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backtothestart02 · 3 years

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Just Best Friends - 9/? | westallen fanfiction

A/N: “It’s been 84 years...” lolz. I hope you enjoy this! I don’t know when the next chap will come, but as soon as I can write it, I will!

...

Chapter 9 -

A week passed. During that week, Iris made herself completely unreachable – not just to Barry but to Eddie as well. She worked through lunch, so Barry couldn’t take her out, and she worked late hours, so that by the time she returned to hers and Eddie’s apartment, she was so exhausted, she could only heat up some leftovers and collapse onto their bed when she was finished with them.

That also meant no sex, no cuddling, and hardly any talking that wasn’t an incredibly brief apology before passing out or running out the door. And for Barry, it was just one excuse after another, though they always sounded very similar.

Sorry, I have so much work to do. Or… Maybe another time? I just got a new story, and I have a hot lead on it.

He always understood in words, but she could see the disappointment on his face every time. As well as her failure to respond to the fresh bouquet of flowers he set on her desk daily.

They weren’t just excuses though. They were legitimate…most of the time. Were they unnecessary? Probably. She didn’t have to go out of her way to beg her boss for more stories, or to work so far ahead of schedule that she felt she was on the verge of a burn out or collapse.

But she didn’t know how to act now that Eddie was back. She knew she needed to break up with him. She knew that. But she didn’t want to break his heart, and she wasn’t 100% sure Barry would just agree to date her after the hell she’d put him through emotionally. So avoiding both of them seemed to be the only way out.

She’d also come to the conclusion that while irritating, her dad going out of his way to forbid Barry to tell her he was the Flash had come from a place of love, and that she couldn’t stay mad at him any more than she could with Barry. The only problem was she found having that conversation with him was almost impossible because either Eddie or Barry or both seemed to be in his vicinity at all times.

Little did she know though that there was one other person who was taking a keen interest in the situation developing over the past week, and it was the one person she’d been paranoid about for a while before Eddie came back, and who she’d entirely forgotten about as the weight of the three men in her life came barreling down on her.

And that person had apparently had enough of what she was doing and had decided to seek her out for a confrontation of sorts shortly after Barry left during his lunch break for the fifth time that week.

With a slow yet determined saunter, Linda approached Iris’ desk just as soon as Mason disappeared for his daily lunch walk.

“Iris.”

The familiar voice made her freeze. She recovered quickly, but she had a feeling Linda had caught her red-handed and completely unprepared for where this particular conversation would lead. After all, the last time they’d “talked”, Linda had completely brushed her off, and the time before that Linda had told her to her face that she knew Iris had feelings for Barry, even when she’d still been in denial of that fact herself.

“Linda.” She shuffled her papers around on her desk to somehow fill the awkwardness of the moment. “What, uh…what can I do for you?”

Linda folded her arms and sat on the corner of Iris’ desk.

“Was that Barry that just left?”

“Hmm?” She decided to play dumb. “Oh, yeah, it was. He uh, wanted to go to lunch. I told him I had work to do, which I did – do. So, if you don’t mind?”

Linda’s jaw actually dropped.

“Dismissing me so quickly? If I recall correctly, the last time we talked, you were only too eager to get my attention.”

Iris bit her tongue to keep from responding with something she’d regret.

“Let me guess. You’re giving me a taste of my own medicine?” Linda raised her eyebrows.

Iris cleared her throat.

“Not at all. I just…I have work to do. A lot of it.”

“You’ve had a lot of work to do for the past five days, haven’t you?”

Iris’ eyes squinted.

“Have you been…spying on me?”

“Please.” Iris waited. “I’ve been talking to Barry. He’s needed someone to vent to, you know, since before Eddie came back you were practically climbing on top of him every day at lunch and after work and sometimes before work, according to him.”

“That’s not how it was,” Iris said under her breath.

“No? You better clear that up with your supposed best friend then, because that’s how he saw it. He’s crushed that you’re avoiding him again.” She leaned forward. “Which you are doing, right? Neither of us is buying that you suddenly have so much work to do.”

“I do!” Iris snapped. “I…I asked for it.”

Linda’s eyes widened and her mouth formed an ‘o’.

“And why would you do that?”

She started shuffling her papers again.

“That’s none of your business.”

“You made it my business when you made out with my boyfriend after sticking your finger in his mouth and sitting on his lap on our date.”

Iris sighed testily.

“I thought you two broke up.”

“We did.”

“Do you wish you hadn’t? I know it wasn’t your idea.”

“I’m not stupid, Iris. I’m not going to blindly fight for a relationship with someone who clearly wants to be with someone else.”

Iris bit her lip, avoiding eye contact.

“He does?” she asked quietly.

“He’s in love with you!” She lowered her voice when she got a few looks. “He’d take you in a heartbeat,” she paused. “If that’s what you want.”

Iris swallowed.

“But you don’t know what you want, do you?”

“Yes, I…I do.”

“Then what do you want? Please, tell me at least.”

“Why?” She met her eyes again and glared. “So you can run off and tell Barry? Or Eddie?”

Linda rolled her eyes.

“I have no reason to tell your boyfriend anything. Barry, however, I do still care about. And we’re friends now. He deserves to know the truth, even if it isn’t from you. He’s going crazy with all your…mixed signals.”

Iris nibbled on her lip again, guilt weighing her down.

“Iris, hey, there’s something I wanted to…” Mason approached, then came to an abrupt halt, sensing the tension between the two women immediately. “Am I interrupting something?” He looked between the two.

“Not at all.” Linda smiled serenely before looking down at Iris one last time. “You know where to find me, Iris.”

Iris gulped, not looking at her but nodded just before Linda retreated – finally – to her desk across the room.

“What was that about?”

Iris closed her eyes and shook her head before swiveling in her chair toward him.

“Nothing. What was it you wanted to talk to me about?”

His eyes were full of suspicion, but it was clear his need to discuss something with her was greater.

“I want to show you something.” He took the seat Linda had vacated, then pulled out a folder, revealing to her a familiar face she’d nearly forgotten. “Simon Stagg. Remember him?”

…

Well, there was no longer any way of avoiding it. She had to seek out Barry. Mason’s suspicions about Harrison Wells stirred her insides too deeply, and honestly, made her worried about her best friend, since she knew how much he adored who had become to be his mentor. There was Caitlin and Cisco to consider too, who had known Dr. Wells even longer, but right now all she cared about was Barry.

So, she marched over to CCPD shortly after her conversation with Mason, using the excuse of pursuing a story – which, more or less, she was – to explain her absence at her work site and sought out Barry as soon as she stepped out of the elevator.

Unfortunately, her dad’s eyes locked with hers first. She swallowed, remembering how things were between them. She considered then abandoning a much-needed talk with Barry to finally hash things out with her dad. That course of action was dashed however, when within seconds he had looked away from her and gestured instead in her direction to whoever was standing across from him.

She should’ve known then who it would be, but it didn’t occur to her until he was walking toward her, a grin on his face, no doubt thinking she was there to see him.

“Iris, hey.” He kissed her before she could even think to turn her cheek to him. “Did you have a late lunch today? I have some time now. We cou-”

“Oh, actually, I’m here to see, Barry. Is he upstairs?”

“Huh?”

“In his lab?”

Eddie blinked.

“Um, yeah, as far as I know. There are no active crime scenes where he’d be at otherwise.”

“Great. Thanks. I’ll see you tonight.”

She pressed a quick kiss to his cheek and headed towards the staircase before he could so much as pull her in for an explanation or something more.

Feeling confused and honestly a little hurt, Eddie returned to his desk, Joe sitting now at his, ignoring Eddie’s state as best as he could.

“Should I be worried?” he finally asked.

Joe pretended not to have heard him.

“Joe.”

“Hmm?” he asked, not looking up from the files he was pretending to look over in front of him.

“Should I be worried?”

“About what?”

“About Iris,” he said, as if it should be obvious.

Despite how he felt about the man dating his daughter, Joe looked up to address him. He was also his partner, after all.

“Why are you worried about her?”

Eddie let out a cough of relief, eager to unload his troubles onto somebody – anybody – who would listen.

“She’s made herself busy ever since I got back.”

“She has a job. So do you.”

“More so than usual though,” he pushed on. “She leaves earlier than she used to, and she comes home really late. When she does, she eats some leftovers and crawls into bed without so much as a ‘hey, how was your day’ or ‘I love you, too, Eddie’.” He frowned. “It worries me.”

Now Joe frowned.

“She’s been avoiding Barry too.”

Eddie’s frown deepened.

“When had Barry been trying to meet up with her?”

“On her lunch breaks,” he blurted without thinking, then met his eyes, trying to play it off. “She always says she’s too busy working on a story.”

Eddie leaned back in his seat.

“I haven’t tried to meet up with her for lunch at all this week. I guess I’m so used to her coming here, and if she didn’t, that she had a good reason. I guess she did.”

“Well, there you go.”

Joe started to stand, eager to escape the awkwardness of the conversation.

“But I mean, we haven’t had sex all week.”

Joe finished straightening, then shot him a glare. Eddie’s face fell.

“You didn’t want to hear that.”

“Not particularly, no,” Joe said. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

He turned and headed for the bathroom. Any place was better than this.

…

About a step and a half before the entryway to Barry’s lap, Iris stalled, nibbling on her bottom lip. Barry had been as pleasant during her intended lunch break as he’d been all week, but she still wondered how accepting he’d be of her, especially when he found out this was a working meeting. She definitely needed to apologize first. How and when was the question, though. It was still beyond her how he hadn’t lashed out at her yet. She’d been treating him so unfairly, and yet time and time again, he kept crawling back to her, as if he was a glutton for punishment.

Well, no more of that. She couldn’t guarantee when she would break up with Eddie, but maybe Linda was right and she could at least explain her behavior this week and tell him she planned to break up with Eddie. Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe…eventually.

“Is someone there?” Barry called out, and Iris realized she’d started tapping her shoe against the floor in time with the rapid rhythm of her mind.

She stopped abruptly, then cleared her throat and peeked her head into the doorway.

“Hey.”

She gave an awkward hand wave.

“Iris?”

His brows furrowed, but he started to smile. Lord, help her, it made her heart do a flip.

“What are you doing out there?” He got up out of his seat and headed towards her. “And why didn’t you just come in?”

“S-sorry,” she stuttered, shocked by it as much as he was, then forced herself to walk through the door.

He came to a stop as soon as she was inside and waited for her explanation.

“I guess I didn’t know if you’d want to see me.”

He gawked.

“Iris, I’ve been trying to see you all week.”

“No, I know. Of course. Right. But uh…I thought my rejecting you today might’ve been your breaking point, and that you wouldn’t want to see me now. Without an apology. Which I am totally willing to make, by the way.” Her chuckle was strained, and she couldn’t meet his eyes.

“What’s there to apologize for?” he asked. “You had work to do. That isn’t your fault. I’m sure you’ve been working hard to catch up.”

“Actually…” She took another step toward him. “I haven’t.”

His brows furrowed, and he sat back down.

“I don’t follow.”

She sighed and sat on the corner of his desk, the only spot where there wasn’t files or a conglomeration of office supplies.

“I asked for extra work.” She swallowed. “On Monday.”

He tilted his head, confused.

“I was trying to be busy. On purpose.” She licked her lips. “So I’d be too busy if you came to see me.”

He froze, his heart thudding away inside his chest. He didn’t know how to take that bit of information, and honestly, he was crushed.

“I don’t understand…you didn’t want to see me?”

The hurt in his voice was palpable. Iris hated that she was doing this to him again. He shouldn’t even want to be her friend after this, no matter how apologetic she was.

“Not just you,” she said, hoping that would soften the blow. “Eddie too. And my dad.”

He was mystified by that. He understood Joe, what with the Flash business and all that, but Eddie?

“What have you got against Eddie?”

“Nothing!” she burst, then got up and started to pace. “I just…” She licked her lips, unable to stop walking and unable to form words either, it seemed. She couldn’t stop though. Not to leave, not to make eye contact. Her hard was pounding, and her breath was coming in short bursts. She felt everything closing in around her and wondered if she was having a panic attack.

Suddenly, she stopped and forced herself to look at him.

“Do you want me to go?”

“No,” he said instantly, standing too. “I want an explanation.”

She swallowed.

“I thought you and I were good last week.”

“We were,” she said. “We are.”

“Yet you purposely didn’t want me near you this week?”

Her knees locked, and she tensed up.

“And Eddie…what in the world did he do except home to you? I would’ve thought you’d be happy about that.”

Tears welled in her eyes. Her fingers were sweaty and tingled. She didn’t answer. She couldn’t.

“Iris.”

Answer.

“I don’t love him anymore!”

She covered her mouth at the same moment his eyes bulged, and he nearly stumbled backward.

“What?” he finally managed.

She sighed, running a hand through her hair as she started to pace again.

“I realized it last week. Or rather, I’ve been slowly realizing it for the past several weeks. I’ve just been…in denial.”

Barry’s pulse started racing. He approached her moving form with one determined step after another.

“What have you been in denial about, Iris?”

She stopped.

“What I just said!” She licked her lips again. “I don’t love him. I’m not in love with him anymore. But I don’t…I don’t know how to tell him. I don’t want to break his heart. Especially after I went out of my way to make him feel bad about thinking there was anything between us, when really-”

“Wait, wait, wait, us? As in, you and I, us?”

She looked up at him reluctantly and nodded.

“Yeah.”

“He doesn’t know I told you how I felt, does he? At Christmas?”

“No!” Her eyes widened. “No, I didn’t tell him that. He’d probably have punched you by now if I had.”

Barry paled, then squeaked, “Really?”

“Uh-huh,” she confirmed.

“W-Why?” He wrapped his arm around the back of his head.

“Isn’t it obvious?” He gave her a blank look. “You were trying to get his girlfriend to break up with him. To be with you.”

Barry thought about it for a few seconds, then realized that yeah, he kind of had been. He shook his head after he got past that thought.

“I still don’t understand though. If you didn’t tell him about that…” He locked eyes with her. “Did you tell him you…find me attractive?”

“Oh, God, no.” She pressed her face into her hands. “That would’ve been even worse.”

“Worse than a love confession? How?”

“Because it’s coming from me! And I…”

“What?”

She power-walked to right in front of him and prepared herself for the blow of all blows.

“I don’t just find you attractive, Barry. I have…I have feelings for you.”

I’m in love with you – But she couldn’t admit to that yet. Not while she was still dating Eddie.

He swallowed, fighting with the smile that wanted to take over his face.

“What kind of feelings?”

“Barry.” Her voice softened. “You know what kind.”

“Tell me,” he said. “Just so I know for sure.”

He was holding his breath, and she couldn’t blame him. Honestly, she was on the brink of holding hers too.

“You make my heart race, Barry.”

“Iris.”

He started to lean in, and it took all of her willpower to step back out of reach.

“No, we can’t. I can’t. It’s bad enough I cheated once. This can’t go any farther until it’s over.” She met his eyes. “Until Eddie and I are over.”

Barry swallowed.

“And when will that be?”

Her shoulders slumped, and her bottom lip quivered.

“I don’t know.”

His shoulders caved in as well. He forced himself not to get mad, but he couldn’t help feeling disappointed. So, the love of his life finally felt the same way, but she wouldn’t let herself act on it? And she wouldn’t do the one thing that would allow them to be together.

“Is that the only thing you came to tell me?” he asked, unable to keep some chill out of his words.

Iris supposed she couldn’t blame him.

“No…” she admitted, deciding not to mention how she hadn’t meant to tell him as much as she had.

“What else?”

She pursed her lips, hating that she had to turn this conversation into a business one before she could give him the answer that he wanted.

“What else, Iris?” he asked, sounding exhausted when she didn’t answer for too long.

“It’s about, Dr. Wells,” she finally said.

That caught him off guard.

“Dr. Wells? What does he have to do with anything?”

“I hope nothing, but just in case…can we go somewhere else? To talk?”

He wanted to ask her what was wrong with his lab, but he supposed the fresh air would do them both good. Give them a clear head and put everything she’d already said to rest for the time being. After all, she sounded awfully serious about whatever else she wanted to talk about.

“Sure,” he said. “Just let me grab my jacket.”

“Barry,” she called after him as he walked by her.

He stopped when he reached his garment.

“I’m sorry about…everything.”

“Don’t worry about it, Iris,” he said, as he slid his arms through the sleeves. “It’s fine.”

…

Hours later, and on a whim, Eddie found himself at a jewelry store – diamonds, to be more specific. In the back of his mind, he knew his intentions probably weren’t smart. Especially not right now, not with the way things were between him and Iris, especially this week. But there was another part of him that thought this might be just the thing to jolt their relationship back into what it had once been and the potential of what it could be, the future he’d seen from almost the minute he started dating her.

He pointed out a ring nestled in velvet that caught his eye in the display case below him. An employee walked up, inspired by his curiosity and tried to catch his attention.

“Sir?”

“Can I see that one, please?”

The man smiled.

“Of course.”

He reached for the key and unlocked the case. Just as he was pulling the velvet block out with the specified ring upon it, Eddie’s phone started to vibrate.

“Oh, excuse me.”

He turned partially away and glanced at the screen on his phone. He answered immediately, a smile on his face.

“Hey, Iris, what’s up?”

“I’m home,” she said, and he could hear the frown in her voice.

“So early?”

“Yeah, I felt bad for coming home so late every night this week…I thought we could have dinner together.”

“That sounds great.”

“Yeah?” She sounded relieved.

“Definitely. I’m uh…just running a last-minute errand. I’ll be home soon.”

“Okay. See you then.”

“See you.”

He turned back to the jeweler as he slid the phone back in his pocket, and his eyes widened with enthusiasm as the ring was presented to him.

“Oh, yeah. This is the one.”

#westallen #westallen fanfiction #backtothestart02 fanfiction #just best friends #chapter 9

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the-girl-in-the-box · 3 years

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Not Today XXVI

A/N: So, there's gonna be a lot of plot here that we've sort of... seen in the show? But it is necessary to move the plot forward, and I hope I've changed it up enough to keep it interesting! I'm also hoping to focus a lot on the "behind the scenes" of Ivar's and Asta's plans, but also soon we'll be getting more answers to what the end of the last chapter means! Until then, I hope you enjoy this update! Skål!

Summary: When Ivar takes the throne of Kattegat, Lagertha flees to Wessex along with Björn, Ubbe, Torvi, and the Bishop Heahmund. There, they seek the aid of King Alfred. This aid comes in the form of his sister, Aethelind, who agrees to travel to Kattegat and try to reason Ivar, who she spent some time with during their youth, when her grandfather King Ecbert hosted Ragnar Lothbrok in their castle. Now, she is the only hope for Lagertha and her supporters to retake Kattegat from Ivar the Boneless.

Masterlist

They woke the next morning to the sound of bells, and to the feeling of Oleg shoving them slightly to wake them. “Ivar, Asta. Get up,” he said, and Asta grumbled and buried her face more into Ivar’s shoulder. His grip on her only tightened as she squirmed a little closer.

Oleg tried again, and this time, the pair stirred and looked up at him, irritation clear in their eyes- as well as a bit of exhaustion. “We have to leave,” he said, and went to wake up Igor, who still slept where Asta had put him to bed.

Once Asta had gotten up, and Ivar was sitting up as she went to straighten her hair, he began to speak. “I was dreaming, that my wine was poisoned, and that that’s the reason why I did not drink it,” he said, his eyes following her across the room. He finally tore his eyes from her to look to Oleg. “Why did you have to kill your brother?”

Oleg paused, turning back to look at Ivar. Asta had also stopped moving about and was now watching Oleg. He turned, looked to Igor, and answered, “Because this child belongs to me. Not to Askold, not to anyone else. His father made me his guardian.”

“What did Askold do?” Ivar questioned then.

“I heard reports,” Oleg said. “Askold was grooming the child. He was trying to steal him away from me. And that I could not allow.”

Asta noticed the way Ivar’s eyes narrowed, the look on his face which showed he didn’t quite approve. “He’s just a child,” he argued.

Oleg was silent for a few moments, before saying, “No,” and walking back toward Ivar. Asta leaned against one of the bedposts, her eyes following Oleg closely. “He’s not just a child. He’s the only legitimate heir. To control him is to possess the only keys to the Kingdom.” He stopped to look back at Igor, who was still sleeping soundly, before turning back to Ivar once more. “I mean to keep those keys safe about me.”

Ivar simply hummed in response, though he seemed skeptical. Oleg gave a nod, and then finally went back to Igor, who he began trying to wake, as Asta went to sit next to Ivar.

“Interesting thoughts about this all, hm?” she whispered to him in her own tongue. This earned another thoughtful hum from the Viking King as he turned to her.

“Indeed,” he replied. “I think… perhaps we should keep said keys safe about us as well, hm?”

“The child?” Asta questioned. “You mean to take him away?”

Ivar shrugged a little in the way that said he wasn’t closed off to the idea, even if he wasn’t fully agreeing to it just yet. “Perhaps,” he said. “Either way, it would be wise to be close to him.”

Asta nodded a little, and turned back to watch Oleg and Igor. Something the former said had scared the latter, but the sound of a horn blowing interrupted them all, and their attentions all looked out the window to see what it might have been.

“What is happening?” Ivar questioned Oleg.

Oleg sighed a little. “Seems like we have visitors,” he said vaguely.

The Commander came into the room and spoke to his Prince, making Asta and Ivar share a look, confused and concerned. Ivar decided to say something about this.

“Oleg, what is happening?” he demanded. “Hm?”

“I forgot to tell you,” Oleg began to reply, seeming almost put out. “I have another brother.”

Ivar and Asta’s eyes both widened. Another brother? They exchanged a look as Oleg added, “It seems like he wants to talk to us.”

Oleg almost stalked out of the room, and Asta and Ivar shared another look. This continued to get stranger, this situation. When they heard Igor slide out of bed and drop to the floor, they turned to see what he was doing, watched him hide behind the changing screen. Asta got up and walked over toward the boy as Ivar got to the ground and crawled toward him, Igor poking his head out to look at the two.

“You don’t have to be afraid,” Ivar assured him. Igor looked outside, then back to him, and drug his finger across his throat, making a face as if pained, before hiding again.

Asta’s face contorted in concern, as Ivar turned to look over his shoulder, brows creased as he thought. Oleg’s brother would kill him.

“Should I stay with the boy?” Asta questioned, her eyes glancing down at Ivar. He looked up at her thoughtfully. After a few moments, he nodded.

“Yes,” he said. “Be sure no one comes to hurt him. Hm?”

Asta nodded, and Ivar moved to start putting his braces on his legs. She moved to help him, and once they were done, she pressed a kiss to his forehead. “I’ll be here, love,” she told him. “Go.”

He smiled up at her and kissed her cheek, before going back to Igor. The sound of Ivar’s crutch growing quieter signaled that he was headed out of the room, and so she knelt down in front of Igor.

She waved, a way of saying hello, as she couldn’t speak his language, and he waved in response and said, “Pryvit.”

“Pryvit,” she repeated. She put her hand to her chest, indicating herself, and said, “Asta.” Igor gave a small nod, and repeated her name. “Yes, exactly.” Asta nodded and smiled warmly at him.

She got Igor to get ready for the day, just in case they needed to make a quick escape, and then moved him to another room, one with a warm fireplace and comfortable seating. Igor was relaxing, and Asta was sitting beside him, keeping an eye out for any signs of danger. Not that she was armed, but she didn’t require a sword to fight anymore.

It wasn’t long before they heard the sound of a crutch, and so they both looked up. Asta was grinning, and she gestured to Ivar. “Maðr minn,” she told Igor. She stood to go to Ivar, and kissed his cheek lovingly.

“Cholovik,” Igor said then, and Asta repeated the word.

Ivar gave her a tight-lipped smile and a short hum, coming into the room more. Igor gestured for him to sit on the small stool, and Asta went back to her seat beside Igor. Ivar was still smiling, but then he almost seemed to cough. The moment he coughed again, he leaned forward, and she realized he wasn’t coughing, but gagging. An image of Askold falling to the poison filtered through her mind, and she suddenly sound her heart pounding. He couldn’t have been poisoned.

Suddenly, he popped a small ball out of his mouth, which he then produced and looked at as if stunned. He coughed again and suddenly spat out two more balls, high up into the air, and he caught them both, before showing them all to Igor. The boy was laughing, and Asta relaxed a little. Ivar was fine, and only trying to play a joke on Igor.

Igor hopped up and ran to grab what looked like some sort of instrument, which he returned to his seat and began to play. While he was gone, Asta got up and wandered over to Ivar, her hands going to his shoulders and her chin resting on his head. “You scared me,” she told him. She pressed a kiss to his hair, and he turned to look up at her, humming.

“I did not mean to,” he said. He kissed her stomach as an apology.

The truth was, though they had kissed the night before, and though both had confessed things to the other, neither could be sure what exactly that meant for them, and it wasn’t as if they had time to discuss it. They kept up the affectionate relationship they showed to those around theirselves, but when it was only them? Who knew what would come of it?

Ivar relaxed quite a bit as he listened to Igor playing, and Asta couldn’t help but kiss his head once more. She knew how badly he’d wanted to be a father, and she wished so badly that his son hadn’t died. It made her heart ache to see how badly he still wanted it.

The sound of approaching footprints reached their ears, but neither of them looked away from Igor just yet. They wanted him to finish his song before they looked away. So, when he did, they all turned to look at Oleg. He said something in his own tongue to Igor, and then, “Asta, Ivar?” With that, he turned and left. Ivar gave a great sigh, pulling himself to his feet.

“Woof, woof,” Ivar grumbled, and Asta chuckled quietly. She turned to glance at Igor, who seemed disappointed, and so she reached down and brushed a hand through his hair. He gave her a small smile, which she returned, before leaving with Ivar to follow Oleg.

They walked into the main hall, though Oleg hung back, and so Ivar sat in one of the chairs at the table, Asta sitting to his immediate right. Many Queens sat to the left of their Kings, but not her. She was first and foremost his Prophet. She would sit at his right hand.

Oleg’s brother, who had been introduced to Asta as Prince Dir, was pacing the room as they waited on the Prince Regent himself. Eventually, he joined them, eating an apple. All eyes turned to him, and Dir said, “You have had two hours. What is your decision?”

Asta looked confusedly to Ivar, assuming he would explain to her, and he did. It was a quick explanation of the situation, how Dir was threatening Oleg and the two of them in exchange for custody of Igor.

“I told you,” Dir said to Oleg. “Hand over the boy, or I kill you and the cripple. And his Queen, as she has joined us.”

A glare narrowed Asta’s eyes as she sat up straighter, leaned over more toward Ivar. Clearly, she took that threat seriously, and didn’t intend for it to go through. Oleg gave a hum, and took another bite of his apple.

“Perhaps you have forgotten what I said. I said, ‘unless you release the four of us, unharmed, then in a day or so, a terrible thing will happen to you’.”

“I don’t believe you,” Dir replied. “You don’t really have second sight.”

“I think maybe you should believe him,” Ivar spoke up, watching the two Princes.

“What has this to do with you?” Dir questioned.

“Nothing,” Ivar said. He smirked. “Everything.”

Dir chuckled, unconvinced. “You are bluffing,” he told Oleg. “But let me give you the benefit of the doubt, and ask you a question only a true Prophet could answer.”

Asta and Ivar shared a look, considering she too was called Prophet. Would this be something he would want to test in her as well, or only in Oleg?

“I recently got married,” Dir said. “In secret.” Asta found her eyes darting to Ivar, only to find his eyes quickly looking back to Dir. So they’d had the same thought, then. Interesting. “The identity of my wife is only known to a few trusted servants. Not even Askold knew about my nuptials and the name of my wife. But I assume…” He turned slowly to face Oleg once more. “That you know. Don’t you, brother?”

He had approached Oleg, who was sitting on the table finishing his apple, but now stood to his full height, almost making Dir have to take a step back. Almost complete silence filled the room, aside from the natural sound which couldn’t be avoided. Oleg eventually confirmed, “I know your wife’s name. I know everything.”

He smirked and walked around to the side of the table, not noticing the skeptical look Ivar and Asta shared. He was eating their lies right out of their hands. How could he possibly know everything?

The brief realization that he could, in fact, be pretending occurred to them both, but they also both elected to ignore it. They’d rather survive this encounter first, then deal with Oleg later.

“What are you waiting for?” Dir ended up pushing. “Tell me her name.” When Oleg remained silent, Dir chuckled. “You see?” he called, turning to face his soldiers. “He doesn’t know her name. He’s bluffing after all!” He scoffed and gave a small shake of his head. “I knew it…You don’t know her name.”

“Anna.”

Ivar and Asta looked at Oleg when he spoke. Almost as quickly as they had done that, they looked to Dir for confirmation. They couldn’t see the way his face fell, especially as Oleg repeated, “Her name is Anna,” but the silence was telling as it was. “You were married at the church of St. Magnus Martyr here in Novgorod. I believe… this is the lady in question.”

He stepped aside, and Asta and Ivar turned to see a young woman standing there, clearly feeling quite anxious. Asta couldn’t hold in a gasp, and Ivar put his hand on her arm to calm her. She didn’t need to give away that she hadn’t known. After all, wasn’t she meant to be a Prophet, too?

Dir turned as well to face the girl called Anna, and the unsettled look that passed through his eyes made Oleg begin to laugh. “Am I right?” he questioned, though they all knew he had been. “This is your new bride, Anna.”

Ivar couldn’t help himself in applauding, though Asta did not. That seemed to be the image they gave off, these days. Ivar would approve of something Oleg might have done, and though Asta wouldn’t give her disapproval, she wouldn’t give her approval, either.

“Now, my dearest brother,” Oleg began. “You will give the four of us safe passage out of here, or my promise will come true.”

There were a few moments of tense silence, while all waited to see what Dir would do. Even he himself didn’t seem quite to know, until he commanded finally, “Order the warriors to stand down. Prince Oleg and his party should be untroubled when they leave, if they agree not to harm my wife.”

Ivar seemed stunned they were getting away with this, and Asta tried to just keep a small smile on her lips, as if she had expected this. Oleg, however, seemed almost offended, a bit concerned. “I don’t need to harm your wife,” he said, and then turned to her, calling, “Anna, come. Come!”

She ran from where she had been standing to Prince Dir, who wrapped an arm tightly and protectively around her. Asta chose to stand, and begin making her way toward the three gathered opposite the table from herself and Ivar.

“We meet so rarely, Dir,” Oleg said as she made her approach. “It’s unfortunate that it has to be in such circumstances. But the next time… will be different.”

“You have the boy,” Dir said, his eyes only briefly glancing over to Asta as she came to a stop beside Oleg. “You don’t need to see me again.”

“But we are family,” Oleg protested. “Family is important!” Dir took his wife by the arm and started to leave the hall, but Oleg called out his name. When his brother turned, he suggested, “We should stay in touch.”

“Perhaps,” Dir said vaguely. “Just don’t invite me for dinner.”

With that, they started off, but not without Ivar calling after them, “You forgot to say goodbye to the cripple!”

The door closed.

“Well,” Asta sort of huffed. “He was pleasant.”

“He is going to come for Igor,�� Oleg said. “We need to return to Kiev, and we need to take control of the situation.”

Asta walked back to the table, which she rested her hands on and then leaned fully against. There was silence as they all thought, and she finally spoke up. “We need to move Igor to safety as well as eliminating the threat,” she said. “If we can capture Dir…”

“Yes,” Oleg agreed. “Then we will have all the pieces to this puzzle accounted for.”

“Then that’s what we do,” Asta said, and gave a curt nod, straightening again. “Ivar, let’s go get Igor. Oleg, be ready to go as soon as we’re ready. We can’t waste any time.”

Oleg nodded, and it was only once Asta and Ivar had left that he realized she had entirely taken over his plans. She knew how to command a room. Of course, she had been Queen in Kattegat- one of them- and he was beginning to believe she was the more militant of the two. Perhaps she had stood with Ivar in each war meeting, perhaps she had gone into battle with him each time he went. It certainly made sense- if one wanted to bring an entire room of Viking men to heel, they had to be able to command that sort of respect from them. He simply… hadn’t expected that from the previously rather quiet woman.

What else might she be capable of, that he would not expect?

“You are planning something.”

Asta couldn’t help the smile that came to her lips as she heard how good Ivar was getting at speaking her tongue. His fluency was improving, the more they used it to keep their words to themselves.

“Of course I am,” she replied. “I don’t trust Oleg as far as I could throw him, and I don’t like Dir. But having them both in Kiev, an eventual decision between them will be easier to make, and I want them both where an eye can be kept on them.”

Ivar’s eyes widened a bit, and he nodded. “You have a talent for strategizing, don’t you?” he commented, looking to her. Asta laughed a little.

“Of course,” she said. “How else do you think I actually convinced my brother to send me to Kattegat?”

He hummed as he considered that, and nodded. “The gods have… allowed much to be taken from me since that day you arrived,” he mused, walking along beside her. “But they have also given me the best ally I could have asked for.”

Asta shot him a look as if she were devastated. “Don’t tell me you buy into everything Oleg says?” she questioned, and Ivar chuckled.

“Of course not,” he said, and bumped her. “You know I meant you.”

“Yes, I did,” she said. “I just wanted you to say it.”

He couldn’t help but laugh at her words, shaking his head in an affectionately amused sort of way. They’d be back to Kiev soon, and he knew her plans would work well for them. Letting Dir be captured and brought there would help them, in some way, eventually. But, they would take their time in getting to know the boy, Igor, and just as Oleg had said- he would be the key to all of this. They only needed to determine which door he would need to unlock.

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just practice - chapter ten

chapter ten is here, yay! hope you all enjoy it! somewhat important update in the notes at the end of the chapter on ao3 for those interested. thanks in advance!

ao3 link here

Holding the premier of the school play on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving was a bold move in Annabeth’s opinion, so it was surprising that the school’s parking lot was nearly filled, although that almost certainly had to do with the fact that Piper was playing Viola in the school’s production of Twelfth Night. Her performances in the school plays had turned into something of local legend after all. It had all started when she landed the role of Ophelia as a freshman, a feat in and of itself, but it was the way that she had sent audiences home in tears each night of the production that had catapulted her to near mythic status among the student body. It had gotten to the point where even many members of the football team could be found patiently waiting in line to watch a Shakespearean play.

Ever prepared, Annabeth had come fairly early to help secure seats for herself and the rest of her friends. The moment the doors opened, she made a beeline for the rows close to the stage and found some center seats, but when the auditorium began to fill its seats quicker than she anticipated and none of her friends had yet to arrive, she was forced to concede all of the seats she’d reserved except for two, one on either side of her. As more and more of the seats began to get filled, She came close to sending a text in the group chat as her sense of worry grew. Fortunately, that was when Jason showed up, a grateful smile on his face as he sank into the seat next to her. He took off his jacket, draping it on the seatback, and rubbed at the dark bags beneath his eyes.

“You look like a panda,” Annabeth said, smirking.

Jason ran his fingers through his hair and scowled. “Very funny. I’ve been neck deep in planning for the stupid after-party, and it has been a total nightmare.”

“So I take it that working with Drew Tanaka isn’t a good time then?”

Jason rolled his eyes and said, “There’s just something about event planning that turns her into a demon. At one point, I legitimately thought she was going to skin me alive.”

“Very dramatic,” Annabeth teased, squeezing his shoulder. “At least the worst is over now.”

“I sure hope so,” Jason muttered. “Otherwise, I might not live to see another day.”

Annabeth was about to say something when her phone vibrated in her pocket. She fished it out and looked at the caller ID, which immediately sent a frisson of irritation running through her. That was probably the seventeenth time this random number had called her over the past two weeks. She didn’t recognize the number at all, but whoever it was happened to be incredibly persistent about calling her.

“That number again?” Jason asked.

Annabeth sighed and nodded. “It’s starting to get really fucking annoying.”

“You should just block ‘em and save yourself the trouble,” Jason said, shrugging.

“Yeah, you’re right,” Annabeth said, sighing. “I’ll do it after the show.”

Jason nodded and pulled out his phone to shoot some texts, presumably to the group organizing the after-party. Annabeth spent her time scrolling mindlessly through Twitter, waiting for Percy to show up, but he was still missing two minutes before the show was due to begin. It was only once the lights began to dim that Annabeth heard the familiar cadence of his footsteps behind her. Percy squeezed past the people who were already seated, murmuring apologies as he passed by, before he sank into the seat beside her. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat and winced as he probed his upper back muscles.

Annabeth looked at him with concern and said, “Are you okay?”

“I’ve been better,” Percy said, grimacing.

“I swear your coach has been extending practices by an hour every month now since the start of the school year.”

Percy huffed a laugh. “You’re probably right. I swear, he’s trying to kill me. Literally every part of my body hurts right now.”

Annabeth frowned in the dark. In all his years on the team, she had never heard Percy complain about his body hurting after practices. His coach must have been pushing him even harder over this past month than normal. She wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

She leaned in to him to whisper to him and found her face heating up at the distracting scent of body wash and chlorine clinging to his skin, evidence of the post-practice shower he must have taken before coming here.

It took her a moment to collect her thoughts and mumble, “If you feel that bad, you should have just gone home. Piper would understand.”

“I’m not missing the premier just because I’m a little sore,” Percy said, shaking his head.

Annabeth paused before giving him a tentative nod and turning back to the stage, but she still felt lingering traces of embarrassment. That scent was beyond familiar to her and it had been for years, so she was troubled by how she had suddenly become so conscious of it.

Fortunately, the start of the play gave her a way to stop treading down that creepy train of thought. She had read Twelfth Night once during middle school, but it hadn’t made much of an impression on her. Seeing it performed now, the play was a lot better than she had remembered, but then again Piper had always insisted that there was a huge difference between reading a play versus seeing one live. For a high school play, Annabeth couldn’t help being impressed by the level of care and effort that had gone into every element of the production, from the set design to the lighting and wardrobe. Of course, the actors were great as well, but Piper stole the show as Annabeth had expected.

It took her a while to realize that Percy was mouthing lines beside her, nearly verbatim. At first, she’d thought she was hearing things, but when she stole a sidelong glance at Percy, she noticed that he was leaning forward in his seat, staring intently at the stage and whispering the lines to himself.

“But, indeed, words are very rascals, since bonds disgraced them,” Percy mouthed.

On stage, Piper said, “Thy reason, man?”

Percy whispered, "Troth, sir, I can yield you none without words, and words are grown so false, I am loathe to prove reason with them.”

Annabeth shook her head in amazement before knocking elbows with him to get his attention. He froze in his seat, face turning a gentle shade of vermilion in response to being caught, before turning to face her.

“You know all the lines?” Annabeth whispered incredulously.

Percy ducked his chin. “Not all of them, just the scenes where Piper has lines. Must have helped her rehearse them like a hundred times.”

“And let me guess, she didn’t ask for your help: you volunteered,” she said, sighing.

Annabeth found herself shaking her head again when he rubbed the back in his neck and looked away with a sheepish smile. It was amazing that Percy had managed to memorize all those lines, but it was even more impressive that he had done so while juggling all his other responsibilities. Her heart welled up inside her chest looking at him while he tried to not-so-subtly divert her attention back to the play, still blushing profusely, as if he didn’t realize he was more amazing in her eyes than anything Shakespeare could’ve ever written.

Before she knew it, the play was over, and Annabeth found herself waiting backstage with her friends for Piper to finish changing into her normal clothes. Leo and Frank spoke quietly to one another while Hazel was noodling with her phone. Jason drummed his fingers against his pants and rocked on his heels and kept looking down the hallway to the changing rooms with poorly suppressed excitement, practically embodying the spirit of a golden retriever. Percy stood beside her, leaning against a wall with his eyes closed, close enough for their elbows to touch.

When Piper showed up with an exhausted smile on her face, Jason rushed in and pulled her into a fierce hug.

“You were amazing,” he said.

Piper laughed tiredly and whispered, “Thanks, Jace.”

Jason stepped away suddenly and rubbed the back of his neck, suddenly embarrassed by such a public display of affection. Piper rolled her eyes and poked him with her elbow before turning to address the rest of them.

“Thank you all for coming tonight. I really appreciate it.”

“Jason is right,” Frank said. “You were really great out there tonight.”

Everyone chimed in with words of agreement, which flustered Piper a little, much to Annabeth’s delight. Piper rarely ever got flustered except when she got bombarded by compliments that she had rightfully earned. Percy was the only one who didn’t say anything, but he watched the entire scene with a soft smile on his face. Once she’d given everyone else a hug, Piper met Percy’s eyes, her eyes shining with gratitude, and a wordless understanding passed between them.

“So, after-party everyone?” Jason asked.

Piper leaned against him and nodded tiredly. “I could certainly use a drink right now.”

Jason smiled before turning to the group and saying, “It’s at Drew’s place. I texted the address to our group chat in case anyone didn’t remember it.”

With that, they dispersed and made their way to the parking lot. It was dark outside even though it wasn’t all that late, but it was nothing unexpected considering December was on its way. Annabeth buried her hands in the front pocket of her sweatshirt, but she still couldn’t help shivering as the wind howled past them.

Percy smoothed his wind-tousled hair with a scowl before he gave her a sidelong glance. “So I’m guessing your parents didn’t change their mind about the after-party then?”

Annabeth nodded. “They are still insisting that I spend some quality ‘family time’ with them for Thanksgiving. Whatever the fuck that means.”

“Maybe it’s a good sign,” Percy said.

Annabeth snorted and said, “Knowing Helen, I highly doubt that. It’s probably just going to be a miserable meal with passive aggressive comments for dessert.”

Percy stopped and gave her forearm a gentle squeeze, forcing her to meet his eyes, which shone with concern.

“If it gets bad and you ever need to get out of the house, give me a call, okay?”

Annabeth tried for a laugh, but it sounded hollow even to her ears. “Come on, Jackson. You don’t think I can survive one measly dinner?”

“I know you can,” Percy said, firmly but not unkindly. “But there’s a big difference between surviving something and not having to suffer because of it.”

She didn’t really know how to respond to that, so she just remained silent. Percy looked at her and waited for a short while before he sighed and dropped her arm. Annabeth could tell by the downturn of his lips and the furrow of his brow that he still wasn’t entirely convinced, but she didn’t plan on changing her mind. No matter what happened at tonight’s dinner, she was determined not to call Percy. A nameless fear had begun to take root inside her. She couldn’t say what it was, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that something terrible would happen if she continued to rely on Percy as heavily as she had. Maybe she was completely off-base or maybe she was simply imagining the whole thing. And yet it grated on her like an itch she couldn't scratch, telling her, compelling her to at least do something.

Percy scuffed his converses against his ankle and nodded again. “Well, I guess I'll see you when you come over on Friday then?”

Annabeth nodded and watched him leave before she made her way back to her car. She didn’t remember much of the drive back home. The spam caller called again at some point, but apart from that the only thing that stuck out was how the pit in the center of her stomach grew the closer she got to her house. When she wasn't eating outside the house, Annabeth usually holed herself in her bedroom until the rest of the family finished dinner before she went downstairs to microwave the leftovers and bring them back upstairs with her. Tonight, unfortunately she had no such avenue of escape.

Once she parked in the driveway, Annabeth continued to sit there in the dark, her hands wrapped around the steering wheel so tightly the cheap stitching on the faux leather dug into her palms. She couldn’t help thinking at that moment that silence wore many different faces. When she was with Percy, silence was companionable and radiated a warmth that felt like trust. When she went for a run, silence was open and peaceful, almost like a physical space where she could leave reality behind for a short while. When she watched Percy give his mother a hug before he left the house, silence was wistful and forlorn, wrapping around her heart like tendrils of smoke. But now, as she sat in the car outside her own house, silence was unforgiving and violent, like a shark sensing blood in the water, waiting for her to tear herself to shreds.

But eventually, Annabeth screwed her eyes shut and forced herself to take a deep breath before she finally made her way inside. She slipped past the door and quietly took her shoes off before heading to the dining room. The rest of her family was already seated and had started eating.

“Ah, Annabeth, we weren’t sure if you would make it, so we got started a little early,” Helen said, voice dripping with faux sincerity.

Annabeth pursed her lips and nodded sharply before she pulled out a chair for herself and sat down. She didn’t put much on her plate — barely enough mashed potatoes to make a mound drizzled with gravy, a small piece of grilled chicken, and some buttered vegetables — and tried to finish her food as quickly as she could so she could retreat to her room.

Of course, it didn’t take long for Helen to take issue with that. “Someone certainly seems to be in a rush today.”

Annabeth looked up from her plate and tried to quell the fire in her eyes, but it was difficult when Helen looked at her with that smile of hers like poisoned honey, while the coldness in her eyes communicated her utter and absolute disdain for Annabeth in a way words never could. Briefly, she looked to her father to see if he might intervene, but like always, she was disappointed. He was staring absentmindedly at the wall behind her, probably thinking about his research.

"I'm just really tired," Annabeth lied.

"And yet you had just enough energy to go to your friend's play," Helen said.

"It's almost like human beings have less energy over the course of a day."

She had tried very hard to keep the sarcasm out of her voice, but it didn't seem to matter judging by the tick of Helen's jaw. Annabeth couldn't help deriving a twisted sense of pleasure at the momentary collapse in Helen's composure.

Helen sighed with mock affectation. "Children your age are so disrespectful these days."

Annabeth shrugged nonchalantly. "Must be because we’re on our phones all the time."

A gleam passed in Helen's eyes. "Or maybe it's because you associate with the wrong kinds of people."

Annabeth furrowed her brow and deliberately set her fork aside. "And what is that supposed to mean?"

Helen raised her wineglass and took a sip before she spoke, and when she did her tone was feather-light. "Oh, it's nothing. As your mother, I'm just concerned when a girl your age spends all her time unsupervised, doing lord knows what, with someone like that Jackson boy."

Annabeth balled her hands into fists. “‘Someone like him’? You don’t even know him.”

Helen looked at her imperiously over the rim of her wine glass. “I don’t need to know him to know that he’s of the wrong sort.”

It took Annabeth a second to decipher what Helen had meant, but once she did the pit in her stomach burned with hellfire.

Annabeth barked a harsh laugh and crossed her arms over her chest. “So he’s the ‘wrong sort’ just because he isn’t white?”

“That wasn’t what I said,” Helen said mildly.

“No, but it's what you meant.”

For the first time that night, her father spoke, voice low yet firm.

“Annabeth,” he warned.

Annabeth bit her tongue and wrestled with the urge to scream. At that moment, her phone vibrated again in her pocket, so Annabeth decided to run with it. Anything to give her an excuse to leave.

Her chair emitted an unholy screech as she stood up. “I have to take an important call.”

Annabeth didn’t wait for Helen’s permission and left the dining room quickly, only just noticing the irritation in her eyes. She went upstairs to her bedroom and slammed the door behind her before pulling her phone out of her pocket.

When she looked at the caller ID and noticed it was that same spam number again, Annabeth clenched her jaw and made to reject the call before an idea occurred to her. If she couldn’t show any emotion around her family, well then this stubborn asshole who clearly couldn’t tell she wasn’t going to answer the phone would give her a good opportunity to vent.

“Hello?” Annabeth snapped, answering the phone.

The voice on the other end of the line sounded male. “Oh, um, hello. Am I speaking with Ms. Annabeth Chase?”

“Yes,” Annabeth spat. “And who are you?”

There was a pause — the speaker was clearly taken aback by Annabeth’s open hostility, but it didn’t take long for them to recover.

“I apologize if this is a bad time, but my name is Rick Waters. I’m the coach of the women’s cross country team here at the University of California, Berkeley. I just wanted to reach out to you regarding the offer of admission we sent you a month or so ago.”

A panicked flurry of thoughts blew through Annabeth's mind. “Oh, sorry, I thought you were a telemarketer. Did you say that you sent me an offer of admission a month ago?”

“Yes, we sent a letter in early October to be precise.”

“I never got anything in the mail,” Annabeth said, frowning.

“Oh, well I suppose that certainly explains things. Perhaps there was a mistake made somewhere along the way, but no harm done. I could inform you of our offer over the phone now, if you'd like."

Annabeth pressed a hand to her forehead and shut her eyes. "Um, yes, please do."

"Well, we've been scouting all over the country for new runners for the incoming freshman class, and we were very interested in you. You are clearly a very talented distance runner, and I think you would be a wonderful asset and a great fit with our team here at Cal. All our facilities are state-of-the-art, and we have some former Olympians on our coaching staff in addition to a team of dietitians, physical therapists, and psychologists. I’ll pause here if you have any questions.”

“No, not at the moment, sorry. I’m just a little overwhelmed,” Annabeth said, mind reeling.

“I understand,” he said. “The reason I have been trying so hard to reach you, though, is because we need to know your decision before the 30th, which is in four days.”

Only four days? How the fuck was she supposed to write all those supplementary essays in only four days? It had taken her months to just finish the essays for the Common App.

“What is the process if I decide to commit to Berkeley?” Annabeth asked. “Like, am I required to send an application and include essays?”

“No, we wouldn’t need anything supplementary. We do, however, require a transcript, but we’ve already been in contact with your high school regarding that, and it was more than satisfactory. In fact, we were highly impressed with your academic performance.”

“Oh, um, thank you,” Annabeth said, feeling relieved.

“Of course,” the coach said. “One final thing I wanted to mention is that we would be willing to offer you a fairly sizable athletic scholarship should you decide to attend in the fall. It would cover a majority of your tuition and room and board fees.”

Annabeth leaned against her door and sank down to the floor, smiling so widely it hurt. The one fear she had had was how she would afford going to Berkeley, so she was beyond relieved that they were willing to give her a scholarship. For once in her life, it seemed that all her hard work had actually amounted to something. For once, her accomplishments actually mattered.

“Thank you so much,” Annabeth said quietly.

“Take some time to think about it, but please do get back to us by the 30th so that we can secure your admission. To be perfectly honest, the deadline for athletic recruitment ended in October, but I’ve been adamant with the Admissions Office that you were special and that the deadline be extended on your behalf.”

Annabeth's throat constricted and her heart squeezed in her chest. “I really don't know what to say. Just thank you so much. I really do appreciate it. I’ll be sure to get back to you by the 30th.”

“Wonderful,” he said. “I look forward to hearing from you.”

With that, the phone call ended, and Annabeth knocked the back of her head against the door and stared up at the ceiling, not sure whether to cry or laugh. As the coach had said, recruitment was usually finished by October, so the fact that she hadn’t received any offers from schools had been depressing. She had assured herself that her application was strong enough on its own to brave the conventional admissions process, but this was an immense weight off her shoulders. Of course, that meant that all those hours she’d spent on writing her stupid Common App essay had been pretty much useless, but she couldn’t bring herself to care.

The only thing that soured her mood was the knowledge that she still needed to go back downstairs to deal with her step-mother now that the call was over. Annabeth sat there and looked up at her popcorn ceiling, trying to muster the strength to get up, but it still took her the better part of ten minutes before she finally rose to her feet and closed the door behind her.

:::

Friday at the Jackson household was often a rambunctious affair, but it was quieter than normal when Annabeth came to visit the day after Thanksgiving. But that was largely due to the fact that Paul happened to be away at a teacher’s conference, Estelle at a playdate at a friend’s house, and Sally was upstairs, working on her writing, which left Annabeth alone with Percy downstairs.

He had been the one to suggest that they bake something together, much to her relief. She had wanted to do something where she could turn her brain off, and there was just something about baking in particular that tended to calm her down. As Annabeth sat on the countertop, swinging her legs, and watched Percy riffle through the pantry in search of ingredients, it occurred to her that that was probably why he’d suggested the activity to begin with. The domesticity of Percy humming a tuneless melody under his breath while moving about the kitchen in his pajamas made warmth blossom in her chest.

"Are you gonna help out or are you just continue checking me out, Chase?" Percy asked, looking inside a cupboard for vanilla extract.

Annabeth felt heat rush to her face as she hopped off the counter. She tried to keep her tone light and asked, "What am I not allowed to check out my fake-boyfriend?"

Percy looked at her over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow. "Then surely you wouldn't mind if I were to check out my fake-girlfriend then."

Annabeth's heart fluttered in her chest. "It almost sounds like you're asking for permission."

It was hard to tell if the look in Percy’s eyes was teasing or challenging. "And if I am?"

Her throat had suddenly become completely dry. She wasn't sure if the move here was to say yes and double down or if she should play it off and change the topic.

She settled for the former and said, "And what would you do if I said yes?"

Percy's eyes darkened and his eyes darted to her lips for an instant before he cleared his throat conspicuously and turned away. “Good job. That should work when you get a real boyfriend.”

With that, the tension in the room dissipated into thin air, leaving Annabeth with a vague sense of dissatisfaction, although she couldn’t explain where it came from. Annabeth tried her best to put the interaction behind her and started helping Percy find the remaining ingredients, but she found her eyes wandering towards him without her permission. It was definitely because of the previous exchange, Annabeth reasoned, that she suddenly began paying attention to the way his back muscles strained against the fabric of his thin t-shirt when he reached up to get some nutmeg or the hard line of his jaw when she caught a glimpse of his profile as he turned away.

Her face began to heat up again, but this time it was because she was actually guilty of the crime she'd been accused of. She shook her head in an effort to dispel those thoughts, but she couldn't erase the images taking center stage in her mind's eye.

This was really fucking weird. She'd seen Percy practically every day for the last ten years, and his body had never distracted her like this, so it felt creepy and wrong. Yet, her eyes continued to wander towards him whenever she wasn’t vigilant, much to her embarrassment, as they started making the cookies.

They were nearly ready to put the chocolate chip cookie batter into the oven when Percy stopped and suddenly groaned.

"What?" she asked.

"I forgot the blue food coloring," he grumbled. "Mom and I ran out last time we made cookies."

Annabeth knew better than to ask him if it was really that important for the cookies to be blue, so she nodded and said, "Should we go to the grocery store?"

"Yeah, just let me get changed," Percy said, leaving the kitchen.

Sally made her way down the stairs and smiled as Percy went past her. She stepped into the kitchen and surveyed it for a moment before looking to her with a mischievous glint in her eye.

"Well, at least you both don't make nearly as big a mess as you used to."

"Sorry," Annabeth said, her face heating up.

"Relax, dear," Sally said, laughing. "I'm just pulling your leg."

Annabeth managed a smile and said, "How was your book tour?"

Sally leaned against the counter-top and sighed. "Exhausting, but overall, pretty good. Each time I have to do one of them, they just keep adding more and more cities. I know that it's a sign my books are reaching a wider audience, but it still wears out an old woman like me."

"You're not old at all, Sally," Annabeth said genuinely.

A warm smile crossed Sally's face. "You're sweet, dear. How have things been with you?"

Percy came downstairs, now that he'd changed, and jangled his car keys. "Ready to go?"

Annabeth looked to Sally and felt a surge of gratitude when Sally told Percy, "You go on ahead. Annabeth and I are going to have some girl time."

Percy looked between the two of them for a moment before he shrugged and left the kitchen. Annabeth waited until she heard the sound of the garage door closing before she spoke again.

"How did you know?" Annabeth asked.

"Hmm, know what?" Sally asked.

"Know that I wanted to talk to you.”

"I've known you since you were seven, dear," Sally said, giving her a significant look.

Annabeth couldn't help the fact that that brought a smile to her face. "Percy told me that he got recruited by USC."

"Mhmm."

“I’m happy for him and everything, but- I don’t know. It’s just that college actually feels real now and not like something imaginary in the far off future,” Annabeth said, twirling a strand of hair around her finger.

"It’s a big change," Sally admitted. "But I'm sure you both can handle it when the time comes."

"I know,” Annabeth said. “I’m just worried about being apart from Percy and stuff.”

"Well, if you’re that worried, what if you found a college close by LA?" Sally asked.

Annabeth shook her head. "A recruiter from Berkeley reached out to me Wednesday night about joining the cross country team there. He said the university would even be willing to give me a pretty big scholarship, so I'm thinking of accepting."

"Annabeth, that's fantastic," Sally beamed. "Your parents must be so proud of you."

"They just asked how I was going to pay for it," Annabeth said, smiling thinly.

Sally's eyes softened and she pulled her into a warm hug. Annabeth didn't expect a lump to form in her throat, but it didn't surprise her when it happened. She knew from prior experience that Sally Jackson's hugs did tend to have that sort of effect.

"Well, for what it's worth, I'm so incredibly proud of you and everything you’ve accomplished," Sally said. "Lord knows how hard you've worked these past few years."

"Thank you," Annabeth said, trying not to let her voice quiver.

Sally pulled away and framed Annabeth's face in her hands, smiling softly. "You've grown into such a wonderful young woman. It’s almost hard to believe that bossy little seven year old would grow up like this."

Annabeth wiped at her nose as a watery laugh escaped her. "Well, one thing hasn't changed: I'm still pretty bossy."

"Well, no one's perfect, after all," Sally said, a twinkle in her eye. "I really don’t think you have anything to worry about, dear. Berkeley and LA are in the same state."

"It's a five hour and forty-two minute drive," Annabeth said. "I, um, checked on Google Maps."

"That’s not that bad," Sally said. “You and Percy can deal with that.”

Annabeth shifted on her heels. "No, it's not that. I know we'll be okay, but I'm just worried it'll change things."

"Well, I know that the way you two feel about each other won't change and that's the most important thing," Sally said firmly.

"Of course, things will be different, but that doesn't mean it has to get worse. This is just another stage you have to pass through in your life, just like Percy does. But despite all that change, you will still be Annabeth and Percy will still be Percy, and that is enough for me to believe you both will be fine."

Annabeth considered her words before nodding. "I still haven't told him."

"He'll be happy to hear it."

"I know he will," Annabeth said. "I just want to be less of a wreck when I tell him. I don't want him to worry."

Sally smiled and said, "That boy will worry about you regardless of what you do."

"He shouldn't have to though," Annabeth said desperately. I’m not worth it.

"No, perhaps he shouldn't," Sally admitted. "But he chooses to anyways, and who are we to say he's wrong for it."

There was a pause before Annabeth quietly said, "Sometimes, it feels like he loves so hard, so honestly, so naturally that it's impossible for me to catch up."

"That's just the way he is," Sally said, a sad smile on her face. "His name means 'To Destroy', but there's no one more protective, more loving than my boy. Been that way all his life, even when he shouldn't have had to. Because of that, I’m afraid that I've hurt him without knowing, hurt him in ways that can't be fixed."

"You mean with Gabe?" Annabeth asked.

Sally's eyes turned hard. "He started trying to protect me from him ever since he was six and I don’t think he has ever stopped. Even now, I can see he still doesn't completely feel comfortable around Paul, but he bears it for my sake. He has always been willing to cause himself pain if it means alleviating someone else’s suffering. Sometimes, I worry that he feels the need to be responsible for how other people feel.”

Sally’s words immediately made Annabeth think about her conversation with Kara and how she had said something similar:

I just remember being so fucking stunned. Like, your girlfriend is telling you she’s breaking up with you after cheating on you, and your response is to go be someone else’s fucking therapist?

Annabeth balled her hands into fists and tried to swallow the lump in her throat. She wasn’t sure what to say. She had never been good with words or emotions, but she wasn’t even sure if this was something that could be fixed with just words. If she were like Percy, maybe she could think of the right combination of words to say in order to make this better, but she wasn’t.

She hated this. All her life, Annabeth had been praised for being intelligent. Most of her identity was built around that fact. Whenever her life went to shit, the one thing she could count on was the fact that she was smart: it was the one thing that made her feel like she was worth anything. But lately, Annabeth couldn’t help questioning if she’d built her entire sense of self around a lie. She couldn’t recall the last time she’d been able to use her intelligence to solve a problem, or at least not any problem that mattered. It seemed pointless to have all this purported intelligence when life only sent her problems that couldn’t be solved just by thinking really hard.

Sally must have sensed Annabeth’s frustration because she put her hand on Annabeth’s shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. Although she felt a bit better, it did nothing to dispel the underlying sensation of weight, like someone was sitting on her chest.

The garage door opened and Percy popped into the kitchen with an exuberant smile, holding a bottle of blue food coloring in his hand.

“Managed to get the last one!” he beamed before his smile fell and he looked between the two of them. “What happened here?”

Sally gave Annabeth’s shoulder another squeeze before making her way to the staircase. “Oh, nothing. Just girl stuff.”

Percy nodded but clearly looked unconvinced. Once Sally was gone, he turned to her with a question in his eyes.

“Girl stuff?” he asked.

Annabeth found herself settling for a half-truth yet again. It seemed like that was all she did these days when she spoke to Percy.

“A recruiter contacted me from Berkeley,” she said, looking at her feet. “They’re giving me a big scholarship if I go there to join the cross country team.”

Percy blinked before breaking into a smile and rushing to her with open arms. “Holy shit, Annabeth, that’s insane! I’m so happy for you!”

Annabeth returned his hug and smiled into his shoulder — Sally had been so spot on about his reaction that, despite her heavy mood, it was kind of hilarious.

“Thanks.”

Percy looked at her with a searching gaze. “Then why do we seem so sad?”

Annabeth rolled her eyes. “I’m not sad. I was just getting emotional with your mom about how much I’ve matured.”

“Hmm, you don’t look all that mature to me,” Percy said, appraising her.

“Asshole,” Annabeth grumbled. “I don’t seem to recall that being your opinion back when you were trying to get permission to check me out.”

Percy’s face flushed at the accusation, and his voice jumped an octave as he stammered, “T-That was to help you practice.”

“Yeah, sure,” Annabeth drawled. “Very convincing.”

“Now who’s being an asshole?”

“Couldn’t be me,” Annabeth said lightly.

“Of course not,” Percy said, rolling his eyes. “Now should we start making these cookies or not? I’m starving.”

Annabeth followed him to the batter and watched as he drenched it in blue food coloring, tongue poking out the corner of his mouth, and found herself desperately wishing they had more time. There was a delicate, almost exquisite pain that came with the awareness that this couldn’t last, but watching Percy roll misshapen balls of blue cookie dough made it easier for her to ignore it. At least for a while.

#just practice #percabeth fluff #percabeth fic #percabeth fake dating au #fake dating au #im so bad at endings fml #please reblog if you can it would mean a lot #ill love u forever and always

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mrsparknamjoon · 3 years

Text

02. family matters | reliability • kth

previous | index | next

pairing: taehyung x reader word count: 2.155 genre: drama, light angst rating: pg-13 warnings: none au: ceo/office trope: enemies to friends to lovers tags: ceo!taehyung, office!au, best friend!yoongi, unresolved emotional tension, mutual pining, slow burn crosspost: ao3

summary: let’s go back a few years to see how tae and Y/N’s relationship started and also get a glimpse into the kim family

A/N: it was important for me to start the series with a flasback so that the reader would be familiar with the kim family dynamics and the tension with Y/N right off the bat

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

10 years before

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

“There has to be someone else” I said, staring at the Seoul skyline in front of me as I pondered all the possibilities with hands in my pockets. I'm taking over the family business and the only thing that scares me is making a mistake when hiring people. Well, my dad scares me, and getting a complaint call from him questioning how I managed to ruin Vante Enterprises in less than 6 months of his long-awaited retirement is not in my plans.

“Why?” asked the woman sitting on the large and comfortable couch behind me. Her thin face and dark hair complemented her porcelain skin very well and she was, at all times, the most beautiful person in any room.

“She’s inadequate” I replied, making her roll her eyes.

“Nonsense, Tae Hyung. Y/N graduated at the top of her class, in front of you much less, and did an MBA abroad” the woman said nonchalantly while taking a sip of her tea.

“I meant in regards to the company's culture” I sat down next to her, leaning sideways on the back of the couch and resting my head on my hand.

“Oh right” she set the cup down on the coffee table, “I forgot that you Kims only hire who you can control”

“Mom!”

“Honey, this is your opportunity to differentiate yourself from your father” she continued, “Having someone you know in a position like this is important in the long run”

At least in one thing my mom and I could agree on: I would, without a doubt, run the company in a new way. I had already started by choosing people who were suitable for the positions and not because I knew them or my family had some kind of connection with theirs. If, by chance, these two factors intersected, great, otherwise, the best resume wins.

“Known is not the same as reliable” I observed.

Still not satisfied with my answer, my mom got philosophical. “Trust comes with time” she started in a tone as if she wanted to pass for a spiritual being of great wisdom, but I knew she was just trying to be a good mom despite not knowing the exact details of what the family business required.

“I still have six more resumes appointed by someone I know” I leaned over to the coffee table and picked up the papers. “Two of them are former classmates too. How about that?” I waved them back and forth.

“If I remember correctly, neither of them made you stutter for the first time in an academic debate” my mom made a pose like she was thinking, crossing her arms and bringing one hand to her chin. How dramatic... and a liar. I didn't stutter.

“Yup, I think it's time for you to go” I exhaled, slapping my hands on my thighs and standing up. “Thank you very much for coming and giving your input on a subject I did not ask for” I continued in an amusing tone, but low-key serious, taking her by the hand and guiding her towards the door.

“Tae Hyung, you know that Y/N is the right choice” she moved the bag handle over her shoulder. “Be smart” and caressed my face.

“Okay” I sighed, “I love you” and kissed her forehead.

“I love you too” she smirked and left.

I went back to the couch and grabbed the resumes intending to read them one more time to be absolutely sure that I had not missed any relevant information. Very conveniently the first one was Y/N’s.

“She did it on purpose” I thought out loud when I realized my mom had deliberately put it there so I couldn't ignore it.

Very well then, I started reading Y/N’s resume with legitimate attention, trying to ignore the name and photo at the top. I needed to be objective and impartial, a lot was at stake, but to be completely honest, at first, it was difficult because she has some striking physical features, which most men would find attractive but that was not my case. And even if it was, her personality overshadowed everything else to the point of making me lose any interest. After my common sense settled in, I continued reading, paying close attention to her previous work experiences.

“Hmm, this is interesting” I mumbled to myself.

Unlike the other candidates, Y/N had interned at one of the largest financial institutions in the country during college - something I had no idea, by the way, but not that we were friends back then, of course, because why would she tell me something like that? I really had no way of knowing - and I'm looking for people with experience in acquisitions. Convenient coincidence, I like it.

Moving on, I analyzed two letters of recommendation along with her resume and I must agree that on paper she is the right person. Damn it, I hate it when my mom is right! Still, the matter of company culture is real and I think that a person like her wouldn’t do well here. She is opinionated, impulsive, and hates being told ‘no’. At the same time, she was praised for the exact opposite in the letters, and that made me curious. An interview wouldn't hurt, would it?

I got up, went over to my desk, and pressed the button that put me in direct contact with the secretary.

“Yes, Mr. Kim?” Eun Ae answered promptly.

“I need to schedule some interviews next week” I said while fiddling through the resumes and selecting three, “I’ll email you the information”

“Yes, sir”

“Ah, Mrs. Gwa?” I almost forgot. It was better to hide my identity, otherwise, they’ll try sucking up to me thinking it would affect my final decision. And by 'they' I mean two of the three people because Y/N most likely wouldn't even accept the invitation if she knew that I was in charge of the company. “When contacting the candidates, I ask you not to divulge that I'll be the one conducting the interview”

“Okay” she wrote down and I could hear the sound of her keyboard. “Anything else?”

“No, that's all. Thank you”

Between today and the day of the interview, I had to prepare myself for the different reactions I might receive. My position as CEO has not yet been announced in the media and only shareholders know that a new person will take over at the end of the year. They suspect it will be my older brother, or rather, they expect it to be him but to the general dismay it will be me.

Ye Jun is a lawyer and has been involved in the family business since he started reading. However, two years ago in the middle of Christmas dinner, he had a breakdown when my uncles pressured him about some specific problem happening inside the company and he totally lost his composure (with a little help from alcohol, of course). He made a scene screaming that he didn't want that life anymore or even see any of those people again. Then he went on about how much he hated their meetings and the way everyone was fake in front of my father and in private would even criticize the color of the tie he wore. From the corner of the living room, I watched the whole thing go down without a hint of shock on my face because I always knew that moment would come. Ye Jun wasn’t born to be a leader.

The next day, he and my father were locked in the office for almost three hours. When the heavy wooden doors finally opened, dad left looking tired and announced without looking me in the eye, “Now it's up to you, Tae Hyung.” Confused by that statement, I went in and saw Ye Jun with his head between his hands, sitting in the armchair by the window.

“What the hell did you say to him?” I pointed my thumb back at the door.

“That I’m not doing it” Ye Jun replied, lifting his head and interlacing his hands. His posture seemed relaxed as if he were finally comfortable, although there was an uncertainty in his eyes that made me wonder if he was having second thoughts about the decision.

“Do what?” I asked, already knowing the answer.

Ye Jun looked at me and smiled.

“Give in to the pressure, complying with expectations, sacrificing my profession, not being myself”

He paused, standing up and holding me by the shoulders.

“I also told him that the best person for the position is you” Ye Jun's voice was full of affection, “It has to be you, Tae” he patted me on the side and I looked at him stunned.

“Dad will never put me ahead of Vante, Jun” I blurted as soon as I managed to assimilate what my brother had just said.

“Didn't you hear what he said to you as soon as he left?” Ye Jun looked confused for a second “Now it's up to you. You are the next CEO” he said in a firm tone.

I suddenly got embarrassed because it felt like I had just stolen my brother's job. “It doesn't make sense, we have opposite views on how to run a business” I looked away and stared at the floor.

“True, you do, but lately he started to realize that the world is changing and that Vante could be much better off if it started to adapt” Ye Jun stated by squeezing my shoulders and bringing me back to reality. “Of course, there is still a certain traditionalism in our field, but every now and then dad finds himself negotiating with foreign companies where the mindset is what sets them apart and he feels conflicted. Do you continue as you are and please national companies or do you adapt and gain visibility abroad? He wants Vante to remain as the leader in the segment but he is stuck in his own beliefs and he knows it”

After this conversation with my brother, things changed and I started to accept more confidently the responsibility that was placed upon me. However, regardless of how I felt, the criticism would come in full force. Many powerful people will question my father's decision and I wouldn’t be surprised if boycotts took place in the first year.

It was with all these possibilities in mind that my first act as CEO was to completely renew the staff, starting with the most strategic positions and closest to me. One of them was the operations manager, who would act as my right hand, valuing Vante's financial success and setting in motion the vision, strategic plan, and goals I set.

In theory, Y/N was perfect for it, but I wouldn't make it easier just because we knew each other. She was very smart and I was sure that the moment she walked through that door and came face to face with me, her demeanor would change and we would start playing a game of chess.

******

I dedicated the entire day Wednesday for the interviews and the first two had gone very well, exactly as I had planned and prepared — what a relief! It was almost 4:30 pm, Y/N’s appointment was the last one and I was extremely curious about her reaction, I don't know why. Maybe I wanted to prove something to her, like ‘Ha, look who’s running things now’ or ‘I bet you never thought you would see me sitting here'.

Y/N was always better at everything and I couldn't stand it. I had an obligation to excel at something. She was not perfect as everyone liked to think and, frankly, to worship. But, even if it bothered me to admit, we had things in common and she was qualified.

“Yes?” I said coming out of my reverie when the phone rang.

“Ms. Y/LN is here, Mr. Kim” Eun Ae announced.

“Let her in”

I heard a light knock on the door, followed by its closing and a few clicks of high heels on the floor coming towards me. I looked up and Y/N was dressed in a black midi-length v-neck dress with a stand-up collar that made her look formal but not old. Matter of fact, if I was actually paying attention I could even say that this specific fabric was made for her body type and hugged her in all the right places, but I wasn’t.

“Hello, Y/N” I said getting up from my chair, “Long time no see!” I smiled and took off my glasses, placing them in front of me next to the tablet I had been holding moments before.

Y/N shook her head holding a laugh as she bit her lip and stated as if it were the most obvious thing in the world: “You’re so predictable. I’m amused”

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱 ❤ 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗺𝗲 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝘀𝗸! 𝗶 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ revised version: 09.25.2021

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tev-the-random · 4 years

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What it Ursa took her children with her? - Pt.2

As we were saying:

Little over year has passed since the family arrived in Hira’a, and fateful news gets to them: Ozai remarried. His new wife is someone who is honoured to marry the Firelord and doesn’t mind the fact that his head is so deep up his own arse- anyway, and they are expecting a child, who is to be the Firelord’s legitimate heir.

Azula’s hopes and dreams are shattered. At age ten, she is quite literally being replaced in her beloved father’s life. It’s like she’s never even existed, and she can’t help but wonder what she did wrong.

Zuko is also upset, of course. All those years when Ozai told him he was unfit and worthless come flooding back. But somehow, he already expected things to turn out like this. Unlike Azula, he wasn’t so deeply feeding on hopes that things would go back to normal. He sees it more as a situation that was out of everyone’s control.

He convinces Azula it’s not her fault, and these kids will still be trying to understand and defend their father later down the road. There must be a reason for all of this, right? They start thinking of a reasonable scenario…

Ursa just feels sorry for the poor woman who has to deal with Ozai now.

So we get a timeskip: about three years came and went. Zuko and Azula – treated as kids and not as weapons – lead a peaceful and happy life whenever they’re not thinking of their father and everything they could be doing out there.

They have become known local troublemakers in their spare time. Kids know better than to challenge them, people know not to leave flammable goods out in the open – a strict policy regarding fireworks has been established after a chaotic incident – and failure to keep an eye on them this one time led to… well, let’s just say that the town is still unsure of whether or not they’re is being haunted by evil spirits.

They aren’t allowed anywhere near Forgetful Valley, but bold of you to assume they never tried. In-jokes arise.

‘No, I’m serious: that tree’s face looked exactly like yours, Zuzu. You really should befriend it,’ Azula mocks, remembering a particularly ugly tree they encountered in their adventure.

‘Sorry, I wasn’t looking at it. I was busy looking for whoever it was that asked you,’ Zuko retorts. ‘Since Forgetful Valley has all the kinds of crazy stuff.’

‘Maybe we should go back and look for your impulse control, then.’

‘None of you are going back in there,’ Ursa reprehends. ‘It was very irresponsible of you. Forgetful Valley is a dangerous place, you could have gotten hurt!’

‘Your mother is right, you know?’ Noren comments. ‘I’ve been to that jungle before, and it’s definitely not a playground. But I swear…’ He makes a dramatic pause. ‘I once saw Ursa’s sense of humour in there.’

The kids burst out laughing while Ursa sighs. ‘Since you can find such amazing things in the valley, dear, why don’t you go back there and find yourself actual funny jokes? I’m sure my sense of humour will be around the same corner.’

*More laughter*

(IDK, I write crappy comedy, ok?)

They still have a bit of a hard time making friends. I wouldn’t say they are shy, but they definitely have a talent to say the wrong things at the wrong times, and it’s hard to make deep connections. Sure, they would play with other kids from time to time, but in the end, Zuko and Azula are each other’s best friend.

They’ve cleared an area by the beach that any Hira’a resident knows to stay away from when they’re training.

Azula discovered a great passion for theatre. Not only are her acting skills fantastic, she also seems to be naturally aware of what makes a good scene. People say she’s Noren’s Little Assistant.

She hates being called Noren’s Little Assistant. She would much rather be called Ursa’s Little Star, because goddamn is she a good actress and she needs everyone to know that.

Zuko is more of a plant-lover guy. Unfortunately, he hasn’t inherited his grandmother’s green thumb, and despite Ursa’s best efforts to teach him, it seems like everything he touches dies.

He has grown to show a way with animals, however. Any variety of frogs and toads love him; lizards of all kinds are attracted to him like he’s a magnet; furry animals big and small adore him and any type of bird-like creature seems to think he is the best human being in existence. But his favourite animals are still the turtleducks.

Back in the palace, Iroh eventually learns of Ozai’s bullshit and how he got the throne in the first place. And you know what? The time has come for Iroh to draw a line in the sand. He confronts his little brother, who confronts him back by telling him that, should he try to tell anyone in the Fire Nation the truth – that Ozai was a top-grade traitor who actually had no right to the throne –, no one would believe him. Since his brother won’t be sensible, Iroh decides that’s it: he’s fucking out.

Now a fugitive from the Fire Nation, he somehow winds up owning a lovely traveling tea shop called the Jasmin Dragon. Most people don’t even suspect he is the fearful Dragon of the West, because he’s just so nice?

You can bet he serves blends of tea from all across the nations.

The tea shop is also a good cover up for his exchanges with the Order of the White Lotus. He gives and receives information, and does his best to help villages to either defend themselves or evacuate during Fire Nation attacks.

One day a member of the White Lotus travels to Hira’a for one reason or another and finds Zuko and Azula. This person then sends a letter to Iroh.

Iroh comes to Hira’a to visit the family. He’s glad to see they’re ok, even if he can’t stay for too long. But long enough for some Quality Time – these kids have grown so much!

Iroh doesn’t know of Ursa’s part in Azulon’s assassination, and only assumes she knew of Ozai’s plan. But now, it’s time that her children learned a couple of things, and he is willing to teach them, so that when the time arrives for them to meet their destiny, they should be able to choose wisely and face whatever comes their way. So he asks the children to accompany him in his travels.

Ursa doesn’t want to let them go. They’re children, they should be here living a peaceful life, not meeting some grand, dangerous destiny! What if something horrible happened to them?

Iroh understands the pain of losing a child. He doesn’t want to make Ursa spend her time worrying about losing two, so he respects her decision and soon leaves the town.

But the siblings are not about to just sit here when they know they’re destined for something greater. What incredible knowledge did their uncle hold? Did their father have something to do with this? They always knew there was more to their fate than just living in Hira’a for the rest of their lives, and this is their chance; it’s now or never.

Zuko and Azula are about to sneak out and follow Iroh when Noren spots them. But instead of trying to stop them – he is well aware that he can’t – he gives them two masks and some advice about never forgetting who they were.

Why yes, I am saying that they eventually take the masks and become partners in crime, Zuko as the Blue Spirit and Azula as the Red Spirit, because parallels.

They catch up with their uncle and adventures and shenanigans issue as Zuko, Azula and Iroh cross the Earth Kingdom.

Now imagine this trio: two of the most awkward firebending teenagers travelling with their old tea-loving uncle, who spits proverbs like he’s made of them. The possibilities for both hilarious and heart-warming moments are endless.

Iroh thinks himself a matchmaker. Whenever he thinks he sees some romance going on, he encourages his nephew or niece to make a move. His flaming cupid arrows do more damage than good, yet he only has good intentions at heart. Teens all around the kingdom encourage you to stop, sir.

Their new life is even more humbling than in Hira’a, since they are constantly travelling. But they manage, and they know their uncle is nothing but wise… even if Azula is still quite arrogant and manipulative, and Zuko is impatient and hot-headed, which can lead to a lot of conflict.

Iroh teaches them both how to create and redirect lightning. Zuko is better at redirecting than Azula. Creating it, on the other hand, is a bit more complicated, and both of them get their fair share of explosions while learning. Neither of them really gets a hang of it – although Azula is better at it than Zuko, that’s not saying much – for they still have a lot of identity-related turmoil inside them that won’t let them grasp the energy.

Guess who else teaches them? Other members of the White Lotus. Both Zuko and Azula get some swordsmanship Skills™ from Piandao, some different (and somewhat unwillingly taught) firebending technics from Jeong-Jeong and a lot of things from Bumi, including but not limited to: creative thinking, the art of patience, strategic planning, dealing with pirates and a surprising amount of rocks-related knowledge.

Bumi adopted Zuko and Azula and gave himself the role of Second Uncle. You cannot convince me otherwise.

So one day, little over a year after the siblings joined Iroh, they wind up in a city where this big circus is performing. Uncle Iroh decides to take his niece and nephew to see it. And oh, aren’t they surprised by who they see performing?

Even though Ty Lee was essentially the only one between her sisters to befriend Azula – and consequentially, the only one to periodically spend time in the palace with her –, Zuko and Iroh still have a hard time distinguishing her from the six other girls who look exactly like her, uncertainly calling her all different names before Azula snaps ‘you idiots, that’s Ty Lee!’.

The acrobat is so glad to see her friend again, because damn: it’s been nearly four years since they last saw or even heard from each other! And Zuko, I thought you were dead? This is such a neat reunion, there’s so much for them to talk about! And sure, the circus has to leave soon and so do the siblings, but Ty Lee reassures them that, if they ever needed her, she wasn’t hard to find. This isn’t the last we’ll see of Ty Lee.

Azula doesn’t let it show, but she resents Ty Lee a little bit for choosing to abandon her noble life. She really wishes she could have had a choice.

Uncle Iroh tells the siblings stories about the war that would have some day mesmerized them. But now, his opinions about those events and what he did as a prince general have changed; that, along with what the family sees in their journey – all the horrors brought to innocent people – gives Zuko and Azula a new perspective on what they used to think was a greater good. It will still take a while for Azula to understand that no, these people are no lesser than her and for Zuko to understand why any of that matters.

Iroh eventually tells them the truth about Azulon’s death. Or at least, what he knows of it: their father killed Azulon, banished them, took the throne by force and planned to gain more power at the expense of everyone. This is a lot to take in, and the siblings don’t quite believe it.

After four years thinking about it, Zuko and Azula decided to take their mother’s early words – they went to Hira’a to be safe – and formulate what for them was a reasonable scenario. They believe that Ozai never actually wanted any of this to happen. The whole family had to have been in danger, be it due to some political, social or personal threat, and Ozai wanted to take it all by himself to protect them. So he sent his wife and children away, concocted a plan with Azulon to cover for them and, once Azulon died and left him the throne, remarried to keep appearances. To Zuko and Azula, this makes perfect sense. And they thoroughly convince themselves of that.

They initiate an argument, thinking that Iroh is jealous of Ozai.

Their uncle sees these children are starting to stray from their path, but he knows this is a necessary journey for them. They will never be able to deal with reality unless they face it.

The siblings leave Iroh, planning to head straight to the Fire Nation capital and find out what really happened. Maybe now that they are older, it would be a perfect time to come back home; they surely could defend themselves from any threats.

Of course, they’ll be very disappointed to know that Ozai was just a bitch and never actually cared for any of them.

I don’t have a full formed idea about how their reencounter with their father would go down, but I say Ozai would officially banish both his children from the Fire Nation for trying to cause a commotion – which could easily be perceived as a threat. Not only that, but Zuko and Azula are the children of a traitor; cue for Ozai revealing what happened that night four years ago, confirming that he was the one to kill Azulon with Ursa’s help.

I also think that, after that day, the Firelord would have discreetly helped spread rumours about Ursa that would drag her name through the mud in the Capital – was she cheating on Ozai? Was she selling Fire Nation information to the Earth Kingdom? Was she planning a coup against the Firelord? Her crimes change from mouth to mouth. In the end, no one would take Zuko or Azula back unless Ozai wanted it. But he doesn’t. Not now, at least…

But Ozai also decides to play with his options: he plants a seed of doubt in his children’s minds; should they prove themselves useful later on, it would only take pulling a few strings for them to come crawling back to him. So he tells them that they needed to prove themselves for everyone to see that they weren’t traitors like their mother. They needed to prove their worth so that he could accept them.

Ozai goes a step further with Azula and tells her that, before his demise, Firelord Azulon had a plan. A plan to bring her back and put her in the leading, prestigious role she was always meant to get. But they needed to wait for the right time. There is a right time, Princess Azula. Your hopes were right all along, they will come for you eventually if you prove yourself.

The siblings have a lot to think about while they’re leaving the Fire Nation. They idolized Ozai so much all these years. But the undeniable truth came crashing down on their heads, spoken by the man himself. What would they do now? They didn’t think it possible, but their harsh actions made things so much worse: they couldn’t come back to their mother, they didn’t have many hopes of running into Iroh again, they can’t even set foot in their homeland anymore; Zuko and Azula are all on their own.

Maybe it’s time to turn a new leaf. It starts with them being fairly neutral, not completely loyal to either the Fire Nation or to the rest of the world. During this period, they would argue a lot about what to do or where to go next, getting separated and going their own ways before destiny makes them stick together again, over and over.

They manage to get a few deals and own a few favours here and there, become known thieves as the Spirits, and maybe meet up with Ty Lee’s circus every now and again. Life is hard.

But there is one thing that is about to be a beacon in their darkness…

Time to catch up to the show. Oh, you thought I wouldn’t go there?

Part 3 coming right up!

(I know I said this would be a two-parter, but it got ridiculously long, so I split it again. Three-parter now.)

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ks-caster · 3 years

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Beth Liveblogs Black Widow

Bought that premium access on Disney+ so I can have the privilege of pausing for snacks and using subtitles as needed - so let’s go!

Beth’s Spoiler-Free Review: Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the movie - the plot was compelling, the characters were likable, and the stunts were really excellent. I felt like hair and makeup dropped the ball on realism multiple times which I was sad about, because how she looks seems to be pretty important to Nat so I expected it to be done well in her movie.

I did not like the way they framed the tail end (denouement - obviously because this movie is mid-series we know how it ends to an extent) - I felt like the connect-up to Infinity War was lackluster, especially compared to how enjoyable and dynamic the rest of the film was.

Spoilery live-reactions are under the cut. Click at own risk! Feel free to rebagel with your own impressions, thoughts, jokes and rebuttals!

The movie begins with a young Nat with blue dyed hair and visible roots, showing her natural red. Do you know how hard it is to get natural red out of hair, enough to make it blue and not green? And I’m supposed to believe that a middle-school age girl in 1995 Ohio had access to these chemicals? I’ll give her the white hair in IW/Endgame because she’s an adult with a lot of experience as a spy altering her appearance. But as a child? In the 90s? While her family is apparently in hiding? Sus.

The scene with Alexei laying on the on the wing while Nat learns to fly? AMAZING stunts. Amazing. AND someone in an action movie is finally smart enough to shoot the tires.

Nice skills on young Nat, getting the gun. Since we know from Endgame that Nat’s father is named Ivan, we know that Alexei isn’t really her dad. She also refers to presumably the red room as going “back.” Was she lent out to these agents to legitimize their family?

-0-

Nice knife moves, Yelena - I love the hand switch.

Ooooh so she was being mind controlled and the red stuff freed her? Interesting.

-0-

Nat is in Norway - visit Thor! He’d love to have you. (I’m mixing up my timeline, aren’t I?)

Supplies Dude whose name I didn’t catch refers to the Avengers breakup as a divorce - I kinda love it. It’s accurate!

BUDAPEST omg are we finally going to get the story?? Are we??

Box dye? I’m supposed to believe she got all that red out of her hair with flippin’ Loreal? Really? And that toner isn’t even the color she ultimately went - it’s too yellow. Sus.

-0-

Oop, looks like Nat got caught up in Yelena’s desertion.

Do not give Nat your metal frisbee, robocop - she’s been around Steve long enough that she knows how to use it.

I laughed out loud when she did the string him up thing with the cables - literal spider move, I love it!

Mystery box is empty - classic bait and switch.

-0-

BUDAPEST - WE ARE IN BUDAPEST - IT’S HAPPENING PEOPLE

Nat closing the door behind her is a small thing but I appreciate it - no sneaking up behind her.

When Yelena throws Nat in the kitchen and her feet hit the door and she spins before she hits the ground? That was a helluva stunt.

Oooooh honey. No body left to check is ALWAYS movie code for they lived.

Dreykov’s daughter? Another hint from Avengers 2012? C’mon, movie.

Riding the chimney down? Another incredible stunt.

Dreykov can scan his soldiers’ bodies and terminate them if they’re too damaged to keep fighting? Big yikes. With Nat where she is character development wise, the stakes are now much higher because if she injures an opponent they may be killed remotely.

“Do you want me to chase him down and un-steal it?”

The car door under the bike was an excellent stunt - as was the car going into the subway. Though I’ve never seen a subway entrance big enough to admit a car.

Who hasn’t wanted to slide down the middle to avoid the crowded escalators lol.

Yelena making fun of Nat’s sexy poses I am LIVING omg.

Running water for wounds. RUNNING WATER. NOT ALCOHOL. The vodka goes on the INSIDE for the pain - the running water cleans the OUTSIDE. If there’s a convenience store then there’s a bathroom, with running water. Cleansing with something like alcohol is a LAST RESORT and you do not look like you’re at that point resource-wise. I thought these ladies were supposed to be highly trained in all of the things?

“Could be fun though.” “I saw where he put the keys” “Top drawer green cabinet.” I love their chaos.

Yelena’s vest and its pockets and the resulting conversation are positively majestic.

“You are sensitive.” “You’re a very annoying person.”

-0-

Do! Not! Move! Around! Like! That! While! Getting! A! Tattoo!!!! That poor artist was trying his best and Alexei just...

Ooooh was Red Guardian like Captain Russia? Interesting.

“Just don’t make a scene.” “You made a scene didn’t you.”

David Harbor running up that wall and then wiping out after the guard shocks him... I really loved that stunt, especially since they don’t show him being all super cut - he’s a big guy! He’s allowed to have fat over his muscles and still be a strong dude! I love it.

“Such a poser.” Girl, you need to meet Loki - he does a lot of hair flips too lol.

The sibling energy between the girls during the rescue!!!

“Whooooooa... this would be a cool way to die.” Yelena, I’m not necessarily disagreeing with you but get your head in the game girl.

Poor Alexei - he never gets to do the dramatic escape from *inside* of the aircraft.

Hang on, no ovaries? So all of these women are now in immediate, surgically-induced menopause? The uterus part makes sense if the intent was to prevent them from getting pregnant if they have sex during a mission, but, what, they gotta be on estrogen supplements for the rest of their lives? That’s just really poor planning. Like it was hilarious the way Yelena went into the biology of it to make Alexei uncomfortable, but that really doesn’t make sense to do to your superhero kids. It’s just bad science.

Love that Yelena keeps her vest even after she changes into her matching white flight suit. That vest better make it to the end of the movie.

-0-

“Honey, we’re home.” I 100% expected her to shoot him on sight tbh. it would have been funny.

Alexei squeezing into the uniform is such a post-pandemic feel. Also all of the fancy braids at that table; I see where Natasha got her propensity for them.

Animal cruelty warning, ugh. Poor piggy Alexei.

Oooh the photo album and Natasha remembered staging the pictures; they’re emotional for her but in a different way.

I wonder if robocop’s shield is actually Alexei’s.

The singing between Alexei and Yelena was a really beautiful moment because it was neither auto-tuned-good nor hilariously bad - it felt really real, especially the way Yelena’s so choked up she can barely make sounds come out.

Uh-oh, mama has one of those monitor your vitals and kill your ass suits. The suits I understand - the eyeliner though... when and why did she do her makeup?? That’s not really the thing that comes to mind for me when I’m getting ready to do something athletic, like say kidnapping my supersoldier fake family.

“This is a much less cool way to die.” Also WTF why would they do that. Wouldn’t it be easier to get the information out of her while her brain is still attached to, y’know, her mouth??

CLEVER CLEVER CLEVER they switched outfits and faces ooooooh like mother like daughter.

The door opening as Alexei is leaning against it dramatically bahahahaha

I love the plan. I’m thoroughly weirded out that Melina has a red wig just lying around that perfectly immitates Natasha though.

“Yelena, it’s mama. You have a two-inch blade in your belt.”

Oh. My. God.

Antonia.

A pheromone lock preventing them from hurting them if they’re close enough to smell him - I like it. It’s clever and new.

Bahahaha poser! You posed I saw you! Still love the vest.

Natasha is really good at manipulating people’s emotions to get what she wants - I mean, scary good. So if she’s provoking Dreykov into beating her up, there’s a reason.

“Using the only resource the world has too much of - girls.” Kill him.

-0-

When I say I whooped out loud... SEVERING THE NERVE. Thank you for your cooperation. YAAAAAAS QUEEN.

-0-

“Slight change of plans - we are going into a controlled crash.” The way she said that was just so mom-like omg!

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The grenade as a delivery system was super smart - but yikes what if she’d mistimed it and blew Natasha up? Also, after the beating she took and how hard she had to wack her own face into the desk to sever her olfactory nerve and the amout of blood we saw her leave behind from doing that, her face should be a LOT more messed up, come on makeup department.

“Get as far away from here as possible.” And then keep going because General I-Collect-Supersoldiers-Like-Stamps Ross is about to turn up at your location looking for trouble and he’d snap you ladies up like there’s a fire sale and you’re going out of stock.

This crash doesn’t look all that controlled, Melina. I’m starting to suspect that most of the widows won’t live long enough to make their own decisions...

All of the aerial stunts were amaaaaaazing - the way Nat slowed herself by sliding down the panels so Antonia could catch up with her and she could deploy her parachute...

The vest survived the movie!!!

Fuuuuuck Ross is showing up and he sucks and I hate him and I’m super worried that he’s gonna take the vest from Nat if he takes her into custody. Please don’t let her lose the vest.

Okay, there is now zero reason for Nat to stay behind. They have an aircraft. She had plenty of time to just board it and leave?

-0-

Okay okay okay Ross did not get her and did not take the vest. But am I supposed to believe she bleached her hair, toned it blonde, and then re-bleached and re-toned it to silver? Who does that? That would be terrible for her hair. Her scalp would be burned all to hell from the amount of chemicals needed to not only get all that red out but THEN get the blonde toner out. Y’know what color silver toner is? Blue/purple. Y’know what happens when you mix that with yellow? Green. And not a nice green either (I speak from experience). No. Her hair at the end of the movie? Cancelled.

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SHE GOT THE DOG!!!

Oh, ouch. Big ouch. I hurt like a lot now. This is so not an okay way to end the -

...

Countess I-Forgot-Your-Name-Already?

Oh no. Oh no. That’s worse. That’s a lot worse. We are now setting up the Hawkeye series and I while I’m horrified that this was how they ended the film, I gotta say that’s going to make for some wonderful angst in that series on both Clint and Yelena’s parts and I am here for it!

OVERALL IMPRESSION

I really, really enjoyed this movie, I thought the story was compelling, the stunts were really excellent, and I liked the character dynamics and the twist

I did not like the ending - it just sort of fell off quickly and didn’t feel satisfying after an otherwise really fun movie. I also take issue with the hair and makeup as shown among the characters, as seen in my several rants to that effect.

I would have liked to have seen a few more childhood/training flashbacks, and absolutely would have loved a cameo from Jeremy Renner (not just his voice) and to see him and Nat meeting and him giving her the whole dad speech that he does so well - bonus points if she could have then quoted him to Yelena or Antonia, showing the way that multiple people had a formative effect on her (an answer to the “The Avengers aren’t really your family either” comment).

#BlackWidowSpoilers #Black Widow Spoilers #Beth Liveblogs Black Widow

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inessencedevided · 4 years

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The Untamed, episode 14 - watching notes

Little note on the last ep: I love how everyone finds wwx in his inner robe absolutely 🔥🔥🔥 I mean, I agree! but it's just one less layer! It's still covering his entire body! 😂 but still, it's somehow the hottest shit any of us have ever seen :D

So, off to ep 14 *bangs head to opening melody*

He put the headband back on because he fears that lwj is nervous without it 🥺🥺🥺

How can they be so soft with each other???

And lwj's almost-smile :')

Can't write much about the arrow picking except that I honestly love how this scene is shot. The lightening, the music, the sound of them working. It all works brilliantly to build up the tension

Wait? Was that weird lightening that lwj shot into wwx head something to let them communicate by thought? The potential! 😲 My mind immediately went to thought-sharing-smut fix but then I remembered that there might even be hope for that in canon!! 😱 (or at least, some version of canon)

That's vaguely disgusting (The inside of the shell, I mean)

I'm surprised the turtle doesn't notice that there is someone walking around inside her shell

So wait ... what? There is a sword there which traps the turtle. Meaning, someone has been there before and maybe purposefully trapped it there, meaning this whole excursion was completely unnecessary. They could have just left it there and it would never have bothered anyone outside that cave. Then again, Wen chao doesn't strik me as someone to think such things through ...

Quickly, Wei Wuxian! Stab the diary with its tooth! ... wait, wrong fandom

Maybe it's not though ... there's very horcrux-like black goo coming out of the sword 😳

Tf is happening to wwx? He's hurting 🥺

Now he's... not. And he's somehow controlling the black mist and the swords ... I'm confused. Is this where the "demonic cultivation" comes in

Worried lwj is my new favourite thing on this show

Why is there random fighting in the throne room of the wen sect???

Wwx looks mildly traumatised :(

Oh wow ... I'm continuously in awe of the music choices. During this talk, you can hear the main theme (wangxian's theme, I think) in the background. But for the first time, it's played on deep, melancholic cellos. That alone gave me chills! Just, endless kudos to whoever was in charge of the soundtrack for this show!

Apparently, worried lwj is also wwx's favourite thing :')

Seriously wwx!!! He is helping you and NOW you decide to throw the "boring" back at him??

Are these two idiots allergic against genuine, heartfelt moments???

Oh god, no I take it back immediately!!!!

"Can you sing a song for me?" 😭

Hughn ... you don't understand!

There's NO trope I love more than one part of a couple singing to the other (maybe it's because that's how I like to show love. Sorry, tmi)

I'm weak guys ... 😭😭😭

He's doing it .... OMG HE'S DOING IT! and his voice is so nice and deep and ...

Okay ...line break ... I'm actually crying. I legitimately have tears running down my face

I just watched this sequence three times and I couldn't type while I watched because I COULDN'T MISS THIS!

Also I'm crying. It was hard to see anything

Just ...

...

THEY DID THAT

They did a straight up compilation of their love so far

And the song! THE SONG!! THE SONG!!!

I had suspected so before, but it's actually their love theme

And ... hugh ... lan wangji sang it ... for wei Wuxian

Apart from how f*cking meta that is, that's just... the most romantic thing you can do for mesomeone (have I mentioned that I'm weak for this ...)

And and and the compilation ...

They really know how to play a fandom, right? Like, they know

I'm speechless...

Just the fact that they do this and then they have to pretend that nope, this is completely straight, nothing to see here is absolutely bewildering to me

Hugh ... I need to calm down... I'll watch it a third time

The lantern scene was there, tooooooo!!! 😭😭😭

No, no I'm concentrating again

"What's the name of the song?" What's the name??? What is it?

(If you know, please don't tell me! I just ask these questions to get my feelings out, not because I genuinely want to know spoilers ;))

They got out. I'm almost sad. With how things were going, a few hours more in that cave and they probably would have straight up cuddled :D

Jiang Cheng allows himself to show 1, ONE second of genuin concern for his brother, before he starts acting all tough again 🤦‍♀️ *sigh*

Noooo, why did lan wanji leave??? :(

Okay, that's a good reason

Yay! They finally decided to do something about the Wen clan :D

God I love Lotus Cove :)

Again, this reminds me so much of lotr and particularly the elves. The way the camera pulled from a light background to wwx, just waking up in bed after being injured ... the only thing missing was Elrond's head floating above him :D

Woahwoahwoah, hold a second. I had to go back and pause ... is that two men kissing on the bed frame??? Is this the show's way of telling us "yes they kissed, no we couldn't show you. Here, have some heavy-handed subtext so you won't miss it"

It's senior sister :,)

And even Jiang Cheng is caring eith him, bringing him soup ... I have feelings!

And now the whole family is here *sniff*

Okay ... f*ck. I see. Jiang Cheng did so mich, wwx even tries to pull attention to it and their father/uncle still only pays attention to wwx :/

Argh, I forgot that there's still one more member to this family 🤦‍♀️

Oh f*ck her!

Just ... ugh ... that's all I'm saying about that

wwx and jiang Cheng! 😭 - they're both such emotionally constipated idiots (especially jc), but this heart to heart felt so real, you know? Like it could happen between any two brothers in their situation :')

And honestly, it's so tragic. Both of them are definitely NOT at fault for their situation, yet it always hangs over their relationship. I hate it when,in a story, the parents' baggage is transferred to their children, mostly because that's sadly how it goes most of the time

Episode finished... Going back to the song part, so I feel good again :D

These past two episodes where ... hagh ... heaven for my hurt/comfort-loving heart 🥰

And in general, I think, this one was my favourite so far!

@sweetlittlevampire @fandom-glazed @elenirlachlagos @allhailthedramallama @luckymoony (please excuse my typos, btw. I'm sure there are many) 😅

#sophie watches the untamed #the untamed #the untamed episode 14 #lan wanji #lwj #wei wuxain #wwx #wangxian #jiang cheng

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zahramalik · 4 years

Text

TITLE: MACBETH AUDITION TRIGGERS: None. WORD COUNT: 1,245 NOTES: Zahra might be going for Macbeth, but what she mostly wants is to break out of the box Orson forced her into. It’d be nice for her final role at Alderidge to be something that breaks away from that, even if it’s not Macbeth. If she gets a role that’s starkly different from the others she’s had, it’d cement the fact that she is actually a talented actress and can get roles without banking on her looks. However, it’d also be interesting if Heidi turns out to view Zahra the same way Orson does, and decides she should play a more traditionally feminine role. It’d crush her, and probably make her question her place at this school.

Also, I realized that Zahra’s monologue is the main’s blog description only AFTER I decided on it and after I wrote like half of this para already. Please don’t hold that against me!!

“I’m Zahra Malik, and I’ll be auditioning for the role of Macbeth.” The deliberate omission of Lady prompts Heidi’s brows to jump in surprise. Still, the director doesn’t hesitate to jot the request down in her notebook, which is surely filled with details of the other students’ auditions. No going back now.

Most would expect Zahra to go for the ruthless and conniving queen; it’s only the natural progression after playing a lovelorn princess last semester. And it’s admittedly poetic, how both Lady Macbeth and Zahra are held back by their roles as women in a society that admonishes them for being as cutthroat as any revered man. Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, and fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty. People have always taken Zahra at face-value, as an object meant to be admired rather than an intelligent being with ambitions of her own. Lady Macbeth had to settle for living vicariously through her husband, who never would’ve become king without the will of the play’s women.

Zahra is through with being a mere lady. Like Macbeth, she is determined to become king at any price, even if the cost is her own heart.

“I’ll be performing Edmund’s monologue from act one, scene two of King Lear.” It’s drastically different from the other monologues she had in her arsenal — Helena, Cleopatra, Cressida — but it still would’ve come as no surprise to anyone that she’d chosen a villain’s monologue. After all, Macbeth is arguably the villain of his own story, and Zahra has never felt like the hero of her own. But while it was heavily debated on whether Macbeth’s tragic rise to kingship was because of destiny or the witches’ manipulation, Zahra knew she was not merely someone’s pawn. Like Edmund, she was never blessed by the gods or granted fortune by the stars. Everything she had gained, she’d clawed after it on her own.

“Whenever you’re ready,” Heidi says, Zahra can’t help but feel as though those words are merely the start of something grand.

“This is the excellent foppery of the world —” Try as she might, it’s difficult to kill the girl Zahra and become reborn as the bastard Edmund on stage. The two became unintentionally entwined during all the time she spent practicing the monologue. She could not help but see herself in King Lear’s Edmund, a complex villain who had been rejected since birth as similarly as she had. They both thirsted for a power that belonged to others, and were willing to go to drastic lengths to achieve their goals. And like Edmund, she’d felt shunned by her own hometown, was born from her parent’s mistakes and molded from it. Even at Alderidge, it was hard not to feel like a second-class citizen amongst uppercrust classmates who fit in so seamlessly, whose birthright guaranteed they’d never have to struggle the way she always had.

The inability to separate herself from the character only made her performance that much more thrilling to watch, every word a dynamite of raw emotion. All the anger she has towards the world, towards the people who looked down upon her, channeled into a soliloquy penned centuries ago. Her voice is strong, her hair is pinned back tightly, her stance is tall and commanding — Zahra proves that she can play a conniving, nefarious man just as compellingly as she can play any beautiful maiden.

The performance isn’t all just rage and contempt; Zahra can’t help but present sorrow as she laments on how Gloucester’s mistakes cursed his bastard son to live a vicious life. “My father compounded with my mother under the dragon's tail; and my nativity was under Ursa major; so that it follows, I am rough and lecherous.” Despite his wretchedness, Edmund has always been one of the more sympathetic Shakespeare villains, especially when he can convince the audience that Gloucester deserves all of the cruelty that Edmund would soon bring upon him. Zahra does her best to do the same, giving a performance that would turn anyone on her side, even if her getting Macbeth means that Hudson doesn’t.

No, shut that down. Zahra doesn’t allow her guilt to seep into her performance but instead she channels it into rage, fueling Edmund’s contempt towards Edgar, the beloved legitimate brother. Why couldn’t she have both Hudson’s success and the lead? Why did she allow her choice for Macbeth to hurt her so much? It shouldn’t have been difficult to choose herself over someone else, and she’s furious that she’d allowed herself to get too attached. Edmund was right, she had no one but herself to blame for her own faults.

Edmund, too, felt guilty in the end. A lot of good that did for him.

“— fa, sol, la, mi.” It was a stellar performance, better than anything she conjured up in her rehearsals. Zahra has to stop herself from breaking out into a grin onstage, proud of herself for managing to pull it off. Fuck Orson’s low expectations for her, she was so much more than a pretty face. Macbeth was hers, goddammit.

It takes only a second for Heidi to completely turn the switch. “Would you mind running through that again for me, differently this time?”

Zahra can’t help but pause, a bit taken aback by Heidi’s request. Orson never asked her to give another take on her auditions. Then again, Orson probably already decided on what role she’d have before anyone stepped on stage. So what was Heidi’s play here? Did Zahra somehow mess up her first performance? What was it lacking that Heidi needed to see it again a second time? Or did Heidi just want to see Zahra’s versatility, test her flexibility as an actor? Zahra’s first instinct is to ask, “Different, how?” but immediately realizes that’s a stupid question. Instead, she says, “Of course,” and makes her way back to where she first began.

This time, Zahra focuses more on Edmund’s vindictiveness, plays him less emotional and more calculated. His scorn for his family leeches through more savagely. This is the birth of a monster, risen from the lack of love and respect Edmund had to endure his whole life. “Tut,” she scoffs, “I should have been that I am, had the maidenliest star in the firmament twinkled on my bastardizing.” Zahra may have been uncertain in how her audition was going, but as Edmund she showed that she was nothing but in control of her own fate.

She is pure wickedness at the end of it, ready to strike down Edgar in order to claim the power that had never been granted to her. It’s perhaps a more vindictive performance than one would give when going for Macbeth, the guilt-ridden mad king. But there’s wickedness in Macbeth, too, a warrior who may have hesitated, but still cut down his enemies in order to maintain his place at the top.

Heidi nods, dismissing Zahra and revealing no insight to if that second performance gave her whatever she was looking for. “Thank you for your time,” Zahra says, her voice void of any emotion. She can’t help but feel a bit drained; this was longer than any other audition she had to give for Orson — what did that signify? Zahra had no idea how to feel, and despite everything, wished the stars would be kind enough to give her an answer.

#ensembletask

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randomoranges · 4 years

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drag meeting au part 9 [i fucking adore this au okay?]

When Edward made it home that night, it was to a mantra of “I’m so fucking screwed.” He said it to himself as he changed out of his clothes, said it, albeit a little garbled, as he washed his face, continued saying it as he ruffled his hair to let it breathe, and belted it out from the top of his lungs as he took a long shower.(He hoped it would be cathartic. It wasn’t.) He continued berating himself as he changed into his pyjamas, kept it up once he was in bed, and then only stopped once he was lying on his back, staring at his ceiling.

It was as if he wanted to suffer. Maybe he was secretly a masochist. At this point, that was the only explanation that made sense. No one in their right mind would purposely put themselves in such a ridiculous situation. And yet, here he was, making it worse.

He could have come clean. He could have, at any point during the last five hours or so, admitted to this little misunderstanding. They could have – hopefully – laughed it off. He could have easily ran for the hills afterwards and put everything behind him. But nope; instead, he’d accepted a second date – hell, he’d even gone on and promised a third! A bloody fucking third date!

Maybe he should consult. Have himself locked up and studied and such. There was clearly something really wrong with him. Normal people weren’t this stupid.

The kicker was, however, that – well, he’d had a really nice time. He’d really enjoyed his evening. More so than the time before. It just kept getting better. Who in their right mind would want to end something this good? It would be completely daft of him to put an end to it, because of a little minor inconvenience. Even if said minor inconvenience wasn’t really minor and was really more of a giant lie that would completely destroy the perception his date had of him.

But – those were details.

“I’ll tell him after the third date – won’t plan for more,” He promised himself. “I’ll tell Étienne that I’m not really a woman then. He’ll understand – he’s gotta understand, he’s so sweet and kind...” He told himself, trying to convince himself that it would work out – that two more dates wouldn’t be a bad idea. This way, he could enjoy his time with Étienne a little more, if it all went to hell, and the damage wouldn’t be as big.

He hoped.

He really needed to get to sleep.

After an exhausting weekend (he couldn’t sleep, plagued by the millions of ways his little scam could backfire and end up hurting what was turning out to be a really decent man), Edward went to work on Monday. He went through the motions of his day, texted Étienne while pretending to be Kate, and finally headed back home at the end of his day, looking very much forward to falling face first on his bed and not moving until his alarm would go off the following morning.

He waited on the metro platform and silently prayed that there wouldn’t be any interruptions and that he could go straight home.

The metro, as was often the case at this time, was packed with people, but when it stopped and the doors opened, letting people out and then letting others in, Edward took to his same compartment and tried to find himself a spot where he could stand without being pressed up against a myriad of his closest strangers.

There was a standing spot by the adjacent doors and Edward went to lean up against it. He propped up his messenger bag over his feet and then leaned his head back against the door and tried to relax and enjoy the ride.

And that’s when the universe decided to curse him for being a terrible human being who apparently took pleasure in making the lives and feelings of others a farce and a game.

Across from him, sitting by the opposite window, was none other than Étienne, seemingly lost in his own thoughts, but staring right fucking at him. Or, in his direction, he hoped and prayed. There wasn’t any way he could have hoped for this to happen. This was even more ridiculous than the cheesiest of sitcoms.

The worst was, that for a fraction of a second, Edward forgot that he wasn’t currently dressed up as Kate, and had started smiling in Étienne’s direction and had very much taken one-step towards him to say hello.

Luckily, the universe had not forsaken him just yet and instead, he’d had enough mental activity to remember that Étienne had no idea who the hell Edward Murphy was and so, he’d leaned back against his hands before he did anything stupid with them and looked anywhere but to where Étienne was. (But that was really hard to do. Mostly, because he was freaking out at the thought that Étienne was here in the metro with him and that maybe he would recognise him. The last thing he wanted was a scene in the metro. Secondly, Étienne looked lovely as usual with his paint stained hands, his portfolio tube, and his colourful bag.)

He was endearingly cute and Edward had to fight every fibre of his body not to walk up over to him, introduce himself and strike up a conversation.

“Yeah, and with your luck, you’re gonna click and then you’re gonna find yourself hanging out with him one day as Edward and the following going on a date with him as Kate. Focus, Jesus, you’re in enough trouble as it is,” The one part of his brain that still seemed to work told him.

Miraculously, Edward managed to go mostly unnoticed and kept his eyes averted from Étienne as much as possible. He still stole glances every now and again and at least once, he was convinced that Étienne had been looking at him.

But then again, the metro was crowded so for all he knew, the other man could have been looking at anyone else in the compartment.

Regardless, when his stop finally arrived, Edward was relieved and more than glad to get off. He was finally out of the station, when his phone buzzed in his pocket.

Edward retrieved and opened it to find a text message from Étienne himself and Edward wasn’t even sure why he was surprised at this point.

“Speak of the devil,” He typed out, “I was just thinking about you.” He added as he started walking home, mindful of his surroundings.

“Should I be worried? Am I in trouble? Did I do anything bad?? ;)”

“If you consider “bad” as in being constantly on my mind, then yes. You are in trouble.” That wasn’t a lie. He’d spent whatever time he wasn’t freaking out over this situation replaying their first date over and over and over again. Especially the way Étienne’s hand felt in hers – in his. Or, the way he had cupped his cheek. Or, the way he had kissed him all nice and slow. It had been a really nice kiss. Étienne’s lips had been surprisingly soft. He’d kissed his fair share of chapped lips. That had been a nice change. He should try and get as many more kisses in, before he put an end to this.

“<3 In that case, I take full responsibility, but I’ll have you know that you’ve been on my mind quite a lot as well.”

This guy. Honestly. How the hell was he going to be able to fess up to him and potentially let him go? He was a gift.

“You really are a charmer, aren’t you?”

“And if I was? Would I be in even more trouble????????”

God, he could even picture that (beautiful) teasing grin of his and it sent butterflies to his stomach. It was like he wanted this – wanted to suffer as much as possible.

“Oh, so much trouble. You have no idea ;)”

There was a pause and Edward wondered if maybe that had been too much – if he’d interpreted Étienne’s tone wrong and instead of it being playful and flirty, it had actually been legitimately worried.

“Good. I like trouble.”

Nope. Never mind. Étienne seemed to be just as bad as he was. Edward actually had to stop by the street corner and lean against the lamppost for a moment. He wanted to scream into his hands and also climb into Étienne’s lap and kiss him senseless. Alas, he couldn’t do any of those things so he contented himself by taking a deep breath and then tried to remain calm as he answered him back.

This was the greatest gift and also, the greatest curse.

PREVIOUS: VIII CURRENT: IX NEXT: X

#pc: montreal #pc: edmonton #edward murphy #étienne maisonneuve #au #ficlet #3 sentence fic meme thing #drag meeting au

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galaxiasus-a · 4 years

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selfietake said: "I'm happy I met you, Piers." He reaches out to cup both of his cheeks, pulling him closer so he can briefly press a kiss to his lips, then rest their foreheads together. "Won't ever stop being sorry about where we started, but there's nothing that could make me regret how we got here, together, despite that. And I'm not going anywhere. I'm here for as long as you want me." His smile softens as he pushes hair behind the other's ears. "...but if you want a New Year's kiss, you better steal it."

↪ SELECT: New Years ( @selfietake )

Being on top of a secluded rooftop isn’t exactly how he usually spent the last few minutes of the year. It was better than being down in the streets, with the flashing lights and the excited chatter of ongoing party goers who are waiting for the clock to strike twelve. He knows even in Spikemuth it was in similar fashion; with his residents celebrating in their own way that they get to finish another year together with the strength the town had. Even then, Piers would be alone, unless he was with Marnie. Watch the scene from outside his window with a cigarette in hand, content with simply seeing Galar reach a new year from a safe and less overwhelming distance.

When the hand that’s been resting on top of his own lifts, Piers immediately breaks out of the trance he landed in from staring at the Motostoke stadium lights, curious to see what Raihan was planning to do next. Before he can really guess, he could feel their bubble close around him when he felt his hands on him again. It's amazing what could distract him nowadays. He was never one to be social, so often times he would stare at walls during events and simply zone out into his own thoughts until someone legitimately shakes him out of it. Now, all it took was for Raihan to be in his field of vision. If he held his hand, kissed him, or simply looked at him, Raihan will be the only person in the room, no matter where they are. His eyes locking on the way Raihan moved around the room, or how his fangs poked out when he smiles, or when Raihan looks back at him with a smirk on his face that says he knows Piers wants him close to him. It didn’t take long for Piers to admit that staring at Raihan was much better than staring at a wall.

His hands raised, moving over Raihan’s shoulders so Piers can gently wrap his arms around his neck to keep him close, the beginnings of a smile forming on his lips. He took note on how cold it had gotten since they’ve been up here, now that his bare arms are free from the large hoodie that had been tucked over him. Of course he was inevitably going to steal it, he still hasn’t answered Raihan’s accusation that he purposely came to the roof in short sleeves as an excuse to take his iconic dragon hoodie. He wasn’t going to confirm it, but he wasn’t going to deny it either.

Of course, the cold quickly became something that wasn’t an issue. As brief as it was, the kiss was quick to spread the warmth and comfort across his body. The pressure built in his chest, as it always does whenever Raihan kissed him, and it's his reason whenever his heart started to beat fast in response. He sighs, already starting to lean into the kiss only for Raihan to pull away too soon after. There was a soft whine in protest before he could really stop it. It’s not always that he is the one keeping affection short lived.

He forces himself to keep quiet as he speaks however. He blinks at his words, unsure if he was really surprised by what he said, but the way his fingers gripped onto the collar of Raihan’s shirt was hard to ignore. The past year, it’s certainly been one that Piers had never expected to happen in a million years. Marnie finally going out on her own Challenge was the only thing he had to get adjusted, that was what he thought anyways, suddenly getting into a relationship with someone he thought would never have any sort of feelings for him was definitely not something he was prepared for. Much less, anything that came after the surprise confession.

He can’t say there’s anything he regrets about it, though, not when he took a moment to move his head so he can nuzzle his nose against Raihan’s with a short chuckle. He’s more than aware of how they started. How the famous final gym leader treated him, how he made him feel on nights where it hit harder than before that he had no one to go to for help during that time. No matter how much it all hurt back then, Piers knew that he could never say that he would want to go back and change anything about it. It makes where they are now all the more shocking, really. It still amazes him to this day how they were able to go from enemies to equals, he knows Raihan’s reasons on how he managed to change his ways, but he wished that part in his heart would fully understand it all.

How he went from doubting his worth because of him, to feeling loved and happy by the same person. “I’m grateful for meeting you, that you gave me a second chance to see who I was.” He pauses to think over what he said, looking at Raihan that wasn’t his eyes once he got too shy to keep eye contact. He doesn’t often think about how easy it was to know that Raihan loved him, where his feelings lied in when it came to this relationship, it was something that became natural quickly after they became official. The more he thinks on it, the more he appreciates how everything started in the first place. Maybe calling him the same person wasn’t the full truth, not with how much Raihan grew over the past few years, his feelings towards the weird goth trainer aside.

“I would hope not.” He replies, seeing his foggy breath as he spoke only reminded him that it was in fact, cold outside. It would be embarrassing to admit that he forgot his surroundings again; the lights not being as blinding and the noise from below becoming muffled while they were sharing their moment on the roof. It always happens, this doesn’t come as shocking to him anymore. Moments like this where Piers knew deep down that if there were to stay like this forever, he wouldn’t mind it at all. Whether it was outside on the spot of the roof, or out in public where he was comfortable in his lap and leaning against him, or in a pitch black room where the only thing Piers could feel was the safety of his arms around him. It didn’t matter where they were, or what they were doing, he would be fine as long as he was around.

“I’m going to be wanting you for a really long time, then.” Its something he blurts out in the middle of his thoughts, his grip on Raihan that he hadn't realized was tightening finally loosening. He really didn’t need to say what Raihan already knew; that the idea of them ever being apart brought a feeling he didn’t ever want to face. And he knew Raihan felt the same way. “You finally caught me, you know. You won’t have to spend anymore years chasing after me now. You have me, and I won’t be going anywhere either. No matter how mushy and embarrassing you get.”

Then he lets out a scoff, rolling his eyes and letting them cast aside to the view in front of them. There was a short “mhm”, as if he was actually thinking about it. Of course Raihan wasn’t going to make any of this easy, he knew he was trying to get him to come out of his bubble. “Maybe, maybe.” He replies, but with his index finger tapping the back of Raihan’s neck in rhythm to an imaginary clock in his head it was clear that he was more concerned with stalling for time. Either that or teasing his partner. It’s not his fault on whatever Raihan ends up thinking.

After what felt like an eternity, he finally stops, the hand he was using shifting again so his fingernails can leave a trail that rests on Raihan’s chest. He lets out a hum as he continues to ponder, swearing that he could actually feel Raihan’s heart at a quicker pace. He didn’t make the effort to hide the smile that came with this thought, it was nice to be able to tell that Raihan was as reactive to his bouts of intimacy as he was. It was taking up all his might to not cuddle up to him so he can hear his heartbeat himself on the spot, instead he lets out a sigh and blinking to look up at him with such softness in his eyes it's a miracle that Piers didn’t get shy and look away.

“Is it really stealing if it has always been mine?” As if on cue, the screams below them become louder as the whistling of a firework soars through the sky. He wastes no time after that, simply tilts his head and presses his lips against his. He isn’t one to initiate the intensity his partner usually does, but when there’s not even an inch of distance between the two when he pulls away and for a brief moment his eyes land down at Raihan’s lips before blinking up at him again, it’s clear that this is going to be one of those rare instances where he won’t be delivering a simple short kiss. “I love you, my beloved.” He mumbles, giving one more kiss before breaking away again. His words are soft, but he knows Raihan can hear him above all the fireworks. “Stay with me… forever? That’s all I really want this year, a promise that you will.”

#and with that #its my first post of 2020 #i am LATE i wanted this out at midnight but im a ho and can only write after midnight #i hate this. how do people write during the normal hours #ANYWAYS #PIERS? BEING SOFT? AND AFFECTIONATE? FUCK DUDE WHO WOULDVE THOUGHT SKDJNFKJSDNFKSDNFSDNKSDNFS AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA #HE LOVES HIM A LOT I DONT KNOW HOW OBVIOUS THAT IS #i have no idea what their timeline is so.... first new years together.... for that sweet aesthetic #it took me way too long to write all this #but also i dont regret shit #heres ur fucking comfort food u fucking gay i love u and happy new year i dont ever regret meeting u and getting to call u a friend #bc ur amazing and everything u do is amazing and im forever grateful that i started talking to u and the chat again #bc i missed u and everyone else and u helped made the last half of the year better #[ DARKDRAGONS | raihan/piers. ✦ tell me everyday I get to wake up to that smile ]#i have a new ship tag with the new format but like. im lazy #i wanna lay down #selfietake

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moved99999999999 · 5 years

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U guys wanna know what I think about that hell hotel show

I feel like twitter’s very tired of seeing ppl talk about Hazbin Hotel, so I putting my opinions on tumblr where they belong. I’m not a “professional critic” by any means, but I’ll try my best given what I know. And don’t worry, I’ll be incredibly nit-picky to suit the internet’s needs.

I’m gonna mainly focus on HH itself instead of Vivzie’s accusations because that's a WHOLE other can of worms to open.

During the time of me writing this, I haven’t watched any YT reviews, but I’ve read a few threads criticising the show, so take that as my social influence bias.

My ted talk is allllll below the cut. Enjoy~

Context:

My first exposure of Vivzie’s work was her “Die Young” animation that I came across around 2016. Instantly I fell in love with how “smooth” and lively her animation was, and especially the fact that it was hand drawn. Animation like that was extremely rare to come by (and still is) and seeing her execute it so well with such complexed characters was amazing to my fetus self.

A few years later and I see the first trailer for HH. I instantly went OH I RECOGNISE THAT STYLE AND THOSE CHARACTER TYPE DESIGNS and was looking forward to what it had to offer.

On “opening day” I watched the pilot ASAP to avoid my opinions from getting warped by all of the key-mash memes and post call-out bitching (literally the extremes of the HH opinion spectrum), and overall.....

I thought it was good.

Not ground breakingly amazing, not horrifically terrible, but charmingly good.

(Ok now it’s actual review time)

Animation Quality:

As a hand drawn animation that has the freedom to get creative with its shots, a lot of effort was clearly put into how everything moves (it definitely didn’t take any lazy flash puppet shortcuts for the main sections of the show) and I can appreciate that. However it tends to be... rather inconsistent, most likely due to the varying skill level of the animators on the project. It’ll be nice and smooth one minute, and then awkward and choppy the next which can make the viewing pretty confusing at times. I’ll be honest I found myself overlooking these inconsistencies due to the characters and backgrounds themselves being very visually engaging, especially considering how over designed some of them can be (which I applaud the team for handling cuz wow that must have been painful). However, the needle thin and exaggerated art style makes some things incredibly hard to look at. While it helps with adding fancy details, it hurts in catching peoples eyes in the right place.

It’s also chalk full of little details, visual gags, and references that are hilarious to look at if you have the luxury of pausing every two seconds (the news segment and Sir Pentious turf war w/ Angel and Cherri are good places to look). But I feel like these lil details were put in at the cost of some some continuity errors (Charlie not wearing her coat in one shot, and having it back on in the next, papers being blank, etc.) and lip-syncing issues which really shouldn’t be happening considering all of the detail they were able to put in. There are also some shots that have just SO MUCH detail put into them, only to be shown for less than a second. I get that’s the cost of animation sometimes, but save the detail for the shots that need it, because at that point you’re just causing the animators to waste their efforts.

However, I was surprised at how professional the soundtrack and editing was. Not one but THREE songs in this single episode was really surprising, and the variation and quality of each was great (as cringy as Charlie’s song is)

But overall, the production quality is surprisingly good for a project like this, the editing, sound effects, and sound track act like a cherry on top. Of course there are some noticeable drops in quality, but given time and a budget, it has enough chops to look like an actual show.

Writing:

As far as overarching plot goes, it seems like it’s going to be one of those procedural shows that tries to be serialised, but it’s a creative twist on hell and has an interesting premise to begin with. You can get really creative with seeing how you’d dive into getting redemption out of all of these seemingly lost causes, and I’m sure there are many people willing to know the backstories our main cast. As a pilot, it did it’s job of launching the plot very well, setting up the premise of the hotel and introducing characters in a very engaging way. I was legit really interested in each segment with who in introduced, and it didn’t feel like I was being overloaded with names to remember (which can be a problem for many medias and introductions). The cohesion between each scene is VERY smooth, and I genuinely enjoyed some of the cliché cuts/gags.

Unfortunately I can’t extend this interest to our main character. Charlie is one of the most generic tropes we’ve ever seen. She’s a boring Disney princess who has a “cute happy positive goal to change her world” and the only thing that would make her more generic is if she wore a dress and cried “I’m tired of being so privileged”.

(Although it’s impossible to tell, I honestly think Viv is just projecting through her, especially considering how horrifically accurate the hotel’s opening mirrors the internet’s reaction to the pilot itself)

I would be more forgiving if she was a supporting character or someone less important, but she’s the freaking protagonist, arguably the character that has to be the most interesting. Angel’s personality seems to be “flirty porn star”, and while that’s just as bad as being a boring Disney princess, at least he gets a few jokes and has a profession more interesting than Charlie’s. Around the end of the pilot he just seems like he’s getting involved because Viv likes giving him attention. If he’s supposed to be leeching off of the hotel, wouldn’t not care if it survives or not?

(There’s that whole stereotype issue that everyone keeps bringing up, but I genuinely think that’s BS because people are blatantly ignoring the fact that Angel is a porn star, Vaggie is portrayed as helpful, and that the show takes place in H E double hokey sticks.)

The transitions may be smooth, but the dialogue pacing can get really awkward at times. This paired with the animation sometimes having awkward quality drops makes some movements incredibly jagged, and has some detailed shots show for incredibly unbalanced screen time as mentioned before.

I don’t have enough to give voice acting it’s own section so I’m just popping it down here:

The voice acting is legitimately better than several big name projects I know. It’s consistent, great at expressing the character’s mood properly, and each voice fits each character perfectly. My only gripes are that Alastor and Sir Pentious tend to grain on you after awhile due to them keeping a single tone for too long.

Character Design: AKA the only thing I have legitimate experience with.

First thing’s first. The characters are WAY too over designed. There are so many markings and accessories that are incredibly unnecessary. I think the mindset for these characters was “the more complicated and attractive the better”, which makes them look like they’re designed by an edgy tumblr artist (heck I fall for this too some times).

Especially if a character is going to be animated, you have to keep in mind the value of simplicity. You absolutely don’t have to fill in your character with markings and trinkets to make them look unique, I mean just look at the gen 1 pokemon starters. Thanks to the limitations of the game, the sprites were forced to be simple, and it was that simplicity that made them such unique and varied creatures. You can tell Blastoise is a bulky water blasting turtle just with a quick glance.

Many of the characters suffer from over complication, but I’ll look at Husk for example. He has these stripes all over him that do not contribute to who he’s supposed to be at all, and only look like they’re added to make him more unique. The markings that DO help are the little card suite marks on his wings, because those at least infer he’s linked to a casino/gambling type of theme. I would say his outfit helps as well, but formal wear and bowties are worn way to often by the main characters, which brings me to another problem.

They may look different, but they feel way too similar. From the same skinny body type, to generic head shapes, to outfits, the focus characters just don’t stand out amongst each other. Even the ones with interesting features still suffer from feeling generic. I’d say Sir Pentious is a good example of this. He has a serpentine/naga body and clever hair style that make his concept really creative, but his skinny body type, complicated eyes all over his tail, and generic “young but supposed to be at least middle aged” face just push him back into obscurity. He’s even wearing the SAME outfit as Alastor (who's an even worse offender of that generic face problem), and unless Viv has some plan to link the two, I’d say the characters need to stop using a dress code.

A successful character design can to tell you who the character is just by looking at them. You should be able to tell if a character’s personality, function, age, the universe they belong in, and if they’re important or not, and that’s a big problem when it comes to the background characters. If you pause on one of the extras for a minute you can see all of the effort put into designing them, and that takes away so much attention from the main cast. Not only that, but they have actual variations in their body types and outfits, which makes them more intriguing than who we’re supposed to be interested in.

Regardless, this pilot has potential, and if they can get someone to comb out the flaws, you can end up with something good. No one can deny a legitimate animation was made here, and the team successfully executed the start of a story, and that’s something anyone can look up to.

TLDR: The pilot is good. It has some major flaws, but it has potential to be a good show.

If you actually read this far epstein didn’t kill himself.

#I'm only doing this cuz i wanna draw angel dust and i feel like I have to justify myself before ppl start calling me mean things #Fan art is coming ;)#hazbin hotel #HH is good yall just have a mob mentality #critique

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cycwrites · 5 years

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Still Falling - A Fic Tease

The Return of the Nowish Fic Teases! This one is a series of Staubrey scenes from a story I plan on writing called “Proposals, Weddings and Promises.” Did I call it that JUST so I can shorten it to PWP? Maybe… That story will, eventually, be both the Bechloe and Staubrey weddings from proposals to final dance (and maybe honeymoon). But for now have a much delayed Staubrey Week 2019 entry.

Plus I hurt my soul writing Can’t Help Falling and this was my way to get past it.

Edited to add that it takes place post-Worlds and pre-Nowish.

As always, thank you to @tiny-maus-boots for being the Master Beta, editor and sounding board.

Rating: Teen

Word Count: 6834

On AO3 with my other Fic Teases.

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~S~

Friday, January 15th 2016

“Stacie! Did you call to give me more embarrassing stories about my sister? Please tell me yes!”

Stacie laughed as she adjusted the phone against her ear. “Sorry to disappoint you, Aiden. She’s been on her best behavior.”

He snorted. “That’ll be the day.”

“True.” Stacie leaned back in her office chair. “Despite the pressure of school, I’m glad she seems to have… relaxed… a lot the past couple months.” While the move to LA had been stressful, Aubrey still wasn’t even close to the ball of tension she’d been since Stacie had met her. The visit to the Posen estate over Thanksgiving – and spending time with her brothers – had been exactly what Aubrey had needed to unwind.

“Me too,” he said sincerely. “The past few years she’s been… She’s had…” Aiden trailed off, obviously trying not to be offensive.

“A stick up her ass?” Stacie grinned.

“Your words, not mine.” Stacie could almost see him hold up his hand as if to ward off a blow. “I don’t want her to hit me; it stings like the dickens.” She heard him close a door and the background murmur she’d been hearing cut off. “Everything okay though? Did you have a good birthday last week?”

“Yeah, we’re great and yes I did. Thank you for the picture. I love it.” Asher and Aiden had sent along a baby picture of Aubrey’s that Stacie had fallen in love with the second she saw it in Aubrey’s bedroom. In it a very serious faced Aubrey was standing stiffly at attention, saluting the General who stood opposite her. He was saluting her back, every inch the perfect soldier; but even in profile and only able to see one eye, the pride and love he felt for his daughter was obvious.

“You’re welcome. You know Asher and I consider you family.”

Stacie squirmed in her chair, caught between pleasure at the words and a lifetime of avoiding anything like them. “Thanks.” It felt lame, but it was still hard to express certain things with anyone but Aubrey. “I… feel the same way.” She rolled her eyes at herself. ‘Real warm, Conrad.’

When she’d set her mind to wooing Aubrey, Stacie hadn’t considered the fact that she would also be accepting the Posen’s as a family into her life as well. Which she should have because she knew how close Aubrey and her brothers were. It wasn’t that she didn’t like them, she did – though she was pretty sure Mother Posen didn’t approve of her – but she had no idea how to express any of it. Except to Aubrey, where she felt safe enough to talk about anything.

“Sorry,” he said cheerfully. “I forgot you’re not big on the feels. Bossy will change that soon enough. With a little teasing – I mean help – from her older and wiser brothers.”

“I have no doubt,” she said with another laugh, feeling the discomfort fade. They really had made her, and Beca, feel like family at Thanksgiving. She didn’t think it would be long before she loved them as much as her own brother.

“I’m sure you didn’t call me just so I could tease you.” She heard him settle into his own chair.

“Not exactly.” Stacie took a measured breath. “Do you think General Posen would give me the recipe for his BBQ sauce?” As she expected there was a long pause.

“I dunno Stacie, the General considers that classified information.” Aiden hesitated. “I mean, you definitely impressed all of us with how much you knew about marinades and dry rubs…” He paused and Stacie heard what had to be a stifled snicker.

“No wonder you and Beca got along so well.” Stacie laughed. “You both live in the gutter.” She ignored Beca’s voice in the back of her head that asked ‘Would you like to be pot or kettle?’

Despite the inappropriately hilarious innuendos, there had been a very intense discussion on all things barbeque over Thanksgiving: The best brands of BBQ’s, best ways to prepare all the various things you could cook on them and then the actual cooking process itself. After twenty minutes Beca had escaped to the kitchen, ostensibly to see if she could help but Stacie knew that she was really hoping to steal something to snack on. Beca still hadn’t developed any real cooking skills beyond breakfast and all the talk of food prep had only served to make her even hungrier and dinner was still at least an hour away. Plus she’d begun to look pained with the effort of not laughing during the dry rub discussion and Stacie imagined she’d paused somewhere to giggle uncontrollably before finding the others.

“Guilty as charged.” He said with another laugh before picking up where he’d left off. “But he hasn’t even hinted at what’s in it to any of us. I don’t even think Mom knows.”

Stacie sighed and played with the pencil sitting on the desk in front of her. “I know Aiden, but if I’ve learned one thing over the past few years, you never know unless you ask.”

“That’s a fair point.” She heard him hum under his breath and could almost picture him purse his lips exactly like Aubrey did when she was considering something big.

“I just… I wanted to give Aubrey a surprise. She followed the three of us to LA without hesitation and…”

“Is she unhappy?” He asked it quick, but she could tell he wasn’t really worried. “She seemed fine at Thanksgiving.”

“No, nothing like that.” Stacie shook her head even though he couldn’t see her. “School has been kicking her ass, just a little, and… She’s got an interview in a few weeks at the law firm Beca’s label uses, to be an intern, and when she gets it, I wanted to surprise her with a taste of home.”

“I knew you were mushy at heart.” Aiden teased but she heard brotherly pride and approval in it.

“Only when your sister is involved,” Stacie said easily.

“Aw, now you’re just buttering me up so I’ll do it,” he accused.

“Guilty.” Stacie cradled her phone to her ear. “Did it work?”

“Of course it did.” He snorted. “I’m her big brother and making her happy is coded into my DNA.”

“I know the feeling,” Stacie muttered and flushed when he laughed. She hadn’t meant to say it out loud.

“If it’s cool, I’ll give Dad your number and have him call you. Is it okay that I tell him why you’re asking?”

“Of course, I expected nothing less.” Stacie felt herself relax, only then realizing that she’d been tense since she’d made the decision to call and picked up her cell.

“I can’t promise anything, but I’m sure he’ll at least call you to say no.” He laughed again. “Of course, if he says yes you know I expect to have you share with me.”

“Aiden,” Stacie sat up and leaned her elbows on her desk. “If he hasn’t given it to you, I’m sure as hell not going to go against him and give it to you if he entrusts me with it.”

“Aubrey always did pick the smart ones,” Aiden said. “Alright, Stacie. I’ll call Dad tonight when I know he’s not in the office anymore. Not sure when he’ll call you though.”

“That’s fine. Thanks, Aiden.” Stacie closed her eyes in relief. She’d been afraid he’d refuse outright because she was an outsider. In hindsight, she should’ve known better; Aiden and Asher had welcomed her in with arms wide open when Aubrey had first told them they were dating. Hell, at Thanksgiving she’d been treated exactly like Aubrey from the second they’d arrived - like a younger sister with all the teasing that accompanied it. It had been strange to realize that she’d already felt almost as comfortable with Aubrey’s brothers as she did with her own. It had also made her miss Derek and she’d gone to see him the following weekend.

“Anytime, Stacie. I hate to say it, but I do have to go. Army never rests and all that.” She heard him sigh. “I hope to be able to come visit soon”

“It’s okay, I understand. My lunch break is almost over anyway. And we would love you to visit.” Stacie eyed the clock, wishing she was already off work and headed for the condo. “Tell Asher hi for me, will ya?”

“’Course.” She heard someone knock on the door in the background and Aiden’s voice quieted as he turned his head away. “I’ll be out in a minute.” He came back to the phone. “Be good and don’t let Bossy live up to her name.”

“But what if I like it when she does?” Stacie couldn’t help herself and grinned at the gagging sound he made.

“Nope! No! HangingupnowbyeStacie.” He said in a rush.

“Laters, Aide,” Stacie said as the line went dead. “So easy.”

Standing she put her phone in her lab coat pocket and stretched. “Now I just have to convince the General to give up a family secret to an unknown. No big deal. Piece of cake.”

Leaving her office for the lab, Stacie spared one final thought before she put it away. It would do no good to dwell while she waited to hear from Aubrey’s father. ‘Please let this work.’

~S~

Sunday, January 17th, 2016

When her phone rang, Stacie almost ignored it. She usually screened unknown numbers by letting them go to voicemail and calling them back if it was a legitimate call. Except she didn’t have the General’s number and she wasn’t sure if she’d be able to call him back. With a quick glance to make sure she was alone – completely unnecessary as Aubrey had gone to the store for dinner supplies – she forced her nerves away and answered. “Stacie Conrad.”

“Stacie.” The General’s gruff voice filled her ear. “How are you?”

“I’m great, Sir. I hope your weekend has been good.” She had never been good with parents and rolled her eyes at her stilted words.

“Passing well. Lydia didn’t have any events this weekend so we’ve just been rattling around the house.” He let out a chuckle. “But I’ll spare you the boring details of two old people filling their days and just hop right into it.” He paused and Stacie took a quiet breath, bracing herself as she sat at their kitchen table. “I hear you want some classified information.”

Despite the smile she could hear in his voice, Stacie’s tension grew as the moment she’d been thinking of for two months finally arrived. “Actually, Sir, the recipe is sort of secondary to why I wanted to talk to you.” She took another breath. “I’m sorry I wasn’t one hundred percent truthful with Aiden, but I wanted to do this right.” The hand not holding her phone began to ache and she forced herself to relax the fist she hadn’t realized she’d been making in her lap, resting it palm down on the table.

“And that is?” Thankfully he sounded curious instead of angry.

“I want to ask Aubrey to marry me and I was hoping to get your blessing Sir, General Posen, Sir.” She stared at her left hand where it pressed into the wood so hard her fingertips blanched white. ‘Maybe that was overkill…’

“I see.” It was completely neutral, no hint of anything she’d been expecting: surprise, disapproval or anything in between.

Her heart, which had already been trying to pound its way from between her ribs, tripled in speed. She would have licked her lips to wet them but her mouth had gone dry. “I realize that we’ve only been together for a short time, but I have loved Aubrey for years even though I didn’t realize it.” She wished she had some water but she didn’t trust her legs to hold her up. “I never thought – I never planned to fall in love. So I didn’t recognize what I was feeling as anything more than fondness. Until a year ago when I…” She trailed off with a self-deprecating laugh. “Until I couldn’t hide from my truth anymore.”

“That you loved Aubrey.” He made it a statement not a question and still there was no hint of what he might be thinking.

“Yes, General Posen.” Stacie shifted in her chair. “By the time I realized it, I thought it was too late… She was dating Thad, had even brought him home.” There was a small sound through the phone but she couldn’t tell if it was because the General had approved or disapproved of Aubrey’s boyfriend. “But then I got this second chance to prove to her what I’d spent all that time hiding from myself. That I love her with everything I am or ever will be.”

Stacie forced herself to take a breath, feeling lightheaded from all the emotions bouncing around inside her. She tried not to read too much into the fact that the General hadn’t said anything at all; he was military, he was a man who needed all the facts to make his decisions and likely rarely gave in to his emotions. Stacie understood it – Aubrey was the same way, though she was listening to her emotions more – and could respect it. She’d been planning different versions of this speech since Thanksgiving.

“So while I realize and appreciate that it could look like I’m moving too fast, that I’m setting us up for failure… I don’t want to waste any more time in starting the rest of my life with the only person I have ever – will ever – love.” She heard her throat click as she swallowed dryly, determined to get the rest of it out before she had her nervous breakdown.

“I know I’m not… what you and Mrs. Posen had envisioned for your daughter as you watched her grow up into the beautiful woman she is today. I know we come from two different worlds…” Stacie trailed off. “But I love her. And I promise to cherish Aubrey as the amazing woman she is for every second of the rest of our life together. Forever. It’s not a word I use lightly – one I never thought I would use at all. But it’s what I want with everything that I am.” She hesitated. “I just hope that I can live up to the way Aubrey loves me; prove to her every day that she didn’t make a mistake in choosing me.”

Stacie let herself fall silent; there was nothing left to do but wait for his answer.

As the silence grew, her heart fell. She knew she wasn’t good enough – not yet – for Aubrey, but she thought that the Posen’s had accepted her over the holidays. At least enough that when she’d realized she was going to ask Aubrey to marry, Stacie knew she had to do it the right way from the start. And in Aubrey’s world, that meant asking her father… Except he still hadn’t said anything and each passing second felt like a stone in her heart.

Even if he refused, Stacie still planned to propose to Aubrey; there wasn’t a force on Earth that could prevent that from happening. She’d had the ring since the beginning of November, already knowing that Aubrey was her future, but had only recently solidified how she wanted to propose. They were meant to be, she knew that now, so while Stacie didn’t really worry that Aubrey would say no – brief moments of insecurity aside – she didn’t want to be the cause of a rift between Aubrey and her family.

“And the recipe?” His voice startled her from her musings.

“She told me that, as a child, she loved barbeque nights. Because that meant you were home.” Stacie didn’t think Aubrey would mind her sharing this secret, but she still wanted to squirm a little. “And I want to show her that I… want… to be her home. Because she is mine.”

There was another long silence before he spoke again.

“Do you have pen and paper handy?”

“Yes, Sir!” Too afraid to let herself hope, Stacie scrambled to stretch out an arm that had become leaden with nerves and pull over the notepad they used for groceries.

"First, I want to remind you that if you give this to any of my children, I will both be disappointed and then lock you away in a bunker for treason.” Amusement laced his voice though there was something else underneath it.

She nodded before remembering he couldn’t see her. “Of course. I would expect nothing less. But I promise I’ll guard it with my life.”

“I know you will.” This was said softer and Stacie knew they weren’t talking about barbeque sauce anymore. He cleared his throat. “As you know, we go for a sweeter taste up here in Northern Virginia, so it’s more tomato based. But the real trick is to make sure you let it sit for a night after you mix it all together and then heat it slowly when you’re ready.”

“Got it.” Stacie said as he gave her the ingredients, taking meticulous notes in a shorthand she had made up in college. The last thing she wanted was for Aubrey to find it and ruin the surprise.

As he spoke, silent tears tracked down her face, moved beyond words at the unspoken but unmistakable approval of her as a partner for Aubrey.

~S~

Sunday, February 14th, 2016

Stacie was sure she was going to throw up.

The tension in her body had grown all day and now that the moment of truth was almost here, she wasn’t sure she could eat the dinner she’d spent the day preparing.

On Saturday she’d been spared coming up with an excuse to get Aubrey out of the house by Beca insisting that Aubrey go with her for a last minute gift consultation. Apparently she’d bought something for Chloe and decided that maybe she’d picked up the wrong thing – earrings versus bracelet, if Stacie heard right – so Stacie had had several hours free to mix together the recipe given to her by the General the month before.

Chloe, who Stacie had confided in three weeks before, had stored the various ingredients Stacie picked up in preparation. It was a testament to how nervous Stacie was that she hadn’t realized one simple fact until Chloe pointed it out: Putting together the incredibly complicated recipe was essentially chemistry and who better to replicate it than an actual chemist? Chloe had also offered moral support as Stacie had carefully measured and poured, more focused on getting everything correct, more meticulous than she even was in her lab.

Once she was done, Stacie had sealed it tightly and wrapped plain brown paper around the container and neatly printed “Aubrey Keep Out” on it with a smiley face and a heart. She knew that single command to stay away would drive Aubrey absolutely insane for the next day but she’d also respect Stacie’s desire to surprise her.

“She’s going to love it.” Chloe put her hand on Stacie’s shoulder as she closed the fridge. “Even without the marinating, that test taste definitely tasted like the sauce I remember from the last time I was there.”

“Yeah?” Stacie turned to clean up the mess she’d littered over the kitchen counters. “You’re not just saying that?”

“You know better.” Chloe shoulder bumped her. “It’ll be perfect.” She turned on the faucet and set it to warm so she could start rinsing plates to put them in the washer. “I knew you had a sappy side.”

“Don’t tell anyone.” Stacie started to gather her trash to throw out before Aubrey got home.

“Too late, they all know.” Chloe said easily.

Stacie just hoped that Aubrey wasn’t disappointed that they weren’t going out on their first official Valentine’s Day. It wasn’t a day that had meant anything to Stacie in the past, but like asking the General for Aubrey’s hand, it was one more thing she wanted to do right. And for what she had in mind, she didn’t want it to be in public. She wanted it to be just for them. So she’d asked Aubrey if it would be alright if she made them a home cooked meal and she had immediately agreed.

Now, after cooking the ribs for several hours and then slathering sauce on one side and then the other for another half, Stacie carried two plates out to the table Aubrey had finished setting out on their balcony.

“I know it’s not a glamorous restaurant, but I wanted to try and give you something special for our first Valentine’s Day together. I know I can’t really match it, but you said how much you miss home cooked barbeque, so I thought…”

“I love it.” Aubrey interrupted her rambling and put her hand on Stacie’s. “I love you.” She took her seat. “It smells amazing, love.” Aubrey had kept coming out to the balcony to sniff over her shoulder, something Stacie had allowed until it was time to sauce them.

Stacie’s mouth was dry again and she wished she could gulp the beer Aubrey had poured earlier. “Thanks.” She sat on the edge of her chair, surreptitiously wiping her hands on her napkin she draped over her lap. “Guess it’s the moment of truth.”

Aubrey picked up her glass and held it up. “Happy Valentine’s Day, Stacie.”

“Happy Valentine’s, Bree.” Stacie gratefully lifted her glass and clinked it gently against hers. “There is nowhere else I want to be than with you.”

Aubrey’s voice softened. “Me either.” She reached her free hand over and rested it on Stacie’s arm while they both sipped their beer. Setting down her glass she looked at her plate. “I still can’t believe you cooked this all day.”

Stacie took another small drink, for courage and moisture. “It wasn’t that much trouble. Just let it sit and do its thing ‘til it’s time to turn it and poke it with a fork to see if it’s done.” She couldn’t figure out what to do with her hands and felt she was dangerously close to turning into Beca with her gestures, so she put them in her lap where her fingers twisted tightly together.

Nothing in her life had been more important than this moment; than the woman sitting bathed in sunlight that lit the highlights in her hair and brought out the sparkles in her eyes. It was more than living up to the legacy left to her by her grandmother’s rose quartz, a fact she knew would amuse Gran endlessly. She could almost feel her Gran’s hand on her hair and the loving way she’d have told Stacie ‘I told you one day you’d need it.’

Aubrey shot her a glance out of the corner of her eye, her lips curling into a smile. “The anticipation is killing you, isn’t it?”

“You have no idea,” Stacie muttered.

“Aw, baby.” Aubrey shook her head. “Alright, I’ll put you out of your misery.” Like any true connoisseur of fine barbeque, Aubrey picked up one of the ribs with her fingers and delicately took a bite, her eyes closing to savor the moment. Stacie, watching closely, saw the second realization hit. Aubrey’s eyes flew open and met hers. “Stacie?” Aubrey took another, bigger bite, and Stacie felt relief wash over her even as she smiled at the smear of sauce that ended up across Aubrey’s cheek.

“Yes?” She strived for nonchalance and leaned back in her chair, her left hand dipping into the band of her skirt where she’d stored the small box she’d had for months, waiting for her heart to actually break through her ribs.

“This is… Dad’s… how did…?” Aubrey took a third bite instead of continuing. “It’s perfect, love.” Her eyes closed again, a hum of pure contented enjoyment coming from her throat as Stacie reached out and wiped away the sauce with her thumb. “He hasn’t even given us that recipe. How?”

Stacie slipped from her chair and knelt on one knee. “He gave it to me the day I asked his permission to marry the love of my life.” She opened the box and waited. It wasn’t that she was worried about a no… except she’d been wrong before. At the retreat. And she didn’t know what would happen if she was wrong again.

Aubrey’s fingers opened in shock, dropping the rib back to her plate as she turned to face where Stacie had been sitting before turning shocked emerald eyes downward. Her mouth opened but no words came out as she took in the ring before her.

“Aubrey Marie Posen,” Stacie said, her voice shaking from the strength of the love coursing through her veins. “I didn’t know it, but I have loved you since the night of the riff-off and I watched you laugh at a horror movie.”

Aubrey’s hand reached up to trace her throat, fingers looking for a Bella scarf that hadn’t been there in years. Stacie smiled gently at her; wanting so much to reach out and touch her reassuringly and hoping one day to make that nervous tick a thing of the past.

“It took me too long to realize it and I’m sorry.” She licked her lips again. “I know we’ve only lived together for a short time, but I don’t want to wait any longer to start our life together.”

Aubrey’s eyes flickered from the ring to Stacie’s eyes, wondering and filled with something Stacie couldn’t pin down. Her hands wanted to shake from nervousness but she willed them to behave as she waited for Aubrey to say something.

Instead, Aubrey frantically wiped her hands on her napkin, turning away slightly and Stacie’s heart stuttered in its wild beat, wondering if she’d been wrong, if this wasn’t the time… But Aubrey merely pulled something from underneath a second napkin that Stacie hadn’t realized was sitting on one of the empty chairs. Stacie looked down as the small box that mirrored her own was opened and balanced in one delicate palm.

Everything inside her went calm and still as she met Aubrey’s watery gaze with her own.

“Yes.”

~S~

Thursday, August 18th, 2016

“I told you she was going to cry.”

“Beca!” Amy threw a small handful of rice at Beca where she sat at the piano. “Even I know you’re not supposed to say that during a wedding rehearsal. It’s expected that the bride cries.”

“Then you should also know that you don’t actually need to bring rice to the rehearsal.” Beca shot back, unable to wipe off the ones that had landed on her shoulder. “It’s also not nice to throw things at the pianist.”

“Did you just call yourself a penis?” Amy asked incredulously. “What else about you do I not know?”

Stacie grinned as Chloe broke off singing and began to laugh. “I’ve missed you, Amy.”

“Because I’m fun.” Amy shrugged and threw a few more pieces of rice at Beca. “Even when my friends keep secrets from me.”

“Oh my god.” Beca stopped playing and covered her face though Stacie knew it was to hide her grin. “There are no secrets, Amy.”

Stacie looked back up the aisle as Aubrey walked toward them, clearly torn between amusement and annoyance. Amusement won as Stacie reached for the box of Kleenex she had kept close.

“Like we’d trust you to tell the truth.” Aubrey took the tissue Stacie handed her and wiped at her face. “We’ll have to ask Chloe if we want answers.”

“Oh, well.” Chloe said, covering the microphone confidentially. “In that case…”

“Do not.” Beca turned on the piano bench and pointed a finger. “Do not give Amy any ammunition to make things up.”

“Oh, Beca.” Ashley shook her head. “Don’t you know that just fuels us more?”

“Did you really need all of them tonight?” Beca looked at Aubrey. “Like, couldn’t we have just used chairs since only Chloe and I are moving around during the procession?”

“Nope.” Aubrey said cheerfully. “It’s my wedding, I get to do what I want.”

“Bridezilla.” Beca winced as Chloe backhanded her shoulder lightly. “We’ve been married not even four months and the abuse starts.”

“Like we don’t know you love it.” Jessica grinned at her.

“Guys – maybe not in front of the parents?” Aubrey cleared her throat. “Chlo, Beca, do you guys mind going through it one more time?”

Beca answered first. “Of course not, Aubrey.”

“Thanks, DJ.” Stacie smiled at Beca before turning to give Aubrey a kiss on the cheek. “I think that last pacing was fine, love.”

“Thanks.” Aubrey squeezed her hand before joining her father to walk back down the aisle and out of the room.

After one last look around to make sure everyone was in place, Beca began to play “Can’t Help Falling in Love." As Chloe started to sing, Aubrey and the General reappeared in the doorway and made their way down the aisle.

At first Stacie wasn’t sure the song was appropriate; it had broken her heart when Aubrey had told her what had happened after their single night together in college. It hurt her in ways she wouldn’t have dreamed possible to think of Aubrey standing in the Bella living room, listening to this song and burying all her feelings. When Stacie had come back downstairs, she’d had no idea that Aubrey had been crying minutes before and learning about it had brought Stacie to tears.

But over the past few months, Aubrey had convinced Stacie that it would turn the song into something wonderful instead of a painful memory. “Besides, it’s my truth. I tried not to... but I couldn’t help falling in love with you.”

Now, watching Aubrey walk toward her, Stacie knew it was her truth too.

And tomorrow, finally, they would belong to each other and she’d never let Aubrey go.

~Amy~

Friday, August 19th, 2016

Amy took the microphone off the stand and looked over the reception room.

“As is tradition, the two brides will have their first dance and they’ve given me the honor of singing it for them.” She waited as the room erupted into whistles and cheers before looking over at the table behind her. “So, if you two would please stop snogging for two seconds and make your way to the dance floor?” The cheers became catcalls as a half blushing, all smiles Aubrey was led to the center of the room by a grinning Stacie.

Amy took a deep, steadying breath and, with one last glance around at her sisters, began to sing “Still Falling For You” by Ellie Goulding. There was no music or instruments, they were aca-people after all, but her voice was steady and smooth. While she’d been practicing this song almost daily for two months, she was still afraid she’d screw it up. Rationally, she knew no one would care but she would feel terrible even as she pretended to laugh it off.

Fire and ice This love is like fire and ice This love is like rain and blue skies This love is like sun on the rise This love got me rolling the dice Don't let me lose Still falling for you Still falling for you

She couldn’t help but smile as she watched Stacie gently spin Aubrey, both of them lost in each other’s eyes. There had been bets amongst the Bellas on who would lead this first dance, but it hadn’t even been a thought in Aubrey’s head. Once she’d stopped running from her feelings, Aubrey had given everything she was to Stacie without hesitation – including putting Stacie’s name above her own.

Beautiful mind Your heart got a story with mine Your heart got me hurting at times Your heart gave me new kind of highs Your heart got me feeling so fine So what to do Still falling for you Still falling for you

There were a few low whistles as Stacie dipped Aubrey and kissed her, both of them motionless as they got lost in each other before Stacie righted them again. Aubrey pulled her close, her arms winding around Stacie’s neck as they moved in perfect sync.

It took us a while With every breath a new day With love on the line We've had our share of mistakes But all your flaws and scars are mine Still falling for you Still falling for you

It had definitely been a journey, watching the two of them circle each other over the past five years and Amy was honored to be part of their new beginning.

Amy had never been big on family, her own having devolved into a nightmare that drove her away once her mother passed, but she had begun to realize that the women sitting on either side of the head table behind her were just that. So it didn’t surprise her that when she reached the chorus, eight voices joined her own, filling the space around her with music. Because of course they would. Unrehearsed. Without thought. No hesitation or even a question amongst them.

Aubrey and Stacie both looked up, eyes bright and shining in the dim light, their smiles flashing as the Bellas sung them into this new phase of their life. Their voices lifted and weaved, announcing to everyone in the room how much they loved the couple gliding smoothly across the center of the room.

And just like that All I breathe All I feel You are all for me I'm in And just like that All I breathe All I feel You are all for me No one can lift me, catch me the way that you do I'm still falling for you

Stacie and Aubrey looked around at them, their eyes bright and shining with unshed tears and shocked wonder. Amy could relate as she felt goosebumps on her arms as a rush of adrenaline hit her. They hadn’t talked about this, had never practiced singing this particular song together, but their voices lifted hers up and she felt she was starting to understand why people cried at weddings.

Family. This was her chosen one and she would lay down her life for any one of them. Even Legacy.

While they stopped singing for the next stanza, they kept the beat with snaps as Lilly provided the bass, letting Amy take the lead once more.

Brighter than gold This love shining brighter than gold This love is like letters in bold This love is like out of control This love is never growing old You make it new Still falling for you Still falling for you

It took us a while 'Cause we were young and unsure With love on the line What if we both would need more But all your flaws and scars are mine Still falling for you Still falling for you Still falling for you

Amy thought the song was definitely the perfect choice for the two of them. They had been fire and ice; they had both been young and unsure. But even Amy had figured out by the ICCAs that there was more to the two of them than just Captain and Bella. Of course, Amy herself had been young and stupid and hadn’t given it much thought until that last Thanksgiving at the Bella house. Even then she’d not realized the depth of their emotions, both of them too adept at hiding it at that point. But seeing them together over the past two weeks leading up to the wedding… Aubrey was like a completely different person. Or, rather, she was the person they’d only caught glimpses of that first year; completely relaxed, open and… Amy smiled to herself as Aubrey laughed at something Stacie whispered in her ear. Someone not afraid to let go.

The rest of the Bellas joined her for the chorus again and Amy realized that they were approaching the end of the song.

And just like that All I breathe All I feel You are all for me I'm in And just like that All I breathe All I feel You are all for me No one can lift me, catch me the way that you do Still falling for you Falling, crash into my arms Love you like this Like a first kiss Never let go Falling, crash into my arms Never breaking what we got Still falling for you Still falling for

There was a breathless pause before they gave it their all and Amy was glad this was being recorded because she never wanted to forget a second of how connected to them all she felt in this instant.

And just like that All I breathe All I feel You are all for me I’m in And just like that All I breathe All I feel You are all for me All for me

Then, one by one, their voices fell silent until only Amy’s remained.

And just like that All I feel is you All I feel is you You are all for me I’m still falling And just like that All I feel is you All I feel is you

As she sang the last few lines she fought to keep from tensing up.

Amy had been waiting for this moment for five very long weeks. She had told no one the plan and while she may have been a safe that locks there were just some things that begged to be shared. But she’d held off and now that the moment was here she couldn’t wait to see the looks on their faces.

Stacie and Aubrey had slowly been moving around the floor, whispering and nuzzling each other, but over the last few lines they had drifted to stand in front of Amy.

Amy took a breath, hoping no one thought anything of her pause before singing the last few lines of the song, as she casually held the mic out further than she had been.

“You are all for me.”

Stacie and Aubrey sang it together, both their faces going almost comically slack in shock, before identical smiles of pure joy lit up the room. Stacie cupped Aubrey’s face with both hands as the two of them finished the song together.

No one can lift me, catch me the way that you do I’m still falling for you

Aubrey pulled her in and kissed her while the room went still around them. Amy stepped to the side, leaving them alone and hoped the photographer was on the ball and capturing this moment of sheer perfection.

Stacie had come to her with the idea first: “So, if Bree and I happen to end up in front of you at the end of the song, do you think you could hold the mic out for me to sing the last bit?”

Amy had agreed and immediately called Stacie whipped – affectionately, of course.

Aubrey had called her a week later: “Would it be crazy if I wanted to sing the last three lines at the end of the dance?”

Amy almost laughed, except she knew Aubrey would assume Amy was laughing at her and that was the last thing she wanted. So she’d choked it back and told Aubrey it wasn’t crazy at all and she’d be happy to hold the mic out for her if she could get Stacie there.

She’d obviously heard about their double proposal and the fact that they both had the exact same idea about their first dance song proved that they were obviously meant for each other. It had killed her not to share this secret with Beca but some things were better as surprises. Speaking of…

Amy turned and looked where Beca and Chloe had been sitting and couldn’t help the laugh that burst out of her – thankfully she’d turned the mic off when she’d stepped out of the way, she’d have hated to ruin the still ongoing kiss but she couldn’t help it. Beca was full on ugly crying as she held tightly to Chloe’s hand; not that Chloe was beyond that herself, but the only other time Amy had seen Beca cry this hard was at her own wedding.

Not that Amy was one to talk. She took the tissue that Lilly held out to her and dabbed at her cheeks as the entire reception room filled with a roar of approval as the brides finally separated, even if it was only to rest their foreheads together.

Amy cleared her throat and turned on her mic.

“Ladies, gentlemen… And Trebles.” She only waved as good natured jeers came from the far side of the room. “I present to you Mrs. & Mrs. Posen-Conrad.”

Family.

Amy thought it again as the noise grew deafening but the Bellas were still louder than the rest as they stood up and cheered at their tables.

My family.

-------

(x)

#Staubrey #Stacie Conrad #Aubrey Posen #Pitch Perfect Fanfic #wlw #Beca Mitchell #Chloe Beale #Barden Bellas #Fat Amy #A Shared Lifetime #cyc writes #cyc fic tease

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idkthisisjustforfanfic · 5 years

Text

Chapter 2 - (totally uninterested.)

The possibility of speaking more than five words to Ethan had my heart doing somersaults as I got off of the elevator in Harry’s building. I knew where he lived--Kristen’s classmate, Georgia (who we sometimes hung out with) lived on the fourth floor.

If I remember correctly, we ended up eating pizza here a few Fridays back at 2am when we were plastered and Kristen was not anxious about her grades.

I made my way down the hall to the fifth door as Harry’s text message from an hour earlier had instructed. I lifted my hand to knock, but it opened before I made contact--Harry stood with wide eyes and an expectant smile on his face.

“Hi,” I said, pulling my head back in surprise. I peered over his shoulder, causing him to laugh. “Is he here yet?”

“No, Nora, relax, come in.” He stepped aside and let me by, we were cramped in a small hallway that didn’t give me much of a view of the rest of the place. “They’ll probably be here in like 15 minutes. They sometimes get take away after practice.”

“Hmm,” I said, watching as he retreated back towards the living room. It was decently clean for an apartment of four guys.

Harry and Ryan had been friends since freshman year--at least, that was my understanding. He was the one that Harry talked about the most. Then there were Alex and Niall as well.

Ryan and Niall were both on the basketball team with Ethan. Harry was on the soccer team (he’d told me at work that he was good, but I decided out loud when he told me that I didn’t believe him.) Alex, their fourth and final roommate, didn’t play any sports. He was big into the music scene and spent most of his free time, as Harry as explained, in a dingy recording studio with his classmates.

“Hmm what?” He asked over his shoulder, not stopping to look back at me. He headed into the kitchen and reached into the fridge. He pulled out a beer and handed one to me before opening one for himself. I followed him over towards the couch and sat beside him.

“Just hope he shows up,” I said simply, shrugging my shoulders. I took a sip of the beer and winced at the tase. I’d never admit it to Harry, but I was much more of a cider or wine type of girl.

“Right,” he laughed. I followed him into the living room and sat beside him on the couch. He reached for a bag of chex mix he’d apparently been snacking on before my arrival. “Whatever would we do if he didn’t?”

I rolled my eyes, pulling out my phone to check the time again. “They don’t pay me enough to sit next to you in that stupid library, so we’re definitely not gonna do it out here,” I motioned around his apartment.

The TV was on, commercials flashed over the screen as he pulled his eyes up to look at me--completely unenthused. “Nora, just appreciate the fact that I even let you come over, okay? Now you get to drool over him like he’s a caged animal and he’ll never even know.”

His tone was playful and chastising, but I pulled my feet up on the couch and moved around to get more comfortable. “How are you gonna introduce me?” I asked, wiggling my eyebrows at him to bother him more than I already was. I took a few more sips of my drink--hoping the alcohol would calm my nerves.

He reached his hand in the bag and then popped another handful in his mouth and shrugged. “Doesn’t he know who you are?”

I thought on it for a second. I mean--he should. We had a class together during our sophomore year and he’d spoken to me three whole times in the Library. He at least had to know my face. “He knows that I work in the library, I think.”

Harry widened his eyes a little bit and let out a sigh, grabbing another handful of his snack. “Okay--I’ll just say you’re my friend, from the library, that we work together,” he shrugged a bit.

There was noise in the hallway--laughter and voices as the door opened, and I turned to look at Harry with big eyes and a grin on my face.

He rolled his eyes at me and reached his hand inside the bag once more. “Oh come off it,” he said, and he must have known his gibberish made no sense to me--an American--because he continued when I scrunched my nose in confusion. “Relax.”

Niall, Ryan, and Ethan all came in with their duffle bags on their shoulders, laughing at something one of them had said as they filed into the living room. They dropped their bags on the floor and I--as the ever-nervous idiot who could barely manage a conversation with someone she found attractive--kept my mouth shut decided I’d let Harry do most of the conversing.

“Hey guys,” Harry greeted. “This is Nora. We work at the library together.”

I watched as they each scanned my face. I’d met Ryan maybe twice--Niall was in my major, and Ethan, well, you know the story. I raised my beer at them in greeting and let them turn back to each other and whatever conversation they’d been having. Was that too friendly? Was raising a beer at a group of guys basically code for I’m also a dude, so don’t bother finding me attractive?

“Dude, y’shoulda seen the fucking half courter this one made tonight,” Niall pointed at Ryan, who was too busy downing a gatorade to respond. Ethan sat at the table in the corner, taking off his shoes and finding a sweatshirt in his bag.

“It wasn’t actually that good,” Ethan laughed, looking up to give Harry and I more details.

“It was pretty fucking awesome,” Ryan defended, setting the gatorade down on the counter. He was stood in the kitchen--but a cut out in the wall allowed a full view. “I’ve never seen you make one like that,” he shot back at Ethan.

“I’ve never tried cause I’m not trying to get hurt and benched for the fucking season,” he retorted with a laugh.

I didn’t know nearly enough about basketball to act like I did, so instead, I tried to change the subject.

“Have you started your project for Benham yet, Niall? You’re taking his class this semester, right?”

He let out a dramatic groan. “Oh, am I. He’s ridiculous--completely mental. I have to work with Kyle Porter, that wanker. He’ll probably fuck it all up and we’ll fail.”

Harry let out a laugh at how dramatic his friend was being, but I simply kept my eyes on Ethan as he came to join us on the couch. He reached for the bag of chex mix from Harry (who easily handed it over) and plopped himself down with a sigh.

I felt somewhat betrayed, honestly, not just because Ethan had sat next to Harry instead of me--but really because Harry had completely and utterly downplayed his friendship with Ethan. Here they were, all hanging out in Harry’s apartment, and Harry just handed him the chex mix as if they were long lost brothers in some sort of tribe of idiots.

Why had he completely downplayed it?

Ethan leaned forward and it took me a second to realize he was looking at me. “Nora, you said? You were in my History of the English Language class last year, right?”

I let out a laugh, which Harry made a face at because nothing Ethan had said was really funny, and nodded. “Yeah, with Adam Middleman, good times!”

Ethan nodded and sat back again, letting his eyes drift to the TV. Harry’s eyes were still on me--his face blank and somehow sending a message that I was a total idiot.

“Anyone hungry? Should we go to the dining hall or order something?” Ryan asked as he came back into the living room, his eyes scanning the room for answers.

“I’d do either,” Niall announced, tossing his bag into (what I assumed to be) his bedroom. “But I’m hungry, so let’s make up our minds, ladies.”

“Let’s just do the dining hall,” Ethan said with a shrug.

“Yeah,” I said quickly. “The dining hall is fine.”

Harry turned to look at me again--which was just getting to be obnoxious now. He’d give me these are you crazy? stares, but wouldn’t actually say anything. He stood from the couch as Ryan responded to Niall, saying something about the sandwich bar in Henderson Dining Hall.

“Will you come with me, for a second? I want to show you something.”

I stared up at Harry, confused and annoyed that he was trying to get me away from Ethan. He widened his eyes at me to let me know he was serious, and I stood from the couch. I held in the exaggerated sigh I so badly wanted to unleash and followed Harry down a side hall and past a bathroom.

He went into a dark room (his bedroom, I was guessing), and shut the door behind me. “You need to chill out. You’re being obnoxious.”

I rolled my eyes, somewhat offended by his feedback. He clearly didn’t know what it was like to have the hots for Ethan Davis for two years and finally be able to talk with him in a casual environment. I was always seeing him at parties or in the library--now I finally had the chance to talk to him like a real person.

“I am not being obnoxious.”

“You’re being obnoxious,” Harry nodded sternly, his arms now crossed in front of his chest.

“You think everything I do is obnoxious,” I retorted, crossing my arms to mirror his.

“Everything you do is obnoxious.”

“Is that seriously all you wanted? Can I go back out there now?”

He let out a breath and tried to temper himself. “Nora, just--play it cool.”

“What do you mean?” I asked--almost desperate for him to give me legitimate feedback. If he was going to drag me into time out and just shit on me, I didn’t want his help. If he was going to actually give me insider advice on how to land Ethan Davis, I’d take it.

“Just, I dunno--play hard to get or something. Don’t act so available.”

I paused for a second, looking at him straight in the eyes. Maybe the adrenaline was clouding my comprehension, but I didn’t understand. “But,” I said, my eyes narrowed. “I am available.”

He rolled his eyes a little, which caused me to laugh in response. “Nora, that’s not hot. Being unavailable and totally and completely uninterested is hot.”

I frowned at him, totally and completely trying to not laugh at how stupid he sounded. “You’re incredibly moronic. Can I go now? I’m totally tagging along for dinner.”

He let out a deflated laugh. “You’re unbelievable. But I’d love to watch you continue to crash and burn tonight.”

I reached up to pinch Harry’s cheek. He swatted at my quickly, a deep frown causing a wrinkle in his forehead. “Cheer up,” I said. “You get to watch people fall in love tonight!”

My dinner with Harry and his friends was mostly uneventful. I did my best to interject at the right moments and say things that would catch Ethan’s attention, but most of my social interaction ended up being eye rolls back and forth across the table with Harry.

At least I got to sit and look at Ethan for a whole 45 minutes.

And now, I was hoping when Ethan left the library for the night, he’d decide to march right up to the information desk, tell Harry to suck it, and propose marriage right here, right now. I’d happily oblige.

“You’re doing that thing again,” Harry mumbled, his mouth half blocked by the hand he rested his chin on.

I looked over at him, clicking my phone shut in a quick realization that I still had a paper to write. “What thing?” I asked, my voice monotonous and disinterested.

“When you roll your wrist and make that cracking sound.”

I narrowed my eyes--was he serious? My silence made him look up at me and offer a quick smirk before he turned back to his computer.

“Sorry that I don’t live to please you,” I replied coolly. I lifted my feet from the desk and brought them back to the ground, internally bargaining with myself that better posture would lead to better focus.

Harry was quiet for a second. He typed away at his computer and I flipped through the book on my desk, hoping to find whatever inspiration I needed to bang out a quick 6 page paper.

“The other night was terrible,” he said, his eyes peering up sideways at me to see what type of response he’d get out of me.

“It wasn’t terrible,” I corrected him. “It was the first of many nights that I spend with Ethan. Every couple starts somewhere.”

He let out a snort, clearly disagreeing with my description. “And how do you think you’ll spend a bunch of time with him?”

I shrugged. “You really hate me that much that you won’t let me hang out with all of you?”

His face was serious, his lips in a straight line and he blinked twice before responding. “Yes.”

“Harry,” I rolled my eyes. “You’re a dickhead.”

He laughed at this, clearly un-offended by my insult and somewhat entertained by his own answer. His hair was up in a bun, he was clad in a black t-shirt and skinny jeans that seemed to make it hard to sit comfortably. He kept moving around and adjusting (what I could only imagine) was his incredibly small penis.

He didn’t respond, instead, he picked up his phone and opened snapchat--clicking through a selfie from some blonde-haired girl I didn’t recognize. Barf.

“I mean, I guess if you don’t want your little secret to get out,” I trailed off, hoping he’d put two and two together.

“My secret?” He asked, his eyes still on his phone as he snapped a picture of his computer in front of him and typed back some type of message to whatever stupid girl was falling for his sickening charm.

“Yeah,” I said casually. “You know, your” I raised my voice to be above our normal library shift volume. “Arrest record.”

He looked up at my quickly, not as bothered as I expected. “It’s not an arrest record,” he reminded me.

“Well, whatever it is, I’d hate for everyone to know about it.”

He lowered his brows at me, his lips still set in a firm line. “Are you trying to blackmail me, Hanson?”

I shrugged my shoulders and laughed a little. “I mean, you told me about it--it’s not like I had to go digging.”

“Keep quiet about it, yeah? I don’t need your big mouth ruining my chance as a politician.”

“Right cause the skinny jeans didn’t already do that for you,” I nodded seriously, a smirk fighting its way onto my face.

He let out a sigh. “Nora, Nora, Nora. You’re my least favorite person on the planet.”

I looked back to my computer and typed my name on top of the word document. “I can live with that.”

We both looked up when we could feel someone approaching the desk, and Ethan (who carried a water bottle in his hands) smiled at both of us.

“Hey, hi Nora,” he leaned forward on the desk. “Either of you know that someone’s totally drunk on the second floor?”

“What?” Harry asked, pushing his computer back on the desk to stand up. “Jesus Christ.”

“Thanks for telling us,” I said, following Harry’s lead. I followed Harry around the desk and into the main area of the first floor.

“I’ll see you both tomorrow night?”

Harry stopped in his tracks and I my head shot in his direction with raised brows. Tomorrow night? I had no idea what he was talking about--but you bet I was going to be there if Ethan Davis would be in attendance. “You sure will!” I answered for both of us.

With that, Ethan waved and bid us goodnight, heading out of the main doors as Harry and I made a beeline to the stairs.

“What was that about?” I whispered once we were inside the stairwell. Even at a lower volume, my voice echoed against the old walls.

Harry took the stairs two at a time, putting distance between us as he replied. “Just some people coming over, it’s not a big deal. You won’t know anyone.”

“I’ll know you and I’ll know Ethan,” I argued.

He rolled his eyes as he stopped in front of the door to the second floor. He placed his hand on the doorknob and paused. “Nora--fine. You can come. But keep your mouth shut about the whole thing with Luke Billups thing, okay?”

I smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Deal.”

Not only had I weaseled my way into being invited to whatever type of party was happening at Harry’s on Friday night, but I also weaseled my way into getting a date. So when Kristen and I were stood in the living room, watching as Harry and Niall played pong with Alex and Ryan, I was hopeful that Ethan would be arriving soon.

There were a decent amount of people. A few kids from my major that were friends with Niall, a few guys from the basketball team, a number of girls who seemed to be interested in getting the attention of Harry and his roommates.

Pair that with the lowered lights, the music that was playing way too loud, and the alcohol in every cup, and I was feeling more comfortable by the minute. Even Kristen seemed to be enjoying herself. Georgia Lederman had showed up as well, so we stood in the corner of the room, sipping our drinks and laughing whenever one of the boys did something incredibly stupid.

“Have you seen him yet?” Kristen whispered to me when Georgia got distracted by a fellow classmate.

I shook my head, tilting the rest of my drink back into my mouth. “Nope,” I said defeatedly. “But he’ll be here, he’s the one who brought it up.”

“Anyone need a drink?” Harry’s voice sounded from behind us, I turned suddenly to find him leaning over me, a drunk smile on his face as he waited for our response.

“I’m all set, thanks though,” Kristen smiled up at him.

“I do,” I sighed, somewhat bitter about having to follow him into the kitchen, but also disappointed about the fact that Ethan was still nowhere to be found.

He turned on his heels and started weaving through the living room. I trailed behind, finishing the last of my drink in order to start a new one. Once we were in the kitchen and somewhat separated from the rest of the crowd, I lowered my voice.

“Where’s Ethan?”

Harry pulled a face as he bent into the fridge to grab a beer for himself and a bottle of vodka. “How would I know? He’s not actually my friend.”

“Well you’d have a better idea than I would,” I told him.

He rolled his eyes, taking my cup out of my hands and setting it on the counter. I hoisted myself up, happy to sit on the section of counter that connected into the living room--my back to the crowd--watching as he twisted off the top of the bottle and poured a shot’s worth into my cup. “M’sure he’ll show up eventually. Lemonade or cranberry?”

“Lemonade.”

He poured some in and stirred with a knife. He took a sip first and then handed it over to me. I hopped down and took it, but both of us turned to the door when it opened and revealed more people in the hallway.

Low and behold, Ethan Davis stood behind two other members of the basketball team, a smile on his face as Alex greeted them at the door.

“It’s about time,” I said under my breath, only loud enough for Harry to hear--who only let out a short laugh.

Ethan squeezed his way through the people in the hallway, joining us in the kitchen as he offered hellos. “How’s everybody doin’?”

“Great, hi, how’re you?” I asked, offering a side hug as he leaned into me. Harry made a face but turned around to grab a beer from the fridge, offering it to Ethan without a greeting.

“Good, happy to be here, how are you two? Glad to not be at the library?”

“Totally,” I laughed, sipping at my drink to make myself feel less awkward.

“Actually get to just hang out tonight, right? Must be hard to work with your significant other,” he laughed.

“What?” I tilted my head sideways, sure that I had misheard him. Harry let out some sort of laugh but looked just as interested in Ethan’s next words.

“Aren’t you two, like--y’know--together?”

I pulled my head back and my eyes went wide--I probably couldn’t have made a more disgusted face if I tried. I looked up to Harry quickly, totally unsure of how we’d given Ethan that impression. Maybe it was the bickering. Maybe it was the time Harry pulled me into his bedroom last week in front of Ethan. Whatever it was, Ethan couldn’t have been more--

“Right,” Harry nodded, slinking an arm around my shoulders and pulling me into his side. “Yeah, we are, actually.”

“What?” I said again, looking up at him, eyebrows knit together in confusion and annoyance. He smiled down at me and widened his eyes, somehow conveying that he had a plan and that it was in my best interest to go along with it. I let out a sigh, hoping to God that he wasn’t about to screw me over. I twisted my mouth into a small smile. “I thought we weren’t telling anyone about it, babe?”

Harry laughed a little. “Yeah, well, it’s just Ethan. He’s a pal.”

Funny--that was a change of tune from what he’d said five seconds ago.

Ethan let out a laugh and slapped Harry on the arm. “Happy for you two.”

I forced a grin in his direction--feeling suddenly stuck against Harry’s side and under his arm. Kristen, who was watching on in the corner with Georgia and Kate Levinsky, had the most confused look on her face. She wasn’t the only one.

Ethan got distracted suddenly, pulled into the living room by Ryan to play a round of pong, which gave me the perfect opportunity to pull Harry aside and smack him upside the head for a whole hour. “Excuse me, bedroom, now.”

Harry raised his eyebrows at this. “Didn’t know you’d be so willing,” he laughed, only causing me to roll my eyes at his stupid joke. I pulled him by the shirt into his room, shut the door behind us with a thud, and set my drink down on his bedside table to cross my arms.

“Okay, relax,” he said slowly, drawing out the phrase in a mess of slurred words and accent. “That’s the most interested in you he’s seemed. So, you’re welcome.”

“You’re welcome?!” I repeated his words in a high pitched voice, my anger getting the best of me.

“Nora, just chill, alright? It’s not real. Just let him think that for a week or something and then you can tell him we ended things and he’ll want to swoop in.”

“How do you know?”

“Because he’s Ethan Davis,” he shrugged. “He’s kind of that guy.”

I looked at him with wide eyes, expecting him to continue. He sighed again. “Y’know--he has a reputation for being kind of a rebound. He hooked up with Charlotte something in your major. Right after her and Andrew Best broke it off?”

“Just because he did it once doesn’t mean he’d do it again.”

“He did it with Allie Nguyen and Peter Norville too.”

“Okay, but, you don’t know that it means he’s actually like, into that.”

Harry rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed that I wasn’t more appreciative of his quick thinking.

“And besides, fake dating is stupid and it won’t work and it would require that we spend more time together outside of the library than we’ve already done this week. Don’t you hate me? Don’t you not want anything to do with me?”

He shrugged. “If it means you’ll keep your mouth shut about what I told you and cover my ass when I’m sometimes late for shifts and if it will get you closer to Ethan so you shut up about him, I’ll do it.”

I sat on his words for a second. He sipped at the beer in his hand and gave me an expectant look, as if he were impatiently waiting for my answer.

It felt stupid. It felt like it was bound to go wrong and things would get weird and complicated and then what if at some point things between me and Ethan actually did work out? What if we ended up married and I’d have to tell him that I lied about being with Harry to make him interested? I could already picture the emotional break up scene with Ethan in my head where he found out I lied and felt betrayed and I didn’t know if I wanted to go through that.

But maybe I was getting ahead of myself.

I let out a breath--and Harry seemed to tilt his head to prompt me to answer him.

“Fine, okay. Fine.”

#totally uninterested #harry styles fanfic #harry styles fiction #harry styles fan fic #harry styles imagine #harry styles au #harry styles writing #harry styles uni au #harry styles fic #harry styles au fic #harry styles au fanfic #harry styles uni fanfic #harry styles uni au fic

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stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale · 5 years

Note

hey CJ since we’re getting ep4 next week, can you list all of your possible theories/predictions for episode 4 ? how the episode will start, how it will end, deaths, scenes, and what not :)

*deep inhale*

buckle in

it’s a long one

You know what I’ve noticed? We haven’t had a single walker death, have we?

Marlon killed Brody, AJ killed Marlon, Lilly killed Mitch [😭], Clementine killed Abel, Louis killed Dorian, AJ killed Lilly/ Lilly killed James, we’ve blown up who knows how many delta soldiers but…

No one has died from a walker bite or walker attack, and we haven’t had to deal with a bite victim in our group.

Which… is weird, right? Just me? All three of the previous seasons had ‘em.

S1: Girl in the motor-in, Doug/Carly, Duck, Brie, Lee

S2: Pete, Sarita, Carlos, Nick, Luke, Sarah

S3: In all of the endings, Kate, David, and Gabe [and Javi, if you count the fake-out ending] can be killed by a bite/turned into a walker. [Also Conrad can die to the walkers in one of his many deaths]

So… s4 gives us?? A bitten Abel?? But it’s determinate and he lives anyway?

This just kind of makes me think that we might get one in episode 4 since we haven’t had to deal with it. Then again, they might just be going for the whole “humanity is more dangerous than walkers” thing, but for the sake of argument…

I don’t think Clementine will be canonically bitten like Lee was. By that I mean she may get bitten if that’s what prompts one of the endings. Same thing with AJ.

I’m thinking that one of the kids might get bit, and I’ve narrowed it down to Tenn and Minerva.

Tenn because I feel he would be the most tragic and it could really show us what kind of AJ we’ve created.

Maybe AJ’s super cold and just… shoots Tenn before anyone gets to say goodbye because “what do you do when someone’s bit?” and it doesn’t really affect him all that much even tho he considered him his friend.

Or, maybe AJ’s legitimately heartbroken that his friend is bitten and doesn’t want him to die and we see our kid just… cry over his friend.

Or maybe there’s a happy [?] medium where AJ’s upset but he knows what has to be done, so he says his goodbyes, lets everyone say their goodbyes, and then whoever [most likely Clem] puts him down.

As for Minerva, if she survives the explosion, might get bit as some sort of “redemption” by saving Tenn or whoever.

Lilly / James Endings

So, I’ve already discussed the whole Lilly vs James choice in previous asks so I’ll just summarize my best guess as to what they may do as far as the outcomes. I think with this choice, we may be choosing our final antagonist.

[spare Lilly] I doubt they’ll just kill her off in the explosion because she’s fucking Lilly and the devs said they’re straying away from choice payoffs like that.

I think she’ll be “missing” as in when we wake up we may not see her [unless she is there and attacks us and we have to escape her again] and she’ll gather up any delta survivors to get revenge and possibly take AJ [assuming they’re going for the s1 parallel of kidnapping a child] and then we’ll have a final battle with her.

I’m hoping it’s by the barn so that we can bash her brains in with the salt lick like WHY ELSE WOULD THEY SHOW IT TO US??

Lemme look her in the eye while Clementine holds the salt lick over her head and say,

“Larry bled like a fucking pig, and so will you.”

Fuck Lilly jfc

[shoot Lilly] Again, I doubt if we save James that he’ll be killed off during the explosion, but we’ll get separated.

after an intense escape scene and I think we’ll meet up with some of the group [Louis/Violet, Aasim, Omar] but no one else is accounted for but there are too many walkers drawn in from the explosion to stay put and look.

Clementine might send everyone back to the school while she searches for AJ because I don’t see her just assuming that he made it back without looking. But, when we get to the school be to find that [hopefully] everyone made it back okay [more or less] except AJ and James.

Which prompts a “Oh shit, we have to go find them!”

Whether they’ll go through with the ‘kidnapping’ part of it, I dunno, since it’s been pointed out that James doesn’t really seem like the type unless it was for some extremely drastic measure.

We might have to justify our actions to him and explain why we told AJ to shoot.

I said before that part of the choice [James vs Lilly] might be to let James die a friend and thinking AJ’s saved, or prevent his death and watch him turn on us. But, I dunno. Either way’s heartbreaking.

AJ + What becomes of him

I agree with a lot of people when they say that we won’t be influencing his choices next episode and he’ll make his own decisions based on what we taught him.

This is a little worrying because I’m not the greatest parent… after all, I shoved Abel through the window, let him attack Dorian, told him to shoot Lilly…

But! I didn’t kill the walker couple [what good that’ll do I dunno], I let him know that killing Marlon was wrong, didn’t give him dibs on Abel, I didn’t torture Abel…

I’m just eager to see just how much it’ll affect how my choices shape him because I don’t want to it be just one or two things.

Deaths

Honestly, I think it’d be cool if everyone was determinate.

Imagine the combo of endings that could produce.

I’d hate it because I don’t want my kids to die, but at least if they were all determinate then I could possibly save them all, right?

Unless we get an A vs B choice again in which case PLEASE DON’T

I keep thinking of scary combos like

[save Aasim] vs. [save Ruby]

[Save Tenn] vs. [save Willy]

[save Willy] vs. [save Aasim]

[god looking at these makes me think of those fanmade ending screens that are all over reddit and I don’t like it]

I know that if they throw ANY of these at me I’ll just be stuck there, staring at the pause screen gripping my controller to the point of breaking it and trying to not scream.

Also, I list those ones because I don’t think we’ll have another [save Louis] vs. [save Violet] choice because at this point it’s a little pointless? It’s a shitty choice for the player to make but… it’d be easy, too? Depending on which route you’re doing? Like, I’m not going to pick Louis for all three episodes then suddenly be like “Nah, gotta save Vi” because???

I think my choice is pretty obvious at this point, game, c’mon.

But, if that’s not the case, I’ll list who’s most likely to die down to least likely:

Omar [sorry buddy, you’re on all our lists and I hate it]

Minerva

Tenn

Lilly/James

Willy

Aasim

Ruby

Louis/Violet [betrayed]

Louis/Violet [saved]

Clementine

Tho I hope Omar lives to the end so he can turn to the camera and flip all of us off for talking shit

Gimme that romance

I know we just took down [or did we…?] a bunch of sick delta raiders but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t get to smooch Louis again, okay?

After all this shit, I’m gonna need to see some romance with Clementine and her bf/gf [or bromoments if you friendzoned them]

Let me hug AND kiss Louis.

I think we deserve it at this point.

Also, he’s pretty messed up from shooting Dorian [OR YA KNOW LOSING HIS TONGUE]

And gimme angst with Violet. I’ll try not to get pissed off this time around since I’ve got a better understanding of her character after taking time to process it. So long as she doesn’t hurt anyone [and I doubt she will] then we’ll be fine.

Long post, but there are some of my thoughts.

Maybe once the trailer comes out I’ll have more ideas and predictions, but for now, that’s all folks.

#asks #twdg #twdg theories #twdg clementine #twdg aj #twdg louis #twdg violet #twdg ruby #twdg willy #twdg mitch #twdg aasim #twdg omar #twdg james #twdg lilly #twdg marlon #twdg brody #twdg tenn

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