stories end

i don't, but i'll throw a list below the cut for you. young muses at the top, parents are at the bottom.

“        i    know,    i’m    sorry.        that    sounds    really    sweet!        and    i’m    glad    that    poor    angel    got    taken    care    of,    but    that’s    just    not    how    it    is    all    the    time,    y’know?        sorry,    that    probably    sounds    silly.        oh!        that    sounds    amazing!        do    you    think    it    would    bug    them    having    people    come    visit?        like,    if    they’re    there    to    get    away    from    mean    people        …        i    dunno’.        as    long    as    they’re    happy!        ”

                        fairy    wrinkles    her    nose,    it    sounds    far    too    complicated    for    it    to    be    something    that    she    could    accomplish.        and,    even    if    she    could    do    it,    she    never    would.        it    sounded    unfair,    but    she’s    never    been    in    a    lot    of    situations    where    she’s    wanted    to    have    an    advantage,    or    at    least    she    thinks    she    hasn’t.        she    was    a    lot    shorter    than    soren,    which    meant    she    knew    it    would    take    her    longer    to    climb    up    to    him,    especially    if    he    kept    moving.        why    not    start    now?        allie    reaches    for    a    branch    as    she    speaks,    chattering    away    even    though    she    should    probably    focus.            “        well,    i’m,    like,    totally    not    doing    a    ploy,    just    so    you    know.        and,    wait,    who    am    i    gonna    be    in    trouble    with?        the    ground?        i’m    pretty    sure    the    ground    doesn’t    mind,    it    even    catches    me!        ”        she    takes    a    break    from    climbing    for    a    moment,    stilling    so    she    can    squint    up    to    him    and    the    branches    to    be    counted.        hair    is    tossed    back    behind    her    shoulder    as    she    shakes    it    out    of    her    eyes,    the    sun    above    them    already    making    it    hard    enough    to    see.            “        um,    like,    ten?        ten    big    ones    anyways,    but    i    think    there’s    some    more.        ”

                        eyes    light    up,    the    fairy    pleased    with    gio’s    answer,    her    nervousness    washing    away    easily.            “        like    a    model?        model’s    are    so    pretty,    they    get    to    play    dress    up    and    have    people    look    at    them    for    a    living!        they’re    so    sparkly    too        …        am    i    sparkly?        ”            she    thinks    it’s    really    special    that    gio    makes    the    rules    and    still    lets    her    stay    with    her.        the    fairy    reaches    for    gio’s    hand,    before    stopping    suddenly    with    wide    eyes,    remembering    reed    saying    something    about    poison    nails,how    her    and    gio    had    talked    about    it    before.            “        are    you    wearing    your    special    nail    polish    today?        ”

“        oh,    yeah!        the,    um,    really    smart    kind    of    crafty!        i’m    the    sewing    kind    of    craft    way,    but    i’ve    heard    people    talk    about    the    other    craft    way!        ooh!        maybe    gio    should    join    a    smart-crafty    club!        they    have    normal    craft    clubs,    why    not    the    other    kind    too?        they    can    talk    about,    like,    sketchy    plans    instead    of    glitter    glue!        oh    my    gosh,    i’d    love    that!        duh,    you    always    make    sense.        i    don’t    think    i    have    anything    leather,    i’ve    only    seen    it    on    other    people.        leather’s    like        …        dark,    right?        i    hope    so!        yay!        so    it’s    all    worked    out    now!        ”

   micah couldn’t help but let out a gentle laugh at gio’s question. of course he wouldn’t even attempt such a feat. but he did listen intently to the list of new used products. “that cuckoo clock sounds like a good find,” he thought aloud as a hand ran through his hands. “can i see it?”

        “Hey—” a startle and a question and a caution all leaning forward, a hand outstretched even though there isn’t particularly anything he can offer. Nothing other than a relative empathy. (He’s never faced down with a falling cannon, but crushed…. crushed he knows.) He’s not confident she’ll want his concern. The understanding…maybe? It’s worth trying, anyway. “It stops. Th-” Hm. Try again. “The.. pinching. Pins and needles. It all stops, eventually.” A terse offering, his look shaded with the memory. Struggling to find any shred of something reassuring about– “It– you think it won’t but it does.” Mostly.

          feelings have always been an anomaly to harriet .   not one for opening up ,   and not one for letting someone in ,   she had never had someone who does not work for her just  …  openly confess devotion to her .   their relationship had been what it always had been for years now ,   and somewhere along the way ,   something had shifted .   they would spend the night in each other’s bed ,   but instead of dressing and leaving ,   they began to talk .   they began to sleep through the night and leave the next morning .   sometimes they only  talked and never touched at all .   and god ,   she is terrified ,   but being with him is the easiest thing she has done for years .

          humming softly ,   she leans deep into soren’s touch ,   seeking the feeling of his fingers in her hair again .   warm brown eyes open and peer up into his face ,   inspecting the look on his face ,   trying to decipher what is going through his mind .     “   we can .   not if you don’t want to .   ”

Time  had  turned  harriet's  presence  into  a  comfort,  the  sort  where  soren  didn't  always  think  before  he  spoke  because  he  felt  safe  following  his  impulses,  but  a  line  was  crossed  the  night  before  with  the  presentation  of  a  fact  he'd  considered  obvious. If  harriet  had  shown  the  slightest  of  unease,  he  was  prepared  to  minimize  the  meaning  and  explain  all  of  it  away  through  the  veil  of  sex,  but  it  was  necessary  because  she  reciprocated,  and  wasn't  that  the  strangest  thing?