#*rereading* oh i wouldn't want to read this either

[in-tua-deep]

man i have really been thinking about worldbuilding and exposition in books recently

when i was like, i don’t know, twelve-ish, I picked up this book about a teenage girl in a spy school. and i absolutely fell in love with it - I thought it was incredibly neat how the book just seemed to drop me into the middle of the story, even starting in the girl’s second year. in fact, the main character frequently referenced events from her first year (falling in love with a civilian, things ending badly, finding secret passageways, losing her mother’s trust etc.) 

and I actually really enjoyed the fact that the character had a rich and vibrant life outside of what i had read and that the book didn’t go out of its way to explain her past in flashbacks or anything. i understood the main takeaways and why she was reacting to things based on what i gleaned, and more than that i understood the growth of the character, why she was cautious in certain places but reckless in others, etc and i felt smarter for not being handed the answer on a silver platter

anyway it wasn’t until i finished the book and realized there was a sequel that i looked it up and found out that. in fact. i had started with the second book in the series.

oops.

[ridleyytheriddler]

so um

i've been thinking (a lot) and i realized that the word friend doesn't mean shit. like honestly i feel like the label "friend" or "best friend" gets thrown around a lot and if you use that word with someone then they're supposed to be like better than the rest of your friends idk? this is kind of my opinion since my quote-unquote best friend uses it a lot because we spend more time together then anyone else.

and i think that's fair. honestly i never really thought about it much until now, because that kind of best friend does not equal the level of trust that i think a best friend would share with you.

this makes no sense right now and i don't have any fucking idea why im writing it because no one will take the ten minutes to read this and actually understand it

like i think the only best friendship I've ever been able to see is aled and frances. like they're honestly so comfortable and open with each other and would do anything for each other which is allonormatively considered a couple-y thing when its not- its just trust. and platonic love. which is important for everyone, but i think people on the aromantic/asexual spectrum find it especially important.

because tbh my "best friend" doesn't feel like someone i'd be able to trust. she makes me feel kind of uncomfortable. shes suffocating. it feels like she cares but it feels like she's fake. idk- my mom said sometimes in relationships there's always a part where it feels kind of weird or boring, but i feel like this is different... idk. enough about my dumb life.

and that is why i think im so fucking fed up with life, because love is so important (if aplatonic-aro people exist, you are excluded from this. keep rocking). and ever since my life went restart because of le covid ✨ i lost like 99%. of the people i could talk to. now the only people i have left are my parents, who have issues mainly with each other, my 6 closest friends, and that fake bestie lol.

so... yeah. love. its important. honestly i feel like you could be popular and have 50 billion friends but if you didn't love anyone you'd feel like shit and want to die. and its not your fault if you do, and its not really anyones' fault unless they just hate you, in which case it is their fault and i will come over and punch them for you :)

without any of that platonic or romantic love? you feel empty. i feel empty. i hate it so bad. i only feel good when I'm with people, people that haven't broken my trust or pushed the limit with me, just people that generally give off good vibes. the best kind of people are the people that you can have silences with and it not feeling awkward as hell.

thats why i want to crush on someone, bc romantic relationships already include this kind of thing. but the allo people I'm surrounded with do not fucking understand; they never will, unless they find my tumblr account, which will never happen, because they don't give a single fuck

[lilacmingi]

DR. FACILIER (DISNEY VILLAINS AU)

My works are 14+ ONLY. If you’re under 14 DO NOT interact with me or any of my works. NO SPAM-LIKING PLEASE

Pairing: Dr. Facilier!Mingi x fem!reader

Word count: 8,130

Note: I was rereading over this while drafting it here from my Wattpad and I totally forgot how much I loved it 😫

The sound of the front door being slammed shut echoed throughout your home, followed by the sound of keys being dropped into the glass bowl kept in the foyer.

"You're not gonna believe what just happened." Your brother, Wooyoung, hissed angrily as he stormed into the living room.

"What?" You asked, rolling your eyes.

"I went to that voodoo guy and he screwed me over."

"You what?" You sat upright, giving him a sharp glare. "You know those people are quacks."

"I was curious." He defended.

"What exactly did this guy do?"

"He did some card reading to predict my future and it was horrible."

"I don't see what the problem is. You paid to have your future told."

"He was all upbeat and excited saying that he saw a bright future for me and then when I paid him and pulled cards, he told me I was gonna lose all my money and die alone."

"Seems pretty accurate to me."

"Hey!" He huffed, slapping your arm.

"It's the truth! You lost money on that reading."

"Don't you get it? He made me think I was gonna get a good reading and I didn't. I was tricked."

"What do you want me to do about it?"

"I don't know. Something."

"No."

"Do something, Y/n." He whined, shoving your shoulder.

"Cut it out."

"Not until you do something."

"You can take care of it yourself. If you're not satisfied, go talk to the guy."

"If I go back, he'll recognize me. Plus, he has a sign up that says no refunds."

You stared up at the purple and green sign that read: Dr. Song's Voodoo Emporium. There were two torches up on either side of the sign, casting an orange glow on the letters.

You didn't even know why you were there. Maybe you did care that Wooyoung got scammed or maybe you knew he wouldn't quit complaining about losing money if you didn't do something.

"It's now or never." You muttered to yourself before pulling open the creaky door and stepping inside.

"Welcome." A deep and somewhat husky voice greeted you from somewhere in the shadows. "You know, I always say fate brings people into my little shop."

Suddenly, the room was illuminated by many candles and lanterns, all being set aflame on their own and all at once. Stepping out from the dark shadows was a tall, slim man with silvery hair pushed away from his face. He donned an outfit consisting of a vest, an animal print suit jacket, dark trousers, and boots. In his hand was a cane with a gold skull on the end.

"So, darling, do you think fate brought you here?" He asked, extending his hand to you.

"I think you ripping off my brother brought me here." You answered.

He retracted his hand, his strong brows tugging together. "What ever do you mean?"

"You scammed my brother."

"I don't know your brother." He stated.

"You told him you saw a bright future for him and when he got a card reading, you told him he would lose all his money and die alone."

"Sorry to inform you, but I can't control that."

"Yeah, right."

"I swear. It's not me. It's the cards."

"The cards?" You scoffed. "Please."

"It's true. I don't decide people's futures."

"I knew it. You're just a scam artist." You hissed, stalking towards the exit.

"Woah, woah, woah, woah!" The man hurried to stand in front of the door, his hands up as he tried to stop you from leaving.

You sighed, crossing your arms as you waited to hear what he had to say.

"I'm a man who likes to make bargains. So, how about this? I give your brother another reading for free if you let me give you a reading right now."

"You scammed my brother and you think I want a reading from you? No thanks. I'm not interested in your tricks."

"No tricks."

"You're lying. I know how con men like you work."

"Fine. I guess you don't want to help your brother."

"You know that's not true."

"Oh, but it is. If you really wanted to help your brother, you would take this simple deal."

"Why do you want to give me a reading so badly?"

"Can I not give a pretty lady a free reading?"

Your eyes narrowed. "If I do this, you'll give my brother another reading?"

"Of course." He grinned, extending his hand. "What do you say?"

"Fine." You give in, shaking his hand.

"Wonderful." He smiled, gesturing to a round table in the middle of the room. "Have a seat."

I can't believe I'm doing this. You thought to yourself.

"I don't want any funny business, Dr. Song."

"Please, call me Mingi. And I can assure you, no funny business."

In a flash, a deck of tarot cards appeared in his hands. He shuffled through them before fanning them out across the table, three of them sticking out from the rest.

"Oh." Mingi gasped. "It seems fate has already picked for you."

That's weird.

You didn't even see him touch the cards. They just moved on their own.

Mingi flipped the cards over, humming to himself. "Interesting."

"What?" You inquired, leaning forward to get a look at the cards.

"You're lonely, aren't you?"

"Excuse me?"

"You're lonely." He looked up at you, his dark irises boring into yours.

"No. I'm not."

The corner of Mingi's mouth twitched as a breathy chuckle left him. "You are."

"I'm not. I'm content."

"Are you?"

"I..." You trailed off, swallowing.

Were you lonely? You didn't feel lonely. Not all the time, anyway.

"You've never been one for relationships, have you?" Mingi inquired, tapping on the first card.

"How do you know that?"

"I know all. Past, present, and even the future. And it seems to me that you've always been hesitant of getting into relationships. You say you're content now and, while that may be true, you're unhappy." He tapped on the second card, most likely indicating the present.

"I'm not unhappy." You denied.

"Deep down, you are. I see it clear as day." His sharp eyes stayed focused on you.

You didn't like the way he was looking at you. It felt like he was staring right into your soul, reading your every emotion.

"Let's see your future, shall we?"

He glanced down at the third card, his brows raising in fascination .

"Seems like you're going to find love in an unexpected place." Mingi's head tilted, a strand of silvery hair falling over his forehead. "A very unexpected place."

You blinked a few times, waiting for him to continue. "And?"

"That's all."

"What?"

"That's it."

"What will he look like? Where will I meet him? How long will it be until I meet him?"

"I don't know."

"But you said you could see the past, present, and future."

"To a certain extent. I don't know all the details."

You pressed your lips together, feeling slightly peeved. To your disappointment, you couldn't exactly be mad at him. The reading wasn't a bad one, it just wasn't as detailed as you'd hoped. Part of you wanted to hear more, but the other part wanted to leave that place as quickly as possible.

"You seem rather interested for a person who thinks I'm a scam artist." Mingi smirked.

You immediately backpedaled. "I'm not interested. I just expected more detail."

"That's not how my readings work. In fact, that's not how any readings work. You don't always get what you want."

"Well, I let you give me a reading, so a deal's a deal. You give my brother another reading for free. No tricks."

"Of course." He placed one hand over his chest and raised the other. "I assure you, I'm a man of my word."

"We'll see about that." You turned on your heel, ready to leave the establishment.

"Wait. I never got your name."

"You don't need it."

You reached for the doorknob only to have the lock turned by some strange shadow that resembled Mingi. The sight was unsettling and caused you to step away from the entrance.

You glared over your shoulder at Dr. Song.

"Unlock it."

"I'd like your name first."

"It's Y/n."

The door unlocked in an instant.

"That wasn't so hard, now was it?"

You abruptly pulled the door open, ready to leave. You had only taken one step outside when Mingi called out for you again.

"One more thing."

You huffed out a sigh of annoyance as you turned towards the fortune teller.

"Here's my card." He held a small business card between his middle and index finger, offering it to you. "In case you ever need me."

You took the card from him, knowing you'd never use it.

"I'll see you around, my dear." He waved as he watched you leave the shop.

"I get another reading?" Wooyoung asked.

"Yes. No charge."

"Will it be a good one?" He questioned, skeptically.

"He didn't say."

"What if I get a bad reading again?" He whined.

"You should just be thankful he offered you another for free."

"You're right. Thanks for going down there."

"You're welcome."

"So, should we go down there tomorrow?"

"We? No, no, no, no. There is no we. You're going down there alone. I'm not going back there." You denied.

"Why not?"

"He's annoying."

"That's not a valid excuse."

"I don't see why I have to accompany you."

"What if he tries something? Any tricks, I mean."

"He promised no tricks."

"I still want you to come with me."

And that's how you ended up back at Dr. Song's Voodoo Emporium... again.

"I don't wanna do this." You groaned.

"It won't be that bad. We'll be in and out in no time." Wooyoung assured you.

You highly doubted that.

Your annoyingly optimistic brother stepped inside, pulling you with him.

The shop was lit up better than the previous day, allowing you to see all the strange doodads inside: jars lined up on driftwood shelves, bottles of of every shape and size filled with multicolored liquids, books with foreign symbols on the spines, even animal skulls.

"Well, look who's wandered back into my shop."

You rolled your eyes as Mingi stepped from the shadows, making yet another dramatic entrance.

"It wasn't by choice." You stated.

"I'm here for my free reading." Wooyoung spoke up, stupidly unaware of the tension between you and Mingi.

"Ah, yes. Wooyoung, right?"

Your brother nodded.

"Come. Have a seat. Since your last reading for the future was bad, I'll give you a redo for it."

"Sounds good."

You stood off to the side, giving the two some space. From there, you watched Mingi, making sure he didn't pull any tricks.

He pulled out his deck of tarot cards, shuffling them around before presenting them to Wooyoung.

"Pick three cards and we'll see what your future holds."

Your brother's hand hovered over the cards laid out across the tabletop until he selected his first card, then the second, then the third. Each selection was made carefully, as he didn't want to get another bad reading.

"Alright. Let's see what we have here." Mingi hummed, flipping over the first card.

"Oh. This one is good. It means that you'll have some luck."

Mingi then flipped over the second card.

"Mhm." He hummed, with a nod. "This one could mean that there will be a rough patch for you at some point."

Wooyoung frowned.

Mingi flipped over the last card, a small smile tugging at his lips.

"Well, it seems that you'll get through that rough patch and be content in where you are in life."

"Really?" Wooyoung asked.

Mingi nodded.

"What about getting rich? You mentioned that last time before you got me to pay for a reading."

"Ah. Well, I can make that happen for you if you still want it."

Your brows furrowed as you watched their exchange, feeling unsettled by Mingi's words, as well as his shifty behavior.

"Yes!" Your brother answered, enthusiastically. "Is that even possible?"

"Of course it is, Wooyoung. I have friends on the other side that can help me to change your future around."

"Woah. Seriously?"

"Of course. I can make your dreams come true. What do you say?" Mingi extended his hand out towards Wooyoung.

As your brother reached towards Mingi's hand, you saw that shadow from the day before reaching towards Wooyoung. Sensing that something wasn't right, you jumped into action, lunging forward and pulling your naive brother's hand away.

"Don't!"

Wooyoung looked at you with wide eyes and an expression that said, 'What's wrong with you?'

"Are you insane?!" You shrieked.

"No. I'd say I'm the complete opposite actually. I'm about to be rich!"

"No you're not, you idiot. He's trying to trick you. Are you not even the slightest bit worried by these so-called 'friends from the other side'? There could be some serious repercussions to this."

"Uh..." He trailed off.

"Are you seriously going to trust the guy who scammed you?"

His jaw dropped in realization.

"You!" He pointed at Mingi. "You we're trying to trick me again."

"You almost fell for it." He muttered under his breath.

"Unbelievable." You scoffed. "We're leaving."

Wooyoung stood up and the two of you started to walk out.

"Don't be like that." Mingi called out.

"Look, my brother got his free reading and that's that. We're done here."

You didn't allow him any more time to speak as you and Wooyoung left the shop, slamming the door behind you.

"Now do you see why I wanted you to come with me?" Wooyoung asked once the two of you were outside.

"I do. I'm glad I was there, but that doesn't mean I wanted to be."

"You're right. He's a total scam artist."

"I know. Good news is, we won't have to deal with him ever again. You got your free reading, so everything is settled."

Wooyoung gave a nod of finality as the two of you walked away.

You scanned the shelves for any snacks that caught your eye. Wooyoung was in "desperate" need of honey butter chips and annoyed you into going to the convenience store. You figured since you were going out of your way to get his snacks, you might as well get something for yourself.

"Well, would you look at that."

Your brows furrowed at the familiar voice. Turning your head, you spotted someone you didn't expect to see.

Mingi stood at the end of the aisle with one hand resting on his cane and a shopping basket over his other arm, a smug grin on his face.

"You've gotta be kidding me." You muttered.

"What was that?" He asked, walking over.

"Why are you here?" You questioned, ignoring him.

"What does it look like?"

"Stalking."

He chuckled. "Just because we happen to be at the same place at the same time doesn't mean I'm stalking you. You know what I call it?"

"What?"

"Fate."

"Well, I call it annoying." You remarked, walking away.

"Ouch." Mingi hissed. "Those are harsh words."

"Good. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have shopping to do."

You left the aisle you were in, not wanting to share the same area with that fraud. You relocated to a different aisle, perusing the snacks there, picking up a couple things. To your disappointment, Mingi had followed you.

"Why are you avoiding me?"

"Because I have no interest in speaking to you. Nor do I have a reason to speak to you."

"That's a shame."

"Yeah. A real shame." You remarked sarcastically.

You tried, yet again, to get away from him, but to no avail. No matter where you went, he followed.

"Why don't you tell me about yourself? Do you have any hobbies?" He inquired.

"Is that your way of flirting? If so, you're doing a terrible job."

He had that same shameless smirk on his face, letting you know that he didn't care that he was annoying you to no end. You already have Wooyoung harassing you at home, you didn't need another one.

"Come on. I wanna know more about you, darling."

"Don't call me that."

"Why?" He asked, leaning over your shoulder. "Does it make your heart race? Hm?"

"No, it makes me want to throw up."

"You are merciless." Chuckled Mingi. "Don't worry, though. I'm a very persuasive man. I'm sure I could get you to change your tune."

Your patience was wearing thin. You didn't know how much more you could take. This man's incessant questions and flirty remarks were beginning to drive you to madness.

"Look," You started, placing a bag of snacks into your basket. "I'm not interested, okay? Nothing you say and nothing you do will change my mind, got it?"

Mingi's brows raised at your harsh words, but you could see that he wasn't affected by them. In fact, he actually had the audacity to smirk.

"We'll see about that."

Weeks passed and every time you left the house, you ran into Mingi. It didn't matter where you went, he was always there. He had somehow found a way to be exactly where you were every single time—and it was annoying.

Mingi's shadow slipped underneath the front door of his shop, slinking across the walls until it got to the office located in the back.

"Ah. There you are." Mingi greeted. "What have you found out?"

His shadow moved close to him, leaning in, telling him something in a hushed voice.

"What's that?" Mingi asked, leaning closer so he could hear better.

His shadow whispered in his ear, a smirk tugging at Mingi's lips as he listened to the information his shadow provided him.

"Ah. So, she's going to an art festival? Perhaps I'll pay her a visit."

You walked along the sidewalk, browsing the tents set up on the street. There were many different artists selling a wide variety of wares. From uniquely-shaped vases to colorful works of art—they had it all. You enjoyed going places alone every once in a while, so when you heard about a nearby art festival, you knew you had to check it out.

Your fingers ran over a canvas painting, feeling the texture of the pigment. Bright colors were spread across the surface, layered and mixed to make different hues and shadows in the artwork.

"This is a really nice painting." You told the vendor. "How long did it take you?"

"Around 48 hours."

"Woah. That's a lot of work."

"It is." The vendor nodded. "But, I enjoy it, so I don't even realize how much time passes."

You smiled softly.

You loved hearing about the interests and hobbies of others, especially how they enjoy it so much it doesn't feel like work or that they get so immersed in it that they lose track of time.

"Fate just keeps bringing us together."

The soft smile on your face fell immediately.

That better not be who I think it is.

You slowly turned towards Mingi who stood behind you, propped on his cane that he constantly carried with him.

Every time you saw him, he was wearing some sort of vest and jacket, each one with a different pattern or color. Today was no different, except that there were round glasses perched on his nose. You had to admit, the spectacles made him appear softer in a way.

You paused.

The mere thought that Mingi looked softer put you back in your place. You quickly reminded yourself that this man was a scam artist (and a stalker, apparently) and shook away any thoughts about him being remotely soft, pushing them away to the deepest corners of your mind, hoping they wouldn't resurface.

You told the vendor goodbye and wished them luck on their sales before approaching Mingi, your expression cold and void of any emotion except anger and annoyance.

"If you don't quit stalking me, I'm going to call the cops."

"The cops? I'd like to see them try and do something." He chuckled.

"Why can't you just leave me alone? I only visited your measly little shop to right a wrong for my brother. The deal is done. I have no business with you any more, so I don't know why you keep following me around."

Mingi tilted his head to the side, an amused expression plastered on his face.

"What do you want from me?" You asked flat-out, not cutting any corners.

"I want you, Y/n."

You weren't expecting that answer at all. You tried to cover up the fact that you were caught off guard, responding in a cold voice.

"You can't have me."

"Is that a challenge?" He raised a brow.

"No. It's a statement."

You turned on your heel, leaving him standing on the sidewalk. You didn't care that you had ditched him. After all, he's the one who encroached on your day out.

A nearby tent caught your attention. The vendor had many intricate wood carvings on display. They were so beautiful that you stopped for a moment to admire them, complimenting the man on his incredible handiwork. You chatted with him for a moment, asking how he makes such complex creations. You ended up purchasing a small keychain with a carving of a skull hanging from it.

You continued down the street, taking a few moments to check out anything that caught your eye. One of those items was a medium-sized canvas with multicolored neon shapes painted on the surface. The background was black, making the vibrant hues stand out. You loved it and you had to have it.

Greeting the woman running the booth, you immediately picked up the canvas, mentioning how much you loved it. After glancing at the price, you decided you would purchase it. You looked down only for a moment, digging through your wallet to retrieve some cash for the lady. You had just counted out the money when a hand extended past you, neatly folded bills held between two slender, ring-clad fingers.

"I got it covered."

The lady took the money, thanking the person. You turned to see Mingi behind you, his tall form leaned over you slightly. You had to keep it together long enough for the vendor to hand you the canvas which had been placed in a plastic shopping bag. You gave her a friendly smile and wished her luck on the rest of her sales before walking away so she wouldn't hear you scream at Mingi.

As much as you wanted to think he bought that for you out of the kindness of his heart, you knew he didn't. He had something up his sleeve.

"Aren't you gonna thank me?" Mingi asked before you had the chance to say anything to him.

"No."

"Ah. Well, I suppose that's fine. However, you do owe me."

"I beg your pardon?" You asked, stopping in your tracks.

"You owe me." He repeated.

"I don't owe you anything."

"Oh, but you do. I just paid for that painting."

"That was your choice. I had nothing to do with it."

"You still owe me."

"You know what?" You muttered, digging through your wallet. You pulled out enough money to cover the cost of the painting, shoving the cash into his chest. He stumbled a bit, placing his hand over the money to keep it from falling.

"I paid you back. We're square now." You told him.

"Did you?" He raised a brow.

You narrowed your eyes at him as he showed you an empty hand. You looked in your wallet, then began patting down your pockets, reaching into one of them, pulling out the wad of cash you'd just given to Mingi.

"Wh-what? How did you—"

"Like I said, you owe me."

"You... you..." Trailing off, you tried to find the right words to describe the man in front of you. "You snake!"

He seemed unfazed by the attempted insult.

"Whatever it is you're wanting me to do, I won't do it." You snapped.

"Spend the day with me." He told you.

"You really think I want to spend the day watching you scam people? No thanks."

"Would you rather do something else? I'm sure I could think of other ways for you to make it up to me." He told you, his eyes looking you up and down.

Your mouth fell open. "You sicko."

"That's not what I meant." He huffed. "Look, I just want you to spend the day with me, that's all. Come hang out at my shop with me."

"I'm not interested." You told him, sternly.

"Excuse me, young lady." Someone called out, catching your attention.

You turned towards the voice to see where it was coming from. A man in a black coat wearing many odd necklaces made of bone stepped out into the street.

"Me?" You pointed to yourself.

"Yes."

"What is it?" You inquired, stepping towards the man's tent, noticing all the unique and odd jewelry he sold.

"You are quite a stunning young woman."

"Oh. Thank you." You responded, thrown off by the strange and sudden compliment.

"I think you'd look lovely wearing this necklace." He grabbed a black velvet box from behind the table, opening it up to show you the product.

The chain was silver and on the end was a unique pendant, one that you'd never seen before. An iridescent stone was encased in intricate, silver designs. The gemstone is what really caught your attention. It changed colors in the light, looking purple from one direction, then a green-ish teal color from the other. But, if you looked at it straight on, it was a mix of colors—it was enchanting.

"It's beautiful." You commented.

"I made it myself." The man told you, removing it from the box. "Go on. Have a look. You can try it on if you'd like."

You stepped forward, your hand reaching for the necklace. Just then, Mingi's hand shot out, grabbing onto your wrist before you could even touch the pendant. You turned to him with a questioning look on your face.

"Sorry, but we're not interested." He told the man in a stern tone, his voice dangerously low.

The vendor gave Mingi a hard glare as you were dragged away.

"What was that about?" You asked once the man was out of earshot.

"There was a bad energy surrounding that necklace." Mingi responded, his face solemn. "It's probably cursed."

"Cursed? Why would someone try to sell me a cursed necklace?"

"There are dangerous people in the world who love meddling with the lives of others."

"Isn't that what you do?"

"No. I help people. Sometimes I have sneaky ways of doing it, but it's nothing like what that man does."

"You both trick people. I don't see the difference." You stated.

"That may be true, but at least I don't try and sell people cursed items."

You were about to tease him for admitting that he indeed scams people, but you knew all along, so there was no need to joke about it.

You did feel a little touched by the fact that he stopped you from getting a malediction from a cursed necklace. You honestly didn't think he had it in him.

"I'll spend the day with you." You spoke up.

"What?" Mingi turned to you, his normally sharp and narrow eyes now wide in surprise, glimmering with hope.

You had to stop yourself from fawning over how insanely adorable his eyes were.

You cleared your throat before repeating yourself. "I'll spend the day with you."

"Really? What made you change your mind?"

"You just saved me from catching a curse. I guess I owe you for that."

The very next day you found yourself standing in Mingi's voodoo shop again, this time on your own volition. You walked around the room, getting a good look at everything inside. If you were going to be there all day, you might as well make the most of it.

He had all sorts of strange knickknacks, trinkets, and novelties. One of those being lucky rabbit foot keychains. You figure that was typical for a voodoo shop. On the driftwood shelf, besides all the strange liquid-filled bottles, there appeared to be elixirs and bath salts, some promising good luck, while others just promised a boost of energy. In a basket under a wall of ominous-looking masks were dozens of voodoo dolls.

"Do people actually use these?" You asked.

"They sure do, my dear." Mingi answered.

"Seriously?" You turned towards him. "Do they work?"

"Would you like to test one and find out?"

You recoiled your hand, not liking how confident his tone was. "No thanks."

"Very well. The offer is still on the table if you change your mind." He hummed, straightening his jacket and smoothing his hair out.

The door to the shop opened, catching your attention. A customer stepped inside, looking around the small building.

"Ah. Welcome." Mingi greeted. "Is there anything I can help you with on this fine morning?"

"I was told you do card readings." The young man spoke.

"I do indeed. Have a seat."

You watched as Mingi's shadow moved across the floor, pulling the chair out for the customer. Every time you saw his shadow move, you got a shiver down your spine. Something wasn’t right. It may be Mingi's shadow, but it seems to have a mind of its own and is beyond his control.

"Am I interrupting something?" The man asked, noticing your presence.

"No. She's just watching me work, that's all." Mingi brushed it off. "So, what would you like to know? Your future? Or maybe there's a certain someone you have your eye on and you want to see if you'll win them over. Hm?" He raised a curious brow.

"Y-yes! How'd you know that?" The man questioned.

"I know everything. I can see right into your heart and soul." He responded, shuffling his tarot cards.

"Wow."

Mingi then began the card reading, holding them out to the customer. He selected his cards and Mingi begin interpreting each one. He shook his head, making a tsk sound.

"Seems like you won't ever get with this girl."

"What?" The man frowned.

"Yes. The cards are telling me that she'll find someone else."

You crossed your arms, upset by the man's reading.

"Aw. Don't look so down." Mingi cooed, placing the end of his cane under the man's chin, using it to lift the his head. "I have something that'll help win her heart."

"Really?" The man's face lit up instantly.

"Of course." Mingi stood from his chair, striding over to a cabinet. He retrieved a small box, carrying it over to the table. He open it up revealing a beautiful necklace with a heart- shaped charm.

"That's beautiful."

"It's powerful too."

"What?"

"The necklace is charmed. If you put it on her, she'll fall in love with you."

"For real?"

Mingi nodded.

"Hm." The man hummed. "Do you have anything else?"

Mingi seemed disappointed, but turned up the charm, smiling brightly. "Of course."

He strode over to the shelf of bottles, retrieving one of them. "How about a love potion?"

You rolled your eyes.

Yeah, right.

"A love potion?" The customer parroted.

"Yes. If you give her some of this, she'll fall for you instantly."

"Really? How do you know?"

"I got it from my friends on the other side. They can make all sorts of magic potions."

"Woah."

Friends on the other side?

He's said that before. As far as you know, you've only seen his shadow, so who are these friends of his?

"How much?" The man asked, pulling you from your thoughts.

You cleared your throat, grabbing Mingi's attention. You stared at him intently, shaking your head no, silently telling him not to trick that man.

"Excuse me a moment." Mingi walked over to you, making sure you were both far enough from the man that he wouldn't hear.

"What are you doing?" You whispered harshly.

"Business." He responded, plainly.

"No you're not. You're scamming. What's the truth behind that necklace? And that so-called love potion?"

"Well, they both really do work. If he uses the love potion, he has to be the first person she sees. The necklace only works when she's wearing it. And as soon as the necklace is clasped around her neck, her soul immediately belongs to my friends on the other side."

"What?!" You whisper-yelled trying not to completely freak out. "You're gonna let him sell this girl's soul without knowing?"

"If he chooses the necklace, yeah."

"How can you be so nonchalant about this? Do you not have any remorse?"

"I have to please my friends on the other side."

"What?"

"You see, doll. I have these friends—beings, if you will. They help me make things become a reality for people, but they need something in return. I do the bidding for them and give them what they want, and in return, they give me something I want."

"That's sick." You spat.

"It's just business, dear." He brushed you off, returning to his unsuspecting customer.

"So, what do you say?" He asked, taking his place back at the table.

"How much for the necklace?"

"Free of charge." Mingi smiled. "All I ask is payment for the card reading. That's it."

The customer was enticed by the offer and was ready to accept.

Knowing what you know now, you didn't want the poor guy to get caught up in a bigger mess. You stared Mingi down, shaking your head. He stared back, his eyes not leaving yours for a long moment as he reconsidered. Then, before the customer could answer, he spoke up.

"Actually," Mingi started. "Forget the necklace, the potion too. There's another way you can possibly change the outcome of all this."

"Really? How?"

"What you need to do is take her out. Ask her on a date and see where it goes from there."

"Are you sure?"

Mingi nodded. "I can't guarantee that it will work, but it's worth a shot. The sooner you do it, the better. That way no one else snags her before you."

"Okay. I think I can muster up the courage to ask her. Thank you so much." The man smiled, pulling money from his pocket. "I'll definitely try that."

Mingi took the cash from him. "Before you go, take this." He grabbed a rabbit's foot keychain, placing it into the man's hand. "Good luck."

"Wow. Thanks a lot!" The customer beamed, leaving the shop.

As soon as the door closed, the fortune teller turned to you.

"Are you happy? You probably screwed me out of a customer." He grumbled, counting the cash.

You saw his eyes widen before he began to frantically recount the bills in his hand.

"He paid me extra."

"What?"

"He paid me a few dollars more than what I charge." He gaped.

"Really?"

"Yeah. He must have really liked my advice." Mingi smiled, shoving the money into his pocket. "I'm a genius."

"You wouldn't have given that advice had I not stopped you from completely ruining his life."

He pursed his lips, narrowing his eyes. "Fine. I suppose you have a point."

Throughout the day, you watched Mingi give readings to people and try to sell them items that you knew had a twisted backstory to them. Somehow, you were able to get him to rethink things and give his customers an actual solution to their problems rather than scamming them into purchasing something that would possibly ruin their lives.

All in all, you'd say your time spent with Mingi wasn't all that bad and you were glad that you were able to possibly save the souls of a few people during your time in the shop.

"Well, today was... enlightening to say the least." You said. "I should go now."

You prepared to leave until Mingi stopped you.

"Would you like something to eat before you go home? You've been here all day and neither of us have eaten. I'll pay."

"You won't use it as an excuse to say I owe you again, will you?"

"No." He shook his head. "Promise."

You were pretty hungry and you couldn't turn down free food, so you agreed. A delivery order was called in shortly. You assisted Mingi in tidying up his shop after a long day while you waited for your meal to be delivered.

Half an hour passed and you found yourself sitting at the round table in the middle of the shop chatting with Mingi while the two of you ate.

"So, what did you think?" Mingi asked, grabbing a large bite of ramen.

"Well, I didn't like how you tried to trick people. I did, however, like what you told them after you chose to be honest."

He couldn't help but feel proud of himself after hearing your words. At first, he was angry that you made him feel guilty for attempting to scam people, but as the day went on, he realized it wasn't so bad. He'd have to find a way to make up for it when he contacts his friends on the other side later, but he wasn't really worried about that at the moment. He was having a wonderful time with you.

Mingi's shadow was agitated that you managed to get in his head and talk him out of striking any deals. The shadow knew you were bad news from the start. You deterred Mingi from doing many tasks, which caused his friends on the other side to become impatient. What happened today would be the cherry on top. They would show him no mercy if he continued this behavior.

"So, the voodoo dolls do work?" You questioned.

"Of course."

"I bet you sell those to people without warning them of the consequences." You commented.

"On the contrary. I actually do warn people before they buy those. I don't want anyone to do something they'll regret."

You looked at Mingi's expression and the way his eyes stared into yours. He was telling the truth.

"Hm. So you do care for your customers." You teased playfully.

He let out a chuckle. "Of course I do."

"This food is great, by the way. Thanks for buying."

"It's the least I could do. I know you didn't exactly want to be here today."

"Actually, if I'm being honest, it wasn't all that bad. Also, I appreciated the way you protected me yesterday when that weirdo tried to sell me a cursed necklace. I felt like I really did owe you."

"I just didn't want you to get yourself in a messy situation. Truth is, I care about you a lot." Mingi admitted.

His words surprised you and made your heart melt at the same time.

Before you could process what was going on, Mingi's shadow lunged for you, knocking you from your chair, pinning you to the ground.

You let out a yelp, struggling to pull yourself off the floor. You couldn't help but wonder how a shadow was so strong.

"Hey!" Mingi shouted. "What are you doing?"

He got up from his seat so fast, his chair nearly fell over. "Get off of her!" He roared, his voice so gravelly and threatening that it sent a shiver down your spine.

Then, you felt the ghostly grip on your wrists disappear. You pushed yourself into a sitting position, your heart pounding violently against your rib cage.

"Y/n." Mingi panted. "I'm so sorry. I... it's never done that before. I swear I had nothing to do with it."

"I need to go home." You responded, your mind in a haze.

"Wait. Please—"

"I can't handle this." You told him, heading towards the door. "I'm sorry. I need to leave."

That's the last time Mingi saw you.

You were in the middle of cleaning your room, tossing things you didn't want into a donate box and throwing away invoices from past online orders and other paper junk into the trash.

There was a knock on the front door, but you paid no mind to it, assuming your brother would answer it since you had your hands full at the moment.

However, the knocking persisted.

"Wooyoung! Can you not hear there's someone at the door?" You shouted down the hallway.

"Yeah." He called back from the living room.

"Are not gonna answer it? I'm kinda busy."

"You do it. I'm in the middle of a drama."

You let out a long sigh, stomping into the living room.

"Can you not pause it?"

"No." He responded, his eyes glued to the TV.

"You're unbearable." You said through gritted teeth, going to answer the door.

The person on the other side was not who you were expecting.

Mingi stood at your doorstep, his head hanging low. You would have told him to go away had you not noticed he wasn't wearing his usual getup. Instead of his customary vest and cardigan or suit jacket combo, he had on a white dress shirt tucked into a pair of black slacks. It was much more toned-down than the outfits he usually wore.

Before you could open your mouth, he spoke.

"I'm done."

"What?"

"I cut ties with the shadow realm."

"Why?"

"For you."

"For me?" You parroted.

He nodded. "This crooked and shady life I'm living isn't the life I want. Especially if it ends up hurting you."

"This isn't a trick... is it?" You inquired.

He shook his head.

"So, let me get this straight. You cut ties with those friends of yours for me?"

"I did."

"And what about your...shadow?" Your eyes trailed to look at the shape cast along the concrete walkway behind him.

He followed your gaze, noticing your uneasy behavior. "It's gone. Just a normal shadow now. Cutting ties got rid of all the abilities I had."

"I see."

"I'm really sorry about what happened that evening at my shop. I had no control over my shadow. It just attacked without warning. Truthfully, I think it's because it knew—"

"Y/n! Who's at the door?" Wooyoung shouted from the living room, cutting Mingi off.

You let out a sigh, rolling your eyes.

"None of your business!" You shouted back before turning to Mingi. "I'm sorry about him."

"It's fine. Maybe we could just stand outside and talk." He suggested. "That way we have some privacy."

"Good idea."

You stepped outside, closing the front door so Wooyoung wouldn't try to eavesdrop.

"Alright. You were saying?"

"Right. My shadow... I think it knew that I was going soft."

"Going soft?" You inquired.

"Yes." He nodded, taking in a deep breath like he was preparing to say something extremely important. "Y/n, I was drawn to you from the start. I got my shadow to follow you around after you first came to my shop. That's how I always knew where you were. I just wanted to see you any chance I got. Then, my feelings began to get more serious and I wanted to do things to make you happy. I wanted to protect you. I guess my shadow realized that I was becoming soft and drifting from my old ways. It tired to hurt you because it thought you were getting in the way."

There was so much information to take in. Mingi had his shadow follow you? But, he likes you and obviously cares for you. Not only that, but he's changing his ways for you. He cut ties with the shadow realm for you. That's a pretty big commitment.

"You were right for calling me a stalker. In a way, I was. I'm sorry." He apologized.

"Actually, it's okay. Technically, it wasn't you following me. Also, I can see that you've changed drastically. You're not the same voodoo shop owner I met a month ago."

Mingi's heart soared hearing you say that. Knowing that he had, at the very least, earned your trust was a big accomplishment for him.

"So, would you maybe be willing to give us a chance?" He asked, softly, his hands finding yours.

Your eyes landed on your joined hands, looking at the way his large ones encased your smaller ones.

"I think..." You trailed off, looking back up at Mingi. "I think I'd be up for that."

His eyes became wide, looking rounder and more innocent, sparkling with hope.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." You nodded.

Being caught in the moment, Mingi started to lean in, only to catch himself before he got too close.

"Can I kiss you?" He asked, softly. His voice barely above a whisper. He didn't want to do anything you weren't okay with.

"You can."

Mingi then closed the narrow gap between your faces, his full and plush lips pressing delicately against yours. Your eyes fluttered closed immediately, melting into the kiss. His large hands let go of yours, holding the small of your back, pulling you against him. The closeness had your heart racing. You had never experienced anything like this before. You were feeling emotions and feelings you had never felt in your life. A rush of heat flooded your body and it felt like butterflies were running rampant in your stomach. All these new feelings were overwhelming but so amazing.

The feeling of Mingi's hands running up and down your back sent tingles up your spine, making you feel warm from the inside out.

Your fingers latched onto the ends of his silvery hair, grabbing at the long strands in the back. Based on the sigh he let out against your lips, he liked that.

After a while, you pulled away, feeling short of breath. You and Mingi stared at each other for a few moments, both of you panting, trying to catch your breath. Mingi's partially exposed chest rose up and down with each huff as his hooded eyes stared into yours. Your arms were wrapped around his slim waist, holding him tightly, not wanting to let go.

"You were right." You spoke up, still breathless.

"What do you mean?"

"About finding love in an unexpected place."

You could see Mingi's cheeks tint pink.

That's exactly what he said to you after your card reading. At the time, Mingi could see into the future, but even he didn't know who you would end up with. He had no idea he would be the one.

"I guess I found love in an unexpected place too." He admitted.

"Why do you seem so surprised? I thought you knew everything." You teased with a smirk.

He couldn't help but grin.

"As much as I hate to, I'd better get back inside. You know, before Wooyoung comes out here and starts harassing me."

"Right." Mingi chuckled.

"I'd like to see you again." You told him as you went to open the front door.

"You have my card. Just give me a call." He winked. "We'll sort something out."

Hongjoong: Hades ⟡ Seonghwa: Maleficent ⟡ Yunho: Captain Hook ⟡ Yeosang: Evil Queen ⟡ San: Cruella de Vil ⟡ Wooyoung: Hyena ⟡ Jongho: Gaston

Masterlist ᝰ — enjoyed this imagine? reblogs & comments are very much appreciated!

DO NOT steal, plagiarize, copy, repost, alter, or translate my works in any way

🏷 @h3arteyes4mingi @weird-bookworm @poppy2007 @parkjennykim @evidive @mxlly143 @lizzymizzy-blogg @minhanbyeol @dinossaurz @laylasbunbunny @iammeandmeisiam @delulu18

[hazelfoureyes]

How are you so good at writing smut??? It legit makes my body warm all over and my brain fuzzy, you fucking smut wizard <3 do you have any tips on writing smut? Or just writing in general?

Thank you for such a compliment! 💖🥹This is mildly embarrassing-- but I really am so horny?? I am not playing a character. lol I am a goblin. When I watch porn (for pleasure) I just take in the sounds and the sights, really just going full art reviewer on that shit for inspo even when I'm not trying to.

"Wow his cock got so big suddenly, is he going to cum? his head his massive...omg he sunk it right back into that guy after he came?? he's still going!? DICKS CAN DO THAT?" *takes mental notes*

"Her hips kept pulling away there before she orgasmed, overstimulated a bit maybe, love how he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back down" *jots down on my notes app*

"wow the way he said that-- jesus I just got dizzy I need to hear <whatever character> say that." *writes Luci saying that shit immediately* I am unqualified to give tips on anything, but I'll tell you what I tend to do! For smut; I just focus on sensations, I think. We can all see what sex looks like! Imagining the feeling of it, that's whats so fucking hot to me. Why is that man moaning? What is he feeling that is so good? What made her legs shake like that? Yeah his dick went into her pussy. Nice. But like---- was it warm? did his head get caught on the way in, popping past that unyielding flesh untrained to his size, just at her entrance? did the feeling of wet walls and a tight grip make him go weak for a second, mind blank?

For general writing; oh geez....I have a super visual brain, so I just try my best to describe what I'm seeing.

If it feels like I've forced someone to say or do something, then I back up and try again.

I wrote a part in A Doe in Fall part 4 that I had to redo; I had reader slap the detective when he suggested maybe she was hitting on him, a man coming to intervene making Brady get nervous and apologize before leaving all flustered.

But I realized--- no, this reader is too smart. She would never make a scene like that, she wouldn't know what might happen. What if everyone watches her then sit with Alastor? What if people notice and somehow remember seeing him? What if they recognize him? I loved the scene but I had to remove it. She would never do that, even if I loved seeing it.

I try to just shut down a little and see what my brain throws out unfiltered. It's really mentally taxing. I'm either 100% focused or I can't do it. I proofread maybe 6 or 7 times, or more. I don't stop until I get through it at least once without edits, and if I find myself bored of reading it, then I walk away for a second. If I am too disinterested to read it again for proofreading or just feeling the flow of it, then why would anyone else want to?

Hazbin Smut Masterlist I spent way too long rereading before posting

I felt this like this wasn’t helpful at all 😭

[fandoms--fluff]

Road Trip

Flufftober, October 1st.

Vampire female Salvatore reader x Hope Mikaelson

Summary: Lizzie and Josie set you and Hope up on a road trip, knowing the wherewitch (unactivated vampire side) has had a massive crush on you since she was nine.

Reader goes to the school only to look out for the twins and to throw insults at Alaric, otherwise, you wouldn't be there. You don't actually do any work...or go to any classes either or teach any classes since you got turned at 21. You're also there to look out for Hope, as per request from Klaus before he died. Considering you and Stefan are the only ones in Mystic Falls he actually liked and secretly cared about.

Warnings: swearing,

a/n: Even though it's basically irrelevant to this fic, Stefan is alive and no one took any cure. And Damon never gave his car to the twins - this one kinda is, idk. And the other side was never destroyed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope stares at you as you're reading Peter Pan, across the library. "Subtle" Lizzie says from behind her.

"Did you know, she's reread that book three times already this year" Hope says, aware of how stalkerish she sounds. "So the girl likes Peter Pan, she probably met the author in the fifties when it came out." Lizzie shrugs, smirking at her frenemie

"It came out in 1911 actually, and there's nothing saying I can't read a book more than once" You look up from the book and over to them.

Hope immediately blushes, knowing you were listening to their conversation. She pulls Lizzie out of the library with her quickly. "You knew she could hear us, didn't you?" Hope whisper yelled to the siphoner.

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. It's so obvious you like her!" Lizzie explains, whisper yelling back. She walks up to her and Josie's room, leaving Hope standing there embarrassed.

Lizzie walks into her and Josie's room. "That's it, I can't take it anymore. We need to get Hope to admit her feelings to y/n before my head explodes!" Lizzie exclaims. "Finally, let's do this" Josie stands up from her desk. She walks over to Lizzie's bed, where they start planning.

"Lizzie, why did I have to pack a bag?" Hope asks her, duffle bag slung over her shoulder. "You'll see" Lizzie smiles as she leads Hope over to Damon's car, that which is here without his knowledge, thanks to you.

Josie walks towards them, also with a bag slung over her shoulder. "Are we going on a trip or something?" Hope asks, confused.

"Well, we aren't," Josie tells her and points to herself and her twin. She drops the bag on top of the trunk.

"Where exactly did you need us to go again?" You ask eyebrow raised. You have the keys to the Camaro in your hand.

"Oh, right, here" Lizzie hands you a map with a location circled in black marker.

Hope's eyes widen slightly, figuring out that she and you are going to be on a road trip. Together. Alone. She wants to kill Lizzie and Josie right now, she groans in her head. She already knows somehow she's going to make an utter fool of herself. Why did she get out of bed this morning, why? she thinks before zoning back into the conversation taking place.

"A campsite? In Atlanta?" You ask with an eyebrow raised. "Yep, mhm" Lizzie nods her head.

"You know, if I could tell when you were lying when you were a child, I still can, right?" You cross your arms.

Lizzie and Josie share a surprised look before quickly leaving. "Love you, auntie y/n" Josie says before slipping into the school with her sister. You roll your eyes playfully at her way of trying to be cute so you don't hunt them down and lecture them later.

"..We don't have to go if you don't feel like it" Hope hesitates before speaking. "No, it's fine. Besides, you and I both need some time away from this damn place. I can tell. Plus I don't know how much longer I can take having to see Ric's face every day." You unlock the car, and open the trunk, placing the bag Josie packed for you in it. Hope softly chuckles at the last part you said as she also places her bag in the car.

"Okay, Atlanta here we come," You say once you're both inside the car and you start the ignition.

The radio plays as Hope looks out the window, watching as everything seems to fly by as you're driving. It's been around three hours since you guys left. Hope's calmed down a bit, knowing all she has to do is make it through the next 2-3 days at most and then her secret is still all safe.

However, it doesn't help that you look absolutely beautiful as your eyes concentrate on the road and your fingers sometimes lightly tap along to the song playing. She's been trying her hardest to not just flat-out stare at you for the past two hours. You're wearing a black fitted v-neck top, dark wash jeans, and a leather jacket. And she can't stop thinking about how good the outfit looks on you.

By hour four, you pull over into a gas station. You're not stupid, you know exactly why the twins set you and Hope on a road trip. You've known for a while about how the youngest Mikaelson has a crush on you. Now you could always just confront her and all that, but you're not going to make it that easy. You're seeing how long it'll take until she finally spills it out to you.

You've been smirking on the inside most of the drive, noticing the not-so-hidden looks and eyeing Hope's been doing.

"Why don't you go pick out a couple snacks while I fill up the tank" You smile. You pull your wallet out of your pocket and hand her a twenty dollar bill. "Y-yeah, okay" she grasps onto the bill and walks into the small store.

Once you pay for the gas with your card, Hope is back in the car, a bag of snacks in her lap. She stopped in the bathroom there, making sure her face wasn't bright red from blushing. The good thing is her cheeks were only slightly flushed, so wasn't as bad as she thought she looked.

You guys munch on the snacks for the next leg. Hope soon realized that having something in her mouth to constantly chew on is settling her nerves a bit. Thank god she got a pack of gum at the counter before paying.

"You look glum...Wanna know a secret that your father and my brother would most definitely kill me for if they find out I told you about it?" You look over to her at a stop light. Why are there so many stoplights here? You guys are the only ones on the road for petes sake.

"Really? Yeah" Hope looks up at you, her eyes widened. Before you spoke, she was staring at her shoes with an expressionless face.

"Well, Chicago, 1920's, Nik and Stefan were close. Too close it seemed to me, so I did some investigating one night. Let's just say when I broke into Stef's apartment because he wouldn't give me a key, my precious eyes were traumatized. There I saw, my baby brother and my good friend, Nik, naked on his bed in the middle of a hook-up sesh" You tell her, you smile seeing the disgust on her face.

"You just told your friend- enemie's? daughter about him and your brother having sex! Why?!" She exclaims, a disgusted look on her face.

"Because you said yes you wanted to know something" You smirked, happy to see her no longer glum. "I thought you meant something like, I don't know, an embarrassing story where they were drunk and had a stupid conversation, not a- wait, were they like...together?" Hope broke off from her sentence.

"Ah, now I was hoping you'd ask that, this will tell you all you need. Probably in a more censored way," you reach into the backseat and pull out a worn-out leatherbound journal. "My baby bro's journal, doesn't know I have it, so keep it on the hush and don't tell anyone." You wink at her. "I nicked it from him when Klaus came to town to sacrifice Elena. Such a dork, even when he was humanity-less, he still freakin wrote in a diary" You playfully roll her eyes and her the old diary.

"Do I even want to know how much blackmail you have against basically everyone?" She asks you, opening the diary. "Oh, sweetie, you don't even want to know who and how much" you chuckle.

Hope immediately feels butterflies in her stomach when you call her 'sweetie'. It slowly falters off though, "Wait, do you have anything on me?" She asks, alarm on her face.

"Hmm, good question" You pretend to think for a second before pulling off a very damon-impersonating smirk.

"I'll make sure not to get on your bad side then" Hope says. "Good idea, your uncle didn't do a very good job with that. Oh what am I saying, he still doesn't. If you're ever pissed at him and something to hold over his head, I've got you."

"You know uncle Kol?"

"Yep, we crossed paths in 1872 and just stuck together since then, even when Nik decided to dagger him for a century," you tell her. "And when he died...twice" you both chuckle at the way you held off on the dying part.

"He's never mentioned he knows you," Hope tells you, not remembering her uncle ever bringing your name up.

"Has he ever mentioned a 'she-devil' or 'crazy scary woman'?" You raise an eyebrow. "Yeah, a bunch" she tilts her head. "Then he has, wow, so rude of him to never actually say my name and just those disgusting ones," You tell her in a joking tone.

"That makes so much sense," Hope says, earning her a flick to her thigh from you.

"Uh-huh, I bet it does" You smirk at her gasp. "We'll be there in forty-five minutes, so you might want to read that or I can give you a very detailed version instead," You tell her, turning without signaling because you guys are the only ones on the road. still.

"No thanks...I thought we had another two hours left?" She started reading until your info fully sunk into her mind.

"I mean we should, but I have no mind for speed limits, and we'll get there before dark. That means no bears or coyotes to sneak up on us in the dark." "What?!" she looks alarmed again.

"Just kidding, there's no bears or coyotes within 10 miles of the campsite unless it changed in the past year" you reassure her. "Oh, okay, thank god" she lets out a relieved breath, continuing on the page she was on.

Hope looks up from the page she's on as you park the car in a clearing beside a massive pine tree. "There are things in here that a daughter should never know about her father and ex-lover? best friend? friends with benefits? I don't know, but it's gross" She puts the diary on the backseat where you grabbed it from earlier.

"I'm surprised you made it that far, honestly" You chuckle, getting out of the car.

Hope follows you to the trunk and pulls out her bag. "So where exactly are we going in here?" She asks as you sling your bag over your shoulder.

"A site that was abandoned twenty years ago and no one has visited besides me. I never thought there were any bad reasons to tell my wonderful nieces, but they for some reason want us here, so I'll just go along with it" You answer her question.

Hope's stomach fills with butterflies again, knowing that she and you are going to be the only ones here. She watches where she's going, not wanting to trip and then you probably going to ask her if she's alright and then she'll most definitely say the stupidest answer, and then you'll probably figure out her huge crush on you. How is it that her mind can rant like this whenever she's around you, is her question.

Hope's eyes widen when she looks at the place you guys stop at. It's a beautiful clearing with no trees littering the circle and the clear sky shining down. There's a river a couple hundred meters forward and it just seems so peaceful.

"This looks amazing" She finally says. You chuckle at her ogled state, "Yeah it does, there's a barrier around us that'll only allow people I want in here. So there are no enemies and now only five others know about it, you, Josie, Lizzie, Kol, and Katherine" You explain, and motion for her to place her duffle bag down on the log, beside your bag.

"That's so cool," she says, looking around again. "How long are we staying here again?" she asks.

"Maybe like two or three days before heading back if that's alright with you," you say while pulling a tent to assemble out of your bag. "That sounds good" Hope smiles, walking back over to you.

"I hope you don't mind sleeping in the same tent, it's the only one I have that's not broken, thanks to my brothers, but it's fairly big" You lead her to around the middle of the site and start taking all the pieces out of it's bag.

"N-no, I don't mind" on the inside, she's screaming. This is literally too good to be true. She going to be sleeping in the same tent with you, for three nights at least. She's literally jumping up and down on the inside, she's so happy. No way her overthinking is going to stop her from feeling joy, not at this moment at least.

You smirk to yourself, knowing exactly what's going on in Hope's head, maybe she'll realize that it's okay to tell you about her crush during this time before Josie and Lizzie plan another surprise trip or plan for you two.

You build the tent, giving Hope instructions for some parts considering this is her first time building one. It's up and ready not even fifteen minutes later, all the pegs hammered into the ground and all the zippers working.

"And we're done before sunset, good job us" You give her a high five. You guys bring your things into the tent and set up the two sleeping bags that were in your bags because Josie packed them both in your bag. Probably so Hope wouldn't get too suspicious before leaving.

It's been two days, you guys are leaving tomorrow. And Hope can't even count the number of times she just wanted to go up to you and kiss you. But her self-consciousness stops her before she gets up to do it. every. single. time.

Not this time though. They can go fuck off while I go make a stupid decision, but it'll hopefully be worth it, Hope fights with herself. She stands up as best she can in the tent and walks over to where you're sketching.

You look up at her, but before you can utter a word, Hope goes on her knees and presses her lips to yours. She pulls away, eyes widened.

Hope cannot believe she just let herself do that. How stupid can she be?!

"I- uh, s-sorry. I have no idea what I was thinking" She goes to stand up, but you pull her back to you and bring her into a soft yet passionate kiss.

"You knew exaclty what you were doing. And I'm glad you did. It may have taken you a while, but you did and I'm proud of you, and I might just also have a huge crush on you too" You tell her everything going on in her scrambling mind.

"You do?" She asks, shocked. "One hundred percent" you smirk.

It takes her a second to realize, "Wait, you knew I had a crush on you this entire time and just let me almost make a fool of myself countless times over the years?"

"Pretty much, yeah" You nod with a faux thinking face.

"I guess it's worth it though" She mumbles, looking up at you this time. "Yeah, I strongly agree. Why don't you try being my girlfriend to find out for yourself though" You set your sketchpad and pencil down and place a hand on her thigh.

"Really? Yes!" she smiles, lighting up her face.

You bring her into another kiss, and it ends with you both doing absolutely nothing for the rest of the day besides cuddling and you telling her embarrassing and some disgusting (she thinks at least) stories about her family and yours and some of the mystic falls gang.

There's no doubt that Klaus is watching from the other side and sighing as his daughter falls for you even more. At least he doesn't despise you, and you never tried to kill him. You better not corrupt his sweet daughter too fast, he thinks, knowing it's bound to happen, just hopefully not all at once.

[elleloquently]

i can’t explain how much i love your posts i-😭😭😭 they make me feel so safe and loved🥹

if u take requests, can i kindly request some headcanons with videogamer!ellie x reader!gf ?

thank u sm beauty!!💕💕💕💕💕

| a/n : i am so happy to hear that, that is so sweet!!! i'm so sorry this took so long, i'm rly behind on requests ): as a reader tho i adore this idea. modern au bc yay modern technology!

gamer!ellie with a reader!gf :

-having different interests definitely didn't keep either of you from spending time together. you would just do separate activities, together.

-if ellie was gaming you would always take the opportunity to read, and if you wanted to read then ellie would play something. you sorta correlated times that way someone wasn't feeling left out if you wanted to actively spend time together (ellie wouldn't want to see your pout when you saw her gaming while you were missing her lmao)

-if there was a game ellie was really into at the moment, she would def be guilty of surprising you with a book from your to read list so she could spend more time than usual playing ,,

-you are privy to her ways but you would certainly never complain about getting a new book !

-ellie always listens while you sit with your legs over her lap, ranting and raving about whichever book you're reading at the time.

-if you burn through books quickly she might get the side plots or characters mixed up, interrupting your rambles with a follow up question about a character that was definitely from like, three books ago.

"ellieeee," you would pretend to whine, though the look of interest crossed with confusion on her face made it difficult to stifle a giggle. "that was my last book, this one is different now."

"oh! right! but he did turn out to be bad, right?"

"yes. okay, anyway..."

-sometimes she gets distracted and loses or has to pause for awhile because she just likes . watching you. it's sweet, the way you look so peaceful with a book in your hands.

-ellie thinks it's funny when you mimic the facial expressions that you're reading about. rushes for her phone sometimes bc the faces you make while reading crack her tf up. you get so flustered when she shows you later but she absolutely adores the photos.

-especially if you're making an expression in regards to what is happening in the story. you're so quiet and ellie looks over to check on you, only to be met with your bewildered expression or a deep set frown. she'll pipe up and ask what's happening, grinning when you snap your book closed.

"oh my god," you start, leaning forward to clue her in.

-sometimes you find yourself rereading paragraphs over and over, finding it difficult to focus as your eyes wander to ellie instead.

-the look of concentration on her face... muttering and swearing under her breath... her hands.

!!!!!!!

-tugging ellie's hand in a book aisle at the store, pacing around the shelves with mumbles of "i promise i'm just looking, not buying any today"

-(ellie carries your books when you leave the store)

-displaying the same patience while she's browsing games, debating and comparing. you make sure to pay extra attention cause you love surprising her for special occasions.

-you try some of her games occasionally after much convincing on ellie's end. she's such a backseat gamer though and it ends with you either getting a lil grumpy or laughing too hard to take it seriously.

-she tries to find some low stakes, silly games so the two of you can play together. if there's a book you're really crazy about, you'll pass it on to ellie and she'll read it so you can have someone to discuss it with <3

[she-posts-nerdy-stuff]

I’ve taken a night to get my emotions and my brain in order so now let’s talk: Percy Jackson and The Olympians Season One Finale. And oh my goodness you guys, I loved it so much. I cried, I screamed, and I drank blue cocktails. (we tried to make blue cookies as well but they just came out beige with the tiniest hint of kinda green, but they still tasted good)

BOOK AND SHOW SPOILERS AHEAD!

I have been a fan of Charlie Bushnell's Luke all season but I was really waiting for this episode to truly see his interpretation of the character and OH MY GOD HE DID NOT DISAPPOINT. I cried. He can freaking ACT and he was absolutely incredible (tbc I'm not saying no-one else has been acting to the same incredible standards because they absolutely have but I'm particularly praising him because this is really the first opportunity he's had to truly show us what he can do). The fact that the show managed to surprise me (as someone who was first read the books when I was six and has loved and reread them over and over again since) with the interpretation of Luke it presented completely blew me away, and I LOVE this interpretation of him so let's talk about it. I firmly believe that Percy and Luke are literary foils and each represent everything the other had the potential to become, so to see the set up of a potentially far more emotional arc for Luke was really beautiful to me and I think it was really well done; the fight scene in the forest so perfectly exemplified everything between them that is so similar and so distinctly different. The pain we saw in Luke in this scene was so genuinely moving and it I think it sets up a really interesting implication for his arc towards being willing to kill other demigods as either being slower or as being partly influenced by the pain he feels from losing Annabeth - when he looked at her I could hear I'm on her side, always. She's my little sister. and it was heart-breaking. At first I wasn't sure about the absence of the pit scorpion but I think it makes a lot of sense for this adaptation since if he was emotional and didn't want to kill Percy but had taken the scorpion out there with him it just wouldn't add up - however, I do think that Percy should have been injured in the fight. It didn't have to be anything that stopped the series from being PG because that would be unnecessary and as teens and adults who enjoyed the books a long time ago we know that this show isn't made for our age group so we shouldn't be expecting any gore or anything, but I do think that the show hasn't consistently represented the stakes as being as high as they were in the books. That being said, I adored this scene and the fight, I think it was absolutely the correct choice for this interpretation of Luke and maybe this is an unpopular opinion I don't know, but I am really glad that Annabeth was there because I think it's so important for her to be able to see this first hand instead of having the news passed on to her and it potentially gives us a really interesting set up to explore her emotional response to his betrayal in a slightly different way. It's also incredible to me to note that Luke's demeanour changed when Annabeth revealed herself; he is a different person in her absence because of the façade he puts up for her and this for me was really reflective of the way when Annabeth describes them first travelling to camp she idolises the way he fought off so many monsters to protect them but Thalia describes it as him picking unnecessary fights and endangering them.

This is maybe an inconsequential detail, but for me it was massive: the change in lighting at the betrayal reveal emphasised Luke's scar far more noticeably than before and in this moment, reminding book readers of the pain he went through and of Hermes' failures, Percy is literally seeing Luke in a new light. Incredible. Now maybe I'm just misremembering but I was convinced that it was in the first book that Luke told Percy how he got his scar, but I remember it being quite a brief retelling and Luke skating over the details quite quickly. I think that's because we only get it from Percy's perspective in the books and Luke is unable to fully articulate his experiences because of the pain it causes him, so I'm wondering whether not telling us about his quest thus far is because not having a limited POV is going to give us the opportunity to truly understand Luke's pain, and maybe even show us flashbacks, later on, which I think has brilliant potential and could be utterly heart-breaking and amazing if it's done well. I'm really glad that there's already been reference to May Castellan (the way I want to cry just thinking about herrrrrrr. I am not emotionally prepared to see May Castellan on screen anyway, but the prospect of seeing her during a far more emotional character arc for Luke is terrifying and so exciting and I can't wait it's gonna destroy me) and I although at first it struck me as strange that they'd included Hermes in season 1, I think I now understand that it was quite important for us to have a better understanding of Hermes attitude towards Luke and the fact that Annabeth had met him before very obviously explaining that there's more to understand about their relationship, but ALSO because it added so so much to the Percy/Luke parallels by showing us Hermes' failures and Poseidon's successes. I think that the presentation of Poseidon was so brilliantly done, I cannot explain to you the scream that I screamed when the camera panned round to reveal that Poseidon was standing in between Zeus and Percy; they so perfectly showed the awkwardness and discomfort of their relationship in synchronicity with Poseidon genuinely wanting to care for and protect Percy, and I think that it did such a good job of highlighting the difference between Hermes and Poseidon and the subsequent impact on Luke and Percy respectively. The first I heard that my sister had started watching the episode (tbc she knew I'd already finished it) was an all caps text message saying" HE SURRENDERED". Because that means SO MUCH to us as the viewer! It was massive!!!!!!!! It was incredible!!!! It also made so much sense as to why they had let the solstice pass, because we needed to see this and so much more importantly PERCY needed to see this. I hope I'm getting my point across this feels kind of like rambling nonsense, but when we have this more sympathetic image of Luke it is therefore so important to understand why we so confidently believe he's in the wrong and for me that came most prominently from the way Poseidon did enough for Percy to show him that he cared the only way he knew how to, and in Luke using Percy's own fatal flaw against him in their final sword fight. Percy's fatal flaw is his loyalty and in that fight the moment he thought he'd hurt Luke he stopped and apologised, only for Luke to exploit his feelings of friendship and use them against him to keep fighting. Again, I think this could have been more effective if Percy was actually injured but I understand why they didn't and I wouldn't have suggested they cut anything else to have enough time to include that.

And whilst we're on parallels as well, I don't think there are any words to explain what I felt when we heard "You didn't ask to be a half-blood". Like... yeah, literally nothing, I can't explain it, it was incredible.

I was going to talk about Annabeth being allowed to be a kid but I actually saw a post about that yesterday by @mydairpercabeth so I'll link it here.

Okay if you bothered to read this far thank you very much, let me know what you thought of the show and the finale too!! And also I've been avoiding talking about this too much up until now, I made a post when the first two episodes came out but I've been quiet since because I wanted to watch the whole season first, so if anyone wants more of this/wants thoughts on any of the other episodes let me know! Thanks for reading I hope it made some semblance of sense :)

[joanquill]

Hello! Is your ask box open? If not, please disregard this and sorry in advance 🥺🙏 I wanted to make a request of Albert James Moriarty on how he would react to his s/o receiving love letters (these days it would be a text or dm but alas the Victorian Era lmao) from an ex. And vice versa. If he received love letters or Fan mail. Thank you so much! ❤

S/O Receiving Love Letters Reaction and Vice Versa

Albert James Moriarty

A/N: I wasn't quite sure if this was a headcanon only, so I added a short scenario just to be sure ^^"

Guide: (E/N): Your Ex's Name

Warning/s: Profanity

S/O Receiving Love Letters

Despite knowing Albert wasn't your first lover, he was determined to be your last.

You didn't hide things about your love life, but he would notice some exes had a more negative reaction from you than others.

He wouldn't push you if you didn't want to talk about a particular ex.

When you would tell stories, you kept them short and straight to the point.

If you were friends with your ex, he didn't mind, and he would try to be on good terms with them.

If he does feel uncomfortable with something, he would always talk to you about it, so you two can work it out together.

Whenever you would receive letters from your ex, you would either give them a curt response saying you were taken or throw them in the trash.

He didn't really care for your past or the letters. He loves you for you and trusts you.

So when he was sorting out letters and saw a love letter from your ex-fiance, he was intrigued.

When he finished sorting them out, he immediately walked up to you with the letter in hand, a mischievous smile on his face.

"Dearest?" Albert called out as he walked into the living room, seeing you reading a book on the couch.

"Yes?" you replied, lifting your head from the book as Albert showed you the letter.

"(E/N) wrote to you," he grinned, making you squint your eyes and put down your book.

"(E/N)? As in my ex-fiance (E/N)?" you questioned as you got up from the couch, walking up to him.

"It would seem so," Albert confirmed, giving you the letter.

"What does he want?" you sighed, roughly opening the letter.

As you read the letter, you let out a scoff and wore a strained smile.

"He forgives me for ruining our wedding day? Are you serious?" you read out loud in disbelief, rereading the letter from the top while Albert grabbed some wine from the kitchen.

"Is he serious? He was the one who slept with a random girl he met at a bar the night before!" you shouted as Albert poured you a glass.

"Oh, my God..." you grumbled, throwing the letter on the table as you rubbed the temples.

"He thinks our relationship is a way for me to make him jealous..." you told Albert, making him raise a brow.

"Really?"

"Really," you confirmed, "And he said he's willing to "forgive" me and take me back? Can you believe this-! This! Narcissistic, entitled-!" you groaned as you leaned back on the couch, feeling your head heat up in anger.

"How the hell did he even know where I live!?" you questioned, grabbing the letter.

You let out another deep sigh as you grabbed the glass Albert prepared for you, downing it in one go.

"May I?" Albert asked as he pointed at the letter.

You nodded in response, letting Albert take the letter and read it himself.

"Wow... Three pages and not one apology,"

"Right!?" you defended, making Albert chuckle as he put down the letter.

"Ugh... Years later, and he's still giving me a headache..." you muttered, walking up to Albert and climbing onto his lap, hugging his torso as you rested your head on his shoulder.

"Are you okay?" he asked as he hugged you, rubbing your back as you relaxed against his touch.

"Yeah..." you replied, snuggling into him, "I can't believe that idiot would think I would leave you for him..."

Albert lightly chuckled as he kissed the side of your head.

"Would you?"

"HELL NO!"

Albert Receiving Love Letters

Seeing love letters in the mail is pretty much the norm in the Moriarty estate.

Especially after the tea party, the love letters just skyrocketed.

Whether it's for Albert, William, Louis- even Fred received some letters of adoration.

Let alone invitations from single noble women.

If there were NO love letters or invitations, it feels off.

Seeing love letters addressed to your lover is nothing new, even before Albert started courting you.

At the start, it felt a little uncomfortable seeing the number of letters he would receive, let alone how some women would give you theirs so they know Albert would see them.

However, Albert would always reassure you that they mean nothing to him.

And he'd make sure everyone knows he belongs to you.

If it was simple fanmail or words of gratitude from the people he helped, you adored those letters and even agreed on how great your lover was.

"Do you really need to go?" Hannah asked, holding onto your clothes as she looked up to you with sad puppy eyes.

"Yeah! You haven't visited us in ages!"

"We missed you!" the kids whined as they started grabbing onto you, making it harder to end your visit to the orphanage.

"Now, now, children... We can't keep Mx. (Y/N) away from their home," Lillian, the caretaker, warned, making the children whine as they let you go.

"Besides, didn't we prepare a gift?" Lillian reminded, making the children's heads perk up as they rushed back to the building.

"A gift?" you questioned as Lillian smiled at you.

"Yes. The children have been working on it all morning," she explained as they started running out and lining up to you with a piece of paper in their hands.

"For you!" Edmund smiled as he held up the paper to you, showing a letter of gratitude to you and Albert.

"It is a shame Lord Albert couldn't come... The children wanted to surprise both of you," Lillian added as the children started to crowd around you, excitedly showing their letters and drawings.

"I see..." you breathed out, feeling your heart swell in emotion as you took a deep breath, composing yourself.

"Thank you. I'll make sure Albert will receive them as well,"

You kept smiling even when you arrived back home, rereading the letters the children made.

When you heard the front door click, you quickly got on your feet and ran to the entrance.

"I'm ho-" you greeted Albert with a hug, almost pushing him back out.

"Welcome back!" you happily greeted, making him smile.

"What got you in such a good mood?" he questioned as he kissed your forehead, making you giggle.

"You'll see,"

[yuseirra]

hikaai is such a funny ship. I feel like I'm defending someone in court for being wrongly convicted... pleading "Oh, there is no way he could have done it, your honor!" with the basis being.. my hunch (but there IS more than that) So it's... not exactly about being happy and excited at this point(I love drawing them btw), it's more about being unable to overlook some things.

Either the guy is so good at lying and his entire life that's been described so far is a lie, or it's that he's extremely hurt and timid (he couldn't even go visit his gf giving birth and go see his own kids because he got nervous if what he claims is the truth PL EASE Hikaru.. oh, goodness. But I think this DOES fit his character... it's oddly realistic. And he treats his children quite lovingly after that? The way I see it?)

but even if he can fool ME, I doubt he would have been able to fool Ai. She's the better liar, her whole story revolved around her lies and love and there's a scene where she literally reads him like a book within the story. If Ai and he fights, he does not have even the slightest chance to win. He does not stand a chance against Ai. That's what happened regarding the 15 year old lie as well, he didn't have a clue when it came to HER lies. I like that about them. They're very tragic, but you know, the way Ai steps in and leads him is sweet. That part of it is kind of cute. That's EXACTLY why she's worried about him, everyone, he's so vulnerable and so easy to be taken advantage of. It happens OVER AND OVER. I'D worry if I knew a person like that.

Am I the only one who feels this way? This character is being bullied. I shouldn't have to care about that, he's just a drawing, he can go to jail or HELL if he needs to be punished, I won't care about him if HE'S the one who's killed Ai (he's still good-looking but my feelings for him would change a whole lot) but don't people see?; Ai decided to help him because he was bullied as a child!! She couldn't bear seeing the guy she found endearing being in pain! I think that's happening again! And Ai's dead now so she can't help him anymore... their children have to do it in her place... This whole situation makes me feel like I'm watching a bullying incident in school but being unable to do anything about it... I feel really bad. Why are these things happening to him? It'd be better for HIkaru's sake if he really IS evil and is some sort of god that drives people crazy, that's the other way this could make sense but would that be a good story? It won't be, so I don't think that's it.

By the way I've been rereading ch 1 a lot because Ai-

and if I had a gf like that who'd risk everything they had going because of their love towards me (that's EXACTLY what she's doing there) I could give my life. She's so lovely?? I'd love her with all my heart. Yeah she's hurt Hikaru so much from that lie she told him but, it was an action so full of love, I get it so well. She's that sort of character, she's the embodiment of love. So I think Mephisto must be the boyfriend's song. Ai risked everything for him, and I don't picture the guy she loved acting any different for her sake. He wouldn't have fretted over giving his own life for someone like that, in fact, he'd wish to do MORE if he could. Being the super.. timid person he used to be, he's probably been pushing himself really hard. However, I don't even know how much he's capable of doing because I feel like 'Huh..with this personality, can he really even go that far?;; CAN he actually do something for Ai in a drastic manner?;'

yeah.. this ship is stressful.. it's golden though! I just hope things get resolved somehow and soon. nervous laughter

I should go play my game too~ I wish I had several bodies, there's so many things I want to do and have to as well..!

[merakiui]

Oh so real!! Aaa I would love to learn more about RSA. It's been, like, what? 4 and a half years now? They've gotta give us something eventually!! (coping) I do think in general we should get more fun traveling events. I know we're getting those obviously with the hometown events, but I'd love to learn some more about the world that isn't the few countries surrounding Sage's Island? Like we still have no idea where Sam's hometown (Port O' Bliss) is! Though considering what Sam's twisted from maybe they could be saving it for something like halloween??? They probably won't tbh but it WOULD be really cool.

I want to update and say I unfortunately did Not pull b7 eel cards (Jade got me to about 87 before the banners ended, no chance to pull on Floyd 💔 so greedy) so I'm handing in my Jade lovers card and twirling his poor twin around. Floyd wouldn't do me and my savings like Jade did. Trust. This does remind me actually to reread some of your Floyd fics ,, it HAS been awhile I fear

It is a really cool feature!! And AAAA I LOVE BARB !! We share,, many fictional men. Right down to my poor poor childhood crush on Kyoya. Reiji though has plagued my brain for YEARS I would love to see what all you think of him if you ever do read a full translation!! There's been fan-made english patches made actually for the first two Dialovers games on the vita if you have a pc and patience with the silly silly world of emulators. It's how I did his Haunted Dark Bridal route :-) and goodness what a trip that game is!! Ohh Reiji and Laito the interesting little critters you are,,,,

Vampires though in general,, auughfhh,, I think about vampire fish a good bit honestly. I can't remember rn if I've stumbled across any works like that but maybe I should check ao3 after this,,, for science. of course. Also don't worry about answering these quickly or anything. You could respond to this in a month and I'd still have the same joy reading your response as I would if you'd responded immediately. So always take your time.

(Also I wasn't sure how to throw this into my ask, but have you ever shared your twst friend codes here? If not, would you be open to doing so? If you aren't it's totally chill!! But I'd been wondering for awhile :]! )

- :3 anon

Begging twst for an RSA event!! OTL I want to see the inside of RSA and see more characters from there,, more Neige and Che'nya!!! Omg and it would be so fun to learn more about places beyond Sage's Island and the other areas nearby. I would love more Sam crumbs, especially hometown crumbs!! Thinking about a Princess and the Frog inspired Halloween event,,,, AAAAA THAT WOULD BE SO AMAZING!!! OTL OTL hoping with all of my heart for something.....

No eels... (◞‸◟；) I am sorry you couldn't bring either of them home. Those rotten eels!!! ( ｡ •`ᴖ´• ｡) how can they be so troublesome and slippery!!! Friendship ended with Jade. Floyb is the new bestie and he would never treat you or your savings in such a disrespectful manner! Certainly not in the way Jade did. I hope he will comfort you more than Jade ever could. <3

We are on the same wavelength, :3 anon!!! Immaculate taste as always for us hehehe!! We are passing the fictional men around and letting them spin in our brains like conveyor belt sushi! I definitely want to learn more about Reiji because he was one of the brothers I sort of,,,, ignored due to my lack of interest. ^^;;; but now I am very intrigued. What do you MEAN he creates drugs and potions and other nefarious things!!!! I fear I am not immune to a cordial smile and the drugs slipped into my tea (winking and nudging Reiji). How terrible it would be if attractive vampire with glasses did that to me...... uuwaaaa,,, I want to be able to play those fan-made patches!!!! One day I shall have a PC that allows me to unlock full gamer potential like Idia. >:D haunted dark bridal route sounds so fascinating... 👀

AND LAITO!!!! Dare I say,,,,, what if Cater x Laito crossover!!!! Cater in Laito's outfit,,,, VAMPIRE CATER?!?!?!?!?!?! OTL my brain chemistry was irreversibly altered when I first watched that church altar scene in the anime. LAITO, THE VAMPIRE THAT YOU ARE!!!!! Truly the most interesting of critters.

Vampire fish my beloveds. AAAA I just love vampires. <3 gothic vampire Azul is amazing, but I also love modern-day vampire Floyd....... and of course vampire Jade who loves playing with the cute vampire hunter who is after him. Many thoughts for those three. May you find plentiful vampire works in your very scientific ao3 search!!!

UUWAAA you're too kind and patient,,, 🥺 thank you so very much... I would feel so terrible if I responded as late as a month later!!! orz but it's a relief to know you would still be happy to read my thoughts. Please also take your time in replying!! There is never any rush.

:o I haven't shared it before!! Here it is below! Feel free to add me as a friend! My profile is very Rollo as of this moment. I hope my level 105 tako card can be of use in battle. 🐙 ✨

[yandere-daydreams]

Words cannot describe how obsessed I am with the milf!reader two-shot. Amazing, spectacular. Ive reread it 12 times now. The way you keep going back and forth with the flashbacks???AHHHH!!!!

Each time I read it I can’t help but just remember the readers feeling of betrayal (especially for Geto) because the reader clearly saw him the same as Mimiko and Nanako. And the sympathy that she had for him because he’s a religious figure and a dad but he’s so young. She saw him as a kid and clearly forgot that men are monsters no matter what age.

Okay if Himari didn’t have cursed energy…would Geto learn to love her as he did with the reader? Or would it just be like “ew, a failure. Let’s kill it and try again ig”. Or would he develop hatred for his own daughter because his wife ran away and basically chose a monkey over him.

Okay and the reader mentioned she had a stalker…don’t tell me….wasthattoji????

The fic is so good and definitely one of my favorites and I will be hyperfixating on it for the next several weeks.

ahhh thank you so much!!! something i really wanted to communicate with all of my age-gap pieces is that weird dissidence that happens when someone you view as a child is looking at you like a potential romantic/sexual interest, especially when that latter person is willfully misinterpreting platonic gestures it's sorta too late to walk back on. it's just a very bad time for everyone, over all.

and about himari - she is a sorcerer (or, at least, will be when she's older), but if she was born without cursed energy,,,, geto would have a hard time. i think he'd still keep her around as evidence of his ownership over you, but it'd be more of a 'oh yeah that's my wife's kid who i have to tolerate sometimes' situation than anything like his relationship with mimiko and nanako. he'd be very controlling either way, though. i had to cut it so that piece wouldn't be a million words long, but there was (very briefly) going to be a scene where he has one of his cursed spirits or another curse user manipulate the baby's gender late into the reader's pregnancy to make sure he'd never have to split your attention with another man (or literal infant boy, in this case), and that basically sets the tone for how much general freedom any children reader has with him are going to be given lmao.

[cbrownjc]

Oh! You reblogged my reblog of your reblog and added 'wonderful addition' in your tags! Thank you so much! You're one of my very iwtv and dm blogs, so I'm very excited that you thought so. You always have such great meta (and made me feel unalone in the 'Daniel was dying of AIDS when Armand turned him; I don't care what Anne says' camp.. Overdose deaths... don't go that slowly and nobody who was overdosing could be that coherent. Even the most high-functioning addict couldn't have told such cohesive story re: the twins. Not even with their minds. If you have taken that much, you are either passed out or the words coming out your mouth are incoherent *or* your delusions are literally delusional and they tend to be really on a few things. Daniel would not have able to collect his like that. He just wouldn't have been. I didn't pick any of this up when I first read it because I was about 14 and didn't anything about anything. I have since grown-up and gained life experience I wish I did not have. I hope I don't sound like I'm being flippant about this. Or that I'm oversharing. Because I'm not trying to be. As I said, I take this from my own life experience as someone watching what this kind of drug use looks like and how it usually concludes. It's also just something that *really* stood out to me when I reread the Devil's Minion chapter very recently. I sat there and said holy shit, this is AIDS, right? I mean, it doesn't specify anything except Daniel destroying his body and I'm like, okay, well long-term drug use does destroy your body, but it's not all at once like this. This is a metaphor, especially with all the sexual encounters Daniel was having especially in that specific time period. Obviously, the first thing I did was hunt down posts on tumblr to confirm my suspicions only to find that, according to Anne, it was not meant to be a metaphor for AIDS. It was drugs? So, I sat there and went nope, not really how long-term drug use go, definitely not how overdoses on hard drugs go. Anne, I do not think you have been in the presence of a serious addict while they are scary high or even around one for any length of time if you think this is how it goes. I also thought that if it was supposed to be an overdose, then 500ish years-old or not, it should have still affected Armand. A longterm hard drug user like Daniel would have to have taken a lot of something very strong, particularly if we're talking about the drugs readily available to addicts in the 80s. This is one of those things in the books that I reject their canon and insert my own when I think about it. There are a bunch of outstanding arguments for why Daniel was dying of AIDS and then there's Anne's own words that she meant for it to drugs and I just feel like this is one of those occasions where death of the author must be applied. At least for it to make sense in *my* brain.

I am so sorry I just filled your inbox with a wall of text only very tangentially related to the original topic, which was to say 'thank you' and 'yay, one my favorite blogs said this was nice and now I feel less like all my commentary is unhinged nonsense! :D' But a wall text that no one asked for came out. I'm so sorry.

Hi!

First of all, don't worry about the wall of text, it's fine. It's nice getting message from people who just enjoy what I have to say and just want to say thank you! I will never have a problem with that. 🙂

I don't know if you've checked out my tag on the subject of AIDS on my blog, but I have some older posts there that discuss my thoughts when I first read Queen of the Damned and how Daniel was dying in that book. And, to be fair, Daniel wasn't really dying of drugs there, it was cirrhosis of the liver from drinking too much. Which I'm sure Anne chose it because she'd had a history of alcoholism and so could write from experience about it.

But yeah, it's still an addiction he was dying of. Which, by the time I read the book in 1995 was rather jarring that it actually wasn't AIDS, as I said in this post here. I can understand why it wasn't (given when Rice was originally writing that book), but it just can't help but be jarring now, when you read that book after the 1980s I feel.

Given that the showrunner and writers are playwrights, however, I think they well know they can't do Daniel's story in this day and age now without mentioning the AIDS crisis and tying his character into it in some way. It would just ring hollow not to, IMO. And I think they know that given that AIDS-related issues were some of the very first images we see in the first episode of the show, as well as the book we know in-universe he wrote about it.

Anyway, yes I really liked your post, and again, no apologies needed for the length or anything, really! The fact that you see me as a favorite blog to read is so nice to hear! 🤗

[the-solar-system52]

TPOH UPDATE THEORY

OH WE ARE SO BACK!!

I wasn't expecting an update this week, and almost missed it since I checked the website too early, but here we are!

Now there is A LOT to unpack in this page, and if you know my theories, then I'm sure you think I'm about to talk about the parallels between The House of Lead and Negative in this dialogue. Which I 100% will, but another time. I want to talk about the Lead House in itself first.

When I first started with my RGB and Negative theory, I said that the House of Paint and House of Lead where supposed to be parallels to RGB and Negative, and I still stand by that.

But as I read recent pages, reread old ones, and was offered different perspectives from other fans, I'm began to think a lot about Lead House and Paint House as their own CHARACTERS, and not just plot points to parallel other characters.

Just listen to this stuff RGB says, this is very interesting characterization! And also incredibly depressing. Lead House's strange and physics-defying architecture being explained by it trying to fill the void left by being split apart, and it's extreme loneliness because of that is a very tragic situation for a literal house to be in.

And when I first read Double Exposure, I was under the impression that either The Butterfly or Negative owned the house, but this is seemingly debunked in this page. And that fact puts the previous pages in a very different context.

RGB outwrite states it here. This House has a personality, toying with RGB and Hero by trapping them, but not actually harming them. It seems to just be excited to be inhabited by people, when it hasn't for so long, and doesn't want them to leave.

Unlike the Paint House, this House can't be owned by anyone, and chooses it's shape based on whatever it wants. And although it seems to take an interest in the conversation Hero and RGB are having (evident by it spawning in the mirror maze when they were talking about Negative) it doesn't seem to be directly controlled by them.

And gosh I love this panel so much! It seems entirely self aware of how it's gone "cuckoo" due to its loneliness, but turns it into a joke. Or maybe its not supposed to be a joke, and the House just doesn't have any other way to communicate, both options are equally sad.

But seeing how much personality Lead House has, it made me realise that Paint House doesn't really share the same traits.

Its design is entirely dependent on person who is controlling it. Although it reflects the inhabitants thoughts, like Click's face in the trains set, Hero's up-high bed, a bunch of plushies spawning in, etc. All these examples all come from the thoughts, wants or memories of Hero when she has the House's key. I wouldn't say it has much of a personality or consciousness at all.

And though this system may be convenient for our protagonists, it is very inconvenient for the House itself. It straight up FALLS APART when Hero isn't paying enough attention to it! And consistently gets more and more abstract when controlled by a distracted 8 year old's mind.

So, Lead House has more individuality, isn't controlled by anyone and therefore doesn't fall apart or abstract. But, because it can't be owned, its gone insane with loneliness and isolation.

Paint House can be owned and wouldn't be considered lonely, but is far too dependent on others and is falling apart because of it.

Both houses are incomplete in their own way, so the obvious solution is for them to be fused back together into the House of Lead Paint!

The House of Lead Paint would be a balance between an individual personality, as well as being influenced by others. And they wouldn't be lonely anymore if they were together, plus once again being a home to someone! I could definitely see Hero and RGB living there, but instead of just outright controlling the House, they are able to ask the House for certain things, (or maybe the House could still read Hero's thoughts, but get to choose if its wants to change or not) and it will be more of a character.

This will obviously take the stress off Hero, since she won't have to be constantly thinking about the House just to stop it from abstracting or worrying about her dreams changing the house, and instead it could take care of itself at times, while still being helpful to our protagonists when they need something.

I think this may be happening sooner rather than later. Specifically because of RGB's "It may be as well for us to stay outside for a while" line, implying that something needs to change before Hero and RGB can go back into the Paint House.

This also seems like a stand in for a 'Tree' to this part of the story. "Big structure with emotional issues that needs to work through its issues in a symbolic way and transform into something else" Hero being the current owner of Paint House, having a track record of wanting to help out Trees, and needing a way to get out of Lead House, it seems perfectly in character for her to want to merge the Houses back together again. And now that the houses are in the same area to eachother (with the folded page being opened) I could 100% see this happening before the end of this arc. Probably as a conclusion to them getting out of the Lead House.

(anddd it could maybe be foreshadowing for RGB and Negative RGB merging back together???) (Fnaf sb ruin eclipse reference???) (tho, if that does happen, it would most likely be at the climax of TPOH)

I can't believe I'm getting so emotionally attached to the character arc of two HOUSES. But I just needed to get this rant out of my system.

So I'll probably talk about the dialogue relating to Negative another time, since this is already very long. Maybe I'll wait till the next update, since I'll undoubtedly have more things to rant on about then. But I hope you enjoyed this, even if it's a bit different from my usual RGB-centric theories.

[kaelidascope]

Dude, I love this fanfic so much! I just wanted to ask where you got the idea from. Did you have any inspiration from anyone? Also, what's your favorite fanfic? And want do you recommend ?

AWE bless!! Thank you so much I'm glad you're enjoying it <33

So actually a good 80% of this is written from personal experience LOL I used to dance and was into drift building/racing in my late teens/early twenties! Most of the references or scenes in Midnight Menagerie are references to things I've seen or done in real life, OR stories friends have told me within the same field. (Nora is literally just a rebranding of this one mutual friend we had who just. Absolutely fucking unhinged) Like for example, the anticipated Hangover Chapter is just a retelling of an insane Summer weekend I had in 2017 ☠️ it's a personal delight being able to translate things into the narrative, even more so knowing people find my stupid, terrible decisions as amusing as I do in current times lol

My general rule of thumb is to write from experience. Things I understand either on a technical point or emotional connection. So, if you've read it in my work, it's probably something I've done LOL

Another reason I find drive in writing this type of narrative is that MM!Blake's type of dissociative PTSD is something I haven't seen much in media in general. I've seen people depict her in various ways (some of them good!), but none of them ever really apply directly to me, so I wanted to make something that I could relate to and how to properly navigate life, given the environmental circumstances. Plus some us need better examples on how to juggle mental illness as adults and also be in healthy long term relationships because damn I have zero reference LOL

For the fic recs, oh boy I have so many LOL time to be a pathetic fangirl on main but okay here's the ones that immediately jump to mind (also heads up most of these are mature or explicit rating);

Certified Kaeli Fresh Fics

Let You See My Wilder Side (If I Can See Your Bones)

We all know this one but it is, hands down, my favorite piece of literature of all time. Masterfully crafted and a timeless classic worth several rereads (and I have. Embarrassingly so)

Written by @/lucytara on tumblr || @/explosive_sky on twitter

honestly all her works are immaculate and beyond compare. Also a major fan of I Have A Bullet With Your Mouth On It (That was first RWBY fanfic I ever read LMAO a friend recommended it to me before I even watched the show) I aspire to write like her some day. It's what got me writing fanfiction in the first place. So, credit goes to Erin for inspiring me to post my manuscripts at all. Words cannot express my gratitude and appreciation. I have two book series in the process of being published now and I wouldn't have had the nerve to do it had it not been for this specific fic.

2. One Day At A Time

Also one of the earlier fics I read before getting into the show LOL I love all of @/Frenchsoda 's work, the full list is also worth checking out. I'm a fan of disgruntled Blake who doesn't understand her attraction to Yang but it's so god damn sweet ugh

3. Fucking In Love

Written by @/Set_WingedWarrior and @/Softlight

This one circulates a lot in my social circles. Everyone I know LOVES this one and after reading it earlier this year, now I see why. As someone who worked in the sex industry for a brief period of time, this one's not only accurate but also A DELIGHT to read. The premise is fun, captivating, and worth the wait. I actually discovered a chapter update earlier this year and sent the gc into hysterics because we thought the fic was dead LMAO props to these authors!! They're doing an amazing job and deserve praise

4. You're A Mountain, Full Of Glory

written by champion author @/lescousinsdangereux

I should just preface already that every book Blake reads in MM is a fanfiction that exists because I love Easter eggs. Everyone knows I had Blake reference this in chapter 3 LOL but it's equally as immaculate as Erin's work. I LOVED especially the dynamic between Weiss, Yang, and Ruby in this one. Baby, we're complicated fucking murdered me 😭 also that fuckass Christmas scene, that's my favorite Christmas song LMAO

5. The Home Inside Your Head

Written by the ever skilled @/writeriguess . I found this fic by accident by seeing fanart for it floating around on this site. Got curious, picked at it, and. Oh, my god. It's not very often my brain gets scratched in the right way, but boy this one does it. This author does something specifically unique I haven't seen many do before, and I applaud them for it. There's great detail on the scenes that matter, and the fucking organic build up between Blake and Yang is just. God. Chef's kiss. Truly. It feels so god damn natural and healthy and it's already crossing off several of my agendas already. Give this one a read and give the author some love. SENSUAL FACE TOUCHING? CHAPTER 13????? BOOOOOOOYYYYYYY I'm normal about it

6. You'd Be Paranoid Too (If Everyone Was Out To Get You)

Written by @/WabaJaba_ on twitter

Okay so this one's completely different than what I've previously listed but HOLY FUCKING SHIT IS IT A THRILLER. It doesn't nearly have the amount of love and attention it truly deserves. A friend of mine recommended it to me because it shook them so fucking hard they were in total brainrot hell for a MONTH. NOW I UNDERSTAND WHY LMAO God I was obsessed with this for weeks myself. It obviously lives up to it's rating, horror fics aren't for everyone. But if you're able to read it, good lord you should. It's chilling, captivating, and had me on the edge of my fucking seat the entire time. Both endings are good, I still can't decide which one I prefer but RAH I will make sure this is seen god dammit

and last but certainly not least

7. You And Me and This Temptation

written by talented author @/ProfessorSpork

Okay this one was an accidental find as well. A friend sent it to me because THEY found it by accident, I clicked on it for later, went looking for a completely different fic that I mistook for this one, started skimming and realized 'wait a minute LMAO I don't recognize this'. But the thing you have to understand is I hate reading. I'm not a reader, I'm picky and it needs to be worth sitting down for long periods of time. This is one of the rare instances where I was so captivated by it I kept reading more and more from the middle where I landed, and eventually just said ykw let me just start from the beginning cus LMAO context.

This one is, by far, one the healthiest and loveliest depictions of first times I have ever seen. This shit was so inspiring to me that it literally kickstarted an essay in someone's DMs why depictions like this are so important. I didn't have this experience irl, and why MM is written the way it is is because its meant to serve as a lighthouse for those who, like me, haven't. This fic however I feel like should be a required read for anyone getting into relationships for the first time because if it's not like how these two interact, LEAVE IT. This is the standard. This is amazingly written, it's the closest I've ever seen canon Yang and Blake be written to date. The fucking souvenir bit 😭 NJKFGNFJKGNGJ killed me, I was kicking my feet laughing for a good minute. This is the kind of standard everyone should look at and go 'yeah, I want what they have' BECAUSE IT'S CORRECT. LOUD CORRECT BUZZER NOISES

Honestly everything in my bookmarks is certified Kaeli Fresh but these 7 are my top faves. They're probably also really commonly known I'm sure but LMAO like I said I don't read much 😭 which is heavily ironic considering I write myself. Anyway this ended up way longer than I intended but LOL <3 <3 go give these incredible authors love!!

[sciderman]

Reading New Mutants #98 is such a wild experience because Wade still acts as the snarky and kinda sadistic shit talking queen of mercs, but he's also like...super menacing and competent too? Especialy next to today where people fuck him up like a noob, seeing him taking out a group of mutants with gadgets and tricks, body Nathan and having to be taken out by a suprise element was a true shock...and i kinda love it? Like, Wade shows up and he's actually a threat, but a threat that doesn't even take you seriously, he insults you but is also oddly polite to his main target. What is your take on the original version of Wade?

interesting question! really really reaaaally interesting question! new mutants #98 is an issue i've read like, a million times because newer comics always always always recontextualise it - so you find out, wait - domino was vanessa in disguise, so actually, she probably had an insight on how to take down wade better than anyone else - wait, nathan knew wade as someone who saves his life so was probably pulling his punches actually - wait - the guy who sent wade to kill nate was actually nathan's SON?? like there's five million plot twists that come after new mutants #98 that get me rereading it over and over.

i do love that wade's introduced as someone who is equipped and prepared – he definitely was more competent in the earlier comics, he was perpetually a threat, and always had just the contrived weapon in his arsenal needed to take out certain mutants with certain powers.

they kind of gradually started stripping him of all that - i think when he started making the transition from minor villain to empathetic anti-hero, they started stripping him of his teleporter belt, his image inducer, his swiss-army-knife arsenal that made every fight too convenient for him. and now - now he's just a guy with two swords and maximum effort.

i'm not saying it's bad – buuuut... i love the mission impossible movies. i love impossible gadgets. it's so much more fun to see than just, you know, guys hitting and slashing at each other. give me stupid weird gadget that wade has tucked away in some pouch belt of plot convenience specifically to take down this specific guy with weird specific powers. give me a competent wade who did all the research before going into the fight. not a wade wilson who kind of coasts by with dumb luck and gumption.

but - you know, on the topic of wade being hyper-competent in new mutants #98 it's - kind of not something i believe, either. sure, he's a menace to those kids but - remember, he does still get his ass handed to him in a humiliating kind of a way. what a start to his career. and these guys aren't shaken at all. no "oh my god. this guy is someone we should worry about. we should worry about letting him free." no. wade is shipped back to his employer in a box. there's no worry that he might come back angrier. deadpool's kind of a joke.

nathan summers does often maintain a level-head in general - buuut, i just don't think there was any moment in that fight that nathan really thought he was going to lose against wade. there was no "oh no, all hope is lost" moment. wade was just quick with his punches, sure, but i don't think the cards were actually in his favour. nathan wasn't incapacitated, and would have easily taken wade down.

he kind of just didn't want to, i don't think.

i think maybe he wanted to see what wade could do. and i think if nate really thought wade was a threat to the kids, nathan would have protected them more fiercely. there's no reason at all why nathan couldn't have so, so easily just - yeeted wade out of the building. wade really, really wouldn't have stood a chance if nathan really saw him as a threat to him or (especially) to the kids. nate's training up these kids. he probably saw wade as just - adequate practice for them, but no real threat. wade is completely manageable for him.

i think later on wade gets savvy to the fact that nathan usually pulls the punches with him.

nathan could so, so easily just...

if he didn't want to deal with deadpool.

i think vanessa probably knew that too. and i think that's why she stepped in when she did - because she probably thought if wade pushed too far and trod on one of nathan's nerves, it would be the end for wade. so she neutralised him.

i write a bit about it in i love you, wade wilson - my beloved fic about deadpool's early days.

[wheeloffortune-design]

I wrote a novel for 17 years. I loved it, I was proud of it. And it got published! By a respected publisher! I loved my book, I was proud of it!

And then, well. Time passed, books didn't sell. The publisher did not really market it, either. Most of my support came from loved ones, which I'm grateful for, but when the insidious voice of impostor syndrome tells you constantly "well, they don't really count", you doubt yourself.

Reviews came in. They were room temperature at best. The only professional review I had in a magazine could be summarized by the critique saying "Well I wouldn't have done it like this." I check the reviews on Amazon, on Goodreads, and I can't get the positive ones in my head. Just the mean ones. (No, not even the negative ones, the mean ones. Like the one that said "Well most of the support for this author comes from people who already like her so it doesn't count." It sucks when the worst things you tell yourself are said by someone else.)

And I doubt.

Was the plot too complex, was the writing too simple, were the characters annoying, the setting not serious enough, was it boring was it boring oh no it was boring wasn't it.

And I stopped loving my book.

I've been trying to work on the sequel. I have a great story to tell, I'm proud of it (?), I love it (?). But I can't stop thinking about the first book as a failure.

Imagine that! Finally getting your novel published! And being convinced, in the deepest part of yourself, that you failed at your lifelong dream.

I need to reread it. It's hard, I hate what I see, I only see what I would (should) change. It's a chore, and I don't want my story to be a chore.

I need to fall in love with this story again. I once adored these characters, and I was proud of the plot and the research. It's hard, I need to put aside the mean voices both outside and inside my head.

The copy I'm rereading is damaged and used, because I slept with it under my pillow for a month after receiving it. I used to love it, be proud of it.

(...I read books and fics and comics, watch shows and movies, with so much love and enthusiasm... Maybe someone somewhere gets joy out of this story like I get joy from other's.)

I just need to love my book again.