#Using old tags just in case people still follow those lol

[prometheus2007]

Finally, an Introduction!

Hello there! I’m Promni, formerly known as GalacticSomewhat. You can call me Prom, Promni, or Galactic! I am a blogger that posts almost always Gacha content, either of fandom designs or my own OCS!

I’m 17 years old, and my birthday is August 27th. I’m a girl :3. And my oc is below along with the Online Code!

OC CODE IS HERE: D987VV72G

I own the Silly Nerds community, and I do follow everyone there, so if you get a random follow from a random person that's why.

Please DNI if you are: an awful person (basic DNI stuff), a supporter of RhylietheCaterfly, asking for money for any reasons, are going to beg me for things, are going to send me links, or are gonna start drama. Don’t be that guy >:(

tags I use follow: promni favs for things involving me or my oc that I love or just things I really really love, promni OCS for my OCS, promni reblogs for reblogs, promni lore for oc lore, and silly promni for goofy posts ^^

BTW my asks are open so always feel free to send asks I love those!! :3. That’s all I wanna say, thanks for reading! Love you guys /p <3

Banner is by @jam-yippeeee !!!! PFP by @artismeyou-12 :333 dividers are by @sister-lucifer !!!! :3

[suemooon]

Origins of the Oncest ship: the history

Travelling in The Once-ler's fandom history | by suemooon

Welcome Oncelings!

to one of my most serious researchers I have ever done before, now, here’s a little explanation:

I wanted to make a fandom analysis using old posts, the way back machine, and other stuff to try to compare the once-ler fandom in its golden age and now, trying to suppose how it was and trying to see what happened there, but it would be later. Because I got a really interesting capture that I got while I was checking the Oncest tag in the wayback machine, and I got this:

IT QUICKLY GOT MY ATTENTION

Someone saying that they were the first ones to show the Oncest ship term.

I wanted to see if it was real and not a joke or something like that, so I copied the url of the tumblr and desired that the blog is still up, and I got it!!!

I explored their tumblr for a little while, and I noticed another thing, there’s a bunch of photos of the once-ler BEFORE the movie of the Lorax came out, this of course means that ye, there was some people who found the once-ler attractive and begun to share his pictures in tumblr (without any tag, if it wasn’t the help of this blog and some other ones, I probably couldn’t got them).

This makes a lot more sense than saying that the once-ler fandom was born after the came out of the movie I can say.

Those pictures belongs to all the Lorax trailers, in which ONLY appears the gray once-ler, not greedler. So we can say that the people who find him attractive in the beginning, the greedler was like a kind of “plot twist”

But the topic of the whole fandom will be for my another analysis, now let’s try to focus on Oncest.

2. Possible date of apparition

In my research, it seems that Oncest was born between 19th March, 2012, but where did I took this supposition?

Checking the dates between their first Oncest mentions (and also checking other old inactive once-ler’s blogs), there’s some important dates to make a highlight.

link to post: https://theambernerd.tumblr.com/post/19771248254/thank-you-all-you-lovely-people-for-following-me

In this screenshot, someone responds that this pairing has a name, this is from March 22, 2012, so the ship already existed and had a name too, so let’s check out the other blogs and their archives.

temporarilycheating

squidmama

Suddenly we see Oncest fanart.

The dates are between 19th and later, is this the origin of the ship?

Of course this is just a supposition, I had to see it at that time to prove it, but it’s not the case. All I can do is make suppositions.

You can take it as something true or fake, that’s your opinion.

3. Who was the original person who brought up with the Oncest idea?

This one was one of the most complicated things that you can try to research, we are talking about something that is 11 years old, so some pretty amount of information got lost with the time.

In words of temporarilycheating.

IT’S CALLED ONCEST BECAUSE I SAID SO! Lol but really…actually, I’m kinda the one who came up with the name in the first place… The pairing existed, but I think it was originally called twincest or something… But anyhow, in month one of the fandom, back when Sirsteeve made some of the first oncest fanart the fandom went CRAZY over the idea…and so did i. So I was sitting in my living room having a feels moment over this new OTP…but since the fandom didn’t really have a name for it, it made me think… It came to my mind that the fandom was somewhat dividing the once-ler into two seperate people of the same relation-oncie and greed-ler. To me, it sounded like incest. So I played around with that idea a bit in my head. And after saying incest repeatedly in my head I noticed the ‘ce’ in the word. I came to the conclusion to 'once’ in addition to the 'est’. thus 'oncest’. I had a fangasm and posted my idea to tumblr ASAP. Apparantly, it caught on cuz it’s still called oncest today and is widely known C: That has to be one of my greatest achievements in this fandom.

link to post: https://temporarilycheating.tumblr.com/post/25857778616/why-is-it-called-oncest

There's a small mention to someone named "Sirsteeve" who explains that were one of the firsts ones to draw Oncest.

I searched and their oldest Oncest post I found is this one.

Date: March 19th, 2012 by: sirsteeve ( hour - 5:22 PM )

So we have in our eyes one of the first Oncest post ever.

Is that the original Oncest post? I don’t know, it only says that is ONE of the first persons in the fandom who brought up the idea. Is it made by one person or a group of people? I don’t know.

Other very first posts about Oncest:

Date: March 19th, 2012 by: cartoonjunkie ( hour - 10:39 PM, 5 hours later after sirsteeve )

Date: March 20th, 2012 by: owlapin

Date: March 21st, 2012 by: rutella

4. Who gave the name of "Oncest"?

GUYS!!!! I KNOW WHAT TO CALL THE PAIRING!!!!! Y'know, once-ler/green suit once-ler!???? IT SHOULD BE CALLED ONCEST!!!! GET IT!? Its like incest, but with himself! :D WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK!? If you like the idea, reblog this to spread the word! :D

Date: March 20th, 2012

It seems it’s true, temporarilycheating was the one who created the Oncest term, we should give her more recognition for it!

link to post: https://www.tumblr.com/temporarilycheating/19650360910/guys

Conclusion

Second part? who knows. But the only thing I can say is… this one was one of my most complicated things to find, but now I got some important information. I'm here for you to share my knowledge!

I must say, I’m very proud of me for this, you guys have no idea how excited I got when I found these photos and data, maybe is not too much but I think they’re really important yet; this information forms part of our fandom history, and I think we should keep that information up and don’t lose it.

As a reminder too, as I already said once…

Oncest is like an icon for our dear Once-ler Fandom, whether we like it or not.

We can’t deny its existence, we can’t blame it, we can’t try to delete it, it always will exist as always the fandom will exist and some people like it.

And… My opinion about Oncest?

Well, I don’t hate it, I don’t love it thou, but I can like some posts about it, I can appreciate art from this ship, and it’s idea too.

Any reblog, like, and comment it's appreciated!

[sphxremint]

(man this art is really old but im usin it anyway lol)

☆ Heya heya一it's me, Mint!

I'm the guy that does the funny draws (and music (and sometimes edits)).

Some of you have definitely heard that line way too many times before. Or some of you probably just know me as the Simple Yet Stupid guy. If you haven't seen me before, congratulations! You've successfully met "that guy" (me) for the first time!

This is my tumblr. I reblog stuff I think is neat and post art/music/stuff I like once every [unspecified time frame]. I dipped (sort of) from Twitter (ah, sorry一ECKS [X] as it's called now) like a year or two ago because some guy had too much fun ruining it. Now I'm here more often!

Right, this is an intro post. lemme get on that...

☆ cool things you should know

• I'm 20 (born July 4th, on MINT day. not whatever the hell independence day is. eugh)

• I'm aroace (certain of it now! we out here)

• I'm black (there's like no way to make this funnier it just is what it is)

☆ some other neat stuff

• I draw!

I'm definitely not consistent with it at all, but I'm trying, 'cause it's fun and I like doing it. I may be into a lot of medias too, but I'm mostly an oc artist, and it's a curse I will bear until the end of time

• I make music!

I'm also not very consistent with it, but I'm a bit less open about it... I do it for fun, really; though it's more of a personal thing compared to my art.

• My timezone is CST

...which is about UTC -05:00. if you need to know that. i know we all got varied timezones

• I'm very good at being inconsistent!

(such as basic punctuation and grammar. cause thats important. sometimes i'll actually use apostrophes and sometimes ill just completely forget mid-sentence. lmao)

☆ my 5 core interests

aka. The main things I like! I switch between the 5 of these on a whim. You can inquire me about any of these. Be ready when it happens.

• Sonic The Hedgehog (he's just THAT GUY, yknow. just a guy who loves adventure. ultimate life forms and whatnot)

• Kirby (i'd forfeit everything for him. #1 blorbo living life)

• FINAL FANTASY (esPECIALLY XIII and XIV. but it's mostly XIV. two lalas ready for Dawntrail WOOO)

• Celeste (#1 game ever. i love everything about it so much, i naturally get my friends to play it. i'm also pretty good at speedrunning. smile)

• and anything osc! (though I'm not part of the fandom "like that". just on the surface layer, yknow? bfdi, ii, boto, ppt2... funny shows go brrr)

☆ cool and awesome tags

□ #mint.txt = probably some random garbled text i spat out one night

□ #mintdraws = i sure do! and you should go look at it!

□ #mint.png = funny image included (not guaranteed)

□ #mint.mp3 = rarely use this but i still want people to know i make music

□ #mint.ask = because i get those. sometimes art, sometimes stupid funny stuff

□ #simple yet stupid = yeah its for those funny objects i talk about. i put this one here just in case

□ #mint's expoboard = i'm probably talking about one of my ocs

☆ and some extra stuff i guess

□ my sonas and stuff if you need that

□ my carrd! go read it cause most of my extra links (and contacts) are already there

□ my toyhou.se Did you know I have a toyhou.se? because I never shut up about my characters, and sometimes people just need the Repository of Information. well... here it is.

Okay. I'll update this post more as time goes on, but... that's about it. That was probably like a read and a half. oops.

Remember: if you do follow me, you are (unofficially) officially consigning yourself to my presence and any stupidity and/or brainrot that follows.

...if that's cool with you. lmao =ᴗ=)b

(big shoutouts to the old pinned i had. you will forever be missed)

last updated: 08 / 27 / 2024

[alarrytale]

I know you’re not going to agree with me on this but I’ve been here since 2013 and I can easily say I’ve never seen this much invasive type behavior from Larries before. Not on tumblr but definitely on other social media platforms. It’s overwhelming and exhausting even as a fellow Larry. Plus then they tag him in the most bizarre connections, making his achievements all about Harry and even using Louis’ trauma with losing his family members to how Harry must’ve felt more than Louis. So unfortunately, he’s been brought into this quite a bit by fans. Before we did have that wall between fandoms and him but when people started tagging him more and more, that wall disappeared. I know you don’t want to hear criticism of other Larries because you’ve made that clear previously but unfortunately some did contribute to the change in the fandom also and it’s pushing some Larries away. More Larries have changed to a neutral stance to move away from that type of behavior. It’s no longer harmless clowning in many cases. I miss the old days where Larries were fun and more about being supportive than proving they’re right about 2 artists’ sexuality. I also remember artists are still people and as a closeted person I feel for them. It’s difficult and I can’t even imagine being forced into closeting like they are. Wanting to show who you are but also knowing you can’t. And then having those feelings as someone who is examined under a microscope daily by millions of people seems awful. Am i sticking up for his denials? No of course not. He could’ve handled things differently obviously. But I think his “so be it” response this last time was just him sort of giving up, so it’s hard to even call that a denial. I don’t think he’ll talk about it anymore after that type of a response but that’s just my opinion. As a side note I’ve seen more posts talking about an increase of men in the crowds for his shows lately from people who have attended shows. I also saw someone bring up the Vintage Fans group before. Great group! And they continue to grow in size. I think things can be deceiving with his crowds at shows. Many of the people in the pit are young and queue to get a good spot because hell when I was young, I used to do the same. But in my early 40s you wouldn’t catch me doing something like that lol. When you look in the seated areas, the ages of fans vary greatly. I’ve been to a few shows for this tour and I was always in very good company.

Hi, anon!

You don’t have to agree with me! I feel like i say this all the time, but it's important that we acknowledge the right to have differing opinions and beliefs. We are all different people with different fandom experiences.

I think you need to remember a couple of things. Who's the one with the power, H and L's role in this as instigators and role models, that social media are fandom spaces where the artist promotes their stuff and do fan service by interacting with fans, and that gaslighting and lying makes people desperate to prove that what they're seeing isn't imagination, it's real. You also need to consider that there are always a handful of people in every fandom who goes overboard, doesn’t know boundaries and who acts on impulse. Those people aren't representative for the fandom at large. They might be vocal, have loads of followers and engagement on their posts, but they don't represent the fandom and majority opinion and views.

I don't know what you mean by invasive behaviour and i don't know the context of why and when it happened if you don’t give me examples. The reason why people have such a need to prove that they're queer is because of extreme gaslighting over several years paired with larry signalling. For the fandom environment and to lessen tensions it would have been better if they didn’t signal at all. But then larries would have left, and H and L would be miserable if they weren't allowed to show who they are. Fandom usually takes their cues from H and L. The more H and L lies and try to hide stuff, the more the fandom will dig to find the truth.

H and L are both celebrities and with that comes scrutiny, an interest in their private lives and being role models. It's in the job description. If they can't handle that they need to find another job. They're 30+ year old, white male multimillionaires. You don’t have to pity them.

If you think that the fandom is the reason for the denials, let me tell you it isn't. It's homophobic labels and Louis and Harry's own pushing of boundaries, refusing to stunt that's making Louis do larry denials. It's got nothing to do with fandom. Believe me, Louis is not done talking about larry or larries lol. It's the only thing getting him in the papers these days.

It's good to hear that the crowds are still diverse! I think you're right in that the younger ones are probably in the pit and at barricade.

[aquareegia]

Hello,

I can't sleep and I just wanted to share some thoughts regarding our book project. These are my own thoughts, I'm sure @vesselsscarlet will share their own thoughts if they want to.

I've overcome the frustrations tbh, I just feel deflated now lol. I just know I will never do something like that ever again. What really got to me, were the asks I received, when we started to get a little more direct.

I almost wish I didn't delete some of them, just to show you how rude and condescending some people were about it... but I really didn't want to have to see it whenever I looked into my inbox because it really made me feel like shit.

It didn't help that people kept comparing us to other projects and made us feel like we are not good enough with what we offered. Other than the downright rude asks, I'm sure those people actually didn't mean any harm, but it still came off iffy in the whole context tbh.

Just to state a few facts... we started this project in December. We announced it very early, we didn't even have a deadline set for a while.

Once we knew a touring schedule, we quickly shared a deadline, which was realistic for us to be able to finish the book in time (despite living in different states and not being able to work directly together). There was plenty of time before and after we announced a deadline. We did put up reminders and updates and we said in our first posts to check out the tag in case you miss something. We simply can't put up weekly reminders and run after every single person. It also would be pushy and annoying tbh.

You're all old enough to follow simple instructions and set your own schedules.

I don't care for explanations why it didn't work out tbh. We all have our private lives that take priority. We all have our struggles with mental health that sometimes cause us to procrastinate and lack motivation for something that isn't a priority. If anyone gets that, it's me. However... we also said that we ask for one simple thing, and that is communication!

We're not some monsters, that'd bite off your head if you asked for more time or something. It's ok if you'd need more time but is it too much to ask for a little heads up?

We have always said that this project is only possible with your help. If there's just cricket chirping in response, what are we supposed to do?

Like I said I personally won't be doing any fan projects in the future anymore. I still very much value the people in this community but I won't lie and say that I'm not a bit disappointed.

Lia and I still have to talk about what we will do with this project. Idk if it even makes sense to extend the time frame tbh. I feel like the majority of those who would've participated, would've done so by now but yeah... idk man.

Guess I'll leave a poll here to get an idea of what to do.

Whatever we choose to do, the book won't be happening this year either way. At the current state, we won't be able to finish it in time for November, so we can only hand it over next year.

Thank you to everyone who submitted their letters and art and did give us a little heads up in case something would be late. We truly appreciate you, and we're sorry we can't hand over your letters as soon as we hoped to. 😔

[thedeviljudges]

Tell us about your tagging system on here. What's the x for? What's the rationale behind your top 5 tags? Which tags do you browse through on your own blog, if you do?

oooo this is an interesting one!!!

first question: so way back in tumblr olden days, lmao, before they changed the layout to where it didn't look like you were clicking on a blog; you'd actually go to someone's page and see their HTML theme, and people found a way to hide their posts in case others went directly to their page (ie. lurkers), and they didn't want them to see them all.

so say when i go to clawbehavior.tumblr.com - i can see everything you post, but with a code, i can hide posts from people who visit that url so ppl who aren't following me don't have to see the personal posts if i don't want them to. the posts that show up on my homepage are tagged with an x. (this does NOT work if you're on your dashboard, and you click someone's name now; all posts will show up).

tumblr kinda/sorta ruined it a bit. now you don't have to be following someone to click their page via the dash (on desktop or mobile) to be able to see every single posts - even those of mine that aren't tagged with x.

but still, if someone randomly wanders onto my page by typing it in or stumbling across a posts via google and then they click on my home theme, they can't see personal posts.

however, there is a way to see all posts aside from clicking on my blog through the dash and/or tags. the code used to direct you to NAME.tumblr.com/tagged/x, and you'd see that link in the search bar. now it doesn't do that anymore, and you just see NAME.tumblr.com, but!! the code still works. if you go directly to my link, you'll only see posts that are tagged x.

there's a special little something you add to the end of NAME.tumblr.com for someone directly on my page to be able to see all posts that aren't tagged with an x.

so long story short, posts not tagged with x cannot be seen by those who visit my page directly; they can still see them if they come across my blog while being a tumblr using desktop/mobile and clicking the name.

second question: i don't feel i use my tagging system as much as i used to. i used to be much more rigorous with it. i like using the name (theme) stuff to describe things, so 'funny stuff' or 'writing stuff' as a catch all for posts of that category. i also try to use tags that i'll remember now esp bc i haven't kept track of many old ones. so i also keep it simple with easy descriptors such as 'text,'

third question: hands down 'the devil judge' or 'the devil judge meta' lol. i'll remember i wrote/saved something, and i gotta go dig for it bc i know it's in one of the two. i don't often go back through tags unless i'm looking for something specific.

[somuchyoudontknow]

Hi Sophia, I see a lot of team PR are really discouraged especially after the stuff that’s recently occurred. But wait…hear me out!

I mentioned this on maja’s blog as well: I think the plausible deniability and hinting by friends is exactly the narrative they intended from the beginning.

Before their “relationship” was announced, I simply thought they were just waiting to announce and then they’d finally be out and not have to “hide” anymore, like some team real blogs assumed. But TBH, I don’t think this is the case. In fact, the hiding only continued into NYE 2.0 and now this Bermuda thing. Both groups alluding and hinting at being in the same place, but never really posting themselves together or in real time. You know, like normal people do.

This is intentional. Always has been, always will be for this particular orchestration.

For the case of Leo/Gigi, plausible deniability is also used because this couple is never seen together either, but their relationship is pushed by tabloids hinting that they arrived somewhere together and left together. All the articles have stock photos of them separately, and their narrative continues to be pushed as a “how serious are they? But Leo doesn’t really want to settle and neither does Gigi so they’re just having fun”. If you actually read the articles, the pics never show them hand in hand, it’s always a pic of Leo arriving and then Gigi in the same place but not with him. But the articles always push they’re seen together - hinting, hinting, always hinting.

CE:Ab have a private but super serious narrative that’s intentionally made so CE doesn’t look like a Leo (and yes, his Pr team is aware of all the other relationships with big age gaps and how the men always get called cliches and blah blah), even if fans and haters still do call him that bc they don’t like the relationship. They’re very serious, but super private, so you never see them out, they don’t have pap pics, but CE did want to tell y’all he’s serious about her for a whole year bc look at all the photos they have together in those two 2 IG stories! Not fake at all!

Outside of that, they can’t call paps on themselves bc then it’s not private. Tabloids won’t write articles about their NYE or Bermuda vacations bc there are no pap pics but they can keep circulating the same old fluff pieces and the PR worked anyway bc the majority of ppl think he’s engaged - thanks to gossip, DM, and TikTok. Their job is done without having to even pop up together. Wedding planners and violinists follow Ab and every celeb whose been on the rumor mill, especially since her name probably has engaged attached to it every time anyone googles her.

The fans, like you and others have said, are what keeps the gossip going and what tabloids and gossip mags will leverage when they do “research.”

Meanwhile, CE, whose very likely unwilling to participate in anything such as yacht pics or even looking like he wants to hold AB’s hand in public, can shut down his SM and disappear while AB and her merry band of clout chasers, and CE’s thirsty friends can have paid trips to Bermuda and get a little extra narcissism boost while they’re there.

AB pretending she doesn’t care about CE is the narrative that’s supposed to make it seem like she’s not an opportunist golddigger. The only problem is that while she’s not posting him and never directly alludes to him, she literally shows her true colors multiple times in the following ways:

1) deleting comments in real time (she was 1000% sitting on her phone and seeing what ppl wrote about her during ski trip 1.0)

2) not limiting her comments or removing her tags when the rumors were rampant last year

3) not deleting the dating comments but deleting the ones about her as golddigger or opportunist (lol)

4) not turning off her location despite getting harassed every time fans found out she was in the US again

5) Justin dropping trolling hints on behalf of her being around CE since the dawn of time (and not stopping despite the year of harassment from fans and haters)

6) her sister posting outside his house allegedly and the private photos leaking despite nothing else ever leaking before

7) her only blocking her tags after her IG reactivation and refusing to let in tags from her fans, any of her projects, and just allows tags from Justin and her fashion shows. (Real great priorities! Take “actor” out of your bio)

8) not promoting anything related to work but happy to keep trolling her IG location so fans will continue to think she’s with him

9) her friends never posting her so of course fans will assume she’s with him

10) only getting posted when Justin or someone else alludes to maybe they’re all somewhere together near CE (bakeries, Bermuda) so even her out and about pics are ruined with ppl thinking she’s with CE.

11) cropping and photoshopping her left hand out of pics (LOL) - poor Joana getting sacrificed to fuel your narrative!

12) hiding a pic of CE’s dog in her photo dump and not tagging him (lol).

13) showing up to ghosted premiere to post a pic of her dress and get her pics taken while never attending her own premieres or helping the WN cast promote the show that made her “famous.”

She’s trying so hard to let ppl know she’s not a clout chaser, she’s different from other girls. Except she only wants to promote wearing “fashion”, attending fashion shows, and going on luxury vacations and partying on boats.

Opportunist of the worst kind.

[flightlessangelwings]

I posted 2,606 times in 2022

315 posts created (12%)

2,291 posts reblogged (88%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@flightlessangelwings

@mattmurdocksscars

@princessxkenobi

@the-scandalorian

@practicalghost

I tagged 1,738 of my posts in 2022

Only 33% of my posts had no tags

#comment rb - 429 posts

#fic rec - 151 posts

#jey answers - 107 posts

#fan art - 92 posts

#din djarin - 53 posts

#jey talks - 50 posts

#pedro pascal - 45 posts

#joel miller - 43 posts

#pedro pascal character fanfiction - 43 posts

#pedro pascal characters - 41 posts

Longest Tag: 121 characters

#din i…” your voice trailed off as you both gazed at each other. “i know” affection laced his voice as he held you close.

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Steal my Girl

Joel Miller x fem!reader

Word count: 1k

Warnings: fluff, established relationship, Joel and reader being sly and silly, domestic fluff, hint of spice, slightly jealous Joel, protective!Joel, no use of y/n

Notes: This idea popped into my head randomly and I just read Joel's voice so clearly so I just had to write it! And yes, the title is a One Direction reference because I just couldn't help it here lol! This is short and sweet but I’m so happy with it so I hope y’all like it too! 

Taglist form is in my masterlist if you’d like to be added or feel free to also follow my update blog and turn on post notifs @flightlessangelwings-updates​

~

It was late into the night and the last few stragglers finally left the bar. Working at the bar in Jackson wasn’t as perilous as what others did for Jackson, but it was your way of contributing to the community. And you loved to be part of a place where people could relax and let loose for a time. There was one person, especially,  that you loved to see relaxing at the bar.

Just as you grinned at the thought of your someone special, a familiar voice rang through the emptiness of the bar, “Excuse me ma’am,” the low Southern drawl broke the silence, “Y’all still open, or did I miss last call?” Joel leaned against the doorway of the bar entrance as he eyed you with a fiery gaze.

You turned around and met Joel’s eyes with a bright smile as you played his little game, “Hey there stranger,” you set your cleaning supplies down as you crossed the space towards him and leaned against the bar, “Sorry, we’re closed up for the night.”

“Well, shit,” Joel scoffed playfully as he stepped closer to you, “In that case, I was wondering if I could take you out for a drink somewhere else.”

You pouted, “Oh I don’t know. I don’t think my boyfriend would like that,” you shimmied your shoulders subtly. It wasn’t often that Joel got into a mood like this, but you absolutely loved it when he did.

“Boyfriend huh,” he shifted to one leg as he rested his hands on his hips. 

“Yeah, boyfriend,” you stepped closer to Joel with a fire in your eyes as you spoke in a low tone, “His daughter likes to call him a grumpy old man. He may be a little rough around the edges, but he’s a handsome man with a drawl that makes me melt. And when he holds me at night with those big strong arms, I feel like I’m in heaven.”

A tinge of red creeped up on Joel’s cheeks as he dropped his gaze to the floor, “Well he sounds like one lucky son of a bitch to be able to call you his girl. I hope he treats you right.” Joel moved his hands to your hips as he slowly pulled you flush against his chest and his eyes met yours. Both of your hearts pounded in your chests and neither of you were sure if it warmed up in the room or if it was the heat between your bodies.

“Oh he does,” you reached out for Joel, “And he’s a good man, but I don’t think he’d like some stranger creeping on his girl,” you fiddled with the sleeve of his shirt as you bit your lip, “I saw the way he gave the eye to the new guy in town the other day.”

Joel let out a soft chuckle as he leaned in close to your face, “Well I guess we have to be careful then,” his tone was so low that his words went right to your core as his lips hovered over yours. You giggled against his face as your eyes fluttered closed and you felt the way his lips ghosted over yours in a soft, sweet kiss.

Just as you were about to deepen the kiss, Ellie’s voice interrupted you both, “Gross, you guys! Get a room!”

You and Joel jumped away from each other with a start and your breath hitched in your throat as you gasped. Joel was the first to respond though, “Ellie, what are you still doing out? It’s late.”

“I was on my way back from Dina’s and I saw the lights still on here,” Ellie replied with a shrug, “I thought I’d check if everything’s ok.”

“Thanks for checking, Ellie,” you piped up from Joel’s embrace, “There was some creep trying to make a move on me,” your gaze moved to Joel as you looked at him with a devilish grin.

“Keep that shit at home you guys,” Ellie rolled her eyes as she turned to leave, “We still on for game night tomorrow?” she called behind her before she walked out the door.

“Tomorrow,” you echoed, “Night, Ellie,” you and Joel both said in unison.

“Night,” her voice retreated as she left you and Joel alone once more.

Almost immediately, you felt your skin heat up again as Joel caressed your sides. You met his eyes once more and the look of pure admiration on his face nearly took your breath away, “Shall we head home?” you whispered.

“Yeah, I’ll walk you home, baby,” he replied. He wrapped an arm around your waist and walked at your side as you crossed the room and shut the lights off. Joel added, “So, you noticed that traveler last week, huh?”

“Joel, the entire town saw the death glare you gave that poor guy,” you giggled as you leaned in and kissed his cheek and savored the way his rough beard felt against your skin. “He didn’t know who he was dealing with, but I’m sure he was harmless,” when Joel huffed, you cupped his face and turned him so that his lips hovered over yours, “But there was a shady guy in here just now who tried to steal your girl away.”

A low rumble of laughter escaped Joel’s lips, “Is that so?” he grabbed you tighter as he finally kissed you deeply, “Well I’ll just have to keep a better eye on my girl then,” he mumbled between kisses.

“Why don’t we go home and you show me what that bad man would have done to me if my big strong man hadn't been there?” your voice was low and seductive, and you heard the low groan Joel let out at your words.

“You know I wouldn’t let ‘nothin happen to you, right baby?” Joel cupped your face.

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918 notes - Posted January 28, 2022

#4

When Jealousy Strikes

Tasm!Peter Parker x gn!reader (no use of y/n)

Word count: 1.3k

Prompt: “nothing is ever going to happen between us!'' and "the italicized oh" with TASM!Peter (requested by @rae-gar-targaryen​ for my 3k follower celebration!)

Warnings: fluff, friends to lovers, pining, jealousy, kissing

Notes: Tho this fic is not explicit, my blog remains strictly 18+ only! Rae, this prompt was so fun and it works so well with Peter thanks so much for the request mi amor!!! I really had fun with this one! My update blog is @flightlessangelwings-updates​ to stay up to date on when I post!

~

Peter Parker had been your best friend for as long as you could remember. The two of you grew up together, and though sometimes life got in the way, the two of you remained as close as could be. Even as you got older and he would disappear at times or seemed distracted, you were still always there for him. And Peter was always there when you needed him, even if at times it was in the middle of the night and he looked disheveled beyond reason. 

Secrets weren’t common between you, but there was one big one you kept from Peter all these years: you were desperately in love with him.

You tried to hide it as you got older; you tried to date others to keep your mind off of your best friend. Nothing ever worked out, though, and you always made your way back to Peter. He was always there for you after a breakup, and his embrace was more comforting to you than he realized. 

“That jerk didn’t deserve you anyway,” he’d say as he held you tight, “You deserve the world,” Peter whispered your name against your ear, “You’ll find the right person. And until then, you have me.”

You choked back a sob at his words; he had no idea that his words made you cry more than your breakup. And it wasn’t because if anything he did. No, it was all on you. It was because you were too afraid to say anything and lose him forever than admit how much you actually loved him. You would rather have him as your best friend than not have him in your life at all, so you kept your feelings buried deep down.

But, even you couldn’t fight off the green monster of jealousy all the time. And it all came to head at a party that Peter had invited you along to as his date. 

As you watched someone so charming and beautiful so easily flirt with Peter from across the room, you felt the hooks sink into your skin. You knew you had no right to be jealous. And that Peter was free to flirt with and date who he wanted, as were you, it still didn’t mean it hurt any less. Especially when the advances came from such a pretty face.

How could you blame him for flashing that effortlessly loveable smile back? How could you blame him for the way his hand rested on the other’s shoulder? How could you blame him for being so irresistible?

Every muscle in your body tensed as you watched the interaction. Part of you didn’t care to hide the sour look on your face as you watched Peter exchange glances from this new person. But, the other part of you still wanted to keep your cool.

“As long as he’s happy…” you lied to yourself.

It wasn’t until Peter glanced over at you and his face dropped that you realized you weren’t hiding your emotions as well as you thought. You watched as he quickly excused himself and rushed over to you with a look of concern on his face.

“Shit,” you cursed to yourself as you tried to gather your composure.

“Hey,” he said your name so sweetly, “What’s wrong? You ok?” Peter rested his hands on your shoulders as he looked you over, “Let’s get you some fresh air.”

You tried to protest, but Peter ushered you away from the crowded room and down a more quiet hallway. Heat rose in your skin as your mnd lingered on the strong grip he kept on your shoulders and the way he looked at you with such worry.

“I’m fine Pete,” you finally found your voice when you were alone with him on an open balcony.

“You’re not fine,” he looked at you sternly yet his face still held that softness that you were so fond of, “Something’s up,” he paused as you stared at him, “You know you can tell me anything. We’re best friends,” he let out a sharp breath with a tight smile as he spoke.

“Is that all we’ll ever be?” The words escaped your lips before you could stop them.

“Whaaat?” Peter looked dumbfounded, “You’re acting weird. What’s going on?” He held onto your forearms tightly as he looked into your eyes.

You took a deep breath before the dam of emotions finally spilled over, “You wanna know what’s going on?” your voice was louder than you meant it to be but you didn’t care, “What’s going on is I have to watch these people flirt with you that I can’t compete with in a thousand years! I know I have no right to be upset, but I’m just scared that something would happen between us so I never said anything. But a person can only take this for so long before…” you drifted off before you finished your thought.

For what felt like ages, you and Peter stared at each other. Tears filled the corners of your eyes as you did your best to calm yourself back down. You were sure Peter could hear your thoughts with how loudly they screamed in your head, and he definitely could read the look in your face. 

Suddenly, everything clicked in his head and his mouth dropped open.

Oh…

Before you could open your mouth again to take back everything and ask him to pretend your outburst didn’t happen, Peter crashed his lips against yours in an awkward but desperate kiss. He wrapped his arms around you and held you as tightly as he possibly could as he let his kiss speak for him. As your chest was suddenly pressed flush against his, you felt his heartbeat, and to your surprise it pounded just as hard as yours did. 

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918 notes - Posted May 23, 2022

#3

I know there’s other posts out there but I wanted to make a comprehensive post about being completely inclusive when writing reader inserts. Everyone has their own perspective and ideas so I wanted to share my thoughts and tips that I use myself when I’m writing. Of course I most likely forgot things as well so feel free to add on if you think of something I missed and I’ll add it to the list here!

Quicke note before we get to it: if you spot something on this list that you’ve done before, don’t beat yourself up about it. We all slip up and make mistakes. Just learn from it and keep it in mind for the future! As readers, we understand that it’s near impossible to include every single individual that could possibly read your work, but the point is to be as inclusive as possible with your writing.

Under a cut for length and to make sure you always see the most updated list when you click on it! Reblogs are very much appreciated too, especially if you’re a writer so we can all learn and grow and be better!

~

Labeling your reader (a guide to terminology)

Gender neutral (gn)- no pronouns, no gendered nicknames, no mentions of genitals

Assigned female at birth (afab)- no pronouns, no gendered nicknames, reader usually has a vagina

Assigned male at birth (amab)- no pronouns, no gendered nicknames, reader usually has a penis

Female/fem/f- she/her pronouns, traditionally femme nicknames, reader usually has a vagina

Male/m- he/him pronouns, traditionally masc nicknames, reader usually has a penis

Non-binary (nb)- usually they/them pronouns, reader can have either a vagina or a penis

Quick note: terminology changes often and as far as I know this is the most up to date on being inclusive with labeling readers. If it changes or if anyone has suggestions I’ll update this.

If you do want to assign your reader character some type of label, please tag it appropriately. Lots of poc writers like to write black, Latine, Asian, etc readers for example. Or other examples are plus size reader, short reader, tall reader, nerdy reader, shy reader, sporty reader, etc.

Don’t be afraid to write a trans character too! Trans characters can have either the opposite genitalia from their birth assignment or the same, everyone is different! There’s a big lack in trans reader representation!

Please note too that just because reader is labeled one way does not necessarily mean they are cisgender. People can be non-binary and use she/her or he/him pronouns. There’s no need to label your reader as cis at all

And please don’t label your readers' sexuality as straight. Bi/pan/demi/queer people can be attracted to a male character but that does not mean they are exclusively into men. It alienates queer readers.

~

Inclusive with skin tones

Please do not use “blush” or “flush” or anything like that! I know that’s one of the top issues when being inclusive with skin tones. Instead, try something like “you felt your skin heat up” or “your palms felt sweaty” or “you felt flustered.” Focus more on the emotions and what reader is feeling or thinking or physically reacting rather than saying reader blushed.

Be careful when describing bruises or injuries. Not all bruises get bright red for example. Instead, try mentioning blood stain, swelling, or just use “discolored” or “beat up” or something like that.

Not everyone’s skin turns red when slapped so just avoid “your skin reddened” altogether.

Not everyone has pink nipples, just skip describing the color altogether

Or pink lips. Again just skip the color description

While all skin is able to get burned, not everyone’s skin turns red/pink from being in the sun. Instead use more feeling descriptors like “your skin felt hot from the sun” or even describing peeling would be ok.

Don’t say that reader looks like an established character.

“Knuckles turned white” doesn’t happen with everyone so just leave it out. Focus more on muscles straining or something instead.

Avoid the phrase “you look white as a ghost” when referring to reader.

If you want to mention makeup, just leave it general and don’t specify colors or shades or anything like that. Not all shades show up the same on all skin tones.

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1,070 notes - Posted July 11, 2022

#2

Let Go

Joel Miller x fem!reader (no use of y/n)

Word count: 3.4k

Warnings: smut (18+ ONLY), rough sex, unprotected sex, dom!Joel, multiple orgasms, oral (f receiving), overstim, established relationship, manhandling, use of “good girl” and “yes ma’am,” aftercare, soft!Joel

Prompts:  “You can be rough. I can take it.” And “Good girl… that’s a good fucking girl”

Notes: Another fic written for @mattmurdocksscars follower celebration writing challenge!! And happy TLOU day!!! I love Joel so much, and he has so many facets to him that he can definitely be soft if he wants but also rough if you ask him to be. Let me know what you think cause I really had fun writing this one!!!

@flightlessangelwings-updates​ is my update blog, turn on post notifs to stay up to date on when I post!

~

For as strong and tough a person as Joel Miller was, he was always soft and tender when it came to you. Sure, in the past he had his one night stands, just a fuck to scratch that itch and release some tension. But with you, he was different. He was slow and soft and sweet and the perfect lover. He always held you so carefully as he ran his rough fingers along your skin. He always showered you with kisses and praises. He made sure you came at least once before he even thought about his own pleasure. He didn’t just fuck you… Joel Miller made love to you.

And it was mind-blowing. No one before had ever shown you such devotion or such care. You felt safe in his arms, and you were always left shaking and whimpering in the best way. Joel made you feel special and beautiful and loved in a way that warmed your heart. And you loved him so much for it.

But, there were times you wanted something different from Joel, something harder… rougher. 

There were times where you saw him scuffle with a traveler at the bar who got too rowdy, or when you saw him fight off infected while out of patrol. And you couldn’t help the thoughts that raced through your mind: what if he manhandled you like that too? What if instead of treating you so carefully, he just threw you down onto the bed and fucked you like that time was all you two had? What if he left marks on your body and didn’t stop until you were in tears?

Tonight, you decided it was finally the time to ask him to fulfill your deepest desires…

“Joel,” you sighed as you writhed underneath him.

It took no time for Joel to wrap his arms around you from the moment he stepped through the door. Joel was always in a desperate mood whenever he came back from patrol, especially when he got back late. Perhaps he was worried he would come home to find you in trouble, that something happened to you while he was out. Perhaps it was just seeing death and destruction over and over again made him appreciate his time with you more. Perhaps it was a mix of both.

“Something wrong baby?” Joel’s voice was low as he pushed himself up onto his elbows. His breath caught in his chest for a moment at the sight of you completely bare underneath him, and he looked at you as if this was the first time he saw you naked.

“I want you to do something for me this time,” you buried one hand in his hair while the other stroked his beard. You loved how soft his hair was, and the more greys he got the more handsome he was to you.

“Anything, baby,” he replied without hesitation. Joel would truly do whatever it took for you. He would walk to the ends of the earth to find what you wanted, he would take a bullet for you, he would even find a way to bring the sky down if that was what you asked of him.

You grinned as the fire in his eyes made your skin warm and tingle, “I want you to fuck me hard tonight. Don’t hold back.”

Joel’s mouth dropped open. He did hold back with you at times, but it was because he never wanted to hurt you in any way. He always made sure you were more than satisfied, but sometimes that came at the cost of restraining himself. But, he also couldn’t deny that your request turned him on too, and Joel was sure you felt his cock twitch between your bodies. 

“Are you absolutely sure, baby?” he asked as he cupped your face, “I don’t want to hurt you or nothin.”

You let out a deep breath, “I’m sure, Joel,” you pulled his face closer so that his lips hovered over yours, “You can be rough, I can take it. Promise.”

Joel smiled against your lips before he kissed you deeply, “Alright,” he whispered as he broke away, “But you gotta promise me you’ll tell me if it’s too much. Ok?”

Your face lit up with excitement as you felt a rush of arousal to your core, “Deal,” you kissed him again, “Now fuck me, Joel Miller. Let go, baby.”

“Yes ma’am.”

There was a flash of mischievous in Joel’s eyes before he dropped his entire weight onto your body and captured your lips with his in a heated kiss. You moaned into his mouth as you felt his entire body engulf yours, and you immediately surrendered to him. His tongue explored your mouth like it had a hundred times before, but this time his kiss felt different. It was more rushed, more desperate, more passionate than ever before. It was as if Joel was consumed with the need to taste every corner of you, and you willingly let him.

Your arms wrapped around Joel’s broad shoulders as you felt the comforting weight of his body over yours. Right away, you felt like you were on fire with the change in his demeanor, and you loved it. As Joel continued to devour your mouth, he rocked his hips against yours, his cock slowly but meticulously sliding along your folds.

“Mmm… Joel…” you murmured against his lips as he ran his hands along your sides.

“You like that, baby?” There was a hint of cockyness in his voice that he rarely showed. But you loved when he got like this.

“Yes,” you squeezed him tighter.

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1,301 notes - Posted September 26, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Weakness

Din Djarin x afab!reader (smut with no pronoun use, no use of y/n)

Word count: 6k

Warnings: smut (18+ ONLY!), sex pollen, unprotected sex, fingering, thigh riding, multiple orgasms, feelings, pining, protective!Din, feelings confessions, mild violence, bounty hunting, minor character death (please let me know if I missed anything but I think I got it all)

Notes: There’s so many fics where Din is the one who gets pollened, so I wanted to do something a little different. This is a beast of a fic omg this is so long by my standards lol! And of course, lots of pining and protective!Din too cause you know me lol! Enjoy! And as of posting this, I’m getting real close to a big follower milestone so give me a follow if you liked this!!

Feel free to also follow my update blog too and turn on post notifs to stay up to date on when I post @flightlessangelwings-updates​

~

Blaster fire cut though the hot wind of the Tatooine desert. You grunted as you ran ahead of the Mandalorian in pursuit of your current bounty. The two of you worked as a team, and you each were able to anticipate the other’s actions before it happened. Even without words, you both somehow appeared to read the other’s thoughts, and it made you a very dangerous and deadly team.

Vaguely you wondered if your feelings for Mando were a part of the reason why, but you didn’t let yourself dwell on it too much. Instead, you buried your true feelings deep down and kept it a hidden secret from him.

“Never a dull moment on this planet huh?” you snarked through your comms as a gust of sand blocked your view of your partner.

“Keep your guard up,” was his response as you both moved in tandem to surround your target.

You were thankful that Grogu wasn’t with you both as you trekked your way through the desert. Peli was more than willing to keep him safe with her in her hanger and watch over him while you and Mando chased the elusive bounty. This would be a great help for your little group, since the payout was more than any of you imagined. And it would help to keep ahead of your enemies too as you both worked to keep the little green child safe. A hint of a smile momentarily lit up your face as you thought back to how excited Peli was to watch the kid.

“You want to hang out with your auntie Peli, kid?!” she lifted Grogu up into the air with a big smile, to which he giggled in response. She lowered him back down and cradled him in her arms before she turned back to you and Mando, “Don’t worry, I’ve got it covered. You guys take all the time you need! No rush!”

“I don’t see anything here,” you spoke again as you brought yourself back to the present. You knew better than to think that your target got the slip, however, since there was no way he could have gotten past the Mandalorian.

“Same here,” his gruff voice rang through your ear.

It was a comfort for you as another gust of wind kicked more sand in your face. You pulled your hood over to block the hot, stinging air as you tried to calm the rush of emotions that suddenly came over you. Sometimes you wondered if you were as good at hiding your feelings for Mando as you thought, but when he never acknowledged anything you knew your secret was safe. 

He was strong yet tender, and when he opened up to you more with time and you saw how good his heart was, you were done for. You never let on how much the Mandalorian actually meant to you since you didn’t want to compromise anything you already had with him.

Unbeknownst to you, Mando’s emotions were a perfect reflection of your own underneath his beskar armor.

There were times, though, that you were sure the kid figured out your secret feelings for Mando. But, you couldn’t linger in your head for long as suddenly your target jumped out of what appeared to be thin air and launched himself at you. Quick to react, you grabbed your vibroblades and blocked his own weapon before he hit you.

“Mando,” you grunted as you stayed locked with the bounty, “He’s here.”

“I’m coming, hang on.” 

Mando sounded worried, but you didn’t have time to linger on that thought as the bounty seemed to turn into a flurry of knives and fists as he attacked you. Sweat dripped down the side of your face as you blocked attack after attack. You weren’t able to get the upper hand, much to your annoyance, but as long as you kept your defense up, you knew your partner would be there in no time.

Somehow, he was able to get past your defenses, and before you even saw the man’s hand move, you felt a pick at the base of your neck. You gasped loudly as a hand covered the spot that suddenly stung and he took the opportunity to knock your blade out of your hand.

A shout of your name caught both your and the bounty’s attention as the Mandalorian leapt through another gush of sand and landed his blade right in the bounty’s chest. He fell to the ground, dead, and Mando glanced to make sure he wouldn’t get back up before he rushed over to you.

“Hey, you alright?” he asked in a worried tone as his hands landed on your shoulders.

Your vision felt blurry as you looked up at the shiny silver beskar helmet that you had grown so fond of. The longer you looked into the darkened visor, the hotter your body felt, and you weren’t sure if it was because of the desert air around you.

“Din…” you whispered his real name as a glossed over expression came across your face.

“I’m getting you out of here,” he replied as he tugged at your body. Din stood and grabbed the bounty’s limp body and flung it over his shoulder before he took your arm and draped it over him on the other side, “Lean on me,” he told you in as calm a voice as he could muster, “This storm is getting too strong to make it back right now. We need to find somewhere safe.”

You barely registered his words as a flurry of emotions ran though your head. You weren’t even sure if you walked yourself or if the Mandalorian took most of your weight on himself. Vaguely you heard him mention an abandoned moisture farm ahead, but you had trouble hearing any specific words. All you heard was the sound of your heart pounding in your chest and blood rushing through your head. The pounding echoed in your ears as you felt your body temperature rise steadily.

A rush of cooler air hit your face when Din brought you through the threshold of the abandoned building. There wasn’t much to the place, and it was clear no one had lived here in quite some time, but it was a shelter from the sandstorm, and that was all that mattered to Din. He didn’t even care about the bounty as long as you were safe and alright.

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1,421 notes - Posted February 18, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[thesixthstar]

Ok sorry about this but i've seen so many posts about 'tumblr etiquette for twitter users jumping ship' that haven't covered this but y'all. If you want to add to/say something about a post when you're reblogging it, there's 3 ways to go about it:

Actually adding your text to the reblog - this will mean that if anyone who follows you reblogs that version of the post, they're spreading your addition as well. This is how we get those big posts that are a chain of many people's additions. Because of that, its generally expected that you'll only do this kind of addition when you really have something to add other than "lol" or "this^^^" (though this wasn't true in like 2012 when people would just add enthusiastic gifs of agreement in long annoying chains).

Not adding anything to the post itself - this doesn't mean "keep your mouth shut" but if you have a joke you think OP (or the person you're reblogging from) would enjoy, but don't want to share it, leave it in the Replies. these are basically just a comment section. Its not the best UI and is just one long thread so its not a great place to carry on long conversations (usually you want to move those to DMs) but for a quick comment or two it works!

Talking in the tags. This is a grand old tradition on tumblr - the tags are great for organization (e.g. tagging something with '#aesthetic' or '#craft' so you can find it on your blog later), but since tags are not automatically copied onto reblogs, its a way to make commentary that you feel you'd like to say to the people following you, but that wouldn't necessarily be something to spread on every reblog after that (e.g. '#omg this cat looks exactly like my cat!'). It used to be the case that OP of the post couldn't easily see a collection of all the tags people had added to their post, so it used to be a way to politely avoid spamming OP with comments that wouldn't be relevant to them. This is no longer the case, and anyone can now easily view all the tags that have been added to a post, so be aware of that. This is

Essentially, imagine tumblr like a conversation in a crowded restaurant - adding to the reblog is like speaking clearly to the crowd, commenting is like privately texting OP about something they just said out loud, and talking in the tags is like whispering to the 3 friends right next to your about what just got said.

Some notes about these:

if you see a post that you want to share that someone has added something annoying to in a reblog - click the username of the person above them in the post - that will bring you to a version of the post from before that comment so you can reblog that one

Sometimes someone will say something funny in the tag that you might want to share - you can either just copy that tag into your tag, or you can copypaste/screenshot to add it to the body of the post. In terms of giving credit, its polite when adding it to the body of the post to put in parentheses (tags via @username) or something along those lines. If you're copying it into your own tags, you can just say something like "#stealing these tags ->" or something similar. Not many people care deeply about credit if you're still just copying into the tags section but its still polite to do so.

For any addition, whether it be comments, tags, or adding to the reblog, up to 2 people will get notified: OP will get notified, and the "note" number on their post will go up. Whoever reblogged the post onto your dashboard will also be notified.

[thisbluespirit]

Meme: Top 10 AO3 works vs Personal Top 10

I was tagged by @captain-aralias Thank you @captain-aralias! <3

Rules: List your "top 10" (or up to 10 if you haven't written that many) fics ranked by kudos on AO3. Are you surprised by what's most popular to your readers? Then, under a cut, provide your ranking of your personal top 10 fics (with explanations if you want!), and then tag a few fellow writers!

AO3 top 10 by kudos:

The Spirit of St Mary Mead (Miss Marple)

So We Meet at Last (Miss Marple/Dracula 1968)

it's the rain that will strengthen your soul (Star Wars Prequels)

Five Times the Doctor Got in the Way of Captain Janeway (and One Time They Got Along Just Fine) (DW/Star Trek: Voyager)

By the Book (Original)

Observation (Miss Marple)

We'll Burn That Barn When We Come To It (Hist RPF)

Not Bad For a First Attempt (Georgette Heyer)

Some With Arrows, Some With Traps (SW Prequels)

Dodging a Bullet (Doctor Who)

My own top 10.

A lot of these are fine as top stories, I think! Even if I think something is good, I don't trust that it is, if other people haven't said so. I mean, proof of the pudding is in the eating and all that. That said, there are definitely some random things that have got into this list.

(Dodging a Bullet has been pretty well unloved for YEARS, but looking at it it seems like maybe someone recced it last year somewhere or something? It suddenly had a bunch of bookmarks and has pushed out other things. Plus all the Star Wars ones have moved positions again.)

If I sort by comments, I think those are much better, so in no particular order:

The Spirit of St Mary Mead (Miss Marple yuletide fic, where Miss Marple is a Genius Loci, but it's still just canon. It was a great prompt, I think I wrote it fine, and it's top of my works by every measure, and there's no ship effect, so... who am I to argue?)

We'll Burn That Barn When We Come To It (William of Normandy/Harold AU in which the Battle of Hastings involves a lot more sheep and bees and a lot less people being killed. It's 'found texts' type fic, another Yuletide one, it was huge fun to write and it got a great response, so again, I'm not going to disagree!)

By the Book - I am SO happy and amazed this is on both lists. It was original fic written for Het Exchange (the tiniest exchange, lol!! XD) a few years back, for the prompt of Librarian/Demon she accidentally summoned. I got to use all my rl library knowledge and it, er, sort of stormed the exchange (it was VERY tiny, did I say?), and I would place it in my top ten, yes. I don't know how people still keep finding it, but I'm so delighted that they do, and they still like it.

it's the rain that will strengthen your soul - again, yes. This is a five times Padme Lives Obidala AU where they go on the run with the twins post RotS. It was another for an exchange (Space Swap, I think). I wrote it in mid lockdown, I buried myself in the Wookieepedia, and I was pleased with this one, and it's gradually got more love as the time has gone on, and I think it is a good fic; a very gentle story of healing that was probably a lot due to the times.

Okay, but there we diverge, because I think all of these are that bit better than the others in that list (which include at least 2 pieces of flash fic, one of which was written to cover a wrangling error I made long ago). Mind you, I think in some cases, it's because I Did The Research Dammit Appreciate This People, or because I plotted harder than usual, but most of these are or have been in top ten positions on AO3 as well:

(5) movements of the mind (Twelfth Night) - I wrote Shakespeare fic for Yuletide (about Feste & Olivia), and pulled it off. I had to watch TN a lot and then got 16th C jokes off the internet.

(6) Truth and Compromise (Discworld) - so old I hesitated a while over it, but I think I genuinely got the tone right (which is never easy for something like this) and I occasionally still read it myself if I want something to follow up The Truth with Wiliam/Sacharissa.

(7) Cul-de-Sac (No hawkers, traders, cold callers, canvassers or purveyors of religious knowledge) (Sapphire & Steel) - I've written a lot of S&S I'm really pleased with. It was hard to choose one (I do think I've done some good and unusual things for it), but this stands up and was very well liked.

(8) One Step Forward (Two Steps Back) (Jonathan Creek) It's very timey-wimey and I had to write accurate Maddy and Jonathan and be funny, and I do think I achieved all of the above, even if it took quite a while.

(9) Salt of the Earth (DW) I always include this one in my self-recs, but there's a reason. I still think it's good. It's about a very minor character, but it was one I'd wanted to write ever since I first watched Image of the Fendahl.

(10) i love the rose both red and white (Shadow of the Tower) Maybe this is another 'i did the research' one, but it's very obscure and still has done pretty well in my stats, so I don't think it's just me. But I did do the research, and I tried to push myself as to style for it as well, I think.

I do like Some With Arrows, Some With Traps, but it's another SW Obidala exchange fic, and it is very surprising that it's as high in kudos because it has never got many comments, and I just thought it wasn't much liked. But it has an OC droid and was as much 'SW fun adventure but Obidala canon divergence' as I could make it. (Still, I it's a short story that clearly in my head should have been 80k and never ever will be, so I think it's fair to swap it out for variety.)

I do not know what is with the Miss Marple thing. It just happened. (Those are pretty much my only Miss Marple stories! It's a rare fandom! It is a mystery.) It's pretty funny, though, and I will be sad if one day the ships beat Miss Marple from the lists!

Tagging (if wanted/not already tagged): @maryellencarter @pers-books @lurking-latinist @herawell @scarletmanuka @human-nxture @bunn1cula @foreignobjecticus @jurijurijurious

[cryptid-puppy]

pinned post

whelp. finally broke and decided to stop lurking on Horny Tumblr... not gonna be super active, mostly probably just gonna use this for reblogging things so I can find them later.

If you don’t have your age in your description or pinned post (or if it’s there but not 18+) I WILL block you if you try to interact with this blog. This blog is NOT for minors, got it?

probably also not going to have the best/most consistent tagging but I’m mostly into puppy play and that kind of stuff so like, that’s gonna be a lot of what’s here (if that wasn’t obvious by the blog name lmao...)

edit: just in case you can’t see my description, i’m 22yrs old, i’m transmasc with he/him pronouns, and you can call me Crypt.

edit 2: changed that i’m not looking for mutuals because i think i’m starting to feel comfy enough to chat with people, so long as y’all understand that this is my side-blog and i don’t follow people back (even from my main which i wish to keep private). but, some more info if you might be interested:

I’m aromantic, so really with anything I’d be looking for a Fuck Buddy, keeping things somewhere in the platonic to queer-platonic range. I’m pretty t4t in a “i’m a transmasc puppy sub looking for a transfem/enby dom” kind of way. sorry cis/genderconforming people u just aren’t hot to me lol

it’s pretty easy to figure out what i’m into buuut, biggest things are petplay, praise kink and pain play. those are things i know i’m definitely into. i’m still really new to all of this so i haven’t figured out any super hard “no” stuff outside of misgendering.

[dosiracexmachina]

17 questions

tagged by @mr-dyketective ​ 🤍

nickname: I had some throughout life, but rn I can only remember Кирпич (Brick) from middle school days, because my pencil case resembled one in a way and I used to beat up boys w it lol and also kinda similar to my surname, Доширак (instant noodle brand popular here) because I used to eat it all the time and, again, kinda similar to my first name, and derived from this one -> Доша (Dosha) - mispronunciation of my first name’s short form

sign: Leo, every time I say it people point out my hair

height: 5′ or 153.5 cm (yes, that half of cm IS important to me) hate being a womanlet

last thing i googled: arhangel да нет (archangel yes no) a site with a spinning wheel that gives you yes or no answer... this is how I make decisions in life...

song stuck in my head: mania by the Blake Robinson synthetic orchestra... it’s kinda cringe and edgy but awfully catchy (T_T)

number of followers: 78 it is greater than I expected lol

amount of sleep: depends

lucky number: don’t have one, mom once said it’s 16 because of some numerology stuff or whatever, but idk, I have one of those wallpapers w angel numbers for home screen and lock screen on my phone

dream job: I wanted to be a translator when I was a kid and currently study linguistics in college, but along the way I became disappointed in this profession, so my dream profession would be being neet

wearing: im in my bed so just my pink nightgown w black lace (sounds kinda cringe when I have to type it out, but I look pretty normal actually)

movies/books that summarize me: oh boy I can list off my favourite movies and you can make up your own mind: Full Metal Jacket, Metropolis, But I’m a Cheerleader, Cloudburst, Alien and Aliens, Jennifer’s Body, Marie Antoinette, I Shot Andy Warhol and Funny Games. From childhood: Bambi, Sleeping Beauty and The Golden Compass. In terms of literature L.N. Andreyev and M.A. Bulgakov are authors who stick out to me, though it probably doesn’t summarize me

favourite song: can I just give my favourite band? I’ll just give my favourite band Гражданская Оборона (or Егор и Опизденевшие, there’s same person behind them though the latter is more trippy)

favourite instrument: I don't play any, but I like bass guitar’s influence on the tune or whatever

aesthetic: I used to switch aesthetic or -core like every week, but now I kinda settled on femcel messy French girl female manipulator c*qu*tte type of shit (sorry for using this word I hate it, though sorry for using all of those words but they’re kinda close to my style now 😔)

favourite author: well shit guess that’s answered lol

facourite animal noise: my old Maine coon cat used to have the most high-pitched meows, they were hilarious coming out of a giant cat’s mouth, I miss her greatly

random: I want to rename my blog to goatswoman, I didn’t like the word girl even when I was younger and made this blog why did I name it like that, but I also want to change my layout and what if my mutuals won’t recognise me or smth... I still love goats though, my favourite animals along with spiders

I don’t have anyone specific to tag and everybody probably did this thing anyway during these couple of days I wasn’t logged in

but

if you didn't do this thing and you want to then I tag you!

[troglobite]

lkfajsdflk

more thoughts abt fatness and desirability etc re: that one post i rbed and tagged

i can think of like Two characters who are actually fat who are cool interesting complex and their fatness is a neutral thing.

and they're both from the same show

laszlo and guillermo

like that's it lol

but i love them both bc they're complex characters who (as far as i know, bc again, i don't engage in fandom bc hhhhhhh) aren't FLATTENED.

yeah guillermo wears sweaters and is idealistic and goofy

but also? he kicks so much ass physically and emotionally

he is morally grey, fucked up, selfish, melodramatic, occasionally just MEAN

and ALSO a very loyal friend

he's not made to be ~comfy cozy~ or a joke just bc he's fat

it's just part of him, and it doesn't hold him back from having boyfriends and desires and BEING desirable

OR from being a truly fucked up piece of shit on occasion lol

and laszlo is The Most Desirable And Horny Man ever

and he's not portrayed as unwelcome in his advances, he's never portrayed as crude or rude or unwanted (except in very specific hilarious circumstances that have nothing to do with him being fat and horny)

he's not made out to be this lecherous freak

he's just exceedingly horny and eclectic and weird and funny and also sweet and heartfelt but utterly clueless about the weirdest things

he's a fun and complex character, and being fat is a neutral thing about him.

so when people make these two characters soft in fanart or fanfic, it's bc they're doing fandom shit, not bc they're fat (or at least, there's enough plausible deniability that it doesn't immediately read as that lol)

but az/raph/le is an irritating case to me

bc on the one hand YES MAKE CHARACTERS FATTER, IT IS A NEUTRAL THING! DO IT! GET USED TO SEEING FAT CHARACTERS AND IT NOT BEING A BIG DEAL! AND THEM STILL BEING DESIRABLE AND COOL AND LOVED!!!

and all of the other positive shit they said

on the other hand i am REALLY FUCKING SUSPICIOUS of people's motivations in making him fat in the VERY SPECIFIC WAYS they are making him fat

because you know what they ALSO do?

they make him SHORTER

and part of that is bc then together, he and cr/wl/y look like this:

oI

and ppl love that for some fucking reason

(baseless speculation that it's bc of reproducing gender roles and power dynamics in relationships that don't have them--ANYWAY)

people also draw/write him knitting. all the time.

i'm PRETTY sure he NEVER did that in the show. in reality i'm pretty sure he would be absolutely baffled by how it works bc it's a complex human thing. his only human interest outside of music and books is magic.

he doesn't even WEAR knitwear.

and yet. everyone draws him short, fat, round, and knitting, with this little placid smile on his face.

tell me that making him fat, doing those things, and calling him azi is in any way a neutral or positive thing 100% of the time.

okay that was really combative--

clearly i think a lot of ppl just don't think about it.

and some are just following fanon trends.

but either way, they are creating and reproducing something that relies upon shortness and fatness to convey "somft, smol, roumd, sweet uwu bb"

and it is INFURIATING.

I AM SHORT AND FAT

AND I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW OFTEN PEOPLE HAVE STEREOTYPED OR UNDERESTIMATED ME

they would see my anger as laughable or cute

my interests as childish

my glee and excitement as weak and youthful

my threats funny

and i'm REALLY FUCKING ANGRY that giving him the same traits i have is meant to fucking woobify him so he's smol and cute

and then there are posts that are like ooohhh!!! he's a badass! he has a PLAN! he's so cool and tough!!!!

all in the same tone of like. fucking. talking about your 9 year old wanting to dismantle the patriarchy. or a small dog managing to scare bigger dogs.

so while i'm glad that there exists a lot of fanwork that makes him fatter AND desirable

and just has his NORMAL, CANON ATTRIBUTES (goofy, endearing, a bit gullible, but also steadfast and loyal, also self-denying and occasionally clueless or reticent) that are PART of him but not meant to be EMPHASIZED by his physical attributes

like that's great

i'm REALLY fucking irritated to see him made shorter and fatter as a shorthand way of conveying uwu smol bean

he's not. any of those things.

so THAT is why he in particular being made fatter (AND SHORTER) in fanworks just grates on me

yes i have tried blocking tags but blacklist systems no longer work consistently on here :)))))))))

so i see a lot of it unwillingly and then scroll past at lightning speed

but yeah. those. are my thoughts.

[gifsbysimplysonia]

I have one cuz I can't believe I forgot lol

All of this happened and only AFTER the backlash did this group of folks seem to realize that they had never requested nor seen proof that the alleged perpetrator of the scamming knew Chris or anyone else who knew Chris.

........

Imagine that? Letting someone into your private circle and just blindly taking what they say as gospel - cuz it's what you WANT to hear not necessarily cuz it's true. And only AFTER you run to public forums and pedal what they all now claim were HER lies ... start demanding in your private Discord proof of how she knew all this about CE / knew him / knew anyone in his circle. Suddenly, just her word wasn't enough. After...months.

I'm of the opinion that they really thought their loyal base was gonna buy into this and when they didn't and people who normally never spoke up or out about them started making posts and putting them in the CE tag ... they panicked and decided to scape goat one person. And when proof was provided that the ringleader and that scape goat were (probably currently are) still following each other and in communication, that just cemented it for me.

They posted screenshots showing this, y'all. Screenshots from their private Discord, as if those would somehow exonerate them / mske us all go "Oh, it obviously wasn't you guys. This one person led all y'all astray." Granted a bunch of folks did say "Oh well you got scammed too and you apologized, case closed." Which is so flabbergasting to me.

Not me. Instead, I was/am out here questioning how old all of these people must actually be cuz HOW?? Just HOW?? I guess the desire to believe a fantasy / false narrative just outweighed logic for all of them (of which there were/are like 6 or 7, maybe more, per the screen names in the Discord screenshots).

Due diligence is a thing and because I'm old and have been around bandoms and fandoms where I've seen what NOT speaking up about sh!t like this does...and this subject has come back around, I'm speaking up again.

Don't forget. Don't allow yourself to be gaslit. And always ask questions.

Jfc so the “family in need” that the gofundme references was Chris evans??? Lmao that’s literally insane. Holy shit. So some people donated under the guise of trying to help a single mom and her family and others donated under the guise of getting CE out of a “PR contract”? Thanks for your time responding to this btw. I’ve always been confused about this whole thing.

Correct. It was a shady deal all the way around and tbh blew over way too quickly 🧜🏻‍♀️

[catintheruemorgue]

annoying things they do

summary: small things these guys do that just grinds your gears a bit.

characters: oda, dazai, kunikida, twain, akutagawa, atsushi, mori, poe, ranpo, fittzgerald, steinbeck, chuuya, yosano, gin, kouyou, higuchi, alcott and lucy

these are all based off things i do or have inconvenienced my life lmfao i’ll probs do a part two with everyone i missed this just got wayyy to long lol next im posting being friends with double black 

Oda:

If you're wearing shorts and have bruises he will poke them when you're resting your legs on him. He’s silent about it too and if you yell at him he pretends to act like he doesn't know what you're talking about.

Will smack your sunburn but this one is actually an accident. He just wanted to pat you on the back because you're amazing.

Will space out when you talk too long, sometimes certain objects are just so… mesmerizing

Dazai:

Loves to jumpscare you the only exception is if it was a trigger. In that case he will just call your name and whip something at you for you to catch at random.

When you're driving he likes to reach over and honk your horn. It's almost caused so many roadside fistfights.

If he sees a dog in public he will bark and growl at it.

Kunikida:

Won’t let you on the bed without socks on. You could be sick as a dog and he’ll still enforce this rule.

Cleaning is hard because he has a hard time throwing things away. You'll spend extra time as he holds two identical pens, trying to decide which one he wants to keep. He’s learned to plan certain days in his schedule for cleaning now.

Won't let you turn up the music in the car and will keep it at a level that's so low it's annoying.

Twain:

Walks around the house shirtless but then complains about how cold it is.

Blasts his music so loud when he wakes up in the morning and it's always early 2000’s hits. It's not rare for you to have Pocketful of Sunshine by Natasha Bedingfield stuck in your head by 9 am.

Always has to climb something, this stems from his adventurous side. It's not really that annoying but when you’re in a crowded area and he runs off to go climb the tall statue, screaming at you to take a photo… Yes it is. Especially when children try and follow him and you're stuck receiving glares from the parents.

Akutagawa:

Will not let you throw any food products out. He tells you it's a perfectly good meal (even if it's not) and that he will eat it tomorrow. It’s sad because you know this stems from childhood but it’s still annoying.

Reuses the same gross, musty ziplock baggies. You keep buying new ones but he doesn't get it lol.  

Will tell you if your breath smells, hair is messy, outfit is ugly. He does not see an issue with this and it's nice knowing someone has your back but he doesn't have to be so rude about it..

Atsushi:

If he drinks he's one of those drinkers who will not let you take it from him. Keeps an iron grip on the cup. He finishes it no matter how drunk and always throws up. Thankfully he rarely drinks.

He stops to help everyone, literally even if they just look like they need help. You've been late to so many things.

Will eat anything. Once you made steak and somehow forgot about it. It was hard as a brick yet he still almost broke his teeth eating it. You think you saw some tears as he told you it was delicious.

Mori:

Listens to people's conversations in public and isn't afraid to comment, loudly, about it. You know it's loud because they either stop talking or try and confront you guys.

Comes up to stops fast and brakes so hard you feel like he does it on purpose.

Sometimes if he and Elise get into a “disagreement” he’ll try and rope you in to take his side and you always do, knowing it would probably give him more satisfaction if you chose to side with her.

Poe:

Asks for constructive criticism but will then argue with you about why you're wrong.

Always humming a song he heard Twain singing and then it gets stuck in your head too.

Will deny stupid things like why your favorite mug is in the trash or why he just let out rather loud scream in the bathroom. You know he's lying because he looks away and makes sure his bangs are covering his eyes.

Ranpo:

Will call you out on any lie even if you don't mean to lie you just forgot about some of the details.

Don't take him grocery shopping if you have a set amount you want to spend. He won't even sneak, he will just say he wants something and throw it in the cart.

Such a backseat driver even though he can't drive.

Fitzgerald:

Likes to act like he's still in his twenties and will somehow get the two of you invited to college parties where he will attempt to do a kegger in front of everyone. You end up being the one to hold him up and he always ends with a, “LETS FUCKING GO!”

Likes to ask for the senior discount even though he's not that old, he just likes to hear the women validate that he's not old.

It’s scary how he used to buy without looking and now will scream if the price on a price tag is too high.

Steinbeck:

Always looking at the grass for wheat to chew on. It's so cheesy when you walk into the city and he's got it sticking out of his mouth.

He gets weirdly intimate with nature and you feel like you're third wheeling.

Has the mentality that he has to provide for you because he is the man. He gets so shocked when he finds out you still want to work.

Chuuya:

Has a hard time making decisions you could ask him what he wants for dinner and his mind will just break.

Gets way too pissed at movies and will actually get up and walk away. Once you were kicked out of the theater because he wouldn't stop yelling at the screen. Another time he walked out you waited a whole ten minutes before you realized he wasn't coming back.

Sometimes activates his ability at night and it's so scary waking up to him floating halfway across the room.

WOMAN TIME!!!!!!!!!!

Yosano:

Will glare at you so intensely if you say something she disagrees with.

Always tries to rope you into drinking with her even if you’ve said no the past ten nights.

Will describe wounds or injuries in such detail and just won’t stop, almost like she’s trying to fuck with you, but she’s not.

Gin:

Claims to be nothing like her big brother but then will go on to make the same facial expressions and do some of the same mannerisms as him.

Will spend hours trying things on just to put it all back, leave the store and change her mind when you’re almost home. Then she’ll have you run back with her to buy it all.

Is used to sneaking around so scares you a lot. Also on the topic of being silent sometimes she just won’t respond, thinking you can just read her vibes / mind.

Kouyou:

Will judge what you eat, especially fast food but will try and steal a fry in private when you're not looking.

Will say things like, “Well that's just the way the world works.” If someone tries to share their baggage with her. You understand she’s had a pretty rough life but it's caused you to almost spit out your drink multiple times.

At functions forgets about you for about an hour while she mingles with everyone else, you could tap on her shoulder and she'll dismiss you like you're a subordinate. Until you clear your throat again you'll see the slight blush as she apologizes.

Higuchi:

She has no sense of privacy. If she hears a crash or loud noise she will bust down the door. It’s sweet but not when the noises are usually from you knocking all the shampoo bottles down again.

Horrible road rage actually puts you on edge to be in the car with her. She doesn't even have to be driving.

Likes to act like she's a professional at everything and people usually believe it because of her suit. It's so nerve wracking when she giggles when they walk away with false information.

Alcott:

Will agree to everything you suggest but you can only tell when she doesn’t want to do it when you’re currently doing it.

Yet she’s not afraid to grumble about how annoying it is when someone bumps into you and doesn’t apologize. It’s sweet but you’re left dealing with the situation if the person is aggressive enough to say something.

Always corrects your spelling or if you say something like “I could care less.”

Lucy:

Will fish for compliments in a very obvious way like, “Wow. Wish someone would call me pretty..” and then just stare right at you.

Kicks you so violently in her sleep but won't let go of you so you cant get away.

Constantly stealing from restaurants. You're banned from a couple restaurants because she got caught trying to steal a cup or salt shaker.

[cafeinthemoon]

Staring at the Sun

Chapter 1/2

Wordcount 1500+

Title Part I

Fandom Kimetsu no Yaiba

Pairing Yoriichi Tsugikuni X reader

Symbols ✔ | ➕ | 💛

Warning (s): mentions of fighting with sword, axe, blood, minor injuries, serious injuries, decapitation, family drama, family loss

Tagging @darling-imobsessed I'm not sure if you're interested in reading kny stuff from a beginner but here it is lol (if you want to be tagged in any of my stories, just send an ask or a message 😉)

N. A.: So this is my kny work and I'm so proud of it because, despite loving the story and the characters, I've never had good ideas for stories with them... until season 2 came out! I'm loving it even more than season 1 and can't wait for the third one ❤

At first, I wanted this story to be just an one shot, but it ended up too long, so I divided it in two parts. It won't have a complex plot or a continuation after Part II comes out. I just want it to feel like a slice of life story, you know.

Anyways, I hope you like it 🥺

Your feet were numb from wading out on the thick snow through an entire evening and night, yet you knew you had to keep moving. The chilling air burned your lungs at each breath, and the few exposed parts of your skin were received with merciless scratches as you moved among bushes and dead branches; the axe you’ve been carrying attached to your back became too heavy, the temptation to drop it increasing at every minute. However, no rest was allowed to you now: your persistence and that axe were your only hope, and of those people you had to save as well.

The top of the trees entangling with each other over your head hid the moonlight, darkening your sight, but your other senses were enough to guide you. The feral sounds of steps rushing toward the depths of the grove, the smells of the wilderness blended with sweat and fear, the suffocated voices praying for help were proof that you were on the right direction, besides what people used to say about it: when you were on your way to meet a monster, your heart would desire to run as fast as possible to the opposite path.

Your brother – or what was left from him – was who you had to find before anyone else. It hasn’t been possible to see him since his transformation, for he has been hiding in the shadows, with not even the forest’s beasts accepting his company. Moments before his immediate consciousness disappeared, you promised yourself you would follow and contain him, using any methods under your reach, before he could hurt someone. You swore you would do it, and thanks to this promise you were there, not sure of what exactly you were going to find once you reached him, but knowing that the tracking was the easiest part of your mission, while stopping him would be a different story.

The screams – and his groans – became louder when you reached some particularly sinuous, descending spot among the woods. You unattached the axe and continued to run toward them, and in a sudden change the thick tress were left behind and the moon’s pale glow appeared above: you entered a clearing at what could be the center of the grove, and felt the axe almost slip from your hands with the terrifying vision.

Your elder brother, once as human as yourself, now reached the full form of an Oni, one of the blood lusty creatures that came at night to devour people, leaving nothing but destruction and suffering behind them. You doubted their existence as you’ve only heard about them from the mouths of the common folk, something that changed after what happened to your brother; still, believing in what you saw was easier than accepting it, whatever the way you thought of the case.

He was standing in the middle of the clearing, arms open, legs folded, about to throw himself over a woman crouching on the white ground, protecting a small child with her fragile arms. As far as you could see in that fading light, he maintained the general aspect of his old appearance, with only a few, disturbing exceptions: his nails, always short and modest, have grown into what should be called claws now; there was nothing left of the calmness you used to sense in his voice: all the politeness and intelligence of his manners were gone, giving place to brutal noises that could never raise from a normal throat. When he turned to you, you saw that his eyes, once of a clean, bluish shade, were now as yellow as the ones of a serpent, with no signs of having recognized his sibling.

The seconds you stood like this felt like eternity, for all the things you had to endure in such a ridiculous amount of time: your brother died, and something else – an evil force, or spirit or decease, you didn’t know – dared take over his body to harm others, and make no distinction between them and his family with no excusable reason, at least not one you could see. How? Why? The absence of answers was heartbreaking.

However, you couldn’t allow your spirit to be broken in the same way, not when lives were in danger before you. You knew you might not get a second chance to catch his attention for so long and thus creating a gap for the woman and the child to escape, so you clenched your hands around the axe’s base and forced your legs to run toward monster.

He didn’t stay quiet while you went to attack him: forgetting about the two people on the ground, the Oni jumped toward you, his claws ready to drag you down. You raised the axe as fast as you could, not overthinking the move, and the blade cut through the skin of his arm, ripping it off; the member fell on the snow, a puddle of dark blood forming on the endless whiteness. As you landed on the ground, you gasped as if the injury was inflicted on your own body.

Unlike you, your brother – the Oni – didn’t show any signs of disturbance or pain after that: instead, he just stretched the remaining part of his member and grew another one in the blink of an eye. You almost screamed with the sight: from the stories you’ve heard about that power of theirs, you should have foreseen this, but witnessing it by yourself was something infinitely different.

Now you changed your positions with the demon, standing between him and the people he hunted until there. The gap you first intended was created, and there was no room to failure. You didn’t know if the woman realized that too, but the lack of time to think forced you to count on this.

Without looking at her, you screamed:

- Take the child and run! And don’t look back!

The woman mumbled something you didn’t understand, so you just repeated your command, louder:

- Run! Now!

You heard her standing with the child and moving away, stumbling through the uneven, wet ground behind you. You didn’t have time to glance and see how fast she ran or how far she was, for the creature in front of you, after watching the escape of his prey, was furious.

He didn’t wast time and came after the woman in hopes to stop her before she disappeared in the trees with the child, and maybe catch you in the process.

Well, you didn’t know how much clever he was now as an Oni, but you were counting on the possibility of him underestimating your physical capacity: it was sort of clear that you alone couldn’t stop him if he wanted to catch the other people. Whether he realized that or not, you were ready to take advantage from him being oblivious to it and compensate the lack of power balance.

And that was precisely what you did: your true intention was to bring him as close to you as possible and then inflict in his arms and legs as many injuries as you could, so that he would be occupied with the multiple regenerations: this would reduce his offensive capability and give time for the woman to run and for you to prepare an effective way to stop him.

An effective way. What did it even mean? Maybe if you would go for his neck... you’ve heard something about the neck being the vulnerable spot of a demon’s body...

He was unnaturally fast. You didn’t even blink and he was already passing by your right side, ignoring your presence. Yes, he opted for pursuing just the woman and maybe taking care of you later. That was what you needed. You prepared your axe…

But you just couldn’t make it quick.

When you looked into his eyes, you didn’t saw the monster, not even when all that existed in those golden pupils was a bestial hunger. You saw your brother. Your family. Your best friend. Everything that you had. You wanted him back; you wanted to call him, to wake him up from this nightmare in which he was trapped, to make him remember what he was, what you were.

You raised the blade to his scapula, slowing him down as his shoulder and arm were separated from his upper body and forcing him to pay attention to you. It wasn’t as good as you planned, but it was enough. Now you just had to ignore the protest of your sore muscles and continue.

And you did it. You moved forward, twirling the axe to his sides, his legs and arms, everything you could see in that dubious light, in a confusion of skin, blood and snow. You kept moving, even when you were the one feeling the pain of each attack, of each cut, each drop of blood that fell. When he realized you wouldn’t let him go ahead, he stepped back, just enough to be out of you axe’s reach, and stood quiet, waiting for a chance.

You already understood that your physical strength and agility were nothing compared to his as an Oni, so you needed to finish this as soon as you could, otherwise your strategy would turn against you and he would kill you and go after the woman. You just weren’t sure of how much more you could stand until a chance to reach his neck appeared. It has been just a few seconds and you were already sweating despite the freezing weather; your limbs were numb from the constant effort and your lungs were burning. He, on the other hand, hadn’t shown any sign of tiredness yet; besides, his skin was more resistant to injuries than you first supposed, and he wasn’t having great difficulties in healing them simultaneously. You had no time to think or to make plans.

Your only option was to finish this now.

You also noticed your sight was blurry, but not only by the shadows. Yes, you’ve been crying for all this time. Did your brother see that too? Did it make any difference to him? In his current state, you doubted that. He wasn’t even able to speak as a human by now. And you couldn’t stay there and wait until he was fully recovered.

It was when you felt something hot soaking your clothes; you looked down at yourself and noticed you were bleeding. You looked at him and saw him licking his remaining hand, stained with a dark, reddish fluid. You gasped: he was able to hurt you just enough for him to taste the closest human blood available. Was that a threat or he was just getting the precise amount of energy he needed to heal faster in the current circumstances?

But there was no time to figure that out, because now he didn’t wait until his regeneration ended and was going toward you again.

You didn’t think of your next moves. You just let your body do the work for you: your legs just started moving, and your hands tightened around the axe’s base. You repeated to yourself that you had no brother in front of you, just a monster.

He’s not your brother anymore. He's just a monster. Just a monster. Cut him. Now.

You were now face to face with the Oni, and your arms were too slow: the axe was too far from his neck. You had to find a gap, a chance, anything…

And that time, the heavens wanted you to find it: you forced your body to move aside, pretending you were going to let him pass; when he was right beside you, you turned around yourself and, reuniting all the strength remaining in your arms, you threw them ahead, finally making the blade meet the monster’s neck.

It was all too fast for your senses to process, yet time seemed to stop. In a moment, you were looking into the Oni’s eyes, knowing that it would take an instant of failure, of hesitation for you to die, and in the next one you were seeing his body fall before you, spreading snow around as his head was thrown into the cold air, landing heavily on a spot under a tree, his face turned to you, his bright eyes wide open, glued on yours.

Apart from your own heavy breathing and his gasping despite the decapitation, the silence that fell on the clearing after the Oni’s defeat was too much for your sensitive ears. Yes, you did it. You stopped your brother, as you promised, and saved the woman and the child’s lives. It was over, at least for them.

Because for you, it was just starting. As you stood still, watching his body disappearing as ashes in the wind, you thought that this was the scariest part of all, even more than the things that might have happened in case you couldn’t stop him.

That was the last time you were going to see the being that once was your brother.

While you looked into his eyes, you saw no angry, no hunger nor the slightest will to fight for his life. Even the golden glow of malice has faded. In its place, you just saw fear. Fear and tears. Yes, the demon was crying. Or now that he was about to die, was he your brother again? Was he remembering everything? Even if he was, it was now too late. A human couldn’t heal those injuries or stop the vanishing.

Whatever that being was – your brother or still an Oni –, he was leaving forever.

Your legs started trembling before you could control them; you didn’t know how you managed to keep on your feet. Your hands let the axe fall in front of you, burying itself in the snow. Your entire body was shaking.

When the last remaining of his body disappeared, leaving no trace of its previous existence, you understood what you just did. Your brother hasn’t been there since the transformation, but when his body was gone, the last proof of his passage through this world was gone with it. Your brother died, and you had not even a body to bury.

Your tongue was suddenly released, and you started screaming at the empty clearing, your eyes blinded by hot, thick tears.

- Onii-chan! Onii-chan! Don't go! I'm sorry! I'm sorry… Onii-chan… No...

Your throat soon became sore, and your heart were in crumbles. Your injury throbbed at each sob, but you didn’t care. You covered your face with your hands, not wanting to find the place where your brother was no longer at, not wanting to face what you did, what you had to do to save those people, not wanting to think of how lonely you were now.

- Please, Onii-chan... – you mumbled against your palms – Don't leave me alone…

You didn’t know if that was a sign that your wish was heard or anything of that sort, but whatever you might have asked, it would never be something like that: a rampant sequence of sounds exploded your ears at that moment, spreading around you, coming from all directions as if a group of things, or living beings, just came out of the trees and ran toward you. With the startle, you took your hands off your face and looked, but had no time to react to what you saw.

A group of Oni arrived from the grove’s shadows, ready to attack. You haven’t sensed their presence until they were surrounded; they just appeared out of nowhere. Your axe was still on the floor, and it was going to stay there; you tried to turn back and stumbled, falling on the snow, helpless against those hungry beings.

Your hands were empty now. Your legs finally gave in to exhaustion and you wouldn’t stand up so soon. You felt the ache on your side increasing; when you looked down, you gasped at the sight: slit your brother opened in your torso was larger than it seemed at first. A black stain has appeared over the fabric of your clothes, and a pulsating sensation took place: if you took a deeper breath, you would lose more blood and pass out. You closed your eyes tight and covered them with your hands, ready to face your end...

However, the creatures never reached you.

A sequence of clean, hissing sounds was heard, as if a blade in flames was wielded before and around you, consuming everything that entered its way. Through the gaps between your fingers a reddish light appeared, and the cold air was filled with the growing heat of a summer day. Was the forest on fire? If so, you would had to run right now.

You gathered all the courage left in you and opened your eyes…

And saw the night being purged from the clearing.

The Oni didn’t have time to move, whether to defend themselves or to hide from the expanding waves of fire breaking through their skin, dividing their bodies in several pieces, their flesh turning into burning cinders, vanishing before they reached the white ground.

It was all so swift that you almost thought that the waves came from multiple directions, but it didn’t take long until you understood, in surprise, that they were born in just one spot: the blade of a stranger’s sword, brandished in perfect harmony, as an extension of his arms, doing as he pleased.

Among all the suffering, blood and desperation, you were marveled. Those movements, you thought, were more like the ones of a dance than a combat style. You felt it would be vulgar from your part to call them a battle ritual, so elegant, so beautiful they were. Yes, that was a terrible night to be alive, in the middle of a forest during winter, but for an instant, the sight of that fight – if that should be called a fight – made you forget about it. Just for a moment, there was no fear, no darkness, pain or loneliness in your heart. Only the light of the flames.

Though the creatures were many, not a single one escaped; and despite being cut in pieces, you couldn’t call it a massacre – instead, it was a cleaning.

The vision didn't last longer than a few seconds, yet time seemed to stop as you were immersed in it. You only realized it was over when the last sparks faded out in the melting snow, giving back the domain of light to the moon.

Among them, the man of the sword stopped a few meters before you, cleaned its blade and put it back on the sheath, so fast that you barely followed the movement. A quietness established in the space between you, like the silence that comes when a crowd stops speaking or when the last drops of a storm reach the ground.

You took that moment to observe your savior. That he was taller than most of the people you’ve met, you noticed even at that distance. His hair, tied up, was long, floating behind him with the chilling wind that started blowing moments ago, only sensed by you now; the locks were dark, almost black, but their edges were of a lighter, warmer shade. You noticed he wasn’t dressed for the winter, but somehow it didn’t make a difference in his case: any other person would be trembling if they went outside in such clothing, but the cold didn’t seem to touch him at all, even with the wind entering the folds of his red haori.

Looking at that man under the moonlight was like staring at the sun.

Until that moment, there was only room for admiration in your vision, however you experienced something close to fear when he took the first step in your direction, for it wasn’t possible, through mere observation, to figure out his next moves: did he notice that you were not a demon? Even if he did, was he going to wield his sword again and eliminate you just as he did to the Oni? Was he going to interrogate you, to check your conditions or even pass by you and disappear in the forest, as sudden as when he arrived?

You still couldn’t move from your spot; the ache under your clothing was becoming unbearable, and you found yourself holding your side to delay the bleeding.

The stranger stopped in front of you and lowered his eyes to you. The pale light that barely touched his face, yet looking into them was like seeing the flames of the battle again, contained in a peaceful glow but ready to be summoned a second time. Those were gentle eyes, filled with sadness, wisdom and the weight of everything he might have seen. And after what you yourself just witnessed, you didn’t want to try and imagine what those things would include. You were so lost in your deliberations that you took a moment to see that, just like you, he was crying.

Chapter 2