#I've been sitting here for like 20 minutes trying to figure out what other tags I could include with this post

[itsamenickname]

So I have a thought.

I'm sure you all have seen at least one idea/AU where Luigi marries Bowser and becomes king or king consort of Bowser's Kingdom.

But what about vice versa? Do you think that Bowser would ever consider the thought of handing the crown over to Kamek, Kammy, or Bowser Jr. (assuming that he's old enough to rule over the kingdom) so that he could have a normal-ish life with Luigi?

[horizon-forbidden-sheesh]

Writing Process: Timelines & Trackers

Okayyy, so I've written about the drafting process in detail. But along the way, logistics problems tend to pop up that can't be solved in words alone.

Mostly, it has to do with knowing exactly where someone is or what someone is doing at the same time as another character I'm writing. For instance, when does Alva get back to the Base? How long is she there before Aloy shows up?

I didn't always take detailed notes on this during my first play-through. And after I abandoned my Scrivener file, (more about this here ⚙️) I decided to refine my timeline.

I already had a great foundation based on my first play-through and my New Game+ speed run. So, I started fresh, with a new game file and good old fashioned pen & paper. I'm still working through this as I write. (Just finished the Scorcher side quest!!)

*This is in a Master-size (A4) Leuchtturm notebook, in which I'm working back-to-front. I prefer purple pen and grid paper always.

Yes. I know. I am a psycho. As I mentioned in the Preamble, gaming timelines are a special interest. 💁🏼‍♀️ Plus, I build client-friendly Gantt charts for design projects IN MY SLEEP. So, taking my timeline from paper into Spreadsheet status felt like a v natural next step.

💡I started with a weekly at-a-glance, mostly because I needed to coordinate when various characters arrived back at Base:

Why yes, I am tracking Zo & Aloy's periods. Because there is no single, magical herb you can take to stop pregnancy. Don't get me wrong, I dig this trope! It's important to discuss family planning, and our genre is ✨fantasy✨ after all. But I can only suspend my disbelief so far, and there are other ways to get around this, which a Matriarchal society would probably be clued in on.

💡 This quickly evolved to a daily at-a-glance once Kotallo made it to the Base:

This spreadsheet helped me IMMENSELY as I was writing chapters 13, 14, 16, 17, & 19! Basically any time Aloy & Kotallo are not in the same location. Knowing what Kotallo is doing at the Base while Aloy is off mid-adventure has been super important to make sure their Focus calls work and feel natural.

Likewise, knowing exactly what day Erend returns, and how long they have before Aloy gets back all helps with continuity and flow.

Other Things I'm Tracking:

💡Datapoints. The whole point of the GAIA Gang is that they're sorting through the data Aloy collected during the events of HZD. And since that was an absolute whirlwind year for Aloy, I'm thinking her files are a fucking shit show—and almost none of the people sorting through them even know how to read. 😵

So, I started by accumulating all the files by location. I am assuming they're probably geo-tagged—if not, they're at least assembled in order of pick-up, which would mean they're ordered by Aloy's general location at time-of-discovery anyway.

*I crossed them out as I moved them to the next spreadsheet tab...

From this hot mess, I figure that Zo, in her infinite wisdom, took one look at Aloy's files and went, "Oh hell no."

💡Here's the way I imagine Zo organized her playlists, much to Varl, Erend, & Kotallo's relief (Meanwhile, Alva re-filtered everything, and discovered entirely new metadata categories, obviously):

The most important detail here was time!! Most of these are like 1 minute long... but 1 minute in the game is like, 20 minutes IRL. So you've gotta figure the GAIA Gang is back at Base binge-watching an entire docu-series, while simultaneously learning how to read (and procrastinating with hours and hours of bodycam battle footage).

No wonder they're always busy when Aloy shows up!

💡 And yes, these are all tabs on a single spreadsheet:

💡 "Population" is literally just a mess of numbers & formulas as I try to figure out how we went from ~20 E-9 Cradle inhabitants to multiple tribes in the span of ~700 years.

I mean in 3041 we're prolly sitting at like... maybe ~15k in the U.S.?

*On second thought, that Oseram number is probably higher.

Anywayyyy, as fun as a blank page is, my brain really does work best on a grid. The process is totally intuitive, and I create the necessary docs as I go, the same as I would for any client or project. Sometimes, you need to explain things in a way so everyone is on the same page, and I find spreadsheets invaluable in that regard. (Y'all should see my wedding planning spreadsheet, lol.)

This whole process has helped me to find what works for me, and writing fanfic is truly preparing me to write my own original works. What I've discovered is that spreadsheets are part of my flowstate. They bring me a deep sense of peace and they help me to stay on track and oriented while I'm in the weeds.

🖤 Really, I want to come back to something I said in my second 'Process' post: Do what feels natural. Everyone is different. If being 'organized' steals your joy, don't do it. Stay messy! Whatever! Who cares? The most important part is that you find your flowstate.

I found this old Hindu saying while I was copywriting for a Chinese Medicine client, and it really stuck with me: "There are a hundred paths up the mountain, so it doesn't matter which path you take. The only one wasting time is the one who runs around and around the mountain telling everyone else that their path is wrong."

I'm just here documenting my own path up my mountain. And part of me thinks that it's all incredibly self-indulgent and cringe, but hey—when has blogging ever not been?

If you've read this far, I'm grateful. It's all a bit shouting-into-the-void out here, especially when you're this deep into a niche that moved on a while ago. But I've always loved a slowburn. (And if you do too, you might consider reading The Marshal.)

xo, Sheesh.

[piers-wifey]

A summery of the things that happened last day/night on my brother's pre-birthday party:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- Everyone was chilling with some hookah and beers/cocktails while eating pizza

- A few hours later, at 11 pm, my brother got the Tequila which was gone within 15-20 minutes at best

- At 12, we congratulated him and he, as well as some of his friends, began to jump around

- Two minutes later, our best friend, whom we'll call Headbutt buddy 1 from now on, was lying on the grass

- He and Headbutt Buddy 2 accidentally headbutted each other. At least that's what I've been told. I didn't see what happened, cuz I was smoking and standing with my back to them

- Twenty minutes later, Headbutt Buddy 1 and the bucket were besties

- Headbutt Buddy 2, who seemed fine at first, suddenly started speaking Spanish with us and did so for the next two and a half hours

- Headbutt Buddy 2 also found a random stick - from which I still don't know where he got it from, cuz we have no trees in our garden - and began poking the grass and walking around like a drunk old man. He also used it to spin around and nearly fell twice

- To my question from where he got the fucking stick from, he answered with something in Spanish from the other side of the garden

- Meanwhile my brother was with Headbutt Buddy 1 and looked after him while he was still 'watering the plants'

- Headbutt Buddy 2 then randomly ran out of the garden (with the stick) and I had to run after him and drag him back. I also took the stick from him because he was also pretending to be a caveman on the hunt for mammoths

- Headbutt Buddy 2 then went over to my brother and Headbutt Buddy 1 and talked to them in Spanish, to which my brother (who was tipsy, obviously) replied with "Oui oui!" while Headbutt Buddy 1, in between burps and barfs, began to curse in Russian

- Another one of our friends, lets just call him "K", began speaking Portuguese with Headbutt Buddy 2 in an attempt to somehow communicate with him

- Me, completely tired of everyone's bullshit and still trying to grasp what the fuck was happening here, smoked one cig after the other together with "K"

- Headbutt Buddy 2 also texted "K" and my brother in Spanish and even called "K" even though he was sitting right in front of him. (After pretending to be on a call with someone)

- An hour later, Headbutt Buddy 1, who was still tag teamed by Queen Lizzy and Prince Philip in the Gulag, had to be carried by my brother to his dad's car, who my brother had called. (He's 18 and therefore allowed to drink, so don't worry. He isn't a minor)

- A few minutes later, Headbutt Buddy 2 decided to go bonkers again. I told "K" to throw him to the ground and sit on him til he calmed down again. But it backfired and "K" was the one on the ground and Headbutt Buddy 2, who was free now, ran into the shad and just stood there, staring out of the window like a total maniac

- I shoved Headbutt Buddy 2 to the arbour where he took a twenty minutes power nap on the bench

- After he got up, he spoke German again and told us he was just pranking us. (At this point; however, we thought he had hurt his head and even considered calling an ambulance)

- At 3 am, we all took a nap on the benches and chairs and about 4, "K" and his girlfriend went home

- My brother and Headbutt Buddy 2 then drank a few more drinks and about 6:30, they both went for another nap. Headbutt Buddy 2 on the bench and my brother, for some reason, on the grass

- I took the opportunity and began to clean up the garden. I also checked in on the "Schnapsleichen" every now and then. (Btw, that's what we call a person who had a few drinks too much and is now passed out. It literally translates to "Schnapps corpse"/ "Booze corpse")

- At 7:30, Headbutt Buddy 2 woke up and went home. I then tried to wake up my brother and nearly dislocated my shoulder while rolling him around

- Luckily, our Ma picked us up and after trying to figure out what locks my dad uses for the arbour, my brother, who was drunk af, suddenly began to talk about old and mouldy baguettes. I tried to explain to him that I've gotten rid of the baguettes and that we were trying to figure out which locks we have to use, but he kept talking about the baguettes. After two minutes of us arguing and him yelling about the mouldy baguettes (which we didn't have) I told him to get up and go to the car, to which he replied with “Fine, if you want to keep the mouldy baguettes, do it. I don't care!”

And to make things funnier: He doesn't even remember the conversation. And I regret not recording him, lmao.

Anyway, this is how my entire Saturday and nearly half of my Sunday went. The whole event has been one hell of a wild ride, lol.

Also, events/evenings like these are what gives me inspiration for my S.T.A.R.S. shitposts. Especially when it comes to the single braincell trio.

[bookwyrminspiration]

hey! I'm relatively new here :3 just wanted to say that I just got back into the kotlc fandom and I'm obsessed with the wings au- it's one of the first not-xreader fanfics I've genuinely enjoyed and gotten so invested in. I love the qpr-ish relationships between the characters and the way you wrote them all! the wing designs are just- *chef's kiss* and the story line behind it too- I could go on all day about it. You've honestly inspired me to try writing my own aus! I was wondering if I could post fanart of the designs? I'd be sure to credit+tag you ofc

You're such an amazing writer!

Oh my gosh this ask is so sweet I legitimately read it and straight up stopped what I was doing for a solid 20 seconds to smile at my phone. I'm sitting here like !!!!! and covering my face

Also welcome to/back to the fandom! It's fairly small overall and relatively stagnant at the moment (the two year gap between books has really changed things), but there's a solid handful of us who are here and refuse to let go :)

I'm absolutely thrilled that you love the dynamics between the characters because I think that was one of the things I was the most...not nervous, but unsure about? Not that I didn't want to do it, because I very much did, but it's generally a different dynamic than a lot of the other fics in the fandom. All the ship fics are wonderful, I was just very aware that I was intentionally flat out ignoring all romance in a fandom that loves it. I wanted to go for a "they're all a family and it's like they've always been a family and they trust each other and are there for each other without hesitation or awkwardness" kinda thing. I have one note from my original layout that just says "(domestic)" when talking about all of them.

The wing designs!! I love them all so much and it was so fun to try and figure out what to do for each of them. I was trying to do wings that were a little more obvious for the characters and wouldn't require anyone to really search up anything to figure out why they had them, more follow a mental association. Like with Linh's dragonfly wings, dragonfly you think water and Linh is a water person! The added detail of her wings specifically relating to dragons was a bonus play on words there, but do you get what i mean about the association? That's what I was going for.

The story line! It has developed so much since I first wrote it there are things happening that I never planned for and things that I meant to do that got completely ignored, but I love where the au has ended up and where it's going. It is still heading towards its original ending, but it's gotten there a different way and with different dynamics and important characters. Like Phoenix (the girl) originally was just a throwaway character from the first chapter that got the kotlcrew out of a sticky situation and made them face some things as they did so, but then someone asked about her and I went...wait a minute you're right why is she there? And now she's got a lot of relevance to like. Literally everything happening.

It's so cool that it's inspired you--if you ever do write/draw/make your own aus I'd love to see them! And if you ever have any questions on how I've made mine I love to talk about everything always, so you'll probably get a lot more information than you could ever want

As for fanart, of course!! I love seeing fanart of the au it always such a delight. Please do tag me, that way I can see it!! It's so cool to see how people interpret the words I've put down because I almost never have a concrete image in my head. I'm just going for vibes and then those vibes become different things to different people and it's so fun to see.

Thank you so so much for all the compliments this ask seriously made my day, I absolutely love hearing peoples' thoughts on the wings au. I was actually just writing for it before I answered this, so have a little teaser quote!!

“Here, this is a good example,” came Biana’s voice behind her, and she whirled back around, watching those flecks of light condense and merge and assemble themselves into the shape of her friend, her sister.

[scuttle-buttle]

Chapter 11

WC: 2077

Rated: E

Chapter Tags: full on angst, discussions of emotional trauma, mild depictions of blood/gore, mentions of self h*rm & su*cide, mentions of child abuse, discussions of physical disabilities, institutionalization, some dialogue & plot canon to TV show, hurt/comfort

🧠

The rest of the conference went by much like the first day did. Both you and Laszlo bought a few books for your collections. An ease had settled over your conversations with the help of Sara and John's presence; you spoke more freely with each other. You tell yourself it is not because he's going soft on you or vice versa, but rather that you have found yourself in this imaginary bubble where you happen to get on well. It's inevitable that it will pop once you’re back at school and Laszlo will revert back to his usual callous state.

Laszlo. It still felt odd to think of him like that, rather than by his title. You couldn't lie, it gave you a sort of thrill. Even in your dreams you had only called him by his honorific. Thankfully you didn't have another dream after Friday. You couldn't escape the feeling that you'd said something incriminating in front of the man in question. So you chose to pretend it didn't happen.

Monday morning came and you headed to the train station. Once again he had secured a private cabin for the journey. This time you came prepared with a book since you had yet to replace your broken phone.

"Thank you again for inviting me to this, I really enjoyed myself. It was really nice of the department to foot my travel expenses, the hotel was really fancy. I may have helped myself to a mini-bottle or two," you joked.

"There is no need to worry about the department's finances; they were not involved."

You pause. He paid for you? Laszlo did say he would take care of the arrangements; but the four-star hotel, the private compartment train tickets, the admission to the conference, and every meal? Shit, that must have been a fortune, hundreds of dollars at least.

You don't know what to say, so you settle for an awkward "oh." A moment passes before you add "I appreciate that, um, I can pay you back. Might take some time but I can."

The professor is flippant in his reply. "There is no need, it was well spent for the research and knowledge acquired." He opens his book signaling the conversation is over.

You lick your lips. Fine then, I'll just consider it payment for emotional suffering and damages of the last eight weeks.

The first few hours of the journey were spent reading one of the new books you picked up at the convention. Occasionally you would peek over the pages at the professor. He was engrossed in his own selection; sometimes he would pause to write down a thought.

Around the seventh hour of your journey you had given up on reading anymore in favor of looking at the fields outside. The silence was comforting.

Laszlo had trouble concentrating on the book in his hand. He saw you as a conundrum. One minute you could be sociable and teasing with your comments, then next you were biting at his throat with your quick wit and fierce ideals. He decides that he wants to know what made you into who you are today. Now is as good a time as any.

His eyes on you cause a tingle up your spine but you ignore it. Laszlo breaks the silence; "may I ask a personal question?"

"You just did," you answer, still peering out of the large window. He huffed once, amused. At his following silence you face him. You raise your eyebrows to signal him to go on with his question. Curiosity grows at the thought of what he intends to ask.

"Twice now you have made implications of a traumatic past," he begins.

Bubble popped.

Interrupting, you snark "is this the part where you psychoanalyze me, doc? Because trust me, I've been through enough of that." You pick at the lint on your jeans.

Laszlo tries to choose his words more carefully the next time he speaks. "What I mean to say is, the first afternoon in the classroom where you defended that student you implied you had been witness to a trauma. You then displayed signs of anger and embarrassment before leaving prematurely. Yesterday you mentioned having entered a psychiatric facility. As an alienist I can't help but find myself curious about your experiences."

You slide your eyes to meet his from across the cabin. Your face is devoid of any emotion. "We all have our demons. Even you can't argue with that."

Your jaw clenches. Everyone had warned you. They all said he would try to worm his way into your head to figure you out. All the reviews, the gossip, everything. It was a big fat 'I told you so'. You give a pitiful laugh at the situation. "You know, everyone told me that you would pull this stunt."

He seems confused by your statement. "And what is that?"

"That you'd get inside my head and try to figure me all out or whatever. You already know I googled you beforehand, what everyone says about your methods. By now I assume you've done a little research yourself. I promise you there is nothing exciting here," you scoff and point to yourself.

"You would be correct in your assumption." You chew at your cheek as he starts. "I do know some of what happened in your past. Yet I also know that society likes to dilute the truth into something either more palatable, more entertaining, for people to consume greedily. What I want to know is what you have faced. How you have not allowed the experience to overcome you so much so that your humanity is erased like the characters I lecture on."

Eyes closing of their own volition you are thrown back in time to that night so many years ago. You didn't talk about it anymore. Bitsy knew of course, but that was the extent.

Laszlo waits. He knows this is likely to push you over the edge if your history with him means anything. Quite frankly, anyone would be tossed to their limit at his interrogation had they gone through what you had. John always told him that he needed to work on his bedside manner; that he had a habit of coming on too strong in his pursuit of learning the intricacies of the human mind. But your earlier comment about being sent to a so-called 'nuthouse' rubbed him the wrong way. It left a bad taste in his mouth. He needed to know. He needed to understand.

Laszlo can imagine the reprimand that he would receive from John and Sara for this. Just as he considers apologizing for his intrusion you open your eyes.

"She was fine. None of us suspected anything was wrong. I came home from having dinner with some… boy, and she had locked herself in the bathroom. She- she must have started over the sink and moved to sit on the side of the tub. She was hunched inside it when I got the door open. I pulled her out. Blood was… everywhere." Your voice is clinical as you explain.

"After, I shut down. So I checked myself into a psych ward a few days later when I couldn't get the feel of her blood off my hands. It's slippery, you know. And it smells. You wouldn't think so but it does." You clear your throat. "I did the therapy, took the meds they prescribed, all the standard treatments. Later I started watching true crime documentaries. I'd heard about exposure therapy so I figured the more I saw the gore, the less the image of my dead roommate would bother me. And it did help. The nightmares stopped after a while, I came back to school. I was better, just not the same.” You had watched the passing landscape as you explained. Turning to face him you speak again. “That's why those pictures didn't bother me. They weren't anything I hadn't seen before."

He contemplates you. The discovery and subsequent loss of your friend in this manner would no doubt cause lingering effects to your psyche. A stain that would forever remind you. "I offer my sincerest condolences. I do not presume to know what that would be like to experience, but I am glad you sought help afterwards. To make the choice to alleviate yourself of your own suffering where possible.”

As he says this he realizes that your anger towards the idea of being enslaved to unconscious impulse makes perfect sense. It explains why you focused so much energy on defending your belief in free will. That you have the power to choose how you carry your joy, your anger, your healing. It reminds him of how he held onto his own guilt and hurt, ignoring how it festered within him for so long. He feels as though he needs to share a piece of himself with you.

“I played piano as a child, quite well too. My mother hoped I would someday make a career of it. I vividly remember playing Mozart’s Concerto for Piano No. 20 in D Minor at a holiday party when I was seven years old. It was my favorite to play.... It requires two hands." You finally look at him. "My father...” He pauses to gather himself.

Now it is the doctor that cannot meet your eyes. As you listen you feel your confusion grow. How could he have been a talented pianist if he only had full use of his left hand? Unless..., the realization dawns on you just as he continues, his words slow.

“My father had two sides. One loving and the other brutal, the two often coexisting. It was something as trivial as putting me to bed, I recall... A game of tug of war. We were laughing…” He inhales a sharp breath. Already you can feel the tears begin to blur your vision. “I don't remember if he was drunk or if I said something that offended him. He must have pulled my arm behind my back.” Laszlo exhales shakily. “In small children, fractures can often affect…” he trails off, unable to finish. You can hear how he barely holds himself together.

Your heart aches for the broken man that sits in front of you. He never let on how much his arm bothered him, at least not within your presence. Suddenly you don’t see him as this rude, insufferable, obsessive man, but instead as someone that spends his life trying to protect himself. He projects his own anger and hurt so that he may, just for a minute, forget about his own demons. He wants to help others even when he feels he cannot bear to help himself.

But unlike you, he has to live with the physical reminder of his past every day of his life.

You stand and move to sit on his right side. Before allowing yourself to think too much of your actions, you place your hand atop his own, curling your fingers around his palm and squeezing delicately. You don’t bother wiping away the tears on your cheeks. “I’m so sorry, Laszlo;” the whisper is barely heard above the sound of the train. A second passes where you fear you have overstepped and offended him by touching the affected limb. When his thumb tightens against the backs of your fingers you know he is not. He holds you in place.

“You asked me how I kept my humanity. How does anyone really? We learn to take what we get and we carry it in a bag. Sometimes you have to drag the damn thing behind you. But eventually the weight gets less and less if you allow yourself to move forward, even if it’s still there with you all the time. I dealt with what happened years ago and it does still haunt me. It’s easier now than it was, but… I- I suppose I’ve learned from you too. Sitting in those lectures and hearing you talk. We can either let it haunt us for the rest of our lives… or we can accept it… and use the memory of our pain to help ourselves and others.”

“I’m not sure the choice is entirely in our hands.” His tone is mournful.

You turn to smile at him through your tears. His own eyes are bloodshot. “I disagree. If it weren’t, if we didn’t have the freedom to choose that, we’d all be murderers.”

Tag list

@hardlyinteresting @lorna-d-m @livvyshmiv @somethingthatsaysbubbles @greeneyedblondie44 @unbeatablecurlgirl @apparrio @marchingicenotes7 @anteroom-of-death @bruhidaniel @lemairepstuff @thehuiabird @zemosimp05 @alindeluce @iamnotthecatladynextdoor @laura-naruto-fan1998 @trelaney @boneheadduluc @i-am-dead-inside-666 @fictionlandslanddreams

[softysuho]

Armor

A/N: it's been awhile since I've written s o-

Genre: Werewolf!AU, Series

Pairing: Chanyeol x Reader

Warnings: Mentions of blood/torture

Summary: Chanyeol had watched his friends find their mates, watching as their smiles became ten times brighter than before. The pairs practically swallowing their other half in front of the beta wolf. It had been 5 years since Chanyeol's 20th birthday, the only wolf in the entire pack to have not found his other half the night of the celebration. He knew she was out there, he could feel her emotions, a dull throbbing in his heart when she was sad or stressed. The flutters when she was happy. However, he never expected to find her on enemy lines.

Links to chapters are on the masterlist

•••

You silently picked at the sleeves of your oversized hoodie, head down as you listened intently to your Alpha. Ravi had been your Alpha for a little less than three years, taking the position of your father. Ravi had been your fathers beta, a good one at that. You and Ravi practically grew up together by the hip, some even thought that when he turned 20, you would end up being mates. Nope. Maybe that's why your father had given up his position to the 22 year old Ravi before his passing. You had never wanted the position anyways, stress never looked good on you and you were sure that somehow, and someway, you would fuck it up.

Ravi was good playing the Alpha role. He was strong, tall and handsome. His mate, Jane, was equally as stunning. She was a breath of fresh air for your pack, her kindness had lifted the spirits of many at the loss of your father. She had become one of your good friends, her and Ravi loved you dearly, respected and valued your opinions in meetings like these.

A new pack had moved into the next town over. One just barely larger than the one your father had kept together. To say you were nervous was an understatement. The way Ravi spoke about this pack made your stomach churn in all the wrong ways. You winced as his hand came crashing down in front of your figure, making you still and slowly meet the red eyes you had only ever seen one other time. Ravi was pissed, pissed at you for something you were unsure of.

"I expect an answer when I'm speaking to you Y/n." You let out a soft sigh, eyes wandering over to Leo who looked at you with soft eyes. "We've never had a pack move this close to us, everyone knows how bloody we make can make things for others when they step out of line. So tell me, why do you think this pack moved in?" You couldn't help but roll your eyes. Why was it a big deal? The pack could be peaceful.

"How the fuck should I know? I can't read the minds of others, dumbass." A growl ripped across the room, Ravi's knuckles turning white as he stared down at you.

"Y/n. I get we used to be best friends-"

"Used to?" You laughed, leaning back in your chair. "Used to be best friends? How about this Alpha, you can lay the fuck off. I don't know if you remember, but you're only in this position because of me. So don't you dare try and use your 'Alpha authority' on me. I don't know why the pack moved in, maybe they saw an open place and decided to take it because they needed more space." You crossed your arms, staring up at Ravi. Yeah okay. Maybe you lied about the respect and value. Maybe you lied about them caring for you anymore. But sometimes it's nicer to think of how it used to be.

Ravi inhaled sharply, stomping back up to the front of the room where drawings of the boarders were. "I'd watch that mouth of yours Y/n." He rolled his shoulders, Leo shaking his head disapprovingly at his Alpha's behavior.

"Maybe Y/n is right. Maybe their numbers increased and they needed a bigger space for their pack. They could be harmless." Leo spoke softly, his eyes never leaving yours as he spoke. Leo was a nice man, his cold appearance was always intimidating to outsiders. Maybe that's why you both seemed to be the others escape when things got rough. You had spent countless nights crying into his shoulder. Whether it be for your fathers passing or Ravi's new attitude towards you. Jane, well, she was a nice girl. She was your friend, and she did respect you. But she couldn't show you an ounce of kindness when Ravi was around. Sometimes it seemed like he blacklisted you to the pack, only keeping you here because of your fathers old position. But Leo was different. The only comfort that you have left in this pack.

"Can you stop sucking Y/n's dick for five minutes Leo." Ravi groaned, rubbing his temple. "You're not mates, so stop acting like it." Leo stood up at that, hand planting firmly on the table as he took a deep breath.

"Why don't you stop being an asshole to the girl you used to do everything with. Grow a pair and realize you miss when we would all hang out and watch movies all night. Maybe then you'll stop being a fucking prick." Kicking his chair back, Leo stomped out of the room, his back tense with anger.

"I think we should talk about the pack later, when we've all calmed down." Hyuk spoke. He was the problem solver, a good one at that. His soft hair fell over his eyes as he looked your way and then to Ravi. "The other pack can wait."

You stood from your chair slowly, bowing towards Ravi before you made your way out. "I miss when you used to smile at stupid things Ravi." You whispered as the door closed behind you.

•••

Chanyeol groaned loudly, whining as Jongdae pushed him out of the way in attempt to reach the house before the others. "Junmyeon gets the large room Dae!" He yelled, watching his mate run after him. 'Sinners' his wolf snickered. Junmyeon patted the giants back, pushing him towards the house.

"I'm giving you the big room on the top floor, that way you don't have to be around all the... ya know-" Chanyeol cut the Alpha off, shaking his head in annoyance.

"You're the Alpha Jun, you and Suzy deserve the room." Chanyeol shook off the males arm, beginning to walk towards the house. Knowing full well, Junmyeon was going to force him to take the room.

"Maybe the new location will be good for you!" Junmyeon called out behind him, laughing when Chanyeol flipped him the birdie.

The rest of the day was spent attempting to get settled in, but the constant dull sensation of fear and sadness kept filling his limbs. It became a normal feeling after a year, the sadness from his mate and the fear that seemed to come once the sadness settled. He had no idea what was wrong with his mate. He didn't know where she was, if she was okay. It killed to know she was out there, without him. He wanted to know what her scent is, he wanted to know how soft her hair is, he wanted to know her. He didn't want to feel just her emotions anymore, he wanted to feel her. In his embrace, in his clothes, with his mark placed in the soft spot between her shoulder and neck.

His eyes closed, trying to make the sadness diminish. He wondered if she could feel his longing, his happiness when he thought of a future with his unknown mate. He wanted her to feel something other than the normal: fear, sadness and calm.

Baekhyun had knocked softly on Chanyeol's door, mumbling something about a pack meeting before he disappeared from behind the door. His guess was that a group was going to go on a patrol tonight. Scope out the borders around the human village that some pack families moved into, as well as the giant forest that surrounded the giant pack house.

He mumbled to himself, rubbing his eyes roughly as his feet padded down the wooden steps. As the second in command, Chanyeol was never allowed to miss a meeting. His input was always needed and he had to make decisions when his Alpha couldn't decide. His blonde hair was pulled back with a thick white headband, tank top hanging loosely on his shoulders, most definitely not dressed properly for a pack meeting. Chanyeol plopped down in the chair next to Junmyeon, nodding in the direction of his 11 brothers sitting patiently around the giant table. "Well, shall we start?" Junmyeon spoke, turning towards the giant bulletin board. "The neighboring pack, Blood Rise, is no joke."

It went on for what seemed like hours, Junmyeon not only discussing how we should somewhat fear the pack, but also boarder patrol groups. And he just happened to get stuck with Sehun and Jongdae. The biggest wusses that jump at their own shadows. "You're kidding." Chanyeol rubbed his face, leaning forward on the table as the latter glared at the giant.

"Nope, deal with it Yeol." Baekhyun laughed, swinging his arm over Kyungsoo's shoulders. Pulling a sour face, Kyungsoo flicked Baekhyun's arm off before crossing his arms.

"Why am I stuck with him again? Last time I check, Baek doesn't even know how to put on his underwear correctly." Kyungsoo eyed Baekhyun before turning back to Junmyeon.

"There's no tags okay! And it was one time! Damn, you put underwear on backwards and suddenly your stupid."

"You are stupid Baek." Jongin called out, giggling to himself silently.

"Would you all shut up, Yeol, Dae and Hun, go patrol before I beat you with a wooden spoon." Junmyeon laughed, running a hand through his hair as he pointed towards the door.

"No balls!" Jongdae yelled as he dashed from the room.

[mikeholdher]

Weekly Update June 9th:

Man if it wasn't for my roommates coming up and visiting every other weekend I would go crazy. It's a nice area however people are too stuck up. If it's not the stares from people trying to figure out what's wrong with your face it's the people who treat you like your the help until you speak to them and they realize you're not some random off the streets.

Brought my car up. Been so long since I've driven. Had to wake up early in the morning and go wash the car. Couldn't stand the sight of it being that dirty. A guy actually stopped me outside of the garage mistaking me for my dad. He left a note on my dad's car telling him he has a nice car and leaving his business card up there. And then just by chance I ran into him pulling out of the garage today. "So your parents got a couple of bimmers what happened to you?"

"I missed the memo"

"That's gotta be a much more fun car though."

"not exactly parts are just cheaper."

"True alright man the names Taylor. Have a good one. And hopefully everything works out with John's Hopkins."

Then I dip to the hand car wash 20 minutes away cause I don't feel like paying someone 50 plus to wash my car and do a shitty job.

I'm probably overreacting here but it's a really shitty feeling when out of nowhere someone just ghosts you but still updates their IG story. And then like a dumb ass you message them again. Only to get no response. So now you're asking yourself what you could have done differently. Meh it's just me. I'm being stupid here. Let me shut up and suck it up.

Bentley has been putting so many smiles on people's faces during the week. It's basically my highlight of the day. I come in to radiation in the morning. Him trotting happily beside me cause he knows he's about to get all the petting and belly rubs his heart desires. It's so weird hearing the aide convos. "That's the Yorkie I was telling you about." "Awww it's so cute." Then of course they walk up and ask me if it's okay to pet him. And here's my mindset. Every one of those people I'm there with has in some shape or form experienced cancer or been affected by it. We all could use something in the morning to put a smile on our faces...be it a joke here...or a rambunctious 5lb dog there. I'm not sure what I would do without him. I'd literally have nothing outside of my roommates and parents. Also if anyone doubts dogs being remotely human fuck you. 🖕

I gotta get my confidence back. I even stopped wearing my traditional khakis and button ups. My motto was you never know who you will see in public so stay ready. I'm usually well dressed but been feeling unwanted recently...ehhh that's a lie. For awhile. I've shot my shot these past couple of years and it's gotten me nowhere. "No worries there is someone out there for you." See I'd believe that if it wasn't every girl I talked to. 🤔 Or at least I'd get a "let me get to know you and we'll see" Anyway these Tag Heuer Aviators are fire. Might buy a second brown pair or off color later. 🤣 I know all that's "yikes," to end on this.

Doc says radiation is going as planned. Getting massive headaches (brain swelling from the radiation) which is normal. Getting pain meds for it. Shaved all my hair off. Couldn't cut it into a mohawk this time. Fell off from the inside out. Fatigued a little bit. So I'm struggling to keep myself occupied. Man I can't stress this enough. I don't wish this on anyone. The pain I can deal with. The waiting game is the real hindrance. It's been 3 years since I've been waiting to get my life back...or whatever fraction of it is left. I don't think I can take a 4th lesion if it comes up. I would just let it run it's course. I can't sit on the sideline anymore. I'm miserable.

Kind of a non eventful week really...

[mad-madam-m]

So I'm just curious, how do you get yourself to write? And do you use prompts and if you do where do you get them? I meant to use NaNo to get me to write but it took 4 days into November for me to realize November started so I failed lol. I've been meaning to start this original thing and it's just not...working.

First of all, anon, you could start writing RIGHT NOW (yes, with 10 days left in the month) and you would not fail NaNo. You might not hit 50k (although I know people who have hit 50k in that amount of time, or less), but you won’t fail. NaNoWriMo isn’t about hitting 50,000 words so much as it is about putting a stake in the ground and saying, “Here. Today. I will start writing the project I’ve always wanted to.” And doing it. Doesn’t matter what that project is—original novel, short stories, fic, poetry, revising something, a series of blog posts—NaNo is about just. Fucking. Doing it. And you still have time to Do It.

To answer your questions:

Do you use prompts and if you do, where do you get them?

For original stories, particularly novels, I usually don’t. For fic, particularly short fic I’m writing for events, I do. Tumblr has a wealth of writing prompts that range from “here’s a situation” to “here’s a line of dialogue GO,” and I tend to reblog them under the tags “fic prompts” or “writing prompts.” Honestly, most of them would work for either original fic or fanfic, so if you are a writer who likes to work from prompts, go forth and enjoy!

How do you get yourself to write?

That’s kind of a big question, and uh, the answer to it got long. Very long. (I said once that if you give me half a chance, I’ll talk about writing all the live-long day, and this answer is no exception.)

Different things motivate me for different projects, and as with all writing-related advice, YMMV, but here’s a few things that really help for getting myself to write:

1) Develop your story.

The current original story I’m working on, for example, I have not really had to struggle to get myself to write at all because 1) I’m stupid excited about it and 2) I have developed the hell out of it.

I’ve talked before about outlining my stuff here, so I won’t go too much into it again; suffice it to say that I have done about the same amount of development on my current original story that I had on ADA by the time I started writing. I started around the very end of September developing my characters and spent a good chunk of October working on setting, worldbuilding, plot, and finally my notecards.

Shockingly, having some idea of what’s happening and where I’m going is making this story easier to write.

Right? Like WHO’D HAVE THOUGHT.

Because of that, I’ve been excited about writing my story, so getting myself to write on it has been (comparatively) a cakewalk.

That’s not to say any of the writing is good (oh God no) or that there aren’t parts that need fixing, or that I haven’t been stuck. But it’s been stuck like “how do I describe seeing a tree-covered mountain in the middle of fall from the POV of someone who has never seen something like this” rather than “I have no fucking clue what happens next uh…”

The stories I struggle the most with writing are the ones that I’ve worked the least on developing. The stories that have been the easiest to write have been the ones I’ve spent at least a month doing prep work on before I ever start drafting.

2) Love your story.

Being in love with a story makes it a lot easier to write, at least for me. Because here’s the thing, ideas are easy.

If you’re a creative person, you’re going to end up with a file of story ideas—maybe prompts you liked, dialogue that stuck with you, one of those “humans are space orcs” tumblr posts that’s just really clicking in your brain—that will be longer than you could conceivably write if you had a hundred lifetimes. That’s okay! That’s great. But it means a lot of them are never going to get past the idea stage.

For me, the stories that get finished—the ones that not only get started but actually make it through the first draft and then three rounds of editing and revisions—are the ideas that I’ve been percolating on for months, if not longer. They’ve been cooking in the back of my brain while I’ve been doing other things, sorting themselves out, and most importantly: they will not let me go.

Coming up with ideas is easy. Finding an idea that will last and sustain a story and my interest for at least a year, if not longer? That’s harder.

Y’all know how much I’ve been talking about Tiger & Bunny over the past year? We’re talking that level of obsession with a story that I want to write, whether it’s fic or original. Sometimes it takes months or years for all the puzzle pieces to come together. Sometimes the whole thing will congeal within a few weeks, or there will be one crucial piece of story that will just make EVERYTHING come together, I will literally shout “OH MY FUCKING GOD” and that’s it, I’m off to the races. (In this particular case, it wasn’t anything I���d done in the first two weeks of poking at steampunk-y ideas; it was the realization that I could put a circus on an airship. The whole story just went WHOOSH after that.)

BUT. But. Sometimes you don’t have that. These stories are great and I love them and they remind me why I love writing so much (and if you’re writing something that’s gonna be 90k+, like I have a tendency to do, you need to be in love with it, IMO), but sometimes you’re in situations where you just have to get it done. In those cases:

3) Resort to bribery.

I’ve been poking at the third part of Alpha & Emissary, oh, basically since I posted the second part. My problem is that my fandom focus has been, shall we say, split for the past year. *coughs delicately, shoves Tiger & Bunny fics under the bed*

But here’s the thing: I hate having a published WIP on AO3 (it’s why I don’t publish long!fics until they’re completely drafted and mostly edited). I hate—HATE—having an unfinished series on AO3.

So that’s the rub: I have an unfinished series that I want to finish because I hate that it’s not finished. I also have a new fandom that is wresting my attention and inspiration away from said series. What’s a girl to do?

A girl tells herself she can’t write any more Tiger & Bunny fic until she finishes this one WIP, that’s what she does.

And it’s motivated me to sit my ass down and work on that WIP, because goddammit, I have a “but there was only one bed” TaiBani fic that I would really like to have up by New Year’s.

Your bribery will be different. Maybe you get to watch 1 episode of your favorite show per every 1k you write, or you get to try a new knitting project when you finish this short story. Maybe you binge-watch an entire season of your favorite anime if you exceed your NaNo goal. Or you write 50 words and get a cookie. The point is, find what works for you to get it done.

4) Figure out a minimum daily goal and stick with it.

For me, this was 500 words a day. 500 words. That’s it. That’s one 30-minute word sprint for me. That’s something I can do without stressing myself out.

Because of this point and point 3, I wrote more than 7000 words on a story I’d been stuck on for the better part of a year before I had to stop to work on NaNo stuff. Another 7k, and I’ll probably have it finished.

Your minimum word count will almost certainly be different. Maybe it’s 300 words a day, maybe it’s 1000. Hell, maybe it’s 100 words. Again, find what works for you, what you can write regularly without stressing yourself out.

Another important thing: If I didn’t hit 500 words, I didn’t beat myself up about it. Maybe I wrote 350. Or 220. Or just 93. The point is, did I write? Yes? Then I did good. I got myself a sentence or a paragraph closer to finishing. And it all adds up.

(And hey, you don’t have to write every day. I do, or I try to, because that’s what works for me. If it stresses you out to do so, then find another way to make it work.)

5) Deadlines, deadlines, deadlines.

This one’s hard because I can rarely keep a deadline that’s not set by an external source. If you tell me on December 20 that you need a story by December 22? Then on December 22, you’ll have a story, edited and ready to post. But when it comes to something I set for myself, the chances of a deadline working are 50/50.

That being said, it is something that helps me keep on track and even if I don’t finish something by a self-imposed deadline, it does get me writing.

6) Sprint with friends!

NaNo is really great for this because all your writer friends are coming out of the woodwork going I need to hit 5k by the end of today, will you sprint with me? Sometimes it just helps to have that kind of accountability. You all get together (I’ve used Discord, Google Hangouts, IRC, and Twitter DMs for this), set a timer, and write for 15 minutes or 20 minutes or 30 minutes. Then, when the time’s up, you post your word count, everybody congratulates everybody else, and then you take a break before doing the next one.

Sprints are the reason I’ve been able to make some pretty significant headway on my word counts, and few things get me writing like knowing I’m going to have to tell everybody in my group what my word count is in 30 minutes or less. >.>

Like I said earlier, YMMV on all of these. What works for me may work for you, or it might not. But if you aren’t sure, it’s worth giving it a shot.

Happy writing!

[the-stories-in-my-head-95]

Hey, I've Got You- Chapter Six

Tony Stark x enhanced! Reader

Summary -The reader was captured and experimented on and given the healing factor and she has claws that extend out from the bed of their nails. The people who are experiment on her cover her skeleton in vibranium. So the reader now has metal claws. They keep her locked away for a very long time. They rarely feed her or let her out because there is such a high chance of her escape now. Somehow the UN panel that is in charge of the accords finds out about the illegal experiments and send Iron Man in to shut down the operation. The reader is the only one there because the scientists had gotten word that they had been discovered. Tony finds the reader and takes her back to the compound.

Message- Team Cap is back!  Sorry if it sucks!!

Warning- Reader is held captive and experimented on. Mentions of torture. Self-injurious behavior.

Background  Chapter One  Chapter Two  Chapter Three  Chapter Four  Chapter Five

Word Count- 1500ish 

Tony had received a call that morning informing him that Bruce Banner, Thor and some guy named Dr. Strange would also be coming to the tower.

“I think that they are actively trying to make my head explode!” Tony huffs as he starts to get dressed for day. You had already gotten ready choosing to wear a black pencil skirt and a dark red blouse. You were now holding Teddy, who was still asleep.

“I called Pepper she said that she would handle getting three additional rooms ready, she also said Helen would find two empty labs for Banner and Strange. Everything is taken care of, you don’t need to worry about those things.” You murmur as Tony sits down next to you fully dressed and he looks down at Teddy.

“How are you feeling about leaving him for the day? I’m a nervous wreck about it!” Tony said while trying to laugh it off.

“I hate the idea of leaving him here. He’s barley been out of our sight since the day he’s been born. But MJ is awesome and I showed her everything she needed to know last night, if anything happens she’ll call us and she promised to send photo updates every hour.” You say as you lift Teddy up to kiss his forehead, then you passed Teddy to Tony, so he could say goodbye. The two of you decided to leave the house earlier than usual so you have some extra time to prep. You say goodbye to MJ and then the two of you drive to the compound. The two of you drive in a comfortable silence, Tony held your hand the entire time. Once the two of you arrive at the compound you see Peter waiting for you, he looked nervous.

“Pepper just got a call, they’re gonna be here in about 20 minutes.” Peter said as he ran up to the two of you.

“Why so early? They weren’t supposed to come until 10:00.” You ask.

“They didn’t say. But everything is all set up, everyone else is waiting in the conference room.” Peter says. You and Tony nod and you kiss him on the cheek.

“Go, I’ll be there soon.” You say, Tony gives your hand a squeeze before letting it go. After he walked in you turned to Peter. “So, are you going to wear the mask?” you say as you but your oversized black sunglasses on.

“Yeah, I think that it’s for the best, at first anyway.” You hum in agreement and the two of you make your way to where the quinjet will be landing. When you see it start to approach Peter puts his mask on. You both straighten up a bit and the smile falls from your face. You do your best to look fierce and you feel Peter stiffen next to you as the jet lands. They all start to file off of the quinjet, one by one. They all look around a bit confused probably at the lack of familiar faces.

“Hello, Ma’am, we were told that Tony would be meeting us here.” Captain Rogers said.

“Yes, he’s inside, he had other things to attend to. So if you would please follow us we will bring you to the conference room.” You say icily. Then you and Peter turn around and start to walk quickly through the compound.

“Did Stark get a new assistant?” you hear Natasha ask Steve quietly. Eventually you get to the conference room where Tony, Pepper, Helen and Rhodey are. They all look serious as you enter the room. You quickly make your way to the empty seat next to Tony as you pass him you give his shoulder a little squeeze and he catches your hand and kisses is as you sit.

“Jeez Tony, have you been screwing the co-ed the entire time we’ve been on the run? She’s like half your age. What do you think of this Pepper?” Clint says. You start to tense up, you knew what people thought when they saw the two of you, but most people kept their thoughts to themselves. Tony went to say something but Pepper put her hand up.

“I’m very happy for Tony and his wife Y/N. While Tony and I did date in the past we finally realized that we were better as friends.” Pepper sneered at him.

“WIFE! You must have really lucked out when you went looking for a sugar daddy, kid!” Your hands clench into fists and you feel your claws pierced your skin. Tony looks down and frowns.

“You know nothing about her, so don’t judge her and none of you have been actively pursued in over a year and I know for a fact that most of you have been living in Wakanda.” Tony said as he glared around the room. “Now if we could get started. Things will be different, there are areas you will not have access to without permission, those include Helens, Spiderman’s, Rhodey’s and my labs, as well as Peppers and Y/Ns offices. All of you who lived here your rooms are in the same place. Those of you who haven’t your rooms are labeled. If you need an office just let Pepper know, Dr. Strange, T’Challa and Dr. Banner we have labs set up for you.” Everyone is tense and staring at Tony in shock. Your phone dings and you open it to see a picture of Teddy sleeping, so you show it to Tony and he smiles. “Do any of you have any questions?” No one said anything. “Okay then. I’ll be in my lab, if anyone needs me just let FRIDAY know.” Tony says as he gets up. He reaches his hand out to you and you take it and the both of you walk out. You can hear the rest of your group following you. You turn your head and see Pepper pushing Rhodey and Helen and Peter are right behind them. All of you make your way to Tony’s lab. As soon as you get there you all take a deep breath and just look at each other. Tony grabs a washcloth and whips the blood off of your hands.

“Can we just stay in here for the rest of the day?” you say and everyone laughs a bit. All of you hang out in Tony’s lab for a couple hours but eventually you all make your way out into the rest of the compound. You meet your therapist in your office and you talk for about an hour. Then you walk her out of the compound and when you turn around you see Steve and Bucky walking through the hall. You nod at them and quicken your pace a bit. You meet Peter in the gym and you tell FRIDAY to restrict access. After about 20 minutes you hear a knock on the door.

“FRIDAY, who’s at the door?” you ask.

“It is Captain Rogers, Mr. Wilson, Mr. Barnes and King T’Challa. Do you want me to let them in?” FRIDAY asks.

“Put you mask back on and grab a yoga mat for me.” You tell Peter who nods and jumps out of the ring. You walk over to the door and turn around to make sure Peter has his mask on and that he put the mat out. When he nods at you, you open the door. “Can I help you?”

“Yes, we were hoping to use the gym. We were unaware that you were in here. If you would prefer we could come back later.” T’Challa says.

“No, it’s okay. You can come in. I was just doing yoga and Spidey just wanted to work out without his mask for a while, so we locked the door. His identity is very important to him.” You say with a fake smile. You turn around and walk over to where Peter is standing. “Let’s use the treadmills for a little bit.” Peter nods. While you guys are on the treadmills you watch the four men train. After another 20 minutes you and Peter leave quietly.

“That was awkward.” Peter says when you walk into his lab.

“Yeah no kidding, are you staying for the “group dinner”? It’s going to be so awkward!” You say as you hop up onto one of tables.

“Yeah, I’m staying for it. I’m going home with you and Tony and then me and MJ are going to back to the city together. Tony said that you were going to bring Teddy with you guys tomorrow. That’s okay right? If not MJ can go back tonight and I can miss class to watch him tomorrow.”

“No, we need to tell everyone about him eventually. Does she know about what you really do here?” you ask.

“Yeah, she figured it out before we started dating.” Peter mumbled.

“I like her. She won’t take any shit from you.” You say. “I’m going to go find Tony, have fun with your science stuff.” You say as you hop off the table. After you say bye to Peter you make your way to Tony’s lab.

Tag List- @capbuckthor​ @avc212​ @purplekitten30​  @peachpodge​ @red-writer13​ @redcresent @sexysamsungl​