#Got a bunch half-finished and some answers drafted for now

[oculusxcaro]

Khare can tolerate a lot of smells but the ones she can't handle is the smell of death and decay. Too many people died in the facility, mutated beyond recognition or dying slow, painful deaths as their bodies couldn't handle the experimentation they were forced to undergo, making those scents uniquely repulsive to her.

[traegorn]

I need to stop doing this to myself.

(A Rant Where Trae Has Written Too Many Books This Month)

So since most of you started following me because of Witchcraft or podcast stuff, I realize a lot of you don't know how much fiction writing I do.

Primarily what I've published are comics. The big one is UnCONventional (which ran from December of 2009 to December of 2019), but I also did a steampunk comic called The Chronicles of Crosarth (which I put on hiatus in like 2018 intending to come back to... but I haven't, and I make no guarantee that I will even though over 650 of the 800 planned pages are done). Crosarth is... fine? The art isn't great in either of these, but UnCONventional carries itself with the humor.

But that's all old stuff. You may be like "Trae, what have you been producing for the last four years," and the answer is "not a lot." I got major creative block with the pandemic. Peregrine Lake, the "Northwoods Gothic" comic I was supposed to launch in 2020 (which has some characters from UnCONventional in it) didn't materialize when I said it would. What storytelling energy I had went into Stormwood & Associates and The Meatgrinder (my two actual play podcasts), but that was it.

And then 2023 happened, and the juices started flowing again.

Peregrine Lake is moving forward -- but with me just doing the writing. My urge to draw has not returned, but my urge to write has. A friend of mine, Ethan Flanagan, is drawing it, and I've written the first year of comics. It likely won't launch any time soon (the artist I'm working with is busy as hell so we want to get a shit-ton of the comic done before we launch it -- we have like the first month and a half of the comic ready?). But yeah -- it's happening. I hoping for Spring, but we'll see.

The other thing though is that I've started writing, like, novels. I've always had like twenty ideas in my head, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I decided to start with the idea I cared the least about (in case I fucked it up): A queer urban fantasy story.

In the last month and a half I've written complete drafts of two different novels in this setting, and am halfway through another one... and have another one outlined.

I, uh, had some ideas.

If you're asking yourself "Hey Trae -- what the fuck? That's a lot" you need to know a few things that aren't obvious. At one point in college, in 72 hours, I produced over 40 pages of text between three research papers. All were for 300 level courses, and I may have disassociated while writing them because I frankly don't remember most of it. But, like, they were decent papers.

One of those papers is in Google Scholar.

Anyway, yeah. I haven't been sleeping great because I've been obsessively writing, but you might ask "Why didn't you just write one and get it ready to publish?" That's a great question. Because I wrote a book, and when I was 3/4 of the way through it I realized something very important: This book would make a great sequel to a book I haven't written. I've been writing book two in a series where I haven't written book one yet.

Well fuck.

So I finished that draft, and I went and wrote book one. Now that book? That book I'm getting ready to publish. I expect to have it out in January. Part of my editing process involves setting what I think is a completed, good, revised draft down for a couple of weeks and then returning to it with fresh eyes. We're in that waiting period right now.

But I still had a bunch of energy.

So the first thing I did was a revising draft on book two (the one I wrote first), but I finished that. And had more energy. And more stories in this setting kept popping up.

So I started a third book. And I'm halfway through the first draft of that book. But then I realized yesterday... shit, this isn't book three.

This is book four.

I need stuff to happen before we get to this story.

So now I've outlined the actual book three, and am working on literally both of these books at once (I'll take a break for Christmas and then go do a final edit on Book One).

And... I'm just like... why am I like this?

I need to stop myself for a few days and get more sleep.

[askbohemiancompany]

A Honest Update

Hello,

It has been a while since I have posted any kind of content. That has been for a number of reasons I want to be honest about what’s going on with me.

To get the lighter stuff out of the way, I’m not leaving blog as I still want to finish my final 2 arcs. Then, as a prelude to the final arc, I have something where all of the sides of a conflict will be available for a specific set of questions and then it may lead to a recruitment event where people can join multiple sides. You can ask me questions on this.

To get to that. I will be answering the one plot ask, one meme and reblog a bunch of stuff in the drafts.

On the Bio Ska I will start posting short stories of varying lengths. So please follow me over on @the-bio-ska

Now to the serious stuff.

So I will be putting a content warning here for the bottom half of the post. I know I do not put them on my posts because I mention in the pinned post what to expect on the blog, but this an update regarding where I have been lately and I do not want to blindside anyone in a non-plot post.

(CW Death, Suicidal Ideation)

From least severe to most severe I started ADHD medicine due to an inability to focus on non-work tasks. Any writing has been glacial due to both this and insane imposter syndrome.

I have ideas that I have but I never follow through on. I need to stop thinking it is okay for me not to write when due to not feeling it. To quote Dan Olson:

“…ambitions without actions are just fantasies.”

Having a constant state of paralysis has kept me from following through, getting further with either this blog or Bio-Ska short stories. Not helped by work crushing me down.

Going to more severe topics, my martial arts instructor, whom I have know since I was 6, was killed by a drunk driver out of nowhere. The week it happened everything was hell. While some anxieties I will not elaborate on were resolved, it was emotionally taxing and left me burnt out.

Finally, I have had constant bouts of suicidal thoughts for years and they only got worse this year.

Thankfully it has never ended with any violence against myself, however I describe my state as the thought cabinet ‘finger on the eject button’. It is miserable because it never stops, but there is enough self control that I cannot go through with it.

This is the state me. I’m going to push myself to write whenever possible. If I can write this long update, need to put that towards the many projects. Thank you for your patience and for those behind the scenes I have spoken some of these topics, but not all of them.

[outpost51]

The 51 Post

Figured I'd start some kind of digest!

Contents:

Things You Might Have Missed

This Week's Jams

WIP Breakdowns

From the Skwad

Around the 'Blr

Things You Might Have Missed:

I've got a taglist form now! Because who doesn't love a good form?

BRHP: Chapter 14 posted; Atria learns the meaning of touch starvation and really, really misses her dad.

WIP Intro: Caught in the Crossfire (18+)

WIP Intro: The Arsonist Chronicles (18+)

WIP Whenever (Open Tag): BRHP chapter 15 snippet; pop pop is having a time time

Crossing Over: the 5th entry into the Lighthouse in the Fog shorts; a new player has entered the fray, and a familiar face reappears.

Vampire Council lore and vampire origins lore

Aria/Omega snippety snip

This Week's Jams:

friends like these || Brassie [spotify/youtube]

Little Girl Gone || CHINCHILLA [spotify/youtube]

EVERGREEN || PVRIS [spotify/youtube]

Eyes on Fire || Gold Souls [spotify/youtube]

WHEN THE PARTY'S OVER || Cami Petyn [spotify/youtube]

Lizard Lady || Laura Doggett [spotify/youtube]

WIP Breakdowns:

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Chapter 15 should be coming out later today, with 16 slated for release sometime late this week or early next week. I'm finally in the chapters that don't require a ton of rewrites; most of what I've been doing is adding content. The whole thing is outlined through chapter 30 though! Since this is my entry for WIP Big Bang, updates will "stop" at chapter 18, since that's what I had published before the rewrites. After that, you'll have to wait for the release date! Which also means I have to wait for the release date for the serotonin, and that's going to be a nightmare.

Unlikely Adventures of Bitchface and Go F*ck Yourself

At this point, it's just a matter of making myself work on it. About a third of chapter 9 is written and the entirety of Act II is outlined.

Blinding Neon, Shades of Grey

nervous laughter

Stellar Parallax

Fuck, I missed this WIP. I missed Jane especially, she's so fun to write -- I'm about a third of the way into chapter 9 and it seems to be flowing pretty well? I just wanna get to the part where she and Saren beat the shit out of each other LMAO

Lighthouse in the Fog

Dunno if y'all saw, but the lighthouse keeper stories have a tag and a tentative title now! It's going to remain as a series of loosely connected shorts, and that may very well be what I end up doing with Xatal as well. Anyway, we have some lore groundwork laid! Look out for the 6th short later today!

In the Works

I still have questions in my inbox that I am absolutely getting to! I've also got a bunch of unanswered tags in my drafts and Notion. Losing a week and a half of planned answer time threw my schedule WAY off. Submission for SSSC #006 is in the planning stage. Hannah and the MILF Squad Get Up To No Good is about 30% written and fully outlined. I have... so many Kryterius prompts left to fill, and so many more spotify wrapped prompts left, send help. Still working on separating out the Daddy Issues smutshots, hoping to finish up the rewrites for the F!Shali one before the end of July. TIPYNTS is most likely going to come out in October, and by then I'm hoping to have a backlog of chapters to make posting more consistent.

From the Skwad:

Door's always open! 18+ writing server for both fanworks and original works! Camp is starting soon! We also have a flash fiction challenge and three bingo cards running until the end of the month!

@teamdilf continues to absolutely baffle me with her productivity here we go: A Cheesy Situation is now complete, ch 16 of Alice's Adventures in Andromeda is live, ch 18 of The In-Laws and the Grandparents is live, A Night in the IKEA dropped which I'm absolutely dying over, and that's not even all of it. holy shit J i don't know how you do it but i'll have whatever you're having thx

@thetrashbagswasteland dropped ch 4 of the Sunseeker rewrite and I'm adsfdafdadsf yes. thank you king

@sparatus is tearing me to fucking pieces with Make Less the Depth of Grief. i hate you (i love you)

@uraniumwriting also obliterated me with their FFF entry.

@wrathbites is back and I'm literally beside myself I missed the Vampire AU so fucking much.

oops @commander-krios got me invested in Star Wars please look at this.

@starknstarwars updated Smuggler's Ruin aaaaaaaaaaaaa

A few of our members participated in Shenko Summer!! @dandenbo wrote Volta and @mrsd-writes wrote both We Got Here the Hard Way and Forever Home!

@regalbois dropped a new original oneshot and has been going bananas over Bioshock lately and gifting us MORE mlm deliciousness, ch 3 of Magnum Opus went live last night.

@inflarescent has a new wippppp aaaaaaa -- intro post for The Roulette Paradox here!

@discoeffect updated Far From Any Road and I am devouring the first book so I can read this one!!

Around the 'Blr:

Have you checked out the Writeblr Directory or Writeblr Cafe yet?

I'm literally still thinking about @captain-kraken's Heitha translator.

@void-botanist dropped some witch lore I'm eating with a spoon.

@tc-doherty ALSO popped off with the conlang.

The dates IRL are lining up with the dates in @elshells's Agent Ace EXCITING also a new chapter is dropping probably by the time I post this lmao

@liv-is dropped this GOLDMINE of relationship writing tips also TIL what Liv does for a living not sorry

@writernopal first of all made me absolutely CRY being sweet in the tags last night and also dropped an aasoaf 3 sneep while i was composing this thank you my friend i needed the energy snack

did y'all see Find the Word XVIII from @artdecosupernova-writing i'm going FERAL

@tabswrites's Silver Sentinels has a second chapter, I am VIBRATING

@oh-no-another-idea just slid in with this little diddy that i LOVE.

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

Outpost Updates Taglist: @tabswrites @writernopal @freedominique @asher-orion-writes @liv-is @starknstarwars @captain-kraken

Ask to +/- in the tags, replies, DMs, or HERE!

[istumpysk]

hello! i’ve been reading some of your reread stuff and i noticed a bunch of references/you pointing missandei sneaking up on dany and connecting that to arya but i’m having a hard time connecting the dots. would you be willing to explain it (like a 5 year old lol) or is it a theory you’ve only just started piecing together? thank you!! i’d never noticed how many times missandei sneaks up on people until you pointed it out and it’s got me intrigued bc i’ve been obsessing over what her role will be since the show Did All That lol

Why yes, I absolutely can!

Daenerys has a habit of being snuck up on.

Sometimes it's Quaithe -

She is standing over me. "Who's there?" Dany peered into the darkness. She thought she could see a shadow, the faintest outline of a shape. [...] "A dream." Dany shook her head. "I dreamed a dream, no more. - Daenerys III, ASOS

Sometimes it's Quaithe again -

A soft rustle made her open them again. She sat up with a soft splash. "Missandei?" she called. "Irri? Jhiqui?"

"They sleep," came the answer.

A woman stood under the persimmon tree, clad in a hooded robe that brushed the grass. Beneath the hood, her face seemed hard and shiny. She is wearing a mask, Dany knew, a wooden mask finished in dark red lacquer. "Quaithe? Am I dreaming?" She pinched her ear and winced at the pain. "I dreamt of you on Balerion, when first we came to Astapor."

"You did not dream. Then or now."

"What are you doing here? How did you get past my guards?"

"I came another way. Your guards never saw me."

[...]

Dany glanced back toward the persimmon tree. There was no woman there. No hooded robe, no lacquer mask, no Quaithe.

A shadow. A memory. No one. - Daenerys II, ADWD

Sometimes it's Missandei -

"My queen?" said a soft voice in the darkness.

Dany flinched. "Who is there?"

"Only Missandei." The Naathi scribe moved closer to the bed. "This one heard you crying." - Daenerys VIII, ADWD

Sometimes it's Missandei surprising the queen's personal guard, Barristan Selmy -

"No," murmured a soft voice behind him. "She would not do that, ser. She would not go home without us."

Ser Barristan turned. "Missandei. Child. How long have you been standing there?" - The Queensguard, ADWD

Sometimes Missandei's even doing it in old drafts that were later rewritten (thank you to @powderpowderblue for sharing) -

"My queen?" said a soft voice in the darkness.

Dany flinched, imagining pale skin, blue lips, a twisted blade. "Who is there?"

"Only Missandei."

And sometimes you even get mirrored text, and fun mad queen parallels -

His merriment still echoed in her ears when she felt a light touch on her shoulder, and woke suddenly. For half a heartbeat the hand seemed part of the nightmare, and Cersei cried out, but it was only Senelle. The maid's face was white and frightened.

We are not alone, the queen realized. Shadows loomed around her bed, tall shapes with chain mail glimmering beneath their cloaks. Armed men had no business here. Where are my guards? 

[...]

A dream, that's all it was, a dream.  [...] She imagined Tyrion creeping between the walls like some monstrous rat. - Cersei I, AFFC

So, what's going on here? Clearly something.

Well, it's foreshadowing how Daenerys will die.

I won't get into every parallel, chapter transition, or piece of evidence, but here's a quick rundown.

Someone (a rat!) will surprise Daenerys, and like Maegor the Cruel, she will be attacked and killed in the throne room immediately after she takes King's Landing -

All day the lords made plans, and late into the night. It was the hour of the wolf when at last Maegor allowed them to take their leave. The king remained behind, brooding on the Iron Throne as they departed. Lord Towers and Lord Rosby were the last to see His Grace.

Hours later, as dawn was breaking, the last of Maegor's queens came seeking after him. Queen Elinor found him still upon the Iron Throne, pale and dead, his robes soaked through with blood. His arms had been slashed open from wrist to elbow on jagged barbs, and another blade had gone through his neck to emerge beneath his chin.

Man to this day believe it was the Iron Throne itself that killed him.

[...] It might also have been a person or persons unknown, entering and leaving the throne room through some hidden passage. The Red Keep has its secrets, known only to the dead. - Fire & Blood

It's something that's hinted at in a very prophetic Daenerys chapter, among other places -

Dany could hear sounds within the walls, a faint scurrying and scrabbling that made her think of rats. Drogon heard them too. His head moved as he followed the sounds, and when they stopped he gave an angry scream. - Daenerys IV, ACOK

Funny enough, the hidden passages of the Red Keep tend to be a source of paranoia amongst notable Targaryens -

But when he closed his eyes, it was Aerys Targaryen he saw, pacing alone in his throne room, picking at his scabbed and bleeding hands. The fool was always cutting himself on the blades and barbs of the Iron Throne. Jaime had slipped in through the king's door, clad in his golden armor, sword in hand. [...] When Aerys saw the blood on his blade, he demanded to know if it was Lord Tywin's. "I want him dead, the traitor. I want his head, you'll bring me his head, or you'll burn with all the rest. All the traitors. Rossart says they are inside the walls! He's gone to make them a warm welcome. Whose blood? Whose?" - Jaime II, ASOS

x

Varys wrung his hands. "Oh, my lord, nothing would please me more, but . . . King Maegor wanted no rats in his own walls, if you take my meaning. He did require a means of secret egress, should he ever be trapped by his enemies, but that door does not connect with any other passages. - Tyrion II, ASOS

Of course I also have to mention it was harbor rats within the Red Keep that killed little princess Daenerys -

The princess was six, and years past being weaned, but a wet nurse was summoned, for there were some who believed that mother's milk could cure Shivers. Maesters came and went, septons and septas prayed, the king commanded that a hundred new ratcatchers be hired at once, and offered a silver stag for every dead rat, grey or black. - Fire & Blood

So is 11-year-old orphan Missandei, who speaks many languages and keeps collecting dead brothers the rat in the wall who will creep up on Daenerys?

No, it's not sweet little Missandei. Missandei is a stand-in for another character in the story -

Lord Renly stifled his laughter. "My brother is too kind. I can find the door myself." He bowed to Joffrey. "Perchance later you'll tell me how a nine-year-old girl the size of a wet rat managed to disarm you with a broom handle and throw your sword in the river." - Eddard III, AGOT

x

The old fat septa moved forward. "Boy, how did you come here? You have no business in this part of the castle."

"You can't keep this sort out," one of the red cloaks said. "Like trying to keep out rats." - Arya III, AGOT

x

The older scowled. "Who's this father of yours, boy, the city ratcatcher?" - Arya III, AGOT

x

"You be keepin' your filthy hands off. The gold cloaks know how to deal with thieving little gutter rats, that they do." - Arya V, AGOT

x

When he laughed he brayed like the donkeys they were riding. "Where's a gutter rat like Lumpyhead get him a sword?" - Arya I, ACOK

x

The Bull scowled at her. "Why should she want you? You're nothing but a little gutter rat!" - Arya II, ACOK

x

He probably won't even know me. She looked more like a drowned rat than a lord's cupbearer these days. A drowned boy rat. - Arya X, ASOS

Tall order, am I right? Good thing Arya spent half of AGOT in the underground tunnels of the Red Keep training for this very moment!

Quiet as a shadow, she told herself. She wondered where she was. When they had first come to King's Landing, she used to have bad dreams about getting lost in the castle. Father said the Red Keep was smaller than Winterfell, but in her dreams it had been immense, an endless stone maze with walls that seemed to shift and change behind her. - Arya III, AGOT

x

This time the monsters did not frighten her. They seemed almost old friends. Arya held the candle over her head. With each step she took, the shadows moved against the walls, as if they were turning to watch her pass. "Dragons," she whispered. She slid Needle out from under her cloak. The slender blade seemed very small and the dragons very big, yet somehow Arya felt better with steel in her hand.

The long windowless hall beyond the door was as black as she remembered. She held Needle in her left hand, her sword hand, the candle in her right fist. Hot wax ran down across her knuckles. The entrance to the well had been to the left, so Arya went right. Part of her wanted to run, but she was afraid of snuffing out her candle. She heard the faint squeaking of rats and glimpsed a pair of tiny glowing eyes on the edge of the light, but rats did not scare her. - Arya IV, AGOT

I hope this helps, anon! There's so much more, but it's too many words to share here. :)

[vinceaddams]

top five clothing items you wish you'd wear more often, please! and the five you do wear the most, please!

Oh heck! I still have asks from that ask meme thingy I reblogged 2 weeks ago, sorry for taking so long!

Hmm, tough to choose specific things I wish I wore more often. I do have a bunch of fancy 18th century things that sit in my closet most of the time, but usually when I leave the house I'm either going to work or to the grocery store, and I don't feel like being super fancy for that. Cuff ruffles would get in the way of all the hand washing and such, and breeches would be annoying at work because I use machines with knee levers.

I guess I wish I wore my nice shoes a bit more often than just for photos, but they were expensive and I don't want to wear out the leather soles. Maybe I ought to get little rubber soles added.

Oh, and my embroidered monster waistcoat! I wish I wore that more, but it's from an older pattern that doesn't fit me very well. The embroidery is also a bit worn out in places, alas.

It's a bit difficult to know which things I wear most frequently, but here are my best guesses for right now. (My summer answers would of course be different.)

1. This brown wool waistcoat from early 2019. I wear it all the time in the cold half of the year.

Just like the monster waistcoat, it's made from a pattern I drafted before top surgery, so it really doesn't fit me anymore. It's also getting pretty shabby. I've been meaning to make some new everyday plain wool waistcoats for a while now.

(I wear that green shirt pretty often too.)

2. This cap. It's just two pieces of linen, and I made it in 2018. I like wearing caps indoors when it's cold, and also under my wool hat outdoors. It adds an extra layer of warmth, is softer than the wool hat, and protects it from my very oily scalp.

I have 3 of these caps, but this one is my favourite. It's also something I ought to make more of.

3. These pants. They're just plain black cotton fall front pants.

I could pretend I'm wearing them the most because they're fully lined and therefore warmer than my other pairs, but the fact is I've got 3 other pairs of pants with holes worn in them that I need to patch and have been avoiding for a shamefully long time. It's a pretty easy thing to fix, and I will likely put it off for several more weeks, if not more.

I feel the need to point out that not all of my wardrobe is in such a miserable state, I at least have a good amount of shirts!

4. I don't think I have any pictures of it, but my winter coat is just a plain medium grey modern (by which I mean at least a couple decades old) wool one. Here's an image I found on google of approximately the same coat.

It was my grandfather's, and is a bit too big for me, and the lining is getting pretty worn out. Someday I want to completely pick it apart, recut it, and re-sew it with a new lining, but I can't do that until I have a backup winter coat.

5. This poor flannel nightgown which has finally worn out! Just a few days ago it developed a huge hole in the back panel, and a small one by the button placket, so it's destined to be cleaning rags and/or firestarters.

The buttons might end up on another nightgown though. So I guess this is no longer a thing I can wear frequently :( In the linked post I actually made 3 nightgowns from the same pattern, and that was the medium weight one, so now I'm down to the very heavy fish print flannel one and the light rayon one, and need to make more. (A very common theme with my wardrobe things, alas. I am slow.)

But I did just finish a new nightgown this week, made from a completely different pattern that I'm quite excited about! I'll get some pictures soon!

[augustmourn]

20 Questions for Writers

Tagged by @jaimehwatson - thank you!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

165! Plus one unrevealed.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

567,814

3. What fandoms do you write for?

I tend to be serially monofannish and mainly write for one fandom at a time, with small forays into other fandoms for exchanges. So right now it's Danganronpa but for quite a while before that it was Locked Tomb, etc. My longest-running fandom I've written for is probably All For The Game because that series is embedded in my brain and will never leave,

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

Unexpected - Bojack Horseman, 1220 kudos. It was the most kudosed fic in the fandom for a while!

you know what they say about assumptions - Star Wars, 872 kudos.

Into the Dark - IT Movies, 723 kudos.

The Kids Are Alright - IT Movies, 680 kudos.

Lights Will Guide You Home - Star Wars, 632 kudos. I should probably just tag this one "abandoned and discontinued" since I haven't touched it in six and a half years.

5. Do you respond to comments?

I used to be better about it and then I got out of the habit, probably because I stopped responding immediately (waiting for exchange anon periods to end.) I still try to go back and respond to recent ones, but there are a lot that it would be too weird to respond to now. I really appreciate every one of them, though.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Probably quiet birds in circled flight, which is an IT fic where Richie commits suicide instead of Stan. At least that's the first one that comes to mind.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

This is a harder one to answer, honestly, because I feel like most things I write aren't long enough to have an earned happy ending; it's usually at least bittersweet. My actual answer is probably the 50k Komahina fic that I'm in the process of editing, because the current ending was maybe the sweetest thing I've ever written and I disgusted myself.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I had one fic attract a bunch of hate comments because it was werewolf in wolf form/human smut. It was mostly funny.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yes. Lots. I've been told my specialty is noncon but I write a lot of other stuff too!

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

Never have and not sure if I ever will! It's just not something that really appeals to me, for some reason.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I think I had one put on Wattpad but I don't remember how that turned out.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes! Into Russian.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No, mostly because I don't think I could write that collaboratively. The idea is interesting to me, though.

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

I don't know if I'm capable of having an all-time favourite.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I would like to tell myself I will someday finish my Star Wars WIP, but I was still in high school last time I touched it, and my writing style and taste have changed so dramatically since then that I would want to rewrite the entire thing. I would also like to go back and finish the second chapter of the Karate Kid fic I posted.... three years ago? That's at least possible.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Porn, I think. It's pretty easy for me to write at this point. I like writing arguments, I like writing fight scenes.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

I still have not figured out how to do structural or significant editing on longer stories. I finished three long stories (at least first drafts) in 2023, one had to be posted for a deadline, and the other two are extremely daunting to consider.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I've never done it, I'd be intimidated, I'd have to ask a native speaker for assistance.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Hunger Games, when I was eleven! The fic was not good and it's still online until FFN goes bust.

20. Favorite fic you've written?

My TLT longfic Crashing remains possibly the proudest achievement of my life thus far. More than four times as long as the previous longest story I'd ever finished!

Tagging @ladyculebras @hearthouses @gregwambsganss @queermccoy and anyone else who wants to!

[galactic-pirates]

Ask Game for writers: 1, 7, 10. 😀

In which I should have read this more carefully 🤣 I saw it was about WIPs and didn’t realise it was so fic focused. I guess I could answer this two ways. I could convert it to art which is fandom, or I could vague talk my original novels. Maybe both? 🤔

1) 🦈Tell us the name of your/ one of your WIP(s)

Hmm well I don’t want to share the name of my original novel 🫣 I know I probably should but I get afraid about it. I sort of put up a division between “personal fan me” and “career me”. Not that I have a career (yet) but I can dream.

As for art well that doesn’t have names exactly, and also I don’t have WIPs in the same way. I have a list of ideas and I tend to take one, and finish it, rather than juggle several projects like I did fanfic.

I am currently signed up to the Librarians Exchange and I will be making something for that. I probably shouldn’t talk about that though because of the whole ‘secret’ gifter thing.

I would like to pick one idea off the list and say “I’ll do that next” and talk about it but truthfully what I am hoping to do is practice basic techniques. I spoke about this earlier with my frustration at being stuck with the ‘tracing’ and wanting to do it properly. I don’t know if I will be able to ‘teach myself’ to any level so that I can use it for the exchange. I mean I have had literal years to do so and not got anywhere with it so far 🤷‍♂️ I got a new sketchbook (because clearly the half dozen I already had weren’t enough) but maybe this time I will commit. I got some erasable coloured pencils and sketching in purple seems very fun so 🤞

7) 🖍Post Any sentence from your wip

As said I can’t really do this. I wish I had some kind of sketch to show, but again as I said art “WIPs” are more just ideas unless I am mid-project and I’m not right now.

To make up for not answering this I have picked another question for you.

11) 🛠Is there a scene or anything in the WIP you are struggling with right now?

For my original novel quite a lot of things 😂 but description is usually the hardest part. I can see it in my head but it’s so clunky when I try and write it down. Way too much frowning or smiling going on lol. I am trying to use more body language and less dialogue tags but I need to find more variety in it.

For the art it’s like I said I have my current process of bashing together a bunch of different references. Sometimes this includes selfies when I am struggling to get limb angles to match what’s in my imagination, but it just doesn’t work. It’s a) botched together so a lot of the angles are just slightly off/mismatched and it is unnatural and b) so stiff with no flow/life. It has zero style.

10) 🤡How many Wips are you actively working on?

Well I am actively drafting one original novel. I have benched the redraft I am 1/4 of the way through, the first draft I need to reboot, the first draft I am only about 70% finished with, and the first draft I only wrote a bit of (I think that covers them 🤔). But really it’s just the one for “actively working on”.

For art… well I can’t lose sight of the gift exchange. I’m wondering if I should pick up ‘Sketch a Day’ again. I definitely want to do the 100 heads challenge. I got a copy of the Loomis Method book (heads and hands) and I think I should go through that. Same with Hamptons book (figure drawing). I was doing some screenshot redraws from “What If?” as I adore that art style. I can’t seem to pick a medium (paint, pencils, markers, ink) and so there’s so many options for rendering practice. It’s a bit overwhelming to be honest all of everything I want to work on.

Thanks for the ask ❤️

[poohsources]

HELLO EVERYBODY! been a while since i did one of these, i hope you're all doing well, and have a great day / night wherever you are. i'm officially back from my vacation which means i'm officially returning to this blog. yay! now you might be wondering what exactly this means, and truthfully, i'm not too sure yet either. what i do know is that i plan on being around here more regularly. also, i'm planning to finally start working on the christmas giveaway gifts ( if you're one of the winners i've messaged previously, i'll message you again in a few days to discuss details ).

another thing i'm not sure i've mentioned here yet: i got a new job last month which means i definitely don't have as much time anymore as i did previously. it's also one of the reasons i've been so absent since the start of the year because i had to get used to it, learn some new stuff, etc. my schedule changes every week so i can't even give you reliable info on when i'll be able to be here and do stuff but i promise you that'll be something i'll figure out.

anyway, as for content i've planned, i really should start going through my inbox and try to answer as many questions there as possible. things have been really piling up in there and i'm very sorry about the delay in answers. there are also a few requests (primarily for certain kinds of memes ) that i will be working on slowly but surely. in terms of memes, i have some half-finished ones sitting in my drafts so i might just post these sometime soon. additionally, there are some other things i started working on a while back ― like some psds, templates, etc. ― that i might try finishing. so just a whole bunch of new content to use.

one new thing i might try out in the future is something one of you mentioned when i made that post about putting some very time-consuming or image-heavy templates behind some kind of temporary paywall. not sure how exactly i'm gonna do this yet ( i have a few ideas and websites, like patreon, in mind already, but i first want to see all the different possibilities i have on what site and what makes it the easiest and most user friendly for both you and me ). but that is something that's probably gonna take a few weeks / months still ― we'll see.

even though i could probably go on for a while and tell you about everything that's going on in my mind regarding this blog and its future, that's gonna be all for today. because honestly ― none of it is ever set in stone and while i do have some exciting things i wanna do here, real life can always get in the way so i feel back if i make too many promises i then have to delay. but i'm gonna try my best because i care about all of you people, the rpc as a whole, this stupid little hellsite i could curse multiple times a day, and although it's not much i do wanna contribute a little something to make this a nicer place for everyone.

so yeah, take care everyone, don't forget to drink enough water and get enough sleep, and i'll talk to you again soon. 🧡

[187days]

Day One Hundred Thirty-Two

All the juniors took SATs today. In order to minimize distractions and give them the best test-taking environment possible, the rest of the school operated on an atypical schedule: Blocks 1 and 2 were about half an hour longer than usual, Block 3 was about ten minutes longer than usual, there was no flex block, the lunches were changed so that all the test-takers could eat C lunch... Block 4 was normal, but 

It actually worked out really well for my World students because it gave them more time to finish the rough drafts of their essays. I was really impressed by how well they used the time, especially during Block 2 because it was so lengthy. Did they run out of steam in the last ten minutes or so? Yeah, but they’d done so well up until that point, it was alright.

I had an observer in the room- Mr. Y, a former student and current middle school social studies teacher, who came up to see what a day in ninth grade social studies. Now, Mr. Y was a sophomore when I started teaching, and, while he wasn’t my student, he and I often talked politics because it’s an interest of his. While he was in college, he did a bunch of his observation hours in my classroom, and since he joined the middle school faculty we’ve been colleagues and friends. We have very similar mindsets and beliefs about education, so it was fun for both of us to spend the day together.

It used to be a regular thing that the middle school teachers visited us to observe, and we visited them, but then Covid happened, admins changed, etc, etc... So Mr. Y realized it’d been a while since he’d observed, and he wanted to make sure he’s still preparing his eighth graders well for their experience here, and that’s how this came about. His former students were thrilled to see him, and even the students who hadn’t had him as a teacher were happy to talk to him about their essays. Meantime, I was giving pointers, answering questions, proofreading on request. It was great. 

Then my APGOV students came in to prepare for a discussion-based assessment about Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” and Malcolm X’s “The Ballot or the Bullet.” I asked them to write 8-10 questions about the content, context, and/or style of these texts, and they got right to work. Mr. Y got a look at some of their questions, which was great because he  got to see the level or work students are doing by the time they’re in twelfth grade and in an AP class. He took a ton of notes to share with the other middle school social studies teachers, and hopefully we’ll all get back into the habit of observing each other more regularly.

I missed most of track practice today because I had to renew my CPR certification, and our school nurses were offering a class this afternoon. I made it out for the last ten or fifteen minutes, but that was long enough for my face to get a bit of windburn. And, man, if I had to describe preseason, that’s one of the things I would definitely say: windburn. But, despite the wind, there was sunshine and warmth, and the snow is melting! 

[norcalbruja]

Script-writing semi-progress!

[Note: The first half of this post is from my actual writing blog.]

So with my dead-end life and non-existent art career, I spent a while venting in one of my writing Discords. I'm just spinning my wheels trying to get LITERALLY ANYWHERE with my novel drafts, my poetry, my short stories, and a theater script that I'm probably going to convert into a comic series or some kind of serial/online series, and I'm just not fucking getting anywhere.

This hurts especially bad because I write about FILIPINO mythology, and I've been asking FILIPINO theaters if my script is cool and people want to like, workshop it or keep an eye out for when the first draft is finished. Of the few people who actually answered me, the general consensus is that IT SOUNDSSSSSSSSSSS COOL, but it's too expensive and nobody wants to take a risk on unpublished/new writers.

And I'm like "great, so you like it, you just want SOMEONE ELSE to take a risk on it."

The script is called "Takotsubo: The Story of a Superhero." It's about a bunch of Asian gangsters/superheroes who roam around Oakland, California, trying to heal from their damage and dealing with the media, who treat them WAY differently than they'd treat white superheroes. After they recruit their only Filipino-American member, she ends up being the only person with ENOUGH knowledge of hostile Filipino spirits to keep everyone alive--but luckily, she attracts the Filipino gods as well, who know that a half-trained and very short mage cannot be expected to handle the likes of the aswang and the bantay-tubig with just some kalis sticks and her anger issues.

Everyone (and by extension, the audience) then learns about the CULTURE-SPECIFIC shitstorm that is Filipino colonization.

I have currently asked six or seven of my Filipino actor friends about it, and three people asked me to send the current script! I've got everything in some email drafts, but I'm just trying to work the nerve up to press the damn "send" button, lmao.

I did tell them it's a gangster AND superhero script, but like... I'm still worried they're going to wince and go "no, even if you're literally deconstructing the stereotypes, I don't think I can do this."

--

So I emailed my friends and am waiting on the others to message me back.

Araw the Sun is just... flat-out ordering me to "GO FUCKING ASK YOUR PINOY FRIENDS ABOUT THIS. RIGHT NOW. DO IT!!! YOU ARE DESPERATE AND YOU WANT HELP, SO I WILL GIVE YOU HELP!"

Araw is yet another Tagalog spirit who said he'll help me, but unlike the others, he's actually brutally honest about how he knows I don't believe him and I don't even know if he's who he claims to be, and he's just constantly going "DO IT ANYWAY. YOU NEED HELP, I'M GIVING YOU HELP."

He's supportive in the most angry way possible, lmao.

Like this guy is constantly going something like, "WHERE THE FUCK ARE THE OTHER ANITO??? WHY HAVE YOU SPENT YEARS IN THE FUCKING WILDERNESS WITH ONLY A GIANT SQUID AND A BUNCH OF REPTILES??? FINE, I GUESS I'LL HELP!!!"

And maybe he's a figment of my imagination or someone like Eric Draven as "a non-famous Tagalog spirit who took on my interpretation of Araw from my stories," but one thing that struck me a couple days ago was how I was Desperate Again and asked him for as much help as he could give me.

And once I was done, he was like "Yes, that's good enough, I'll get to work now."

I asked him, "...Okay? You don't want to stay a bit, or eat breakfast or something?"

And Araw told me, "I do not pretend that you love me. It seems that's for Haik and the other anito. You begged me for help, the same as as you begged the dead man, and the squid, and the crow, and all those foreign gods. Why shall I eat the food of someone who howls like a starving creature? Or play the kind god to a woman with no money, stuck in a job that she hates? You have as much choice in this as a beast lured into a trap, and if Ulupong is right, the other anito don't treat you any better than one."

And I'm like, "Well, that kind of hurts, but thanks for being honest, Araw."

Honestly, it IS very relieving that Araw just drops in to help me, listens to me say the same things over and over, and then he goes off to do stuff without trying to talk to me or being dramatically "concerned" about my situation, that I constantly tell the spirits I'm tired of explaining.

[findmeontheisle]

chasing the ocean: part 14

author’s note: okay i’m not even gonna bother lying, i lowkey was giving up on this fic again but as always, i logged in to this account with the intention of deleting it and stopped myself when i saw how many people were still finding this series or coming back to read it again and i just pushed myself to finish this draft. i have no clue when or if there’s gonna be a next part, but i promise to not delete this series.

warnings: curse words (yall know the drill), rumors

masterlist

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weeks crawl by and slowly, my frustration with the rumors builds.

after the first few days back at auradon, harry and i decided to not be extremely public about our feelings. it's not that either of us were ashamed or embarrassed, we just didn't want to answer the questions that would inevitably follow. there was no way that we could have known that this option would've been so much worse.

it started with some of the other royals mentioning that they saw harry at the erodan ball. i should've known from their hushed tones and how their eyes sparkled with an intense curiosity that there were underlying questions laced into it. so, i just shrugged and confessed that harry spent the break at the castle with me and my parents so of course he was invited to the festival and ball.

from there, people took note of how harry wasn't acting quite the same anymore. his brooding nature never changed, but he wasn't pushing his way through crowds or threatening people with his hook. the cherry on top was when one of the vk's mentioned that they hadn't seen him flirting with anyone at lunch or in the halls in a while.

when i first got wind of that rumor, it peaked my interest as well. i tried to remain as nonchalant and pretend to be oblivious to the stares that harry and i received everywhere we went even if we were separated. but i found my gaze wandering until i could catch sight of harry at lunch daily. and that rumor was true.

in his time at auradon, harry had flirted with practically everyone in the school. no one was safe from his mischievous blue eyes or his raspy charm. but for a week and a half, he kept to himself in the best way that harry hook could manage.

girls still flocked around him frequently, but he always just maintained enough interest in the conversations to not visibly look like an asshole until they would give up and sulk away. each time, he would sigh in relief to find some reprieve from them and then his eyes would trail around the open lawn where everyone ate until our gazes met. my cheeks would instantly turn red and i would roll my eyes after he would send me a wink.

but now...

now, everywhere i go, people are staring and whispering as if i'm completely unaware.

i bet they're hooking up.

really? i heard that he's stringing her along for her money.

aubrey told me that he's still talking to like four other girls, but y/n thinks that she's the only one.

oh my god, that's so embarrassing. who's gonna tell her?

gritting my teeth, i adjust the strap of my backpack and duck my head down as i continue the walk to the attic. just as i'm approaching the door to the stairwell, i feel a tap on my shoulder.

when i turn on my heel to find evie, it takes everything in my to not let out an exasperated sigh because despite how much i love evie, she loves to gossip and i mentally cannot handle any more of that right now.

"hey y/n, i've been hearing a bunch of rumors going around the past few days-"

the look on my face is enough to have her pause midsentence, but she offers a small smile and meekly finishes, "and i just wanted you to know that if you need someone to rant to about it, i'm here."

mustering up the energy, i smile weakly at her before shrugging a shoulder, "thanks evie, that means a lot, but maybe another time. i'm just really tired from classes and dealing with all of that so i'm boutta go nap for a while."

she nods understandingly and as i open the door, she casually reminds me about some upcoming assignments in our shared classes. i thank her again and make the trek up the stairs to the attic.

shutting the wooden door behind me, i groan in relief at the sight of the safe space i've formed with harry in the attic. our walls have a combination of art from both of us and harry's slowly began to leave some of his personal valuables out on display. most of it is just vintage-looking pirate tools, but on his bedside table, i've noticed some pictures with worn edges. out of respect for his privacy, i haven't taken a closer look, but i have a general idea of what could be in the pictures.

tossing my backpack on the ground next to my desk, i kick off my shoes and pull off my jacket before finally falling onto my bed peacefully.

the sun has yet to even begin to set, but my eyes still droop with exhaustion. pulling myself up further onto my bed, i curl up and rest my head on my pillow. the warmth of the sun streaming in and the softness of my blankets have me sighing contently and letting my eyes close peacefully.

but i quickly realize i can't sleep.

my thoughts are still racing from all of the stress from the past few days and the rare moment of silence feels deafening. my first few years at auradon were spent basking in the glorious retreat into the attic due to the seclusion and peace i found from it. but in the past few months, i had grown used to hearing harry spray paint the walls or whistle a little tune or play the ocean noises i once couldn't stand.

an idea struck me and i was lifting myself from my bed before i could consider it further. my eyes find the device in seconds, already knowing it's location from the nights of listening to it softly play.

the speaker that i had gifted him was resting on the chest at the end of his bed, the nob turned down significantly from what it would've been when he first arrived. harry and i had come to an agreement to still have the ocean noises through the night as long as it was a background noise and not rattling the ear drums of anyone in a mile radius.

i pick it up before glancing all around, as if the miscellaneous objects that harry and i filled the room with were watching me.

hitting the power button, i hear the quiet roar of the waves hitting land and smile to myself. i set it back in its rightful spot and then without a second thought as to why, i grab harry's blanket and carry it to my bed.

laying down with the blanket pulled over my shoulders, i inhale deeply and for a moment, it's as if harry is laying right next to me. his unmistakable scent surrounding my senses. my eyes close and the waves make me think of the nights that we've spent under the stars together.

i feel myself drifting off into a peaceful sleep as a smile slowly pulls my lips up.

harry's pov

"hey hook, i got a question for you."

my jaw ticks and i feel my face sink further into a grimace. i barely refrain from continuing my walk towards the attic, but i slow my pace enough for carlos to catch up.

his cheeks are flushed and he's breathing heavily from the short run. i don't let him notice the amusement in my eyes at his lack of athleticism as i stare straight ahead and grumble, "better make it count, carlos. i'm not in the mood for an interrogation."

that was the most truthful thing i've said all day.

everywhere i've gone, i'm followed by stares and whispers, but the worst part were the few that were bold enough to ask questions. the range of conspiracies on why me and y/n were seemingly getting along now honestly shocked me. i had been asked if i'm getting paid or if i'm stealing from her or if i'm planning on overthrowing eroda. the questions never stopped and i would simply be left glaring at them as i wordlessly pull my hook from my belt loop. that was enough of an answer for most of them.

but as carlos comes to a stop in front of me, i get the feeling that i won't escape this as easily.

carlos smiles brightly and shrugs, “you and i both know you won’t do anything.”

stepping closer, i instinctively grab my hook and my voice drops into a low rumble as i argue, “unlike ye, my bite is much worse than my bark, deville.”

the smile stays prominent on his stupid face as he replies, “yeah, but y/n would not be happy about that.”

i don’t even process myself moving until i hear the thud of carlos’s back hitting the wall, my fingers tangled in his shirt as i hold him slightly off the ground.

“don’t ye dare bring her into this.”

to give carlos credit, he didn’t even flinch, which is impressive considering how well i remember him shaking and cowering back on the aisle.

carlos rolls his eyes at me and snaps, “she’s what i was gonna ask you about, dipshit. now, put me down before someone sees and snitches to her.”

narrowing my eyes, i glare deeply at him before slowly lowering him to the ground. bringing my hands back to my sides, i nod at him to continue, but i don’t back away or break from my stance towering over him.

he takes a moment to straighten his clothes before he stares up at me and there is no anger or amusement or any of those feelings in his brown eyes. just curiosity. carlos keeps his voice quiet, despite us being the only people in the hallway currently.

“what are you trying to do, harry?”

the question catches me off guard, but i don’t let it show as i force a chuckle and sarcastically snap, “well, carlos, i was trying to go to my room to avoid annoying people, but instead i got stopped by one of them and asked a dumb question.”

i turn on my heel to storm off, but his hand catches my arm and this time, his voice is more stern as he asks, “no, harry, i meant what are you trying to do with y/n?”

groaning, i throw my arms in the air in disbelief and huff, “of course ye believe the fucking rumors.”

everything in me wants to walk away right now. to just drop this stupid conversation that i should’ve avoided and go back to the attic. maybe i could paint or shine my hook. maybe i could lay on y/n’s bed and just listen to her hum as she does homework.

but then some small part of me thought about the idea of her hearing the same rumors that i have. that i’ve been using her or have some ulterior motive or am just playing with her feelings. the thought then plants an imaginary picture in my mind of her forcing a smile to look unaffected even though her eyes get duller with each rumor. for every conspiracy, her lip trembles and she turns away so no one can see how much those words hurt her.

and that’s enough for me to shake my head and grit my teeth as i growl, “listen. i’ve done some shitty things in the past and i’ve hurt people before. my reputation is practically me shadow from how much it’s gonna follow me for the rest of my life. i’ve accepted that.”

carlos stares up at me with wide eyes filled with fear and slight awe, but i pay him no attention. my voice is getting louder as i get angrier, flashes of all the times that i overheard the whispers in the halls.

“ye can say anything you want about me and it won’t bother me. but the second, ye bring her into the rumors… i’ll drag ye off the plank and into davy jones’s locker me self.”

my accent is thicker now and my chest is heaving as i rant, but i’m not quite done as i level carlos with a glare and snarl at him, “i’ve done terrible things, but i plan on being the best i can be when i’m with her. so ye can take that and go tell everybody that they can keep her name outta their mouths. if i catch wind of one more rumor that involves her, imma handle things the way i did on the isle.”

taking a step back, my throat feels raw and that’s when i realized that i had been yelling. i roll my shoulders to try to loosen my stance and i feel an ache in my jaw from how hard i had been clenching my teeth.

walking away, i hear carlos call my name once more. i stop, but don’t give him the satisfaction of me turning back to face him. my hand rests on my hook and for a moment, i wonder if y/n would forgive me for using it on one of her friends.

“thank you, harry.”

my shoulders stiffen again and i feel like a statue from my incapability to move. for a moment, i wonder if i imagined the words coming out of his mouth, but then he speaks again.

“she hasn’t been talking to any of us at lunch, but we can all tell the rumors are getting to her…. so, thank you.”

clicking my tongue, i don’t give him any acknowledgment to what he said and continue to walk away.

but by the time i’ve reached the attic, his words are swirling in my brain. i had noticed that at lunch she didn’t look as engaged as she typically did, but i had chalked that up to her being stressed about her history class again. but now all of her quiet sighs and moments of zoning out while we were on walks, they all made more sense.

i push the door open and frown at the wave noises that feel out of place when there’s still daylight, until i catch sight of her napping.

she was curled underneath a blanket that had been given to me a few days before i was transferred off of the isle. it was one of my few possessions that i didn’t steal or have to scavenge for. and now, as she sleeps with a distant smile and the material of the blanket tucked against her face, i would happily let her keep it for the rest of eternity.

i shut the door as quietly as possible and begin to tip toe towards my bed, cringing when i accidentally step on the creakiest board i’ve ever encountered in my life.

humming sleepily, y/n lifts her head and rubs her eyes with the back of a hand as she mumbles, “hey harry?”

sighing in disappointment at myself for waking her, i smile at how adorable she is with her eyes half-closed and her hair all messed up.

“yes, darlin’?”

she smiles vaguely at the nickname and then her hand lightly taps on the space of the bed next to her.

it’s an invitation that i simply can’t pass up on so i hurriedly pull off my boots before slowly sliding onto the bed next to her. wordlessly, she pulls the blanket up to partially cover me as well and then she curls into my side. her head rests on my arm and i swear i feel part of my heart melt as she happily sighs, her entire body relaxing against me.

she quickly drifts back off into her nap, but i feel my brain still lingering on the conversation i had with carlos. and as i gently tuck away a strand of hair that had fallen in her, i feel even more certain that i will stop at nothing to be the best that i can for her. starting with putting a stop to the rumors.

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//tag list: @kitkatgaming @reblogserpent @marichat4lyf @thomaslefteyebrow @newtshairdryer @thoughtsoftheantagonist @myalupinblack @rintheemolion @aquaamethyst96 @notyuralycat @aquaamethyst96 @3sriracha

[charmmycolour]

Hallo chrammy Colours (sorry if I got your name wrong) i have a question,

I recently got into your fanficana normal life. And because some of the chapters were postet for from another this made me wonder:

How do you keep track of your story? Do you right every chapter out in concept before you start writing? And did it ever happen to you, that you got an idea while writing a chapter, which you really liked and wanted to implement into the story? Would you change future, already planned chapters for it (under the condition it's not a massive plot change).

I was wondering bc your 12th chapter was my favorite one despite being posted later then the others. There's no shift in writing style either so I'm just curious. How do you manage that?

I'm looking forward to an answer.

greetings from Québec's Sweethearts.

I hope you have a great day.

My my this is such an interesting question. Thank you!

About my writing process, I have my own steps system (note this doesn't apply to fics I co-wrote with other authors, where I use a different one, only those I wrote entirely myself). For me writing a fic usually goes like this:

Idea: I have an idea for a concept I find interesting or a scene that would be cool to do. Sometimes these ideas don't tie to anything, they're just small fun scenarios I make up for fun, but if I like them a lot, I will develop them into the next step.

Outline: Now I have a core concept or situation I want to write, so it's time to decide how the rest plays out. I think of a beginning, an ending, and a general line of events that happen in the middle. It's a written draft and not set in stone, but has the general feeling (romance, comedy, angst, etc.)

First Draft: I will start writing whatever scenes I'm more excited to do. I usually work on the first chapter too so it's easier to set the tone later. The big events should be set in the draft, mostly, but can still change if needed; all the small things can wait. If I don't know how to write a part I jump to another.

Second Draft: Now we have a bunch of little stories! It's time to tie them together with the boring parts. It's not as exciting to go over exposition, or have the characters move around, but it's necessary. It's also the step where I make sure everthing is coherent and it's not contradicting other parts of the story.

Usually at this point is when I will clean the first chapter and start posting. I usually haven't finished the fic when the first chapter is up, but roughly half of it if not more will be written or planned. Note the first chapter will first go through step 6 and 7 first.

Final Draft: I rewrite everything correctly, polish the details, cut the filler and in general focus on making the flow dynamic and interesting. At this point it's possible I had a better idea for a future scene and I change it, but once something is published that detail is FINAL and will stay until the end.

Beta: I ask someone (usually my boyfriend) to revise and correct the chapter, fix the grammar and tell me if something is confusing or they have noticed a mistake in the timeline. This is important because I'm NOT English so I make a lot of mistakes lol

When I posted chapter 1 of ANL, up to chapter 9 I think? Were already in first draft at the very least. Some scenes from the ending had been the first I wrote, but as I developed the story and had new ideas, they have been heavily altered from the first idea.

Currently ANL is written to second draft completely, and the only reason I'm not faster uploading is because I'm lazy making the proper rewrites and drawing the illustrations that come with it (sorry!). The ending of the story went through several changes but I think I'm happy with the current one - nonetheless I never discard the idea of implementing changes if needed.

To keep the tone and writing consistent, I read the chapters together with the prior one (from the same character) together to make sure the narration flows the same way. Even if I learned a way to do it better, I try not to make it too different - I think keeping the flow is more important.

Often I will go back and correct things on prior chapters, but only grammar or oddly-written sentences, never events.

I hope this answers all your questions! Please don't hesitate to send more if you have them, and a big big thank you for reading my story! It makes me so very happy.

Have a wonderful day!

[skellebonez]

Tumblr Messed Up Fill #1

So Tumblr did a BIG OLD OOPS and published a bunch of my unfinished drafts that I left in my queue at 1 PM... when I set it to 1 AM and intended to finish a couple and then change the time again.

LUCKILY I DIDN’T HAVE THE ENTIRE FILLS IN THE QUEUE AND JUST BITS I ADDED IN TO HOLD SPACE. So... I guess this is how we’re doing this! @winterpower98​ here’s some Mentor Swap AU Shadowpeach!

How did you get that scar?/That is not a good hiding spot.

It had been scheduled far in advance and Wukong should have remembered that this was going to happen. The Weather Station needed to let it rain sometimes! It was good for the environment! Good for nature! But Wukong was Wukong and when he trained with Xiaotian for as long as he did he had a tendency to forget the unimportant things like “scheduled downpours” and “when training is actually supposed to end”.

So by the time he managed to crash land a foot away from Mei’s front door after pogo sticking his way off of Mount Huaguo he looked like he’d been dropped into the ocean.

“Cold-cold, cold and wet!” He yelped, shoving the staff back into his ear and trying to hold his jacket over his head as best he could, which did just as much good as it did during the ride. Which was “barely anything”. “Ah shit, it’s cold why can’t they make the rain not COLD!?”

He continued into the building, shuddering as he felt rain water seeping through every bit of fabric he wore, even his shoes the traitors. He immediately started ripping off his shirt, at the very least wanting to get some of the drenched clothing off him, and he froze when he heard a yelp from the other side of what should have been a very empty entry way given Mei was supposed to be out of the house.

A very familiar yelp.

“Why aren’t you are your own house!?” The voice yelled, and as Wukong pulled his shirt over his head he found the voice’s own staring at him with wide eyes alight with a mix of confusion and horror.

“UH, I think I should ask you that, Macaque!” He accused, turning sideways and walking backwards into the building with a raised eyebrow. “Why are you in Mei’s house? Are you hiding in Mei's house!? That is not a good hiding spot!"

“Wouldn’t you like to know, Monkey Boy?” Macaque said snarkily with a smirk.

“Monkie KID, and yeah, that’s why I asked,” Wukong snarked right back, holding his shirt and jacket out in front of him with a frown. “Also, you’re a monkey so...”

“Oh shut up.”

"And you look like you nearly drowned," Wukong chuckled, ringing his shirt out and pointedly not mentioning the blush he saw forming on the other's face. Yet. "It's raining cats and dogs and I’m pretty bad to, but you shouldn't be that bad."

"... don't laugh," Macaque grumbled, doing much the same to his scarf. "I was trying to get here when the rain was getting really bad and I... fell. Off the docks."

Wukong immediately burst into cackles.

“I told you not to laugh you asshole!” Macaque snapped, baring his teeth and trying to puff up his fur in annoyance but failing miserably with the sheer amount of water weighing him down. If anything it probably just made him look... adorably sad. Like a puppy. But a human sized monkey.

“I-I’m sorry!” Wukong held his sides, trying his very best to stop laughing. He also failed miserably, if not even more so than Macaque. “It’s just imagining you, YOU, falling off the docks? Just! You’re practically an acrobat! You’re usually way cooler than that!”

As Wukong continued to fail Macaque’s face softened as he stopped barring his teeth in warning and stared at the other young man.

“... you think I’m cool?” He asked softly, attempting to smooth down his fur and brush the water out of it.

“Kinda?” Wukong said with a half snicker, finally having himself under control. “Cool enough I guess.”

Macaque hummed, giving up on his attempts to dry off with a sigh. It was pointless to try to dry off with his fur like this, not without some kind of towel or brush. And he would be damned if he let Wukong let himself shake dry! That was not going to happen.

So instead he turned to the other, watching as he laid out his tip layers on his arm and turned around.

And something caught his eye.

Multiple somethings.

“How did you get that scar?”

Wukong tensed, not enough for him to stop moving but more than enough for Macaque to notice that he was walking away much slower than he needed to.

"Depends on which one you mean," he answered eventually. He reached up to pull on his hair, frowning as it dripped more water on him.  "Hold that thought until I come back."

And so he did. Macaque watched the other leave and stood in the open room, awkward and dripping sea and rain water all over Mei's floor.

He debated leaving. Just walking out the door and avoiding the awkward conversation that was sure to be leveled in his direction when the human returned, but before he could even make the decision to decide on an option something brought and green was lobbed at his head and wrapped around his face.

“WHAT IN THE-”

“Towel off before Mei gets angry we both tracked in water,” Wukong said, mischievous chuckle resounding through the air before Macaque managed to unwrap the towel from his face. “I’ve got something else that’ll help out after.”

Macaque was going to ask what that something was before the words died in his throat, the sight before him making him pause in confusion and barely held back amusement.

“You have Monkey King themed PJs?” He asked, toweling off his head first. “At Mei’s?”

“Sometimes I stay over.” Was all Wukong said, shrugging as if it was nothing. “Considering you’re here and I don’t see signs of a break in I assume those plum PJs in the same closet are yours.”

“I DON’T HAVE PAJAMAS HERE I DON’T STAY THAT OFTEN!” Macaque snapped, and his face flushed a deep red in embarrassment before he saw Wukong’s victory smirk. “... you made that up to make me slip that I’ve been here before.”

“And you took it hook, line, and sinker,” Wukong said playfully, grabbing the monkey demon’s arm and using a second towel he had to dry it off. “I wasn’t kidding about the PJs though.”

“O-oh...” was all Macaque could reply with as the information slowly sunk in before he ripped his arm away. “I can do that myself!”

“Then do it and come inside!”

~

Macaque was... mostly dry after a couple minutes, enough for Wukong to drag him into the bathroom and instruct him to change and use the blow dryer he has shoved into his hands while he mopped the floor. And as much as Macaque disliked the noise... he couldn’t argue that the warm air of the device was a welcome change from the icy seawater against him.

He may have looked like an extra puffed up fur ball when he was done and refused to come out until he at least had the PJs (short sleeved and indeed covered in plums) on to hide the worst of it.

Didn’t stop Wukong from devolving into cackles at his expense once again.

“Hold on, let me do something,” Wukong offered, and guided him to sit down on the couch sideways, situating behind him with the other pulled against his chest and a comb in hand. “At least I can help with your hair... if it counts as hair.”

“... I don’t know if it does,” Macaque replied, finding himself at a loss for what to do and say in this situation.

They were enemies, right?

Shouldn’t Wukong... be chasing him out of the building?

Now sitting him down to- OH NO!

“ACTUALLY WA-”

Macaque froze as Wukong’s fingers brushed against his scalp and the teeth of the comb brushed through his hair, far more gentle than Macaque could remember anyone touching his hair before, and he went limp in Wukong’s arms like putty.

“Knew that’d get ya,” he felt Wukong say as much as he heard him say it, and the hands and comb continued through his hair and fur and he couldn’t even muster up any coherent words to snark back at him. Just a frustrated grumble. “Xiaotian does this to me a lot. And to his monkeys. So I figured this would be... ya know, nice for you.”

They stayed like that for a good while, Wukong brushing his fingers and the comb through puffed up fur and pulling out tangles Macaque didn’t even know he had on the back of his neck. It felt... strange. To trust someone that you spent so much of your time fighting against, flirting with awkwardly in the midst of battle, never thinking that the two of you would just sit and do anything calmly together.

But here they were. On Mei’s couch. Macaque feeling a purr rumble up in his chest as Wukong groomed through his hair and fur in a gesture he clearly admitted he knew the implications of.

“They’re from before,” Wukong said after a while, after he rested his head on Macaque’s shoulder and started working through the fur on his arms. “Before Red took me in... back before I had the staff to fight with.”

And as much as Macaque wanted to ask, and if he really tried he knew he probably could, he chose not to push it when he heard the way Wukong’s tone changed. Something equally nostalgic and melancholy.

“I think they make you look cool too,” was what he said instead.

“... We’re both pretty cool.”

[beelzegrub]

can I request what would happen if we summon them while we're on human realm bc we missed them so much but lose so much blood in the process I don't really know I'm a sucker for these kind of things. thank youu!!

EDIT FROM FUTURE OP: This ask has been sitting in my drafts for months half finished and I finally found the motivation to finish. Anon, I’m so sorry for the wait. You’re a sweetheart ❤️ I was only able to do the three eldest though and I’m so sorry!!

Um hello??? I love this so much thank you!!! I thought it was kind of silly to go through all of that at the end of season 2 to just.... not use it so I’m excited about this!!!! (Sorry if this is too angsty my brain got super pumped about this and took off.

PS the request said “we” so I used a reader insert type of style. Hope that’s what you were looking for :)

MC Summons Their Demon, but at What cost?

Trigger warning!!!! Self harm/blood

How long had it been since you’d seen the him? Weeks? Months? Who knows. They all blended together after while. All you knew is that it had been too long. Why was this all so tedious? Solomon had promised to teach you the summoning ritual as soon as you could handle it. Why hadn’t he done so? Did he not trust you? Was he purposely keeping you away from the them? Surely you were strong enough at this point. Enough with the waiting. You wouldn’t sit around and any longer! You needed to see them. You needed to see him.

You flipped messily through book after book. Solomon had given you many to study for your apprenticeship. There had to be something about summoning in one of these!

“Hmm..”

You carefully read through the worn pages of one of the larger and dustier tomes. Something about this one called to you. You zoned out as you took in the information on the pages, following context clues until you found what you were looking for. The images drawn on the page seemed foreign and surprised you. A summoning circle? You had expected as much, but the repeated mentions of ‘sacrifice’ and ‘blood oath’ seemed ancient and outdated. You couldn’t help but notice there was no mention of sentimental possessions of the demon you were trying to summon as well. You were sure none of the brothers would suggest a summoning if it were dangerous though...

Out of options and out of patience, you gathered your courage and set up the ritual to the best of your ability. Things seemed to match the books instructions, at least. All that was left was the blood. You stepped into the middle of the circle and closed brought a sewing needle to the top of your finger. The book hadn’t specified the amount of blood needed, but it was better to start small, you reasoned. You closed your eyes and pricked it, quickly squeezing a single drop of blood into the center of the circle, and said the name of the person you had been desperate to see.

Lucifer

The day of the summoning, Lucifer had felt this nagging sense of danger from the moment he opened his eyes. He was so sure it was one of his brothers about to cause trouble for him once again.

Lucifer spent the day preparing for the worst. Had Mammon stolen something of vast importance? Did Levi buy another piece of cursed media? Surely Beel hadn’t eaten a poisonous dish??

That evening, tired from being on edge all day, he had retired to his study, hoping some music would help calm his nerves. He settled into his chair and closed his eyes.

Then came the pull.

It had been ages since he had felt a sensation like this. When was the last time someone had tried to summon him? Hundreds of years ago, it had to be. And it never felt as strong as this force pulling him now.

There had once been a cult of devil worshipers who sacrificed many of their members for a chance to pull him to the human world, quite surprised to find out their sacrifices had been in vain, considering Lucifer wasn’t interested in a bunch of worthless humans. But even then the tug hadn’t been this strong. Sure, he could still resist it, but the strength of it still left him awestruck. Who had the power to call to him like this?

“Lucifer!”

His blood ran cold. Immediately, he stopped resisting the call and gave in, allowing the summoning to take place.

You had done it. Lucifer was here! The strongest and most fearsome of the seven, and you had Summoned him to you. Your heart swelled when you though of how impressed he’d be when he found out you had done it all on your own. Would he praise you? Would he tease you? Would he tilt his head and smirk, then ask you if you had really missed him that much?

You smiled softly, looking up at him. The look on his face wasn’t one of pride. His eyebrows had furrowed and a frown creased deep into his face. Was he angry at you? No... you had seen his anger many times. This wasn’t it.

“MC....what have you done?”

He cradled you softly in his arms. Wait. When had he picked you up? You looked at your surroundings, the fear in the pit of your stomach ever growing. Where had all this blood come from? You had only pricked your finger! Lucifer’s hand touched your cheek, pulling your face back to him.

“Don’t look.”

You had no choice but to obey. You simply didn’t have the strength to move anymore.

“I’ve called for help, it’ll be just a moment, MC. Just keep your eyes on me.”

Lucifer’s voice was soft and soothing, and you felt your tired body relax into his hold.

“I did it... I brought you here... I did it...” you closed your eyes, a smile on your lips.

“MC, keep your eyes open. Look at me. MC! MC!”

Mammon

That day had started out much the same as always. Mammon, still sore from last nights punishment, groaned as he slumped into his desk at RAD. He rested his head in his arms against the desk, and glanced at the seat that used to belong to you. Obviously, you weren’t there, but it didn’t hurt to check....

“MC is still in the human world, Mammon.” 

Mammon jumped and sat up straight in his seat, his cheeks red from being caught.

“I know that Belphie! I was just-just uh zonin’ out! MC’s old seat just happened to be in the same direction!” He stuttered out an excuse. 

“Just call them, Mammon. I’m sure MC would be happy to hear your voice.”  Oh great, now Beel’s getting involved too. He knew his brothers meant no harm, but all this talk about MC was getting him riled up!

“Fine! I will! I’ll call MC tonight! and you two AREN’T invited!” Mammon laid his head down once again, this time hiding his face, not wanting his blush to show a second time. Tonight he’d finally hear MC’s voice again. And he could blame Beel and Belphie for the call!

 Come dinner time, Mammon had just about run out of patience. His head kept telling him to wait just a bit longer, but something in his heart was yelling for him to quit dragging his feet. 

“I’m going to my room and NOBODY better interrupt me, ya hear?!” Mammon stumbled to his feet and started marching to his room, six pairs of eyes staring at him questioningly. He only made it a few steps when he felt it. A tug. He closed his eyes and swayed on his feet, dizzy from the force of it. This was a summoning, wasn’t it? He had felt it plenty of times from those damn witches, but something about this was different. He turned around to look his brothers again, a look of confusion on his face.

“I...think I’m bein’ summoned.”

Levi snorted and crossed his arms. “I’m sure you’re guilty of something. Better just get it over with.”

The rest of the brothers mumbled in agreement.

Except Lucifer.

Lucifer quickly pushed out his chair and hurried to Mammon. Something was wrong. A simple summoning wouldn’t have this effect on a demon of Mammon’s stature. 

The pull came once again, stronger this time. Mammon winced and held his hand to his aching head. Lucifer’s hand came down to rest on his shoulder

 “I don’t know how long I can resist this. Somethin’ isn’t right. Lucifer, what’s happening to me?” He looked to his brother for help, and found the rest of them had gathered around as well, a look of concern on all of their faces. 

“Someone call for Diavolo and Barbatos. Mammon, hold on just a few more moments.” Lucifer commanded. 

Mammon would have agreed, if not for the voice that rang out clearly in his head, calling his name. 

“Mammon!”

Mammon’s eyes snapped open and stopped resisting the pull, hearing the shouts from his brothers disappear as he followed the call.

“Mammon! Mammon! Mammon Mammon Mammon! Please!” You couldn’t keep this up for much longer, you knew it. You had fallen to your knees moments after the initial call. You could feel every drop of blood flowing out of the pin prick on your finger, but you didn’t dare give up. You had come this far, and you wouldn’t give up now. Not until you had to.

But you didn’t have to. A flash of light blinded you momentarily, and when you could see again, there he was. Standing there was the Mammon. Relief flushed through your entire body, and you stopped pouring your magic into the spell. Utterly exhausted, your body came crashing forward, landing in front of his feet.

Mammon quickly slid to his knees on the ground, picking you up off the floor and resting your head in his lap.

“You....Are you okay, MC?” Mammon tried to keep his voice even and steady, not wanting to scare you, but his hands that held too tightly and his body that quivered gave him away. 

“I am now.” You answered quietly, unsure if it was true. At least Mammon was here and holding you in his arms. Things would be okay as long as he was with you. 

“You...You idiot! Stupid! What the heck were ya thinkin’!? Can’t you see how much blood you’ve lost? This isn’t how you’re supposed to be summoning us! I’m gonna kill that damn sorcerer!” Mammon felt his blood boil with each second that passed. How Could Solomon have allowed this?

You softly squeezed his hand, not having the energy to yell for his attention. Immediately, he stopped, looking at you questioningly. 

“Solomon didn’t teach me this. He wouldn’t. But.... I just couldn’t wait any longer. I needed to see you.” You answered.

He frowned deeply, more troubled with this answer. You had done all this just to see him? He felt a lump in his throat form. “I would have come to you. You didn’t have to do this.” He pressed his forehead to yours, closing his eyes to stop any tears from escaping. 

You cupped his cheek, returning the affection he so rarely showed. “S’okay. All that matters is you’re here now. I just...need....to rest....a little...” Your eyes fluttered closed, feeling at peace and calm in your love’s arms. 

Panic. Once again, Mammon’s eyes snapped open. He placed his hand over yours, trying to gently coax you into opening your eyes once more. 

“Not yet, you can’t yet, MC. We have to wait for help to come. Come on, wake up.” He knew his brothers would come. Someone would come. They wouldn’t let this happen to you. He wouldn’t let this happen to you. “MC!” When gentle touches didn’t work, he got rougher, shaking you and yelling, desperate to see your eyes open.

“Enough playin’ around MC! Wake up! WAKE UP, DAMMIT! Wake... Wake up...You have to..... Wake up....”

Leviathan

To say that Levi was missing his MC was like saying humans like air. Is it true? Yeah, but kind of an understatement. Humans needed air to live and breathe, and in his eyes, you were air. It’s no secret that Levi wasn’t exactly popular. One might even say it was well known that he was a dorky loner demon, if they were feeling particularly sassy. Being a loner has it’s advantages, like having more time for gaming and anime binging, but it sure is, well, a lonely once you’ve had someone to share your passions with. And once that someone is gone, their absence weighs heavy.

So yes, Levi was missing MC. So what? Everyone was missing MC. Why wouldn’t they? His MC was a ray of sunshine in a world of darkness. Ugh. That line sounder way cooler when the hero in his latest otome had said it. Of course his thoughts couldn’t sound that cool. But that’s not the point! Levi figured he had no right to complain about MC being gone, because he was just a gross, annoying, worthless otaku. He didn’t deserve to miss them. He was lucky he got to spend as much time with them as he did, really. 

But nobody could blame him for thinking these thoughts, right? Thinking about how much he missed the way MC would cram themselves as close to him as possible to get a look at whatever mobile game he was playing was harmless. So was remembering all the nights they’d spent binging anime and then realizing the sun was up, smiling sheepishly at each other and promising not to stay up so late next time, even though they always did. Okay, so maybe  thinking about the way they looked when they were fresh out of his shower, smelling of his soap and shampoo was less than innocent, but what was he supposed to do!? Leaning your damp head on his shoulder and curling up close to him like that! Doing things like that is bad for an otaku’s heart! You might give them hope or something...

Enough was enough! He didn’t have time to be obsessing over how much he missed MC. It was taking time away from his one and only true love. “Ruri-Chan, you’d never abandon me right? No, I know you wouldn’t. You’re not like that.” Levi began speaking to his latest figure. “Not to say MC IS like that! No, of course their not! They didn’t have a choice!” He stuttered out a quick fix to his hurtful words. He was glad they weren’t around to hear, but it still felt wrong to say. He was quiet for a minute, staring at his floor in shame. Slowly, he lifted his eyes back to the figure. “Do you think they miss me like I miss them?”

And then he felt it. It had been so long, but he knew this feeling.This was a summoning, wasn’t it?! Based on the intense tug he felt, it had to be a super powerful sorcerer or maybe a group of basic magic users? Honestly, he was flattered. Someone wanted to summon HIM? No, They must have made a mistake. Surely this summon was meant for one of his brothers.

Leviathan was so lost in his own self pity he missed the first two calls of his name. The third one, sounding so desperate and pleading, snapped him out of his funk in an instant. He knew that voice. Without hesitation he let the summon take him, and there he was. He was finally reunited with MC.

But it wasn’t supposed to be like this. When he finally saw them again, he was supposed to feel elated and whole again, not like a piece of his heart was ripped right out of his chest. But when he locked eyes with them, surrounded by blood and their eyes looking glassy, that’s exactly what he felt.

“MC! Oh no. Oh no.”

Levi. He was here. He had to be. You heard his voice and felt his presence, felt his arms circle around you and cradle you tightly against his chest. But why couldn’t you see him? And why did you feel so… empty?

“Levi? That’s you isn’t it? Why is it so dark?” Had the candles all gone out? No, even before you lit them, you remember it hadn’t been this dark. Something was wrong.

Levi inhaled shakily, holding back the sobs he desperately wanted to release. “MC, what are you talking about? I’m right here! Can’t you see me?”

Like a bolt of lighting, the realization hit you. It wasn’t dark. The candles hadn’t gone out. It was your eyes.

“No, Levi. I can’t. I can’t see you. I can’t see anything.” You shakily reach your hand up, frantically feeling around for your love’s face. Leviathan’s usual timid nature word have normally had him reeling away, but in this moment, he had no reservations as he helped guide your hand to his cheek. His lips trembled as he fought the urge to scream.

“MC…. Why would you do this? You’ve lost so much blood… and.. and your sight? I’m not worth this. I’m just a useless otaku! It isn’t fair!” His tears began to flow, the guilt of it all was ripping him apart.

You closed your eyes and smiled as you remembered the many faces of this man you had called to you. “It was worth it. I did it because I love you, Levi. I need you. After all, what good is a Henry without his lord?”

[theeslytherinslut]

12 Grimmauld Place (3/?)

Pairings: Sirius Black x reader, Remus Lupin x readers brother 

Word Count: 2,072

Warnings: angst, language

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 4 

It was the only room you’d seen thus far that didn’t have peeling layers of dark-colored paints, ranging from deep emeralds to smoky greys and jet blacks. Instead, it was painted likely the lightest shade of grey Sirius could convince his mother to agree to, but looking around, that was probably the only thing she would’ve approved of in this room. 

Laughing to yourself quietly, you had a stark, strangely sad realization: this was still a teenager's room. Scantily clad Muggle women postered the walls draped across expensive-looking cars, Gryffindor apparel was strewn everywhere possible, what looked to be a Quidditch banner hung from the ceiling, and various Honeydukes wrappings littered the floor. A large, expensive, very elaborately made chair stood in the corner of the room, buried underneath layers of dark clothing. 

“Sorry, probably should’ve cleaned up...wasn’t exactly expecting company though, not that you’re a bother! Merlin, it’s lovely to have someone so love--so...it’s nice to have someone else here.” Sirius finished, as red as the scarlet robes hanging from his canopy bed as he stuttered his way through his explanation. 

“This is...this is incredible,” you said, moving through the room to find a picture of Sirius and James with their arms thrown across each other's shoulders, laughing jovially as Remus shook his finger at them in the distance. Chuckling to yourself, you continued to look at the handful of old pictures that littered his dresser. 

Another picture nearby showed Sirius sneaking up on James as he very clearly flirted with Lily, her face lighting up with laughter as James jumped up in fright. 

“He was always so easy when Lily was around...” Sirius trailed off, smiling sadly at the photos before you. Looking to the other corner of the mirror, you saw three more photos shoved into the cracks. 

The first was a picture of the group of them lounged around the Great Lake; you’d guessed Peter was behind the camera because only the four of them smiled up at you. James’ head lay in Lily’s lap, hers rested on Sirius’ shoulder, who waved up cheerily at you. As Lily sat up to meet James halfway for a quick kiss, Sirius stretched out his arm and pulled in a sheepish looking Remus, ruffling the top of his head affectionately. You smiled at the sight of your brother with his friends. The happiness that radiated from this picture was intoxicating, you never wanted to look away. 

The next was of them in what must’ve been the Gryffindor common room. Being a Slytherin, you’d never seen the inside of anyone else’s common rooms. Large, comfy furniture was placed strategically around the room, drapings of what you’d assumed to be scarlet and gold draped the walls, an inviting fire dominated the center of the room. 

This picture was another of the group of them, but this time a frightened-looking James and a smirking Sirius were evidently getting scolded fiercely by Lily. You laughed upon seeing Remus standing behind Lily in a sort of gesture of good faith but seemingly offered no words to his insolent friends. 

“Hexed a fourth year Slytherin,” he explained, you turned to glare playfully at him, and he smiled, “The git tried to stick gum in my hair! I think there might’ve been an incident with myself and a girlfriend of his, though...Anyway, James caught him just before and...well, he was with Madam Pomfrey for a few days, I think. Lily gave us a right good telling off for that one, came close to Minnie’s scoldings,” Sirius sighed wistfully, likely reliving the day in his head.  

“Wait...” you trailed off upon seeing the last. 

The third picture was in the Great Hall; though many people were in the picture, the center focus seemed to be a group of Slytherin girls standing in the entryway. There, in the center of the photograph, laughing heartily, was you. Your Y/H/C hair was seemingly shining underneath what was likely a very sunny day, your teeth gleaming as you laughed at something someone had said. 

“Is that..?” you turned around, looking to find him sheepishly smirking at his feet. 

“Yes, I believe it is,” he said. A smile was on his face, but he was scrutinizing yours. “I think I nicked it off Remus at some point.”  

“Why?” you shook your head. Surely Sirius Black hadn’t been fawning over you as well? Surely you hadn’t wasted all these years apart because neither one of you had the bollocks. “You could’ve had anybody...” 

“Well, I could--and did,” he stated matter-of-factly. “Please, don’t misunderstand me. I’m not proud of my whorish boyhood--though it only seems fair having given my recent dating history, funnily enough, a dementor's kiss is not a hot thing.” he broke off when you let out a rip of laughter. “But all that is behind me. I can still hear James suggesting I settle down with a nice girl instead of working my way through the female half of our year. Remus gave up on that idea long ago, I think.”

His smile turned sad at the mention of his friend, and your eyes fell back to the picture of the two of them being scolded by Lily. 

“I’m sorry, Sirius,” you said honestly. “The last half of your life...it must’ve been awful. Losing your best mate, your brother essentially, and then being blamed and imprisoned in fucking Azkaban for a decade for it.” 

Sirius didn’t answer, merely looked darkly at the floor. You took your cue to steer the conversation in another direction. Tightening your towel around you, you cleared your throat. 

“So, this nice girl James wanted you to find, any luck thus far? Do I know her?” you asked, lightening the mood. 

“What do you think? This decrepit house isn’t exactly overflowing with options. Unless you count portraits of past, insane, family members, then I’m swimming!” he laughed, skirting around an answer.

“Nothing like a little pureblood incest,” you laughed in return. A draft of cold air blanketed the room, and you shivered. “So, er, I didn’t exactly have time to pack a bag on my way out; you don’t by chance have any clothes you wouldn’t mind me using, do you?” 

“Oh, right! Sorry, it’s absolutely freezing in this drafty old house.” Sirius commented, gesturing to your goosebump covered arms. He turned and clapped his hands, flying to his closet. 

“Well, I’ve got a bunch of my old school clothes in here...Seems dear old Mum had at least half a heart. This stuff might fit you a tad better,” he murmured, running his hands along the swinging clothes in his old closet. After a moment, he let out a barking laugh. “Here!” 

He threw you a maroon hoodie, and you gave him a look, knowing he was teasing you about the housing. Opening the balled up fabric, you smiled despite yourself seeing the front. It was a Gryffindor Quidditch sweatshirt. You grinned giddily as you turned it around and saw Sirius’ last name splayed across the back, complete with his number. What you wouldn’t have given to wear this years ago...

“Did you need pants, too?” Sirius asked, an odd look on his face as you smiled down at his sweatshirt. 

“Oh, no. That’s okay. This looks like it should cover everything--I’m a hot sleeper.” you explained sheepishly.

Turning, you padded softly over to the adjoining bathroom and clicked the door shut. 

What a turn of events. Standing in Sirius Black’s bathroom, you took stock of the night. 

You’d been attacked and almost killed by Fenrir Greyback, only just managing to escape what would have been a horrid death--or worse. After being mended by Madam Pomfrey, Sirius Black was to continue nursing you back to health. Sirius Black, your greatest childhood crush, and the way your heart hammered in your chest even now told you it might not be all the way extinguished. Never once did you think you’d see where he lived, let alone be undressing in his bedroom. 

And his bedroom...what a time capsule it was. It made you feel like you were in school again, hoping to catch him in the hallways between classes, always peering through the stacks of books as he and James teased Remus during his studies. And further, it seemed all that time you hadn’t been the only one watching. Sirius Black had been watching you almost as much as you had him in your school years. Evident in that hidden in his bedroom was a photo of you, a photo you didn’t know he snuck. A photo surrounded by the greatest hits of his school years, surrounded by those he considered family. 

Trying not to let it all go to your head, you groaned when you slipped the sweatshirt over your head. Though the pain in your body wanted to bring you back to reality, the full, uninhibited scent of Sirius sent you reeling once more. A sickly sweet, smoky scent was the most noticeable. Tobacco, maybe? Suddenly, the image of a young Sirius lounged beneath a tree on the skirts of the Great Lake was brought to mind, smoke rolling from his mouth as he brought his hand down from his lips. Of course, another inherently muggle form of rebellion, a double whammy to his family. 

Something woodsy lingered underneath, as if the hoodie had been swaying in the breeze of some forgotten forest for the last twelve years instead of shut up in this abandoned house. Head swimming, you gingerly stepped out into the bedroom before you got lost in your thoughts. 

“So, er, about the bed situa...” Sirius said, trailing off as he turned around to see you leaning against his doorway, sweatshirt draped to the tops of your thighs.

“Sorry, shit, I can put something else on if you want...don’t want to make you uncomfortable or anything. I mean, we’ve known each other all this time--sort of, anyway. I must be like a sister to you...this is probably super weird. I’ll just fetch a pair of pants,” you nervously rambled. Sirius’ face had not changed since he saw you, and you were beginning to feel incredibly anxious about it all. 

“No, no. Seriously, I wouldn’t dream of it,” Sirius said, his old playful smile playing on his lips. Rolling your eyes, you damned the blush creeping up your cheeks. 

“Here, I found you these," Sirius said, tossing you a pair of thick brown socks.  "I remember hearing you whine about your hands being cold all the time, figured the same might apply to your toes in an old drafty house like this.” 

“You remember?” you asked him. 

“Yes, well, I overheard you whining about it a time or two, and Remus was always mentioning you whining about being cold...I just remembered, that’s all.” Sirius said, his tone becoming oddly choppy. 

“Well, you’re right. My toes were positively popsicles, but I didn’t want to be a complainer or anything, though...” you trailed off, pulling the thick socks onto your ice-cold feet. 

“Ah yes, get attacked by a murderous werewolf, blast yourself into a wall, shatter a few bones, but lest you complain!” Sirius teased you, smiling once more. 

In the next second of silence that occurred, your stomach rumbled loudly, and you smiled sheepishly. 

“Bastard got me right in the middle of making dinner,” you explained. 

“Well, come on then. I’ll have Kreacher fix us something; what would you like?” Sirius asked, seemingly happy that he could help. 

“What’s he good at?” you shrugged, hungry for anything. Winking at you, Sirius barked for Kreacher as he led you down into the kitchen. 

“Yes, Master?” Kreacher croaked, bowing so lowly his nose brushed against the dusty floor. 

“Fix us some herb dumpling stew, won’t you? And some of those delicious little mince pies you make.” Sirius said, and at once, the elf nodded and stepped over to the stove. 

“And some apple pie?” you asked hopefully as you sank into the seat across from Sirius at the long kitchen table. 

“Whatever she asks, Kreacher,” Sirius commanded, smiling fondly at your excited state. 

“Of course, Master...Kreacher gladly serves those pure of blood...gladly...whatever she asks..” he agreed in his funny speech patterns. 

While Kreacher was cooking, Sirius reckoned it was time to alert Remus and the rest of the Order, and you couldn’t find a reason to disagree.Sighing, you watched him disappear to retrieve Remus.