#The Dark Future Trio Prompt

[crossroads-of-the-raven]

The Dark Future Trio (if no-one has done this yet)

You know about The Celebrity Trio

You know about The Secret Trio

But do you know what binds them together.

Kur whispers in the back of Zak's mind as the Human Cryptid King works to enjoy his down time introducing Wadi and Ulraj to Ben and Rex.

Danny has perfected his false smile as he does his best not to grab Valerie, Tucker, Sam, Jake, and Randy and fly as fast as he can away from The Nasty Burger.

But these two boys are not alone in their suffering.

Jade Chan is an anomaly.

She's famous due to her Uncle Jackie being the leader of The J Team.

She's a secret and her missions with Section 13 are written in reports that only the highest clearance will ever see and fewer will ever believe.

She was eleven when she made her worst mistake.

It wasn't a real Tattoo, really it was only an ink rubbing, a rubbing taken from off the cover of one of her elderly Uncle's old books - she had placed the face of Tarakudo on her ankle and the shadows came to life.

The Shadows came to life and slowly, she lost control.

Slowly, she lost control but her elderly Uncle is clever.

He's clever and made a potion (He's clever and made extra)

With the potion, the face of Tarakudo disappeared and soon The Queen of Shadows disappeared.

The Queen disappeared and Jade Chan returned.

Time passed and Tarakudo's spirit was released.

His spirit was released and he greeted the once Queen.

Jade escape but his words remained.

He would see his Queen again and he was patient.

[clownakai]

"Dance with me."

Shuuichi very nearly chokes on his drink. "Pardon?"

Scotch smiles beatifically back at him. Definitely tipsy, at least a little bit. "Dance with me."

"I can't dance," he blurts out, the lie slipping past his lips as smooth as breathing.

Silence falls over the flat, only broken by the sound of Mochi's hissing from inside Scotch's bedroom; Hana has probably been bothering him again.

"That's fine," Scotch eventually replies, "I'll just have to guide you." With all due respect, fuck that.

"Why?"

"Well, I obviously can't let you lead if you don't know how to dance." Scotch leans back against the couch, looking for all the world like someone who just cracked the Twin Prime Conjecture or some other equally convoluted math problem (thank you, Shuukichi).

Shuuichi scowls, bringing his drink to his lips only to realize that the glass is already empty, again. "Why would I want to?" he clarifies.

"Ugh." Scotch rolls his eyes, muttering something about all workaholics being the same. "Live a little, why don't you? We can even turn the lights off if you're that embarrassed."

Way more than slightly tipsy, Shuuichi corrects his previous assessment with a sigh. "I'd be stepping on your toes the entire time if we did that."

"You'd manage it even with the lights on."

Shuuichi's eyes narrow. For the sake of his lie, he doesn't correct Scotch's claim. Let the guy believe what he wants, so that proving him wrong will be that much— hm.

He glances critically at his empty glass. He'd better cut back on the drinking for tonight, lest he want to end up embarrassing himself for real.

Then again, if he doesn't dance at all, those chances will inevitably drop to zero, thus allowing for more drinks to be had. Who knows, he might even get something mildly useful out of his flatmate in that case.

Scotch shifts in his periphery, successfully drawing Shuuichi's gaze to himself. He knows exactly what he's doing: it's in his posture, so loose and relaxed it can be nothing but studiously arranged; in his hands— long, calloused fingers loosely holding up a crystal glass (and petting Hana and chopping vegetables and dancing on bass strings and carding through Shuuichi's hair); in his eyes, so very blue and positively smoldering (there's a sliver of ice in them, ready to pierce and tear and sink: Shuuichi pretends he doesn't see it).

Tipsy, but no less dangerous because of it: Shuuichi had better keep that in mind. He should tread carefully, play it safe— turn down the offer once and for all.

Oh, who is he kidding?

"Fine." He puts his glass down with a clink. "Show me how to dance."

Scotch looks, for lack of a better descriptor, absolutely delighted. Shuuichi suddenly regrets more than a few of his life choices.

The other man stands up with remarkable grace for someone who has been drinking for the past hour and a half; he waits for Shuuichi to do the same, and at no point does he stop looking at him— through him, digging and searching and for a weightless moment Shuuichi wonders—

"I set the music up, you get the lights?" Scotch asks, blinking it all away.

Shuuichi valiantly holds back a grimace, but nonetheless moves to comply. "If we fall and break something, do me a favor and shoot me before Bourbon comes back."

Scotch snorts, and Shuuichi's stomach most definitely does not do a little victory dance. It doesn't.

He flips the light switch, plunging the living room into darkness: the only remaining light sources are Scotch's phone and a stray ray of moonlight feebly peeking past the mostly-closed curtains. Shuuichi takes advantage of those to orient himself, smoothly padding past the couch with nary a sound; he's sadly not fast enough to catch a glimpse of Scotch's screen, instead finding himself being led to the emptiest part of the room as the first notes of a simple waltz begin to fill the air.

"Right. So, the first thing you want to do is—" Shuuichi only has an inch or so on Scotch, height wise; it's certainly not enough of a difference for him to successfully pretend not to be taken by the moonlight striking the man's features, only barely reflected in his eyes.

(There they are, those shards of ice. Primed and ready, a hair's breadth away.

Ever the fool, Shuuichi inches closer.)

"— even listening to me?" Scotch asks, sounding torn between amusement and mild annoyance.

"My right hand in your left," Shuuichi absentmindedly parrots, "my left on your shoulder. You go left foot forward, the other to the right, close with the left, then right foot backwards, the other to the left, and close with the right. I just mirror you."

"... Okay, good." Scotch doesn't sound baffled, but Shuuichi is pretty sure he went a little overboard and recited something the other hadn't said yet. God fucking dammit.

"I know what a waltz is," he tries to salvage, "I've just never tried dancing it." For his own sake, Shuuichi prays that all the drinks he had tonight will help him sell the beginner act he talked himself into.

Scotch gives him no verbal answer; nonetheless, the silence feels as loud as a blaring horn to Shuuichi. Then there are hands on him, one coaxing his own upward while the other slips under his arm and comes to rest on his back, miraculously avoiding getting caught in his hair at it splays right beneath his shoulder blades, and Shuuichi almost forgets to let Scotch guide his hand into the correct position rather than doing it himself.

Right now, he might hate his own shirt more than anything.

"Alright." Scotch is... close. Not quite chest to chest, but still enough for Shuuichi to smell a hint of alcohol when he speaks. "Waltzes are in three quarters, so we're just going to— one, two, three."

Shuuichi doesn't even need to pretend: he stumbles through the first few rounds, the hand on his back burning like a brand. He wonders if Scotch can feel Shuuichi's heart jackrabbiting beneath his fingers, a caged beast in its own right.

(It sure feels to Shuuichi like it's trying to claw its way out of his chest.)

The waltz eventually gives way to a slow song Shuuichi doesn't recognize but is still aware enough to know how to adapt to: he doesn't startle when all of a sudden Scotch is everywhere, chest pressed against his and arm dipping to Shuuichi's waist and face so close the tips of their noses almost touch— yet he's deafened by his own heartbeat, a relentless drumming in his ears as Scotch meets his eyes and smiles.

"So you did lie to me," Scotch murmurs, smile widening when Shuuichi freezes. "This one's in four quarters, so it's no longer a waltz. But you didn't need me to tell you that, did you?"

Shuuichi swallows dryly. With how they're standing— with how Scotch is holding him—, the flush he can feel creeping onto his cheeks is just about the only thing he can feasibly keep to himself; everything else is fair game, from twitching hands and shallow breathing to faltering steps and a heartbeat so loud he struggles to convince himself that the other still can't hear it.

"No," he admits, and watches the ice spin in Scotch's eyes. "I didn't."

Shuuichi almost expects the operative to let go, to step back and put a healthy distance between them; what he gets is Scotch's fingers drumming a silent tune on his waist and one of the guy's legs moving forward in a tacit bid to keep dancing. Shuuichi obligingly follows, happy enough to let the other lead while he gets his shit together, although he puts his foot down the moment Scotch tries to raise their clasped hands above their heads.

"You're not turning me," he huffs, then curses himself for speaking up when Scotch's breathy laugh warms his lips.

"Next time, then." The weight around Shuuichi's waist disappears, and this time Scotch steps away for good, leaving him cold, adrift and hungry for something he can't quite place.

Shuuichi stares at his retreating form— what little he can distinguish of it in the dark, at least—, then sets out to distract himself by clearing the low table of all evidence of their drinking. It'll certainly not be enough to fool someone like Bourbon, but it'll knock 'leaving a mess for others to clean up' off the list of complaints he might receive tomorrow.

He knows what this— all of this— was. He's been taught how to do the same himself and he can't afford to fall for it.

(He thinks of those eyes, dark waters waiting to drown him.)

He really, really can't.

(Scotch took his phone with him, but Shuuichi still hears something: one-two, three-four; one-two, three-four. It's nothing like the all-encompassing drumming from before, and it makes him wonder...

Maybe his heart had felt so loud because it wasn't the only one he'd been hearing.)

[spookyserenades]

Trouvaille - Drabble #4

Pairing(s); BTS OT7 x Reader (This is a Namkook x Reader centric drabble!)

Genre/Themes; Hybrid!AU, themes of the supernatural and the occult, religious themes, violence, hurt/comfort, horror, romance

Rated; 18+ for swearing, violence/gore, future sexual themes. Reader discretion is advised.

Word Count; 3.4k

Trouvaille Masterlist

Trouvaille playlist

Prompt; Trouvaille Namkook x Reader, snapshot of a random paranormal investigation (Halloween edition!)

Long time no chat! I hope you all like use this little drabble to help through the Trouvaille hiatus :) We've got some ghostbusting shenanigans in this drabble! I love this trio (and missed them so so much!) There's a slight fright factor for this fall season (spooky setting, jumpscares, grabbing) But fluff and some cheekiness there as well. Chat soon and I love and miss you all! <3

“You’re a filthy liar,” Y/N refused to budge from her passenger side seat, even with the expectant looking hybrid flicking her tights-clad kneecap. “This is not a new dive bar. You can go. I’m staying here.”

“The wolf has already driven all the way into the city, Y/N. Might as well see what we can stir up,” Jeongguk, in a recent attempt to cut back on smoking, stuck a toothpick into the corner of his mouth. Y/N wondered if he truly had an oral fixation. “Come on. You’re always going on and on about ‘spooky vibes’ ‘halloween spirit’ ‘doing seasonal activities’, all that shit. Now that I’m taking you up on that, you’re backing down?”

Y/N bit her lip, cornered and effectively silenced. Sensing her defeat, Jeongguk stepped aside, allowing Y/N to slither from her seat and the warmth of Namjoon’s van. She wasn’t planning to traipse around a weathered and dark graveyard days before Halloween– rather, she was in a skirt, heeled boots, and a delicate off-the-shoulder sweater, meant for slinking around a cozy bar. Immediately, the crispness of October evening air had a shudder rolling down her spine, and the haunted-looking cemetery beyond Jeongguk’s leather-clad shoulder wasn’t helping, either. 

“Look at you, Bambi. You already have the camera bag,” Y/N muttered, somewhat mourning the loss of getting tipsy with him and Namjoon that evening. Despite the nickname, Jeongguk’s antlers were completely absent, only the two vaguest spots of calcification present over the spots where the bones usually sprouted from visible. 

Jeongguk hummed like he hadn’t heard her, double checking the batteries on his flashlight. Y/N, rubbing her arms for warmth, scanned the graveyard. It appeared that they were alone, which Y/N chalked up to people actually celebrating in the new dive bar Y/N was supposed to be at that moment. About to open her mouth to complain, her posture went rigid when a heavy garment, laden with rich scent and crushing warmth, was draped over her caved-in shoulders from behind. 

“The least you could have done was tell her to dress to be outside,” Namjoon spoke to Jeongguk through gritted teeth, watching the girl in front of him nearly dissolve into pieces in response to the jacket he offered her.

 Y/N promptly maneuvered her limbs into Namjoon’s sherpa and denim jacket, not even feeling badly that the wolf hybrid sacrificed it to her as she let his smell and body heat curl around her. No matter how gruff his voice registered to the ear, Namjoon had an undeniable concern for those he cared about. 

“Thanks, Joon,” Namjoon’s jacket was somewhat akin to a safety blanket, drowning Y/N’s figure and making her feel like a cake topper next to the tall wolf hybrid. 

Jeongguk had already wandered off on his own, and it was hard to make him out in the darkness since he was both dressed in all black and he had shed his antlers again. 

“I swear, I wasn’t in on this. Your outfit isn’t warm enough, and obviously being here is making you uncomfortable,” Namjoon lamented, Y/N snorting at his insistence of his innocence. 

“I’ll be fine. Just hold my hand,” Y/N reached for her wolf hybrid, hooking her index and middle fingers around his thumb and shivering at the spark that resulted in the contact.

Namjoon made a noise in the back of his throat. Not moments prior, Y/N clocked the way Namjoon’s ears drooped sideways: he was uneasy, too. Her wolf hybrid was amongst the bravest of her boys, but with the amount of intense horror movies Jeongguk was making her and Namjoon watch that week, Y/N thought his trepidation was quite a natural outcome.

“You suspect I’m going to trip on something, don’t you?” Namjoon grunted resentfully, though he adjusted his grip swiftly so the entirety of Y/N’s hand was completely engulfed by his. 

“Watch your step. If she goes down with you, you’ll fucking crush her,” Jeongguk called back, Namjoon’s chest rumbling deeply– while simultaneously squeezing Y/N’s fingers in a vice. “Wait. You have something to record audio with, right?”

“He thinks it’s amateur hour,” Namjoon seethed, jaw pulsing when he waved his Walkman around for the elk hybrid to see.

 “Jeongguk, this is too much. It’s cold and damp out here, why can’t we just go to the bar?” Y/N complained, attempting to save her evening of dodging shadows and being smothered by her wolfish security detail. “We can come back during the day, when the sun can warm us…”

“I’ve told you, Y/N, your pouting doesn’t work on me. You’ll be glad we did this, you know,” Jeongguk replied promptly, speaking around the toothpick in his mouth. Y/N scowled at him, watching her elk hybrid bend to his knees to set up a tripod by a crumbling monument. 

“What are you even looking for tonight, hmm? The spirit of Sam Adams?” Y/N let Namjoon tug her along with defeat, though her mood brightened when she earned chuckles from both of her hybrids. 

“Yeah, I bet you two would love that,” Even under the darkness of night, Y/N could see Jeongguk’s wide eyes rolling back. She was just putting on a show, standing stiffly beside Namjoon with her lip jutting out in a false pout, but by some Samhain miracle, Jeongguk physically seemed to soften in response. “Give me like, an hour of your time. The bar will still be open after.”

“Oh, really?” Y/N cheered, relieved that Jeongguk wouldn’t be conducting a four hour long investigation. “You promise?”

Letting go of Namjoon so the wolf hybrid could place his recording device on a nearby boulder, Y/N gently smacked her chilly palms against Jeongguk’s cheeks and pressed. The action had his lips puckering, the hoop through his lower lip pressed against her thumb, and his eyes as wide and round as they could possibly get. His tapered ears fluttered and stilled, like caught prey, and without his antlers, Jeongguk looked a lot like his least-favorite nickname. 

“Leggo ‘e,” Jeongguk attempted to talk with his lips still pursed, one of his inked hands wrapping around her wrist once the shock wore off. Grinning, Y/N released the elk hybrid, who inelegantly rocked backwards– ass landing on the heels of his combat boots. “You gotta stop doing that outta nowhere.”

“But you look so cute when I surprise you… so no, I won’t stop,” Y/N stuck her tongue out at him, his camera sitting in his lap, forgotten. “Okay, you’re on the clock. 58 minutes left and I’m out of here.”

Shivering like he was trying to shake off tension, Jeongguk squared his shoulders and resumed adjusting his camera. Fortunately, the dimness of the evening saved Jeongguk from being caught with reddened cheeks. 

“What’s my task tonight?” Y/N straightened up, suddenly paranoid she was standing on a grave. 

“Honestly?” Jeongguk cocked his head, expression turning wry again. 

“God help me. Yes, honestly.”

“You’re kinda here as bait. Since you’re witchy and all these dead guys weren’t really okay with that,” Jeongguk admitted, Y/N’s jaw hanging loose. 

“Oh, spectacular. Did you bring some rope to tie me to a stake and light a match? Maybe you’ll attract the apparition of Cotton Mather!” Y/N growled, pretending to paw through the elk hybrid’s equipment bag for a yard of rope. 

“Jeongguk, this is a new low, even for you,” Namjoon interjected, placing a heavy palm on Y/N’s shoulder– protective alpha wolf tendencies. “I’ll stay with you, Y/N. You can do the audio with me.”

“But…” Jeongguk hummed, Namjoon’s fluffy gray ears twitching in agitation. “If she’s alone, she’ll probably get better results herself. Just sayin’.”

“Unfortunately, he’s right. Whatever. I’ll walk around for a bit and just feel things out, okay? And you are so using your money from the last investigation to buy me a basket of fries at the bar after,” Y/N was able to cut Namjoon off before a spat occurred, hoping her carefully constructed “messy” going out updo wasn’t a pigeon’s nest by then. 

Muttering, she swiped a recording device from Jeongguk’s bag, marching off in no particular direction to avoid Jeongguk’s smug grin– and Namjoon’s raised hackles. The chunky heels of the boots she was wearing were sinking into the mud and grass as she walked, making sure to stick to the main paths winding through the cemetery. 

It was somewhat of a challenge to not be creeped out, Y/N definitely picking up on spiritual energy and the thinning of the veil during Samhain, so entities could more easily communicate with the living. Additionally, the lack of her physically intimidating wolf hybrid posing as a bodyguard glued to her side had her flinching at the slightest of sounds. 

The graveyard was large enough that she couldn’t hear Jeongguk or Namjoon asking their usual investigation questions, which wasn’t comforting, either. Swallowing, Y/N switched her recorder on, slowly passing by a tomb with a weeping stone angel affixed to the top. There was a bench beneath an oak tree, looking over the cemetery, where Y/N decided to pause and take a crack at an interview. With Namjoon’s jacket wrapped around her snugly, she relaxed a tad when she could smell his scent. 

As always, she started with breaking the ice– not by giving out her name, of course– listening to the static coming through the device sitting in her lap. Of course, she wouldn’t be able to interpret any of the audio until she and Namjoon hooked it up to his production program, so really Y/N was having a one-sided conversation in a field full of the unseen dead. All the while, she kept one eye on her watch, finally switching off the recorder after 40 minutes of repetitive questioning. Though the sherpa-lined denim jacket she was loaned kept her top half warm, her nearly bare legs were chilly and she was ready to drag Jeongguk to the van by one of his Bambi ears. 

Oddly enough, beams cutting through fog from two other flashlights were nowhere to be found once Y/N stood from the old bench. Chewing her lip, anxiety began to tighten her chest as she debated whether or not to call out either of their names. On one hand, Jeongguk would be pissed if she interrupted a recording of his, and on the other, Namjoon’s fury would be cold and quiet if he found out she didn’t call for him when she was scared. Neither outcome seemed desirable, and put her in a tight spot. Typical. 

Deciding to just meet her two hybrids at the front gates, close to the van and the well-lit street, Y/N picked up the pace and retraced her steps as best she could. Acutely more aware of her surroundings without knowing exactly where her companions were, Y/N was at least grateful she was up-to-date on all of her spiritual protection, so were the missing hybrids. Even still, there was that eerie sensation of being followed nagging at her. 

Though every instinct in her was begging to break out into a full sprint, when she heard wet gravel squelching behind her Y/N immediately paused; like a rabbit frozen in the face of a predator. Holding her breath, her mind automatically began to loop protective phrases, the only thing audible being the blood rushing in her ears. Was there a rustling in the nearly-bare trees, or were there whispers coming from behind her? Balling up her fists, Y/N geared up to make a purposeful beeline to the gate– which was almost in sight– however, she only made it about two steps before a yelp from her pierced the quiet night sky. 

Wiry, cold fingertips from behind dove into the base of her updo, nimbly grasping the hair stick holding everything together just to yank it free. Two things shocked Y/N the most: first, the weight of her hair falling around her, and the ping of the hair stick clattering to the gravel. All things happening in a matter of nanoseconds, Y/N’s brain processed so slowly that she was defenseless. 

As soon as she yelped and her body began to flinch, two strong arms wrapped tightly around her middle, a large body crooking over hers. Utter horror crashed down over her head, and she was positive she was screaming bloody murder as the grip on her waist got stronger. 

“Boo,” a pair of warm– not ghostly– lips grazed the shell of her ear, and Y/N choked on air, a breeze rolling by bringing a familiar scent along with it. “Gotcha right before you ate shit on the grass, too.”

Jeongguk’s presence wasn’t instantly recognizable because his leather and musk scent was lacking the usual tobacco edge, since he wasn’t smoking as much. The fear that took over was promptly replaced by astonishment and fury, and Y/N began to fight her way out of Jeongguk’s embrace, his deep chuckle in her ear. In retaliation, she scraped her nails over the tattoos clasped over her sides, his forearms actually overlapping on themselves due to squeezing her so hard, making him laugh louder. 

“Let GO, Jeongguk! You scared the piss out of me! Let go!” Y/N’s struggles were futile against the hybrid’s brute strength, so she pretended to go limp so he’d let her go. With a snarl, she realized he was probably giggling at her heart thundering in her chest. “What the fuck? I thought you were a rapist!”

“Do you really think anything could happen to you while we’re here? Please,” Jeongguk scoffed, the sharp point of his nose nudging her earlobe playfully. “Again. Weren’t you the one who encouraged scary pranks this time of year, kiddo?”

“Ugh. Get off,” Y/N groaned, her cheeks flaming. All of her boys had a magical ability to talk her out of being annoyed with them, and they all knew it. “You owe me two drinks now, the basket of Cajun fries, and I get to smush your face whenever I want, no complaints.”

“Sure…” Jeongguk eased himself off of Y/N slowly, ignoring the red scrapes marring the back of his hands. “I’ll add it to the list of your requests, your highness.”

“Fuckin’ little shit,” Y/N grit her teeth, finding it unfairly devastating how insanely hot he looked, cocky and satisfied, his dark eyes somehow still sparkling at night. “We’re going. I wouldn’t blame Namjoon if he left you here, you know.”

“Thinking about it,” a new voice joined the conversation, though it was low to the ground. Casting a look towards her feet, Y/N watched her wolf hybrid bend and gingerly pluck her forgotten hair pick from the gravel. “I take back my earlier statement. This is the new low, Jeongguk.”

Y/N was about to violently nod in agreement as Namjoon stood, towering over her, but something made her eyes narrow as she glanced up at him. Jeongguk, now an onlooker, tried to school his expression when Y/N gave Namjoon a deliberate once-over, the girl even stepping away to get a full view. The elk hybrid had to bite on his fist in order to be successful. 

“Hold it. You said you weren’t in on this!”

“I’m not!” Namjoon’s eyes went wide, Y/N snatching her hair stick from him suspiciously. Blinking rapidly, the wolf hybrid pushed his glasses up on the bridge of his nose, awkwardly shifting the gear bag higher up onto his thick shoulder. 

“Joon. Your left ear is droopy, and your tail is stiff. Besides, you keep fiddling with your glasses and your voice is all high like when you’re nervous in public. You knew he was gonna pop out on me like that,” Y/N listed off, ticking each point on a finger pad. To distract her, Namjoon made a quiet, pitiful canine whine, offering the hair stick to her as a peace offering– but Y/N wasn’t easily bought. “Joonie. You’re sweating.”

“S… so?” Namjoon spluttered, forcing himself to look into Y/N’s eyes. Sucking in his cheeks, Namjoon made a last-ditch effort to seem innocent before releasing a ragged sigh. “Aw, come on, sta–”

“March your butt to the driver’s seat before I peel out of here myself,” Y/N cut Namjoon off with (an admittedly adorable) huff, stomping in the direction of the van and not wanting to hear Namjoon’s term of endearment for her while she was still ticked. 

Jeongguk, at that point, couldn’t help but snicker wickedly, brushing past Namjoon in triumph. That, and the sight of Y/N storming away, being nearly eaten alive by Namjoon’s coat, was quite the sight. 

“Do… Do you still want to go to the bar?” Namjoon asked delicately, once he stumbled into his seat in the van, the equipment bag stuffed hastily behind him. The grunt coming from the booth told Y/N Namjoon might have aimed it too close to Jeongguk’s shin. 

“Yes,” Y/N replied haughtily, still feeling the heavy grip Jeongguk had on her. He had been bulking up for the winter… “You guys are mean. I meant to prank each other, not me.”

“That sounds a little unfair, no? Can’t take the heat or something?” 

“You guys are pulling fast ones over me constantly, 12 months a year. Can’t take the heat? Please. I’m a champ,” Y/N accused, sticking her tongue out at Jeongguk in the back seat. He just smirked knowingly, which had Y/N’s mind going in the direction his probably was, eliciting a sharp cough from her throat. “Fine. I guess I should be a good sport, I’m the one who started this.” 

With that, Y/N began to get a little too warm, so she began to unbutton Namjoon’s jacket to strip it from her. Her ears perked up instantly when Namjoon began to growl softly, sending a spark of excitement through her. The mood developing was starkly different than the one that had just dissipated, one wired and charged, and there was no doubt the two hybrids felt it with a certain heightened intensity.

“Keep it on. It’ll be cold at the bar,” Namjoon requested, the gruff authority making her spine straighten out instinctively. However, petulance won. 

“No, there will be a ton of people in there. I don’t want to be hot,” Y/N refused, deciding to ignore the two of them filling the van with their intensity by flicking through her phone. Namjoon didn’t like his protective (possessive?) requests to be denied, and Jeongguk didn’t like to be ignored. Y/N, truthfully, was still aggravated; neither of them apologized for plotting to terrify her. 

The bar was only around the block, so she didn’t ice them out for too long. In the five minutes it took for Namjoon to find a parking spot, she could tell he was feeling remorseful due to the sad thumping of his tail against the car door when he hastily opened it for her, his ears sideways. From that position, she was nearly eye-level with him, and he was brave enough to drink in her expression. 

“I’m still mad at you.”

“I know.”

“Make it up to me?”

Namjoon perked up just a degree, looking down at her through his eyelashes. Millions of possibilities flooded through the wolf hybrid’s mind, but conscious of the fact that he was blocking half of a sidewalk, he made a decision. With an arm around her waist, Namjoon helped her out of the van, and before she was too stable on her feet, he pressed his lips to the center of her forehead gently. Y/N hummed lightly, too pleasantly surprised to be embarrassed several pairs of eyes were on her. 

“‘M sorry we scared you,” Namjoon murmured, his chin resting on the crown of her head, body awkwardly bent. Giggling, she ruffled his starlight hair, Jeongguk interrupting by sliding the side door open. “Let’s go in. I’ll buy you the first drink.”

“Hey, that’s supposed to be me,” Jeongguk spun on the heel of his combat boot, already at the bar’s entrance. The sound of rock music and jovial conversation pulsed from behind the door. “Yeah. Sorry, kiddo.”

“Okay, okay, I forgive you. Hey, let Namjoon go in first. His height parts crowds, we’ll get to the bar faster,” Y/N yanked Jeongguk back by his belt loop, Namjoon shouldering by with reddened ear tips and his dimples creating deep craters in his cheeks. 

“After yo–”

Y/N stopped holding the door open when Jeongguk placed a hand on the wall beside her face, reached up to boop her nose, and then leaned in to whisper: 

“I’m only sorry I didn’t film your reaction.”

“Oh, you motherfucker!”

Please do not repost or translate my work. Thank you!

[morgana-larkin]

Ok so I saw a post from @dashbag-art about a guitar in Melissa’s classroom and asked for a fic in which Mel serenades her lover, so here it is! Not edited in the slightest and I hope you like it!

On another note: I’ve got like 4 fics I’m working on right now, 3 of them are prompts and the other is Mine Part 8. Stay on the lookout! Oh and Y/M/N means your middle name. 😊

At The Beginning

Warnings: just a lot of fluff

Words: 1,002 (short but sweet)

Melissa knows how much you love music, from singing in the car to singing and dancing in bars, your life revolves around music. Which is why she knows the perfect way to pop the question.

Melissa takes a deep breath as she paces yet again, in her classroom. She plans to ask you as soon as you come to get her from her classroom like always. The trio and Barb know of her plan and she made them swear to keep it from you unless they want a bat to the head. Janine took both of their classes to the gym after lunch when she saw how nervous Melissa was.

“Melissa dear, you’re sweating.” Barb says, a minute after the bell rings.

“I’m just really nervous.” Melissa says as she walks a little bit closer to her friend.

“I know dear, but it’ll be great. You’ve been practicing so much for the past couple weeks and you know she’s gonna say yes no matter what.” Barb tells her, trying to comfort her.

“I know, I just want to show her how much I love her and I don’t want to mess it up.”

“Even if you do, she won’t care. She’ll love the thought alone.”

“I think the kids will love the project next week.” Barb and Melissa both turn when they hear you talk to Janine.

“Here she comes, good luck.” Barb says before leaving.

Melissa takes a deep breath as she grabs her guitar. She watches you walk in by yourself and your face changes to confusion when you see Melissa holding her guitar. Melissa starts playing the guitar and looks at you as she starts singing.

“We were strangers, starting out on a journey. Never dreaming what we’d have to go through. Now here we are, I’m suddenly standing, at the beginning with you.”

Melissa starts singing the song and you immediately start smiling. Melissa continues singing.

“No one told me, I was going to find you. Unexpected, what you did to my heart. When I lost hope, you were there to remind me. This is the start. And life is a road that I wanna keep going. Love is a river that I wanna keep flowing. Life is a road, now and forever, wonderful journey. I’ll be there when the world stops turning, I’ll be there when the storm is through. In the end I want to be standing at the beginning with you.” Melissa continues singing and you can’t help but walk closer to her and put your stuff on a nearby desk.

“We were strangers on a crazy adventure. Never dreaming how our dreams would come true. Now here we stand, unafraid of the future. At the beginning with you.” Melissa continues playing the guitar and looks at you with a smile. “Wanna sing the chorus with me?” She asks you and you nod.

“Life is a road that I wanna keep going, love is a river that I wanna keep flowing. Life is a road now and forever, wonderful journey. I’ll be there when the world stops turning. I’ll be there when the storm is through. In the end I wanna be standing, at the beginning with you.” You both sang and you look at her with a wide bright smile.

“Knew there was somebody, somewhere. A new love in the dark. Now I know my dream will live on, I’ve been waiting so long, nothing’s gonna tear us apart! And life is a road that I wanna keep going, love is a river I wanna keep flowing, life is a road, now and forever, wonderful journey. I’ll be there when the world stops turning, I’ll be there when the storm is through. In the end I wanna be standing at the beginning…” Melissa sings and does one last strum on the guitar. “With you.” She ends and a tear slides down your cheek and you have a huge smile on your face. Melissa quickly puts the guitar down safely and turns to look at you. “Remember how we met here? You got introduced as my new aide 5 years ago.” She says and you nod your head. “I had no idea that would be the most important meeting of my life.” She continues and then she reaches in her pocket to pull something out and then gets down on one knee. You gasp and put a hand over your mouth. “Y/N Y/M/N Y/L/N, will you marry me?” She asks you and you launch yourself at her and hug her.

“YES! OF COURSE I WILL!” You shout and she hugs you back with a huge smile on her face. “Wait…” you say as you pull back. “I thought you didn’t want to get married. You wanted more of a common law relationship.” You ask her.

“I thought I did too, but lately I’ve been thinking of marrying you.” She simply says and she puts the ring on your finger. You look at it with a smile and then you look at her and kiss her. You both then hear clapping and cheering and you both look and see Janine, Jacob, Gregory, Barb, Ava and Mr Johnson there.

“I told you she’d say yes dear.” Barb says.

“Well how can I say no when my fiancée serenades me with a song?” You say and put an arm around her neck and look at her with a smile.

“I can’t wait to make you a Schemmenti.” Melissa tells you and kisses you.

“Oh, get a room!” Ava yells, then flips her hair and leaves.

You then hear Janine and Jacob squeal. “I can’t wait! Can we help plan the wedding!” Jacob asks you both.

“Only help, but we make all the final decisions.” Melissa tells them sternly and they both nod.

You then look at Melissa again and lean your forehead on hers. “At the beginning, with you.” You sing softly and Melissa can’t remember the last time she’s been this happy.

Taglist: @esposadejoyhuerta

@imaginesmultifandoms

@idonothingalldays-blog

@sexysapphicshopowner

@dvrkhcld

@lilfartbox1

@ricejucie

@unicorniusfallapatorius

@a-queen-and-her-throne

@sleep-deprived-athlete

@og-kxsh-420

@sasheemo

@midnight-lestrange

Let me know if you want to be added!

[thenerdykneazle]

Left Behind

Summary: Ominis is feeling forgotten when he discovers his partners have run off on yet another adventure without him. He frets about the future of his relationship with two people who seem to neither need nor want him around. Can Sebastian and MC make amends with him when they return to the castle?

A collab with the lovely @darch7995, who gave me the prompt and created the audio version of this story. Listen here.

Ominis Gaunt x F!MC x Sebastian Sallow

Warnings: light angst, sad Ominis

Word count: 2511

Ominis could hear the scrape of metal on stone as the door to the Room of Requirement materialised before him. He pushed it open and stepped inside. He could hear several cauldrons bubbling and the magical loom weaving away. The aromas of mallowsweet leaves and shrivelfigs hung thickly in the air from the potting tables along the wall.

“MC? Sebastian? Are you here?” he called as he took echoing steps into the centre of the large room.

A soft pop came from his right. “Deek saw the students leave nearly an hour ago,” the house-elf said.

Ominis groaned. “Ugh, of course, they did,” he groused. “Off to fight some dark wizards or search for artefacts in a hidden cave, no doubt.”

“MC told Deek they were going to collect ashwinder venom for a new potion,” Deek said timidly.

“What a surprise!” Ominis said sarcastically as he began to pace around the room. “That’s obviously more important than working on our project for transfiguration – like we had agreed on days ago! And, naturally, they didn’t tell me they’d miss our appointment. Plus, why ask the boy who can speak to snakes to tag along? Why would he be useful?”

Deek let out a squeak of fright as Ominis sent a hex at the adjacent wall, singeing a portrait of a witch with her pet niffler in her lap. “Deek is very sorry if he upset you,” the meek elf said in a trembling voice.

Ominis winced. “No, I’m not upset with you. I…I’m sorry,” he said, as a pang of guilt stabbed into his stomach. He hadn’t meant to scare the innocent elf. He was just frustrated.

Deek apologised again, as if he’d done anything wrong, before popping away again.

Ominis sighed as he trudged forward into the forest vivarium. Inside, he could hear unicorns galloping across the ground and jobberknolls soaring above the trees. Wand outstretched, Ominis walked down the cobblestone path to a bench by the water. The sun warmed his skin as he stepped out of the shade of the trees. As he sat there, a light breeze tousled his hair, making a few strands fall across his forehead. He usually liked to nap in the spot, but he didn’t feel up to it at the moment.

His attempt to brood angrily failed miserably, as Ominis just felt dejected. He sniffed as unshed tears made his nose begin to run. He didn’t understand why his companions constantly neglected him in favour of each other. He had been elated – eventually – to have MC make him and Sebastian a trio again. Something had been missing ever since Anne had to leave school. He thought MC had filled that void – not that she had replaced Anne, as the other Sallow twin was still like a sister to him. She was far better to him than any of his actual siblings, and nothing would change his love for her. But she wasn’t there anymore.

And Ominis’s feelings for MC were certainly different than his ones for Anne. Right from the start, they were a lot more like how he felt toward Sebastian. It had felt like a dream come true when they had decided to date each other – Ominis had thought he couldn’t ask for better partners. They both made him laugh. They both knew how to comfort him when he was upset. They both made his heart skip beats when they sat close or grabbed his hand to lead him to some newly discovered oddity in the castle or out on the grounds. Ominis normally hated when people grabbed him, but it was different with Sebastian and MC.

Though, neither was dragging him much of anywhere lately. The girl who had stolen a piece of his heart had also managed to steal most of their boyfriend’s time. They were always sneaking off to Merlin-knows-where to get into untold trouble. It made Ominis feel like an outsider in his own relationship.

Heavy thuds behind Ominis announced the approach of the hippogriffs even before Highwing’s chirping made their presence obvious. She nuzzled into the boy’s side before flopping down on the ground beside him, resting her head on the bench beside him. Caligo settled down on the opposite side of the boy.

Ominis laughed softly, despite the heaviness still in his chest at being abandoned. “At least you two still like me,” he said, giving each beast a pat on the head.

Caligo chittered happily as Highwing rubbed the side of her face against Ominis’s thigh in a display of affection.

“Maybe I should take a page out of Poppy’s book and promote you two to my best friends,” Ominis joked. He could feel Caligo’s head tilt with his hand still resting atop it. “You wouldn’t abandon me for each other, would you?”

They gave no response.

“What am I saying? Of course, you would,” Ominis said, shaking his head. “You two are a bonded pair.”

The words tasted bitter in his mouth.

“You know,” he continued to the hippogriffs, “I used to think Sebastian and I were a rather bonded pair. And, while I was sceptical of MC when she first arrived, she won me over. I thought I had gained a new partner in crime. I didn’t realise then that my old friend and my new one would slowly decide they were better off without me.”

Highwing made a sympathetic sort of chirp. At least, Ominis thought it sounded so.

“Yes, I suppose MC left you behind on this adventure too, didn’t she?” he observed. “She has a fancy upgraded broom and a duelling champion. What’s she need any of us for? Never mind that you saved her from those poachers. Or that I helped her defeat all those inferi in the catacombs – inferi that Sebastian created, mind you. But why have the blind boy tag along, right? I couldn’t possibly take care of myself – or, shock of shocks, be helpful.”

Caligo rested his head in Ominis’s lap. The boy stroked the creature’s head, smoothing his feathers gently. It made his fingers feel powdery to run them through his plumage, but it also soothed him.

“I just….I really can’t believe Sebastian replaced me so easily,” he said, struggling to get the words out as he was getting choked up. “After all we’ve been through together. After all that I’ve stood by him through. And MC…I confided in her about things I’d never even told Sebastian. They both mean so much to me, and…it’s like I’m expendable to them. They just ran off without telling me. Again. Not only do they not need me, they…they don’t even want me there.”

Ominis stayed in the comforting presence of his feathered companions. He felt a bit less alone with them on either side of him. Completely losing track of time, he just sat and sulked with them until two more people burst into the vivarium.

“Ominis?” MC called as she wound through the trees.

The blond didn’t bother replying. He had little interest in talking to either of his so-called partners. The hippogriffs scampered off when they heard their master’s voice.

“Traitors,” Ominis grumbled to himself.

“Ominis! There you are!” Sebastian said as the pair arrived at his bench. “We’ve been looking all over for you! We were worried something happened to you when you weren’t at dinner. You’d just disappeared!”

Ominis snorted out a laugh. “You two are the ones who disappeared,” he accused, crossing his arms over his chest in indignation. “We were supposed to work together in the library this afternoon, and you couldn’t be bothered to tell me you weren’t going to make it.”

“That was today?” MC asked guiltily, shifting nervously where she stood and making the leaves crunch under her feet.

“Yes, it was!” Ominis shot back irritably. He shifted away from her voice, turning his nose up in the air. “But I should’ve known better than to expect my boyfriend and girlfriend to show up to our study date.”

“I’m sorry, Ominis. We just got caught up–” Sebastian started, laying a hand on his shoulder.

Ominis shrugged him off. “You’re always getting caught up in something! And always leaving me behind!” he interjected.

“We didn’t think you’d want to come,” MC admitted, sounding remorseful.

Good, Ominis thought. She should be sorry.

“We had to fly up into the mountains to find the ashwinders’ nests, and you hate flying,” she explained.

“But I love the two of you! I would’ve gone if you’d asked,” Ominis retorted. “But you clearly didn’t want me there.”

“That’s not true!” MC insisted.

“Isn’t it?” Ominis replied.

“You know it’s not,” Sebastian stated firmly, breaking back into the conversation. He often let MC handle Ominis when he was upset, as Sebastian was under the impression that MC “had a way with him.” The blond had clearly struck a nerve to make him feel the need to speak up.

“No, I don’t, Sebastian!” Ominis argued, growing angrier. Before he knew it, he was on his feet and jamming a finger in Sebastian’s chest. “You two just don’t want your little blind pet getting in the way. You don’t think I can handle myself out in the forest, right? You think you need to protect me from harm while you both run headfirst into danger. You treat me like a child!”

“Ominis!” MC gasped, taken aback at his outburst.

“Do either of you even want me around anymore?” he asked, trying not to let the pain show in his voice.

“Of course, we do,” Sebastian said, and his anger had dissipated. He took hold of Ominis’s hand. Ominis squeezed his in return. “We didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I didn’t think you would want to go gallivanting through the Highlands.”

“What I want is to spend time with my boyfriend and girlfriend again. You two are always gone lately,” Ominis admitted.

MC wrapped her arms around him from behind. “I’m sorry, Ominis. We found a potion that might be able to cure Anne, and I’ve had tunnel vision about the whole thing. But I also didn’t want to get her hopes up if it didn’t pan out. I wasn’t sure we’d be able to find all of the ingredients.”

Ominis rested a hand on her arm that was across his stomach. “Why didn’t you tell me?” he croaked.

“Ominis,” MC said chidingly, “you know you’re rubbish at keeping secrets from her.”

The boy’s cheeks flushed with heat. “I’m not that bad,” he said defensively.

“You told her what I’d bought her for Christmas three years in a row before I started hiding it from you, too,” Sebastian argued, making MC chuckle.

Ominis could feel her chest rumble against his back, and he melted into her.

“So, you two aren’t tired of me, then?” he asked a bit timidly.

MC laughed. “Hardly,” she replied before giving him a sweet kiss on the cheek.

“Who else would be the voice of reason?” Sebastian joked. Tenderly cupping his hand over Ominis’s cheek, he added, “You know I’m mad about you, you stupid git.”

“Ever the romantic,” Ominis replied drily.

MC giggled as Sebastian crashed his lips into Ominis’s. He had clearly taken the heir of Slytherin’s words as a challenge. One he met with force. If MC hadn’t been behind the lithe boy, Sebastian probably would have knocked him to the ground.

Sebastian tasted like the treacle tarts he always gorged on after chasing MC around on some ill-advised adventure. Ominis fisted his free hand into his boyfriend’s robes as he kissed him back, sliding his tongue into his mouth and making him moan. Sebastian quickly returned the favour – and then some, as he moved to trail open-mouthed kisses down the side of Ominis’s neck.

Panting as he pulled back, Sebastian’s smirk was practically audible. “Better?” he asked cheekily.

Ominis chuckled. “Much,” he replied silkily, stroking his thumb over the back of MC’s arm, which was still wrapped around him.

“Does this mean you’d want to help us get venom from the snake I’ve got in my nab-sack?” MC inquired, lifting her head off his shoulder. “Because I’d really prefer not to get bitten again.”

“You were bitten?” Ominis roared.

“Three times, actually, but Nurse Blainey patched me right up when we made it back to the castle,” she replied as if it were as casual of a fact as that it might rain the following afternoon.

Ominis felt like he might pass out before the rage steadied him. “You let her get bitten three times?” he growled at Sebastian.

“How is it my fault?” Sebastian asked, bewildered, but Ominis had already spun away from him, refocusing on MC.

His hands worried over every inch of her. “Are you sure you’re all right?” he asked. “Are you dizzy? Or in pain? Do you want me to take you back to the hospital wing for the night, just in case?”

“I’m fine,” MC insisted, and Ominis would bet a pretty galleon that she’d rolled her eyes.

“I got bitten too, you know,” Sebastian sulked.

“Merlin, I’m so glad you’re okay!” Ominis said, pulling MC into a tight hug.

Sebastian pouted even more at being ignored.

“I am as long as I can breathe,” MC choked out.

Ominis instantly released her. “Sorry,” he muttered, raising a hand to her cheek and gently stroking his thumb over the smooth skin.

“It’s all right,” MC replied kindly before turning her head to press a kiss into his palm. “You’re sweet to worry, but I really am fine.”

“Barely! You’re never going out without proper supervision again,” Ominis asserted.

“Now who’s being treated like a chi–” MC started.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Sebastian asked, offended.

“You know exactly what I meant, Sebastian,” Ominis said severely. “Clearly, you two are hazardous left to your own devices.”

“I’ll let that slight pass if it means you’ll start coming out with us,” Sebastian said lightly.

“Yes, I’ve quite made up my mind on it,” Ominis replied seriously.

“Brilliant! It’ll be great having more help. And if we all get stranded in one of those remote little cabins and have to share the one, tiny bed all pressed up against each other, well…all the better,” Sebastian added cheekily.

Ominis jumped slightly when he felt a hard pinch on his bum. “You’re a degenerate, Sebastian,” he tried to assert, but his face was going red imagining the scenario.

“You love me,” the mischievous boy stated confidently.

Ominis could tell he had stepped in rather close, because he could feel Sebastian’s breath puff over his nose and cheeks.

Ominis gave a dramatic sigh, refusing to give Sebastian the satisfaction of swooning at his flirting. “Against my better judgement, but, yes, I do. Both of you.”

“Good. Because we’ll never be tired of you, so you’re stuck with us,” MC said.

“Promise?” Ominis asked, feeling a jolt of insecurity.

Sebastian rested his forehead against his, their noses brushing together. “Promise,” he vowed.

Ominis relaxed. Pressed between the two people he loved most, he felt anything but unwanted.

[oh-no-its-bird]

Tora gets hit w the time travel beam *gestures vaguely towards the "team ro time travel to warring states era but make it Tora AU team ro" post*

And gets mistaken for a bastard senju kid and missing brother of Tobirama bc of the resemblance. But also using the same logic I used w Itachi of the "the only people allowed to draw the connection are people who personally knew Tobirama when he was Tora's age (which, if sticking to the original team ro prompt, would be like 12) so only like. The founders + Touka get to make that conclusion

Him 🤝 Tenzo -> getting mistaken for a Senju and getting lots of hugs from Hashirama that make them Feel Things (TM)

People are telling Tora he's probably a bastard kid and he's making deliberate eye contact w that one time he tried to break into the senju compound and was kicked out bc the gates keyed into senju blood specifically. He's pretty sure he's not a senju guys. Trust him. Really.

Mmmm ok but actually taking it seriously, how would Tora affect the team ro dynamics in that specific adventure? In my original post I went really in depth on what each character thinks of their situation + the founders, so would that change at all?

On top of that, since it's a few month before the Uchiha coup, it's also peak Itachi-Tora-Shisui chaos hours as they plot to stop it

I think it's mostly the same, tho maybe Tora's general affect on Itachi means he isn't quite so much in the "Hey what if we just kill Madara. What then." boat

But also I can see the opposite, with maybe Itachi instead getting Tora on the "Hey what if we kill Madara in his sleep" boat

Shisui can sense the "Tora and Itachi are doing something alarming" button being slammed in the room over and investigates

Oh my god worst possible outcome: they get Shisui on board too. I can see it tbh, they were looking for ways to avoid the coup and the possible village retaliation and like hey !!! Opportunity they sure as fuck won't be getting anywhere else!!!

Plus like, play into the "Itachi rarley offers his own opinion bc he trusts Tora and Shisui to be in charge, but when he does offer it he's listened to"

Well he sure did offer his opinion!! And he sure is being listened to!!!

They actually all just feed into eachothers stress and decide that yes. To avoid the Uchiha coup and or possible village retaliation (they dont know the massacre is on the board yet but suspect smthn similarly bad), this is the best choice to make.

It turns into Kakashi having to talk them all down (whether he does so in time or not is debatable)

They get stopped, obviously, (tho actually commiting to killing off Madara like that would be very funny) and Madara assumes it was Tora's idea bc hes a clear leading figure in the trio and the other two are Uchiha. Tora is willing to take the fall for his friend, but Itachi is not

Itachi has a whole breakdown and bursts into awful messy tears for the first time since his father took him out to a battlefield as a child.

It's a whole thing and everyone is horrified (Tora and Shisui especially but even Madara + whoever else was there are cringing awkwardly at the sight of a previously blank faced little kid just. Loosing it.)

Itachi confesses to it being his idea and, at this point we're past the time travel reveal, explains he just needs to make sure Madara doesn't freak the fuck out and inevitable fuck over the entire Uchiha clan w a shitty reputation that haunts him for years to come

Madara is horrified what the fuck

Also INCREDIBLY demoralized ab the village now, what do you MEAN he fucking left it what do you MEAN originally Izuna died (they were keeping them in the dark ab everything future-wise other than just the fact that the village existed but this kind of forced the lid off that pot)

Also note: Kakashi !! Was !! Not !! Aware of this !!! Holy shit kids !!!!!!

They end up having a whole Thing(tm) about how look even if Madara one of the causes of their shit reputation,,, it can't all be traced back to and blamed on one man. That's not how politics work you guys.

(Queue shocked Pikachu faces and disbelief of three teenagers)

Kakashi, having his own special front row seats to the Konoha politics and rumor mill + yondaime's student + experience with facing the worst of it bc of his dad, giving them some sort of speech about scapegoats and politics and the soul crushing realities of systematic oppression and blame

It's a learning experience.

[vaderkin-is-a-lightning-rod]

Hello everyone!!

We’ve got a lot of amazing pieces of art and fictions for the Vaderkin Creative Exchange 2024! I’m super proud of all of you. 💜

On this day, until the 31 August...

🎊 🎉 🎨 THE CREATIVE FESTIVAL OFFICIALLY OPEN 🎨 🎉 🎊

For the artists and writers who had this idea for one of the prompt they received but didn’t have time to make it — this is the occasion!

For creators who missed the deadline and wanted to join the event — this is the occasion!

For people inspired by one of the drawings, or by one of the fanfiction scenes — this is the occasion!

How to participate?

On Tumblr: Tag your work Vaderkin Creative Festival 2024, precise the work that inspired your art, and mention the server blog @vaderkin-is-a-lightning-rod so we can repost you.

On AO3: Tag your work Vaderkin Creative Festival 2024, precise the work that inspired your art, and add your work to the vaderkin_creative_exchange_2024 collection

This is an event to give you the chance to draw fanarts or write fanfiction on the amazing creations this event produced. You don’t need to have signed up to the event nor receive / made a gift for it. You can make a fic or an art inspired by a fic which itself was inspired by another art, make a fanwork inspired by an art of the event, and begin an art fight! The only limit, is that it must be linked in some way to one of the event works.

Basically, be inspired, draw, write, and have fun! 🥳

Vaderkin Creative Exchange 2024 Masterlist

Fanfiction

Sáinnithe by @sinvulkt for @squad-724

Field of Dreams by @fanfictasia , TiranaSorki for @mina-jamsin-derulo

Letters by @fanfictasia , TiranaSorki for @mina-jamsin-derulo

Dying Stars by @fanfictasia , AminaGila for @acryliccassetteart

Heaven Swallowed the Smoke by AshCatchem for @nightingalewritings

As Everything Burns by @fanfictasia , RivanaRita for @zero-max

Paths by @wisechaosglitter for @sunrisemcashao3

Eyes on Ahsoka by @rinn-e for @mina-jamsin-derulo

Beyond the Stars: The Enduring Legacy of a Galactic Hero, 20 Years Later by Squidwonder for @tramp-fiction

grudging sacrifices by @unlikecharlie for @cinderfeather

just like a photograph by @withyourrhythm for @omaano

Is this the droid you want to die on? by @adragonsfriend for @ladyv-aka-via

Flightless by @ravenite-void for @fancyfrey

Fragments of a Dynasty by @tantive404 for @ravenite-void

Under the Moonlight by cherrycourage for @artmelody

Present, Past, and Future by @wendingways for @mina-jamsin-derulo

knowing how it goes (but never how to stop it) by MillionLights for @vandervoiz

The Restless Devourer by @vandervoiz for @sinvulkt

in thousands of agonies - i exist by @femmefangirl for @asteral-feileacan

Brillant and Blue by @nightingalewritings for @sinvulkt

In Common by @pat-the-togorian for @fanfictasia , RivanaRita

Angel of Fire by @asteral-feileacan for @starlesssky72

How to date a Time Traveling Jedi (quickest routes, no shortcuts) by @zero-max for @yatsukisakura

Don't Look Them in the Eye by @cinderfeather for @piroporopi

Art

A Scar In the Eye and [Panel 2] by @piroporopi for @vandervoiz

Alone by my side by @nightingalewritings for @tantive404

In from the desert by @nightingalewritings for @adragonsfriend

Vaderkin Creative Exchange 2024 art by @jarenka for @rinn-e

They were great and a family by @ravenite-void for Melly (ao3)

Through time and into darkness by @ravenite-void for @wendingways

Art for Vaderkin creative exchange 2024, The Winter Picnic and Art #2 by @wendingways for @unlikecharlie

[ART] Your Mistake by @asteral-feileacan for @fanfictasia , Tirana

No Respite From The Past and A Cord Unsevered by @vandervoiz for @letitrainathousandflames

Artwork by @artmelody for @pat-the-togorian

Vader kidnapped, Disaster trio (or with Padmé) being a family, Eldritch Dragon Anakin, Anakin transforms, horrified and Vaderkin falling from the sky by @fancyfrey for @sinvulkt

Beginning at the end by @mina-jamsin-derulo for @artmelody

Eyes on the future by @mina-jamsin-derulo for @christina-stark-skarlet-stileto

Until The Night Ends by @mina-jamsin-derulo for SquidWonder

Artwork by @starlessskys-artblog for @ravenite-void

The Clone Wars: 20 Years Later! Exclusive Interview with General Anakin Skywalker-Amidala by @tramp-fiction for @wisechaosglitter

To protect, Anakin... Or Vader?, Blob Vader get BOOPED and Surrender by @sinvulkt-art for @cinderfeather

The restless devourer, The dark wyrm, The puppeteer by @sinvulkt-art for MillionLights (ao3)

Anakin and Fives shenanigans by @omaano for @fanfictasia , Amina

Of Shotguns and Band-aids  by @zero-max for @asteral-feileacan

Artwork by @ladyv-aka-via for @shevek

Massive Mer Ani by @squad-724 for @zero-max

Medusa Vader by @squad-724 for @nightingalewritings

March on the Temple by @acryliccassetteart for @fanfictasia , Rivana

Panel by @yatsukisakura for @withyourrhythm

When Your Boss is Very Heavy by @cinderfeather for MaDonz(ao3)

[Art] Mom did it better by MaDonz for AshCatchem

Chaos by @fanfictasia , RivanaRita for @femmefangirl

"I'm prepared to sacrifice my life." by @sunrisemcashao3 for @starr234

This is the fourth step of the Vaderkin Creative Exchange 2024 event. You can find the full event rules here.

[bluerosefox]

[2023 Prompt List 1][Here] [2023 Prompt List 2][Next] [2023 Prompt List 3][Next]

|Why Ra’s Would Summon the Ghost King (Also Twins AU) [Part 1] |Danyal, Danny, Phantom [Part 2] |WIP [Part 3] |Bio!Dad Jason and Bio!Mom Jazz (With Oc!Kid or Son!Danny) |Ghost Gotham (With Bonus Ghosts Martha and Thomas) |Danny Says Clone Rights |Robin’s Haunted Halloween (Feat. Ghost King Danny and Ghostly grandparents Martha and Thomas) |Library Cryptid Danny |Twins to Trio? (Dani mistakes Damian as Danny, and Damian learns his twin might not be dead) |Twins AU BUT WITH ANGST! |Mom!Dani (Square up Superman) |Free Flying Graysons (Feat. Ghostly John and Mary Grayson) |Comes in Twos (Twins! Jason and Danny die on the same day) |Foreboding Words of Warnings (Feat. Competent Ghost King Danny) |Across My Memories (Feat. Ghost King Danny, Ghost!Prince Jason) |Consorthood Via Combat (Feat. Ghost King Danny, and Danny dating any Bat of your choosing) |Wrong Number Au (Danny sends a rant text to Tucker... Only its not Tucker) |Todd and Phantom, Mostly Ghostly Shenanigans (Danny and Jason try to get out of the GZ together and bond) |Ellie “I WILL bite you” and Danny “He’s just a baby” Fenton (Deaged Danny and caretaker (and tiny bit feral) Dani (Ellie) watch out Gotham, she’ll bite.) |Double Troubles (another Damian and Danny twin au but they wanna see how long their families notice they switch places) |Everything, including the bride. WAIT, BRIDE?! (Dead Tired pairing, Tim now regrets being a smart cookie as a kid and solving a magical puzzle box while Danny regrets beating Pariah Dark cause he got the old King’s bride now as his own) |CAT Ghost INSTINCTS (Damian brings home a... interesting new acquaintance who has some interesting... quirks) |Peek-A-Boo Champ! (Jazz and her baby being taken by a cult. Jason coming to save them. And Uncle Danny being the best at peek-a-boo) |Teeny-Tiny Kitten (Danielle ‘Ellie’ makes a wish and later gets found by a certain cat and bat) |Same As The Day I Lost You (Mix de-aged Danny, and siblings!Damian and Danny, add in some teleporting/portaling when the bats are fighting the League and you get this idea.) |Cuckoo Clocks (Clockwork sends a certain RR a sticky note during his solo run to come find Phantom and later find him) |The (Not) Normal One... (a reborn/reincarnted Danny idea where he’s the normal one in the batfam... only he’s really not.) |Dip and Kiss (Jason totally would kiss the person who ended the Joker in an Oscar worthy movie moment) |The Trouble With Time Travel Guilt (Danny starts an AITA thread due to his guilt over the future that will never be, he trauma bonds with fellow heroes and time travelers over it) |Friendships Between Realms (YJ and Danny Shenanigans Being Peek Friendship) |Misunderstandings and Miscommunications (Danny panics and runs, good Fenton parents want their son home, well meaning but not knowing the full picture best friends, on a war path Jazz and the maybe wooing of RH, and the DCverse getting caught in the middle of the chaos) |A Little Robin (Danny gets stuck in a Robin doll/plush and winds up in Gotham) |Kid's y'know? (Youngblood wants to be an astronaut this time, and Danny... Has to stop him from running amok the JL Watchtower) |Gothamites Never Really Rest (Johnny was a crime alley kid, Kitty was the daughter of a mob boss, and Jason was a kid they pseudo raised before their deaths. They meet again when Kitty and Johnny return to Gotham and find budding crime lord named Red Hood)

[sincerely-sofie]

What do you think Ark's gonna do when Twig eventually dies, considering he's immortal and stuff.

Have a fic inspired by this question and this prompt by @oblonger. Be warned. It's a heavy one.

(Celebi ultimately barely appears in this, sorry. I got caught up in the Ark Angst Train ride :< )

She'd left him the house in her will. She'd left him the home they had spent their days in, that they had wept and laughed and held each other in, and he could barely stand to spend a second within its walls. Take care of it, she'd said in writing messy from the tremors in her hands rather than any lack of familiarity with the script she wrote in. The shutters still squeak and I never got around to fixing that. Sorry to leave you with chores to do. He knew she said it as a joke, but he couldn't bear the thought of her feeling any sort of guilt as she penned these pages in secret while her body broke down around her. 

Fire-types were prone to dying of disease rather than age. He was aware of this, and had hoped she'd be the exception. An infection of the lungs was nothing to fear when a Legend with the power to cure ailments owed a mortal what amounted to a life debt, so he was the one to call on his counterpart when Twig's coughing fits began to yield bloodied kerchiefs. It was a simple thing to mend lungs when one had no shortage of power when it came to vanishing disease—

— Yet Cresselia couldn't heal her. 

She tried again, clasped Twig's shaking hand tighter and murmured her command for the universe around them to abide her instructions and leave his hero unaffected by disease. 

It failed once more. 

Cresselia gave him a sorrowful glance, and he knew. He knew it was because of him. He'd tried so long to forget the curse, and now it had reared its head in the worst way possible. The infection rejected almost all mortal treatments. Now it remained untouched in the face of Legendary ones— and it was because of him. 

Twig had pulled her hand away, flexed her fingers, and laughed tiredly. “Yeah.” She smiled, and he knew it was despite her knowledge of what the two Legends were sitting in quiet terror from. “That might as well happen. Well, I had a good run, right?”

He wanted to scream when he saw her wipe away the tears in her eyes before they fell. He wanted to take her by the shoulders and shake her, to tell her to Stop trying to be brave about this. But he didn't do anything. He just sat there, numb and silent. 

***

It wasn't even a month afterward that she passed, and he wasn't there when it happened. 

(She'd told him when he'd asked, once, that she had seen a final dimensional scream after being brought back from death by Dialga. Her ability had been dormant ever since she was seized from the afterlife, but it returned for this singular vision before vanishing entirely. He asked her what she'd seen, and she told him she'd seen how she would die. It was fuzzy and vague, but she thought she'd recognize the moment when it came. He was horrified by this. She laughed and told him she was joking, that she just saw what she was going to eat the next morning, and that it wasn't anything to worry about. 

(Looking back, he wished he had paid more attention to how she backpedaled on what her vision contained only when he started to panic. She was lying. She was lying for his sake, and as he reflected on this memory, he could only recall how Kip had mentioned her hiding the fate awaiting her at the end of their mission until she was fading away from existence on their return from Temporal Tower.)

“Hey, Ark? Would you mind running over to the Future Trio’s place and asking them if they'd mind coming over sometime?” 

She sounded so tired. He spent most days at her bedside now, offering what comfort he could as her illness progressed. He looked her over, wary. “I could ask Celebi through our link. There's no need for me to leave to do so.”

“Well, yeah, but I don't want to use her as the middle man on this. You know how she only hears what she wants to hear, right? It'd be better to just go and ask them all in person so we can get an accurate answer.” She frowned up at him from her sickbed. “I know it's a bit silly, but it'd mean a lot to me, Ark.” 

“… You're certain you'll be well enough while I'm gone?” 

“Sure as sure can be.” Her smile was thin at the edges. He wondered if she was in much pain. “I'll holler for Gardevoir if I need anything. You know she'd come running if I did.” 

“Very well. I'll make haste.”

“Nah, take your time. I'm going to be okay.” 

He set off, and he would forever regret leaving her alone that afternoon. 

***

It was Dusknoir who alerted him to her passing. Ark had gone to her friends’ home as she asked, relaying her request for their company, when the man suddenly went rigid where he sat in the corner of the room. 

Grovyle asked him what was the matter, but Ark himself froze as understanding settled over him with a damning weight. 

Ghost-types could sense the life-force of those they spent much time with, which meant they could tell when that life-force was slipping away from this plane. Dusknoir looked up with tears in his eye, and Ark snapped into the shadows outside their home to hasten to Twig. 

She was already gone by the time he reached her— lying limp in her bed, curled up cozily, the flame of her tail gone out. Her journal was open to a message she'd written before passing, her pen laid across the pages to prop it open— Love you. Keep up the good work. 

She'd known. She'd known it was her time, and she had sent him away to die alone. 

It wasn't fair. 

But when had the world ever shown him kindness?

***

Years passed after Twig left his side for good. Kip was aging happily despite his grief, and had retired from his archaeology team after earning an injury that jeopardized his career— though he spent his time writing books that swiftly became cornerstone texts for those studying archaeology. Grovyle himself passed soon after Twig did. Celebi murmured something about him dying of a broken heart through her tears when Ark tried to comfort her afterward, and how he still had so much life left in him despite his demise. 

On days like this, where it rained slow and weak as if the world mourned alongside him, he couldn't help his bitterness. 

It wasn't fair. 

Twig had so much left to give the world, and so much left of it to see, and yet she'd been cut down before her time. He knew it wouldn't last forever, that she couldn't remain with him as long as he would walk the wastelands of this wretched world, but it wasn't fair. And the skies had the gall to weep like they cared. 

It was his fault, he knew. She couldn't be saved because of a curse he'd dealt himself, and that was why she couldn't be healed. But surely as much as the universe scorned him, as much as his existence was formed on grudges and terror, the universe wouldn't turn its wrath for him against those he loved. 

She'd shown him so many things. She'd changed him. She'd made him see a point to life. And she was gone.

She was gone, and it was his fault. 

He paced an empty home with his head in his hands and wailed. 

It wasn't fair.

[carmillapixel]

Happy Halloween! 🎃

This is the last of the Froggy fall pictures, and the theme is spooky season. I really love how the little waltz turned out, it was fun making the beetle part of the spotlight, given his cameos in the previous pictures. I enjoyed this little trio, so perhaps I’ll draw them more in the future!

It was a challenge doing a spooky feeling colour scheme, and also making it look dark enough for a torch, without actually making it dark. I managed to include all of the daily prompts on this one, feeling happy about that!

If you want to see my sketches and my initial more nightly colour scheme, check my patreon! The post is available to free members, same with all the October art I did this month!

[mrfancyfoot]

Plots & Prosody: Prompts

Raphael x Evie (f!OC)

.

- A Blank Page - "Evie starts her contractually mandated courtship friendship period with Raphael and he presents her with a gift."

A short, (uhm, mostly) cute and fluffy prompt piece for Part II of Plots & Prosody. Part II begins post-BG3 events wherein Evie begins making a life for herself in Baldur's Gate, and Raphael is making good on his plans to conquer unite the Hells...while also trying to court her (of which she is completely oblivious).

This will probably be absorbed into Prosody in some form in the future when I get to the appropriate place officially, but for now, it will live on Tumblr. :)

Thank-you, anonymous friend, for spinning up a prompt!

Prompt Rating: T / SFW Word count: 777 Timeline: Plots & Prosody, Part II - Canon Tags/Warnings: POV Evie; POV Raphael; Raphael x Evie; Fluff; Friendship; Stalking; Obsession; Dark Romance

Main Fic (Rated E/Varied): AO3 + Tumblr | Master List Related Prompts: Good Morning , Caress , Supreme

❤️ Thanks for reading! :3 ❤️

“A gift, my dear,” Raphael declared as he held out a book - a journal - to her, “to commemorate the transition to a new chapter of your life.”

Wide-eyed, Evie accepted it and ran her hands over the soft, reinforced, black leather cover.  It was embossed with her name in a golden script between a trio of tiny, glimmering gemstones arranged into a fanned shape with golden scrolling.

It was the first thing he’d given her without the expectation of receiving something in return.  She almost questioned it, though he had deliberately used the word ‘gift.’

“Oh, gosh, this feels almost too nice to use!” she exclaimed as she paged it open.  High-quality binding, pages that were thick enough that ink wasn’t going to simply bleed through them.  

He smiled smugly as she lifted it to her nose and inhaled the delicious smell of new leather and paper.  And not muck and mildew like her current one...

“Are these…opals?” she asked in awe.

Raphael nodded with a gesture, his eyes flicking between her ears.  “I couldn’t help but notice that you appear to have a preference for the gem.”  He then frowned, his brow raising in question.  “If that is incorrect, I can have another placed instead.”

Evie shook her head emphatically.  “No, no!  It’s one of my favorites.”  She self-consciously brushed a hand over her ear realising that she did wear a number of them, even if they were small and minimalistic.

“The journal is enchanted to repel the grime and spills of daily happenstance,” he informed her knowingly.

“Easier to be careful when you’re not travelling and living out in the wilds for months,” she justified as she fought back a blush of embarrassment.  “But thank you, I very much appreciate the consideration!”

“Ah!  Not to be forgotten, there is something else.”  His fingers rose to snap and a small, oblong box dropped into his hand that he also passed to her.  “I have seen that you are making strides in your endeavor to render quills obsolete, though in the meanwhile, I thought a fresh plume was warranted.  This one will take dictation.”

Slipping the journal into the crook of her arm, she carefully lifted the lid off the box.  Inside was cushioned a fine, white quill with a pearlescent sheen that reminded her of the opals.  She was mesmerized by how stunning it was and knew, again, that she would be hesitant to use something so nice.  

And she could use it for dictation?

“Oh, wow…  You really didn’t have to!”  The thoughtfulness that went into it genuinely touched her.

Today marked the first day of fulfilling her side of their contract - in exchange for the Orphic hammer, she had agreed to spending a minimum of six full days with him every month, for a period of two years.  It was really just more or less a continuance of their meetings from before…in contract form.  An easy thing to agree to, all things considered at the time.  And he still got his Crown, so almost everyone was happy in the end.

Though, from even before then, it had increasingly felt like Raphael was afraid of the possibility of losing her presence in his life since she repeatedly refused to sign over her soul to him.  He clearly saw her time as at least equal in value to the hammer.  It was cute, in a ‘contractually mandated friendship’ kind of way.

Raphael would probably, absolutely never admit it, but it was clear as day to her that the human part of the devil needed real affection and affirmation.  And so, she would gladly help to fill that need.

“May I hug you?” she slyly asked with a grin.

While he looked mildly surprised for all of half a second, he removed his hand from his hip and held his arms out.

She excitedly bounded forward to wrap her arms around him and felt him mirror her.  “I do love them, thank you.”

“Think nothing of it, my dear,” he smoothly replied with a chuckle.  “I am merely happy to see that you are pleased with them and in knowing that they will assuredly be put to excellent use.”

He couldn’t fool her.  Raphael might have been cool as a cucumber on the outside, but his heart was now beating up an awful racket in his chest.  She bit her lip to keep from giggling.

.

.

.

As he returned the fox’s silly, giddy embrace, Raphael eyed the gifted journal’s twin - where within her ink would be duplicated - nestled surreptitiously between other books upon the shelves nearest his desk.

Another way to keep a close watch on his intended.

[himebushou]

One of Buddy Daddies' central themes is the concept of change. The series explores both whether it's possible for people to change and whether they should be allowed to change.

In Episode 7, Kazuki openly admits to Karin that he fears changing because that, to him, is the same as forgiving himself for what happened in the past.

However, Karin encourages Kazuki with the words, "I bet you can make [Miri] happy too!" The rain promptly stops and the sun comes out, symbolising that Kazuki can now walk towards a brighter future.

Then, in Episode 8, Rei tentatively asks Kazuki, "You think we can change?" Once again, change is presented positively: we see Rei and Kazuki driving through darkness, but their path is paved with light the entire way.

This conversation takes place a few months after Kazuki meets Karin; therefore, Kazuki's already had time to commit himself to changing. For Rei, however, the conversation in Episode 8 serves as a vehicle for allowing the audience to know, explicitly, that he wants to change.

So: Kazuki didn't want to change but was convinced that he is allowed to. Rei didn't know if he could change but was prompted to try.

However, if we go back to the start of the series, the person who is most invested in the pair changing is Kugi Kyuutarou.

In Episode 1, as Kazuki leaves Mistletoe Café, Kyuu-chan pointedly asks:

From Kyuu-chan's perspective (and we see Karin reiterate the same idea), Kazuki has mourned for a long time — long enough that he can now be merciful with himself and think about his own happiness. The fact that Yuzuko died five years ago is significant: had she died 'too recently' (e.g. a year ago), there is a risk that the audience would have accused Kazuki of moving on too quickly and therefore failed to sympathise with his pain. However, with Yuzuko's passing taking place half a decade ago, both Kyuu-chan and Karin could be positioned to say to Kazuki, "You've been unhappy for a long time: I give you permission to move on." Of course, the five years also allows for the exploration of other ideas, such as the parallel of Kazuki's unborn child being the same age as Miri — but this is a seperate matter and I'll try to avoid going on a further tangent just now.

The scene in Episode 1 is the first indication we receive that Kyuu-chan doesn't simply care for Kazuki and Rei as colleagues. In fact, he wants to see them living better, more fulfilling lives.

Then, in Episode 5, Kyuu-chan looks after Miri and comes to the conclusion that her influence is a positive one. He does have some reservations, but he shares these with Kazuki and Rei, stating that he's unsure of whether Miri's presence will be good or bad for the pair.

Ultimately, however, Kyuu-chan gives his blessings for the trio to continue living chaotically — and let's not forget that he's indulgent enough to babysit Miri while Rei and Kazuki undertake a reconnaissance mission.

Next, in Episode 7, Kazuki 'runs away'. He whines to Kyuu-chan about his living conditions and Kyuu-chan notes, "You've really changed," with a small smile on his face.

Kyuutarou is pleased. He's wanted to see his friends happy for years — he introduced Kazuki and Rei to each other in the hopes that they would be good for one another in some capacity (and, as knowledgeable as Kyuu-chan is, I doubt he could have predicted that Kazuki would take over Rei's life in such a dramatic way). As he listens to Kazuki whinge about domestic life, Kyuu-chan comments, "Sounds like you're having a lot of fun." Kazuki protests, but it's clear thst he enjoys what his life has become.

Nevertheless, at the end of Episode 10, Miri — who has been presented as Kazuki and Rei's light — leaves with Misaki. Kazuki and Rei believe that they are doomed to return to their old, empty lives and Kazuki says, "Guess we weren't able to change." Rei agrees, offering a resigned, "Yeah." Here, the pair are too absorbed in their grief to realise that they have already changed.

When Kazuki and Rei believed that change was possible, they were both basked in light. Here, however, the shining Ferris wheel (which now represents what they believe will be their last ever happy memory with Miri) is behind them. Even the bright stars are behind them. Rei and Kazuki are locked in darkness and the idea of being able to change is consigned to their past — a foolish, naïve past where they believed that they, two men with bloodied hands, could ever be truly happy, like normal people. Once again, light and shadow are used to juxtapose the past and the future.

But this post is about Kyuutarou, so we must ask the question: how does Kyuutarou feel about all of this?

My guess is that he's devastated.

In Episode 10, Kyuutarou uses some forthright language to convince Rei and Kazuki that their life with Miri is over. He reminds them, "We're the ones who killed her father." From his standpoint, Kyuutarou needs to speak these harsh truths and intervene (by calling Misaki) in order to save lives. It's easy to perceive Kyuutarou in a negative light — however, we can understand that his hand was forced. In Episodes 5 and 10, Kyuutarou warns Rei and Kazuki that the Organisation does not show leniency; it is probable that Kyuutarou fears for his own life, also.

So when Kyuutarou shows the pair a picture and states, "All of this was only ever a dream," he isn't simply addressing Kazuki and Rei. He's also talking to himself. For Kugi Kyuutarou, too, a precious dream — one where his friends can change, one where they can be happy — is dead.

And having to be the one to sound the death knell? Having to bear the burden of driving nails into a coffin?

Kugi Kyuutarou is in mourning.

[ionlymadethissoicouldleaveanask]

Dialogue Prompt

4 - John & Cobalt-Team (pick your straight-man)

13 - Kelly & Fred

From these prompts - please, anyone feel free to throw me some more!

4 - "Could you not be a show-off while we're trying to stay alive!"

(Set in the Silver timeline)

Cobalt Team were among the highest-performing Spartan teams. They had been hardened into a cohesive unit since they were six years old, and it showed. Ice water ran through their veins. They were efficient, they were precise, and they were deadly. Unfortunately, even the best of the best had bad days.

This was a bad day.

They'd been scouting ahead for an extraction detail - yet another in a long list of embarrassingly meaningless tasks ever since Silver Team had dropped the ball and made the entire SPARTAN program a liability in the eyes of the Powers That Be. For this particular mission, Silver Team was even sent along. No one knew why not one but two Spartan fireteams had been assigned babysitting duty, but then... they weren't the type to question orders. They'd leave that to John and his band of misfit toys.

Cobalt had just split off to check a new NAV marker when they came under fire. It took only a matter of seconds for the grizzled soldiers to realize that they were well and truly surrounded - and in deep trouble to boot.

"Elite, nine o'clock," Cobalt's leader, Val-015 called out stoically. He put a three-round burst into the towering alien's center-mass. Its shields flared brightly, then cracked. Yaz-112 put a single round from her DMR through the creature's skull, its dark blue innards spraying outward in a fine mist.

Val shifted his aim. "Cobalt Three, half a dozen jackals creeping up the right flank."

"I see them, I see them!" Karim-002 barked. He distracted the vaguely avian creatures with a few burst from his battle rifle before lobbing an M9 fragmentation grenade over top of their shields. A second and a half later, their angry squawks were silenced permanently.

Cobalt were good at what they did. Quick. Efficient. Deadly.

As Val consulted the dozens of incoming enemy contacts on his motion tracker, it suddenly dawned on him that it wouldn't be enough.

"Where's Silver when you need them?" Karim asked no on in particular as he knocked down a trio of Grunts with a few well-placed shots. "John's always around to act like he's the be-all end-all of hardcore soldiers, but when you actually need him? Something better always-"

Whatever Cobalt Three had been about to say was lost in the violent report of a Condor's chin-gun. The dense foliage around the fireteam erupted into shrapnel and neon-colored plumes of blood as the UNSC dropship rose seemingly from nowhere and began to burn down the encroaching enemies.

The carpet-fire was enough to give Cobalt a brief reprieve - and then the Condor was spinning around, its gangplank hanging open and waiting to receive them. Karim groaned audibly when he recognized John-117 standing on the lowered ramp, one arm outstretched heroically.

"Come on!" the Spartans' squad leader bellowed, firing an M6 into the woods.

Cobalt scrambled onto the Condor, both Val and Yaz allowing the Chief to help them aboard. Karim stiffly refused the other Spartan's help, opting to fling himself into the hovering dropship under his own power.

Once the troop bay was sealed tight and they were headed back to their carrier, John made his way to Karim's side.

"Are you injured, Spartan?" he asked, his voice surprisingly gentle for the man who had become so synonymous with warcraft that the UNSC had all but painted him as their mascot.

"I'm fine," Karim snapped. Then he sighed heavily, staring at his boots. Finally he lifted his eyes to glare at John's visor. "Just... could you not be a show-off while the rest of us are trying to survive?"

John stared at him in silence, the small twitch of his head the only indication that Karim's annoyed request had any effect on him. "Sorry," he finally said, his tone heavy-laden. "I'll try not to in the future."

From the cockpit, Vannak-134 and Riz-028 laughed loudly.

13 - "I would rather be kissing you right now."

The UNSC Infinity was the greatest warship the UNSC had ever constructed. She was sleek, she was fast, and she was just as powerful as the most impressive weaponry the Covenant had ever managed to bring to bear.

Not the least impressive attribute of the Infinity was her Spartan Deck. S-Deck, as it was known by the ship's crew, was stocked with enough Brokkr System machines and training materials to keep an entire company of Spartans happy... and Blue Team was certainly taking advantage of that.

Kelly-087 in particular was enjoying herself immensely. With the Infinity's 'War Games' simulator, the fastest of all Spartans had finally found herself a worthy challenger: a training relay that combined all of the thrill of a life-and-death combat scenario with all of the competitive triumph of being able to run simulations over and over again until her need for perfection was finally satisfied.

"This is incredible," Kelly said excitedly between rounds. Blue Team had just sent Fireteam Boxer to the showers, thoroughly humiliated with their poor showing against the veteran Spartans. Next up on the chopping block was Grindstone. She couldn't wait to rub the upstarts' faces in her own squad's superiority.

"I couldn't imagine a better way to spend our day," she continued, jabbering excitedly. "Teaching these kids how real Spartans operate, only to line them up and knock them back down the very next day."

Although Blue Team held immense respect for the Spartan-IVs, it was undeniable that they all got a very real sense of satisfaction from knocking down the younger generation down a few pegs from time to time. While John and Linda smirked and nodded their concurrence, Kelly noticed that Fred merely cocked his head to one side curiously, and said nothing.

Curious herself, the Spartan leaned closer to the man. "Something wrong?" she asked quietly enough that only he could hear, studying his expression. They were close - close enough for her to feel the heat radiating off his unhelmeted head and to count the flecks of blue pockmarking the green of his eyes. Close enough that she could smell his breath, still minty from his toothpaste, and could see each tick and shift in his familiar face.

Fred glanced over at her and grinned, dimples forming small valleys in his cheeks. "Not a thing, Rabbit," he said with a twinkle in his eye that he seemed to reserve only for her, in moments like these when no one else would notice. "I was just thinking that there's at least one thing I could be persuaded to do instead of this."

Kelly shot back a grin of her own, raising her eyebrows in surprise. "And what might that be, LT?" she prodded.

"Nothing too important," Fred answered, his smile slowly transitioning into a smirk. "But I'd rather be kissing you right now."

With that, the Spartan slid his helmet back into place. "Time's up," he called out, turning his back on Kelly and slinging an MA5D over his shoulder. "Grindstone's waiting for us to show them up yet again... I'd hate to disappoint."

Kelly watched him confidently march away, her jaw dropping open ever-so-slightly in shock. Then, mustering all of her will-power, she closed her mouth with a click of her teeth and resolved to focus on the upcoming simulation. It wouldn't do her any favors to waltz in unprepared. But, she promised herself, she was definitely going to take Fred up on that offer.

Sooner than later.

[scribz-ag24]

Thank you so much for your nice comment on the story!!! 😭😭😭😭 it rlly made my day!

I was trying to capture a lot of the softness and dynamics I see in your comics and art, so I am very pleased it worked out 😊

Also additionally, I want to do a bit more for the trio but work has me drained to come up with prompts, but if there’s ever a little ficlet idea you’d like to see materialized or you have any prompts, please send them my way!

I have to do my part in spreading the futuretrioshipping propaganda…

NGL I enjoyed the softness and trust you conveyed in your fic so much, it was so beautiful but still tame enough that it feels in character for all of them! It's perfect!

I'll certainly try to come up with some prompts if i can, although I aam not the best at those. Maybe something with them trying to integrate themselves in treasure town/the past, if they ever return to see hero and partner; or maybe something relateed to what you brought up in your fic of grovyle trying to convince himself they're safe... maybe there could be sth sweet done with foods, since they all would finally have a chance to have a nice, relaxed meal that's not based on grimy food and seeds and some rare apple, like in the dark future.....hmmm

whatever you choose to do, I already adore how you're spreading the futuretrioshipping propaganda <33

[crackinglamb]

AO3 Year End Roundup, 2023

Normally, I'd do this in a couple days, but we're close enough for government work (and I'm on a deliberate break anyhow, so nothing new is being posted). Normally this would also be a tag game, but I haven't seen it floating around yet, so...

Hey, you wanna do your own roundup? Go for it. Yes, I mean you (looking at you, DAFF crew). Consider this an open invite. Tag me back so I can see what y'all have been up to.

Words posted: 241,283 . This total has had subtracted from it the amount that already existed for the fic that carried over from last year (which was WG, of course). So this is actually what I posted this year.

Additional Words Written: ~166K. I have several WIP's going on in the background. One of which is finished and will begin posting after New Year's. Another of which is about halfway done. The rest are...procrastination projects/getting the wiggles out. They may never see the light of day. But they count as writing, so they are included.

Grand total of words: 407, 283 (goodness gracious)

Fandoms: 2

Works: 12, 11 of which were new.

Highest Kudos: Into the Current, at 271 (just like last year, I'm not counting WG since it wasn't new). The Iron Bull/OFC, rated E, 79K words, complete.

Highest Hit Oneshot: The Mighty Fall, at 706. Sookie Stackhouse/Eric Northman. Rated T, 2900 words.

New Things I Tried: I wrote a trio of fics for True Blood/Southern Vampire Mysteries this year. The WIP that's finished and waiting for the new year is a continuation of this series.

I also posted a ficlet I'd originally posted here on tumblr for archiving purposes. Some Years Into the Future...

Fic I Spent the Most Time On: Driftwood, my Bullmance series. Writing ItC itself wasn't particularly long, about two months, but T3, the next fic, is still being written. At first it was all going to be one long fic, but then I decided I've had enough of epics (meaning any work significantly over 100K words), and split it into parts.

Fic I Spent the Least Time On: The Mighty Fall. I have finally gotten to use the tag 'I wrote this instead of sleeping'. 🤣

Favorite Thing I Wrote: Usually, I have trouble with this category. I'm poly, you know. But this year, I actually DO have a fave. Okay...I have two.

How Deep the Bullet Lies - a gift for @rosella-writes, for the Solas Lovers Exchange. Solas/Cassandra Pentaghast with a whumpy open ending. Rated M, 4200 words.

More Than Mere Stone - a gift for my beloved @ir0n-angel in the same exchange. Solas/F!Trevelyan, pure fluff. Rated G, 1500 words.

Favorite Thing I Read: In Twain, by CatC. It's everything I wanted in a 'background character gets caught up in events' fic. With a sizzlingly hot Bullmance and So Much Cole. I think I've read it three or four times already. At least. If you need something comforting and wonderful, I cannot recommend it enough. It's simply delightful, and so is the author. Rated E, 172K words, WIP.

Something I Finished: I did it, at long last. I finished What a Wicked Game to Play. It was the focus of NaNo (and took literally three days once I put my mind to it, hence much of the other writing I did that hasn't been published). It feels really good to have my beloved Behemoth marked with a green checkmark. The story itself isn't finished, and I'll eventually write more for Imogen and Co., but for now, it is Done.

Writing Goals for 2024 – Keep on keeping on. I want to finish T3, so I can start posting it. I want to finish a couple other things from the WIP list. There will of course be a new Fluffuary prompt list. Biggest goal, however, is simply not to burn myself out. I've started waiting to publish until a fic is finished, which has done wonders for my stress levels. No more posting gaps on an in-progress fic.

Allow me to Gush about some things I wrote this year.

(Otherwise known as: honorable mentions)

Out of the Dark - Lark Cadash was once going to have an epic fic to her name. But I'm Tired, and frankly, I'm bored with rewriting the events of DA:I over and over again. So I've turned her into a series, where I can just put up oneshots and short chaptered things in no particular order that add up to one big story. This is one of them. Post-canon, Lark goes into the Deep Roads to find the answer to a riddle that's bugged her for her entire life. She gets more than she asked for, with a side serving of sad Solas. I've had many of the headcannons included in it for a long time, with no home. Now, they're out there in the world. Rated G, 4800 words.

What Lies Beneath - my actual giftfic for the Solas Lovers Exchange. I had such fun writing this, and had ideas for it as soon as I received the assignment. I got to set something in the Hissing Waste, which is one of my favorite places in the game, as well as write a polyship for my two favorite romances. F!Cadash/Solas/Iron Bull, rated T, 3400 words.

Maker Damned Fools - back in 2020, I wrote a Varric/Hawke short little thing for the first Fluffuary. I always wanted to go back and expand it into a fuller story. Add it to the pile of Things I Finished This Year. From their meeting to post-canon. Rated E, 32K words.

What a Wicked Game to Play - *deep satisfied sigh* It took two years and ten months to complete, with near constant weekly updates. It's 412K words by itself (not counting the rest of the series). It contains about 350 embedded images of either screenshots or fanart. It is both the highest hit (over 90K) and highest kudo'd (1535) work on my archive. Affectionately known as 'the Behemoth', extensively written with my signature yeeting of canon. Imogen McLean, MGIT, Inquisitor, beloved of Fen'Harel. I am stupendously proud of this work, but I am also incredibly happy it's done. I set out to write an epic, and I damn well succeeded. Rated E.

See y'all on the flipside! 💕

[victorluvsalice]

Valicer OT3 Week, Day Seven: Free Day!

It's the finale of OT3 Week! Thank you @ot3-week for bringing it to us! And, as is tradition, the final day is a "free day" for anything you may want to write --

And without a prompt to guide me, I naturally went back to my beloved Valicer In The Dark trio! :D Because my favorite AU of the moment definitely needs to be represented during this week as well. So have the trio hanging out in their lair after they've gotten established and fixed the place up some, with Victor bringing up an interesting topic of conversation...

--

“This is about as far from how I expected my life to go as possible.”

Smiler looked up from their spot on the floor, hand still wedged in the brushes of their Smile Sweeper automaton. “Hmmm?”

“It’s just – whenever I pictured my future, I pictured the plan my parents had made for me,” Victor continued, absently picking out a melody from the piano. “An arranged marriage to whoever was most likely to get them the status and the house in Brightstone my mother so craved. A job working in, then running Father’s cannery once he was ready to give up the reins. Children whenever Mother decided she wanted grandchildren. Things like that. I never – I hoped that I would come to love whoever my parents picked out for me, and that they wouldn’t mind me having a dog, but other than that...I didn’t really have any dreams for myself.” He looked around the living room. “Certainly not any that included me running away from home, becoming a Whisper, and setting up house in Six Towers with two people who actually and truly love me.”

“Don’t forget becoming a semi-famous criminal,” Alice put in, eyes still on her sketchbook.

Victor snorted. “That too. But yes – it’s really not where I thought I’d end up in life.”

“I don’t think any of us expected to end up here,” Smiler pointed out, finishing unwinding the thread that had tangled in the brushes. They flipped the Sweeper back over and switched on its electroplasmic battery, causing it to come back to life with a happy ping! “On my end, I thought I’d be living in Advocate headquarters for the rest of my life. Helping out fellow Advocates, advancing our causes, eventually trading Joy Serum sales on the street for taking over the shop in Nightmarket from Mum and Dad. Maybe get married and have children, maybe not – I wasn’t going to commit until I knew for sure it was going to make me happy. But in my future, I always put the Advocates first.” They grinned. “Then a man fell out of a wall in front of me and Alice, and everything took a big old left turn.”

“It was more to our side,” Alice said, smirking as she looked up. “But they have a point, Victor – do you think I expected any of this to happen? I couldn’t picture a future for myself at all for years – all throughout my time in Rutledge. It was too hard to think of a life without my family. And even when I realized I had to and defeated the Queen of Hearts to get myself out of there, I never thought much beyond the next week or so – simple survival always took precedence. Hell, even when you caught me on the way to Nan’s to talk to her about Bumby and what I should do, Smiler, I didn’t have any plans beyond taking care of him.” She bit her lip, lowering her sketchbook to her lap. “I think, subconsciously, I assumed I’d immediately get caught for his murder and Hollowed out.”

“Alice,” Victor started, getting up from the bench.

“I’m fine,” Alice assured him, holding up a hand. “And that’s the crux of the matter, isn’t it? I’m fine. Not perfect, but – bloody hell, in a better state than I ever thought I might achieve after Rutledge. I still talk to things that aren’t there, sure, but it’s not nearly as bad as it was. Wonderland’s even gone from hindrance to help, in fact – you two know my hallucinations are better at picking up things than I am sometimes. And as for the rest of it – I’ve got a roof over my head, I’ve got time for hobbies, I’m making a difference for those less fortunate than myself – in a very illegal manner, granted, but fuck the Bluecoats and all the corrupt shites they stand for–” She looked from Smiler to Victor, expression softening. “And I’ve got two people who love me, which is two more than I ever imagined.”

Victor smiled, going to join her on the couch. “Me too. I’m – I’m so happy I fell out of that wall in front of you two. Or, to the side, or – near you,” he finally said with a laugh. “Let’s just say near you.”

“I’m happy too,” Smiler said, releasing the Sweeper onto the floor and getting up to join them. “I don’t even want to imagine life without you two now. You’re my best friend, Alice – and you’re the best partner I could have ever dreamed of, Victor. I love you both so much.”

“I couldn’t have put it better myself,” Alice said, taking Victor’s hand and giving it a squeeze. “I know it was a bit of a long, bumpy road to get here, what with all the nonsense surrounding how we met and our chosen profession, but – I am so glad we put in the work.”

Victor squeezed her hand back, then took Smiler’s as they sat down next to him. “Me too. I am truly blessed to have you both in my life. I can’t wait to spend all our remaining years together.”

“Same,” Smiler said, leaning their head against his shoulder.

“Same,” Alice echoed, doing the same. “I just hope we have plenty of them – we have ticked off a lot of powerful and important people.”

“Well, they have to find our heavily-warded and ghost-protected house first,” Smiler said with a cheeky grin. “And good luck to them.”

“Mmm – though, that reminds me,” Victor said, looking between them. “I overheard in the greenhouse the other day a woman talking about how she was looking for someone to steal a brooch back from her estranged husband...”