#{ I ended up losing the prompt it was from but I remember the gist of it. }

[whitetiger-byakkomaru]

Help (( sorry I know we almost never interact ))

☾ — TO SAY THAT EVERYONE WAS EXPECTED TO BE ABLE TO HANDLE THE TASKS GIVEN TO THEM WITHOUT ANY ISSUE WAS AN UNDERSATEMENT WITHIN THE JAPANESE IMPERIAL DEMON ARMY, in fact, often times… if one was not able to successful preform the task given, their dependability would drop and they would either end up working elsewhere within the army or used as vampire bait when such a time for the need would arise. Yet despite this, not everyone could properly carry out their orders, especially that of the younger recruits. Usually they fell short when it came to things like combat compared to the adults or higher ranked working within the army, which was likely to be expected given the circumstances, but sometimes the young ones managed to surprise their superior officers with their abilities, thus earning them a possible safe spot within the masses of the other foot soldiers. But… this situation wasn’t exactly like that. No, the task at hand wasn’t anything combat related in the slightest, but instead mere housework as most would call it. Helping the wounded within the infirmary, helping to cook meals for those who had just returned from battle, working in the few farm fields they had, tending to the laundry of the army, or simply restocking supplies and fetching others from the various storage rooms.

☾ — He had only managed to happen upon her by sheer chance, BUT AS HE WAS PASSING THROUGH THE HALLWAY, he managed to see a rather short female soldier trying her hardest to reach the few items placed upon the highest shelf within the storage room. To say that her struggling was cute would prove inappropriate — especially given the fact he was supposed to be serious around his underlings — so instead he quietly enters the room just enough for her to see him within her peripheral vision. There’s a small wave of the hand to get her attention, but instead of looking at him (perhaps due to embarrassment from being caught in such a situation or simply because she was too focused on her task), she simply mouths the words ‘help’ towards him — so without much effort, Shinya reaches up and over the blonde female — grabbing onto the remaining few items before handing them over to her.

☾ — “Here you go,” HIS WORDS COME FORTH RATHER CHEERFULLY, “We all appreciate your enthusiasm to preform your tasks on your own, but perhaps next time it would be wise to bring someone taller with you? Or maybe just bring a step ladder?” There’s a short but breathy laugh that manages to escape the lips that were pressed into a smile on his face, free hand then coming to rest upon Elyon’s head before giving it a few good ruffles of the hair.

[newstedz]

snowfall ☆ kirk hammett

okay so i'm relatively new to this but i just was so inspired by @mustainegf 's prompt that I just kept writing and writing and you get the idea. basic gist is that kirk calls you over to watch an old movie with him, its all fluff (timeframe is around 1987, post damage inc. tour.) also sorry for the incredibly generic title I literally cannot think of anything else

exhausted was an understatement.

you'd finally gotten a day off, and god was it needed. you barely had any energy to get out of bed to grab a snack, much less go outside. besides, it was freezing, and as much as you loved the idea of snow, it loses its charm when you're stuck waiting at the bus stop in the middle of a blizzard.  the day is yours, and ideally it would have been spent alone, tucked into bed. but then, you got a call. your stomach instantly dropped. you anticipated it'd be your boss, fabricating some asinine reason for you to appear at work today, even though nobody in their right mind would be out in the cold just to go to some shitty retail store. you pick up the phone with a groan. however, you're met with another familiar voice. one you weren't expecting, and suddenly, that dread in the pit of your stomach is replaced with butterflies.

"hey!" kirk beams from the other end of the phone. "sorry- did I wake you up?"

"no." you reply. granted, you weren't fully awake, but you didn't have the heart to make him think he may have been burdening you.

"oh.. okay!" he says, not seeming to need much convincing. "anyways, i just got this tape, you've gotta see this. it's some horror movie from like, the 50's or something. I got the tape  from this guy, he- I mean, that's not really important, I guess." he says, his enthusiasm dwindling as his voice grows more shy. "but I was wondering, I mean, i'd really like for you to come over and watch it with me. if you want." he offers sheepishly.

you can't help but smile. if it were anyone else, you'd consider making up some elaborate excuse about how you caught a stomach bug or fell ill after standing in the cold for too long. but you've known Kirk since you were kids, and you can't remember the last time you guys got to really hang out. between you working and his touring schedule, things just never seemed to work. it was something special to him, too. you knew how involved he was in tape trading, horror, and all that stuff you couldn't quite wrap your head around. but for him, you'd do it in a heartbeat. you gaze out the window. it's still snowing, but it had slowed to flurries. a thin layer of snow coats the grass and branches of the trees. you can't pass this up.

"sure."

"really? nice! so um. I'll see you." he exclaims, abruptly ending the call before you could even ask when he wanted you to be there. you sigh, getting up and heading for the shower.  one long bus ride later, you arrive at his door. as soon as you knock he rushes to the door, trying (and failing) to hide his excitement. "hey!" he grins, showing off his adorable, crooked smile. he steps aside allowing you to enter. "sorry its a mess in here. i just got back.." he murmurs. you cant help but laugh. "its whatever, man. i've seen worse from you." you reply, earning a chuckle from him. as soon as you two get settled, the snow gets heavy. very heavy. seems like you made it just in time. kirk seems to notice too. "looks like you're stuck with me."

_

the next hour is spent watching the movie, though it seems like it was only used as a catalyst for the two of you to play catch-up and for him to infodump trivia about the film. though you can't focus on the movie, at least not now. you're too focused on the way the light shines off his face and curls. the way he incessantly giggles when recalling a crazy road story. the snow is piling up outside, and it's only now that you realize he was trying to talk to you.

"hey, did you hear me?" he asks, tilting his head. he figured he was talking your ear off, though you really could listen to him all day.

"huh? i- no, you're good. i'm just.. cold." you attempt to wave it off unconvincingly, only leaving you to be met with more of his concerns. "are you okay? you were kinda just staring. are you bored? we can do something else, if you want." he murmurs as he gazes briefly at you, only to shift his focus to the TV screen. it could be the lighting, but you could've sworn you saw the lightest tinge of color come to his cheeks. 

"what about you?" you ask. the whole time you've been here, you've gotten the basic stuff, yeah. but it wasn't as personal as it used to be between the two of you. you used to stay up for hours talking about your worries, your goals. you were the first one he told about anything, and vice versa. but now it seemed like he was nervous just from being the same room with you. 

"what about me? i'm fine." he shrugs, now trying to shift the attention back to the movie.

"then why wont you look at me?" the question sorta just slips out. you didn't mean to pry, today was supposed to be lighthearted, but kirk's reaction seems to confirm your suspicions of there being something more, as he begins to stumble over his words. you place your hand gently over his. "you know you can talk to me, right?" as your eyes meet, his face goes red. "it's stupid." kirk murmurs again, though he knows he can't hide this from you anymore. "i feel like.. i'm running out of time. I mean- you're not always gonna be waiting around for me, and it's like whenever i'm gone, i.." he trails off, shifting his gaze away from you yet again. he takes a deep breath, gathering his courage. "I like you. like really like you, and I don't wanna drift off from you or mess anything up-" kirk rambles on, but you've heard enough. you laugh, suddenly scooting closer to him. all you give is an affectionate "shut up" before your lips meet. you move away to see his shocked expression, but he quickly swaps it for a huge, dorky grin as he pulls you in for another.

a few more shared kisses later, kirk pulls away, staring back at the window. he turns back to you. "y'know.. it's pretty nasty out there. maybe you should stay the night." he grins, not subtle in the slightest. you can't help but laugh and nod. suddenly, the room feels so much warmer.

[yolowritter]

Lilanette Week: Body Swap!

Hello there everyone, and welcome back to my insanity! I ran into a few technical issues yesterday, hence the delay, but we're back now and you're getting double the Lilanette! It's a Win-Win, really! Anyway, I only have one more complete fic for this event and it's the Free Space on Saturday, but I figured I should still give you all the cliffnotes that @nicodemoon and I came up with! As an aside, this is a future au taking place sometime during their college years.

So, our story begins with Ladybug, and an Akumatized Villain! Do not ask me what their name is, I beg of thee. Naturally, they have the power to swap bodies between 2 targets, because Chrysalis is very smart. She's already forced the Akuma to blast her, and now only needs either Ladybug or Chat to get hit. Ladybug discerns this by the fact that no civilians are being attacked. Anyway, Chat tries to take the hit for her, but unfortunately...the Akuma just bashes him aside and blasts Ladybug anyway. Marinette opens her eyes to find herself in a dark, cramped place. The Parisian Catacombs, of course. Naturally she immediately notices that she's in Chrysalis' body and detransforms, running around to find a mirror. And when she does...Marinette has no idea who she's looking at. Yes this is inspired by that episode Flash and Lex Luthor from the animated series. Of course she asks Nooroo for the girl's name, but since she technically isn't his Holder, the poor Kwami just gets a case of bubble-mouth. Knowing she has limited time and that her own ID is most likely compromised, Marinette wracks her brain to figure out why this girl looks vaguely familiar. And then...she remembers! Because civilian!Chrysalis (lets say one of Lila's other identities) has actually met Marinette before! Where, you ask? In a bar of course, where she half-drunkenly asked her out on a date because she was pretty! At the time, Alya had been with Marinette so she didn't accept, but that's the memory that sticks out to her. Immediately after this, Ladybug blinks, finding herself back in her own body with the Miraculous Cure zipping through Paris. Chat compliments her for being incredible as always (possibly not having seen her get hit at all), but comments that she probably didn't need to take things as far as she did. We can assume that Lila-Bug went in the cartoonish violence direction to defeat the Akuma. Anyway, Ladybug goes home, anxious about Chrysalis possibly knowing her identity. In fact, she doesn't get a wink of sleep because of what happened last time (London Special). But in the morning, at 9am to be exact, her doorbell rings. Marinette isn't expecting anybody, so she holds her Miraculous close and goes to answer. Opening the door, she sees civilian!Chrysalis awkwardly standing there with a bouquet of flowers. She says hi and nervously asks Marinette on a date, which she accepts this time. End Fic!

Why does this entire thing happen? Because Lila wanted to find out Ladybug's identity. She's already developed a crush on Marinette, and this would be a bit funnier if we add a small beginning section with Lila ID #27 somewhere in the background. Something like attending a lecture in college, a coffee shop, you guys get the gist. Naturally, since her identity is compromised, Lila has nothing to lose and decides to shoot her shot with the local superheroine. Lilanette is presumed to ensue, and everyone is happy!

Obviously I didn't have time to write all of this in real fic format, but I still wanted to share what was drafted for this prompt. Shame I didn't get to make a fic because I think it's hilarious, but Saturday is much more important! Anyhoo, I'll see you all...in like 20 minutes with the Spooky prompt rant, similarly to this, but until then, Stay Miraculous everyone!

[cellsshapedlikestars]

It's been a while since I sent you a prompt so here you go (but also no pressure!!!): YouTubers Sansa and Jon meet when Robb does a big event thing (he is also an YouTuber) and they have such a great chemistry that their fans keep asking for a collab and those two can't deal because they liked each other but they also had messy public breakups and they are shy of trying again with another public figure (is that too specific? The gist of things is youtubers!au I'll love whatever you come up with ❤️)

Ummmmm hello.

I'd like to preface this by saying... I don't know, I've been in sort of a slump lately and realized everything I've been writing has been pretty depressing and bleak (and by that I mean stuff I've been writing but not posting). In general, I've been feeling very blah and so I decided to try and force myself to write something light and remembered this prompt existed!

I preface this because I'm not sure I'm super happy with the final product, but I've also been staring at it for a while and I'm just going to post it. So sorry if this isn't what you were looking for!

Also, I think this is the last prompt in my inbox (except for that one from an anon that I got back in December 2020 that's become a sort of security blanket for me and I don't think I'll ever do because I'll miss seeing it in my inbox).

.

.

“Is that the cooking guy Bran's obsessed with?”

Arya's words take a few moments to make their way into Sansa's brain. Between the noise and the lights and the mass of people around her, it's all she can do not to have a full panic attack.

Sansa loves people, she does, but there's a reason her job is mostly sitting alone in her living room talking to a camera. She's social to a point, and she'd left that point far behind about two hours into VidCon. It doesn't help that Harry is here, with his merry band of asshole vloggers. It took her much too long to realize how toxic that whole group was and she's forever grateful she never really participated in their videos. But between Harry being, you know, around, and the pressure of meeting fans and constantly being on, she's losing a bit of her sanity.

Luckily, she's got Arya and Jeyne with her – Jeyne as her manager and Arya as... well, Arya's just always been good at getting her out of her own head and bringing her back down to earth. Which is what she suspects her sister is doing now.

“Snow's Kitchen?” Jeyne joins in, and Sansa's grateful for something to focus on as they weave their way through the crowd.

She looks up to where Arya's pointing and... “that's Jon Snow?”

“Sure is,” Jeyne says, a sudden, gleeful smile on her face.

“How do you know? He never shows his face.” Sansa has seen Bran watch his videos and she's never seen Jon Snow's face before. She would've remembered. All she remembers from those videos is the camera pointed at a kitchen counter, and all she remembers of Jon Snow himself was a torso, hands, and a disembodied voice.

“Oh, he does sometimes,” Jeyne waves away as she and Arya seem to come to a silent decision and change course to the booth where Jon Snow is.

“Come on, Bran will kill us if we come back without an autograph,” Arya pulls on her arm. Sansa wants to be reluctant, but she ends up following the others without any real protest.

“Hi!” Jeyne enthuses when they make their way up to the booth. It takes a while – his isn't the most crowded, but his fans are clearly devoted. And, she notes, respectful. A sharp contrast to the fans that used to mob Harry, she can see the difference in an instant. Some of his fans seem to recognize her and move out of the way so she can get up to the front quicker, which makes her feel a bit guilty for cutting the line.

Jon Snow looks first at Jeyne, who'd spoken, but then his eyes move to Sansa and she feels... ok, she is not going to acknowledge the way her tummy flips. No way. She tries to focus on what Jeyne's saying.

“I watch all your kid's cooking videos,” Jeyne's saying, and that really brings Sansa back to reality. Jon Snow has a kid? He's probably married. Her stuttering heart and traitorous stomach can shut up.

“How old's yours?” a man asks, the one standing behind Jon that she assumes is his manager. He looks kind and gives Jeyne the sweetest smile.

“Oh, it's for my boyfriend, actually,” Jeyne explains. “Theon's the pickiest eater. I've found toddler food is the easiest way to make him eat vegetables.”

“Theon Greyjoy?” the man asks.

“Unfortunately,” Jeyne sighs. The man's eyes move to Sansa and widen a bit and she almost sighs internally. He obviously recognizes her. If he didn't know who she was already, Theon (and by default, Robb) probably clued him in. She's been in enough of their videos.

“I'm Sam, I'm Jon's manager,” the man introduces with a smile.

There's a lot of introductions and awkward shuffling as Sam brings them back behind the booth and Sansa tries very hard not to show how flustered she is when Jon shakes her hand. There's more talking (mostly Jeyne and Arya and Sam) and Sansa learns three things pretty quickly: Jon started a series on kid food because Sam's son is also a picky eater, Jon doesn't have kids himself, and there's no ring on his finger.

“Get a photo for Bran,” Arya says at one point, pushing Sansa in Jon's direction. “Our brother loves your videos.”

Jon doesn't seem to know what to do with the compliment and it's in that moment that Sansa realizes he's worse with real people than she is. Sansa can be social (she used to be more social, before Harry), but she gets the sense that Jon is a true introvert. It gives her a strange boost of confidence.

“Do you mind?” she asks, standing next to him and pulling out her phone.

“Course not,” he says and moves so he's in frame. She takes the photo and immediately sends it to Bran.

“We should head out,” Jeyne sighs. “You've got fans waiting and Sansa needs to be at her panel in fifteen.”

Some awkward goodbyes (or maybe that's just her projecting), and she tries not to think too hard about how nice Jon's smile is. She tries to shake him out of her head and focus, instead, on her talking points for the Women in Social Media panel she'd been invited to.

And she definitely ignores when Jeyne leans over and whispers, “he's much cuter in person, right?”

…

Sansa is unreasonably thankful to be home.

She loves her fans, she really does, but VidCon is always overwhelming. Now her life can get back to normal.

The first morning after she gets back, she rolls over in bed and checks her phone. At first, nothing seems off - the normal mentions and DMs and emails. It takes about five or so minutes to realize a lot of people are quote tweeting her and she clicks on the notifications to see... there, on her Twitter, is a short, looped video of her and Jon Snow. He's smiling at her and she's laughing at something he said and Sansa watches in horror as her video self reaches out and places a hand on his arm.

She quickly switches over to her messages and sends one to Jeyne.

What the hell?????

It was a cute moment! is Jeyne's near-immediate response, as if she was waiting for Sansa to text her.

Sansa groans and opens Twitter and clicks on Jon's name (that Jeyne had, conveniently, tagged in the post) and she sees that his most recent post is the selfie she took of them, with some caption about how great it was to meet her.

She calls Jeyne.

“Do you know what you've done,” she groans, flopping onto her back and staring up at the ceiling.

“I posted a cute video of you,” Jeyne says innocently.

“Have you seen the comments?”

“Oh, you know how the internet is,” Jeyne dismisses, and for a moment anger flares in Sansa's chest.

Jeyne isn't the one the internet is now shipping with Jon Snow, if the top comments she saw are any indication. Jeyne isn't the one who's very public relationship imploded in a very public way not six months ago. Jeyne might be dating a Youtuber, but she isn't a public figure herself and while Sansa knows she means well, she doesn't... she doesn't really know what it's like.

And this was a good move, Sansa knows, from a PR standpoint. That's Jeyne's job after all – she's her manager, she's there to help build Sansa's brand. Jon has nearly eight million subscribers, which isn't too far behind Sansa's ten-point-three.

“Jeyne,” she whines, closing her eyes tight against the suddenly too bright morning sun. “You know I'm not... associating with other creators right now.”

There's a moment where she hears Jeyne take a deep breath. “Not everyone is Harry,” Jeyne says, her voice losing the teasing quality it had started with.

The memories are suddenly there, hovering in the corners of her mind – that one girl releasing Harry's DMs to her. The floodgate opening, girl after girl coming forward with receipts. Proof that Harry had been cheating on her since the beginning. And she means girls, not women.They'd all been so young, it makes her sick. It's not like she's ancient at twenty three, but finding out her twenty seven year old boyfriend was DMing shirtless selfies to sixteen year olds made it even worse.

“I've never heard a single bad thing about Jon Snow,” Jeyne continues. “He's never been involved with any drama, no one has anything bad to say about him. He doesn't really do collabs with any other creators except maybe some chefs, so it doesn't seem like he's a clout chaser. Honestly, he's a PR dream. And if you were going to get back into collabs...”

“Jeyne...”

“Come on! Just because he's a Youtuber and hot as fuck doesn't mean he's a bad person. Just look at you! Don't judge a...” Jeyne seems to hesitate, search for words, “a... chef by his apron? Wait, no, don't judge a cookbook by it's cover, how did I miss that?”

“Oh my god,” Sansa groans. “If I agree to a collab, will you stop trying to come up with cooking idioms?”

“Yes,” Jeyne agrees, clearly pleased with herself.

Once she's hung up, she opens Twitter again and sees that she has a DM from Jon Snow himself.

Hey, I just found out Sam posted that photo without your knowledge. Apparently he and your manager decided all of this, but they should have asked you first. I can take it down if you want.

She stares at the message for too long before responding.

It's a good photo, it'd be a shame to delete it.

…

“The video title will be something like – Cooking Sansa Stark's Favorite Meal,” Sam tells them as he fiddles with the camera settings.

Sansa feels anxious, though she's been doing this for nearly four years now. She's perfectly fine in front of her own camera.

It's that Jon's audience is so different from hers, that's what's making her nervous. It definitely isn't Jon himself. She definitely doesn't notice how nice his arms are in his tight tee or how perfect his ass is in those jeans or even that stupid man bun that she should hate but absolutely doesn't.

“Here,” Jon hands her an apron and she busies herself tying it on and not watching Jon's hands as he ties his own. She absolutely doesn't wonder what his hands would feel like on her.

She is not getting involved with another creator ever again.

She made that promise to herself after Harry and she repeats it, over and over, in her head. It doesn't matter how attractive she finds Jon, it doesn't matter how nice he is.

“I still maintain it should be Cooking a Romantic Meal for Two,” Jeyne chimes in and Sansa feels her face heat and she can't bring herself to look at Jon.

It's not like they haven't acknowledged it – the way the internet has starting gossiping about them. And Jeyne and Sam have been very active in hinting about this collab and that's done nothing but fan the flames. Jon had pulled her aside when they got here to make sure she was ok with it all, which was... nice of him. She wishes he weren't nice, it would make her stupid crush on him easier to ignore.

“That's a little too pandering, even for you,” Sansa finally manages to say, which makes everyone laugh.

“So,” Jon says after they've done the video intro and he's explained to the audience what they're doing, “sushi is your favorite meal?”

“Well, I think my actual favorite meal is my mom's pot roast, but sushi is always my go-to when we're figuring out where to eat. And it's definitely not something I'd try making at home.”

The video goes well, she thinks. Jon gives her instructions and she follows them as best she can and she learns all sorts of things about him. He's from Winterfell, just like her, and he started this channel while he was in culinary school because all his friends kept asking him to cook for them, and he started making instructional videos out of spite. He has a dog (which he promises to let her meet once they're done the video, because Ghost isn't allowed in the area where they film, for food safety reasons). She also learns that he often donates his extra food to a local halfway home. Sam's the one to tell her this, and she watches the tips of Jon's ears turn red as he shrugs it off.

By the end of filming, she realizes that her small crush on Jon Snow has definitely evolved into full blown. And then, when she finally tries the finished product, she almost moans around the chopsticks and tells him that she loves him.

Luckily, she does neither of those things and saves herself the embarrassment.

…

This wasn't her plan, honestly.

She runs a fashion and lifestyle channel, it only makes sense that in her channel's collab video, they'd do something related. And Jon Snow is known for only ever wearing the same thing in his videos – black tee, jeans. That's it. Even in his public appearances and the few photos he's posted of himself on social media, its the same.

“Sometimes he puts on a flannel when it's cold,” Sam had amended with a laugh when Jon had grumbled about this observation, when it was decided that Sansa would buy him outfits in various styles and make him try them on for her video.

She swears she had started out with the most innocent of intentions.

She never intended to end up on top of Jon Snow in her bed while he's half dressed in khakis, the pink golf shirt he'd been wearing thrown somewhere on the floor behind her.

But, well, here she is.

“Sam and Jeyne are waiting,” Jon says, breathless and panting when they pull away for air.

“It's not my fault you look hot in soccer dad chic,” she grins, trailing her hand down his stomach to the waistband of the khakis. He laughs, head falling back against her mattress.

It's also not his fault that when she'd knocked on her bedroom door, where he was changing, and asked if everything was alright, she'd mistaken his response as a request for help and opened the door to find him shirtless.

(It might be her fault, though. She swears he asked her to come in, but now that she's taken a moment, that might have just been wishful thinking on her part. She's just glad he doesn't seem to mind that she'd barged in on him changing. Or that she practically threw herself at him.)

“I can't believe you actually got me to wear this,” he mutters.

“Just wait for beach vacation chic,” she teases. “Board shorts and a fun floral shirt...”

He groans, but there's still a smile on his face and she thinks he doesn't mind much at all. She's just about to lean down to kiss him again when Jeyne calls from the living room, “everything ok in there?”

“Guess that means we should get back to it,” Jon sighs, though his hands stay at her hips and he doesn't look like he really wants to get up. It's up to her to finally crawl off the bed and she pulls at his arm to make him sit up.

“Your next outfit's there,” she points at a stack of clothes. She's just about to leave when she turns and says, “maybe we shouldn't tell Jeyne or Sam about this? Until we figure out what...” She trails off, feeling suddenly shy, even though this is her apartment and they're in her bedroom and Jon had definitely seemed into that kiss. But Harry is still there, in the back of her mind.

“I'd like to take you out,” Jon keeps his voice low so no one but her can hear. “If that's alright?”

“Yeah,” she whispers, trying to tamp down the fluttering of her heart. “I'd like that.”

She leaves and closes the door behind her and takes a moment to lean against the wall of her hallway to try and process everything.

Getting involved with another creator is not something she ever intended, and maybe this will all be a huge disaster like Harry was but... but there's a part of her that thinks it won't be. There's a part of her that knows, somehow, that Jon is different.

She tries as hard as she can to wipe the stupid, besotted smile off her face before she walks back out to the living room, where Sam and Jeyne are waiting.

“Everything good?” Sam asks, eyebrow raised.

“Oh yeah, bit of a mix-up with the outfits, it's all sorted,” she says as breezily as she can.

“Good,” Jeyne nods. “Now, before we start filming again, why don't you fix your hair so the audience doesn't figure out you two mauled each other between takes?”

[oneoftheprettynerds]

So We Meet Again: Dark! Stucky x Reader

Requested: Yes, based on a prompt by @heavenlyseb

A/N: I was halfway done with LACs next chapter but the inspiration died Idk why so I thought I’d invest the creative energy somewhere else and then try my hand at that again. Thank you to you for dropping this request in my ask box, @heavenlyseb​. 

WARNINGS: Non-con, Mental breakdown, spiking a drink.

Summary: Reader tries to escape her past but it’s harder when your past includes dangerous men.

Word Count: 1.3 K {so drabble I think}

The entire day something had felt wrong. Maybe it was the universe’s way of sending you a message, foreshadowing misfortune in ways it knew. 

For the first time ever you had messed up breakfast, spilling the coffee and burning the toasts. Then you had forgotten some very important papers at home that Steve thankfully had a soft copy of on his laptop. After you left office earlier than him like you always did to go home and cook, you had your car die on you and leave you stranded. This series of unfortunate events didn’t end there; unfortunately, it followed you home. 

The streak continued with the laundry getting messed up, all whites turning pink and colored fabrics getting bleached. You fingers got stuck in a drawer, yours toes also getting stubbed. Nevertheless the day wasn’t even close to beating the worst day of your life; more like the worst few months of your otherwise simple life.

A shudder ran through you as the thoughts and memories you had buried so deep surfaced again. With one uncurbed thought that gave rise to the unpleasant memory train, you were back in that posh glass office again.

 It was New Years Eve. The decorations were still hung up around the large rooftop arena, from Christmas a few days ago. The bars had the strongest alcoholic drinks wearing pretty shades of blue and orange. There were plants draped in ornaments, a lot of them. You remembered chuckling about how the potted plants were a show of wealthy people, all affluent people pretending to have a green thumb or care for the Earth.

You greeted the people you knew and joked about resolutions. You remember hanging out with the only actual friend you had there, the receptionist Lucy. Anyone else you talked to at the company was merely a coworker, some of them plotting your downfall even. But Lucy was genuine, and so your only friend.

Said friend however, did abandon you few minutes prior to midnight with poor, half a hearted apologies, running in preparation for her midnight kiss. You giggled and honestly, weren’t even offended, just amused by her antics.

You planned on sulking in the corner with the other singles who weren’t ready to mingle and saying goodbye as soon as the clock hit twelve. That plan failed when your handsome hunk of a boss, whom you had seen only a handful of times and encountered for even fewer, brought you a drink and asked for a few minutes of your time.

You don’t know what made you go then, nor do you have any better take on the situation even now but the gist of it all was that you did oblige. It could have been the alcohol coursing through your veins, the encouragement by others’ jealous stares and Lucy’s wink or even the slight crush you had on the man with the cerulean eyes.      

However, going to his office and him fucking you on that sandalwood desk wasn’t your choice.

You remember him kissing you at the midnight stroke, a kiss sizzling with passion and yearning. When you both pulled away, you felt flushed and giddy but the carnal desire in his eyes after just one kiss alarmed you. Still, you offered to exchange numbers for a follow up, he was your boss after all but your dazed mind could not even remember your own number.

Your mind began to lose consciousness as you sweated and your skin heated, head and folds burning alike. You slipped in and out of articulacy, fragments of memory in your mind.

You shook your head as you realized you were shaking, keeping the knife down on the board and halting the slicing of tomatoes. You wiped your tears as you chided yourself for almost getting into another accident, a fatal one even, zoning out like that with a sharp knife.

The sound of the door opening and closing made you calm, Steve was home now. You hadn’t told him everything about your past yet, just bits and pieces, but you had never felt unsafe with him. He was nothing short of a gentleman, courted you properly and even waited months when you weren’t initially ready.

He let you progress the relationship on your terms, his support always there whether it was the question of spending a night together or moving in. His arms were where you felt the safest, his strength a promise of protection. 

A second set of footsteps made you furry your eyebrows, Steve didn’t inform you of company tonight. You pushed your anguish aside, putting on a facade for his guest as you got back to chopping. 

“Honey, I’m home.” Steve’s holler made you easy, his presence itself was comforting.  

“I’m in the kitchen.” You sung back, the nickname making you smile. 

“I brought a guest for dinner, hope you don’t mind.” He called out from the living room, the slight thud of furniture telling you they sat there.

You checked the broth, dinner for three would take time, even more so as your bad luck kept you on your toes today. Switching off the stove you sighed and made you way to the living room.

You planned to ask Steve to order and simultaneously greet his guest but ice froze in your veins when you entered the square doorway. Your planned again and at this point, one would think they had a knack for unsuccessful plans.

You could never forget the broad shoulders, the silky brunette locks and the sapphire blue eyes of James Buchanan Barnes, the handsome devil that haunted your existence.

You remembered waking up to your senses getting slaughtered. The drag of a cock in your hole as you clenched as tightly as a boxer’s fist. The squelching noises, the breathy moans and the sound of skin slapping skin. It took all you had in you to open your eyes every time you slipped out of consciousness.

You remembered being taken on every surface in his large office, against the glass panels looking onto the city below, on his velvet sofa, even his private elevator.  

Barnes had whispered sweet nothings in your ears that night and every night after like he was your lover, not your assaulter. How he cornered you with the obscene footage the night after when you threatened to press charges. You both knew then that you had no hope, no chance of winning against him and would have no dignity either if released some footage with some faces blurred.

He used and abused you and his power, until the day you finally gathered your guts and went far way, a new place, new start. 

You believed you didn’t leave a trail behind but then how was the devil himself greeting you in your own home? 

Your whole body shook like it did minutes earlier and you found Steve gently cradling your face. You flinched at his touch, skidding away, “Get this man out of here, Steve!” If looks could kill, the brunette would have dropped dead.

James Barnes had the audacity to smirk as you brushed a hand through his hair, ever so confident and smug, your shaken form amusing him.

Steve hung his hand around your shoulder and wiped a tear that had escaped. His arms were your haven and such you had believed until a moment later, “That’s no way to greet Bucky, sweetheart.” 

Your head whipped at light’s speed as you looked in horror at Steve, the hold on your shoulders tightening and keeping you alongside him.

“He was kind enough to give you months to adjust but now he misses you more than he can endure.”

  “Steve, you don’t know what your bastard of a frien-” You started hoping it was a misunderstanding on your part.

At the curse, Steve’s grip became bruising as he cut you off, “Trust me sweetheart, I know. Bucky and I don’t have secrets.” 

[be11atrixthestrange]

“Don’t hesitate, just kiss me.” I can’t help myself, Romione please? 😘

So, I took some creative liberties with this and I gave the gist of that line to George. He reeeeally wanted it, and I felt bad for him because his brother died. 

Thanks for the prompt!!

-------------------

Number Eleven

He could still count the number of times he’d kissed her on his hands.

With Lavender, it was hard to keep track because his mind would always wander elsewhere while they kissed. He’d start thinking about his schoolwork, quidditch, or Hermione. Mostly Hermione. By the time he refocused, it was impossible to know if they had shared one, two, or five kisses, and he didn’t really care anyway.

He couldn’t focus on anything else when Hermione kissed him, so he remembered each one vividly. Although amazing, it didn’t feel normal to be able to kiss her. He still hesitated each time, half expecting her to turn her head away and change her mind, but she never did.

First, the Room of Requirement. He’d never forget that one. Even if someone obliviated him, he was certain the sound of basilisk fangs clattering to the floor, and the feeling of her lips frantically meeting his would still be there.

Then they kissed again after the battle, on their way back to the Gryffindor common room. The heartbreak he felt for Fred must have been evident in the way he walked determinedly forward, face down, shoulders slumped, because she did exactly what he wanted her to do. She reached for his hand and pulled him to an empty hallway and hugged him. Then he cried into hair, and she just held him for as long as he needed to be held.

When he stopped crying, their lips came together. He didn’t know who initiated it, but it didn’t matter like he thought it would. Their second kiss communicated something completely different than their first one. Rather than ‘I want you’, it said ‘I’m here for you’, and Ron scanned every detail into his memory. It was softer, gentler and sweeter, and managed to burn away some of the sorrow he felt about Fred.

Their third kiss was in the boys’ dormitory, more specifically, his bed. Curled up in eachothers’ arms, under the blankets, they enjoyed a more passionate kiss that might have turned into a snog if he hadn’t been so damn tired. They silently agreed to put that on hold before sleep overtook them, and he was grateful, because he wanted to be fully present the first time they truly snogged.

They shared their fourth kiss the next morning, but Ron kept it short and sweet, because he hadn’t brushed his teeth yet, and he was a bit self-conscious…

The day after the battle was a blur. He spent most of the day making arrangements with his family, checking in with his classmates, and visiting victims in the hospital wing. They both remained distracted until later that evening, when they returned to the Burrow, and they shared their fifth kiss on the landing of the stairs before parting ways for the night.

Kisses number six, seven, and eight all happened the next day. In the garden after breakfast, quickly in the living room between chores, when they had a rare moment alone, and before bed, when Hermione managed to slide into his room, and Harry determinedly looked away.

Number nine was their first real snog. They took an afternoon around the orchard, and finally alone and obscured by trees, he embraced her. She let him press her up against an apple tree while he admitted her tongue between his lips, and it was a blissful oblivion.

Then there was number ten, earlier today, before the funeral. It was a lot like number two—comforting, supportive, gentle, hidden away from prying eyes.

The funeral ended hours ago, but Ron, Hermione, Harry and the rest of his siblings were still outside, passing around Butterbeers and telling stories of Fred.

Hermione was next to him, but no closer than she would have been sitting if they were still just friends. That was one thing about the last ten kisses, apart from Harry, no one else knew about them.

It was strange to feel such happiness with Hermione in the midst of his debilitating grief. Both emotions were so strong, yet somehow, they didn’t conflict with one another. He had enough room for it all.

Out of respect for everyone’s sadness, they’d been keeping their relationship relatively quiet. Ron was balancing both grief for Fred and excitement over Hermione, and he didn’t want to risk his family misunderstanding that. As a result, he still hesitated before each kiss, just to look around and make sure no one would see.

Then George brought it up.

“Fred and I would make bets with one another. There was one that never got resolved,” he said, staring directly at Ron.

He looked like he expected Ron to respond, so he did. “What was the bet?”

George motioned between him and Hermione with his butterbeer. “You two.”

“What about us?” asked Ron nervously.

“Are you together?”

Hermione and Ron exchanged a glance, and the grins that spread across their faces gave their answer away.

“Good,” said George. “Who kissed who?”

Ron looked back at George with wide eyes. “You bet on that?”

George nodded. “I reckoned you’d be the one to pluck up the courage and kiss her. Fred figured it’d be Hermione.”

Ron could feel his face reddening, Hermione smiled smugly in his peripheral vision.

“So,” said George, a little impatiently. “Who won the bet?”

“Erm, Fred won,” answered Ron.

“Bugger! He always wins,” said George, looking at Hermione with a hint of admiration. “Ron, why didn’t you kiss her?”

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but paused, unsure exactly how to answer. Hermione filled the silence.

“He hesitated,” she said, smirking. “So I took my opportunity.”

George smiled. “Of course he did. I’m happy for you both. Fred would be too.”

Ron looked at Hermione, and she slipped her hand into his. He wanted to kiss her, but was still unsure if it’d be in bad taste.

George didn’t seem to think so. “Well don’t hesitate, just kiss her,” he said, alleviating Ron of his uncertainty.

Hermione smiled as Ron reached a hand behind her head and gently guided her lips to his. Number eleven. He heard a chorus of “awws”, whistles, and even a groan from Ginny.  .

Now everyone knew. Did this mean he could kiss her whenever he wanted? If so, he would. He could no longer count their kisses on his fingers, and he couldn’t wait to start losing track of them.

[let-them-read-fics]

Saranghae

Requested by Anon: “Can i make a request for Blackpink RoséXFem!reader one shot/imagine where y/n always thought she was the one that said I love you first but she realizes rosé said it in korean when y/n was first learning it the first few months they were dating. like rosé says it and y/n is like wait what does that mean? and rosé teases her and doesn't say anything (holy crap this is long, sorry. i hope that makes sense. I asked someone else if they can write it but I dont think they're going to) thank you very much if you do🥺❤️”

Pairing: Rosé x Fem!Reader

Word Count: ~ 2,300

Warnings / Misc. -- Fluff, Happy Ending

Disclaimer: This writing is a work of fiction, and no disrespect is meant for those mentioned herein.

A/N: To the anon who requested this: Thank you! This is actually a really sweet ask, so hopefully I did it justice. I stuck with the gist of the prompt, but I added a little twist to it. I hope you enjoy; let me know what you think. Happy reading, everyone!

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

~~~ Flashback: A Few Months Into Your Relationship ~~~

“Baby, come grab the door, please!” You request, your hands busy holding the two steaming cups of hot cocoa you prepared for Rosé and yourself. At the sound of your voice, she sets down the notebook that she had been writing in, and makes her way to you. She appears in the doorway with a wide smile, her face lighting up when she spots the drinks. 

“How’d you know I wanted some?” She takes her mug from you, being careful not to move too quickly and spill it, and lays a kiss on your cheek -- her way of thanking you.

With a nonchalant shrug, you make your way across the room, saying over your shoulder, “It’s my superpower, duh. We’re just in sync like that.” The giggle that leaves her lips makes your heart flutter, and you can’t help but smile back.

Now armed with your beverages, the two of you sit back down on the floor next to each other, getting prepared for your mini lesson. The fluffy material of the carpet comforts you, and you settle in.

~~~~~~~

Rosé repeats the phrase one more time, slowing it down for you, enunciating the words as clearly as she can. Your gaze is set on her lips, taking note of how they purse and pout with the different syllables. You try again, albeit incredibly slow and choppy, but eventually the words manage to come out intelligible. She celebrates the win, quickly standing and pulling you up along with her for a victory dance; after all, it was a pretty tricky phrase for someone just starting out. She knows how competent you are though, and she wanted to give you a challenge. 

As the two of you stand there, doing a little dorky jig together, she takes a second to think. She is totally smitten with you: these past few months have been some of the happiest times of her life, and she owes a lot of that to you. There’s no one she’d rather have by her side like this, staying up well into the night to teach Korean to. She loves that you’re eager to learn more, and she’s ecstatic to be the one that gets to help you on that journey. It really is a special thing to her, and she doesn’t take it for granted. Time spent with you is heaven, regardless of what the two of you are doing. 

Rosé is pulled from her thoughts by the quiet sound of you yawning. Her heart nearly melts at the sight of your face all scrunched up, paired with the little wiggle that you do. She pulls you in, smiling as you nuzzle your face into her neck sleepily. “Rosé, I’d love to keep practicing, but I’m about to pass out.” Her hand comes up to run through your hair, the other one wrapped around your body to keep you close. “We should be going to bed anyway, babe. We can pick back up tomorrow, if you’d like.” She kisses your forehead tenderly as you just simply nod, your body too tired and brain too fried to do much of anything else. 

Once she’s tucked you in, making sure you’re comfortable and warm, she crouches down next to the bed. The lights are dimmed now, the only source of illumination being the moonlight that glitters in through the blinds, kissing your skin just right. Sitting there, face to face with you, she realizes that you’re her person. The one that she wants to wake up next to every morning and fall asleep wrapped around every night; the one to go on late night drives through the city with, stopping wherever your hearts desire; the one to hold through the bad times and comfort through the sad. You mean the world to her, and she can’t help but declare it.  

“사랑해, Y/N.” 

Despite only being half conscious, you’d never ignore the sound of her voice. “Mmm?” You mumble groggily, the noise making her laugh. She makes a mental note to add that to her list of favorite sounds. “Nothing, angel. Rest now.” With that, she goes to stand, but you catch her wrist before she can go. “No, tell me. Pleaaase?” Your eyes are open now, but just enough for her to see that beautiful sparkle in them. “Tomorrow. Now shhhh.” She leans down, placing a hand on your cheek to caress it, as she presses her lips to yours in an attempt to silence you. Her plan works, and she gives you a few more pecks before going to pick up and organize the books that were still strewn about on the floor. Not even a minute later, the sounds of your soft snores carry over to her ears, and she just shakes her head in amusement. 

~~~ The Next Day ~~~

“Alright, ready baby?”

“Do your worst.”

“Next up is… 사랑해.” Her eyes hold a hint of mischief, and you furrow your brow as you try to place where you’ve heard that. 

“Wait, wait, wait. Have you said this one before? It sounds familiar…” Now, deeply confused, you rack your brain. She plays innocent, though, having no intention of bringing up what happened the night before. With you being none the wiser, she’s content with teasing you for now. 

“Oh, that’s gonna drive me insane. Roseanne! What does it mean?” She chuckles at your frustration and use of her full name, but she doesn’t give in. Clearly, she gets a kick out of this. 

“Just start guessing, babe.”

~~~ Present Day, At The Blackpink Dorm ~~~

“Guys, I have the perfect game for tonight! Somebody was talking about it at the studio today: it’s called the Newlywed Game. I wanna see how well the lovebirds can do.” Lisa informs as she walks through the front door of the dorm, making her way into the living room where you and the girls are sitting. 

“Oh you’re on, Manoban. I know Rosé like the back of my own hand.” A smug expression takes over your features as you smirk at Lisa, standing up and playfully challenging her. 

“Oh yeah? Jennie and I are so gonna beat you.” She matches your energy, coming eye to eye with you, and she struggles to mask her grin. With the way she’s moving her lips to hide it, she kinda looks like a fish. 

Jisoo is next to speak as she goes to stand between the two of you, pretending to hold you back. “Hey, hey, break it up. Save it for the game.” Lisa sticks her tongue out at you, which prompts you to brush past Jisoo and tackle her onto the sofa. Jennie shouts, “Fight! Fight! Fight!” And soon, all of you are piled together in a heap of fake punches and throws, laughing loudly. 

{....} The Game {....}

“It’s neck and neck as our couples head into the final round; whoever wins this, wins the game.” Jisoo announces to no one, gesturing and looking to imaginary cameras around the room. “Contestants, are you ready?” Everyone nods in affirmation, and you give Rosé’s hand a loving squeeze. 

“Who was the first to say, ‘I love you’?”

At the question, you look to Rosé with a cocky expression on your face, absolutely convinced that you’ve got it in the bag. She scribbles her answer down on the white board -- yes, surprisingly, the girls had a few of them laying around the dorm -- and looks up at you with a smile. 

“Reveal your answers in 3...2...1…” Jisoo calls out in her best host voice, successfully creating suspense as she holds onto the numbers, dragging the count down out. 

“Now!”

Everyone flips their board around, and it seems as though time stops for a moment. Lisa and Jennie have the same answer, and you look to see what Rosé put -- despite being confident that you already know. Your jaw nearly drops to the floor as you read her name on the board.

“WHAT??” You exclaim, utter disbelief coursing through you: your whole life is a lie, it’s official. The other team is cackling by now, and you send them a mocking smile. 

Eyes now focused back on your partner, you say, “I totally said it first. Remember, that night after dinner with your parents back in Melbourne?” You hope something will click at that, her memory magically being jogged. Alas, that never happens. Everyone gets comfortable on the couches in preparation for the story she’s about to tell.  

“We hadn’t been dating super long, but it was when I was teaching you Korean back at your place. We cut the lesson short because you got sleepy, so I put you to bed. I couldn’t help myself though; you just looked so cute all cuddled up like that. I hadn’t expected for you to actually hear me, since I thought you had already passed out, but you asked me to tell you what it meant. I was stubborn and didn’t, of course,” You narrow your eyes at her, ready to stick up for your past self, but your heart secretly soars at how precious that story is.

“I love you, a lot, Rosé; but I hardly think that that counts, considering I was practically unconscious,” you say, putting emphasis on the word. The inner gamer in you is on full display, and you’re not ready to admit defeat yet. 

“Nope, we won, fair and square.” Lisa declares, exaggeratedly tossing her hair over her shoulder. You look to Jisoo, hands clasped together, eyes pleading, but she hands the victory to the other team. 

With a roll of your eyes, you tut at the loss; in no time, though, the feeling of Rosé’s arms snaking around you has you abandoning your little pity party, opting instead to smile at her. You pull her in for a kiss -- there’s no one you’d rather lose with, after all. Her lips turn up in a smile, and you can taste the cherry gloss on them. Eventually, the two of you decide to spare the others from your love-fest, and pull away. You keep an arm around her, your other hand busy being held by hers, and she lays her head on your shoulder. 

The playful atmosphere still stands, and Jennie goes to rub it in. “How’s it feel to lose, Y/N?” 

Dramatically, you look off into the distance, pretending to be in deep thought, before looking down at Rosé, and say, “With you, I can never lose; you’re the greatest prize I could ever ask for, Rosé.” The other girls let out a chorus of boos at your cheesy line, and Rosé lets out a little squeal as she scrambles to hide her blushing cheeks. With each laugh that she lets out, her body shakes against you, and you laugh right along with her. 

“Have I told you how adorable you are?” She asks, gazing up at you through her lashes. 

You purse your lips at her own cheesiness, and say, “Once or twice, I think. But tell me again.” 

Over the course of the night, she does just that -- multiple times, might I add -- and the 5 of you revel in each other’s company. Given their busy schedules, the opportunity to spend multiple hours with each other can be pretty rare; so, all of you thoroughly take advantage of the night. Karaoke sessions, Netflix binges, dance battles, food breaks, tickle fights -- anything you can think of, you guys probably did it. 

As things wind down, everyone is nodding off, and you take that as your cue to go. You remove your arms from their position around Rosé, the action drawing a whine from her, and you lay her back against the couch so that you can bid the girls goodnight.

“Sweet dreams, Y/N.” Jisoo says, voice laced with exhaustion, as she flips the small pillow in front of her over to the cool side. 

“Night, loser.” Lisa’s grin can be heard through her words, and you lightly smack her as you go by.

“Sleep well, Y/N. We love you.” Jennie is the most awake of any of them, and she reaches up to give you a hug. 

“Goodnight guys, we’ll see you in the morning.” Arms are thrown up into the air as a sign of acknowledgement to your statement, and you make your way back to Rosé.

She’s curled up against the side of the sofa, her hair falling gracefully over the armrest. Not having the heart to wake her up, you opt to scoop her up into your arms, smiling as she drapes hers around your neck. Her skin is warm against your own, and you take comfort in the feeling. Somehow she always manages to be so, so perfect, without even trying. As you make the journey back to her room, you’re careful to not bump into anything. She shifts a bit in your arms, and your heart nearly stops when she lazily mumbles your name in her sleep, a cute smirk on her lips. Nothing feels better than this.

Now in her bedroom, you slowly lean against the door until it shuts, and the soft sound of it latching behind you echoes across the silent space. You lay her down and pull the sheets up on her -- just as she had done that day, all those months ago -- and press a kiss to her cheek. “사랑해, Rosé.” As you climb into bed next to her, she rolls over to face you. A small smile plays on her beautiful lips as she says, “I heard that; I love you, too, baby.” A content sigh leaves your lips as you beam at her and pull her into your embrace. You wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in the world right now.

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

Thanks for reading!!!

[qobiin]

to live for us

pairing: gratsu (gray x natsu)

genre: angst, fluff | established relationship, canon-compliant

warnings: mentioned suicide attempt, post-galuna island arc, hurt/comfort, gray needs therapy

word count: 1684

summary: Natsu and Gray finally sit down and talk about Gray's Iced Shell attempt on Galuna Island.

“We need to talk.”

Natsu looks up from the drink Mirajane set down on the table before him a few minutes ago. Gray is standing in front of him, arms crossed against his chest in an attempt to stop his hands from subconsciously removing his clothes.

It never works, but Gray is of the mind that it makes him appear more intimidating than he actually is. Of course, Natsu isn’t sure he could ever find someone who wears underwear with hearts on them intimidating.

“Finally!” Natsu cheers, forcing a smile onto his face even when it’s the last thing he wishes to do. “Back home then?”

Gray nods even as he scowls, but he turns on his heel and immediately makes his way towards Fairy Tail’s doors anyway. Natsu jumps up from his seat and waves goodbye to Lucy who is sitting at the bar with Erza.

Happy looks up at him as he stands, but Natsu only has to wave wordlessly at him before the blue cat returns to focusing on his food. Gray is already halfway across the room, not one to wait or beat around the bush for important conversations like the one they are going to have. Natsu follows after him with his signature smile stuck in place, making sure to not have anything appear out of the ordinary about this situation.

He catches a few Fairy Tail members giving them odd glances, probably due to his and Gray’s lack of fighting and loud taunting. Natsu only waves pointedly at them before they avert their gazes and return back to what they were doing beforehand.

Natsu does not try to be subtle as he sniffs the air, taking in the familiar mix of scents in the guild. Everyone in the guild has known him long enough to know about the extent of the abilities he gained through the Dragon Slayer Magic that Igneel taught him as a child. There’s no need to be secretive around his hoard anyway.

Out in the streets, trailing after Gray as he leads them home, Natsu tones down on his sniffing as best as he can. If he garners a few strange or confused looks though, he doesn’t beat himself up about it. Most of these people will write off his behavior as a weird wizard thing and continue on with their day as they give him a wide berth. There is no need to worry.

His attention is drawn back to the moment when the scents start to signal his proximity to their home. Gray reaches the front door first and unlocks it, leaving it open for Natsu behind him.

The smell of home almost knocks him off his feet as he crosses the threshold. It’s just his, Happy, and Gray’s scents here, with hints of Erza scattered all around. Albeit, Gray’s scent is a bit stale considering the fact this is his first time returning home since they came back from Galuna Island.

They escaped punishment for breaking guild rules because the master wasn’t there but Natsu would like to not switch bodies with anyone ever again. It has been a few days at this point and still, Gray has not returned home. Natsu has been waiting patiently for this moment when they will sit down and discuss what is wrong.

Gray is sitting on their bed, shoes off and hands gripping the bottom of his shirt. Natsu reaches out and stops him from stripping, eyes on Gray’s face as the man focuses back in on the moment at present.

“Thanks,” Gray mumbles sullenly, his gaze downcast.

Natsu doesn’t say anything. He merely waits.

“I know you’re mad at me, but if you could tell me why you’re mad at me, it would make my apologizing to you much easier,” Gray scrambles to say after a moment of silence has passed between them.

Natsu tilts his head to the side and inhales, tasting the nerves and fright swirling around the edges of Gray’s scent. He exhales heavily, sitting down slowly on the bed beside Gray.

He leans back and lies down, keeping his eyes on the ceiling and not the man who should have been home with him these past few days. “I’m not mad.”

Gray twists at the waist to stare at him, his shoulders a stiff line that Natsu isn’t sure he has permission to soothe just yet. “Lying won’t help.”

“I’m not mad,” Natsu repeats, relaxing as their scents begin to blend together. “I’m worried about you. You scared me back there when you were going to sacrifice yourself to restrain Lyon. You knew by doing it your way you were going to end your life and yet you tried anyway.”

The silence that befalls them then is deafening. It goes on long enough that Natsu wonders if he should be angry after all. After a few seconds of contemplation though, he decides that anger would not help him right now and waits patiently for Gray to say something.

However, the longer the silence continues, the less likely Natsu believes that to be. Gray isn’t known for talking about feelings. Not just his own, but discussing feelings in general always gives his face a pinched quality that Natsu can’t help but laugh at sometimes.

He isn’t laughing now.

“You remember what I said when I asked you if we could find a place together, right?” Natsu asks once he is certain Gray won’t say anything without more prompting.

Natsu sees Gray’s nod in the corner of his eye and grins up at the ceiling as he thinks of the memory. Gray’s eyes had gone wide with surprise, his scent expanding with the force of it and appealing to Natsu so much he barely realized how close he had been getting until Gray pushed him back with a hand on his bare chest. Natsu had leaned in again to bury his nose in Gray’s neck anyway and gulp down lungfuls of his scent, smiling as Gray threaded his fingers through his hair and asked him why.

“I told you that you were the first in the guild to be added to my hoard when we were children. That I would want you near almost always and would despise every moment that we were apart,” Natsu recalls, his smile softer at the edges now. “I told you I fell in love with you when we were teenagers and that I would like to make you my mate in the future and you accepted.”

Natsu waits again, just to see if Gray will say anything at all before he uses his last-ditch effort. “How am I going to make you my mate if you’re not there for the future?”

Gray makes a sound as if Natsu has just kicked all the air out of his chest. They have fought and sparred enough times for Natsu to know what that actually sounds like so when Gray wheezes, he sits up quickly. He reaches out and takes Gray’s hands, biting his lip as the man who is his opposite in almost everything finally begins to cry.

Natsu moves closer until he can wrap his arms around Gray, tucking his head under Natsu’s chin as he shakes. His breath hitches but Natsu only clutches him tighter, holding him securely in his arms even as Gray somehow migrates to his lap. Natsu doesn’t mind that, he just holds on and waits.

Eventually, Gray’s sobs begin to make sense. Most of what he is saying is a mantra of “I’m sorry”s and half-aborted “I didn’t mean to do that”s, but Natsu gets the gist. He shushes and rocks Gray in his arms, focusing on their scents instead of the urge to cry with his mate.

When the worst of Gray’s tears have dried up, Natsu kisses the side of his head and pulls back far enough for their gazes to meet. Gray’s eyes are red-rimmed and puffy but he isn’t avoiding Natsu’s gaze anymore and that’s definitely a start.

“I think what happened with Ur was only dragged back up at Galuna Island and you never really healed from it,” Natsu ponders aloud, tilting his head in silent question and continuing when Gray nods tiredly. “She raised you like Igneel raised me and we’ve never gotten over suddenly losing them. Have we?”

Gray has to clear his throat twice before he says, “I don’t think we’ll ever be over that.”

“No,” Natsu agrees. “We won’t.”

“I should talk to someone,” Gray murmurs, the corners of his mouth twitching with amusement when Natsu raises an unimpressed brow at him. “A professional. Mirajane has been saying I should talk to the Good Doctor who helped Elfman after…”

Natsu smiles bitterly in response. Elfman was not the only one who had to talk to the Good Doctor after Lisanna died after all. Gray knows about this, of course, but Natsu had never strived to convince him of talking to the Good Doctor until now.

“I can let them know at my next session to expect an inquiry from you?” Natsu suggests.

Gray nods, leaning in quickly to press a kiss to Natsu’s cheek. “I’m still sorry. I just didn’t know how to fix things back on Galuna Island.”

Natsu nods but knows without seeing that his smile is not as bright anymore. “I think you just have to remember that you’re not alone anymore. Neither of us is and I’ll always have your back. We’re Fairy Tail members and you’re the one who I want to spend the rest of my life with. I want us both to have long futures ahead of us.”

Gray’s cheeks flush a light pink, his scent curling with both embarrassment and quiet joy. “It will be hard, but I’ll try. If not for me or for you, then for Ur. For the life she gave me by giving up her own.”

“For Ur and Igneel,” Natsu agrees. “May they look upon us and see us happy. Together.”

“Together,” Gray assures him before he leans in and their lips meet in a soft kiss.

a/n: i forgot to post this when i first posted it on ao3, but i hope you all like this! this was written for icewhisper as part of the secret snipers exchange 2020!

[eirenical]

I am dying to know about all of your guardian wips 👀👀👀

[In response to this post.]

(And anyone else who would like to ask about a WiP, please do! ^_^)

I AM SO GLAD SOMEONE ASKED ME ABOUT THESE.  ^__________^

OK, getting these out of the way first, because they are no longer WiPs...

cheng jie KNOWS: This is the fic that became This is Not a Shovel Talk.  ^_^  This is the fic set right after Zhao Yunlan loses his sight and Shen Wei brings him to Dr. Cheng.  Set in a much broader universe (the universe tag is “college shen wei fic”) where Dr. Cheng and Shen Wei were good friends in college, and she had taken bb!Shen Wei, fresh-faced from Dixing (and millenia underground OTZ) under her wing and he imprinted on her like a baby duckling.  ^_^

FEET: I’m sure anyone who’s been following me for a hot second recognizes what this must be.  ;D  It’s the fic that became The Inherent Intimacy of Walking Barefoot Around Someone Else's Home... which is NOT a foot fetish fic, no matter how much Zhao Yunlan thought it might be.  XD  It’s about the INTIMACY.  The YEARNING.  FINDING HOME IN EACH OTHER.  It’s about the DOMESTICITY OF IT ALL, OK?  ...also a ridiculously hot picture of a barefoot Zhu Yilong looking like an absolute thirst trap, BUT WHO’S COUNTING.  XD  (...you’re welcome.  ^_^)  All fic notes and posts can be found under the tag “the foot fic,” because I’m just original that way.  ;D

And now on to the actual WiPs! ^_^

...but behind a cut because this is getting long.

buried and stabbed bookjoyworm: OK, so this one actually... may be self-explanatory.  XD  I reblogged this writing meme yesterday, and bookjoyworm was RIGHT THERE with this suggestion: “trapped under something and stabbed/impaled for weilan.”  (I’m still taking prompts for this writing meme, BTW, if anyone is interested.  ^_^)  And my mind IMMEDIATELY latched on to the idea of some kind of a car accident or cave in where Shen Wei got everyone else out, but was then crushed under the debris/trapped in the crushed car himself.  And he’s half out of it because a piece of debris is literally pierced through his body and he’s slowly suffocating, and he’s the other half out of it because he’s flashing back to the millenia he spent trapped and buried alive and his brain just kind of shut down in panic.  Of course, they’re eventually going to get him out and he’s going to be fine, but HE IS NOT HAVING A GOOD TIME, IN THE MEANTIME.  And I know this is weilan, but I’m on a Shen Wei and Da Qing kick atm, so there is also going to be a little bit of “even as rotund as he is, Da Qing can squeeze through the debris and reach Shen Wei and helps act as a lifeline when Zhao Yunlan has to stop talking because he’s going hoarse.”  ^_^

Shen Wei college fic 01: ...exactly what it says on the box?  ;D  This is the first snippet of what will eventually become the larger universe from “This is Not a Shovel Talk.”  Takes place the first day of orientation with Cheng Xingyan taking a bb!faced Shen Wei under her wing. First bit is actually posted here, if you’d like to read it.  ^_^  Labeled “01″ because I see this being a series of shorter fic, much like the “Care and Training of a Former Megalomaniac” series.  ^_^

Mirror Mirror (x this short film that Z1L did with Li Bingbing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48K8Q7JyrNU): Oh, I am EXCITED ABOUT THIS ONE.  I am... currently in the process of taking a lot of it apart and rewriting it, but I’m still very excited.  ^_^  First of all, I recommend watching the YouTube link.  It’s a short film (~6 minutes); it’s set in the year 2084 on the Moon.  But here is the gist of it: a woman (LBB) has come to see an art installation of multiple mirrors.  The exhibit is about to close, but the curator (Z1L) keeps it open for her, conversing with her as she looks at the mirrors, but eventually becoming too overcome with emotion to continue talking.  She eventually follows the exhibit around to the stairs that lead up to the office and confronts the curator.  It turns out they have a history.  By the end, you get the definite feeling that there is a reconciliation (...and maybe more?) in their future.

So of course, I IMMEDIATELY went... omg... what a GREAT concept for a Guardian reincarnation story.  *_*  So, the basic premise is that drama canon pretty much went as drama canon goes.  Some 30-40 years later, Shen Wei and Zhao Yunlan are reincarnated.  Shen Wei doesn’t remember anything at first, but he’s haunted by his image in the mirror, convinced that the boy he sees in his reflection isn’t him, but is instead someone else.  (Spoiler: Because it is.  Two guess as to who and the first one doesn’t count. ;D)

He has... a rough go of it.  He starts pursuing art as a way to try to purge the half-memories and images that haunt him, eventually fleeing for the isolation of this installation on the moon, because he can’t handle the oppressive concern of everyone around him for his sanity.

Zhao Yunlan, OTOH, was orphaned as a child, but found and adopted very quickly by Da Qing and Zhang Shi.  I don’t think he remembers his former life, at all, but most of the major players are there; it’s only been 30-40 years and even the humans could still be alive by then.  He’s been following Shen Wei’s art for a while, fascinated by the young brilliant recluse, some nagging sensation of familiarity telling him that this person is special, and more importantly, special to HIM.  He eventually saves up the money to go to the Moon and see the mirror installation.  (By this point, Shen Wei has his memory back and he is absolutely floored that Zhao Yunlan just... waltzed into his exhibit like that, and he doesn’t even know how to begin to process it.)  The rest of the fic follows the short film canon, only this time it’s Zhao Yunlan seeing Shen Wei and just... KNOWING.  And then they live happily ever after.  ^_^

[simpingforthehunt]

Can't Lose You

Pairing: Jonah Heidelbaum x Reader

Premise: Y/N confronts Jonah about the Hunt.

Masterlist

requested by: @fanfictionedagain

CONTENT WARNING: Mentions of death, murder, N@zis, and trauma.

word count: 1,041

A/N: So I'm not *great* at writing angst because I'm terrified of conflict myself, but I tried XD Hope you enjoy it :)

Jonah was finally home for the first time since Meyer's death, grateful to finally get some peace to himself. Unfortunately for the Nazi Hunter, that peace didn’t last long when he heard an aggressive knock at the front door. "What the fuck does Millie want now?"

He stepped away from the Crock-Pot, and open the front door to find a very angry Y/N glaring up at him. "What the hell, Jonah?”

"Wait, what?" Jonah stood at the door, shocked to see his partner at the door. They usually called beforehand to let him know they were coming over. "Y/N, what are you doing here?"

"Fucking Nazis, Jonah?" they whisper-shouted. That prompted the boy to step aside and let Y/N in the house, trying to figure out a way to explain.

The first thing that Y/N noticed was the smell of Chicken Noodle, calming them down a bit. Ruth had always been good to them, and Y/N considered her soup their go-to comfort food. The old woman was missed, and the sudden wave of sadness fed into the anger they were feeling towards Jonah. "How could you get yourself involved with Nazis? Jonah, that's extremely dangerous-"

"I know."

"You could get hurt!"

"I know."

"Or worse, they could kill you!"

"I know."

"I can't lose you," at those words, they broke down crying. Noticing their knees buckle, Jonah rushed to them as they sank to the floor. He held them as they bawled, thinking about the weight of their words. Y/N felt the same pain Jonah had when they lost Ruth and Arthur. They had imagined Jonah being the next person murdered, especially with clear evidence someone was after him. He knew exactly what they were feeling.

A feeling of guilt bubbled inside Jonah. He had cried himself to sleep a few times at the thought of Y/N's body in a casket. That fear caused him to push them away more than he did with Carol and Cheeks. He understood why they were so angry with him and now felt angry with himself for lying to her. After Booty died… Jonah wouldn't be able to live with himself if anything happened to anyone else he cared about.

After a few minutes passed, the sobs turned into shaky breaths and a section of Jonah's shirt was soaked. "How much did Cheeks tell you?"

"Only…" they trailed off, trying to remember how to properly breathe. Y/N took a deep breath and wiped the tears from their face before continuing. "Only the gist of it."

Relieved, Jonah untangled himself from Y/N and stood up. He held out his hand, and Y/N begrudgingly took it before getting up as well. Jonah led them to the living room and pulled Y/N into his arms once they sat on the couch. He tried to ignore how they tensed at his touch and tried to break the ice with an apology. "I'm sorry, Y/N. I was trying to protect you."

"I can handle myself," they argued, their tone bitter.

"Just let me explain," Jonah said. "Without interruptions. It's hard enough to talk about."

While Y/N didn’t respond verbally, they did physically. Jonah took them relaxing a bit in his arms as an invitation to continue. He took a deep breath and started with Meyer. How the old man waltz right into his life and brought him to The Hunt. How Meyer told Jonah that it was a mitzvah. The Hunt wasn't too pleased with his arrival to the team, arguing that Ruth didn’t want him involved. All of them had gone against the idea of Jonah joining them.

He was both offended and angry at that moment. Harriet calling him a child, Roxy's comment about refusing to start a kindergarten, Joe's general attitude towards the 19-year-old, Mindy and Murray's worry and concern, and Lonny's initial annoyance. All of it bothered him more than it should. Jonah had been underestimated his whole life, and being seen as a burden by a group of strangers hadn't helped at all. He was desperate to prove himself. Had to show them that he was a vital asset to the team. However, once he watched them torture Karl Holstedder, he ran.

He had distanced himself from the Hunt for a day before Booty was killed, and in that moment Jonah knew he had nowhere else to go but Meyer's. When he saw his best friend dead on the floor of Babel Comics, the boy couldn’t bear to see that happen again. He had to distance himself for Carol, for Cheeks, and for Y/N.

"So Meyer turned out to be the Wolf?" Y/N clarified, shifting so they could look at Jonah. Their attitude completely changed towards their partner. Jonah was broken and traumatized. They wanted to be there for him, but they weren't sure how.

"And now Joe's missing," he sighed. "We're travelling to Europe next week to begin the next phase of our plan, so I won't see you for a while."

"I want to come with you," they insisted. He needed someone to anchor him to the light. "Let me join the Hunt."

Jonah was silent for a minute, looking at his determined and stubborn partner. He gave them a small smile and chuckled, cupping their cheek. "Well… Harriet claims that relationships are a weakness. It wouldn't hurt to prove her wrong."

He pressed his lips to theirs and placed his free arm on their waist. Weeks of tension and worry between the two fueled the kiss, causing the space between them to grow smaller with every second. At some point Y/N ended up straddling Jonah, the two barely noticing. They were too focused on each other, trying to fulfill the other's needs while attempting to keep it fairly PG as they were right next to the window.

As the makeout session was about to escalate further, the Crock-Pot beeped to let them know that the soup was ready. "We don't have to eat it now. It'll be fine to sit for another hour."

"It's about time to eat, though," Y/N stated, noticing the sun setting.

"Stay the night, then?" Jonah kissed Y/N softly.

"Absolutely."

[itsthenovelteafactor]

Vanya and the Phantom

I asked and y’all answered (special thanks to @schizoidwire and @the-aro-ace-arrow-ace  and all the people who responded to my earlier post for encouraging me!), so it is time for how The Phantom of the Opera song introduction can be read as a look into Vanya’s self-narrative and also foreshadows future events in a really subtle and interesting way. 

I’m channeling my inner Elliot and going into full conspiracy mode. This is gonna be a long one, y’all. 

Part One: In Which I Expose Myself as a Former Theater Kid

So, for those who aren’t familiar with The Phantom of the Opera, it was originally a novel by French writer Gaston Leroux back in 1909. In 1986, Andrew Lloyd Webber rewrote it as a musical. For purposes of my analysis here, I am just going to be discussing the musical because 1) the score used in the opening scene is from it and 2) I’ve never read the book. (If anyone out there has read the book and wants to weigh in, please do!) 

It’s a very aesthetic show, and draws on a lot of gothic themes and imagery. The plot follows an opera house, and specifically a young chorus girl named Christine Daaé. I’m not going to explain the whole show plot in detail because wikipedia exists, but I will do a quick overview here and point out some things as they relate to things I’ll be discussing later. Also there will be a test after and it will NOT be multiple choice.

The show begins when the opera house is sold to new owners who 1) just want to make money and 2) do not respect the opera house’s resident ghost (who isn’t really a ghost, but we’ll get to that later.) When the Phantom makes his presence known, and freaks out the resident prima donna singer (who will be relevant later) Carlotta, who says she won’t sing under these conditions. It is then that Christine appears. She’s quiet and humble and has always lived in the background, but is incredibly talented. The woman who runs the chorus (also owner of the opera house’s resident braincell) suggests Christine sing the part. She does, and is amazing. Everyone is blown away, and she’s catapulted into instant fame and success. 

We later learn that Christine has been studying under the Phantom, who appears to her in mirrors. She calls him the Angel of Music, and thinks that he was sent to teach her by her recently deceased father. He isn’t. He’s actually pretty malicious, and is obsessed with Christine, wants to control her voice, and doesn’t like her dating anyone. Which is a bit awkward when her childhood friend shows up and promptly falls in love with her. 

Anyways, Carlotta is jealous of the attention Christine has been getting and threatens to leave prompting the new owners to cut Christine from the program. The Phantom doesn’t like it at all, sends a bunch of letters, things escalate, people are murdered, and the whole first act ends with the chandelier falling from the ceiling and crashing onto the stage (which is done with really cool effects, oftentimes beginning the show hanging over the audience. It’s a BIG MOMENT and one of the most iconic ones from the show. This will also be relevant later.)

Act two takes place a few months later, wherein no one has seen the Phantom. Shock of all shocks, though, he’s not dead. He’s been writing an opera and he wants Christine to star in it. More stuff happens, you learn the backstory of the Phantom (which is pretty sad, ngl, but in no way makes him less of a creep) and the story ends with the Phantom kidnapping Christine and giving her an ultimatum: stay with him forever, or he kills Raoul (aka childhood friend/romantic interest guy). She agrees to stay with him and he’s so moved by her compassion that he lets them both go and disappears forever. 

Part Two: Casting the Characters

That’s interesting, Rosie (note sarcasm) but you said this was about The Umbrella Academy? I did, in fact. So, we meet Vanya when she’s playing a medley of songs from The Phantom of the Opera. Since it’s primarily the melodies and not one of the orchestral pieces from her performance later (I don’t think), we can assume she’s just playing it for herself (which is nice! good on you, Vanya). 

Maybe she’s never seen the play and just likes the score, but for purposes here, let’s assume she’s familiar with it. 

You can tell a lot about a person by the stories they connect with (for example, I like TUA because I like fun sibling dynamics, found family, music, and being sad). And I think that it makes sense that The Phantom of the Opera would be a story that resonates with Vanya. The overlooked chorus girl finds power in music, and, after years in the background, is finally given a chance to show how special she is. 

So, yeah. I don’t think it’s outside the realm of possibility that Vanya sees herself as Christine. There are some discrepancies, sure, but this is Vanya’s self-narrative, which we learn pretty much immediately is unreliable. (Love her, but it’s true.) And if Vanya is Christine, then we can try and tap into her perspective to look at some other characters. 

Anyways remember Carlotta (the prima donna opera singer who always got the spotlight and tried to destroy everything good that happened to Christine because she felt threatened that someone might be as good/better than her whose entire personality and role in the story I just summarized, rendering my plot recap useless)? Carlotta is how Vanya views Allison. (Kind of all her siblings, but her relationship with Allison is the most important here.)

Think about the scene in the cabin? 

“You couldn’t risk me threatening your place in the house! You couldn’t handle the fact that Dad might find me special!” - Vanya, having a mental breakdown.

This always struck me as an interesting accusation to throw, since prior to this moment, I don’t think there was any indication that Allison had ever felt threatened by Vanya. She excluded her, sure, and wasn’t super friendly at times, but the idea that Allison has been pulling strings to keep Vanya out of her spotlight is new. But that is exactly the role Carlotta plays in Phantom. 

Fun fact! At one point in the musical, the Phantom enchants Carlotta so that she loses her voice right before coming on stage. 

Part Three: The Phantom of the Opera is there

So based on everything I’ve said so far, the most straightforward reading is then, that Leonard Peabody/Harold Jenkins (who for purposes here I’ll call Leonard) is the stand in for the Phantom, which works... really well. Both in helping to understand Vanya and also because it foreshadows the twist of season one in a really cool way.

So, the Phantom appears to Christine first not as an enemy, but as a friend and teacher, who encourages her to be more confident in her abilities. He trains her to develop her singing ability. While the teacher-student dynamic is actually inverted initially with Vanya and Leonard, from the get go, he is showering her with compliments, encouraging her to be confident in her abilities, and, at least on the surface, supporting her in a way she hasn’t been supported before (he’s a trash human but an expert manipulator). 

But, in the play, the Phantom is also very possessive over Christine and her power (er, I mean voice). He also is perfectly willing to kill and/or hurt people who he views as standing in the way of Christine and her success (see the aforementioned Carlotta incident). Which is exactly what Leonard does to Vanya. He kills the first chair violinist to help her get it, and orchestrates a whole master plan to get her to reveal her powers on his terms. 

Even the part where he starts “training” her to use her powers kind of resembles the second act of the play. The Phantom wrote a play for Christine and she’s going to star in it, whether she wants to or not. 

(One could even make the argument of the parallels between Christine believing the Phantom was sent by her father to teach her and Leonard showing up because of his revenge scheme against Vanya’s father, but I honestly don’t have much support for that.) 

Part Three: Two Conflicting Narratives

So, as you might’ve noticed, I sort of have two different threads of analysis going on right now. 1) The Phantom of the Opera parallel is part of Vanya’s self-narrative and in it she mischaracterizes Allison, making her more suspicious of her motivations and 2) Leonard Peabody is clearly the Phantom and doesn’t bother being subtle about it. I hope that I’ve been convincing (or at least intriguing) for you to get to this point, because here is where they come together.

Vanya has this parallel going, but she doesn’t see Leonard as the Phantom. In the beginning at least, he’s her Raoul. If I had to guess, I’d say Reginald Hargreeves is the Phantom in Vanya’s self-narrative (says he’ll train her but wants to manipulate her and keep her locked away for himself, strict teacher who doesn’t really care about her well being, wearing a mask to appear more normal/human... she wouldn’t exactly be wrong). Leonard, on the other hand, is Vanya’s supporter. He validates her, and believes in her, and taker her side when Carlotta and the opera house owners (er, the rest of the Hargreeves children) gang up on her and conspire to keep her out. 

This is all building to, of course, the final confrontation. The Phantom says Christine has to pick one or the other. When Allison comes to talk to Vanya, Vanya feels as if she’s been given an ultimatum and lashes out.

And that’s where everything (including this parallel) starts to crumble. 

(I honestly don’t know a lot about the other characters and how they fit in. I suppose we could have Five = Raoul if we ignore romance plot and focus on the childhood friend that hasn’t been seen in a while angle? And maybe also Pogo = Madame Giry. Vanya doesn’t really have any friends to be Meg.) 

Part Four: It’s All About the Moon

So that is kind of the gist of The Phantom of the Opera as a window into Vanya’s self-narrative theory, but there are a couple of other loosely related ideas I thought I might as well bring up since this thing is already ridiculously long. 

Remember how I mentioned the chandelier is like, THE scene from The Phantom of the Opera back in part one, and said it’d be relevant later? Bringing that back now, because I’m going to pull a Luther and connect everything to the moon. 

So, to get the obvious out of the way, the moon exploding and the chandelier coming crashing to the stage are similar because something falls, breaks into a bunch of pieces, destroys a bunch of stuff, and creates a powerful and memorable image to close off before an act/season break (the next installment of which begins with a time jump). 

Additionally, it’s worth mentioning that The Phantom of the Opera is told out of order. The opening scene shows a grown up Raoul at an auction for the items left behind after the opera house closes, and it switches to the past as the remains of the chandelier rise upwards to the ceiling, Phantom’s theme swelling (it’s a really cool moment, tbh). Following the prologue of The Umbrella Academy, we switch to the present with two images: Vanya alone on the stage, and then Luther alone on the moon. Which has a kind of symmetry that might mean nothing, but is still kind of cool. 

(Also the item that Raoul buys from the auction is a music box with a monkey crashing symbols on top of it. Which might mean nothing.) 

Part Five: How is she STILL talking about this? (AKA Conclusion)

To be honest, this is more a very tangled “things I noticed and thought were interesting” discussion than a formal essay with any clear thesis. While there is a chance that this was all coincidental and I’ve gone full Pepe Sylvia, the music selection in The Umbrella Academy is one of the things that they seem to be really deliberate about. 

I would love to chat with anyone about this theory, so feel free to reach out in the notes or message me! My inbox is always open. Much love, and thank you for reading, if you got this far! ❤️

[elenamegan14]

Twisted Wonderland: Headcanons for Dorm Haunted Houses Pt.4 - Savannaclaw

MASTERLIST

Part 3

TW: Themes of Cannibalism and Gore in Haunted House. 

THE ATTRACTION:

Savannaclaw’s haunted house is centered on the Elephant Graveyard’s theme. Only darker and gorier.

It’s a “Cannibal” Rave Party where the menu on the house is… YOU!

Guests entered a large gate out of a giant mammoth skeleton amongst the rocky hills. Green lights and fogs shrouded them everywhere. Graphic animal carcasses and skeletons littered on every single step that the guests took around their haunted house. Dark Tribal and Progressive House music echoes all across the hills. 

As they climbed on top of the rocky hills, they saw a rave party being celebrated amongst the whooping Savannaclaw students, dancing amongst the strobe lights with a DJ on top of the hill. As they beckoned guests to come closer, they can see limbs, heads and organs splattered across the banquet table. Everyone is sporting a bloodied mouth, tribal tattoos and a nasty smirk as they tried to grab the guests by force. It was primal - many guests are quite spooked. 

Ruggie is the second-in-command of all the ‘predators’ and the saboteur of the team. His role is to sabotage the participants during the obstacle course as well as instructing the ‘predators’ to hunt as many participants as they can. He was wearing a hyena-themed like rave tribal outfit along with a mask made out of antelope skull. He accessorized himself with pieces of teeth and bones. 

After going through the mini haunted house, participants and guests were then escorted to the start lines where they were given each towel and water bottles to refresh themselves.  

It may not look like it, but Leona did put a bit of an effort to the dorm’s haunted house, only because it’s a chance for him to unleash his beastly side upon the poor guests and first-years. 

Their dorm’s haunted house is the most athletic one out of the dorms. Think of the Zombie Run or The Walking Dead Obstacle Course marathons, only this one has hungry predators chasing the hell after you. 

Of course, guests who are willing to be a little sporty tonight are allowed to participate in this interactive obstacle course, but while they went on a normal route, the students who took on the charm challenge are instead given a more difficult course. 

They’re selling the usual merchandise: t-shirts, flags, water bottles, and sports bands are quite popular but the most fast-selling items are their unique necklaces. And pictures of Leona. Rook and Vil hunted him down to pose per Ruggie’s request. The Crafts Club took this as a chance to show off their skills at making tribal accessories and keychains.

Leona’s costume evoked a sense of raw power - ripped off tribal-like punk-like leather with his black tribal tattoos and makeup. His teeth are bleached with red dye, to make it seem that he already ate up his ‘preys’ before and his stomach had room for seconds. 

Strangely, most of the female guests are willing to be captured by ‘Leona’ when they have to go through the ‘Predator’s Cove’, perhaps it was their strange kinks but who he is to deny when he plays along as their ‘king’. 

Actually, most ‘predators’ who already got romantic partners took this as an opportunity to play ‘predator and prey’ kink to a whole new level. They were responsible for the massive loss of participants because the participants themselves were willing to be ‘captured’ by the ‘predators’ to be ‘eaten’. Get it? -winks-

THE MISSION: 

Their mission for this haunted dorm is the same as the guests - they enter an obstacle course marathon challenge where they have to evade, survive and go through all the traps on this challenge. They will encounter ‘hungry predators’ along the way, so they have to make sure that the predators won’t mark them by smearing ‘blood’ on their shirt. 

They were warned that the predators would also ‘bite’ as well, which is a NO-NO in MC’s group case. 

Of course, the host is also considerate to tell that, since this is an athletic event, they have to carry a water bottle at all times to rehydrate themselves. Epel and Jack already brought more than ten bottles to reserve their stamina, and share it along with everyone on the team.

And of course, they were allowed to use their MagicPens to blast some magic limited only to this event to ward off the Savannahclaw “predators”. 

...well, they can try. Those ‘predators’ are fast as heck. 

MC’s group and the poor students run like the wind when the predators are unleashed. Only 55% of the participants remained. 

ANGRY RAVE MUSIC PLAYS ON THE BACKGROUND. 

Did I mention this is also an obstacle course as well? 

They got sticky floors, nets to go through, falling boulders, hidden pits, climbing the cliffs, tightropes, and...

“WHOSE IDEA IS IT TO PUT A CIRCUS FIRE RING IN THE OBSTACLE?! This is so randomly dangerous!” Ace yelled while putting out the fire on his butt. In Jack’s defense, he has no idea that they’re going to use HIS suggestion.

Epel went through the obstacles smoothly, even down to kicking a few Savannaclaw students. 

Ruggie got Grimm by his arms and he prepared to mark the poor flying feline, but Grimm being Grimm, decided to bite Ruggie’s hand instead. He dropped Grimm with a yowl, nursing his hand as he watched Grimm with vengeance on his eyes. 

But MC? Poor MC might be slow or their stamina is not as strong as the others, so they’re having quite difficulty in keeping up with the others. While they’re not looking, one student jerk enough to cheat tripped MC’s feet, causing the charm they got from Heartsyabul’s challenge to fly out. 

THAT DAMN STUDENT GOT THE CHARM. 

MC watched helplessly as his other friend held you back, laughing as they held the charm to defend themselves against the attacking Savannaclaw ‘predators’ as they left you at the mercy of the ‘predators’. 

Luckily, Grimm and Deuce came to your rescue by hauling your butt up as they blasted the predators back from ‘harming’ you. 

Ruggie’s sabotage team went nuts. They’re a hindrance to the students, like making them slipped on oil floor and banana peels, Ruggie using his magic to redirect some students to the wrong courses (or walls if he was feeling sadistic), putting low-level mines on their path that explodes (students blasting off like Team Rocket), trapping legs on bear-trap-like clamps and caused some students to get zapped by some electronic shocks to buy time for the predators to catch up to them.

Ace saw a familiar glint of the charm on one of the students. One look at it and he gets the gist of what happened. Ace gave that poor student a karma by tricking him to look down ("Hey! Your fly is open!”), causing that said student to panic out of embaressment and run into a wall of sticky web. Ace saunters back with a whistle, stealing the charm back and gleefully as that student is pounced by Ruggie and the ‘predators’. 

In the end, almost everyone made it. Still, no one complained and is happy that they’re still in one piece. 

Their last obstacle mission is quite simple: inside the den of predators, there’s a charm tucked right next to Leona. The students must creep amongst the sleeping predators WITHOUT waking them up. 

That sleeping part is Leona’s idea. 

Easy huh? Do you think that’s easy? It turns out that Savannaclaw had set up traps that guaranteed to make the poor students scream out of their wits. Five students found out the hard way when they stepped on a klaxon, got toy spiders rained down on them, and gas released on the nape of their necks. 

Finally, they decided to use a straw lot to determine which student should go down like a man to retrieve the charm. 

Spoiler alert: MC got it. Their group protested. 

BUT THEY DECIDED TO TAKE IT FOR THE SAKE OF FREEDOM. Touching tears were shed. 

Grimm decided to follow MC to make up for abandoning them in the first place - he will be the one who warned MC about possible traps. As they went in, they did not realize Ace was biting his nails and Jack gripped a boulder so hard that it cracked from the intense suspense. 

MC tried their best to endure everything - the cool jelly floating down their face, the spiders, the gas and even tickling feathers. They were screaming internally. 

When they finally reached the location, they found out that Leona is hiding the charm inside the jar that he holds. 

MC tries to lull him into a deep slumber by singing ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’. It actually works. No seriously. 

MC’s group also secretly joins it from outside. They make a good acapella. 

In the middle of the song, Leona unconsciously grabbed a hold of MC and put them on a tight hold hug as if MC is a dakimakura. Still, MC is got the guts to finish the song and escaped from Leona’s hold, holding the jar carefully on their chest. 

It all went well until Grimm and Ruggie happened. 

...hey, yeah. Remember the Emperor’s New Groove? The part where Kuzco pisses off a squirrel so the cute squirrel decided to get even with Kuzco by tricking him to wake the entire jaguars using balloons? Well, Grimm’s the Kuzco and Ruggie, being the little shit, IS the squirrel. Guess what happened next. 

“ROAAAAAAAAARRRRRR!!!”

“THAT DAMN RACCOON HAD WOKEN UP THE PREDATORS! RUN, YOU ASSHOLES!” 

They all run. MC seems to run the fastest. The students had no chance against the speed, power, and agility of the Savannaclaw students - they got “eaten” one by one. Most of them are Leona’s victims. 

“AAAAAAAAHHH! DON’T COME ANY CLOSER!” One of the students screamed as he tried to shoot Leona several times using his MagiPen, but failed due to Leona’s unbelievable speed. He got his “throat” ripped out.  

While they were running, another student body checks MC so hard that they lose their charm, prompting that students to roughly grab it before they do. 

“Thanks for the charm, loser!” That was his last words before Ruggie pounced on him from above, Epel hurriedly grabbed the charm before anyone could steal it back. When another student tried to fight Epel for it, he was rewarded with a serious eye poke from Epel, followed by a knuckle sandwich from Deuce that escalated into an actual scuffle. IT WAS WILD. 

Meanwhile, MC, is seriously cornered down by Leona who took this opportunity while they were down. “Nowhere to run, herbivore.” Leona gave MC a frightful smirk as he leaned down towards their doom. So MC was left with no choice but to do… THIS. 

They got down on one knee and reluctantly cringed as they said these words: “Please, Leona-senpai! I’m just a small, insignificant herbivore who wants to live! Therefore… Leona Kingscholar, will you do the honor of… -gulps- MARRYING ME?”

The shock that came from the participants and the ‘predators’ is enough to momentarily stop the chaos. 

“EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHH???!!!” Jack, Ace, Deuce, Epel, and Grimm simultaneously yelled. 

Leona just stood there dumbfounded. 

MC took the opportunity to book it before Leona could realize what’s going on. Once he does, he shrugged… AND CHASE THEM LIKE HELL. 

They barely made it to the exit gate. Leona snapped at them, but he couldn't do anything as the survivors celebrated their victory along with the other participants that escaped from the predators. 

MC apologized to Leona about the proposal. They were just scared at that time - any rationality that they had at time flew out when Leona almost got them, Leona-senpai is truly terrifying out there. Leona ate up the complement and seemingly forgives MC...

...but not before he licked MC’s neck as a warning. MC is left flushed - please do NOT do this, senpai! 

Some girls wanted Leona to lick them too. XD

The rest of MC’s group watched blank-faced. Jack had to slide you away from Leona’s gaze - there are people watching sir, please be reasonable. GOSH. 

They were tired, their breaths almost depleted, but they enjoyed it. It was fantastic - they feel reinvigorated, Savannaclaw may put their participants at risk, but it was the best fun they ever had. After resting for quite a while, they went on to their next dorm.

The scent of the sea and motor oil greets them in the first place. It’s time to enter the den of Octinanivelle’s haunted dorm...

TO BE CONTINUED...

Part 5

[pucksnsticksnhockeyboys]

into you

request: 51 w Makar? I love that smiley guy sm !

prompt: “Smile.” - “No.” - “You’re smiling, though!” / number 51 off of this list with Cale Makar.

summary: Cale’s teammates like you, but that doesn’t mean they’re not going to chirp him for how into you he is. 

warnings: none

word count: 1.8k

“I don’t know how you managed to trick me into this.” You huffed as you exited your apartment, your ever-smiley best friend waiting patiently for you to lock your door. 

“Because you love me?” He offered, just enough teasing in his voice to have you grinning despite the sleepiness that still had its grips on you. Cale, the redheaded boy who occupied most of your thoughts, led the way to the elevator, chuckling softly to himself at your response, which was little more than an annoyed grumble. 

See, you couldn't let him know just how accurate his teasing response was. You had been head over heels for the sweet boy the moment you saw him offer to pay for an old lady's coffee at the small cafe you worked for. He was cute, sweet, and the way he stumbled over his words as he ordered endeared him to you almost instantly. After him coming into the cafe a few more times, he was brave enough to ask when your shift ended so you could get a cup of coffee with him. You wasted no time in agreeing to go with him, hoping that it would be an impromptu first date, but he gave no sign that he was interested in being anything other than friends. So, you remained in his life, but as the supportive best friend.

Which was how you found yourself in your current position, waking up early on your day off just to go shopping for a charity event that you weren't even sure you wanted to go to. 

The charity part wasn’t the problem, the whole getting up early to shop for a completely new outfit was why you were so annoyed. And since Cale insisted that he paid for you, no matter how vehemently you told him no, he had to come shopping with you. 

Cale, bless his heart, was doing his best to find something you liked. You had given him a gist of what you were looking for, and he finding pieces that actually fit your style. Still, he not everything his picked were winners.

“What about this?” Cale asked, brows furrowed as he studied the fabric. You knew he was serious, but the clothing his picked out was so absolutely ridiculous, you couldn't help but giggle. 

“Cale, it’s neon yellow.” You explained when he looked to you to explain what was wrong with his choice. The redhead’s cheeks turned even more rosy, and you turned back to the rack to try and distract yourself from intrusive thoughts telling you red was now your favorite color. 

He was going to be the death of you.

A few days later found you all dressed up and following Cale into a ballroom packed with people. Your hand was clasped tightly around his wrist as he used his hockey frame to maneuver you through the crowd. A few times you were stopped by someone usually thirty years Cale’s senior to talk to him about hockey statistics and all things related. 

You could tell he was just humoring everyone while looking for an escape. His usual smile replaced by a tight-lipped one that told you he wanted to be anywhere but where he was, though he would never admit it. 

Just because he had to entertain the old men didn’t mean you had to, and when you spotted three blondes standing off to the side, somehow avoiding attention, you knew it was your one chance to get away. Waiting until it was Cale’s turn to talk, you squeezed his forearm and whispered that you were going to talk to Mel before separating. He shot you a pained look that only you spotted, and you grinned mischievously at him. You both knew what you were doing, but it didn't make you feel bad about leaving the redhead with the men that were asking a thousand and one questions. 

As soon as she spotted you, Mel Landeskog was calling your name. Her husband Gabe was standing next to her, arm wrapped securely around her waist. Beside them, Erik Johnson stood, having decided this was an occasion to wear his fake teeth. Shortly after your friendship with Cale developed outside of the cafe you worked at, he introduced you to his team. They were fun to hang out with and you grew close to Mel like she was your older sister, with Gabe and EJ being the annoying brothers. 

“You look fantastic.” Mel complimented, pulling you into a hug as soon as you were within arms reach. You returned the sentiment, Gabe and EJ both taking turns to embrace you annoyingly tight after. The smug look on both of their faces almost made you want to turn back and rejoin Cale in the stifling conversation about Colorado’s third period goal statistics and how to improve them. 

“You two make me nervous.” You chuckled, looking between the boys before raising a brow at Mel for an explanation. You knew you were screwed when you saw she was also grinning at you with a mischievous look on your face.

“So you’re the rookie’s date, huh?” EJ started, wiggling his brows dramatically and in a way that made you cringe. 

“We're just friends, Johnson.” You huffed. Your relationship status with their defenseman was always a topic of interest between the two blondes, and it got even worse when the rest of the team jumped in on the joke—Burky could be relentless in his teasing when he wanted to be.  

“Mhm.” He hummed, looking thoroughly unconvinced, much to your chagrin. Instead of taking the bait like you knew he wanted you to do, you rolled your eyes and turned to Mel, engaging her in conversation about anything other than hockey and boys, more specifically, hockey boys.  To give Gabe and EJ credit, they knew when to draw the line and take a step back. Well, at least you thought they did when they let you and Mel be for all of two minutes before their teasing started up again. Only this time, it wasn't directed at you, though you still were at the center of attention.

“How’d you get such a good-looking date, Cale?” Gabe started, unable to resist the jab and a chance to cause his teammates cheeks to darken. Cale appeared at your side, cheeks just as rosy as you figured they would be but he was taking the chirps in good humor. You, on the other hand, were getting a little annoyed. With the boys constantly making jokes it would only be a matter of time before Cale put together the fact you had a massive crush on him. You were dead set on the idea that of he found out about your feelings, he would be weirded out and you would lose one of your closest friends. 

“I asked nicely.” Cale teased, earning a barking laugh from his teammates. You rolled your eyes at his adorable comment, having expected nothing less from him. 

“I’m not that good-looking.” You absentmindedly commented, causing Cale’s head to whip around to face you. Your own cheeks started to get rosy, and you could only meet his confused look with one of your own.

“You look amazing, I’m lucky that you came with me.” Even more so, your face flushed at his compliment to the point where you were certain that you matched the color of his hair.

“Oh, my god. I’m just going to tell them.” EJ sounded so exasperated, but there was still traces of his smug grin. You and Cale both looked to him for answers, but he was just looking to Gabe and Mel. Gabe seemed to be on the side of EJ spilling whatever it was but Mel was shooting him a stern look. There was some silent discussion, Mel nudging her husband’s shoulder in reprimand for a fault you weren't sure he had made.

“Remember what we were talking about the other day after practice?” Gabe turned his focus to Cale, who for a moment looked at his captain dumbly. You watched with confusion as Cale registered what Gabe had been talking about, before nodding slightly, his lips set in a firm line. Gabe gestured with his thumb over his shoulder towards the balcony, and Cale nodded once more.

You tried not to jump out of your own skin as Cale threaded his fingers through yours and tugged you in the direction his captain had just suggested. You shot Mel a look over your shoulder, but the blonde only gave you two thumbs up, and encouraging smile on her face. 

The Denver night was cold, but it felt nice against your flushed skin. Once the balcony door was shut, Cale dropped your hand and moved to stand at the railing, his grip tight on the metal. Your heart was pounding in your chest as you moved closer to him, placing a shaky hand on his bicep to try and silently coax an answer of what was going on out of him. 

“The guys chirp me a lot.” He leads, and you stay quiet, knowing that was not what he needed you to follow him outside for. “Mostly because I’m the rookie, but also because of you.”

“Me?” The question fell past your lips in little more than a whisper. Cale nodded, turning to face you. You weren’t sure if he meant that his teammates didn't like you, but you felt like that wasn't the reason. At least, you hoped. 

“I’m like, so into you, and they give me so much shit for it.” He confessed, and you felt the corner of your lips turn upwards. 

“I mean, if you’re being sappy then I don't blame them.” You couldn’t help but tease, and you could tell he knew you felt the same when you noticed you beaming up at him. He groaned at your comment, dropping his head back at your comment as he cheeks turned red. “Smile.”

“No.” He shot back, but despite his comment you could tell he was grinning widely.

“You’re smiling, though!” He chuckled at you comment, tilting his head forward to look at you once more. His smile was soft, gaze flicking from your eyes down to your lips and back up. You leaned forward a bit and that was all the invitation Cale needed to duck down to your level press a gentle kiss to your lips. 

The kiss was slow and sweet, just as you expected it to be with Cale. Ever the gentleman, his hands found home on your waist but never explored any further. When you pulled away for air he used his grip on you to anchor you to your spot right in front of him. You weren't sure who was grinning brighter, but you were certain an argument could be made on both of your behalves. Cale was the first to break the silence, you were still too shocked to do speak.

“Yeah, I am smiling.” 

[blue-bower]

Lotor Rewrite

I’ve given my thoughts on how horrendously Prince Lotor’s character arc was handled. I’ve reblogged a couple posts that sum up my thoughts on the matter. https://blue-bower.tumblr.com/post/185061129226 https://blue-bower.tumblr.com/post/185061352401 https://blue-bower.tumblr.com/post/182574536376 So, this is going to be my personal re-write of the end of season 6, and the events following in seasons 7 and 8. This is not going to be a rewrite of the entire last 2 seasons; I'm just focusing on Lotor (and Allura later on). There's just so many forced/rushed plot points and distasteful choices on the writers' part that it would take an entire essay to break everything down. But ultimately I feel like Lotor - and at the very end of the series, Allura - were given the worst treatment of any character. Also, keep in mind that it’s been four years since I’ve watched the series in full, so I may not be remembering things 100% accurately. But frankly I do not feel like returning to season 6-8 again just to flesh out a headcanon. This also isn’t a fully set-in-stone fanfic or script, just a general gist of ideas. I have several ideas for potential rewrites with various branching paths.

There are two main ways that I believe the end of season 6 could be revamped.

In the first rewrite, the plot twist with the dead Alteans in the lab never happens. A lot of people saw it as a very ham-fisted way of adding conflict for the hell of it. There could (and imo, should ) still be an Altean colony founded by Lotor, and Romelle would still be a character that is introduced to the Paladins at some point. But I feel like the only thing she would really contribute - at least in season 6 - is siding with Allura in trying to warn Lotor about the dangers of messing with quintessence. If she had a bigger part in the last couple seasons, I personally would have liked to see more of her learning magic and fighting from Allura.

In my opinion, there was already a plot element in place that could have just as easily led to a conflict and possible falling-out between Lotor and the Paladins: Giving the Galrans access to unlimited quintessence. It baffles me that no-one at any point even questioned this, or tried to warn Lotor of the possible ramifications of handing over this kind of power to a power-hungry empire. They just went along with it. So I think they should have steadily built up the unease with going through with this plan, ultimately leading to a battle over whether the gate should be destroyed. It could still be revealed that Lotor did have the ulterior motive of starting his own empire, using quintessence for his own gain. But it would still paint Lotor as a sympathetic antagonist, who truly believed he was doing the right thing.

If the twist with the Altean colony & lab has to happen, then at the very least, it should have been given more time to be resolved. The audience should have been given more answers.

So in this rewrite, the confrontation with Lotor and Romelle still happens. She explains what she and Keith saw, she explains her brother's death and sees Lotor attempting to cover up his death. Lotor still looks like a deer in headlights, but also seems to look guilty. He doesn't deny the facility existing, however. Cue his ass still getting knocked out by Allura. 

Whether the facility happens or not, season 6 still leads to Voltron and Lotor confronting each other at the rift gate. In the first scenario, Lotor tries to reason with them; he claims that under his new leadership, the Galrans will not be using the rift for evil purposes. In the second scenario, Lotor pleads with Allura to let him explain himself; that he never intended to kill Alteans. Allura and the Paladins are conflicted on what to do, and whether to believe him. Most importantly, though,

Allura does not compare him to his shitty abusive father.

If anything, I think she may point out that he's actually a lot more like Honerva than he's willing to admit. It still stings, but doesn't send him into a violent frenzy or a cringeworthy monologue fitting of a Saturday morning cartoon villain. Allura tries to compromise with him; she says she'll come with him to the Altean colony if he destroys the gate. He refuses.

I can see either of these rewrites branching into two potential scenarios: A solo battle between Lotor and Voltron like we saw at the end of season 6, or an interruption to their confrontation: A fleet of Galran ships appearing in an attempt to claim both the phase gate and Voltron. Lotor and the Paladins are forced to cooperate, and get into a battle with the Galrans. Lotor realizes the only way to get them to back off is to destroy the gate, but he also tells the paladins that his ship can phase into the Quintessence field at will - which prompts Voltron to do the same. He convinces them to phase there with him after they destroy the gate.

In either of these conflicts, Lotor starts to lose control of himself in the Quintessence due to his stress and heightened emotions. In a rage, he starts phasing in and out of the quintessence field in order to attack the Galran fleet outside, despite his own advice on staying hidden. The Quintessence starts messing with his mind, making him start to go power-mad (because let's face it, this scene is still hot).

The Paladins try to get through to him, and Lotor fights off the darkness that corrupted his father. But it isn't enough. Voltron is forced to fight him, and blasts him into unconsciousness.

And instead of leaving him to fucking rot in the quintessence field, they manage to save him in time.

Mortally wounded, they place him in a stasis pod. It's going to take him a while to recover, but it's clear that the quintessence is healing him - and quite possibly making him undead like his parents.

In the meantime, Allura wants Romelle to take her to the colony (or the research facility if that plot point stays), but Romelle keeps refusing, saying it's too hard for her to go back - not to mention the fact that travelling there is extremely dangerous and has the effect of warping time - plus it's imperative that Voltron focuses on undoing the damage done by Lotor creating a rift in spacetime. 

I see most of season 7 playing out as normal, since it mainly focused on the Paladins fighting for Earth. I feel like we should have gotten a season 9, because there was just too much going on in season 8 and not enough time to tie up loose ends. The main plot point I would change is Lance’s confession. He does still confess his love to her, but acknowledges that she may not reciprocate it. And she doesn’t. She tells him that she’s just not in a place to move on yet, or pursue another relationship. And he respects her decision.

After Lotor recovers, he isn't quite the same. He seemingly hasn't been corrupted the way his parents were, but his Altean marks are now permanently glowing bright purple, and his eyes are glowing light yellow, mirroring the vision that Honerva had of him.

The others reveal that everyone's actions in the Quintessence had altered time, and two years have passed. He feels remorseful for his actions, but also angry that the Paladins didn’t listen to him. They nearly get into a fight with him because he is still somewhat unstable, and very clearly carrying a massive amount of power within him due to the quintessence, putting him on par with Honerva’s abilities. Allura demands him to take her to the colony, against Romelle's wishes. Lotor’s powerful magic enables them to transport the castle/ship directly to the colony; something they weren’t able to do before because of the massive amount of spacial distortion coming from that region. And again, depending on whether the facility is kept, it can go one of two ways.

They arrive at the colony, and it’s clear that the Alteans don’t worship the ground he walks on the way they did before. Not only do his glowing eyes remind them of Zarkon, but Romelle has been sowing the seeds of distrust in some of the Alteans since the beginning. I know a lot of people were expecting Romelle to be outed as a traitor, but personally, I don’t really see her as the type to try and frame him. I just believe she genuinely disrusts him because of what Galrans did to Alteans in the first place, and she doesn’t feel comfortable with him declaring himself as their new ruler. But hey, maybe there could be a twist that Romelle lied about the facility all along? Some food for thought. But the combination of genuine unease about the half-Galran, and the testimony of what happened between him and Voltron, makes it clear to Lotor that he no longer has their complete trust. If the facility stays: When they arrive at the colony, there is almost immediate distrust and maybe even hostility toward Lotor. As it turns out, before Romelle returned to the Paladins, she told other Alteans what she saw that night her brother died. He tries to talk them down, explain that what he was doing, he did for the sake of Alteans and their future. Some of the Alteans don’t believe Romelle to begin with; others want to banish Lotor. Since he can’t persuade the masses to believe him, he tells Allura to come with him. When they arrive, Allura sees the chambers that Romelle described. When asked about Romelle's brother again, Lotor explains that he tried to save him, and that he never intended to kill the Alteans. He only wanted to harvest a partial amount of quintessence, because it would be the key to locating Oriande. This would make sense as to why he specifically needed quintessence from Chosen Alteans. But somewhere along the lines, something went wrong with the process. Lotor attempted to cover up the deaths, partially out of shame, but also because he knew Romelle already didn't trust him and didn't want more reason for her to lead a revolt against him. Though he feels remorse, Allura calls him out on his bullshit: Covering up the tragedy was a cowardly move. The consequences of Lotor always being the type to leave unfavorable outcomes in the past and keep moving forward have finally caught up to him, and now it’s his responsibility to face his mistakes. At the very least, he gives the Alteans’ bodies a proper burial. The arc ends on a somber note. Lotor is not a hero, nor a villain. He is the culmination of the tragic life that he had been forced to live; for better and for worse.

After this point, it's up in the air as to how the last season (or two) could be rewritten. I can still see a plot with Honerva trying to recruit Alteans to her side in the time span that Lotor was gone, manipulating them into believing that Lotor would have wanted them to continue Honerva’s experiments, and to fight Voltron in revenge for what they did to him. But ultimately, Lotor would confront them and force them to surrender.  All I know for sure is that, before the final endgame battle, Lotor would sacrifice himself for Voltron and to protect the universe. Likely in a very intense, emotional battle against his mother. I know that the most ideal outcome would be for him to stay alive, marry Allura, and rule the new Altean colony together. But this series has never been a stranger to death and the theme of sacrifice. If done well, I think a heroic sacrifice - especially from a character that was previously a villain - can have an extremely positive impact on a story. Maybe, in a scene mirroring his first encounter with the White Lion on Oriande (maybe Honerva has taken possession of the White Lion instead of just destroying it?), he would realize that fighting won’t do any good anymore. He’s forced to surrender. And in doing so, frees the white lion, the massive amount of quintessence within him, and all of Oriande. Honerva no longer holds power over the Alteans. And in a tragic sense, it means that she can no longer be accepted by Alteans either.

I’ve been very back and forth on whether or not Allura would still die in the end. I completely understand the fanbase’s frustration with the decision to kill her off. It felt very gross for PoC fans to see a main PoC character die in such an unceremonious manner. It felt like a cheap way for them to pay homage to the fact that Allura dies in the original series. But like I said, if done well, the theme of heroic sacrifice will leave a positive lasting impact on a series. On top of that, Allura has been shown since the beginning of the series to be an extremely self-sacrificing character. She was willing to put her life on the line on many occasions; and I almost feel like the scene with her surrendering to the white lion was foreshadowing her ultimate fate. If Allura does stay alive, then I feel like she would become queen of the new Altean colony, but would still leave on diplomatic missions across the universe. Altea IS NOT RECOVERED after all the space-time bullshit. The universe doesn’t just magically overlook complete time paradoxes to bring back dead planets. Allura and the Alteans have long come to terms with the fact that they will never get their original home back, but they can start anew. But, if Allura does die, then it damn well be a goddamn Iron Man from End Game moment. No cheap off-screen Deus Ex Machina, no half-assed goodbyes. Her sacrifice would leave a lasting impact through the universe/multiverse. We’d need a solid full episode of the Paladins (AND CORAN BECAUSE HOW THE FUCK DID THEY LEAVE HIM OUT OF REACTING TO HER DEATH) mourning her passing. Truthfully, the ultimate reason I believe they both might die is because I’d want to keep the final image of the series (before all the epilogue stuff). It’s such a profoundly beautiful image that perfectly encapsulates the sacrifices that Allura and Lotor made in order to bring peace to the universe. 

And that’s obviously meant to be Lotor right next to her. The figure is purple. You can see his hair, boots, even the outline of his skirt thing. Why would they put this in if Lotor was always intended to end up as a villain? The fact that they kept that silhouette after treating his character arc so poorly makes it clear to me that he was meant to have more of an overall impact on the story, but was ultimately thrown to the wayside just so the writers could go “WhAt A tWiSt!!!”

And that about wraps it up. Like I said, there isn’t one set storyline that I have in mind, because I have a few different ideas. IMO literally any path the story could’ve taken would be better than what we were given.  If anyone has any suggestions or feedback, feel free to comment/reblog and add your thoughts. Again, it’s been a hot minute since I’ve watched the series in full, so there may be some key moments I’m forgetting. What would you change?

[swampythesweetsketch]

Adrien Sugar Prompt 2.0

Alas, it is time for me to expand on the Adrien Sugar idea I expressed.

BEFORE YOU READ - Be aware this is a idea for a salt fic that redeems Adrien! So some things are a tad ooc cause... honestly- have you ever read any salt fics??? This stuff insane yo.

THE GIST

Adrien at some point has begun to doubt his role as Chat Noir. The Parisians seem to dislike him, it feels like he and Ladybug has disconnected, even hearing his classmates turn on his hero persona is getting to him. Back that with his father again drawing away from him and Lila getting away with anything she wants (INCLUDING getting Adrien in trouble when he doesn't want to do anything she wants); then there's the lack of friendship from Nino being held closer to Alya, and Marinette has never been colder towards him.

But that last point, he can admit, was his own fault. (Fun insert can be a callback to S03 E24 Ladybug and him wondering if it was even worth it to threaten Lila to go back on her lie)

After all this, he feels like he's a failure. All aspects of his life are now being closed up and the freedom of Chat Noir feels empty.

He can't imagine there being a solution to his problems. (This can take place post S3 when Master Fu gives Guardianship to Marinette / or before S3 as Master Fu obviously favored Ladybug because of her guardian training)

After one too many bad akuma fights (returning akumas or brand new ones), Paris is on the warpath on discarding Chat Noir for the umpteenth time. And Adrien can't help but to hear the most brutal brunt of the backlash. He begins loosing his grip on everything.

That means (any of these can apply): his grades slip, he loses his friendships, he loses his patience with Lila and gets dogpiled like Marinette would, and/or he gets grounded.

He then hits rock bottom. It's the middle of the night, and he can't leave his home.

"Kid, we have patrol tonight! Ladybug? Girl of your dreams?" Plagg floated above his kit, as Adrien fiddled with his ring.

It was off, constantly being turned in one palm to the other. His greens eyes read stress at every angle.

"Plagg... I don't think I can do this anymore..."

Adrien gives Plagg the ring and tells him to return with it. He's too ashamed to even reveal his identity to Ladybug. And after a long fight with Plagg- the kwami is given one order by Adrien.

To leave.

And Plagg does, but he keeps returning every night and every time Adrien turns him away. Orders him away. It falls to one night where Adrien crumbles down after everything that's happened. And the guilt of giving up Plagg breaks him.

Adrien has a meltdown and Plagg realizes that Adrien can't go on like this. But he can't convince Adrien to take him back.

Paris has noticed Chat Noir's absence and it's made their backlash worse. Ladybug has only had Plagg for an ally for a while now (maybe a week or a month? Depends) and wonders where her partner went. Lila has been reveling in the chaos and been spreading rumors on Chat's whereabouts. Which doesn't help Adrien's mental state at all.

So what does Plagg do now?

He goes to the current guardian  and tells them why he was given up. That Chat Noir no longer believes himself a worthy hero. (And this is kinda where the importance of whether the Guardian is Master Fu or Marinette)

FU resolve As Fu receives Plagg back in his care, he's mortified to hear from Plagg why Adrien gave up everything. But he's certain that the maybe- just maybe... he messed up with giving Adrien such an important miraculous. But he has to shake that off and remember how long the boy has done his job. And successfully too! But the climb of insults and the turmoil of Adrien's life has finally submerbed him.

So what else is there to do than send Adrien... a new kwami?

Yes it will break Plagg's heart to see his kit become another kwami's ward, but Plagg is determined that if Adrien can continue having any semblance of freedom with a new kwami; Then maybe Chat Noir will return.

MARINETTE resolve When Plagg comes to Marinette, the girl believes that an akuma is running amok (pun not intended) and Chat Noir got pinned before he could transform. Before she can transform, Plagg stops her.

He tells Marinette (revealing Adrien or not) that Chat Noir has given up his role. Marinette is horrified, she starts freaking out. She blames herself. How can her most valued partner given up!? Did she scold him too hard???

Plagg stops her, again, and explains that Chat just- sputtered out. The entirety of Paris seems to be angrier with Chat Noir more and more with each day and every akuma seems to be more and more capable of wiping out the black cat. That and Chat's personal life has strangled him to a point, Chat feels like he's been abusing the cat miraculous for any inkling of freedom.

Marinette is too worried at this point. With the loss of allies (After Miracle Queen post S3 / or Marinette has lost her friends to Lila) she has to think.

And Plagg convinces her... what if Chat Noir had a new kwami to help him break out of his funk?

TIME TO CONVERGE THE TIMELINE AGAIN!

With Tikki or Wayzz, they handpick a new kwami that will be delivered by Plagg. And by the next night, Adrien meets the new kwami.

Adrien picked up the black box with a exasperated sigh.

"Plagg..." Adrien already knew what was inside. "I told you-" he could feel his gut twist, a couple tears collecting in the corner of his eyes.

The shining light from the box blinded him for a second- the color seemed off but then again- Plagg was a God of Chaos.

But as his eyes squeezed shut, he heard the swish-ing of the air in front of him and he was about to cry. "Plagg I told you, I'm not going to be Chat Noir again!"

"I know that!" The voice was different. "That's why they sent me instead."

Adrien's eyes snapped open. Shock. "B-But- what?"

Aaaaannnnnddddd this is where the gist of the prompt ends! You can choose which kwami you feel could work with Adrien, whether he stays as a new hero or returns as Chat Noir, if he gets redeemed (cause this is a Adrien Sugar prompt), and if he ever starts taking control of his life. or even decides to start a new one when he breaks free of his father (and Lila).

That's it! Thanks for reading!

[sea-wolf-coast-to-coast]

FFxivWrite2019

FFxiv 30 Day Writing Challenge SEPTEMBER 1st - 30th, 2019

Welcome to YEAR 3 of our annual FFxiv 30 Day Writing Challenge, folks!

In 2017 we saw 2,451 written pieces ranging from three-lined haikus to multi-paged stories. 2018 ramped up even more with 3,641 written pieces! 

We are a merry band of prolific writers, FFxiv RP community, and I couldn't be prouder of our willingness to challenge ourselves creatively, using our RP craft as inspiration. Let’s see how we do in 2019!

Here’s the gist:

Runs from September 1st - 30th, 2019. During that timeframe:

Visit @sea-wolf-coast-to-coast​ once a day at 12:00pm (noon) PST for the prompt of the day. All prompts will be one word or brief phrase that you can interpret however you please.

You have 24 hours to write something for that prompt.

Submit the link to your entry post via this Google Form: https://forms.gle/EJV82Wh85BZpwaFa9  – Tumblr has been hiding @ mentions from my dash which means that I’m missing so many of your entries. :( Submitting a link to your post via this Form will ensure that everyone’s posts are seen and tracked! Please help me, haha. Tag @sea-wolf-coast-to-coast​ in your post, and use the hashtag #FFxivWrite2019.

There are no length or skill requirements (short & sweet is fine!).

There will be no 24-hour deadlines for the first week, September 1st - 7th.

Makeup/extra credit days every Sunday.

Every entry posted within its 24-hour deadline will count toward a participation prize raffle at the end.

You can join any time - late entries are welcome! They simply won’t count toward participation prizes - unless submitted on a makeup day.

If you’re an artist and you would like to volunteer to do a simple black & white illustration as a participation prize at the end of this challenge, please let me know!

RULES & MORE INFO below the cut~

What’s the purpose of this writing challenge?

First and foremost, the purpose of this challenge is to break the power of perfectionism over your personal creative process. Some folks frown on my 24-hour submission deadline but I think that it’s a critical part in getting people to just go ahead and submit something, even if it’s not perfect, and in doing so perfectionism begins to lose its power day by day.

If you’re someone who rarely creates because the fear of it not being perfect keeps you from starting or finishing, then this challenge is designed for YOU!

Of course, connecting FFxiv writers, of all skill and experience levels, and sharing our work is also a perk!

Rules:

You cannot submit things that you’ve already written – Even if the topic is the same. All entries must be new and freshly written for this challenge!

No rough drafts and no redos – Relax! Use this as a low-pressure opportunity to loosen up and de-rust your writing chops. No one will be judging your work for quality or length. The purpose is to get into the habit of writing daily. Don’t overthink it, and don’t put too much pressure on yourself! It’s all for fun!

Submit the link to your entry post via this Google Form: https://forms.gle/EJV82Wh85BZpwaFa9  – Tumblr has been hiding @ mentions from my dash which means that I’m missing so many of your entries. :( Submitting a link to your post via this Form will ensure that everyone’s posts are seen and tracked! Please help me, haha. Tag @sea-wolf-coast-to-coast in all of your entries and use the #FFxivWrite2019 hashtag – Thanks to Tumblr shadowbans, using a hashtag alone is no longer a great way for me to track prompt entries. :( So! Tag me, please, so that I don’t miss your posts. You’ll know that I’ve tracked your post when you see a like from me (NOTE: sometimes it takes 48 hours for me to catch up to your latest posts). 

Select which Prompt # your submitted link is for in the Google Form  – There’s no longer a need to include the Prompt # in the title of the post unless you want to for your own tracking purposes. Include the prompt number in the TITLE of your post – Example: “Prompt #10: Your clever post name.” Entries without the prompt number included in the post title won’t be counted toward prizes.

You have until prompt #7 to back write for participation prizes – That means that if you discover the writing challenge a few days, or even a week after it’s started, you can still jump in and back write as many of the first 7 prompts as you want and they’ll count as entries toward the participation prize! After day 8, however, no back writing will be counted towards the prize - unless it’s submitted on a makeup day. That being said, it is totally possible for someone with only 1 participation entry for the duration of the contest to be drawn as the participation prize winner so don’t give up due to lack of participation overall!

Absolutely no griefing, harassing, or trolling other writers – This will earn you an automatic disqualification from the event.

Tag NSFW content with #NSFW and put it below a cut – Similarly, if your entry contains graphic or violent content that may be triggering to others, please include a brief trigger warning at the top of your post. Be considerate of your readers!

Make-up Days / Extra Credit Days:

EVERY SUNDAY will be a makeup/extra credit day. No prompt will be provided on these days. Instead, you’re welcome to back write and submit as many entries for previous prompts as you’d like! You can also make up your own prompt to write to for the day and submit that as extra credit.

Completing all prompts + extra credit will put you at 30 entries total toward the participation prize raffle.

Participation Prizes:

In early October, I will total up the number of all entries made within their 24-hour deadline, or on makeup days/extra credit, and draw winning numbers for a black & white portrait of their character drawn by one of our volunteer artists.

The number of available prizes depends on how many artists volunteer.

While we do have prizes, remember that getting a prize is not the ultimate purpose of this challenge. It’s a chance for you to beat the snot out of perfectionism in your creative process by just DOING IT! :D

As always, send me an ask or a message with questions. 

Let’s do this, FFxiv community!

(( FFxiv2019 banner art by @dantinmikannes ))