Mushy May Day 15: Painting On Each Other

Ok first off (I hope I'm not to late) HAPPY BIRTHDAY <3

And second, I just read your latest fic where Phantom regresses for the first time AND I LOVE IT. Honestly, little ghouls have a special place in my heart and it always makes me so happy to see other share the thoughts I have especially when they're kinda similar to my own (like Tain being the older and Dew just being a tiny baby)

Anyway, I'd like to request (only of you want off course) Phantom meeting little Rain and Dew for the first time? Maybe he is still big at first but just seeing Rain playing with toys/stuffed animals and Dew being cradled in someone's elses arms and getting taken care of looks so appealing to him and Swiss coaxes him to maybe join if he wants and slowly he does and Rain and him start to play together and the day ends with Swiss tugging them all in (Dew at first of course). Also you can add pretty much everything else you want, like with what they play, or what Dew does!

Getting to this super late lol (thank you for the birthday wishes I appreciate it)

This idea was so sweet and this is what popped in my head. I needed something soft so this was a joy to write.

I hope it's ok love 🖤🖤🖤

Cw: regressed ghouls, shy phantom, tiny Dewdrop

He'd been in a floaty in between space all day. He hadn't slept well and he didn't feel great and really all he wanted to do was wander into Swiss' room and ask him for help.

But he didn't want to bother him. He didn't want to be too needy...

He hears...he's not sure what he hears in the den but he's curious enough to go find out.

Swiss is on the couch with Dewdrop on the floor between the lower half of his legs, like Swiss' legs are the only thing holding him up. Rain's stomping around with two dinosaurs in his hands, shrieking and making them knock over towers of blocks.

One of the blocks lands in Dewdrop's lap and he blinks at it.

Rain swoops over with the pterodactyl. "Dew's gonna get squished! We gotta save him!"

Dew giggles quietly when Rain uses the dinosaur to grab the block off his lap. Swiss smiles and runs his fingers through Dew's hair.

"Good thing we've got Raincloud huh, firefly? He saved the day!"

"I'll always save Dew!" He races around the room and Dew claps.

Swiss catches him from the corner of his eye. "Hey bug!"

Rain stops running and Dew pouts. Phantom shuffles his feet, fuzzy socks sliding on the wood of the floor.

"Come over here." Swiss pats the spot on the couch beside him.

Phantom launches himself against his side, hiding his face in his shoulder.

"Feeling shy?"

He nods, thumb weaseling up into his mouth. He loves Rain and Dew but they've never been together like this and now he feels like he's intruding.

"Want to just sit with me and watch for a little bit? You can join in and play whenever you're ready."

He snuggles in closer, watching Rain from behind his hair when the water ghoul starts running around again. He roars and shrieks and makes the dinosaurs fight and Phantom smiles.

Rain flops over beside Dew, breathing hard and hands a soft, crinkley star to Dew who promptly shoves it in his mouth, biting hard into the fabric.

"Do you know dinosaurs?" Rain peeks over Swiss' knee to look at Phantom.

He shakes his head, gnawing on his thumb. He doesn't really...

"You can teach him." Swiss ruffles Phantom's hair. "You know what he does know a lot about? Sharks!"

"I have sharks! Hold on!"

He sprints from the den and Swiss cringes into the couch.

"Walk Rain!"

Dew makes a grumbling little sound in the back of his throat and bites his toy harder.

"Maybe Dew's not a firefly, maybe he's a dinosaur!" Swiss smiles down at the little ghoul between his legs, nose scrunched up as he chews on the star.

"C-could be a dragon...."

"Very true, love bug! Dewdrop the dragon!"

Phantom giggles when Dew tilts his head back to look at them, the plush toy hanging out of his mouth.

Rain darts back into the room, arms full of sea creatures.

"Hang on! Mounty has the rest, I can't carry all of them."

The giant rounds the corner with the rest of Rain's toys and Swiss laughs at him.

"You're lucky there are little eyes and ears right now." He drops the toys onto the floor. "Hi bug."

He blushes, Swiss is the only one who has seen him like this and he's not sure what to do.

"S'ok you don't have to talk to me until you're ready."

Dew squirms and holds his arms up until Mountain scoops him up.

"Hello firefly."

Phantom bites his lip. "D-dragon.."

"Hmm? Sorry bug I didn't hear you." He kneels with Dew in his arms, closer to the little Quint but not touching. "Can you tell me again?"

He glances at Swiss who nods. "Dew...h-hes a d-dragon..."

Mountain's eyes go wide. "He is?"

Phantom slowly uncurls from Swiss' side. "Yeah. He ate a star!"

Rain bounces over. "Help me find treasure! Dragons need treasure!"

"Why?"

Rain shrugs. "I don't know...but in all the stories they have some..."

Mountain laughs. "I think Dew is getting tired. Why don't you show Phantom your sharks for now."

Rain takes his hand and pulls him from the couch, both of them laughing when they bump into eachother. Mountain takes the spot Phantom had been occupying, tucking Dew more comfortably in his arms.

Swiss drapes his arm along the back of the couch and runs his nails over Mountain's shoulder.

"Been busy today?"

"Yeah, Sister has me doing the walkway differently now. She saw it at another Abbey so now naturally ours has to look like that."

They chat while Rain and Phantom play whatever game they created and Dew falls asleep, fingers wrapped tight around Mountain's thumb.

"Bath time?"

Rain whines. "But-"

"Minnow." Mountain warns.

"Sorry..."

"If you both clean up you can take a bath in Lus' tub together, lots of room for both of you and a couple sharks."

They race to clean up the toys, only getting distracted a few times. Mountain had left to get the bath ready with Dew in his arms.

"Ok pick a few toys to bring with you." Swiss claps his hands together. He wraps his arms around their shoulders when they're ready and guides them down the hall to Lus' room.

"Hi Lus!" Rain yells as he sprints by, racing to the bathroom.

Phantom clings to Swiss, chewing on his lip.

Swiss tugs his lip from between his fangs. "You're gonna hurt yourself, would you like a soother?"

He peeks around the multi ghoul to watch Cumulus. She's in a chair with Dew wiggling in her lap, fussing softly.

She shushes him and runs her fingers through his hair, holding him tight to her chest until he settles.

"Oh...hi bug! I didn't see you there!"

He gives a tiny wave but doesn't move from Swiss' side.

Lus smiles. "Do think you can help me before your bath?"

He likes helping...he nods.

"Can you pick some jammies for Dew for me? I forgot to grab them and he's comfy now."

"I-I can help." He tugs Swiss' hand. "Where are they?"

"We'll run to Mountain's room real quick and grab some."

Swiss leads him down the hall and over to the dresser with Dew's clothes, the ones saved only for when he's this small.

Phantom pokes around, rubbing the fabric between his fingers, scrunching his nose with his tongue poked out. Fully focused on the task at hand.

"This one!" He waves the soft pajamas around so fast and races back to Lus' room before Swiss can even see what he picked.

"Wow you're fast!" Swiss hears Cumulus before he walks in and he smiles, she's got him out of his shell without even trying.

"Picked these ones! D-Dew ate a star and now h-hes a dragon and these have stars!"

Her eyes go wide and she gasps. "Oh my goodness! Don't tell Aether that he ate a star, he might get nervous."

Rain pokes his head out of the bathroom. "Dew wouldn't eat Aether! Come on Phantom! The tubs ready!"

Swiss ushers him in just as Rain sinks into the bubbles, already making his sharks fight each other.

Swiss helps him from his clothes and helps him over the lip of the tub so he can sink into the water beside Rain.

Swiss laughs when Rain tosses a squishy squid at Phantom and it splats against his chest .

They splash and play, giggling happily, creating games Swiss can't even keep up with. He lets them play longer than usual, well past bedtime.

Rain begs for Lus to wash their hair, claiming she's the best at it and Phantom simply takes his word for it, only shying away a little bit before relaxing under her careful fingers.

He gets them dried off and in their pj's. He can't resist them and their soft puppy eyes when Rain asks if Phantom can sleep in his room with him and Mountain laughs with his arms full of a sleep soft Dewdrop.

Rain kisses Dew's cheek and Mountain's and Phantom gives a little wave before Rain grabs his hand and sprints off down the hall.

Mountain kisses Swiss softly before taking Dew down to his room for the night, humming a lullaby as he walks, swaying the little ghoul gently.

"Ok pick a book and hop up into bed so I can get you tucked in."

They pick Puff the magic dragon and Swiss squishes them together and tucks them in, tickling them when they are trapped under the blanket.

Phantom falls asleep halfway through but Rain makes it to the end of the story despite his heavy eyes.

Swiss smiles and pushes his hair back. "You helped Phantom a lot today, duckling."

"I did?"

"Mhmm, I'm really proud of you."

He smiles wide and snuggles down into the blanket further. Swiss kisses the top of both of their heads before switching on the light projector, sea creatures dancing across the walls with a soft glow.

"Sleep well, I love you."

The only response he gets is soft even breathing from both little ghouls.

𝘔𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘺 𝘔𝘢𝘺 𝘋𝘢𝘺 𝘛𝘦𝘯: 𝘘𝘶𝘪𝘦𝘵 𝘕𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴

Rating: G Pairing: Mountain/Aether with brief appearances by Dew and Rain. Words: 750ish Using this one as an excuse to talk about the abbey library (since I wrote this while at the library it seems fitting). Mushy May brought to you by @forlorn-crows Divider by @ghuleh-recs

Aether loves the library after dark. When it’s been deserted by the day staff. Lights turned low. Doors left closed, but unlocked. He lets himself in after long shifts at the infirmary and wanders the stacks. It’s a way to decompress. Not that there is that much stress at the infirmary these days. Mostly he deals with colds, flus, sprains, stitches, the occasional baby. There was a time when trauma seemed to live in those walls. Where he would go in knowing he’d come home bloody. 

But lately, things have calmed down. Evened out. He likes it. He likes the abbey quiet and stable. He knows it won’t last forever–can’t. That something will happen, another power shift, and the whole place will turn itself upside down again. 

He’ll haunt the library then too.

He walks the whole library before he even thinks about a book. Weaving in between the tall shelves. Climbing the narrow stairs to the fiction section, lofted above stacks and stacks and stacks of history texts and dusty books about summonings. 

He looks down over the library, it’s dark wood, and vaulted ceilings, and plush victorian era couches. He turns and plunges deeper into the stacks. Dragging his fingers over the spines of new fantasy books preferred by Rain, and the romances Cumulus and Sunshine read voraciously. He browses Dew’s horror section–in case there’s something new he should bring home to the fire ghoul. Glances at the young adult section that Aurora has devoured since she got here. 

He snags a historical fiction for himself, and presses onward into the darkness. There’s a nook, Dew found it years ago, tucked away behind this section. A set of winding stairs hidden behind a wall panel. Aether touches two fingers to the section of wall and it clicks, and pops out, swinging on invisible hinges. 

He steps into the stairwell and tugs it closed behind him. There’s light coming from above. The faint glow of the fairy lights he and Cirrus hung right after Dew found this spot. He follows that glow up the steep stairs and emerges into a small comfortable room. More of an attic than anything else–but transformed into something cozy. There’s a big window in the gable, flooding the room with moonlight. It’s warm and quiet, and not empty. 

Mountain’s seated on one of the many floor pillows. A blanket curled up around his shoulders, back to the wall, horns just barely brushing the peaked ceiling. He’s fully absorbed in a book that Aether recognizes as one of Rain’s favorites. Not a usual pick for the earth ghoul. 

Mountain looks up at him as Aether gets closer. He smiles, it’s warm and sleepy. He pats the pillow next to him. 

“Did you just get off work?” 

Aether nods, dropping down next to Mountain. Shifting so their thighs touch from hip to knee. 

“What are you doing up?” Aether leans his head into Mountain’s shoulder. Mountain reaches up and scratches his fingers through Aether’s hair. Soothing fingers rubbing soft circles above his ear.

“Didn’t realize what time it was–got caught up.” 

“Thought you didn’t like fiction.” 

Mountain huffs out a little laugh. “Yeah, guess I was wrong. Rain has good taste.” 

“He does,” Aether agrees. Settling in, he grabs a blanket of his own and opens his book. One he’s been meaning to read for a while.  “You hanging out for a while?” 

Aether doesn’t mind being here alone, but sometimes–especially tonight–the company sounds nice. Mountain’s ground presence sets him at ease like nothing else, he wants to drown in it. 

Mountain nods. “Got 100 pages left–I need to finish it. And then there’s the sequel.” Mountain holds up another thick paperback. 

Aether smiles, he leans his head a little deeper into Mountain’s shoulder and cracks his book. They fall into companionable silence, soft breathing turning into subtle purrs as the night wears on and the moon sets. 

In the morning, when Dew comes looking for them–he finds them curled up together. Books drooping from their hands. Covered in the same blanket, heads tilted together. The room filled with soft snores.  He takes a picture before he retreats. Sending it to Rain who’s out searching the greenhouse for signs of Mountain.

Found them he sends with the picture.

Adorable Rain responds seconds later.

Dew smiles at the sleeping ghouls in front of them, then turns away. He pads quietly down the stairs and closes the door softly behind him, and goes to finish making breakfast. They’ll emerge when they’re ready–but until then, Dew is more than happy to let them rest–they deserve it.

If you have Ghost you have everything

I'd like to request a SwissTom/DewTher double date please. Up to you if it gets spicy or not

I am very much stretching the definition of a double date here, but I had an idea that I could not put down.

Contains a very, very, very small mention of a Rite Here Rite Now spoiler. But just in case.

divider by @ghuleh-recs <3

This is it, Dew thinks, settling back farther into his adirondack chair, condensation from his beer dripping over his fingertips. Aether's in the chair next to him, a bonfire glowing a few feet ahead of them on the lakeshore, and the air is comfortably warm as the sun sets behind the forest surrounding the Abbey. This is the reward at the end of it all, all of the work, piety, loyalty, and literal blood, sweat and tears Dew's put into the Ghost Project.

Rain's still in the lake, bickering playfully with Aurora and Sunshine while Cirrus and Cumulus wring water out of their hair, wrapping towels around each other as the air starts to cool. Mountain's ducked into the woods to tap into the stash of firewood he keeps hidden for pack nights like this. Papa- no, Frater- No. Copia's asleep in his own adirondack chair, paperback open and resting on his chest, readers askew on his nose.

Aether sits next to Dew, taking a big swig of his beer, lime wedge shoved down into the neck of the brown glass bottle. His other arm hangs off the side, reaching just enough to twine his pinkie with Dew's. The touch is grounding, and Dew shuts his eyes, swallows his own mouthful of beer. They don't need more than this, every word has already been spoken between them, engraved into their minds the same way they have matching scars in the crooks of their necks.

A few feet away from them, the relative quiet is broken by soft chatter, Swiss practically giggling at something he said that Dew couldn't hear, matching Aeon's laughter. The two of them have practically been glued together since the end of the Re-Imperatour, and tonight is no different. Swiss leans back in his chair, and Aeon sits sideways in his lap, legs dangling over the armrest. Their horns click as they lean in to whisper to each other.

Dew runs his tongue over his fangs at how cloyingly sweet the two of them are. "I don't think we were ever that bad, right, Aeth?"

Aether snorts, finishing his beer. "I couldn't tell you, darling. We weren't looking in on us from the outside. We might have been that bad."

Dew tugs at his pinkie. "Yeah, you were so fucking desperate once you got it through your thick fucking skull that I was into you."

Even in the firelight, Dew can see the way Aether rolls his eyes. "In my defense, I'd never dealt with water or fire courting rituals before I met you."

Swiss starts, turning over to them. "You talking courting rituals, big guy?" he laughs. Gold and purple eyes practically glow in the firelight.

"Nah, we're talking about how the two of you are practically one ghoul now," Dew cuts in, setting his empty beer bottle onto the ground beside his chair to pick up later. "Haven't seen you take a breath without each other since probably Los Angeles. No, wait, it was after Sydney."

Aeon laughs, shifting closer in Swiss's lap with a soft chuff. The way they nuzzle their cheek against Swiss's doesn't help their case. "Gettin' caught up on lost time, it had been a really long time since I'd been touched nice."

Dew bites the inside of his cheek. "Yeah, I know, voidling," he says softly. Remembers the scent of terror that'd permeated the bus in the early nights of the tour. Remembers the way Aeon had shook against him the first night they'd shared a bunk.

"But Swiss, pup?" Aether teases. "You've got a whole pack of ghouls wrapped around your finger who'd be more than happy to give you affection, and you choose him?"

"Hey!" Swiss protests, throwing a middle finger at Aether as he hauls Aeon impossibly closer with his other arm. Aether just laughs, gold fang glinting in the firelight.

"I'm just saying," Aether shrugs, standing with a groan. "Any of you want another beer?"

"Please, starshine," Dew says, his pinkie still entwined with Aether's. He reluctantly lets go, lets his arm fall back to his side.

"I'll pass," Aeon says, mismatched eyes shutting with a heaving sigh. The air's starting to get a little chilly, and Dew bets the voidling's using that as their excuse to press even closer against Swiss.

"Me too," Swiss says, and Aether cocks his head at him, lips quirked up in a smile.

"Alright," he says, rummaging through the half melted ice in the cooler to pull out two beers. He sets his down to pull out the bottle opener, passing the first one to Dew. The fire ghoul takes a long drink, raising the bottle in thanks. Aether settles back into his chair with his own, tucking the bottle caps in the pocket of his shorts.

"No, but seriously, you're going to give us all cavities with how sappy you're being," Dew says, even as he reaches over the edge of his armrest to take Aether's hand. "How's the dental at the infirmary again, Aeth?"

"Well, it's where I got this," he says, tapping a claw against his gold fang. "So we're in luck. You two can keep being ridiculously sweet."

"Come on," Aeon whines, tail flicking behind them and whacking against the legs of the chair. A log shifts in the fire, sending flickering orange embers into the darkening sky. "We're not that bad."

"There's no way in hell that you two weren't as touchy," Swiss cuts in.

Dew laughs, copper eyes narrowing into slits as he gestures with his beer bottle. "Well. Seeing as you weren't summoned until a year and a half after we started courting, you have no fucking ground to stand on. For all you know, we were perfectly chaste."

"The two of you?" Swiss laughs. "Chaste?"

A tall shape passes in front of them, silhouetted by the fire. Mountain puts another few logs onto the bonfire. He turns to face the pairs, hands on his hips. "As the only one in the pack who was here when the two of you finally got your shit together, I can say with absolute certainty that the two of you were way fucking worse, Aeth, Dew. How the two of you managed to make the entire bus reek of sex in that tiny fucking bunk, Satan only knows."

Dew sputters, glancing between him and Aether. Swiss cackles. The quintessence ghoul grins, raising his beer in a toast. "Nema to that."

Mountain pulls up another chair, ruffling Aeon's hair playfully, running a knuckle along Swiss's horn. "Now, no more bickering. I'll chaperone this little double date, don't worry."

The five of them burst into laughter. It's so loud it startles Copia awake, and they can't stop laughing long enough to explain or apologize.

Let's add some more tat photos.

Thanks for the reminder

a companion piece to ibuprofen secondo

To Bea Okay Pt. 1: The First of a Thousand Steps Forward

[A desperate young woman with nothing to lose accepts a job offer that's a little too good to be true. Or, how Bea came to work for the ministry.] Below the cut.

From the moment she's approached on the street, Bea thinks to herself that this has to be some kind of elaborate scheme; That the flyer she is holding in her hands is a one way ticket to losing her kidneys to some back alley surgeon, and that she should do herself a favor and throw it away.

But, looking up from the embossed print at the odd nun who had handed it to her, she just gives a noncommittal shrug and tucks it away inside of her tote bag along with all the other random bullshit she's been handed already.

Despite putting on her bravest, bitchiest face when approached by people trying to give her stuff like this, Bea's never been good at turning people down when they aren't put off by her obvious annoyance and discomfort, because, quite frankly, saying "No" has always been a difficult thing for her to do.

Now, standing by a dumpster, Bea reaps what she's sown and turns her tote bag upside-down, letting its contents filter out into the trash.

Not like she has anything important in there anyway.

Everything slips away just fine, except for that stupid fancy flyer the nun gave her -the cardstock much more rigid than the flimsy printer paper she's usually handed- which gets caught up in the handles of her bag, and when shaking it doesn't loosen it even an inch, Bea gives an irritated grunt and rips it from there herself.

Looking at the paper once more, Bea leans herself against the bricks behind her and takes a moment to actually read what it says again;

"Now Hiring: Year Round Groundskeeper, Inquiries Please Visit Our Community Outreach Post At The Nunnery On Maple View."

Huh.

Bea squints at the page searching for any fine print or any obvious red flags, going so far as to hold the flyer up to the sparse sunlight peaking through the clouds overhead, searching for... something.

And that's when she sees it, the faintest hint of a odd sigil that appears like a phantom as the light shines through the dense paper;

It looks like an inverted cross with a circle set around the bottom.

"That's..."

Lowering the flyer, Bea tilts her head back against the wall, thinking.

On one hand, this is obviously sketchy as hell, but on the other hand, perhaps not the organ snatching kind of sketchy she thought it was.

Or maybe it's just a very fancy organ snatching thing.

She pushes away from the wall and shakes her head.

Honestly, if this is some kind of cult thing, she should hand this in to the authorities, but Bea's never gotten along with cops, and even if she hasn't done anything illegal in... about a year or so?

Yeah, she's not risking getting stuck in jail overnight.

But checking out a possible cult in the city using a groundskeeping job as a scam to draw in someone desperate enough to go for it?

Color Bea impressed.

And fucking desperate as shit.

If the offer turns out to be legitimate, cult or no cult, Bea's been looking for an opportunity like this.

Finally, a fucking chance of not sleeping in her car!

Erm... maybe.

Looking at herself in the window of an empty store front, Bea's not exactly the kind of person you'd want to hire on the spot; She's not big or tall, she's sturdy, compactly built, but entirely unassuming dressed as she is now.

It doesn't help that her hair hasn't been washed in days, or that she hasn't been able to keep up with basic hygiene like brushing her teeth, but-

...She needs this.

She needs to get out of this hole she's dug for herself.

Pinching her eyes shut, Bea takes a deep breath, rolls her shoulders, and stands up straight.

Fuck it.

Fuck it, fuck it, fuck it... she's going to do it.

She's gonna do it.

She's going to go in and ask about the job.

.

.

.

Bea's not sure exactly what a nunnery is or what purpose it serves -beyond being a place where nuns live- but sitting in the hallway waiting to be interviewed, she can at least admire the nice architecture.

It's strange though.

The lack of crosses on the walls.

In fact, there's not a lot of religious iconography anywhere in this front room, not that she minds really.

Bea's never been exceedingly religious; She wasn't brought up going to church, even if her mother had been raised Catholic, she, too, seemed disinterested in continuing on with her faith.

Not that she could really blame her.

Life had not been kind to her mother, and as a result Bea's hadn't turned out much better, but a small part of her has always held onto the hope that things could get better... even if things had really gone south for her over the last couple of years.

Lifting her head from her lap, Bea surveys the others waiting in the hall, folding back into herself just a little when she realizes she's the only woman here.

This sort of thing doesn't exactly surprise her all told, but it does make her a bit less confident that she'll even be considered for the job.

By and large people hiring for landscaping work or other jobs requiring physical labor prefer to hire men, even if Bea has the experience and know how, some folks are just set on the idea that someone like her can't -or even shouldn't- be working in this field.

She'd gotten enough "well meaning" lectures from older men about how she wasn't built for this kind of work, that she should stop cutting her hair, that she should smile more, and-

"Beatrix Milne?" A gentle voice calls, drawing her from her internal ramblings.

She stands and is greeted by a sweet looking, elderly nun, who gestures smoothly for her to approach and enter the room to her right.

Inside the room, sits an older woman dressed in mostly black with a brown shawl draped over her shoulders, grey and blond hair tied back in a tight bun that makes Bea's own head ache from the tension present there.

"Have a seat." the woman smiles, and Bea does what she's told, moving her tote bag into her lap so it doesn't catch on the arm of the chair, "I have to say, this is a refreshing sight, I've seen thirty men so far... It's nice to see a young woman like yourself applying for a position like this."

"I... Mn." Bea bites her tongue, unsure of how to feel about that statement, opting to simply nod instead, "I've worked similar jobs in the past, so I thought I would apply."

"Experience is a desired trait." the woman chuckles, tenting her fingers on the desk, "Introductions first; I am Sister Imperator, I am, as my title might suggest, the mother superior of this particular nunnery, though perhaps not for much longer..."

She gives a somber smile.

"And you are?"

"Beatrix Milne, or just Bea..." she says, "When you say that..."

"My health is in decline." Sister Imperator supplies, answering Bea's unfinished question, not seeming in the least bit offended by it either, "I intend to retire soon, and return home to the countryside, which is why I am hoping to hire a new groundskeeper; The property maintained by my family is quite large and difficult for someone such as myself to tend to, even with the help of the other residents of the property, only a handful of them are skilled in art of horticulture and understand the balance between beauty and the thoughtful maintenance required to care for the surrounding green spaces..."

"Additionally, there are tasks that need to be done that require the knowledge of how to use highly specific tools and machinery that I would not risk allowing an inexperienced individual using for fear of damaging it or themselves." she explains, "I also do not enjoy pulling them from their studies to work outside..."

"Studies?"

"Part of the property houses a school of sorts, a small one, but a school nonetheless, where individuals come to study specialized fields of science, literature, etcetera... I often rely on volunteers among these students to help maintain the property alongside our current gardener." she says, leaning back in her chair, "Our gardener is a diligent, hardworking fellow, but he oftentimes bites off more than he can chew, and he bears other responsibilities that take him away from the property for long periods of time, which makes it difficult to maintain things properly."

"...So you'd be hiring me to pick up his slack?" Bea questions, and Sister Imperator gives a little laugh and shakes her head.

"In a way, yes, but I really much prefer having someone else who's capable around when he is not, or perhaps when more than one set of hands would come in useful." she replies, "Making one person work to maintain nearly fifty acres of land would be cruel, even if a little over half of it is woodland."

"Fifty acres..." Bea tries to imagine it, but the sheer size is difficult to comprehend based on a number alone, so she tries to visualize it using a similarly large unit to help; Football fields.

As Bea sits doing the mental math of football fields to a single acre, Sister Imperator continues on explaining the details of the job.

"-Of course, I understand if you would be worried about leaving behind friends and family here in the states."

"Oh, uh..." Bea blinks back to the present at about sixteen football fields, "...No, not really."

"Oh?"

"I'm not in contact with my family, and I'm new to the area, so I don't really know anyone here." she admits easily, "I can pick up and go pretty much anywhere."

And that...

That really makes the older lady grin.

"Really... Well, I have to admit that that puts you ahead of some of the other candidates." she shuffles some papers in front of her, "...If I were to offer you the position now, how soon would you like to start?"

Bea stares.

"...As soon as possible... if p-possible?" she gives a nervous laugh.

Sister Imperator stands and rounds the table in a singular, swift motion, hand grazing the table top as she heads for the door.

Bea gives a nervous squeak when she opens it to step outside, but then the woman opens her mouth and-

"I've decided on a candidate, thank you all for your time, you are free to leave now."

The door closes again.

"Now then..." she says, gliding back around the desk and taking a seat once more.

"Let's discuss the finer details of your new job."

What.

"...What?"

Anyone with an ounce of common sense would have left that interview thinking it was shady as hell, but Bea?

Bea leaves the nunnery not thinking about much at all.

Actually, as she drifts through the door, the first thing that filters through her mind is how hungry she is.

There had been little candies on the desk during the interview, and she'd eaten one or two while waiting for Sister Imperator to come back with the necessary paperwork, and when she got caught popping a third in her mouth, the older woman had slid the bowl a little closer in a subtle, encouraging gesture.

Bea twirls one of the wrappers between her fingers.

"Maybe it's actually poison." a small part of her brain frets, but Bea just hums, thinking about what she can afford to eat that will actually be even remotely filling, "...It's sweet though."

.

.

.

Bea's never been on a plane before, and after being on one for nearly eight hours, she's come to the conclusion that she's never getting on another one ever again.

What little pride and dignity she might have had prior to boarding that wretched contraption is flung out the window as soon as she's firmly on the ground, curling into a tight ball.

If it weren't for the modicum of shame she feels -combined with a touch of nausea- she would have stayed there.

It sucks that for some things you have to experience it first to know how much it'll mess with your stomach, but, hey, now she knows.

Scrambling back to her feet, Bea parks her carryon beside herself and tugs on the coat she'd bought in anticipation of this trip; It may be decently warm inside the airport, but she can see the snow coming down outside, and she'd rather not freeze while waiting for her ride to arrive.

The ministry -the organization Sister Imperator works for...? Runs...?- had arranged to send a car to pick her up at the airport, which had been nice of them, especially seeing as Bea wouldn't know how to ask for one, let alone give the driver proper directions, because she doesn't exactly speak Swedish.

Yeah, somehow an old lady she's never met before, who possibly runs a cult, convinced Bea to travel to Sweden of all places on a whim.

Despite the obvious red flags, the prospect of being in a foreign country where she doesn't speak the language, and the voice of reason screaming at her NOT to do it; Bea did it.

She's always been this way truth be told, ever since she was a little kid, she knows she shouldn't but she does it anyway, because marching into Hell feels different than stumbling into it, even if she could have taken any other option.

At the end of the day, Bea supposes, she just wants to see what will happen.

She's the type of person who doesn't want to get involved with gossip, and yet needs to know all the details, and sometimes that requires her to get involved to some extent...

Although in this case, knowing that this could all be some ploy to drag her into something shady and illegal, the thought that echoes most prominently in her mind is...

"The worst they can do is kill me."

And in some strange way she finds comfort in that.

That, ultimately, coming here, she's accepting that as a possible outcome... and she's okay with it.

She's okay with the idea of dying.

Perhaps that's something she should be worried about.

But for now?

For now she waits for the car to take her somewhere far, far away...

👅

have you considered: Mountain/Aether strength kink

Oh, I am considering.

Considering Aether, hauling Mountain up over his shoulder and carrying him down the hall. One big arm wrapped around his thighs.

Thinking about the little sound Mountain makes whenever Aether lifts him, drags him around, or otherwise manhandles him.

Mountain loses his mind when he realizes Aether can throw him. No one can pick Mountain up, no one can really bully him around without him allowing them to. But Aether? Mountain doesn't stand a chance against Aether's strength.

He feels small in Aether's arms. Feels delicate. Breakable. Aether maneuvers him with no trouble. Knows exactly what leverage to use to put and keep Mountain where he wants him.

Mountain can't get enough of it.

And then, of course, there's the reverse.

No one ever manhandles Aether either. He's big. Sturdy. He doesn't expect anyone to be able to really pin him down. Hold him in place. He, like Mountain, has to allow himself to be pressed into the dirt and fucked. Has to pretend that he can't really get away.

Until, of course. Mountain pins him in the greenhouse one day. Presses his cheek right into the soft dirt on the greenhouse floor and Aether pushes up against him and realizes he's actually stuck.

That he can't get away from Mountain if Mountain doesn't want him to. The thrill that runs up his spine at that makes him shudder and rut his hips into the dirt.

He whines, pathetic, and Mountain laughs at him.

They seek each other out for it, a lot. Whenever Mountain wants to feel small, or Aether wants to feel weak, they know where to go.