By's Journal

Positivity Meme - Day 1

2014-09-07T08:31:55Z

During the next five days, post three positive things about your day and ask three people to do the same so the positive attitude can gain some ground. (I really don't know who is on here these days so if you haven't been tagged -- *tag*.)

1. The weather - Summer is winding down, so the days are nice enough that you want to be outside and the evenings are just barely beginning to be brisk so I can break out all of my favourite hoodies.

The view from my apartment is nothing like this but on clear days you really can see stuff like this depending on where you are in the city.

2. Playing card games with my husband - We have a number of cooperative (or, as I call them, "don't get divorced games") card and board games that we can play. The Pathfinder Card Game recently came out with a new, pirate-themed set so we played that and Eldritch Horror today.

Hello, Bruce!

3. I was not on-call on Saturday. - We've been short-handed at work for various reasons so I spent a good chunk of last month either working long hours, or on-call, or both. I'll be back on-call at 4pm on Sunday but at least my Saturday was completely my own!

Yay! Happy things!

Pimpin Peeves

2013-10-17T16:08:44Z

...but not like that. Well, maybe like that. Depending.

Come, write crack with us, throw some levity into your life! Or at least read about this so you don't think your whole flist has gone mad(der).

The Ultimate Bad!fanwork Challenge of DOOM

One-Shot - Teen Wolf - Howls

2013-09-13T06:05:36Z

Title: Howls
Author: byaghro
Pairing: Pre-slash Derek/Stiles
Rating: G
Word Count: 1629
Warning: Post Season 3A - some spoilers through that as well as speculation about the fallout thereof. Also Hale family feels.

Summary: If a wolf is lost, howl them home.
Disclaimer: Not my characters. No copyright infringement is intended.
A/N: Beta-ed by dysonrules his is what happens when khasael inks me to wolf behaviour articles. Also, I think that the Hales (Derek in particular) (a) deserve some happy and (b) would be different-ish if that happy ever happened.
~~

“Hey, Derek, is Stilinski sending you links to articles about wolves?” Cora asked when he got back in the car.

They were somewhere in Wyoming, meandering their way east. Part of him knew he should find a place to settle and get Cora enrolled in school again but a GED had been good enough for him when he and Laura left so it would suffice for his little sister as well. Derek felt that being together and away were more important than stability at the moment.

“What.”

She rolled her eyes at his inflection. “Stilinski. You know, Stiles. Has he been sending you links to articles about wolf behavior?”

“Yes, Cora, I remember who Stiles is. And no, I don’t think,” he pulled his phone from his pocket only to realize it had gone dead. He tried to remember the last time he’d used it. A week ago? Two?

Cora’s put-upon sigh was all teenager as she snatched the device and plugged it into the car charger. “You really would find a cave and just become a mountain man if you could, wouldn’t you?”

He shoved his hand in her face, effectively silencing her and pushing her back in her seat. Things like this were coming back slowly. The banter. The teasing gestures. The normalcy of being siblings, instead of alpha and beta.

By the time she stopped spluttering at him, he’d pulled away from the gas station and onto the highway. He wondered if they could make Cheyenne by nightfall.

~~

Derek didn’t think about his phone again until they’d stopped for the night. Cora tossed it to him as he was putting his duffle bag on the bed closest to the door.

“Tell Stilinski we’re not actual wolves.”

“Why don’t you tell him? He’s been texting you,” Derek replied.

She huffed and shut the door to the bathroom.

When his phone finally powered up and found a cell signal, it was like the thing became possessed. It beeped non-stop for two minutes straight before all of the incoming message notifications stopped.

He scrolled through the list. There were a couple from Scott the day after they’d left but nothing from him after that. Isaac sent one every few days asking about their trip. Derek felt a little bad that he’d not been in better contact with Isaac. He hoped being Scott’s beta was doing Isaac more good than being Derek’s beta ever had.

The rest of the messages were from Stiles. Twenty in all. Five from just after they’d left and then one a day from there. Most were multimedia messages. Derek started with the oldest.

From Stiles (10:24am): I stopped by the loft but it’s cleared out. Way to skip town and not say goodbye, asshole.

From Stiles (11:20am): Did you really just leave? I was kind of kidding, but I checked all of your usual haunts and all of your stuff is gone.

From Stiles (11:21am): It occurs to me that since one of the places I checked was your old family home, ‘haunts’ is probably not a good word to use. Sorry about that.

From Stiles (1:09pm): Scott apparently knew you were going. Or that you were gone. Or whatever. Nice to be kept in the loop, as usual. I can’t believe you just left, dude.

From Stiles (8:45pm): I’ve been thinking about it and I guess I can understand why you left. If anybody needs a break from the Hellmouth that is Beacon Hills it would be you (and Cora too, I guess). I wish you’d said goodbye though. I hope you guys find what you’re looking for.

The next message was from a day later with no text, just a sound attachment. Derek opened it expecting some sort of verbose rant that Stiles decided he didn’t want to type out on his phone.

Instead he heard a soft, low howl. It wasn’t a wolf howl and it wasn’t the trainwreck that was Scott’s first howl. Just a small, mournful noise made by human vocal cords.

Cora opened the door to the bathroom, pajamas on and her hair wrapped in a towel. “Was that--?” she paused, staring at Derek.

“I think…” he started, then clicked on the next message. It was the same, a soft howl. Different enough from the first to know that it wasn’t just a second copy of the same message. “I think it’s Stiles.”

Cora’s eyes widened and she practically dove for her phone.

Derek kept going through the messages from Stiles. One per day. Just a sound file of him howling and nothing else. No explanation. Nothing.

“Um, I think I know what he’s doing,” Cora said, staring down at her own phone. She turned it around so Derek could read the title of the article: ‘Wolves Howl More for Their Friends’

She pulled the phone back and began scrolling. “He’s been sending articles about how wolves howl more when a pack member that they have a strong relationship with is taken away. He also sent an article about how wolves howl more when higher ranking members of the pack disappear. It says they try harder to re-establish contact with those wolves than others.”

Derek frowned. “Has he been sending you messages like this?” He indicated his phone.

She shook her head. “No. I mean, he texts me random stuff. Stupid tumblr posts and information about the World’s Largest Ball of Yarn or whatever but never anything really personal. Nothing like that.”

He sat for a minute, staring at his phone. What was Stiles trying to say? Was he sending the messages because he thought Derek was still the alpha? Surely he’d spoken to Scott. Stiles was always loyal to Scott, why would he howl for Derek as his alpha? And if that was the case, and Scott was Stiles’ alpha (he refused to think about why that rankled with him), then was Stiles calling him for another reason?

Was Stiles trying to say they were friends?

There was a part of him that wanted it to mean something else but he was too unsettled to deal with that right now. Not when he wasn’t even sure if he was ever going back to Beacon Hills.

“I think you should answer him.”

Derek startled at Cora’s statement. He hadn’t realized how far into his head he’d been. “What?”

“I think you should answer him. Re-establish a connection.”

Derek rolled his eyes. “What do you want me to say? Hey, Stiles, got your howls?”

Cora giggled. “Howls it hanging?”

“Oh God, you’re as bad as he is.” His lips tugged into a bit of a smile a the thought, though. That really did sound like something Stiles would say.

“Howl you doin?” Cora was full-on laughing now.

“Please stop.”

She had tears running down her face. “I’ve been mooning over you.”

He sighed. “You are a disgrace.”

Then he hit her in the face with a pillow.

Things devolved into a wrestling match from there. Two exploded pillows and a broken chair later, they lay on the floor beside each other, panting.

“Seriously, though, you should answer him,” Cora said.

Derek looked over at her. “You mean like actually…” he trailed off.

She nodded. “He’s looking for his lost packmate. I think you need to let him know you’re still here.”

“He’s not my packmate. He’s in Scott’s pack,” Derek argued.

Cora’s snort was less than ladylike.

He thought about it a bit longer. “Alright.”

“Yeah?”

He nodded. “Yeah. You’re right. He deserves to hear back.”

She grinned at him.

~~

They waited until the next day. Derek didn’t want any (more) complaints about their noise levels so they packed up first thing in the morning and set out on the road. Once they’d reached a fairly deserted stretch of highway, he pulled onto the shoulder and got out.

“How do I record it?” he asked, fiddling with his phone.

Cora sighed and snatched it from him. “I’ll handle that, you just provide the howl.”

She punched a few buttons on the phone and then nodded at him.

Derek took a deep breath. He hadn’t done this in a while, had been too busy fighting and running to really just relax and let loose for fun. He wondered if he could do this at all. Would it sound stupid on the phone? He’d never heard himself howl before. He was about to back out when he thought about Stiles, recording howl after howl, and sending them to him unselfconsciously.

He took another breath, threw back his head, and howled.

It was strangely cathartic.

Once he was done, he looked down to see Cora furiously swiping her fingers across his phone. After a moment she grinned up at him, triumphant. “Done!”

He started back toward the car and the paused. “Do you… um… do you want to do a family howl? Just for us?”

She stared at him for a moment. He could see tears gathering in her eyes and he opened his mouth to take it back when she nodded suddenly. “Yes. Yes, please.”

Derek stepped over and put his arm around her waist. They breathed in and then lifted their voices together. By the time they were done, Derek’s eyes felt suspiciously moist and Cora was openly crying. They hugged by the side of the road for a minute before she shoved him back.

“Enough of this emotional crap,” she said, wiping her eyes, “let’s get back on the road.”

He ruffled her hair then side-stepped away from her playful swipe.

~~

They’d been on the road for about five minutes when Derek’s phone pinged with an incoming message.

Cora opened the message and read aloud: “Good to hear from you, Sourwolf. I missed you, too.”

Drabble - Teen Wolf - Hint of a Spark

2013-09-13T05:29:25Z

Title: Hint of a Spark

Author: byaghro

Pairing: Gen Derek & Stiles or Pre-slash Derek/Stiles

Rating: G

Word Count: 144

Warnings: None

Summary: ...Just our hands clasped so tight

Waiting for the hint of a spark...

Disclaimer: Not my characters. No copyright infringement is intended.

Author’s Note: Beta-ed by dysonrules. Title, summary, & end quote from "I Will Follow You Into The Dark" by Death Cab for Cutie. (The main gist of which has nothing to do with this story.)

“Stiles.”

“It’s almost done, just give me a minute.”

The noise outside grew louder.

“Stiles, we don’t have a minute.”

Stiles hopped up from his spot on the floor. “There. Done!”

Nothing seemed different. “Now what?”

“Now, we believe,” Stiles told him, clapping his hands together.

Something slammed against the door. Derek fought a snarl; possibly at the situation, possibly at Stiles, probably both.

“Come on, Sourwolf, trust me.”

Derek stared at him for a moment. “I do,” he replied solemnly.

Stiles’ face lit up and he grabbed Derek’s wrist. “Let’s do this!”

Derek pulled his arm away only to link their fingers together instead. He nodded.

Stiles raised his other hand toward the door. A wave of magic enveloped them like a physical presence seconds before the door exploded open.

...Just our hands clasped so tight

Waiting for the hint of a spark...

Trading Card Giveaway!

2013-09-02T08:55:19Z

I have a trading card ~~obsession~~ hobby and have ended up with a bunch of extra cards.

I don't want to throw them away and it's really not worth the hassle to try to sell them on ebay as they're not complete sets or anything.

Therefore, I'd like to offer them to you! They can be used as prompts or pretty cards to pet & love or starter paper for small files. Whatever you want.

I have cards for the following (don't judge):

One Direction
Iron Man 3
Twilight - various movies
Possibly Harry Potter (I'll have to check on these)

I think I'll send these in sets of five to ten until they're all gone.

Reply below and let me know which fandom or fandoms you'd like cards from. Feel free to request specific characters and I'll try to accommodate you.

To give some more detail about the card sets:
1. The One Direction cards are from the Panini set and are individual and group shots of the lads.
2. Iron Man 3 cards are by Upper Deck and are all scenes from the movie.
3. Twilight cards are by NECA and are character cards and scenes from the movies.
4. Harry Potter (if I have extras) are by Artbox and are all scenes from Deathly Hallows Part 2

I'm screening comments so give me your address or, if you'd prefer, your email and we can exchange addresses that way instead.

One-Shot - Teen Wolf - What's In A Name?

2013-06-16T22:25:05Z

Title: What's In A Name?

Author: byaghro

Pairing: Pre-slash Derek/Stiles

Rating: G

Word Count: 902

Warnings: Crack.

Summary: Stiles has many odd habits, this is one of them.

Disclaimer: Not my characters. No copyright infringement is intended.

Author’s Note: Always good to start a new fandom with crack. *facepalm* I blame khasael and fandom in general for their characterization of Derek’s eyebrows.

Here’s the deal, Stiles had this... habit.

Not like biting his nails or jerking off, although he did both of those things pretty consistently as well. (He considered the jerking off more of a ‘recreational sport’ than a ‘habit’ though.)

No, Stiles liked to name things. And not just his car (Betsy) or his stuffed animals when he was little (Leo the Lion, Octo the Octopus, and Ned the Duck) but everything. His favorite hoodie was Lil Red. His favorite glass, the sepia one with the beveled sides and the chip on the lip, was Tina. And his XBox was Goloth, Destroyer of Noobs. (He got carried away sometimes, sue him.)

He even named other people’s things. Scott’s bike was the Nutcracker (because it always went after Stiles’ nuts when he rode it). Jackson’s crosse was the Douche Swizzle. And Lydia’s tight pink sweater was just ‘The Precious’.

But once he got started, he could rarely stop. Scott had one ear slightly lower than the other. Stiles called it Dippy. Jackson’s hair usually made him look like a startled cockatoo so it was Polly. And Lydia’s breasts were ‘Ice’ and ‘Cream’. (He’d made so many ice cream sandwich jokes in his head. So. Many.) It was fun to answer Scott’s question of “what do you want for dessert?” with “Ice cream” and have Lydia sit right there, clueless. (Although she would sometimes narrow her eyes at him as if she knew what he meant. Lydia was creepy that way.)

Therefore, it stood to reason that the more time Stiles spent with Derek, the more likely he was going to name one or more of Derek’s things. He wanted to name Derek’s car “The Volvo of Great Justice” but that was just confusing since it was a Camaro. And if he ever had to explain it to anyone he’d have to admit knowing WAY more about Twilight than he was comfortable with.

So the Camaro was Bumblebee. Derek’s signature jacket was Tony. And his eyebrows were Tiffany and Jennifer. Stiles had no clue where his brain got these things sometimes. Honestly.

All he knew was that Derek never emoted with anything except his eyebrows. Which meant that Stiles spent a lot of time staring at them trying to get a read on Derek’s moods. Tiffany would twitch when Stiles said something funny that Derek refused to laugh at (Stiles liked her best, she got his humor). Meanwhile Jennifer just made him nervous. Any movement from her was usually followed by threats upon Stiles’ person.

(Although Jennifer would sometimes arch up at something ridiculous Scott said and Stiles would be tempted to shout, “I know, right?”)

One thing that always baffled Stiles was where the hell Tiffany and Jennifer went when Derek was in his beta form. Stiles had a theory that perhaps they just transformed into sideburns (Frank and Eduardo) but he couldn’t be sure. Plus, Stiles was still kind of terrified of Derek in any sort of wolfed out state so he was always relieved to have Tiffany and Jennifer back.

As such, Stiles didn’t think he should be blamed for expressing his happiness over their return. Derek had been dosed with a poison that kept him in a partially shifted state. Deaton had to sedate the alpha while they worked on a cure.

They suspected the hunter who created the poison did it so the werewolves he dosed would hurt someone in their crazed state and therefore violate the Code. Stiles thought it was a shitty, underhanded way of sticking to the letter but not the spirit of the Code but then most hunters he’d encountered seemed to operate that way if they kept to the Code at all.

Finally, after several tense hours, Tiffany and Jennifer were back and Stiles was highly tempted to kiss them in relief. Instead he took advantage of Derek’s still unconscious state to gently pet Jennifer (hoping that might make her like him more) while whispering sweet nothings to Tiffany.

“I missed you so much. Don’t ever leave me like that again. I don’t know what I’d do without...”

“Stiles.”

Stiles froze and glanced down at Derek’s now very open eyes. Shit.

Jennifer lifted in an eloquent arch. Shit shit shit.

“What are you doing?”

Stiles snatched his hands away quickly. “I... um... I was just talking to...” He waved his hands in his general... face... direction. “Um... that is... no one. I was talking to no one.”

Derek frowned. For one brief, hysterical moment Stiles brain supplied wild thoughts of lesbians kissing as Tiffany and Jennifer furrowed together.

“You were telling no one that you missed them?”

“Yes? No. That is. You! I was totally telling you. That. All of that.” He glanced briefly at Derek’s eyebrows so that he wasn’t technically lying.

“O-kay.” Derek was looking at him like he’d lost his mind. Which... wasn’t really new, sadly.

“Anyway. Now that I’ve um... confessed. Ish. Sort of. I’m just going to go. Be somewhere else,” Stiles rambled, steadily backing toward the door. “I’m glad you’re better.”

He halfway turned to make his escape when he heard Derek’s voice call out.

“Hey, Stiles.”

“Yeah,” he called over his shoulder, still intent on getting out of the room as quickly as possible before he could say anything else ridiculous.

“Is Bumblebee okay?”

Stiles walked straight into the door. Derek’s laughter followed him down the hallway.

Drabble - Supernatural - Separated But Never Apart

2013-01-07T05:00:58Z

Title: Separated But Never Apart
Author: byaghro
Pairing: Semi-implied Sam/Dean (if you squint)
Rating: G
Word Count: 316
Warnings: None.
Summary: You can come between the Winchesters, but not for very long.
Disclaimer: Not my characters. No copyright infringement is intended.

The therapy room Dean is in looks like every other therapy room at the Facility. Comfortable couch, plush armchairs, a small desk for the therapist, and a large, gilt-framed mirror. The therapists at the Facility enjoy doing “look at yourself and tell me what you see” exercises. (Personally, Dean thinks they’re all full of shit.)

The point is, there is no way Dean can know the “mirror” is really a one-way viewing window. And even if he did, there is absolutely no way he can know the second his brother steps into the room on the other side of the glass. Despite these facts, Dean stops talking to the therapist mid-sentence and simply stares at the mirror.

Later, the Facility employee in the room with Sam will call it ‘uncanny’ to his colleagues (‘creepy’ to his friends), the way Sam and Dean approach the mirror at the same pace. Watching each other with the same intensity, even though Sam is the only one who can see his sibling.

They both raise their hands and their fingers overlap, three inches of bulletproof glass the only thing separating them. They aren't allowed to speak, aren't allowed to see each other at all, except like this.

The Facility says it's because seeing Sam would be detrimental to Dean’s progress. Sam knows the real reason. The Facility is afraid of them, terrified of what the Winchesters are capable of. Sam thinks they don’t know the half of it.

The therapy room has no microphones, some tripe about doctor-patient confidentiality, but Sam watches as Dean’s lips form his name. He presses his hand harder against the glass and thinks, soon.

After he leaves, they find perfect handprints imprinted half an inch in on either side of the window.

A week later Dean Winchester vanishes from a locked down, Level Three room. The room will smell like sulfur for months after.

One-shot - Glee - People Watching

2013-01-07T04:45:49Z

I realized I didn't post ANY writing to my journal during 2012. This is utterly unacceptable. To that end, I'm going back to post all of the snippets I wrote and (apparently) never shared.

~~

Title: People Watching
Author byaghro
Pairing: Blaine Anderson / Kurt Hummel / Sebastian Smythe (aka Sebklaine)
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1497
Warnings: None.
Summary: When you work at a dance club, people watching is always a great way to pass the time.
Disclaimer: Not my characters. No copyright infringement is intended.
A/N: A small bunny that attacked me last November.

“Okay, what about those three?” Sarah pointed at the three men who just walked in the bar.

Tonya turned to observe the guys in question. One was tall with perfectly styled hair and pants that looked painted on. He had his fingers tangled with a shorter man with barely tamed curls wearing a bright purple bowtie. The third guy was also tall but while the first looked like a Marc Jacobs model, this one looked more American Eagle.

“Painted-on-Jeans and Bowtie are dating, American Eagle is their tag-along friend,” Tonya finally replied.

Sarah shook her head. “I think they’re all just friends.”

Fifteen minutes and three shots later, Bowtie and Painted-on-Jeans were making out while American Eagle sat beside them looking bored.

Tonya nudged Sarah and pointed at the three. “Care to change your assessment?”

Sarah frowned. “Maybe they just hooked up.”

Tonya snorted and went back to tending the bar.

They’d been at the bar an hour when Sarah sidled back up to Tonya’s side. “I revise my opinion.”

“What?”

Sarah pointed at the three guys, now down to two, Bowtie and American Eagle. American Eagle was leaned close to Bowtie, speaking in his ear with his hand pressed intimately into Bowtie’s lower back. “I think Painted-on-Jeans and Bowtie are dating and American Eagle wants to hit that.”

“Or is hitting that.” Tonya cocked her head toward the corner where American Eagle was now sucking on Bowtie’s neck. Bowtie had his head tipped to the side and his eyes were closed; an expression of ecstasy on his face.

“American Eagle better hope Painted-on-Jeans doesn’t catch them; I think he could take him,” Sarah replied.

Tonya giggled.

“What are you two up to now?” Brad asked, placing his tray on the bar between them.

Sarah indicated the spot where Painted-on-Jeans had just returned, seconds after American Eagle stopped molesting Bowtie’s neck. Bowtie lit up and eagerly leaned in for a kiss from Painted-on-Jeans.

“Those three?” he asked, already knowing the game Sarah and Tonya played, trying to figure out the stories behind the various patrons that frequented the bar. “Totally in a threesome.”

“No way. Bowtie is cheating on Painted-on-Jeans with American Eagle,” Tonya told him.

“Painted on...” Brad shook his head. “You two are ridiculous. And I’m telling you. Threesome.”

Sarah rolled her eyes and grabbed her drinks. “Whatever.”

Later in the evening, watching the three on the dance floor, Tonya was starting to think Brad was right.

“Three whiskey sours, four shots of Jager, and.... what?” Sarah asked, staring at Tonya.

“I think Brad is on to something,” Tonya said.

“Oh, whatever, just because he’s gay doesn’t mean … oh...” She’d spotted the trio on the dance floor. Bowtie was dancing, facing American Eagle, while Painted-on-Jeans held his hips. Every few minutes he’d lean back on Painted-on-Jeans’ shoulder to him deeply. Then he’d lean forward and drag American Eagle in to kiss him as well.

Both girls watched this process for several minutes. Finally Sarah huffed. “Obviously Bowtie is forcing Painted-on-Jeans to participate in this. He can’t be willing to share his boyfriend like that.”

Brad, who’d come up to the bar while they were watching the boys interact, threw his arms around both of their shoulders. “Are you two still on this?”

Sarah threw her hand out in the direction of the men. “Painted-on-Jeans is being forced into a threesome because of his love for Bowtie. It’s not right.”

Brad tugged them in closer. “I’m telling you ladies, those three? Happy, committed threesome. No one is being forced to do anything. Everyone is happy.”

Tonya turned to look at him suspiciously. “How do you know?”

“It’s a gay thing,” he replied with a grin.

Sarah elbowed him in the side. “I’m a lesbian and I don’t get that impression at all.”

Brad pointed at the dance floor. “How about now?”

Both girls turned back to find the threesome. Only now there were only two. Painted-on-Jeans and American Eagle were practically fucking on the dance floor. Bowtie was nowhere to be seen.

“What... I don’t even...” Tonya stuttered.

About that time, Bowtie appeared at the bar, sweaty and flushed and grinning like mad. “Hey Brad, how’s it going?”

Brad released the girls and stepped forward. “Good, Blaine. How are you? How’s the album coming?”

“It’s amazing! We’re laying down the final tracks now. Kurt and Seb actually had to drag me out tonight.” He laughed.

“Speaking of your boys,” Brad winked. “How are things going? It’s been what... three years now?”

Blaine blushed and looked down bashfully for a moment. “We couldn’t be happier.” He glanced back at the two on the dance floor, still lost in each other. “Actually, I’d better get back out there before they get started without me.”

“It looks like they already have,” Sarah muttered.

Blaine turned to her with a laugh. “Trust me, they know I’m gone. The three of us,” he looked at the boys on the dance floor fondly, “we work well together.”

“That’s awesome. Truly.” Tonya pushed three glasses toward him. “Shots on the house. Congrats on your three years.”

“Thank you,” Blaine told her with a smile before grabbing the three glasses and heading back to his lovers.

Tonya glanced at Brad. “You’re such a cheater.”

He grinned at her. “What?”

“It’s a gay thing, my ass,” Sarah grumped, nudging him with her hip.

“When will you ladies learn that I am the master of all things relationship?”

“Maybe when you actually get one,” Tonya replied.

Brad stuck out his tongue and sauntered off.

Back on the dance floor the three boys were lost in their own world.

~~

Later that night

Sarah was wiping down tables by the exit when the three boys she and Tonya had been speculating on finally stumbled off the dance floor, arms wrapped around one another.

“I don’t know why you always insist on pretending you and Blaine are cheating behind my back when we go out like this. It never lasts,” Painted-on-Jeans was saying.

“Whatever, Kurt, you know you think it’s hot,” American Eagle replied.

Wedged between them, Bowtie... Blaine, pressed his nose against Kurt’s. “Yeah, baby, hot.” He drew out the H and cut off the T; he was obviously beyond plastered.

Kurt drew his face back and waved his free hand under his nose. “I’ll tell you what’s not hot, the fact that your breath smells like a distillery.”

Blaine immediately pouted and turned to his other boyfriend. “Seb, Kurt says my breath smells bad.”

Seb leered at him. “We’ll just have to put something in your mouth to help with that.”

Blaine gave him a grin that was all teeth for about five seconds before he suddenly frowned.

Sarah, who’d been surreptitiously watching them, knew that frown. She scrambled for the nearest trash can.

“I don’t feel so...” Blaine threw himself over the trash can, shoved in front of him just in the nick of time, and vomited.

Kurt sighed but still rubbed his back gently. “What am I going to do with you, Blaine Warbler?”

Sebastian put his arm around Kurt’s waist, stroking Blaine’s hair at the same time. “You’re probably going to give him water and aspirin and tuck him in.” He paused. “And then, if I’m lucky, you’ll give me a blowjob.”

Kurt frowned at him. “Remind me again why I love you two.”

“You mean, despite the fact that I’m a pervert and Blaine’s a lush?” Sebastian answered, totally unabashed.

“Yes, despite those facts.”

Sebastian grinned and leaned forward to rub his nose gently against Kurt’s. “Because we love you.”

Blaine, who appeared to have recovered from his recent bout of nausea, stood and nodded solemnly. “We really do, Kurt.”

Kurt stared at them both for a moment before kissing Seb’s cheek and brushing his thumb across Blaine’s cheekbone. He smiled softly at them both.

“Come on, Lushy, let’s get you home before you defile any more trash cans.” Kurt wrapped his arm around Blaine’s waist.

Sebastian did the same on Blaine’s other side. “What about the second part of my plan?”

Kurt rolled his eyes. “If I have to tend to drunken Blaine, I think I deserve the blow job.”

“I think that can be arranged.” Sebastian reached down and pinched Kurt’s ass, causing the other man to yelp and smack Seb in the shoulder. “Now come on, let’s see if we can get him home before he starts....”

Blaine suddenly gasped between them. “OH MY GOSH!! I LOVE THIS SONG!!!! TONIIIIIIIIGHT.... WE ARE YOUUUUUUUNNNNG!!!!”

“Or not.” Kurt said with a sigh. But his eyes were fond and his lips twitched as he and Sebastian exchanged a look and started dragging Blaine from the bar.

Sarah watched them go before pulling out her phone and sending a quick text to her girlfriend.

To Anna: “You know that thing you suggested with Audrey a few months ago? Let’s talk about that tonight when I get home.”

From Anna: “K xoxo”

New Journal for FOOD!

2013-01-06T08:38:45Z

I'm one of those people that will eat somewhere awesome (or awful) and then... yanno... sleep or eat somewhere else or blink or something and then I don't remember what was good, what wasn't, what the name of the place was, etc.

In an effort to keep up with the good, the bad, and the tasty of Colorado and wherever else my travels take me, I've created a food journal.

This will be filled with my brief (or rambly) reviews of restaurants I've tried. These will not be in any way formal or all inclusive or anything. Just my commentary on "I ordered this, it was good".

So if you're interested, here's the journal: travelingfoodie.

It just has stuff for Winter Park, CO right now but I hope to expand that as I go along. There are a few NYC restaurants I can add from memory and then any new restaurants I encounter will hopefully make their way in as well.

Also - HAPPY NEW YEAR HUGS!

I needs the Precious!

2012-11-30T20:32:57Z

Random Question:

Does anyone know where I can purchase the BBC Sherlock 2013 calendar online? It is on Amazon's UK website but the American site only has outside vendors as options which makes me a bit leery.

Also, I would be willing to send monies via Paypal if someone in the UK could get it for me and ship it here. *hearteyes*

I miss you all!

2012-10-05T21:42:56Z

I know I haven't been more MIA from LJ than usual but I feel like I have. In the past I could at least lurk on your journals but work has taken all of my free time. And, unfortunately, will continue to do so until at least November. *sobs*

I wanted to ask for recs and pretty boy pics but I don't know when I can enjoy them. ;;

So just know that I love and miss you all! *group snuggles*

100 Things - Prompts - Number 7

2012-06-29T23:50:50Z

I love this picture, I can't even tell you how much. He was almost a game night boy but I decided to hoard him. :D

100 THINGS - PROMPTS - NUMBER 6

2012-06-24T05:58:02Z

Prompt 6: Lace purple panties... for men

(I thought about putting up a picture but sometimes imagination is better.)

100 THINGS - PROMPTS - NUMBER 5

2012-06-18T05:13:50Z

Gonna have to step up my game here to catch up if I want to finish before the YEAR IS OUT OMG!

~~

Prompt 5: Friendly board game night turned competitive ie. vicious board game wars!

Tagged by oldenuf2nb

2012-06-10T08:52:18Z

I got tagged in the questions meme by oldenuf2nb! Here's the rules:

Rule 1 - Post the rules

Rule 2- Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post and then make 11 new ones.

Rule 3- Tag 11 people and link them to your post.

Rule 4- Let them know you’ve tagged them!

1. What is your Favorite novel that ISN'T Harry Potter? Well, I love Stephen King as an author but the first book(s) that came to mind were The Alienist and The Angel of Darkness by Caleb Carr. They are murder mysteries set in New York City (mostly) in the late 1890's when fingerprinting was strange new science and you were likely to be profiled based on your body type. These are very detail rich reads that make you feel like you have experienced NYC "back in the day".

2. Daniel Radcliffe or Robert Pattison? DanRad all the way! RPatt mostly comes across as a douche. A snarky one perhaps, but a douche just the same. (Sorry Twilight Flisters.)

3. Once Upon A Time or Grimm? I've never seen either *hides* but I'm guessing Once Upon A Time, just based on flist responses.

4. What is your favorite meal? Well, it used to be fried rice from Kanpai of Tokyo but since that is a Chattanooga restaurant I guess I'll have to find something new. As for home cooked things, cream of mushroom soup mixed with sour cream over rice is a comfort food of mine.

5. What is the most important thing you learned from your mum? Never use sex as a weapon in your marriage. Not that I ever planned to do that anyway because, you know, why punish myself. But you hear about women getting angry and withholding from their husbands and that just seems - silly to me. For several reasons, (1) as I said, why punish yourself, (2) unless you're fighting about sex specifically, why bring it into the equation? Him not putting away his socks shouldn't really have any bearing on whether or not you get freaky later, (3) two words - angry sex, (4) ladies, I hate to break it to you, but you do not have the only vagina on the planet. Once you get married all of those other ones don't just disappear. So if you deny him access to yours, he can probably pretty easily find access to another. Why would you give him the hint of an excuse to cheat?

6. If someone offered you a million dollars to walk away from your on-line friends, could you do it? No, I really don't think I could. Especially now when ALL of my friends are confined to on-line. I have yet to meet anyone IRL that shares my interests unless we were first friends on-line. We went to dinner with a couple tonight & the lady was perfectly wonderful but I felt like I was hiding part of myself all evening because she's not a writer or a fangirl really. I just couldn't be... myself. I can't imagine being cut off from everyone that I CAN be myself around. *shudders* I'll stick to good old hard work for that million, or, yanno, the lottery. :D

7. If you had fifteen minutes with God, what would you ask him? What are the REAL edicts I need to live my life by? Cut out the religion-specific, denomination-specific fluff, just give me the actualfax rules to live by. Also, what are Your views on homosexuality? And how do I reconcile my kink interests with being a Christian? Or does that even matter?

8. Have you read Wuthering Heights? Yes. Catherine feels very young Scarlett O'Hara to me in her sort of bratty, manipulative ways. I also remember thinking that despite all of the soap opera drama, she is less of a milksop than Jane Eyre. Granted I read them both a million years ago & should perhaps refresh before making such statements. :D

9. Without Googling him, do you know who Bobby Sherman is? Yes but I did Google him to confirm he was who I thought he was.

10. Who in fandom would you like to meet that you haven't? ANYONE that I haven't met yet! But off the top of my head nursedarry,phoenixacid and alaana_fair. I would also love to spend more time with all of you that I HAVE met!! *snuggles everyone*

11. Do you think Ron Weasley is actually a good friend? The part of me that wants to wrap Harry in bubble wrap & protect him from everything says "No" but the logical side of me thinks he was just a human friend. Who hasn't gotten jealous of a friend before? How many of us used to fight like cats & dogs with our "friends" over toys or boys/girls or whatever? Ron got jealous & angry several times but he never seemed malicious to me. I don't think he ever tried to harm Harry through rumours or whatever, he just didn't always subscribe to the "Harry is awesome always" school of thought. And, really, considering how close he was to Harry, can you blame him? We all have famous people that we admire however, how much of that admiration would fade a bit if we knew that they snored or picked their nose or always left wet towels on the floor? I think the difference between a fan & a friend is that friends know those things about you & like you anyway. Yes, they might sometimes get jealous and storm off in a huff, but they tend to come back eventually to put up with your little quirks & habits some more. TLDR; yes, he is for the most part.

(Yeah, I'm going to spare you guys the tagging bit as this is an older meme & I'm not sure who has done it & who hasn't at this point.)

M'not ded! aka Ramblings about The Great Move

2012-06-10T08:05:00Z

May almost killed me. But I'm back now and things should be calm. *crosses fingers like whoa* So my plan is to get back into posting like, yanno, REGULARLY. And also maybe that whole writing thing I dabble in sometimes.

On a personal note as to WHY May almost killed me...

So, my husband does web database programming.. stuff. And he was doing contract work from home, the bum. One of the companies he was working for said several months ago, "Hey, we're planning on doing some expansion and we might want a lead programmer type person and would you be interested? You'd have to move to Colorado where we're based but there would be a raise & yadda yadda."

He asked me if I would be okay with that. To which I said, "Psha, YES!" Because we'd be moving to Denver, not Bumfuck, Wyoming or (now that I've driven through it & know how middle-of-nowhere it is) Colby, Kansas or something.

So he talked to his boss & was told, "Okay, cool, we just wanted to see how you felt about it, we won't know anything for a while." Whatevs.

Then we get a call a few weeks before our vacation in early April. "So, we might be getting some funding soon and are you still interested." Us: "Yes."

Then we get a call whilst ON vacation. "So, the funding is like 98% a go, we're still good right?" Us: "Yes."

When it all started we were thinking, "Okay, this will probably happen sometime this summer. Fine." As the calls started coming closer together it became, "Alright, it might happen sooner, maybe." Finally we realized that once they were a go, they were going to want him in Colorado like... yesterday.

For those of you who know me, I am a Ravenclaw through & through. Which means I'm a planner. Give me a vacation destination, a Christmas list & budget, whatever and I'll make it happen. There will be research & spreadsheets & dammit it'll happen. Possibly with slides. XD

However, we still didn't know if the funding was going to come through SOON soon or summer soon. I didn't want to research a bunch of places to live & such only to have to wait three months before we could move on anything.

Well, near the end of April we get the call that yes, the money has come through & we want Zbra in his desk in Colorado on June 4. O___O

This means we have approximately a month to do the following:
1. Find a place to live in Denver - a city I'd never been to EVER and Zbra had been maybe twice
2. Figure out what we were going to do with the house we own in Tennessee
3. Figure out what stuff we were taking & what stuff could go into storage
4. Figure out how we were going to get our stuff & our two cats & ourselves out to Denver
5. Make whirlwind visits to as many friends & family as possible.

It was a Herculean task let me just tell you!

Some things to note:
1. All of our family is in the Tennessee / Georgia area so our plan is to return in five or so years. This made the whole "uprooting everything" concept a little easier to swallow. Plus, technology & travel being what they are, we're not exactly inaccessible out here. I told one friend, "It's not like when the West was first being settled; we're not going to burn the wagon & shoot the horses once we get there." He laughed at that comment - a lot. :D
2. My current company was AWESOME and said that I could continue to work for them after the move. We have a remote office here that I go in to twice a week & can work from home three days a week (WIN!). YAY for one less thing I have to do - job hunting!

Once we were "Go" on the move, I spent hours and HOURS researching apartments in Denver. I had, unsurprisingly, a spreadsheet with rent amounts and square footage and amenity options, etc. After I'd gotten it narrowed down to a handful of hopefuls, Zbra's company flew him out to do paperwork and for him to apartment hunt. I'd scheduled visits and he dutifully attended each, taking photos & asking questions. He also drove around several of them at night to see what the creepy factor was like. Since I was going to be working from home, I didn't want to be in a place I couldn't feel comfortable in alone during the day or at night if he had to travel.

He uploaded pictures & called me each night with updates. We discussed pros & cons and finally settled on the one that sounded the best. We opted for a newer place near his work so his commute wouldn't be too bad. It is near a bypass so my commute is equally tolerable. (There was a second contender that was a more historic building. It was built with the intent of being a hotel but was later converted into apartments. It also has a boiler system for the heat. Between those two things & the fact that it is in Colorado, I told him I would have had a hard time not writing "REDRUM" on the mirrors and making 'The Shining' jokes - OFTEN. -- I do intend to visit the hotel that 'The Shining' hotel as based on. *big ol' hearts for Uncle Stevie*)

An amusing side note about the apartments we ended up in - the address of the place I sent him to was 6515. When he signed the lease he said "there are two buildings & we're in 6715". I thought nothing of it since several places I spoke to were multi-building complexes. It wasn't until I got here & saw the place that I realized, there are actually two complexes side by side, owned by the same parent company but called different names with slightly different floor plans amenities, etc. The place we live in is NOT one I researched. *headdesk a billionty*

So, we had a place to live in Denver. One item checked off the list! Now, what to do with our house in Tennessee? Since the market stinks right now, and since we intend to return, we decided to rent. We found a good rental company who will handle virtually everything and we've left it in their capable hands. As of today it hasn't been rented but it sounds like it is showing well so that's good. It was kind of sad though, we went through & completed several projects we just never got around to before - so when we left the house looked pretty awesome. We hated to be leaving it!

The sorting & packing was the worst. Naturally. We rented a storage building in Tennessee and proceeded to play the "will we really need this in the next few years" game. We were moving from a pretty large house to a one bedroom apartment - thankfully Zbra & I are pretty fond of each other & spent most nights on the couch with the cats draped across us even in a larger place so we weren't too worried about being cramped. We trashed & donated more things than we even realized were in the house. It was crazy!

(Also, in going through notebooks & papers spanning back to elementary school I realized - I've been a writer my entire life. I had story ideas from waaaaay back. That actually made me feel better about my writing. It has been in my blood this whole time. It is not a passing fad and I WILL get back to it.)

Thankfully we had one friend who was between jobs at the time so he basically moved in with us to help pack, shuffle, donate, etc. He and another friend (who took his vacation to help us - bless him) also came out to Denver with us. I can't tell you how awesome it was to (a) have the additional help and (b) have familiar faces around for the first week we were here.

By the time we reached MOVING DAY tensions were pretty high. We'd looked into moving companies but I kept finding horror stories about places that would hold your things hostage (basically) until you paid them additional fees. We weren't willing to risk it so we ended up renting a Budget truck & doing it all ourselves. Which means I drove 1200 miles across the US looking at the back of a Budget rental truck. Blergh.

We left Tennessee on Sunday, May 27th. Zbra was driving the moving truck with one friend as a passenger. Our other friend was driving Zbra's car. And I was driving my car with two drugged kitties in carriers in the back seat.

For those of you who don't know, the drive from Chattanooga, Tennessee to Denver, Colorado is about 21 hours. Yeah.

The problem with the situation was - we had all of our worldly possessions in a big-assed truck and two cats in the car. So we couldn't really stop & sight-see anywhere. It was just pedal to the metal, get there as quickly as possible driving. This kind of driving basically stinks.

We made it to just outside of Kansas City, Missouri the first day. St. Louis looks very pretty at night but that's about all I can tell you about it. Kansas City looks alright in the daytime but that's about all I can tell you about it.

We passed through Lawrence, Kansas *insert Supernatural fangirling here* but it was on a toll-road so we couldn't really stop. Boo!

Let me just tell you - the stretch of I-70 between Kansas City and Denver -- SUUUUUUXORS. Seriously. There are... four trees. Total. For hundreds of miles. I know this because it is so flat you can see for miles & miles in every direction. Coming from the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, the type of utterly flat you see in western Kansas is just... bizarre.

Plus the exits are few & far between. If you even think you might need gas, stop as soon as possible because who knows when you'll get another chance!

And, if the desolation and fields aren't enough to make you feel like you're about two miles away from being part of a Stephen King novella, there is the Creepy Wheat Jesus billboard in Colby, Kansas. I am not kidding. Google that shit. It is a foursquare check-in spot & everything. I can't even...

Back to the move - so we made it to Denver late Monday night. We stayed in a hotel just down from our apartments and got our keys first thing on Tuesday.

Tuesday we spent moving crap in & trying to figure out such vital things as - where did we pack the toilet paper and shouldn't we have a shower curtain in here somewhere?

Wednesday the four of us, Zbra, myself, & our two friends, drove up to Mount Evans. That was pretty cool except for the fact that I hate, hate, HAAAAATE roads with sharp drop offs and no side rails. So I kept my eyes closed for most of the trip up & down.

On the way we saw what we first though were prairie dogs (sue us, we've never seen the damned things before) and later thought were ground hogs -- only to discover they are marmots. IDEK. I'm just going to call them mountain squirrels, thank you very much. :)

Wednesday evening Zbra & I went to grab some groceries and came home to find our bed covered in moving plastic (saran wrap basically). This is what happens when you leave your friends unsupervised in your home.

Thursday I had to work & Zbra flew to Seattle for Lock & Load (Warmachine convention). He got to see dysonrules which makes me INCREDIBLY jealous. (THANK YOU, BEBE, FOR TAKING CARE OF HIM & MAKING HIM EAT!!!)

Saturday saw the first of our two friends on a plane back to Georgia. It hit me when he walked away that it might be quite some time before I see him again. There was some sniveling on the way home. Sunday saw our other friend off and heralded Zbra's return.

Last week was still a "getting settled" week and now this weekend is our first real weekend to BREATHE in a month & a half. I slept for a MILLION hours!! FINALLY! XD XD XD

It has been fun exploring so far & I look forward to more exploring & things in the future. It is pretty hard for me on the friend front because I know Zbra, his boss & boss's wife (SORT OF), annnnd that's about it. I'm a pretty solitary person so that's not as hard for me as it would be for some people but if any of our fandom peeps are in the area, lemme know, yeah? Fangirling alone is just no fun!

Things to note for any future transplants:
1. There is virtually no humidity here. I can't begin to tell you how strange that is for me. I'm used to walking outside & feeling like you're wearing the heat. This whole non-oppressive heat is strange. Plus, glasses leave no sweat rings, what is this even??
2. Because it is so dry, you need chapstick & lotion like a mofo. Trust me.
3. If you are fair skinned, you need SPF x 1,000,000,000 because you will burn easily.
4. Sunglasses are required, not optional.
5. Holy shit there is a lot of SKY! You have never seen so much SKY. At least if you come from my neck of the country. I know that sounds like a weird thing to notice but in my TN back yard, you could only see the sky if you looked straight up. The trees were so tall everything else was blocked. I'm sure it's the same if you live in some place like NYC where the buildings tower over you.

Soooo.... this post got way way way way way longer than I intended. But there you have it. Esby's Great Move!

100 THINGS - PROMPTS - NUMBER 4

2012-04-29T20:22:26Z

I believe the photo speaks for itself....

100 Things - Prompts - Number 3

2012-04-24T04:21:09Z

I couldn't resist this one:

"You can stroke people with words." ~F. Scott Fitzgerald

100 Things - Prompts - Number 2

2012-04-22T03:19:38Z

Wow! Prompt number one garnered an awesome drabble from oldenuf2nb! *spins*

For prompt number two, let's get snazzy....

New York City - The Plaza Hotel - The Presidential Suite - $15,000 per night

(I don't think I've made that much this YEAR, pre-tax...)

The 7,802-square-foot suite covers nearly the entire 18th floor of the Plaza, with views overlooking Central Park. The walls are covered in silk, the reception area has a 10-foot-wide stained glass window and the hand-painted piano depicts scenes from the French countryside.
The suite has five bedrooms, five and a half bathrooms, two living rooms, a dining room, powder room and sauna. There are also three marble fireplaces, a terrace and a 2,000-bottle wine cellar (guests are charged extra for indulging). The Presidential Suite also comes with the use of a secretary/butler and the Plaza’s chefs are at your disposal.

For my fellow Ravenclaws, some links:

http://www.forbes.com/2002/03/07/0307feat_5.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Plaza_Hotel

100 Things - Prompts - Number 1

2012-04-18T06:49:17Z

Let's get this party started right!

First prompt -- Banana Split

(With handy, dandy visual aid!)

Because anything with bananas and cherries and whipped cream can only lead to goodness. Preferably smutty, smutty goodness!

I'm just throwing these prompts out to help get those plot bunnies breeding. But if you want to throw a drabble or drawble (or more) in the comments, I certainly won't stop you!

...I'm off to eat some ice cream now!

100 Things Blogging Challenge & Randomness

2012-04-18T06:36:15Z

{Take the 100 Things challenge!}

I'm going to attempt this challenge in two ways.

One for prompts - which I think will kind of defeat the original challenge goal since they'll probably be shorter than tweets. Although I'll probably throw quotes and pictures and things in too.

And another for travel - both places I've been and places I'd like to go. Here you'll get my rambly thoughts on everything from neat hotels I've stayed at to "Must See This OMG" places I want to visit.

Also - Norwescon was AMAZING!!! It was SO GREAT to meet fandom peeps and put faces and names to user names. It makes me giggle a bit to see your posts & think "I met them! XD XD :3 " (Although dysonrules will still sometimes say things like "Susan said..." to which I reply "Who? OOOH! MUNKEELVR! Right!") --- For those of you I haven't met yet, SOMEDAY MY DARLINGS! SOME. DAY!!

Smoochfest Prompting is OPEN!!

2012-02-20T06:09:42Z

banner by star_sailor13

Tattoo Meme Pimp!

2011-11-08T02:23:18Z

Because everyone needs some ink kink! XD

I love having my house choice validated.

2011-08-15T03:13:02Z

Your result for The Sorting Hat: A Comprehensive Harry Potter Personality Assessment [Test/Quiz]...

Ravenclaw

64% Ravenclaw, 42% Hufflepuff, 50% Slytherin and 46% Gryffindor!

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,

if you've a ready mind,

Where those of wit and learning,

Will always find their kind;

The cardinal traits of Ravenclaw are intellect, wit and openness to experience. They are the most introverted house of the four. Ravenclaws are more likely to prefer small gatherings of like-minded individuals and require recooperation after stressful social interaction. These individuals are intuitive creatures, the quintessential researchers. They lack the stubborn, strict, and rule-abiding qualities that would inhibit intellectual growth—one can't be too set in their ways if they are to be open to exploring new ideas and paths of thought.In contrast to Slytherin and Gryffindor, Ravenclaws in general are much more emotionally stable. Their reactions seem dampened compared to the sometimes dramatic responses of the other houses—they're much less likely to get offended, they're more open to criticism, not particularly argumentative and interested in hearing different points of view. They can at times seem to be less interested in people and more interested in their own inner world, and appear to be disconnected from the rest of humanity.

Ambition is secondary to them. Although they may strive to excel in school, knowledge and self-enrichment is the primary goal as opposed to simply wanting good marks. If they do happen to strive for excellence, it is because it fits with their other goals, not out of a desire to be superior or the best. Due to their intuitiveness and willingness to listen, Ravenclaws can be empathetic and make good advisors. They should generally leave leadership roles to people who are more extraverted and who would enjoy them more, however.

Take The Sorting Hat: A Comprehensive Harry Potter Personality Assessment [Test/Quiz] at HelloQuizzy

Drabble - The Bet

2011-06-23T02:45:38Z

Title: The Bet
Author: byaghro
Pairing: Albus Severus/Scorpius
Rating: G
Word Count: 560
Warnings: None.
Summary: James & Lily have a bet going. Rose is disgusted. Hugo is vaguely clueless. Just your typical day in the Library.
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter characters herein are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No copyright infringement is intended
A/N: Written as a pick-me-up for dysonrules . Mostly it’s just gen next-gen gang stuff.

Rose huffed and crossed her arms. "This is never going to work."

Lily shot her a look but didn’t reply, turning her attention back to Albus.

"I’m sending him to you when he goes all maudlin over this," Rose informed her cousin tartly.

"He isn’t going to be maudlin because this is going to work," Lily hissed, still watching her brother sidle closer to his goal.

James flopped gracelessly into the chair beside his sister. "Has he done it yet?"

Lily elbowed him in the ribs. "No, now be quiet."

Rose frowned at the both of them. They were leaned forward in their chairs as if watching a particularly suspenseful movie instead of watching their brother walk to his doom. "I can’t believe you two are betting on this. Poor Albus is going to be heartbroken and all either of you care about is who wins the pot."

"Shhh," they whispered in tandem.

Albus had almost reached Scorpius when Hugo joined them.

"What are we doing?" he asked, bewildered by the intense stares.

Lily just flapped her arm at him in a vaguely shushing motion while James grabbed his wrist and dragged him down into a seat.

"You’re about to watch me win twenty Galleons," James informed him smugly.

Lily glared at them both. "No, you’re about to watch me win twenty Galleons because this is going to work."

Hugo looked to Rose for a translation.

Rose heaved a sigh of one raised around the Potter brand of insanity her whole life. "Lily somehow convinced Al to finally approach Scorpius. And then she promptly bet James twenty Galleons that Scorpius will agree to date him, instead of punching him in the face. Which is what James is anticipating. And frankly, so am I."

"He could hex him too, that would also count as a win for me," James added eagerly.

Hugo looked from his sister to his spectator cousins to Albus who was blushing and staring at the floor while he apparently tried to woo Scorpius Malfoy.

"Thirty Galleons says it works."

Lily whooped and wrapped her arm around Hugo’s neck in the combination headlock-hug that she was known for. (You never knew if she was happy with you or planning to suffocate you until it was too late.)

James and Rose stared at him slack jawed.

"How could you vote against—"
"Where are you going to find that kind of—"

"Shut up and look," Lily spat, causing all of them to turn back to the two boys halfway across the library from them.

Scorpius was frowning and slowly reaching for Albus. When his fingers curled into Al’s tie, Rose began to stand.

"Great, now I’m going to have to break up a fight," she grumbled but didn’t make it much farther than that.

Because instead of punching or hexing Al, Scorpius had tugged him into what appeared to be an amazingly intimate snog.

Lily was doing a little victory dance in her chair. Rose was still standing, staring, unable to process the fact that she wasn’t going to have to stop a fight quick enough to realize she should probably stop them from the groping session they were initiating now instead.

James turned to Hugo with wide eyes. "How did you know?" he asked, awed.

Hugo shrugged. "I caught them making out in the greenhouse last night."