#its also funny since im old so im like the mother duck with all the little chicks wanting to go to mcdonalds

[batarangsoundsdumb]

yet another ask dump yeehaw!

do you ever think that jay's mother was one of those bitch who believes in horoscope and tarots and things like that and so he believes in these things too, or it is just me projecting?

sheila haywood took one look at jason's birthchart said 'nah this won't do' and left.

Wait, but what happens when the justice league does find out that Bruce and John fucked? Lmao it sounds like it would be hilarious, really, I don’t want a justice league that doesn’t make fun of Bruce for like his entire life.

barry runs out of the meeting immediately and comes back with an entire sti testing kit. diana fully seriously wants bruce to get tested while bruce is sitting there like 'come on guys, you're being ridiculous, i already checked twice'

john is standing in the corner clearly offended while bruce is just like 'don't even say anything, constantine, you fucked a shark'

tim was like "i'm drake now" and everyone was like ahh so your fursona is a dragon and tim was like pffffft no. ducks.

on the one hand, good for him, on the other hand, bro, how do you still have a secret identity when your superhero name is just your last name,,,,

Your fic on ao3 was GOLD PLEASE CONTINUE I loved Dinah's cameo btw ( @purple-vixen

thanks so much! i already continued but this ask is like 10 years old because i'm a notorious procrastinator (also yes! i love dinah so much aahhhhhhhhhhhh)

I've FINALLY been watching the Batman animated series and I gotta say, after watching "the gray ghost" I am CONVINCED that Batman is a closeted super hero geek who was 100% freaking out the first time he met Superman and is just REALLY good at hiding it.

bruce internally: holy fuck holy shit holy fuck holy shit holy fuck holy shit holy fuck holy shit holy fuck holy shit bruce externally: get out of my city, alien

AHHH ur multimedia fic is the only thing that brings me happiness anymore continue it forever pls

uhh thanks, but can't continue it forever because my attention span is that of a toddler on crack on a good day and i can't function without at least 10 things going on at the same time and music in the background

Oi, so I'm getting into dc and watching batman the animated series, and they use fruitcake a lot. Which I thought was very funny and wanted to share w you - Denilla

wait like fruitcake (food) or fruitcake (derogatory) ?

young justice 🤝 teen titans slut shaming batman

tim drake and dick grayson to their respective teams 'you guys stop it, that's my dad'

Happyhoganon: If an eighty year old Batman had fought crime in Gotham City for decades and the only threats to him and the city lately are a wheel chair bounded Penguin, your usual purse snatchers and a few con artists popping up every now and then, how well could the Dark Knight do in maintaining the peace in Gotham despite him being just somewhat fit to do that as an elderly man (which says A LOT given how old he is)

uhh he'll probably do what my grandpa does and that is ruthlessly prank them until they die of shame.

in the death in the family interactive movie there's an ending where Jason is tasked with raising Damian and he decides he's gonna raise Damian to take down the waynes and al ghuls which uh maybe isn't great BUT the idea of Jason raising Damian... PRICELESS. CHAOTIC. I just need more people to know about this :)

yes i saw that wow holy shit but jason would accidentally drop damian on his head one (1) hour in and jason just yeets him into the lazarus pit.

Headcanon: The Penguin has a really hard time fighting any of the Robins because of his avian obsession means there's always a small part of his mind that's like "Birb. Child. Protect" ( @subspacecadet )

as soon as dick becomes nightwing the penguin is like 'you know what, fuck this dude' and shoots at him.

Y'all talking about King Shark dating Constantine, let's not forget about John literally hooking up with Satan

listen there's a clear difference between monsterfucker and satanfucker in that king shark is literally a shark and satan still looks like a normal dude

Does everyone in Gotham think Batman is a teen dad?

everyone in gotham thinks batman has been around since gotham was founded, but they do think that bruce wayne is actually a teen father and dick grayson's biological dad.

why. why would you do that fancast when you know it will only hurt people

what? i loved my fancast it was really well done. i did it with good representation in mind and i really managed that with alfred pennyworth being ✨italian✨

Seeing james charles a jason gave me psychic damage how dare you i need to wash my eyes

well that's a you problem isn't it?

do you think dick grayson thirst tweets about nightwing just to annoy his family/cause problems on purpose in general?

he thinks nightwing is hot, next question.

holy jiminy cricket batman, its as cold as the good lords ass crack in here!!

i- what? this is why i don't fuck with english expressions it's way too goddamn weird

Brooooooo, your teen dad!Bruce au is soooo good. I've got brainrot.

Honestly if you ever write anymore, I'd read that shit twice. Sign me the fuck up. Good stuff, Good Stuff.

uh yeah i'm thinking about writing a fic, but i have exams coming up and i don't wanna fail because that would suck. but after i'll certainly be writing more tho

your teen dad AU is so great! bruce acting like a big brother for all of like a week before he's telling everyone about his son. what if in the AU dick meets the JL because they need to rescue him? maybe he's in trouble/kidnapped at a gala and bruce starts calling for JL. clark finds him and has to fly with dick to bring him home - that's how dick and clark meet and superman becomes dick's fave hero. he goes around the manor thinking he can fly with a red blanket draped around him like a cape.

actually- if you want a young dad! bruce fic with like that kinda stuff(just with damian) go check uhh- in for a penny by cdelphiki. it's really good and bruce is like 24/25-ish. (and dick's there!!!)

This account has solely convinced me that Tim is a trash goblin ( @hamilcat-and-magic-turtle )

because he is. that boy has slept in dumpsters on multiple occasions even if he is the son of a billionaire.

Okay but when you said victory dance I did think of the whole justice league defeating the big bad and then they all start flossing

well that's exactly what hal jordan does and that's why batman uses a gun now. no but the victory dance in my opinion is like the 'we're all in this together' dance from high school musical.

The horrors in Invincible s1 was nothing compared to the comics, I cant wait for s2

oh well okay, i mean i personally react to horror and violence by laughing awkwardly so i can't wait to be called a monster for accidentally laughing at a mass murder.

I'm currently watching Batman: The Brave and The Bold and- Bruce is just talking about Oliver like he's an old love (@nightwings-kid)

okay im going to watch that lmao that's totally and completely in character for him tho.

The invincible comic is like super gratuitous with its violence so much so I'm shocked the show was able to adapt it in a faithful way! Anyway had the show been live action it absolutely wouldn't have the same impact as it does as an animated show and I'm so glad so many people agree with me on that

also because a live action casting would've been like uhh amanda stenberg for amber, the dude- the guy from the supernatural but with a mustache for omni-man, and scarlet johanssen for debbie grayson

Debbie grayson is a milf, yes. You're welcome for the invincible propoganda, now you can questions your life. Bruce def seems like the perfect father next to Omni-man. Like they really took a rip off justice league and I was like well, now I'm attached even tho I was like hah I know who they're supposed to be. And then bam- death gore death gore gore gore sad Mark grayson just had to have daddy issues. Why does every character have daddy issues. I'm sick of the attacks

because daddy issues make a person arguably funnier, that's why i'm not even remotely funny (haha good dad flex). i liked that it was dark contextually, but not in the colouring, bc i hate when it's like 'uh yeah graphic murder and now a shot so dark you have to sit in a dark room and squint at the screen to faintly see the characters. (like dcau ugh)

About the Wayne insurance, for a moment I thought you would put the video with moans over the waves.

i mean- i could've done that, but rick rolling seemed more family friendly.

Its the first time in forever that im surpise rickrolled, i usually expect it. Congratulations (i really should know better this is tumblr)

i get rickrolled so often but i actually like the song so i dont really give a fuck

Actually, my information about Damian and John's kids is outdated because it was revealed that the old men telling the kids stories about the Supersons were actually Jon and Damian the whole time. I was blinded by my thirst for Grandpa!Bruce Wayne but I was wrong... I liked my version better, tbh (@artemisa97)

fair enough. but i'd honestly like to see damian and jon getting together, just because it's a really fun dynamic and their friendship was really cute when they were kids. (also idk maybe it would be nice to have one (1) main batfam/superfam character that's not cishet)

How am i JUST finding your blog skdskfkd you're so fucking funny and ur takes are hot

i thought u were calling me hot :( but youre not :( crime detected (but lmao thanks)

So I have depression and I swear that your memes are one of the few things that have made me laugh so thank you 💛🥺 (@katekanebadass)

aw you're welcome, and i hope you're doing okay!

The metropolis memes are so funny, I love them 💀😌

i think metropolis is also so fucking funny it deserves more attention imagine having your entire police force being upstaged by an alien from kansas and his kids

as an american i feel your complete lack of knowledge of us geography is just so sexy (platonic) ❤️

thanks so much (i also don't know any other geography, i'm not kidding, like you can tell me you're from hungary and it will just blank, there will be nothing that comes to mind)

In the DC universe they don't say "Can't have shit in Detroit" they say "Can't have shit in Gotham"

this just reminds me of that guy whose porch got stolen like the steps to his door, and i'm thinking of people living in gotham and waking up without a front door and going "can't have shit in gotham"

honestly all i know about chicago is the bean, so. what would gotham's famous sculpture be?

gigantic gargoyle statue in front of one of the police precincts because a villain thought it was a smart way to keep the police inside, but it's too heavy to move.

why tf do people go on about how batman "works alone" or how he's the "lone wolf" when he like 38290202 members in his family

bc people think it's cool that a grown man in his 30s has no friends or family instead of calling it what it is (sad)

Bruce is gotham's sugar daddy

why would say something so controversial yet so brave.

my favorite batfamily fanfictions are the ones where they use their shitty codenames, unironically, in any context

dick: gerard way are you in position, gerard way are you in position

tim: for the last fucking time, my codename is 'totally not count olaf' this week, abbafan 3000

dick: shut up my codename isn't 'abbafan 3000'

dick: it's 'abbafan number 1' and you know it

I have a feeling Tim drake is ur favourite batfamily member but okay u don't have favs if u say so ok

i mean he is, i won't deny it. but i love each and every one of the batfam just the same, i just have a weak spot for short dumbass nerds, because i'm a short dumbass nerd.

Omg i fuckin love boy meets world too fam shsjkfk

bro boy meets world was the shit!!! it was just fire and awesome and so fucking great like bro. it was so good im not even going to be accepting criticism

you know I find the whole "joker completes batman" thing a bit disgusting considering the horrendous stuff the batfamily went through because of the joker and let's not get started on the "joker has a point" thing like yeah he's this cool complex villain but he's absolutely batshit crazy

like yes! i get what you mean the joker just fucking sucks man he doesn't do shit for batman's character or the batfam he's literally just annoying as fuck. like the joker has a point' shit is so stupid. i will accept 'magneto was right' because he fucking was and i think he didn't do anything wrong, but joker? he's just like that. he's not even cool and complex he's just a weirdo with a bleach kink at this point.

ALSO YOUR RACISM POST- SO TRUE BESTIE

thanks bestie, i'm glad you agree.

in today's essay of why I think cass should become batman- I was thinking Tim would probably be the most efficient batman in many ways but I also think he wouldn't want to be batman tbh none of the batfamily members would want to be batman because they're trying to outgrow him but cass is the one who wants to represent the symbol that is batman

absofuckinglutely i will say it again and again that cass represents the batsymbol more than anyone in the batfam, in batgirl (2000) she literally didn't care about anything else than bruce's oath to not kill, she thought the batsymbol was more important than anything in gotham. she's just an excellent character because her motivation to not kill is not 'i'm scared i can't come back from it' or 'well my dad says no murder so i'll go along with it' but that she's killed somebody as a young child and she never wants to kill a human ever again and that's so fucking beautiful for a new batman like yes.

need more cass, duke and tim inclusion in gothamite memes

yes yes, a tall order of cass, duke and tim coming up in 1-14 business days

oldest to youngest batfam members cus I'm confused as shit

okay order of being taken in: dick, jason, tim, cass, damian, duke order of age: alfred, bruce, dick, cass, jason, tim, duke, damian (though cass and jason are around the same age general consensus is that cass is a little older)

I'm so confused Steph is a redhead?? like how was it that hard to get this right? the source material is literally right there and free

cw is jared, 19

do you receive anon hate? if so, how do you deal with it

uh no, i'm not remotely popular enough to get anon hate and i also don't say a lot of things that would attract anon hate, but i do send anon hate to @the-real-peter-parker because he forgot about the specialists from winx club

Wait how many languages do you speak??

uhh- 5 if you include latin, but that's a dead language and i'm really bad at it. but english, my native language, german, and french also, tho german and french not fluently.

You can mix aguaepanela with aguardiente 😈 and is tasty

okay but now i'm curious if the liquor deserves the 😈 emoji or if that's a you problem. but i googled it and it looks like something you'd take one sip of and then not remember the rest of your evening.

#i love all of you guys so much thanks for all these asks #some of these are literally from march but fuck it #the day tumblr puts dates next to anon messages is the day i close my inbox crawl into a hole and die #it's such a basic task to answer asks but i don't want to bother anyone with asks clogging up their timeline #and if i don't have a funny or good answer i'm like 'uhh okay won't answer it now then' #so this is for you #also i deleted a few asks because it gives me mental pain to see my inbox go over 50 and it's almost at 100 #i was complaining about having too many asks to the-real-peter-parker like months ago and then i had 45 asks in my inbox #now it's amassed to going over 100 twice #but no i love all of you and you're great and you're all fantastic and i lvoe you #muchos kiss kiss #kiss kiss for my kiddies lvoe you #invincible spoilers #dc #dcu #dc comics #ask #anon #bataranswers #i really wanna try aguapanela now i'm gonna see if i can find panela somewhere and review it for you babes #uh yeah that's it #muchos gracias for all your questions babes

[yoongis-scooter]

senior year, but make it infected

pairing: yoongi x reader (yoongi seems to be in high demand so imma just keep writing for him until 1) someone requests another member or 2) i write something good that’s with another member lol)

word count: 1,029

genre: highschool!au, best friends!au (you n yoongles reminisce about your senior year) (also tried to make it funny but im not funny so)

warnings: this involves covid-19 and essentially how high school seniors are being effected by that so if that upsets you/triggers you don’t read! also there’s a couple swear words

authors note: hi y’all!!! i am/was a senior this year so i’ve def been reminiscing on my high school memories n such :’) also a lil fun fact!! all the stories told in this fic are inspired by things that have actually happened to me lolol but yea!! i hope you enjoy!!

new cases of covid-19 confirmed!

restaurants shutting down do to covid-19!

CDC recommends that citizens stay quarantined!

that’s all your news feed had been for weeks now. you feel awful for everyone that’s been affected, sure, but you find it hard to care now that your last few months of your teenage years have been infected with this god forsaken disease.

you’re mother told you that you were being over dramatic, and that it’s time you start letting go and start thinking about your future. maybe she was right, but you weren’t having it. 

you sit at your desk that’s placed by your window. it overlooks your front yard and you can see all the people that walk by throughout the day. some wearing masks, some not. many move away from the people they see walking towards their direction in silent fear, but they still said a polite hello to not seem too rude.

the time on your phone reads 1:18 AM in little white lettering. you and yoongi had been on the phone with each other since 11, and the call showed no signs of ending any time soon. these nighttime calls with yoongi were a regular occurrence now that the two of you can’t see one another every day at school. the two of you live only about a 10 minute walk away from each other, but your parents were so caught up in the news that they wouldn’t let you leave. so facetime calls would have to suffice until this all blows over.

you’re drawing little doodles on your notepad while you and yoongi talk about miscellaneous things. you look out of your window briefly and notice a lone duck waddling it’s way into your yard. he wanders for a couple minutes while you and yoongi continue talking. you watch him for a minute and then go back to your doodles.

“don’t even get me started on mrs.jung, i can pull up her mugshot at any moment so she better watch how much work she gives us” yoongi babbles. you had accidentally brought up the sore subject of the teacher, knowing how much she gets on yoongis nerves. sometimes you’ll do it just to watch get mad. what can you say, its cute.

“wait she really got arrested? i just thought that was a rumor”

“yea, it happened in like 2013 i thi-”

HONK HONK HONK HONK

your head shoots up, spotting the duck running around your yard and honking like the world was going to end. 

“what the fuck is that?” he asks, looking at your equally as confused expression through the phone screen. you groan loudly, but for some reason the obnoxious honking triggers a memory, and you start smiling a little. yoongi, still very confused, speaks up.

“can you like, not do that? it’s creepy” yoongi said, slightly disgusted by your sudden change in behavior.

“do you remember that one time jungkook was drunk off his ass and he could stop telling us facts about canadian geese?” you beamed, looking at yoongi through your camera. the memory brings a smile onto his face too.

“oh my god... i do. and hoseok was really freaked out because jungkook has never even left the country” yoongi hummed, the both of you now grinning like idiots.

this leads you into a rabbit holes of funny moments that had happened in your friend group.

like the one time you, taehyung, and namjoon had spent 20 minutes painting jesus’ ass to perfection in art history class and then realized you only had 10 minutes to finish the actual assignment but ended up just turning in the ass anyway

like the one time jungkook found one of your head bands on your bedroom floor and put it on like a tube top, then proceeded to prance around your house chanting california girls by katy perry

like the one time your class had taken a trip to washington d.c. and had gotten a chance to attend the changing of the guard ceremony at arlington cemetery, but when all of you got there, namjoon forgot to put his phone on silent so his ringtone started blaring during the what was supposed to be quiete ceremony

the laughter that had been coming from the both of you had finally calmed down and the two of you caught your breath. the both of you still had large smiles on your faces.

“i can’t believe i’m about to say this, but i actually think i’m gonna miss high school” you sigh, looking down at your floor. 

“yea... i mean we’re still going to see each other though. we’re literally going to the same college (y/n)” yoongi chuckles, wanting to tease you but he holds back, because he feels the exact same way. 

“oh shit” yoongi whispers.

“what?”

“it’s 3 in the morning”

you look at the time and yoongi is in fact correct. the numbers read a bright 3:07 AM and you grimace at the thought of having to get up tomorrow.

“well i think it’s time that i hit the hay. i recommend you do the same, (y/n), would hate to see bags under your eyes tomorrow” yoongi joked, and if he were right in front of you, you would’ve flicked him on his forehead.

“shut up! i’ll talk to you tomorrow?” you ask hopefully. and he confirms with an echoed tomorrow.

you throw yourself onto your bed and start looking at old pictures in your camera roll. you miss your friends, and you would give anything to just be in the same room with them again. 

you begin gathering all sorts of photos into a file. the folder consists of any and every stupid memory and greatest accomplishment that the eight of you shared throughout your four years of high school. you share it with them and finally shut your eyes, dreaming about seeing your best friends again.

when yoongi wakes up the next morning he sees the notification from the photo album you humorously titled ‘senior year, but make it infected.’ he chuckles at your amateur attempt to be funny

“what a fuckin’ sap”

#bts fanfiction #bts fanfic #bts fluff #bts drabble #bts one shot #bts imagine #yoongi #min yoongi #suga #yoongi fluff #yoongi fanfic #yoongi fanfiction #yoongi x reader #yoongi oneshot #yoongi imagine #yoongi drabble

[quinlin-blog1]

Blurb from What’s It Like

Axel Fletcher was a nine year old boy. He had brown eyes that were full of life and messy brown hair to match. He lived with his Mother and Father and his two siblings, both were girls.

Axel went to school like any other child would do, he did his homework, he got good grades and he even helped the Kindergartners with their lunches. But like any other child, Axel also got bullied.

It was always during break, Axel had just finished helping the Kindergarten class and he would make his way outside to the playground. Axel’s favorite spot on the playground, was under the slide. Not many kids went there because they were too busy playing on the swings or on the slide itself. All break, this was where Axel would sit, happily coloring in his drawing book, oblivious of the other children.

This obliviousness left Axel when two eighth grade boys came up to him. These two boys were known throughout the entire playground as the bullies and if you see them, you’d best avoid them. But unfortunately for Axel, today, he didn’t see them coming.

Axel was using an orange coloring pen, to color in the bill of the duck on the page, when suddenly the pen was ripped from his hands and a muddy, scuffed boots stepped right on his picture.

“Hey!” Axel exclaimed.

It was in the moment that Axel chose to look up at whoever had ruined his picture, expecting and hoping for it to be a kindergartener, playing around with him like they had done moments before, but not today.

“Watch it Shrimp!” The first boy told Axel as he snapped the coloring pen in his beefy hands.

Axel looked at the two boys, hoping that maybe he could just disappear and they would never see him again.

“Hey! We were talking to you Shrimp!” The second boy exclaimed.

Axel looked around the playground for a teacher, even another student that may help him, but the playground had been deserted. There wasn’t a teacher or student in sight. Now Axel really wish he was invisible.

The one boy watched ass Axel’s glance fleeted to his picture, so the older boy picked up the drawing and laugh a loud, fake laugh.

“What’s this supposed to be? Roadkill?”

Tears jumped to Axel’s eyes and he quickly looked away, hoping that the bullies wouldn’t see him crying and pick on him even more.

But luck, just didn’t like Axel today.

The first boy pulled Axel up by the collar of his shirt and then shoved Axel down to the hard gravel ground again. Axel could feel tiny pebbles sticking into the palms of his hands and his back and bum hurt from the harsh impact, but Axel didn’t cry, not again, he didn’t want to be weak in front of the older boys.

Once again, Axel was picked up by his collar and the second boy hung him on the edge on the railing for the slide, high enough to make sure that Axel’s feet didn’t touch the ground.

Axel thrashed and kicked, hoping that if he moved enough he would get unhooked, but looking down at the ground, it seemed much farther away than it had before and suddenly Axel didn’t want to fall, nor did he want to stay hooked on that railing. The two boys stepped back and started laughing cruelly, really, Axel didn’t see what was so funny. Why would you laugh at someone who’s stuck and can’t get down? But it was the mind of a big boy, as much as Axel tried, he didn’t understand how an eighth grader thought and didn’t think he ever would.

Now Axel was just hanging limply in the air, trying to hold his head up although it felt like his head weighed a million pounds. His legs were beginning to go numb and Axel already couldn’t feel his fingers. His back was getting cold from the light wind, the back of his shirt was stretching awkwardly and to make matters worse, the bell rang.

The bell rang, this meant that the other children would be coming out from wherever they had been playing and would see Axel hanging there. They were bound to laugh at him. He was going to get teased, laughed at and people would never let Axel live this day down.

But one good thing would come out of this, maybe a teacher would see.

‘Maybe they’ll get expelled’ Axel thought bitterly ‘maybe they’ll have to do community service.’

As children filled the school yard once more, Axel became aware of how many students there really were, there were hundreds. And they were all standing there, laughing at him.

Well most of them were, the only ones that weren’t were the ones that thought practical jokes were silly and a waste of time, but these children wouldn’t voice their thoughts, nor would they help poor Axel down from his perch, so really, Axel would remain there.

It was when a teacher came five minutes later that Axel finally got down. For the rest of the day, Axel kept his head down, hoping that his classmates wouldn’t tease him too harshly. The end of the day couldn’t have come quicker in Axel’s mind. As soon as the bell rang, Axel was out of his seat, grabbing his backpack and putting his coat on, soon Axel was running out the front doors of the school, ignoring the other people that were snickering and pointing.

The bus ride home wasn’t eventful. Axel sat in the seat closest to the driver hoping that no one would throw paper wads at him if he did this. But instead, kids just spat spit balls at the back of his neck and called out mean things. No matter how hard, Axel couldn’t shut it all out.

So when the bus reached his stop, Axel jumped up and ran out towards his home.

Axel opened his front door, took off his coat and shoes, dumped his backpack on the ground and ran up to his bedroom. He knew that his parents weren’t home yet, his mother was visiting his aunt in Florida whilst his father was at work. The babysitter was going to be there soon so Axel only had a few moments to himself.

In those moments, Axel decided that he was going to go hide himself in the attic and not come out for the rest of the day. In his mind, it made sense, he didn’t want to be bothered and no one went into the attic anyway, so Axel grabbed his favorite comic books, a few packages of crackers from the kitchen and pulled the ladder down. The attic was dusty, as attics are, in one corner there were boxes of old Christmas decorations that would not be taken out for another few months, in another corner there was a box that was labeled “Axel’s Baby stuff” and there was a clutter of other random boxes around the attic.

Axel found a folder out chair in one of the many boxes and unfolded it next to the grimy window. Looking out of the dirty glass pane, Axel could see the other houses on the street, cars driving, most likely filled with children from school, there were dogs running on the street, cats sitting on fences and leaves blowing from the trees. It was truly beautiful. Now that Axel cared. The beauty of the outside world never really struck Axel and he never understood why his mother was always talking about how amazing nature was.

Huffing, Axel sat back in the chair and watched as the sun slowly went down behind the clouds and down onto the horizon. He could hear his babysitter downstairs, calling for him, telling him that it was dinner, but Axel wasn’t hungry and he was pretty sure that if he tried to eat, it wouldn’t end well.

So Axel stayed in the chair, in the attic, looking out the window, watching as the sky faded into oranges and pinks and yellows, then as sit faded into a dark blue and black. The stars had come out by the time that Axel heard this front door opening, alerting him that his mother and father had returned home and his babysitter was leaving.

Something glittered in the sky and Axel looked up. It was a star, just like the other stars, but this one was special somehow. It was brighter, bigger and Axel could’ve looked at it all night long.

“If you wish on a star, maybe it will come true”

Axel remembered the words his mother had told him when he was young, of course Axel didn’t believe any of that nonsense at the time nor did he now, but it was worth a try.

So Axel closed his eyes, took a deep breath and thought to the star.

“I wish I was invisible. I wish that I was invisible and no one would ever know where I was. I wish that I was invisible so that I will never get teased again”

With that last thought, Axel opened his eyes and looked at his hands. When he realized that they were still there, he sighed.

Axel folded that chair up once more and put it back in its box, making sure that he put the box exactly where he found it, because he didn’t want his mother to be cross with him and then Axel went down the ladder.

“Axel! You didn’t eat your dinner” Axel’s Mother stated as he walked into the sitting room. She’d returned earlier that day.

“I’m not hungry” Axel said quietly.

“The Sitter said that you’ve been up in the attic since you got home from school. Did you need something?” Axel’s father asked.

Axel simply shook his head “I thought I would find my Soldier toy up there, but I couldn’t find him” Axel lied.

“Well I’m sure he’ll turn up. Now, go eat your dinner, I’ve just warmed it up and then go straight to bed” His mother ordered.

So Axel went and sat at the table and slowly ate his cold dinner. The chicken didn’t taste good, the potatoes were dry and his broccoli were mushy, all in all, Axel was excited to go to bed. Once he had finished his dinner, Axel put his plate in the sink, kissed his mother and father good night, then went up to the bathroom to brush his teeth.

As he did this, Axel wondered why his wish hadn’t worked.

‘Did I do it wrong? Was I missing something? Maybe the star needed some food and maybe it would have answered my wish if I had given it some chicken. Do stars eat chicken? Do stars eat at all?’

All these thoughts went through Axel’s mind as he finished brushing his teeth and he climbed into his warm bed.

Grabbing his stuffed bear, Axel closed his eyes and the last thing he saw was the star, before he fell asleep.

The next Morning Axel woke up dreading school. He didn’t want to go and he buried himself deeper into his covers, hoping that the world would disappear and school would cease to exist. But reality came to him when his babysitter called up the stairs to him, saying that it was time to go to school.

So Axel begrudgingly got out of his bed and trudged over to his cupboard, where he quickly got dressed, put on his shoes on, brushed out his hair and grabbed his backpack and ran down the stairs, where his sitter was holding his lunch.

“Turkey and Cheese, with no mayo and extra ketchup” His sitter recited.

Axel smiled a fake smile and took the paper bag out of the baby sitter’s hands.

“Thank you” He said before rushing out the door.

But as soon as he did, Axel felt a sudden wave of dizziness surround him, stumbling for a moment, Axel blinked the spots dancing in front of his eyes away and he continued to walk to the bus stop. He was hesitant when he saw that there were other kids standing there, he didn’t want to be made fun of because of what had happened yesterday, but when he arrived at the bus stop, no one greeted him, no one said hi, or asked him how he was, no one teased him, no one even looked at him. This relieved Axel, he waited at the bus stop in peace, and no one spoke to him, which was alright with Axel because he didn’t really know any of them.

When the bus arrived, Axel was the first to get on, he sat in the front row where no one else joined him.

In wasn’t a very long drive to school, around five minutes if the stops to pick up the other children weren’t long. During this short time, Axel looked out the window and waited to get to school, still dreading what might await him.

But finally the bus stopped at Axel’s school and all the children got off the bus, Axel going last, hoping to get lost in the crowd, but nobody noticed him.

Everything went normally, Axel went to his locker cubby, placed his coat and backpack in it, and then walked to class, where Axel sat at his desk, waiting for all the other children to join him.

Soon enough, the classroom slowly filled with other children and Axel’s teacher began roll call.

Considering the first letter in Axel’s name was A, his name was quite near the beginning of the list.

“Axel” His teacher called out

“Here!” Axel replied like always. But his teacher didn’t hear him.

“Axel?”

“Here!”

But once again, poor Axel wasn’t heard.

“He wasn’t on the bus today. Maybe he’s sick?” One of the other children suggested

“But I’m right here!” Axel protested, getting up out of his seat.

Axel walked over to his teacher and waved his hand in front of their face, but it was like Axel was invisible.

Then the thought hit Axel. He had wished on the start that he could be invisible, he woke up this morning and he wasn’t.

‘But then I got very dizzy when I walked out the front door’ Axel reminded himself ‘Maybe I’m only invisible when I’m not in my home’

This made Axel very happy. He could do whatever he wanted to and not have to worry about anybody seeing him.

Grinning to himself, Axel made his way silently (Although no one could hear him) out of the classroom and down the hall to find the grade eight class.

Inside this classroom, was a grade eight class learning about biology, and the two bullies from the day before were there as well.

Axel slowly walked into the classroom and sat in the teacher’s chair, watching ass the teacher explained bird physiology. Axel played with the things lying on the teacher’s desk, things like tack and erasers and confiscated phones. The class seemed to drag on forever in Axel’s mind and he was sure that some of the other students felt the same way. Some of them were staring blankly at the chalk board, other were napping with their heads tucked onto their desks, while there were very few writing down every word the Teacher was saying, whether it be important or not.

From what Axel gathered, the teacher was both telling a story about a bird and telling a story about his childhood, both were equally boring. Axel looked around the classroom for anything he could mess with and his eyes came into contact with the other chalk board. The one the teacher wasn’t writing on. One this chalk board was the date, the eighth grade lessons for that day, reminders about a math test on Wednesday and an old game of tic-tac-toe. Grinning, Axel made his way over to this board and picked up the chalk board eraser. Axel raised the Eraser and began to wipe away the words and numbers written there. Slightly paranoid, Axel kept looking over his shoulder to see if any of the students had seen him, but no one had, in fact Axel had remained invisible to the entire class.

Soon, Axel had wiped the entire chalkboard clean of the writing and he picked up a piece of blue chalk, grinning a Cheshire Cat grin. Axel put the chalk to the board and began drawing a giant wobbly picture. As he drew, the picture turned out to be a picture of a volcano, a blue volcano with pink lava flooding from the top. Personally, if you were to ask Axel, he’d say it was the best Volcano he had ever drawn. As Axel moved on to draw a spaceship hovering in the sky by the volcano, he realized that he was too short to reach the place he needed to. So Axel walked over to a stack of spare chairs in the corner and picked one up. Looking around Axel realized that surely someone would notice a floating chair being walked across the classroom.

Ignoring those thoughts Axel began to carry the chair to his old spot in front of the chalk board. To his shock, no one saw him.

Shrugging, Axel began to draw the Millennium Falcon from Star Wars.

AS he drew, Axel heard a grunt as one of the students woke up, yet he ignored this noise and continued to draw. Suddenly, the classroom erupted into whispers and chatter and the teacher stopped his droning.

“What is the matter?” He asked

One of the eighth grade students pointed to the chalk board and the teacher looked over and let out a shriek.

The author is sure that you would too if you saw a floating piece of chalk drawing a picture of a spaceship.

“What is this!?” The teacher demanded.

“The classroom is haunted!” One girl cried out

Grinning again, Axel put the chalk down, causing several children to squeal and look around to look for him. Axel went over to one of his bullies from yesterday and began playing with his hair.

“What’s happening!?” His friend exclaimed as Axel put a pencil in the boy’s ear.

As the cherry on the cake, Axel went over to the chalk board with the teachers writing and wrote, in giant letters. BOO!

Everyone in the classroom began to scream and they jumped from their seats out of the classroom, the teacher close behind them.

Axel was doubled over in fits of laughter as he listened to the class freak out in the hallways.

‘That was fun’ Axel thought to himself ‘What should I do now?’

As a response to that, Axel’s stomach rumbled and Axel happily skipped to the classroom, giggling as he passed the grade eight class. In the cafeteria, the lunch lady was scooping things into bowls, getting ready for lunch which happened to be very soon. Axel walked over and grabbed a piece of a turkey sandwich, which had been put on a plate not moments before. When the lunch Lady turned around and saw a sandwich missing she looked around and picked up a cleaver.

“Come here ya vermin, try it!” She then began to run around the cafeteria, trying to find the “Mice” that had stolen the sandwich.

The day went by too quickly for Axel’s liking. During the next few hours, he had thrown cheese strings at the Secretary, Poured water on the head of his French teacher, whom he thoroughly disliked, given flowers to the girl that he had a tiny crush on and sat in the principal’s office, while spinning on the Principal’s chair.

The bus ride home was pretty boring compared to the rest of the day, he stood at the very front, not sat, stood and waited to get off. When he got off the bus, he ran home and stopped at his porch.

‘If I go into my house, will I reappear?’ He asked himself. ‘Well I’ll have to go in sometime’

So Axel took a step forwards and walked into his house.

“Hey Axel” His babysitter said “How was school?” She looked over at his, smiling lightly.

Axel grinned and set his bag down “Oh you know, pretty boring”

#superpowers #wishes #kids #school #humor #comedy #invisibility #short stories #fantasy #imagination

[ofstaffs]

rerek 2

rey rey immediately stepped away, a heartbroken expression taking over her already distraught features. derek clearly didn't trust them together. she didn't want him to be mad at her anymore. instead she backed up even more before stumbling towards where derek had gone, eventually finding him by the bar. "what did i do now?" she asked tiredly, still not able to look into his eyes.

Derek: It had nothing to do with trust or distrust and everything to do with the fact that even after proposing, even after promising his entire life to her, it still wasn't good enough - Rey had purposely kept their engagement from Steve and had acted like she was delivering both regretful and bad news when she'd told him. There were still feelings there, and it killed him that they were so obvious. He shook his head in response to Rey's question, arms crossed over his chest and not looking at her. "Are you in love with him?" he asked, voice distraught and confused, but not accusatory, more upset than blaming. "Because if you are, just get it out of the way now. Just tell me."

rey rey closed her eyes slowly then inhaled a slow, deep breath, letting it out as she managed to bring her exhausted eyes up to his own, though her hands were still clutching fearfully at the skirt of her dress. "no..." she whispered truthfully with an even tone. "are there still feelings there? yes. will i ever act on them? absolutely not. i didn't tell him because i didn't want to upset him on his wedding night, but that didn't go so well. anything else?" she raised one eyebrow then crossed her arms in return, trying to match his own firmness, though it was more adorable than anything.

rey joined the chat 26 hours ago

Derek: Ugh sorry we're figuring out how to get home

rey: haha its oka

rey: y

rey: ill be here

Derek: Derek wasn't sure he believed her, and he hated himself for it. It was just on the tip of his tongue to ask her - quite harshly, really - if Steve's /wife/ knew about their feelings for each other, but he swallowed the words down and sighed a hard breath out through his nose instead, ducking his head and taking more deep breaths to steady himself. He didn't want to fight. He was so tired of fighting. He couldn't comprehend what it must be like to love someone without complications. "Are you ready to go home?" he asked, voice matching the challenge that had been in Rey's. Apparently he hadn't quite gotten out of the clear; but at least he'd gotten away from talking about Steve.

rey rey just gave a single nod and tightened her sweater around herself before tilting her chin up then turning and walking away without waiting for him, trying her best to look defiant. but it wasn't really working. she stopped in place and looked around before ducking her head then quickly moving back to him, grasping onto his arm. "i-i don't know which way to go from here," she admitted sheepishly, voice lacking the stubbornness it'd contained before.

rey: ✍

rey: WHY DID THAT HAPPEN AGAIN JFC

Derek: Derek finished his beer and set his glass down then turned back to Rey-... Who seemed to have walked off without him. He rolled his eyes - if she was going to get defensive and irritated by his completely justifiable concern about her feelings for and relationship with another man, she was within her right to do that. But it didn't mean that he had to put up with it. He followed behind a ways, hesitantly approaching when she stopped. It surprised him when she took his arm, and he looked at her for a long quiet moment before continuing on, arm in arm with her down the road.

Derek: Lol no idea. It's funny

rey rey's stomach was still churning. it had been since the confrontation with ben and steve, and she knew it was all thanks to the exhilaration. she wrapped one arm around her front and continued to hold on tightly to his arm as they walked, though she was staring up at him sadly. they were well out of the meadow by the time she finally spoke up. "...i'm sorry i made you mad, derek... i promise i'll try to stop feeling this way about steve... i just want to make you happy," she murmured as if it were the most simple concept in the world then tucked her head against his arm and looked forward again.

Derek: Derek didn't mind silence. He was wondering what was going through Rey's mind the entire time, but he didn't much feel like talking, nevermind about everything that had happened, whether tonight or ever. "It's fine," he said passively, not really sounding like he meant it. "I just don't want to think about it anymore." He was going to put another ring on her finger and promise her his life, his whole world, and she couldn't even promise him her entire heart. Sighing, he turned them down another street in the direction of the apartments.

rey rey looked up swiftly again as she caught his tone, cheeks immediately paling. without even thinking about it, tears filled her eyes as her lip began to tremble, but she quickly faced away from him before he could see, even though she knew he'd probably find out anyway. still the nausea increased, especially due to his hollow, empty words. slowly, she stopped in place, letting her arm slip from his, as she turned her back to him completely, hand clasping over her mouth. she didn't know what would come out: a sob or sickness, so she just leaned over slightly and kept her hand over her mouth, hating the way they were acting.

Derek: Derek stopped when Rey did, brows furrowed as he watched her turn away and then curl into herself - he'd seen her fold in on herself when she was upset, but he felt that this had come on so quickly. He touched her arm as he stepped up next to her, surreptitiously pulling the pain as he looked at her face. Nausea swept through him, making him queasy for a minute. "What's wrong?"

Derek: I wish this fuxking thing notifications

rey rey glanced to the side just enough to see black running up his veins, and immediately pushed his hand off, shaking her head swiftly. "no..." she whined, not wanting him to do that for her. she deserved it. she'd made him unhappy and this was what she got for it. she stood up straight and moved in front of him, taking small gasps of breath. "i-i'm s-...." sick? sorry? "...s-scared of you leaving, don't leave, please..." she begged through her tears, holding her hand over her mouth again as she looked fearfully up into his eyes.

rey: on a computer it does

rey: it has sound notifications

rey: but i reply fast haha

Derek: "I'm scared of you leaving, too!" Derek pointed out with no small amount of irony and exasperation in his voice. "I'm scared of you cheating on me, I'm scared of you not being happy with me, I'm scared of you leaving me for him." His shoulders were rising and falling whxg as he spoke. "But that's what love is! That's what being with someone you care about is like! Constantly worrying that they're gonna find someone better than you, someone they deserve, because you want the best for them!" He ran both hands through his hair, looking just shy of pacing. "I'm not going anywhere! Jesus Christ, Rey. You think I'd give you my mother's ring and then leave because of shit with Steve? I'd never give him the satisfaction."

rey: yeet i hope this turns into fluff soon

Derek: It will

Derek: also

Derek: I am so so sleepy

Derek: *rapidly JFC were my she's even open when I typed that

Derek: EYES

Derek: FUCK ME

rey rey gasped sharply when he shouted, stumbling back immediately and clasping both hands over her mouth, as her jaw dropped. she just stared at him in disbelief as her tears continued to fall, stepping back again. what had happened to them? they'd been so happy in paris, and then suddenly... it seemed as if something had snapped. she'd never act on the extremely minor feelings she had for steve. derek had to know that. but obviously he didn't. "i'm sorry..." she sobbed helplessly and stumbled back yet again, not knowing what else she could do to make him not yell at her anymore. "p-please stop..."

rey: i hate timezones ugh

rey: ill be 3 hours ahead of you when you get back ;/

Derek: Ugh fuck that

rey: but ill stay up 4 u i promise

Derek: I'm so sorry I've been conking out so early. My mom fucking runs me ragged. I usually only walk like half a mile a day just in everyday life and we've done like 7, in shitty shoes, in the heat the past couple of days. I'm so wrecked.

rey: it's okay bb

rey: ill probs just re-read old rerek threads rip

Derek: He did stop, his chest rising and falling with the harshness of his breathing as he looked at her. He'd scared her, badly, and he hated himself for it. He just hadn't know how else to get out those feelings, to make her understand them. "I'm sorry," he mittered, turning to the curb and dropping down to sit, elbows on his knees and his head hung. He just wanted to be happy. He just wanted them to be happy.

rey as derek sat on the curb, rey felt a massive urge to make herself feel smaller than him, so she took a seat on the road where she had been standing and tucked her knees to her chest. she buried the lower half of her face in her kneecaps and stared down at the asphalt beneath her, crying silently to herself. she didn't want to be afraid... but when he yelled like that... nothing terrified her more. even snoke. even being alone on jakku for fifteen more years.

rey was timed out 12 hours ago

rey joined the chat 2 hours ago

Derek joined the chat 31 minutes ago

rey: rip they just arrested derek im so emo

Derek: womp

Derek: He looks so good in that scene tho

rey: he rly does

rey: the beard makes all the difference lbr

Derek: tru it makes him look so much older

rey: i love it

Derek: Derek hid his face in his hands; he didn't want to be angry about this anymore. He didn't want to feel frusrated with and upset at Rey, and he hated the way she seemed so scared of him, like she genuinely believed he would hurt her. He never would. He'd never raise a hand against her. He clenched his eyes shut as he took deep breaths to steady himself before he could get up and approach Rey, crouching down next to her and hesitantly, gently, touching her shoulder. "I'm sorry," he said quietly, leaning in towards her. "I'm sorry I shouted. I'm just.... Frustrated. I want our relationship to be symmetrical and it doesn't feel that way, and that's hard for me to deal with. But I love you - more than anything, Rey - and nothing is going to change that. Ever."

rey rey couldn't help but duck away slightly when derek placed his hand on her shoulder, wincing softly, but took slow, deep breaths and wiped at her eyes then finally looked up into his, her worry evident. more tears fell as he spoke, and she furrowed her eyebrows in confusion slightly. "you-you do...?" she whispered, tone genuinely surprised. she really was scared that he'd stopped loving her simply because of this stupid steve problem. something she couldn't help. she thought being honest about it would be better, that he'd help her get over him, but it had all backfired. "i-i love you s-so much... so much..."

Derek: "Of course I do," he said, a note of bemusement in his tone. As if something like this could just erase the entirety of their relationship, erase everything he loved so much about her. He found her left hand, holding it up between them. "I thought I made that clear when I made this particular promise." He cradled her face in his hand, looking into her eyes as he spoke. "I love you too. More than I think you realize." He wondered if she understand just how much proposing meant to him. "Can we go home now? I'm ready to just lay down with you."

rey rey's eyes drifted to her finger as more tears dripped down her cheeks, though she smiled shakily at the sight of the beautiful ring. then she met his eyes again and nodded. "y-yeah..." she whispered in agreement and wiped at her eyes again before taking his hands and standing slowly, still feeling somewhat off. "how about a massage?" she suggested with a small chuckle. the last one had just felt so darn good. "but this time i'll return the favor... i promise."

Derek: "Hey, there it is," Derek said warmly when she smiled, brushed over her cheek with the back of his thumb. "There you are." He kissed her forehead before helping her up, lacing their fingers together. "I'm more than happy to give you a massage," Derek said. "You deserve one. And I'd love one if you're up to it, but if you're not that's okay, too." He guided her by the hand around to his back, offering to give her a piggy back ride like he had after their first kiss.

rey "stop..." rey chuckled shyly when he commented on her smile, immediately turning her head away and biting her lip, though she was only smiling wider. he was too perfect. "of course i'm up for it," she replied and nodded, then giggled when he led her behind his back. she knew immediately what he was offering, so she laughed softly before carefully climbing onto his back, as if jumping would hurt him. "remember after the movie...? you gave me a ride home on your back," she chuckled, arms winding around his neck.

Derek: "As I recall," Derek said primly, "you loved it." He hooked his arms under her legs and bounced her a little so she'd move up his back into a more comfortable position. He started them back on the path home, not much of the walk remaining at that point. "You trust me?" he asked as they approached the staircase of the building that led up to their apartment.

rey "i did," rey admitted in a soft chuckle, hiding the lower half of her face in the back of his shoulder as she stared up at him. she let him readjust her on his back, complying willingly, and looked up again as they approached the staircase. her head quickly snapped towards him and she just paused before giggling nervously and holding onto him tighter. "always."

Derek: "Good. Take my hand." He held his right arm up, hand offered out to her. "And no matter what, don't let go, okay? And when I say so, just let go of everything else. Like you're jumping off. Got it?" Once her grip was sure, he gave her a, "Go!" and swung her around his body, landing her securely in his arms in a bridal carry.

rey rey quirked an eyebrow at him but slid her hand into his with a somewhat excited chuckle, keeping her grip tight. "okay..." she laughed nervously and raised her eyebrows before jumping off when he told her to, unsure of what to expect. but when she landed in his arms, she paused then began to laugh again, burying her face in her hands. "oh my goodness, that was so fun!"

Derek: Derek grinned, pleased that she'd enjoyed the little trick, and adjusted his arms slightly before heading up the stairs. "I thought you might like it," he said as they came to their landing and he fished out his keys.

rey "i always like when you carry me," rey giggled. it was true. she'd never get tired of it. when they approached the door, she turned her head to face it, but kept her arms wrapped around his neck, fingers combing through the hair at the nape of his neck.

Derek: "I noticed," Derek chuckled, carefully guided them through the door and making sure not to bump her into anything. He closed the door with his foot and carried her down the hall to their room, setting Rey down before climbing onto the bed next to her and laying on his side facing towards her.

rey rey turned her head forward again once they'd disappeared into the bedroom, smiling softly to herself. it smelled like his cologne. perfect. once he had laid her down, she kicked off her heels then curled up into a tight ball, the skirt of her dress curtaining over her legs. "you look so handsome..." she breathed out, reaching her fingers up to trace his cheekbone. "wow..."

Derek: "I look exactly the same way I did before I left for work," Derek chuckled, turning into her touch a little as he kept his eyes on hers. But he understood the sentiment - every time he went without seeing her for long, he always felt struck by how beautiful she was. "I've been looking forward to seeing you since I left."

rey rey shook her head, an adoring smile on her lips. "no... no, you always look this handsome," she whispered, dragging her thumb slowly over his lips and scooting closer as he spoke again. she smiled again and nodded her head, laying her hands in his own. "you're pretty much all of my impulse control, i think that's obvious by now... i can't get through one wedding without fighting with someone," she chuckled.

Derek: Derek hummed noncommittally as he puckered his lips just slightly, enough to press a semblance of a kiss to Rey's thumb. His arm wound around her waist, pulling her even closer until he could slip a leg between hers. "There... there was a lot going on. There's been a lot going on," he said, shrugging slightly. "You're stressed out. All that emotion's gotta come out somehow."

rey rey wrapped both of her legs around one of his and nodded in agreement, letting out a heavy sigh. "yeah..." she murmured, dragging a hand through her hair then resting it on top of her head as she closed her eyes. "yeah, i really am..." she'd never really stepped back and glanced at all her problems as a whole; always just focused on one at a time. but the list went on and on, now that she thought about it.

Derek: "We'll just... we'll find a better way for you to deal with it before it gets to that point," he said quietly, taking one of her hands and bringing it up to his mouth to gently kiss her knuckles. "At least there weren't any drink hoses involved this time," he chuckled, then laced their fingers together. "Have you, uh... have you thought about when? A date? For the wedding?"

rey rey smiled bashfully at his joke, holding his hand tightly, but easing up on her grip more and more as she relaxed. talking about the wedding made it even better. "i'm guessing tomorrow's out of the question," she teased, though she'd actually do it. she just wanted to be his wife as soon as possible. "when's the soonest we can do it? because i want to do it the day before that," she laughed softly.

Derek: Derek actually laughed out loud at that, smiling as he rolled onto his back, looking at the ceiling. "Tomorrow is out of the question," he said, "I don't think even Lydia would be able to get everything together in time." He pulled her hand over to play with her fingers. "Usually engagements are around six months long. It takes a lot of planning to put a wedding together..." He knew that wasn't what she wanted to hear, but he felt it needed to be said.

rey rey felt her jaw drop. literally. /six months/? but immediately she froze, remembering the ridicule she faced the last time for trying to rush something. "o-okay," she choked out, trying not to sound as disappointed as she actually felt. she didn't need a big wedding. she didn't care if it was just them two and someone to officiate. she didn't care. she just wanted to be married to him. but she bit the inside of her cheek and rolled over onto her back, though she let him keep her hand. her left hand, ironically enough.

Derek: "I know it's a long time," Derek said, rolling back onto his side when he felt her roll away, still holding onto her hand and playing idly with the ring on her finger. "And I know you don't want to wait. At this point.... at this point I don't really see the point, either. So we could expedite things, I'm sure. I just want everything... to be perfect. To be exactly what we want. I'm only planning on doing this once."

rey rey looked up at him when he rolled back onto his side next to her, releasing her teeth from the inside of her cheek and instead biting her bottom lip gently. a small smile tugged at the corners of her lips before she took a deep inhale then mumbled, "i know you do... but... i've lived my whole life without luxury. fifteen of those twenty years were spent with even less than a normal amount of wealth. i don't care about how many flowers there are or-or what colors the plates will be... all i care about is being your wife." but she shook her head, tugging at the hem of her shirt. "but-but if you want to wait... i can do that."

Derek: "I know you haven't," Derek said gently. It had been a topic of considerable discussion, and it was almost constantly on his mind when it came to caring for Rey, whether it was making her comfortable or buying her things or making sure she ate enough in a day. "So I... you can't blame me for wanting to celebrate us to the greatest extent that anyone in this town has ever seen." He leaned in and kissed her gently, pouring as much love and sincerity into the gesture as he could. "But I know it's important to you. we could shoot for three months?"

rey rey sniffed softly but kissed him back lovingly, placing her hand on his cheek. at the suggestion of three months, she just let out a shaky exhale but shrugged her shoulders and rolled over onto her stomach. "take my dress off...?" she whispered, face burying into the pillow. it was tight and pinchy, as much as she loved it. plus she still wanted that massage.

Derek: He could tell that it still wasn't good enough - unless he actually married her within the month, he doubted anything would be. But he knew that these things took time - they might be able to manage two months, if Derek wanted to pay an exorbitant amount for everything. The food, the decorations, the cake, the venue, the dresses, the suits, the photographer, the music... it would all take time. He quietly worked on the small clasp at the top of Rey's dress, then unzipped it all the way down to her lower back, carefully guiding her arms out of the sleeves before he pulled it down her body and off her legs gingerly.

rey rey couldn't help herself as she curled her toes into the sheets when he unzipped her dress. occasionally his fingers would ghost over her back or thighs and her heart rate would increase. which she knew he'd pick up on. once it was off, she stayed face down, but slowly tilted her head up to look at him, brown eyes full of love and passion. the pendant of her necklace had somehow slipped down the chain so that it now laid on her back in the exact same position as his tattoo. the moonlight reflected off the silver material of it, and it slid down her shoulder blade as she shifted on the sheets. "...how is it done...?"

Derek: Derek hummed quietly when Rey turned to look at him, fingers gently touching the pendant of her necklace where it sat on her back, a delicate mimicry of his own mark there. "How is what done?" he asked quietly, fingers ghosting over her back and the backs of her thighs.

rey rey stared down at the comforter, hands slowly sliding up to clasp lightly above her head, resting on the pillow. like usual. like they loved. as his fingers trailed over her skin, she began panting lightly, toes curling up again. she took another few moments before finally whispering, "how do you turn someone into a werewolf...?"

Derek: Derek's brows furrowed, a little crease appearing between them as he looked at her, hands faltering for a moment before they resumed their path, thumbs rubbing into Rey's shoulders and down her back in looping circles. "Usually it's done with a bite," he said slowly, "but people can be turned by a scratch that goes deep enough, too."

rey rey swallowed thickly and clenched her jaw, eyes slowly falling shut. his touch was irresistibly enchanting. "and you can only be turned by an alpha..." she whispered, quirking a brow then slowly returning it to its usual spot. her words were becoming breathier, more quiet, as his fingers traveled more places around her body. "...can you turn someone...?"

Derek: "Right," Derek said, fingers curling around her sides to knead over her hips, her stomach, inching up towards her ribcage. "Not anymore," he said. "I was able to, once. I turned Erica, Isaac, and Boyd. They were my betas."

rey rey hesitated before rolling over to lay on her back, gently tugging him down to meet her level. she brushed her fingers across his lips before pausing then whispering, "you want me to be safe... to be able to look out for myself..." she moved her hand down to his and dragged it up her body, taking a bit more time at her chest, before resting it on her cheek. "being like you would keep me safe."

Derek: "Of course I do," Derek said quietly, then froze, frowning a little when Rey implied that... that what? She wanted to be turned? "What? No, Rey, it's not... it's /really/ not that simple," he said, sitting up a bit, confused by what she was doing. "It's so easy to lose control when you first shift," he explained, "you could seriously hurt someone. Hurt yourself. There are people, Rey, who /hunt us/. Just because of what we are. I don't want that for you. Ever."

rey rey shook her head, purposefully averting her gaze from his. she knew there were hunters. they were in magnolia. and three of them were her best friends. not like derek knew that. "i-i could protect myself. you've done it so far, why can't i?" she asked shakily, bringing her hands down to rest over her chest. "you-you wouldn't have to worry about hurting me on the full moon. you wouldn't have to panic each time i don't answer my phone when you're at work. i-i could heal, i could fight better."

Derek: "Because I've been doing this all my life," he said desperately, wishing he could remove the thoughts from her head surgically, completely eradicate them so they'd never appear again. "You can protect yourself right now." He rubbed his eyes. "I'd have to worry about /you/ hurting someone on the full moon!" He couldn't argue with the healing or the fighting, but he didn't want to acknowledge that. "I don't know if you'd still be able to use the Force after the shift."

rey "you told me scott became in control when he was around allison. she helped him stay calm," rey whispered, placing a hand on his cheek. "derek, it could work for us... i know it could..." she shook her head and bit her lip, letting out a heavy sigh. "i don't care if i can't use it anymore. i don't care. i don't care if i have to go against alec when he's hun-" uh oh. immediately rey clasped her hands over her mouth, her eyes widening. "n-nothing..."

Derek: "That took him a while," he said, "and not everyone's anchor is the same thing." He shook his head lightly as she insisted that it could work. He didn't want this for her. He could do it for her in the first place, and he would refuse to tell her who could. His eyebrows lifted when Rey cut herself off, shaking his head again but this time for an entirely different reason. "I know Alec's a hunter," he said. "I met his sister before I met him, and she told me all about it. He told me that he doesn't hunt anything that doesn't deserve it. Including werewolves."

rey rey let out a deep breath of relief, able to snap back into her normal state of mind. at least she hadn't said dean or sam's name. she sat them both up then climbed into his lap, hair curtaining over her face as she panted heavier now. she didn't need derek's senses to tell that her heart was pounding. she could feel it against her chest. "i'm sorry..." she whispered at the ridiculousness of the whole idea. she wouldn't last a second as a werewolf. she knew that. "i-i'm not in my right mind..."

Derek: Derek sat up, hands on her waist as Rey settled into his lap, his head tipping to the side as he tried to look at her through her hair. He pushed it back behind her ears after a few moments, concern in his expression as he cradled her face. "Are you okay?" he asked, her heart pounding and her breathing coming rapid and shallow. "What's going on?"

rey too much. too much was going on. almost losing derek had just been what set it all off. but one thing... one thing had stuck with her. slowly, she tilted her head up to look into his eyes. "i spoke with lydia..." she whispered, eyebrows raising just slightly, though her fingers found his shirt to play with the material again. "she told me... she told me about your uncle... a-and i can't stop thinking about it..."

Derek: It felt like he'd swallowed a gallon of ice water when Rey said that she'd spoken to Lydia about Peter. Peter, of all people. He doubted Lydia took care to explain the nuances and difficulties of the situation. "What did she tell you?" he asked slowly, hands resting lightly on Rey's hips, as if afraid to touch her, afraid that she'd tell him not to touch her.

rey "she said... she said he controlled her... m-made her bring him back from the dead without her actually wanting to..." rey remembered, staring down at the sheets beneath them and furrowing her eyebrows, exterior softening as his hands rested on her hips. any time he touched her brought her comfort, but right now, she wanted to feel him as much as possible. "and that... she doesn't know where he is..."

Derek: "He did..." Derek said, uncertain as to whether or not Lydia had pointed out that Derek had been on the one to kill him in the first place. He was ready to justify it, to tell Rey that he'd been killing people and had no intention of stopping, but that didn't seem to be her concern. "And... no, we don't know where he is right now... Probably off licking his wounds after his last failed grab at power. But if he ever does find me, find us, I'm not going to let anything happen to you. He's not going to hurt you. I won't let him."

rey rey smiled sorrowfully, her eyes falling shut. "how do you always know what i'm thinking...?" she whispered. it felt selfish, being afraid of peter. because if he came, he'd only be out for derek. but after searching lydia's mind for memories of peter... she hadn't been able to get his vicious actions out of her mind. even now, looking into derek's memories, she saw him getting hit, getting hurt by his uncle, and it made her sick to her stomach to think of that ever happening again. she wouldn't let it. "i-i can fight him, he can't do anything against a lightsaber..."

Derek: "It's not going to come to that," Derek promised, wrapping his arms around her torso and pulling her against his chest, tucking her head under his chin. "It's not. I promise." He cradled the back of her head in one large hand, thumb stroking over her hair. "I'd never let you fight him, okay? He's too... manipulative, too willing to get into people's heads, under their skin. He'd find out all your weaknesses and use them against you, and I'd die before I let that happen."

rey rey let herself be coddled and soothed, resting both her arms against his chest. the air was cold, and she was fully unclothed, but derek's natural body heat kept her feeling warm and safe. as it always did. as he spoke about her weaknesses, she clenched her fists slightly in fear. she knew her main weakness: derek himself. if he was ever to be hurt, she couldn't fight and take that risk. and she was pretty sure it was the same way for him, too. "i-i don't want to talk about it anymore..." she whispered for the second time that night.

Derek: "Okay," Derek agreed easily, ducking his head to hide his face in her neck. He could tell she was scared - he didn't need her senses to know that - and he felt... nervous that he'd never considered the possibility that Peter could find them. Could ruin everything they'd built. "We don't have to." He rubbed his hand up and down her back, from the nape of her neck to the dip of her spine, reveling in the simple pleasure that he could touch her, that she was there... and she wasn't going anywhere.

rey rey nodded, feeling reassured by his gentle, steady tone. either he was good at hiding his emotions (which she knew to be true) or he really wasn't worried about his uncle. not daring to look into his mind again in fear of more memories of peter, rey simply glanced up and into his eyes, not knowing what else to say. so she did the only thing she really wanted to do. her hands slid up to tangle in his hair as she leaned up and kissed him, softly at first.

Derek: He kept her wrapped up in his arms as he kissed her, holding her as closely as possibly as her hands wound through his hair. He kissed her gently, reassuringly - trying to convey as much as possible that she didn't have anything to worry about, that he was going to protect her. He cradled her face in his hands, thumbs gently brushing over her cheeks as their kiss gradually deepened.

rey while he deepened the kiss, rey slowly leaned back more and more until she was laying flat on the bed, him hovering above her. she ran her hands down his back until her fingers found the hem of his shirt, which she tugged up and up until eventually it was off, then tossed it aside. her leg slowly moved to brush up his then back down as she nipped at his bottom lip then kissed him again.

Derek: Derek was reluctant to pull away from her for even a moment, but he sat up enough for her to pull off his shirt before stretching out over her again, resting his weight on one hand. The other he let smooth over her skin, over her stomach and up to her chest, his thumb ghosting circles over her nipple only just long enough to make it hard before his fingers were trailing downwards again.

rey when his fingers found her chest, rey tilted her chin up and gasped hoarsely, letting his lips land on her neck. she took a quick, deep breath then set her legs on either side of his body, though she brought them up so her feet were flat on the bed, toes curling into the sheets. but she brought her hands down to unbutton then slowly push down his pants and boxers at the same time. once they were off, she moved her hands up to clasp above her head, and found his lips again.

Derek: "We are going to have to get up eventually," Derek chided with a laugh, pushing back Rey's hair from her face as she rested on his chest, his fingers brushing up and down her spine. He didn't really want to move, either, but a shower and food were in order. "C'mon," he prompted, squeezing one of her hips gently and rocking his body back and forth in an attempt to get her moving. "Let's go."

rey "nooo..." rey groaned under her breath as derek said they'd have to get up. she turned so her cheek was resting against his chest, rather than burying her entire face in it, and winced silently when he squeezed her hip, one of her most ticklish areas. but she was shocked awake and opened her eyes, a small smile forming on her lips. she was so relaxed after they'd finished making love, and he'd just cuddled her for what felt like hours, though she knew it was only about twenty minutes or so. "fine," she sighed in defeat and moved off his chest, but held her arms up to him once he was standing, and giggled tiredly.

Derek: "Yesssss," Derek groaned right back at her, laughing a little when she didn't do much responding other than to move her face. "C'mon. If we don't get up now, we never will, you know that." He stretched, arms extending over his head and legs flexing and toes curling before he half-rolled, half-climbed off the bed. "Oh my god," he laughed when he saw her summoning him down to pick her up. Despite the complaint he still complied, bending over to let her arms around his neck as he lifted her up to hold her against his front. "You're so spoiled," he muttered as he carried her off to the bathroom, leaning over to start the shower without putting her down, instead pressing her up against the wall and letting his lips find her collarbone, already marked but still enticing.

rey "derek..." rey groaned but giggled when he picked her up, wrapping her arms around his neck. she loved being carried like this, no matter what. it allowed them to still be so close after intimate moments such as the one they just shared. "i know, but you're not gonna stop..." she mumbled against his skin as she closed her eyes again, chuckling softly. they were both sweaty and warm, so the shower would definitely feel good. but when he pressed her back against the wall, she lifted her head up with a quiet gasp, then let her eyes fall shut when his lips found her collarbone. the marks there weren't deep, but she'd need to cover them up with makeup tomorrow, she was sure of it. she winced softly, feeling the pit of her stomach tighten with ecstasy again, and took deep breaths, head falling back gently against the wall. "not again..." she whispered. she didn't know if she had it in her, really.

Derek: Derek hummed noncommittally into her skin when she teased him; he'd never stop spoiling her as long as he lived, he knew that with certainty, and apparently so did she. He couldn't blame her for taking advantage of it, especially when he loved it so much. "Wasn't gonna," he replied just as quietly into the skin of her throat, nose brushing along the softness of it, lips dragging a long line as his stubble scraped over it gently. His hands gripped her thighs, thumbs rubbing into the crease where they met her torso before sliding back to hold her up by her ass. "As much as I wish I could." He found her mouth again and kissed her until they were both out of breath, their skin warm and he could feel a heat low in his belly, that endless desire he always harbored for her. But he let her down, feet lightly stepping to the floor before he held his hand out to help her into the shower.

rey as his thumbs massaged into her skin, rey winced again and bit down on her lip, flexing her feet slightly as they rested against his back. again she breathed steadily until his hands moved to her behind, one of her favorite places where he touched her. she nodded in agreement then kissed him back, holding onto his hair gently, and felt that itching sensation creep up her body once she was on her feet. her legs pressed together tightly and she leaned over just a bit to recover, knowing how easy it was for her to become aroused. but then she took his hand and shuffled into the shower, letting the water cool her down both internally and externally. she stood so her back was pressed to his chest then slowly reached an arm up to loop around his neck, eyes closing and lips parting. "that's better..."

Derek: He could have touched her like this forever, no boundaries or secrets between them; he knew she got overwhelmed quickly, whether it was his hands or his mouth or any other part of him, and there were definitely times he played that to his advantage. But he let her recover once she had her feet on the ground, mouth trying (and failing) to quash a please little smirk behind her back. He sidled in behind her, hands smoothing down her sides and the fronts of her thighs, not intended to be sexual but celebratory, reveling in her and the fact that she was his. "I love you," he said quietly, head bowed to press his lips to her shoulder, light, worshiping. "I love you so much..."

rey a smile formed on her lips as she felt his hands travel down her hips to her thighs, and whispered, "i love you with all my heart..." it wasn't hard to, with how amazingly perfect he was. she still didn't feel like she deserved him, and probably never would. "it hurts less this time," she murmured, opening her eyes to look up at him. the first time had been pretty painful, even with how slow and gentle derek was, since it was her first time ever experiencing anything like that. since then, it'd hurt less and less after each run, and now it was just a slight disturbance. she gathered the washcloth and lathered it up with soap before turning her body to face his then handing it over so he could wash her, as they always did after making love.

Derek: "Good!" Derek replied earnestly, pressing his lips to her cheek and nuzzling at it with his nose after. He wrapped his arms around her middle and squeezed her gently. He'd nearly stopped then and there the first time, when he sensed her discomfort and uncertainty despite taking as much time as she needed. "Think it won't hurt at all soon?" he asked quietly. It was difficult to not feel bad whenever they had sex, feel like, despite what she said, she was uncomfortable or unhappy or they were only doing it because /he/ wanted to. He pushed the thoughts to the back of his mind as he accepted the washcloth from her, tangling the fingers of one hand with hers as he held her arm out for him to start washing, working his way to her torso and over her chest before going on to the other arm.

rey "yeah, i do," rey smiled hopefully and gave him a nod, leaning up to peck his lips gently. she didn't need to use the force to feel the guilt stirring inside him. and she didn't like it one bit. she /wanted/ to do it, she really did, even through the pain. it was all worth it in the end, and she assumed derek didn't see that side of it. only the painful side. she stepped back just slightly so he could extend her arm to clean it, fingers dancing in his own, then watched his hand as the washcloth dragged from her shoulder to her abdomen and chest, where she had a few marks. she loved them. she watched again as he moved onto her other arm, but watched his face now instead. he was sculpted by gods, she was convinced. everything about him was so perfect. literally every little thing. "i love you..." she piped up quietly, standing on her toes for half a second before giving him a shy smile.

Derek: Derek's mouth twisted on a shy sort of smile when she said those words seemingly out of nowhere, and he ducked his head briefly, looking down at their feet before glancing back up at her. "I love you, too," he said, bringing one slightly soapy hand up to cradle her cheek, looking into her eyes as he said the words. "I can't believe you're going to marry me," he said, huffing out a chuckle as he smiled, all teeth and palpable awe. "I can't believe you're going to be Mrs. Hale." He rolled the words around on his tongue. "Rey Hale. Rey Skywalker-Hale?" He laughed a little, using the back of his hand to brush the washcloth over her stomach and hip.

rey rey laughed happily, nodding her head. she was still in shock, too, even though it had been well over a week. "just hale. i'm your family now, i don't want to be remembered just for my father and uncle and everyone else. i want to be my own person," she whispered, then smiled again. "your wife." she leaned up to peck his lips a few times then let him drag the washcloth over her stomach and waist, though she smiled a little each time his fingers brushed against her soft skin. she'd never get tired of his touch. never ever.

Derek: An easy smile tugged at Derek's lips as he leaned in close to her, pressing their lips together easily, briefly, a few times one right after the other. "It's your name just as much as it's theirs," Derek said, both hands touching her waist as he leaned in close enough to feel her breath on his face, her whisper so close that it felt loud in his ears. If they could stay this close forever, he'd die a happy man. "You are your own person, no matter what your name is." He could feel her smile against his lips as they kissed again, and he sighed contentedly when they parted, pulling her in close and resting his chin atop her head as he rubbed the washcloth over her back, and lower, to her thighs.

rey rey smiled softly and shrugged. "it's really only been my name for a few months... i've been fine being just rey before i knew. just rey..." she whispered when he leaned close to her, biting gently at her bottom lip. suddenly words weren't forming in her mind as easily, with how entrancing his gaze was. she nodded slowly, though, and kissed him back, though this one was soft and delicate. when he pulled her close, she rested her forearms against his chest and closed her eyes, though she frowned when he skipped a very important area. she took his free hand and placed it on her butt with a small giggle. "much better."

Derek: Derek's brows shot up when Rey placed his hand back on her ass, a little taken aback by the brazenness of it - a far cry from the woman who had been so uncomfortable with just being aroused a few months before. "Much better," he agreed, chuckling, and then gently passed the washcloth over her skin, humming into her neck as he pressed his face there, reveling in how comfortable it was being this close, enjoying the way they could touch each other so easily.

rey rey smiled slowly and wrinkled her nose just a bit before moving her hand up to the nape of his neck when he ducked his face into her skin, letting her eyes fall shut. slowly, her fingers ran through his hair, gently scratching his scalp in a soothing way as they went along. she remembered him saying long ago how much he loved when she did that. she turned her head just enough to press a gentle kiss to the side of his own, then rested her cheek against his hair and let out a soft sigh.

[heartowrite-o]

hrghgh okay this is long as shit so i’ll be uploading it in parts as i finish (i actually have several parts like immediately done but whatever. i might post them immediately after this idk) SO UMM i want to like clarify some stuff first! because im a jerk and i didn’t do it in text lol

Its a soul mate au for Dragon Age! featuring my Inquisitors and my friend’s! So im a loser and really into soul mate aus so in this particular one, basically when people are kids they get words on their arm that are the first words their soul mate ever says to them, and the words disappear when you meet them. CHEESY but its one of my fav soul mate AUs i ever saw so im using that.

so. only one of the Inquisitors is actually Inquisitor in this, the rest soooort of take the place of companions kind of?? I actually did put a lot of thought into who it would be so...It wasn’t chosen at random or anything! Also, if any characterization of your Inquisitors is wrong TELL ME! I am more than happy to rewrite things! In fact I would love to do so! i have so much fun writing for our Inquisitors that tbh i would be perfectly happy to change things to make sure i get it right!

theres also a lot of time skips in this. sometimes they aren’t clear. This is a rough draft! I have to go in and change how much time passes in certain parts, and also change up the tense. I wrote a lot of it in present tense but sometimes i slip into past (i tried to make it like, when characters are thinking, its past, when its actions, its present, which is not at all proper BUT LMFAO i was experimenting and trying to get in some present tense practice so idk it was fun!)

anyway hi. btw when i say its long as shit, i mean it.

The Trevelyan sisters are still just little girls when their markings show up.

Huddled beside the fireplace, Lana and Ariadne roll up their sleeves, exposing their forearms to the glow of the flames. Their parents stand in the doorway, eyes soft and smiles gentle as they watch their daughters giggle and compare the newly printed words on their skin.

“Hm...At least its not 'Hello'.” Lana muses, running her small finger along the length of her arm. “I was really worried. Mother says Aunt Lucille's soulmate mark was just 'Nice to meet you', and it took her nearly four years to figure out Uncle was meant for her.” She holds her arm up just a little higher, speaking the words on her arm slowly. “'Is it? I hope they're right about you'...I wonder what I'm right about!”

Lana erupts into another fit of giggles, and Ariadne can't help but release a sigh of relief as she looks at her own arm. She's just glad she has one at all.

“Mine says...'Perhaps you can talk some sense into her then.'” Ariadne tilts her head slightly as she speaks. “Interesting.”

“'Interesting'? That's it?” Lana feigns outrage, pulling her sister's arm closer to her face to inspect the words with a grin. “Its so specific! Mine is too though, we're very lucky, I think.”

“Lucky indeed, but its time for bed, girls.” Their mother finally says from her spot in the doorway. Lana opens her mouth to protest, but their mother gives her The Look, and continues on. “You'll have all the time in the world to gossip about your marks.”

Reluctantly, the girls rise to their feet, little hands clasped together as they follow after their mother. They whisper about what they hope their soulmate is like as they make their way down the hall, heads ducked low and hands raised to their mouths to hush one another's laughter.

For the next year of their life, the marks are a frequent topic of conversation, as the girls wonder and daydream about where and how they'll meet their future partners. Ariadne pictures a life growing up with her sister, being the first to hear the news when her sister finally meets whoever's words are on her skin.

Her magic manifests just two years after the arrival of their marks, and two months after that she's made to leave home, and spend what she assumes will be the rest of her life in the Circle. Lana and her write to one another, with the topic of soulmates dying out after her third year away from home.

-------

Ashala and Adahlen are just two of the many Clan Lavellan children who discover their marks on the same day.

Ashala stares down at her arm, like sheer willpower alone would make the words change. 'Greetings. My name is--' but it just stops there. It could be worse, she knows that deep down, but that doesn't change the fact she can feel tears beginning to sting at the corners of her eyes. She wants to know the name. That would make it so much easier...Why did they cut themselves off? What if something terrible happens to them when she finally finds them?

Beside her, Adahlen seems completely oblivious to her distress, and is looking down at his own arm with a knitted brow. “Mine just says 'Dragon!'...” The young elf suddenly pales. “Oh no. Do you think my soulmate is a dragon?”

Adahlen's brother—still too young to receive a mark of his own, yet old enough to not want to be left out of the loop, rolls his eyes. “Dragons can't talk. Why would a dragon shout 'dragon' at you anyway?”

Adahlen glares at him, but he visibly relaxes.

“Maybe,” The younger sibling continues. “Its a warning. Maybe you get eaten by a dragon when you meet them.”

Just like that, Adahlen tenses again, but the sibling's strange back and forth was enough to make Ashala giggle, and lighten her spirits.

After the initial excitement of the markings die down, the Lavellan clan children go their separate ways, except for Ashala and Adahlen, who linger beside the halla pen.

“You didn't say what yours was.” Adahlen notes with a hint of curiosity. “I bet its something embarrassing, isn't it? Was it as bad as Taren's said? I've never seen his face that red before.”

“No, it's...” Ashala clasps her hand over her arm, teeth worrying into her bottom lip. “Nothing like that. Its just a little strange, that's all.” When Adahlen raises his eyebrows at her, she shows off her mark with a resigned sigh.

“...That's hilarious.”

Ashala scoffs at him.

“No, not in a bad way! I mean, thinking about it is funny, isn't it? You meet your soulmate and they can't even get their name out. Isn't it fun to think about what they're interrupted by? Could be anything.”

“But what if its something bad?” Ashala looks down at her arm again. “What if...I don't know. Something goes wrong? You're right, it could be anything.”

“Anything. Sooo...why focus on the bad stuff? Maybe they can't finish their sentence because they trip, simple as that. Or maybe you talk to them first, and they're so nervous about meeting their soulmate they...throw up on their shoes, or something.” Adahlen grins at her, and Ashala can't help but smile in return.

“Creators, I hope not.” She giggles. “But...I guess,” Ashala eyes Adahlen slyly, “That's better than them being eaten by a dragon.” At that, Adahlen gasps, and although the two of them try very hard, they can't contain their laughter.

The two children spend a few more minutes discussing their future soulmates, before the Keeper calls Ashala away for training.

Over the years, the two come up with many more theories behind the words on their arm.

-----

Lana's head is swimming.

The dull throbbing pain she had awoken to had faded, but her hands were nearly numb with cold, and the bright green mark on her palm would send occasional stings through the entire arm. She shudders, mind still reeling as it desperately attempts to catch up to the situation at hand. She hardly notices another person has joined her newly formed entourage.

Cassandra seems to know the blond man who approaches, but Lana hardly pays him any mind. She's too busy staring down at her hand, at the glow that slices through her palm. It still feels unreal, like she'll wake up at any moment and find herself at home, waking up just before her trip to the conclave, when things had been normal...Or at least, a single thread of normal, among the tapestry of absolute chaos Thedas had become.

Lana vaguely processes that Cassandra has singled Lana out. Closing the rifts was hers, 'the prisoner's', doing.

“Is it? I hope they're right about you.” The man--Cullen--says. “We've lost a lot of people getting you here.”

Lana forces a thin smile to her face. “Well, that makes two of us then, doesn't it?”

There is little time for chatter after that. Lana finds no respite until after the fight against the Pride Demon, when she wakes up in a strange little cottage. From there she's ushered to the chantry, where her world continues to be thrown upside down. The mark on her hand, the Inquisition, the rift...It's all too much.

Its not until nearly a week after the incident at the conclave that Lana realizes her mark is gone. She's rolled up her sleeves to run through some training exercises with the soldiers (one activity that gives her a semblance of normalcy), when she sees her forearm is blank, the words she had stared at nearly every day since she was 9 years old suddenly gone.

Her training partner knocks her to the ground, and Lana doesn't get up, mind racing as she tries to remember all the conversations she's had with the dozens and dozens of new people she's met in the past week.

Cullen, she finally realizes. Her first conversation with Cullen. She'd been so busy being the 'Herald', she hadn't noticed...Did he know yet? Had he realized?

Lana accepts the soldier's hand, and pulls herself to her feet. She immediately scans the training grounds for Cullen, only to see him already staring at her. Another soldier is talking to him, but she's too far away to hear.

She is, however, close enough to see Cullen's face redden as their eyes meet. Close enough to watch him fumble and drop the stack of papers he had been handed. Definitely close enough to watch him scramble to pick up the papers, turn around, and flee up the stairs towards the chantry, while the soldier left behind scratches his head in confusion.

He definitely knew.

-----

The conclave had been a disaster in the most literal sense, yet Ariadne had managed to walk away from it not only unscathed, but with a new friend.

She had arrived with her Circle, and left with the only other survivor she had seen, an elven girl by the name of Ashala, who had gone with a few members of her clan. The chaos at the Temple of Sacred Ashes had been...unimaginable. The strange green  gashes in the sky, that spit out an endless supply of demons...it felt like something the templars would have made up to scare mages into behaving. Stay in the Circle, or the sky itself will split apart because of you, naughty mages.

Ariadne was sure she had survived only by running—quite literally—into Ashala, who had been nearly as terrified and disoriented as her. The two mages had fought their way out of the temple together, and after not being able to find any of the parties they had arrived with, decided it would be safer to put off parting ways.

They put it off for days, then weeks, then a month, as the girls wandered the Hinterlands, and avoided the templars together. Ashala should have been safe from them, but the templars camping along the roads didn't seem to care if a mage was Dalish or not, as the two girls had discovered the hard way. They had escaped, however, and now tread a bit more carefully through the woods.

“I think we can reach Redcliffe by tomorrow.” Ashala smooths the map out along the ground in front of the fire Ariadne was attempting to tend to. “We're somewhere around here, so if we get up early, and don't make any stops, we could get there before sundown.”

“Thank the Maker.” Ariadne sighs, leaning back onto her heels now that the fire was steady. “We can get more supplies before we keep going north.”

Ashala nods, and for an hour the girls sit in a comfortable silence with one another. It isn't until the flickering of the fire casts light onto Ashala's arm that Ariadne breaks the silence.

“You've still got your mark...Is it weird that I was worried about meeting them at the conclave? I didn't talk to anyone while I was there.”

Ashala turns to look at her. “I don't think its weird. Nobody was expecting it to go as badly as it did but...I don't think many of us thought it'd end well, either.”

“I was so worried about it being a mage from another Circle. If things went badly, I never would have gotten to see them again...But my mark's still here. I suppose I've still got a chance to meet them.”

“I'd say you have a better chance now than you would have before, wouldn't you? You're not stuck in one Circle anymore. They could be anywhere out here.”

“It feels silly, doesn't it? What happened at the conclave, us just trying to make it back to the Free Marches...yet I keep thinking about my soulmate. I've got much more important things to be doing.”

Ashala laughs, and pulls a blanket out of her pack. She nestles down besides the fire, the flames flickering in the reflection of her eyes. “Its silly, but silly can be good. I'd rather feel silly than hopeless...We should sleep though. We need to be up early to get to Redcliffe tomorrow.”

Ariadne hums her agreement, and after a few more minutes of silent contemplation, she drifts to sleep.

------

Lana had only returned to Redcliffe to grab a few supplies needed for Skyhold repairs, but the sight of the lake and the cool air wafting off of it was a welcome change from the heights of Skyhold, beautiful as it may be. Weeks of overseeing rampart repairs and breaking up arguments over just how many pots the garden really needed, could certainly make even a fortress begin to feel cramped. It was nice to be at sea-level again.

She hadn't come alone, of course. Now that she was Inquisitor, it would just be too dangerous to wander about on her own, she was far too important. Not, however, important enough to avoid manual labor, or personally picking every single elfroot in the Hinterlands for the garden back at Skyhold.

Vivienne, Varric, and Sera had all accompanied her, a party that she had regretted nearly the moment they had left the gates. Sera and Vivienne could hardly be expected to be civil to one another for more than thirty seconds at a time, with today apparently being an especially bad day, as they couldn't even make it five.

Now the four of them stood on Redcliffe's docks, bags full of plants and minerals Lana couldn't be bothered to scour the hillsides for herself. Its uncharacteristically quiet for her group, but she figures that Vivienne and Sera have finally run out of insults for one another. It only took them fourteen hours.

Sera finally breaks the silence, not with insults towards Vivienne, but to stand beside Lana as she overlooks the lake, and offer her a sly grin.

“You avoided Cullen when we left.” She says.

“I didn't.” Lana replies.

“Did too. I saw it. You two looked right at each other, didn't say anything, then left. Cullen nearly fell down the stairs.”

“The soldiers caught him.”

“Yeah. So whats wrong? Why are the lovey-dovey soul mates not talking?”

Lana pinches the bridge of her nose. “We keep trying to talk about it but its just...Its weird. I hardly know him at all, but I know I'm supposed to be with him.”

“What, you don't like him?”

“No, that's not it. I like him a lot. When we do talk, hes very sweet. He just gets weird when I bring up the soul mate thing, then he always finds an excuse to leave. I'm the Inquisitor, you think I'd be the busy one, but Cullen can make anything into an emergency.”

“Ha.”

“Its not funny!”

“It is.”

“Alright, sometimes its a little funny. I just don't know why he's so nervous. We already know we're each other's soul mate, that cat left the bag awhile ago—the bag is in absolute shreds. I just want to talk to him about it without him getting up to leave, or spitting up on his shoes.”

“Lana?” Both Sera and Lana lift their gazes from the lake, turning with mirrored curious looks to see who had called out to the Inquisitor.

Lana stares at the two girls standing on the dock, one human, one elven, both with red hair. The human girl's hair was a much brighter shade of orange, framing her freckled face and her wide blue eyes that were beginning to water.

There was no way.

After the conclave, Lana had refused to believe her sister had been among the casualties. She had given Leliana a description of her sister and begged the spymaster to find her, because she had to be out there somewhere still. Lana wouldn't let herself think otherwise, no matter how many times Leliana returned to her empty handed. She couldn't believe her sister was dead, but over time, she had begun to lose hope of the possibility of ever seeing her again.

The red-haired woman in front of her—Ariadne, her sister, opens her mouth to speak again, but Lana rushes to her, pulling her in for the tightest hug she could manage. Ariadne wheezes at the sudden contact, but quickly squeezes Lana just as hard.

“What are you doing here?” Ariadne says, her voice wavering.

“Me? What are you doing here?” Lana huffs out a laugh. “I don't even care. I'm just so glad you're okay. I thought I'd never get to see you again. After all the Circles...I just didn't think I'd ever find you.” She finally pulls away, but she keeps her hands on her sister's shoulders, studying her at arms length. “Are you alright? Your clothes are so dirty! And whats that scratch on your face from?” She glances at her sister's companion, who is looking a touch uncomfortable to suddenly be scrutinized by both Lana, and Lana's friends who are all still lingering on the dock, who watch with expressions in different stages of 'befuddled'. “Who is this?”

“This is Ashala. We ran into each other at the conclave. I don't think I would have survived without her help.”

“Oh. Well then, thank you, Ashala.” Lana says sincerely. Ashala squeaks out something unintelligible in response, nods, then quickly averts her gaze again. Lana doesn't push her for more—Ariadne was shy around strangers too. She knew when to back off.

“Lana, what are you doing in Redcliffe though? I thought for sure you'd be back home. I was going to make my way there, we could have just barely missed each other.”

Lana blinks, now hit with the realization that Ariadne has no idea about this messy Inquisitor business. “Its...a very long story, Ariadne. I've got a camp set up, how about I tell you on the way there? Your friend should come too...”

-----

When Ashala had decided she and Ariadne should stick together, she wasn't sure exactly how things would end up. She had assumed they would travel together until they reached the Free Marches, then go their separate ways in search of their families. Of all the possible outcomes to their fateful meeting, she certainly hadn't pictured winding up at an old fortress, with Ariadne's sister leading a literal army, to be one of them. It wasn't really even on the list.

She was grateful nonetheless, even if she felt terribly out of place in Skyhold. After they camped outside Redcliffe and heard Lana's tale, they had made for the mountains immediately. The air was much thinner than she was used to, but she'd learn to deal with it.

Ashala was overjoyed for Ariadne, she really was, but she did miss her company. Ariadne had spent the last few days trailing after Lana, while Ashala mostly stood around feeling and looking rather awkward. She'd eventually made herself cozy in the library, where she met a few member's of Lana's Inquisition—Dorian, in particular, who was quite nice, and despite how nervous and out of sorts she was feeling, he could still get a chuckle out of her now and then.

The rest of Lana's friends had been out running errands for her, so aside from the advisers and the trio she had met back in Redcliffe, Ashala and Ariadne were both still waiting to be introduced to the rest of the essential members of the Inquisition.

Ashala was currently passing her time in the library, nose buried in a book. She glances up over the top of it just as Lana pokes her head into the library, beckoning Ashala over once she catches sight of her curled up in a plush chair.

“There you are! Should have figured,” Lana grins at her, and Ashala offers a much softer smile in return. “The rest of the gang is back. I sent them to look for stuff in the Fallow Mire, so they're all just a tiny bit crabby I think, but come on, I'll introduce you.”

“What about Ariadne?”

“Oh. I accidentally let slip that I've got the arcanist working on something, and she left to go check it out. I'll grab her in a minute, but come on.”

She was a little reluctant to leave her chair and book behind, but Ashala slowly unfurls herself from her seat, and sets the book gently onto the table beside her. Lana gives her another smile, and although her enthusiasm couldn't be called 'infectious', it does help ease Ashala's nerves, just a little.

They don't have to go very far before the first bit of introductions were to be made. The two girls merely go a single floor down, to the rotunda that had been empty during Ashala's initial stay here. Now it containes a single occupant, who was standing on a wooden scaffold, paint brush in hand, staring intently at the wall.

“Welcome back.” Lana says. The elven man on the scaffold glances down at them at first, but then turns to regard them directly when he sees Lana has someone with her.

His hello takes the form of a simple “Inquisitor.”, and a nod.

“We've got some new guests. My sister and her friend.” She pats Ashala on the back. “This one is the friend. Her name is Ashala.”

“Greetings. My name is--”

He doesn't get the chance to finish, as an interruption in the form of an absolute cacophony of bird shrieks erupts from above them. All three crane their gaze up towards the spymaster's third floor, where crows flit about, and dive down towards them.

Sera runs out from the stairway soon after. “Didn't do it!” She claims as she sprints past them, Leliana hot on her heels.

Its chaos after that, agents running this way and that, trying to corral the birds back into cages. The painter from before has come down off the scaffold, and is busy trying to pry a bit of parchment from a bird's beak.

Ashala is ushered away from the scene of the crime, and is given introductions to the rest of Lana's team, but she doesn't process any of it. Her mind is still back on the man with the paintbrush, of his words to her, his unfinished introduction. She still doesn't know his name, but she knows who he is now. Ashala knows that when she next rolls up her sleeves to look at her arm, the words she had spent her whole life pondering over will no longer be there.

Once she had met everyone, Lana says her goodbye, then leaves Ashala alone with her thoughts in the library. Her face is still flushed with embarrassment, and excitement, and although she already knows what will be there—or won't be there, Ashala pulls up her sleeve to look down at her arm anyway. She can feel her heartbeat in her throat when nothing but bare skin is underneath the fabric.

-----

“Tomorrow I want you to meet everyone then.” Lana says, chin resting in her palm, her elbow against the arm of the chair she's pulled up next to the fireplace.

Ariadne is seated on the other chair beside her, practically mirroring her sister. “Of course. Sorry, I just got kind of carried away. Your arcanist is amazing.”

“Amazing, hm?” Lana wiggles her eyebrows.

“Not like that!” Ariande laughs. “I admire her, but not in that sort of way. Besides, my marks still here, and I exchanged plenty of words with her.”

Lana moves her gaze to the fireplace. “I met mine.”

“Your...? Oh!” Ariadne leans in close. “You did?! When? Who? Just recently? Awhile ago?”

“Temple of Sacred Ashes. Cullen. Just after the conclave.”

Ariadne stares at her. Lana has no clue what else she should say. Cullen was an ex-templar after all, maybe Ariadne wouldn't approve. Lana couldn't make them get along, she wouldn't even try, because that wouldn't be fair to her sister, but--

“Cullen? The blond sweaty one?”

“Sweaty?!”

“Every time we went to talk to him, he'd sweat like Andraste herself had descended from the sky and told him she didn't like his attitude. I honestly thought perhaps he's been grievously ill all this time, Lana. It makes much more sense now.”

“Oh. Well. Yes. The blond sweaty one.”

“So...how is it?”

“Hows what?”

“I don't know. Whatever happens when you meet your soul mate, I suppose.”

“We...haven't talked about it much. He gets a little weird when I bring it up.”

“Hence the sweat.”

“Yes. I don't know, Ariadne, maybe he doesn't like me? Maybe that's why he's so uncomfortable with all of this. I didn't even think it was possible to not like your soul mate, but what if I'm just the exception to that? What if he's so upset that I'm his soul mate that he can't deal with--”

“Lana I think its probably the opposite? He's likely just anxious.” Ariadne leans back into her chair again, crossing one leg over the other. “Like... he meets this girl, his soul mate, and she's also the Herald of Andraste? Maybe...Don't bring it up anymore. At least for awhile?”

“Are you sure that's a good idea?”

“No.” Ariadne shrugs. “But it makes sense, don't you think? If you're soul mates, you'll always be soul mates, even if you don't talk about it. You're meant to be together, so maybe get to know each other first. Then everything will fall into place.”

“Aw.” Lana reaches over and ruffles Ariadne's hair, her sister letting out an indignant squawk as she did so. “You know just what to say to make me feel better. You always do.”

------

Ariadne had spent the morning in the library with Ashala, who seemed more quiet than usual. She had been perfectly polite of course, greeting Ariadne with a smile, and a pat against the empty chair beside her to welcome Ariadne's company, but hadn't said anything further.

Ariadne was curious, but wouldn't pry into Ashala's affairs unless she was invited to. If something had happened, Ashala would tell her in time.

They read in silence most of the morning, until Ariadne began to grow restless, thinking that Lana would have come to get her to introduce her to the rest of the team by now. Ashala had already gotten the grand tour—which, now that she thought about it, might be the reason her friend was so quiet. Perhaps the rest of Lana's friends were...not great?

She excuses herself, offering a goodbye to Ashala before returning her book to the shelf, and descends the stairs to hunt down her sister. Her days in Skyhold had yet to be enough to really give her any sense of direction in the place, and Ariadne ends up wandering through the halls, finding the kitchen, the garden, the stairs up to Lana's room, and even winds up going through Cullen's office (where the two of them awkwardly nod at one another before Cullen flees from his own room), until finally Ariadne finds herself in the courtyard's training area.

Lana was there, luckily, talking to a tall woman with dark hair cut short to her head. Perhaps 'talking' wasn't the proper word for it, since both of their faces were contorted into scowls—with the woman Ariadne didn't recognize having a much more impressive one.

“Inquisitor, its not that easy.”

“I didn't say it would be easy.” Lana retorts. “That doesn't change the fact I think it needs to be done. Or do you still not believe what I saw?”

“I read the report, Inquisitor, I believe you. That does not mean we should--”

“Cassandra, I've talked to the blacksmith and Dagna, they both agree that its the strongest--”

“I'm aware of the strength of dragon scales, but the dangers outweigh any potential--”

“--So if we can just get even a little bit of dragon scale or bone, we could craft weapons to give us the advantage! I think its worth it, Cassandra. You and I have fought demons countless times, we both know how strong some of them can be. I saw that future Corypheus created back in Redcliffe, I want any edge we can get.”

The woman Lana was arguing with—Cassandra, apparently--throws her arms up in the air with a frustrated sigh. “So we risk our life, your life, for this? Slaying a dragon isn't--”

“Haven't you already done it?”

“Which is exactly why you should listen to me!”

Lana was ready with an argument, Ariadne could see it on her face., but her sister's mouth snaps shut at the sight of Ariadne lingering just a few feet away. There is a moment of tense silence, where Lana and Cassandra quietly fume and glare at each other, but eventually Lana waves Ariadne over.

“Cassandra, this is my sister, Ariadne. Ariadne, this is Cassandra.” Lana says through clenched teeth.

Cassandra looks Ariadne up and down, before sighing. “Perhaps you can talk some sense into her then.”

Ariadne's spine goes rigid. Lana doesn't seem to notice, and barrels ahead to resume her argument. “Really? Cassandra, you can stay here then. I'm going after a dragon, we need the materials, but I don't need your help to do it.” Lana pats Ariadne on the back. “Ari, come find me in the tavern. I'll introduce you to Bull.”

Lana leaves after that, and with the way she had worded things, Ariadne assumes she does not intend for her to follow right away, and needs time to cool off.

Which leaves Ariadne standing alone in the courtyard with the woman her sister had just been arguing with. A woman who was apparently her soul mate. Ariadne didn't spend days in the Circle staring wistfully at the words on her arm just to forget them now.

“I apologize. This was not very becoming of me. Your sister...She's a good leader. I do not want you to assume I disrespect her decisions, I just...”

“Question them?” Ariadne finishes.

Cassandra nods, then her eyes suddenly light with an understanding that Ariande was sure had been flickering on her own face just moments before. “Oh! You--”

“Yes. Um...”

Cassandra seems to have been just as aware of her own markings as Ariadne had been. She steps a little closer, and for just a split second Ariadne is sure she's going to go for a hug, but Cassandra sticks out her hand instead.

Ariadne takes it lightly, and shakes. She giggles a little, feeling like they're sealing a deal, agreeing to some sort of contract instead of meeting their soul mates.

“I'm Cassandra Pentaghast. I should have introduced myself properly earlier, rather than wait for the Inquisitor to do so.”

“Its fine! Please don't worry about it. Um...Well, Lana already said so but, ah, I'm Ariadne. Its very nice to meet you, Cassandra.”

They fall silent, but their hands remain in one another's grasp. Ariadne isn't sure how its possible, but this meeting is managing to be both more awkward than she had imagined, but far better than she had predicted. She's uncomfortable, but in her usual sort of way that she is around strangers. Yet there is this underlying feeling in the pit of her stomach, a spark of understanding that yes, this is her soul mate, she doesn't even know her, but Ariadne already loves her. Or she will. She knows she will.

“Lana is waiting for you so...” Cassandra is looking down at their hands.

“Oh. Right.” Ariadne still doesn't let go. Some spell might be broken once she does.

“We can talk about this later.” Cassandra says it, but Ariadne can detect a hint of hopefulness in her voice. She's asking for permission, this isn't a statement.

“Yes. Of course.” Ariadne replies, and both of them relax, finally letting their hands fall back to their sides. Cassandra nods at her as she turns to leave, and although Ariadne is still excited to meet the rest of Lana's friends, she's pretty sure none of them will top this one.

-----

Ashala ends up going along with Lana to find a dragon. After hearing the rundown of the argument from Ariadne, Ashala and her brainstorm a way to get supplies the safest way possible. There was no way for it to be entirely danger-free, but the two of them had come up with a plan to possibly get at least a small amount of scales without confronting a dragon at all.

A large portion of the Hinterlands was dragon territory, one that was predominantly active during the day. If they camped out on the outskirts the night before, they could possibly make it to the nest early in the morning, when the dragon was out hunting. If they were lucky, perhaps the dragon would leave a few shed scales behind.

Ashala was not prepared, mentally, to fight a dragon, but she had jumped at the chance to go when Ariadne said she would be accompanying her sister on this ridiculous task—she kept the ridiculous bit to herself, but she really did think going out of their way to trek through dragon territory was a phenomenally bad idea, even with their plan in place.

So it was her, Ariadne, Lana, and Lana's friend Iron Bull who set out to the Hinterlands a few weeks after the plans had been made. Iron Bull was another of Lana's friends that Ashala already liked—He was a little crass, yes, but funny at times, and willing to keep conversations going even after Ashala and Ariadne ran out of practiced niceties to say. He and Lana led the group, chatting to each other once the two mages had become obviously exhausted by conversation.

Ashala's time with the Inquisition was now numbering at roughly two months. In that time she had gone on a few missions with Lana, and had spent some time with all of her friends by this point. A few, she got along better than others, but she didn't dislike any of them, not really.

She had yet to talk to Solas. At all. She wasn't sure what to say, and was worried too much time had passed. It had started out as her just wanting to think of something good to say to him, since it would be the words that define her as his soul mate, but all that time stressing had led her to putting it off for weeks, and now here she was, nearly two months after meeting him, and still had yet to say a single word. He'd probably be so upset with her, wouldn't he?

Ashala had plenty of opportunities, too. Lana had brought the both of them on missions together, yet Ashala still couldn't bring herself to say anything. Lana had stopped putting them on teams with one another altogether, likely under the impression that they didn't get along.

Her self loathing followed her out to the Hinterlands, and stayed with her even as they made camp. Their two tents housed Iron Bull in one, and the three girls shared the other, with Ariadne lying in the middle, and Lana and Ashala on the edges. It was cramped, but oddly cozy, and it was nice to chat with the two sisters before falling asleep. It helped take her mind off things at least for a little while.

In the morning they were up before the sun, and making their way to the dragon nest. Ashala was embarrassingly jittery, jumping at every little rustle of bushes, or snapped twig.

By the time the nest was in sight, the sun was up just enough to cast the valley in a pink glow.

“This would be pretty, if I wasn't expecting a dragon to swoop down and eat us.” Lana comments. Iron Bull snorts in response.

“We...aren't the first ones here?” Ariadne sounds astounded, and Ashala follows her line of sight up towards the nest itself. There is one lone figure up there, crouched down and examining something in the dirt. There's a bow strapped to their back, and for a moment, Ashala tenses, wondering if they were in for a fight if the stranger was feeling particularly territorial about whatever spoils the dragon left behind.

When they stand upright, and turn around to regard the group below, Ashala gasps, and the elf up on the nest does to.

“Adahlen, what could you possibly be doing up there?” Ashala asks incredulously.

“Looking for you.” He says, then glances behind him. “Well. Not looking for you here, but I was scouting the area when I noticed the dragon leave, so I went to check it out.”

“By yourself? What if the dragon came back?”

“I didn't think that far.”

“Wait, you said you were looking for me?”

Adahlen nods. “Well, yeah. Lots of us are. After the conclave we went to the ruins to find, well, you know. Remains. But we didn't see any sign of you, not your body, or your staff. The Keeper thought you might have survived, so she's been sending out search parties all over.”

Ashala's eyes begin to sting. She had been so caught up in the Inquisition, she had forgotten all about her original goal of getting home. She hadn't even remembered to send a letter, or any kind of sign she was okay. But they'd been out here looking for her, even though its been months, because they still thought there was a chance for her to be okay...

Her stomach turns. She feels guilty. And happy. So happy, that they all cared enough to search for her even after all this time.

“I take it you two know each other?” Lana says, regarding Adahlen with uncertainty.

“Oh, yes. He's another member of Clan Lavellan, we grew up together.” Ashala answers quickly. From up at the nest, Adahlen waves. “Adahlen, this is Inquisitor Lana Trevelyan, um...Well, have you heard about--”

“Yes.” Adahlen says before she can finish. “We looked in all the major cities for you, and the Inquisitor is all anyone's talking about. So you're working for her?”

“Its kind of a long story, but yes.”

A horrendous shriek bellows from above them, bringing the conversation to a screeching halt. The sound of large, flapping wings fills the air around them long before the beast soars into view.

“Dragon!” Iron Bull calls up towards Adahlen, who immediately heeds the warning and scampers down off of the nest, just barely escaping before the dragon slams down where he had been just seconds before.

He runs over to them the moment he's on level ground, bow drawn in one quick movement and aimed up at the dragon, which has its eyes trained on the five of them. Iron Bull has his ax out as well, stance screaming for a fight. Ashala is horrified and a little impressed that the qunari is actually smiling.

“Nope, no, put it all down, we are leaving,” Lana is already backing up, with Ariadne mirroring her at a much faster pace. “I planned for sneaking in there, I didn't bring enough potions, I wasn't expecting—just--just go, lets go!”

Ashala sprints after the two girls who are already fleeing the scene. Just before she's out of earshot, she hears Adahlen laugh and say to Iron Bull: “Your friends aren't much fun, are they?” but the two of them are soon following close behind her.

---------

Lana is amazed they make it out of there in one piece, but they somehow manage. The only bruises they bring back to Skyhold are on their pride.

They cross through the gates of the fortress with nothing to show for their trip—Aside from an extra person. After a little bit of discussion, they decided it would be best if Adahlen returned with them to Skyhold, where they could send word back to Clan Lavellan about what happened. Lana very pointedly does not look in Cassandra's direction, not wanting to see any sort of smug satisfaction, or worse, genuine pity. Apparently not even weeks worth of planning was enough to get dragon scales without actually fighting one.

They're greeted in the courtyard by a few soldiers, and from there, the five of them go their separate ways. Ariadne and Ashala walk side by side up the stairs, seemingly no worse for ware, since they're chattering with a surprising amount of gusto.

Iron Bull puts a hand on Adahlen's shoulder. “We've got a lot to talk about.” He says, and Adahlen laughs as he agrees. They head towards the tavern together, leaving Lana alone with her thoughts, which is the last thing she really wants to be alone with right now.

She has little time to stew before she sees Cullen walking towards her, hand on the back of his neck, a nervous tick Lana had noticed weeks ago. He rarely initiates conversations with her, so her desire for a distraction, as well as her curiosity, keeps her rooted in her place as he approaches.

“Can we talk?” He asks, and Lana nods. He leads the two of them up to the ramparts, just to the side of his office, where they look out over the mountains surrounding Skyhold. He doesn't start to speak right away, which doesn't surprise her, but she is surprised at herself for not starting up a conversation in his place like she normally would.

“I'm sorry.” He eventually sighs.

Lana looks at him. “For what?”

“I've been...a little foolish. Which Leliana and Josephine have told me many times. I've been unfair to you, avoiding you, refusing to talk about—about this.”

“No, Cullen, its fine. I know I keep pushing you, and that's not fair of me. I shouldn't force you to talk about if if you're not comfortable.”

“I do want to talk about it. I just don't know how. I think I can, but then I see you and I'm at a loss for words. I keep thinking I'm not worthy of you, that there must have been some sort of mistake.”

A little voice in the back of her mind wants to comment on how cute it is that he's blushing so hard, but she knows her face is just as red right now. “I...was worried for a long time too. That you didn't like me, or something had gone wrong, but, Cullen, I do really like you. When we talk, I always feel so much better. Anytime we spoke about strategies, or our friends, it felt so natural. I just have this idea in my head of how soul mates--” She doesn't miss the way his face flushes to an even deeper pink color the moment that word leaves her lips, “--are supposed to act, but...I'm pushing it. I want to get to know you. I want it to be real. So can we talk more? Not about what we're meant to be, but just normal conversations first? We don't have to rush it. I'm sorry for making it seem like we should.”

Cullen smiles at her, a small but sincere one, and Lana's heart skips a beat at the sight of it. “I'm sorry too. For avoiding you. But, yes, I'd like that.”

“...Can I ask though, what made you change your mind?”

She's not sure how much redder Cullen can get. “When you left to fight the dragon. I was angry. At you, at anyone who didn't stop you. The thought of you never coming back left me so empty inside...I realized I felt the same way back at Haven, when you went back out there to give us all a fighting chance. I had just met you, but I still couldn't imagine a life without you.”

Lana stares at him for a long time, struggling to think of anything to say to that confession. It was unfair, to be told such a thing, when she didn't have anything nearly as mushy in return.

She responded by burying her face into her hands, and murmuring that that was a sneaky move on his part.

-------

Adahlen had been with the Inquisition a grand total of two days, and he already forgot where the room Lana had given him to use was. He hadn't actually set foot in it since thanking Lana for her kindness, and probably would not be able to find his way back to it if you threatened him at knife point.

“Oh shit,” He murmurs. Lana. Lana was supposed to introduce him to everyone else today. She had stopped by the the tavern yesterday afternoon to tell him the rest of her friends would be back, finally all in one place again.

The light shining in through the hole in the ceiling let him know it was late morning. Lana probably went looking for him in his room, only to find it empty.

Adahlen literally rolls out of bed, uncaring of the amount of noise he made, since he knows Iron Bull is already awake—it had only taken two days to learn his soul mate was a light sleeper. “You ass. You didn't wake me up.”

“Whoops.” Iron Bull does not sound very sincere.

It takes him a few minutes to get dressed, delayed by the amount of time it takes him to find his shoes. When he's finally clothed and finds them, he's out the door, still pulling his boots up as he stumbles out onto the ramparts—he's honestly amazed that Bull's room has three doors into it.

“Oh, Adahlen, there you are!” Ashala was apparently part of the search party, as she finds him first, and jogs over to him. “You weren't in your room, we've been looking for you all morning. Are you alright? We thought something might have happened--”

“I'm fine,” He reassures her. “I was with Iron Bull.”

“This early?”

“It was late when I got there.”

He can practically hear the gears in her head turning. When it finally clicks, Ashala gasps. “Adahlen! You didn't.”

At that, he doesn't bother to suppress a grin. “I did.”

“I mean, its fine of course, I just wasn't—I didn't expect you two to get along so well so quickly!”

“Oh,” Adahlen rolls up his sleeve, showing off his blank arm. “Soul mates. Found out right after we met. We decided 'fun bits now, important discussion later'...I don't have any idea where that room Lana gave me is anymore, by the way.”

“You're not exaggerating that conversation at all, are you? Well...Congratulations, really. I'm very happy for you. Lana's still looking for you though, to introduce you to the others. Are you still up for it?”

“Yeah, lead the way.” He lets Ashala take the lead. “So...how exactly did you get wrapped up in all of this, Ashala?”

“Creators, its a long, long story.”

“Then lets walk slower.” He smiles when Ashala slows her pace, falling in to step beside him. “I'm glad you're safe. We were all really worried about you.”

“I'm glad you're here, honestly. I've made friends, but its nice to see a familiar face. Anyway, I met Ariadne first...”

#heartowrito fanfic #heartowrito word count: 7825