muster up the courage to try and explain to him why you couldn’t see the red light.

And boy was that a mistake. You regret removing your hands from your eyes as soon as you take a good look at him. Turns out, the beskar armor only made him look more intimidating. The man was large, made to be a hunter. He was broad-shouldered, muscular in all the right places and soft in others. You unintentionally frown when you see his bronze skin littered with scars of all shapes and sizes. Maker, the life he led was worse than you thought.

“I- uhh, I don’t...I couldn’t see it.” You hated how much your voice broke when you tried to explain yourself. As much as you wanted to blame it on being afraid of him, you knew it was less about the danger he exuded and more about the fact that you could see more of his skin than you thought you ever would.

“Excuse me?”

“I didn’t know it was red.” You knew none of what you were saying was making sense but this wasn’t exactly a situation that you thought you’d find yourself having to deal with, and with the Mandalorian of all people.

“Are you fucking with me?” He was less hostile than earlier but his words were still spoken aggressively. You couldn’t blame him really, especially when you knew how strict his religion was.

“N-no. I- my species doesn’t see color until- well, it doesn’t matter. My species doesn’t see color. We just see grays. I’m sorry...I should have asked before if there was anything I needed to learn about the ship that required me seeing colors. It escaped me. I’ll try to pay more attention...I promise you I saw nothing.” You take one last glance at the heaving, glistening body in front of you before you turn around and walk in your room. You shut the door behind you this time, knowing that he probably wanted some of his privacy back and that he would need to limit himself should you keep it open.

It’s not until a few hours later that you sit up when you hear a soft knock on your door. You stand up and push open the barrier, finding the Mandalorian standing in front of you with his helmet looking straight at your reluctant expression. You wait for him to say something and when he doesn’t, you raise your eyebrows and silently ask him if he needs anything.

“I didn’t know about your...I didn’t know. And I didn’t mean to scare you with the blaster either, it’s a reflex to- umm.” You nod at him and look down to see what he’s holding in his hands. “You left your clothes lying on the floor.” He pushes the fabric towards you and averts his eyes when he sees your undergarments peaking through the shirt. You thank him as you set them down on your bag and look into his visor again.

“Ad'ika?”

“Hmm?”

“I’m sorry.” The whispered exclamation does little to calm your nerves and you’re not sure what to say to him so you nod and awkwardly smile into the shiny beskar helmet. The Mandalorian murmurs a quick ‘good night’ before he makes his way to the cockpit, leaving you as confused as ever.

You don’t get an ounce of sleep that night, the image of him in nothing but a helmet and some flimsy pants making you wish he had shot you with his blaster instead. You refuse to admit the rising emotions you’re beginning to feel towards him, mostly because it didn’t matter whether or not he reciprocated them.

You still couldn’t see color.

He wasn’t your soulmate.

You’re afraid to leave the room the next morning, not sure which version of the Mandalorian you were going to have to deal with. It turns out, there was nothing to worry about because not surprisingly, you got the quiet, slightly shy man chatting with you. He pretends nothing happened the previous day and you go along with it. You’re just about to enter the atmosphere of Iktotchon when you receive a hologram from Fett telling the two of you of the sandstorm passing through the meeting point.

As you buckle into the seat behind the Mandalorian, he takes a moment to turn around and call for you.

“There’s going to be turbulence.”

“I- I know.” You barely hold back from furrowing your eyebrows at his comment but then he turns around to face you completely and you narrow your eyes at him with suspicion.

“I’ve landed on worse planets.” It takes you a few extra seconds to realize what he’s attempting to do and you can’t help but laugh and break the moment. You quiet down when he turns around and begins to descend to the planet.

“Are you worried about little old me Mandalorian?” You try to distract yourself from the sudden, harsh shaking of the ship but the teasing does little to calm your nerves when you realize that the sandstorm was as bad as Fett made it sound. You shut your eyes and try to picture the calm nights you’re so used to on Tatooine.

“You know, you can just call me Mando.” His voice breaks you out of your haze and you growl in response when you hear a few sounds go off above you.

“No, I- I can’t call you that. I reserved it for the other guy already!”

“You mean the Mandalorian who already told you his name?” He claps back and chuckles when you sigh in irritation at his question.

“Fine okay you’re right. How about this? Can you land this fucking ship without killing the two of us Mando?” You’re screaming at the top of your lungs and grasp the belt around your torso harder when you don’t hear back from him.

“Mando?”

“You mean the ship I already landed ad’ika?” Your eyes shoot wide open and you look around frantically, only to see that most of the turbulence you experienced was due to the sand and gravel hitting the metal of the ship.

“Oh...that was- not as bad as I thought it would be.”

“Anything beats Maldo Kreis.” Mando says as he stands there across from you and the slight tilt of his helmet at your confused expression makes you realize he may not have meant to say that out loud.

“We need to go. The storm will only get worse if we wait until night.” You nod in agreement and follow him out of the cockpit to the docking station. Mando instantly regrets lowering the docking ramp when he sees gravel quickly entering the ship. You run to your room to grab the helmet you brought with you and lock it in as you return to help him with the crates.

It’s a difficult few hours on the planet, and you grow more irritated when the Ikotchi threatens you with less supply exchanges. When his demeanor suddenly changes and he asks you to take the crates and leave, you thank him and quickly take the crates up the ramp with Fennec before he changes his mind. You never once notice both Mandalorians as they subtly push their blasters back into their holsters.

You’re leaving Iktotchon later than you prefer, mostly because both bounty hunters find themselves in a heated argument that Fennec has to end not-so-gently. You don’t bother asking Mando what the issue was when you see him strutting into the cockpit, quickly strapping yourself in when he glances at you to make sure you’re safe.

It’s a rough take off for both his ship and Slave I, but you say nothing of it, knowing that he might not appreciate any light teasing at the moment. Once you’re out of the planet’s atmosphere, Mando puts in the coordinates for Pasaana and sends a hologram to Fett, letting him know that you would be reaching the planet in less than a day.

You want to ask him if you could help in any way but you decide against it and leave him to his thoughts. You want nothing more than to take a long, hot shower to rid yourself of all the sand that managed to seep into your clothes. But then you notice the state of the docking area and before you can talk yourself out of it, you look around for anything that resembles a sweeper and clean as much of the floor as you can. You’re thankful that Mando doesn’t leave the cockpit and when you’re done, you go back into your room to grab a change of clothes so you could use the refresher.

You think you hear Mando passing by your room but you say nothing and make your way to the refresher, halting in your steps when you look at the light and find it turned off.

Great.

“Mando? Are you in there?” You’re not sure if he can hear you or not so you try to ask him again a little louder.

“Mando!? Are you i-”

“No.” You jump as soon as you hear him respond from behind you. Turning around, you clutch at your chest when you see him standing in front of his door without the beskar armor.

“I- uhh, t-there’s no light. And I wasn’t sure what that meant really.” You’re ringing your fingers again, and hope that he doesn’t notice just how nervous you are in his presence.

“Well I- I rewired the electrical circuits of the refresher so you know when it’s occupied and when it isn’t. If the light is on, it means I’m in there, and if it isn’t, then it’s free for use. No more colores.”

You look at him as if he took off his helmet, trying to wrap your mind around the fact that he went out of his way to accommodate you when you’re only on his ship for another few days.

“Thank you,” is all you manage to say before you push the door and scramble in. Mando looks at the door for another few minutes before he remembers that he hasn’t eaten in a while. He cooks up a meal for two quickly and eats his share before you finish your shower. When he hears you walking out, he sits in his usual corner and brings out his weapons to polish them.

You smell food as soon as you walk out of the refresher and you throw your clothes on your cot before you make your way to the large space across the hallway. You’re about to ask Mando about the food situation when you see a plate opposite of him on the table.

“It’s yours.” Mando breaks the silence as he wipes in between the crevasses of his blaster, nodding towards the space in front of him to let you know that you could join him,

“Thank you Mando.”

Neither of you say anything as you inhale your dinner and it’s not until you’ve washed your plates and set them aside that Mando decides to break the silence.

“Can I ask you something?”

“S-sure.” You think he’s going to ask you what it’s like to not see colors and to only see gradations of gray but his question catches you off guard.

“When can your species see color?” If you were uncomfortable by his question, you did a good job hiding it from him. Mando watches as you push off the wall and return to sit in front of him, lazily pushing around the towel he was holding as you answer him.

“This might sound stupid and I’m usually told that it’s not real but I’ve seen those of my kind experience the second they could see color so I know it’s not just a fable we’re told when we’re young. Basically, we see color when we meet our soulmates.” Mando’s heart breaks when you throw him a forced smile, one he’s seen a million times looking back at him in the mirror.

“Your soulmate?”

“Yup, the person I’m destined to be with. My other half. The one that will belong to me and I to him.” Mando nods along with you as he stands up and hangs up his weapons one by one.

“I know what you’re thinking. What’s someone like me going to do at the Festival of the Ancestors? Honestly, I think it’ll be fun to attend it whether or not I can see the colors. It’s a rich culture so I’m sure I’ll enjoy it either way.”

“I can always walk around with you and describe to you the colors, t-the patterns even. If...if you want.” His suggestion throws you off guard and as earlier, you gape at him as you try to figure out what he was playing at. You think he’s pulling your leg and will laugh at you at any moment, but when he doesn’t, you realize that he’s being dead serious.

“That would be nice Mando. I might not see the colors but I could always imagine what they look like next to each other.”

And just like that, the conversation is over as quickly as it begins.

“Good night mesh’la.” Mando murmurs as he makes his way to his quarters, leaving you more hopeful than you’ve felt in a long while.

It’s a weird thing to admit but for the first time in years, you don’t go to sleep wishing you could wake up and see colors. No. You doze off wondering what it would feel like to hold his hand and maybe, just maybe, kiss it. You think of how soft his untouched skin must feel like and how calloused his scarred muscles would look.

When you dream that night, you see faint images of his lips caressing yours and his firm arms bringing you into his embrace.

And you wake up with a lazy smile etched on your face because those dreams, those sweet, lovely memories your brain conjured up during the night, felt as good as seeing color.

You can’t look at him for the duration of the morning, constantly pretending that you’re doing something or other so he doesn’t think you’re avoiding him because the last thing you wanted was to make him think you didn’t want to talk to him. But you just can’t find it in yourself to look into his visor. Every time you so much as glance at the beskar helmet, you remember what your subconscious conjured up and you stutter out a response to whatever he says.

Not surprisingly, Mando notices the shift in your behavior and he waits until you finish fixing the crates’ locks, which were clearly not broken, before he approaches you.

“Mesh’la.”

“Yes Mando?” You’re still not looking at him and Mando starts to genuinely believe that he’s done something wrong. When you try to walk past him to place the tool back in your room, Mando reaches out and takes hold of your wrist before you’re out of reach. You look at his gloved hand wrapped around your skin before you meet his eyes past his visor and Mando holds his breath because for a moment, he thinks you can see straight through him.

“You’re angry with me.”

You never realize until this moment that Mando tends to ask most of his questions in the form of a statement and it’s strange. It’s strange because it never occurred to you that he’s the type to perhaps jump to conclusions when he can’t read the situation. Setting the tool box down, you stand up and fix your shirt as you muster up the courage to respond to him.

“I’m not. I’m not angry with you. I’m- it’s...difficult to explain.” His hold loosens but he’s standing in your space and you think it’s because he’s not totally convinced by your answer and won’t let it go until you give him a proper explanation for the sudden change in your treatment.

“It’s difficult to explain why you’re not angry with me.”

There it goes again, that weird phrasing of his inner thoughts. You huff in irritation and Mando misunderstands your annoyed expression so he steps away and turns to look everywhere else but you.

“No, Mando...maker- yes it’s difficult to explain because you’re- no, not you. It’s not your fault it’s mine. I’m just not used to- gods why is this so hard?” You’re visibly stressed and it must be a sight because Mando comes back to stand in front of you and he rests one hand on your shoulder, waiting until you turn to look at him before he tries to break the anxiety-inducing silence.

“You don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to. I- I shouldn’t have offered to walk through the festival with you. I should have thought of how uncomfortable you’d feel before I selfishly asked t-” You perk up at his choice in words and you’re about to ask him what he meant by what he said but he doesn’t give you a chance. “Please believe me when I tell you I only wanted to...I thought it might help.”

“You see, this is exactly why I’m avoiding you.” You’re not sure who’s more surprised by your little outburst but when his hold tightens around your shoulder, you think maybe it’s him.

“So you are avoiding me.”

“Yes okay? I am, I’m avoiding you because the last few days felt like a whiplash of emotions and I don’t know what I’m feeling right now. One minute you’re angry and quiet and it’s as if I’m not in the same space as you, and the next thing I know, you’re rewiring your damn ship so I know how to use it and then offering to pretty much waste your time during one of the most beautiful festivals in the galaxy just to make sure I’m enjoying myself. And...and it’s difficult because I feel myself falling but I don’t want to because I’m afraid...I’m afraid you won’t be there to catch me...because you don’t have to. Because why would you when-”

You’re not sure how you got to this moment but all you know is that you're’ suddenly surrounded by Mando and the cold beskar armor and his natural musk and this unique woodsy scent and it’s-

It’s breathtaking.

“Cyar’ika, I didn’t know...I didn’t know I was causing you this much distress. It’s difficult for me to- to speak my he- to speak at times. I wasn’t thinking of how I’m coming off and I was so busy trying to figure out my- my own feelings...that I didn’t stop and think of what you must be going through.” His voice is low and you think perhaps that it’s breaking with every word he whispers through the vocoder, so you do the only thing you think of at the moment. Reluctantly, you wrap as much of your arms around him as physically possible, hoping he’d understand that you were listening to him and no longer trying to ignore him.

“Mando-”

“I- I volunteered for this supply run.” You’re not sure how this relates to this current affair but you sink further into his embrace, hoping that he wouldn’t shy away from explaining why he’s bringing this up now.

“I know. Fett told me.”

“Did he tell you why?” Mando replies instantly and you furrow your eyebrows even though you know he can’t see you.

“N-no.”

“I- I couldn’t stop thinking of you. Ever since the last time I saw you, I’ve been at war with myself, with what I was allowing to happen. I knew you weren’t to blame with the cauterizer but I couldn’t accept my heart letting you...maker, I can see why you said this is difficult.” He chuckles nervously and you hold your breath in anticipation because he isn’t, he can’t be admitting what you think he is.

“W-what’re you saying Mando?”

“I’m saying I need you cyar’ika. I’m saying, I’ve been dreaming of you for the past 53 sleeping cycles. I’m saying, I can’t bear the thought of not seeing you after Pasaana.” You don’t realize how long you’ve been holding your breath until you exhale against him and Mando pulls away, keeping his helmet aimed to the floor as he continues. “And if- if you can give me a chance, I’d like to- I’d like to...well, I’m not exactly sure what you enjoy doing but I’d like to do it with you. You don't have to give me an answer now. I know I’m being selfish and I know that I- I don’t belong with you because you haven't seen color yet. But please, please consider this. Consider me.” His voice is much more reserved, lower even, than before and you realize it’s because he was probably considering not telling you up until now.

Your heart breaks at his last words because this was never something you thought you’d have to deal with. But looking back at the last few days, no matter how confusing or strange they were, you can’t help but admit how alive you’ve felt.

You know he doesn’t expect you to answer him right away and you know you should take some time to think over what he’s asking of you.

So when you lay both of your hands on his chest and ask him to look at you, Mando thinks you’re going to reject him and you feel his muscles tense when you step closer to him.

“I do...I- I am considering this Mando, I have been for the past few nights if I’m being honest...it’s actually part of the reason why I couldn’t look at you today. I woke up with this unusual thought, well, unusual to me. It’s been so long since I stopped thinking about seeing color and directed all of my attention to something, or rather, someone else.” You smile up into the visor and slowly reach to rest your hand on the space between his helmet and his cowl. The mere touch of your skin shakes him to his core and Mando has to clench his fists so he doesn’t lose control over himself.

“Today was the first time I woke up not caring if I hadn’t seen color because- because being with you, and- and talking with you and staying on this ship with you felt like I’ve already seen color. I don’t know what’s going to happen when I do...if I do, but I know that I’d like to give this, us, a shot.”

“You...you do mesh’la?” He almost sounds like a young child asking his parents for permission to have something and when you nod at him, Mando can’t hold back anymore. He wraps his arms around you once more, and carries you off the ground, smiling to himself when he hears you giggling at his dramatic display of affection.

He pulls away and you think he’s about to say something but a message comes through to the ship and Mando apologizes quickly before he ascends to the cockpit. You stay planted in your spot for what feels like hours before you hear Mando telling you that you’re nearing Pasaana. When you get to the cockpit and take your usual seat, Mando rises from his chair and approaches you, kneeling down at your feet to buckle your belt easier and ensure that you’re safe. It’s a small gesture but you know he’s conveying a thousand emotions in that little tap to make sure that you’re buckled in properly and when you smile at him, he reaches over and pushes a stray hair behind your ears before he returns to his pilot chair.

You don’t feel the turbulence once, mostly because you’re too busy replaying the brief moment over and over again in your mind until you’re sure you’ve committed it to memory.

Mando has to tap on your shoulder twice once he lands, and you nod in affirmation when he asks if you were feeling alright. The two of you make your way out of the ship just as Slave I lands. When you glance at Mando to ask him about the argument between him and Fett, you find him already staring at you. You smile at him and watch as he looks away apologetically. Maybe he really was as nervous as you.

“You’re coming along then?” Fett says to Mando as you make your way towards the desert and you pretend to focus on the dozens of kites flying in the air, unsure whether you were meant to be a part of this conversation or not.

Mando replies in Mando’a and you look to Fennec to ask her something about the kites to try and ignore the two men who may or may not have been talking about you. You’re about to ask Fennec about the colors of the flying toys when Mando steps in between the two of you and takes hold of your upper arm, pushing you ahead of the others so he could get a private moment with you.

“Is- are you okay?”

“Fine. He’s being difficult.” His curt answer lets you know that he wasn’t going to reveal what that whole ordeal was about so you nod and try to fall in step with him. You’re about to ask him about the colors of the kites when Mando leans over and whispers in your ears.

“Those two over there are red, like the color of the twin suns on Tatooine when they’re just setting. And, that one over there, the large one flying higher than the rest, it’s a dark blue...like the night sky.” You try to not let the proximity of his body affect you but the more he tells you of the colors, the closer you want him to get to you.

“That smaller one is light green, like many of the plants on Felucia.”

“I’ve never been to Felucia.” You admit to him as you keep your gaze on the kites, trying to differentiate between the colors but barely noticing a difference between the grays.

“I can take you there.” He offers with ease and you look into the visor and smile at him. “I’d like that.”

You can vaguely feel their eyes on you but you don’t bother to pay attention to them, wanting to spend as much time with Mando as you could. Once you reach the edge of the festival, you thank the Aki-Aki that approach you and wrap a necklace of flowers around you. You laugh when they reluctantly look at Mando and he sighs heavily at your death stare before he leans down and allows one of them to place a necklace around his cowl as well.

“Hey Mando?”

“Hmm.”

“Do the necklaces look the same?” Mando turns around and sees Fett and Fennec look away from the two of you. He waits until they walk the opposite direction before he looks at you and takes hold of your necklace.

“Yours have lighter colors...yellow, orange, white, pink and a few light greens here and there. Mine is darker. This is purple, and these are blue...and all of these are dark red and brown.” He points to each of the flowers and tells you its color, never once noticing the way you’re looking at him and hanging onto every single word he says.

When you hear the sound of distant music playing, you take Mando’s hand and make your way through the crowd, telling him that you want to see what they’re doing on the other side of the festival. Mando says nothing as you pull him through, only responding when you directly ask him about the color of the caravan fabrics and laughing when you joke about how he technically blends into the surroundings. And when you come across a large crate that you can vaguely see some designs on, Mando offers to make room for it on his ship so you can get it. It’s a long argument between the two of you but he wins in the end, telling you that he genuinely wanted to gift you something that you can remember him with and might enjoy some day. You almost cry at the unspoken implications of his words but when he shrugs his shoulders and hands over the credits, you quietly thank him and let the seller know that you’ll be taking it before you leave.

Over the next few hours, Mando never leaves your side once, even when you tell him that he should enjoy his time as well. You notice how he changes the subject every time you ask him to explore by himself and giggle when he responds with an opinion on some of the color combinations. It’s quite comical to be in the presence of such an intimidating individual who’s complaining about how ‘that blue doesn’t go too well with this red.’

As you’re making your way through the different caravans, you notice a table displaying a dozen large cloaks. Turning to Mando, you see that he’s busy asking one of the sellers if they have similar shirts but in darker colors. You walk to the table on the other side and look through the capes to try and differentiate between them. When you realize that it’s of no use, you hold one up and call for him to ask if he should buy a new one.

“Hey Mando, maybe you should get this instead of-”

The question dies in your throat when Mando glances away from the vendor and holds your gaze. Your brain refuses to catch up with what your eyes are seeing for what feels like an eternity and your hand flies to your chest and clench it tightly as your heart skips a beat at the sight in front of you. It takes a few seconds for you to inhale deeply when you realize that you aren’t breathing and you feel your heart skip a beat when you watch Mando strut towards you. He drops what he’s holding in his hands and takes a few strides in your way, not caring to hold back as he wraps one arm around your waist while the other rests on your neck and tilts your head so he could take a better look at you. You still can’t wrap your mind around what just happened and you’re not sure what he’s saying until he lightly shakes you in his arms and raises his voice to grab your attention.

Maker, his voice was unlike anything you’ve ever heard. It was hoarse yet calming, the kind of calming that one could only dream of feeling.

“Mesh’la, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” His voice shakes you to your core and your eyes shift down to his lips, tilting your head to the side when you follow the scruff peppering his handsome features and memorize the different colors of his hair. Gods, you couldn’t put a name to any of them but you knew you liked the combination of the light and dark outlining his sharp jaw.

“I- I don’t...maker. You’re...you’re-” You’re unable to form a coherent thought and as you reach out to touch his cheeks, Mando clenches his jaw but doesn’t dare to move a muscle. He realizes that this is the first time you see him without his helmet and he finds himself praying that you find him, at the very least, okay to look at. His hold on you eases when he feels the palm of your hand caress the side of his face before you push his hair aside. Mando nuzzles into your touch and he shuts his eyes to commit this moment to memory. The last time someone was this gentle with him broke his heart, but he found himself longing for a similar feeling with you. Only if it was you.

“N-no...please. Look at me.” Your whispered request drowns out the music of the festival and Mando’s eyes flutter open immediately. He looks down at you and can’t help but shift his focus to your parted lips as you try to speak again.

“Mando? What...what color are your eyes?” You hold your breath as Mando’s gaze softens when he meets your eyes again. He doesn’t know why you’re asking but he answers you anyway.

“Brown.” His voice breaks but then you’re smiling up at him as you reach for his cheek with your other hand and rest it on his heated skin. He’s not sure what brought about any of this but he can’t care less, not when you were here, in his arms, touching him so gently and looking at him like he was the only one that mattered across the galaxy.

“Hmm...they’re a beautiful color.” The admission sends a shiver down his spine and he doesn’t register the meaning behind your words until he sees your expression change to one of panicked shock.

Oh.

“You can see color?” Mando doesn’t intend to sound so accusative but his tone must have been harsh because you nod and snatch your hands away from him as if he’s burned you. You don’t dare look anywhere else as the reality of the situation settles in your mind.

It’s him. It’s been him all along.

“I- I can see color.”

Mando watches as you blink in confusion before you look to the side. You do a double-take when you see the vibrant colors of the festival and Mando steps away as you walk around him and approach a caravan hanging clothing of all color gradations. You ignore everything else as you softly trace the different colors and patterns on the garments before you walk over to the next little cart and stare at the vibrant jewelry. There’s so much to take in and you forget for a moment where you are. When you look away and turn your eyes to the sky, you can’t help but smile at seeing the kites gliding through the air. You don’t know which one you want to focus on because they’re all so pretty so you stand in there for a few moments to take it all in.

It’s not until you feel a presence next to you that you remember how you came to see this new world. When you begin to ring your fingers anxiously, Mando takes a step towards you and takes your hands in his palms.

“Cyar’ika, do you need anything?” He doesn’t know what to say and your lungs refuse to expand when you finally look at him again.

You spent years conjuring up different scenarios in your head to try and anticipate what to expect when you finally meet your soulmate. But standing here, in front of Mando, in the middle of the Festival of the Ancestors, you realize that this compares to nothing.

“I- I don’t…”

“If you want me to go-”

“No! N-no, please. Stay here with me. Stay here with...me.” Y

ou tighten your hold around his hands to prevent him from leaving. Mando nods and turns back to the caravan he was standing by to grab his helmet. You say nothing as he carries it and looks at you, but your eyes must give you away because Mando throws you a quick smile as he keeps it on his side and leads you through the festival.

Neither of you discuss the new development but you don’t ignore it either. You continue to steal glances from each other every now and then, especially when Mando leans over and tells you about each of the colors. Except this time, he doesn’t tell you so you could imagine what they look like. He tells you so you could memorize what each pigment is and begin to recognize them on your own. It’s almost as if nothing changed with how often Mando describes to you the gradations and patterns, but you know that this was far from the truth. And with the way Mando breathes softly against your forehead when he leans down to talk to you, you sense that he knows this as well.

He’s much more forward with his touches now, perhaps even a little shameless too. Hours ago, he would apologize if he pushed you by accident or shifted closer to you. But now, he was walking with you with one hand on your lower back and he would stand longer behind you as you asked about a new color shade.

As the sun slowly sets across the sky, you turn to Mando and wait for him to finish his drink before you ask him about the others.

“Do you mind if we don’t tell the others just yet?” You watch as Mando’s expression falls and you shake your head immediately so he doesn’t misunderstand the reason behind your request.

“Not because I don’t want them to know about us, I- maker, it’s just that I’ve experienced so many changes in the span of a few days and I want to make sense of things without...without someone asking me too many questions about what I’m feeling. I want to let this sink in? And- and I’d like it if it’s just you and me. Please.” Mando is quiet for a while and you think that maybe it was the wrong thing to say to him.

“Us?”

You can’t hold back your laughter at the soft question and you almost fall over from how hard you’re giggling at him.

“That’s what you took away from everything I just said?” You sigh in relief when he mirrors you and chuckles in return.

“I’m sorry cyar’ika, I- of course. Whatever you need from me.” He’s a man of few words but he somehow knows what to say to calm your nerves.

“Thank you Mando.” You say as you turn your attention back to the setting sun to watch the colors change across the sky.

“Din Djarin.” He whispers to you after a long while, and you meet his eyes briefly, your furrowed eyebrows silently asking him what he was referring to.

“My name is Din Djarin.” His gaze is piercing and you find it much more intense now that you know for a fact that they’re your favorite color. “So you can start calling the other guy Mando again.” Your heart skips a beat when you see dimples appear on his cheeks as he grins at his own joke, and nudges your shoulder so you could relax into him again. You say nothing and lean against his shoulder, resting your head on his beskar armor and enjoying the cold sensation against your heated skin.

You’re not sure how long the two of you sit there in your bubble and watch the festival as it continues on for, but you’re interrupted when Fett approaches you and clears his throat to catch your attention.

“We’re leaving.” The Mandalorian says as he watches you closely. You think you’re being subtle studying his armor but Fett notices how you continue to look between him and Din’s and he tilts his head to the side as he turns to his friend and barely holds back from smirking at him.

Din nods and lets them know that you would be returning with him back to Mos Eisley. Fennec is about to ask why the two of you are acting differently when Fett shakes his head as he looks at you.

“Until next time princess,” Din’s posture straightens when he hears the nickname and narrows his eyes at the man trying to get a rise out of him.

“Usenye.” You snap out of your haze when you hear Din growl at his brother and wave goodbye to him and Fennec as they walk away from you.

“Is everything okay between the two of you?”

“Yes sweet girl, don’t worry about it.” You flush at the pet name and Din notices how you shiver at his touch when he raises your chin to take a better look at you. He slowly leans towards you, never once breaking eye contact as he grows closer to your lips. “Is- is this okay?” He asks and refuses to move a muscle until you respond to him. You’re already breathless and he has barely touched you but you muster up the courage to answer him.

“Y-yes.”

He smirks when your hoarse voice fans over his cheeks and as much as you wish for him to take whatever he wants, you’re thankful that he’s being patient with you and ensuring that you’re comfortable.

“Sweet girl,” Din whispers as he finally captures your lips in a chaste kiss. It’s at this precise moment that the festivities begin to pick up but you don’t notice the fireworks filling the skies or the music growing louder. You shut your eyes and hold onto Din’s wrists as he moves against you and deepens the kiss. When you gasp at his ministrations, Din’s hold on your neck tightens and he pushes you back until you lay on the blanket he set down for you. You moan as he slips his tongue past your lips and swirls his tongue across yours. Fisting your hands into his cowl, you try to pull him closer but cry out in pain when the beskar armor digs into your hips.

“I’m- I’m sorry mesh’la. I didn’t mean to-”

“No no it’s...it’s just your armor. I promise, I- I liked this.” You gulp nervously when you see an amused expression take over his handsome features.

“Is that so?” You don’t have time to react to his question, squealing in surprise when he suddenly stands up and pulls you along with him.

“What- where are we going?” You ask him as he pulls you through the multitude of visitors and Aki-Aki. He stops abruptly and speaks to one of the natives before he pushes you into the caravan standing behind him.

“Din, we can’t just-”

“I asked for his permission. Don’t you know, all of these are for visitors who want to stay the night.” You’re about to ask him why you’re staying the night out here instead of his ship but you can’t seem to form the question because you see Din taking his armor off.

It’s mesmerizing watching him take each beskar piece apart but when he’s down to just his clothes, it occurs to you that this night might be going somewhere else. Your nervousness must show on your face because Din walks towards you slowly and takes your hands in his. He kisses your wrists before leans over and rests his forehead against yours.

“Don’t worry cyar’ika, I’m not… I won’t- we’re not here to do anything other than talk. I didn’t feel comfortable taking my beskar off out there so-”

“I trust you Din.” You interrupt his word-vomit and lead him to one of the corners of the tent so you could lay down next to each other. When you rest your head on the pillow and finally look up, you’re met with a small opening in the ceiling of the caravan that gives you a perfect view of the blue night sky lighting up with fireworks.

When Din finally seats himself next to you, you whine in irritation and pull him down until he’s on his back next to you. Din never once lets go of your hand and he occasionally raises the palm of your hand to his lips to kiss across the skin.

“Can I ask you something?” You don’t look away from the fireworks when you speak, not wanting to miss seeing any of the vibrant shades of reds and yellows as they broke through the clouds.

“Anything sweet girl.”

“Why did you take off your helmet? I thought your Creed prevented you from showing your face.” You hope the question isn’t too insensitive or private, and when Din takes longer than you like to respond, you finally turn to him to apologize. But Din cuts you off before you can even say anything, keeping his focus on your wrist to distract him long enough so he could respond.

“I had a son once, well, he wasn’t mine physically but, he was mine. He was a foundling by Creed and I was tasked with bringing him back to his kind. It’s a long story that I could tell you another time but...when I had to give him up, I couldn’t bear the thought of him never seeing me without the helmet. I needed him to see me, to know what I willingly gave up and what I had to do to ensure his safety. I’d taken off my helmet once before and even thought it was my choice, I didn’t want to. But in that moment, before I watched him go, I decided that he was more important than my Creed. He was...he was everything to me. And it took a long time to realize that personal connections and relationships weren’t a weakness, they were a strength. My strength.” You’re not sure when you turned to your side and nuzzled into his embrace. But you couldn’t focus on anything else but him and the way his eyes twinkled in sadness when he mentioned his kid. It was a shocking admission and you never once thought of him in such a role but looking back at the last few days, you didn’t find it impossible. He was kind, quiet, sweet, adn patient.

“I keep my helmet on almost all the time but I only take it off around people I trust. I’m telling you this because- because I trust you. I trust you cyar’ika. I took it off earlier today because I wanted you to see me...and also because I was trying to pick out a gift for you. I figured if I didn’t preface it with anything that it would be less dramatic but- little did I know.” The indirect mention of the not-so-little change you experienced earlier today makes you smile.

“If I knew you needed to look into my eyes for you to see color, I would have taken off the helmet the first time I saw you.” He trails his nose across your cheek before he kisses your eyes and your forehead, smiling down at you when he sees how relaxed you feel in his arms.

“It wouldn’t have mattered.” Your response surprises him and he pulls away and looks at you quizzically.

“I- I saw you before my eyes saw you, Din. My heart chose you before my soul did. I...I think I knew when I saw you again…I think a part of me knew that you were it for me and that it didn’t matter if I didn’t see color with you because- because you were...you’re perfect.” You feel a weight lift off of your chest when you finally confess to him what you’ve been feeling for the past few days and you shift impossibly closer to him to let him know that you were telling the truth.

“I’m not perfect mesh’la.” His laugh is self-deprecating and he only stops when he feels your hand slip around his back and hold onto his shirt like your life depended on it.

“You are to me.” It’s perhaps too forward for him and Din doesn’t know how to react or respond to your confession so he nods at you and nuzzles into your neck to avoid any more of your intense emotions.

“You haven’t told me yet what your favorite color is.” He tries to change the topic, not expecting your response to shoot through his chest and into his heart like a blaster.

“Brown obviously.” You answer instantly and without hesitation.

“Why ‘obviously’?”

“Well, it’s-it’s your eye-color Din. What other color could be my favorite?”

His heart ceases to beat at your adamant reply and he pulls away again to look into your eyes to see if you were teasing him. Instead, he finds something swimming in your eyes that would have terrified his soul had he met you years ago.

“Ner kar’ta,” Din moans into your ear as he rests up on his elbow before molding his lips with yours again. You don't know what any of the Mando’a means but you have a pretty good idea of what he’s trying to convey in that moment and you wrap your arms around his neck and bring him closer to you. When he lays back down and pulls you into his side, you can’t help but take one last look at the night sky, finding the stars shimmering behind the multitude of fireworks. You watch the different colors blend with each other, and you almost cry when you see the yellows and greens and blues mixing so beautifully together to create new gradients across the galaxy.

But none of them compared to the color of Din’s eyes. And you go to sleep dreaming of the moment those kind, dark, brown orbs captured your soul and whispered affections into your heart.

Translations

Mesh’la - beautiful Cyar’ika - beloved/darling Ad’ika - little one Usenye - go away Ner kar’ta - my heart

Pedro Pascal (and any of his characters):

@pastel-0-princess @feelmyroarrrr @libbymouse @its--fandom--darling @spideysimpossiblegirl @princess76179 @cheekygeek05 @miraclesoflove @purple-mango @freeshavocadoooo @metalarmsandmanbuns @acthenerd @greeneyedblondie44 @cannedsoupsucks @purplepascal042 @talesfromtheguild @f0rever15elf @vibin-hippie @onesmokinbabe @leaiorganas @words-way-of-life @kideyz @lovesickmadsadpoet @niall7inches @rosiefridayrogersunday @tati-adventures @sleep-tight1 @itsfreeekinbats @cybergroupie @vibin-hippie @marsplsstop @mouthymandalorian @diogodxlot @janebby @juletheghoul

Din Djarin: @a--1--1--3 @tanzthompson

#din djarin x reader #din djarin/reader #din djarin fluff #the mandalorian x reader #the mandalorian/reader #the mandalorian fanfiction #din djarin fanfiction #din djarin #the mandalorian #pedro pascal #soulmate au

[probably-haven]

Hello!

So I’m the anon who asked for more Archon War Venti headcanons and I just loved it! I really like reading your headcanons cuz some of them are similar to mine but mostly are headcanons that I didn’t think of so it really is nice to read and see your thoughts about Venti!

I feel like as if I’m asking too much but could you keep doing these types of headcanons? Like it doesn’t have to be Archon War headcanons but like some headcanons about Venti’s relationship with the Ragnvindrs and Gunnhildrs. Because the first Gunnhildr was the first one who prayed to Barbatos and the first Ragnvindr was his friend who left but came back and I really wanna hear your thoughts on that!

And I’ve decided to get off anon cuz you just replied to my texts and I wasn’t expecting that so I’ve got a short confidence boost that I am completely taking advantage of! And thanks for the advice! or uhh comment? observation? I’m not entirely sure but thank you for that! I’ve heard that be said to me a few times and I have been trying to be more, uhh, assertive so thanks for that!

rfouierjkhfkecs i actually came across information on Gunnhildr and the "Red-haired warrior" yesterday when i was doing more research into the rebellion against Decarabian and I was like "wow this would be really fucking fun to research and theorize on, but its too specific/niche to include unprompted no matter how much i want to" but bestie you prompted, and im literally so happy right now because I didn't think I'd ever really get the chance to post about them!

also lmao yeah, i tend to try and reply to as much as I can, since it's a good feeling when someone does and all. but yeah, no problem! I’m glad you felt confident enough to reveal XD. 

This may be structured a bit more like analysis/theory/just citing canon things at first before it gets into a more headcanony format.

ehe i have so much free reign on this it's lovely

More Archon War Era Venti: one two three

spoilers for Venti's backstory and Diluc's(kinda, i think, just in case)

first things first, laying down some canon background because before yesterday i hadn't heard of either of them outside of that one cutscene.

the very reason Decarabian had his storm wall up in the first place was because at the time Andrius had declared war on him- and his tower, and the city of Mondstadt by extent, were basically constantly under attack by Andrius's blizzards, which since he was still alive back then, were a lot bigger and covered basically what seems to be the whole of Mondstadt outside the barrier.

This meant that people had two options. Live in the city under Decarabian's oppression, or live outside the barrier, and brave the blizzards of a warring god... which was not a good idea

but the Gunnhildr clan(not yet called that) tried- and they almost died because of it. In the midst of a blizzard, the clan chief's daughter, named Gunnhildr(which the clan would be named after later) sent out a prayer that was heard by a wandering wind spirit. And the faith of that prayer gave the spirit enough power to create a small shelter to protect them.

When her father past, she became the new leader and also a priestess. She would later lead the clan to fight Decarabian alongside four others. And basically the Gunnhildr Clan ended up as like sworn protectors of Mondstadt

-

as for the red-haired warrior, who is basically assumed to be the earliest known ancestor of the Ragnvindir clan(im gonna refer to as Ragnvindir for convenience sake, even though "Ragnvindir" is technically a different character from Vanessa's era)theres not much information on him, but heres what i have from the various wiki's

- he was a wanderer

- one of the first to use the sign of windblume to find other rebels(so he's intelligent)

- actively propped up the nameless bard so he could watch as the tower was destroyed

there's this little tidbit too from the Windblume Ode bow's description that im probably gonna talk about a considerable amount too: "Atop the ruins of the ancient tower, amidst the cheers, songs, and tears of those who had newly won their freedom. A red-haired warrior turned his back on the newborn god, hidden like a single raindrop in a tidal wave of humanity. He was first among those who passed the secret sign of Windblume, the one who wove threads of dawn throughout the long night. His name has since been lost to time, but his deeds are still remembered in song." followed later by "The fate of this clan will likely never change: they shall ever live in the darkness and bring forth the flame of dawn."

-

Now I'm going to start with the Ragnvindir(geez, why's it spelled like that tho)

My idea of his character is basically formed by a mix of Ragnvindir stereotypes and just generally analyzing text.

So what do we know about Ragnvindir's for sure? they are shady motherfuckers- or at least they rarely operate in the spotlight. also damn, these guys are more cursed than anemo vision wielders- like the only one who didn't canonically lose someone close to them was Crepus, but considering that Diluc doesn't exactly have a mom..... he probably did

so what do we know? - he was close with the nameless bard - he was intelligent - he likely operated primarily from the shadows "ever living in the darkness" - he was a wanderer - he abandoned Venti during the celebration - but his deeds were still remembered in song, so Venti and him were likely still close

now the question of the century: how will i choose to interpret "turned his back on the newborn god"? And honestly, I'm- not sure- at first i assumed he abandoned him completely- but Venti did still make sure to carry on his memory- which could just be Venti being Venti, but for the sake of sanity, this is how I'm interpreting it.

A lot of things happened to the Ragnvindir that day. He lost a friend, saw another become a god to replace the one they had conquered, and he saw his goal, his reason for being in Mondstadt, come to fruition. "see the world through my eyes" the bard had said, and the Ragnvindir had been a wanderer even before. Sure, the people had won freedom, and that was to be celebrated, but he's intelligent to recognize that people would likely see him as one of the key figures in leading the rebellion. And for him this was a solemn time, and ending to a chapter, and not being one to operate in the spotlight, the last thing he'd want is to be swept up in festivities and attention at a time like this.

It also likely didn't help that he's probably smart enough to understand the idea of "power corrupts," and seeing the wind sprite just readily accept the mantle of Archon was likely not the most comforting thing to happen in the given situation after all. But Decarabian was gone, and Andrius had ceased his blizzards, so without a word, he slipped into the crowd and left, a wanderer once more.

-

now back to Gunnhildr

she was the first to receive an anemo vision from Barbatos, no I do not take criticism on this "the power bestowed on her by Barbatos" like please, they basically said it.

It also mentions that she crowned Venti with laurels(symbol of vistory) after the battle- the book Biography of Gunnhildr additionally says "the Gunnhildr Clan will continue honoring the legacy of its ancestors and its duty to the Anemo Archon: to protect Mondstadt, the land and all who inhabit it, forever."

I really like this because it conveniently ties into my past headcanon about Venti granting visions to the people of Mondstadt and having them be the ones to erect wind barriers and defend the city in his absence.

So in the Archon War I like to imagine that the Gunnhildr clan had a lot of people who were actually granted visions and were basically in charge of protecting it from those who would attempt to ambush them.

Mondstadt essentially became known for this- the fact that the mortals within it were strong enough to fend off the force of a god without support from their own.

but regardless, Gunnhildr, as she had before, served as a priestess to Barbatos, the closest thing that Mondstadt had to a ruler, and yet she only took charge of prayer and protection.... i hate to just- equate them to their descendants- but to an extent- her role was kind of like a merge between Jean and Barbara- Except with a whole lot less structure.... i really dont want their characters to just be carbon copies of the descendants but- c'mon, the comparison was right there.

anyways besties- back to Venti so i can tie them in

The Archon War was one of the worst times for Venti in his entire life thus far. And the time immediately after Decarbian's fall, while Gunnhildr and the Ragnvindir were still alive, was the key period of time in which things could have gone very differently.

Venti is the god of freedom. That's a reoccurring theme and I think I've made that abundantly clear. But during this time, Venti was anything but free.

I've mentioned before how he would stay far from the city of Mondstadt so the shockwave of his death wouldn't reach him, should he fall.... well- Venti is new to a lot of things- godhood- humanity- war- freedom- and at this point he was trying hard to figure out how to be Mondstadt's god without becoming Decarabian, and while still being able to survive, and make sure they survived, and see the world for his friend, and carry on his friends legacy.

And this is a lot of stuff for what was once a carefree elemental being, and there were certain things that had to be done for this to happen. He couldn't just stay in Mondstadt, or he would grow weak and his people would be vulnerable to attack, but he couldn't abandon it, because despite being able to fend for themselves, there's always hat just in case. He couldn't stay in any one place outside of Mondstadt for very long or he'd be found and killed. He knew in order for Mondstadt to survive he would have to take an active role in the war, strengthen himself so he could defend Mondstadt, and thats exactly what he did.

He started by going after the less powerful gods, ones he had a chance at beating with the power he got from the Gunnhildr clan and the rest of Mond, and by wiping them out, he would grow stronger, so he kept it up- working his way up the metaphorical ladder.

but he couldn't let anyone near him either, because he knew just what would happen if he was attacked then. Were it not for Gunnhildr's prayer, the early years of the Archon War would have been without contest the loneliest time of his life, and there would be nothing he could do about it, bound by survival and his attachment to the legacy of his friend, constantly fearing for his life and going against his very nature as the god of freedom. Frankly thrust into that circumstance that early on, and having to face it alone, it's likely that Venti would have caved under the pressure and dropped his attachment to either his survival, or to his friends legacy... or just something entirely worse(isolation messes with brains) so I'm attributing the fact that he didn't do that to Gunnhildr's companionship, speaking to him and guiding him through it as he had guided her through the blizzard some time ago.

I also like to think that she's responsible for founding at least a number of the different celebrations that still happen in Mondstadt even now.

Ugh supportive warrior priestess- we stan

anyway meanwhile! we got the Ragnvindir

He hears about Venti taking part in the Archon war during his wanderings and returns to Mondstadt to check in, wary of what he might find.

Venti, who hadn't seen him since the rebellion, is elated to say the least and they do a bit of catching up because they need it

and then the conversation turns more serious, and the Ragnvindir brings up a third thing that Venti needs to hold onto- his humanity.

See, in the early years, just desperate to get a foothold on the world, Venti's first number of targets were just indiscriminately going after those he knew to be weaker than him, and the Ragnvindir points this out, saying that while it's not necessarily bad, if he keeps doing it, it won't be long until he causes his and, by extent, Mondstadt's legacy to be tainted by a reputation for slaughter, no better than any of the other bloodthirsty gods that frequented the war's fields. "Think of what the bard would do, we were both close enough to do that much"

And Venti becomes yet more caged, but recognizes that he's right, and this is another turning point, that in the coming years would keep Venti from losing himself.

also- Gunnhildr, Venti having told her about the Ragnvindir's concerns that he now shared, probably organized some kind of event (not unlike the right of part, but also, yes unlike it) that was deliberately intended and designs to serve as an excuse that Venti could chose to take to visit Mondstadt, something she know he desperately wanted to do, but wouldn't allow himself for fear of putting them in danger. But if she made it an official celebration, then it would give Venti the opportunity to visit his people again, under the guise of it being a responsibility, not having to deal with the moral implications of doing so at a time when he was already dealing with enough of those already.

Also on his travels, the Ragnvindir probably started and spread a number of rumors that could end up working in Venti's favor, not that anyone ever knew it was him of course.

basically Gunnhildr protected the people of Mondstadt and did all she could to keep everyone in as high spirits as possible, Venti included.

And as for the Ragnvindir, he took a more realistic approach, traveling and getting venti followers in far places, spreading false information about him, and just overall making sure that Venti didn't do things he'd regret.

And when they died, Venti would carry their legacy with him as well, not losing his humanity to the tide of war as he very nearly had(though he still often came close), and trying to spreading high spirits where ever he could without fail.

#genshin impact #genshin venti #genshin impact headcanons #genshin theory #genshin headcanons #archon war era venti #genshin barbatos #genshin decarabian #nameless bard #genshin ragnvindir #genshin gunnhildr #genshin lore #genshin spoilers #spoilers #angst #venti angst #archon war #old mondstadt

[yelena-bellova]

Don’t Be Afraid: Poe Dameron x Solo!Reader - Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty: Party on Pasaana

Plot: Poe, Y/n, Finn, Rey and the rest of the gang journey to Pasaana to try and find the Wayfinder.

Series Masterlist

Warnings: none really

Word Count: 6.8k

A/N: I’M BACK! This is by no means my best or favorite chapter but it moves the story along and boy, is there a lot coming...Hopefully you’ve stuck around this long and if not, I’m not offended. Hope you enjoy!

----

Despite the fact that I’d spent my day fixing the Falcon, me and Chewie still ran every diagnostic possible on it before even thinking about taking her up. She was too temperamental to be treated any differently.

“You know I love flying with you, but don’t feel like you’re obligated to come with, Chew,” I said, closing up the last panel on the underside of the ship, “This one isn’t going to be a simple supply run.”

Chewie groaned in protest at my offer to let him stay on base, reminding me of the promise he’d made to Dad. That he’d protect me and he didn’t intend to stop doing that anytime soon.

I conceded to the Wookiee and emerged from underneath the Falcon. I found Rey finishing her repairs as Poe stood nearby, patting her on the arm, “We’re going with you. Chewie, you get that compressor fixed?” “No, I did,” I answered, dusting off my hands on my pants. The two of us still hadn’t spoken since our fight earlier in the day. “What do you mean you’re coming with us?” Poe separated from Rey, revealing Finn and the droids behind him, and led me to the side of the Falcon. He kept space between us, probably because he didn’t know where we stood after our fight.

“Do you honestly think we’d let you guys take this on by yourselves?” he asked.  

“Poe,” I shook my head, “Rey and I don’t even know what we’re walking into, I don’t want to throw you guys in the line of danger.” “So it’s too dangerous for me to risk my life but not you?” he asked with raised brows, wedging me between a metaphorical rock and a hard place, “Y/n, we’re a team. If one of us goes, we all go.” I hung my head in frustration, these were the type of situations that I hated the most. I couldn’t protect everyone, that had been made clear, and I certainly couldn’t justify to Poe why it was okay for me to charge headfirst into a fight but not him. Though I’d try every time, even if it was bound to end in failure.

“Fine,” I relented, shrugging and letting my hands fall against my legs, “But I’m flying us there.”

“Understood,” Poe agreed, pulling a corner of his lip up in an almost smile, “I am sorry about today, y’know…It was stupid of me not to think about how much the Falcon means to you.” “Me too,” I sighed, remembering all the harsh words we had flung at one another in contrast to the white flags me were now waving. This wasn’t the first makeup we’d had lately. Not by a long shot. Poe and I had been fighting more than usual, tensions were high with all that was going on and our relationship wasn’t escaping un-scorched. There was never any doubt as to whether or not we still loved each other, but we needed to find better ways of dealing with our stress rather than taking it out on each other. “Chewie told me there was only one escape route and you took it. You guys coming back alive is more important than anything else.”

Where there should have been a kiss or intertwined fingers, there was only silence and our best attempts to smile. There was so much lying underneath the surface that we didn’t ever have time to deal with.

“I wish you’d tell me.” I tried my hardest not to look phased, “Tell you what?” Poe swallowed as he stared into my eyes, “Whatever it is you’re keeping from me.” Every hair on my body stood to attention and fear shot through my veins. I knew he’d become suspicious of me but we hadn’t addressed it out loud before. Once the words of distrust hit the air, it became a true issue. The bottom line of it all was if Poe knew I had been in contact with Ren, he would never trust me with anything ever again.

My tongue peeked out to wet my lips as I nervously shifted my weight to my other foot, “I need you to trust me that what I’m doing, I’m doing for the good of the Resistance.” “We don’t keep secrets from each other, Y/n,” he shook his head and placed his hands on his hips, “That’s not us.” “You wouldn’t understand it, it’s Jedi stuff.” He bit his lip and nodded sarcastically, “Oh, so because I’m not a Jedi, my little average brain couldn’t possibly understand whatever problem you’ve got? Thanks for clearing that up.” “Poe,” I took a step and reached out to grab his forearm, “I didn’t mean it like that. Just please trust me. Everything I do, I do it to keep us safe.” I watched the emotions flicker in his eyes, changing from confusion to anger to desperation to hurt. The thought of confessing to him came through my mind at least ten times a day, but it wasn’t possible. Selfishly, I didn’t want to watch him learn of my betrayal. He would never look at me the same way and I wasn’t ready to lose that.

“I trust you more than anyone,” he finally said, stiffening his voice to hide his emotions, “I just wish you felt the same way about me.” He shrugged out of my hand’s hold and made his way up the ship’s ramp. I chewed on my bottom lip and leaned my forehead against one of the Falcon’s legs. There was nobody on any planet in any galaxy who I trusted more than Poe. He was the best thing that had ever happened to me and the fact that he was beginning to doubt my trust in him was a sucker punch. This time he wasn’t at fault, he only wanted to help me shoulder the burden. But there was nothing he could do to aid in the mental torture I was inflicting on myself.

I turned on my heels to go find my mother but froze at the sight of her and Rey locked in an embrace. I could sense the sadness in Rey that came with leaving her, the only mother figure she could remember having. Watching as she turned away, clipping Uncle Luke’s lightsaber to her belt, I took my cue to say my farewell.

“We’ll check in when we can, if we can,” I stated, partially as a commander but also a daughter to her worried mom, “Who knows, maybe we’ll be back in time for dinner.” A lame attempt at humor, yes, but there was nothing I wouldn’t do to try and make her smile in the most concerning of hours. “Look out for each other, don’t take too many risks,” she instructed, taking my hand in hers, “And come back in one piece.” There was some feeling in the air that I couldn’t put a name to, but it was there nonetheless. I never liked leaving Mom but with the stakes as high as they were, I felt a new sense of dread. I wasn’t immune to fear of losing my life and the reality of something happening to me and leaving her on her own caused a new urgency inside me to come back alive.

“I love you,” I whispered, squeezing her hands tight as tears began to fill my eyes, “So much.” “My darling,” I could hear the emotion in her voice that she was pushing down, “You are the greatest love I could have ever asked for.”

There wasn’t much more that could be said as I bent down to hug her, there was so much meaning inside our few words. We’d survived for a year as a family of two, something we were never meant to do, but we’d somehow done it. Mom’s health had begun to worsen with her age, but the incident on the Raddus had forced what was natural to happen prematurely. She got tired quicker, she required a cane sometimes and needed my help more often, though she always tried to avoid asking. I didn’t think it possible but we’d somehow grown closer in the last year, which made it all the more important that the mission go right and I return safely.

She whispered against my ear, “May the force be with you.” I pulled back with a watery smile, “We’re gonna need it.” With a kiss to her cheek, I forced myself to head back to the ship with a deep pain in my chest. It felt like I was tied to both the Falcon and Mom, the more distance I put between her and I, the more I began to hurt. It lit yet another flame of determination inside me to come back victorious.

Rey had waited for me outside the Falcon, attempting to act like she hadn’t witnessed the tender moment. The two of us shared a hopeful smile before we walked up the ramp together. When we arrived in the cockpit, it was apparent that it was going to be a tight fit. Rey moved to take the empty co-pilot’s chair with Chewie standing in the back, waiting to be called to action. Poe and I didn’t bother to make eye contact choosing instead to bury our pain for a later date. I gave Finn a good natured slap on the shoulder before sinking into the captain’s chair. I’d flown the Falcon hundreds of times by now and yet each time I took the controls, I felt like a child way out of their depth. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, there was no time to waste on fear. All that mattered was the mission.

“Next stop,” I narrated as I readied myself to lift the ship off the ground, “Pasaana…” ————

“You sure this is it?” Poe asked from the front of our group.

“I followed the coordinates perfectly,” I panted, already missing the jungle heat as opposed to Pasaana’s dry kind, “Right, 3PO?”

“Mistress Y/n is correct, these are the exact coordinates that Master Luke left behind.” We rounded the bend of the hill we’d climbed to find the least likely scenario on a planet we’d thought remote; a party.

“What is this?”

“The Aki-Aki Festival of the Ancestors,” 3PO explained, “This celebration occurs only once every 42 years.” “Well, that’s lucky,” Finn commented from beside me.

“Lucky indeed, this festival is known for both its colorful kites and its delectable sweets.” Under normal circumstances, I have had all the patience in the world with the droid I’d spent my whole life around. But now, overlooking the obstacle that would make it harder to find the Wayfinder and ultimately save the galaxy, I joined my friends in staring him down. “3PO, read the room.” “Let’s get down there,” Poe directed with a thumb tucked into his holster, “This is gonna take way longer than it should.” Having spent the better part of my life traveling, I loved getting to immerse myself in different planet’s cultures. It was one of the reasons my diplomatic skills were so highly tuned, I knew how to connect with all different types of people. So there was a small part of me, though stressed, that made a note to take in the sounds of the Aki-Aki’s chants and the array of colors in the crowd. I wasn’t the only one interested in the details either…

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” a wide eyed Rey commented as Finn and Poe passed us by.

“I’ve never seen so few Wayfinders,” Finn retorted.

“Take in what you can, we won’t be back for another 42 years,” I bumped Rey with my hip before following our group.

“There’s always random First Order patrols in crowds like these, so, keep your heads down,” Poe turned to look back at us, zeroing in on the only one tall enough to stick out, “Chewie. Let’s split up, see what the locals know.”

Rey was too taken by her surroundings to fully register what Poe was saying and Finn had gone with my boyfriend, leaving me to follow along with them. As soon as I did, Poe turned to me, “What are you doing?” “…Coming with you?” “We’ve gotta cover as much ground as possible,” he gestured over towards a grouping of tents, “Try talking to some of the traders, see if they know anything.” Thinning my eyes at him in shock that we were on a mission and Poe didn’t want me with him, I decided that now wasn’t the time to fight back. “Fine, Bee,” I called to my boyfriend’s droid hovering near Rey, “You’re with me.” The two of us made our way through a couple vendor’s booths, unsuccessful in getting any information about the location of the Wayfinder. I didn’t even have to do much talking with them, my senses could tell me whether or not my question brought up any memories. Which was good for me because I wasn’t in the mood to do a lot of chit chatting. Bee must have picked up on my silent frustration because he nudged me in my calf, urging me to talk. “He could have said it about ten other ways,” I vented, “But instead he had to make it sound like I was doing something wrong by going with them.” You know how he can be when he’s stressed. “I’m stressed too,” I cried, gesturing to my chest, “And maybe I wanted to go with him because I feel a little less worried when I’m with him. It’s never mattered what’s going on, we’ve always partnered together on missions. Clearly he doesn’t need me this time.” Didn’t you two have a fight before we left? Do you think it has something to do with that? I sighed defeatedly, “Probably…Or the fight we had earlier today, or the one we had just before he left a few days ago…” There was no shortage of examples I could have given as to why Poe didn’t want to be around me. “Things aren’t great between us right now.”

Maybe you should talk to him about it.

“Not right now, Bee. There’s bigger things at hand then Poe and I fighting. Nobody here knows anything, let’s go find the others.” When we made it back, Finn and Poe were engrossed in a conversation with an Aki-Aki. He turned his focus to me, “Got anything?” “I’d probably be a little more enthusiastic if I did, Dameron,” I remarked, taking a spot across from him instead of next to.

He looked between me and Finn, who was trying to remain focused on the Aki-Aki in question, “Whoa, what’s going on?”

The saddest part of why I was angry was the heart of the matter, Poe and I weren’t functioning like the inseparable couple we’d been for the last year. We were functioning like soldiers, ones who bickered at any chance we were given. And while I wanted nothing more than to talk to him about how I felt and ask him when things had gotten like this, not even love could come before war. I looked up at him, the frustration and hurt clearly painted clearly across my face, “Nothing that matters right now, I’m gonna go question some others but don’t worry, I’ll do it by myself.”

Just as Poe was opening his mouth to reply and I was ready to turn away, Rey came running in our direction. “We have to go. Back to the Falcon, now,” she ordered.

“Why?” Finn asked. “It’s Ren.”

Despite the anxiety running through my veins, I took a contradictory step forward. “He’s here?”

“He’s on his way,” Rey answered, her eyes wide and locked with mine.

“Then let’s get the hell out of here,” Poe began tracing our path back to the Falcon with his eyes, “It’s back this way.”

We ran through the festival with our heads on a swivel, until Poe shot his arm out as a barrier when we came face to face with a stormtrooper. “Freeze! Hold it right there. I’ve located the Resistance fugitives, all units report-“ A dart whizzed past us and landed perfectly in the trooper’s eye. We turned to see a figure holding a crossbow standing behind one of the tents, dressed in robes and his face covered with a helmet. “Follow me.”

With no other options in sight, we trusted in our mysterious savior and followed him. We climbed into his vehicle slowly rolling through the festival. “Leia sent me a transmission,” his modulated voice said before speaking in an alien language to the driver. “Okay, how’d you find us?” Finn asked what we were all thinking. The man reached to take his helmet off and I was greeted by a face I hadn’t seen in years. He grinned, “Wookiees stand out in a crowd.” “Lando!”

Chewie moaned his excitement at seeing his old friend and shoved his way past us all to hug him. “It’s good to see you too, old buddy,” he laughed before turning to me, “Look at you, the princess is all grown up.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and breathed for the first time all day, “I can’t believe you’re here.” “This is General Lando Calrissian,” 3PO said from behind us.

“We know who he is, 3PO,” Rey gently admonished.

“It is an honor, General,” Finn said, a big smile gracing his face. “General Calrissian,” Poe spoke up, “We’re looking for Exegol.”

Lando looked between our crew before centering on me, “Of course she’d send you.” I scrunched up my nose and tilted my head, “I didn’t give her much of a choice.” He shook his head with laughter, “You’re her daughter alright…” he flicked his wristlet on and a holo of a Wayfinder appeared, “Only two were made.” “A Sith Wayfinder,” Rey said, “Luke Skywalker came here to find one.” “I know,” Lando chuckled, “I was with him, Luke and I were tailing an old Jedi hunter,” he changed the image on his holo to a creature, “Ochi of Bestoon. He was carrying a clue that could lead to a Wayfinder. We followed his ship halfway across the galaxy here. When we got to his ship, it was abandoned. No clue, no Wayfinder.” “Is the ship still here?” I asked.

“It’s out in the desert where he left it.” “We need to get there, search it again,” Rey suggested.

My posture straightened as the sound of ship engines filled my ears. I peered out a window to see a small bunch of First Order ships flying towards the festival grounds.

“I got a bad feeling about this,” Lando muttered before turning to us, “Ochi’s ship is out past Lurch Canyon. Go!” “Thank you, General,” Poe said before beginning to help each of us out of the crawler.

Chewie moaned his happiness at seeing Lando again, something he reciprocated. Before taking Poe’s extended hand, I quickly embraced my non-biological uncle. “We’re on Ajan Kloss, come join us. We need pilots.” “My flying days are long gone,” he gently declined before taking my hands into his, “But do me a favor, give your mother my love.”

“I will, as long as you consider coming,” I said before kissing his cheek and allowing Poe to help me out. My heart ached to walk away from another member of my family…

“Can’t believe I never put it together that you’re a princess.” Poe said from beside me as we sprinted through the desert. I was hoping no one had noticed Lando’s long standing nickname for me.

“Of a planet that ceased to exist long before I was born,” I panted, “I don’t think that counts for much.” “Doesn’t matter, I’m still going to call you Your Highness,” Finn called from ahead. “There,” Poe pointed, “Those speeders,” he tossed his gloves off, slid beneath the vehicles and began hot-wiring the vehicles. The yelling of a group of Aki-Aki, presumably the owners of the speeders, made him hurry through his work. “We gotta go!”

Finn, Poe and 3PO hopped into one while Rey, Bee, Chewie and I crowded into the other. I didn’t have time to look back as I began steering but I could sense that Poe was surprised that I didn’t come with him. The urge to turn around and yell at him for the exact same thing that had happened moments before was strong, but once again not our highest priority. What was important was the stormtroopers tailing us. Rey took over on offense while I piloted us, it wasn’t until her cry of my name that I turned around. The troopers were flying through the air using jetpacks, something none of us had ever seen. 

“I can’t get a clear shot!” Rey yelled.

“Switch with me!” 

She continued firing her blaster as she moved to the front of the speeder where I let her take the wheel. I ducked down next to Bee and calculated what angle I needed them to be at for my plan to work.

I’ve got an idea. “Bee, not now,” I shouted over the engine, turning back to the problem at hand. Ignoring my ignoring him, Bee began tapping away at a stray canister in front of us until it shot up into the air. A yellow explosion burst from the canister in front of the stormtroopers. When one emerged from the cloud, his disoriented driving sent him off a ramp like cluster of rocks. Rey turned and took a perfect shot, the trooper’s speeder exploding in the air.

“Never underestimate a droid,” she grinned.

“He’s doing my work for me!” I replied, standing back up and nudging Bee, “Now where’s Poe and Finn?” “Y/n, look,” I joined Rey at the front of the speeder, “Ochi’s ship.”

Parked atop a large structure of rocks was a modest craft that hopefully contained the answers we needed. 

Rey’s face turned serious, “I’ve seen that ship before.”

“Y/n! Rey!” 

I whipped around to see Poe and Finn’s speeder flying up behind us, “You get all of them?”

As I inhaled to answer triumphantly, the speeder was thrown forward and us with it. We flew through the air before landing roughly in a pile of dark sand, the screams of the rest of our group following directly after. I rolled over with a groan and looked up to see one last trooper whizzing through the air. Finally getting to go through with my original plan, I got to my knees and raised one of my hands, force pushing him into one of the cliffs.

“So they fly now,” I exhaled, falling back on my heels. As soon as my full weight landed in the sand, it began collapsing into itself.

“What the hell is this?” Poe exclaimed, I looked over to see the same sensation happening to him.

“Sinking field,” Rey cried, “Try to grab something!”

I struggled against the pull of the field to try and reach a piece of our smoking speeder, but my torso was already below the surface making it nearly impossible. I had landed somewhat near Poe and tried to wriggle my way to where he was, him already doing the same. I stretched my arm out as far as it could and barely brushed his fingers when his head dipped down below the surface. “Y/n!” he called out just as I lost sight of him. “No!” I yelled, throwing my arm into the pit and fishing around to try and grab him. “Rey, Y/n,” Finn said frantically, “I never told you tha-“ he disappeared into the black sand, lost to us. “What? Finn!” Rey called, it was the last thing I heard below my body was pulled under fully. 

What followed was pure darkness, I kept my eyes squeezed shut as to not get anything in my eyes. In a flash of panic, I flailed about and tried to swim upwards back to the surface for a breath of air. All I could do was struggle and pray that I met the bottom, I didn’t want to die in a pit of sand. After a few seconds, I crashed through something hard and my back hit open air. I fell to the ground with a groan, Bee’s beeps and squeals a homing beacon in the dark. “Poe,” I sat up, feeling around the dimly lit cave for him, “Poe…” “I’m here,” he replied, I could barely make out his silhouette as he crawled on his knees to me. His gloved hand wrapped around my arm, making his close presence known, “Are you okay?” In a rare moment of tenderness, something we hadn’t felt in a long time, I reached up and laced my hand through his curls bringing his forehead down to meet mine. “Where’s everybody else?” Poe pulled me to my feet and unsheathed his flashlight, “Rey! Finn!” 

“You didn’t say my name, sir, but I’m alright,” 3PO said, coming in from the other side of the cave.

The sand seeping out of the ceiling of the cave followed by loud grunts sent Poe and I bolting towards it just in time for him to catch Rey and ease her down to the ground. “You all right?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she mumbled, “Where’s Finn?” “Where’s Chewie?” I asked, rotating my head rapidly to try and get a full scope of the cave. On cue, Chewie dropped harshly from the ceiling with a moan, I ran over to him and helped him sit up.

Finn climbed out of a hole behind us, “I’m good. What is this place?” He stumbled towards us, the four of us huddled together for a relieved reunion. 

Poe had one hand on Finn’s shoulder and one clutching my waist, he pressed a quick peck to my temple. “I thought we were goners,” he panted, I savored the feeling of being close to him even if it had taken thinking we were going to die to get there.

“Which way out?” Finn asked.

I squinted as I looked at our surroundings, “Can’t see a thing.” One step ahead of me, Rey unclipped her lightsaber from her belt and ignited it, lighting our path. Poe stepped forward as well, clicking his inferior flashlight on as if it would make a difference next to the luminous weapon. Shaking my head at my boyfriend, I ignited my own saber and followed Rey, “We need to hurry if Ren’s on his way. “So what was it?” Rey asked as Finn joined us.

“What?” he replied confusedly.

“What you were gonna tell Y/n and I?” A beat passed, “When?” “When you were sinking in the sand, you said ‘I never told you…’” Rey spelled it out for him.

He inched closer to the two of us and lowered his voice, “I’ll tell you later.” “You mean when Poe’s not here?” the man in question asked from behind us, staring Finn down as he squeezed between the three of us.

“Yeah,” Finn replied confidently.

“We’re gonna die in sand burrows and we’re all keeping secrets?” Poe deliberately turned his head to look at me when he hit the word ‘secrets,’ a wave of guilt washing over me. 

“I’ll tell you when you tell us about all that shifty stuff you do,” Finn fired back, referring to to hot-wiring of the speeders and no doubt something else he’d seen Poe do recently.

“I do not wanna know what made these tunnels,” Poe commented as he took the lead at the front of our group. 

Ever the helper, 3PO jumped in to give an answer. “Judging by the circumference of the tunnel walls…” Poe turned to the droid, “I said I do not wanna know. Not,” he realigned his focus ahead of us, spotting something in the shadows, “What’s that?” “Is that a speeder?” Finn asked. “An old one,” Rey answered as she got a closer look. “Wonder if it still runs,” I said, running a hand over the dusty vehicle, “We’re gonna need a way out of here.” “Perhaps we will find the driver,” 3PO said hopefully. I think they’d be dead by now.

“Yep, BB-8, I think dead too,” Poe responded to his droid’s astute observation.

“Oh, my,” 3PO pointed towards the symbol on the front of the speeder, “A hex charm.”

“What’s a hex charm?” I asked, shining my saber over the detail and getting a look at it myself.

“A common emblem of Sith loyalists,” 3PO answered. “The Sith…” I mumbled under my breath, running a finger over it and catching the dust in my hand.

“This was Ochi’s?” Finn asked. “Luke sensed it,” Rey stepped forward, “Ochi never left this place.” “And he ended up down here,” Finn continued the train of thought.

“He was headed for his ship,” Poe completed the sentence, “Same thing happened to us, happened to him.” I followed Rey who was hot on the scent of something, the two of us spotting the skeleton at the same time. “So how did Ochi get out?” I took a breath, “He didn’t.” The four of us moved as one to examine the carcass, mangled and broken into pieces but clearly bearing resemblance to a creature. “No he didn’t…” Finn muttered.

“Bones,” Poe said from beside me, turning away for a second to stifle a gag, “I don’t like bones.” “Bones? Never a good sign,” 3PO commented.

My eyes flitted over the scene while Rey searched deeper, spotting a bump in the sand with Bee and helping him to unearth it. She pulled out a unique carved dagger, I could sense the same thing upon seeing it that she could. “Horrible things…have happened with this,” she trembled. “The writing…” I crouched down next to her, running a finger over the weapon and trying to figure out what language the script was written in, “I don’t recognize it, 3PO?”

The loyal droid came forward and took the dagger from my outstretched palm. “The location of the Wayfinder has been inscribed upon this dagger,” he announced, “It’s the clue that Master Luke was looking for.” “And? What does it say?” I asked with a hopeful smile.

3PO turned to our group, “I am afraid I cannot tell you.” “20.3 fazillion languages and you can’t read that?” Poe asked in confusion.

“I have read it, sir, I know exactly where the wayfinder is,” the droid responded, “Unfortunately, it is written in the runic language of the Sith.” “And?” I asked, inklings of impatience seeping out of my voice.

“My programming forbids me from translating it.” “So you’re telling us the one time we need you to talk,” Poe shook his head, “You can’t?”

“Irony, sir,” the droid answered, backing up to face us head on, “I am mechanically incapable of speaking translations from Sith. I believe the rule was passed by the Senate of the Old Republic.” I wasn’t listening, none of us were listening as he went on, instead focusing on the large serpent that had appeared behind 3PO with a growing growl. The four of us took a startled step back and held out our various weapons. It let out a meaning roar followed by a loud hiss, alerting 3PO to its presence. “Serpent! Serpent! Serpent!” Surprisingly, Rey placed a hand on top of Poe’s blaster and lowered it as the serpent showed off its razor sharp teeth once again. Keeping her eye trained on the beast, she blindly handed her lightsaber out for Finn to take. “Rey…” he cautioned, gripping the weapon tight in his grip. I could sense what she was sensing as I watched her approach, the serpent was crying out in pain more than anything else

“I’m gonna blast it,” Poe said quietly, his blaster once again aimed at the snake.

“Don’t,” I whispered, contradicting my words as I kept my saber activated in my hand, ready to fight if necessary. Rey kneeled down next to the snake, her eyes still locked with it as she laid her hand over its body. It snarled at her but she didn’t flinch, shutting her eyes and doing what I suspected she would do. She healed whatever wound the serpent had, receiving a small non-threatening moan in thanks. It snaked away down another pathway of the cave, revealing an exit that lit the cave up with the sunlight of Pasaana.

Bee rolled forward to ask Rey what she had done as she rubbed her hand, “I just transferred a bit of life. Force energy from me to him. You would’ve done the same.” “Luckily, we won’t have that problem again,” I said as I deactivated my lightsaber and clipped it back onto my belt, helping Rey up after, “Nice job.” Our group climbed out of the hole and we got a good look at the rock structure that displayed Ochi’s ship we’d seen during our speeder chase. “Looks like we’ve got our ride,” Poe commented as we walked up the rocks.

“We cannot possibly fly in that old wreck,” 3PO interjected. 

“We gotta keep moving, find someone who can translate that dagger,” Poe replied, “Like a helpful droid.” “I suggest we return to the Millennium Falcon at once,” the droid said as forcefully as he was capable of being. “Troopers’ll be waiting at the Falcon,” I said, pausing my steps to try and shove aside the pain I felt at the thought of leaving my beloved ship behind, “We’ll find a way to get it back.”

Not more than two seconds after I spoke did each hair on my body stand up straight and a cold wave run through my body. I twisted to look out upon the miles of sand and rock, sensing the familiar presence of Ren yet not being able to see him. Rey and I shared a look, concern mixed with understanding that someone had to deal with it. I could feel that it was her that needed to confront him, I wasn’t the only one that shared a complicated history with the Supreme Leader. I nodded understandingly to her, the two of us not needing to speak a single word.

“What is it?” Finn asked, approaching the two of us. “I’ll be right behind you,” she said, handing Finn her staff and bag, “It’s okay.”

She passed by both of us, heading back down the way we’d come to go deal with our problem. “Let’s go,” I directed, turning back towards our new ride, “She’s got this.” The rest of us climbed the rest of the rocks until we hit Ochi’s ship, opening the ramp and heading into the heart of it. “Let’s see what we’ve got,” Poe said, switching on the flickering lights, “Let’s get those converters fired up.”

Finn, Poe and I marched to the cockpit, swiping at dusty cobwebs that adorned the ship. Poe flipped open the shutters and started her up proudly while Finn and I were more focused on looking out the windows for Rey. “Where is she?” he asked me.

Poe interrupted before I could form an answer, “Guys, help me out over here.” “Chewie, tell Rey we gotta go,” Finn ordered the Wookiee, who looked to me for confirmation. I gave a short nod and ran off the assist Poe in getting the ship up and running.

“What is she doing?” he grumbled as he sat down in the captain’s chair. “She’s helping us out,” I sat down in the seat next to him, “Trust me.” “That’s all I get?” he asked annoyedly as he flipped various switches, “Another Jedi thing I wouldn’t understand?”

“Are we really doing this right now?” I snapped, pressing a few buttons to help prep the ship.

“We wouldn’t have to if you would just tell me what’s going on,” Poe shot back, his voice raising to match mine. “It’s Ren,” Finn interrupted our fight, anxiety creeping into his tone. He bolted out of the cockpit leaving Poe and I to ourselves. “Finn, wait!” I yelled, taking off after him before he tried to intervene. I caught up to him outside of the ship, “Finn, you’ve gotta let her do th-“ My feet stopped as I spotted what Finn saw as well, Chewie was being loaded into a First order transport along with the dagger. Finn and I dropped to the rocks, crouching down and watching the scene unfold as the Wookiee pushed forward into the ship, hunched over and handcuffed. My natural instinct was to run and free him, but I knew that spelled too much potential danger for us all. And with Finn’s hand tightly gripping my arm, there was no way he’d let me go. It was one of the worst tortures I had to endure.

“We need to find a way to stop the ship,” I said quietly through my unshed tears, “If Poe could get that thing in the air…” “If we fire, the whole thing goes down,” Finn ended the idea as soon as it had been born.

I buried my face in my hands and rubbed furiously, my mind spinning with adrenaline and worry. The sounds on an approaching ship caught my attention, I rose to my feet and followed the noise across the rocks. Yards away from us stood Rey, lightsaber ignited with her back turned to the ship that undoubtably belonged to Ren. She took a running start as the craft advanced toward her and what happened next even I could hardly believe as I watched it. Rey flipped up in the air, letting her arm hang down and slicing off one of the ship’s wings. While she landed gracefully in a cloud of dust, Ren’s ship split violently until it was just the round cockpit rolling across the field of sand before exploding against one of the rocks. My breath caught as the flames engulfed what was left of his ship, I searched for any life left in the wreckage, sensing that he wasn’t dead yet. With my focus momentarily on Ren, I hadn’t noticed Finn had climbed down the rocks and was calling out for Rey.

“They got Chewie! They got him!” he pointed to the skies, I looked up to see the transport containing him had taken off.

“No,” I mumbled to myself, sticking my hand out to stop the ship using the Force. Rey had the same idea and aided me in my efforts. At that moment, a familiar cloaked figure emerged from the flaming wreckage, slowly making his way towards us. I could feel his stony, emotionless stare even with the great gap between us. Even so, I kept my focus on trying to pull the ship out of the sky. Ren extended his hand as well, creating resistance for Rey and I that only made us try harder. The three of us stood locked in our stances, throwing the ship from side to side as we battled for the life inside. 

Then suddenly, the fight was over. From Rey’s outstretched hand came thick strands of lightning that wrapped around the ship. It took mere seconds until an explosion ripped the ship apart.

“Chewie!” Rey shrieked in horror. “No!” Finn cried.

I dropped to my knees in shock, watching as the wreckage floated to the ground, Chewie buried somewhere inside. One loud guttural sob escaped my lips and I clutched my stomach, crying out for the loss of another part of my family. 

“Guys!” Poe’s voice broke through my grief, “We gotta go! They’re coming!”

Through my tears, I looked above to see Poe standing above me next to the ship and heard the noise of incoming fighters. I had to summon the strength to rise to my feet, my eyes drifting back to Chewie’s fiery grave one last time. “I’m sorry,” I whispered, my voice choked with emotion. I spared a final look to Ren, who I could sense was just as shocked at what had happened as I was. I sensed something in him, the same thing I had sensed when Mom had been thrown out of the Raddus. Sorrow. I wished I could have said I cared, but all I felt towards him was anger. He had contributed to Chewie’s death.

As Rey and Finn approached, I snapped back into action and climbed the rocks, Poe helping me and pulling me up the final foot. We bolted for the ship, racing to the cockpit and taking our assigned seats. He had gotten the thing in flying shape and as soon as we had everybody on board, Poe lifted it off the ground and shot us into the sky and away from the fighters. It was only when I knew he could manage without me that I slipped out of my chair and out of the cockpit.

A distraught Rey was waiting in the hold for me, she stood as I entered, “Y/n, I’m so-“ I breezed past her and Finn, I ignored the droids, I didn’t even think to go to Poe for comfort. Instead, I locked myself in the refresher and let my tears freely fall, mourning the loss of my life long friend.

----

A/N: I promise the next chapter will have little more going on...Let me know what you thought or if you’d like to be tagged ☺️

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[sevenkittensinatrenchcoat]

Korean Character Bios

I posted before about some characters bios from the 2008 South Korea Tour. I tried to translate the bios for the named swings with mixed results.

Well, it turns out that I’d completely failed to notice that Google Translate actually has a Korean keyboard that let me type more letters than other online keyboards did, and I was able to get some slightly better translations this time. Also, I did all of them. I’ve Google Translated all the character bios.

So, here they are:

Seductive Cat / Grizabella

She was a member of the Jellicles as a seductive, pure, curious cat, but she left the Jellicle society to experience a bigger and wider world. Now, marginalized for her shabby appearance, she returns to the Jellicle society to become a Jellicle member again.

(Notes: It appears that the word “seductive” is used to mean “glamorous”.)

Rebellious Cat / Rum Tum Tugger

A member of the Jellicles, he’s a cat who does only what he wants to do and has a clear sense of self. He likes to receive attention and is charismatic just by being himself, so he is the most popular with female cats.

Prophet Cat / Old Deuteronomy

As the eldest ancestral cat of the Jellicles, he is intelligent, wise, respected, and loved. Every year at the Jellicle Ball, a cat is selected and sent to the Heaviside Layer to become a new Jellicle cat.

(Notes: “ball” was actually “festival”, but I shifted terminology to match. Also, is Old D the ancestor of all Jellicles?)

Leader Cat / Munkustrap

A young and responsible leader cat who protects and takes care of the Jellicle Tribe. the Jellicle Cats trust and follow him as a leader.

Theatre Cat / Gus

After Old Deuteronomy, he is the oldest and has been a Jellicle member for many years. He was a famous actor when he was young, but now he is suffering from a serious illness.

Wealthy Cat / Bustopher Jones: 

Although not a member of the Jellicles, he is an aristocratic cat who is always welcomed. In his spare time, he likes to play golf and enjoy lavish meals.

(Notes: So Bustopher isn’t a Jellicle? I’m still not sure what defines a Jellicle in this version.)

Kind Cat / Jellylorum: 

She is a middle-aged, kind-hearted cat who always takes care of old Gus and the kittens.

Thief Cat Couple / Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer: 

A playful and clever couple of thief cats who are always causing trouble together.

(Notes: The word for “thief” sometimes translated as “stray” but only when applied to the word “cat”, so I’m guessing the Korean term for “stray cat” might be “thief cat”. But, Jerrie and Teazer are clearly not strays in their number’s lyrics, so I used the translation that applied to them. Also, the word “couple” translated as “pair” sometimes, so this isn’t confirming a romantic pairing, but they could’ve been playing it that way anyway, for all I know, so take that how you will.)

Train Cat / Skimbleshanks: 

As a train conductor, he is an orderly cat who takes on all the responsibilities of the train. An uncle to all cats, kittens love to hear his stories as a storyteller.

Magician Cat / Mr. Mistoffelees: 

The best magician, though he can’t speak. He can even make things disappear. As a great magician, he rescues the kidnapped Old Deuteronomy.

(Notes: “Magician” can also translate as “wizard” or “sorcerer”. This Misto is mute, which makes sense for a production from this region and era. Outside of Japan, east Asian productions are usually based on Australian ones, which is where the named swings come from. Although the first Australian productions had Misto sing, they later made him mute, only to switch back more recently. 2008 was during the mute era.)

Sensual Cat / Bombalurina: 

She is a very sensual and sexy cat, popular with male cats who pay attention to her sexual desires. As Demeter’s older sister, she always protects her.

(Notes: I think “older sister” might not be literal. She might just be a sort of “older sister figure”. It’s not clear.)

Sensitive Cat / Demeter: 

Because of Macavity, she is anxious and nervous about everything. She is also at risk of being kidnapped by Macavity. If she shows any signs of anxiety, it’s always a sign that Macavity is nearby.

(Notes: So, she’s always anxious, because of Macavity, but if she’s anxious, which is all the time, Macavity’s nearby. Is Macavity nearby all the time? This one is weird.)

Siamese Cat / Cassandra: 

Possesses a strange beauty. As the only hairless Siamese cat, she always behaves arrogantly.

(Notes: Despite the better keyboard, this one wouldn’t translate properly, so there’s some stuff missing. This is the general idea of what I think was being said. I wonder how having a Siamese cat in the cast affected Growltiger.)

Gumbie Cat / Jennyanydots: 

During the daytime, she sits all the time and seems lazy, but at night she’s actually a busy cat who educates bugs and mice.

White Cat / Victoria: 

She is the purest, most innocent cat. This Jellicle Ball is her first, but she presents a beautiful dance.

Philosophical Cat / Plato: 

A cat who doesn’t move much, so he looks lazy, but he reads a lot and is always careful with his actions.

(Notes: I thought this characterization was weird until I realized that he’s “philosophical” because he’s Plato. He’s literally named after a philosopher. Since Australia-based productions at this time where Broadway-based, Broadway inspirted Australia inspired South Korea, Plato is just Macavity’s double and doesn’t have much to really do, so I guess they decided to have a bit of fun with the character.)

Villain Cat / Macavity: 

The mob boss of the feline world. Kidnapped Old Deuteronomy as the villain who commits evil deeds.

Just Cat / Alonzo: 

A masculine cat who is always dignified and protects young cats, even in inconspicuous places. He rescues Demeter from Macavity. They spend their lives together.

(Notes: More Broadway-based stuff. It seems like Broadway-based Alonzos are the superheroes of the Cats world.)

Copy Cat / Pouncival: 

A boy who wants to be a man. He follows Skimble around.

(Notes: His title more literally means “mimicking cat”, but how could I not translate it this way? Anyway, here’s another translation that wouldn’t cooperate with me. The first sentence ended up something like “a young male cat who wants to be worn by an adult male cat”. I couldn’t get it to make sense, so I guessed at what it was supposed to mean. He is Skimble’s copycat at that’s adorable.)

Curious Cat / Sillabub: 

Victoria’s best friend, a curious, intelligent, and pure kitten. She helps Grizabella return to the Jellicles by singing ‘Memory’ together.

Twin Cats / Coricopat and Tantomile: 

Mysterious twin cats who are not yet adults, but are still mature and have excellent cognitive skills. They always move together and do the same things.

(Notes: The twins are kittens/junior cats in this version, apparently.)

Teenage Cat / Tumblebrutus: 

A teenage boy who wants to be a man. His actions take precedence over thoughts and words, and he gets a lot of guidance from Munkustrap, because he can’t read the room.

(Notes: Very much a Broadway characterization. His first sentence was nearly the same as Pouncival’s. “read the room” was more literally “interpret the atmosphere”, but I thought this sounded more natural. Also, Munkustrap Adopts Kittens With Poor Social Skills.)

And now, named swings:

Stubborn Cat / Victor: 

He is more stubborn than any other cat and has a temperamental personality.

Meditating Cat / Olivia: 

She is a deep thinker with a determined personality.

Gentleman Cat / Admetus: 

An internally strong, generous, and gentle cat with a masculine appearance.

(Notes: Admetus has a personality closer to your average Broadway-based Plato than Plato does.)

Loner Cat / Quaxo: 

He’s a solitary cat with a strong sense of pride and arrogance, so he doesn’t fit in well with those around him.

Busy Cat / Electra: 

She likes to be involved, so she’s always busy and distracted.

Bragging Cat / George: 

Has a tendency to show off what he has.

(Notes: This one, just like the last time, broke down completely. It ended up saying “He has a tendency to show off what he has, rather than what he has”.)

Attentive Cat / Jemima: 

She’s attentive in everything and always acts responsibly.

Emotional Cat / Etcetera: 

She’s a cat who fits in everywhere and has emotions that take precedence over her head.

Emotional!

That’s all of them.

#cats south korea #grizabella #rum tum tugger #old deuteronomy #munkustrap #cats gus #bustopher jones #jellylorum #mungojerrie #rumpleteazer #skimbleshanks #mr mistoffelees #bombalurina #cats demeter #cats cassandra #jennyanydots #cats victoria #cats plato #macavity #cats alonzo #pouncival #sillabub #coricopat #tantomile #tumblebrutus #cats victor #cats olivia #cats admetus #quaxo #cats electra

[oddluver]

I need a moment to collect my thoughts, theories, and headcanons about Time Traveler!Karl. This might be a long one. I’ll be referring to the characters and not the real content creators.

Currently, the characters in the present SMP have 3 lives canonically. The future descendants of our SMP characters have died only once. Is it safe to say that Dream and/or Karl have altered timelines so much that there might be a gap in generations to spawn with only 1 life rather than 3?

In the present SMP, Karl was killed by Technoblade during The Festival and canonically has 2 remaining lives (correct me if I’m wrong). Dream has stated, recently, that if he dies then everyone on the SMP dies a permanent death. This was said after Tommy took both of his lives and that Dream was the only person who knows how to resurrect a dead character.

If it’s possible that Dream does indeed have 3 lives, then this means that he will die at some point in the present SMP. Once he dies, the remaining characters and future descendants will be affected. Their next death would be their last or they spawn in only once.

In the future SMP, Ranboo’s descendant, Ranbob seems to worship and idolize Dream. The Lost City of Mizu is technically built as a shrine for the future descendants’ ancestors. Ranbob’s obsession to kill or trap anyone who enters the City of Mizu may be due to the influence of Dream.

Ranbob shares Ranboo’s characteristic trait of memory loss and aversion to water. In the present SMP, Ranboo is manipulated by Dream and forced to do things for Dream when he slips into his unconscious state. He is also part Enderman, in which Enderman are aversive to rain/water. Is it possible before Dream’s death in the present that he caused generational trauma in Ranboo’s bloodline that would lead Ranbob down his current path? Also, why is Ranbob living under the ocean? How did he get there and could he ever leave his watery prison?

If it’s the case that Dream has infinite canon lives, then his permanent death for everyone claim may be a bluff for further control of the SMP. To understand this, we would have to dive deeper about Time Traveler!Karl.

At what point Karl knew he could time travel, we don’t know. However, we can see some of his motivation. Karl never really had his own place on the SMP. Rutabagville was a flop, Party Island has its temporary uses, and El Rapids went through hell and back. Then, Gogtopia was built and simultaneously destroyed in a single day. Karl gained his own power to build, destroy, and become recognized by the other citizens (doesn’t this sound like someone familiar)?

The episodes may not be canonically correlated, but this is where I’d like to draw some points. We can agree that Gogtopia and the beach episode takes place in the present SMP. The present SMP is where our Karl spawns in after time travelling. However, taking a look at both past and future episodes, there is a dark relationship. In both instances, Karl could not prevent the deaths of those in that time period.

For the most part, Karl is an observer. In The Village, Karl was in the role of a god, who tried to save the citizens without giving too much away as the narrator or in this case as a time anomaly (someone who doesn’t belong in that time). In the future SMP, he was even more an observer by looking through the eyes of his descendant. Without having a physical body, unlike in the present SMP or in the past, Karl definitely had no chance of interfering.

Karl is motivated to fix the wrongs by time traveling. In every travel, Dream or his presence was there. Karl has met Cornelius face to face (whether this is Dream himself, his alternate self, or an ancestor is unknown). He also saw through Issac’s eyes of Ranbob’s Dream shrine (this would especially be problematic if Dream has infinite canon lives even in the future). During the beach episode, Dream immediately put his armor back on after it concluded. Despite not being in the present all the time, Karl does notice the subtle changes due to his actions and I bet Dream does too.

Dream has said that he wasn’t supposed to be in prison, initially. It was meant for someone who knows too much. Karl could very well be that possibility with him time traveling everywhere. No matter where Karl goes in time, he’s anchored down to the present SMP. With him anchored, how far will he let himself go to fix the mistakes?

Part 1/2. Sorry if this doesn’t make all the right sense. Comment your ideas/opinions about Time Traveler!Karl. I’d love to hear about them.

#dream smp #tales from the smp #karl jacobs #dreamwastaken #ranboo

[tchallasbabymama]

The Temple- Chapter 4

Hey y’all, here’s the 4th and final chapter of The Temple. I might come back and do an epilogue, what do y’all think?

Check out my masterlist HERE for more of my stories!

Taglist: @maddeningmayhem, @theblulife, @nahimjustfeelingit-writes, @quietstorm-73, @ladymac82

CW: smut

Word count: 3185

N’Jadaka was shaken from his thoughts when the vibration from the Dora Milaje’s vibranium staffs went through the boat and into the river. He danced with his family as the water swirled down the drainage system his ancestors built hundreds of years ago, and the falls dried up slowly as the party commenced. Shuri noticed his return to reality and grabbed him for a dance before he could disappear into his head again. The royal family moved in sync with the drums while everyone sang in honor of their new, soon-to-be-crowned prince.

Representatives from each tribe were invited to celebrate N’Jadaka’s crowning, and each boat held about a hundred tribe members. Unfortunately the falls weren’t big enough for all of Wakanda to get to see the event up close and personal, but just like Challenge Day it would be televised to the whole country. When he found out just how many eyes would be on him, N’Jadaka grew nervous. He didn’t know how to be in the public eye as anything other than the monster he once was, but the whole country seemed to believe in him. More importantly, his family believed in him, and now he was finally becoming what he was always supposed to be. He would officially be Prince N’Jadaka, Son of Prince N’Jobu.

N’Jadaka came out of his shell the more he danced with his family, but his nerves grew again as the boats neared the edge and hovered their way down the falls, dropping the tribes off at their respective sections. He knew it was only a matter of minutes, now. 

Once their boat touched down, N’Jadaka and the royal family disembarked and took their places front and center. Nakia and T’Challa stepped forward and addressed the crowd. N’Jadaka tried his best to listen, but his heart was beating so loud he couldn't hear anything else. When Nakia reached out her hand to bring him up with them, he could barely move, prompting Ramonda to give him a little nudge. He quickly snapped out of it and stepped forward, the crowd cheering then quieting again.

There he stood, wearing the same traditional shorts as T’Challa, with the Jaguar habit around his neck, his father’s ring on his finger, gold slugs in his teeth, new gold bracelet, and gold earrings in his ears with his hair braided back. He didn’t know it at the time, but he looked just like his father in that moment. 

Ramonda and Shuri made their way to stand with them as a woman in purple entered with a wooden box. 

“N’Jadaka,” the king turned to face him, tears in his eyes. “It has been a long journey for you, umzala, but welcome home.”

The woman then opened the box and N’Jadaka was presented with his crown. It was similar to Shuri’s with the jaguar mandible, but with black and gold beading and two golden canine teeth. Ramonda lifted the crown from the beautifully crafted Jabari wood box and cried tears of happiness as she placed it on her nephew’s head. 

“It was your father’s,” Ramonda said, cupping his face in her hands.

“Come on, Auntie. You’re gonna make me cry,” N’Jadaka said, tears already running down his face.

“The teeth were my idea,” Shuri added as he pulled them both in for a hug.

The two of them stepped back after making sure his crown was secure on his head before the entire royal family turned to face the crowd, saluting them in unison and shouting, “Wakanda forever!”

He looked up at the crowd as they echoed the salute and he was able to make out tears on the faces of the people he knew. His therapist Ife had come, as had several of the other Ithemba patients from his time there. M’Baku and Okoye looked on with approval, both too proud to shed a single tear. He saw a few of Shuri’s lab assistants who had been there when he woke up and saw him at his worst staring at him with pride. He even saw the little old lady from the market and he was glad he made the choice to wear her bracelet today. Finally, his eyes landed on a group of people in all white towards the top of the falls before landing on the one person he really wanted to see.

Aisha smiled at him and blew him a kiss from afar, and it took everything in him to not reach out and catch it. T’Challa noticed his goofy smile and followed his gaze up the falls.

“Is that Aisha?” he asked, already knowing the answer.

“Mhm, that’s her,” he said dreamily.

T’Challa shook him out of his stupor.

“Come, cousin, you will see her later. You only have one crowning! Well, I guess you have had two, but you know what I-”

“Honey, stop rambling, lets go,” Nakia pulled T’Challa back on the boat and the rest of the family followed shortly after. They all made it back to the palace to change clothes for the feast in the prince’s honor.

-------

N’Jadaka stared at himself in the mirror when he was finally alone in his room. He looked just like his mom and he hoped she could see him from the ancestral plane. He could almost hear her going, “Look at my baby!” and a happy tear escaped his eye at the thought. He stared at his baba’s crown on his head and wondered what he had looked like in his royal garb. He never got to meet Prince N’Jobu in all his royal glory, and he made a mental note to look for pictures later. 

The prince changed into an all-black suit with gold accents, still donning his crown of course, and left to join the festivities. When he made his entrance you couldn’t tell him a damn thing, he was so full of himself. He walked down those stairs like he owned them, and when he joined the rest of the family at their table he was in such high spirits he couldn’t stop smiling. His joy affected everyone at the table and even somehow reached to the rest of the party.

Wakandans love to party, so they worked their dinner off with some dancing. With A Hennessy bottle in his hand for most of the night, N’Jadaka danced the night away, tiring himself out and eventually excusing himself to get some fresh air. He set down his bottle of Hennessy and headed outside the hall towards the balcony. He stood there looking over all of Wakanda and feeling at peace when he suddenly felt a pulling in his stomach.

He turned around and there she was again, wearing a form fitting off the shoulder white dress and gold accessories that glowed even brighter on her satiny dark brown skin. Her braids had been intricately tied back into a bun with gold ribbon and golden heels on her feet. His voice caught in his throat and almost a whole minute went by before he said anything.

“You look beautiful,” he was finally able to get out after shaking himself out of his shock.

That smile he loved so much crept up her face and her dimples came out of hiding.

“Thank you, my prince. You look good in clothes,” she said cheekily, undressing him with her eyes but trying to be respectful. She couldn’t get the naked image of him out of her head.

“Well thank you,” he laughed.

“And that crown looks good on you. How does it feel?” 

“Light,” he responded after thinking for a moment. He reached out and grabbed her hand before leading her over to a bench off to the side. The two of them caught up on what had been going on in their lives over the past two weeks since they saw each other last.

“Into the wall?!” 

“Yeah girl, that’s just what happens being in Shuri’s lab sometimes. You know, I could show you-” he was interrupted by the king and queen coming out to the patio.

“Oh, this is where you disappeared to. You know you’ve abandoned your own party, right?” Nakia asked as she plopped down on another bench, relieving her aching feet. “And what is your name?”

“Aisha, my queen. My king,” she saluted them both and they waved her off.

“Any friend of my cousin’s is a friend of ours. So tell me Aisha, what-”

“Nope, we’re gonna go now,” N’Jadaka interrupted before the king could embarrass him. “I’ll see you later T, Queenie.” He dapped up T’Challa and kissed Nakia on the cheek before grabbing Aisha’s hand and leading her away from them.

The king and queen waved them goodbye, and as soon as the two lovebirds were out of sight they turned to eachother and snickered like children.

“Is that the one you were telling me about?” Nakia asked. She always loved gossiping with her husband.

“Mhm, he’s crazy about her. What do you think?”

“Did you see how they looked at each other? I’d be very surprised if she's not a princess by this time next year.”

Back inside, the prince and the Daughter of Bast had caught the eye of nearly everyone in the room but neither of them noticed. They danced the rest of the night and only sat down once the crowd started to dwindle.

“Want to get out of here? I think I’ve shown my face enough for one day,” the prince said as he stood and reached out his hand to pull her up from her seat. 

“I was ready an hour ago, let’s go,” she said, leaving the festivities on the arm of the prince.

_______

“Wait, is this allowed?” N’Jadaka asked, breaking away from her lips for a moment. His hands gripped her hips tight while his lips travelled up and down her neck. They found their way to the edge of the bed and Aisha straddled him. 

“Of course it is,” she giggled as his beard tickled her skin. She grinded her hips into his lap, removing his shirt while he unzipped the back of her dress. He tongue kissed her neck and moved up  to her ear.

“Get up, then,” he said before slapping her ass with both hands. She moaned into his ear, then got up.

He kissed her collarbone lightly as he pulled her dress down her body, facing some resistance around her hips and ass. His lips travelled down to her perky nipples, remembering how sensitive they were to his touch last time. Aisha let out a moan and sat back down on his lap, grinding her bare pussy into him again.

His fingers found their way to her clit as he bit her bottom lip lightly. He tugger on it before going in for the kill, tongueing her mouth like his life depended on it. She moaned into the kiss as his fingers explored her pearl.

“Yessss,” she let out.

“Right there?” He teased. “Or right here?” He moved his fingers further down, spreading her lips and entering her slowly.

She loved the feeling of his thick fingers stretching her out so much that he added a third finger and picked up the pace. All Aisha could do was moan and cum until she was unable to hold herself up, grabbing onto his neck for support. 

“Tapping out on me already?” He teased again.

“Not at all, my prince.”

He growled and laid back, picking her up and placing her on his face.

“Good, ride this tongue babygirl.” He slapped her ass and she got comfortable on her throne.

His tongue immediately wrapped around her erect clit and he let out a moan, enjoying the taste of her. His tongue was pure magic the way it moved against her, and her pussy was like a faucet for him. His thick tongue travelled down to her hole and entered her, swirling around and massaging that spot inside her that made her legs shake.

“Mmm, baby, ooh just like that. Just like that.” Her hips moved back and forth over his face as his tongue worked her insides. 

His grip on her hips tightened and he let out a deep growl when he heard her call him baby. 

“Call me that again.”

“Yes, baby, yes, oh my Bast, mmm.”

He sucked on her clit and her body seized while her juices rained down on his face. She slumped down and stared at him as he cleaned his plate before hopping off and right onto his dick.

“Mmm, baby, you feel so good inside me,” she said as her hips twirled like a tornado, rendering him speeechless. His hands came up to play with her nipples as she rode him and she came almost immediately. 

She rode him all night, edging him while easily spinning around and periodically switching from reverse to forward cowgirl. 

He couldn’t do anything but grunt and moan and hold on tight since she was in complete control. When his body began to twitch and his eyes fought to keep from rolling to the back of his head, she sped up, bouncing her ass on his pelvis while her hips moved in a circle. She leaned down so that her lips brushed his ear.

“Cum for me, baby. Cum in this pussy.”

Once again, his body obeyed her command and he released inside of her with a roar. After being teased all night, his body finally felt relief and a wave of fatigue washed over him. 

Aisha tried to pull herself off of him, but the prince wouldnt let her waist go. She laid  her head on his chest and they fell asleep with him still inside her.

Their nap only lasted so long before they were up fucking again. The whole night consisted of sex and pillowtalk, and didn’t make it to sleep until around 5am. They fell asleep in the exact same position they did earlier. 

Aisha was awakened by the sound of a knock at the door and a stirring beneath her, but she was too tired to open her eyes. Her human pillow grunted at the disturbance, but didn’t seem too concerned until they knocked again.

“Hamba!” N’Jadaka yelled towards the door, and Aisha giggled at his early morning grumpiness. 

On the other side of the door, T’Challa heard her laugh and stepped back from the door, smirking on the way back to the dining room to join the rest of his family for breakfast.

N’Jadaka had their breakfast brought to the room and the two of them lazed around all morning eating and growing closer.

“You know, it’s weird.” N’Jadaka started.

“What is?” Aisha asked, sitting up with her legs tucked under her.

“You and me. I, uh, I saw you before we met...in a daydream while I was jerkin it in the jacuzzi.”

She snorted and they both broke out into a laughing fit.

“Nah, I’m serious though, ma.  Everything down to your tattoo,” he said as his hands caressed the ink up and down the side of her body.

“Maybe we knew eachother in a past llife,” her hand came out to caress his face and he leaned into it, planting a kiss on her inner wrist. 

“Maybe we did...who do you think we were?”

Aisha laid down on his chest and stared at the ceiling while he ran his fingers through her braids. They stayed like that for another ten minutes before Aisha broke the silence.

“What if we were just two people who met and fell in love? You could have been a traveller from the merchant tribe and maybe you saw me from afar, swimming in the river and were drawn to me. Or maybe we were childhood friends that grew closer as we got older and eventually fell in love, “ Aisha mused. 

“You said love, twice,” the prince pointed out.

She paused.

“I guess I did, huh?”

They stared into each other’s eyes.

“I know it seems early, but...after you left the Temple I couldn't get you out of my head. I feel...connected to you in so many ways.” she grabbed his hand and brought the palm to her bosom. “I already feel your heart beating in my chest. Baby, I felt your pain. I’ve never connected with anyone like that. And then when I’m around you i get this feeling in my stomach-”

“Like someone’s pulling you-”

“Yeah, that’s- wait, you feel it too?” she looked up at him with her slanted feline eyes and he gazed into them lovingly.

“Ever since the first time I saw you, babygirl.”

Their romantic moment was ruined by a tiny black furball with a shiny gold collar sneak-attacking them and landing on the bed.

“I was wondering where you were!” Aisha lifted her and snuggled her close, the kitten purring and rubbing her head against Aisha’s face. “What’d you name her?”

“Cleo, like Cleopatra,” he said through a smile, enjoying the sight of her doting on his fur baby.

“The perfect name for a little queen like her,” Aisha booped her nose then set her down to play on the bed. 

“Do you have to get back?” he asked her, changing the subject but hoping she’ll say no.

“Nope, I see patrons on my own time, there’s no schedule...but I haven’t really been seeing much of anybody lately,” she admitted.

“Why not?” he sat up, concerned.

“It doesnt feel the same to me...my body reacts to you, but not to anyone else anymore. You broke my pussy.” 

He fought a smirk from appearing on his face. He didn’t want her to leave the Temple because of him, but he did like knowing he was the only one her body responds to. 

“I’ve been thinking about leaving…” Aisha said nervously.

“Look at me,” he said to her, tipping her chin up so that she was looking into  his eyes. “Are you doing this for you?”

“Yes, I can’t provide pleasure if I’m not pleased myself. You’re the only one I want to touch me... Plus I just don't want to leave here,” she smiled up at him.

“Then don’t.”

“I’m not,” she giggled.

“No, I’m serious. I don't mean just like right now. Don’t leave, stay here in the palace with me.”

Her eyes got big and a smile grew on her face. He tilted her head so that her lips were just an inch away from his.

“You know you my princess, right?” he asked before lightly planting a kiss on her lips. She looked at him and nodded her head before going back in for another.

In that moment, N’Jadaka felt whole for the first time ever. He hadn’t experienced love and affection in such a long time, but now he can’t imagine his life without it. Not only the beautiful woman in his bed, but his family and his country as well. 

The smile on his face grew wider and a tear came to his eye. This is what his life was always supposed to be, and at last he found it.

#cecewritessometimes #black panther fic #the temple #n'jadaka x oc #n'jadaka #black!oc

[veiledsilver]

Top five moments you've felt like the universe was messing with you.

Oh boy everyone get ready this is a long list. In descending order, from mildly funny looking back on it to "oh god oh shit oh fuck":

5. Catfishing: College Edition

In 6th grade, I decided to apply to colleges early to see how they were like. I was scared that if they knew I was too young, they'd arrest me. So I created a gmail account as my persona, a white 12th grader named Emilie Alexander. Emilie was planning to go into nursing, dating a high school linebacker named Kyle Kenderson, and deathly allergic to bee stings. If she even came near a bee, she would die.

This part was of the utmost importance.

See, I was constantly paranoid that one day, the jig would be up- I might forget that my fake last name was Alexander. Or the college dean might come knocking at my door and tear up my home in his mad search for Emilie. If that happened I would fake her tragic death, presumably caused by one big fucking bee.

I secretly collected my information. What nearby states were the prettiest to visit. Which colleges were the safest and most affordable. How often they held courses that I liked. In my emails with colleges I tried to sound as mature and professional as possible.

Then, one day, a college member asked me what high school I was in, so they could check my records.

My blood froze.

It was time to bring out the bee.

In response to their question, I sent an email that was like this:

"Dear Mr. McLaughlin, I was a proud graduate of- ugh! Ah! Kyaaaa! Uwaa! W-w-what's this... huge goddamn bee doing here?! Eek, pardon my foul language! It's just that, as I told you earlier, being stung by a bee would kill me.... and now it's stung me thrice (three times)!!

What do I do?! I can't die... I've always wanted to attend your beautiful college...

But this is... the end...

Mr. McLaughlin...

*looks at you sadly*

Tell... my mother... I loved her...

*dies*"

He never responded, probably because he was rendered speechless, but I never touched that account again.

My private gmail for fun stuff like tumblr still has "Alexander" as a surname, though.

4. Wild and Authentic

Alright. Alright. So. My art teacher in middle school.

Right off the bat, they endeared themselves to the tumblr art kids- they proudly used they/them pronouns, dyed their hair vibrant colors, deeply encouraged OC creation, and was chill with any art style even if it was anime. Mx. Mason was very cool, except for one thing.

We had complete artistic freedom when it came to their assignments, EXCEPT FOR ONE THING.

Drumroll, please.

Take a deep breath if you must.

Ready?

...

Cats had to have extremely distinct whisker pores.

YES, they believed that modern depictions of cats were too streamlined. Too... idealized. As a cat owner themselves, they were convinced that society's vision of cats did not do their feral feline ancestors justice. In making their faces flawlessly smooth-furred, we were stripping the cat of its true nature.

I found this out the hard way, when I was drawing warrior cats fanart for class (it was of Firestar cuddled in the arms of an orange haired anime catgirl who was his reincarnation in my first ever comic series, Warriors Neko Desu! ♡ Heart Academy Dokidoki).

Mx. Mason came over to look at my magnum opus, and I expected them to have their socks knocked off at my artistic talent. They lifted up my drawing for all to see, and I smugly leaned back in my seat.

Only for them to launch into a passionate lecture about how, in neglecting to draw whisker pores on cats, I was DENYING THIS FICTIONAL CAT OF ITS WILD AUTHENTIC SELF.

My friends absolutely lost it when I told them this story, and there was a period of time when all our discord nicknames were wild and authentic too.

As for Firestar and his counterpart Hoshineko Orenji-chan, I never did give them wild authentic whisker holes, but that's to be expected of a kittypet, I guess.

3. Stan Jungkook Or Whatever

A couple years ago, my family and I flew to Seoul, South Korea, to visit our relatives and teach me more about my heritage. It was very nice! I got to visit shrines and festivals and palaces, and I was in awe that this was what my ancestors had once seen in their daily lives.

Then, when we went to the modern side of Korea, I realized just how much I didn't fit in.

It was clear that I didn't know how to act, or how to speak Korean, and I spent my days fumbling around and getting scammed multiple times by salesmen. But I clowned myself the most... during an interactive event with kpop stars.

They had this experimental event where holograms of the boys would sing onstage and dance in place of the actual idols. Before the show began, girls could stand in booths that scanned their appearances, and holograms of THEM could dance onstage with the hologram boys.

I didn't know this.

When Cousin Ae-cha told me to step inside one of the machines, I thought I'd be hilarious and stand backwards, so it would scan the back of me instead of my front. As I walked out, I saw other girls putting on their best makeup, cutest clothes, and most expensive accessories, and I slowly realized that I was in danger.

But the danger didn't come until halfway through the concert, where the boys looked eagerly off-stage and a holy staircase appeared and all the hologram girls descended from heaven. There were cherry blossoms. There were roses. There was me, among the crowd of beautiful airbrushed girls, walking backwards.

I felt the judgemental gazes of twenty girls and their mothers.

Each boy danced with a girl, who got a cute animated moment with special effects, and sang about how they found a dream girl to have a true love romance with. Finally, all the girls vanished except one, and it was me.

One of the boys didn't dance with any girls, and now he was all alone in the rain, feeling dejected that HE did not find his true love girl to have a dream romance with. Then the rain stopped, the sun came out, and I emerged. Still backwards.

He was thrilled and sang about how my face (that he didn't see) stole his heart, and now everyone in the audience was giggling, and he slowly brought me very close to kiss me... but because I was backwards, his nose was cutely nuzzling my hair.

The audience members- at least the adults- were now laughing their asses off. His lips met the back of my head, and together we vanished into the wind.

I'd say I couldn't show my face there ever again, but I never did show my face, so... hm...

2. Horrid Little Temptress

If I wasn't a minor, I'd need a drink before starting this story. Sadly, I cannot drown my sorrows- and neither should you after you hear this, because it's only fair.

Mrs. Appleby was my Spanish teacher in like, 9th grade. Even the wild and authentic art teacher thought she was insane. Appleby forced kids to brew tea for her and yelled at them when they didn't get it right, and I thought she had a chronic squint until I realised she just did that to mock me and my Asian eye-folds. She forced us to watch Dora the Explorer to "absorb knowledge." Everyone fucking hated Mrs. Appleby.

But the worst thing she ever did... was during the school festival.

See, whenever she's angry, she zooms right into kids' faces to scream at them. Her wrinkled flesh would blot out the goddamn sun and all you see are her bloodshot yellow eyeballs so victims just stayed rooted to the spot like cornered animals or something similar. This is important.

Because when she was sampling her own brownies (read: hoarding them so no one else could eat them), one parent foolishly decided to grab one and she thought it was a student and she grabbed his wrist so hard she could've nearly snapped it and... and... zoomed into his face.

Except she underestimated his height and kissed him by accident, but it was more like her mouth was sucking in his face like a vacuum.

His wife was shrieking like an ape. His kid, my classmate, saw his social life flash before his eyes.

In her defense, she did not mouth to mouth with him on purpose and afterwards she cried in the bathroom and when I foolishly followed her in to comfort her, because I am a teacher's pet through and through, she snatched the paper towels I got for her and wailed that she was a-

A-

HORRID LITTLE TEMPTRESS.

If I had decided to not be kind, I never would've heard that string of fucking words. But I did. And I paid for it dearly. The end.

1. Violence IS The Answer, Sometimes

Thomas, my dearly detested.

Back in sixth grade, I used to have a crush on him because he had the surfer boy look with nicely tanned skin and pale blond hair and the clearest aquamarine eyes I've ever seen. He also liked surfing and swimming. He seemed like the perfect little trophy waifu except for one absolute dealbreaker.

He and his parents were extremely conservative and so, when I told him I liked him, his response was basically "haha no you're a [slur] and would probably eat my dog."

I was horrified and ran away to cry. But then, by the next day, I decided I needed to punish him. Thomas walked in before class started and I was waiting for him with these hands. I kicked him so he doubled over, slammed his face into his chair's seat, and quickly clambered on top of him to SIT ON THE BACK OF HIS HEAD. He started shaking and twitching and trying to pry me off, but eventually he went limp and stopped moving.

I thought he fell asleep, but Mohammed, another classmate who was bullied by Thomas, told me that Thomas might never wake up again (not that he was very sad about this. I didn't know until later, but Thomas said slurs at him too).

While I was sitting on the guy, he'd straight up passed out from the lack of oxygen.

Screaming and crying, I told our homeroom teacher that Thomas suddenly fainted, and she was the type of Caucasian that thought all little Asian kids were sweet and innocent, so it didn't even cross her mind that? It might've been me? Who sat on his head when she walked in?

He was sent home early that day. I had to go to a different school next year because Thomas's mom threatened legal action. The only reason I didn't get punished further was because my rich cousins out-Karen'd her and donated a huge amount of money to the school to keep them quiet.

Anyway, I never did anything that insane ever again, because something like that is enough for a lifetime. My cousins made it clear they would never back me up again. I was sure this whole event would be put behind me, too.

But last fall, during my first day of online learning... who did I see in my zoom meeting... BUT THOMAS! I had my mic and camera off, but the moment he saw my name, his face went pale. His soul would've left his body, but then it would've gone to hell, so it wisely decided to stay inside.

Still, out of shame and embarrassment, I never turned my camera on for the rest of the school year.

#asks #there you have it #i feel like I'm confessing my sins to the pope

[thinkingisadangerouspastime]

grief

Written for Day 6 of @aangweek! Read here on AO3.

~*~

6. grief - and when i can’t be with you dream me near / keep me in your heart and i’ll appear

Aang took a deep breath as he stepped onto the balcony of Iroh’s tea shop in Ba Sing Se. The air was… well, not cool - it was never cool during Earth Kingdom summers, even if it didn’t get quite as hot as in the Fire Nation - but it wasn’t overly warm, either. The humidity wasn’t too extreme in the evening, though if anything Aang appreciated the slight gravity to the air. It was… grounding.

Fitting for the Earth Kingdom, but perhaps an odd sensation for an airbender to seek.

Still. Aang found a certain comfort in the air’s heavier presence. It was there. Surrounding him, clothing him. He was there, existing and living and breathing in the moment. In the present. In the now.

Only… He wasn’t.

No, Aang was in the past, as he was wont to be. Particularly on that day of all days. If he closed his eyes, the Southern Air Temple sat before him, alive and carefree and in its prime as it had been… a hundred and one years ago. If he listened, he could hear the laughter of students learning their first airbending technique from the monks. Echoes of the past. If he took a deep breath, he could smell freshly-made fruit pies, sweet and tangy like those he’d whip up with Gyatso.

Sometimes… Aang could pretend nothing had changed at all.

Of course, the truth was that everything had.

Aang sighed, opening his eyes to stare down at his wooden necklace. Engraved in the center was the symbol of his people and their element. Today was a day of celebration, he knew, but the heart didn’t often lend itself to such clarity.

It was the first anniversary of the end of the Hundred Year War. The first anniversary of the Fire Nation’s defeat. The first anniversary of a new, peaceful era. A cycle of cruelty had ended, and a future of harmony had begun.

Well, perhaps it wasn’t quite so simple.

A ghost of a smile graced Aang’s lips. How the past lingered on.

His friends were inside the Jasmine Dragon, laughing and teasing each other just as they’d done a year ago. They were relaxing after a long day of political tasks and dull meetings and formal celebrations, a decision for which Aang could not blame them.

Soon, they would join him on the balcony. Aang knew this. His friends never let him be alone for long.

But for now, Aang basked in the stillness. And he breathed.

“Greetings, Avatar Aang.”

Aang blinked upon hearing his name. Or rather, hearing his formal title. Of all his friends to join him first, he’d suspected it would be Katara. Maybe Zuko. But not… Well, who was Aang to question the workings of the universe? It was far more powerful than he.

“Grand Lotus Iroh,” he said, bowing to the older man. “Is there something you need?”

Iroh chuckled. “I suppose I don’t ‘need’ anything, but I will remind you that it is not necessary to address me so formally. Just ‘Iroh’ is fine.”

Aang gave him a small smile. “On one condition - you have to drop the formalities for me, too.”

Iroh’s chuckling became full-on laughter, booming from the man’s stomach. “Oh, you sound like my nephew. He can’t stand it when I address him as the Fire Lord.” He smiled at Aang. “I accept your condition, Aang.”

Aang found himself laughing, too. “Thank you, Iroh.” He’d always been fond of Zuko’s uncle. For one, Iroh had given him memorable - powerful - advice on their journey into the crystal catacombs together. And two, it was clear as day just how much Iroh loved Zuko, and how he tried to be the doting father Zuko had never had. In that respect…

Well, he reminded Aang of Gyatso. A little bit. Caring for a person with every bone in his body, guiding a child through responsibilities thrust upon them that they were unprepared to bear, and loving a little boy who wasn’t their own son. Who didn’t need to be.

“Are you alright, Aang?” Iroh asked, pulling him out of his thoughts. “I noticed you withdraw from your friends in my shop with a rather…” He paused. “Pensive expression, I suppose. I simply wanted to check on you.”

Oops. Had he already given himself away?

Aang shrugged, returning his focus to the cityscape of Ba Sing Se before him once more. Lanterns lit the streets as laughter and music filled the air. “I have a couple things on my mind. Nothing too serious.” A smile tugged at the corners of his lips. “I’d say it’s been a long, busy day, but I don’t want to imply you weren’t there for as much of it as I was.”

Iroh chuckled. “Perhaps I was there for most of it. But my responsibilities are certainly not comparable to those of the Avatar.” He, too, turned to look out over the city. “However… This day presents conflicting feelings to you, does it not?”

Aang stiffened as Iroh’s comment sunk in, wondering how on Earth the man could have known what was on his mind. But he soon relaxed, realizing it wasn’t exactly difficult to put two and two together. And moreover, Iroh was simply… well, he was an observant person. Zuko was his nephew, after all. During Zuko’s banishment, Aang had a feeling Iroh had needed two sets of eyes in the back of his head to keep track of him.

“That’s one way to put it,” Aang admitted, a soft smile inching onto his lips. “But I didn’t want my overthinking to ruin the festivities, so I came out here.” Even from the balcony, he could hear Katara and Sokka squabbling about the significance of a particular Pai Sho tile, soon interrupted by Mai dryly informing them that they were both wrong.

“I am sure your friends would not -”

“I know, I know,” Aang interrupted with a laugh. He looked down once more at the wooden beads hanging around his neck. “I think I just needed… a minute of quiet. With myself.” Himself, and the past that ever influenced the present.

Aang glanced at Iroh, hastily adding, “It’s okay that you came out here, though! I don’t - I don’t mind the company.”

Iroh gave him a warm smile. “Since I am here, would you like to share your thoughts with me? About your conflict, that is.” He stroked his beard. “Please don’t feel pressured, of course. But if you speak, know I will listen.”

Aang allowed a pause to pass between them. Gathering his thoughts. A moment of silence, filled only by his friends’ muted voices from indoors and the cityscape chattering around them. Then he sighed.

“It’s not a big deal, really.” Aang gently clasped his wooden pendant, fingers tracing the curves engraved in the center. “A year ago, I defeated Fire Lord Ozai. And I am happy about that. Happy that the war is over. That we won.” He exhaled slowly. “But if I think too much about it…”

His hand tightened on the beads, and Aang found himself looking anywhere but at Iroh. “I chose to spare Ozai’s life. I don’t regret that decision, because affirming and upholding the beliefs of my people is - is -” Aang blinked back tears, and he took a sharp breath before he continued. “One of the reasons it was so important was because I’m the last of my people. I’m the only one left who can uphold our beliefs.”

Aang bit the inside of his cheek to avoid breaking into sobs, but against his will a few tears slid down his cheeks. “When I think about it like that, when I remember how part of my choice was because - was because they’re gone -” Aang couldn’t finish, his teeth sinking into his tongue to stop a choked sob from escaping.

 The absence of his people was a never-ending ache, a pain rooted deep in his bones. And some days were more agonizing than others. Even days that should have been happy ones.

Iroh nodded. “I see,” he said after a pause, once Aang had wiped his eyes and eased his unsteady breathing. “I hope you understand, Aang, that your grief here is not irrational. While grief is seldom controllable, and often leaves us confused…” He shook his head. “It is not irrational. Your feelings here are what you need them to be.”

Iroh gave Aang a sorrowful look. “I regret that I have so little advice for you, Aang. The decisions of my ancestors, my brother, and my own may have caused irreparable damage to the balance of this world. Worse, in doing so, they stole everything from you. And for that…” Iroh shook his head. “No words can express my apologies.”

Aang exhaled slowly. “Not everything,” he finally said, once he was certain his voice wouldn’t waver. “Guru Pathik told me that my people’s love for me has not left this world. That it was reborn in the form of new love.” He gave Iroh a warm, if watery, smile. “You… remind me of Monk Gyatso. The way you take care of Zuko, even though you aren’t his father. Because it doesn’t matter. You -”

Aang’s voice caught in his throat. Iroh didn’t comment, and Aang collected himself before he continued.

“You still love him,” he said, maybe a little wistfully. Spirits, there were times Aang missed Gyatso so much he couldn’t breathe. “You still love him, and you would do anything for him.”

Iroh gave Aang a soft, sincere smile. “That is the highest praise I have ever been awarded. Thank you.”

Aang looked down at his beads once more. This time, he noticed Iroh’s gaze following them, too. “And… the Fire Nation can’t take my grief from me. I will always remember my people, and I will always work to keep their memory alive.” What was the future other than a world built on the past?

Iroh nodded. “Grief is nothing if not love,” he mused. “Grief is all the love we have for someone, for something, that no longer has a place to go.”

Aang nodded, eyes watering for what had to be the umpteenth time since their conversation started. Grief was love. All the love Aang had for his people that he kept in his heart, love so jam-packed it made his chest ache with pressure about to burst.

But love was reborn. Every day. Reborn in his friends.

In his family.

Aang turned, wrapping his arms around Iroh in a tight hug, an embrace the older man gently returned. “Thank you,” Aang whispered. “For taking care of Zuko. For listening to me. For…” He exhaled. “Just for being here.”

Iroh shook his head. “No, Aang. I am the one who must thank you.”

Aang wasn’t sure when he started crying. He wasn’t sure when his friends joined him on the balcony, either. But when they all wrapped their arms around him in a massive, ridiculous, everything-he-could-have-ever-wanted group hug…

They were Aang’s present. His friends grounded him, keeping him in the now. And yet, if he opened his eyes?

Aang suspected he would fly.

~*~

idk how much i like this ficlet either lmaooo. regardless, aang deserves a million hugs and his friends will always be there to provide them!! i hope to see you tomorrow for the final day of aang week 2021 - love. (here's a hint: an overabundance of fluff. also, everyone's a little bit in love with aang! which is practically canon.) thank you for reading!

#aang #aang week #aanglove #iroh #atla #avatar the last airbender #the gaang #air nomads #gyatso #atla fanfic #atla fanfiction #words aren't real anymore #amy writes

[castiel-barnes]

Damerons Music.

Pairing: Poe Dameron x Fem! Reader. AFAB (reader is married to Poe.)

Summary: Poe has quite good music taste and when flying on mission and fighting the First Order it can be quite amusing, especially as you’re talented and cocky as Poe. 

Warnings: Angst. Fluff. Fun. Music references.

Wordcount: 1.4k

Tags: @phoenixhalliwell

Leia loved the two of you and trusted the two of you immensely. She had been a mentor to the two of you. But there were some days when she really wondered what was going in your heads. She had officiated your small wedding as part of the celebration, after the Star Killer base explosion. At the evacuation of D’Qar, the two of you ran all the way to the bridge to find Leia. Skidding to a stop in front of Leia you and your husband at this time shared a single brain cell.

“Permission to jump in an X-Wing?” You said in unison with Poe,

“Permission granted.” Leia responded smiling at your synchronicity with Poe as you both turned and ran. The two of you ran full speed with BB8 in tow, towards the hanger and your X-Wings.

“Do you want music today?” Poe asked kissing the top of your head, 

“Yeah, surprise me today. Be safe flyboy.” You responded as you put your helmet on and smiled at him.

“I think I know what i’m gonna put on. You be safe too sweetheart.” Poe stated with his signature smile. The two of you started up the engines on your X-Wings and flew out the hanger, as soon as the First order fleet arrived out of hyperspace. The two of you flew towards the fleet and stopped in a two fighter formation just in front of them. Poe patched the two of you into First Order comms and decided to have fun.

“Attention! This is Commander Poe Dameron.” Poe started,

“And Lieutenant Y/N Dameron.” You chimed in. Wondering if Leia did actually have a message for Hux.

“Of the Republic fleet, we have urgent communique for General Hugs.” Poe continued as he looked over at you briefly,

“This is General Hux of the First Order. The Republic is no more. Your fleet are Rebel scum and war criminals. Tell your precious Princess there will be no terms, there will be no surrender...” Hux stated looking out the window towards the two of you.

“Hi, we’re holding for General Hugs.” Poe stated. You snickered knowing exactly what he was doing,

“This is Hux. You and your friends are doomed. We will wipe your filth from the galaxy.” Hux responded already sounding annoyed.

“Okay. I’ll hold.” Poe said humming to himself,

“Hey Poe, do you think we have time to order some food?” You asked smiling. You were both still on comms with the First Order so they could still hear you.

“Yeah, I think we’ll have some time. Could really go for some blue milk pancakes.” Poe replied looking at you again, he knew that you knew what he was doing.

“Hello?” Hux said slightly confused,

“Hello? Yup, I’m still here.” Poe replied.

“Can they hear me?” Hux asked one of the officers who had patched them through, and the officer nodded. “He can?” Hux continued,

“Hugs? With a H? Skinny guy. Kinda pasty.” Poe said somewhat describing Hux,

“Oh don’t forget the ginger hair and the anger management issues.” You added on, getting your blasters ready.

“I can hear you. Can you hear me?” Hux stated very clearly annoyed by this point which was hyping you and Poe up even more for getting under his skin,

“Look we can’t hold forever, we have something important tonight. If you reach him, tell him Leia has an urgent message for him.” Poe stated looking over at you and nodded. He was giving you the final shot to get under his skin. 

“I believe that they’re tooling with you sir.” Captain Peavey informed Hux who instantly glared at Peavey,

“About his mother.” You said, hearing Poe chuckle and then hearing music start playing that was heard on the Finalizer. I fought the Law by the band Clash started playing, the perfect song to play whilst pulling difficult manoeuvres around in space fighting the first order. 

“Good choice of song today honey.” You complemented Poe on his song choice,

“Thank you darling, I knew you’d appreciate some good music. And nice blow to Hux about his mother.” Poe responded and you knew he was smiling. The two of you flew in formation pass the bridge of the dreadnought that was accompanied by the Hux’s Star destroyer. 

“Damerons, I suggest that you keep the flirting to the minimum because on behalf of every senior officer on bridge right now. I don’t think we want to hear you flirting. Or singing.” Leia stated coming over the comms startling you both for a second, because you forgot she could hear you. 

“Yes Ma’am.” You both said in unison. Pulling around the front of the dreadnought, both of your had gone for the surface cannons but that was until the First Order cavalry arrived. BB8 let out a frantic beep which notified Poe of their arrival.

“Y/N!! We’ve got a lot of company coming our way.” Poe almost shouted over comms, 

“I see them baby, beebs get another song on. And make it a good one.” You replied and also talked to BB8. Somewhere in the playlist, BB8 found the best song that went along with this type of situation. Danger Zone by Kenny Loggings. You and Poe chuckled knowing the origins of the song, but this song got you hyped.

Everyone knew that you and Poe had good music taste. They loved how in sync the two of you were, especially when the two of you were flying. It was like watching the Festival of Ancestors on Pasaana, the synchronicity of everyone celebrating together.

*****************************

You worried about Poe a lot. He had a lot of weight on his shoulders, and sometimes it showed especially when the two of you were alone. For a long time he was Leia's successor, Commander of his own squadron and Leia's most trusted pilot.

When Leia passed, Poe became General and asked Finn to co-general with him. The weight added up as the responsibility of General was passes down to him. At the battle of Exegol, the fight was hard for a while it looked like the battle was a loss. You heard Poe scream as he saw Snaps X-Wing burn up and crash. Thankfully Lando and Chewie turned up in the Falcon, with what looked like the entrie galaxy backing you up. You both smiled, a tear coming yo your eye. The call was answered.

"Hey baby, why don't we get this party started?" You asked Poe as you flew past him,

"Honey, I was thinking the same thing. R2 put some good music on." Poe replied also talking to R2. BB8 wasn't the only droid with some good music taste, R2 put on a classic up beat song. Blitzkrieg Bop by the Ramones 1976. Smiling briefly you got back to flying fast and pulling some hard G forces.

*****************************

It'd been months since the war ended. You had helped Poe and Finn clean up the mess that had been left behind. The two of you had been sleeping better than you had during the war, but you both had trouble some nights. Poe more than you some nights.

You felt Poe thrashing around and mumbling.

"No... Snap... nooo.!" He mumbled eyebrows pinched,

"Baby? Hey Poe wake up honey. It's alright." You stated gently rubbing his arm to wake him up. He sat up shaking and breathing heavily. You looked at him, his eyes looked distant and watery.

"Poe?" You asked quietly, placing a hand on his shoulder hesitantly,

"I- I'm sorry b-baby. I'm sorry." Poe responded looking at you sheepishly. He still wasn't there in the room mentally, from what you could tell he was in his cockpit on Exegol watching his best friend die over again.

"Don't be sorry baby. Don't be sorry. You're here on Yavin. We're not fighting that war anymore." You replied stroking his hair back.

"Beebs, put on Dream a little dream of me by Doris Day. Come here baby." You continued pulling Poe of your shared bed gently. You held him gently and swayed slowly. Poe laid his head gently on your shoulder, and every now and then you heard him sniffle. Everytime he sniffled you placed a gentle kiss to his temple.

"I love you baby. Thank you for being with me through everything." Poe said quietly,

"I love you too, you know I'd be here for you always." You replied. The song ended and you pulled him back onto the bed, letting him use you as a pillow. He was shaking a little still, but after letting you look after him Poe fell back to sleep easily.

Everyone knew that the two of you had a dynamic like no one else, and everyone enjoyed the music you played when flying. But behind closed doors, you were both calm and the music you played was calm and soothing.

The Damerons are an energetic couple, but you were both calm and relaxed when it was just the two of you.

#star wars #writing #poe dameron #poe dameron x reader

[queenofnohr]

Twisted Wonderland: Lilia Vanrouge Scary Outfit (SR) - Voice Lines + Personal Story

Voice Lines

Summoning: Halloween is my home turf~♪ I’ll be looking forward to seeing your surprised face in the future. Groovy: Don’t look down on me. You never know— you might just end up spending the whole night sleepless, trembling in fear. Set Home: Roar~ How was that? I’m a dragon ghost. Home Idle 1: It is said that on Halloween night, the ghouls that served under the Witch of Thorns dance round a fire all night long. They’re party animals, surprisingly. Home Idle 2: I can remember the day I met a genuine Long from the East like it was yesterday. Their crimson scales were truly a sight to behold. Home Idle 3: Most sweets are delicious, but marshmallows aren’t my cup of tea. I can’t feel satisfied after eating them. Home Login: Trick or treat…… what? Have you already gotten used to my pranks? Then I’ll just have to prepare something extra special for you. Home Idle Groovy: If I were a real Long, I could give you a ride on my back. Shall I give you a piggyback ride instead? Home Tap 1: Ugh, the horns on this hat are heavy. And Malleus always has to deal with these on his head? Home Tap 2: My red nails are cute, right? I had Vil paint them. It seems these crimson nails are some kind of long lasting thing called “gel nail polish”. Home Tap 3: Silver and Sebek used to be such scaredy-cats way back when. The morning after Halloween, they’d do laundry all day without complaint. Home Tap 4: Have you seen Ace? The way he’s always eating Trey’s sweets makes them look so delicious, so I made some too. Home Tap 5: Whoops. Because of my height, the tail is a tripping hazard dragging on the ground. You should take care not to step on it either. Home Tap Groovy: ACHOO! …...Excuse me, the peacock feathers tickled my nose.

Personal Story I’ll Scare You to My Heart’s Content: Chapter 1

-Interior Hallway-

Ace: This is around where the Halloween Organization Committee was having their meeting, right? I was told to submit an application for using magic in our production, but…… Dorm Leader Riddle is super impatient, but if I wait a bit, Cater will come back to the dorm. Sebek: Silver!!! Don’t you dare fall asleep again!!!! Ace: Hm? That voice must be...... Of course it’s Sebek…… and Silver-senpai. What are you guys doing here? Sebek: Hm…… If it isn’t Ace. We’d like for Lord Lilia and the Young Master to review our decorations. So we’re waiting for the meeting to end. Ace: Wouldn’t be easier to just shoot them a text saying, “Let me know when the meeting is over.” You don’t have to wait right outside the door for the meeting to end. Sebek: You think that I could call those two on a smartphone!? There’s no way I’d do such a disrespectful thing!!!!! Ace: Okay, okay. I don’t know what’s so disrespectful about that, but I’ll wait for the meeting to end with you guys. All: ………………………… Silver: Zzzz...... Sebek: Silver! Don’t use me to prop yourself up while you fall asleep!!!! Silver: Ah! Sorry. Ace: Sebek, you’re way too loud. They’re having a meeting in there, so turn it down a notch. Sebek: Guh…… Of course, I wouldn’t want to get in the way of the Young Master’s work. Ace: Isn’t he falling asleep ‘cause we’re just standing around silently? How many times have you yelled at him instead of having a single engaging conversation? Sebek: Talk about something interesting, hm? Then, last night, the Young Master...... Ace: Yeah, of course it’s about the “Young Master.” Topics only you’re interested in are prohibited. Sebek: Why! He should be an exciting topic for everyone in the world! Ace: Oh, I know. Are there any interesting stories about Halloween in the Land of Thorns? Sebek: Isn’t Halloween more or less the same between countries? Silver: No…… I heard from my old man that Halloween is celebrated differently depending on the country and culture. The other day, Azul told me about how they celebrate Halloween in the Coral Sea, but it was different from how we celebrate at the academy or in the Valley of Thorns. Sebek: What, really!? …...A- Ahem! Let us chat a bit! In the Land of Thorns, lanterns are made of carved out wood. Though I don’t think they’re used any differently than jack o’ lanterns…… Ace: Wow, what else? Silver: Then…… When the moon rises high in the night sky, a scarecrow is burned in the castle’s town square, and people in costume dance around it. Ace: I see. So it’s like a midnight costume dance party. Sebek: It is not something as frivolous as some social event. It's a feast for ghosts where all the evil spirits in the land run rampant! …...I’m trembling just remembering Halloween ten years ago…... Ace: Yeah right~ You’re totally exaggerating. Sebek: I am not exaggerating!!!!!! You can only say that because you haven’t seen it for yourself!!!! Silver: He’s right…… What Sebek says is true. Halloween in the Valley of Thorns......is truly terrifying…... Ace: Huh? Even Silver-senpai is agreeing……

Creaaaak......

Lilia: Sebek, Silver. Sorry to keep you waiting. I voice hear your voice from all the way inside. Malleus: It’s fine if you wait, but be a bit quieter while there’s a meeting in session. Sebek: My...... My apologies...... Cater: What’s this? Ace is here too. What’s up? Ace: I brought the documents Dorm Leader Riddle told us to submit. Here they are. But I had some free time while I was waiting, so we got to talking about Halloween in the Valley of Thorns...... Sebek got all heated and said, “There’s nothing more terrifying!” Cater: Wow, I didn’t think Halloween in the Valley of Thorns was so scary. It’s said that life in the Valley of Thorns is centered around magic…… Do you also use magic to decorate? Malleus: Yes. Most of our decorations use magic. As for scariness, it depends on the person. Ace: See, Sebek is just a scardy-cat, right? Sebek: No, I swear I’m not......! Lilia: Kufufu. Putting aside whether or not Sebek is a scardy-cat…... It’s true that Halloween in the Valley of Thorns has a very different atmosphere than the festivities at this school Cater: Eh, how so? Ya boy Cay here loves scary stories. Tell me about it, Lilia♪ Lilia: Okay, then as Halloween ambassador from the Valley of Thorns, I’ll teach you guys all about it!

I’ll Scare You to My Heart’s Content: Chapter 2

-Interior Hallway-

Lilia: So about Halloween in the Valley of Thorns…… Well, where should I begin? Malleus: As Diamond stated earlier, life in the Valley of Thorns revolves around magic for the most part. Lilia: That’s right. So, the light from decorative Halloween lanterns aren’t from LEDs, but from fire magic. The lanterns are also made from carved wood, not pumpkins. Many of them are carved to resemble the ancestors of the followers of the night, like dragons and bats. Sebek: On the actual day of Halloween a lighting ceremony is held wherein the Young Master lights all the lanterns in the country with magic. The sight of the Young Master lighting those noble green flames can only be described as awe-inspiring. Ace: He uses fire magic to light all the lanterns in the entire country!? Cater: Is Malleus’s magical strength seriously that crazy!? Malleus: The Valley of Thorns is a small country that has less territory and fewer people than the Rose Kingdom. It’s not a particularly notable feat. Lilia: I remember the day the Queen first asked Malleus to light the lanterns. Malleus: ! Lilia! Don’t tell them that story……! Lilia: It was a catastrophe— Malleus was so enthusiastic he made a mistake in the amount of force he was using, and burned all the lanterns in the entire country. Houses and fields were set ablaze, and the whole nation worked together until morning to extinguish the fire. Malleus: ....... Lilia: The incident was engraved into the history of the Land of Thorns as “The Halloween Fire.” Sebek: I can’t believe it……! What a wonderful event to make the populace recognize the Young Master’s power! Ace: No matter how you look at it, isn’t burning peoples’ houses down no laughing matter……? Cater: As expected of Malleus. Even as a kid, he’s been on a completely different level. I couldn’t imagine him dressed up in a ghost costume, going around to all the neighbors, asking for candy with a, “Trick or Treat”~ Malleus: You’re right, I certainly haven’t ever done that. Though in the first place, the tradition of distributing sweets on Halloween does not exist in the Land of Thorns. Cater: Whaaaat, no way! Ace: In the Rose Kingdom, that’s the main event. Lilia: It’s true. The first time I learned of the custom of handing out candy was when I traveled to other countries. It’s a good tradition. Innocent children happy to receive candy are so cute. That’s why I wanted to let Silver enjoy it…… However, we lived far away from any other people. As a replacement for him being unable to go around a neighborhood to visit houses, I was the only one Silver could ask for candy. Silver: And I knocked on your door endlessly until my bucket was full. Ace: Wow, Silver-senpai and Lilia-senpai were neighbors. Silver: Neighbors, huh…… Well, you’re not wrong. Lilia: Silver asking for sweets over and over again was so adorable! No matter how many times he did it, he’d always laugh so happily. Malleus: We never did that, did we? Lilia: Why, do you want to do it too, Malleus? How about we do it this year? Malleus: Lilia, just how old do you think I am? Lilia: Age doesn’t matter as long as you’re having fun. Sebek: If you wish it, Young Master, I shall give you sweets as many times as you desire! Malleus: I’m saying I’m not going to do it. I’m no longer a child. Sebek: My…… My apologies. I’ve overstepped my position. Lilia: Kufufu. The part of Malleus that thinks like that is still a child, no? Ace: By the way, you said that Halloween in the Valley of Thorns is super scary, but none of this is scary at all. Silver: The scary part is what happens with the scarecrow in the castle’s town square…… Malleus: In the Valley of Thorns, it’s customary to burn a scarecrow in the middle of the castle’s town square at midnight on Halloween. And people in ghost costumes dance around the fire until morning…… Ace: Oh yeah, that’s the midnight dance party that you mentioned earlier. Sebek: That’s right…… And what’s truly terrifying is Lilia, dancing around the burning scarecrow, illuminated by flames!! Silver: Halloween ten years ago was especially horrifying…… An ominous dance you would never in a million years imagine could come from our usual Lillia-senpai…… Malleus: Ah…… Remembering that day makes even me feel like my entire body is freezing over. Lilia: What’s with you guys? In my youthful impetuousness, I just cut loose a little bit. Ace: Lilia-senpai’s dance…… But he doesn’t look scary at all. Sebek: You can only say that because you haven’t seen it for yourself!!!!! Malleus: His uncanny wriggling body was like a venomous snake, and just hearing his hoarse laughing voice felt like you were being cursed. Silver: His shadow stretched long across the cobblestones in the square looked like a giant demon that kidnaps children. Sebek: Both children and adults alike were terrified of his appearance and with a single glance returned home, trembling, and waited for the nightmare to end. Silver: Some of the children who witnessed Lilia-senpai had recurring bed-wetting issues. Ace: No way, you guys are totally trying to pull a fast one on us! Cater: Ahaha, even Malleus and the others got in on Lilia’s joke, and are playing along surprisingly well~☆ Though I think it’s true that the husky shouting he uses sometimes in Casual Music Club is a bit scary. Malleus, Silver, Sebek: (Lord) Lilia(-senpai) is nothing like this when he’s serious!!! Ace & Cater: Whaaaat? Lilia: Kufufu. Now I’m in the position to spread loveliness as Diasomnia’s cute mascot, however…… In the Valley of Thorns, I was feared as the, “General of Terror.” If you like, I can show you a scary face right now…… But I think it’s better to keep it as a fun treat for Halloween day proper. Ace: Should you really be saying that? Our expectations are gonna be sky-high. Cater: I’m looking forward to seeing it on that day, Lilia♪ Lilia: Kufufu…… Then your wish is my command, and I’ll scare you to my heart’s content. I’m very much looking forward to Halloween day.

-

*If it wasn’t apparent from the personal story, in this line Lilia implies that he’d scare Silver and Sebek so bad they’d do their chores without complaint the next day and/or were so shell shocked they’d just obediently do laundry and/or would wet the bed the night before

#twisted wonderland #disney twst #lilia vanrouge #malleus draconia #twst silver #sebek zigvolt #diasomnia #ace trappola #cater diamond #long post #my translations

[every1studio]

REQUESTED: “ateez x greek gods” [ateez]

genre: misc. + GREEK GOD ! AU (reincarnation version) + fem reader

ficstyle: bulletpoints + reactions

requested by @svteencarat : “ Hi! I was wondering if you still take request? If you are still doing requests, then could I ask for a greek god! ateez and a human! fem reader angst (Of course i'd like it if you can make me cry, UwU) nd that if the oneshot could have a fluff ending? Thanks! This isi my first request ever so i don't really know how to since I'm kinda new to tumblr?? (I'm literary requested this from alot of kpop au writers out there because I never see any Greek god aus, and I JUST. NEED. MORE. GREEK GOD AUS!!) “

note: I’m kinda depressed about my WayV fic so I’m shifting my attention back to ATEEZ before I get any motivation to continue that series ): + I didn’t have a lot of ideas for angst because I didn’t want them to be too long but I hope this is good?? + information from: Meet the Greek Gods & Greek Gods and Goddesses 

HONGJOONG X APOLLO

reincarnation of: APOLLO (god of music, poetry, prophecy, and medicine; later known as the god of sun)

in every lifetime, there is a reincarnation of APOLLO in the Kim family

Hongjoong was the present-day god of sun; there was a lot of pressure that was placed on his shoulders because of it 

but even through all the stress, he still couldn’t ignore the passion he had for music or for poetry 

or the unquenchable desire for more knowledge 

or the love he has for the sun rays peeping through the day clouds

he’s known to be the “doctor” of his friend group because no matter what problem they have medically, emotionally or physically, he’s able to help them and succeed  

Hongjoong still has the lyre that was passed down to him from his ancestors 

it’s an unusual instrument to play nowadays but that’s probably what made him stand out at the arts and music festival that held place at the college square 

the guy’s performance was a self-composed piece and he somehow altered the lyre to make it an electric instrument; a stryre 

you were working as the sounds person; so you had the honors of listening to his whole performance with no disturbance

and it didn’t help that he was so handsome

if you didn’t know any better, you thought he was a Greek god 

little did you know

you didn’t think anything of it after his performance until you felt a tap on your shoulders 

“hey can you tell me what kind of amps you use for the show today? they were really compatible with my stryre!” 

your eyes were met with his 

“oh yeah.. um.. I used my own amps for the show today, which is why everyone who had to perform had to sign a waiver.. but they’re Goldmund Telos 5000.. my uncle offered them to me for a lower price...”

the boy grabbed both your hands in excitement, “oh you know about music? are you a music major too? what’s your major? 

the way he radiated, it was like you were in the presence of the sun 

how could someone emit such energy?

“nothing fancy.. I’m in music technology-”

“you’re the T.A. for Dr. Trumbridge!” 

“you know me?” you were surprised that he knew you, then again you are the only T.A. for the most strict professor in the university 

“yeah.. you graded my paper for composition of electric instruments... you gave me a lot of feedback and I really appreciate it..” 

Hongjoong had to take that class because it was a requirement for his major in music composition 

but he began to like it 

why?

because you were there 

at first he thought you were quiet yet snobby T.A. for a strict teacher

then he received the first paper you graded for him 

there was so much care and incredible feedback; it was like he could see the true you through your grading 

after that paper, he couldn’t help but notice every little thing about you 

he slowly began to fall for you; his own version of Aphrodite  

his voice was so soothing, you forgot where you were and what you were doing for a moment 

“of course.. hey, um.. I have to get back to work, the next performance is in 5 minutes...” 

you let your hands slip away from his grasp when you realized how long you two were there, just holding hands 

“oh yeah sorry...I’ll let you get to that then...”

you nodded before turning away 

“Y/N!” 

you turned to hear him call your name, “are you free after the performances? I know the food courts are gonna be open until 1AM...so you wanna.. grab a bite?”

how could you say no to that sunny smile, “yeah sure.. uh here’s my phone number.. send me a text or something.. I’ll see you later..umm..”

“I’m Hongjoong.. go on, I’ll see you later!” he repeats 

when you had time, you checked your phone for any messages 

there was only a voicemail; you held it up to your ear 

“hey Y/N, it’s Hongjoong.. I don’t know what you like to eat.. but I hope you like Greek food?”

SEONGHWA X EROS

reincarnation of: EROS (god of love) 

Seonghwa always help this friends with their love life 

but it had it’s drawbacks 

being as good looking as him; the girls would be more interested in him than his friends 

which caused riffs in his friendships 

in the end, he didn’t have any friends 

as the reincarnation of the epitome of love himself, he couldn’t help but excrete pheromones and he used that to his advantage 

he began to have an addiction with fake love; one night stands, hookups, leading girls on, 

any sorts of a short-term romance 

anything for to not feel lonely anymore

but that wasn’t enough

the void in his heart grew larger and larger, to the point where anything he tried to fill it with just fell through into an abyss 

Seonghwa was just leaving the cafe; dripping wet because he didn’t want to meet up with one of his hookups anymore and she tossed water in his face 

which made him even more hot BUT ANYWAYS 

you were in an irritated mood

you just quit your job because your stupid boss won’t advocate for fair pay for the hardworking females in your workplace

so you stormed into the cafe and tried to calm yourself down 

there was a commotion in the cafe but you were too busy getting your order of iced latte 

something about no one will ever be good enough to satisfy someone, followed by the sound of splashing water; then something about being rich and handsome will only get him so far 

on your way out, you bump your whole order onto a man that already seemed like he was soaked with water 

at first glance, he seemed like a puppy someone left in the rain 

but the more you looked at him, the more entranced you were by his visuals

you didn’t let your thoughts diverge you from dumping your whole cup of latte on him 

“sir? are you okay? excuse me, can I get some napkins?” you took some napkins from the worker and dabbed where ever you could and where ever wouldn’t get you arrested 

the guy looked at you with his empty eyes

why are you helping him?

a hopeless guy like him?

a sick-minded disappointment of the god of love?

“it’s okay.. I deserve it..” he gently pushed your helping hands away 

you furrowed your brows at him and sternly told him, “look, mister.. I don’t know what you did for you to “deserve” this but I’m just apologizing for the coffee okay?”

he was kind of taken back by the sudden sassiness and let you continue to wipe it off

“what’d you do to get in this mess anyways, handsome?” you murmured as you offered him napkins to dry his hair 

“a girl I was fwb with wanted to take it further but I told her that’s not for me... plus I have some other fwbs I don’t want to let go off...” 

he seemed kind of embarrassed afterwards, it sounded better in his head 

“oookay.. maybe you did deserve it..” you rolled your eyes in a joking manner and wiped your hands clean

you seemed different than all the other girls; sassy and quirky, independent and was probably not the type to fall in love at first sight 

“now that my business is over, I’m gonna order another latte-”

“let me!” Seonghwa said kind of loud, which caused you and some of the other people in the cafe to whip their heads towards him, “let me.. get it for you.. I mean it’s my fault you have to get another cup anyways..”

“so I can be another fwb? no thanks.. that’s not my type of relationship..” 

you took his silence for feeling shameful and felt bad, “that offer was really sweet but I’m sure I can get a free cup since everyone saw what happen..”

you grabbed the readied cup of latte and smiled at him, “I’m sure you’re not a bad person... but maybe you should think twice about being in a relationship.. any relationship. it takes two to tango.. remember that, ciao~”

and with that you left the cafe 

leaving Seonghwa collecting puddles and thoughts about the new side of love he’s never seen or experienced before 

the next day, you got a job interview with one of the most well-known companies in the whole world

you couldn’t afford to mess it up 

you entered the elevator and hit the button of the highest level of the building 

people came and left the elevator but someone REALLY caught your eyes 

it was the sad “puppy left in the rain” fuckboy; in a suit 

“what a coincidence, boy wonder. you work here?” 

he was fixing his tie, he gave you a small smile, “you could say that..”

you nudged him in the side; which caught him off-guard because he was ticklish 

“you’re working for one of the best companies with some of the best working condition, you should be more proud of your position!”

your floor dings and you adjust your lanyard, “how do I look?”

your question flustered Seonghwa, “g-great.. go-good.. beautiful..” 

that last part was mumbled but you heard it

“oh.. thank you.. well gonna go to ace my interview, maybe we’ll be cube buddies or something.. wish me luck~” 

you trotted down the hall towards the room the interview was held in; you sat for your turn, you couldn’t stop fidgeting from adrenaline 

“Ms. Y/N? we’re ready for you~” an older lady shot you a reassuring smile 

you took one last deep breath before walking in the room

you thought you were prepared for this interview..

UNTIL YOU SAW BOY WONDER, MR. HANDSOME FACE AKA THE SAD “PUPPY LEFT OUT IN THE RAIN” FUCKBOY 

SITTING IN FRONT OF THE PLAQUE THAT SAYS CEO 

oh what a time to be alive 

“so, Ms. Y/N, shall we beginning?” Seonghwa smirked as he opened your portfolio 

YUNHO X TYCHE 

reincarnation of: TYCHE (goddess of chance, fate and fortune)

Yunho was bored with his life; he was bored with his riches

this was the consequence of his luck 

sure; he always won all the games at the casino, got the winning ticket to the lottery, anything that had zero to no chance of winning? he won them 

he won them all 

it was always like this; ever since he was little 

it made him kind of depressed  

he would get himself in every life-threatening situations but by a stroke of miracle, he would be saved by the bell 

people only wanted to be around him because he would bring luck to everyone around him 

so he holed himself up in his house; his very big and very empty house 

because he was sick of being used, sick of winning, sick of being lucky 

the doorbell rung; he checked his door security camera

it was probably his food he ordered 

surprised to see someone still waiting there with his food

he scurried downstairs and swung the door open

there you were, frowning at him, “Mr. Yunho? I don’t mean to be rude or out of line, but you’ve been ordering nothing but the unhealthiest options from our place.. I’m worried about your health, SO I included some healthy options.. it’s not included in your payment... HAVE A GOOD DAY!”

you hoped that he wouldn’t think too much about your kind offer 

but Yunho places his big, firm hand on your shoulder, slightly tugging you back 

“why are you worried about my health? what do you want from me??”

you turned to him meekly, “I’m NOT stalking you! it’s just that... you’re always ordering from us, at least 4 days out of 7.. and you always order the MOST unhealthiest options.. I’m assigned to this area of town and there’s not a day or time where I don’t deliver food to your house..so I suspected that you don’t leave your house often..”

you looked to him for any social cue that he was uncomfortable by you 

but he just looked sad, “no one’s... ever cared for me like that before.. people are always asking things of me, they never do things for me..”

in that moment, he caught your eyes

they were glassy and filled with worry

“thank you..” he says softly with a smile

you smiled back, “I gotta get back to work.. have a nice day, Mr. Yunho..”

“Yunho!” he calls out

“call me Yunho..”

“you can call me Y/N!” 

now that Yunho knew that you were assigned to this area, maybe it wouldn’t be weird to order more often than he already does 

to you know.. make a friend? or did you do that because you like him? but you never even seen his face until now....

you know? maybe this was just an act of kindness, right? is what he thought 

which was true, at first

but when you saw heard what he said about how no one has ever done anything for him, you wanted to change that

you went to his place the next day on your day off

you could hear the thumping sounds of his footsteps, “Y/N? I didn’t order anything.. yet... you’re not wearing your uniform..”

Yunho ears turned pink at the sight of you so dolled up; periwinkle form-fitting dress with a light denim cropped jacket and white platformed sneakers; your hair was thrown up in a messy ponytail  

“wh-what’s the occasion?”

you smiled at him, “I’m kidnapping you for a day.. you’re cooped in your big house 24/7, you’re too pale! let’s go get some sunshine and some food!”

you dragged him out of the house, “my wallet-”

“I’m paying! I don’t care what you say about “guys always paying for girls,” I’m different!”

Yunho didn’t know that his heart could feel so full, “that you are..”

maybe his luck wasn’t just catered towards riches and fortune

maybe you were his lucky charm 

YEOSANG X HERMES 

reincarnation of: HERMES (god of travelers and trade, the trickster, the messenger of the gods)  

everyone would think that Yeosang is such an angel; how could he ever do anything wrong?

that’s where everyone is wrong

he is the king of tricksters; the devil on your left shoulder 

but he would never face the consequences for his actions because before anyone realizes what he’s done, he’s gone in a snap

that was the life he was used to 

that was until he came across you 

you had just moved into a new townhouse complex; a nice area 

you thought it was nice until you met the troublemaker of a neighbor

you caught him spray painting the side of your house

there was a walkway in between your house and his house, so the side of your house was completely bare 

sure it was beautiful BUT you weren’t going to live there long so you didn’t want to go through the trouble of cleaning it yourself when you knew who the culprit was 

little did he know, you were outside watering your plants

you sprayed him with water

“young lady! what are you doing to that poor young man!” the elderly lady who lived a couple of houses down was scolding you 

“ma’am he was vandalizing my house!”

“well all I see is that he’s helping you clean it, isn’t that right Yeosang?”

you turned to see his mischievous smirk turn into an angelic one

“of course ma’am, I saw some kids spraying up the place and I wanted to help out our new neighbor~”

“she probably thought you were those kids, though I know you would NEVER do something so terrible.. what a sweet, sweet boy.. you two have a good day now~”

and with that she left

you caught the guy before he had the chance to run away and grabbed him by the collar

“I don’t know who you think you are, sweetheart.. but I hope you keep your promise and clean YOUR mess..you’re not fooling me..”

Yeosang sulks as he’s scrubbing your walls 

you sprayed him with water, “whoops, I was trying to spray the wall.. must’ve slipped..”

“I’m gonna get you back...”

you sneaked right behind him

“probably wasn’t a good idea to say what your planning.. I’ll be ready.. you better count on it. now get to cleaning, sweetheart~” you said in the same tone as the elderly lady 

since then, you and Yeosang have been in childish fights to get back at one another 

everything on the lines of ding-dong ditching to stealing things from your property small things 

this went on for days, weeks, almost over 3 months! 

you don’t HATE him but you definitely don’t like his alter personality or his real one whatever it is 

it was golden hour when you saw him lurking in your front lawn, you swung the door open

“WHAT do are YOU stealing this time, Yeosang?” 

he grabs your wrist

“I’m stealing your time”

you rolled your eyes at him, “and what’s that gonna do?”

“hopefully succeed in stealing your heart” 

SAN X HADES 

reincarnation of: HADES (god of the underworld) 

San lives and has lived a sad life; with each reincarnation, his life goes through the cycle of the whole story of Hades and Persephone 

only to be in a “forced” relationship that runs in clockwork 

he’s done everything to try to get away from this cursed life 

he’s chained, shackled to lifestyle of his predecessor 

but he wants to switch Hade’s selfishness into his own selflessness 

he lives in black 

he lives in chaos

he lives like how Hades would 

like his life, you are also stuck in a loop; the only thing is, you are unaware of it 

you are the reincarnation of Persephone; youthful even if you age, beautiful without any effort and brighter than any star in the sky

if he was the darkest twilight, you were the sun at it’s highest peak

San could always find you, even if he didn’t tried

it was destiny, no matter how he to evade it 

he locked himself inside his dark home; having 3 black shibas as his companions 

played chess by himself

cook meals to eat at his large and empty table

roasted his own coffee beans and drank black coffee to past time  

didn’t even watch TV

only leaving at night when the stars are brighter than the streetlights and shadows are enveloping everything in sight

he wanted you to live every life with purpose and however you wanted 

you deserve that at the very least 

he didn’t want you to be apart of his terrible life 

but there’s no way to dodge destiny, you were like a magnet

San was walking his dogs, his usual routine; same thing and everything 

until you ran into him at the corner

there was no time for an exchange of words before his dogs all trampled on you with kisses 

“Cy! Bear! Russ! get off of her!!” he tugs them off and he knew he was in trouble 

even through reincarnations, you still looked the same; the same beautiful you 

“I’m so sorry.. here..” he offers a hand to help you up but were you still playing with the dogs 

“it’s all good, it’s my fault for going not paying attention on a jog! look at your little fluffy, woofy faces~” that’s when you finally look up at him and the reflection of the streetlights flickered in your eyes 

“do I.. do I know you? you look familiar?” 

you took his hand, bewitched by his striking features, as he helped you up, “you’re probably mistaking me for someone else...”

he looks around, it’s a sketchy area for you to be jogging so late in the night

“why are you jogging so late in such a dangerous area.. there no cameras, streetlights are dim and there’s little to no one awake right now?”

you truly didn’t know who he was, but you felt same with him

you felt like you probably knew him in another life; it made you feel sentimental

“I just got a new job and my new work schedule doesn’t allow me to have the time for my daily jog-”

“so you jog at night where it’s most dangerous?!” San slightly raised his voice at you

which startled you, “I-I’m sorry...”

San took out his phone, “what area to do you live in? I’m gonna call a cab to take you home..”

“you don’t have to! I live close by...”

you waited for him to offer walking you home but the silence just prolonged longer than you expected

“you could walk me home?” you asked

how could San ever say no to you; it was like he was programmed not to 

“sure...” you led the way and he followed you as closely as he could without letting your hands brush against each other 

“I’m Y/N”

“San..”  

“do you live around here too?”

“yeah”

you tried to make small talk with him but he kept his answers short  

“this is me..” you showed him the gate to your place

“stay safe, Y/N..don’t run out so late..” he said before leaving

but you held him back, “you know.. maybe I could walk your dogs or something... so that I can feel safer.. or maybe we can go on nightly walks?” 

San turns to walk back to where you were; Cy, Bear and Russ followed him after 

“if fate allows us, we’ll meet again... please take care and be safe, Y/N.. goodnight..”

maybe destiny is inevitable 

maybe he’s miserable because he doesn’t want to force this destiny onto you and make you miserable

but maybe you aren’t actually miserable when you’re with him 

but he can’t take those chances

and he won’t 

MINGI X POSEIDON 

reincarnation of: POSEIDON (god of the sea) 

Mingi was your childhood friend; a complete moody, edgy son of a gun

his personality wavered like water itself

he can be calm as a pond on a silent night or he can be as violent as a roaring hurricane 

you learned how to deal with all of his mood swings 

you thought you knew all about him 

you basically knew all about him

except for the fact that he’s actually the reincarnation of the god of moody waves himself, Poseidon

because of his mood swings, he always had a hard time with dating 

if the girls thought their mood swings were bad, they had no idea what they signed up for when they were dating him 

they all ended badly 

you felt bad for Mingi

you knew him the most

you knew how he was

you knew the kinks in his gears

today was another day, another break up for Mingi 

so the real question is, why didn’t you and Mingi ever dated each other?

you pushed feelings and thoughts to the side because, you knew that dating would be different 

he’s seen you through all your hard times and much as you have been there for him 

what if you lose him and any relationship you have with him?

so you locked those feelings away and pretended like everything was fine

except everything wasn’t fine

you began to cough petals of blue hydrangeas; the more you suppressed your feelings the worst it got

and every time Mingi was involved in another relationship, you could feel the branches curling around your lungs 

you didn’t want to go through with the surgery to get the flowers out because if you did, you would forget about the feelings you ever had for Mingi

your whole relationship with Mingi relied on those feelings; you couldn’t toss those away 

so you hid all of this from him

well, you thought you did 

“what happened this time?” you asked as you tossed him a hoodie you borrowed from him

“she didn’t like you.. so I broke up with her..” 

that reeled in some of those locked away feelings but you kept them in the back of your head and out of your heart

“it seemed like she was good for you.. I could just back away-”

“NO!”

Mingi tossed the hoodie and slammed you up into the wall

you were so startled; he never resulted into hurting you before so it made you scared 

he was never the physically violent type; especially towards people

but this was different, he was acting different 

scared to the point where tears welted up in your eyes

it made everything blurry but the sight of Mingi in front of you was still clear 

in that moment, Mingi realized what he did and remorse washed over 

“I-I’m sorry don’t cry..” he wiped your tears away; you were so overwhelmed you didn’t realized that he turned your tears into aerosolized mist 

he held your head as he caged into a hug 

your favorite hugs 

“I can’t live without you.. I don’t know what I’d do without you... even when I’m with other girls, I can stop thinking about you..”

those locked feelings that you had for him were trickling into your heart

it got a little bit easier to breathe 

you cupped his face, “Mingi..what are you trying to say?”

you needed to hear him say it with his own mouth 

“I love you, Y/N... I can’t be with you..”

your eyes wavered and your hands trembled 

“why? is it something that I did or something that I said? am I... am I not good enough for you?”

Mingi shook his head furiously, “no. no.. Y/N, you are perfect. you are everything I want.. everything that I need... but I can’t let you be apart of the life that I live.. deal with the family that I have...”

you didn’t know about Mingi’s family but Mingi never seemed to want to talk about

“this is why I have to do this.. I hope.. I hope you understand..”

he kissed your forehead and then everything became black 

when you woke up, you were in the hospital and you had no recollection of where you were and how you lived you life up until now 

Mingi was moving out of his house next to your; he had been crying because he knew about your condition

he distracted himself with other girls because he couldn’t get you involved with his family

those girls were short-term relationships to distract him from his long-term crush on you 

which worked then but it probably won’t work now

because you will never remember him 

you will never love him again 

and now he’s coughing up blue hydrangeas; but in your memory, he’ll keep it until the day he dies 

WOOYOUNG X DIONYSUS 

reincarnation of: DIONYSUS (god of wine)

the sun was peeking through the window; stirring you awake

when you opened your eyes, it hit you

you weren’t in your bed

or your room

or even your clothes

you looked to your right and put 2 and 2 together

you were in the same bed as the “sweetheart” of a frat boy, Wooyoung

you couldn’t help but scream 

which caused Wooyoung to scream and fall out of bed 

“WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?!” 

“WHAT? NOTHING! NOTHING!” 

Wooyoung was sleeping with a black tank top and grey sweatpants 

you were in his shirt and boxers for shorts 

Wooyoung stares at you as you stare back at him

“can I sit on the bed and tell you what happened?”

“only if you don’t touch me-”

“I’m not going to touch you, not without consent anyw-”

“OKAY WHAT HAPPENED?”

Wooyoung pointed to the living room which was visible from where you and Wooyoung were

“we were studying because we’re in the same literature class..” he dragged out his sentence

“uh-huh~” you motioned your hands to move along 

“you wanted a break and I brought out some wine...”

“uh-huh”

“and then you talked about your love life and you started getting out of hand..”

“WHAT?! I DON’T REMEMBER THAT PART!”

Wooyoung rolled his eyes, “you CHUG 2 glasses without even talking to me and then you started to talk about Lucas-”

“OK OK OK!” you could feel your face getting red and your head started to feel tight 

he noticed your discomfort and got up from the bed

“where’re you going” you slurred

“getting your dumdum head some water and advil”

when he came back, you were still laying in bed but you had tossed your hair up in a messy bun 

“you started to get hysterical; saying that you’re a great gal and why don’t you have a boyfriend and spilled wine on yourself. I told you to go take a shower and gave you some of my clothes to borrow..” he handed you the water and bottle of advil 

you nodded and took them from him; still embarrassed 

“you called for me in the bathroom. you showered and changed but you didn’t want to walk. complained that you were sleepy.. so I carried you to the bed..”

“you carried my fat-ass?!” you were conscious about your weight 

“like a princess..” he smiled at you

“I was going to sleep on the couch but you BEGGED me not to leave you, so I slept NEXT to you and there was a nice amount of space between us..okay? NOTHING happened..”

“okay..” you murmured

you weren’t confident in your looks and always worried about your appearance but Wooyoung didn’t care about any of that 

“Y/N.. are you okay? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable..” 

“you don’t make me uncomfortable..” you pulled the blanket up to cover your body, “I don’t want to you to be uncomfortable..by me..”

Wooyoung held your hand, “you don’t.. I hope you know that..” 

you were about to slide your hand away but Wooyoung held on

“I know what the others say about me, but that’s not me... I’m not some frat guy who goes around sleeping with other girls..or a guy who’s known for going to the bars and clubs every other night... I’m just a guy who’s too wimp to actually tell the girl he actually likes that he wants to be with her and make her feel loved and make her love herself..so...”

you felt him lift your chin up to meet him eye to eye

“will you let me get the chance to do that?”

JONGHO X HERACLES

reincarnation of: HERACLES (son of Zeus)

Jongho was just minding his business

he JUST had to go to the store to get some more protein shake powder before going to the gym 

he was JUST taking off his helmet that went with his motorcycle when he heard you yelling someone to back off 

he turns to you across the street in an alley cornered by a moderately fit guys 

sure he was always saving the damsel in distress but this time was different

“ma’am are you in any trouble?” he shouts out to you and it catches the attention of the other guy

“a girl can take care of her own and take care of this fool myself..” you tried to wave him off but the guy grabbed your arm quite forcefully

“take care of this fool? Y/N.. aren’t you such a doll?” 

no words were able to leave your lips when Jongho rips the guy’s hand from you and slams his fist into his face

it takes more than a couple seconds for the guy to get up from the ground 

he glares at Jongho with terrified eyes

“this isn’t the last you’ll see from me!” the moment the guy is up on his feet he’s running

“wow.. if he was a dog, he’d be running with his tail between his legs..”

you looked at the guy who just saved you, he had on a leather jacket and his black hair was slicked back like he was in Grease 

“what are you some type of modern-day Hercules, biker boy?” you joked

Jongho gave an awkward cough, “you could say.. but.. are you okay?”

you nodded as you rubbed your arm

“a little shaken up but I’ll live..” you started to look around; you were slightly paranoid at this point

“you wanna go for a ride? we can go anywhere you wanna go” he asked as he pointed to his bike 

“in that?!” you’ve never rode anything of that sort 

he took your hand and handed you his extra helmet, “it’s a little scary at first but she drives like a dream”

weary but you trusted him, “what’s your name?”

“I’m Jongho”

“well, Jongho..” you started to adjust the helmet on your head, “I’m gonna take your word for it..” you held your hand out for him to take 

he takes it, you didn’t expect him to kiss it but he does

“what a gentleman..” you tried to hide the trembling of your voice

you hated rollercoaster or any rides of that kind

anything that involved a rush of adrenaline scared you 

but when Jongho wrapped your arms around his waist, you felt safe and you weren’t as scared  

“where to, princess?” he asks as he turns to shoot you the most adorable smile 

“know any good food carts?”

“buckle up, because I know just the place”

[ masterlist + guidelines ]

#ateez #ateez yeosang #ateez san #ateez jeong yunho #ateez reactions #ateez greek au #ateez au #ateez yunho #ateez imagines #ateez oneshot #ateez park seonghwa #ateez angst #ateez soft hours #ateez drabbles #ateez fluff #ateez fanfic #ateez fic #Ateez hongjoong #ateez jung wooyoung #ateez jongho #ateez greek god au #ateez kang yeosang #ateez kim hongjoong #ateez x reader #ateez x atiny #ateez x you #ateez choi san #ateez choi jongho #ateez blurb #ateez mingi

[therecordsoftis]

Alexa, Play “A Whole New World.”

I’ve been doing some world-building and field-guide making while working through edits and writing lately. I’ve been playing with superstitions, plant/animal life, holidays - it’s been a lot of fun.

And now, I’m asking for your help! I would love to collect some of YOUR stories. As the folklorist in me would call it, “Field Work”!

I’ve left some examples, and questions for you below the read-more.

I’m currently working on Good Luck charms - my biggest one right now is that, while under a tree if an acorn/pinecone etc. falls on you, you’ve been “blessed” by the spirit of the tree and you’re in for good fortune, especially if it happens to hurt a little. A twist on this, to “Knock on Wood” is to ask the tree spirit for help specifically with a little extra luck and to scare away the “Jinx”. Bonus if knocking on a tree trunk causes an acorn to fall on you!

I remember skipping over cracks in the sidewalk, chanting the “Step on a crack - and you’ll break your mother’s back” rhyme as a kid. So because my streets are mostly paved in cobblestone (and avoiding the cracks between them isn’t realistic), I’ve come up with “Broken or loose, there will be no Goose.”. Essentially, avoid upturning/disturbing loose or broken stones from the street or you’ll go without/be in for hard times ahead.

Black cats are not bad luck, but helpful warnings. If they cross your path, they’re trying to alert you to potential danger ahead, so maybe pick another route into town or, at the very least, proceed with caution.

Lots of my buildings have gargoyles, so it’s best to avoid walking under ladders, because they like to swoop on people who aren’t aware of their surroundings and could cause an accident under their ledges (Just doing their best to fulfill their role as protective spirit guardians, you know).

I’m also looking at what a burial service/funeral might look like. Do they have an annual festival/holiday like Halloween or Dia de Los Muertos where the dead/ancestors are met and celebrated? How about births/weddings? 

Questions for you:

Tell me how you feel/what you think of my examples above I’ve already worked through!

Talk to me about your favorite good luck charms/superstitions. Are you superstitious? Are there some you follow and some you don’t? If you’re not, is there a specific one you like/find entertaining anyway? Do you carry a good luck charm and how do you know it’s extra lucky to keep around?

I’d also love, if you’ll share them, recipes you bring out specifically for special occasions. Your favorite memories from events like funerals, baby showers, weddings. I want to hear/collect your stories, and I’d love to let them inform how the same function in my own writing.

#T.I.S News #Folklore #Story Collecting #Writers feildwork #research #superstions #traditions #culture #funerals #memories #weddings #baby showers #world building #books #writer #interveiw

[ladykeane]

Bertie and Reg dress up for Halloween at Dahlia's!! and the party!!!

To the lovely Nonny who sent this, I profusely apologise if you’re not the massive weeb/animation geek that I am. But this idea stuck, and I couldn’t help myself!

Fair warning, it’s quite silly, most definitely cracky, and completely self indulgent…

There was a lesson given to me by my drama teacher at school, Mrs Irving, that has always stayed with me. The gist of her teaching was that a good actor must have a sort of dual consciousness. I suppose what she meant was that a chap should have the power to transform his mindset into that of the character he plays - and then just as easily slip back into his usual mental space, once the curtain falls. There must co-exist a Bertie-the-Wooster and Bertie-the-Prince-Hal within a single animal. Well, I suppose I have put this lesson to good use in my adult life, as I can attest that Bertie-the-Drone, Bertie-the-obedient-nephew and Bertie-the-seducer-of-certain-Jeeveses manage to be conjured at the drop of a whatsit.

A particularly surprising example of this dual consciousness wheeze occurred just recently, on the night of Aunt Dahlia’s annual Halloween bash. I suppose the lifted veil to the spirit world aided this shift of the Wooster disposish. (Well, the costume probably helped too, not to mention my dear auntie’s insistence that her party guests never drop out of character for the whole of the evening. That can make certain things a tad awkward, such as bathroom ablutions. One must ask: does Superman use the lavatory at all?)

I was given the scoop on the event by my ancestor over the phone, as I sat digesting a fourth-or-fifth slice of Reg’s birthday cake. (This year he had requested a Black Forest, and I have to say that I outdid myself. The leftover kirsch was also a boon.)

‘Super-groups?’ I asked. ‘You mean like the Travelling Wilburys?’‘No, young clot, I mean super-groups like the Avengers, Justice League, and their lycra-clad ilk. The group with the best costumes and most convincing delivery will receive a prize from your Uncle Tom and myself.’‘Ooh! And what is that?’‘For one, a cooking lesson with Anatole. Apparently he owed Reg a favour, and your man generously donated said favour to me.’I glanced an appreciative glance at my beloved, who sat perusing the W.H. Auden anthology I had given him.‘Secondly, a near-pristine Nintendo Gamecube, complete with controllers and a collection of best-selling game cartridges.’‘You mean the one you confiscated from Angela and myself? I still think that was an unfair punishment.’‘I say, it was entirely fair! Do you forget that I got stuck with the bill to clean your old headmaster’s office!? I am told that the stench of baked beans can still be detected throughout the school halls, to this very day! Anyway, I would advise you to get cracking. The competition will be stiff, I hear Angela’s little friends have been working on their costumes since August. Perhaps you and Reg could go as Batman and Robin!’‘Perhaps, auntie.’‘Well, pip-pip then. I’ve got many a fake tombstone and skeleton to haul down from the attic.’

As I hung up, Reg raised his head from his book. ‘I believe Mrs Travers has briefed you on this year’s Halloween festivities?’‘Indeed. She’s never offered a prize for the guests before. They’re real plums, at that. I reckon it would be well worth the splurge to get some first-rate togs.’‘May I ask what this year’s theme is?’‘Super-groups. By which I mean, groups of superheroes. She suggested we go as Batman and Robin! We’re already quite the dynamic duo, anyway. What d’you think?’

As I uttered these words, the Jeevesian brow began sinking south, until the look on his face chilled the lukewarm cup of tea sitting at my elbow.‘I should say not, Bertram.’‘Oh. Well… what about Danger Mouse and Penfold? You could be DM, of course.’‘I regret that I shall be unable to attend this year’s festivities. I have much to do to complete the Earl of Rowcester’s living will.’

Of all the paper-thin excuses! ‘Oh, don’t give me that Reg! What is it? You don’t care to be in the same room as all that brightly-coloured spandex? You fared just fine at last year’s “Stranger Things” soiree, and we were surrounded by a multitude of eighties fashion, at that!’(He made quite the dashing Steve Harrington, actually. Aunt Dahlia cast this Bertram as Dustin, so while I was able to tag after him all night there was an unfortunate dearth of snogging.)‘I am afraid I must insist. I do not care to be dressed in the bright, garish apparel that is requisite of superheroes.’

Given that it was the lowly rotter’s birthday, I held on to the flames that should have escaped from my nostrils. ‘Oh, very well, Reg. Have it your way.’ To ensure that none of my internal invective against him slipped past the Wooster lips, I left the flat for a sullen trudge about Mayfair.

***

That very evening, Bingo Little summoned self and several other Drones to dinner. He was in town with his husband Randy, to look for a property where they could spend their Winters. While the reports given indicated that all was spiffy within their NYC townhouse, Randy wanted to ensure that his paramour did not lose touch with his British roots. And I think I remembered him saying that his next novel was to be set in South Kensington, inspired by the likes of Richard Curtis and Hugh Grant. All rather convenient, no?

‘That Gamecube and cooking lesson with Anatole is as good as ours, lads. I have the perfect idea for our super-group.’ Here Bingo took a long sip of tea, leaving us in a state of eye-boggling suspense.‘Christ and his disciples?’ suggested Stinker.‘The Bloomsbury Group?’ queried Boko.‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?’ asked Gussie.

‘Better,’ Bingo finally replied, a rivulet of tea dribbling down his chin. ‘Do you know “Sailor Moon”?’

‘Sparkly schoolgirl with the pigtails? Yes, I recall watching the English language version with Angela sometimes. Quite a cheesy romp, that.’‘Oh, you ought to read the original manga ,’ said Boko. ‘A perfect blend of costumed superhero action and romantic high fantasy!’

For the next half hour, we were subject to Boko and Bingo giving us a full synopsis of the dratted space opera, complete with character studies, mythological references, and feminist overtones. Now, I have known my fellow Drones to sometimes possess hidden depths, but I was unsure whether this encyclopedic grasp of a Japanese super-girl-group was more of a mild pathology instead.

‘So,’ Bingo announced, ‘I believe I’ve figured out the perfect casting for each of us. I shall be Sailor Venus, of course, the soldier of love. Randy does call me his golden love god, after all.’ (Pause here for requisite retching.) ‘Gussie can be Sailor Mercury, given his general… wateriness. Boko’s love of house plants is perfect for Sailor Jupiter. And due to his spiritual calling, Stinker will be Sailor Mars, the shrine-maiden.’

I was trying to picture each of my chums kitted out in a colour coded schoolgirl costume. Perhaps we would score points for comedic effect, if nothing else.‘And what about me?’ I asked.‘Well, you’ll be our Sailor Moon, naturally.’‘Golly! I must say, Bingo, I’m quite chuffed to be given the starring role. I assume that it’s due to my former experience with drag, not to mention my theatrical prowess and general heroic gravitas.’‘Well… I suppose. It’s also because Sailor Moon is supposed to be a ditzy blonde crybaby.’‘Ah.’The judicious nods that the others gave were a tad insulting.

‘Does this mean that I’ll have to wax? ’ asked Gussie.

***

Now, if you’ve ever seen the much-celebrated cartoon, you’ll know that one of the highlights of every episode is the spangly transformation sequences, where each heroine morphs from humdrum schoolgirl into celestial warrioress. Our first go at donning the famous fuku was much less glamorous.

Boko knew a chap who knew a lass who worked at a highly-regarded fancy dress company. Apparently, many a masquerade-goer and cosplayer has raved about their beautifully crafted goods. As we trundled our way out their HQ on the tube, we were all in high hopes of scoring the perfect outfits. As it happens, the fitting session that followed made me appreciate just how inadequate the standard sizing of womens’ apparel really is.

Bingo and I had the best luck, but the costumes closest to fitting us were narrow in the shoulders and wide in the hips. Gussie managed to squeeze into one of the larger sizes, but resembled more of a wrinkly chicken sausage than a cute superheroine. (The skirt was appallingly short on him, and when he bent over to grab his phone from his bag I was quite traumatised.) Stinker, who is built akin to a silverback gorilla, utterly utterly destroyed the costume he attempted to yank on. I offered to foot the bill for that one, as a vicar’s salary can only cover so many breakages per month.

‘It’s no good, boys,’ sighed the seamstress who had patiently assisted us, ‘you’ll need to get these custom-made.’‘And how long will that take?’ asked Bingo.She put on a brave face. ‘I’ll do my best to get them ready for Halloween, but bear in mind I’ve already got a backlog of orders to finish.’‘Chin up!’ I replied. ‘I can probably ask a favour of the drag queen who did my costuming for “Legally Blonde” - Reg cut her a sweet deal with a new agent at the time. I’ll ask if she can source the shoes and wigs and things.’

A level of relief washed on to the girl’s face at this. I’d feel the same, if I were freed from the task of cobbling a pair of Stinker Pinker-sized red pumps.‘Even so, we’ll be cutting it close with this order. I doubt I’ll be done before the morning of the 31st.’‘Send me the bill for your energy drinks,’ I offered.‘It’s a deal.’

***

Time ticked on, and All Hallows Eve drew near. While I did my best not to harbour any full-on wrath against Reg at his blowing-off of the party, I couldn’t help but act a tad pipped towards him. Were lurid leotards and shiny accessories really so horrid?When he snuggled close to me on the sofa, I scooched away. When he dropped a kiss upon my map, my only response was tight-lipped disinterest. The blighter refused to compromise, so wherefore should this Wooster succumb to his entreaties? I took a lot of cold showers that week.

The big day came, and still nary a costume was yet received.‘5pm, she said,’ Boko told me, ‘and we’ll have to go and pick them up ourselves.’‘Hm, that is cutting it close. Well, bear up, old fruits! Leather Smalls will be along this arvo to do our make-up and hair.’‘Leather Smalls?’‘Didn’t I tell you? She’s part of an all-drag M People tribute act.’

If I can impart to you the experience of tubing it across suburban London in a long blonde, pigtailed wig, a full face of makeup, and masculine civvies, accompanied by four other similarly styled blokes, you probably wouldn’t doubt my claim that it was one of the more surreal experiences in my life. Halloween is not quite the big deal here that it is across the pond, so we got quite the share of wolf whistles, disapproving auntly glares, and ‘yaaaas, queen’s from our fellow travellers.

At last, at last, we arrived at Brinkley Court, freshly finished costumes in hand. The coloured lights, costumed crowd, and strains of ‘Monster Mash’ from within indicated a party already in full swing.As we entered the front door, I grabbed for the first bowl of sweets I could find, given my lowered blood sugar.‘That’s it!? Gawd, Bertie, you could have at least made an effort!’

Angela had grabbed one of the sweets from my hand and popped it in her mouth. I wasn’t quite sure who she was supposed to be, but her costume was really quite the thing.She was caked head-to-toe in light purple body paint, with a long wig in a paler shade of the same colour. A brilliant gem was affixed to her chest, and she wielded a long double-headed whip. I did not feel inclined to backtalk her.‘So who’ve you come as?’‘One of the Crystal Gems, obvs. Anyway, you need to go easy on those. Mum says that some neighbourhood bullies have been stealing sweets from the trick-or-treating kids, and she’s promised to recompense them.’‘What!?’My blood was now boiling - what lowly cad felt the need to scam helpless rugrats out of their jelly babies and smarties?

‘Oh, it’s awful,’ said Aunt Dahlia, swiping the remaining sweets from my hand and depositing them back in their bag. ‘I just saw Captain America crying his poor little eyes out, being comforted by Bucky Barnes. A whole evening’s worth of trick-or-treating swag, stolen from them by three nasty teenagers!’‘She means Thos and Edwin,’ Angela translated.‘What teenagers?’ asked Stinker.‘Some of the nastier upperclassmen from Eton, apparently. Captain America tells me that they have a reputation for bullying even the house masters and head teachers. Great brutes.’‘Rum,’ I said. ‘But, Aunt Dahlia-’‘Who?’I took in my auntie’s costume.‘But, Catwoman, hasn’t anyone tried to pull them up for it?’‘They’ve been too wily. I was told that they also egged the Emsworths’ place, running off onto Ham Common before anyone could catch them.’‘Travesty!’ cried Boko. ‘They can’t get away with this!’‘Too right!’ I said.‘Well? You lot are supposed to be the Sailor Senshi, aren’t you? You fight for love and justice, yes?’‘Er…?’‘You must transform, and thwart the damned villains!’

The Drones and I shared a look askance. ‘Um.’‘May I remind you, Sailor Moon, of the video games and French cuisine that are up for grabs for the group who best embodies their chosen superheroes?’‘Right ho. Moon Prism Power Make Up, then!’

***

We stampeded upstairs, bottlenecking on the landing, and Stinker stumbled noisily upon the top step. Into my old bedroom, and our everyday trappings were cast off in favour of our splendid, sparkly sailor ensembles.It was a bit of a muddle - the others needed help donning their padded brassieres, not to mention adjusting their skirts to preserve modesty. But after a few fumbling minutes, we were ready to go, as resplendent a team of magical girls as Brinkley Court had ever seen.

I allowed myself an indulgent linger before the full-length mirror. I really did look cute. The big pink bow was quite flattering to my proportions, and the blue skirt and collar set off my eyes nicely.‘Come on, Sailor Moon! We’ve got a contest to win!’With a flick of my pigtails, I was off.

Bursting out of Brinkley’s front door again, we charged into the gloaming. The place looks directly out over Ham Common, and on the great stretch of lawn, it did not take us long to spot the perps.

A juvenile, quivering Wallace and Gromit were surrounded by three of the largest, most grotesque teenage boys that I’d ever beheld. Though a good decade younger than myself, they looked to be twice my height and about four times my body weight. Most ghastly of all were their choices of costume: the ringleader was dressed as Pennywise the Clown, with his two lieutenants cast as Thanos and a zombie version of Napoleon Dynamite. I admit that the hint of rotten green brain showing through his blonde afro was an impressive use of make-up, but it did turn my stomach a tad.

Just before they could rip the trick-or-treat bags from the youngsters, I put a solid, heeled boot forward.‘Leave those beloved icons of childrens’ entertainment alone!’‘Hurrr,’ slurred Thanos, ‘check out the anime drag queens.’‘Wanna come party with us, girls?’ said Pennywise. ‘We got heaps of sweeties for the sweeties!’I puffed out my padded chest. ‘Never! I stand for love and justice! And… by the Code of the Woosters, I shall punish you!’

And so it began. We swooped upon them. Wallace and Gromit scarpered, and we were met with a barrage of large humbugs. When thrown with enough velocity, those things can leave a bruise.

Behind me, Gussie boldly came up bearing a large garden hose. He turned the nozzle on the head, but instead of dousing the monsters, the force of the spray was a bit too much for him, and he clung on for dear life as the hose thrashed about in his arms. He quickly went down in a self-inflicted mud puddle.

Stinker managed to plant a shiner of a right hook on Thanos. The brute staggered away, doubled over in pain. He threw off his plastic infinity gauntlet, upon which Stinker tripped magnificently, going pumps over skirt into the turf as well.

Boko fearlessly leapt upon Napoleon’s back, wrapping his noodly arms about an equally noodly neck. Napoleon bucked about like a bronco with a bad itch. Boko did his best to hang on, but the slippery satin gloves ultimately betrayed him, and the poor soul was flung off into a nearby rose bush.

The three monsters continued running from us. It was just me and Bingo now. We exchanged a silent glance of Sailor Senshi solidarity, as we pursued them towards a clump of oak trees.With a well aimed stomp, Bingo got Pennywise right in the oversized foot, with the heel of his pump. However, before I could back him up, the two lieutenants grabbed my chum and snatched his wig by its red ribbon, hurling it up into the branches of one of the trees.‘NOT MY VENUS WIG!’Abandoning the skirmish, Bingo pathetically began clambering up the branches to try and retrieve the thing. (I mean, it was a nice wig. And if it came back damaged, I would be owing Leather Smalls big time.)

And so, the beasts turned their attention to me. Three cruel grins bore down upon me like vultures on a dying wildebeeste. They looked like they could easily pummel me into a boneless mush, and not even feel it the next day. I’m not too proud to admit that I quivered in my heeled boots.‘What was that about punishing us, sweetie?’‘Let’s hang her from the branches by those stupid pigtails!’‘Yeah! And then we’ll-’

All of a sudden, something sleek and sharp came whistling through the night air. It popped Pennywise’s balloon, and struck Thanos right between the cheeks of his ample bum.‘Ow!’‘What the…’It was a fine, thin blade, attached to a deep red rose.

The four of us whipped our heads towards the source of the floral projectile. Imagine my total astonishment to perceive, perched upon a high stone wall before the radiant moon, none other than Tuxedo Mask. Gosh, he was splendid, with his billowing black cape and aura of general rakishness.‘How dare you blackguards steal from innocent children and assault these brave soldiers. Sailor Moon, I know you can defeat them.’‘But how, dash it!?’

He tossed me a bright pink plastic object. It took me a moment to discern that it was an external hard drive. It bore a little decal of one of those colourful cartoon pony characters.I looked back at the monsters, to find Pennywise agog.‘Wh… WHERE DID YOU GET THAT!?’‘Uhm…’‘Dude… is that what I think it is?’ said Napoleon.‘GIVE IT BACK!’ cried Pennywise.

Tuxedo Mask and I shared a single silent, meaningful glance, and I dropped the thing to the grass, raising my heeled boot above it, primed to smash.‘Well… I might, if you agree to apologise to every last child you terrorised, AND return their sweeties.’‘But we already ate some,’ said Thanos.‘Alright… maybe just give them a few quid, in that case. AND you’ll be cleaning the egg off Mrs Emsworth’s front stoop.’‘Anything, ANYTHING!’ begged Pennywise. ‘Please just give me back my-’‘NIGEL!!!’

A robust, sour-faced Jean Grey was stomping across the grass, her fiery gaze fixed on Pennywise.‘You have a lot of explaining to do, young man!’‘But Mum-’‘I should confiscate your little pony stories this instant!’‘No! Please…’‘Instead, you will do exactly as Sailor Moon says, and apologise to all the people whose Halloween you have ruined! You too, Cyril, Edgar! Don’t think I won’t be telling your mothers what you’ve done!’

The clown was dragged off by his ear to begin his penance, but not before he could snatch up his pink hard drive. Now that the leader had fallen, his two henchmen slunk along in his wake.

The Sailor Senshi had regrouped, and Angela, Thos, and Edwin (sorry, Amethyst, Captain America, and Bucky) had also dashed up to join us.‘You know who that was?’ said Angela, ‘Little Nigel Belfry. I went to St George’s with his big sister Diedre. Rotten little punk. One of the worst trolls in the online “My Little Pony” fandom too.’‘He bullies us all the time,’ said Thos.‘Well, dangle the name “Eulalie” in front of him. That’s his username on all the major MLP forums. Not sure he’d like that info getting out at Eton.’ Here she thumped me on the back. ‘Well done, Sailor Moon, you gave him the punishment that he sorely needed.’‘Oh, but I couldn’t have done it without…’I turned towards the stone wall. Of course, Tuxedo Mask had already biffed off. Probably to go hunt down the Silver Imperium Crystal or something.

***

Now that the drama had wound down, we finally had a chance to mingle. I got to take in the costumes of Angela’s group: Honoria was some sort of giant magenta woman with sunglasses and boxing gloves; Florence looked lovely and delicate in a gossamer tutu, and gleefully swung about a rather frightening spear; while Madeline was surprisingly dressed in drag - some charming little chap by the name of Steven, I think. The craftwork of their outfits was simply matchless, and they were clearly the ones to beat for the contest.

After Time-Warping and Thriller-ing and Caramelldansen-ing the night away, as well as quaffing some questionable looking cocktails with names like Chemical X and Radioactive Sludge, it was time to announce the winners of the costume competition.Uncle Tom (sorry, the 4th Doctor) killed the music, and tapped a fork against his glass of Chemical X to call for silence.Dahlia-or-Catwoman hopped up on the coffee table, to better survey the throng. ‘The door prize goes to Winnie the Pooh, who clearly misunderstood the assignment.’Spode-the-Pooh shuffled up to grab his bag of humbugs, and Madeline-or-Steven applauded wildly.

‘The runners-up are Wario and Waluigi, who regrettably stayed true to their despicable characters all evening!’Claude and Eustace collected their swag of Quality Street and Jack Daniels, fighting over who would get to carry them.

Angela and I exchanged a tense side eye. Could one of us really have been left out?

‘And the first prize… is a joint win, between the Crystal Gems and the Sailor Senshi! Come on down, ladies!’Well, everyone pooh-poohs nepotism until they benefit from it. Angela and I joined hands, and led our respective groups to their shared moment of glory. (And after a little bartering, we agreed to let the girls take the cooking lesson, while we scored the Gamecube. I know that Angela has long been an avid fan of Anatole’s show ‘Cuisine Inferno’.)

***

After a little more merrymaking, the music changed from novelty festive monster songs to the cheesy fodder of slow dancing. As couples began to pair off and pitch woo, a thought occurred to me: where the devil had Tuxedo Mask gone?

At the very least, I wished to thank the fellow. It was anyone’s guess as to how he had picked up on Nigel-or-Pennywise’s little secret, but he had truly been my saviour.

I squeezed through the waves of slow dancers, trying to keep my eyes peeled for a top hat or a black cape. Alas, the only capes I could spy were of bright and garish hues.

I escaped to the quiet of Brinkley’s large, rambling back yard, in the hopes of getting a little air. As I ankled along the gravelled drive in my heeled boots, I couldn’t help but let a little melancholy sink in. Despite my search for Tuxedo Mask, I well knew who I really wanted to spend this night with.I reached the fountain, ornamented by Aunt Dahlia’s favoured statue of Artemis, and plonked my sorry self down upon its edge.‘Sailor Moon… we meet again.’

He emerged from behind the shadow of the trees, and I leapt right up.‘Tuxedo Mask! Ah… I really did want to thank you for your help back there. Awful solid of you, old chap.’

He did not come closer. ‘You are most welcome. I had been charged with organising the family affairs of the Earl of Rowcester. I encountered his youngest son, who proved to possess a most malicious and scheming temperament. I felt the temporary acquisition of the lad’s most prized digital information would prove a useful bargaining chip at some juncture.’‘And right you were, Tuxedo Mask! What a bally stroke of genius you…’

He stepped forward, and removed his eyemask.

‘Bertram, I am sorry that I was so intractable about tonight.’‘Oh… Good Lord… Reg, I hoped so dearly that it was you!’

I flew to his arms. And Angela, the sneaky brat, managed to get a good number of happy snaps of Sailor Bertie and Tuxedo Reg locked in a passionate embrace.

‘Reg?’‘Yes, my moonbeam?’‘Keep the cape.’

#jeeves and wooster #bertie's blog #fanfic prompts #seriously tho this is total crack