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thyme-in-a-bubble · 5 months

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the wood

lilac, chapter twelve

a/n: *the author's note equivalent of just ✨moaning✨*

summary: the sight that beheld you once you stepped out onto the porch had all of the air slip out of your lungs all at once.

warnings: lumberjack!frank castle x reader, smut, lumberjack AU, past domestic violence, crazy ex trope, chopping wood, kissing, dirty talk, size kink, manhandling, belly bulge, outdoor sex, oral, multiple orgasms, cockwarming, squirting, mirror sex, penetrative sex, unprotected sex (because this is just porn. no one is getting pregnant, I’m just craving the intimacy. let them be hoes and live out the fantasy)

word count: 5200

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Stirring awake with a gentle groan, your arm extended in search of the body beside you. Finding nothing but linens, your eyes groggily blinked open to discover that no one else was in the bed but yourself.

Tugging your arm back under your frame, you sighed and let your front sink further into the mattress, your cheek buried itself deeper into the pillow just a moment longer before you pushed yourself up to a sitting position.

Swinging your legs over the side, you reached for the grey woollen socks you’d kicked off in the middle of the night. As you slipped them back onto your feet, your gaze caught your reflection in the round rattan-framed mirror hanging on the opposing wall.

Letting your eyes linger, turning your head from side to side, you made sure that the recently faded bruises hadn’t somehow returned to haunt you of what had occurred. But thankfully, all you saw was skin. No marks, no scrapes, no bruises, nothing physical to remind you of Preston.

Getting up, you caught the muted dark brown flannel that hung by the collar from one of the dresser’s knobs, and shrugged it on, doing up the buttons so the borrowed shirt covered you further.

Pitter-pattering out into the small kitchen, you turned on the tap and reached for a glass, swiftly filling it up for a refreshing sip.

As you lowered the drink from your lips, a satisfying cracking noise from somewhere outside found your ears and your gaze flickered to the cabin’s front door.

The sight that beheld you once you stepped out onto the porch had all of the air slip out of your lungs all at once.

Just a little ways off from the hut stood Frank by a wide and sturdy stump, split wood littering around his feet as he repeatedly let the long axe in his grasp come down upon the piece balanced on the reliable base.

Utterly hypnotised, your feet hazily carried you across the porch till your fingers were gripping onto the railing. Clad in a simple grey undershirt, the sight of the prominent veins in his arms bulging, straining at every violent hack till the thick log split, caused your brain to melt, and the fact that the hem slightly rose every time as well didn’t help matters either.

Each one of his precise swings conjured a laboured huff that sounded way too close to how he had been panting in your ear just last night. Occasionally, small curses too slipped through his puffs whenever the wood he worked on got particularly stubborn, and every time, without a doubt, you felt your cunt clench.

As one log split, forcefully crashing to either side, he picked up a new one, but before he could crack it open, he rested the axe a second against his leg while he let a dollop of spit fall from his panting lips to his calloused palms, rubbing it in for better traction before he picked up the axe once more.

Tingles pricked and tickled every nerve in your body as his sinful display eventually came to a close. The soft sunlight that streamed through the treetops caught a glint of the sweat gleaming on the part of his rapidly rising and falling chest that peaked out of the neckline of his tank, dabbling his skin like diamonds.

Wedging his axe into the base stump, you continued to stare as Frank caught his breath and bent over to gather up the wood into the wide woven basket that too was at his feet, his gaze swiftly spotting your dazed form, nearly drooling at this point.

“Oh, hey,” he smiled, offering you a small wave as he tossed a few pieces of firewood into the crate.

“Huh?” still in a trance, you blinked, your teeth digging into your bottom lip as your thighs squeezed together in an attempt at soothing the persistent pulse that now throbbed between them.

“You’re up.”

“Yep, I–, uhm, I am,” you shook your head, trying and failing to clear it, “morning.”

“I’m sorry,” he picked up the heavy basket, “did I wake you?”

“Nope, no, you didn’t,” you let a sinful exhale as he climbed the steps of the porch. Redirecting your gaze elsewhere as he set the firewood down, you stared out at the forest and coughed, “there, uh, sure are a lot of birds out today.”

“Hm,” the porch creaked beneath his boots as he neared where you stood, “is that what you were staring at?”

“Yeah, why, did you not think I was? Was there something else going on here in the forest that could possibly capture my attention other than mother nature herself?” you joked, knowing full well how obvious the truth was, “I am Dunbrook’s resident birdwatcher after all.”

“Sure, you are,” a shiver ran down your spine as his deep voice rumbled in your ear. Wrapping his burly arms around your waist, you leaned back into his warmth as he gently checked, “how are you feeling today?”

“I’m alright, pretty good actually,” you answered the question he had formed a habit of asking you every morning you’d stayed here, “I slept quite well, so that always helps things,” turning in his embrace to face him, you wrapped your arms around his neck and wondered, “how long have you been up?”

“Not long,” his gaze traced yours, following as it yearningly flickered down to his mouth.

“You hungry?”

Drawing you in closer, you heard him utter, “fucking starving…” before he captured your lips in a kiss.

A little dazed from how rapidly the simple peck escalated, you pulled back to politely pant, “oh, yeah? What are you in the mood for?”

Flashing you a smirk, he cocked his head and said, “what do you think I wanna eat?” and if his tone didn’t manage to squash any ounce of doubt you had that he wasn’t in fact talking about food, the sensation of his hands sinking down to palm your bottom though the flannel made it crystal clear.

“Frank,” you giggled as his fingertips discovered your lack of underwear.

“What?” you watched as he slowly sank down onto his knees before you, “is what a no?” his eyes stayed glued to yours as his beard tickled your thigh.

“No,” your legs gently wiggled further apart, letting him spot the glint of your want that had dripped down your inner thighs.

“No, it’s not a no, or no, you’re in the mood for something else?” you sucked in a sharp breath as his ghosting touch teased your goosebump-ridden legs, “because I think we still have a bit of bread left or there might be some leftovers in the fridge.”

Losing track of all of the metaphors through the fuzzy haze his teasing touch set you in, you mumbled, “I–, what?” and a small whine then fell from your lips, “fuck… Frank, I–… can you just–, please?”

“I can do a lot of things, sweetheart,” he pressed a peck to the sensitive skin of your inner thigh, “what do you want me to do?”

“Oh my god,” you sighed, an airy chuckle flowing from your lips as you threw you head back and gazed up at the fluffy clouds visible above the rusty roof, “you’re such an ass.”

“Ah, I can be a lot worse, don’t you worry,” his devilish hands slithered up to your bottom and lightly raked his short fingernails over each cheek.

You sounded downright pathetic as you pleaded, “can you please–,“ but his playful tone cut you off before it flourished into a full sentence.

“Yeah?”

Blinking down at him, you desperately hiked the oversized shirt further up and asked, “…eat me out?”

Grin growing wider, he didn’t hesitate before diving in. Cracking you further open for him, he hoisted your left thigh up onto his broad shoulder and buried his face in your want. Holding you steady with one hand digging into your ass and the other firm at your hip, he zealously parted your petals and felt your pulse pound against his eager tongue.

As he then brazenly sucked down on your clit, your fingers sought out his dark hair, gripping it tight as your eyes fluttered, “oh my god, tha-that feels so good!”

With your brows tightly knitted together, as your eyes blinked down to meet his ever-unwavering gaze, you couldn’t stop yourself from letting go at a record-breaking time, the show you had imbibed in earlier not aiding in drawing your conclusion out. Trembling above, your legs tried to close around him, but the sensation of your thighs pressing against his thick skull didn’t face him one bit as he only held you tighter and kept up his keen kisses.

Back arched against the railing, your chest rose and fell rapidly as Frank twisted his head to place pecks along your inner thigh, the soft flutter only issued a stubborn clench to your cunt in desire for more.

Hooking your grip in the fabric of his shirt, you pulled him back up and desperately crashed your lips against his, feeling your desire sodden in his beard and tasting your adoration on his tongue.

“Alright,” he dreamily disconnected from your needy kiss, “but seriously now,” he drew in a methodical breath through his nose as if in an attempt to calm his own desires down enough before he asked, “what do you want for breakfast?” clearly assuming that the morrow coitus wouldn’t go any further.

Puffing out a hazy grin, you simply let your palm drop to the tent in his trousers and leaned back in to utter against his lips, “I don’t care what’s for breakfast,” your touch tightened insistently over the clear imprint of his desire, “just shut up and fuck me.”

A silent and amazed laugh slipped out past his lips as you tugged at his waistband, “yes, ma’am,” stealing one last kiss before he spun you back around. Grasping onto the railing, your hazy gaze washed over the idyllic scenery as you felt Frank free his length and sweep it through your dripping folds, nudging persistently against your pearl before gliding down to catch your entrance with his tip.

The morning sunlight dazzled in the lake beyond, glittering and flickering just like the sparks that buzzed inside of you.

Giving you just an inch, you felt your forms sigh in unison, your breaths harmoniously synced in satisfaction.

“Did I tell you how good you look in my shirt?” his low timbre crackled in your ear like a warm fire as he slowly rolled his hips, deliberately taking his time, letting you worship every maddening detail of his cock, “because you do,” you felt his palms snake up to squeeze your tits through the flannel, “feel free to steal them any time you want.”

Mouth agape, your head fell back against his chest as shaky moans slipped out at every unhurried rock to his hips.

“You sure it’s not the lack of anything underneath that you like so much?” you grinned, your hips rolling back against his deliberate efforts.

“Well, I’m certainly not complaining about that part,” he chuckled and pressed his lips to your neck, “I think you might be able to get me to do anything you wish dressed exactly like this.”

“Oh yeah?” your giggle broke up your moans, “anything I wish?”

“Mhm,” he hummed gravelly, his fingers nimbly undoing a few of the buttons and granting his grasp access to slip in and seep across your tingly flesh, “fucking anything…”

Sinking in deeper with every gentle thrust, your left hand lowered and began to draw tight circles over your clit as the other’s grip tightened around the railing, your nails leaving crescent-shaped imprints in the raw wood.

But when his lips began to wander across the side of your neck in a way that made you feel as if he was kissing every millimetre of your body, that’s when you felt your legs begin to tremble once more. The intensity of his slow pace began to grow within you, nearly being too much for you to take, so when his fingers sought out your pebbly nipples in a dizzying pinch, that’s when your frame jerked, Frank’s throbbing girth sliding out of you from just how hard you were squeezing down on him, and as your front collided with the fence, your fingertips furiously kept up their pace and kept your orgasm going, convulsing for all of the flora and fauna to see.

Leaning with your folded-up arms against the top of the banister, Frank’s burly arms, which were still enveloped around you, tightened as you felt the warmth of his front melt against your curved spine. Letting one of your hands drop, it swiftly found his and weaved itself with it as you drew it up higher to press it against your thumping heart. Though when your pulse began to calm, you raised your tangled fingers further, all the way up so that your lips could press against the back of his palm.

As you slowly unfurled your form, your fluttery kisses gently danced up his arm till you found yourself facing him once more with your lips attached to his collarbone.

His bulbous tip leaked against the few buttons that were still fastened on the shirt you wore and his wide palms slid down past your waist to knead your bottom and draw you that much closer.

Shuffling your feet, you gently pushed against his brick house of a frame for him to shift as well. Backing up, you crossed the short width of the porch till the back of Frank’s knees bumped into the solid bench that sat flush against the exterior wall. As he buckled and planted himself on it, it only took half a second for you to curl into his lap.

Grabbing the sides of your face and bringing you into a sloppy kiss, you snaked a hand down between your frames and seized his dick. A low moan vibrated against your tongue as you raised up your hips and rubbed his hardness against your slick a moment before slowly sinking down, his lips falling from yours as you did so. Gazing back at him through your lashes, you saw as his eyes stayed shut, his mouth hung agape and his head gently fell back against the wall, the sensation of your warmth enveloping him evidently rocking him to his very core.

Gliding your grasp into place over his broad shoulders, you slowly drew your hips up before easing back down, all the while taking in every little micro-reaction you stirred on your partner's face.

“Christ, you feel so good,” he groaned, hazily peeling his eyelids open to blink back at you with a stary gaze, “so fucking warm,” he leaned back in a murmured against your lips, “and wet...”

One of your elbows bent and curled the remainder of the limb over his head, your fingers weaving into his short waves as you slowly nuzzled your nose against his, gently sweeping from side to side and sharing his hot breath as you leisurely bounced in his lap.

Keeping one of his palms glued to your hot cheek, the other one drifted down to undo the last remaining buttons, freeing your tits completely. His gaze lowered to watch them sway with your slow movements, the open flannel now akin to a curtain flowing next to the soft peaks.

“Fuck,” he moaned, holding you close as his dark brows knitted together, “if you keep going like that, you’ll make me cum.”

“Good,” you panted as you too felt the end near once more. With your forehead pressed to his, you shakily rode him, keeping up the same leisurely pace, feeling every single part of him intoxicatingly stretch you out, till his groans grew louder and his eyes screwed shut, digging his fingers into your hair as his length twitched inside of you and you creamed all over his cock, your amalgamation mingling and becoming indistinguishable from one another’s euphoric juices.

Burying your features in the crook of his neck, your breaths came in ragged as you felt how tightly your cunt was clenching around him. But nevertheless, you simply stayed there, frozen atop of him and with his softening girth still embedded deep within you.

“Oh my god,” you groaned light-heartedly into his skin, “you fucking dick.”

“What?” he chuckled warmly in your ear.

“No, it’s just,” you huffed out laboured breaths as you hazily explained, “you made me cum so hard and now I feel like a fucking virgin…” but when his reaction was to try and pluck you off of him, a sharp hiss escaped your lips, “no, no!” your arms tightened around his neck, “stay, stay,” your alarming tone was softened by a shuttering whimper.

Seizing your cheek, he gingerly drew you back for him to take in your fuzzy expression, “oh, you want me to stay?” he smiled at the pout that had formed on your lips, and a sluggish nod tipped your head at his playful tone, “alright,” he tilted his chin and pressed a kiss to the edge of your hairline, “I can stay.”

“It’s dumb,” you murmured as you felt his pecks flutter down your face, “but I’m just kinda scared that if you pull out I’ll just somehow close up completely.”

“You won’t,” a soft chuckle rumbled within his chest as he neared your lips, “don’t worry, I’ll help you if it ever comes to that.”

Tilting your chin, you pressed your lips to his, your tongue swiftly swooping in to dance lazily against his own.

Goosebumps erupted across your skin as you felt his touch lightly ghost all along your spine, caressing up and down the length of you as your kiss grew sloppy.

As you noticed your sensitive pussy begin to relax, so too did you sense when Frank’s cock, which previously hadn’t gone completely soft yet, began to swell within you, the sensation making your hips instinctively grind down against him as the sensation consumed you.

And with his lips never leaving yours, a light squeak escaped your lungs as Frank suddenly rose to his feet, scooping you with him, his fat cock all the while still staying warm within you.

As his slow stride carried you back inside, your gaze was hazy as his kisses migrated down your neck, but when you passed the kitchen, your eyes snapped back open, “wait,” you stopped him and his lips detached from your pounding pulse, a string of saliva still keeping him connected to where a lavender love mark had begun to bloom, “I’m thirsty! I still–,” keeping one arm hooked around his neck, you carefully pointed to the half-full glass still on the counter, “my water is right over there.”

With one hand under your bottom and the other clasped at your waist, he redirected his steps and walked over to the small open kitchen. Once he reached the counters, a sly smirk seeped across his features as he commanded, “hold on tighter,” and as you did, his grip then shifted and let go of your side to grasp the glass of water.

“You know, you could just put me down,” you chuckled as he lifted the drink up to your lips, carefully tilting it and granting you a sip.

“Now where’s the fun in that?” his coffee gaze stayed fast on your lips as you drank. When you tipped your head back to halt the flow, a little droplet escaped the corner of your mouth, rolled down your chin and all the way to your exposed chest. Setting the glass back down, he swiftly dragged the back of his index finger along the glistening stripe and wiped it up, “making a fucking mess,” briefly leaning in to clean up the rest with his tongue.

Giggling fleetingly at his comment, you asked, “do you want a sip?” but he only gazed back at you and gently shook his head, other desires more prevalent in his mind.

Biting down on your bottom lip, you felt his girth throb inside of you.

As his stride slowly began to return towards the bedroom, it only took you letting your arms hang at your sides a moment for the flannel to cascade off of you and drop to the floorboards.

Craning his neck, he buried his face in your boobs, nipping and nuzzling gently against the soft flesh as you insistently tugged at his grey tank, one of your socked feet also shifted and nudged at his waistband in an attempt at getting him to the same level of undress as you were at. But unfortunately, none of your efforts yielded much success as his grip on you halted the fabric from exposing too much of his warm flesh.

You hadn’t truly comprehended that you’d reached your destination before your spine pressed against the doorframe, Frank momentarily using it as leverage as he carefully lifted you off him, shifting his hold on you as you felt his previous load begin to drip out.

Gingerly plopping you down onto the bed, you expected him to melt down atop of you and bury himself so deep inside of you that you wouldn’t be able to walk for a whole week, instead his warmth disappeared as he took a few steps back, his dark eyes glued to you and the mess between your lazily fallen open thighs, as he stripped off the clothes that clung to his bulky physique.

Raising yourself up onto your elbows, your teeth snatched up your bottom lip as you spotted the lewd stain on the front of his pants, completely sodden with your essence.

He was surely taking his time with it, putting on a show and letting you drool over every sliver of skin he revealed, but perhaps it was just your impatience getting the best of you, because when the last bit of fabric finally dropped to the floor and he stood there a second in all of his jaw-dropping glory, you heard your whine resonate within the cabin, “Frank, my legs feel like jello,” a breathy laugh slipped out past your pout as you feared he’d ask you to come crawling to him, “please get back over here.”

Choking down a laugh of his own, he painfully slowly stepped closer to you, your thighs splitting wider as he neared.

“You sure?” he playfully cocked his brow as his fist closed in around his fat base, stroking himself agonisingly close to your puffy pussy, “I thought you said I made you come so hard that now you can’t take it anymore,” smiling as you attempted to wiggle closer without any success, “you sure you can handle more?”

“Yes,” flowed from your lips as you stared at the way his grip slid up and down his intimidating length, the lingering gloss making his movements go molten, “yes, I can take it, please, I want more.”

Finally granting you a tad of contact, he tapped the hefty weight against your swollen pearl, “yeah?” gliding his free palm down your inner thigh to fight it as it jerked in response, “this what you want?” he repeated the action, the lewd soppy smack resonating within the room, “or was it more something like this,” you gasped as he suddenly slid the entirety of his length inside of you.

“H-holy shit!” you felt all of the air get pushed out of your lungs as his tip nudged against the deepest part of you, a sensation that caused your limbs to tremble at his sides.

“What?” he smirked, pulling back out completely, and gliding his weight through your soppy folds, parting them with his girth as he rubbed against your clit, “I didn’t quite catch that,” your hazy gaze fluttered down to see how far up your stomach his length rested, the staggering image efficiently causing your brain to melt out of your ear.

“Yo-you, you, yes!” you blubbered incoherently, “that–, yes!”

“What? This?” he bullied your clit further.

“Ah!” you moaned sharply, “no, no–”

“Oh, you mean this?” he slammed back inside of you so fiercely that tears formed in the corners of your eyes, “is this what you want? Would this make you happy?” he slowly eased back out, just halfway, before burying himself once more, “because you know that’s all I want, is just to make my girl happy.”

Mouth agape, you watched as he fucked you, still standing tall next to where to laid melted against the mattress, but when you noticed the dull bulge that rhythmically appeared in the lower part of your stomach, your eyes grew wide, and the tangible proof made your pussy threaten to flutter around his girth.

“F-Frank!” you whimpered as he gazed down at you, admiring the way you took his entirety, “I think I'm gonna–”

“What?” he offered you one last thrust before retracting completely, leaving you squirming as he dropped down to his knees before you, “you’re gonna what?”

Both of his thumbs briefly came up to spread your puff apart for him, granting him a great view of your collected mess that still oozed out of you. redirecting his gaze to stare up at you, he placed a few teasing pecks along your glistening petals, his prominent nose nudging against your puffy clit as he teased you, making his way up to lap a cruelly light lick to your sensitive pearl.

“I am waiting patiently here,” two of his fingers came to fill you up, hooking inside of you and swiftly initiating a rocking rhythm against that spot that conjured the lewdest of squelching melodies, “what are you gonna do, huh?” and as he sucked down on your clit, he only did so for what felt like a second before it all became too intense and your pussy gushed around his determined digits, a display he had obviously hoped for as he bellowed gravelly, “there it is,” a feral look glazing over his intense gaze as he tickled out as much of your nectar as you’d grant him, “fuck!”

As you laid there quivering and shaking on the crumbled sheets, the last thing you’d expected after a high so paralysing was for you to crave more, and you did. In a deep and primal way that you couldn’t quite wrap your head around. In a way that caused you to sluggishly yank him up onto the bed and feel his weight on top of you, a sensation you didn’t get to savour long before he rolled around, taking you with him as he planted his head upon the pillows still at the top of the bed and manhandling you on top of him.

Body melted and plastered atop of his, you uttered into his skin, “you’re being so mean.”

Digging his grip into your hips, he grinded you down against him and checked, “too mean?”

“I–…” you thought about it a second before the corners of your lips began to tip upwards, “no… I like it, but you’re just still mean.”

Manoeuvring your molten frame, he lifted your pelvis up far enough for him to slip back inside.

“Yeah, well, what else is new,” you felt his low chuckle rumble in his burly chest beneath your cheek, “we can’t all be a ray of sunshine like you.”

Keeping his grasp glued to your hips, you swiftly discovered that your exhausted limbs weren’t up to the task of doing all of the work independently and became ever so grateful when you didn’t even have to ask for help as Frank began to rock your frame for you, moving you like a toy on top of him.

Arms curling up and retracting in against your form, you smooshed your cheek further down against his chest as you drooled on his pecks, the rocking motion nearly lulling you off into a dream, but before you could fade away completely, Frank’s voice washed over you once more.

“Hey, sweetheart?”

“Mhm?” you mewled as he fucked you down upon him.

“Can you open your eyes for me?”

And when you did, it took your fuzzy gaze a moment before you spotted the mirror on the far side wall and the reflection in it, but when you did notice it, the shuttering moan you let out left no doubt in Frank’s mind if you had or not.

“Look at how fucking pretty you are when you’re all fucked out,” you felt him shift his hold so that he kept your hips stagnant and bucked his own up into you in such a way that caused your head to levitate just a centimetre off his pecks as his balls slapped against you from the force of his efforts, “can you keep your beautiful eyes right there on the mirror? I want you to see how cute you look when you cum…”

You weren’t sure that cute was the specific word you would have used to describe how it looked when he once again made you squirt all over his cock. But sure, you could see how in Frank’s eyes you must have looked utterly adorable gushing around him from just how good he made you feel.

Rolling over, you both now laid on your sides with your limp leg flung over his hip and his flush face clutched in your palms as you held him close in the silky embrace.

“Frank,” your woollen-socked foot caressed his lower back as it methodically moved beneath it with every lavish thrust, “I don’t think I can cum again.”

“Is that a challenge?” his warm palm slid down your frame and he pressed his middlemost fingers down upon your overly sensitive clit, “because I think you can. I even think you can squirt some more for me,” and as he angled his molten motions, he didn’t quit till your face screwed up and squelching noises echoed at every zealous plunge, “such a fucking good girl, you can do it, just let go, I’ve got you,” he talked you through your high as it crashed into you, nearly knocking you out completely as your body fulfilled his wish and his own peak swiftly followed suit as your clambering pussy milked him dry.

With sweet sweat glistening up your skin, you felt utterly boneless as you laid there in Frank’s arms. Placing a few slow pecks all along the length of his nose, he hummed contentedly and a soft smile warmth up his features.

After nearly falling back asleep in the safe cocoon that was the post-coital bliss, you heard yourself ask after you both landed on not slumbering the day away.

“You wanna take a shower before we actually figure something real out for breakfast?”

“Wow, okay,” he jokingly scoffed as he began to drag himself out of the bed, “but don’t think this is gonna work a third time.”

“What?” you chuckled as he got up to his feet and pulled open the top dresser drawer for a few fresh towels, “no, I seriously just mean cleaning up before we eat!”

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i-was-today-years-old-when · 8 months

Text

i learned what is the most bizarre government in world history?

A bit strange that no one speaks of Italian city-states here.

I think they tried just every conceivable form of government. I will tell a bit about my dearest Florentine Republic.

In 13th century, Italian city-states witnessed an intense fight between pro-Emperor and pro-Pope factions. Most nobles were pro-Emperor. Florence was one of the places where they lost the battle, which led to the establishment of democracy.

Of course, this democracy was very different from what we call democracy today. Modern Western countries are representative democracies where people only vote in the elections and countries are governed by professional politicians. A medieval Italian would call such system aristocratic.

Of course, Florentine democracy was also exclusive. Wage labourers, people in debt and women were excluded. But all others could directly participate in government of their country: 5,000–8,000 people out of 25,000–50,000 adult citizens.

Political parties were forbidden (actually, the word party was invented as a slur, something that people do not remember now). Elections were seen as aristocratic mechanism because the rich and the educated would be capable to convince or bribe others to vote for them. So the main mechanism of democracy was casting lots.

Florence was subdivided into four quarters, sixteen neighborhoods and twenty-one corporations (seven major ones representing rich citizens and fourteen minor ones representing poor citizens): every citizen was a member of one of those. Initially, corporations had something to do with profession. Nobles renounced their nobility and joined corporations to be able to participate in the government. For instance, nobleman Dante Alighieri entered the corporation of Doctors and Apothecaries, and the ancestors of Niccolo Machiavelli registered in the corporation of Winemakers.

The main government body was Signoria. It consisted of eight Priors (two representing every quarter, six representing major corporations and two representing minor corporations) and one Gonfalonier of Justice, the chairman. They ruled the city during the period of two months only and then replaced by others. Signoria was the main legislative and executive authority. However, it could take major decisions only in common with other bodies such as Twelve Good Men (three persons from every quarter, mostly rich people) and Sixteen Gonfaloniers (one from every neighbourhood). These three bodies (Signoria, Twelve Good Men and Sixteen Gonfaloniers) were all chosen by lot: notes with their names were chosen from special leather bags preserved in the sacristy of the Santa Croce cathedral.

The laws were approved by the Council of the Commune (192 people, 48 from every quarter, majority rich) and the Council of the People (160 people, 10 from every neighbourhood, majority poor).

There was an enormous quantity of other governing bodies that regulated everything that needed to be regulated in the Republic, from quality checks of the bread to the licensing of the sex workers. In most cases, people served from three to six months. It meant that every full-fledged male citizen of the Florentine Republic could hope to be chosen for one of these positions.

The judicial and military power belonged to the podestà, a foreign citizen with good reputation, legal education and a military company or at least a group of armed servants. Florentines believed that a foreigner would be a more impartial judge in Florentine discussions. A podestà was invited to Florence for six months.

Finally, the Medici family managed to circumvent the system and become rulers of Florence but it took time. The system of checks and balances did work.

However, no one was able to circumvent the government system of Venetian Republic. Do you know why?

For more than five centuries (from 1268 to 1797) the procedure to elect the doge (chief of state) did not change.

Choose 30 members of the Great Council by lot.

These 30 people are reduced by lot to 9.

These 9 people choose 40 other people.

These 40 are reduced by lot to 12.

These 12 people choose 25 other people.

These 25 people are reduced by lot to 9.

These 9 people choose 45 other people.

These 45 people are reduced by lot to 11.

These 11 people choose 41 other people.

These 41 people elect the doge.

Funny that many Americans blame their electoral system for being complicated. You may think what you want about the Venetian system but it guaranteed what was probably the most stable government in the history of mankind.

By the way, despite the fact he was elected for life, the power of the chief of state in Venice was very much limited.

He could not appear in public without other officials present (security from populism). He could not meet foreign diplomats or open foreign dispatches without other officials present (security from collusion with foreign governments). He could not possess any property in a foreign land.

However, he had a nice place to live.

#today i learned #facts #truth #history #government

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nthspecialll · 2 days

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I think we sometimes as a fandom tend to hyper-focus on certian characters' backgrounds simply because we like the character when in reality other characters who might not be as interesting has way better backstories, because no, Javier, Arthur and John are not the only ones with sad backstories

Like why does no one talk about what happened to Leopold's sister? Why does no one talk about young Lenny tracking down and killing folk? Why does no one talk about Javier actually in a way working for the government for a while and the reason why he killed that powerful military man? Why does no one talk about why Dutch is called Dutch and not by his actual first name? Why does no one talk about Bill's worst childhood fear coming true? Why does no one talk about both Swanson and Micah saving Dutch's life or that Tilly is also a murderer?

Anyways here is a full explanation of all the Van Der Linde gang members backstories.

Sean MacQuire

Sean Macquire and his father lived in Ireland possibly with more family but had to flee because the English (who were at the time in charge of ireland) were chasing them. They fled for their lives and they were in Boston for a month before his dad was shot in his sleep, showing the remaining Sean that there was truly no honor or shame in the world.

He was then sent to a reform school, which we all know was abusive and a living hell, so he ran, living as a low-life thief, he was a teenager, when he in a bar somewhere in North Elizabeth saw Dutch and Hosea and liked Dutch's watch. He followed the two into an alleyway and threatened them at gunpoint, however they laughed at him and told him to shoot, so he did, except the two others had noticed him first and took the bullets from his gun. Sean started crying, thinking they were going to kill him but instead of doing that they gave him a home, a place to belong.

Lenny Summers

Lenny's grandparents as well as parents were slaves and his mother was born on a cotton field and taken away from his grandmother, who hadn't even known she was pregnant, immediately. His grandmother was then told to simply get back to work.

After the civil war, the old overseer kept making advandages towards Lenny's grandmother, to a point that in the end she needed to kill him and just barely escaped being lynched. Lenny's mother never saw the grandmother again.

Lenny's mother later met Mr Summers who was an educated man and taught Lenny to both read and write, however wehn Lenny was 15, his dad was beaten to death by several drunk men. Lenny stole a gun, tracked and hunted down the men, shooting them and showing no remorse even years later.

Kieran Duffy

Kieran Duffy's father was an Irishman who came to America with a dream of farming. It was there that he met Kieran's mother and not long after having Kieran, they both passed due to Cholera and not shortly after that the stables that he worked at to support himself threw him out. He decided to join the army to support himself but it didn't last long before he quit due to it "not working out well."

After returning from the army, he fell into work with a bunch of unnamed outlaws, though they all passed away, leaving him alone once again.

At some point he ran into the O'Driscolls who gave him a choice, to ride with them or to get killed, esencially forcing him to join them and work as a stable hand for them, though he was at the bottom of the latter simply working with the horses before being kidnapped by Arthur Morgan and joining the Van Der Linde gang.

Leopold Strauss

Leopold Strauss was born into severe poverty in Austria and his family struggled heavily with food. By the time that Strauss was only twelve, his older brother was beating up nightwatch men for whatever cash and food scraps they had on them. By that time Strauss's father had already sold his younger sister Anna, by the age of nine, into bonded labour to be able to provide for the rest of the family.

When Stauss was seventeen he was sent with his uncle to the US due to health problems, however the hellish sight of Brooklyn gave Strauss's uncle a heart attack on the spot, leaving Strauss alone in a forgein country. To survive he began doing illegal money scams and after doing so for years Dutch picked him up.

Tilly Jackson

Tilly Jackson was the daughter of a slave and became an outlaw by the mere age of twelve, running with a gang called the Foreman brothers but after murdering the leaders cousin after he made advandages on her, she had to flee. She returned to her mothers workplace but found that she had already passed.

Later Tilly ran into Dutch Van Der Linde and as he was already taking care of John Marston and Arthur Morgan, he took her in, becoming just as much as a father figure to her as to the boys.

Micah Bell

Micah Bell was born directly into a life of crime as his father Micah Bell jr was a petty but ruthless and violent outlaw. Already when Micah was 17 him and his father were on run from the law as they had slid Jean and Roscoe Briggs throats and later hung them as well. His father was also his primary partner in crime, however he also seemed to have teamed up with his brother Amos a few times as well, however Amos regretted his past life and started a proper one with wife and children and threatened to kill Micah if he came close.

Micah had several partners in crime later in life, including Joe and Cleet who appears later in the game, as well as a fellow named Norman.

Micah runs into Dutch Van Der Linde in 1898 in a bar as Dutch is trying to sell some stolen goods, however the deal doesn’t work out and Micah steps in to help Dutch and save his life, earning a place in the gang.

Bill Williamson

Bill Williamson, also known as Marion Williamson, was born into an abusive family with a father who lost his mind to alchohol, even going to the point of mixing moonshine with whiskey. Watching this Bill always feared falling in love with liquor and suffering the same fate.

Bill always showed signs of being more of a troubled kid and being sent to a reform school did not stop him from building s solid criminal record as a kid.

Bill would later apply to the military and serve in the 15th infantry, fighting against the native americans before being dishonorably discharged for deviancy and attempted murder in 1892. For a year after he lived rough, truly falling in love with liqour and stealing from people om the side of the roads, one time being robbed himself by a "woman" (likely a cross dresser or genderqueer person).

In 1893 Bill tried to rob Dutch and got angry as the man simply laughed at him, however he calmed down as he was allowed a spot in the Van Der Linde gang.

Daniel "Dutch" Van Der Linde

Dutch's mother was an english woman named Greta and his father a dutch man who lived somewhere near Philadelphia who fought in the civil war and died, which is why Dutch hated southeners.

Dutch's nickname rumors to come from his father's desperate attempt at keeping touch with his ancerstory.

When he was 15, he left home due to troubles with his mother whom he never got along with and simply saw him as a disobedient and troubled kid. He wished for freedom above all so to gain this he started a life of crime and in mid 1870 met Hosea Matthews.

Hosea Matthews

Hosea was born in around 1844 and lived the majority of his earlier life in the mountians, growing to love fishing and hunting. His father was mostly absent, living a life of "sin and debauchery that would make an emperor blush." Hosea saw his dad only about three times in his life but loved him none the less.

He tried to make his way with comedy as a stage actor, however he turned to petty thieft, stealing from his audience and later others in town. He was caught by the sheif stealing a chicken and sentenced to be hanged. Luckiy for Hosea the town folk saw it as a punishment too cruel and a riot broke out which ended with someone shooting the noose around Hosea's neck, allowing him to flee.

Mid 1870 Hosea found Dutch sitting by a campfire and decided to rob him, however found that Dutch had already robbed him. Hosea feared for a moment for his life but it ended with the two of them laughing it off and teaming up.

Molly O'Shea

Molly O'Shea was born into a wealthy Irish family, set up to live a proper and educated life, however she quickly got bored and showed little interest in the life set up for her, so she ran off to America in search of adventure and excitment. At some point she ran into Dutch Van Der Linde and found an interest in him and his life style, only to later genuiently fall in love with him.

Arthur Morgan

Arthur Morgan was born to Beatrice and Lyle Morgan in northen US. His mother died in his early life and he never really got along with his father whom there are rumors was abusive. Lyle lived a life of petty crime and was arrested and executed. Arthur saw his father die and although not having the best relationship, Arthur kept his father's hat and picture.

In 1877 Arthur was 14 and a wild delinquent. He ran into Dutch and Hosea, being picked up and taken under their wing, taught not only the ways of crime but also skills like reading, writing, hunting and so on.

Uncle

Uncle was born in Ohio (insert Penelope Braithwaithe shutter) with the only family present being his parents who died when he was nine and an "uncle" named Jeb whom Uncle hints at being a pedofile.

After his parents death he was on his own and was forced to a new city where he had to care for himself, and from that time to the game start in 1899, we know he has been married at least twice.

Uncle tells many stories of his past such as going to Africa and being worthshipped like a god by the locals, however the truth of these stories are highly doubted due to his tendency to lie. He does tell stories of being a "one shot kid" in his younger days, the truth of these also being doubted, however it may have been his tricket into the Van Der Linde gang.

Susan Grimsaw

Along with Hosea, Dutch and Arthur Susan was one of the founding memebers of the Van Der Linde gang, having run into Dutch during a poker game where both he and she found interest in one another, causing the curious couple and their unruly son to stay in the area a bit longer, paying poker long into the night while Susan sat on Dutch's lap.

Having gotten into a romantic relationship with Dutch, Susan was allowed to join the small group and even stayed when Dutch moved on to Annabelle, now serving as a form of housemother, making sure that people did their work, took properly care of themselves and made camp feel like home.

You can also hear Susan talking to Mary-Beth one time in camp, admitting that she had a fiance once however he went to heaven.

John Marston

John Marston was born in 1873 to an illiterate scottish father born on the boat to New York and a prositute mother who died during his birth. At first John lived with his father who constantly spoke of Scotland and his love for the country, however he was blinded in a bar fight south of Chicargo and later died when John was eight. The true cause of his father's death is unknown however John was told it was a barfight.

John spent a few years in an orphanage before running off and living on his own, at the mere age of eleven commiting his first murder by shooting a man, though he claims it was not his fault.

At the age of twelve John had been caught stealing from homesteaders who planned to have him hanged, however Dutch stepped in and took him under his wing.

Orville Swanson

Swanson used to wrok as a Clergyman but after indulging in the "earthly pleasures", being seduced by alchohol and sex, he lost his family, job and in the end faith, though he desperately tried to regain it.

At some point or another he fell in love with a woman named Margaret, though she was already married, so he simply added bigamy to the list of sins he had already commited. When the two of them were in San Fransisco, the law finally caught up wth them and while she fled onto a ship headed for Shanghai he was stuck and never saw her again.

Under unknown circomstances Swanson came to save Dutch's life and due to Dutch's debt to Swanson he was allowed to join the gang.

Mary-Beth Gaskill

Being a woman of good nature, Mary-Beth did not struggle getting close to her victims after having found herself needing to find a living in the streets. Due to her looks and personality she could with ease fool the richer men into thinking they were saving a poor maiden in need while her fingers slipped into their pockets.

It was through this that Mary-Beth got in trouble with not just the law but her victims as well. One night she had gotten a few foul men on her tail that she ran into the Van Der Linde gang who saved her and asked her to join them.

Charles Smith

Charles Smith was born to a Native Mother and a free African American father, all three of them living fairly happily with his mothets tripe together with a few other free men before the US army chased them away.

They continued to live together but a few years later Charles' mother was captured by the army, leading Charles' father to fall into alcoholism and a deep depression.

At the mere age of 13 Charles left his father and began to live on his own, becoming a supreme survivalist from an early age.

Some point during the late 1898 ran into the Van Der Linde gang in the Grizzlies and joined them.

Simon Pearson

Simon Pearson's family were whale hunters and although Pearson wished to follow in their footsteps it did not go that way due to the whale industry having lessened by the time that he got out of school. Having been forced to look for new employment options, Pearson joins the Navy where he even managed to get stranded for fifty days on a ship filled with plauge, watching his friends and coworkers slowly drop one by one.

After having returned from the Navy Pearson begins to struggle financially and takes a loan, however unable to pay it off loansharks comes after him and it is during one of these attempts at getting to Pearson that the Van Der Linde gang saves him and brings him to camp as a cook.

Abigail Marston

Abigail Marston, originally born Abigail Roberts, was orphaned at a young age and started roaming around bars, scraping whatever few coins she could take from folk before starting a work of prostitution, making an earning by selling her body and at some point running into Uncle at a bar who introduced her to the gang.

Now living with the gang, Abigail still worked as a prositute up until falling pregnant with Jack Marston by John Marston.

Josiah Trelawny

Josiah Trelawny was born in England though he has no memories of his life there, he later imigated to America where he starts working as a conman and trickster. It was during this line of work that he met yhe Van Der Linde gang and joined them bur with a special advandage as he, unlike the others, was allowed to appear and disappear as he pleased, always knowing when Dutch planned to cut him off and return with a big hit.

Josiah has a family living in Saint Denis concisting of a wife and two sons named Tarquin and Cornelius. Just as with the gang, he would disappear on them for months.

Karen Jones

Karen Jones lived as a scam artist in her early years and absolutely loved the outlaw lifestyle and hoped for a bit more which partly drove her to accept the Van Der Linde gang's invitation, hoping to achieve more.

Javier Escuella

Javier Escuella was born in Mexico to a drunkard father who worked for Allende' (a main antagonist in rdr1, a military man) uncle. When he was young he saw his own uncle as well as four other separate men get casterated and fed to pigs for simply suggesting fair wages for their work.

Javier moved on to become a violent and known bounty hunter and revolutionary, fighting against what he saw as a corupt system.

Javier ended up killing a powerful former military man for a woman that he loved, fearing for his loved ones life he fled to America where he knew no english and had no work or food, leaving him starving.

It was in America that he ran into Dutch as they both were trying to steal the same chickens. Dutch took Javier in, fed him, gave him a family and a life, leading Javuer to idiolize Dutch also for his revolutionary ideals.

At some unknown point someone attempted to kill Javier, leading to him having a prominent scar on his throat.

Sadie Alder

Sadie Alder grew up in a harsh envioment and from a very early age learned how to hunt and ride to care for herself, things that Jack Adler fell in love with. The two of them married september 1896, moving to a ranch in Ambarino where they had three happy years of marriage before the O'Driscolls arrived at their cabin.

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queen-of-weird-girl-nation · 2 months

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Obsessed with Jason saying the most disturbing things imaginable and just moving on and everyone is like: ??????!!!!!!!

Jason: that was one of the most disgusting things I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen a wolf gouge a child’s eyes out.

Leo: I’m sorry what

Jason: poison isn’t that bad. When i was like 3 I swallowed poisonous berries and had to take care of myself because the first rule of the wolf house is self sufficiency.

Piper, choking on her drink: SAY WHAT?

Annabeth: you get a lot of concussions.

Jason: haha yeah, I was pushed of the Wolf House roof a bunch of times to learn how to fly, so I probably have some head trauma

Annabeth: WHAT?

Percy: like, being on a quest? At age 17? Sounds like child labour tbh. My first quest was when I was twelve, and they just keep on coming!

Jason: well be grateful, my first quest was when I was 6, and I nearly died and was abandoned by my quest mates multiple times and left for dead a bunch of times to. I think one of them was trying to kill me… but I got to ride an eagle at the end of it so that was fun

Percy: please SAY SIKE??!

Jason: what’s a sike?

@starlightshadowsworld this one’s for u

And all the other Jason stans

#jason grace #heroes of olympus #percy jackon and the olympians #riordanverse #percy jackson #percy jackson and the olympians #i love him your honor #annabeth chase #piper mclean #leo valdez #tw gore #i guess

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evermore-grimoire · 9 months

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The Evermore Grimoire: Astrology

Leo (July 23rd - August 22nd) is the fifth astrological sign in the zodiac and is represented by a lion. In Greek mythology the constellation is identified as the Nemean Lion which was killed by Heracles during the first of his twelve labours. The Nemean Lion would take women as hostages to its lair, luring warriors from nearby towns to save the damsel in distress, to their misfortune. However Heracles was able to break the impervious lion's back which in turn freed the women. Zeus (king of the gods) commemorated this labor by placing the Lion in the sky. Traits associated with Leo include being bold, intelligent, warm and courageous. As a fire sign Leo's are the natural leader of the Zodiac, ready to blaze a trail, vanquish injustice and make a name for themselves along the way. Blessed with high self-esteem, they know that they possess enviable traits, and they're proud of them. They don't believe in false modesty and will be the first to praise themselves for a job well done. But Leo isn't self-aggrandizing or unwilling to roll up those sleeves and do the work: this sign knows that in order to be respected and admired, he or she needs to put in the effort worthy of a leader. They thrive on social interactions and have no problem making friends (although pinning them down to spend time with you is another story). Leos put themselves first, and will turn down a plan that doesn't fit with their agenda or idea of fun. This trait has gained them an unfair reputation for arrogance. But on the flip side, when they choose to spend time with you, it's genuinely because they want to.

artwork by Yaroslava Apollonova

#MythEdit #MythologyEdit #Astrology #Zodiac Signs #Leo #My Edit

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rose-tea-and-strawberries · 1 year

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When You Share A Birthday With Them (Heartslabyul and Scarabia)

The gift you give them: a handmade scrapbook

Word Count: 11k+

Warning: Reader is female

Since it’s my birthday, let me give you guys a gift 🥰

ACE TRAPPOLA

Honestly, Ace didn't want a party - he wanted to spend the entire day glued to your side and being the only one to bask in your company.

No annoying Grim, no pesky Loosey-Deucey, no stupid schoolmates tripping over themselves to get a morsel of your attention

Just him, you and hours of alone time

He both loved and hated that you were the most sought after student in the entirety of NRC (and RSA, if some rumours were to be believed)

Loved because, well, why not? You were the most gorgeous angelic being he had ever laid his eyes on. Every time he saw you passing by, he swore he could feel time slow down and see ethereal light illuminating your face. It took two days of quickening heartbeats, sweaty palms and laboured breaths for him to finally come to terms with his infatuation. And when he realised that he fell for you, he realised hard.

Suddenly everything he did, he did for you. Every stray touch or ‘friendly’ arm around your shoulder was so that he could soak as much of your skinship as he could. Every game of basketball was so that he could see you cheering for him. Every task he completed, no matter how big or small - be it painting roses, studying for exams or simple chores - he did to earn your praise. Your presence was a drug and he was shamelessly addicted - your intoxicating smiles gave him a rush that was so much more sweeter than when he scored a perfect hoop.

Hated because well, even if you were dating, you still had a multitude of friends that were completely whipped for you (he was more than comfortably certain that if he were to pass on in a tragic accident, the entire student body of NRC would attend his funeral with a sign saying ‘y/n’s second boyfriend’ hanging around their necks and use his eulogy as an opportunity to hit on you) and he knows because he’s been there. He remembers the time when having you in his arms was just one of the many daydreams that you starred in, when he was the one who did everything he could so that you would spend more time with him, even if for a few more minutes. He knows that there are plenty of students who are smarter, richer, more handsome, who could whisk you away into a fairytale romance and leave him freezing and aching in the shadows. Now that he’s got you, he doesn’t think he could ever let you go.

Not to mention, ever since the two of you had made your relationship known to the public (and by ‘the two of you’, he means ‘he stormed into the crowded cafeteria right after you accepted his confession, slammed the doors against the walls and loudly proclaimed that “Y/N L/N IS MY GIRLFRIEND!” before immediately getting scolded by Riddle’) Professors Crewel and Trein have been on his case. He swears, he can feel Lucius giving him the stink-eye during class.

But now - now that you revealed this sweet, sweet bit of info - he felt like he was on cloud nine yet again.

What other evidence could there be to prove that you are the perfect one for him? What other reason could there be to show how incredibly matched the two of you are than the fact that you were born on the exact same day?

Now he finally, finally has a reason to have you all for himself.

Of course, he knows that with the many friends you have around campus, locking the two of you up in your bedroom in Ramshackle for the next twenty-four hours is kind of unreasonable

But that doesn’t mean he won’t make this day special for the two of you.

First of all, he’s sleeping over.

Texting each other birthday wishes at midnight? Psssh lame

Lying down next to each other on your bed and whispering ‘happy birthday’ to each other the second the clock turns twelve, moonlight splashing a supernatural glow onto your faces under the cover of darkness, whilst Grim is snoozing away on his little cat bed? Hell yeah

Instead of birthday beats, the two of you commemorate the start of your mutual birthday by giving each other the appropriate number of birthday kisses.

You start by pressing small, yet slow kisses across his jawline. Then you make your way up his cheeks, on his glabella, down the slope of his nose and right in the middle of its bridge. With every kiss, he makes soft whimpering noises as his chest rises and falls with every deep inhale. He makes a slight keening sound from the back of his throat when you place your second to last peck right on the corner of his mouth, so close yet so far from where he wants you. Then, you decide to stop torturing him and you press your lips against his. He angles his head and places one his hands on the back of yours so that he can

Ace gives you a boyish grin when you pull away, “my turn.”

“Wha-ACE!” you whisper-yell in surprise as he flips you over so that your back unceremoniously hits the mattress and places his hands on either side of your head so that he can cage you.

He gives you a smile that Che’nya would be proud of when he leans in, “I hope that you’re aware, Y/N, I’m planning to reclaim every kiss you withheld from me.” And he surges in, grabbing the sides of your face in a gentle way that does nothing to resemble the ferocious onslaught of his lips against yours. Every breath is taken right from your lungs as you find yourself sinking into the warm feeling of his affection rushing through every vessel in your body. He pulls back the moment the your head gets fuzzy from the lack of oxygen and stares at your flustered, heaving self before immediately diving back in for more and he does so again and again and again until he’s completed his side of the birthday kisses.

When the both of you are left panting for breath, he uses his thumb from one of the hands still cradling your face to rub gently against your cheek. Even in the darkness of the witching hour, you could see the clear unabashed adoration that gleamed in his eyes when he whispered, “Sevens, Y/N, I love you so much it's crazy. I swear, you taste better than any cherry pie I’ve ever had.”

(“I don’t suppose you want another kiss for luck?” he smirks at you and wiggles his eyebrows. You didn’t have the energy to throw a pillow at his head but you did give him a glare that was able to make him say “kidding, kidding” before gathering you up in his arms and hooking his chin over your head, finding comfort in the way his body was able to wrap around yours.)

The both of you fall asleep in each other’s embrace, blissfully drifting off-

Until Grim wakes the both of you up by jumping onto your slumbering bodies until you agreed to give him his tuna

After changing into your respective uniforms, the two of you share breakfast at the Ramshackle dining table until you hear Deuce knocking on your front door, causing Ace to groan as he’s reminded that he does have to share you with the rest of the school

Before the two of you leave, Ace pins on a rosette with the words ‘BIRTHDAY GIRL’ in big glittery block letters onto your blazer and you do the same to his (with his rosette having the words ‘BIRTHDAY BOY’ printed on), pecking him on the lips once you’re done.

The two of you make your way to Heartslabyul where you’re both greeted by numerous card soldiers

As per the rules, Riddle hosts a birthday party instead of the usual unbirthday

You and Ace are given the seats of honour beside Riddle’s throne, with Trey placing a beautiful layered cake in front of you - it’s tiers a mix of both your boyfriend and yours aesthetics

Right after the dorm sings ‘happy birthday’ the two of you happily blow out the candles in unison and then share a birthday smooch ♡

“Wow,” Ace mutters, as Trey and Cater try to prevent a red-faced Riddle from either blowing up, having an aneurysm or passing out, “that wish sure works fast.”

You bet that he’s going to be flaunting you around the school, showing off to anyone and everyone how the two of you have the same birthday

The two of you end the day cuddled up under a blanket/pillow fort where you decide to exchange your personal gifts to each other

You both got so many gifts from everyone else that you thought that it would be better and more intimate if you gave your own gifts to each other when you were alone

So the two of you set the whole scene in the living room: you grabbed chairs from the dining table, a few pillows and blankets, filled Grim’s stomach with tuna and sent him upstairs to sleep and lit a few candles for ambiance

Ace went first by giving you a box that looked neatly wrapped in paper that was patterned with playing cards on first glance but upon closer inspection, you could see the hints of untidiness with slight tears, uneven sides and a bit of generosity when applying the sellotape. It was obvious that he did try his best to make it look nice for you - even if the metallic silver stick-on star bow looked like it was three seconds away from falling off

You gently open up your gift to find a necklace with a metallic heart that had a large letter ‘A’ engraved on it

He of course had to do the thing where he puts it on you from behind and then presses kisses up your neck and around the space behind your ear

When you pull away and push his face away he makes a disappointed sound, looking at you like a kicked puppy and you have to remind him that you have a gift for him to

“Can’t us making out be your gift?” he pouts despondently as you move away from him to grab your gift bag.

He does take it from you with enthusiasm, though

When he reaches in and then takes out a book, he gives you a raised eyebrow before looking at the cover, which consisted of a picture of the two of you and the words “To the Ace of my heart, Love Y/N”

He flicks it open to find that every page has been filled with pictures of the two of you, cute and funny annotations of said pictures, adorable doodles and little love notes that were filled with your praise

‘Look! It’s you during a flying lesson. Have I ever told you how attractive you look when you're smiling and the wind blows through your hair like that? Well, you do - your smile always looks attractive. I can never get enough of it 😊’, ‘Remember this? This was the day you dedicated a hoop to me during one of the practice matches at your club. You may have completely miss-aimed your shot and lost the game but you’ll always be the ace of the team to me. And before you say anything I’ve dedicated a two page spread on your winning shots later in this book so you don’t have to get huffy about this one picture’, ‘look! It’s the love of my life 😊❤️’

As he was thumbing through the pages, he soaked in every handwritten letter that you wrote and - if he was being honest - he spent way more time looking at the photographs with your smiling face than he did of him.

His heart felt lighter than ever and he could feel the tell-tale pricks of overflowing emotion at the back of his eyes

He wordlessly puts the book down at his side - carefully and delicately, like it was made of glass - and then hugged you like there was no tomorrow, the force of his body slamming into yours making you fall backwards onto the floor with his arms still wrapped around you

You could feel his body trembling as he shakily whispers, “I love you so goddamn much, baby.”

He has no idea what he did or which kingdom he saved in a past life for him to be blessed with not only knowing someone like you but for someone as amazing as you to want him and cherish him like you do.

“Thank you for the best birthday of my life. I swear that in the next one and the ones after that, I’m going to knock your socks off. Just wait.”

DEUCE SPADE

When he finds out, he’s the embodiment of *surprised pikachu face*

Then he gets all giddy

Like Ace, he thinks that this is proof that the two of you were made for each other

Mama Spade likes to read romance books and watch romcoms and romantic dramas so he’s definitely is a hopeless romantic

He definitely believes that soulmates are a thing now

How else would you explain that you’re his perfect other half - you’ve travelled across worlds and come from another time, space and universe and yet the two of you have found each other

You bet he’s going to be freaking out about this information with his mother over the phone, a sappy, lovestruck smile etched on his face as he goes on and on about how perfect you are and how much he loves you and that he can’t wait to bring you home to meet her

Anyway, like with Ace, the two of you spend the evening before your shared birthday having a slumber party in Ramshackle, half because Deuce wants to be the first person to wish you on your birthday and half because he wants you to be the first person he sees on his

The both of you treat that day like it’s New Year’s and you wish each other ‘happy birthday’ and start kissing the second the clock hits twelve

First the two of you give each other a tentative peck but once you separate, Deuce looks at you, wide-eyed and completely entranced, before moving forward and claiming your lips again.

You could feel him growing more and more bold as he caresses your cheek and presses his lips against yours in a way that exuded nothing but want

And then you fell asleep whilst cuddling, with Daisy the chick (the cute and fluffy chick squishmallow that the both of you had shared custody over) nestled in between you ♡

The next day, after eating breakfast at Ramshackle (which consisted of you surprising him by making cute omurice designs because that boy deserves to be spoiled), you phone his mother so that she can wish the both of you

The entire time you and her are chatting, he’s just watching you with the biggest heart eyes

“What’s the smile for, handsome?” You ask once the two of you had said goodbye to his mother, taking note of the way the corners of his lips were pulled upwards.

He laughed and rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, “ha, uh, nothing it’s just that, well, I’m just happy to see the two of you get along, that’s all.”

“That’s good,” you smiled, stepping forward to brush some stray lint off of his blazer and realign his tie, “your happiness makes me happy.”

When you looked back up at his flustered visage, you found yourself staring right at those beautiful cyan eyes you loved to get lost in. You could hear him gulp before you felt that magnetic pull that magically appeared whenever he was in your close proximity and just as you closed your eyes and were about to press your lips together-

“YO PREFECT! JUICE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!”

Goddamnit Ace.

You have to physically hold back your ruffled boyfriend before he could deck his fellow card soldier

And so the three of you go on your merry way to your classes

You have the usual party at Heartslabyul where he nearly gets into a fistfight with Ace when the redhead wanted to spend more time with you

Trey not only made a birthday cake that’s been decorated with fondant ducklings but he also made baby chick cake pops

We stan the best baker in this house

Afterwards, you spend the day going joyriding on Deuce’s magical wheel, your arms wrapped around his torso and head resting on his upper back so you could hear his quickening heartbeat from beneath his shoulder blades

After you go for a few rounds around the less populated areas of Sage Island, he takes you to a diner where he pays for anything you want for dinner

Then he stops by his dorm to pick up his present and he walks you back to Ramshackle with both of your hands intertwined

When you arrive at your dorm he shyly hands you a gift wrapped box, his eyes trained on the floor

You open it to find a dainty little silvery metallic bracelet with a single black spade charm

If you have pierced ears, he would’ve gotten you spade earrings as well

He hurries to attach it around your wrist when you ask him if he could please put it on you and then brings your inner wrist to his mouth so he could place a kiss right on it

Then you give him a scrapbook that’s filled with photographs of the two of you and little love notes that you’ve written for his eyes only.

‘My handsome man looking stunning in his star sending robes’, ‘Look at my future police officer go! Have I mentioned that you look breathtaking during your club activities. I guess that’s why we’re so perfect together - you love track and field and I love watching you during track and field’, ‘Love, I adore you so much. I can’t wait to meet your mother and thank her for raising the most amazing person with the most beautiful and gentle heart I’ve ever met’

To say that he’s dumbfounded is an understatement. His mouth has gone completely dry and all he can hear past the blood rushing past his ears is the sound of his heart hammering against his ribcage like a drum.

All this time, he’s been trying to atone for his past, to make up for the suffering he put his mother through and become an honour student that she can be proud of. He can never be able to erase the tears that he caused her to shed but he can do his best to make sure that she’ll never cry again but even then, with all of his hard work and determination, he still finds himself falling short - whether it’s getting far too low on a test or getting in trouble with Ace or even having to actually stop himself from flipping his delinquent switch when his violent instincts start to rise (of course, the last one is no problem when it comes to you getting hurt - in that case, his chained delinquent side will come out roaring)

What’s worse is that whenever he finds himself in trouble, he’s filled with the overwhelming guilt of having to drag you down with him

Whenever he holds hands with you he always compares how small yours are compared to his, how they are much more delicate. He knows that you are made of tough stuff - you wouldn’t have survived fighting overblots whilst completely magicless in a world that isn’t your own if you weren’t - but he can’t help seeing how smooth your hands are compared to his rough, calloused ones. Whenever he sees the scars on his fingers, the lasting damage of split knuckles and adrenaline highs, he can’t help but remember the look on his mother’s face when she would notice them the morning after his late nights of bashing faces and breaking noses, of the terror that would fill her eyes whenever she would take in a new bruise.

Sometimes he wonders if he’ll ever come to you and find that expression on your face

He’s brought back to reality when he feels your hand poke his cheek. He starts in surprise and then realises from the confused expression on your face that he hasn’t said a word for a while

“Deuce?” you call to him in that sweet lilt of yours, “are you alright, love?”

You look at him with your unwavering kind-hearted gaze - the same way you always look at him. Even when you found out about his regretful past, you still held his hands with the same gentle care you always do. You’ve never held his actions against him, never treated him as though he was someone you felt threatened by.

(“My protector” is what you call him, “I’m never scared when I’m with you because I know that as long as you’re near, you’ll do your best to keep me safe.”)

When he confessed his sins, you washed away his worries. When he confessed his goals, you gave him your strength.

He placed your gift to the side and then firmly grasped onto your shoulders, looking at you with such firm determination that you start to feel worried, “I love you.”

“Yeah,” you laugh a little awkwardly, still unnerved by how blazing the fire behind his eyes is, “I know tha-”

“No, Y/N, I love you,” he repeated resolutely, “I love you so much it sometimes hurts. Every day I find more and more reasons to fall for you. Every time I look at you I can’t help but see a future with you. I want to take you home to my mum and grandma. I want to wake up every morning and make you breakfast. I want you to be there when I graduate from the police academy. I want to be with you every time you laugh and hold you whenever you cry. Whenever I think about what I want to do whether it’s ten minutes from now or ten years from now, all I can think about is that I want to do it with you.”

Your eyes softened and you gently pried one of his hands off of your shoulder and placed his palm over your cheek so you could nuzzle into it, “I like the sound of that, Deucey.”

He brings your head closer to your chest, “I swear I’ll protect you from anything that comes your way so please keep on relying on me. I’ll become someone you can be proud of.”

RIDDLE ROSEHEARTS

When he found out, he didn’t really give that much of a reaction

It was more like “ah, I see, you and I share a birthday”

But then, later at night, just as he’s about to go to bed, the thought of the fact that he and his darling rose were born on the same day (even though he’s her senior, what with her being a first year and all) hit him like a freight train

He never had a reason to look forward to his birthdays

Thanks to his mother, they were treated as any other day - with him tirelessly studying in a locked room until his eyes became sore and his hands hurt like hell and his back screamed for relief

If anything his birthdays were one of the worser days, as all they did was remind him of everything he was denied and deprived of

But now, not only was this going to be the first birthday since his overblot where he’s finally reclaiming control of his life and getting the childhood he always dreamed of, but he’s also going to be sharing this day with you

You. Kind, wonderful, breathtaking you. The loveliest flower he had ever laid eyes on.

And for once, he can’t help but feel excited for his birthday since he knows that he’ll be celebrating not only his birth the the birth of the person who held his heart in their hands.

He can’t wait.

Ever the gentleman, he arrives at your dorm and smartly raps his knuckles on the door.

The moment you open the door, he’s immediately blown away by the warm smile you greet him with. You’re even wearing your own version of his dorm’s uniform. He has to take a moment to clear his throat and gather himself before he holds out the bouquet of roses he’s been holding in his arms.

You thank him with a peck to his cheek and invite him inside to share a breakfast of toast and your handmade rose petal jam accompanied with tea and biscuits.

After breakfast he holds out his left elbow so that you could your own elbow with his, and then he escorts you to the Heartslabyul gardens where your joined birthday party is about to start.

The entire way there, he has his head held up with pride at having such a beauty at his side. He’s not unaware to the many many looks you receive from the rest of your peers but everytime he feels the bitter taste of jealousy you always turn to him with a smile, your lovely eyes lighting up with nothing but happiness whenever they meet his and suddenly he feels so giddy that all negative thoughts end up bursting like delicate little soap bubbles.

And having you in his dorm’s colours, with his arm interlinked with yours and it being his birthday that you share whilst you walk along the halls of NRC like the King and Queen of Hearts themselves, why he felt like he could soar above the clouds right there and then with how elated he felt

As the Dorm Leader’s girlfriend you are already regarded as the special guest of honour at every event held at the dorm but since it’s also your birthday you are given the extra special VIP guest of honour treatment.

Cater has his phone out, recording yours and Riddle’s entrance to the party. Riddle pulls out your designated chair, a heart-shaped throne much like his, and, once you're seated and pushed back in, Trey brings out a cushion with a golden tiara that matches his own crown and Riddle himself gently places it on your head and the crowd claps and cheers

The whole event is a very formal high tea with a spread of scones, tarts of every type, an assortment of jams and tiny sandwiches, and a variety of baked goods and finger foods

Trey baked the two of you a tiered strawberry Victoria sponge cake that was decorated with roses

When the time comes for you both to blow out the candles, your hand finds Riddle’s underneath the table. At first he tenses at the contact but he immediately relaxes and intertwines his fingers with yours, giving your hand a slight squeeze in the process. Even though neither of you are looking at each other, you can both tell that the other is smiling

You both drive the knife into the cake together and everyone cheers.

Since you are sitting next to each other, you both eat the slice that the two of you have cut and the subtle intimacy of you sharing the same plate of cake has his heart beating like crazy and his face blossoming with pink

He doesn’t do much to hide that small little smile either

At some point a Heartslabyul student hands you and Riddle microphones so that the both of you give birthday speeches where you both thanked everyone for throwing this party and thanked your friends for being such great friends

Ace, Deuce and a few Heartslabyul first years did tear up when you genuinely and wholeheartedly thanked them for making you feel at home in a world that wasn’t yours and that them inviting you into their dorm made you feel less alone and like you had a family here and it was a one hit k.o

You: I love you guys 🥰

Ace, Deuce and Grim: WE LOVE YOU TOO, Y/N 😭😭😭

YOU used KINDNESS

It was super effective

I hope you know that you have an entire dorm of chaotic card soldiers that would die for you

You and Riddle do say a few sweet words to each other because you both prefer to keep the PDA at a minimum but then once Riddle stops talking he takes your hand and places a gentle kiss on your knuckles right in front of everyone’s salad

The rest of the day is spent with the two of you side by side: taking a stroll around the rose maze, playing a private game of croquet, tending to the Heartslabyul animals and horse riding.

All of which involve Riddle gazing at you endearingly

The two of you have an intimate tea party when the day is done.

Unlike the other ‘intimate’ tea parties you have - all of which are located in a private bandstand in the Heartslabyul gardens - this tea party is truly intimate since Riddle had it specially prepared in his bedroom

He pulled out all the stops with rose petals sprinkled over a luxurious white lacy tablecloth that covered a quaint little table, soft rolled-up cloth napkins that were tied up with a perfectly done red bow placed over the two fine china plates, lit candles and cushioned chairs.

After dinner, the two of you find yourselves reclining next to and embracing each other on his four poster

It’s there where the two of your exchange gifts

Riddle gifted you a custom-made charm bracelet that included little trinkets of a tea cup, a flamingo, a pink and blue hedgehog, a miniature version of his crown, a rose and a heart

He spent the entire time of you carefully unwrapping the pristinely packaged parcel, opening the jewellery box and admiring the bracelet in apprehensive silence as his mind went into a downwards spiral on whether or not you’ll like it

Don’t worry, though, your lips on his cheek and beaming smile of thanks was able to wash all of that away

“Do you like it?” he asks timidly.

“Of course I do,” you answer resolutely, “how could I not love it? It reminds me of you.”

Sevens, you really aren’t good for his heart.

It’s clear that you were incredibly touched by this thoughtful gesture and you hurry to give him your gift

Since your boyfriend is camera shy, instead of giving him a photobook, you hand him a leatherbound journal that has been filled, cover to cover, with pages upon pages of your endless love for him. From three page letters to love notes consisting of five lines, every word you have written is seeping with adoration, the ink on those pages completely pouring with your tender devotion. Not a single space of blankness was left bare as your writings went from corner to corner, making him dizzy at just how much care you had put into this gift

‘To my darling Riddle, falling in love with you has been the most beautiful, most incredibly wonderful unexpected accident that has ever occurred to me...’

‘My dearest Riddle, the sovereign of my heart, I just came back from watching you practice at the Equestrian Club. Did you know that when you smile I feel like I’m basking in the warmth of the sun? I feel like I could gaze upon your happiness for eternity and never once feel tired. How lucky am I to have the most handsome being in all of Twisted Wonderland to call mine…’

‘Riddle, my love, you have one of the kindest and sweetest hearts I have ever met. Your commitment and loyalty to the ones you care for have never once failed to woo me. Everything from your intelligence, your integrity, the softness of your eyes, the euphony of your voice, the gentleness of your touch and the feeling of complete reliability I sense from your presence have captivated me and have done nothing but make me fall for you over and over again - I don’t think that I’ll ever be able to stop…’

He’s only a few pages in and his ears are already burning red, his face a beautiful crimson. His head feels light with the way his mind reels at the onslaught of euphoria.

“Riddle,” you start, growing concerned at the way his body froze and a single tear cascaded down his cheek.

He closes the book and sets it aside on his bedside table, and then, without even a hint of warning, he throws himself at you and wraps his arms around you and buries his face into the crook of your neck. You can feel him shaking, muffled sobs quaking his body as you feel wetness beginning to form at the base of your shoulder.

“Oh darling,” you coo, leaning your own head against his whilst softly and lovingly threading your fingers through his scarlet locks. That soft-hearted, caring gesture only made him squeeze you tighter and for his whimpers to become louder, “I’m sorry, dearest. It wasn’t my intention to make you cry.”

“No,” he pulls back, his wide-eyed watery gaze staring at you with longing, tears streaming down his flustered cheeks. He grips your shoulders tightly, “don’t apologise. Never apologise when you’re with me.”

You hummed in reply and gently wiped away his tears with your thumb, “but still-”

“Wait, Y/N,” he takes a deep, determined breath, “I wish to speak. You are and always will be one of the best things that’s ever happened to me. You’ve ingrained yourself into my heart so deeply that not a second goes by where I don’t feel your presence. When you’re not in my sight, you’re in my thoughts. And when I'm asleep, you’re in my dreams. Whenever we’re apart I’m filled with a yearning that’s part anguish part joy - anguish because the torment I feel when you’re away from me is torture, yet joy because I know the hope I have of when I see you again fills me with the happiness of knowing that I have something to look forward to and someone I can share that happiness with. You broke down every rule I made for myself. You brought light and colour to my cold and monotonous world and for that I can spend a hundred lifetimes thanking you and it wouldn’t even scratch the surface of the gratitude I have for what you’ve done for me. I know that this world isn’t your home, my rose, however, you have become mine. Believe me, I am aware of my faults but Y/N I promise, I will do my best to become someone who is worthy of calling you theirs. So please continue to stay by my side?”

“Riddle,” you smile at him, “there’s no reason for you to ask that of me. I don’t intend on leaving you anytime soon. Or ever, actually.”

With that, Riddle surges forward and claims your lips with his, pressing as deep as he can to show you just how deeply, completely and irrevocably in love he is with you, how you have bewitched him with your very being and have given him everything he’s ever craved for and more, how he wants you more than he wants anything else in the world. The second the two of you part he has you in his embrace yet again, wanting nothing more than to get lost in your touch.

“You have successfully stolen my heart and rule number 23 dictates that one must replace anything that they have stolen. However, I implore you, dearest - please keep my heart for as long as you live because at this point, it rightfully belongs to you.”

CATER DIAMOND

The first thing he did was squeal with absolute delight

“OMG, this is so cray-cray!”

He then immediately tells all of his followers on Magicam, twst!Twitter, twst!Snapchat

#WhenYourGFIsAlsoYourSoulmate #ItsFate #CoupleGoals #CoupleGoalsCouldNever

On the day of your birthdays he’s going all out

He’s documenting/live blogging the entire day on all of his socials

You’re both wearing sashes that have glittery letters spelling ‘BIRTHDAY BOY/GIRL’ on them

When he picks you up he gives you a keychain that has your shared star sign on it because he seems like an astronomy guy to me

The two of you do have a trendy Pinterest-style cake during your birthday party but Trey uses his unique magic on it so Cater doesn’t taste it’s sweetness

He also gets Trey to put on sparkler candles that were the letters ‘C’ and your first name’s initial and a heart as well as two firework candles and he records your reaction to the cake being lit instead of the actual cake because your eyes lighting up were much more beautiful than some dumb candles ♡

(Trey had to have a firm hold on Ace and Deuce’s shoulders to make sure that they don’t do anything stupid near the flames)

After the party he’s taking you out for a walk in the town square so that the two of you can go cafe hopping and so that there can be plenty of photo ops along the way

He pays for everything you order so don’t even think about getting up

Even though he doesn’t like sweets he won’t say no to a few bites of whatever you’re having if you feed him ;)

You two are definitely wearing matching clothes during this date by the way

Then the two of you go back to Ramshackle where you both can canoodle amorously without running the risk of being interrupted by one of his dorm mates

His gift to you is an acrylic stand that resembles an MP3 player. At the top centre was his favourite selfie of the two of you and underneath that picture was the title of yours and Cater’s favourite song.

“Isn’t it totes adorbs?” he chirps as he takes in your awed expression. He points at a small black and white QR code that was placed in a lower corner, “see this? If you scan it on your phone, it takes you to our shared playlist. Awesome, right?”

When you give him your handmade photobook, he has to take a breather when he turns the pages.

Some pictures are the ones that the two of you have taken together whilst others are selfies that you had printed out from his magicam account. It included some photos you had on your personal phone like the ones of him rocking out on his guitar during his club activities or the rare candid photos you took where he wasn’t wearing that happy-go-lucky fake smile and instead showed you the real him that he kept hidden underneath the layers of goofy jokes and playful laughter.

Reading your little comments has him subconsciously giving out an actual genuine soft smile

‘Well if it isn’t my reliable upperclassman, Cay-Cay crushing it on the guitar. Watching you have fun on stage during your concerts always makes me swoon #BFGoals’, ‘You know, I figured out why you’re so perfect for me - diamonds are a girl’s best (boy)friend after all’, ‘Look at my gorgeous bf. Everytime you go #NoFilter I feel like I #WonAtLife’

Oh, Prefect how he adores you. Hasn’t he got such a sweet underclassman?

“Oh, honey,” he sighs, inching closer and closer to you until your lips are millimetres apart, his gaze a mixture of besotted and wanting, “you know just how to make Cay-Cay’s heart go cray-cray.”

“Cater,” you breathed, “you're too close!”

“That's the problem, honey,” he said, pecking your lips, “no matter how close we are (he gave them another peck), I just need to be (and another) closer (and another).”

“What-umph-what are you doing?”

“What do you think? I need to make up for the birthdays I had where I was supposed to be with you.”

TREY CLOVER

First of all: HUSBAND MATERIAL

It probably seems like I don’t like him as much as I do my faves but lads I stan this man so much

I’m just horrible at writing for him

Just - just look at him

His aura is just so domestic and everything about him screams ‘I know how to treat you right’

Plus he’s a baker so you know he smells good

And you know behind that kind, reliable upperclassman ‘only-sane-man’ and ‘single mother of the dorm’ exterior, he’s housing some chaotic stuff

Because 1) it’s always the quiet ones and the ones you least expect and 2) he’s a card soldier and Heartslabyul is one of the most chaotic dorms in NRC

I’m like 110% sure he knows at least 15 different ways of hiding a body

Anyways back to the headcanons

He’s so happy to hear this

To him there’s just something so intimate about sharing such a special day with the girl he loves

The afternoon before your shared birthday the two of you have a baking date where you make your birthday cake - and the other assorted baked goods for your joined birthday party - together

The entire date was so soft and domestic and it felt extra special knowing how important the food you were making

On the day of your birthday, he hands you a little cupcake bouquet

After your birthday party, he takes you to a private area in the Heartslabyul gardens for a picnic

The two of you just lie on the grass and start talking about everything and nothing and basking in each others company in the peace and quiet

He’s reclining against a tree and you are lying on the grass with your head propped up on his comfortable lap, the both of you perfectly content and full after feeding each other finger foods and sharing Trey’s incredible baking

Meanwhile the rest of Heartslabyul is in chaos without their brain cell and impulse control holders

Like red paint is splattered everywhere, Riddle is chasing Ace with a flamingo mallet and Cater is filming it as Deuce is lying in a fetal position on the ground waiting for you to come and pick him up

He gifts you a cute apron that comes in a matching set so that the two of you can wear matching couple aprons when you bake.

He also gives you a wooden spoon that’s been engraved with a cute little message from him

You give him your recent venture into arts and crafts:

A scrapbook that you made that has all of your favourite memories with him, as well as your cheeky little comments

‘Do you know that whenever you roll up your sleeves to start baking, your husband vibes go off the charts?’, ‘No wonder your parents work at a bakery - how else could they have made such a cutie pie’, ‘Hey, remember this? It was that time I joined you and Rook in the Science Club and taught you both how to make elephant’s toothpaste and then you got disappointed because it wasn’t actual toothpaste. I swear I wanted to get down on one knee and propose right there and then.’

The entire time he’s skimming through, he’s just shaking his head and chuckling in amusement

“Thanks, cupcake, I really appreciate it,” he leans over to you and pecks your forehead, “Not as much as I appreciate you, though.”

“Now would you prefer a princess cut or a diamond band?”

(This is so short I feel so guilty for doing this to such a marriage material man but I literally have no idea what to write for him 😭)

KALIM AL-ASIM

Sunshine boy is literally the embodiment of :D when he finds out

His eyes go wide and start sparkling, sparkly flowers start dancing around his head and his sunshine aura quadruples

You tell him at 10:00. By 10:03 everyone in Scarabia knows. By 10:05 everyone in NRC knows.

I’m telling you he’s practically shouting it from the rooftops

He spends the next few days just making it clear that everyone knows that he and his treasure share a birthday

“Professor, Y/N and I have the same birthday, isn’t that great :D”

“I’m aware, Mr Al-Asim, however I believe I asked you to answer question 7.”

“*blissful sigh* It’s like we’re soulmates ( ´ ▽ ` )”

“Heaven’s, I need a drink…��

He wanted to throw a party that very night to celebrate the joyous occasion of him discovering this wondrous news

You were fortunately able to get him to agree to just a two-person dance party in his bedroom with just the two of you

Jamil, who had felt his ‘Kalim is planning another party’ senses tingling, mentally thanked you

But on the actual day though

Oh boy

Sunshine otter boy went all out

Because double birthdays = double party obviously

When you entered Scarabia it looked like the birthday extravaganza of a lifetime

You can see Ace, Deuce and Grim mucking about with some purple peacocks and golden camels from the menagerie that Kalim had brought in before your vision shifted and you found yourself on top of carpet, who happily took you to where Kalim was joyfully waving at people from the top of his elephant.

The two of you start the joined party sitting next to each other during the parade as everyone cheers for the two of you as though you’re the prince and princess of the school

He most probably had a crate full of outfits sent to Ramshackle that morning that were your favourite colours plus some jewellery and sent a note asking you to wear one of them for that night so that the two of you could match

The buffet and dessert tables go on for miles and are packed with mouthwatering food that’s either been handmade by Jamil or by the many many talented personal chefs from the Al-Asim family

The two of you stand in front of a cake that seems to be double your height and the both of you sing happy birthday to each other, gazing into each other's eyes and thumbs rubbing over each others hands, completely oblivious to the rest of the frickin school being in your proximity

After the two of you cut the cake, Kalim happily insists on feeding you the first slice and you joyfully do the same. The lovestruck expressions on both of your faces are the causes for everyone’s happiness (“Dorm leader and the prefect are so perfect together 🥰”), disgust (*cue Ace making vomiting sounds*) and envy (“I want what they have 😭” “*pats back* there, there, Razoul, have another glass of apple juice”).

The two of you are going to be dancing the night away and you can bet that that Kalim got the Light Music Club to perform for this day

And if live music isn’t to your fancy, he managed to find that one Ignihyde student that isn’t a total recluse and convinced him to DJ

At some point he’s going to bring you to the stage and the two of you start singing duets but a few minutes later it just delves into the two of you rambling about who loves who more

“Aww, I love you Kalim.”

“I love you more, Y/N.”

“No way, I love you more.”

“Nu uh, I love you more.”

“Yeah, well, I love the way you always brighten my day when you smile.”

“I love the way your laugh sounds like the most beautiful music I’ve ever heard.”

“I love the way your arms remind me of home and your touch makes my worries disappear.”

“I love how beautiful your heart is.”

“I love how kind your eyes are.”

“I love how you're the first person I think of whenever I wake up.”

“I love how my heart is so full of you I can’t even think about calling it my own.”

“I love the way I fall deeper and deeper for you every day.”

“I love the sound your heart makes when we cuddle.”

“I love the sounds you make when we kiss-”

Guys, Jamil has been banging his head against the wall for the past five minutes you should probably wrap it up

Then Cater has his phone pointed at the both of you and he starts chanting “KISS! KISS! KISS!” until it grows louder and louder and practically everyone is chanting it.

The two of you shrug and happily press your lips together as the crowd cheers and fireworks go off in the background and explode into blooming carnations of colour that fizzle out the words “HAPPY BIRTHDAY Y/N AND KALIM” there’s another one that had K.A and your initials contained within a dazzling pink heart.

When the two of you separate, Kalim gives you a smile that rivals the sun as he gently cups your face in his hands, causing you to lovingly nuzzle against his palm.

Scarabia Student B: “DO IT AGAIN!”

Later he takes you to a room that you think is a second treasury that the Al-Asims built but then your jaw drops down in shock when Kalim reveals that it’s a room he had built to keep your presents.

“I didn’t know which one to get you,” he explains cheerfully as you stare in awe at the way the room glowed with the reflection of the treasures that were stored inside it, “so I got everything!”

You could only nod dumbly at him, not trusting your voice to squeak or give out from the surprise that flooded your veins.

“But,” he chirps, “there is one thing that I have to show you, wait here”

You watch him as he skips away to grab onto a gilded box before he makes his way towards you and hands it to you, asking you to open it. Once you flip open the lid, you’re greeted by the sight of a half heart, similar to the friendship necklaces that you get in your world only very clearly, much, much more expensive; the golden pendant consisted of an outline of half of a heart that was studded with shimmering rubies. Your hand hovered over it, still in so much astonishment that you didn’t even know if you were worthy of touching something as valuable as it.

“You know,” Kalim’s cheerful voice snapped you out of your wonder, “in the legend of the thief, the sorcerer is guided to the Cave of Wonders by combining two halves of a golden scarab. That’s why I wanted to give you this because I have the other half. So if I ever wanted to combine both halves of the heart to make it whole, I would be guided to a treasure that is worth more than all the riches in the world combined.”

“Kalim…” you whisper, touched beyond belief.

“And,” he rubs his neck, a bit embarrassed, “I also wanted to show you how much you mean to me. I know that sometimes I can be a bit much and I know that I can cause problems but-but you’ve always been right by my side and supported me. You never speak to me like I wouldn’t understand something or dismiss me or push me aside. You make an effort to understand me and include me in things. You always ask me for my opinion even when other people don’t and you never get upset if I don’t do things correctly. You always notice my efforts when I’m trying to be more independent and you always take them seriously. When I make mistakes, you always try to see the good in my intentions before you tell me where I went wrong and-and I love you a lot, I really do, and I want to give you the world because you mean the world to me. I’ve had a lot of birthday celebrations and I’ve been to even more parties but this is my favourite one out of all of them because I get to celebrate the birthday of the one whose smile is my paradise.”

Unable to express just how much he means to you with your limited-at-this-moment vocabulary, you gently put the box down and throw your arms around his neck. He lets out peals of laughter as he wraps his arms around your waist and spins you around. You peck his lips and he sets you down and excitedly asks if he could put on the necklace for you, his eyes shining with hope. After he hooks the necklace around your neck, he turns you around to inspect you with a smile, “I’d say that it suits you but you look much prettier, treasure.”

“Kalim!” You felt your face heat up as he laughed at your cute (in his eyes) expression.

Of course, you end the night going for a magical ride above the clouds and across the stars on Kalim’s magical carpet

He then drops you off back at Ramshackle whilst you are still on Carpet. He hops off first and extends a hand so he can help you ease yourself onto the ground

You then ask him to stay in front of your door for a second before you quickly dash inside and grab the gift you had made for him

With flushed cheeks, you shyly hand him the gift bag, which he happily accepts with a giddy chirp of “thank you, Y/N!”

As he leafs through the pages, his smile becomes wider and wider as he sees the care and effort you put in with the myriad of photographs, cute little commentaries and little doodles you drew on the side

‘Eating date cake with my love! Did you know that everything tastes so much sweeter when you’re with me?’, ‘Look Kalim, it’s you on the drums. You make such beautiful music - I could listen to it forever’, ‘Playing mancala with the sweetest, most adorable boy in all of Twisted Wonderland’

Much like your reaction upon receiving his gift, he engulfed you in a bear hug

“My treasure,” he mumbles, his voice slightly muffled from how his cheek pressed against the crown of your head, “I know that it’s past midnight and that it’s no longer our birthdays but can I spend a few more minutes with you. When we're together time goes too quickly and I love you too much to let you go.”

“It’s alright, Kalim,” you smile and snuggle against him, “you can hug me for as long as you want.”

“In that case,” he tightens his hold on you and kisses your forehead, “can I keep you in my arms forever?”

JAMIL VIPER

Another one that doesn’t show much of an outward reaction

If it were anyone else he would’ve been annoyed

Yet another thing of his that he has to share/give up

But this is you

The coolness of his eyes, the delight of his heart, the balm of his mind

His beautiful, angelic diamond that unfortunately exists among the fools he calls his peers

The only one who he can reveal his true self to and never having to worry about you shunning him or leaving him for Kalim

Or anyone else for that matter

Sometimes it feels like you have your own version of snake whisper with the way you have all of NRC spellbound, him included

Don’t get him wrong, he understands exactly why others would be drawn to you but you accepted his confession not theirs so there’s no need for them to be so eager to do favours for you or look so happy when you thank them and give them your

He’s more than capable of serving you - in fact, he’s the only one worthy of serving you and you’re the only one he likes to serve

Anyway, on the inside he’s really happy that you share a birthday with him

He doesn’t really believe in soulmates or fate but he does like the fact that he shares something important with you that no one else (Kalim) could ever attain

Smug snek boy is smug

His plans were to spend his day doing his duties whilst inviting you to Scarabia so the two of you could eat his handmade meals as he tries and fails to dissuade you from helping him in the kitchen (he admires your competency and efficiency but you are not going to lift a finger on your birthday and no he doesn’t care that it’s his birthday as well - no way is he going to let one of his assorted dorm mates make your meals) and then once he’s triple checked everything the two of you could sneak away to his bedroom and spend some quality time together

But no

Of course that can’t happen

Because Kalim - sweet, sweet Kalim - just had to throw a joint birthday party for his two best friends :D

Because he loves them so much :D

Meaning that he had to spend the entire afternoon and evening sharing you with not only his dorm but all of your friends as well (read practically the entire school)

He swears upon the Seven, if that slimy octopus cozies up to you for a second longer he’s going to have a second overblot

DID ASHENGROTTO JUST KISS YOUR KNUCKLES? WHILST LOOKING RIGHT AT HIM? AND SMIRKING?

Grumpy snek boy is grumpy

Just as he was contemplating using his unique magic on the entire party to make them go away, he felt your hand slip into his and all was right in the world

“Easy love,” your voice held traces of laughter, “your frown lines have frown lines.”

“Am I that obvious?” He already knew the answer to that. His silver tongue and poker face has made him a master of manipulation. It just so happened that you were the only one who could see past his facade - or, to be more realistic, you’d rip off every mask he’d have on with nothing but your bare hands and intelligent yet kind words, making it all too easy to tell when he is wearing one.

“Not at all,” you hum, “I can just tell.”

Oh Sorceror of the Sands, aren’t you incredible

Not a day goes by where he doesn’t admire your strength and resilience

Like him, you’ve been forced into a taxing role you didn’t ask for; having to not only babysit those two dimwitted card soldiers and that crass, gluttonous, troublemaking cat that your so fond of but also having to do the headmaster’s job for him by playing therapist and solving everyone else’s problems despite having plenty of your own

Every wrong done against you, you’ve forgiven - not due to naivety but because of your kind-hearted nature that forces you to see the good in everyone

You’ve come into this world with nothing but disadvantages yet you still end up victorious, making it clear to everyone that you are not someone to be messed with or taken lightly

A lesser person would have crumbled or been eaten alive by the twisted students of this villainous school but not you.

You were more than just a pretty face that spewed out honeyed words, you were an unstoppable force to be reckoned with who could be as endearingly stubborn as you are kind

You didn’t change yourself to fit the situation, you changed the situation to fit you

Unlike him, who had manipulated and used you from the very beginning, you’ve been nothing but honest and genuine to him throughout your entire time here at NRC

And you were the only one who was able to break down his walls and the only person he ever allowed himself to be vulnerable with

Not even his parents or sister have met sides of him that he’s revealed to you

He grasps his hand tightly with yours, “let’s leave.”

“But Jamil, the party-”

“I do not wish to spend another second here, my diamond. I’m sure that the sky won’t fall if we excuse ourselves and obtain the private time we rightfully deserve.”

‘And even if it does, I do not care,’ he mentally adds on as your shoulders sag in agreement and you nod.

Once he has dragged you to his room, he bodily spins you so that your back is pressed flat against the door. Finally, the tenseness leaves his body and he slumps forward, resting his forehead on your shoulder with a deep exhale.

You stroke the back of his head with a comforting smile, “rough day?”

“Exhausting,” he replies, “I don’t know why Kalim insisted on throwing this party. I had explained to him multiple times that such extravagance was unnecessary.” “You know him - this is his way of showing that he cares. Not to mention that your dorm was excited to celebrate with him.”

“Still,” he stands back up at his full height, reaching out one of his hands to cup at your cheek, “all it does is pile more work for me. If they truly wanted me to have a good birthday, they would’ve allowed me to spend it privately with you.”

“I would’ve liked that as well but every time I tried to find you someone would come up and chat with me and I don’t have the heart to dismiss them. I’m sorry if it made you feel like I didn’t want to pay attention to you.”

“Please, I have no need to worry about the insects that swarm around you,” charcoal grey eyes glimmered with mischief, “you and I both know that whatever drop of affection they have for you is nothing compared to the ocean of love I possess.”

You let out an amused huff of laughter at his confidence.

“Although,” he eyes your neck with a smirk and smoothly runs his fingers down the exposed skin of the slope of your neck and your clavicle, “perhaps it might be a good idea to leave a physical reminder to not monopolise time that doesn’t belong to them.”

“Jamil!” you whisper-yell and lamely smack him on the shoulder, cheeks burning at the unsaid implication, “don’t you dare.”

What charming expressions you make. He chuckles at your flustered countenance, “I’m merely suggesting an extra birthday present. Though, I suppose that would be more of a present for me. Speaking of presents, I believe that we have yet to exchange gifts.”

He places a little black cube into your hands, its dimensions small enough to fit snugly in your palm.

Inside it you find a ring made up of a shiny golden snake ring with miniscule, precisely placed diamonds placed on its coils to act as scales and tiny rubies as its eyes

With your permission he takes your hand and gently slides it onto your index finger and then kisses the knuckles of that hand whilst staring right into your eyes

You hand him your gift (which you had already placed in his room when you entered Scarabia, with a large note saying that he’s not allowed to look inside)

Like Riddle, instead of a photo book, you give him a journal filled with love letters and words of praise

‘To the master of my heart, there is never a day that goes by where I am not proud of you. I could spend years singing your praises to the heavens and I still feel like my words would be inadequate. You are a wonder worthy of the highest recognition possible and I am certain that you will receive everything you deserve and more…’

‘To the Sultan of my love, how dare you be so attractive! How dare you! Do you have any idea how hard it is to concentrate when you occupy my thoughts every second of the day? Seriously, how am I expected to learn in class when all I can do is think about how much I love to get lost in those entrancingly beautiful eyes of yours or how much my fingers yearn to rake through your silken hair. That’s not to say that I’m only appreciative of your physical handsomeness - your attractive personality is far more alluring…’

‘To the one who holds my most dearest affections, I’m not saying that I’m with you because of your incredible skills at cooking and kissing but I am saying that you are way too skilled in those areas to be real. I know I always go on about how captivating you are when you’re dancing or playing basketball but you enthrall me even when you do the most mundane things - how is it that you make walking look so pleasing…’

Closing the book, he places it on the floor and then swiftly claims your lips with his, pressing his mouth deeper and deeper against yours until you were left panting

“My diamond,” he whispers, eyes boring into yours and mouth a hair's breadth away from yours, “my love, you mean more to me than anything else this world has to offer. You’re the only being I covet more than my freedom. Travelling the world, power and glory - they all mean nothing if you’re not by my side.”

“You’ve entranced me with your soul much like how the story queen, Scheherazade, captivated her Sultan with her tales. And just like how she brought peace to his enraged and vengeful heart, you’ve rid me of the bitter wrath that polluted mine. When I feel suffocated, you are my air. When my mind is shrouded in darkness, you give me light and no matter how sweltering the sun may be, I will always feel cold without the warmth of your company.”

“If that’s the case, I’ll do my best to make sure you’re never left wanting,” you say.

“Oh my diamond,” Jamil sighs, silently thanking the heavens and every miraculous force that gave him you, “you have created an absence in my heart that only you can fill so please take responsibility and make me yours - both now and in our lives after this.”

#twisted wonderland x reader #twst x reader #twst #twisted wonderland #ace trappola x reader #deuce spade x reader #riddle rosehearts x reader #cater diamond x reader #trey clover x reader #kalim al asim x reader #jamil viper x reader #fem reader

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