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phykios · 3 years

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Ain’t No Sunshine, modern royalty, 1970s au [read on ao3] thank you as always to my darling @darkmagyk for taking a true story off the rails

May 3rd, 1979. The date seemed to jump off the page, the loud, bold text almost mocking her.

Not that she was keeping track, but it was just about four years to the day.

She’d woken up this morning, feeling kind of off, wandering around her apartment in a daze as she hustled her children out the door for daycare, losing time on her bus commute to work. It wasn’t until lunch, as she took the time to go through her day planner, that she realized: four years ago was when she had last seen Percy Jackson.

Though why Annabeth was thinking about him right this second was anyone’s guess.

Oh, sure, she’d thought about him a lot all throughout her pregnancy--thought about him, cursed his name, dreamed of strangling him for leaving her alone with these two absolute terrors--but as the years had gone by, and she had lost all hope of ever making contact with him again, he’d sort of fallen by the wayside of her thoughts. Something must have been going on with the navy mail system, because absolutely none of the letters or postcards she’d sent had ever been received, and she couldn’t reach out to Sally, since Annabeth had lost her address as well.

There was always the possibility that he… well, that he wasn’t around to receive letters anymore. But she tried not to think about it.

She tried her best not to think about him at all, these days.

Today, however, her childhood best friend turned US navy midshipman had popped up on her internal radar, and had just decided to take up residence in her brain. Her normally mind-numbing job couldn’t even properly distract her, and she spent all afternoon daydreaming about his messy, perpetually windswept hair, and his toothy, contagious smile, and his gorgeous green eyes like she was some kind of pathetic, lovestruck teenager, obsessing over her rockstar crush. Taking calls, scheduling appointments, and dodging the creepy advances of the assistant CFO were slightly more palatable if she had something pleasant to think about.

Old-fashioned romance was for suckers, anyway. Who needed it?

At least it was Friday. Fridays were KFC days, and she really did not need to accidentally burn dinner today. Again.

She hated it, but her kids loved it. God knows they could barely stomach whatever she usually attempted.

She sent them to bed early-ish, and settled down in front of the TV with a glass of wine. She didn’t usually indulge, but she had had such a weird day, she felt she deserved it.

Taking a long, long sip, she could no longer deny it: she really fucking missed Percy.

She missed him like she’d miss a missing limb, and it was all the more cruel because she’d lost him once, and miraculously found him again, on that fateful trip home from Athens. A military brat stuck at the American naval base in Spain to save money, waiting for a spare seat to open up on a plane so she could go home, by the sheer force of luck, she’d practically tripped and fallen into the lap of her childhood best friend.

And then she did trip into his lap. And then into his bed. And stupid, stupid, Annabeth, she’d always been so bad with her birth control.

Her little boy, he had blond hair, but sometimes he would look at her, or laugh at something, or drool in his sleep just like his daddy, and Annabeth thought she might just fucking die from it.

She loved her children, of course, how could she not? But she wasn’t about to deny it--sometimes, alone in parenthood, juggling dishes and laundry and schoolwork and life, she felt like she was drowning.

Sharp, piercing, the doorbell rang, knocking her out of her reverie. A little tipsy, still in her rumpled work clothes, she set the glass aside, and made her way to the door. “Mr. D,” she said, opening it, prepared speech all ready to go, “I told you, I’d have the rent for you by--”

She stopped, blinking, speechless. It was not Mr. D.

“Hey,” said the man outside her door. The ghost from another world that she had, apparently, conjured with her thoughts.

“...Hey.”

He smiled, a little strained, the light of the streetlamps casting harsh shadows on his face. “It’s good to see you.”

“How did you know where I lived?” It was, perhaps, not the most elegant thing to say, but she hadn’t exactly planned for what would happen when Percy Jackson, love of her life, father of her children, long-lost best friend wandered back into her life.

“Can I come in? Maybe for a Coke or something?” he asked, not answering her question.

She almost wanted to say no. For every letter never returned, for every month gone by without a word, for every day spent raising their children without him, not knowing if he was alive or dead--she almost said no.

But this was Percy. She could spare him a Coca Cola at least. “Sure,” she said, leaning away, “come on.”

“Great,” he said, and this time, his smile was all real.

So focused had she been on him, she hadn’t even clocked the older man who stood behind him. “Sir,” said the other man, with the air of a beleaguered secretary--and Annabeth would know, “I really must advise--”

“I’ll just be a minute,” said Percy, not even bothering to look back at him, pushing past Annabeth’s half-extended arm.

“But, sir, your father--”

Percy let the door shut in his face.

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. “Harsh.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, well… I’ll make it up to him later.”

“Who is he?”

But Percy didn’t answer. “Nice place you got here.”

He was being nice, of course. It was a craphole apartment in a craphole side of town--but the rent was cheap and the bus was convenient, and she only felt the slightest bit of shame as she led him to the craphole couch, handing him a coke from her craphole fridge. Christ, his suit looked like it cost more than her TV.

“Is your… husband home?” he asked, delicate.

“My what?”

“Your husband. I saw, um…” Embarrassed, he flicked his eyes to the ring on her left hand.

“Oh, this? It’s--it’s not--” Hastily, clumsily, she fumbles it off, pulling around the knuckle. “I’m not--I’m not.”

He blinked. “Oh.”

“Yeah, I just--it’s to ward off creepy guys, right? Like, they won’t take no for an answer unless they think they’ll have to deal with an angry husband, so I just…”

In her more pathetic moments, she pretended that it had been given to her by the man before her. She had picked something small and simple, something that she thought he might have gone with, and pretended he had slipped it into her pocket the day she left the naval base.

“That’s--cool. That’s great, I mean. I mean, that’s--”

“What do you want, Percy?”

Not at all bothered by the shortness of her tone, he sighed, closing his eyes. “I have a… personal question I need to ask you. And I’m sorry to bother you with this, I just--I have to ask.”

Ominous. “Okay?”

“Did we…” He sighed again, mouth twisting. “Did you, as a result of our repeated sexual encounters four years ago, happen to have any children by me?”

He just rattled it off, as if it was something he’d said over and over and over again, tired of receiving the same answer, but never expecting anything different.

“Excuse me?”

“I know, I know, it’s an extremely rude question, and I know I have no right to ask you, especially since it’s been so long, but I swear, there’s a reason I--”

“Did you never get any of the letters I sent you?”

At that, his head shot up. The look in his eyes could only be described as ‘terror.’ “What?”

“I must have sent you half a dozen,” she said, crossing to the kitchen, the wine making her a little bit short. She had, in fact, sent him eight letters, with pictures, and never received a single response, but since he seemed genuinely lost, she decided not to tell him. Plucking the most recent photo down from the fridge, she returned to the man in her living room, his knuckles white around the can.

Standing before him, she handed him the photograph. He took it, fingers shaking. “We… you…”

“Percy Jackson,” she said, like she was introducing him to someone at a party, “meet your children.”

Even after they had just been born, Annabeth had seen how obviously they were his. Only their daughter had the same messy black hair, both both had the same long, straight nose, the same intense, brooding brow as their father--and when her son smiled, or her daughter laughed, it was hard not to see the shades of Percy so strongly in them. It was hard to see them, too.

Percy’s mouth was trembling. His eyes were wide, glassy, fixed on the photo. “My--” he swallowed. “What--what are their names?”

“Alexander,” she said, softly, “and Anne--”

“Annemarie,” he breathed. “Alexander and Annemarie.” He looked up at her, his eyes shining. “You remembered?”

Of course she remembered. Two lonely kids, she and Percy had spent so much of their childhood together, playing house, building their perfect family, even if only in their imagination. Alexander for his mother’s cousin, and Annemarie because he had wanted to name their daughter Annabeth, and she wouldn’t let him. Twenty years later, alone and in pain, holding her newborn children and alternately cursing the man who made them and desperately wishing he were with her, Annabeth had known that they could only have one set of names, even if their father might never meet them.

His face crumpled. He dropped his head into his hand, and groaned, like someone had pressed on an open wound.

“Percy!” Annabeth sat down next to him, one hand on his shoulder, the other on his leg. Four years later and it still felt so natural to touch him like this. “Are you okay?”

Nodding, he grunted. “Yeah,” he croaked, voice hoarse, “I’m okay. I’m fine. I just--” And then he shuddered, a hand coming up to scrub at his eyes.

He was crying, she realized suddenly. Annabeth used to be the one that cried. She could count on one hand how many times she’d seen him cry. He hadn’t even cried when she had finally left the naval base.

Taking a shaking breath, he wiped his nose on the sleeve of his expensive suit. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered, shattered. “I didn’t--I never--if I had known, I swear, I would have left the navy. I would have come home.”

The silent, unspoken “to you” echoed in the dead air of her apartment. “Why didn’t you?” she asked, quietly.

They held each other’s eyes, an eternity passing in a heartbeat. Neither wanted to break the sacred silence, to bring words into the crystalline moment that hung in the balance between them.

“I never got your letters,” he said, tears in his eyes. “I… after you--left, I…” he sighed, aching. “I… got hurt. Bad.”

Annabeth couldn’t breathe.

“And,” he huffed a laugh, wet and messy, “and then I met my father. Can you believe it?”

Her eyes bugged out of her head. “You what?”

He nodded.

“He’s alive?”

Sally rarely spoke of him, and Percy had always refused to. Annabeth had just assumed he had died, years and years and years ago.

Percy laughed again, humorless. “He’s the king of Thera.”

Her jaw dropped. “He…”

“Yeah.”

“Are you shitting me?”

Shaking his head, he smiled, rueful. “I wish.”

Words from a half-remembered newscast floated through her mind. Alexander and Annemarie had been right terrors that night, and she had only been half-listening as the reporter informed the world that Triton, hereditary prince of Thera, had died, killed in military action. “He… found you?”

Percy nodded, miserable. “He told me--asked--told me to--to find anyone I might have…” And then he swallowed, tears in his eyes again, real, glistening tears. “And I am so, so sorry, I know--I know your job is here, and your whole life, and the children, but I--”

She took his hand in hers, squeezing gently so he didn’t fly away. “It’s okay,” she said. “Just say it.”

“I’m supposed to--I’m supposed to… if you would… come with me,” he trailed off, suddenly shy.

For the second time tonight, she felt like she’d been hit with a sledgehammer. “...What?”

“He… my father… the king wants--needs heirs. He… he asked for a list of women, and I… gave him your name.” Stomach hot, Annabeth wished she had the courage to know about the other women on that list. Or to ask why Percy, young and handsome as he’d been at both twelve and twenty, wasn’t out there making some new ones himself. Why was he chasing down old leads? Why was he chasing down Chase bastards? “You’d--you’d live in the castle,” he said, like he was trying to sell her on it, though she could tell his heart wasn’t really in it, “and we, well, we’d technically have to get married, but that doesn’t need to be a big deal. You’d get your own rooms. You can set them up however you want. And you’d have a personal staff, a stipend, and the kids would get private teachers, and--”

“Staff?”

He blinked, caught off guard. “Yes?”

Staff. Someone to do the laundry and clean the dishes. Someone to cook dinner and look after the house. Someone to help. Someone to do all the parental things that she just could not do, not by herself. Not without him.

“I know I have no right to ask this of you,” he said, squeezing her hand. His hand was just as big as she remembered, and just as warm. “And I would never, ever force you to do anything that you wouldn’t want to--”

“Yes,” she said, interrupting him.

He blinked, dumbly. “What?”

“Yes. I’ll come with you. We all will.”

“...Oh. Uh, great. That’s--that’s good. Are you sure?” He looked like a lost little dolphin, eyes huge and uncertain, and then, Annabeth did the one thing that she’d been desperately wanting to do for the last four years.

She pulled his face to hers, and she kissed him. Shocked, he stiffened, almost pulling away--before relaxing into her, cupping her face in his big, warm hand. Eyes closed, they leaned their heads against each other, sharing air once more for the first time in years. She had lost him twice already: once as a child, when her father had decided to move her across the country, and once as a lovestruck college girl, when she had to leave the naval base, four years ago. She wasn’t about to lose him for a third time.

And for the first time in forever, she no longer felt like she was drowning.

#my fic #pjo fic #pjo #percabeth #percabeth fic #au #the rivalry ends here #the au which we have affectionately named 'chop chop'#for... reasons...#darkmagyk #perseannabeth

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whenzombiesattack · 3 years

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eruri fic rec list

i spent all of january 2021 obsessed with eruri (i’m v late) and this is what i can give you. also these fics are ones i’ve never really seen rec’d before. i wld die 4 them and i hope they (these fictional characters) know that

sole by valisi @valisi-clark. 2k, T. Levi wonders if Erwin has ever considered a punishment for him. Because Erwin thinks of everything. if you get off on levi’s devotion to erwin, and erwin knowing that, this is for you!!

300-thread-count by masi. 4k, T. An interesting new guest by the name of Erwin Smith has checked into Levi’s hotel. super cute au.

your arms like towers by kanthia @kanthia. 5k, M. It’s expensive and time-consuming keeping his body in peak physical condition, but there’s really no point in saving money. The Military Police and Garrison are content to let death come slow, from jaundice or an improperly maintained rifle. The entire Survey Corps lives balancing pleasure against death. this is a great take on erwin being invested in nutrition, and to that end, levi.

indigo blue by watergirl1968. 4k, E. "You’ve gone soft," Levi muttered. He understood Erwin’s command demeanour in the field. He empathized with Erwin’s occasional deep silences and blue moods. He appreciated that Erwin was inclined to laugh easily, in spite of, or perhaps because of, their circumstances.What he was utterly unused to was being cherished in so thorough a fashion, and it unbalanced him. ok i love horses so this is SUCH a good fic on erwin actually being great with horses, and the symbolism that translates to levi, too. also v hot ;_;

blood and salt by valisi. 10k, E. Erwin spares a man's life during the war. i really rec anything by valisi but this one just hits me soooo good. an au about erwin sparing levi’s life in a war.

vespers by valisi. 100k, E. A series of stories detailing Erwin Smith and Levi Ackerman's private life together. ok you get it. i love valisi. this is the PERFECT precanon fic in my opinion. erwin’s manipulation and levi’s understanding of it is SO perfect. the tenderness. the tension. UGHHHHHHHH.

i will return once more by kanthia. 25k, M. A phone call from counselor-turned-director Erwin sucks Levi back into a strange and wonderful world. this summer camp au is really beautiful and also so immersive. i am brown so i do not camp but this really was so descriptive and cute.

service not included by ketita @jochai 21k, E. Levi is living his best life, assassinating people in Sina's underground and getting paid for it. Unfortunately, some big Survey Corps asshole calling himself Erwin Smith keeps rudely interrupting him with numerous misconceptions: that Levi cares about what he has to say, that Levi will hang around to let him say it, that Levi is actually a prostitute, and that Levi will not murder the shit out of him for constantly getting in his face. this one is SOOO funny, i am in love. truly the hijinks fic of eruri for me, at least.

accidental by unknown. 10k, M. I decided to leave daddy kinks to the professionals and wrote this soft, soft daycare au... DAYCARE AUUUU. so perfect and soft and made me CRY.

we are getting old, but I still love you (even when I don't) by kusuriuri @ningen-suki. 11k, M. Erwin and Levi are married and 40. They schedule sex, should really work-out more, and need each other to shut up. All the time. So Levi buys a book to help improve their marriage. He just wishes Erwin would stop eating cupcakes. au about oldies. they’re so perfect together and so stuuupiiid.

communication by everythingsshiny @buttercup-the-bard. 11k, E. The war is over, but Levi cannot say goodbye. after the war, levi is mute, and erwin is blind. they still want to be together ;_; so soooft.

pavlov by longlostwriter. 3k, E. Levi gets bored of his usual routine in the Survey Corps, so he decides to spice things up with a bit of classical conditioning. sometimes you need levi just messing around, super cute.

competitive by patroklassy. 11k, not rated. Levi is a university student unimpressed by many things. Most of them have something to do with the fact that fellow student Erwin Smith obtrusively appears in his life to sweep him off his furious little feet. i would classify this fic as eruri with just hilarious scenarios they find themselves in. the first chapter is about them, the second is just a road trip with the gang that’s just so funny.

the bf by afuzzyowl @afuzzyowl @fuzzfics 76k, M. Levi gets a new boyfriend, and he's everything Levi could have ever hoped for. Except there are rumours going around, rumours that maybe he's not as perfect as he seems... PURE CRACK. so cute.

#eruri #erwin smith #levi ackerman #levi x erwin #fic rec #eruri fic rec

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mxvladdy · 4 years

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Single Dads- Overwatch Prt.1 Headcannons

Jesse McCree

His two little girls have him wrapped around their fingers. Jesse can be seen on base entertaining his twins with games, tea parties, and piggyback rides. They both inherited their father's love of western flair and aesthetic much to his delight. Yes, they all have matching boots for special occasions. Their favorite thing to play with when Jesse is away is their play-dough sets and easy bake oven (with supervision from grandpa Rein). When they are old enough to cook with him though he has so many ideas of what to teach them. Grandma’s recipes won’t die out with him.

When Jesse gets back from a long mission all he wants is to cuddle up, it warms his heart when they snuggle up during their favorite Disney movie and nod off. Over the years he has let his hair grow longer than he normally liked just so his girls could play with it (Instead of touching their own. He had a heart attack when the girls had found his electric razor. Aunty Olivia had a field day fixing that mess)

He likes to take them to the gun range when he has time to practice, making sure they have proper safety gear. Don’t need to turn out like their daddy, deaf in one ear, and ringing in the other. He hopes that they will never have to raise a weapon of their own but knows with his line of work and who he is it’s a possibility. If they want to learn how to hold a gun he is probably going to beg Ana to teach them. He doesn’t want them in close combat, that’s an absolute nope.

Hanzo Shimada

Whenever he sees his son his face splits into the most brilliant smile. His infant son squirms in Ana’s arms, trying to get to his dad as he steps off the dropship. Chubby baby arms wave excitedly, impatient to be back in his father's embrace. As he grows he turns into a very giggly and chatty baby who babbles to anyone in a mix of English, Japanese, and Tibetan (thanks to Genji and Zenyatta babysitting). Hanzo adores his son and strives to be a better father than his ever was to him. He’s strict, but never overbearing.

He loves to read to his son whatever he can find, though his favorite is Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see? Which he reads in English and Japanese till his little one is asleep. When his son can’t sleep he will read it over and over again while his dragons rocking him to sleep.

He encourages his son’s interests whatever they may be at the time. He has saved up a lot of money from mercenary work and what he could take before he fled his home. So he can spend all the money he needs to help fuel his son’s interest.

He regrets that he hadn’t taken more family heirlooms to pass down to his son. Genji often jokes about a bonding trip when his son is older and trained to the old estate. A right of passage taking back what was rightfully theirs. It is a tempting idea… But even without the family trinkets, he will pass down Storm bow, whether his son uses it or not he doesn’t care. The biggest inheritance will be his dragon when the time comes.

Genji Shimada His eldest child is a spitfire, very much like he was in his youth. Thankfully, he tempers it much better than his parents ever did, finding an equal balance between friend and father. He respects her boundaries and she respects his wishes. Whenever she is feeling down she always finds little origami figures all over her room just like when she was little. Really into textiles and engineering. While never admitting it to her father but she one day wants to design him a better, slicker, and lighter body. One as close to flesh as possible. Till then she flourishes with Gabe learning how to sew and make patterns. The holidays are always filled with new custom clothes for the Overwatch members. She is found in the frequent company of Zenyatta. She wants to travel with him one day, to gather inspiration for her fashion and to see what her father saw to make him into the man he is today.

His younger son though is very much like Hanzo when they were little. Reserved and resourceful he spends most of his time with Winston learning what he could from the scientist before dinner. Genji isn’t dull by any sense of the word but the stuff his boy was interested in was just over his head. Has a service dog named Totoro that is always there for him when things get too overwhelming. When things get too much or he is tired Genji loves that his son comes to him for help and advice. To him this is the ultimate show of trust, he wished he could have done this with his father. Normally they just meditate and talk. Other times they go find Satya, who his son loves to talk to.

Christmas and birthdays were always a fun challenge to find things that would keep him stimulated. Last year the highlight had been his very own personal telescope. Courtesy of the science department of Overwatch.

Gabriel Reyes (Pre-fall and After)

His princesa is his world. His crew likes to tease him about his phone usage. 99% of the time he is in the barracks he is glued to it, face-timing his daughter. During the original Overwatch years, his mother and grandmother raised her while he was on tour. It kills him looking back on how he had watched his daughter grow from the scene of his phone. But at the time he believed it was for the best. Now- now he would give anything to be the one to teach her how to walk, her first words, prom, and graduation.

The few times he could visit were glorious. Lots of home cooked meals made together and gifts from the places he had been around the world. Jack and Ana would drop by sometimes as well bringing with them stories and her father’s escapades and foolishness. As his daughter grew she picked up a passion for music and would send sound clips of her music lessons and compositions to him. No one was safe from him showing it off. After the fall and his resurrection, he stayed clear of her, keeping the pictures and recordings saved close to him at all times. Though the holidays are a hard time for him to stay away. Every year her family Christmas tree has a few more presents under it then she bought.

She knows he’s still around and is determined to find a way to bring her father back.

Jack Morrison

Twins are a handful. One he thought he was ready for. I mean, he was able to keep Lena and McCree inline (mostly -but not really). He is a nervous dad at first. Overly prepared, he read every book and online forum. But, self-doubt is a hell of a drug. He gets better over time and the motto of “fake it till ya make it” 100% applies to him.

As Strike-Commander he is in his office a lot. When the twins were newborns, he moved his work to his condo. As they got older he returned to his office and set up an area for the kids. When he is in conference calls it’s always funny to see the toddlers get into frame, or try to get his attention. His office is littered with scribbles and paintings the two did in daycare or while playing with Ana and Reinhardt.

The two have their dad whipped. He won’t admit it but he is wrapped around their fingers. It’s not that he showers them in gifts or lets them make trouble all the time. But he does turn a blind eye to the little things. Missing cookies, a little stain on his chair after he told them no food in his office. Ok, maybe one more scoop of ice cream, but promise me you’ll eat dinner alright? Most nights he can’t read them to sleep. It hurts, but they adjust. He does tuck them in and turns on some read-alongs for them before heading back into the office. The twins are out within minutes blessedly.

Jean-Baptiste Augustin

Twin girls, and he is on top of it. Ultimate chill dad. He gets it. Life is rough, and he is so proud that his girls feel safe coming to him for help. He teaches them how to handle their problems with words not violence. Papa and uncle Mako will take care of it.

Neither girls are interested in medicine, which hurts a little but it’s not his life and he’s proud regardless. He is great with letting them explore their dreams. The eldest follows Bridgette wanting to learn about armor and the youngest (much to his fear) really likes Fawkes and his innate skill with explosives. Praise the gods Athena kept a close eye one them when he had something to show her.

Both are close with Genji’s kids in age. It’s nice for them to have friends that aren’t a bunch of old soldiers. They all like to hang-out on the roof of the base to destress after a day of school or side projects. When the four are together there is a 90% chance the evening will end with a few more grey hairs on the father’s heads.

Cooking is a big part of their family ritual. Baptiste grew up rough and underfeed so there is no way he will ever let his girls feel the same way. He teaches them what few Haitian recipes he knows from heart. Then sometimes they will watch videos and read recipes online of other peoples to try and add to their own books. His paranoia gets the best of him sometimes and he teaches them basic survival skills. They appreciate it and understand his fears. He is open with them about his past and is unashamed to admit his faults.

#overwatch headcanons #Overwatch #fluff #because I can

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simplicityts · 3 years

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100 Baby Challenge Guide | Part I: Overview & Matriarch

Objective

The objective of the 100 Baby Challenge is to give birth to 100 children in as few generations as possible, and successfully raise them to Young Adulthood.

Rules

No cheats or mods, except for ‘bb.moveobjects on’ and ‘reset sim’.

No help from nannies, baby daddies, or free services. Daycare is allowed only when leaving your lot to woo another donor.

You can’t use the same donor twice.

You can’t change pre-existing lot traits or lot traits that you choose, so choose wisely.

A child must reach Young Adulthood to count toward the 100 -- therefore they can’t die or be taken away by social services.

Your matriarch can’t get married until she becomes an elder, and must move out of the household after she is married.

You can’t have a career that takes you out of the household. Example: rabbit-hole jobs.

Only Young Adults can be moved out of the household.

You can’t influence your child’s gender or traits. You must use the randomizer for traits. You can't eat carrots or strawberries. You must avoid Pop and alternative music.

You can only age up:

-> Babies on their actual birthday;

-> Toddlers once they reach level 3 in all skills, or on their birthday, and;

-> When Children and Teens get an A in school.

TIP: Toddlers who reach level 3 or higher in their skills will have a head start in their skills when they age up to children, so don’t just let them languish until their birthdays. (I will go into more detail about this in Part 3: Babies and Toddlers.)

Step 1: Create your Matriarch

According to the official challenge rules by Snarky Witch, your Matriarch can be male (as long as he can become pregnant) or female, but I’m going to use female pronouns for simplicity sake. You can make her look and sound however you want, but she must be a Young Adult.

Choose her traits and aspirations wisely!

1. Aspirations

I highly recommend either the ‘Freelance Botanist’ or ‘Painter Exraordinaire’ aspiration to begin with. I’ve done both, but I personally prefer the former rather than the latter, because you only have to tend to your plants once a day and are therefore not tied to an easel. The problems I encountered with painting are that it takes awhile to finish one painting, and my matriarch would have to start and stop every time she went into labor or had to do anything else (like eat or take care of kids). You can still paint until your plants start generating simoleons (§), but the lot I chose comes with blooming herbs, so I don’t have to wait.

TIP: However, I also recommend switching back and forth between aspirations, because meeting aspiration milestones will give you satisfaction points which you can spend on helpful reward traits (see the Reward Traits section below). In addition to the ‘Freelance Botanist’ (if you choose to garden at all) and the ‘Painter Extraordinaire’ aspirations, you’ll want to complete the following ones as well:

-> Fabulously Wealthy:

You’ll earn 5% interest on your household funds every week. More § for doing nothing? Yes, please!

-> Nerd Brain:

Instantly fix or upgrade any object. Super useful when stuff breaks, and trust me, they will. Completing knowledge based aspirations such as this one will also give you the Quick Learner bonus trait, which will help you learn skills faster.

-> Big Happy Family:

You’ll boost your children’s skill gains whenever you’re nearby, which means they’ll age up faster, and the faster you can age them out, the faster you can make more kids and finish the challenge.

-> Mansion Baron:

Get 10% back on any build mode purchases added to your household funds once a week. You’re going to be buying stuff to furnish your house, so you might as well get some of your § back, no?

-> Serial Romantic:

You might find this handy for the Alluring bonus trait, because it makes you more successful at romantic interactions.

You can still do career based aspirations like Master Chef without actually joining the career. You just won’t be able to complete them once you get to the career based goals. For Master Chef, you can go up to Milestone III. That’s 1,425 satisfaction points right there! Just be sure to switch to this aspiration before you cook anything, and you’ll easily blow through these goals and milestones (same with the other ones).

TIP: I’ll leave you with this last note: don’t bother with children’s aspirations, EXCEPT for your successor! Completing children’s aspirations just wastes time getting them out of the house, but completing these for your successor is beneficial because it means they can buy bonus traits sooner.

2a. Traits

Check out Carl’s Guide to The Sims 4 Traits if you need help narrowing down your traits, but I highly recommend the following:

-> Creative: your sim will become inspired more often, in turn increasing the quality and value of their paintings (higher quality = more §). Choose this one only if you plan on painting being your primary source of income. Otherwise choose something like Cheerful, which will make your sim happier in general, or any of the other traits instead. For instance, I’ve chosen ‘Loves Outdoors’ for my gardeners.

-> Romantic: your sims will be flirty more often, and will gain romantic relationships faster than other sims. This will help you woo and bed donors faster.

-> Family-Oriented: your sim will gain happiness from being around family, which will honestly be most of the time.

2b. Reward Traits

Reward traits can be bought with satisfaction points from the Rewards store. To get to the Rewards Store, press G and then click on the present.

IMPORTANT! Save your matriarch’s satisfaction points for traits; don’t waste them on potions. However, exchange your Young Adults’ satisfaction points for the ‘Moodlet Solver’ or the ‘Re-Traiting’ reward potion, and then transfer them to your matriarch’s inventory before you move the kid out of your household.

The Moodlet Solver potions will come in handy whenever your sims are mourning the death of someone they know, because it removes all negative moodlets. Don’t mistake this for the Happy potion, which is only a temporary fix.

The Re-Traiting potion, however, is best used on your next matriarch only. The rules of the challenge dictate that you have to randomize all of your children’s traits, so you will inevitably end up with a successor that has unfavorable traits. This potion will allow you to change their traits to more suitable ones. However, focus on stocking up on the Moodlet Solver potions first, and only purchase this one if and when you need it.

I’ve separated the Reward Traits I recommend into 3 categories: general, painters, and gardeners. They’re then ordered from most to least important in each of their categories. If you’re matriarch is a gardener or painter, I recommend buying Never Weary first, then skip to your specific categories, and finally work your way down the rest of the general list. However, anything after Great Kisser really isn’t necessary.

In general...

-> Never Weary (10,000): never have to sleep again! Trust me you’ll want to buy this first, because you’ll get more done if you’re not wasting 6+ hours sleeping.

-> Night Owl (1,000): gain skills 25% faster between 8PM and 3AM. You’re not sleeping any way, so this is great!

-> Frugal (2,000): reduces bills by 25%. Who doesn’t like saving money?

-> Beguiling (2,500): this is my favorite way to woo donors, because it makes it so easy.

-> Great Kisser (3,000): this one increases your Charisma skill every time you kiss, and charismatic sims are more successful at wooing donors.

-> Fertile (3,000): increases your chances of twins and triplets. I don’t recommend this early on. You definitely want to get comfortable with this challenge, and in a groove, before you start popping out multiples.

-> Forever Fresh (8,000): never need to shower or bathe again! Honestly, after the Toddler stage, showering is faster than bathing and isn’t really that much of an inconvenience.

-> Forever Full (10,000): never need to eat again. I like to make my Matriarch and Teens watch the cooking channel while they eat, because it raises their cooking skill, and satisfies their hunger and fun needs at the same time. Therefore this reward, like the previous one, is a very low priority.

For Painters...

-> Marketable (1,500): increases the value of paintings by 10% to triple the usual value. Choose this one, and the next one, if painting is your primary source of income. Otherwise, skip to Night Owl.

-> Creative Visionary (2,000): 20% higher chance of painting Masterpieces, which are worth A LOT of §.

For Gardeners...

-> Morning Sim (1,000): gain skills 25% faster between 5AM and 12PM. This one is great if gardening is your primary source of income, because your plants will need to be tended to and harvested at around 7AM.

For more information on reward traits, check out Carl’s guide here.

Step 2: Choose How to Make Money

I’m not going to spend much time on this, except to clarify which sources of income/careers are allowed. Only Careers that allow you to choose to ‘Work from Home’ are allowed as long as you always choose that option. I’ll try to list all of them, but I’ve only actually tried the Freelancer and Gardener careers with this challenge.

Work from home careers are as follows:

-> Freelancer (Basegame): including Digital Artist, Programmer, Writer, Fashion Photographer (Moschino Stuff), and Crafter Branch (Eco Lifestyle). I don’t recommend this career, because I found it difficult to manage a work-life balance.

-> Critic (City Living): Art or Food Critic.

-> Style Influencer (Basegame): Trendsetter or Stylist.

-> Gardener (Seasons): I prefer Botanist over Floral Designer, because I have no interest in creating flower arrangements. This is also the career I choose, because my Matriarch’s are usually gardeners.

-> Civil Designer (Eco-Lifestyle): Civil Planner or Green Technician.

-> Military (Strangerville): Covert Operator or Officer.

-> Social Media (City Living): Public Relations or Internet Personality.

Keep in mind that you DON’T have to do any of these careers, but make sure they compliment your Matriarch’s traits if you do. I’d even recommend avoiding these altogether if you’re starting this challenge for the first time.

I choose to pursue the Gardener career, because I get bored with just gardening on its own. This also gives me an additional source of income on top of my side hustles (i.e. gardening, selling collectables, etc..)

Other sources of income include:

-> Painting

-> Gardening

-> Fishing

-> Digging for collectables

-> Selling honey (beekeeping in Seasons)

There’s probably more, but I only have experience with Basegame and Seasons, because, up until recently, those were the only ones I owned.

If you have Seasons installed...

I recommend you get at least one Money Tree, but you don’t have to spend 5,000 points in the rewards store to get a seed. You can easily get a fully grown tree from the Gallery if you have the § , and don’t consider this cheating. Perfect trees are available, but I prefer to download the '3 x Money Fruit Tree’ from SimBuilder20 instead. As I’ve said before, I prefer to make § gardening, so starting with a lower level tree helps me build up my matriarch’s gardening skill and complete the ‘Freelance Botanist’ aspiration quicker.

TIP: You don’t have to keep spending points or simoleons to get more money trees.

Here’s how to get 5 more Money Trees for FREE: go into build mode and put your money tree into your household inventory when it bears fruit. When you do this, the fruit (i.e. seeds) will be separated from the tree. You can then take them out of the inventory and plant them (and your first tree) somewhere on your lot.

Conclusion

Please do a Google search for more information on anything mentioned in this guide. Carl’s Sims 4 guides are a great resource, but so is Youtube, etc..

If you have any additional tips regarding the topics covered in this post, please include them as a note on this thread. Otherwise, stay tuned for Part II: Your Lot wherein we will discuss things like: choosing which lot to purchase, applying lot traits, and saving money in build/buy mode.

#thesims4 #the sims 4 #ts4 #ts4 challenge #100 baby challenge #challenge #100 Baby Challenge Guide

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thejustmaiden · 4 years

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The Sesshomaru F*cks Debacle

Hey, fellow Inuyasha fans! How we feeling?? I imagine a lot of us are doing quite fabulously after the recent news we got about the sequel coming out this Fall, "Hanyou No Yashahime." So if it wasn't obvious already, I want to take the time to discuss the topic of- you guessed it- Sesshomaru. Go figure!

***THIS IS A REPOST OF MY ORIGINAL BLOG THAT DISAPPEARED FROM THE TAGS. PICS/GIFS HAVE BEEN REMOVED TO HOPEFULLY REPAIR THAT.***

Let's be real, as much as probably (and literally lol) all of us have viewed him as "daddy material" at some point or another during our teens, Sesshomaru being physically intimate with another being, much less a human, is difficult to conjure up in our minds. And there's nothing wrong with that, per se, as sex and romance doesn't come so easily to some as it does to others. Then again, that's not to say a romantic relationship is completely impossible or unattainable for him either.

I, for one, am not a huge fan of the idea of Sesshomaru siring children of his own. Granted, adopting/protecting children and other small companions is kinda his thing (I saw one user even describe him as a 'walking daycare' 🤣), and maybe it'll just take some getting used to, but all in all it's not entirely unfathomable to picture him having biological children. Though I'd be lying if I said I still didn't prefer he just took these two twin half-demon girls in and under his wing instead, like he did Rin. However, seeing as that's unlikely the case since the two girls resemble him in some fashion, the chances of that coming true are slim, which must mean that Sesshomaru did in fact bone some lucky lady. That's not to say I don't acknowledge that there's still a chance these kids aren't truly his but we'll see!

Which leads me to the real reason behind this blog! I'd like to address in-depth why I and so many other Inuyasha fans consider shipping S*ssrin as wrong and why it makes a lot of us extremely uncomfortable.

BUT FIRST BEFORE I FORGET, I want to give a little unofficial disclaimer by stating that this blog isn't intended to upset certain fans regarding my stance on the controversial ship. Thus I will not tag it under that ship name, and I suggest others who agree with me to do the same in any of their future posts.

Because let's not forget that the most important thing is that we're all fans here. We fell in love with this story and hold its beloved characters close to our hearts for a reason. And that still counts even if you're returning to this fandom a decade later. So please, let's try and remember that and be civil towards one another. Putting people down by attacking and insulting others in real life really doesn't make us any better than them. I REPEAT, please do not engage in this post unless you plan to be kind and respectful of others who may have a differing opinion than you. There's never a need to be ugly towards another human being. That goes for all shippers and fans of Sesshomaru in general. Thank you in advance for your understanding and compliance. 😊

Again, none of these comments are aimed at being inflammatory towards those fans who have a different approach to this pairing. If any of you are reading this now, please keep that in mind before deciding to participate in any discourse with me and other antis.

Okay, let me go ahead and list a few of the main arguments fans of this particular ship use to support them together. Then I'll give my reasons why those aren't enough to justify their relationship turning romantic:

1. Rin will be an adult before they get romantically involved

2. Sesshomaru didn't raise her and therefore isn't her father; he was never like a father to her in the first place

3. Sesshomaru hasn't been grooming her, not then and not now. Besides, it was Rin's choice first.

4. Age difference shouldn't matter when you look at other relationships in the series (InuKag, Koga x Ayame, etc.)

5. It was always going to be canon because the drama CDs exist

These are the main points I'm seeing around. Now let's dissect them, shall we? These are my direct responses- I'll try to keep them short and concise. Fyi: Jk! I'm lying, that never happens. 😆

1. Rin may be an adult, but from our standpoint that doesn't make much of a difference. It doesn't matter because it's all about how her relationship with Sesshomaru started off and how it continued onwards. From that moment, it was basically established from the get-go that their relationship resembles that of one a young girl shares with an older man who winds up becoming her guardian. She initiated it by trying to bring him food while he was injured, and he reciprocated by deciding to bring her back to life that fateful day.

Of course we're all happy that he did, because he's a better demon for it and a similar thing could be said about her! Therefore you must understand that fans against this pairing find it very hard to grasp the notion of a budding romance here when we look at their history. For us, it's synonymous to imagining a father eventually falling in love with his daughter or someone else who reminds him of a daughter, and vice versa. But let's just say he's not a father to her like many of you claim and more like, say a modern-day babysitter. Isn't it still bizarre to you that a young girl could fall in love with the man who looked after her and cared for her at that age, maybe even played games with? One day or on multiple occasions he even sees her naked because she had an accident and got hurt so she needed help changing or something. I admit it's more realistic that it was Jaken if anyone who'd be in charge of this, but why does it really matter who was tasked with what? Sesshomaru may have not been around all the time but that doesn't mean he's any less involved or invested in Rin's general care and well-being. So it's that thought alone that keeps many of us from even contemplating a romance forming between them. Whether he hardly interacted with her over the years or not is irrelevant, because it's clear to me that they have both formed a strong enough bond that constitutes calling them family. I highly doubt he ever even planned to keep Rin in his company as long as he did. But it happened, and whether you want to admit it or not, meeting her changed his life. Meaning Rin was never just some girl he traveled with or hardly knew. Despite his feigned indifference and stoic ways at times, I'm pretty sure we can all agree that Rin grew on him and was the first person to really influence him in a way that helped soften and open up that heart of his in a way nobody ever had before. One's significance to any given person isn't solely measured by the quantity of time spent alongside that person but by the quality of how that time was spent with said person. It's safe to say that in the case of Sesshomaru and Rin, they definitely fall under that category.

2. Fair if you don't view Sesshomaru as Rin's father, but you must acknowledge that he did fill some father figure-like role to her at the very least. Or let's just call him her vassal if you think that's a more accurate description. Also, can I just quickly stress again that it doesn't matter how long she spent by his side or whether she spent more time in the village or not, because he still ended up playing a major part in her childhood as an adult male role model. Regardless of the title you give him, it still stands that although he may not be her official adoptive father, he is LIKE A FATHER. There really is no point in denying that, because their dynamic exudes one of a father-daughter. I guarantee you that any outsider looking in would agree that if not her father then at the very least he embodies a male relative of some kind. Honestly, the details of their relationship dynamic specific to this show (regional/period differences, human vs. demon culture, etc.), don't really matter here. Why? Because one can assume that the general consensus here is that a large percentage of fans perceive their connection as a familial one. Yes, most would unanimously agree that Rin and Sesshomaru, along with Jaken and Ah-Un, are a FAMILY.

If she had first met him as an adult, then we'd possibly have a very different story here. The point of the matter is that he didn't, so that should be where this discussion ends. Unfortunately, for many, it's not. The bottom line is that a child he knew and cared for should never be someone he begins to view in a romantic light. I don't care how many years have passed (or that to demons years are like days or some less inconsequential length of time), and how much she's matured or how specific marriage customs were back then (if they're no longer appropriate now then why are we still condoning these backward practices?). Rin should NEVER have the desire to be sexually attracted to this father figure she's always looked to and trusted to protect her. Maybe it's vastly different from a demon's perspective (even though still unjustifiable in my opinion), but as a human, Rin's feelings towards Sesshomaru wouldn't and shouldn't suddenly change towards him and in such a drastic manner mind you. Yeah, maybe she used to have an innocent crush on him, but I'd like to think our smart and compassionate little Rin would learn that was simply because she was a child who didn't know any better. Besides, growing up with Kaede and around other humans I'd like to think she fell in love with another human sometime over the course of all those years. It only makes sense, right? Don't you think that's part of why Sesshomaru left her there in the first place? He wished for her to experience what it was like to live a normal human life, falling in love and marriage both being a key part of that. If I were Sesshomaru, I'd be deeply troubled if I started to develop feelings for a little girl I once protected and kept in my company for quite an extended period of time, which was at least a year from what I understand. (Pls correct me if I'm wrong because I gather it may have been longer.)

3. Apparently in the manga and the Final Act, we see Sesshomaru still visits the village to check on Rin from time to time. He even brings her gifts, such as beautiful and luxurious kimonos. I recently learned from another Tumblr post that kimonos are what older men gift in order to sort of earn their favor with these young ladies, AKA they're wooing them. If that is indeed true, then that would mean he's basically grooming her and has been for however long she's lived there in the village but potentially even longer. To put it nicely, he's courting her. If this was another young lady (maybe not an adult perhaps but still of marrying age) who he DIDN'T assist in raising, then I could possibly get on board with this.

The thing is, it's far from that with them two if you consider everything they've gone through and endured together! Because he not only met her as a young girl but he got to know her first as a young girl, and she became one of his traveling companions all while she was only a young girl!!! Their bond will always be defined by that time when she was just a young girl, and nothing can or should change that he will always see her in that same light. Kinda like how our parents or other family members from older generations tell us that they'll always see us as their babies. So the fact that her time spent with Sesshomaru is constantly compared to her time spent in the village shouldn't apply here. Don't we all know this already? That we can can come across someone in our lifetime and maybe the time with them is short-lived, but that doesn't make it any less significant or those people any less special. Sesshomaru made an impact on her as much as she did on him, that much we know is true. Sure, it was years ago, but that's not something you ever forget. Sometimes when you look at loved ones you haven't seen in a while, there are just certain memories you have of them from over the years that will come rushing back to you without fail and that you will always cherish no matter what. I'd like to believe that when Rin looks at Sesshomaru and he looks at her, that they can both look back fondly on their times traveling together. This explains why I'm really struggling here to picture how anyone could sleep with someone they used to treat as their guardian/father/ward/daughter/what have you. So someday and somehow, this person just stops viewing them that way, is that it? I mean, how does this work exactly? It's not like you can just flip off a switch and forget everything from your past with this person, ya know? Unless you have your memory wiped, what I'm understanding is that S*ssrin shippers approve of the idea of these two characters KNOWING that they are or used to be like practically FAMILY to each other, yet agree that these two characters in question still have the capacity not to mention desire to pursue HAVING SEX with each other anyway. Do I got that all right? Did I miss anything?

Originally I provided two examples of fan art I found to help put what I'm trying to say here into better perspective, but since they've been removed, just type in "Sesshomaru and Rin" on Google and you'll find plenty of examples of what I'm talking about here- and no, it's not S*ssrin images. I realize Sesshomaru has never been the touchy-feely sorta guy like it's depicted in some of the fan art, but that doesn't necessarily diminish the affection he feels and attachment he has towards Rin. He just has a different way of expressing his love is all, even if he doesn't outwardly show it. The real question here is, can you really look at sweet pictures of an adult comforting a child who's been under his care for a significant amount of time and then suddenly be like, "oh man, I can't wait till they bang!" I'm sorry, to each their own, but you gotta admit why we must find that creepy.

4. Regarding Inuyasha and Kagome's relationship, we need to remember that he didn't age after all those years stuck to that tree. And besides, demons age differently so this is a pretty unfair comparison. This isn't the best example, but think about how a cat's lifespan works. 10 years in (indoor) cat years is like 56 in human years. So technically in demon years, Inuyasha is physically and emotionally compatible with a human around Kagome's age. Hell, even though he's over a hundred years older, Kagome is still a whole lot more mature than he probably ever will be! 😂 (Psst! We still love you, Inuyasha! 💋)

Now as for Koga and Ayame, this also isn't comparable to Sesshomaru and Rin. Koga met Ayame one night, only not to see her ever again until she was older and of age. After rescuing her on that night when she was only a girl, he gives her a piggyback ride and you can tell he just wants to cheer her up when he mentions her being his wife someday. (And boy, did that work wonders on Ayame!) Then they gaze at this stunning lunar rainbow together, which I think is quite rare judging by looks of it. This is not an attempt to defend this proposal- if we can even really call it that- but all I'm saying is that I don't think even Koga knows what overcame him in that moment. Fast forward to present-day when they cross paths again, and Ayame still remembers his so-called promise, but guess who doesn't right away? Yep, our man Koga! It takes a quite a while for it to come back to him, too. This further proves my point that something beyond Koga and his power possessed him to say all those things to a little Ayame for some reason. Maybe you can call it destiny, or maybe it was some special kind of magic caused by the lunar rainbow, Idk! All I know is that they do end up together in the Final Act and that it wasn't until they met as two consenting wolf-demons that they really grew to know each other and coincidentally- or maybe not so coincidentally- fall in love.

5. From what I understand, it appears these drama CDs are some kind of satire which doesn't equate to canon. Perhaps Rumiko did not debunk them but she also didn't confirm they're true either. I'm hearing conflicting reports, however, and her involvement in them is questionable. Like her name is supposedly on the cover or something? But then I've also heard that she has spoken out against this ship. From the sounds of it, there is enough evidence- or lack thereof rather- to conclude that fans cannot use this as proof enough for their ship already being or soon-to-be canon.

Finally, I'd like to end on this note where I'll be addressing ethics in entertainment. When it comes to our choice of entertainment, there's always a level of escapism implied, sometimes so much that we project ourselves onto certain characters. Delving into a fantasy world like that of Inuyasha can really help some people better cope with real life problems, but it's all about striking the right balance, as each individual has different wants and needs. The thing is there's only so much escapism one can allow in a fictional world before basic morals from our own world begin to take precedence. I can always enjoy some good fantasy, but it's not long until I start to reflect on how I personally relate what entertainment I'm currently absorbed in to real life. It's inevitable really. For example, if certain relationships portrayed on screen conflict with strong opinions I've adopted on a sensitive topic, especially those that take children into account, then I feel it's my responsibility to speak out against any media that even remotely promotes it. Yes, even if it's just fiction. Because art imitates life, right? (And yes, sometimes the other way around.) So in other words, our stories should mirror our way of life to some degree. History has seen its fair share of ugly events and traditions we are surely ashamed of but that we've hopefully learned our lessons from. Most societies nowadays seriously frown upon or condemn stuff like pedophilia, child grooming, or anything of the sort. Of course it doesn't help that we see still see these kinds of issues glossed over so much that we've become desensitized to them in many respects.

The thing is we cannot allow this way too common older-man-dotes-on-young-girl trope (or anything resembling it) to continue to be glorified or romanticized. It matters not that feudal Japan was a drastically different time to be alive and that this was the norm back then, or even that this remains a popular ship in Japan. All it comes down to is if whether we would currently tolerate such acts and behaviors were we to witness them in real life. If your answer is 'no', then it should be 'no' in every respect. If you deem it acceptable just because it's fiction, then I'm sorry to say, but you're going to have to answer to a lot of people. No surprise there, that goes for all fandoms. I guarantee you it's not just the people who personally identify as victims who have serious qualms with this ship either, because you don't necessarily need to have bad experiences of your own in order sympathize and see where a lot of these people are coming from. And no, just because I'm unhappy with the possibility of S*ssrin going canon does not mean I'm whining or that I'm attempting to spread negativity about this series before it's even out. Remember, fans have the right to be critical of whatever content it is they're watching/reading, and if they demand something in the storytelling be represented better, then of course they can challenge that. After all, none of us should feel like "canceling" the content we love is our only hope to fixing a story. That's not how it ever should be. Fans are fed up, and can you really blame them? Nah, we can strive to do better in this area, plus it's not like there isn't always room for improvement. So let's please be more vigilant about how the content we consume translates to reality, in addition to being mindful of how it can directly correlate to real life problems for ourselves as well as others around us.

That's a wrap, y'all!! I hope you enjoyed what I had to offer on this topic, and here's hoping I actually contributed something new to this conversation! I'm aware that that's unlikely the case for us fans who've been living in this tag the past couple days (like me lol), but I'd like to believe I put my own spin on it and it was still worth your while. 😉

P.S. Overall, I remain optimistic about the new show! So are there any friendly Inuyasha group chats on Tumblr I can join? If so, please do invite me! I need to obsess about this sequel even more than I already am, EEEK!!!

#inuyasha #hanyo no yashahime #sesshomaru #anti sessrin

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goddessofthundathighs · 5 years

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Hoe Ass Erik: The Classroom Treatment

Pairing: MIT!Erik x Black OC

Word Count: 1,846

Warning: NSFW, Public Sex, Nastyness

A/N: I’ve said a million times that I wasn’t reviving this story, yet here we are. You’re welcome.

9:30 am, Philosophy. Erik could think of a million and one things he’d rather be doing, sitting in the ice cold lecture hall not being one of them. He sat in his usual spot, the middle seat of the second to top row near the back exit. The rest of the row seated his line brothers and his girlfriend best friend, Hennessy. It was the only class the pair had together and the class where they found themselves the most distracted. Erik yawned and stretched, giving Hennessy the faintest peek of his v-line when his shirt lifted. She discreetly bit her lip, trying and failing to hide the flustered look on her face. Erik caught it and wiggled his hips in a circular motion with a sly smirk on his face just to tease her.

“I’m not about to play with you,” she said with a shake of her head. His grin widened as he leaned over to rest his head on her shoulder.

“C’mon, you know you like it,” he teased, using the tips of his fingers to rub up her thigh.

“Whatever nigga,” she deadpans, pushing his head from her shoulder, which he simply put back.

“Gimme kiss and I’ll move,” he fake pouts, wiggling his face caterpillars for emphasis. It worked, as she leaned over to peck his lips softly.

“Mr. Stevens, Ms. Chiron. Save it for after class, please and thank you,” Professor Johnson sneers before turning back to face the board. Erik’s groan echoed around the room as he reluctantly pulled away from her lips.

“Behave sir,” she scolded, placing her index finger to his lips.

“Maaaan. He actin’ like we don’t do this all the time,” he pouts, leaning his head back on her shoulder.

‘True, but it’s still inappropriate.”

“Have you met that nigga?” His line brother Kendall chimed in. “Inappropriate is that nigga’s middle name.”

“Touche,” she agrees, still rubbing Erik’s leg to placate him.

“Quit pouting,” she whispers, to which he responds by grabbing her hand and placing it on his lap. She smiled deviously before turning to him, anxious to fill him in on the thought that had crossed her mind.

“Want Mama to make it better?” she cooed, rubbing her hand across his lap. He nodded, feeling himself hardening under her touch.

“Please,” he whined softly. She smiled sweetly before dropping down to her knees in front of him. She lifted his shirt, softly kissing down his stomach until she reached his belt. She slowly and carefully undid his belt and jeans before exposing his third leg to the rest of the row.

“Y’all niggas nasty,” Kendall said with a smirk, all too used to his friends’ public escapades. Hennessy simply shrugged before licking a long stripe up one side of Erik’s shaft and back down the other.

“Best way to be,” she replied before taking him into her mouth. Erik reclined in his chair, lifting his shirt so that he’d have an unobstructed view of his girl while she worked. She looked up into his eyes as she pushed him down her throat and he threw his head back with a soft hiss.

“Shiiiit.”

One look down the row had the rest of his line brothers reclined in the same fashion, each one sneaking a glance as the freaky scenario unfolded. Just as Professor Johnson paused his teaching, Hennessy’s slurps suddenly became much more vocal.

“What is that sound?”

“My bad, Professor J,” Kendall covered. “Opened my browser to a video I had been watching.”

“Keep your extracurricular activities out of my classroom, Mr. Barnett.”

“Yes sir,” Kendall said with a smirk. Hennessy wasn’t phased. One thing Erik loved about her was her adventurous nature. Public sex and the thought of being caught were major turnons for her and he took advantage whenever and whereever he could.

“Gahdamn,” Erik moaned softly as he clutched a fistful of her curly mane. She pulled off of his dick slowly, stroking him as she looked into his eyes.

“Daddy feel better?” He nodded, grinding himself against her hand.

“Is Daddy gonna cum for me?” She asked in the soft, needy voice that drove him crazy. Kendall bit his lip as he looked down at her.

“Shiiid, keep talking like that and we’re all gonna cum for you.” She smirked as she watched Erik, who was still grinding himself into her hand.

“Come on, Daddy. I can already taste the precum on my tongue. Make this throat a daycare.”

“Jesus Javonte Christ!” Kendall called out, readjusting himself in his pants.

“Oh fuck,” Erik cried out as he gripped her hair tighter, cumming down her throat. He looked down at her, panting frantically as she licked him clean before tucking him back into his jeans and climbing back into her seat. He was spent, resting his head on the desk trying to regain control of his senses and motor skills. Hennessy glanced over at him before nudging him softly.

“Sit up baby.”

“H-Huh?” he stuttered as he sat up, his eyes low and hazy.

“You’re gonna miss the lecture.”

“I don’t give a fuck, I want you.”

“Later baby,” she placated, gently scratching through his beard. He smiled goofily as his leg bounced in excitement.

“Dog ass nigga,” Kendall teased.

“Bark bark, bitch.”

---------------------

Erik had a new pep in his step following the treatment he had received in the classroom. He whistled and sang his way through the rest of his classes while Hennessy hid away in the library studying for the upcoming psychology exam. Hours had passed and before Erik knew it, it was nearly midnight and his better half still hadn’t returned home. After a brief text conversation, he learned that she was in the library and opted to go help her “study”.

He found her on the fourth floor, her usual spot because it stayed open all night, was right next to Starbucks, and it was the floor that hardly no one came up to. He found her with her back facing the door, headphones in and caramel macchiato in front of her books. He crept up behind her slowly before wrapping his arms around her waist, kissing her neck softly. She bit her lip and rolled her head to one side, giving him more access to her sweet spot.

“Wassup, pretty girl?” he spoke between kisses to her neck.

“Hey bae,” she whimpered.

“What you studying?” he asked as he licked from her neck to behind her ear. Her breath hitched, causing her words to tremble out.

“P-Psychology.”

“How long you been in here?”

“About an hour.” He nodded softly before returning his face to the bend of her neck. “W-Where you coming from?” she stuttered out, as he nipped at her earlobe some more.

“Frat had a chapter meeting,” he replied as he pulled his chair closer to her. “I missed you.”

“I’m sorry, I needed to get these concepts down.” He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her shoulder gently as he watched her work.

“It’s fine baby. I know how you get about your studies.” She smiled softly, pushing the gold wired glasses back up on her face causing him to chuckle.

“You know, you real cute with them glasses on.”

“Thanks. I stole them from my boyfriend,” she said with a sly smile. He chuckled softly as he poked her nose.

“Yeh, I ‘member.”

“I mean.. He can always have them back.”

“Nah, you look betta in ‘em,” he said as he grabbed her chin and pulled her in for a kiss which she happily returned. He sucked on her bottom lip and slowly tugged at her waist until she was straddling his lap.

“W-Wait.. I gotta finish..” she whined as he kissed up his neck.

“You need a break, you been studying all day. Come get ya pussy wet for a real nigga,” he growled as he grabbed her waist. She smirked, feeling him getting harder under her.

“My pussy always wet for a real nigga,” she purred.

“Perfect,” he grinned as he slid her arms around his neck and his hand into the front of her shorts, slowing massaging her clit with his thumb.

“Why you teasing?” she moaned as she worked herself up by grinding on his lap.

“Good question,” he replied as he slowly pushed his joggers down and moved her shorts to the side, still tempting her with sweet torture.

“You still talking,” she whined. He bit his lip at the needy edge in her voice before sliding her all the way down on his length.

“Damn,” he moaned as he used his hands on her waist to guide her movements.

“Shiit,” she moaned softly, not wanting to attract the attention of the few other patrons that inhabited the other side of the floor. He bit his lip as he continued to slowly bounce her on his lap, the sound of her arousal ringing in his ears. She bit her bottom lip, focusing all of her attention on keeping quiet. He used his thumb to pull her lip from between her teeth before pulling her down with a kiss as slow as he was fucking her.

“Oh now you wanna take it slow?” she teased as she rolled her hips to meet his upward thrusts. He smiled, gold slugs gleaming in the light of the library as he began bouncing faster.

“Oh you want the Killa stroke? Right here, right now?” He teased as he thrusted harder, causing her skin to clap against his.

“N-Nah.. I like it slow,” she whined. He slowed his strokes again, using his grip to pull her slowly from hilt to tip repeatedly.

“Yeessss,” she hissed. He had her now. She threw her head back and started rolling her hips against him, causing her essence to drip onto him.

“Gahdamn bae,” he moaned into her neck.

“What? You wanted me to get wet for a real nigga.”

“I know, but shit. It feels so fuckin’ good. Fuck.” She smiled, happy to know that she was affecting him just as much as he was affecting her. She leaned down to suck at the sweet spot on his neck while simultaneously moaning in his ear.

“You sound so fuckin’ good,” he growled as he grabbed her ass in both hands.

“Cuz my Daddy is making me feel good,” she moaned in the soft and needy voice that drove him wild.

“Shit,” he growled against, thrusting against her gspot repeatedly.

“Daaaddyyyy,” she whined in his ear as she came in his lap. He slow grinded her through her orgasm before cumming shortly after her. He kissed her deeply, swallowing each of her moans as she rode out her high.

“Thank you Daddy,” she mewled, thoroughly sated and more prepared to focus on the task at hand.

“You’re welcome, pretty girl. You wanna stay here or study at home? I was gonna make ramen.”

“Oooh, I’ll take homemade ramen for $500, Alex.” He smiled and kissed her forehead before lifting her from his lap and readjusting their clothes.

“Homemade ramen it is, Princess.”

TAGS: @hearteyes-for-killmonger @panthergoddessbast @bidibidibombaclaat @amethyst1993 @thiccdaddy-mbaku @thehomierobbstark @laketaj24 @princessstevens @princesskillmonger @iamrheaspeaks @drsunshine97 @thadelightfulone @dameshaemonique @whatmoredoyouwantamericaa @killmongersgurl @youreadthatright @forbeautyandlife @kissmyafropuff @wakanda-inspired @vikkidc @trevantesbrat @chaneajoyyy @jozigrrl @blowmymbackout @nickidub718 @heyauntieeee @theogbadbitch @maya-leche @blackpantherismyish

#vanity writes #my shit #erik stevens #killmonger smut #daddy erik #killmonger fic #erik killmonger x black oc #hoe ass erik

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forallyourikemensengokuneeds · 5 years

Text

raising a princess ch one

“Sakura come here!” Mitsuhide yelled through the house.

“No daddy.” She said as she stood on the landing, “I don’t wanna go to school.”

“Sakura Akechi! I have to go to work and you need to get to daycare.” He said as he went over to the stairs.

“I is a big girl, Daddy. I can stay here by myself.” She said as her golden eyes glowed with a knowledge Mitsuhide sometimes hated.

“You are a big girl but baby you have to go to daycare. I have to go to work. It is Friday and we can go to the park this weekend if you will just please go to school.” Mitsuhide pleaded with the now three year old.

“I don’t like it daddy!” she said as he moved up the stairs.

“Why don’t you like it?” he asked as he sat down at the landing she was standing on.

“Daddy Miss Tanya yells all day.” She said. “She is mean. I don’t want to go.”

“Sakura Do you want to look for another school?” Mitsuhide asked.

“Yes Daddy.” Sakura said as she hugged him.

“Well you still have to go to school today but after my meetings I will pick you up and we will go look to see if there is something you like better.” Mitsuhide said as he knew he was giving in to her to easy but he also really didn’t like the way the school was headed. When he placed her two years ago in the new school it was fashioned to be more of a learning center where the young girl would learn things like a pre-school but as time went by he could only see it being a place where people dumped their children all day. He hated leaving Sakura in it but until she said something he wouldn’t move her again. That day finally arrived.

“Okay daddy.” She said as he hugged him and he lifted her up. He carried her to his car and belted her in to her car seat. Still small he wondered if she would ever be ready for a booster seat. They got to the daycare and he walked her in with her small backpack on his back and he looked around. She walked to her classroom which was in the back, though she was small she was in the advanced classroom with some of the older kids. He placed her backpack in the cubby hole she had and he bent down.

“I’ll see you in a few hours, princess.” He said as she hugged him tight and he pat her back.

“I love you daddy.” She said as she went to the table in the center of the classroom.

“I love you too princess.” He said softly.

“Mr. Akechi.” Miss Tanya said as she walked up to the man who was watching the tiny little girl at the table. “We would prefer it if you only used Sakura’s name here instead of any nicknames or pet names.”

“I will call my daughter whatever I wish.” Mitsuhide said as he looked down at the woman with disgust.

“It is just that some of the other children do not get called things like Princess by their parents and we find it gives a false sense of superioty to a toddler.” The woman went on.

“She is three. If I want to call my daughter princess, I will.” He said.

“I just find it causes much more trouble down the road.” She said, “Also I do have to ask you to refrain from doing it here.”

“You know what.” Mitsuhide said as he was trying to reign in his temper, “I don’t believe that we will have an issue with nicknames any longer.”

“Well it is good to see that you are taking my advice seriously.” Tanya said with a smile.

“I would like my daughters records please.” Mitsuhide said. “Sakura come here please.”

“Her records?” Tanya asked blankly.

“Yes. I would like her records please, NOW.” He said forcefully trying to not roar.

“But we don’t give those back to parents unless they are pulling their children from the school.” Tanya said.

“I know. As of this moment you do not have to worry what I call my daughter. She will not be going here any longer.” He said as an evil smile crept over his face.

“But.” Tanya said and the owner of the day care came over to help disfuse the situation. To which five minutes later he was walking out of the daycare with a folder on one hand and Sakura holding on to the other.

“Where are we going daddy?” she asked.

“To my job. I have that meeting I have to go to today but you can stay with one of your uncles. After that we will go find you another school.” Mitsuhide said.

Three hours later he was standing in front of a small house as he wondered if he had the right address. This did not look like any of the other daycares he had been too over the years. He looked down out the little girl next to him who also had bright wide eyes. He went up and rang the bell. A young woman opened the door with a smile.

“Hello, Can I help you?” she asked with a slight southern accent he could detect.

“I called about the daycare about an hour ago.” Mitsuhide said when he cleared his throat to speak as the woman in front of him was one of the most beautiful he had ever laid eyes on.

“Oh, Mr. Akechi. It is so good to meet you.” She said as she opened the door wider to let the two of them in. “And you must be Sakura!” she bent down to Sakura’s level and put out her hand to shake the girls hand. Sakura looked up at her father who nodded and she placed her small hand in the one of woman in front of her. “It is a pleasure to meet you Sakura. My name is Kristy.” She stood up and looked again at Mitsuhide, “If you will come with me we can discuss what you wish for Miss Sakura and then if your still interested in our program I can gladly show you around.”

“Lead the way.” Mitsuhide said as he looked down at his daughter who also seemed to be taken with woman. They went into an office off to the side and she left the door open.

“As I told you the owner who happens to be my aunt isn’t in today. She won’t be in for a week or so but I can answer any of your questions.” Kristy said as she sat down.

“So your aunt owns this place?” Mitsuhide said.

“My aunt started this place because of the sheer size of the family.” Kristy said. “We all went here at some point of our lives.”

“We?” Mitsuhide asked.

“My Siblings, cousins, and myself.” Kristy said as she pointed to a picture on the wall. “We were a huge family and my aunt was the only one who had a degree in early childhood education. She started this place to help all of us find a place to fit in.”

“A place to fit in?” Mitsuhide asked.

“Most of our fathers were also in the military. We were born in different places and often had different backgrounds in education even from our own siblings at times. She helped us with learning English and getting us ready for the school systems here. She made the program to help us, her family, but found that adding a few children from other families was the key to having a well rounded program. Even now the family is the main users of the school.” Kristy said with a smile. She looked at the tiny girl who was looking around the office. “Do you have any questions Sakura?”

“Is that you?” the tiny girl asked as she pointed to a picture on the wall.

“Surprisingly no, hun.” Kristy said as she walked over and took the photograph off the wall. “This is my mom.”

“Mom?” Sakura said with a tilt of her head. “I don’t have one of those.”

“Well if you wanted to see me in one of those pictures. I am in this one. Though I must be around your age.” Kristy said as she glossed over the admission of the young girl, “It was when my dad moved us from south America to here. He was in the military too just like your dad.”

The girl continued to look at the different photographs on the wall. “Now Mr. Akechi can you tell me what you are looking for in a program for Sakura?”

“Something that will teach her something. I don’t want her to be sitting in front of a tv or doing arts and crafts all day every day.” He started and Kristy let out a small laugh.

“I understand.” She said. “I think maybe I should show you around so you can see that we are slightly different then most daycares.”

“Yes. I think I would like to see that.” He said and Sakura took her fathers hand as they left the office.

“Now this right here is the front entrance. Though most people use it to come and go so we can monitor who enters and leaves we do have another entrance around back. It has a special badge that you have to have to open the doors. We do have an alarm on that one as well so we know inside the building that someone accessed it. These front rooms are our conference rooms that we can have meeting with families to give quarterly reports on each child. We do have these conferences on your schedule so if you have an issue we can help address it here as well. Now here comes the classrooms. This is the babies room. We have two teachers and eight infants under twelve months old in here. We also have a floating teacher that helps out in here when needed. Now the younger toddlers room. And further down the hall over here is the classroom that Sakura would be in.” Kristy opened the door and waved as all the twelve heads of the children turned and saw her. The two teachers that were in the room also looked up, “Please continue.”

“And this is how we say it in French.” The teacher said as she repeated a phrase in french to the class while the other teacher said, “This is how we say it in Spanish.”

Kristy shut the door and smiled at the two people she was giving the tour too. Mitsuhide was impressed already and it seemed his daughter was. “Now let’s go to the art rooms and the computer lab.” Kristy continued on the tour showing them room by room and the outside of the building with the semi large playground.

“This place is completely different.” Mitsuhide said.

“Like I said my aunt built this whole concept from the ground up. She knew that it would be more effective on the learning parts if it wasn’t like a school. There is one television in the whole building. That is only used for the older children on a Friday if they have received enough credit for the week. They also only watch a half an hour of whatever it is they won. Language skills are important for under five years old so we introduce things that will help them as well when they are older. It also helps for those who have to learn English that we offer five different langagues here. We are a family regardless and my aunt runs this place like it is her family.” Kristy said as she sat back down.

“Sakura what do you think?” Mitsuhide asked.

“I love it here daddy.” She said as she looked up at the woman who was sitting there.

“Okay princess.” He said as he looked up at the woman. “How much is the school.”

Kristy threw out a number and Mitsuhide looked at her like she was insane. “How is that possible? I was paying three times that amount at the other place.”

“Mr. Akechi we believe in quality over making a profit.” She said. “My aunt will never be rich but she will have the knowledge she helped guide her children here into something better.”

“We will take the spot.” Mitsuhide said.

“Good, now let’s have you fill these out.” Kristy said as she pulled out a new folder with a bunch of papers.

“Do you work here?” Mitsuhide asked.

“Actually no I don’t.” Kristy said, “I fill in for the office if I am needed like this week that my aunt is on vacation. I also help out here over the summer. I am in medical school and have break then.”

“A doctor huh?” he asked.

“Yes but I owe a lot to my aunt. You will find that most of the teachers here are either my cousins or they are former students.” Kristy said.

Mitsuhide looked at her and smiled. This was going to be the daycare that worked out for him and Sakura. Something told him this was going to help him with the girl.

#ikemen sengoku inspired sort of #rasing a princess #single father #Akechi Mitsuhide #Sakura Akechi

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lannpaige-blog · 5 years

Text

NaProWriMo 2019 Prompt List

Day Thirteen Prompt: relax, wild one

PG - Warnings for Bullying Mentions

Characters: Patton, Logan, and Roman

Pairing: Logicality

Word Count: 1377

This is based off that text post floating around about Logicality parents raising an insecure Roman. I can’t find that post now because I’m terrible at reblogging posts that later inspire stories, so if someone could direct me to it, that’d be super!

Edit: Found the post! It was written by @a-valorous-choice and here’s an adorable/heartbreaking addition to the post written by @mysticnachophilosopher! Excuse me while I fawn all over this au thanks.

Relax, Wild One

Patton opened the front door and saw Logan framed in the archway to the entrance hall. His partner’s back was too him, but Patton could see the tenseness of his shoulders, the stiffness of his neck, the straightness of his legs which locked at the knees to make him appear a little taller than he had that morning.

“Good evening, Lo,” Patton said, his voice a test of the waters as he placed his keys and wallet on the entrance table and crossed through the archway. Logan didn’t turn. He didn’t ease. He only stared, arms crossed, out the large window and hummed. Patton placed his hands on Logan’s upper arms and kissed the man on the cheek. Logan still refused to calm against his touch. Patton let his eyes follow Logan’s out the window and into the backyard.

Their young son was there, foam sword in his hands, swinging it in a dramatic fashion to fight imagined foes. Patton considered giant orcs or evil vampires, but there was something far more frantic about these strikes than the ones Patton had seen when the boy played pretend.

“He did not speak when I picked him up from daycare this afternoon,” Logan said, “When we returned home, he retrieved his sword and starting doing this. He has only paused to breathe, I believe, but then he continues.”

Patton frowned. “Have you tried talking to him?”

“I did not know how to approach the subject,” Logan answered. Patton tilted his head at the young boy, let his hands slide off Logan’s arm, and exhaled in the hope that his own sudden tension would ease.

“I’ll go talk to him,” Patton said, “Can you fill the hot water kettle? I’m feeling green tea tonight.”

“Of course,” Logan said. Patton walked to the back door before Logan moved. He was sure his partner was still standing in the same spot when he opened and shut the door.

The crisp November air stung his face again. Patton shivered under his cardigan - far too thin for how the weather turned out - and crossed the dying lawn to his boy. Roman’s small cries of effort were the only sound. Then Patton stepped on and snapped a twig. The young boy jumped and jerked around, sword at the ready. Patton jumped back and held up his hands with a smile, even though Roman was too far from him to actually hit.

“Relax, wild one, it’s just me,” Patton said with soft chuckle. Roman blinked at him. Then the sword lowered. Roman’s eyes went with it. Patton closed the space between them and knelt down, his head slightly lower than Roman’s own.

“You alright, kiddo?” Patton asked.

Roman shrugged. His little fingers nervously gripped at the sword handle. Patton tilted his head to try and catch Roman’s gaze, but those large brown eyes wouldn’t budge.

“You know whatever’s bothering you, you can talk to me or your papa about it, right?” Patton asked.

“Yeah,” Roman said. His voice sounded so fragile against the cold air. Patton immediately reached and brushed his hand through Roman’s brown hair before letting his hand rest on the boy’s shoulder.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Patton asked.

Silence. For a moment, Patton thought Roman wouldn’t say anything. He did finally speak though, his hands getting tighter on the handle of the sword in the process.

“Some kids were mean to me today,” Roman said.

“How were they mean?” Patton asked.

Roman swayed under his hand a little and dipped his head lower. “They called me mean names. Laughed at me. Said I looked stupid because I wore this.”

Roman held his left arm out at a sight angle to gesture at his hoodie. It was a Disney princess hoodie, one that Roman fawned over at the store when the two of them went. Patton bought it immediately. He had never seen Roman so in love with a piece of clothing before and he was not about to leave the store without it. To see all that joy sucked away because of the meanness of children wrenched at Patton’s heart. He wondered if this was the same feeling his mother had all those years ago when Patton came home with the same issue, tears streaming down his face. Patton could feel tears well up, but he held them down. He would save them for Logan later, once Roman was asleep. Patton let his hand tighten on Roman’s shoulder.

“I got picked on when I was in school for what I wore,” Patton said.

Roman’s gaze finally lifted. Those brown eyes blinked at him. There were no tears there. Patton wasn’t sure if that was good or not. “Really?”

“Yeah,” Patton said, “I wasn’t exactly one of the cool kids and I always liked bright colors, so when I came to school wearing clothes that weren’t liked by my peers, I got called all kinds of names. But I wore them anyway. You know why?”

Roman shook his head.

“Because clothes are another way we express ourselves,” Patton said, “And I wanted to show the world the kind of person I was. Sure, it was scary and some of the names really hurt, but I put myself out there anyway and I’m happy I did. It made me more comfortable with who I was then and who I became. I don’t think I would have ever married your papa if I hadn’t become that comfortable with myself.”

“So my shirt isn’t stupid?” Roman asked.

“Does it make you happy?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you like wearing it?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Then it’s not stupid at all,” Patton said with a smile. Roman gave a small smile himself and his body twisted back and forth for a second. Then he stopped and his frown faded.

“How do I get them to not be mean?” Roman asked.

“Well, people give all different types of advice on that,” Patton said, “Most people would just say to ignore them and they’ll go away, but your papa and I know how much that can hurt and we know they won’t stop. I was always nice to the people that were mean to me. Every time they said something mean to me, I said something nice to them. It didn’t make them stop, but I felt better about the situation when I was still nice. When people were mean to your papa, he would stay quiet but then write down all the incidences and reported them to a teacher or other school staff. They would step in to help him, but that didn’t always stop the mean kids either.

“The truth is, kiddo, that sometimes people are going to be mean, no matter what. Sometimes you can’t stop them. All you can do is decide how you’re going to react to them. And that’s something you have to figure out for yourself. Your papa and I can guide to making a choice that we think is best, but you have to decide if that choice is right for you. All I ask is that you try not to hurt anyone back. You don’t want to become the mean kid.”

Roman stared at him for a long moment. Then he nodded. “Okay, daddy.”

Patton gave a soft smile. “Do you feel better, kiddo?”

Roman nodded. “Yeah.”

“Okay, then let’s get inside. It’s getting dark and I’m going to start dinner soon. I bet your papa would be okay with you putting on a movie tonight if you ask nicely.”

Roman beamed at him and then ran inside, foam sword bumping against the ground as he charged into the house chanting for Logan. Patton chuckled, stood, and then frowned again. He thought about the world, the mean kids, the light that was stolen from Roman that day. How time changed, how kids grew.

Patton looked at the skies and hoped to see a shooting star. None came. He made a wish anyway. He hoped his little wild child would grow into a kind man full of the love he clung to. Then, with a sigh and a heavier heart than he had that morning, Patton crossed the yard and entered the house, closing the door and the world out behind him.

#sanders sides #ts roman #ts patton #ts logan #logicality #roman #patton #logan #fan work #fan fiction #my fan fiction #logicality!parents with insecure child!roman #bullying mentions

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247onlinemarketing · 4 years

Text

Why I Got Started In Marketing

13 years ago I was lying in the bed listening to my daughter read her book to me... “Daddy wake up she said.”

“I’m sorry sweetie, Daddy is tired it’s been a long day at work.”

You see 13 years ago I was a single parent. I would take my daughter to daycare early so I could drive to get to work by 7:30 am. My commute was 35 minutes with no traffic, but because of the morning rush… it would take 41 minutes.

So, as a result, my daughter would be one of the first to arrive and because I had a long workday and had to deal with an even longer commute back home, she would be one of the last to be picked up.

So we would get home, I would cook dinner, usually a pasta dish…. that was quick and simple. Cooking is not something that I enjoy doing. I can do it, but I have no desire to cook, I would rather bake.

I enjoy baking the family recipe pancakes and apple pie. But we can’t eat pancakes and apple pie every day… So I was forced to cook pasta and the occasional salmon or tuna.

I remember putting my daughter to bed that night, thinking I have to find another way to earn the same amount of income but with less time spent.

As Robert Kiyosaki said in his Top Selling Book “Rich Dad Poor Dad” the pathway to wealth and financial freedom is operating in the Right Side of the Cashflow Quadrant. You can either be a business owner or an Investor. I’m currently on the left side, Employee

Well, needless to say, I started out as an Investor. Based on my default introvert personality… I figured investing is the better path to start. And plus I really didn’t have a business idea to start in the “Business” quadrant.

But man I lost money trying to invest…

So now, I have to find a way to make up the money that I lost…

How am I going to do that?

A second job is not a solution. My daughter is already in daycare for the near-maximum time allowed. The only solution I could think of is starting a business. I could start a home business and work on it at night and a few more hours on the weekends.

In my research in searching for a home business, I came across ways to market your business using internet marketing techniques. Which peaked a desire to learn more.

Around this time a buddy of mine was looking to start a race team and race shop. He’s been a racing fan all of his life. New every NHRA top dragster and crew chief. He grew up building engines with his father.

I volunteer to help market his race shop as a way to test this new-found knowledge of marketing online.

So once or twice a week, I would write a blog article talking about an upcoming race and the results of the past race. Also, I would write a press release article each week during racing season, announcing their attendance in the weekend race event. After about six weeks of consistently writing blog articles and press releases, I received a phone call from a local newspaper writer. He wanted to interview the race team owner.

I asked how he heard of the team.. and he mentioned he find out about us through one of the press release sites. Wow… that was amazing… This actually works.

The editor featured the race team in the local newspaper, which jump-started my buddies race shop business.

Now I had proof that this online marketing thing can work.

So I thought to have a business where I can help people market their business online would be a great business for me.

So I created my business in October of 2009. To help entrepreneurs market their business online.

By the time I finished planning my first marketing campaign using SEO strategy. The Google Slap occurred in 2010. Adwords cost increased significantly, the rules changed and now my plan that I created was obsolete. Old news, it would only work if I had a bunch of cash to invest in Google Adwords.

Which I did not, have the cash. And the credit cards were already maxed out from the multiple business and marketing training courses I purchased to accelerate my learning.

Thus entering me into a challenging period. The bright side is I was getting married in July of 2010, to a wonderful, God Fearing, Proverbs 31 women.

But at the same time, internally this added a lot of stress. I put all of my eggs in this business and now, I have no income to support my new wife and daughter.

You see in October of 2009, I left my current job to focus on starting the business and spend more time with my daughter. I had savings for 6 months and a passion. But guess what… savings was depleted and now, I have no income, savings, or credit to extend the venture.

My new wife was supporting us with her income from a new job.

But this just added more stress, because I desire to support my wife and family. And the end game was for her to be able to be at home and raise our children. We believe in having a parent at home to nourish and teach the children in the way they should go so when they get older they will not depart from it. And naturally, my wife is a better nurturer than me, so having her working while I was at home was depressing for me. But I was not ready to give up and quit the business.

I was on the verge of getting a new client, which occurred through good old fashion networking.

And to be honest, this bugged me as well, because how can I be an online marketer getting clients through means outside of online marketing. This was just more of a confidence deflator, which intern I didn’t feel worthy of pricing my service where it needed to be to support my family.

I lowered my price significantly, so when I did get a few new clients, the price barely covered my expenses and wasn’t much leftover to support the family.

However, the online strategy I did implement for them did work, which boosted my confidence, but it still didn’t boost my price.

And by this time my wife was 6 months pregnant and I had to make the decision, to put the business to the side and return to the workforce as an Employee.

It was a good decision, because it provided cash, health care, and allowed my wife to stay home with our children.

That stress was gone, but the reality is I failed at getting the business to the point to support us. I was unable to achieve the goal of generating enough income without sacrificing all of my good working hours as an employee.

That sense of failure wade on me, but as a husband and father, I had to make the sacrifice.

But the question was still in the back of my head… how do I make this business work, grow it to the point where I can eventually have it as my main source of income.

I know all of the tactical marketing strategies, but when I try them, I’m still not getting the results I need online. By this time the internet is saturated with online marketing agencies. There is a lot of competition.

However, when I get in front of my ideal client in person through networks, I usually get a client, but how do I get in front of them.

Networking organizations usually meet during the day, while I’m working. and I don’t have enough vacation days to use them for monthly or bi-monthly meetings. Plus this still is going against my one rule… to generate the majority of my leads through online marketing campaigns.

So that’s out. So how do I get my message in front of my ideal customer?

SEO is working, but it takes a long time. And it is extremely harder in the B2B niche, because of the high competition.

Paid advertising works, if you have enough money and a good funnel to offset the cost of acquiring a customer.

Then I remembered a common message my mentors shared, Mike Koening, Ed Rush, Frank Kern, Russell Bronson, and Rich Harshaw about positioning. It’s about how to position yourself as an authority so you can attract highly qualified buyers.

People are attracted to gurus… the person that is influential in helping people solve their problems.

The fact of the matter is I ignored this message because I was scared to do it. I didn’t believe I was an expert or an authority. Even though I knew more about digital marketing than most business owners. And I had proof to show it, but because I didn’t know more than my mentors, I didn’t have the confidence to do it.

Going back to my first marketing campaign for my buddy with the race team and shop. Their success started with an influential person, local newspaper writer, finding my press release and blog, and writing a featured article on my buddy in the local newspaper.

The local newspaper is perceived by the local readers as a guru… Authors of news articles are perceived as gurus even if they have limited knowledge in the subject matter. They receive this status, all from interviewing people in a certain niche.

So if you are not a guru, but use a medium that people perceive as a place where gurus hang out like a newspaper, podcast, Amazon, YouTube, the Internet, etc. and you are featured in the media then you automatically are perceived as a guru.

I was so close to the promised land back then, but because of my lack of faith… I’ve spent 9 years in the wilderness going in circles, similar to God’s people when they left Egypt and spent 40 years in the wilderness because of their lack of faith in God.

Man what a valuable lesson learned though… I know have faith and confidence.

So I have created a plan which I call Oracle Position, which will position you and me as an authority in our industry, so we can attract highly qualified clients ready to purchase our products and services.

The strategic plan starts with drafting and creating your offer.

Second, drafting and creating your messages.

Third, creating a sales funnel to capture, connect and convert leads into loyal customers.

Fourth positioning your messages and offers everywhere online, to lead through your sales funnel.

Fifth, accelerate the plan with paid advertising.

I failed in the past because I did these steps out of order or in no order at all.

I know this plan will work, which is why I am inviting you to join me on this journey to witness it for yourself, so you can have the faith and confidence in believing it will work for you too.

Join me on this journey by following me on this media by subscribing, liking or whatever means it has for you to get notified of my next publication.

#marketing #marketingstrategy

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chatalyst · 5 years

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God I am so soft and crying bc I just got inspired by @marionettedupaincheng's post about dadrien and ugh I'm just:

Playing on the themes that Thomas Astruc already enjoys in his characters, Adrien and Marinette wouldn't necessarily conform to the gendered expectations of "husband and wife". So going off of this:

Adrien being the stay at home father and playing with their baby all day and calling Marinette multiple times sobbing over how perfect their child is.

Marinette is the "breadwinner" in this scenario, her fashion empire takes off, and her and Adrien both agree that he'll go into retirement so that their baby doesn't have to sit in daycare all day and can be raised by a present parent.

She comes home after a long day of dealing with clients and snobby assholes who don't believe she can do her job without their help, and she bursts into tears in the doorway when she sees her house is completely torn apart but in the corner she can see Adrien and their infant coloring in coloring books and doing arts and crafts. Adrien thinks she's upset that the house is a mess but she simply puts her bag down, and (while wiping tears off her face) asks if she can color the picture on the left side of Adrien's coloring book.

The child will never wonder if Adrien and Marinette accept them, because their parents are Ladybug and Chat Noir, social rights advocates for ALL LGBTQA+ children, and the face of mental health advocacy in Paris. Even if the child grows up to be straight and cis, they always have an understanding and deep appreciation for the lgbtqa+ community, and is the greatest ally.

Marinette and Adrien always make it a point to have family nights growing up, whether it's watching a movie or going out to eat or baking something together. They both understand the importance of family from polar opposite experiences and want their child to have a good relationship with them.

One day their child asks where Adrien's Mommy and Daddy are, and Adrien sits them down and tells them about how chosen family is the most important. How family should support and love you, and be there for all of the good and bad times. He says that while some people have blood-related family members, you can also have non-blood-related family members, and those people are just as important. He then says that Marinette's parents were so kind that he calls them mom and dad sometimes, because they offered him a home when he had none. Then he smiles and tells his kid Uncle Nino and Auntie Alya practically raised him by teaching him the ways of the world. Marinette has to leave the room because she knows she's about to start crying.

Adrien is the best lullaby singer. Mary had a little lamb? Owned that shit. Rock-a-bye baby? Fuck him up! Any version of any Disney song ever? Kills it every time. You cannot TOUCH him when it comes to getting a baby to sleep with lullabies.

Also, when it comes to their child doing something wrong, he ALWAYS makes it a point for them to sit down and have a discussion. He wants open communication, and he wants his children to know that he's always there, even if he's disappointed.

Adrien HATES the silent treatment, but understands that sometimes him and Marinette need a moment to themselves when they have an argument. They both agree that stepping away when they get upset/angry, and then coming back together later to have a level-headed discussion is how they want to handle disagreements. They also make it a point to never fight in front of their child. Their child not only sees this, but has a healthy expectation of what relationship disagreements should look like.

Basically I just think Adrien and Marinette would be wonderful examples and would be the best parents? Esp. Adrien who would want to make sure that all of the insecurities and Daddy/Mommy issues he has aren't passed on

#miraculous ladybug #ml #ml season 3 #adrien #adrien agreste #marinette #adrinette #adrienette #feel free to add more!#ml hc #headcanons #my hc

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askdarus · 6 years

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Cutscene: Post-9x02

Story update, character development, a new character, oh my!

“How do you do it?” Paul asked softly. His head was pounding, mostly because Richie was up screaming most of the night.

“You mean Gracie?” Aaron asked, looking at his daughter, who was napping in his arms, “Paul, I have one...you have two kids. I can’t really-” he winced when Meredith ran through screaming with Richie running after her, “I can’t really give you advice there.”

“But you’re doing it alone,” Paul said quickly, not even phased by the screaming at this point, “Just...how?”

Aaron looked up at him, shocked, “You want to do it alone?”

“No,” Paul mumbled, “I don’t...want to. I love Daryl, you know that. But lately…” he swallowed, “Aaron, Richie doesn’t even want to speak with him on the rare occasion he’s home. I thought with Carol taking over the Sanctuary that things would be better, but they aren’t. He just turned into Maggie’s lacky instead of Rick’s,” he said quickly and sniffled, “I respect Maggie’s decision, hell...I would have done the same thing,” he swallowed, “But why...why’s it always my husband that does the dirty work, huh?” he demanded, “Why’s it always my family that gets bit in the ass?”

Aaron pursed his lips but didn’t say anything, just looked down at Gracie, who was napping in his arms, “Hey, I bet we could start getting a daycare going here. There’s a school, at the Kingdom, yeah...but nothing for the younger ones,” he looked up at him, “I’m sure we could find someone interested in teaching...and it would do you good not to be in the house all the time.”

“Alex says I’m getting paler,” Paul snorted, rolling his eyes.

“And how is Alex?” Aaron asked, trying to keep his voice neutral.

Paul pursed his lips, looking out the window, “He’s…” he trailed off and shook his head, “He’s certainly...looking at me,” he snorted, “Don’t tell Daryl...I’ll never hear the end of it if he knows he was right about him still…” he shook his head again and winced when Meredith let out a particularly loud screech, “Mer, quiet down a little,” he called, standing up and looking through the cabinets, “Daddy has a headache.”

“Need me to get you something from Harlan? I can run over to the trailer,” Aaron told him.

Paul shook his head and held up a bottle, “He already got to me,” he laughed, leaning on the counter, “Somehow he noticed I had one...despite looking after about four communities.”

“At least he has Siddiq...and Alex, I guess,” Aaron smirked.

“It’s never good to have Alex,” Paul snorted, “The good doctors probably need these more than I do with him around.”

Aaron walked up and clasped his shoulder, “I’ll ask around about getting a daycare set up,” he said, “Hang in there.”

Paul smiled at him weakly, “Thanks, Aaron,” he said, watching as he walked out. He popped the tylenol Harlan had given him and put the bottle away before looking up at the clock on the wall.

Noon.

Paul sighed, walking down the hallway towards the other bedroom, “Vi, c’mon, you can’t be sleeping this late, they’re going to start calling you lazy,” he said, knocking on the door for a moment.

Silence.

Paul sighed again, “Vi-” he opened the door and froze.

There, was his little sister, in bed with someone else from Hilltop.

It wasn’t the first time he’d sadly walked in on her...Violette had walked in on him several times as well. During the few months their parents gave them to spend together in the summer, the two always got into trouble...it was just who they were.

Hell, you leave two people in their teens in a beach house for months, there was bound to be trouble.

“VIOLETTE!” Paul snapped.

“What?” his sister groaned, burying her face in the pillow.

“It’s noon and you’re naked with…” he trailed off, gesturing to the woman beside her.

“Lily,” Violette said, “Who just got back last night, Paul.”

Paul felt his anger dissipate immediately and he grinned, “Why didn’t you wake me?”

“Well, you’re still just as high strung as she described,” Lily said, turning to him despite not having anything to cover her chest and nothing on.

Paul immediately put his hand over his eyes and looked up at the ceiling.

“Yup,” Violette said, tossing her a shirt with a grin.

Paul rolled over in bed at three in the morning, wincing as he grabbed his phone.

He really didn’t need his father waking up, especially from a noise. It would immediately turn into lockdown mode and he didn’t feel like dealing with sitting in the basement until morning when his father deemed it safe.

“Hello?” Paul asked, his voice scratchy.

“Paulie?” Violette whispered on the other line, “Hey, little brother, how’s it going?”

From the time Paul was adopted, Violette was determined that she was the older sibling, despite being younger. Paul was adopted after Violette was born, so she was determined that she was the older one here.

Violette was twenty one now and Paul was twenty four. Violette was living in New York with a job at an upcoming fashion industry, three hours behind him, since he was still living with their father in California.

“What’s goin’ on, Vi? It’s three in the morning,” Paul said, rubbing his eyes.

“I met...the most amazing girl,” Violette said, giggling drunkly, “Her name is Lily Marie Teller...fuck, Paulie, you’re gonna love her.”

Paul rolled his eyes, sure this wasn’t going to go anywhere. He’d dealt with plenty of calls like this from his sister before.

But it did go somewhere...it went to Violette bringing Lily to their annual summer trip, to meeting their dad, to bringing her all their family holidays…

“Welcome back,” Paul said, still looking up, “How’d you find this place?”

“Saw some of the signs in Ohio. I was with a small community, nothing big...” Lily said, pulling her shirt on, “Figured...if the Rovias were anywhere, they’d be in a big place like this,” she smirked, “The two of you were always so preppy, I figured you’d have to have a place with a mansion.”

Paul rolled his eyes, “Well...I’ll introduce you to my husband when he shows up. Have you met the kids?”

“Not yet,” Lily grinned, “But I’d love to.”

Then, it hit Paul.

Lily.

Lily was a pre-school teacher.

Finally, things would start going his way, especially with Aaron looking to start a daycare.

“Well, lunch will be soon, you can meet them then,” Paul said, turning around with his hand still over his eyes.

He ran right into the wall, making the two burst out laughing.

“So...when’s that husband of yours coming home?” Lily asked that night, “Starting to think he’s made up.”

“Funny,” Paul snorted, crossing his arms as the kids watched and old VHS tape, “He comes around eventually,” he said.

Paul watched as Violette gave Lily a little shake of her head, a silent don’t bring it up.

Someone knocked on the door.

Paul sighed and got up, almost tripping over one of Snowball’s four children in the process. He was pretty sure it was Buttercup that was under his feet.

He swung open the door and Alex stood there. Paul sighed and stepped outside, “What, Alex?” he demanded immediately, leaving the door slightly cracked behind him.

Alex handed him a paper.

Paul sighed and took it, “Is that all?”

“Yeah,” Alex nodded.

They stood there in silence.

“Are you going to read it?” Alex asked.

Paul sighed and opened it, reading down the page quickly.

Dear Paul,

I know this is kind of weird...a letter. It’s the same way that we called things off...but I’m also hoping it can be a new beginning for us too.

It’s no secret around here and probably outside of the community that you have been having issues with Daryl...hell, you’re not the only one. But after tonight, after what I’ve heard, I’m saying this as your friend as well as the person who is still very much in love with you, that I fear he’s dangerous.

That being said, we don’t have to tell anyone if you’d ever want to

Paul stopped reading and shoved the letter into his arms, “Okay...first of all...no. Just...no. We’re not,” he pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, “We’re not getting back together, Alex. Are you completely insane?” he demanded, “I have two kids...just…” he shook his head, “Second, what did you hear?”

“You haven’t heard?” Alex asked, “Harlan and Siddiq are getting ready to leave now. Aaron’s arm was amputated at the sight of the bridge construction. Apparently the Saviors dropped a bunch of logs on it and Daryl lost his shit, beat the guy with a pan or something,” he snorted, rubbing his arm awkwardly, “Not exactly safe to be around kids.”

“Yeah, well, I’ll be the judge of that,” Paul snapped, “Alex, you’re my friend. I thought we were on a good page and then you just…” he took a shaky breath, “I need to...can you leave?” he demanded before walking inside and grabbing his coat.

He looked at Violette and Lily, “Can you put them to bed when it’s time? I need to go.”

“What’s up?” Lily asked immediately.

“Family emergency...stay with them,” Paul said before dashing out the door. He pulled his beanie down over his head and waved down the car that Harlan and Siddiq were in just before it headed out of the gate, “I’m going with,” he called, getting in the car.

Paul rushed into camp, following quickly behind Harlan and Siddiq as they rushed to the medical tent. He looked around and caught eyes with Rick for a moment before trying to hurry after them before he caught up.

“Jesus, wait a minute,” Rick called.

Paul sighed and turned around, “Yes?” he asked, crossing his arms.

“Look,” Rick cleared his throat, “I know me and Daryl haven’t been on...the best of terms lately. But I wanted you to know...you ain’t alone in this. We’re a family, you included. Okay?”

Paul nodded, not saying anything.

“What are you doin’ here?” a shocked voice asked.

Paul turned around and saw Daryl. He quickly pulled him into a hug.

Daryl hugged him back, “Sorry,” he mumbled against his shoulder, “Was tryna get back, but this happened a-and I…” he took a shaky breath, “Couldn’t leave ‘im, Paul, you gotta understand.”

“I know, I know,” Paul said, carding his fingers through his hair, “C’mon, let’s go inside and see what the docs say,” he said.

And the two went inside to check on their friend.

#cutscene #cutscenes

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lastbluetardis · 6 years

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And Babies Make Five and Six (4/16)

Summary: Sometimes the things we want the most stay just out of reach. But after an extra helping of heartache as they try for a third baby, James and Rose are blessed with double the joy.

Trigger warning for infertility for select chapters--this is one of those chapters.

Ten x Rose AU

This chapter: NSFW, 8800 words

Betaed by the marvelous @chocolatequeennk, and also written for @doctorroseprompts because it is a Doctor x Rose fic.

AO3 | TSP | FF | Perfectly Matched Series

Ch1 | Ch2 | Ch3 | Ch4 | Ch5 | Ch6 | Ch7 | Ch8 | Ch9 | Ch10 | Ch11 | Ch12 | Ch13 | Ch14 | Ch15 | Ch16

James’s ears rang. Rose was pregnant?

Hope swelled up through his stomach and into his chest as he pawed through the trash, looking for the test. He was optimistic when he couldn’t find it; Rose always saved the test to announce her pregnancy to him. He couldn’t wait until she got home.

But then he heard a soft rattling noise when he put the test box back in the trash, and his heart sank. He took out the box again and opened it; a thin piece of plastic was inside. He dumped the test out onto his palm, and all of the air left his lungs when he flipped it over. One vertical line greeted him.

Not pregnant.

Not pregnant? But they were trying so hard. Why weren’t they pregnant? He wanted them to be pregnant. It had been a year and a half. Surely this test was wrong.

“Daddy!”

The door to their bedroom burst open, and James hastily dropped the test back into the trash as he wheeled around.

“Ainsley, you’re supposed to knock if the bedroom door is closed,” James reminded, even though there was nothing that Ainsley’s eyes shouldn’t be seeing. He was appropriately dressed in his trousers, and his bare chest was nothing she hadn’t seen before.

“Daddy, we’re gonna be late!” she said, ignoring what he’d just said.

“No we’re not, darling.” James glanced at the clock and realized he was nearly fifteen minutes behind his usual schedule. “Come. Let’s get some breakfast.”

He glanced into Sianin’s room on his way to the kitchen, and noted the toddler was still sleeping. He’d let her sleep a few minutes more while he whipped up Ainsley’s breakfast, then he’d work on getting her ready for daycare.

“Toast and eggs okay?” he asked even as he grabbed the bread from the pantry.

“Yep. Where’s Mummy?”

“She had a work thing early this morning,” James said. “In Cardiff.”

“Where’s that?”

“In Wales,” he answered. “I’ll show you a map later. But right now, can you grab yourself a cup of milk or juice?”

In a few minutes, James had Ainsley’s breakfast plated in front of her.

“Okay, you tuck in, I’m gonna wake your sister and finish getting dressed.”

He strode down the hallway to Sianin’s room, where the toddler was still asleep.

James crept into her room and crouched down beside her before he brushed her hair away from her face. She groaned and scrunched her face, then lifted her hand to push his hand away. He chuckled. For as much as Sianin hated falling asleep, it was quite the event to get her to wake up again.

“Rise and shine, my darling,” he whispered, rubbing his hand across her back.

“No,” she mumbled, even as her eyes cracked open. Her gaze was unfocused, and she closed her eyes and let out a low sigh, seemingly content to go back to sleep.

“Waking you up as a teenager is sure to be fun,” muttered to himself. Then he raised his voice slightly to continue rousing his daughter. “Come now, Sianin, it’s time to get up. You’ve got a great day ahead of you. I’ve got some yummy breakfast waiting for you, then all the fun activities at daycare.”

Another minute passed, then Sianin fully opened her eyes and sat up.

“Good morning,” he cooed softly.

“Mornin’,” she said through a yawn while she scrubbed her fists into her eyes. “Gotta wee. Go wee, Daddy.”

“Quite right,” he said, scooping her into his arms to walk her to the loo.

After she used her toilet, James got her dressed for the day then carried her into his bedroom.

“I know you’re probably hungry, but just come with Daddy while he gets a shirt on, eh?”

He continued talking with Sianin as he set her onto his and Rose’s bed and grabbed an oxford at random from his closet.

“What color is Daddy’s shirt, Sian?” James asked as he slipped his arms through the sleeves.

“Blue!” she said with a proud smile.

“Good job! And what about this? What colors are in my tie?” He trailed his fingertip across the gradient of colors.

“Brown. Blue. Blue again!”

“Well done, darling. Who’s my big, clever girl?” James cooed. He shrugged into a blazer, then picked his daughter up and pressed a smacking kiss to her neck. She squirmed and shrieked out a giggle, and the sound warmed James from the inside out. There wasn’t a more beautiful sound than that of his family laughing. “Done! We’ve got to hurry a bit with breakfast, though. Daddy’s running a little late. Don’t tell your sister, though.”

Ainsley was nearly finished with her breakfast by the time he entered the room with Sianin.

“Go clean your teeth and get dressed,” James ordered as he strapped Sianin into her chair. “Once Sianin finishes her breakfast, we’ll leave.”

James breathed a sigh of relief when Sianin ate her food without a fuss. It was sometimes difficult to get her to eat in a timely fashion, and it was usually worse when they were behind schedule, as though the toddler knew and she vindictively ate slower or messier just to make them even later.

But Sianin ate her cold eggs and crust-less toast without complaint, and James only had to endure five minutes of Ainsley’s whining for Sianin to hurry up and that they were going to be late.

“Patience, darling,” James reminded. “We’re not going to be late, but even if we are, it’s no big deal. I’ll just sign a slip of paper. No harm done.”

A few minutes later, James had bundled up his girls against the chilly October wind and buckled them into the car to take them to school. Usually he dropped Sianin off first, as it was between the house and the school, but to alleviate Ainsley’s unwarranted anxiety, he dropped her off first.

“See, plenty of time,” James said as he idled in front of the school, where students were still trickling into the building. He helped Ainsley out of her car seat and knelt down in front of her. “There was no reason for you to be so worried, all right? No need to make such a big fuss for something so small. It’s not worth it getting upset over the little things in life. Okay?”

“Okay,” Ainsley conceded with a sheepish smile.

“That’s my girl,” he whispered, tugging her in for a hug. He pressed his lips to the top of her head. “Have a good day. I’ll see you tonight. Love you lots.”

“Love you, too,” she said. “Bye, Daddy!”

He watched her run towards a boy James recognized as one of her friends, and he waited until they were inside before getting back into the car.

“And time for Miss Sianin to go to daycare,” he said, glancing at his toddler in the rear-view mirror, before pulling out onto the street to drop off his youngest.

He made it to his office only a few minutes later than normal, and that was even with him stopping at the local coffee shop for caffeine and a muffin. With the girls safely at school and daycare, there was nothing keeping James from thinking back to the pregnancy test he’d found in the trash.

When had Rose taken the test? What had made her think she was pregnant? Was she feeling ill? James wracked his brain, but there was no indication that Rose wasn’t feeling well. Perhaps she was good at hiding it?

No, she’d’ve told me something felt off, he thought, dismissing it immediately.

Then perhaps her period had been late, triggering her suspicion. Or maybe she’d had a moment of niggling intuition, and she just knew she was pregnant.

But according to the test, she wasn’t pregnant.

His memory brought back to life the moment nearly a year and a half ago when Rose had taken a pregnancy test, only for it to have come back negative. He remembered the heartbreak in her face just before she’d sobbed into his chest.

Had she been that distraught when she’d taken this test and saw it was negative? His heart broke at the idea that Rose had cried by herself while he slept, unsuspecting, just the next room over.

He was dying to call her and ask what had happened, and why she hadn’t told him. If he was being honest, he was hurt she’d kept this from him. Surely he had a right to know that she’d suspected she was pregnant with their child?

But she was busy, and probably wouldn’t answer. Besides, if she had been upset about the test result, he didn’t want to upset her while she was working. It could wait until tonight.

He threw himself into his work to distract himself, but the time still crawled. The highlight of his day came when Rose wrote to him during his lunch break.

This new software is amazing!

James smiled as he munched on the pad thai he’d ordered when he realized he’d forgotten to bring a lunch.

“User friendly?” he asked.

For the most part. There were a few places I thought it wasn’t quite intuitive, and I told them so. But still, it’s so great, James!

He grinned as she began to ramble about all the properties and functions the software had, most of which he didn’t understand. But he didn’t mind; he loved when she got this excited.

So how’s your day?

“Very slow,” he said. “I’m counting down the hours ‘til I can leave.”

I should be able to leave in another hour or so. Unless we hit any delays with the train, I should be home in time for supper.

“Excellent. See you then xoxo.”

James slurped down the rest of his lunch before going off to teach his only afternoon class.

The rest of the afternoon dragged on as agonizingly slowly as the morning had, but finally James deemed it late enough to clock out and go fetch his girls.

The evening moved just as slowly as the rest of the day, much to James’s frustration, but finally the girls were in bed and he and Rose were alone.

“I found something interesting in the trash this morning,” James said as Rose helped him wash the dishes they’d been neglecting for a couple days. When Rose stayed quiet, he asked, “Why didn’t you tell me you’d taken a pregnancy test?”

Rose shrugged. “Dunno. Doesn’t matter, does it? It came back negative.”

James eyed her carefully and noticed the tense set to her shoulders and jaw that belied her nonchalant tone.

“And how did you feel when you saw it was negative?” he asked softly, setting is dish towel down.

“What do you want me to say, James? I was hurt and disappointed, but it is what it is,” Rose said shortly. “We’ll just keep trying.”

“Why didn’t you wake me? You didn’t have to face it alone.”

“But then I would’ve had to see your disappointment, and I didn’t think I could handle that,” Rose said.

James frowned. “You don’t need to protect me or spare my feelings. If you’re upset, I want to know so I can give you a hug and tell you it’ll be all right.”

Rose gave him a wan smile before she stepped up to him and into his open arms. He held her close to him and rocked them gently as he nuzzled his nose into her hair.

“I was a little hurt that you kept this from me,” he admitted. “We tell each other everything. Surely I should be told if you suspect you’re pregnant?”

Rose sighed. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I just didn’t think it mattered since it came back negative.”

“Can I ask you something?” At her nod, he asked, “If I hadn’t found the test, would you have even told me about it?”

“Eventually,” Rose said. “When I wrapped my head around my disappointment and didn’t feel like I was gonna burst into tears by telling you.”

His heart clenched in sympathy and he tightened his hold around her. “We’re partners, Rose. A team. Teams work best when there is open and honest communication.”

“I know. I know, and I’m sorry,” she said. “I didn’t want to get your hopes up by telling you my period was nearly a week late, is all.”

“Don’t worry about my feelings,” James said. “We’re in this together.”

Rose nodded and pulled back to cradle his cheeks in her palms.

“I will always worry about your feelings,” she countered. “But I promise I will let you know all of the gory details of my monthly from here on out.”

She spoke with such a straight face that James couldn’t help the smile that twitched across his lips, one that Rose then mirrored with a beaming grin. He chuckled and pulled her close once more.

“I really am sorry,” Rose whispered. “Let me make it up to you?”

“Hmm, what do you have in mind?”

Rose walked her hands down his back and to his bum, where she gave it a quick squeeze before she brought her hands around to the front of his trousers to tease at his zipper.

“I’ll think of something.”

oOoOo

“Mummy!”

Rose startled awake at her five-year-old’s hysterical cry and the way the door bounced off the wall from the force with which Ainsley opened it.

“Mummy! Daddy! My ear exploded!”

Rose swung her legs off the bed and saw Ainsley standing beside the bed with her hand clapped over her right ear. The poor thing was shaking and in tears, and Rose’s heart twisted. Her daughter had complained of an earache since the afternoon before, and it seemed like it finally ruptured. Of course that would scare a five-year-old.

“Let me see,” Rose said gently as she flicked on her bedside lamp.

“What happened?”

James came around and squatted at Ainsley’s side.

“My ear exploded!” Ainsley shrieked.

“Let me see,” Rose said again, a little more firmly.

“There’s ear juice on my pillow!” Ainsley whimpered.

The five-year-old finally lowered her hand, and Rose saw a pinkish-yellowish liquid was beginning to crust in and around her ear.

“You just have an infection,” Rose said soothingly. “Your ear didn’t explode, sweetheart. Nothing to be scared of. This happens sometimes. We’ve got an appointment with Dr. Andrews today, remember?”

“It hurts,” Ainsley whimpered, sniffling. “Both ears hurt, Mummy.”

“I know,” Rose whispered. “Come. I’ll clean your ear, then you can sleep with me and Daddy tonight.”

Rose picked up Ainsley and carried her to the en suite, where she sat her down on the vanity. James followed them and rooted around in the cabinet, where he found a bottle of liquid acetaminophen. Rose quickly cleaned out Ainsley’s ear, while James poured out a dose of medicine for Ainsley.

“This will help, darling,” he said, handing her the liquid. He pressed the backs of his fingers to her forehead. “And it will help your temperature, too.”

After Ainsley swallowed down the medicine with a grimace and a shudder, Rose carried their daughter back to bed, and settled her in the middle. As soon as Rose crawled into bed, Ainsley snuggled up beside her and sniffled.

“I’m so sorry you’re not feeling well,” Rose murmured, her heart breaking. “Try to get some sleep. We’ll get you to the doctor tomorrow, and they’ll make you feel better.”

Their sleep was restless for the rest of the night. Ainsley dozed in fits, and whenever she awoke, she whimpered and complained of the pain in her ears. Finally, morning dawned and they got up and prepared for their day.

Ainsley’s appointment wasn’t until late-morning, and so Rose was taking her into the office with her until the appointment. After that, James would collect Ainsley and take her home.

Rose breezed into the office with Ainsley on her hip. Her cheek was on her shoulder, and she kept digging her ear into her mum’s shoulder.

“Aw, is someone not feeling well?” asked Rose’s coworker, Penny.

“Ear infection,” Rose sighed, rubbing her hand across Ainsley’s back. “I’m taking her to the doctor at eleven.” She brushed Ainsley’s hair away from her face and said, “Ready to go to Mummy’s office?”

Ainsley nodded, and Rose walked back to her office. She had quite a bit to get done today, which is why she’d brought Ainsley with her; otherwise, she would’ve taken the morning off.

Rose settled at her desk and fired up her computer, keeping Ainsley in her lap as she pulled up the photographs she needed to touch up and get sent out to clients for the go-ahead to print.

Ainsley was utterly miserable all morning, and Rose hated that she couldn’t have stayed home with her daughter. But she had a deadline, and James was proctoring an exam until eleven-thirty.

“Daddy’s birthday is coming up. Would you like to make a card for him?” Rose asked when Ainsley started getting restless.

Ainsley nodded, and Rose saved her file before she reached into her drawer for her tablet. She turned it on and opened up a simple sketching program, then selected the option for designing a card.

“Here you go. But you must be very careful with it, okay?” Rose stood up and moved to sit on the floor with her daughter to teach her the basic commands Ainsley might need to draw what she wanted to make. She taught her daughter how to change the color and thickness of the pen lines and supervised Ainsley for a few minutes until she was satisfied her five-year-old was okay.

They passed the morning in relative silence, broken only by Ainsley asking questions about the tablet.

“Do you think Daddy will love it?” Ainsley asked, showing Rose her final product.

Rose smiled as she saw the drawing of a brown-haired girl floating behind a brown-haired man.

“He’ll definitely love it,” Rose promised. “Is that you and Daddy?”

“Uh huh. He’s giving me a piggyback ride,” Ainsley said, pointing. “And on the inside…” She tapped on the screen to go to the inside cover of the card, where Ainsley had drawn the entire family. Then on the opposite side, she’d written, “Happy birthday, daddy! I love you a whole lot! Love, Ainsley”.

“It’s beautiful, sweetheart,” Rose said. “I’ll print this out for you, and I’ll keep it safe for you until the twenty-seventh, okay? But now it’s time to go see Dr. Andrews.”

Rose saved Ainsley’s card then set the tablet back in her desk drawer. She took her daughter’s hand and guided her out of the office, locking the door behind her, and to the car.

They were called back almost as soon as they got to the doctor’s office, and after the nurse took Ainsley’s height, weight, temperature, and blood pressure, Rose sat beside Ainsley to wait for the doctor.

When she stepped into the room, Ainsley crawled into Rose’s lap as the doctor made to look in Ainsley’s throat and nose, then finally her ears. The doctor concluded that Ainsley’s eardrum had indeed ruptured.

“It broke?” Ainsley asked worriedly, looking up at Rose with wide eyes.

“It’s completely normal,” the doctor soothed. “I’ll bet your ear is beginning to feel a lot better than it did yesterday?”

Ainsley nodded. “My left ear still hurts.”

“What an infection is is fluid buildup, mostly,” the doctor explained. “And that pressure is what causes the pain. But eventually that pressure will get to be too much and it ruptures.”

“Like last night when you thought your ear exploded,” Rose said. “Your other ear will probably do the same thing. And then it’ll start to feel better.”

“When?” Ainsley whined.

“Soon enough,” Rose answered, pressing a kiss to Ainsley’s temple.

“And I’ve got some medicine for you to help it feel better and to make the infection go away.” The doctor then turned to Rose. “Fluid might keep draining from her ears for a few more days. Just keep them clean, and give her all of the medicine, even if she says she’s feeling better. And keep an eye on her; sometimes ear infections travel to the sinuses or throat.”

Rose nodded, thanked the doctor, and walked out of the office, where a surprise was waiting in the waiting room.

“Daddy!”

“Hiya, darling! How are you feeling?”

“Okay,” she said. “My ear ruptured!”

“Your eardrum,” Rose corrected. She turned towards James and pecked a kiss to his lips. “The doctor sent the antibiotic prescription to the pharmacy. I gave both of our numbers for them to text when the prescription is ready to be picked up.”

“Great,” James said, and he held his arms out for Ainsley. “Are you ready to go home, darling?”

She nodded, and after giving Rose another kiss, James turned and walked Ainsley to his car.

Her earache cleared up after a couple days, and James and Rose were relieved when their daughter didn’t develop a sinus or respiratory infection from it, either.

“Why do I still have to take medicine?” Ainsley grumbled after James forced her to take a dose of the icky pink liquid.

“Because you had a bacterial infection,” he explained. “Bacteria are living things. Some are stronger than others, and so the weak ones are probably dead from the medicine, but some are still fighting. And if you stop taking your medicine, the strong ones will continue to live, and you could get sick again. Also, they’ll have recognized the medicine the doctor gave you, and they might develop immunity to it. That’s what’s called a superbug. We’re trying to avoid making superbugs.”

Ainsley blinked owlishly up at him, before she walked away and to her toys. A muffled snort caught his attention, and he glanced sheepishly over at Rose.

“It’s always a lesson with you, isn’t it?” she asked, grinning at him with that tongue-touched smile.

James put the antibiotic back into the fridge then stepped up to where Rose was sitting at the table.

“Any moment can be turned into a learning opportunity,” he said. “And I’m a man of learning. And teaching. I just can’t help it.”

“Well, it’s a good thing I married you for your brain, Professor Tyler-McCrimmon.”

“Are you saying it wasn’t for my devastatingly handsome good looks?” he asked, feigning affront.

Rose pursed her lips and tapped her chin as though in thought, and squealed when James reached out and tickled her ribs.

“Your ego doesn’t need any more stroking,” Rose gasped as she squirmed beneath his fingers.

“Perhaps not, but I’m sure I could provide something else for you to stroke.”

Rose cackled and swatted at his shoulder.

“There are two children who could’ve overheard you,” she chastised, but her reprimand lost its bite amidst her breathless laughter and bright eyes.

“Nah, they’re preoccupied with the telly. Besides, I don’t think they’ve grasped the concept of innuendo yet,” he said, bending down to touch the tip of his nose against hers.

“Thank God for that,” Rose murmured, her eyes fluttering shut as his breath puffed against her lips. “Everything that comes out of your mouth is an innuendo.”

“Pfft, don’t you act all innocent Mrs. Tyler-McCrimmon,” he snorted. “I know first-hand the level of filth that passes those lips.”

“That’s not the only thing that passes these lips,” she whispered, and she leaned forward to brush her lips against his.

His mouth parted, and she trailed her tongue lightly across his bottom lip, before slipping it into his mouth. He hummed as she trailed her tongue leisurely against his, and his hands scrabbled against her back as he deepened the kiss. He breathed heavily through his nose, which was smooshed against her cheek, and he tugged her clumsily to her feet.

Rose chuckled against his mouth but stood willingly and moved with him as he backed up and eased himself onto the kitchen table. She was somewhat impressed that he managed to keep kissing her as he shimmied up onto their table.

He spread his legs and tugged her forward. When she was between his legs, he loosely hooked his ankles around the backs of her thighs to keep her where she was as he continued kissing her. One of his hands was at the small of her back, holding her close, and the other was tangling and untangling itself in her hair while his lips moved leisurely against hers, catching and releasing her bottom lip between his own.

Remembering that she, too, had hands, she leaned closer to him and linked them around the back of his neck. She lightly scratched her nails across the back of his head and neck while her other hand moved forward to rest against his chest. His heart was pounding and his skin seemed to throb with heat beneath her palm. His chest rose and fell sporadically with his breathing, and she could feel hers heaving, too.

She loved this. Just being with James and snogging him breathless and feeling his body against hers. It was as though she could feel his very life force when they kissed. It was humbling and made her fall in love with him all over again.

“Mummy, did you…”

Rose gasped and straightened away from James. She took her hands off of him as he slipped his hand out from where it had ducked under her shirt. Her cheeks were burning as she tried to tame her hair and force her face to not look as though she’d been thoroughly snogging James against the kitchen table.

She glanced up at James to make sure he was presentable before she stepped out from between his legs. His cheeks were red, his lips were swollen, his hair was mussed, and his eyes were bright and shining. He looked as disheveled as she felt, and she couldn’t help the giggle that bubbled up in her chest. James returned the giddy sound, and she heard Ainsley sigh impatiently.

Rose swallowed down the rest of her laughter as best she could and turned to her daughter.

“Sorry Ainsley,” she said.

“What can we help you with?” James asked, sliding off of the table top to stand beside Rose.

“I gotta talk to Mummy,” Ainsley said.

“Oh?” he asked. “Daddy can’t help?”

“Nope,” Ainsley said.

James frowned at Rose. She shrugged and shooed him out of the kitchen.

He pouted but said, “Fine, keep your secrets. I’ll just… go and do my own secret… stuff.”

Rose watched him go, her body warm with love for her daft husband, before she looked back down at her daughter.

“What’s the matter, Ainsley?” she asked.

“Did you print the birthday card I made for Daddy?” she asked.

“I’ll print it for you tomorrow and bring it home with me,” Rose promised. “That way it will be all ready for you to give to him Friday morning. Okay?”

Ainsley nodded then went back into the living room to continue watching cartoons.

True to her word, Rose came home the following evening with Ainsley’s card, and she helped Ainsley fold it in half and decorate the envelope.

When James and Rose entered the kitchen on Friday morning—James’s birthday—Ainsley was sitting in her pajamas at the kitchen table and she was practically vibrating with excitement as James’s gaze landed on the glittery envelope sitting at his place on the table. Ainsley had decorated the front of the envelope with various stamps and shapes that framed the words “TO DADDY”.

“I’m gonna wake Sianin,” Rose said, giving James’s arm a squeeze before she walked back down the hallway.

“What’s this?” he asked, his heart swelling in his chest.

“Happy birthday, Daddy!” Ainsley squealed, slipping off her chair to run up to his legs.

He reached down and hauled her into his arms.

“Thank you, Ainsley,” he said, peppering kisses across her face.

“Open it,” she said, pointing to the envelope.

James picked up and smiled when he saw the words “I love you soooo much!” scrawled across the back seam of the envelope.

He eased it open, not wanting to tear up the words, and he finally was able to get to the card inside. It was printed on thick paper, and James recognized the small watermark logo of the company Rose worked for on the back of the card.

“This is beautiful!” James breathed, seeing what he assumed was a portrait of himself and Ainsley on the front of the card. “Oh, Ainsley, thank you!”

“Open it,” she said, resting her cheek on his shoulder.

James did, and his heart melted again as he saw a drawing of their family and the sentiment “Happy birthday, daddy! I love you a whole lot! Love, Ainsley”. He smiled at the card and tightened his arms around his five-year-old.

“Thank you so much, Ainsley,” he murmured into her hair.

“Do you like it?” she asked, her voice muffled by his shirt.

“I love it,” he said. He pulled back and pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, Daddy,” Ainsley said, leaning forward to kiss his cheek.

He set her back on the ground just in time for his youngest to sprint into his legs.

“Whoa, there,” he said, nearly tripping over her.

Sianin bounced on her toes and beamed up at him as she squealed, “Happy bir’day, Daddy!”

“Why thank you, Sianin sweetheart!” he cooed, bending down to pick her up.

She leaned forward and blew a raspberry-kiss into his cheek, spraying his face with spit.

“I love you, too,” he said dryly, even as he grinned.

The family ate breakfast together, then James grabbed his and Rose’s suitcase as she loaded the kids into the car. For his birthday, he and Rose were taking a weekend holiday together. She’d surprised him with tickets to a theater show and reservations for a honeymoon suite in London. Robert was going to pick up the girls and stay with them at the house for the weekend.

James was excited for his birthday weekend. They hadn’t been to the theater in ages, at least not to see a show intended for adults and not small children, and it gave him and Rose an excuse to dress up nicely, which they hadn’t done in a while. He wore a new oxford and tie with his favorite suit jacket, and Rose had bought a new dress with a plunging neckline and open back. She looked so beautiful, and he could barely keep his hands to himself when Rose had let her dress skirt ride up her thigh throughout the theater show. Then he’d hurried them through dinner when Rose used far too much tongue to eat her food and her toes wandered endlessly up and down his legs.

She grinned as he rushed them to the lift of their hotel, and then to their room. As he fumbled with the key card, Rose stepped up behind him and pressed herself along the length of his back.

“Having a bit of trouble?” she asked innocently as he struggled to slide the card into the slot.

“These damn things never want to read for me,” he growled, turning the card again and again, but always missing the correct orientation.

“Let me try,” Rose said, and she wrapped her arms in front of him to yank it from his fumbling fingers. She stood on her tiptoes and pressed her breasts tight to his back so she could see the door handle. “You’ve just got to hold it steady.” As she spoke, she reached down and let her fingers graze across the front of his trousers, where she felt him hard and straining against the zip. “Then you simply line it up…” She gave his erection a soft squeeze. “And slide right in.”

She pressed a long, open-mouthed kiss to his neck and inserted the card into the lock, then removed her hand from James to reach in front of him to open the door.

“Easy peasy,” she whispered, before James turned and yanked her inside.

oOoOo

“So, Sianin’s almost three,” Jackie said as she, Rose, and James walked through the festive little town. Ainsley was trotting a little way ahead of them, looking at all of the beautiful window displays in the shops. Sianin had gotten over-excited and was asleep in the pram Jackie was pushing.

“Not for another three and a half months,” Rose said, glancing over at her mum, then down at her toddler.

“About the same age Ainsley was when you got pregnant with her,” Jackie said as though Rose hadn’t said anything.

Rose stiffened. “And?”

“And I was wondering if you were thinking of having any more,” Jackie said. “You adore these girls. I just figured you wouldn’t be stopping with two. God knows you have the means to have half a dozen kids.”

Rose clenched her fingers around James’s hand as white-hot anger and hurt seared through her chest. Not even the soothing stroke of James’s thumb across the back of her hand helped, and she snapped, “That’s none of your bloody business, is it?”

She dropped James’s hand and sped up to walk beside Ainsley, who was wandering a little too far for comfort.

James watched her go with an aching lump in his throat. When Rose caught up with Ainsley and swung her up into her arms, he turned back to his mother-in-law.

“She’s right, it isn’t any of your business,” James said curtly, “but if you must know, Rose and I have been trying for another baby for over a year now.”

Her face paled and her mouth worked silently for a beat before she mumbled, “I-I didn’t realize…”

“We haven’t said anything, so you wouldn’t have known,” James said. “But it’s been hard on both of us, as you can tell from her reaction to your oh-so helpful comment. So bugger off with the advice, yeah? Now, excuse me for a mo’.”

James walked up to Rose, who still had Ainsley on her hip as they watched carol singers.

“Ainsley, darling, could you go wait with Gran? I want a quick word with Mummy.”

“But Daddy, the carolers!” she whined.

“Don’t they have such lovely voices?”

James turned and saw Jackie had walked up to them.

“You can stay here and watch,” James said as Rose lowered Ainsley to the ground. “We’ll be back in two ticks.” He looked around and spotted a cafe. “We’re gonna get something hot to drink. Stay with Gran.”

He wrapped his hand around Rose’s and gently tugged her into the cafe.

“All right?” he asked softly as they joined the queue.

“No,” she said shortly. “What business is it of hers anyway, about our family planning?”

“It’s not,” he soothed. “I’ve just told her off.”

“Good,” Rose grumbled. “Though she’ll be unbearable now, trying to give us advice and sympathies and God knows whatever else. And she wonders why I don’t tell her things.”

“I know,” James said gently. “I’m sorry.”

“I hate feeling like this, James,” she mumbled, resting her head against his shoulder.

“I know. So do I,” he admitted. “It’s like I’m failing you, somehow.”

“What?” Rose asked, scrunching her nose. “How are you failing? My stupid body’s the one that won’t get pregnant.”

“No, my stupid sperm aren’t doing their job to fertilize your egg,” he argued.

“Well, maybe my stupid egg isn’t accepting any of your sperm,” Rose said, a hint of a smile crossing her face.

James beamed and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “There we have it, then. Your egg and my sperm are both being idiots. It’s definitely not us.”

Rose laughed and wrapped her arm around his waist. “I love you, James.”

“As I love you.” They reached the front register, and he placed his order of two peppermint mochas, a hot chocolate, and a hot tea. As they waited for their order, he asked, “Want to go out for supper next weekend? Just the two of us? We can ask Dad or Jackie to babysit and take a night to pamper ourselves. It’s been a while since we’ve had a date night.”

“In three weeks, we’ll be away together in Bora Bora,” Rose reminded.

“Oh. Yeah. Okay,” he said, feeling a little disappointed.

Rose must’ve seen it, because she wrapped her arm around his and drawled, “Buuuuut I suppose a day of pre-vacation pampering couldn’t hurt.”

“If you really don’t want to, we don’t have to,” he said, not wanting her to feel guilted into anything.

“I love date nights with you,” Rose said. “You know that. I just don’t want Ainsley and Sianin to think we keep abandoning them on the weekends.”

“We haven’t,” James argued. “It’s been… ooh, let’s see… My birthday weekend was the last time you and I went away together for a weekend.”

“Has it really been that long?” Rose asked curiously.

Their drinks were ready, and so they stepped up to the counter and took their beverages.

“Yep,” he said, popping the ‘p’.

“Well, then, I think a date night is in order,” Rose said, bumping her hip against his.

James beamed and leaned down to press a quick kiss to her lips before moving out of the way of the next customer.

They joined Jackie, Ainsley, and Sianin, who were still listening to the carolers, and distributed the drinks.

They had a pleasant enough afternoon, but James could still see the tension between Rose and her mum.

However, the hard set of her shoulders didn’t loosen even after they bade Jackie goodbye and went home. He made a mental note to ask her if something else was bothering her later that night when the girls went to bed.

But instead, she brought it up first.

“Do you think something’s wrong?” Rose mused as she brushed her teeth. “With us?”

“Us?” James furrowed his brows. “What do you mean something’s wrong with us? We’re great, aren’t we?”

“I meant our bodies,” she clarified. “Like something might be wrong so we’re not getting pregnant.”

“Rose, I thought we went over that this afternoon,” he said.

She rolled her eyes. “No, we made a joke about it to make ourselves feel better in the moment. But Mum’s comment really emphasized how long it’s been that we’ve been trying.”

“It hasn’t been all that long,” James argued.

“It’s been a year and a half, James,” Rose sighed.

“Exactly. That’s hardly any time at all!”

Rose glared at him through the mirror as she rinsed her mouth of toothpaste. James let his shoulders slump as he stopped trying to inflect a bit of cheer and optimism into the situation.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, stepping up behind his wife to wrap his arms around her waist. He nuzzled his face into her neck and murmured, “We’ll keep trying. We’re bound to get lucky again.”

“What if we don’t?” Rose asked, leaning back against his chest.

“Then… we can discuss that when the time comes,” he answered. “But don’t give up so easily, love. There’s still plenty of time. We just need to stop worrying so much about it. Stress makes it more difficult for couples to conceive, you know, what with the out-of-balance hormones and…”

Rose couldn’t help but smile as James slipped into “professor mode”, as she liked to call it, and he once more started to explain studies he’d read that correlated stress and fertility. She knew that talking about whatever was bothering him and making it factual and concrete helped James to process stresses in his life. Despite having heard this particular lecture at least half a dozen times, Rose tilted her head back to rest against his chest and closed her eyes and let him talk.

When he’d stopped speaking, she let him have his turn at the sink and climbed into bed. After checking to make sure her alarm was set, she switched her phone to ‘do not disturb’ mode and waited for her husband to join her.

She listened to him brush his teeth and gargle mouthwash before he stepped into the loo to use the toilet. After washing his hands, he splashed a bit of water on his face and finally flicked the lights off.

The mattress dipped beside her as he crawled in, and she immediately snuggled into his side. She was silent for a few moments before she broached the subject she really wanted them to discuss.

“Hey, James?”

He must have caught onto the serious note in her voice, because he inhaled deeply and twisted under her. Having been displaced from his chest, Rose rolled off of him and settled onto her side as he shifted until he mirrored her position.

When his attention was back on her, she said, “I was thinking that maybe we should go in for fertility testing.”

She bit her lip as she scanned his face, wondering what he was thinking, but his face remained blank of any emotion.

“Do you think that’s really necessary?” he asked slowly. “We’ve already got two kids. We’re obviously fertile.”

Rose shrugged. “What if something’s changed? Don’t you at least want to make sure that we’re both all right?” James was still silent though, and Rose reached out into the space between them for his hand. His fingers twined loosely through hers. “Please, James? It would mean a lot to me if we got tested, just as a precaution. I’m sure everything’s fine, but if it’s not, I want to know sooner rather than later so we can work out what to do next.”

James squeezed her hand and exhaled softly. “Yeah, you’re right. I guess I just liked the idea that everything’s fine and we’ll get pregnant soon enough. Or maybe I’m scared that I’ll be told something is wrong. But you’re right. It’d be stupid of us to not double check. I’ll call for an appointment in the morning.”

Rose smiled at him and leaned over to press her lips to his. “Thank you. I’ll get my own appointment, too. Night, James. I love you.”

“Nighty night. Love you, too.”

True to his word, James looked around online for a fertility clinic, and found that the place he and Rose went for general checkups had a department that would suit their needs. He forwarded the details to Rose, then called the office for an appointment.

That was how the following weekend found James sitting in a waiting room with a few other blokes, trying not to feel self-conscious. All of these men were older than him, or at least they looked older, and James couldn’t help the feelings of inadequacy and the fear that maybe his body was giving out on him earlier than it should.

To give himself something to do, he grabbed a nearby pamphlet and began scanning through the information on erectile dysfunction—something he thankfully never had an issue with—and on potential fertility issues.

He was mollified slightly as he read about possible causes of male infertility; none of them were applicable to him. He then scanned the last paragraph on ways he could make sure to keep himself and thus his sperm healthy. They all seemed like common sense to him—eat well, get regular exercise, don’t smoke/drink/take recreational drugs, etc.—but he supposed not everyone had the gift of common sense.

“James?”

He looked up and saw a nurse scanning the room. They made eye contact, and she smiled warmly as he stood from his seat.

“If you could follow me, please,” the nurse said.

She took him down a little corridor and checked his height, weight, and blood pressure, all of which she deemed “excellent”. Then came the part James was dreading most.

“You’ll be in this room right here,” she said, guiding him into a room at the end of the hallway. It at least seemed more secluded than other rooms. How awkward would it be to be overheard? The nurse handed him a small plastic cup and said, “Please stick this in the incubator”—she pointed to what looked like a mini-fridge that sat on the counter—“once you’re done.”

James’s ears burned as she turned on her heel and walked out of the room, closing the door firmly behind her. He grimly realized the door had no locking mechanism, merely a toggle switch that claimed the room to be ‘occupied’. Exhaling a shaky breath, he glanced around the sterile-smelling room as he drummed his fingers against his collection vial.

A lone, cushy chair sat in the corner beside a table full of magazines with scantily-clad women, and across from a television. He wrinkled his nose at the chair—who knew how many men had sat there and… you know… The thought sent a shudder up his spine.

He picked up a magazine and flipped through it, but he set it down just as quickly. The women in the magazine were pretty enough, he supposed, but they did nothing for him. But he needed them to do something for him. He and Rose were counting on him to give a sample to make sure everything was all right with his sperm.

But he just couldn’t. He’d flipped through three magazines and looked at many photos of women in various stages of undress and doing what James supposed were sexy acts to themselves or others.

Yet he remained resolutely uninterested.

He tried to ignore the ticking clock, and he desperately hoped he wasn’t being timed. How humiliating would it be to get interrupted during this?

At least ten minutes had passed since he had shut himself in this little room to have a wank, but he was as far from having a wank as he could be.

Well, maybe he should just wing it…

James unzipped his trousers and tugged them down around his thighs before he worked his pants down only as far as necessary. He gently wrapped his hand around his completely flaccid penis and started playing with himself.

But after a couple minutes of trying to force himself to get an erection, he was still frustratingly limp.

Annoyed and more than a little embarrassed, he grabbed his mobile and dialed Rose.

“So how’d it go?” she asked.

“It hasn’t yet. Did you know that having a wank on command is much harder than it sounds?” he answered, and he rolled his eyes when Rose giggled.

“Oh dear,” she said.

“Yeah,” he said flatly. “These magazines are utter rubbish and frankly disgusting. Who the hell gets horny from this?”

“Most men, probably,” she said cheekily, and James could see the way her tongue was probably poking out from between her teeth.

“I’m not most men,” he grumbled.

“No, you’re not,” Rose said, her voice pitched low. “You’re my handsome, sexy man.”

“Er, what-what are you doing?” he squeaked.

“Well, you said you were having a bit of performance anxiety,” she replied, and he heard some rustling on the other line. “Right, let’s do this. Close your eyes, James.”

“No, this is silly,” he said, feeling even more humiliated.

“Please?” she asked. “Let me try to help. Close your eyes, please.”

He sighed, and nodded, then closed his eyes and listened to Rose.

“If I were there with you, I’d start by kissing you,” she whispered breathily. “That bottom lip of yours is so tempting, just begging to be bit and licked and played with. But I wouldn’t linger. Gotta keep you on your toes. I’d move to your neck. To the place I can feel your pulse the strongest. And I’d nibble on your skin and taste you. You taste so good, James.”

He hummed as his mind provided him the perfect montage of memories to give sensation to the words she was saying.

“My hands would be everywhere,” she continued. “They’d probably start in your hair. I love your hair. It’s so soft, but so strong. When you go down on me, that’s my favorite place for my hands to be, you know. I love pulling you closer by your hair and scraping my nails against your scalp. You seem to like it too. You always make that little noise that’s a cross between a sigh and a groan, and it always makes me wetter for you, James.”

He whimpered out a breath as his belly swooped with heat. He dropped the hand not holding the phone to his cock; he wasn’t completely hard yet, but Rose had him well on his way.

“After your hair, I’d touch your chest. It’s so strong and broad and perfect. I love being able to feel your heartbeat against my palms. It beats faster the longer I touch you.” In response, James’s heart began pounding more quickly, and he couldn’t help but smile. Rose knew him and his body so well, and he absolutely loved it. “And I know how much you want me to touch your nipples, but I won’t. Not yet.”

“Tease.” He fumbled with his phone for a minute before he put it on speaker and set it on the table next to the magazines to free up his hands.

“You love it,” she said. “That makes it so much better.”

“Yeah.”

“I’d scrape my fingers through your chest hair next,” she said, and James copied her narrative. “And you’d be arching your chest, and I’d finally relent and circle my fingernails around your nipples.”

He groaned as he played with his nipples, sending sparks of pleasure low in his belly.

“I love how sensitive they are,” she breathed through the phone.

“Me too,” he sighed, stroking his cock, which was finally hard enough to get the job done. “I like how you touch me better, though.”

“Yeah?”

“Mhm. I like how I never know what you’re gonna do next. Been together for twelve and a half years now, and still you manage to surprise me.”

“Well, I aim to please,” Rose said brightly. “But enough about me, this is about you. How you doing?”

“Good,” he said. “Keep talking, please.”

“Right, so I think I’ve spent enough time at your nipples,” she replied. “Though I’d probably still play with them even after taking your cock in my hand. I’ve always loved how you feel in my hand, James. So hot and hard, but still soft.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“No, in a good way,” she said quickly. “Your cock is just perfect. I love playing with it, stroking it agonizingly slowly until you beg me to speed it up. I love taking it in my mouth as deep as I can, and sucking you gently at first, then harder the longer I go. You make the best noises when I go down on you, you know. And you taste so good. It’s so much fun to tease you while you’re in my mouth, too. I love taking my time, and driving you mad with my tongue. Soft little flicks that make you gasp every time, then longer sucks until you can barely speak anymore. I love making you come with just my mouth.”

James could barely get out a reply, as he was too busy replaying all of the times Rose had given him a blow job. God, she was good at it. He loved being inside of her, make no mistake, but there was nothing quite like having her lips and tongue around his cock, giving him the most perfect suction he’d ever felt, driving him to madness.

“Ahh, shit,” he gasped, feeling that aching tingle starting low in his balls.

“Remember to hit the specimen cup,” Rose reminded quickly.

He fumbled for the cup and positioned it at the head of his cock as his hand jerked up and down his erection in short, quick movements.

“Come for me, James,” she whispered huskily. “Let me have it, love. Come on.”

“Oh, fffffuck,” he groaned, his head tilting back as pleasure burst through his body. But he quickly forced his eyes open to make sure his semen was actually going into the cup.

Thank God.

His cock pulsed in his hand and he hummed out a sated sigh as he gave it a few more lazy strokes.

“Well done, you!”

James giggled at the pride in her voice, and he set his specimen cup on a table as he worked his pants and trousers back up.

“Thank you,” he said earnestly. “If it weren’t for you, I’d still be in here chafing myself raw trying to get an erection.”

“I’ll always be here to suit your carnal needs.”

James laughed again. “Right, I’ll see you in a little bit. Love you.”

“Love you, too,” she said, before she ended the call.

Once his trousers were zipped and buttoned, he stepped over to the incubator and set his sample into the 37C chamber. They’d told him his results would be ready in a few days, and in his current sated state, James was positive they would come back all clear. With that uplifting thought, James donned his coat and walked out into the weak December sunshine.

<-- Ch3 | Ch5 -->

#ficandchips #dwfic #doctorroseprompts #doctor who #ten x rose #au #soulmates #kid fic #lemons #themes of infertility #my fic #perfectly matched #and babies make five and six

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