#oooo i love these aus | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

skyloftian-nutcase · 19 days

Text

Oh hey look it's an AU of my AU because my brain won't shut up :D

Ganondorf dragged his feet, slowing his pace as he stared at the deli.

"No," Nabooru immediately cut in. "I know what you're thinking."

"I want some," he said simply, stubbornly, resolutely.

"You're not a child," Nabooru argued. "Have some blasted self control. It's not on the grocery list."

As the pair argued, Link wandered over, a box of goldfish in hand. Nabooru immediately raised an eyebrow at him.

"My budget," he reasoned with an innocent shrug.

Nabooru sighed. "Fine. Put it in."

"Oh, so he gets to grab anything he wants, but I can't?" Ganondorf grumbled.

Nabooru rolled her eyes. "He is paying for his own groceries. How old are you?"

As the two continued to bicker, Hemisi poked Link, motioning with her phone. "You've got to see this meme, it's hilarious."

Link peered over her shoulder, eyes curious as a smile pulled at his lips. Meanwhile, Ganondorf finally conceded, glaring into the void as they continued their trek beyond the beloved meat section.

When the family got home, Link helped Ganondorf unload the groceries, setting his own aside, while Hemisi and Nabooru greeted their poodle and made sure he had dinner. Eventually, everyone settled, with Ganondorf and Nabooru humming along with the radio while they meal prepped for the next day, and Hemisi and Link relaxing on the sofa together, both on their phones. Occasionally the teenagers exchanged memes and videos, giggling.

When the parents were finished, Ganondorf moved to dismiss Link for the night when he saw that both children had fallen asleep on th sofa. Hemisi was laying across it, her legs draped over Link's lap while he sat slumped on the corner, arms resting over her. Nabooru smiled at the pair as her husband sighed.

"The boy might as well move in," Ganondorf half joked. "He almost always falls asleep here."

"That's a dangerous idea having them actually live together while they're dating," Nabooru chuckled. "I can't watch them 24/7."

Ganondorf hummed in agreement, walking over and gently picking up his daughter. Yes, she was fifteen, but he didn't care - she would always be his little girl, and he was gentle enough that she didn't wake up. He tucked her in to her bed and watched her a moment, smiling.

Meanwhile, Nabooru grabbed a pillow and helped ease Link to lay down across the sofa, covering him with a heavy blanket and kissing him softly on the temple. "Rest well, baby."

The parents stayed awake a little while longer, chatting quietly at the table as they sipped some hot tea. When Link abruptly startled awake, falling off the sofa and nearly hitting his head on the side table near it, the pair rushed into the room to settle him. His nightmares weren't too frequent, but they came often enough that both were familiar with it.

"Link," Ganondorf said gently, grounding him as he gasped for air. "It's all right. Relax. You're safe."

Link stared at him, disoriented, and the man sighed, pulling the teenager into a hug. Eventually, he picked him up, settling on the recliner and letting Link rest on his lap. He yawned as he rubbed the boy's arm calmingly.

"Maybe he should move in," Nabooru said with a half smile as she threw the blanket over them both. "You gonna stay here for the night?"

Ganondorf grunted in the affirmative, and Nabooru's smile grew. "Perfect. That means I get the bed to myself. Come on, Ghirahim!"

Their poodle trotted happily after his mother as Ganondorf scowled, but he got over his grumpiness soon enough. The house grew still, and peace filled the air.

#y'all wanted them to just be happy so here #have them just being happy <3 #yes I'm making aus of my aus #no I won't elaborate #or continue LOL I HAVE ENOUGH WIPS OK BLORBOS. DO Y'ALL HEAR ME #*side eyes imprisoning war blorbos*#writing #is this worht self reblogging LOL #whatevs I said I would for all my writing >.<#Ganondorf's “I take what I want” paired with Link's “oooo shiny” would be disastrous in a grocery store y'all #that's literally what I thought when I was grocery shopping and then this whole scene happened haha #hero of shadow #technically #his nightmare was of the actual story LOL #good thing modern Gan is nicer #ganondorf #lovelies the idea of Ghirahim being the family poodle is SENDING ME HAHA

21 notes · View notes

that-foul-legacy-lover · 1 year

Text

rings little bell more Childhood Friends AU brainrot ehe you as Ajax's best friend for several years, being there when he went missing at age 14. those three days he was gone were the worst days of your life, filled only with worrying yourself sick and searching for your beloved friend, forgetting to eat and sleep even when his parents and yours send you home. it's only when you get the news that he's found, Ajax is home! that you allow yourself to smile as brightly as you did before, excited to see your friend again. you don't get to see him for another week, though- his parents want to have him recover from whatever ordeal he might've gone through, and you politely keep your impatience under wraps until finally, finally you're invited over to his house a little ways down Morepesok. his mother greets you, looking tired but happy, and directs you up the stairs to Ajax's room. the door is closed when you get there, and not even knocking will get an answer, so you slowly crack it open yourself and peer inside. "Ajax?" one bright blue eye stares back at you from inside the dark room and you gasp, quickly stepping inside and closing the door as you stare at what you can only guess is your friend, hunched in a corner. he's taller now, although not as tall as all the adults in your life, and changed. instead of fingers, there were claws; peculiar armor covered his whole body, with a ruff of lilac fur on his shoulders. gone were the squishy cheeks and freckles you loved poking, replaced by a crimson mask-like face with twin horns twisting towards the sky. he sees you staring and whimpers, unable to control his new transformation, turning away from your wide eyes. surely you won't be his friend anymore after this- he's surprised you even came to see him in the first place but this must be the final straw, even for someone as sweet as you- "You're so cool!!" you squeeze Ajax in one of your bone-crushing hugs, the ones reserved for him and him alone, hands patting his hair and fluff in awe. you ramble about how soft the fur is, how spiky his armor is, how cool his mask looks- all with glittering eyes that tell how excited you are and how much you missed him, and Ajax's whines turn to happy little chirps as he hugs you back, his best friend in all of Teyvat. when his mother checks on you both, she sees you and her son sprawled on the floor together, Ajax sleeping peacefully for the first time since he returned.

243 notes · View notes

fluxydrawings · 2 years

Photo

Read the first chapter (all thats out atm) of ‘digital in reciprocation’ by Anonymous on ao3 and got fuckin, possessed ta draw this. The prose is SOOOO good,,, heed the tags but if ur interested give it a gander, im personally Very excited ta see where it goes :D

#lifesteal smp #lssmp #branzy #branzycraft #rasplin #mcyt #my art #fanart #fic art #tw suicide #thats technically whats goin on here so ta be safe kawkejrkjewk #also its a clow nzy fic just so yall know but i aint taggin that for this lmao #OKAY now that those r outta the way i have ALOT ta say bout this one #im like. super proud of how this came out akjwerkjkjawerkjkwjkjrwk very fond of sillouhettes #also LOVE how rasplins hair came out specially in that last panel <33 hair <333 #its a human au so i wasnt gonna put alotta shit from his design BUT i was drawin n was like OOOO i can make his hair look like horns >:)#also i looked up 'how to draw fire in paintoolsai' n went ta google images n vaguely skimmed what was there but i do like how the fire came #out <3 #the text placement of this one gave me some grief theres like. 3 variations of each panel before i settled on what i like dkawkerkwekjkjr #fond of the font i found its Cinzel Decorative #thought it matched the vibe #OH ALSO okay so like #when it comes ta highschool aus my thing for those is they GOTTA be silly. its highschool for gods sake. if u wanna make it dramatic but sti #ll in a school setting make it a college thing #but alongside that you can Also get me ta read literally anyfin if its well written enough n BOY HOWDY THIS FIC #i have an inkling that this anonymous is the same author who did those other 2 rlly pretty prose french title fics that im in love w/ which.#author if ur seein this n u Are that person. pls tell me if i can podfic that one i left a comment on im so in love w/ it. if u are Not that #person just ignore me <3 akjwerkjkwjek #okay im done now. send tweet

268 notes · View notes

maudiemoods · 8 months

Text

Sooooo I made this guy. Take him as you will. His name is Orion “Star” Aster. He’s a scavenger and my non-human oc for sun and moon queer romance/queer platonic interest. (The dark purple side of his “face” is his mask. He’s disfigured on the hidden side, from a run-in with eclipse

#submission #OOOOOO!!! CUTE!!!#OOOO I LOVE THE MASK!!!#I LOVE PURPLE ITS ONE OF MY FAVORITE COLORS!!!!#beings made of stardust au #beings made of stardust

29 notes · View notes

every-sanji · 2 months

Note

what are some of your favorite moments where sanji just gets screwed over (like the hgeegh bit)

I'm not sure if that's like. Getting screwed over so much as just being made fun of for saying silly things. That said I do think his bit where he just starts talking in wing dings (here) is incredibly funny and given the fact that it has been one of my most popular posts this month I think most of you can agree with that. I do in general think the zoro and sanji dynamic is incredibly funny even if I'm just skimming for sanjis I'll keep an eye out for them for a giggle.

#asks #anonymous #not sanji #i say that last part as if i dont have z0san blacklisted. i dont like them romantically #theyre just funny to me. literally antagonistic to each other for fun to the detriment of everybody around them #i love when zoro goes out of his way to rile up sanji which is. just about every time it happens #he's so teaseable its so easy to get under his skin like that #also since i'm already rambling in the tags i started watching high card recently #actually finished s2e2 when i saw this ask #hoping to get to s2e4 today if not more #<- guy who binged literally 10 episodes of it yesterday #uhm. if there are any high card fans following me... hmu i'm so obsessed with this series now #(not that. the enstars hyperfixation is going away thats still going strong #and ironically i started watching high card bc a friend mentioned an alkakurei high card au and i went oooo sounds neat)#but yeah. i need a vijay focused episode yesterday please and thankies.#but otherwise very solid series i think most of you would like it if you like one piece for the action sequences #characters are pretty well written too. chris...#someone on discord compared the cards to op devil fruits but if you could take them away and like. kinda?#the card chooses you but you have to activate it in play to like. use it #not entirely like a fruit that you eat and it becomes a part of you whether you like it or not #but anyway. watch high card #thats too many tags goodbye

10 notes · View notes

tennessoui · 1 year

Note

I totally get not using Hazy lmao. BUT- if you want Obi-Wan to sound super uptight and Anakin super laid back- have Obi-Wan use the full names for the museums, and Anakin the institute-wide slang

National Air and Space Museum- Nasim, African American History and Culture- Namac, ect

ooo i love further insider context and you know im a big fan of slight differences between anakin and obi-wan's speech patterns ("maybe" for anakin, "perhaps" for obi-wan; "but" for anakin, "however" for obi-wan)

though further than that, i'm honestly not sure how much i'm aiming for uptight obi-wan and super laid back anakin in this au. i feel like they really share that here and also have the strongest possible narrative bias when it comes to describing the other's actions:

for instance, in this ficlet for the smithsonian au, anakin gives himself a tummy ache because obi-wan brings a new coworker to lunch :( which feels not laidback OR particularly chill; and in this smithsonian au ficlet (their first meeting!!), obi-wan sort of starts a game of footsie under the table with padmé's hot texan friend which is not uptight......but in this ficlet, anakin sees obi-wan's actions as cool and aloof and uptight and rude (when really obi-wan is just a touch heartbroken) and in the fic i'm currently writing for this fic to go on ao3, obi-wan is thinking about how he could never ever like anakin skywalker at all because he's TOO laidback and describes him like this:

Skywalker likes American barbecue and Johnny Cash and he probably grew up driving a truck until he crashed it; he’s cocky and smug and an olive lover, for god’s sake, a twenty-nine year old child prodigy who acts more like the adjective than the noun. He’d trip over his own feet half the time with how often he’s got his head pointed towards the sky of all things if it weren’t for the flocks of people who fawn all around him specifically to prevent that sort of thing.

even though a few scenes later, he'll find him stressing the fuck out over budget problems and unable to leave for their scheduled lunch date

a lot of the smithsonian au is based on perceptions, wrong or right, and the power they hold over us when we're making connections with others + the extent to which we can lie to ourselves about something we're not ready to embrace even though everyone else can see it + silly rocketman in big meanie love with silly water man makes brain go brrrrrrrrrrr

#asks #smithsonian au #obikin #i adore this au tbh it's one of my top fives i think no joke #oooo and your other ask about the clones!!! and the name pun of wolfgang vs wolffe #love!!!#idk if the clones come up yet i forget if ive included them already #i think ive just been makng ocs for ease of my own sanity #but you make a strong case for includng the clones if just for this!

41 notes · View notes

seaside-lovers · 3 months

Text

so. the dealer from buckshot roulette, huh.

don't look at me 😔

#crushing on weird little freaks keeps happening #shout out to hank for being my favorite weird little freak <3 #now im wanting a buckshot roulette au with us #OOOO one with jotaro would be neat as well...#i beat it on normal #now to do double or nothing next #🍺 yearning hours #🍺 dancing on the edge of love and hate #yearning hours #waves.txt

10 notes · View notes

wilted-woods · 11 months

Text

Hejsgsjaidjka-

More for @blackkatdraws because I now have LoveVirus!Black and Valentino brainrot now- hhhhgnnggh-

Just more communication while LoveVirus!Black is still struggling to understand what Valentino is saying but this time in his YipYip form xD

I think I made LoveVirus!Black's hair a lil too pwoofy- oops- xd

Luckily Valentino does translate what he said by writing them into the ground (he basically lightly dug out the letters xd)

What he said translates to (please be nice to YipYip!Valentino, he tried his best to spell-):

"You peyay wit mie? Tahg! Ee peyay tahg? Or you rhun aphtr mie? Ee peyay chase!" :3

[You play with me? Tag! We play tag? Or you run after me? We play chase!]

LoveVirus!Black: Ehhh..ehuh..? *He leans forward to re-read what the other wrote. Still sorta struggling here xD* Ehm- *He stares at it to make sure that he's seeing it correctly as well as reading it out loud, listening to himself to see if he could come up with what the other is saying- or at least something close*

YipYip!Valentino: *He stares at the other and begins doing his lil tippy-taps as well as already being filled with a lot on energy*

LoveVirus!Black: Tahg? Tahg...Is it a mixture of German-? No..that can't be right..I mean..could it though-?..euh..? *He could feel his head starting to ache as he looked closer and squinted his eyes and reading it again before he finally figured it out once the headache passed* oh- OH!! Oh my- you want to play tag? Or chase? *He looks at the other for confirmation and was released a heavy sigh as the other nodded with extreme excitement followed by energetic yips and chirps*

#I'm starting to hyperfixate on the fictional relationship between #LoveVirus!Black and Valentino-#I honestly thank you Kat for giving me so many ideas XDD #Just from looking at LoveVirus!Black and the chaos that's hapoening in the background lmfao #tsp #tspud #the stanley parable #the stanley parable ultra delux #tsp narrator #tspud narrator #tsp lovevirus au #my YipYips #Oooo #should I draw them playing tag??? 👀👀#Or chase?#awwwe #the idea is already making me squeal x3 #shush- let me be delusional-#tsp love plague au

24 notes · View notes

dat-silvers-girl · 1 year

Text

You're my friend now

Summary: Okay but seriously, Sarahi works on her own at the palace, barely speaking to anyone. The animals are a welcome respite. Thank goodness, the animals won't be her only friends going forward. Barnaby exists.

A/N: I wrote this and other fics while I was bored out of my mind waiting for paperwork to get done. So it isn't proofread, probably nonsense, and mostly written for funsies. If I make art I'll just post it seperately. If I make any.

HPHM Cardverse AU by @ariparri

XXX

Sarahi had only been working in the palace for a week when one day she was assigned the stables to clean. And while most maids would groan at that, Sarahi was excited, because it would mean finally being able to see the horses. Ignoring everyone's confused looks, she made sure to sneak some sugar cubes from the kitchen to feed them.

Creatures are friends, and friends are meant to be spoiled with affection after all. The only other time she'd seen the horses was when she was watching them graze, and this one white horse with black hair came very close to the fence and let Sarahi pat him. Sarahi had been wanting to go to the stables since, hoping to make a friend.

She'd come out with two.

The stables… they smelled bad. But that is to be expected when animals are involved, so Sarahi wasn't too bothered. The horses let out some curious whinnys at the new person in their stables.

As happy as she was to be surrounded by horses, Sarahi was well-aware that she would have to finish cleaning up first. There was hay all over the floor, hoof marks from when the horses were brought inside, and the unfortunate consequences of the horses that went number two a little too late.

Sarahi let out a sigh and began cleaning up.

XXX

The cleanup took nearly three whole hours. But every time Sarahi would get tired or annoyed, a random horse would nose at her for a sugar cube, or give her an encouraging whinny, which instantly brightened her mood. That white horse she met earlier got most of the sugar cubes, given that it was the one who poked Sarahi the most.

"I'm going to run out of sugar cubes if you keep eating them bud." Sarahi giggled, as the horse ate it's third sugar cube in a row. The horse huffed, and still nosed at her face for more.

"Stars above, bud! Let the others have some too!" Sarahi laughed. She pulled away to feed the other horses before this white one could eat them all.

XXX

Most of the horses seemed content with the amount of sugar cubes they had eaten, and had long since gone back to their own food. Except, of course, the white horse, that still stubbornly nosed at Sarahi's back for more sugar cubes.

Sarahi let out an amused sigh. "Oh alright. Don't tell the others, but I saved this last one for you, okay?"

Saying so, Sarahi held out her palm with one more sugar cube, which was instantly eaten by the white horse. It let out a pleased sound, as if it was satisfied about getting the last cube.

Sarahi chuckled. She was never more comfortable than she was around animals. For some reason, every time she was with a group of creatures, one or two members of that group would take to her. Like the one black puppy in that litter near her house, that gray horse named Moor in the University stables that kept trying to chew on her hair, the light brown rabbit in the gardens, and now this white horse in this herd.

As if trying to express his thanks for being treated as special, the white horse nosed at Sarahi's face politely. Sarahi took this as being allowed to let him, which he seemed very happy about, as he let out a soft huff.

"Awww… aren't you just a lovely, absolutely spoiled boy? But you're a good boy! Yes you are!"

Sarahi was so into babying this horse that she didn't notice the stable door open.

"Hey, Dash!" Came a cheerful voice. "Did you make a new friend?"

The white horse, named Dash, looked over to the newcomer and winnied loudly in reply.

Sarahi, however, had all color drained from her face as she instantly realized that the horse she was patting away belonged to Barnaby Lee, the Ace of Hearts. She immediately backed away from the horse and neatly clasped her hands in front of her to appear as small as possible.

"I am sorry. I was just finishing up cleaning in here. I'll leave."

Dash was clearly having none of it, because it prodded Sarahi again to demand more pets. The Ace laughed.

"Aw, but Dash seems to love you already! How many sugar cubes did you give him?"

"Too many… Wait! How did you know I gave him sugar cubes!? Was I not supposed to!? Well… I know I wasn't actually supposed to but he was such a friendly boy and I thought-"

"Hey hey hey, slow down." Barnaby said, as he approached to pat his horse too. "Dash will just take to anyone that gives him sugar cubes. Though this isn't the first time he's let you pet him."

Sarahi hesitantly continued petting Dash. After all, her own fear of talking to other people (especially important people) was no fault of the horse.

"Uh…"

"Hey, you're new to the palace, right? Dash let you pet him earlier too! When he was grazing? Yeah, I think he was grazing."

The Ace looked thoughtful, but quickly beamed at the maid. Sarahi didn't notice, as she didn't look at his face, and kept her attention on the horse.

"Say, do you like creatures?" He asked.

Sarahi was startled. "Huh?"

"Do you like creatures?" He asked again. Unlike most people, the Ace showed no annoyance in having to repeat his question.

"Why… uh… why do you ask?"

"Oh! I know I love creatures! Just wondering if you liked them too!" He replied.

Sarahi blinked. Wasn't the Ace of Hearts said to be a tough, ferocious guy? This man seemed so innocent, and sweet. He was still smiling, and patiently waiting for her to give an answer.

Sarahi took a deep breath. "Yes, uh… I do love animals and creatures and all. They're all really lovely. Dash is very polite."

"Right!?" Barnaby squealed. "Dash is my best buddy! He's the dashiest of horses! Aren't you buddy?"

Dash answered with a loud whinny.

Sarahi had forgotten to hold back her chuckle. The Ace of Hearts was absolutely radiating with joy.

"Have you ridden a horse before?" He asked.

Sarahi smiled. "I have! I used to ride a horse from the University stables sometimes, back when I was still there."

"Oh, were you the one riding Moor?"

"How did you- yes, I did ride Moor. He… uh. He wasn't the fastest so a lot of students just ignored him. I felt bad for the buddy, so I wanted to make sure he felt good too. I hope he did…"

"Great, I've been out of University for a week and I already miss him." Sarahi added under her breath.

"I'm sure you riding Moor cheered him up, really!" Barnaby said. "He was always happy to get out of the stables. Have you been riding horses long?"

"Huh? No. The only other horse I rode was when my grandmother took me to a farm once and I got to ride a big brown horse. I remember his name was Blue."

Barnaby raised an eyebrow. "Why would one name a brown horse Blue?"

Sarahi shrugged. "The world may never know."

XXX

If anyone told Sarahi earlier that day that she would be discussing her favorite creatures with the Ace of Hearts that afternoon, she would have called them delusional. And yet, this man had somehow pulled out from Sarahi, her bucket list of every creature she wanted to meet, while he told her of his own.

"Unicorns." Sarahi had added. "They're extremely skittish. My father tells me tales of how a unicorn used to eat out of my grandmother's hands when he was a boy. I have never seen any, alas, but someday…"

Barnaby nodded. "Did you know that unicorn foals are golden?"

"I do! And they're horns are just little nubs. I'm sure they look absolutely precious!!"

"Oh you'd love the Abraxan Derby! It's an event in the Land of Clubs!"

"I've heard of it. I've always wanted to see an Abraxan up close. I really want to see how big one is compared to me. And do you need a huge saddle to ride on one?"

"I don't know but I'd love to participate in the Abraxan Derby! I like to think I'm pretty good at riding."

"I'm sure you are, I mean… Dash wouldn't love you so much if you didn't ride him well. I'd probably fall off the saddle. Moor just didn't seem to mind my fidgeting, I think.."

"Well, given how much Dash likes you, maybe he would let you try?"

"Pfff… He only likes me because I gave him one too many sugar cubes. More sugar can't be good for his health."

"Are you sure? Because he hasn't stopped whining for your attention since we started talking."

Dash huffed in response to his rider and prodded at Sarahi's face again. That was all it took to remind Sarahi where she actually was and who she was rambling about Unicorns and Abraxans with.

The maid sighed. "I have to leave now, buddy. Maybe I'll be assigned here again next week."

Barnaby nervously chuckled. "Oh. Right… we were talking for too long, huh?"

Sarahi gave a polite nod. "I must get to my other chores before I get yelled at. I do apologize for taking up your time, sir."

The confusion on the Ace's face was almost amusing.

"What?" He asked.

Sarahi blinked. "Huh?"

"Was me rambling on about creatures getting annoying?"

"What!? No!" Sarahi yelled, shaking her head in disbelief. "If anything, this was the most fun conversation I've had in a long time!"

Barnaby clapped "I feel that way too! That's great! So… what were you apologizing for?"

"Uh… taking up your time?"

"Shouldn't I be apologizing for taking up yours?"

"No! Your time is more important than mine, isn't it?"

It was like more question marks were appearing over Barnaby's head with every passing question.

"Why would my time be more important than yours? Also… how did we go from unicorns to… time?"

"Well, to start it's because you're the Ace of Hearts, and I'm just some maid. And secondly… you're right. Um… how did we get here?"

Barnaby's face slowly broke out into a smile before he started giggling. Sarahi looked around nervously, not sure what exactly he was amused by.

"I just remembered that I forgot to ask your name. What's your name?" Barnaby asked, now that his fit of giggles stopped.

"Oh. I'm Sarahi."

Barnaby beamed. "I like you, Sarahi. You're nice!"

"Huh…?"

Barnaby tilted his head at the lack of response. "Hello?"

"May I ask you a question?"

"Sure!"

"Why are you talking to me?"

"Oh, is that all? Well, I was coming in here to see Dash, and he seemed to like you. So that made me think that you were nice and liked horses. And turns out you like creatures, just like me! And that's great! I've always loved creatures, and it's always nice to meet more creature lovers. The more love for them, the better, right?"

Sarahi turned away and frowned a bit. "I see. It's just that… didn't you hear what I said earlier? You're the Ace of Hearts, and I'm…"

"What? You're just Sarahi, right?"

"I'm just a maid."

"So, just Sarahi. Me being the Ace and you being a maid is important… why? Head's getting a bit muddled."

Sarahi turned to the man to see him so genuinely confused that she wanted to laugh. "You don't think that someone as great as you shouldn't have to interact with or be close to anyone of my level? You know… the maid that just spent 3 hours cleaning up after the poor horses whose lunch didn't sit right?"

Barnaby giggled again. "No, I don't think that. In fact, I can't think of any reason I'd possibly think that. You're nice, so why wouldn't I be nice to you?"

"Huh. Important people usually aren't."

"Then let me be the first to change that." Barnaby smiled, and extended a hand to the maid. "I'm Barnaby."

Sarahi hesitated for a bit, but then decided to take her chances. She shook his hand.

"Sarahi. Nice to meet you, sir."

"Huh? No no no! You're my friend now, why would you call me sir? Just Barnaby, okay?"

"Uh… okay? Nice to meet you then… Barnaby? Look, I'm sorry, but I really need to leave. Heaven forbade me from ever being on time since the day I was born, apparently."

Dash, who had just been an observer for most of the conversation, let out a sad little huff.

Sarahi gave the horse another reassuring pat on the snout. "Oh it's okay, bud! I'll be back next week. Just don't eat all the sugar next time."

The maid picked up her bucket and then looked back. "It was a pleasure to meet you, both of you."

"Same here. Dash and I will see you here next week then?"

"Huh? You'll be here as well?"

"I'm sure it'll be a lot more fun if you have someone other than the horses to look at. And I can introduce you to the other horses too!"

Sarahi grinned at the idea. "Really!?"

"Yes!" Barnaby answered, mirroring her excitement.

"I'd love that! I'm so excited for next week! See you then, Dash and Barnaby!"

XXX

Sarahi had already gotten scolded by the Senior maid and gotten her next list of chores when she actually thought harder about what happened at the stables.

"Mama seems to be wrong." She thought. "Maybe not everyone hates me? Maybe he won't drop me? Too early to tell, I guess. But a friend? Here, at the Palace? Eh... Who am I kidding, he won't show up. But imagine… a friend here…"

XXX

"You're… you're actually here."

Sarahi let out that thought without thinking as she entered the stables, only to see Barnaby pacing back and forth.

Barnaby noticed, and gave her a big smile and a wave. "Sarahi, hi!"

The maid beamed at him in return. "It's nice to see you again."

I think I have a friend in the palace. I have a friend.

18 notes · View notes