#Surro Writes

[promptsforyourwhumpfic]

WT 2024 #20: "Giving Permission to Die"

The Sentry and the Strays - My science fiction universe set in the distant future.

Summary: After a harrowing rescue, Ted gives Charlie permission to die.

WC: 1322

“I’ll watch him.” 

The three words took Kydd by surprise. He craned his aching neck to take in the surprise visitor. Of all people, he was not expecting his chief engineer to be watching from the door. 

“Ted.” He rasped, a little surprised at the intrusion at such a late hour. His hand hadn’t left Charlie's hand. 

“I’ll watch him.” Ted said again, a complicated expression on his face. Kydd’s heart began to pound a little. He knew Charlie was going to be fine - he knew he wasn’t doing any good just sitting by and waiting. But there was something about this kid that got under his skin and etched through his veins. 

Suddenly, Ted was at his side, shifting from foot to foot as though fighting his instincts to walk away as he had done so many times before. Just the fact he was in the room told Kydd he was serious. 

Finally, the man met his eyes. 

“You’re exhausted. I can watch him, at least for a little while so you can eat, shower and get some sleep in an actual bed.” Said Ted, only to be met by a scoff. 

“What makes you think I haven’t been.” Uttered Kydd. 

“Because you’ve been here for days.” 

“You’re not the first person to be telling me that.” 

“Then let me be the first to tell you that you’re not doing anyone any favours by just sitting here. Charlie’s not going anywhere and I know you want to promise him that you’ll stay, but sleep while you can, he’ll need you to be strong for him when he wakes up. I know for a fact that he wouldn’t notice you missing for a few hours.”

Kydd’s eyes filled with tears, and Ted’s face contorted in discomfort and concern. 

“Like how we didn’t notice that he’d gone.” The Captain rasped. Ted’s heart shattered. 

“No. We didn’t.” He amended after a moment. “But running yourself into the ground isn’t going to solve that.”

“You’re- you’re right, I should rest.” Kydd sniffed and stood, still reluctant to let go of Charlie’s hand. Ted slipped his hand between them, allowing Kydd to finally let go. He stood idle for a moment, feeling troubled by being untethered from the boy. He swallowed, thanked Ted with a clap on the shoulder, and shuffled off on creaking knees, allowing his body to adjust to the motions of walking. 

Without thinking Ted took his place in the chair; still warm from days of having someone occupy it. He spent the next few hours just watching, and waiting. It was intoxicating. The anticipation that something could happen at any moment had him glued to the spot, and within minutes he was hooked; he understood why others had spent hours alone with him. It was as soothing as it was disconcerting; to be alone, though not truly. 

Ted took in every detail he had tried to forget since they pulled him from the rubble. The metal brace on his leg created a considerable landscape from under blankets desperate to keep his temperature at a normal level, despite the low level fever that had been present in the last forty-eight hours. 

Due to the harsh nature of some of the restorative medicine they had to hand, Charlie's body was still covered in deep scrapes, bruises and burns that had been left to heal in the open air. His head was their biggest concern. He’d taken a tremendous blow when the station disintegrated around him, and the rooms bled O2 faster than he could breathe, so it was a matter of time before they found out the true extent of the damage. 

Would he remember them? Did Ted want him to remember? The harsh words, the rejection and the expectation for him to just make it on his own? Would he want Charlie to remember the pain? Given the sheer damage caused to his already malnourished body - only malnourished after so many months away from the Strays - would it be kinder to let him go? HIs ribs had already been broken by a previous round of CPR just trying to get him back to the safety of the Arc; another round would surely kill him… 

“Charlie, Kydd would never say this - he’d never want to… but I’ll understand if you don’t want to wake back up. You’ve done enough. You don’t have to give us the satisfaction of being able to apologise to you… you don’t have anything to prove. You showed us your loyalty time and time again. And we owe you everything but I’d understand if you never wanted to take it. I wouldn’t blame you if you use us to fully heal, steal a ship and never look back. I don’t blame you if you want to turn any of us in. I don't blame you if the first thing you do is shout and scream and curse us out. I deserve it atleast. Looking back, I had every opportunity to find out what you meant. I had every means to understand your circumstances but I simply refused because I was angry and- and petty. I mean this with my whole heart Charlie that I never hated you. I hated your circumstances. I hated where you came from so much that I didn’t even get to see the man you had become. I was so afraid of losing everything I knew, that I nearly lost something equally as important. My family - you.” 

Ted didn’t realise he was crying until a terrible sob tore from his throat. 

“S-so I don’t blame you if you decide that sleeping is kinder than the outside world. I do not blame you if you decide to rejoin the stars. One day I’ll join you, if you let me that is… but then I don’t blame you if even in death you prefer to remain alone…

Just remember you don't have to be - not anymore.”

Ted took his free hand to wipe the tears, steading his breaths to at least remain somewhat composed should someone walk in. In that moment, he felt exposed and vulnerable - an uncomfortable feeling nonetheless, only made worse by Charlie’s stillness broken by the occasional rise and fall of his chest from the oxygen mask. Aia said that a positive was that he was now breathing on his own - a huge step up from how they found his lifeless body - yet he was terrified that he’d just stop. Despite every permission he’d just given Charlie, his biggest fear was that the younger man would actually take him up on them. But when was Charlie one to follow the rules? Ever since they met, if he didn’t like or agree with something, he made sure to change it to suit the logic in his mind. He couldn’t complain as the job got done, and over time Ted grew to appreciate the gymnastics that Charlie’s mind went through to get to his conclusions. 

The second Ted stopped trying to correct him, and rather work with him, the easier their relationship became. 

“I see what Kydd means by you getting under our skin.” Ted huffed, somewhat annoyed, though if anyone was there to hear him they’d know he was being far from malicious. The tears began to flow, this time in earnest as Ted’s chest heaved. 

“You are worth so much more than you will ever know, to all of us, Charlie. I know why you did what you did but… It shouldn’t have been you. You didn’t have to fix something you didn’t break. You didn’t have to go to those lengths…”

“But he did.” 

Ted’s tear-filled eyes snapped to the end of the bed, where Yve stood, smiling sadly at the pair. Startled, the engineer immediately stood; chair launching behind him as he tried to smooth his clothes despite the teardrops on his tunic. He cleared his throat.

“He did.” Nodded Ted. “Stubborn bastard.”

[swtorpadawan]

SWTORpadawan Headcanon: The Unforgiven

There are several passing references in the game to what happened on Tython during the five-year gap in Knights of the Fallen Empire. Right out of the gate, Lana specifically informs the Outlander that the Jedi Order took devastating casualties during the war and doesn’t know anything about any surviving leadership. The romanced Nadia Grell letter specifically mentions the attack on Tython, while Kira concludes her own letter by informing us that the Jedi Order was “dying”.

Much later, of course, we meet the Jedi who evacuated to Ossus in Jedi Under Siege, who are completely unaware of everything that’s happened around the galaxy in the past five or six years.       

The conclusion we come to is that the Zakuulans attacked Tython, and some of the Jedi escaped to Ossus. (Even bringing some of the Kalikori villagers along with them.)

In my Halcyon Legacy Storyline, I’ve featured this largely unchronicled event in a couple of short stories: This Moment and How We Came to This Point. We have almost no “canon” details about it, although from what we see later on Ossus, it is clear that some or all of the Kalikori villagers went with the evacuees. (In my story, this was a minority of the Twi’leks who chose to join the exile, and Kalikori Village still stands on Tython.)

But let me expand on all that: One head-canon I have is that when the Jedi were preparing for the attack and their evacuation, they realized that they would need several defense teams to slow the Zakuulans down. A sort of “rear guard” if you will. Given their experiences with the Eternal Empire up to that point, they knew that losses to these special groups would be extremely heavy, assuming any of those Jedi made it off Tython at all.

One of these combat teams of volunteers (one that formed organically rather than by design) was made up entirely of Force-users who had experienced the touch of darkness in their respective pasts. Each of them carried a degree of responsibility and guilt for the circumstances of their lives. That didn’t mean they didn’t believe in the Jedi Order and their precepts; on the contrary, most of them were quite grateful to the order for their help. But individually, each of them came to the conclusion that if the Order was to begin anew, they would need to save as many Jedi of all ranks as they could, even at the cost of their own lives.

At the suggestion of one of their members, the group would call themselves ‘the Unforgiven’.

When the remaining members of the Jedi Council – Archivist Gnost-Dural and Barsen’thor Ulannium Kaarz – protested that it went against every principle the Jedi held dear to place individuals at risk of being sacrificed on the basis of their past experiences. The nominal leader of the Unforgiven – one Bengel Morr –countered that they weren’t seeking forgiveness from the Council or the Order; they were thankful they had already been given that. Rather, they were seeking to forgive themselves.

The Council still objected to the name but under the circumstances, they could not deny the group’s right to fight for the Order.  

As the might of the Eternal Empire descended upon Tython, the Unforgiven held the line. Every time it appeared the Knights of Zakuul and their legions of Skytroopers would break through and turn the retreat into a massacre, the Unforgiven were there, forcing the Eternal Empire to pay for every inch and making sure that as many Jedi as possible were saved.

In the aftermath of the exodus, in recognition of their sacrifice, Gnost-Dural vowed that the courage of the Unforgiven would forever be remembered in the Jedi Archives.

Without further ado, I present the Unforgiven.

Master Surro and the two survivors of the Seventh Line. We first encounter Master Surro and the Seventh Line on Ziost. [There’s a whole bunch about the Seventh Line that I find controversial, including whether or not Satele Shan and the Council even knew about them and what they were doing on Ziost. Instead, we only hear about them from Theron or Lana, even if we are playing a Jedi Master sitting on the Council.] Nevertheless, Vitiate’s possession of Surro and the others was one of the best subplots of the Rise of the Emperor story. Naturally, during my playthrough with Corellan Halcyon, he spared Surro (despite Lana’s protests) and the two other unnamed Seventh Line members, as well. (They couldn’t have given them names???) In the months that followed, Surro and the others were treated with kindness by the Jedi, but when the Eternal Empire appeared poised to strike at Tython, remembering the harm they had done on Ziost under Vitiate’s influence, they were among the first to volunteer for the defense teams.

Among the Unforgiven, they would be among the first to die during the retreat, covering the final withdrawal from the Temple.

[Tagging @swtorramblings and @starknstarwars ]

Fortris Gall.  Seventeen years before the fall of Tython, Fortris Gall had been an impressive young Jedi Knight during the closing days of the First Great Galactic War. A hero during the first battle of Balmorra, Gall bitterly opposed the conditions of the Treaty of Coruscant. Joining a conspiracy led by Master Dar’nala, Gall took part in the bombing of the Galactic Senate on Coruscant in an effort to vacate the Treaty by blaming the Sith for the act of terrorism. After a fateful encounter on Dantooine with Satele Shan, Darth Baras and Darth Angral, Gall realized the extent of his error, abandoning Dar’nala to her fate.  

Gall understood that if he returned to the Jedi and the Republic, he would be held responsible for his crimes. Unable to face his former Master – the legendary Orgus Din, who sat on the Jedi Council, Gall withdrew into the Outer Rim. There, far from the frontline galactic conflicts, he rediscovered what it meant to be a Jedi in his own way, helping isolated colonies to resist attacks by pirates and slavers.

He eventually found a measure of peace.

When the Eternal Empire began its campaign against the known galaxy, Gall initially declined to get involved. He was well aware of his own legacy and was worried that he would repeat his mistakes.

But when he heard that Orgus Din had been slain years before while fighting Darth Angral at the start of the Second Galactic War, Gall realized he had to make peace with his time as part of the Jedi Order. He arrived on Tython mere days before the attack, and – after meeting with Bengel Morr, another former apprentice of Din’s – immediately joined the Unforgiven. During the fighting, he bravely felled three Zakuulan Walkers single-handedly with his twin lightsabers before finally being cut down by an Exarch.

Fashk. Growing up, the Flesh Raider known as Fashk always knew he was different from most of his people. He saw things that they didn’t. Felt things that they didn’t. Eventually, during the Flesh Raider uprising of 10 ATC, he realized he shared the gifts of the hated Jedaii. Desperate to earn his place with the Order and learning that they had recently begun supporting the Kalikori villagers, Fashk abducted a young Twi’lek named Viyo Kobbeth. This led him to the attention of a talented Padawan on Tython in Corellan Halcyon, who sought to rescue the pilgrim. Despite the severe nature of the situation, Corellan agreed to support Fashk’s introduction into the Order. At last, he would become a mighty hunter.

The next few years were difficult for Fashk. Although he was talented in the Force, denying his own aggression went against every instinct that had been ingrained in him as a Flesh Raider, both genetic and cultural. Nevertheless, he managed not to attack any of his fellow trainees, so he maintained his place with the Jedi, tentative though it was.

Finally given the chance to see combat on the world of his birth, Fashk was quick to volunteer for the toughest combat assignment available to cover the evacuation, and that meant the Unforgiven.

During the attack, the Flesh Raider lashed out with the Force with a ferocity that startled the Zakuulans, briefly driving them back and buying the Jedi precious moments.

Fashk was never happier than in the last moment of his life.

Loyat. Loyat was a life-long Sith, trained on Korriban and apprenticed to Darth Arho, a Dark Councilor and Loyat’s eventual lover. Later as a Sith Lord, Loyat fought under Arho’s command during the Battle of Ilum. Abandoned by her master during a Republic counterattack, Loyat was defeated and captured by Corellan Halcyon and Kira Carsen. Realizing that everything Arho had taught her had ultimately been a lie, she abandoned the teachings of the Sith. After a relatively short time in a Republic prison, Loyat – at Corellan’s recommendation – was sent to Tython to begin her recovery and possible training as a Jedi, should she accept it.

Although grateful for the chance to work through her trauma, Loyat struggled to fully embrace the Jedi path. Her emotions were too close to the surface for her to make that commitment. When the Eternal Empire was poised to attack Tython, the Jedi were prepared to designate Loyat as a dependent and prioritize her evacuation. Partially out of gratitude and partially out of pride, Loyat insisted on joining the defensive combat teams. Knowing her history with Corellan on Ilum, Bengel Morr recommended her for the Unforgiven.

Loyat fought bravely against the Zakuulans, destroying dozens of Skytroopers until she was eventually knocked unconscious in an artillery explosion from an Eternal Empire walker as the Unforgiven fell back.

Loyat was officially listed as “Missing – Presumed Killed” in the Jedi Order’s after-action report. After all, it seems implausible to believe she could have survived…  

[Author’s Note: Tagging Loyat’s #1 fan girl, @raven-of-domain-kwaad as well as @alexsrandomramblings ]

Sajar. Once a member of the Dark Council years ago before his defeat at Tol Braga’s hands, the path to redemption has been a long one for Sajar who faced numerous setbacks over the years. His lapse on Quesh while commanding Republic troops led to him executing several prisoners of war and led to a fateful encounter between the Hero of Tython, Corellan Halcyon, and the Emperor’s Wrath, Lord Scourge.

Sajar spent years recovering from his ordeal on Quesh determined not to falter again. When he heard that Tol Braga, who had been his master, had succumbed to the Emperor’s mind control techniques, it led to another crisis of faith, this time leaving him catatonic for a time. While in this state, Sajar experienced several Force-visions involving Corellan Halcyon.

Although he again recovered, word that Halcyon had been killed aboard Darth Marr’s flagship darkened his mood. When it was clear the Zakuulan’s attack on Tython was imminent, he was among the first to volunteer for the combat teams.

During the fighting, the Unforgiven were briefly at risk of being encircled, which would have allowed the Eternal Empire to bypass their defense and strike at the Jedi ships as they lifted off planet. Recognizing that the Order’s survival meant far more to him than the inner peace of a single faltering Jedi, Sajar reached out to the Dark Side and embraced the power that had once been his as one of the most powerful Sith in the galaxy. The Zakuulans, unprepared to face the tactical challenge of a potent Sith amongst the Jedi, were briefly stunned. As he unleashed a fearsome storm of lightning against the Knights of Zakuul, the last three survivors of his team were able to pull back and continue the fight, allowing the last of the evacuation ships to escape.

In the final seconds of his life, Sajar received the gift of one final vision from the Force. With tears trailing down his cheeks, he let out a cry of laughter as he saw that Corellan Halcyon had not only survived but that he would one day meet with the survivors of Tython, many of whom would owe their lives to Sajar.

Sajar did not die as a Jedi, but his sacrifice allowed many other Jedi to live.    

[Author’s Note: Special thanks to @taraum for the bit about Sajar having visions concerning Corellan’s future, as that concept was shamelessly pilfered from her amazing Motivations story that you should definitely go read. Also tagging @shabre-legacy ]

Ako Domi. A hero during the First Great Galactic War, Domi was captured by the Sith Empire during the Battle of Sullust, a conflict that earned him a legendary status in the Republic. Imprisoned at Shadow Town on Nar Shaddaa, Domi was subjected to horrific torments, and watching his fellow prisoners turn on each other eventually broke him. Now a Sith, Domi and his apprentices would eventually encounter Corellan Halcyon and Kira Carsen years later during the Power Guard Crisis. The two Jedi defeated the Sith, but Corellan refused to strike the killing blow on the former Jedi, instead insisting instead that Domi be sent to Tython in an attempt to recover his humanity. (Satele Shan later would commend Corellan for his decision, though predictably Jaric Kaedan would not.)

Domi’s return to the Jedi path was a slow and arduous one. Part of him embraced the familiarity of the Order and its teachings. But with the guilt with everything he had done, of the lives he had destroyed in Shadow Town, it took him years before he could trust himself to hold a lightsaber again.

But recover he did. Just in time to meet the Zakuulan invasion.

It was Ako Domi who dubbed the defense team ‘the Unforgiven’. None of the other members objected.

As the battle of Tython waged on, no one fought with greater zeal and determination than Domi. For a few hours, he was once again the Hero of Sullust, fighting in a hopeless battle.

He was one of just three Jedi left still fighting at the end.

Domi gave his life to allow Bengel Morr and Nalen Raloch a few fleeting moments to fall back to their last defensive trench, where they reported their status to the evacuation fleet in the final transmission from Tython.

Bengel Morr. Another former padawan of Jedi Master Orgus Din, Bengel Morr was traumatized by the destruction of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant during the Sack at the end of the last war. Withdrawing from the Order and the Force, Morr spent years navigating the galaxy’s criminal underworld, learning the ways of power. A decade of preparation later, he reemerged on Tython with an apprentice, determined to destroy the Jedi Order by controlling the Flesh Raiders.

Morr’s defeat at Corellan Halcyon’s hands at the end of the uprising was a revelation to him. In that moment at the Forge, he saw the true future of the Jedi, and he finally understood his own role to play in that destiny.

In the weeks that followed under the care of the Masters of Tython, Morr slowly started to recover. With his pain eased, he started to remember his old self. Bengel realized what he had done, and was left guilt-ridden, even more so when he learned of the death of Orgus Din at the hands of Darth Angral. But the consoling messages he received from Corellan helped ease his suffering, and by the Battle of Corellia, the short-handed Jedi were willing to send the recovered Nautolan into battle.

Morr distinguished himself during the fighting against the Sith, though witnessing the horrors of war first-hand once again raised the specters of Coruscant in the dark corners of his mind. Sensing his unease, the Masters allowed him to return to Tython as part of a training cadre; one that included Nalen Raloch, formerly of Kalikori Village. The very people who Morr had tormented during the Flesh Raider uprising he led.

Facing Nalen Raloch and his resentment on a daily basis proved to be one of the greatest challenges of Bengel’s life. The Twi’lek harbored considerable hatred towards the Nautolan for everything the pilgrims of his village had endured.

It took years for Bengel to earn Nalen’s trust and respect. But in the process, Bengel made peace with some of his own demons. The two became close friends.

The training cadre missed the fighting on Tython during the Sith Empire’s assault on the Temple before the Revanite Crisis as they were hundreds of kilometers away on a survey mission scouting the Flesh Raiders. A year later when it became clear that the Zakuulans intended to attack Tython, Bengel – who had endured two sackings of Jedi Temples – vowed he would not allow a third.

The Unforgiven were born, with Bengel as their nominal leader. And on Tython, Bengel Morr finally met his destiny, making peace with his past.

Nalen Raloch. Nalen Raloch had always been a protector. When the Kalikori pilgrims were driven from Ryloth, he protected them from their orthodox Twi’lek persecutors as a young warrior. After they settled on Tython, he emerged as his village’s champion, holding off the predators in the Flesh Raiders and other indigenous species.

But serving as a protector is a double-edged sword for every being; when he found the holocron of Rajivari, Raloch was seduced by the promise of power he needed to defend his people, and in the promise of striking back at the Jedi who had ignored his peoples’ suffering for all their posturing assertion of moral superiority.

It was only after his confrontation with a talented young Mirialan padawan named Ulannium Kaarz that Nalen realized that everything he was trying to do to protect his people would have led to their destruction had he not been stopped.

Nalen, under the care of the Jedi, slowly began to rebuild his life and his sense of identity.

He came to see the value in defending not just his own people, but all people. He came to understand that he could be a protector without letting that consume him.

When he was confronted with training beside the man who had led the Flesh Raider uprising, he was beyond disgusted. He nearly quit the Jedi on the spot.

But as time went on, he began to see Bengel’s compassion. His dedication. His commitment not only to the Jedi but to his own redemption for his actions.

Nalen would learn more from Bengel than he’d learned from anyone.

When Bengel volunteered to lead one of the defense teams, Nalen didn’t hesitate to join him, despite knowing the likely outcome.

During the Battle of Tython, Nalen fought hard, but he found himself increasingly distracted. As the Eternal Empire fell upon the Jedi home world, he was terrified that the Zakuulans would turn their eyes towards Kalikori Village, knowing that his people would have been wiped out had they sent even a handful of Skytroopers in that direction.

Had Bengel not been by his side, he would have abandoned the Jedi and returned to his old home in a desperate attempt to save his fellow Twi’leks.

As it stood, Nalen and Bengel were the last two living document Jedi on Tython. In the final message from the retreating Order, Ulannium, now a master on the Jedi council, exchanged kind words. The Barsen’thor further revealed that the Zakuulans had bypassed Kalikori Village, much to Nalen’s relief.

Nalen and Bengel were alone.

Before the end, the two exchanged a fleeting moment. They acknowledged the possibility of what might have been between them in another life.

Nalen had found what he had sought for so long; the strength he’d needed to defend his people.

@grandninjamasterren @swtorhub

Thanks for reading.

[whumptober]

WHUMPTOBER 2024: PROMPTS LIST

Welcome to Whumptober 2024 — Seventh Time's a Charm!

Please make sure to read the Event Info and FAQ below carefully, as most of your questions will be answered there already. For everything else, you are welcome to come to our ask box or ask questions in our Discord server here.

This year’s AO3 Collection can be found here.

This year's playlist can be found here.

The 'Anatomy of a Whumptober Prompt' post can be found here.

And our 'Resources for Writing Sensitive Topics' post is here.

We’re very excited to see the community come together for another year of Whumptober! Go wild with the prompts, and support your fellow creators - we wish you all the fun!

Best of luck and happy whumping,

Mods Vanne, Yenn, Kitty and Surro

(Text versions of the prompts, as well as event information, rules and FAQ are posted below the cut!)

Whumptober 2024 Prompt List

No. 1: RACE AGAINST THE CLOCK

Search Party | Panic Attack | "If only we could hold on.” (Icysami x Renegaderr, Strangers.)

No. 2: TRUST ISSUES

Amusement Park | Role Reversal | “You got away with the crime while the knife's in my back.” (Charlotte Sands, Rollercoaster)

No. 3: SET UP FOR FAILURE

Fingerprints | Wrongfully Arrested | "I warned you."

No. 4: HALLUCINATIONS

Hypnosis | Sensory Deprivation | “You're still alive in my head.” (Billy Lockett, More)

No. 5: SUNBURN

Healing Salve | Heatstroke | "If my pain will stretch that far." (Lottery Winners, Burning House)

No. 6: NOT REALISING THEY'RE INJURED

Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms | Healed Wrong | "It's not my blood."

No. 7: ONLY FOR EMERGENCIES

Unconventional Weapon | Magic with a Cost | "It's us or them."

No. 8: SLEEP DEPRIVATION

Isolation Chamber | Forced to Stay Awake | "Leave the lights on." (Coldplay, Midnight)

No. 9: OBSESSION

Broken Window | Bruises | “Frame me up on the wall, just to keep me out of trouble.” (Fall Out Boy, Irresistible)

No. 10: BLOW TO THE HEAD

Slurred Words | Passing Out from Pain | "I can't think straight."

No. 11: SEEING DOUBLE

Convenience Store | Loneliness | “Leave no trace behind, like you don't even exist.” (Taylor Swift, Illicit Affairs)

No. 12: STARVATION

Underground Caverns | Cannibalism | "Just a little more."

No. 13: TEAM AS A FAMILY

Familial Curse | Multiple Whumpees | "Death will do us part." (Set It Off, Partner's In Crime)

No. 14: LEFT FOR DEAD

Hunting Gear | Blackmail | “Because I want you to know what it feels like to be haunted” (tiLLie, kooL aiD mAn)

No. 15: CHILDHOOD TRAUMA

Painful Hug | Moment of Clarity | "I did good, right?"

No. 16: NECROSIS

Swamp | Wound Cleaning | "No, I can't feel anything."

No. 17: NOWHERE ELSE TO GO

Ruined Map | Shipwrecked | "We had a good run."

No. 18: REVENGE

Unreliable Narrator | Loss of Identity | “I see what's mine and take it.” (Panic! at the Disco, Emperor's New Clothes)

No. 19: BLOOD TRAIL

Abandoned Cabin | One Way Out | "Is there anybody alive out there?" (Bruce Springsteen, Radio Nowhere)

No. 20: EMOTIONAL ANGST

Shoulder to Cry On | Giving Permission to Die | "It's not your fault."

No. 21: BODY HORROR

Body Horror | Tattoo Gun | Spirit Possession | “Let the bedsheet soak up the tears.” (Apparat feat. Soap & Skin, Goodbye)

No. 22: BLEEDING THROUGH BANDAGES

Tourniquet | Reopening Wounds | "Oh that's not good."

No. 23: FORCED CHOICE

Public Display | Broken Pedestal | "I'm doing this for you."

No. 24: RADIATION POISONING

Collapsed Building | Equipment Failure | “I never knew daylight could be so violent.” (Florence + The Machine, No Light, No Light)

No. 25: SURGERY

Stitches | Being Monitored | "It's for your own good."

No. 26: NIGHTMARES

Breakfast Table | Parting Words of Regret | “I'm haunted by the lies that I have loved, the actions I have hated.” (Poe, Haunted)

No. 27: VOICELESS

Laboratory | Muzzled | “I have no mouth and I must scream.”

No. 28: DENIAL

CCTV | Exposure | "They caught me red handed."

No. 29: FATIGUE

Labyrinth | Burnout | "Who said you could rest?"

No. 30: RECOVERY

Hospital Bed | Holding Back Tears | "What have I done?"

No. 31: ASKING FOR HELP

Therapy | Making Amends | "I'm alive, I'm just not well." (Elliot Lee, Alive, Not Well.)

Alternatives List:

Body Swap

Communication Barrier

Finding Old Messages

Forgotten

Friendly Fire

Motion Sickness

No-Holds-Barred Beatdown

Regret

Secrets Revealed

Shivering

Survivor's Guilt

Time Loop

Used As Bait

Venom

Vermin

Event Info & Rules

WHUMPTOBER is a month-long, prompt-based creation challenge (think: Inktober, but whumpier). There are 31 official themes this year - one for each day of the month - which can be used, skipped, or combined in any way you’d like. They are meant to serve as inspiration without being taken literally (e.g. you don’t have to include the exact wording of prompts into your work). Feel free to run rampant on interpretation. For example, if the prompt is “flame", you could create something with reference to a candle/campfire, your character could have suffered a burn, or the flame could be a reference to an ‘old flame’ - an old relationship. It’s truly down to you!

In total, there are 4 prompts for each day. These are optional suggestions and can be used in conjunction with the theme, or as options/alternatives.  We want to give everyone as much creative freedom as possible, as well as increase event accessibility for folks with triggers and squicks. There is also a list of 15 alternative prompts that can be subbed in for any day, again to give participants as much creative freedom as possible.

Creators can PRODUCE work in any media they choose, including but not limited to: writing, visual artwork, photo/video/audio edits, paper crafts and elaborate recommendation lists (not just a list of links). Creators can PARTICIPATE as much or as little as they want (i.e. you don’t have to do ALL the prompts if you don’t want to) and prompts can be used in any order. They are also free to use even after the event ends.

When uploading Whumptober content to your blog, be sure to tag it with:

#whumptober2024 …..(the event tag)

#no.1, #no.2, #no.3, …..(theme number)

#bruises, #stabbing, …..(the theme or specific prompt you chose)

#altprompt …..(if you use an altprompt, tag the post with the number of the prompt you replace)

#fandom or #OC, …..(ironman, original content, oc, etc.)

#medium …..(gifs, fic, podcast, art, etc.)

#teeth, #etc …..(trigger warnings & any additional tags. Keep in mind not to add “tw” in front but only use the word/trigger itself)

#nsfwhump …..(only for nsfw content)

#your own tags go here

PLEASE BE DILIGENT WITH YOUR TAGGING. Only properly tagged posts are considered for archiving on the official @whumptober-archive blog. They must be tagged in the order above. An elaborate post about our tagging system can be found [here]

Unfortunately, due to the sheer number of participants in recent years, we cannot guarantee your work will be archived. A random selection of properly tagged posts from all genres will be reblogged each day.

Whumpers who produce content for 31 total theme days are considered event completionists and will be tagged in a masterpost at the end of the month. A form will be published at the beginning of November asking you to tell us if you completed. This is based on trust and we will not check this.

Frequently Asked Questions

Please read this before you send an ask!

TIMELINE

July: Trope voting form released. Late August: Prompt list is released for at least four weeks of preparation time. Tropes cannot be posted earlier than August 25th because of Moderator obligations in real life. (But, you know, go ahead and start writing/drawing, and add the themes in later, if you want!) September: Do as much or as little on your works as you want. You can prepare everything in advance or let September go by with vibes and start working in October. It’s up to you. October 1st: Challenge begins! A storm of whump breaks upon us all! During this time, some posts will be reblogged to the whumptober archive blog. We open the yearly AO3 collection for posting (optional). November 1st: The challenge is officially over! Completionist form opens for those who want to be included in the hall-of-fame. Early November: We release completionist and participant badges, solicit feedback, and post a hall-of-fame list of completionists by the 10th.

PARTICIPATION AND COMPLETION

Q: What counts as participation? Create or continue at least one work inspired by one of this year’s prompts. Q: What counts as completion? Creating work(s) inspired by at least one prompt from each day (or alts), for a total of 31 unique prompts. Q: Do I need to create 31 works? No. You can, if you want. Or you can create one work that you add to every day with a new prompt. Or several works that combine prompts. You can also update an existing work by adding new material with the current prompts. Q: Do I need to post my works somewhere to be a completionist or a participant? No. Q: How do you know I actually completed the challenge? We’ll take your word for it! Q: Do I have to finish my work(s) to be a completionist? No, you can post WIPs. And you’re not obligated to finish them in October, but if you want it to count towards being a completionist, you must have completed 31 prompts by the end of the month. So for example, if you’re writing a long fic and you fit 31 different prompts into the writing you did in October, it’s okay if that fic isn’t finished by the time October ends, you’ll still be a completionist. Q: Is co-writing/illustrating allowed? Yes, absolutely, and it would count towards being a completionist for both/all of you. Q: Is there a min/max limit on word count for written works? No. Q: Is there a min/max limit of quality for art? No. Q: Do I have to do something each day to be a completionist? No. You can skip days whenever you want, and as long as 31 daily prompts (or alts) are in your works done in October, you can be a completionist. For example, if you wrote a 1000-word ficlet that covers prompts in days 2, 3, and 17, you can check all three days off your list even though it’s only one work. Q: Is this challenge just for fics? No! Artworks, GIFsets, headcannons, rec lists, poetry, moodboards, or any other creative work is encouraged. Q: Can I combine Whumptober with other creation challenges? Absolutely, as long as the other challenges allow it too.

PROMPTS

Q: How do the prompts work? There are FOUR prompts per day: a theme and three ideas. You can use one, two, three, or all four prompts for each day. If you don’t like any of the daily prompts, you can substitute one of the ALT prompts instead. Q: How strictly/literally should we interpret the prompts? As literally or as figuratively as you want. For example, if the theme is WATER, that could mean drowning, waterboarding, raining, swimming, take place underwater, be lost at sea, construct a metaphor about a character’s mood that changes like a flowing river, crying, or whatever else you can think of that fits that theme. Q: Can I combine prompts? Is there a limit on how many? No limit and combine as many as you’d like. If you create a work that checks off multiple prompts, that work will count for a fill of multiple prompts. You need to address 31 different prompts to be an official completionist, but you don’t have to produce 31 separate works.

WORKS

Q: What’s whump? Hurting a character, whether that’s physically, emotionally, intellectually, psychologically, or any other way you can think of. Comfort afterwards is optional. Angst is emotional whump, so it counts. Q: How do I know if it’s whumpy enough? If your character is just mildly inconvenienced, it probably needs more whump. However, no participant has to prove whumpiness to the mods. Whatever you write is up to you. Q: What kind of characters can I create for? Anything. Generic “whumpee,” OC, PC, NPC, major characters, minor characters, or whatever you want. There are no limits. Q: Does it have to take place in a specific fandom? No, you can create works for your own worlds or for fandoms or for both. You can also create more generic or pan-fandom works. You can do cross-overs or use OCs, whatever you want. Q: Can I create AI-created works? We will not reblog or promote any works we know to be generative AI-created. Q: Is there anything we’re not allowed to write? As long as it contains whump and is based on our prompts, it’s fine. Please courtesy tag your works if you post them so people who follow the #whumptober2024 tag can filter according to their preferences. Q: What about sex, minor characters, and potentially disturbing content? You can create whatever works are legal in your country and post them accordingly. Please courtesy tag anything you think might be objectionable if you post to Tumblr so people who follow the #whumptober2024 tag can filter according to their preferences.

POSTING

Q: Where can I post my work? Post where and how you want. You don’t even have to (cross)post it to Tumblr. Just keep in mind if it’s not on Tumblr we will not be able to add it to the blog archive. There is an AO3 archive for Whumptober 2024, as well as the parent collection for works completed outside of the event. Q: Can I start posting early? You can, but this is an October event and wouldn’t it be more fun with everyone doing it at the same time? We won’t be reblogging any work predating October 1st. Q: Can I post late? Yes. For the sake of our hardworking Post Fairies, only a day’s themes will be reblogged to @whumptober-archive each day of October. But you can post whenever. Some of us are still working on and posting Whumptober fics from years ago. Q: Do I have to use your tags? Only on Tumblr and only if you want us to reblog your work on @whumptober-archive. Q: How do I have my works reblogged to the archive? Properly tagged posts will be reblogged to @whumptober-archive. If you want the official archive blog to reblog you, post on Tumblr and tag correctly (see this FAQ link for more info on tagging). Please note not all posts will be reblogged each day. Q: Can we @ you? For questions and comments, of course. We’ll be getting a flood of notifications, so if you really want us to see something send an ask. Q: Can I cross post on other blogs? Yes, multiple platforms and blogs are perfectly acceptable, as long as they allow cross-posting (to us). You can also post different works to different accounts under different names, without posting them everywhere at once. If you post some works under your main and others under an alt blog, that’s fine for completionist purposes. Q: Can I upload/repost my Whumptober content to other social media platforms? Of course! We’ve created an AO3 Collection to archive any fics posted there, which can be found here. The blog is the official archive, so please respect the personal boundaries of any whumpers in your social circle (don’t out anyone as a participant who would prefer not to be outed).

Most importantly, have fun, create, and enjoy all the whump posted this October!

[moonlightazriel]

Chapter 4: Lost in history /// Azriel X F!Reader

Summary: The research for a way to send her back started, but they come to the conclusion that there's only one person that can help them now.

Word Count: 2,1K

Warnings: Just our babygirl Y/N being sad.

Notes: We have some Elriel content and i admit that it feels werid writing about them but soon things will change hehehehe

Main Masterlist

Worlds Apart Masterlist

“This is all I have that mentions other worlds.” The red headed female from yesterday's training spoke, her red hair was covered by a blue hoodie, a stone resting peacefully against her forehead. Just like Petrah wore too. 

“Thank you..” She motioned for the female so she could tell her name.

“Gwyneth, but you can call me Gwyn.” She nodded. 

“Thanks, Gwyn.” The female smiled at her, before spinning on her heels and leaving her alone, walking away.

That morning, Rhysand had appeared again, she had to hold herself as she stared at those violet eyes, he wasn’t like Maeve, he already proved that. He had told her that they were already looking for answers, ways of getting her back to her world. She had asked him how she could help, and that’s how she ended down there.

The priestesses walked around in silence, their dresses rustling against the marble floors, books and more books adorned the walls, the smell of dust and parchment filled the cavernous space. Aelin Galathynius would love a library like that one. The two had discovered a common interest in books during the time she spent in Orynth. 

The dream of creating their own book club felt like a very distant memory now. She was rather fond of the Queen, Aelin was just amazing, and she saw her for what she truly was, a survivor, just like Y/N. So young having to deal with all of that, she admired her strength, the courage to wake up everyday and fight for the world she wanted.

She shook her head, thinking about it wouldn’t help, and she would just be sad, more than she already was. So she stuck her nose on the pages and read everything she could about other worlds. 

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆ 

She closed the last book with an annoyed growl. Nothing. Absolutely nothing helpful on those pages. She wanted to bang her head against the nearest wall, the whole fucking day spent in theories, nothing concrete in how to access those said worlds. 

“Nothing?” A deep voice sounded, she turned her head, Cassian was standing there. “I won’t say we're having much more success than you.” She took a deep breath, getting up and stretching her muscles.

“I sat here for hours and not a single thing was useful. For a library that big, someone would think you have more information than that.” She started to follow the male. 

“Thank you, I've been saying that for centuries.” He led the way towards the endless stairs that would take them back to the surface.

“How old are you exactly?” His head turned to the side just enough so he could see her from his peripheral vision. 

“I’m 539 years old.” She stopped in her tracks. “I know it sounds old for such a young female like you.” He turned fully to her.

“How old do you think I am?” A smile danced on her lips.

“I don’t know, 22?” She then laughed, walking past him, starting to go upstairs to get out of that library. 

“Thank you, but I'm 105.” She explained and Cassian gasped loudly. 

“You’re not.” She nodded her head.

“I am. Witches tend to age very slowly.” She emphasised the world very, and Cassian found himself intrigued. Obviously they also aged slowly, but he didn't imagine the same happened in her world as well. 

The rest of the way was silent, as they made their way towards the House of Wind, as Nesta had introduced yesterday. The house responsible for her warm bath and fresh clothes this morning as well. She had thanked the house quietly, but Azriel had caught the faint whispers, so used to them, thinking it was very sweet of her. 

More people had joined the dinner, the smell of food lingered in the air, conversations floated around and she found herself surrounded by more strangers. A female holding a baby that looked like a younger version of Nesta. A black male with white hair, sitting by the side of a small female with silver eyes and short hair. 

She greeted all of them, introducing herself and waiting for them to do the same. The male was called Varian and Amren was by his side. Feyre and Nyx were High Lady and heir to the night court. They all looked at her with curiosity, everyone seemed to look at her like this lately, even when she was back at her home. 

“So you are the pretty female that the skies blessed us with.” Amren spoke. She reminded her of Lin, with her narrow eyes and deep black hair. 

“Amren, will you keep what I told you in secret, please?” Morrigan exclaimed, sipping on her wine. The smaller female just rolled her eyes, waving her hand in dismissal.

“Well, I guess so.” She poked a piece of lamb. Her goblet filled with wine but she craved something else. She craved blood. 

“Hopefully you had more success than us.” Feyre spoke, her sweet voice sounding like a fresh breeze. The baby slept clutched to her chest. Y/N knew she was staring at him, but she didn’t care, her memories drifting to a distant time, where a baby just as tiny as him never had the chance to live, and she paid a bitter price for her actions. 

“I.. hmm…” She cleared her throat, everyone was waiting for an answer, their eyes glued to her. Her scar throbbed with the attention and she had to hold back from flinching with the pain that pulsates on the skin. “No, I have found nothing useful.” She concluded, sipping on the wine, making a frown at the taste, blood tasted way better. 

“Not fond of wine?” Amren mocked, like she knew exactly what she wanted. 

“I just like something a little bit different, that’s all.” She didn’t want to disrespect them in their home, Asterin would be disappointed if she did so. So she downed the wine with the food, pretended to participate in their conversations and watched as the night progressed out of the window.

“We need to check Koschei.” Rhysand spoke, this caught her attention and she started to listen again. “It’s been weeks, we need to know what he’s been up to.” The name caused her blood to run cold, she didn’t know what, but something about this creature left her on alert.

“Who is Koschei?” She asked, their heads turning to her, Rhysand shared a look with his mate, like they were having a silent conversation before he spoke again. 

“He’s a powerful sorcerer bound to a lake.” He started. 

“For now.” Morrigan corrected. 

“Yes, for now. We want to defeat him before he becomes an even bigger problem than he already is.” She studied them, how the whole table felt tense with the conversation, like they were afraid of this thing, something told Y/N that she should feel afraid too. 

“Maybe he knows something.” Nesta started. “He’s from another world as well.”

“What? Do you want to go there and ask him how to open a portal to another world?” Amren mocked and Nesta gave her a hurtful look. 

“No, but maybe we can find a book about him, someone that knows his history or something like that.” She defended herself.

“Nesta is right.” Cassian spoke, hand squeezing her thigh under the table. “We’re already looking for a way to free Vassa, we can ask Lucien to try and help with this too.” 

“That is a great idea. I’ll send him a letter, it’s already time for him to visit us.” Feyre chimed in, her blue eyes sparking with happiness at the thought of seeing Lucien again, it’s been months since he left with the Band of Exiles. “You’re going to love Lucien.” She turned to Y/N.

“If you think so.” Meeting more people, she was so excited for that. With a loud yawn, she excused herself and retired to her room, she had to wake up early to go for a ride on Meraxes, she could hear the winds calling for her.  

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆ 

“I swear there’s nothing going on.” Azriel promised, but Elain still refused to hear him. After their argument the day before, she had come looking for him in the training field, just to find her glued to his back, and Azriel allowing it as she claimed.

“What I saw yesterday would love to disagree with you.” She poked her untouched food, they were in a reserved table on a restaurant across the Rainbow, he just wanted that argument to be over. 

“It was just training, my flower.” He begged, rubbing his hand over his face in an attempt to calm himself, he didn’t know what else he could say to convince her. “You chose me and I chose you, despite everything, that female cannot change that.” 

If he only knew how wrong he was. She looked at him with that spark in her eyes, hands clutching his scarred ones and bringing to her pink lips in a sweet kiss.

“You are right, she’s not better than me and she never will.” His shadows moved as if they disagreed, they were always quiet in Elain’s presence and he never knew why. They didn’t darted towards her like they did with Y/N more times than he could count in the short period she was there.

“Yeah, let’s just eat and go home, please.” He begged and Elain nodded.

The rest of the dinner felt bitter against his lips, his head throbbed and when he rested his hands on her lower back to lead the way home, it felt wrong, so wrong. He swallowed the feelings and kept trying to convince himself that he chose this, this is what he wanted. Three sisters to three brothers or whatever. 

Elain’s hands cupped his cheek, and she lifted her body to the tip of her toes, kissing him lightly on the lips, saying her good night to him, disappearing into her room at the River House. 

He closed the door behind him, flying towards the House of Wind in a starless sky, dark clouds covering the beautiful night. When he landed on the balcony, he slowly stalked towards his room, but his shadows urged him away from it, towards the library. 

From the open arch on the stone wall, he could see her, a tiny nightgown covering her body, some strands falling loose from her braid. A book clutched in hands as she sat against a window, eyes glued to the sky. 

“Couldn’t sleep?” He said, his voice hoarse. She turned to him, those beautiful eyes penetrating his soul. She closed her book.

“There’s a storm coming.” She raised her finger, pointing outside. 

“How do you know?” Stars still littered the sky from where he could see. 

“I can hear it's calling.” Azriel nodded. She had a defeated expression on her face, all he wanted to do was to soothe the furrowed eyebrows and tell her everything would be fine. “Do you think I'll ever find my way home?” Tears glistened in the moonlight, burning her eyes. 

“I don’t know.” He answered with honesty, he didn’t have the answer for that, and as much as he wanted to help her, something inside him didn’t want her to go back. He shushed that part of him, hiding them in the shadows of his heart. 

“I wonder if they miss me.” She looked outside again, ever since Asterin died, she felt like she lost her space in the world, like she didn’t belong anywhere, if she disappeared would anyone notice? Would they find a way to get her back? All those questions and self doubt weighed on her soul, crushing her until she couldn’t breathe. She blinked the tears away. 

“I’m sure they do.” She could hear the pity in his tone, and she hated that, she knew that if she looked at him he would have that look on his face, the one everyone had when they looked at her. Manon, Fenrys, Aelin, Shearah, Elide and all of them, the same pitiful glare reserved just for her. She didn’t want to face that here as well.

So she got up, leaving the book behind and walked past him, as fast as the winds, but his warm hand caught her arm, forcing her to stop. Her head whipped back, eyes locking with his golden ones. 

“I’m so sorry if I offended you.” His voice was gentle, calming.

“I don’t need your pity.” She barked in anger. 

“I wouldn’t dare.” He promised, and she just nodded, freeing herself from his grip, going to her room, locking the door and throwing herself under the blankets. The skin of her arm felt warm where he had touched. And that night, after tossing and tuning for what felt like an eternity, she dreamed about that male again.

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

Taglist: @fieldofdaisiies @blackgirlmagicforever @a-frog-with-a-laptop @going-through-shit @asweetblueberry2

@roses-r-red54330 @mis-lil-red @sheblogs @hibye02 @impossibelle

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@asterinblacksword @tsumudoll @georginat12 @skyjasper @anuttellaa

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@lees-chaotic-brain @thisblogisaboutabook @esposadomd

[zorosjuicymelonsx]

Finding You

First of all, thank you all so much for your patience and your continuous love for this fic 💚

Second of all: I really hate life right now 😭

I hate this job and I'm currently trying to look for another one. Its been really stressing me out and has affected my mental health to the point where I all I do is work and rot and mentally feel incapacitated to do any of my hobbies. Unfortunately I have to be an adult and can't leave my job until I can get another job 💀

Third of all: I really hope you enjoy this chapter, I had a little bit of a writers block as well but never forgot you guys and its all of you guys that kept me motivated to continue doing what I love which is writing and using my imagination ❤️ I can't believe we're on 4.6k reads on AO3 and over 350 likes on Tumblr, I thought my eyes were deceiving me thank you all so much 😱🩷

Chapter 10 Previous Next

Your ears pick up on the growing sounds of birds chirping. Your skin felt the blanket of warmth lay over you along with your eyelids exposed to the light of the sunrise over you. Normally, you wouldn’t be opposed to some warmth while you slept, however you found yourself beginning to overheat. You scrunch your brows feeling the heat continue to seep into your skin. Begrudgingly opening your eyes slowly, you do your best to scope your surroundings with minimal movement. You couldn’t quite figure out why you’re feeling so hot right now…until you felt the shimmy of a foreign object across your waist. 

Slowly bringing your chin down to inspect, you see a lightly tan arm wrapped around you. At first you let out a sigh of relief that you didn’t feel any danger posed with the arm and you certainly felt relief when you realised it was just Zoro’s arm. You smile to yourself before slowly closing your eyes in the hopes to return to your peaceful slumber.

‘Zoro’s arms around me…’

….

‘HIS ARM IS AROUND ME???’

Your eyes gape open in the span of 0.00001 seconds, your cheeks begin to heat up as you try to keep your heart calm. Even perspiration wasn’t your friend in this situation. You looked back down at the arm gripping your waist, keeping your arms tightly tucked into your chest like a praying mantis. Your ears potentially picked up on the gentle snores that came from him, your back picking up on the steady breathing that's coming from his chest. 

You didn’t want to wake him up but at the same time, you didn’t want him to wake up to this and feel the anxiety he described to you. You had to ensure that you protected Zoro’s wellbeing as much as he protected everyone else's. Taking a deep quiet breath, you bring your right hand down to gently pry his arm away. 

Amidst your efforts to avoid waking up sleeping beauty, you’d forgotten one small detail about him; he had this uncanny ability to sense any disturbance in his sleep. 

“Y/N, stop moving so much.” Zoro mumbled out. You sucked in a breath. 

‘He’s awake.’

“M’sorry but you’re literally a furnace. Please get off me.” You almost pleaded, you didn’t want him to feel anxious the moment he woke up and saw you. 

Relief flooded you as you felt the heat lift off your skin and the ability to move yourself around. He didn’t seem too bothered by the sleeping arrangement but you remembered how good he was at hiding his true feelings. You turned to look at him on his side as he napped, the gentle inhalation of quiet breaths that filled his chest. Your eyes zoned onto the sunlight perched on his tan skin, deepening his light caramel complexion. Your eyes crept up to his face and the peaceful expression of his closed eyes and solemn lips, the curvature of his nose and the apples of his cheeks.

Ignoring the growing heat in your cheeks, you move to bring yourself to stand off the ground and gently stretch your sore body, the soil on the ground now not quite as soft as you’d remembered it before passing out from exhaustion. You took a few steps away from Zoro, looking around the trees and over the lake to refresh yourself on your surroundings. 

“When should we go back?’’ You broke the silence as you continued looking around. 

“Gimme five min.’’ 

You rolled your eyes. 

‘Typical Zoro’

“You can nap on the ship.’’ You counter argue. You knew five minutes would turn into at least an hour. 

“I know.’’ 

“Then…what's stopping us from going home earlier?” You persisted.

“You.’’ 

Frowning in confusion, you turned to face the swordsman who hadn’t moved, his eyes still closed. 

“Me?’’ You questioned pointing at yourself unconsciously. 

“I don’t know when it will just be us two like this again.” 

Your breath hitched, your eyebrows relaxed now as you held back the sound of an awe you’d wanted to say in response to his answer. 

“But you said-’’

“I know…I’m fighting it.” His eye finally opened to meet yours, seeing the softness in his iris and the somewhat solemn tone of his voice that sounded accepting of his situation. 

You purse your lips, the guilt you’d felt for him came back in full force. Clearing your voice, you walked to stand in front of him, holding out your hand, noticing his focus shifting to it. 

“I’m starving, we haven’t eaten anything in over 24 hours.” 

Zoro gave a quick huff before accepting your hand and helping him up. In doing so, once he was up he dragged you into a hug, the air in your lungs practically squeezed out. 

“I’m sorry.” 

“What for?”

“Everything.” 

“Zoro…it's not your fault.” 

He looked at you solemnly, his hands atop each of your shoulders before leaning in to quick your lips a quick peck. You unconsciously slapped your palm over your mouth at the shock of his action, watching the red in the apples of his cheeks grow. 

“Alright, get us out of here.” Zoro tried to sound assertive and confident, unknowingly you could hear a nervous shake in his tone. 

Nodding, you checked your surroundings once more before creating a hole back to the Sunny. Once the hole formed big enough for the both of you to go through, you gestured for him to go in first. He walked through, shortly following after him and finding yourselves back in your shared bedroom. You turned back to close the hole, feeling the effects of your fruit wash over you in exhaustion. The lack of food and water definitely made it worse. 

“You okay?” Zoro cautiously asked. You looked up at him, seeing the concern in his eye. You gave him a small smile and nodded. 

“Yeah it's just the side effects, that's all.” You assured him. 

“Y/N, Marimo…is that you?” You heard a familiar voice muffled behind your door. 

“Yes Sanji, we’re okay.” You loudishly responded, visibly seeing annoyance on Zoro's expression as Sanji opened the door, followed by Nami and Luffy. You could see relief in all of their faces, a small wave of guilt flooded you remembering your sudden departure yesterday. 

“Oh Y/N-chan, are you okay?! Marimo, why does she look like this? I’m going to kill you.” Sanji's face of endearment turned to flames as his gaze went to Zoro who gruffly sighed in response.

“Sanji, I’m fine-” 

“Are you hungry? You must be, let's go.” Sanji grabbed your hand and dragged you out of the room towards the kitchen. You were surprised that you let Sanji lead you but your exhaustion really felt like a heavy weight on you and you didn’t have enough strength to take control from him. You instead just let him lead you to sit at the kitchen table, knowing food and water is needed to make a speedy recovery. 

What your exhaustion failed to pick up on was the hardened grit in Zoro's teeth and deep scowl as he stood there and watched the cook take you away, his hands clenched into fists. His anxiety at the thought of you was in his throat but at the same time his chest burned with anger at the contact Sanji made with your hand. Unconsciously, he let his legs walk him to the kitchen in pursuit of you. 

Nami and Luffy looked at each other in confusion before following behind and taking their seats at the kitchen table, each of them beside you. Shortly, all the Straw Hats followed in and sat as they patiently waited for Sanji to serve them breakfast. Amongst all your crew members, you were the only one who’d been slow at eating, almost picking at your plate as you took your time to savour your food. 

“Y/N, why are you eating so slow?! Are you full? Can I have your food?!” Luffy offered with a big grin on his face, practically seeing stars in his pupils which was soon wiped away as a kitchen cloth was whipped over his face from the angry cook in front of him. 

“You leave her plate alone, how many times do I have to tell you this?” Sanji said through his teeth, walking over to stand beside you and placed his right hand on your shoulder in worry. 

“You don’t have to finish it if you’re full, I won’t feel offended, Y/N-chan.” Sanji said soothingly, you looked up to meet his gaze which quickly dropped to his hand which gripped you gently. 

“It's fine San-” 

What you both didn’t realise was the grumpy swordsman who sat across from you had stood up to go around and grab Sanji's wrist and take it off your shoulder. The other's quiet chatter amongst each other turned into pure silence at the definite start of another infamous Zoro vs Sanji fight.

“Stop touching her so much shit-cook.” Zoro said in a low tone to the cook. You could hear the deep anger in his throat, shifting yourself to look at the swordsman and how his tone equally matches his expression of anger.

“Excuse me? Get your shitty hand off me.” Sanji turned to face Zoro head on. You felt sick to your stomach, you didn’t understand what had gotten into him.

“Why do you keep touching her? You understand she's my wife right? You think I wanna sit here and watch you prance around her like a shitty prairie dog?!” Zoro stated bluntly, you could practically see steam coming off of him. 

The question stunned all the Straw Hats including yourself, your jaw dropped and felt a wave of heat flood you at the sudden change in his behaviour, feeling embarrassed that this started because of you and furthermore more embarrassed it was happening in front of everyone. 

You quickly stood up to stand between the two, taking your focus onto Zoro to calm him. 

“Zoro, its oka-”

“Oh all of a sudden, she's your wife?! You’ve been nothing but shit to her, she's beautiful and the kind of woman that you don’t deserve.” Sanji bit back with fire on fire. You turned to face Sanji, now you were getting pissed off.

“Sanji, that's enough.” 

“Bite me shitty cook.”

“THATS ENOUGH!” Nami shouted as she stood to intervene. You felt a wave of gratitude towards the navigator. 

You took advantage of the given opportunity to defuse the fight and decided to drag Zoro by his wrist away from the kitchen and to the Crows Nest. You could hear the sound of Nami telling off Sanji distance itself as you both moved further away. You both arrived in the nest, dropping his wrist as you took a deep breath to gather your thoughts. You really did try to keep calm but you couldn’t help but ask the one pestering question you had in your mind. 

“What the fuck was that?!” 

“I didn’t want him touching you, I’m so sick of seeing him drool over anyone with a pair of tits.” Zoro hadn’t seemed to calm down since moving him away from the source of his anger. 

“It's not okay to do that, why do you feel the need now to start picking fights because of me?!” You were genuinely upset and confused. You were really trying to be considerate of his feelings and to assure nothing would change until he sorted out his temporary curse. 

“I may not understand how my head is working right now but I know for damn sure I didn’t like seeing that.”

“Zoro, you know what Sanji is like and you know my heart only belongs to you. I wanna find this bastard and end this so we can be together in peace and you don’t have to feel like blowing your brains out.” 

Hearing this you could see Zoros gaze visibly soften, the anger finally dissipated from his being. He brought his right hand up to the back of his neck to stroke away any remnants of anger left, remaining awkwardly standing there.

“I’m sorry Y/N.” Zoro mumbled out sheepishly. 

“I think you apologise to Sanji.” 

“Over my dead body.” Zoro deadpanned. 

“Well it was worth a try.” You chuckled out as you stepped towards him to give a quick hug. 

Zoro allowed the hug as he stood awkwardly, you eventually let go and now both of you stood there not knowing what to do with yourselves. You suddenly felt a presence somewhere in the room, feeling the hair on your body stiffen. You had to concentrate on who it might be until you realised there was a pair of hands pointing towards the exit of the door. 

“Robin wants to speak with us.” You announced to Zoro, you could hear a grunt responding to you before you both embarked out of the Crows Nest and towards the library where you both knew she would be waiting. As you approached the door, Zoro quickly sped up to open the door and let you in first. 

You had to fight the fast-approaching redness of his courteous behaviour, mumbling a shy thank you and entering the library where you found Robin sipping on a tea in the most comfortable looking chair. Lowering her cup, she looked up at the both of you with a small smile on her face. 

“I’m glad you guys are here, don’t worry I won’t take too long. I just wanted to talk about my research into our swordsmans…interesting situation.” Robin clarified, a small pocket of air you’d held in relief itself. 

You’d always braced yourself whenever you were summoned by other people in life, even if it was over the smallest of things. You had to thank your dad for that, the bastard always made you feel like you were in the hot seat whenever you’d conversed (argued more like). 

Robin's small smile turned slightly tight. If that meant anything to you, it was that she hadn’t found anything positive. 

“Zoro has been touched by our friend who holds the Wipe-Wipe no Mi devil fruit abilities. I must say there's very little written about it. The reason that not a lot is known about this fruit is because it gives the user the ability to wipe either your entire memory or certain portions or people of their choosing, which is what's happened to Zoro-san.” 

You unconsciously nodded, recalling the prick had mentioned he’d purposely removed you from Zoro's memory. 

“When our friend Enver had wiped you from his memory, in the process he added some sort of barrier around his mind. This barrier is keeping him in a state where any thought of you makes him mentally push you away even more. This would explain his behaviour towards you and why he feels he needs to stay away is not of his own doing but because he cannot control it. It's quite interesting when you think about it and how powerful this could be in the wrong hands, in this instant it is and we have to stop him in any way we can.” 

“I-is there any cure to this?” You asked cautiously, soaking in the information Robins spent weeks looking into for you. 

A quiet disappointed sigh expelled from the archaeologist. 

“I’ll be honest; there is no known cure. Zoro could be like this for the rest of his life.” 

You’d felt your heart drop, your lip thinned as it threatened to wobble at the thought of your husband being in this endless cycle of anxiety for life. 

“However, I have faith that Zoro can break this.” 

“Despite no victim recorded ever being known to break this barrier, I believe that Zoro is strong enough that he could break the barrier. He has already shown that he can speak to you and be around you even if he is constantly fighting away the urge to be away from you 24/7. This is our hope.” 

“What about Chopper's cure?” Zoro asked. 

“Inconclusive, our poor doctor has worked himself to the bone trying to figure out what's wrong with his antidote. He may not be able to find a cure at all, however, I won’t discourage him from trying for his friends.” You hummed in agreement and appreciation of Choppers efforts. 

“Don’t lose hope, it's all we have right now.” Robin assured me. 

You used to be a woman of God, the idea of something better coming despite your difficult upbringing allowed for your will to continue. You’d since given up on belief since Zoro's disappearance. All the bad that had happened to you during the time you were apart and you couldn’t comprehend why any God or powerful force above would ever hurt you the way this did when you’d committed no atrocities and only wanted to live peacefully. 

“Thank you for everything Robin, I’ll be off.” You’d walked out of the room, leaving Zoro behind who seemed deep in thought. There was one question the archaeologist pondered about the swordsman. The swordsman had about to make a step out towards the exit until he heard Robin's throat clearing itself. 

“Zoro-san, have you seen anything come back to you in the weeks that Y/N has been with us?” 

Zoro stayed still hearing her question, choosing not to answer. He knew that she knew deep inside he had started seeing the flashbacks. He also knew she would be wise not to be and that she had to trust his reasons for keeping this to himself all this time.

Robin hummed, confirming her suspicions as she watched the swordsman leave the library.  

‘I wonder if he’s fallen for her again…’

————————————- ⚔️✨ ————————————

Taglist: @starlightanyaaa @eggrollforyou @rosellerinfrost @qalable @ecang

[steddieunderdogfics]

This week’s writer spotlight feature is: @stevesbipanic! They have fourteen works under the Stranger Things tag and thirteen of those works are under the Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson tag over on Archive of our Own!!

Our anonymous nominator recommends the following of their works by stevesbipanic:

Stevie's Time Loop

Home For Christmas

Remember Me

The Clothes That Make Us

Boy for All Seasons

She's an amazing writer that's able to make you feel connected to the characters, especially Steve. She's able to make me both cry and laugh in the same fic which is a feat to do well. She's also an amazing friend. Stevie's Time Loop is one of my favourite as it's a really unique way of writing a timeloop with large time jumps and most loops focusing on Steve and his trauma rather than finding a solution. - anonymous

Below the cut, @stevesbipanic answered some questions about their writing process and some of their recommended work!

Why do you write Steddie?

Steddie was the first ship that ever drove me to write fanfiction. I think the fact that I see myself a lot in both of them, especially Steve makes them so enjoyable to write for me. I think they’re also such moldable characters that you can write them into a lot of different stories quite easily and I love exploring their personalities and dynamics.

What’s your favorite trope to READ?

Soulmate AUs because I’m a sucker for true love.

What’s your favorite trope to WRITE?

Angst with a happy ending, I love making both these boys and my readers cry but also want them to be happy and in love in the end.

What’s your favorite Steddie fic?

This is such a hard question, there are so many talented writers and amazing fics, but if I had to choose one I’d have to say “The One in Which a Time Loop is Fucking Exhausting” by badpancake, it was one of the first time loop fics I read and really inspired my own time loop fic.

Is there a trope you’re excited to explore in a future work but haven’t yet?

I’d love to explore a fantasy AU in the future, I know many talented authors writing dragon!eddie and King Steve or knight and bard steddie and it is one of my favourite genres of fics that are outside of Hawkins.

What is your writing process like?

A mess, most of my works on Tumblr are spur of the moment ideas that will come to me and I immediately need to write them down. It’s actually the longer slower projects that are hardest for me since they require a lot more planning and editing, I really admire the authors consistently putting out those big fics.

Do you have any writing quirks?

I’d say my most noticeable one is how I write dialogue, I really don’t like writing steve said eddie said etc etc. I usually write each thing said on it’s own line and it’s clear who’s speaking by what they say or how they say it, I think it breaks up the story nicely too since you feel you’re seeing the conversation rather than reading it.

Do you prefer posting when you’ve finished writing or on a schedule?

As soon as I finish writing I want people to see it, I kinda hate sometimes when I’m doing a project and have to wait for a specific time to post but the anticipation can be fun too.

Which fic are you most proud of?

Honestly, I’m most proud of my latest fic “Home for Christmas” it was the first time I’d ever participated in a bang and the project felt huge, it felt like a big achievement getting it all out in the end and it’s the longest fic I’ve ever written as a bonus.

How did you get the idea for Remember Me?

I think I’d been reading a fic where Steve got a concussion and had a bit of temporary memory loss and I just thought what if all those concussions had long lasting effects on Steve’s brain when he grew older. I’ve also experienced a love one going through long term memory loss and how hard it is to watch that.

When writing Stevie's Time Loop, what was something you didn’t expect?

I didn’t expect it to become a whole fic! It started off as one little off hand drabble I wrote that alluded to a lot of loops surrounding the scene of Steve and Robin discussing how Robin had a bad feeling about this and just thought well what if this is like time loop deja vu.

What inspired The Clothes That Make Us?

Exploring why Steve dresses how he does and how he likes the things he does and how there’s an emotional reason behind some of the fans favourite outfits was something I wanted to explore more and this was my very first fic I wrote for ao3 so it was a bit daunting but also very exciting.

What was your favorite part to write from Boy for All Seasons?

My favourite part was definitely thinking of all the silly costumes Eddie would come up with as well as flirty Steve is so fun to write.

How do/did you feel writing The Clothes That Make Us?

I felt nervous since it was the first fic I ever wrote but excited since I felt really proud writing something that long and the feedback I got was so heartwarming.

What was the most difficult part of writing Remember Me?

Omg just getting to the end without crying so hard, after I posted it so many people messaged me about how they cried through it, just know I was writing that through tears too!

Do you have a favorite scene and/or line from any of your fics?

"Thank you for giving me a life worth remembering.” in “Remember Me” makes me want to cry everytime and really shows what we want for our favourite characters is to have a happy life however long they get.

Do you have any upcoming projects or fics you’d like to share/promote?

I’ll be posting my fic in the upcoming Reverse Bang in March which is exciting and I’ve got a secret project coming up later this year that people can follow @steddielycrying.

Outside of these questions, Is there anything YOU would like to add?

I’d just like to thank everyone who’s supported me through writing, whether it be a random comment on a fic or my lovely mutuals that get me through hard days, this has been an amazing fandom to be apart of and I can’t wait to write more!

Thank you to our author, @stevesbipanic , and our nominator! See more of @stevesbipanic's works featured on our page throughout the day!

Writer’s Spotlight is every Wednesday! Want to nominate an author? You can nominate them here!

[sequinsmile-x]

I Knew You'd Linger Like a Tattoo Kiss - Welcome Home Kisses

-x-

A series of unrelated one-shots and mini fics about the many types of kisses Aaron and Emily share.

-x-

Hi friends,

Here's another one of these prompts! This one is VERY soft.

Thank you to everyone who has sent prompts from the list - I will absolutely get around to them all. My aim with this is to write all of the ones from the list eventually.

Please see the masterlist for a full list of tags, and the list of prompts for this series.

-x-

Words: 1.9k

Read over on Ao3, or below the cut

His shoulders slump the moment he switches off the car engine. The case he had just got home from had dragged on a few days too long, the unsub eluding them in a way that frustrated him, when all he wanted was to be at home with his wife and kids. 

Emily was still on maternity leave, the 8 weeks that had passed since Evie had been born both a blur and stretched out around them, a baby bubble full of bliss and exhaustion that he hadn’t wanted to leave. He’d been back at work for a few weeks, but he’d been able to avoid going on cases until now, Strauss’s patience and understanding lasting longer than he thought it would. Before he left, Emily had assured him that they’d be fine, her smile soft and sleepy as she swayed back and forth with Evie against her chest, trying to get her back to sleep. 

He’d called every night around Jack’s bedtime. Even if he was still in the precinct instead of his hotel room he’d find an empty hallway or a quiet corner so he could have a moment of home. A reprieve from the violence he’d chased and surrounded himself with his entire life, and a much needed reminder of what he’d been able to build out of the ashes of what had burned down around him more than once. The sound of Jack and Emily’s voices, and Evie’s cries and coos in the background, enough to ground him until he could see them again. 

He knew he’d be too late to say goodnight to Jack, that the little boy would have already been tucked up in bed by Emily, safe and secure and loved - everything Aaron had promised Haley in her last moments that he would be. Aaron had never really been sure what he believed in. He’d seen too many awful things, things most people couldn’t even imagine, he struggled to accept that there was a divine being who would let them happen, but if there was something, anything, after this life he hoped Haley was looking down on them and smiling. 

As soon as he opens the front door to his house more of the tension seeps out of his chest, his shoulders loosening as the warmth and the scent of home washes over him. He smiles at the sound of his wife’s singing floating out from the living room as he takes off his shoes and jacket. He unceremoniously dumps his go-bag in the foyer, something he knows Emily will chastise him for later, because he doesn’t want to be apart from them for a moment longer than necessary. 

He stands in the living room doorway, his shoulder resting against the frame as he watches Emily pace back and forth with Evie held securely against her chest. She’s in a pair of his sweatpants, the pant legs rolled up so she wouldn’t trip, and one of his old t-shirts, a pattern of milk stains strewn across it. Her hair is piled on top of her head, a messy bun that has flopped to the side slightly, and he can picture her adjusting it multiple times throughout the day. She looks beautiful, impossibly gorgeous with her cheek resting on Evie’s head as she sings to her. It was something they’d learnt soothed her back when she was pregnant, that Evie’s kicks would quieten down at night when Emily sang to her. 

“Duérmete mi niño, duérmete mi amor

duérmete pedazo de mi corazón.

Este niño mío que nació de noche

quiere que lo lleve a pasear en coche.”

He knows he won’t spook her, that not only would his wife have heard the front door open and close but that she would have seen him out of the corner of her eye as he stepped into the doorway. She was permanently aware of her surroundings, a hangover of when she was at Interpol and then being hunted down by Ian that she would never shake off. He makes sure to keep his voice quiet, aware that not only was she tired but she would kill him if he woke up Evie after she’d worked so hard to calm her. 

“Spanish tonight?” 

She smiles as she looks up at him, her lips pressed against Evie’s head when she nods, “We did French last night.” 

She’d told him from the start, when the idea of a baby was nothing more than hope and joy fizzing beneath their skin, that she wanted their kids to know as many languages as possible. She was teaching Jack how to speak French, eagerly helping him with homework since before she and Aaron were even a couple, and she was determined Evie would be multilingual from the start. 

He smiles and walks over, wrapping his arms around them both as he encourages her as close as he can with Evie between them. Emily leans into him, her lips against his jaw as he sighs contentedly. 

“Hi,” he says, pressing his face into her hair breathing her in as she snorts against him, shifting back just far enough to look at him. 

“I haven’t washed my hair in days,” she says, scrunching up her nose, “It can’t smell great.” 

“You always smell great,” he replies, his hands drifting to her lower back, “I missed you. All of you.” 

“We missed you too,” she says, smiling at him, “Hi,” she adds, seemingly realising she hadn’t said it yet. She leans forward and presses her lips against his, leaning into it for a second before she pulls back, “Welcome home,” she whispers and his smile gets wider and he kisses her again, chasing the comfort she always brought him. She frowns slightly as she pulls back, her hand rubbing circles on Evie’s back to keep her asleep, “Are you okay honey?” 

He sighs and clears his throat. Part of him doesn’t want to bring work into his home, doesn’t want to poison the air with it, but he knows lying to her is useless, that she’d see right through him in a second like he was made of glass. She knew him better than anyone had ever known him, better than he knew himself, and he’d lost the will to keep anything from her years ago.

“I’ll be okay,” he says, his lips pressed together as he clears his throat, “It was just a tough case, that’s all.” 

She hums for a moment before she steps back, pressing several kisses in a row to the top of Evie’s head before she adjusts her hold on her, “Here, take the baby.” 

He smiles, amusement dripping from every pore as he does what she’s asked, never one to argue about time with his baby girl, “I’ve got her.” 

Emily smiles as she lets go of Evie, “Now, stay here and hold her, she’s magic,” she says, kissing the top of Evie’s head before she kisses his cheek and then the corner of his lips, “And I’ll go get you a drink.” 

He sighs, “Em, I just got home I should be looking after you-”

“Quiet you,” she says, no malice in her voice at all as she raises her eyebrow at him, “Hold the magic baby and let her make you feel better. I’ll be back in a minute.”

He doesn’t argue as she disappears from view, shaking his head with amusement as he’s left alone with his little girl. He looks down at Evie, who is still asleep, her round cheek pressed against his chest in such a way her mouth is slightly open, drool dripping down onto his suit jacket. 

“Mommy drools on me when she’s sleeping too, Evie girl,” he says, kissing the top of her head, breathing in the scent of the baby shampoo Emily had spent what felt like hours agonising over. Her focus switching back and forth between two bottles as they both stood in the baby aisle in the store, his world famous patience with her being tested to its limit, “Only the prettiest girls get to do it,” he paces around the room, not because he needs to but out of habit more than anything. Standing still felt wrong these days after two months of pacing and swaying as they tried to get her to sleep, and it made him restless. It had led to Dave gently making fun of him as he paced back and forth at work with a case file in his hands, something he hadn’t even realised he was doing until it was pointed out to him. 

“Jack will probably want to go to the zoo this weekend,” he says, talking just for the sake of it, knowing another thing that had soothed her from the start had been his voice, “We’ll take you too. Mommy will cover you in sunscreen, she does that - you get used to it - and put a big hat on you and you’ll sleep in the wrap against her chest the entire time,” he smiles at the thought of it, and makes a mental note to ensure he has enough storage on his phone, well aware that he’ll take as many photos as possible so he could look at them when he was at work, so he could scroll through photos of Emily, Jack and Evie to remind him of what he had now when he couldn’t be with them, “I think you’ll like the polar bear the best when you get bigger.” 

He could picture it now. Her a wild thing who would run away at any given opportunity, making him consider baby reins for the first time, something he’d grimaced at whenever he saw a parent using them, because she would be like Emily to her very core. Wilful and beautiful and determined to run around because she could. He can’t think of anything better than Saturday afternoons at the zoo with his wife and kids. Of being pulled between Jack and Evie’s favourite exhibits, and those of any other kids they might be lucky enough to have, until he and Emily were run ragged by them. Soft and tired smiles on their faces when they climbed into bed, a toddler between them, as they’d claim never again even though they knew they’d do the very same thing the next weekend. 

It was normal. Achingly and beautifully so, and, for the first time in his life, it was something he was allowing himself to have. 

He smiles and kisses Evie’s head again, the last remaining bit of tension leaves him, his chest lighter for it, and he hears his wife’s footsteps approaching. 

“See,” she says as he looks over at her, a cup of tea in one hand and a glass of scotch in the other, a smile on her face as she watches him rest his cheek on top of Evie’s head, “She’s pure magic.” 

He hums, nodding as he holds his daughter closer and winks at Emily, “Just like her mama.” 

She rolls her eyes just like he knew she would, her cheeks tinged pink at the compliment, and she walks over to him, her lips catching his cheek as she chastises him in a way they both know she doesn’t mean, “Sap.” 

They settle onto the couch together, Evie in Emily’s arms and her in his, Jack safe in his bed upstairs, and Aaron knows there is nothing in the world he’d rather come home to.

[lizziestudieshistory]

Books of 2023 - January

I'm trying something new and writing vague thoughts on the books I've read this month as I've finished them. So if I repeat myself or I ramble (more than usual) then I apologise. Not that anyone reads these anyway 😅

The Winter's Tale by William Shakespeare - pleasantly surprised! I remember not getting on with The Winter's Tale when I first read the play as I found it disjointed. However, this time I really got into the themes and Shakespeare's examination of age/corruption/irrational passions vs. youth/rejuvenation/constancy in love. It's a WEIRD play and it definitely has a confusing plot, however, I did enjoy myself.

Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson - an underwhelming reread. Rhythm of War wasn't my favourite to start with and this reread really showed how formulaic sections of this book were (mainly ALL the stuff in Urithiru). I really didn't need another Kaladin fight scene after part one and that's sort of half the book... I did enjoy elements, such as looking at Kaladin's depression and Raboniel, but the vast majority was disappointing.

On the Knocking on the Gate in Macbeth by Thomas de Quincey (essay) - interesting essay I read randomly whilst on a break in the library at uni, it discusses act 2 of Macbeth and how Shakespeare creates an emotional response from the audience with a knock. I don't have much to say tbh...

Shakespearean: On Life and Language in Times of Distress by Robert McCrum - a pointless vanity project that shouldn't have been published. I only continued with this because I bought it and I NEVER buy nonfiction - clearly a rule I need to stick to! The points of interest came from McCrum pulling from other people's work (and citing it badly!!!) either by paraphrasing or directly quoting. I still don't really know what McCrum had to say for himself on the subject of what makes Shakespeare "Shakespeare" or "Shakespearean"... So what was the point? I also found myself disliking McCrum on a personal level, he came across like that unpleasant public schoolboy in your uni class who thinks he's smarter than everyone else, and is slightly sexist... Not a great impression.

Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare - a reread of an old favourite. I found this read very different to my previous experiences, this isn't to say that I didn't enjoy it but I found myself bored with the "B" plotline with Malvolio and Sir Toby Belch... And Olivia wasn't as dazzling as usual... However, I did really enjoy discovering how fabulous Viola is and thinking about late Elizabethan/early Jacobean gender norms and identity. So swings and roundabouts.

A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin - I really wasn't expecting to like Earthsea, I'm not sure why but I had a feeling it wasn't going to be for me... I was so wrong! I had a lovely time with this first book. I don't think it's going to be a new all-time favourite series, but it is one I'm going to enjoy picking up every now and again as the mood takes me. Le Guin is a beautiful writer, her prose is lyrical and captivating in a way we rarely see in fantasy. It's simple, elegant, and layered - a child could read Earthsea and yet there is a rich thematic lining to this story that I loved pondering as I read through. The characters and narrative distance did mean I couldn't lose myself in the story as I would with someone like Robin Hobb, but I loved A Wizard of Earthsea in a different way. I'd highly recommend giving it a go if you're interested in classic fantasy!

The Poems by William Shakespeare - I've never tried Shakespeare's poetry before, at least not seriously, you can't go through the British education system without reading sonnet 18 at some point. Poetry usually isn't my thing and I only enjoy epic and narrative poetry...and this is still the case, as this collection proved. I enjoyed Venus and Adonis, and The Rape of Lucrece much more than The Phoenix and Turtle or The Passionate Pilgrim. Both of the longer narrative poems gave me something to think about, usually surrounding the themes of each poem and its historical context. The shorter works I found myself largely indifferent - although The Phoenix and Turtle is very beautiful.

[pagebypagereviews]

Unraveling the Dark Secrets: A Riveting Review of "Before She Knew Him: A Novel" by Peter Swanson From the masterful pen of Peter Swanson, "Before She Knew Him: A Novel" lures you into a world where the line between truth and deception is tantalizingly blurred. The psychological thriller genre has been continuously evolving, but Swanson manages to breathe new life into it with his knack for suspense and intricate plot twists. Those who adore a nail-biting narrative that keeps you guessing until the very last page will find this book irresistible. If you've ever wondered about the hidden depths lurking beneath the surface of your seemingly ordinary neighbors, this novel will compel you to question everything you thought you knew. "Before She Knew Him" is a game-changer for psychological thrillers, providing not just a gripping storyline but also addressing the pervasive feeling of unease that today’s readers often experience in an age of ambiguity and hidden identities. It offers a specific, much-needed escape for readers struggling with the monotony of predictable thrillers. Swanson’s attention to character development and his ability to build an immersive, tension-filled narrative work together to solve the issue of lackluster thrillers that fail to engage deeply or provide substantial psychological insight. The novel sets a high bar for what psychological thrillers can achieve, making it not just a must-read but a definitive example of the genre done right. Plot "Before She Knew Him: A Novel" by Peter Swanson intricately weaves a suspenseful narrative that centers around the seemingly tranquil lives of Hen and her husband Lloyd who move into a suburban neighborhood. The story takes a dark turn when Hen suspects their neighbor, Matthew, of harboring a sinister secret. Driven by her troubled past and her growing obsession with Matthew's possible involvement in an unsolved murder, Hen embarks on a perilous journey to uncover the truth. As she delves deeper, layers of deceit and danger unravel, leading to a gripping climax that challenges her sanity and safety. Characters The characters in "Before She Knew Him" are complex and multifaceted. Hen, the protagonist, is a freelance illustrator with a history of mental illness, making her a cautiously unreliable narrator whose perceptions are constantly questioned. Matthew is her enigmatic neighbor, whose composed exterior masks a deeply disturbing personality. Supporting characters like Lloyd, Hen's supportive but skeptical husband, and Mira, Matthew's seemingly oblivious wife, add depth and tension to the narrative, as they each bring their own secrets and suspicions into the fold. The interactions and relationships between these characters drive the plot forward and enrich the suspenseful atmosphere. Writing Style Peter Swanson’s writing style in "Before She Knew Him" is marked by its crisp, clear prose and carefully constructed suspense. The narrative alternates between different viewpoints, primarily Hen and Matthew, allowing readers to gain insights into their thoughts and motivations. This dual perspective deepens the psychological complexity of the story. Swanson's use of foreshadowing and cliffhangers keeps readers engaged, perpetually teetering on the edge of doubt and certainty. The dialogues are sharp and realistic, contributing to the tension and aiding in character development. Setting The setting of "Before She Knew Him" plays a crucial role in enhancing the novel's atmosphere. The story unfolds primarily in a quiet, suburban neighborhood in Massachusetts, a locale that contrasts sharply with the dark undertones of the plot. This juxtaposition highlights the theme of hidden darkness beneath a veneer of normalcy. Swanson’s detailed descriptions of Hen and Lloyd’s new home, as well as the eerie vibes of Matthew's residence, immerse readers into the surroundings, making the suspense more palpable. The setting acts almost as a character in itself, reflecting the isolation and procedural paranoia experienced by Hen.

Unique Aspects "Before She Knew Him" stands out due to its blend of psychological thriller and domestic drama. One unique aspect is the protagonist's battle with mental health, which adds layers to her reliability and drives the story’s tension. The novel's exploration of the moral ambiguities in human nature, where good and evil intertwine, provides depth beyond the typical thriller. Additionally, Swanson’s decision to reveal certain plot points to the reader while keeping them hidden from the characters creates dramatic irony that heightens the suspense. The book’s structure and pace are carefully calibrated to keep readers guessing and engaged until the final page. Book Review Plot Complexity and Twists: The intricate plot of "Before She Knew Him" is one of its strongest points, featuring numerous twists and turns that keep readers on their toes. Swanson expertly crafts a web of suspense that escalates as the story progresses, drawing readers into a narrative that is as unpredictable as it is compelling. For instance, the revelation of Matthew's true nature and Hen’s spiraling obsession showcase the plot's depth and the author's ability to maintain suspense throughout the novel. Character Depth and Development: The depth and development of characters are meticulously handled, presenting individuals who are relatable yet flawed. Hen's struggle with mental illness is portrayed with sensitivity, and her journey is laced with moments that reveal her vulnerabilities and strengths. Matthew, as the antagonist, is equally compelling, his sinister charm and hidden psychopathy creating a formidable counterpoint to Hen's determined quest for truth. These nuanced portrayals allow readers to connect with and understand the complexities of the characters’ actions and motivations. Atmospheric Setting: The setting of the novel adds a haunting quality to the story. Swanson’s depiction of the suburban environment serves to amplify the eerie and suspenseful tone of the book. The seemingly ordinary neighborhood, with its quiet streets and friendly facades, becomes a backdrop for the dark events that unfold. This contrast between setting and narrative action underscores the theme of hidden dangers lurking beneath the surface of everyday life. Thematic Exploration: The novel delves into themes of trust, obsession, and the duality of human nature. Hen's journey raises questions about the nature of reality and the reliability of perception, while Matthew’s character explores the darker aspects of human behavior. Swanson’s writing challenges readers to consider the complexities of morality and the thin line between sanity and madness. These themes are woven seamlessly into the narrative, enriching the story and giving it depth beyond the surface plot. Comparative Analysis: Comparing "Before She Knew Him" to other psychological thrillers, it's evident that Swanson’s unique approach to the genre sets it apart. Where many thrillers rely heavily on external action, Swanson’s focus on internal psychological tension and the development of deeply flawed characters provides a refreshing take. This approach can be likened to the works of authors like Gillian Flynn or Paula Hawkins, yet Swanson maintains a distinctive voice that makes "Before She Knew Him" a standout in the genre. Pros of "Before She Knew Him: A Novel" Book Review Engaging Writing Style The engaging writing style of "Before She Knew Him: A Novel" captivates readers, making the narrative flow smoothly and keeping the audience hooked. This style enhances the user experience by maintaining interest and encouraging longer reading sessions. The author's proficient use of language and varied sentence structure also contribute to creating a compelling read, which is essential for a positive reader engagement. Character Development The book review highlights the strong character development, which allows readers to form a deeper connection with the characters. Effective character development enriches the reading experience by providing a more immersive and emotionally resonant narrative.

Readers who feel invested in the characters are more likely to stay engaged and experience heightened emotional responses to the unfolding plot. Plot Twists and Turns The unexpected plot twists and turns receive notable attention in the review, showcasing the book's ability to surprise its audience. These elements enhance the user experience by adding excitement and unpredictability, which keeps readers on their toes and eager to see what happens next. Such twists can transform a standard narrative into a memorable adventure, promoting a satisfying reading experience. Exploration of Themes The book's exploration of various themes such as psychological disorders, trust, and betrayal is well-received in the review. This thematic depth offers readers more than just a surface-level story, engaging them in thought-provoking content that invites deeper reflection on human nature and relationships. A strong thematic foundation enhances the intellectual and emotional engagement, enriching the overall user experience. Cons of "Before She Knew Him: A Novel" Book Review Pacing Issues One downside noted in the review is the inconsistent pacing of the novel. Slow-paced segments can detract from the user experience by causing periods of disinterest or frustration. Readers may find it challenging to maintain their attention during slower portions of the book, potentially diminishing the overall enjoyment and leading to a disjointed reading experience. Complex Plot Structure The intricate plot structure might be seen as a drawback for some readers, presenting challenges in following the storyline. A complex narrative can lead to confusion and difficulty in keeping track of various subplots and characters, negatively impacting the user experience. Readers who prefer straightforward stories might find this complexity overwhelming and less enjoyable. Unresolved Subplots The review points out instances of unresolved subplots, which can leave readers with a sense of dissatisfaction. Unresolved elements can create a frustrating reading experience, as they may feel like wasted narrative potential or loose ends that detract from the overall cohesion of the story. A lack of closure can be disappointing and can undermine the emotional investment that readers have placed in the book. Character Inconsistencies Character inconsistencies noted in the review can disrupt the authenticity and believability of the narrative. When character actions or traits do not align with earlier development, it hampers the reader's ability to fully immerse themselves in the story. Such inconsistencies can break the reader's suspension of disbelief, making the experience less seamless and potentially diminishing the emotional impact of the plot. FAQ: Before She Knew Him: A Novel Book Review What is the genre of "Before She Knew Him"? "Before She Knew Him" by Peter Swanson is primarily a psychological thriller with elements of suspense. Who would enjoy reading this book? This book is suitable for readers who enjoy psychological thrillers, suspense novels, and gripping, character-driven stories. Is this book part of a series? No, "Before She Knew Him" is a standalone novel. What is the main premise of the story? The novel follows Hen and her husband Lloyd as they move into a new neighborhood. Hen becomes suspicious of her neighbor Matthew, believing he might be involved in a series of unsolved murders. Who are the main characters in the book? The main characters are Hen (Henrietta) Mazur, her husband Lloyd, and their neighbors Matthew and Mira Dolamore. Is the book suitable for young readers? "Before She Knew Him" contains mature themes and some violence, making it more suitable for mature readers and not recommended for young readers. How has the book been received by critics? Critics have generally given "Before She Knew Him" positive reviews, praising its plot twists, character development, and suspenseful narrative. What are some key themes in the book? Key themes include trust, obsession, the impact of mental illness, and the nature of guilt and innocence.

How long is "Before She Knew Him"? The novel is approximately 320 pages long, making it a moderately quick read. Is there a movie adaptation of the book? As of now, there has been no movie adaptation of "Before She Knew Him." Where can I purchase the book? Before She Knew Him" is available for purchase at major bookstores and online retailers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and local independent bookstores. In conclusion, "Before She Knew Him: A Novel" by Peter Swanson is a compelling psychological thriller that masterfully explores the complexities of human relationships, suspense, and moral ambiguity. As a reader, you are immediately drawn into a world where nothing is what it seems, and every character harbors secrets that could unravel at any moment. This novel stands out not only for its gripping plot but also for its in-depth character studies, particularly of Hen and her unsettling intuition about her neighbor. The way Swanson crafts Hen's psychological depth makes her not just a character, but a more tangible and relatable being, immersing the reader fully into her world of suspicion and danger. What makes "Before She Knew Him" a valuable reading choice is its adept handling of suspense and pacing. Swanson skillfully keeps the reader on edge, revealing just enough at each turn to maintain intrigue without giving away too much. This delicate balance ensures that the tension is sustained throughout, making this novel difficult to put down. The unpredictable twists and turns will keep readers guessing until the very last page, guaranteeing a thoroughly engaging experience. The novel also offers profound insights into the darker facets of the human psyche. It delves into themes of obsession, guilt, and the lengths to which people will go to protect their secrets. This psychological depth sets it apart from more conventional thrillers, providing not just an entertaining read but also material for deeper contemplation about human nature and morality. Furthermore, Swanson's narrative style—marked by crisp, clear prose and meticulous attention to detail—enhances the storytelling, making complex ideas and emotions accessible. His ability to create vivid, atmospheric settings further immerses readers in the story, making the world of "Before She Knew Him" not just believable but eerily real. For those seeking a novel that offers more than just a surface-level thrill, "Before She Knew Him" is an excellent choice. Its rich character development, innovative plot twists, and intricate exploration of psychological themes make it a standout in the genre. This book isn’t just a fleeting escape from reality; it is a profound journey through the darker corridors of the human mind, offering both entertainment and introspection. Whether you're a seasoned thriller aficionado or a newcomer to the genre, Peter Swanson's novel is sure to leave an indelible impression.

[scarlett-green-rose]

Dash didn’t know which of his friends found the comic first, and at this point it didn’t matter. He had bigger things to worry about after all.

“MY STUDENTS THINK WHAT?!”

Dash buried his face into his Phantom plush, Pookie running excited circles around the room while he contemplated blocking his friends.

“Your students have quite the eye for character design and colour composition. You must be so proud of them.”

“Paulina,” Dash didn’t whine, because Dash was an adult and the last time he did anything close to whining was when he was nine. Literally half a decade before ghosts were even a thing in Amity.

“What,” Paulina’s voice tittered through his Fenton-and-Foley modified phone, Star’s giggle and Kwan’s chuckles accompanying her. “I’m just saying.”

-

“It’s surprisingly... professional.”

And it was. The art style was consistent, the website was easy to navigate. Heck, even the writing was in character for all that the presented romantic tension between Dr Fenton and Mr. Baxter’s was entirely made-up.

Tim scrolled through the site, parsing through the comic pages and reading through the comments. Most of which complemented the artist on their talent and creativity and how it was shown through Dr Fenton and Mr Baxter’s whacky characterisation and shenanigans.

Not that much of it was exaggerated. If anything, Tim was pretty sure his classmate was downplaying it.

Tim sighed. “I wonder if Bruce will even believe that any of this is real.”

-

“ - because there’s no way that nobody believes this isn’t real. I mean, the evidence is all right there! Valerie, Valerie are you listening?!”

Valerie pinched down at the bridge of her nose, a migraine growing in her head. “No, Wes, I wasn’t. The moment I found out that it was your number calling me I stopped listening.”

“Liar,” Wes’ voice accused from the burner phone, and he wasn’t wrong.

Wes was Valerie’s best informant, a fact made even better that he was from Amity Park, and therefore knew what her standards were and how to live up to them. His information may often sound unbelievable and like delusional conspiracy theories but he was always right - Batman being Brucie Wayne was a very large pill to swallow, one hardly made easier by visual confirmation. Valerie, however, often wished hoped that Wes had left behind his obsession with Danny in high school.

Some days, Valerie contemplated actually wishing for it. Consequences and Danny and Jazz’s I’m-not-mad-just-disappointed-in-you face be damned.

“Wesley,” Valerie tried, because she just wanted to get this over and done with. “Why are you so worried about a teenager’s comic series on the nonexistent love life between their teachers?”

-

Dash cuddled - not hid, he was not hiding, damn it! - his burning face closer to his beloved plush. His friends laughter accompanied by Pookie’s obviously excited barking.

“You guys are assholes,” he declared through Phantom’s chest. “Pookie’s my only friend now.”

“I thought we decided that the dead didn’t count in high school,” Kwan commented.

“If they do, does this mean that you’re finally coming out of the closet?” Star chirped, and Dash groaned at the punchline.

-

“I don’t even get as to where people are getting this ‘ship’ from,” Tim mumbled into his cup of coffee. “I mean, it’s not like there’s been any confirmation that either of them are gay. The teacher’s lounge doesn’t even look like that.”

Jason’s chair screeched across the floor as he stood and then plucked Tim’s lukewarm coffee from his hands.

Tim’s eyes bolted to Jason’s. “Wha- Hey! What gives?”

“You’re going to bed, Replacement.”

Tim gawked at Jason, he was just on hour 43! He’s usually allowed to stay up longer than that.

Jason rolled his eyes. “You were speculating on the sexualities of your suspects Timmy. You need to sleep. Now come on.”

“I - what? No I’m not, and I’m fine!” Tim protested as Jason manhandled him out the room.

-

“I don’t care,” Valerie drawled out. “Go to bed.”

“But, Valerie,” Wes whined, and oh Ancients, Valerie was surrounded by children. “This could be detrimental to-”

“I don’t care, Wesley,” Valerie interrupted. “You’ve already lost face by with your previous behaviour in Wayne Tower and then Gotham Academy. If you lose your post in the GCPD through sleep deprivation of all things, I’m turning you into a ghost and then hunting you for the rest of your sorry existence. Do you understand?”

“But-”

Valerie scowled and felt the phone’s case crack a little between her fingers. “I said, Wesley Weston. Do. You. Understand?”

There was a moment of blissful silence as Wes finally shut his mouth. And, then - “butdashsoldcrushonphantomandthisperceivedrelationshipwithfentoncaneasilyleadtofentonssecretbeingrevealed-”

Valerie threw the phone on to the ground and took what little catharsis she could in the crunch of metal on concrete as she stomped on the device for good measure.

Ancients, Wes was such a large financial and emotional investment that it almost wasn’t worth it.

“Hey, Red Huntress, you good?”

Almost.

Valerie turned towards her hero mentor for the week and tried to inject as much cheer as she could into her voice. “Yeah, just my friend pestering me about conspiracy theories again. I don’t even know why I bother giving him the numbers to my burners. He just uses them to annoy me to death.”

Nightwing stared at the shattered remains of her burner on the ground. “If you say so, Red.”

-Dialogue bits-

Wes’ run on rant:

“But Dash’s old crush on Phantom and this perceived relationship with Fenton can easily lead to Fenton’s secret being revealed-”

-

Dash: You guys suck.

Paulina: You love us.

Dash: Yeah, I do. I just wish hope that you guys would stop joking about how long it took me to come out of the closet.

Kwan: You were declaring that you wanted to date Phantom since you first met him, and that it wasn’t gay since he was dead.

Star: You came out as actually gay on our second year in college. You’re never living this down.

-

Dick, remembering Jason scream incoherent into his phone at Bruce and then smash it to bits:

Dick, remembering Roy scream incoherent into his phone at Oliver and then smash it to bits:

Dick, watching Red Huntress, his current hero mentee, scream incoherent into her phone and then smash it to bits:

Dick: Man, heroes with Red in their names are wild.

Short DPXDC Prompts #468

Danny is a Chemistry teacher at Gotham Academy. His favorite student is Tim. He shocks the students by teaching and creating a Fear Antitoxin for the kids to learn as part of their curriculum.

[tiredassmage]

Back from vacation (very expensive, lots of fun, worth it lol) and that means my brain is thinking intently about blorbos again, so have another lil wip from a scene I started writing before we left because I got really emotional about Ziost again, okay?

Also, preface, I was trying to work on this really late while ‘Pump It’ by Black Eyed Peas was stuck in my head, but it was late, so it was like... it was being played on a record player 3 rooms down a dimly lit hotel hallway and it was just. A real experience, lmao. Because it does not at all fit what I was writing.

Rhystyl & Savosta + their continuing mutually unexpected supportive friendship they won’t talk to anyone else about, tbh. I care them a lot, idk exactly where I’m ending this though, so this is what you get for now, lol

Also, their referenced Yavin IV conversation is actually finished (x), in case that interests you.

“Theron’s right, Master Surro,” Rhystyl began quietly, “The Masters back on Tython… They can help you, we can…” He trailed off somewhat abruptly with a harsh swallow. The shallow platitudes about healing and leaving the past behind lodged in his throat.

“It isn’t over,” Master Surro breathed. She closed her eyes tightly, struggling and failing to ward off a grimace twisting her lips. “After all we’ve done…”

“In that much.., you are correct, Master Jedi,” Savosta agreed quietly as a frown settled across his lips. Rhystyl cast him a weary gaze. “The Emperor’s influence is… difficult to forget.” His eyes narrowed briefly. “But… in that, you are not alone, Jedi. That must be your strength. This Knight beside you is living proof.”

Rhystyl’s eyes widened. For the briefest moment, a ghost of a smile briefly turned the Chiss’s lips. He had not forgotten their discussion on Yavin IV.

“Didn’t…” Surro hissed through her teeth. “Didn’t… quite expect to be taking advice from a Sith…”

Rhyst smiled faintly. “In times like these, Master Surro..? We all need all the help we can get. Even if its source is unexpected.” He broke away from holding Savosta’s gaze to check in on his fellow Jedi. “There’s more than enough room for you aboard the Defender, Master Surro. Theron and I can get you back to Tython. It will take time. It won’t be easy. But nothing about this ever was.” He offered her a hand. “We would not be Jedi if we did not continue to try. Will you come with us?”

Surro considered his offer for a moment in silence. “Alright,” she agreed finally. “I’ll go. If that’s what Theron thinks…”

Rhystyl shook his head. “It must be what you want as well, Master,” he reminded gently. “You don’t have to commit to anything right now. At least let us take you home.”

“Alright,” she assented with a nod. “I can do that much, at least…”

“I will make the arrangements to get you all off-world,” Savosta assured Rhystyl quietly. “You will encounter no trouble from our forces. I swear it.”

“Thank you, my friend,” Rhyst replied. “Lana won’t..?”

The Chiss shook his head. “Do not concern yourself with our affairs at the present, Jedi. I still hold my authority and we will all need time to… lick our wounds, I believe the saying goes.”

Rhystyl puffed a faint breath of amusement as he helped Surro to her feet again. “Yes. Yes, we will… Take care of yourself, Savosta.”

[promptsforyourwhumpfic]

WT #2: "They don’t care about you."

The Sentry and the Strays - science fiction universe. Set in the distant future on a planet called Hephaestus Ten.

Content warnings: implied transphobia | depression

Summary: A barman gets a visit from his brother and learns he has to attend a wedding. The barman is far from pleased given his family's past.

WC: 1873

Nobody cared about him, it was a fact he'd long accepted. Even his manager's occasional remarks seemed like mere formalities. 

His role was as straightforward as it got – plaster on a smile and pour pints, no more, no less, and just the way he hates it, the routine was predictable. His manager's voice crackled through the radio headset, a relic from a time when the pub had reluctantly embraced modernization, abandoning its old-world charm for the sake of being a venue for spitting sawdust born of alcohol. The bartender was amazed that his ears hadn't succumbed to an infection, given the way he forced the earpiece into place. 

"You look rough," Ryan said from elsewhere in the building; thumbing through receipts that held more than enough numbers to hire more staff instead of more cameras and the new vehicle he passed in the parking lot out back. 

Nonetheless, the bartender casually tossed his backpack next to a sturdy shelving unit of beer crates, before making his way to the bar area. He absentmindedly brushed off stray animal hairs from his clothes – a simple ensemble consisting of rugged jeans, sturdy shoes, and a white t-shirt topped with a grey shirt. His recent side gig as a dog walker provided him with a bit of extra cash; just enough to break even at the end of the month, assuming he had no unexpected expenses such as a cup of coffee.

“Wanna start paying me more?” He replied into the microphone protruding from the earpiece. It was evident in his voice that he was exhausted, but rent wasn’t going to pay itself, so he strapped a well-loved apron across his waist and slapped on a smile that couldn’t reach his eyes. 

“Overheads!” Ryan sing-songed across the radio, before the line went dead save for the occasional background interference from the patrols nearby. The bartender rolled his eyes; executing the perfect swerve to avoid bumping into his colleagues during changeover. Two new-hire openers, and one experienced closer on a measly Thursday night. No cash tips were to be expected, but a few drinks may be bought for him across the evening - it’s the least the patrons could do for not roping him into their personal lives or ratting their habits to the authorities. It was a simple agreement: he minded his own business, and they minded theirs.  

He took a rag from the sink and began his duties, grimacing when his preferred cleaner stung the blisters and scratches on his hands from his second job. Earlier in the day, a small pup took great pleasure in using his hand as a teething toy, and he had mere minutes to spread some salve across the wounds before leaving for his shift. Broken skin, and light abrasions however were nothing special; nothing worth speaking about to the patrons who stared soullessly into their drinks. His gaunt appearance and sunken eyes drew little attention also, as did his hunched shoulders. 

There couldn't have been more than a dozen drinkers at the time; either fresh from an early shift at the docks, or recently despaired by personal loss. Perhaps later, when the middle shifts began to trickle from their posts, then the bartender may experience a rush; in which he’d have to be a little faster pulling pints and mixing spirits-

“Please.” An old man rasped for his attention, nudging his glass across the bar mat before him. The young man nodded and wordlessly poured him another in a fresh glass, yet spied on the man in his periphery as he shakily pulled coins from his pocket. His trembling hands, cracked, scarred and dry from days at the reclamation point, yielded a sum a few coppers short. Deciding he didn’t see it, the young man placed the drink before him, and left the pile of coins to gather dust on the bartop. Silently, he turned to continue his cleaning, moving spirit bottles to one side to wipe the wood-effect counter beneath. 

As predicted, the earpiece crackled to life. 

“I saw that!” 

And the bartender took everything he had to not stare into the closest security camera. Notably, there never was one pointing to the corridor where the toilets were, neuter was there one in the corner patrons liked to meet. 

It was worth a shot. 

The young man hung his head and turned, though the patron was nowhere to be seen. Just a pile of coins and a half-drunk pint. He caught the silhouette of the man stumbling through the entrance and out to the smog-filled city. He shook his head, and moved to the till to ring up the man for the half he had drunk when he was interrupted by the television in the corner. It was hard to ignore the fanfare that bypassed the low volume the screen had been set at, and it even startled the elder patrons who had slipped through the doors thirty years ago for a cheeky half. The bartender himself was only six years into his tenure following a sudden move across the country. He slept on couches for weeks before he had enough for a room in a shared house where his possessions were limited to an old footlocker salvaged from the reclamation point, a mattress in the corner and a side table that doubled as a desk.

“Here we go…” Old Ben, a man of his fifties grunted as he turned to face the news. The bartender was yet to decide if it was the man's back or the stool that creaked. 

Like clockwork, the five o’clock advert for the H.U.S.C came to life, prompting eye rolls from those whose applications wouldn’t even get looked at, let alone given a courtesy call.  

“Do you dream of being more? Of living life on the edge? Of traveling out of this system and to planets of indescribable beauty? If so, your security is written in the stars, amongst the ever-increasing crew of the Humanities United Space Cooperation, where all employees are granted permanent employment, and a pension just filled with benefits!”

The bartender took one glance across the pub, swallowed, then turned back to the screen with a sour expression on his face. The pile of change remained in front of him, as for some reason his attention was stolen by the television.  

“Experience a lifetime of once-in-a-life opportunities while climbing through our ranks. With an agreed vacation schedule, you’ll have ample time to explore and create new relationships. You'll have access to all your current amenities, and more! Work away your medical debt within months, and receive reasonable coverage for any work-related accidents.”

The bartender moved to return to his role, but found himself entranced as the advert continued beyond it’s scheduled end.  

“But there is more to life than working in our administrative offices, or our advanced reclamation points. Are you hungry for adventure - do you want to pilot your very own vessel? Apply for a position as a Sentry, and you too can join the parades and earn recognition as a protector of our precious cargo. Regardless of your background, the H.U.S.C has a place for you. We welcome all with warm beds, permanent employment and freedom of food. Join today, and experience your full potential!” 

The front door creaked and slammed, though the bartender kept his eyes on the patrons. 

“Bunch of bollocks, isn’t it, boys?” Began a hearty conversation in the corner, whereas a group of dismayed older drinkers turned back to their interrupted game of cards. 

Warm beds. Food security. 

Adventure. Another life-

“And what good have they done for us?” A drinker chortled above the rest. 

He was right. 

With a sigh, the bartender reached for the pile of change, but a large, plastic package was slapped on top, trapping his arm to the bar. The bartender sighed and made eye contact with the perpetrator, his heart stuttering when recognition flashed across his mind. 

“You’re not seriously thinking of signing up, are you Freddie?” His brother, Anthony, questioned, his eyes critical above a smog mask. Judging by the suit, he had traveled directly from his job in the Centre - the hub of all intergalactic freighting as per the planet's designation. Freights and distribution, a stop off for many but otherwise a pleasant location to rear a family if you’re in the right neighborhood. The suit meant he was serious; here for a demand instead of a brotherly chat. 

“Don’t call me that.” Frederick grunted, finding the well of spirit bottles intriguing as his arm was still uncomfortably contorted across the bar. His back began to ache. 

“You chose the name, brother.” The elder straightened. “Still on for tomorrow?”

The wedding. 

“My wedding.” 

Right, how could he forget?

“The family will be there.” Frederick stated, less than a question and more of an expression of distaste. “Last time we were together, we didn’t exactly get along.” 

“It’s the piercings.” Anthony deadpanned, eyeing his brother's most recent eyebrow piercing. 

“Sure.” He said. “Even you don’t like them.” 

“Why do you care so much about what I think?” Shrugged Anthony. “I accepted you.” 

Frederick’s expression went dark. Acception didn’t necessarily equal humility.

“What do you want?” Frederick said, taking his arm free and leaning against the shelves behind him. 

“I’m dropping off your suit.” 

Frederick eyed the package hesitantly. 

“I still haven’t said I was going.”

“It’ll look better on you if you do show up.” His brother tried to reason. “If you don't, people will think less of you.”

The barman picked up a rag and began to clean when his manager Ryan entered the floor, seemingly looking for something. 

“And you’re people?” Frederick spat. “I’d be happier here.”

“Here?” Sneered his brother, “In the beautiful sub-suburbs of Hephaestus Ten?”

“Anywhere. Anywhere but near them.” 

“Fred, they don’t care enough about you - not enough to start shit at my wedding. This isn’t about you. Look, you’re my brother, and It’s just a few hours. Hell, I’ll even send you some cash for taking the time off and transport expenses. I want you there.”

“To play happy families?” Frederick huffed, crossing his arms. “To pretend everything is alright when previously our own mother told me she wished I was never born? I know things would be easier without me there, so why are you trying?” 

“Fine, maybe that is what I want. Just for one day, one day out of hundreds every year. Will you give me that?” Anthony snapped, then sighed as Ryan took to the nearby till to count the change. 

“Leena has been asking about you - my brother. Says that since I’d met her family, she should meet all of mine. We’re not gonna be here forever, you know.” He picked the suit up, and handed the package over. Frederick didn’t meet his eyes as he took it. 

“I’ll send you the cash. See you tomorrow.”

And with that, he left, smog mask back in place long before he exited the building. Frederick could feel Ryans eyes on him; he’s obviously seen the exchange over the cameras and came down to investigate. 

“I need tomorrow off.” Frederick said in the direction of his manager. “Family emergency.” 

“Funeral?”

“Might aswell be.”

[whumptober]

Question for the mods because I'm curious :)

What are all of your fave prompts to write about/draw/edit/whatever creative thing you do??

Thanks for the ask anon! It was really fun for us all to come up with our favourites! And for a little more fun, at the end we've added a poll for you guys to let us know which mod's interests best align with your own!

Kitty - My favourite whump tropes are definitely captivity and torture, followed by burning buildings with of course smoke inhalation and oxygen masks and all that, vehicular accidents, and hypothermia (especially when paired with nearly drowning or falling through ice)! I absolutely adore anything with family feels too, especially found family, and although I don't write it much I love a good bit of enemies to lovers too. Characters dealing with mental health issues can also be very therapeutic for me. And of course my whump needs to have a good amount of comfort at the end, so recovery is a very good trope too!

Also, alternate universes are my jam!

Yenn - I love body horror and I go feral for mouth sewn shut. I don't know why that one fascinates me, but I love the horror and helplessness of it. I also deeply love sleep deprivation, maybe because I'm generally sleep deprived (I have nightmares every night). Coming in at a close third is probably Doomed by the Narrative, but only when it's done well, because I can usually spot it from the opening sequence and the fun becomes figuring out how we'll get to the fall. I'm all hurt, little or no comfort.

Surro - Found family will forever be my favourite trope, especially if the dynamic contains that One Whumpee that ties them all together. Parental figures who just so happen to let the One Whumpee get under their skin are also my jam as it makes the comfort that much sweeter. I go ham for misunderstood/outcast characters who sacrifice themselves for the team (and the team get to them just in time). But I also love writing for emotional angst, characters with anxiety (as it’s therapeutic for me) setbacks in recovery, head injuries, angst surrounding scars, and of course BEDSIDE VIGILS! (Especially if those watching the whumpee are wracked with guilt for abandoning said whumpee)

Personally I lean more towards the platonic/comfort side of Whump, but I make sure my characters go through hell to finally get their respite.

Vanne - I’m really unfaithful to tropes most of the time and normally have about a million WIPs going at once. I normally end up going back to more emotionally charged tropes every time though. I write a lot of doomed romances with a lot of emotional angst. I know that’s super vague, but honestly give me tears, rejection, loneliness and a character’s internal struggles and I’m all set. I’m so up for any kind of emotional trainwreck. I also really cycle through tropes that are relevant in my life at a given time, so it’s hard to list specifics. I’m definitely either all in on the hurt, or all comfort depending on the day. I rarely find a balance between the two.

[venbetta]

I saw this post and the additions, I really loved these so much. As someone who also has glam Freddy rotating in my brain 24/7, rent free, I feel like I wanna ramble about some bits of dialogue of his that intrigue or tickle me.

I'm gonna use his unused voicelines as examples, and each segment is also based on the video chapters.

Something that makes me a lil sad about SB is how rushed and incomplete it was, there was clearly a story going on and yknow I wish we got to see how the characters were before it all got finalized. Especially Freddy. His first voiceline from the original trailer was BONE CHILLINNGG, I get goosebumps.

But his unused lines really interest me. I'm gonna write my thoughts for each section of voice lines with quotes...

Parts & Service

I think about this line often, as Freddy introduces the P&S section to us very casually, before hinting at "behavior corrections".

What the hell do you mean corrections?? What are they doing to yall down there?? He clearly holds back from saying the real thing.

Honestly this line is what made me develop the headcanon that Freddy (and the other glams to a certain extent) are dealt with servere punishments for mild misbehavior. Of course I can see if it was for something like going on a rampage or injuring someone, but like... imagine if they got punished for small instances

Forgetting to show up for a party? Messing up on stage. Dealing with a rude customer improperly. Like really minor stuff.

Idk that line makes me think. It feels like Freddy doesn't wanna disclose that.

The headcanons go so hard with that line.

Also where the hell did that party pass come from? Sir?? Answer me.

I also love how he explains the party pass to Gregory. He's so whimsical about it. Even though the boy's pretty rough around the edges and mature despite his age, he still tries to make it appealing for him

It's the subtle excited spiel he goes on, even if it's commercial and programmed into him. It's like lowering down to a small child's level and explaining something in simple terms.

Sure, Freddy knows Gregory is very capable (especially if this takes place in the middle of the game), but it's cute to see him treat him like any other kid.

Early Fazcade Introduction/Boiler Room Mission/Power Outage Mission

I grouped these sections together because I have the same curiosity about them

First of, I wish there was context. Like I get that Fazcade is the DJMM mission, but what about the other two??

Sucks we'll never know

But there's also this odd tone/disposition Freddy's taken in these lines. Why does he sound so tired? Solemn almost? Idk maybe I'm overthinking/overanalyzing it.

Maybe Kellen was just tired that day LMAO

But it makes me wonder why Freddy sounds like that

As the previous posts point out is Freddy gradually coming to terms with the state of the plex and that everything is basically going to shit- especially in a matter of hours.

It makes sense that even the most optimistic person(?) could fall to exhaustion and strain at a certain point. He's been helping Gregory escape and keep him alive for five hours straight with occasional moments of rests. On the go. No time to sit down and think

It's just one thing right after the other, and Freddy is uncomfortable as much as Gregory is, and he basically lives there.

Imagine living in your house for all your life, thinking and being told everything's fine until you actually find out there's a fucking amalgamation living in the basement. Like honestly, that would be quite exhausting to deal with.

Poor Freddy, he's just trying to keep this kid alive, but his energy is running thin. That's what it sounds like during these parts.

Which Shirt?

Okay Freddy's had a lot of good lines in most games he's appeared in post SB, but this is downright the cutest thing. (After the cut "it tickles" line from Hw2)

This is definitely the beginning of the game because he's still whimsical. The fact he's excited about shirts of all things despite being surrounded by gift shops all his life is adorable.

And that's only because he's interacting with a kid who's the target demographic for said shirts.

The little "hm?" Is fucking adorable. Why is he like that? He's such a fucking dad omg.

Despite how serious of a situation they're in, he just wants to lighten up Gregory's mood probably. Distract him. Maybe do a lil dress up (God imagine).

And seeing Greg indulge and pick out a shirt, it's the sweetest interaction we could've gotten out of these two. Freddy's little "d'awww" kills me.

I used to hate the fire escape ending but honestly it makes me giggle at the absurdity of it. Not only cuz it's confusing (...not really), but the fact that Freddy just blatantly commits arson.

VIP

Some might point to Michael Afton and whatnot... but man, can we just separate him from anything post fnaf 6 and just indulge in the absurd decision that Freddy- a ROBOT- decides to commit arson.

As stated in the posts above, his moral compass is very circumstantial. I fully believe that he does it to put an end to everything.

It makes 100% sense, he's burning a bridge (or a building in this case) so that nothing bad like this can happen again.

He knows the sins of the company he was born into, and he doesn't want anyone else to suffer. It's kinda badass, honestly. He's fully accepted there's no fixing any of it.

He's oddly goofy about it though. Like "I have a finger lighter :3!" *cutely commits arson* "whoopsie!"

Freddy- no? That's not...

I mean good for you, but sir. Please.

I also headcanon that he has pyromania... and definitely had prior knowledge of how flammable those plushies were lol

Security Access/Customer Database

Another line in SB that makes me giggle, "But I highly doubt anyone's that dishonest!" It's so silly

Like I understand why they might've cut it out, it's extremely self-aware. And Freddy Fazbear of all people saying it would apparently be too on the nose for the entire story of the franchise.

But it's just so funny? Freddy's either delusional or trying hard to compensate for the company's botched systems of security.

Like we have really good security systems that even a 7-foot animatronic couldn't break through, but if there's a fire... uhh... idk, good luck, I guess.

Also the database line is insane. Really cockblocked the entire fanbase with that line

Typical cutting off important information cliche

Like how does Freddy remember Gregory? And before anyone says "GGY" ... I have a hunch that it wasn't exactly planned out. I mean it would make sense and honestly maybe it was alluding to it, I believe it to an extent

But looking at how the game came out before the books, I wouldn't say its definitive. It's just fascinating though.

Negative Rumors

Funny how the database line is followed up with Freddy's subtle lore spill. What do you mean older models?

Some say it's the older models going from Pizza Place, all the way back to Fredbear's (I also thought too)

But knowing that there are other Pizzaplexes and that there's an alleged prototype Freddy, it also adds some meaning to his line.

Freddy's clearly unsettled and even distressed. Again I wish the context was known for what warranted this response?

Did they both stumble upon something regarding him? Clearly. But what?

And it honestly adds more to his existential crisis, even if it was initially silly. Like he's aware of there being older models of himself and versions of him at different malls

There's been terrible things that happened. He actually acknowledges it! Before, he's either compensating or he's unaware, but this line is where he confirms that- yes- a lot of bad shit happened. Technically, he briefly says something similar during the East Arcade mission when Gregory quips about the tight security.

But this cut line holds so much power, and whether he's referring to older models of himself or the 40+ years of Freddy Fazbears being "flawed", it's just insane how potent it is.

Freddy Searching

I'm a simp. I love good guy Freddy, don't get me wrong, but damnit, give me whatever this is.

The growl, the way he pleas. "I thought we were friends?" Man, it goes so hard.

Also he's hot. I'm sorry. I need him to say "Superstaaaaar?" like that a few more times...

Honestly, I wish we got to see him corrupted or go rogue. It would've been so cool even if it was disappointing. Friends and I have made aus based around this idea god...

Survival Mode Introduction

I don't have much to say other than how cool of an idea this was. I want there to be a survival mode just so I could see how this plays out

The one thing I like about Freddy in this, though, is the way he tries to frame the lockin slumber parties. Clearly, they're problematic, and the fact that they were even a thing is concerning yet hilarious. There's also the way he subtly chuckles(?), sheepish because "Oh God, that sounds worse explaining it out loud." Makes him human.

I like the constant quirk Freddy has of trying to deescalate/comfort Gregory's nerves by either awkwardly succeeding or making it slightly more befuddling.

Also, he sounds so cool. That last countdown didn't have to be that theatrical, but it was.

Again the growl... I won't stop simping you can't make me

Intrusive Message Response

Freddy butting in like this was interesting due to the fact that he suggests a way for you to deal with Monty. I think this line was added back into the game.

But yeah the fact that he gives you clear hints of taking down the other bandmemebrs, especially with Monty, it's pretty clear he's made up his mind

I know most people who say "but Freddy didn't want his friends to get shattered!" But he definitely shifts his perspective at a certain point.

Not exactly clear on what caused the shift but it's there. It's unfortunate that his friends had to get injured at the expense of being upgraded...

I'm gonna mention this last tidbit since it's not in the video, but there's a line where Freddy says "I could go through this gate if I had Monty's claws"

... he sounds so weird saying it. Compared to Chica and Roxy, he doesn't say much. But Monty? That's odd but also funny.

He doesn't even push to know where he got the claws from, knowing damn well its Monty's. "How fortunate!" Freddy- Freddy... sweetheart, just say you don't like Monty, okay? (Lighthearted)

I think that's about it, I feel like I rambled a lot... I might've missed some things?

I just really like Freddy, and the posts above really had me giddy and excited about his quirks and how much he changes throughout the game. Sure most of it is surface level, but being able to find ways to interpret him is fun, especially looking at how he functions morally.

One last tiny note, I think it's funny that he doesn't condone cheating at games, but let's Gregory steal public property (merchandise and tools via the gift boxes). Sure, *some* of it is meant to help him.. but do you think if Freddy saw Gregory swipe candy from the kiosk, he'd turn a blind eye or...?

Freddy's pretty interesting from a moral standpoint. He goes from this commercial being who tries to compensate for the sketchy business practices, to someone who becomes tired and strained of the mayhem, and ultimately finds that there's no way to fix the mess and sins of the past; history will repeat itself, one way or another. Break the curse.

Glamrock Freddy’s Morals

I’m losing my mind over Glamrock Freddy’s moral compass. He is honestly such a treasure just because of his perceptions of good and bad.

Firstly, he praises the Pizzaplex’s scheme with the Fazcams; they’re only sold in Monty Golf and are also banned from use there, so they are confiscated (presumably to be resold).

But if you bring him into Fazer-Blast and try to make him enter the ride, he says with UTTER disappointment, “Shame on you, Gregory! I cannot enter the attraction with you, it would be cheating! It is against my programming to cheat!”

Like you’re okay with cheating people out of their money and merchandise but God forbid he play Fazerblast with me. (FYI I JUST WANTED TO LOOK FOR COLLECTABLES, I HAD ALREADY BEATEN THE GAME)

He complains of the fire safety system, but he is willing to SET THE BUILDING ON FIRE in one of the endings.

Finding a Bonnie Bowl ticket? He’s thrilled! Gregory is disappointed by the Mr. Hippo magnet? Someone could have died and Freddy would be less distraught.

Like, Freddy, man, what are you doing????

[poetesmorts]

Letter for the dead

Warning/s: a little bit of angst, slight mentions of grief, homophobia, death.

Word count: 849

A/N: happy one year for this account!! i finally had the motivation to write something. requests are open! enjoy :)

December 15th

Dear Neil,

I didn’t even get to say goodbye. I regret not having the chance to hold you for the first time and describe to you the things I was nervous about. My consciousness bears millions of regrets with me, this one will haunt me evermore.

I used to overhear people say they want to repeat the day before an incident, over again. Their feelings were unknown to me. I was vain, indifferent. Now, destiny showed me what they went through. The Universe would bless me if a genie would come to me one day to grant me a wish. I'd say I’d love to have one more day with you, only the two of us. We deserved one.

I should’ve asked before. The guilt I express currently would be more tolerable. You think you have the whole time on your hands. Then something shifts in the wind. It alters the timeline. How cruel can the minutes be? They pass, even though we implore them to stop, so we can linger the moments we experience. I did want to spend more time with you. I promise you that. My words couldn’t aid me.

I fear I will forget your gentle voice, your radiant face. The picture of the way you used to laugh and light the room more than candles will wither. A lack will be that of how you used to recite poems to me every night before bed. All the memories owned with you will fade. It’s my worst thought when I lay in bed. I rather stay awake, reliving my moments with you than going to sleep. Even there you appear in my dreams. It's the only way I can still hear you call my name. Remember when I had nightmares. You welcomed me in your bed and made me feel safe. I live my nightmare, and you are nowhere to calm my restlessness. Do you recognize the times when I cried in the middle of the night and you were there to wipe the tears on my face? My handkerchief dries them off instead, because your hands are somewhere unreachable. I will not be able to recall the images, yet my brain will deep-bury the evidence that you existed. My biggest concern will show itself. I will grow old. The things we did will burn out. None of us will tell the story we had to write. I wish I could at least have a piece of your something to help me see that, even if you aren’t here, your soul lives. I’m sorry if I do forget you.

The world is a beast. A survival of such an act would be a scandal and you would have hurt yourself more. It wouldn’t have allowed you to heal from the wounds, nor would it have let me speak. I accept the fact you’re gone, I can’t do anything about it, but here, on paper, I can confess and pretend you’re reading it. I love you, Neil. I always have. After the play, I planned on showing you who my heart beats for. I wanted to bring you to the cave, read you the poem I wrote for you. Your father was an obstacle. He took you away. I ensured myself to do it the next day. It was the worst idea I have ever had. So much love in my veins only for it to evaporate. Where we live, my darling, they would have executed our love. I couldn't care less. I would have risked my life for you to squeeze me in your arms. My life would have not been worthy if you didn't kiss the rivers my eyes drained. We would have run away, far, far away, where you wanted. I didn't believe the myth of first sight love. My unbelief cursed me. The things we had together sank me in forever longing. It's not the time to love a ghost, nor the remains. You're a photograph. You are the wind hitting my window. You're the snow I bury myself into. You're the missing piece I need. You're the flock of clouds hugging my street. I regret not telling you sooner... I fall in love every day with the objects of reality that embrace you. They also stab me as I remind myself I can't tell you the three holy words. You left for a place where you can be the actor you desire to be. I am surrounded by the sorrow of your passing, but at least I am happy you can have what you merit - peace.

Though you will not write back, wait for me instead! The day where we will hold each other without shame will come! We will enjoy our home there... I hope you rest well until then. When I become ashes, stand by the nearest pond. You will see me have a bouquet of forget-me-nots in my hands. It will be for you. I meant every word in this letter. I love you.

Yours,

Todd

[genshxn]

ｉｎｔｒｏｄｕｃｔｉｏｎ

Isekai oneshots series - Part 1 // 500 Followers event series

Thank y’all so much for 500 followers fhrjendjfir

For a while now you’ve been feeling an intense pair of eyes staring at you, despite being asleep. Shifting around, you’re pulled from your sleep from the gaze. Opening your eyelids feels like opening rusty shutters. It took a moment for your 3AM brain to compute what was looking at you, but once you finally realize it was a pair of stranger’s eyes, you immediately launch yourself back like an octopus.

You land backwards on your ass, hard. When the hell did the floor turn to stone, and when were you sleeping on it? Rubbing your sore backside a little bit, you finally take in your surroundings... some sort of unfamiliar laboratory? To your side, there’s all sorts of bookshelves and strange contraptions. Nothing you had really seen in high school biology class, for sure.

"...Are you okay?" A voice suddenly asks. What’s with the familiar voice? You look directly in front of you, and there’s a familiar face looking at you from a kneeling position.

You furrow your eyebrows. This shit can’t be real, right?

"Albedo?" You ask, your voice high pitched in confusion and apprehension.

"Oh my, you know my name," he speaks. He writes down something in a notebook he had next to him. "How strange."

What’s strange is that I’m suddenly face to face with a fucking video game character who looks real as hell. You think to yourself.

"How did I get here?" If your suspicions prove true, then you should be in Mondstadt, Teyvat. Specifically Albedo’s alchemy research lab.

"I was trying a particular summoning ritual I found in an old tome. You are the result of the summoning," Albedo trails off lightly, likely continuing his tangent to himself in his head.

"W-where am I?" Time to see if you’re right.

"You’re in my alchemy workshop. We’re in Mondstadt, Teyvat."

"Holy fuck I really did get isekai’d," you muttered to yourself, bringing your hand to your forehead.

"Pardon?"

"Nothing. I—I’m... uhh... basically not from this world."

"Another outlander... I figured." He thinks to himself. Alright, so you’re definitely here at the same time as the traveller. "Do you perhaps want a different attire? Those clothes don’t look very... practical. Like sleepwear, almost."

No shit. I’m still in my pyjamas. You pulled me outta my bed. You grumble in your mind.

"Sure. I’ll take a change of clothes if you have some."

"I’m afraid it’s just a standard Knights of Favonius uniform without the armour." Albedo hands it to you and turns away for you to change. You quickly do so and slip on the black turtle neck, puffy black pants and knee high boots.

"Decent," you say.

Albedo turns back around. "Come with me. There’s someone you may like to meet," he says, gesturing with his hand for you to follow him out of the alchemy lab.

You exit out of the headquarters and into the bright city of Mondstadt. It’s currently sunset, but the sky is still bright. You thought it was last 3AM, so you’re quite tired now. But you���ve already been woken up, so there’s no going back to sleep for you. Albedo appears to be headed in the direction of the tavern. What? Who’s at the tavern? The traveller?

Nah, turns out it was literally fucking everyone.

"What the fuck."

Pretty much every playable character is packed into Angel’s share. It’s lively with all the conversation between everyone. No one really notices your entrance except Diluc who simply casts a confused look at your unfamiliar face.

Albedo drifts over to a braid-styled blond that you instantly recognize as Aether, who was chatting to Paimon and Jean. He turns in your direction and wonders over with Albedo in tow.

"So you’re the same as me, huh?"

"Yep." You bite the inside of your mouth to not blurt out anything dumb. You’re surrounded by characters—uh, more people now—that you simp. You do not want to say anything stupid.

"What brings you to Teyvat?" Aether asks. It’s weird talking to him without Paimon being the surrogate speaker for the silent protagonist. He’s not really the protagonist anymore. It’s arguably you now.

"Uh... Albedo was stuffing around with summoning and I was the thing that got summoned."

"Oh, so you’re here by accident."

"Yes... I unfortunately don’t have any way to send them back to their world." Albedo joins in.

Maybe I don’t wanna go back so fast.

Out of nowhere, you feel something small bump into you from behind. You turn around and it’s a drunk Venti.

"Ehhhh, who’s this new pretty face?" He slurs. A blush is evident on his face. If he’s this drunk, he’s got to have knocked back at least 30 beers or so.

"This is... I do not know your name actually," Albedo realizes he never asked your name. Oops on his behalf, you guess.

"Y/N."

"Huh, that’s a strange name. Doesn’t sound local." Venti wracks his brain, trying to think where it could be from. "Oh! Could it be you’re like ol’ Aether here?"

How the fuck did the drunkard guess correctly. Then again, he is a god.

"Uh... yeah. Our situations are similar enough..." You say. You didn’t really lose your only next of kin to a god that looks like it’s from a different game. You got summoned here by Albedo out of pure fucky-wucky luck.

"Everyone!" Venti suddenly calls out. Oh boy, here he goes with his drunken antics. "We have another outlander with us now!" He pretty much hangs off you with one arm while pointing at you with his free hand. "Give ol’ Y/N a warm welcome!"

Literally everyone is staring at you. This is a nightmare.

"Uh... Hi," is all you can get out.

"Well hello there, Y/N. I must say, that name of yours is quite pleasant to say," a smooth voice coos from the corner of the tavern. You know exactly who it belongs to. Kaeya.

You look over at the blue-haired man who’s sat at the bar cross legged with one arm on the bench, propping up his head. His eye screams "FLIRT FLIRT FLIRT". You notice a blush on his face. He’s also drunk off his ass. Kaeya is promptly bonked over the head by Diluc with an empty beer mug.

"Owww..." Kaeya rubs his head.

"Shut it, Kaeya. Gods, can you wait 10 seconds without flirting? Sorry about him. He’s worse when he’s drunk. Just ignore him." Diluc sighs, crossing his arms.

"Oh, so you’re not going introduce yourself since you did for me?" Kaeya throws a glare at the redhead, who in turn sighs.

"Name’s Diluc. I own the tavern," he says.

"Y/N? I do not believe that is a name similar to Aether’s. You must be from different world, then." A deep voice chimes in. Oh fuck, you know who that is as well. Zhongli. Why is he here in Mondstadt?

"It’s certainly a strange name, alright."

"You’re one to talk, Fatui."

You also know the next two belong to. Childe and Xiao, respectively. Your eyes flitter about the crowd and spot them quickly. Xiao is perched on the second floor railing while Zhongli and Childe are sat at a table.

"Aww, no need to be a sourpuss in front of the new one," Childe chuckles to himself, obviously provoking Xiao, who takes the bait.

"I’m not a sourpuss!" He hisses. This just rises another laugh out of Childe. You’re surprised to find Zhongli suddenly standing in front of you, as you were distracted by the brief drama between the adeptus and the harbinger.

"My apologies for those two. They do not get along very well. My name is Zhongli. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." He greets you.

"Y-you too."

Now it’s Childe’s turn to suddenly appear before you. "Hey, the name’s Tartaglia, or Childe. But if you want, you can call me your’s—," Childe was instantly cut off by Xiao hurtling a mug at Childe’s head. What’s up with the flirters getting bonked?

"I’m Xiao... If you ever need me, just call my name and I’ll be there," he grumbles, readjusting himself on his perch.

"Goodness, the men are certainly talkative tonight," Another voice speaks. This time, it’s a woman’s voice. "Don’t mind them, outlander. My name is Ningguang. Pleased to meet you." The white haired lady greets you with a coy grin. You thought she wouldn’t have any interest... So why’s she talking to you?

"Ah, so this the newbie, huh?" A strong arm slings around your neck. You look up and see Beidou looking down at you. "How ya doin’ kiddo? Name’s Beidou, cap’n of the Crux. Come visit if you wanna grab a drink sometime," she grins. Her chest is awkwardly close to your face.

"Beidou, you are rather tactless, you know," Ningguang sighs. Whether it’s from how close Beidou suddenly got or whether she instantly invited you out for drinks, you don’t know.

"Loosen up Ning, we’re at a tavern," Beidou nudges Ningguang, to which the white haired woman just rolls her eyes.

"Oh my, so this is the cutie everyone’s talking about all of a sudden?" There’s literally only one person who calls everyone a cutie. Lisa. "Hello there, sweetie~ If you ever need help with anything, I’m always available to do anything for you." She finishes with a wink.

"Lisa, don’t be so hasty. Give Y/N some room to breathe." She places a hand on the mage’s shoulder and reigns her in a bit. "Sorry about her... She gets a bit... enthusiastic when meeting new people. I’m Jean, Acting Grand Master of the Knights of Favonius. If you ever have any troubles, don’t hesitate to let me know," she says with a kind smile. Jean seems the most level headed here.

Looking around, your eye also catches Ganyu who’s face planted down on the table, asleep. That’s honestly how you wanna be.

Right now, you seem to have a lot of hot people clamouring over you. Did you die and ascend to heaven? Or are you burdened with the curse of the isekai harem protagonist?

ep 2 ->