#I want chapter 3 completely done before I start uploading it but I also want to hit my 'within september' deadline

[comicaurora]

my current record for number of comic pages lined in one day is 12, set last night, breaking my previous record of 11. today my goal is to hit 22

[kudouasagi135]

After Shinichi started living in Kaito's home…

Quick pharaoh!Shinichi au sketch ｡⁠◕⁠‿⁠◕⁠｡

Shinichi starts getting so impressed with everything in this timeline that he started digging into Kaito's stuff without permission, and Kaito is generally annoyed with it but he can't help it.

Shinichi also allowed him to put on his father's costume (Kaito KID clothes) whenever he wanted but not use it for stealing or he will send him back to the underworld (⁠・⁠_⁠・⁠;⁠)

These boys don't get along right away with each other, especially with Shinichi being the only barrier between Kaito and actual death.

New au info down here ↓

Shinichi becomes a ghost after he starts living with Kaito, but not exactly one.

Shinichi can control who can see him and who can't, but he will become completely invisible and unable to do that on every new moon 🌑, and even Kaito won't be able to see him.

Shinichi can also interact with any object from the real world and can choose to have his hand move through the object or hold it.

Shinichi can have a human body every two full moons, he won't be a ghost on those days, but he loses connection with the underworld, only to regain them the day after. Along with his ghostly nature.

On the blood moon, Shinichi will hide away in his room from Kaito and not show himself to anyone, concerning everyone who knows about his existence (Yup, Kaito told them about it)

All detco characters will belong to the Egyptian civilization era with alternative names (Shinichi was called Senzo before Kaito changed it into Shinichi and teaching him Japanese), while all mk characters will belong to our current timeline, and we will consider Toichi to have actually died in this series because if he were alive then I wouldn't have been able to fit all the family drama in the au.

And that's all, I'm out, peace! (⁠≧⁠▽⁠≦⁠)

I'm currently writing chapter 1 and will upload the story on fanfiction.net after I am done writing the drafts for chapter 2 or 3 so that I'll be able to update weekly.

But I'm currently busy with another secret project that everyone will enjoy and it might be out on AO3, Fanfic & Wattpad (This is a very old, badly made, discontinued fic that I used the link for because I didn't know how to get the account link on Wattpad, you can read it if you want but I recommend not to because it is really bad (⁠￣⁠ヘ⁠￣⁠;⁠)) on Monday morning according to the middle east timeline.

[whatacaitastrophe]

Is It Over Now - Chapter 12

Previous Chapter

Chapter Song Inspiration: "The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot" - Brand New

Chapter Warnings: Mystra

Spotify Playlist: Here

Chapter Notes: this is the last chapter of "Is It Over Now!" thank you so much to everyone who has read this fic and liked it, reblogged it, left comments etc. the next installment, "Everything Has Changed" is already on AO3, and i'll start uploading chapters here soon <3

also!! i have a discord server!! it was made to coincide with the twitch channel, but i need more friends to talk about bg3 with so pls come hang. link is above!

Chapter 12: Call Me A Safe Bet, I'm Betting I'm Not

“Astarion, we’re supposed to be packing.” Fallon giggles.

Astarion is also supposed to be in the kitchen, taking stock of what food they have left and how much of it is worth taking with them. Instead, he’s in their bedroom with his arms wrapped around Fallon’s waist from behind, peppering kisses across her neck and shoulders. “We’ve done enough packing for today, I think it’s time we take a well-deserved break.” 

“We just started!” Fallon argues, but she also does nothing to stop Astarion’s hands from slipping beneath the hem of her shirt. 

“We started yesterday.” His fingertips dance lightly over the skin above her trousers underneath her shirt. 

Fallon looks at the clock on the wall and giggles again. “You cheeky fucker, just because we started at half-ten in the evening and it’s now one in the morning does not count as starting to pack yesterday. It’s been two and a half hours!”

“Fallon, darling, I’m starting to think you don’t want to have sex with me. It’s going to give me a complex.” Astarion chuckles and he brushes her hair to the side to nip at the nape of her neck. 

She snorts with laughter when he says that. “Yes, because Ao forbid I try to actually make sure we’re prepared to leave for Velrea in four days,” she says drily, leaning into his touch and tilting her head further to the side to give him better access. “Nevermind that we’ve not gone a single day without having sex since the Winter Solstice.”

Astarion pauses for a moment, and Fallon does not need to look at him to know that her partner is digging through his memory to try and prove Fallon wrong. The dramatic huff following the silence is also telling: he knows she’s right. Not that this deters him at all. Instead the vampire changes tactics. “Well, when I live with the most beautiful woman in all of Faerun, how can I be blamed for wanting her constantly? I mean, what would you do if you were in my position?” His fingers deftly slip beneath the very top of her trousers, skimming over her hips. 

A shiver rolls across Fallon’s body, and she almost, almost, gives in. It’s been two months since the Winter Solstice, and Fallon and Astarion have been insatiable ever since. It’s like finally admitting how much they love each other woke up something inside of the them, and with it came a new level of virility that Lae’zel claimed makes them “impossible to be around for longer than an hour.” Truthfully, Fallon would love nothing more than to stop folding clothes and let Astarion take her right there on top of the freshly laundered pile but they have a deadline to meet. If they want to reach Velrea before the Spring Equinox, they absolutely must leave in four days’ time. 

“If I were in your position, I’d take a cold bath then go back to the kitchen.” She giggles. It is only then that Fallon turns around to face Astarion, and she plants a soft kiss on his lips, then pats his cheek when he pouts. “I promise to make it up to you, my love. I’ll even show you what I bought at Figaro’s when I went shopping with Shadowheart a couple days ago. It’s lacy and pretty, positively sinful and completely impractical for traveling.” Fallon teases him, biting her lip and batting her eyelashes. 

“Wicked woman. Absolutely wicked.” Astarion smirks, kissing her once more. “I’m holding you to that.” 

“I expect nothing less. Now go.” Fallon gently pushes him away from her, playfully smacking his backside as he leaves the room. 

The last time the two of them traveled together it was about as unplanned as it could get, considering they’d both been kidnapped and forced to make due with whatever happened to be on their person at first. Now that they have the time to plan and prepare, Fallon wants to do so. Even with it only being the two of them this time, Fallon easily resumed the leadership role she naturally took on during their adventures from the nautiloid to Baldur’s Gate, and Astarion was happy to let her. He’d even admitted to Fallon that was initially part of why he wanted her to come with him in the first place. “You’re better at making tough decisions than I am. Better at taking the emotions out of it, if you will.” He’d explained. 

Fallon could only hope that she is still able to think that logically in the event they are faced with danger. Things are different now, and there is far more at stake; namely, how far she would be willing to go to keep Astarion safe and to help him get what he wants. Fallon would never say she didn’t love Gale, but she certainly did not love Gale in the way she loves Astarion now. The way she feels about the vampire is soul-deep and all-encompassing. If anything ever happened to Astarion, she would scorch the entire world to save him. 

How is it possible that the two of them had so many clothes? It’s not like they were constantly leaving the suite. Astarion couldn’t unless it was dark outside, and Fallon’s sleep schedule was slightly closer to his these days because of it. When they did leave, it was only to go downstairs to the tavern, or occasionally to Wyll’s. Lae’zel and Shadowheart had returned to Creche K’liir, promising to visit more often, same with Karlach and Halsin back to The Grove. On top of that, when Astarion and Fallon were at home they were naked more than half the time because of their inability to keep their hands off of each other. 

Thank the gods they were clothed this evening, however, because the easy silence that filled the suite was interrupted by the sound of somebody opening a portal in the sitting room. “What the–”

“I seek an audience with Fallon of Baldur’s Gate.” An ominous female voice echoes through the suite, and Fallon freezes. She knows that voice. It’s a voice she’s only ever heard once before, but once was enough for her to know enough. Fallon grabs her sword on her way out of the bedroom, despite knowing that it will likely do little should the owner of the voice pick a fight. Astarion apparently had the same idea, for when they meet in the hallway, Astarion is holding a dagger. Quickly, Astarion kisses Fallon and whispers, “I love you,” before taking a step in front of her protectively as they enter the sitting room. 

At the sight of Mystra, Goddess of Magic, Fallon’s heart rate increases exponentially. She’s even more beautiful than Gale’s memories of her depicted, and on that alone, Fallon understands why Gale walked directly into her trap time and time again. Why in the nine hells is Mystra in her home? She quickly scans the sitting room for Gale, but the demi-god is not present. Fallon looks Mystra in the eyes and swallows as she desperately tries to keep her cool. 

“I can’t say I know what the protocol is when a goddess comes to visit. Am I to bow? Offer you tea? Drop to my knees and pray? Then again, you’re not my goddess, so I suppose I don’t need to do any of those things.” Fallon says cooly, and her grip tightens on her sword.

“Put your weapons away, I did not come here to harm you.” Mystra demands. 

“I’ll believe that when I see it.” Astarion snarls back at her, dagger raised. 

“You will not threaten me, vampire.” Mystra snaps.

“You’re the one who entered my home without an invitation, not the other way around,” He snaps back. “What do you want with Fallon?”

Mystra does not recoil when Astarion refuses to back down, but her presence seems to become less…overbearing, somehow. “I came to congratulate her.” 

Astarion and Fallon look at each other in confusion. “Congratulate me for what?”

“For ruining Gale of Waterdeep’s life.” 

Fallon’s blood goes cold, and her grip on her sword loosens. “What have you done to Gale?”

Mystra lets out a cold laugh. “Oh, it’s not a question of what I’ve done, Fallon of Baldur’s Gate, but a question of what Gale of Waterdeep has done. For you, because of you, however you wish to interpret it.”

Even Astarion is lowering his weapons now, and he takes a step back to hold Fallon’s free hand. Whatever Mystra is about to reveal, it’s definitely not good, and Gale is definitely not okay. “What did he do?” Astarion asks.

Mystra smirks. “Gale of Waterdeep has decided that he no longer wishes to become a god. He claims that if being a god means spending eternity without you in it, then he doesn’t want it.”

Oh no. Fallon’s heart drops into her stomach as she slowly puts the pieces together in her mind. She remembers what Gale said of his bargain with Mystra in order to achieve godhood, and what the stakes were. What the cost would be if he denied Mystra. Astarion must remember, too, because his grip on her hand tightens. 

“I told Gale of Waterdeep the consequences of his choice would be the same now as they were when I first offered him a chance to ascend to godhood. He chose you still. I simply needed to meet the woman who turned my chosen against me so thoroughly face-to-face, and to bring her a gift.” 

Whatever this gift is, Fallon is already certain it’s not much of a gift at all. Not for her, not for Astarion, and most certainly not for Gale. 

Mystra snaps her fingers, and Gale Dekarios is suddenly on the ground at Fallon and Astarion’s feet. He looks up at her weakly, and when he reaches for her, his entire body is shaking. Fallon’s sword hits the ground with a clang and lets go of Astarion’s hand, dropping to her knees in front of Gale.

“What have you done to him, you wretched bitch?!” Fallon screams at Mystra. Fallon reaches for Gale’s body and Astarion is almost immediately at her side, helping her pull Gale closer to them both, wrapping their bodies around Gale to protect him from Mystra. If that’s even possible at this point, as it seems the damage is already done.

“I have not done anything Gale of Waterdeep has not asked for,” Mystra says coldly. “He knew the consequences of defying me, turning his back on me, and chose you anyway, so I bring him to you, Fallon of Baldur’s Gate. For he is your problem now, in all his imperfect, entirely and ordinarily human disgrace.” 

Mystra says nothing else before stepping back through her portal, and Fallon and Astarion watch in shock as it closes. It is only once Mystra is gone that either of them realize Gale is inconsolable. 

“She– she took my magic. Fallon– it’s gone. I can’t feel The Weave anymore. Oh gods. It’s gone!” Fallon pulls as much of Gale into her lap as she can and holds him there as the man she once loved so fiercely completely breaks down. Even after everything Gale has done, he didn’t deserve this punishment. Taking away his access to The Weave was already cruel, but dropping him on his ex-lover’s doorstep? That was especially malicious. 

“It’s gone.” Gale continues to repeat, and Fallon just looks at Astarion desperately. For once, she does not know what to do. 

“Well,” Astarion sighs, and reaches for Fallon’s hand, squeezing it tightly. “I guess I’d better make sure we’ve got enough food for three, then.”

There’s no hesitancy in his voice and Fallon nods in agreement: Gale Dekarios of Waterdeep, mortal, non-magical, and human, is coming with them to Velrea, whether he likes it or not.

Masterlist

[starboybutler]

Poor Boy ( CH. 1 )

summary: Jess Wade finds an injured boy on his property one day.

word count: 3060

warnings: violence, kidnapping, anxiety

notes: decided to start posting my multichapter clint/jess fic to tumblr and not just on a03! i hardly post over here so this should be a treat for my three followers here (also bc i wanna use these cute cowboy dividers i found). i'm already three chapters deep into this story, and currently working on the fourth- so i'll upload the rest of the chapters sometime this week to space em out a lil. in the meantime, please enjoy chapter one!

chapter 1 (you are here)

chapter 2

chapter 3 (coming soon)

jess wade was fifteen years old when he first saw his name on a wanted poster.

his mom was devastated beyond belief. she nocouldn't even begin to think that her little boy was running around with a group of troublemakers, looting and vandalizing and stealing- but that wanted poster stuck out in their small town like a sore thumb.

the people were outraged that a delinquent was in their town, ruining their reputation and committing petty crimes like it was a fun after school hobby. they never liked jess much, even before they knew he was stealing, honestly. he always heard the town gossiping to his momma about how she should take him to a doctor because 'something wasn't right’ with him.

jess never paid them any mind, all he needed was his momma.

but when that wanted poster showed up, he lost her too. she yelled at him, which she had never done before- and jess felt his heart shatter into pieces.

that's the last time he remembers crying.

the town shooed him out, with nothing but the clothes on his back and a horse to get around. at least they were nice enough for that.

but he wasn't completely alone, even then. he still had vince, who he'd committed the petty crimes with. vince didn't have his mom or dad either. he ran away a long while ago, and began his side gig of stealing from small towns wherever he could find them. when he found jess’s town, he saw jess sitting on the porch and scrubbing away at his only good pair of shoes, trying to get the dirt out of them.

vince approached him and said he needed help getting something back. said a kid in this town stole his money and he wouldn't give it up, so he had to go take it by force.

he chose jess because he was mean looking- tough. he was an outsider, even in his small hometown, and that was just fine with him.

jess knew he was stealing, but he went along with it anyway. to this day, he doesn't know what possessed him to join that lanky ginger kid.

eventually he cut vince off, but that damn vince hackett still knows how to get under jess’s skin like a goddamn bug.

after the messiness of getting out of the bond he had with vince, jess decided that he was better off alone. he didn't need anyone. all he needed was his horse- and even then he could replace that. he just needed to stay on the outskirts of any town, far away from anyone and anything.

jess hummed to himself quietly as he poured grain into his horse’s feeder, gently petting his nose as he leaned down to eat. his horse truly was the only thing he cared about anymore.

jess set down the grain and wiped at his forehead, exhaling as he turned on his heel towards the exit of the barn. just as he stepped into the sun, the familiar sound of a gunshot echoed loudly in his ears.

he'd heard gunshots more times than he could count. he would hear them at any time of day, but for them to be this close to his cabin was unusual. had vince found him again?

jess reached for the gun on his hip, placing his hand on it as he stalked out of the stables and into the hot sun, observing his surroundings carefully. nothing looked out of place. no suspicious figures on the horizon, no horses, no nothing. just the land, like it always is.

jess moved his hand away from his gun and hummed lowly, rolling his shoulders back. wherever it came from, it wasn't his problem. nothing ever was anymore.

he began to walk towards his cabin, but something in his gut told him to turn around. he glanced behind his shoulder, and saw an unusual lump on the ground a little ways in the distance.

a person.

jess spun around and quickly made his way over to the body, standing over it and staring at it, dumbfounded.

it was a boy.

he looked to be a teen, maybe eighteen or nineteen maybe. his hair was blonde, but dirty and matted with dried blood and dirt, and his skin was pale. save for the fading flush on his cheeks from the blistering heat. his clothes were ripped and stained, and jess could faintly see scratch marks and ripping on his clothes from a struggle. jess knelt down and gently pressed his fingers on the boy’s neck, feeling for a pulse.

it was there, but it was awfully faint. jess furrowed his brow in thought, looking over the boy once more.

he was in bad shape. there was a chance that even if jess took him to get help, he’d die before he could even begin to recover. on the other hand, it never hurt to try, just a little. it never hurt to have a little hope.

without a second thought, jess gently took the blonde boy into his arms bridal style, trying not to jostle his head too much as he headed towards his secluded cabin. he had some supplies laying around in his room for emergencies, maybe he could patch him up well enough for a few days or so.

jess kicked his door open and sat the unconscious boy on his shoddily made couch, jogging to get his supplies from under his bed. he set everything down on his coffee table and exhaled through his

nose, grabbing some gauze and pressing it to the wound on his head gently, sopping up any blood that was still dribbling out.

the boy twitched weakly, and jess cursed to himself as he swabbed up any blood. this wasn't going to be perfect, but jess wasn't a doctor- it didn't need to be perfect. this boy just needed to survive.

jess grabbed the bandages and wrapped the wound tightly, cutting it short with his teeth and tucking it under the others so it stayed in place. he began dabbing the other wounds and wrapping them in the same fashion, holding his breath as he prayed that this boy didn't die on his couch.

as jess wrapped up the last wound on his arm, he looked over the boy once more.

he was barely breathing, but he looked a little less pale. he was sweating bullets, shaking and twitching from the shock of whatever happened to him. his eyes were screwed shut, tears running down his cheek every once in a while.

jess sighed softly, reaching to the side of him and pulling a blanket over the boy as he twitched and trembled in his sleep. jess decided that trying to wake him up now wouldn't be the smartest thing to do. he’d probably scare the boy out of his mind and send him into shock again. the kid just needed to rest, they could talk when he woke up.

as for jess, he needed to freshen up after handling this boy’s beaten up body. his clothes were stained and dirtied now.

jess lifted his chin, gently dragging the razor across his neck carefully. he let his facial hair get a little out of hand lately.

the seasons were changing, so he didn't have to go into town as often as he used to. the heat was dying down ever so slightly- so his crops weren't dying as often. he could survive for a few months without having to go visit the sheriff for some goods. the sweets his wife made were good for storing up when he needed it, but the ride was draining.

he set the razor down and washed the remaining shaving cream off of his face, dabbing his face dry with an old towel as he sighed deeply. the boy had yet to move on the couch, but his breathing had evened out, and he had stopped shaking. he seemed to just be in a deep sleep now.

hopefully he woke up soon. jess had a lot of questions about his whole ordeal.

jess turned and placed his hat back on his head, freezing in his steps as he saw the boy sitting up on the couch. he looked dazed, his eyes fixed on his dirty hands and tattered clothes. the poor thing seemed like he was still in shock.

jess carefully took a step forward, and the blonde’s head snapped up towards him. his eyes were big and blue, glassy with unshed tears. jess held up a hand in front of him, setting his jaw.

“i know you're confused,” he starts slowly, his voice firm. “but i ain't the one that hurt ya.”

the blonde blinked, looking away from him and staring at his filthy hands once more. he seemed so out of it- almost like he wasn't even sure he was real or not. it was creepy.

“i shot him,” the boy spoke hoarsely, before breaking into a harsh coughing fit. the poor thing probably hasn't had a drink for god knows how long. jess rushed to the sink and filled a glass with water, pressing the cool glass into the blonde's trembling hands.

“drink something,” jess muttered, guiding the drink to his lips.

the boy obeyed almost mindlessly. when he got that first taste of water, he was gulping it down quickly like it was the last time he’d ever get to drink anything.

the boy exhaled loudly as he finished the water, reaching to messily wipe at his mouth, smearing dirt on his face. jess would have reached and wiped it off, but he didn't want to startle him even more. the boy’s hands were bandaged. were those bandages there when he found him?

“better?” jess asked, setting the glass to the side and raising an eyebrow.

the boy nodded ever so slightly. he sat and stared at the ground, before large tears welled up in his eyes and spilled down his dirty cheeks, wetting his shirt. his body shook as he pressed the palms of his hands into his eyes, palming at them desperately to stop the tears.

jess had never been good at dealing with emotions. his own, or others. he found them to be too complicated, and he rid himself of any feelings long ago, when he was young. the people in his town called him heartless when he shed no tears at funerals, or when he didn't smile at the get-togethers. that's just who he was. life was easier that way- and no one understood but him.

“i dunno what i did wrong,” the boy started, his body trembling as he sat up, trying to compose himself. “i-i was jus’ doin’ chores for ma, in the fields, and then,”

his eyes darken, and he clutches at his head like he's in agony.

“th-they snatched me up- t-took me away an’...they tried to….and i shot ‘em.” the blonde hiccuped frantically, tugging at the matted hair on his head.

jess quickly grabbed his wrist, pulling it away from his head as gently as he could manage. the boy’s hands twitched in his grasp, and he weakly tried to pull away before he gave in, his body much too weak to put up any fight.

“don't be yankin’ and pullin’ at your head like that,” jess scolds softly, letting his wrist go. “you're gonna hurt yourself more. it's a miracle you're even alive.” he said bluntly.

the boy looked away, his eyes still dark as his hand balled into his pants, tears threatening to spill from his eyes again.

“why'd you save me?”

jess set his jaw. hell, he didn't even know why he saved this boy. a near-dead body was a common sight where he lived, in the middle of nowhere. it was common for people to dump and leave bodies for dead around here, and jess would ride and walk past them like they were nothing but another rock in the sand.

but when he saw this blonde boy on the verge of death, something gripped at his heart and he couldn't walk away from him. he didn't know what that feeling was when he saw him. maybe jess did it because he genuinely felt bad.

“i don't know.” jess admitted, adjusting his hat. “but i just knew i couldn't leave you to die out here. especially not on my property,”

the boy swallowed and just nodded, just looking absolutely defeated. it wasn't fair, someone so young having to go through something like this. jess knew that feeling.

he crouched next to the boy, finding his eyes under the bangs of his messy locks. “let's get you some clean clothes.”

“okay,”

jess wandered to his room and opened his drawer. he didn't have many clothes, as it was just him, and he didn't really go anywhere. he did still have some old clothes that didn't really fit him anymore, back when he was in his early twenties…but the boy obviously didn't want to get dressed in a whole get up right now.

he eventually settled on an oversized sleep dress he had laying around. it was a little faded, but other than that it didn't have any tears or holes in it.

he walked back into the living area and tossed the sleep dress onto the couch. the boy picked it up and observed it, before muttering out a small ‘thanks’.

“need help getting dressed?”

“no,” the boy said quickly, clutching the fabric to his chest. “get out.”

“alrighty,” jess hummed, confused by the sudden hostility. maybe he was just self conscious. jess could sympathize somewhat, he didn't like people seeing him shirtless much either. he was almost always wearing about three layers of clothes.

he shut his bedroom door behind him to let the boy get dressed, but not even a second later he heard a loud cry from the living area.

he opened the door and saw the boy clutching his side, his face screwed up in pain as he laid on his side, the sleep dress sprawled on the floor. jess slowly approached him, his hand held out.

“you sure you don't-”

“i’m fine, damn it.” the boy hissed, obviously embarrassed, sitting up slowly. “i just…ugh-”

“i’m not gonna do nothin’ to hurt you.” jess states firmly, looking the boy in the eyes. “i’ll help you get dressed, and then i’ll leave you alone if you want.”

the blonde stared at him, as if searching for an ounce of proof that he was lying, before muttering in agreement. “fine,”

jess gently grabbed the boy and sat him up with ease, slowly beginning to unbutton his tattered shirt. he slid it off of his arms and put it to the side, moving to undo the button of his pants.

the boy squirmed, and jess looked up at him. his face was pink, and he was looking off to the side as jess slid his pants off slowly, as to not hurt him. he suddenly reached down, swatting jess’s hands away and fumbling with his pants.

“i can do this part,” he mutters, kicking his pants off.

jess shrugs and grabs the sleep dress, rolling it up as he stands. “arms up, if you can.”

the blonde lifts his arms as much as he can, groaning as he feels the wound on his side shift. jess presses a hand to his shoulder to stop him, moving to slip the garment over his head and arms the best he can.

it was a bit of a struggle, but he eventually maneuvered it to get over his head.

while the boy wiggles into the sleep gown, jess’s eyes rake over his body curiously. he's covered in bruises, which wouldn't be concerning, considering the state he found him in, if they weren't old bruises. some of them were small, purple blotches, others were deep purple or even greenish-, mostly along his legs. his chest was untouched, pale and smooth. they were obviously caused by someone hitting him- but the question was who-. maybe they were caused by the struggle earlier, with whoever he supposedly shot. the gown dropped suddenly and jess looked up at the boy, who was droopy eyed.

“i…thanks.” he mutters, curling himself into a ball, pulling his knees to his chest, looking away. “i, uh…’m real sorry for everything. i’m just not right in the head right now,”

“i know,” jess says. “you've been through some stuff.” he mutters. “i won't make you talk about it until you're ready.”

“i appreciate that,” he mutters, his cheeks flushing slightly.

the kid was well mannered when he wasn't freaking out. jess appreciated that.

jess’s lip curled up slightly, and he tilted his head. “what's your name, kid?”

the boy set his jaw, fidgeting nervously as he answered quietly. “clinton. clinton reno.” he answers softly, his eyes darting up to jess. “you can call me clint,”

“clint,” jess says, standing and gestures to the kitchen. “hungry? i can whip something up.”

the boy- clint- shakes his head, grabbing the blanket tightly and laying back on his side with heavy eyes. “no, i’m…i'm really tired.”

“alright,” jess hums, adjusting his hat. “you get some rest. i’ll be here in the morning.”

clint nods and shuts his eyes, falling asleep almost immediately afterward. jess blows out the candle and heads towards his room, shutting the door quietly.

he sat on his bed, sighing heavily. this might be a lot more than he bargained for. if this reno boy had really shot someone, there wasn't no way the constable wasn't gonna come looking for him. he suspected he'd get a visit from sheriff ramsey soon, but he could lie to him easily enough. he hated to do it, but if he had to, he would.

he laid back and ran a hand through his hair, his eyes falling shut as his mind began to run. what was he going to to with this boy once he was healed up? that wouldn't be for a while. it was already come fall time, and he would probably be a wanted man in a few days, so it's not like he could send him off on his lonesome- but jess only had living space for one person.

jess fell asleep with an image of clint crying fresh on his mind.

[equestrianequivalent]

QuintSum has been finished. What now?

Yes, you read that right. I've finished the first draft of QuintSum. I'm done. I told you, I said I would be, and I finally am! So, what now?

Well, the short answer is that I'm going to release it all on Ao3, but there's a few things to discuss related to that process, because that won't be done in a day either.

How will you release the fic?

First things first:

Chapters 1-28 will be rereleased. Chapter 29 will be uploaded. This will happen first. I will not announce when the chapters are being rereleased, but once I have uploaded chapter 29, which I will announce, you can be sure that the rest of the fic is up to date.

ALSO, IMPORTANT: Remember how I said that you wouldn't need to reread the reuploaded chapters? I lied. You should probably start the fic over from the beginning if you started reading before August 2024. I have changed way more than I ever could've predicted that I would, and it shows. While you're probably going to be able to follow the story, you're probably not going to understand a Solid amount of basic knowledge the characters hold, nevertheless what each character is thinking and why, especially not how we got to this point, if you don't reread the first 28 chapters. But also I'm not your mom you can do whatever you want. But don't say I didn't warn you.

We will go 1-3 releases per remaining arc. Most arcs will be released in two halves, as you can see in the screenshot above. The short explanation is that this means there will be less releases with more chapters. (And don't let the low chapter count fool you, the wordcount goes haywire sooner than you think. The chapters currently average around 4-6k.) There is 135 chapters in total, it would take me over a year to upload this entire thing even if I released two chapters per week. And I don't want to do that. Therefore, I will release them per arc, which is a collection of chapters about the same part of the story, pretty much. Those releases will look as follows:

Arc 5: Chapters 30-34. (One release)

Arc 6: Chapters 35-51. (Two releases)

Arc 7: Chapters 52-59. (One release) (<- Most subject to change, this bitch is a complete mess in terms of chapter length already. Stay tuned to see how I deal with that I guess!)

Arc 8: Chapters 60-84. (Three releases)

Arc 9: Chapters 85-103. (Two releases)

Arc 10: Chapters 104-109. (One release)

Arc 11: Chapters 110-116. (One release)

Arc 12: Chapters 117-135. (Two releases)

I cannot say when these will be uploaded, but this means that there will be 13 releases of new chapters.

Probably. There is always a chance that I will split up the arcs more, because, I don't know if you've noticed, but the second draft is already getting ridiculously long, and these chapters sometimes take me multiple days to get through. I'm a full-time university student currently getting a bachelors, and I'm at least planning on getting a masters going as well, sometimes I just do not have the time to write as much as I really would.

Anyways! This is how it's going to work on My end of things:

I will edit and finalize the chapters in each release, and then upload that entire batch on Ao3 together. This will take however long it may. I have no deadlines and no goals to hit. It'll be done when it's done. Then I will release a post announcing that this arc has been uploaded, with a link to the First chapter in that arc. This will repeat until we reach the last chapters. And then we're done. It is Way less complicated than it sounds, all you need to do, really, is remember that I will release things less consistently, but when I do release, believe me, you will have stuff to read.

How long is this fic?

135 chapters. And the wordcount of the first draft ended up at 280k words. It will probably be a little more on Ao3 because I always add stuff when I revise. So far I'm 100% on track to double the final draft, but don't hold me to that. I'm personally assuming it'll be somewhere between 350-450k words. All my friends think it will be longer. We'll find out who is in the right once it is done. Point is that while I never intended to set the record for the longest fic sorted by word count on Ao3, well, right now it sure is looking like I will do just that. By a lot.

What is important to keep in mind?

Read the tags. I have consistently talked on my main about how the biggest goal of QuintSum has been to "make Elizabeth's death worth it". Third-party sources would agree that I have done just that. In fact, my friends would all claim I've managed to write a by-the-books tragedy. Do with that what you will. Other than that, you can expect pretty standard things from the game. And a few near-death experiences here and there. I will say tho, remember that I rate this story T, that rating speaks louder than Most of the tags. The tags aren't lying, but the severity of it is dictated more than anything by the rating.

Anything else?

Tell @jorvikzelda that you love them because they're the entire reason that I started, nevertheless finished this fuckass fic of mine. Stay tuned for the release, boys, we fucking made it.

(If you want some sporadic updates because I can't shut up, I'm always yappin over at @shiroselia and otherwise you can find me at Ao3 as per usual)

Cheers!

[melodygatesauthor]

Weekly Update - 05/18/2023

Hey all! I think I'm going to start doing weekly updates since I have a lot going on and a lot of fics in the works! I want you to know what I'm currently working on (WIPs) and I'll also toss some life updates in here as well. I'm also going to mention requests I have in the pipeline and when I'm expecting to complete them. Maybe your request is in there! (It probably is)

Going forward the updates will be on Sunday, I'm just doing this now because I have ADHD and it's on my mind today lol.

Since I've been really following the winds of inspiration lately, I want to keep doing that so I'm just putting this here so you know where the winds are blowing lmao.

I'll also mention if I think my current longfic is going to be delayed or anything here as well.

Gonna cut it up into sections to keep it consistent and easy:

Long/Chaptered Fic Updates

Currently I'm working on A Bit Dodgy, as many of you know. There will NOT be an update this Monday (05/22/2023). Though I will be working on it this week for @welcometostayingawake to edit and I'll have it to post by 05/29/2023 (that's the goal). If it's going to be pushed back again, I'll let you all know the Sunday before (05/28/2023).

Mini-series Update

Worth the Risk Part 3 should be out this week. That's the goal anyway. I have a good chunk of it done but there's still a lot to do. <- Still hoping to have this out this week but we will see (05/22/2023)

Uploading The Fractured Moon Part 2 (either tonight or tomorrow yay) Continuing to chip away at The Fractured Moon Part 3

There's a top secret fic series coming out HOPEFULLY this weekend, but it may be next weekend instead depending on how quickly I can get it finished. I'm losing my mind over it. (It's a 3 parter and all 3 parts are coming out at the same time teehee) <- Editing that today 05/22/2023. Hope to be done with it by tonight!

In June there's a writing challenge for Pride that @flightlessangelwings is putting on and I'm working on my fic for that so I'll be announcing more for that fic once I have the details better outlined!

Fool Me Twice should be getting a part 2 soon. I'm hoping I'll feel inspired to at least start it this week but maybe not. <- Taking this off the list for this week. Focusing on ABD and requests (05/22/2023).

Still considering doing 2 other parts for The OJ Problem but honestly, it's not that exciting to me rn. Since it's more of a Valentine's Day fic I might consider just doing those next year. <- Taking this off the list for this week. Focusing on ABD and requests (05/22/2023) will probably just put this on for next year for valentine's day.

Requests

I still have a sizeable amount of requests. REQUESTS ARE STILL CLOSED CURRENTLY. If your request is in blue, that means I'm going to try to work on it this week (05/21-05/27). If it's in pink, I'm going to try to work on it a different week. It's taking me a while to get into the headspace for some of them so thank you for your patience. Green means it's done I'm just working on editing now. They are posted in no real order, just working on them as I feel inspired to.

Blue Jones X f!Reader requested by @saraicus

There are 2 prompts in particular that I liked from the list you sent so I'll be doing them. - His eyeliner running down as he’s banging you against his desk - You’re a new patient and he just grows overprotective towards you. Doesn’t want you to meet other men and keeps you in solitary confinement for his jealousy sake.

Moon Boys X f!Reader by @ravenz-hope

Gamer reader and the boys getting angsty over her being too obsessed with the game (most relatable thing ever) <- Haven't had the time to set up the post but this will be coming out very soon. Need to finish editing as well (05/22/2023)

Moon Boys X f!Reader by @simpforbritgents

Asking for something like Feeling Flustered where the moon boys are doing guided phone sex.

Moon Boys X f!Reader by @mercuryrosesixx

Moon Boys w/ a f!Reader w/ nipple piercings. <- Started working on headcanons (05/22/2023).

Marc Spector X f!Reader by @blueflowerhat

Marc shower sex based on AI prompt.

Steven Grant X f!Reader by Anon -

Steven and Reader are both virgins. Marc is guiding/coaching Steven.

Doctor Marc Spector X Patient Reader by @burnincrown

Role Reversal (sort of) of Not a Doctor - Marc is the doc, reader is the patient and he takes advantage - Dark Fic

Nathan Bateman X f!Reader by @campingwiththecharmings

This is the prompt that hit me like a Nathan-shaped mac truck! -> “if you don’t like my teasing why are you moaning”

Nathan Bateman X f!Reader by Anon

Cam girl reader x Nathan - Nathan turns to a cam girl, he's been kinda stalking her. (Excited hehe)

That's it for right now. I'm a busy lady as usual but I like having a few different projects going at once! More coming soon! Thanks for always being so awesome and supportive. Love you all!

[tavinafanfiction]

Fic Update?

So, the current situation re: Silkverse and also Sixverse is this --

A Measure of Steel (The ABoS sequel): currently at 25k, chapters 1 & 2 are complete, chapter 3 is missing (1) or (1.5) scenes. I'll start updating this again when there's (5) completed chapters just so we can get a month or so of updates before I go "omg there are no more completed chapters, shockedpikachu.jpeg."

brighter burning stars (The all this scarcity promotes sequel): currently at 31.6k, chapters 1&2 are complete, chapter 3 is at I think 3-4 scenes from completion. This fic only has 6 chapters so I want to finish all of them before I start uploading it onto the internet HOWEVER, there is also another problem here, and that is that The Touka POV Fic (Stars) and the Tajima POV fic (weigh your shadow) cover some very similar timelines so I was thinking of posting them with like (1) chapter a week alternating, so that the timeline makes sense, but that uh, well, Tajima POV is at 6k/60k and NO completed chapters so it's not doing so hot.

The current situation with Warverse (Age Swapped Nies) is this:

Next chapter imminent, sometime this week or next week I only have 3-4 more scenes to get done for this chapter. UNFORTUNATELY this fic seems to have grown more chapters so I might need to do some pruning lmao.

and thus concludes the fic updates roundup.

[inkblackorchid]

With the next one of Aki’s stories being a long one, is it something you are planning on finishing before you start publishing chapters, or publishing as you go along? Just curious what your approach is for the longer fics

Ok so as I've said on tumblr (and I think maybe also in the author's notes on ao3?? I forget) before, I at the very least want to finish the first portion of this fic before I start uploading anything. (That portion's end being marked by a particular duel.) From the way my outline is looking right now, that means I'd probably write until chapter 5 or more before I might consider publishing a chapter (there are currently a total of 14 chapters planned). And as of right now, I'm about to finish the first draft of chapter 3.

...But. But. See, the thing is, this fic, due to being extremely plot-heavy, needs to be super tightly written. Like, this thing needs to work. And all the duels in it (yes, multiple) really need to hit the mark, or else this story loses some of its emotional impact. In other words, I'll definitely be extra thorough when it comes to editing this one, too. So at least where this particular fic is concerned, I'm kinda shying away from the "publish as I go along"-approach, because there are too many moving parts here and I want this to be as coherent as possible. So it's a bit of a tossup atm. If I feel confident enough in how fast I'm progressing with the story by the time that first portion is written out, I may start publishing before all the chapters are done. But if there's a chance that I might deviate from the outline later in a way that would require me to go back to a previous chapter to add some setup there? I'll hold off and wait until at the very least the first draft of the whole story is done.

As far as longer fics in general go, though, I'm always more the type who likes to write a bit in advance before publishing. Even with To Be of Use, which had little to no plot and was the only work I've genuinely published as the chapters got done so far, I didn't feel entirely happy throwing the chapters out as I had them. I'm a huge fan of setup and payoff, and callbacks, and foreshadowing, etc. and the thing is, even if you're a very practiced writer, as soon as you're writing a plot-heavy story, you'll encounter moments where you come up with an important thing you want to happen a little later in the story than you meant to, and suddenly need to go back to actually set that up, because you didn't in the first draft of an earlier chapter. (At least this is my experience, your mileage may vary, writing styles differ, etc.) So to write the best thing I can, I usually like to give myself the time to write the entire first draft, then revise that first draft, then do the final edit of each chapter just before publishing it. (This was also my modus operandi for basically all my 5Ds fics prior to Fields of Arcadia. Even if I didn't have the entire story edited and polished yet, the first draft was always complete before I ever started publishing. It's only now that my backlog of pre-written first drafts has caught up to me and I'm forced to keep y'all waiting as I prepare the next big thing completely from scratch in real time.)

[bottlecaprabbitgames]

Weekly Update for 15 January, 2023

Hi, guys! I'm moving the update stuff up a bit, just because I want to take a break today and I won't be off till the 19th or 20th!

I'm super happy with the progress I've made this week!!! I got all of Scene 3's rough draft done, which was super nice as I actually changed how a few scenes play out and how their variations will play out when I go back to flesh the scene out!

We also got to over 13,000 words in Chapter 5 so far!!! And, like, mind you, I've only got Scene 1-3 written, and ONLY Scene 1 has been fully fleshed out and edited so far!! We still have one scene to go, AND I haven't gotten any of the huge variations done in Scene 2 or 3! I actually have only just started editing Scene 2, and like... I'm barely any ways in.

So, hi, yes, I'm super excited because I really think Chapter 5 will come super close or fully to 20,000 words!!! I'd love for it to, as only Chapter 1 came very close to it, and our other chapters have been smaller! (Which, I mean... there hasn't exactly been much to make huge variations on yet, I'm just being hard on myself, lol.)

One of the last things I want to mention is the stuff that comes with customization (ie clothing). I definitely want there to be some spots where your choices on customizing your MC gets fully mentioned, it might just be when I go back for the big final edits once the final chapter is completed, and before MG: Trepidation is uploaded in its entirety. I haven't forgotten your choices! I just want to get the full story down before I go back in and get them into the light!

Okay, that's all I got! I will be spending my few hours after work later to play Fatal Frame 5, so that's why I moved this up, lol. I will also say writing might be a little slow, I have my mom's birthday coming up on the 20th (she'll be 46!!), I have my permit test the 23rd, and a big doctor consultation on the 30th, and February will be very similar with my shop opening and me hopefully learning to drive AND getting all my doctor and dental appointments started.

It's gonna be a busy couple of months, but I really hope to still squeeze in a good couple thousand words a week at the VERY least!!

[purplemninja]

Hello everyone. I’m just giving you the current status of my continuation/fix-it comic of @hezuart‘s ‘Channel Change’ AU.

I’ve just finished all of the panels for page 2 of it (27 panels/12 image files total this time) and I’ve already made progress on a few of the panels for page 3 (which is also the last page and will be 29 panels/ 13 image files), and some panels are even finished (I didn’t draw all of this comic in order), but there are still a number of panels that haven’t been started yet and the ones that are already being drawn in progress need to be finished.

Also I guess this may count as a little update but I was considering a slight edit to the last panels of the comic, but I decided that it’d probably work better as an epilogue. So now this comic will have a little epilogue to it (that’s very short, only 5 panels/3 image files long).

I still plan to upload the entire comic all at once like Hezu did, so I’m still not going to upload anything anywhere until it’s all complete. And like Hezu did with ‘Channel Change’, each post will have a link to the other pages in the descriptions, so when I finally start uploading them please wait for me to add the links to the other parts before liking and/or reblogging so that all of the links are there. I can’t add links to the different parts right now because they are all in drafts right now. So please do wait a few minutes for me to put the links in when I finally upload them (Refreshing the page will probably also be required for it to work).

And if anyone wants any updates on my ‘Six’s Shield’ series, I have the written part of the second to last chapter uploaded, now I just need to make some art for it. Then there’s just one last chapter left to write and make art for, and then the series will officially be finished, though with the last chapter I plan to make the art for it first before uploading the written part so that both bits of the last chapter can be done as close as possible.

And for anyone particularly interested in my ‘Six’s Shield’ series, after I upload the stuff for the last chapter (when it’s made first) I will also upload a separate ‘master post’ of the series here, on Reddit and probably somehow on Deviantart too (I upload stuff for it on the LN subreddit and DA too), which will firstly have a link to the whole series for people to pick which instalment they want to read, but it will also have some ‘fun facts’ in it, for anyone who’s interested in any trivia about it. And I plan to pin these master posts onto my Tumblr and Reddit accounts, so there’s that to look forward to for anyone who likes the series.

I look forward to finishing and uploading the comic and the art for the latest chapter of the last instalment of Six’s Shield, and eventually the writing and art for the last chapter too.

[talesfromasnarkylisa]

Lacey: Chapter 6

August 3, 2023

It was Thursday afternoon. I completed the Music Refined editor application in the morning before work, so all I had to do was to submit it. Once I did that, I worked on editing a video. I hadn’t uploaded to YouTube in forever and I was losing subscribers. What I didn’t expect to see was an onslaught of hate comments. 

Ladybugfan (2 hours ago): go fuck yourself.

Peterparking (3 hours ago): I’m sure you wouldn’t go behind a rival editor’s back to make fun of them watching a kid’s show, Mr. Grammar Freak?

loverstanner (6 hours ago): What is with you and your obsession to make teenagers sob themselves to sleep over overblown mistakes

Coderguy (10 hours ago): Hello James hope you had fun breaking Lovergirl’s heart

They were varied, but all had one thing in common: bringing up old drama. Some talked about my previous tendency to talk shit about publication editors. Others mentioned my needless roasting of a beginner writer’s one small typo to the point of bringing them to tears. And that wasn’t even getting into my relationship with Betty. Good lord, is that something I do not want to get into.

I didn’t bother to go through all the comments. There were just too many. But I did check the video analytics. Lo and behold, many of these commenters were also former subscribers of mine. I also checked my Twitter analytics. My old controversies really still bit me in the ass.

Darian and I met up at the park later on. He was finished his voice work for the week and I needed a break from dealing with all the hate comments.

“How’s it going, James?” asked Darian.

“Done with the Music Refined application,” I told him, “which is nice.”

“That’s awesome!” a giddy Darian smiled.

We sat on a wooden bench close to the river. 

“I guess,” I adjusted my shirt. “But I’m not sure if I’ll get in. Besides, people are still bringing up my old drama.”

Darian sighed.

“Let’s be real here,” he pointed out. “You were pretty obnoxious last year. Even just a few months ago, there was still that whole argument where you got petty over a fanart of you with a streamer the artist didn’t know you hated.”

“That streamer was one of Augusta’s lackeys,” I said.

“It’s not like he knew that,” responded Darian.

I started feeling increasingly frustrated with my oblivious friend.

“If Noah did any sort of research, any Google search-” I nearly lashed out.

“This isn’t easily searchable,” said Darian. “The most Izzy publicly did was say she liked Augusta’s art and hoped Augusta would find a good therapist. To an outsider, it’s probably not a big deal.”

“Fine,” I calmed down. 

Darian was right. There’s a reason I had to apologize for my spat with Noah and backed down. 

“Let’s talk about something else!” exclaimed Darian.

“Like what?” I wondered.

“I read this article on the Guardian about this hilarious scambait that lasted five months,” said Darian.

“Tell me more,” I responded. I’ve always loved stories of good scambaits.

Darian began telling me the story. It all started with a man named John. John was an IT support guy tired of being single, so he went onto Tinder to have a little fun. Sure enough, he found a perfectly sculpted young woman named Brigid. Or so she presented as. John’s next few DMs with her made it pretty clear she (if she was even a she) was just a scammer. From the instant desire to marry to a fascination with cryptocurrency, anyone with a functioning brain should have been able to figure out their bluff. This obviously included John.

Did John just block the fake profile and move on with his life? No. He was a very bored man and this alleged woman had a very checkered online dating record. John tried his hand at scambaiting. The guy gave them the most absurd of responses. When they told him he was a duke’s son, he always corrected them to say he was the long-lost king. Whenever they told him to buy NFTs, he sent them videos about the dangers of NFTs. 

John spent a lot of his free time wasting their time to prevent them from scamming others. But all perversely enjoyable things come to an end and so did this. After almost half a year of cat-and-mouse, Brigid gave up. They then nuked their Tinder profile.

After hearing about the story of John from Darian, I contemplated to myself: what if I could be like John? Find someone to try to scam me, and then turn that back around on them and write about it for clout. I could make hundreds of thousands. But how would I find that person anyhow? It seemed very time consuming. I had multiple jobs to work, not to mention a potential editor position that would take even more time.

All of the sudden, I started thinking of Lacey. In our last few in-server conversations, she seemed to like me a lot. She sent me a bunch of smiley face emojis after a joke I made and asked me questions about my favorite song lyrics. 

A plan came to mind: manipulate her to do shady things and make myself out to be the victim. I dismissed the thought at first. She’s just a nobody, I told myself. On the other hand, most scammers are nobodies anyways. 

What would be the harm when she deserved it?

(Wattpad version: https://www.wattpad.com/1483652157-lacey-chapter-6)

[stones-and-birds]

Some Updates! July 16, 2024 🐦‍⬛💎

Howdy! Been a bit since an update, and while not a ton of folks are actively keeping up with this I figured an update was still worthwhile. Updates under the cut.

-Kieran

Development Updates:

This project is still actively being worked on! There's a ton left to do before I can even properly begin coding the VN and making assets - character designs, outfit, logo, and abnormality designs, not to mention continuing to flesh out the plot + properly write down the full summary. Things are slow due to life - we've got obligations outside of working on this, but it's still full steam ahead as this story is very important to us.

I had initially planned to release Chapter 1 on its own for the Children of the City Zine - I ended up switching to an illustration for my piece because I didn't want to work under a deadline for this. I am learning very quickly not to overestimate my abilities to get stuff done while dealing with multitudes of other stress.

The plot has, for the most part, been finalized - I'm still extending what I had written out and making tweaks here and there for better story flow, but we know what the overarching plot is as well as what the conclusion will be. Of course things could change, PM is still putting out new content and we don't have all the worldbuilding we could, but we're taking it in stride.

As of right now, the amount of chapters slated to be in the final product will be 9, and 7-8 of those will unlock optional story snippets at the end of each chapter (think the 'tips' feature in Higurashi, for example). It's very possible this will change!

I've switched to planning mostly on a Notion board which has helped productivity a lot more than having things scattered across various Google Docs files!

We've added @winterbunz to the dev team for proofreading and additional writing help!

Feedback needed?:

We're still deciding on whether or not to release the story in parts or wait until it's complete before releasing the whole thing - If we decide on releasing it in parts, It'll likely be a release similar to Limbus in that the primary release has 3 chapters and the rest will be released as completed. Still not sure though, feedback is appreciated. I may post a poll regarding this soon for easier engagement.

I would really like to add some minigames of some sort, as well as a functional Abnormality Codex for the fan abnormalities. I have some ideas on how to implement these, but it's going to take some studying and planning and such to figure it out - so nothing's set in stone on that front yet!

Some Adjustments/Fixes:

I had somehow mixed up Canto 1 LCB's L Corp branch, D-02, with Canto 2's, J-03, and ended up naming the branch J-02. This was an error on my part and I'm embarrassed to admit it took me so long to realize - The primary branch featured in this story will be J-03! I intended it to be the one from Canto 2 from the start, I just can't read.

I've also maybe been a bit too loose-lipped regarding plot beats, so I'll be avoiding that more in an effort to prevent spoilers for people who don't want them.

Misc Updates:

A good amount of the main cast of this project is uploaded on Art Fight for 2024's fight! Since a majority of the main characters are mine specifically, most of them will be located on my AF account, demonerium. I'm on Team Stardust this year!

Oracle also has some of his characters that are a part of the SaB cast on AF - you can find his profile as oracle_milkman, he's on Team Seafoam.

While you're at it, attack Michelle too! They don't have any SaB characters yet, but they have their own Lobcorp OCs as well as others.

TL;DR:

Development is still in progress! We're currently still working on finalizing the plot and chapter summaries, but it's getting closer!

Branch J-02 is now referred to as Branch J-03 to correct a mistake I made... and somehow only recently noticed...

Some discussion/feedback would be appreciated regarding release methods and minigame/extra feature additions!

[dio-the-thot-exterminator]

reflections n stuff

Post about me trying to explain some of the projects I got going on. Hopefully, it makes sense lol.

I guess to start, most of my writing and projects are…comedic? I just want to embody tomfoolery. Some of the projects I was creating with my coauthor, I've mentioned them before. (LOL if you saw my rant that one time), (and it wasn't just once my ass can not stop mentioning it) (yes I'm mad). They basically stopped contributing so ALL the projects were put on hiatus. Yeah :/ but I refuse to let all those years of hard work sit inside a Google doc never to see the light of day again. So here we go. 

TSO22 (Completed)

Hiii its me and my story. Titled semi-censored bcuz i uploaded it to YouTube and you can literally search it up and I'm not ready for that yet.

Anyways My second short film!!!! With real actors and a production team so exciting!! It's about a witch who seeks revenge on some children who wronged her! She casts a spell on a toy plushie and makes it come to life. She sends the toy to kill Fuzzy Lilypill, Large Plumjum, and Final Baddie (judging by their names you can tell this is extra goofy). Honestly one of the best things I've ever done, it was so much fun. Even though the film is hella cringe (kind of the point) it makes me laugh…like a lot and that's all that matters.

I need to tell everyone about the top-tier advertising like the way everyone pitched in to help was wild. We had lil signs and business cards and everything! The advertising was how I was able to book the actor who played Final Baddie!!

And ugh the bloopers in this film are so silly they were a lot of them bcuz nobody here has ever starred in a film before and it was a little awkward at first. But once everyone understood that this was just for fun and not really that serious we got some good content.

(Now I also need to do some complaining like I literally had to get down on my hands and knees and beg people to join. It was not fun. Why doesn't anyone want to create things anymore so sad) 

The Internship (Partial)

Yes yes yes all me. This was a script that I had written for another short film! It's self-explanatory.

The Killer finds out that the internship they applied for was given to one of their classmates! This can not be! Filled with rage the killer kills that bitch and the victim's friend group because of jealousy and whatnot. Since the first pick is…well dead, the killer gets a callback and now the internship is theirs! Wow what a happy ending. I’m actually living for this script :)

I did multiple rewrites and created some google form sign-up sheets for people to join the project.

created a storyboard of the film (will search for it later).

And I started creating a custom score for it as well.

Unfortunately, no one wanted to join :( so it never came to life. That being said, once I find an animation app and learn how to animate, it's over for you hoes. And I guess this goes for all my future films lmao. (unless I actually find people to star in them praying I do tbh). 

Beastly Bordello (wip)

This was a project we (me and my coauthor) started in middle school. It went through lots of rewrites like Jesus Christ. The first pass was garbage. I was crying when I reread it omg.

Anyways. How do I say this with the least amount of spoilers? There are 3 “books”, The first book draft is “complete”, we have the whole thing outlined, the first 2 chapters ready, and just need to fill out the meat of the texts a bit more.

This part of the story follows the human characters. We have the main character Debbie Smith, she is basically a bum loser 😷 and everyone hates her (it’s giving depressed!abused!timid! reader). We have Meredith Castaño who is like her cool best friend 😎 (I've drawn her with Dina. A side character who may or may not be her boo). And then we have Becky Maurice, Hanna Peters, and Lisa Blake (We call them BHL) . They are like the mean girl trio 🤬. Book 1 is meant to be a typical 2000s high school movie. Dare I say a “coming of age story” smh.

Becky is out for revenge and will stop at nothing to make Debbie's life a living hell (we are just bullying Debbie for 200+ pages).

On top of that, we discover that Debbie's homelife is not so good 😞 with her abusive parents 😭 and terminally sick sister, how will Debbie move on to the next phase of her life as she approaches high school graduation and adulthood 😱?

Omg the girls are camping! How fun! (totally not a slasher movie waiting to happen and 100% does not have a musical mid-way through).

People are dying 🪦!! Kids are going missing!?!?! Does this have anything to do with Debbie’s mysterious nightmares 🧠!? She's always had them, as she’s gotten older they’ve become more frequent, almost every day, and she even starts seeing 👀and hearing 👂 things while she's awake?

That's so scary. Oh nooooo she knows doom approaches and she is powerless to stop it :( silly silly complicit Debbie.

Like damn her life couldn't get any worse…and then BAM bitch it does!!! OMG supernatural 👹tingz and bloods🩸and crips 🔵 murder 🔪and oh shoot people are being kidnapped. Yikes.

This is book 1, Book 2 and 3 are not written yet (and honestly might not be written as I do not have my coauthor helping and it is a very ambitious project). As I said, we do have supernatural characters. The creatures. I'm pretty sure you've seen Octavia at least once? Maybe. We have our big baddies like The Lord, The Madam, The Master, The Empress, The Doctor, The Scientist, etc. Then we have our “good” creatures? They are just mf who were also kidnapped, like Alexa, Alexis, Mackenzie, Amelia etc. damn that's a lot of names that start with A.

This is reaching the spoiler zone so not sure if I should go farther. Anyway they work together to try and escape and find out where they are, why they were kidnapped and try to get home etc etc. More death and murder, staples in my work :P

This project has the most progress on it, if you go into the Beastly Bordello tag you can find some of the character designs. Not all tho because a lot of them…were meant to be drawn by the coauthor and I never got themmmmmmmm 🙄🙄.

I like really REALLY wanna continue this but gotdamn it's a lot of work and I get so discouraged easily <- lying my ass was carrying this book by myself for like 3 years.

If anything I'll design the rest of the creatures by myself. That's all I see myself doing, for now, oof. 

Beastly Bordello: The Musical (Completed)

LMAOOO THIS WAS A PROJECT I HAD TO DO FOR CLASS!!!

I had to make a jukebox musical thing and I chose the wonderful Emilie Autumn. The script is short, just around 36 pages and it’s like a transition between book 2 and book 3.

It follows The Madam and she is processing the new shipment of humans she just got in.

Which would be our lovely main characters (Debbie, Meredith, BHL, etc) and we are given a little tour of the brothel (is not actually a brothel we just call it that, think of it more as a farm, a meat farm).

We meet the other characters like The Master and those lil goat mfs (main characters in the original original beastly bordello). We also get a brief introduction to our main creatures (monsters) like Mackenzie, Jia, Isla, Amelia etc (you’ve seen them before).

They then get tagged by The Doctor and The Scientist (I love those gay niggas)

And then everyone gets split up and Debbie finally meets Octavia.

What do people say? OOC? I think that means out of character? Because we have to make everything fit the song, so they just be saying stuff at one point. But shhhhhhhhhhh it's okay.

Anyway, It's just more foolishness and camp and because it's a musical it gets stupid. But I love it either way. That's what I aim for yessir, like wow something beastly bordello related that I actually completed. Wild. 

Adventure to Find Jelly (wip)

 Hiii another middle school project, I was working on this with my coauthor. Okok let's see how do i explain this with no spoilers. This is apart of our “sentient object” universe.

It takes place in an apartment and the family has gone away to visit relatives so now every object can come to life and do what they want.

The story follows Peanut Butter (PB) 🥜, a quiet and kind jar of peanut butter who is tired 🥱 of living the simple life. And decides to sneak out of the cabinet to go to the club (inside a closet) and that day he meets Jelly🪼(she a jar of jelly but they ain’t have the right emojis)

She is the new girl in town (the family got her from the grocery store before they left). They instantly fall in love😍 and Omg this would be like his first girlfriend, PB finally got bitches 😤.

They spend a lot of time doing couple stuff 😘 bcuz PB never got to do any of that before. Jelly is very sweet and loving 🧐 but…something is off about her…just a little 😨.

PB doesn't seem to notice nor care. But his cooler 🍆 asshole brother (who is super overprotective) tells him not to trust Jelly and leave her🙅🏿.

PB’s parents are angry 😡 and disgusted 🤮 that PB would disobey them and go to the club🕺🏿. And spend a lot of his time outside the cabinet instead of staying at home and being a good son 🤓.

PB is tired of people thinking he aint that guy 🥲 and he decided to run away 🏃🏿 to live a life with jelly.

But in a twist of events 👃, when PB arrives at Jelly’s cabinet he discovers it trashed 🗑️💢!!! And jelly is missing 😱😱😱😱😱!!

He tries to tell the police 🚔but they don't believe him, they’ve never heard of anyone called jelly 🪼 before.

PB is confused but figures out he has to do this on his own 🦸🏿‼️, he has to go on an adventure to find jelly.

It's very cheesy but like my other stories it involved murder and drama. So it's not uneventful . Hmmm we outlined 10 chapters. And started outlining the sequel book. But we never actually started writing any of it.

I’m pretty sure some of you have seen jelly before. And possibly PB because I was just given his design a couple days ago. I'm definitely going to continue making art of them, and hopefully, we’ll get Sunbutter soon. But I'm not sure about writing out the rest of the story. It's a lil problematic.

Being A Fruit (wip)

Middle school project strikes again and yes you guessed it my coauthor was involved as well. Another story taking place in our “Sentient Object” universe.

From the title you can tell this series was going to involve all the fruit characters. Bananas, strawberries, apples, etc and I think I designed a good portion of the characters too. But y'all when I say drama. I mean DRAMA. Like “how to get away with murder” type drama. This story is batshit. And it's 10x more stupid because it involves lil fruits.

I'm going to quote this for you: our strawberry character Rosette is traumatized because she “watched entire family get chopped into a fruit salad”. And then we have our villain who “loves to abduct baby fruits”.

Besides character bg we don't have any chapters drafted. But to be fair we were going to make this into a mock podcast. Like the character fruits were going to call in and tell their stories, and the radio host would have to piece together what happened. And if someone stopped calling in then they got killed oop.

Because this is like a one-off, if anything has a chance to make a comeback it's this one. Idk if anyone would want this tho besides me. Because I will go crazy in the google doc and write this myself. This story is wild. 

When Two Erasers Touch

Damn did I peak at middle school? Another coauthor and me classic. This was I think the first book in our “Sentient Object” universe.

It is about lesbian erasers. Our first love story! They find each other bcuz their humans bring them to school and they chill inside a desk or something. I think we only wrote 2 chapters for this. We love a trendsetter though.

I don't think our two erasers Jika and Marei will make a comeback. But omg I am just rereading the chapters and is soo melodramatic!!! These lil erasers are going through it. Ok, I won't make any promises but…maybe we might do like a throwback chapter. Just once. Maybe. I'm not really a fan of Romance but It's so dramatic I can't even describe it. 

The Hecatomb Trilogy (wip)

Finally! Something recent and does not involve my coauthor. This is one of the stories that came to me in a dream. It's hard to recall because my dumb ass didn't type or write down all the information.

I drafted the introduction and the dialogue 10/10. It's a horror movie (I say movie but it's a book bcuz everything is a movie to me). Slasher movie, of course, just a lot of carnage and ridiculous stuff. I don't have much but I have a note on the side of the google doc, that says “3 survivors bond throughout the story, connecting over their trauma and become a polycule.”

So… I have priorities lol. The first movie takes place in the neighborhood and just follows everyday people, dying you know. The second movie is meant to take place in a hospital following the survivors. And the third and final film is meant to reveal who the killer is and their backstory.

From what I have written it just says the killer is dressed in all-black leather and is super strong ;P Damn now I kinda wanna pick this back up again and put some thought into it. I see the potential ngl. We'll see. Who knows. 

Adherence (wip)

All me this time. Another story that came to me in a dream. And I think everyone needs to write a gay vampire story once in their life. This one is mine. I guess it classifies as a slice of life? It's just a cute lil story about the “last” vampire adjusting to the modern world and falling in love with his would-be victim.

They do things like go to the corner store <3 and get robbed afterwards LMAOOO. The MC has to chase a naked vampire around the apartment bcuz that nigga is scared of the shower at his big age... The Vamp fucking loves modern tech and is thoroughly entertained by it. His favourite is those little toy bears that you find at like CVS and u press a button and they start dancing. The vamp meets his neighbor and she does his nails.

Just a lot of shenanigans and also of course killing. I know I keep talking about the dialogue but my god it's working my pussy out.

Damn…is this my humor? Idk why I'm surprised. Hmmmm I would want to complete some of my other projects before I start working on this. But who knows. 

(SU pearl and pink diamond fanfic) wip

I don't wanna claim this. I wrote a pearl and pink diamond fanfic on wattpad back in the day. And I actually got one of my SU friends to read it. It was great. I don't remember the name tho but I wrote like 8 chapters of it and I'm proud I made it that far. Scared to actually read my old writing so I will not be searching for it. Just know it is out there. 

_____________

And so soooo much more that I don't feel like listing atm. anyways sorry for typos i am not editing this i'm tired.

Ask questions if you want to, uhhhhh you wanna make something? I'll be happy to help, yeye byee

[corneroffandom]

Weekly Writing Update #63 (September 17th, 2023)

Second week in a row that had some decent writing, I think I finally have a good writing schedule worked out that doesn't completely take away from everything else I need to do in a day. Although I have no doubt I'll be able to finish Connections this week, I'm not sure how October will go writing wise, I have a lot of projects that I'd like to finish before NaNoWriMo, and it's a little overwhelming. I just have to keep reminding myself that any progress will be good progress! We'll see how it goes. I'm also in the process of writing a Better Than You BayBay fic that I just started last night, wanted to have it finished this weekend but I'll do my best to have it done before Wednesday. We'll see.

Didn't necessarily want to end this on a sad note, but you know how it goes. News just broke today that Billy Miller, one of my favorite soap opera actors from the last fifteen years, passed away Friday. I haven't gotten to see him in much since he left General Hospital in 2019, but I adored every time that I did, and he will be missed. I hope he's found peace.

Back to Basics: 600 World Wrestling Digidestined: 533 Encontrar una Manera: 578 Encontrar una Manera bonus story: 205 New Years drabbles: 146 Sixteen: 114 Renatus: 150 Passenger: 204 Evidence: 169 Connections: 2405 Better: 407 In total: 5511 Annual Word Count: 113103 New fic plot notes: 3 Team Work chapters booked: 0 Old fics uploaded to AO3: 0

Find me on Ko-fi at https://ko-fi.com/corneroffandom Any questions or comments, please let me know!

[idleglowingpixels]

When you only have one fic currently posted online :') But ironically enough I've been working on XXY since 2019 (started posting March 2020 -- yes I know COVID times), got 4 chapters in before realizing I hated its state at the time. Then I spent all of Fall 2022 rewriting it, as well as an additional 3 chapters for my first buffer "batch."

I'm SO MUCH HAPPIER with the new XXY chapters, it's currently my favorite fic that I'm working on that's also viewable on AO3 here! I feel like if I still had the old chapters public you can tell how my writing has improved XD

But it wasn't a total train wreck! I just had no idea what I was doing with the POV order (RIP Boomer and Buttercup's POVs that I never got to in that version). Also I had so many better ideas on how to approach the two teams merging, because I FLOPPED on that part originally I have to admit lol (But thank you if any of my followers on here read the original drafts I appreciate it :') ).

The runner-up fic is the Miraculous Ladybug rewrite I think I've had in mind since the latter half of Season 3 aired. I've had so many ideas from subsequent seasons, however, that I'm saving writing it to its full extent until Season 5 is completed. (Side note, god I wish it was done airing tho I hate it here enough with the bad writing :'D)

It's gonna take a while because each "episode" is 3 roughly-3k-word chapters -- which is 78 chapters for an entire 26-episode season -- and I don't want to release Book 1 (Which would be Season 1) until I have it completed. I wanna upload chapters on a weekly basis, so I'll have over a year to work on Books 2 & 3 (I think I'm only doing three total at this current time). I might end up doing less (like only 2 chapters per episode, marking 54 chapters) but it remains to be seen. I only have the first few written as of right now.

Thanks OP for giving me an opportunity to ramble LMAO

Reblog with your favorite fic you've written! 😊

[the-scarlet-witch-22]

Chaconne (Agatha Harkness x Reader)

Summary: You are an aspiring concert violinist who attends an audition for the Manhattan Symphony Orchestra, under the new direction of famous conductor Agatha Harkness

Word Count: 4.2K

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBNquKkKcF4

A/N: Hello! This is an AU fic heavily inspired by one of my favorite tv shows Mozart In The Jungle. This is going to be at least 3 more chapters, and I already have the second part done so it should be uploaded by the weekend. Also, I added a link to the piece that is heavily mentioned throughout this fic. It’s not necessary to listen to it before reading (or at all haha), I just thought I’d add it in for anyone curious :) Hope y’all enjoy! Please let me know what you think, and my inbox is always open for any questions. Also: I do not own Mozart In The Jungle...Jeff Bezos please do not sue me. 

You rushed through the bustling streets of Manhattan, silently cursing yourself for not getting a cab. Not that it would’ve made much of a difference; rush hour in the city was horrendous no matter what form of transportation you chose. But at least you would have been sitting in an air conditioned car and not running through the crowded streets. You tightened your grip on your violin case as you hurried across the street, destination clear in your mind.

You had been finishing up your final private lesson of the day when you received a call from one of your old college friends. They informed you to drop everything you were doing, not literally because that would include your very expensive and very fragile violin, and hurry down to symphony hall because one of the first violinists in the Manhattan Symphony had sprained her wrist and they were holding open auditions.

A part of you knew the odds of being selected from hundreds of the best violinists in one of the most affluent cities for music was slim to none, but you also knew you had to take this chance. It’s what you had been working so hard towards during undergrad and grad school, and it would be nice to have a more...stable job. The Manhattan Symphony Orchestra was one of the greatest and well respected orchestras in the world, and you would kill to earn a chair.  

You ran faster than you had in months, and made a mental note to add more cardio to your basically nonexistent workout regime because wow, you were out of shape. Rounding the corner, you quickly dodged running into other pedestrians and could see symphony hall a block away. Despite the burning in your lungs begging you to stop running like a mad woman, you picked up the pace and sprinted to the building.

Ever since you started playing the violin you swore to anyone who would listen that you would play in the Manhattan Symphony Orchestra. Your siblings would always ask for concert tickets to see their favorite band, or sporting tickets, but you always begged your parents to take you to the symphony. While your siblings hated it and complained how long and boring it was (and the outrage that they weren’t allowed to bring food inside), you were enraptured by the entire experience.

You fell in love with the sounds of Dvorak, Beethoven, Brahms, and Tchaikovsky. Sitting in the concert hall you waited in anticipation to watch the musicians who had spent their entire lives preparing for that moment; to pour every ounce of their soul into their instruments. Ever since the moment you stepped inside your first concert hall at the young age of five, you knew this is where you wanted to spend the rest of your life.

Shaking those thoughts aside you hurried through the building to where the blind auditions were being held. You silently thanked whatever genius came up with the idea of a blind audition, because you were a mess after running over twelve blocks from your apartment. Following the signs on the walls, you found the warm up room, but was surprised to find everyone packing up.

There were over a dozen people of various ages, and you noticed one of them crying. A woman around your age noticed your disheveled appearance and sighed. “If you’re here for the blind auditions, they were cancelled.”

You felt your heart drop. “What? Did they already find someone?”

“No, because the new conductor is a total psycho,” Someone else said angrily. “She kept yelling about how we’re all wasting her time and she’d rather have her pet rabbit play New World Symphony.” He motioned to the girl who was sobbing. “And she told Megan her tone was so bad that she would personally throw her violin into a wood chipper so no one would have to suffer through her performing again.”

The new conductor he was referring to was one of your favorites. Agatha Harkness. She was beloved throughout the music community and had many fans, but you had heard rumors of her hard work ethic and ability to make people cry in under a minute. You thought back to your undergrad violin lessons where one of your professors told you that your tone while playing Mendelssohn sounded like a dying donkey. Musicians were often times very blunt.

“That’s a bit harsh.”

“A bit?” The guy rolled his eyes. “This job isn’t worth it. I’m going to audition for the second violin chair in Iowa. It might not be as great of an orchestra but at least their conductor isn’t the devil incarnate.”

As the others continued to pack up, you still felt your gut twisting at what could have been. Feeling rejected, you left the room and saw the back entrance to the stage open. From a quick glance around it appeared the hallway was deserted, so you quickly ran through the door, violin case still in hand.

Time came to a stand still as you walked on stage and stared into the seemingly empty concert hall. You dreamt about this moment more times than you cared to admit. There was something so peaceful about being on stage. Taking a deep breath, you closed your eyes and pictured a scene you had spent years dreaming about. Realizing the opportunity to play in this hall wouldn’t likely come again, you made the split decision to open your violin case.

Staring at your violin, you briefly wondered if this was a good idea. But, you silently argued that no one else was around, and besides, you did run half a mile to get here. It would be a waste to not play and appreciate the gorgeous acoustics. Plus you could feel your fingers aching to play something, anything, to let out the feelings of  disappointment from missing the auditions.

Gently pulling out your bow, you applied a generous amount of rosin before grabbing your violin. You took a few minutes to tune, and the moment your bow hit the strings you felt a shiver at how the sound bounced off the walls. You went through a condensed version of your normal warm up and played a few different scales before debating on what piece to play.

Although your friend had briefly explained the audition would be sight reading and then playing excerpts from Dvorak’s New World Symphony, the auditions were over and you wanted to play something else. It wasn’t the flashiest piece, or one of the better known violin concertos, but it felt right. Vitali’s Chaconne arranged by Charlier. You had originally learned the gorgeous piece during your junior year of undergrad for a concerto competition and it had quickly become a favorite.

Clearing your mind of everything but the music, you closed your eyes and began to play. Your bow swept across the string, producing the opening g-minor chord. The melodic sound rang through the empty hall and you felt your heart ache at how good this felt. It had been a while since you had the time to play this piece, but it was like it had been no time at all. Your fingers danced across the strings and you felt all the uneasiness leave your body.

While this wasn’t the most complex piece you had ever played, it required your full attention. The chaconne was structured as a simple sixteen bar phrase that was rephrased and dallied up with different techniques and melodies which made it easy enough to memorize, but hard enough that you needed to focus on the pattern your fingers made.

With every movement of your bow, every run you made up and down the fingerboard, you were letting out the pain and sadness you felt radiating through your body. It was hard to put into words how playing the violin made you feel, but the best explanation you had come up with was that it was your salvation. There was no sweeter medicine than performing. No matter how out of control life was, how bad things got, your solution was turning to music. It saved you.

As you neared the end of the piece, you felt your bow arm gently ache and you knew you had to have complete focus if you were going to hit the upcoming octave slides that led to the double stops of doom. Octaves were never a violinist’s favorite technique, and they were your own personal kryptonite. You had rather tiny hands, which made the stretch from your index to your pinky rather difficult on a good day. You changed the position of your hand to make the reach to hit the upper octave, but briefly winced when you realized you had fallen flat on the lower note.

You ended with a flourish of your bow on the final g-minor chord and let out the breath you had been holding in. You stood there for a moment, soaking in the afterglow of your performance and enjoying the quiet that radiated throughout the spacious room. Just as you went to clean off your violin and leave before you got kicked out, you heard the sound of slow clapping from within the hall. The hall was dimmed and you saw a figure sitting far up in the upper rows. The mystery figure continued clapping and they stood up and walked down the steps towards the stage. There in all her glory stood Agatha Harkness, the newest conductor of the Manhattan Symphony Orchestra.

“Not bad, but your octave slides could use some touching up,” Agatha offered as she stood at the bottom of the stage. “You tend to go flat on the lower notes.”

You felt your breath hitch as you saw the famous, and apparently very scary, conductor staring at you. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize anyone was still here.”

“Ah so you aren’t here for the auditions?” Agatha questioned, arching an eyebrow up at you. “What are you doing here then, breaking and entering? I’d hate to have to call security on you.”

“What? No, no I’m not...” You stammered, feeling your cheeks turn red. “I came for the auditions but I was told they were cancelled.”

Agatha laughed, and you noticed how it was more of a cackle. “They were. But believe me dear, I’m sure you would have done the same if you were in my shoes.”

“One of them said you threatened to throw their violin in a wood chipper. Isn’t that a little mean?” You pointed out.

“You did not have to listen to that imbecile butcher the opening of Mendelssohn,” Agatha argued, folding her hands across her chest. “Throwing her violin in a wood chipper would be the least I could do to ensure no one else suffers hearing that disgrace of a sound ever again.”

You stifled a giggle that threatened to escape. “I’m sure it wasn’t that bad.”

Agatha waved her hand in the air. “Maybe. But you,” she pointed a finger at you, intrigue colored her features. “You were good. Vitali’s Chaconne is a personal favorite of mine. Everyone always chooses to play Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D Major, or Mendelssohn, or Brahms, or something big and flashy. I’ve always preferred a more subdued piece like Vitali. Violinists don’t take enough time to appreciate the beauty of a chaconne.”

You stared at her in disbelief. Almost no one had even heard of Vitali’s Chaconne, but she did and it was her favorite. “Thank you, Miss Harkness. I-“

“Ah ah ah,” Agatha waved a finger to silence you. “I’m not finished. You were good, but not great. Your octave slides were flat. Your bow hold is giving me a headache, you need to relax more. Your vibrato is too fast, we need to work on slowing it down. Didn’t your teacher ever tell you that? And don’t even get me started on your opening chord.” She eyed the younger woman before continuing. “But despite all that, you have promise.”

You were speechless. She wasn’t yelling at you? “You think I have promise?”

Agatha nodded. “Which is why I’m offering you a job.”

“I got the position?” You smiled. “I can’t believe it.”

Agatha’s eyebrows furrowed. “What? No, don’t be ridiculous. You’re not ready to play with the Manhattan Symphony.”

“But you said you were offering me a job,” you repeated the words of the older woman.

“And I am. As my personal assistant,” Agatha explained as if it was the most obvious answer.

“You want me to be your assistant?” You said in disbelief. “Miss Harkness I’m not so sure if I’m qualified-“

Agatha cut you off again. “If you’re serious about being a violinist, especially being a violinist in my orchestra, we need to work on your technique. Natural talent only gets you so far my dear.” She shrugged. “And I may have just fired my newest assistant for being entirely incompetent.”

“I don’t know what to say,” You admitted. This certainly isn’t how you expected your day to go.

“I’m not going to force you to work for me, dear,” Agatha drawled out. “You can walk right out that door and continue on with your presumably simple and boring life.”

“And if I stay?” You prompted, already knowing what you were going to choose.

Agatha slowly walked up the steps of the stage and approached you. “Well then I’ll have my work cut out for me. As will you, darling. I’ll be working you quite hard.” You blushed at her suggestive tone and she smirked at your reaction. “Blushing already? I’ve barely even started.”

You cleared you throat before nodding. “Alright. I’ll do it.”

“Then let’s get started.” Agatha smirked. “This is going to be fun. Now, let’s take it from the top.”

Working for Agatha was interesting. She was very hard to read, and you could never tell if she was mad at you or if she was just in a mood. You had spent the past few weeks helping her prepare for the first symphony rehearsal of the season. Granted you weren’t doing much to help, all she was asking you to do was make copies of parts and to organize folders for each section.

Today was different. You entered the mostly empty building with a drink holder containing two cups of coffee in one hand and your violin case in the other when the sound of Agatha’s heels came click-clacking down the hallway. From the moment she rounded the corner, you could tell she was in a foul mood.

She was mumbling something incoherent but she stopped when she spotted you. “You’re late.”

You chose to not comment on the fact you were an hour early and instead carefully set down your violin case to hand her one of the cups of coffee. “Bad morning?”

“Hayward is an asshole,” Agatha seethed. “I had the entire season planned out but he thinks I’m not appealing to our investors.”

Well that explained it. Tyler Hayward was CFO of the Manhattan Symphony Orchestra and was a Grade-A asshole. You only had a few interactions with the man but they had all been quite unpleasant. He was less than pleased to discover Agatha had fired the assistant he hired and chose to hire you without consulting him. Luckily Agatha had all but kicked him out of her office and told you to come to her if he gave you a hard time.

“How is Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9 not appealing to investors?” You asked in confusion. “Everyone loves The New World Symphony.”

“That’s not the problem. He thinks I’m playing it too safe with the soloists,” Agatha explained and you thought of the soloists selected thus far. You could see how they would be safe options, but who doesn’t love Joshua Bell?

“But it’s too late to get out of those contracts without losing money,” You pointed out. “Does Hayward not know that?”

“Oh believe me, Hayward always gets his way,” Agatha spat out, and you noticed she appeared to be growing angrier. “He’s still mad I was voted in as music director by the board instead of his choice for the position, so he’s punishing me. And now I have to deal with Maximoff.”

You made a mental note to address the first part about Hayward later when Agatha wasn’t as grumpy, but grinned at the mention of the famous pianist. “Maximoff as in the Wanda Maximoff? She’s-“

“A wild card and not the soloist I envisioned having,” Agatha finished for you, glaring at the mere thought of the woman as you both walked towards her office.

“But she’s an amazing pianist,” You argued, remembering the one time you had the opportunity to watch her perform live with the Royal Philharmonic. “The way she plays is beautiful, and magical, and-“

Agatha growled and glared at you, picking up the speed she was walking at. “And she has no control. She doesn’t listen to direction and thinks she’s always right. Her ego is her downfall.”

You arched an eyebrow. “Wow, that sounds absolutely nothing like you.”

Agatha let out a laugh but still sent you another glare. “Don’t push it, darling,” Agatha warned you as she unlocked the door to her office. “I am nothing like Wanda Maximoff.”

You rolled your eyes after she turned around. “Right. So I’ll take the Beethoven parts out to make room for Wanda’s piece?”

Agatha sighed and combed her fingers through her wildly curly hair. “Well I’d rather just tell the little Sokovian princess she’s not allowed anywhere near my orchestra. But since that would be frowned upon, yes put the Beethoven back. Her agent should be emailing us the parts later today.”

You set off to prepare the dreadful task of reorganizing each folder while Agatha studied different scores. She had her baton out and was mindlessly conducting as she went through the fourth movement of the Dvorak. Over the past few weeks you had started to fall in love with watching her conduct. There was something so mesmerizing by the way she could bring different pieces to life with the mere movement of her hands. You watched her right hand lightly grip the baton and noticed the position of her fingers lightly grasping the silver object while her blue eyes scanned the score.

She felt your staring and smirked as she continued conducting. “See something you like, dear?”

Blushing furiously you went back to your task of sorting music, but every once in a while you allowed yourself to take a break to watch Agatha conduct, and although she smirked whenever she noticed, she didn’t make any more comments. Eventually you finished the work and put the folders away while filing the Beethoven in the cabinet.

“Good, you’re done,” Agatha said as she stood up. “Now it’s time for my favorite part of the day.”

You internally groaned and realized what she wanted. “Where you make one of the interns cry and go get lunch?”

“Close, dear. But no.” She motioned to your violin case. “Come.”

This was your least favorite part of the day. Now, you were used to receiving constructive criticism, and even just good old fashioned criticism. Over the years you had less than kind violin teachers, and you shuddered at the memory of Stefan throwing a chair across the room when you only had three pages of Mendelssohn fully memorized two months before your recital preview. He kept yelling in Russian that he would not be the first faculty member to have a student fail a preview. Or the time Jacqueline caused you to have a panic attack right before your sophomore year concerto competition because she didn’t ‘like your stage presence’ and went on some insane rant, and then yelled at you more while you were sobbing. Ah, the fond memories you had of college.

But there was something so intensely nerve wracking about performing in front of Agatha that it made all of those encounters seem like fun and games. You weren’t sure what it was about the woman, but there was just something about her presence that constantly had you on edge. What made it ten times worse was that Agatha seemed to be aware of the effect she had on you, and did whatever she could to make you blush.

You took a few moments to tune your violin and roll your shoulders back while Agatha made herself comfortable in the audience, but you both knew she wouldn’t stay out there for long.

“Now darling,” Agatha called out from her seat. “I want you to remember what we’ve been working on. The first impression you set when your bow hits the string needs to be dominating. I want to feel like you’re pinning me down on the stage. Make me want it.”

You stared at her incredulously and shook your head, trying not to visualize what she just said to you. “Right...pinning...dominating,” You murmured as you straightened your stance and took a deep breath. Setting your bow on the string, you made sure it was positioned at the frog.

“I can see you tensing from all the way out here,” Agatha said in a mocking tone. “Do I need to come up there and help you relax?”

You knew her coming anywhere near you would do the opposite to relax you. “Nope. Just stay where you are!”

“Oh, are you the one giving orders now, my dear?” Agatha teased as she slowly got out of her seat and made her way towards the stage. “I’m just trying to help. You need to relax your shoulders, otherwise you’re going to end up with a hunchback.”

“I like the Hunchback of Notre Dame,” You offered weakly as you watched her stalk her way up the stairs, her heels clicking up each step.

Agatha rolled her eyes. “Of course you do.” She closed the distance between you and put her hands on your shoulders. “You need to relax.” She examined you closer and arched an eyebrow. “And breathe, my dear. Unless you want to fall in my arms.” You had taken to staring at the floor of the stage until you felt her hand gently cup your chin, forcing you to gaze at her. “Am I that hideous to look at that?”

“Ha, you’re so funny,” You managed to get out before taking a deep breath, and once again tried to relax your shoulders.

Despite your best efforts, you still felt tense, and Agatha noticed it as well. Letting out a gentle huff she moved behind you and began to rub your upper back. “Jeez, have you ever had a massage? It seems like you need one.”

“That’s a bit above my current pay check,” You quipped and blushed when you heard her responding chuckle.

“If you’re asking for a raise, you’re going to have to do better than that,” Agatha replied, her breath tickling your ear and sending delightful shivers down your spine. “You need to let go, darling. This much tension in your shoulders will do too much damage to your posture.”

She hit a particularly hard knot and you couldn’t help but moan at the sensation. You thought you heard Agatha mumble something under her breath but you were so lost in the sensation you didn’t ask her what she said. Agatha continued rubbing your shoulders and you slowly felt yourself relax into her touch.

“That’s it,” Agatha murmured. “Good girl.” Your eyes shot open at the praise and you heard her lightly chuckle. “Relax, dear. I could do this all day.”

Your shoulders eventually loosened up and you couldn’t help but groan when Agatha took a step away from you. “Quit your whining and play that chord,” Agatha demanded as she turned away from you, clapping her hands loudly. “I want to be wowed.”

Taking a deep breath, you fixed your stance before setting your bow back on the string. You were hesitating, and Agatha knew it too.

“Any day now. It’s not like I have anything else to do,” Agatha’s words were sharp but you knew she meant it as encouragement.

You let go of any fears you had of what would come next as you positioned your fingers on the string and rolled your bow to produce the g-minor chord. Your left wrist was loose enough to slow down your vibrato and you went through the first section without any interruptions from Agatha. As you began the next phrase you remembered what Agatha had told you about making it bigger and better than before.

“Always leave them wanting more,” Agatha had instructed her. “Make each phrase slightly different. No one wants to suffer through ten minutes of the same few notes.”

You added more vibrato for this phrase and changed the dynamics so you were growing in sound until you heard her calling for you to stop.

“Stop! Stop, that’s enough,” Agatha yelled as she walked back towards you. “That was...better.”

“Dare I say you sound surprised?” You joked causing her to glare at you.

“Fishing for compliments, are we?” She questioned, but eventually relented. “You’re getting better.”

You grinned wildly at her praise. “That was the nicest thing you’ve said to me so far today.”

“Keeping score?” Agatha mused, a smile threatening to tug at her lips at your enthusiasm. “Like I said, you’re getting better, but there’s a lot of work to do. I want to hear those octave slides and not feel like my ears are bleeding from your intonation. Chop chop.”