"Mom, the princess is flirting with her hotel manager again!"

-- some cannibal kid, probably

Howdy!

I am here to talk about Viv's horrible character designs.

From an animator perspective, they suck.

Here's why

1. The characters have way too much detail

For animation, more lines equal more work. You're going to be drawing them over and over, and it just creates more stress and work for the animators.

For example, I took one of the most egregious designs in HB (Beelzebub) and simplified it to be animation friendly.

(Can't send it here but I'll probably make a post about it or something.)

2. There's too much of 1 color

WHY IS THERE SO MUCH RED??

Especially since they're in a primarily red background, they don't stand out AT ALL.

Like how am I supposed to see them if they blend in to the background??

3. I have no idea what half of them are supposed to be

Charlie is based off a doll?

Alastor is based off of a deer?

Katie Killjoy is based off of a praying mantis?

Angel Dust is based off of a spider?

Beelzebub is supposed to be well... Beelzebub?

When designing characters, they need to be clear on what they're supposed to be! And no, explaining it on Twitter does not count.

4. The animation reference sheets are garbage

No wonder there's so much animation errors. There's no facial expression sheets, lip sync guide, nothing. It's just a 4 angle turnaround sheet where the character is in complex poses all the time.

If you Google Lackadaisy's animation reference sheets and then look at HB's, it's like night and day.

I'm more than willing to send some examples (along with the edit I did) if you want

So yeah, what are your thoughts?

These are all great points! I think you summed up the main problems very well, but I'll elaborate on each of them. I'm no expert at character design or animation by any means, but I'll do my best to explain my points!

First of all, like you said, the character designs are way too complicated. Anyone who knows even the slightest amount about animation knows you want to simplify and streamline your designs as much as possible to make it easier on the animators. Vivzie is way too obsessed with her Deviantart OC lookin'-ass character designs to actually do this, even though it would seriously help to make the animation process way faster and easier. Beelzebub is seriously the best (or worst?) example of this.

I feel so bad for the poor souls who had to animate this. There are just way too many moving parts here, from her multiple arms, her wings, her markings, to her freaking lava lamp hair and tail?? It's just awful. And so many of Viv's designs suffer this problem, I could go on and on.

Like, I think it actually is a nice looking design, as a still image. Maybe not for the demon Beelzebub, but as a general furry OC, I think she's cute. But that's beside the point. I would love to see your redesign of her!

Next, the RED. So, most of the characters we see in Helluva Boss are red-skinned imps, which has been a common depiction of demons for centuries. One big problem I have is that there's little contrast in these designs. Let's look at our three main imps.

Aside from some white and yellow highlights, they're all mostly red and black. Their color palettes aren't distinct in the slightest! And, I mean, come on. Red accessories against what's almost the exact same shade of red skin? Really? It just doesn't look good. A little contrast here and there goes a long way, like... maybe make Moxxie's bowtie blue? Or Blitz's pendant green? I don't know, anything to help each character stand out, and help give them more visual intrigue.

It doesn't help that most of the backgrounds are primarily shades of red, too. Here's a few screenshots I found that really show this problem.

Look at all that fucking red. Like you said, there's such little color variation that the characters blend into the background. Now, to be fair, I did specifically choose these screenshots because I think they really highlight the problem, but this really is what so much of the show looks like. Granted, we do have a bit more variety in the different rings of Hell, each with their own main color, but this is still too much red, considering how much the color comprises the main characters' designs.

Next, like you said, Vivzie is really bad at making characters actually look like the things they're supposed to look like. Let's take Alastor as an example!

Oh boy! More red and black. So, Alastor here is supposed to be a deer. What's the first physical characteristic that comes to mind when you think of a deer?

Yeah, those big, impressive antlers! So... where are his? Oh, they're those tiny little forks on his head that are almost entirely obscured by his stupid emo hair. Like, come on! Giving him bigger antlers would have made him look so much cooler and more intimidating, and it would have been a great focal point for his design! It's such a missed opportunity. (I know he has bigger antlers in his scarier "demon" form, but you still could have made these a little more impressive.) And don't even get me started on those ears... they look more like fox ears or something. Like you said, a good design shouldn't need to be explained through supplementary material. We should be able to tell what a character is supposed to be just from looking at them!

Another great example is Angel Dust, who, despite being a spider, lacks so many distinct features we associate with spiders! He only has six legs instead of eight, he doesn't have pedipalps or chelicerae, and he also lacks that big old spider booty, which I think is such a missed opportunity, considering he is supposed to be in the sex industry. He isn't even remotely shaped like a spider, he looks more like a fuzzy stick bug or something.

Part of me feels like Viv is too afraid to make her characters look unique, so she just goes with the same, skinny humanoid design for just about everything. It's such a shame, because I really do think she is a talented artist who can make some really interesting designs. But then again, she also gave us Beelzebub, so... maybe not.

As for the reference sheets, maybe I wasn't looking hard enough but I couldn't find any official ones for the main characters, so if you could send those my way I would appreciate it! Though it honestly wouldn't surprise me if they were bad. I did look up Lackadaisy's and found them pretty easily and...

This is so freaking comprehensive and detailed, it's incredible! Look at all those poses and facial expressions!

Comparing Vivzie's works to Tracy's feels kind of unfair, since Tracy has been working on Lackadaisy for 17 years, and it really shows. This is leaps and bounds above Helluva Boss and Hazbin Hotel in quality. Rocky's design is tight; it's detailed, but not overly complicated. There isn't an obnoxious overuse of highly saturated colors, and there's such nice contrast between his fur, his eyes, suit, and tie, making his design very nice to look at. You can also tell so much about his personality and the world he lives in just from his appearance. It's such a good design, and Rocky is just one example from Lackadaisy! All of Tracy's designs are memorable and stand out from one another, unlike so many of Vivzie's characters, whose designs honestly feel interchangable.

So much thought and care has gone into Lackadaisy, and I seriously cannot wait for the full series, as well as all the other amazing indie animated series that have been coming out recently. It's sad that Helluva Boss is seen as the pinnacle of indie animation, when there are so many other series out there that are just.. better! Lackadaisy, obviously, but we've also got Digital Circus, Murder Drones, Monkey Wrench, and so many others that deserve way more appreciation than what Helluva Boss receives. And that's just from an art direction standpoint, we aren't even talking about writing. That's a whole other can of worms.

All of that being said, it's obvious that a ton of love and hard work went into Helluva Boss, and I hold absolutely nothing against the animators and artists at Spindlehorse. These poor design choices are a hallmark of Vivzie's art style, and they're simply working with what they've got. There is such wasted potential here because it feels like Vivzie is too afraid to step outside her comfort zone and design something that isn't a brightly colored, sharp-toothed twink, or skinny anthro wolf girl.

Anyways, that about wraps up my thoughts. Thanks for the ask, this was fun to delve into! And again, I'd be very interested in seeing you post your redesigns! 👀

Deadly Kiss.

Desc: Asher wasn't a bad person. She was quiet, well behaved, and had a gentle beauty about her that naturally made people flock to her. Asher was a good person, until she was given a reason not to be. 2002, she's only 22, never willingly been intimate with anyone, when police stumble upon her body in the Tennessee senator's home, a single gunshot wound to her head and a gun in her corpses grasp. She wakes up in hell, with a new appearance and powers, which present her with new opportunities, until she meets Angel Dust and becomes mixed up in Charlie Morningstar's hotel, unevitably becoming mixed up with Alastor.

Taglist: @sparrowrye

Pt. 3: Why Hide?

After around a week, Asher was settled into her room and Charlie had decided Asher would be a cook/stand in bartender when Husk wasn't wanting to work. But the job itself was pretty lax as the only residents were Angel Dust and Sir Pentious. Asher and Angel Dust could often be found causing slight trouble, the pair getting along quite well. Her bracelet had buzzed a few times since she'd left Midnight's place, but she still refused to answer the summoning.

-♡

Angel Dust was at work, the call Valentino gave Angel Dust didn't sound very happy which meant he would likely be gone all night. Asher sat at the bar with Husker, quietly sipping at a glass of tequila. Charlie and Vaggie were watching TV, and Sir Pentious was off doing Gods know what. Asher slipped in an earbud and turned on an animated show on her phone, resting her chin on her blackened hands which resting on the bar top so she could comfortably watch the show.

Alastor stepped into the parlor and began conversing with Charlie, his yellow grin in place as it always was. Just as Asher was taking a draw from her vape, a character said something she found particularly hilarious and she choked on the smoke before falling off of the barstool with a laugh.

She laid on the floor laughing her unholy ass off for a few minutes, making the others smirk at her enjoying herself. "Your freckles glow when you laugh." Husker pointed out with a chuckle.

Asher sat up and giggled once more, her black hand flying up to cover her oddly white grin. "Yeah, comes with my 'biology' I guess." She chuckled, settling back on the barstool. Suddenly, her phone began ringing and she hurried to disconnect her earbuds and answer the call.

"Hello?" She asked, only to be met by awkward breathing. When she pulled the phone away from her ear, she was met with a contact she didn't like seeing and quickly hung up before blocking the number.

"What was that about?" Husker asked.

"Just.. someone from my past." She says with a huff.

"If you don't like them why not have them dealt with?" The catish demon asked, his wings flicking.

"That's who I used to be. I killed him once and that's why we're both in Hell." Asher deadpanned, rolling her eyes and huffing a piece of black hair out of her face. She'd gotten comfortable, and without thinking slipped her trench coat off, revealing her bright white button up tucked into her black skirt. As well as her deer-like tail.

"What?" Husker asked, tilting his head confusedly and staring at the three behind Asher.

Asher turns, tilting her head as well. Charlie looked like she had stars in her eyes, Vaggie wasn't even hiding the fact that she was staring at Asher's ass, and Alastor's grin was still present, though his red eyes were wide and a soft blush coated his gray skin on his cheeks. "What has you all like a deer in headlights?" Asher asks, becoming self-conscious.

She covers her stomach in insecurity, until it finally dawned on her. "My coat-!" She yelps, looking like she was about to curl into herself from insecurity, but before she can allow the tears to flow at being exposed, Alastor is there with his own waistcoat being draped across her shoulders, shifting into a larger form to cover her from the others' eyes.

A sense of protection washed over her as Alastor stood behind her, his upper thigh brushing her black and silver tail. She melts into the security he offers, even if it may be false. He helps her slide her gray and black arms into the sleeves of his coat, his fingers lingering on her shoulder for a moment before stepping away.

She looked flattering in red.

"S-sorry.." she mumbled, keeping her head down and making sure her beanie was secured on her head.

"Don't be! But.. why do you hide your tail?" Charlie asked.

"Because I know how demons can be." Asher huffed

"She has a point." Husker said.

"Well then, that's the first thing we'll work on with you. After all, staff members also have to work on bettering themselves here. Isn't that right, Alastor." Vaggie said, seemingly growling Alastor's name.

"Quite." Alastor chuckled, rolling his red sleeves up to his elbows.

Asher didn't like the sound of that.

Can we meet your Friends? Or your family? (If you have them)

"Oh! Why sure I can talk about my friends and family ain't used to important questions like this."

((this will be a long post)) click the read more

"On the family side no actual people."

"But I do consider Toof the *walrus* to be my child! Granted I guess you can say all the walrus my family. I love thoes bastards, I used to consider Richard my daughter but... well after she passed away and came back to life, she's both literarily and figuratively DEAD to me."

"As for my friends? well I got at least 6 of them, I could call close friends! and I have many more but these are the ones I'd say I'm closest with and have the most history."

"Let's see there's Moth Man, though we only get to hang out a few times per year. Like mentioned in the past I paid for his top surgery so I do care for that funky moth quite a bit."

"There's Doom Slayer which is quite the fella! Usually when we hang out together I join him during one of his hunts killing demons, we play poker at least once per year. And there's also fun fishing trips where he puts a hook into my back and uses me like bait. We don't talk much but let me tell you great guy, always calls me a freak and abomination he's got a fun way of showing love like constantly trying to rip and tear me in half!"

"And of course I have plenty of fellow phone headed friends but let's start with one that's related thanks to my business!"

"Gemni The Phone Guy, ((owned by @gemnis-trash-fazbenders / @sorrowful--owl ))"

"Gemni has been pretty busy for quite awhile, so haven't had much time to actually spend with him, he opened his own Fazbender restaurant in 2020 and is housed in Australia.

He's the one who supplies me with kangaroo tails, he's an absolute goober always making necklaces out of bones which he calls *clicky clacks* due to the sound they make.

He's a sweet guy though has his own dark past, pretty sure he was one of the workers working in Abel's location... Before uh the incident yeah his mind is all scrambled poor fella I feel bad for him, he's not really able to feel much in terms of emotion but he seems genuinely happy and I hope to spend more time with him in the future!"

"Speaking of Gemni that brings me to my next friend who you all should know very well the one and only..."

"Robert The Cannibalistic Phone Guy, ((owned by @not-robert / @clownsuu ))"

"I met him back in December of 2019 it's around the time Gemni first started getting his restaurant getting set up and started sending me shipments of kangaroo tails, it was nearing Christmas so I wanted a big shipment and when it arrived the only thing in the box was a big buff cannibalistic zombie man who was drunk."

"Let me tell you he was confused as hell also very angry when he woke up, strangled me till my head popped off! Yeah Robert's a real fella just seeing me for the first time confused the hell out of him, though I don't know everything about his origins he's been around a VERY long time."

"Of course after he found out he couldn't kill me that just made him even more pissed and we had a little bit of a fight, eventually managed to calm him down and explained who I was. And ever since that day we've been buds!"

"I feed him all the meat products he could ever need and he dosen't kill my customers and also I can make him do whatever I want, like dressing up in costumes or promoting the restaurant hell it's because of him I have a karaoke bar!"

He also gave me the idea for the bowling alley, he might be an asshole but he's fun to have around. Plus if he wanted to leave he always could but he sticks around because I know he likes me to. That or I'm so cursed it just keeps drawing his attention and he can't help but see what I do next."

"Ah, and of course we have... ugh he's gonna freak out once he sees this post... the little nightmare child known only as..."

"Chuck The Fanboy ((owned by @chuck-the-fanboy / @lazy-charlie ))

"Look, I don't wanna feed into his little obsession but I guess, I will admit ... I care for the little guy. He's just a kid after all even if he's no longer alive, I might treat him like shit sometimes but thats because the kids obsessed with me no idea why honestly."

"I met him for the first time in I think 2017 and he was still alive back then, poor kid walked into my restaurant wearing ripped and torn clothes he looked like he was basically starving. I can't really remember what he looked like but I think he did have orange hair? his skin was also very pale."

"He wanted so badly to buy some food for himself, but he only had a pocket full of pennies... I don't know why but I felt bad for him so I gave him a large soda, a small pepperoni pizza and some french fries to eat... Kid looked at me like I saved his life, like I said I can't fully remember his face but let me tell you he looked so excited."

"I stayed and watched him eat and then he left... I didn't see him again untill 2020 when he walked back in one day with Robert, when he walked back into my restaurant that day... His skin was a green color, and he had one of thoes new chatter phones for a head."

"The kid had drowned in a pond that's all he remembers, he has no idea how he got his new head. All he does remember is waking up and suddenly having a duck trying to warm him up, he calls the duck queen and he treats it like his mother."

"Ever since that day when he came back, he's basically refused to leave and he's became obsessed with me, to the point he calls himself my biggest fan, kinda why he's known as **chuck the fanboy.** He's an annoying little brat and despite all the times I kick him, yell at him and such he dosen't lose any of his feelings towards me."

"He's too innocent for this cruel world, let me tell you but on the good side of things at least he can't die again, though there is something about that Queen duck that's strange it dosen't seem like a normal duck sometimes I wonder why? But yes I consider him... A friend EVEN IF IT PAINS ME TO SAY IT BECAUSE I KNOW IT WILL DRIVE HIM UP THE WALL."

"And my last friend worth mentioning has gotta be the one that matches me the most, someone who's chaotic but could never be my level of cursed."

"Bedlam The Chaos God ((owned by @weirdozjunkary ))

"My timeline and universe itself only really has one god and yes sadly it's the Christian one we also have a Satan."

"Bedlam himself is from another universe enterally full of gods for just about everything that exists, there's even an actual PARTY god there, They are a hoot let me tell you."

"But yeah how did I meet Bedlam then? well I met him back in February this year infact! He was feeling pretty bored that day and decided to check out a new universe and discovered mine by accident, once here he had heard about my existence by ease dropping on some people."

"My guess is he thought I was a chaos god like himself, and was keen on meeting me because of it. Should have seen his face when he first walked into my restaurant and layed his eyes upon me, guy was shocked to say the least!"

"He's a pretty intresting fella, he often changes voices seemingly unable to decide what voice fits him properly, I'm sure he'll find his perfect voice one day. He's basically like a living cartoon I swear when we properly got to know eachother we basically reenacted a tom and jerry episode."

"Don't even get me started on the time we robbed a bank he turned the whole place upside down, and smashed the large vault open with a massive cream pie! We didn't even keep the money we just gave it back like an hour later and we had lunch together after."

"Guy, defiantly is weirded out by me, which is surprising since well he's the god of chaos but fair enough I'm alot more cursed then I am chaotic, but we get along fairly well! Though we don't hang out all the time, I'm a little to overstimulating for him, to hang out for long periods of time."

"Let me tell you though? Despite how little time we've known eachother, he's defiantly one of the most fun people I know, he's also great taste in fashion both litearly and figuratively, don't tell him this but last time we hung out I was chewing on one of his horns while he was talking about another god in his world named Llios."

"I will admit, I have a bit of a teething issue sometimes and I like to bite things though he didn't seem to notice."

"I wonder what he's up to? I gotta see if he'd be interested in joining one of my poker games! Next one is coming up real soon, Count Dracula, Sugar Crisp Bear, Santa Claus, Moth Man are gonna be there. And we're short one member since Slender Man's busy and I can't get in contact with Eyeless Jack I think he blocked my number."

"But yes thank you for the question! Hope this answer satiates your curiosity, feel free to ask more questions about my friends, I'm sure I got more fun stories I can tell about them. I just didn't wanna drag this on for too long."

your love is my turning page (where only the sweetest words remain)

Pairing: Steve x Eddie Rating: General Word Count: 928

It’s hard to tell exactly what draws him out of an already restless sleep: the lack of weight on the other side of the bed or the quiet noises from down the hall.

It’s been ages since he had to sleep alone, and Steve can never do it for long.

Slipping out from beneath the covers and fighting back a shiver at the loss of warmth, he makes his way out of the bedroom with slow, near stumbling steps as he rubs the remnants of sleep from his eyes. It doesn’t take long for him to follow the sounds to the other bedroom and the door is ajar when he reaches it.

A quiet, miserable sob reaches his ears and yanks at his heartstrings. He can barely stand to hear it. Leaning against the doorway, he peers through the dim light and stays silent as he watches a shadowed figure pace back and forth in front of an empty crib.

The bundle in his husband’s arms lets out another cry and he hums in return, ducking his head to press a kiss to the top of her head.

“You’re breaking my heart here, sweet girl,” Eddie murmurs, cradling their daughter’s head carefully as he sways with her tucked against his chest.

Her tiny fists clench tight in his soft, worn t-shirt and he starts singing quietly as he gives her the corner of a cool washcloth to chew on. It’s the only thing they’ve found to help her teething that she doesn’t outright refuse. Charlie gives another pathetic hiccup and kicks out with both feet before finally slumping against him with a sigh.

“There you go,” Eddie says softly, giving her back a few gentle pats.

It’s overwhelming, how much adoration fills Steve as he observes them. He loves them both so much, and still can’t quiet believe that this is his family. Something that a part of him, a much larger part than he is willing to admit, never thought he’d get to have.

Charlie is their miracle, and it’s all thanks to the surrogate that didn’t hesitate to volunteer for them. She came out screaming and red-faced with a full head of dark, thick hair. Her eyes didn’t take long to darken into a near mirror of Eddie’s, and Steve can’t put into words how thrilled he is that she inherited them.

Every time he says as much, Steve delights in the flush that rises to Eddie’s cheeks and the unrestrained grin that pulls at his lips.

“Your daddy thinks he’s sneaky, y’know,” Eddie murmurs quietly.

Steve blinks, his own cheeks warming as he realizes that he’s caught. Eddie glances up from where he’s been gazing at Charlie, a soft smile lingering as he meets Steve’s eyes like he’s been aware of him this whole time.

“You look really good like that,” Steve says, unable to keep quiet about it for a second longer now that he’s been called out.

Eddie predictably blushes as Charlie stirs at the sound of his voice, still chewing determinedly on the corner of the washcloth. A small line forms on her forehead as she tries to seek out where he is. Steve takes pity on her, closing the distance between him and his family. One hand covers her back and the other arm slides around Eddie’s waist as he presses as close as he can to them.

“I think she’s on the tail end of it,” Eddie says softly.

God, Steve hopes so. Day after day of miserable wailing has brought them both to tears more than once, and not a single one of them is well rested. It’s far more overwhelming than either of them expected, but they wouldn’t give up a single second of it for anything.

“Bring her to bed.”

Eddie glances up at Steve with surprise. They’re both admittedly soft when it comes to their girl, but he’s tried to stick to the baby books as much as possible and pushes the self-soothing tactic more than Eddie likes. But tonight, Steve just wants them both in his arms.

“Yeah?” Eddie says, looking up at him with the same wide eyes that peer at Steve from his shoulder.

“Yeah,” he nods, kissing Charlie’s temple, then Eddie’s. “C’mon.”

He snags Eddie’s hand and guides him down the hall, and they waste no time in snuggling up together with Charlie laid out on Eddie’s chest and Steve curled up against his side.

“Still can’t believe she’s real sometimes,” Eddie confesses, stroking up and down her back as her eyelids grow heavier.

“Even when she turns into a screaming demon?” Steve asks with a tired grin.

Letting out a quiet huff of laughter, Eddie nods his head and looks over at him.

“Even then.”

Leaning in, Steve brushes a kiss over his lips.

“Love you so much,” he murmurs, staying close with his forehead presses gently against Eddie’s.

“Love you more,” Eddie says back, the corners of his eyes crinkling as he grins at Steve.

“Not possible.”

“I beg to differ.”

“Hmm, like it better when I’ve got you begging for-”

Eddie’s affronted gasp cuts him off.

“In front of our daughter, Steven?”

Steve lets out what can only be described as a tired giggle as he lets his head fall to Eddie’s shoulder. He feels the press of lips on his forehead and reaches out to clasp his hand with Eddie’s where it lays over Charlie’s back.

“Let’s go to sleep, baby,” Steve mumbles.

“Yeah,” Eddie sighs, squeezing Steve's hand lightly. “Let’s go to sleep.”

My neck is doing better but is still very stiff. And I just had one of the worst charlie horses in my calf I have ever had. Like I can't fully stand up on my heel because it stretches my leg down and I am not having fun. And James is in New York and is sending me very confusing texts which has me all out of sorts. I don't like feeling so confused.

I didn't have a bad day though. It was fine. The best thing that happened today was finishing my blanket. That made me so happy. Helen said I was running around showing it off with a big smile like it was my baby. And it's true,n it feels that way.

I started the day feeling fine enough. I apparently snoozed my alarm though and I don't remember doing so which frustrated me. I would feel alright. Neck still stuff but not as painful. I got dressed and ready. I felt like I was forgetting something though and as we were leaving I realized I forgot my rings. James went back for them and that made me feel a little better.

Breakfast was correct this time. And we got to the market before 8. Even with leaving a few minutes late so I'm pretty impressed.

I was fully in charge today and because my focus was so much on that I was not a very good salesperson I always sold one sticker pack and that was it. But because I was getting paid to be there I don't care as much honestly. I was happy to stand at the market table next to my table and work on my blanket. I finished sewing the last rose together within the first hour and then I spent the next 2 hours working on the sewing down it tail ends. They're not all done but at least it's mostly finished and it looks great and I'm so proud of it. I think there's like 60 hours into this blanket. And I am really thrilled with the final product. I still might put a fleece back on it but honestly because I've sewn down the edges so well I don't even know if it needs it. I'm still really happy though and I just want everyone to know all about it.

I also had some really nice conversations with people. As people were getting set up I had to ask two of the smaller distilleries to be next to each other in one spot but there were super chill about it. And then because the charcuterie people came I had to move the Puerto Rican distillery all the way down to the end but I gave them the option for spots and they picked their favorite one so no one was mad at me. And then I found out that four of us are not going to be there next weekend so it's going to be kind of a sparse market because it's like Jenny and bread and food and it's I don't know what they're going to do without us. I'm the least of the concerns but still my energy will not be there.

James came out to buy breakfast and baked goods and while we were paying a woman was looking at my blanket and trying to understand them notes that I append to it and so I went over to chat with her and she was so nice and very encouraging. And I started explaining to some older women about at the construction and I was like you know a potholder loom this is essentially a blanket made a pod holders. And it made me laugh and it made them laugh and it was just a good way of explaining what I had done since I didn't have my wing with me to have a visual. But I very happily stood there and worked on sewing down those edges until about noon.

When I finally made a sale. I sold my sticker pack to a lovely girl around my age. And she ran over to her friends to tell them about the stickers and they were all very excited and I got a little boost of pride because they were so interested in my stickers. I need to order more of the jobs and I want to get some drawing done tomorrow. Tomorrow my big plan is to work on my Native American field trip PowerPoints. Because I have need two of them. I might just make one PowerPoint though and just like have a an opening and closing section but regardless I would like to also get a little bit of drawing done and some deciding on what my next stickers will be. I also would like at some point to make a better sticker display and packaging but for now I'm happy with what I got.

Once everyone was done at the market I packed up real quickly and went inside to talk to James and have them take a picture of me holding my blanket. And I chatted with Stanley and Bob and my neck was doing a lot better and my back was doing a lot better but I was still tired and I didn't want to stay till 2:00 but I stayed until everyone was out of the pavilion which is what I've been told to do in the past. I walked down to the water after sitting with James for a while. There were jellyfish and I was really excited about that because I love seeing the jellyfish in the harbor. And I even saw some fish and it was like a whole school of fish swimming back and forth and that was neat to see too. And honestly was a really beautiful day for how humid it could have been with the storms coming in tomorrow and this upcoming week. I was in a really good mood though and while I was very happy to be done and going home I was also not dying of exhaustion like sometimes I am.

After I said goodbye to James I got myself together in the car and went home. There was a little bit of traffic but it apparently cleared up before it became an issue. And I got home before 2:00.

When I got back here I brought my bags in and my blanket and hung the blanket up on my garment rack in the studio. I'm hoping that the weight of itself will pull the stitches a little bit so that I can see if there's any failure marks or failure points. Anything that needs to be reinforced. And I got a little shower and I changed into a soft shirt and then I laid down.

I watched a video for a little bit but then I fell asleep. I woke up at 4:00 as James was getting ready to go. They looked so handsome and it was just nice looking at them. I really could have gone with them to New York but I have no interest in seeing basketball game and it will be nice to get some work done tomorrow. Have some time alone. I gave them a very big hug and told them to be safe and then they were off.

I would get up soon after that and when and had some food. And then I played a game on my tablet for a little while and then I painted my nails. But I ended up messing up my pointer and thumb on my right hand because I started working on my next knit project and I could not wait until my nail polish was dry obviously so I messed it up and took it off those two fingers. Maybe I will repaint them later but I was very much into this new project.

The new knit squares are going to be much larger than the last ones they're 19 rows across instead of 12 which doesn't sound like it's that much more but it is. Originally with the small squares they take about 15 minutes, the new squares take 45 to an hour. I think I'll get faster as I'm going but I am very pleased with the size that I have chosen. I didn't have the right size hoop so I just marked off on a medium sized hoop how many pegs I needed and I think it will work out just fine. I honestly can probably get two done because I can do one on each side but I'm not going to worry about that right now.

I would watch a documentary and eventually take a longer bath. My hair feels very strange and flat today. And I keep looking at my pictures from like May and my hair looks so much different than it did and I don't know why. I know I cut some at the beginning of the summer but the shape of my head looks weird today. But even pictures from like 2 weeks ago it looks fine so I know it's all in my head. Well I mean my hair is on my head but you know what I mean.

I've been hanging out in bed since then. Which is when I had a horrible Charlie horse in my calf that hurts so bad and felt like it lasted for so long. And I was very distressed and I texted James and James started talking about laying in a hammock and how it was probably worse than a hammock and I'm like what are you talking about I'm nowhere near a hammock. For some reason they thought I was at camp? They have the car! So then I was all confused because they were talking about hammocks and then talking about the days of the week and I was like what are you talking about and I was worried because they worked 8 hours and then drove for 4 hours to get to New York so I was like are they just over tired what is going on. But they are safely in New York with family and everything is fine. They're going to a basketball game tomorrow with their friends and it's going to be fine. But that was very upsetting at the beginning of this post while I was texting them. Everything is settled now We are talking about other stuff They know I am home I know where they are. I'm going to try to stretch my leg and searching out ready for sleep.

I have a long day of working on the computer tomorrow so hopefully it is nice and if it rains it's not too bad. I hope that you all have a very nice night tonight. And you sleep good. Until next time my friends. Goodnight everybody.

Evan's not having a good time in this next segment of Fyre's FNaF X Some Random Book of Goosebumps But With Foxes Crossover AU

Recap because it's been a while: all the human characters have notable fox features. Michael bleeds out in an accident while he was trying to prank Evan as usual, and since the little guy got to watch his older brother die he's scared shitless by the animatronics now even though it as just a little bit of anxiety before. A few months later, Elizabeth gets rabies and Evan runs off to Henry's house to wait it out because William isn't doing shit about it (and also isn't giving him any real support while he's grieving Michael's death). This eventually leads to Charlie's murder because Evan wasn't around to "support" Elizabeth (even though she wouldn't have been able to comprehend that and it would have been actively dangerous for him) and Henry allowed that. William forces Evan to learn how to work with the animatronics so he can "get over" Michael's death. William decides to experiment and make a rabies cure, luring kids into the Employees Only room, infecting them with rabies, and keeping them in his little basement workshop until they go completely feral and he kills them to try and study their brains. That cycle continues until he successfully tests a prototype cure on Cassidy, but since he can't just let her go he still kills her. Most of the MCI don't remember much of this because the rabies blacks out that part of their memories, but Cassidy does remember and helps them fill in the gaps. There's a plan for Michael to return at some point, but I currently have no ideas for Charlie or Elizabeth. If anyone has a suggestion it is very welcome.

Now onto new stuff!

It's 1993 and Evan's 18 by this point in time. William's heavily frustrated that nothing is helping his son to just forget out his brother and be happy around the animatronics. So what's the best course of action?

Show him how to wear one of the springlock suits! Because if he's literally inside an animatronic and comes out unharmed, that's sure to work! Henry also hasn't been around much since Charlie was found dead behind the Diner, so the Fredbear suit is available! (I forgot to mention that Fredbear's closes much later in the timeline, so this would be viable)

Evan is very obviously terrified by this idea. Not only was he explicitly told the suits were dangerous to wear as a child, but he's also scared that he could meet a similar fate to his brother. But the punishment at home for not complying was always worse than just doing it, so he might as well get it over with.

But who knew panicking while wearing a springlock suit could be dangerous? Well, William did, but he knew what he was doing so it wouldn't be a problem. For him. Evan wasn't so lucky, because he was trembling enough to set off the springlocks in his left arm. It started in his forearm, and spread to his upper arm and hand before William finally pried the springlocks open and helped him take off the suit. It hurt a lot, and fractured most of the bones in his arm and hand, so it had the opposite effect his father was hoping for.

Evan had to spend a few nights in the hospital due to just how many bones were broken in his arm, and William was obviously forbidden from letting him do anything that could hurt his arm again one he was sent home with a splint for both his arm and hand (I basically just googled the two separately for the drawing as I couldn't find one that combined the two). Of course Evan's tail chewing nervous habit got worse after this, the tip of his tail being much less full and him sometimes even drawing blood.

He wasn't about to tell his father about the little girl that appeared around him after the incident, since it seemed only he could see her. She looked somewhat familiar, although he didn't know exactly from where. Floppy ears and curly tails weren't exactly common around Hurricane.

William wanted to continue his form of exposure therapy even while Evan was healing, so he would bring some of the animatronics home to get him up close and personal with them. And on top of that, he'd get them working to show his son that there really is nothing to fear with them.

Most of them did normal repetitive actions, but sometimes William would bring home members of the main band, and Evan swears they would look right at the invisible girl then at him. Sometimes they'd try to pat him on the head or offer him a hand after that. It was only ever Freddy, Bonnie, and Chica who did that. Foxy even seemed to respond to Evan starting to cry, almost like he was trying to comfort him. Foxy couldn't possibly know why he started crying, because the animatronic wouldn't know about Michael, right?

When that wasn't happening and William wasn't around, Evan would try talking to this little girl since he had nothing else he really could do. He figured out her name was Cassidy and that she hated his father, but she wasn't telling him much past that. The name still seemed familiar, like he had seen her before somewhere. Talking to Cassidy became one of the few comforting things he could do around the house, since William made him get rid of his plushies because he was "too old for them".

Evan walked around Hurricane sometimes. He stayed away from Fredbear's/Freddy's, but other than that it was nice to get out and move every once in a while. Even just sitting on a park bench was nice, because at least he's not at home.

What he didn't expect from one of those trips outside was pulling a missing person poster with Cassidy's name and picture on it out of his pocket.

------

If you somehow didn't think I'd put GoldenDuo in this AU because Evan is alive, then you are very sorely mistaken

Hi love!

Sorry for bothering you, but could you do something like really cute and fluffy between Charlie Weasley and reader where he's all shy and delicate maybe teaching her about dragons and their characteristics pls? Like, something that feels really intimate, you know?

I absolutely love your writing and I believe that you could make justice to the character.

Take care darling,

-A

Thank you for the request, loveliest anon! This is actually the first fic request I’ve ever gotten and I’m so happy you like my stuff so much, this makes me very very soft.

This fluff piece was just what I needed to get my mojo back hopefully. Please let me know if this is like what you had in mind - I for one had a lot of fun with it! <3

***

Favourites

Charlie Weasley x Reader

Word Count: ~ 2.800

As a Care of Magical Creatures test covering dragons of all things is imminent and you were too distracted in class to pay proper attention, you know just who to turn to for help.

“You want me to do what?”

Charlie Weasley blinked at you in confusion. He could feel his blood rushing in his ears as he looked at you standing in front of him, clutching you Care for Magical Creatures book to your chest as you raised your eyebrows at him.

“I asked if you could help me studying for the test next week?” you repeated your question, brow slightly furrowed. “I can’t keep track of all these dragon traits and who would know them better than you?”

Charlie felt the heat creeping up on his face. Of course, the test. It was all he had been able to think about ever since Professor Kettleburn had announced the topic; all except you of course.

He tried to formulate a coherent answer that wouldn’t make him look like a blabbering fool in front of you, but the way the dappled sunlight that broke through the trees reflected in your hair distracted him more than he cared to admit.

So he resorted to a weak nod. “Uhm, sure, I’d love to. See you at six in the library?” he managed to stammer out eventually.

A beautiful smile formed on your face as you nodded in enthusiasm. “Sounds great, see you there!”

Charlie watched as you swished around and walked back to your friends, who greeted you with giggles and whispers as they glanced in his direction. You gave one of them a playful swat on the arm, before your clear laugh carried over to him onto the warm summer air and made his heart clench.

He knew all of his dragons by heart, of course he did; this test was the first he hadn’t bothered studying for at all. But now, he suddenly felt the overwhelming urge to prepare himself.

 *

The light of the sun had already started to turn into the beautiful golden shade that heralded the end of a warm autumn day as you skittered into the library. You were a little bit late for your study session with Charlie, and the exertion from running all the way from your Common Room flushed your cheeks slightly red. Your friends just hadn’t let you go, all of them just as excited for what they called ‘your dragon date’ as you were. Not that you’d ever tell them that.

You found Charlie sitting at a table near the windows and your breath caught for a moment as you took in the warm light that washed around his frame; it was making his ginger hair glow like fire, the only vibrant speck of colour in this dusty old room full of books.

He had his nose buried in a big, leather-bound tome, his eyes darting over the pages frantically; you noticed how the tip of his tongue stuck out between his lips in concentration. He was so immersed in his reading, that he only noticed you approaching as you sat down next to him. Jumping in shock at your sudden appearance, he almost knocked over his ink bottle, only catching it at the last second before its dark, inky content could wash over the thin pages of his book.

“Oh, you’re here already, I didn’t even notice you until now.” His freckled face had flushed a shade darker than usual as he put his ink bottle back into its position and made room for you on the table.

“I’d rather say I’m here finally,” you responded, feeling a little bit guilty at making Charlie wait. “But I see that you started without me.”

He hurriedly closed the book. “No, I was just reading up on some facts about Welsh Greens so I have them sharp in my mind,” he explained, “in case you have questions, you know?”

It was only now that your eyes took in the numerous heaps of books piled up on your table. “First question,” you said as you ran your fingers over the backs of the tomes stacked on top of each other. “I thought the test was about dragons native to Europe and not every single one in existence,” you pulled out a particularly old looking book containing myths and fables, “and beyond.”

You silently counted the numbers of books Charlie had amassed and your eyes went wide. “Charlie, these must be all the books about dragons in the whole library,” you laughed, giggling at the flustered expression of the boy beside you.

“Well, not all the books,” he clarified sheepishly. “There are quite a few in the Restricted Section and then there’s the two I have up in my dorm but forgot to bring and- “

You cut off his rambling by gently touching his arm; he shut up almost instantly, glancing nervously down to where your hand was lying. “It’s alright, it was just a joke.”

“Of course,” Charlie muttered slightly embarrassed. What was wrong with him?

He watched as you pulled your notes from your bag; they were rather sparse compared to the almost three scrolls of parchment he had scribbled down himself.

“Where do you want to start?”

You hummed to yourself as you considered your choices. A warm, fuzzy feeling spread inside Charlie’s chest as you drew your lips into a pensive pout and tapped your index finger against it.

Finally, a neat stack of white flashcards, that lay hidden behind a book on Sea Serpents, caught your attention. You reached over Charlie and pulled them towards you.

Your mouth dropped open as you flicked through them; on every one of the laminated cards was an extensive profile of every kind of dragon imaginable. The descriptions were written out in a neat, accurate hand that looked nothing like the careless scrawl you’d seen on Charlie’s class notes.

But what took your breath away were the detailed drawings below the text. They were done by pencil and although they didn’t move like magical pictures often did, they were so lively as if they only waited to pounce off the paper and take into the air.

Charlie watched you apprehensively as your fingers traced the outline of what appeared to be a Swedish Short-snout. He felt his heart beat faster at the soft, admiring look in your eyes as you turned towards him.

“Did you do these yourself?”

He nodded in response. “It’s hard to find decent descriptions all in one place,” he explained quietly. “I don’t know how accurate the sketches are though; I’ve never seen a dragon in real life.”

You flashed him a radiant smile that had his heart rate pick up considerably. “I don’t care if they’re realistic; they’re brilliant!”

Encouraged by your excitement, he took the flashcards out of your hands and fanned them out, their blank backs facing you. “Then I’d suggest we start with them; pick one!”

Running the fingers along the cards twice, you finally settled on one and drew it out of his grasp. Charlie’s freckled face lit up as he saw which one you had chosen.

“The Ukrainian Ironbelly,” he exclaimed, “my favourite!”

All of his former shyness was suddenly forgotten; this was his prime discipline.

“The Ironbelly is native to the Ukraine, as its name suggests, obviously. It’s considered the largest dragon species in existence with an immense wingspan, long talons and scales that are said to be harder to pierce than steel. It’s name stems from the metallic grey colour of his underside and ever since one particular large specimen carried off a whole sailing ship in the late 18th century, they are under strict observation by wizarding authorities.”

You did your best to jot down the information Charlie dumped on you with impressive speed but there was no way you could keep up with his excited ramblings. So you resorted to listening to him as he lectured you about feeding habits, hunting methods and the average temperature of the flames an Ironbelly could produce.

He sighed wistfully as he paused for breath. “They’re amazing.”

You couldn’t hide your smile at his dreamy expression as you picked out your next card from the stack. “Okay, how about this one?”

The dragon it showed had ridges running along its back, ending in a nasty, arrow-shaped spike at the tip of its tail. It barred its teeth at you in a vicious snarl.

“That’s my favourite, the Hebridean Black,” he repeated his words from before, positively bouncing with energy this time around.  

You glanced at the card you two had just worked your way through. “I thought the Ukrainian Ironbelly was your favourite?” you teased him.

Charlie’s bouncing stopped instantly as he blushed bright red; you hadn’t meant to bring him down and felt sorry all of a sudden. So you propped the card against one of the book piles and turned to him.

“So, tell me more about it.”

Relieved to be able to tread on secure ground again, Charlie immediately recounted all the facts about one of the two dragon breeds native to the British Isles to you.

You continued in this fashion; your pulled a random card from the stash and Charlie would tell you everything he knew about it. He grew more animated with every new flashcard; as it turned out, every dragon you talked about was his favourite.

Seeing him so caught up in his favourite subject had a warmth spread in your chest and the smile on your lips never vanished even once. You had given up on writing Charlie’s words down about four cards ago and were merely staring at him explaining to you everything about these fantastic beasts that made up all of his dreams and musings.

His excitement quickly spread to you and you found yourself hanging onto his every word. But the more you were listening to him, the more you found your concentration shift from the dragons you were discussing to the boy beside you.

Your head propped on your hand, you admired how recounting scale colours and preferred environments of Romanian Longhorns brought a twinkle to his blue eyes and how his contagious laugh had you chuckle at the idea that people would confuse a Hungarian Horntail with a Norwegian Ridgeback.

The dimples forming in his freckled cheeks as he smiled at you were the exact reason why you had needed help with studying for this test in the first place. When you had talked about dragons in class, the eager smile and the slight scrunch of his nose as he scribbled down every single word Professor Kettleburn had to spare had left you breathless and unable to concentrate on anything but the butterflies dancing in your stomach.

The pile of flash cards had dwindled down until only a few more were left. Your breath caught in your throat as you turned around your next pick; the pictured showed a slender dragon directly from the front. It’s wings were outstretched and it seemed to be staring directly at you out of wide, pupil-less eyes. It was the only drawing so far that was coloured.

Your finger traced the subtle colour gradient rippling over its pearly scales as Charlie looked over to see which one was next.

“The Antipodean Opaleye,” he murmured, taking in your fascinated expression, “it’s singularly coloured scales and eyes are the stuff of legends.”

“It’s beautiful,” you whispered, trying to imagine how the scales of a real life Opaleye might shimmer in the sunlight.

“Not as beautiful as you,” Charlie suddenly blurted out. The words had fallen from his lips before he’d even had a chance to stop them.

Both of you froze as what he had said sank into your consciousness. You couldn’t believe your ears and were half sure that your mind must have played a trick on you.

You carefully glanced over to Charlie out of the side of your eyes; he looked incredulous and you could watch the colour of his face turning from ghostly white to a deep, vivid scarlet that clashed with his ginger hair in a matter of seconds.

Feeling your own cheeks starting to blush at the unexpected compliment, you desperately were looking for something to say to take the shock out of his widened eyes. But your mind wasn’t working properly anymore, so all you managed was a meek “Wow, uhm, thank you Charlie, that’s really sweet.”

It was apparent your words didn’t help his flustered situation as he covered his face with his hands and groaned “I can’t believe I said that out loud; I’m such an idiot.”

You didn’t know what to do to help him; you felt utterly flattered and confused at the same time. You thought about putting your hand on his arm to reassure him what he had said actually made you happy, but paused halfway, not quite daring to touch him again.

Still unsure of what to do, you got up and picked up one of the books he had used to illustrate the facts on his flashcards.

“I’d better get going, I guess,” you stammered without looking at the wretched boy sitting at the table next to you, “thank you so much for helping me, I think I’ll manage the rest on my own. Can I borrow that book though?”

He didn’t raise his face from his hands, but nodded anyways. You felt bad for leaving him like that, but your head was spinning and you desperately needed to sort out your thoughts.

But seeing Charlie’s slumped frame sitting at the table, all the bubbly excitement from before completely drained from him, tugged at your heartstrings so hard it almost hurt. So instead of turning around and leaving, you drew a deep breath, gathered your courage and stepped behind him, placing a light kiss on his cheek.

You could feel his shoulders tense and his breath hitch as your hair tickled his jaw and were glad he couldn’t see the deep blush on your cheeks as you straightened up, picked up your bag and his book and hurried out of the library with a racing heart, too afraid to turn around once more.

*

Charlie and you hadn’t spoken again after what had happened in the library. It had taken him quite some time to be able to think properly again after you had left; he had just sat at his table, hand on his cheek where you had kissed him, staring into nothingness, the peachy smell of your hair still hanging in the air.

Even though the thought of how soft your lips had felt on your cheek had been the most prominent thing in his mind, he had passed his test with flying colours; some things just couldn’t be erased from his mind, no matter what was happening around him.

He had just returned to his dorm after a particularly tiring Quidditch practise when he saw it lying on his bed, propped up against his head bord; the book you had borrowed from him to finish studying on your own.

For a brief moment, he wondered how you had managed to get it up here, when he noticed something white sticking out of the pages. Curious, he picked up the book and flicked it open.

Even without looking, he knew what chapter it was you had marked with whatever you had put in there; he had read this book more times than he could remember. It was the chapter on the Antipodean Opaleye; he grimaced at the memory of when he had last thought about this particular dragon.

A white flashcard was stuck between the pages, its laminated surface flashing as Charlie turned it around to read it.

A big smile stole onto his face as he saw the photograph of you laughing and waving at him that you had stuck on the front side. His eyes swept over the lines written in your feminine hand and his smile grew even wider as he read the ‘special characteristics’ section:

It has to be remarked, that this particular specimen was able to pass her test with full marks.

He was glad to hear his blurted out compliment hadn’t affected your marks in the end. He sighed wistfully, when he noticed the very small, scribbled note at the very end of the card; it wasn’t as neatly written as the rest, almost as if your hands had shaken while writing it down.

Greatest weakness: While not many weaknesses are recorded of this specimen, it is said that it can be easily tamed by ginger-haired dragon trainers in the making. Whether these rumours are true, remains to be determined.

Charlie’s mouth dropped open as he read the last section over and over again, not daring to believe what he thought they said. But after the tenth time, he finally allowed the butterflies that  had been fluttering in his stomach to spread into the rest of his body, his smile growing into the widest grin as he tucked the flashcard carefully into the book again.

This time, he was sure; this one was his favourite.

  Tagging: @weasleysandwheezes

bad days//charlie weasley x reader

Good morning my puffs!!!! I got two requests today:

booksmusicteaandanimals said: Hey, hey you fabulous writer, that 50 wordless ways to say I love you...... can I request of you one with our good ol dragon loving boi with the number (or numbers if you’re willing) 38, 14, 11????💛💛

lettersfromtheocean said: Number 38 (from the 50 wordless ways to say I love you list) with Charlie Weasley, please? I had to restrain myself not to spam you, because all the prompts sound adorable and I'd love to see your take on pretty much all of them

So I figured I’d combine them together!!! Hope you like this :) <3

taglist: @curious-curios​ @summer-writes​ @willowbleedsonpaper​ @strawberriesonsummer​ @jenniweaslee​ @cherrycolakxsses​ @peeves-a-legend​ @booksmusicteaandanimals​ @heart-of-tempered-steel​ @lettersfromtheocean​ 

*Not my GIF, credit to creator*

11. Telling them a dumb joke just to see their smile.

14. Singing and dancing to their favorite song.

38. Letting them warm their cold hands under your shirt.

You couldn’t wait to get back home to Charlie. Since you’d showed up to work that morning you had realized it would be a bad day- the cafe messed up the order you had made for you and your coworkers, then you found out that a client had moved a deadline on the project yet didn’t bother to tell you, then you couldn’t get lunch because of that. By the time you had finished you just wanted to leave the second the clock struck 5. Luckily, your wonderful and caring husband knew from messages you had sent that you would be returning home in a bad mood and all he wanted to do was bring a smile back to your face.

Charlie heard you before he saw you- the way you slammed the door when you walked in, groaned as you struggled to take off your shoes almost slamming your body into the living room table, and threw your purse down onto one of the chairs. When he finally got to you, you were struggling to take off your jacket, your breathing telling him that you were becoming overwhelmed.

He walked up to you, “Hello dove,” before he slowly placed his hands on your shoulder so as to not startle you. “Let me help you with this.”

You nodded your head and felt his hands run down your arms before reaching the sleeves of your jacket, pulling them off one by one. When he was done, he wrapped his arms around you so that your back was against his chest, “you feeling any better dove?”

You shook your head, still not trusting your voice. Thankfully, Charlie was used to these days so he merely swayed the two of you from side to side to help you calm down. You felt his wand arm go up as he flicked his hand, starting the record of “Be my Baby,” that the two of you always danced to. It wasn’t like the other times when the dancing was energetic, no this time you just held onto Charlie for dear life as he moved the two of you around slowly. 

When the song finished, Charlie lifted your chin so that you would look at him, “How are you feeling dove?”

Finally you were able to muster a tiny smile, “A bit better… this definitely helped.”

Charlie nodded his head and led you into the kitchen. He hoped that with some of your favorite foods in you, you’d smile a bit bigger and talk a bit more. You did chat a bit, mostly listening to Charlie recount what happened at the reserve that day.

“Ok, I have a good joke for you now,” he’d started telling you cheesy puns once he was done recounting his day. “Why are dragons such good story tellers?”

You shook your head at him, “I don’t know.”

“Because they have very impressive tails.”

You chuckled a bit at his response and your smile grew a tiny bit more, but for Charlie it was an improvement, “That must have been one of your cheesiest jokes tonight.”

Charlie finally decided to try one more thing so as to help you feel better. After placing the dishes in the sink, with the plan to clean them the next day, he grabbed your hand and walked you over to the sofa. He laid down and then pulled you down so that you would be laying on top of him. Before he wrapped his arms around you, he grabbed his wand and lit the fireplace so that everything would feel extra comfy and then wrapped you with your favorite blanket. 

He didn’t say anything then, knowing that you appreciated the quiet and merely brought his arms up and down your back before drawing little designs on your hips. When he looked at your face, he could tell that your thoughts had started to consume you, so he grabbed your hands and placed them under his shirt knowing that feeling his skin would help ground you a bit. It took a couple minutes but the dazed look you had in your eyes slowly disappeared. When he saw, he went back to hugging you close to him watching as you soon fell asleep with the smile that he was waiting for on your face. 

Dearly Departed Chapter 1

"𝙳𝚒𝚍𝚗'𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚖𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚘𝚞𝚌𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚋𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘 𝚢 𝚘 𝚞 ?"

Chapter 1

Falling down

She gasps, the springlocks closing around her body. The golden suit clenching tightly around her, beams impaling her legs and arms, as she becomes light-headed from the loss of blood. Her black hair, becoming mangled and coated with her own blood, her ocean blue eyes filled with fear as she attempted to struggle through the pain. Then, he laughed. He LAUGHED. William Afton, more commonly known as "The Springlock Killer". Infamously known for stuffing his victims into springlock suits at the most cursed restaurant in the entire United States, Freddy Fazbear's. The killer of her parents. The killer of her Sister. The killer of herself, she presumed. Oh, and uh, also her Uncle. Yup. What luck, right? Coming from an abusive family, she supposes that she shouldn't be that surprised. 'At least I'll finally be with my sister, although I don't think she'll be where I'm bound to go.' she thinks to herself. 'If this is how I die, so be it.' She felt her head become drowsy, the pain so great she eventually became numb to it. She didn't know how long she sat there, bleeding out a slow and painful death. Was she already dead? She didn't know. And after God only knows how long, she gave into the deep sleep waiting for her. And with that, Keyla Lynn was finally dead. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Falling. The first sensation she felt. Falling. Wind whipping at her hair, her stomach doing flips as she openly plummeted down to the ground below. Hitting said ground hard, she let out a grunt as she pushed herself up, opening her eyes. Grey, dirty concrete is what seemed to be below her. The stray pebbles felt rough on her palms--wait, her hands?! Swiftly sitting up, she examined her arms with a curious expression. First of all, she was pale. Sure, she'd already been quite pale, but God- Now she was almost white. Her fingers were a little longer, and her nails were also a deal longer, sharpening into points, as if she had claws. Her eyes trailed up to the rest of her lower body. She was wearing a black hoodie, with a pair of jeans and some torn sneakers. As she watched herself with curiosity, she noticed a dull, aching behind her. She stood up shakily, glancing behind her- WAS THAT A TAIL? Oh-oh no- She stiffly lifted a hand to her head, feeling for ears. Yup- They were there. Great. She sighed. Where the hell was she? Suddenly, something brushed up against her arm- Oop. Yup, she had wings as well. Dark, grey wings that were almost the size of her body. "Oh my god- please go away-" she asked half heartedly, not wanting to deal with this. Whatever happened to 'eternal peace' ? As if her words actually did something, her wings shimmered and sparkled, suddenly disappearing. Woah. Was she high- "Come back." Nothing happened. "Uh, wings appear!" she commanded. Still nothing. She imagined a vivid image in her mind, her wings repeating the same shimmery effect and reappearing. Opening her eyes, she noticed they had returned. Practicing this a few times, she eventually got the hang of it. Deciding to keep them hidden for now, she looked around at her surroundings, for the first time. Well, it was night. That's for sure. The sky was a deep, dark, blood red. In place of the moon, was a large pentagram, glowing softly. That confirmed it. She was in Hell. Well, shit. She seemed to be on some kind of sidewalk. Glancing around, a few other people--demons??--wandered the street. Picking up an abandoned knife on the sidewalk, she glanced around, scouting for any small or vulnerable demon. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well that was harder than expected. But damn--she got the money! Now all she needed to do was find somewhere to stay-

Scouting the forest that she'd brought her victim, she noticed a gleam in the distance. Making her way towards it, she found she had much more endurance then the average person. It was a small, secluded cabin, in the middle of the forest. Perfect. Now, she needed to--

Wait. What's this?

She picked up a small poster, having been stapled to a nearby tree. The picture showed a childlike drawing of a creature, large antlers and symbols floating all around it. 'Beware the Radio Demon' -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few months went by, and she settled into hell fairly good. She'd become rather powerful, become a feared demon in the small circle she lived in. She started to build a name for herself. Nightly. The Night Terror. Or, as lazy as it is, The Nightmare Demon. Nightly also discovered, she had a set of cat-like fangs. Yup, those came in handy a lot. She supposed it would still be a while before she became recognized by the overlords, though she didn't care a lot about that. There was one, however, she was interested in. 'The Witch' as she was called. She was one of the most powerful overlords, her power even rivalling the wicked Radio Demon. Curious, she was. Nightly had been wanted to see this..witch,, in person since she'd first heard about her. Her real name was never mentioned, though. Only the other overlords had known such. For if anyone was to know it, rumors were she could be summoned. Nightly scoffed at the rumors. Seems like hell was full of cowards. She was no coward, however. As she'd started to build her status, Nightly had also taken a large portion of 'territory' as the others called it. In reality, it was her own circle of three different cities. Not a lot, but it sure wasn't a little. She still had yet to go up against any overlord, but she could at least take Sir Pentious in a battle to the death. It wasn't until she'd actually met, said Radio Demon, that she realized this might be harder than she thought. -

She was walking down a familiar road, heading towards her home in the forest. She hated the route she was taking tonight, as The Radio Demon was on another one of his egotistical rampages throughout the town. Well, it was okay, since it would only be a little longer before this area would be hers. She sighed into the chilly night air, stuffing her hands into her hoodie pockets. Then, something happened.

She felt her ears flatten, a growl rumbling in her chest as her tail stood up straight. She could faintly hear the white noise of a radio out of tune behind her. Footsteps approaching. She shuddered as she felt the infamous static dancing on her skin. Turning around, her eyes widened into dinner plates as she confirmed who was following her. The Radio Demon. Standing tall, lurking over her, he chuckled darkly. Shadows extending out from behind him, closing off the path that she had just come from. "Now, what do we have here? A small, damsel in distress, up against the most feared dragon!" the radio host spoke ecstatically, as if broadcasting live. "Oh, what to do, what to do! Tell me, little doe, what shall you do?" he asked menacingly. Suddenly, large, shadowy tentacles emerged from the ground, capturing her legs and slamming her against a nearby building. Groaning, she got on her feet, spreading her wings and quickly flying off into the distance, escaping the powerful demon. - Yeah. That wasn't fun. she shuddered as she recalled the encounter. She'd become increasingly more powerful since, but she was still nowhere near overpowering the radio demon. She could, however, take on the smaller demons, like Sir P for example.

A few years had gone by. she'd adjusted to life in hell, and while she wasn't happy, no, but she was moderately okay. Walking down the street, she paused as she heard a local news station broadcasting a- wait, song? She watche curiously as the Princess of Hell, Charlie Magne, sang a song about...love? What? Oh. A Hotel for rehabilitating demons. Interesting. Free rent and food? Hell yeah! With that, she made her way to the designated, "Happy Hotel"

She paused, glancing up at the title. Wait, why does it say "Hazbin Hotel" instead?

Mermaid AU

This is another Hazbin Hotel AU fic idea I’m giving away and this one is not as horrifying and graphic as you would expect. In fact it’s actually kind of sweet but hey there’s nothing wrong with a little sweetness once in awhile right? This was greatly inspired by films such 1984's Splash, 2007's Fish Tales, and 2018's the Little Mermaid. If anyone wants to write or draw this feel free to do it but please inform me if you do.

As a young boy Alastor is timid, shy, and has an extreme fear of water. While his mother loves and adores him, his father is ashamed of his son's skittish nature and emotionally and physically abused him to get him "To be brave."

One Summer when the family is vacationing at their beach house, they take a boat ride to sea and his father throws Alastor into the water to force him to learn to swim despite extreme protests from his wife. Alastor nearly drowns but is saved by a little girl who gives him a kiss which not only allows him to breathe underwater temporarily but forms a connection between them. However the two are separated when Alastor's mother pulls him out. Since no one else saw the girl, Alastor believes their encounter to be a near death hallucination.

Some time after this his mother becomes pregnant again and dies giving birth to a daughter. Alastor looks after his younger sister and protects her from their father's abuse until finally social services takes them out of his care. But rather than be separated from his sister through foster care, Alastor runs away with her and takes on the role of her guardian. But due to the abuse he becomes distant and refuses to form any relationship with anyone save for his younger sister.

Years pass, Alastor grows into a workaholic and anti-social young man with a job as a radio host who never dates or goes to any social events which concerns his pre-teen sister. When her school let's out for Summer break, she convinces Alastor to take a vacation or do something besides work every hour of everyday. He decides to take a Summer job at a radio station where their family's beach house is located.

They have to take a boat to get to the house but unfortunately Alastor accidentally falls off the boat and nearly drowns due to never having learned to swim because of his aquaphobia. However Alastor is rescued again, he doesn't understand how but his sister gets a glimpse of something underwater. Something with a fish tail and long blonde hair.

The next day a beautiful blonde woman named Charlotte "Charlie" comes to their house to return Alastor's wallet which he lost when he fell off the boat, claiming that she found it washed ashore on the beach. Both feel drawn to each other which confuses Alastor because he's never been attracted to any woman before. His sister notices this unspoken attraction and is suspicious of Charlie so she follows her to the beach one day and discovers that Charlie is in fact of mermaid. They befriend each other but Charlie swears the young girl to secrecy about what she is because she had recently escaped a circus which captured and imprisoned her. However Charlie cannot ever return home because years ago her father banished her for saving a human boy from drowning. Now she's all alone and has no where to go.

Alastor's sister correctly deduces that Charlie is the one who saved her brother when he was younger and gets the idea to set the two of them up together. Both Charlie and Alastor are against the idea but with help from their cleaning lady Niffty and one of their cranky neighbor's Husk, the two end up spending a lot time together. Despite Charlie's bubbly, outlandish behavior and Alastor's more aloof and distant personality, they bound over their shared passion for music and their difficult relationships with their fathers. Romance sparks between the radio host and the mermaid which eventually turns into a passionate love affair.

But trouble arises when Charlie's former captor Valentino comes to town with his circus and is desperate to recapture his biggest money maker. Even going as far as to brutally interrogate his other acts: Vaggie a fortune teller and Angel Dust an acrobat. Both loyal friends of Charlie who helped her escape and try to do everything they can to keep Valentino from finding her. Such as secretly visiting her at night by the cove to warn her about where Valentino is and how to best avoid him.

I thought this would be especially interesting because Charlie has a lot in common with media's most popular fictional mermaid characters. Like the original little mermaid character from the story but Hans Christian Anderson, she desires to reach heaven. Like Ariel in the Disney film she's gifted with a beautiful voice and has goals and a personality that differs from her family and species. And like Madison from Splash she's blonde, has a child-like innocence, a free spirit, and tries to see the good, beauty, and love in everything.

It follows

Series Summary: Reader is running from financial problems and his/her studies, will they catch up with him/her? Charlie's close friends (none other than Sam and Dean) go to check up on the reader due to Charlie becoming worried for him/her. Trouble pursues, as the reader wants to keep silent about his/her struggles.

Warnings: None

Masterlist

Chapter 14

Dean focused intently on driving down city side-streets, just in case if the creature back there decided to trail after them. He was bewildered, and honestly didn't know what to think, but he tried not to get too lost in thought as he sped to the motel. Hell, he was lucky he wasn't a midnight snack, based on the way it tried to ravish both Dean and itself.. For a good couple of minutes, the drive was silent, except for the sound of your heart pounding in your ears and an occasional thought passing through your mind.

"What exactly happened back there?" Sam asked.

"I don't know, I really don't. But whatever we are hunting, it is not a werewolf." Dean replied.

"Did you see what it was?" You asked curiously.

"That's the thing, I did, but, it wasn't anything I've seen before." Dean said.

You and Sam stared at Dean, hoping the discomfort would force him to continue explaining. As you expected, he glanced from the road, back at both of you.

"What?!" He finally asked.

"What did it look like?" Sam inquired.

"Well, it was in the form of this beautiful woman. It looked normal, at least until I slashed it with the silver knife; which had no effect on it, by the way. And it used some sort of power, healing the wound instantly. Not like angel mojo, but… I don't know." Dean explained.

"Anything else?" You asked, feeling like he was holding back.

"Um… well, it's like she put a spell on me." Dean admitted.

"And you didn't bother to tell us?!" Sam asked.

"I thought it was nothing, but I suppose now it could be important." Dean said.

"What did she specifically do to you?" Sam asked.

"I don't really know, to be honest.. It was like she was.. irresistible, and I couldn't control Mr. General-"

"Please don't tell me you..." Sam began to interrupt.

"God Sam, no, I didn't go down on her. At least, I wasn't going to, not until she started biting my neck." Dean said.

Sam massaged the bridge of his nose. "You could have spared the details, you know." He said in disgust.

"No, like, she was actually trying to feed on me, it was weird." Dean explained.

Both you and Sam looked in confusion at the elder Winchester; you hadn't even heard of this in the books.

"I guess it isn't a wolf." You mumbled audibly.

"Ya think?" Dean retorted.

"But that leaves us with one big question.. What is it then?" Sam asked aloud.

Silence filled the car once again as you all pondered deeply.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

As soon as you got back into the motel room, you all instantly hit the books, having no idea where to even start. You weren't really too skilled at this type of research, but you used what you knew from the series, hoping it would suffice. The first topic you figured you could start on, was a shapeshifter, but you instantly hit another dead end, since shifters weren't immune to silver. Your only resort now was anything that ate their prey.

"Could it be a rugaru?" You asked, reading into the lore.

"I don't think so," Dean said, "at least not like any I have ever seen. That thing had complete control, you should have seen it."

Sam cleared his throat briefly. "Maybe it had its urges under control?" Sam guessed.

"Maybe, but it seemed completely human to me, except for the feeding part. No wrinkling skin or black eyes… All normal. There was something about her face though, and I can't put my finger on it." Dean said.

"What about it?" You asked.

"It had a familiar aspect to it, like I've seen the features before."

"Like you knew her?" You asked.

"No, like I've seen similar facial features somewhere before, but I can't remember exactly where." Dean said.

"What were the facial features like?" Sam asked.

"She had a long pointed face..." Dean recalled.

"Like a stereotypical witch?" Sam asked with a chuckle.

"No," You responded, typing away on the extra laptop, "like a fox."

"There it is," Dean said with recognition, "how did you guess?"

"I've watched some interesting cartoons in the nineties." You responded with a smirk.

Dean looked at you with confusion and then to his brother, shrugging when they both didn't get the reference. You clicked on the first link that popped up, since it seemed remotely along the lines of the Winchester business.

"A Kumiho?" Dean asked, reading the title of the webpage.

"Yeah, it says here that it roughly translates to 'nine-tailed fox'." You stated.

Dean hummed in response, peering over your shoulder.

"Common lore says it transforms freely; many say that it turns into a woman, to seduce prey."

You all raised your eyebrows at the last statement and instantly looked at one another.

"This makes total sense," Dean said, "(Y/N), you're a genius!"

You blushed. "I mean, not really.." You replied.

"Are you kidding? It would have taken me and Sammy a good hour or so to crack this, and I think it's only been forty minutes. That's incredible!" Dean exclaimed.

"Thanks." You beamed quietly.

"Yeah, good work (Y/N)." Sam agreed, returning the smile.

Suddenly, the police scanner on Sam's computer popped up without warning, almost sending you to the floor. A male voice roughly came through the small speakers, ordering a squad to dispatch to East Morgan Street, near State Road 931. The attacker was unclear, but a young boy was both badly injured and traumatized by something the officer couldn't exactly place reason on.

"Alright, I definitely feel we should check this one out. It's likely what we're after." Sam said, standing up from his small work space.

"What have we got to lose?" Dean said.

The three of you quickly got into your federal attire and headed out to the general address provided. In a short amount of time you arrived to the scene. Multiple cop cars, and fire rescue squads were swarmed about, flooding the dark, desolate street with flashing lights. You adjusted your 'badge' and made your way to the police car in the center of the scene. A middle-aged cop stood on the side with a small group from the squad, who seemed to be discussing what he came across when he found the boy. The rest of the two teams attended to the boy on the back of an ambulance, addressing his wounds and occasionally asking him questions. You and Dean headed over to the officer, while Sam took to the boy. Your anxiety perked slightly, but you acted as nonchalant as possible, to try and not draw attention.

"Excuse me," Dean said, grabbing the group's attention, "I'm Agent Ford, this is my partner, Agent Griffith, would you care to explain the situation?"

"FBI? Why would you guys be interested in this? Isn't it a little early?" The middle-aged officer asked.

"We've been pinging these types of cases for a brief while, and we think it's the work of a specific killer, we picked this up on the radar." You responded confidently.

"Alright, that sounds reasonable." The officer said to you. "Tend to the scene guys, I've got this one." He said to his colleagues.

After his colleagues dispersed, you instantly asked for details on what had occurred not long before he sent out the alert on the scanner.

"It's weird, I was driving down here, patrolling the park for the evening shift, when this young boy ran straight in front of my car. Luckily, I wasn't going the speed limit, or both of us would have been roadkill. He came right out of the brush over there, and it looked like he got attacked by some wild animal or something. I got out of the car, and asked him what was wrong, and he just pointed to where he ran from. There was a woman, just standing inside the entrance of the woods, staring at us. I shone my flashlight, and she took off running. I couldn't leave the boy, so I called for backup." The officer said.

"Did he ever say what gave him those bites?" Dean asked.

"That's the thing, he said it was the woman." He replied with uneasiness.

"Did you have anyone go after her?" You asked.

"Some of the squad scoured the area, but they couldn't find anyone. Like I said, it was weird." He answered.

"What did the woman look like, officer.." Dean trailed off, gesturing to the cop.

"Mavin, sorry." He finished. "She was thin, her hair was infused with a natural red and a few other natural-born colors. Her face came to a point at the chin, and her nose was small but longer in length… Almost like.."

"A fox?" You said.

"Yeah..exactly! How did you know?" Marvin asked.

"Just intuition." You said.

"And you haven't seen her since?" Dean asked.

"No, thankfully. She had a weird vibe to her. But we have definitely on the lookout." He said.

"Thank you for your time, Officer Mavin." You said.

As you finished conversing with the officer, you saw Sam had already walked back from the ambulance, talking with another officer. He broke off the conversation as he saw you two walking up.

"What did you find?" Sam asked, putting his hands in his pockets.

"Looks like this coincides with the case," Dean replied, "The officer matched the attacker to a 'T'. It was the same thing that attacked me."

"That's promising; you know what the kid just told me? The lady lured him in, probably just like the other victims. Remember how Brayden's sister said that a woman was trailing her brother before he died? I think that's what has been happening with all of the victims." Sam said.

"I think you're right, but do you think we could take this back to the car or something? Cops make me uneasy." You admitted quietly.

The boys looked at you with understanding and agreed to your reasonable request. Without drawing much attention, you all went back to the beloved car to discuss what would happen next. But just before you hopped into the back seat, you could have sworn you saw two eyes glaring at you in the distance.

chapter one: double deuces

chapter one of book three, of course ;)

"tell me a story (will ya, will ya) a real good story (I won't leave till ya) spill your guts old man; leave out any secrets, hiding in the... any skeletons, and all your other sins any skeletons, in the closet! any skeletons, any misfortunes any skeletons, hiding in the closet! any skeletons, any skeletons in the closet!"

“Happy birthday, my dear friend.”

Aurora had taken Sam out to that Vietnamese restaurant for lunch on her birthday. Twenty two years old and she could feel the very essence of age over her head. In New York for two years and it all felt like a blur and the clear real thing all at the same time. In a year's time, she would be on the brink of her mid twenties: it all felt so ephemeral and so quick at the same time. It felt so odd to think that not even four years ago she was still in high school and she had gone into a strange brand new place in the meantime.

Four years felt like a lifetime ago, especially since she looked on at her black hair and she swore it was growing lighter over her temples. It could have just been the reflection of the glass in the mirror for all she knew, but when she went to brush her hair, she swore there were some light tendrils near the crown. As long as it didn't turn into a striking pearly white silver color, she knew she would be fine.

Aurora raised her white china tea cup for a toast to her. The soft aroma of the green tea comforted her, and she followed suit with her own cup.

Ever since she and Emile had gotten together, and ever since she had gotten that dress for Kirk's wedding the next weekend, Aurora had been dressing up more nicely: at the moment, she had a rich deep purple velvet sweater wrapped around her body and a little red rose tucked behind her ear. Despite the bitter New York cold, she started wearing more floral print tights to go with her skirts; Sam had to take a second look at her face to make out the sight of the black eye liner about the smooth edges of her eyes.

Sam herself meanwhile found herself drawn more to black—Aurora said it was because of her hanging out with Testament the past couple of weekends as well as Joey on certain days after school.

“I think it could also be because I'm in the arts,” she told her the day before. “Marla wears a bunch of black and Belinda has been wearing a lot of it, too.”

“Hangin' around the arts and hangin' out with a bunch of heavy metal dudes,” Aurora chuckled.

The art scene seemed so far away from her given she was a student and she even began to struggle with classes in recent days. Indeed, the thought of forfeiting college itself to live down in the real bohemian side of New York City was more tempting than ever to her. But she had nestled in the Bronx, three floors over Frank and down the block from Charlie and Marla. It was either pick up and go live alone in another part of town or stay there and continue to do what felt like spinning her wheels day in, day out. Sam tried to not let her thoughts cast a shadow on her own birthday, but she couldn't help but look at her own reflection in her tea cup and frown.

“Maybe it's all the doing stuff after school that's getting to you,” Aurora told her. “We haven't really seen Marla in the past few weeks.”

“No, we haven't,” Sam confessed as she gazed out the window at the snow drifts along the sidewalk.

“Well, if it's any comfort, I've been getting antsy myself,” Aurora said. “Emile wants me to move in with him but it's gonna be hard to do it especially if it's just him who's helping me with the move.”

“And you're going from Long Island up to the Bronx, too,” Sam added, “it was bad enough for me to get my bed up the stairs in that building.”

“It was tricky for me, too,” Aurora continued. “And you and I also moved across country, too.”

“And how—from around the same area, no less. Well, San Diego is way further south in comparison to Lake Elsinore, but it's near the same range, though.”

“It's all within range of L.A., that's for sure. L.A. and Riverside.”

“Hey, if Greg, Eric, and Louie can talk nonsense while they're in the studio, we can, too,” Sam pointed.

“Makes sense—Southern California exiles, the both of us.” Aurora raised her cup again to her and they clinked them together before they took a sip in unison.

“When's your birthday, by the way?” Sam asked her as she held her cup close to her mouth. “I can't remember if you told me or not.”

“May twenty ninth.”

“Oh, I see. I kept thinking it was in October for some reason.”

Aurora chuckled at that. “Well, I haven't really made it much of a point because my parents always treated birthdays different in comparison to that of American culture. I always wanted an American style birthday party growing up in San Diego but that's probably the one thing they brought over from the Korean peninsula is the way birthdays are treated.”

“And how's that?”

“When we reach a certain age, they have different celebrations for them. Like your first birthday is 'dol' or three hundred sixty five days since you were born, and that came from the fact Korea didn't have as good of protection on their newborns as we do here: so when you made it to your first birthday, it was significant. The family says a prayer for the kid and then they eat rice, seaweed soup, and rice cakes—my mom has a photo of me from my 'dol', I'll have to show it to you if and when we go out to San Diego together. They have cake and candles just like Americans, but the cake is far different—it's a lot more savory than it is sweet. And on New Year's, they eat a soup so they can finish up the age they are for the certain year. So you're actually considerably older on the peninsula than you are here. If you're ten years old, in Korea, you're considered eleven or twelve.”

“Wow.”

“And when you reach fifteen years of age, and you're female, you're considered an adult. That said, I'm glad I'm a born American because I can't imagine coming to New York City as a fifteen year old.”

“I can,” Sam said.

“You can?”

“As a boy.” She thought about Alex right then.

“Now, boys have to wait 'til they're twenty before they're considered adults.”

“So Alex would still be considered a boy right now?” she asked her. “Being eighteen?”

“Yes!” Aurora then burst out laughing and clapped her hands at that. “Oh, god, I just pictured him in the traditional horse hair hat that boys have to wear on their twentieth birthday, and I also just pictured him picking up a giant rock and lifting it over his head, too.”

“How giant are we talking, exactly?”

“One that dwarfs his entire body.” Aurora raised an eyebrow at that.

“I dunno, Aurora,” Sam confessed with a shake of her head, “—he's pretty thin but he's also got that little bit of baby fat left on him. He looks pretty soft.”

“Bet you he's way stronger than he looks.”

“Joey is,” Sam continued as she brought her cup back up to her lips.

“Joey is!”

“Mr. Hockey Player—yeah, that boy's tougher than nails.”

“Well—we are going to be in the Bay Area next weekend,” Aurora pointed out. “A whole weekend of doing stuff while Kirk and—Rebecca, I think is his fiancée's name?—while they're getting married. We all can just hang out and be a bunch of genuine friends together for a couple of days.”

Sam squinted her eyes at that.

“What do you have in mind?” she asked her in a low voice.

“You'll see. And maybe Exodus and Death Angel will want in on the fun, too. Fun with the 'little four'.” She flashed Sam a wink as she sipped from her tea once again. Right then, the sole waitress in the restaurant showed up at their table with their bowls of pho: chicken for Sam, vegetarian for Aurora. One more toast and they both dipped into their bowls of fresh hot soup.

At least that night she was to have cupcakes courtesy of Marla, forty dollars courtesy of Belinda, and a jovial phone call from her parents that night. Nothing more, nothing less, but at the same time, she wished for more and she knew that her flight back out to California that next Friday was the start of something for her. Something big and grand, like that next weekend in the Bay Area. It would take place on a day that wasn't her birthday, but it would be something.

Since it was Wednesday, after lunch, she headed back to school for the rest of the day and then back to her place in the Bronx. She stepped in through the front door: the first thing she noticed was the vase of yellow tulips on the table. They had lasted so long, and for so long in the heart of the first winter following Cliff's passing, but she noticed the wilt as it began to settle in on the yellow petals.

She would keep them there on the table until the pure yellow color vanished and they lost their smell, much like with the black hat Cliff had given her.

Sam took her seat on the couch with her drawing pad rested upon her lap. She was an artist in New York City, and yet she lived so far from the actual art scene. The boots still on her feet and yet she had no means as to how to look for it outside of her school work. Marla and Belinda had their way, for sure, but there had to be something more. There had to be, especially since she began to put her head down and put more work into her art for her classes. The struggle still came down on her, even as she gave her fish tails more scales and her humans more of a shading around their heads. It all seemed to slip away from the in between her fingers.

Everyone seemed to be doing better: her classmates received more praise, even Belinda who, at one point, admitted that graphites were a challenge for her as well. And yet, when Sam drew a self portrait surrounded by roses and water lilies, one of the comments Miss Estes left for her on the back side of the heavy grained paper was “lots of effort.”

She was eager for the flight out to the Bay Area by the time that early Friday morning rolled around, and she and Zelda were seated next to each other. She had packed that copy of Siddhartha with her but she had no idea as to when she would get to crack it open over the weekend.

Zelda had put on a plain white T shirt and fitted black jeans, and she had combed her short bob of black hair back for the flight. Apparently all she had packed with her were white shirts and black jeans.

“Don't you wanna look nice like at Cliff's memorial?” Sam asked her with a chuckle.

“I've got some suspenders and a tie to go with them,” Zelda replied. “It's a wedding for a friend of ours, and he said that we can wear whatever we like. So I told him that I'm gonna be full punk chick there. I'm guessing you'll be the artist?”

“Of course,” Sam replied, “the full black, baby.”

Zelda raised a hand to her for a high five and the light for the seat belts flickered on right then.

“I'll tell you this, Zelda,” Sam began.

“What's that?”

She peered over her shoulder to make sure Marla and Charlie paid no attention to them, given they were right across the aisle from them. Sam then gestured for Zelda to move in closer to her: beyond her and outside the window, she noticed the first few flurries of snow against the pane. She hoped they would take off soon.

“I'm getting kind of bored of New York,” she whispered to her.

“Really?” Zelda raised her eyebrows at her.

“Yeah. It's just—falling into the whole 'same old, same old' thing. I'm an artist, I should be able to go places with it all.”

“Absolutely, absolutely.”

“And I just—” Sam shook her head. “It's a great big city but I feel like there's nothing for me there anymore. Two years there and I'm not feeling it anymore. I'm glad we're going back out to the Bay Area for just this one weekend because I feel myself slowly going insane.”

“And why are you telling me this in a whisper?” Zelda asked her in a soft voice.

“Because—I don't know how to break it to Marla yet, or Belinda for that matter. Aurora kind of knows, but not in that sense, though. I made note of it to her but she didn't really suggest anything to me.”

“You can come to Providence,” Zelda suggested, “there's tons to do in Providence. Narragansett and Natick, too.”

“I guess what I'm trying to say is I feel trapped. Two years ago, I came here to the Northeast for a change of pace and it feels like it's trapped me sideways. There's no way out unless I really genuinely leave. The downside of course is—leaving you ladies behind and leaving Anthrax behind.”

“Yeah, and—we kinda like you, Sam. I do, especially. And I know Aurora does, too. And Marla.”

“Aurora is one of my best friends. Her and Frankie. They're my best friends. I don't know how I would handle leaving them both behind for a change of pace. I feel me and Marla drifting, if I'm honest. Can't really blame her, though—school's getting hard on her.”

“Well—whatever you do, Sam,” Zelda started again, “I'll support you on it. If nothing, you'll get the full support from me.”

“Thank you, Zelda. That—that means a lot to me.” Sam showed her a friendly smile.

Zelda shrugged. “I'm from Rhode Island,” she replied. “Moreover, I'm a punk rocker from Rhode Island. We look out for each other more so than these metal boys.”

They touched down in the Bay Area at five in the morning, and right as the sun began to rise right behind them. The thick fog surrounded the airport and Sam thought about the one and only Christmas she and Cliff spent together.

“Looks like San Francisco,” she muttered. “Feels like it, too.” She closed her eyes as they rolled up to the gate. She and Zelda stepped out of the airport first and she breathed in that marine air. She swore that New York was in fact her one true home, but there was just something about California that brought her more so into that feeling. That feeling that she needed to be there. All the fleeting thoughts led up to that moment there on the sidewalk.

Cliff's remains were not very far away from there, either.

She, Zelda, Marla, Aurora, and Belinda all stood at the curb as Charlie and Emile fetched their rental cars. All those men awaited them not too far from there, and Sam was eager to see Joey again given he flew in from Syracuse. That morning in which he and Belinda woke up before her and flirted with each other went through her mind every now and again. She never realized how much she wanted him until he put his arms around her and they locked eyes with each other. She needed to at the very least see him again: he also promised her a birthday gift.

Within time, Emile showed up with the little black car for himself and Aurora, while Charlie rolled up to the curb in a short dark green van. The four remaining girls piled inside away from the damp cold; Sam wanted to refer to him and Marla in the front seat as “Mom and Dad” again but she decided not to as she shivered under her jacket.

It wasn't New York, but Sam had forgotten how cold San Francisco could feel once the winter time set in.

“Okay, so we're going to a place called Marin Heights,” Charlie told them. “I think that's where the guys—Metallica—got the loft for us.”

“I've heard of it,” said Belinda from the middle seat.

“Me, too,” Sam added from the way back; Zelda huddled next to her and shook her head about. Sam had no idea as to why she didn't bring a jacket with her given it was winter in California. But instead, she peered out the small notch of a window to the Bay itself. She remembered that Testament were to film a music video out in Alcatraz, and those cold yellow lights from the island itself pierced through the foggy darkness. She wondered if they had finally wrapped up the recording of their first album since she wasn't able to sit in with them over the past couple of weeks because of school. She also wondered if she would receive any credit on it like with Stormtroopers of Death.

Charlie wound through the city until they reached the freeway, which in turn brought them up to Marin Heights, nestled back in the hills on the north side of town: they reached a switch back on the hillside so Sam was able to see the very top of the Golden Gate Bridge as it rose through the fog. The clouds themselves split apart so as to let the first rays of sunlight through and the metal of the bridge shone that bright amber color with the sunrise.

No wonder Cliff loved it there.

She sighed through her nose and turned her attention back to the road ahead of her as it turned away into the hills. Within time, they reached the top, and a small villa of little brick two story houses nestled back in the trees. She wondered if the wedding was going to be there as Charlie pulled up to the gravel driveway and stopped before the one closest to the street.

“I think this is us,” he informed them. “Or it might just be check in, I dunno.” He climbed out and then Sam and Zelda followed suit. The latter raised her lanky arms over her head and closed her eyes. Meanwhile, the former spotted a tall lanky boy with long black hair perched on a stone post on the other side of the driveway. He faced the other way but she knew those rich jet black curls anywhere.

“Joey?” she called out.

“Hm?” Zelda asked.

“Joey's over there.”

Zelda peeked around the rear end of the van and she nodded at her.

“Yeah, he is! Go get 'em!”

Sam then ducked around the end of the van and hurried over to him.

“Joey!” she called out. “Joey!”

He turned to face her with his eyebrows raised. He had lost a little weight so his waist was rather slim like Joey's, and the black hair dye held up, but she knew those deep eyes anywhere.

“Oh, hi,” she greeted him as she skidded to a stop before him.

“Hi,” Alex replied back to her with a thoughtful look on his face. “What's happening?”

“I thought you were Joey for a second.”

“You thought I was Joey?” he laughed at that.

“You have similar hair to each other.”

“His has more of a pile, though. Like right on top of his head. That big pile of ringlets atop his head.” He gestured to the crown of his head. “Even though I'm sitting down, I think he's a little bit shorter than me, too?”

“I think so?” Sam shifted her weight right there. Stray strands of his black hair lifted off of his shoulders in the wind and he ran his hand over the back of his head. He shivered from the feeling over his skin.

“God, it's cold out here,” he muttered as he adjusted his jacket.

“Yeah, it's pretty nippy. Not New York, but it's that California cold, though.”

“You know, both my parents are from New York,” he said.

“Oh, yeah?”

“Both obscenely smart Ivy League professors. They came out here before I was born to teach over at Berkeley.”

“Is that why you had the gray streak?” she asked him.

“Nah, I have no idea where that came from.” He shifted his weight yet again on that post. He seemed uncomfortable sitting there but Sam had no idea where to go right then. Charlie's voice behind her caught her ear and she peered over her shoulder at his talking to James.

“Happy birthday, by the way,” Alex told her as he shifted his weight a fourth time. “Aurora told the five of us last week that it was her assistant's birthday and she didn't know what to get you.”

“Aw, thank you—it was back on the twenty first, though.”

“Happy belated,” he corrected himself, and she swore he winked at her. Someone called his name and he looked off to the distance.

“Hang on—” he said, and he darted past her towards Charlie.

“Sam?” Zelda called out to her, and she jogged back to her. Aurora had climbed out of Emile's car right next to them and she shivered inside of her windbreaker.

“What's up?”

“Apparently the wedding is today,” Aurora announced.

“Today?” Sam was stunned.

“Yeah. Three o'clock. I guess Kirk's lady couldn't wait for it a second longer so they're doing it today.”

“So we get a full weekend of good ol' fun,” Zelda added as she clasped her hands to her upper arms.

“Exactly!”

Sam turned her attention to Alex, who was talking to Charlie about something. His black hair twirled in the cold winter winds. Even from a distance, he had such a grave expression on his face that it made Sam think he was much older than in reality.

Belinda had the right idea: he was very precocious. But now she had a little bit of insight into the boy in that he was raised by intelligent parents. It was a start with Alex and she could only wonder from that point onward.

Aurora and Emile led her, Zelda, and Belinda into the cabin behind Charlie and Alex, and once they stepped inside of the cozy foyer, Zelda was eager to turn on the heater.

“Terrible idea not to pack a coat,” she muttered as she hurried down the front foyer in search of the thermostat, “terrible idea not to pack a coat!”

Sam and Belinda meanwhile took to the narrow stairwell in front of them, and they made their way up to that second level: to the right stood a couple of rooms, while to the left was the bathroom and two more rooms. The door at the far end stood slightly ajar, such that when they reached the top, they spotted that head of black curls outside the doorway.

“Hey, Joey,” Belinda greeted him. That lopsided grin and those big brown eyes returned the favor, and Sam's heart skipped a couple of beats at the sight of him. He didn't appear to be ready for a wedding at all with his plain white shirt, extra tight blue jeans, and ragged white socks.

“There are my girls,” he said as he padded closer to them.

“Oh deary me, you're gonna be down the hall from us?” Sam teased him.

“Yup, me, Frankie, and Charlie and Marla. We're gonna be all here at the end of the hall if you need anything.”

“You know the wedding is today right?” Belinda told him.

“Oh, shit, is it really?” Joey raised his eyebrows at that.

“Yeah, Aurora just told us,” Sam added, and her heart sank at the thought of him barely being in the know of these things. “Three o'clock. So Bel and I are gonna get settled in and get dressed.”

“Oh, damn, thank you,” he told her, and his brown eyes sparkled at the sight of her. Cold as the earth and as engulfing as venom. He doubled back to his room and Sam pushed open the door in front of her. Inside stood a small bunk bed and a heavy wooden dresser underneath the window.

“Top or bottom?” she asked Belinda.

“You're older and got way more inside, so top,” she replied as she lay her purse down on the faded blue comforter upon the bottom bed. Even though they had plenty of time before the wedding, Sam wanted to clean up, and change her clothes and look her best. She hadn't been to a wedding in what felt like forever: there was one from when she was three years old, but she had no memory of it and she had no clue as to who even got eloped then, either.

Belinda offered to curl her hair and do it up extra nice, but she promised her there was very little to actually do up given her hair sat flat on her head. If only she could make curls into a crown like with Joey, but she had what she had in the form of a red wine colored dress and a thin black sweater over the top: the dress was a bit snug around her hips but she need not obsess over something as trivial as that when she remembered what Joey wanted to give her.

She was about to head on back inside of their room when she spotted him on the other side of the hallway with the five men from Death Angel, if she recalled correctly. Once again with the quintets and she would learn all of their names in the meantime. But he had a box wrapped in old faded red wrapping paper tucked under his arm and she hoped it wasn't just a wedding gift, especially since he still hadn't gotten dressed.

He laughed at something one of them said and he turned around.

“Oh, there you are!” he called out to her, and he scurried towards her. The tape on the edges of the box and the crooked look of the paper itself told her he wrapped it in a hurry, but she didn't mind at all once she slid her fingers under the edge of the paper closest to her. Careful not to tear it, she unwrapped it and lifted the lid. Inside was a pair of black leather gloves and a red and white knit scarf, the latter of which she ran her fingers over to find it softer than anything she had felt before. It was as soft as a cat.

“It's your own pair of gloves plus a scarf,” he declared. “I just think about how cold you always get upstate.” He shrugged at that.

“I love it, Joey! It's so soft.”

“It's cashmere.”

Sam gaped at him. “Cashmere,” she echoed him.

“Yeah—it was marked down, though. But it's cashmere. I wanted to give you something nice and good and good and nice.”

She slipped the gloves on and they fit around her fingers as if they were made for her. Joey offered to put the scarf around her neck; he stood before her, a country boy in a plain white shirt before a California girl in a dark red dress, and he wrapped the scarf around her.

“You look beautiful,” he whispered to her. “Happy birthday. Double deuces as of ten days ago!”

“Thank you—” She put her arms around him and she held him close. His slender little body was as soft as that scarf, and he smelled of fresh baked bread, something she would be willing to experience as long as he didn't have a drop of alcohol on hand.

Maybe there was in fact something more to life than being in that groove all the time. Maybe she could find a way to break out of her shell, and she could owe it all to him.

And she still hadn't told her parents about him.

Charlastor Week #6: Hurt/Comfort

Charlie had told her it was best that they stayed separate for now.

Charlie had told her that it was best that they break things off now before things would get worse.

Charlie had told her many things, but she didn’t expect that any of them would have a positive effect on Vaggie—or her.

For now, as Charlie huddled in the one place that no one would ever check (the rightmost stall of a bathroom in desperate need for renovation on a floor that was evacuated due to a brawl a few weeks ago), she would just relax and let none of her worries touch her now.

But that’s what Charlie had been busy telling herself for over three hours. However, all she could do right now was sit and cry while browsing all of her albums featuring her beloved partner when they had all those good times trying to redeem fellow sinners or hanging out or that one time—Oh! Why was Charlie doing this to herself! This was torture of the sweetest kind! A part of her wanted to throw her phone into the deep, disgusting bowels of the toilet beneath her, but another part was too damn sentimental and wanted to hold onto that phone like it was the only thing keeping her sane.

Charlie loathed the position that she was in, but after the events of last night…

Suddenly, Charlie heard a disturbance in the darkness. It was faint, but repetitive. And it was coming closer.

Footsteps, she knew that it in the back of her mind. However, she didn’t want to contend with the fact that either someone found her or worse, someone was just stumbling in on this part of the building. Whatever the case, she simply tightened her arms around her knees and stifled her sniffles. It wouldn’t do for someone to see her so weak and vulnerable. Especially since she hasn’t told anyone, save for Vaggie, about what happened.

The hands that clenched at her knees became unbearable; they were too tight. Her nails, always kept short to prevent them growing into claws, dug deep into her skin, almost drawing blood. There was only so much that Charlie could do before—

The bathroom door slowly creaked open and the footsteps from before clacked loudly on the linoleum. Ah, she could recognize that telltale click clack of dress shoes anywhere. It was Alastor and by God, she didn’t want to have this on her plate as well. Holding her breath wouldn’t work, Charlie knew that his ears could hear the most imperceptible of sounds. It was only a matter of time.

“Oh, Charlie,” his voice was mirthful, but not unkind. He had stepped in front of her chosen stall. Thankfully, he didn’t see fit to slam his fist upon the door or worse, force his way in. Having the Radio Demon also be a gentleman from a bygone era had its downsides, but for now, it saved her from seeing him.

For now.

“I know that I can be intimidating, but it’s been years since you’ve last stuttered around me!” He chuckled and the low, mellow tones had Charlie minutely relaxing within the hold of her arms. Still, she kept her breathing quiet. There was a pause outside of the door, an audible one that was only signaled by the radio frequency stuttering around a bit before going back to its scheduled programming. “Darling, Vaggie told me to come find you, which is a miracle no one asked for in Hell, but oh well.” Charlie could practically see him shrug comically in her mind’s eye, the image of which almost had her smiling into the crook of her elbow.

“Ah,” Charlie managed to croak. Her voice was shaky, like an old rickety building just moments away from crumbling away. “Did… Did Vaggie… Did she…” Why did it hurt to say her name so much? Saying a name shouldn’t have held so much power, but here was Charlie, wasting away in a cell of her own making while her dearest love’s name scratched and clawed at her throat while the pit in her stomach threatened to swallow her soul whole. A soft whimper left her lips and she nearly had an aneurysm. Alastor was here! He could hear her breathing, possibly the way her heart was beating at a rate that would have been harmful to humans. Of course he would be able to hear her!

Despite his excellent hearing, Alastor refrained from commenting on Charlie’s state of mind. Instead, he surprised Charlie with an observation.

“It was Extermination Day yesterday. Was it not?”

“Er…I’m pretty sure you of all people know that.” She didn’t mean to sound so mean, but where was he going with this? On top of that, he didn’t even bother answering her question. “What does that have to do—“

“And your…uncles came to visit you. Alone.” Another observation. A stone cold fact that chilled Charlie to the bone. No one knew about that. Not even Vaggie. How could—? “Darling,” he said easily, as if he could see her expression from the other side of the bathroom stall, “you weren’t really that secretive yesterday. Vaggie had me tail you. A risky, but bold move. Entertaining, even.”

Charlie felt like he should have laughed at that moment, he was an entertainer, he knew when certain beats and phrases were emphasized, yet… He kept his voice subdued. It was almost as if he were respecting the ordeal that she had gone through yesterday.

“So… you heard everything?” She chuckled bitterly. “Does… she know?”

“If you are referring to your dear lady friend, then yes. That woman put her spear to my throat and of course, I had to tell her everything lest you want to run this hotel all by yourself.” His voice, even lower than before caressed her ears and had her looking up at the stall door in wonderment. “I know that I shouldn’t pry into your affairs, but it’s quite telling that I’m being the mediator between the two of you when it should be me stirring up chaos in my wake. Why don’t you tell her how you feel?”

“Feel? Feel?” Charlie threw herself off the toilet seat and wrenched the door open. Miraculously, Alastor managed to avoid being hit as the door swung wide in his direction. Normally, Charlie would have taken care not to make such a fuss, but at heart, she was a soul that felt too much at times. She needed to let it all out, no matter the consequences. “How would you feel if your partner was destined to be taken away within a year because your stupid plan worked? How would you feel that no matter what you do, you can’t join her because of your parents? Because of the place where you were born? How would you feel if your girlfriend who loves and trusts you so much decides to leave your side for good because—because—because—“

With every question she threw at Alastor, the Princess of Hell would poke him in the chest, all pretense of acting the fool in their business relationship thrown to the wayside. She didn’t care that Alastor was seething underneath that damnable grin of his. She didn’t care that her voice was loud and that half of Hell could hear her. She didn’t care that water was dripping down her lashes and onto the full apples of her cheeks. She didn’t care that heat was rushing towards her flushing face, how she wobbled and screamed for some sort of sign that all of this was a nightmare.

After what had seemed like an eternity of spewing out questions that Alastor couldn’t have possibly known the answer to, Charlie had fallen silent. Her head was bowed low, fists clenched and trembling at her sides. Her hair, usually gently curled and vibrant, was matted down to her scalp, tangled because in her frustration, she would tug at her locks. For a moment, there was not a sound in the bathroom; for once, there was radio silence.

When Alastor spoke, the filter that masked his voice was gone. His words were crisp and clear, as was tradition of the Mid-Alantic accent, but there was another accent layered underneath his main mode of speaking. His consonants were rounded off, his vowels drawled and blurred together. Belatedly, Charlie realized that he was a Southerner, which matched up to his chosen cuisine whenever he would cook, but she had never asked. Never confirmed what was probably so obvious during their time together as business partners.

“Charlie, I wouldn’t know how to answer any of those questions. To be honest, I don’t think I would ever have the heart or the stomach to even try to attempt to phrase such sentiments.” Charlie felt rather than saw that Alastor was looming over her, his shadow encompassing her much smaller frame. She shuddered when she felt his clawed hand rest against her locks, had tried blinking away tears when he began combing through them with a gentleness befitting a mother grooming her child. “But, my dear, you can. I’ll be the first to attest that Vaggie was in hysterics when you ran away from her. She went from yelling to pleading with me to find you.” He tugged Charlie closed and rested his head on top of Charlie’s. “Imagine that, your dear love acting quite the sweetheart to me when she knew that you were going to fall to pieces.”

Charlie sucked in a deep breath. “She probably hates me for doing this to her.”

Alastor stopped his gentle petting before pulling away from her.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Have her fall in love with me. Allow her to date me. Get her sucked up into the hotel redemption schtick and then—and then—“ She shrugged her shoulders, not noticing how Alastor’s radio static seemed to grow erratic and imbalanced. “Well, you were there when Uncle Michael, Uncle Raphael, and whoever else was there when they told me. At least they gave me one year to say goodbye.”

“I probably should have known this before I’ve ever properly introduced myself, but you are very conceited, my dear.”

Charlie’s head whipped up from gazing down at the floor and straight into the Radio Demon’s eyes. For the first time since Alastor had stepped into her bathroom, she noticed that he looked…ragged, well more ragged than usual. His eyes were glowing a faint red, which only heightened the shadows that lay under his eyes. His clothing was bedraggled and torn, flecks of blood and an assortment of dirt was layered over his customary jacket. He was, in the words of one Husker, looking like shit.

She brought a hand up to her ashen lips, tears springing anew in her eyes.

He was telling the truth; he really had been following her to the meeting place with the angels. Had she known that he would have followed her into the forest where sinners first appeared from Earth, she would have picked somewhere closer. And cleaner.

Now, all her guilt over what happened last night was compiling into one burden.

“A-al! Have you slept at all?” She cried as she hurried to him. A hand brushed against his cheeks, another straightened the lapels of his coats. He was always well dressed—putting on the ritz, he would say. This was simply unacceptable for the Radio Demon! “I’m so sorry—“

He shook his head lowly at her. “You should know better by now, I don’t sleep.”

“But I’m worried and I can help you—“

“And therein lies your problem. You’re so compassionate and wanting to do good by others; you want to bear the loads of everyone around you. Yet, you don’t care. Not at all.” He held up a hand, effectively stopping Charlie from demanding what he meant. “You claim to start redemptive therapy for the good of all sinners. You claim to want everyone to end up in Heaven. You claim you’re doing this to stop overpopulation in Heaven. But. You. Don’t. Care.

“You’re doing this because you want to be there. Your blood that runs through your veins calls out for the sweet ambrosia of God’s love and acceptance. You want it, you crave it. So you get an idea; do enough good deeds that are worth mentioning to the higher-ups in Heaven. Along comes someone who believes in your cause. Another one joins just to jumpstart the business. Another, another, another, and you feel like you’re actually succeeding, but in reality, you’re just gathering up the clout, the good points to get you into Heaven. Then, all of a sudden, the wish that you had been preaching gets granted.

“Do you feel proud of yourself? Do you feel the need to rejoice and celebrate? After all this hard work why not celebrate? Yet, you don’t. You’re here throwing a pity party in a bathroom that has seen better days. You want to know why?

“You’re bitter and jealous. You’re resentful that the one person who you thought would stay by your side until the end actually worked hard enough for the chance to be redeemed.

“Besides, have her fall in love with you? Allow her to date you? And what was that last part you said? Allow her to get sucked into the hotel redemption schtick? What do you take her for? I may not have the highest of opinions on her, but I do know this: she went with you because she utterly cares more about you than she does about redemption.

“That’s why you’re conceited, dearest Charlie. You’re doing all of this because you hope to earn something after all of this. Vaggie did those things not only for you, but for herself. She wanted to fall in love, so she did. She wanted to get closer to you, she did. She believed in the redemption process and now—Look! She has it.”

Alastor knelt down on one knee and clasped Charlie’s hands in his own. His claws had retracted back into the supple leather of his gloves, allowing them to gently touch her skin.

“I apologize if I’m being harsh, but it must be said. You of all people should be happy—nay! proud—that Vaggie has earned her spot inside those pearly gates.” His grip gently tightened around her wrist, pulling her gently onto the floor with him. “Go to her and talk. You have an entire year left with her before your uncles come to take her away on Extermination Day.” He tapped a finger against her cheek. “Before that, I recommend you take a long bath. You’re smelling a bit ripe.”

Charlie… Charlie didn’t know what to say. After so long, she knew that there were times when the Radio Demon had his moments, both good and bad, but this speech was unheard of! Without warning, Charlie launched herself into his chest and felt a fresh slew of tears escaping her eyes. She was probably adding to the mess that was already caked onto his clothing, but at that point, she didn’t care that she was brought low and vulnerable in front of her business partner.

“Thank you,” she murmured into his lapels. “I…your methods need some work, but it really got to me.”

“I will look into better methods for the future. In the meantime—“ He surreptitiously tried to move away from her, but the soft arms that surrounded him wound tighter than a cog in a well polished clock. A loud sigh fell from his lips. He should have expected more physical sentimentality than was reasonable from Charlie.

“You know, you could be a motivational speaker for some of our group therapy sessions. Who knows, you might be next for redemption!”

“Ha ha ha! Not a chance, sweetheart.”

Snakes & Butterflies | Part VII

Pairing: Jimin x Reader

Genre: Soulmate Au!, Fluff, Angst, Smut (in the future)

Words: 3.2k

Warning: minor swearing

Note: Part 7 is here! I hope you enjoy. I have decided to add a lot more fluff and a just a little pinch of drama. I love you guys !! 

Reminder: * conversations in Korean *

Once we separated Jimin from Taehyung, the adventure to the museums commenced. I decided to leave my Jeep and opted to ride with the guys, since they had such a big car. Jin wanted to drive there but I decided to drive since I was more familiar with LA traffic. Jungkook was my navigator, so he had to sit in the middle, right next to me, much to Jimin’s disappointment. 

Once we were on the highway, Taehyung started to play music and the car became a karaoke party. After hearing Namjoon and Yoongi rap to Eminem’s Lose Yourself, I was convinced that they were not human. I mean, I knew Jungkook had a beautiful voice but I never imagined that all of them were so talented. Taehyung’s vocals were husky, yet rough that made it sound warm and soulful. Jin’s were very even and yet sweet sounding. I could tell from how Hobi was vibrating in his seat that he was full of passion, if I remember correctly, Jungkook did mention that he was dance major and he specified in hip hop. I had yet to hear Jimin’s voice, which had me a bit excited. Once Charlie Puth’s ‘We don’t talk anymore’ I was not disappointed. 

“We don’t talk anymore, like we used to do” Jimin sang. “We don’t love anymore. What was all of it for?” 

His voice was what I would describe as heavenly. It was very sweet and crisp and combined with Jungkook’s soft and smooth vocals, I may have been the first person to thank God for LA traffic because I’m sure I would have crashed. To my surprise, I looked in the rear view mirror, and I was attacked by Jimin’s intense stare, as if he had already been staring at me as he sang. I quickly averted my gaze back to the road and put both hands on the wheel, even though the traffic was so bad that we hadn’t even moved an inch for the last five minutes. I gulped my nonexistent saliva, and I realized that my throat was really dry. I should have brought water. I risked another glance at Jimin, and he was still staring at me, but this time with a smirk. I quickly rolled down my window and prayed that there was some wind. The audacity.

“Y/N,” Taehyung said from behind me. “You’re next. What song do you want to sing?”

“I-I” I stuttered. I tend not to listen to music since most songs portray love but I was definitely not gonna be singing some club banger.

“Noona,” Jungkook said. “You liked that one song by Ariana Grande that I showed you. You should sing that one.”

“Are you insane?” I spluttered. “I would butcher that song.”

And they all started to chant my name and I quickly rolled up the window since some of the other drivers were giving me weird looks. 

“OK!” I exclaimed with a slight eye roll and the buys erupted in cheers. “Play Breathin’ by Ariana, Taetae.”

“Coming right up,” Taehyung said. 

“I actually have never heard it before,” Yoongi said with Hobi nodding in agreement. 

The music began and almost immediately I began to sing.

                                    Jungkook

I bopped my head along to the beginning of the song as Noona started to sing and the car was real quiet. Too quiet and her voice wavered a bit from what I reckon was nerves. So in order to help her relax, I started humming along.

“Sometimes it’s hard to find,” Noona sang now, getting in rhythm and swaying back and forth with me, “Find my way up into the clouds. Tune it out, they can be so loud. You remind me of a time when things weren’t so complicated. All I need is to see your face.”

Once the song ended, Noona’s face was flushed from embarrassment but erupted into her signature smile as the hyungs cheered and complimented her.

“Liars.” she started pouting with a small smile, but I could tell she felt a bit proud. “You guys sound like angels and over here I sound like a dying whale.”

“I like your voice Noona,” I said automatically and she turned and gave me a grateful smile but she nervously looked into the rearview mirror and back to the road. Traffic was starting to move and she focused on driving. For some reason the back of my neck was feeling real hot.

*

“You are a brave boy Jungkook,” Namjoon whispered from the passenger seat next to me. “But let’s not test Jimin’s patience anymore okay?”

“Yes hyung,” I said with a gulp, remembering the punch Jimin gave Taehyung earlier.  

*

“We’re almost there!” Y/N said in excitement and the boys sighed in relief, even though the SUV was big, it was slightly uncomfortable for eight fully grown adults. Once Noona paid for the parking, in spite of Jin’s insistence to pay, we were finally off and exploring. We relatively kept together as a group as we explored the museums, which were all conveniently within the same area. One of the museums had a German history exhibition, much to Namjoon hyung’s delight. Him and Noona stayed behind to look at more historical artifacts and photos. 

Jin hyung had dragged all of us outside to take selcas and Yoongi and Hobi hyung were heading to another exhibit on the opposite side, which looked like an indoor garden. Jimin sort of lingered outside of the group, almost as if he wanted to go back inside.

“Hyung,” I whispered to him and he hummed in response, not really paying attention. “Just go back inside, Namjoon hyung may get lost, and Noona will panic, you know her.”

“Should I?” He said even though he was already taking a step towards the building. “Does she really panic like that still?”

“Yep,” I nodded. “If anything she’s gotten worse.”

Jimin then took off without replying and I couldn’t help but smile and feel relieved. A big arm wrapped around my shoulder and Jin hyung sighed from between me and Taehyung. 

“Always needing encouragement,” Jin said with a hint of endearment. “It’s the first time I’ve seen him act this way towards a girl..I never thought I would actually ever witness it.”

“He deserves it,” Taehyung said with a small sad smile. 

“They both do.” I said with a twinge of an unfamiliar emotion in my chest. 

I noticed that Namjoon had a tendency to wander off in curiosity, since it had already been twice that I lost track of him. I was incredibly thankful for his height, otherwise I would have had a full on panic attack at being left alone in a room full of people I don’t know. I kept hold of the sleeve on his hoodie, just in case though but he didn’t really seem to notice. We were both currently looking at a photograph of a statue of a leopard carrying a child, when a small statue caught my eye. I looked at Namjoon and he was still reading the facts about the photograph. With a slight sigh, I released his sleeve and made my way to the small secluded statue that no one paid attention to. 

It was a replica of a gravestone found in Germany in the 1850’s. It was of a butterfly and a snake. The snake was devouring its own tail, while the butterfly was in the center. The butterfly reminded me of my own drawings from when I was a little girl. I lightly traced the henna tattoo and I let my mind wander back to my dream. I haven’t had any dreams lately, to my disappointment.

Don’t cry too much

I wonder what Cassandra meant by that. I shrugged, I had been a tad bit more sensitive lately but I figured my cycle was due. I look back at the statue one more time and this time I focus on the snake devouring its own tail.

“I’m jealous,” Jungkook said with a sigh. “Your Mark is so cool! The snake looks so real!”

“I like yours Jungkook,” another voice said. “It suits you, you are like a hawk: quick and agile.”

“But I like Y/N’s the best,” the voice continued. And I felt a warm pressure on my hand. Almost as if someone had squeezed my hand. “Monarch butterflies are really pretty.”

When I looked up at the voice, the sun was too bright for me to make out the person. I looked back down squinting from the sting of the sun. 

“You’re home now Noona,” Jungkook said with a teasing tone. I felt my eyes water slightly. “Don’t cry Noona I was only joking!”

“Jungkook,” the voice said sternly and I was quickly enveloped in a hug. “You didn’t have to come, I could have walked her by myself.”

“I was only joking Jiminie!” Jungkook whined. “I’m sorry Y/N!”

“Jimin,” I said wrapping my arms around him. Not really wanting to let go. 

“Yes?”

“Jimin,” I repeated once more, hugging him even tighter. 

“Are you okay?”

And I was startled, almost as if I had fallen asleep. 

“I’m sorry,” a familiar voice said, as big hands steadied me. “I was talking to you earlier but you seemed lost in thought, Y/N are you okay?”

“Yes,” I said quickly, regaining my surroundings. “I must have dozed off in a daydream. Wait..”

“Minho?” I asked once I recognized the man in front of me. And I was right. Minho was in front of me and he chuckled at my expression. 

“You really were dozing off,” he chuckled once more. “As I was saying, you never gave me a call...I was wond-”

“Y/N?” Namjoon sighed in relief, he was panting and his glasses were askew. “Where have you been? Jimin and I have looked all over the place-wait I need to call him before-”

“Ladies and gentlemen sorry for the announcement but we have a missing child: her name is Y/N L/N. She is wearing a black V neck shirt with a jean skirt. She has long black hair-”

Before I could hear the rest I covered my ears in horror, while Namjoon scrambled through his pockets. I have never been so embarrassed in my whole life. Not even my mother would have dared-

“Jimin!” Namjoon said into his phone. The rest of the conversation was in Korean and Minho chucked a bit. 

“Wow,” He said as we both heard a pair of running footsteps. Before I knew it, I was wrapped in familiar arms and Jimin’s chest was constricting with exertion against my cheek. 

“Jimin,” I said as best as I could. “I’m-”

And he spins me around inspecting me and then his hands are on my cheeks.

“Why did you go off by yourself?” He said his eyebrows scrunched in worry. “Do you have any idea how worried I was?”

“Aren’t you twenty four, Y/N?” Minho said in amusement. I felt my face turn red in embarrassment. Jimin’s eyes hardened, and he took my hand in his and took a step in front of me, almost blocking me from Minho’s view. “Didn’t know you were a child, almost foo-”

“I’m sorry but who are you?” Namjoon said before Jimin could. He was now fixing his glasses and straightening his coat. He had his hand on Jimin’s shoulder.

“He’s an acquaintance of mine,” I said side stepping around Jimin, who tried pulling me back behind him. “It’s okay, his name is Minho Lee.”

“Nice to meet you,” Minho said bowing. “You guys are Korean as well right? I’ll speak comfortably if that’s okay?”

“Aren’t you already speaking comfortably?” Jimin said, his tone brazen, causing Minho’s smile to falter and his gaze darted to our clasped hands. I felt my face turn even more red and I tried to tug my hand but Jimin only squeezed more. “Keep still.” He whispered. 

“How do you guys know each other?” Minho asked, his eyes held a hint of amusement. 

“I’m actually their host-”

“We’re friends,” Jimin answered. “Since we were children.”

“But we’re actually staying where she works,” Namjoon clarifies. “An Airbnb.”

“Did you quit your job at the hotel Y/N?” Minho asked. “Did you quit the same day you saw me there?”

My eyes widened at that, and Jimin quickly glanced at me with a question in his eyes. I had forgotten to mention that I worked at a hotel as a part time outside of the summer.

“It’s a long story,” I sighed, pushing my hair back with my free hand.“I’ll give you a call soon to plan a meeting with you Professor Lee.”

“But-”

“You’re a professor?” Namjoon said with a surprised tone. “You seem young..”

“Ah,” Minho laughs. “Yes, I just started lectures at Y/N’s university. We’re both from the Anthropology department.”

That piqued Namjoon’s interest and before me and Jimin could even stop him, Namjoon’s curiosity got the best of him.

“What do you specify in?” Namjoon asked with his head inclined. Jimin quietly sighed and he wasn’t alone there, I was always open to hearing Namjoon rant and answer questions but I didn’t really have patience for it right now.

“Origins of the Nethanderals,” Minho replies. Almost immediately Jimin and Namjoon stiffened. I hummed in confusion and Jimin shook his head. His phone vibrated and he quickly whispered in Namjoon’s ear. Namjoon nodded as well.

“Well,” Namjoon says, extending his hand to Minho. “I would love to hear all about it sometime Professor Lee but we really must get going, the rest of our group is looking for us.”

“Oh that’s too bad,” Minho says smiling as he shakes Namjoon’s hand. “Do you perhaps have a moment Y/N?”

“She actually can’t,” Jimin replies before I even open my mouth. “She brought us here, and she’s showing us around so-”

“It will only be a minute,” I said with a hint of annoyance. Before Jimin could protest, I managed to pull my hand free. I lead Minho towards a secluded section, missing the way he shrugged at Jimin, who took a step in his direction but was held back by Namjoon.

“Okay,” I sighed. “When are you free so we can chat?”

“Your friend is funny.” Minho said with a hint of mischief.

“I’m not here to talk about Jimin,” I said rolling my eyes. “So if you have nothing to say I can go?”

“Wait!” Minho says attempting to grasp my arm but I crossed my arms. I was honestly annoyed with these guys trying to manhandle me. “I was just joking. I’m free whenever after the morning.”

“Well I’m having a barbecue tonight if you want to come?”

“Will that be alright with your guests?”

“It should be,” I shrugged. “You can talk to me about your research then.”

“Do they know about your?” He asked, gesturing to my arm. 

“No,” I sighed with frustration, only Jungkook knew. “How about after, the barbecue shouldn’t take too long?”

“That’s fine.” He said, sounding a bit pleased. “It’s a date.” He said that last part a bit loud and I turned around to glare at him. 

“Or not.” He shrugged. “It’s not a date.”

“I’ll meet you at the hotel around 8.”

“Bye!”

And I walked back to Namjoon and Jimin. Namjoon was reading the facts on the statue of the snake and butterfly, while Jimin was staring at me intensely. 

“Jimin,” I sighed was I was in his proximity. “I’m not a child anymore, you didn’t have to make an announcement.”

“Oh excuse me,” Jimin said with an brazen tone once more, causing my eyebrow to arch. “Didn’t mean to interrupt your reunion.”

“Jimin, I-”

“Never mind,” Jimin sighs. “Hobi hyung wants to have lunch.” 

And he left me and Namjoon standing there. Me more in shock and Namjoon scratching his head. I look at Namjoon for an explanation.

“We were worried, Y/N,” He says sighing. “With what’s been going on lately how could we not?”

“I understand that,” I sighed in defeat. “But he seems upset for another reason.”

“Well that guy was a bit weird,” Namjoon mutters. “He didn’t know how to take a hint.”

“What?”

“Nothing,” he says smiling. “Let’s go. I’m hungry.”

                                    Namjoon

*

“What the hell happened?” Jungkook whispered to me as Jin was showing me all the pictures he took. I sighed as I looked at what he was talking about. Jimin and Y/N were both sitting next to each other but facing the opposite direction, not even acknowledging one another. But it was funny how the maknae line still managed to get them to sit next to one another. 

“He sort of asked the museum to make a missing child announcement.” I whispered back, causing Jimin to roll his eyes. “It was embarrassing.”

“What?” Taehyung and Jungkook both said. 

“Why didn’t he just call her?” Jungkook whispered. 

“Not all of us have her number,” I reminded Jungkook.

“What are you talking about?” Taehyung said, pulling out his phone. “We have a group chat.” 

He was right. The group chat was on kakaotalk and already there were several messages.

*

“Taehyung,” Y/N said with a confused expression. “What’s this app, it’s all in Hangul? Wait, my whole phone is in Hangul?”

“Oh!” Taehyung laughed. “Sorry I still have trouble with English! I’ll fix it for you!”

Taehyung reaches for her phone but Jimin quickly grabs it. 

“Hey!” Y/N whined, but Jimin just gives her a pointed look and she blushes. “Oh thanks..”

“You forgot to add me to the chat Taehyung…” Jimin muttered in annoyance. “But he added you Namjoon…”

“Really?” I said surprised. “I actually haven’t heard anything..oh it’s on silent.”

I did a derp face while everyone but Jimin laughed. He rolled his eyes and handed Y/N’s phone back. After lunch, we went to other museums and this time we made sure to stay together, which pretty much meant we went through everything fairly quickly, to my disappointment. There was one garden or a greenhouse that we all did not want to leave though.

“Y/N!” Hobi exclaimed with excitement. “You’re gonna love this place, me and Yoongi loved it!”

                                         Jimin

Hopi started to lead Y/N to this greenhouse that seemed to be packed with people. I felt myself get a bit nervous by the crowd so I decided to keep a close watch on her. Once we had entered, Hobi had covered Y/N’s eyes, who pouted and I opened my mouth but Yoongi hyung shushed me. 

“Wow…” Y/N said once Hobi let go. And wow was right. What must have been a trillion monarch butterflies flew just about everywhere. Some landing on people’s faces, shoulders and hands. The others had walked further in, leaving me and Y/N to stare in awe. I cupped my hands and sure enough a butterfly landed on my hands. She squeals in joy and does the same, but a butterfly lands on her Mark. Her sword Mark was bleak compared to the butterfly. I couldn’t help but wonder, how her Mark looked. Did it look like mine? Was it cracked and broken as well? Did she have it removed and got a tattoo of a sword. I wasn’t quite sure. I look back at her face and her smile was gone and her eyes shined with unshed tears. She stared at the butterfly that had yet to fly away. 

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Jimin,” Y/N said. “I remember.”

“Remember what?” I asked. My whole body was on alert and I could feel my blood ringing in my ears. She looks up at me and a tear fell, I go to wipe it but she catches my hand.

“I remember you,” She says and I felt my heart drop. 

Shouldn’t I be happy?

Prev / Next 

Masterlist 

A Generous Donation [15]

[part 1] [part 2] [part 3] [part 4] [part 5] [part 6] [part 7] [part 8] [part 9] [part 10] [part 11] [part 12] [part 13] [part 14]

"You're not fidgeting," Scully said, slipping her arm under his as they walked up the path to her mothers' house. "Your mom isn't that scary." "You're the first one to say that." "First what?" "Boyfriend." She smiled looking up and seeing his grin. "When was the last time you brought a guy to meet the family?" "Don't ask." "Okay, now I really want to know." "Mulder!" They took the three steps to the front door and he drew her closer into his side, grinning wide. "Tell me!" He teased, but she rang the bell and the a second later the doors stood open.

"Charlie!" Scully smiled, stepping inside and hugging her brother. "You're just in time." "I thought we're early," Mulder smiled as they shook hands. "Here, that's on time, if you're on time, you're late." "What if the time isn't set?" "Then whoever's last, is late." "That's mean." "Don't listen to him," Scully laughed and pushed her coat into her brothers' arms. "Emily!" "Hi, Aunt Dana." The girl smiled, kissing Scully's cheek then came and did the same with Mulder. "Grandma sent me to tell you dinner's ready." "Dana, Fox," Maggie came in, wiping hands on her apron, "good, you're here." "Hi mom," Scully hugged her mother then linked her arm through Mulders' again, "this is Mulder, not Fox." "Of course," Maggie laughed and took the flowers he brought. "Thank you for the invitation," Mulder said and taking a step back to Scully's side, he found her hand, waiting for him, fingers lacing together. "Let's agree that from now on, you're not just invited, you're expected." "Mom," Scully sighed, "we just got here." "Who's hungry?" Charlie said, comically cheerful. "I'm hungry," Emily chimed in. "You're always hungry," he laughed. "Will would understand me," she pouted and turned on her heel, clinking buckles and creaking leather. "He'll be back, before you know it." Scully said and followed, pulling Mulder along. "And you'll fight for the best bits." "Once he's back, he can have them all." "He might want that in writing," Charlie chuckled. "Then he will have to go through my lawyer," Emily laughed and walked through to the dining room. Scully followed and paused, clearly surprised by the amount of food on the table. "You didn't say we're redoing Thanksgiving," she said. "It's just a dinner," Maggie replied taking her usual place. "It looks delicious," Mulder said and pulled out a chair for Scully. "Come, sit down and enjoy."

Scully leaned against his side, playing with her wine glass. That was by far the nicest family dinner he attended, though admittedly, his own family gatherings didn't set the bar very high. He felt full and content enough to doze off on the couch, and that was the best feeling he could imagine right now. Charlie took the end of the couch while Emily sat on the floor, trying to lure Stubb from her grandmas' lap. The feather on a stick got nothing but a twitch of whiskers from the ginger cat, who true to his name, missed a piece of his tail, but like his book counterpart, retained his good humour despite the feline misadventure. After rubbing on all shins and collecting all due pats and scratches, he settled in his mistresses hands. "Tell us about your family, Fox." Maggie said from the armchair by the fireplace. "There's not much to tell," Mulder said, "my father worked for the DOD and died in '95, mom stayed on the Vineyard after they divorced and there she died, in the spring of 2000." "I'm so sorry." "It's okay. After my sister disappeared in '73, we sort of started to live on our own anyway." "That's horrible," Maggie said appalled. "It's ancient history. I go out to the island once a year, to visit the graves and make sure the house still stands." "You have a house on Martha's Vineyard?" Scully asked. "Usually I rent it out, saving a week or two for myself in the summer." "I'll remember that," she said, sipping her wine, "it's always nice to get out of town for a while." "Consider yourself invited," he said, drawing her a little into his side, then looking up, "that goes for all of you." "Can I book two weeks right now?" Emily asked opening her arms for the cat, who finally decided he wanted the toy more than a nap. "I'll pay, obviously. "Don't be silly. I'll email you the number for my realtor and let her know she should expect a call. It's always open for family." "Thank you," she said and grinned, picking up the cat to look into his green eyes, "Uncle Mulder." Maggie and Mulder laughed, but Scully levelled a glare at her brother. Charlie shrugged almost imperceptibly and took a sip of scotch, ignoring her frown. "We should all go together, a family vacation," Emily said, looking up at Scully, "Will would love that." "Small steps, Em," Scully said, "we'll see if he's up for it." "Any ideas for Christmas?" Charlie asked. "Haven't thought about it yet, if his results keep improving, they might loosen the quarantine procedures, but is it worth the risk?" "He will have to come out of there, eventually," Mulder said. "Christmas happens every year," she said a little sad, "Will happens once in a lifetime." "We'll think of something," he sighed. "Is everything okay, honey?" Maggie asked. "Sure, I just had a long day, that's all." "You wanna go home?" Mulder said softly, dropping a kiss on her temple, but she shook her head lightly. "Not yet," she said and handed him her glass, "I'll just rest my eyes for a minute." "Okay." The conversation flowed around her, touching Mulder's childhood on the island, the house and his travels. Some stories she heard and some were new, especially ones from his Oxford years. All the while, Mulder stayed as warm and relaxed as ever, as if he always belonged there. And when he and Charlie realised, they both traveled to New York to see Red Sox play against Yankees in September, she realised, he not only belonged, but became one of them.

They came back to her place, somehow feeling that that's the right bed to end the day in. "You want tea?" She asked, when he helped her out of her coat, ever the gentleman. "Will there be rum in it." "No rum, sorry." Mulder followed through the living room, and caught up to her by the sink, where she filled the kettle from the tap. He put his arms around her, pulling her back to his front. "Then we'll have to think of something else to keep us warm," he said against the side of her neck, "beside tea." "I don't recall you having any trouble with that," she teased, leaning against him. "You're my great inspiration," he chuckled, but let go when she moved to set the kettle on the stove. "I need to shower first," she said, turning and pulling his face down for a kiss. "Can you do this?" "So it's me making the tea?" "I really need to pee." That made him laugh. "Go, I'll take care of this," he said, kissing her again. "Thanks."

She left him to roam free around the kitchen, pulling out mugs and her favourite Earl Grey. He found lemon in the fruit basket and sliced it in half, little thing he knew she liked, and while he waited for the water to boil, a picture on the wall caught his eye. It was a simple landscape scene, seaside sunset in orange and purple, but in the foreground, with their backs to the camera, sat Scully, in a sundress and a straw hat, saying something to Will, sitting beside her on the sand. He couldn't be older than five, and God did she look beautiful. The scene radiated love, a sweet and tender moment caught so perfectly, that he almost felt jealous he wasn't there to witness it. There was a date below the picture, July 1996 with initials, CS. The jealous feeling died the minute he saw the inscription, Charlie Scully was a man of many talents. Mulder followed the trail of family portraits captured on various occasions, from birthday parties to Christmases. The kettle whistled when he was looking at a picnic scene, in which Scully fed watermelon to a three year-old Will. His face was pink as was his stained shirt, but their smiles were so vibrant, they made him laugh softly. "What's so funny?" Scully asked from a distance. Mulder turned and saw her come in, wearing a short, silk nightgown under a long, loose kimono. Both very modest, demure even, but the gown had just a touch of lace trim and it was enough to make his knees weak. "Okay, I feel underdressed," he said, as she came closer, barefoot and stunning. "You like it?" She said, puling the midnight blue robe around herself a little. "You might say that." He swallowed hard, watching her take the mugs from the counter on her way, and handing one to him, while glancing at the wall. "Will and watermelon," Mulder said, gathering his wits and gesturing with the mug to the picture. "Oh, that one, we were in California that summer and he really discovered fruit that year, loved it ever since." She took a small sip and looked up. "You want to see more?" "Show me everything." He watched the silk float around her curves and shins, as she pulled albums from shelves and brought them back to the coffee table. She took the first one and folded herself on the couch against his side, filling his space with her warmth. "Before we begin," she said, keeping her hand on the cover, holding the thick volume shut, "please, remember this was early 90's and my hair was…" "Wonderful, I'm sure of it." He finished, taking the album from her hands. First page held a single picture, Scully in a hospital bed, looking up into the camera, holding a little bundle of blankets in her arms. "He was so tiny," she said wistfully, "but there was always something in his eyes, like he knew more than he showed." "That's all you," Mulder said, pulled into this tender scene, "you can make or break someone with one look." "No I don't." "Yeah, you do," he chuckled, turning the page, "but he only got love from you. Look at this." He ran his fingers around a photo, again showing Scully watching Will in her arms, nursing happily, his tiny palm closed around her thumb. "That's love." "He was two months old." "Who took this one?" "Charlie, that's why he's hardly in any picture," she said, leaning on his side, "he's the family photographer." "Here's one." Mulder laughed seeing Scully's brother holding Will in his outstretched arms, little arms flailing and tiny feet squashing his perfect nose. "Why do I find this hilarious?" "Because it is, Will was a fighter, putting him to bed took hours." Scully laughed sipping tea, "only way was to tire him before the bath, warm water calmed him down and he usually fell asleep nursing. Those were the good nights." "And the bad ones?" "Oh, he wouldn't fall asleep for the world, the little night owl. But he wasn't fussy or scared, he just played in his bed, minding his own business." "We would've gotten along nicely." Mulder said, turning the page to more baby and holiday pictures, pausing by a photo of Will holding on to the edge of a coffee table. "Look at him, he's so proud." "End of an era," Scully smiled looking over his shoulder, "after that, I had to have eyes around my head." "He looks like a runner." "He does, but he always loved water best." She pointed to another picture, where they were sitting in a paddling pool laughing, as Will slapped his tiny arms and legs against the surface, sending water splashing everywhere. "A regular sea monster," Mulder chuckled and turned the page to find a photo of Emily, maybe six years old, and Will with his nose and elbows covered in scabs. "What happened here?" "He tried to run," she sighed, smoothing down a corner that got unglued. "He saw Emily walking through the yard and just ran to her." "Poor kid," Mulder crooned. "You'd think so, but he barely cried, he always was a tough cookie." "That's because he grew up watching you," Mulder said not even trying to hide the admiration, "don't underestimate the strength you're projecting, a self-sufficient, capable and independent figure, who also gave him love, care and support he needed. Positively reinforced example." "Sometimes I forget you teach psychology at Harvard," she smiled, kissing his cheek and leaning her head on his shoulder. They browsed through the album, watching Will grow from a wobbling toddler into a small boy. Pictures of first bike rides, country fairs and family trips to Chicago, Washington, D.C., New York. Mulder paused on a picture of Will in a New York Yankees jersey, a classic baseball card shot. "Wow." "What?" Scully said, startled out of her reverie. "I've got the exact same picture," he said laughing under his breath, "I mean, the uniform is a bit different but still, he could be me. I guess all kids look alike at a certain age." "No, that's not it," she said and her tone made him look up from the album and meet her gaze. "Then what is it?" "He's your son," Scully said. For a second he wanted to tease her back, laugh about it, roll his eyes, but though her tone was warm, he saw she was scared. "What?" She shifted a little, staying close while turning to see him. "Remember when I told you how I had Will, after I had a terrible fight with the guy I was with?""He didn't think you can do it," Mulder said. "My friend is a fertility specialist and she agreed to help me with the procedure." "What procedure?" "In Vitro fertilisation," Scully said, holding his gaze, though her cheeks burned and her hands were starting to shake. "I had Will through IVF," then she added quietly, "using donor sperm." Mulder's blood ran cold and he hid his face in his hands. "Oh sh…" "Did you ever?" She asked gently. "I," his voice came muffled, "I did, once. I never told anyone about it." He felt her side pressed against him, arm around his shoulder. "It was supposed to be anonymous." "I contacted the bank and they gave me a few options to chose from." "The blood test before transplant," he said, looking up, "that's how you found out." "Yes," "And you didn't tell me." "I couldn't bring myself to do it," she said quietly, her eyes growing wet, voice breaking, "if anything went wrong, if the transplant didn't work." Tears spilled and she looked away. "I couldn't give you a son, just to take him away." For the first time that night words failed him, but he puled her into his arms, feeling his shirt grow hot as she held on tight. All the conversations with Will were coming back, the pain he felt at the thought this kid might be gone someday, amusement mixed with respect, when he tried to play the matchmaker, wanting to take care of his mother, the relief he felt, when he heard he was getting better, and suddenly, it all made sense. He had a son, a brilliant kid with bright blue eyes and a huge heart. A kid who facing death, cared more about others than himself, honest and kind young man. Could he have done it better? "We have a son." He whispered and felt tears burn down his face. "Why IVF? Couldn’t you just find a guy?" He asked once he found his voice again and once he spoke, she began to relax. "I was crazy back then," she sniffed, snuggling closer, "the thought I'd have to deal with some guy for the rest of my life, someone who might show up one day and ruin what I build for the baby and myself. In my head, it was the worst thing possible." "You could have at least tried," he chuckled, kissing her neck, "maybe we’d meet sooner." "Or we would never end up together. Maybe now, instead of sitting on this couch, I'd be mourning my son, cursing his father, wherever he was." "You wouldn't be together?" "I wasn't ready to share myself with anyone yet, I wanted a child, but that didn't mean I felt that my life lacked." "Unconditional love." "Everyone told me I was crazy, even Charlie." "Really?" "He said, I love you Danes and I'm with you, but this is crazy." "And your mother?" "She thought so too, she thought I should wait, that Daniel wasn't the right man, that someone would show up, who would love me and our child." Scully looked up and cupped his cheek, meeting his eyes with warmth, "she didn't know, I'd have to wait twenty years for him." Mulder leaned closer and caught her lips, feeling them tear-soft and willing. "I still wish you told me sooner." "I couldn't." She sighed, resting her forehead against his, cool fingers scratching at the base of his scull. "If it failed, if Will died because of the transplant, I couldn’t risk watching you go through that." "And if I wasn't a match? Would you leave me one day, without telling me why?" "God no," she pulled him back into a hug, "I love you too much."