#I’ll edit it later to fix any typos lol

[kadajsbitch]

Fresh Air

Pinocchio x Fem!Reader

Warning: Smoking a cigarette, other than that none for the most part.

I kind of want to turn this into a series, idk yet. This may be a bit OOC but for the most part, the character is nameless as for the little mentions of her family and things, I still for the most part kept it a clean slate for the readers to make that themselves. If I do make this a series, I’ll probably give them a last name or something but as of now, it’s pretty much a blank slate so enjoy. 😅

•*•*•*•*•*•

It was late. Way too late for a lady of her status to be outside even if it was just to stand in front of the building she resided at.

But then again, those things didn’t matter anymore… not with the rogue mechanoids patrolling the streets of Krat looking for any potential human or even puppet that hadn’t been affected with whatever was turning them haywire, to ultimately slaughter. It also didn’t matter anymore considering she no longer lived under her families rule anymore. For all they knew, she was dead and despite that being a cause for concern to most, it was one of the things that felt like a grand weight being lifted off her shoulders… therefore, her status didn’t matter anymore.

She pulled her robe around herself a little more tightly for the sake of keeping warmth. Due to the fires that were beginning to spread around the already apocalyptic city, the winds had picked up, causing for it all to appear slightly foggy, and in all honesty hard to breath… which made for what she was about to do seem stupid.

But one thing was for certain and that was that Krat was now in an apocalyptic state and even if the puppets were to one day just stop their tumultuous assault against everything within their line of vison, it would take years before Krat could be in a state of repair… and years before it would be fully repaired.

She reached into her robe pocket, keeping her head up and alert as she looked around once more, wearily taking a few hesitant steps away from the door. While it had only been a few days since her arrival to the hotel, she felt as if she was trapped which to her was slightly ironic because before she had arrived, she had told herself if there were people there who could help her, she’d never leave the building for the sake of her life.

To get to the hotel had been a challenging and a perilous journey itself. She had been on her way back to the station, not willing that was or sure but having only been in Krat because she thought she’d be able to hide out there until her family got bored with looking for her…

She let out a frustrated huff, as she quickly moved to check her other pocket, and to both her satisfaction and annoyance, she finally grasped the thing she had been looking for… the box of cigarettes.

Straightening herself as she hesitantly glanced down the bridge and around her once more, making sure she was indeed alone. Her attention fell back to the little box. She had grabbed it off a corpse when she had been running towards the hotel… she guessed it had been a simple cream white color before it had been splattered with blood.

It felt wrong to grab it off a dead man’s body, but then again it wasn’t like he would be using them. She for one, definitely did not them nor have any true need for them considering she had never smoked before in her life. Yet she did it… and she despite the overwhelming feeling of regret having to do with her actions, she felt a peculiar sense of excitement by it due to the fact if her family could see her, they’d surely throw a fit at catching her smoking.

She carefully slid the little box from the bloodied sleeve that held its contents, before pulling one of the carefully hand rolled pieces out. Quickly, she placed it between her lips before pocketing the box and shoving it back in her robe pocket and finding her matches.

Speaking of her family….

She came from a wealthy one. One with lots of influence on those within in London and neighboring countries, yet no one would’ve guessed considering she never had her debut into society the proper way due to the fact she had ran away. She knew what would come of the day… Her mother had wanted to throw a debutante ball and hold it at their manor, like they had done for her sister and cousins, and so on.

While from the outside, it seemed like a grand affair, some girls who were the stars of their balls and those they attended, loved it and looked forward to them, she knew it was just an excuse for her parents to go window shopping for a husband for her. The very thing she did not want.

So, she waited a week before the event, the night of her escape she had changed into one of the puppet servants clothing and promptly ran away. She had been fifteen then… and she had been very ill-prepared for how the world outside of first class society really was and yet, she wouldn’t trade it for nothing in the world because at least she had one thing her parents seemed to have not wanted her to have at all, and that was free will to live her life according.

Of course, her family wasn’t just going to allow her to leave on her own terms. Over the years she had narrowly escaped men who had chased after her, no doubt privately hired by her father who promised them wealth and money to find her. Three men in which, continued their pursuit of finding and bringing her back to her father alive and in one piece for the award they were no doubt expecting from the man.

And they would’ve succeeded this time too, if not for the puppets at the station going haywire and attacking the men who were all but trying to drag her in the train and those around her…

Feeling her hand grasp the small box of matches, she quickly pulled it out, her head whipping around to ensure her safety once more before she looked down, bringing the now lit match that she had repeatedly hit against the striker until it was ignited.

Quickly she brought the end of her cigarette to it before shaking the match out, and taking a shaky inhale. While she had never smoked before, she had been told if she ever tried, to inhale with her mouth first before fully inhaling with her lungs to avoid the embarrassment of hacking up said lungs. She pushed the smoke out through her nose, making an audible ��Oh.” Sound before, she brought the cigarette away from her mouth as she hesitantly looked across the bridge, her face fixing on the figure she hadn’t noticed before.

She froze for what felt like minutes before she slowly made her way to the hotel door. However, she got the need to look back once more, in which she did, and luckily it wasn’t a puppet like she had assumed… it was him.

He was halfway across the bridge now, his eyes fixed on her. He wore a simple chemise top that had a loose frill collar, and simple black breeches with his flat shoes and socks. A stark contrast from the uniform she was use to seeing him in…She suddenly became aware of what she had on, as the skirt of her chemise night dress and train of her robe blew slightly in the harsh wind, again reminding her that she shouldn’t have been out. If not for the fact that by societal standards, she was a woman, it was the fact that she was dressed indecently especially considering she was alone.

She pulled the silk robe a little bit tighter around her chest area, looking down to make sure it was still secured in place by the silk belt of the robe before she hesitantly stepped away from the door as he got closer.

“It’s late. You could’ve smoked through the window.” His voice was surprisingly deep yet it wasn’t so guttural, and held a softness to it. It was both pleasing yet odd coming from him considering his features were somewhat soft. Despite this, he didn’t sound particularly upset or worried about what she was doing. More so stating the situation, and a solution that would’ve been better than her coming outside.

She sighed softly, exhaling the smoke as she turned to look behind him and towards her right. “Yes, it is and I could’ve but I needed some time outside of the hotel… I know the air isn’t particularly fresh out here, but it’s nice to be outside.” She said, her eyes finding his to search his expression.

He tilted his chin down slightly keeping his eyes on her as his eyebrows furrowed in an expression that seemed to be questioning her reasons.

“Nice to be outside… in these conditions.” He turned his body slightly to look at the scene beyond the destroyed building that stood closer to the hotel as his eyes shifted from one collapsing building to the few giant clouds of black smoke rising in the air from fires that brewed.

She rolled her eyes, shaking her head slightly as she took another drag of the cigarette, now feeling a little more comfortable to inhale it. “As thankful as I am for Antonia’s benevolence and allowing me to stay under her roof for the time being, staying inside for too long can be a bit stuffy. No matter how many windows you open.” She said, watching as he turned to look back at her, his eyebrow raised slightly in a questioning matter while his gaze seemed to hold a look of doubt.

“Besides, it’s not like we can really have many windows open… while it does seem like the puppets tend to ignore the inside of the buildings, if they catch wind of seeing anything within, they’ll do what they usually do.” She says frowning. When she had arrived to the hotel, she had felt safe enough to relax and be as loud as she wanted due to the fact she was staying in the highest part of the hotel… that’s until Antonia informed her that some of the puppets were climbing.

“How attentive. You’re observant enough to know that if they think they can sense humans within the building, they’ll tear it down in a means to get to us. Yet it’s alright to stand outside and smoke because you’re in need of fresh air?” At this, she narrowed her eyes at him slightly before rolling them watching as a gentle grin found it’s way on his lips.

“We haven’t been formally introduced. My name’s Pinocchio.” At this, her exspression shifted to one of curiosity. “Like the fairytale?” He nodded before holding his hand out for her to shake, an action in which she carefully repeated as they became familiar with one another.

“(Y/n).” She said, a little to stiffly for her liking but hoping it was believable. She had been using the false name for years after she had ran away, yet it never felt right coming from her lips.

She didn’t miss how the corner of his mouth slowly withdrew, his eyebrow raising more as a smirk found its way to his face. “Lovely name. I haven’t met anyone with a name like yet.” She smiled, withdrawing her hand from his as he did as well.

She had seen the man walking around the hotel every now and then, but she had never interacted with him due to the fact he seemed to only really come inside the hotel to maybe get supplies and talk to Eugenia, Antonia, and the man who resided in the study.

And almost immediately, he’d leave afterwards. She had never seen him eat or drink anything, which in turn made her believe he ate when she was either in her room considering the fact it’s where she mainly stayed now unless she was speaking with Eugenia, the girl who ran the weapons shop she had became friendly with.

After a moment of silence and looking at one another, he turned to face the bridge to look at the scene in-front of them.

“You shouldn’t stay out too long. They rarely come up here, but every now and then there’s two or three that are sauntering infront of the door when I come or am exiting.” At this, her face fell from the relaxed, almost pleasant look to one of shock. Not really by the fact that they would come close to the hotel, that much she assumed but she hadn’t even bothered to check the windows before she so much as opened the doors.

He glanced at her from the side before smiling gently, turning back towards the doors as he opened one. Before he entered however, he looked over to her, clearing sensing her sudden unease. “Are you coming inside too or, do you wish to enjoy the outside air more?” He asked. Again, his tone was gentle yet you could see an almost teasing look in his eye as she stood there waiting for his response.

She didn’t hesitate however. Quickly, she knelt down, quickly stubbing the cigarette out as her other hand held her robe together tightly to keep modest before she stood up, and quickly went inside. Nodding at Pinocchio who averted his eyes to the ground to watch his step, once she was inside as he moved to follow, closing the door behind him.

[teklarn]

I NEED A PART TWO FOR BAUKGOU’S AWKWARD CONFESSION!!

𝓫𝓻𝓾𝓽𝓪𝓵 - 𝓴. 𝓫𝓪𝓴𝓾𝓰𝓸𝓾 𝓹𝓽. 2

character(s): katsuki bakugou x fem!reader

a/n: k the first one kinda blew up and i've been on tumblr for like a week and it made me rly happy receiving the requests ty <33 thank u for all the reblogs too !! this is a bit later than i hoped it would come out b/c half of the original fic was deleted by accident, but i’m on summer break until sept 5 so hopefully i’ll still update frequently. 

𝕣𝕖𝕓𝕝𝕠𝕘𝕤 𝕒𝕣𝕖 𝕘𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕥𝕝𝕪 𝕒𝕡𝕡𝕣𝕖𝕔𝕚𝕒𝕥𝕖𝕕!

summary: bakugou finds he’s rejecting his feelings for you in fear of becoming weak, however he just can’t seem to ignore you. 

genre: lil angsty, fluffy at the end

warnings: cursing, one-sided pining, gave reader a quirk, the fighting scene is bs i cannot write action scenes at all im so sorry lol,  second hand embarrassment for our dearest dynamight :(

word count: 2507

pls don't mind any typos! i try to edit to the best of my ability but i tend to type fast and i might miss a few or a lot of things. 

- - -

read part one here my loves !!

you found yourself bored, cheeks puffing out as you swirled around the drink in your glass cup, sitting across from midoriya. he was muttering again, which you’d always found cute, however you weren’t listening this time at all. 

part of the reason you’d rejected bakugou was due to the fact midoriya had requested your attention first, and not as friends. if you’d told bakugou that, it would just wound his delicate ego on top of the fact that you truly had no interest in him whatsoever. 

at the moment, though, he was the only thing on your mind. there was no sudden spark of attraction you’d felt when he’d confessed. of course, anyone would find it flattering that the katsuki bakugou found you attractive. his standards were higher than the clouds. 

at the moment, it felt like something was blocking your chest from feeling something for him, however you couldn’t pinpoint what it was. 

“—it was amazing, right, y/n? y/n?” 

your eyes flickered up to meet the emerald, wide-eyed eyes of your friend. you contemplated lying, but it was no use. shaking your head softly and pursing your lips, you set your drink down. “i’m sorry, midoriya. i’m just kind of...out of it, i guess you could say?” 

he cocked his head to the side. “’out of it’?” he repeated. 

“yeah,” you sighed, head pounding. 

“is everything alright? maybe today isn’t the best time for this.” 

“yeah,” you agreed. “maybe.” 

“do you want to go back to the dorms?” 

you nodded, massaging your temples. “yeah, yeah let’s go home.” 

midoriya let out a soft chuckle through his nose, smiling. “alright.” he offered his hand, and you gladly let him heave you up. 

“i’m sorry about this. honestly, midoriya, i enjoy your company, i really do. but i never assumed you’d catch feelings for me too—” 

“too?” he blinked. the two of you continued on your way back to Heights Alliance. 

you gulped. “yeah, there’s—” 

“are you saying you caught feelings for me, as well?”

your eyes fell blank, lips parting in question. “no, uh. you know what? never mind.” you giggled gently in hopes the two of you would laugh it off without another thought. perhaps you should keep you and bakugou’s quiet interaction to yourself. midoriya and bakugou were already rivals enough. 

- 

the following week was agonizing in many ways. sitting beside bakugou guaranteed that you would get strange, judgmental looks. it never guaranteed his stolen glances. when you’d catch him staring, his cheeks would flare up, and you swore he had smoke puffing out his ears. 

each time, he looked as if he would explode. what can you expect from a guy like him? 

it was easy to assume you’d just pissed him off, though. you weren’t the type of person to tell everyone you’d been asked out, but you needed to speak to someone about it. the thought had been nagging you, stuck at the back of your mind but just on the tip of your tongue. 

you even found that you were distancing yourself from midoriya, who, after asking you out, had insisted you begin calling him izuku. over everyone else, you’d choose him to speak to about the matter, but ever since you’d discovered he had feelings all along, it was strange being around him. 

you viewed him differently. he shot you glimmering smiles and blushed softly when you said his first name. 

“y/n?” 

you twisted around to see mina rocking on her heels behind you. “yes?” 

“are you okay? you seem...how do i put this.” she tapped a pink finger against her lips. “off. you seem off. is everything alright?” 

your brows raised. “oh, yeah. i’m good. thanks for checking in.” 

“is there anything you want to talk about?” she adjusted her hero costume. you and the rest of the girls were currently changing for another training exercise. 

yaoyorozu fixed her hero costume. “i don’t mean to impose on anything, but i have to agree with mina, y/n. of course, there’s no pressure to tell us anything. you’re under no obligation to unless you need and want to talk to someone, but we’re here if you need us, okay?” 

you nodded, smiling softly. “thanks you guys.” 

- 

it was the same training as before, however you were able to select a partner of your own. being that there were 21 students in the class, there was always ought to be a group of three, or one person left out. you’d come into yuuei out of pure luck, as some like to put it. 

you’d found it offensive they’d assumed it was that and not your own pure skill. it’d taken a while to re-convince yourself that you were worthy of being in the class, even if you were usually the odd one out. 

most students had already bonded by the time you arrived here, so finding a partner wasn’t always easy. once you and midoriya had gotten close, you two did most things together, however at the moment, you weren’t quite feeling it. 

surprisingly, your eyes caught bakugou standing alone, eyes scanning the room for a partner. kirishima must have partnered up with another friend, then. it was always them together. 

unfortunately, you weren’t quick enough to avoid either of them. bakugou was already trotting up to you, eyes locked on your figure just as midoriya began jogging to your side. 

in perfect unison, they asked, “be my partner?” (in two very different tones, of course.) 

you blinked between them, about to answer when aizawa came up behind you three. 

“are you guys in the group of three?” your teacher deadpanned. 

your shoulders slumped. “yeah, i guess so.” 

“get to work. you’ve already wasted five minutes standing around.” 

you nodded politely. “yes, sensei.” 

you swallowed. bakugou’s crimson gaze was pinning you in your spot, and midoriya’s lips thinned with a lack of enthusiasm when bakugou looked back at him. 

“get to work, you three,” aizawa repeated, walking away. 

“i can take on both of you.” bakugou cracked his knuckles. 

you clenched your fists. “we already know you’re at the top of the class, bakugou. there’s no need to rub it in our faces.” 

he averted his eyes, cheeks flushing red. it was like a sad, silly way of letting you know you won this fight. 

“i’ll go against you two,” you said, adjusting your hero costume. 

midoriya’s eyes widened. “what? y/n, but—” 

“but i’m not strong enough?” you finished for him. you knew where they ranked in strength, and while yours was just as powerful, if you let one thing slip, your arrows would disappear and you’d be dust. “that’s exactly my point, you two are practically at the top of the class with your quirks.” 

“tch, don’t hold back,” bakugou said, readying himself. 

“don’t go easy on me,” you mocked. 

“y/n, do you really think this is a good idea—” before izuku could finish, you and bakugou launched yourselves at one another. 

you charged forwards. an arrow flew from your hand, twisting its way right through the smoke of an explosion. when it cleared, bakugou was nowhere to be seen. 

a gasp fell from your lips as you turned around just a little too late. your ears rang terribly as your back collided with the ground. 

izuku cried out. green lightning flashed, and he was at your side in a moment. “kacchan!”

you groaned, sitting up. bakugou cut through the smoke with an arm. “fight me, damned nerd. there aren’t any pauses in a real fight.” 

you wriggled yourself away from midoriya. “midoriya, you’re my enemy in this.” 

“bu—” 

“no buts. fight me. and don’t hold back.” 

midoriya noted the determination in your eyes and stood, giving you a sure nod. you were back on your feet in a second. bakugou flew in the air and came crashing down just as fast as he conjured a blast in his right hand. 

attacking wasn’t your best option right now. you were smart enough to know that. an arrow appeared flat at your back and pulled you from where bakugou was targeting. 

cement flew into the air. 

that blast could have wounded you badly. possibly killed you, if he’d hit the right spots. 

in the air, you examined their zealous features. midoriya’s brows were furrowed in that determined smolder. 

bakugou, as always, looked angry. as expected, he charged first, shooting himself into the air. his foot nearly collided with your face, missing my barely an inch. you took your shot, revealing the arrow you’d hidden behind your back. the tip collided with his chest. 

you left the arrow to complete its command and stick your blonde opponent to the wall and trap him there while you went after midoriya. 

while he bested you in strength, you did the same to him when it came to speed. you dodged his punches like they were weak attempts at hitting a ball in a park. 

you grinned. in a battle of strength and speed, whoever landed the first hit would win. there was no question. 

twisting in the air, you allowed the ball of your foot to shove midoriya to the ground. he cried out as his face was crushed into the cement. 

it was perfect timing, as bakugou ripped free of your hold, the arrow keeping him in one spot dissolving into air as soon as its purpose was lost. 

your head whipped around to see him charging for you. 

your fingers curled. the headache pounding at your temples was beginning to get hard to ignore. 

bakugou launched himself at you, spinning in the air like a missile. he really wasn’t going to howitzer you...right? 

when he didn’t slow down, you threw your body to the right, the attack just barely missing your leg. it scorched a bit of your thigh. a groan fell from your lips as you cupped the area around the burn, shuddering with pain. 

bakugou’s chest was puffed proudly as he marched up to you, hands cracking with excited explosions. 

he pulled back his right arm, ready to spark up another fight as midoriya recollected himself. you bit your lip to hide the fact you were quivering. 

it was sudden, but bakugou paused when he saw your hand fly up. 

“give me a minute...” you gasped out, skin still sizzling. 

“y/n! are you alright?” 

you didn’t respond. midoriya smacked his friend’s arm. “kacchan! what’re you thinking?”

“midoriya, i’m fine. don’t stress over it.” you limped to your feet, rejecting the extended hand from your green-haired friend. “i’ll just go see recovery girl.” 

“do you need—” 

you smacked midoriya’s hand away, a little bit more rude than you intended it to be. “i’ll be...fine.” you offered a weak smile to hopefully make up for your tiny outburst. 

although you could see in his eyes he wanted to help, midoriya nodded and stood by, hand falling back to his side. you clutched around the patch of burned skin. the sting had faded a bit, however there was a soreness to the wound that felt like a constant stabbing to your leg. 

you swallowed the pain down, marching towards the exit with determination and a bit of a limp.

you looked back to see midoriya had gone off to tell mr. aizawa what was going on. your teacher nodded, understandingly. 

there were a few worried glances and offers for help in the hall, but you’d neglected them all and found yourself relieved to see recovery girl in her office, typing away. 

she turned as the door opened. “please knock beforehand next time—oh, dear. y/n? are you alright?” 

you gave a tense nod. “mhm. just got a bit banged up in training today.” 

the old woman pursed her lips, smile lines becoming evident. “i see.” she led you to the small cot reserved for patients such as yourself and directed you to sit down. 

she examined the bruise. “it’s fairly bad. what happened?” 

you made a gesture to the door. “i was brawling with bakugou and things got...intense.” 

“that boy has quite an extreme side to him, as i’ve come to notice.” 

“mhm,” you agreed. 

“unfortunately, y/n, i have no ointments to be able to treat this properly.” 

you nodded sheepishly before the old woman smooched your cheek. a soft green glow radiated around you. 

when she pulled back, she said, “now, your body will be trying to catch up on the healing process. that’s what my quirk does. speed up recoveries. since it’s sped up, you’ll require some rest, preferably sleep. i’ll make sure your teachers know you’re excused for the rest of the day, sound good?” 

“yes, thank you recovery girl.” 

she pushed herself out of her rolling chair and left the room, smiling at you.

your eyes fluttered shut not long after that. 

- 

the sun was gone when you woke up, the hallway light flickering off. 

“good, you’re awake.” 

you looked to the left. you cried out, gathering the white sheets around yourself despite being completely clothed. “bakugou! what the hell? you stalker! you creep!” 

bakugou took the slap you gave him on his arm. it was light, and didn’t do much damage. 

“what...what do you want?” 

even in the dark, you could tell bakugou’s cheeks were burning red. “about...about the other day. i wanted to talk to you about it.” 

your chest fluttered in unwanted hope. “there’s nothing to talk about.” 

“dammit, y/n, i wish there wasn’t anything to talk about. you’re insufferable and annoying and i can’t stand being around you because no matter what’s going on, you make my chest feel all funny. it’s stupid, and i can’t take my eyes off of you.” 

heat rushed to your cheeks. “i’m flattered, really. but i-” 

“i’m not asking you to reciprocate my shitty feelings. if anything, it’s better if you don’t.” 

“bakugou, i wasn’t...” you paused. 

“you what?” he snapped, voice soft despite his tone. 

“i was going to say that ever since you...ever since you asked me out, i’ve been conflicted about my own feelings.” 

“the hell is that supposed to mean?” 

“i’m not sure if i like you back or not, bakugou. but hearing you say all this...makes me want to give it a shot. sort of. also, why the hell are you watching me sleep?” 

bakugou swept hair from his eyes. “don’t go and try to change the subject on me, dumbass.” 

you gulped. 

“so what’re you saying?” 

“i’m saying,” you started, “i’m saying that maybe i want to go out on that date with you.” 

“say it again.” 

“what?” you looked up, his eyes boring into yours. 

“i said i want you to say it again. tell me you want to go out on a date with me.” 

it startled you how sure he was when he knew what you wanted, too. this was unlike the last attempt to ask you out. 

“katsuki bakugou, i want to go on a date with you.” 

he grinned. “where to?”

[lauras-happy-place]

That’s so interesting!!! Can you post more pictures or anything of those cartoons? Such a culture shock! It’s so weird how you guys get all the american cartoons AND your own ones! You had double the fun! I’ve never seen those

//Edit: I didn't know it was gonna be reblogged so many times (20 atm, but that's 20 times more than I expected), so I'll add and fix sum stuff...now there are too many versions of this reblogged that has all my typos//

The following ones are mostly from my country :) I watched these so many times as a kid! I’ll give you a brief description too:

This is an animated movie called

Vuk

About a fox cub whose parents were killed by hunters, and he has to learn to live on his own. He’ll get under his uncle’s care.

The next movie is called

Cat city

/in my language it’s a pun: instead of mouse trap it’s called “cat-trap” so idk why they translated this way…

It’s about two societies: cats’ and mice’s. The mice are constantly harassed by the cats, so they build a machine to tame the cats. It's a political comedy. (Also, we don't talk about the sequel...what sequel!?)

The next movie is my favourite, called

Vili the Willow

I found this translation online, but he’s a sparrow so idk. When I wrote this I thought it meant sparrow lol…

Anyway: It’s about a brat boy who mistreats birds and so a lady visits him to ask the boy to stop harassing the sparrows. He doesn’t listen to her, but she turns out to be a witch, thus she turns the boy into a sparrow for a day to teach him a lesson, but when she goes back to retransform him, She can't find him anywhere. He got chased by his own cat and then he got lost in the city. He has to find his way back, makes new sparrow friends and learns valuable lessons along the way. (This isn't from my country per say, but it's very popular here.)

These one are cartoons:

Frakk, the terror of the cats

Misleading title tbh. The cats are the ones who always play trick on the vizsla to get him in trouble. The black cat is the mastermind, the white one is a little slow and is easily manipulated. (She's my fave. Her name translates to Shy or Modest, but with a diminutive suffix to make it cute.)

Pumukli (this is German but I wanna talk about it)

This is in Roger Rabbit style. It’s about a little elf who can only be visible by those whose hearts are pure. He finds himself in Master Deer’s woodworker workshop. Pumukli likes to get into trouble, and they go through adventures together. In later episodes I think the master dies, so he lands with another person, I’m not sure….

Diving spider - Wonderspider

Diving bell spider….but it sounds rhythmic like this, just like in Hungarian. Fun fact: As a kid I shipped them before knowing that shipping existed. (Both guys btw, so I was an early ally lol)

This was a movie, but then they made it into a series later on. It’s about well….uhm. So basically a spider who makes oxygen bubbles to breath underwater, built himself a palace and is very kind to others. It’s a simple story. He befriends the land spider, who’s always grumpy and helps others.

A Nagy ho-ho-ho horgász

Idk how to translate this….The Great F-f-f- fisherman…but it’s actually a line he says in the cartoon. Like Santa: ho ho ho

About a clumsy fisherman who only fishes for sport, then releases the fish. His pal is the worm/ bait. The fish trick him all the time so he never catches any. He finds funny and clever ways to try and catch them, but he always loses in the end.

Pompom's tales

It’s my favourite cartoon! The main characters are that ball of hair called Pompom and the girl. She wears him as a hat and they help their friends like my favourite character: the big blue bird who lives for chocolate. (Chocolate Arthur) The girl’s name is Picúr (itty-bitty) and as a reoccurring ending Pompom always waits for her in front of her school until it's time for her to go home.

Mézga family

Also my favourite one and also most famous one in the country.

One day the boy (on the right) invents a radio (he’s a young genius) that can make calls to the future to the 30th century. They reach MZ/X (that’s the future-guy’s name), who’s their future relative. He has an invention that can teleport things back to the past. The father (one with glasses) asks this relative for futuristic stuff that makes life easier, but they always mess up or misuse the things, therefore getting themselves into trouble.

The ginger girl and the mom (in the purple dress) don’t know about the radio. There are a grumpy neighbour for comedy relief too. Also, there’s a spin-off series where they go around the world. There they don’t mention the future, they’re just very unlucky and clumsy.

There’s an other spin-off where the little boy travels space during nighttime and discovers weird planets . He was a fan favourite. Also the dog talks in that one.

I could’ve put other cartoons here, but I’m getting tired, so

We also have folklore tales called….well Folklore Takes

They’re about…folklore tales

[maraudersftw]

This is weird. My dialogue is awful. I've been writing for over eight years now. I've barely improved. I feel demoralised every time I reread something of mine because it's just plain terrible. Like, there's no way anyone is actually ever going to say that. Let alone two super witty people, you just know would be great at bantering / flirting. I've asked people to beta, they're just too nice to actually tell me the very apparent issue with my dialogue. I'm not exaggerating. What should I do?

Hey, anon! First of all, I'm honoured that you thought of reaching out to me for this question even though I'm definitely still learning a lot of things about writing and what feels right to me myself. But I understand where you're coming from, and I'll do my best to help you out in whatever way I can. If any of my lovely writer mutuals have more to add, please feel free to do so!

1. Before I even start talking about anything else, it's important to remember that we're our own toughest critic, so it's possible (and quite likely) that your dialogues are not nearly as terrible as you think they are. When you've been writing and staring at the same words you've written multiple times, even the most interesting of dialogues can feel lame and try-hard to you. Whenever I write a fic and proofread through it before posting, 9/10 times I feel like it sounds boring or too dragged out. And it's because I already know what's going to happen, what the other person is going to say. Even if something is meant to be witty, I no longer find it to be so because I've written them. Return to your fics a year from now and you may feel differently.

2. Your betas are there to help you. I know it's difficult to broach that awkward boundary where you want them to be brutally honest about your writing vs wanting strangers on the internet to shower you with validation, but if you really, genuinely, want to improve your writing and make the maximum use of your betas, try talking to them about it. From what you've told me, they seem like very nice people, and if you tell them that they should just be as critical with your writing as they are with theirs, I think they'd understand. If they find that uncomfortable, that's fair. You can always ask someone else. I find that having different betas for different fics is always a good idea because you get to see how differing perspectives work.

3. Ask your betas to leave you comments when they're editing. It's easier to just pass on the doc and have them fix your typos and grammatical errors, but ask them how you can improve the dialogue and pacing as well! Tell them to leave some tips for you as they go over your work. This way, it doesn't have to be an one-on-one conversation (so neither of you feel awkward), and you can just return to the doc later and go through the suggestions slowly and imbibe them into your future works.

4. This might sound very simple, but it's important to remember when you're writing fic that these characters are normal humans who talk and behave like normal humans do. Sometimes, the whole flirting/bantering feel of the conversation just comes through from their actions and not their words. For eg. instead of writing something like:

"Hey, Potter! Are you free this weekend?" asked Lily.

"Why? Wanna take me on a date, Evans?" He smirked.

"Maybe I do."

You bring the scene to life through the same words, but more actions. Like so:

"Hey, Potter!" Lily called, her fingers tentative as they fell on his arm. James turned around, one eyebrow cocked. "Are you free this weekend?"

He looked at her silently, a smirk pulling at his lips. "Why? Wanna take me on a date, Evans?"

Lily's eyes glittered with the thrill of a challenge, and she pressed a little closer. "Maybe I do."

5. Make sure that you let your characters talk and breathe like normal humans, too! Let them take those heavy pauses for tense scenes, let them break off in between sentences because they can't finish a thought right or they're laughing too hard or they've just suddenly remembered something that froze them on the spot. Let them fumble and sigh and repeat words like we do IRL conversations. If your character is having an argument, and they're red in the face, they're probably not gonna say: "Why not?"

They're much more likely to say: "Well, why the hell not?!"

You can throw in a couple of "um"s and "uh"s and "er"s for those unsure few milliseconds. Em dashes are your best friends here. Sometimes, even saying that they're pausing to think or breathe or collect themselves can help bring your dialogues to life.

But yeah, don't overdo them either coz then the flow might break lol

6. Read! Read! Read! As writers, we sometimes forget to really read other stories or appreciate different characterizations and writing styles, which can make your writing growth halt. Not saying this is true for everyone, but reading more definitely doesn't do harm. And especially for us fanfic writers, this works even better, because we're writing about the same characters again and again. If you read another writer's take on it, you'll slowly start to hold onto the pattern of how a certain character speaks, or what they're likely to do. This is extremely useful when writing a dialogue. For instance, I know how headstrong and stubborn Lily is, I've read so many takes on this trait of hers. So when I write my dialogues, I know I can't have her backing down easily. She will go red in the face, she will yell, she will be in denial, and say harsh things she probably doesn't mean entirely when she's mad. But at the same time, I also know she's unflinchingly kind, so you know you have to write that she speaks in soft tones when comforting someone. She probably smiles really kindly, tucks her hair behind her ear when she's shy, confesses things with a lot of bravery, watches James from the sidelines with the softest expression (sorry, got lost in the feels for a sec)

Similarly, you've gotta make James be the loudest one in the room, the one who's voice carries over to everyone, who's absolutely unabashed in his dialogues and whose confidence shines through his words. But the same boy then turns unsure and tentative in moments where his heart is on the line. I always write his dialogues as super vulnerable during such scenes (much more than Lily's would be). A lot of desperation, pleases, promises, etc. etc.

I know this got really long, and I'm not sure if any of it was at all helpful. If you're looking for something specific, please do send in another ask! I don't mind helping out!

[bibbawrites]

Tis The Damn Season - Single Dad!Charlie x Owen

THIS IS PART 8 OF THE SINGLE DAD!CHARLIE SERIES, YOU CAN FIND THE OTHER PARTS HERE

Request: none

Word Count: 3897 words

Summary: Part 8 of Single Dad!Charlie, Owen spends Christmas and New Year with Charlie and Margaux

Warnings: swearing, sexual references, implied sexual content  pretty sure everyone knows at this point but this does include romantic chowen, remember this is fictional, if you dont like that just dont read :)

A/N: i was hesitant to write this since its literally march but @happinessinthedarkesttimes​ told me i should do it when i asked her so here it is lol  things are getting a little more steamy...  sorry for any typos im once again editing this half asleep lol  anyways hope you enjoy!

Tag List: @happinessinthedarkesttimes​​​​​​ @littlemissaddict​​​​​​ @vicesvsvirtuesfanfic​​​​​​ @headheartbellarke​​​​​​ @lovesanimals​​​​​​ @bartok-the-magnificent​​​​​​ @juliefromaustralia @multi-universe21 @rangerelik @kaitieskidmore1 @katrina765​​​​​​ @fandomxreaders​​​​​​​ @ifilwtmfc @yagorlemmalyn​

December 23rd - 9pm

“Papa!” Margaux exclaimed, running over to Owen as he exited the plane. “You’re back!” 

“I am.” Owen grinned, scooping up the four year old to give her a hug. “Isn’t it past your bed time missy?” 

“Daddy let me stay awake to see you!” Margaux told him, and Owen smiled at the mention of Charlie. 

“I’m glad. Where is Daddy?” He asked. Margaux pointed and Charlie waved from his spot on a chair. 

“Over there.” She said, and Owen grabbed his bag that he had dropped in his haste to grab Margaux before heading over to Charlie. 

“Hey handsome.” Charlie grinned. Owen blushed slightly.

“Hi.” He replied. “Missed you.”

“Missed you more. Ready to go home and have a good sleep?” Charlie questioned and Owen nodded, visibly relaxing at the mention of sleep. 

“I really am.” He agreed. Charlie smiled, taking Owen’s bag. 

“Great. Let’s get out of here.” 

-

Margaux fell asleep in the car on the way home, so once they arrived Charlie took her straight to bed. He pulled her door closed, leaving just enough of a gap to let the hallway light creep into the room, before heading down the hallway to where Owen was stood in the living room. Charlie glanced up, grinning when he noticed that Owen had fallen right into his trap.

“What are you smiling about?” Owen questioned. Charlie smiled.

“Look up.” He said, and Owen obeyed, Charlie walking closer as he did.

“Mistletoe? Really?” Owen raised an eyebrow and Charlie shrugged, a cheeky grin on his face.

“Figured it would be my only chance to kiss you.”

Owen rolled his eyes, leaning in and kissing Charlie on the cheek.

“Happy?” He asked. 

Charlie pouted, grabbing Owen’s shirt and dragging him in, connecting their lips in a forceful kiss. Owen’s back hit the wall, his hands finding a place on Charlie’s waist. Charlie bit at Owen’s lip and Owen groaned, allowing Charlie to slip his tongue into Owen’s mouth.

Owen pulled away, panting, and pressed his forehead to Charlie’s.

“Is Maggie fully asleep?” He murmured against Charlie’s lips. Charlie nodded.

“Yes.” He replied. Owen grinned.

“Good.”

And with that he grabbed Charlie’s shirt, dragging him to the bedroom.

-

December 24 - Christmas Eve

Charlie woke the next morning, still naked and tangled up in Owen’s arms. He opened his eyes to find Owen already awake, playing on his phone.

“You’re awake.” Owen said, placing his phone down. Charlie hummed in response. Owen bit his lip.

“So last night was...” He trailed off.

“Yep...” Charlie replied simply. Owen hesitated.

“I don’t usually hook up with people I’m not dating.” He admitted.

“Well at least you can’t get pregnant.” Charlie joked.

“Hmm.” Owen replied, clearly not amused by Charlie’s joke. Charlie frowned.

“O?” He spoke.

“Yeah?” Owen replied.

“Do you regret it?” Charlie asked. Owen sighed.

“I don’t know Char. Remember what I said in Hawaii? I’m just not sure if I’m ready to do... this.” He said. Charlie’s heart sunk.

“But sex is okay?” He questioned, somewhat bitterly. As much as he loved Owen he wasn’t about to enter into some friends with benefits situation.

“It was a one time thing.” Owen mumbled. 

“Oh...” Charlie’s voice was small, and for a moment he considered wriggling out of Owen’s grip.

“Please don’t shut me out like in Norman.” Owen begged. Charlie hesitated.

“I won’t. I just don’t fully understand.” He said.

“Charlie...” Owen sighed. “Look, I don’t know about you-“

“But I’m feeling 22.” Charlie interrupted. Owen bit back a smile.

“No, you dork. I’m trying to be serious here.” He said, and Charlie moved so that he could see Owen’s face.

“I’m listening.” He assured Owen. Owen took a breath.

“Look, I’m not out to anyone. I have no clue what I am, and before I met you I’d never even considered being with a guy. But I met you and everything changed. I guess technically you were my sexual awakening.” He explained. Charlie traced a pattern on Owen’s arm. 

“You don’t need to have a label, I don’t. Just love who you want to love.” He said, and Owen sighed. 

“I just need a bit more time to figure this out.” He spoke after a short pause. 

“And you can have it. But can I at least get one last kiss? And promise me we won’t stop snuggling.” Charlie put on his best puppy eyes and he could see Owen caving. 

“We could never stop snuggling.” Owen said. “And as for the kiss...”

He lent in, pressing a gentle kiss to Charlie’s lips, pulling away with a grin when Charlie tried to deepen the kiss.

“There.” Owen grinned and Charlie groaned.

“You have no idea what you’re doing to me.” He muttered. 

“Oh I have a bit of an idea.” Owen smirked, his gaze drifting downwards towards Charlie’s naked bottom half. Charlie blushed slightly, swatting at Owen’s chest.

“Shut up, you know that you can’t control morning wood.” He defended, slightly embarrassed that Owen could feel that he was hard. 

“I know.” Owen grinned cheekily. “You should probably fix that though. I’ll go wake up Maggie.”

He climbed out of Charlie’s bed, still naked from the night before, and made a big show of finding his boxers, knowing that Charlie was watching his every move. He found them and pulled them on, grabbing a pair of Charlie’s sweatpants and putting them on too before turning to look at Charlie.

“Have fun.” He winked, before leaving the room, and Charlie in it. Charlie let his head flop down onto the pillow with a sigh, and not for the first time considered the fact that Owen was literally going to be the death of him.

-

Charlie entered the kitchen a little bit later and ignored the look Owen gave him, instead heading over to Margaux and wrapping his arms around her.

“Good morning baby, happy Christmas Eve.” He greeted. Margaux grinned, her mouth full of froot loops. 

“Daddy! Santa comes tonight.” She exclaimed, and Charlie nodded, matching her excitement level. 

“He sure does, are you excited?” He asked and Margaux nodded quickly. 

“Yeah!” She squealed. Charlie ruffled her hair, turning his attention back to Owen. 

“Do you have plans today O? Mags and I are gonna go to the Mall to get a photo with Santa.” He questioned. Owen nodded. 

“I actually have some last minute shopping to do.” He said. Charlie smiled. 

“Cool, you can come with us and go off while we do our photo then.” He suggested, and Owen nodded. 

“Great.” He said. 

“Daddy?” Margaux spoke up. 

“Yeah baby?” Charlie glanced down at the four year old, who was looking at him in concern. 

“What happened to your neck? Did you bump it while playing?” She asked innocently. 

Charlie’s eyes widened, and Owen choked on his tea.

“Yeah baby, Daddy fell over.” Charlie agreed.

“Silly Daddy.” Margaux giggled. 

“Yeah, silly Daddy. Why don’t you go find your Christmas scrunchie for Daddy to put your hair up?” Charlie said, trying to distract her, and it worked. 

“Ooh okay!” Margaux grinned, climbing out of her chair and running to her room. 

“You gave me a fucking hickey?” Charlie said once he knew Margaux was out of earshot. 

“In my defence... yeah no I don’t have one.” Owen giggled. Charlie glared at him. 

“Fuck you Joyner.” He muttered.

“We already did. Last night.” Owen winked, rushing out of the room before Charlie could even register his cheeky words and process what just happened.

-

A few hours later and Charlie and Margaux were lined up ready to get their Santa photo taken. They reached the front of the line and the photographer gave them a welcome smile. 

“Okay sweetie are you ready to meet Santa?” The photographer asked and Margaux nodded. 

“Yeah.” She said. The photographer smiled. 

“Great, Dad are you gonna be in the photo?” She questioned. 

“Yeah I am.” Charlie replied. 

“Okay cool, just head on through.” She instructed, and Charlie carried Margaux in, sitting down on the allocated stool with her on his knee as they smiled for the photo. Once they had taken a few and the photographer was happy it was time to talk to the Santa. 

“Ho ho ho, what’s your name little one?” He asked and Margaux smiled. 

“Margaux.” She said confidently. 

“And what do you want for Christmas Margaux?” Santa asked. 

“A pony.” Margaux told him and Charlie grinned. 

“Oh, well you know it might be a bit hard for Santa to fit a pony in his sleigh. Is there anything else?” The Santa said, trying his best to redirect the four year old and not make any promises. 

“Yeah...” She glanced up at Charlie before looking back at Santa. “I want Papa to stay with me and Daddy all the time and not go away again.”

Charlie bit his lip as he made eye contact with the Santa, who shot him a slightly sympathetic look.

“I’ll see what I can do.” Santa told her softly and Margaux smiled. Charlie took that as their cue to leave, standing up quickly and saying one last goodbye to the Santa before leaving. He paid for the photo and collected the print outs, one for him and one to send back to Canada for his mum. 

They left the photo area and headed through the mall to where they were meeting up with Owen. 

“Daddy?” Margaux spoke up. Charlie hummed in response. 

“Yeah Mags?” He asked. 

“Will Papa have to go home?” Margaux questioned, her voice soft. Charlie sighed. 

“Probably baby. You know Papa lives in Oklahoma, he has to go back to Bindi, remember?” He told her, and Margaux pouted. 

“I wish he wouldn’t go.” She said, and Charlie nodded, spotting Owen on a bench just ahead of them. 

“Me too baby, me too.” He agreed as they reached Owen who jumped up quickly. 

“There you are! How was Santa, what did you ask him for?” He questioned. Charlie bit his lip. 

“We’ll talk about it later.” He said, and Owen frowned but dropped it nonetheless, changing the topic to a toy that he had seen, leaving Charlie to zone out and consider how exactly he was meant to explain Margaux’s words to Owen without hurting him. 

-

It wasn’t until later that evening that Owen brought the topic up again. He and Charlie were sitting in the living room, and Margaux was in her room, taking a late afternoon nap since she had been exhausted when they got home from the mall. 

“What did she ask for?” Owen asked, and Charlie bit his lip. 

“At first a pony. Luckily Santa dodged that one and said it was too big to fit in the sleigh. So he asked her what else she wanted, and she said she wanted you to stay with us and not go home.” He admitted. Owen was silent.

“Oh...” He said after a moment. Charlie nodded awkwardly. 

“Yeah.” He replied. They fell silent, before Charlie spoke again. 

“Owen, I promise I didn’t say anything to her. I’m not trying to guilt you into staying by brainwashing her.” He said, and Owen nodded. 

“I know, don’t freak out.” He replied, grabbing Charlie’s hand and giving it a light squeeze. 

“I just don’t want you to freak out.” Charlie explained. 

“I get it. She’s four Charlie, she just wants her Papa around more often.” Owen sighed, and Charlie nodded. 

“She’s not the only one.” He said. Owen shut his eyes. 

“I know. I’m thinking about it, trust me. But it’s not an easy decision to make.” He mumbled. 

“I know it’s not. Take your time. Now should we go have ourselves a nice Christmas Eve dinner?” Charlie said, deciding to change the topic as quickly as he could. 

“Sounds good. I’ll get Maggie.” Owen agreed. 

Charlie sighed as Owen left the room to go find the four year old. He wanted nothing more than for the blond boy to stay for as long as he could, but that was unrealistic.

He knew that all he could do was just enjoy his time with Owen while he could.

-

December 25 - Christmas Day

“Daddy! Papa! Wake up!”

Charlie’s eyes fluttered open as his four year old bounced on the bed, narrowly missing jumping on his and Owen’s tangled legs.

“It’s Christmas!” Margaux squealed.

“Margaux.” Owen whined. “It’s so early.”

“But Santa came.” Margaux flopped down, landing on Charlie’s chest. He wrapped his arms around her, placing a soft kiss on her messy curls.

“Merry Christmas baby.” He whispered.

“Merry Christmas Daddy. Present time?” She grinned. Charlie shook his head, glancing towards Owen, who had rolled over and was attempting to go back to sleep.

“Cuddle for a bit first. Give Papa a chance to wake up.” He told her, and Margaux nodded, snuggling closer to her father.

“Okay.”

-

Almost an hour later and Owen was finally awake and Charlie couldn’t hold Margaux off any longer.

The three of them set up in the living room, where all of Margaux’s presents were under the large fake Christmas tree.

Charlie sat leaning against Owen as Margaux opened her presents, and once she was happily playing with a new truck that she had gotten Charlie offered Owen his presents.

“This one is from Mags.” He explained, as Owen opened the present to find a drawing that Margaux had done of the three of them, framed nicely.

“It’s beautiful. You did a great job Maggie.” Owen complimented and Margaux grinned.

“Thank you!” She exclaimed. Charlie grabbed a second present.

“This one is from me.” He handed the small box to Owen who opened it, revealing a key. 

“It’s a key to this apartment. I figured even if you don’t end up moving here at least you can still come any time you want.” Charlie explained and Owen smiled. 

“Thank you Char.” He said softly, and Charlie nodded. Owen reached down, grabbing the last wrapped present and handing it to Charlie. Charlie took it and opened it to find a photo book filled with photos of himself and Margaux, Owen and Margaux, memories from set and their adventures together and more. 

“This is really sweet Owen.” Charlie smiled softly. “Thank you.” 

“You’re welcome.” Owen replied, pressing a soft kiss to the side of Charlie’s head, as Charlie rested his head on Owen’s shoulder, the both of them watching Margaux play with small smiles on their faces. 

-

The rest of their Christmas Day passed quickly and before he knew it Charlie was tucking Margaux into bed with a kiss on the head, and leaving her room to go have a shower.

Almost an hour later he reentered the kitchen where Owen had cleaned up everything from dinner and was sitting on a chair fiddling with his phone.

“Beer?” Charlie asked and Owen’s head shot up.

“Please.” He smiled and Charlie opened the fridge, grabbing two bottles of beer and handed one to Owen before sitting down across from him.

“So, first Christmas away from home, how you feeling?” Charlie questioned. Owen shrugged. 

“Honestly, pretty good. I was worried I’d be homesick but I wasn’t at all.” He said and Charlie grinned. 

“That’s really good. Cleaning up after Mags all day would have been a good distraction.” He replied and Owen groaned, making Charlie laugh. 

“I don’t know how you do this 24/7. You’re literally a superhero.” 

“Nah, just learnt to leave the messes until after she’s finished. Much easier.” 

Owen glared at him. 

“You say that now, after I spent the whole day picking shit up?” He spat, but Charlie knew he wasn’t really angry. 

“In my defence you’ve lived with her before. Rookie error from someone with experience.” Charlie retaliated and Owen flipped him off, the both of them crumbling into a fit of giggles. 

“Daddy?” Margaux’s voice came and Charlie instantly stopped laughing, his whole focus on his daughter. 

“Hey, why are you up?” He asked. 

“Bad dream.” Margaux climbed into Charlie’s lap and he wrapped his arms around her, beginning to rock her slightly like he did when she was a baby.

“Wanna talk about it?” He questioned and Margaux pouted. 

“I couldn’t find you.” She told him. Charlie placed a reassuring kiss on her head. 

“I’m here, and I’m never gonna leave you, okay?” He whispered, and Margaux nodded. 

“Yeah.” Her voice was already beginning to sound sleepy again. Charlie ran his hands through her curls, detangling a knot with his fingers. 

“You wanna stay here and cuddle Daddy until you fall asleep?” He asked, moving to rub her back, and Margaux nodded, snuggling her head into Charlie’s chest.

“Love you Daddy.” She mumbled. Charlie smiled. 

“I love you too baby. So much.” He replied. 

They sat in silence until Charlie was sure that Margaux was asleep. 

“Never get a break.” He joked quietly. Owen shook his head in awe. 

“You’re literally the perfect dad, you know that right?” He complimented, and Charlie blushed slightly. 

“I wouldn’t say perfect.” He mumbled, but Owen shook his head. 

“You are.” He said. Charlie smiled across the table at him. 

“Thanks O.” He whispered. 

“I mean it.” Owen smiled. 

“I appreciate it. It wasn’t exactly in the plan to become a parent at 18, but I guess that’s what happens when you’re young and stupid and don’t know how a condom works.” Charlie shrugged, and Owen gave him a small glare. 

“So you made one mistake, but look at what came from it.” Charlie looked down at Margaux as Owen spoke. “The best present that you ever got.” 

“Very true.” Charlie agreed. “And I’d never want to return her for the world.” 

-

New Year’s Eve

“Do you drink champagne?” Charlie asked Owen as the three of them walked through the grocery store on New Years Eve, getting the last minute snacks and drinks for their night in. Charlie pushed a trolley with Margaux in it, and Owen walked along beside them. 

“Yeah.” Owen said. Charlie smiled, stopping the trolley. 

“Great, I’ll get a bottle then. Mags, what drink do you want as your special drink?” He asked the four year old, who didn’t even hesitate. 

“Pink milk!” She grinned, pointing, and Owen grabbed the bottle from the fridge next to them.

“Okay, snacks.” Charlie said, crossing off ‘Margaux drink’ on his shopping list.

He pushed the trolley out of the aisle and through the store to the snack aisle, stopping when he reached it. 

“Okay, go wild.” He instructed, and both Margaux and Owen cheered, with the blond boy grabbing whatever Margaux asked for, putting it into the trolley along with his own snack choices. 

Charlie grinned as he watched them shop, adding a few of his own things into the mix. 

He could get used to this. 

-

Later that night Charlie, Owen and Margaux had made themselves comfortable on the couch, both Charlie and Owen having a glass of champagne while Margaux drank strawberry milk out of a plastic champagne glass. 

“How long Daddy?” Margaux asked, looking up at her dad. Charlie glanced at his phone, seeing that it was just after 11pm. He was shocked she had made it this long without crashing. 

“One more hour baby.” He told her and Margaux nodded. 

“Okay.”

She turned back to the TV which was playing a countdown of the best songs of the 2010′s, and they fell into a comfortable silence only filled with small talk and songs for about 45 minutes until Owen broke the silence. 

“Char.” He whispered, and Charlie looked up. Owen gestured to Margaux and a small smile appeared on Charlie’s face as his gaze landed on the four year old, who had curled up on the couch and fallen asleep.

“Should we put her to bed and bring out more alcohol?” Owen questioned and Charlie nodded with a grin. 

“Sounds good. I’ll put her in bed, you get the drinks?” He suggested, and Owen nodded, placing a soft kiss goodnight on Margaux’s head before heading into the kitchen.

Charlie picked the four year old up and carried her to her bed, tucking her in and kissing her before heading back out to Owen, who had already poured two glasses of champagne. Charlie sat down on the couch next to Owen, grabbing one of the glasses and holding it up.

“Cheers.” He said, and they clinked glasses before drinking. Charlie placed his glass down before looking at Owen. 

“5 minutes til midnight, you ready for 2020 to be over?” He asked. Owen shrugged. 

“Mostly. There were some good things that happened this year.” He said. 

“Yeah it wasn’t all bad.” Charlie agreed. They fell silent for a moment. 

“Hey Charlie?” Owen spoke up, his voice slightly shaky. 

“Yeah?” Charlie turned, giving Owen his full attention. 

“I made a decision, about where I want to live...” Owen started, and Charlie’s heart skipped a beat. He was pretty sure he knew what Owen’s decision would be, but he wanted to hear it just to be sure. 

“Yeah?” He prompted. Owen looked down. 

“I think I’m gonna stay in Oklahoma, I’m not ready to leave yet.” He said, and Charlie nodded, understanding. 

“I get that.” Owen looked up. 

“But I have a compromise.” He said with a small smile. Charlie raised an eyebrow. 

“Oh yeah?” 

“I’m gonna get my own place. I found one that’s really nice and affordable, and it has a study that could be turned into a bedroom for Margaux, and you could come stay with me whenever you wanted.” Owen explained, and Charlie couldn’t help but smile at the thought of Margaux having her very own room in Oklahoma to stay any time. But there was one other thing... 

“A room for Margaux?” Charlie questioned and Owen nodded. “So where would I sleep?”

“Uh, I was kinda counting on you sleeping in my room with me...” Owen trailed off hesitantly. Charlie’s stomach fluttered at the thought. 

“You’d want that?” He asked, eyes wide, and Owen nodded shyly. 

“I do. I love waking up with you Char. I love hearing your morning voice, and seeing your messy hair, and the way you kiss my face while you’re still half asleep. And I love having you in my arms, or being in your arms.” He rambled, and it took everything in Charlie not to kiss him. 

“You really like me, huh.” Charlie teased. Owen blushed, rolling his eyes. 

“I do. I figured it was obvious, you know, when we literally had sex last week.” He retorted. Charlie grinned. 

“Owen.” He said. 

“Charlie.” Owen mimicked his tone. 

“I would love that.” Charlie stated, bringing the conversation back to the original topic. 

“I’m glad. Actually, I have something else to tell you too.” Owen told him. 

“Oh yeah? What’s that?” Charlie tilted his head. 

“I think I’m r-“

Owen was cut off by the countdown to midnight starting on the TV, and he stopped talking with a sigh as both boys grabbed their champagne as they counted.

“5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Happy New Year!”

Charlie lent in, placing a soft kiss on Owen’s cheek, not wanting to push the boundaries.

“Happy New Year Owen.” He said. Owen bit his lip, and Charlie missed the longing look in Owen’s eyes, his gaze drifting to Charlie’s lips. He swallowed, shaking his head before replying.

“Happy New Year Charlie.”

[mittensmorgul]

(re: trad authors vs fanfic authors and the “nine levels of removal") Yes. This. Story time! I went to a book event for a well known, critically acclaimed, best selling author once about 20 years ago. He'd never done a proper "book tour" before and as a fan I was excited. Myself and other fans from a Yahoo Group (RIP) met up at the event and gave Mr Popular Author a fan art book we'd put together. He later wrote that he’d had to go off to a corner of the bookstore to hide and cry for a few minutes because he'd always thought he was writing into a void. Then BOOM, there we were, a big group of us, right in front of him, loving his work and giving him feedback (and gifts!) He’d never so much as read a review of any of his books before. The sudden realization that actual humans had read (and liked!) his work was apparently very emotional for him. Fanfic authors don’t have the luxury of that distance. And I don’t envy them for it. The feedback they get is immediate and devastating. Trad authors often won’t even get told how many copies their book has sold for the first six months after publication. Fanfic authors see every single view and kudos and comment in real time.

Yep. This.

I mean, it’s shifted a bit in the last 20 years. A lot of traditionally published authors have websites, or twitter, or other social media. Before I ever came to fandom, I was trying to go the traditional publishing route, too. Heck, a decade later I’m still on author twitter (most of my twitter is authors/publishers/agents/editors because those are the people I befriended when I first started seriously writing). But there is a sense of removall still there between authors and readers. And twitter followers and interactions don’t always equate to readers.

I mean, look at any author’s twitter, and a lot of it is just... like anyone else’s twitter.

Authors can also go look at their reviews on Amazon or Goodreads or wherever else online, and see their book’s daily ranking in sales if they really want to, but trust me on this, everyone involved in the publication of their books has probably told them not to do this. It’s not helpful in any way, unless they’ve shot to the top of the bestseller lists. Learning their new release ranks 32502905 in their genre... isn’t worth bothering, you know? And there’s nothing to do by obsessing over it.

When your agent is sending you all the good reviews, all the positive feedback, and encouraging you to finish the draft of your next book or your next round of edits, you don’t HAVE to think about responding to every comment anyone makes on your work. You’re encouraged NOT to respond. Because those reviews are NOT FOR YOU. They’re for other readers, to help them decide whether or not to make a financial investment in your already published book.

Fanfic comments ARE NOT THAT. Fanfic comments are written directly TO the author. Sure, other readers might see them, and I’ve had conversations start in comments on my fic before so I know it happens. But when a reader writes a comment on a fic, it’s generally to thank the author for the story, for having entertained them for a while.

Not all fanfic authors reply to comments, but I think the vast majority of us TRY to at the very least. Thanking the reader for reading, expressing the happiness we feel that our work has brought someone else a bit of joy (or angst, or whatever feeling we’ve inspired with our words). Or else answering questions the commenter has asked, or otherwise expressing gratitude.

It’s a DIRECT CONVERSATION, the likes of which most people will never have with a traditionally published author. The absolute ridiculousness that anyone expects the works we publish on AO3, for free, can be compared in any way to a traditionally published novel is beyond belief. The conceit that works we write-- again, for free, in our spare time, out of love for doing it-- should be as polished and free of any sort of errors as works that have spent more than a year and often more than two years going through multiple rounds of editing, proofreading, line editing, typesetting, etc. where MANY PEOPLE have scoured it for errors and yet still a few slip by here and there... I mean, HOW can anyone hold writers working on our own, in our spare time, for zero pay, purely for our own enjoyment to the same level of exactitude that we hold commercial novels? It’s laughable.

And honestly, it reaches a point where we’d rather just post the thing and move on to the next thing. I have gone back and done minor edits to some of my older works. If I’m rereading and notice a typo, I’ll fix it, for example. I once switched a character and wrote it as a different character because I felt bad about how the original character was portrayed. But for the vast majority of them I have zero intent of going back and making major edits on anything I’ve written, because I have moved on. I’m writing something else now, and maybe that will be more polished for having written the previous things with the wonky sentence structure or the awkward choice of words.

Mostly I write because I want to tell the stories that are stuck in my head. I need to get them out or they wedge in there like a big old log jam. Enough words build up that if I don’t start lining them up and pushing them out, the pressure builds up and bursts out in really inconvenient and messy ways. I’m personally not writing fanfic as “practice.” Or because I hope to some day be “good enough” to publish original works for money. I came to fandom to write fanfic so I wouldn’t have to deal with the rest of the publishing industry lol. I don’t need encouragement or approval or advice on how to improve. I just need an outlet. And if other people enjoy anything I write, that’s just a bonus to me.

(I had a publishing contract in my hands, stared at it for three days and then cried as I tore it up... I didn’t want to put myself through the publishing mill... I was already burnt out just getting to that point, and couldn’t imagine it becoming my life for years to come. It wasn’t worth it to me, and then I found fandom and AO3 and fanfic, and got all the benefit from writing with none of the angst of commercial publishing. This is where I WANT to be, this is not a stepping stone or training ground for someday becoming a “real author.” Sure, it is for some folks, but for a lot of us, this is just what makes us happy.)

Can you imagine going to a craft show where everyone has spent their time making beautiful handmade things and walking directly up to each artist and critiquing their work? Going up to a knitter and complaining that you saw a nicer hat in Macy’s the other day and pointing out everything about her hat that you don’t like? Or going to a jewelry designer and saying you prefer gold to silver, and demanding to know why they chose to inlay green stones when clearly they should’ve used blue ones?

Same vibe on critiquing fanfic in the comments. Or at the author in general. It’s just rude.

[bereft-of-frogs]

Doctor Strange, Antman and the Wasp, Avengers Infinity War and Loki

I hope those are not too many :-)

not at all!

doctor strange - describe the process that leads up to publishing your fics. do you outline the whole thing? obsessively edit it? create moodboards?

It definitely depends! There are like 3 tiers:

- most complicated: aka multiple outlines/drafts - ex. ‘alone amidst the ruins’. For big complicated things I like making multiple outlines, usually one ‘conversational’ one right at the top of the document where I in paragraph form explain the plot like I’m explaining the plot to a friend, then a point-by-point plot outline (like A. Prologue....i. scene one...B. Chapter One...i. scene one...ii. scene two....), then a ‘worst’ draft, and a second/final draft. I usually do all the prep work and the first draft in Scrivener, and then the second draft back in Pages

- medium: similar to the first, except it’s all in Pages, the ‘point-by-point plot outline’ is in [brackets] right in the document. This is the most common.

- easiest: I usually just like....have the idea, write the idea, for the short fics (and also the not-so-short but kind of scary ones where I’m like ‘hm idea’ and then like 12 hours later I have 6k words and am like....’uhhh ok thanks brain u ok?’. ex. ‘the sleepwalkers’ iirc...haven’t had one of those in a while, I miss them). I’ll often write it out of order, starting with the most vivid scenes and then going back and filling in plot-necessary info

For all fics, I usually just reread a few times (until it gets to the point where I’m like ‘oh no it’s boring’), then format for AO3 in the google doc script thing, but even then I usually still have to go through and fix italics but that’s okay because the change in font usually makes random typos start to stand out, then I turn on Grammarly for a last typo pass (lol or really, let’s be real, rethinking some of those commas pass...) and then post! and run away. XD

I don’t really make moodboards...I do often research stuff while brainstorming/while the idea is percolating. A few I have actually read nonfiction books for inspiration (’alone amidst the ruins’, the medieval-ish fantasy AU). I do feel like I need a new way to get inspired for a couple fics I’m feeling like are sort of slogs/I’m stuck, maybe I’ll consider moodboards. Or playlists.

I don’t know, for people who do make moodboards or other creative inspiration for fics, any advice?

ant-man and the wasp - what’s your favorite type of comment to recieve?

I mean here’s where I should say ‘all comments’ because technically yes, all comments, even just short ones, but yes the best comments are the long ones with yelling and where you can tell the reader was really engaged. I’m most likely to respond to those because, that one post going around is true, honestly it’s not about just getting comments, I mostly just want to yell about my fics. XD (I’m sorry if I haven’t responded - there’s one in particular right now in my inbox I’ve been meaning to respond to for like...several weeks, maybe I’ll do that when I get back from my run.)

avengers: infinity war - do you have any fanfic recs?

I glanced through my bookmarks which are a mess but you can trawl through there. I usually respond with ‘he’s been dead for years’ because I still think it’s one of the best concept+executions of a fic I’ve ever seen (and also #calledout it is sooo accurate when I first read it I had to check whether or not it was roleplaying). And also unironically whenever someone asks me about depictions of death/funerals in media, internally I think ‘**sob** jacob and esau say their goodbyes’ before out-loud saying something about like...The Haunting of Hill House or whatever XD

loki - what’s the most outlandish (or it could just be your favorite) au you’ve ever read/wanted to write/thought of?

Hmmm. I don’t usually do big AUs unless there’s a reason for it, which is how I ended up with the “all-human AU” **cough** of dark underground//violent sky, I guess the medieval-ish fantasy AU is the most dramatic I’ve ever written. I’m honestly a bigger fan of dramatic canon divergence AUs. I would like to finish my ‘Loki wins Avengers 1′ AU one day, or the Sam/Bucky apocalypse AU (where the other set of people get snapped) but inspiration has currently stalled, I’m trying to be patient with it. :-)

[mcu asks]

[bronanlynch]

bi-weekly life update time

have these past two weeks been good? not really! did I consume any media worth talking about in them? some!

listening: in honor of the Partizan post-mortem, I’ve been listening to the Partizan soundtrack so let’s talk about what an absolute fucking banger RADIOSTATIC. HIATUS. REDSKY. is. like the whole soundtrack is amazing but this one’s iconic. ominous and eerie and evil, just like the character who shows up while it’s playing

reading: mostly fanfiction tbh. I bounced off of The Longest Night by E.E. Ottoman (historical romance) despite being really excited to read it (how many t4t m/m romance novels exist? not many) because, and I mean this as respectfully as possible, it was very clear to me that it needed just one more read-through by an editor before it was published and the typos were too distracting for me to just keep reading. I’ll probably finish it eventually but not right now

favorite things I’ve read recently are my friend's extremely fun Dishonored fic about Billie and the Outsider being roommates and this incredibly cool epistolary/archival materials fic about the legacy of Sokrates from Counter/Weight written by one of my twitter mutuals for the Secret Samol exchange event

watching: more Supernatural. look, I’m unemployed and depressed, do you expect me to watch good television?

however, season 12 is uh. really bad. it’s close to being interesting sometimes, with the Mary coming back to life stuff, and damn they really turned up the queerbaiting in any episode that Cas is in (this is the season with “I love you” [shot of Dean’s face] “I love all of you”) but the British Men of Letters storyline is. well. they want to teach American hunters how to do a more efficient genocide, and yeah, they are the villains but not because of that, somehow. Sam & Dean dislike them because they have gadgets and bureaucracy and that offends their sense of American individualistic masculinity, and because one of them went rogue and tortured Sam at the beginning of the season, not because it’s absolutely horrific and evil to propose murdering every single ““monster”“ in the entire country after it’s been shown again and again that ““monsters”“ are people. also, even more fucked up considering that sometimes the beings referred to as monsters are sacred to indigenous cultures. if the BMoL were the villains because the narrative framed their goals and actions as abhorrent, that would be one thing but that’s super not how it’s framed. some guy gives a powerpoint presentation about how they’ve systematically murdered every vampire in the entire northern midwest/plains region and no one ever stops to be like “wow are we sure this is a morally ok thing to do” and at the end of that episode Sam decides that he wants to join them after all. you really do hate to see it. shout out to my roommate for very patiently letting me message them about all of the horrible nonsense that happens in this hot mess of a show.

playing: Knife of Dunwall, still. got into the Legal District finally and then had a very difficult time trying to get through Timsch’s house because he has So Many guards and servants holy shit. favorite glitch is when I shot the maid in the basement with a sleep dart and she said “oh no” and froze but didn’t fall over unconscious like she’s, y’know, supposed to when you get hit in the head with a sleep dart and you don’t know anyone is around. so I assumed she was unconscious but just didn’t fall because the game glitched but no! when I got closer she started yelling at me and I had to reload and go back and try again

making: finally doing more work on that cosplay project that I’ve been vaguely noodling away at since like June or whatever. (listen it’s very hard for me to motivate myself without a deadline and who knows when cons will come back. and it’s not even like this is an outfit I can wear around the house, it’s entirely white and we have a black cat who sheds a lot) I finally have all of the jacket mock-up pieces cut down to the right size (hopefully) except the sleeves, which means I can start sewing the mock-up 2.0 together. and worry about the sleeves later, because fuck the sleeves. I have accepted that they’re gonna be kinda messy when I sew them on, even on the real jacket, but luckily epaulettes can be used to cover many fabric crimes (EDIT: forgot that I didn’t even seam rip the bottom half of the jacket so I’ll need to do that and then I’ll need to do math so that I take away the same amount from the bottom half as I did from the top half. so I’m less far along than I thought I was. oops)

no pictures because there’s nothing to look at yet, so instead here’s Lilac, sitting on the blanket-cloak my roommate made me as an early birthday present. they thought they were making something to keep me warm, but turns out Lilac likes sitting on it more than she likes sitting behind me in my chair, so actually my roommate got me the gift of back support

writing: posted two things that had deadlines last week that I’m pretty proud of: my gift for Secret Samol about Milli & Broun becoming friends, and the fic I’ve been working on since the summer for a Persona 5 big bang which is like, part fix-it fic and part opportunity for me to be self-indulgent and pretentious. no idea what my next project is gonna be, which is kinda nice actually, to not have any deadlines looming other than uh. the important paperwork kind of deadlines lol

[some-stars]

Untamed anon from earlier again - sorry I didn’t see your response sooner, and thank you! Untamed is definitely the kind of fandom to hook you away from everything else lol. For a more detailed hook, perhaps Yen and Geralt are super turned on by Jaskier unexpectedly helping save them in a fight, and post-battle adrenaline leads to fun? No worries if it’s too late in the day now though!

(Please note: I can’t edit this or the cut tag will break, so if you notice any typos or whatnot, forgive me, I’ll fix it when it goes up on AO3.)

--

He doesn't mean to get involved with the fight. He's really quite comfortable observing these things from a safe distance, despite Geralt's grousing about him getting in the way. But when one of the soldiers gets a lucky hit that sends Yennefer to the ground and tears Geralt's attention away, and a fifth one approaches from behind the tree Jaskier is perched and hidden in, raising his crossbow—well, there's really nothing to do but leap directly onto the man's head like a leopard ambushing its prey. Although a leopard probably wouldn't scream at quite such a high pitch as it leapt.

He honestly doesn't hope to do more than distract the soldier long enough for Geralt to do—well, something—but his weight combined with the surprise topples the man flat, and then, well, he does have his dagger in his hand, and suddenly he's sitting on top of a dying man. It's not exactly pleasant, but the adrenaline overpowers any sense of revulsion for the moment.

He barely has time to realize what he's done before Geralt is swinging his sword with a roar in an arc that takes out the last two soldiers. Yennefer pushes herself up to hands and knees, eyes squeezed shut in pain, and Geralt runs to her, kneeling in front of her.

"Are you hurt?" he asks, one hand skimming over her head where the blow landed. She winces and pulls away.

"I'll be fine," she snaps. "Just let me—" She draws in a deep breath and murmurs something in Elder speech, and he watches her shoulders straighten as the pain drops away. Geralt sits back, looking relieved.

"So, uh," Jaskier says, and their heads both turn abruptly toward him. "I know I said I wouldn't get involved, but, well." He gestures at the man who, he realizes, he's still sitting on top of. With only slightly shaky legs, he stands up and goes to join them, bloody dagger in hand.

"Jaskier," Yennefer says, eyes wide and—gratifyingly—worried.

"What the fuck were you thinking?" Geralt growls, which is how Jaskier knows he's also worried.

They both descend on him, patting him down for injuries as he protests that he's fine, he got the drop on the guy, it was actually really impressive— "He was going to kill you," he says as Geralt frowns, "he had a crossbow and you weren't looking, I couldn't just let him."

They both look at him then in a way that—well, he doesn't usually associate it with being covered in blood (apparently neck wounds spray a lot).

"So," he continues, a little warily, "I know you don't like it when I get involved in fights, but I think some thanks might not go amiss?"

There's a long moment as they look at each other, exchanging some silent communication that he can't decipher, and then back at him in a way that he absolutely can decipher, but very much did not expect.

"Thank you, Jaskier," Yennefer says—purrs, really—and seizes his mouth in a devouring kiss. He drops his dagger, startled, and a second later he feels Geralt behind him, huge and heavy and enveloping.

"Thank you," Geralt murmurs, lips tickling his ear. Apparently the adrenaline hasn't worn off for them either.

When Yennefer lets him breathe again, Jaskier says, "Not that I object, but could we maybe go somewhere without so many dead bodies lying around? Just, you know, the mood."

Geralt hmms in a way that indicates he, personally, has no such compunctions. Yennefer steps back, waves a hand and makes a complicated motion with her fingers, and murmurs something under her breath, and suddenly the clearing is empty. The grass is still bloodstained, but, well, one can't have everything, Jaskier decides, and happily lets them pull him down to the ground (in a dry patch, thankfully).

He's been the focus of both their attentions before—he's more amenable to that than either of them, however much they always end up enjoying it when he can coax them to let him spoil them—but never with quite this intensity. They team up to undress him with blinding speed, Yennefer on top and Geralt on his trousers, and he definitely hears fabric tear but it doesn't seem worth complaining about when Yennefer shoves him flat on his back and swings a leg over him, hiking up her skirts and grinding her slick cunt against his cock as it rapidly hardens.

"Fuck," he mutters, almost dazed with the speed of it all. He reaches up to touch her, wanting to ground himself somehow (and also just to touch her breasts, which are magnificent even clothed and he will never get enough of), but she shakes her head sharply.

"Hold him," she says, looking over at Geralt, who is watching with evident hunger in his golden eyes. Jaskier lets out an undignified sort of gurgle as heat spikes through his stomach and his cock stands fully to attention.

In the blink of an eye Geralt is behind him, tugging his arms over his head, holding his wrists in an iron grip that Jaskier simply has to tug against, just for the pleasure of failing to move even a single inch. Which is when Yennefer shifts, rises up on her knees, and sinks down onto him, wet heat embracing his cock in a tight clasp that makes his hips buck up into her helplessly.

Usually when they're fucking him he talks, at least until he can't anymore—pleas, swears, stupid jokes, whatever nonsense happens to pour out of his mouth. It's just how he is, but right now all he can do is gasp for air and stare at Yennefer as she rides him fast and hard, at Geralt's eyes fixed unswervingly on his face, and moan loudly as they take him apart.

It doesn't last long—he supposes adrenaline rushes will do that—before Yennefer is shouting wordlessly and clenching tight around him, before he grinds his hips up against hers and comes inside her with his eyes fixed on Geralt's fiercely intent gaze. She topples off gracelessly and lies beside him, panting.

Geralt lets him go then, and Jaskier tugs at his arm. "Come on, come here," he says, pulling him down—not that he can actually pull him, of course, but the request is clear enough, and Geralt joins them on the ground. A glance at his trousers makes it clear that Jaskier's work is not done here. He rolls over on top of Geralt and kisses him, and it's as though he hit some kind of release lever—Geralt's arms wrap tight around him and he kisses back like he's starving for it.

When Jaskier tries to pull away Geralt growls and holds him tighter. Yennefer laughs.

"What do you want?" she asks, rolling closer, sliding a hand through Geralt's hair. "You want his mouth? I'd offer his ass, but we don't have the supplies."

"Excuse me," Jaskier says indignantly, between kisses. "I can offer my own ass, thank you very much."

Geralt shakes his head. "Just this," he says, "like this," and wraps a leg tightly around Jaskier as he grinds up against his bare thigh. The thought of it—primal, clumsy, desperate—sends a shot of lightning down Jaskier's spine.

"At least let me get you out of your trousers," he offers, and with a huff Geralt lets go, lets Jaskier make enough space between them to undo his buttons and pull his cock out, then yanks him close again and goes back to rutting against him.

That doesn't take very long either; Jaskier kisses him all through it, and shivers as Yennefer murmurs soft encouragement to Geralt, tugging lightly at his hair until he groans out his release into Jaskier's mouth and spills hot and wet between their bodies.

For a minute there's no sound, after, except the three of them breathing hard and the ever-present rustle of small creatures in the woods.

"Honestly," Jaskier says finally, "if I'd known it would turn you both on this much I would have killed someone ages ago."

Yennefer slaps him upside the head, which at this point in their relationship is more satisfying than it should be. He rolls off Geralt onto his back, feeling sticky and contented as the rush of battle and then sex finally starts to disperse.

"It wasn't a reward," Geralt grumbles, making no move to get up.

"Yes, yes, I know," Jaskier says. "We all just got caught up in the excitement, et cetera, et cetera. But you must admit, I did save your lives."

Yennefer scoffs, and Geralt hmphs, and Jaskier lies peacefully naked in the grass and preens.

[onlyhereforangst]

21, 38, and 40 for Shall We

21. How many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting?

LOL never. Not even kidding I rarely rarely reread my work before posting. I do best just letting it flow & if I catch any typos or errors as it comes out, I catch it. If I don’t, I don’t. I’ve done this from the start, I don’t edit/beta/revise, nothing. I’ll reread my fics maybe weeks to months later & if I spot a typo I might fix it if I’m not feeling lazy (it kills @thekeyboardninja but it’s okay 🤷🏻‍♀️)

38. Talk about a review that made your day.

Oooo there isn’t one specific one. BUT I will say the reviews that like to pick out a line or two or more and specifically comment on that line I absolutely love. It makes my day to see someone sniper a sentence that I enjoyed writing or a feeling I wanted to convey with that part and it worked??? Like it just makes me giddy inside to see that. (But I also love keyboard smashes and other comments 😉)

40. Write an alternative ending to [Shall We] (or just the summary of one).

Should I be surprised you picked this one?? Hahaha. Ok how about I promise you a mini sequel? I’ll make it heated (potentially even to the level the original is) & funny with Kasie’s line we all know we need “it’s allllllways the divorce lawyer” 😏 because really my alternative ending is just a continuation I’m bummed I didn’t wait to write.

talk dirty fics with me

[starkey]

☄ ✄

☄️ what the writing process was like

I write everything in Scrivener, cause I’ve got it on my laptop, my ipad and my phone. I travel quite a lot so it’s nice to be able to write/edit on the go.

First I start by blocking out the main plot points. In TIE I notoriously had ridiculously long chapters, broken into scenes of variable length. Every one of those scenes started out as an individual text file in the chapter folder. Scrivener lets you view your text files as a list or as a “cork board” - I tend to use the cork board view. I’d have a title and a few lines summary for each text file, that aligned to a rough scene in my head, and others were blank or created along the way as I was fleshing out the scenes.

The thing TIE really helped me with was writing a shit first draft. For a lot of my life I’ve been chewed alive by perfectionism in my writing - I couldn’t go on to the next sentence until I’d made sure I absolutely loved the previous one. Honestly it just... doesn’t work, it’s not efficient, and you get too attached to perfectly worded sentences that aren’t necessary for the story you’re trying to tell. Nowadays I write fast, messy first drafts. It lets me sort through the plot, make sure it works, and get the scaffolding of the story onto the page. I work generally chronologically, although if there’s a scene I really want to get down I’ll sometimes do it out of order. But I’ve found if I bounce around a lot I just straight up forget what’s already happened

My second draft is basically EVERYTHING ELSE and it’s probably more accurate to say “second to eighth drafts”. I focus much more on the actual writing, fix any plot inconsistencies, patch up plot holes, focus on prose-bits that I want to get right, etc etc.

My third draft for later chapters in TIE I did with @fivie. I stuck all the individual scenes into one document and then fiver looked at them in google docs and did an insane amount of coma-wrangling and typo fixing, and reminded me every time I said “oh my god” that I’m a heathen and God is a name that should be capitalised.

Then before publishing I run over it a few more times until I can get through to the end without wanting to change something 😂 and that’s how I know I’m ready to post!

✂️ something I deleted before the final draft

There was originally much more of Enjolras’s POV in chapter 5. Chapter 5 was probably the trickiest chapter because so many things had to happen simultaneously, the pacing had to stay very tight so the tension didn’t drop, and yet I had to change POV halfway through and introduce a character through his own eyes, after the previous 150k had all been The Grantaire Show. Trying to convey who Enjolras is as a person and how he’d changed over the course of the story (from his own pov, rather than Grantaire’s) WHILE he was going through an incredibly tough time and only thinking about the immediate situation in front of him... was very challenging lol. It helped that I could use the institute as a tool to pivot his memories around but at one point in my planning I nearly created an entire Enjolras pov chapter, before fiver gently told me that that way lay madness :’)

[fanyiyimdzs]

I think I'm going to go back and standardize how I translate certain terms, because a few of them I've been a bit inconsistent on. I'm also going to revisit some decisions I made at the spur of the moment (because that's how I started this in the first place 😅). So things might get revised a little--bear with me through the early installment weirdness. (You'll notice that I revise stuff after it gets posted sometimes anyway, usually for typos, but yesterday I revised like the first third of chapter 2 because I decided I hated a lot of the prose.) This is actually my first time doing a fan translation, so it's been a bit of a learning process.

I'm going to think out loud for a moment (also so I have a record to look back on for standardization purposes, and because this is actually my least favorite part of translation, and, imo--despite the amount of attention these particular types of translation issues get in fandom--the least important, but I have to fix it up sooner or later). Some of these aren't changes, I'm just going to list them to have them all in one place.

If you don't want to read all this but are interested in voicing your opinion, you can skip to the end for the list of things I particularly want to hear feedback on.

Clan related

氏 -> clan - I know a lot of people are used to “sect” but many many rounds of character flashcards have drilled it into me that this means “clan” or “family” 😅

家族 -> house, eg. House Lan - I had been translating this as “family” but now that I think about it carefully, “house” sounds better and avoids confusion with the ordinary word “family.” Plus the fewer syllables set translations have, the better, in my opinion. Makes it easier to write prettier sentences. One is not more or less accurate than the other (and in fact, House probably has connotations closer to 家族). Thoughts?

宗主 -> Clan Master - I had been using “Lord” because of its simplicity, but I'm not in love with it and it does sound too European. I like the symmetry with “young master” and it sounds nicer to me than “Clan Leader.” Don't like the number of syllables, but I guess you win some, you lose some. Thoughts on this too?

公子/前辈/子弟+后辈 -> young master/senior/junior - these are good translations, will stay. Although I'll probably change 前辈 when used as a title. It would sound strange for Lan Sizhui to refer to WWX as Senior Wei all the time (it'll probably be “Master Wei” instead).

师姐/师弟/etc. (shijie, shidi, etc.) - honestly, not sure about this one. When used as an address, I'll probably change it with the person's name unless the dialogue is specifically stressing the family-like relationship. When used as a regular word in a sentence I'll probably go with sister/brother unless the fact that they're not blood relatives is relevant, in which case I'll add “clan” in front. This seems like it'll work better as context dependent than a set translation.

老祖 -> grandmaster - tempted to go with “Old Master” instead kind of on analogy with the painters and because 老 literally means “old,” but it would probably sound strange to have WWX constantly referred to as “old” lol. 夷陵老祖 will be either the Grandmaster of Yiling or Yiling Grandmaster depending on which better fits the tone/rhythm of the sentence.

Magicky supernatural stuff

阴虎符 -> Yin Tiger Talisman - I thought about a billion different translations for 阴, but honestly, none of them work. English speakers are familiar with the word 阴 through “yin-yang” anyway (it's the dark component). So 阴 is Yin. I also hate “Stygian” with a passion lol -- how many people even know what that means, like 0.1% of the population? Might as well just keep it Yin if no one is going to understand anyway. (For a similar reason, stop translating 风水 as “geomancy,” Netflix--way more people have heard of fengshui than geomancy!)

To be honest, I'm not thrilled with the “tiger” part, and am tempted to keep it untranslated. Yinhu Talisman or Yin Hu Talisman sounds better to me. What do you guys think? Is “tiger” important?

I picked “talisman” because I thought it ultimately was the most accurate and clearest translation. It is a talisman. Not thrilled about the number of syllables, but I'll go with accuracy this time.

符篆 -> seal or paper seal (if it's a paper seal) - don't have much to say about this one

祟 -> spirit - can someone confirm or deny for me whether 邪祟 is a generic term for all types of spookies in MDZS? It's a bit unclear for me from the text

妖/魔/鬼/怪 -> fae/demon/ghost/monster - guess I'll just stick with the usual translations. Tweaking fairy to fae to make it less benign-sounding. also I need to go back and change a few occurrences of “demon” to “ghost” 😅

妖魔鬼怪 -> evil spirits? - struggling with the single phrase generic term. Anyone who is a super expert on the minute details, does 妖魔鬼怪 = 邪祟?

厉鬼 -> vicious ghost

走尸 -> walking corpse

凶尸 -> fierce corpse

刀 -> sabre

Sword names will probably stay untranslated, although I'm tempted to render Suibian as “Whatever” or “Anything” to make the joke work.

Miscellaneous

断袖 -> gay or other appropriate synonym that will be understood without explanation - I love the story of Emperor Ai too, but I want this translation to be idiomatic and not require explanations to understand beyond what is absolutely necessary.

乱葬岗 -> Burial Mounds - I like this translation a lot

I probably missed some stuff, and sorry for the rambliness but anyway this is your chance to register an opinion before I go back and edit these changes in. Answer any or all:

1. 家族 - House or family? Or do people really love 氏 = sect and 家族 = clan that much?

2. 宗主 - Clan Master, yes or no? Or other suggestions?

3. Ideas for 师姐 (“shijie”), etc.? Otherwise, I think I'll keep this one on a case-by-case basis

4. 老祖 - anyone have any better ideas than “grandmaster”? Otherwise I think that's what I'll stick with.

5. Yin Tiger Talisman, Yinhu Talisman, or Yin Hu Talisman? From an aesthetic standpoint, the middle one is my favorite, but the others are slightly more transparent as far as meaning.

6. Does 邪祟 = 妖魔鬼怪? Someone link me to a detailed taxonomy of the undead please

7. Does Suibian stay Suibian, or get turned into something that will make the joke about its name work in English? If the latter, should the other sword names be translated too so Suibian isn't literally the only with an English name?

[hangsangwithbts]

Let’s Get Married (pt. 26 BONUS)

sm text au in which you agree to be jin’s fake fiance. links can be found in my bio!

a/n: this is my first attempt in a long time at writing angst, so I hope it came out decent? if it didn’t, let’s blame my poor choice in music while writing this lol anyway, this takes place right after the texts from pt.26 but before the IG posts. if you have any questions or need any clarifications, please don’t hesitate to ask!

_____________________________________

In the years that he has known you, Seokjin had only seen the stubborn and feisty y/n, but now thanks to your arrangement, he’s gotten to see more sides of you. Sides that he didn’t even know could exist (at least not towards him) such as the selfless and caring y/n that would wake up early on his busy clinic days to pack him lunch so he wouldn’t starve or the cuddly y/n that had the bad habit of destroying the makeshift pillow wall and using him as a pillow instead just about every night.

Seokjin wasn’t sure what to expect when he opened the door to your shared room, but out of all possible scenarios, he sure wasn’t expecting to be so torn by your crestfallen state.

You greeted him with a small “hey” and attempted a smile, but it didn’t reach your eyes. You stepped back to let him further in, gaze falling as a feeble attempt to hide how red and puffy your eyes really were.

All he wanted to do in that moment was pull you into his arms and hold you close and as soon as he noticed the slight wobble of your chin, that’s exactly what he did.

“Am I just a joke to people?” You cried, balling your fists against his chest. “Are my feelings not valid?”

Seokjin pulled away, just enough to be able to hold your face in his hands. His lips curved into a frown as he wiped away at your tears with his thumbs. “You’re feelings are always valid.”

“Not to him.” You choked out, struggling to keep more tears from falling.

Seokjin led you to the bed, rushing to the bathroom to grab you some tissues. When he returned, he sat beside you and wiped your tears away for you. “Well, your feelings are valid to me so talk to me. I’m here.”

“Two years. I gave him everything for two years.” You took a deep breath. “I thought what we had was the love you read in books, but while I was his Gatsby, he was my Daisy. While I fantasized about marrying him, he was finding ways to leave me��because apparently, me not coming from an established family was not acceptable to his family. I was nothing but a toy to him. Still, I stayed.”

“I foolishly believed he would choose me but as soon as I brought up marriage, he left. No warning, no goodbye. Nothing.” You felt your eyes burn with new tears as your mind forced you to relive those memories. “I tried reaching out to him but all I got was blocked and humiliated by his family. I was told that I was and never would be enough for him.”

“I was left devastated. For nights, I cried myself to sleep, wondering what was wrong with me because surely, Hoseok leaving me was all my fault, right? If I wasn’t enough for him, would I ever be enough for anyone? Would anyone ever truly love me for me?” 

You crossed your arms, feeling so small and vulnerable and in an instant, Seokjin pulled you into his embrace once more, resting your head onto his shoulder. A sullen look clouded his features. He couldn’t fathom why anyone would hurt someone as sweet and loving as you like this. He now understood why Namjoon and your other friends were so apprehensive when it came to Hoseok. If comforting you wasn’t his priority, he’d be on his way to teach a certain someone a lesson...

“And now three months later, he decides to waltz back into my life, acting as if nothing happened and claiming he’s in love with me.”

Seokjin fixed his gaze to stare straight ahead instead of down at you and gulped.“Are you--are you still in love with him?”

It scared you how different your answer would’ve been, if he had asked you three months ago. But now, things have changed. You were no longer the same naive y/n or that’s what you liked to believe, even though you knew there was another possibility...

Seokjin didn’t realize how tense his shoulders were until you exhaled a loud breath that almost sounded like a small laugh, breaking the silence with your long awaited answer.

“No.” You shook your head, hastily wiping at the last of your tears. “And I don’t think he truly loves me, either. I’m still just a toy to him, someone he thinks he can play with and dispose of whenever he wants…”

“Sometimes, it seems like I’ll never be worthy of love since I’m not good enough for anyone.” You finished with a shrug of your shoulders as you stared off into space, your lips curved into a deep frown and eyes lacking their usual spark. “I mean, look at us. Our relationship is fake and yet I’m not good enough for you.”

Seokjin’s frown deepened. “Hey, don’t say-”

“Don’t get me wrong.” You interrupted. “I know you chose me for this exact reason and in no way do I blame you. It just hurts to know that even when it’s pretend, I’m not enough.”

“Please, stop saying that. You are enough.” Seokjin corrected and without thinking of the consequences it could pose, he placed a kiss onto your forehead. You didn’t seem to mind it, resting your head against his chest and finding comfort in the sound of his heartbeat. 

Seokjin knew where you were coming from and it hurt him to know that he was hurting you, even if it was unintentional. That was the last thing he wanted to do. God, if only you knew…He pressed his face against your hair, murmuring words that were drowned out by the stuttering of your breath as you slowly came to a calm. 

“You’re enough for me.”

__________________________________________

I apologize for any typos that I might’ve missed. I’ll edit this again tomorrow, just in case!

tag list: @asoftslytherin @tan-dulset @youthandtears @politically-accurate @entitledtolove @gittydakitty @uwuteamleader @missbowkimjinju 

[nona-gay-simus-main]

How To Collect and Organize Beta Reader Feedback

As some of you might know, I previously wrote a full draft of my currently untitled m/m romance novel and got through an almost full round of beta readers before I decided to scrap it and start again, nearly from scratch and with a different premise (It went from two timelines - first love/second chance to a single timeline - enemies to lovers).

Out of nowhere, I decided to start rereading and reorganizing my feedback in hopes to find something that would be useful to me in my current draft. Originally, I just planned to delete everything that wasn’t relevant, but a lot of it was really cute and funny, and I mean, I did write a full book - even if it wasn’t all that good - I at least deserve to keep my feedback from it.

Before I went on this endeavor, I foolishly believed that there’s no wrong way to collect beta feedback and boy, oh boy was I wrong! So I’m here to tell you the wrong ways and the right way. But first, let’s revise our terms:

What is a Beta Reader?

Beta readers are readers, who would be interested in picking your book off the shelf if it were already published. That means you should already have a pretty good idea of what is your genre and age category is. There’s no such thing as a ‘fiction book for everyone’. While certain books might have broader appeal, all books have a target audience. So figure out yours. 

The reason to know this from the start is two-fold. First, obviously to know how and where to market your book. Second, different genres come with different expectations and you really don’t want to piss off your core readership. You’re not going to be able to please everyone, and if you try, you’re likely to end up pleasing no one. So while it’s definitely a good idea to look for diversity in your beta readers, you should probably not be looking for genre diversity. 

I’m gonna let you in a little secret: for the longest time, I had no idea I was writing a romance novel. Part of it was that I really just hadn’t read a contemporary queer romance, so subconsciously thought that (contemporary) romance was for the straights only. But the bigger part was that my story just wasn’t well structured so I had no idea what the main conflict was supposed to be. And let’s just say... that didn’t exactly do me any favors when I was trying to get people interested in reading it. You can’t really amp others up about a project if you don’t know what the project is about.

Not only that, but I had a cp/beta reader who while wonderful, wasn’t a romance fan, so there were several points where I felt frustrated with their critique because I felt they simply didn’t like certain conventions of the genre. And that’s not their fault - we were just not a great match. Still appreciate working with them, but I know better now.

Where to find Beta readers?

You can find them anywhere. Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook groups, Discord servers and so on. Just look around. I assume you’re writing your story because you want to read something like it, and if you want to read it, someone else probably wants to read it too.

How to collect Beta feedback?

I normally use Google Docs or sometimes Word. Chapter by chapter is definitely best. It’s much less overwhelming to try to read 10 pages than 210.  Copy/Paste the chapter in a new document and send it to the beta, after warning them for any triggers or squicks that might apply. 

If you’re using Word, send the document over email. If you’re using Google Docs, share it with their email. Make sure to share it through email and not create links (like me), because it’s much safer that way. If you share it, only the person with the access to the email can see it, if you make a link, anyone with the link can see it. Again chances of plagiarism are minuscule, but still.

On Google Docs you want to give them Comment permission. That way they can make comments in the margins and any edits they make will show up like Track Changes on Word. If they are using Word and making edits, simply encourage them to turn on Track Changes. 

Encourage betas to make comments while reading, on everything that they liked, disliked, found confusing, or anything that made any impression at all. Even if’s just ‘lol’ or a keyboard smash. Sometimes those are the best comments to read!

But also keep in mind that not everyone will do that. That’s why I always have a questionnaire or do an interview with the beta. Questions tend to prompt people into organizing their thoughts a bit. Because I’m nice, I’ll share my questionnaire with you, (it is actually an adjusted version of @jennamoreci​‘s questionnaire from her beta readers video here:

1. What is your overall opinion of the chapter? 

2. What do you think of x character ? 

3. What is your favorite scene/part/line and why? (You can pick more than one.)

4. What is your least favorite scene/part/line and why? (You can pick more than one.) 

5. Are any parts confusing or unclear? 

6. Do you think there’s anything specific I need to improve or fix in the chapter, whether it’s the writing, the charters, plot, setting, etc.? 

7. On a scale of 1 to 10, how much did you enjoy the chapter? 

8. On a scale of 1 to 10, how eager are you to read the next chapter? 

9. On a scale of 1 to 10, how much are you enjoying the book so far (not applicable to chapter 1)?

10. Do you have any predictions? 

12. Do you have any other comments, thoughts, suggestions, or advice?

You can also add questions specific to the chapter, especially if you are already worried about a particular aspect of it. You should also ask their opinion on every character who shows up in the chapter.

I prefer to put this questionnaire at the end of the document I send to my beta reader, that way I’m sure they won’t be accidentally spoiling something with my questions and they can go over it right after reading instead of waiting for our schedules to match so we can have an interview. It’s a bit of a copy-pasting game, sure, but ultimately it takes no more than a couple of minutes. I would discourage you from having the questionnaire in the same document you are writing because it might end up messing with your word count, and lie to you that you’ve written more words than you actually have.

Afterward, if you need any clarifications on their answers, message the beta on their preferred platform - for me, that’s usually Discord, sometimes Twitter or Tumblr - to ask for clarifications. Sometimes you can also explain what you were going for, especially if the beta had a question, but don’t overdo it. You don’t want to seem argumentative. 

Oh, and be sure to thank your beta readers. Don’t forget they are giving up their time to help you for free. Nothing annoys me more from a beta reader perspective, then to not receive even a form thank you. 

How to Organize Beta Feedback?

So this is the big one. After you receive your beta feedback, address all the small things you can like typos and grammar right away (unless you’re already pretty sure you’ll be deleting/rewriting the scene) and mark stuff, that they’ve pointed out is badly phrased, etc. for later. Then delete irrelevant feedback, like one-word answers or ‘no opinion’. The feedback you disagree with might be unpleasant to read, but that doesn’t make it irrelevant. And if something makes you really mad, chances are it’s something you probably need to work on.

Then copy all the feedback - every comment and every answer, even if you disagree with them - into a separate document organized BY CHAPTER, not by beta name. This was the mistake I made. You’ll need this feedback when you move on to revision and you really don’t want to have a million tabs or documents open. Аlso it’s much easier to spot patterns if everything is in the same place. And if several people are saying the same thing, that’s probably something to pay attention to. 

Oh, don’t play around with fonts too much. I make everything the same font, but at first, I tried to make it really distinguished between what quote from the manuscript the beta was responding to and the beta’s own words, and honestly, you wrote your book, you know it pretty well. 99.9% of the time you can easily tell what they were responding to and what’s a quote from the book and what is the beta’s own words.

Good luck on your beta journey!

[thatlittledandere]

1, 2, 3, 13, 14, 21, 24, 37, 38 and 39 for those writer questions. (Sorry for being so many at once I'm just curious)

fic writer’s meme

1, 2 and 3 already answered!

13.  What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever come across?

You don’t need to write scenes chronologically! Changed my life.

14. What’s the worst writing advice you’ve ever come across?

Those lists of words to use instead of “said” FUCK that. Also my high school Finnish teacher pissed me off, like, in general. And we didn’t even really WRITE fiction.

21. How many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting?

...Do I revise? *checks the definition of the word* Yeah it’s possible I don’t exactly “revise” after a fic is complete. Of course every time I open it to edit it or continue I go through what I already have and make alterations, but if all of that counted for this, it would be like asking “how many sessions does it take to write a fic” which is impossible to answer as it can range from one to dozens, even with oneshots. After I finish the last scene I post it and return to it, like, two days later to fix the typos lol

24. Have you ever deleted one of your published fics?

Nope.

37. Talk about your current wips.

Uuuuh I have WAY TOO MANY unfinished ones to mention and I’m not even sure which ones I’ve abandoned for good and which ones I’ll finish one day... But I started and two fics for Souyo week and I’m still PRETTY determined to finish them! 

One was... more of a vague idea than an actual plot, which is why I stagnated. But it’s my personal headcanon that while the seeds for Yosuke’s attraction to Yu were sown while rescuing Yukiko, Kanji’s dungeon is where Yosuke first started to... start to be somewhat almost aware of it. Like that’s where he had the first butterflies and/or the “wait a second” double take that he adamantly refused to acknowledge. And yeah that was supposed to be the fic for the Fog prompt because, uuh, steam is almost like fog, right? Yes I know what words mean

The second one was for the Stormy prompt. I made the storm more of a mood than a weather condition because I’m pretentious like that, and it was an argument fic. But then it spiraled out of control when more and more narrators kept forcing their way in and I got a case of bad conscience bc the reason for their argument was Yosuke’s internalized homophobia that he still wasn’t completely over and idk suddenly I started feeling guilty for exploring it constantly;; Like I haven’t even WRITTEN anything with that trope/headcanon yet but it’s always on my mind and it kinda feels like it’s all I can think or write about and like I’m somehow making light of other people’s trauma and yeah I’ll stop typing now

*clears throat* ANYWAY! I may or may not finish these one day.

38. Talk about a review that made your day.

I feel awkward naming names sdsfsdgf but this one time I felt a fic came out really forced and then one of my favorite authors commented that it “flowed naturally” and I was so happy I showed it to my mom lol. And my April Fools mistake got a really long comment picking apart scenes and lines I had already forgotten writing by that point (next day, but I wrote it in a real frenzy). Oh and someone commented on one of my stupid joke fics that “the plot is actually really good” and yea... I think about it a lot.

39. Do you ever get rude reviews and how do you deal with them?

Luckily I haven’t gotten any!

[lunawings]

King of Prism SSS Episode 10 (LOUIS)

So I think one of the main reasons a lot of people were confused by this episode (well other than misleading subtitles......) was because a lot of us had our own long-time theories/assumptions about what Louis is or what a Rinne is, and this episode turned out a bit different from what we were all expecting. (I got a lot of messages that were like “But I always thought that...”) I think you have to let your past assumptions go in order to take this episode in. A few of my long-time assumptions were proved wrong by this episode as well.

Although, given this post does still include statements that are my own interpretations, if you think I’m wrong about something please feel free to speak up. (But also please include evidence from Rainbow Live if applicable, etc.) I’m afraid I may have to go back and edit this post several times, especially after whenever the director starts releasing interviews about all this. 

There is a tl;dr at the end, but I really hope most of you guys read all of this. I know it’s long, but the Crunchyroll subs for this episode are just....... so bad...... by far the worst....

I wasn’t really able to keep track of the the scores when I was watching this in theaters, so I actually didn’t realize what a big deal Joji’s score was until this scene at this moment. It’s why I tried to start a dialogue about it earlier. 

Kinda funny how Kokoro, Mondo, Mitsuba, and Tsurugi’s scores are almost exactly the same. It makes them feel all the more like manufactured prism stars.... (not really their fault, it’s how Schwarz Rose does things....) 

I’m going to skip over talking about the scene with Jin and Sanada because I think it’s best saved to discuss in a future episode. Don’t worry, we’ll deal with Jin later.

HE’S SO HAPPY AND CONFIDENT AND EVERYONE BELIEVES IN HIM........................................................................................ 

The translator doesn’t really understand prism sparkle, causing a lot of confusing dialogue in the subs, but I suppose that’s kind of to be expected for anyone that didn’t watch Rainbow Live. 

I’m pretty sure the intended meaning here was: If they can’t fix Rinne then the prism sparkle will disappear, which would mean the end of the prism world, and the prism gods, etc.

Um no, I think they said F-type here. Rinne keeps falling in love with male stars because she’s “F-type”. 

My understanding of the scene is: the Rinnes keep falling in love, which is keeping them from spreading the prism sparkle and leading to destruction of the prism world. But the gods hesitate to make an M-type prism messenger since there is a “dark history” with that. So they just change the basics (like appearance) of Rinne to be male, while keeping the rest of the coding the same, and..... 

....Also restore the memory to hopefully “avoid problems”.

(The subs say “back up” here which isn’t so off, but a bit misleading. I believe the Japanese is 復原 or 復元 = restore and they do say lit: “memory”, not data. I guess the translator was thinking in computery terms.) 

So this explains why Louis is male and has memories of the past, even though they say Rinnes lose their memory in Rainbow Live.  

He’s a Rinne, just a different version. 

And because he has those memories, he immediately begins looking for....

Turned? What do the subs mean by “turned”? 

The word used here was 復活 = to be revived/resurrected. 

I guess the translator thought Shine went to the dark side or something, but he went to the dark side long ago. (Either that or this was supposed to be “returned” and that was a typo.) 

This scene is taking place in the Pride the Hero-ish era and the prism gods are asking Louis WTF he’s doing awakening Shine (by giving Shin the pendant and whatnot). 

So. I read a while back in a director interview in the “Ready Sparking” fanbook that Louis’ mission was “to kill Shin”.

Which didn’t make any sense to me. Rinne in the flashback in Pride the Hero says she’ll find Shine again, so why would she find him just to kill him again? Why would Louis go to all the trouble of giving Shin the pendant and awakening his powers JUST TO KILL HIM? 

But now in this scene it makes sense. Louis’ mission was not to kill Shin(e) to begin with. He was intended to be just a regular prism messenger trying to spread the prism sparkle UNTIL THIS SCENE when his mission changed, because he decided to divert from his mission and awaken Shine without permission.  

So the spoiler I read was technically true, but not in the way it seemed. He did not specifically come like an angel of death to kill Shin(e). (A huge load off my mind.) But in between the ending of the first movie and Crazy Gonna Crazy, things changed. 

Once again, misunderstanding of prism sparkle. The way they subbed this, it sounds like he was told not to expand the brilliance of Shine because what “its” refers to is not clear............ It should have been more like: “Your mission now is the elimination of Shine. There is no need to worry about spreading the prism radiance anymore.”

None of this is readable in the theater ahah... Every time I saw Part 4, I always thought I’d be able to read a bit more of it and I never did. 

But yeah, I’m not sure if we knew before that Hijiri’s mother was deceased....? (Did we?) 

Edit: Lol nevermind we did.  

I heard some people saying that Shin(e) was a Rinne, so I just want to take a second to clarify this. 

Shine is not a Rinne. Shine is a Shine: A now defunct male prism messenger program. He’s a separate program from Rinne, and they were meant to exist together. (Unlike Rinne and June, who were both Rinnes and thus caused an error by existing at the same time in the same world in Rainbow Live.) 

Woah. I’m not sure, but I think they cleared up his face here to make it more obvious how much he looks like Shin...... I think I remember it being too dark to see his eyes well in the theatrical version...? ??

But anyway, the rule for prism messengers not being allowed to perform before an audience (and also the reason why) is something that was previously established in Rainbow Live.  

So I think the subs were absolutely fine for this part. My understanding of it was that after erasing Shine, Rinne gets stuck in a loop where she keeps self destructing because she’s trying to find Shine. 

This makes the prism gods decide to delete her memory. They also task her with guiding male stars as well, since Shine cannot fill that role anymore. This is why the Rinnes in the Rainbow Live era have their memory deleted, and what also unintentionally laid the groundwork for June to fall in love with Hijiri I believe. 

And because the Rinnes kept falling in love like June is why they re-wrote the program to be Louis to try and prevent this and also gave him the memories of the past Rinnes so he will supposedly know what not to do. (But the unintended effect of this is that the memories of the past Rinnes also gave him the memory of Shine, causing Louis to search for Shine again.) 

Which is why I’m confused as to why the very next scene is Louis staring at the pendant looking confused like he doesn’t recognize it or something? Because I thought from the earlier scene where Louis was created, he immediately set off looking for Shine after the Rinne -> Louis update? Am I just misreading his expression here or did I miss something? I don’t know. 

Edit: OMFG IM AN IDIOT. THE SCARF. This scene isn’t taking place right after Louis was created. It’s taking place right after Crazy Gonna Crazy. He’s looking at the pendant which fell from Shin after their show. It’s meant to transition into the events which happen after Louis re-seals Shine I guess. They could have made this a bit more clear. 

If you thought why the F is Kokoro here well WHY YES. YES THAT IS SUPPOSED TO BE OTOHA 

but putting that aside

I believe this scene was supposed to establish that Louis knows the Rainbow Live girls. He has the past memory of Rainbow Live era Rinne, but he can’t really do anything about it........... (It’s not like he can just go talk to them as Louis.....)

But his expression is so unreadable it’s hard to tell. 

He gives Shin back his powers to jump geez Crunchyroll.

(But for anyone wondering how mix-ups like this can even occur in the first place, a lot of sentences in Japanese don’t have subjects in them. Therefore, if you don’t know.... the context.............................) 

Maybe the translator chose this wording in the context of prism messengers being forbidden to be seen on stage. But as much as I appreciate that, it’s wrong. In this scene Louis is saying that he physically cannot perform. (He’s a fallen prism messenger now, so the rules don’t matter.)

Okay, I’ll take a moment to explain this just in case, since it is not explained outright:

When Louis broke his connection with the prism world and lost his rainbow feathers in Pride the Hero, he made the same decision June did when she ripped off her wings in Rainbow Live. He chose Shin(e) over his mission. He disobeyed orders and cut himself off from the prism gods in order to do things in his own way.

But whenever a prism messenger makes this decision, their rainbow feathers are replaced by the night dream feathers. The night dream feathers take life away. 

(Screencap from Rainbow Live episode 43.)

In other words, ever since Louis pulled out his earring in Pride the Hero he has slowly began to die.....

Although this is never stated clearly within the main King of Prism series, there are several ways you could have picked up on it before this episode. 

First of all, like I said before we have already been through this with June in Rainbow Live. 

Second, across the Road to SSS events on Prism Rush we have steadily seen Louis getting weaker and weaker. At first he was just tired and fell asleep after the Schwarz Rose opening ceremony in Road to SSS 1, but then his deteriorating condition was made crystal clear in his Queen of Glass PR story from Road to SSS 4, in which Louis plans a date with Shin only to collapse and unwittingly stand him up. 

And then eventually by the time we get to Road to SSS 9, Louis cannot even gather the energy to perform at all unless it’s with Shin. And we got this whole scene with a weakened Louis begging Shin to perform with him.

But even after their performance is a success and they win the Tokyo Kizuna Beat Climax, by the time we get to Road to SSS 10 Louis is so weak they miss the finals. 

Finally, Louis being a fallen prism messenger is directly confirmed in literally the opening scene of King of Prism SSS. 

So if you saw this scene and your reaction was something more like “Oh look it’s Louis... are his wings different?” and not “LOUIS IS DYING” then well.... That’s exactly why I’m always telling you guys to watch Rainbow Live.......................

Although, there was a bit of confusion over these feathers even for people who watched Rainbow Live so don’t feel too bad if that’s you. Some people thought Shin had the night dream feathers in Pride the Hero, or that Rinne had them in the end of Rainbow Live. 

But no. The regular star-type feathers are dark blue too. (Generic, lower level feathers than the rainbow ones.(?))

There are only two characters to have the night dream feathers. And they are: June in Rainbow Live and Louis in SSS. Both fallen prism messengers. 

And buried in the midst of all this Louis drama and deep lore is my probably favorite Joji line of all time. Seriously the Joji in this scene is best Joji and I cannot not laugh no matter how much I’m suffering. 

Okay so. Here is what I do not understand about this episode and would be thrilled if someone could explain it to me. If Yamada-san knew Wataru Hibiki, then Shine could not have been sealed that long ago. I actually searched my fanbooks/magazine collection until I found one which listed Yamada-san’s age as 24. So he’s probably 25 now. So this scene could not have taken place more than 20 years ago (and even that is generous). 

So what the heck was all that 1,000 years thing about? Is that just the amount of time Rinne and Shine knew each other? Or does time just not flow in a straight line for prism messengers when they are skipping in and out of different worlds? 

WOAH

WOAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

SHIN’S PHONE BACKGROUND IS DIFFERENT 

Okay you’re just going to have to believe me on this, BUT I SWEAR Shin’s phone background in the theatrical version is a photo of his hand holding the pendant. Which seems like a weird choice for a background right? But I had a theory on it that I was gonna discuss here. And that theory is that Shin wanted some kind of a background that reminded him of Louis, and that was all he had. (He couldn’t straight up use a picture of Louis because he didn’t want the other boys to question it.)

But TV version Shin, HE JUST WENT FOR IT. NO SHAME. DAMN BOY. 

I can’t help but wonder why Shin still feels like he has to hide his relationship with Louis here, considering if Road to SSS is canon like it seems to be then they all saw Shin and Louis perform together at the Kizuna Beat Climax a few months ago. 

But I guess in between the Prism King Cup and the start of the Prism One tensions rose with Schwarz Rose again, so maybe he’s worried about that?

Or maybe there is a possibility that maybe he would talk about it if it was anyone but Leo asking. What with how Leo is. 

(I know the real reason is probably just because for plot convenience/the casual viewer hasn’t read Road To SSS but shhhhhhhhhhhh.)

I’m sorry but, man I do not like this outfit. And not because it’s basically girls clothing. If Naru wore it I would hate it too. It’s just kinda ugly IMHO. (It’s not an existing Pretty Rhythm coord is it?)

Original brand glasses Shin is cute as heck though. 

I like how he just keeps his same damn clothes he’s been wearing the entire time in SSS and just glasses + hat = done. Pfft. 

Shin and Louis saw a PriPara movie together. 

(Prism Tours is the name of the first PriPara movie, which included different courses of Pretty Rhythm shows/flashbacks shown on different weeks in theaters back in 2015. The “flavor” Over the Rainbow animation seen in the first King of Prism movie was actually reused from Prism Tours, and increased attendance to the prism boys course of that movie including that scene was one of the main reasons King of Prism was greenlit in the first place. So I wonder if this is actually a reference to that.)

This crazy umbrella street is apparently based on a real place in Nagasaki (nowhere near Tokyo).

I just happened to catch a Tweet about it right after Part 4 came out.

So..... I actually wasn’t as excited for Shin and Louis’ date as you would think I’d be. I spent a while thinking about it and I came up with a couple reasons. First of all, even though this is the first date they have had in the main series, in the side materials.... they date all the time. Like seriously! In my mind they have already been dating for years so this was like just another date. 

Second.... honestly...... I don’t really ship Shin and Louis all that much anymore. Or at least not in the way I used to. My feelings about them peaked somewhere in the Pride the Hero era, and have been quietly declining since. And this scene basically sealed it. Their relationship just isn’t what I thought it was. I know in this episode Louis realizes he loves Shin and not Shine, but he took such a long time to reach that conclusion and I’m just so uncomfortable about their relationship being originally based on Rinne’s relationship with Shine. Which was not a healthy relationship. 

Also! It wasn’t 1,000 years since they have seen each other dammit! It was like 20! AT MOST! Right????? Yeah that’s a long time for mortals, but not for a being like Louis that lives for thousands of years. 

Anyway before you send me hate, just know that I’m definitely not saying Shin and Louis shouldn’t be together and I’m certainly not saying that you should agree with me. Both of them deserve happiness, especially Louis. I’m just saying I personally am not as passionate about them the way I used to be. 

But even so....

That didn’t stop me from going to find the location of this scene when I was in Tokyo last week! 

So did Shin pass the smell test or not? Because Louis.... I guess technically........... (nevermind..... not gonna open up that can of worms right now...........)

EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS SHOW MAKES ME SO SAD

(Especially thinking about what happens next.) 

 Louis is not at his peak performance condition here. He’s not performing a serious competitive show. Heck, he’s just wearing casual clothing. 

He’s finally realized he loves Shin and not Shine................  All he wants to do is just relive his date with Shin................ THATS ALL.....................

WTF THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR THIS ONE 

THIS IS THE MOST BLATANT MISTRANSLATION YET 

He says 君は僕を殺すことができない = You cannot kill me 

Shine tells Rinne (Louis) that she cannot kill him because that would erase Shin’s memories too. He knows Louis cannot stand to lose Shin.

NO

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

HE JUST WANTED TO RECREATE HIS DATE WITH SHIN

HE JUST WANTED TO DO A FUN LITTLE SHOW ABOUT HOW HE LOVES SHIN

THAT’S ALL

WHY

WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY 

It took me a long time to appreciate it considering WHAT JUST HAPPENED but this YABEEEEEEEE from Sanada is pretty hilarious. 

This is unfortunately (?) another moment ruined by the new ending music. 

In the theatrical version, this moment is dead silent and it makes it all the more apparent the.... change which has just taken place. It is terrifying. 

But regardless. Now you can probably guess why episode 11 is so painful for me and any fans of Shin..................................

*deep breath*

Okay so. Let’s review. 

Here is my tl;dr of the timeline, from my understanding:

The Rinne/Shine program is created with Rinne for female stars and Shine for male ->  Shine breaks the rules and so Rinne has to erase him -> But Rinne doesn’t erase him completely and promises to find him again -> The Rinne program gets stuck in a loop where she keeps freezing/self destructing because she's trying to find Shine ->  The gods decide to start erasing the memory of the Rinnes -> Rinne keeps falling in love with male stars since she's in charge of male stars now too ->   The events of Rainbow Live happen -> The gods decide to alter the Rinne program to make the body male and restore the memory of the past Rinnes to fix this, creating Louis -> Since Louis has the memory of the past Rinnes he goes to find Shine again -> The events of King of Prism : Louis begins the process of resurrecting Shine in Shin ->  The gods find out and order him to delete Shine again -> Louis still cannot finish the job and cuts himself off from the prism gods, becoming like June -> Louis realizes he loves Shin not Shine but.... -> Louis’ weakened state allows Shine to fully resurrect, and.....

So. There is more to this. But if you would like to come to your own conclusions about what just happened in that final scene and go into the next episode blind, this post is over. Thanks for joining me this far!! 

But if you would like me to explain some more things using spoilers not revealed until the next episode, keep scrolling. 

Obviously you don’t have to!

It’s up to you! 

I just kinda feel like I owe it to you guys. 

(Since I was lucky enough to get my major questions answered right away and not have to wait a week like you guys do.)

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Episode 11 spoilers start here

So I first saw Part 4 on like, 3 hours sleep. So as you can imagine I was having a really hard time taking all this in. And when that last scene happened I was basically plunged into the darkest depths of absolute horror. To think all this time I had been worried about Louis hurting Shin. The opposite had never ever crossed my mind. 

In my first viewing what I thought happened was that Shin had just regained his memories and killed Louis. And for 30 seconds or so, I seriously considered walking out of the theater. Not that I didn’t plan to ever finish watching it, but I just felt I was not ready and needed time to cry and take this all in before continuing to the next episode at the next showing. I was so close and literally the only reason I didn’t leave was because I just didn’t want other people to see me walking out. So I stuck with it and forced myself through the next two episodes. 

And I’m glad I did. Because that’s not what happened. 

The next episode makes it very clear that Shin and Shine are two different people. Shin did not get any memories back in the final scene. Shin is Shin, and Shine is Shine. 

From what I can gather, Shin was born with Shine sealed inside him. He’s like the host. (Whether this technically makes him a reincarnation or not, I’m not sure.) Shin has never had any contact with Shine, but Shine has always been watching life through Shin’s eyes.

The Shin we see walking off at the end of episode 10 is Shine controlling Shin’s body. From the moment he says “Rinne.....” Shine is in control, and Shin as we know him is unconscious. Shin has no memory of the things he does while Shine is controlling him. 

Also, the act of Shine destroying Rinne’s feathers did not kill Louis back there. But as you can imagine, he’s in bad, BAD shape right now.....