#One Year Apart Zine

[smilesobrien]

FINALLY got around to making an itch.io page...!! allow me to promo Halloween for Mice parts one and two... haha...!!

[lord-prey]

I like buying charms to put on my keys n backpacks :)

Sometimes I leave extras or ones I don’t wanna take out on my cork board as well. Aka the current Yuuji, Taka n demifiend, they’re not kept that close together btw I did that for the pic 😩

Oldest charms I got are the Jack Ryan and Jazz one, my ex mailed me those back in my jr year of highschool :)

Newest one is the Levi n weeping scope one, got em 3 days ago but my god I scratched em tf up already 😩

N uhhh the Taka, Yuuji n Demifiend came before the Levi :)

[if-whats-new]

What's New In IF? Issue 32 (2024)

By Aj, Dion, Briar, Jen and Peter

Now Available!

Itch.io - Keep Reading below

If you read the zine, consider liking the post: it helps us see how many people see it! And sharing is caring! <3

~ EDITORIAL ~

Two Issues in one week?!

Yes, it’s us again!

Since Issue 31 came out on Wednesday instead of the regular Saturday and we tried really hard to make this one on time, we’re back once more, just a few days apart.

We sincerely hope you’re not getting sick of us yet!

We want some feedback!

As we’re starting to get a hand of things, we would love some feedback from you guys! What you enjoy, want more or less off, how we could improve... Anything goes! We even have a nifty form.

We hope you enjoy this new issue!

AJ, DION, BRIAR, JEN AND PETER

~ BE A PART OF THE ZINE ~

THIS ZINE ONLY HAPPENS WITH YOU!

Want to write 1-2 pages about a neat topic, or deep-dive into a game and review it in details? Share personal experiences or get all academic?

WRITE FOR THE COLUMN!

Prefer to be more low-key but still have something to share? Send us a Zine Letter or share a game title for Highlight on…!

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!

Came across something interesting? Know a release or an update announced? Saw an event happening? Whether it's a game, an article, a podcast… Add any IF-related content to our mini-database!

EVERY LITTLE BIT COUNTS!

Contact us through Tumblr asks, Forum DMs, or even by email! And thank you for your help!!

~ EVENT SPOTLIGHT : IF Short Games Showcase 2024 ~

December 1st 2024 to January 1st 2025

Short games tend to get less love than longer games in general-purpose, non-speed-IF comps, while the ones released outside of a competition or jam may not get eyes on them at all. The IF Short Games Showcase 2024 aims to give the shorter works their very own place to shine!

The Short Games Showcase is an opportunity to show off shorter interactive fiction works made in the past year (Jan 1, 2024 to Dec 31, 2024), regardless of whether or not they were previously released.

Authors can submit up to three games - each of them should be completable in 30 minutes or less. The showcase has a broad view of IF. It will accept anything usually considered to fall under that umbrella, including parser games, choice-based/choose-your-own-adventure games, visual novels, point-and-clicks, and text-focused Bitsy games. In addition, a work must not have been submitted to more than three prior jams or competitions.

The SGS will have both a Best Overall winner and winners in several specific categories:

Best Use of Short Form

Best Use of Interactivity

Best Story-Focused Game

Best Puzzle-Focused Game

Most Replay Value

Best Previously Unawarded Game

There might be no prizes, but bragging rights are great too.

Do you have a short project that deserves it’s own moment in the spotlight? Then don’t hesitate and join too!

To read more about the rules and overall goal of the showcase, visit the Itch page.

~ ENDED ~

The voting for ECTOCOMP 2024 is officially over! Check out the results!

You can now check out all 16 entries to the Videotome Jam!

Disabled Rep VN Jam has a very simple premise but a very important message. Check out the submissions!

~ ONGOING (VOTING) ~

A Very Hallmark Game Jam has entered the voting phase. You can now vote for your favourite out of the five entries.

~ ONGOING (SUBMITTING) ~

Media depicting healthy examples of polyamory isn’t that common. The PolyJamorous 2024 is trying to break the status-quo!

This year’s Yuri Game Jam is in full progress. The devs have until December 2nd to submit their projects.

Once upon a time, a game jam was held to create stories around the theme of fairy tales… and that game jam is the Once Upon A Time VN Jam. It’s running from October 1st to January 31st.

Concours de Fiction Interactive Francophone 2025 is for all French-speaking enthusiasts. Submissions are accepted March 3rd 2025.

Are you perhaps a fan of more somber, melancholic themes? Then check out the Dying Year - Visual Novel Jam! You have until the end of the year to participate.

The Black Visual Novel Jam is all about working with creative professional developers who work in visual novels to bring more Black stories to life. The goal is to create a space where Black creators can show their unique storytelling through visual novels.

IF Short Games Showcase 2024 is a great way to shine some new light on your projects made in the past year (Jan 1, 2024 to Dec 31, 2024), regardless of whether or not they are previously released! You have until January 15th 2025 to join.

Winter Visual Novel Jam 2024 is here! You have until January 1st 2025 to submit your projects.

Are you familiar with Decker? Then why not take a part in the Deck-Month 2?

Another bitsy jam is here. This time with the theme "better late than never".

SeedComp! is a 2-round interactive fiction game jam, focusing on creativity and the growth of ideas and the Sprouting Round has just started! Check out the Planting round for inspiration.

~ OTHER ~

Intents to enter are open for Spring Thing 2025. To submit an intent to enter, you'll need a working title for the game and a few other pieces of information. Intents for the 2025 festival can be submitted any time between now and March 1st, 2025.

~ NEW RELEASE ~

You’re a promising officer in the Teranese military, a force which has not seen major engagement in decades but which holds vast influence. Thanks to the… complicated circumstances of an injury, you’ve been quietly reassigned. Now you’re to be the bodyguard to a child of a famous scientist who is attending a wilderness boarding school for the children of the richest and most powerful figures of Teran society. What could go wrong? Play Honor Bound (CScript) and find out! (There’s also a mini prequel game about the Honor Bound PC, aged 17 - Honor Bound: Recruitment Day (Twine).) @hpowellsmith

I Fell in Love with a Mailman (Godot) is set in the RADICAL 1980s with the rise of the claw machine industry, play as a girl boss big city girl who's grappling with the realization that her successful corporate life might not be as fulfilling as she imagined. Return home for the holidays and discover a new side of yourself: will you win a prize in the game of love, or is romance simply a rigged game of chance?

You are the Dark Queen—the most powerful being of your entire universe. Your lair is breached by an aspiring hero—a pitiful thing, easily crushed. Except they keep coming back. The Dark Queen of Morthlome is a 20 minute anti-game about an unconventional relationship and the capacity for change.

Two people show signs or attraction to you; however, only one truly loves you. "Eric or Alex?" The same question appears over and over again in your mind. Now it's time to really find out the answer! Go through different apps, discover and gather information in order to decide who is the true love in Attention (Unity)!

As always, don't forget to check out the submitted entries to the events mentioned in the previous pages. They deserve some love too!

~ NEW RELEASE (WIP) ~

In Swapped (Twine) you play as a 17 year old senior, anxiously awaiting the day you graduate, pack your bags, and ditch Sunnyview. But one day, all of that changes when filming for a movie is announced near your hometown. A chance encounter with the one and only Taylor Victory, famous actor with eerie facial similarities, leads to a deal. You will swap places—Taylor will experience a normal week of high school as you, and you will live the life of an actor in their place. @aurelim

In the grim remains of a shattered world, Voxhaven stands as the sole surviving city. The air, thick with pollution, carries the stench of decay and betrayal. The government’s watchful eyes are everywhere, controlling every move... every whisper. Survival means more than just enduring the endless haze—it's about navigating a city built on lies and deceit, where trust is scarce and death lingers in the shadows. In Voxhaven, freedom is a distant dream, and every breath you take is a reminder of the world’s broken past. - Requiem of the Fallen (Twine) @miss-briar-novels

This Too Shall Pass (CScript) delves into a reality in which you were once the Chosen One- Destined to save the world. But you had failed. You now navigate that same world 22 years later as it slowly succumbs to that fate you were supposed to save it from. @thistooshall-if

MEMORALYSIS (Ren’Py) follows the psychic detective Philon Delancy to a strange seaside town to solve the murder of one of its most notable public figures. What starts as a routine house call quickly reveals a tangle of messy relationships, local superstitions, and past unsolved mysteries — and at the center of it all is the victim’s enigmatic niece, Celosia James. But surely the rumors about the young heiress have been greatly exaggerated. After all, everyone knows demonic possession isn’t real.

To Allison, life is just an endless cycle of exhaustion with no escape route – wake up, study, work, fulfil family duties, sleep, rinse and repeat. But sometimes she can't help but wonder... Is that really all there is to life? Soon, Allison stumbles upon a group of people who may be just as lonely as she is, and little by little, their encounter returns colour to her world... - Re:Curse (Ren’Py).

In All the Way (CScript) you play as a young woman living in a time and place a little like the early 90’s in California that is about to have some serious run ins with the supernatural. Her life and that of her friends are quickly disrupted by beings that seem to have a bit of a vendetta for her - but what has she ever done to these creatures and why are they targeting her and her friends?

In the Halls of Asgard (CScript) you play a Norse God trying to survive in Asgard, and preparing for Ragnarök.

You play as the amnesiac protagonist, trapped in a mysterious house with two other captives. You quickly learn that the only way to escape is to have one of the three of you die. Will you kill or be killed? Who is the mastermind? Is there no way for all of you to survive? The mystery deepens as you find that no matter who dies, the killing game begins anew in Yet Another Killing Game (Ren’Py).

The Corpse Road (Twine) is an explorable fiction about death.

~ UPDATES ~

Ashenmaw - Dragons of Marrowoods (CScript) updated their demo. @ashenmaw-if

Fellow Traveler (Twine) released Episode 3 “tease” and Act 1. @robotvampire

The Soulforge Order (Twine) released Chapter 1. @thesoulforgeorder

The Sword of Rhivenia (CScript) released Chapter 5.

The Thousand Of Us (CScript) added new content to their public demo. @ivanwm-05

We Wretched Creatures (Twine) released Episode 6. @darkfictionjude

Azrael (CScript) updated their demo.

Drink Your Villain Juice (CScript) updated their Patreon demo. @drinkyourvillainjuice

New Era (CScript) updated their demo. @newera-interactiveif

Starways Saga (CScript) added new content to the Navy Path.

After Dark (CScript) updated their Patreon demo. @dalekowrites

Exit Through the Gift Shop (CScript) updated their demo.

Haunted (Twine) added a “Side Story” to their demo. @hauntedif

Meteoric (CScript) released Chapter 5.

The Unwilling Sword of Lamenthria (CScript) released Part 1 of Chapter 3. @lamenthria-if

Trouble Brewing (Twine) released Chapter 5. @troublebrewing-if

~ OTHER ~

Thom Baylay’s Kitsune (CScript) is now in Open Beta.

Issue 29 of the Amare Fortnightly Bulletin is out now! @amaregames

The Twine Cookbook is now available in print and through December 2024 it's 25% off! All proceeds from sales go toward the Interactive Fiction Technology Foundation and its support of Twine.

~

As always, we apologize in advance for missing any update or release from the past week. We are only volunteers using their limited free time to find as much as we can - but sometimes things pass through the cracks.

If you think something should have been included in this week's zine but did not appear, please shoot us a message! We'll do our best to add it next week! And if you know oncoming news, add it here!

~ MAYBE YOU NEXT? ~

We did not get a submission this week. But if you have an idea for a short essay, or would like a special space to share your thoughts about IF and the community...

Shoot us an email!

~ HIGHLIGHT ON ~

A couple of games that we thought were cool.

Treasures of a Slaver's Kingdom by S. John Ross (Inform 7)

Comes with a fake manual for the 1979 TTRPG it's purportedly "adapting". Well-crafted, sincere, and really funny.

//submitted by Carter X.//

Your favourite game here?

Do you have a favourite game that deserves some highlighting?

An old or recent game that wowed you so much you spam it to everyone?

Tell us about it! And it might appear here!

WE LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU ALL! WHETHER IT'S GOOD OR BAD, OR EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN...

Have something to say? Send us a message titled: Zine Letter!

As we end this issue, we would like to thank:

Carter X.

For sending us a Highlight!!

And as always, huge thanks to all you readers who liked, shared, and commented on last week's issue!

What might be tiny actions are huge support and motivators to us!

Thank you for cheering us on this journey!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Thank you for reading and see you next week!

AJ, DION, BRIAR, JEN AND PETER

WHAT'S NEW IN IF? 2024-ISSUE 32

[mephistopheles]

i don’t know much about the fan reception of the TOS movies but i do believe that k/s zines were already circulating by the time TMP came out which means there absolutely were shippers in 1979 and i can’t imagine being in the theatre as star trek puts forth a film that is thematically centred on two lovers, one human and one alien, reuniting aboard the enterprise after years apart, at the climax of which spock clasps kirk’s hand, stares deep into his eyes, and says he finally understands “this simple feeling.” i think i would have died on the spot

[bernardisgross]

Bim bam boum ! Here's the whole comic i drew for Crossroads @zine--garden , a zine focused one showing and sharing love for Hunter x Hunter ^^

I chose to focus on my two favorite teachers !!!

Bonus, making of & talk in the read more⬇

I was very happy to be able to participate and even more happy to finally share a headcanon i've had for years about Bisky and Wing's meeting.

I don't know how clear it is but basically, Wing is a young nen user who happens to have been taken in by a big criminal family. The boss is using his abilities to forge precious gems from cheap materials, passing them as precious gems he bought for his collection. As a renown collector, he also sells the gems and makes tons of money from it. As Wing's skills become sharper though, his forged gems become more and more precious, making it difficult to tell them apart from real ones.

Having sold a good gem in a batch of "bad" ones, the boss is trying to get it back, framing his client as a thief. He calls for Bisky (a "young" hunter with a good resume) planning to trick her into committing insurance fraud in his place. Unfortunately, she's got a better eye than he thought, and asks for the good gem as compensation.

Feeling antsy about his money, the boss accepts, already planning to get rid of her once the job is done.

Bisky can sense the residual nen from Wing the moment she meets him, that's why she demands he comes with her. She wants to make sure at first that this is a normal child in the wrong place rather than the boss's actual associate.

Making him her disciple just came along the way because she honestly didn't know what to do with that kid LOL but didn't want to return him to a bad place. Also, she saw his potential. Here's a rejected final page (rejected bc I couldn't tie the text properly and wasn't very happy with the visual) where it's a bit clearer that she's got back with the good gem and values it a lot BECAUSE it was made by Wing. (also metaphor, analogy blabla)

I love teachers/masters in stories, i love that trope so much!! It's always so interesting to me to have someone older and wiser share their knowledge with the young waiting for nothing in return. Nurturing and loving, becoming a support with the only satisfaction to witness the growth and blossoming of someone else. I think it's so beautiful to help others in this way, to give a little of yourself with kindness.

I think if touches on other tropes i'm sensitive to like found family etc... So of course, i've loved Bisky & Wings for a looong time, and i'm even more obsessed with the fact they're on the same line of teachers 🥺💕

I was always curious about how they could have met and what could have moved Bisky to take him under ... her ..................... wing.....🔥🔥🔥 lol... anyways !!! I went full indulgence and comics are not my thing at all so if you've enjoyed it, i'm very very, very blessed and happy ^^ !!!

I've also included a rejected sketch of the cover with big Bisky :3

and here's a look at all her outfits !! I love Lolita alt fashion soo much, i do tend to latch onto characters who dress like this... and love making my own outfits for them too !!!

I also made a sticker of Palm for the merch bundles !!

Thank you so much if you've picked up Crossroads, it was great from the start !! I'm so lucky and so grateful to @/gachahugs and all the contributors for having me ^^ !! thank you thank you !

[ayaheart77]

Hiya!! Happy 1st In Stars and Time Anniversary everyone!! It's hard to believe it's been a year since I saw this game in the eshop and said "huh, thats a cute art style and some funky music, wonder what's going on here"

This is my piece from the @ourtimeinthestars zine! If you haven't checked it out yet please do!! So many amazing people worked on it and they deserve to see their efforts be seen!

While I'm not as active in the isat community anymore, this game will always hold a special place in my heart, mainly cause I got to infect my friends with it and watch them get silly with it (love you guys <3)

I guess all thats left to say is thank you insertdisc5 for the amazing game! thank you mods and zine team for hosting and putting together the project! thank you isat community for being one of the best comunities i've been apart of! and thank you to my friends who encouraged me to join the zine in the first place! I don't think i'd be here on tumblr right now if it wasn't for this project, so thank you! thank you everyone!!

(ID in Alt text)

[solarpunksoup]

PART 2: THE STEW

(aka a resource masterlist/archive from an amateur librarian)

LAST UPDATED NOVEMBER 11, 2024

PART 1: THE SOUP (disc. February 28, 2023)

disclaimer: most of these will pull up my reblog, not the original link. this is in no way me trying to take credit, but it was just easier and more efficient to get the links this way, and makes the resource still partially accessible if a blog is deactivated.

just like part one!: if you see your post on here and would like it removed or credited in a certain way, send me a message. i’m more than happy to do that!

this will be continuously updated. click the original post to check if the date has changed.

you can also search “updated version” in my blog to pull up the most recent edit

not all of these are direct guides! a lot of this is inspiration for your own personal praxis

The Featured

some things that are particularly relevant right now or what I find most interesting

Self Managed Abortion

Managing War Anxiety

Testosterone is for Girls, Too! (zine for purchase)

Solarpunk in Different Parts of the World

Gardening + Gardening DIYs

Sharing the Fruits of Your Labor

Healthy Soil

Ani's Tomato and Pepper Harvest

Moostie's Guide to Carrot Tops

DIY [Non-Fibre]

Filtering Rainwater

Tech

Pirating Resources

uBlock Origin's Official Guide to Bypassing Youtube Anti-AdBlock

[Google] Drives

Cooking/Foraging

Scrap Soup

Random Tips for an Amateur Cook

Mending + Fibre Arts

Solar Dyeing

Making Yarn from Scratch

Inspo for Mending a Belt

Inspo for Decorating a Jacket

On Acrylic Yarn

Thought, Theory + Idea Lists

Ways to Live in Direct Opposition to Capitalism

Rural Solarpunk

Activism in the Winter Months

Social Workers, Not Cops

Importance of Trades

Solarpunk in Different Parts of the World

Boomer Positivity

Stories of Transfem Acceptance

Staying Critical of "Self-Sufficiency"

Shopping

Native Seeds Search

Volunteerism, Protesting + Community Activism

Community Fridges/Freedges

Free Little Library for MOVIES!

Nzambi Matee Recycles Plastic to Make Bricks that are Stronger than Concrete

Workplace Advocacy

A Legit Way to Fight the Climate Crisis from Where You're Sitting Right Now

Village Tackles Speeding by Planting Thousands of Flowers Because Drivers Slow Down as They Pass By

Emotional + Physical Health

First Aid for Seizures

Masterlists, Compilations

History of Specific Depopulated Palestinian Areas

UK-Specific Solarpunk Resources

Zines

Testosterone is for Girls, Too!

T-Girl Self Defense

The Shirt, (or How to Explain Revolution to an 8-year old)

a word on the soup and the stew:

hello world!

if you've made it all the way down here, hello! hi:3

welcome to a project I've been working on for many years. 3, to be exact! which may not seem that long to you, but for me, the soup started as a way for me to collect resources as an isolated, abused teenager and give me a source of hope. I think it gave me something to hoard, to call my own, even though it never really was. it was and always has been just my organization of a community's brilliance. and along the way, people seemed to like it. with this outpouring love and a community I could finally call myself apart of, I learned to let go of false ownership and instead grow a true love for archiving, for sharing.

now, I am a free, happy adult, and that time seems like forever ago. yet I continue collecting these resources and sharing our community's brilliance as an ode to that younger self, and because I still believe in the solarpunk community and it's message:

hope! keep hoping! endure! keep enduring! above all else, we must survive, we must dream, and we must LOVE!

I hope you reflect upon these with the same gentle, hopeful heart I always have. Praise the authors, love them, love yourself, and let our hope inspire you to create and act and be.

All of my love!

The Keeper

[birdfrenchforbird]

2025 book bingo tbr

i'm gonna be following the 2025 book bingo created by the magnanimous @batmanisagatewaydrug and i have just completed (to the extent i can today) my tbr! (this has also inspired me into making a list of 25 things i need to do 25 times throughout 2025... so if there's one thing i will be next year, it is occupied). i drew from books that i own/my roommate owns as much as possible.

Literary Fiction: Luster by Raven Leilani (which has been on my libby holds list since mackenzie last recommended it. abt 20 weeks to go).

2. Short Story Collection: Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung, translated by Anton Hur (advanced reader's copy i got for free from my college's book club)

3. A Sequel: A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon

4. Childhood Favorite: The Sword of Darrow by Alex and Hal Malchow or Heidi by Johanna Spyri or something i find when i am home for the holidays that calls my soul more than these two

5. 20th Century Speculative Fiction: The Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkein (because TECHNICALLY it counts)

6. Fantasy: Piranesi by Susanna Clarke (one of the few remaining Book of the Month editions i still own)

7. Published Before 1950: Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters, published in 1915

8. Independent Publisher: I Love Information by Courtney Bush, published by Milkweed Editions (will need to either get over my fear of going to the library in person to set up my online account and put a hold on this OR purchase a copy)

9. Graphic Novel/Comic Book/Manga: Fun Home by Allison Bechdel or Saga by writer Brian K. Vaughan and artist Fiona Staples, have not decided (both owned by my roommate)

10. Animal on the Cover: Diminished Capacity by Sherwood Kiraly (he was my playwriting/fiction professor and gave me my copy of the novel)

11. Set in a Country You Have Never Visited: Euphoria by Lily King, set in New Guinea (owned by my roommate)

12. Science Fiction: Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams

13. 2025 Debut Author: Julie Chan is Dead by Liann Zhang, expected May 2025 (another physical hold or purchase situation)

14. Memoir: Reading With Patrick by Michelle Kuo (commencement speaker at my graduation!)

15. Read a Zine, Make a Zine: tbd! will probably be more than one!

16. Essay Collection: The Book of Difficult Fruit by Kate Lebo

17. 2024 Award Winner: How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair, NBCC Award for Autobiography (will borrow from libby, audiobook is also available)

18. Nonfiction: Learn Something New: I was paying more attention to the nonfiction part than the learn something new part and i do need to find a new book for this because originally i was gonna go with one of Caitlin Doughty's novels which, while lovely, are not something New To Me. i know i have a biography of Anna Freud somewhere so maybe i will dig that up? otherwise it might be a scroll-through-libby adventure

19. Social Justice & Activism: The Theater of War by Bryan Doerries (read a few chapters first year of undergrad but never the whole thing so technically it counts as a new book for me)

20. Romance Novel: Once Upon a Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber

21. Read and Make a Recipe: Jane Austen's Table by Robert Tuesley Anderson, specific recipe to be determined upon reading

22. Horror: Flowers in the Attic by V. C. Andrews (owned and recommended by my roommate as a good option for me, because i do not do well with horror. respect the genre so much!! but my anxiety disorder)

23. Published in the Aughts: Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik (just got my thrift books copy a couple weeks ago. i am making myself SAVOR this series)

24. Historical Fiction: Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

25. Bookseller or Librarian Recommendation: tbd upon getting over my fears and actually visiting my library in person! it's a five minute walk from my apartment i do not know what my problem is

[beyond-the-light]

The soon is here!

The wait is no more! It's here! I had the honor of being apart of a Zine for the first time ever! We got to pick a lore entry of our choice and make a piece of art for it! I picked three Cayde ones and in a very brain broken fashion, meticulously copied his hand writing from the TTK collector's edition! I want to thank people for being there and seeing my progress as I've made art this year. I couldn't have done it without any of you and especially @unlucky-phantom who has been my rock through everything! Art is under the cut as well as a tiny update. Link to the Zine HERE!

I'm not going to say for sure what the future holds for me but I'm hopeful. I'll let you know when I do.

[mlbigbang]

2023 Marichat & Ladrien Fic Rec List

It’s the end of the year which means it’s finally time for the ML Big Bang’s yearly fic rec lists! We’re really excited to bring you our contributors’ favourite fics started this year to supply you with plenty of reading material while you’re waiting for the Big Bang fics’ publication in January.

Boulangérella by @aidanchaser

Once upon a time, magic was wild. The two princes of the kingdom have been tasked with choosing their brides by the end of their 21st birthday celebrations. Crown Prince Adrien Agreste will have to choose between a woman who can protect his kingdom, a woman offering the power to wake his sleeping mother, and the woman he has loved and admired for the past year. Then there's also the seamstress that he is suddenly falling for. By the time he realizes he doesn't have the power to choose at all, it may be too late.

It's a creative Cendrillon retelling with the kwamis as fay, Adrien as the kingdom's prince and most wanted thief, and Marinette as the seamstess and superhero partner stealing Adrien's heart twice over.

Scary, like a little black purring kitten by @h-sunnywet-d

The calendar just turned into October, and Chat Noir has to make sure that his Good Friend Marinette appreciates the new season wholeheartadly. It sure won't backfire on the long run.

Just An Ordinary Girl by @kasienda

Chat Noir and the other heroes are in a bit of trouble, and Ladybug wanted just one weekend off! But luckily they know someone who can help. Someone who is just an ordinary girl…

you will never sleep alone (i'll love you) by @ladyofthenoodle

Marinette had saved up for months to be able to afford this vacation. Not only that, but she’d spent months trying to convince herself that it was okay to even take a vacation, that Monarch was really and truly gone. Which was why Tikki was at home with Alya, so that Marinette could actually relax and enjoy the plush amenities the hotel had to offer, such as a bed that looked like it cost five times her monthly salary. Or, she would be able to enjoy it, if she wasn’t standing in the middle of the villa she’d booked over a month ago, fighting for the bed with freaking Chat Noir, of all people.

May I introduce myself, Your Highness? by @chocoluckchipz

Whether picking up a stray animal off the streets or saving a dying child at the market, Adrien had always strived to be the best version of himself. Truly, he would've been the perfect candidate to be snatched up by a kwami, were he an orphan, dying somewhere remote after a short life full of nothing but suffering and misery. Yet as it stood, the sole heir to the French throne had little to complain about. Apart from, perhaps, a complete absence of a love life. That is until a mysterious girl, wandering around his gardens at night, catches his attention.

This fic has it all - Ladrien, royalty, fairy tale elements, magic and disguises! It's an enthralling read and one of my absolute favorite fics from 2023.

The Perfect Date by @peachcitt

“I dare you to ask this special someone on the date you just described.” “I totally will,” Adrien says with confidence, looking into the camera and nodding resolutely. “Scout’s honor.” He holds up the kitten as if swearing an oath. There is a space of silence. “Right now,” Hanna says. Adrien stares at her. “I’m daring you to ask that person out right now,” she says. or adrien has a little slip up during a live interview, and ladybug hears. for the golden hour zine!!

reserved by @luckyyoyo

“Don’t you think,” he coughed, a blush creeping up his cheeks, “this kind of thing should be.. reserved for my girlfriend?” He gestured to their poses. A squeak came from her mouth and her knees buckled, but surprisingly still had no struggle keeping Adrien up. “You know, you could always be my girlfriend.” Ladybug, saviour of Paris and local damsel-in-distress Adrien Agreste, suggests he gets a fake girlfriend to ward off his zombie fans. While lovingly holding him in her arms, of course. Adrien, far too comfortable in her arms, suggests it could be her. Introducing your superheroine pretend-girlfriend to your strict, uninterested father is a bit harder than Adrien realises.

Displaced by @kasienda

Adrien loosened his tie and dropped his suit jacket unceremoniously across the back of the sofa that was already cluttered with unopened boxes, mail, and unfolded laundry. He really should have listened to Nino and hired a maid or cleaning person of some sort. But well, he still had a secret to keep, and keeping that secret was more important to him than ever. He moved to his bedroom on autopilot without turning on the light, intending to collapse into bed immediately. But when he tried to slip into his space, he found it was already occupied. He flipped his phone flashlight on towards the ceiling to light the room in a soft glow. In his wife’s place, Ladybug lay sprawled diagonally across the bed.

here comes the rush before we touch (come a little closer) by @ladyofthenoodle

When an akuma attacks during Adrien Agreste's beach themed photoshoot on a dreary day in Paris, Ladybug is on the scene immediately. Unfortunately, with a glimpse of Adrien's alluring abdomen and without her partner, it's not long before she's hit, and Adrien with her—but maybe Ladybug can afford a little vacation with the boy she loves. He's certainly not complaining.

On Borrowed Time by @miabrown007

The life of Paris’ Golden Boy is all shine and glamour; blindingly bright smiles, neverending parties, bargaining for just a shard of time for being happy. But that’s alright; Adrien has long given up the false hope that someone will get it. That is precisely why it’s a spectacle when she does, when she barges in like a hurricane in crimson and turns his life upside down. Heaven knows, it’s time for the wind of change.

[arctic-hands]

[Image Description: the above and following photos are of a very small printed out zine in black and white. The cover has the word "Missing" in big letters with a black background, and the words "current as of Dec 2, twenty twenty-four". At the bottom it says "a WhatsApp story". In the center are three photos in black and white, the top one showing a man and a woman, a second showing the same man and many children gathered around a table, and the bottom photo showing the family posing in the middle of a city street.]

[The first page of the zine, saying in handwritten lettering "She messaged me goodbye last Sunday." In the middle of the page is a screenshot from WhatsApp, showing the sender saying "I'm sorry, my friend, but if we don't communicate anymore, be sure that I will be killed, burned, hit by a missile that tore me apart, or die of hunger and cold." The next message, by the receiver, starts out "I'm so sorry this is" but cuts off. The second page shows a simplistically drawn "Breaking News" sign in white on black. The text says "Two days before, we were cheering the I.C.C. arrest warrants."

[Third page says the words "We, a world apart from each other, began to see an end to her nightmare." The picture is of a simple circle representing a globe, with a point labeled Me on the very left edge, and a point labeled Her very close to the right edge. The fourth page has a repeat of the Breaking News sign, this time black on white. The text says "Three days after, a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect."]

[Fifth page shows drawings of crowded tents in various states of sheltering as it rains, forming water in front of the tents. The text says "But she's not in Lebanon." Sixth page has inverted white-on-black, with the text starting in a rain cloud and stopping in the middle of the rain. It says "I don't know where she is now. Laid out in the rain, maybe."]

[Seventh page has no picture, just the words "My therapist told me to have hope..." The eighth page shows a pen-scratched dark tunnel with a small circle of light towards the end. The text says "...but Hayam ran out of it. She told me if she survived the night, she would have a nervous breakdown."]

[Ninth image says "What could I do a world away?" The circle globe is filled in completely dark. Tenth page says "I couldn't even say anything meaningful back to her." The image is of another WhatsApp screenshot. The sender texts three messages: "Kids not stoped craying [sic]", "I am fineshed [sic]", and "I hope if I just die". The receiver says in response "I don't know what to say. But you've got to keep going a little bit longer".]

[Eleventh page is without image, saying "Did I have the right to say that?" Twelfth page shows two flags, one the year twenty twenty-four merging into twenty twenty-five, and the other a crudely drawn American flag. The text says "As of now, I don't know what her life is like for myself. As bad as it is, and as bad as it may get, I don't have her frame of reference."]

[Thirteenth page shows a notebook with a grid in it, made up squiggle words, and at the very end it says "Fuck everything". The text says "I haven't written in my diary since the election. So I'll write it down here. But even as I am a victim of what's to come, I'm still complicit in the now." The next page is blank, saying "What could I do but apologize?"]

[The back of the zine, showing a simple drawing of a boarded up door on a brick rowhouse with one boarded up window and one shattered window. On the door board it is written "If I must die, you must live to tell my story". Besides this is an arrow saying "Refaat Alareer, killed in Gaza twenty twenty-three", and another arrow that says "Actual graff in Baltimore". At the top it is written "Donate to help Hayam's family." And at the bottom is a typed-out link to a GoFundMe. End I.D]

Fundraiser verified by @nabulsi here, Hayam's story detailed here and here

@leieryx is doing art comissions in exchange for donations to the GFM here

I'll let you all know whenever I hear back from someone. In the mean time, please continue to help Hayam and her family.

(zine formatted and printed using the Electric Zine Maker program)

[sukinapan]

honestly would be pretty interested in hearing about all of them, if thats alright

it's no problem o( ❛ᴗ❛ )o i like talking about this

for context, apart from making personal art i'm also an artist and character designer at Smarto Club, so I don't know if these count as OCs but i have posted art of them here: Haco from >Bubblegum Galaxy and Teacup from >Teacup.

you can check the steam pages on those games for more info if u like. i love all my characters but i don't usually make personal art of these two since i already do it as my job.

my newest Smarto Club character is a bit different since she's more in the style of what i'm doing personally so i want to make more art of her soon. her name is Abigail:

she's a kid who likes reading about bugs and catching them but she never hurts them : ) this is a short game in early development but it's about catching creatures called angels. it's got horrorish vibes but i don't think the end result will be full-out horror, since it's also kinda silly...

then there's Peklo, it's a game for which i created the whole concept and story but the plan is to develop it as a studio at Smarto Club. i wrote more context for it on this post, but for the characters, they're my favorites to make art about at the moment. the main ones are Kiku (the cat) and Mi (the bunny):

i recently created these human forms of them for fun but i'm not sure whether i'll establish them as canon or not... they're trapped in limbo/hell so there's space for them to have a past human form. they don't remember their lives but Kiku feels a deep sense of regret about things unkown to her and wants to break out of Peklo. Mi feels trapped in an eternal sadness, she longs to see the ocean, she can always hear it but has never been able to reach it.

the antagonist in Peklo is a frog entity called Guppy but i haven't really shown him outside of his froggy logo

i also have OCs from my smaller games. there's Hlina that i created specifically for >this game that was commissioned to me for a zine. i don't have any plans to use her again for now but i might make more art of her in the future for fun. she's part of a strange dream realm and is hostile to the player:

there's iro from the >game with the same name who's my oldest game OC. i created that bitsy game for her story but she existed previously in my art degree final project, it was a version of the same story but just a section of it. it's a dream of mine to create a full-fledged 3D game for her some day.

she's a bit of a defective space exploration robot, sent to explore planetoid Iridium-3 in search of human contact. it's set in a future where humanity has dispersed among the whole galaxy so lots of groups have lost contact with each other.

my latest game OC is Michtat, a wizard cat that i created just for this silly zine.

lasty, there’s the characters from my comic that I’m working on, called The most distant planet. the main characters are Victor and Mitya, two 9 year olds whose families end up living together.

i'd say these are the dearest characters to me of all. i don't post as much of them because they're mostly in the shape of comic pages and it doesn't spark as much interest as my games. i love drawing them though.

they’re both little weirdos who isolate themselves and don’t fit in much with other children, so the friendship they develop is very special to them. they have almost opposite personalities where Victor (darker hair) is very shy and dorky but also very sweet to everyone, while Mitya mostly gives 0 fucks about what anyone thinks or says, he blurts out whatever he’s thinking and just wants to run around wild.

the story is mostly slice of life-ish but there’s also a science fiction element ^-^ Victor is obsessed with things like ghosts, aliens, etc but Mitya thinks it’s all just dumb tales.

another important character is Alyosha, Mitya’s 17-18yo brother. he doesn’t know how to talk or relate to his little brother and is kinda weirded out by him. they where very close when they were younger, but when Mitya was 2 he had an accident that Alyosha feels guilty about, and has been somehow different ever since.

he still worries about his little brother and how isolated he is, though. at the beginning of the story the two of them live alone with their grandma who does love them but has kind of a cold and distant personality. 

Alyosha was the type of kid to be considered “gifted” but now feels completely burnt out and had to repeat a grade at school. he felt so humiliated by this he eventually stopped going entirely, so he now works part time and just studies at home. he cut contact with his old classmates but he still has 2 best friends from the last few months he spent at school in the grade below, Manon and Min Na. they’re the kind of friends who just show up unannounced at his house and job, and are very involved with his family’s life.

i’ve also included Min Jie in some art, she’s Min Na’s younger cousin and comes into the story later:

i should have like character sheets and stuff for all of these OCs but i’m the kind to just jump head first into drawing/modeling lol, that's why i included all these finished illustrations.

i really wanna publish this comic, i’ve been working on it for a long time and i’m currently waiting for the results of a public funding application here in my country to decide what i'll do next.

hope this could be of interest (^人^) thanks for the ask!

[seldomscilence16]

Can't believe i'm actually apart of a zine! Its been fun working with so many incredible people and seeing their amazing talent! The @sing-it-togetherzine mods have been awesome and I can't wait to see it all come together. Random snippets of my contribution below!

...

Branch had spent 20 years of his life stubbornly alone and dedicated to the hard work it took to keep himself- and the village- as safe as it could be. He rarely had time for breaks, though his routine was something he’s grown accustomed to, a system that worked for him and allowed him to be as prepared as he possibly could be. A system that was currently being uprooted and redone as his life as he knew it changed, as he had to try to adapt to new circumstances and being a part of a society again- Not that he was complaining!

At least, not out loud…

.

Grabbing his basket, forcing his legs to stop shaking, he heads up and out to find… berries? Yeah that sounded right, he would find the heck out of those berries…

.

“Usually we’re keeping others from bugging Branch about a party, a little ironic that we’re going to bug him about preparations for one.” Boom remarks idly, smiling slightly at the thought.

.

The very thought of Branch being in trouble, from predators or otherwise, felt like a stab to the heart.

.

Grandma comes closer and brushes a gentle hand over his forehead, a sad smile on her face-

.

“Not getting rid of us, that's for sure.” Hype agrees, “If Troll eating giants can’t keep us apart, I don’t think a few scars will either, yeah?”

[dcafanzine]

Hi everyone! We’re super excited to start introducing our contributors! Let’s let them introduce themselves!

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Hello, everyone! I’m Agent Darkfest and I am one of the contributors for Bonus Zine as a Page Artist! I am super excited to be a part of this incredible project, it’s my first time so I feel really honored to work with so many amazing people! I first got into FNAF by reading up on the lore. But when Security Breach came out, I became obsessed, especially with the glamrocks and the design of the pizzaplex. But when I came across the DCA, I just couldn’t get them out of my head. I always enjoyed the concept and design of animatronics and automatons, add the jester aesthetic to the mix, and that became a formula for inspiration! In addition, the community itself is so welcoming and creative, that even after a year, I’m still getting inspired! I truly look forward to the completion of the fanzine, especially with the talent and love that is going into making it!

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————————————————————————

Hey, I'm Bean I'm a page artist for the bonus zine. I've previously worked on another DCA zine, I just love these funky robot jesters and all aus and iterations. Fell in love with the DCA because of their silly vibes and jestery demeanor. Plus, everyone's lovely art and ideas really brought them to life. I'm a fan of fnaf and was waiting for security breach to come out. <3

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Hello hello! I am Ohno (like oh no— help! Nooo!) and I am a page artist for the main and bonus zine! I’ve never participated in a zine before but I’m super excited to be apart of this one! The DCA is the perfect encapsulation of everything I love about fiction and fandom so they have been bouncing around in my brain for over 2 years now.

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[riotwritesthings]

Unrequited Dreams

WinterIron, M, 3.5k - Soulmate AU, Angst, hopeful ending

I can finally share my piece from the Reforged WinterIron Zine! I'm so excited, I'd had the idea for this fic for years and it was delightful to finally bring it to life. And now I get to share!

Thank you to all the mods over at @reforgedzine for making this happen!

~~~

The night before his thirteenth birthday Bucky is so excited he can barely fall asleep, because he’s going to have his first dream about his soulmate.

The anticipation has been building for weeks, for years; his family has taken to fondly rolling their eyes because Bucky can't talk about anything else. He can’t wait to find out something, anything about his soulmate, about how they'll meet for the first time. He can't wait to start trying to make sense of the hazy details the dream will leave him with.

In the morning, Bucky wakes up sobbing, because now he knows that his soulmate is gorgeous and graceful. That knowledge is crystal clear even if few other details are.

And now, Bucky knows that he's going to put a gun in his soulmate's face and pull the trigger.

~

Thirteen year old Tony wakes up feeling cold and hollow except for a sharp ache settling deep in his chest.

Apparently, it was stupid to be excited, just like Howard always said. Because now he knows that their first meeting involves his soulmate pushing him away.

Literally.

Tony knows that dreams are funny things. He read all about soulmate dreams and how easy it is to misinterpret them, how they tend to exaggerate, back when he was dumb enough to look forward to them. But he would swear that the shove felt hard enough to knock the air from his lungs, felt strong enough to throw him clear across the room.

The ache in his chest lingers the entire day, and every morning that he wakes up from the same dream, the pain is agonizingly fresh, digging a little deeper.

So Tony grows up and learns how to push people away first. He tells himself that when he meets his soulmate, he’ll be ready.

~

Bucky never tells anyone about the dream, even when his parents give him concerned looks. Eventually people stop asking.

Every time he has the dream, Bucky remembers a little more. His soulmate is dressed in mostly black, moving gracefully and carelessly through a room in chaos. His soulmate has gorgeous eyes and a wicked, beautiful smirk.

Every time, Bucky shoots his soulmate in the face and wakes up nauseous.

At least when he joins the army, no one else talks about their dreams either. Most nights, Bucky is too exhausted to dream at all, and it’s almost a relief when nightmares start to overtake the few times that he does.

~

Most nights, Tony drinks until he falls into a short, restless sleep, just to avoid the one dream he doesn't want to have.

He doesn’t want to see his soulmate’s cold, emotionless eyes. He doesn’t want the all-too-brief feeling of his soulmate's hand beneath his own before he's shoved away.

When Tony does dream, it’s of clenched fists, feeling frustrated, helpless. Feeling like his entire life is falling apart around him, and it’s all so stupid.

So he refuses to figure out any other details because he’s already going to have to live through it at some point. He doesn't want to know if that fleeting contact of hand against hand is a first meeting, doesn’t bother trying to remember anything about the large, bright room the dream takes place in or the people around them. He doesn’t care if it's a charity gala or something else. None of it matters.

Tony wakes up and drinks more.

He builds and smiles for the press. He does his best to not lose the few people he has, and tells himself that he won’t care when his soulmate doesn’t want him.

Sometimes he even believes it.

~

The Winter Soldier doesn’t dream at all.

Not during the short, fitful sleep he gets on missions. Certainly not while he’s frozen.

He forgets.

~

When the moment finally happens in real life, they don’t recognize it.

Bucky isn't in his right mind. He’s barely clinging to awareness past the hold of the conditioning in a room in chaos. He doesn't recognize the graceful motions of the gorgeous man who jumps into the fight, or the moment he points his gun in the man's face.

The bullet doesn't connect, and when Tony doesn't die, the Winter Soldier rips his hand away from Tony’s, shoves him across the room and knocks the air out of his lungs.

Tony isn’t thinking about the brief contact of his hand on Barnes’ over the barrel of a gun, of Barnes’ hand splayed across his chest. He’s thinking about the fact that his life is falling apart, and that he needs to stop a rampaging Winter Soldier. He doesn’t have time to think about the splinter itching at the back of his mind.

They don’t even notice when they stop having the dreams, after that moment.

~

Tony is alone in his workshop, in the too-empty compound, when it hits him that he doesn’t even remember the last time he dreamt of his soulmate.

It’s not just because he barely sleeps, not just because when he does dream it’s of his friends falling from the sky, of cities and worlds crashing to the ground. He’s spent so much time trying to ignore the dream, apparently he’s even been ignoring the fact that it’s gone.

It’s a stupid thing to be upset about.

Tony has always known how they would feel about him, known they wouldn’t want anything to do with him, but he still has to sit on the cold tile floor as his legs give out. He blinks back tears, wondering how far he must have fallen, if he doesn’t even deserve a soulmate who pushes him away anymore, doesn’t deserve anyone.

He wonders if his soulmate dreams about someone else now.

~

Bucky is in Wakanda, trying to find peace, when a doctor asks about the dream.

For a second Bucky doesn’t remember. And then he does. And he can’t breathe.

He doesn’t dream much anymore. When he does, it’s always nightmares. He hasn’t dreamt of his soulmate since before the war.

Before the Soldier.

And Bucky realizes he’s probably already killed his soulmate, and doesn’t even remember it. Everything goes fuzzy.

No one asks about the dreams again. Bucky has so many regrets to move past, he just shoves this one down with all the others. His soulmate is probably long gone. There’s no need to think about it.

So, he tries not to.

~

Having everyone back at the compound is exactly as awkward-as-hell as Tony thought it would be. It only makes him feel a little better that he’s clearly not the only one feeling it.

The reasoning is sound, the threat is coming, but that doesn’t mean Tony has to be happy about it.

But he smiles, shakes hands when he has to, and reminds himself this is for the best. He can bury his hurt feelings for the good of the world. He can be an adult, pretend everything is fine. He shows everyone to the residential wing, despite most of them already knowing their way around, and doesn’t meet anyone’s eyes as he says to make themselves at home.

Slowly, they start putting the team back together. There’s lots of talks about trust and honesty that feel hollow and stilted, but Tony supposes it’s progress.

They still work well together in the field, but that was never the Avengers’ problem.

Around the compound, though, the split remains obvious. Everyone seems torn between walking on eggshells and the urge to act like nothing’s changed even though it has, Tony among them.

The different sides of the war still give each other wide berths in the hallways, and Steve still stands protectively between Tony and his shadow of a best friend when they happen to run into each other in the gym.

Tony spins on his heel with a lazy wave, doesn’t even care if he’s too obvious. For just a moment, Tony’s gaze meets Barnes’ as he turns.

For just that moment, Tony finds himself caught in that deep blue stare before the doors slide closed behind him.

~

Bucky spends a lot of time wandering the compound.

He’s aware everyone thinks it’s a paranoid-perimeter-check thing, which it partially is. But it's also just him enjoying the novelty that he can spend his time wandering aimlessly. He can go where he wants when he wants, never has to sleep unless he chooses to.

He’s still getting used to it; remembering how to enjoy the freedom.

Which is how he runs into Stark in the kitchen at three AM, when he’s trying to outrun his nightmares. Tony is apparently making pancakes.

Bucky freezes in the doorway as they stare at each other. Just when he’s preparing to back away, Stark’s lips curl into a tiny smile. Stark tips his head towards the rest of the kitchen, obviously inviting him to stay instead. Bucky grabs an apple and sits at his usual spot at the far end of the table, trying to look comfortable, and it’s somehow easier than he’s expecting.

It’s only a couple minutes before Stark finishes making and neatly stacking his pancakes on a plate. Then he dumps everything in the dishwasher and shoots Bucky only the briefest look before leaving with his plate of food.

Bucky tells himself to avoid the kitchen around that time. He should give Stark some space, because he’s so clearly uncomfortable with everyone being back.

But two sleepless nights later, Bucky’s feet carry him on a familiar path without thought.

Stark is making waffles this time. He barely even looks up as Bucky takes up the same space at the table. Stark glances at him again as he’s preparing to leave, at the power bar Bucky’s been picking at, then transfers one waffle to a smaller plate. He sets the small plate on the table, just within Bucky’s reach. Then to Bucky’s surprise, Stark sits at the counter instead of leaving.

Bucky pulls the plate closer, and they eat in total silence. They’re not even facing each other and Bucky is actually a little relieved. He doesn’t know what to say to anyone these days, much less Stark.

It’s the first time they’ve done more than pass in the hallways, but it’s not as uncomfortable as it should be. When Tony stands to leave with a wave and a small, warm smile, Bucky finds himself disappointed.

~

As the weeks go by, Tony notices Barnes getting more comfortable around the compound, sometimes with Steve but most often alone.

Not that Tony lets himself wonder why he cares, why he scrolls through security feeds of the hallways like he needs to check on Barnes. It’s just morale has been slowly improving, and that’s the last bridge Tony has to mend. Or, the last bridge to build from scratch over a giant chasm, in this case.

He’s coming back late from a charity event, a little tipsy with plans to head to the lab, but gets sidetracked when he passes through the living room and realizes Barnes is on the couch watching Star Trek. Tony pauses for a second, filled with nostalgia, but he tells himself to leave Barnes to his marathon in peace.

To his surprise, Barnes looks at him with a tiny smile, unsure but devoid of suspicion or impatience. Tony sinks into an armchair, asking himself why. They proceed to watch four and a half episodes in silence.

Tony wakes up to Steve and Sam clomping through after their morning run, slumped down in the chair with a blanket carefully draped over him.

It becomes a habit, and Barnes becomes Bucky, even if they haven’t actually spoken yet.

So maybe Tony has FRIDAY alert him when Bucky is queuing up the next episode so he can head to the living room. After the first time, though, Bucky waits for him to arrive before hitting play and greets him with a smile that gets brighter every time.

Tony doesn’t let himself wonder about the why’s. Like why he spends so much time simply existing in the same room as Bucky, why that doesn’t feel awkward at all. Or why it seems to be the only thing that helps Tony ignore the empty pit in his chest.

One night, Tony realizes he hasn’t seen Bucky in a while. There’s been no marathon nights despite being due to start Next Generation. He tells himself it’s not creepy to flip through security feeds., He’s just curious how Bucky is spending his sleepless nights now.

Tony’s heart leaps into his throat when he finally locates Bucky on the roof of the hanger, standing on the ledge. He’s breathless by the time he makes it to the hangar, heart racing and legs shaking from the sprint. He doesn’t even know what he thinks is happening, except…

Bucky looks at him with wide, exhausted eyes when Tony bursts through the door, and he could swear Bucky’s shoulders drop in relief. Tony doesn’t have time to think. He just starts talking, because Bucky looks so haunted, and Tony knows a thing or two about distractions.

They’re still on the roof when the sun comes up., And Bucky has to stop pointing out all the constellations he can remember while Tony fills him in on the new star science he’s missed.

~

After the roof, something shifts.

Bucky can’t put his finger on exactly what it is, or even when it happens. But that one stilted conversation about the stars becomes less stilted conversations about whatever’s on TV becomes friendly debates about the merits of different toppings as they make pizza at midnight.

Before Bucky knows it, he feels like he’s home.

He finds a groove with his new life and starts branching out, starts connecting with the rest of the team. He’d almost forgotten what it felt like to be a person. To actually interact when he passes people in the hallway and eat with a group.

To be more than a ghost, to be part of something good.

Always though, he gravitates back to Tony. Because Tony actually makes him laugh and it fills a void in his chest Bucky has long gotten used to. Because Tony is always trying to do better and god Bucky wants to learn how.

Because when Tony’s been on an inventing binge, Bucky can trick him into taking a nap by putting on home improvement shows, and it makes Bucky feel like he’s doing something right. The team smirks when they walk in on Tony drooling on his shoulder, but it’s not like that.

He recognizes the look Steve and Natasha start to give him, smug and knowing. And fine, maybe Tony would have been exactly his type, before. But it’s not like that.

Because Bucky is the man who killed his soulmate. He doesn’t let himself think about that kind of thing.

~

When Bucky decides that he wants to officially join the Avengers, Tony leaps at the chance to make him new gear.

He does the same for the entire team, after all, making sure everyone’s safe. It doesn’t make Bucky special. No matter what the wide grins from Rhodey try to imply.

Tony just loves a challenge, loves the excuse to build something new. So maybe he gets more input from Bucky than anyone else, offers to help Bucky test all the gear on top of team training, but it’s not an excuse to spend more time together. He just sees what Bucky is trying to do, and he’s all too familiar with that struggle.

Despite the knowing looks from everyone, it doesn’t mean anything that he lets Bucky into the lab to see the prototypes, even if it is Tony’s only place of solitude in the compound. Even if eventually Bucky just hangs out there with him for hours.

Tony keeps telling himself it means nothing.

Watching Bucky try to teach DUM-E checkers is the final straw, though. Warmth fills Tony’s chest so fast and hard that he can’t breathe around it. And he finally admits that maybe it all means something.

But Tony is the man who doesn’t deserve a soulmate, who never even got to meet them. Who’s not sure he’d want to meet them anymore, as guilty as it makes him feel.

Maybe he can’t lie to himself anymore. Maybe he’s completely in love, but Tony knows better than to say anything.

~

Days spent in the lab with Tony run together in the best possible way. It’s a blur of playing with the bots, watching Tony create the future, and trying to convince him maybe the new reboots of Star Trek do have something to offer.

Bucky knows what a privilege it is to be here, to see Tony at his most relaxed and occasionally unhinged. He tries not to let it go to his head, give him ideas, even though every day he falls more in love. He’s even getting used to the pangs of guilt over the soulmate he should miss.

Until one day they’re watching a movie on the lumpy couch in Tony’s lab. When it’s revealed that Tony called the plot twist from the very beginning, he smirks at Bucky at just the right angle.

Bucky’s heart drops into the floor.

He knows that smirk. He’s seen it a thousand times in a thousand dreams, even if he hasn’t had it in years, he remembers.

And of course it’s Tony, who’s smart and gorgeous, graceful and just the right amount of wicked. Who Bucky already loves so much he can’t breathe sometimes.

Tony, who he still can’t possibly deserve.

So Bucky says nothing, as happy as he thinks he’ll ever be. Tony is here, alive. Bucky’s soulmate is too smart and too tough to die. Bucky gets to watch the way he laughs when their friends do something stupid, to watch Tony’s back in fights while they both try to do better.

He’ll never get to taste the edges of Tony’s smile, but he shoves that aside. Tony is alive. That’s more than enough.

~

Tony’s first thought when he wakes half-buried under rubble is that he’s officially over alien invasions. The second is that the power of the suit fading in and out, causing the concerned shouting over the comms to cut in and out, is really not helping with his throbbing head.

The aliens swarm into what’s left of the nightclub, stealing his attention before Tony can work up the breath to answer, and all the suit’s questionable power has to go to blasting the ones that get too close. The oversized bug-like soldiers just keep coming, and Tony starts to wonder if he’d be better off ditching the deadweight of the armor.

But he’s not sure he can make a run for it. His head is spinning and he’s dimly aware of blood filling the suit, and the aliens are still coming—

There’s a roar of approaching gunfire and then Bucky is bursting into the destroyed building, wielding a large knife and the only gun Tony has built in years.

And the thing is…Tony knows those movements.

He knows that brutal fighting style, the blank rage in those blue eyes. He recognizes the wrath of the Winter Soldier. He’d been dreaming of it most of his life.

Tony can’t believe he never put it together before, because of course it’s Bucky. Resilient and brave and so kind, Bucky who still deserves so much better than Tony. Of course.

Maybe it’s just easier to recognize him with unconsciousness trying to drag Tony under. Maybe Tony’s already dreaming.

He must be, because suddenly Bucky is leaning over him. His eyes are warm, and scared. Tony doesn’t know this part of the dream, doesn’t know what happens next.

Everything is going black. Tony struggles to find his words, to plead. To beg not to be shoved away again.

~

Bucky sits unmoving beside Tony’s hospital bed for three days, even though all he wants to do is run.

He saw the recognition in Tony’s eyes, he knows that Tony knows. He wants to leave before Tony asks him to, because what else could Tony want from a soulmate like him?

But that’s not what Tony had said. Tony asked him to stay while sounding so scared, so resigned. Like he knew Bucky wouldn’t and it was already breaking his heart.

So, Bucky stays.

He’s staring at his fists, trying to stop himself from wondering, when the heart monitor starts beeping triple time, giving away that Tony is awake. Bucky jerks his gaze up to meet Tony’s big brown eyes, watches the flashes of fear and hope that go through them.

Bucky knows he must look terrible, hasn’t slept or shaved in days. He’s barely eaten, and he can feel the lines of worry set into his face. But Tony’s still looking at him with something like awe, just because he’s here.

When Tony smiles nervously the wave of hope that crashes over Bucky nearly overwhelms him, could crush him beneath it.

Bucky smiles back.

[lavenderstobins]

Here’s a masterlist of all the Stranger Things fics I’ve posted! Mostly Robin/Nancy and Steve & Robin 💜

Last updated: 09/11/24 | AO3 | Twitter | ☕️ Ko-Fi

🪻Highlights

➤ love will tear us apart Steve & Robin | T | 12k Robin gets Vecna'd. ➤ leave the speaker on and stay Steve & Robin | T | 8.6k | stobin month 2023 Steve and Robin meet in 1984 instead. ➤ through the years we all will be together (if the fates allow) Steve & Robin | T | 19.6k Steve and Robin work on Christmas. Everyone brings a little bit of Christmas to them.

🌿 Multichapter Fics

➤ you're out of touch, i'm out of time Steve & Robin, Robin/Nancy, Steve/Eddie | T | 12/12 | 75.5k Steve and Nancy travel back in time to 1983 and try to fix things.

➤ in the web that is my own, i begin again (WIP) Steve & Robin | T | 6/11 | 32.5k | Spider-Man AU Steve struggles to balance his superhero identity with his regular life.

➤ one more or one less (WIP) Steve & Robin | T | 1/? | 2.5k After Starcourt, Steve realises that Robin's missing.

➤ holding my last breath (WIP) Nancy/Robin | M | 1/12 | 3.6k | Scream AU There's a killer targeting teenagers in Hawkins. After the killer takes the life of one of Nancy's friends, she'll stop at nothing to get justice.

➤ chasing visions of our futures (WIP) Stevie/Eddie, Stevie & Robin, Robin/Nancy | T | 2/7 | 4k Stevie's dead set on nudging Robin and Nancy together. She's not expecting to realise her feelings for Eddie along the way.

➤ separation brings us awfully close Robin/Chrissy, Robin/Nancy, Chrissy/Nancy, Chrissy & Eddie | T | 3/3 | 9.8k Chrissy learns the hard way that Spider-Woman can’t save everyone.

➤ you’re someone (who knows someone i once knew) (WIP) T | 1/3 | 4.4k Steve Harrington dies. Decades later, Dustin Henderson resurrects him. This is not that story. That story’s already been told. No, this is about what comes after.

🍊 Oneshots

➤ you got light in your eyes Steve & Robin | T | 7.2k | Sequel to Out of Touch Steve can't stop thinking about what Mr. Hauser had told him about Robin.

➤ the pleasure, the privilege is mine Steve & Robin | T | 7.6k Robin won’t let Steve go alone. Not even at the end of the world.

➤ share the same space for a minute or two Robin/Nancy | G | 2.4k Nancy isn’t yet sure what to do with herself now that the world isn’t ending. Robin helps.

➤ the future's unwritten, the past is a corridor Nancy & Eddie, Steve & Robin, Robin/Nancy, Steve/Eddie | T | 26.3k Robin and Nancy have just moved into their new house with their son, next door to Steve, Eddie and their daughter.

➤ guess i'm a coward (i just want to feel alright) Steve/Eddie, Eddie & everyone | T | 7.2k When the bats attack, Eddie sticks to the plan, and he runs, and he lives. He thinks, maybe, that he’ll hate himself forever for it.

➤ cracks in your ceiling Robin/Nancy | T | 9.9k Nancy has a movie night with friends, invents a new disease, and quite possibly has her life ruined by Sigourney Weaver.

➤ in war, in peace, in death Steve/Eddie, Steve & Robin, Robin/Nancy | T | 7.8k Steve realises Robin's alive, trapped in the Fade. (A Dragon Age AU)

➤ now i've found a real love  Robin/Nancy, Nancy & Mike | T | 8.7k Nancy Wheeler deserves a good Christmas. In fact, they all do.

➤ used to be you but now it's you and me Steve & Robin | T | 2.4k | twin stars stobin zine contribution It's only natural to cry on your birthday.

➤ 'cause i'm gonna be free and i'm gonna be fine Steve & Robin | T | 7.5k Two decades after the Upside Down closes for good, Steve's daughter goes viral on TikTok, and things quickly escalate from there.

➤ this dream isn't feeling sweet Lucas & Robin, Robin/Vickie | T | 13.1k Lucas finds himself struggling at the post-championship game party.

➤ there’s joy not far from here (i know there is) Steve & Robin, Steve & Robin & the Party | T | 3.7k Steve, Robin and the party have an important discussion about homophobia.

➤ HOW TO SURVIVE THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE: A GUIDE BY DUSTIN HENDERSON Dustin & everyone | G | 2.5k Dustin's guide to the apocalypse.

➤ this is how we'll dance Steve & Robin & Eddie, minor Robin/Carol, Steve & Dustin | T | 1.8k Prom night 1985 from Robin, Eddie and Steve's perspectives.

➤ hold onto hope if you got it Wayne & Eddie, Wayne & Everyone | G | 2k When the trailer park is destroyed, Wayne loses his mug collection of twenty years. Eddie decides this is unacceptable and must be rectified.

➤ you will surely be the death of me  Steve & Robin, Steve & Robin & the Party | G | 4.4k When Eddie plans to go out of town, Robin and Steve finally agree to play a D&D campaign, on the following conditions: 1) it’s one session, and 2) Robin’s the DM.

➤ life among the dead  Nancy & Robin & Steve, Robin/Nancy | T | 1.3k A Pushing Daisies AU in which Nancy can resurrect the dead.

➤ tonight i'll dream while i’m in bed Robin & Steve, minor Robin/Nancy | G | 4.1k Steve and Robin met, once, long before Scoops Ahoy and Starcourt Mall.

➤ sing me to sleep Robin & Steve & Nancy | T | 1.5k Nancy goes searching for Robin in the Upside Down after Steve dies.

➤ caught up in the motion Robin/Nancy, Robin & Steve, Robin & the Party | T | 3.2k Robin accidentally wears Nancy's Emerson t-shirt to work. Problem is, nobody apart from Steve knows that they're dating.

➤ kiss and (don't) tell Steve/Eddie, Eddie & the Party | T | 1.8k Eddie has a hickey. The party try to figure out who gave it to him.

🩵 Josieverse

➤ bright as the morning sun Steve & Robin & Josie | G | 1.4k | stobin month 2024 A slice-of-life oneshot revolving around Robin, Steve and Josie.

➤ here's to my future (here's to my yesterday) Steve & Robin & Eddie | T | 3.3k Robin’s three months pregnant and still only two people know. They’ve been invited to Dustin’s Halloween party, though. She can keep it a secret. Probably.

➤ all for freedom and for pleasure Steve & Josie & Eddie | G | 0.8k Eddie discovers that Robin’s daughter has learnt how to blackmail people.

➤ what you fear the most Steve & Robin & Josie | G | 1k Steve comes home to find Robin and her daughter Josie seemingly trapped.

➤ somebody that you used to know Robin/Valerie, Steve & Robin | M | 1.9k Before Josie was born—before everything changed—Robin had had something with Valerie. Nothing serious, nothing labelled, but it mattered all the same.

➤ when you touch the stars, hold my hand Steve & Robin & Josie | T | 3.3k Josie is confused about why she doesn’t have a dad.

🌹 Smut fics

➤ if this feeling flows both ways Robin/Nancy | E | 9.1k Nancy accidentally receives a sext from Robin and can’t stop thinking about it.

➤ i’d suffer hell if you’d tell me Robin/Nancy | E | 8.8k It’s been a while since Nancy’s had time alone with Robin. She intends to make the most of it.

🌸 Rarepairs

➤ every time it rains Steve/Kali | G | 1.6k Kali wouldn't class herself as someone fond of walks, but she is fond of Steve.

➤ neck full of mockingbirds (WIP) Robin/Carol | E | 9/? | 7.5k Carol and Robin, from start to end.

➤ i wanna be adored Nancy/Eden | G | 1.9k Nancy's lonely. Eden's there.