#Fun fact: me and several others wrote a fic

[tamari-real]

PLEASE PLAY THIS GAME FOR FURRY DATE TIME CHARACTERS

IF YOU LIKED DATE TIME AND YOU'RE ALSO A FURRY, PLAY STORM THE SWAN!

PLEASE LOOK HIM!!!!

You live in a cute animal village but... #indiegame #horrorgame#gamedev https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiW0ov4Vtm4 free on steam https://ift.tt/jgWdnI8 via CatTrigger https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzea0YWTKcQJeDZhUqbC_-w February 04, 2025 at 05:00PM

[quatregats]

Current Situation would actually probably be solved if I stopped looking to Projects for all my satisfaction in life

[berberriescorner]

"Through It All"

Characters: Rio x Black!Reader.

Summary: There aren’t many things that put Rio on edge. Most people see a calm, cool, and collected individual. Keeping a level head is his specialty. What happens when the person he loves most needs him to be strong for both of them? Get a glimpse of what it’s like seeing him hold someone down through thick and thin, in sickness and health. If you know, you know.

**PLEASE READ THE WARNINGS AND AUTHOR’S NOTE**

Warnings: Angst…like seriously. You’ll understand once you read the author’s note. This fic contains sweet, soft, fluffy Rio. The fic includes some of my crazy humor with a smidge of the character’s inner thoughts. If reading about gynecological procedures makes you uncomfortable, this may not be a fic for you. It doesn’t go into great detail, but it is mentioned and sheds a bit of light. If mentions of the ins and outs of fertility is a soft spot, please read with caution. It isn’t my intention to bring anyone down, but this story is based on parts of my own experiences. Again, the note will explain more.

Author/Personal Note: Okay. Where to start? So, as some of you may know throughout the past two years I’ve been getting cycles of iron infusions. This year, after making several complaints and an ER visit or two. I had an ultrasound performed, which led to me getting surgery months later (the procedure I had done recently). I’ve been spending my days at home recovering, and it’s given me time to reflect. Damn, it’s been a rough couple of years, but I’m so thankful through it all. It’s difficult having a plethora of health issues. This situation put so much added stress on top of it all. As a woman, hearing you have a fibroid. Learning it’s best to get it removed to protect your fertility is scary as hell. You get it done, get sent home, and though you have loved ones taking amazing care of you. It’s still a difficult, challenging process. At times, it’s lonely. No one but you can fully wrap your head around the emotions and feelings the body is going through. It’s pretty wild.

Anywho, sorry y’all. Let me stop rambling and get to the point. We all know how overactive my imagination is. Being stuck in bed, my mind has been wandering. I thought to myself why not take this experience and channel it into a fic. I’m hoping that this will also be a comforting story to anyone who’s been through the same experience. Here is a look at how I envision Rio taking in the experience with his lady. I plan to write at least two more parts for this. Happy reading my lovelies! I wrote this on a whim, in celebration of my birthday, so ignore the grammatical errors my loves. I may come back and do some more editing. Depends on how I’m feeling.

Word Count: 1,800+. 

Inspired By💜:

Random fun fact: Toni Braxton and I have the same birthday😆. Happy Birthday, Queen💓.

Everything was still as a deafening silence fell across the room. It was as if each occupant was afraid to utter a single word. Your mother pretended to distract herself with a Kindle book as your father paced the floor quietly. They’d share a glance each time they checked their watch, smiling at one another in comfort and reassurance. 

Then, together, they directed their attention toward the chair in the far right corner. It was tucked in a tight corner next to a window, giving little relief and comfort to your husband, Rio. He, too was anxious, but no one would ever know it. He was always able to still his facial features. Never one to give his emotions away. The only person who could read him wasn’t in the room. You were on the other side of the building and the reason for your families’ nervousness. No longer able to stand the constant glances and silence, Rio stood from his seat. He released a breath, rubbing his palms against his jeans. Turning to your parents, he stated, “I’m going to grab a quick cup of coffee from the cafeteria. Would you two like something?”

Your mother, a gentle, nurturing soul, responded for both of them.

“No, baby. We’re fine. Don’t worry. I’ll come find you if we receive news.”

Rio ducked away in a vacant spot in the cafeteria, hands folded over top of the steam of the coffee. He searched for peace and solace until a jolting vibration exploded in his jacket pocket. Fumbling for the phone, he answered without looking.

“What they say ma-. Oh, my bad. Wassup? Everything good?” Rio listened patiently before snapping. “You know this is something you could’ve handled yourself, right? I don’t have time for the three stooges bullshit today.”

He instantly felt a slight pang of guilt. Rio realized that the stress and worry of his current situation were influencing his mood. Taking a deep breath, he relaxed. Inhaling, he continued, “My bad bro. She’s been in for three hours, and it’s got me tweaking. Nobody’s giving us any damn answers. It’s a non-invasive procedure, but it’s still considered major surgery. I just need to hear she’s good.”

“It’s all good, boss. I know you’re worried about wifey. She’s a strong woman. Boss lady’s going to be alright. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything. Call me as soon as you know something,” Mick responded.

“You're right. Thank you for holdin’ shit down.”

He laid his phone on the table, burying his face in his hands. The last few moments he spent with you were on repeat in his mind. Rio returned to the present, hearing the chair opposite him slide backward. His eyes connected with your father’s, and he readied himself for wherever the conversation would go.

It was no secret that the two hadn’t always seen eye to eye. The two men sat for several minutes before your father started speaking.

“I’ll be honest with you, man. You’re not at all what I envisioned for my daughter.”

“You seriously want to have this conversation right now?”

“Now wait, son. Let me finish.”

Hold up. It’s son now? Where is this going? It didn’t even sound disrespectful. It doesn’t sound like he’s trying to play me on some sucka shit. I’ll hear him out.

Rio nodded his head, giving your father the floor.

“I may not know all you do for a living, son, but I know you’ve managed to make a comfortable and safe life for my baby girl. When it comes down to it, that’s what I’ve always wanted for her. It took me some time to come to terms with it, but I know, without a doubt, that you’re doing everything in your power to make her feel protected and loved. Let me just say what I’m getting at,” he chuckled. “You’re good at hiding it, son, but I know you’re worried. Hell, so are we, but that’s alright.”

Rio’s head dropped, shoulders slumping. He took the opportunity to be vulnerable finally. Your father’s acceptance allowed him the space to do so. He felt a comforting grip land on his shoulder. Your father finished, “Baby girl is going to be alright, son. With all your love and support, she’ll be back on her feet soon. Now, you take a few more moments to yourself. Don’t be surprised when her momma wraps you up in a big hug when you head back. She’s worried about her favorite son-in-law.”

Rio chuckled, “I’m her only son-in-law, sir.”

“Even better. You ain’t gotta share. That sweet woman sure knows how to smother people in love.”

“You’re daughter is the same way. It’s one of the many things I love about her.”

“Which is why you understand my reasons for being so guarded. That’s my baby girl. Enough with that ‘sir’ shit too. Call me pops. My son may not like that, but I get a kick out of irritating him anyway. He’s overprotective of his sister.”

“Y’all gon’ try to take me out if I ever mess up, huh?”

“What I look like snitching on myself? Let’s not ever get to that bridge, son.”

The two men shared a laugh, but everything turned serious when they saw your mom power walking towards them. Rio's heart began thudding in his chest.

“Ma, what’s wrong? Did-.”

“Relax, sugar,” she cooed, rubbing a hand against both men’s arms. “The nurse said the doctor should be ready to talk to us in about fifteen minutes. Let’s head back to the waiting room.”

Fifteen minutes came and went. Your mother couldn’t help but crack a smile at both men. They both started fussing about how long the surgeon was taking. She felt sorry for the man once he approached them. The doctor, attempting to apologize, was cut off by an impatient Rio.

“You good, doc. We understand these things take time, but excuse us for being anxious. We were under the impression this would be about an hour-long procedure. How’s my wife?”

The surgeon explained himself. “That’s what we anticipated, but the process took longer. Your wife’s last ultrasound a few months back showed a fibroid the size of a plum. Sadly, it grew to the size of an orange, which would explain why things grew more difficult during her last few cycles. However, you’ll be happy to know that we managed to do it laparoscopically, and everything looks great. She’s being taken to recovery now, but we’ve decided to keep her overnight.”

All three of your family members asked, “Why is that,” in unison.

“We just want to keep an eye on her for the next twenty-four hours. Given gas was used to see things more clearly, we’d like to monitor her. We’ll need to see that she gets up and walks to get things flowing. I just want to be sure she gets it moving out of her system. Also, since she’s anemic, we just want to be extra careful. I promise everything went well, and she should be ready to go in the morning.”

Each family member felt at ease. The trio waited for an invitation to your recovery room. Though he wanted to be the first person you saw when you woke up, Rio encouraged your parents to go first. The two visitors' only rule irritated them all.

Your eyes fluttered open, and your parents laughed at the slurred responses given to your nurse. Your parents took turns kissing your forehead, expressing encouraging words. Your father, now at ease, left the room in search of Rio.

“You might want to hurry back there. She’s still a bit loopy. Baby girl has been asking the nurse, where my husband? You got my baby acting ratchet in this hospital,” he joked.

“Aye, she was like that when I met her,” he laughed, walking towards recovery.

Rio slid behind the curtain, laying eyes on the most precious sight. You were in bed, laid back, eyes closed, singing off-key as your mother held your hand, laughing. The nurse stepped beside him, giving a small giggle.

“She’s been looking for you. Ma’am, the man of the hour is here.”

Your eyes popped open as you halted the song. “My husbannnd! Hey baeee,” you winced, given the pain and having a hoarse voice.

“Mama, you back here wildin’ ain’t you? How’s our little patient doing, ma,” he directed toward your mom.

“Crazy as ever. This girl opened her eyes, looked at me, and called herself whispering. Loud as ever, she asked me if she still had a uterus. Her daddy would’ve turned red if he were capable.”

They both shared a laugh as you did your best to shrug shoulders. Wanting to give you two privacy, your mom went to sit in the waiting room. Rio turned to you, holding your hand. His lips brushed across your knuckles, and he shivered at how cold they were. Wrapping his hand around yours, he tried warming the digits.

“My momma ain’t answer my question though,” you mumbled, eyes closed.

Rio smiled, “What’s that now, mama?”

“My uterus. Sis still in there, right?”

“Yes, darlin’. What makes you think it’s not?”

“I signed them papers, man. In the event of a ‘mergency, they were going to take shawty,” you sassed, words still slurring.

Rio did his best to hold back a cackle. Clearing his throat, he replied, “Mama, you straight. Everything went according to plan. There was no emergency. The fibroid is out. It was bigger than expected. That’s why it feels like you were out for a while.”

“Aight bet. So when we making babies,” you asked, wincing again.

“First off, sit still, mama. Your body is pretty sore right now.”

“Baby, I’m drugged up! I don’t feel nothin’.”

“Second. You’ll be recovering for four to six weeks. You’re not going to be in any type of mood for all that. I believe the surgeon said no sex for two to three weeks. No babies for at least six months, darlin’. They just sliced your uterus open and stitched it back together, mama,” he explained, running his thumb across your lip.

He laughed at the pout etched on your face. Rio caressed the side of your face, kissing you gently. “On some real shit. I was worried out my mind over you, mama. I’m so glad you’re good. You’re my world. The clock kept ticking, and I was about to lose it.”

Your eyes connected with his, “I’m right here, papa. I’m good. We gonna be good. No matter what,” you whispered. Even through the drugs and drowsiness, you could feel his angst. Rio could read between the lines. He knew what you were trying to communicate. It had been on both your minds heavily. Your eyes connected with his. Rio saw the unshed tears you were holding back, and he swallowed hard, nodding his head in agreement. No matter where this path led, Rio knew, in his heart, that he loved you with everything in him.

Baby or not, we’ll still feel fulfilled and happy. My life’s purpose is to love and give you the world.

This piece was both personal and therapeutic for me to write. I truly hope you all enjoyed it. Please be sure to comment and reblog, it's appreciated. Now I'm about to go eat some birthday cake and read some amazing fan fiction😆.

Divider credit💜 : @firefly-graphics

tagging💜 : @4everbrookemarie @darqchilddaydreamz @astoldbychae @sunshine-flower

@nightlywords7 @starrynite7114 @amorestevens @fineanddandy

@rio-reid-whoreee @that-one-anxious-mango @novaniskye

@alertyoulikeitsamber @1andonlytashae @lovedlover @blkbutterfly816 @banana123pudding

[thedeluluverse]

Author’s Note:  Welp, this ended up way longer than I plannedXD Sorry for the delays but I hope y’all like it and please please please gimme ALLLLLL the feedback! Been a while since I wrote and very nervous haha XD

Summary: Y’all have been friends for 5 years, but there are still sides to him that you’d never imagined. Will his tricks work or push you away?

Pairing:  prisonguard!sunoo x inmate!femalereader (mentions of Sunghoon)

Rating: 18+

Genre:  angst, smut, one-shot, prison au, yandere fic, happy ending

Word Count: 4,124

Warnings: 18+ MINORS DNI  extreme “Brought the Heat Back” feelings, explicit content, oral sex (f. receiving), breast play, squirting, clit play, praise kink, neck kissing, degradation, unprotected p in v (be smart kids), yandere/obsession themes, secretly monitored self-pleasure, wrongful imprisonment, Y/N glossing over red flags (don’t do this irl pls)

Since the summer before you went into high school, you and Sunoo have been friends. It started when you went to his friend Jake's house for an end-of-middle-school pool party, and you both bonded over judging the annoying tweens around you.

As fate would have it, you ended up having many of the same class periods all throughout high school and grew even closer over several study sessions. Both went solo together to dances but acted like one asked the other when anyone asked to avoid looking pathetic.

That is until the senior year Sadie Hawkins dance. A new student had joined the roster and immediately became the focal point of school for you. His name was Sunghoon, and he was the right amount of reserved and sarcastic to give you heart eyes.

Despite your nerves and insecurities, you worked up the courage to ask Hoon (a nickname he recently accepted after many hangouts together) to the dance. To your surprise, he rapidly accepted your invitation!

Proud of yourself and overwhelmed with excitement, you call Sunoo after school to tell him of this accomplishment and see if he wanted to go shopping with you this weekend.

After a quick snack, you call your best friend, "Hey, Sun-sun, are you busy?" "Nope, Y/N, just avoiding homework, haha. What's up?" "Ohhhhh well, nothing much except I asked Hoon to the dance, and he said yes! Can you believe that???".

Deafening silence extinguishes your enthusiasm as quickly as it sparked, "Um, Sunoo...you there?"

A couple more seconds pass, and he says, "The call is still going, isn't it?" With a scoff, you retort, "Oh, excuse me, sassy king, it was hard to tell when you made no indication that you heard me."

He has the nerve to get offended and goes, "Sorry if I didn't clap for joy at the fact that for the first time since we came to this shithole, I'll have to stay home for a dance. I mean, whoopee for you, but you gave me no warning that you'd abandon me like this."

You are speechless. It's the last reaction you expected, and now you feel bad for not at least letting him know. "I... I'm not sorry I asked him, but I apologize for not setting you up or warning you first. I can try to hook you up with my friend if you want!" "No, it’s fine. Have fun. I have to get started on homework. Talk to you later. Unless you forget all about me...”

With that, he hangs up and leaves you stunned, sitting on your bed slack-jawed. You honestly thought he would be happy for you. Feeling lost, you call your friend Ara, "I have no idea why he would react that way. Can you believe that?!"

She gives a disappointed sigh, then says, "I actually can. Imagine if he gave you no heads up and sprung on you having a date to the dance. And don't even pretend like that'd be okay with you, girl.”

Dejectedly, you admit that she’s right and just can’t get over the intensity of his reaction, to which Ara says, “Oh come on, you can’t be this clueless... he has had a crush on you forever.” “WHAT? Noooo, don’t give me false hope like that.”

She snorts. “Heh, you finally admit it. You have a thing for him! Well, it looks like you have to choose. Pretty new boy or tried and true rock?”

Pondering her words, you make a plan of action, “Hmmm, well, I may never get lucky enough for a guy like Hoon not to reject me, so I’ll stick with that, and then next week, I’ll tell Sunoo how I feel.”

Giving a hum of approval for your plan, Ara warns you not to play with either boy’s emotions or neglect your own. “Do what makes you happy, Y/N; whoever you don’t choose will just have to deal.”

Meanwhile, Sunoo avoids you like the plague for the next week, even going so far as to switch lab partners.

All of that is almost forgotten once the day of the dance finally arrives. You feel like the prettiest vampire queen in a floor-length ruby-toned number that lays perfectly off your shoulders and hugs all the right places.

After Hoon's mom drops you off, the night is a blur. A magical blur where he indeed must be a prince in another life with how well he is treating you. After a couple of slow songs with y'all almost kissing, you excuse yourself to the restroom to try to settle your nerves and try to summon some courage.

You exit, and upon reaching the hallway, you see Sunoo. He looks awestruck, and you blush. "Hey, Y/N, I'm really sorry. I overreacted, and well, I miss my friend. Will she accept me back?"

Pretending to think, you finally smirk and say, "I suppose I will accept your apology. I missed you too!" After tightly embracing each other, he steps back and says, "Well, my beautiful bestie, you wanna head back in and ditch Mr. Stuck Up? The chaperones are dissociating, so I'll be able to sneak in no problem."

You back away, upset, "First off, flattery won't get me to allow you to talk badly of him or convince me to sneak you in. Secondly, he is not stuck up; he is just still fairly new and reserved. Once you give him a chance, you'll see he is really cool!"

Rolling his eyes, he walks away, waving you off, "Have fun with my replacement. I'll see you around, maybe.."

In shock, you are frozen in the shadows when Hoon comes to find you. "There you are. You were gone so long that I got worried about you and had to come look for you. Everything okay?"

Smiling away the tears threatening to ruin your makeup, you nod and head back inside. You try to enjoy the rest of the dance, but the look in Sunoo's eyes haunts your memory.

It was like when he got picked last for dodgeball and by the opposite team, not even by you, but more intense and frightening if you're honest.

After graduation, you hear he got accepted to the security guard training program at the local jail while you were still waiting to hear back from your photography internship. It was annoying, but you try to hope it'll still happen.

The park was quiet for once, so you head over to take some more nature shots in your free time. Panning over to the left of you, a figure comes into focus, coming towards you. Shockingly, you see Sunoo smiling in your direction, and anxiety freezes you in place.

"Hello, stranger," he quips as he sits beside you on the bench. You scoot away from him, annoyed that he was so lighthearted when he was the one who parted ways.

"Can I help you, Mr. Kim?" "Why so formal? It's just me, Y/N." Crossing your arms, you look the other way and say, "Well, I don't tend to act friendly to people who walk out of my life for stupid reasons."

Pouting, he gets up suddenly, leaving you even more confused than before, then reappears about 5 minutes later with two cups in his possession. "All right, peace treaty apple juice. Let’s forget about all the high school silliness and share this with me before I go off to training.”

Almost denying his request, you realize how dehydrated you are and say fuck it downing the whole thing.

Not even 5 minutes pass, and you start to feel weird. You are barely able to convey this to Sunoo before you pass out. Unable to tell how long you were out, you awaken to being handcuffed and shoved in a police car.

Through half-open eyes, you scan around for Sunoo or anyone you know, but all you meet are the blinding sirens, which only make the pounding in your head worse.

The entire ride to the processing center, your mind is racing, trying to figure out how you got in this predicament, and freaking out because your independent life has only just begun and you had so many plans!

They bring you in and take your mugshot. Nobody is telling you what is happening, assuming you are only playing naïve to pull one over on them.

Going down the hall of multiple holding cells, the current inmates look just as confused as you feel, wondering what such a young girl is doing in this wretched place.

Distracted with your thoughts, you practically are thrown into a tiny room with just a bed, sink, and a hole to use the bathroom with no windows.

About to ask why you were not given the option for a call or are being separated from the rest of the people (not that you were upset, but it was worrying you how dangerously you were being treated), the female guard shoves you into the room and slams the door in your face with a "Shut the fuck up you waste of space."

Seems like around 3 days have passed. The only way you can tell is because you have been given 6 meal trays and heard from your trek to your room on the first day, inmates being upset they only get 2 meals daily.

While you are still confused about why the hell you are in this place, your strategy at this point is just to do as you are told and try to stay low until you can speak to someone with legitimate authority.

With this new mindset, the rest of your body is returning to normal, which is mostly a good thing...

The exception is your libido. It has returned with a vengeance, and once the lights go out on the 4th day, you decide to risk it not having spotted a camera yet.

Between your regular sex drive and all of the unfairness and frustrations with your situation, you cannot hold back any longer.

Right before you are about to hit your climax, you hear the keys in your door and freeze.

Pretending to sleep, you roll over onto your side and stick your fingers in your mouth to hide the smell of your sex, hoping they will buy that you still soothe yourself this way as an almost adult.

The door swings open, and you hear the footsteps approach you. You try to keep breathing normally even though you are terrified. The figure above you chuckles, and your heart plummets.

You try to convince yourself you are going insane, but there is no denying it once you hear the voice say, "Now, when did you start sucking your fingers when you sleep? In all of our sleepovers, I have never seen you do that."

You shoot up and start bawling, finally letting your body release all of the emotions that have been pent up since this whole ordeal began. Wrapping your arms around his neck, you pull him down into a tight embrace. Big mistake.

As he stands back up, he notices the sweat along your hairline from your previous activity and widens his eyes in concern, "Oh no, Y/N, do you feel okay? Are you getting a fever? You felt warm just now."

Blushing quicker than ever, you fervently shake your head in denial, "No, Sun-sun, I feel fine; was just a little warm, I promi-“

He cuts off your sentence by grabbing ahold of your chin and tilting your head up as he moves even closer to your ear whispering “Don’t lie to me when I saw everything you needy slut.”

Your eyes widen in horror, and confusion clouds your brain again as you look at him through your peripheral vision, "Wait, what do you mean? How? Why am I in here?"

Sinisterly chuckling, he gives you his cheeky smile. "Patience, I'll answer your questions and then help you with your little dilemma. Terribly sorry to interrupt, by the way, but you looked so sinful that I was hoping to catch you in the act." "Um, and what makes you think I would've let you? Or even needed your help?"

Sitting on the bed with you, he quirks up an eyebrow, "Slow down, I still haven't answered the first round of questions."

Pouting, you sit back against the wall and hold your knees to your chin, a medley of unpleasant feelings swirling in your gut.

Tucking a loose piece of hair behind your ear, he begins addressing your queries. "Okay so I may have commandeered the feed from your camera into a personal monitor so I can keep an eye on you. No biggie between friends, right?"

Your face turns red at him, using that title from when he went to M.I.A. for weeks after graduation. "How dare you..." you scowl at him. "Oh, now calm down, drama queen, so I can continue with my answers."

Begrudgingly, you do so but not without a lethal side eye aimed at the wall, slightly scared to direct it his way.

You never thought your friend would spy on you or call you a slut and aren’t keen to find out what other secrets are lying in wait.

Continuing his replies, “I know you would’ve let me because even if you try to deny it, we both have had feelings for each other since week one. As to you needing my help, I know you had everything perfectly under control but I feel like you crave more than your fingers kitten.”

Not daring to speak when he clocked your shit so accurately and your face looks like a tomato, you just hide your face. "Knew it." He states smugly. "Alright, on to the next matter: why are you here? It's all thanks to me, of course."

Slowly, you raise your head in horror as your entire body shakes. Scooting back as much as possible, you ask, "Wait, you are playing a trick on me, right? There is no reason for you to do that. Nice try, dude.."

He stands up and starts pacing around the room, "Oh, I had my reasons. First, things were getting too serious with that Hoon guy, and I didn't like it. And you might have found out you got accepted to a photography internship, which would take you away from me, and that can't happen...not yet. So, I would check your mail before you and only take out mail from the places you applied."

You stand up now with fists balled up at your sides. "What are you going on about? Not yet? Why don't you want me to be happy?" you scream at him with tears running down your face for the second time tonight.

As he approaches you, he wipes a tear from your cheek and kisses your forehead, "Oh darling, you still don't get it. I want nothing more than for you to be happy. Just not without me and not before I unlock the key to your tight pussy that I've dreamt about for years."

You freeze, staring at the wall, "What did you do? You still haven't answered why I got thrown in here and treated like a villain. Tell. Me. Now."

He sits you down on the bed again, looking down as if you were a rat caught in his trap. Which you were, by the way.

He squats down, staring into your soul as he reveals the remaining puzzle pieces. "Well, I got accepted into this place as a star trainee with excellent scores. They basically told me to use my best judgment and make them proud. My parents were not thrilled that I hadn't pursued a more upstanding career choice, so I wanted to prove to them that I could thrive here. You just happened to be the perfect muse to show them all my skills."

Taking a deep breath and looking too excited to finish relaying this info to you, he continues, "Well, when I spotted you in the park looking dejected but having that trying-to-distract-yourself look in your eyes, I knew it was my time to strike. I expertly mixed apple-flavored alcohol in the juice and then 'spilled' some on myself. I called a couple of buddies in the force to come over and help execute my plan."

All of your tears have dried up as you are burning up, wondering who the person is in front of you. "Don't worry, it gets better," he says as he pats your knee.

Cracking his neck, he nears the end of his story. "So basically, you are in here because I made you look like an underaged alcoholic by having the empty bottle right next to you, then lying to the officers and saying you were pressuring me to drink with you. Oh, also, you were trying to sell shots to our classmates and even the middle schoolers. They are so worried about this getting out with the mayoral election coming up and your parents being his friends that they aren’t allowing any visitors or calls from or for you until the sentencing.”

You stand up, knocking him on his ass in fury, "How could you?! If you had just told me how you felt ages ago, you could have gotten what you wanted instead of keeping it in and becoming this creepy psychopath! I demand a lawyer!”

He cackles while fully lying down on the floor, "You have no pull, sweetheart, but nice try, hah! Even your parents aren’t asking about you, hoping this all blows over and they can maintain their perfect image."

With his eyes closed, still laughing, you cage him beneath you and start to choke him. This time, he freezes and smirks up at you, "Oh, this is how you wanna play it, huh? Pretending you are furious instead of insanely turned on and hoping this ends with you knowing how I feel inside of you. Cute, really."

You scowl down at him and are about to get off of him when he roughly grabs your hips and pulls you back down onto him. "Oh no, there's no getting out of this. How does it feel finally being able to feel how excited you make me? Honestly, it feels like you are excited, too, with the wet spot you left on me."

Face flushing in embarrassment, you glance at the floor to escape his intense gaze, but all masking ability flies out of the window as soon as he bucks his hips against you, eliciting a breathy whimper from your throat.

The moment it exits your mouth, you bite your lip and try to escape his hold. Or at least you meant to...

Instead, you end up grinding against his hardening cock through both of your pants. Feeling his deep chuckle against your clit, you spasm, and he just grins as he pulls you down to attack your lips with a furiously passionate set of long-awaited kisses, entwining your tongues and both assaulting the other's lips with teasing sucks and bites.

When you finally can pull away and catch your breath, he sits up as you wobbly stand and immediately backs you into the bed with his arms on either side of your head, licking from your collarbone up to your ear lobe, enjoying you moaning his name.

That was the final straw of resolve. It snapped like the tiniest twig in your core, and an animalistic need overwhelmed you as you dug your claws into his back underneath the plain white under-uniform tee that clung to his muscles just right.

Gasping for air, you beg, “Sunoo. Please...I need you.." while trying to undress him.

He smirks while he cocks his head to the side, "You're lucky hearing you beg was my last thread of teasing you leaving. Strip for me, needy whore."

With that, you spring onto your feet like a lithe cat and strip with lightning speed, laying back on the bed with everything exposed down to your arousal-soaked lips.

You usually were shyer, but you couldn't help it after the earlier interruption, plus finding out he felt the same way. You would deal with the red flags after you came.

Staying in his simple yet sexy white tee and dark grey workout pants, he descends like a hawk. He licks a broad stripe from your pussy to your sensitive bundle of nerves, making you cry out and grip his hair to keep your soul from flying out of your body too rapidly.

Immediately, you trap his neck between your thighs, not letting him weasel his way away and tease you for a second more.

He picks up on your neediness, and tongue fucks your velvety cunt whilst moaning into you, letting any insecurity of smelling or tasting weird disappear without a trace.

Rising up on his elbows, he makes a show of licking his lips, leaving his chin shiny with your pleasure, and makes his way up your body so you can taste yourself off of him as he makes circles with his thumb on your growingly sensitive clit.

Feeling your high about to crash upon you, you exhale, "Sunoo, I'm about to." Yet, before you can finish your sentence, he shoves you off of the edge by taking your plump breast into his mouth and matching the pace of his fingers with his tongue around your nipple.

As you cum, he disappears between your thighs again, not wanting to waste a single drop (or leave any evidence) while continuing to squeeze and slap your tits. When he can feel you are getting close again, he quickly makes space between your bodies, causing you to sit up and dig your nails into his thighs, making him moan loudly.

Then he adds salt to the wound by lightly slapping your pussy, making you squirt for the first time all over the bottom of his shirt and dick print.

Straddling him now that he is fully erect is torturous; while you nibble along his neck and behind his ear, you ask, “C’mon Sunoo, I need to feel you in me...please.”

Throwing his head back to allow you to kiss more of his neck, he just smirks and says, “Well, someone is needy tonight...well, you have been such a good little thing for me, I will grant your wish, pretty. First, you have to get up so I can get out of these damp clothes”.

Feeling bold, you raise up just enough to pull down his pants along with his boxers and then straddle him again while he sits up and removes his shirt while kissing and playing with your perfect tits.

After you give him your adorable yet seductive pleading eyes, he stops wasting time. He flips you onto your back again and, with utmost sincerity and care in his eyes, says, “You ready? Stop me if it hurts, okay? I really do care about you.”

Tears welling in your eyes, you nod and subtly pull his hips closer to you. You have liked him for a long time, and despite all of the nasty lust that has occurred tonight, it was weirdly healing at the same time.

He slowly slides the tip in, and after a few seconds, you surprisingly quickly can let him quicken his thrusts and go even deeper, both uttering sensual guttural noises in unison as soon as he bottoms out.

You notice him blush and quirk your eyebrow this time asking what is going on. He looks to the side then admits,” Well, this feels amazing, like even better than I’ve imagined, and I know that sounds cliché, but trust me...that’s a big deal. And well, I don’t think I’ll last much longer, sadly; I want to, but...yeah, sorry..”

Latching your ankles around his hips, you just bite your lips and eyefuck him as a green light, to which he gives you a deep, caring kiss as he slowly hits that sweet spot inside you, resulting in a simultaneous orgasm with the both of you collapsing in sweet bliss.

He cannot stay around too long, or the guard headquarters will get suspicious, but he lingers as long as he can while he tries to rinse out your delicious scent from his clothing.

You have the best sleep that night and are oddly comforted by someone caring that much. You are at peace knowing there are mutual feelings and hoping y'all can date normally once you are released.

Until you are released (about a week later), Sunoo frequently visits your cell of solitude because he is the only guard who can "handle" you. Over time, you become closer and decide that you will finally pursue a healthy relationship once you are free, and he will not have to stalk you anymore.

[sabine-smitten-obviously]

And YOU will feel healed of the last 15

... when you read this fic. That is, as long as you suffered from an abandonement wound like i did.

Ello lovelies, i have another wonderful fanfic-rec for you! 🤓

But you are an ocean by @ineffably-good

Coverart by @ineffableclassics

What it is about:

After Aziraphale's defection, Crowley tries to figure out how to live life for himself.

Notes:

Ok so, the end of season two broke me. Figured I was maybe done writing stories about these two after that. And yet, several hours later, a sentence appeared in my head, and then this happened. Guessing at chapter totals… I'm finding I like the idea of Crowley going off in a different direction than what I'd initially expect. Not just raging, not sleeping for a century, but actually trying to move on. And why the hell shouldn't he just move to the South Downs by himself? So here we are.

What i like about it:

🩷This fic doesn´t jump in on pushing the story - their story - forward. Instead it goes a totally different path. A quite big part of it is dedicated to Crowley mending the pieces of his broken heart. It´s endearing, it´s breathtaking and it will have you cry. Not only for Crowley but for every single person who ever had to endure heartbreak.

🩷Fun fact no.1: in real life I am a relationship-coach specialised in toxic relationships and heartbreak. And the way Crowley´s heartbreak is described couldn´t be any more accurate. Every thought, every pain, every action he takes, the strength it costs him, the weight of it all - its written absolutely to the point. I could have copied several pages for the "most beloved quote".

🩷So Crowley tries to build a life for himself. Not just living without the angel and rotting in a pit, but really trying to carve out a nice little existence for himself. He is doing his work, he is healing and you can follow along with him, as he learns to build at least new "friendships" - though he would never call it that himself, thanks a lot.

🩷This healing-journey takes quite some time and somewhere in the middle of it i started to think - he could do it. He COULD heal his hurt, mourn the loss and still somehow at least live a life on his own. Maybe feeling the missing part of himself for the rest of his existence, but not being miserable about it the whole time. And that is a thought - a wish - i would have for my dark angel.

I could see him living that life and at one point i almost thought - i would love to see how that would´ve played out for him. A life without Aziraphale. What connections would Crowley have made? How would he have coped with the loss of those humanly connections lifespan after lifespan? Would he have relocated each century? Would he have moved to Australia and learned surfing at one time? Would he have become a timelord and travelled - i mean seriously, Crowley could do that probably?

But you, my dear, are an ocean.

And oceans are ancient

And can survive everything,

Even the wrath of weather and planets.

-- Nikita Gill

SPOILERS AHEAD - if you don´t want to know the plot, stop reading here.

Stop reading if you dont want spoilers!

Ok - you´ve been warned! Here we go: 🤗

🩷Fun fact no.2: I actually downloaded this fic some time ago but had another fic in mind i wanted to start next. So after i finished the last one (also really brilliant, i wrote a rec on it too), i started my e-reader the next day, THIS fic was already open instead on page 1. Huh?

I have absolutely no idea how this is possible, but i DO believe in hints-of-the-universe. Or little demonic miracles on their own. Because i needed this fic.

🩷Because of course - this is a Good Omens fanfic and eventually the other angel arrives. And without giving away to much: Aziraphale has to fight for Crowley. A long long time. He has to be steadfast and consistent and earn the trust of his has-been-companion-for-millenia. Nothing is a given any more.

And i am NOT saying that this is what Aziraphale needs to do or that he was wrong in any way. (The fic doesnt say that either by the way.) But what cracked ME personally about the last 15 was my own abandonement-wound which got triggered massively. I felt retraumatised even.

So reading and feeling that Crowley does not jump on the next best possibility to be back with the angel was a big thing. Having the Angel slowly earning his trust and simply showing up again and again - I needed that. I needed Crowley to take his time, not be the sick lovefool he is often proclaimed to be. For him to have doubts, to feel conflicted, to feel love and the need to self-preserve at the same time.

All these ambiguities we all have. And to take the steps with him. Watch the turning point, when the fear of losing Aziraphale again becomes less and less and the fear of wasting time gets stronger. Taking one step at a time, sometimes even backwards. All those things, typical for a healing process, which is never straight forward but most of the time a rollercoaster instead. I loved this. I needed this. I could sit back, breathe and watch my own heart grow. Just. Wow.

Most beloved quote:

So if you feel like maybe you need a fic in which Aziraphale really shows up and cares while Crowley really takes his time to learn to trust again... And not because one of them has been an idiot, but to experience them both learning and growing together ... and that might be something for your own healing journey, this might be just THE fic for you. I absolutely loved it and so will you.

Reading is therapy! 🤗

[rlbbackup]

A year in review - 2024 (SxF)

So, after reading the lovely @unhappy-sometimes's 2024 retrospective (which I highly recommend you read!), I thought I'd do something similar!

This will be pretty long and have lots of links and tags but I hope you enjoy this little romp I took down memory lane about all the fics I wrote this past year!

All for Naught

This was a fic that was inspired by a conversation with @glacialdawn and I wrote it up completely in 12 hours. I’m not exaggerating! We were just goofing off in dms and we got on the topic of Yuri’s decision to become an SSS officer and how it relates to Yor’s raising him…and it evolved from there. 

All in all, I’m VERY proud of how this fic turned out. Having it be solely from Yor’s POV and forcing her to deal with an abrupt change in how she views her brother was a lot of fun. Of all the reveals that may or may not happen in SxF, I personally feel that the Briar Siblings reveal will be the most critical. Yeah there’s betrayal involved in the TwiYor one and Anya’s reveal will likely end in bloodshed, but Yor has hid what she needed to do to raise Yuri for over a decade and a half at least. And while she admits that her brother is intense, seeing him in his work environment would probably shatter something within her. The work of the SSS isn’t glorious. Neither is that of an assassin. 

All this to say that with this as the start of my fics in 2024, I’m not surprised how later fics turned out XD

Hypothetically…

While my Post-reveal, Pre-relationship series has been written almost entirely out of order, I really enjoyed the inspiration that led me to writing this one. When I saw this post by @itsmechini, the words almost poured out of me. Twilight and Yor have had a lot of things taken from them in life, things that ultimately made them who they are but they didn’t have a choice or say in the matter. Having the choice to reveal who they truly are to each other and accepting the other for who they are feels like a healing of that particular wound and I couldn’t help but put pen to paper. 

I was also inspired by the writing style of the lovely Puolain while writing this, leading me to use different scene change styles and I think it flows better because of it! 

I will also admit that I cried several times while writing this, especially at Yor’s answer to a hypothetical question asked. Beyond that, this was a really cathartic fic to write and I’m glad I got to share it with you guys!

Side by Side and Locked in Tight

THIS FIC.

It’s been bouncing around in my head for a long time now, since I love the song that inspired this (Cop Car by Sam Hunt - there is also a version by Keith Urban, but the Sam Hunt version feels softer so I’m going with that one XD). I had an early draft of this fic existing in my Google docs since… 2021 I think? Right after I fell down the Ken/Anya shipping cavern and haven’t wanted to climb back out.

But actually writing this fic was a STRUGGLE until talking prompts out with the people in the SxF Rare Pair server. While it was a NSFW prompt, handcuffs just broke through the fog I’d had regarding this plot idea and BOOM I was finally able to post it. 

While Ken has some of the shortest character involvement in SxF, I love this kid. I get he’s practically an OC at this point, but I’m okay with that and I love playing around with how he’d interact with the Cecil Hall Gang. I want them all to be friends. Anya should have more friends!

Anyway! I go back and read this fic from time to time and I’m still happy with it. Especially the twist at the end XD

Don’t forget to lock the door

Another fic created with the help of the Rare Pair Server! (love you guys!)

One thing that makes me laugh constantly in SxF is the fact that the Forger’s apartment has a deadbolt but it looks like the Forgers never use it XD. Imagine all those times people barged into the apartment stopped by a simple use of a sliding lock 🤣So, why not make it a plot point of a fic!

I blame @creativwit for this ultimately. Though it was a pleasure to write Twilight and Franky needling each other and Yor soothing both of them. On a second/third/however many times I’ve read this thing, I still love how they are soft with each other in their own ways.

Little Black Number

A fic inspired by my own art!

Sometime in 2023, I was talking to some friends on discord when I was reminded of Princess Diana’s “Revenge Dress” that she wore after then Prince Charles’ “Tell All” interview where he sort of hinted at being unfaithful to her during their marriage. This spiraled into “I’m pretty sure Yor would look fantastic in the Revenge dress” and going from there.

Now, based on anecdotal evidence, it’s believed by myself and others that SxF takes place mostly in an alternate version of the 1960s. Endo-Sensei does mix things about the world regarding technology in his story, but the fashion is straight out of 1960s fashion magazines. So, the revenge dress is way out of the possibilities. Still. I think the dress would look good on Yor and drew it!

The dress I describe in the story is notably different (namely that the skirt is ankle/floor length versus the above knee design of the inspiration). 

To the story itself, I really want Yor to have friends and while I’m still wary of Melinda I think the two of them could be close! So I wrote about them having girl time together, bonding even when they are in two different social groups and where they can compromise on things. It was a quick and fun write! I really loved this one!

A moment of weakness

This fic was inspired by @/usleepover's art on Twitter!

Like most of the other fics mentioned here, this was inspired by chats on Discord. I have USleepover and @astersugar for this. Long before ch. 109, we were wondering what would lead these two to interact, and guessed that it would probably involve Dr. Forger’s office. Now…that conversation spiraled into something wildly different from what I did in this fic, but it did inspire me.

As a little more background, I have had a fic in the background for a year and a half now where Yor experiences a medical emergency and how the Forgers’ lives change as a result. I have no idea when or if I will ever post that fic since it’s…heavy. Emotionally and mentally heavy. But I was able to write this in relation to it. While I’m not specific in what ails Yor, I did leave enough for one to guess. Like it’s larger, heavier sister, this fic took an emotional toll on me. Having someone you love in the hospital and not being able to do a damn thing to help them is…difficult. I can’t put into words exactly how difficult that is. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy, that’s how bad it is. So writing Loid and Melinda come to terms that they are out of their depths and still want to do something for Yor was cathartic in a way. I’m really happy with how this one came out and still reread it on occasion.

Rendezvous

I half blame @sister-cna-reader for this 🤣Her Hidden Under Roses’ Au with McMahon and Sylvia has me in a CHOKE HOLD and I was sunk for this ship from the start. So I decided to write about it. The other person I “blame” for this is @/Ari_Gateau on AO3 for encouraging me and ultimately giving me the prompt idea in the first place! You both are wonderful and I love you dearly!

I went back and forth on where in any timeline to put this, but ultimately decided that my PRPR verse was the best place. With Twilight and Thorn Princess revealed to each other, I could see their handlers also involved in that. Handler and Director aren’t exactly friends, but they are allies enough to watch each other’s backs if they find themselves on an assignment where they have aligned goals. 

Leaving this fic with the ending I did was a choice I also debated internally but I like it! And I guess that’s what matters 🤣

Pink Sakura

OH BOY THIS FIC.

The inspiration for this hit me upside the head very suddenly on Kiss Day (May 23) and I decided to choose violence. Like with Side by Side and Locked in Tight, I pulled my “canon but mostly an OC” buddy Ken back for some hanahaki “fun” 🤣This one is in the same universe as Flowers and Thorns, but this is clearly the angster younger sister. And once I started writing, I couldn’t stop. I wrote for almost three days straight before I was ready to post this. But it was worth it.

Adding Anya’s chapter wasn’t something I had originally planned (not that there was much planning involved in this fic 🤣) but once I finished Ken’s chapter, I realized there were some pretty glaring plot holes. So I used Anya to fill them and I think that worked out really well! I know hanahaki isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but I enjoy it and I’m glad I wrote this one!

New Moon Blues

I return to my Myth Au! 👏 I’ve mentioned this in my author notes, but this whole au was developed by several people (@httplovecraft1890 , @gonnahypatia, @whatroguewrites, @awphooey2u, @juuyeah and @connoisseursdecomfort) and started by @foxtamer113. I couldn’t have made this without everyone’s inputs!

This one was a plot we had discussed ages ago. I think once we nailed Loid and Yor’s roles down, we almost immediately started brainstorming how Anya fit into their lives. We pretty much made her their biological child from the start (if my memory serves me), which I genuinely love in Aus. We did debate over HOW she was born, even though we agreed that she would be a baby goddess. One of the ideas mentioned was something about mingling blood and tears but we decided that the "Athena" route was much more fun to play with. In the end, I altered it just a bit mostly because of inspiration from a comment on the story before this one (Soothing Rays). (thank you to that commentor! I can’t find it right now, but you are amazing!)

Floodgates / Throwing Away Fate (just to keep you safe)

These fics are a RIDE my guys. 

First off, Floodgates was originally a gift from the lovely @creativwit and I hijacked it because of conversations about this au on discord 🤣(like several others on this list amirite??) The idea of Kasper came from those conversations and we’ve grown insanely attached to him. Originally, he was going to be the contact that Garden silenced in ch 43, but we loved him too much to do that.

Since then, we had this idea of what would happen if Franky really did end up in Garden’s crosshairs, and Wit wrote the first chapter of Floodgates as a start. I’m pretty invested in Yor as a fault, so I kept thinking about how she would handle this situation and ended up writing the “interludes” for this fic. I’ve since renamed those chapters to the lyrics of Loyal, Brave, True by Christina Aguilera since that’s the song I primarily write these chapters to. 

Throwing Away Fate is a prequel (hence why i’m mentioning it here) and was pulled from those same conversations. I love the idea of Kasper already been head over heels for Franky before the real action gets going in Floodgates, so I wanted to explore how he found Franky and went on this adventure running from Garden. Originally, I had wanted to write more (up until they are found in Floodgates ch. 1) but I was running out of steam and didn’t want to force myself any farther. Maybe one day I’ll (or wit, or both of us together) write the scene where Shopkeeper finds Kas. That might be fun 😈

Crosslegged in the Dim Light

Unlike the song this title is drawn from, it’s pure fluff! I saw this art by EvuriKigen and immediately started writing. There wasn’t much thought put into the development of this fic since I just started writing. The only thing I did think was that I wanted this to be in my Post Reveal/Pre relationship series, where even though Twilight and Yor have all their cards on the table, sometimes they don’t need to talk about the specifics of their jobs. They know and trust their partner, and that’s really the point of this story. 🥰

Inferno

Shifting gears pretty abruptly, we once again dive into my chats over discord 🤣While I will grumble about how Yuri’s superior doesn’t have a name 😒, I love the dynamic Endo-Sensei set up for the First Lieutenant (I know in the English version he’s called “Captain” but the Japanese says “First Lieutenant” so that’s what I’m going with!), Yuri and Chloe. So I wanted to expand on that outside of their tracking down WISE agents. 

And while I know there is no evidence of any of them being closer than colleagues, my shipping brain just loves the idea of Chloe at least admiring her superior. Hence This fic. 

Like Crosslegged in the Dim Light, I wrote this one very quickly and with little thought about plot. I’m pretty happy with this one!

7 Minutes in Heaven

This one was a beautiful joint venture with @cambot77, @sister-cna-reader, @strangeduckpaper and @creativwit! As with several of the last fics, this one started it’s life on discord. It was our original hope to have this done by Kiss Day (May 23) but that changed as we all kept writing. It was a blast!

Writing out a list of all the pairs to start off was a treat because I kept randomly forgetting some of them XD. But we got them all and planned out a vague idea of what could happen in each chapter. Then I used an online spinner to divide up the ships that hadn’t been previously claimed. After confirming that everyone was happy with what they had, we made the order. 

Ao3’s Collections and Co-author features really helped us here and reading everyone’s chapters brought me genuine joy. It’s so wonderful watching how all of our different writing styles and takes on the characters fit together as a whole. I honestly cannot pick a favorite chapter since I love them all. Thank you all again, my dears. This project was so much fun!

Complicity

The fact that it took me 9 months to finish this one is still astounding to me 🤣I had planned for All For Naught to be a stand alone, but then I saw a prompt on the @dailytwiyorprompts tumblr and that quickly flew out the window!

Seeing everything from Twilight’s perspective and going through his mental gymnastics was honestly a blast. Not sure if there will be a follow up to this duology or not, but anything’s possible.

Psyche

The last fic I started in 2024. This is a gift for the lovely @cantareincminor and was something she requested specifically. Her prompt was: “Mole hunt arc with a twist: Garden sends Thorn Princess to Shellbury to assassinate Wheeler. Instead of Nightfall, Thorn Princess is the one to stumble upon Wheeler and Twilight. She absolutely mops the floor with Wheeler and saves Twilight. Up to you whether his mask is off or on—could be awesome either way if she believes her husband or her brother is in danger.”

No going to lie, I was completely surprised when this developed into a 10k first chapter. The second chapter is still in the works and looks like it may also end up about that length and there’s no clue about the 3rd. But I want to talk about the inspirations behind this fic beyond the prompt. 

The title for this fic changed multiple times as I was writing it and probably spent more time as “untitled” than anything else. But within the day I posted it, I was struck by Orpheus by Cantare herself! I honestly love mythology (as my Myth series shows I hope 😅) and considered the wider plot of where this story would go. Without giving away too much, the story of Eros and Psyche just fits. Yor is the wife that doesn’t truly know her husband and through some twist of fate ends up finding out. While this story won’t be a one-to-one retelling of the myth, there may be echoes found within it until the end. And I’m really excited to share that with you all!

Honorable Mention: Sleeping with the Telephone

While I started this fic back in Nov 2023, a lot of it has been written in 2024. This fic has been an honest to goodness rollercoaster to write…and it’s not done yet. 

In my author’s note, I mention that I originally wrote part of the first chapter as a one shot on my RP blog, but it has developed moreso than I could have anticipated. There are a lot of themes in this, from draftees suddenly leaving their children and spouses behind, to family dynamics and the struggles therein, how war impacts relationships as a whole, and the like. Of course most, if not all, of these are addressed in Spy x Family, but bringing the war back to Ostania and having them fight another country entirely was interesting. 

Unlike the phenomenal @niregonnagiveyouup’s Not a Vein of Stars (which i HIGHLY recommend), I wanted to base this story around some of the hot conflicts during the Cold War. The US and USSR were infamous for recruiting other countries to help fight “their own” wars (like the Philippines sending troops to South Korea and The Warsaw pact sending troops to fight with the USSR in Albania). This still happens in the present day (such as the UK sending troops to Afghanistan and Belarus to Ukraine), even if it’s not to the same insanity that WW2 was. I don’t like it. I never have liked war, and writing this story from the perspective of a family being caught in the proverbial crossfire helped me hate it all the more.

But this story is a passion project of mine. I’m at the home stretch and re-reading this story to center myself for that happy ending I’ve promised myself really helps me love it all the more. Someday soon that fic will have a complete next to it’s name and I can’t wait. 

I know this was long as heck, but thanks for sticking with me! I didn’t realize I had written so much this past year since I took a break for a good chunk of it. But in hindsight, I’m really proud of how all of these works turned out and want to thank everyone who read, left kudos and/or comments. You all are wonderful!

Happy 2025 everyone! Here’s to more stories! 🍾

[ghost-proofbaby]

When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let's spread the self-love 💛

this caused a sweet walk down memory lane of the last several years, so thank you very much for that <3 i've decided to exclude long fics, and focus more on one shots posted here, because in all honesty? every long fic i write for a character i hold near and dear to my chest, and each one is a love letter all on their own (i'm looking very hard at you two, the shire is burning and the moon will sing.)

you showed me colors (eddie munson x reader)

yes, very sad, but also i just adore the world building i managed in this fic. absolutely tragic but also the sweet moments really did give me a toothache. i think it did well on encapsulating both the feeling i got as i fell for eddie while watching the show, as well as the devastation when the canon ending to season 4 happened. a slightly different story, an almost parallel universe, and yet it all ended the same. big tragedy. big feelings. but the love is still there <3

2. foolishness and all (eddie munson x reader)

this one is honestly pure silliness, but it also just captures my love for eddie so... nicely? so perfectly? one shots like this one and no denture adventure just always serve to remind me why i love eddie, why i love writing, and just the sheer joy of fandom/being a fan of things to the point of wanting to immortalize them with my words forevermore - even when the words are inside jokes or entirely unserious for the most part.

3. sweet like honey (steve harrington x reader)

the notorious fic in which i've had snippets of sent to me a few times where i go "WHO WROTE THIS? I NEED TO READ IT!!" only to be hit with the fact that i wrote it. was the final nail in the coffin in the way steve owns the nickname "honey" for me, too. we love cocky king steve. long live.

4. simple. (astarion x reader)

this one i love due to the way i got to play around with a new dynamic between astarion and reader/tav <3 his character, including his trauma, is something extremely personal and important to me, so venturing out with this type of writings with him has always been a slippery slope for me. but i genuinely enjoy what i did here <3

5. kissing lessons (robin buckley x reader)

and of course... how can i not include this lovely work in which helped me take something sour from my past, and make it sickly sweet? robin has been a huge fictional crush for me since season 3, and getting to put myself into a reader while giving them a happier ending than reality was just very fulfilling to me <3 makes my heart sing that so many others enjoyed it right along with me <3

this was so fun and nostalgic, thank you so much!! 😭🖤

[dumbladores]

Light in the Shadows - Part 1

Alec Lightwood x fem. reader

Chapter One - The shadows have eyes

Finally I'm posting the first part of the Alec fic. CHapter two is hopefully following soon. I'm gonna remove all hate comments or comments about how Alec can't be in love with a female etc. I honestly don't care. I love Alec/Magnus in the show and think a personality/character shouldn't be defined only by their sexuality. We all deserve a comfort character and are free to imagine whatever the fuck we like. So yeah, that said, I hope you have as much fun reading it as I had writing. Nive comments are much apprechiated. Love u guys. By the way, I wrote in I-POV, not You-POV, I hope that's OK and you can immerse yourselves nontheless. It's set somewhere in canon, don't ask me where. I just watched the tv show. Let's be generous with the plot logic. Anyways, enjoy. Warnings: swearing, canon typical violence Word count: 1829 _____________________________________ Chapter One - The shadows have eyes

I didn’t hear them coming. It was dark and after a few drinks with my friends at the pub, I wasn’t as steady on foot as I’d wished, as took the steps to my apartment, fumbling for the keys in my bag while thinking of my warm bed and the garbage I should probably get out since the disposal company would collect the ton tomorrow morning, when I suddenly heard a floorboard screech behind me. I whirled around, trying to get a grab on the pepperspray attached to my key. I had never had to use it, but it gave me a sense of security when I had it with me. I didn’t even know if it worked. The light in the staircase was dim and didn't reach the corners that lay in the shadows, as well as the staircase that led up, to another set of apartments. It was an old building, but cheap and perfect for a student as myself that didn’t come from money and had to work half of the week to pay rent, not to mention the student credit that was accumulating in silence. There were nine other parties in the house, mostly students, and I rarely ever encountered them, but I had heard of robberies in the neighborhood. I stared into the darkness, trying to make out shapes. But nobody seemed to be there. I shook my head, laughing at myself and my overly probably drunken alertness. I turned around, grabbing my key, when suddenly, there was a hand over my mouth and a tall figure creeping on me from behind and pulling me into the shadows of the upper staircase.

„Make no noise“, a deep voice tingled at my ear. I was surprised I hadn’t alreade made any. The blood rushed through my veins like a tidal wave and the adrenaline seemed to render me completely immobile, enhanced by the fact that a strangers strong grip held me in place. „Stay calm“, the voice continued redundantly. „They’re searching your apartment.“

I wanted to ask who, why and what the hell was happening.

The hand lowered from my mouth and the grip around my arms loosened. I whirled around to see who had been lurking in the shadows, and was surprised to see a very tall guy in his late twenties. He was dressed all in black leather gear, thick boots and straps containing several knives. On his back, he seemed to carry a bow and a quiver with arrows. He was very tall, lean but not lanky, muscly but not buff, and he seemed to be tattooed all over. His hair was black and messy, and I couldn’t help but notice the very advantagously arranged features of his face, culminating in the sharp gaze of his eyes under prominent dark eyebrows. Pity, I thought, when I whipped out my pepperspray.

„AHHHHRGH!“

The guy cried out loudly and held his face, while I stumbled my way over to the door, somehow miraculously managing to get a grip on my keys, opening the door and slamming in shut behind me. My hands were shaking uncontrollably, when I tried to get a hold on my phone in my bag, getting the code wrong twice before realising I didn’t have to unlock my phone to make an emergency call, but before I could type in the number, there was a movement near me. I turned my head and in that moment, someone grabbed me and slammed me into into the all behind me. A man had grabbed me, a hand around my throat, and I wasn't sure whether I saw right or my hazy mind was playing tricks on me, but there were tentacles with teeth coming out of his head. There was only one rational explanation to this. Someone must have put something in my drink, a hallucination drug or something, acid or LSD, what the heck did I know, and I should probably skip the last season of Stranger Things. However, for now, I could only hope the intoxication would end soon. 

„Where is the mortal cup?“, the thing said, despite it having no mouth.

I wanted to say something, but fear must have disabled my nerves somehow, because I could move my mouth. 

„I-I…“, I managed. 

„Tell us!“, another voice said and another figure emerged. It was a man, middle aged and rather unpleasantly looking. „Or we’ll cut off your limbs, piece by piece.“

I struggled against the monsters’ grip but couldn’t even remotely bring it to move a tiny fraction. 

Suddenly, there was a sound at the door, and then it was kicked open. Three figures came storming in, one of them the tall guy that attacked me in the staircase. The figure in front of me loosened its grip, and was knocked out by a small black haired girl, while another blonde one fought with the other man. The girl held the creature with her whip, while the tall black haired guy took a shoot at it, and then it seemed to explode in a million pieces of glowing dust. The blonde guy struggled with the other one, but when the girl and the other guy came to help him, he retracted and flung himself out of the window.

„Now that was good timing“, the blonde said, turning around and facing me. So did the others.

„What the fuck is happening?“ I didn’t recognize my own voice, it sounded calm and collected and not terrified like I actually felt. 

The blond guy rushed to the apartment door and slammed it shut., while the dark haired woman turned to me and said: „I realize that must all have been very disturbing.“

„What the fuck is happening?“, I heard myself repeating, dizziness scraping at the corners of my consciousness. „Who are you? And what are you doing in my apartment?“

„I’m Isabell“, the girl said quickly, stepping closer with a worried look on her face. „And that’s my brothers Jace and Alec. But I think you already met earlier.“ Her lips quivered.

„Before she nearly blinded me, that is“, the guy named Alec snorted. He all but avoided to look in my direction, disapprovingly inquisiting the contains of my apartment, but I couldn’t help but notice his eyes weren’t red in the slightest.

„Oh come on, big bro. It’s not as if you could have been a bit more sensitive. You have to excuse my brother“, Isabell said, eyeing me playfully, „he’s not good with women.“

„Funny“, Alec said dryly.

Even though my judgement was clouded in the moment, I felt that these guys weren’t here to harm me. But still.

„Would somebody please explain to me what’s happening?“, I said angrily, not understanding why they were joking around as if nothing had happened.

„The men who were here were demons“, the blonde guy said, crossing the apartment and checking on all the windows, as if he was expecting more of those creepy guys lurking around. „They were looking for the mortal cup.“

„The what?“

The siblings exchanged some looks.

„You don’t know where it is?“, Isabelle said, her voice tense.

„Uhm no? What the fuck’s going on? Who are you people?“

„I told you she’s just a mundane“, the guy named Alec said, not even attempting to hide his annoyance. „There has obviously been a mistake. This is all a waste of time.“

„No, there has to be a reason they think she knows where it is“, Jace said. „We have to take her with us to the institute. It’s not safe here.“

„Not safe? What do you mean?“ 

Isabelle stepped forward and grasped my arm. „Okay, I need you to trust us. We have to get you to a safeplace. Pack quickly all the things you need and come with us.“

„All the things for what?“

„Things you need for a stay. Clothes, toiletry and such.“

„But why?“ „Because those guys that waited for you earlier, there’s more of them. And they will be coming for you. We’ll explain everything later.“

„And who are you guys?“

Isabelle smiled. „We’re Shadowhunters. Demon fighters. Keepers of peace. Protector of mundanes.“

I looked at her, expecting she would burst out laughing every moment, but she didn’t. Neither did the others. Jace was still alert, looking out the window while Alec was leaning agains the wall of my living room, still looking bored and examining my overflowing bookshelves with a kind of weirded out expression.

„Right“, I said calmly, more to myself than to Isabelle. „But the cat comes with.“

*

„So all the legends are true? What does that mean? All the legends?“

„Well not all, but some. Those of demons, werewolves, vampires…“

„Never read of Shadowhunters before though.“

„Well, but we are the coolest, so we know how to stay hidden.“

„That’s nuts.“ 

Though Isabelle had spent most of the last two hours answering all my questions, I still couldn’t believe what was happening. They had led me to an abandoned church which was hidden from the rest of the normal world and was functioning as their New York headquarters. After following them through a busy room full of big screens and holographics, they had led me to a room in a quieter wing of the Institute, where I could dump my small suitcase and let my cat out of the transport box. Isabelle had helped me get settled but instead of sleeping all I cared about was getting answers to my questions, while slowly also sobering up, which wasn’t pleasant. But the adrenaline that was still pumping through my veins kept me wide awake, although it was way past three o’clock of the morning.

"So, Valentine is looking for the cup. And your friend Clary is his daughter. And you already found a cup and destroyed it. But now there's another one. And you thought Valentine was dead but now he's somehow alive again? And Jace thought he was his son but wasn't, and ... now you don’t now what I have to do with all this?“

Isabelle shook her head. „All we got was a tip they were heading to your address. We didn’t know they were looking for the cup.“

„So why were they looking at my place?“

„I really don’t know“; Isabelle said apologetically. „Maybe that’s all a huge mistake. But until we know for sure, it’s better you stay here.“

„Right“, I said, still not able to grasp what was happening. Still believing at every moment I would wake up in my bed and that it all was only a weird dream. 

„You have to sleep now“, Isabelle said, getting up. „We’ll talk more in the morning. I’ll fetch you for breakfast at ten.“

„Ten? Thanks, that’s… a reasonable time.“

„We’re used to be up all night. No early birds here. Have good night. And if you’re having trouble sleeping, just knock. My room’s next door. By the way, nice move with the pepperspray. I haven’t seen Alec disarmed in years. So thanks for the show.“ "Are his eyes, you know, ok?", I said, feeling a bit guilty.

"Sure they are. We have healing runes, remember?"

"Ah right. That's convenient."

Isabelle smiled, wished me a good night and left the room. My tired eyes followed her. Leaning back in the admittedly very comfortable bed, stroking my cat that had curled up beside me, thinking I was definitely going to leave on the light, I dozed off, strange images in my head of tentacle demons and holy cups and angry sharp eyes under prominent dark eyebrows.

Tagliatelle: @glowingatdawn

[ladyhoneydee]

AO3 Wrapped 2024

As a notorious fanfiction fanatic, once I learned of the wondrous AO3 Wrapped earlier this year, I just knew I would have to run my stats! It's taken me a few extra days since December 31, but here they are!

I'll be putting the cool basic graphics first! For people who are curious about more detailed tag breakdowns (more relationships, genres, fun niche tropes, etc) of what I read, look under the cut!

Here is the link to make an AO3 Wrapped of your own! My friend @minimum-underdrive spent hours improving upon the lovely coding made by soupbanana on github, and we would love for as many people to use it as possible!

Graphic Breakdown:

Slide 1: Pretty sure I audibly gasped and maybe yelled when I saw that word count for the first time! Yep, I sure do read a lot of fic, lmao. Ironically, I didn't actually read Delicious in Wilds in 2024—I was briefly checking something in it. But since the AO3 Wrapped code uses everything that appears in your history, here it is! My actual longest fic read in 2024 was Rage Against the Calamity by BCWill (@bugcatcherwill), which is currently ongoing at 626,657 words.

Slide 2: To quote my friend @louwhose: "wow I am so surprised that Dee, great reader of all things loz, got those fandoms and that character", lmfao. The order is also not surprising given which LoZ game duology has the most fics written for them!

Slide 3: Zelink...zelink...then—WAH! Hehe, sorry to jumpscare you with a Parks & Recreation ship. I had a...phase...after rewatching much of the show this summer. And for anyone curious, the AO3 Wrapped code decides your top authors not by how many words you've read by one author, but by how many fics you've read by one author. As a result, all of my top authors write lots of oneshots: Mistress_Lrigtar (@mistresslrigtar), Fyreflare (@wouldyoustilllovemeifiwasawyrm, and ZeldaElmo (@zeldaelmo) are pillars for zelink, spitecentral (@marinsawakening) wrote a lot of gen oneshots this year, and nocturne-of-forest (@nocturne-of-forest) is the current mvp for midlink oneshots.

Slide 4: This slide—with one very notable exception—was not too surprising to me! Fluff, angst, and hurt/comfort are genres and therefore get tagged for lots of different premises. Now Selectively Mute Link, on the other hand, was not something I expected to appear in my top 4 AO3 tags, and did in fact make me cackle upon reading it. I was somewhat surprised to see that my top rating was GA, as I would have expected T, but I'm certainly content with it, lol.

Detailed Breakdown!

The coding behind this basic graphic is wonderful and concise. However, I wanted to learn much more about my reading habits than just this brief takeaway could show me. Fortunately, as long as you (or a friend of yours, in my case, since I know zilch about coding) know how to run specific commands, almost every detail you want to know about your reading stats is findable.

As such, instead of just my number one fella Link, here are my...

Top Characters

Link (Legend of Zelda): 1307

Zelda (Legend of Zelda): 1071

Impa (Legend of Zelda): 196

Ganondorf (Legend of Zelda): 136

Purah (Legend of Zelda): 130

Midna (Legend of Zelda): 129

Mipha (Legend of Zelda): 121

Urbosa (Legend of Zelda): 119

King Rhoam Bosphoramus Hyrule: 114

Revali (Legend of Zelda): 101

My top characters definitely reinforce the fact that BotW/TotK were my top games within the LoZ structure! Everyone but Midna appears in one or both of those games. However, Link and Zelda (who appear in many games and AUs) have an almost ridiculous lead on everyone else, and the characters who only appear in BotW/TotK all share very similar numbers (between 101 and 130). As a result, I'd surmise that several hundred of the fics contributing to Link and Zelda's numbers come from other LoZ games or AUs that aren't game-specific, and several hundred are BotW/TotK fics (or BotW/TotK-specific AUs) that focus specifically or solely on zelink.

Top Relationships (both romantic and platonic)

Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda): 840

Link & Zelda (Legend of Zelda): 287

Leslie Knope/Ben Wyatt: 87

Link/Midna (Legend of Zelda): 60

Midna/Zelda (Legend of Zelda): 29

Impa & Zelda (Legend of Zelda): 28

Link & Midna (Legend of Zelda): 27

Link/Sheik (Legend of Zelda): 27

Aryll & Link (Legend of Zelda): 20

Link & Mipha (Legend of Zelda): 19

More big differences here! Zelink is clearly my OTP, and you can tell that I click on a big proportion of everything written for them (1880 zelink fics were posted or updated in 2024), and that they are the most popular ship in the LoZ archive. Midlink is a substantial jump down, but since I also read a very high proportion of all posted midlink fics (113 fics posted in 2024), this is largely due to the paucity of the ship within the archive. Same and worse for Midna/Zelda, which being f/f (on AO3, a notably m/m site, and in the primarily f/m LoZ fandom) has unsurprisingly low numbers.

Fun fact: Link/Tetra is my 14th place ship at 16 fics, which means that if you count all possible incarnations of Zelda, my grand total of romantic zelink and zelink-adjacent works is 883!

Now onto Tags. I knew immediately that I would want to split tags into more categories, since AO3's system of "Additional Tags" containing everything from genres to warnings to author musings means that everything under the sun is lumped indiscriminately. As a result, any fun niche tag (enemies to lovers, for example) gets buried under the mass of Fluff and Angst that almost every AO3 user would have populating their top stats (especially if they read as widely as I do). As a result, I have split my top 50 tags (minus tags like "zelink", "Other Additional Tags to Be Added, and spoiler tags), into three kinds: Genre, Setting, and Fun!

Top Genre Tags

Fluff: 324

Angst: 286

Hurt/Comfort: 226

Romance: 130

Fluff and Angst: 105

Emotional Hurt/Comfort: 97

Angst with a Happy Ending: 89

Character Study: 73

Domestic Fluff: 67

Light Angst: 67

Smut: 66

Humor: 64

Friendship: 60

Angst and Hurt/Comfort: 36

Fluff and Smut: 33

Tooth-Rotting Fluff: 33

Romantic Fluff: 29

Found Family: 27

Fluff and Humor: 27

Slice of Life: 27

Hurt No Comfort: 26

Being an FFN transplant to AO3 at heart, I decided Genre tags were those similar to FFN's genre tagging system. I decided to keep in specific genres, like "Tooth-Rotting Fluff" or "Light Angst", to show the deviations within wider genres, and the kinds of angst or fluff that I'm most likely to read. When all tags are lumped together, the overall lumpable categories are Fluff: 618, Angst: 609, Hurt/Comfort: 359, Romance: 226, Smut: 99, Humor: 91. With that math done, I interestingly am almost balanced when it comes to fluff and angst! Personally I'm quite pleased to see Character Study as #5 on the list when you lump the overalls—I do love a good character study, and they never get as much attention as shipfic, so I'm happy to have contributed!

Top Setting Tags

Post-Canon: 111

Alternate Universe - Modern Setting: 97

Canon Compliant: 97

Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence: 96

Pre-Calamity (Legend of Zelda): 85

Alternate Universe: 52

Post-Breath of the Wild: 44

Post-Game: Tears of the Kingdom (Legend of Zelda): 41

Alternate Universe - College/University: 33

Post-Calamity Ganon: 29

Post-Twilight Princess: 27

Setting tags refer to when or where a fic takes place. Of course, most fics, especially oneshots, that fall within a certain game will not include tags about that, and not every fic set Pre-Calamity or Post-Canon will tag such. Not all Alternate Universes will tag the plain Alternate Universe tag, and may skip straight to "Sci-Fi AU" or such. However, I think this is still pretty interesting! Most of what I read revolves around canon, and I'm basically just as likely to read things that are explicitly canon-compliant as are specifically canon-divergent. Yet, unsurprisingly to anyone that knows me, AUs form a strong contingency of settings! Modern AU being so high makes me laugh, but if you combine all 3 AU tags that appear on this list, I have 182 AU works--meaning that around 10% of everything I read this year was some flavor of AU!

Top Relationship Trope Tags

Slow Burn: 123

Established Relationship: 96

Mutual Pining: 77

Pining: 71

Friends to Lovers: 59

Love Confessions: 38

Enemies to Lovers: 31

Idiots in Love: 31

Eventual Romance: 29

Pre-Relationship: 28

First Time: 28

When I tell you I chortled at there being two separate pining tags, and them being right next to each other! It heartens me that the pining is more often explicitly requited, hehe. Otherwise, I think this is really interesting! Despite most romance works in both fanfiction and published media being about getting together (which is reflected here), my number of Established Relationship fics is also quite high. Which honestly makes sense, because I love a good established relationship where characters have to face an issue together. When it comes to the Big Three of romance tropes—Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, and Idiots in Love—I think these fell right where they belong. Friends to Lovers is my preference of these, Enemies to Lovers is common among BotW fics, and Idiots in Love is my special little guy.

Top Fun Tags (including romantic tropes)

Selectively Mute Link (Legend of Zelda): 133

Slow Burn: 123

Established Relationship: 96

Talking Link (Legend of Zelda): 94

Zelda (Legend of Zelda) Needs A Hug: 85

Link (Legend of Zelda) Needs a Hug: 79

Mutual Pining: 77

Pining: 71

Link (Legend of Zelda) Uses Sign Language: 70

Oral Sex: 68

Grief/Mourning: 64

First Kiss: 60

POV Zelda (Legend of Zelda): 59

Friends to Lovers: 59

Canon-Typical Violence: 58

Vaginal Sex: 52

Mute Link (Legend of Zelda): 43

Happy Ending: 40

Cunnilingus: 40

Falling In Love: 39

Vaginal Fingering: 39

Love Confessions: 38

POV Link (Legend of Zelda): 36

Blood and Injury: 33

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD: 33

Explicit Sexual Content: 33

Masturbation: 32

Enemies to Lovers: 31

Idiots in Love: 31

Eventual Smut: 30

Trauma: 30

Nightmares: 30

Trans Link (Legend of Zelda): 30

Eventual Romance: 29

Pre-Relationship: 28

First Time: 28

Worldbuilding: 27

Kissing: 27

Anal Sex: 26

My favorite highlights from this:

Four of these tags (a total of 340 tags!) are about how Link communicates, and that's not even including the tag I myself tend to use for a non-talking Link (Nonverbal Link)! I love the diversity in how he communicates and how we as writers convey that fact, lol.

Apparently, I've read more Oral Sex fics (68) than Smut fics (66). I love what that says about how people tag.

I literally have only 4 more fics in my biggest smut-related category (68, Oral Sex) than I do for Grief/Mourning (64). Guess I'm nearly as sad as I am horny??

Zelda needs more hugs than Link, despite appearing less often in fics. I wonder if it's because of BotW, and many Pre-Calamity fics would be more likely to hug Zelda than Link?

There are more POV: Zelda tags than POV: Link tags, even though Link is in 300 more fics than Zelda overall. I have a feeling that's because Link is seen as the default, so people are less likely to tag for his POV specifically.

Nightmares and Trauma having the same value is hilarious to me. Did it just so happen that all fics with Nightmares also tagged for Trauma and they are the exact same fics? Were some fics with Nightmares lacking Trauma, but the math ended up matching regardless?

Trans Link ended up on there!

Worldbuilding ended up on there! Hell yes!

Bonus Info

I forgot to save this data and I've already read too many fics in 2025 to run it again, but my Rating stats for 2024 went General Audiences (711) -> Teen (in the 600s) -> Explicit (~275) -> Mature (~158) -> Not Rated (<50)!

Three of my top 50 tags were related to events! Zelink Week 2024: 40, Whumptober 2024: 37, Zelinktines: 37

In conclusion...I read a LOT this year! I already knew that, but it's one thing to know it, and one thing to see your data all written out. And now that I have this information, I'll be able to compare 2024 to 2025 when December rolls around once again!

If you want to find your own AO3 Wrapped stats, once again, here is the link! Unfortunately I can provide no advice on how to get the program to provide more tag details the way I got into for my Detailed Breakdown, but if enough people want to find that information and can't figure it out, my friend and I might post some sort of guide!

If you got this far, thanks for reading—I hope you enjoyed this deep dive into my LoZ fanfiction obsession!

[nightofnyx8]

2024 Fic Writer End of Year Wrapup

No one tagged me in this, but I wanted to do it anyway. Though a harder year for me in terms of writing, I still want to celebrate everything I did accomplish.

1. How many words did you publish on AO3 in 2024? 86,650! Surprisingly, despite my severe writer's block, it's the most I've ever written in one year.

2. How many fics did you complete this year?

Oops. In all fairness, I have three ongoing longfics, and I plan to finish two of them next year! Song of the Raven might take a little longer to finish.

3. How many in progress or ongoing fics did you start this year?

I started two this year, As Time Goes By and The Color of Truth! Along with Song of the Raven, those fics should keep me pretty busy in 2025 (that is, if I don't add a cowboy AU like I've wanted to do for forever lol)

4. What was your favorite thing you wrote?

I loved writing As Time Goes By. I adore historical fiction so, so much. In fact if I ever wrote an original work, it would 100% be some historical romance, I can't get enough of it. Unfortunately that's when my writer's block started hitting really hard, as it reminded me too much of my grandfather's death this summer. The fic has become really personal, but my grief has moved to the point where I can open the document and remember his memory without that constant ache in my heart, and it is my hope to honor him by finishing the fic. @nallhir also finished the most lovely artwork for this fic as well that I'm just so excited to share.

5. What piece was your most experimental or different from your usual style?

I did a Twisters fic. I did. Without shame. And though I don't know if I'll continue it, I adored combining my love of the American Midwest with my very slight obsession with Glen Powell.

6. Did any fics surprise you - either while writing or their reception?

The reception to Song of the Raven will forever surprise me. I started that fic as a passion project, and the support and love for that fic has humbled me greatly. It's become my workshop fic, so to say, where I can really experiment with prose, characterization, and even delving into smutty writing. I've loved the journey so far.

7. Do you have a fic you wrote and loved that went under the radar? (This is your sign to reblog/repost it!)

I love my marriage in a bottle collection. Post-reveal twiyor is and always will be one of my favorite tropes.

8. Who is an artist that inspired you?

@nallhir @roucaelum-art @aerequets @ideksams and of course @smaii_i on twitter

9. Who is an author that inspired you?

@firewoodfigs, my darling friend, I've loved each and every one of your works this year, even between two fandoms! And though I don't often have the time to truly express how much I adore your fics, please know that I read and cherish every one. I've also loved reading incoming twiyor authors on twitter! @julyorr, @brefhottub, @smiledarnyou, @deluloid and my dear patty had such fun fics this year!

10. Who is a new author you discovered?

To @bloomingdarkgarden and @pinkrasberryfish -- we hardly know each other, I know, but your beautiful elriel works have made me fall in love with writing all over again. I could cradle your beautiful words in the palms of my hand. Thank you for giving Elain and Azriel such beautiful stories, and for helping me get over my own writer's block. I adore your fics so, so much.

11. Did you do any collaborations? How did it start?

@nallhir-I love you. If I could commission you for every twiyor scene I ever wrote, I would do it a hundred times over.

12. What accomplishments are you proudest of?

I think I've finally found my voice in my writing. I've spent a lot of time studying other author's prose and experimenting their styles within my own stories, but this year, I'm happy to look back at my fics and think, "yeah. that's me. And I'm proud of that."

13. What did you learn about writing or creating this year?

Writing is a process, and sometimes writing styles can change. Some stories call for more delicate prose, and some are more plot-driven. There is no shame in creating something beautiful to me (especially for free haha). If it heals my soul, then it doesn't have to be perfect.

14. Any advice you’d like to share with new or aspiring writers?

Whatever you want to write about, write it. It doesn't matter if it's the 500th college AU in the fandom. It doesn't matter if you think your prose is too flowery or too structural or blocky. It doesn't matter if you have a crazy idea that won't leave your head. Write it. Your words matter.

15. What are your creative goals for 2025?

I honestly just want to write every day, no matter how much or little. That may mean writing in my personal journal or in my poetry journal, but I spend so much time as a teacher giving of myself and absorbing other people's emotions, that I think it's good for me to spend some time giving something back to myself as well. I think I'll write an elriel fic this year...something for me :) I adore them too much.

Tagging @firewoodfigs @roseofbattles and anyone else who'd like to <3

[laura1633]

i need to say this somewhere and i hope you won’t mind if i send this “rant” here. bc this is just a stupid smut pet peeve that i let annoy me so much.

but anyway every time i go to the lestappen tag i get really disheartened bc there is such a imbalance. there is so much bottom charles and omega charles and charles being loved and worshiped and i honestly wouldn’t mind that at all but the number of fics where max gets the same are pretty much nonexistent compared to charles-centric fics like there are bottom max fics but they get drowned out. pretty much all the popular fics that have thousands of kudos and that ppl recommend to everyone are bottom charles. seriously i saw a rec list once where the few bottom max fics had the fact that they are bottom max mentioned in the same manner as content warnings for some other fics. it was super weird but maybe the person who made that didn’t think it would come across like that.

i know there are lots of bottom max fics (i’ve probably read them all lol) and ppl who like both, like you. i’m happy about the ppl who comment on bottom max fics those fics still get a lot of love even when it seems so little in the grand scheme of things. but i’m just annoyed and a bit confused that it’s so disproportionate. probably bc charles is more popular than max and bottom charles has gotten so popular ppl are inclined to it and it's "safe" and gets more love.

then again there’s so much talk about omega max on tumblr and then none of that shows on ao3 weirdly. (except maybe on the maxiel side i literally became a maxiel shipper bc i wanted more omega max lol) some ppl on here who say they’re bottom/omega max “truthers” have like several top max fics on their account and no bottom max fics which literally not that deep everyone should write what they want and what they are inspired to write but not practicing what you preach confuses me a bit not gonna lie haha. i’ve written my own fics which are pretty much premises i want to desperately read but no one has written them (like fine i'll do it myself) and i've gotten a good response but i’m a slow writer so i haven't written everything i want to write. thank you for everything you’ve written laura!

I don't mind at all anon, I have added your second ask too <3 Sorry this ended up being a lengthy reply. I love that we can yap about the bottom or omega Max agenda though 😂

I started writing maybe about two years ago and at the time a lot of the Lestappen stories were definitely bottom Charles and omega Charles. I started writing because a little bit like yourself there was some stuff I wanted to read that didn't exist so I just wrote it myself. At the time I had no clue how to write but I have hopefully improved over the past couple years! I was just desperate for there to be some more soft Max or Max being looked after and cared for. I just think Max doesn't get enough love and there can never be enough fics where it's pointed out just how hot he is!

I also like the idea of sexy, hot alpha Charles and think it's fun to not always see him in that 'babygirl' role if that makes sense. Although I can see why he ends up in that role a lot, he is also very pretty

I used to read a lot of Maxiel for the same reason as yourself, in fact I do still read Maxiel because of that reason and also because there are some very talented writers writing it. (although I also think of Daniel as being quite omega like!)

I definitely agree that there is a lot more bottom and omega Max within the lestappen tag now compared to a couple of year ago.

For me, I like to swap it around. I like to write soft alpha Max and even bottom alpha Max. The main thing for me is that the dynamic works for the story I want to tell. I have started leaning more towards omega Max though because I know that there is plenty of omega Charles out there and there are plenty of people who can write omega Charles much better than I can!!

You are absolutely correct about the comments and kudos thing. Firstly I should say that there are some amazing writers writing some amazing bottom and omega Charles fics that deserve all the love in the world and I am not for one second suggesting that they only have so many responses because of the dynamic but (at least to start with) I found that my omega Charles fics got more kudos than the omega Max ones. That might have just been a coincidence but when I start writing a story I know it will get more attention if I write it with the omega Charles dynamic. I'm not for one second suggesting that that is what people are thinking about btw, it's just a fact I have noticed with my own work. These days I just write what I like and hope some other people like it. If I ranked my fics by kudos they definitely wouldn't be in quality order so I don't worry about that now 😂

Like you have said, everyone should write what they like as it's all for fun. I am just glad there are other people out there reading and writing bottom/omega Max or even just Max getting the love and attention he deserves.

I will read top Max and I enjoy top Max. The only Max fics I don't like are where the writer clearly doesn't like Max and is making him unnecessarily aggressive or just making him the butt of the joke in a mean way. I prefer to read Lestappen when I can tell that the writer likes both of them if that makes sense (obviously people have a favourite but that's different. )

The content warning for the bottom Max fics made me giggle. I don't know what context that was in as I didn't see the post but it definitely made me laugh. Maybe it needs a content warning because its likely to alter your brain chemistry and you'll not be able to see him topping again 😂

I will always write some bottom Charles and some omega Charles because it just works in certain contexts for me but I have felt myself leaning more towards the other dynamic. Hopefully most people don't mind because there are so many Lestappen writers these days so there is definitely plenty of omega Charles to chose from.

I am shocked there is not more Omega Max x Omega Charles though as that seems to fit quite well.

Sorry, I totally rambled there but I am a huge lover of omega and bottom Max and always will be. I am also a huge lover of Max being treated nicely and softly and getting all the attention and affection in the world.

[thelazyhermits]

In the end A/Ns of the first chapter of my newest TWST fic, Psychic Recollection, I mentioned that, by the end of orientation, one of the TWST boys knows my Yuu is a girl while a different boy has a suspicion about it but isn't 100% sure about it.

I wanted to make a post revealing who those boys are and the reason behind how they figured out Yuu's gender since this will help me avoid making another too long A/N lol 😂

While I'm sure many people have guessed this, Leona is one of the guys. However, he's not the one who's sure that Yuu is a girl like y'all might have expected.

The reason Leona isn't completely sure is cause there were a lot of first years in the Mirror Chamber wearing perfume/cologne, and several of them went a little heavy with their perfume/colgne since I could easily see many teenage boys overdoing it due to their nervousness/eagerness to make the best possible first impression lol

As a result, the noses of the poor Beastmen in the room were not working at full strength lol

However, because Leona was able to put some distance between him and the first years, his nose wasn't as affected as the other Beastmen, so he was able to pick up Yuu's scent, just not as clearly/effectively as he normally would.

Yuu's scent was the reason Leona abruptly stopped glaring at her during that scene when their eyes met cause he could pick up some of her positive emotions when she was admiring him, and he could visibly see that she seemed genuinely excited by the sight of him, which surprised him and led to him paying closer attention to her scent.

However, what really caught Leona off guard was that he was able to pick up a certain scent that precedes a girl's period.

I've seen HCs where people believe that Beastmen can tell not just when a girl has her time of the month but even before it actually happens cause their noses are just that sensitive.

Since I thought that made a lot of sense, I decided to incorporate that HC here by having a very confused Leona pick up the scent that means Yuu will be having her period in the near future.

Because of all the perfume/cologne in the air, Leona isn't 100% about Yuu being a girl, especially since NRC is an all boys' school, so he wonders if his sense of smell is just off.

He realizes that his nose wasn't on the fritz when he meets Yuu the next day at the botanical garden while she's working as a janitor.

Fun fact: Upon getting a confirmation that Yuu's a girl and realizing her period will be starting soon, Leona secretly buys all the stuff that she'll need and has Sam deliver it to Ramshackle via his friends on the other side cause he knows she's poor/won't ask for this kinda stuff, and despite just meeting her, this isn't something a guy like Leona, who was taught to respect women, can just ignore.

Plus, Yuu really entertained Leona during orientation, so it was essentially a reward for giving him a good show/keeping him from being bored lol

If y'all were wondering if Yuu knew who sent her this little care package, Leona had intended it to be an anonymous gift, but Sam wrote a little note and left a hint as to who bought the goods for her, so Leona's efforts to remain anonymous were ruined lol

Anyway, moving onto the identity of the boy who knows for sure that Yuu is a girl....

It's Kalim. Probably wasn't expecting that, huh? 😂

The reason Kalim figures out the truth is, when he was comforting Yuu, he was reminded of his little sisters and how they acted whenever he comforted them. Plus, Yuu's "sad expression" just really made her look like a girl in his eyes, like it was impossible for him to see her as anything but a girl when he looked into her eyes during that time.

Before I wrote the orientation chapter, I hadn't really given much thought to the idea of someone possibly knowing Yuu's gender early on, but after writing out the events of that chapter, I decided that it made sense for Leona and Kalim to be the first ones to figure out the truth or get a clue about it.

I just thought it'd be funny if Kalim, who can often be oblivious at times, was the first to find out Yuu was a girl, and when asked, Kalim just acts like it was so obvious that Yuu was a girl haha

[alpineglow]

do you think you could write for Yelena Belova x reader Sharing their first kiss?

ofc!! I adore a cute little fluff fic like this, they are DELECTABLE!! also I hope y'all enjoy the fact that all my fic titles are Taylor lyrics, idk why I always love people who have super cohesive title themes. Also sorry if this is OOC or anything! I wrote this all in one go at like 10pm LMAO.

The First Kiss, It's Flawless

Ship: Yelena Belova x Reader Word Count: ~1.8k Description: Yelena's got a crush on you. She wants it to be perfect. Who better to ask than her older sister? (Spoiler: Many people are better to ask) A/N: NOTHING BUT SILLY ROMANTIC FUN FOR MY GIRLS BC THEY DESERVE THE WORLD

Masterlist

11:30am, Manhattan

"Natasha, I'm being serious," Yelena groans, shoving her face into her hands. Her sister was sat next to her on the edge of her bed, awkwardly patting Yelena on the back. When her sister asked for help, and to come to her Brooklyn apartment as soon as possible, the last thing she expected it to be for was romantic struggles.

"And I'm being serious too! You just go with the flow," Natasha says, sighing softly as her free hand pinches her brow.

"That's easy for you to say! Maria asked YOU out!" Yelena was definitely growing more frustrated, owed to the way she flopped her body back onto her bed and pulled a pillow over her face. Natasha rolls her eyes, pulling the pillow away. She earned herself a few daggers glared in return.

"Yelena, Y/N is sweet. The worst they can say is no."

"That's what you and everyone else say! I can think of so many worse things that could-"

There it was, the list of reasons she couldn't take the leap about to tumble forth. Natasha knew it all too well. It was incredibly impressive how in every other aspect of their lives, Yelena led with her head held high. This was a vast departure from that. So, with a sigh, Natasha stood up, stretching, and grabbing her keys and phone from the bed.

"What are you doing?" Yelena asked hastily, pushing herself up onto her elbows.

"Going to play matchmaker." It was a simple plan, really. Feign confused sibling, apologise if it wasn't the case. Easy operation, in and out. To Yelena though, it wasn't.

"Are you out of your mind?" Thankfully, the door was shut, meaning Yelena's shout didn't have the chance to escape the room and echo down the hallways of the apartment building.

"No- Seriously, you have nothing to freak out about! I figure it out for you, and make the opening!"

Before Yelena could object, Natasha was out of the door.

---

Natasha had asked to meet you at some nondescript coffee shop by Central Park. It wasn't out of the ordinary, meeting an Avenger in some otherwise innocuous location. Unlike other times though, this did seem like a genuine encounter. When you arrived, Natasha was already sat outside, with two coffees on a wire table.

"Hey, Nat! It's been a while!"

You'd been friends with the redhead for nearing a decade now - working with the Avengers as an intelligence officer on several occasions. On the third or fourth time, Natasha had taken a shining to you, and the pair of you became close friends.

Being close friends, she had, of course, gotten your coffee order dead on. It was a welcomed warmth in the late winter in New York.

"How've you been, Y/N?" she asks, taking a swig of her coffee. From there, the conversation flowed naturally, as if you'd seen each other yesterday. It was nice, pleasant even. You felt yourself relax into it, smiling as the odd joke came to light.

"Hey, do you mind if I ask you something?"

You furrow your brow, nodding.

"Of course?"

"Forgive me, if I'm overstepping, but I couldn't help but notice- You and Yelena? Are you two-"

A blush blooms across your face, and up your neck. You try and hide it with a sip of your coffee, but you fail miserably, choking slightly.

"What? Oh- No! No, no, no. We're just friends." You laugh nervously, coughing a few times. When you finally meet Natasha's eyes, there's a good natured humour in them. And, obviously, she had seen right through you.

"Is it that obvious?" you say, a frown meeting your expression. You'd thought you had been subtle.

"Afraid so," Natasha replies. This was good news, great news for her sister. An idea sparked though. She'd have to beg Yelena for her forgiveness though.

"You know... Yelena's free this Friday night."

Your brow furrows.

"I don't follow?"

Natasha laughs, setting her empty coffee cup on the table.

"Ask her on a date. I promise it'll go well."

Things clicked into place for you, and you roll your eyes. This was a double agent case. But that meant Yelena liked you back... Oh my god. You reach into your pocket, pulling out your phone.

"You're an asshole, you know that?"

"Hey! I had to play it cool, in case you didn't like her. Would've been really awkward if I was straight up and you weren't into her."

You couldn't argue with that logic. Finally, you find Yelena's contact on your phone, and type up a quick message.

Are you free Friday?

There's a short delay, albeit a touch too short, before Yelena responds.

Yes. Are you suggesting something?

How about a movie at mine? 7pm. Keep it casual. Like a casual date.

Yelena takes a little longer to respond this time. You hear Natasha's phone ding, and look up in time to see her laugh.

"She just called me a motherfucker."

---

Friday came all too quickly, and you found your palms sweating. You're not sure why. Your intentions had been perfectly clear when you messaged Yelena and asked her out. She knew what this was, and you did too. And it wasn't like you didn't know her - you'd warmed up to each other quite quickly once Natasha had introduced you both. Being closer in age to the younger of the sisters would do that.

To top it all off, you already had Natasha's approval. So there was nothing to be afraid of, right?

It was just you and Yelena, in your living room, watching a film.

Romantically.

Not as friends. Very very not as friends.

The microwave beeped from your kitchen, yelling at you that the popcorn had finished.

God, what am I doing?

The microwave opens with a thud when you pull the handle, grabbing the popcorn by the very corner. Holding it over the sink, you shake it a few times to disperse the butter, and get the kernels out. Fondly, you remembered it was Yelena who'd actually taught you that trick.

Finally, you dump it into a large bowl, and take it over to the living room. Netflix was already pulled up. You hadn't yet settled on what film to watch, and you'd be damned if you picked it on your own. Risk her not liking it. On your first date. The very thought sent a shudder through you.

You couldn't linger on it for too long, because the doorbell rung.

"Fuck! 7pm already," you whisper-shout to yourself, carefully dodging around the couch to get to the front door. Habitually, you look through the peephole. You're greeted with a fisheye view of the blonde, and open the door.

"Yelena! Hey!"

Why the fuck are you saying that like you didn't expect to see her. You literally invited her here.

Thankfully, she looked as nervous as you felt. Yelena smiled though, holding up a bag of M&M's.

"Hi. I brought these! Makes popcorn better," she said. "Can I come in?"

"Oh! Yea, of course, sorry!" you jumble out, stepping out of her way. You lock the door behind her as you close it, and follow her as she's already made her was to the living room.

"I didn't know what you wanted to watch, but I made popcorn!"

You're nervously fidgeting with your hands, surveying the living room situation. There were plenty of blankets, and pillows. The coffee table was in reach, with popcorn, and the new bag of M&Ms. You're too busy worrying to catch the soft look Yelena sends your way.

"We can pick off of your Letterboxd, don't you have that watch list? Movies are more your thing," she jokes, settling down with a pillow and blanket in the corner.

You agree, pulling out your phone and settling on the lounge. You're a little too tense, and sitting an almost awkward distance away from her. Not quite in her space, but not quite in yours either. You rattle off a few titles, and don't notice her creeping nearer until a hand rests on your forearm. You look at her.

"How about that one?" she asks, pointing to a movie poster on your phone. You become aware of how close she is.

"Yea... That'll work."

---

It'd happened almost 20 minutes ago now, but your knee was touching Yelena's under the blanket. It felt like electricity arcing up your body when it first happened, but now it had settled to a soft warmth. A pleasant warmth.

When the end credits rolled, Yelena stayed still for a while. Wrapped up in a blanket, leant against the armrest of the sofa.

"Wow. That was a good movie. Good taste," she said, sitting up. You liked the way her accent wove the words together. It made such a simple statement feel like the highest praise.

"Yea!" you say, standing up to take the bowl to the kitchen. "I'm glad I got to watch it with you." It's a tad sappy, but you meant it. Couldn't hurt to say on a first date.

"Do you know what time it is?" she asks from the living room, where she'd rolling up the blanket she had used. Your eyes stray to the microwave, which reads 10:30pm. You relay that information to her.

"Your place is pretty far away... I have a guest room you can use?"

"My my! Getting me to stay the night on our first date, that's very bold."

If she were anyone else, and if you'd known her for any less time, you would've panicked. A faux pas, and you would've passed out. But you could spot the jest in her tone. When you come back to the living room, she's smiling.

"I'd actually really appreciate that," Yelena says. Her tone is lower than before; more authentic. More tender. Simply more.

"Thank you for coming tonight." She looks at you, regarding you with a warmth that went just a step beyond friendship. A new dash of vulnerability.

Her hand rests on your outer forearm that's by your side. It was a sweet touch, an innocent one, too. But it felt perfect. Everything in this moment felt right, and you felt at ease.

"Can I kiss you?" Yelena asks. If you listened closely enough, dissected it with the proverbial knife, there was a touch of fear in her tone. You hadn't heard it, though.

Rather than answering, you lean forward, capturing her lips in yours. Like everything else, it felt right. It was chaste, and didn't last long enough. But for now it would be enough. It was more a promise. A beckoning call forward, a waiting hand.

Yelena's smiling when you pull away. You find yourself smiling too.

You show her to her room for the evening, and before you go to return to your own, you call out behind you.

"Night, Yelena!

◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤

Hope y'all enjoyed! Like I said, I wrote this in one take at night, so forgive any mistakes! Requests are open!!

[sihtricfedaraaahvicius]

The Dating Game

Note: surprise. I said I wasn't going to post or even write a fic at all today, but this came to me after a nap and I wrote it within a few hours. soooo... this is just a silly little fic that I hope will entertain you.

Warnings: fluff/lightly suggestive.

pairing: Modern!Sihtric x you (f) (slight hint of reader x Modern!Osferth)

summary: Sihtric and Osferth both wanted to win you over by the end of the night.

wordcount: 3k

Masterlist

You friends Gisela and Eadith couldn't stand the sight of you being miserable anymore. It had been over six months since your last relationship ended, and they felt it was time for you to go out and have fun again. You had been hesitant at first, but soon realised they were right and you agreed to tag along. They made movie reservations and promised there would be cute guys, but you didn't really care about any of that right now, you just wanted a fun night. You only knew Uhtred, as he was Gisela's boyfriend, and you had only heard of the other guys by their names; Finan, Sihtric and Osferth. The plan was to meet up at a pub, play some pool and then go and see the latest horror movie all together. 

You were the last to arrive at the agreed spot, and your friends quickly introduced you to the guys you didn't know yet. Osferth, a cute blond guy, shyly smiled and shook hands with you and you noticed he kept staring at you the whole time after. Finan was dark haired and muscular, he spoke with an Irish accent and gave you a bear hug. He was handsome and friendly, but you could tell he was more interested in Eadith and you couldn't blame him for that. Then there was Sihtric, who had duo-coloured eyes and a haircut that was half shaved off. You weren't sure if you thought he was attractive or incredibly intimidating, but he gave you a tight hug and let his hand linger on your waist when you both pulled back. You felt yourself blush and were happy that Uhtred soon drew everyone's attention when he announced he'd pay for the first round of drinks.

'Did you bring your own wallet?' Gisela asked.

'Of course!' Uhtred smiled, but he later found out that he had in fact not brought his wallet, and Gisela had to pay for it.

The pub was rather quiet and there were several pool tables free to play at. While you enjoyed a drink with Sihtric, Osferth had been trying to gather the courage to ask you to compete against him for the past twenty minutes, but he found it hard to get your attention as Sihtric had never left your side since you were introduced. You didn't mind Sihtric's company, because he turned out to be soft spoken, sweet and funny. Osferth took a step towards you and then back again, and he kept that going for at least five more minutes. Then, when he finally walked up to you and opened his mouth to speak, Sihtric beat him to the question.

'Want to play some pool?' the Dane asked you.

You happily agreed and Sihtric took your hand, walking you to the pool table, much to Osferth's disappointment and he was left with no partner to play with. While Sihtric prepared the table, Osferth saw another chance, and he came up to you as you stood at the side.

'Can I maybe join you guys?' he asked.

Sihtric gave Osferth a hard stare, meaning no, but you felt bad for the shy boy and told him that it was okay. Before the game could begin, you were pulled to the bathroom by your girlfriends to ask you if you were enjoying yourself and if you enjoyed the company.

'I think Sihtric and Osferth like you,' Gisela said as you all checked your hair and make-up in the mirror.

'Really?' you frowned, 'I'm not sure…'

'They totally do,' Eadith grinned, 'Sihtric can't keep his eyes off you, and I haven't seen him smile like that since forever.'

'And Osferth has been gathering all his courage to talk to you,' Gisela chuckled.

While your friends tried to peak your interest in the guys in front of the bathroom mirror, Sihtric walked over to Osferth while holding a cue stick.

'What are you doing?' Sihtric asked and leaned on the stick, towering over Osferth.

'What do you mean?' Osferth asked innocently.

'Dude, you're being a cockblock.'

'What? I'm not-'

'Yes, you are,' Sihtric clicked his tongue, 'why can't you play pool with the others?'

'Because Uhtred gets annoyed when he loses and Finan cheats.'

Sihtric knew Osferth had a valid point, but he still wasn't happy about him joining.

'Fine,' Sihtric eventually said, and he looked at Osferth for a moment, 'do you like her?'

'Who?'

'The new girl,' Sihtric rolled his eyes.

'Oh,' Osferth's cheeks turned bright red, 'I… I don't know, m-maybe, I- I guess- why?'

'Just asking,' Sihtric said, and he cursed under his breath as he walked back to the other side of the table.

And Osferth smiled, because he was very aware of what he was doing, and he wasn't planning on letting Sihtric win this easily.

Not much later you returned with your friends, and while Eadith and Gisela went back to their own pool partners, the game officially began for Sihtric and Osferth. But their goal was not to win pool, it was to win your heart by the end of the night. And poor Osferth didn't know it yet, but he didn't stand a chance. You thought he was cute, but he wasn't your type, and you just wanted to include him because he was adorable and you wanted everyone to have a fun night. Sihtric was pretty decent at pool, while you and Osferth sucked at it. Sihtric saw the opportunity to teach you some tricks, and so he gladly did while Osferth couldn't do anything other than watch how the Dane got close to you. It was a classic trick in the flirting book; Sihtric stood behind you and helped you to take on a better position, and then he showed you how to hold the cue stick properly while your hands and bodies touched. Osferth gritted his teeth as he watched the scene unfold and he crossed his arms, annoyed. While Sihtric helped you out, he looked up at Osferth and grinned proudly. When it was Osferth's turn again, Sihtric walked past him and slapped his shoulder, hard, 'One-nil,' he said and winked.

You were oblivious to their rivalry, but then you really only had eyes for Sihtric anyway. After a few rounds of playing pool you went to get yourself a drink at the bar. Sihtric was quick to follow you, after he had shoved Osferth back who wanted to attempt that same thing, and he snuck up behind you. He wrapped his arms around your waist and lifted you up, making you squeal lightly in his arms while Osferth could only stand back and watch, again. You giggled when Sihtric put you back down on your feet, and he kept one arm around you as he stood next to you. He leaned on the bar and looked at you, completely smitten, and you knew you had the exact same look on your face. You had never met a guy as breathtaking as him before and you were going to take your chances with him, even if maybe he was only looking for a fling; you were single and looking for a good time.

Sihtric bought you a drink and you both walked back to the pool tables, but you stopped just before the short stairs that led down to the table's floor, and you both decided to have your drinks at a high table that looked out over your friends and the games they played. At first you and Sihtric stood on opposite sides of the table as you had some small talk, but he smoothly moved closer and circled his arm around your waist again after a little while. He pulled you in and it felt almost natural to place one hand on his waist while you nervously played with the straw in your drink that was on the table with your free hand.

'Hey,' Sihtric said and leaned in closer, his warm voice made you melt instantly, 'you okay?'

'Yeah,' you mumbled and smiled shyly.

'Yeah?' he murmured and pulled you flush against him, 'you okay with me?'

'Mhm,' you hummed with reddened cheeks.

Your hand snuck around his waist and under his zipped hoodie, while Sihtric swayed you lightly and he chuckled.

'Yeah?' he asked again, 'you don't mind me? Don't mind this?' he asked, his lips grazing your temple as he spoke.

'I don't mind it,' you smiled, clearly even more shy.

You tried to look away from Sihtric, but he followed you with his eyes and he smiled.

'Oh, don't be shy with me,' he purred and bit down on his lip, then circled his other arm around you as well and almost leaned his forehead against yours.

'Yeah, well,' you mumbled and laughed softly while butterflies rushed through your stomach.

You felt safe and comfortable in his strong arms, and he smelled nice too. Sihtric was more affectionate than anyone you'd ever been with before, but you enjoyed his harmless clingy nature.

He trailed his hands slowly up and down your sides, his mismatched eyes still fixated on you while you looked up at him. The tension grew, and you both slowly leaned in closer until you almost kissed. But just before your lips touched you were both pulled out of your little love bubble when Osferth suddenly cleared his throat next to you. Sihtric looked at his friend, annoyed, and Osferth smiled sheepishly.

'If you guys could finish your drinks,' Osferth said, 'then we can go to the movie theatre.'

'Oh,' you said, a little disappointed by the buzz kill, 'eh, yeah, sure.'

Sihtric only glared at Osferth without saying a word, and you both finished your drinks soon after. Sihtric took out his phone after he had put on his jacket and he suddenly felt nervous when he wanted to ask for your number. He noticed you looked over at him while you grabbed your own coat, and he pretended to be very busy on his phone as he tried to calm his heartbeat. You couldn't help but smile, and your friends hadn't been blind to the chemistry between you and the pretty Danish boy.

'Do you like him?' Gisela asked.

'You don't mind him being all over you?' Eadith asked, 'because that's just how he is.'

'If he's too much you can just tell him,' Gisela added.

'Girls, calm down,' you rolled your eyes, 'everything is fine.'

'More than fine it seems,' Eadith grinned and nudged your elbow.

'Stop it,' you hissed, but your smile betrayed your feelings to your friends.

'He's sweet, just not the brightest,' Eadith then snorted.

'What?' you laughed, 'what do you mean?'

'Well,' Eadith began, but she was hushed by your other friend.

Gisela saw Sihtric walk over and she quickly pulled Eadith with her, away from you, but staying close enough to eavesdrop.

'So,' Sihtric began and cleared his throat, 'eh, would you… I mean, is it okay if like… I… can I have your number?'

You smiled and told him it was okay, and he began to search for his phone. You waited for him to get his phone and watched him search his pockets, but then you noticed he held his phone in his hand already.

'Hold on,' Sihtric chuckled, 'I misplaced my phone,' he mumbled as he searched the inside pockets of his jacket.

'Eh,' you laughed, 'I… think you're holding it?'

'What?'

'You're holding it.'

'Where?' Sihtric frowned, then looked down at his hand, 'oh,' he said, then laughed and shook his head, 'sorry.'

So he was not the brightest indeed, but he was still cute. You gave him your number and your friends gave you a proud smile when you looked at them as you all headed out of the pub. Osferth sulked behind you and Sihtric, and he sighed when he saw the Dane smoothly intertwine his fingers with yours as you crossed the street, and he looked back over his shoulder to mouth 'Two-nil,' to Osferth. You looked up at Sihtric and smiled, after which he let go of your hand and wrapped his arm around your shoulders. You strolled through the city, to the movie theatre, while you and Sihtric continued to chat and got to know a little more about each other.

'Are you excited for the movie?' Sihtric asked as you approached the theatre.

'Not really,' you confessed, to which he laughed.

'You don't like horror?'

'I'm okay with it, just not on the big screen.'

'Scared easily?'

'Yep,' you chuckled.

'Well,' Sihtric shrugged, 'I heard they reserved tickets for the lounge chairs.'

'Lounge chairs?'

'Yeah, you know, I think they're actually called loveseats. It's basically a small couch. So,' he smiled, 'if you get scared you can always hide in my arms,' he winked.

'I might just do that,' you smiled shyly again, and Sihtric was being a gentleman by holding the entrance door open for you.

Osferth was still behind you, and Sihtric was fast to let go of the door so it almost hit Osferth in the face. And Sihtric looked back over his shoulder as he held your hand again, and he mouthed 'Three-nil,' to Osferth with a grin, who huffed in reply.

Osferth finally saw his chance with you. Sihtric and Uhtred were talking while you and the girls got into a conversation too, and you all walked up to your seats. Gisela was going to sit with Uhtred, everyone knew that, and Eadith sat down next to Finan. As Uhtred excused himself to move past you and the others, to Gisela, you sat down on an empty loveseat and Osferth was quick to sit next to you while you tucked your coat under the seat.

'Oh,' you said, softly, surprised to see that it was not Sihtric who had sat down next to you.

You looked up at Sihtric, who had his jaw clenched and glared at Osferth, Osferth was smirking next to you and held up one finger to him, 'Three-one,' he mouthed. You and Sihtric exchanged eye contact and you shrugged lightly, not knowing how to politely ask Osferth to move without making him feel bad. Sihtric sighed and moved past you, to the last empty seat and he sat down. He looked at Osferth again, who sat on his side, and if looks could kill then Osferth would've been smited right there. You awkwardly sat next to Osferth and you texted Sihtric.

You: sorry, he just sat down :( 

You looked at Sihtric as he read your text, then he looked up at you and shrugged with a smile.

Sihtric: not your fault darling, it's okay…

You: but what if the movie is scary????

Sihtric: oh, I heard it's very scary ;)

Sihtric: I'm afraid you'll have to cuddle up with Osferth

Sihtric watched you read his message, and laughed when he saw you make a face. You grimaced and looked at Sihtric, who laughed and shrugged again. You tried to come up with a way to make Osferth swap seats with Sihtric, but Osferth was only interested in making conversation with you.

'So,' Osferth said, 'do you like horror movies?'

'Not really,' you said.

'Oh, me neither,' Osferth smiled, 'I get scared easily.'

'Oh,' you chuckled awkwardly and swallowed hard.

You looked over at Sihtric, who was laughing as he pulled the neck of his zipped hoodie half over his face to cover up his amusement. He then looked at you and cocked his head, gesturing you to come over and sit with him. You contemplated your options, and then had an idea to make it less painful for Osferth. You scrolled through social media, and when you saw a random meme you held your phone up towards Sihtric.

'Have you seen this one already?' you asked.

Sihtric leaned in and squinted his eyes, knowing what you were trying to do, and he fought a smile.

'I can't see what it says from here,' he said.

'Oh, hold on,' you said and got up, 'I just gotta show him this one photo,' you told Osferth, who said it was okay and didn't think much of it.

But then he saw you sit down next to Sihtric, who immediately wrapped his arm around you and pulled you against his side as he looked at your phone.

'Smooth,' Sihtric chuckled in your ear.

And while you locked your phone and cuddled up even closer, Sihtric looked over to Osferth, who looked bamboozled and slightly annoyed.

'Four-one,' Sihtric mouthed.

Osferth sighed, annoyed once again, and he mouthed, 'Fuck y-', but then the lights went out as the movie was about to start, and he watched the entire movie with a straight face and his arms crossed.

You and Sihtric got cosy, and it didn't take long before the suspense of the movie became too much, and you buried your face in his chest. Sihtric smiled and wrapped both arms around you. Your friends were all captivated by the movie as it went on, except for Osferth, but he refused to watch you and Sihtric all cuddled up. Sihtric lightly stroked your side with his thumb, and when you looked away from the big screen again as the movie showed too much gore for your liking, he smoothly lifted your chin with his fingers and softly nuzzled your nose. You both smiled while the blood splashed on screen, and then he cupped your cheek. Sihtric pecked your lips lightly at first, carefully seeking out how far you wanted to take it, but his light pecks slowly turned into firmer kisses, and you soon french kissed until you both ran out of breath. 

Your friends had all been oblivious to the fact that you and Sihtric were busy sticking your tongues down each other's throats and feeling each other up through your clothes, and he settled his hands on your buttocks after you had pulled your legs up to the couch.

'Cheeky lady,' Sihtric whispered, smiling, when you teasingly rubbed your hand over his bulge and he squeezed your ass, 'maybe we should finish this back at my place?' he said, 'or yours?'

'You want to wait that long?' you teased.

'Well, no,' he chuckled, 'what do you have in mind then?'

'The toilets are quite big here,' you whispered in his ear, and you looked at him to see him bite down a sly smile.

'Lead the way,' he winked.

You held Sihtric's hand as you got up and walked past Osferth, quietly leaving the theatre room to have some fun together in a locked toilet stall, and Osferth gave up when he realised why you two were sneaking out of the movie. He huffed and rolled his eyes at Sihtric, who smiled and mouthed, 'Game over.'

taglist: @clairacassidy @finanmoghra @uunotheangel @hb8301 @bathedinheat @neonhairspray @anaeve @bubblyabs @travelingmypassion @sylasthegrim @andakth @succnfuccubus @willowbrookesblog @lady-targaryens-world @skyofficialxx @elle4404 @alexagirlie @sweetxime @solango @gemini-mama @cheyennep3107 @little-diable @jennifer0305 @drwstarkeyy @mrsarnasdelicious @verenahx @urmomsgirlfriend1 @foxyanon @djarinsgirl27 @sigtryggrswifey @diiickbrainn @sihtricsafin @lexwolfhale @dixie-elocin @m-a-s-h-k-a

[doyouhearthunder]

On Pros and Antis and the Confessing of "Sins"

If you're in any way involved in fandom spaces, and in particular fanfiction, you've probably heard about the ongoing debate between proship and antiship schools of thought. It's a perpetual drama machine that I have tried to stay clear of, to avoid incurring the wrath of the 'pitchforks and torches' types, but I feel I can no longer stand on the sidelines while my friends take abuse from terminally online Unreasonables. So I'd like to set the record straight on a couple things.

First though, since we're dealing with amorphous internet terminology that means 100 different things to 100 different people, here are some quick definitions as I see it:

PROSHIP is the more reasonable, nuanced and mature stance of the two, defined as the belief that there is no automatic correlation between individual morals and the consumption or creation of fictional media. Proshippers believe that all facets of life, even darker and more taboo topics, are fair game for fictional exploration and creative expression (even in the common context of NSFW fetish material). The key point here is that one should have a healthy ability to separate fiction from reality and an understanding that finding enjoyment in darker subject matter does not somehow make one a bad person - although moral lines obviously can and should still be drawn regarding improper behavior towards real people, it does no one any good to limit creative expression or paint creators with a broad moral brush.

ANTISHIP, on the other hand, is a reactionary movement in response to the above. Antishippers believe in drawing a hard moral line in the sand around some topics and discouraging creative expression regarding them. Antis defend their conservative worldview by attempting to take a moral high ground, making themselves out to be the reasonable ones and decrying any criticism of their position as tantamount to condoning the indefensible. But the problem with antis is more one of behavior than motivation; they may think they're defending the innocent, but they function like a loaded gun pointed in all the wrong directions. Anti rhetoric is often characterized by sweeping black and white moral standards and purity tests, leading to targeted harassment campaigns, harmful slander and willful distortions of reality, and attempts to ostracize targets from fandom communities and turn public opinion against them.

It's also worth mentioning that the burden of these culture war campaigns against "inappropriate" and/or NSFW content often falls more heavily on queer and marginalized creators, due to internalized transphobic rhetoric and fear-mongering, while cis people who consume or create similar content often skate by unnoticed, shielded by privilege or anonymity.

To demonstrate my point: I am the creator of several popular SFW fics, but I'm also the creator of several popular NSFW ones. For years I've been writing "darkfics" with subject matter that could be considered extreme or controversial, under the pseudonym of SubordiSins (a more common story for many of your favorite fic authors than you might think, I should add).

My best-known (and best) work under that handle is a fic called Reindeer Games, a novel-length erotic torture porn thriller. RG was written as a collaboration between myself and @kimberlyeab, a talented and prolific fic writer and a dear friend. I'm quite proud of our work together: We took a simple premise and gradually expanded it into a twisty, emotionally complex character-driven drama. It was also, frankly, some of the most fun I've had writing anything. It's important to me to be clear that while the subject matter of RG is an acquired taste (mind those Dead Dove tags), the fact that I wrote it on an alternate AO3 account does not mean that I am in any way ashamed of it.

In addition to being a fantastic creative partner, Kim has done a great deal to uphold the most basic benefit of fandom: providing like-minded fans with safe, accepting online spaces through which to forge friendships and express themselves creatively. I've definitely found my online tribe in Kim and their friends, as have many other notable fic writers.

However, Kim has also been a magnet for controversy, in part because of our collaboration on Reindeer Games, but mainly because as a queer online figure who openly writes smut, they make a good target for hate. They have directly suffered from the crude transphobia of chuds and 4channers, the vile slander and sustained harassment of unhinged and obsessive Tumblr stalkers, and even email bombs and doxxing campaigns that pose a threat to their IRL safety and security.

Through it all, I have tried to be a supportive friend while also benefiting from a shield of insulated anonymity that means I get to be impervious to harm from writing the same fics that they get hate for. I originally took that approach for my safety, but I'm tired of feeling like I have to choose between self-preservation and being fair to my friends. We never meant it to, but the unequal footing created a wall between us and lead to hurt feelings. I've had enough of it, and so I'm finally bringing that wall down.

To summarize:

Proshippers are good people more often than not, and antis are often dangerously obsessive, inappropriate, and untethered from reality.

Fiction cannot be held to the same moral standards as reality and if you don't understand why, I don't know what to tell you other than "Give it some more goddamn thought."

Nobody needs to meet someone else's arbitrary standard for moral purity tests in order to deserve being left alone and not harassed.

Having kinks is normal, and most of your favorite fic writers have probably written about their kinks, even if not openly. As ever, the golden rule of fanfiction is and has always been "Don't like, don't read."

Just as it is the responsibility of fic authors to tag their work appropriately, it is the responsibility of internet users to make use of content filtering and block features to curate their online experience and protect themselves from material that upsets them. It is *no one's* responsibility to police what other users post online.

Anyone who throws around accusations like "p*dophile" or "gr*omer" without concrete and substantiated evidence of actual wrongdoing (aka, a lot more than just fics or kinks) is not a serious person.

Kimberlyeab is a cool and sexy person and anyone who tries to hurt them must go through me as well.

Any complaints about my/Subordi's fics or the contents thereof can be mailed to the following address:

Doyouhearthunder 69 Fuck Off Ave Proshiptopia, FU United States of Mind Your Own Damn Business

Any praise for my fics can be directed to my inbox. <3

Thank you for reading. I will not be taking questions at this time (except of course from friends in good faith).

God bless all the kinksters and the queers, Nate

[butterflydm]

this is random but i just remembered that ages ago i saw an ask game for asking fic writers their 5 favorites/ones they're most proud of of their own fics, and i would love to know yours if you're up for it! it would be so interesting to hear a Butterfly Career Retrospective haha

feel free to be flexible on the number and discuss as many or as few fics as you feel like, and to count a whole series as a single entry (like voice, although if you have any particular favorite installments or interludes within that that you'd like to note i'd be curious to hear that too!)

This took a while but I finally got it done, @markantonys!

I have written a lot of fics, so this was a difficult challenge. I am somewhat helped out by the fact that old fics tend to fade out of my memory… but then if I reread a bit of them, I tend to remember why I wrote them and what I loved about them. I did not limit myself to five fics (I tried!) but these are roughly in reverse chronological order of when I posted them.

not in the stars, but in ourselves - trying to bob and weave and make something that feels narratively satisfying out of the mess that is Mat Cauthon's late series arc has become something of a hobby of mine! This is fic is one of several where I narratively examine parts of the canon that didn't work so well for me and try to rearrange them into something that feels like it rings true for the previous characterization and choices.

This fic in particular really made me see how the roadblocks that existed in each of the character's main plotlines was so much easier to solve if they had access to the other main characters (and I suspect that's part of why Jordan kept them so unnaturally separated during these arcs).

I also really enjoy the romance in this fic, and how the characters interact with prophecy in more unexpected ways, and how Rand and Mat help each other through their traumas, and how each of the members of the polycule bring their own perspective to the relationship.

the caffrey exception in White Collar fandom - this fic languished mostly unfinished on my harddrive for a long time before polyweek gave me an excuse to finish it up and post it! I wasn’t really in White Collar fandom, was the problem, and I always write and post more consistently when I have fellow fandom people to encourage me. I also was originally watching WC with my (now ex-)girlfriend and I stopped watching after we broke up, iirc, so I didn’t actually finish the show until years later. And by the time I was writing it, I didn’t feel like there was all that much visible fandom around. But it had a nice little response during polyshipweek, so I was really happy with how it all turned out. Makes me think that one day maybe I’ll finish up and post that RENT fanfic that’s been on my harddrive for eighteen million years.

negotiating with the truth in The Wheel of Time fandom - you can tell I got fancy with this fic because I gave the chapters titles, lol. This fic leans hard into Mat being an unreliable narrator and playing around with that, and it was a lot of fun to focus on and explore that part of him. I do love a lot of the fics I've written in WoT so trying to narrow it down more was tough (and I still only managed to narrow down to three!) but I really loved writing this one and exploring the differing ways that Mat and Rand were approaching this relationship of theirs and how they come to a compromise in the end. I think I really liked that they genuinely do have different wants and desires that need to be navigated.

voice interlude: feels like falling for the first time in The Wheel of Time fandom - this is, a little bit, subbing in for the Voice series as a whole, but I wanted to pick out a complete story and not something still in progress. I am pretty hopeful that Voice will get finished (there are three more main fics in the series, I think — one that mostly spoils through bk9: winter’s heart; one that mostly spoils through bk12: the gathering storm; and then one with whole-series spoilers) but I have some fairly long unfinished works in past fandoms, so eggs and hatching & etc.

What makes this fic in particular stand out to me is how I was able to really take this one moment in time in the series and expand on it so that I could deep-dive into Mat’s characterization and what he was thinking and feeling, and it’s such a revelatory moment for Mat. I enjoy showing characterization via writing about sex, and the interludes in the Voice series really allow me to do that.

my mouth (your lips) my hands (your hips) in The Magicians fandom - This fic where Margo and Eliot approach Quentin on this more equal ground (of them competing to see which of them can land him first) and it developing into a true polyam relationship… I really loved exploring how messy but ultimately loving it was. I also loved delving into Margo as an aromantic character in this fic, and how the great love of her life is her best friend.

A lot of my own fears and pains and worries made it into the three main characters in this one, though all in ways that make sense with their own base characterization, I think. There’s this one line that Eliot thinks - “he had always been better at self-preservation than bravery” and that is 100% canon Eliot but… yeah, it’s also me. One of the things I am working on in therapy is loosening the stranglehold of my self-preservation so that I can be a little braver when it comes to reaching out to other people.

If you like my poly fics in WoT fandom, you might also enjoy my marqueliot fics (but I wouldn’t recommend the show tbh. Or, well, I might rec it up until the episode “All That Hard Glossy Armor”. That’s a good one to end on. And it’s a Margo episode!).

searching for a sound (we hadn’t heard before) in The Magicians fandom - I wrote some serious fix-it fics in this fandom. But this fic was me taking the kind of ridiculous angle on a plotline that I think that the show might have actually pulled off, if it had been so inclined. This fic was also me balling up all my frustration at the poor writing choices and lobbing it at the show’s forehead. It was very cathartic to write. And I think it’s pretty funny too, so that’s a bonus.

(I’m Not Calling You A) Liar for Steven Universe fandom — I am cheating here and including a vid. This vid is… if I sliced up my heart (Hannibal style) and laid it out on a plate, it would look something like this vid. I actually started watching Steven Universe because I saw the “Stronger Together” clip with Garnet but soon after I started watching… holy shit, Pearl and her deep heartbreak over Rose just grabbed me by the throat and did not let me go. Watching her slowly process and begin to resolve her grief was a very healing experience when I was watching the show. There was something very much intensely yearning about Pearl at the start of SU, and how she was trying so hard to hide it (from Steven but from the other gems as well). But she can’t move on until she confronts and heals!

My favorite of the vids that I’ve made, I think, and the one I’m proudest of. There is maybe one single clip that I would change now if I went back to edit it again, but that’s it. I’m fully satisfied with the rest of it; and this is not the case with most of my vids. My Yuri! On Ice vid is probably the other one that comes closest to feeling like I wouldn’t change anything now.

Enyo’s Daughter in MCU fandom — so I am a bit of an odd one out in MCU fandom, because the ship that I liked the best, over any other… Tony and Natasha. Iron Man and Black Widow. It’s a complex and thorny ship, but I liked exploring it. Tony and Natasha both get to be messy and fucked up and exploring situations like that can be interesting. It was written pretty soon after the first Avengers movie came out, if I recall correctly. I never did finish the sequel to this fic, which I am kinda sad about.

Any fandom where canon is currently developing can be kinda tough for me to stay ahead of, in terms of writing any big fic series(es) — this is also why my big Star Wars WIP is destined never to be finished, tbh. I started writing it before a lot of the current canon even exists, and trying to go back and finish it would be difficult because the new shows & movies have changed so much and it can be hard to mentally reconcile what I knew back then vs what I know now when it comes to canon. Once the new MCU movies after Avengers came out, this fic was kinda doomed to never get the sequel finished, alas. And this is why WoT having a closed book canon has made writing fic for it easier, I think.

Melt into Time from American Idol RPF — time-travel fic! I’ve attempted it from time to time, but this one I actually finished. I don’t remember the actual process of writing this anymore, because my memory is for crap, as I mentioned at the start, but it is probably my favorite fic that I wrote in this fandom overall. It deals with second chances and a lot of yearning and people being emotionally messy (a theme for me, for sure).

Justice, Be Not Blind from Dexter — my one and only Dexter fic. What I remember most about writing this fic is that despite how short it is (less than 1k), I did so much research. Miguel Prado was hands-down my favorite character who ever appeared on Dexter and so I wanted to write a fic for him, but I wanted it to sound as true to his character voice as possible. I don’t even really remember the extent of the research that I did and it’s been so long that I couldn’t tell you anymore whether or not the character voice is accurate, but I remember how much I wanted to get this right and how much work I put into trying to get Miguel to feel genuine.

Travelers Without Map or Compass for Doctor Who fandom - cute romantic fluff, but I’m very fond of it. It captures a sort of vibe in the Doctor & Rose relationship that was very appealing to me, and I enjoyed exploring and expanding my thoughts on some of the rooms in the TARDIS.

Another Nameless Planet in the Star Wars (Prequel) fandom — I wrote longer fics in Star Wars fandom but honestly I think I captured Anakin best in this small fic that’s not really about anything in particular except Anakin wanting to be treated as an equal (by Obi-Wan specifically).

I have fics that I wrote before this point, but most of them I genuinely don’t remember writing to the point of going, “huh, oh, wow, I guess that was me, huh?” lol. But going back over my fics… man, it really is like having the deepest yearnings of your heart spread out in front of the world sometimes, isn’t it?

Thanks for sending me on this journey to the past! I hope you enjoyed it. <3