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nightmare-of-homophobes · 1 month ago

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Anything Goes ~ Reno Sweeney x f!reader

Warnings: drinking; smut; sex with a strange; strangers to lovers; fingering (Reno receiving); oral sex (reader receiving); mirrors; slow burn(?); misuse of "anything goes" songs; probably annoyingly ooc (idc); no established period; ignores the cannon; hints of bdsm and corruption kink; maybe lightly hints of religion kink but y'all are not ready for this conversation and I didn’t dive into it so let’s all ignore it; no beta reader; and Carol's reference.

Words: 4,7k (more or less)

Tag list: @confuseuniverse ( @jubshead @yourbasicqueerie @kenzie-floops, in case you guys aren't interested in being in my tag list please let me know)

It’s my first work in months and English isn’t my first language, so be nice leaving comments! Xoxo!

***

That night was supposed to be just one more cold, boring and lonely night, hadn’t your friends asked you to come with them to a new bar, where - they told you - would have some good drink and very good music since a rising singer would be singing there that night. Always trusting your friends to not let you down on your nights out, you put on your best trousers and a long-sleeved shirt and accompanied them.

The bar was a bit hidden, but you were able to find it. It was a rustic but comfy place, like some old tavern adorned with fairy lights and curtains of silk. It felt like entering another land. One where you could rest and forget your problems.

– So… Who is this rising star we came to see? – you asked once you and your friends were settled down on a table in a corner. The bar wasn’t that crowded and the table was close enough to the stage, so you could still have a clear view of it.

– Her name is Reno Sweeney, if I remember it right. – one of your friends, Hope, told you. – She has been doing shows in the bars around the city and it’s starting to get some attention.

– Reno Sweeney? – you repeated the name, tasting the name. It was a good name, one that you weren’t used to. – Have any of you actually heard her singing?

– No, but you know… There’s always a first time. – Billy, Hope’s boyfriend, said while wiggling his brows. You just rolled your eyes, amused with his attitude.

You all had some drinks before the light on the room started to dim and someone announced the great attraction of the night:

– Ladies and gents, I would like you to welcome our guest star, the woman who had been stealing hearts around town with her seductive voice and tempting looks… Reno Sweeney!

Everyone in the bar applauded as a woman went up on stage. The woman was slim and elegant, dressed on a shiny dress with a slit while a faux fur scarf hung around her naked shoulders. All in white tones… Just as some ghostly (or angelic) vision. The only different color she was wearing was on her lips: dark red lips.

Like a forbidden fruit that few would be able to taste.

– She's gorgeous! – Evelyn, by your side, exclaimed.

– Yes… – you breathlessly agreed. – She is.

When the applauses ceased, the woman spoke seductively, her voice soft as a breeze:

– It's good to be here with all of you tonight… – her smile was charming and playful. – The night is a child, my friends, and I'm certainly just starting. – she winked at the crowd.

As the band started playing, Reno Sweeney started to sway gently to the melody before the first verses finally let her mouth. The hair on the back of your neck immediately raised up at the sound of her singing, her words dripping from her lips like honey. Sweet and, oh, so dense. You just couldn't rip your eyes off her.

It was clear tha the moment she started to sing, the bar became hers… And you were afraid you had become hers too.

***

As the night went on and the drinks were drained by your group, you felt yourself getting lighter. When Evelyn asked you to dance, you quickly accepted the offer, playfully assuming the guiding role of the dance - to what he didn't complain at all.

As Reno's gentle voice sang “La Vie En Rose” in the background, you led Evelyn to the dance floor. Couples started to join you and the singer’s attention turned to it, smiling at your playfully behavior as she spotted the two of you in the crowd, dancing through the couples in reversed roles.

You felt nervous as you met her eyes at some point through the dancing, her sassy attitude never faltering as she smirked and winked at you.

(Well, it could've been - and it would make more sense if it was - to Evelyn, but you got yourself hoping that it was to you.)

When the music ended, Reno chuckled maliciously.

– Look at all of us here on a Saturday night… – she started. – Dare I say, we got the behaviour of a bunch of sinners. – she stood up from the little stool she was and gestured towards the people at the bar. Her smile never disappearing. – And since we're a bunch of sinners and mass is only tomorrow morning, I'm afraid I will have to take the burden of guiding you to the light tonight. – signaling to the band, she finished her discourse. – Ladies and gentlemen, we are here tonight to fight the devil… But, of course, we'll do it in the best of styles, so I hope y'all help me by accompanying me in this dance.

As she finished talking, a lively jazz began to play as Reno began to sing about the angel Gabriel. Only that woman could sing a gospel in such a sinful way and yet entertain people who clearly didn't go to the church assiduously.

As she sang excitedly, she left the stage to swing among the people, interacting with tables before getting on the dance floor, dancing with some guys in her way before getting to Evelyn and you.

– Once I was headed for hell… Once I was headed for hell! – she took Evelyn from you, spinning him around just how you've done with him during your dancing. – But when I got to Satan's door, I heard you blowin’ on your horn once more… – she let Evelyn so she could take your hand on hers and spin you too, holding onto your waist after she did it. – So I said, “Satan, farewell!”. – she sang the verse close to your face, making your cheeks burn.

As she let you go and slid across the dance floor back to the stage, you stood frozen at your tracks. Evelyn chuckled at your reaction as he returned to you.

– What the fuck just happened?! – the words blurted out of your mouth as you looked at him.

– I don't know but you got her attention, sweetie! – he said in a singing tone and bumped his hips against yours. – Oh, God, someone pinch me, did we just dance with Reno Sweeney?! – he freaked out a bit.

– WE DID! – I freaked out with him and we laughed our asses out before going to the bar to get a drink.

As Evelyn discussed something about his drink with one of the bartenders, I called another one and asked:

– Could you send one of these to Miss Sweeney? – I pointed down to my own drink. A minty cherry cocktail.

– I could try. – the guy said. – But she hasn't accepted any of the drinks people tried to buy her tonight.

With that, the man caught the attention of one of the waiters and sent them out to ask the singer if she would want the drink. You watched as the man approached her during the break between songs and whispered in her ear, gesturing to the bar.

She gazed at you and you, not knowing what to do, waved shyly at her. She smirked at you while tilting an eyebrow before facing the waiter and saying something to him.

You waited anxiously as they got back.

– She will want a Cosmo instead of the cherry cocktail. – the man informed, waiting for the drink so he could take it back to the woman at the stage.

You smiled to yourself with that and watched when she accepted the drink. She looked at you again and raised her drink subtly at you, to which you answered by raising your own at her direction.

– Seems like you're a lucky one. – the bartender said to you, watching the interaction.

You just chuckled and paid for the drinks.

***

The bar was slowly getting empty and Evelyn was drunk at this point of the night. Billy and Hope were getting disgustingly tactile towards each other and you were in the best of moods.

– I think we should get going… – Hope said after annoyingly letting out a chuckle because Billy was kissing her neck. – Are you coming with us?

– No, you can go… – you said. – I want to see the end of it. – you gestured to the stage.

Billy stood up with Hope and they both took Evelyn with them.

– Good luck, dude! – Billy said as they started making their way out of the bar.

As Reno announced the last song, a man approached your table:

– Excuse me… – you looked at him confused since you didn't know him. – I couldn't help but notice your dancing partner left you and I really want to dance so… Do you fancy a last dance?

You frowned slightly but nodded anyway, quickly standing up. The man didn't seemed harmful at all, so why not?

– Just don't try any funny business. – you warned him, to which he raised his hands in redemption.

– No funny business! – the man agreed.

As Reno's voice flooded the place, you claimed the dancefloor with the stranger. Now there were few people in the bar and most of them were too drunk to know their own name.

The man was gentle and respectful, leading the dance but still giving you some space. While swaying around with the guy, you couldn't shake off that feeling that someone was staring at you - that light pressure nugging at the back of your head and making you feel warmed.

As you looked back to the stage, your eyes locked with Reno’s.

In olden days, a glimpse of stocking

Was looked on as something shocking

But now, God knows

Anything goes

Good authors too who once knew better words

Now only use four-letter words

Writing prose

Anything goes

She sang the verses seductively, never breaking eye contact. You felt your breath hitch.

If driving fast cars you like

If low bars you like

If old hymns you like

If bare limbs you like

If Mae West you like

Or me undressed you like

Why, nobody will oppose

When ev'ry night the set that's smart is in-

Truding in nudist parties in

Studios

Anything goes…

Anything goes

As she finished her show, the man thanked you for the dance.

– This was fun… – he said. – Maybe we could repeat this on another occasion…? – he asked unsure.

You were about to dismiss his offer, when the silky voice rang behind you.

– Excuse me, but can I borrow the lady for a moment?

You felt a shiver run down your spine, so you quickly dismissed the man:

– I'm sorry… – he just nodded politely and you turned around to face the ginger woman again.

– I don't think I caught your name, sweetie… – Reno said, invading your personal space to hold onto your shoulders.

***

The woman's lips clashed against yours in the hall as she used her body to trap you on the wall. After thanking you for the drink and doing some small talk, Reno invited you to her place, which wasn't that far from the bar, to grab some more drinks and talk, so you accepted the offer.

Yet, she clearly had other plans in her mind.

When you both were out of breath, she stepped back so she could find her key and finally open her room’s door. Once you were inside it, she pushed you back against the wall, her hands going to the back of your neck as she smiled with desire.

– You're beautiful… – she said with honesty, making your heart flutter. You weren't used to being complimented.

– If I'm beautiful, then what are you? – I asked breathlessly. – An angel flung out of heaven?

She chuckled amused, leaning into you again as if to kiss you, but stopping to speak against your lips:

– What does this make me? – her voice sent heat straight to your core. – A demon? – you were about to say that wasn't what you meant when she brushed her lips in a way to your ear to whisper. – I liked it.

Those three words almost made you whimper and you had to shut your eyes tight. You would certainly need to go to church after that night.

Holding onto her waist, you brought your mouth to her jaw, kissing and licking a way to her left shoulder while slowly unzipping her strapless dress - sometimes you even dared to softly bite her milky skin, feeling more confident once you noticed she wouldn't prevent you from it.

When you were about to pull her dress down, she escaped from your hands and mouth, a playful smirk on her face as she held the fabric while throwing off her fur scarf. Sitting on the bed with fluid movements, she stared at you - waiting.

– You first. – she said, her tone deep and sultry.

Swallowing hard, you started undoing your buttons. First you undid the trousers, quickly taking it off with your shoes. Then, as you started to undo the shirt, she gestured with one of her finger for you to come closer.

She slipped off her dress as you walked to the bed. Laying down while pulling you with her, she finished your work before throwing your shirt on the ground, her cheeks a bit flushed as she found herself under your weight - your hands placed at the sides of her head to support you.

At that moment, reality hit you. You had a sexy and talented woman under you. But she was a complete stranger.

– We know nothing about each other… – you commented softly.

– Does it bother you? – she asked in a tone as soft as yours, one of her hands was holding gently at your neck as the other caressed your side, tickling you a bit.

– Not at all… – you answered. – But I would like to know more about you.

She held your gaze and bit down on her lip. The lipstick was smudged and you knew your lips, face and neck were covered in that exactly tone of red.

– Well, then ask me before my mouth is too busy to answer. – she whispered tauntingly, making you close your eyes and the butterflies in your stomach twist crazily.

– Reno Sweeney is your real name, or is it an artistic name? – you asked, sitting down at her thighs.

She sat herself too, holding onto your back so she could kiss and bite your clavicle.

– My real name. – she murmured against your skin. – My turn… Do you live in this city, or are you just visiting?

– I live here… – you gasped as she licked from your clavicle to your jaw. – Uhh… How old are you?

She leaned back for a moment to wink at you.

– A lady never reveals her age. – she dived back into work. – Have you done this before? I mean… With a woman?

– Yes. – your breath hitched as she unclasped your bra and took it off. – You?

– Yes… – she took your breasts in her hands. – How old are you?

– 20. – her hands froze for a second and you looked down at her, worried. – Any problem?

– Not at all… You're just younger than I thought. – she said and you watched how she kissed your nipples, feeling yourself get more soaked at every passing second.

– Too young for you?

– As long as you have age to consent… – she licked one of your nipples. – It won't be a problem for me. – latching her lips on it, she lifted her gaze to meet yours eyes.

You lost any rational thought at that sight and a whimper fell from your lips. Throwing yourself back on her, you kissed passionately, holding onto her tight as you unconsciously started rocking your heat against her thigh.

When her tongue teased your mouth, you promptly opened it for her, letting her taste once more the cocktails you had earlier. She also tasted like alcohol, but with hints of sweet and sour that you recognized from that cosmopolitan.

It didn't take long for her to reach between your legs and start rubbing your clit with her thumb, making you gasp slightly against her lips. You took a sharp breath when, putting your panties to the side, she slipped her fingers through your wet folds.

– Gosh, you're soaked… You probably have been wet since I climbed on that stage, haven't you? – she provoked you, bringing her fingers to your clit to lubricate it.

A small moan left your lips as your forehead rested against hers. Your eyes were closed again and when you opened them it was only to be met with Reno's big brown ones staring up at you in desire and admiration. You almost moaned again at that sight.

Rocking your hips against her hand and thigh, Reno built for you a gentle rhythm as she went back to your chest, playing with your nipples into her mouth or free hand, taking rounds between pinching, licking, sucking and biting them. Making you a total mess for her since her busy fingers on your clit were working at a pace that didn't satisfy you at all.

– Reno… – you whimpered her name, feeling so frustrated you could cry if she didn't give you what you wanted. – Please…

You felt her smirk against your breast before raising her head to look at you.

– What is it, darling? – she asked in an innocent tone, pretending to be clueless to your needs.

– Faster, please… – you begged her, your hands holding at her shoulders with such force you would certainly leave marks.

– What? I don't think I understood you, darling… – she said with a smug smile on her face, her eyes twinkling with malice as she slowed even more the pace of her fingers.

You groaned irritated and looked down at her with a begging expression.

– Please, Reno, don't tease me like this. – you hold her face in your hands, panting softly against her lips.

You watched as her eyes darkened even more and she let out a low, throaty humm at your request.

– I love the way you say my name… – she said before catching your lips again, lying you down on the bed so she could have her way with you.

Feeling her kissing a way from your lips to your belly, you almost couldn't hold yourself from buckling and whining as a slut, trying - not so subtly - to get her attention to where you needed her the most.

– Please, please, please… – the soft pleading left your mouth as if it was your personal mantra, which made her very satisfied.

– Since you're asking so well… – she muttered before diving between your legs, a loud and obscene moan leaving your mouth as she did it.

Her tongue circled your clit slowly and lightly before flattening it against you, pressuring down deliciously so you had no option but to throw your head back on the mattress and tangle your fingers on her perfect red locks. Losing your head as a strain of curses fell from your lips.

– Do I have such power on you or are you always this needy? – she mocked you before licking, very slowly, from your entrance to your clit, sucking it hard as she reached it.

She released your clit with a loud pop and your hips quivered under her. You were so sensitive for her at that point.

– You'll have to fuck me in another occasion to discover… – you answered without even noticing, making her laugh.

– Maybe I'll do it… – she answered before bringing her lips to your clit again as she slipped a finger inside you. You were so wet it didn't have any resistance.

As she resumed her sucking, her finger built a rhythm that made you feel both satisfied but in need of more at the same time. And you let her know it.

– Put another one… Please. – for your surprise, she didn't tease you, just obeyed. Her brows were furrowed from being so focused on bringing you to your climax.

You were an unashamed mess. Face hid on the pillow, fingers tightly holding ginger locks, mouth opened, chest rising and falling heavily, cheeks warm, belly tense, erratic hips and trembling legs.

You were at the edge of your orgasm.

Reno, of course, had noticed all of that and was giving her best to ruin you. Twirling her fingers inside you, she found that spot that almost made you scream from pleasure and flattened her tongue again against you, letting you grind onto her mouth as she kept hitting that spot inside you.

Your hips stuttered as an intense wave of pleasure crossed your body and your mind went blank as you shut your eyes tightly.

When the pleasure subsided and you returned to your senses, you realized you still were holding Reno buried between your legs, so you let her go, watching her pull her fingers out of you while choking to catch her breath.

– I'm so sorry, did I hurt you? – you asked her with worry in your voice.

Her only answer, though, was to throw herself back on your lips, kissing you fervently as she straddled your hips, making you taste yourself on her tongue.

When both of you ran out of air, you separated yourselves, a strain of saliva still hanging between your mouths, connecting you two as you breathed the same air.

She didn't give you time to recover at all before she was grinding against your belly and whispering on your mouth:

– I'm so wet for you… – you groaned at her attitude, which just made her grind harder down onto you. – What are you going to do about it?

Sitting straight while still catching your breath, you averted your eyes from hers for a second and an object, in the corner of the room, ended up catching your attention.

– Nice mirror you have there… – you said to her, your mind already turning its gears.

– Fuck, I'm practically jumping at your lap and your attention is on my mirror? – she complained, shaking her ass on your lap.

You chuckled and took her off your lap, going to the mirror. It was a full size mirror and you replaced it in front of the bed.

– What are you doing, come back, darling… – she said seductively, spreading herself temptingly on the bed.

– Wait a minute, you're going to like this, I swear… – you said and adjusted the mirror. – Sit against the headboard of the bed… Can you see your reflex well? – you asked as you watched her obey your request.

– Hmm… a bit to the left. – she guided you. – Enough, yes, now it's perfect. What are we going to do?

Returning to the bed, you seated beside her and told her:

– Sit in front of me.

Lifting an eyebrow, she smirked, understanding what you were leading to. As you spread your legs and she sat between them, you pulled her body flush against yours.

– Now… Where were we? – you muttered under your breath, letting your hands slide down her body to reach her knees and spread them widely, putting your legs above hers so she was under your mercy. – Your stockings are so soft… – you whispered against her ear, watching through the mirror how she tilted her head to the side, her lips parting as you were running your hands along the stockings. – I wonder if your panties are as soft as them...

Her breath hitched under that comment and you smirked against her neck, letting your right hand wander to her core, feeling how she tensed up the closer you got to it.

Starting to rub her through her panties you used your other hand to pull her bra down and to the side, just enough so her breasts were free from it. Squeezing them and pressing her clit, you were very satisfied to have her getting impatient on your hands.

One of her hands went to the back of your neck while the other held onto your wrist, her breathing getting labored as you put her panties to the side and collected some of her juices with your fingers, before taking them to your own lips to taste her.

– Hmm… So sweet. – you said and heard the small whimper that fell from her as she watched you, through the mirror, lick her juices off your fingers. – Do you want to taste it too?

You placed your fingers back on her pussy, collecting more of her juices. Tapping your fingers against her lower lip, you didn't have trouble slipping them inside her mouth, playing with the softness of her tongue before she actively sucked her own wetness from your fingers.

– Lube them well, okay? – you asked while kissing her jaw and neck. – Then you won't feel any discomfort when I slip them inside you.

A muffled sound left her mouth and you just chuckled before taking your fingers out of her mouth. Without warning, you slipped them inside her.

– Oh, God! – she moaned, throwing her head back on your shoulder, her eyes fluttering close.

– Is it hurting? – you asked, kissing her temple.

– No, no… – she bit down her lower lip, furrowing her brows as she shifted softly against your hips. She didn't seem uncomfortable at all, just unaccustomed. – Just stay still until I tell you so.

With your free hand, you stroke her face and jaw, making her relax against you.

– Go on. – she said softly.

Pushing your fingers deeper, you found her clit with your thumb.

– You know… you have a nice bush down here. – you complimented her, eyeing the ginger locks contrasting with the white fabric and her milky skin. A blush creeped on her skin.

– If only you fucked me with the same talent you use to talk nonsense... – she mumbled with a bratty attitude.

– A what now? – you asked just to be met with her silence. – Well, then I'm sure you could do a better job yourself, don't you think? – you threatened to remove your fingers from her, but her hand on your wrist tightened, holding it in place as she regretted.

– No, no, you're doing great…! – she said, holding your gaze through the mirror. – Don't stop.

You smirked at her reflex and watched her melt against you once again as you started thrusting your fingers in and out her slick hole, the wet sounds filling the room along her small whimpers. But, of course, the quiet atmosphere was broken once her pleasure started to build up.

Everyone who had watched Reno knew she was cheerful and loud at the stage, yet few knew that she was just as loud in bed. Unashamed - and, honestly, not caring at all - if people were able to hear her in the closest rooms.

– Yes! Yes! Just like that! – the words would fall from her lips in succession, like a hellish melody and you were the one orchestrating it.

You couldn’t point out what was better at that moment. If it was to feel her panting against your body as you held her in her place. Or to hear her cries of pleasure so close. Or to see her slim and beautiful figure squirming at every thrust. Or to be thrusting your fingers as deep as you could, caressing the velvet walls of her insides in a dance you discovered with her...

Or to have all those sensations combined with the fact that, in the intensity of the moment, Reno acknowledged how loud she was getting and, in a desperate measure to quiet her down for a bit, she reached for your free hand and placed it around her neck, inciting you to choke her quiet.

Holding her throat firmly and doing a final effort with your fingers and thumb to calm down her buckling hips, you watched, mesmerized, as her eyes rolled up and her mouth fell open as a struggled moan left her, her whole body tensing up as she reached her climax, her legs shaking and her hips occasionally buckling to the gentle rhythm you set to help her ride down her orgasm.

Once she started to melt in your arms, you started to slow down your fingers until they came to a stop. Your whole hand was covered in her juices and you didn’t waste time before sliding into Reno’s mouth the exact fingers that were inside her greedy pussy just seconds ago.

She opened her eyes in surprise, but didn’t make any move to not take them inside her mouth. You were still holding her neck softly and gave a playfully squeeze at it before guiding her chin to face the mirror once again.

– Look at you, Reno… – her eyes stared at themselves in the mirror.

She was the absolute picture of lust. Fiery locks falling into all directions, breasts showing off above her bra, legs spread widely, stretched out pussy, skin flushed in a soft pink, eyes hooded and a bit hazy and all the while you were the one holding her like that.

– You really were onto something when you sang that nowadays anything goes.

Masterlist

#it may be shitty but i worked my brain out to write this #reno sweeney #reno sweeney x reader #anything goes #one shot #patti lupone #reader insert #nightmare writes #nightmare of homophobes

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unabashednightmarepizza · 1 year ago

Text

𝐿𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝐿𝑒𝑔𝑜 𝑃𝑖𝑒𝑐𝑒𝑠

A/N: I feel like this sucks but it would still do, I hope yall like it! This is also like the story of how director!reader and Ben got together in my "Shadow and Bone Chronicles AU" but could still be read seperately.

Taggings: @augustwithquills @idohknow @bloody-mf-bsc

Today will be hard, was his first thought when Ben woke up and started getting ready for the "hangout" you planned. It had been a long time since you two actually talked yet alone go to a place together. Between presses and shooting, the only form of communication between you two was texting and occasionally video calling.

And even they weren't able to fully ease his painfully beating heart.

He had stopped seeing a friend in you a long time ago. To him, it was way past that point. With your childish side coming out with him, showing your love through your sarcasm and bullying which made everyone laugh as he flushed, trusting him so much to the point you slept in his house whenever it became late, and how you always magically knew something was wrong with him and offered everything possible just to see him crack a smile...

It was the little things, the way you silently cared for him and did little things that made him fall for you.

Hard.

He paced around his room as he looked for his outfit, anxiously looking at his reflection in the mirror. Did he look fine? He wasn't too much, was he? Was he underdressed? He should have asked what you were going to wear-

"You aren't turning back to your anxious and weirdly worried self, are you?"

Jack's voice shook him from the deep turmoil he was close to putting himself in as Ben looked at him with an annoyed yet affectionate look at his brother who was leaning over his door. "What are you doing here?"

"Making sure you don't overthink." He huffed out a laugh as Ben grabbed his phone and wallet and brushed past him, letting out a laugh as his brother swatted his back and followed him. Being back at his parents' house, alongside his brother, had been the best decision he had ever made. Between shooting, going on stages to sing and doing press, he was exhausted and he rewarded himself with a month of full rest and just being Ben.

Not Ben Barnes, the actor the world knew.

He smiled softly to himself as he got out of the house, almost with a skip to his steps and trekked towards where you would be waiting for him. Though the sunny weather eased his mind and brought warmth in him, there was this... Disturbing ache and beating of his heart.

And the voice that always told him something was wrong, even in his best days.

Good guys never get the girl, don't get your hopes up...

That thought suddenly made him halt, close his eyes thightly and continue walking. His heart felt heavy at that unspoken fact, squeezing and contrasting painfully. That was something he was used to experience, it always happened to him anyways, leaving hım heartbroken.

And he really didn't understand why women tended to go after men, rather boys, that could never treat them right.

But deep down, all this worry and negative voice was because of... His feelings for you.

He wanted to confess, to tell you that he liked you for a long time now, wanted to wrap his arms around you as he inhaled your smell and savored your warmth and love. He wanted to sway you to a song only you two heard, cook with you and then perhaps throw flour at each other like in those cliche romcoms.

He wanted to tell you about his day, talk to you, call you freely without worrying about anything, call you sweet names, share his life with you and talk about it as you both laid on your beds, crack jokes to make you laugh as he would bask in the sound of its melody...

Yes, he was a hopeless romantic but it had always been like that anyways.

He was just good at hiding those intentions behind care and flirting. But it was perhaps obvious in the way that he had been acting, that he was searching for a commitment and serious love, that he thought about settling down with the woman of his life.

But could he really do that? He didn't even know if you felt the same, would it really be worth risking your friendship? Besides, there were other things to worry about as well. He wouldn't be there all the time for you and you for him even if he wanted, and you two would have to rely on the net while missing each other... And perhaps, you would get tired of him and this constant time of being away, want to find someone who could actually take time for you and give you everything you deserved and made you happy-

But just as when his thoughts started to slightly overwhelm him, he heard your voice steadily coming closer to where he was waiting for you... Alongside with the hard "pat!" sounds your shoes made against the pavement.

"Hello,Ben! I'm sorry I was late, I had to run here..." You panted and came to a stop when you reached his figure that was looking at you with worry as he helped you straighten up. His hand rubbed your back and he widened his eyes at how hard and fast your heart was beating, so much so that he could feel it through layers of clothes and skin.

"But why did you run, Y/N? Your heart beats like crazy, let's sit down a bit-"

"Because you were waiting... I didn't want to make you wait."

And it always does that flips whenever I'm near anyway

He widened his eyes at what you said, and couldn't help but let his heart make those flips too as he slightly blushed. You panted harshly to get more air into your lungs after running for 15 minutes straight. It wasn't your fault that the bus you took broke down in the middle of the road, but perhaps remembering sometimes, that you were also a famous who had her own car would help.

"So... Let me give a big hug to my favourite actor and friend! You were so good as the Darkling and excuse you, how dare you make me like him..." You got up with a wide smile, arms wide open as you rambled about his latest work and gushed out because God knew what those costumes and raspy voice of his did to you. This was perhaps the most futile attempt you had ever done, trying to conceal your feelings for the kind man before you.

You always knew Ben was handsome, charming and everything a woman could ever want in a man. He was kind, generous, cute and excited like a puppy most of the time and they were all the reasons you fell for him.

A grave mistake on your end, because he could never like you in that way. Why would he, when he could have anyone, when there were many who wanted him?

But as you gushed and buried your apparent affections for the man before you, you didn't realize how his smile slightly faltered and dropped, his eyes casting down with thight and pained lips as he bit them, hands thightening inside his pocket.

Of course, you didn't see him that way...

Against all odds, Ben let himself believe that Jack and pretty much everyone was right about his feelings and that you returned them.

What a fool he could be...

Maybe he was supposed to be more direct? Like a dinner date and not a hang out? But yet again, you were the one who prepared this and specifically called it a "hangout", not a date.

If he was in his house, he was sure he would have thrown a book or two at the wall angrily and eat himself up as he sat on his couch.

Contrary to what people believed hım to be, an effortless flirt, he wasn't. Not when it came to genuine feelings he had been harbouring for such a long time. He had dated before, obviously, and though he used to felt a spark to the women he dated... All of them went away after some time. He never felt that dizzying feeling whenever he was near them, or wanted to spend every waking hour with them, to know and listen to how they are, to be there for them in any way possible and shoulder their weights like it was his own...

He never felt that desperate for a girl before and this enough told him that his feelings were going to get even deeper as more time passes, and not go away.

Besides, he wouldn't be able to do so for so long since you always found a way to be there for him and surprise him, making it near impossible to stay away from you as he would always grin widely in response.

Such as his birthday, when you suddenly appeared from inside the box with a huge cake between your hands, obviously getting into it with the help of his castmates even if you were "supposed" to be working away from him but came here just for him anyways, a decision he had come to realize that brought tears to his eyes and squeezed at his chest.

You were effortlessly kind and considerate, and he really wanted to be mad at you for making hım feel like that, be vulnerable at your presence so much but he also knew that you had nothing to do with the way his heart felt about you and your stupid smile.

And he can't, he just can't hate you, be mad at you. He is rather mad at himself, for not listening to his friends who always said good guys never win, he is mad at himself for imagining things, dreaming of you and him together so much that he thought they could come true.

But what if...

He was about to cry tears of frustration every time he backed away from letting his intrusive thoughts win and just scoop you in a bear hug, kissing all over your face.

Such as right now, as you were trying to pinch his cheeks cutely, unaware of what you were doing to the poor man who was sure to smoke at this point.

"you are cute whenever you have that look on your face..." You giggled at his pouting and crimson face as he tried to cover it up by coughing and offered you his arm as you both walked together silently, acting like having you pressed to his body wasn't affecting him, making him almost loose his balance with tripping on his own feet.

As your eyes were glued to the road ahead of you, you didn't realize his focused gaze on you while he looked at your face secretly. There were eyebags under your eyes, something you were insecure about it sometimes but he found them adorable.

Especially when you smiled and alongside your cheeks, they made your eyes almost disappear by how big of a smile you had.

You got more skinny, perhaps a result of working too much. He knew your tandency of overworking yourself and forgetting to eat, since he had to force you eat many times as you would blush and admit your mistake with cheeks full of his food.

But there were some pleasant changes with you too. First, your hair which was a different color that suited you better and they framed your face perfectly. Then the change in style came too. You always used to dress more comfortable and sporty, refusing to show your curves or skin even though many complimented you when you showed them...

And now... you were more confident with everything about you and he couldn't be happier at seeing you love your own body.

He didn't actually know if that was a good change because many people were already looking at you up and down with eyes that definetly wasn't friendly which made his blood boil inside him...

And as you dragged him to the Lego shop, he knew that he would still have all of you and fight whoever dared to wipe that wide smile on your pretty face.

"Please, please, please! Look, I'm telling you, this one is expensive, I'm not gonna lie." You stopped Ben from saying anything with defensive hands to his way, standing behind the huge Hogwart's building lego set and made your best impression of puppy eyes, begging him while he was looking at you with teasing eyes, lips drawn up softly as he eyed the many items behind you.

As soon as you both entered, you disappeared from Ben's sight and he was left shocked behind you as he ran after you, wondering how you could be that fast. He chuckled under his breath at your excitement and it soon turned to full laughter when he found you looking at the lego set with heart eyes, with your hand clasped together and he had to refrain from buying it.

He coughed once, twice to cover his flushed cheeks and tried to make the best impression of being serious.

"Don't you think It's a bit expensive?" His eyes softened when you pouted and turned to look at the price tag, and he already knew that he would buy whatever it is that you wanted to have just to have your smile.

"But... We can split? This one is soooo big anyways, and I don't have enough room in my home." You laughed giddily, trying your chances with him as you showed how big it was like a child being asked how much do you love me and Ben smiled at you, standing next to you as he took a look at the box. He had to admit, that one looked... Way too good to not to buy, just like you insisted.

But he has to be stern! He wasn't as much of a simp as his brother and pretty much everyone pointed hım out to be!

"Don't you already have enough Lego sets in your house, love?" He turned his eyes to you, not realizing the sweet nickname that passed his lips as you blushed and stared at his soft and kind dark brown eyes with a stuttered breath. He leant over to you with his hot breath over your face, his stubbled and handsome face making your heart flip as the way he thightened his jaw sent you in a frenzy.

Suddenly, the air had gotten hotter and you had to fan yourself and take a step back from him before you did something you might regret later... Like jumping on him right there and there.

"I do? My mom keeps telling me to get rid of a few of them, asking how I live in there.... And besides, look! " You took a box that held the Funko POP figure of Sirius Black and showed it to him, in which he playfully raised a brow at, chuckling at your childish side that came out whenever you two hang out together and took the box from you. He already knew that he would buy whatever you wanted as soon as he saw how excited you were but it didn't hurt to tease, right?

"This one is you, in another universe, begging you to buy him~"

you shook it from side to side with a cute pout and came closer to him with small steps, peeking around the tiny corner of the box as he giggled at your antics.

"I haven't played Sirius Black yet, love..." he pointed out as if it was the most obvious thing, but it made you gasp dramatically and look at the box and then at him and back to his amused face with an offended gasp.

"But you ARE the Sirius BLACK?" you raised your brow in the Rock way, giggling when he shoved you away gently and shook his head at you. You were a big Harry Potter fan and openly, very openly indeed, fangirled after Sirius Black at any chance.

There were times he caught you watching edits of Marauders and cry, which he couldn't lie that was cute, and often comforted you.

He had to admit fans had some real talent with making edits that real.

And also, these would be one of those times that you swore you would one day make the Marauders TV series a reality and him as Sirius. He would chuckle and agree, if you ever decide to do that for real, and though he tried not to show his enthusiasm, you knew he was also excited at that idea but didn't tell outright to not put a weight on your shoulders.

Another reason to love him and also make this shit real.

"If you buy me this... Who knows, maybe a big surprise will be waiting for you at home~"

He was a damn almost-40 man, did you really think you could deceive him with such thing?

How old was he? Five?

But...

"Oh? Are you bribing me with a surprise?" He couldn't help but give only one fast glance at what you were holding and... He was so close to caving in, calling it a day and buy whatever you wished to buy.

Life was short, you gotta have fun, right?

Besides, you were using that puppy eyes and please you always cutely did with the battings of your lashes and pout, and he was a complete sucker, weak at the knees for the combination of the two cutest thing on the lovely face of the most adorable person he knew.

"Because it's working!"

You cheered loudly with a clap of your hands and a quick twirl, sprinting to the shelves in a hurry. You seriously thought he was gonna say no, by the hard look on his face and squeezed eyes he often did whenever he either thought about something or was getting ready to refuse an offer.

What can you say? He was a damn good actor, one hell of a kind even.

After you both were finally able to wrap everything up, and you forced him to make lego versions of each other which he was reluctant first but soon found himself making little versions of his friends and family too much to your enjoyment as he had the most gleeful look, you finally pulled him to where you could finally pay for everything.

Even though you had to hold the neck of his sweater and force him, much like a mama cat.

But now, you had to distract him someway because... Well, you forgot that half of the things were actually his birthday surprises, unknowing to him, and you had to pay for them before he did.

"Hey Ben..." He hummed at you when you tugged on his coat and looked down from sideways. His handsome face was full on display, the sharpness of his jaw making your knees turn to jelly momentarily before you pulled yourself together and smiled at his grinning face, eyes twinkling in happiness as a little strand of his hair escaped from the beanie he wore.

"Did you know you can make legos for your animals too?"

"You can?! Why didn't you tell me this before! I'll be quick, just wait a few minutes, okay?" You laughed as he hurriedly got out of the line, all the while sprouting I'm sorry's to the people left and right while momentarily holding their shoulders to not to bump into them harshly.

Another fact about him that was so loveable.

You sighed lovingly after his back, watching him miss the first turn and then flusteredly look at you as he turned back to the right one and smile. You giggled at his silliness and shook your head.

For an adult, he surely didn't act like one.

"Hmm, what a lovely couple you are... It's been so long since seeing two people so in love."

You slowly turned back to see a short, old woman holding her grandson's hand while they too waited in line, all the while smiling kindly and staring knowingly with a mirth of a future-mother-in-law type of way at you.

"Did you," you pointed between you and Ben at a distance coming over to you fast, with a shocked face as he watched you with red cheeks, smiling bashfully at the older woman's soft yet teasing eyes.

Oh, shit... He heard her, oh my God this is so awkward!

"... mean us? Pftt, no ma'am, we aren't dating, we are friends. He is just buying me the gift he couldn't buy."

Even though I wish he was something more...

You waved her off as if it was no big deal, trying and probably failing to conceal your flustered state as if being mistaken as a couple bu ithers didn't make your heart launch at your throat.

The older lady, who came with her grandchildren, only hummed in thought and nodded and you swore you saw the playfulness that came with youth in her eyes for a second. "Well, that young man doesn't look at you like a friend."

And as if she didn't just drop the biggest bomb at you, she took a hold of her grandchildren's hand and let them guide her away in yet another shelf after they left the toys near the cash.

You gazed after the woman with a slacked jaw and couldn't help but think about her words.

What did she meant by "He isn't looking at you like a friend does."?

What do I not see? Had I been... Blinded by my insecurities?

No, that was impossible. Because come on, it was obvious that he had a type in woman and you definetly didn't suit that. Besides, it wasn't like Ben to shy away from confessing or telling you about his feelings so, there was literally no reason for him to hide if he liked you back.

You weren't the Boogeyman, right?

You were silently, and slowly, drowning in these thoughts when a thoughtful-looking Ben came back with three more lego sets for the animals he knew and loved and you couldn't help but worry about him.

"Ben? Are you okay? You were fine like 15 minutes ago..."

"Yes, I am fine... Have you payed for everything?" His eyes slowly drifted towards your hands that was full of the sets, nodding your head at hım as he hummed and went to pay for the other three he got while you were left dumbfounded at his... Sudden lack of excitement.

He was just fine as he went to that shelves, what happened in just 15 minutes I wasn't there?

As you trailed close behind him, since that man was tall and his steps were bigger than yours, Ben was thinking back to what had happened in the store. How that old lady called you "his lover" and how he grinned like a kid being given his favourite toy at a Christmas day. He was beaming with joy inside at seeing other people being able to witness the traces if love in his actions, face and gestures since this, was the kind of man he was.

Proud to show off his loved ones as long as they deemed it okay and safe.

But the bitter pang of you refusing it so blatantly and quickly squeezed his poor heart harshly.

Why did you always look like it was such an absurd think to be seen as his girlfriend?

Before this day, he would have thought that it might have gone as far as disgusting you. But soon, he realized that it was far beyond that after he saw you blushing and loosing track of what you were gonna say or do whenever he leant a bit closer, or hugged you thightly.

Both different from how you used to act with him before.

Yet, he didn't want to get his hopes up only to crush when you rejected... That is, until that lady in the store came and literally knocked some sense to his "thick" head.

That girl is madly in love but doesn't know you also are, even a half-blind old geezer like me can see it!

That was exactly her words.

At first, he tried to go back against her words, telling her how wrong she was... Then he noticed what she said first and now, he was a mess.

What is he supposed to do now?!l

"Hey, Ben? There is actually something I want to talk to you..."

Now, that was the most couregous shit you were about to do in your whole life besides choosing your line of profession and that one time you decided to cross roads without holding your parents' hands.

Ben isn't the kind of man to throw someone aside for such thing, is what you thought as you took deep breaths to calm yourself down and stared at his lips as his nervous eyes found yours. You hated to be the cause of that, especially after such a fun day out, but... If you didn't do this, it would haunt you even in your dreams and regrets would wash over you for the rest of your days.

"Sure, of course... Look, if It's about-" he started with a dejected sigh, full on expecting you to tell him that the idea of being together or anyone entertaining such idea was wrong and stupid.

"I have had feelings for you for a long time!"

Yeah, no he was hearing voices that wasn't actually-Wait, what?

You rushed the words out in one breath, fearing that if you waited even a second, you would loose all your courage. That short time of your adrenaline rush was soon over, and you were left as a jittery mess before his shocked eyes as he tried to understand the situation he suddenly found himself in.

A situation that seemed like it was out of his dreams.

"Y-You... You have what?"

You groaned in embrassment while avoiding looking up, knowing the look of rejection even without doing so.

Oh, only had you done it... You would have seen the bright red face he supported with the cutest, boyish smile ever.

"Look, I know you don't feel the same but do you really have to-"

"Who said I don't?"

This time, it was your turn to become the shocked Pikachu but Ben wasn't done yet.

"This... Do you know how long I've been waiting for this moment?"

Double shocked Pikachu.

Your brain was turned into a putty, short curcuiting every second as it tried to understand what it was hearing. Maybe it was the cold weather? Maybe you brain froze and now was replaying the recent pleasing dream-

"I-I... You have?" You asked with a weak voice, hope lacing every single part of you as your eyes shone with love and expectations. His eyes softened at how fragile you looked, so dependant on what was going to leave his lips. He knew you tried to avoid confrontation as much as possible, especially when you weren't sure about the outcome.

This must be already hard for you to do and here he was, being all silent and staring at you which was probably even more nerve-wracking.

But you just seemed so cute, so adorable with that cute pink over your cheeks all the while looking up to him! He was just dreaming about how soft your cheeks must be, so squishy and warm because of the cool wind-

"Are you gonna say something?" You pouted at his face, still staring at you with a stupid smile as he let out a soft chuckle at your angry face, feet stomping like a bunny.

You didn't understand what was taking hım so long just to form a simple sentence. Yes or no, simple! You were the one who made leap of faith, the one who was close to having a heart attack and he was just grinning, shuffling on his feet excitedly-

"I love you too..."

You laughed out in glee at it, like a kid being given a hefty amount of chocolate and jumped up happily. At moments of pure excitement, humans lost track of what they did and that was exactly what happened as you moved to kiss his cheek but ınstead landed a smooch on the corner of his lips.

You kissed the corner of his lips...

You... Kissed... The corner... Of his mouth...

He slowly covered back from the shock as he watched you, a hand on his lips while disbelief was written all over his face and eyes. The epiphany od the moment nearly blinded him and he was sure his heart literally dropped but was them set aflame wildly.

Upon realizing what you had done,you stood there with your hands still on his chest to balance yourself... But when you came back to your senses, you left the bags between his hands and ran away with flaming cheeks, leaving an utterly bewildered, shocked yet happly in love man in the middle of the pavement as he stared longingly after you, already planning the next 100 dates ahead.

Dinner at Barnes' household was never quiet.

It was walmost tradition at this point, Ben and Jack bickering with each other go the last bite of the meal or one of them talking about their job as the parents listened...

But never in like 40 years that it had been that silent. And Tricia had a very good guess as to why with just one simple glance at her blushing eldest son who very much so resembled the kid he once was.

Tricia, as the observant mother she was, just stared at her eldest son eating... Like a proper human being for the first time with a small smile, and chuckled to herself. Ahh, what love does to people...

Hearing their mother sigh deeply, both Ben and Jack looked at her weirdly as they stopped eating. They stared at each other as if asking what the other did, nudging each other, even if they were literal adults, but in the end, Ben was the only one able to ask her as he gulped down his food.

"Mum, what's wrong?"

"You're in love and didn't tell me."

A snort left Jack as he tried to hold himself back from full on cackling as Ben shot him a look and turned to his mother with slightly blushing cheeks, eyes wide and full of wonder at how she was able to know this.

Did she really have eyes at the back of her head?

He really hoped and tried his best at hiding what just happened to him a few hours ago, even though the blush on his cheeks and the heavy shopping bags full of gifts made it pretty obvious.

"Where... where did you get this idea from?"

But he who fights and runs away, lives to fight another day and Ben wasn't going to make today his last day of peace. Because he knew...

He knew his whole family, down to the very end of both his parents' side, would tease him endlessly for his "obvious" crush on you, especially more than usual if they heard you and him were finally together.

But unforfunately, he was the one getting caught of guard when his mum noncholantly shrugged her shoulders and continued to eat as normal, looking at him above her glasses with a happy grin.

" Because, you finally eat without smacking your lips. Someone finally was able to chip that habit away... Which only a woman would be able to do."

"More specifically... A pretty co-worker of yours who goes by Y/N~"

Ben was left absolutely in shock with his mouth hang open at the way his own mum understood what was going on with him, his raging crush, as Jack choked on his own food and his dad looked between him and his wife with a grin that matched the one as hers. "So, he really grew enough balls to confess?"

"Dad!"

"It seems so, honey. Finally, the days he mops all around has ended!" She enthusiasticly replied him without glancing at her offended yet happy son as they both looked at him happily. After all, they have been rooting for you and him to get together for ages. You were a very kind soul, always offering your help even if you were at the other side of the planet and being Tricia's best gossip partner. She still remembered how you called her and told her your plan to surprise Ben in the middle of his shootings for his brithday and how it had to stay hidden as you prepared everything.

That was when she knew it was you for her son.

If her son hadn't done a move already, she was about to take the matters into her hands just to officially make you family.

But yet again... She was unsure if it was really her son who did it first.

"So... Who confessed first, son?"

"I bet my arse it was her!" Jack yelled out as a blush appeared on Ben's face at remembering what happened before he came back home, how your slightly chapped but still soft lips felt against his own skin,and that was enough to throw them into a frenzy as Jack cheered loudly for him while his father also joined.

But his mother, seeing the embrassment on her eldest's face, tried to shush them. But of course, as the men of the house were quite loud, it was near impossible with being the only female.

Another reason for you to join the family.

"Jack, no cursing at dinner!"

"Okay, I'm out. I don't want to listen to your teasings..." Ben slapped his knees as he got up and walked towards his room in his parents' house, his heart thundering inside his chest as his hand got clammy with anxiety.

He still couldn't believe how today turned out, how you told him you loved him for a while but wasn't sure if it was one-sided or not, that this was actually a date... Which he found absolutely ridiculous because he thought he was being very obvious, and then kissed him as if those words leaving your words weren't already enough for him to be sent into a cardiatic operation.

"Yeah, go and talk with your girlfriend~"

"Jack, stop making fun of your brother!"

But when he went up to his very much so enormous amount of gifts at the corner of his house, not caring about how his family suddenly turned silent as they watched him secretly from the corner, a note attached to the biggest set caught his eye and he softly took it between his hands and couldn't help but tear up at what was written in your handwriting.

Thank you for being exactly who you are and offering me a chance I never imagined that would be mine, something I didn't know I need my whole life... Happy belated birthday, Ben :)

"Oh my God... Is he crying-"

"MUM, BEN IS CRYING BECAUSE OF HIS GIRL!"

And he couldn't help but chuckle when he sat down and looked at the post and later story you shared, reading all the excited and shocked comments, feeling grateful for taking that old woman's suggestion seriously and rolling with it.

Because now, after years of pining, he finally had what he wanted and the voice that whispered to him was now... Silent.

Good guys indeed get the girl in the end, and he got his.

His lego piece.

Liked by freddycarter1, blakelively, benbarnes and 5,456,132 others

Y/N Y/L/N: Anything to see this wide smile...Even though it costed more than 10,000 Sterlins

View 453,623 comments

User1: WHEN IS IT GONNA BE MY TIME? BEN BARNES YOU LUCKY-

User5: GIRL WHAT DID YOU BUY?!

Y/N Y/L/N: nothing much really. The Hogwarts Building, 12 Grimmauld Place, Hogwarts Express, Gryffindor House, the Quidditch Trunk and Sirius Black POP Figure... It was the food that costed more.

User5: YOU CALL THIS "NOT SO MUCH"?! GIRL HOW RICH ARE YOU?!

User7: and do you accept any other sugar baby?

User3: guys there is a more important question to ask... Are they together finally? Because there are photos of them being all cute together and kissing sweetly and if that shit is right, I can't breathe...

User7: I say Ben Barnes finally found someone to babygirlify hım😌 as he should be

User7: Hear me out, whoever is reading this between you two, if you prove us that you are fucking together finally... I'll start to sing a song for this specific ship and upload it on Twitter

User6: THE BET IS A BIG ONE, COME ON NOW Y/N WE ONLY EXCEPT ONE SIGN

User12: OMG GUYS CHECK HER STORY RIGHT NOW WE DID IT, OUR SHIP HAS SAILED😭😭🥹 AND DAMN BEN BARNES YOU KNOW HOW HOT YOU ARE IN SWEATERS😭🫦

Y/N Y/L/N added to her story!

#ben barnes x you #ben barnes x reader #ben barnes x y/n #ben barnes imagine #ben barnes #shadow and bone imagine

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asherthehimbo · 8 months ago

Text

Listen to my music, listen to your heart

previous | fourteen : why? | m. list | next

notes: warnings: angst, mature language, grief, insinuation of bad family dinamics, kind of(?) religious talk, Song names + lyrics r things I made up they aren't actual songs🤕, Blue = Chan pov, Yellow= Bubbles pov

Navigation | Stray kids masterlist | Soulbound masterlist

notes: hope you guys liked this chapter!! next chapter might take a little longer since its written and I have exams soon do I have to focus on studying. The album Angel wings is literally Bubbles talking about his family/ past and his feelings towards Chan.

Taglist: [11/30][open]: @foxilsdenn @conwunder @heyogg @zzstar @xavi-in-kpopland @idkwhatto-namethis @glitchyaiko @kaisworlds @ashersdeadinside @kuuroomiii @kenaicantcommunicate

Orange/bold means tumblr wont let me tag you

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torukmaktoskxawng · 1 year ago

Text

tsamsiyu ta'em - strangers like me

Masterlist - part ten

Summary: Kayla continues to learn about island life with the Metkayina and also learns a bit more about her teachers along the way. Tonowari and Ronal find their student strange and intriguing.

Pairing: Ronal/Tonowari/Original Female Character

Tag: #tsamsiyu ta'em fic

posted on ao3

Word Count: 6k+

Taglist (bold indicates "could not tag"): @motheroffae @undeniableadrenaline @mooniequeen @shit-i-say-shit-i-think @heart-an0n @amiets2 @slutforsmut4ever @yeosxxx @im-in-a-pansexual-panik @sucker4angstt @inolaphoenix @ilovechickenwings tojisleftarm andyfromku @ivysully

A/N: I am so sorry for my absence! I wish I have a good excuse for being absent, but the truth is I'm not doing so hot in the real world rn. My job is cutting back hours and I barely have enough for rent. I'm getting a second job next month so hopefully, things smoothen out.

Here is the long-awaited update that I will kick myself for delaying in exchange for obsessively crying over Good Omens Season 2. Let the montage of Awa'atlu life commence! Again, thank you for your patience and I hope you enjoy!

Note: The title is named after the Phil Collins song "Strangers Like Me" because Tarzan and Avatar just go together XD

To avoid having Ronal hunt her down again, Kayla got up earlier the next morning and made her way back to the village to join her brother's family for breakfast before her lessons. Kiri was definitely doing better and Tuk was excited that her aunt had decided to see them off before their busy days. After pleasant conversations and the promise to meet before their midday meal, the kids took off to pursue whatever they planned for the day. Kayla stood up with the intention of going to find either the tsahik or the olo'eyktan and so Jake walked her out of the marui as they talked.

"So Neteyam mentioned that you guys talked about what happened between Lo'ak and Ao'nung," Jake started off.

'Oh, boy, here we go,' Kayla thought as she tilted her head to glance back at him, feigning partial innocence, "Yes? What about it?"

"Nothing, I just wanted to let you know that it's already been handled, and it sounds like the boys are actually getting along now. Neteyam also mentioned that you didn't get to meet Ao'nung yesterday so I wanted to make sure you knew this before you went looking for a fight with the kid."

"Jake, how young do you think I am?" When his face twisted with hesitance, she rolled her eyes, "Don't answer that. What I'm trying to say is that I'm not a child, I'm older than I look, and believe it or not, I do realize this. You don't have to worry about me... but you could've been a little nicer to Lo'ak."

Jake refrained from also rolling his eyes, knowing his sister would say this. He wasn't blind. He was well aware that Kayla would always be quick to defend his youngest son, no matter what he did. Jake was half-convinced that Lo'ak could get away with murder as far as his aunt was concerned, "He knew he wasn't allowed to go beyond the reef but he went anyway. He was at fault as much as Ao'nung."

"I get that, but it feels as though Lo'ak received more punishment than the boys who actually put him in danger, and for what?"

"For picking fights."

"No, for defending his sister," her eyes narrowed, "Not that you would know what that means."

Jake took the verbal lashing in stride, internally sighing, "I can't punish the chief's son for what he does against my kids, Kayla."

At first, Kayla had every intention of cursing her brother out, but instead paused and tried rephrasing her response. Her eyes drifted to the reef while she recalled far-off memories, "I remember Mom and Dad were allowed to punish the neighbor kids if they misbehaved with us and no one would bat an eye."

The mention of his old life irked him, and he wasn't afraid to show that in his deep snarl, "Well, Mom and Dad aren't here and we're not on Earth," her posture visibly stiffens but doesn't interrupt. Jake's wave of anger is immediately replaced with guilt, so he opts in taking a breath before he could say anything else he might come to regret, "Things are different here. So be civil and keep the peace. Don't go picking fights with teenagers."

"I won't," she mutters darkly, the coldness in her eyes returning as she side-eyes him, reminding Jake that he still wasn't out of the storm regarding her, "That's what you're here for."

She doesn't stay long enough to hear whatever rebuttal he might have in mind. Instead, she walks down the pathways leading further into the village before calling back, "I'll see you later."

Tail lowered in distress and possibly shame, Jake could only turn back to the marui and try to go about his day as he normally would. He knew he deserved the petty insults and his sister's aggression toward him, especially after all the radio silence she had endured for months while he was here experiencing a new way of life, on top of everything else. He just wished Kayla could manage to let go of all the pain and anger like he did when he first began to learn the ways of the Omatikaya. Physically, Kayla's avatar hasn't changed apart from the new Na'vi trinkets she had added to her standard-issued cargo shorts and crop top. However, Jake had hoped her mentality toward him would change the more she learned how to be Na'vi.

He knew he was a fool to get his hopes up so soon.

Walking through the village, Kayla went down the same route Ronal had brought her yesterday, hoping she would catch sight of the tsahik. Again, there were some stares from the Metkayina, but they didn't last as long as the day before and the reef people didn't look as bothered by her appearance. The Na'vi go about their day without much acknowledgment to Kayla, and before she knew it, she had made it to her destination, the craft huts she had met Tsireya just the other day.

It wasn't hard to find Ronal among the crowd of mottled skin patterns. Her accessories, tattoos, and rounded stomach are a dead giveaway, and the tsahik easily found Kayla in the crowd in turn, though it wasn't as hard, given the circumstances. Ronal's eyes visibly squint when her gaze lands on Kayla, then the Na'vi woman pulls away from her task to rise and meet the avatar. Another Na'vi stands to join her, a teenage boy and Kayla had an inkling who it was.

When Ronal approached Kayla, she motioned to the boy behind her, "My son, Ao'nung."

Smiling timidly, Kayla greets Ao'nung as respectfully as possible, though even she could admit her smile was tighter than usual. Ao'nung didn't say a word back, instead deciding to simply nod and avoid eye contact. His ears drooped and his head lowered like this was torture for him. Clearly, he was being coerced into being here with Kayla, but she decided not to fault him for it. Perhaps he's already being punished enough for his wrongdoings that he didn't need Kayla to torture him further about it.

Ronal doesn't appear to notice nor care for Ao'nung's discomfort and sternly stated to Kayla, "We will be teaching you how to communicate underwater. Do not fall behind or you will be left behind."

Kayla refrains from the small smile that threatened to escape her. Ronal's words vaguely reminded her of Neytiri's way of teaching Jake both from the stories she heard and the video log Jake had recorded. As Jake had once phrased it, 'Learn fast or die.'

With that in mind, Kayla doesn't complain and silently follows Ronal and Ao'nung away from the craft huts and further down the pathways. It didn't take long before they brought their guest to a large marui. It wasn't as big as the communal pod for the feasts, but it was significantly taller and wider than the normal ones Kayla has seen, including the Sullys' marui. She took note of the different colors of weaving and decorations adorning the home, such as the totem and skimwing skull hanging over the front entrance in greeting, a small windchime of shells softly dancing in the warm breeze. If Kayla had to guess, this was the olo'eyktan and tsahik's pod. Soon after stepping inside, both Ronal and Ao'nung lower to the ground, sitting back on their legs and Kayla does the same, proceeding to listen as Ronal starts off the lesson.

Nothing eventful happened as Kayla learned the Metkayina equivalent of sign language. Ao'nung never said a word regarding Lo'ak or any incident that happened with Kayla's nieces and nephews prior to her arrival. In fact, Ao'nung didn't say a whole lot other than chiming in a time or two to help Kayla with the lesson. Perhaps he never said a word outside of the subject of his people's sign language because his mother had been giving him sharp looks throughout the whole lesson. It was hard to miss. Ronal wasn't exactly a subtle creature. She openly expressed whatever she was feeling, unafraid of hurting someone's feelings, not even her son's, it would seem.

It was amusing to find all the similarities between the mother and son, both physically and spiritually. Their glare, eyes, and even their pout were the same. Kayla even dared herself to look a little closer without getting caught and noticed that Ao'nung inherited the same mole as his mother's, both spots found above their lip, on the top right side.

She must have lost track in time as the suns rose higher in the sky. Before she knew it, her next teacher had shown up to take her to her next destination. Tonowari stepped up into the marui, his large frame blocking the majority of the light coming in through the entryway. His gaze brushes over Kayla and Ao'nung before his eyes land on the tsahik, "Ma Ronal. Is this a good time?"

One of Kayla's ear flick to the side at the term of endearment, glancing over to the woman in question who only firmly nods and stares back at Kayla, "Go on. My mate will continue your riding lessons from yesterday."

Kayla mutters her thanks and stands up to join Tonowari. As they turn toward the exit, the olo'eyktan points back to his son, "Ao'nung. Remain with your mother."

"But, Father--"

"Do not question me, boy," the tone in Tonowari's voice was a little louder and stronger than normal, and even Kayla could feel her spine straightening up, despite not being under his scrutiny. Kayla briefly glances back at Ao'nung and notes the way he shrinks in on himself, still unable to look her in the eye, clearly embarrassed. Kayla looks away and follows Tonowari out of the marui, shadowing his footsteps as he addresses her, "I apologize for my son."

For the moment, Kayla had the empathy to pity the teenager and decided to soften the blow against Ao'nung, "There's nothing to apologize for. He was a pleasant enough teacher."

His voice had reverted back to its normal tone, significantly smoother and kinder on the ears, "Did you learn well?"

"I think so. It's not that different compared to what the Sky People have," when he flashed a questioning glance over his shoulder at her, she further explained, "They have a language that requires hand motions, too."

He doesn't question it further, instead looking back ahead and leading Kayla down to the docks. The ilu anxiously await their arrival in the water below, clicking and calling excitedly as Tonowari pulls a harness over one of their heads. The two adults get into the water and stand beside the earnest ilu, Tonowari trying to calm the creature whilst Kayla makes tsaheylu. She mounts the creature with ease, remembering yesterday's lesson and dreading the idea of falling off again as Tonowari begins reassuring her, "You need to exude confidence. Tell the ilu that you will command them and you will be respected by them. Do not give them space to come up with their own ideas."

She takes a few deep breaths to calm her nerves and nodded, waiting until Tonowari steps away before commanding the ilu to move forward using only the bond connecting them to each other's thoughts. The creature obliges and all appears to be going smoothly. Kayla manages to instruct the ilu to swim faster before eventually sinking underneath the water's surface. The ilu picks up speed and even as she clings on for dear life, Kayla could already feel her grip loosening. Angry and determined, Kayla tightens her thighs around the saddle of the creature and demands her bonded steed to leap out of the water and let her breathe, no room for nonsense.

To her shock and delight, the ilu chirped happily and sprung out of the water like a bullet, briefly flying through the air and allowing Kayla to take a breath before diving back in. She was so shocked that she almost lost her grip before regaining composure and asking the ilu to do it again, in case she had only imagined her success. The ilu was ecstatic to leap out of the water again and did so without a fuss, and this time, Kayla laughed as the shock wore off.

On the surface, the woman is met with a small audience. Lo'ak, Neteyam, and Tsireya were out riding their own respective ilu that afternoon before briefly pausing to watch a school of fish swim all around them, tickling their feet. Just as Kayla appeared to finally be getting the hang of riding an ilu, the teenagers caught notice of her as well. Lo'ak is the first to spot her, cupping his hands over his mouth as he crows in encouragement, "Go, Auntie! Woo-hoo! Yeah! You got it!"

Kayla laughs as Neteyam and Tesireya begin to cheer her on as well, their voices carried by the winds as Kayla and her ilu dive into the water and back out again. By the time Kayla remembered herself and returned to her teacher, Tonowari had his arms crossed but otherwise appeared pleased by her improvement, tail leisurely swaying behind him with curiosity.

~~~~~~~~~

Weeks go by since Kayla first arrived in Awa'atlu, and despite having to adapt to yet another completely different culture, Kayla had to admit that it was getting easier as time went on. She originally thought the ways of the Metkayina were a cakewalk compared to the Omatikaya, but maybe it was because she learned from the Forest People first that made learning from the Reef People easier than she originally thought it would.

She makes sure to reiterate this to Norm and the other humans every time she sees them. When everyone in Awa'atlu is meant to be resting, Kayla retreats to her campsite and secures her avatar form before closing her eyes and breaking the neural link. The next time she opens her eyes, it's within the link gurney back at High Camp. Norm and Max are always there to greet her, asking about her headaches and other health problems. There were days even Kayla had to admit were rough. After spending so much time in her avatar form, it's starting to strain the link connecting herself to her human form and it causes massive headaches every time she breaks a new record of not reporting back for days on end. To distract her friends from lecturing her, Kayla just updates everyone on Kiri's condition and relays any messages Jake or the rest of the Sully family wanted her to bring. In return, the scientists or even the Na'vi, such as Txe'la and Meui, would update her on any information regarding Ardmore or any Sky People activity.

She's always left disappointed when they say the same thing. No one has seen Spider.

Trying not to let the news discourage her, Kayla always wakes back up in her avatar form in better spirits so as not to worry Jake and his family. Kayla continues to treat the days as normal, continuing her lessons and helping out in any way she can so as not to overstay her welcome. When she wasn't following Tonowari or Ronal around, Kayla was usually in the company of her nieces, nephews, and their new friends.

Tsireya was one of those friends, and she was such a sweet girl who would happily entertain Kayla in any endeavor. When she wasn't busy, one of Kayla's favorite pastimes was helping Tuk and Tsireya find seashells for their hair and any jewelry idea they had in mind. Tsireya, as Tuk said, knew all the best spots where the shells were always fully intact and not crushed into pieces by the harsh tides. During these little adventures, Kayla, Tuk, and Tsireya would learn more about each other, bonding over the fact that they were all their families' younger sisters.

The sign language was easier than the verbal language, but Kayla felt as though she had a rug pulled from beneath her feet when Ronal knowingly stated that she was going to be teaching her student a third language. The tsahik, with the help of other Metkayina, began to teach Kayla the language of the tulkun, the sea creature Kayla learned to be the spiritual animal and companion to the Reef People, as the ikran is to Forest People. Apparently, not even Kayla's nieces and nephews have progressed as far as learning the tulkun language yet, and they became ecstatic to realize that they would be learning this alongside their aunt. Joining Ronal in these lessons with Kayla and the Sully kids would also be Tsireya and Rotxo, which only excited the forest kids more. Ronal wasn't as pleased with her own student when she caught Kayla fondly watching the children interact more than once.

Kayla had to learn this extra language on top of her breathing lessons, the latter of which was taught by both Tonowari and Ronal. Sometimes they would teach her separately, and other times they would do so together, but whatever the case may be, it didn't matter to Kayla. She would carefully listen to whoever was teaching her, and sometimes she listened so intently that she caught herself observing her teachers a little too closely.

Like Tonowari's eyes for example. Kayla noted they were a light blue at first as she sat cross-legged across from him while they practiced breathing exercises. But upon closer inspection, Kayla noticed specks of green engulfed by those blue orbs, like clumps of islands surrounded by warm sparkling oceans.

He was a clenched fist with a gentle touch. Kayla greatly admired him for being someone who could easily take advantage of his strength and position above his people but chooses to be kind and soft-spoken instead.

It was fascinating for Kayla to see just how different the Metkayinas' eyes were compared to the Omatikayas'. Whereas every Na'vi of the Forest had orange or yellow cat-like eyes, the ones who live off of the reef had rounder and bigger eyes, not to mention they had a variety of different shapes, sizes, and colors.

Like Ronal's eyes. The opposite of her mate's, Kayla noted that Ronal's eyes were more green than blue, with specks of a warm, gold color, like a sunset reflecting off the ocean surface.

She was orphic, but that's as far as Kayla allowed herself to describe the tsahik.

There was plenty to say about Ronal, but Kayla thought it best not to linger on any of the words bouncing around in her head. It was clear to her that the tsahik will always disapprove of Kayla and her presence among the Metkayina, so Kayla didn't want to compliment the Na'vi woman too much, especially since she doesn't intend on staying for very long.

Her stay was still very much temporary, at least in Kayla's eyes, as she still intends on going back to the forest to find Spider. For now, however, she was content with her small campsite just inside the treeline of the Metkayina island, a campsite that Ronal appears to disapprove of along with everything else about Kayla. The tsahik still has to occasionally venture out and find Kayla among the trees if she is in need of the avatar woman, like today when Ronal had the mind to take the time to find Kayla. It wasn't hard since the demon had kept her promise and never moved her campsite so she would be right where Ronal could find her. Still, Kayla was apologetic when Ronal found her and the tsahik begrudgingly told the foreigner to follow her back to the village.

Ronal brings her to the shoreline and recruits her to help fix an ilu pen that had begun to wither with age. Tonowari was already hard at work on it and briefly looked up to greet the two women when they sat down on the edge of the pathway and gracefully slipped into the water with him. After a brief instruction from him, Kayla gets to work in silence, and Ronal isn't opposed to doing the same. The silence wasn't as awkward as they were in the past, but out of the corner of her eye, Kayla could clearly see that something was bothering the tsahik, as Ronal wasn't ashamed of openly frowning while watching Kayla work. She didn't appear to be glaring in disapproval, but she looked... frustrated. It was as if she was trying to figure out a complicated puzzle. Kayla briefly glanced at the Na'vi positioned on the other side of her and noticed that Tonowari was much more subtle than his mate. Unlike Ronal, he only snuck glances at Kayla and her work here and there and did his best to hide whatever expression was on his face.

"Am I doing it wrong?"

"No. You're doing well," a compliment was not what she was expecting and it shows as Kayla's ears perk up and her eyes briefly widen. Ronal pointedly ignores the reaction and blatantly asks, "Why do you not stay with your brother's family at night?"

Kayla looked at Ronal, nose scrunched slightly in confusion, all the while completely unaware of the stare Tonowari sent to his mate from above Kayla's head, "Why would I?"

"Group sleep is also customary in the Metkayina."

"What's a group sleep?"

By Eywa, did the Omatikaya teach this alien woman anything? Ronal huffs out an irritated sigh, "Families sleep in large groups, usually in their swaynivi. Some clan members will sleep alone or with their mate just as long as they return to their family's nivi in a short period of time. Otherwise, they're deemed spiritually unhealthy. It is unsafe for one to sleep alone."

"I see," Kayla's ears pin back and her posture straightens, understanding the question now while pointedly staring down at her work on weaving the ilu pen together instead of addressing Ronal, "Well, where I'm from, that's called an invasion of privacy. I would assume that the families who sleep in large groups mostly contain parents and their children, correct?"

She doesn't wait for a response as she further explains with a small distaste in her mouth, "Since I'm neither of those, I don't want to invade my brother's and his children's privacy. Thank you for your concern, but I've been alone for a very long time. I can assure you that I am just fine with the sleeping arrangements I have now."

Even Ronal can sense a dismissal when she hears it in Kayla's voice. It was clear that the alien woman didn't want to further discuss this topic and so the tsahik didn't push it. Returning to her work, Ronal now briefly shared a glance with Tonowari but he pointedly kept his mouth closed during the whole conversation and after.

Luckily, the silence is saved by Neteyam as the teenager arrives with a purpose, slightly bouncing over the pathways above the adults' heads, "Auntie. My father is looking for you."

Kayla's discomfort visibly melts before Tonowari and Ronal's eyes. She looks up and smiles at the Na'vi boy, "Tell your father he can come and get me himself next time instead of sending you out. You should be elsewhere, enjoying the reefs and hunting with your friends."

She briefly turned back to the clan leaders, silently asking for approval to leave with her eyes flicking between the two Metkayina. Both nodded and openly watch as Kayla turns back to Neteyam, smiling up at her nephew as she rises up onto the pathway and follows him out, gently shoving him once to get him to pick up the pace so she didn't trip on his heels.

Neteyam huffed a small laugh as they walked, but the sound falls in replace of shame. He was visibly acting a little shy as he avoided eye contact, "I am sorry that I told my father about our conversation. I should have asked for your permission."

"Hey, no harm," she nudged him, "It's not like our talks are meant to be a secret or anything. It's nice that you can trust your father with everything; trust him enough to talk about whatever you want. As long as you're comfortable, kiddo."

"Was your father not like that?"

Kayla bit her tongue to refrain from visibly wincing, staring directly ahead instead of at her nephew, "No. I don't think he was. Not from what I can remember. Mostly I relied on Tommy and your dad growing up."

"What was my father like as an older brother? Am I like him?"

Kayla briefly grew quiet as they walked, pondering about how she could best word this to her oldest nephew. She tried seeing Jake in Neteyam, she really did, but whenever she tried comparing the teenager's best traits, they only remind her of Neytiri. And when Kayla thinks about Jake, all the pain and other torture he had put her through both intentionally and by accident, she couldn't even fathom Neteyam doing the same thing to his own siblings. Physically and mentally, deep down she knew that Neteyam was nothing like his father, and she was secretly grateful for that.

So instead of agreeing, Kayla simply smiled while staring the teenager in the eyes so he could see her sincerity, "No, 'Teyam. You're like Tommy. He was the older brother. When it comes to how you treat your siblings, you remind me of him, and I think your father sees it, too."

~~~~~~~~~

When Ronal isn't busy with her duties as tsahik or teaching Kayla, she is making sure Neytiri also adapts to their way of life. Although the former tsakarem had been comfortably accustomed to island life by the time her sister-in-law joined her family, Ronal still takes Neytiri into the jungle for a second pair of hands to gather the needed plants and herbs for her stock. Today was no different as the two women stumbled across a large jungle tree, larger than any of the others around them. Instead of following Ronal's suggestion to skip this tree and its healing fruits in exchange for a shorter one, Neytiri stops and shakes her head. Ronal was adamant about moving on since she was in no condition to climb and wasn't built to climb trees even if she wasn't currently pregnant.

Neytiri still shook her head in defiance and simply said, "You need Forest People."

The Forest woman opens her mouth and calls out at the top of her lungs, causing Ronal's ears to twitch in response to her whooping and cawing. Notifying her family about her location, it didn't take long for Jake, Kayla, and all the Sully children to come running to Neytiri's call.

Neytiri proudly smiles at her family while explaining why they had been summoned, "Our tsahik needs the fruit from the top of this tree and the ones surrounding it."

The others take a moment to look at one another before Kayla breaks the silence, briefly tapping Tuk's shoulder before running off, "'Last one to the top is a rotten egg!"

Tuk squeals and immediately chases after her aunt. The older Sully kids smile and break into fits of laughter, following suit and running after Kayla and their little sister. They all leap up, grabbing onto the lower branches before lifting themselves up, climbing expertly higher without their arms protesting the weight of their bodies. Ronal watched them climb higher and higher, keeping her expression stoic while observing the way Kayla makes the collecting and scavenging into a game for her nieces and nephews, challenging them to see who can gather the most fruit. In the corner of her eye, Ronal could still see Neytiri standing beside her, also watching the trees and smiling fondly up at her family. Jake soon stands beside his wife, hands on his hips while watching his sister and his children with a careful eye.

It was then did Ronal address Toruk Makto directly, flashing a face of disapproval, "Does your sister always act so childish?"

Jake's posture stiffens and he struggles to find the right words under the tsahik's watchful eye, "Well-! Uh..."

"No, only with the children," Neytiri answers for him, eyes hardened when they meet Ronal's as if daring her to speak again, "She plays with them because she wants to remind them that they are still just that. Children."

~~~~~~~~~

Kiri woke up bothered about something and everyone could tell. That girl didn't know how to hide her feelings no matter how badly she wanted to, the definition of an open book. Even though no one knew why she was upset, they could clearly tell that whatever it was, it had something to do with her aunt. Kiri wasn't necessarily cold to Kayla, but the teenager would go quiet and only speak in one-word responses whenever the older woman spoke directly to her.

Kayla decided that she needed to fix whatever was going on between herself and her oldest niece, so she offered to take the children out as the afternoon slipped into the evening. Neytiri suggested bringing them swimming through the reefs to collect barnacles and other underwater plants for tonight's supper, a passing time a lot of the villagers tend to do. Kayla takes up the idea and presents it to the Sully kids, who all agree to go, some more enthusiastic than others.

Tuk immediately splashes into the water and her brothers chase after her. Meanwhile, Kayla and Kiri linger on the beach, watching them disappear into the ocean. Kayla had tried breaking the tension with a small smile, "So when are you gonna show me how to use those underwater fairy wings?"

She was hoping for a small laugh or even a smile, but Kiri does neither. Instead, she looks sad and distracted, looking out over the horizon where the sky meets the sea, daydreaming of other lands... of home. Kayla bravely touches the girl's shoulder, and when Kiri looks up, her aunt could see the concern plain on her face. The avatar woman squeezes Kiri's shoulder, "What is it?"

Kiri bites the inside of her cheek before giving in, letting out a small sigh, "When are you going back to the forest?" She quickly understands how that could easily be misinterpreted and corrects herself, "It's just that-- you promised you'd look for Spider. And yet, you're here and he still hasn't been found yet."

Kayla relaxes both in posture and touch, removing her hand from Kiri's shoulder and instead letting it fall to her side, "I'll likely be gone by the end of the week, but for Norm's peace of mind, I'm going to be running a few tests on you so he and I both know you'll be okay," silence follows and Kayla reaches out once more, letting her hand gently grasp Kiri's arm, "Kiri, look at me."

The teen does so, a little belligerent at first. Upon staring up at her aunt, Kiri could see the determination in her eyes that closely matched Kiri's father's. Kayla tilts her head down to try and stand more at Kiri's height before softly explaining, "I haven't given up. And you might find it pointless to keep an eye on you after what happened, but I don't, and I don't think Spider would either. Think about it, kiddo. Spider would want us to make sure you're alright before we ever went looking for him."

Kiri ducks her head and watches her toe make shapes in the sand beneath her feet, "I know... but that doesn't mean I have to like it. He deserves to be put first for once."

Silence lingers between the two of them before Kayla simply says, "You're right."

Kiri doesn't wanna look up to see whatever expression was on her aunt's face. Instead, Kiri takes her arm and drags her to the water, "Come."

"'Where we going?"

"You said you wanted to learn how to use a txampaysye."

Kayla's nose scrunched up, testing the word on her tongue with bitterness, "How do you even spell that??"

Kiri manages to loosen up and laugh before they both held their breath and sank down into the water, sinking until they joined the rest of the Sully children. They introduce Kayla to txampaysye -gill mantle- and instruct her on how to use it in order to breathe underwater. Kayla wasn't far off. The gill mantles really did look like fairy wings, but other than maybe a few comments or stories, none of the Na'vi children would know what exactly a fairy was. The children and their aunt spend the evening doing as Neytiri suggested, gathering underwater plants and barnacles alongside other Metkayina, most of whom all wore the txampaysye. By the time the communal dinner rolled around, the Sully family was exhausted, but content all the same.

~~~~~~~~~

A peaceful morning where the Sullys invite Kayla over for breakfast goes uneventful until they're rolling up their nivi after a good night's rest. Their peace is interrupted by a horn, followed by whoops and hollers of celebration coming from outside. Confused and on edge, Jake and the kids emerge from the marui, looking around as the Metkayina jump around and dive into the water, making the newcomers curious as to what was going on.

Their answer came in the form of Tsireya, astride an ilu as she waved down her people from the water below their homes, "The tulkun have returned! Everybody! Our Brothers and Sisters have returned!"

Kayla looked up toward the atoll wall protecting the village from less docile nature. Emerging from the tunnels and pathways underneath the wall were rolling waves indicating something large below the water. Spurts of seaspray spring out like geysers from beneath the ocean's surface. It was a large pod of whale-like creatures, massive and slow. Their descent onto the village was graceful and one that brought much joy to the Metkayina as they couldn't get in the water fast enough.

The Sully kids couldn't wait either, jumping from the walkway around their home and into the water below. They scatter, exploring the new creatures one way or another. Tsireya had grabbed Lo'ak when she spotted him and pulled him onto her ilu, swimming away to introduce him to her Spirit Sister. Jake summoned his tsurak and both he and Neytiri take off to observe the sacred animals themselves. Rotxo had come around and pulled Kiri and Tuk away too, leaving Neteyam and Kayla to wander. Ao'nung was not far behind his friend, however, and invited Neteyam to come along with him to find his own Spirit Brother. Earning a small reassurance from his aunt, Neteyam doesn't hesitate to jump in and both teenagers each grab an ilu and take off, making a game of chase with Ao'nung in the lead.

Neteyam kept close to Ao'nung the entire time. The chief's son leads Neteyam through the chaos expertly, the two of them swimming quickly around a particular tulkun. Kiri, Tuk, and Rotxo were hanging onto the bull's fin and gliding peacefully through the water, the tulkun likely the reef boy's Spirit Brother. Neteyam was only able to catch a glimpse of this as they swim by, keeping close to Ao'nung's tail and playfully chasing him.

Jake had been leisurely swimming his skimwing through the maze of tulkun and Metkayina before glancing off to the side and perking up. Reaching back and tapping Neytiri's thigh to grab her attention, he waits until her eyes are on him before pointing out the sight he stumbled across. Following her husband's gaze and finger, Neytiri spots a mother tulkun and her calf, the smaller whale-like creature keeping close, mostly under its mother's fin or belly. Neytiri smiled with delight, her heart melting at the picture.

Kayla had been floating above the surface, watching the vast sight of tulkun from up top the back of an ilu she had successfully summoned. She didn't venture very far until the olo'eyktan sought her out. She noticed his tsurak first, flying above her head before gracefully sinking into the water, folding in its webbed fins. Tonowari brings it back around and swims up to Kayla's side, a determined smile on his lips, "We must put all that you learned to the test. Come meet my Spirit Brother and see how well you can understand and communicate with him."

She nods and dutifully follows him into the water after taking a deep breath. They submerge and take off, weaving through and around the large bodies of tulkun, dodging other ilu and Na'vi while Tonowari keeps his pace slow for Kayla's ilu to catch up. Underwater, Kayla can get a better look at the tulkun, and to her amazement, she realized that most of them were tattooed like their respective Na'vi. Eventually, they come across a large bull and Tonowari slows to a complete stop, disengaging from his tsurak and openly swimming the rest of the way to the heavily tattooed tulkun male. Kayla disengages from her ilu and watches it swim away before swimming in the same direction as the olo'eyktan, keeping a small bit of distance while he approaches the tulkun, greeting it like an old friend with a wide smile before gesturing Kayla to come closer.

When Kayla swims close enough to float near the large eye of the creature, Tonowari motions to the bull and makes rapid hand movements, "This Makayla te Suli tsmuke te Toruk Makto. She is of the Forest People and has come to learn our ways."

"Greetings, Makayla te Suli." The tulkun sings, and Kayla is delighted that she can understand him.

She quickly signs back, just as she had practiced, "I See you, great and mighty tulkun."

"Have you learned much since your arrival?"

"Yes, many things. I have excellent teachers in the olo'eyktan and the tsahik."

"Indeed. You are in good hands with my Brother and his mate. Ro'a speaks highly of her."

Curious, Kayla turns to the olo'eyktan in question, hands slowed by the water as she asks through the Metkayina sign language, "Is Ro'a Ronal's Spirit Sister?"

Tonowari nods while further explaining with his hands, "Yes, and I believe Ro'a has just given birth to her first calf."

"Indeed." The tulkun calls softly, the beautiful sound muffled in Kayla's ears like a song trying to pierce through cotton, "We are very proud and happy for our sister. What of Ronal's child?"

Tonowari beams, "Growing fast. Halfway there."

Kayla faintly smiles as her lungs begin to faintly burn, then quickly makes the appropriate hand motions to signal, "Forgive me. I need air."

She tilts her head upward and kicks her arms and legs to plunge up to the surface. Kayla immediately gasps for air the moment her head broke through the ocean waves, taking deep and calm breaths while looking around at all the joyous reunions going on around her. Laughter and cheers are still clinging to the approaching afternoon air, not a single Metkayina worried about the day's chores as they are too busy reacquainting themselves with their Spirit Brothers and Sisters. Kayla fondly watched these interactions, her heart warm and yet... sad as she watched the Na'vi swim around her without a care in the world. It's not as though she expected anyone to notice her, but it was a brief realization that today she was invisible and an outcast compared to these beautiful tulkun creatures. It was just another reminder that she didn't belong here and she had no Spirit Sister of her own, feeling out of place among an entire lagoon full of tulkun, Na'vi, tsurak, ilu, and other aquatic creatures.

Once she caught her breath, Kayla inhaled deeply and stuck her face back into the water to check out the activity going on beneath her treading feet. Looking around, she managed to catch a glimpse of a familiar Na'vi, a woman, adamantly communicating with her hands toward another tulkun, a female and her calf. Kayla recognized Ronal's ornaments that expressed her importance among the other Metkayina, along with her rounded belly. Without those traits, however, Kayla wouldn't have recognized her because the tsahik was smiling, broadly, unbothered by anything going on around her as she spoke to what had to be her Spirit Sister, Ro'a.

In all the weeks Kayla had been living here, she had never seen Ronal smile, let alone smile like that.

A/N: Please remember that I can't reply to any comments below every chapter because I'm using a secondary account. So if you have questions about the series you would like answers to, please put it in the ask box, thank you!

If you have a request, check the rules first! Much love!

Buy me ko-fi <3

Just a brief notice that updates are gonna be spotty from here on out as summer is coming to a close and I'll be working two jobs next month (Sept). Keep the love and support coming and I hope to update for y'all soon!

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thefatedthoughtofyou · 1 year ago

Text

Sweet Music Playing In The Dark (Be Still, My Foolish Heart) [Part One]

I'm super excited about this "fic" and am so happy to finally start sharing it with you guys! It's really gonna be more of like... a "not-fic" and mostly me rambling on and on about this world I've got in my head.

Some things will probably be contradictory because i constantly think of new things and ways to do things as i ramble, but it's just a loosey goosey overview of the thing! That I'm posting cuz i hope you guys will enjoy it too!

It's all pretty much based on inspiration I've gotten from listening to Bring Me The Horizon so it's almost all gonna be their songs, if i get the links to post! And i hope you enjoy listening to the songs as well! I'll post the song that inspired each part on each part!

It's a friends to lovers au! There will be some Buckingham as well, because Chrissy and Robin are together and have a band together and are Eddie and Steve's besties! Steve is with Nancy at the beginning but there's really not gonna be much details about them aside from the breakup! Eddie also has a partner at the beginning (i haven't decided who yet shh shh shh shh), but there will also be a breakup. Or maybe I'll just have him not able to find the right person. We'll see what happens! But i hope y'all enjoy the ride with me!!!

{ Cute little bat banner is by @1-800-shedevil }

What if they know each other vaguely from robin and chrissy. They aren't close really, just see each other around. Passing in the studio sometimes. Or at events. They're each others besties friends. Besties in law maybe?They chat here and there.

And then covid happens. They're in lockdown. And chrissy and robin get tagged in some musical video challenge that's going around. So they do it, cuz they live together, and because they've been dying to see steve and eddie sing together, they tag them and pass it on. They have each others numbers because of chrissy and robin importance. So they'll both see it. And eddie sends steve a song name, some 80s song, he remembers them chatting about how they love 80s music at an event when they'd both run to hide in the bathroom to be away from the crowds for a bit. And steve text back,

"???" so eddie sends the post, and steve is like,

"oh!!! Oh my god yes let's do it!" So they do a little face time split video thing and its not a huge deal. Its goes a little crazy for a day or two and then calms. But then steve wakes up to robin calling him, and like 10 missed calls from her already. And he answers all groggy in the middle of the afternoon, lockdown, he can sleep when he wants damn it. And he's like,

"whats happened?" And she SHOUTS his name into the phone, he groans. But then she tells him to check Eddie's instagram, and then promptly hangs up on him. And he's like blinking himself awake still but he clicks it open and pulls up Eddie’s. It's actually the first thing that pops up on his feed cuz he really doesn't follow that many people... like... at all. He can see eddie, sitting on his bed, guitar in his lap and one of his little music machines next to him. Steve clicks it and feels himself blushing because of what Eddie's saying.

Basically, he starts of with,

"okay so normally i wouldn't comment or respond to like... assholes in the notes and comments but, I'm locked in my apartment and haven't talked to anyone face to face in like a fucking month an half and am just scrolling through all these stupid fucking comments so lets break this down." He shakes his hair out of his face, it's even longer than normal, his bangs are falling into his eyes. He settles back in, leans closer over his guitar, pointing into the camera.

"All you assholes. Calling Steve's music like... bland pop whatever blah blah blah. Have you listened to his stuff??? Cuz like, not to get TOO into it. Just... oh fucks sake hang on." He leans off the bed, making a weird strangled noise as he stretches. He manages to get hold of a hair band and shoved his hair up into a severely messy bun. Pushing his bangs to the sides he settles back in with his guitar and plays a bit of one of Steve's songs.

Steve feels his face getting hotter and hotter. He's still with nancy. But she's locked down at her own place and it's not even attraction making him blush. It's the fact that eddie munson, heavy metal rockstar man, is playing one of his songs, peice by peice, and laying down some serious music theory on his fans.

He plays it bit by bit until a small section of the song is playing out over his little recorder. And its acoustic and not electric like the actual song. But all the parts are there, and it sounds good. Steve can't stop watching. Barely blinking. Eddie stops playing and looks back into the camera, eyes a little wild, he's really been going at it for awhile. And he's like,

"steve might be, technically, a popstar, which, isn't really even THAT true. He jumps genres just like we do, but thats not the point. The point is, there are so many fucking... the fucking layers??? The goddamn depth of the composition of these songs he's making? He's a musical genius okay? Like... his songs are bonkers when you break them down okay?? So of i see one more of you cunts come into my comments and tell me to stop associating with popstars, which is a whole fucking OTHER topic im choosing to ignore. Dont fuckin tell me who to associate with you pretentious fucks. Anyway. Dont fuckin talk about his music until you fucking LISTEN to his music. The skill and precision it takes to make music like this? And in all the genres he ventures into, the skill level stays. Like...." eddie makes a wild flourishing motion.

"This dudes fuckin nuts okay? He's got fucking bars. He's got fucking talent. And he's my fuckin friend. So shut the fuck up. Mind your own business. Or get with the fucking program and go fucking listen to his shit. Fuck. Got me all fuckin heated now. Bunch'a dumbasses." He shakes his head. Clicks the music play back off, and sets his guitar down next to him. He pushes his bangs up off his head, breathes out a deep breath and rolls his eyes.

"Just... be nice. Or stay out of my comments. He's a friend. He's a fucking hard worker. And i dont take kindly to people calling themselves my "fans", he does the air quotes,

"and then showing up and shitting on steve just cuz he doesn't sing metal." Eddie lets his eyes move away, and then back, and then he smirks, reaches for the camera and says

"Not yet, anyway." He winks, and the video goes black.

Steve is so fucking flattered he has no words. And it only gets worse when he scrolls and sees chrissy and robin cheering eddie on. But THEN he sees Jeff, Andy, and Gareth in the comments too, saying stuff as well. Jeff leaves a trail of fire emojis and then says,

"yes!!! We use Steve's stuff at warm ups alllll the time!!! His shit will rock your world!"

And steve is just, so fucking flattered. He likes the post and tries to think of a way to respond. He thanks eddie in the comments. After checking his own and seeing some of HIS fans saying similar stuff about eddie and his band.

So he comments and doubles down,tell HIS fans he feels the same. He doesn't tolerate hate toward his friends. And then, he grabs the box from under his bed. Pulls out his stack of Corroded Coffin ticket stubs. He's been to.... several shows. Like a lot. Not always front row. He and robin love lawn seats. So they hang back there, and party with the kids and make a good space for themselves, dustin had started a lawn mosh three or four times. But he just makes a video, says,

"its come to my attention some of you think i couldn't possibly be a fan of Corroded Coffin. And i just woke up like an hour ago and im not generally good with words so im not gonna say anything. I'm just gonna do this." He holds up the stubs, all stacked together at first, and then he slides his thumb and the stubs fan out, he's got like... 15 to 25 of them.

He smiles. Fans himself a bit with them, holds them closer to the camera so people can see they're actually Corroded Coffin tickets and then pulls them back. He gives a little toothy smile and a peace sign and then turns the camera off. He goes to take a shower and comes back to a comment from eddie under his video thats just,

"YOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! FUCKIN WHAT!?!? OUR BIGGEST FAN YOU SAY?? 🤣😈🔥🔥🔥💋💋💋"

Cuz he's an emoji slut and had been up for... over 24 hours making that video and just losing his shit a little. But then he also gets a personal text from Eddie and he's like,

"holy shit. Have you really been to that many of our shows?" And steve is like,

"yup. More actually. Ive seen you a few times at festivals from backstage too" and they get to chatting.

Steve tells eddie about dustin starting the lawn moshing and eddie loses his shit again cuz that was so cool to him and the guys, that the lawn had been moshing like the pit. And thats how they start really talking and becoming actually friends and not just semi sort of adjacent friends. Robin and Chrissy add them both to the same group chat and it just blossoms from there.

They dont really post anymore videos, alone or together. But then, after lockdown, a music award show comes to them both and asks if they'd wanna perform a song together as a suprise for the show. And Steve's kind of hesitant. Cuz he doesn't know if he can pull off a Corroded Coffin song. But eddie just claps him on the back and is like,

"dont worry. We're gonna play one of yours" and steves like,

"shouldn't we talk about it a little?" And the band boys chime in that they've been DYING to perform one of his songs. And steve is just so flattered. But he's also like,

"i dont... know. How's my song work with you guys and your style? Im not exactly a heavy metal guru." Eddie smirks at the word, throws his arm over Steve's shoulder and says,

"oh steve. Lemme open your eyes. Lemme show you what you can really do." He widens his eyes cheekily and he and the boys take him to their studio to show him what they have in mind.

When they perform, it starts with just steve alone with his guitar, the stage behind him dark. He gets through the beginning and then the band kicks in with their heavy style and the crowd 'ooohs'. Steve finishes the first verse and then the lights come up, the band goes harder and Eddie comes out from behind Gareth and starts playing his guitar, walks up to the second mic and starts singing and everyone goes CRAZY.

Steve matches Eddie's energy for the whole performance. Eddie jumping and playing and sliding to his knees when he's not singing. Steve jumping to the beat and playing when its Eddie's time to sing. Both of them leaning in close to one mic to sing and play their guitars in unison a few time. The crowd screaming making them both smile.

The crowd screams loud again when Steve leans against Eddie's back as they play, head falling back to lay on his shoulder. And then Eddie is hard core screaming the end of the song. Steve bouncing on his toes as he plays the final notes and the light fall and the stage goes black.

The comments on the videos online are almost all about how GOOD it sounds. And how well their voice go together. And a ton of Corroded Coffin fans being like,

"look at the little popstar man go!!! He's a little rocker at heart!" Cuz steve had been jumping around, keeping up with eddie as he played his guitar and yelled into the mic with him. And Steve's fans are like,

"holy shit! I haven't seen him look that happy on stage in ages!! He's a rockstar!!!" Everyone coming together and agreeing that rock agrees with steve! Even if he doesn't go their on his own in the future, they're glad he's friends with eddie and can venture there if he wants too, when he wants too. Because eddie is always happy to have him. They hug super tight at the end, eddie grabbing Steve's hand and holding it over their head as he screams,

"make some fucking NOISE!! FOR STEVE. FUCKING. HARRINGTON!" and the crowd fucking loses it as they smile and walk off, Eddie's arm draped over Steve's neck, both of them sweaty and hot and beaming.

#Sweet music playing in the dark #sweet music part 1 #steddie #steddie au #rockstar!eddie munson #popstar!steve harrington #friends to lovers #steve x eddie #steve harrington x eddie munson #steddie ficlet #my writing #mine #my fic #steddie fic #Spotify

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lil-melody-moon · 11 months ago

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Hello, love! I hope you’re doing well❤️

You know I love the way you express yourself when it comes to talk about music. It’s always so satisfying to read how passionate you are for the bands and songs you love so I wanted to ask you a few questions.

I’d like to name this section…Let’s talk about The Who!! (I’m sorry, I’m sorry HAHAHA) All right, let’s get started with the questions:

- How did you find out about The Who? What made you fall in love with the band?

- What’s your favourite album? And your favourite song?

- Have you seen all of their movies? (Tommy, Quadrophenia, The kids are alright…) What are your thoughts on their movies? (I haven’t seen any of them but I’m looking forward to seeing Tommy cause it’s my favourite The Who album)

- Why is Keith Moon your favourite? (I know you love drummers😏 but I’d like to know what makes you love Keith so much)

- Some people like to compare The Who with Led Zeppelin to the point they say The Who is way much better than Led Zeppelin. I’ve heard they say that Who’s Next is better than Led Zeppelin IV. I think they’re both good bands with great musicians but I don’t think I’ve heard The Who enough to form a solid opinion on who’s the better band so I’d like to know your opinion since you listen to both bands.

- And for the last question: If you could go back in time, which The Who concert would you like to attend and why.

If you want to add some more information about them such as fun facts or things you’ve recently discovered/learnt about them, please do it.😂 Thank you so much for taking your time answering my silly questions. I’m getting my revenge for pushing me into Def Leppard (Just Kidding, I love you Mel❤️)

Hello! I'm kinda fine, thank you <3

Uuuu, I like the sound of that! Let's start then, shall we? :3 I'll tag you additionally if something breaks @jimmysdragonsuit13

How did you find out about The Who? What made you fall in love with the band?

How did I find out about them…Oh God, we gotta go back toooooooooooo… 2008 actually. Tiny me walked into the living room when mom was watching CSI: Las Vegas and you know. I knew mom loved watching tv series with murders and what not so I stood in the hall, looking at the tv, curiously and then came the intro, short version of "Who Are You". I heard them for the first time that evening and tiny me was blown away. Mom eventually noticed me, because I walked in the living room and asked her if I can watch with her, silently hoping this intro will play again and I was blown away again by the instrumental at the very end.

I've watched all three series with her - I actually need to give them a good watch sometime soon - and I know one day I've asked her about the intros. She didn't remember the band's name, but all she told me was this: "Those songs are long and kind of weird. This band was weird, let's begin with this. Crazy, destroying everything, but how they were called again?" and she didn't recalled sadly and I wasn't interested to the point of searching by myself - mind you, I was at primary school, had it really stressful, was bullied, searching for a band and get into them, especially if they were old was the last thing on my mind back then. So I gave it up, just enjoying the intros.

Now, let's skip to me being in high school. I think to 2016, it was probably this year that I started get into music with mom's and dad's help mostly, but also the guy I really liked. This was my Metallica phase, strongest one, and the second one out of three, and Japanese music phase, but anyway. I know that while mom searched for music to download we stumbled upon The Who - I remember the fragment which was played and it was that moment from the tv program, where Keith blew up his drum kit. It was short, so I didn't get to listen to them well, but mom somehow recalled my question about CSI intros and she told me, it was them XD But she cut my curiosity short by saying that they aren't very good, dad agreeing with her. I was very susceptible to their opinions back then so I gave up on them again.

Just to rediscover them in the last year at May or June. TV Station randomly played "My Generation" and while dad was complaining - he hates them - I just listened. First time without any breaks and like, I was "Okay, they're fine" for most part. Enter the drumming instrumental break tho and from "Okay, they're fine" I just sat there, listening, saying to myself: "THAT guy is GOOD", but I couldn't see him properly back then. Skip to July, when I started using Instagram again, and the app was like: "You know? You forgot about someone" showing me Keith Moon. It was this photo:

So the usual, totally wasted Moon <3 But you know, I didn't connect that he was the guy I considered this good. Skip ahead a few weeks and tumblr showed me gifs with him - and I think it was YOU who reblogged this gifset - when he was totally elegant and I was like: "That's… That's Moon?!" reading in the tags what band he was in. And like from this day I just wanted to find an opportunity to listen to The Who, but dad came in with "I will show you Deep Purple now" and I skipped a few chances on getting "Who's Next" album at the record store, actually feeling that I should get it, but I somehow didn't for some weird reason.

I was fucking hesitant. Like, I remember finding this album, staring at the cover, thinking to myself: "That's Moon's band, the one he was in…" and you know, I almost reached for it, but I didn't for some reason - later regretting it big time, but like, skip a little bit more (this is a span of a MONTH I think) and Spotify randomly played "Love Ain't For Keeping" from this very album, actually throwing me so off guard, because I always heard their more chaotic songs and this one just entered, with the drumming, the good guitar, Roger started singing, the lyrics flowed SO WELL. I was blown away for the fourth time in my life by them XD

And I think that I only waited two days to listen to the entire album and once I did, fifth time being blown away has to enter the stage. With this, we can go to the second question of this part of the "Let’s talk about The Who!!" (I love the name!).

So, what made me fall in love with the band. …I gotta start from this… The thing that made me blink and stare at the tv when I was 10, literally hypnotized, the one that made me actually consider giving them a try is the fucking drumming! I MEAN, DID YOU FUCKING HEARD THAT?! I know you did, that was rhetorical XD Just the way Keith plays it's like… It's the ideal way of playing drums to me. There's literally nothing better for me than to hear the beating on the double bass drums from him, not to mention the constant fills, the way he just seems to use every single drum, even if his drum kit looked like this:

This guy was all over his instrument, actually making it sound like a freaking lead one, and you can't tell me, nobody can't tell me that The Who had other lead instrument than the drums. I mean, you only have to compare one song to 1978 and any other one after that year. I will never say that Kenney or Starkey are bad drummers, far from that, but the fucking emptiness in later songs after 1978 is unbearable for me. And not like I listened to only one song and said: "Nope, I'm sticking to the albums to 1978" and that's that, no. I actually listened to a few where Kenney played on the compilation album I got for myself and I just couldn't stand the shift. I can't shake the feeling that the songs after 1978 are a shell of what they could be, so for my own sanity I decided to stick to the albums to the 1978 and that's that and I'm happy. I'm a really happy lil Pole now <3

Second reason would be the lyrics. And now get this, I'm never, almost never paying attention to lyrics, especially when I listen to a song for the first time, but like… Pete is a genius at lyrics. Probably the most free to interpretations pieces of poetry/lyrics I have ever seen. It happened a few times that the meaning that Pete wanted to get through the lyrics was totally different to how I felt about the song, but like if both interpretations work for both sides, it's good. This is how you actually write good poetry and I tend to think of The Who's lyrics like that. Taking a fragment of "Who Are You" as an example, which is probably my most favorite fragment of any lyrics Pete wrote:

I know there's a place you walked Where love falls from the trees My heart is like a broken cup I only feel right on my knees

I spit out like a sewer hole Yet still receive your kiss How can I measure up to anyone now After such a love as this?

Such tiny details in lyrics, lovely ones are really scattered everywhere in the songs and they get me every time. "Love Is Coming Down" is entirely like this, the instrumental actually giving more than the lyrics, they being only as another instrument, at least I feel about them like that. Which also brings us to third reason and that being Roger's vocals.

I freaking love his voice. The way he can express emotions is like nothing else I heard before - not saying that Robert Plant is in any way worse, he isn't, but like their screams of emotions can't be compared. "Love Reign O'er Me" settled the bar too high for me, sorry Robert! But like, Roger also has that specific tone of voice that gets to me. I can't explain what is it, but it's just good to listen to you know - even when he speaks, it's just making me a bit tingly inside - also his laugh is adorable, not to mention his smile!

And like, John Entwistle can't be listed as fourth reason, but I actually like his playing, like a lot and I can't skip on him. I like all of them, I really can't skip on John XD He has such a nice style of bass playing and I'm definitely not a fan of this instrument XD John is such a big exception as Paul McCartney is. Making me like bass in songs is almost impossible, so this guy literally achieved the impossible.

All of THAT, would sum up the answer for your first two questions. Now, let's move to the next ones, shall we? :3

What’s your favourite album? And your favourite song?

Favorite album would be "Quadrophenia" and I doubt that will change, even if I finally listen to "The Who Sell Out". "Quadrophenia" is so much deeper than "Tommy", at least for me. You know, it's that kind of album that when I've listened to it for the first time, I knew it was my favorite from the get go, the one that spoke to me right away. It actually carries a somehow heavy story that can't be shown in any other way than through music.

Everything is put perfectly, from the first sounds of sea to the last sounds of insane drumming at the very end, but let me just state why I feel like that towards this album. There are literally no skips on this one for me, each song is unique, but it only makes sense if you listen to it with the rest. It's also the case where the lyrics got my attention. I have a weird case of not listening to lyrics, but here, when I've listened to it for the first time, I had to check out the lyrics to "Cut My Hair" because something just brought my attention to it. One listen was for the music, second listen for the lyrics and I got the grasp of the story that this one tries to tell, even seeing two acts in this one. I will part the album in two while talking about songs if you don't mind <3 First half being from "I Am The Sea" to "I've Had Enough" and second beginning from "5:15" and ending at "Love Reign O'er Me".

The shift that happens between "The Dirty Jobs" to "I've Had Enough", followed by the masterpiece that is "5:15" - the first song I've heard from this album, fun fact - which gives an amazing feel of traveling far away from everyone, just wanting to disappear is insanely good. I usually stick to the second part of the album, because like the first half is focused on showing Jimmy's (the poor sod that is the main protagonist of this story) everyday life, the second shows him actually losing everything bit by bit - I'm talking about this album for the third time, it should be my bachelor degree by now XD - and that is what makes this album shine for me.

Let me just sum up the songs of the second half real quick - mind you that I didn't read the lyrics and this is my interpretation from what I feel from the music, heard from lyrics, got emotionally and saw in the movie:

5:15 - a journey by a train to nowhere, just far away from the everyday routine after losing everything, literally everything (this is so well shown in the movie!)

Sea and Sand - actual feeling that can be described as calm after the storm, just calm loneliness, the urge to disappear from life, from existence

Drowned - wanting to come back to the sea, suicide attempt, failed, but it's still there, feeling of helplessness

Bell Boy - meeting the idol that is not who Jimmy imagined to be, feel of betrayal, the biggest one (you can even say that Jimmy's world crumbled at this point)

Doctor Jimmy - insanity, all of the personalities coming out, one or two always triggered after alcohol or drugs, the feeling of not caring about anything and anyone even about himself

The Rock - the grand final, giving up on life, struggling before doing so, regret of being born, everything that happened is just too much and here is the second suicide attempt

Love Reign O'er Me - an emotional ballad that sums up the feeling of the entire story, it doesn't give a conclusion, the conclusion if Jimmy died, riding off the cliff or not is up to you (I usually go with the conclusion that Jimmy drowned, but his body was washed ashore on an abandoned island and now his soul is stuck there, as he's too troubled to go to the afterlife, maybe meeting similar soul there, but like that is the ending I'm usually going with).

All of that, all of the second half of the album is the best piece of music I have ever heard. Not only the story but musically it's just… As a whole it's probably the best album of the 70s for me, but also, I think I kind of feel sorry for the poor sod that is named Jimmy, connecting to his "trying to fit in the world" a bit too personally. Like, seeing/hearing his struggle, his hesitation, just trying to find a place for himself in the world that certainly "is not for him" just got to me. Additionally there comes the open ending and like my conclusion is one of the many you can come up with really. And there's also the repeated theme that plays throughout the entire album, the main theme of Quadrophenia, it's just so good to listen to. Sad, melancholic with a bit of hope/calling for help. As of now, you should know I love sadness in music, so that was a given I would be attached to this album.

But now, going to my favorite song. I certainly have a lot, like: "My Generation", "A Legal Matter", "The Ox", "Cobwebs and Strange", "Happy Jack" (drumming, OMG, DRUMMING IN THIS ONE), "Overture", "1921", "Eyesight of the Blind (The Hawker)", "Underture", "Pinball Wizard", "Tommy's Holiday Camp", "We're Not Gonna Take It", "Love Ain't For Keeping", "The Song Is Over", "Getting In Tune", whole "Quadrophenia", "Slip Kid", "However Much I Booze", "Squeeze Box", "Trick Of The Light", "Love Is Coming Down", "Who Are You", BUT there is one that isn't listed here and was mentioned up above.

And that, my dear friend, is "Bell Boy". There are three reasons for that. First reason and the main one is the fact that Keith Moon is singing in this one. This is literally all it took to make me love this song and it happened immediately - just imagine me listening to this one for the first time, suddenly hearing Keith, I was NEVER this happy before XD Second being the opening of the song. It begins with Keith's drumming, what can I want more? XD Third reason, this song is absolutely catchy. I have no other reasons, they are pretty simple, but like, I can't help but love this song! Plus there's this part of the lyrics where Keith sings - with a very pretty voice of his:

Some nights I still sleep on the beach Remember when stars were in reach Then I wander in early to work Spend my day licking boots for my perks

And I kind of tend to imagine him sitting on that beach at night, looking at stars, everything silent, only the sound of sea heard. …Just a calm image that is appearing in my mind each time I hear him start singing this verse, but that is a detail. Moving on!

Have you seen all of their movies? (Tommy, Quadrophenia, The Kids are alright...) What are your thought on their movies? (I haven't seen any of them but I'm looking forward to seeing Tommy cause it's my favourite The Who Album)

Not at all, but I saw "Tommy" and "Quadrophenia". I'm slowly getting to watch "The Kids Are Alright", but I'm a bit hesitant about this one. Dunno why, I just am - something is telling me to wait with it XD

My general thought about those two is that they are okay, like really okay, but like, they could be better, especially "Quadrophenia" and so I will go with this one first!

So, as you know it's my favorite album and I have to say that the movie shows the entire plot very well. It's rough, actually being very similar to the photos that were done for this album specifically and it gives away the vibe of 1965 (I think) very damn well, comparing it to the photos. Actors are okay - the one who plays Jimmy stole my heart, I can't help but have a crush on this poor sod, all the reasons you've already read, so I won't repeat myself, but I do have a few things that itches me about this movie.

The order of the songs and that some of them were cut out of it. Don't get me wrong, I know there had to be changes made, some songs are replaced by the actual acting and that's cool, but mixing the order of the songs is totally different. I'm talking specifically about the moment they've played "Love Reign O'er Me". It threw me so off guard at first, it was just not sitting well with me. This is a freaking conclusion song and they threw it right before "Bell Boy" started to play, before the scene where Jimmy sees his idol working at a hotel as a bell boy. The song playing in the background saved me from a rant when I was watching it with a friend, but ya know, it was just the worst moment to play it, like come the fuck on XD

And I have a very big BUT to Sting being in this movie. Like, this guy is a brick, he can't fucking act, he has a poker face the entire freaking time, like move a muscle on your face! XD But there also was that motif in the album that each band member had his song, "Bell Boy" being Keith's song, making the character Ace Face his character and Sting does not do well in that character. I mean, after listening to the album, knowing about it, knowing how Keith was it just doesn't add up at all. It would probably, or most definitely, look different if Keith was still alive at that time, because Pete clearly stated in one interview (if I remember correctly) that there were plans in 1978 to make the "Quadrophenia" movie and for all members of the band to be in this one, so I think Keith would automatically play as Ace Face - just like it happened with Uncle Ernie in "Tommy", BUT THAT LATER - and the interpretation of the character would be accurate with the source material. This is what ticks me off personally a little bit, but like I have no right to blame anyone and I won't.

Overall the entire movie could be much worse, I'm kind of happy with what I saw. So now… Moving to "Tommy"…

I'll be honest with you, I've watched the movie first, then listened to the original album and while I like the original score much more, I can't say a bad word about the musical. It's sometimes weird, fucked up, scenes are very long, they made me uncomfortable due to the fact how Tommy is treated - I literally feel so sorry for him the entire time, I almost hate every character in this one - besides two, Tommy and one more, but that later, and God, how happy I was at the very end! This musical makes a nice loop actually and I won't spoil it for you, but like, remember the opening scene on a mountain when you'll watch it, just remember it <3

Some songs are changed, like very changed, I love some changes, I hate some, but like, all of them fit the artists in the musical, so that's good. I don't have to like everything, but like this musical did something. I actually told myself at the beginning of the last year when I've dropped out of anime and all the fictional worlds for good that I won't fall for a fictional character. I meant it only for animated guys, the ones in games - you know, a bunch of lines/pixels - but I didn't think about actors and characters they are playing. I started watching movies very recently, actually enjoying them more and more and this movie, this freaking musical made me break the promise. Uncle fucking Ernie stepped into my life and I was a goner! LET ME EXPLAIN!

I knew, I was aware that Keith plays in this movie. My freaking bestie send me some gifs of him from this musical on Discord and even then I was like "This is probably from "Tommy", I bet my ass it is" and I was right. I know what character Uncle Ernie is, but like my bestie said "You always liked the worst, it doesn't surprise me anymore" and that's kind of typical for me. But this had five stages actually.

First being the scene where he showed up for the first time in that small window of his. I leaned in the direction of the tv, this scene was pretty dark and it was a bright afternoon and I was like: "That's Keith, isn't it?" not being sure 100%, but I was excited. Second, then came the scene where "Fiddle About" is playing. And I swear it to you, I fucking swear it to you, I've never was laughing and feeling embarrassed to the point of blushing and curling on my bed ever in my entire life. Not gonna spoil this beauty, but this musical and Uncle Ernie destroyed the word "fiddle" for me XD Third being that one tiny scene where Tommy is famous already and Uncle Ernie has a cameo there. He is somehow changed, the outfit and general look, vibe totally the same, creepy older guy, but like… The fact that I thought: "Oh… You look good…" should be a big red flag for me, but I carried on. Bring in the fourth stage where "Tommy's Holiday Camp" plays. Uncle Ernie is totally changed in this one, probably trying to look friendly and that made me say out loud: "Oh fuck, now you look hot" and that just started a wave of things. Fifth stage being a few days after the movie, having a conversation with myself that went like this: "You remember Tommy, right?" "Yep" "Remember Uncle Ernie?" "How could I forget?" "You would let him fuck you, wouldn't you?" "…" "…" "Yes…" And that brought up this post, which is still a big state of my mind, ESPECIALLY during horny days and it also brought up a big au where I've made a self-insert in this musical, went for a uncle-niece trope and actually worked on it so hard to make everything work as I wanted, that I'm proud of this personal fuckery I've made. In conclusion, I love this fucker and that's that <3 (Hmhm, I will watch "Tommy" at my horny days with friends, this will end well)

Also, a fun fact! I vaguely remember that I've watched this movie when I was tiny, I could be 3 back then, but I remember two scenes from it. The one when it's shown how Nora is disgusted by Tommy when he's already famous and she's sitting in that white house of theirs, all rich. I remember this scene because it's just turns weirder and weirder, but no spoilers for you ;3 And the one where "Tommy's Holiday Camp" starts, Keith as Uncle Ernie having his second 5 seconds of glory. Just a random fact <3

Why is Keith Moon your favourite? (I know you love drummers😏 but I’d like to know what makes you love Keith so much)

…Oh My God, this will get emotional…

Okay, first of all! Keith is the guy who started my obsession with drumming. He set the ideal type of drumming style that I love, with those short intros to CSI. Sure, I could forget about him in those longer breaks between encountering The Who once in a while, but unconsciously I always knew what I was searching in drumming. That would actually explain why I was always bored when I heard the drums going in one rhythm, without any changes in songs. I just had a type, thanks to who I've discovered in the last year.

Second would be his personality. I still don't know a lot about him - still hunting for a book about him! - but from what I know, knowing what flaws he had, how he acted around people, just the tiny details I could catch here and there, watching documentaries, especially that one that made me hysterical at the very end… I don't know, I just got so attached to him in such a short span that it's insane. One week I was cautious about him, knowing how much he drunk, how much drugs he took. Second week I started getting attached, just to fall in love with him in the third week. Sure, that one documentary had a lot to do with it - it was talking mainly about his last day of life and talking about his life in short, but what was okay was the fact that his girlfriend was in it, talking about him as well - and you know, I learned a lot at that day, the fact how he died bringing the previously mentioned hysteria and I just… It was the day that started the rest of the reasons of why I like him so much. It just kicked everything in.

So third reason that appeared at the same day would be the fact that I saw a mirror image of my dad in him. And I'm not joking here. Mostly in the behavior and addictions. My dad's a tame version of Moon in those two aspects, except drugs luckily, but like, seeing how Keith died and knowing damn well that he and my dad had the same drinking addiction and knowing how bad it was with dad - alcohol was slowly killing him, it was slowly destroying my family - I saw in that moment that if not one accident that happened and if not my mom's constant fight for dad to stop drinking, my dad would end the fucking same as Keith. And like, I think my mind made that connection, caused a hysteria, understood the tragedy and I think I started to feel sorry for Keith to the point of the insanity that is now.

Which also brings us to the fact that I started seeing a handsome guy in him. No matter the age, I just see a handsome, exactly my type of a guy. And like I know I sound insane, but for the entire life I felt like I was searching for something. This feeling only getting stronger two years ago when I got interested in music, started listening to older bands and you know. I've jumped from The Doors to The Beatles, from The Beatles to Led Zeppelin, from Led Zeppelin to Deep Purple just to jump from Deep Purple to The Who, this day making the feeling of searching disappear. Like, I've found Keith, that's all I apparently wanted. Keith is a special guy to me and I can't help it but love him to the point that I decided if I don't have a boyfriend now, he'll get the entire love I can offer, even if it's only in form of fics or scenarios in my head.

And like, something else happened as well. I sometimes have strange dreams where I can see the dead ones and I had one like that with Keith. I can't tell you what exactly happened there, because I don't remember, but like, one fragment remains: I was sitting with him on a white floor (it's always a white space) across in close proximity. We were talking about something, dunno what, but Keith was so happy. He was actually beaming with happiness, making me laugh with something he said and from here I only know that he got closer to me, but what did he do? I have no idea, yet I felt tingly all over my body the entire day. I feel tingly when I think back to that dream, but like, that happiness of his was so real. And this dream happened a day after I heard "Love Ain't For Keeping", day before I've listened to "Who's Next". And funny thing, after I listened to the album, I heard in my mind: "Finally back at home". Just a thought crossing my mind randomly. I can't explain that as well.

But the attachment grew to the point of how it is now. I don't know, I just feel like at home with him around. Even if he's just in the music, he's still around and even the thought of that brings a smile on my face. Also a lot, and I mean A LOT of The Who's lyrics makes me think about him, bringing in the slight urge of taking care of him. "Love Is Coming Down" is probably the best example for that, but like the scattered fragments of beautiful poetry I've mentioned earlier… I was talking about the fragments that always makes me think of him. And sure, yeah, I ship myself with him just for fun, to make most of my loneliness go away, but like I do feel a strong connection to him. I don't know if it's a soulmate thing, if it's attachment, if it's just a simple human sympathy or if it's just a woman's lonely heart going insane, because it thinks that it found the second half, but like… Keith is special for me for all of those reasons and I think I could find many more, but those are the most important ones.

I feel like a piece of me that should be in the place finally got in and I'm happy with that <3

Some people like to compare The Who with Led Zeppelin to the point they say The Who is way much better than Led Zeppelin. I’ve heard they say that Who’s Next is better than Led Zeppelin IV. I think they’re both good bands with great musicians but I don’t think I’ve heard The Who enough to form a solid opinion on who’s the better band so I’d like to know your opinion since you listen to both bands.

Oh God, I've never compared them. I mean, okay, I did two times. Once because I wanted to decide who's got his ass on the first place of favorite drummers - this was a hell! - and second while answering on one of your questions, but now that I think about it…

It's still difficult to choose, because both are great bands and their style is completely different in everything: bass, drums, lyrics, vocals, guitar, everything. And I know that people love to compare, I don't do that, unless I have to decide on the ranking, but that's like personal thing.

I would say who is better depends on the music taste, because some will love The Who, hate Led Zeppelin and the other way around (my dad hates The Who, loves Led Zeppelin) and honestly if I was asked about that, like I am now, I would have to compare them depending on my taste, so I would have to do the same as I did a few months ago to make it clear who's on the first place on my long long LONG list of drummers. Album comparison doesn't make sense for me, because you can clearly hear that "Led Zeppelin IV" has a totally different vibe than "Who's Next", but then it's also a matter of music taste and if there's no skips on album.

But if it comes to solely my opinion, so coming back to the struggle on who's better, John Bonham or Keith Moon, I'm gonna say that Keith is slightly better than John and that makes The Who automatically be better than Led Zeppelin for me. But again, slightly. It's such a small difference that they could be both on the first place if I didn't want a clear answer.

Then again, it's a funny situation, the comparison of drummers. I remember saying at August that if I ever find a better drummer than John Bonham that'll be a miracle. I shouldn't have said that, you know? XD

And for the last question: If you could go back in time, which The Who concert would you like to attend and why

Ack, fuck, I only watched two of them XD But there are two, most definitely!

The one from Charlton from 1974, the last one I've watched and the second. It was a good concert really, Keith was incredible - and they played "Bell Boy", I would pay everything to be there and hear him sing!

And the one concert I didn't watch and just had to search where it was and what year it was, it's the one from Kilburn from 1977. I only saw one fragment of it, one song, but like, if Keith was acting like a bastard who wanted to piss everyone off the entire time, sign me the fuck up! Plus, it's the concert where he wears this costume - it's mainly purple and white, all sparkly!

I love it! I even specifically searched for this photo to get it on my facebook header - yes, Moonie is even there! - because I wanted this specific Keith, from this specific time and in this specific outfit! I just love him in this one. Fuck I need to watch this concert one day XD

And please, the only thing I've recently discovered was a fragment of an interview, when Keith was talking about how he destroyed every room below his one in a hotel by making the waterbed break, water destroying the floors and ceilings while he was sitting on in his chair, looking like: "Well, that happened" as if he didn't expect it would break XD I love this idiot so much, I can't fucking express it properly XD Oh come on, they weren't silly, I had a blast with them! Oh, your revenge you say… Well then mischievous grin Expect to receive something soonish ;3 (Love you too, take care! <3)

#we'll see if this works #if everything will be saved #God it's so long!#ask corner

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aintgonnatakethis · 6 months ago

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SGA Sheppard-gives-Kolya-to-Todd?

his boy's a fucking queer?

I couldn't decide which sounded more interesting

Thanks for the ask, @wyked-ao3! 😄

Sheppard-gives-Kolya-to-Todd now finally has a name and a first chapter posted! bodies in my closet which I added the Dead Dove: Do Not Eat to as a promise to myself to actually follow through on what I want this fic to be: an exploration of Sheppard's dark side. As currently all he wants to do is make out with Todd which, while is an understandable position to hold as well as a nice add-on, isn't what I'm going for overall.

What Sheppard needs to let his darkness out is an enabler. On Atlantis he's surrounded by good people who keep him on the straight and narrow through a mixture of support and pressure (what I mean by 'pressure' is Sheppard feeling pressured to live up to their expectations for what sort of person he should be). I think this is very well shown when he and his team are onboard Todd's hive and he won't give Todd an inch of ground even as Todd is clearly begging for help. If they were alone, I believe Sheppard would be much more willing to provide assistance, but in front of the others he has to 'save face'. Like when he says to Todd "every time we work together I feel like there's a live grenade in my pocket". He would never have said that if there'd been someone else - anyone else, even a stranger - in the room with them, because he's admitting to a weakness: 'I know you're dangerous and I'm going to risk helping you anyway'.

"You're a prize bull, Sheppard. I hope the ride was worth it."

his boy's a fucking queer is inspired by the song the lyric's from: He's So Good by Trash Boat, and is pre-canon SGU, way back when Telford and Young were young men (ages aren't specifically given but mid-to-late twenties, perhaps early thirties at a stretch). Telford stumbles across Young making out with a man. Now, back in those days trading handjobs was common place (yes irl not just in my headcanon lol) because there were so few women on base - if any - and there were often long periods where everyone wasn't even allowed to leave the base at all. So it was viewed by the majority as Not Gay, just something you did to get by.

Kissing, however? Hmm. Telford reacts extremely poorly, and so far it's left open to the interpretation of the reader whether that's because he's jealous, wants Young for himself, and has internalised homophobia about the whole thing, or whether he's just straight up homophobic. But it gets angsty and hate-crimey so it's heavy reading, perhaps even to a more serious degree than the torture in the above Kolya fic, purely because a large section of the people who engage with fandom are queer in some way and therefore will be feel more personal connection to a hate crime over the torture of a "bad guy".

I tried to stop myself from launching off "bad guy" and put this in the tags because it's not strictly tied to the fics, but I couldn't help myself. Sorry. 😂

So. What does 'bad guy' really mean? How has western socialisation affected our views on the subject? Is Kolya a bad guy or someone in a terrible situation? Can you blame any of the 'bad guys' in Pegasus for what they do? They've been subjugated and terrorised for ten thousand plus years. Wouldn't any of us do anything to escape that or even have just a single scrap of safety amongst the horror? Like I don't blame Ronon for never accepting the Wraith in any way shape or form because they slaughtered his entire planet and on the other side of things I don't blame the individual Wraith for killing because the only other option available to them is death, and any species will do incredible things in order to survive. I'll chuck the Iraq-Afghanistan comparison in there too: the Genii as a whole and Kolya as an individual are only the way they are because of Wraith oppression, much like when Western troops roll into places they should not be in and start killing the local populace - they create resistance groups and lend credence to existing ones because people are watching their families die. If someone came into my home and killed my family I'd want to kill them too. I know the eye-for-an-eye viewpoint isn't a healthy one for society and overall I am a prison abolitionist and rehabilitation-focused person, but that's an easy stand to take when I don't have skin in the game, ya know? 🤷‍♂️

Back to the fic! I haven't worked out the ending yet - it's one of those short stories that I get distracted away from halfway through and leave unfinished for a while unless someone expresses interest in the idea - but I don't think it's going to be a happy one.

Everett goes white as a sheet. Telford's never actually seen anyone have the colour drain from their face at such a rate before. He's always imagined it's the response duty-death informers get, calling to the house of some unfortunate serviceman's wife, who knows as soon as she sees a man in uniform who's not her husband at her door.

WIP Name Game

#i have thoughts and i hope i have shared them in a literate manner! i know it's a complicated topic #ask #wyked-ao3 #wip game #writeblr #writers on tumblr #my quote #mine #sga #ask game #stargate atlantis #john sheppard #todd the wraith

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lostforgottenspaces · 2 years ago

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thank you @finemorningofremusing for the tag !!

this was actually super fun! if there were more questions i probably could've kept doing it forever lol

interview music tag game!

RULES: put your playlist on shuffle. for each of the 10 interview questions, select a lyric from the random song that comes up. (skip if there aren't any lyrics and make sure to drop the name of the song in the interview answer!) <3

1. first off, how would you describe yourself in one sentence?

I'm an apostrophe, I'm just a symbol to remind you that there's more to see // Whatever It Takes - Imagine Dragon (this song has so many good lyrics in it holy shit)

2. what kind of [leo] are you?

my heart is full of swords // Dear Arkansas Daughter - Lady Lamb

3. you're visiting your favorite spot, what are you thinking about?

times change, yeah, I can't adjust // NO NAME - NF (omg I love his music but it was a bit emo for this lol)

4. if your life was a movie, what do you think the first review would say about it?

salute the dead and lead the fight (hail, hail), who gives a dam if we lose the war? // Save Yourself, I'll Hold Them Back - My Chemical Romance (ahhh these lyrics were great, i highly recommend listening to this song)

5. say you get a book deal, what are you titling your memoir?

How Could You Leave Us // How Could You Leave Us - NF (again, amazing, a little sad, but we love it, pretty sure i have a Black Brother's fic idea based on this song)

6. what would you say about your best friends?

don't wanna let you down, but i am hell bound // Demons - Imagine Dragons (@ all my besties, ily lil fuckers)

7. think back to when you had everything all figured out in high school, what was your life motto as a teenager?

sometimes the only payoff for having any faith, is when its tested again and again, everyday // Immortals - Fall Out Boy (<333 oh to be delusional again)

8. describe your aesthetic now:

these words are all I have so I'll write them // Dance, Dance - Fall Out Boy (this is actually so true)

9. what's a lyric that they'll quote in your euology?

its believing in yourself when no one else does // HOPE - NF (this song hits so hard)

10. and for our final question, say we believe in soulmates, what do you think their first impression of meeting you will be?

(warsaw) looks at you with earnest grace and says, "the fuck it is we're doing?" // Warsaw - Lovejoy (its true, i have no idea whats going on at any given moment)

Lots of people have been tagged already so if you want to do this, I have tagged you! It's super fun, highly recommend :)

#tag game #lost speaks #music #mcr #fob #lovejoy #imagine dragons

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coffee-n-bagels-comic-universe · 6 months ago

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Faith & Fate - A Leap Of Faith Fanfiction

As I told Emily (@philhoffman ) I have started writing a Leap Of Faith story, which I have now titled 'Faith & Fate', it takes place in 1993 and in the fictional town of 'Lead Springs, Texas'. And I shall now word dump on you some info:

Major Changes to the plot / Spoilers:

After the ending of 'Leap of Faith' Jonas was dropped off the next town over by the truck driver. The trucker thought Jonas was mad and threw him and his bag out.

Jonas had to call Jane, she and Sheriff Braverman came to get Jonas and they (Jonas and Jane) re-joined the crew, heading off to the next town, eventually reaching Lead Springs, Texas by January 9th of 1992, where 'Faith & Fate' begins.

So basically, I'm using 'Leap of Faith' as a 'movie becomes series' (like Buffy for example) to lead into 'Faith & Fate'

As per usual, if you wish to be tagged or untagged from the story, please let me know, either through asks or DMs

Characters (OCs & From Leap of Faith):

Under cut due to length. These are just the characters I'm certain I'll include as of now (8th June '24)

Jonas Nightengale & Jane Larson

Aka the two least deserving of anyone's trust, the Boss (Jonas) and the ACTUAL boss (Jane). I don't trust either of them, but I trust Larson more because of the butterflies scene. Jane is dating Sheriff Braverman long-distance and Jonas still keeps in touch with Boyd and Marva, though he isn't particularly close to either of them.

Ages: Jonas - 47. Jane - 37

The Choir & The Crew (General)

More than likely underpaid (even though Jonas has a bag of golden watches), but good people. I know several of the crew who put together the gigantic tent have tattoos, so possibly a mix of types of Christians, including maybe some who aren't fully Christians

Ages: Unknown, Approx. 20s-40s mostly

Tiny

First of all, he's a giant, dude's like 6'3. My name for him is Timothy Smalls, so in my head at least Jonas nicknamed him Tiny because of the character of Tiny Tim and it just stuck. He helps with building the tent, collecting money, gathering info, etc.

Age: 44

Matt

(Image credit - @philhoffman / Emily) Matt, my beloved, young dumb and full of… energy, this man has so much energy. My name for him is Matthew Braddock. He helps collect money and gather info, but is also the one who Jane and Hoover (Meat Loaf) send to do random tasks, like an intern.

Age: 25

Hoover

The driver of Jonas' bus, as in the main bus at the front of the pack of 4. His name's Tobias Hoover. His family is my OCs, specifically his 2 brothers and niece. I like his fashion choices, but I know they're not for everyone, also I have been unironically listening to mostly Meat Loaf songs while writing these characters.

Age: 43

(OC) Jedidiah 'Jed/Bubba' Hoover

Eldest brother, and the only Hoover brother to have kids, big (6'2") cuddly papa bear, but seriously don't come near his daughter, he protects her like she's a miracle and her mother / Jed's wife died when Cai was very young.

Age: 46

(OC) Micaiah 'Cai' Hoover

Jed's daughter, Cai's been raised by practically just men, her family has always been in Lead Springs, her uncle Tobias was the only one who left. She suffers with CIDP, which means she's often in a wheelchair but manages as well as she can to be independent. She doesn't work, not due to disability but rather due to lack of jobs, as well as the mistreatment she receives in Lead Springs.

Age: 22 (turns 23 within the first few chapters)

(OC) Zechariah 'Ari' Hoover

Tobi and Jed's younger brother, and Cai's uncle. Zechariah goes by Ari, which can be confusing. He lives with Jed and Cai, acting as a second father to Cai while working with Jed at the town's diner. Most days he regrets letting Tobias leave, but has to remind himself that his brother has his own life.

Age: 40

(OC) Reverend B.J Deacon

The young, new Episcopal church reverend/deacon, fresh faced and just out of seminary school. He's very new to actually leading a church and very inexperienced, hoping to learn from Jonas how to engage people with their faith.

Age: 22 (turns 23 within the first few chapters)

#leap of faith #leap of faith 1992 #philhoffman #steve martin #debra winger #m.c. gainey #philip seymour hoffman #meat loaf #meatloaf #john goodman #patricia arquette #alfred molina #matthew lillard

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citystoryscapes · 1 year ago

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bad buddy fandom getting-to-know-you meme!

yayyyy thank you for the tag deepa, who is the best! @fiercynn <3 I've been meaning to participate in this for agessssss

since there are both recent newcomers to bbs fandom and people like me who are new to bbs tumblr, i thought i'd create a getting-to-know-you meme for people to introduce themselves if they want! all questions are optional

note: i consider "fanworks" to pretty much everything people create related to a fandom, including but not limited to meta/analysis/discussion, gifs, fanvids/edits/fancams, filk, fanart, fanfic, fan food, fan crafts, etc. please include this note with the meme unless you have a different definition!

name and whatever you want to share about yourself

hey, I'm rain! that's not my actual name but it's all the internet is getting. my pronouns are she/they. I'm in my 20s and a grad student, and fandom has been a (selectively) great place for me in terms of finding supportive, brilliant friends. I like to write a fair bit; occasionally, I post it too. I also like cats, big cities, good tea, and old houses.

when did you watch bad buddy/join the fandom?

I'd heard about bad buddy because it was airing around the same time as another show I was watching, but I wasn't toooo interested until episode 5, part 4/i4. when I tell you that kiss UNLOCKED SOMETHING IN ME... I caught up on the first 5 episodes pretty much immediately after that while quarantining alone over Christmas, and it pretty much kept me sane. I watched the rest of the show as it aired- please spare a moment of silence for the people who had to wait out the two-week gap between episodes over New Year's.

bad buddy has always made me SO genuinely happy and hopeful, reminding me that there is hope for queer Asian people even if our families aren't always supportive.

favorite ship(s)

patpran, inkpa, and some comic relief waikorn

favorite character(s)

in terms of fanworks, it's a very close call between pran and pat, but I think pran is my favorite by a hair! I love his character arc throughout the show! I especially love his confidence and the way he grew into himself. pran might win in terms of being inspirational, but I have to say, I LOVE well-written pat meta.

in terms of who I'd like to channel in real life, it's obviously ink. she is the absolute coolest, a proud simp, and a protective girlfriend.

(I'm great at avoiding making choices)

favorite episode(s)

episode 5, because what could ever compare? I also love parts of episode 3 and 11 (I'm saying this as if I don't love the entire show).

favorite scene(s)

ep 5 rooftop kiss!!!! ep 3 bus stop and mini elevator scene; ep 4 pran's injury and the three wontons dinner; ep 6 beach scene where they're paired up in the game; and their trip to the market, ep 7 confession scene; ep 9's 'anyone taller than me is fine'!!!!! ep 11 bus scene, beach scene, and song montage; ep 12's entire bait and switch reveal, and pat pran's dinner out with friends.

see what I meant about avoiding making choices?

one thing you would change about the show if you could

seconding deepa, WHY DID INKPA NOT KISS??? also this isn't a change I would definitively make to the existing show, but I'd love a b-side where we see patpran's relationship in the years between their graduations and pran's return from Singapore.

what are your some of your favorite fanworks made by other people?

I can't believe this is a question I am legitimately choosing to answer:

Fic:

make my body say ah, ah, ah by Sabulum

heart in a cage by sunshinedobi

paradox by Everybodyknows

dynamic by riddles2

a nose boop and the rest is history by seekingmoonscapes

don't forget me when I let the water take me by gilly_bean

your love is your life by threewontons

Videos:

same page by dkyth73

just friends by fiercynn and scribe

dancer by coldties

(if you create fanworks) what are your favorite fanworks that you’ve made?

technically I've only published one bad buddy fanwork (it's a fic called these violent delights). my favorite thing I've created for the show is an unpublished canon-divergence fic where patpran have sex and possibly get together during their ep 6 beach trip

a song that makes you think of bbs (the ones in the show don’t count lol)

I'm sticking to the classics; same page and just being friendly by tilly birds are my top choices. I also made playlists for pat and pran, for said unpublished fic, so here's some of the songs I picked for both:

for pat: the loneliest time by carly rae jepsen, double take by dhruv, better by khalid, the enemy by andrew belle

for pran: washing machine heart by mitski, 18 by 1D, and dancer by leon

idk anything else you want us to know?

I love all of you smart meta writers, I'm kissing your big beautiful brains

okay i'm literally going to tag all of my tumblr mutuals that i think are still in the fandom (if i missed anyone sorry!!), but also if you want to do the meme consider yourself tagged! please don’t let this flop lol 🤞🏽

#bad buddy #bad buddy getting to know you meme #bad buddy fanworks rec #patpran

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jpeg-dot-jpeg · 1 year ago

Note

4, 11, and 13 for the latest fanfic q&a!! I haven't read the many names of one very special clone boy yet but I am SO EXCITED TO START IT AFTER WORK TODAY!!!

-@bibatboy

!!!! I really hope you like it! I haven't had much time to work on the next chapter yet, but I'm gonna get it outlined today. It requires much more homework studying the source material than originally anticipated lol.

Answers in regard to my latest fic Thermogenesis

4. What’s the most challenging part about posting new/updated work? Do you find posting stressful or invigorating?

Posting is the fun part for me! I love getting to see the fruits of my labors finally pay off. The hard part is getting a fic to the point where I really feel like it's finished. That, and having to pick tags, write A/Ns, etc.

11. What songs best capture the aesthetic of this work? Did you listen to this song while writing?

I don't usually listen to music when I write, at least not as anything other than white noise, but I think Physical by Dua Lipa is a big vibe for this fic.

13. Are there any cut lines/scenes from this work? Why did you cut them?

There aren't lines or scenes I ended up cutting from this, so in leiu of that, I offer you a sample from the next installment in the series.

Their first date had been a rooftop picnic. It was actually supposed to be an outdoor concert at Robinson park, but that had gotten scrapped because, well - it was Gotham. Then they’d rescheduled for a lovely visit to the aquarium, which also got a raincheck because, once again, Gotham. At that point, Tim figured they’d just have to pencil something in for the next calendar year. But then Jason - smart, sweet, impatient Jason - had tracked him down on the tail end of patrol, sat him down several stories above 9th St., procured a basket full of breakfast foods and a thermos of fresh coffee, and said into his comm, “If anyone even thinks about interrupting in the next hour, I will personally fill all of your shoes with peanut butter.” They watched the sunrise while exchanging bites of chocolate croissant and it was the best date Tim had ever been on in his life. On their second date, Jason picked Tim up on his motorcycle and drove them to the Gotham History Museum where he let Tim curl a hand around his elbow and regurgitate all the Mesopotamian fun facts he’d learned in his childhood as they strolled through the gallery. It was tied for the best date he had ever been on in his life. And after Jason drove him back to his apartment, he laid a hand soft against Tim’s jaw and pressed a kiss featherlight to his mouth before fleeing the scene. But he couldn’t get his helmet on fast enough to keep Tim from seeing the adorable blush on his cheeks. The third date had been a slightly more traditional dinner and a movie, except instead of a movie it was a drag show on the east end that had Tim laughing until he wheezed, and for dinner Jason led him down the sketchiest alley he’d ever seen in his life (and Tim had seen a lot of sketchy alleys) to a hole-in-the-wall Filipino restaurant where he gorged himself on the best lumpia ever. And when a mugger stepped out of the shadows during their exit, Tim held Jason’s cup of halo-halo while he disarmed the guy. Jason held out the newly acquired knife as a joking gift to Tim. That knife sat in a box in his closet next to the visitor’s map from the museum and his ticket stub from the drag show. Jason walked Tim home after that and - because it was the third date after all - followed him inside and fucked him into the mattress until he saw stars.

Thanks for the ask!! <3 <3

#bibatboy my beloved #JayTim #Jason Todd #Tim Drake #fic rec #fic update #ask #ask answered #fic teaser

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bookpersonmaryjon · 2 years ago

Text

Fanfic Writer Interview

Thank you @you-have-to-use-your-imagination for tagging me!

I have to tag people now, but since I only have very few followers (for a reason, that reason is I get overwhelmed easily and need a bit of distance) I hope no one gets mad if I skip that part...

How many works do you have on ao3?

40 works on ao3, one other on a German fanfic site but it's uhh on a several-year hiatus so... not important!

What's your total ao3 word count?

it's 79.578 words holy shit... that's almost 80.000??? how???

How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

I've posted works for four fandoms, three on ao3. Doctor Who (27 fics), The Umbrella Academy (2 fics) and Rusty Quill Gaming Podcast (10 fics).

I've technically got 2 Harry Potter fics, written before JK turned out to be a terf, but I removed them for the moment because I don't want to support her in any way until she gets over her bigotry, and if she never does that then I'll just leave them unpublished forever.

The other one not on ao3 is a Once Upon A Time fanfic that's really just a self-indulgent self-insert for my best friends and myself.

I've also written for far more fandoms, just most of those are only WIPs on my laptop that I'm not sure I'll ever finish and/or post.

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Cheating (236 kudos, The Umbrella Academy fic)

Stormcage Wives (232 kudos, Doctor Who fic)

drunk on your love (and a whole lot of ginger) (119 kudos, Doctor Who fic)

tired of the lies (but afraid of what the truth will bring) (107 kudos, Doctor Who fic)

you're burning up and I'm burning out (or is it the other way around?) (101 kudos, Doctor Who fic)

Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

Yes, always. People tell me they like my writing, of course I'm gonna thank them for it! And if I get to ramble on about my fic for a bit, even better!

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

Oof, let me think...

I'm torn between three, I think.

Wait for me - TUA fic that is really just angst the whole time and especially the ending

Achilles Come Down - DW fic that I would call angsty, but it's kinda ambiguous? it's based on the song by Gang of Youth with the same name, and that song is definitely angsty, so it stands to reason the fic is also at least a bit angsty

I had a dream, which was not all a dream - DW fic that's also very angsty throughout and the last thoughts aren't very cheery, I'd say it's pretty darn angsty.

Do you write crossovers? If so, what's the craziest one you've written?

Yes, but only unpublished unfinished stuff so far.

The craziest of them would probably be the 'Hunger Games but fandoms for districts' one which I only started because of a tumblr post I shared with my friends and we hyped each other up so much that I wrote three chapters in a haze of euphoria before reality kicked me in the teeth and I stopped.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

No, and I really hope I won't receive any in the future...

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Every time I try it either turns into cuddles or the screen fades to black without my doing. I just can't write smut for my life.

(I might be greyace actually??? that might be a contributing factor...)

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not as far as I know, and again, I really hope it never happens.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Does it count if I started translating my own fanfic?

If not, no, but I wouldn't be opposed to it if someone were to ask!

What's your all time favorite ship?

Thoschei, I'd say.

Maaybe Zoscar, but tbh I've shipped Thoschei the longest so I gotta go with that one.

No, wait, I've been shipping SwanQueen far longer than Thoschei!

So either one of those...

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

Oof, that's a hard question... I've got so many WIPs I wanna finish but don't think I ever will.

There's a soulmate AU I've started, Doctor Who, Thoschei, rather angsty, and I've written myself into a corner and can't get out of it again.

I also started something that I call Override Paradox, which is really what it sounds like, in that it's 13 trying to create a paradox big enough to override the memory block in the matrix. I really wanna finish it, but it's really hard to write paradox fics, tbh...

Err, I've got several timetravel fix-it stories for various fandoms that I'd really like to finish, but not any one specifically, really.

I also really want to finish that Once Upon A Time fic, mostly just so I can have it finished, and because I did start it for my best friends and I'd really like to give them a nice thing, basically.

I also recently got back into The Umbrella Academy and really wanna finish a couple of those stories, just because they're rattling around in my brain and I would love to make something out of the ideas.

What are your writing strengths?

I'm... pretty good at angst? And fluff? Does that count as strength?

I'm good at imagining what a character is thinking, that's probably a neat thing. There are a lot of fics where I get fully immersed in the inner monologue of someone, and I'd say I'm pretty good at it?

I've also been told I'm good at plot twists, so. those?

(gosh I'm so bad at complimenting myself... definitely need to work on that.)

(also what the hell is a writing strength??? I don't really know what this means...)

What are your writing weaknesses?

I ramble a lot. Describe too much.

I also cannot for the life of me just write a story on the fly without having at least five paragraphs of backstory... It's really annoying, honestly.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

If it makes sense story-wise and if it's done well, then I'm all for it!

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Once Upon A Time. I started it like, five years ago? It feels like an eternity tbh... hang on...

2017??? holy shit that's. yeah, that's six years... wow.

What's your favorite fic that you've written?

Gosh.

I'm gonna choose from the ones I've finished, because I will not be able to choose from the unfinished no matter how hard I'll try.

'Achilles Come Down' is really one of my favorites. I had a lot of fun writing it.

'confessions uttered in the (un)safety of your embrace' was incredibly nice to write. The level of double and triple thinking? Brilliant. The fact that I didn't even realize I was doing it in a triple way until it was pointed out to me (thank you @rearranging-deck-chairs)?! Effervescent.

So yeah.

That's it. You can stop reading now. Also, thank you ^_^

Bye!

#tag #me rambling about my fics because I like doing that #also just noticed I tagged you differently dimitri hope that's okay

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midnightdevotion · 2 years ago

Text

Safe

Request: "Who did this to you?"

Pairing: Rooster x Civilian Reader

a/n: I could see this being a three-part series, let me know if you guys want that!

Tag list is open!

Requests are open!

Warnings!!! so there will be talk about past abuse in this, this might be triggering to some people so please please don't read if this will harm you in any way!

You'd been a bartender at the hard deck for about a year now. It's been the best job you've ever had. Most wouldn't dream about being a bartender but you loved the atmosphere. The way people were usually so friendly, and you loved working for Penny.

About three months ago, you met the most breathtaking aviator you'd ever seen. You'd both been dancing around your feelings since.

3 months ago:

It was an especially rowdy night at the hard deck, which isn't necessarily unusual but you did notice a few new faces. You didn't really give it another thought, too busy making drinks to even have a spare thought.

Only when she heard the crowd booing and the bar go weirdly quiet did you allow yourself to look up and register what was going on. First glancing at the jukebox to see that it had been unplugged, you turned your head to the starting notes of a piano.

Your breath hitched as you watched this man perform for the whole crowd. There's a lot of attractive people that come through this bar, and a fair amount of them try to flirt with you but you have never seen someone glow like him.

You were totally enraptured in his performance for the entire duration. Penny of course picked up on this. "Someone's got heart eyes for Bradshaw huh?" she was grinning cheekily at you when you pulled your eyes away.

Groaning you laugh, "Penny don't start, he's just attractive but you know that these aviators are never here for very long." All she does is look at you with a knowing look.

"y/n I know you are scared after your last relationship, but he's not going to hurt you anymore. You are allowed to move on" You just sigh, remembering his last words to you before you blocked his number. "You're MINE and I'll kill you before anyone else can have you"

Logically you know that the odds of him finding you are slim, you deleted social media, and nobody knows where you moved off to. You're almost thankful the rush comes back bigger after he finishes the song. You lose yourself back into your work, pretending you don't see Penny's looks of concern.

Things finally slow down after an hour of pure chaos and that's when he walks up to the bar.

"excuse me, ma'am, can I grab four beers from you?" you look up to see none other than the gorgeous piano-playing aviator. You see penny go into the back from the corner of your eye.

"sure thing" you give him what you hope is a polite smile that doesn't show your absolute nervousness.

"Are you new around here?" the tanned golden retriever of a man asks

"Uh depends on your definition of new, I moved here about 9 months ago" you explain, really hoping he doesn't try to find out why.

"That explains it" you cock your head at him waiting for him to clarify.

"I just wouldn't ever be able to forget such a beautiful woman. So I had to make sure I didn't miss it four years ago"

He's left you speechless, and you just handed him his 4th beer so why isn't he leaving. He's staring at you with soft eyes and a soft smile before he chuckles.

"Can I get one more thing from you darlin?" you nod, because well it's all you think you can do.

"What's your name?" he asks, eyes sparkling as he watches you borderlines squirm from his gaze.

"It's uh- it's y/n" you try to sound like you aren't affected by this man but clearly that doesn't work at all, and you can only pray the hotness of your cheeks isn't actually visible.

"y/n... beautiful. I'm Rooster by the way." and before you can even register what is happening you can hear your voice

"like the animal?" next thing you know his head is thrown back, and his laugh.. god his laugh is the most beautiful sound.

"That's right darlin just like the animal" he's grinning at you before his attention is being demanded back to the pool tables. He looks almost forlorn as he turns back to you.

"That's my cue, unfortunately, I hope I get to see you again soon y/n" he sighs as he grabs the beers and heads back to the pool tables.

____

Present:

It turns out those aviators that you thought would be gone quicker than you could blink are staying. Most of them are looking to buy houses and find a permanent residence off of the base.

Rooster is one of those pilots.

It's another Friday night at the hard deck and these make for especially busy nights. You watch as the people you've come to call friends walk in. Though you try not to dwell on the fact that caring about people here scares the living hell out of you.

Rooster is grinning the second he sees you, beelining it directly for the bar. "ah my favorite bartender" he lets out a chuckle at your eye roll. "I packed you some food because well I know your bad at that so when you're on break let me know and I'll sit with you"

Your heart is fluttering, and the butterflies are untameable. Of course, he brought you food, last week you had mentioned that you almost always forget to bring food, and you're getting awfully sick of eating bar food multiple times a week.

"You brought me food?" you're looking at him like he hung the moon in the sky for you, and penny would sarcastically note he looks at you the same way.

"Of course sweetheart, can't have you eating any more bar food remember" You know it's not really significant but suddenly things feel too real. Before you can register what you're doing, you're giving a tight-lipped smile and a nod of thanks before darting off to the back.

Penny, the only one who knows your full story is looking over in confusion to see a just as confused Bradley. Penny knew you would need a minute before you were ready to talk, this isn't the first time something has sent you into flight mode.

"Bradshaw sit back down, she needs a minute, when that clock says 7:30 you can go back." Penny fixes him with a firm stare and he feels like his only option is to plant back down on the bar stool. Even though everything inside of him is screaming at him to find you.

It's quite possibly the longest twenty minutes of Bradleys life before Penny gives him the okay to go into the back.

He walks back, shocked at what he sees. You're standing there, top pulled up to show your stomach, but what he doesn't expect is the huge scar.

"y/n... what" his voice is so soft yet it still causes you to jump. You were expecting Penny would send him back, she's been encouraging you to talk to rooster about everything for a while now. Ever since learning of them staying about two months ago. You knew once you shared this though, he might change his mind about you. Even if he doesn't it makes it all feel so much more real, no more keeping him at arm's length.

"I... the reason I came to California was because of my ex. He started out so nice, picture-perfect really... and after a year we decided to move in together. That's when things changed" You still weren't facing him, but you know he could see you in the mirror and if you lifted your head you'd be able to see him too.

"It started small.. he would slap me or just say nasty things to me if I didn't do things right but he slowly got worse. It went from slapping me for breaking a dish to full-blown beatings for some guy who looked at me for a second too long" You can't see his face but you can imagine that his eyes show the same polite sympathy everyone else's does, and god you weren't ready to be pitied by him yet.

"One... one especially bad night he came home drunk.. and well he started beating me for who knows what... I guess my body had been through enough and my small intestine tore. I should be dead really because he beat me till I passed out and then he went and passed out. I'm lucky because my best friend came over that morning and saw me through the window. She called 9-1-1 and they got me into surgery in the nick of time... I was in the hospital for 3 weeks to make sure it wouldn't re-open. I thought I would be able to just stay with Kenzie-- my best friend but he kept calling, and then those turned into him parked outside her place, and then he was leaving threatening notes on my car.. the police weren't any help. So I waited until I watched his car leave at 2 am one morning and I had Kenzie drive me to the airport. I left, and I haven't been in contact with anyone from back home since too scared that he will find me and kill me this time." You didn't notice when the tears started, but you could feel them drip onto your chest.

"darling... can I come closer" You furrow your brow at him asking permission, but nod nonetheless. He's slow with his movements, you'd bet it took him almost a minute to make his way towards you, even though it was maybe twenty feet of space. He moved so he was standing in front of you, effectively blocking your view from the mirror.

"Can i?" you glance up at him to see him looking at your scar, it makes you anxious but you nod anyway. His feather-light touch traces your scar. "Who did this to you?"

"Bradley no.. you can't go after him. He will know where I am then and I will have to move and if he finds me anyways he will kill me" Your voice is frantic, more panicked than you have sounded in a while.

He takes his eyes off of your scar, the first time you guys make eye contact after exposing your innermost traumas. "y/n..." his voice is basically a whisper, but you see the anger. The anger in his clenched fists and his furrowed brow. The hatred sparkling in his eyes at what happened to you. You find yourself confused because you expected pity or even nothing as you figured he would take back his feelings, not wanting to try things with someone so damaged. Here he was though, keeping his anger in control so he doesn't scare you, and asking if he can come closer or touch you.

"Bradley please" and maybe it's the desperation in your voice or the pleading in your eyes but he clenches his jaw and nods. You find yourself reaching up, hand reaching his face and thumb rubbing his jaw trying to get him to relax. He reaches his own hand up, resting his on top of yours.

"I won't do anything y/n, but I'm never letting anything happen to you again." his eyes hold such a fierceness that you truly believe him, and it's as if this is the first time you feel safe, truly safe, in a year.

Taglist:

@alanadetigy

#rooster imagine #bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster bradshaw #rooster x reader #bradley bradshaw x reader #top gun #top gun maverick #bradley bradshaw #bradley bradshaw imagine #rooster x y/n

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burgundybmw · 2 years ago

Text

Guitar String of Fate

MASTERLIST

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 2,372 (plus social media posts)

Warning: Angst (just the lyrics to the songs on the album, everything else is fluffy!), Game of Thrones critique and reference to its violent content (it makes sense later)

Summary: When the band Daughters of Lilith tour bus breaks down in the middle of Indiana, they are left stranded for a few hours waiting for help. Y/N (also known by Echo) sees a bar in the distance with a giant LIVE MUSIC sign in bright neon lights, she tells the girls they might as well find some entertainment while they wait. The local favorite Corroded Coffin is playing, and when she locks eyes with the guitar player for the first time, Y/N can’t help but feel the electricity in the air. Will this be a missed connection? Or will the strings of fate bring them together again?

Author’s Note: Here it is! The first chapter of Guitar String of Fate! Hope you guys enjoy it! Let me know if you want to be tagged in future updates!

Part I

This is Fred Benson coming to you live from Indianapolis! Fresh off the Antiquity tour, we have with us the members of Daughters of Lilith!

Echo: Lovely to be here!

Eden: Hey guys!

Chrissy: Hey everyone!

Barb: Hello!

Vickie: Hey!

For those who aren't in the know, Daughters of Lilith is an all girl rock band from Los Angeles, California. They took the music world by storm back in 2019 with their debut album "Into The Gorgon's Eyes." In an era where rock music was thought to be dead and buried, these ladies have brought it back to the land of the living! With millions of streams and stadiums across the country sold out, Daughters of Lilith has certainly rocked our worlds. Now tell us, how does it feel to finish up with your first continental tour?

Echo: It's definitely bittersweet. Everything has been amazing so far, all of our fans coming out to see us is absolutely surreal.

Vickie: Oh definitely, sometimes I feel like I'm going to wake up and this all thing was just a dream my brain made up.

Eden: I'm still shocked people actually like our sh*t. When we first formed the band we had no clue it would blow up like this.

Chrissy: It's crazy, because like, going on stage used to be so scary for me. Now it's like second nature! I loved seeing everyone's signs in the audience and watching them sing along to our music. It's so cool!

Barb: It feels good to be back in my home state of Indiana, but I can't wait to get back to LA for some much needed rest for sure.

Some R&R is definitely deserved, especially with the new album coming out in a few weeks. "A Mausoleum Knight's Dream" is heavily anticipated, when you guys dropped the title it went viral on social media. Can you tell us a bit about it?

Eden: It's definitely a different vibe from our first album, Y/N wrote most of the lyrics herself. I remember we were sitting in our apartment and I woke up to use the bathroom. I found her in the kitchen scribbling in her notebook like a woman possessed.

[Edit: Y/N L/N goes by the stage name Echo. Her band mates refer to her by her legal name in interviews]

Chrissy: She wrote the entire thing in like 2 days! It was insane! I don't think she slept!

Echo: I wasn't that bad...

Barb: You were. You were chugging espresso like it was water. Eden had to throw you in bed to get a couple hours of sleep and you snuck out the window!

Echo: I was in the groove!

Vickie: That just proves our point!

A whole album in two days! That's certainly something!

Echo: They're being dramatic. It was more like a week, but yea it was a lot. I got the idea for the album when we went to go see Shakespeare in the park. I get a lot of my inspiration for music from literature.

Yes of course. "Into The Gorgon's Eyes" was inspired from the Greek myth, right?

Eden: Yea and other myths and stories as well. Vickie and Y/N are big Greek mythology nerds.

Vickie: I'm a big Percy Jackson fan! But that wasn't the only reason why we chose the theme.

Echo: I think the story of Medusa is unfortunately something a lot of people can relate to. A lot of greek tragedies are. I wrote 'Wool Stained Red' after watching Game of Thrones actually. As much as I loved the show, the graphic displays of violence were absolutely horrific. It's insane how normalized violence is in media. How it's trivialized for plot development. We see it with Medusa, she was a victim of a crime and she became the villain, a monster. We sort of ran with the idea that we should show the other perspective. History, literature, myth, they're often written by the winners. We wanted to tell the story of the side characters, the ones who are cast aside to push the hero's narrative.

'Wool Stained Red' is actually one of my favorites on the album. Whenever I listen to the opening verse and chorus it always gives me goosebumps.

[Edit: 'Wool Stained Red' is the third song on the album.

Verse 1: They tell us as little girls / To watch for the wolf in sheep's clothes / Don't frolic, don't go, don't stray / Beasts lurk in the shadows / I thought I was safe inside, the door was locked up tight / You came like a ghost in the night, and now I'm the ghost inside

Chorus: The shroud that drapes around me is not as clean as it should be / I walked alongside the virgo / I tried to say no (tried to say no) / This stain won't go away, no matter how hard I try / You've marked my soul forever, until the day I die]

Barb: Y/N wrote the opening and Eden did the chorus. At the time, they were fighting over the notebook to get all of their ideas out.

Eden: We wouldn't have to argue over it if she didn't insist on using the same notebook for music...

Echo: It's my lucky charm! I bought ten of them from the same store for when we eventually run out of pages. I swear it's like magic, I can't write in anything else.

Chrissy: It's so cute actually, she takes care of that thing like it's her baby.

Vickie: She doesn't go anywhere without it.

Is that where you wrote A Mausoleum Knight's Dream?

Echo: Sure is. I'm excited to see what people think about it, I don't know if I can wait two weeks for it to drop. Patience is certainly not my virtue.

You're certainly not alone with that, fans have been buzzing for months for its release. Especially after the overwhelming success of the Antiquity Tour. Are you guys going to do another one for this album?

Vickie: We would love to! If the album does well I'm sure another tour is on the horizon.

So what's next for you ladies? Gonna spend some time in Indiana before heading back to LA?

Barb: I wish we could, but we have events planned in LA for the new album release. It would be nice to spend some time in my hometown for a bit, but we might come back the next time we have downtime.

Echo: I was really bummed out about that. I really wanted to see Hawkins.

Hawkins, Indiana?

Chrissy: Yea! Barb, Vickie, and I are from there! Funny enough, we didn't really know each other well until we all met again in LA.

Vickie: We actually all went to the same high school, but Hawkins High is pretty big and we didn't run in the same circles back then.

Barb: Chrissy was a cheerleader, Vickie was in band, and I was more of a home body. It's insane to think about where I am today. If you would have told 16 year old Barbara Holland she'd be in a rock band with millions of fans, she would have said you were insane. I only had one best friend in high school, her name's Nancy. We're still really close.

I'm actually an alumna of Hawkins High funny enough.

Barb: I knew I recognized you! You were on the paper with Nance right?

I was! I can't believe you recognized me! It's good to see you again.

Barb: It's good to see you again too, Freddie!

Eden: I'm feeling very left out right now.

Echo: I guess we're not cool enough to be a part of the Hawkins crew Edy.

Vickie: Oh you two are so dramatic.

Chrissy: We'll all plan a vacay soon! You guys can see where we grew up!

Echo: Sounds good Chris, I'd love to see it.

As much as I love this trip down memory lane, we unfortunately have to wrap up this interview. Any final words to your fans in Indiana?

Echo: You guys were kick ass last night! Can't wait to come back!

Eden: Till next time Indiana.

Chrissy: Bye everyone! We love you guys so much, thanks for coming out!

Vickie: Hope you guys like the new album!

Barb: Thank you Indianapolis, and shout out to Hawkins!

That's everything folks! This was Daughters of Lilith with you live in Indianapolis! A Mausoleum Knight's Dream drops in 2 weeks, so stay tuned for that!

Eddie was procrastinating, but it wasn't his fault. Really. It was Robin's. If she never suggested new music to him he would have actually made progress with Corroded Coffin's new material. How was he supposed to resist the temptation of an album called Into The Gorgon's Eyes? It was like a siren's call. The link to the album Robin had sent just begging to be played. Eddie knew Gareth would give him shit for listening to another band's music instead writing for his own, but when he did he care about Gareth's opinion anyway? He thinks Whitesnake is one of the best bands to come out of the 80s. Clearly his opinion was wrong.

Robin had told him that the best way to listen to the album was from beginning to end. That once he started it, he had to finish it. He had a few hours before he had to leave for The Hideout, so he decided to put it on early instead of playing it in his van. It was the best decision he made in weeks.

Daughters of Lilith's music wasn't like anything he'd listen to before. The melody transported him outside of himself. It sounded as if he was inside of a cave, or some abandoned ruins in an ancient land far away from Hawkins, Indiana. He understood why the lead singer decided to go by Echo, her voice surrounded him on all sides, moving through him like a stark winter's chill.

Robin was right when she said it was a masterpiece. It was haunting. Tragic. Eddie was hooked. The introduction 'My Body Is A Temple' was lighter, bright for a nu metal/goth rock band. All of the instrumentals were acoustic. Echo's voice shined; her high notes reminiscent of the church choir Eddie's mom made him join as a kid. Surrounded by stone, the reverb bouncing off the walls of his mind. Peaceful, angelic. Completely different from the song that followed it.

'Violated' began with an intense guitar rip, so loud it almost deafened him. The drums pounded against his ears like most of the metal music he listened too. What differentiated it from the rest was the soft keys of the piano that broke through the heavy tone. Echo's voice was heartbreaking. As if she was on the brink of tears. Pure agony. That's how most of the Into The Gorgon's Eyes went, a contrast of harmony and discord.

The last song on the album hit him the hardest. There are only a handful of songs that ever made him cry, 'Hemlock' was one of them. It left him feeling raw. Untethered to the space he occupied in his bedroom. Eddie knew he was going to be late for tune up at the Hideout, but he didn't care. When the song finished, he instantly replayed it. The melancholy sounds of Echo's sirens call beginning again.

Your hubris is showing my dear/ It’s what will destroy you /You swallow your pride without fear / Until those lips I once kissed turn blue / I wish I could say I was surprised / But from me, oh you could never hide /

The poison fills your veins / Like the way you filled my head / You tried to mask your pain / Now I sleep alone in our bed / They tell me it’s not your fault, that it’s a disease of the mind / And it’s so easy to say, until they watch the decay of your eyes that were once kind /

Gifts of the Earth can heal / They can send you to your grave / You’re sprinting backwards on life’s old wheel / That’s not how one should behave / And you won’t drag me there with you, despite how hard you tried / I’d rather walk this road alone than become a widow before a bride /

The poison slowly fills your veins / Like the way you filled my head / You tried to mask your pain / Now I sleep alone in our bed / They tell me it’s not your fault, that it’s a disease of the mind / And it’s so easy to say, until they watch the decay of your eyes that were once kind /

…

I told you I told you / Time and time again / The flowers are not so pretty / When they can bring the kiss of death / Say hello my darling, to the fates of three / When they cut your cord and steal your last breath / You told me I was your Eurydice, that you’d go to Hell and back for me / You’re a lyre, you stole the gold from the windows of my soul to pay Charon’s fee / I told you I told you / It was never if but when /

The poison slowly fills your veins / Like the way you filled my head / You tried to mask your pain / Now I sleep alone in our bed / I sleep alone in our bed /I sleep alone in our bed /

When you wake up tomorrow, will it be heaven sent?

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mha-adore · 4 years ago

Text

General HCs: Students

Excluding Dekusquad and Bakusquad I have everyone else here, I hope you like it ☺

Tokoyami (+Dark Shadow)

* He's really trying to be a harbinger of truth and exposer of deciet. He's a dork. He's just trying to impress you.

* He's so stupidly into music and has like seven playlists he's made for you. Please listen to them he worked hard. He's really shy about his music tastes.

* Dark Shadow teases him relentlessly. You're walking near him? Tokoyami mysteriously trips into your open arms. You need help reaching something on a high shelf? Shadow birb got you covered. His only goal is to make you notice how flustered he is with you.

* He's insecure about being part avian. Most people aren't really attracted to birds, right? Honestly he could look like anything, it doesn't matter. He's a little angsty but kind hearted and pays close attention to you.

Jiro

* She's written like fifteen songs for you and you've heard none of them. They're top secret hidden in her locked diary. If you ask her very nicely and promise not to judge she'll play some for you.

* Expect a lot of punk and metal gifts from her. Her entire existence is punk and metal please lift her up. She is so shy about it.

* Totally the flustered gf. Borrows your clothes without asking and denies it only to approach you in front of everyone else and be like "oh hey here's your shirt back btw" and leave like it was nothing but she is screaming inside.

* Honestly just share a closet with her you two would trade clothes so often you'd need to stitch your names into the tags to keep track. Share the same perfume/cologne too while you're at it. Did you use the same fragrance or did you snuggle together for an hour? No one else knows.

Momo

* She knows other people are after her either for her physique, her family wealth or both and as such, is distrustful at first. She doesn't want to fall for someone only to learn they're using her. Give her space to get comfortable with who you are.

* That said when she knows it's genuine feelings she spoils you rotten. Designer clothes, expensive jewelry, a custom hero costume etc. Her wallet is yours for the taking. Please don't fuck her over.

* Because her family is well known both as elites and heroes she has a reputation to keep up. She insists that you go with her dressed well and looking great so she can show you off with style.

* She is actually very soft hearted and needs some soft love sometimes. Just sit with her under a blanket she made and watch a romcom. Don't judge her for binge eating, she needs to eat well to support her quirk. If anyone makes fun of her kick their ass into the stratosphere.

Aoyama

* He simply will not stop sparkling and neither shall you. He shares his skin care, hair care and multi vitamins with you. You're both glowing, literally.

* He can be spontaneous and over the top in everything he does. He likes to show off and catch stares. He wants to catch your stare. If you gaze longingly at him he'll act suave while squealing with glee inside.

* He spends his money frivolously. He buys expensive care products, jewelry, clothes, stuffed animals...Did I mention it's all for you? He's penniless for you and doesn't mind that at all.

* He craves your attention so much. Spend some time alone with him and just look at him. In public keep your eyes locked on him. His ego will go through the roof, in the best way.

Monoma

* He is so fucking full of himself. Until you're around. He's usually narcissistic and up his own ass but when you walk by he's suddenly humble, kind and friendly. It's just him wanting you to see his good side.

* Sweet hearted asshole wants to feel loved. Just be kind to him. Help him with his homework. Spend free time with him. Help him show up 1-A. He'll love it.

* Totally uses you as a reason 1-B is better than 1-A. "Sure you guys fought villains and all but you don't have anyone even vaguely as attractive as my beloved!" Just let him have his fun in the sun.

* His hero costume is over the top for a reason. He wants to be the prince to sweep you off your feet, kiss you and ride off on a horse. He has the attire covered. Next, your love.

Hitoshi

* Above anything please just be accepting of his quirk. Don't ask him to use it for anything unnecessary or say anything bad about it. He's been ridiculed his entire life for his "villainous quirk", please be kind.

* Nap with him dammit. He's sleeping deprived because he pours all day and night into becoming good enough for 1-A. He wants to be a real hero and he values that over sleep. Cuddle with him at night and he'll sleep like a happy rock.

* You must love cats, end of discussion. His backpack is cat shaped, his phone case is a cat, his spirit animal is a cat, he may as well be a cat. He'd be over the moon if you compares him to a Maine Coon.

* When he does get into 1-A please be happy for him. He worked so hard for it, show your support. Even if you're in different classes you can see each other during lunchbreaks and after school.

Mirio

* He is sunshine. He is warmth. He adopts introverts. It's our man. His hugs are like butterfly kisses if they could crush you.

* He's the type to be really into you and still treat you like a friend. He can't get with someone unless he knows them very well beforehand.

* Though he's friendly and out reaching to others he's still a private person who shares little about his personal life. He needs to learn about you first. Being open yourself will encourage him to start chatting about himself.

* He loves romantic songs. He isn't one for Spotify, playlists or the such but if he hears a song that makes him think of you he's texting you the link immediately. He gets so caught up texting you that he stops listening to others and is in his own little world.

Tamaki

* He is just....So shy. So baby. He really wants to be a strong hero and save the people he loves but he is so shy. Don't pressure him into anything, he just needs someone who will let him be himself.

* That said, he has no experience in love. He's had crushes over the years but nothing meaningful enough to mention. Until you came along and took his heart for a stroll. Now you're all he thinks about. Is your hand warm? Do you like to kiss cheeks? What's your favorite flavor Pop Tart?

* When he manages to confess to you (not if, when) it'll be something cheesy but sweet. Like on Valentine's Day he'll leave a heartfelt card on your desk with his signature and a flower. He's a simple man.

* His feelings are so sensitive please never yell at him, not even out of excitement. He's scared of upsetting the people he cares about and wouldn't dream of upsetting you, his little mochi ice cream. Yes all his pet names for you are based on food.

Nejire

* She's the personification of a flower crown. With thorns. Very soft, sweet and pleasing to the eyes but very capable of defending herself. She is not a sex object and beats the ass of anyone who says so about herself or you.

* I personally headcanon her as asexual but that's my idea on it. You can see it however you like. Either way she's very romantic and loves cute gestures like 3 foot tall teddy bears and hand sewn clothes.

* Imagine this: at the beauty pageant, she wears a dress you sewed for her yourself and, alongside her natural beauty and talent, wins the pageant. She would have just been proud to show everyone your skills but she won wearing that dress, you can bet she's telling everyone you made it.

* She treats Eri like a daughter and hopes you'll do the same with her. Call it a little childish but she loves the idea of playing house with you. Married in a little happy home caring for Eri together.

I think that's everyone I need to add for now. If you want to see someone else in this let me know! My next two posts will be this same format for pros and villains. If you have any headcanons to share or a request my inbox is open

#mha x reader #tokoyami #tokoyami x reader #jiro kyoka #jiro x reader #momo yaoyorozu #momo x reader #aoyama yūga #aoyama x reader #monoma neito #monoma x reader #mirio togata #mirio x reader #tamaki amakiji #tamaki x reader #nejire hado #nejire x reader

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