#I've been having a weird one but this healed me I think. the boys.......

[vaguely-concerned]

the way lucanis immediately and oh so innocently counters davrin's suggestion that he could make the step up to something stronger than coffee with 'like gingerwort tea?' and davrin capitulating gracefully on the spot makes me think that once davrin and rye returned from their trip (in both senses of the word) in the arlathan woods, davrin went straight to lucanis in the pantry and dropped rye directly into his lap like 'here you make some sense of your mans he's been gently giggling and making skeleton puns the whole way home. also he said something about wanting pancakes and that no one makes them right except you. and also about fifty times that you smell sooo good and your hands are nice but I'm taking that one to my fucking grave there's gotta be a limit for everything'

[baldurs-gate-official]

Omw to be the most fuckable twink in the ER

[saccharinescorpion]

i've been debating on whether to post about this but what the hell, it's relevant both to today's episode and the topic of people trying to smooth over the flaws of Dungeon Meshi characters.... so, uh, remember what i said yesterday about Laios forgetting the basics of human decency when interacting with Izutsumi

i was intially worried about people reading this scene in uhh certain ways but was thankful to see most fans were chill with it... before i realized that. uh. maybe people were being a little too chill

okay............ so,

1. for the record: i believe that it is clear from what we know about him and what we know about the entire series as a whole that, yes, Laios didn't have "untoward" intentions towards Izutsumi in this scene. there's even an aside in Izutsumi's profile in the Adventurer's Bible that says as much. he likely saw it in basically the same way Falin did when she was observing the reproductive organs of the caterpillar in that one scene. FOR THE RECORD this excuse would basically never fly in real life, but for Laios, it actually honestly makes sense... he has a habit of ignoring people's boundaries, he gets ahead of himself when it comes to learning about monsters... he didn't have bad intentions, no, but it doesn't change the fact that he's an adult man (not a [my face contorts with a great pain] "curious boy") who was being really invasive about a teenage girl's body. it was weird. it was 100% weird, lmao, i don't think fans are "lacking media literacy" by saying "uh yeah that was kind of creepy and inappropriate of Laios"

2. and i also don't think it's villifying ND people to say that. if i were to be honest, i would argue the whole "he's just a curious boy :(" thing is a lot more offensive to neurodivergent people. Laios clearly knows about the concept of bodily autonomy- he felt weird and bad about touching Marcille and Senshi in "intimate" ways just to heal them. literally one scene after this one he expresses embarassment about accidentally touching the leg of (who he thinks to be) Marcille. he very obviously possesses the capacity to understand why it would be inappropriate to observe a stranger's body like they were an animal. i can accept the explanation that his monster curiosity temporarily overpowered his "oh actually maybe i shouldn't try to get up close and person with this teenager who i literally just met," but that doesn't change that he had to be restrained from doing that. i'm not even saying he's a "bad person" or anything because of this scene- i just am baffled at the idea of fans being presented with the slightest bit of messiness (he was creepy to a young girl, however unintentionally) and jumping to try and "justify" it (he's just silly, he's socially awkward, he's autistic, he's a Curious Boy) and even mock others who rightfully point out that that was uncomfortable behavior. Laios was creepy to Izutsumi. he didn't mean to, but he did (and to be quite frank he was lucky to get off with a smack from Chilchuck and a blindfold)

3. "I would also ask" excuse me?

[strangersteddierthings]

Bad News First, Eddie

Part One 🦇 Part Two🦇Part Three🦇FInal Part

"Bad news first, Eddie," Steve sighs as he leans back on his heels, cleaner in one hand and a rag in the other. "They vandalized your headstone again. Good news, I beat Wayne out here so he won't be seeing it."

It's been over a year since they'd had to leave Eddie behind. He'd been cleared of the murders. That had been the easy part, since the Upside Down had exploded out into the Rightside Up. When Vecna started killing people it had been pretty easy for people to realize Eddie was just another victim.

Or so Steve had thought.

Eleven saved them all, the people of Hawkins knew the truth, yet Steve still found graffiti on Eddie's grave.

Eddie's grave is empty, because Eddie's body hadn't been recovered. Too much had happened, no time to mount an expedition to retrieve it, and the gates were closed. Another regret Steve lives with.

Like not taking Eddie's face between his hands and looking him dead in the eye when he told them not to be heroes.

Late at night, Steve sometimes imagines he did just that. Looked him dead in the eyes and said, "there is no shame in running, in living to see another day. Don't be a hero because I need you to be okay tomorrow."

Robin says it's not good for his mental health, these what-if scenarios, but so what?

Steve isn't sure what started it but coming out here to talk to Eddie seems to help him clear his thoughts. He always starts with the bad news, Eddie's voice in the back of his mind. Bad news first, always.

The first time Wayne had caught him out here, Wayne thought he was vandalizing. Had scared Steve half to death being yanked back violently by his upper arm. It didn't take Wayne long for his eyes to process that Steve wasn't holding paint.

"You know my boy?" Wayne always spoke in the present tense about Eddie.

"Not as well as I would have liked, sir," Steve swallowed thickly. It was the start of a friendship, of sorts. Wayne seemed happy to have someone to tell stories about Eddie to, and Steve was happy to learn about Eddie.

Months pass and Steve goes every week.

"Bad news. The new guitarist is mediocre at best. Good news. Corroded Coffin lives on and they finally got a new guitarist."

"Bad news. Robin will not shut up about Vickie. Good news. Robin got that date she wanted."

"Bad news. Wayne had an accident at the plant. Good news, he's okay. I think... this might be weird to you, but I've convinced him to move in, at least until he's healed fully so he's not alone. He's staying in the downstairs guest room. Not that you know where that is. You've never even been to my house... bad news, you've never been to my house. Good news, I really wish you had."

So it goes. Wayne Munson moves in and never moves out. Steve's parents call once, to ask if he wants the house. Steve says yes.

Shortly after, Robin takes a room upstairs. Says she gonna take a year off school before college. The Party moves their dnd games to Steve's giant dining room table. His house is always full but part of Steve feels empty.

"B-bad news," Steve forces the words out around the lump in his throat, "I found out too late. Good news, I'm bisexual. Bad news, good news? I don't know man, the news is I could have loved you. I think I do, but that's the you Wayne and the kids tell me about, so who is to say really."

So it goes.

"Bad news. They're seniors this year, Eds. Seniors! Robin going away to college was bad enough. I don't know if I'll even know how to function when they do. 'Cause they're gonna, you know? They're smart. Too smart to stay in this town," Steve is crying, can feel the tears falling, but doesn't stop them. "I know I should go, too. Somewhere else. Anywhere else. But I can't leave. Wayne's here. You're here. And if I go, who will look after either of you?"

"Bad news. College acceptance letters have come in. They're not even graduated yet. This should be good news, but, heh, friends don't lie."

"Bad news, Eds. I can't remember your voice. I didn't think.... I feel like I remember it but I can't hear it. I want to hear it. I-i need-" Steve doesn't know what he needs, doesn't know how to end that sentence so he just sobs, fingers burying themselves into the dirt of an empty grave.

Wayne gets a phone call one day and says he's gotta go back to Tennessee. Eddie's father -that rocks Steve because while he knows Wayne was Eddie's uncle, he never connected that a father was somewhere out there- Eddie's father, Wayne's younger brother, needs him.

Steve drives Wayne to the airport in Indianapolis. Wayne promises he'll return but Steve won't hold him to that. This is family, and as much as Steve pretends, he isn't Wayne's nephew. Isn't Wayne's family.

As Wayne disappears onto his flight, Steve is left hollow. There's no one left in Hawkins that needs him.

"Bad news, Eds. I think I'm a danger to myself. I keep having these thoughts... like how easy it would be to drive my car into the quarry. Or just slip into the pool and take a deep breath. I don't know who I am, or how to be me, without someone needing me."

Wayne calls and tells him he's coming home. Bringing a guest if that's ok. Steve says okay because he needs to meet the man who taught Eddie how to hot wire a car but not play catch. Also, he hopes to hear Eddie in his voice when they speak.

"Bad news, Eds. I'm too much of a coward to meet your old man. Afraid of what he'll sound like. Because I want him to sound like you so fucking bad it hurts. So instead of being home, I'm hiding here."

And then, a miracle happens.

"Well, I've some bad news for you, too, Stevie. I got my voice from my mom."

[clairegregoryau]

Through the Looking Glass

From fairytale in Season 1 to stark reality in Season 2 of Our Flag Means Death- meta ported across from this Twitter thread by popular demand!

This thread contains spoilers for the entirety of OFMD Season 2

First OFMD S1 rewatch since S2, and holy shit, if you haven't done that yet... do that. A thing that it made instantly clear: they told us *all along* where this was going, but there was a reason we didn't see it. Because we were living in Stede's world then. Now it's Ed's.

I know that a lot of us have felt that the tone shift at the end of S2 was... jarring, compared to what's come before. This felt like a show that wouldn't go there. One where being run through was a temporary hiccup. We've travelled all the way from this to this.

But we haven't jumped there without a journey in between. And from the minute we started hearing about Blackbeard, the show never tried to hide what Ed's world and his specific life was like. Not once. In fact they told us over and over and over.

But Season 1 told us a lot of those things through song and story and fuckery. It blended reality with fiction.

Stede met the Blackbeard he knew through books and tall tales, and the real man was even more wonderful than he'd imagined.

We, along with Stede, were comfortable thinking that all those other tales were exaggerations and misrepresentations, and a lot of them very likely were.

The Ed Stede got to know was a person who was capable of whimsy and silliness and loved soft things and doing something weird. Yep, he was also capable of violence and rage, but when he was with Stede, he didn't feel it so much.

This was a vacation from that life.

To Stede he was absolutely lovely... oh, and also a bloodthirsty killer. And Stede loved (and loves) everything about him, and both of those things can be true. This is a perfect example of a spot where (in watching Season 1 without the benefit of hindsight) I assumed that everyone else in that pub was wrong, and Stede was simply trying to protect Ed's fearsome reputation by agreeing on the bloodthirsty bits. And I think from Stede's perspective that was largely true. I think that's how they wanted us to see Ed, through his eyes. Now, after watching both seasons, I think it wasn't the whole picture.

They told us, we heard it, we saw glimpses of it. But we (and Ed) were in Stede's run-away-to-sea fairytale the whole time. It wasn't until Stede left that we saw the reality- the Ed we knew had been, to a degree, a fictional character all along. I always saw this scene as Ed putting a bit of distance between himself and reality; it always felt like the Blackbeard of Stede's storybooks was the fictional one. But now it feels like the softer Ed that Stede knew was much the same- neither of them the whole story of who Ed was and is.

The one person who refused to live in Stede's fairytale was Izzy. I've seen people say it before, but he always gave off that vibe of the only human in the Muppets movie, or the guy who was in Black Sails while everyone else was in Pirates of the Caribbean. He saw the real risks clearly.

And in that light, the end of S1 has shifted an inch to the left for me, and I'm seeing it at a slightly different angle.

Izzy ripped away the healing Ed was doing, but in some respects he did it by tearing away the fairytale we'd all been living in, shoving Ed back into the Blackbeard story.

And that's where we pick up again in Season 2.

The fairytale reference came back in S2 in two notable places, those being Jim carrying that legacy forward in the darkest times, and in Izzy invoking the wooden boy against Ricky's efforts. Stede's made himself into a real boy. Ricky, nope.

Now that I've watched both seasons together, the tone shift doesn't feel so jarring at all, actually.

It feels like sliding through the looking glass, out of Stede's world, and into Ed's- a world that existed all along; we were just seeing it, la vie en rose, through Stede's eyes.

At the beginning of S2, Stede's gone, and we're seeing it unfiltered through Ed's reality.

But Stede wasn't lying when he said he loved everything about Ed. He made a promise to come back and find him- he went down into Ed's darkest place and reminded him that no matter how bad things got, there WAS someone waiting for him, ready to love him.

The contrast between S1's fantasy and S2's reality (excluding mermaids and actual bird guys and cursed coats) is stark, but it really is that.

We have the same settings, the same people, and very different ideas and outcomes at different times.

But it was always there.

Things do come back to a state of (precarious) balance once they're all together. Apologies are made, whether they're spoken out loud or through actions. Things go right, things go wrong. Healing happens. Izzy continues to have the steadiest, most real through-line in the story as he tracks toward redemption, finds acceptance, and to an extent finds himself.

Once again, I hate that they went here with the ending and I wish they hadn't. But it got a fraction easier for me looking at it not as a continuation of Stede's fairytale, but of the grounded-in-pirate-reality arc Izzy was always on, even while we lived in Stede's world.

Where does that leave us? We're not going back to the fairytale, but we're not going to be living in Black Sails for S3, either. We've hit a fusion point where S1 ended with each of them going to separate, miserable homes, but S2 ended with them in the same place, ready and willing to make a go of it.

Season 3 is going to give us their world, together.

I LOVED the moments in this season where the deep emotions were in balance with the silliness I've always adored about this show. Eps4-6 were wonderful like that. Clearly we're not done with drama, either, but like Ed and Stede, I think we'll find a middle ground.

Anyway in conclusion, a rewatch of S1 after S2 somehow made me love the first season even more, which felt impossible? It's now gained /even more/ layers of depth than it had before. No matter how you feel about S2 I think it's worth that rewatch.

Adding one more bit of clarity for myself: I think we got a bit (intentionally) seduced in S1 by the idea that the Ed of the storybooks, the Vampire Viking Clown with the nine guns, was a version of him that others saw, when Stede saw the REAL person who 'worked' for Blackbeard.

In hindsight I think it's clear the Ed Stede go to know was also not the complete version of himself- the reality is, there's a whole spectrum between the two, and they've landed in the middle of it now. Ed intentionally leaned into the unlovable Kraken image to protect himself.

It very much didn't work, just like being just... Edward hadn't worked to protect himself, either. This season has been very much about pulling those two extremes together and finding all the parts that make up Ed overall (another thread on that here on Twitter, which I'll also shift across to Tumblr soon!)

And I think one of my favourite things in S2 has been seeing the way Stede SEES that- he knows what Ed's done, everyone's told him, but he still loves Ed. sees his trauma and how it affects him, and believes he's a good man regardless. He IS lovable; he's not forever broken.

And together, they can heal.

[on-a-lucky-tide]

Ok so, I love all the shorts you post on here, you are building up a background of Competent Officer but Emotionally Stunted Price and Emotionally Intelligent and Badass Nik. Cool, fabulous.

But I've got to ask; what is Nik's sore spot?

With the extra decade it does make sense that he is more sure of himself and his relationships generally but you did touch on it with the body image/food one and mentioned it in passing with the how they met bit. Does the age gap get to him sometimes? All the loud machines (and guns) is he worried about his hearing going?

Or, his English is pretty good but does he sometimes get lost with fast speakers/strong accents?

What about something more silly? Is he fine with spiders but gets freaked out by daddy long legs (like me)? Is he wildly afraid of moths? Is he fine with big injuries but if he get a papercut is it the end of the world? Does he suffer terribly from Man Flu?

On a more domestic note, what irritates Price about him? I mean, no one is perfect right?

Does he always leave the bathroom in a state? Do all the broken noses mean he snores like a bear with a head cold (admittedly that might apply to Price as well)? Is he like my Dad and has very strong opinions on adverts and regularly go on rants about how the ad has nothing to do with the product? Does he like Marmite and Price hates it (or vice versa)?

Some excellent questions. I think Nik's weaknesses or vulnerabilities are tied up with his strengths, which I know sounds weird, but hear me out:

- This man is mad intelligent. He speaks eight languages, he canonically can fly pretty much anything (from what I've seen). He was significant enough in knowledge and skills for MI6 to go for him twice. Weakness: his intelligence can sometimes make him coldly logical. Look at how he didn't even blink twice at terrifying Butcher's family; I think that feeds well into Price's ruthlessness. He cares deeply about those he loves, but if you're not "his"? He won't even blink when pulling the trigger if it will help meet his goals.

- Linked to the above, he values his physical strength and his intellect. They make him worth something and he doesn't feel he has any intrinsic worth just as Nik. (Overbearing and demanding Soviet General father made it clear Nik needed to earn his place in the world.) If he feels they are declining or lessening, this is going to throw him through a loop. Big time. (Well noted from the food ficlet.)

- I think he was hugely, perhaps even suicidally, depressed when he turned informant. That conflict of loyalty and morality would have been difficult for his mind to process. I think that explains his apparently unflinching loyalty to Price and Laswell. In his eyes, they saved his life by giving him a purpose. (Nik you stupid fuck you literally set up Chimera and you're a hugely wealthy arms dealer off your own back wtf mate.) Nik never really had time to heal from that, he papered over it and got on with the job. I think as he settles down with Price, he will need to go to therapy. A lot of it.

- He is untidy (not unclean) at home. Laundry on the floor by the basket, never puts books away, gets fixated on a project at the expense of other things. It's like he left the military and his psyche rebelled against the bits he hated the most. Price can't compute how he can be so clinical at work and yet a complete clusterfuck at home. The garage is full of vehicles and appliances he disassembled and never put back together. Man's lucky he's dynamite in bed.

Nik is a "good" man in so far as he can be in a morally grey position. I write him with Price, through Price's lens, so we see "hero protagonist Nik" because that's who he is to/with Price. However, I do have a little ficlet tucked away when a jealous Ghost confronts him in Paris, and he tells Ghost, "If you take a shot, boy, you better not miss, because it will not happen again", and Ghost realises just why Price chose this man as his life partner. He's exactly the same level of ruthless.

[petrichor-idyllic]

Hi Petri <3, so this request is a bit longer than the other's so bear with me (and my broken English lol). I was thinking about a Minho x fem!reader where she's from maze B and is close friends with Aris, so she's with him in the whole cafeteria scene where he gets introduced (while the boys are excited about the food, beds, girls and etc. and Thomas is having a bad feeling about that place). She's more positive about being there than Aris cause they been through a lot and she just want a little rest, but when she sees what that place really is she's terrified and is willing to do everything to get out, so Minho sees this fire in her and kinda likes it. (I don't know if it made any sense 😬, but I trust you to make a good fic out of it)

Oo, I do like more plot-driven requests like this, they give me more to work with :))

DECEPTION IN LIBERATION

MASTERLIST | MINHO MASTERLIST

SUMMARY: See above. Movie based fic.

WARNINGS: Inappropriate language, violence, teenage boys still not knowing how to act in the presence of a girl, WICKED spelt WCKD because movies, Rat Man aka Janson, probably innacurate Group B slang thanks to Wikipedia.

Just 'cause you wouldn't know the characters' names doesn't mean I don't, so the Gladers' names are used before you meet them. Because there is no way this would work if I couldn't use their names.

You'd escaped the Maze.

Finally, after all this time, you'd escaped, and now you were safe. The years of torture and stress are now behind you and you can finally start to heal.

Your friends are safe. You're safe. And so are an entire group of teenagers who apparently went through the same things you did. WCKD definitely had big plans, but that doesn't matter anymore.

It's over.

At least that's what you think.

You playfully nudge Aris. The measly boy sits next to you, hoodie hiding his face as he stares at the table in front of you. You guys escaped the Maze first, meaning that you were the first to arrive. They keep taking people away; Aris' best friend Rachel was one of the first.

And he's been distant ever since.

You've been keeping an eye on him. Though, it is hard trying to spend time with the boy when he barely speaks nowadays.

You nudge him again. "C'mon, Aris, you've been avoiding us for-finching-ever." He scoffs, shaking his head. "What's goin' on?"

"You won't listen to me, so what does it matter?" You sigh, shuffling slightly and swinging your leg over one side of the bench to look him at him straight.

"Of course I'll listen to you. What's going on?"

From a few feet away, the Gladers have started talking to boys from other groups, and have taken note of Aris.

And therefore, you too.

"Who's the girl he's with?" Minho ask the unknown boy, eyes fixation on you.

The boys shrugs. "Just some chick he was in the Maze with."

"Lucky shank," Frypan chuckles.

Thomas, however, takes note of Aris. He's not like the other people that are sitting around and chatting. He's reserved, sunk low into the table and not even looking at you as his hood hides him.

"Aris," his eyes flicker to you, "I'm always gonna listen to you- talk to me."

He hesitates but takes a deep breath. "There's something wrong here," he mumbles, his voice barely a whisper.

"What do you mean?"

"Something is going on- the Guard's are armed, our friends keep getting taken away, and..."

"And?" You push him to continue and he shuffles closer.

"Don't tell anyone, please."

You start to feel anxious. This is getting weird. "Okay."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"At night, I've been sneaking through the vent tunnels-"

"What?" You hiss. "That's so dangerous."

"I know, I know- but they go all over the building, a-and they take people into this... room that I can't get into. There's something weird going on. I know it sounds weird and you won't believe me, but-"

"I believe you," you trust Aris, and he's smart, so if he thinks something isn't quite right, then chances are something isn't quite right. "But what do we do?"

"Teresa!" Both of you perk up as you watch Thomas, who you're yet to know, stand up from his table, marching over to the doors to try and follow a girl behind some windows.

He's quickly stopped by some guards, but he's clearly agitated.

"Maybe he could help?" You blink at Aris. "We need all the help we can get. I'll show him what I mean- you too."

○ ○ ○

If you knew when you'd escaped the Maze that you'd end up stuck in another round of twisting and confusing corridors in the form of the vent system, you might've actually killed someone.

Aris, on the other hand, seems happily at home as he crawls around the tight spaces.

You're awkwardly crouching around the corner whilst Aris goes to get this Thomas kid.

After a few seconds, your friend reemerges, with the boy hot on his heels. He blinks at you and you give an awkward peace sign before Aris hurries him along.

"Come on."

You both follow him through the vent system, Thomas in front of you.

"Hey, wait a second." Thomas grumbles, clearly questioning how he gets himself on these situations. "What the hell are we doing?"

"Come on, we're gonna miss it," Aris says.

"Sorry," you answer instead, "he thinks you might be able to help- he reckons something weird's goin' on here. I don't really know."

You crawl into a more open area- even you don't really know what's going on.

"What are we doing?" Thomas asks again and it's kind of funny that he even came in the first place.

"Shh. Come here," Aris waves you both over. You both hover over an open-ish vent that looks down over a corridor.

One of the doctors appears, following by a strange trolley that seems to have a person in a body bag with a screen over the face. The screen shows vitals and other medical information, making you and Thomas exchange concerned glances.

"What the hell was that?" Thomas asks for the both of you.

"They bring in new ones every night like clockwork." Aris answers.

"What do they do with them?" You ask, even though you probably already know the answer.

"I don't know. This is as far as I've ever gotten. The vents don't even go into that section. But once they go through that door, they don't come back out." Aris pauses, visibly shaken. "I don't think anyone ever really leaves this place."

"C'mon," you say, "we gotta go before someone notices we're gone."

"Why'd you show me this?" Thomas asks, stopping you both.

"Because maybe the others will listen to you. There's something weird going on here- I know you think so too."

"Hey, wait," you stop again, "what's your names?"

"Aris," your friend answers, "and this is (Y/N)."

And with that, your friend crawls ahead.

"You're Thomas, right?" He blinks at you. "I heard some of your friends say it in the cafeteria."

He nods, and you offer him a reassuring smile. "It's nice to meet you, Thomas."

○ ○ ○

Janson reads out more names of people as you sit in the dining area. Apparently, Aris and Thomas spoke briefly earlier- they have some kind of plan regarding a key card.

You're, quite frankly, scared to watch.

Thomas has told the members from Group A what he saw, they seem skeptical at best. But, they seem to be a strong group and with most of Group B gone, you have little choice but to hope Thomas can convince them.

Thomas suddenly stands up, storming towards the doors and trying to blend in with the people's whose names were called.

He's stopped fairly quickly.

You can't quite make out what's going on, but when a guard sharply points into Thomas' chest, you're already on your feet.

"(Y/N)-" Aris hisses, but the plan isn't going to work if Thomas gets himself in trouble. You can't let this go south.

Thomas pretends to walk away, before turning and diving into the guard. All of the Gladers are on their feet in seconds, jumping to Thomas' defence.

"What the hell's your problem, man?" Thomas shouts as he gets shoved again and you dive in.

Pushing the guy back, you stand protectively in front of the boy. "Back the fuck off, man- you think shoving a kid around makes you tough?"

The boys exchange glances.

Who is this girl? Where did she come from? How come she's helping Thomas? Why does Thomas get all the girls? What is happening?"

"Control your friend!" The guard yells just as Janson bursts through them.

"What's happening here?" Janson seems lost for a second as he looks at the boy. "Thomas? I thought we could trust each other." He touches the boys shoulder and you go to step forward again, only for Thomas to slightly put his arm out, stopping you from intervening.

"You know we're all on the same team here."

"Are we?" Thomas asks.

Janson seems irritated by this and you ball your fists. You could punch this guy and give the Gladers an easy distraction- it would give them and Aris time.

You think about it until a hand grabs your wrist. You look up and meet the eyes of an Asian boy. He's tall, tanned skin and dark, swept up hair. He's handsome, but something in his dark eyes is telling you to stop.

And for some reason, you do. Relaxing your muscles, but returning your attention to Janson- Minho doesn't let go.

"Get them to their bunks."

In a matter of seconds, you're all separated. You just about manage to get to Aris before going to your separate rooms- agreeing to meet at Thomas' vent.

You can hear bickering as you approach, just catching Aris before he knocks down the vent.

"Hey, Thomas," he says casually.

"What the...?" You catch from one of the boys.

"You got it, didn't you?"

"Yeah, yeah, let's go. Where's your friend?"

"Right here!" Your voice echos on the metal from behind Aris. "Getting real finchin' sick of crawlin' around, though."

"Alright, maybe you guys are right," Thomas says to his friends, "maybe I'm just paranoid. But I gotta find out for sure. Just cover for me, I'll be back as soon as I can."

Making the same trip as last time, Aris and Thomas jump down out of the vent, with you staying up there to help them get back up again and keep watch.

You anxiously crouch, watching as you wait for the boys to return.

"C'mon, guys," you mumble to yourself, fiddling with the hem of your shirt.

What feels like hours passes, but it couldn't have been more than five minutes, when Thomas and Aris burst out of the room. Both of them are clearly worked up.

You open the vent. "C'mon!" Offering a hand, they struggle back up, but eventually they join you again. "What happened?"

"We gotta go," is all Thomas says, "we gotta go!"

The boys are rapid at getting through the vents, Thomas bursting into his friends room. He, quite literally, throws the vent cover across the room.

"Thomas!" Someone shouts as he frantically scrambles into the room.

"We gotta go! We gotta go right now!" Thomas says as you and Aris both struggle out of the vent, still yet to have an explanation from either of them.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Minho, whose name you're yet to learn, asks.

"What do you mean 'we gotta go'?" Newt adds on, all of the boys in a frenzy.

"They're coming! Come on! We gotta go!"

"Thomas! What's going on?" You try to grab him but he brushes past you, grabbing things and starting to try and block the door.

You look at Aris, who is completely shook to the core so there's no getting anything out of him.

"What happened?" Frypan yells. "Aris, what happened?" He shouts at the timid boy, getting too close.

"Don't shout at him!" You pull him away. "He's terrified! He ain't gonna tell you klank!"

"Thomas! Can you just calm down and talk to us!" Newt begs, the whole room in a frenzy.

"She's still alive!" Thomas says.

That's ominous.

"Who's she? Teresa?" Frypan asks.

"Who the finch is Teresa?" You ask.

"Ava." Thomas is blunt now.

"Ava?" Newt repeats, watching his friend desperately try and tie the door shut. "Will you just turn around and talk to us?"

"It's WCKD!" Thomas snaps, turning around to face you all. The group freezes. "It's still WCKD. It's always been WCKD."

"Shit," scrambling to help, Thomas seems almost relieved that someone else is doing something as you help him move a mattress to block the door.

"Thomas," Newt stops him. "What did you see?"

Thomas gives a very vague explantion- a video call with Ava Paige and bodies strung up and being tested on.

That's all you guys need to start your escape.

"Come on, let's go!" You usher all the boys towards the vent, letting them go before you.

The Asian boy from before is last, hesitating for a second.

"Ladies first?" He says.

"Minho!" Someone from inside the vent shouts. "Not the shuckin' time, man!"

"Go," you tell him and he obeys. At least you know his name now.

Thomas somehow ends up leading the way as you all try to fight through the crawl space.

He breaks out into a corridor you don't recognise, the rest of you hot on his heels.

"Come on! Come on!" He ushers you towards him. "Okay, okay, let's go!"

"You guys go ahead, there's something I gotta do," Aris states and you look at him.

"What are you talking about?" Thomas steps towards him.

"Trust me, it's important. You guys wanna get outta here, right? Just go."

"I'll go with him," one boy offers.

"Okay, Winston, go! Go!" Thomas takes charge, and you learn another boy's name. "Come on!"

You hesitate, watching Aris start to take off, you go to follow him but Thomas grabs you. "You're with us, okay? Stay close."

You're reluctant, but you nod.

"You sure we can trust this kid?" Minho asks.

"You don't wanna know where we'd be without him," you're glad to hear that Thomas has faith in your friend.

You turn a corner, immediately bumping into the same doctor you saw earlier. You all freeze.

"What are you kids doing out?" She asks.

Then the sirens start blaring.

Which is enough of a hint, I suppose.

"Move," you demand, stepping forward and grabbing the doctor. She struggles, but you grab her wrist, twisting it behind her back and pushing her in front of you. "You're gonna show us how to get outta here."

The boys exchange looks once again. But, Minho smirks- he almost impressed at this point.

"Let's move."

The group starts the make their way down the halls.

"We gotta get Teresa." Thomas states.

"Who?" You question him. "Who is that?"

"A friend."

"A friend? Seriously? We- oh, finch it, I don't know who any of you guys are either."

"I'm Newt, if that helps." The blond says.

"Frypan."

You look at him. "You're called Frypan?"

"I'm-"

"Yes, I know who you are, Minho."

Rounding another corner, you're almost immediately met by gunshot. You're quick to retreat, letting go of Dr Crawford as she also ducks for cover.

"They're shooting at us!"

"No shit!"

You back away, running in the other direction when Minho suddenly stops.

"Minho!" Thomas yells. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Minho!" You yell as the boy starts charging in the direction of the shooter.

Just as he rounds the corner, Minho jumps, kneeing the guy in the chest and causing him to crash into the wall, knocking him out cold.

All of you, including Crawford, run over, staring at the guy on the floor in some kind of awe.

"Shit, Minho," Newt says and you snort.

"Not bad, stick," you grin at him, watching as he smiles himself, "not bad at all."

Thomas grabs the Launcher, using it to direct the doctor as you make your way to this girl you don't know.

"Dr. Crawford," a scientist says as you force her to pretend to open the door, only for Thomas to follow her and everyone go into a panic.

"Where is she? Where is she!" Thomas is pointing the gun at anyone and everyone as they put their hands on their heads.

He passes the gun to Minho as he rips away a curtain, revealing a girl.

"Get down!" Minho yells. "Get down, now!"

The scientists and doctors all get on the ground as Newt starts tying their hands together to deem them less of a threat.

"You're never gonna get away with this!" Doctor Crawford threatens.

"Yeah?" You scoff. "Watch us."

"Guys!" Frypan, who's watching the door shouts. "They're coming! Where do we go?!"

"Frypan! Move!" Newt pushes over a medical table, shoving it in front of the door just as it's nearly forced open.

"Get back!" Minho grabs your wrist, pulling you behind him along with his friends. "Get back!" He points the gun at the door, keeping you all protected. "Okay! We gotta get outta here! Where do we go?"

"Everybody stand back!" Thomas yells, picking up a chair and slamming it against the glass window, only for it to bounce off. "Newt! Help! Help!"

The boy grabs another chair. "Ready?"

At the same time, they smash the glass, sending shards scattering everywhere as you use your hand to shield your face.

"Go! Go! Go!"

It's a blur of action and yelling as you all try to climb out of the window.

"Hurry! Go!" Minho yells, lingering back before tossing the Launcher to Thomas and jumping over himself.

"Stay behind me," Thomas instructs you all as he opens the door, revealing another Guard.

Which he immediately shoots.

In a burst of sparks and electricity, the man hits the floor, his body seizing and twitching uncontrollably.

You're stunned for a second, but you recollect fairly quickly. Running past the guy, all of you break into a sprint, eager to escape as you near the exit.

"There it is!" Reaching the door, Thomas tries the key card, which denies access.

"Shit! Come on!" Thomas begs. "No, no, no!"

"Thomas!" You spin to see Janson making his way down the corridor. Handing you the key card, he raises his weapon, walking towards them.

"Open the door, Janson!" He yells.

"You really don't want me to."

"Open the damn door!"

"Listen to me!" The Rat Man snaps. "I'm trying to save your life. The Maze is one thing, but you kids won't last a day out in the Scorch. If the elements don't kill you, the Cranks will. Thomas, you have to believe me. I only want what's best for you."

"Yeah, let me guess, WCKD is good?"

Whilst this exchange is going down, you're desperately trying to open the door. Both Newt and Minho stand by your sides, pushing and grabbing at the door to see if that does anything.

"You're not getting through that door, Thomas."

As if the Gods themselves were listening, the key pan suddenly lights up green. Whirring as it rises, it reveals Aris and Winston standing there.

"Hey, guys," Aris says and relief washes over you.

"You crazy bastard," you laugh. "Come on!"

"Thomas! Come on! Let's go!" Newt yells.

Thomas starts shooting, the amo quickly running out, so he launches the weapon towards them.

Janson barks orders down his radio and the door starts to quick close.

You all start to yell words of encouragement, pushing Thomas as he starts to bolt towards the door. He hits the floor, sliding aross the mouth surface as he slips under it.

"Move! Move!" Aris slams a pipe into the pad, breaking it as the rest of you grab as many supplies from nearby as possible.

You're in some kind of warehouse area, all of you sprinting towards another set of giant doors; WCKD personnel flooding from all areas.

You reach them first, pulling on a handle and having to cover your face from flying sand as they open.

Running out into the desert, all you can do is tell each other to keep moving, and that you'll lose them in the storm. It's dark and windy and hard to run.

Following the girl, she finds a building buried in the sand, and you're the first to following as you slip into the shelter.

Eventually, you all have a moment to catch your breaths, using a flashlight to illuminate your new surroundings.

You're too busy examining to listen to Thomas' full explanation and the Gladers' arguing.

Eventually, they come up with some plan to find the Right Arm and you find footsteps.

You start moving, deciding to stay close to Minho because he has the best light source.

"You were pretty good back there," you attempt to make some light-hearted conversation since you just risked your life with this kid.

"Yeah? You weren't so bad yourself." You chuckle, accepting his compliment. "I, uh, I never caught your name."

"What? Tommy-boy didn't tell you?" You raise an eyebrow and Minho shakes his head.

Even in the dark, it's easy to see how attractive the boy is. He's well built and effortlessly charming. And impressive from the stunts he pulled before.

You might just develop a crush on this kid.

"(Y/N)."

He hums in response. "I like it; (Y/N), really rolls off the tongue."

You roll your eyes, but hearing him say your name does make you feel a typa way.

The feeling is mutual, too. Bold and quick-thinking, but also caring and easy to talk to. Not to mention you're easily the most attractive girl Minho has seen (which isn't many but that's not the point.)

"Minho! Quit flirting with the new girl and give us a hand!" Newt shouts, making you try to repress a smirk.

"I wasn't flirting!" Even in the dim light, you can see Minho's reddened expression.

"Sure, you weren't!"

Confident and smooth, but easily flustered.

Good to know.

He turns to you. "I wasn't flirting."

You grin. "Uh-huh."

He opens his mouth to say something, but nothing comes out and he ends up looking like a fish out of water.

You snort. "Yanno, you can flirt with me, if ya want to. I don't mind." You playfully wink at him, unsure if he can even see it before you jog off, catching up to your friend.

He watches as you throw an arm over Aris' shoulder before he puts an arm around your back.

Minho stands there, grinning like the Cheshire Cat before dropping his head and shaking it to himself.

"Okay, lover boy, c'mon," Thomas says, having watched the whole exchange, "you're with me."

"Shut up, shank," Minho playfully pushes his friend, "don't you wanna be with your girlfriend, anyway?"

"I should be asking you that." Minho rolls his eyes.

But he smirks.

Yeah, okay, maybe he likes you. After all, you can't really nearly die with a hot girl without catching feelings, can you?

Okay, so, not quite as good as some of my other pieces and there's barely any romance, but that tends to happen with my pieces that I have to pull the movie up for lol.

Maybe a part 2 is in order again? Well, you guys will have to let me know about that.

I hope you enjoyed :))

[peaceloveandstarrs]

2024 was.... something. Here goes... VERY long post b/c this year was A LOT. But in about 9 hours it'll be in the past! so!

I had the worst work year I've had; it was my first as a lead, a brand new curriculum, and assistants who were hard to open up to. And my boss was telling me it was on me to open up to them. Not quite right. They needed to open up to me too. They ended up leaving, and now I've got one of my good friends working with me, she's a huge help. I had a lot of struggles with constructive criticism - my brain takes it as SEE YOU AREN'T GOOD ENOUGH... definitely still working on that too. People at work want to help me, not put me down. I'm still building my confidence there, but I will get there!

Personally - I still dealt with a lot of the anxiety. I had a massive falling out with my former best friend, Cherry. And yes, it was my fault. I know I'll never get to apologize, but my biggest task here is forgiving myself. What I did was a product of being unhealed; now I know better. I still miss her sometimes, but I know I'll be okay. Something that happened caused me to fall out with Mel, but luckily we've been able to rekindle and now things are stronger than ever. Forgive and forget. I'm so happy to have her back in my life - she's one of my biggest cheerleaders!!! I love you! I also strengthened friendships with Bridge (I dunno your real name), Renee, and made new friends! I'm working on coming out of my shell... I'm not nearly as bad as my anxiety makes me out to be.

And with Matt, things are amazing <3 we're both taking steps towards getting ready for the next chapter... so one day in 2025 you might see me post a ring!!! ;) he's my biggest offline supporter, and I wonder every day how I got lucky enough to find him. I love him dearly and I can't wait to see where life takes us in 2025.

Healing... whoa boy has this been a downhill rollercoaster lately! In the good way! I'm becoming more accepting of myself and all my weirdness, enjoying my hobbies more and more, and changing how I see myself. I'm trying to treat myself more compassionately when I mess up or get into my head - this is hard work, I didn't get these mindsets in a day, I won't reverse them in a day!! I truly think this new obsession with Bob Dylan helped - it refreshed me, gave me some new energy that I hadn't gotten in a long time.

sooo here are some thanks

@lil-melody-moon where do i begin!!! I'm super grateful that I chose to reunite w/you, we're quite the team! lol thank you for encouraging all my weirdness and thirst and obsessions. I can't wait to see what the next bout of teasing will be... mwah! thank you for all of your love and support.

@good-to-drive you are amazing and i'm so grateful for your friendship and understanding. i don't know how i would have gotten through some of the hard times during the fallout with my other friend without your support. thank you for all your saraniverse help, for the personal help, and for encouraging this new obsession ha! i can't wait to hear more about your research :D

@johangeorghohman you found me during a very dark time, and i'm happy that you stuck around now that i'm doing better! thank you fr all of your kindness and for listening to my insane ramblings lol!

@djbead123 and @androidxmutt yall are awesome! i know we haven't been friends that long, but i'm looking forward to continuing into 2025! (and i can't wait to see that drawing!)

@knoxoverstreet16 i'm glad i messaged you! you're fun to talk to, and i love seeing little pics from your tours and stuff! :D

@rufusrant thank you for being my starrison friend ^_^ and for not giving up on me when i wasn't as healed as i am now (so i wasn't making the best choices, friend and conversation wise). i do wanna write that story!

@i-am-the-oyster and @s-l-martin thank you for being so encouraging when it comes to how shy i am on discord... i'm getting out of that slowly but surely!

finally but not least @bridgeoverstrawberryfields i know things are tough for you right now, but i just wanted to extend some love and care. you've been a wonderful friend all this year, and i thank you from the bottom of my heart. and i'm here whenever you're ready <3

[emperor-of-blood]

Next up is Laios!

The leader of our somewhat intrepid heroes! Laois is best known for his love of monsters. It'd be a lie by omission to leave out his autism. It's quite apparent not just in his monster obsession, but in his social life and peculiarities with different sensations. But it's most obvious in his special interest; which makes sense as that just so happens to be at the forefront of the story. It's why the story is even able to happen. What would've happened if Laios didn't know all he did about monsters? Or frankly, if he just wasn't eager to try eating them?

More secondary information about Laios, funny as this is to say, is that he's one of the front liners for the party. He's courageous and tough. He's versatile and quick-witted. He's resourceful-

And he's kind.

So, with that out of the way:

Laios is....

A Knight Of Light!

One who exploits [Light]/protects with [Light]

Listen. It's not my fault that all of these knights keep getting a knight class!

Perhaps the first thing I want to talk about here and to remind everyone about, is that Knights exist in sessions void of their aspect. Tbh sometimes I think I should probably try to work that into my little descriptor above at some point; and then I remember it sort of is already. That's the in the "exploit" part. The Knight gets a lot out of a little. How this exists in Dungeon Meshi, is that nobody is really taking advantage of the dungeon as it exists. Laios sees it for what it is, and because of that, our heroes are able to progress through the dungeon despite not having a penny to their name. Part of it fr me too is that when Laios loses his sword he picks up another one that a lot of people would refuse, or at least kill the monster inside it first. And Laios's insistence not to proves a boon! Also, probably the fault of Dave, but whenever I think about how a Knight should work I always look right to their weapon. How do they get the most they can out of this by exploiting their aspect? Kensuke is a great answer to me.

Would Senshi have even joined their party if not for Laios? ... Probably not? But more likely is that no one else would've let him join their party. Which I guess we do know to be true as he'd been living in the dungeon alone for years. Senshi really was a diamond in the rough and I don't think I can understate that. He's just weird. That's really the only " bad " thing about him; and Our Boy Laios here of course sees that as a positive! Laios learning healing magic lets Marcille shine. Despite a lot of people in the story really not liking Chilchuk, Laios wants him in the party and lets him work as he sees fit. I can't think of a boss I've had that would've been fine in the same scenario. And you know what? It lets Chilchuk thrive! He turns out to not just be great at what he can do but also puts his best foot forward even when he doesn't want to do things. He's always emphasizing his role as a noncombatant, which Laios takes in stride, but when push comes to shove he's throwing a dagger into the eye of a Red Dragon. He could've ran!

Now you might be thinking: "Gee, this sounds an awful lot like a Blood player or maybe a Hope player."

And- well, you're not wrong exactly. There's an argument to be made for each of those. But I want to ask you: "What is Dungeon Meshi really about?" To me, it's about the deconstruction of the dungeon. What actually is a dungeon? Is it really just a setting that only exists when our heroes are inside? How does it function? What happens to all of the monsters after the adventurers leave? Where does the treasure come from? Why are the monsters the way that they are? What happens to the traps after they've been sprung?

These sorts of questions have been largely ignored or hand-waved by storytellers and dungeon masters for years and years. And that's ok. But it doesn't mean you have to do that. As we can see, there are so many wonderful answers to be found here!

And really, who better to explore all of this than Laois?

[fanficfish]

some random hetalia thoughts about the countries

mostly headcanons and character studies i guess. probably canon but who knows i'm too sleepy to go check. i'm gonna ramble and maybe it'll maek sense i don't know. Someoen tag me if they get anything idea worthy out of this.

link the inspired post: https://www.reddit.com/r/hetalia/comments/1eqt7ek/after_all_these_years_im_gonna_say_it_i_did_not/

I've seen a little talk about how England leaving America on his own for so long messed him up a little (thank you reddit user who go that talk going). So i wanted to think about some of Englands' other colonies and stuff i guess?

so like we have America. I still stand he's probably like, Jamestown or something and over time he became the main US rep, like how the UK has the four brothers (five? Six with Sealand) but England represents them at meetings. Or Japan reps all of Japan instead of like a couple dozen prefectures showing up. That kind of thing. And like that guy's a little messed up. In earlier parts ofhis story, he's shown to just be really explorative, stil strong tho, but mostly jsut a nice sweet kid who happens to have three teenagers fighting over him. Seriously couldn't they share? Oh wait it's hetalia no they can't XD

anyways, it's only wlater once America is firmly under British rule that he starts growing the yelling and loudness. I think that's like the sign hhat he wants a little attention f rom England- like, he's shown to just be a guy when it's Canada when they're kids but england gets the "SHOVE FOOD IN MY PIEHOLE" treatment. And I think that's just because England keeps leaving and coming back but sometimes he just ignores the kids and does his own thing for a long time. Canada ends up letting America take the lead for them. And then later on once all is said and done America revels in his big parties and whatnot because the attention is on him, and it won't heal the hrut of England just leaving all the time but it sorta helps. (Canada doesn't count they're basically joined at the hip it's not the same).

and if you compare it to like the Italies for example. Austria was still there to watch over Italy North even though he really went for the uh. Less optimal route. But he was till there, in his own way. Prussia definitely wasn't going to leave HRE and later Germany alone unless he absolutely had to. Spain didn't jsut go gallivanting around when Romano was there (no comment onhis other former colonies). Ofc you could make an argument for Iceland, but by the time Norway took over he'd been alone mostly for 300 years, and even if Norway and Denmark didn't exactly visit all the time because i headcanon Iceland stayed happily on his island 90% of the time like Aland and Faroe Islands to avoid the drama called "four nordics pretending they could get along under one roof when they definitely are not good rooommate compatable", I doubt he was entirely without parental guidance. Norway could always sense him (so themoment anything bighappened Norway would be marching right over), and Iceland mentions sending letters out. I'm jsut gonna guess he sent the letters via Mr. Puffin, and I'd guess Mr. Puffin could always deliver some words if needed from overseas. Iceland also apparantly has fairies at his house so there's that too. Not thet he'd admit it.

But if you notice, it's def circumstance that gives some character which is cool when we're talkign about stereotype-based characters. Ameriica becomes loud and "ignores" the room when he's given the stage, because if he outrages everyone then he'll get attention. Italy N.. had everythig taken care of for him and has few worries, and a pretty good work ethic since Austria isn't a slacker. Roomano is a spoiled brat. Iceland....honestly boy just needs to accept the others rubbed off on him and he's just as kooky as the rest of them. I know you're a teen and all but kid c'mon you love them mystical animals and you keep bringing up your weird museums XD (I swear this child got Norway's anti-socialness, Sweden's inability to admit things (in his case, he actually likes hanging out with the others), Finland's oddness, and Denmark's everythign else because we all know Norway probably saw Iceland at last and had a crisis over it, man knows when Iceland appears but can't get around to taking the ruling for how many years????

And then there's New Zeeland, who had to raise Austrailia when NZ was also pretty young. NZ doesn't even have the hope of hep fro manyone- America and Canada i'm pretty sure still had visitors from like France and I think the Netherlands would have popped by a few times, because they did do a bit of um. Trading. with the colonies and stuff. Austrialia used to be on the other hand where they sent English prisoners. New Zealand is not ready for that kind of craziness, and so of course we're gonna get a free range crazy Austrailia and a done with it New Zealand who got no help and probabl ygot even less parental support then America. BTW it's crazy that technically GB still techncialy rules over so many big places like Canada and Austrailia even though they also technicall ydon't like that's just so wild.

so what have we learend from this? England sucks as a dad, and Iceland's teen rebel phase is in full swing. WHat was the poitn of this? I don't know but you read it and i wrote it so.....

ima sleep i forgot the poitn already lol

[3lle-l-black]

Season of love event @george-weasleys-girl

"— I can't imagine a world where I don't have you two with me..."

Girassol (Part 1)

Fred Weasley x reader

Warnings: More than one pronoun for R , long fic, twins call reader their Girassol 🌻, George x reader platonic, fluff and a little angst, Grumpy and Sunshine, English isn't my first language

Versão Português Inspired by Girassol - IVYSON

— Ginny, can you please stop talking about this for a second? – I stop in the middle of the burrow stairs, turning to Hermione and Ginny who are behind me.

— I'm just saying..

— Okay, an idea: stop saying

For those of you who have arrived now, I will explain the situation. I had the brilliant idea of dating one of Ginny's older brothers, Fred Weasley, after being friends with the twins for my first four years at Hogwarts. Don't get me wrong, was amazing, but after they left school and opened WWW, war became a real possibility and Hermione, Ron and I were worried about helping Harry.

In short, things got more complicated, we became distant and broke up. I didn't want but I didn't have the courage to insist. Anyway, we became 'friends' again.

Last night, while talking to Hermione I mentioned that I missed him and our conversations. The problem was that Ginny overheard, what brought us to this situation.

— I don't wanna talk about it, Ginny. I'll ask just one more time. Please. – I go down the stairs and head towards the living room with the girls right behind me.

— Ginny, drop it. Stop before you hear something you don't want. – Hermione says, noticing my irritation. They sit together on a couch, and I sit across from them.

— Everyone can see that my brother made an idiotic choice. I just think she could go talk to him, try to resolve the situation," Gina says, head down.

The night after the Seven Potters event.

Harry, Ron and Hermione were already asleep, I've been looking at the sky through the bedroom window for some time now, the stress of fighting the death eaters and the worry haven't let me sleep. I get up and go downstairs, maybe I can clear my mind by changing the environment and checking if the twins are okay.

George had fallen asleep on the couch and Fred would never leave his brother alone, so they slept in the living room. When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I noticed that one of the boys was awake.

— Hey – I called him in a low tone so as not to wake the others

— Hey, can't sleep? – is George. He made to sit down, but I stopped him first.

— You don't need to get up, you have to rest and no, I couldn't. – I take out my wand and clean the bandages around his head. — Still hurts?

George looks at me with a teasing smile. — Have you forgotten who I am, woman? A scratch like that can't knock me down.

I roll my eyes and perform a healing spell to help with the injury. I sit next to George on the floor after placing my wand on the table. We talked like that for a while, maybe more than an hour, a sleepy George making jokes even in a bad moment, me leaning on the sofa and we trying to keep the laughter down so as not to wake anyone else up.

...

— Hey... I'm sorry our friendship got weird, it's just... I don't know, I didn't know how to act after your breakup.

— That's okay, I didn't know how to act either. I missed our conversations. – In the last few weeks, whenever the twins and I were in the same room, an uncomfortable silence would settle in, so it was good to talk to George, even in those conditions.

— I missed you too idiot, and you know... – I see him nod to the other redhead — I wasn't the only one

— Yes? Did he tell you that? – I ask skeptically, looking down at the floor. George got up and sat next to me with a playful smile.

— Yes, just don't tell him I told you that.

— Oh shut up, I think the spell affected your brain and made you more of an idiot than you already were. – My heart races at the thought of Fred admitting to missing me, but it doesn't change anything if he hasn't admitted it to me.

George was stifling a laugh when he curled up and let out a groan of pain.

— Are you ok Georgie? – I take out my wand and whisper a "Lumos" to brighten the room.

— Yeah, just a bit of pain, don't worry – Some noises can be heard behind us. George looks over my head and breaks into a smile. I follow his gaze to find a confused, recently awakened Fred. — Did we wake you, sleeping beauty? – George teases as Fred sits on the couch, letting the blanket fall to the floor and mumbles a confused "What time is it?"

— Are you the ones making the noise? Why are you awake at this time? – He blinks a few times, getting used to the light in the room. Suddenly, Fred's eyes widen, and I can tell that any trace of sleep he had is gone. — Did something happen? George is ok?

— Yes, don't worry, I couldn't sleep so we were talking. Sorry for the noise – Fred visibly relaxes, if I was worried about George, imagine him.

— It's okay, I got plenty of sleep – He stoops to pick up the blanket from the floor and covers himself again. Sleep... I didn't realize how sleepy I was until now.

— It will be dawn soon... What were you doing? I mean, were you here together a long time?

The look on Fred's face amuses George and we can see a gleam of mischief in his eyes. — The little girassol here was taking care of me, they're a great doctor, you know?!

I can't really follow the conversation, apparently Fred frowned at George's comment. Now they are teasing each other and laughing louder than they should. I always loved how chaotic they were together; I also always loved being in that chaos.

Fred's POV

A mischievous glint flashed across George's eyes — Ah, the little girassol here was looking after me! She's a great doctor.

I unintentionally frown, 'taking care of me'?

— You're a grown man, can't you look after yourself? – His laughter echoed around the room.

— Don't be like that, I let you play nurse too.

I let out a 'hole', starting to laugh too. George gets up and lies back on the couch. My eyes wander around the room, and I see the 'little girassol' is unusually quiet. A smile lights up my face when I realize she's sleeping, leaning on the couch in an uncomfortable position.

I stand up and put one arm around her back and the other under her legs, trying not to disturb her peaceful sleep. I carefully lift her into my arms, and she snuggles up against me, her face resting in the crook of my neck. Her soft breathing stopped my own for a moment. I freeze, realizing how close we are now.

I turn around and put her on the couch. Once I'm sure she's in a comfortable position, I sit down in front of the couch. Can't help but keep my eyes on her. She shifts a bit, and without thinking twice, my hand reaches out to sweep away a couple of strands of hair falling over their face. She's just so darn lovely.

— I can't imagine a world where I don't have you two with me – Before I can finish my train of thought, a scream echoed behind us. George and I quickly stood up, frantically searching for the source of the sound...

Remembering that English is not my first language. please read with your heart

[tinyfantasminha]

Hi I’m not sure if you’re aware put people are going around screenshotting your tumblr and sharing it on callout and adult yume hate tweets. I felt so weird messaging that’s why anon but I wanted to let you know about it, with the harassment and doxxing that has happened recently! I’m a fellow Jack yume and adore your art so this is sad to see.

This is one of the occurrences.

x(DOT)com/riddlehoe_/status/1729650574541406714?s=46&t=kTkdN9P14joudjwCx7-lhQ

So called ''normal people'' when they got nothing to do

Yeah I'm aware of the rabid anti-yume swarm in twitter..... I've seen plenty of moots getting hate campaigns and being doxxed to the point where I'm almost desensitized to it. What's the point of persecuting yumeshippers?? Especially the adult ones who quite literally keep the game alive and running for consuming and making content and buying merch? So they can feel entitled to the non-existent anime boy and feel morally superior for not having ''disGusTInG THOUGHTS'' about an imaginary little guy despite literally commiting a cybercrime and thinking they've just did a favor society?? Truly a priviledged chronically online teenager moment™

I was already expecting to get hate at some point but thankfully I've been focusing on my academic and social life lately so discourses online just seem more and more insignificant and irrelevant (as they always should be) going outside and touching grass is really healing and important to make you realize that there are greater irl problems to worry about than protecting fictional characters and harassing strangers on the internet, everybody should do that methinks 🧡

I might be a target of doxxing one day and honestly??:? I don't care. It's gonna be funny as hell. Cause it's probably some american teenager who thinks that doxxing an user in another country is gonna make the FBI arrest me for kissing my fictional blorbo in my head and that I'll be beaten up on the streets lol. Mini Karen, I assure you no one in south america cares about fictional character discourses to the point of making threats as much as people in the US do (and u guys somehow think that's normal behaviour) much LESS in my city, it's gonna do nothing 😭

Anyway, thanks for the heads up!!! I hope you thrive with your yume with Jack, he needs more love, don't let gatekeeper losers ruin your vibe 💗💗💗💗

[fanimesenseiwrites]

Y'all ever read something so bad it makes you wanna write and fix it?

Nightbringer (up to) lesson 60 Spoilers under the cut.

Yeah, like... someone posted the meme of the sign that says "Our expectations were low but holy fuck"

And that's kinda exactly how I feel.

Through the fuck-all pacing and general messiness, I can see the vision and I think that's what makes me the most upset. I wish it all hadn't been cut so short.

I feel like we still know too little the Celestial Realm to really understand why the genetic stunt with Simeon suddenly allowed him to be invited back for a meeting with the potential of getting his wings back. Honestly, that's one of things I don't like. Like, in a world of magic, where Simeon was just made to be human, why couldn't he just be made to be an angel again? If he was being good and decided he wanted to stay in the Celestial Realm, why did it matter if he had any demonic cells? Why couldn't they just be changed like he was for his punishment?

And that's not to say it's all bad, I like the idea that humans could naturally change to be anything given the proper influence. And that angels and demons can't change without a powerful external factor (i.e. God or the Demon King). But with regards to Simeon and how they handled that, it was not great.

I also really liked the moon idea actually (maybe it's just because I like Majora's Mask lol), but again, that in particular was just a fumbled mess. That was probably the worst because it was introduced and then taken care of so quickly, of course. But something in particular that bothered me was how when you're up there trying to cast your spell, and then it does the weird cracking, absorption thing, and it seems like it goes wrong! It doesn't work, and your chosen boy gets hurt trying to protect you. And the lame, generic way you heal him aside, your spell did work?? I think? They don't address it again, so I can only assume it worked.

But it didn't give that vibe to me. When a solution hurts somebody, but doesn't kill them, that doesn't give the vibe of the solution working. Just in any plot of anything I can think of.

And I just felt there were lot of blanks to fill in with that part of the story. Which, I kinda have always felt that way with Obey Me (hence why I ever started writing for it in the first place), but I always chalked that up to being a feature of an otome game. There are choices you get to make, and they wanted to make it more inclusive, so I was never mad about that. But these last few lessons, the gaps are WIDE.

And don't even get me started on not learning anything new about Nightbringer, for pretty much the whole season!

All that bitching to say, I'm gonna write something to make this better. I'm gonna focus on this moon plot line first, because I like the idea of it and I've got ideas to make it better, and then I may move on to writing a good satisfying ending to Nightbringer as a whole.

I've seen several other writers and creatives talk about creating a good ending, etc. So I'm excited to see what ideas other people have. If you have your own idea, please write it. Don't think you shouldn't because other people have ideas. More cake is always a good thing.

Thank you, and I'll see you soon lovelies ~

[fishermanshook]

Bonjour Bonsoir

May I request headcanons for Andrew Kreiss where he has to protect the person he has feelings for in a match ? Like all fluffy and stuff !

Thanks !

Of course I can do that for you!

You first, Your Body Second. (grave keeper x gn!reader)

Roxman_ on Pinterest

I've been writing for idek how long now and I still f up grammar and spelling. Warning as always.

What is love? And what lengths would you go to protect the ones you do?

But you don't have to worry about that. Not when you've got the Gravekeeper to protect you from the dangers that present themselves in every match you play in.

He'll keep you safe, always and forever.

-

The Grave Keeper has only felt so much love in his life, which really only amounts to a couple specs of sand. He can't wrap his head around the concept of it all-let alone the feeling of it.

Out of all places to fall head over heels in, he had to in this hell hole? Nobody expects it, and it's surely a surprise to all who welcome the feeling.

Which is something that Andrew doesn't do at first. The poor boy doesn't think he is anywhere near deserving of all the love and attention you give him.

Andrew hasn't differentiated the difference between being generally kind to going out of your way to do something for someone who's developed a crush. He knows what he feels, but can't figure out if your trying to tell him you reciprocate these undying feelings.

He's new to love, having been void of it for almost all his life he's forced to take baby steps. But for you? It'll be worth it.

-

Your one and only game today is a regular match, thank gosh.

None the less, you find yourself chatting it up with the Grave Keeper. The others cannot fathom the fact that you seem to be the only one in the manor who could keep up a regular conversation with the man. But to the two of you, this is just another chat.

It was weird y'know, how quickly the two of you seemed to click. Out of all the Survivors, you find him the easiest to talk to. It's so easy to find tranquility in each other's presence that you lose track of time. (You and Andrew may or may not have accidentally been late to a couple matches because of this.)

The Grave Keeper has told you more about his life than he's told anyone else. You've excepted him for who he is, scars and all.

It's more than enough for the man to catch feelings.

He isn't entirely sure how to show it though, but maybe this match will be the perfect time to demonstrate it.

-

"Two ciphers left!" The Priestess shouts into her radio which allows the rest of the team to know to keep up the pace. She's stuck having to take over the kiting while she bides time for the Doctor to self heal herself, which shouldn't take long.

You're halfway through decoding your cipher before you hear the sound of teleporting, you're soon greeted with the sly smile that belongs to no one but "Fool's Gold". Seems the hunters changed targets.

"Shit," you mutter into the radio as you quickly throw down a pallet, almost risking a hit. "Hunter's here, continue decoding at all costs!"

For the rest of the decoding period, you weave your way through pallets and windows. Unfortunately, you take a hit which leaves blood pouring from your back and you in excruciatingly pain.

In the distance, you see a blurry figure with hair white as snow running towards you.

"Fuck, Andrew? Andre you've got to get out of here-"

Your voice is cut off by Andrew picking you up and slinging you over his shoulder.

"Wait are you seriously going to kite with me on your shoulder?"

"Of course not, I'd never risk you getting more hurt than you already are now. Just hold in there, I won't let you get hurt again, I promise." Andrew says as he makes a mad dash across the map. You soon see a glowing blue and black portal.

"Go now, I'll take over the kiting."

"Andrew no I can't let you do tha-" Your voice is silenced (again...) from Andrews lips on yours.

Does it catch you off guard? Yes. But you soon lean into the quick peck, rapping your arms around his neck.

"Mh, Darling I'd love to continue but I'd rather you be safe okay?" With another quick peck on the lips, the Grave Keeper helps you through the portal, which is quickly destroyed by "Fool's Gold's" pickaxe.

"I'll see you soon, my love."

-

The whole match seemed to have been an entire blur. Even while you got bandaged up and the entire team was able to get out you still can't comprehend what just happened moments earlier.

I guess that confirms my suspensions then... You say to yourself as you make your way back to your dorm room. Only to be stopped when you feel a strong hand grip your shoulder, turning you around.

"H-hey, um, how are you?" Andrew stutters and stumbles over his words, obviously worried about the move he pulled on you earlier.

"Hi Andrew. I'm doing more than okay, how are you feeling?" You ask him with a smile tugging on your lips as you rock back and forth on your heels.

"I'm d-doing okay, uh, so-" You cut off Andrew with a kiss to the lips. Honestly you've been waiting too long to do this.

He leans into the kiss, putting his hands on your hips and you rest your arms around his neck. The kiss is slow but passionate and secretly sends him over the edge with happiness.

He promised to protect you, and for the first time in your life, you know you can count on it.

note: No, I am not an Andrew fan. No, I do not know why I made this fic so long. Yes this does suck ass but you still read it so (THIS IS SO OOC IM SORRY) (This is so ass what the heck)

©️2023 fishermanshook — do not steal, translate, plagiarize, or repost my work on any other platform

[steviewashere]

I want to know more about, oh… Want to Go Home With You, AND Dom/Sub Steddie, AND Frat Boy Steve, AND Discombobulated by the Disembodied! Please. :3

Ooo, okay. I'll talk a little about each of these first, and then give a snippet of Want to Go Home With You under the cut, but like after my rambling. I have so much to say.

For the Dom/Sub Steddie, I already mentioned using subspace and light bondage as a means to help Steve heal from trauma associated with the Upside Down. (Ex: Torture in season 3, the demobat tail around his neck.) And just the idea of creating something good from the bad. But I definitely want to have a moment where Steve begins to experience a subdrop at the very beginning, and that leading to the discovery of him only liking soft restraints—silk or Eddie's bandana. I am a sucker for some care during and after a subdrop (which I don't know what that says about me, but) and I have been thinking about how to get it in here.

Frat boy Steve, my beloved. Right now he's written as this guy that consensually is a hickey canvas at these frat parties. But I am waiting for when the slowburn is not a slowburn and Eddie gets to treat him to a night of tender, long, and focused sex. Where the only hickeys he receives are from Eddie. But I unfortunately haven't even introduced Eddie yet, which I need to work on. Just know that's where my head is at with frat boy Steve.

And I don't have much to say on Steve getting Vecna'd that I haven't already said. But there's this one line of dialogue that won't get out of my head which is, "Am I still beautiful?" And I know already that I'm using it after Steve is blinded by Vecna. Where he's having a quiet moment with Eddie, they're holding hands and sitting side by side on the couch. Steve's just had a major panic attack, he's coming back to himself. And then he just drops this bomb of a question. Eddie doesn't even hesitate, doesn't give them a moment of silence because he's squeezing Steve's hand and answering fiercely, beyond a reasonable doubt, "Yes, you are. You are so beautiful, sweetheart." And then Steve begins to softly cry. And that's as far as I've thought for this piece.

Anyway. Snippet for my merman Steve fic :)

——— Not until he’s satisfied, dropping Eddie’s head unceremoniously. And then pushing himself up by just his arms, tail still between Eddie’s legs. “Now wait,” Steve states, that same giddiness returning.

“Bah—“ Eddie chokes out. “But…What? You just kissed me and you’re not even gonna talk about it?!” He asks incredulously.

Steve merely shrugs. “It was okay,” he critiques in that odd broken way he does. “Teeth are funny. Not like mine. Weird, Eddie.”

Eddie can only roll his eyes.

Then, Steve’s own eyes widen. His mouth pinching down in a confused, Muppet way. Nostrils flaring. Eyebrows flying to his hairline. And then he…Steve kicks Eddie’s shin.

But instead of his tail—

There’s a whole fucking foot against Eddie’s leg.

He screams because Steve begins screaming, chirping something distressed. And he doesn’t know what the fuck to do. He’s just turned an actual, real life merman into a human.

Intelligently, Eddie states, “This is nothing like The Little Mermaid.”

——— <3

[thegirlwhowrites642]

Hiii

Do you have more Ginny headcanon ?

Do you have fifteen hours?

I'd say most of my headcanons are more like deductions from canon to be honest. You can find some of them in my one-shots. Anyway, I'll try to make a list of strictly Ginny headcanons.

her favourite colour is green (which between Harry's eyes and the Harpies is basically canon, it's like saying that red being Harry's favourite colour is a headcanon)

as we all know Ginny loves cats, but seeing that her family could never afford to buy her one, she always had in mind that with her first paycheck, she would buy her first cat, and she does

when she was little she wrote adventure stories about her and The Boy Who Lived

writing was a part of her healing process after the Chamber

in her second year, Dumbledore invited her many times to play chess and it was a subtle way to bring her to open up about the diary (this is technically not canon but it's way more canon complaint that Dumbledore did this than the idea that he didn't, both from the perspective of him being a good loving man despite it all, and the cynical perspective of him wanting to know more about Riddle)

I'm a strong supporter of the universally accepted headcanon of Ginny and Sirius having late-night chats at Grimmauld Place

Ginny jokingly promised Sirius that if she and Harry would've actually ended up together (like Sirius seemed to believe) she would've called her first boy after him

as the years go by, she and Rita Skeeter develop a sort of frenemies situation (this is actually something I've been thinking of writing about for a long time)

with tpfy @takearisk-ao3 made me fall in love with the idea that Smith would remain an annoying presence in her life

she was arrested at least once while Harry was already Head Auror, it was very embarrassing for the Aurors involved

McGonagall asked her to become Head Girl but she turned it down

she was the first woman to become sports editor for the Daily Prophet (for who doesn't know this: sports journalism is an exetremely sexist field)

I can't imagine Ginny as anything but the coolest of mothers

every young Quidditch player dreams of the stamp of approval from Ginny Potter, if she says a player is going to be great then that player is going to be great, she very much has the power of influencing the players' market with her opinions

in general, I imagine Ginny as eventually a very revolutionary, iconic, and borderline intimidating figure of sports journalism, someone people would aspire to work with and become like (a sort of way less workaholic and good version of Miranda Priestly)

obviously, she published books, but I totally see her publishing also novels and I think that Ginny specifically writing children's novels in her last years would be a very full circle moment seeing that she started the story in love with The Boy Who Lived

I'm kind of into the idea of Ginny eventually starting her own newspaper (with Albus, because I headcanon him as a journalist too)

she is extremely careful in making sure Lily Luna never thinks she can't do something because she is a girl and she makes sure James and Albus never shove her aside

she loves Harry's smile (this is kind of canon, to be honest, fourth book) and she absolutely adores the sound of his laugh

she rescues animals like it's her job, the Potter house is filled with rescues (Harry is always grumpy at first about it, more because he feels like someone should be the reasonable one but secretly it's just one of the many things he loves about her)

the animals obviously have the weirdest names

she kind of likes Slughorn, in the way you like a weird uncle you see once a year

she absolutely can cook, she is the only daughter of Molly Weasley, of course she can cook, she just doesn't like doing it most of the time

even after she stops playing she still keeps doing regular physical exercise

absolutely accidental fashion icon

Ginevra was the name of her half-Italian maternal grandmother who died of a broken heart after Gideon and Fabian's deaths

she passes on to her kids her arts and crafts love, but especially to Teddy

All is well is something she started saying to Harry after he had nightmares, eventually, Harry started doing it with her too, and it sort of became their mantra

she was a bit disturbed by the fact that she would never be able to know if James and Lily would have approved of her, she went alone to their graves the day before her wedding to talk with them

this is substantially canon, but according to JKR, when yew wands (like Ginny's) get buried with their owner, a yew tree is born from the grave and I adore that image (the tree protects Harry's grave too)

I'm pretty sure I could go on for an eternity but let's stop here.