#what is your deepest Cody desire?

[codychristiantreasures]

What a sweetie.

#cody christian #cutest guy #him and those puppies were so adorable #His frieking smile omg #anyone been starting the new year off with Cody thoughts like I have? #what is your deepest Cody desire? #asher adams #all american #theo raeken #teen wolf #mike montgomery #pll #cody allen christian

[multi-fan-dom-madness]

Midnight Masquerade - Rex and Cody

Chapter Summary: The bottle lands perfectly between Rex and Cody. You've never been one to back down from a challenge.

Chapter Warnings: 18+ content; angel!Rex x f!reader x devil!Cody; kinks: threesome + dirty talk; praise kink, degradation kink, spanking (one instance), oral (both m and f receiving), bratting and brat training, spitroast, poorly translated Mando'a, 'monster' interpreted rather loosely for this one, absolutely no cl0nc3st, if I missed any please let me know!

A/N: Not fully happy with the monster part of this, but in terms of smut, come get y'all juice! some inspo taken from the lovely @sev-on-kamino for the part where Cody asks a leading question. Mando'a roughly translates to "plaything" (geroya for 'play' and 'kebis' for 'thing')

Word Count: 4.0k (do not perceive me)

Read the intro here! | Suggested listening

...Rex.

No, Cody. 

No. Hang on. You lean down and align your vision with the direct line of sight of the bottle’s mouth, and realize with a jolt that it’s perfectly between the two men. Blinking, you straighten up. The entire table gives you an expectant look, but none more so than the two men the bottle seems stuck between. Nerves and arousal pulse through you, drying your mouth. Kark, would they...?

Into the momentary silence, Cody speaks, one eyebrow raised. His wings, dominating the space with jet black feathers, rustle in impatience. “Clearly, it’s pointing at me.” 

Next to him, Rex’s face, bathed in the light of his halo, scrunches in a frown. “Are you sure about that, vod?” He gestures to the bottle. “Look, it’s pointing at my arm.” 

“Yeah, and mine is right next to yours, di’kut.” 

They devolve into petty bickering, jostling each other as they try to prove which one of them the bottle actually points to. Worrying your bottom lip, you spare a glance around the table. The others have moved on from the moment, having not been chosen, and have resumed their own conversations. 

With a sigh, you stand, chair screeching on the stone floor. Both Rex and Cody snap their attention to you, frozen in mid-wrestle, Rex’s head nearly pinned beneath Cody’s arm. 

Hands on your hips, you tilt your head. “Boys,” you tut. “There’s no need to fight. If you can’t decide, I will.” 

Cody reluctantly lets go of his brother, a scowl threatening to mar his features. 

“What’s your choice, mesh’la?” Rex asks. The look on his face is serene, angelic—there’s no other word for it. Whatever decision you make, he’ll be okay with.

“Yes,” you say. At their blank stares, you chuckle. “Both. And. What do you say?” 

Cody and Rex exchange a single glance before both men scramble out of their chairs. Well—Cody scrambles, knocking empty shot glasses askew and sending them hurtling off the table to shatter on the flagstones beneath. He ignores the grumbles of protest from the rest of the troopers, skidding to a halt in front of you with a smirk damn near as devilish as the ram’s horns curling out of his head. 

For his part, Rex stands, exuding calmness even from across the table, and spreads his wings. The white, pearlescent feathers seem to glow dully from within for a moment—and then he beats them once, gliding over the table in one smooth movement.

Your mouth falls agape as Rex settles onto his feet beside you. “Woah.” 

He gives you a small smile, one that steals your breath. The look he gives you makes you feel like there’s some long-standing inside joke that only you and he share; butterflies flutter in your veins.

“Are you gonna just stand there eye-fucking her, or are you gonna actually fuck her, vod?” Cody’s voice jolts you out of the golden depths of Rex’s gaze. 

Meeting Cody’s eyes, you shiver despite yourself. His eyes are dark, boring into your very soul. Goosebumps erupt over your skin at the sensation of your deepest desires being dredged up from the vaults of your mind. Core clenching with need, you whimper almost silently. 

“What was that about eye-fucking, Codes?” Rex teases. 

Cody rolls his eyes. “Yeah, yeah. C’mon. Let’s get somewhere private before I change my mind and fuck you right here.” 

Chest tightening with blazing desire, you have no choice but to allow yourself to be ushered forward by them both. You can only imagine the sight you present to the rest of the partygoers, a literal angel and devil at your shoulders. Rex to your left, Cody on your right, your hands itch to reach out and grab theirs. You can feel their wings, feathers soft and warm, tickling at the backs of your legs as you walk; idly, you wonder what those feathers might feel like beneath your palms. 

It’s Rex who makes the first move. His fingers are strong and cool where he laces them through your own, and the reassuring smile he gives you makes you melt. 

Not one to be outdone, Cody grabs your other hand. His skin is so warm it’s nearly hot, like he’s burning from within with hellfire. Kriff, you’re not one who buys into some of the metaphysical beliefs you’ve heard from various folks on Coruscant, but if there is an afterlife where souls are either punished or blessed for eternity, you’re pretty sure which side this night is about to land you in.

You don’t really care. 

The two men escort you through a series of hallways to a random door, which opens onto a sparsely furnished bedroom. Seems your hosts know exactly what their guests would want from this night of revelry. Aside from the massive bed, hanging from the ceiling is a wrought iron chandelier with lit candles that cast flickering lights on the cobblestone walls, giving the space a rather fantasy-esque feel. Tucked in one corner stands a washbasin with a full water jug. Good. You’re going to need hydration after tonight.

Licking your lips, you glance between the other two out of the corners of your eyes, before dropping their hands. As you step deeper into the room, Rex shuts and bolts the door. The two men remain close by the entrance. They regard you with unabashed curiosity, though you pick up their wildly different intentions: one bright and willing to support, one dark and willing to break. 

You urge your racing heart to settle. “So. Ground rules. Someone says ‘red,’ and this all stops. That clear?” 

Cody gives a single, terse nod while Rex smiles encouragingly. 

“Great.” You shimmy out of your clothing, leaving you in nothing but your shoes in front of both men. Rex’s white toga, belted with gold trim, begins to tent as his cheeks flush, taking in the sight of your nude form. Cody’s hands twitch toward unbuttoning his black shirt, his own bulge growing noticeable. 

Your chest rises and falls with each shallow breath. In the chilled air of the chamber, your nipples stiffen, goosebumps arising once again all over your body. Their gazes are heavy on your skin, lingering in all your dips and curves. 

“She’s beautiful, isn’t she, Cody?” Rex murmurs. His wings shift against his back. “Bet she’s gonna be such a good girl for us.” 

Cody snorts. “Bet she’s gonna be a good slut for us. Isn’t that right, princess?” When your thighs press together without realizing, Cody smirks. “Yeah, she is. Filthy little plaything.” 

Body flushed with warmth, you can’t decide who to focus on as they begin to approach, one step at a time. Rex flanks to your right, while Cody moves to you directly. His hands roughly cup your face and drag you forward to close the distance. Lips crashing into yours, you can’t help the moan that escapes you as Cody grips the back of your neck with one hand. His other hand immediately finds a home at your breast, tweaking your already-sensitive nipple, squeezing the soft flesh. His kiss is dizzying in its demand: his mouth moves against yours with feverish intent, dead set on making your knees wobble. 

And when they do wobble, your legs threatening to buckle, Rex is right there. One of his arms snakes around your waist to hold you upright against his chest, now bare. The fingertips of his other hand trail lightly over your thigh, skating close to your heated core. When Cody plies your mouth open with his tongue—forked tongue, you realize, you groan, arching back into Rex. 

“Such a sweet thing,” Rex murmurs in your ear between soft kisses to your shoulder. “So soft for us. Gonna make you feel so good, mesh’la.” 

Cody lets you break the kiss, your chest heaving with ragged breaths. His eyes glint in the candlelight. Swollen lips pulling back in a roguish grin, his forked tongue flickers out to lick his teeth. 

“G’on, geroy’bis, give Rex some love,” Cody husks. 

Already dizzy and dazed with lust, you find you don’t have it in you to turn in Rex’s embrace. Rather, you simply lean your head back and tilt to find his mouth, already seeking your own. You sigh in contentment as his lips slot against yours. His kiss is soft, gentle, and yet no less debilitating for it. Your head swims with pleasure as Cody continues to tug on your nipples. When his mouth latches onto one of them, you keen into Rex’s mouth—he uses the opportunity to taste you, his tongue sliding against your own.

Your eyes flutter open in surprise when one of Cody’s thick, hot fingers trails over your slit. You whine as his finger traces the lightest circle around your aching clit, but he withdraws his touch before you can properly react. Rex pulls away from your lips to give you a smirk that, if he didn’t have a halo and angel’s wings, could be called sinful. 

“What d’you want, sweetheart, hm?” Rex asks. His grip shifts to tilt your head back toward Cody. “Tell him what you want. Use your words like a good girl.” 

Fidgeting under Cody’s heavy stare, you try to recall some of the confidence you’d had just a few minutes ago, back at the table. “W-Well, Commander? Aren’t you going to touch me like the slut you say I am?” 

The dark smirk that sprawls over his face makes you immediately regret your words. 

“Oh, no, geroy’bis,” he purrs, voice dangerously low as he crowds into your personal space. You try and fail to not cower back into Rex’s embrace. “No, no. Sluts take what they’re given and don’t talk back. Brats, on the other hand...” His eyes rake your trembling form. “Brats get their mouths stuffed until they learn their manners.” 

You stiffen in Rex’s arms, breath freezing halfway in your lungs as desire blazes through you. When you don’t move, gaze locked on Cody’s self-assured smirk, Rex shifts behind you.

“Cody,” Rex warns. “Cyare, color?” 

“Green,” you gasp out. 

“Good girl,” he murmurs, as Cody chucks under your chin with a smug, “That’s what I thought.” 

“On your knees,” Cody commands, voice hard as the stone your knees crack against as your body betrays you. You’d intended to take your time, continue pushing the devil’s buttons, but the moment Rex released you, your legs collapsed. 

Body burning with embarrassment and lust alike, you peer up through your eyelashes as Cody makes quick work of the zipper of his pants to free his cock. Flushed and weeping, the head of his dick bobs in front of your face, making you go cross-eyed as you try to appraise its full size. Maker, he’s big, thick and long. Your mouth waters. Cody steps closer; his hard length taps against the side of your face, smearing precum along your cheek. 

Behind you, you’re aware of Rex watching with equal parts amusement and concern. And all around you, feathers, warm and insulating, envelope the three of you. Black over white, white over black, they both stretch their wings in a protective circle to embrace you. Stars, you want to reach out and touch, to feel the down beneath the flight primaries—but then Cody grips your jaw just hard enough to force your mouth open, and you accept his flushed tip in your mouth. 

Your lips stretch to accommodate him as best as you can. There’s just so much of him. Lapping at the vein on the underside, you hollow your cheeks as he slowly pushes further into your hot, wet mouth. His teeth grind as his eyes drill into yours, dark and slitted. His cock is heavy on your tongue. Whining around him, you shift on your knees to alleviate the growing discomfort there. 

“Rex,” Cody says, voice strained. “Play with her cunt. Wanna watch her eyes cross while I fuck her face.” 

A gush of slick drools from your folds, coating the insides of your thighs. Rex repositions himself, at first you think to reach around from behind you, but then one hand gently nudges your knees apart as his grip lifts your ass just enough for him to shimmy beneath. You inhale sharply through your nose at his hot breath on your folds. 

As Rex wraps his arms around your thighs and tugs you down, Cody thrusts into your mouth shallowly. You jerk and groan, mind and body short-circuiting between the two very different stimuli. Rex’s tongue is cool and languid where it swirls over your pussy; Cody’s length is hard and domineering as he ruts into your mouth. All you want to do is kneel there and take it; but you want more than that. Hollowing your cheeks, you suck with every pull back even as you grind your hips down against Rex’s mouth. Moans claw out of your chest and vibrate around Cody’s length, making him grit his teeth. 

“Kriff, geroy’bis,” he huffs out. “Got such a dirty fuckin’ mouth. Suckin’ my cock like a karkin’ pro.” 

You hum in satisfaction. Beneath you, Rex nudges your clit with his nose as he fucks your hole with his tongue. Pleasure ripples through you, centered at your heated core and pulsing outward. 

Out of curiosity, you reach down with one hand and tentatively wrap your fingers around Rex’s halo. All at once, your body jerks taut with a cry. Blinding radiance floods your body—and just for a moment, you can feel Rex as if he is you. You taste yourself on your tongue, feel the way your folds part under Rex’s ministrations, feel the aching length of arousal at the apex of his thighs. Rex groans; you feel it rumble in your chest like the sound comes from you.

Yanking your hand back, you peer with wide, teary eyes up at Cody, who clearly doesn’t understand what just happened. 

Rex lifts your hips. “K-Kriff. Are you okay?” 

You motion vaguely a thumbs-up so he can see. 

He hesitates, before delving back into your folds. Despite the sensation of being linked is gone, the knowledge of how much this is affecting Rex throws you right back into your pleasure, the cord in your belly winding tighter with every wag of his tongue. 

“If I pull out, you gonna be good and ask nicely for what you want?” Cody asks. He doesn’t relent in his pace. His cock drives incrementally deeper into your mouth with each thrust. Tears dew at the corners of your eyes as you try not to gag, squeezing your fists tight. You can’t answer, can’t even nod.

Cody hums. “That’s too bad.” He holds the back of your neck with a firm grasp. “Guess you still haven’t learned manners.” 

Eyes widening, you wail brokenly around Cody as he begins to fuck your face in earnest. His fat cock pushes to the back of your throat with every stutter of his hips forward. To match the intensity, Rex begins rocking your hips back and forth across his face. His lips latch around your clit and he sucks. Your toes curl. Vision going blurry, you squirm, trapped between them.

Cody releases you and takes a shaky step backward. You cough and sputter, tears leaking down your face, yet you can’t help the way your core lurches at the sight of Cody so affected. What little of his skin you can see beneath his clothes is shiny with a layer of sweat, his cheeks flushed, hair disheveled where his fingers ran through it. 

While you try to regain your breath, you can feel your orgasm approaching, a molten thread pulling taut in your belly. Dropping your gaze to Rex, you keen at the sight of his face slick with your juices, shining in the warm light of his halo. 

“Gonna- gonna—” You gasp. 

Rex digs his fingers into the meat of your thighs as you ride out your high, twitching against his mouth as he continues to lick and suck you through it. Once you begin to come down, panting harshly, Rex gently lifts you off his face. You become aware of a new sensation. Along your arms, something cool and ticklish brushes against your skin. 

Peeking your eyes open, you gasp in wonder at the long, luminescent feathers dragging slowly up your biceps. Rex flexes his wings to caress you. A shiver cascades down your spine.

“Did so good for us, mesh’la,” Rex croons. “So pretty when you cum like that. So pretty when your mouth is stuffed full of cock.” 

Without thinking, you reach out to touch one of Rex’s wings. The feathers are soft, and he holds still to let you stroke the long primary feathers, fondle the shorter coverts. He shudders beneath you. 

“Feel good?” you murmur. 

He hums in response, eyes sliding shut. When you burrow your fingers beneath the stiffer feathers, seeking the down beneath, Rex groans low in his throat. Your nails gently scrape over the warm, membranous skin of his wings, cushioned by downy under-feathers. Under your fingers, you can feel the blood pumping through his veins, fast and hard, just as affected as you are. You watch in fascination as Rex’s expression contorts into one of serene bliss as you stroke your thumb over his skin.

“Mesh’la,” he croons. 

You glance up at Cody shyly. “Can I- Can I touch yours, too?” 

“Greedy,” he accuses, but there’s no real heat behind his words. “Let’s move you to the bed, and then yes, you can touch.”

On unsteady legs, you hobble to the bed, Rex and Cody in tow just as soon as they strip completely. Cody positions you in the center of the bed and, one leg folded beneath him, slots himself at your side. Rex mirrors his pose on the other side, face still sticky with your slick. Once more, their wings spread with a gentle rustle to envelop you. At a nod from Rex, you reach with both hands and bury your fingers into white and black feathers. 

Cody’s forehead drops against your shoulder with a low moan. Rex captures your lips in a sweet kiss, setting your head spinning again. The taste of yourself makes you whimper. His lips curve against yours as you let your hands wander. Brushing over their wings, you smooth your palms over Rex’s and Cody’s thighs, feeling the powerful muscles there flex in response. Drawing farther up, you grope blindly for their lengths. 

All three of you sigh simultaneously as your fingers wrap around them. Rex is shorter than Cody, but thicker too. You moan in anticipation. 

“Filthy fuckin’ thing,” Cody mumbles against your shoulder. His heated body makes sweat begin to dew on your skin. “Couldn’t just pick one or the other, could you? Had to have two cocks. We’re gonna ruin you, princess. Split you open so good you’ll never want another dick.” 

Rex nudges you to turn and face Cody. As the devil’s lips smother yours, Rex trails a featherlight hand down your spine, pressing open-mouthed kisses to your shoulder and neck. 

“You’re so good for us, mesh’la,” Rex praises quietly. “Made to take us.” 

You whine in agreement, nodding within Cody’s grip. 

“Gonna fuck you now, geroy’bis,” Cody says as he pulls away. His eyes never leave yours, hot and dark, as he continues, “You should feel her mouth, vod. Feel how sinful those lips are when they’re wrapped around you.” 

Whimpering, you flutter your eyelashes at the implication of Cody’s words. 

He grins at you, wolfish and lustful. “That’s right. Hands and knees, filthy girl.” 

Crouched on your elbows, your ass presented to Cody, you bite your lip as Rex’s cock fills your vision. Cody’s steadying grasp on your hip keeps you grounded. His fingers gather some of your slick to spread over his length, and then the blunt head of him presses into you. 

You flick your tongue against the underside of Rex’s tip, moaning at the way your cunt stretches to fit Cody. The deeper Cody pushes, the farther into your mouth you draw Rex, until finally, they’re both seated fully within your holes, one dripping slick and one drooling spit. Cody’s hands splay over your ass for a moment before—

Smack!

You jolt with a surprised, muffled yelp at the stinging ass smack. 

“Doing so good for us,” Rex coos. His breathing is strained, coming in harsh gasps, but he gives you a smile when you glance up to see his expression. “Cody, on three?” 

Cody grunts out an affirmative. “One, two—” 

“Three.” 

They set a devastating rhythm. As Cody withdraws from your tight heat, Rex pushes just a bit more down your throat—then drags your head back as Cody pushes his hips flush against your ass. You’re manhandled between the two of them; Rex’s hands on your head keep you stable while Cody pounds against the spot in your cunt that makes you see stars. Whining, drooling, you relax your throat to take Rex as deep as you can as Cody takes what he wants from you.

The air is full of the sounds of both of them fucking you. The wet squelch of your pussy echoes in direct counterpart to the way you gag on Rex’s length; and orchestrating it all are both men’s voices, muttering filth and praise and worship. At some point, you lose track of who says what, their voices blending into the buzzing in your ears as your orgasm begins to build again. 

“That’s it, little one, take those fuckin’ cocks.” 

“Such—a—good—whore—for—us—ngh!” 

“You’re doing so well, sweetheart, letting us use you like this.” 

“Yeah, you gettin’ close? Feel that tight pussy chokin’ me. Cum for us. You can do it.” 

That last is in response to the way that you wail, the sound tearing from your chest as Cody reaches around and presses his fingers to your clit. Body locking up, you pull from Rex’s length with a messy pop as your orgasm crashes into you. Cody fucks you through it, hard and fast, unrelenting. Even when you begin to shake, overstimulated, he slides his cock into you until, with a growl, he buries himself to the hilt and moans. 

You nearly cum again at the feeling of his cock pulsing in you, spilling his hot seed into your sopping cunt. “C-Cody.” 

He slips his softening length from you, but then Rex is immediately there to fill the gap. Using both of your spends as extra lube, Rex’s length splits you apart at the seams. Dimly you’re aware of Cody collapsing on the bed next to you, his gaze warm and caring, horns retracting into his skull. But then Rex tilts your hips just a little, and you can’t even scream, the breath knocked from you as he grinds into you.

Where Cody was rough and insistent, Rex is gentle yet firm. Even as your body jolts in blinding pleasure, he holds you completely still so he can hit that devastating spot in you with deadly precision. You’re swept away by your third orgasm; it hits you so suddenly that you don’t have time to cry out, instead small squeaks falling from your lips. 

Like Cody, Rex stills deep in you and spurts his cum into your stretched, wrecked hole. He nearly collapses on top of you, barely catching himself on his hands. The three of you pant and lay there, trying to recover from the mind-melding experience you just shared. With trembling fingers you reach to trace the scar around Cody’s eye. He hums, leaning into your touch. 

A giggle escapes you, tired and fucked-out. “Holy shit.” 

“You can say that again,” Rex mutters, pulling out at last. 

You whimper at the loss and at the sensation of both of their spends welling out of your spent cunt. Rex pushes some of it back in with his thumb. Moaning, you plant your face in the cushioned bed. 

“Just relax, cyare,” Cody says with a contented sigh. “We’ll take care of you.” 

“You already did,” you mumble thickly, gesturing to your lower half. 

Two rumbling chuckles echo in the room. Rex says, “You know what he meant.” 

Turning your head to meet Cody’s eyes once again, you simply smile. “I know.”

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#captain rex x reader x commander cody #rex x reader x cody #captain rex x reader #commander cody x reader #mdfm hallowkink 23 #x reader #the clone wars x reader #the clone wars #rhiwrites #midnight masquerade

[mightywolves23]

The Case of the Animal Onesies Part Four

Word Count: 423

Characters: Obi-wan, Cody

Fluffy fluffness. Enjoy...  Part Four of the mini series inspired by Catawampuscorner art. I hope you check them out.

***

“I found it!” Obi-wan quickly read all the information on the screen. His heart sank. 

It seemed that the artifact acts on the deepest desires of the person who first touched it. It would then play it out for seven months was the least amount of time recorded. 

Obi-wan slumped. He looked around him at the various troopers turned babies in onesies. Obi-wan remembered that Cody was the one to touch the artifact first. 

What was Cody’s deepest desire? It couldn’t have been for all of the troopers to be babies, could it? 

Obi-wan snuck through the sleeping puppy piles of baby clones. He spotted the black and yellow outfit of Cody, wrapped around the white of Rex and the orange wings of Boil and Waxer. 

“Cody?” Obi-wan whispered. He nudged at Cody’s side. “Cody? I need to talk to you.” 

Cody blinked open amber eyes at him. “Obi?” Cody yawned. “I’m sleepy.” 

“I know dear one. This will only take a moment.” Obi-wan reached out and ran his hand over Cody’s head. “What did you think about when you touched the statue?” 

Cody rumbled under his hand. He pressed his head up into Obi-wan’s touches. “Wanted to be a family. No fighting bad droids. No stupid war. No more dying. Wanted that for all my vode.” Cody’s lower lip trembled and his eyes teared up. “I just wanted to be a family. With you, and Anakin and Soka and all my vode. I got my wish. Was I bad?” 

Obi-wan melted. All his frustration and worry at the situation melted away at Cody’s obvious distress. His thoughts were good and innocent. All he wanted was his family safe and whole. 

“No dear one. You weren’t bad at all.” Obi-wan pulled his hand back. 

It was a good thought. This should pass soon enough. He thought. 

“Come here, Cody.” Obi-wan pulled the distressed Cody into his lap. Drat being this small. “Hush now. It’s alright.” Obi-wan rested his chin on Cody’s shoulder. “It’s okay Dear one. You have your family. It’s alright.” 

Cody fell asleep in Obi-wan’s arms. Obi-wan laid back into the puppy pile of Rex, Cody, Boil, and Waxer. 

The warm bodies pressed around him made a huge yawn crack his jaw nearly in two. Obi-wan snuggled in his otter onesie and pulled Cody closer to him. 

It was only a few more months. At minimum. He should enjoy this while he could. It would be over soon enough. 

Obi-wan fell asleep in the midst of warm cuddly clones and dreamed.

#star wars #clone wars #stories #drabble #fanfic #baby clones in animal onesies #baby clones #onesies au #animal onesies #obi-wan kenobi #commander cody #baby cody #de aged #catawampuscorner

[ash-and-books]

Rating:5/5

Book Blurb: Wilder Girls meets The Craft in this Sapphic horror debut that asks: what price would you be willing to pay to achieve your deepest desires? Finch Chamberlin is the newest transfer student to the ultra-competitive Ulalume Academy... but she's also not what she seems. Months before school started, Finch and her parents got into an accident that should have left her dead at the bottom of the river. But something monstrous, and ancient, and terrifying, wouldn't let her drown. Finch doesn't know why she woke up after her heart stopped, but since dying she's felt a constant pull from the school and the surrounding town of Rainwater, like something on the island is calling to her. Selena St. Clair sees right through Finch, and she knows something is seriously wrong with her. But despite Selena's suspicion, she feels drawn to Finch and has a sinking feeling that from now on the two will be inexplicably linked to one another. One night Finch, Selena, and her friends accidentally summon a carnivorous creature of immense power in the depths of the school. It promises to grant every desire the girls have kept locked away in their insecure hearts—beauty, power, adoration—in exchange for a price: human body parts. But as the cost of their wanting becomes more deadly, Finch and Selena must learn to work together to stop the horror they unleashed, before it consumes the entire island.

Review:

“Hell is a teenage girl.” - Diablo Cody, Jennifer’s Body

Two girls, a god, and making deals with the devil. Finch Chamberlin is shy and awkward and is the newest transfer student to the competitive Ulalume Academy. On the day of her audition she accidentally meets Selena St. Clair, a gorgeous popular mean girl with more secrets. On the day of her audition on the way back home Finch and her parents get into an accident and finch dies at the bottom of the river... until she is back. Finch was declared dead but has somehow made it back alive but her parents did not. As Finch begins her school year at Ulalume, right after a traumatizing and horrific event in her life, she is fragile and just trying to make it through the year. However she finds herself being pulled to a mysterious ghost like creature in the cave that goes by the name of Nerosi... It also doesn’t help that Finch ends up paired with Selena who seems to see right through Finch. Selena and her friends accidentally run into a cave and meet a creature named Nerosi who offers to give them whatever they want in exchange for something else... and as Selena’s friends begin asking for more things and the sacrifices get bigger and bigger Selena will have to find a way to save them before it’s too late and the only person she knows that can help her is in the form of the girl who she can’t seem to stay away from, Finch. Finch and Selena soon find that they share a connection besides Nerosi, and must help each other stop this mysterious creature before it’s evil is unleashed on everyone and destroys everything. On top of that they’re complicated feelings for each other are growing and bodies will start dropping soon. This was such a fun read! It mixes in mystery, romance, friendship, fighting demons/creatures, and everything in between. It was a thrill from beginning to end and getting to know Finch and Selena was a joy! I definitely recommend this book!!!

*Thanks Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire, Sourcebooks Fire for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

#book review #bookish #ya book #book #my dearest darkest #lgbtq reads #lgbtq books

[adamwatchesmovies]

The Road (2009)

I’ve seen The Road twice now and it’s still a wallop of an experience. This is not a horror film or a thriller but it will have you sweating throughout.

This post-apocalyptic story follows a man (Viggo Mortensen) and his son (Cody Scott-McPhee) traveling in a desolated North America. After an unspecified global disaster, nearly all animal species have gone extinct and all plant life has been wiped out. Most humans have resorted to cannibalism to survive, but our heroes insist on holding onto their integrity in a world without hope.

Based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy, The Road shows us the deepest depths of desperation. While searching for greener pastures, our protagonists have to dodge marauding gangs armed with guns while having to confront their own demons and the appeal of letting go of their ideals. This film is frightening in the same way that a zombie movie is frightening. With limited resources and rampant paranoia, who is more dangerous: them, or us? It’s interwoven with a powerful drama. A father, a son. Probably the last living family left on earth. How did they get there, where will they go next?

For what it is, this is a great-looking, film. The use of color is particularly striking because there’s hardly any. This world is so bleak you wonder if suicide isn’t better than another day of uncertainty. Then, we slip into flashbacks of before the disaster and see how carefree these people were. It helps you remember that survival isn’t enough, that hope and joy are what will keep you going. A warm fire, a treat that’s been overlooked, a pleasant memory, those are what will keep our heroes going.

Watching The Road, you become determined not to lose hope, no matter what. You desperately want to see this father and son make it out alive. They became avatars for you. If they make it, you will too. Perhaps more important than their lives are their code of ethics, their desire to remain good people in a world where all morals have been abandoned. This is the crucial human element that makes the picture an unforgettable experience. Though things get as bleak as they possibly could, you’re constantly reminded that hope can still burn bright.

I won’t call this is a depressing movie, but it’s a depressing story. You thought a zombie apocalypse was bad? At least zombies can’t help but eat people, and once you turn into one, there’s nothing you can do about it. Our heroes are dying. They’re starved, haven’t seen sunlight in years, regularly talk about suicide as an option, and have seen horrors only hinted at in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre time and time again. It’s not a question of “if”, but “when”. In their shoes, what would you do? Director John Hillcoat forces you to confront a scenario with no alternatives. It's kill or be killed. When confronted with such extremes, you're compelled to examine who you are.

All that and it’s got some powerful performances. It boils down its themes to the essentials, stripping away everything but the crucially important. What’s left makes a powerful impact. Is it the kind of movie you can just pop into your machine and watch anytime? No, but you’re going to forget it anytime soon and it will provoke something inside you. The Road might be the stuff of nightmares, but I can’t help kind of loving it. (On DVD, April 22, 2016)

#TheRoad #movies #films #MovieReviews #FilmReviews #JohnHillcoat #CormacMcCarthy #JoePenhall #ViggoMortensen #kodi smit-mcphee #RobertDuvall #CharlizeTheron #GuyPearce #MollyParker #GarretDillahunt #MichaelK.Williams #2009films #2009movies

[bubsdolan]

PEGGING GRAYSON BUBBA OH MY GOD I LOVE YOU🥵🥵🥵

“on your hands and knees for, mama,” after grayson had made it very vocal to you one evening that he wanted to try arseplay, accidentally dropping it in his deepest slumper, a wet dream like no other, it was time to finally unleash your dominant side.

grayson was always the dominant, extremely kinky one in your relationship. his always put your pleasure before his own, attending to your needs the best way he knew how. however tonight, he was your cum slut, you were going to use and treat his tight forbidden arsehole, the way he always used yours.

“not a sound ok, baby. the more noise you make, the less likely ill allow you to cum.” your voice stern, showing you mean business. normally if you were to instruct grayson to do anything sexually where you take control, he would shush you by plunging his  fingers so deep into your pussy, that it made you forget even bringing it up. but tonight, the way his arsehole was aching for you, begging to be touched and played with- he obeyed.

“y-yes, mama. please..please.” grayson begged for you, his eyes mastering the best puppy ones that he knew you could never resist. the way his rough hands were stretching out his arse cheeks made your pussy juices drop down your inner thigh in anticipation and lust.

“gotta prep you first, yeah? bet you’ll like mama’s tongue licking your little hole. my naught boy.” you coo, soothing your hands across the delicate skin of him arse. licking your lips for moisture and preparation to go to town in the area he so desperately craved.

you situate yourself behind him, dropping your head to his crack as you blow warm air around his hole. slapping his hands away before you replacing them with your own. grabbing tightly onto his arse, spreading his cheeks as far apart as possible so you can fit yourself perfectly in between. instantly your tongue is swelling around his tender hole, spitting on it in order to help the lubricantcation.

“oh-oh fuck,” Grayson whimpered below you, dropping his head to the pillow and moaning into the material. his hands gripping the bed sheets in order to help him through the newfound pleasure he soon became addicted to.

you pull away abruptly, sending a hand smack onto one cheek of his arse, which sends his body jolting forward from force. “i told you not to speak, slut. now you deserve to be punished,” you say through gritted teeth. raising your hand and joining it back to his skin was a harsh slap. your hand print visible under the redness forming over his skin.

after many spanks and cries and whimpers leaving graysons lip, you resume your position face between his legs. your tongue pushed deep inside of him, penetrating his hole. he was in such a state of euphoria that was he was subconsciously rocking his hips back agasint your tongue. sweat dropping down his forehead, muscles tensed as he bit down on his lip in order to contain his moans. 

pulling away once again, causing grayson to whimper and whine at the loss of the sensation, you reach for the bottle of lube saved for this special occasion. pouring a substantial amount onto your thumb and forefinger, even tipping some of the liquid around his tense muscle for good measure. you bring a delicate finger to his hole, pushing in slowly and allowing him time to adjust to before you begin to stretch him out. 

“you like that, hmm? tell me who you belong to.” you growl, adding more pressure and thrusting faster at the encouraging sound of graysons deep breathes, breathes thay only increase the more you mercilessly fingerfuck his tight hole.

“yo-you, mama. it’s yours.” 

“damn fucking right it is. my little arsehole to ruin.”

grayson moaned and fidgeted his body the entire time. rubbing his crotch against the fabric of the bed sheets as his cock grew panful hard, the tip leaking pree cum due to the unimaginable acts you were performing. 

grabbing the foreign object from beside you, you strip yourself completely of your clothes. strapping the abnormally large and tanned silicone cock around your waist and making yourself comfortable. 

“relax, baby. tell me if you want to stop,” your caring, protective side came out. knowing this was going to be a first for both of you and wanting grayson to be extremely comfortable as you could make him. wanting him to experience all pleasure and the bare minimum pain.  

“holy fuck!” grayson screams. feeling the tip of the strap on rub around his clenching arsehole, leaking and dripping with a mixture of your saliva and lube. at the sound of his whimpers and begs for more, you wiggle the toy inside. starting with the tip as you feel it stretch out his hole to the extreme.

“my little sex toy. such a pretty arsehole, gonna destroy it,” with that being said, you trust deeper into him. causing grayson to cry and grunt at the feeling, his head eyes rolling to the back of his head when you hit sweet spots inside him he never knew existed. his body automatically adjusting to the pain, quickly turning it into pleasure as you try and move against his constricting arsehole. you balanced your hands on his hips. using his body as a guide to thrusts your hips in a perfect rhythm.

“oh fuck, fuck, oh fuck, fuck!” profundities leaving graysons lip only enoourged you to hit harder, deeper hit faster, hitting his prostate as your skin slaps hardly against his own. the wet sounds leaving his arsehole only adding to the intensity of the arseplay. graysons mouth gaped open, his knuckles turning white due to the amount of pressure and strength he used to keep his face down, arse up. 

“taking mama so well, sweetheart. know you wanna cum, cum all over my big thick cock.” your tease, hand colliding with his arse once more, pulling and teasing at the skin as your hips never give up. using all your energy to fight through the tightness of his dripping clenching hole.

“so good, mama. more- i want more.” your cum whore begs, lifting his head up to face you. his eyes filled with tears and whole body shaking due to the penetration. his cock leaking even more cum as he started to release the tension and get himself off. his wrists working in time with your heavily trusts. 

“use me, mama. use my tight little hole. hmmm- fuck!” grayson belts out, his voice cracking slightly due to the fast pace of your movements.

with one finally push through his walls, you watch his arsehole swallow the toy whole. sinking every last possible inch as you continue fucking him into oblivion. his screams, whimpers and moans heighten with each and every thrust. grayson has never experienced pleasure like it before. it felt exhilarating, anotherwordling and so incredibly intimate. there would never be another soul alive that he would let peg him, that he would trust with such a foreign yet submissive feeling that he grew to desire.

you can feel grayson’s walls clench and unclench around you, promoting you to bring your small soft hands to wrap trigly around his neck. pressing your fingertips deep into his skin as you lift his head up straight, his neck bending as he arched his back further into you. almost immediately he reaches his climax. a mixture of your thrusts and fingers choking him out, sending him over the edge. 

“good boy. all fucked out for mama,” you bring your lips to his ear, your breath hot on his skin as you praise him. graysons body is decorated in goosebumps, his stomach littered with specks of his own cum as his hands and your hips fuck him through his orgasm. his legs tremble beneath him, the tight grip of your hands around his throat being the only stability to keep his body upright.

your pussy clenchs at the sight, your own cum spilling out of you as you watch grayson whimper and cum all over himself. his body glistening from sweat, a beautiful jaw dropping sight you captured perfectly to mind. an image you never wanted to forgot and definitely knew you wanted to experience again. 

“you made quite the mess, baby boy. maybe mamma should clean you up hmm. lick your cum off you, yeah? 

“oh fuck- yes please, mama. made a mess,” he uses whats left of his energy to flip himself over on his stomach. you finding your place perfectly between his legs as your tongue licks strides up and down his torso. collecting as much of his cum in your mouth as you could hold.

you crawl your body further up his own, straddling his bare abs as you moan softly at the feeling of grayson pulsating member slapping against your dripping sweet core, driving him crazy.

you press your fingers roughly to his cheeks, squishing them together in order for his lips to part and allow your access. you spit into his mouth, transferring a mixture of his own cum and your saliva from your lips to his.

“swallow it, slut. taste how delicious you are.” you watch his wide eyes as he swallows every drop you had to offer him, a pit of jealously as you urged to drink him yourself. you gawk at him licking his lips im content, smirking to himself as he tasted the saltiness of his cum. his eyes turning dark with lust as he watches you roll your nipples between your nimble fingers above him. eyes fixated on him tasting himself, your arousal leaking onto his stomach. 

“we’re definitely doing that again, but right now, mama needs a reward.”

{tag- @lovingdolans @ohdolans @fallingfordolans @voguekristens @guiltydols @randomxstuffx @babyboy-cody @lovingdolans}

#bubsdolan #grayson #grayson dolan #grayson blurb #grayson concept #grayson dolan blurb #grayson dolan concept #grayson dolan fic #grayson dolan imagine #grayson fic #grayson imagine #grayson dolan x reader #grayson x reader #grayson dolan fluff #grayson fluff #grayson smut #grayson dolan smut #grayson oneshot #grayson dolan oneshot #dolan twins #dolan twins smut #dolan twins blurb #dolan twins imagine #dolan twins concept #dolan twins x reader #dolan twins fic #dolan twins fluff

[magicalforcesau]

Dancing With Ghosts in Your Garden~ Chapter 18 - Year 2: February

(ao3 link)

In lieu of the incident with the sleeping draught, all prefects were mandated to enroll in Professor Palpatine’s brand new weekly Potions seminars. As the misstep with the Vitamix potion along with Maul’s nearing presence showed, it was ideal that all prefects be properly trained in the event that professors were once again subdued. This, they felt, combined with Professor Fisto’s ongoing dueling club, would prepare them.

Obi-Wan’s doubts of how prepared they could possibly be for something so unpredictable grew stronger with each day. Although he was already enrolled in the advanced potions class, he would never deny the opportunity to learn more. If anything, it would at least offer more practice.

“Given that it’s February, I figured it best we start with a common favorite amongst the masses of troublemakers,” Palpatine’s shoes clicked on the ground as he paced at the front of the room.

From what Obi-Wan understood, Palpatine didn’t receive any punishment for the accidental sleeping potion brew. Yoda had, of course, received a rather scathing howler from the Ministry at his supposed flightiness, of which he took the blame for. It seemed Anakin had stepped up and claimed it was he who accidentally knocked the draught in the already brewing potion.

That all certainly added up and did not help Anakin’s reputation amongst his peers.

“Any guesses to what that would be?” Palpatine asked, eagerly taking in the small crowd of Hogwarts’ best with expectant eyes.

Because this was a class full of prefects, each were considerably decent students and wanted to learn. There were exceptions, Obi-Wan realized as he looked over to a nearly snoozing Zeb, but they were outliers.

“Love potions?” Breha Organa said rather dreamily. Obi-Wan didn’t need to turn around to know she’d been looking at Bail as she said it.

“Right you are, Breha!” Palpatine smiled, “Amortentia is the most powerful love potion in the world, at that. Many of you and your students are for the first time diving into the wondrous and mysterious landscape that is romance. Some of you aren’t even aware that you are.”

Did he look at Obi-Wan on purpose? No, that would be silly. Palpatine always took care to rove eye contact throughout the classroom. It was a sufficient method of maintaining focus and Obi-Wan knew this, but he still shifted his gaze immediately elsewhere like he’d been caught copying homework.

“Love and potions aren’t all that different, really.” He continued, “The right and organic combination makes a fruitful and prosperous brew. The wrong and inauthentic combination is bitter and not made to last.”

“And if you’re not careful, you could end up with a wrinkly, scrawny little creature.” Zeb added knowingly, earning a few chuckles throughout the group.

“As if you’ve got anything to worry about there.” Caleb muttered, and much to Zeb’s dismay, acquired a more popular response.

“Boys, please.” Palpatine chastised, “I don’t want word to travel that Gryffindor’s prefects lost them points.”

“Cody would have an aneurysm,” Satine whispered and Obi-Wan only nodded in response. It was no secret to either of them that their friend was less than pleased with how bleak Gryffindor’s odds of obtaining either the House or Quidditch cup were becoming. If he heard that Caleb and Zeb worsened those odds, neither would be awaiting a very pretty conversation.

The troublesome two seemed to recognize this and justly shut their traps.

The class turned back to Palpatine, who seemed rather satisfied with the change in their mood and circled around the cauldron at the center of his desk. From it, emerged a pink fog that resembled a cloud at sunset and judging by the smile its scent drew from Palpatine, it smelled as pleasant as it looked.

“A love potion manufactures the deepest desires from the person who ingests it, manifesting them all at once in an intoxicating fashion that causes them to see the intended target in a different light.” He said almost reverently, “Ironically, it’s called a love potion, when it should really be called an infatuation potion.”

“That’s because you can’t build love from a substance.” Satine muttered from beside him. “Try as some might.”

Obi-Wan stared at the cauldron. He’d heard of amortentia. Evidently, a cheap ineffective version was sold at Zonko’s in Hogsmeade, though he never took much care to notice. He didn’t know much about love, save for the fact that it seemed highly unlikely for anything to recreate something as complicated as attraction.

She raised her hand, “Professor? Aren’t love potions banned at Hogwarts?”

“That they are,” Palpatine said with crossed hands, “Though that’s not to say they haven’t been smuggled in before.”

“Why would they do that?” A familiar high pitched voice from the back called.

Despite his interest in the subject, Obi-Wan couldn’t resist snapping his neck in turning to see none other than Anakin Skywalker sitting at the back desk, looking incredibly small in stature next to Onaconda Farr. Farr, in his defense, looked just as confused by Anakin’s presence as Obi-Wan felt.

“What are you doing here?” Obi-Wan asked him, “This is supposed to be for prefects only.”

“Not to worry, Mr. Kenobi, I did grant Anakin permission to attend.” Palpatine answered before Anakin could muster up a smart response, “Anakin shows a real knack for potions and given the circumstances, I would say it’s best that he be included whenever he could be protected.”

Obi-Wan slumped back in his chair, feeling properly admonished. It wasn’t that he didn’t think Anakin was capable. It was quite the opposite, actually, but there was an order to these things and learning advanced spells before one was ready did not seem indicative of a sound idea. Anakin needed to learn the building blocks still, whether he believed it or not. Despite his talent, he knew there was an absence of maturity to handle heavy source material. Dueling was one thing, as there was an obvious precedence for it right now and it was typically taught to some degree during second year anyway. Teaching Anakin about love potions felt more like giving a dog a steak and telling him not to eat it. He could try to convince everyone that he was over his crush on Padmé all he wanted, but it simply wasn’t true.

“To answer your question, Anakin,” Palpatine continued, “When someone is too blind with desperation to see reason, they will do just about anything to acquire what they want. A love potion, while sounding frilly and fun, occludes all rational thinking from the person it's given to.”

“And typically, it’s not ingested voluntarily.” Satine added.

Obi-Wan frowned, thinking of the potentially dastardly effects such a tool could provide for a desperately lovesick person. It was no different than being under a curse, in a sense, because the poor sap trapped in such a state had no agency whatsoever.

“How does one tell if someone is suffering from the effects of a love potion?” Fenn Rau asked.

“Why, you see them every day in young and happy couples as you walk through these halls. They’re starry-eyed, flushed, unspeakably happy, practically in a trance.”

“How are we to tell the difference then?” Obi-Wan asked.

“These features tend to be a good deal more exemplified and elongated.” Palpatine said, “For instance, while the honeymoon phase is technically normal, it’s really not meant to last. There’s also known to be loss of memory in the person as the potion begins to fade. We advise that you all keep an eye and see if you notice any excessively clingy and almost controlling couples.”

Obi-Wan thought about his parents, finding it very hard to believe they ever had any semblance of a honeymoon phase. They were so professional all the time that he’d rarely seen them even smile in the other’s presence. Of course, he was always splitting up sneaky couples that tried to sneak off to snog, so he supposed he did have some experience witnessing what Palpatine was referring to. Part of him was having a difficult time reconciling with the fact that it was their ancient potions professor who was explaining to them the complexities of romance.

“Because of the dangers that this possesses,” He waved a little pink vial around for all to show, allowing the light to catch it in a way that made it sparkle, “I believe it’s important that you understand these properties quite well and that you take care not to share this information outside of this room.”

There was a warning tone to his voice that was rarely used and Obi-Wan swore everyone sat up even straighter, though he doubted that was possible for Satine, who already appeared quite alert.

“It’s okay to take notes, of course, right?” Hondo asked from the other back corner of the room opposite to Anakin.

“Yes, but-” The older man did a double take as he whipped back around, “Hondo, what are you doing here?”

Obi-Wan thought it was fairly obvious what Hondo was doing and why he was suddenly so apt to take notes. He hadn’t thought to say anything when he originally saw him, seeing as if Anakin was invited, maybe he’d thought to include another unexpected guest. Hondo was possessed for a significant amount of time, after all.”

“Just trying to perfect my recipe is all.” Hondo had the gall to shrug, “What’s so wrong about that?”

“You mean besides intruding upon a meeting where you are not welcome and admitting in advance that you intend to sell an illegal substance throughout the school?” Palpatine asked, “I suppose we could discuss your time management skills, seeing as you have plenty of potion’s homework that you could be catching up on.”

Reading the room for a change, Hondo sighed like a great disservice had just been done to him, “You can’t fault a guy for trying.”

“Actually, I can. 15 points from Slytherin.” Palpatine crossed his arms, “And I expect your essay on Felix Felicis on my desk tomorrow morning.”

“My tutor isn’t going to like that.” Hondo grumbled as he walked by Obi-Wan, “He’s not even finished my Charms presentation.”

“Why would you say that to us?” Satine hissed, knowing full well that they were now going to have to look up the legitimacy of Hondo’s new “tutor” in their dwindling free time.  

“I’m honest to a fault!” He shrugged as he fully exited the room and was promptly locked out by Palpatine. He even took the effort of using two padlocks to secure the job. To be fair, Hondo was quite slippery.

“Now,” He said as he clapped his hands together once, “Why don’t we get to the important part? Brewing!”

***

This was a colossal waste of his time, skills, and resources.

While Sidious normally enjoyed when the school devolved into chaos, he did not appreciate when it stood in the way of his plans. Right now, his former apprentice was the obstacle that could feasibly destroy everything he’d worked tirelessly to achieve, all before it could truly start.

He knew he should have killed him when he had the chance, but Azkaban just seemed all the more fitting for the murder machine to waste his days away at the hand of his own failure. He would not make that mistake ever again.

So, it seemed Sidious’ own interests aligned with the rest of his colleagues: get rid of Maul. It felt peculiar- to be on the same side as the enemy, but if he wanted to defeat them, he needed this loose cannon of a pawn to be decimated before it was too late.

And through it all, the putrid “open-minded” community only served to remind him why they needed to be brought to an end. In what world would enlisting the Potions professor to teach love potions be useful? How he managed to seem convincing, he was unsure, because there was no greater waste of time than the frivolous pursuit of love. Well, unless it was being manipulated as a fulcrum for change.

Even with as little soul as he had remaining, if any, he still found the smell of amortentia to be utterly arousing. They certainly wouldn’t enjoy to know what he smelled when he breathed in amortentia: fire, ash, rubble, stained blood.

They should be barricading, sending students out in troves to hunt the demon down, and utilize the muggle-borns as bait in a trap to be sprung. Maul couldn’t resist the hunt. He knew such instincts never changed, not even from the waning sense of purpose that Azkaban reduced men to.

Instead, here he was, giving a pointless lecture on the dangers of love potions. After which, they’ll have another practice dueling session with snowballs. It was pitiful. At the very least, they should be using stones. Children needed to learn pain at an early age. They needed to become so familiar with the sensation that they found home in it. In the hearth of that home, is the power that exists from within. Only then, can they prevail.

He glanced to the back corner of the room and felt his lips twitch. Between this year and the last, Skywalker was becoming quite acquainted with pain. He grimaced as he took in the rest of the lot, noting how soft they all were as they nervously discovered what attracted them when they leaned over their brewing cauldrons. At least he’d been able to kick that waste of blood Ohnaka out. He was spared of that particular headache, especially when just looking at the boy angered him to no end when he considered how deeply that botched experiment failed. Truly, that family couldn’t do anything right- not even when under hypnosis.

He had no doubts that Maul was scoping out the land, realizing just how weak these wizards had gotten since he was in school- that his lessons from Sidious had always reigned supreme and that no one stood in his way, save for Yoda and Sidious, himself. That would be disastrous if anyone witnessed a reunion between the two. They would know instantly.

Then again, if Sidious were to capture and kill Maul, he would only further his popularity amongst the simpletons that allegedly “ran” their community. Perhaps, there could be salvaging of this wreck. Tyranus need not be the only one to pull strings in the wake of Maul’s drama. It was only fitting, since Sidious was the marionettist and this was to be his show.

Not only that, but such a feat would certainly impress the boy, who clearly had a sound reason for disliking Maul. While Sidious loathed the concept of needing to work towards the trust and approval of a child, understood that in due time, it would be worth it.

Even if such a boy nearly killed them all with his own klutziness.

Sidious breathed a steadying breath, just barely turned away from any possible lingering gazes.

He moved over to his desk and opened the top drawer. He needed a drink.

***

Satine, like many of the curious girls in her year, had done fair research on the subject of amortentia. Apparently, it had ruined its fair share of marriages as well as mental health states, making it completely illegal to produce for private or public subsidization. It seemed, curiously, only the aurors could do so with Ministry approval. That, much to Satine’s confusion, was the case for many subjects.

“Because I would hate to have a bunch of little zombies in my class, we’ll just be smelling the potions today.” Palpatine announced.

Despite her knowledge that amortentia affected everyone differently, she still wasn’t quite expecting the drunk-like sensation that filled her up from head to toe as she took a deep breath in from the fumes that emanated off the surface. Everything around her seemed to move in slow motion and her chest rose and fell with the relaxed notion of falling asleep, except she simultaneously never felt more stimulated in her life.

She’d never known that you could smell so many wonderful things at once yet still differentiate them for what they were and more importantly, how it got her flushed in a way that made her shift in her seat.

New books, homemade apple pie, crisp fall air, the lingering remnants of a minty aftershave wrapping around her like a scarf…

She started out of her reverie, blushing too mad to even consider looking to her left no matter how curious she suddenly was. Her heart was beating out of her chest and if she wasn’t absolutely certain of the potency of amortentia, she’d have the decency to be more embarrassed. Instead, she willed herself to calm down and refused to breathe through her nose any further, no matter how warm she felt when she had.

While none of what she witnessed was news to her per say, it wasn’t like she made a habit of lollygagging and daydreaming in the middle of a classroom setting. It was quite disarming to be so vulnerable yet also so close to what (or who, for that matter) was driving her crazy to begin with.

“Problem, Mr. Kenobi?” Palpatine was suddenly standing in front of them, which was at least a little bit of a distraction.

A ringing in her brain wanted desperately to ask him what he smelled, but she felt herself frown deeply when she noticed Obi-Wan was leaning with his entire face in his little cauldron, trying desperately to catch a whiff. Surely, if he got any closer, he was going to accidentally inhale the potion through his nose.

“I might have brewed it incorrectly.” He muttered, echoing a bit from still having his head in the cauldron.

“Let me see,” Palpatine urged him to lift his head and under normal circumstances, Satine might tease him for the little creases that the rim brought to his face.

The professor raised his nose to the fumes that still wafted through the air and smiled dreamily. She wondered if they would ever know what he was seeing when he inhaled the scent. It was none of their business to ask, but she really couldn’t picture Palpatine being in love with anyone.

“No, no, it’s perfectly correct,” He said with the airs of residual glee, “Why?”

Instead of giving him a straight answer, Obi-Wan turned to Satine, “I think I need you to move.”

Any previous concern, as per usual with Obi-Wan, was replaced with a scalding sort of annoyance only reserved for him, “What? Why?”

As she held her own special adverse reaction to him, he had one for her that matched. His eyebrows furrowed as he gestured to his cauldron. Sometimes, he was far too serious for his own good, “As lovely as your perfume is, you don’t need to go so heavy-handed with it! I can’t smell the potion.”

Satine, who initially believed they were going to get into an argument, found that she had no points to be made, because all that came out of her mouth was a little puff of air. Palpatine, if she had the eyes to spare him a look, was equally as surprised, even if not nearly as emotionally invested in such a rebuff.

“What?” Obi-Wan finally asked, growing more annoyed at not being in on the punchline.

Everyone else was suspiciously quiet too, much to Satine’s growing unease, but she could hardly spare a thought other than to say, “I’m out of perfume, actually. I sent Copikla home yesterday so my mum could send me a new bottle.”

Instead of being annoyed, the clouds seemed to clear, if only a little bit, and he flickered back to the potion, “But how-”

“-It smells different to everyone.” Palpatine, who looked between the two of them with his face stretched in discomfort and eyebrows raised beyond physics, clarified with a tone that was clearly meant for only them, “Based on what the individual finds attractive.”

All of the color seemed to wash out of Obi-Wan’s charmingly embarrassed face as his mind worked rapidly to wrap his head around that answer. Even though she hadn’t breathed in her potion again, Satine still swore she was suddenly feeling the effects of it.

“I- Well,” He tried to formulate a response, but to his credit, he had just admitted that he was at the very least attracted to her perfume (which she made the mental note to stock up on more frequently), in front of the entire class of prefects and Anakin.

“Oooooooh Obi-Wan likes perfume.” Anakin, while completely missing the point and a big teasing opportunity, shattered the tension that previously froze the entire room and everyone burst out into a fit of needed laughter. Even Obi-Wan laughed, though nervously, as he flashed Satine the occasional glance here and there through lowered lashes, as if trying to gage her reaction to this accidental admission.

She smiled. Clearly, it was to her benefit to read ahead of him.

“For what it’s worth,” She said in the midst of the uncontrollable chatter that erupted thanks to Anakin’s offhand comment, “You smell nice too.”

He blushed, which she found she quite liked the shade of pink on his face, “Thanks.”

It didn’t address the underlying implications, just as neither of them seized the moment to do so on Christmas Eve. She found it was just as frustrating trying to guess what was going on inside of his head as it was waiting for him to do something about the things she did know.

As much as she wanted the cat to be fully out of the bag, she knew the middle of Palpatine’s potions class wasn’t the time or place.

***

“I believe it’s a mistake to have any more Hogsmeade trips this year,” Qui-Gon said to his other heads of house and to Yoda, who was staring quite pensively out the window, “Not when we know what we know. It’s quite possible that Maul has an entrance to the school if he truly is behind what happened to Bultar Swan.”

“We have no real proof that he is, though.” Shaak Ti said, “It certainly doesn’t seem like his style.”

“While I know the usual term “innocent until proven guilty” is our mantra, I think we should consider being more hesitant with Maul.” Qui-Gon said.

“I agree,” Windu nodded, standing firmly next to him, “Though having more students out of the school would allow us a proper amount of time to sweep the school and see if he had any secret entrances.”

“We have that same opportunity at night.” Qui-Gon said.

“You know this school shifts and changes between night and day,” Palpatine said warily, “It is ever-moving and Bultar Swan was attacked in broad daylight in a common room.”

“Why are we not interviewing more Ravenclaws then?” Windu asked, “We’ve got to do something! Skywalker’s mother is missing and we all know that boy isn’t going to lay down and allow for speculation to simply rise without doing something foolish.”

“I don’t appreciate your assumptions of Anakin.” Qui-Gon said, “He’s a bright, even if impulsive boy, who is going through an unspeakable grief.”

“No one twice his age should have to endure what he’s going through,” Shaak Ti said kindly, “Let alone as young as he.”

“I’m not saying he has no reason to act out.” Windu raised his hands, “I’m merely stating that it is only a matter of time before he takes matters into his own hands.”

“That would make it easier for Maul, unfortunately,” Palpatine agreed, “Perhaps we should motion to shut off the Floo network?”

“Done that, I have.” Yoda spoke up, “Because used it, he did.”

“For what?” Qui-Gon asked eagerly.

“Unknown location, he accessed.” Yoda mused, “Unregistered through the network, it is. Talk to Dooku, I suspect.”

Palpatine frowned, “That can’t be good.”

“No, it can’t.” Windu agreed, “Can you extend your protective charms to Hogsmeade, Yoda?”

“Do that, I did, after we woke up from the sleeping incident.”

“Oh, so it’s safe then.” Shaak Ti shrugged, “The dementors haven’t detected Maul on the inside and he was last seen on Diagon Alley.”

“I’m sure this is quite exhausting for you, Headmaster.” Windu acknowledged.

It was true. Extending his powers over an entire settlement as well as the castle at all times would have drained any normal wizard to death. Yoda, as it were, was not a normal wizard. Even still, it was visible on his worn features that he was exhausted.

“Safe, the students should be,” He said instead, “But careful we will still be. Search the school we will for secret entrances while they are gone, we will.”

***

“Are they gone yet?” Anakin asked, ducking up from where he’d been digging furiously through his trunk. Rex who was sitting on the window sill keeping watch over the massive gates of Hogwarts nodded slowly.

“Yeah I think so,” He confirmed, stretching his arms above his head and yawning, “I dunno mate, don’t you think a nice Saturday in might be nicer than trying this again. Don’t you remember what happened last time?”

“Psh!” Anakin waved a hand, “Well we’re certainly not trying anything like that again. Although I would like to get another look at that sword.”

“I figured you’d seen enough swords in your short life,” Rex rolled his eyes, “Didn’t Dooku intend to sacrifice you with one?”

“It was still cool, but I’m not really trying to go to Hogsmeade, just give off a good impression.” Anakin shrugged before he pulled out his nicest T-Shirt, swiftly pulling the one he had been wearing off and switching them out, “Well how do I look?”

“The same but in green,” Rex deadpanned leaning his head on his hand, “If all we’re doing up here is playing dress up then I’d much rather get this show on the road.”

“Oh come on,” Anakin checked himself out in the dingy mirror on the back of the door. He was really hoping he’d run into Padmé; he thought she’d like it. He’d already seen her leave, but overheard her talking to her friends about Rabé meeting them later and taking the tunnels. His mum had bought it for him over the summer and he tried to push past the rising feeling of sadness, “We had to wait until all the prefects left anyways, I’m not really looking to be caught and dragged back here by any of them and especially not Zeb, who was eyeing us up pretty hard at breakfast.”

Rex shuddered, “Definitely don’t need him tossing us through the portrait hole again. It’s not our fault that the rest of the second years left without us!”

“I’d hate to see what happens if we’re caught alone of our own accord,” Anakin grinned, despite the true statement, such a thing wouldn’t stop them, “Well, let’s go before Windu gets here to babysit.”

“Right,” Rex grimaced, standing up and grabbing his wand. Anakin grabbed his as well, throwing it into his robe, it was much too cold to go around without it, and they headed down and out of the common room. He really hoped no one would snitch on them.

The two traversed the halls carefully. Keeping quiet for once to listen for approaching footsteps and ducking into a few empty classrooms to avoid the ghosts lurking around the otherwise empty halls. It took much longer than they’d have liked to make it down to where the tunnel’s entrance would begin. Luckily, the map showed Rabé’s little figure moving in that direction too, marking a bit of a clear path. She would lead them straight to Padmé.

Anakin’s heart rate increased for more reasons than being caught.

He thought better of it. Obi-Wan would probably kill him on the spot if he slithered out of the tunnel and into Hogsmeade. Not to mention, Maul was lurking around in the area looking for him. Maybe, if they caught up with Rabé in the tunnel, he could simply give her the necklace to give to Padmé.

It didn’t sound incredibly indicative of his house in terms of bravery, but he knew at least Obi-Wan would approve of his method.  

“Almost there!” Anakin grinned at Rex, but almost had his head knocked clean from his body when Rex grabbed his robe and yanked him hard into an empty classroom, “Wha-?”

“Shh!!” Rex was very much alert and his eyes narrowed as they both heard footsteps echoing off the walls. The footsteps paused just outside of the door and Rex cursed under his breath as a shadow moved towards the entrance. Rex glared at Anakin for a few minutes before mouthing, ‘You owe me!’ and straightening.

“Mr. Fett?” Palpatine’s confused voice echoed off the stone walls, “What are you doing here? And all alone?”

“Sorry Professor,” Rex gave Palpatine a rather over the top concerned look, “It’s just, I haven’t seen Anakin since breakfast and he did mention he was thinking about coming to see you.”

“To see me?” The professor sounded a little more surprised than Anakin thought he should, but perhaps he was trying to avoid looking like he picked favorites, “Well I certainly haven’t seen him. I’ll keep an eye out, but I’m going to need to escort you outside with the other second years.”

Anakin winced, of course even Palpatine wouldn’t be willing to overlook a student wandering the halls without an escort. He’d have to bring Rex back something good from Hogsmeade.

“Alright, thank you Professor,” Rex nodded, although he didn’t look very thankful in Anakin’s opinion.

Their footsteps faded away, but still Anakin waited a minute longer before darting from the classroom himself.

He wandered the empty halls, being extra careful to listen and flicker his eyes to the map. Rex was a little more perceptive than he tended to be. Anakin certainly didn’t want to get caught, but at least he knew what story to go with if he did.

Finally, he reached the entrance of the tunnel, looking around carefully, he quickly slipped inside and hurried to close the entrance, plunging him into complete darkness.

Anakin pulled his wand out, lighting it with a, “Lumos Maxima,” They’d been working to improve their maximizing skills in charms recently and Anakin felt it was paying off. The tunnels were rather boring and unremarkable. He remembered them being pretty long, though he’d never made it all the way to the end the last time.

He took his time, kicking away rocks and humming softly. He still didn’t want to give his position away if there was someone scouting the tunnel for mischievous students, but boredom without Rex crept in fast.

He paused a moment at an odd noise and listened hard. It was a soft shuffling noise and despite the echo, it sounded like it was coming from behind him. Could it be another student trying the same thing he was? Unlikely, most of the houses were pretty locked down outside. He wasn’t sure why the professors had been so insistent on a supervised snow day, but most students went for it.

That left the possibility that he was about to be caught.

Letting the fear of boring evenings in detention spur him on, he picked up the pace until he was running rather swiftly. With the way his wand was swinging, the light bounced around enough to make him motion sick so he gave it a quiet, “Nox,” not letting up on the speed of which his shoes pounded the ground.

He slowed when he nearly tripped over something lying on the ground, but wasn’t quick enough to avoid running right into someone.

Anakin fell backwards with an, “oof,” He tried to catch his breath for a moment, “Sorry, Rabé,” He said softly standing up, “While I’ve got you, I’ve got a question for you. Lumos.”

His wand tip glowed again, revealing him face to face with a student’s face frozen in a scream. This was not Rabé. Anakin stumbled back, tripping on what felt like the fabric of a scarf, before he saw the glint of eyes reflecting the light off his wand.

Yellow. Bright yellow eyes narrowing as they realized they’d been caught. Anakin felt his heart leap in his chest. Fear filling his lungs, causing him to nearly choke on a scream. He heard the eyes take a step forward and he scrambled to his feet and fell into a sprint. His wand light faded as his concentration waned and he shoved it into his robes.

He shouldn’t be running from Maul, because that’s who it was, of course. He’d vowed revenge even if Qui-Gon always gave him that sad sort of look when he said it. He should be back there giving that kidnapper a piece of his mind. He was the Chosen One, it was his job to save everyone and take down the bad guys.

Even as these thoughts played in his mind, he continued to sprint, fear pushing him into overdrive. He nearly screeched again when he ran full tilt into something human knocking them both to the ground.

“Bloody hell!”

“Rex!” Anakin was relieved to find someone he knew, but it wasn’t enough to stop the adrenaline that had him back on his feet and pulling desperately on Rex’s arm to get him to move, “We have to go now!”

“Great, I just escape Palpatine only to get caught again. Who is it? Windu?” Anakin nearly growled at the slow pace Rex was moving at.

“It’s Maul! We have to go!” That was enough to get him moving.

They didn’t stop to even breathe again until they burst from the wall and right into Professors Palpatine and Qui-Gon who nearly got bowled over.

“What-” Qui-Gon looked ready to start a lecture and Palpatine even looked like he was ready to dole out a few point reductions, but Rex cut them off quickly.

“Anakin saw him!” Rex was pointing his wand at the entrance to the tunnel like Maul was about to come out right then and there for a fight.

“Saw who?” Palpatine asked head tilting to the side in curiosity and Anakin nearly spat the name out as he joined Rex in his battle stance.

“Maul.”

***

The deafening screech that stretched from Hogwarts through Hogsmeade with painful clarity was one that very few students attributed meaning to. It wasn’t unreasonable that students, particularly younger ones, immediately leapt into disorder, running hither and yon, terrified they were about to be dive-bombed. It was a horrible sight to see, even if it didn’t make his job all the more difficult.

Designed with the vocal cords of mandrakes, the emergency siren was only used in times of utter duress and was a means of warning students and faculty to return to Hogwarts at once. Historically, it hadn’t been officially sounded since the early twentieth century. Even still, prefects were always trained on what to do in the event of hearing the siren.

All the training in the world still didn’t fully prepare Obi-Wan for the very real visceral reaction that the ear-splitting sound brought. Of course, he could not spare a single moment to think, a tough reality for a Ravenclaw, and immediately moved forward with what he’d been taught: gather his house, ensure they were all in company, and get them back to the school.

While not given a direct message with it, everyone seemed to share the same thought as he did. There was only one true reason that the archaic alarm would be used right now accompanied by the dementors that jetted across the sky: Maul was close.

Not only close, but likely in their midst.

Shop owners wasted little time in evacuating their premises and battening down the hatches, effectively snuffing the warm glow of Hogsmeade in a singular swoop. His brain was busy scanning the hysterical crowd that was amid constant motion, searching for every and any blue-robed student that he might come across. It occurred to him now that there was perhaps more meaning to the explicitly placed Hogsmeade dress code than the professors led on to. It certainly made rounding up students a lot easier when they were color-coded.

Moving around on the ice-laden stone walkways? Less easy. He’d not only had to catch his own balance in his haste, but many other wobbly students. Even Satine’s elbow was caught by him a time or two, of which she spared no time to thank him, though he knew otherwise she would. She was just as stern as him in their mission, practically grabbing students and sliding them across the way to the huddle of other students, hardly blinking in the process.

It was with this goal in mind that he was able to develop a razor focus that practically tuned out the alarm. That, or the pounding in his ears did a decent job of it. Silently, he found the space to be relieved that Anakin was safe back at the castle with the other younger students.

It couldn’t have taken more than a couple of minutes to successfully corral all of the students that lingered about. It wasn’t as though any of them truly wanted to sneak off, after all. The horror on everyone’s faces spoke volumes of their concern.

Each of the prefects did their headcounts rapidly, trying not to dawdle for a moment longer than necessary, all praying they reached the same number they started with. He felt capable of breathing again when Ravenclaw reached that quota. Gryffindor prefects, it seemed, had forgotten to include themselves for a moment, which briefly induced a panic that was quickly assuaged by an irritated Mace Windu.

Perhaps it was a bit presumptuous to be relieved that Mace Windu and Kit Fisto were the supervising professors that day, but it certainly helped their odds to have experienced fighters of dark magic alongside them. The sky grew dark above them, not from the descending sun, but from the mere presence of the dementors swarming together like an ominous storm cloud.

No one looked back as they were ushered down through the storm cellar beneath Honeydukes, which remained open only at Windu’s order.

“Move quickly, don’t linger, don’t stop, don’t pause!” He ordered in a booming voice that didn’t even need to be amplified with a charm.

While Gryffindor’s prefects had nobly volunteered to lead the charge of students down and through the tunnel, the others remained on the side, performing last-minute counts to ensure all made it safely while urging them to hurry it up. No one seemed to have a problem with performing the latter, but some were getting a little rowdy in the process.

“Hey, hey, this is not an excuse to push or shove!” Satine chastised a few overeager Slytherins, “The only way this works is if you work together!”

She was right, of course, but Obi-Wan believed it was falling on deaf ears. They were terrified and rightfully so. Perhaps they shouldn’t have allowed the Hogsmeade trip to occur in the first place with everything going on. It was almost like they were trying to lure Maul in. If that was the case, it was a very sadistic choice.

Padmé Amidala as well as her friends had been some of the last people to filter in, surprisingly, and tears stained their cheeks.

“Keep it moving, ladies!” Kit Fisto ordered.

“We can’t find Rabé!” Sabé, the girl who looked most like Padmé, cried.

“I’m sure she’s here somewhere.” Windu said, “Slytherin house reported no missing students based on their earlier count. Now GO!”  

“She came later!” Padmé insisted, pushing back against the hands of Fenn Rau, who was trying to make them descend down the ladder. “We never saw her!”

“Then maybe she never came at all?” Satine tried.

“She came.” Padmé looked between both of them, “I know she did! She wouldn’t flake out on us like that. What if something horrible happened to her? What if-”

“-We can explore these possibilities back at Hogwarts.” Windu said, “If she is indeed missing, I will waste no time in coming back for her. I promise you.”

“That is already a waste of time!” Sabé protested, “What if she’s hurt?”

“I cannot risk all of you, including these prefects, for one possibly lingering student. I need to get you back to safety. The tunnels will be locked behind us.” Windu said and waved his wand to provide a gust of air, sending all of the girls down the tunnel against their own will. Satine looked horrified at the choice and frankly, so did Windu for a moment, before he began insisting the prefects follow.

For Obi-Wan, time began to slow down as his brain methodically and almost mechanically traced back through that day, desperately trying to recall if he’d seen Rabé. She stood out among Padmé’s friends in that she was the only Slytherin and yet it was still odd to see them apart. Before the alarm had turned the world on its head, it had been a rather mundane and peaceful day at Hogsmeade. The weather had been nice, if not quite nippy. He’d popped into Tomes & Scrolls with Satine while Cody lingered around Spintwitches, but none of them bought anything. If they had, surely, it would have been lost in the chaos with many other student’s purchases.

He’d debated getting a box of every flavor beans, since Hondo said he had a game of Russian Roulette, but with the beans, brewing. Cody seemed interested and it sounded like less of a consequential gaming experience than Hondo’s usual ventures. He wasn’t afforded the opportunity to go into Honeydukes, but…

Obi-Wan felt his heart stop altogether in his chest. He hadn’t gone into Honeydukes, but he almost did. And who was lingering by the butterbeer stand when he was busy deliberating with Cody?

Rabé.

He’d only caught a glimpse of her for a fraction of a second before he turned around. Clear as daylight and standing at the far end of Hogsmeade. There were other Slytherins around her, but like Padmé, her hair was always intricately woven and this made her stand out.

Where did she go so that none of her friends saw her?

“She was here today,” Obi-Wan lurched forward, grabbing Satine by the arm on instinct.

“How do you know?” She began to ask, eyes searching his own with growing concern.

“I saw her.” He said and then shoved against the stream of students that were still pouring down the tunnel.

“Ben,” It was her turn to grab him, “Wait!”

He didn’t wait, though. Instead, he slipped out of her grasp, which had been firm enough to take his robe with it, and pushed through the crowd. Windu, never the slouch, noticed him instantly and his eyes widened as he realized what Obi-Wan was trying to do. Unlike Padmé and the girls, he didn’t give him the opportunity to stop him, instead lunging forward and falling into an immediate sprint out the door- the cold wind whipping his face so hard that it caused tears to freeze in their wake.

He vaguely heard his name shouted from behind him, but he could only think of finding Rabé before it was too late. It might have been impulsive and it was definitely foolish, but he wouldn’t be able to leave with a clear conscience unless he did everything in his power to bring every student back safely. He understood that the professors needed to do their duty, but Obi-Wan was to be an auror someday. Running into the line of fire was surely a requirement of such a field.

All he could think of was how he knew what it was like to be forgotten. If there was even a small chance of preventing someone else from befalling that fate, he had to try.

Running across the slick stone walkway proved itself to be even more difficult than walking had, but Obi-Wan was utilizing the forward motion that the ice provided him for acceleration. The sky above him was almost completely black- as though Hogsmeade was at risk for being sucked into outer space. Suddenly, the cold that Obi-Wan felt no longer seemed to be as a result from the climate.

He’d studied dementors a good deal over the years and objectively understood how they drained a person from their hopes and dreams, removing the parts of them that basically made them human, but he realized then that he never really knew. He wasn’t even the target for these dementors and just being in their presence made him feel like all color was depleting from the landscape.

He forced himself through it, focusing on the task at hand and what purpose that gave him. He decided to slide by the (now closed) butterbeer stand at the end, where he’d last seen Rabé. After all, it was entirely possible that he was the last person to see her alive. That certainly didn’t give him much comfort.

He turned his head from side to side, trying with a last stitch effort to see if she’d taken refuge in one of the closed shops. The keepers were kind and would more than likely house a lost student during a crisis such as this.

As dread pooled deeper in the pit of his stomach and his body struggled to fight off the shaky chill that climbed its way up his spine, he dared to look up, noticing that the dementors were no longer searching, but swarming. The snowfall only seemed to thicken, which was rather unfortunate as Obi-Wan had to swipe his arm over his eyes several times to continue seeing.

They congregated at the Three Broomsticks- in front of which, Obi-Wan did not stop, but in his haste, did meet the bloodshot amber eyes of none other than the Dathomirian known as Maul. In their midst, Obi-Wan found he would rather embark on a lengthy stay with a dementor than look another second into the killer’s eyes. He was leaning back in his seat with casual aplomb and raised his stein of butterbeer as though in cheers or celebration, selling the chilling lack of regard for life with a cruel smile curling his black and red lips.

It was if he was saying, “I’ve won.”

Obi-Wan swallowed thickly and averted his gaze immediately, understanding that this might be his final moment. If that were so, he would use it wisely.

“No, you won’t.”

Maul’s smile broadened, resembling the actual devil as he did so.

Yes, Obi-Wan was definitely about to die.

However, the moment ended as quick as it started, for once the dementors dive bombed past Obi-Wan and straight for Maul, he flipped a galleon into the air and caught it, allowing himself to disappear to whatever rock he dragged himself from before.

Obi-Wan only thundered forward until he arrived at the end of the limits of the town, sighing deeply and wincing at the wreath of frost that circled his head as he caught his breath. He was immensely cold and with nothing to do about it and worse, began to feel quite defeated. Part of him wanted to rationalize that Rabé did likely go back to the castle. However, whether it was intuition or simply an unknown magic in the air, he could practically feel the presence of another.

Then, from the corner of his eyes, he noticed something poking out of the snow- just next to an old townhome, and drew closer. His steps were heavy and without hopeful anticipation as he regarded the gray fingers breaking through the massive snowdrift.

He knelt down slowly, and raised his wand to blow away the piles of snow and ice and used his hands to remove the last remnants on his own. Attached to the outstretched hand, which served as much as a warning as it did a signal of distress, was the petrified gray face of Rabé.

***

“You have to go back for him!” Satine demanded as she was practically carried by Fisto all the way back to Hogwarts. It had been the only way they were able to prevent her from slipping after Obi-Wan in a panic-induced gut-reaction. She believed he was an idiot for running off the way he did, but that wasn’t to say she didn’t understand the feeling.

“The dementors are mobilizing, Satine!” Windu turned on her with fire in his eyes, “Had Mr. Kenobi not been so uncharacteristically impetuous, we wouldn’t be here.”

“And there would still be a lost child out there!” She growled, not usually one to ever speak to a professor so brazenly, but this was Obi-Wan they were talking about, and she would always be a bit irrational when it came to him. “It doesn’t seem like anyone really cares about that though!”

“Not care? I would lay down my life for every single one of you. Do you think it pleases me to know that not one, but two students could be suffering at the hands of that animal on my watch?” Windu said hotly, “But I cannot jeopardize the dementors potentially catching a murderous sociopath. Obi-Wan would not want me to do that!”

She knew deep in her bones that he was right, but she didn’t take to it any better, instead feeling bile rise up her throat- only subdued by the way it seemed to constrict at the wretched thought of losing her best friend. The cold weight of pure dread settled on her chest, evaporating her fury and nearly suffocating all logical thought.

Nearly.

She turned on her heels back to Ravenclaw house, who were staring at her with a mixture of sympathy and shock. Satine knew she had the capacity to lose her patience, but she tried to always do so with some semblance of professionalism.

“We’ll go find him ourselves then!” Cody, equally as heated as she had been, raged alongside Echo and Fives. All were still dressed for the winter and had their wands at the ready.

“You will do no such thing.” Professor Fisto pulled Cody back by the arm, “Headmaster Yoda is the only one who can save your friend now.”

“What was the point of teaching us all that stuff if we aren’t going to use it?” Cody fired.

“In the event that there is an inescapable situation, Cody.” Fisto said, “I commend your bravery, but there is a line between courage and stupidity.”

“So, that’s it?” Echo chimed in, “We’re just going to run and hide every time a bad guy comes knocking on our door?”

“Yeah, you’re supposed to teach us defense against the dark arts!” Fives added, “I’d say Maul qualifies.”

“Maul is much more than any of you can understand or handle.” Windu’s voice no longer spoke with anger, but from a deep place that teetered on remorse and pity. There was a defeated look in his eyes that Satine would never forget, as though Maul had already won.

“Glad you’ve all been effectively wasting our time then.” Cody snarled, “Propping us up and making us feel as though we’re really doing something all year. What has all of this been? Some show for the Ministry?”

A few other Gryffindors pooled around him and it occurred to Satine just then that if Cody hadn’t been so set on pursuing Quidditch as a career, that he’d make a mighty fine commanding officer. People rallied behind him. They believed in him.

She just wished that call to order wasn’t coming from a place of wishing to fight a dark lord.

“Cody, I highly recommend that you stand down.” Fisto said, “I get that you’re upset, but we need to remain calm. Take your brothers back to the Great Hall and wait for further instructions.”

Cody was teeming with anger- she could tell just looking at him and for a moment, she feared he was going to act brashly. Windu seemed to think the same thing judging by the appraising look he gave him.

He didn’t move, but he did send Echo and Fives back with the Gryffindor prefects and the rest of the house. The other houses and their respective prefects trickled afterwards, each going to the Great Hall for what was surely to be another lockdown.

“Great, another sleepover.” Fives huffed as he went.

“Yeah, telling ghost stories by candlelight altogether will surely keep us safe.” Echo complained under his breath.

“I thought I said-” Fisto began.

“-I’m not leaving until Kenobi is found.” Cody said, “Dead or alive.”

“Don’t you dare talk like that.” She seethed, grabbing his attention instantly and Cody, to his credit, did appear riddled with guilt at her reaction.

“Sorry.” He muttered.

“I expect this level of irrationality from Cody.” Windu said and eyed Satine, “But not you.”

“I’m not leaving either.” She said, clutching Obi-Wan’s robe tightly between clenched fists, “Consequences be damned.”

Where she thought there would be retribution or even more yelling, there was not. Fisto, of the two of them, actually appeared more upset. Windu, instead, nodded slightly. It seemed he understood that this was a battle he would not be winning today.

Satine scanned the area, remembering someone very curious to be missing from the pack. As if it were possible, more horror gnawed at her nerves, “Where’s Anakin?”

That was Maul’s whole purpose for scouting out the school, right?

Windu grimaced, “He did try to sneak out to Hogsmeade earlier.”

Her eyes widened, “But he’s alright?”

“It is to my understanding that young Skywalker is with Professor Jinn.” Palpatine swerved around the corner, dark cloaks flowing behind him dramatically as he reconvened with the professors, “Any update on Maul?”

“No,” Windu said tartly, “But seeing as our students have been debating on staging a coup, it might have been useful to have your presence, Professor.”

The tension, as it was, seemed unbreakable.

“My apologies, Professor Windu, but I will say these students have the right to be upset. All of our efforts to protect the school have thus far failed.” Palpatine said.

Satine also couldn’t blame everyone for being upset. In their effort to make everyone feel safe, they only propped them up with delusions of grandeur. There was a fine line to walk between keeping the student body informed and propagating debilitating fear- at least in this predicament.

“You’re here now.” Fisto said, “That’s what counts.”

Satine wasn’t so sure, but then again, Maul hadn’t broken in yet.

“Surely, it’s not wise to have students so close to the entrance.” Palpatine said.

“Yes, well, it also wasn’t wise to allow Anakin so close to your Vitamix potion.” Windu countered, “I guess we’re all doing things a bit differently right now.”

Palpatine seemed properly slapped by that, because there was little argument that could be brought up to counter the comment. That was, indeed, what happened and it left the school wide open for possible attack.

“Yoda should be back any minute.” Fisto paced the floor, his wet boots making a squeaking noise as he did so, “And hopefully, he has good news.”

“If not?” Cody asked.

“If not, we might have to help him and if that’s the case, you two will stay back.” Windu ordered.

Even Cody didn’t argue with that logic.

Not but a moment later, erratic banging came from the metal door, growing more desperate as the seconds went on. Palpatine leaned forward as if to open it and Fisto grabbed his wrist before he could perform the charm.

“There’s a password.” Fisto said.

“And why would Maul just come knocking on the front door?” Palpatine scoffed.

“Maul is anything but conventional.” Windu reasoned.

Cody and Satine looked between each other as the three professors deliberated. They were beginning to understand why it sometimes felt like it took forever for anything to get done. No one could agree on the simplest things.

“What if it’s Ben?” Satine stepped forward, “You’ve said it yourself that the tunnels are blocked off now.”

“Yoda would have found him and brought him back by apparition.” Fisto said.

“And if he didn’t?”

Windu opened his mouth to respond, but then from a familiar voice, “HELLO THERE? IS ANYONE THERE?”

She glared between the three professors, who were all a bit dumbstruck as they hastily moved to open the door. As it swung open unceremoniously, her heart resumed beating as Obi-Wan Kenobi, pale, drenched and speckled with snowflakes, practically fell through the entryway.

She moved on instinct rather than thought and caught him in a tight hug, combatting the sharp chill that traveled up her spine at his frigid body with the warm relief that he was alive. She only removed herself enough to tightly wrap his robe around his shoulders before pulling him closer.

“Get him some blankets!” Windu ordered while Palpatine was simultaneously brewing a warm beverage from thin air. Satine, for her part, could not let go.

“N-nice t-to see you t-too.” He shivered and did not reject the warm contact.

“You’re an idiot, Obi-Wan Kenobi.” She muttered into his shoulder, but it really didn’t have as much fire as she would have liked it to- not when he looked so pitiful with wet hair in his face, teeth chattering, and a nose and cheeks red from the cold.

“I’m aware.” He said.

“You could have been killed!”

“I know.”

“And you really couldn’t have at least brought your robe with you if you were going to go running off on a deadly mission?”

“You’re right.”

“Stop agreeing with me!” She leaned back and glared at him.

“My apologies,” He smiled ruefully, but it faded almost instantly, “All the trouble I’ve caused, I’m afraid it was for nothing.”

“What do you mean?” Fisto cut in.

“I saw him.” Obi-Wan’s voice was hollow when he said it. His eyes became downcast as he reminisced, “And Rabé. I couldn’t move her on my own… She was frozen in carbonite.”

Windu cursed, scrubbing a hand over his bald head, “And Maul?”

“Gone.” Obi-Wan said, “He used a portkey before the dementors could get to him.”

***

The dementors separated like parting clouds, allowing for remnants of dwindling sunlight to cast a yellow beam onto Hogsmeade. Even with the sunset behind it, the usually buzzing and quaint town looked barren without the lively folk that inhabited it. It was to their best interest to hide, of course, and he knew that once this awful storm passed, they would return again. Yoda moved slowly through the snow, feet unbothered by the crunch of the ice beneath him.

He had no doubt that Maul was here, but held equal assurance that he no longer was. His protective charms were supposed to stop people from getting in, not out.

He grimaced as he knelt to the Slytherin girl’s motionless body- frozen in time with a horrific expression painting her features. She would need to join the growing group that took up beds in Madame Nema’s hospital wing. He just hoped with everything in him that they could make this right.

It tugged at his heart that children always seemed to be the ones to suffer for the choices of adults. This one was not excluded as Yoda and the other professors deemed that it would be safe.

It should have been safe.

He cursed as he thought back to the extensive lengths he’d gone to in protecting the school. He was exhausted, constantly firing off on all cylinders to keep this place safe. Even Hogsmeade hadn’t been exempt from his reach.

Well it had, but it seemed the small window of Maul’s murder in Diagon Alley to Yoda waking up from the botched Vitamix potion was the hole he’d crawled through. The dementors hadn’t detected him, which was a whole other concern that he would need to investigate at a later time.

There were so many ways that they failed.

Yes, well, this girl’s parents will not enjoy a meager response like that, so he ought to think of something better. Either way, he would not be sleeping well for his hubris. Maul might not storm the castle with his being there, but he was not above dancing around it. He was boxed out for now, but there was only so much that could be done. He had managed to convince them to disallow apparition for the time being without Ministry approval. This combined with the monitorization of the Floo network, limited Maul significantly.

However, there were always portkeys, which was the most secure way for a person in hiding to quickly transport. You didn’t need a license for it and you didn’t even leave a trace on your wand in the process.

It seemed Maul was getting significant joy from toying with them by instilling fear. It was just like a dark wizard to play on people’s emotions as such.

And yet…

He looked back down at the girl with a different sort of befuddlement. Not that he was complaining, but why hadn’t he killed her? Was it because it would have drawn too much attention for his liking? That didn’t seem right, though, because he had no problem murdering the guards at Azkaban or that store owner on Diagon Alley. Why utilize this mysterious alternative method now?

It hadn’t been the first time, obviously. There was the first official occurrence in December, not to mention the carbon remnants found in Shmi Skywalker’s flat, and Obi-Wan and Satine’s discovery at the Shrieking Shack.

Maul had certainly developed a predilection for the long con in his time locked away in Azkaban. Yoda would say it was out of character if he didn’t understand how much a man could change from trauma. He’d seen it in his own face and he’d seen it in many other’s. Maul didn’t want to mess up this time. He wanted his target and he wanted it done right.

But why Anakin Skywalker? Surely, Maul didn’t buy into the Chosen One prophecy. And if he did, why the sudden malevolence towards the boy? Nothing from the ancient texts seemed to make any reference to Maul in the slightest. It wouldn’t have affected him in Azkaban.

Would it?

As Yoda waved his wand once to lift the casket of carbon from the ground to float aimlessly behind him, he turned back towards the castle, realizing not for the first time that the more he learned, the more he had to ask.

***

“We were worried you became a popsicle out there,” Cody said as he took off his own robe and coat to also wrap around Obi-Wan. They all sat in the Great Hall with the rest of the student body, each positioned on their own sleeping bag as they faced each other. Despite having been inside for over an hour, Obi-Wan still clutched the blankets that were given to him tightly and didn’t reject Cody’s addition to the pile.

“I’m sure he was more concerned about seeing Maul.” Satine said.

“I’m sure he was.” Ventress sauntered by with her trademark smirk painted on her black-stained lips.

“Come off it, Ventress,” Cody scowled, “Kenobi wouldn’t lie about such a thing. Dementors were there too.”

“They’ve been here the entire time, Fett.” Ventress said, “How many false scares have there been? I’m beginning to believe it’s all conspiracy, myself.”

“It’s that level of thinking that’s going to get someone seriously injured.” Satine said, “Or worse.”

“Maybe then someone will start to take legitimate action,” She sighed almost dreamily, like she was fantasizing about the possibility.

“And I suppose Rabé basically turning to stone was just nothing.” Cody barked.

“A pity, truly.” She inspected her fingernails, which were actually quite noticeably jagged and cracked with chipped black polish, “Have we not noticed that every victim has been pureblood? You don’t hear the Ministry talking about that, of course.”

“What are you getting at?” Satine growled.

“I’m just saying, Duchess,” Ventress displayed her best pout, which coming from her, still had all the appearances of a cat ready to pounce, “I would hate to see a group marginalized by their blood type.”

“Listen here, Ventress-” She clutched his sleeping bag tightly and was surely ready to fire off on a meaningful tangent of her own, but was interrupted by the sound of barreling footsteps coming their way.

Anakin and Rex came sprinting down the aisle and slid onto their knees towards where they sat. Anakin, for his part, skidded right into Obi-Wan and nearly knocked him over by the velocity at which he traveled.

“Where have you two been?” Cody asked.

“We were with Qui-Gon!” Anakin said and looked around to Obi-Wan, “Fives just told us about what happened at Hogsmeade and I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

Obi-Wan’s heart melted at the thought of Anakin’s concern and ruffled his hair, “Not a scratch on me.”

Anakin nodded in relief, “That’s good. It’s crazy that we both saw Maul today and he didn’t even do anything to either of us!”

Obi-Wan, Satine, Cody, and the briefly forgotten Ventress all snapped their attention towards Anakin in surprise.

“I’m sorry, what?” Satine was the first to speak.

“When and where did you see Maul?” Cody followed shortly behind.

“And you lived?” It was unclear whether Ventress was surprised or disappointed.

Obi-Wan, in all fairness, was still processing the small twelve year old boy, who presumably alone, faced the bloodthirsty killer that had it out for him. He knew he must have looked horrified, because Anakin’s own worry seemed to grow by just looking at Obi-Wan.

“I’m okay!” He said first, knowing that this was the most important thing, “And for the record, it wasn’t my fault.”

“It was a little your fault.” Rex winced.

“Rex! You’re supposed to be on my side!” Anakin whined.

“What did you do?” Obi-Wan pinched his brow.

“I already told Qui-Gon and he promised me immunity and while I don’t know for sure what that means, I’m pretty sure it means you’re not allowed to get mad.”

“That’s not what it means.” He said.

“Well, then, who’s got a decent ghost story to share?” He tried, looking around to each of them, “Ventress? I’m sure you’ve got some just by looking in a mirror every day.”

“Anakin…”

“Fine…” He sighed, “I… Might have sort of tried to go give Padmé her Valentine.”

“Of all the foolish and impulsive things to do!” Obi-Wan roared instantly.

“You said you wouldn’t get mad!”

“No I did not!” He snapped, “Do you not realize how incredibly dangerous that was? And the kind of risk you were putting yourself at? What would have happened if he had gotten you? I swear, I know you’re young but you need to think in terms of the long-”

“-Mate, not sure you are in the best position to be giving that lecture today.” Cody said, “Seeing as you also ran right into Maul’s clutches.”

“Yeah, really!” Anakin defended, “I heard all about what you did!”

“To save someone!” Obi-Wan rounded on his friend, “Not to retrieve a pretty trinket for a girl I fancy!”

“Based on your taste that’s a good thing.” Ventress scoffed.

Satine, who was admittedly calmer than Obi-Wan, frowned and looked at Anakin, “What happened?”

“If I’m allowed to continue.” He said pointedly before going on, “I wasn’t actually going to go to Hogsmeade. Believe it or not, I’m not completely stupid.”

“You just said-” Obi-Wan’s voice cracked.

“-Ben, let him finish.” Satine admonished.

“Thank you,” Anakin nodded and the kid really had the nerve to look smug, “I wasn’t going to Hogsmeade, but Rabé was and believe it or not, I get nervous too sometimes. I wasn’t sure I would have the nerve to give it to her in person, so I was going to ask Rabé if she could give it to Padmé for me. So, I used the map to follow her, obviously, and was never going to leave the tunnel system. But then about halfway through, I saw him.”

“Maul?” Cody asked in awe.

“No, the boogeyman. Yes, Maul.” Rex rolled his eyes.

“Seems like the same thing to me,” Ventress yawned, clearly unimpressed, “Seeing as Maul can’t be in two places at once, I would say one of you is lying.”

“I’m not lying!” Anakin asserted and looked to Obi-Wan, “And he’s not either.”

“Rabé didn’t just turn to carbonite on her own.” Obi-Wan said.

Anakin’s eyes widened, “He got Rabé too?”

“What do you mean too?” Satine asked.

“I mean, Tiplee was also frozen in carbonite down in the tunnels. I only managed to get away because I must have caught him off guard. I ran as fast as I could.” He patted his pockets, “Dang! I think I dropped the map in the process. Again.”

“Seriously, no more of those for you.” Satine said.

“Not like it’ll be of much use now that Yoda is closing the tunnels again.” Cody said.

“That’s horrible.” Obi-Wan frowned and stroked his chin thoughtfully, “But I wonder why he wouldn’t have come into the school.”

“He’s afraid of Yoda.” Ventress scowled, “Everyone knows that, but clearly, he’s a fool to be leaving all of these little clues around.”

“There’s got to be a bigger plan at play here.” Satine said.

“Like what? Two Maul’s?” Ventress rolled her eyes, “I could see the creep going after Skywalker as that is clearly his primary intent, but Kenobi? Who would bother to go after someone who cowered at his own shadow at one point?”

The particular incident that Ventress was alluding to happened when they were only five years old, he might add, but even in his head it didn’t pack the same impact that she wanted it to. Instead, Obi-Wan flashed her a disapproving look.

“Rabé is a member of your house.” He pointed out, “I didn’t see you running back to save her.”

“Actually, I didn’t see you at all.” Satine added.

Ventress, nonplussed, rolled her eyes dramatically, “Good to know the two of you are still conjuring nonsense that would rival The Quibbler, but if you must know, I was tutoring in the library.”

“Wait a second,” Obi-Wan allowed some of the blanket to slide off of him when he sat up straighter, trying his best to suppress a shiver that immediately followed. He was grateful that Satine set it back into place, “Don’t tell me you’re Hondo’s tutor.”

Ventress furrowed her brow, “Be wary of the tone, Kenobi. My marks often rival your own.”

She wasn’t wrong. Horrible personality aside, Ventress was an exemplary student. Like him, she sort of had to be, given the reputation their respective families upheld.

“I wasn’t underestimating your intelligence,” He said, because he wasn’t a total fool, “But I never took you for a good samaritan.”

“Surely, he’s paying her.” Satine groaned as she leaned back on her hands.

“I don’t need the money, muggle-born.” She hissed.

“Since when has galleons been his only form of currency?” Satine shrugged, “Everyone has a price, is all I’m saying.”

“Fools,” Ventress shook her head as she walked away, “All of you.”

“Yeah, well, when you turn to stone, it’ll match your heart.” Anakin said and stood up, “I’m going to go apologize to Padmé.”

Obi-Wan watched him sadly as he walked over to where the crestfallen group of usually chipper girls huddled together. At least they were able to comfort each other in this trying time. Obi-Wan looked to Cody and Satine, who were both wearing a considerable amount of concern on their features.

He knew their responsibilities as older students and prefects, alike, were only going to rise as the fear and sense of danger increased. Anakin had nearly come to his end if he hadn’t been so quick on his feet. He supposed those dueling classes did have their uses if implemented properly. As it were, Maul would likely not make the same mistake twice.

***

The atmosphere was much more subdued than most Quidditch mornings. Even Cody found himself sitting quietly across from where Obi-Wan was falling asleep over a plate of pancakes. Ventress was the only one not subdued, she was glaring around at her team, snarling at anyone not paying attention to her. He didn’t think she’d get very far with an attitude like that. As captain, sometimes the best thing you could do was read the mood of your teammates.

Obi-Wan’s head dropped forwards almost landing in the syrup before Satine managed to pull him back without even a glance over. He blinked, looking around like he hadn’t even been aware they were in the Great Hall in the first place.

“Might want to eat something, mate,” Cody suggested, gesturing to his plate that he seemed surprised was loaded even if he had done it himself.

“Right,” He did so without another word. Satine looked fairly volatile this morning, having woken up extremely early for a morning patrol so there wasn’t much conversation for them to be had. He was tired too, having been picking up a few patrols of his own. Palpatine’s accidental sleeping potion may have been an unfortunate idea, but a few extra hands that could take on prefect duties were still welcomed. It’s not like Cody could say no after watching his friends be run ragged.

“You sure you’re going to be awake enough to stay on a broom?” Cody asked as they both watched a piece of pancake fall slowly off his fork. Obi-Wan just nodded looking up with a sigh.

“We’re all tired,” He nodded towards where Koth had passed out at the breakfast table. Aayla and Cin were awake enough to doodle on his face so it maybe wasn’t the entire team, “Hopefully this will make for a short game.”

“Hopefully,” He nodded, but he wasn’t sure he was honest in his statement. Ventress was looking especially poisonous this morning and wouldn’t take anything sitting down, “Maybe we shouldn’t be playing anyways.”

Obi-Wan and Satine both looked at him like he’d just grown a second head and he met their looks with a glare.

“Who are you and what have you done with Cody?” Kenobi squinted at him as if checking to make sure he hadn’t been cursed.

“I think hell must have frozen over,” Satine added with a nod, “I never thought I’d hear Cody Fett, not want anything to do with Quidditch.”

“Hey! Woah!” He shook his head quickly, “I never said that.”

They both raised an eyebrow at him and he rolled his eyes.

“Even I am not enough of a sports fan to look past the elephant in the room,” He jabbed his fork at them, “Maul’s close and we’re just going to take the whole school outside? Again? Plus, morale is down,” Instead of gesturing to the two obvious examples in front of him, he pointed to Koth, who had just woken up and hadn’t figured out why everyone was laughing at him yet.

“When you put it that way...” Obi-Wan flicked his eyes to the professors, who were desperately trying to keep warm inviting facades. He took a sip of pumpkin juice.

“Why go through all this trouble for such a barbaric game anyways,” Satine glowered, “We need a break from potential violence not more.”

Cody knew explaining the dynamics of Quidditch would not change her mind any so he kept his own thoughts to himself on the matter. He thought of Quidditch as a much needed break most of the time. But it was hard to deny the fact that only a few people would be having a good time today and that wasn’t how he felt a healthy Quidditch environment should be.

The screech of an owl alerted everyone to the arrival of the morning mail. It was always a little hectic, but it didn’t stop them from being able to spot one of their three owls if it chose to show up. The only owl Cody could recognize was a large tawny one. Well manicured and, if memory served, sharp talons. Obi-Wan barely avoided getting his letter dropped on his head, his hand flicked up to catch the falling parchment with deft precision. As most letters from his parents, he was careful to shield it so Satine couldn’t see, something that always had her frustrated despite knowing that it was fair given the nature of these letters.

Obi-Wan read the whole thing in lightning speed, eyebrows furrowing the further he got, although he nodded before swiftly depositing it on the table next to his plate. His owl swooped down again landing on his head causing him to wince.

“Alright message received,” He tried to pick up the pesky owl, but it looked rather indignant to be manhandled. Still because he was gentle and fed him a bit of breakfast, the owl allowed itself to be set on his arm, “Tell them they’re early,” He tried saying it quietly enough so neither of them would hear, unfortunately they were both rather intune to his voice. If an owl could show emotions, which Cody had, up until this moment thought untrue, Obi-Wan’s owl would look almost melancholic for a moment. A hard thing to do for a bird that had permanent angry eyebrows colored into its feathers.

It took off in a hurry, nearly taking off a few heads as it went and disappeared back into the flock it had arrived with.

“What did they say?” Satine asked, as she usually did, but he just shrugged.

“Nothing out of the ordinary,” He gave her a smile, but she frowned.

“That never makes me feel better,” She told him sternly. He just shrugged.

There was a loud pop and they all looked up to see Palpatine and Qui-Gon standing at the head of the Great Hall, the two of them would be escorting both teams outside and to the pitch. It was best to have an experienced teacher at the helm and who better than those who had earned their titles as Heads of House.

Obi-Wan stood swiftly, accepting their well wishes and good lucks, before falling into line behind Eeth. Satine was watching them leave with narrowed eyes and Cody wasn’t sure what was going on, but she certainly looked much more focused than earlier. She slid her hand across the table, snatching the note from where he’d left it, clearly for the trash pile, and spread it open.

“Should you do that?” He asked even if he was curious himself, he wasn’t about to get accused of reading other people’s mail.

“It’s a suspicious piece of parchment I found unattended,” She lied as she peered down at it. Her nose scrunched up in disgust as she read it just loud enough for him to hear.

“Obi-Wan Kenobi,

As you are about to turn 17, we remind you once again of your duties and expectations. In one year you will turn 18 and we’ll discuss then your future. Despite your best attempts to undermine our plans we will do what we can to work around your failure.

Don’t expect a gift this year, you received one last year and we’ll be happy to give you one when you turn 20. Consider continuing to go to school despite your constant disappointments gift enough.

-Mother”

Cody felt the grip on his fork tighten as he stared a hole through the paper. A correspondence with Obi-Wan’s family really was never pleasant, but did they have to be so outwardly despicable? What surprised him most was the excitement lighting up Satine’s eyes as she read the letter over again.

“Brilliant!” She grinned and he practically snapped his fork in half.

“What’s so brilliant about those two bastards continuing to tighten the noose around his neck?” Cody growled and Satine looked up, having the decency to look aghast.

“Oh heavens no,” She looked sick at the thought, “That’s not what I was referring to at all. How could you think-?”

“-How could I not? Maybe hell is freezing over,” He ran a hand down his face as she rummaged around in her bag before shoving plates and goblets out of the way, nearly toppling a few over. She set down a massive book-like object with a white exterior and silver rings. It was full to the brim with pages and she opened it up excitedly.

“It’s a binder,” She told him at his look before moving on to what must have been the important thing at hand, “You know how Ben’s rather dodgy about his birthday?” Cody nodded, “Well I’ve been tracking him ever since 2nd year,” She flipped around in the binder and Cody could see so many color-coded graphs it made his head spin.

“You did this? For what?”

“If he won’t tell us, I’ll find out on my own,” She glared sternly at a picture of Ben that blinked up at her from the page, “That’s what I told him,” She flipped through it, pointing at various sections, “I was able to surmise that his parents tend to have a letter pattern. They only send him mail on major holidays or if he’s done something they disapprove of.”

“When is that not the case,” He muttered.

“I was able to narrow it down after a few years to February or March,” She was in the back of the book now where a calendar full of crossed out dates sat, “It was confusing, sometimes they sent him a letter end of February like this one,” She waved the letter at him, “Sometimes it was in March. This is the first time I’ve been able to read one,” She grinned proudly tucking the letter into the back pocket for evidence purposes.

“What good does that do? They didn’t say what day it was,” Cody studied the calendar in interest.

“It does a lot of good!” She pulled a fancy highlighter from her bag, “He said they were early, meaning it can’t be any of these dates,” She ran her finger through most of the month. They only had a few days left until March though, maybe she’d figured out the month, “Most importantly!” She looked at him face as serious as it was when she was taking her OWLs, “They said they got him a gift last year-”

“Yeah a ruddy gift,” Cody frowned, “What good is an antique quill if it doesn’t even work?”

“I agree,” She said impatiently, “That’s not the point. They said they’d get him another one when he turned 20. He turned 16 last year-”

“Your point?” Cody was beginning to get lost and would rather she hurry up her point than leave him thinking.

“He doesn’t have a birthday this year at all!” She announced and Cody straightened, staring at her in shock.

“Well that’s not possible!” He declared, “Everyone has a birthday once a year! Even those who don’t care much like Kenobi.”

“It is possible!” She grinned proudly drawing a line on her calendar right between the 28th of February and the 1st of March, “He was born on February 29th! A leap year!”

Cody blinked. That actually made a lot of sense. Kenobi wasn’t a liar and he was sure he’d asked about specific days and been told he was wrong. He’d only seen Kenobi get a birthday present their first year (a pack of gobstones) and their fifth year (the aforementioned broken antique quill). Cody had just figured they wouldn’t ever figure it out unless he told them himself, so he usually just tried to get him a good Christmas present every year. He had noticed Satine had started to give him a present around this time of year, but now they had the exact day.

“Does this mean his parents use that as an excuse to never get him anything?” He frowned and Satine angered instantly.

“I’m almost shocked they haven’t forgotten the date themselves.”

“So,” Cody looked at the little highlighted line indicating the fruition of 5 years of work, “What are we doing about it?”

***

“I still say we should have gone with March 1st,” Cody said from where he was balanced rather precariously on a ladder taping the end of a streamer, “Then we’d be celebrating him having turned 17.”

Satine, who was holding onto the ladder to make sure she didn’t have to take anyone to the hospital wing today, glared up at him, “Absolutely not! He has a February birthday, we’re celebrating it in February. Otherwise he’s going to assume we’ve forgotten it!”

“He doesn’t even know we know it,” Cody rationalized, but came down from the ladder anyways to admire his work with her.

“Alright,” She looked down reading her list. She’d had years to plan this event, he’d never had a party before that she knew of and she wanted it to be perfect, “We’ve got the streamers and the balloons. The guests have been told what time to arrive...” She checked off the boxes as she went, “Can I trust you to go and get the cake without dropping it?” She looked up at her friend and he grinned giving her a thumbs up.

“Oh yeah definitely,” It didn’t instill in her a lot of hope, but he was at least eager to do it.

“Alright go, but hurry!” She checked the time off the clock in the corner. “They’ll be here soon.”

“On it!” He saluted her and raced out the door.

Satine observed her surroundings once more. They’d chosen an empty classroom rather than something elaborate like the Great Hall or too intimate like Qui-Gon’s office. She’d gotten approval, Qui-Gon was to arrive any minute now to supervise. He’d been the only professor she could think of that would understand how important this was to do. She was sure if she’d talked to Windu or even Headmaster Yoda, she’d have gotten shot down before she even began. Qui-Gon knew about Ben’s family though and like her, seemed to want to give him the best experience he could.

There was a spot for the cake on the teacher’s desk as well as plates, utensils, and napkins. The ceiling was practically drowning in streamers of all different colors and balloons were floating around aimlessly. Her and Cody’s presents to him were sitting in a neat pile on a couple of tables pushed together. She hoped he’d get a few more, but hadn’t explicitly said anything on the invitations. It was rather short notice after all.

“You’ve done a wonderful job,” She turned to see Qui-Gon in the doorway. He was holding a colorfully wrapped package which she gratefully took from him placing it on the table next to the other.

“Do you think it’s too much?” The last thing she wanted to do was overwhelm him, but she’d learned over the years it was hard to figure out what would.

“I’m sure we could all do with a little cheeriness,” He said in lieu of answering. Maybe he didn’t know any better than she did.

It didn’t take much more time before the students she’d invited began to arrive. The entirety of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team poured in along with Stass. They’d been a little downtrodden at being beat so terribly by Slytherin, but seemed happy enough to be there. The clones were the next to arrive with Anakin in tow. Anakin proudly added his gift to the stack before going back over to Rex.

Cody arrived again, loudly kicking in the door gingerly holding the cake. It hadn’t gotten squashed which she was thankful for. Behind him was Breha and Bail, both levitating trays of food and a bowl of punch, letting them settle into place on a row of desks.

More prefects appeared as well as a few other students. Hondo had seemed rather pleased to have been invited, but Satine was a little worried about what he had possibly brought as a present. Soon the room was pretty full and Satine shushed everyone as well as she could without shouting.

“Alright I’m going to get Ben,” She announced, “Be ready.”

“Yes ma’am!” The Fett’s all saluted her and the others in the room nodded keeping their chatter to a minimum.

***

Obi-Wan was growing a little concerned. Satine had been the one to ask him to meet her in the library, but she had yet to appear. He’d kept himself occupied with his textbooks, but he was tempted to go out and look for her. It was no sooner than he closed his textbook and stood that she rounded the corner looking rather flustered.

“Sorry I’m late,” She panted as she flipped her hair back and out of her face. It was down today, which was becoming a bit of a rarity and he smiled.

“It’s no trouble,” He said sitting back down, “Was there something in particular you wanted to work on? I’ve already finished my essays, but I can help you with yours.”

“Actually,” She was fidgeting nervously and he gazed up at her in concern, “I was hoping you wouldn’t mind if we went on a walk first.”

“A walk?” That was an unusual request.

“Yes I- I just think it would be nice, don’t you?” Well, he was hard pressed to deny her anything. Especially something as simple as a walk around the castle.

“Alright,” He agreed, sliding his text book back into his bag. She was scrutinizing him and he looked down to make sure his clothes were straightened, because the last time he’d gotten that look his fly had been undone. Rather embarrassing.

He looked up again, starting in surprise, when he felt a hand in his hair. She gave him an apologetic look as she stepped back.

“Sorry, your hair was messed up,” She told him and he felt his face warm slightly, but she just coughed awkwardly and started walking. He ran to catch up.

He couldn’t help, but to run his own hands through his hair, just to ensure that it wasn’t still a mess, “It’s fine Ben,” She told him as she walked just far enough ahead to force him to follow her path.

“I didn’t think you minded much if it was messy,” He said instead of removing his hands.

“I don’t, I just-” Satine cut herself off with a shake of her head. Obi-Wan was confused, but let his hands finally drop to his sides.

“Well alright?” He wasn’t sure what else to say. She was acting off and he couldn’t pinpoint it. Maybe she was upset? But she didn’t look it. Even if she was, the library was perfectly quiet that evening. His heart beat a little faster in his chest as he remembered another time the two of them had been alone, the Christmas party. Did she- were they going to talk about it? He wasn’t sure he knew what to say about such things.

“Ben?” He looked up at his name and she was frowning at him, “Are you alright? You look pale.”

“I’m completely fine,” He confirmed, “Are you?”

“Yes?” Maybe they were both acting a little off this evening.

“Good,” He smiled at her and she returned it easily.

She turned then and walked towards the door of an empty classroom, disappearing inside. What on earth could she want with him in an empty classroom?

He refused to lose her though and quickened his pace until he was pulling the door open only to be assaulted by many loud cheers. It took him a moment to register what they were saying in the first place.

“Happy Birthday!”

His birthday? He blinked, taking in the scene. Many of his close friends were there, his Quidditch team, Anakin, Qui-Gon. All of them were standing there watching him which made him more than a little nervous. The ceiling was decorated in nearly every color of the rainbow and it was complete with balloons. He gripped the strap of his bag, unsure what was expected of him. He certainly had never had a party for himself before.

“Happy Birthday, mate!” Cody appeared in front of him practically dragging him into the room and pushing him towards the professor’s desk. It broke the tension in the room and chatter resumed much to his relief. There were less eyes on him.

“Uhm, thank you,” He managed a smile.

“Look at your cake! We had it made special.”

He looked down in surprise at a white cake decorated with 17 silver candles. Written in delicate blue icing was, “Happy Birthday Obi-Wan!” He’d never had his own birthday cake before, but he’d seen them when Satine or Cody had celebrated theirs. It was kind of them to think of him, he just wished he knew the proper way to respond. The parties he attended usually had scripts to follow and he had never been instructed for one like this.

“It’s chocolate,” Satine’s hand landed right next to his on the desk and he looked up catching her eyes, “I know it’s your favorite.”

“It is,” he agreed almost solemnly.

“Do you like it?” She asked and he nodded quickly, his face heating up, how rude that he hadn’t immediately offered them a thank you.

“Yes of course! I- Thank you,” He told them both seriously, “I’m sorry, I’m just not at all sure how I’m supposed to react.” Satine’s eyes flashed sadly at him for a moment before it was gone and she smiled at him softly, bumping her fingers into his.

“You can react however you’d like,” She assured him, “Yell at me that you hate it for all I care,” He took a step back and nearly tripped over Cody at the insinuation.

“Absolutely not, I’ll treasure it!” He vowed with a stern expression and she laughed a little, it was a sound he quite liked.

“Don’t treasure it too long,” Cody warned him, “Because after we sing to you we’re all going to eat it.”

“Sing?”

Neither of them answered, but he found himself pushed into the professor’s chair and everyone seemed to gather all around him. He felt his face get warm and he hoped it wasn’t too noticeable. Both Cody and Satine were lighting the candles on the cake and right when they were done a rather off-key rendition of “Happy Birthday” was sung and shouted at him. There wasn’t much for him to do except sit there and try to look less uncomfortable. When Fives and Echo finally finished drawing out the last “you” Satine told him to make a wish and gestured for him to blow out the candles. It took him two attempts and he wondered if he looked as foolish as he felt.

Soon, however, everyone was preoccupied with their slices of cake and mingling with one another. Obi-Wan had to admit despite his embarrassment of having so many eyes on him, the cake was rather good. It was certainly his favorite kind from the Great Hall and he was quietly delighted when Satine offered him another piece.

“You know today’s not my birthday,” He told Satine as she sat down next to him cutting into her own slice.

“I know,” She smirked, “I know that your birthday isn’t today or tomorrow, but is actually February 29th. Despite what anyone else may say about this though, is that it’s still worth celebrating even if the day won’t appear again for a few more years.”

He blinked at her, shocked. He knew she’d been interested in figuring out his birthday, but he had assumed she’d dropped it by now, “How did you find out?”

“Years of observation,” It wasn’t a helpful answer, but he had to admire her intelligence in getting this far, “So am I right?” She leaned in close to him, her eyes searching his for the answer.

“Yes,” He answered quietly.

“Kenobi!” Hondo nearly knocked him into his cake when he slapped him on the back, “Why have you not shared your birthday with me before! Hondo gives fabulous presents that one would not wish for in their wildest dreams!”

“Ah thank you Hondo,” He peeled Hondo’s arm off his shoulders. He was fairly sure Hondo was correct in his assumption that he definitely wouldn’t have wished for whatever lurked in Hondo’s present in any of his dreams.

“You’re welcome, my friend! Only the best for one of my closest associates,” He winked at him before waltzing away back into the crowd. Obi-Wan watched him go as Satine stifled her laughter.

“I assumed you’d want to open your presents later?” She asked.

“I have presents?” He looked around the room until he spotted them and blanched. There had to be at least 10 sitting there in a pile just for him, “I can’t accept that,” He looked at her with wide eyes and she narrowed her eyes.

“It would be ruder for you to reject them,” He looked between her and the presents. A catch 22.

“I’m not opening Hondo’s in front of anyone,” He decided and she laughed again.

Suddenly there was a loud crash and they both looked up to see Anakin sprawled out on the floor. Obi-Wan’s heart flew into his throat thinking of a similar event at the last party he’d gone to at this school. Before he could run over there though, Anakin was sitting up with a dopey smile on his face. He giggled.

Obi-Wan let out a sigh of relief, but something still didn’t seem right. Anakin had Qui-Gon’s help to stand up, but he wobbled. He looked a little bit like he was drunk, but he doubted Satine or Cody would spike the punch at his birthday party. Cody seemed to have a similar guess because he took a sip of his own punch and frowned.

“Don’t you think,” Anakin giggled so hard he almost fell down again, “Don’t you think that Miraj Scintel is the most beautiful girl you’ve ever met?”

The room went silent.

“She’s really beautiful,” He said again giggling wildly. He tripped and Qui-Gon just barely managed to catch him.

Half the room broke out into laughter, it was a ridiculous sight, but Obi-Wan was more worried about what the cause of this was. Qui-Gon was too and immediately slapped a cookie out of Hondo’s hand.

“Someone’s snuck a love potion in,” Satine said standing up, looking particularly mad.

“Miraj Scintel by the sound of it,” Cin Drallig raised an eyebrow as they all quietly set their food down.

“Must have been after you Kenobi,” Fives pointed out, “After all this is technically your party.”

“Me?” He barely talked to the girl and found her quite detestable, they were as different as they came.

“It’s possible any of you were the target,” Qui-Gon frowned as he picked up Anakin to keep him from getting anywhere.

“Hey put me down! I need to go tell Miraj Scintel that I love her!” Anakin cried, “Rex, do you think she’ll like me back.”

Rex was looking at Anakin as if he were contagious, but he just gave him an awkward nod and a, “Sure mate.”

“I’ll take him to Madam Nema,” He told everyone and gave a steady gaze at Obi-Wan, “He’ll be fine. In the meantime I’m sorry, but it looks like we’ll have to cut this party short.”

Before long the room had thinned out leaving just Obi-Wan, Satine, Cody, and a mess to clean up.

“You don’t have to help, Ben,” Satine said with a sigh as she pulled out her wand, “It’s your birthday after all.”

“And leave you to do all the work? I don’t think so,” He stood beside her as they both pulled the streamers off the ceiling with their wands. Cody made short work of sending all their food back down to the kitchens. The three of them moved the desks back to where they were meant to before collapsing together at a section of desks in the center of the room.

“Who knew a party would be so much work?” Cody complained as he picked a bit of streamer out of his hair.

“I did,” Obi-Wan answered quietly, “I really appreciate the thought, but I’m not sure I like having all the attention on me.”

“The point of a birthday party is just to be around those that love you,” She told him, “Yeah it’s a little embarrassing being sung too or opening presents, but there are some things in life you just have to accept.”

“I’m not sure,” He would really rather not make such a big fuss about something as mundane as the day he was born. Satine gave him a rather scathing look for a moment before sighing deeply and reaching into her bag.

“Do you remember when I was late coming back to school?” She asked them.

“Only every day,” He complained and Cody just nodded. She sized them both up before pulling out her wallet and, as if it was physically painful for her she pulled out a thin white card.

“I was late because I was getting my driver’s license,” She set the card down in front of them, revealing Satine in rather bad lighting. On the right was a list of identifying information and quite interested, Obi-Wan picked it up to look at it.

Cody immediately had broken into a fit of laughter, catching the end of Satine’s fiery glare, “It looks like a mug shot!”

“That’s why I wasn’t too interested in telling anyone!” She snatched the card out of his hands and Obi-Wan just blinked looking over at her.

“What’s wrong with it? You look lovely,” That comment just made Cody laugh harder and earned him Satine’s glare as well.

“It’s a bloody terrible photo!” She shouted shoving the thing far back in her wallet and stashing it back where it belonged, “The point is,” She emphasized, “Sometimes you have to suffer through some embarrassment in life, I doubt having a birthday party is as terrible as having that as an identifying picture.”

“I don’t see what’s so bad about it,” He looked between Cody and Satine. It showcased her hair and although she wasn’t smiling, in it he could see the softness in her eyes.

“You are unbelievable, Obi-Wan Kenobi!” Satine’s face had gone red, “I show you the worst picture of me forced to exist and you still think being sung too is worse?”

“Let’s open presents!” Cody changed the subject quickly, shoving a shoddily wrapped gift into his hands and trying to whisper, “Come on mate, open it! She already has a mugshot, what’s going to stop her from murdering us.”

“Cody!”

#anakin skywalker #obi-wan kenobi #obitine #anidala #the clone wars #star wars #hpau #magical forces au

[andy-the-8th]

Day Of and Day After - Sam (Part 5)

Part 5 of Creatures That Defy Logic

Read on AO3

That feel when you're 14 and your boyfriend turns out to be a merman, but you've still got things to get done this summer.

Sam's perspective at the end of the movie.

A/N: Sam was perhaps the least-developed character in the whole movie, so writing from her perspective was kind of a fun blank slate. I've given her a last name, individual background interests and information, and invented (mostly - Jennifer is Sam's friend who had like 2 lines) a whole supporting group of original characters for the chapters from her perspective - maybe they'll also be connected to other stories?

Sam got home about an hour after leaving the marina and Cody's parents behind. Hot from the long walk and summer air, she went immediately to the kitchen and downed two glasses of water, letting the coolness spread throughout her body as she sat and calmed down at the kitchen table.

It had been a good plan to walk back. Sam was as much an athlete as Cody or Sean or any of the boys they hung out with - her mind and muscles were connected, and one always worked better when the other was engaged.

With the open air and time to walk with purpose, she had managed to calm her emotions about losing Cody. She hung on to the mermaid's silent promise to have him back before school started, somehow communicated to Cody's mom via telepathy. God, telepathy. Another ontological thing to adjust to. Would Cody have telepathy when he returned?

She'd managed to stop crying about halfway through her walk. She knew it would come again that night, and probably the next several nights. She could hear her friend Jennifer laughing at how silly she would look crying over a boy going away for the summer, even a boy as socially desirable as Cody Griffin. Sam and Jen connected on a lot, but in the boys department she sometimes wished Jen could be a little less shallow. As far as Jen was concerned, a boyfriend only needed to be cute and popular - emotional depth, socializing, deepest-darkest secret keeping was for girl friends. Sam agreed on all the latter, but had always thought romance could be about something more.

She hadn't been attracted to Cody for his popularity. If anything, she was drawn to his drive, his energy when he would compete, the charisma he had among his teammates and with his friends. The way being one of the popular guys hadn't turned him into a cocky prick like Sean and some of the other boys on the team.

Sam felt like they were meant for each other, even if they'd only been going out since spring break. She thought Cody felt the same - Cody was like an open book, which was something she'd always loved about him. He was terrible at lying, and you could always see every emotion on his face. She had never doubted his feelings for her.

Which was part of why she was still not over him not telling her about this sooner.

Sam's older sister Jackie had come home from college last summer, talking about all the drama of dating in college with her high school friends once they were all back in town. The new thing she kept talking about was love languages - the way people show each other they care. Sam honestly thought most of her sister's talk was needlessly dramatic, and hoped that the boys she knew would grow up to be a bit less vapid and out of touch than all the boys Jackie seemed to encounter. Regardless, Sam took the little checkmarked quiz in the back of Jackie's magazine, and which said her love language was trust - being able to tell each other anything.

When she'd told Cody on the beach that she wanted him to be able to tell her anything, she could even hear Jackie's or her mom's voices in her head, saying that she was being a bit demanding for a three-month relationship in 8th grade. She didn't care. She knew she loved him, and to Sam that meant complete honestly.

So having to find out after Cody sprouted fins, apparently blew up the scoreboard (?),  and ran away from the meet was justifiably infuriating. To be fair, she didn't really expect this to be what Cody was keeping from her. Part of her was relieved that it wasn't him seeing some other girl. She didn't think he would do that, but this was junior high after all. She only now slightly regretted storming out that day - she may have been sad to lose Cody, but he had hurt her too with his lack of trust and uneven expectations.

The fact that she had to learn about the details from that Josh kid only exacerbated the issue. Apparently they were close friends or something now? Then again, he looked at Cody like a science project - like he was something to study. Still, she could tell that he was important to Cody, and had clearly helped him out when the problems had started - even if she would rather have been the one to do it, the kid's science background probably helped a lot more. Even if Josh insisted they weren't problems, they were steps of Cody's metamorphosis, it sure still turned into a lot of problems for everyone else involved.

Josh's - no, Jess's - weird-ass comment about her "kissing" him after performing mouth-to-mouth was probably the part of the day she least wanted to remember. Like, sorry for trying to save your life. Thank God for junior lifeguard training and boyfriends who can apparently shoot lightning out of their hands.

Still, as she was thinking about school the next day, Sam realized it was going to be weird to not be able to talk about where Cody was with anyone. She was his girlfriend, after all - "the most popular girl in school" as Jen naggingly kept reminding her - and had always been an extrovert, wanting to talk things over with people she cared about to make them all make sense. Jess was now in the weird position of being her only peer she could be fully truthful with about what was going on her life.

That would make for an interesting summer.

God, and Sean would no doubt have a million questions after whatever he might have seen at the swim meet. It was bad enough that he still attempted to flirt with her whenever possible - him getting into a fight with Cody that had to be broken up by Josh Jess of all people surely was going to make him all the more insufferable.

Getting up from her chair, Sam tied her hair back and got up for another glass of water. She was reminded of Cody's weird sudden thirstiness at all times over the last several weeks, and how that finally made sense, and (thankfully, maybe) wasn't diabetes, as she'd repeatedly warned him. He'd  insisted it wasn't, with the excuse that his mom wouldn't want him to go to regular doctors to get tested anyway. That part at least was true, even if only half of the story. Diabetes would have been a bit more normal, but imagining Mrs. Griffin dealing with insulin shots was almost scarier than her dealing with merpeople.

Merpeople of all things. She didn't doubt Cody's promise to her this time, but still: there'd better not be any mer-girls to hear about come the end of the summer.

Putting her glass in the sink, she stretched back and decided to put all the drama of middle school girls and boys - human and otherwise - behind her for the rest of the afternoon. She slid open the glass door next to kitchen table and stepped out onto the small porch in the backyard, lined with shelves of potted plants all sorts of colors and shapes. Sam had always loved her plants - succulents, aloe, bromeliads, spider plants, dracaena trees - things tied to the earth. Her room and the back porch had become her container gardens, where she'd retreat to care for them and decompress. She gathered up her watering cans - large spouts for rainlike streams, small bottles to directly water the soil - and the various pump bottles of plant food for each variety. As it was the beginning of June, it would be time to refresh the fertilizer in all of the soil. She filled the watering cans at the sink and moved smoothly and slowly from plant to plant, dabbing drops of liquid plant food to the soil, carefully parting leaves and stems, watering just the right amount for each species. The work was perfect, slow and relaxing - Sam focused on the diverse needs of each individual plant as well as appreciating its beauty and growth progress.

Sam was actually quite a good biology student herself, though she had always been more inclined to studying plants, both aesthetically and via agriculture, than anything to do with the oceans. Land management and endangered species conservation were at the top of her extracurricular interests - she had been president of the middle school environmental club the last two years, organizing recycling drives, local beach cleanups, and nature walk days for the elementary school.

This summer she had managed to get a part time job at one of the local greenhouses, which served both the florist shop and a few of the garden centers around town. Her job would start two weeks from the end of school. The prospect of spending the summer caring for things of the earth was far more comforting and appealing than tomorrow and dealing with people again.

Sam mentally noted the irony of her caring so much for things of the land, with her boyfriend turning out to be a literal sea creature.

She finished all of the care and cleaning for the plants on the back porch, then carefully went upstairs with the smallest of the watering cans and repeated the process with the small collection of indoor plants in her room.

After finishing up, she laid back on her bed, staring at the musician posters on her ceiling - Backstreet Boys, TLC, and Destiny's Child - trying to let her mind zone out. She reached into the bottom drawer of the dresser next to her bed for her CDs, finding what she had been looking for: TLC's FanMail, new just last winter. She popped the CD into her small player and put her headphones on, closed her eyes, and focused on following the rhythms of the drums and harmonies in the voices. The music worked - she found herself drifting off to sleep, exhausted physically and mentally from the rest of the afternoon.

It was almost dark outside when she woke to her mom coming in the front door downstairs. Sam quickly got up, taking a few seconds to reorient herself in space and time. Quickly trying to pull herself out of the weird fog of falling asleep midday, she made her way downstairs.

"Oh hey! Were you asleep?" Her mom rarely missed anything. Like Sam, she had long red hair, pulled back into a bun over her black dress shirt and blue blazer. Her mom was a lawyer, one of the only ones in their town who worked in environmental protection policy. Most of her days were spent with documents and plans from the various touristy planners, boat charters, and other industrialists looking to exploit the town's oceanside location, circumventing whatever environmental protection laws as they could. Ms. Lindsey Brathwaite was the main champion of the environment standing in their way.

Sam consciously widened her eyes and slightly shook her head to wake herself up. "Only a bit. Had a busy day earlier, lots going on with tomorrow the last day of school."

"Oooh, any plans for tomorrow night? Two weeks still til you start work, anything going on in the meantime with ze boyfriend?" Her mom always had a good sense of humor when discussing Sam's social life, even if it got a little annoying sometimes with not taking things quite as seriously as her daughter would like. If only she knew this one.

"Actually I was just going to maybe hang out with Jen and the girls tomorrow. Cody's, uh, Cody's going to be going away for the summer."

"Oh really? Family vacation? I would have thought they'd stay around, tourist season and all." Lindsey never missed a thing.

"Uh, no, he's going away by himself. Swim training thing, out in Australia." At that Lindsey turned right around from where she was busy taking plates out of the cabinets. "Australia? Really?"

Sam did her best to nod nonchalantly. "I think he has something going on there for like, potential Olympic training maybe? And Mrs. Griffin's sister lives there too." Sam turned away, slightly bit her lip, worrying she might be laying it on too thick. Best to avoid too many details with the story, in case she or Jess or anyone else couldn't remember them all if they had to. That said, a training camp for the Olympics wouldn't be too out of the ordinary to be in Australia - the next actual games were in Sydney next year anyway, and as she said, Mrs. Griffin had a sister who lived somewhere on the north eastern coast.

Lindsey was still no less surprised but at least seemed to buy the story, frowning at her daughter slightly. "Aw, I'm sorry to hear that, I'd imagine you'll miss him, especially with such little notice!"

"You have no idea." Sam's tone accurately indicated to her mom that she was annoyed but also wanted to drop the subject for right now.

"Well we can get on making dinner right now, then if you want to call Jen later tonight you can set up your plans and talk things over? I won't be needing the computer tonight so the phone'll be all yours." Sam really loved her mom, especially how she knew when to give her space to work things out socially. "Jackie will be coming back next week too!"

The thought of her sister showing up again for the summer made Sam even more glad to be out of the house at her greenhouse job. Jackie was alright, but ever since Sam had grown up enough to be dating, her sister was only too interested in being helpful - and prying - in that department. There were only so many details Sam would be able to give about the boyfriend she'd already told Jackie about.

"OK, thanks Mom! I'll call Jen after dinner." Sam walked over to the salad bowl Lindsey had already put out on the table, and began carefully mixing in croutons and putting the dressings out from inside the fridge. After the day she just had, something as simple as making dinner was an appealingly normal event.

#the thirteenth year #dcom #disney channel original movies #mermen #mermaid #TLC #backstreet boys #destiny's child

[langdxn]

I'm soooo curious how others perceive Cody, like his personality and stuff! Do you think you could write something where the reader is a fellow actress on ahs, and the moment Cody and her meet, the tension is heavy and sparks are flying, and after a while of getting close and hanging out Cody confesses his feelings? You can write it as a fic or as headcannons and add smut it's all up to you! I'm just so curious now hkgjfkfjjd 💕💖❤️

asdfghjkl this has ruined me 💕💕 I’ve never tried headcanons before so this probably sucks but here goes! I’m so sorry this is so long 😭😭😭

The first read-through for a season is terrifying enough, nobody knows who’s returning, who’s not returning, who the newbies are, what to expect.

You’re new this season so you turn up early just to introduce yourself before all the chaos ensues.

You’re the first one in the room and once you’re settled at your named seat, your handbag scooted neatly under your desk, the door creaks open and a heavily-ringed hand curls around it. Cody peeks round the corner and he’s already beaming from ear to ear before he’s seen who’s in the room.

Your heart doesn’t know whether to soar or sink like a stone because Cody freaking Fern just walked in smiling like a soft boi.

He’s stood in the doorway squealing with glee, he’s back for another season and he wasn’t dreaming it! He throws a “oh my god this is actually happening” in your direction.

He can’t decide whether to run over and greet you or sit down before everybody piles in and things get crazy. He settles for the latter because he’s shy as heck, so he saves himself the nerves by waving happily across the room. “Hey, you’re new here! Nice to meet you, I’m Cody!” His Michael rings glint in the early morning sunlight — he must be a morning person.

His Aussie accent is drop dead GORGEOUS by the way, there’s nothing that can change my mind about that, I don’t make the rules.

He spots his seat directly across from you and flings his bag on the table, pulling out his chair and sinking into the (indescribably uncomfortable) plastic chair.

So the read-through goes okay, Sarah Paulson’s front and centre smoking and Evan Peters is slumped in a chair in a dark corner.

Scanning through the script, you searched the pages for any scenes where you and Cody are together. From page one, you’re noticing his name above yours A LOT.

You looked over to him and you find Cody gazing back at you, wearing such a warm smile he lights up the whole fucking room.

You quickly looked back down but you couldn’t help looking again and this time he’s winking.

Or blinking really.

It’s a wink.

But he can’t wink.

So he blinks.

Turns out Cody’s character is hopelessly in love with yours and your character bats him off daily.

So when you’re on set, you never know whether he’s gazing at you longingly because he’s getting into character or it’s real.

You’re just lucky he’s not caught you staring at him back.

Yet.

One day before you settled down for filming, you swore you caught him and Leslie Grossman giggling and gesturing towards you. In any other situation you’d think it was a bad thing but they’re too kind to be malicious, especially not behind someone’s back.

Sometimes you’d sit together at lunch and he’s aaaalways reading, he’s nose-deep in philosophy books 24/7 and he’ll read some paragraphs out loud to get everybody talking.

Well, not quite everybody... Gus doesn’t even bat an eyelid.

Every day he’s wearing a different extravagant ring. The costume department must be out of jewellery because he’s always trying them on and ‘testing them out’.

He’s a people person. If he’s not talking, he’s listening, asking questions and actively getting to know everybody.

He’s forever the most popular guy during breaks in shooting, he’s always swamped by people, cast and crew trying to speak to him. That’s why it’s so hard to catch five seconds to speak to him one-on-one... not that you’ve got any courage for that, at least not yet.

“Ask me who I’m wearing,” he shouts over to Billie, gesturing at some out-of-this-world outfit he’s got ready for a photoshoot later. “BALENCIAGAAAAAA!”

Seriously, he LOVES dropping AHS references. It’s obvious he’s a superfan and he tries to restrain it but he’s just so happy to be where he is, living the dream.

Asking him for feedback on your performance in certain scenes is just impossible, he’d never say a bad word about anybody.

DID I MENTION he tries to wink at everybody but... it’s just not happening. He’s working on it. 

Weeks later, you’re filming a scene where Cody has to try and kiss you and you brush it off.

His hands are resting on your hips and he’s towering over you, his lips are hovering so close to yours and his gorgeous blue eyes are pleading with you to let him touch you.

You keep messing up the scene because you’re shaking and blinking frantically, it’s not that you’re not a professional but he’s literally right there begging you to capture his lips and melt into him.

Cody laughs it off and tries to calm you down by whispering that it’s okay to be nervous... like that’s not how you calm a girl down but bless him for trying.

A bunch of takes later, you were shaking so much your lips accidentally brushed together and finally that contact was all you needed to snap you out of your nervousness.

You nailed the next take and the directors finally called it for the day so you all head back to your dressing rooms.

Just as you’re about to leave, Cody taps you softly on the shoulder and takes you to one side.

“I’m sorry about earlier,” he nervously flicks his hair back from his forehead, looking down at his feet. “I was nervous too.”

“What’s there to be nervous about?” You enquire feeling a little intrusive at first but as you’ve got him in private, it wouldn’t hurt to ask.

“Haven’t you seen the way I’ve been looking at you ever since the read-through? I can’t take my eyes off you, I can’t stop thinking about you.”

It’s like someone just smacked you with a brick, you’re totally dumbstruck.

“I—I thought that was just method,” you stutter, shaking your head nervously and some of your hair falls in front of your face.

Cody reaches to brush your hair behind your ear, his azure irises burning into yours like he can plunge right into your soul and pluck out your deepest desires.

“Is this method too?” He whispers.

He gazes at your lips as if he’s making a mental map of your face, knowing full well they’ll be the first thing on his mind in the morning and the last thing at night.

You dare to look down at his, he’s caught his bottom lip ever so slightly between his teeth.

Without another word, his fingers snake gently around the back of your neck and pull you in.

Cody’s lips press so softly against yours, begging you to let him know you feel the same.

Your eyes are closed but it’s like fireworks are dancing all around your vision, like a watercolour masterpiece forming in your mind.

You break away from his lips to breathe deeply and open your eyes to see his eyes glistening, a loving, fulfilled spark ignited by finally, finally kissing you.

You lean back in to sink into his lips, drawing into him deeper and deeper, you feel him smiling so hard against you — he took a risk on you and it paid off.

His large, gentle hands ghost down to your waist and pull you close until you’re flat against him, feeling his heart beating so frantically in his chest it might burst out.

You wrap your arms around him and he breaks your kiss for a moment, drinking in the sight of you flush up against him and feeling you still shaking in disbelief.

“You don’t need to be nervous anymore, Y/N,” he coos, “I’m falling for you.”

#cody fern #cody fern fanfiction #cody fern headcanons

[theconservativebrief]

Michael Langdon, the breakout character of American Horror Story’s eighth season, Apocalypse, is proof of the enduring appeal of bad boys. Played by Australian actor Cody Fern, Langdon is no ordinary bad boy, though: He’s the show’s Antichrist. Introduced as a baby in AHS’s first season, Murder House, Langdon is now back as a full-grown man.

The fact that his character is completely bad news hasn’t stopped AHS: Apocalypse fans from going nuts for him, with his blond locks, black cloaks, and penchant for velvet. And viewers aren’t just rooting for him; they also want to look like him, a man who draws on his masculine and feminine traits to enthrall friends and foes. The AHS fans he’s enchanted are copying his red eyeshadow, styling their hair like his, and finding designer clothes that resemble his black-and-oxblood looks.

Blame Langdon’s appeal on Fern, who infuses the character with a palpable sensuality, earning him the dubious distinction of being TV’s “sexiest Antichrist.” While Langdon isn’t above using violence to get what he wants — he is the devil’s son, after all — in the show, he often relies on his powers of seduction. The way he fixes his gaze on a target, circles a room, starts a conversation, or discusses a massacre oozes sexuality.

“He pushes people’s buttons,” Fern told Variety about the character. “He tempts them and seduces them and brings out their greatest fears and desires, and then they go about enacting horrific evil while he watches. He acts as a conduit for other people’s evil.”

Langdon’s sole purpose may be to “steal, kill, and destroy,” but because he looks so good doing it, there’s no shortage of fans urging him to slay, in both the fashion and felonious sense of the word. The character’s popularity is a reminder that despite rigid gender roles that have framed men as objectifiers and women as objects, men willing to trade on their sensuality to gain power have long proven enchanting — be it literary heroes like Don Juan, or musicians like Elvis Presley or Prince who swiveled their hips and writhed around onstage to captivate audiences. Langdon is part of this tradition, which explains his cult following among viewers who don’t just lust after the character but are aping his distinctive sense of style.

“You see I have a talent, call it a kind of night vision of the soul. I can see into the dark places that people desperately try to keep hidden…”

Okay here is my take on a “glam” version of Michael Langdon from #AmericanHorrorStory Apocalypse! pic.twitter.com/CmHGq7n1s9

— Madison Montgomery (@classyxale) October 11, 2018

Michael Langdon’s style even appears to be rubbing off on Fern. The actor has been spotted off set with red eyeshadow and black clothing that give him the same air of mystery his character has. Langdon has been compared to vampires like Lestat from Anne Rice’s Interview With the Vampire. Both Lestat and Langdon are among a long line of men, including David Bowie, Robert Smith, Michael Jackson, Boy George, and Freddie Mercury, who’ve defied gender presentation norms while enticing their fans.

But Langdon in particular belongs to an era when gender fluidity is increasingly accepted, with more American men than ever signing up for cosmetic procedures and experimenting with makeup. Next year, Chanel’s first cosmetics line for men, Boy de Chanel, hits the United States, and since 2010, sales of men’s beauty and fashion products have seen more growth than women’s sales, according to a 2016 report from the market research firm Euromonitor.

And some men, including Kanye West and Jaden Smith, are wearing skirts without fear that bending gender expectations will threaten their societally enforced masculinity.

“They’re now rethinking what masculinity means, what it means to be a guy, and painting your face or using skin care doesn’t make you any less men,” David Yi, founder of the men’s beauty site Very Good Light, told Vox in September.

Not only is the sight of men in skirts and makeup no longer necessarily considered “emasculating,” it can be considered appealing, especially to women. A viral tweet declared Fern a “whole man” for rocking red eyeshadow while out of character, and the adoring fans mimicking his look are largely women.

The character also illustrates that neither black clothing nor men’s apparel has to be boring. Langdon’s wardrobe is peppered with velvet, leather, chains, and heeled boots. The clunky rings on his fingers add to the perception that he’s a boss, and his layers of clothing emphasize how his character is multidimensional but ultimately unknowable.

Fans of American Horror Story: Apocalypse are copying Antichrist character Michael Langdon’s makeup and fashion sense. FX

Like his makeup, Langdon’s taste in clothing is having a cultural moment. In recent years, high-fashion brands like Balmain, Saint Laurent, Versace, Gucci, and Givenchy have introduced men’s clothing that appeals to the senses, such as vinyl pants, silk shirts, steel-toed boots, and velvet and leather jackets. These garments are often black, throwbacks to the cyberpunk look that dominated 1999’s The Matrix. But they also come in dark blues and reds, the bloody hue that accents Langdon’s closet.

It took a team of three professionals — costume designer Lou Eyrich, makeup artist Eryn Mekash, and hairstylist Michelle Ceglia — to nail Michael Langdon’s look. Fern had some influence as well, he told GameSpot about his character. But Langdon’s masculine and feminine qualities were built into the character by design.

“He needs to straddle the fence between what is considered feminine and what is considered masculine, between how he dresses and how he presents himself,” Fern told GameSpot. “… He doesn’t have a sexual orientation. He is the embodiment of something sexual, so whatever that is in a person, whatever their deepest desire is, he’ll draw out.”

While the Michael Langdon character is coded as male, his gender fluidity is at the heart of his appeal. He’s not just a handsome devil; he represents the person of the future, one who embraces the male, female, and nonbinary parts of himself unabashedly.

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Original Source -> American Horror Story fans are dressing like the show’s seductive Antichrist

via The Conservative Brief

#IFTTT #The Conservative Brief

[thrashermaxey]

Capped: Looking Ahead to Free Agent Frenzy

  This was mentioned last week, but again, the salary cap for the upcoming 2018-2019 season will be $79.5M. Adjust accordingly.

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Between the Entry Draft and Free-Agent Frenzy day, this week is one of the best of the summer. The draft is a day full of hope (and usually torment if you live anywhere in Canada), while July first becomes a whole mess of feelings and opinions. With a focus on the salary cap and cap leagues, we will try and get you ready ahead of time for the bigger signings, what teams and contracts to expect, as well as a little insight on where the bargain line might lie for certain players. Strap in because this one is going to be a doozy.

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All salary info from capfriendly.

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We saw quite a few signings over the past week. Here’s a brief thought on each of those relevant signings before we get into the impending UFAs:

  Ilya Kovalchuk:

Kovalchuk’s fantasy value has been covered well over the last few days by many of the other DobberHockey writers. What I will add here, is that Kovalchuk signed the exact same deal as Patrick Marleau, and should be able to score a little more than the Leafs’ dad. Kovalchuk won’t likely have a place on championship-caliber cap league rosters. However, if you have cap space to burn and are scoring starved, you could do worse.

  The Penguin Forwards:

Dominik Simon and Daniel Sprong received identical two-year, $750,000 average annual value (AAV) contracts. This shows that they aren’t going to be gifted anything, but both players will have a chance to fill in depth roles this year. Sprong is a dark horse scorer coming into this season, but he likely needs this year as an adjustment period before becoming a full-time NHL scorer in the 2019-2020 season.

Bryan Rust scored himself a nice $3.5 million AAV on a four-year deal. I don’t know what the Penguins or my prediction worksheet ($4.2M predicted AAV on a four-year deal) see in him, but based on my eye test, he’s not worth the $3.5 million. However, with the Sheary trade, we get the impression that a spot is opening up for him to ride full time with Sidney Crosby. Rust is entering his fourth “full” year, though he has yet to play 70 games in a season due to injuries. Some of the indicators are there for continued offensive growth, but without the power-play time, as well as the presence of other red flags, I’m not buying in. 

This section was finished here when I wrote it on Tuesday. Then the Penguins signed their fourth line centre Riley Sheahan to an almost identical cap hit from last year ($2.1 million – one year). Status quo here with whatever value he had last year. Don’t bother getting your hopes up that he moves up the lineup either.

  Philipp Grubauer:

The fantasy aspect of the Grubauer signing was covered here by Michael Clifford. On the salary end of it, the deal makes sense for all sides. Grubauer’s value next year should be comparable to James Reimer’s from this past season (comparable situation and contract). Past this season, Grubauer’s value rises, and could be comparable to Ben Bishop’s from the 2017-2018 season.

  John Carlson:

The premier defenceman on the market this year signed back with the Washington Capitals, maybe thinking that they now have the inside track on the Penguins and could pull off the win two years in a row. As unpredictable as that will be come playoff time, we know what we’re getting from Carlson in the regular season. The $8 million AAV will be tough to swallow for a lot of cap owners, however as the leading scorer from the blueline last season, he has earned it, and will continue to be worth the cost for the first half of the contract anyways.

  Stephen Johns:

The Stars defenceman signed before Carlson did, and he may be the best bargain deal on defence this summer because of it. The market has been set high, while Johns’ $2.35 million AAV is paltry compared to what he can provide in fantasy leagues, depending on the categories. If Radko Gudas has provided good value in your cap league the last few years, then you may want to get in on Johns now, if it’s not already too late.

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Here we’re going to run down the top 10 UFAs as per TSN’s board, with their possible/likely destinations, a projected cap hit (and years) from the prediction model*, as well as a few thoughts for fantasy owners.

*Note these are calculated from my own prediction model that is currently in the process of being created. The numbers listed for contract value and term are not my own opinions.

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John Tavares

Most Likely Destinations: New York Islanders, San Jose, Toronto

Projected New Cap Hit: $10,500,000 (Eight Years – Seven if not with NYI)

Tavares is getting paid, and he has earned it. He will also be worth a deal in the 10-12 million range, but if the rumours are true that he is getting offers of a $15+ million deal for one year, and then re-signing at a more reasonable rate, he may not be rosterable next year depending on the league. Odds are he takes the long-term deal now because NHLers at this stage in their careers like the certainty. Although, we haven’t seen a star player like this hit free-agency in a very long time, so really, we don’t know what to expect.

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James van Riemsdyk

Most Likely Destinations: St. Louis, Dallas, San Jose

Projected New Cap Hit: $6,700,000 (Five Years)

van Reimsdyk is likely going to get overpaid in free-agency, but at $6.7 million or lower, fantasy owners should be content. JVR will likely become a top power-play option for his new team, as well as seeing an uptick in his low assist rate from last season (lowest of his last five seasons).

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Paul Stastny

Most Likely Destinations: Montreal, Winnipeg, New York Islanders

Projected New Cap Hit: $4,300,000 (Five Years)

The backup plan to the John Tavares sweepstakes is likely going to take a pay cut from his previous $7 million cap hit. However, the lack of other available options will likely buoy the price. Back in a prominent role, continuing his 50-point pace from last season could be expected, making him a good deal at $4.3 million (especially if he re-signs in Winnipeg). Above the $5.5 million mark would likely be an overpayment, both for real life and fantasy purposes.

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James Neal

Most Likely Destinations: Boston, Colorado, Vegas

Projected New Cap Hit: $7,300,000 (Five Years)

Neal started off strong last season, but his second half was mediocre. Nevertheless, a contender will still overpay for his services. Neal has been to the playoffs and tasted the finals the last two seasons. He will be gunning for a shot at the cup with a contender. A $7+ million contract would be a little rich for my taste, however he should have a fire lit under him coming into next season.

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Mike Green

Most Likely Destinations: Detroit, Edmonton, Chicago

Projected New Cap Hit: $3,500,000 (Five Years)

As the top defenceman of the crop now that Carlson is no longer an option, someone will be overpaying on name value. Green has provided diminishing returns the last few seasons. Right-hand shot defencemen are always in demand, except if you are the Calgary Flames, Green’s hometown team. Green may still be able to make a bit of a homecoming trip back to Alberta, as the Oilers may be a good fit at the right price.

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Tyler Bozak

Most Likely Destinations: Winnipeg, New York Islanders, Montreal

Projected New Cap Hit: $3,700,000 (Three Years)

The number three centreman on this list, may be the best fit as a replacement for the number two. Bozak should jump at the chance if he gets an offer to take over for Stastny in the Jets’ top six. Native to the Prairies (Regina), Bozak has had success in the past centring skilled wingers, and moving from a third line last season, likely to a second line role this upcoming year will be a boost for his value.

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Rick Nash

Most Likely Destinations: Columbus, Nashville, Pittsburgh

Projected New Cap Hit: $3,400,000 (Three Years)

Rick Nash has more to his situation than just numbers. Nash has expressed his desire to win a Stanley Cup, as well as not wanting to completely uproot his family situation. He has also expressed concerns about his long-term health. From that, the most likely scenario is he signs a short-term, smaller money deal with a contending team located close to central U.S.A. If Nash ends up in a situation such as this, he could provide value similar to what Thomas Vanek has done the last few years as an offensive specialist.

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David Perron

Most Likely Destinations: Colorado, Montreal, New Jersey

Projected New Cap Hit: $7,600,000 (Five Years)

If Perron manages to get a contract like the one predicted for him, run! There is no way he could live up to that contract, no matter where he lands. Hopefully you managed to sell on the Vegas hype, because Perron’s stock is about to crash with the announcement of his next contract. Add in the fact Perron is a Band-Aid-Boy trainee and there are too many red flags here to want to invest any kind of fantasy asset in.

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Jack Johnson

Most Likely Destinations: San Jose, New Jersey, Colorado

Projected New Cap Hit: $1,900,000 (One Year)

Here is what I had written by Tuesday before the five-year agreement with the Penguins was released into the rumour mill: “Johnson may be drifting into Cody Franson territory, where he struggles to even get an offer that fits, despite the fact he could help many teams as a bottom pairing defenceman. Gone are the days of Johnson anchoring a blueline, and now the over/under on points production may be set around 12.5 or so (he had 11 last season). Derrick Pouliot’s recent signing in Vancouver offers a decent comparable situation-wise. Anything over $1.5 million though, and Johnson becomes dead weight except in the deepest of cap leagues.”

I stand by that $1.5 million benchmark even with Pittsburgh. Under and I would consider rostering him as long as you can release him during the contract if need be, over and I won’t touch him. Rumours are saying that it is expected to be in the $16 million range (approximately $3.3 million annually) so this could be a mess for the Penguins.

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Carter Hutton

Most Likely Destinations: Buffalo, New York Islanders, Carolina

Projected New Cap Hit: $3,500,000 (Three Years)

This prediction is actually off of the top of my head, because the prediction model isn’t yet set up for goalies. That being said, the Grubauer contract makes a good comparable, while the slight boost of Hutton above Grubauer can be attributed to the supply and demand of the market, with one team getting a little desperate. Though after the Scott Darling debacle last year, GMs in the real and fantasy world alike are going to be a little shy when dealing with Hutton projections for next year. He won’t duplicate this season’s numbers, especially over a full season. However, ever matching his three-year average of a 92.2 save percentage and a 2.25 goals against average, he would be hugely valuable again as a tandem goalie.

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Now that we have finished the top 10 off the TSN board, here’s a bonus round with some quick hits on other fantasy relevant UFAs:

  Patrick Maroon:

As a big bodied, net-front winger, Maroon is the prototypical player that gets overpaid in free-agency. Think Milan Lucic or David Clarkson. St. Louis is rumoured to be interested, and while the fit would be good, the contract and the long-term outlook aren’t.

  Joe Thornton:

I stand by that Thornton took a one-year deal with a large cap hit last year so he could not have to worry about the money this year and go wherever gives him the best shot at the cup. I think he’s biding his time to see where some of the bigger dominoes fall, and then he will make his move. Expect a short, bargain contract with a contending team. However, Jumbo Joe’s best days are behind him, so temper the excitement.

  John Moore:

The only other defenceman available right now that could challenge Mike Green for best available. A steady producer with over 100 hits and blocks each last season, Moore could help you in deeper multi-category leagues. The projection model has him earning $2.4 million next year, however supply and demand in free-agency will likely drive the price higher.

  Riley Nash:

The other Nash showed well when thrust into top-line minutes alongside the Bruins’ top two wingers. As a depth centreman, Nash should command a decent salary from a team that misses out on Tavares and Stastny. Similar to Bozak, something in the $3-4 million range would make sense, and not be an anchor against his fantasy production.

  Robin Lehner:

Lehner needs a fresh start, however there aren’t too many options. The team that needs a goalie most is Buffalo, and he has already worn out his welcome there. Carolina and the Islanders would make the most sense after that, or as a 1B option in St. Louis to push Jake Allen. Actually the St. Louis and New York Islander options are just about the only places Lehner could go where his value would increase. He is likely taking a pay-cut as well, so if he’s available, he may be worth taking a flyer on before he signs.

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Recent Capped articles:

Analyzing Recent Signings Around the League

Brendan Gallagher

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That caps off another Thursday. Hopefully now we’re all set for July first at noon, when the real fireworks start. Thanks for sticking it out and finishing the article. If you feel like I missed something, or am way off on someone, I would love to hear it in the comments, and I’m sure others would too.

  Depending on how busy the long weekend becomes for me, I will try to put out some thoughts on twitter as signings are announced. You can find all those cap thoughts here @alexdmaclean

from All About Sports https://dobberhockey.com/hockey-home/capped/capped-looking-ahead-to-free-agent-frenzy/

[pastorjefflittle]

Excuses, Excuses

Like so many others, Jamie Dulock and her husband, Cody, found themselves in a major transition and looking for a church home. Here Jamie shares her story of fighting through insecurities and excuses to finding meaningful relationships in spiritual family.

“One of my deepest desires is to have a spiritual family. I have prayed for it for so long, I can’t even pinpoint the moment I realized it was missing from my life. But here’s the funny part, I wanted it so bad, but I was the reason we didn’t go to church!

For years we tried to look for and build spiritual family, but we never made real connections. We tried so many different churches, it became overwhelming to me. I would dread Sunday mornings, because I knew my husband, Cody, was going to ask if we were going. He wanted me to be as excited about church as he was, but I was emotionally exhausted from trying.

I felt like a failure, and I would tell myself:

“Big events are intimidating”

“I’m not like them, I’m different so they don’t like me”

“Women my age already have established friends and don’t have room for me”

“I don’t know what to do with my hair and I have no clue what makeup primer is. Maybe if I lost some weight and wore the right clothes, I could connect with someone.”

Thankfully, even in my negativity and exhaustion, God never let me lose hope. He painted a picture in my mind. It was us standing with other families as we raise Godly children. Phone calls and dinners celebrating God’s victories, big and small. Rallying in times of prayer as we witness God’s miraculous power of healing and transformation. The simple beauty of doing life with people who believe in Jesus and trust in His Word. Wow. It overwhelms me.

A couple of years ago, I started meeting women outside of church (who happened to be members of Milestone). And the weirdest thing kept happening, these women, each one of them, actually liked other women! Not in a superficial, obligated way, but they genuinely cared about others.

When my daughter was born at 32 weeks (2 months early) and my family spent a month in the hospital, Milestone women stood at my bedside praying with us. Loving us. We didn’t go to their church. But they showed up with their husbands and rallied around Cody and I as a family. What initially drew us to Milestone was who the people were outside the four walls of the church.

We started attending Milestone in Fall ‘16. And God began rooting us into relationships in a way that we have never experienced before. We come a s we are, and that’s enough.

This semester, I am in a rather large “small” group. It has women of all different ages, in different seasons, and I have thoroughly enjoyed it. But if I am totally honest with you, in the beginning I was worried about joining the group. I thought I wouldn’t connect with anyone. My negative self-talk came back and I became fearful that I couldn’t find family BECAUSE NO ONE WAS LIKE ME OR IN MY SEASON.

I am so grateful I didn’t listen to that fear and negativity, and here’s what I learned about myself in the process…

I had become selfish.

I devalued what I had to offer other people and began looking only for people who could add value to my life.

I looked for people just like me.

Women in the exact season of life I was in. People who dressed like me, thought like me, had the same hobbies, etc.

At the beginning of the Restart In Your Relationships message, right after worship had ended, as Pastor Jeff was coming up to speak, I heard God saying,

“Family comes in all ages and different places in life”.

Here I had been praying all these years for spiritual family, but I had shut my eyes to what family looks like. A real family is diverse and generational. It’s biological, loyal and forgiving. I may have nothing more in common with my brother than the blood in our veins, but that’s enough, we are family and we stand with each other. The same is true of spiritual family. We may have nothing more in common than our love for Jesus, but that is enough! That’s what makes us the body.

As we have been learning to walk in spiritual family, we have been learning the depth of “loyal when it hurts”… that like real family, we stand together on the good and bad days. We don’t walk away when things get hard. We watch out for each other’s kids. We forgive each other and show each other grace.

My prayer for the family of Milestone, is for each member to remember what brought them into this body and fight for it by being what they needed at one point in their lives to someone else who needs it now.”

The post Excuses, Excuses appeared first on Milestone Life.

#church #leadership #discipleship