Feel like I should let y’all know that this event isn’t gonna be happening this year!! Sorry if anyone was looking forward to it, but my real life has gotten much busier in the past year, and I’m also not... really active in the taz fandom anymore, so I don’t think I’d be a good person to run this kind of thing again!!
Don’t worry, though, this blog isn’t going anywhere, so all gifts from previous years will remain for everyone to enjoy!! Thanks for all the great times and great creations, I am going to miss doing this event <33
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[ID: a drawing of lup and barry, with lup carrying barry bridal style on a purple background surrounded by confetti. lup is a thin elf woman with tan skin and brown hair pulled into a bun. she’s wearing a red suit and holding barry in her arms, kissing him and smiling. barry is a thin man with dark brown skin and short curly black hair. he’s wearing a long dark blue dress, and he has his arms wrapped around lup’s neck as he kisses her back. END ID]
Well, folks, that's it for this year! All gifts have officially been posted!!
Thank you to everyone who participated, I think this event went really really well this year, and everyone's creations look amazing!!
Extra thanks to @motherfuckingmagicbrian , @josscadeart , and @all-made-of-stardust for stepping in as backups, you guys were extremely helpful and got rid of a lot of my stress!!
Keep your eyes peeled next year, as I'll probably end up doing this event again, and make sure you look at all the creations posted over the last few days if you haven't already!!
[ID: A digital drawing of Lup and Lucretia. Lup is on the left, with light brown skin and long hair that fades from blonde to pink. She’s wearing a flowey pink dress with a gold belt. She has a small flame cupped in her hands and is looking fondly at Lucretia with a smile on her face. Lucretia is standing to the right of Lup. She has dark brown skin and short, curly hair that fades from white to light purple. She’s wearing a red shawl with a gold button at the collar over a light blue form-fitting dress. One of her hands rests on the opposite arm, while the other hand is lifted up to cover her mouth. Her eyes are squeezed shut and her mouth is open mid-laugh. End ID]
[ID: an aesthetic with 6 images in two columns of three, alternating in color between blue and yellow. Top row: a white jellyfish on a dark blue background, a woman sketched out with the word "rise" written above her on a yellow background. Middle row: a person's hand holding a sparkler on a yellow background, the word "sigh" written in neon blue letters. Bottom row: a neon blue crescent moon, "anyway, back to the gay shit!" written in white on a yellow background. END ID]
A gift for @llliched , created by @aubreylikesgirls !
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[ID: 9 images in a 3x3 grid, all with gray or white backgrounds. From left to right, top to bottom: 1. "I'll be the kid with the big plans" written in handwriting. 2. A brown newsboy's cap. 3. "The facts were these" embroidered on a yellow circle. 4. Three pairs of glasses. 5. "Not a girl, not a boy, not your problem" written in 3 speech bubbles. 6. A dark blue cloak with silver stars on it. 7. A drawing of a juice box with "just cool juice" written on it. 8. A magnifying glass. 9. "Golden boy" written in bubble letters. END ID]
A gift for @neurodivergent-angus , created by @aubreylikesgirls !
A gift for @katie-lynch-official, created by @aubreylikesgirls!
Some of that good good soulmate AU content for you, I hope you enjoy!! Primarily Blupjeans, with some implied Taakitz in there too.
~~
For as long as she could remember, Lup had had the name “Sildar” inked on the back of her neck. Taako made fun of her for it endlessly, but she thought that he couldn’t say much, not with a name like “Kravitz” on his own skin.
They talked often in those early years about soulmates - wondering what their soulmates were like, where they are, what they were doing. They talked about Taako’s a lot - a black marking meant your soulmate was alive, a white one meant they were either dead or not born yet, but Taako’s mark was gray.
Neither of them had heard about something like that before, but they also didn’t really have anyone to teach them, about soulmates or anything else.
Time passed.
Taako and Lup grew up, and they succeeded at things - they were smart, and capable, and respected, and when they applied to join the IPRE, and later to join the exclusive mission of the Starblaster, they were accepted both times. The group was unusual, all of them, but Lup frequently found her eyes straying to one of them.
He had introduced himself as “Barry Bluejeans,” but when they had laughed, he had laughed, too, so Lup suspected it might not be his actual name. Barry, maybe, but not Bluejeans. It fit him just a little too well.
And then the world collapsed, and it was just the seven of them, on a mission to save the multiverse they hadn’t even been sure existed.
Lup thought she might find her Sildar on one of those new worlds - her ears were always open for his name, and she knew Taako was looking for Kravitz, too.
But, at the same time, she was looking at Barry. Sweet, awkward, funny, intelligent Barry, who made her feel warm, who made her laugh, who was maybe a little too interested in necromancy. He wasn’t her soulmate, her mark said that plainly enough, but there was still something about him that kept drawing her in.
After a few too many cycles, when they were starting to get discouraged, starting to feel like there would never be an end, they landed on a world that seemed to pride itself on status and reputation and propriety. The Light had been found by a wealthy family living in a huge mansion, and Davenport’s attempts to ask for it had gone… poorly.
“They’ll only negotiate with people of similar status to them,” he explained later that afternoon on the ship. “And, well, even if I’m the captain, I’m only a sailor in their eyes.”
“We’ll just have to fake it, then,” Taako said, waving off Davenport’s concern with an easy grin. “We’ve made shit up to get the Light before, I’m sure we can do it again.”
Davenport sighed. “Yes, that’s probably what we’ll have to do. Who do we think will be the most effective at that? I probably can’t go back, since they’ve met me already.”
“I’ll go,” Lup offered, raising a hand. “But I don’t want to talk to these assholes alone.”
“I think,” Barry said, not looking at any of them, “that I could also help.”
Lup raised an eyebrow. Barry wasn’t the theatrical type, and he didn’t usually volunteer for that type of mission.
“You sure about that?” Magnus asked, echoing Lup’s thoughts.
Davenport, though, looked thoughtful. “Yes,” he said, “I think you’ll be able to convince them, Barry, if you’re willing to do it.”
Barry nodded at him, and there was something steely in his eyes, a determination and a willingness to do whatever he had to, that took Lup by surprise.
“Excellent,” Davenport said, clapping his hands together. “Do you two need time to prepare, or are you able to go this evening?”
Lup grinned, deciding to put aside whatever Barry had going on until another day. “Ah, don’t worry about us, Cap’n,” she said, “we’ve got this.”
“Yeah,” Barry said, and his smile was a little bit more strained. “We’ll, uh, be fine.”
~~
“Hey, Lup?” Barry said a little later, as they approached the mansion. “Maybe, uh, let me take the lead on this one.”
Once again, his eyes were determined. “Yeah, okay,” Lup agreed, even though she desperately wanted to ask him what was going on. Now is not the time, she reminded herself. “I’ll just, uh, try to follow whatever you do.”
Barry nodded and took a breath, bracing himself before they walked up to the door and knocked.
As soon as a servant opened the door, Lup saw an immediate change in Barry. They had both dressed in some of their nicest clothes for this meeting, Barry even setting aside the jeans. He had looked awkward and uncomfortable in them, but she watched him straighten up and tighten his jaw, immediately looking like he belonged not only in the nice clothes, but in a house just like the one they stood in front of.
“Good evening,” he said, and there wasn’t a trace of nervousness in his voice. “We’ve come to inquire about the artifact this family recently acquired.”
The servant glanced between the two of them, and Lup did her best to match Barry’s pose and demeanor. It worked, apparently, because the young man nodded and led them inside. “I’ll go get Mrs. Willoughby,” he said, scampering off into the house and leaving them standing in a large sitting room.
“What is going on,” Lup hissed, unable to let everything Barry was doing slide without comment.
“I’ll explain everything later, I promise,” he said, smiling tightly at her. “Just… just roll with this, please.”
Before Lup had the chance to respond, a woman walked into the room, tall and regal and carrying the Light in her hands. “Welcome,” she said, nodding at both of them. “It seems word has gotten around, as you are the second people to come to me seeking this item today.”
Barry lowered his head in a half-bow at her, and Lup mimicked him. “You must be Mrs. Willoughby,” he said, smiling at her. “It’s wonderful to meet you.”
“And who might you be?” she asked, and Lup felt her heart drop.
They hadn’t discussed code names, and there was no way Barry Bluejeans was going to get them in this woman’s good graces.
Barry, though, didn’t seem phased. “My name,” he said, “is Sildar Hallwinter, and this is my partner, Lup.”
The world seemed to slow to a stop around her. Sildar. What were the odds that Barry would choose Sildar as a code name, and how had he thought of it so quickly? He didn’t know what her soulmark said - that was private information, only Taako knew hers, and she didn’t think any of the other crew members knew each other’s marks. So why…
Barry negotiated with the woman, Mrs. Willoughby, for a few minutes, but Lup wasn’t conscious of most of it. She smiled and nodded when it felt appropriate, followed Barry’s lead, and at the end, when they were walking away with the Light in his hands, she couldn’t quite remember how they had acquired it.
She was walking as if in a haze, and Barry obviously noticed, because he pulled her to a stop as soon as they were out of sight of the mansion. “Hey,” he said, “are you… okay?”
“Um, what do you mean?” she asked, trying to break free of the fog. It was a coincidence, just a weird coincidence, nothing to get worked up about.
“You just seem a little… I don’t know, spaced out?” Barry said, rubbing the back of his neck, embarrassed. He was slouching again, and Lup found some comfort in that. “I know that was a little weird, and I’m sorry for not preparing you, but I don’t really… like doing that.”
“You were incredible, though,” Lup said, managing a grin at him. “You’re not an actor, though, so how…?”
Barry laughed a little, ducking his head. “Well, again, I don’t really like admitting it, but that’s… that’s how I grew up. In a house like that, with people like that.”
“Oh,” Lup breathed, and she could feel her heartbeat quickening.
“Yeah,” Barry shrugged. “The Hallwinters were a bunch of rich assholes, so I separated myself from them as soon as I could.” He laughed again. “Can you blame me for changing my name, though? Barry Bluejeans might be a bit of a laugh, but it’s miles better than Sildar Hallwinter, right?”
It was his real name. Barry’s name was Sildar.
Barry was her soulmate.
“Oh my god,” Lup said, her face heating up and a grin stretching across her face. “This is ridiculous, Barry, you are ridiculous.”
Barry blinked at her. “What?”
“Gods, I hope you were just too shy to say something,” she said, and then turned around and lifted up her hair, revealing the black writing at the base of her skull. “Fuckin Sildar, dude!”
She heard Barry’s sharp intake of breath, and when she turned back to face him, his eyes were wide and his cheeks were bright red. “Oh,” he said, “I, uh, didn’t realize that that might happen.”
“Don’t leave me hanging here,” Lup said, still grinning, her heart practically beating out of her chest.
Barry jumped. “Oh, right,” he said, and pulled his shirt away from his collarbone, where Lup was inked in small, black letters.
“You were just too shy to say something!” Lup said, practically shouting now, throwing her arms into the air. “Do you know how hard it was, looking for this Sildar when I just wanted it to be you?”
Barry hadn’t stopped looking at her with those wide eyes. “You… wanted it to be me?”
“Hell yeah I did,” Lup said, taking a step forward and putting a hand on his cheek. “Barry Bluejeans, Sildar Hallwinter, whoever the fuck you are, I am glad that you’re my soulmate.”
“Yeah,” Barry said, a smile finally creeping its way onto his face, “I’m glad, too.”
[ID: A family photo of Taako, Kravitz, and Angus, all smiling. Taako is an elven man with light brown skin, long chestnut hair, and freckles. He is wearing a turtleneck sweater depicting a snowman wearing a metal helmet and gauntlets - to emulate the beloved Candlenights Knight. Kravitz is a human man with brown skin and long black braids. He is wearing a gray sweater over a collared shirt, depicting a wrapped gift and a menorah. Angus is a human boy with brown skin, curly dark brown hair, freckles, and big round glasses. He is wearing a blue sweater with a repeating pattern depicting the Star of David. He is also holding a skeleton cat. To their left in the background is a Candlenights bush, and to their right is a large scroll bearing the words: "Joyous Candlenights from the coolest family you know", with their names signed below. END ID]
A gift for @cactith0t, created by @neurodivergent-angus!
A gift for @pri-the-writer, created by @deadbonessinderhellaton!
~~
The Engagement Zone
Summary: Everyone’s favorite roller derby team, the Amnesty Valley Rollers, find themselves facing off against a formidable opponent who’s using a crazy new type of play! How are the Rollers ever going to best them, and look good doing it in the process? Aubrey asks for help. Dani talks tactics. Hollis makes the switch.
Notes: Aubrey’s bummed in the beginning but Dani gets her revved up again, t for swearing, some derby contact and hits but it’s all pg; nothing too wild, Trans Duck Newton, one of my biggest concerns was making sure that I showed off everyone’s derby names, after that it was describing cool derby moves, stuff like ‘plot’ came in after that…..
Part 1
Aubrey hadn’t realized just how hot she was until the water hit her face. She gasped at the chill–tilting her head back to let the last few droplets roll down her neck. You know, in this context, the bathroom is kind of freeing, she thought idly. There wasn’t anyone to see her splash water all over the floor as she cooled off, no one to see her trying to catch her breath. No one to catch her like this.
Shaking the water off her hands, she pulled out a few paper towels from the dispenser on the wall and began to rub them over her face. We’ve only been playing for an hour, she thought to herself, but it feels like it’s been days. It wasn’t the team’s fault - as the captain of the Amnesty Valley Rollers, Aubrey made sure that everyone on the roster had practiced every drill, wall, formation, and potential outcome that they could come up with, and the wins that they had scored from the previous pre-regional games were proof of that. It’s those fuckin’ Hornets, she thought bitterly. We’ve never been up against anything like them before, and it’s not like I have drills for teams who play like this-
You could have, if you thought to plan for this. A voice, one not unlike her own, cut through her thoughts. Now they’re left flailing out there in front of everyone, all thanks to their loyal, brave captain. Slowly, she lifted her head up to face her reflection in the bathroom mirror. It’s not the team’s fault, a voice whispered in the back of her mind. And it’s definitely not the Hornets fault. She put some of the towels under the running faucet and pressed them to her eyes, desperately trying to ignore the burning sensation in the back of her throat. The whole team had worked so hard, trusting my training to get them this far. They gave me everything.
“Hey.”
Dani’s figure appeared in the mirror, spattered with water from the messy cool-down earlier. In lieu of her typical long peasant skirts - the kind that Aubrey thought looked funny on herself, but that Dani could really rock - her girlfriend was decked out in the Amnesty Valley Rollers’ red and black uniform. She had a bad case of helmet hair, but to Aubrey, it didn’t matter - Dani always looked amazing. In her hand, a bottle of water was dripping with condensation. “Hey, Jake brought drinks for everyone, and I wanted to make sure that ‘The Lady Payne’ didn’t miss out,” she joked, referring to Aubrey’s derby name. Her crestfallen expression gave Dani pause. “Is- is it a bad time? I can head out if you need me to.”
“No,” Aubrey said after a moment. “No, you’re fine.” She pushed off from the sink and slowly rolled over to where Dani stood, holding out the bottle to her like she was passing a baton. She drank down half of the water before wiping her mouth with her wrist and giving a refreshed sigh. “You’re a lifesaver, babe. I was starting to melt out there.”
Dani laughed, and even through her guilt, Aubrey could feel her stomach flip. “Yeah, when you’re on roller skates and fighting your way through a crowd of people twice your size, you might get a little winded.”
“It’s not my fault everyone in West Virginia is gigantic! That mountain air does something to you all. ” She brushed an especially wild piece of hair behind Dani’s ear and brightened at her answering smile, “Besides, I think it’s actually because I have my super hot girlfriend as the brains and brawn on my team. That’ll take the wind out of anybody.”
“You know what they say about flattery, Aubrey Little.” Gently, she took Aubrey’s hand and grinned. “It will get you places.”
“I’m not kidding,” Aubrey said. “You’re the one out there selling candy bars for our annual fundraiser, or teaching people how to stand on skates during the recruitment drives, or helping me come up with new plays. We would have never gotten this far without you.”
“You save that sweet talk for your speech after we get to regionals. I want to be recognized for my contributions.”
Her comment brought Aubrey back to reality in full force, with the knowledge of what she had done sinking in. She glanced away from Dani and took a sip from her bottle. “Yeah. Regionals.”
Dani stared at her in confusion. “Aubrey? What’s wrong?”
Aubrey wasn’t great with words at the best of times, let alone in times of derby-induced panic. But whenever Dani used that tone–gentle and understanding and wanting to help–the words in her chest got knocked loose. “I… I fucked up. Back in the final part of the last period, the other team set up a trap, and I fell right into it. And I cost the team twenty points.” She let out a nervous laugh. “I-I panicked, because I couldn’t get out even when I started hip and shoulder checking. And it wasn’t like anybody on the team could come and help me because they didn’t even know what to do, because I didn’t even teach them what to do!”
Dani waited patiently until Aubrey stopped speaking. When she herself started talking, it was slow, as if she was trying to figure out what to say. “Well, yes, Aubrey. The Hornets are using zone play, which is completely new to us. There isn’t really any way short of weird, like, time-travel shenanigans, that you could have taught the Rollers how to deal with it.”
On a surface level, Aubrey was aware that Dani was just trying to help. She was more than grateful for it - Dani always had a way of finding the right things to say and the right ways to say them - but just the fact that Aubrey knew she was right made her feel like crumbling even more. “Yeah, but it’s not like it’s the first time I’ve heard of it. The big derby blogs have been talking about zone play since the beginning of the year, and three other teams in last year’s Nationals championship used it, and I chose to think that we weren’t gonna see it this early in the season. You can say I couldn’t know, but it’s my job to know. And now we’re gonna lose the whole season because of it.”
“Aubrey…” Hesitantly, Dani looked at Aubrey and spoke quietly. “Being twenty points behind the other team is not a death sentence. I mean, it’s not good, but we’re at halftime right now. We have, like, an hour left in the game. An hour and a half if we can get it to overtime.” She reached over and took Aubrey’s hand again, giving it the smallest of squeezes. “I know it looks bad, but it’s not over just yet.”
Aubrey allowed herself a glance at Dani. She knew it - she had that beautiful, stubborn, determined look on her face, the one that she got when she couldn’t be convinced of anything else. Aubrey sniffled hard and sighed. “Okay. Say we somehow figure out how to get past the Hornets’ blockers in the first loop. How do we get past them in the second loop? Or the third?”
“Mmm…” Dani looked up at the ceiling, lost in thought. “Well, what is it they’re doing that’s throwing us off, and what do you need when they’re doing it?”
“What they’re doing down there, zone play - it’s this thing where the blockers work more to try and control your moves than to physically stop you, like they’ll stop on their skates in front of you, or surround you so that you’ll move slower.”
“Huh.” Her brow furrowed as her gaze focused on something behind Aubrey. “Huuuh.” Slowly, she put one skate in front of the other, gently rolling around the room as she thought out loud to herself.
Aubrey watched intently as Dani did this. It wasn’t the first time that she’d reached out to her girlfriend for suggestions, and with Dani’s knack for tactics, she was sure that it wouldn’t be her last. To Aubrey, it made sense - Dani put just as much sweat, blood, and tears into the team as any of the other players did. If she could get them through everything else, she could get them through this, too.
After a few minutes of silence, Dani spoke. “Well, the whole idea of zone play is to control the jammer, right? What if you could get rid of that control entirely?”
As Dani explained her idea, Aubrey’s eyes grew wider and wider in excitement. The team might not have recognized how to take on the Hornets’ style, but it wasn’t like the Amnesty Valley Rollers had forgotten how to play. And this made sure that the Amnesty Valley Rollers’ skills were used. It was quick. It was decisive. It was brutal. Most important of all, it used their strengths and took advantage of the Hornets’ weaknesses, all the while ensuring that the Amnesty Valley Rollers didn’t need to know how to combat zone play. “Babe,” Aubrey breathed. “You’re a genius.”
Dani turned bright red as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and shrugged. “I watch a lot of derby footage.”
“Damn! Maybe I need to start doing that more, iron out my skills and all that.”
“Believe you me, it has nothing to do with skills, if your footwork on the track is any proof.” Gently, Dani reached out to brush a stray wrinkle from Aubrey’s uniform. “Just next time, don’t be afraid to ask us for help, ‘kay?” Ignoring the look of surprise on Aubrey’s face, she continued. “We’d hate to have you worrying by yourself and feeling the weight of the world. We can all come up with something together if anything comes up.” At this, she smiled. “Kind of like we did now.”
Aubrey could feel herself growing heated and red under Dani’s gaze. They had been dating for about two years now, but sometimes Dani did these things that just left Aubrey a gooey mess. She met Dani’s gaze and grinned. “Hell yeah, we did. But next time, I’ll see if I can’t keep you guys in the loop more often instead of like-” she winced. “Running off to avenge you all, like in Braveheart. You ever see that movie?”
The sound of skates slamming down on linoleum echoed in the distance, growing closer and louder with each step. Jake Coolice appeared in the doorway. “Aubrey, Dani, Madeline wants you to know that you have about thirty minutes ‘til halftime’s up and we start the third period. ”
“JAKE!” Aubrey’s shout sent Jake rolling backwards and bumping gently against the tiled bathroom wall. “Can you get the team together for a meeting before we start up again? Dani just came up with a really good idea, and I want to give it a shot…”
Part two
Aubrey had never been more terrified in her life.
Okay, so maybe there were moments in her life where she had been just as terrified - boarding down Death Mountain with Jake came to mind - but here, in the engagement zone, facing down the Hornets again, this particular moment stood out. Worst-case scenarios flooded her mind. What if I trip? What if the team loses track of me? What if the Hornets go and did something else entirely and they screw up our plan?
She forced the knot that tensed in her belly down and let out a nervous sigh. Just concentrate on the plan, Aubrey reminded herself. Dani had gone over the whole thing in detail during the suit-up and, as a consequence, her words echoed through Aubrey’s mind. The most important thing about this, Dani had told her earlier, is that you have to know exactly where Jake and I are, and we have to know where you are.
She could see the two of them behind her, on her far right. So far, so good, she thought to herself. In front of her were three of the Hornets’ blockers. Right in front of her, to her left, was one - NEST IN PEACE, their jersey read. To her right and further up ahead was another - MISBEEHIVING. That’s not a hornet pun, Aubrey thought irritably. They have a theme, they should stick to it! Furthest ahead, on the left, was the final blocker, a tall, wiry guy. Their jersey read KEITHING IT REAL across the back, in bold block letters. Guess they ran out of ideas.
Dani had mentioned it earlier, and now Aubrey could see the zig-zag pattern that their team set up in. I know for a fact that that’s a trap. I guess I could try to go around it, but that might throw off Jake and Dani…so the trap it is. Aubrey leaned to her left and made as if to bank between NEST and MISBEEHIVING. Immediately, the three Hornets swarmed in on her. KEITHING slammed on his brakes, forcing Aubrey to slam on her own and taking the proper fall position. MISBEEHIVING swooped in from the right, blocking off Aubrey’s escape, and while she couldn’t turn around, she could hear NEST directly behind her. Once their ranks were formed, KEITHING started picking up his speed, but only barely. The other Hornets blockers followed suit, leaving Aubrey cocooned in the middle.
If I weren’t so pissed off, she mused, I could appreciate this more. It was brilliant - by closing off her escapes and controlling her speed, they could ensure that she didn’t pass their blockers or inhibit their jammer. Not to mention they could easily push her out of bounds if she tried to break free. Ignoring the sound of her heart pounding in her chest, she sighed nervously. Now I just have to wait for-
“AUBREY, LOOK OUT!”
Jake raced in from behind on Aubrey’s right, Dani skating frantically to keep by his side. With a mighty whoop, he swung his left hip at the blockers surrounding Aubrey, sending them flying. NEST was forced backwards, teetering wildly in an effort to keep their balance. MISBEEHIVING flew past the ring’s boundaries, landing in the track’s middle circle. With a groan, MISBEEHIVING regained their stance and started their clockwise loop around the track. Aubrey herself was trying not to whoop out loud - the same team that had devastated the Rollers in the first half were barely hanging onto their–
WHAM!
Right, she thought dazedly as she was bounced back from the impact. That guy. KEITHING skated in front of Aubrey, glaring over his shoulder at her. He’s the ‘mimic my every move’ guy, right? So he’s just gonna do that again. Leaning to the right, she made to skate around him. Immediately, he caught up to her, slamming hard on his breaks, making Aubrey fly back, her eyes wide and her chest heaving. So I probably have about thirty seconds left before his teammates finish recovering and meet up with him, she thought in dismay, and then…. She racked her brain for ideas, searching for weak spots in his wall, but all that she generated was the droning static that came with panic. In the distance, she could already hear skates rushing up to meet him…
“Aubrey!”
A blur of black and red flew past her right. Her team colors. They were moving slow enough that she could make out the name on the back of their jersey: SEAL THE DEAL. Oh. That’s Jake, then. Directly behind him was another player with a black and red jersey, and a blonde ponytail that was long enough to flutter in the breeze, but not long enough to block out the name on the back: DA-KNEE YA. As she rolled by, she jerked her head to the right and gave Aubrey a knowing glance. Come on!
Ohhh. Realization hit Aubrey like a wave as she reached out and grasped Dani’s hips, coasting forward on her momentum. From the corner of her eye, she could see KEITHING scrambling to catch up with them as Jake battered him back. The Hornet needn’t have bothered - she and Dani were already leagues ahead. Once safely past him, she tilted her head back to look at Aubrey. “You ready?”
No, Aubrey thought. “Yeah!” Aubrey said. In response, Dani nodded in response and returned her focus to the track, bending her knees a little to give Aubrey the room for what she needed to do. Guess I can’t make Dani do this by herself, Aubrey thought nervously as she drew herself closer to her girlfriend. With as much effort as she could muster, she pushed off from Dani’s hips, rocketing herself past her girlfriend, past the Rollers’ other two blockers, and past the Hornets’ final blocker and their jammer.
She broke out of the engagement zone in no time, her lungs and skates screaming with the crowd as she darted forward. Upon rounding the track, she was able to see a little more of the action occurring behind her. For all of the hell that the Hornets’ strategy gave them, it was evident that they still needed to work on it. They had put only one of their blockers with their jammer, leaving them helpless against the onslaught that the Amnesty Valley Roller’s other two jammers, DUCK AND COVER and NIGHT OF THE LIVING NED, were laying down. From her vantage point, Aubrey could see the Hornets’ blocker slam on their skates in front of them, just as KEITHING had done to her earlier. Duck didn’t even stop skating to sweep them aside with a devastating shoulder check, the trans pride flag that he wore around his shoulders fluttering dramatically behind him. Meanwhile, the Hornets’ jammer - SUPERFLY, according to their jersey - was flitting about behind the two of them, fruitlessly trying to break through their wall. In an attempt to free them, the Hornets’ other three blockers had joined the fray, Jake and Dani following after to try and stop them. Quickly, the players became enmeshed in a pit of flailing limbs, flying skates, and shouted swears. And they say derby’s boring, Aubrey thought smugly.
From the middle of the pit, Aubrey could see a black and yellow something fly forward - the Hornets’ jammer cap. The blocker - no, the pivot, she realized in horror - in front of Duck and Ned caught it effortlessly and slid it over their helmet, taking off immediately from the mass of players. Even from her distance, Aubrey could see Jake and Dani talking with each other as they raced after the pivot, literally strategizing on the fly. For her part, she leaned forward and desperately worked to increase her speed, but it wasn’t long before she heard the sound of skates behind her. In no time at all, the two of them were neck and neck, racing towards the start of the engagement zone. From what Aubrey could make out, they were short, muscular, compactly built, and fast as hell - the perfect pivot, essentially. Driven, too - they barely even acknowledged Aubrey as they barreled down the track, concentrating entirely on passing her and navigating the track. Not a bad idea, Aubrey thought, To see who’s up ahead. She herself checked the track. First up was Dani and Jake blocking-
Wait. Aubrey cut her speed, letting the pivot skate past her. “You go on ahead,” she said politely. Jarringly, it was the only time that Aubrey found herself able to generate a reaction from the pivot: they looked back to give her a confused, annoyed glare, but a reaction nonetheless. Shrugging, they turned around and continued racing ahead…
Straight into Dani and Jake.
Aubrey counted herself lucky to catch sight of it all as she skated past. It was something straight out of Derby 101 - the Hornets’ pivot shoulder checked and thrashed against the wall that Jake and Dani had forged, but it was clear that the two weren’t going anywhere. It was now that Aubrey could get a good look at their jersey name - MAULLIS. Jake held steady throughout their assault, never flinching when checked and delivering blows back with deadly precision. Holding out on the other side was Dani, keeping the wall up throughout it all, shouting out commands and calling to Jake for help when she needed him. She was cool under fire, never once showing panic or unease, and maintaining the situation with a sort of casual grace. Just like off the track, Aubrey thought proudly.
The two didn’t say much to Aubrey while she passed them. She didn’t mind - they seemed preoccupied. Guess I’ll be too, she thought as she saw the Hornets’ blockers up ahead. KEITHING had joined ranks with NEST IN PEACE again, abandoning the zig-zag pattern of zone play to stand side-by-side, the two of them wearing a look suggesting that they were eager for revenge. Oh, so now they’re doing walls, Aubrey noted with irritation, before shrugging. Nothing we can’t handle.
As she raced ahead, a voice cut through the cheers of the audience, the muffled curses of the players, and the squeal of skates on the floor below:
“Give ‘em hell, Aubrey!”
Seconds before impacting the Hornets’ blockers, Aubrey beamed. “You know it, Dani!”
~~~
Glossary:
Flat track: A roller derby track that is…flat. It’s often made with masking or duct tape.
Blocker: They try and stop the other team’s jammer from passing them and scoring points against their team, while trying to advance their own team’s jammer. There can be four of them on a track at a time. They don’t have any symbol on their helmet cover.
Jammer: The point scorer in roller derby, so to speak. Their job is to pass the other team’s blockers and score points for their own team. They’re identified by the star on their helmet cover.
Pivot: Someone who can serve as a blocker or a jammer. They can serve as a jammer if the jammer gives them the star cap. They’re identified by the stripe on their helmet, unless they’re wearing the jammer cap.
Engagement zone: the ten feet of space where blockers and pivots can block, serve hits, and prevent jammers and pivots from passing blockers. Outside of it, only jammers can block, hit, etc. each other.
Quick rules:
An average game lasts about four periods, each period being thirty minutes each, with the first and second half having two periods each.
The goal is for each team to aid their jammer in passing other team’s blockers, and by doing that, score points for their own team, while preventing the other team’s jammers from passing their blockers.
[ID: a drawing of lup and barry, with lup carrying barry bridal style on a purple background surrounded by confetti. lup is a thin elf woman with tan skin and brown hair pulled into a bun. she’s wearing a red suit and holding barry in her arms, kissing him and smiling. barry is a thin man with dark brown skin and short curly black hair. he’s wearing a long dark blue dress, and he has his arms wrapped around lup’s neck as he kisses her back. END ID]
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[ID: an aesthetic with 9 images in a 3x3 grid, all images with a gray background. from left to right, top to bottom: 1. “make people feel good about themselves” written in bubble letters. 2. a triangle shaped pin with 3 white rabbits on it. 3. “join your local girl gang” written in thin black text. 4. a series of matches, each more burnt than the one above. 5. a bisexual pride pin shaped like a heart. 6. a pair of combat boots. 7. “bisexuals kick ass” written in black handwriting. 8. a black top hat. 9. “you are magic, don’t ever apologize for the fire in you” written in thin black text. END ID]
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Some Kravitz/Taako/Magnus for you! Enjoy!
~~
The sun was sinking low in the horizon, casting a dazzling array of soft pinks and purples and oranges across the sky. Down on the ground, a fresh dusting of snow coated the landscape. Although the view of the outdoors was obscured by frost on the classroom windows, it was clear that it was shaping up to be a beautiful evening. Taako's students squirmed in their seats as he ran through the final magic lesson of the semester, and he had to admit that he was getting pretty antsy as well. The sooner he wrapped things up and sent everyone home, the sooner he could finally finish his long-overdue Candlenights shopping.
"…And so you move your casting implement like this," he addressed the crowd of fidgety students, swishing the prop wand he used for class demonstrations. "And just like that, you can whip yourself up a tasty holiday treat! This spell can be a real lifesaver sometimes--like when Susan promised to bring desserts to your Candlenights party and then flaked out at the last moment, just as an example."
He cast a glance at the clock mounted on the wall behind him. The hour hand was gradually approaching the 3, although the minute hand was lagging behind between the 8 and the 9. Eh, what the hell, he thought. Close enough.
"Okay, it's time to head home," he said, clapping his hands together and putting on a big theatrical grin. "Remember what I've taught you and, uh, don't party too hard? Nah, scratch that, party as hard as you want. See you on the flipside!"
At that, he heard a faint whoop from toward the back of the classroom, although he wasn't sure which one of his students it was. With a bemused smile, he tucked his prop wand into his purse, which he slung over his shoulder while his students gathered up their own supplies and jumped out of their seats. He hung back for a moment, giving his students the chance to file out first, but didn't lag behind for too long. He had places to go too, after all.
Immediately upon stepping outside, Taako was caught off guard by just how low the temperature had already dropped. It had been hovering around zero degrees celsius earlier that day, but judging by the way the wind nipped at his ears, that number had significantly dropped since then. Fighting back a shiver, he zipped up the winter coat which Kravitz had insisted he wear despite how dorky it looked and stuffed his hands in the pockets. The hood was a little cumbersome to fit around his ears, but he put it up nonetheless. He then scurried down the walkway away from his school as fast as possible. Kravitz was still at work, which of course meant that Lup and Barry were still working as well, and Magnus was probably out doing some shopping of his own, so this would have to be a solo mission. It was more convenient that way, really; shopping alone meant that nobody could peek at what Taako was buying for them.
A few metres down the sidewalk, his stone of farspeech crackled to life in his purse, broadcasting a loud but muffled voice. Without slowing down his brisk pace, Taako took the stone out and held it up to his ear to hear better.
"Hey, Taako," Magnus's projected voice greeted him. "I've finished carving Kravitz's present, so if you wanted to come home and put some enchantments on it or whatever, this would be a good time."
"Sorry, Mags, it'll have to wait," Taako replied. "Making friends was a mistake, because I've got a billion fucking people to get gifts for and today is the last day before all the shops are gonna be closed for the holidays. I'll get home as soon as I can, though," he added. "Love you, bye."
He turned the stone off and tucked it back into his purse just as he approached the store that would be his first place of interest: HMV (the store name, of course, stood for "Handy Magic Valuables"). Inside, the shelves were looking pretty bare as a crowd of shoppers milled around, filling the shop with a dull rabble that thankfully drowned out the chipper holiday tunes playing over the intercom. He made a beeline for the Kenny Chesney records and selected one he was pretty sure Merle didn't already own, then perused the selection of kid's movies, scanning the shelves for the flick Angus had mentioned wanting to own. The kids' section in particular was already pretty thoroughly picked clean, and for a moment he was afraid that the item he was after was already sold out, but upon glancing one aisle over his eyes landed on a copy of Detective Pikachu haphazardly tucked in amongst a bunch of remastered classic horror movies. While he was looking at that particular selection, he picked out the cheesiest-looking one he could find (something about a ghost shark that looked like it had been made on the budget of two cents and some pocket lint) as a gift for Barry. In the checkout line, he picked out some novelty socks with a rude saying on them for Lup.
After leaving HMV, he headed over to Fantasy Home Depot to pick up some stuff for Hurley and Sloane. On the way, he got another stone of farspeech call, this time from Kravitz.
"Hello?"
"Hi, babe, it's me," Kravitz said--he insisted on introducing himself that way no matter how much Taako made fun of him for it. "The Raven Queen is letting us off work early for the holiday, so I'm calling to let you know I'm coming home a bit early."
"Can she do that?" Taako asked.
"Well, she is a goddess, so she can do whatever she pleases."
"Yeah, I guess that tracks. So," he said in his least suspicious tone possible, "Are you home yet, or…?"
"Not just yet, but I'm about to head home." Kravitz paused, and when he spoke up again, there was a teasing note to his voice. "Why, are you and Magnus planning something you don't want me to know about?"
Taako bit back a string of curses, instead setting for grinding his teeth even though everybody and their goldfish told him it was an unhealthy habit. Yes, in fact, Magnus had set aside a half-hour every day for over a month to carve Kravitz a brand-new piano. Taako, meanwhile, had been scoping out all the local pet stores, planning to surprise Kravitz with a new cat and Magnus with a new dog (in addition to the Candlenights feast he cooked for both his boyfriends every year). Sure, it was a pretty big investment, but Taako's financial situation was better than his younger self could ever have dreamed--and besides, even if that wasn't the case, it would still be worth it to see the looks on his boyfriends' faces. He had no idea what if anything Kravitz was planning for Magnus, and what either of them were planning to do for him; his boyfriends were surprisingly adept at keeping secrets from him, probably because they knew him better than the average person.
"Um, no, we're not planning anything in particular," he lied. "But I'm actually out doing some shopping, so if you want to come rendezvous with me at Fantasy Home Depot, maybe we can pick out some gifts together. How's that sound?"
As soon as the words left his mouth, he bit back another even louder string of curses. Shit, no, he can't be with me when I head over to the pet store!
"Um, scratch that," he added before Kravitz could say anything in response. "I actually just remembered that I left my, er, my scarf at the school. So if you could pop over there and see if you can find it, that would be great. Okay, love you, bye!"
He cut the call off in a hurry as he headed into Fantasy Home Depot. On previous years, this had been his destination when it came to shopping for Magnus, and for Kravitz he had usually gotten some sort of novelty item shaped like a skull. It was amazing how the same goof landed every year; he almost wondered if Kravitz would be disappointed not to receive a skull-shaped drinking glass or lawn ornament or whatever this year.
He had already bought a new compass for Davenport and a glitzy novelty ornament for Lucretia, and Ren had insisted that she didn't need any gifts (although he still planned to prepare a special tray of sweets as a gift for her, that still meant he didn't have to buy anything for her aside from maybe a couple of baking ingredients). Once he had picked up the power tool and canister of engine oil that the battlewagon racers had requested, the only shopping he had left came in the form of two fuzzy little companions for the men he loved.
~~
When Magnus had taken it upon himself in mid November to start carving a grand piano from scratch, he had been pretty sure he wouldn't get it done in time for Candlenights. Two weeks into the project, when it had just been a big old block of wood hidden away in his workshop with what barely seemed like an indent in it, he had made a secretive late-night trip up to the Fantasy Bargain Shop and bought a skull-shaped lamp as a backup gift in case things fell through. Now, though, as he stepped back to admire the product of his work--a flawlessly carved grand piano, varnished and freshly painted black--his chest swelled with the pride of a job well done. Now all he had to do was check on Taako's gift to make sure everything was in order, and they'd be good to go.
Just as Magnus turned to leave his workshop, he heard the distinctive ripple noise of one of Kravitz's portals opening upstairs. He scrambled for a sheet big enough to cover the piano and hastily tugged it into place, making sure the gift was sufficiently hidden before heading upstairs to greet him.
"Hey, Krav! How was work today?" he asked, running up to Kravitz and giving him a clap on the back. "Taako is out doing some shopping right now, so he probably won't be home for a while."
"Yes, so he told me," Kravitz said, a note of something like irritation in his voice. "He also told me that he had accidentally left his scarf at his magic school, but I looked all over the place and didn't see any such thing. And wouldn't you know it…" He swiveled his head towards the dining room; Magnus followed his gaze to see Taako's scarf draped over the back of a chair. "Do you suppose he was trying to delay my coming home for some reason?"
"Could be," Magnus said with a shrug. It was only after he had spoken that he realized that was definitely Taako's motivation, probably to prevent Kravitz from seeing the piano. He repeated his shrug with a little more emphasis, then laid a hand on Kravitz's shoulder and gently guided his line of sight towards the fridge. "So, I was wondering if those liquor candies Merle gave us were any good," he said. "Why don't we get into them and see for ourselves?"
"Your restraint truly knows no bounds," Kravitz said, flashing him a teasing smile. "But I really would like to know why Taako wanted me out of the house so badly."
"Um, could be that he was embarrassed by how dirty it is," Magnus said. "We haven't had time to do much cleaning, you know. So we're gonna be real busy tomorrow if we want to have anyone over."
Even as he spoke he internally winced at how unconvincing a lie it was--if only Taako himself was there to think of a good cover. (Or he could just tell him the truth, he supposed, but that would ruin the effect and he really did want the piano to be a surprise.) Sure enough, Kravitz didn't exactly seem convinced; he crossed his arms and arched an eyebrow at Magnus.
"I live here, darling. You think our boyfriend would lock us out for such a reason? Back when I first met him and he was more guarded, maybe, but even then--"
"Or it could be a different reason," Magnus interjected, blurting the words out a bit more loudly than necessary. "We just don't know! But, for real," he added, "Don't worry about it. I promise you, it is nothing to worry about. On a completely unrelated note, welcome home, but please don't look in my workshop."
"Why, what's in the workshop?" Kravitz asked. "Other than that piano you've been carving, of course. Tell me, is it a gift for someone? Of course you know that I don't play piano, only the violin and the occasional woodwind instrument, but…"
He kept talking, but his words didn't reach Magnus's ears; his brain completely shut down for several seconds upon hearing the piano mentioned in such casual terms. When all of what Kravitz was saying caught up with him, his blood froze over. Shit. Fuck. Goddamn it. He knew about his surprise gift? Had known about it basically the whole time? And what's more, he didn't even want it as a gift--wouldn't have any use for it! Even beyond the matter of Magnus's hard work potentially going to waste, what was he going to get for Kravitz now? (He still had no clue what Taako was planning to get for either of them, so even if he did run out and get something now, it may well end up being the same thing Taako had bought for him and he really didn't want to repeat the fiasco of two years ago, when he and Kravitz had both bought Taako the exact same brand of confectioners' sugar.)
"Um, if you'll excuse me," he interjected, grabbing his stone of farspeech off the coffee table in a swift and hopefully not too obvious motion. "I need to go check the mailbox."
With that, he darted outside into the cold winter air, slamming the door shut behind him before Kravitz could respond. His back pressed against the door, he bent over to catch his breath. The cool air stung at his throat as he panted, and his exhales curled up in front of him in little puffs of white, the same colour as the snow. Once his heart had settled back down into its proper spot in his ribcage, he dialed Taako's number on his stone. Luckily, Taako picked up almost immediately, answering with a casual "Yeah?"
"Oh, Taako, this is bad," Magnus hissed, glancing through the window to make sure Kravitz wasn't listening in. "Kravitz knows about the piano I carved for him, and he says he doesn't want it as a gift! Well, he didn't directly say that, but he told me he doesn't play the piano, so he couldn't use it even if we did give it to him. What should I do? Are you almost home?"
"Oh, shit, that's tough," Taako said, letting out a low whistle. Magnus could picture him wincing and adjusting his hat, if he was wearing it--although a glance inside through the window revealed his signature wizard hat hung up on a hook next to his cloak of the manta ray, so perhaps he was going hatless that day. "Um, I'm still not gonna be home for a few minutes, so hang in there 'till I get back, okay?"
"Wait, babe, don't hang up yet," Magnus pleaded. "He's your boyfriend too, remember? Don't you want him to be happy with the gift he gets?"
"Course I do," Taako replied. "That's why I'm out picking up something for him right now. And listen, Maggie, I'm sure Krav won't hold it against you if you just end up giving him a hairbrush with a skull decal on it."
"You know, that's funny; I was just about to ask if I should give him the skull lamp," Magnus said.
Then he paused, listening to the background noise on Taako's side of the call. It sounded like he was in a pretty busy shop--of course, all the shops would be busy right about then--but the weird part was that he could hear what he swore was barking. Quite a lot of barking. And maybe some meowing and other noises too? Brows furrowing, Magnus pressed the stone directly against his ear so he could hear better.
"Hey, you're not at a pet store or anything, are you?" he asked.
"Just here to admire the exotic birds," Taako said. "Listen, though, I've really got to stop lollygagging around here at this pet store that I'm not buying anything from, and head on into the other store next door, which sells other non-pet stuff that I'm gonna buy. Catch you later."
Although Magnus grumbled to himself, initially discouraged when Taako ended the call, his boyfriend's words quickly gave him an idea. Tucking his stone away in his pocket, he stepped off the back porch out into the yard, where Taako and Kravitz had hung up several birdfeeders (he had carved some of said birdfeeders himself, and yet the storebought ones always seemed to be the most popular, which plagued him with irritation). It was too cold out for the yard to exactly be bustling--for once there wasn't a squirrel to be seen--but a few ravens were hopping around at the bases of the birdfeeders. Locking his eyes onto one of the birds, Magnus dropped into a crouching position. It was time to put some of his rogue training to use.
~~
By the time Taako finally got home, Kravitz was anxious enough that he jumped at the sound of the doorbell. From downstairs, he heard Magnus yell "I'll get it!" followed by the sound of his footsteps thundering upstairs. In that time, Kravitz had already come to the door; he held it open for Taako as he walked inside without even stopping to kick the snow off his boots first. Taako carried two shopping bags in each hand, and he was balancing a large box with holes in them under each arm. Kravitz regarded his boyfriend with mild concern as he staggered inside and set down first the boxes, with an unexpected gentleness, and then the shopping bags. Stooped over all his purchased goods, Taako's torso heaved with the weight of exhausted breaths.
"Are you alright, love?" Kravitz asked, unsure whether to chuckle or be worried. "It looks like you've done a lot of shopping."
"Yeah, no shit," Taako wheezed. Then, straightening up and wiping sweat off his brow: "So, have you got everybody checked off your list yet? Cause judging by how the shops were looking, you've got about ten minutes before the whole city is completely sold out."
"No, I've already got all my holiday shopping taken care of," Kravitz said (he had given his fellow reapers their gifts at a holiday party the week before, and the presents he planned to give his boyfriends weren't exactly the kind of things you could find at a store). "Do you need help putting these away?"
He cautiously bent down, reaching for one of the shopping bags. Taako made no move to prevent him from grabbing it, so he took it as a sign that the contents of the bag (a large drill tool and a vinyl record) weren't for him. He set about putting the items away while Taako caught his breath. Nothing in the bags was particularly heavy, so he guessed that the heavy things must have been the boxes. He circled back to try to grab one of them, but Taako's gaze snapped up at that and he moved to stand between Kravitz and the boxes.
"Sorry, Krav, this stuff's off-limits right now," he said. Then, glancing over his shoulder at the two boxes: "Although… hmm, how would you and Maggie feel about opening your gifts right now? That's probably make a few things easier."
"Oh, that's a great idea!"
Magnus's exclamation from behind them made Kravitz jump; he hadn't realized he had come upstairs. Turning to look at him, he appeared to be hiding something behind his back, and was hopping from foot to foot with a big nervous grin.
"I mean, only if you guys want to, of course," he added quickly.
An odd noise almost like a squeak sounded from somewhere in the room, although Kravitz couldn't tell where it was coming from--behind Magnus's back? From inside one of the boxes? Maybe even… no, surely not both. Kneeling between the two boxes, Taako glanced between them, making a soft anxious clicking sound. Kravitz raised his eyebrows but didn't comment. He had a building suspicious as to what at least one of the gifts Taako and Magnus had was, but he hoped he was wrong considering what his own gifts to then were. It would make it rather redundant, and more pertinently, they simply couldn't afford to support that many…
"Yeah, that sounds like a plan," Taako said, interrupting his train of thought. "What do you say, Krav?"
"Er, yes, that's fine," Kravitz said, flashing Taako a smile. "Let's get right to it, then."
"I've actually got my gifts for you two right here," Magnus said--yep, definitely hiding something behind his back, and there was an odd strain to his motion as he stepped forward that suggested he was having trouble holding onto it. "I was originally going to give Kravitz something else, but that didn't work out, so I kind of had to improvise, but considering your whole grim reaper deal I think you'll like it."
"Didja get him some skull trinket?" Taako asked. "Cause, hey, that's my job!"
"Huh? No, this is something different," Magnus replied. Neither of them seemed bothered by the fact that this exchange was transpiring directly in front of Kravitz himself. "Anyway, um… on three?"
"Hold on," Kravitz interjected. "I need to open a portal to the astral plane first."
Ignoring the others' bewildered reactions, he summoned his scythe into his hand and swished it through the air in a broad but purposeful stroke. A rippling hole in the fabric of space-time opened up before him, through which he could see the vast expanse of the world beyond. Bending down, he patted his knee and whistled into the opening. Somewhere amidst the inky blackness, two undead being perked up their heads and scampered over towards him. It hadn't been easy talking the Raven Queen into letting Kravitz give his boyfriends undead creatures for Candlenights, but he was certain that the payoff would all be worth it once he showed them the skeletal pets.
"There, now," Kravitz cooed to the skeletal dog and cat standing before him. He gently scooped them up into his arms, then closed the rift so as not to let anything else in or out. "Alright, on three, you said? Three, two, one--"
He turned around, skeletons in hand, to see Taako opening the boxes and Magnus revealing what he'd been keeping behind his back.
There was a beat as the three men stared at each other, their initial expectant grins at each other quickly fading. In Taako's corner, a greyhound puppy waddled out of the box on the left, and a sleek tuxedo cat stepped out of the box on the right. Magnus, meanwhile, held a raven in one hand and what looked like some kind of a strange weasel in the other. He and Magnus both slowly lowered their acquisitions to the floor, where the skeletal animals and the living ones all scampered toward each other and began sniffing each other--aside from the raven, which hopped over to Kravitz without wasting any time. He recognized it as one of the ravens who frequented their backyard; those corvids always had taken as interest in him, and the feeling had been mutual even before Kravitz had begun serving under the Raven Queen. The flesh cat trotted over towards him as well, while the skeletal one gravitated towards Taako and hopped up onto his lap. The weasel-like creature (maybe it was a mongoose?) followed it, albeit with a bit more caution. Both dogs practically charged towards Magnus, and he let out a delighted laugh as they jumped up at him. He fell back, allowing himself to be bowled over; Taako looked up from scratching the skeleton cat behind its spectral ears to give him a fond smile.
"Well," he sighed, "I guess we should've checked with each other first."
"Indeed, this is certainly… well, it's a lot," Kravitz agreed. The cat headbutted his leg as if to agree, or maybe to argue. "Although I must say, I do appreciate the thought."
They looked over at Magnus, who was rolling on his back with laughter and letting the dogs clamber on top of him and slobber all over his face. Taako grimaced at all the dog saliva, and the mongoose (which had now hopped up onto his lap) chittered with disapproval.
"Gonna be hard to look after them all," Taako went on as the mongoose scurried up his arm and onto his shoulder, and the skeleton cat curled up into a ball in his lap and started purring. "I mean, I bought food and supplies for the flesh boys, natch--" He nodded toward the cat at Kravitz's side and the greyhound pup, which was now sitting down directly on top of Magnus and licking him on the nose. "--And I dunno if these bone babies of yours are gonna need much upkeep… but still, it just seems like a lot, right?"
"It is a lot, is the thing," Magnus agreed from his position underneath the dogs. His hands didn't falter from petting them for even a second. "Probably impractical to keep them all, right?"
"Not to mention how dirty the house will get," Kravitz agreed. "Cleaning will be a nightmare with six animals running around…"
He looked down at the raven perched on his leg, and was met with a pang of surprise at the discovery that he was stroking its head. A glance to his side revealed that he was stroking the cat as well, and it seemed to be thoroughly appreciating the gesture; it repeatedly rubbed its head against his leg, purring.
"Yeah. Mm-hmm. Right. For sure," said Taako, in the distinctive tone he slipped into when he got distracted. "We really shouldn't… I mean, we messed up, good goof and all, but…"
He trailed off, and they lapsed into silence save for the purring of the cats, the sound of the dogs licking Magnus's face, and the soft shuffle of the mongoose making itself comfortable in the crook of Taako's shoulder. None of them stopped petting the animals even for a second--Kravitz wasn't sure he could bring himself to pull his hands away even if he wanted to. Finally, after what felt like simultaneously the most relaxing and the most stressful two minutes of his afterlife, Taako let out a heavy sigh and broke the silence.
"We're keeping them, aren't we?"
"Yep," Magnus replied without a moment's hesitation.
"Oh, we absolutely are," Kravitz agreed, breaking into a grin at the confirmation that the others were on the same page as him.
Taako grinned too, and although Magnus's position in relation to the dogs blocked the view of his face, he laughed again--less giddy now, but with just as much joy. Moving carefully so as not to disturb the pets, Kravitz scooted forward and laid his hand atop Taako's. Then, holding his gaze with an affectionate smile, he brushed back Taako's hair and leaned forward to kiss him.
"Joyous Candlenights, love," he murmured.
"Aw, geez, Krav," Taako mumbled, lowering his face as a furious blush spread over his cheeks. "No need to get so sappy…" He darted forward to kiss him back, then pulled back with a grin, still blushing even though they had kissed a thousand times before. "But, yeah, same to you, babe."
"Hey, what about me?" Magnus asked in mock offense. He gently lifted the dogs off of himself and sat up, edging over toward Taako.
"Sorry, dear, no kisses for you until you wipe all that fucking dog slobber off," Taako told him, giving an exaggerated shudder. Despite his words, though, he raised himself up off the ground to give Magnus a kiss on the top of his head. "And happy Candlenights to you, too. To both of you."
A great warmth swelled within Kravitz as Taako sat back down between him and Magnus. He looped an arm around each of their waists and drew them in close, smiling far brighter than he normally let any of his emotions shine through. Outside, the wind was still blowing as cold as ever, and dark clouds covered the moon, carrying the promise of a heavy overnight snowfall. Here and now, though, the three of them were warm and safe and happy--or rather, the nine of them. Yikes, that really was a lot of pets, wasn't it? Still, looking between his companions and the animals, Kravitz decided they could handle it. In any case, no matter how things turned out in the long run, this was a night that they were sure to remember for a long time to come.
[ID: a digital drawing of Hurley and Sloane from The Adventure Zone. They’re standing looking to the side in their battle wagon outfits. Pink petals are floating around them, with stylized pink tendrils filling the background. END ID]
A gift for @zeromotherfuckers, created by @d3moneyes!
[ID: a digital drawing of Aubrey and Dani from TAZ: Amnesty sleeping together on a couch. Aubrey is fat, dark skinned woman with curly hair that is short on the sides and long on top. The top of her hair is bright red and the sides are a dark brown. She is wearing a purple tank top and dark grey sweatpants. Dani is a thin, light skinned woman with long blond hair. She is wearing a light blue t shirt and dark blue sweatpants.
The couch they are sitting on is dark red and there is also a small coffee table with two white mugs to the right of them. The floor is light brown and the walls are light green and light red with crossed patterns. End ID]
A gift for @motherfuckingmagicbrian, created by @spinneraki!
I hope you like it, I always love drawing these two!! happy candlenights!
“GREETINGS NEWTON FAMILY!” Minerva announced, flinging the door open.
“Honey!” Duck said, clutching his hat to catch up from where he was running up the driveway, “I told you to KNOCK!”
“I did!” Minerva said, “and the door did not open, and so I decided to help it along!” She smiled at him, outshining the sun. Or so it seemed to Duck anyway.
“You are welcome to rob us.” A girl said from the stairs, “Start with Duck’s old dolls--oh, sorry ‘’’action figures.’’’’”
Duck rolled his eyes, and pulled the girl, his sister Jane, into a half-hug, which quickly turned into more of a half-nelson. “Missed you too, Gremlin.”
“Augh!!!” she yelled, flailing like they were kids again, “Abuse! Abuse! Child abuse!”
“Oh please,” Duck said, “You’re not a kid anymore, you can’t use that excuse.”
Jane grumbled. “That’s right!” she said in challenge, “I can fight back!” Jane darted her hands out to tickle Duck’s stomach instead, getting him to let go. “Ha! Jane Newton, Still the Undefeated champion!!”
“Most impressive!” Minerva said, still standing in the doorway and somehow not looking awkward, “Wayne Newton is a most formidable warrior.”
Jane raised her eyebrows. “Wayne, huh?”
Duck scowled at his sister, “Let it go Janey.”
“I also wish to inform you, Jane Newton,” Minerva continued, “That I have no intention of robbing your house, even Wayne Newton’s action figures.”
Jane smiled, “Oh, I like this one, Ducky.”
“Nope,” Duck said, shaking his head, “we’re not doing that.”
Jane ignored him and held out her hand to Minerva, “Pleased to meet you in person, Minerva.”
Minerva beamed again. “You as well, Jane Newton. I wonder, are you what people call, ‘a hugger?’”
Duck could see three whole jokes pass through Jane’s head that she swallowed down. “Yes, I most certainly am--”
Minerva swooped Jane up into one of her classic bone-crushing hugs. Jane groaned as the air left her lungs, while Duck snickered at her pain. He’s been there, though he didn’t regret it. “Alright, honey, let her breathe.”
Minerva let Jane down, who staggered back. “Well. Damn,” Jane said, blinking at the hug.
Minerva paused, “I hope I was not too forceful, Jane Newton. I’ve learned to ask permission first, but I have been told I have trouble holding in my incredible strength.”
Jane whistled. “Oh, I’m fine. Just fine,” she said, biting her lip.
“Hey,” Duck shooed her into the house, “My girlfriend, you can’t have her. Stop it.”
Jane chuckled, walking into the hallway, and letting Duck and Minerva properly enter. Duck took off his shoes, Minerva mimicking him. “Forgive me for stalling out here. I was just trying to save you, Mom’s on the warpath, and--”
“Wayne?” they heard a call from the kitchen, “Is that you Wayne?”
Duck sighed, “Hi Mom,” he said, “Minerva’s here too.”
“Excellent, come in here and set the table!” His mother called.
Duck sighed, taking Minerva’s hand and leading her to the kitchen.
His mother was bouncing about from counter to counter, preparing at least 3 dishes at once. On sight of her son, she thrust a stack of napkins into his hands. “Good to see you too, Mom.”
She doubled back to kiss him on the cheek before dropping her phone onto the pile of napkins. “I’ve pulled up a video on how to fold them, follow it as closely as you can. Jane, check on the vegetables while I mind the turkey, and--oh goodness.” She had finally taken in Minerva. “Oh my deary, you’re much taller than you looked on Skype.”
Minerva took it in stride. “Yes, I am very tall in comparison to most hu--women.” she stopped herself from saying humans, and Duck could only hope his mother and sister overlooked it. “Some people have become intimidated, I’ve noticed, but do not fear. I am here only for peace.”
Mrs. Newton’s face lit up. “Fear? Oh goodness no, deary. You’re perfect. Can you get the platters I’ve put on the top shelf there? I don’t fully trust my step stool, it’s rather old.”
“Certainly!” Minerva said, easily reaching up to grab it.
Duck smiled, taking the napkins into the dining room. He didn’t know why he worried. He should have known his family would take to Minerva just the same as he did.
He was still folding the first napkin by the time Minerva came in with a beautifully plated asparagus, complete with drizzles of sauce. “Are you having trouble, Wayne Newton?” Minerva asked.
Duck sighed, “Sorry ‘bout my mom,” he said, “She tends to go all out, and goes a bit overboard in my opinion. I mean, this is a bit much for a simple Candlenights.”
“There is no need to apologize,” Minerva said, “I don’t really know much about your human traditions. What is Candlenights, anyway?”
“A trademark of Big Head Productions LLC,” Duck answered easily. Minerva blinked, as she did when she was trying to figure out if something was a joke or not. “Look, back when she left my dad, Mom had this huge falling out with her church, and felt...weird celebrating Christmas. So we celebrate this like, secular version that’s on this podcast she likes and connects a bunch of different holidays together. Hence the menorah,” he said, nodding at the candle that served as a centerpiece, “And the Thanksgiving turkey and New Years Eve poppers….its just a whole grab bag of winter holidays.”
Minerva nodded, “A brave thing to do, to leave a culture behind that had wronged her, and to start something fresh and new.”
Duck smiled, “‘Brave’ is a...nice way of describing mom,” he said, “She’s a character, for sure. Always liked to do things her own way. It’s funny, when I came out---” he stopped himself, reminding himself he hadn’t actually super had this conversation with his girlfriend yet. Most people already knew once they’d known him long enough, but Minerva didn’t know a lot of human culture or societal norms or...anything.
“Came out of what?” Minerva asked, the only indication of how long he had stopped talking.
Duck took a breath, and summoned her over to his mother’s picture wall. There were two that were further back than a few years ago, the first of him when he was a baby….and the second of him with Jane when she was a baby. Except he had little pigtails and a yellow dress he’d hated wearing even that far back. “So, this is me,” he pointed at the young child holding up baby Jane. “Or...was me.” She frowned at him, not understanding the significance. “Ho boy, where to start. Um, so, when I was born….people thought I was a girl,” he winced, unsure how to explain western gender standards to an alien. Minerva always referred to herself as she, but he was unsure if that was a translation thing, or if her planet had the same gender norms or what.
“Why did they think that?” Minerva asked, innocently.
“I just…” Duck said, “Sometimes...that happens. People use the markers they have available before kids are old enough to really know themselves, and then...if they got it wrong, then those people---me---are called Trans. Like, transitioning. I’m a trans man.” She nodded. “But uh. Anyway. The point is, when they do the telling, it’s called ‘coming out.’ And...some parents don’t react well to it.” He smirked, “Not Mom though. She was ready to go toe-to-toe to anyone who gave me trouble about it. Gave me the name ‘Wayne’ too….that was quite the ordeal.”
He frowned, but wasn’t seriously annoyed at the memories of Mrs. Newton being fine with helping to change the gender marker on his ID, but refusing to let him legally change his name to ‘Duck.’ in fairness, he was happy with just having Duck be a nickname now. Wayne Newton was something he and his mother bonded over, so it worked out well, a symbol for just the family.
“Then she is an honorable woman,” Minerva said, getting Duck to smile wider, “and a worthy commander, I must go and help with preparing more dishes to be served. Are you sure you don’t need help with the napkins?”
Duck sighed, mood souring as he turned back to the cloth that refused to fold like in the video. “Give me one more chance before I call it forfeit,” he said. She frowned again, trying to figure out if it was a joke. “I’ll be fine,” he told her, quickly jumping to his toes to kiss her on the cheek, “Go help, before she declares you AWOL.”
Minerva smiled, recognizing that one for a joke. She gave a salute, “Yes, sir!” she said, before marching back into the kitchen.
Duck smiled, watching after her. He gave one last look to the photo on the wall, the only one of him pre-social transition his mom kept up. Even that had come with a long discussion, but Duck wasn’t ashamed of being trans, and besides, the first pictures of Baby Jane were important.
As he heard footsteps, though, he turned his attention back to the napkins. How in the hell was he supposed to just make it look like a swan?!
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[ID: an aesthetic with 9 images in a 3x3 grid. the top row is pale orange, the middle is pale pink, and the bottom is dark reddish-pink. from left to right, top to bottom: 1. “see good in all things” written in black, with “good” in white. 2. two rainbow female symbols interlocked. 3. the word “girls” written in neon lettering three times. 4. two jellyfish. 5. a drawing of the moon, with “the moon is a lesbian” written around it. 6. a wooden staff with a crystal embedded in the top of it. 7. a book with “i am not alone, but really i am alone” written on the cover. 8. a neon image of a hand making a heart with two fingers. 9. “oh look an actual goddess” written in white. END ID]
A gift for @ratbianz, created by @aubreylikesgirls!
Some lesbian lucretia for you!! happy candlenights!!
A gift for @paradoxgavel, created by @josscadeart!
~~
Jake sat at the shore of a small lake on the edge of the Monongahela National Forest, hands - still not used to having fingers - closing methodically around a snowball. He looked out at the shimmering, frozen surface of the water in awe, mind lost in thought.
“Who’re you?” A voice called from behind Jake, startling him.
He turned his head slightly.
There stood a child, no older than Jake was at 11. Scrawny and scrappy, hair mostly hidden beneath a toque, save a few strands of brightly colored blue-green.
After studying them for a moment, he replied.
“I’m Jake. Who are you?”
“I’m Hollis.” Hollis answered in return, stepping forward down the slight decline, careful not to slip.
“I’ve never seen you before.”
Jake nodded, not looking up, instead focusing on the icy lake in front of him.
“I just came here a bit ago.”
His brow furrowed.
“Mama said I shouldn’t talk to strangers.”
Hollis laughed.
“That’s meant for adults, not kids.”
They squatted down next to him, careful not to get their jeans wet with snow.
“Oh.”
“Why’re you out here?”
“Tired. Never seen something like this before.”
“Seriously? You don’t have winter where you’re from?”
Jake shook his head.
“Not like this.”
“It’s nice.” He said, after a moment of contemplation.
“Yeah.”
“Why are you out here, Hollis?”
“Dad’s being a dick, needed some alone time.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. ‘S not your fault.”
Hollis took a moment to look at Jake, all fluffy blond hair, and pale skin mottled with freckles.
What truly confused them, though, was what Jake was wearing.
It had to be at LEAST 10 degrees out today, and he had little more than a spring jacket and sandals to keep him warm.
“How the heck are you out here like that? I’m wearing full winter gear and I’m freezing dude.”
“I don’t think it’s that cold, is it?” Jake answered, a bit confused.
“You’re crazy man.”
Jake unzipped his jacket, much to Hollis’ befuddlement, and after struggling a moment with the sleeves, held it out to them.
“Here! I don’t want you to be cold.”
Hollis felt their face heat up despite the chill in the air, eyes darting between the sincerity in Jake’s expression and the flimsy coat held out with the intent to keep them warm.
Hollis stood up sharply.
“Put your coat on, stupid, you’re gonna freeze to death.”
Jake attempted to protest, but Hollis turned to leave too quickly.
Jake slumped slightly with the rejection, but soon straightened back out with a smile with Hollis, carefully hiding their face with their scarf, asked,
“Am I gonna see you at school?”
Jake beamed.
“Probably!”
Hollis nodded, turning to stomp back into the woods, leaving Jake to stare at the surface of the lake with a new sense of contentment.
—
1 Winter Later
A bell rang, not so far away from where Jake sat; atop a rock next to the play park on his school grounds.
“Put your damn coat on.” A familiar voice called, chastising him.
Jake smiles, not looking back.
“Hey Hollis!”
Gentle flakes of snow fell from the clouds, and, to Jake’s delight, stuck to the ground rather than melting away.
“You’re supposed to be in Spanish right now.” Jake thought out loud.
“And you’re supposed to be in Math, but we both have better things to do, huh?”
Jake smiled, a quiet laugh bubbling from his lips.
“Nah, I just wanted to see it. I missed the first snow last year, didn’t want to start a trend.”
“Why do you like winter so much, dude?
“I guess it just reminds me of home.” Jake shrugged.
“I thought you hadn’t even seen a frozen lake before you moved here.”
“No, it’s - We didn’t really have lakes. But that’s not the only reason.”
Hollis leaned next to the boulder Jake had perched himself on.
“Well?”
“What?”
“You’re gonna tell me the reason right?”
“Oh, uh.” Jake stammered.
“I dunno, it just feels like… Right? Everything just stands still for a moment. I can think about home without it… I feel like I have a second to breathe without worrying about life and stuff. It’s nice. It feels special.” Jake fumbled to find the right way to express it.
“You fuckin sap.” Hollis snorted, pushing Jake gently. “We’re in the 8th grade, man what’s there to worry about.”
“Yeah, I guess.” Jake conceded.
“So are we going to class, or are we gonna sit out here in the cold forever.”
“Sit out in the cold?” Jake answered, hopefully?
“Go to class, man!” Hollis laughed, picking up the scant snow that had layered itself on the grass and haphazardly tossing it at Jake’s face.
That got him to laugh, and Hollis felt a bit of triumph.
—
2 Winters Later
During, not the first, but rather, a midseason snowfall, they met atop Mount Kepler for some fun on their day off.
“Almost got it, Keith!” Jake exclaimed, wiping snow from his goggles and grinning.
“You didn’t fall on me this time!” Keith cheered.
“Still ate shit, though.”
“Hey Hollis!” Jake called.
“Sick stunts, what’s that one?”
“It’s called a Buddy Bonk. It’s radical.“
"Nice.”
“Wanna try?”
Hollis hemmed and hawed, before nodding.
“Hell yeah, let me just finish this cig.”
Jake and Keith made a few more attempts; a small jump, landing on a buddy’s upturned board (laying down with knees Firmly on the ground, Jake explained.) and kicking off. Hollis would have been content just to watch them beat the shit out of each other, but as their cigarette burned out, Jake noticed immediately.
“Ok, done. Do you wanna be the Bonker or the Bonkee?” He said with a smile.
“Is the bonker the one that eats shit?”
“Yeah!”
“I’ll do that one.”
Hollis clipped themself into their board.
“So, why are we stunting?”
“Cause it’s gnarly.”
“So, what, you want to be a stuntman now?”
“God no. Well, yeah, actually, but not like a professional guy who jumps explosions and stuff.”
“So just a hobbyist stuntman.”
“Exactly!”
“Just join the local stunt club, stunt on the weekends with the boys.” Hollis chuckled.
“That actually sounds sick though?” Keith said, “Just get our buds together and just kick it.”
“Kepler Stunt Club, accepting new members now!” Hollis gestured the title to the air.
Jake grinned, and Hollis flicked the last of their well-charred cigarette butt to the snow, they pushed their knees off and slid on their heels to position.
“Well, as you are now the founder of the KSC, you need to teach me that Bonk trick., ‘kay Coolice?”
“Heck yeah!”
Jake walked Hollis through the steps of doing a Buddy Bonk
It was, surprisingly, a bit complex. Certainly explained Jake being just fucking covered in snow.
Satisfied in his teaching, Jake lowered himself onto the ground to be Hollis’ Bonkee.
Sliding forward, Hollis bent their knees, readied a jump, and absolutely beefed it.
Tip of their board catching on the ice, they tumbled forward and landing right atop of Jake.
Jake coughed the breath from his lungs as he took the full brunt of Hollis’ weight and fell to the ground. Hollis, frozen with shock, didn’t move for a moment. Concerned, Jake shifted his weight to turn around.
“Oh, crap are you ok?” He said, cut off quickly by a quick knock, as his forehead collided with Hollis’.
“Jeez, ow.”
Hollis found themself at a pause. Unsure of how long they’d been there.
The initial shock of the fall had gone fairly fast, but…
Hollis’ hadn’t been this close to Jake before, they didn’t think.
He had always been a bit cute, they guessed… Fuck, they shouldn’t be thinking like that.
“Hollis?”
Fuck, how long had they been staring?
Hollis quickly scampered off of Jake, flushing brightly.
“Sorry, uh. I’m gonna go inside.” They shook their head, adjusting their board and taking off toward the lodge.
Keith and Jake watched as Hollis went.
“Wow they sure fucked that up, huh?”
“It’s a hard trick, we hadn’t even gotten it yet, why are they so upset?”
Jake wondered.
“I dunno.” Keith shrugged.
Jake furrowed his brow.
“I’m gonna go make sure they’re ok.”
Jake followed to the ski lodge, sticking his head into one of the recessed booths they usually frequented..
“Hollis?”
Hollis said nothing, staring at the table, and scratching at a spot of coffee stained to the surface.
“Hey, it’s ok that you didn’t make the stunt, me an’ Keith hadn’t gotten it either.”
Hollis mumbled something beneath their breath.
“Come on, Hollis. We can practice more if you want? Or we can work on an easier one first. I really want to learn how to Eurocarve…”
“I don’t care about the trick, Jake.”
“You don’t?”
Hollis shook their head.
“Why are you upset then?”
Hollis grumbled.
“Come on, you can talk to me about anything, you’re like my best friend.”
Jake said, tilting his head to meet Hollis’ downturned eyes, smiling softly.
Hollis met his eyes, searching his face for… Something.
“Fuck it.” Hollis sighed, as they leaned forward, as their lips met Jake’s.
Jake’s eyes widened, but didn’t pull away until Hollis did.
After a few moments of silence, Hollis clenched their jaw.
“Well?”
“Oh.” Jake said.
“Was that ok?”
“I have no idea.”
“What?”
“I don’t know how I feel about that yet.”
“Neither do I!” Hollis grumbled.
Hollis could see the gears turning in Jake’s head, before he too leaned forward and gently kiss them.
“I think I like that.” Jake smiled. “But I’m ok if you just want to figure it out.”
A small smile creeps onto Hollis’ face as Jake’s becomes infectious, just in time for a voice to interrupt their moment.
“Hey, you doing ok?” Keith asked.
Hollis looked up. “Yeah, I think I’m good.”
—
3 Winters Later
The Kepler Stunt Club was roaring to life, with most of the teens in Kepler either being on the roster, or simply hanging with the club from time to time.
It had gotten more chaotic than Jake would have liked.
“Hey Hollis, can I like, talk to you?”
“Yeah babe, what’s up?” Hollis said absentmindedly.
“Like, in private.” Jake clarified quietly.
Despite his low tone of voice, he was overheard by the club members loitering about.
“Ooooh!”
“Get it Hollis!” A smattering of people hollered.
“Sure.” Hollis agreed, glaring at the one who had interrupted.
Soon, they were alone, out behind an old building surrounded by evergreens wearing heavy coats of snow and ice.
“Is something wrong, Jake?”
“Uh, yeah I - sorta.”
“What is it?”
“I was talking to Keith earlier and he told me what happened last night. That you and him, and some of the guys had been out and decided to spray paint the sheriff’s office.”
“Yeah?”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea Hollis - “
“He was already up our asses when we weren’t doing anything illegal. What’s a bit of teen rebellion?”
“Yeah, but he was mad that some of the guys were grinding on the park benches. Not that we were committing illegal crimes.”
“It’s just graffiti, Jake.”
“It isn’t - It’s not cool. I don’t think that’s the right thing to do. Kepler Stunt Club was just supposed to be us doing cool tricks with our friends, not - “ wildly gesturing “this.”
“Seriously Jake, are you really getting worked up about this?”
“Yeah, Hollis, I am. I don’t like Dominic and rest of them thinking we’re a bunch of delinquents or whatever and using our club to do crimes.”
“It’s not crimes Jake, jesus.”
“Well what is it Hollis? Because I don’t think I want to be a part of this.”
“You don’t have to tag anything.” Hollis said, as they lit up a cigarette. “I just don’t see the big deal. They already looked at a bunch of kids and decided we were assholes, so why not get in their shit back.”
“Not just the tagging, Hollis.”
“What, like you’re quitting Stunt Club or something?” Hollis snorted. Jake couldn’t be serious, right?
“Maybe?”
Surprise caused Hollis to cough.
“You’ll quit Stunt Club, because Dom wrote his name on a building, and Keith and I just happened to be with him.”
“Hollis, I just-.”
“Fucking seriously, Jake? You’ll ditch your friends, you’ll ditch me because of this shit?”
“I didn’t say anything about ditching you Hollis, I just don’t want to have this stuff attached to me. Mama would kill me if-”
Hollis squints.
“Fine, whatever.” Hollis, giving up on the cig, plunged it into a snowbank, putting out the embers, before sticking it into their pocket.
“Hollis, please don’t be mad.”
“I’m not mad, Jake. But I’m not sure if I want you attached to me either after this.”
Jake faltered, hurt. “Really, Hollis?”
Hollis steeled their nerves, and didn’t react, stepping away carefully, leaving Jake without a goodbye.
Jake walked back to the car he arrived in, past the KSC, before getting in the passenger seat of a car and slumping in the seat.
“Dani, I think I fucked it up.”
“Yeah?”
“I think Hollis broke up with me.”
“Well that sucks Jake, I’m sorry.”
“I think it’s for the best… I don’t know what I can do for them right now. I’m not going to crap on my morals, but I don’t think I handled that well at all.”
“Do you want to go back?”
“No. I’m going to give them space. It’s the least I can do right now.
—
4 Winters Later.
A bright, sterile hospital room.
It’s a few days after the Hornets assisted the Pine Guard, and the residents of the Amnesty Lodge, fight off the Quell. There were no casualties, thank god, but a few injuries.
Hollis is hurt, laying on the gurney with leg in a cast, bandages around their ribs; a side effect of taking off and landing in a thicket of rocks and branches.
Keith had been keeping them company. He’s a good guy, a good friend.
They had been shooting the shit, talking about nothing to keep Hollis’ mind off their injuries.
There was a quiet rapping on the door, accompanied by a soft “Hey Hollis.”
“Hey Jake.” Hollis answered.
They stared for a moment, Jake not moving past the threshold of the door.
“Hey Keith.” Keith said, interrupting the silence.
“Give us a minute, Keith?” Hollis asked.
“Yeah fine, whatever. I’m gonna get some hospital pudding.” Keith smiled, giving Jake a semi-friendly shoulder punch on his way out.
Jake sat down next to the bed.
“You okay Hollis?”
“I’ve been better.” Hollis replied, gesturing to their broken leg.
“Yeah, same.”
It wasn’t awkward persay, to be sitting alone in a room together. It had been too long to be awkward anymore. But it wasn’t fully comfortable, like being away on a long trip, and coming back to a couch that had gotten used to not having you sit in it anymore.
“So, a seal, huh?” Hollis said, trying to clear the air.
Jake took his hat off sheepishly, and fiddled with the edges to have anything to do with his hands.
“Yep.”
“Not what I would have pegged you as, but make sense.”
“Yeah.”
Hollis smiles, and lays back down.
“Jake I-” “Hollis I-”
“Oh, no you go ahead.” “What was that?”
“You first Hollis.”
“I - ok - I don’t think I ever apologized, did I?”
“For what?”
“For what I said to you when you left the Hor- the Kepler Stunt Club.”
“You don’t have to-”
“No, I want to. I don’t think that I was necessarily wrong,-”
“I don’t think that’s how apologies are supposed to start, Hollis.” Jake laughed.
“Shut up” His laughter was still infectious. Hollis couldn’t help sharing a chuckle with him.
“-But I didn’t think about how you felt about it and why you would want to leave. It just felt like a… Betrayal? When you said you wanted to quit the club,” They tried to explain. “It was something the three of us started, It felt like you didn’t want to be around me anymore because we were ‘Bad’. It felt like how Sheriff judging us as bad kids without reason felt.”
“That not how I meant that Hollis.” He said softly.
“I know,” Hollis leaned over to pat his shoulder. “But, like. I get it. I get why you wouldn’t want to be an actual bad kid, because that’s where the rest of us were going.”
They sighed.
“I was angry, Jake. Not with you, just with life. And when you came and told me that I, that my anger was wrong I just. I couldn’t deal with it. I certainly wasn’t in a place where I could even start to deal with it. So I lashed out. I left you before you could leave me. And I’m sorry. Looking back, I don’t think you would have left me. But I do think I would have gotten more distant, and shitty, and cause you a whole lot of problems. I wish it hadn’t happened that way. And I get why you were upset for so long.”
“I was hurt, yeah. But I was a bit selfish too.”
“You really weren’t, Jake.”
“No, I was. I didn’t really get why you were angry. I didn’t want to get in trouble. I didn’t think about why you wanted that.”
“We were 17, Jake, we were both stupid shits.”
“I think we’re still stupid, honestly.”
Hollis snorted, harder than they meant to, hurting their injured rib.
They sucked in a sharp breath, holding their side, and Jake quickly got up before stopping himself from getting too close and sitting back down.
God, he was still so nice.
“I missed you Jake.”
“I missed you too.”
“I’m glad I risked my life to safe this shitty town. If I hadn’t then maybe we wouldn’t be finally having this talk.”
Jake beamed.
“I’m happy too. Do you think we can be friends again?”
“Yeah, I think we could.”
“Are you guys done yet?” Keith called from the hall.
“Yeah I think so.” Hollis said.
“Thank god, I was about to drop this.” He said, carrying an extra chair, with pudding and snacks on the seat.
“There. Now we can both sit.” He said, as he set down the chair and dumps the snacks onto Hollis’ lap.
“I’m not a table, Keith, what the fuck.”
Keith shrugged as he grabbed a pudding cup and held it out to Jake.
“Thanks Keith.” Jake accepted, peeling off the lid.
For once, Jake thought, all is well between them.
Except for Hollis’ bones.
“So, can you do that seal thing at will?” Keith said between mouthfuls of chips.
“Yeah, I just have to take off a bracelet.”
“Take it off!” Keith hollered.
Jake laughed as he took off his wrist cuff.
“God you’re so fucking big Jake.” Keith laughed.
—
1 Winter Later
“Ok, so you’re going to be in charge of bunny hill lessons, ok?” Hollis said, checking their clipboard notes.
“I’m nervous.” Jake admitted.
“Don’t be, you’re the best pizza french fry-er I know.” Hollis tilted their head with a smile.
“Aw, thanks.”
“You’ll do great, babe.”
Jake got ready to get going, but Hollis grabbed his hand to pull him back, and pressed a small kiss to his cheek. Jake squeezed their hand back.
“Oh god, your hands are cold Hollis.” Jake said, frowning, picking a lump of fabric off the office chair. “Here’s my jacket, I don’t want you to be cold.”
Hollis grabbed the coat, throwing it right back at Jake, with a wide smile and a faint blush.
“It’s the middle of February, Coolice!!”
Jake grins, giving Hollis two thumbs up before heading out into the snow.
