#Hello The Sharpshooter

[binging-asian-dramas]

Hello, the Sharpshooter. 6/7

Story: 7

Acting: 10

Chemistry: 10

Comparable to: GO Into Your Heart (cdrama); Skate Into Love (cdrama);

First of all this would of been an excellent drama if they cut the series down in half. Forty episodes was much too long for this becoming draggy in a lot of parts. Aside from that though, this was a very enjoyable watch. I liked how they approached the subject of mental illness and stress can effect athletes, along with PTSD. The whole series deals with very sensitive subjects including sexual harassment, rape. The storyline of the romance side, well it’s really nothing new, boy and girl love each they reunite after several years, there’s a bit of amnesia, and hiccups along the way. The chemistry between the main leads are nothing short but amazing as well as the secondary couple. For me overall I did use the fast forward button a lot to skim over the parts that I though were draggy and not really needed.

[maranull]

Amélie: I want to do something stupid.

Ashe: Do me, I'm stupid.

Amélie:

Ashe: (¬‿¬)

[tortoisebore]

Finally Remus's pov, I'm so ready, him being a looser?? I know he will be

remus is the biggest loser ever confirmed

[rein-the-blood-medic]

"Excuse me" She knocked on the door and walked in. "Sorry to bother you, but I've been told that you are a candy maker? One of your candies was found on the body of a victim. Don't worry, you aren't a suspect, but I was wondering if you perhaps would remember if they came in alone or with someone else" She offers the candy she took from the victim for them to inspect.

Rein looked at her as she came in, "Welcome and that I am." he smiled as he listened.

"May I?" he said taking the candy and eyeing it carefully, "Hmmm... Honey, lemon, and various herbal blends for fatigue recovery. Normally this blend is delivered." he noted as he looked it over again.

He set it down and looked at his fingers, licking one of them, looking displeased, "Someone has added something to this one though... I am uncertain of what exactly though." he said as he pulled out a book from under the counter.

"I do have some records for bulk purchases but....." He eyed her "How do I know you can be trusted?"

[witchcraftandburialdirt]

"I wish you would stop breaking into my office, you do know I literally welcome people to come in right?"

I wish you would..Meme!

"Oh but Miss Caitlyn! It's very fun to sneak in and give you the heebie jeebies...ah...Although I do have to ask, since I haven't been to Zaun in quite some tme, when was the last time I broke in?"

[harunayuuka2060]

Twst Unveil Event Part 3

Philomela: I hope everyone had a good night's sleep!

NRC, NBC, and RSA: YES!

Philomela: Great! Because you all are going to experience some body pain today!

The students: ...

Epel: Haha... Not everyone seems excited now.

Yuurin: She's never good in motivating anyone.

Malleus: How come she became your mentor?

Yuurin: My mother.

Malleus: Oh.

Philomela: I'll be explaining to you the mechanics now!

Philomela: Today will be the elimination round! You are free to attack anyone you please! And you have all the permission to use any type of moves even magic to your own advantage!

NBC student A: Eh? Isn't this a wrestling event?

NBC student B: If magic is involved, then we'll have better chances of winning.

RSA student A: Won't it be fair to not use any magic at all?

RSA student B: Yes. It feels wrong.

Philomela: Ha! Why? Do you think you can win just because you use magic?

The students: ...

Rook: Madame is right! There are many factors we need to consider!

Ruggie: Hm. Yuurin, you never used magic in any of your wrestling competitions, did you?

Yuurin: No.

Jack: I see. Does that mean...

Yuurin: Philomela is not impressed to any of them. That's why she's willing to give them a leverage to make this match worthwhile.

Floyd: Ne~ Mrs. Whale~ What other things we should remember for this elimination round?

Philomela: Nothing much, except that you have 30 minutes to fight anyone.

Floyd: Yay~!

Jade: Oh dear... *chuckles*

Epel: Can't I really join?

Rook: You'll get yourself hurt, Monsieur Crabapple.

Epel: *pouts*

Sebek: I promise to win this round, Waka-sama!

Silver: This is only an elimination round, Sebek.

Malleus: Do your best, Sebek, Silver.

Sebek/Silver: Yes, Waka-sama!/Malleus.

Ruggie: I guess this is the part where we start recording—

Philomela: Spectators! There is a designated room for us!

Malleus, Ruggie, Jack, Jade, and Epel: Huh?

Philomela: *leads them to a room that offers a panoptic view of the locations in the Kingdom of Heroes*

Epel: Whoa... *in amazement*

Philomela: Sick, isn't it?

Jade: Indeed. I've never been to such place before.

Jack: Ah! I can see everyone clearly!

Philomela: *laughs* Yes! This room will cater to your needs! Foods, drinks, and a good entertainment!

Rollo: *looks displeased*

Neige: This is great! Principal Ambrose will surely love this place!

Epel: Neige Le Blanche?!

Neige: Hello~!

Malleus and Ruggie: Flamme/Rollo.

Rollo: ...

Rollo: It's a pleasure to meet you again, mages.

Malleus and Ruggie: *smirks*

Jack and Jade: ???

Philomela: Everyone! Take your seats!

Epel: Um... But there are no seats— *a seat in front of him appears*

Epel: ...

Philomela: This room will cater to your needs. *smiles proudly*

Epel: Neat!

The students: *listening to Philomela's voice*

Philomela: BOYS! ARE YOU READY?

Floyd: Can we do a war cry~?

Philomela: *laughs* YES!

The students except Yuurin and Silver: RAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

Yuurin and Silver: ...

Silver: Good luck to you, Yuurin.

Yuurin: *nods* You too, Silver.

Epel: Wow... Just wow...

Jade: That's Floyd for you.

*Floyd unleashed a flurry of clothesline strikes, taking out multiple students simultaneously with each powerful swing.*

Ruggie: Poor NBC and RSA students.

Malleus: Sebek and Silver are doing well.

*Sebek asserts his dominance by executing his running bulldog move; swiftly seizing his opponents by the head and driving them face-first into the ground with decisive force.*

*Silver expertly wraps his arm around the neck of each approaching opponent, applying precise pressure to cut off their air supply and induce unconsciousness.*

Epel: Wow... Everyone is amazing— Wait. Where's Rook?

*Rook's grin widens as he expertly locks his poor opponent into the sharpshooter.*

Epel and Ruggie: ...

Ruggie: That savage.

Jack: Ruggie-senpai! Look! Some of the students are attacking Yuurin!

Philomela: *smiles*

*Yuurin remains composed as everyone closes in on her. Then, she swiftly grabs one attacker, lifts them, and slams them to the ground with a powerful spinebuster move. With each opponent, she repeats this action, using their momentum against them to quickly take them down, one by one.*

Epel, Jack, and Ruggie: ...

Ruggie: Oh shit, wait— I need to document this.

Floyd: Whoo-hoo~! This feels great~!

The students he defeated: *groaning in pain*

Sebek: Ha! I've defeated 25 students!

Rook: Oh! That's impressive, Monsieur Crocodile!

Silver: Should we be counting?

Sebek: How about you, Yuurin?! Bet you didn't—

Yuurin: *students piled up like a mountain beside her*

Yuurin: It seems we're the only remaining ones.

Floyd, Sebek, Silver, and Rook: ...

Sebek: WHAT THE HELL?!

[alohaasaloevera]

guys I’m honestly happy that klance didn’t become canon because I love how as a collective group of people we utilize our right to explore what could have been and create the most smoking hot scenarios ever and yes I obviously wanted more of their friendship growing into this bond stronger than anything else in the universe especially since Voltron has teamwork and family as one of their main lessons but that’s more of a development issue all around…ok besides that there’s something about klance where it provides this PERFECT environment for shippers to inhabit and FEAST upon. With klance, there’s a solid, engaging dynamic between the two set up, which is this weird one-sided rivalry that stems from Lance’s insecurity and his need to prove himself of his worth and Keith literally being one of the best pilots for his age but since they’re flung into space and chosen to become child soldiers in this 10,000 year old intergalactic war so they have to work as a team which surprise surprise forces them to put aside their differences and work as a team which is shown a bunch when Keith needs to become a leader and Lance steps up as his right hand and and they have some kinda tender moments that won’t definitely drive shippers into a shipping craze (or worse) SO YEAH you could see why people loved it with all the classic tropes and mutual growth all that schmooze (ALSO THEY KNEW EACHOTHER BEFORE THE MAIN PLOT??? Well maybe not like friends or even acquaintances probably BUT HELLO?????? EVEN MORE SHIT TO EXPAND ON????), and they share multiple scenes that could be interpreted as romantic but there’s no explicit romance. This environment is fucking dripping drenched flash flooded cornered by 1000ft tsunamis in all directions with potential for shipping, so when people saw this relationship between two bros with this sort of homoerotic (IM JOKING. Kinda.) unresolved tension towards each other and the POTENTIAL for a good slow burn rivals to friends to lovers, it was to no one’s surprise that they went APESHIT. Klancers made countless different ways where they get together whether it be pre-Kerberos, post-gettingthefuckoutofearth, the start of the show, the end of the show, after the end of the show, right smack in the middle, anywhere, anytime, for who the fuck knows why just ANY REASON DAMN IT it doesn’t really matter because people were pumping out fanfiction or fan art or any fan media of klance faster than I spit out a raw baby carrot after chewing it for one second and now we’re all wallowing about how it should have been KICK but the thing is that if VLD did KICK all the way to Altea, the production of these beautiful stories that so many people have and still are coming up with about klance kissing in midst of a battle, helping each other with their crippling nightmares, smiling for the stars or some other sad premise, and whatever is nestled in his pulse…just like uhhh the amount of fics like these that go into great detail about Keith and Lance in these random situations that end up with them getting together being produced would go down to some degree because of the fact that if the people’s beloved sharpshooter and samurai had ended up together like we had wanted, and the majority was satisfied with the ending the creators had given, people would have shifted from writing about “How could Lance and Keith get together?” to writing about “What could Lance and Keith do now that they’re together?” And like. There’s nothing wrong with that honestly I would be HYPED if klance was ever canon but there is profound beauty in the way the community is able to create more from less and turn a show that went to shit in the last few seasons shine even brighter than it did at its prime. Like I wouldn’t trade my favorite fics 4 anything.

—

Ok another little thing I’m going to put here: With Klance, all I wanted was for them to be great friends 😭😭😭. I tend to prefer klance becoming canon in later seasons or at the end or even an open ending with no confirmed romantic relationships because I am a sucker for character development and the idea of Keith and Lance both harboring these feelings that at first are just admiration and respect but then escalate to yearning for one another or becoming close friends at the end of the show and getting to imagine anything I want post canon is EVERYTHING if you give me S7 Garrison klance I’ll keel over and thank you like I was a second away from dying of thirst and your gift was a truck load of water

[kaaaaaaarf]

ok ok i have admittedly read all your recs for the most wolfstar fic, if you have any additional thoughts!!! <3

Hi, hello!! I believe you are talking about this post, yes? Here are some rapid fire other fics that are extremely wolfstarry:

Hey, Sharpshooter by @tortoisebore

Let's Go On A Press Trip! & Let's Play Pretend by @languagelessonswolfstar

Be silent like deep water by @her_smile_forges_galaxies

Better In The Morning by @brigid-faye

don't cover our tracks by @lynxindisguise

marginalia by @spindrifters

the mayors of simpleton by @fruityindividual

A Song For The End of The World by @wannabelilybriscoe

you wouldn't like me by @c0ffinrehearsal

(also tagging @angel-daydreams in case angel wants more fics too)

[bunnies-and-blues]

Hello! If you've got the time, would it be possible to do more of the study session headcanons? I found em really cute (〃∀〃)ゞ if you don't mind I'd like to see mitsui in it too, thank you for taking the time to read this!

─꒰ᐢ. .ᐢ꒱─ slam dunk : a different kind of training ☆

⸝⸝ tl;dr : when mitsui fails his exams and is faced with the threat of not being able to play in the team, he goes to you, the smartest student in class, for help . (and he discovers something about himself that he didn't know until now)

⸝⸝ note : i hope you don't mind that i made it a mitsui-centered drabble ! writing headcanons has been a bit hard for me lately </33 but i dont mind making a proper headcanon post if you wish !

mitsui groans in his seat and puts his head in his arms. his worksheets are a mess of scribbled formulas and doodles. "this is hopeless, y/n," he mutters, peering at your seat opposite his with a furrowed brow. the cafe was air-conditioned, but he feels hot and icky all over. and even more so when he takes in the way you move your organized notes around the table. slow and calm, like you haven't got a care in the world. and in a way, it was true -- you took the exams with the rest of the school and passed with flying colors. it was only mitsui along with the basketball team's troublemakers that are in this situation right now. at his words, you sigh and rest your cheek in your palm. "if you had just studied harder before, you wouldn't be in this situation." mitsui groans again, louder this time. his pencil rolls across the table and almost falls off if it weren't for you catching it. "hard to study when you're practicing from dawn to dusk everyday." at this, you lift one shoulder in agreement. "true," you chirp. "but now you have time, so you might as well take advantage of it." you pat his back with a firm hand. he groans again, before letting out a massive sigh and straightening in his seat. blearily, he rubs his eyes, already feeling the pressure. you look at him with a raised eyebrow and smile. "cheer up, mitsui-san," you say. "you've done okay in most subjects, you just need to focus on the ones you're struggling with; that's math, science, and english -- that's only three out of seven subjects! "besides, is there anything sharpshooter mitsui hisashi can't do?" mitsui cocks an eyebrow, stares at you. then he scoffs. "you really know how to get my attention, don't you?" you shrug. there's a twinkle in your eye as you did. "just giving you some inspiration." he narrows his eyes, but he smiles eitherway and laughs. "okay, okay. let's do this." you grin at that, handing him back his pencil. your fingers brush against his. "okay, let's start with math first. do the easy topics first and move forward from there! is that okay?" mitsui nods, nonchalant as he could be. but he leans forward to hear you better, and he listens intently when you explain all those annoying formulas. he answers the questions you ask, and takes notes on what he did wrong or did right. he doesn't comment on the way his cheeks heat up when you praise him for getting the right answer, and he doesn't complain when you move to sit next to him so you can better monitor his work. and when you part ways at the train station afterwards, he only raises a half-hearted wave and doesn't say anything, but he makes sure you've boarded your train before he boards his. he's grateful for you taking the time and energy to tutor him, but he'd never say it out loud now, would he?

[skybrushus]

Note. To the best of my knowledge this is not based on any existing Fallout Equestria storyline, nor does it follow any particular plot in Fallout 4. This is just the narrative that popped into my head as I worked on this piece.

    Amber stepped out of the vault and squinted as the late morning light assaulted his eyes. Amber's outdoor excursion was driven by his desire to speak to Vault 69's resident armorer Lock n' Load about some repairs that were being done on his rifle. As such the hybrid pony/dragon felt rather naked just carrying his holster 9mm pistol.

    However the stallion reminded himself that there was four of the vault's sharpshooters to keep an eye on the area surrounding for raiders and dangerous wildlife. One of those sharpshooters was Coco Pommel with her 14.5x114mm anti-tank rifle. Link

     The stallion had been told by another vault armorer that had Lock n' Load needed to go outside to test fire a weapon. Thus his outdoor journey. Amber wondered why Lock n' Load had to go outside to test fire a weapon since vault's indoor firing range could handle everything up to 30mm autocannon ammunition?

      There was suddenly a series of quick shots and the stallion followed the sound. He quickly found 4 mares standing in front of a hastily setup shooting range. One was the vault armorer; standing next to burly earth pony mare was 2 pegasus mares that Amber recognized as being from Stable 69.

    However the other pony was new to Amber. A fuchsia colored earth pony mare wearing an eye patch and festooned in black leather garments was firing a rather short, brutal looking shotgun. It was a rather unorthodox device. 8 barrels of 20ga were arranged in a circular cluster. As Amber watched the earth pony quickly shouldered the shotgun and fired 4 more rounds. Then the mare unlocked the action and smartly snapped downward exposing the chambers. With her left hand she reached for a large stud inside at the center of the barrel cluster and then smartly yanked it back. As the stallion watched the spent shotshells were ejected from the barrels. Then with practiced efficiency the mare began extracting new shells from a belt around her waist and started reloading the chambers when that was accomplished Lock n' Load look at the 2 pegasus mares.

      "Okay get us a brisk wind going away from us. Then we'll test gas discharger."

       The mares took off and came to an hover about 8ft off the ground. Then they began vigorously flapping their wings. As they did a steady breeze started blowing away from themselves and the other ponies gathered there. The fuchsia looked at the armorer who nodded her head. The other mare shouldered the weapon and pulled the trigger from forward trigger group. Suddenly a large cloud of whitish vapors and a tight stream of liquid erupted from the weapon. All of this enveloped a rudimentary mannequin about 7yds away. Obviously it had been setup for this demonstration. After a second this began to disperse away from the ponies gathered.

        Amber spoke as he walked up the small group. "Well that's a very distinctive demonstration." He looked at the newcomer. "And hello. My name is Amber....and you would be?"

        The newcomer gave the stallion a quizzical look. "Name is Cheerilee. Are you a member of this Vault?"

        The stallion grinned. "Yep! And who would you be and what do you do around here?"

        Cheerilee frowned. "I'm a school teacher."

         Lock n' Load spoke up answering the question that was rolling around in Amber's mind. "We're doing this test outside because the firing range's ventilation and filtration system is on the fritz and I didn't want to flood the vault's air circulation system with tear gas."

        This is a Patreon reward for Skyline-Twilight. The weapon she's holding is a prototype Colt Hillberg Defender shotgun. It's a very obscure weapon. Not even Ian at Forgotten Weapon Link has done a video on it yet. So most of the reference images and information I had came from the 1978 book The World's Fighting Shotgun written by Thomas F. Swearengen. Link He had wrote an extensive article in the book on it. It was a developed to fire 20ga shotshells while having a nonlethal tear gas dispenser built into the weapon.

I hope you like what you see. Please help make more art like this possible by supporting me at Patreon

[matrotas-muse-hub]

Yrsa paused. She had been perusing the library on her own time, and she couldn’t help but overhear a woman’s voice contemplating her Freljordian culture.

“I don’t think everyone has an animal spirit in the literal sense,” Yrsa said, rounding the corner of a shelf and addressing the stranger. “However, there have been cases where people are found to have a companion spirit, even those who are not spirit-walkers.”

She paused, offering the woman a polite smile.

“I hope I wasn’t interrupting, I got a bit nostalgic when I heard someone mention the Freljord.”

"The concept of a 'spirit animal' is fascinating to me. I've come across it quite a few times, but I will admit I've never fully managed to understand it"

She flips the page of the book she was reading about Freljordian culture and belief.

"I wonder if everyone has one, then what would mine be. I'd be curious as to how people find out"

[imsiriuslyreading]

Hey Lana, haven’t been on tumblr or in the marauders fandom for a while but i’ve got the wolfstar cravings again so I came here to find your very trustworthy fic google doc/list thingy but i cannot find it. Am i just being dense and a bit lazy? Please could you direct me to it, I will forever be grateful and I hope you are well xx

hello hi howya??

oh this is a very very fun message. first things first:

spreadsheet here

and a little something extra:

what i’m reading:

stealing harry by copperbadge

i still worship the flame by sadspatula

some things i’ve read lately:

more than words by fen

things that haven’t happened yet by kay_elle_cee

the language of flowers by b1ackcatchatsback

Some things i’m excited to read:

hey, sharpshooter by tortoisebore

the bent by earlybloomingparentheses

you know how to ball (i know aristotle) by emlovessid

anyway i hope you’re well and having a lovely time ♥️

[tortoisebore]

more than enough (aka hey, sharpshooter sequel) sneak peek 🤲

since i'm not posting any of this until it's all written and i have absolutely no idea when that will be, i wanted to give u all the first 1,700ish words of the first chapter of part 2 to hold us all over <3

Sirius was in a surprisingly good mood. 

He really shouldn’t be, all things considered. New York was at the tail end of a sweltering heat wave, for one—hot, humid August air rippled in wavy mirages off the streets, and the tiny window unit in his apartment didn’t do shit against the evening sun, and the bridge of his nose was still pink from a particularly long afternoon walk around Central Park last weekend, but nevertheless, he was in a very, very good mood. Maybe it was good karma finally coming back around, or the universe had woken up one morning and decided it was done fucking with him. After the shit show that had been his last semester of college—the entire eight months since January, really—he figured he deserved it. 

“Iced Americano for Sirius!”

He darted through the sullen little crowd assembled around the pickup counter as the barista slid his drink forward in a plastic to-go cup. He popped on a lid and grabbed a paper straw with practiced speed, maneuvered his way back to the entrance and called out a quick “thanks” as he threw his shoulder into the door and raced off in the direction of the museum. 

After graduation, he’d wormed his way into an internship at a modest little contemporary art museum tucked away on a shady street in the West Village. The pay was shit and the busy work was worse, but he’d been offered a full time apprenticeship after the intern contract expired, and since he wasn’t exactly in a position to be turning down jobs in the industry, he’d enthusiastically accepted. It would be a great first gig, if nothing else—he’d be working under a mid-level curator, sourcing pieces, filing paperwork, and arguing with estates over pricing and displays and whose name would be biggest on the programs. It wasn’t glamorous by any means, but it was real, and it would get his foot in the door of the curation world, and that’s what mattered. 

To close out the summer, the museum had been hosting guest seminars all week for the dozen or so interns on staff. Most were at least mildly interesting, but it was Friday, and Sirius had quite magnificent plans for the weekend, so he was putting a hell of a lot of faith in this singular iced Americano to pull him through the next two hours of the last seminar.

His usual coffee shop around the corner was rarely busy, but today he’d gotten stuck behind a group of suits each ordering individual lattes and ended up cutting it a bit closer on time than he'd have liked. He skipped up the flight of stone steps at the front of the museum and checked his phone—he had four entire minutes to spare, thank god—and was just about to tuck it back away when it began vibrating in his hand.

He glanced at it again, gave a happy little hum and threw open the lobby door as he answered.

“Oh, hello.” 

Remus gave a quiet little laugh on the other line, and oh, wasn’t that the most perfect little addition to an already especially wonderful afternoon? “Oh, hi,” he echoed. “You sound chipper.”

“Why, of course I do. It’s Friday afternoon and I have an ice cold coffee in my hand, Remus. The world is blossoming before my very eyes.” 

“Wow. Good day?” 

“Very. Yours?”

“Not a single complaint.”

Sirius hummed fondly. He slowed to a stop in the hallway outside the theater room, turning towards the wall so he wouldn’t be caught grinning to himself. “Are we turning into optimists?” 

Remus tutted. “God, I really hope not.”

Sirius bit back a smile, tapped the toe of his shoe against the marble baseboards and pulled his phone away from his ear just enough to check the time. “I truly do hate to cut this short, but you’ve got about two and a half minutes before I’m supposed to be in this seminar.”

He heard shuffling on the other line, a muffled curse, and then Remus’ voice came from further away. “Shit—it’s already three?” 

“Mhm,” he hummed around his straw. “Don’t tell me you’re about to be late to class, you heathen.”

“I forgot to set an alarm,” Remus huffed. “I keep severely underestimating how much time it’s going to take me to get through these global rhetoric readings.”

Sirius grimaced. “Hey, one more week, and then it’s goodbye, global rhetoric forever.”

“If the final doesn’t kill me first.”

“You’ll do great, you big old nerd,” Sirius chided. “I’ll help you study this weekend if you want. Run some flash cards, try some interrogation-style quizzing…”

“Interrogation style?” Remus repeated amusedly, his voice closer to the phone again.

“I’m thinking a good old-fashioned flashlight to the forehead might do the trick.”

“Depending on how the review goes today, I might just take you up on that.”

Sirius glanced behind him as a couple of the other interns wandered into the theater room, checking the time again to be safe. “You’re coming to me tonight, right?” 

“Yeah, I’ll be over after class,” Remus replied. Sirius heard some shuffling, then keys jingling in the background. “That’s actually why I wanted to try and catch you before your seminar—do you have anything to make at home or do you want me to grab something on the way?”

“Oh, my hero,” Sirius gushed. “Yes, please grab something—get whatever you want. I don’t care as long as I don’t have to attempt to cook anything.”

“Hey, you did really good with dinner last week,” Remus offered kindly. “I went back for seconds, remember?”

Sirius hummed a flat note. “You’re biased, darling. Your opinion can’t be trusted.” 

“I’d tell you if it was bad.”

“I really, really don’t think you would.” 

Remus hesitated. “I mean…well. Maybe not. But I definitely wouldn’t have gone back for seconds if it was that bad.”

“Well, it’s your turn next, and I’m expecting opulence after last time, Lupin. I want nothing short of fine dining.” 

“Oh, god,” Remus tutted. “I really should have done something easy and kept your expectations low.” 

“At this rate you’ll be a full fledged chef by Christmas.”

“Well, tonight you’re getting something cheap and most likely dumped out of a paper box. No opulence allowed on a Friday.”

“Deal,” Sirius smiled. He snuck another look into the theater room, spotted a deck of slides thrown up on the projector, and sighed reluctantly. “I have to get in there in the next twenty seconds.”

“Okay,” Remus sighed back. Sirius heard a door shut and lock and imagined he was leaving his apartment for class. “I’ll text you when I leave school.”

“Can’t wait.”

“Have fun,” Remus smiled. “Love you.”

Sirius’ stomach fluttered. He couldn’t believe it was still doing that, all these months later, but it was a surprisingly frequent occurrence these days. 

“Love you, too.”

He allowed himself five seconds to goon grin down at his phone after hanging up, to admire the newest in a lovely series of photos of the two of them he’d chosen for this week’s lock screen, and then turned on his heel and slipped into the theater room just as his supervisor began introducing the guest.

His usual seat in the second-to-last row was taken, so Sirius slid into one in the back with only a half-hearted little huff. If it were last month—last week, even—he might have put up a bit more of a fuss about losing his unassigned-assigned seat to a rando from the marketing team, but not today. No; today was Friday, Remus was bringing home something greasy and delicious for dinner, and Sirius couldn’t be bothered to be anything but ecstatic for the weekend. He took several long sips of his coffee when the slides at the front of the room flipped to a rundown of the talk—digital curatorial practices in contemporary media landscapes, how very tantalizing for a Friday afternoon—and settled in with a goal to stay at least a little awake for the next two hours.

The speaker—a short, middle-aged man with a vaguely northeastern accent—took off on his introduction, and something about the monotone drone of his voice sent Sirius drifting off into his thoughts nearly instantly. He fiddled with a chip on the back of his phone case for a moment before giving in and flipping it over. The photo from the weekend before waiting on the lock screen really was particularly swoon-worthy; what had started out as a double date picnic in Central Park with James and Lily had turned into an hours-long stroll around the reservoir that left Sirius and Lily sunburnt, James with an infuriatingly perfect tan, and Remus with about a hundred more freckles than he’d started the day with. The four of them had eventually parked it beneath the shade of a line of trees, sprawling out on the thin, brightly-colored woven blankets Lily had brought and savoring the warmth of the late evening sun. Sirius had been feeling especially fond, what with the smattering of new freckles dotted along the bridge of Remus’ nose, and the golden light of the sunset was practically glowing on his skin, so he’d tossed his phone to Lily and demanded she take a new photo for his lock screen. 

The impromptu little shoot had produced several pictures that Sirius loved—one of the adorable, disgruntled scrunch of Remus’ nose as Sirius coaxed him up from his lounging on the grass, another of him carefully pulling Sirius’ sunglasses off and perching them on the top of his head, and this one, his favorite, of himself raised on his knees, pressed up against Remus’ back with his arms thrown around his shoulders, pressing a smiley kiss to his cheekbone. Sirius studied the photo and recalled the warmth of Remus’ skin, the surprised, breathy little laugh he’d let loose and the feel of his hand slipping around the back of Sirius’ neck, tugging him forward and craning his head back to press one, then two quick kisses to his lips. 

A series of bright, fluttery feelings took off on a twirl somewhere beneath his ribs, pulsed warm and sugar sweet under his skin and made him bite back a smile. Sirius took a long, contented breath in and savored it. 

Not so long ago, these quiet little moments of fondness were few and far between. However much he’d tried to convince himself otherwise at the time, Sirius had spent a good chunk of the spring with a heavy pit of anxiety in his stomach, entirely positive that his and Remus’ relationship was one more unresolved, petty fight and a couple of strained silences away from shattering for good. They’d started it off strong, but that last semester in Boston was hard in ways that neither of them were prepared for.

[helyiios]

Shitty pedagogy and vaguely masochistic tendencies : a study of Team Hunt handling trainees

(Team Hunt dynamics, Ethan/Benji in the background, 3.1k)

this one goes out to @liass-21 because this is a stupid thing we've brewed yesterday at like 1AM or something

When they'd learnt they'd get a special, week long training with the members of Team Hunt, the new batch of agents in training had felt particularly proud and lucky. A little fearful, too, but they were more than ready to be able to learn from the greats. There were 60 of them, all split in teams of 15. Each member of Team Hunt had agreed to it, except for Luther Stickell, who had told Secretary Hunley, that, he quotes, "could not be fucking bothered." 

Which led them to this, standing awkwardly in the middle of a massive amphitheater, in their training clothes, waiting for the legends to deign arrive. When they did, the trainees couldn't help but feel sweat drip down their spines. Would they ever amount to what would be expected of them ? Could they prove their worth ? They sure hoped so. 

"Hello, everyone," Ethan fucking Hunt said first, looking extremely relaxed in his teeshirt and jeans, "it's nice to meet you all. I'm Ethan Hunt, special field agent for the IMF, and team leader. As you know, we've been asked to supervise you this week, and we all look forward to it. We all specialise in different areas during missions, but we've all received the same training, which covers everything from honeypot situations to sharpshooting. A week is not a long time to develop your skills, but we're hoping to help you with it. Do your best and you'll be alright. Now, I'll let my team present themselves," he adds, gesturing at the two men and the woman besides him. 

She's the first to step forward, also dressed casually, hair in a loose ponytail. Her face is warm, compared to those of the two other men. 

"I'm Jane Carter. Field agent. I specialise in hand-to-hand combat, it's very nice to meet you. I hope we will work well together." 

"William Brandt," the man in the sharp grey suit says then, raising one hand. "Assistant to the Secretary. I don't go out in the field as much as these two anymore," he adds, pointing at his teammates, "but don't let it fool you. I expect a lot from you all, and I will not go easy on any of you." 

He finally turns to the last agent, a tall blond man who was wearing a seemingly fitted navy blue suit and an undone white shirt under—slightly less formal than Brandt, but still less casual than the two others. He'd actually been on his phone the whole time, typing something with his right thumb, face fully focused. There's an awkward silence in the room that lasts for a few seconds, and a cough from Ethan before he actually looks up, blinking and sniffing unceremoniously. 

"Right," he mumbles, putting his phone back in his pocket, a heavy British accent lacing his words, "I'm Benjamin Dunn. Field agent and Field technician. Huh. Nice to meet you all." 

The trainees look at each other, unanimously deciding that he looked the most unassuming of the bunch. His posture was awkward, and slouched, and so were his words. Clearly, he seemed to be the weakest link.

Ethan Hunt was a legend, someone who defied the odds, Jane Carter looked like she could kill you by just blinking, and William Brandt looked weirdly psychorigid. If anything, whichever team got Benjamin Dunn would be the luckiest. Plus, what was there to expect from a technician ? 

They're all split evenly a few minutes later, each team heading out of the room to other ones, specially arranged for their training. Hunt, for some weird reason, had sent an odd look to the team that had drawn Dunn. He had sent an odd look to Dunn period, actually, but none of the trainees tried to really focus on that. 

There were various sports and gym-like contraptions in the wide room, some treadmills, ropes, dumbbells, and more. And a desk, too, for some fucking reason. Benji Dunn makes a beeline towards it, sitting loudly in the chair and raising his legs to slam his feet on the table. He looked at his team through his long lashes, decidedly unphased. 

"Twenty minutes on the treadmills at 12kmph, or 7.4mph for your Americans," he says mildly. "By the end of the week, I want you to run at 10mph for at least ten minutes." 

"WHAT ?!" the vast majority of his team blurts out, eyes wide and mouth hanging low, "but sir, that's not—" 

"Official training makes you run at 9mph for ten minutes. Why are you complaining ?" 

Some of the men recoil, clearly taken aback by his tone. This was definitely not what they had expected from him. 

"But can't we start with some hand-to-hand combat ?" someone else whines, probably feeling bold, "what use is it to run ? We all know how to that." 

"Yeah, and you won't have the cardio for a proper fight," Benji replies simply, eyes back on his phone screen. Faint noises come out from it, something oddly familiar, and then they realise—

Was he playing fucking Subway Surfers ?

"What would you know about that ?" a young woman retorts, hands on her hips, "you're a field tech. You probably don't want to teach us combat because you actually don't know how do it." 

Benji actually looks up at that, mouth contorting slightly, trying to stay quiet before—

Before he snorts, covering his face and turning away a little to try and hide his hilarity. Now he's full on giggling, which doesn't help with the frustrated blush on the poor woman's face. This goes on for a few seconds before he wipes his eyes, shaking his head slightly. With an exaggerated display of effort he gets back up, cracking his neck and walking over to them. He plants himself in front of the trainee, towering her and cocking his head to the side. 

"You're lucky I have one hundred and twenty four blue keys in my game," he begins, "because I was beating my personal record, just now. I'm not teaching you hand-to-hand combat because you wouldn't be good at it. You need to work on your stamina, first." 

"Or maybe we can use the element of surprise !" someone behind him shouts, and he groans before stepping aside, watching the other trainee miss him by a few centimeters. He defeatedly watches him try and take a swing at him, moving his hands uselessly in the hair, and he can't help but think about Ilsa. It would've been fun to see her do that thigh movement she always used. Once, Jane had said that she'd found it hot, and he'd gagged. 

Whatever. He focuses back on that poor kid who was stalling, throwing hits here and there, and Benji simply kept wobbling from one feet to another to avoid him. It was sort of pathetic, kind of like that time in Vienna when Ethan had to fight that super tall guy. 

With a sigh he finally grabs his wrist, twisting it slightly until the trainee had to put a knee down, whimpering in pain.  Benji kept twisting, looking at him in sheer disinterest. It was not until he'd heard him beg for him to let go that he steps back, putting his hands back in his pockets. Some other trainees had jumped to their teammate's rescue, looking at his reddening muscles in worry.

"Now," Benji says, tone bored, "can you get on those fucking treadmills ?" 

His team looks at him dejectedly, and they all find themselves a spot. There are a few that cannot, due to a lack of enough equipment, and they vaguely wonder if that meant they were safe. 

"You all," he however calls out to them, arms crossed, "fifty pushups, fifty bungees. Repeat until I say it's over." 

"What the fuck," one of the trainees mutters, and suddenly they're jealous of the assholes who were about to go run. 

They get to work, though, even if most of them curse all the way through it. Hours pass, they switch exercises, and they're already sweating buckets. 

"I need to go talk to Hunt," Benji then suddenly says, gesturing at them vaguely, "keep on doing what you're doing. There's a camera watching you. If you don't do as told, I'm going to get real fucking annoyed. Got it ?" 

They all groan in agreement, and then he's disappeared from the room altogether. They look at each other, some with tears of exhaustion in their eyes, but they get back to their activities nonetheless.

—

"Working hard or hardly working ?" Ethan says as soon as he spots his husband, offering him his brightest smile, "how are they doing ?" 

"Why did I agree to this ?" Benji whines, letting his head drop in the crook of the other man's neck, "this is so boring ! They're so boring ! None of them can run at a decent pace !" 

"Define decent ?" 

"15kmph ?" 

"Yeah," Ethan snorts, "that's not decent. Wait—are you torturing those kids ?" 

A shrug.

"Benji !" 

"What ? They're not kids ! They're, fucking—I dunno, over twenty five ! They're full blow adults, they pay their taxes ! You know what some girl told me ? Huuuuh, you're not making us fight because you're a field tech and you don't know how to !" he says, voice pitched higher and tone full on mocking. "Like, who does she thing she is ?" 

"Baby—" 

"And when I passed the field exam, they made me run at 17kmph. And I was older than them. Do you know for how long I puked after it ? Mate, it was not pretty. If I can do it, so can they." 

"I don't think—" 

"Hey, you guys !" Jane calls out as she trots towards them, "all's good ? Training going okay ?" 

"Marvelous," Benji sarcastically replies. "You ?" 

"Yeah, yeah. They're sweet, sort of. Told them I'd bring them muffins at the end of the week." 

"Wow, you actually give a shit about them. Thrilling." 

"What, you don't ?" she frowns, "I mean I don't know, I want to make it interesting for them, y'know ?" 

Benji scoffs, running a hand through his hair.

"They're big boys and big girls, they can handle themselves. I'm not going to bake them fucking cookies. Like who am I ? Fucking Mother Theresa ?" 

"Sometimes," Ethan begins, an amused smile curling his lips, "I forget that we're part of the very exclusive 'people I care about' Benji Dunn club. How many are we in there ? Five ?" 

"I mean, six if we count Hunley," his husband shrugs, pursing his lips. "You make me sound like an asshole ! I'm just saying that I'm here to make them field agents. Not to stuff them with your homemade blueberry muffins." 

"Wh—you love my blueberry muffins, asshole !" 

"I really do," he sighs. "Where's Will ?" 

"Introducing them to the art of filling a report correctly," Jane grins, "he was very adamant about that." 

"That's so hot I might just wet my pants," Benji grimaces, turning back to look over at the door leading to his room. "I'll head back. God knows what they're all fucking doing. Hopefully not having an orgy." 

"Benji—" 

"Dude, ew !" 

"What ? It's a possibility. I'll see you tonight for drinks," he adds, waving them goodbye before turning on his heels, leaving the two other agents to stare at his back a little dumbfounded.

"You know he's making them run at 9mph ?" Ethan asks his friend, grinning when he sees the shock on her face, "yeah, I had the same reaction." 

"I think he's too used to you." 

"And I think we forget he finished first of his promotion during the field agent training." 

"He's so weird and scary." 

"Mm," he simply hums, looking dreamily into the distance. "Anyway. Time to go back, too. Catch you later." 

"Yeah, yeah. See you." 

Should she also make chocolate chip muffins, she wonders ? 

—

At first, Alan Hunley had thought it was a great idea, that whole Hunt thing with the trainees. He'd seen how Ethan had been when he'd started as a mentor, and he deeply believed in his pedagogy. He knew Brandt would not disappoint as well, and he was fairly confident in Carter, too. 

Now. 

The remaining issue was the last agent. Dunn. Why was it always Dunn ? Was he not tired of wearing him out ? Had the blown up buildings in central London not been enough ? What kind of mental illnesses did he have ?

Scratch that.

What kind of mental illnesses did he not have ?

Was he just like that ? 

He stares at the ten reports in front of him. Ten trainees who'd walked out the course on day three, four, and five. Some of them crying. It almost makes him want to laugh, but then he remembers that he has a moral code and actual human feelings, so he doesn't. Instead, he just sighs. 

Today was day seven. The last day. Surely Benji Dunn wouldn't be doing anything out of the norm. Right ? 

That's the mantra he keeps repeating to himself as he walks down from his office to the special rooms, hoping to get a small glimpse at whatever the fuck Team Hunt was up to. Hopefully, Ethan was not telling them about the benefits of jumping off a plane, or kidnapping the King of England, or anything like that. 

At least he hopes so ?

He hears them before he can see them, and he makes his way inside the training room quietly, sitting in a corner to try and not disrupt whatever was happening. Brandt and Dunn were standing in the middle of the room, everyone else watching intently, silence reigning. 

"So," Brandt says, tone horribly high pitched, "do you want to have sex with me ?" he asks, and his voice breaks on that last syllable, and then Benji Dunn's folding on the side and audibly retches. 

"And this," Ethan immediately says, eyes closed and mouth in a thin line, "is not how you try and deal with a target during a honeypot mission." 

"But it can be how you deal with a hierarchic superior," Brandt supplies, index raised, and Jane Carter snorts so loud Hunley's sure that he can see some fucking spit flow out of her mouth. "Don't get too handsy with the marks, though, we're here to get information, not get jailed for sexual assault." 

"Yeah, tell that to Ethan," Jane mutters, rolling her eyes.

"Oh for Christ's sake, I kissed you once in Mumbai, and it wasn't even a full kiss ! A peck at most ! Can you please get over it ?!" 

"God, when I'm gonna tell Ilsa about it..." 

"Ethan's a good kisser, though," Benji offers, hands on his hips, "But I reckon Brandt's too eager on the tongue. Don't get me wrong, it's fun, but it's also really wet." 

"I am so delighted to hear about all of that," their Secretary cuts them off, taking them all by surprise as he gets up from his bench and walks towards them, "I see the training is going well. Only 17 people have given up so far ! Ten of which were in your team, agent Dunn ! Congratulations !" 

"Ella's getting tested for PTSD," a trainee tells him, and Jane whistles lowly at that. 

"Sir," Ethan replies, ever so professional, "it's good to see you. We were—huh, going over honeypot strategies." 

"I can see that."

"It's not going too well," Brandt adds.

"I can also see that." 

"I wish Luther was there," Benji then suddenly pipes up, making everyone turn to him. "He flirted with me once, he even used his low voice and all. Closest thing I'll ever get to get hit on by Idris Elba," he sadly says. "Shame, really." 

"You know," Hunley notes, feeling a vein burst on his forehead, "if I stay here for a minute more, I might be tempted fire all four of you." 

"Is that a promise ?" the British agent asks, face eager. "Can we do the pinky thing ?" 

"Go back to work," his superior groans, sending death glares to them all. "These kids better be fit for field agent training tonight." 

"Yes sir," Ethan nods, watching him stomp out of the room. He stares back at the group, feeling oddly defeated. "Okay, who wants to do some practice target shooting ?" 

Everybody cheers. 

—

By the end of the week Benji had made fourteen people cry, Brandt had traumatised five of them with his whole administrative kink, Jane had brought them her muffins and Ethan had gotten love letters from twenty trainees. Benji actually made fun of him for it once they'd gotten home, but his husband had gotten sort of defensive, saying he'd found it 'sweet.' 

If one thing was sure, it's that they were not meant to be teaching whatever the fuck their missions required them to do. They were a messy team, full of messy people, who did things out of order and, you guessed it, messily. They'd found it fun, though, as far as fun could go when they'd had ten trainees puke their brains out after one of Benji's exercises (he'd called it automatic cleansing, which Ethan, Jane and Brandt thought was fucking weird,) and they had to promise to Hunley to never interact with young trainees ever again, out of fear of breaking them psychologically before they'd even gotten the chance to get in the field. 

Ethan and Benji were spread on their couch that night, slightly tipsy from the drinks their team had shared in honour of the shitshow being over, and the former was fighting an endless battle with his brain to try and not blurt out what he really wanted to say. 

"It's hot when you get all authoritative," he finally breaks, sounding insanely lame, averting his gaze from his husband's. 

"What ?" 

"I mean, when you...give orders," he further explains, trying to play it cool. "It's attractive. Is what I mean." 

"Well," Benji snorts, "'course I give orders. I'm the voice in your ear. That's sort of my job." 

"Yeah, okay. No need to be so cocky." 

"Aw, E. You're so cute when you're flustered." 

Ethan brutally blushes, sending him a glare that would've made anyone who wasn't his husband probably piss their pants. 

"Not flustered." 

"Whatever you say, darling," the other giggles, going back to watch their movie. "I hope none of the kids we've trained are going to die brutally in a traumatising field event," he then says, very calmly. "That'd be a shame."

"You're so weird," Ethan mutters, going to kiss him. "I hope so too." 

"Mm." 

They stay cuddled by each other's side until they fall asleep. 

[autisticlancemcclain]

fic rec friday 59

hello and welcome to fic rec friday! where, on friday, i rec five of my favourite fics.

Lance Denies The Feels by @bleusarcellewrites

“Hey, knock it dead, Sharpshooter.” Keith winks and Lance’s weak. ‘Thanks, I’ll be right back.’ He tries to say, to excuse himself calm and collected so he would exit the training room and go to a corner on a room with no boys with hot mullets, so he can maybe, just maybe, come to terms with the sudden events like a normal person. “You fight good!” Lance shouts instead. [In which Lance isn't aware that he has a crush and the realization hits him hard enough to screams his bi feelings out. On an empty room. Which turns out not to be emtpty. It works out for him in the ends, thanks to a Mulan reference.]

big big fan of fics where lance is so obviously crushing on keith that its just embarrassing for everyone around him. and keiths fond and quiet indulgence fucking -- well. truly gets me every time. also love the clowning he gets from the team lmao

2. See no Evil, Hear no Evil, Speak no Evil by galaxymilk

Lance becomes the vessel for a high-tech Galra weapon that will detonate at the mere mention of its existence. The clock is ticking, Lance, you better think fast.

i read this when i was the tender tender age of fourteen and let me tell you it FUCKED ME UP!!!!!!!!! imagine carrying a bomb in your body that might kill your friends. but if you tell anyone it detonates. that fear? that terror? it is REEKING off the fucking screen. you will read this fic breathless. your heart will make home in your throat. your muscles will cramp in their tenseness. also it features lance bragging about keith to random strangers in the beginning lol

3. When Did This Happen? by memoriesofrain

What do you mean they're together? I thought they were just really close! OR No one knew Hunk and Lance were together and Lance is homesick.

some hance!! yall know i love me some secret relationship. and i love it so much more when its not actually secret relationship and is instead 'yah weve been openly dating this whole time yall are just too dumb to notice' like that one makes me giggle

4. Space Is Cold by corvus (borrowedphrases)

Lance is a pain in the butt, but Hunk loves him and worries about him anyway.

was in my hance era when i was making these bookmarks apparently. and u know what? i was correct. hance is cute as shit. also, 2016 fics will always hold the most specialest of places in my heart. each one of them ate truly. this one is so cute and intimate.

5. Snapshots and Other Bonding Moments by @shyfoxes

Hunk and Lance are constants in each other's lives, and that will never change. Four moments between Lance & Hunk and One moment spent with Team Voltron.

four plus ones!! my beloved!!! small moments of regular life love!!! my beloved!!! 2016 fics!!! my beloved!!! god some of the tags on this thing...nostalgia. anyways. i loved this fic because i have always loved fics diving into the characters' lives prekerb, u know? i want Backstory. also the lilo and stitch references were cute. if youre not a fan of hance, this is pre relationship so can def be read as platonic!! such a cute fic fr

that’s it for today!! i’ll see y’all back next friday for the next fic rec post!!!