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atlasofthestaars · 8 months

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[MK X READER] New Era - Chapter .015

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NOTE:

Yet again we’re hoping for less than three weeks update time. We’ll see how it goes now haha ^^

edit: I lost track of time. I keep on forgetting when I last updated.

Rain got in as a love interest, which does alter the story a bit!

Reminder that I like to do canon divergence <3

Would you guys like a collection of headcanons I’ve done for requests on AO3?? I usually don’t post them there because they’re pretty short but I can put them all into one book that I’ll update.

Also happy 100k+ words! I'm. I'm not ready to figure out how many words this will all be by the end.

FROM THE EYES OF SOMEONE WHO ENJOYS A MOMENT OF PEACE

“Things are getting rough.”

You stood upon the roof of a building, staring down at the destruction of the city around you. Outworlders mobbed the streets, terrorizing the innocent Earthrealmers. To describe it as “rough” was an understatement. It’s been two long years ever since the first invasions on Earthrealm started. It’s been nearly a year since you’ve moved out to the city along with the others to fend off where it was the worst.

Most of Earthrealm’s forces were sent here, along with Raiden, to defend the city. But there were a few that were scattered around the world to help other regions. Fujin and your father, for example, stayed behind to help the monks defend the Wu Shi along with others of the White Lotus. You missed both of them dearly, only being able to communicate with them occasionally.

You haven’t been able to visit Kung Lao’s grave in over a year. You only hoped that he understood why.

“Are you planning on going out again?” Liu Kang’s voice spoke. His voice dripped with concern. You turned your gaze away from the apocalyptic sight to your dear friend. It was a much better view than the one below. His eyebrows furrowed as he stared at you. You sighed and nodded before turning your gaze down to the view below. As disturbing as it was, you felt guiltier turning a blind eye.

“I have to, I don’t think Raiden and Johnny Cage are enough to take down that extermination squad they’ve sent out.” You said, crossing your arms. A light breeze passed by, sending the smell of smoke your way. You grimaced at the acrid scent. No matter how long you’ve been here, you’re not sure if you’ll ever get used to it. Especially with how you’ve become so accustomed to the much cleaner air at the temple. “That, and Nightwolf said he would enjoy my help to help recruit the two Raiden has been getting information on.”

“New recruits?” Liu Kang inquired. You nodded gravely in response. A hint of distaste seemed to linger with his words along with some confusion. You didn’t blame him, ever since you’ve been out here, you’ve never really gone and sought out other help. Well, you’ve wanted to, but Raiden had been hesitant in dragging others into this whole affair.

As if they weren’t already. Still, you saw the logic within Raiden’s decision, even though it was flawed.

“Yes. Raiden says they have potential.” Out of the corner of your eye, you see your friend move. Was that a flinch? Or did he simply shift his weight? When you turned your gaze to check, you couldn’t tell. “I think it would be good to get more help. Our efforts are stretched out thin as it is.” You elaborate. Your hands go out to grasp at the concrete railing, gripping it tightly. You were certain by the time you let go of it, your hands would have the texture imprinted upon them.

“I still cannot believe that even after winning two tournaments and even I had nearly killed Shao Khan, it was not enough.” Liu Kang said, moving to stand closer to you. Bitterness coated his words. The distaste within his words felt strange, no matter how much more common it was becoming. You recalled back to the moment you had confronted him at Kung Lao’s grave. He was doing much better now, but you had felt like something had fundamentally changed within Liu Kang.

You could never truly pinpoint when that change happened. Was it when the invasions had started? Or maybe, was it when Kung Lao died? Part of you doubted it was either one of those, even if it sounded like it made sense. It was probably much earlier, maybe after Raiden had said Liu Kang was not the chosen one. Either way, he had changed. There was resentment that lingered in his soul, directed at Raiden. You could feel it with every interaction.

It worried you. Team morale was low enough as it were without the subtle drama between Liu Kang and Raiden. It was taxing enough to keep on a brave face in front of everyone, to pretend like everything would be alright. You didn’t know if you had enough spirit left in you to mend things together. With every day that you had to hide your dwindling confidence, you broke a little inside.

You should really talk to him, but you feared that it would lead to more issues. Maybe you were being irrational and over thinking things. You were all tired, maybe he was just irritated at how the world has essentially fallen apart.

Surely that must be it. Liu Kang was not one to dislike Raiden. If anything, he had been the one out of all three of you who had regarded him the highest. So it was illogical to think that he would suddenly dislike or even hate the god.

You were just being too worried. Maybe your logic has become weaker after pretending everything was alright for so long. That, and Liu Kang and Raiden were adults, or in Raiden’s case, more than an adult. They can figure out whatever dispute they had, if they even had one. They didn’t need you to coddle them. You had enough on your plate already, you could trust them.

Still, even with that conclusion, a pit of guilt formed in your stomach.

Warmth radiated from Liu Kang, a detail that you noted as you were drawn from your thoughts. It enveloped you in a sense of security. You closed your eyes, and for a moment you had nearly forgotten how terrible everything was. You felt safe. You only indulged yourself in the sensation for a moment before you opened your eyes and forced yourself to look at the destruction below. You didn’t deserve to feel safe and comforted in a world that needed your help.

“I can’t believe it either.” You replied after a long, long moment. You didn’t know what else to say, because what else could you say? It was unbelievable to you as much as it was to him how awful things were, even after all your efforts. It felt like a perpetual punishment for something you’ve never deserved. None of you deserved this, and yet you were all saddled with the heavy responsibility of it.

The two of you stood on the rooftop, looking out at the horrors of the world for a long while. It wasn’t as if you enjoyed seeing it. Not at all, but you couldn’t bear holding a smile for the others right now. Being alone with Liu Kang was better for your soul at the moment. None of you spoke, either not knowing how to or unwilling to break the fragile silence that settled over the two of you. It wasn’t until you realized how much time had passed that the silence had been broken.

“I need to get going now.” You informed Liu Kang. “Nightwolf will be waiting for me.” You turned away, moving to walk away from the man. Then, you felt him grasp your hand. His grip was firm, but not harsh. Just enough to keep you there, but you could still shake his grip off if you needed. But you didn’t. Your gaze trailed up from the grip to his arm then settled on his face. “Liu Kang?”

“I-” He began. His hand trembled. For what reason you had no idea why. Worried, you turned to face him fully. You placed a hand upon his, trying to quell whatever had caused him to shake. His hand settled between yours. His gaze lifted, and for a moment that stretched into eternity, he stared into your eyes. There was a fire that seemed to burn in his eyes, then it slowly burned away into embers. A soft flush appeared on his cheeks, and it seemed he even stopped breathing. You rubbed the back of his hand with your thumb, trying to coax the words out of him. His hand twitched before squeezing yours. “I just want you to stay safe.”

You could tell immediately that isn’t what he wanted to say.

“I will.” You said, reassuring him. You didn’t know what he wanted to say, you just knew those weren’t the words he wanted you to hear. But you held no judgement for the man. He could tell you what he wanted to say in due time. There was no need to rush him. You simply smiled at him. You lifted his hand and pressed it to your chest so he could hear your heart’s beat. “This heart of mine won’t stop beating anytime soon, okay?”

A shy smile spread across his lips as he nodded. His gaze fixated on where his hand was spread upon your chest, feeling the steady heart beat.You could feel how his hand grew a bit warmer, a side effect you knew from him getting a little emotional, whether it be from sadness, joy, anything really. You stood there, letting him feel the reminder that you were alive for a few moments more.

“Alright.” You said, gently removing his hand. Though the man was tough as nails, you delicately removed his hand. You moved it down to his side before sending him a smile. “I’ll be back soon, hopefully with new recruits.” You assured him, giving him a nod. “You better stay safe too, okay?” You watched as the monk nodded slowly.

You left him on that rooftop, feeling the warm gaze of your friend follow your form as you descended down back into the base.

Waking up today was the first time in a few days where you did not feel mired in heavy emotion. That was not to say you didn’t feel at least a little somber, but you at least did not feel desolate. You didn’t think your bed could handle another frenzied episode. Your fingertips traced the sewn up areas a little guiltily. You were still hoping that it was enough to not make others not mad at you.

The last thing you’d want is to ruin the apparent fragile relationship between Outworld and Earthrealm over something silly like this.

You felt a little better at the idea that perhaps not all of your memories would be so heavy and dark. You swung your legs over the bed, and you moved through your morning routine with some grace. It was a small boost of confidence, but one you sorely needed. Maybe it was a little silly, but you didn’t linger on that type of thought process for long.

As you stepped out of the bedroom, the last bits of your somber mood felt like they disintegrated when the sunlight touched you. You felt light, but there was still a slight chill in the air. It was hard to deny that you missed the warmth Liu Kang would give you within your memories. For a brief moment, you wondered if it would be silly to try and stand close to the god to feel if he had that same warmth.

Right on cue, the familiar taps of princess Kitana sounded from the far hallway. As both of you made eye contact, you shared a nod in understanding. Both of you met halfway, falling into familiar step as you walked by her side. It felt familiar. You weren’t sure if it was because you’ve walked by Liu Kang’s side for years, or because of the implications of your memories that you might have walked by her side before.

It felt nice to have a companion to walk with, either way.

“I noticed you went around with the actor.” Kitana spoke, a tinge of amusement in her voice. You couldn’t tell whether she was amused at the idea of the actor, or you being with the man. “Or, rather, he dragged you around.” She quipped. You held back an exasperated sigh at the memory. Even the princess had noticed that?

“Yes, he was rather…” You trailed off, trying to think of the proper words to express your feelings without making a bad impression of the actor for the princess. “...persistent.” You watched her eyebrows raise, and she nodded. The very hint of a laugh left her lips. You blinked, you weren’t certain if that was the first time you’ve heard her laugh.

“I can attest to that.” She replied, a tone in her voice indicating that she understood, even if just a fraction, how stubborn Johnny Cage could be. “The actor would not leave me alone the day after the banquet.” She peeked over to you, a thoughtful look on her face. “Forgive me for saying that I had the thought to smack some sense into him.”

“I take no offense, I understand just how he is like.” You said, a laugh escaping your lips. “He’s rather stubborn whenever he wishes, but he has a good heart.” You said, hand raising to cup your own cheek. Your smile slipped into something that felt sentimental before it bounced back into its more friendly state. You shrugged causally. “Even if it isn’t apparent at first.”

“Such praises are more comforting coming from you rather than his own mouth.” Kitana said, and you could detect what you could only describe as a teasing lilt to her voice. You smiled warmly at it, and you saw how her own smile seemed to grow a little less professional and a little more genuine. It was like watching a flower blossom.

“I can imagine so.” You laughed, bringing a hand to muffle it. You could imagine Johnny bragging about himself to the princess, and her probably being annoyed at it. Or amused. Either way, you had a feeling that the impression he left upon the princess was not the one he desired. “I just hope he didn’t irritate you. Like I mentioned, he means well.”

“While he is persistent as any other who attempts to court me, he is far less brutish.” Kitana reassured you, making you feel a bit better about his flirting, “And, if anything else, he is amusing enough to listen to.” You let out another chuckle at the image of Johnny thinking he was wooing princess Kitana when in reality she thought him closer to a court jester.

“Don’t let him know that.” You informed her, making her quirk up an eyebrow. “He’s an…entertainer in Earthrealm. His ego would swell with pride at the idea that he at least amuses you.” You couldn’t tell if it was the trick of the light or not, but you swore you saw her roll her eyes at the premise of Johnny Cage’s ego swelling even more.

“I’ll keep that information in mind.” Kitana replied, a light tone to her voice. With that, the both of you arrived at the entrance to the Great Hall. She turned to look at you fully, a small smile still gracing her lips. “Enjoy watching the match.” She said, and you granted her the same sentiment. She walked off, content with your response.

To your surprise, Raiden and Kung Lao were not around yet, leaving only the fire god waiting in the Great Hall. You looked around. For a moment, you considered the possibility that you had arrived earlier. You then were quick to doubt that idea due to your walk with princess Kitana. She seemed to be very diligent on routine, so you doubted that you both would have walked out early.

“Where is Raiden and Kung Lao?” You inquired, moreso thinking about the former than the latter. It wasn’t like you didn’t fret over Kung Lao, it was just that the lack of Raiden appearing was strange. While Kung Lao was typically early, it wasn’t as if he didn’t allow himself to take more time to himself. Raiden, on the other hand, was always early. Almost to a fault.

“I am not certain.” Liu Kang replied, his voice calm. You looked over to see him composed as ever. He caught your gaze, giving you a small smile in return. Subconsciously, you found yourself standing near him. You noted the warmth he radiated. It was familiar, the same aura he had back in your memories. “I would not fret over it, I am certain they will be here in due time.”

“I know.” You said, and yet you found yourself biting at a thumbnail. Your gaze was cast downwards as you contemplated over the whole ordeal. “It’s just…odd.” You admitted. “He usually would be here by now. By he, I mean Raiden. Kung Lao sometimes shows up simply on time.”

“Indeed.” Liu Kang nodded. You could feel his gaze still on you. It did not sear you, rather it felt gentle. It was much like how it would feel if you were to hover your hand over a candle to feel its warmth. “However, he is also not the type to show up late if it is an important event. I would not worry over it, it will simply cause more stress.”

“You’re right.” You replied. You felt called out at the last statement, but you knew it was for the best. After all, you weren’t the best at keeping yourself from not being stressed. It was supposed to be a friendly reminder. You took in a breath, straightening out your back before lifting your head up. You shouldn’t be stressed.

A silence settled over the two of you. This silence was different from the comforting one you were used to. It was tense, like a string being pulled far too taut. You supposed it was your fault, you and your busy mind. That, and you've been finding it harder and harder to try and separate the man you remembered the god in front of you.

“Have you been enjoying your stay in Outworld?” Liu Kang spoke. His voice was soft. It was like a droplet of water falling into a still pond. It was so deliberate, so delicate, how he broke the tension. You turned your gaze, and saw the smile he sent your way. It was bittersweet, the way he smiled. It was exactly the same way you remembered.

“I have.” You said. You weren’t keen on lying to the god, but you did feel a bit bad admitting it. You watched his face shift a tiny bit, but you couldn’t quite read if that had any significance. You turned away, finding it hard to see the way he smiled. “It’s very…different.” You told him. There was a hesitance to your words.

Certainly you were struggling to find the right words because you didn’t want to make it seem like you were suddenly forsaking Earthrealm, but there was also something else to it. You enjoyed Outworld, you truly did. But you weren’t naive to blindly praise it to a god. There were, for all you knew, probably a darker side to this place.

The memory of seeing Shao Khan for the first time still lingered in your mind.

“I’m glad you have been enjoying it.” Liu Kang replied, a pleased tone to his voice. You felt his heat grow a little more. Curious, you glanced over to him to see he has stepped over a bit. He was standing so close that he was nearly brushing your arm with his own. “I hope you continue to enjoy your stay here.”

“How has your experience been for this trip?” You asked quickly, not wanting the tension to settle back in the air. You forced yourself to look at him, meeting those glowing white eyes. You wondered, just briefly, what caused the warm mortal eyes you once knew to become godlike. Was this just a new world where Liu Kang was deemed a god? Or was there more reason to it?

“It has been lovely.” Liu Kang said, seeming satisfied with the eye contact you gave him. “Not much has changed since the last hundred years since Outworld functions differently, but something about this time around has been more…” There was a pause as the god seemed to search the air for the perfect word to say. “pleasant.”

“I see.” You replied, but the words felt like a lie on your tongue. You understood the joys of being here, but not the reason behind why it was more enjoyable. The little voice in your head told you that you should know though. And you felt just a little dumb for not knowing the reason. Still, you kept the smile upon your lips.

It was hard not to smile when Liu Kang was looking at you that way.

It didn’t take long for someone to show up. That person was Kung Lao. A broad smile spread across his lips as he sauntered in. As he laid eyes upon you and the god, his eyebrows raised as he looked around, probably searching for his fellow farmhand. When he did not see him, he walked over to you two and looked around once more, just to make sure.

“Where’s Raiden?” He asked, the confusion clear within his voice. You saw him cross his arms as once more, he scanned the room. He seemed more certain that his eyes were in the wrong rather than believe in the fact that his friend was simply not here. You supposed no one could blame him, you were just as unbelieving when you had arrived.

“He's just a little behind.” You excused, trying your best to not show in your voice that you had felt the same way. You didn't want to cause a fuss. “I am certain he shall show in due time.” You saw the fire god nod in agreement, which only made sense since he had been the one to share that same sentiment. At your reassurance, you saw Kung Lao shrug nonchalantly.

“I guess so.”

Some more time passed, and despite your own words, you felt yourself getting antsy with every minute that the diligent man did not arrive. Kenshi had arrived at this point, sending the group a curious glance upon noting the disappearance of the champion. You felt your intertwined hands fidget and clench and unclench. The stare that Kenshi sent your way did not help either. He could do very well with being less obvious.

Finally, to relieve your worries, Raiden finally showed up with Johnny Cage at his side. You sighed as you walked over to Raiden. Your eyes raked over the man. He looked rather unkempt. His clothes were a bit of a mess, and his hat was a bit crooked. He seemed to be nearly on edge. Your tongue clicked as you reached out, adjusting his clothes and hat for him.

“You had us worried.” You admit softly, making sure that the man was presentable. After all, at this point, many of Outworld’s citizens were keeping an eye on Earthrealm’s strong champion. You sent him a small smile, trying to reassure him since you could see how tense he was on his face. You watched as his mouth opened to say something, probably an excuse, but you laid a hand on his shoulder to quiet him. “Hey, you’re here, that’s what matters. Plus, you’re not late either. Don’t worry about it, it’ll leak into your fighting”

“You’re right.” Raiden said, nodding slowly. You could see the nervous energy in him seem to melt away. His eyes closed as he took a deep breath in before releasing it. A small flush covered his cheeks, perhaps still from how he had rushed to get ready this moment. When he opened his eyes, he sent you a sunny smile that warmed your heart. “I will do my best.”

“I know you will.” You told him. You watched as Kung Lao handed over a few items for Raiden and Johnny Cage to eat. You could always rely on him for that. Raiden seemed most grateful at the gesture. Chatter among the group seemed to calm the former farmhand, and it was not very long until the usual proceedings occurred.

“Young Raiden.” Sindel spoke, gazing down at Raiden. You were impressed with how she kept her smile seeming this warm and cordial despite the trend of her champions being taken down by Raiden no matter how the odds seemed. “You have…bested all the champions thus far with grace skill.” The empress commended, though there was almost a slight strain to her voice as she admitted it, it was very subtle, hardly noticeable. “Let us see if this next contender can match your might.”

Surprisingly, after being absent yesterday, General Khan was back to announce the next champion.

“The next challenger is another one of my officers, Motaro.” The general spoke, his voice booming and echoing off the walls of the hall. The sound of hooves caught your attention, and you turned to see a centuarian walk into the halls. His stride was confident, and he walked in with his arms crossed. His gaze was tilted down already, almost glaring down at Raiden who was forced to look up at his opponent.

Despite being an officer, he lacked the same armor that both Kotal and Reiko had donned, being fully bare on his upper body. Only a silver belt concealing where a horse body fused into a human body was present as any sort of protection, and even then it was more decorative than anything. That is, until you spied the back of his horse body. A metallic tail more akin to a lizard’s was attached there. Your eyes lingered on the curve of his horns, finding them interesting. It seems that centaurians were not a simply a human fused with a horse body as Earthrealmers would believe.

You believe you’ve seen this man before, but whatever feeling you had was much weaker than it was for any other person you’ve met. Maybe this man was in your life for but a brief moment…still, if he was, it was strange your brain even felt like it recognized him.

“Motaro is one of the centaurian’s finest.” General Shao bragged, seeming more enthusiastic to talk about Motaro compared to Kotal from the other day. Motaro lifted his head up to bask in the speech, an almost pleased look on his face. “With the tenacity of a bull and the might of one of the best warriors I have fought alongside, he is one of the best warriors in the legion.”

“Little man.” Motaro addressed Raiden curtly. He snorted as he continued to look down at the farmhand. His countenance returned to the look he had previously, but it was marred with a near sneer. His gaze felt nearly as sharp as his metallic tail did. You watched as Raiden took the comment in stride, bowing to his opponent, not fearing despite the size difference between them both.

“It is an honor to fight you.” Raiden told his opponent. You smiled at how polite he was to his opponents, even despite the lack of respect he was granted in return. Still, you wondered if that would remain that way in the future. While the thought of Raiden trying to smack talk his opponents was funny to think of, you hoped that nothing would hurt Raiden enough to take him in that direction.

Motaro’s fighting style was unique, suffice to say. His unusual body type, at least compared to what Raiden had normally fought against. He would charge in a brutish manner, using brute force to try and make the champion cower. Despite his bulk, he also maintained a lot of the battlefield control when Raiden tried to create space by being able to shoot projectiles from the metallic tail that you had spied earlier.

Still, even with the trickiness of the fight, Raiden’s wit led him to victory. When he needed to close the gap, he would teleport behind Motaro. Due to Motaro’s body, he struggled to turn around and face the man before he was met with lightning that was strong enough to stagger even him. Sometimes, Raiden would realize that he would have to match the reckless nature of Motaro and surge right at him, catching the other man off guard.

It was no surprise to you to see that Motaro eventually collapsed. Taking deep breaths, Raiden looked down on his opponent, an ironic twist on the dynamic before. Except for Raiden, there was no hint of malice or disrespect in his eyes. Only warmth glimmered within his.

“Thank you for the match.” Raiden told him humbly, a soft smile on his lips. You watched him reach out to try and attempt to help up his opponent instinctively. He almost seemed to flinch when he retracted it when Motaro denied the help. There was a mixture between a scoff and a huff from the centaurian, but ultimately he nodded before he walked off. You eyed the tail that almost seemed to drag on the floor, making a slight scratching sound.

“Congratulations on a well fought match.” You said, walking up to the once again successful champion. His smile seemed to grow as you walked towards him with a delighted expression. It was almost like seeing a child light up when you gave them the sweetest candy in the world. “Your technique is improving everyday.”

“I can only thank you, Lord Liu Kang, and the monks for preparing me for these moments.” Raiden replied, seeming to fall back onto his habit of being far too humble. You sighed and shook your head in disapproval of how he still didn’t consider his own skills into the fray. Still, it was endearing enough that you still smiled.

“Do not forget how much hard work you have also put in, Raiden.” Liu Kang reminded him, practically taking the words out of your mouth. You saw the god’s eyes flick over to you for a moment. Whether that was in reference to how you and Raiden had often stayed up late training or if it was a reference to how the god knew what was what you were going to say, you could not tell.

“Yeah man, you killed it out there, even with sleeping in.” Johnny hopped into the conversation. You elbowed the actor at the mention of him sleeping in, maybe a little harsher than you should have after seeing how flushed the champion’s cheeks became. You heard the American clear his throat. “You gotta give yourself some credit, Raidude.”

“I will try.” Raiden said, a bit of hesitance in his voice. While it did seem to partially stem from the insistence from all of you that he should be giving himself more credit, you could also sense the hesitance coming due to the nickname Johnny had called him. You would never admit it, but the fact that even the kindest of your mentees seemed to hold a slight disdain towards the actor’s nicknames never failed to amuse you. Yet, all the same, the enthusiasm in him wanting to succeed and work hard on whatever his criticisms were shone through.

After discussion with Liu Kang, like usual, your little group dispersed once more. For a moment, you swore you saw Kung Lao linger for a moment before he seemed to walk off with Raiden. You weren’t sure if your eyes were seeing things correctly, though. The man who did stick around was Kenshi, who soon found his way by your side.

“Ready?” The ex yakuza member inquired. His eyebrows were raised as he looked at you. The way he gazed at you seemed to tell you more words than he said, like how he was willing to wait for you if you weren’t. You supposed it only made sense, from what Kenshi had told you before, that the Yakuza would need to be subtle and communicate with others with even the slightest nod. Still, it was almost like a fresh breath of air compared to the others who seemed like an open book compared to the man beside you.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” You told him with a confident nod. Then, the both of you set off. The difference between the walk to Sun Do with Kenshi compared to Johnny was almost night and day. While it wasn’t completely silent, you both only had some chatter here and there. It didn’t feel like small talk, and comforting silence filled the air otherwise.

You took this time to try and sneak some glances Kenshi’s way while he seemed to remain vigilant in staring on the path ahead. Out of all your champions, you considered the man beside you to be the one you understood the least. While you did attempt to get closer to the man through food, there was still a lot you had left to learn about him. He wasn’t as eager to dispense knowledge as the others, even if he wasn’t totally private about the past.

The reason why Kenshi was so vastly different in this timeline compared to the other three was beyond you. It was a mystery you’ve been trying to unravel since you’ve met the man. His backstory was completely different, and the lack of powers he had previously made you question a lot about this life. Different backstories weren’t anything new, per se, but it was still strange how…different it was. From your memories of the world before, you could conclude that perhaps his lack of powers was from how he did not wield Sento.

You’ve considered confronting Johnny about giving the swordsman the sword back, after all the actor had it for a rather petty reason, but you’ve never gotten too far in your plans. You couldn’t guarantee that talking to the actor would do any good, that man was rather stubborn, even in the face of reason sometimes. But there was also another reason you’ve held yourself back.

You were afraid that the sword would doom Kenshi to some kind of tragic fate. Your memories of Kenshi's previous story were hazy. You couldn’t tell if it was because you simply didn’t remember, or if it was because you never sought out to ask too much about it in the past. Either way, you were upset with yourself over it.

What you did know for certain, despite the lack of memories, was that in your previous life, he had been blinded due an incident that had something to do with the sword. Yes, he did gain powers that enabled him to be more than he was, but thought of losing his eyesight because of it and you potentially being the catalyst for that was more than you thought you could bear. It wasn’t as if you could warn Kenshi of the dangers, you’d sound insane.

Plus, you knew with the significance of that sword, your warnings might go unheeded. You had a sense that the ex yakuza member was selfless enough to be a martyr for the sake of his clan. The thought of him giving up his eyesight willingly squeezed your heart.

You were willing to craft a hat for Kung Lao, there were no flaws behind that as far as you could tell. But Kenshi’s weapon had a lot more weight to it. You wouldn’t know if the consequences behind that influence were the same, and if they would be less than the positives. There was a lot more to consider. Even if your decision that you would err on the side of caution, you still felt guilty that you could not help and provide the weapon that the man beside you craved.

“You’re glancing at me a lot, should I be flattered or concerned?” Kenshi inquired, snapping you out of your thoughts. You found that you were now meeting the swordsman’s gaze who held you with an intrigued look. With a scene that felt all too familiar, you felt your face heat up again. How you’ve let yourself space out and stare so obviously at your companion two days in a row, you had no idea.

“Flattered, I suppose?” You said, awkwardness soaking your words after you cleared your throat. You found yourself unable to maintain eye contact. Suddenly, the blue sky speckled with clouds seemed interesting. You felt your hand creep up to the side of your neck and press against it. Compared to the heat of your face, your hand felt like an ice cube.

You didn’t know what excuse to say, or if you even should. Obviously, you couldn’t tell him the real reason why you were taking what you thought was sneaky glances. If you weren’t telling the god who took you in about your memories, you weren’t going to tell Kenshi. The issue was that now, you had no idea what excuse to even say, and you put yourself in a rather awkward situation because of it.

Despite this, it seemed that you didn’t have to. You heard a chuckle, and took a cautious peek to see Kenshi looking at you with a gaze that seemed free of judgement. His cheeks were tinged with pink. It seemed whatever excuse he had gleaned from what little you said satisfied him. You weren’t sure what his assumptions were, but at this point, you figured you were far too deep to ask what he thought it was.

This was the consequences of your lack of sneakiness, you supposed. You didn’t find yourself too upset though. It seemed to make him pleased enough, and that was enough for you.

The rest of the walk to Sun Do left you feeling just a little lighter.

You both wandered into the city, deliberately leading him in a different direction you had gone with both Johnny and Raiden. You didn’t need to retread those places, you knew very well that you wouldn’t find the gift for Bi-Han you wanted in those shops. It would only waste precious time. You both went from shop to shop, peering at possible gift ideas with careful eyes.

Shopping with Kenshi was much different than the other two. With Raiden, he had been far too passive. He seemed to enjoy peering at the wares and agreeing with you more than scrutinizing the items. He4 didn’t provide any meaningful feedback in terms of whether the gift was appropriate or if it felt right. You didn’t blame him, you had a feeling he was far too elated by simply being in the heart of the capital. That, and he was the one who invited you to explore rather than shop.

With Johnny, he had a completely different taste than you did. He often criticized your choices for being too “tame” or not flashy enough. Perhaps it wasn’t the worst opinion, you had gone for subtler gifts, but the gifts he offered before the ribbon had all been rather…gaudy and definitely didn’t fit the Lin Kuei. It was almost a miracle he had spotted the ribbon and offered it up.

Kenshi, on the other hand, was almost like the perfect shopping companion. His tastes seemed to align with what you were searching for, so that was a far better companion than Johnny. Not only that, but he was very inquisitive and seemed to take every comment you said to heart. You couldn’t resist a smile as you realized this nature was the exact reason why you had chosen Kenshi in particular to critique your cooking.

“How about this?” Kenshi inquired, lifting up an intricate blue sash. You hummed as you leaned in close to peer at the fabric. You plucked the item that was draped over his hands, your fingertips brushing against the inked surface. You lifted up, studying the details. Then, you squinted at it more as you tried to imagine Bi-Han wearing this sash. Your nose wrinkled at the fact that you could not conjure up that image.

“I think we should stray away from accessories like this.” You concluded. “I don’t think Bi-Han would find himself wearing anything in accompaniment to his uniform.” You explained. The swordsman nodded as he took your words into consideration. You handed back the sash to him so he could place it back. With careful precision, he folded the sash before delicately placing it back into its former spot. Had you not known the man, you would have never guessed his dark past with how he carried himself in his actions.

You scanned the area, looking for other ideas while Kenshi also perused the store. Nothing in particular for the grandmaster caught your eye. This store was mostly filled with accessories, which was not the type of gift you could imagine giving Bi-Han. And yet, despite this, something did catch your eye. You walked closer to get a look.

It was a set of five rings. Though they looked initially plain, the closer you inspected them, you saw the beauty within the craftsmanship. They were intricately engraved, small patterns dancing along the metal. But the part that caught the eye the most was the gorgeous gems set into each of them. Each one had a different color, gold, pink, blue, green, and red. You marveled over the rings and were pleasantly surprised to see that the rings had some minor magic, so they could be resized on their own.

You looked and saw they had a special deal if you bought the whole set. Your eyes lingered on the rings for a moment more. How perfect this would be as a gift for your champions. A smile appeared on your face as you thought about it. You glanced back at the bag where you held your gold. Maybe if you had left over gold you could come back for these.

“I don’t think this place has what I’m looking for.” You told the swordsman, striding over to him. You stood slightly in the way of the rings. You didn’t think he’d notice them since it didn’t align with the idea you had for Bi-Han. But still, you wanted to keep it a surprise, just in case. Luckily, it seemed that Kenshi hadn’t noticed where you had gone.

“I agree, especially since this place is geared towards accessories.” Kenshi replied. He nodded in the direction of the door, his hand gesturing for you to lead the way. You did just that, managing to glance back at the rings one last time. You knew that if you did, Kenshi would be likely to notice with how much he’s been noticing your stares. Then again, you supposed that’s because your stares towards the swordsman were rather…obvious. Still, you wouldn’t put it past him to notice the little things.

And so, both you and the ex yakuza member were back on the streets. But not for long. This time, Kenshi pointed out a shop. At first, you hesitated, gazing at all the porcelain cups and teapots. You weren’t certain if these ceramics would be an ideal gift, but then your eyes landed on a particular teapot set in the window. You were so fascinated by it that you stepped inside to get a better look.

The teapot set in question was delftware styled. The blue painted ceramic was decorated to be depicting a snowy wonderland with snow leopards as the main focus. Your eyes studied the set carefully, marveling over it. It had some gold accents around the rim, giving it that extra pop. It even came with a little tea pet, a snow leopard. At first, you couldn’t imagine gifting Bi-Han such an item, but the more you marveled over it, the more you couldn’t imagine giving him anything else.

“With the way you’re looking at that, I think I did my job.” Kenshi remarked, walking up next to you. You smiled over to him, and you saw on his face a very pleased expression. He crossed his arms as he took his gaze from you over to the set. “It’s miraculous how cheap these items are here, back in Earthrealm, these would be worth a fortune.”

“I can’t believe it either.” You agreed with a nod. You eyed the price. It definitely was cheaper than you would expect, but the quality didn’t seem terrible despite it. Looking at it for a few more moments, you nodded once more. “I think this is the one.” You told your companion. Kenshi hummed, his eyes lingering on your decided gift before pointing to something else.

“While we’re at it, you should probably get him some tea.” The swordsman recommended. Your eyes landed on the displays of various teas they had. You walked over, noting how they felt similar in style to the dried teas you served for Madam Bo. On a closer look, some of the teas even appeared to be the same. For a brief moment, you wondered whether a long time ago Earthrealm had some of their teas imported here. It didn’t seem too far off an idea.

You scanned the various teas they had on display. For a moment, you considered picking a tea unique to Outworld. But then you considered how awful it’d feel to gift something that he might enjoy, but then never be able to savor once again in his lifetime. For that reason, you decided it might be better to chose something that he may be able to get at home.

One particular tea caught your eye.

You grabbed the box of the high quality tea, inspecting it. You had never considered this to be made into tea. You couldn’t help but to smile down at the box, too amazed at the fact that tea was a thing. You held it up to show to Kenshi who quirked up a brow.

“Parsley tea?” He asked, eyeing the box carefully. His voice sounded skeptical. You shrugged, but you already knew that the moment you had laid eyes on this particular type of tea, you were going to buy it. Something within you simply told you that it just fit him. That, and you couldn’t deny that you were interested in how it tasted. From the look Kenshi gave you, he seemed to know you were already set in your ways.

With a little pep in your step, you walked over to the Outworlder at the counter. After discussing which set you wanted along with the parsley tea, you soon found yourself back onto the streets with a very nicely wrapped gift in your hands. As you were walking back, satisfied with your findings today, you spied the shop with the rings you had looked at earlier.

“Could you hold this for a moment?” You asked the man. You swiftly handed him the gift and quickly walked off into the shop, ignoring the perplexed look the swordsman had sent you. You couldn’t blame him, you had said you only needed one more gift.

Stepping inside, you were thrilled to see that the rings you had your eye on were still there. Elated, you quickly asked the clerk for the rings. The centaruian seemed more than happy to oblige, giving you a few boxes to carry them in. You slipped the gold one on, eyeing how the light seemed to reflect off of it perfectly. The rest you slipped into your bag. You wanted to keep them a surprise for now.

Checking the money you had left, you were delighted to see you had enough to buy one more gift. That would be reserved for Liu Kang.

“Find everything you needed?” Kenshi inquired. He peered at you, his eye catching the sight of your new found accessory. You nodded, beaming happily at the man. You reached out, hands extended to take back the boxes. Despite this, you found the man pulled away from you, boxes clutched securely to his own chest. “It’s fine, I don’t mind carrying them.” He insisted.

“I don’t want to burden you with them.” You said, furrowing your brows. You made a reach for the boxes again, but the man simply side stepped your attempt. You sighed, placing a hand on your hip. “This is rather childish of you, Kenshi.” You chided, trying to see if you could convince him to give back the gifts. And yet, despite your words, the man was adamant. You sighed once more, shaking your head. “If you insist.”

“I do.” The swordsman quipped back, a victorious tone in his voice. You resisted an eye roll and made your way back to the palace. Once there, you led the ex yakuza member back to your room since he insisted on helping them carry them back all the way back there. As you finally regained the packages, you peered at him for a moment before opening your door. “Wait a moment for me, okay?” You asked.

You stepped into the room, placing your packages along with the other gifts you’ve bought. You removed the rings from the bags, admiring them once more. For a moment, you considered bringing them all in so you could give them at dinner time, but then you paused, remembering you hadn’t gotten Liu Kang’s gift quite yet and how awkward it might seem. Plus, you fancied the idea of giving the gifts privately. It would seem more personal that way.

“Thank you for waiting.” You said as you strode out. You placed your hands behind your back, hiding the little box. You supposed you were as sneaky as a toddler attempting to hide whatever mess they’ve made, because Kenshi quickly sent you a questioning look and leaned over to try and peek. “Here.” You handed over the box, scanning his features for his reaction. “A gift.”

“You didn’t have to.” Kenshi said, his voice shocked. He tried to hand back the box to you, but you pushed into his hands. After that, he relented. He scanned the box, probably trying to guess the present before he opened the box. You felt elated as you watched his surprised reaction to the ring. He lifted it up, watching with amazement as he slipped it onto his finger and it fit perfectly. “This is…” He trailed off, trying to find the right words.

“They’re beautiful, aren’t they?” You remarked. You held up your hand to showcase your golden ring. “I thought this would be the perfect present for all of us.” You then gestured to the red ring. “I chose that color specifically for you.”

“Why red?” Kenshi inquired, looking between the ring on his hand and you. You smiled at him, a small laugh leaving your lips as you looked directly into his eyes.

“Simple. I think it matches your eyes wonderfully.” You explain to him. A soft flush appeared on Kenshi’s face, and he appeared to have been stunned into silence. His mouth closed, then opened, then closed once more. Then, a soft smile appeared on his face as his gaze cast downwards to the ring on his hand once more.

“Thank you.” Kenshi mumbled softly. You grinned at him and placed a hand on his arm.

“No problem, I’m glad you like the gift.” You told him. “Now let’s go, I’m hungry.” You walked off, leading the way. You missed the fond gaze Kenshi sent you way, taking one more glance between the ring and you before following you.

Dinner went smoothly, and it was just as delicious as before. You were tempted to make plans to go shopping for some Outworld type of seasonings before you left so you could cook up some food the reminded you of this place. Maybe if you had left over money after Liu Kang’s gift.

It was yet another wonderful night in the garden. You basked in the moonlight as you waited patiently for the princess to emerge from the palace. You perked up as you heard the familiar sound of heels, and smiled as your eyes landed on the princess.

Oddly enough, there was not the more prestigious and refined look that she usually held. Her face held something that reminded you of the first time you encountered her here. She seemed…upset. You raised your eyebrows as she drew near. When she noted you in the spot, her face shifted, masking her previous attitude with a smile.

It reminded you of Empress Sindel’s smile towards Raiden.

“Are you alright?” You inquired, testing the waters. You saw her smile strain, like a string being pulled nearly too taut. Her hands, which had been folded in her lap, squeezed together as if she were squeezing out her frustration.

“I’m fine.” Mileena replied, her words clipped. You couldn’t sense any hostility within her words, but you could tell that asking about her situation would probably be unwise. You didn’t blame her, you weren’t that close after all. You nodded slowly, taking her attitude into consideration. “How have you been?” She inquired quickly, eager to divert the topic of conversation.

“I’ve been fine, I went and shopped more today.” You told her with a smile. You could read the signs of her frayed nerves and played along with her plan, changing the conversation away from herself. You saw her eyes dart to your hands. You looked down and saw the ring. You lifted your hand to showcase it, allowing her to get a better view.

“I can see that.” The princess observed. She leaned in closer, analyzing the accessory and how it fit on your finger. You saw her expression change slightly, going from a more fake look to a more genuine smile. She looked at it for a few moments more before leaning back and looking at you. “It suits you, you have a good eye.”

“Thank you.” You replied, staring down at the golden gem which shone so prettily in the moonlight. You smiled, still feeling the high of making a satisfying purchase. You paused, considering what to talk about next due to her slightly antsy mood. “How was your day, princess? I’m excited to see how you fare against Earthrealm’s champion tomorrow.”

“My day was alright.” Mileena replied, her eyes looking away into the garden. There was almost an empty tone to her voice, as if she were not telling the entire truth. She rolled her shoulders back as she cleared her throat. “I…” She began, then paused, her face scrunching a bit as she seemed to ponder on the words she would say next. “I am interested to see how I fare against him as well.” She replied, the same smile from earlier appearing on her lips.

You couldn’t tell entirely, but you could sense the aversion towards the topic of fighting. Was it that she was nervous? You scanned her. No, it didn’t seem so. But the reason behind her distaste towards the topic was one you weren’t certain of.

You couldn’t quite ask her about it either.

“What story would you like to hear today?” You inquired, quickly changing the subject. You saw her posture relax a bit, and what must be a breath of relief left her lips. Very subtle actions, but actions you noticed. You suspicions were definitely correct, she had some type of issue with fighting Raiden, or the topic of it.

“Anything light hearted would do.” The princess requested, the relief of the topic change showing on her face. You pondered on this, humming as you considered the various stories and movies you’ve seen. What could possibly cheer her up? You smiled as you recalled the first movie you saw and turned to face her.

“Alright, then how about this one?”

That night, you didn’t quite know why she was upset, but you knew you uplifted her spirits.

part sixteen

tagged - @bonezisded @lollipopin @simpxinnie @zhivaxo @koisuko

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lilywastaken · 2 years

Note

First of all I hope this is the request section second of all love your writings you’ve done so far <3 now to my request, I’ve been seeing way to many edits about dream in mr beast Antartica video. What if fem/reader went along with them and slept with in dream,sapnap, jimmy tent. It would be a dream x reader, friends to lovers or already a couple your choice :). Can’t wait to read more from you <3

⇝ARTIC COLD.

CC! DreamWasTaken x FEM!Reader.

SUMMARY: Spending 50 hours in Antarctica wasn't on your list of things to do this month, but neither was sharing a sleeping bag with your crush.

WARNINGS: Fluff, mentions of blood, illness (Dream's ill the whole time ☠️.), a lot of swearing!

A/N: My first request!! Thank you so much for it! <3 I chose the friends to lovers route with it, and kind of got carried away cause I love this idea (as you'll see)!! I'm actually really proud of this one, it might be my favourite piece of writing yet LMAO. Requests are still open!! Please don't forget to reblog/comment if you enjoy the post, it helps a lot!! Thank you all for the support! <33

WORD COUNT: 5.8K

MASTERLIST.

Also on ao3!

You were used to travelling at this point.

Living with some of the biggest content creators of the year and creating content yourself meant that you were always being invited to places, whether it be conventions or get-togethers with internet friends.

And although you were well acquainted with Karl and knew who he worked for, you had never expected to be invited to be part of one of Mr Beast's survival challenges alongside your roommates and his crew, and you would've been crazy to even imagine you'd be invited to travel to Antarctica of all places.

After living for half a year in one of the warmer states in the U.S., you didn't know how you were meant to survive below 0 degrees when all you had to wear were tank tops and the occasional long sleeved shirt.

Which meant you were stuck borrowing your roommates' big chunky jackets and sweaters that they had brought alongside them for the trip.

It wasn't as if you weren't used to borrowing clothes from them, hell, you were pretty sure most of your closet consisted of Dream's clothes that were too small to fit him anymore.

But that didn't make it any less embarrassing.

"You look like a penguin."

George snorted as soon as you stumbled out of the jet's tiny bathroom, sporting one of the many jackets you were required to wear before exiting the aircraft and stepping onto Antarctica.

"Go fuck yourself." You sneered back, zipping your coat up to your chin and shoving your hands into the pockets, somehow already feeling the chill from the outside despite not having landed yet. "I'm afraid I won't be able to look as stylish as you wish me to during our stay in fucking Antarctica."

"I think you look stylish enough." Clay teased cheekily as he walked up from behind you, large hands landing on your shoulders to manoeuvre you out of his way, causing you to roll your eyes long enough to cause a headache at the cockiness he was exhibiting simply because you had chosen to wear his clothes instead of anyone else's.

"You're just saying that because it's your jacket she's wearing." Nolan commented as Karl helped him zip up the last of the many coats he was wearing, a teasing tone in his voice.

"And she looks good in it, what's the issue?" Dream didn't seem to want to back down from their back and forth, as usually happened with those. When Nolan didn't respond, the blond turned his head around and shot you a grin along with a thumbs up, his silent way of boasting after one of his so-called wins.

"You're such an idiot." You muttered under your breath as Sapnap handed you one of the many scarves that were littered across the floor, and you for one were glad that you had something to cover your face, not wanting anyone to notice the warmth that had risen to your cheeks after your small interaction with Dream.

Despite you living with him for almost a full year, he had somehow never gotten the memo about your true feelings towards him, unlike both Sapnap and George and half of the goddamn internet, who were full-on convinced that you were head over heels for the previously faceless YouTuber, and to be fair, they weren't far off.

He'd been the first one to reach out after lurking around in your streams, the first one to invite you into their server and make an effort to include you into the ongoing lore, to add you to streams with his internet friends and therefore introduce you to the people who you now considered to be your best friends.

It was inevitable, really. After countless hours spent listening to each other's voices through your speakers and being one of the first people to see his face despite his initial fear of rejection, how could you not fall in love with him? He was perfect, from the way his nose crinkled when he smiled to the countless moles adorning his body, he was perfect.

It was stupid, really, how hard you'd fallen for someone who had started out as a simple stranger on the internet who happened to also play Minecraft to one of the people you loved the most.

And you were going to make sure that he'd never know how much you truly loved him, the chances of your confession ruining the friendship you both had built too high to even consider.

"Why are you guys just standing around, we're about to land!" Jimmy came out of the cockpit, clapping his hands together and ushering everyone towards their luggage in an effort to get you to get ready quicker. "Come on! I don't want any of you catching frostbite and dying on me!"

"Wait, that's possible!?"

Despite all the layers of clothing Dream was currently sporting, he somehow managed to feel your hand wrap around his elbow, shuffling closer to his taller build as you readied to exit the aircraft.

"You okay?" He pulled his ski mask down below his lips so he could send you a reassuring smile, his juniper eyes obscured by the ski goggles that sat snuggly on his face.

"Yep. Totally okay. Totally not freaking out because we're about to spend 50 hours in the coldest place on earth. Totally fine, Clay." Your words came out of your mouth almost at the speed of light as your gloved hands fumbled with the scarf around your neck, receiving a laugh from the blond in response.

"Calm down. I doubt Jimmy will actually let us die, okay?" He moved your hands away from your face and fixed your problem himself, the smile on his lips only growing as his fingers brushed against your warming cheeks, a huge contrast to the cold air swirling outside.

"And if you do, just make sure to tell everyone to like and subscribe, okay?" A small 'oof!' left you as Chandler slammed his hands on your shoulders from behind, getting a slightly angered glare from Dream and a few giggles from the others at his action.

"Fuck you, man." You smiled, the sweet yet very brief encouragement you'd received lifting your spirits almost immediately.

But they were swiftly dampened as the doors opened, and holy fucking shit, you'd underestimated how cold it was going to be.

The sun was shining onto your small group, but not a single trace of warmth was felt on your skin, and oh god what you'd give to be back home curled underneath your bed covers holding Patches in your arms.

Jimmy didn't spare a single second to start the challenge, already heading over to the spot he'd claimed would be perfect for the makeshift camp that would be your home for the next two days.

Luckily, you'd been tasked with carrying one of the lighter pieces of luggage, and you'd be lying if you said you didn't almost busted a lung laughing whenever you saw one of the boys slip or trip and fall flat on their faces, but you did stop every time Dream stopped to cough, knowing he had caught a chill right before boarding the plane and the freezing temperatures you were being forced to travel through would likely do him no good.

After surviving a surprise blizzard and almost slipping a few times, you finally reached the spot Jimmy had marked in his mental map. You were almost ready to collapse into the soft looking snow, but of course, you were forced to put up the tents you'd be staying in, which proved even more difficult than propping up a normal tent in the woods, thanks to the never ending wind and slippy snow.

But as soon as you were allowed into the safety of the main tent, you curled into a ball in the corner and fought with your gloves to turn on your phone, which barely worked due to the cold.

"What the fuck are you trying to do with that?" Sapnap groaned as he fell to the ground in front of you, spying at the device in your hands as if he were some sort of prehistoric man and this was his first contact with fire. "You're an actual imbecile if you think there's going to be even a sliver of reception here."

You stuck your tongue out to him and moved to kick his side with your snow boots, snickering in victory as he finally moved away from you, leaving an empty spot at your side as Jimmy started to take out the strange contraptions that were required to make food in such extreme weather, but you were too tired to listen in to his explanation.

"Made you something." You visibly cringed at the sound of Dream's groggy voice before he came into view, ski mask and goggles abandoned so you could see clearly how red and runny his nose was, gloves off so he could hand you the warm packet of food he claimed to have made.

"Didn't know you were a Rudolph cosplayer.", You commented on his appearance with a sly smile, almost dropping the food as you felt him curl into your side, head falling onto your shoulder with a shaky moan of pain, clearly not amused by your attempt at a joke. "You okay?"

"No. Not okay." He whined, his warm breath hitting your neck from where his head was situated and causing goosebumps to form, your body still not used to this much proximity with him. "I feel like shit. Like… worse than shit."

You'd normally roll your eyes at such a statement, but you knew now that he was telling the truth, you'd seen the blood he coughed up the day before during your stay in Chile, and you knew that a cold could quickly turn into something way worse given the time.

You were ready to offer him help with whatever he needed, but you were cut off before you could even begin as you saw his mouth open wide from the corner of your eye.

"Wh-"

"Feed me." He attempted to say without closing his mouth, soft eyes looking up at you through his long eyelashes with a pleasing look. "C'mon. Hungry."

You tried to ignore the head creeping up your neck as you reached into the bag with the plastic spoon to scoop up some of the now lukewarm food out and into his mouth, watching as he closed his mouth around the spoon and gulped, moaning softly at the taste.

"Holy shit that might actually be the best thing I've ever tasted." He opened his mouth again, waiting for you to shovel a bit more food into his mouth.

"Oh, so what you said about my pesto was a lie?" You said, pouting in mock sadness as you repeated your action, shoving the spoon into his mouth a bit too hard and making him choke, but before you could apologise, he shook his head, answering your previous accusation.

"Okay, second best. Your cooking skills put this delicious cold goop to shame." He joked between a few chews, nudging you slightly with his shoulder. "You know that."

"Ah, so you're comparing my food to this?" You raised the bag in question and shook it a bit to further your point, trying your best to not burst out laughing at how panicked he looked as he tried to explain himself; a frown etching onto his face as you finally broke and let out a soft giggle.

"You're making fun of me." He finally seemed to realise as you nodded in response, about to shove some snow in your face if it weren't for the spoon that was shoved into his mouth and the puppy eyes you shot in his direction.

"Truce?"

The gulp he made was enough of a response for you.

Once the spoon you had used for Dream was well disposed of (you didn't want to risk getting ill yourself), you started eating some of the food yourself, Dream's head still snugly resting on your shoulder as he watched your every movement, making small talk every now and then and joining in on the conversations the others were having.

"Okay, it's like… almost midnight." Jimmy commented as he stared down at his watch, everyone staring back at him with the same bewildered expression, since the sun was still shining down onto your small camp. "We gotta get to bed."

"But it's still sunny outside!" Karl whined, pulling back the entrance slap to stare outside for a split moment, everyone immediately shouting at him for letting the cold in.

"And it's going to stay like that! Did the American school system fail you this badly!? Haven't you lot learnt about Antarctica? The sun is always up here!" George exclaimed in frustration, already zipping up his jacket, urging everyone else to abandon their food and do the same.

"Exactly! So let's get into our tents and try to get some rest, okay?" Jimmy encouraged, trying his best to keep everyone's morale up, picking up his sleeping bag and waiting for everyone to be ready before opening the tent.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" You heard Sapnap curse as he followed his group into the tent with their sleeping bags, your own pressed to your chest for extra warmth until you reached the tent you'd be staying in, quickly making yourself at home on the right side.

"Dibs!" You didn't even try to hide the amusement in your voice as you slammed your bag and belongings onto the plastic ground, immediately starting to zip down the giant coat you'd been wearing.

"Yeah, yeah." Jimmy rolled his eyes with a smile as he and Nolan claimed the left side, leaving Dream standing at the entrance in confusion, staring at the empty spot beside your sleeping bag as if it was an abomination of nature.

His brain hadn't seemed to comprehend that he'd be sleeping next to you when you confessed you'd feel safer sleeping in the same tent as him, he had simply assumed you'd be sleeping next to Nolan or Jimmy, not him.

"You okay, dude? You're letting in all the cold." Your voice snapped him out of the daze he had been in, rapidly nodding instead of answering since he really didn't trust his voice to work right then.

Once the tent was zipped up tight, he awkwardly shuffled towards you, watching intently as you pushed your jackets off, which left you in the tight shirt all of you wore beneath the heaps of coats.

His hands shook as he undid his sleeping bag, and he wasn't sure if it was because of the cold or because of how close to you he was going to be in a few minutes.

And he didn't know why this was affecting him so much, he'd been cuddled up into your side less than an hour ago, and he wouldn't be able to count the times you'd crawled into his bed back home after a nightmare or if you were being too lazy to make the few steps that it took from his room to yours. He'd had you in his arms, hell, he'd felt the warm skin of your waist beneath his open palms that one time he helped you decorate the Christmas tree, so why was this different?

Maybe he was deluded.

That's probably right, his cold had gotten so bad that it was affecting his senses, which meant he was now super fucking awkward around you and wanted nothing more than to hide his face in the crook of your neck and feel once again your warm skin bene-

What?

What the fuck?

What the actual fuck?

He froze in his tracks as he stopped his train of thought from going any further, his face heating up as he reviewed the thoughts about you that seemed to have infiltrated his mind.

Well…. it wasn't like he hadn't ever thought about you like that, it was sort of inevitable. You were one of his closest friends, (maybe his closest, but don't tell George that.) and yeah, maybe once in a while he had thought about kissing you, about threading his fingers through your hair and tracing every feature on your pretty face while you laid in his arms.

And… and maybe he had told himself that all those times you had come to him at night for comfort or had stayed in his arms while watching a movie, were nothing but platonic, that you would probably do the same with Sapnap or George (despite the absolute fucking jealousy he felt brewing inside of him at the thought of you lying in their arms instead of his.) and the moments you spent talking about everything and anything at the same time weren't reminiscent to all of his past relationships, because this wasn't a relationship! He was your best friend! Not some creep that was in love with the girl who trusted him the most! Nope! No way.

He nodded to himself in confirmation as he finally finished setting up his sleeping bag, flopping down onto it with an angered huff, ignoring the amused look you sent in his direction.

"You're going to sleep like that?" You questioned, poking his side teasingly, causing him to yelp and move away from your touch as if it was poison as quickly as he could, snapping his head down to look at his outfit.

His cheeks went even redder (if humanly possible) as he realised he had been this close to falling asleep in full Antarctica tactical gear, quickly shoving all of his layers off so he was in the tight shirt your two other tent-mates were also wearing.

"You're so stupid." You snorted at him with a fond smile, turning around on top of your makeshift bed to pick up your phone and some earphones you'd been smart enough to bring. "Downloaded some anime Karl recommended, you want to watch an episode before we sleep?" You offered, making sure your voice was low enough that it didn't disturb Jimmy or Nolan, who were busy talking to the cameraman; lifting an earbud in one hand and waving it around enticingly.

"Y-Yeah, why not?" He smiled back at you, awkwardly shuffling towards you and keeping his distance because he was your friend who respected your boundaries and definitely did not like you.

He sputtered out a whine as you rolled your eyes and pulled his sleeping bag flush against yours, forcing him to sit right next to you, arm to arm, leg to leg and foot to foot. He raised a shaking hand to pop in the earbud you handed to him and tried his best to focus on the screen and not on how fucking warm your skin felt against his, how cute you sounded when you let out a short snort or a low giggle, how pretty you looked from the side with the glow of your phone reflecting your features.

Fuck.

You, for one, were actually enjoying the show at hand (despite only having one earbud, but that didn't matter.), and not focusing on how close Dream was to you, something you were learning to do after all the times you'd spent curled into his side at his bed back home.

You hadn't really thought about how the sleeping arrangements would work back on the plane, you were more concerned about the plastic device Jimmy had shoved into your hand and tried his best to explain how it was supposed to help you use the restroom.

But now that you were given the time to breathe, you finally realised how close you'd be to him, the thought enough to make you want to shove your face into a pillow and scream into it like a schoolgirl, just like every time you ended up in his arms.

Before the episode could finish, the cameraman left after filming a bit of Jimmy and Nolan, the latter escorting him out and turning back around, his gaze flicking down to your sleeping bag.

"Ah, shit, your bag's ripped."

"What?" You let your phone fall onto your lap and leaned over your legs to grab at the end of what would've been your bed if it weren't for the giant gash that had split the bottom in half, exposing your socks to the outside. "Fuck! Jimmy!"

The man in question popped his head up from where he was lying down, surveying the damage before biting the inside of his cheek in thought, scratching his chin.

"Uh… I don't think we've got any spares. Are… Are you okay with sharing or something? I mean, you know Karl, he'll probably be up all night so you can probably take his or share…?"

Dream didn't want to admit how horrible the thought of you leaving his tent to share with Karl was and how disgusting he felt as the jealousy grew in a pit of his stomach as he kept on thinking about it.

"Uh-" You looked down at the threads hanging out of the tear, shrugging your shoulders as you silently agreed. "I mean… as long as Karl's okay with it…? I don't mind."

"Great! Here, let me hel-"

"You can just share with me."

Dream's groggy voice cut off Jimmy's enthusiastic one, causing all of the tent to snap their head into his direction, as if you had forgotten he was there.

"That's fine, right?"

"Yeah!" You cried out a bit too eager, quickly coughing and changing your tone of voice to a more mellow one. "Yeah, that's fine."

"Oookay! That's actually better. A lot of people huddle close for heat here so let's see if you help Dream with that cold of his, eh?" Jimmy nodded, slipping his sleep mask back down his face and lying down, leaving you and Dream wide awake and staring at each other, Nolan having slipped into his bag during your awkward conversation.

"Here." Dream got up and tried his best to pull the sleeping bag open to make more space, waiting patiently for you to unzip your snow boots and put on some fuzzy socks you'd manage to snag in Chile before taking the plane.

"Thanks," You mumbled quietly, awkwardly moving to a side of the bag so Dream would be able to fit in next to you. "For holding it open. And uhm, for offering. I really didn't want to leave the tent, plus, with Karl, Sapnap and George I doubt I'd get any sleep."

Dream snorted in affirmation, aware of how dangerous they were when put together, and he couldn't even imagine how powerful they'd be when contained in such a small space. It was his turn to throw off his boots (not even bothering to unzip them first), and quickly shove himself into the bag next to you in hopes of keeping the warmth his feet had previously been in.

After a bit of shifting and moving limbs, you finally got into a comfortable position, your body draped over his side to preserve warmth with an arm wrapped around you waist with the other tracing random shapes into the arm that was sprawled across his chest, something he subconsciously did every time you were in his arms in such a position.

"This is nice." He mumbled, half joking, half serious.

"Mhm." You hummed, not trusting yourself enough to form proper sentences, carefully resting your head onto his shoulder and tickling his cheek with your hair.

A few moments passed in the same position, Dream's warm hand rubbing circles onto your waist in an attempt to soothe your nerves, knowing how stressed you probably felt without having to ask. You almost melted in his touch as he moved his head to rub his nose into your hair, closing his eyes with a sigh.

"It's impossible to sleep." He finally broke the silence with the muttered sentence, making you giggle and hide your face further into his shoulder.

"Don't you have an eye mask?" You mumbled from your spot, voice muffled by his shirt, feeling him shift beneath you until his hands left you to pull what you assumed was the eye mask down to his face.

"Forgot about it." He grumbled, warm hands finding their spot back onto your body and continuing their ministrations on your skin, lulling you quickly to sleep, feeling as if your head had been stuffed with cotton, tired enough to ignore everything around you, especially the quiet confession that came from Dream's lips and the soft kiss that was pressed to your forehead, leaving it to be a secret of the night.

You were woken up rather abruptly, the tent opening and Karl's high pitched laugh coming in along with the cold air, making everyone in the tent groan in discomfort and move beneath the covers to preserve the warmth, including you two, who during the night seemed to have moved into a different position, your face pressed right into Dream's chest with his chin resting on the crown of your head, his hands cupping the pudge of your thighs as they wrapped around his waist, thumb rubbing in circles like he had done last night with your waist, quickly soothing you back to sleep.

"I'm going to kill you, Karl!" Nolan shouted from his bag as the boy rolled into the tent, Sapnap following close behind with a disposable camera, not trusting his phone enough in such a weather.

"You got it?"

"Yep."

Sapnap made sure the flash was off, not wanting either of you to fully wake up and ruin the moment, before snapping a few pictures of Dream and you cuddled beneath the top layer of his sleeping bag, keeping their giggles and snickers to a low before leaving the tent with a nice reminder of what had happened beneath you.

"Told you it was smart to bring a knife." Sapnap pointed to your discarded sleeping bag with a grin before fully exiting the tent, not without letting in a gust of cold wind.

That seemed to finally snap you out of your sleep, groaning softly as you wriggled in Dream's arms, stopping in your tracks as he let out an incoherent grumble and brought you closer into his arms, as if you were a simple teddy bear and not his best friend who had totally overstepped a line by actually fucking wrapping her legs around his waist as if he were your boyfriend!

"Clay." You whispered as you faced him, moving a hand to push a few of his curls out of the way of his closed eyes and observe the freckles splattered across his skin like stars in the night sky, your finger tracing the short invisible lines between all of them. "Wake up…"

"Hmng…" His hold on you tightened for a moment before returning back to normal, his way of pleading for you to give up and slip back into his arms.

"Claaayy~" you said a bit louder, pressing your finger into the tip of his nose in hopes of getting him to wake faster. "Come on, we've still got a whole day left."

"Do you think I'm actually well enough to do something?" He finally spoke, and you almost jumped at how much worse his voice sounded than last night, but that was a given due to the cold and the mix between his already muzzy voice and the deep tone his morning voice normally took. "Just stay here with me for a while…"

"But I'm well enough to do something, Clay." You mumbled, letting your arm fall by your side and attempting once again to escape his grip, smiling softly as he didn't fight this time and let you slip out easily.

You didn't make any further effort to wake him up again, giving him the luxury of sleeping in a bit longer and getting yourself ready to leave the tent, despite how warm his hold had been and how you truly wanted nothing more than to slip right into his hold and wrap your arms around him.

But you fought the urge to, exiting the warmth of your tent and rushing towards where Karl and George were building a snowman (although it wasn't much of a snowman due to Karl slipping and falling onto it every few minutes.), and offering to assist them.

Ignoring the cold and the fact you didn't have anything to decorate the so-called snowmen with, you actually had fun with them, having said goodbye to Nolan and Jimmy before they left to "claim a mountain" a few hours ago; and you were now left with four snowmen without features, so they really couldn't be called snowmen at all.

"I think it looks pretty good!" Karl hummed as he finished rolling one of the bigger parts of his snowman.

"It's just three balls of snow on top of each other, Karl." George deadpanned as he moved his goggles to see the abominations you three had made.

"I think it looks a bit like you." You stuck your tongue out at George, who returned the gesture before the both of you realised how cold it was to be doing it and quickly returned your tongues back into your mouths.

After making some food and welcoming Jimmy and Nolan back, you spent some time with Dream outside (despite how much your body was screaming at you to get somewhere warm.), and threw a few snowballs at each other, last night's events never discussed or mentioned during your conversations.

You finally realised how much time you had spent outside when Chandler announced the plane would be here in almost two hours, the fact you'd spent almost a day in the freezing snow enough to frighten you into getting frostbite.

"If my fingers fall off I want you to have them, Dream." You confessed to him as you both worked on taking down your tent, giddiness filling you at the loud laugh he let out, nodding his head with a smile beneath his ski mask.

"Yes ma'am, I'll make sure to cherish them until I die." He teased back, shoving whatever remained of the tent into a bag and wrapping some of the rope around it, letting you admire for a moment how strong he truly was before Sapnap called you over to help him with the rubbish.

You didn't have much time to talk as Jimmy hurried you all back to where you had started, where the plane was waiting in all its glory, and holy shit you couldn't wait to be back inside.

You almost tripped on the stairs from how desperate you were to get inside if it weren't for Dream's hands holding you up from behind, knowing how excited you were to get back into the warm safety of the aircraft.

You collapsed into one of the window seats with a loud dramatic exhale, closing your eyes for a moment to enjoy the warmth of the leather chairs and the exaggerated smell of the air freshener that was wafting along the main cabin.

"Fucking finally, right?" Dream laughed after shoving both your luggage into the upper compartments, knowing you'd probably be too exhausted to do it yourself after barely catching any sleep in the last 24 hours, and falling into the empty seat next to you.

"I never thought I'd say this, but…" you turned to look at him dramatically, his heart beating rapidly at your serious expression and words until you spoke. "I actually miss Florida."

He breathed out a sigh of relief along with a laugh, nodding his head in agreement as he moved his hand to wrap around yours, heart fluttering as you didn't even stop him from doing so.

"I can't wait to wear some shorts and a tank top and still be hot." You mumbled with a smile, turning your head to a side to make eye contact with him. "Although it'll probably be a bit too cold for that."

"Yeah, you never know with Floridan winters." He snorted, interlacing your fingers with his and moving to look out the window. "As long as I'm out of this coat, I'll be fine."

It was your turn to laugh, nodding your head in affirmation, and shifting on the seat to rest your head on his shoulder, much like he had done when you had first entered the tent.

Silence filled your little corner of the plane until he finally spoke, turning to you completely and making you lose the balance you previously had.

"You uh… did you hear what I said? Last… uh, last last night?"

You cocked your head to a side like a confused puppy would, shaking your head, a no.

"Uh… well… Shit I'm really going to regret this." He breathed out as a laugh, raising his free hand to pull off his ski mask and ruffle up his curls. "I… I kind of, well… kissed your forehead. And said I- I love you."

Your brain short circuited at his words, blankly staring into his eyes as if your body had stopped just so your mind could make any sense of what he was saying.

"In a non-platonic way."

"In a non-platonic way." You parroted, blinking like a fool as you watched him panic underneath your gaze.

"Yeah."

"Oh."

Silence once again filled your little corner, both of your hands still intertwined and both your gazes locked together, Dream's whole body ready to give out if you didn't give him an answer soon.

"Please say somet-"

"I love you too." Your confession cut him off, his mouth hanging open with unsaid words ready to come out, looking something akin to a fish out of water gasping for air.

"O-Oh!" He breathed out, his body finally catching up to his brain as he nodded at your confession, cheeks pink from both embarrassment and illness. "Holy shit."

"Holy shit." You echoed once again, although this time you ended it with a small breathless giggle, raising your free hand to cup his cheek, stubble pricking your palm and cold skin meeting warm.

"I really want to kiss you right now." He confessed, half closed eyes searching for your gaze as his hand came up to cover yours over his cheek. "But I don't want to get you sick."

You smiled at his pout, shrugging your shoulders as you nodded down towards your fingers. "There's no way I'm not getting sick after that, Clay. It's fine. I want to kiss you too."

He nodded faster than the speed of light as you started to pull him down, pressing your lips to his for a moment that felt like eternity, and oh god, it was better than you imagined. It felt as if fireworks were going off in your head, sending shivers down your spine and lighting every nerve within you on fire, his breath against your lips as he pulled back from them almost burning your skin from how much you wanted to press them back onto his.

"Holy shit."

And by the sounds of it, you hadn't been the only one affected ridiculously by the kiss.

"Can we do that more often?" Dream basically vibrated in his seat at the prospect of being able to repeat that experience, his smile only growing when you nodded your head, a matching one pulling at your lips.

"Yes. Yes please."

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polizwrites · 6 months

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PoliZ's WIP Update - 3 Apr 2024

Getting back to what I’d like to consider an average writing week, with most of my effort was focused on a single work. I touched 4 fics (1 new work & 3 WIPs) for a total of 2330 words.

On Ao3, I posted:

A Little Bit Carried Away - an omegaverse WinterIron meet cute/meet ugly fic.

Shooting for the Moon - a WinterHawk meet-ugly one shot that’s a POV remix of A Hairy Situation

On Tumblr I posted:

Amplification - A Steve POV ficlet where he reflects on the effects of Project Rebirth.

I’m juggling 17 😬 active/semi-active WIPs with my current deadline being the Post July Break Bingo, which ends in April, and the Alpha Bucky April event.

See below cut for what I’m working on/planning to work on - arranged more or less by bingos/challenges/etc. As always, feel free to send me prompts or plot bunnies as well as asks regarding any of these projects or any other WIPs I’ve got out there. Interaction really helps feed the Muse and keep me motivated!

Stony AUniverse Bingo [SAUB_R1] (ends 15 Feb)

Finally got my Masterpost done!

Post July Break Bingo [JBB_23p] (Ends Apr 2024)

Two fill on my 2x3 non-fandom-specific card - still working on potential crossovers.

* A2 - "You knew?" - matched this up with Chapter Three of my Stony spyfic WIP - Keeping All My Secrets Safe Tonight - it’s coming in at 1079 words and after a bit more editing, should be posting this Friday.

* B2 - Character’s personality is split into two different beings – I’ve never played with Bucky & the Soldier being two different people, but this seems like the perfect opportunity! Will see what might be a good crossover on one of my open cards.

* C1 - Touch Starved – another good fit for a Bucky-centric fic. (Steve or Tony or Clint).

* C2 - “What are we?” Pair up with SRB C5 - Exes to Lovers ?

Alpha Bucky April - [BBE_ABA] - (Ends 30 April)

@buckybarnesevents is running another fun event to encourage fanworks featuring Alpha!Bucky - any pairing in terms of characters and/or alignments. Since I already have a couple of Alpha!Bucky WIPs, am using this as a good reason to get some work in on them. There’s also additional challenges that I plan to take on:

* Breeding Kink/Baby Fever - mpreg is a pretty major squick for me, but I think I might be able to make it work in combination with an April BaBB prompt (roleplay) for what looks to be Chapter Three of A Bit Carried Away.

* Nesting - This will fit pretty well into the next chapter of A Sugar-Coated Pill - where Bucky comforts Tony after the bad news he’s gotten and helps him plan what to do next. It’s currently sitting at 177 words and will crossfill with my WIB Couch Cuddles square nicely.

* Purring/Affection - This could (and quite possibly will) fit into either/both of the above fics, tbh.

* Beta Character - My BBC4 fic (see below) features beta!Tony, and aroace Natasha will be making an appearance in Chapter Two of A Bit Carried Away, which is in draft form at 1219 words and will probably post on the 19th.

* Double Minimum Req - 1500 words for a chapter seems pretty do-able - targeting my BBC4 fic (or at least its first chapter) to fill this challenge

Bucky Barnes Connect Four - Alt Jun-iverse [BBC4_R2] {Ends May 31 2024}

Another fun event from the good folks over at @buckybarnesevents! You sign up for a single row card of four squares and the challenge is to see if you can combine any/all into a single Bucky-centric AU fanwork - although you can also create fanworks that are based on a single or combo of 2-3 squares if you want.

The combo of prompts on my first card [Reality Show, Omegaverse, Talent/Manager, Royalty] sparked an idea: Alpha!Bucky as a prince in name only who gets talked into joining a reality show that is supposed to match him up with an omega… but there’s a twist! Picked this back up and it’s sitting at 766 words so far. Thinking the Alpha Bucky April event will be a good excuse to get at least a first chapter of this out there!

Steve Rogers Bingo - Round 3 [SRB_R3] (ends 15 Jun 2024)

Fourteen fills and no WIPs at the moment - need to ponder other possible crossovers with my non-fandom cards & BaBB.

* C5 - Exes to Lovers see JBB “What are we?” above

* E5 - Oversensitivity/Enhanced Senses - paired this up with last week’s Flash Fiction Friday prompt [#FFF246 Pinprick] for Amplification. A Steve POV ficlet where he reflects on the effects of Project Rebirth, it came in at 334 words and will post to Ao3 before the event is over.

Hawkeyes Bingo [HB_R2] {Ends TBD}

Working on this Tumblr event - got a 3x3 card and and am looking forward to creating more Clint-centric content and trying my hand at a bit of Kate Bishop fic as well!

*A1 - Werewolf AU - Posted Shooting for the Moon on Ao3 this morning - Werewolf!Bucky’s POV on the second half of A Hairy Situation. It came in at 786 words.

* A3 - Awkward Flirting – this might be a good entry into my first femslash fic with Kate/Yelena?

C3 - "I've never been so humiliated in my life." - filled this on Tumblr last Friday with A Shining Example. Established WinterHawk where a training session goes embarrassingly wrong and Clint gives Bucky a pep talk. It crossed over with the Flash Fiction Friday prompt [#FFF243 Glitter and Blues] and will get posted on Ao3 before this event ends.

Build-A-Bucky Bingo [BaBB_R1] {Ends Oct 2024}

Another fun year-long event from the folks at @buckybarnesevents! Each month there’s a list of prompts and you choose (at least) one each month for your card!

* November: Crackfic - DONE

* December: Wingman - DONE

* January: Wingfic - DONE

*January: Polyamory - DONE

* February: Fingering - DONE

* February: Morning Sex - DONE

* March: Marriage of Convenience - DONE

* March: Mutual Pining - DONE

* March: Bad Coping Mechanisms - DONE

* March: Wrong Luggage - Posted what is turning out to be Chapter One of A Bit Carried Away last Friday, I combined it with my WIB - I5 - A/B/O: Scent Bonding square to come up with a meet-cute/meet-ugly WinterIron fic that came in at 1209 words.

* March: Rimming - belatedly filling this with Chapter Two of A Little Bit Carried Away - as part of some spicy sexting between Alpha!Bucky and Omega!Tony. This will probably post on the 17th or 19th.

* April: Roleplay - will be filling this with Chapter Three of A Little Bit Carried Away where Bucky will be playing a role to save Tony from some obnoxious alphas at a reception; potential crossfill with WIB A/B/O: Mates and Alpha Bucky April Breeding Kink prompts…

*April: Pet Names - this may also get filled with Chapter Three of A Little Bit Carried Away as part of the roleplaying….

WinterIron Bingo Round 2 [WIB_R2] {Ends 16 Dec 2024}

Signups are still open for Round Two of this super-fun bingo event! I got my card and already have fie fills and three WIPs!

* Iron Soldier (One Bingo, One Fill) - looking at combining my Column B prompts: Matchmaker, Bucky Riding Tony, Stark Gala, Inside Joke and Threesome. Still working on a plot - if you have any suggestions/want-to-sees - let me know!

*I4 - SHIELD HQ - combined this with last week’s Flash Fiction Friday prompt [#FFF245 You Never Cared] and wrote Fathers Don’t Know Best - No Power AU with Bucky working as an analyst at SHIELD who stumbles across a late night visitor to the lobby. It’s coming on at 407 words and will get posted to Ao3 before the event ends.

* N1 - Hair Pulling Kink - thanks to a fun prompt from @scottx - I filled this square with Untangling Their Attraction - where Tony’s offer of assistance leads to mutual kink discovery (not as racy as it might sound). It’s coming in at 544 words and will post to Ao3 before this event is over.

* N4 - A/B/O: Mates - see BaBB Roleplay above

* N5 - "I'm here for you." - Possibly the next chapter of Lady Natasha’s Consort and Lord Steve’s Companion ?

* O2 - Couch Cuddles - see Alpha Bucky April Nesting prompt/challenge above

* O4 - Hotel Room - filling this with Chapter 8 of My Love is Vengeance which is currently sitting at 907 words and will up the rating to Explicit. (Looking forward to April’s BaBB prompts for potential crossfilling!)

* O5 - Sexting - see BaBB March - Rimming above

Warm and Fluffy Bingo [WFB] (no end date)

Four fills on my card, courtesy of @warmandfluffybingocards - need to try for another crossover or two!

————

On other creative fronts: I am working on a Harrowhark and a Gideon figure for a commission. I’ve finished all my Marvel Trumps Hate figures, but still need to create posts (and mail one set). If you’re looking for one of a kind gifts for birthdays or other celebrations, check out Stuffed With Character over on Facebook for a full list of my designs (now over 150!). These soft stuffed figures are mostly Marvel and monsters, but I have some Star Wars, Star Trek, DC and Disney figures as well. Plus I love to take custom design requests for any fandom!

#writing stuff #wip wednesday #wip update #shameless self promo

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jennyandvastraflint · 6 months

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Thank you @janewayseven for the tag! (I will have to say, unfortunately, J7 is not the main ship I deal in dfhsgjjkf)

20 questions for fic writers, J7 edition

1. How many works do you have on Ao3? 159 (7 are J7)

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count? 718,198

3. What fandoms do you write for? Doctor Who, mostly Paternoster Gang specifically, Star Trek Voyager, Guild Wars 2, Legend of Korra, and a few others.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

(since some of my Dragon Prince fics got hit by bots who kudoed and commented spam, I’m not counting those two…)

Songs of Love and Death – An alternate reality for Jenny and Vastra meeting under changed circumstances.

I feel your magic every time I'm with you – After the love potion wears off, Hecate is shaken. She had to observe everything she had done under its control without being able to stop it. When she transfers to her room and breaks down, she doesn't expect Pippa being there.

Spider Lin – Lin is patrolling Republic City at night and saves a certain someone…

Shirt (Or: Lilith coming out) – Lilith asks Eda to sit down with her; she wants to tell her something she discovered about herself.

Face Paint – Janai wakes up to find Amaya already awake and eating the breakfast that was meant for her. Amaya notices Janai's face paint is smudged since she went to bed without taking it off. Janai goes to fix it.

5. Do you respond to comments? Always! I cherish each of them and love talking to the community! <3

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? With the angstiest ENDING? I’d have to go for Until the dance ends… (I usually write happy-ish endings even to extremely angsty fics) Also The Girl of Silver ends on a fairly depressing note (but gods I still love the fic!)

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

I write loads of happy fics and happy endings, but among my longer (and finished) works, I'd say The Knight and the Dragon and A Lonely Place both have very sweet endings!

8. Do you get hate on fics? I think there was a bot commenting something about Jesus and how homosexuality is a sin dfhgjkjsfg But other than that and from actual users, no!

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? No. I have written a few suggestive scenes and making out, but nothing going beyond that.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? Uhhh… I have written one between the Paternoster Gang and the Victorian Torchwood crew, but that’s still in the same universe, so not really?

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not that I know of...

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? I’ve translated a few of my own works, but apart from that, no.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? No, not yet.

14. What’s your all time favorite ship? *looks at username* Jenny and Vastra. But within Star Trek, it’s hands down J7!

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Gosh I have a post-One fic for J7 dealing with the isolation Seven felt for that entire month, and especially with her hallucinating Janeway. I would love to finish it, but my brain is soooooo eepy

16. What are your writing strengths? I like to think emotionality, especially sad ones, dialogue, and character work, and sweet, intimate scenes

17. What are your writing weaknesses? Brevity, action-based scenes like fights, descriptions of surroundings and visual input in general, getting lost in the characters' mental space too much

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? Sure! But if you don’t know the language, get someone to help to make sure it’s correct.

19. First fandom you wrote for? Sailor Moon | Haruka/Michiru

20. Favorite fic you’ve written? One of my faves is definitely Butterfly Queen, and my Turn Loose the Mermaids series! For J7 it’s got to be my very first fic, I’ll sleep when I’m dead, though!

Sorry my answers aren't as J7-centric, I've unfortunately only written seven (completed) works about them, despite being brainrotted about them :(

Gonna tag @lonely-night @hauntedmoonchaos and any other J7 blogs who follow me??

#j7

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luninosity · 1 year

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Whilst I actually remember that I exist here, may I quickly catch you up on some News of various types?

1) the RomPod podcast episode that's got an interview with, er, me, and also the lovely romance scholar Maria Ramos-Garcia, is up now, if you want to hear me ramble about things! We're in episode 2, which you can find here.

2) if you're looking for a good cause to support this month, and some great short stories celebrating queer joy in all sorts of flavors, you might like to check out this anthology kickstarter from Amphibian Press - I've got a story in there! Something brand-new and shiny and exclusive to this collection! (I think we're not supposed to announce the full lineup yet, but there are some lovely author-friends in there too!) Proceeds are going to benefit Club Q!

3) this one’s probably the Big Thing - the Character Bleed box set - with the original three novels, plus new author’s note, and updated cover art - is coming June 10 from JMS Books! Ebook first, then paperback probably in about two months - yes, it’ll be massive! I really want to see it. It’s going to be...wait for it...332,890 words. (Good heavens, did I write that many words?!) It’s actually sort of experimental - JMS said they don’t normally do paperbacks for box sets, but this trilogy has been such a consistent good seller, they’d like to try at least a limited number in print. (So maybe please buy one when that happens? If nothing else you can probably use it as a hammer, or a doorstop, or a weapon.)

This is closer to the way I originally wrote it, as one giant novel - I broke it into a trilogy to, y'know, make it publishable! This volume includes the short stories that came with each book - including the ones that were never on AO3, at least one of those per book. The short stories published separately will get collected into a second volume! (I am STILL working on Leo’s book, which might have to be two books, because it is now 116k and NOT DONE *screams quietly into pillows about not being able to write short things*)

I don’t think the Amazon link is live yet but here’s the JMS Books link!

4) with the Academic Hat on, I am your Fantasy & the Fantastic Area Chair for the Pacific Ancient & Modern Language Association Conference! We've got several great proposals but should have room for 1-2 more - if you are working on some fantasy-adjacent research / creative work with meta-cognitive component, and you want to come to Portland in October, send me an abstract over here! Or, if you are in or near Portland, would you like to hang out, meet up, say hi? Or, any recommendations? I’ve been to Portland once before but also for Academic Conference Reasons, so not lots of tourist time. Awesome Husband might come this time because he’s never been to Portland and he’s got some vacation time. We like history, good craft beer, botanic gardens, water, queerness, and libraries. I think the conference hotel is some sort of Hilton in the downtown area?

5) officially got the rights back from Inkshares* for my first** novel, A Prophecy for Two! (Plus they sent me the last paperbacks they had in inventory, so a- those are I guess rare-ish now, since there'll never be another of those editions - want to buy one for cheap? *laughs* I mean I’m semi- serious; they sent me like 13 paperbacks, and I do not need that many! and b- I think that's it as far as that relationship! *dusts off hands*) Now to give the whole thing a polish and republish it with JMS - we've already had conversations about that, so it’ll happen!

*I’ve got complicated feels about Inkshares. That’s a whole other post. In the short form: did I get a book out of it, when I was an unknown author? Yes. Would I advise someone else to work with them? No.

**first in terms of being completed. A Demon for Midwinter ended up being published first, because of publisher schedules and JMS Books sending me a super-quick offer and having great editorial turnaround.

6) okay, I THINK that’s it! Actually, a totally non-publishing related thing: I just had a student submit - for a 12-page paper requirement - a paper that was 21 pages. Yep.

Honestly, it was kind of lovely - he’s a good student, he’s a good writer, and he already submitted a 14-page version that was excellent, but then he asked if he could send me an updated version “to make it as good as I possibly can,” and I said yes, because he *is* a very good writer, and then. A 21 page paper showed up in my email. Not including his Works Cited section, or the lengthy email in which he told me how much fun he had in my class and getting to write about monsters and monstrosity and ethics and agency. My god, student, I am both impressed and vaguely in shock. I mean, that’s why I do this job, that’s why I love this job, but also - he sent the updated version to me the *day* before final grades were due. (He already had an A.)

#life #teaching #romance #lgbtq #pride #academia #cfp #jms books #lgbtq romance

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whimsyswastry · 2 years

Text

Total # of completed works?

Honestly? Zero.

Total word count?

83.787! Last year I was so excited to have written 17k and this year O_O over 80k!!!

Fandoms written in?

Mass Effect (fShenko), Andromeda (mReyder), Greedfall (fDeSardet/Kurt), and a VERY small amount of Dragon Age (Cullevelyan)

Looking back, did you write more, less, or about how much you thought you would?

Way more. In the beginning of the year, it was like...April and I hadn’t even written 2k words yet. The fact that I wrote more this year than 4x what I wrote in 2021 is shocking and fills me with great joy and motivation to keep going.

Favorite story (of your own) this year?

Operation Leviathan. It was a plot bunny that struck me when I was watching Underwater in 2020, but I just didn’t have the oomph to do anything about it. But somehow, the flood gates opened about three days into NaNo and I wrote about 95% of it in a month. I have a couple thousand words left to wrap it up and some editing! I’m so excited to share it with the community.

Any writing risks this year?

I didn’t really write anything that risky. I tried a different tense, which wasn’t really my cup of tea. Well, that’s not true. I really enjoyed writing in present tense, but when I got into a flow state, it would automatically revert back to past tense. Which made editing a nightmare.

I should really keep trying though. I love present tense, especially for thrillers.

Any fanfic or original fic goals for the new year?

My goal almost every single year is to do make some sort of headway with Unharrowed. It’s a prequel to Inquisition that has been cooking since the first time I played it. But I can’t seem to ever make any progress. I’ve recently started revamping the lead character completely to give her a stronger (both in terms of literature and literally) personality. I’m hopeful that this will solve a lot of the issues I’ve been having with the story.

Most popular story of the year?

Masquerade & Mysteries, by almost 2x as many as my other stories. It’s my greedfall prequel, that tackles the class divide between Kurt and Lucette. It’ll be 7 chapters all said and done. Five and half of them are already completed...I’m just slow (and not very confident) at writing the smut.

Most under-appreciated story (of your own) by the fandom?

In the Flicker -- I understand why it didn’t gain much traction. AO3 is often very ship-centric and I wasn’t sure how to tag this. It was by-and-large a character study as I played with writing in first person. The story starts with a Ryder/Gil pairing, but the end game ends up being Ryder/Reyes. (Don’t worry, it’s not at all anti-Gil, it’s just how the story unfolded). However, I’ve only posted the first chapter, so I didn’t want to tag it as /Gil but I also didn’t want to tag it as /Reyes since neither is technically true.

Hopefully once the story is completed and posted, I’ll be able to tag it more appropriately and it will find it’s audience.

Most fun story to write?

Operation Leviathan! It had been so long since I felt a flow-state while drafting. It was freeing to just word vomit on a page and feel decent enough about what I’d written to keep it to edit down the road instead of trashing it immediately.

Most unintentionally telling story?

Probably Unharrowed. One aspect of the story is coming to terms with a body (or in this case, a magic) that doesn’t cooperate with you and how distressing that can be. I didn’t intentionally mean to parallel my experience, but it just kinda...happened. At least in my notes it did lol I still haven’t drafted it.

Biggest disappointment?

The Hot Zone. So far it’s been well received, which is awesome. But I was 14k words into the story and suddenly it was like hitting a cement wall. I just...couldn’t write it anymore. No matter how hard I tried. I’m giving myself a break and will come back to it as soon as I can because I am so excited for this story.

Biggest surprise?

My word count. Writing in 2020 and 2021 was like pulling teeth. It was torture just squeezing out a couple thousand words over the course of the entire year. But this year, the flood gates just opened. It was like a huge weight had lifted off of me and I realized how much pressure I’d been putting on myself to engage in a hobby that’s supposed to be fun. I’m glad I’ve finally found my way back to enjoying the process.

Favorite part of fandom this year?

The entire Dragon Age fandom coming back to life after Absolution was released. My dash had been a trickle of DA content until December, and then suddenly it was all DA all the time. It was great to find new artists to follow and share as well!

Tagging || A large portion of my writing moots have already completed this or something very similar. So if you’re still reading it at this point, consider yourself tagged! And please tag me, I’d love to read about how your year went! 💛

#whimsy writes #fic review 2022

0 notes

milktei · 2 years

Text

Again.

Sakusa Kiyoomi x gn!Reader

Genre: Angst, hurt/comfort

Warnings: none(?)

Requests: Open

Also posted on ao3 Milktei

a/n : another angst post? who would’ve thought? ahhh it’s been so long since i’ve written anything i’ve deemed as post worthy and i’m still not sure of this one because i’m worried the conclusion is too sudden lol. still it felt good to write again and i hope to do more now that school is lightening up.

edit: 1000+ notes later (oh my god???? thank you???) i realize that i lost some of my paragraphs in my copying pasting process from my notes app to here, somehow the story was still great and made sense but now it’s in its best form lmao

It was different. You weren’t sure if it would ever be the same.

Technically speaking, you and Sakusa had been dating for three years. That is, if you didn’t count the four months where you had thought that he was done with you for good.

It was still jarring really, it had been 2 months since you two got back together and the both of you were lounging on your couch in your apartment as if nothing ever happened.

You still remembered the day vividly. How could you not? You were so shocked you stood at your doorway speechless for more than a couple minutes. The possibility of a second chance was within reach just when you were about to lose hope and attempt to move on from the man you thought you would marry.

When Sakusa had called your name again you eventually broke from your shock and without thinking you took him back.

It was not as if you had regretted your decision. Far from it actually. However, after such a big event happening in your relationship it would be even more surprising if nothing had changed and the two of you went back to exactly how you were before.

Before you knew it, the episode of the show you two were watching ended and Sakusa flipped his phone to check the time. “Ah it’s getting late I should get going.”

A couple months ago you would have pouted, whined about him having to leave and then try to convince him to stay. Eventually it would lead to him staying the night.

But now? You thought back to your last big argument. Where he yelled at you for being too needy, too clingy, too dependent on him and his presence when he had a busy life of his own.

That was the day he broke up with you, claiming that he couldn’t put up with you anymore. If he had done it before there was nothing stoping him from doing it again at anytime.

So you were cautious around him, making sure to prevent anything he had a gripe with from happening. Whether that be speed cleaning your apartment before he came over, only texting him when he did first, not asking him to stay just a tad bit longer. It was nearly exhausting.

You sat up and stretched rubbing at the cheek that had been pressed against his toned chest. “Alright,” you replied quietly, getting off of him so that he could move.

You weren’t looking at his face to notice, but a look of worry crossed Kiyoomi’s face.

He wasn’t dense, he noticed the way you were walking on eggshells around him. He saw you were trying nearly too hard to make sure that he didn’t get upset with you. It was quite heartbreaking in all honesty. He thought that he had made it well known that he still wanted you, and that he was wrong to look at your habits with disdain. He missed your quirks so much in those four months. He was slightly hoping that you would do you usual pout and instead of pulling away, you would hug him closer.

In hindsight, Sakusa genuinely couldn’t think of any good reason as to why he decided to split things off with you that day. There were so many other options that would have gone better, such as actually talking to you.

Instead, he let his exhaustion acquired from his busy lifestyle as an athlete cloud his judgment, and dropped the bombshell one random day.

In the period where you two weren’t together, Sakusa had learned what it truly meant to be lonely, and a month in, he was already thinking of way to ask you to take him back. Eventually not allowing his pride to get in the way and just forcing himself to do it, knowing he would only regret it for the rest of his life if he didn’t at least try.

With worry still fresh in his mind, he got up and you followed him quietly to the front door of your apartment with your head down.

He slowly pulled open the closet but didn’t reach for his jacket. “Do you want to go out for dinner after I finish practice tomorrow?”

He could see the way your body filled with excitement, but as quickly as it came, it left.

You shifted from one foot to the other “If you would like… You won’t be too tired after?“

Sakusa winced as his words were unintentionally thrown back at him

“Can’t you see how tired I am after practice? I can’t go out with you all the time y/n”

“I know Omi, I just thought since it’s been a while-“

“I really don’t have the energy to deal with this right now y/n. I feel disgusting and need to shower. Maybe next time.”

“…Okay.”

That was the end that phone call. There was no next time.

“I miss you.” He had spoken without thinking.

You looked up at him and chuckled nervously, “But l’m right-“

Kiyoomi’s frustrated sigh interrupted you, his eyebrows furrowed and he ran a hand through his hair “I worded that wrong. I miss… us.”

Your stunned silence filled the room. Sakusa sighed and reached down, gingerly grabbing one of you hands with both of his.

“Don’t think I haven’t noticed how different you’ve been acting.” his grip tightened and his eyebrows furrowed. “It’s all my fault.”

You opened your mouth to object but he already started speaking

“Those 4 months without you was one of the worst periods of my life, and now that I have you back it still doesn’t feel right. you don’t have to be so careful around me. I was an idiot who didn’t know how to deal with being loved so greatly by someone as amazing as you.”

Your breath hitched as you watched Sakusa glare down at your intertwined hands his hands trembling as he spoke.

“You should never have to feel as if you have to be the perfect person around me. You should never have to change, to sacrifice your mental health, and exhaust yourself just because you’re afraid that I’ll leave…again. I see how you try so hard around me when I hardly deserve it after everything I put you and our relationship though” Sakusa’s voice cracked and he abruptly stopped. Clearing his throat before attempting to speak.

“I… the way I talked down to you that day was completely unacceptable. I completely understand if you now realize that being in this relationship is too much to deal with and that you would just be better off without me-“

“Please don’t say that.” you whispered.

Sakusa tore his gaze away from your hands and was greeted with tears streaming down your face. His eyes softened.

“Oh no, no I’m sorry i didn’t mean to make you-“

He was cut off by a sob and Sakusa immediately let your hand go and instead pulled you into his arms.

“I still love you.” You sobbed “I know that you should have never been so harsh to me. But I want us to work through this so badly. I’m just scared because nothing is stopping you from breaking it off again, so I thought that if I worked on myself…”

Sakusa shook his head “Don’t blame yourself, not to cut me some slack. I have some things that I need to work on, and I will because I promise you that we can figure this out. We’ll be able to be ourselves around each other again. My desire to make things right and to be with you for the rest of our lives, that is what is keeping me from ever uttering those words again.”

You hiccuped but hesitantly nodded as best you could in Sakusa’s embrace.

“We’re both a mess aren’t we?” you said through slowing sobs.

Sakusa sighed, “This is the exact opposite of how I wanted this night to end.” he grumbled as he placed a kiss to the top of your head.

You couldn’t help the teary giggle that escaped your lips and it was like music to Sakusa’s ears. You lifted your arms to wrap around his torso and buried your face into his chest. Covering his sweater in tears and snot but he couldn’t find it in himself to care.

“You’re not going anywhere.” you eventually grumbled pulling him closer “not after what you said.“

Sakusa laughed and leaned his cheek on the top of your head allowing the both of you to sway back and forth.

“Never again.”

#haikyuu imagines #haikyuu!!#haikyuu x reader #sakusa kiyoomi #sakusa kiyoomi x reader #haikyuu angst #haikyuu #sakusa x reader

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distort-opia · 2 years

Note

Hiiiii uh, I’m TheMidnightOwl on AO3 and I just wanted to say thank you so much for recommending my fic I’ll Tell You No Lies to people 🥺😭 it’s actually one of my favorite fics I’ve ever written. It’s the only multichapter I’ve written that I finished completely before posting so I could edit it as a whole piece. I actually started rewriting it some time ago because I wasn’t fully satisfied with how it went, but then I got sucked into another fandom and it got abandoned. Thank you again tho, I’m glad people are still finding it and still enjoying it bc it’s the hardest I’ve ever worked on a fan project. I bookmarked your AO3 so I can get in some light reading after work 😉 I hope you’re doing well and the muse is forthcoming 💜🖤

Hi!! Ngl, really cool to get a message from you, I've read I'll Tell You No Lies (linking it for whoever is curious) like three times. And I've recommended it, and seen it recommended before; it's such a good Batman and Batjokes comic fic! As I said, it's exactly the origin of the Batman Who Laughs I would've liked DC to expore. I can imagine it took a lot of work, the story feels so entrenched in the world and the characters have such great voices -- as someone who also likes writing fic set in/adjacent to comics, I can deeply appreciate the research and effort it must've took. So, thank you for writing and posting it, really. It's a delight. Really like your writing style and your other Batjokes fics too, but I'll limit the gushing :))

And well, it happens that plans are dashed aside by a new hyperfixation. Fanwork is done with the purpose of having fun, after all, so none of us should force ourselves to write or re-edit something if we don't feel it. So, if you ever come back to the fic, that's great! If not, the fandom already has a gem to enjoy. And well, if you ever get around to reading some of my own stuff, I hope you enjoy it <3 <3

#wishing you lots of inspiration too!!#asks #batman #batjokes #batjokes fic rec

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august-anon · 3 years

Text

Lullaby of Laughter

I've been trying to edit this for days but I've been having brain fog so it's been pretty unsuccessful lol. It was written months ago though and I edited it once back then so it's probably fine? Last time I did a fic poll this got the second-most votes so it made sense to post this next.

----

Fandom: Avatar: The Last Airbender

Ship(s): Suki/Sokka/Zuko

Characters (lee/ler): Lee!Sokka/Ler!Suki/Zuko

Word Count: 2038 words

Summary: Sokka's a bit too restless to fall asleep, and unfortunately all his fidgeting is keeping Suki and Zuko awake. Suki decides to show Zuko just how she tires Sokka out enough to sleep.

[ao3 link]

-----------------------------------

It was different, now.

Zuko had been worried that it would be different, that things would change. He often worried late into the night about it, if they would still like him after they all started to find peace. There was certainly something to be said about romantic bonds formed in the face of death itself, after all, and while Zuko was certain his own feelings were true, he worried about the feelings of his partners were simply in the heat of the moment.

After all, he had tried to kill them multiple times. And had their friends kidnapped, multiple times. And sent an assassin after them. And--

Zuko stopped that train of thought. Uncle Iroh had told him repeatedly how unproductive it was, and Suki and Sokka had started trying to convince him of that as well. He would begrudgingly admit that their methods were a bit more effective than his uncle’s.

But that didn’t mean Zuko’s fears had vanished.

The war was over, now. His father and Azula had been defeated, Aang had saved the world, and now Zuko was anxiously waiting on his own coronation. The heightened emotions from the battles were waning, and Zuko wasn’t yet convinced that Suki and Sokka’s feelings were not going to wane with them. It would be just his luck, wouldn’t it?

They were nothing if not persistent, though.

It was the first calm night since his father and Azula had been taken down. The past several days, everyone had been rushing around, putting out one political fire after the next, stopping battle after battle. Not everyone had gotten the memo that the war had finished. For the first time since Ember Island, the three of them were in the same building with no obligations.

Somehow, they all wound up in Zuko’s suite.

The three of them had slept in the same room before; heck, they had even slept in the same bed before, but they’d never done it alone. Team Avatar, as Sokka liked to refer to their group, was not only extremely close-knit, but also extremely traumatized. Odds were, if one person found their way into your designated sleeping area, five more weren’t far behind.

This was the first night the three of them would ever spend alone.

Zuko felt a bit out of place as he climbed into the bed, Sokka already sprawled out in the middle and Suki climbing in on the other side. Sokka had quickly made himself at home, letting his hair down and throwing off most of his clothing before climbing into the bed. Suki’d had much more decorum, but she certainly wasted no time in snuggling up in Zuko’s bed, cuddling up to Sokka’s side. They both glanced up at Zuko.

“It’s no different than any other time,” Suki said, her voice gentle.

“It’s a little different,” Zuko said.

Sokka rolled his eyes. “Can you at least have your crisis while cuddling me?” He said. “I’m cold, and I need my weirdly-warm firebender boyfriend plastered up against my side, like, yesterday.”

Zuko huffed a small laugh, steeling his nerves and sliding into the bed. Sokka stayed sprawled on his back, Suki’s arms wrapped around his waist. Not sure where to go, Zuko hesitantly mirrored her position on Sokka’s other side.

The three of them laid in silence for a while. Suki was clearly dozing in and out, though not fully asleep yet. Zuko himself felt his eyelids grow heavier and heavier, the spaces between each blink growing longer and longer. Sokka, though, seemed incapable of settling down. His eyes remained wide open between them, and he seemed incapable of controlling his fidgeting, despite how hard he seemed to be trying. After the fifth time he’d jostled them both awake, Suki sat up.

“That’s it,” she said. “Do we need to tire you out?”

Zuko immediately felt the energy in the room shift. Suddenly on edge and no longer sleepy, he carefully sat up, glancing back and forth between Suki and Sokka. Sokka had his hands raised in a placating motion, a nervous grin on his face. Suki looked downright predatory.

Zuko made a note to himself to never be in the center of the cuddle pile. He didn’t want to risk her wrath if he couldn’t hold still, either.

He couldn’t help but feel a little out of place in the situation, though. While this was a clearly practiced song and dance between Suki and Sokka, Zuko had no clue what was going on. He didn’t know why that grin was on Suki’s face, or why Sokka was blubbering incoherently, or why whatever this was would help Sokka get to sleep.

But then Suki looked over at him, her devious grin going a little softer at the edges. “Wanna help out?”

Zuko blinked. “With what?”

Suki smirked. “Sometimes, Sokka’s brain moves a little too fast for him to fall asleep--”

“I’m fine!” Sokka interrupted, deliberately snuggling back into the pillows on Zuko’s bed. “See! Totally tired.” He gave them a comically fake yawn.

Suki rolled her eyes. “So when that happens, I have a little method to help tire him out for the night.”

Zuko glanced back and forth between Suki and Sokka. “What’s the method?’

Suki grinned. “I’ll show you.”

Without any more warning, her fingers were suddenly spidering against Sokka’s bare sides. Sokka shrieked and thrashed around on the bed, but Suki didn’t let up. If anything, she tickled with more vigor, her grin growing. Sokka shied away from her fingers, shouting and pleading for mercy. Zuko’s hands twisted in his lap.

Suki looked up at him and her grin faltered. “Zuko?”

Zuko gestured awkwardly. “Are you sure that’s okay?”

Suki’s face immediately softened and she slowly reached out to him, allowing him ample time to pull away or tell her no. He did neither, and she took his hand in hers, interlacing their fingers. Zuko stared at their hands, almost with a sense of wonder.

“I know he’s playing it up a lot,” Suki said. “But he doesn’t hate it.”

“I’m right here,” Sokka said.

Suki rolled her eyes. “Then you can calm our boyfriend down, since you’re the one who worried him.”

Sokka let out a drawn-out groan, but reached out to link his fingers with Zuko’s free hand anyways. Zuko ignored the way his heart seemed to be skipping beats.

“Alright, fine,” Sokka said. “I don’t hate it.” A flush spread across his cheeks and he fidgeted a bit where he lay between them. “I kinda like it, actually. Just a little.”

Suki scoffed. “He likes it a lot, he means. I wouldn’t do it to him if he didn’t love it.”

“And all the yelling?” Zuko asked.

Sokka shrugged. “Involuntary.”

Zuko nodded. Suki gave his fingers one last squeeze before pulling away and wiggling her fingers threateningly in Sokka’s direction once more. Sokka started giggling before she even touched him, flinching away from her and raising his free hand in defense. He made no effort to pull his other hand out of Zuko’s grasp. Suki lunged.

“You wanna help out, now?” Suki asked over Sokka’s laughter, a bright grin on her face.

A smirk slowly started spreading over Zuko’s face as he stared down at Sokka. His cheeks and ears were flushed, and his eyes were crinkling at the corners from the force of his smile. His laughter shook his entire body, though it was hard to tell with the way he was thrashing around on the bed, trying to escape the fingers pinching evilly along his waistline.

“Who am I to say no to that,” Zuko replied, his smirk growing into a predatory grain when Sokka’s eyes went wide.

Slowly, Zuko used the hand he had interlaced with Sokka’s to raise Sokka’s arm above his head. Zuko’s speed was originally because of hesitance, but then he noticed how flustered it seemed to make Sokka, his thrashing and pleading growing all the more desperate. It made Zuko chuckle a little under his breath as he finally pinned Sokka’s hand to the bed above his head.

“Hey,” Zuko said, voice so low that Sokka could probably barely hear him above his own laughter. “This might tickle.”

While Suki’s fingers occupied themselves with Sokka’s stomach, sides, and hips, Zuko’s own fingers landed on Sokka’s tricep and began slowly spidering down with the lightest of touches. It proved to be very effective, with Sokka arching his back and squealing at a frequency that only flying bison could hear. His legs kicked as he whined through his laughter.

“Torture!” He yelled. “Torture!!”

Suki laughed. “Light tickles get him so bad. He’s usually too squirmy for me to be that mean.” She shot him an evil-looking smirk. “But now that you’re here and I’ve got the extra hands, we can torture him as much as we want.”

Zuko laughed, gaining confidence. He kept his fingers feather-light where they were wiggling down Sokka’s arm. Right when he was above to dive into Sokka’s armpit, Sokka’s thrashing getting more and more frantic the closer he got, he switched directions and started a slow spider back up to Sokka’s elbow. Sokka kicked his legs around at the end of the bed.

“Don’t tease!” He said through his cackling, burying his flushed face in his free hand.

“But you’re cute when I tease,” Zuko said.

Sokka didn’t seem to have a response for that, but Zuko took mercy on him anyway. The next time Zuko made it back down Sokka’s arm, he continued into Sokka’s armpit, scratching the skin as lightly as he could with his blunt nails. It drove Sokka wild. Zuko hadn’t even realized Suki had stopped tickling at first, because Sokka was still thrashing and howling as desperately as ever.

“Are you tired, yet?” She asked Sokka.

“Yes!” Sokka cried, slapping at Zuko’s tickling hand with his free one.

Suki caught Sokka’s free hand and pinned it as well, scritching against his top rib with her nails. “Are you sure?”

“Yes! Please!”

Suki pulled back at that, so Zuko followed suit. She laughed as Sokka curled into a ball and started rubbing at his ticklish spots, trying to scrub away ghost tickles. Zuko couldn’t help his fond smile at the sight. Then, Suki grabbed his hand and leaned in for a kiss, once more giving Zuko ample time to pull away if he wanted to.

He leaned in.

Even through his breathlessness, Sokka wolf-whistled at them kissing over the top of him, and Suki giggled into the kiss. Zuko carefully kept his own smile under control, not wanting the kiss to end so soon, and brought his hand up to cup Suki’s face. He felt one of her hands run through his hair, while one of Sokka’s hands trailed up his side under his robe.

He flinched when Sokka’s fingers brushed a little too gently against his waistline, unfortunately pulling away from Suki in the process.

Sokka was grinning when Zuko opened his eyes.

“We are so exploring that later,” he said.

Zuko gave him a bashful smile, but didn’t protest. He let Sokka pull him down into a kiss, planting his hand against the mattress next to Sokka’s head for balance. The other hand went down to cup Sokka’s neck. Sokka’s hands cupped Zuko’s face, not letting him pull away until Zuko was properly blushing from the heady kiss.

Not that Zuko would’ve been pulling away, anyway.

Suki leaned for her goodnight kiss next, and Zuko smiled as her and Sokka’s lips met. His heart felt like it was turning into liquid, warm and thick and heavy in his chest in all the best of ways. The feeling only intensified when Sokka pulled him and Suki close again, the two of them cuddling up to his chest. Suki and Sokka drifted off first, this time, leaving Zuko to admire the peaceful faces they made in their sleep.

He was sure the spiraling thoughts would find their way back to him at some point. They always seemed to after all, no matter how hard he tried. For tonight, though, Zuko let himself relax into the mattress and hold his partners close.

He was starting to feel like maybe he belonged here.

#tickle fic #My writing #atla tickling #lee!sokka #ler!suki #ler!zuko #ticklish!sokka #atla #sokka #Zuko #suki #is that all my tags i dont even remember my tags lol #Suzukka

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wannabeewriterbee · 2 years

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I’ve got some question for people that write on ao3!

So I’ve been working on a book that I would like to put out on ao3 once I get done with edits/revisions and I wanted some suggestions on a few things! I know I’ve asked a lot below and wrote a ton! But I want to cover all my bases! Thanks for taking the time to even glance at this.

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1. What’s a good word count for chapters?

I know I want to shoot for a minimum 1,000 words a chapter but what’s the average that you try and get to that still keeps readers entertained? For me personally I think hitting around 1,500 or more would be great, but I’m also the weirdo that can read a 200,000+ word competed work in a day, so I don’t know a good average. I know that they typically story have around 90,000 words in it, but those are 250+ page books with tons of chapters. Short stories can span in total anywhere from 1,000-15,000 words but the average is 3,000-5,000 words and this is already beyond that in the first draft. Novella’s start at about 20,000 and cap at 50,000 and it would be super cool to get the story that big, but I don’t think I have the attention span, nor that much to put into it. I know in the end, this book will be what it will be, no matter the length, but it’s nice to see what people try and push themselves to do in their writing.

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2. How do you typically format the layout of your story in ao3?

This would be my first time posting a story and I don’t really know the best/easiest format for readers. I’ve been looking at a bunch of my favorite ao3 writers and I’ve picked up on some of their styles (some of them just being common sense like start a new line when a character talks or when a scene shifts) but I see paragraphs that are just 1-3 sentences and I don’t know if that feels too choppy or if that’s easier for reading on ao3. I know those paragraphs will look different devices, phones make it appear longer and tablets and computers tend to stretch it out to thinner lines. I’m also curious, do you write it with the HTML or Rich Text? I don’t fully understand the HTML but I’d be totally willing to learn it if it’s better than just the rich text.

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3. How do you write a 3rd person pov that shows multiple characters thoughts/feelings?

I’m trying to make sure that my characters have distinct tell signs that they’re talking or thinking, either by how they actually speak or by body language, but I have a few chapters where they’re all together and all are being affected by different things at the same time and I don’t want to just say there names ever single time. They all use the same pronouns so it feels harder to make distinctions between who they interact with just that.

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4. How do you decide when a chapter ends?

What makes you think “cool, this is a good spot to start a new section!” With my story, I have some chapters (minimum 2 chapters, maybe up to 4 though) where they split into pairs and explore and I don’t know if I should make separate chapters for each pair or try to blend them all together since everything’s happening at the same time, but they’re in completely different areas. I have one other chapter where one pair is exploring together and then they even split up and then I have 3 different povs all the same time and a major event is triggered. Would it be easier to make the final place they all explore a separate chapter and show all 3 povs in that chapter? (I think this would be the right thing, I just don’t want to confuse people and think that it’s all happening at different times)

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5. Titles! What do you do?! Chapter Titles and Story titles!

Do you make them funny like the Percy Jackson series, or do you just put Chapter #? Do you slightly give away who is in it and what they do “Exploring with Dave!” Or do you mix it all to get her and make “Ch5- In this chapter we make a bunch of Dad Jokes and piss off the guy we call dad!” Story title for this story I’m writing is pretty easy for how I’ve written it and I have it set (I think) but do you try and make it a vague title, something simple and to the point, or something in between!

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6. Notes, Tags and Summaries, Oh My!

For your notes, beginning or end of chapter? Short and to the point, or make it long and sappy?

For the tags, I know the more you put, the easier it can be found. But is there such a thing as too many tags or even not enough tags? I think it would be cool to actually have my story seen, but I don’t want the wrong audience to see it and then get shit on by people who are just looking to be trashy. I see the max is 75 tags including relationships, characters, and other things, is it hard to hit that max limit or pretty easy if you tag your story right?

For the summary, what’s better, a lil blurb of something that happens in the chapter, bonus if it’s angsty and feels like a cliffhanger. OR a sentence or two saying, “the idiots in the chapter go do this and something happens!” I want the attention to be caught, but I really don’t want to fully give away what happens.

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7. Comments, do you filter them, let them have free reign, or just take it all away?

I’m leaning towards filtered comments, but who am I kidding, I don’t even know if people will read this, and I honestly don’t expect anyone to, this is more just for me to put it out there cause I can and I’ve been bored the past 24 hours and in a first draft have written like 7,000 words and I’m not even done writing. I don’t know how attentive I’ll be to the fic after posting it, I’ve hopefully left the ending open enough to make a second story if I wanted to, but I have no clue what I would write! Also, do you leave it open to guests and registered users for comments or do you only let people who are registered comment. I’m totally fine having guest accounts read my story, but I don’t know if that’s a safe thing to also let them comment, but if it’s moderated then I guess it doesn’t really matter.

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8. The writing process! HOW DO YOU DO IT?!

My usual problem is that I come up with a great story and my outline is like 10+ pages and then I start writing and it’s all written in like, a page. This is the first one that I actually was able to write fully fleshed out chapters. Do you write it a chapter at a time and as soon as it’s edited (if you edit/revise) do you immediately just publish and go to the next, or do you write the whole story before you even think of edits/revisions and posting it? Also, do you write it directly in ao3, or do you use something simple like Word or Docs? Or are you fancy and have a super cool and probably expensive writing program?!

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9. ANXIETY! STRESS!!

Do you have anxiety about posting a chapter? Wondering how it’s going to be received, or if it even will? Do you worry what people think or if it’s good enough to even be seen out in daylight? Do you ever get over this feeling?! I think this is what has always stopped me in the past 5 or so years in writing and posting works. When I was in middle school I didn’t really have this fear and I posted a few things on Wattpad that never got finished and I’ve always thought about taking it down but then I get excited when I see it had like 500+ reads on it and it always stopped me from deleting it, but not enough motivation to continue writing it because I know that I’ve (hopefully) gotten better at writing and I would probably need to rewrite everything else and make it better.

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Okay! I think I covered all of my questions… I’m so sorry it’s such a long post! I’m just nervous and curious! I really want to do this right. Seriously though, if you read all of this, thank you. And if you actually responded to even just one of my questions, you’re amazing and I really value your input!

You may see this pop up in some other places, I’ve already posted it on my Twitter as a thread and I think I may also post it on my Ao3 account and see if people reply.

-WannaBeeWriter

On ao3 and Twitter!

#ao3fic #positive suggestions #questions #ao3 works #writing #fanfic writer #help lol #sbi au #minecraft #dream smp #request info #q and a

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polizwrites · 6 months

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PoliZ's WIP Update - 27 Mar 2024

Another slow week, but am generally pleased with my progress. I touched 4 fics (2 new works & 2 WIPs) for a total of 1833 words.

On Ao3, I posted:

Chapter Seven of My Love is Vengeance - ongoing WIP with young!Tony/bodyguard!Bucky vs Hydra.

Treading a Rocky Road - platonic/pre-slash WinterIron ficlet.

On Tumblr I posted:

Fathers Don’t Know Best - A No Powers AU meet-ugly-ish ficlet featuring angsty!drunk!Tony and SHIELD analyst!Bucky

Untangling Their Attraction - a flirty, kinda sexy getting together WinterIron ficlet

I’m juggling 17 😬 active/semi-active WIPs with my current deadline being the Post July Break Bingo, which ends in April.

Stony AUniverse Bingo [SAUB_R1] (ends 15 Feb)

Final count - twenty-one fills for five bingos - hoping this event comes back so I can carry over a couple of squares! Masterpost STILL forthcoming….

Captain (America) Bottom Bingo - Round 2 [CABB] (ends 28 Feb 2024)

Finally got my Masterpost done!

Post July Break Bingo [JBB_23p] (Ends Apr 2024)

Two fill on my 2x3 non-fandom-specific card - still working on potential crossovers.

* C1 - Touch Starved – another good fit for a Bucky-centric fic. (Steve or Tony or Clint).

* C2 - “What are we?” Pair up with SRB C5 - Exes to Lovers ?

Steve Rogers Bingo - Round 3 [SRB_R3] (ends 15 Jun 2024)

Thirteen fills and one WIP at the moment - need to ponder other possible crossovers with my non-fandom cards & BaBB.

* C5 - Exes to Lovers see JBB “What are we?” above

Bucky Barnes Connect Four - Alt Jun-iverse [BBC4_R2] {Ends May 31 2024}

The combo of prompts on my first card [Reality Show, Omegaverse, Talent/Manager, Royalty] sparked an idea that I’m about 230 words + misc notes into already - Alpha!Bucky as a technical prince who gets talked into joining a reality show that is supposed to match him up with an omega… but there’s a twist! Planning to pick this back up in the next week or so.

Hawkeyes Bingo [HB_R2] {Ends TBD}

Just signed up for this fun Tumblr event - got a 3x3 card and and am looking forward to creating more Clint-centric content and trying my hand at a bit of Kate Bishop fic as well!

*A1 - Werewolf AU - wrote Shooting for the Moon - Werewolf!Bucky’s POV on the second half of A Hairy Situation. It came in at 811 words and will get posted to Ao3 sometime in the next couple weeks.

* A3 - Awkward Flirting – this might be a good entry into my first femslash fic with Kate/Yelena?

Build-A-Bucky Bingo [BaBB_R1] {Ends Oct 2024}

Another fun year-long event from the folks at @buckybarnesevents! Each month there’s a list of prompts and you choose (at least) one each month for your card!

* November: Crackfic - DONE

* December: Wingman - DONE

* January: Wingfic - DONE

*January: Polyamory - DONE

* February: Fingering - DONE

* February: Morning Sex - DONE

* March: Marriage of Convenience - DONE

* March: Mutual Pining - DONE

* March: Bad Coping Mechanisms - Posted Treading a Rocky Road to Ao3 this morning. It’s a bit of platonic/pre-slash WinterIron bonding over a sweet treat as a crossover with a Flash Fiction Friday prompt [#FFF244 Critical Ice Cream] It came in at 437 words.

* March: Wrong Luggage - was also inspired to combine this with my WIB - I5 - A/B/O: Scent Bonding square to come up with a meet-cute/meet-ugly WinterIron one shot. A Little Carried Away is coming in at 1200 words and will post this Friday.

WinterIron Bingo Round 2 [WIB_R2] {Ends 16 Dec 2024}

Signups are still open for Round Two of this super-fun bingo event! I got my card and already have four fills and three WIPs!

* I2 - Hydra - filled this with chapter Seven of My Love is Vengeance - ongoing WIP with young!Tony/bodyguard!Bucky vs Hydra. It came in at 1106 words and posted last Friday.

* I5 - A/B/O: Scent Bonding - See BaBB March: Wrong Luggage above.

* G3 - Surprise Phone Call - Posted Chapter Seven of A Sugar-Coated Pill last Friday. Alpha!Bucky/omega!Tony Sugar Baby AU where Tony got some consequential news. It came in at 1339 words.

* O2 - Couch Cuddles - planning to fill this with Chapter 8 of A Sugar-Coated Pill which is currently sitting at 177 words. Hoping to crossfill with an Alpha Bucky April prompt!

Warm and Fluffy Bingo [WFB] (no end date)

Four fills on my card, courtesy of @warmandfluffybingocards - need to try for another crossover or two!

————

On other creative fronts: I am working on a Frankenstein figure for an upcoming con. I’ve finished all my Marvel Trumps Hate figures, but still need to create posts (and mail one set).

If you’re looking for one of a kind gifts for birthdays or other celebrations, check out Stuffed With Character over on Facebook for a full list of my designs (now over 150!). These soft stuffed figures are mostly Marvel and monsters, but I have some Star Wars, Star Trek, DC and Disney figures as well. Plus I love to take custom design requests for any fandom!

#writing stuff #wip wednesday #wip update #shameless self promo

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starwitness42 · 3 years

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Halo Anons

Hey all! So I got some anon asks about the Halo stuff from yesterday, and I figured I’d answer them all in one post so I don’t spam your dashes. Here goes!

So how is that legal aren’t the characters owned by someone? Like I know ao3 protects their writers specifically because it’s *unmonetized* fan fiction, that’s why you can’t even share links to your fundraising pages..? Either way congrats! I’ll buy it!! This fic saved me. But you should really put this on ao3 I saw it on Twitter that’s the only reason I know. Im sure there’s others like me who went through a period of needing to read certain chapters more than once. I’d be a nasty shock.

With the legal stuff, that’s why I’ve been editing it. All the names have changed, a lot of their backstories (especially Robert’s) have changed, place names have changed, etc. All the mob stuff was obviously my stuff anyway, so that can stay. But I’ve tried to take “Emmerdale” out of it as much as possible.

As for posting it on AO3, that’s where things get tricky. If I say there why I’m pulling it, I risk losing my account, which I very much want to keep so I can write more Robron stuff in the future. So... yeah.

From my other ask.. you should also notify people on the Robron tag. Really! I’m in an great place now, but half a year ago if I saw this fic was just gone I would have fallen apart. When I say it saved me it honestly did.. I was in a really bad place of SH feeling dirty and worthless and this fic made me feel worthy of help. A therapist that was actually paid for through a child victims program that I didn’t think I deserved to use before reading this. So SO happy it will be a book for others!

That’s something I should do, you’re right. I’ll make sure to put a note up on the Robron tag before I pull it. Also: I’m so glad you’re doing better, love!!!!! You go girl!!!!!!

I am so proud of you!! The boy with the broken halo means so much to me ❤️

Thank you, sweetie! I’m not sure if there’s anything to be proud of yet, but I’m certainly going to try and be worthy of all the amazing people that read the fic.

Too bad so many people already read it 😞you should have withheld the final chapter til your book 😉 Jk a HP writer withheld a chapters til she got enough patreon donors and her account was deleted by ao3 😂 ahh exciting though!!! We didn’t deserve your talent on ao3!!!! 👏🥳 are you allowed to use Robron as the people?

Um... does it count that I’ve technically withheld a wedding epilogue? I mean, it wasn’t nefarious or anything. I’m just writing it now so it’s not like I’ve been sitting on it. But at least there will be something fun for anyone that wants to check it out. And really, I didn’t deserve this amazing fandom. I’m telling you, the comments I got on this story still make me ache to this very day. You all were so incredible.

Does this mean ur not writing anymore Robron now. Im so excited for ur sequel

Congratulations 🥳

I am nowhere near done with these two.

No way that’s amazing!! Cheers to you!! I read that fic twice! Are you able to use Robron or does it have to be original character names? I also had no idea your name is Faith! I assumed Becks was short for Rebecca! My name is Hope and my cats are Faith and Love 😄😻

Oh yeah, my name isn’t Faith. Becks is short for Rebecca. Faith is an homage to my first ever fandom name (savingfaith) and Beckett... Beck... yadda yadda. Hope is such a beautiful name though! And what great cat names as well!

I saw the news on Twitter! 🔥🎊 TBWTBH was amazing!!!! Satisfied both my Robron and mob obsession!!! While I don’t reread fics, I still hate that it’s being deleted! It makes sense though! The cover art is amazing!! 🤩

@scrapyardboyfriends outdid herself on that flipping cover. I am so in awe! It was EXACTLY what I wanted it to be and more!!!

“I’m not making this post to pimp myself“ uhhh why tf not??? You deserve to!!! You’re nothing but supportive and caring towards others in the fandom, so damn girl pimp away!!!

You sir and/or madam are so very kind and if we weren’t in a pandemic I would hug you right now. I wouldn’t even begin to know how to pimp myself, though. I’m the worst salesman on the planet.

#TBWTBH #anonomo

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scapegrace74-blog · 3 years

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Ginger Snap, Chapter 6

A/N Well, here it is. The last chapter of Ginger Snap. As an unplanned fic inspired by a vanity license plate, I’m happy with how it turned out. There will be a short epilogue posted in the next week or so. In the meantime, thank you so much for coming on this unexpected ride with me! This chapter’s themed title is Fire in the Belly.

Previous chapters are best enjoyed on my AO3 page, because I have a bad habit of going back and editing them after they’ve been posted.

The next five months were some of the most difficult of my life.

After our talk, Frank and I agreed that it would be best that we parted ways. The Southside flat was close to the university, plus I’d never truly felt at home there, so it made sense for him to keep it. Fortunately, we’d never combined our savings and I still had money tucked away from my time as a medical resident in Boston.

Geillis wanted me to move into her sprawling Murrayfield home, at least temporarily, but I knew that I needed a place of my own. To stand on my own two feet, as it were. Which was how I found myself moving my few belongings into a modest Morningside walk-up as the rest of Edinburgh celebrated Hogmanay with fireworks and drunken revelry.

I scheduled the written component of my medical licensing exam for February. This was likely foolhardy, but I’d already wasted enough time. As a result, almost every waking hour was dedicated to studying. The flat remained an empty box whose naked beige walls bore witness to my rudimentary existence.

Geillis called regularly, reminding me to eat and to occasionally step outside for a breath of fresh air. Returning up the high street from one of our weekly coffee dates, a bright flash in a shop window caught my eye.

I stopped and stared as the afternoon sun lit the vase like a shard of stained glass. It was a profound shade of blue: the colour of a field of indigo, of the night sky in a Byzantine icon, of Jamie’s eyes when he laughed. It sat on my windowsill, filled with the season’s first daffodils, as I pored over practice exams.

***

“Geillis, I passed! I fucking passed!” An elderly woman seated across from me on the bus muttered under her breath about vulgar Sassenachs, but I was too elated to care.

“Of course ye did, ye brilliant disaster. Now I can brag tae the neighbours I have my own personal physician.”

“Not so fast, Duncan. I still need to pass the clinical exam, and that’s no small thing.” My gut twisted just thinking about it, but unlike the written exam, there was little I could do to prepare. Either I knew how to perform as a doctor or I did not. The long months since I’d last treated a patient loomed like a large shadow over that question.

“Och, yer bum’s oot the window Claire,” my friend dismissed blithely. “Ye’re gonna do great. When do ye head down tae yer homeland, then?”

“May first.” The practical examination took place in Manchester and needed to be scheduled three months in advance.

“Sounds like ye’ve got some time on yer hands. Whate’er are ye going tae do with yerself?” Geillis asked in a singsong voice.

Fortunately for me, spring was Edinburgh’s most pleasant season. Its many gardens and laneways erupted in carpets of buds and blooms. The air smelled fresh and green, like biting into a tart apple. I took long walks and fell in love with the city I now called home. There were secondhand bookstores to explore and a weekly craft market where I gradually amassed an assortment of items that made my flat feel like a home. With each passing day, my existence felt more and more like a life; one I defined for myself.

I also started to explore my options for employment, hoping for a job offer from one of the city’s hospitals that was conditional upon my successful completion of the licensing process. It was to that end that I found myself walking down the corridor of The Royal Edinburgh hospital after what I hoped had been a rather successful interview with the deputy director of surgery.

“Claire?”

I recognized her voice immediately. Before turning around I closed my eyes and sent out a fervent appeal to the universe.

“Jenny, hi. How are you?”

She looked just the same, her straight black hair such a contrast to her brother. Next to her stood a man, but not the man I had conjured the moment I heard her voice. I was unclear whether that meant my prayer had been answered or not. Seeing my gaze stray, Jenny jumped to introductions.

“This is my husband, Ian. We’re here fer treatment on his leg.”

“Nothing serious, I hope.”

“Jes a fitting fer a new prosthetic. Jenny keeps beatin’ me o’er the head with the old one, ye see.” I laughed, instantly liking his easy-going manner, so in contrast with Jenny’s intensity.

“Ye must be the Claire I hear sae much about,” he went on, and I wondered what had been said about me in the Fraser household.

“Nothing bad, I hope.”

Ian smiled warmly. “Only good things, I promise ye.”

“What brings ye tae the hospital, Claire?” Jenny interjected.

I explained how I was in the process of qualifying to practice medicine in Scotland, provided I could pass my exams. Jenny and Ian were both delighted, congratulating me as though I’d already accomplished my goal. As we spoke about Wee Jamie’s latest exploits and the ongoing growth of Ginger Snap, I couldn’t help notice that Jenny was staring at my hands. At my left hand in particular. Finally, I couldn’t resist temptation any longer.

“And, how is Jamie doing?” I tried to sound casual, but I was certain my faltering voice betrayed me.

“Very well,” Jenny replied. “Busy, as ye can imagine, but he thrives on chaos.”

I nodded, trying to be satisfied with the news that he was well. It was the most I could hope for, really. Jenny eyed me shrewdly before continuing.

“He’s a good man, my brother. Any lass would be verra lucky tae have him. I’d like tae see him settled, but he refuses tae be rushed. Says the right woman is worth the wait.” She paused before adding, “I reckon ye ken wha’ he means.”

“Yes,” I breathed. “I know exactly what he means.”

***

I took the overnight train from Edinburgh to Manchester. It meant I was likely to arrive at the testing centre deprived of sleep, but I rationalized that most of my residency could be characterized as one long evaluation under similar conditions, and I hadn’t killed anyone yet. Still, as the velvety darkness slipped by outside my window, studded by the lights of passing farms, my doubts got the better of me.

I texted Geillis, looking for moral support. For once she didn’t reply immediately. There was one other name on my laughably short list of contacts. I deliberated for all of a minute, but the late hour and creeping panic made me impulsive.

Hello.

Best to start with something innocuous, rather than the slightly more revealing “I miss you. I think about you every day.” A reply bubble appeared immediately after I hit send. At least I hadn’t woken him up. A small tempest stirred in my gut.

Arsonist. Hello. How are you?

I tried to picture him. Was he at home? Working late? Or, in a scenario that played out far too often in my mind, on a date?

I’m alright. Well, to be honest, I feel like I’m going to puke and cry. Not necessarily in that order.

Och, lass. Do you need me to come over?

Damn it, this man. I had done nothing to deserve his unswerving loyalty but mislead him and then disappear for months on end. And yet here he was, willing to come to my aid on the flimsy pretext of a late night text. Guilt and tenderness warred for possession of my heart.

That may prove a bit difficult, Jamie. I’m on a train to England.

There was a long pause, and then a two letter reply.

Oh.

I realized at once that he’d leapt to the wrong conclusion: that I had left Edinburgh for good. I rushed to correct the error.

I’m taking the second stage of my examination to practice as a NHS doctor tomorrow. It’s all hands-on situations, and the licensing facility is in Manchester.

Arsonist, that’s wonderful news! I’m so proud of you.

I blushed, then leaned my heated cheek against the chilled pane of glass. It had been a rash impulse, but this conversation was exactly what I needed. I wasn’t alone in this. Geillis and Jamie were in my corner.

What has your stomach in a twist, then?

What if I’ve forgotten what to do?! It’s been almost a year since I’ve so much as used a stethoscope, Jamie. The exam is eighteen real-life situations and you’re given eight minutes to respond to each one. Not a second longer. I’m just... what if I fail?

And there it was. The kernel of fear that lived at the heart of everything I did. What if I failed? What if my best wasn’t good enough?

Claire, listen to me. You’re a doctor, just as I am a chef. It wouldn’t matter if I had not set foot in a kitchen in ten years, I would still remember how to cook, and I know that it’s the same for you. I believe it with everything in me.

On some level, I knew that he was right. But it still comforted me tremendously to hear it from someone I trusted.

Alright. That helps. I should let you get to bed. Thank you for talking me off my ledge, Jamie.

Anytime, Arsonist.

As I got ready sign off, another text bubble appeared.

Oh, and Claire? Don’t burn down their wee laboratory, okay? ;-)

I laughed out loud, muting my phone and reclining my seat. Outside, the stars shone brightly, tiny fires in the firmament to guide me on my way.

***

It was a lovely late spring day, and the retractable doors to the fire station were open to the warm breeze. I could hear Angus’ voice as he led a cooking demonstration for a group of young women; a bridal shower by the look of their ridiculous costumes.

“Mind the coriander, lass. Tis a verra powerful aphrodisiac, ken? I willna be held responsible if ye canna resist my considerable charms after ye eat yon soup.”

There was an outburst of giggles as I rounded the corner and entered the reception area. Jenny was on the phone. She halted mid-sentence when she saw me walk in. I rubbed my hands down the front of my jeans, trying to stay calm.

“He’s in the storeroom, in the back,” Jenny prompted before I could even offer a greeting. I smiled gratefully, relieved I didn’t have to make small talk. I had only so much courage stored in reserve, and I didn’t want to use it all up before reaching my destination.

The storeroom was long and narrow, lit by a single naked bulb and girded with shelves. Jamie stood with his broad back to the door, his curls absorbing the light like amber. He had a clipboard in one hand, performing some kind of inventory.

“Jes how many lentils dae ye reckon we need, Janet? There’s nine cans of them here already, and ye have us ordering ten more.”

I’d almost forgotten how much I loved his voice, the undulating grit and silk of it. I had to remaster the art of speech before I could reply.

“It’s not Jenny. It’s me. Claire.”

He froze, and if it weren’t for the sudden rapid flow of his breath I would have assumed he hadn’t heard me. My nerves got the better of me and I blurted out, “I like lentils. You should listen to your sister.”

“Claire.” More sigh than word. He slowly turned. It was when our eyes met that I knew nothing had changed for him. It was still there, after all these months. That look that told me I was the map to his journey, the focus to his vision, the reason to his why.

Hopefully he could read that same certainty on my face.

“I passed my exams,” I began. “I’m a doctor again.”

“Ye never stopped bein’ a doctor. This jus’ makes it official.”

“I’m still a disaster in the kitchen,” I continued. “Last week I ruined two saucepans.”

“Tha’s only a tragedy if ye dinna have someone willin’ tae cook fer ye,” he replied with a strange squinting motion I understood was meant to be a wink.

“I’m still learning who I am. How to be true to the person on the inside,” I confessed. This is what had kept me away for so long, worried that I would escape from Frank’s orbit just to be caught up in another. Jamie never once expected my submission, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t offer it out of habit.

“I’ll let ye in on a secret. Sae is everyone else,” he replied.

Without realizing it, we’d both been moving until we were crowded together amongst the dried herbs and canned goods. My hand rested against the solid metronome of his heart. Just one more confession to go.

“I burn for you in a way I’ve never burned for anything before.”

There. It was said. A thousand wings of rapture beat against the cage of my ribs, clamoring to break free. Jamie carefully pushed a loose curl behind my ear before cupping my jaw.

“Wee arsonist. Come, set my life on fire.”

#my writing #outlander #ginger snap

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galacticglass · 2 years

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No chapter update this month - some general updates instead (art, podfic potential, and more)

With a few more days left in July, wanted to let any of y’all who are here reading my fic Galaxy of Glass that there won’t be an update until next month. I want to take the rest of July to primarily focus on my thesis project for school. Although I’ve gotten a lot of writing done in advance editing takes a little longer especially now that there’s more than just me doing the editing. I have an upcoming chapter I’m really excited for those of y’all reading to see and hoping to have it out before I start my semester.

With that I’ve got a few more updates I wanted to mention:

Since we’re moving into another narrative arc that’s bringing together a lot of moving parts in the story, I want to take some time to clean that up.

My partner and I have gone back and have been slowly editing old chapters to just clean up some weird wording, make other parts more concise, etc. These edits won’t change the overall story. What we’re hoping for is that it’ll help the flow and pacing earlier on and help with continuity a little better.

I’m going to keep slowly adding in illustrations/little drawings here and there because y’all seem to really like them. Those will take a little longer since the work I do for school requires a lot of drawing already, which can be physically intense. This is definitely doubled that I have disabilities that can cause pain and aggravate nerve problems in my arms, so hence the art part will be at my own physical pace. (Funny enough, the reason I’ve slowly gotten back into writing is because it’s a hobby that doesn’t aggravate the ill effects of these disabilities and is simultaneously mentally stimulating and fun.)

One of the major updates I wanted to give though is I’ve also been in the process of researching how to post GoG as a podfic.

I’ve had a few friends interested in the fic who wanted to give it a read but haven’t been able to since it’s y’know, a lot--so far it’s sitting at a little under 69k (lol nice) and the final word count will definitely be well over 100k by the time the fic’s finished. And reading a 100k+ fic just isn’t always the most accessible thing, but one of these friends suggested making something like an audiobook and I was like damn dude that’s a fucking amazing idea! I’m still doing my research into how to make a solid podfic version to make this story more accessible. (Also don’t hesitate to say anything on this topic, I’m absolutely open to suggestions if any of you have had any experience or are more familiar with this than I am!)

Lastly, I wanted to thank y’all for your support and encouragement! I know I probably say that a lot, but I shit you not it means a lot to me. I started writing this story for myself and debated for months if I should post it or not. This past year in particular has been a lot more medical appointments and getting out of one of those appointments to see your messages pop up on my phone (whether from here or AO3) just really brightens up my day. So a hundred times over, thanks for all your support!

#update #fic update

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shadowdianne · 3 years

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Fic writer review [Or a fic writer tag game if you prefer]

I was tagged by @naralanis and I can already see her grin all the way from where I am xd Thank you, dear, for the tag, let’s see what are my answers, shall we.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

*bursts out laughing* Adding both pseuds I have… 535 according to the account info but by counting them all I’m reaching 541 so I’m guessing it’s counting some drafts I need to re-find.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

I seriously hated you for this one xd I was going to do it by hand by I decided one-third there that I value my mental stability a little bit more xd according to the stats page back at a03 that number would be 1257884. It may be wrong. I think there should be a few more numbers up there but the majority of my works are one-shots so *shrugs* There’s also the fact that counting my ao3 things only is shaving off like half of it Xd Anyway, can we laugh at the fact that I’m a pain in the ass and that I’ve written a lot? More than I should have, that’s for sure

3. How many fandoms have you written for?

Trick question because I haven’t crossposted everything I wrote back in ffnet and I actually erased some fics from my account back there so the numbers are a little blurry there.

When I had the entirety of my work posted both in ffnet and a03 I had written for: Twilight (Bella/Alice) Glee (Faberry and there were a couple Pezberry and I don’t fucking remember the pairing name for Santana and Quinn), Harry Potter (Hermione/Ginny, Hermione/Narcissa, Hermione/Bellatrix) OUAT (SwanQueen and several oneshots focusing on the mad hatter and the blue fairy solely back at ffnet that were written in Spanish and never translated), I actually had a veeeery old au prompt of Frozen (Elsanna in where I wrote them as non sibilings), Rizzoli and Isles (Rizzles), Dishonored 2 (Emily Kaldwin/Alexi Mayhew), Lara Croft and Wonder Woman, Supergirl (SuperCorp/Supercat) I had a 100 one -or maybe two??- (Clexa), The Shannara Chronicles (Amberle/Eretreia [Or Princess Rover], Rwby [Blake Belladona/Yang], The Worst Witch (Hecate Hardbroom and Pippa Pentangle), The Half of it, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (Madam Satan/Zelda Spellman) and… I think that’s it(?) I may be forgetting some but probably nothing important if I’m not remembering it lol.

4. Top 5 fics by kudos?

Ah, we are going to go there, uh? Xd My works are not the kudos and comment getting type Xd So I was quite surprised when I went to check this.

1: Cracked it I wrote this one back in 2017, it was a prompt done by an anon: Lena is nerding with one of her projects at home, mumbling mostly to herself because she’s stuck and Kara casually mentions how to solve the problem like it’s nothing. I really had some fun with this. It was back when some us, SQeeners were fully doing the jump between OUAT and SuperGirl (I mean, there had already been some crossover as for fandom is related but this when the girls were actually getting their conjoined voice within the fandom)

2: Dateless I honestly needed to check what this one was about but I think I can see why this one shot has the amount of kudos it has. It’s a short and sweet idea and responds to the Teachers Au that went SO well with SQ. Everyone thinks they hate each other and try to set them up with other people whilst they, in truth, are dating. I don’t remember if I wrote them as married rather than dating but despite being from 2017 as well is one cheeky enough to be cool Xd I probably would edit some lines now *shudders*

3: After you I truly didn’t expect this one to be top 3. Makes me think of a lot of things, if I’m being honest Xd. After you was a one shot written almost feverishly as an answer to the fabulous drawings that Sejic did of both Lara Croft and Wonder Woman back at 2018 or something. It’s just Lara and Diana being himbos but not at all with each other.

4: How about… How about is one I remember perfectly, it was my answer to the ending of the Half of it film. I had SOME thoughts about it, let’s just stop there Xd I really liked the film itself but I think and I thought at the time that my response to wishing for a final scene at the very end of the credits responds to me being in a different personal moment than the characters. I really wanted to explore my feelings about it and so I wrote about them finding each other again after some time passes. It was also something I wrote after quite the hiatus so I took it as something I could write about without focusing too much on the why.

5: Come to me

Ahh, SuperCorp Xd I remember this one actually. A friend of mine and I were talking about descriptions, and she mentioned quite off-handedly how she wanted a fic in where Kara’s back was described. I complied… more or less.

Fun tidbit, despite the big volume of my work is obviously set in ouat there’s only 1 SQ fic there as you can see, the others are either SuperCorp or the random one shots I created for Wonderwoman/Lara Croft and The half of it. *sighs in deep thought* I’m also not going to look too much into how almost all of the fics were posted and written back in 2017. Nope, not at all.

*Small voice screaming you peaked in 2017 and everything else is garbage jumps back and forth*

5. Do you respond to comments? Why/why not?

I tend to always respond, yup. I truly value comments. I might have gone for spells of time in where I didn’t have the mental capacity to check in old fics because I truly didn’t know what to answer but I treasure every single comment and you all who comment know that I can start to ramble in the answers xd -sorry about that- I really really REALLY love interaction.

6. A fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending:

Ok, Nara, come on, this one is a catch for me. I’ve written angst in far too many fics to remember the angstiest one :P I have the most recent one, though, that is the easy one to think about: Goodbye.Written for @delirious-comfort. I’m just going to say “Kisses with their last dying breath” as an idea of what awaits inside but I’ve written about death and loss and angst quite a lot. There were some I wrote back to SQ with Regina needing to kill Emma during the Dark Swan arc that, to this day, I still love and some others in where Regina is the one that dies, again and again, trapped by magic while Emma watches. I have the loss in mental destruction form and… I REALLY like my angst y’know xd

7. Do you write crossovers?

Not counting Lara and Wonder Woman not really! I think it comes from the fact that I loooove worldbuilding as a whole and some pairings would require all my focus into making the world perfect which in turn would make me self conscious on the OOCness of it all.

8. Ever received hate on a fic?

*snorts* I’ve received hate due to the pairing I’ve written about, how I’ve written about it, the amount I’ve written, how slow or quick I can be, the usage of some tropes, the lack of usage of those same tropes… Let’s just go with: yuuuup.

9. Do you write smut?

I’ve written smut, yeah! But I can already see the pointed looks of some so let’s elaborate Xd I write smut when asked and sometimes when not asked but there’s a part of me I like to call a terrible tease that prefers writing the beginning of a scene, taunt it, focus on what happens before the sex scene per se as I find it more enjoyable to write. The process of escalation is always the best for me to see what can I do it by using both dialogue and descriptors tbh, so I tend to tease more than show.

9. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

A few weeks ago I’d have said: Maybe(?) But trying to follow the trail of some other fics that had been stolen from some friends -I think it was me trying to find more about the page that stole something from your Nara!- I found some pages in where my fics had been reposted. In some it was stated that the person posting the fic wasn’t the author but I had never been contacted in order to see if I’d say yes to such a thing and in some others the page was locked up but I could still see someone was pretending to be the author. I did the thing and got some of those down.

Pointed note: Ask me if you want to post or translate or anything. I will look into you and answer you if you seem honest about the thing. But despite every joke and self-deprecating comment those 500 and then some fics represent MY time so very kindly I say fuck off to those who wish to steal from me and if I catch you… you don’t really want to see me angry, trust me.

10. Ever had a fic translated?

I’ve given permission to some, yeah, but never heard it back from them so I’m guessing it didn’t stick.

12. Have you ever co-written a fic?

I’ve written series alongside other authors as @stregaomega for example. And some others that are unpublished -looking at you @carsonnieve - I’ve also done collabs… but fics co-written in the sense of two authors same chapters I don’t have anything posted I’m afraid :P

13. All-time favourite ship?

*snorts*, I guess the obvious answer is SQ uh? And I do think they were the ones that allowed me to read and write SO much. The one I feel more strongly about, however, is Bering and Wells from Warehouse 13.

14. WIP you want to finish, but don’t think you ever will?

All of them counts as a valid answer? But if I only could finish one that would be Arcadia. With A forgotten Promise second and the one I did as an Assassins Creed AU third. (I don’t remember the name so there’s no link, sorry xd)

15. Writing strengths?

Uhhhh, you REALLY want me to say that? I don’t fucking know!! To me everything I write is garbage. I always try to go for the feelings so I guess. Dunno xd I’ve been told I’m good at worldbuilding and to be honest is what I enjoy the most.

16. Writing weaknesses?

Everything Xd Pacing? What I hate the most sometimes is dialogue, I would count it as a weakness but I’m always far too focused on description rather than dialogue. I don’t think it’s a bad thing per se but it’s something that I don’t do as much.

17. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in a fic?

I’m conflicted. Always. Majorly because I think that having bilingual characters in fanfiction is portrayed and expected in a way that I don’t feel it’s honest with how bilingual people -us- talk. So if I go by what I know I do I think it’s not what readers hope to see when it comes to that and if I go for how canonically is hoped to be found I don’t think it’s logical. But that’s me and my overthinking Xd If I have the option I like to do it.

18. First fandom you ever wrote for?

Belice! Or Bella/Alice. Worst first fic ever but oh, well, I’m always saying that :P

19. What’s your fav fic you’ve written so far?

Uhh… Don’t make me do this XD Agh, I don’t know. I’ve always been very vocal about Metallic Ink because I let myself enjoy the process of creating a magic system almost out of zero and that was fun. Despite hating some of the writing process and that I’d do it differently now I think I’m going to stick with that answer. Or anything that had any steampunk-based undertone. To be honest I like more thinking of concepts, I had one in where Emma was a thief and it involved the robbery of a ring that was Regina’s one way ticket to freedom I then later repurposed that I adored thinking about so let’s go with…. Yeah, I love having the option of changing things up a little and focus on how characters would fit in different aesthetics for this one Xd

Annnd… these are four pages, gods. I’m just going to tag @waknatious @carsonnieve @stregaomega here and see what they do- Enjoy the questionnaire ladies :P

#taggie thingie #this was a monster

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