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chromochaotic · 2 years

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there are 100 little things i should be doing, but instead I feel like doing a write up on the books I’ve read this year... mostly so I remember them better, but also bc it might be fun to read later

The list so far (that I remember) (not including ones in progress... like dracula and gideon lmao) (also not including fanfics but man what if):

**12/27: update! adding 4 more (RIP my nice grid)

I'm gonna try and do a positive-negative-positive sandwich with these "reviews", because apparently I'm very picky, ahahaha.

in actual reading order...

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

Thoughts: Read this with a discord bookclub! Which made it a fun read, kind of throwing around our theories about possible backstories before they got revealed, the "limits" of the magic in the book, what we wanted/didn't want to happen. I actually really enjoy non-chronological stories when they're not too convoluted, haha, so that was a treat. Also enjoyed the way the author conveyed all the different settings and time periods.

(vague spoilers in this paragraph) Every once in a while I got a little miffed at how... French the entire vibe was. Like, this will sound/probably is petty, but I don't click with main characters when they're being just like, dolefully beautiful, and how all these love interests seem to be drawn just to Addie's Unique Mega Gorgeous Face and her vague manic pixie air of mystery. I liked her as a character much more in moments like her interactions with Luc, which focused more on her defiance and cleverness. In a way that I swear is related, I remember being a little exasperated at the underlying feeling that romantic love was like the end-all-be-all of existence itself. I get that that's like the whole point, this being an epic romantic story, and romantic in the way that like wistful poems about the French countryside and Moulin Rouge are capital R Romantic. I also don't love Moulin Rouge, though. So it's probably a me problem, haha.

Still, the storytelling was very rich! I liked how lush the emotional moments felt... I also got a kick out of the characters around Henry, like, his friends and family were a mix of quirky and heartfelt that made something about his story get to me a little more than it would have otherwise. Ohhh, and I loved the little visual art "records" printed throughout the book! It always added to the story for me, seeing how they tied in and captured certain feelings. WOO

The House in the Cerulean Sea

Good things! The story is immediately fun and whimsical—this was another read with the discord bookclub, and during our first chat we were all having a really good time talking about the world and the characters that get introduced. The setting is just ridiculously charming.

(spoilers) I know the book is touted for being like, feel-good and lighthearted, and I usually super-enjoy stories like that. It's just that, I feel like it didn't 100% commit to being Cozy Fun Queer Romance when it dipped into having fantasy racism. It might have been one thing if it was just like one or two narrow-minded characters, but the book doesn't really let you forget that systemic fantasy racism is built into their society... This is ofc 100% subjective, I get how a story like this where everything gets wrapped up with a little bit of "oh, phooey on those bigots! cheerio!" could be exactly what we need to read now and then. It just didn't quite strike the balance for the time and mindset I read it in. Also probably didn't help that bc of the bookclub's schedule, there was a looooooong pause in reading in the middle, though!

But again, tons of charming moments, the characters and especially the kids are delightful. My sweet blob son Chauncey sparks infinite joy.

Myths to Live By

So this was an odd one. Backstory: I was one of those people who read The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell and sort of had my world rocked by it, like, went quickly from a cynical atheist to being like "oh shit religion might be good, actually." I had a vague sense while reading that book that like, yeah, sure, the things he was saying were tinged with some sexism and euro-centric vibes etc... But I was still pretty pleased to pick up this Myths to Live By book in a thrift store for like a buck.

Halfway through the book, I'm bopping around on tumblr and finally stumble upon The Discourse (tbh it's not that bad I'm just being dramatic) about Campbell. Like, the way I summed it up to friends was that apparently he's regarded in the academic field of comparative religion the way Freud is in psychology—a big name, probably sparked a lot of people's interest in the subject, but the ideas he spreads are super out of date/inaccurate/oversimplified, especially when it comes to non-western culture. So...

Idk, it was still an interesting read, and probably a good exercise for me in trying to think a little more abstractly. And he still somehow makes me appreciate the significance of rituals and how make-believe stuff can actually hold societies together... I dog-eared a handful of pages (mostly in the first half before my online digging made me kind of disenchanted ahaha), and the last one is on this page putting forward the idea that as humans, "we are a natural product of this earth... If we are intelligent beings, it must be that we are the fruits of an intelligent earth" and this stuff that of course isn't new, but still comforting, like not thinking of man as separate from nature but a distilled-and-connected bit of a big, amazing, living universe.

House of Leaves

Weird!!! Weird book!!!!! Very novel!!!!! Which I liked! okay it's getting a little late which is probably not the best time to type this out, but overall I had a good time with this book. The weird formatting and framing of the story as a movie within an academic analysis within a story and presented as the very book you're holding—nice! The little puzzles to figure out along the way that add extra meaning that you can dig into if you so choose—nice! And ooo the horror, the horror of the house was very fun for me, as someone who enjoys more psychological kinds of horror.

There were parts of the book that were... trying, to read. But I think they were sort of meant to be that way? I don't know, some of Johnny's parts of narration were just so disgusting and off-putting I had to skim/skip them, but I feel like somewhere on a forum someone is arguing that that's a perfectly valid way to read the book. I was also pretty bummed out by like... which characters don't make it out of the story. That's a way I'm not suited for horror stories, but, like these two felt especially personal. Ahhh, well.

But yeah! Very funky, and I absolutely vibe with the final message that the book lands on. I'm also blown away, like everyone else is, by how much research and super-detailed knowledge went into this book to make its sticky spiderweb of complexity really land.

Klaus: The Art of the Movie

heeheeheeheehee okay this was just a fun thing I also picked up at the thrift store, but I love a good art book and the movie is gorgeous all on its own. The way they animated it is super unique—it's 2D made to look 3D, and the art book goes into some good detail about how they accomplished that thanks to new animation tech and stuff. I've always kind of thought 2D animation is more appealing than 3D animation, and this is going off on a tangent, but I will say the book and the commentary in it made me feel Valid.

I don't think there are any downsides to this book?? Unless like, idk, I guess some of the full-page spreads are a little pixelated in print, lmao. and i feel like i have to, as a jew, say it should probably skeeve me out a little more how a story about The Big Christian Holiday is constantly portrayed as "universal". But also it's! gorgeous!! look at this

The book did a great job helping me understand/appreciate how every place and character was designed to be Distinct but also flexible—like, a lot of the locations had to go from Scary to Charming while still looking like the same place, and it was cool seeing the tricks they used to do it.

The Fruitful City

I just finished this tonight! Kind of an odd one, I picked it up at this anarchist bookstore that made me feel like a big poser on a trip to Philly. I feel like I don't have as much to say about it since it's nonfiction, haha. But, yeah, it helped me understand the ins and outs of what growing fruit in the middle of a city looks like. I feel like it makes everything seem a little more possible, like, the author wants people to be less afraid to go out into the world and harvest in a hands on way.

It was a little dry at times for me, but I think my attention span has really suffered since.......... a while ago, haha.

Overall, it was a nice thing to read. There were some really lovely descriptions of people interacting with their communities via shared resources, and small, interesting bits of immigrant history. I have zero cooking skills whatsoever, but it made me think that like, maybe, mayyyyybe, I might attempt to make a jam or something next year.

OKAY i should sleep, this was fun, maybe I'll update it when I finish my next book, who knows! more!!

Gideon the Ninth

Positives: what hasn't already been said! I guess, first off, I love the cast of characters & the whole setting. Like, even though the world of TLT was pretty unusual, the characters feel so grounded and vibrant—they jump off the page through dialogue and things Gideon observes (or fails to observe) about them, and I either love to love them or love to hate 'em, there's no middle sliders! And I loved exploring Canaan House along with the story! The book wouldn't be the same without the haunting presence of its backdrop, this sense of decaying grandeur and old tragedies described so beautifully, all around.

I think I only have a few nitpicks... One would be, as fun as "show, don't tell" was in this book—honestly, I way prefer how this book introduced its history and magic system and everything compared to the one I'm reading rn, which just kind of dumped exposition at me—it was a little overwhelming at the start! I honestly thought I'd accidentally bought the 2nd book in the series when I saw so much odd jargon and strange, offhand details in the first few paragraphs. I was also a little thrown by how suddenly it felt like some of the character dynamics changed, but that might have been a symptom of me binge-reading and then having to take breaks bc of life now and then haha.

So, yes, overall, really enjoyed it! I think the book was very hyped-up for me and it mostly lived up to expectations... More than anything, love Gideon!! Love this beautiful herbo who, by virtue of being a gold-hearted meme-ing brick house, flexes her way into all sorts of secrets and everyone's hearts. (also love Cam and Pal, would die for them. also magnus. maybe ianthe, for sure corona. yep.)

Dracula

lmao guess who did Dracula Daily... This review might be more of that whole experience, which was pretty fun! I definitely fell behind for a while, but I had a chance to catch up, and at that point things were getting wet and wild. I think what I enjoyed most of all was, as some post somewhere on this site points out, the story is pretty touching when you view it as a community of people trying to look out for each other vs. the parasite of self-interest.

Again, like everyone pointed out, there's all the dated things about the book... The asylum-related parts were no fun, and god the way working class people and roma are portrayed vs. the honorable, constantly-bribing-people main cast is just, nah!

But still, for a book this old, it had its surprises! I loved some of the more romantic descriptions of little seaside villages and eerie mountain roads... And the high stakes (haha) of the story were really uniquely explored—reading it along with The Internet helped me get way more destroyed by Jonathan's promise to follow wherever Mina goes, even if it damns him. And the line about Mina's mark at the very end, as the sun rose? No spoilers but I got teary.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief

I listened to this as an audiobook, since I'd never read it and I've seen posts about a new show coming out. The series has always seemed interesting! And it was a fun listen, very whimsical, plus I have a soft spot for summer camp settings.

I felt a little old to be getting into it now, haha—I kept wanting more nuance in certain characters and themes, which isn't a fault of the book considering the intended audience!

Overall, I think the writing did a great job capturing a relatable, exciting story for young teens, plus it's very cool how the author worked to make diversity a sticking point both when he first wrote it and, from what I hear, to this day. There's a lot of joy packed into this adventure, and I'll probably get around to listening to the rest of the series next year.

Harrow the Ninth

First off, I just finished this one, and... I liked it more than book 1! I enjoyed them both, but this one feels like the storytelling kicked into overdrive. Once again, the characters leapt off the page—the number of times I wheezed over lines from Ianthe or John, or got gut-punched by [redacted] and [redacted] and [super redacted]. More than anything, I feel like the mystery(/ies?) unfolding in this story were more engaging than before, where instead of just clinging to the story without a chance of prediction, the reader has more of a chance to puzzle things out along the way (and then still be surprised).

The rollercoaster ending was a page-turner, but there was one point that I think really toed the line of being just plain convoluted, haha. I also remember reading things and thinking "I know if I reread this series one day, this line would probably make me lose my mind, but right now it's just absolute nonsense." Which... I just felt like documenting! I don't know if it's a bad thing, like, I get that part of the fun is squeezing as many clues out of the context as you can, but there certainly is a lot of context-squeezing going on.

Anyway, this was definitely one of my favorite reads of the year! The way the writing plays around with framing—the PAYOFF!!! The payoff of the 2nd person voice!!!!! There's one scene, you'll know what I'm talking about, where the perspective does something and suddenly all these lenses shift into focus and I went wild. I need to draw something for it. My god. I can't rehash all the great things about the series, I guess, but I love it! It's so much fun! There's a stussy! There's a makeout with god! what more can you want!

#hi my name is chromo #uh #book review #?#also a fun fact with HoL is that #it was very specifically mentioned in a fanfic i was reading at the same time #which felt a little spooky but mostly very funny #now with an update!

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distant-rose · 5 years

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Oreos at One-Thirty

Notes: Today is the two-year anniversary of the Little Pirates series. That’s right. On August 16th, 2017, I published the first installment of the series By the Hook. It’s insane to me to think I’ve been writing for this series so long and I couldn’t have done it without the amazing support of all my readers. While the first installment focused on Killian and Beth, I decided to celebrate the series by writing about Emma and Wes today. Thank you for everything and a special thank you to @optomisticgirl for constantly letting me spam her about this dumb ass universe. She’s a trooper. Summary: It’s the middle of the night and one of Emma Swan’s kids is out of bed. She’s not going to stand for this. Word Count: 2,500+ Rating: T

It was 1:30 in the morning when the stairs gave a small whine. It was a faint noise, one that most people wouldn’t notice.

But Emma Swan wasn’t most people.

She had never been the most peaceful of sleepers. The slightest of sounds had the tendency of waking her up, one of the many leftovers from living on the streets and staying in stolen hotel rooms. While a few of her habits from that time had faded, her light-sleeping habits seemed only be more honed with the birth of her children.

She laid there in her bed, ears straining for more movement and her hand automatically reaching for her nightstand where she hid her pistol. She would like to think that no one in Storybrooke would have the balls to attack her family in their home in the middle of the night, but with the number of villains and curses she had dealt with over the past couple of decades, she wasn’t willing to chance it. She glanced over at her husband, debating whether or not she should wake him. He was snoring away, completely unaware of the stirrings in their house, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted to rob him of his sleep after some many late-night shifts at the station.

Her decision was made for her when there was another creak from the stairway, one that was only made when someone was putting their weight on the bottom step. She scowled in the dark.

There was no intruder in her house.

Someone was out of bed.

Muttering curses under her breath, she crawled out of the warmth of her own bed. Killian mumbled something in his sleep before shifting in the warm spot she had left behind and grasping at her pillow. If she wasn’t so annoyed with their kids, she would have smiled at the sight.

As she headed down the stairs, blue and white light danced across the walls followed by the faint chiming music of an advertisement for Old Spice. As she got halfway down, the identity of her little miscreant was revealed.

Her twelve-year old son was on her couch, watching television and stuffing not one, not two, not three but four Oreos into his mouth all at once.

“You got to be kidding me!”

Wes jumped at the sound of her voice, tipping over the large glass of milk he had been cradling in his elbow and sending the packet of cookies flying into the air. Emma’s mood only soured as she watched the mess spread across her leather couch and drip onto her brand new and very expensive carpet that she and Killian had bought two days ago.

“Uhhhhh…hi Mom…fancy seeing you here…” He scrambled a bit, looking around frantically for something before grabbing a half-eaten Oreo off the floor and holding it out to her. “Cookie?”

She gave him an unimpressed look, arching an eyebrow and crossing her arms in front of her chest as she regarded him. His blue eyes darted between her and the Oreo in his outstretched hand.

“What? Don’t believe in the five-second rule?”

“Westley.”

“I can get you a new cookie. It’s no big deal.”

“Westley Graham.”

“But it would be a total waste of a cookie and you know what Grandma Snow always says — waste not, want not.”

“Kid, it’s two in the morning.”

“Actually, it’s one thirty-two, so you’re—”

“Your bedtime is eight-thirty,” she cut him off, rubbing at her temples as her irritation with him rose.

“Yeah, I know.”

“Really? You do? So, you’re not actually here? You’re upstairs like you were supposed to be for the last six hours and I’m just hallucinating right now? I’m not actually witnessing you out of bed and destroying my furniture?”

“No, I’m here. I did actually go to bed at eight-thirty like you wanted…I just woke up and got bored. It’s not like we have a mandatory wake-up time.”

“You’re supposed stay in bed until six-thirty…” Emma replied through gritted teeth. Wes raised his eyebrows at her, looking disturbingly like Killian whenever he was feeling particularly obstinate.

“Says who?”

“Says me.”

“When?”

Emma pinched the bridge of her nose and mentally counted to ten to keep from screaming. When she looked back at her son, he was watching her with an expression that was caught between wary and amused. She was going to kill him.

“I’m saying it right now. Seriously. Kid, if you don't pick up that mess you’ve made of my living room and get your ass back in bed, so help me, I will tan your hide!"

“I’m pretty sure the law frowns upon child abuse.”

“Oh kid, you’re forgetting one teeny tiny detail, I am the law. Get some paper towels. Now.”

Catching her thunderous expression, Wes scrambled off the couch and headed into the kitchen. She was mildly impressed with how fast he was able to move on those skinny toothpick legs of his.

Emma let out a sigh, trying not to think about the ruined rug. Everything in her house was in a state of disrepair. The coffee table had watermarks on it. The couch had been broken more times than she could count. Even the television had small dents and scratches on the screen from the time Beth and Neddy had a lightsaber match that had gotten out of hand. What difference did it make that the brand new rug now had stains on it?

While waiting for her son to come back with paper towels, she went to work picking up the leftover Oreo crumbles on the couch. She deposited them in the empty side of the plastic container before sitting down on the dry side of the couch and turning her attention to the television. Her interest piqued as Dataline crossed the screen, detailing the disappearance of a young woman from Texas.

“They think her boyfriend did it,” Wes commented as he returned.

“What?”

“Christina Morris,” he replied, nodding his head towards the television. “They think her boyfriend kidnapped her. They’re not sure if he killed her or if he took her in Mexico or something.”

“Grim,” Emma remarked absently, picking up the last Oreo and biting it.

“Totally.”

“What the hell are you doing watching this in the middle of the night? You’re going to get nightmares from this stuff.”

“As if I don’t already have nightmares anyway,” he replied, not looking at her as he went about cleaning up the spilled milk.

Her anger and irritation melted away at his words, giving away to concern. She patted the place beside her. Wes hesitated, looking conflicted as he placed the soiled paper towels on the coffee table.

“Come here.”

He climbed onto the couch, placing some space between them. Emma was having none of it, pulling him by the shoulders and guiding his head into her lap like she often did when he was a much smaller boy and afraid of the dark. She brushed her fingers through his thick blond hair, frowning as she looked down at him.

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing.”

“What’s got you so shaken up?”

“It’s just…” He trailed off, averting his eyes and swallowing his words.

“Wes…It’s better to talk about it.”

“It’s embarrassing.”

“I’m your mom, kid. I wiped your bottom when you were baby. Nothing gets more embarrassing than that.”

“Mom, c’mon,” he whined, turning on his side and pressing his face into her stomach. She didn’t press him any further. Even when he was a baby, he had never responded well to being pushed into things. He had inherited both her and Killian’s stubbornness in tenfold. Getting him to do anything when he was a toddler had been absolute nightmare and he had only gotten slightly better in age, replacing tantrums with a defiant look and firmly stated “no.”

So, she did what she felt was best in these type of situations. She waited for him to open up to her, continuing to run stroke his hair and watched what was left of the Dataline episode on her TV screen. They were showing interviews with Christina’s suspect boyfriend before Wes mumbled something against her clothed belly, his breath warming the fabric.

“What was that?” she asked, pausing her ministrations.

“Clowns.”

“Clown?”

“Clowns,” he repeated. “You know like killer clowns. Like in that movie, you know, It?”

Emma shuddered. She remembered the Stephen King novel vividly. She had read it back in when she was in prison and had nothing but time on her hands. It had given her nightmares as well. She was aware it had been turned into a movie a couple of times, but horror movies had never been her thing and she had little desire to actually watch it. She had found the story to be disturbing at eighteen, she couldn’t imagine how terrifying it was to a twelve-year old. He shouldn't be watching or reading things like that.

“Wait a minute,” she frowned, coming to a realization. “How do you know about It?”

“Henry!” Wes replied a little too quickly.

“You, Westley Graham Jones, are a liar and a terrible one at that,” Emma said pointedly, giving him a tired glare. “One, Henry hates horror movies... and possibly killer clowns more than you do. Two, he would never in a million years let you watch something like that. So, tell me the truth this time.”

“Okay, okay, okay. Just promise me you won’t get mad?”

“I’m making no such promises. Seriously, Wes. The truth.”

He let out a heavy dramatic sigh. He was becoming more and more moody as he had gotten older. He was going to be a nightmare teenager. Emma was sure of it.

“Gideon and I snuck into a showing of it during Halloween. He said if I didn’t it would be because I’m scared, and I’m not scared of anything—”

“Except clowns,” Emma cut him off. “Wes, that’s an R rated movie. Gideon is fourteen and even he’s not old enough to watch those kinds of movies. You certainly aren’t. There are ratings on things for a reason.”

“It’s just a movie,” he scowled at her.

“Yeah. A movie that scared you badly enough that you’re having nightmares and are up at all hours of the night feasting on Oreos,” she replied, looking at the demolished empty container. “Your father is going to kill you. His sweet tooth is almost as bad as yours.”

“So? You can just buy more.”

“You think money grows on trees, don’t you?” she asked, unimpressed with his answer.

“Well, money is made from paper and paper comes trees so there’s that.”

“Smart ass kid.”

“Better than being a dumb ass.”

“God, you’re so my kid it hurts sometimes,” she muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes.

He was staring up at her with that impish little grin that seemed to have permanent residence on his face since the time he could walk. He was a good kid though, even if he did sometimes eat all the Oreos and wake her up at all hours of the night. Out of her five children, Wes was the most like her; a little rough around the edges and sometimes a little too smart with his mouth, but he was never malicious. He was just a little too defensive and wanting to prove to be people he was tough. She had been the same at his age.

She wanted to soften those edges. Hers had been bore out of a need to survive; they had been necessary to endure group homes, bullies, being homeless, being in prison and then later as the Savior. Wes didn’t need them. Nothing was going to happen to him, not while she was still breathing.

“You know it’s okay to be scared right?” she asked after a moment.

“What?”

“Being scared of things. It’s normal.”

He scoffed at her words. “You’re not scared of anything.”

“That’s not true,” she sighed. “Want to know a little secret?”

He nodded wordlessly in response.

“I get scared a lot,” she admitted. “I get scared all the time of things – villains, bills, that I’m not being a good mom—”

“But you’re the best!” Wes protested, cutting her off.

“Thank you for the vote of confidence, let me finish,” she responded gently. “The point is sometimes I get scared, but the important thing is to not let it control you. Sometimes fear is a healthy thing, but it shouldn’t paralyze you and stop you from doing things…Do you understand me?”

“Yeah…I guess…” He looked unsure.

“Do you know what makes me feel better when I’m scared…Knowing that I have your dad…and Henry…and your grandparents…and even Regina...I just know that having them in my life makes me stronger and that I’m not alone…and you know what, kid? You’re not alone either…you have all of us and even your brothers and sister.”

“I’m not trusting Neddy to fight off bad guys. He’s barely toilet trained.”

“Oh, stop, he’s fine. A little accident here and there isn’t bad. Give him a break.”

“He peed on my bed, Mom.”

“Like I said accidents happen. He’s not gonna be little forever. He might be even bigger than you and Har someday.”

“Yeah right,” he scoffed.

“All kidding aside, it’s okay to get scared but you can’t let it control you and your sleep schedule…”

“I know, I just…I’m not ready to go back to sleep yet.”

“And that’s okay…We can stay down here for a little bit and watch some TV but not all night, okay?”

“Okay,” he said, batting his forehead against her hand. She chuckled quietly to herself as she resumed stroking his hair. He reminded her a bit of the stray dog she used to feed back when she was in Boston, starved for food and attention.

A new episode of Dateline started, and Emma watched it half-heartedly. Her attention was more focused on the droopy-eyed boy in her lap. His eyelids were getting heavier and heavier as the minutes passed. He was asleep a good few minutes into the episode. She debated quietly whether or not she should wake him so he could sleep properly in his bed but loathed the idea of waking him up again.

She placed a brief kiss on his forehead before gingerly removing his head from her lap and placing a decorative pillow underneath it. She picked up one of the various throw blankets that were strewn carelessly across the floor and tucked him in. She left the television on, wanting to give him some source of light just in case Pennywise the Clown haunted his dreams again and woke him up. It was one of the few things she craved when she awoke from nightmares, being able to see her surroundings and make sure she was safe. She could only imagine that he might desire the same thing.

As she slipped back into bed, Killian wrapped an arm around her waist. He pulled her close and nuzzled his nose against her neck.

“You’re back,” he mumbled sleepily.

“Yeah. I’m surprised you’re awake.”

“You really think I was going to sleep without you in our bed, love?”

“Well…with the way you were snoring…”

“Hey now,” he muttered in mock offense, nudging her foot with his. “Wes back in bed?”

“You know it was him?”

“Educated guess really. He’s our biggest night owl.”

“He had a nightmare. He and Gideon have been sneaking into R rated movies.”

“We’re going to have to watch him. If anyone is going to be throwing secret keggers, it’s going to be him,” Killian commented.

“Probably, but let’s worry about that when he’s a teenager and not at two in the morning. Right now, I just want to go sleep.”

“Alright, love,” he chuckled before placing a kiss behind her ear. “Pleasant dreams.”

“Yeah, no clowns hopefully."

#captain swan #cs ff #cs fic #cs fanfic #little pirates #little pirates fic #oreos at 1:30 #wes jones #my fic #my shit

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lifemessesofkj · 5 years

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Once Upon A Time Rewatch Review: Season 6A, Sisterhood and Spa Days

I FORGOT TO POST THIS, OH MAN, I THOUGHT I POSTED THIS LIKE A WEEK AGO. I JUST WENT TO WRITE 6B AND THEN COULDN’T FIND THIS POST. MY APOLOGIES.

Where We Started: Storybrooke, Maine, Agrabah

Where We Ended: Storybrooke, Maine

Curse Count: Technically, one sleeping curse, but no big curses, but I’m counting one for the creation of the Wish Realm-7

Dwarf Count: Unconfirmed. Probably 7. I thought maybe in the Wish Realm they’dd be back to 8, but I only counted five. Pretty sure we’re up to 7. As long as Grumpy is alive do any of the other dwarves matter?

Yeah! I’m back! Okay, so for some reason I thought I didn’t like this season, but, like, it was really good? There were a lot of plot setup for the second half of this season from the get-go, so it was hard to separate the half-seasons. The official mid-season finale was Wish You Were Here, and so I guess that’s also where I’m going to do it. I’d have liked to include Tougher Than The Rest, but that’s squarely on the Gideon half of the season, and this is the Evil Queen half.

It was a great season in many ways, I’d just like to kick it off with a brief nod to a particular scene in 6x07 “Heartless”, where Regina ruminates on the Evil Queen’s partnership with the Dark One.

R: The Evil Queen and Gold’s alliance, there, um, may be more to it than business. Rumple, and I, there was always a certain amount of chemistry?

Hook: *disgusted grimace*

E: Regina, oh my God.

R: I know, I know.

Henry: *trying to visualize a lobotomy so he can forget this conversation*

R: Nothing ever happened, but I think we can use this to our advantage.

E: *still mindblown*

It was just amazing. But anyways, I’m WAAY ahead of myself.

So I do wish that Jekyll/Hyde had been a longer storyline, which is why I think I didn’t like this season. But they did their job in a very surprising way. They introduced the basis for the Regina vs. Evil Queen conflict. What I think was really unique about this, is that everyone assumes that meek looking Dr. Jekyll is the good half, when it turns out that it is really Dr. Jekyll in the end who poses a threat. I think this is a pretty powerful direction to take, because I think Hide and the Evil Queen have a lot in common with one another, and it’s interesting that Hide doesn’t end up being the big bad threat everyone had labelled him to be.

There was lots of Regina-Zelena-Evil Queen sister drama going on. It led to a nauseating fling between the Evil Queen and Gold, and tbh I fucking loved it. I’m not into talking about it too much, just know that I thought that it was great.

Other than that, the Untold Stories was a mixed bag, I feel like it gave us the opportunity to bring back the format of introducing new characters, which is great. I wish they’d done more stories, but the ones they did were well done. It was good to bring back the Cinderella story, and twist that even further, especially with the angle of trying to undo Emma’s first real save.

I really like Hook’s brother, Liam the Second. I think it’s a little odd that you would name your third kid after your first kid, when as far as you know your first kid is still alive, but maybe that was just an oversight. I’m glad that Hook and Henry had a bit of honest conversation about the relationships they have with Emma and with one another. With all the curses forcing everyone apart, and all the crises, Emma and Hook’s relationship has been pretty intense, with developments happening pretty suddenly. I’m glad that they were able to define their relationship a little better. It’s an added bonus that Hook is one of the few people who spent a lot of time with Henry’s father and knows about him. Also the addition of the Nautilus is such a great nod to sci-fi powerhouse Jules Verne. I think this addition further justifies stories like Frankenstein, who’s also not from the fairytale genre. It also I think lends itself to season 7′s alternate realities.

Aladdin and Jasmine is a fun story, ongoing into the second half of the season, especially since OUAT in Wonderland was on at the time. Honestly, I never did finish the ten episodes of that, but when I understand references (ie Alladin knew a Genie who got free) I really appreciate the fact that the writers were trying to do what they could for OUATIW.

I love the upcoming half season, 6B was a blast. I think that’s why I tricked myself into thinking I didn’t like 6A. But I honestly liked this season as well. The Regina v. Evil Queen dynamic is great.

Also Leroy yelling “Portal! We’ve been portalled” is always a good moment of levity.

I did just want to go over some of the finer point of the Wish Realm, including some of the things from Tougher Than The Rest, which is the first episode of 6B. So in the Wish Realm, Emma is never the Savior, and her real life is a dream that she had. Regina was defeated and banished to an unknown location she can’t return from. So Emma grew up with the life Snow and Charming have been grieving for. Rumple’s been in the dungeon this whole time, so it’s no wonder nothing exciting has been happening.

Snowing is proportionately aged in comparison with their daughter, which is adorable. Neal is still dead, in an unexplained way despite the peace, but still managed to knock up Emma at a young age. Despite being raised by Snow White, the Bandit Queen, years of peace have made Snowing into pacifists and Emma into a bit of a weakling. She lacks all instincts to fight. While this does lessen her overall appeal to me as a character, it is worth noting that even with Neal dead, she’s so happy that she wants for literally nothing. Sir Henry, Knight of the Realm, appears to be bored with his family’s pacifism. There’s no sign of Little Prince Neal, I guess when you raise your child for more than a couple minutes, you’re more fulfilled the first time around.

Regina is also unimpressed by Emma’s lack of heroism. She ends up killing the Wish Realm Snowing. Which was probably a bizarre experience for Regina, as she finally gets to do what she wanted for so long, when she both sees Snowing as her friends/family and knows that it’s not real. Regina refusing to fight Henry wakes Emma up, which is great. I know that it’s a Wish Realm, and they likely both expected it to disappear once they got back, they really left it for a dark time.

They left Wish Henry, a boy with the desire for vengenace, with his grandparents murdered and his mother “kidnapped”. They set Rumplestiltskin loose on the land for the first time in decades. Not exactly leaving the realm in a better condition than they found it.

Without Regina, Robin’s still alive and thieving, but not aged the way Snowing was, and we assume his wife Marion was never executed. He doesn’t steal from the rich to give to the poor, he steals for himself. He’s got no Marion, and no Roland. August and Emma are still friends in the Wish Realm, sadly Jepeto finally died. As for Hook, well, we learn more in season seven about Wish Realm Hook, but let’s just appreciate the beer gut, the stringy dark hair, he’s even worse off then Cowardly Rum Intolerant Heroes and Villians’ Hook.

I just find the whole Wish Realm to be very interesting. I like that it was created, and once created continued to exist, even without Emma, from whom it was born. We essentially end this half season with Emma and Regina still in the Wish Realm, missing their portal home. The shadowed figure of Emma’s vision arriving in Storybrooke and immediately dispatching of the Evil Queen by turning her into a snake and caging her without even slowing down in their march down Main Street. Aladdin and Jasmine heading off to Agrahbah.

Belle and Rumple have lost their son to Rumple’s mother, the Black Fairy (turns out, common folk becoming powerful Dark Beings is a family hobby for the Stiltskins). But on the bright side, it has somewhat united Rumple and Belle, as they have a BIG common goal to overcome.

Leroy marches in yelling “Big trouble, team! Big trouble!” with the Evil Queen in tow. Turns out the Hooded Figure of Emma’s vision is Rumple and Belle’s son, Gideon. So, like that’s a problem. Also he’s out for Emma, who is basically his sister in law, through Neal, so that’s another complex family issue. Snowing is still cursed.

And yeah, that’s 6A. I loved it. I love 6B. I will try to be a little more expedient with my next review.

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smartgirlsaremean · 6 years

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Stiltskin Family Bonding Chapter 13 - When You Wish Upon a Star

Fandom: OUAT

Pairings/Relationships: Papafire, Believer Fire, Henry & Rumplestiltskin, mentions of Rumbelle

Rating: N/R

Summary: The Stiltskin boys bond in a variety of ways. Sometimes it goes well, other times...not so much.

AO3

Chapter 13: When You Wish Upon a Star

The press of people around them was nearly suffocating, and Rumplestiltskin tried to hold perfectly still and ignore his son’s worried looks. He’d never been fond of confined spaces, and that discomfort had only intensified since the events of the previous year, but this was a short journey and he could endure almost anything for his boys. The ferry had held even less appeal for him than the monorail, so here they were. Henry stood a few feet away, his face practically flattened against the window, and Rumplestiltskin smiled in spite of his discomfort.

Leaving Gideon and Belle for even a day had seemed unthinkable, let alone for the entirety of this vacation, but Belle had been adamant.

“Henry needs to spend time with you and his father,” she’d said. “He’ll be grown before you know it! It’s only four days, and Gideon and I will be waiting here for you when you get back.”

Rumplestiltskin hated how very much he needed that reassurance, even as he appreciated that Belle understood his fears. Nightmares about losing the two of them had plagued him for days after Gideon’s birth - sometimes Belle announced that he was unfit as husband and father and disappeared, and other times Gideon was simply gone and Belle didn’t remember they’d ever had a son. Worst of all were the dreams in which he seemed to wake up cold and alone in a great empty bed with no sign of his family anywhere.

“We’re almost there!” Henry reported over his shoulder. “I can see the castle!”

“Great, keep us updated,” Neal said, sidling a little closer to his father. “You doing okay, Papa?”

“Fine,” Rumplestiltskin said, shifting his weight to his good foot.

“It’s just - it’s been awhile since you had to use that thing. From what I hear, the park’s pretty big.”

Rumplestiltskin looked down at the gold-handled cane and tried to speak pleasantly. “I’ve walked miles with this cane.”

“Well, yeah, I know, but…”

Ladies and gentlemen, we are approaching our station at the entrance to Main Street, USA, gateway to the six lands of the Magic Kingdom. Smoking is not permitted at the Magic Kingdom, except in designated areas. Please consult your guide map or ask a cast member for locations. If you’re standing, please hold onto the handrails and stay clear of the doors until the monorail stops completely and the doors open. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Magic Kingdom monorail station.

“We’re here!” Henry turned away from the window.

Ladies and gentlemen, please collect your belongings, watch your head and step, and take small children by the hand. We hope you enjoy your day at the Magic Kingdom!

“Need me to hold your hand?” Neal teased Henry, and Henry frowned.

“He said small children, Dad,” the boy pointed out.

“Yeah, I know.” There was a flicker of something in Neal’s face, but it was gone almost as soon as it appeared.

They lumbered out of the monorail with the rest of the crowd and headed for the elevator, Henry practically vibrating with energy. As they were walking through the large stone archways, however, Henry stopped and looked up at his grandfather.

“Uh...Grandpa? They have...y’know...they have, like, wheelchairs and scooters and stuff.”

“Do they?”

“Yeah.” Henry shifted his weight. “I thought maybe you…”

“I’ll be fine,” Rumplestiltskin said tersely.

“But…”

“Hey, look, maps,” Neal said quickly. He grabbed one and shook it open. “How do we want to do this?”

“Oh, I already planned it all out,” Henry said.

“You did, huh?”

“Yup. I wanna see everything, so I figured we should have a plan. I call it Operation Sidewinder. We kind of zig zag around.”

“Ok. So where to first?”

“This way!”

Henry was quiet as they left Cinderella Castle, and he grew quieter still as they made their way around FantasyLand. Neal kept one anxious eye on him, unsure what had upset him, and another on his father, who was doing his best to hide his grimaces. No matter what Rumplestiltskin said, it had been a long time since he’d walked without magic, and none of this could be good for his ankle. He was trying to figure out how he could salvage what was turning out to be a total disaster of a trip when Henry suddenly stopped.

“The Mad Tea Party!” he said. “I’ve always wanted to ride this one!”

Neal looked doubtfully at the wildly spinning teacups. “I dunno, you’ve had a lot of cotton candy.”

“Come on, Dad, please? It’s one of the most famous rides in the park!”

Neal faltered when Henry stared at him, his eyes wide and beseeching. “Yeah, sure. But if you puke everywhere I’m taking pictures.”

Henry dashed away to stand in line while Neal and Rumplestiltskin followed more slowly.

“It’s good to see the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” Rumplestiltskin said.

“Huh?”

“How many concessions did you wheedle out of me with a look like that?”

Neal smirked. “I only used my powers for good.”

“For a good time, maybe.” Rumplestiltskin shook his head. “He’s so like you.”

“Yeah, he’s trouble.”

“You were never trouble, B - Neal. At least, you never meant to be.”

Neal didn’t quite know what to say to that, so he nodded at the line. “Are you gonna ride that thing?”

“No, I’ll wait for the two of you.” Rumplestiltskin grinned. “One of us has to be able to walk straight.”

Grumbling, Neal joined his son in line. The teacups spun fast and long, and Henry did look a little green around the gills, but at least he didn’t actually throw up. The kid seemed to be in a better mood, and they made their way past the kiddie area, ate lunch at Be Our Guest, and were walking past Prince Charming’s carousel (Henry had snickered a little at that) when he suddenly stopped dead in the middle of the street. Rumplestiltskin nearly knocked him over, and Neal was quick to grab his father’s arm to keep from falling down.

“What is it, Henry?”

“Nothing,” Henry said quickly. “Sorry. Let’s...go the other way.”

Neal frowned and looked at his father, only to see that Rumplestiltskin had frozen too, his face unreadable. “Papa?”

“Come on, Grandpa, let’s just go,” Henry said grabbing his grandfather’s arm and pulling slightly.

Neal followed his father’s gaze and felt his heart drop.

Of course.

“Peter Pan’s Flight.”

“Aye. Let’s go,” Rumplestiltskin said hoarsely, turning to follow his grandson.

They walked in silence toward the Princess Fairytale Hall, and only once they were standing in line did Henry speak up again.

“Sorry. I forgot about that one.”

“You’ve nothing to apologize for,” Rumplestiltskin told him, squeezing his shoulder gently.

“This place isn’t really what I thought it would be,” Henry said after a second’s thought. “I should have known better, I guess, but I thought...I thought it would be more real. I mean,” and he looked up at his grandfather, “you’re not even here. At all. And that’s crazy because none of this would ever have happened without you. My mom wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t be here.”

Rumplestiltskin stared open-mouthed at his grandson for a moment, and Neal blinked back tears. He’d thought of that himself over the last couple of years - that as terrifying as his youth had been, as lonely and desperate as he’d felt, the slightest change and he would never have met Emma, and she’d never have had Henry. He hated that he had to acknowledge that anything good had come of his father taking the Dark One’s curse, but the proof was standing in front him. He cleared his throat and stepped forward, since it seemed that his father’s brain had momentarily short-circuited.

“Yeah, they got pretty much everything wrong, but we can still have fun,” he said. “Like, let’s go see the princesses and then we can tease your mom about petitioning for them to add a Princess Emma character. A princess in jeans and a red leather jacket.”

Henry grinned. “She would hate that.”

“We could take pictures of the princesses and then Photoshop their real-life heads on them.”

“Yeah! And we could get pictures of all the Caribbean pirates and Photoshop Hook’s head onto all of them!”

“Now you’re talkin’!” Neal ruffled Henry’s hair. “Whaddaya say, Pops? Ready for some good old-fashioned Disney fun?”

Rumplestiltskin smiled. “Yes, I do believe I am, though I have one question.”

“What’s up?”

“What exactly is Photoshop?”

#ouat fic #stiltskin family bonding #papafire #believer fire #rumplestiltskin #henry mills #neal cassidy #baelfire

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mrs-emma-swan-jones · 6 years

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Next generation was the only thing could worked for s7. Put all those kids growing up happy and normally wanting to go after their own adventures. They have magic in SB, some grey hair,a few age lines and they get away w the old cast, Jmo Emilie is back for one episode, fine show the kids grow up, Belle motived Gideon to travel, Emma teaching Hope how to use magic, Henry fall for a princess we never saw in ouat, Villan puts SB in a bublle so the famous , the parents don't save the day, (part 1)

Henry author power some how let them invoke only famous villans in name, Rump*e, R*gina and Hook even Zelen*, they even could use HH too, finale, they win and back to take SB from the bublle and reunite w their whole family. What a easy away to respect the character we loved and the 6 years of show, use this 6 years as a back history and not use the thing most hated (WW) and copie old plots and hope we don't notice. (part 2)

This would have been AMAZING and now I’m beyond pissed we didn’t get it.

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fanfictionlive · 4 years

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Which direction should I take my HP fanfiction

Like to apologize in advance, I have really no idea what flair to give this type of post so I put in writing questions. I hope that's alright. But basically this post is a follow up to this: https://www.reddit.com/r/FanFiction/comments/ers8qa/avoiding_a_harry_potter_mary_sue/.

I've written several drafts for the new version that replaced the old. But for a recap, I am currently in the process of writing a frozen inspired/heavily influenced story Harry Potter fanfic. Also, I apologize that version two's bio is long, I kinda worked on that one longer and it has more extensive backstory. And yes, I'm up front that the beginning of each variants story is a 1:1 to Frozen.

Version 1-

Name: Eleanor/ Elizabeth (Haven't decided on the first name) Cedrella (or Gideon) Weasely (Have no clue what to name her, I'ms stuck on first and middle names)

(I've kept with the Weasley theme of naming their children after famous medieval or Arthurian people. Eleanor, after Eleanor of Aquitaine, who stood up to her husband Henry II of England. Elizabeth, after Elizabeth Woodville, the first English subject to marry a King of England. I'd did think about naming her Isabella, after the She-wolf of France, the Queen who rebelled against her husband Edward II and deposed him, but I thought it didn't fit with the Weasleys)

Nicknames: Eleanor: Ella, Ellie, Nora. Elizabeth: Lizzy, Bess, Lilibet. The blonde Weasley, ghost face, the Bastard Weasley (alluded that her mother had an affair to explain her appearance)

Age introduced in the story: Six years of age (1985)

Relation to canon characters: Daughter of Arthur and Molly Weasley, sister to the William, Charles, Percy, Fred and George, Ronald, and Ginny Weasley. Born in 1978 between the twins and Ron.

Romantic Relationships: Cedric Diggory- They met one summer when she needs to find a quiet place outside the Burrow to read, they come across each other and friendship forms over books. Eventually Cedric is smitten. The relationship is not touchy-feely, she cares for Cedric, but doesn't want to get too close and freeze him to death. (They date during her third year (she's held back a year due to homeschooling), but she breaks it off from a misunderstanding. They start dating again towards the latter part of Harry's fifth year, Cedric survived the third trial of the Tri-Wizard tournament). Philippe ( A french student who came for the Tri-Wizard tournament, their relationship lasts a few months before she breaks it off after realizing he's using her)

Character Traits: Loyal, Bookworm (becomes one, so she isn't bored in her room), Shy/Reserved, Soft-spoken, and patient.

House: Ravenclaw or Gryffindor. (Leaning towards Ravenclaw, so it would be disappointing to her parents and siblings in her head)

Character Flaws: Can come off cold and distant (makes her unlikable). Has a somewhat difficult time expressing what she feels and thinks, this damages her relationships. Has an extremely terrible temper that can get her into trouble and detention quickly.

Physical Description: Blonde hair, blue eyes, and freckled pale pasty skin (from her magic, if she didn't have it, she'd look like the Weasleys). Is usually seen with reading spectacles on.

Bio: Born in 1979 between the twins and Ron, this Weasley shocked her parents by appearing drastically different from her many siblings. Nevertheless, her many freckles showed that she was a Weasley. The Weasley girls shows a strong affinity for magic at a year old, when she covers most of the Burrow's living space in thick snow and ice during a tantrum. Arthur and Molly are shocked by this revelation, they had seen children use magic before when they're upset, but never like this. Nevertheless, this special kind of magic coming from their daughter fills their heart with so much love and fear.

Years past, the Weasley girl grows into giddy six year old, using her magic even though its not allowed and despite her parent's discipline. One summer night Ron (or all the Weasley siblings) rouses her from her sleep, Wanting to out into to field to play while their parents were sleeping. Reluctantly she agrees, remembering the spanking she had received from her mother for almost freezing the pond Muggles liked to fish in. They all play as she covers the field near their house in light blankets of snow. The Weasley clan laughed and played as they built snowmen, made snow angels, and having snow ball fights.

Things take a chilling turn when one of her siblings decided they want to reach the sky, begging their sister to build snow mounds for them to jump on. The Weasley girl slipped on her own ice and struck her sibling with her magic, knocking them into a coma, damaging their memories, and gave them a platinum blond streak in their hair. Distraught at what she had down, the girl screams for her parents, several of her siblings run back to the house to get them. Arthur and Molly rush out of the house and down to the field finding their daughter cradling her brother/sister in her arms.

Arthur contacts a trusted friend through the Ministry (or Dumbledore) about their situation. Hours later a strange being arrives, an elvish type man with pointed ears and green skin, the face of an Adonis. Koenraad he calls himself, tribe leader of the exiled Huldufólk clan in the Forbidden Forest (or another part of Scotland). He examines her and the sibling she struck, working his magic and altering memories. Warning them that the child will be plagues with migraines and bouts of blackouts for the remainder of their life when they try to remember their sister's magic. He leaves the blonde Weasley girl with a grave warning, learn to control the magic or fear will be her enemy and her death the consequence of the fear.

(Basically Frozen plot line she's basically locked away for her protection because Arthur and Molly are terrified what could happen to others or worse her)

Version 2-

Name: Eloise Rosalind Arundel

Nicknames: Lola, Ellie, Rose.

Age introduced in the story: Six years of age (1985)

Relation to canon characters: James Potter (Uncle), Lily Potter (Aunt), Harry Potter (First-cousin), Sirus Black (Eventual step-father)

Romantic Relationships: Cedric Diggory- Cedric somes across her in her room, finding it terrible she doesn't have a friend her age. They start a correspondence and it's when she comforts Cedric after a terrible breakup, he develops a crush on her. The relationship is not touchy-feely, she cares for Cedric, but doesn't want to get too close and freeze him to death. (They date during her third year, but she breaks it off from a misunderstanding. They start dating again towards the latter part of Harry's fifth year, Cedric survived the third trial of the Tri-Wizard tournament). Fred Weasley (They date after the Yule Ball and break up during Harry's fifth year when she freezes him to the floor after a end of a relationship argument)

Character Traits: Bookworm, Shy/Reserved, Soft-spoken, and selfless.

House: Ravenclaw or Slytherin.

Character Flaws: Coward; jumps at loud noises and hides when a situation becomes too complicated/Violent. Can come off cold and distant (makes her unlikable). Has a somewhat difficult time expressing what she feels and thinks, this damages her relationships. Has a temper and will act on impulse in her rage, often in resulting in terrible accidents.

Physical Description: Thin/Gaunt like body (her clothes hang off her/ eventually fills out as the story goes along), blonde hair, blue eyes, and pale pasty skin. Lack of color in her cheeks.

Bio: Eloise was born to Albert Richard Arundel III and Judith Athena Arundel , in Scotland, two years before the end of the First Wizarding War and two years before the murder of her uncle James Potter and his wife Lily Potter at Godric Hollow. She was born with, along with being a witch, with the inborn ability to conjure ice and snow at will. Something (currently unknown why) her father disliked from the start and resented her for.

One night, her older sister Anne roused a six-year-old Eloise from her peaceful slumber, insisting she couldn't sleep because Mad-Eye Moody and their parents were arguing too loud. Eloise insisted they go back to sleep, Anne instead told her they were talking about Harry Potter, gaining Eloise's interest. Anne told her that she would tell her what she had heard if she built a snowman with her, Eloise retorted saying that their father would be extremely angry with them if they did so (especially with her). Eventually, she agreed and they stealthily made their way down the Manor's ballroom. The sisters made a snowman (that resembled a house-elf) named Abner. The two continued playing until events took a chilling turn when their father discovered them. Startled, Eloise struck Anne on the head while she leapt from one snowy heap to another. Enraged, Eloise's father pushed her mother out of the way to beat her. Mr. Arundel was stopped by Mad-Eye Moody before he could lay a finger on her. Eloise, distraught by what she had done and the fear of her father, the ballroom was covered in thick ice and sharp ice spikes. Marking the beginning of the end to Eloise 's childhood.

Mad-Eye Moody knew what to do, he brought the family to Hogwarts via Floo Powder. Professor McGonagall greeted them instead of Dumbledore, causing an argument between her and Eloise's mother. McGonagall summoned Charles Weasley and Nymphadora Tonks to bring them to The Hidden Folk. The group made their way through the Forbidden Forest, hiding in the bushes when a herd of Centaurs rushed by. The group reached a hidden grove in the forest with a grass huts, only to be greeted by the leader of the Hidden Folk, Koenraad.

The Hidden Folk leader sends Mad-Eye and the two students away, before smiling down at Eloise. It is unknown why he seemed happy with her, Koenraad had her display her ice magic for him before asking if she was born with her magic or cursed. Her mother confused by his statement answers that her daughter is a witch, Koenraad, surprised by this answer demanded a demonstration with a wand. He reached over and grabbed her mother's wand, and like she was under a spell Eloise did as she was told and obliterated a small withered tree to smothering.

For unknown reasons, Koenraad is shocked by this revelation. He turned his attention to Anne and removed the memories that were too deeply affected by Eloise's magic and changing the ones that had only minor damage. He later explained to Eloise that she must learn to control her special magic, or fear will be her greatest enemy and death the consequence of fear.

It was shortly after she was brought back home that her mother created a system to protect her from others and others from her. Eloise was given gloves and given the mantra to "Conceal, Don't feel, Don't let them know". Her normal Wizarding magic was celebrated, encouraged, and taught at home by her mother, Eloise never did develop an Obscural.

Although being home schooled meant Eloise was safe from the world, she wasn't from her father. One particular incident one night left her with makeup on her face that made her look like a clown and bloodied bruises all over her body. Punishment by her father for wanting to wear makeup, claiming she wanted to look like a whore. While Eloise could've told her mother about the abuse and have it stopped, she couldn't bring herself to do it. Her parents were still clearly deeply in love with each other, and Eloise didn't want to bring pain and a lengthy divorce in her mother's life.

It was during this period in her life she met Cedric Diggory while his family was over for a dinner party and became friends with him on that night and pen pals. It was their first meeting and their correspondence by letters that Diggory came to care for Eloise more than a friend.

Extra Note: I have hit a brick wall on to where I want to take this tale, on one hand I kinda want to write a fanfic about a Weasley OC (there aren't many of them and ones that are there aren't written well). But on the other hand, I know they're not popular in Harry Potter fandom, so it wouldn't get many views unless it's a fic Harry have relatives. I'm stuck between wanting to try something original and wanting my fic to actual be read and seen. Basically both character's are the same despite a few differences and parentage. Basically the same storyline, but each have huge plot differences in places.

submitted by /u/Jealouswayward [link] [comments] from FanFiction: Where Magical Ponies battle Imperial Titans https://ift.tt/2sVdN3l

#fan fiction #writing #fanfiction #tv show #series #movie #fan #write

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dollsome-does-tumblr · 7 years

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R E I G N

cue the lumineers!!!!

there are some vague spoilers ahead, but mostly just the names of historical figures.

favourite female character: Mary + Catherine! I refuuuuse to choose! But also, I love all the main female characters so frickin’ much.

favourite male character: King Henry. My terrible buddy; my drama king; my sex ghost pal. I also feel great fondness in my soul for Francis (I’m sorry, Madi!), Bash, Terrible Darnley, Terrible Narcisse, Gideon, and Castleroy. I just really like most of the characters on this show! (But when I don’t like characters, it’s such an agony to see them gobble up the screentime I wish my faves had.)

least favourite female character: Delphine? She just never really came together as a character despite having some wicked cool potential, and she took up a fair amount of screentime. (You haven’t gotten to her yet!)

least favourite male character: God. There are so many to choose from. I think I’ll give this honor to Conde. And Bothwell. And Dudley. Basically: get away from me, dark brooding handsome dudes. I don’t need ya!

favourite ship: MARY+CATHERINE. Romantic stylez, I have so friggin’ many, and I feel emotionally exhausted by li-ter-ally all of them. Thanks Reign! Thanks for that!

least favourite ship: I think I will always feel the most lastingly bitter about Mary/Bothwell, because I felt like they just had NO chemistry and it took up way too much screentime in our tragically short final season. Why y’all trying to romanticize BOTHWELL? We all know where this is going!

film/tv show rating: 9/10. I wish the show had been more pragmatic in the fact that s4 was almost undoubtedly the last season and done more proper wrapping up of the series; that’s always going to bother me. But also, no show has ever brought me such strange and giddy joys as this one, and I will cherish it always.

#dollsome's deep thoughts #reign

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obtener2 · 7 years

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Journal of a Cavalry Bugler B&N http://goo.gl/670Nqn Apple devices http://bit.ly/1iMsohP Amazon http://amzn.to/1lVBYmD Google Play http://goo.gl/mHCe2V Kobo https://goo.gl/MhIiAw Smashwords: https://goo.gl/DTPYCE

"In the stampede a young rebel trooper lost control of his horse, which broke and plunged backward. The horse fixed her mouth firmly down against her breast. The rider cried, “Whoa. Whoa. Whoa!” but to no purpose. He pulled his saber to menace her but decided against killing her. He raised a leg as though to jump off, but the horse closed the distance so quickly he did not jump either. The rider kept crying, “Whoa,” and hauled on the bit, but the whirlwind, countercharge of a frenzied, lone Confederate continued.

"Fellows raised carbines but had no need to bring him down. Heels-over-head both horse and rider tumbled. The reb leapt to his feet. A trooper shot the crazy horse, but the butternut uniform scurried into the thicket and, appreciative of his daring, we just watched him scramble. Seconds later we became too busy to worry about one boy.

"A column of rebel cavalry came over the hill 300 yards ahead. The shots previously exchanged were merely against their vedette. General William Hicks “Red” Jackson and his force charged down the road as if to cut us to pieces. But pulled up and sought shelter in the woods beyond Holly Springs. If they had carried through, how many of us might have died?"

Based on the autobiography of Charles Henry Dickey, 4th Illinois Cavalry

W. H. Jackson resigned from the Army on May 16, 1861, and joined the Confederate army as a captain of artillery. He was an aide-de-camp to General Gideon Pillow and served at the Battle of Belmont in November. In early 1862, Jackson was appointed as colonel of the 1st Tennessee Cavalry and rose to be chief of cavalry under John C. Pemberton, Earl Van Dorn, and then Sterling Price. On December 29, 1862, he was promoted to brigadier general.

#cavalry #holly springs #Confederate Army #Illinois cavalry #american civil war

0 notes

smartgirlsaremean · 6 years

Text

Stiltskin Family Bonding - Chapter 12

Fandom: OUAT

Relationship: Papafire (this chapter, at least)

Rating: N/R

Summary: The Stiltskin boys bond in a variety of ways. Sometimes it goes well, other times...not so much.

AO3

Chapter 12: No Rush

A Tumblr anon prompted: When he looks after the pawnshop alone, Neal has to deal with the customer who keeps saying bad things about Rumplestiltskin.

Neal hated it when his father left the shop on rent day. For one thing, working in the shop wasn’t exactly his dream job, but until someone else in town decided it was safe to hire the son of the Dark One he was stuck there, earning a completely unreasonable wage considering that he mostly polished things and updated record books. The only reason it didn’t totally suck was that he spent most of the time talking to Rumplestiltskin. They had nearly three hundred years to catch up on, and Neal had realized that he couldn’t expect to understand or forgive his father without talking to him.

The best part of the day, of course, was in the late afternoons on Tuesdays and Thursdays when Henry would come in to sweep and dust. It was good in a weird kind of way, hanging out in dim, dusty shop with his family as if they were just regular guys running a family business. Sometimes he wished that were true - that they were plain old Mr. Gold, Neal, and Henry - and eventually Gid. Gold and Sons, Pawnbrokers. Or maybe they could rename the shop entirely in case the new baby was a girl.

Spinning Wheel Antiques, maybe. Or just Gold Antiques.

Anyway, it was rent day and Neal thought it was kind of hilarious that his father still took Dove and made the rounds, as if direct deposit wasn’t a thing. Rumplestiltskin could grumble about late payments and people trying to take advantage, but Neal knew there was a part of him - and not even a very small part - that loved the drama, the theatrics of rent day. The grim, shady landlord showing up and demanding wads of cash and threatening to toss delinquents out into the street. His dealmaking days were more or less at an end, but Rumplestiltskin was a showman, and he’d always had a dark, sinister sense of humor.

The bell on the front door jingled, and Neal groaned. Few people came in the shop anymore, and Neal didn’t like dealing with those who did. He didn’t have his father’s shrewd business sense or Henry’s guile, and he really didn’t like the idea of making people pay for things that were technically theirs to begin with. He walked out from behind the curtain and saw a man he didn’t know bent over and peering through one of the glass cases.

“Can I help you?” he asked.

The man straightened, a mulish look on his face. “Yes. I’ve come for my sword.”

“Uh.” Neal glanced at an umbrella stand that was full of swords. “Could you be a little more specific?”

“That one.” The man pointed at a sword with a gold hilt, studded with rubies and emeralds. Neal pulled it out of the stand and held it up, and the man drew a deep breath. “That’s it,” he said. “I thought it was lost forever.” He reached for the sword, but Neal drew back, raising his eyebrows.

“That’ll be fifteen hundred,” he said, his grip tightening slightly when the man’s eyes flashed.

“Fifteen hundred! For my own sword!” the man exclaimed.

“For one thing, I don’t know for sure that it’s yours,” Neal said.

“You doubt my word?” the man said, drawing himself up to his full height.

“Well...yeah. I kind of have to. I mean it’s not like there are serial numbers on these things, and I doubt you have any proof of ownership.”

“A man of honor would not require any of those things.”

Ah. A prince, or a nobleman at least. Neal thought he’d noticed a certain...prickishness about the guy. “Well, what can I say? I’m just a lowly peasant. Honor was never really in my budget.” He shifted his grip on the sword, holding it not quite at en garde, and studied it carefully. “This is a pretty expensive sword to just...give up. What’d you get in exchange?”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Well, it didn’t just show up on its own. You had to have made a deal with it. So what’d you get? Power? Riches?” He looked the other man up and down and smirked. “Good looks?”

The prince/nobleman/jerk turned red. “That is none of your business.”

“Okay, no problem. Doesn’t matter anyway, the price is the same. Fifteen hundred.”

“You’re just like your father, aren’t you?” the man sneered. “I should have known not to expect any better.”

“Any better than...what?”

“We can all see through him now,” the man said, leaning over the glass case. “Back in our world he dressed himself up in fine silks and leathers and flourished his magic and made us all fear him, but we all know who he is: a peasant, with no more claims to greatness than a common beggar. A coward who hides behind his stolen magic and his powerful friends.”

Neal clenched his jaw, willing himself to stay calm. There were an awful lot of expensive things in here, and it wouldn’t do to break them.

“He’d better pray his magic never forsakes him,” the man continued. “I’d like nothing better than to cut him back down to size.”

Of course, Rumplestiltskin could always magically repair whatever ended up broken.

“Did you seriously threaten the Dark One in front of his son?” Neal asked. “While I’m holding a sword?”

“As if you would know what to do with a fine weapon like that,” the man scoffed. “Gutter rats like you barely know which end of the sword is which.”

“I know a few things,” Neal said. He grasped the hilt of the sword and reached out, carefully placing the tip on the man’s chest, over his heart. “The pointy end goes in the other guy, right?”

The man’s eyes widened. “Are you threatening me?”

“No,” Neal said. “I’m challenging you.”

“How dare you…”

“Me?” Neal scoffed. “You’re in my father’s shop, insulting both of us, demanding something for free. And I’m the jerk in this situation?”

The man opened his mouth to reply, but froze, his eyes widening in something like terror. Neal didn’t have to look back to know that his father must have returned.

“Well, well, what have we here?” Rumplestiltskin’s voice was quiet and calm, but Neal felt goosebumps crawl over his skin. “A dissatisfied customer?”

“I - I only want what is mine,” the man said.

“That’s all anyone ever wants,” Rumplestiltskin said, approaching the counter. “Unfortunately, our definitions of what is yours appear to differ.” He placed his hand on Neal’s arm and pressed gently, and Neal let the sword fall to his side. “This sword, for example. You sold it to me, and it is therefore mine. The fact that you regret that does not negate the transaction.” Rumplestiltskin clasped his hands before him and raised one eyebrow, smirking. “Unless you have two thousand dollars to hand, I’m afraid your sword will remain in my possession.”

“He said fifteen hundred!”

“I tend to charge more when death threats are involved.”

The man wilted a bit. “I can - return tomorrow. With the money.”

“We look forward to it.” Rumplestiltskin grinned. “Pleasure doing business with you.”

The man huffed and walked away, slamming the door as he went. Neal took a deep breath and replaced the sword in the umbrella stand.

“Well, that was fun. I almost expected him to slither out of here.”

Rumplestiltskin shrugged. “There was no reason to dirty my floors.”

“You didn’t always need a reason.” Neal studied his father. “You really do...have things under control, don’t you? The curse, I mean. You’re more...you than you used to be.”

“I’ve lived with this curse for three hundred years, son,” Rumplestiltskin said wearily as he pulled out a thick ledger.

“Yeah.” Neal fidgeted with a pen. “If you could get rid of it, though...would you?”

Rumplestiltskin was quiet for a few minutes, and Neal thought he’d gone too far, but then the sorcerer sighed and shook his head. “Once upon a time I’d have said no. I’m not a brave man, and the thought of facing this world without magic frightens me, but…” He looked up at Neal, his eyes wide and glistening. “But I see the beginnings of gray in your hair. Henry and Gideon grow more each day, and Belle’s getting laugh lines around her mouth. And I…” he waved a hand up and down his own body. “I stay the same.” Rumplestiltskin leaned against the glass case and stared at the ledger without appearing to see it. “Every day I grow closer to losing all of you and...and that’s more terrifying than anything I can imagine. To be truly alone, to lose all that I hold dear. I don’t want that.”

“Well, there’s got to be some way, Papa,” Neal said. “What about True Love’s Kiss?”

“We’ve tried,” Rumplestiltskin sighed. “Over and over, we’ve tried. But the Curse - it’s grown stronger, more resilient. It weakens a little, and then it’s back, as strong as ever. Belle is at her wits’ end.”

Neal thought of the fairies, but dismissed that idea immediately. The last time he’d gone to the fairies for help, it hadn’t gone so well.

“We’ll think of something,” Neal said. “We have time, after all. There’s no rush.”

Rumplestiltskin smiled slightly and then looked away, his eyes dark and sad. “Aye. No rush.”

#stiltskin family bonding #ouat fic

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smartgirlsaremean · 7 years

Text

Stiltskin Family Bonding - Chapter 7

Fandom: OUAT

Relationships: Papafire, Henry & Rumplestiltskin, Henry & Nealfire, Rumbelle, Swanfire

Rating: N/R

Summary: The Stiltskin boys bond in a variety of ways. Sometimes it goes well, other times...not so much.

AO3

Chapter 7 - The Games We Play

@sagesequoia prompted: Stiltskin Family Bonding Prompt: perhaps the Stiltskins play a board game/have a game night together?

“King me!” Henry crowed.

Rumplestiltskin groaned and placed one black checker on top of the other.

“You suck at this,” Neal said mildly from behind him.

“Bloody ridiculous game,” the sorcerer muttered.

“You’re a chess master, how can you be so bad at checkers?”

“Chess requires deep thought, an intimate knowledge of strategies and the movements of the pieces. This - it’s just jumping about.”

“He’s not very good at Scrabble, either,” Belle offered from the couch where she was entertaining Gideon.

Rumplestiltskin turned and gave his wife a wounded look. “Thank you, dear.”

She shrugged and grinned. “You like to build the longest words - that doesn’t always mean they’re the highest-scoring.”

“I thought you were all about the strategy, Pops.”

“Scrabble should be a game of vocabulary, not strategy!”

Neal rubbed a hand over his mouth to hide a smile. When Henry had thoroughly trounced his grandfather, he went to the games shelf and started rifling through the boxes there. All Henry had had to do was mention that the Charmings held weekly game nights, and Rumple had gone to the toy store and purchased one of every game in stock. From Candyland to Cards Against Humanity, the Golds had it all, and Neal thought it was hilarious.

“There’s gotta be something in here Grandpa’s good at,” Henry said. Rumplestiltskin ground his teeth and put the board and checkers in their box with exaggerated care. Henry shifted boxes around in the cabinet. “Chess...boring. Twister...too many old people…”

“Excuse me?” Belle gasped.

“Got it!” Henry pulled out a box and showed it to the room, grinning triumphantly.

Neal laughed. “Yeah, that’s perfect for your grandpa.”

“Guesstures?” Rumplestiltskin looked confused.

“If anyone has a flair for the dramatic it’s you, Rumple,” Belle pointed out.

“But Dad and Grandpa can’t be on the same team,” Henry said.

“What? Why not?” Neal asked.

“Because you’re pretty dramatic too.”

“Am not!”

“Yeah, okay. I guess it was someone else’s idea to hang an engagement ring from a dreamcatcher and hang it from Mom’s rearview mirror.”

“I was trying to be romantic.”

“And that’s not dramatic how?”

“Fine, whatever. I’ll be on Belle and Gid’s team.” Neal flopped on the couch and crossed his arms, drawing a giggle from his baby brother.

“Okay with me,” Henry shrugged. He pulled the game out of its box and began to study the rules. “We’re going first.”

An hour later, Emma climbed the front steps of the pink Victorian and paused before knocking on the door. There were strange sounds coming from inside the house - well, in most other circumstances laughter wouldn’t necessarily be strange, but this was the Golds’ house. She knocked, but either no one heard or no one cared, so she pushed the door open and peered inside.

Belle, Gideon, Neal, and Henry were on the couch, Belle and Neal leaning on each other and breathless with laughter. Rumplestiltskin stood in front of them, his face red with either exertion or embarrassment, waving his arms and legs in what Emma thought might be some kind of weird dance.

“Karate!” Henry shouted, and the sorcerer lunged for a small box on the coffee table, plucking a white card out of the top.

“That was not karate,” Neal wheezed from beside his stepmother. “That was...I have no idea what that was.”

“Doesn’t matter. I guessed it, so we win!” Henry said.

“Is this exercise in humiliation quite finished?” Rumplestiltskin asked from the center of the room, his arms crossed tightly over his chest.

“Yeah, looks like Mom’s here,” Henry said, waving an arm at Emma. She waved and tried not to smirk as Rumplestiltskin flushed more deeply.

“You guys ready to go yet?” she asked Neal and Henry.

“Yeah, just about.” Neal sat up and straightened his hair and shirt. “All quiet on the Storybrooke front?”

“Not even a noise complaint today,” Emma said. She moved to stand beside Belle and smile at the baby. “I guess it’s a good thing you don’t have any close neighbors.”

“Thanks for having us, Pops, Belle.” Neal rose and pulled his father into an awkward one-armed hug.

“Of course,” Belle beamed.

“Bye, Grandpa.” Henry hugged his grandfather tightly and Emma was torn between being touched and amused - no matter how many times Henry hugged him, the sorcerer always looked as if he wasn’t quite sure what was happening or whether he was allowed to reciprocate. When Henry had hugged Belle and shaken Gideon’s chubby little hand, the three of them turned to leave.

“Miss Swan,” Rumplestiltksin said suddenly. Emma turned, raising her eyebrows, and saw that he was standing stiffly, hands clasped before him. “You are, of course, welcome to join us at any time.”

Emma blinked. “Oh. Uh. Thanks. I’ll...think about it.”

“Do. You are family, after all.”

“Right.” Emma shook her head slightly. “Uh...see ya around.” He nodded, and she turned again to walk away. Family. She grinned to herself. She wondered if he realized that he was getting soft.

#papafire #neal cassidy #rumbelle #swanfire #henry mills #rumplestiltskin

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smartgirlsaremean · 7 years

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Stiltskin Family Bonding: Chapter 6 - Family Business

Fandom: OUAT

Relationships: Papafire, Neal & Henry, Rumplestiltskin & Henry, Rumbelle, Swanfire

Rating: N/R

Summary: The Stiltskin boys bond in a variety of ways. Sometimes it goes well, other times...not so much.

AO3

Chapter 6 - Family Bonding

A Tumblr anon prompted: Stiltskin Family Bonding: Does Neal have a job now?

“I hate this,” Neal grumbled, wrestling with his tie.

Emma leaned against the bathroom door and smirked at him around her toothbrush. “I think you look hot. In a stuffy businessman kind of way.”

“He never cared about this stuff before.”

“Really. Rumplestiltskin. The man of leather and dragonhide and bright silk shirts.” Neal quirked an eyebrow at her and she shrugged. “Henry’s book is illustrated, and Mom and Regina like to tell stories.”

“Well, there wasn’t a whole lot of leather and silk when I was growing up.”

“Oh. Yeah.”

Neal tugged on the bottom of the jacket and sighed. “I mean, I guess I get it. He wants to project a certain image. I just don’t know why I have to.”

“You want to sell priceless antiques in a hoodie and torn jeans?”

“You solve crime in skinny jeans and a red leather jacket,” Neal retorted. “I mean, not that I’m complaining.”

Emma rolled her eyes and went back into the bathroom to finish brushing her teeth. Glaring at his reflection one last time, Neal picked up the jacket lying at the end of the bed. “I have to go or I’m gonna be late. See ya for lunch?”

“Granny’s?”

“No, the other diner in town.”

“Funny.”

Neal shrugged the jacket on and left, wondering when exactly he’d become so domesticated.

“Don’t tell me I’m gonna have to sweep.”

Rumplestiltskin raised his eyebrows at his oldest son, who was eyeing the broom with intense loathing. “Well, someone has to, and unfortunately my former maid now runs a rather successful daycare and has no interest in working for me again.”

Grumbling, Neal snatched up the broom.

“That was a quip, Bae,” Rumplestiltskin said, reaching out to take the broom from his hands. “Henry comes in and sweeps up about twice a week.”

“Oh.”

His father gave him a bemused smile. “Are you that desperate for a job that you’d sweep my shop?”

“I’ve got a kid on the way, Papa. I have to be...stable and stuff. I’ve never been a dad before, not like this - I mean, I love Henry, but I wasn’t around for the hard stuff, y’know? Diapers and midnight feedings and teething. How did you -” He broke off abruptly and ran a hand through his hair.

Rumplestiltskin raised his eyebrows.

“Did you freak out? When you realized you had a little human to take care of?”

Sighing, Rumplestiltskin looked down at a watch on his counter and traced a finger down the length of the chain. “The circumstances aren’t the same, Bae. In my case - your mother and I had hoped for a family - before I went away to war, at least. You were wished for...prayed for...all I ever wanted out of life. I...freaked out, as you say...when I thought I was doomed to leave you fatherless, but from the moment Milah placed you in my arms you were the center of my world.”

“You were like that with Gideon, too,” Neal smiled. His father had been captivated by his younger brother, to the point that Belle had had to draw up a schedule for holding and rocking the baby, or Rumplestiltskin might never have put the boy down.

“It doesn’t go away, that feeling,” Rumplestiltskin said, his eyes still fixed on the watch. “Your children will always be the center of your world. Even when you can no longer pick them up and soothe away every worry and care, you still wish you could.”

“Well...giving them a job and not making them scrub floors is a good substitute,” Neal muttered, poking a finger at the mobile hanging from the ceiling. He couldn’t see his father’s face very well, but he thought he saw a twitch around his mouth that might have been a smile.

“Start in the back,” Rumplestiltskin said at last. “Check my inventory list against what’s actually there. When you’ve finished that, we’ll inventory the front.”

“Got it. Thanks, Pops.”

Neal strode into the backroom, glanced around the room at the mountains of junk piled nearly to the ceiling, and sighed. He was going to be here awhile. But with his father just outside and his son coming in after school every few days, he didn’t think he’d mind.

#tmi tuesday prompt #papafire #swanfire #rumbelle #neal cassidy #henry mills #baelfire #stiltskin family bonding

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smartgirlsaremean · 7 years

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Stiltskin Family Bonding - Chapter 4 - Gideon

Fandom: OUAT

Relationships: Papafire, Henry & Baelfire, Henry & Rumplestiltskin

Rating: N/R

Summary: The Stiltskin boys bond in a variety of ways. Sometimes it goes well, other times...not so much.

AO3

Chapter 4: Gideon

@notcoalbutgolden prompted: These are lovely. I adore these three bonding! As for prompts ... perhaps Henry and Neal meeting Gideon, the newest Stiltskin boy...?

Henry eyed his grandfather with concern. Rumplestiltskin sat stock-still in the plastic chair, his face etched with lines of worry, his fingers white-knuckled where they gripped his cane. Some stupid news channel was playing on the TV in the corner, and there weren’t even any good magazines sitting around, or Henry could have distracted himself. As it was, he had to watch the most powerful wizard in the world fret himself into a panic over his pregnant wife.

If there were some kind of world record for “most twisted family tree,” Henry knew he’d win hands down. His grandparents and his mom were the same age. His adopted mother was also his step-great-grandmother, and she had kind of a thing for his mom, who happened to be her step-granddaughter. (She tried not to let him know, but he was twelve, not stupid. Besides, he was pretty sure his mom was still hung up on his dad.) Things on his father’s side weren’t quite as tangled, but just as weird. His grandfather was a centuries-old sorcerer and the son of Peter Pan. Rumpletstiltskin’s wife was at least two hundred and fifty years younger than her husband and had no magic at all but somehow managed to boss him around just fine. Just a few months ago he’d gotten a baby uncle and in a minute - or an hour - or a couple of hours - he was going to have another baby uncle.

Grandpa Charming was right. Thanksgiving dinners were about to get really awkward.

“I’m sure everything’s fine,” Henry said eventually when he couldn’t stand the sound of the yapping people on the TV for one more second.

Rumplestiltskin met his eyes. “Hm?”

“Grandma Belle. She’s strong and brave, y’know? She’ll be okay.”

Chuckling, Rumplestiltskin shook his head. “I don’t know if she wants to be called Grandma. Just Belle ought to be fine.”

Henry nodded. “So...did you guys pick out a name?”

“We have a few options. Belle wants to meet him before she decides on his name.” Rumplestiltskin glanced at the big swinging doors Belle had disappeared through.

“I’m serious about her being okay,” Henry said. “Things are different here, y’know? Doctors and medicine and...even if something went wrong...and I’m not saying it will, cause it won’t...but even if it did, she’ll be okay. You don’t have to worry so much.”

“Old habits, I suppose,” his grandfather sighed, turning his cane in his hands.

“Like carrying that cane around even though you can walk just fine without it?”

“Yeah, exactly.” He tapped the cane against the floor. “It’s a reminder of who I was. Who I never want to be again.”

“I dunno,” Henry frowned. “I mean, sure, you shouldn’t go around cursing people or turning them into snails, but the old you wasn’t all bad. And it’s not like you were a terrible person when you were a spinner, either.”

Rumplestiltskin raised his eyebrows. “How would you know that?”

“Dad tells me things.”

“Does he?”

“Yeah. From when he was a kid.” Henry leaned back in his chair. “It wasn’t your fault people were so mean to you. You took care of him and helped him grow up when his mom left. That’s not something a bad person would do, is it?”

When his grandfather didn’t answer, Henry looked up and then down again very quickly. Rumplestiltskin’s eyes were kind of shiny, and he didn’t know what to do. Man, someone should have warned him about how sappy the Stiltskin men were. His dad was like that too, sometimes. His moms didn’t cry nearly as much.

“Here, Papa. Tea.” Neal appeared with two steaming styrofoam cups, and Rumplestiltskin took one with a nod of thanks. “You guys doing okay?”

“Yeah,” Henry said. “Grandpa was telling me about the names he and Belle picked out.”

Neal looked at his father, whose eyes were still slightly misty. “Uh-huh. So what are they?”

The big swinging doors opened and Dr. Whale looked out. “Um, excuse me, Mr. - uh - Rumple - uh…” He huffed and waved a hand. “If you wanted to be in the room for the birth, we need to get you suited up.”

Rumplestiltskin went white.

“Your big moment, Pops,” Neal said softly, taking the tea out of his father’s hand and helping him stand. “You can do this. Belle’s waiting.”

“Right,” Rumplestiltskin muttered. “Right. Belle’s waiting.”

Neal winked at Henry behind Rumplestiltskin’s back as, with an expression equal parts awe and terror, the father-to-be followed the doctor to the delivery room.

Dr. Whale wished he were allowed to take pictures in the delivery room, because a photo of the feared Dark One pale as a ghost, trussed up in scrubs, and clutching his panting wife’s hand like a lifeline would probably have made him a fortune. Belle had been screaming a moment before, but she was almost finished, and when it was time for the final push, she looked up into her husband’s eyes and seemed to draw fresh strength.

The squall of a newborn ripped through the air, and Belle collapsed against the back of the chair, her smile blindingly bright. Tears coursed down Rumplestiltskin’s cheeks as he watched his son being gently wiped down, swaddled in a blanket, and then placed in his wife’s arms. Belle stroked one finger over the baby’s cheek and Rumplestiltskin bent to place a kiss to the crown of his son’s head. Embarrassed, Dr. Whale turned away with an inexplicable lump in his throat. Dark One or not, he’d never seen a man look so completely conquered at the sight of his child.

Maybe Belle's love and faith in the old warlock wasn't as strange as everyone thought.

“When will we get to see him?” Henry asked for what was probably the millionth time. At least, it felt that way to Neal.

“When Dr. Whale says we can,” Neal said patiently for at least the hundred thousandth time.

“But what’s taking so long?”

“You heard the doctor, Henry. The baby has to have a bath, and Belle probably wants to at least comb her hair or something, and she has to be moved into a new room. There’s a lot for them to do. Besides...they probably want a little alone time, at least at first. He’s their new baby, y’know?”

“I guess,” Henry sighed, flopping back into his chair.

A tornado of blond hair and red leather whipped through the waiting room just then and skidded to a stop in front of Neal. “Hey! I got here as soon as I could. Everything okay?”

Neal smiled at Emma. “Yeah, the doc said everything went great. Healthy baby boy. Twenty-one inches, seven pounds twelve ounces.”

“Twenty-one inches? Holy crap, he’s a string bean,” Emma said. “How in the world did your dad and step-mom make a baby that long?”

“Uh. The usual way. I guess.” Not that that was something he really wanted to think about.

“Have you been in to see him yet?”

“No,” Henry groaned, stretching the word out for several syllables. Emma grinned and ruffled his hair.

“Impatient to meet your new uncle?”

“That’ll be fun to explain when he gets older,” Neal said.

“Yeah, he and Uncle Graham are probably gonna have a lot of questions when they get older.”

As always, Emma’s eyes softened when her baby brother was mentioned. Graham Nolan had been named for the huntsman who’d spared Snow’s life and freed Charming from Regina’s dungeon. He’d also been one of Emma’s first friends in Storybrooke, and Neal knew from Henry that she’d been devastated when he died. How he died was still something of a mystery, though Neal had his suspicions, which he’d never voice out loud unless forced.

They waited a while longer, the two of them telling stories to distract Henry, and then Dr. Whale appeared again and invited them to follow him back to Belle’s room.

“Why didn’t Papa come get us?” Neal asked.

Whale smirked. “He’s engaged in a bit of a...uh...disagreement, at the moment.”

“Disagreement?”

They were just outside the room, and they could all hear Belle, and though her words were stern, she sounded as if she was holding back laughter. “Rumple, you’ve held him for an hour. I really think it’s my turn now.”

“He’s just gone to sleep, sweetheart. I don’t want to disturb him. What if he wakes?”

“He’ll live, and besides you need to eat something.”

“I ate at lunch.”

“Which was six hours ago. Darling, please…”

There were a few seconds of silence, and then Rumplestiltskin sighed. “Fine. Very judicious use of the face, by the way.”

“Thank you. And you know the rules. You used your face already today, so you’re not allowed to use it again until tomorrow.”

“Tyrant,” the sorcerer muttered, but when Neal felt composed enough to walk in the room, his father’s face was suffused with so much love and tenderness that he might have imagined that last bit. Rumplestiltskin looked up from watching his new son sleeping and smiled. “Neal.”

“Hey, Papa. Congratulations.”

“Thank you.”

Neal walked to Belle’s side to get a better look at his baby brother.

Baby brother. Wow, that would take some getting used to.

“Hey, little guy,” he said softly. The baby snuffled in his sleep and pressed one fist to his cheek.

“What’s his name?” Henry asked softly from Belle’s other side.

“Gideon,” Rumplestiltskin replied.

“Gideon Gold,” Henry said. “That sounds awesome. Where’d you get it?”

“Where else? From your grandmother’s favorite book.”

“Step-grandmother, thank you,” Belle said with a smile. She looked up and caught Neal’s gaze, and he realized he had tears in his eyes. “Would you like to hold him, Neal?”

“Oh, uh...I don’t...I’ve never…”

“Sit here, son,” his father said, rising from his chair. “I’ll hand him to you.”

Before he knew what was happening, Neal was sitting in the chair next to Belle’s bed while baby Gideon was placed gently in the crook of his arm. He weighed next to nothing, but Neal sat like a statue, terrified of doing something wrong. After a minute Gideon gave a tiny grunt and opened his eyes, dark blue meeting startled brown, and Neal smiled.

“Hey, there, little bro,” he said softly. “How do you like being on the outside so far?”

The baby hiccuped.

“Yeah, it’s not so bad. A little crazy sometimes. But you’ve got me and your mom and your dad and your nephew, and we’ll make sure you get through it alright, okay?”

Sighing, Gideon closed his eyes again, and Neal looked up to see that everyone was staring at him, and all of them, except for Henry, had tears in their eyes.

“Hey, Henry?” Emma said, standing. “Let’s go see if we can rustle up some food for everybody, okay?”

“But I wanna hold Uncle Gideon!”

Rumplestiltskin made a sound that sounded suspiciously like a cross between a laugh and a sob.

“You can hold him when we get back. Let’s go.”

She herded her son out the door, pausing to look back at Neal and give him an encouraging smile. He smiled back, trying to let her know that she didn’t need to worry about him. He was with his family, and everything was fine.

#papafire #rumplestiltskin #notcoalbutgolden #henry mills #baelfire #neal cassidy #ouat fic

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