#I’m glad you brought it up because I’ve been dying to talk about it

[changingplumbob]

Foster Household: Chapter 9, Part 10

Darwin: Are we going to game or what

Carson: Just let me send this selfie first

William grabs the seat by Onyx while Carson and Darwin get the spots in front of the screen.

Darwin: I can’t believe we have to have more classes with Mrs H

William: She is the senior teacher

Onyx: And the senior grump

Carson: I’m always worried she’ll give me detention again

William: I thought you were getting help for the OCD

Onyx: Don’t need to have OCD to be worried about her, I’m worried about her. Darwin you’ve got to try curb your antics when she’s teaching us

Darwin: Now where would be the fun in that

Carson: How about not getting your friends sentenced with detention by association

Darwin: Fair point. Oh come on, who threw that banana?

Onyx bursts in to laughter and Darwin throws a cushion at them.

William: Good game folks. See you all at school tomorrow

Onyx: Yeah I better see if my parents are ready to go

Carson: Any headway with Anya lately

Darwin: *sighs* I wish, she’s left me on read for two days now. How about your girl

Carson: *laughs* She’s not my girl

Darwin: She’s pretty, maybe she should be you know? It doesn’t matter that she’s younger if you like her, that's what I tell myself about Anya

Harvey: I think that dinner was a success

Kayleigh: So do I! Oh Reece called while you were doing the dishes and he and Samir are fine to come stay. Plus I let him know Carson and Charlie know about the werewolf business

Harvey: Did Carson faint with shock

Kayleigh: *laughs* No so I guess we were wrong about that

Harvey: We’ll have to keep an eye on him during the visit. Make sure he doesn’t get stressed about a werewolf being under the same roof

Kayleigh: Will you be stressed

Harvey: Not if he gives me grandbabies

After his normal morning routine Carson was delighted to see a text from Ariadne pop up on his phone.

Ariadne: Great news! They’ve opened the rink at school

Carson: How is that great news

Ariadne: Because I’ve been dying to go ice skating so bring your skates

Carson: They weigh a lot

Ariadne: Never let a little weight put you off! I like things with a little weight to them

Carson: Okay, okay, I concede

At school the news of the rink opening had gotten around and several kids had brought their skates. Carson found Ariadne at the edge of the rink looking at them with awe.

Carson: Have you ever actually skated before?

Ariadne: Carson, you're here! When I was little my grandmother took me a few times but... it has been a while

Carson: Maybe it’ll be like riding a bike and you’ll remember

Ariadne: I hope so. I'd rather not fall on my butt in front of everyone

Carson: So... got a sparkly costume hiding under the coat

Ariadne: *giggling* Do you

Carson: Drat. You told me to bring skates, not my leotard, it's back home

Ariadne: Always good to leave something for next time

Carson: *laughs* I mean you’d look much nicer in a sparkly outfit than I would

Ariadne: I think you look nice anyway

Carson: Oh, really?

Ariadne: We ah- we better get on the ice or we’ll be talking until class starts

Carson: Ladies first

Ariadne was first on the ice out of the pair with Carson close behind. He may be asthmatic but he didn’t mind something slow like ice skating. He did his best to keep up with Ariadne but he did slip over once or twice. Luckily he was behind her so felt pretty confident that she’d missed it. As the bell rang and he headed off the rink to class he missed her also wiping out.

In art class Carson was glad to see Mrs T back. She was always much calmer and knew a bunch about art. As she gave a rather detailed analysis of perspective in art he felt his skill grow.

Down the hall in social studies it was a different story.

Artemisia: *whispers* Hey Roger, yo mamas so lazy she has a stay at home job and is still late to work

Roger: Shut up Emi, you know she’s a social worker. I’m not getting suspended again because you can’t control yourself

Artemisia: Only my friends get to call me Emi. Hey Roger, yo mamas so old she was a waitress at the Last Supper

Roger: Don’t think being a girl will stop me from punching you

Artemisia: Go ahead. My Pa will sue you until yo mama is so poor the ducks throw bread at her, oh wait, she already is

Previous ... Next

[houserautha]

random feyd headcanons you have pls

General Headcanons:

• Feyd is the Neville Longbottom to Paul’s Harry Potter and in the book he also receives visions. I have a headcanon that he saw you/reader in a vision before meeting

• He never sleeps. Never.

• Feyd is a masochist. After a battle or fight he will refuse to let anyone heal him, much to the concern of others. He has several scars for this reason.

• He likes to play the role of an unhinged psychopath (because he is) but he’s actually very intelligent and politically savvy. Its sort of canon to the books but I believe that, even though he’s absolutely feral, he’s more cunning and diplomatic than Rabban and that’s why he’s chosen as heir to House Harkonnen

• Feyd definitely doses himself with various poisons in order to not use a poison snooper in front of political guests just to freak them out and exert his dominance

• Feyd is addicted to the adrenaline rush of the arena and nothing else really compares. He’s always chasing that high and gets restless if he hasn’t “performed” in awhile

• (Warning: implications of sexual abuse, pedophilia) Feyd will do everything in his power to intercept the young boys being sent to the Baron. He also sends them somewhere safe. He does not want the same pain inflicted on others.

🌶️Spicy Headcanons🌶️ (18+):

• He has female presenting concubines (that I could tell from in the movie) but for some reason I get the sense he’s sexually fluid. As long as he derives pleasure from you then he doesn’t really care

• He LOVES oral sex. Like just let him stay between your legs all day long.

• It makes him irrevocably horny when you have fights with him or yell at him. Much to your annoyance (and pleasure)

• He definitely walks you through it

• If he’s in the mood then he will stop whatever he’s doing to drag you away. No excuses, nothing. Sometimes you’re abruptly pulled from conversations or meals but you’re more than happy to comply. It was strange at first but now you don’t even question it.

• Knife play and blood/wound play are almost a guarantee. I won’t get into details but like I said: masochist.

Please feel free to ask me questions/more about any of them😂🫶🏻

[phregnancy]

Exactly! Even now a lot of people still act as if Phil saved poor baby Dan and doesn’t have any problems of his own (even though he’s shared with us that he has, but they just ignore it because he’s not as personal as Dan). It just annoys me when some people treat him like a sidekick who’s there only to prop Dan up.

I’m sorry this got so sidetracked, I’ve just been wanting to complain about this for a while 😭

no i’m so glad you brought this up because it has always made me incredibly mad. 1. because it gives dan absolutely no credit for seeking treatment and getting himself help and saving himself. if someone credited my crawling my way out of depression to anyone else i think i would lose my mind, that is so insulting. no one can make you get help and force you to work at it until it sticks, it is a self driven experience. phil was a support, but dan saved himself. 2. people treating phil like a guest star on the dan show makes me sick, they’re devaluing him as a person. phil has his own plethora of issues, he was also bullied in school, his social anxiety was so bad that as a grown man living on his own he still had his mother make his hair cutting and doctors appointments because he was too afraid to talk on the phone, he’s still afraid to talk on the phone to an extent, he has really bad health anxiety which i imagine is made worse by the fact that he has a lot of very real health problems, he went through incredibly difficult and traumatic family crisis privately where he almost quit his career in london to move home because his father was dying of a rare form of cancer. phil is a whole person with his own issues and struggles and people should show him as much empathy as they show dan.

[lostloveletters]

Jesus or Gasoline (John Brady x OC)

Summary: Woody isn't sure what she believes in, except for the way John Brady makes her feel.

Note: Here it is, the result of my making a ‘guy who says grace before giving head’ joke about Brady. I wanna give a million thanks to all the Woody/Brady babes out there because y'all's support and enthusiasm for them means the world to me! As usual I listened to a lot of Bruce Springsteen while writing this. Do not interact if you’re under 18, terf or radfem, or post thinspo/ED content.

Word count: 3.2k

Warnings: Inevitable historical inaccuracies. This goes into Woody’s not so great childhood/young adulthood and her generally negative internalized thoughts surrounding religion. Sexually explicit content involving oral sex (f. receiving) and coming in pants.

The field behind the hangar was a questionable date spot at best, but Woody figured it was better than nothing. Secluded enough with some lighting as to not be stumbling around in the dark, but without fear of being easily identified if they got caught before they could make a break for it if needed. 

Word of the late night rendezvous had come from Holly, barely able to contain her excitement at being the messenger. “Your beau wanted me to tell you to meet him tonight,” she whispered, giggling as she added, “said you’d know where.”

Woody had given Holly all of the details the night John Brady kissed her, her best friend in ecstatic disbelief that so much had happened while she and Bucky were listening to a baseball game across the way. Holly took girl code as a sacred oath, not mentioning Woody and Brady’s relationship to a soul in the week or so that had passed. John wasn’t exactly pleased when Woody let him know that she told Holly, but he supposed if Woody trusted Holly that much, he could, too.

“There you are, sweetheart,” John said, with a genuine fondness that she almost couldn’t believe was directed toward her. “Have you been waiting long?”

She shook her head, greeting him with a kiss. “I’ve been looking forward to seeing you all day.”

“I brought you something,” he said, pulling a Hershey bar from his pocket. 

“Don’t waste that on me, are you kidding?”

“Holly told me you give the village kids whatever candy you get, and I know ground crew doesn’t get as much in your rations as we do.” 

Good ol’ Holly. “They appreciate it more than me.”

He looked at her pointedly, though eyes glistened in amusement as he half-scolded, “Don’t reject a gift, sweetheart. It’s bad manners.”

Woody fought back a smile, felt her cheeks heating up . “Thank you, Johnny. You’re real sweet.” Gave him a kiss on the cheek and squeezed his forearm. “Can we at least split it?”

“I won’t say no to that.” 

The grass was damp from the late afternoon rain. She was glad she thought to grab an old blanket, worn out and smelled faintly of fuel, but it’d do. 

He split the bar in two, handing the bigger half to her. She took a bite, surprised to find herself feeling a wistful melancholy for the states at the taste of it. Wasn’t sure she ever felt homesick before, but there was a first time for everything. Like John laying out on the blanket, resting his head in her lap.

“Comfortable?” she asked with a laugh.

“Great view from here.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“You know, I’ve been dying to ask you this ever since I met you,” he began, giving her pause at the seemingly endless possible questions he could hit her with. “Do you really like being called ‘Woody’?”

She nodded, stroking his hair, taking in how relaxed he looked. “Yeah, I really do. It’s been nice to leave ‘Kate’ behind and start fresh.”

“So your first name is just Kate?”

“Shows you how much thought my parents put into it.”

“See, I wanna know more about you.”

“What do you mean?”

“We talk a good deal, but I don’t know much about your life before all of this.”

“I don’t have anything nostalgic or good to tell you, especially not about me. I’m ashamed of who I was before. I’m trying to be better, John. I really am. I don’t—I don’t hang around people who have nothing going for them.”

People like how she used to be. The backstreets burst at the seams with them. Children of neglect, of the Depression, of something wild otherwise running through their veins. They made their homes where they could. Guys who rode around on streaks of lightning, spewing pure gasoline from snarled lips on each of those hilly avenues until they were wrangled in the back of cherry-topped police cars. Girls who should’ve known better drank empty promises out of broken glasses, handed to them by the constantly circling shark-men. Kate learned quickly not to get attached to anyone. They looked out for each other, but they weren’t friends. There was a difference.

“I got an older brother named Tom. Last I heard he was in jail for holding up a liquor store,” she said. “I haven’t seen him since I was eleven, though. That’s when I really started looking after myself.”

“Eleven is pretty young to be on your own,” he said, taking her hand from his hair and holding it in his own, intertwining their fingers.

“What were you doing when you were eleven?”

He shrugged. “Rode bikes around with my friends. Started learning saxophone. I was an altar boy, too.”

“So your family went to mass a lot when you were growing up?”

“Every Sunday that we could. I remember my mom waking us up to go even when we had to walk through a foot of snow to get there because the roads hadn't been cleared yet,” he said, his voice growing softer as he spoke. “Doesn’t seem all that bad, now. Maybe it—it helped some.”

Woody had seen John make the sign of the cross dozens of times. Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Remembered the first time she watched him among the other Catholic guys in the 100th, crowded around the chaplain for his makeshift blessing on the tarmac before their missions. Devotion ran exceptionally high then, men suddenly armed with a rainbow of beaded rosaries and holy cards adorned with saints whose weary eyes gazed upward, where those men were soon to be. Their heads bowed in silent contemplation as the priest concluded in Latin, John’s mouth moving along with sed libera nos a malo. But deliver us from evil.

A handsome face like his deserved half a dozen kids with names like Mary and Francis who filed neatly into a pew with their shiny patent shoes and a big family meal to look forward to after mass. Kids who gave the likes of her odd looks when she shuffled into church for whatever lunch the nuns were dishing out that afternoon. Always dressed in her Sunday worst—ill-fitting blouses and holey shoes until she ditched their charity and decided she was better off raising hell in denim jeans. God loved everyone, and his love was unconditional, but no one wanted to say he loved some people more than others, and Kate was pretty low on his list. 

After all, Kate Woodward was born without a middle name on a Wednesday morning that even god himself forgot about. Didn’t know what the weather had been like the first time she breathed in the air of her home city, but she was sure it felt like a kick in the chest. Probably why babies cried when they made their grand escape from the womb. 

Hardly raised in the first place, Kate had little faith in god or man, just in the machines she could bend to her will until they gave her freedom to go wherever she pleased. But her freedom had gnashing teeth and a forked tongue that were never satisfied, no matter how many vices she fed it, and she was nothing short of gluttonous in this endeavor. 

Tried and true, the one she had the hardest time shaking—sticky fingers. If Kate saw something she liked, she took it. From drug store shelves to purses to wallets, nothing was off limits. As time went on, her spoils only got bigger and better, linking up with people who taught her how to steal cars like riding a bike. She had yet to find a replacement for that particular thrill, but her self-control had markedly improved in a little over two years.

Then there were men with hacksaw smiles that threatened to cut her open if she got as close as they wanted her to. Thunderous voices that cracked with rage when she’d shove the smoldering cherry tip of her cigarette into a hand that got too close for comfort. None of them were any good, not like the man with his head in her lap, who brought her chocolate rations and listened intently to her, even as her voice shook with trepidation at bearing so much of her heart.

Woody hummed, her fingers trembling as she traced the features on his face—his expressive brows, the nose that gave him a profile she could hardly tear her eyes from, lips she dreamed about since the night he first kissed her and every time since. Besides the power of a well-maintained engine, she believed in the way she felt about John.

“I was lonely and angry,” she murmured after relaying her patchwork of regrets and fears to him. “I made a lot of mistakes because of that. It’s not an excuse. But I wanna be honest with you so you can still change your mind about me if you want to. I understand if you do.”

“There’s nothing to change my mind about, sweetheart. I want to be with you,” he said, conviction strong in his voice as he sat up.

“I’m not a virgin,” she stressed.

He shook his head. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I would’ve been surprised if you were.”

“Well, I didn’t love any of them—four guys in total, mind you—and it’s not like I got anything out of it, either.” She sighed. “I don’t know if that makes it better or worse.”

Crushes were for girls who lived in nice houses and wrote hearts above their i’s. Desire ran hot, expressed in glances made with hooded lids beneath buzzing neon lights that left a thousand things unsaid. But after that handful of physically underwhelming experiences which ended up being far more trouble than they were worth, she came to the conclusion that she was better suited to get her own rocks off.

“Got what out of it?” he asked.

She chewed on her lip. The only sin out there was getting caught, and Kate Woodward never got caught. Woody chose to confess. “I had to get to the good part myself.”

“That’s unacceptable.” 

Her heart sank. “I haven’t done it in—“

“Those selfish bastards never made you come?” 

“Not one.”

“In that case, I’d be glad to be your first.”

“I want you to be,” she said, leaning back on her hands in the dewey grass, spreading her coverall-clad legs apart. “I wanna do everything with you.”

He placed his hand on her thigh, his fingers playing with the inner hem of her coveralls. “Tell me how you want it, sweetheart.”

“I want your mouth.” Truthfully, she’d never had a guy go down on her before. Heard about it from other girls, wild ones out in the desert. A few others as she got to know the first group of WAAC girls she bunked with after enlisting. Even from Holly, as apparently Stan had been generous and enthusiastic about that aspect of their sex life. Stan, Stan, what a man, the girls would tease about Holly’s fiance before he was dearly departed. 

The corners of John’s lips twitched up as he brought his fingers further along the hem, inching closer to her covered sex. “Never had a girl ask me to do that before.”

“You really don’t mind?”

“Why would I?”

She hesitated, averting her eyes from him. “A lot of guys think it’s gross.”

“I think I should decide for myself, don’t you?” He cupped her chin, caressing her jaw with his thumb. “Look at me, sweetheart. What do you want me to do?”

Upon returning her gaze to his, she found no judgment behind his eyes, but a passionate sincerity.

“I want you to go down on me,” she said.

She studied him as he watched her. His pretty lips parted slightly, drinking her in as more of her body was exposed. It wasn’t a strip tease, nothing sexy about the way she pulled her arms out from the sleeves and yanked her coveralls down to her knees, finally kicking them to her ankles and off entirely. Sat before him in her white t-shirt, plain underwear, and boots, almost boyish if not for her breasts, low on her chest, nipples poking through the fabric. 

“Are you wearing a bra?” He sounded breathless, almost as if he couldn’t believe he was even asking.

“No,” she said, her lips curving into a smile, letting him in on another secret. “I always take it off at the end of the day. Don’t tell anyone.” 

As if the other girls didn’t know, with some degree of judgment along with their understanding that the damn thing got uncomfortable, could chafe with all the work they were doing, the sweat and friction. It wasn’t like anyone could really tell beneath the other layers, anyway. But anyone meant anyone of the male persuasion, and with that, John dutifully shook his head.

His lips were on hers in an instant, a hand on her waist, the other shoved up her shirt, squeezing her breasts. She gasped at the way his rough palm felt against her nipple, and he took the opportunity to deepen the kiss, his tongue in her mouth. Her moans were lost to the world, claimed by him and him alone. He straddled her lap, keeping her in place beneath him. 

John moved his hand from her waist to between her legs, rubbing her already wet pussy through her underwear. Her lips were undoubtedly swollen from the ferocity with which he kissed her. A delicious shiver ran down her spine at the thought of how it’d feel against her cunt. 

He hooked his fingers in the waistband of her panties, and she lifted her hips, allowing him to pull them off of her. Bringing up her knees, she felt a burst of adrenaline rush through her at being so exposed to him.

“You need to tell me how I’m doing, alright? I wanna make sure you feel good,” he said.

“Yeah, yeah, okay,” she mumbled, almost dizzy with desire as he lowered his face between her legs.

His hot breath on her cunt, lips brushing against her folds. She strained to hear… whispering?

“Johnny?” she asked after a few moments of aching anticipation. “Baby, if you don’t wanna— Jesus Christ,” she choked out. Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and all the rest of them. 

His tongue lapped at her clit, eyes looking up at her for approval. With a shaky nod, she bid him to continue, biting her lip as to stifle the whine that threatened to escape her mouth. A noble attempt, but fruitless when he licked up her pussy with the flat of his tongue, pulling a moan from deep in her chest. Her heart was beating between her legs. 

Woody could make herself feel pretty damn good on her own. She lifted a dirty magazine from a guy in Reno once. Had pictures and everything, though she wasn’t sure how real it all was. She’d look at the pictures, tongue between her lips and hand between her thighs as she imagined herself in those women’s places, feeling the ecstasy written all over their expressive faces with their typically faceless partners. From there, she’d get creative, allowing her mind to conjure up a man who, behind her closed eyes, could bring her to orgasm. Even in her wildest fantasies, she never thought she’d find one who’d actually want to bury his face in her pussy. 

Fuck, if she couldn’t feel John’s fingers digging into her thighs, she would’ve almost thought she was dreaming. She grabbed his hair, pressing his face harder against her cunt. He was giving so much, and she’d take all of it, greedy with the pleasure he offered her.  

He slid two fingers inside her pussy, slowly enough to see how she’d take it before pumping them in and out at a quicker pace. Used his other hand to hold her down when her hips jerked up in his face, like her muscles had a mind of their own, hellbent on reaching an orgasm. Hell, so was she.

“Just like that— fuck,” she rasped, her nails scraping against his scalp.

She nearly wanted to ask if he’d been lying, if he had gone down on a girl before. He at least had enough experience to know where her fucking clit was, but his mouth. Jesus, how could he expect her to go to the officer’s club and watch him play saxophone after this? As if she wouldn’t be sitting there, skin feverish, thighs pressed together, thinking about his mouth and his fingers in that moment. The way his teeth grazed against her clit, making her pussy clench around his fingers. The way it almost felt like he was making out with her cunt. Their eyes would meet, and he’d know, maybe have a little smirk on his face up there, too. An obscene secret privately shared amidst dozens of other people who’d be none the wiser. 

“Don’t stop,” She was so close it almost hurt, wound up tight and pulsing in her gut, waiting to be released. “Please don’t stop.” Hot tears rolled freely down her cheeks. Her chest felt like it was on the verge of bursting open. Between a fistful of grass and a hand buried in his hair, she cried out his name like a vulgar prayer in the night as her orgasm rocked through her.

A universe of stars burst across her abdomen, white-hot supernova tearing through her muscles, blinding her from anything but the pleasure that pulsed from her pussy. She finally came down from it, covered in sweat, chest heaving, a wild-eyed woman as John pushed himself back up on unsteady arms.

She grabbed his shirt, pulling him closer so he was straddling her lap. Took in his mussed up hair and the way his lips glistened with the traces of her still on them. She kissed him, a muffled moan in her throat at the taste of herself on this tongue. 

She wanted him. More of him. Everything he had to give. Wasn’t sure it’d be enough to sate her need, but damn if she couldn’t try.

“Johnny, can’t we just do it?” she pleaded, her voice a girlish whine that sounded otherwise foreign coming from her as she desperately pawed at him.

“Next time,” he whispered. “Next time, sweetheart, I promise.” Grazed his teeth against her hummingbird pulse. “I didn’t bring a condom.” 

“But what about you?” she pressed, reaching for his crotch. “You must be—“

He shook his head, cheeks flushed as he licked his lips. “I got carried away, sweetheart. I, uh—I’m good.” 

She slipped her hand down his pants, feeling the sticky evidence of his orgasm for herself. Her fingertips brushed the sensitive head of his spent cock, sending a shiver down his spine. Was he good, though? He groaned. No wonder Douglass kept so many goddamn rubbers in his footlocker.

“Next time,” he repeated, voice strained and husky in a horrific display of self-control. He nearly regretted it when she pulled her hand away, feeling something sinful stir in his gut as she inspected her hand, finally bringing it to her mouth and licking the residue off her knuckles with a feline-esque curl of her tongue.

“Just say the word, Johnny. Whenever you want me to return the favor, I’ll drop everything for you.”

He swallowed roughly. She meant it.

[jenyifer]

Book List Time!!!

And with that I have 10 give or take books to discuss. Now I’m up to over 30 books since May woooo telling tumblr about each one has been a great motivator so I hope my reviews and list help people out in a non spoiler fun way. Gonna rank these in order I want to reread them.

1. Green Creek the series by TJ Klune 🏳️‍🌈🐺🌶️🌲 Wolfsong Ravensong Heartsong Brothersong I am obsessed. Literally read all four books in 3 days. I have bought physical copies and marked them up. Will make you cry, laugh, and stay in your heart forever. Just……. Go read it. But the quick synopsis is Powerful Humans Wolves Witches have to pay for the sins of their fathers over and over again while maintaining their found family and finding their true soulmates. There is Ace Lesbian non binary rep in here as well.

2. The Warden by Daniel Ford🏳️‍🌈 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩🧙‍♀️❄️🪦truly a fantasy masterpiece the romance isn’t the focus but it’s fucking good. First sapphic book to get a 10/10 for me. About a witch(with a magic system that is interesting surprising) growing up and finding herself a family without sacrificing who she is. I loved her and at first you think ehhh is this going to be boring no definitely not. Was surprising made me laugh and cry. Can’t wait for part 2 cause more of the hot gf in there I hope.

3. A Taste of Gold and Iron by Alexandra Rowland🏳️‍🌈👑⚔️🌶️🌶️ I listened to this book two times in a row I enjoyed it so much. It’s a bodyguard and prince story. The prince’s depiction of depression anxiety panic attacks was so real. The bodyguard is very endearing. The themes of family are strong and interesting. The mystery was easy to solve but I found it rewarding because I wanted the prince to win so badly haha.

4. Spindle Splintered by Alix E Harrow🏳️‍🌈👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩👸🏼🥀😢

Short story about a dying girl who has a special interest in sleeping beauty. It does have a…. Debatably Sad ending. I did enjoy it for what it was trying to talk about. I lost a friend when she was too young. I’m glad I read it.

5. Scumbag Villains Self-Saving System series by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu 🏳️‍🌈🚩⚔️😈🕊️🤓🌶️? I’m putting it up this high because besides that scene in chapter 21 that slapped me in the brain I really enjoyed the series. Only Danmei I HAD TO GET THE REST OF THE SERIES IMMEDIATELY Hell I’ve even now written fan fic for the side ship. About a Nerd being put into his favorite love to hate stallion novel (story about a hero who fucks his way to success) but he’s in there as the abusive villain who the hero is destined to kill. The nerd has to save himself and unintentionally builds himself a harem featuring the most red flag the hero who so sololy motivated by the nerd. It’s great easy to read very fun. But 🌶️ scene in book 3 is a definite skip and delete from memory.

6. Case File Compendium Vol 1 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou 🏳️‍🌈? 😈🚩🩸🕵️🥼

I did just finish reading this so maybe I’m bias but I really did find it a book I couldn’t put down. I even brought it with me to work to read a chapter during my lunch breaks. Main characters are heavy in their homophobic lifestyles but they kiss and protect each other? True crime and mentally ill characters. MC is has a fatal mental illness that makes him unstable and MIL was his former private doctor. MC is trying to date MIL’s little sister. While getting up to shenanigans they stumble into a corrupt hospital and evil forces are maybe after them?! Idk its exciting fun to read but only if you like 🚩’s

7. The Disabled Tyrant’s Beloved Pet Fish Vol 1 by Xue Shan Fei Hu 🏳️‍🌈🐟👑🎨🖼️ I did genuinely laugh my ass off during reading this book. It was incredibly easy to read I think I finished it in 4 hours. Very cute. I love the inside and outside art. About a nonverbal Prince who has anger issues and his crush on the modern man who is trapped within an ugly little fish. Now yes the Prince is becomes actively in love with the fish. Lucky for us we are stuck in the man who is trapped as the fish’s pov and he is genuinely just trying to get back to his world by obeying the powers that be System’s prompts to go home. Fish is not trying to seduce the Prince or anything. It’s just funny I had a great time with vol 1 probably will read vol 2.

8. So Let Them Burn by Kamilah Cole 🏳️‍🌈👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨🐉🏝️ while having dragons and diverse cast it ultimately falls short of expectations wishing for more depth and clarity. The asexual spectrum representation feels muddled and Jamaican inspired cultural elements are unexplored which is at odds with its rich backdrop that could have enhanced the story. The story’s mystery element lacked cohesion resulting in a frustrating bittersweet ending that suggests a sequel and left me unsatisfied. I won’t read the next book. Won’t suggest it.

9. Faithless Book2 by C L Clark 🏳️‍🌈🚩👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩⚔️👑😩 a big let down from book 1 but I’m locked in for life I guess. Luca is back in France navigating a way to get the crown. While Touraine shows up with a priest and Teen to some how get food for her people. Most of the plot feels useless both MC characters are stupid and do no growing. The new teen character was interesting. I disliked the poly romance I didn’t particularly feel comfortable about Touraine and Luca why not add another person in what could go wrong? Luca’s reign as Queen looks to be very bad and you will feel extremely disappointed at the end. I’m going to read the next book but only because I like the characters who didn’t go to France.

10. Self-Made Boys by Anna-Marie McLemore.

I read 90% of this book and I regret it. It’s a trans characters as the leads gay retelling of the great gatsby. I was truly excited to read it I’ve read The Great Gatsby many times. However this book just laughs at the source material. I’m tempted to say maybe the Chat GPT’d the plot and didn’t ask for any over arching themes in the book. I couldn’t do it I’m gonna have to find a better trans representation book in my next set of ten.

DNF’s

Last Night at the Telegraph Club, The Once and Future witches, Gearbreakers, the emperor and the endless palace.

[oldbutchdaniel]

HOLLY SHIT I was writing that ask about Daniel's turning and missed the rpf happening right under my nose. Shame on me. I should get my priorities straight

NO BUT YOU’RE SO RIGHT WE DO NEED TO TALK ABOUT IT. can we talk about daniel’s turning i’ve been dying to talk about daniel’s turning. i’m literally so glad you brought it up because i need to hold space for the rpf event and new potential daniel turning lore

[panderp123]

C3 EP 78

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⚠️ SPOILERS CR ⚠️

The Lost Children

Seeing Bells Hells aftermath of the shard rejection and how Ashton has brought down those walls. The group goes off in different directions to come to terms with Ashton doing a selfish thing.

The moment…of all characters to say this…Delilah tells Laudna

“He’s a child…”

Which sparked Laudna to make one of her quirky dolls and pulled at my heartstrings.

But before this happened Fearne was so upset she had a somewhat childish tantrum about Ashton almost dying. Three of the party members have severe childish tendencies all different but wow!

Fearne doesn’t know how to handle anger because in EXU she got scared of being evil or turning. Which resulted in her having silent storm-offs or unusual lashouts. It’s very Fearne and how much isolation she’s had from being protected by Nana Mori. A being of the Feywild, Fearne is a delight but it’s so heartbreaking when something scary happens she becomes this little girl. Or a difficult decision such as reviving Orym earlier in the campaign.

Once Fearne storms off and as predicted Chetney goes off to console her. Ashton became this small thing and the walls were all gone. Some moments caught me by surprise.

“I…just want my parents.”

“I wanted someone to blame other than myself…”

“I don’t like myself very much…”

These are important points because I think Ashton…never really left the desert. Their inner child is constantly crying out for their missing parents. This also concluded my point before that the Greymoore home wasn’t as great as it should have been.

To link back to the doll Laudna makes later in this episode, Ashton sees Laudna and apologises. He didn’t betray her. He just did a dumb thing and that triggers Laudna’s childish tendencies. Laudna doesn’t understand the difference between betrayal over doing something dumb in a selfish manner. However, when the doll is handed to Ashton they start to cry.

Holding it and looking at it which a new look at their mistakes. Ashton is just this broken child deep down.

“I’ve never had a doll before…thank you.”

The fact Ashton had never been given a toy shows you how messed up their time must’ve been at the orphanage. Before they plain jump he tucks the Ashton Doll on his person.

Now on to Laudna, the weight of the events pulls her closer to her patron Delilah. As much as we don’t want her to awaken more I’m kind of glad Laudna had her to talk to for this as I feel Imogen would have sugar-coated it too much.

Delilah albeit dark, evil and narcissistic did make an effort to console Laudna. Not only that but Laudna defied her when Delilah suggested she take the shard.

The childish nature of Laudna is due to her traumatic past. So she clings to her inner child Matilda as those memories are not overshadowed by her time in the castle or with the Brairwoods. By all means this isn’t healthy at all! However, it is character growth.

Naming off all the sad things of her friends' pasts or her own Laudna finds a way to mend Ashton’s inner child by making a doll out of graffitied wood, a chipmunk skull & quartz. It’s simple but it made the tough punk cry so it must have worked.

I’m glad the ice was broken before they took respite in the Feywilds. Despite being homesick Fearne didn’t want to be selfish like Ashton in asking could they go. Given that the group are not mentally stable to face Ruidius they all agreed a needed R&R is needed due to lack of communication.

I like how Matt added Birdie & Ollie at Nana’s because the whole group needs a loving parent unite to help.

Things I’d like to see upcoming:

• Chetney is the Grandpa of wisdom of the group & there’s no BS so more of that. (Be funny if he hit on Alura more just for a laugh xD)

• Laudna & Ashton connect on a wholesome level with childish joys (toys or puppetry)

• Ashton & Fearne reconcile more. No romance but more fixing the foundations before anything happens

• Birdie has a secret 👀

• Allura becomes a more Mother like figure for Imogen in regards to her power.

• Orym gives Ashton a stern talk (Liam was AFK so it be good to see what happens there.)

• Nani Mori knows what to do with the shard 🔥

[gurugirl]

so a good boy tomorrow?? no pressure love! i'm just so so looking forward to seeing how this turns out. i'm dying after part 4.

will you give us a little taste of what's to come? a little sneak peak?

Ahhh! I hope so. I'm working on it but this chapter is very complex and I want to do it right. I think maybe tomorrow? But maybe Friday? Or Monday even? I'm so sorry! lol! I know that's not the answer you're looking for but I can't rush my process (I know you're not rushing me) and this being the final chapter means I need to make it a special one. I want y'all to love it (and I need to love it as well).

But I can give you a little sneaky for what's coming. Thank you so much for this ask. I'm really really glad you are looking forward to the last part :)

sneak peek from part 5 of A Good Boy

“So you gonna tell me what it is you wanted that you didn’t deserve?”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to talk about that. I mean…” she dropped her arms to her sides and bunched the material of her dress nervously, “I think you know. You know how I feel, Harry.”

“See that’s what I’m confused about. The more I think about it the harder it is for me to wrap my mind around it. You said you broke up with me to spare me but I feel like the real reason is because it’s too hard. I think if you really liked me enough you’d have tried harder. You didn’t even give me a chance before you dropped me.”

“No. I saw how much it was affecting you. I can’t stand to hurt you so I needed to do it. Yes, part of it was because it’s hard. The situation was –“

“You hurt me the most by breaking it off,” he put a palm on the wall next to her head as he spoke, “Now I’m just angry. It didn’t make things better. And now what was the fucking point? You said you didn’t even get what you wanted. So why do it? Tell me what you really wanted. I just need to hear you say it, Y/n.”

She blinked her eyes as she looked into Harry’s. She was suddenly glad she hadn’t worn makeup because she was already feeling the beginning of the sting of tears behind her eyes, “You. But you know that.”

His features softened immediately. His berry lips parted as he wet them with his tongue and he brought his other palm up to the wall to narrow the space between them, “If you wanted me, you had me. You have me.”

She shook her head, “I don’t deserve you, though. That’s why this–“

“Fuck off with your bullshit. Like you’re some kind of martyr. You took everything from me. I just wanted to be with you. I wanted to be yours,” he kept his voice low but he spoke with heat and emotion, “I would have learned to be okay with it but you dropped me so fast I didn’t even have time to get used to it,” Harry pushed himself back and ran a hand through his hair.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know what to do. I still don’t. I have no idea what I’m doing at all. I feel evil. I feel like your feelings are far more important than mine,” she felt the first tear make a warm trail down her cheek and then as she blinked a second and third. “I’m sorry.”

Harry watched as she tried to hold back her emotion but he saw the tears on her face and he felt bad for his outburst but he was still so raw and angry from everything. “Please, don’t…” he softly brushed the back of his hand to her cheek to wipe her tears, “don’t cry. You’re gonna make me cry.”

She put her hand over his and closed her eyes, “I don’t want you to cry. You deserve to be happy, Harry.”

He shook his head and reached up to cup the other side of her face with his hand, “You don’t want me to cry? It’s all I’ve been doing. Every night for the past 12 days. I miss you, Y/n.”

She looked up at him, “I miss you too but you know we can’t… you deserve to be with someone you can have a real relationship with.”

Harry stepped in close and rested his forehead against hers, “Don’t want anyone but you.”

The world stopped and the only sound she could hear was her heart pumping in her chest. Having him so close to her was comforting and overwhelming all at the same time. It hurt but it felt good. She was confused. Maybe it had been a mistake to break up with him. Maybe that was the mistake.

“Harry?”

The pair separated quickly when they heard Leslie's voice. Y/n’s face began to burn with embarrassment. She’d let it go too far. She hadn’t been in her right mind. Harry’s words and his eyes had her spinning and in a daze.

Leslie said something that Y/n couldn’t hear as her ears began to ring and regret blanketed her skin. She should never have allowed it to get that far. To let him touch her and stand so close… she knew better.

She looked between Harry and Leslie when Harry turned to whisper in her ear, “Will you come find me when you leave? I want to see you.”

Leslie’s face told Y/n everything she needed to know. Leslie was curious about what was going on. Suspicious. Leslie clearly liked Harry. And Harry could like Leslie too if it hadn’t been for Y/n.

Looking back at Harry she shook her head, “Harry… this can’t. No. We can’t.”

His hand wrapped around her wrist, “Yes, we can. Please don’t do this. Please, Y/n.”

“Leslie is right there, Harry. Go have fun with your friends. Pretend I’m not here.”

Harry stepped back and let go of her. He shook his head in disappointment, his eyes piercing into hers, “Fine.”

The way Leslie kept her eyes on Y/n until Harry pulled at her arm had Y/n feeling her guilt and shame bloom and swell.

She closed her eyes as Harry led Leslie out of the hallway and back into the main room of the club. It hurt too much to watch. She felt like she was back to day one when she broke up with him. She hoped that he’d begun to move on but he hadn’t. And neither had she.

[know-the-way]

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears Discourse(?)(maybe idk?)

So… at this point I’ve watched the entire 3 series and film. Twice. I was going to post episode reactions for series 2 and 3, but I really need to skip ahead to Crypt of Tears because I have… questions. If anyone knows the answer or potential answer to any of them, please weigh in because I am just… struggling to understand some of the narrative decisions they made here.

(Btw, overall I enjoyed it, so I don’t want it to seem like I’m coming from a solely negative perspective - obviously, the last 5 minutes in particular… talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, spectacular, never the same, etc etc. I may do a separate ‘things I enjoyed’ post. I just needed to talk this out. lol)

****Full warning, this is a very long post, I am so sorry in advance.****

1. Alright, first things first - wtf do you mean it’s been a YEAR since she left Melbourne?! What was she doing that whole time? Like obviously, you could infer that she got caught up in local shenanigans and hadn’t seen everything to a satisfactory end yet, but I feel it would’ve taken maybe 1-2 minutes to just briefly explain that for the audience’s sake.

I also totally understand that they were attempting to make a stand alone project that could be independent of the series, so referencing where the series left off would be antithetical to that. HOWEVER, I think at the point where fans of the series invested $1 million… that should have maybe made tying up loose ends from the series a bit more of a priority?

I also saw that they hoped to garner new audiences from the film. And maybe it’s just me, idk, but - I’m a new audience and the only thing that brought me to the film was the knowledge that I had 3 seasons worth of backstory to immerse myself in beforehand. There are very few scenarios in my mind that would’ve had me watching just the film and nothing else. So… help.

2. Similar to question 1 - SIX WEEKS?! Where was she for six whole weeks? How did she escape the train? Was it like a Bear Grylls situation out in the desert for a while or did she have to barter with local villages or something? Just again… 1-2 lines of dialogue and I’d be good. Instead, I’m just sitting here confused like, “okay cool, I’m super glad you’re alive and stuff, but um… HOW?!”**

(**acutely aware that this is how Jack must feel all the time) (and he deserves a pint from the pub for his troubles ‘cause omg)

3. SPEAKING OF JACK - *r2d2 screech* This poor man. Jesus. How many times does he have to grieve the love of his life? It’s kinda rude at this point.

I’ve read articles with the writers where they talked about wanting Phryne to be strong and independent without emasculating Jack as a character. And I remember thinking, “Yes! They do such an excellent job of finding that balance in the show and it’s really satisfying. It’s one of the things I love most about their dynamic - the freedom to be themselves while still having this very strong collaborative connection.”

^These scenes, though? Whaaaatttt happened? 🫠 I don’t think it emasculated him, but Phryne’s almost non-reaction to him being there… grieving her... it comes off kind of insensitive and perplexing at its bare bones, to me.

Upon a few rewatches of that scene, I’ve been able to slowly formulate potential justifications for her behavior - i.e. she did tell him to come after her and he didn’t, so maybe she lost hope on her end and dove into the first perilous mystery she could find to help herself get over him. Thus, when she finds out he’s there for her memorial service, I could see her inwardly going, “Okay wow, it took me dying for you to make any moves whatsoever. Cool. Good to know I’m only worth the trip if I’m not here anymore. (Hence, the ‘And I’m very sorry that I’m not dead!’ line later.)”

Which would be a fair point, imo, and they do have a track record of just… infuriating miscommunication, but ultimately… it’s all still hypothetical. We aren’t given any actual, spoken insight into her motivations or feelings in regards to Jack (the smallest glimpse we get is her teary eyes outside the door at his guesthouse along with the “damn it, Jack” line). So, without any further follow-up clarification in the film - at face value, that scene is harsh and almost callous imo. And, despite their many conflicts in the show, there was never once where I felt they weren’t at least making an effort to understand each other. Like there is never a point in the film where they take a moment to acknowledge the time lost between them. They don’t get to have that (necessary) release of emotion and mutual understanding (there’s no nightcap moment), so it just feels incomplete.

4. I promise not to make all of these redundant, but the quicksand scene. Obviously, I love it ~*for reasons*~, but I found myself once again choosing a side (Jack’s)???? Which, throughout the entirety of the tv series, I never chose a side between them ‘cause I could always understand both of their perspectives. In this scene and the reunion scene, I’m left confused both times about Phryne’s perspective. Maybe because Mac isn’t there to pull the full truth out of her just afterwards? That’s probably it.

But her lumping Jack in with “any other man” she doesn’t need to explain herself to - either that was a fear response or a flat out dishonest one. Girl quit playin’… we all know he’s not just any other man and we all know he has never tried to change you or take charge of you. Please, the bottom-leaning switch vibes that come off that man… he LIVES for you telling him what to do. He doesn’t want to control you, he just wANTS TO BE BESIDE YOU. GOD.

I so didn’t want to be frustrated with Phryne (I love her**) and I was honestly upset that I was, but there was just something… missing in both these instances for me (vulnerability maybe? idk) and I can’t quite get it to add up. It really probably was a lack of Mac, though.

(**again, Me 🤝 Jack, complicated feelings for a complex modern woman, we’ll both be at the bar if you need us)

5. Last one - “Is this your idea of sweet nothings?” “I thought they were out of the question?” “They are. Continue.”

Did I miss a scene where they laid ground rules for their partnership going forward in Shirin’s case? Or was that something that was cut/not included? Because… if there was a scene of them discussing that before Jack agreed to stay… that would have taken care of most of what I said above in and of itself.

(But no fr… did I miss a scene? Is my copy broken? Help?)

Gonna Leave on a Positive Note, because if you asked me if the below scene made it all worth it, I’d have to say yes:

[myownwholewildworld]

was it the ants biting her and the whole getting an infection from it??? That has to be it!

I’m so glad she’s immune tho, I was really hoping for it but can’t ever trust you lovely writers to not break our hearts hahaha! I’m so happy she’s better and her and Joel are still together 🥺

ANON MAY I KISS YOU?? PLEASE??

okay i’m going to take this opportunity to talk about something i’ve been dying to since "wherever you go" came to my mind 😭

short answer: YES!!!! 🙌

long answer: when i first posted chapter 1, i only thought of this story as a oneshot. and then i watched a video narrated by the lovely david attenborough where he talked about cordyceps (for those who don’t know, cordyceps is a real fungus!) and ants. my imagination started flowing! that was when i knew i wanted a protagonist who was immune, but unlike Ellie, it was not from birth, but acquired by being bitten by ants.

to summarise the video (this is the one, it’s super interesting so i do recommend watching it, the photography is incredible, like all bbc documentaries), cordyceps infects ants and can kill whole colonies, which is what happened with reader’s terrarium. she picked ants off her yard that had been exposed to cordyceps and brought them to her colony, dooming the whole community in the process of doing so. cordyceps attacks the brain’s motor ability of ants, forcing them to walk back to their colonies to die nearby and spread the spores of the fungus. from what i read too, the host is apparently still fully conscious of what they are doing, but because the fungus literally controls their motor skills, they are unable to stop themselves. this would mean that people infected with cordyceps would be aware of them attacking other people but couldn’t control themselves. how fucking wild is that???

in chapter 8, i wrote: “my parents didn’t even let me have a look at it [the terrarium].” the reason for this is that, if you’ve watched the video, reader would have seen fungi literally growing out of the dead ants. if i had mentioned that, it’d have been a straight giveaway that i wanted to avoid lol

so yes, basically reader is immune to cordyceps because she had already been exposed to it as a child when the ants bit her. it was a milder mutation of the infection though (milder but she still spent 2 weeks in hospital fighting for her life lol), which allowed her immune system to build up the immunity that would protect her in the future. being bitten now would have been like getting a top-up vaccine, hence why fighting the infection didn't take her 2 weeks this time round.

and that’s the story, sorry for all the yapping! but as a scientist myself, i found the whole thing so fascinating! 🤭

thank you very much for the lovely ask and for reading about these two lovebirds! i’m eternally grateful that you were happy about how the chapter turned out! it’s people like you who make me want to quit my job and just write till my fingernails bleed 🥰 much love and forehead kisses to you, lovely! 💖

[phoenixkaptain]

Hey, hi, Flirting With the Villain’s Dad is a great comic and only partially because Euredian occasionally looks like a sad puppy (made all the better with the knowledge of Laurus being his ancestor. The wolf god made a puppy king I love it)

Anyway I just wanted to put my thoughts out, mainly for me so I can remember that this comic really cheered me up during a bad week.

Laurus says “I like that one” about Thierry and the story only continues to prove that Thierry is his favourite by having Laurus be so happy to see his favourite little guy and taking his favourite little guy on a trip :D

Thierry is the best. He is just there. He is the most tiredest archdeacon, please someone let him rest

The part after Yerenika knows about baptismal names and gets all flustered when Laurus starts speaking secret names next to her

Ferric. Poor Ferric. Almost always presented in chibi and almost always crying for the king to please do some of this work please

Yerenika starts the story by constantly proposing to Euredian which turns into Euredian constantly proposing to Yerenika which turns into a very long honeymoon period consisting of the entire length of their marriage.

The difference in age between how old Seo Eun-Seo was when she died and how old she was when she woke up as Yerenika is mentioned a few times. And every single time it is a different number. Which makes me assume that she’s thinking “I got a year older, which means I’m a year closer to the age of my prior body” which is just kind of funny to me

The longer she spends as Yerenika, the more Yerenika looks like her. I like that. That’s fun

Ghost Seo Eun-Seo is great, I love that her clothes are only considered weird by one character briefly one time and then never brought up again

I saw a lot of people call Yerenika oblivious. The word I would use instead is “distracted.” I mean, she’s trying to keep everyone she loves and herself from dying by changing things even though she’s starting to think she can’t actually change things. I would not be emotionally tuned into other people either, in those circumstances.

I actually really liked Yerenika because I found how proactive she was to be nice. She proposed to that man half a dozen times. She actively tried to improve her situation. She was so used to being an ignored child that she completely forgot she had a family and country that loved her. She was so used to being an ignored child that she was afraid she wouldn’t be a good mother herself. She rescues people because she can’t live with herself if she ignored them. She’s not really stupid, which is a common complaint I’ve seen, she just doesn’t know the intricacies of a country she’s never been in. She doesn’t realize that the disembodied voice is the god of the world because I’m sure she’s used to being in religious buildings where gods don’t talk to her. Like, would any of us assume god is the one talking to us if a voice started speaking in a church, like really.

I like that the only one showing Laurus any respect is Thierry. Euredian yeets his ancestor. Yerenika constantly talks back to and makes fun of him. Thierry is appalled. He calls something blasphemous and Euredian literally says “you always say that.” Maybe he’d stop if you were less blasphemous, Euredian.

I really like Yerenika and Euredian’s relationship. It is two people smitten with each other. The height difference is adorable. Euredian is so whipped. Yerenika remains weak to his face even a decade after being married to him. Euredian casually carrying her around from the start and seeing nothing strange about that (it’s normal to carry foreign princesses, I promise, we all do it, you can trust the guy who doesn’t spend time with foreign princesses, he knows) and Yerenika casually spending minutes on end staring at him because she thinks he’s so pretty (which does not mean she loves him, I promise, we all do it, we all stare at pretty men and don’t fall in love with them, it’s normal-)

So glad that Euredian gets to be Dek’s dad after all.

All in all, I liked the story. Euredian and Yerenika are equally weird and protective of each other. Thierry and Ferric are both so tired and it is entirely Euredian’s fault at any given moment. Laurus is the best god and also the funniest and cutest one. The children are adorable. I really liked Soleia as both a villain and an ally because she is really cool all the time. The parts where Soleia and Euredian are forced to work together are the best. Brigitte is adorable in thinking that her cousins are the absolute best-looking creatures known to man and calling Euredian “pretty man” upon first meeting him. Yerenika is constantly cooing over how cute her husband is and flirting with her husband and riling up her husband and her husband just wants her to stop jumping out of windows, pleaSE-

Great story, 10/10, would read to laugh at these weirdos again

[crazy-grrrl-on-the-computer]

Okay, sorry for suddenly appearing, but I'm too curious for my own sake. There are posts you tag with some of your OC and now I'm interested in Dark and Justice. Both are that kind of pair I would love.

I AM SO SORRY IT HAS BEEN 84 YEARS AND SO MUCH HAS CHANGED, BUT I PROMISE THEY’RE EVEN COOLER NOW!

JUSTICE TRANSED HIS WHOLE IDENTITY AND IS NOW A VAMPIRE NAMED DAMIEN, AND DARK MURDERED HIS EVIL EX AND STOLE HIS NAME //WHOOPS

Aaaah, thank you for asking about the murder babes!!!!! ;;3;; But please, you never have to apologize for asking about my OCs~ I love talking about them and I’m really glad you were curious for more information even if I somehow entirely forgot to post the original reply I had typed up before everything changed and only just recently rediscovered this Ask still floating around in my inbox!

Dark is my OC and Damien belongs to my friend @dirtflavoredcoke (you can find more OC-related stuff on their @kieranocemporium blog)

The ship has a new tag on my blog now to represent the new era and also because of just how much has changed about Damien’s backstory!

Warning: There is a massive chunk of text with accompanying art below the cut! ^^

Damien was born human to a farming family in Geneva, New York alongside his sister, Quinn, sometime during the early 1900s (1896, to be exact). Their father had hoped for many children, particularly boys, to help out around the farm but was disappointed that it appeared he had two daughters. “Appeared” being the keyword because little did they know that the promiscuous boy-crazy eldest who was caught on at least one occasion with the hired farm hand in the loft was a boy the entire time. This, of course, Quinn knew and accepted even if she didn’t fully understand her brother yet.

Although their father would have preferred him to “focus on becoming a proper lady and wife”, Damien began a career as a sex worker despite the growing risk of imprisonment that came with the US government’s rising concern about prostitution and the spread of venereal diseases brought on by the first World War. Also, he may or may not have endured some pregnancy-related trauma (miscarriage or abortion) while working that job. Either way, it is safe to presume that this wasn’t the first or last era where he would serve some amount of jail time for offenses including but possibly not limited to public intoxication, obscenity, and patronizing speakeasies during Prohibition.

But by the 1920s, Damien was dying from tuberculosis and, short of better options for survival, he allowed his vampire partner at the time to bite him and save his life. Damien had hoped that turning would allow him to spend more time with Quinn, since he had always felt quite protective of her (an understatement for sure), but he wound up having to leave her behind for her own protection, so his family assumed he had simply died from the illness. (He would later find out that Quinn would run away in grief and be turned without consent by a different vampire that same year, but they wouldn’t reunite until many decades later.)

Unfortunately, Damien’s taste in men had proven to be less than stellar, so after getting what he wanted (the bite) he left his asshole partner in the dust to figure out life as a vampire on his own. This was much easier said than done, but it did allow him to finally start transitioning socially and later, as gender-affirming care advanced in the states, he would begin to transition medically too. At some point along the way, he took up escort work until he decided to “retire” from the working life because he is admittedly too lazy to work and doesn’t think he should have to.

But this is where the backstory gets a bit blurry to my knowledge, so I will leave that up to Kieran to clarify.

Dark, birth name Ezra, is a poltergeist. I’m still working out the details of his backstory from when he was alive, but so far I’ve decided that he is descended from Italian immigrants who came to US America during the first Italian diaspora (+ he’s Irish on his mother’s side) and he died sometime in 1960s New York.

A combination of unchecked mental health struggles and a repressive Catholic upbringing during a high-tension war era already rife with racial prejudices bred just the right conditions for a rebellious streak in him. He gravitated toward the greaser subculture and acted out in ways that didn’t exactly win him many points with his contemporaries, but he was less concerned about fitting in and more focused on proving that he was his own person. Ezra had his eye on a girl, but her older brother did not approve of him and consistently tried to get between them. Eventually, in the heat of a confrontation, Ezra snapped and killed them both. While on the run, he was ultimately killed in a shootout with the police.

In hindsight, he realized much later that he had probably been trying to use the relationship to get close to her brother too but had mistaken that desire for jealousy and acted out in rage. That rage connected with his violent end is what wound up turning him into a poltergeist, which has ironically given him a lot of time to reflect through the decades and discover himself as a person via unhindered exposure to different types of people he had previously never been able to know or conceive of.

At some point, he wound up drawn to a psychic alongside four other poltergeists. A psychic’s purpose in what I call the Extended Monster Universe is more or less to act as a therapist to spirits who need to move on, but given that Lexy was only in high school and barely aware of this ability… she wasn’t exactly the best at it. But because she was determined for them all to get along and wasn’t picky about what she called her new poltergeist friends, Ezra started using Dark as an alias to avoid the irritating ordeal of being known. Unfortunately, there was an exorcist-in-training at her school who sniffed them out rather quickly. It took Dustin a while to bypass Lexy’s determination to keep her friends safe, but he eventually managed to trap them all in a spirit orb and pass them off to his older siblings – Lila and Brentley, two bounty hunters who specialize in artifacts.

It was in transit that they literally bumped into Jesse, a nobody trying to escape a bad situation, accidentally breaking the spirit orb and allowing the weakened poltergeists to seek refuse in his body. Terrified and confused, Jesse continued running and only later found out that he had somehow become a share soul for five very different poltergeists with very conflicting personalities. What this meant was that, in their desperation for safety, they had temporarily attached themselves to his soul for stability until they could regain enough of their power to figure out how to leave… and they were fighting for control. Sympathizing with them to an extent and realizing that they were on the run from the same people, Jesse made a deal with them that he would help the poltergeists find a way to escape if they helped him to avoid the bounty hunters who might do him harm for winding up in the middle of their mess.

A cross-dressing rom-com adventure unfolded from there as the poltergeists took turns attempting to resolve the “bad situation” Jesse had initially been running from and help him seduce Brentley once they realized a relationship could garner them access to artifacts that might release them from Jesse’s body. The romance wound up being more real than anyone was expecting and once again Dark was pushed to come to terms with his own sexuality. In any case, Jesse pulled through for them and the poltergeists made a break for it back out into the world at the first opportunity. From there, Dark no longer cared what happened to the other four or where they ended up (he would later on learn that at least three of them found their way back to Lexy for old time’s sake) – he felt more powerful than ever and he was going to make that the world’s problem.

This is more or less when Dark met Damien.

[This is where I would insert art of them together, if I had any recent ship art for them, but I wanted to get this reply out there sooner rather than later. ;;n;;]

One night, Dark happened to interrupt a vampire’s dinner. Seeing as he was already dead and harboring his own urge to kill, he decided that the smartest course of action would be to use the threat of exposure to blackmail Damien into letting him in on these hunts.

Of course he didn’t realize it for a long while, but practically from the moment he opened his mouth Damien already wanted a piece of him. The way Damien saw it, it was real cute that a cocky poltergeist thought he cared about something as inconsequential to him as exposure, but he did prefer his men to be the “take charge” type and what better aphrodisiac could there be than bloody murder.

Playing his newfound partner for sport seemed to be exactly what Dark wanted… until their accompliceship turned into a flirtationship (no thanks to Damien’s dirty mouth), which found its way to the bedroom (figuratively speaking). To say that Dark wasn’t the best at flirting/relationships would be an understatement, as most people think he is too awkward and blunt, but he’s a quick and willing learner. If he hadn’t recently spent so much time in the body of someone who was very accustomed to casual friendly flirtation, he might have picked up on Damien’s attraction to him sooner.

But eventually it did slip out and Dark figured that, if playing house together satisfied Damien enough to give him what he wanted, he could make this  new development work for him. Damien’s feelings were initially just another way for Dark to maintain control of the situation (or so he thought), but Damien was hoping it would only be a matter of time until Dark finally made a romantic move that didn’t involve the bedroom. Living in such close proximity to Damien and Quinn meant getting used to their personalities, habits, and routines… and feeling some way about it. Soft things.

The first time Dark noticed that he was smiling fondly at Damien, he spiraled into an intense and prolonged internal debate. Fondness wasn’t an emotion he was familiar with and it was making him lose sight of his goals. The solution was simple: Damien was ruining him, so Dark needed to kill him. But… he shouldn’t be so hasty. Perhaps Damien was still useful. Did he… care?!

After grappling with the realization that Damien’s feelings were apparently contagious, he is currently satisfied with his decision to not kill his partner because if this is what love feels like then he’d just have to be okay with it. As it turns out, it’s really nice to feel comfortable enough with someone to let them watch his back for once instead of pushing them away. This is what he’d been missing out on all those years, so maybe he can allow himself to want it.

There is more to this story (more characters and more development), but this summarizes how their found family got here pretty well.

If you have a Toyhou.se account, you can take a peek at Dark’s current in-progress profile and see more images of him here, and you can also find Damien’s profile/gallery here. They’re a bit threadbare right now, since we’ve only recently gotten started on that site, but we’re making progress!!

More art can be found on Kieran’s instagram: kieranology.artz

Kieran also made an in-character aesthetic blog for Damien, which you can find here if you’re interested in seeing what kind of blog he would have (nugoth and vampires; warning for blood, suggestive, and simulated gore content): @damienxdeadly

Aesthetic Moon Divider found here.

[about-faces]

So which Twoface scarred design do you like based on anesthetics the most? And any theories about the variety of colors, like do any play into color theory or any meaning, or are just limited to printed color limitations/artist sole interpretation?

This would have been a much shorter answer if you hadn’t added the second part. But I’m glad you did, because I love talking about this shit! 

While I do have certain… shall we say, opinionated preferences for my ideal design for the scarring, my taste is dependent on SO many different factors. Since you brought up color limitations, let’s start there, because that speaks to a certain aesthetic of Two-Face that I love. 

First, let’s talk about the basic design, the gold standard of the Golden Age. The very first appearance of Two-Face has served as the model for how the scarring's looked ever since. The iconic features include a permanent snarl, a bulging eye, a wilder hairstyle with differently colored hair, and different coloring from his unscarred flesh. Every version of Two-Face since has either followed or subverted this original depiction. 

(Note: I could also go on a whole tangent about how this design MAY have been based on a poster for the 1941 film adaptation of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, which I’ve recently had reason to suspect may be bogus for reasons related to the complicated history of Batman’s supposed “creator” Bob Kane, but that’s several other essays worth a material. And that’s not even taking into account who actually drew this original comic, whether it was the credited Kane, or Jerry Robinson and/or George Roussos. The history of Golden Age comics is rife with controversy, plagiarism, and bullshit, with Batman being no exception.)

For roughly 50 years, this was, more or less, the standard version of Two-Face. Even as DC evolved through different eras of “House Styles” where all art had to maintain a certain consistency, this design underwent very little variation over five decades. While his scarring would occasionally be depicted as gray or off-purple or even flesh toned, it usually stuck to the original choice of green. 

Why green? Why would a man who suffered an acid attack have green scarring? Putting aside questions of realism (which have little place in the world of comics), the reasoning was tied to those specific issues you raised about printed color limitations. The history of comic book coloring is absolutely fascinating, when companies had to rely on printers to produce the cheapest possible product on a regular deadline. 

These printers (supposedly backed by organized crime) published comics on newsprint with the four-color CYMK color model, and comic artists had to work within these limitations. This led to some interesting color-coding for heroes and villains in superhero books, with the heroes depicted in primary colors like red, yellow, and blue, and the villains being depicted in secondary colors like orange, purple, and green. As you’ll note, Harvey’s design uses all three of those secondary colors, appropriately enough for a man obsessed with twos. 

To this day, these colors are what are used for classic, “retro” depictions of Two-Face, which you can still see on merchandise today. As such, I have great affection for this basic design with these colors, especially when they appear on newsprint with the visible newsprint dots.Over the past couple decades, we’ve seen comics companies reprint these classic stories with cleaned-up, “remastered” artwork. As time has gone by, I’ve come to dislike this treatment of older comics, which were specifically drawn for a period where coloring and printing options were strictly limited. Removing those limitations with computer coloring only seems to make the linework appear more dated, at least to my eye. 

For example, take one of my personal favorites, the third chapter of “A Lonely Place of Dying.” On the left is the current, cleaned-up version, while the other is a scan from a long-defunct tumblr user jthener-comics-vault who emphasized the newsprint dots and yellowed newspaper. 

Some may prefer the version on the left, but I strongly prefer the version on the right. There’s just so much more aesthetic appeal with the second version to my eye. The version on the right looks dated, while the version on the left looks timeless because of how it embraced a certain retro aesthetic. Your mileage may vary, but that’s where I’m at with my taste preferences. 

(See also: the recent revival of interest in CRT TV screens with classic video games, discussed in this popular post about how games were designed for the limitations of older TVs, and how current pixel graphics don’t look right in comparison. Given how there’s now a whole Reddit community dedicated to CRT TV pixel graphics, I’d love to see people embrace classic comics in the same way. But alas, the people who care about such things are literally a dying breed, as most comics fans seemingly don’t have much interest in anything beyond the past decade or so.) 

So if you’re talking purely aesthetics within the classic limitations of comics, I consider the version on the left to be my platonic ideal for a perfect Two-Face. It’s not because the linework of the scarring is anything special (as much as I worship the late, great Jim Aparo, his Two-Face scarring looks like Harvey dipped himself into some creamed spinach), but because the scarring fits the overall aesthetic of the printing techniques of a bygone era. 

So that would be ONE example of my preferred take on the scarring, with a specific version that emphasizes his classic newsprint roots. But it’s not the only one, because those limitations were soon expanded by the 1990’s, with advances in printing quality and coloring techniques. On top of that, DC started hiring artists for stories far outside their usual “House Style,” which led to all manner of weird and varied interpretations of characters like Two-Face, depending on the story. In fact, his appearance–along with his personality, motivations, and even his own backstory–would change drastically from one appearance to the next. His scarring alone could be green, pink, red, blue, purple, or some variation of the above! And that’s not even taking into account the pen-and-ink linework choices! 

This finally brings me to your original question of which version of the scarring I prefer. While I still love the classic retro take on the character as well as stylized “dark deco” versions like his appearance in Batman: The Animated Series, there are certain traits I look for in modern depictions of Two-Face. These preferences were undoubtedly informed by the fact that I saw Sam Raimi’s Darkman as a young teen and fell in love with the prosthetic makeup effects by Chet Zar and Toni Gardner, who created a viscerally horrifying template for what I wanted to see used for Harvey Dent ever since.

So these days, when it comes to what I really want to see in the scarring?  At this risk of being too graphic, I like the flesh to be stretched and warped, the lips and eyelids peeled back and exposed. I also STRONGLY prefer there be no clear line down the middle between the scarred and unscarred sides. There should be some sense of integration between the sides, rather than two separate faces–one realistic and one cartoonish–slapped together. Some of my favorite examples include Alex Ross and Doug Braithwhaite’s Harvey cameo from Justice #2 and Brad Walker and Doug Hennessey’s from “Ugly Heart.”

Basically, I prefer a style that’s evocative of movie-style body horror, adding realism without being realistic.He should appear shocking while simultaneously looking like someone who has suffered, and continues to do so. It should compliment (but NOT play up) the good/evil dichotomy, without veering into cartoonishness. Doing that leads to him being treated as more of a gimmick crook rather than a three-dimensional character. 

Again, we’re talking my own personal preference here. As a character, Two-Face represents different things to different people. When creating the story Batman: Faces, artist Matt Wagner wanted Harvey’s scarring to be red because it emphasized the “devil inside” motif. For many people, Two-Face is a character who conveys the evil within normalcy. Fair enough. 

But for me, I like red because it looks like exposed flesh and tissue, emphasizing the raw pain Harvey has and must endure. I prefer when the scarring emphasizes tones of flesh and blood, like reds, pinks, and purples. I loved the blue scarring of Batman: The Animated Series on its own merits, but it only works within that specifically stylized “dark deco” context. 

And when it comes purely to linework design, I think my ideal model would be the work of sculptor Andy Bergholtz, who not only designed a bust I will never afford despite dearly wanting, but who also created an incredible pumpkin carving of Two-Face which, weirdly enough, endures as one of my favorite depictions of the character. 

Notice how Bergholtz doesn’t draw a distinct line between the two sides, but instead shows how the flesh stretches and warps from one side to the next. It looks painful, while also being perfectly integrated with the rest of the head. Hell, even the choice to go with the classic green coloring works, because of how it looks sickly and gangrenous! It still looks fleshy, even with the comic-book-y coloring choice!

These sculptures are my baseline for how Harvey’s scarring should ideally look. But at the end of the day, the scarring is only one factor I look for when it comes to depictions of Two-Face. It’s how the scarring looks with his unscarred side, especially if the artist actually chooses to DO something interesting with Harvey’s face rather than just depict him as a Bland White Dude or Generic Gangster. It’s also how both sides of his face look in whatever he’s wearing, how they’re drawn in the linework, how they’re colored and depicted on paper and/or online scans. So many factors go into making/breaking Two-Face, just as they do with pretty much every other comic character who has existed for decades at this point.

But ultimately, none of that matters to me as much as the writing. Harvey could look absolutely terrible in the artwork, and I wouldn’t care so long as the writing treats him with empathy and compassion. Still, I appreciate you giving me this opportunity to reacquaint myself with his aesthetics, which I’ve too long disregarded because–for many–that’s all they see when they think about Two-Face. Not as a three-dimensional character, but as a walking pile of aesthetics. But it's nice to revisit those aesthetics as a reminder of why he's continued to endure as an iconic character for eight decades.

[starrysnowdrop]

Patch 6.4 MSQ Reaction

Here are my first thoughts, opinions, and overall reactions to the 6.4 MSQ. Since I had a lot to say about Pandaemonium Anabaseios, those reactions were written in a separate post, HERE. Note that these are my personal thoughts, and not meant to be a critique on the MSQ story in any objective manner.

I’m in love with the opening scenes of the patch! The bonding with Zero over eating the spiciest ass curry imaginable was fantastic, and it spoke to me so personally, as my favorite food is Indian curry, and it’s something my mom and I have always loved eating together. So that’s probably way different from most people’s experience, but I took a ton of screenshots of this scene because it felt so personal for me.

Then we got the Estinien fan service scene and ohhhhhh boy, I was DYING laughing and giggling at it!! This is because I’m not an Estinien shipper myself, but I have some friends who are, and I knew that they would die of thirst. Then I got to thinking: WHY can’t we get a scene like THAT with Aymeric?? Throw us Aymeric shippers a bone, I beg of you Yoshi-P!!

Maybe the best part of that scene was Zero’s reaction… Ma’am please!! You are killing me over here!!

Then we got to go back to Labyrinthos briefly and I am just personally so excited for Hali to be coming home to Labyrinthos and Sharlayan soon, but alas, I had to play the patch on Yume, so it didn’t have the same feeling as it would be if it was Hali being there. Nonetheless the brief Sharlayan scenes were really good.

Fourchenault’s backside comments are going to spark a thousand smut fics, I just know it…

I’m so happy that Krile seems to be more in the spotlight going forward, as I love her and I’ve always felt that they’ve done her dirty by always having her stay behind. I’m glad that it looks like she’s going to get more love soon!

Also glad that Erenville made a cameo, as I find him to be a very cool character and like an Everyman. He gives a good perspective that kinda gets lost sometimes when the Scions are always talking with the leaders of nations and such.

The Aetherfont is very likely my new all time favorite dungeon in game. It’s absolutely gorgeous, the music was great as usual, and the fights were really fun! Once Hali gets there, I’m going to take a ton of gposes there!

The Thancred cameo was really nice, but my only beef is that he leaves immediately afterwards. WHY?!?! I’m so annoyed at that.

Probably my favorite part of the patch, storywise anyway, was the Garlemald section. I’m SO glad they are finally addressing how Garlemald and the Garlean people are going to rebuild and their future going forward. It was a nice touch, and I appreciate how Vrtra was able to come up with a great compromise and to let the Garleans have some dignity. Very good stuff in my opinion.

Then the Thirteenth Moon section was pretty much how I expected it would be. Meet the lopporrits and have a cute scene again, open portal, find Azdaja, fight Golbez, yadda yadda yadda.

I will say though, I loved the Golbez trial! The mechanics were challenging yet fun, and I actually enjoyed it very much. The gamer in me was pleased, regardless of the writer in me being just meh about it all.

What I wasn’t expecting, however, was that this Void story arc would still continue into 6.5. To be perfectly honest, this has been my least favorite part of the entire MSQ, in the whole game. Yes, it has trumped everything else as the stuff I least care about. Outside of Zero being an awesome character and wanting Azdaja freed and brought home, I really could care less about everything else. It still feels like an anime filler arc, and though it has gotten a bit better, I’m still not sold. I just want to get to 7.0 like immediately. And if it has anything else to do with the Thirteenth, I might scream. I’m so sorry if anyone is liking this arc, but I just can’t get into it myself.

With all of that being said, I very much loved Pandaemonium way more, and that’s where my mind has been since I finished it yesterday. Therefore, that’s all I’ll say about the MSQ, and I have probably much more to say about Pandaemonium in my next post. Thank you all for reading, and feel free to tell me your thoughts about it all as well!!

[fndmstrugglecomments]

I’m glad this was brought up because I’ve been dying to talk about it.

A lot of RWBY fans like to assume that it’s detractors are all bigots, mainly from the assertion that RWBY is Progressive™ so anyone who doesn’t like it must not like progressiveness. For reasons that have been repeated ad nauseam by myself and others that simply isn’t true: A civil rights group is made out to be terrorists, people with disabilities are constantly depicted as villains, the audience is constantly baited with queer characters, not to mention that fact that it’s made by the most bigoted company I think of off hand.

One’s opinions of RWBY is no indication of of one’s beliefs, there many people who love the show who are just as bigoted as they claim the critics to be, but no one wants to call them out because they support RWBY. Every time RWBY’s inaction in V8 is criticized the defense always falls back the sexist assumption that women are physically weak: “They’re tired, they need their rest,” and on and on and on. When RWBY’s decision to steal an airship instead of taking Cordovin’s offer to send Weiss back is criticized the response is that Jaques will do *something* to Weiss when she gets back to Atlas. They can’t tell you exactly what he’d do and when pressed you’ll get a million different headcanons, but just know that regardless of all of Weiss’ abilities she will be stopped in her tracks by her father, once again falling back on the notion that regardless of how powerful a woman is she will be overpowered by literally any guy.

Those are just two examples, I won’t even get into how the female characters have clearly been designed by men, or how Pyrrha only existed to be the Self-Insert’s waifu, or all of the ableism and racism. My point is that all of what I’ve mentioned is clearly rooted in some kind of bigotry but the fandom doesn’t care. The one’s that do are labeled as RWDE for being critics and then labeled as bigots lol. The RWBY fandom isn’t split into progressive fans and bigoted critics, it’s split into those willing to bury their head in the sand to uphold a mid cartoon and those who aren’t.     

[lesbianlotties]

for the prompts list !! lottienat i can’t decide tbh… 4 or 7 or 9… the choice is yours :) whatever calls to you!!

What about... all three prompts!!! 04.  “And that doesn’t scare you?” 07.  “You might be right, but you don’t have to be so mean about it.” 09.  “I should’ve told you back then, but I didn’t want you to leave.”

Sometime past midnight, after a high school reunion became a dance around a bonfire that turned into improvised group therapy into a prayer circle into a dangerous ritual that was conveniently interrupted by a foolish man with bad intentions that paid the price for his actions… Van was calming down a recently woken-up Taissa that still had dirt and blood on her hands and face, Shauna still had a knife in her blood-stained hands, and Misty was simultaneously grieving for Walter and preparing to hide his body at the bottom of the lake.

Meanwhile, Natalie had pulled Lottie away from the group, to a secluded corner in the back of one of the small wooden buildings of her wellness center. She was gripping Lottie’s arms tightly and keeping her pressed against the wall. Partially because she was furious and it was either leaving bruises on Lottie’s upper arms or picking up a gun. But, mostly, it was because she was trembling badly enough that Natalie feared the woman would crumble down to her knees if she let go of her for just an instant. Still, Natalie couldn’t afford to give Lottie time to get her shit together. They were both splattered with blood and Lottie had just said a lot of really concerning things.

“What do you mean you knew this would happen?” Natalie hissed. She waited for an answer as long as she could but Lottie was still shaking, silently crying, and keeping her eyes tightly closed. “Lottie! For fuck’s sake!” Natalie snapped. “Talk to me, Lottie. What the hell were you talking about just there?”

“I saw this,” Lottie said with such a broken voice that Natalie, tragically, felt like a teenager again. “I’ve seen this before, Natalie. I’ve had visions of that man dying over and over again for months,” Lottie confessed with tears falling down her cheeks and her bottom lip trembling. “I knew all of you would come here eventually, and I knew it would end up in blood.”

“And you didn’t fucking think of telling us an hour ago?! Why didn’t you tell me, Lottie?! I’ve been here for a week!”

“I’m sorry!” Lottie exclaimed.

It was difficult for her to keep talking. She was crying even harder, and almost sliding down the wall. Natalie’s arms really were the only thing keeping her upright. All of Natalie’s bones ached to offer some sort of comfort to the woman in front of her but, as usual, Lottie had crossed a line, and Natalie had never been good at making things easy for her. If she allowed her thumbs to caress Lottie’s arms, even through the fabric of her blood-stained silk shirt, well, no one could call Natalie Scatorccio entirely heartless. Even worse than that, she had to admit that the troubled prophet in her arms had made herself a place in Natalie’s heart that nothing else could fill.

Eventually, Lottie calmed down enough to breathe deeply and Look Natalie in the eyes when she said, “I should’ve told you back then, but I didn’t want you to leave.”

In startling contrast to Lottie’s solemn and absolutely earnest confession, Natalie’s scoff was like a bucket of cold water.

“Bullshit,” Natalie said, always quick to put a stop to Lottie’s crisis, for better or for worse, warranted or not. “If you really believed in your vision, you would know that nothing could’ve stopped this from happening and a heads up would’ve been fucking nice. If they’re just a fucked up fantasy of yours… Well, all the more reason to tell me! I would’ve been glad to tell you hey, Lot, you’re fucking losing your mind!”

Lottie frowned. She was almost entirely calm by that point. Only her hands were still trembling when she brought them up to wipe away the tears on her cheeks and brush the hair off her face. Natalie almost snapped at her based only on the fact that Lottie shouldn’t have been allowed to be so graceful and beautiful after being involved in ritualistic murder and positively breaking down about it afterward. She begrudgingly let her arms fall at her side and gave Lottie some space to put herself together.

“You might be right, but you don’t have to be so mean about it,” Lottie said. Her intense eyes and words said one thing, but Natalie was smart and close enough to catch the discreet tilt of her lips. 

Of course Lottie would turn playful at the worst of times. Natalie was almost surprised she wasn’t talking shit about the dead guy’s outfit.

“There’s a dead man in the middle of your vegetable garden, Matthews. I think I’m allowed to be a little fucking mean,” Natalie said, horrified to confirm that most of her fury had gone out throughout their argument. “Now, tell me everything else you saw in your goddamned visions, and tell me how we’re going to make this right.”

For some reason, Lottie seemed thrown off by Natalie’s request. Natalie had always resisted everything about Lottie’s abilities. And there she was, calm, patient, asking for more, standing by Lottie’s side instead of fighting her or running away.

“And this doesn’t scare you?” Lottie asked her.

The last of Natalie’s walls absolutely crumbled at the sight of Lottie’s sincere confusion and surprise.

“When have I ever been scared of you?” Natalie asked with a smile.

“I can think of a couple of times,” Lottie laughed, and she didn't give Natalie a chance to reply before throwing her arms around her and pulling her in for a hug.

At first, Natalie tensed and kept her arms hanging limply at her sides. However, as soon as she noticed Lottie had no intentions of pulling away until she gave in, as soon as she admitted to herself that the hug was a very small display of everything the two of them felt and would rather do to each other, Natalie reciprocated the embrace. She held Lottie tightly against her body, protectively, at the same time that she relaxed under Lottie’s genuine affection.

They had to make the most of that hug. They had a murder to cover and unexplainable powers to deal with. Who knew when they would get another moment of privacy?

Send me a prompt!