#We still tell their stories and remember their names

[thefallennightmare]

The Ties That Bind Us: One

*gif created by me. feel free to use, simply give credit.*

•Parings• Noah Sebastian x Soulmate!Reader.

•Word Count• 2,268

•Warnings• fluff, language, talks of death/sickness, angst, depression, dark thoughts, soft!Noah, smut that will include unprotected p in v, oral with both male and female receiving, hand jobs, and fingering. Pretty tame smut in this.

•Summary• Growing up, Noah’s grandparents told him the story of why everyone wore a red tie around their wrists and while theirs glowed while his didn’t.

“Yours will glow when you meet your soulmate, Noah.”

When someone moves in next door and catches Noah’s eyes immediately, he sees the red tie around her wrist glowing only to see his remains red. Convinced she’s not his soulmate, Noah tries hard to stay away from her yet small moments between them start to blossom. So much so, he can’t ignore the tie that binds them together

•Authors Note• As I previously stated, even though this is a "reader insert", there will be moments I describe the reader because it pertains to the story. I'm not quite sure how many chapters this will be, I'm thinking around ten but it could change. I'm also sorry this chapter seems very short, but I figured it doesn't need to be super long with an introductory chapter.

•Tags• @artificialbreezy @blueskylinesx @dominuslunae @lobolocaamo @lilcrazy011 @badomensls @shayeanna-ashlie @supersquirrel1996 @missduffsblog @nicelittlenightmares @curse-bearing-hips @collisionofyourkissmakesitsohard @chey-h @idontwantthemoney @heyyoplayer @amelia-acero @xmads-omensx @poisongirl616 @theanarchymuse95 @trvshdxddy @thisbicc @losingmyselfinthoughts @follow-me-down-to-wonderland @alwaysfightforwhoyouare @klutzy-kay24 @xxkatsatwatwafflexx @collidewiththesavannah @tosoundlessdarkistare @rumoured-whispers @dontwantthemoney

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NOAH

Growing up, my grandma would always tell me the same thing whenever I asked her about the weird red tie around my wrist. 

“An invisible red thread connects those destined to be together, regardless of time, place or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but will never break.”

When I asked her why hers and my grandpa’s glowed the same color, her answer was simple. 

“We’re both soulmates. Destined to be with each other.”

I always thought the idea of soulmates was a bunch of bullshit people told to make up reasons why we all were born with these ties. I spent many hours trying to cut or rip it off but it wouldn’t budge. My grandma’s words echoing in my head once again. 

“The only way to remove a bind is with death.”  

The soft breeze filtered through my hair as I adjusted the beanie over my head, opening the door wider so my guest could leave. Yet while I stood on the front porch waiting for her to stop talking with Michael, I messed with the red bind around my wrist like I typically did. I’d been expecting to see it glow for the last few years once I reached the age of twenty one yet here I was at twenty four with the still same red bind around my wrist. 

“So, can I call you?” 

Snapping my eyes away from my wrist to the woman in front of me, her bind also red, I gave her a curt nod. “Sure, I guess.” 

I didn’t miss the way her smile faltered with my words and when she crossed her arms over her chest, I suddenly regretted not trying to be a bit more upbeat. It’s not like she was some stranger, she’d come over a few times before but it was never serious. I didn’t even remember her name most of the time which might have been wrong on my end but like I said, it wasn’t ever serious. Just someone to call when the nights were lonely. 

Wow, I sounded like a real asshole. 

“Maybe we can get coffee tomorrow?” I suggested while stuffing my hands deep into the pocket of my sweats. 

Whatever her name was smiled and nodded enthusiastically. “I would really love that, Noah.” 

Fuck. She said my name which means now I have to say her name. It's the respectful thing to do. 

I rubbed the back of my neck, long strands of hair tangled between my fingers. “Uh, yeah. Same here, uh-.” 

When I trailed off, unable to remember her fucking name, her lip snarled and threw her shoulder over her shoulder, bounding down the front steps. 

“You know what, don’t call me. I’m busy for the foreseeable future!” She called back, making sure to slam the door to her car as she sat inside. 

Shrugging, I didn’t bother to watch her peel out of the driveway and turned on my heels to head back inside when a commotion to my left made me pause. The house next door had been vacant for a few months now so when I saw a large moving truck parked in the driveway. With furrowed brows, I took a few steps closer to the edge of the front porch, the side closest to this house, and watched as someone walked up the ramp into the back of the truck. 

“New neighbors.” Jesse appeared next to me almost out of thin air, taking a rather large bite of his apple. 

“Since when?” I asked, giving him my attention now. 

He tapped my shoulder with the hand that didn’t hold the apple. “Since this morning. Someone was a bit preoccupied to notice.” 

Rolling my eyes, I flipped him the bird and gazed back towards the moving van, expecting to see a group of guys like ourselves emerge from the back of the truck. So when I saw a female figure walk out carrying a large box, my breath caught in my throat. The way her hair cascaded over her shoulders and how a soft melody seemed to echo in the wind over towards me; her singing some unknown tune. 

My eyes tracked every movement of her when she walked through the front door of the house. She was gone for less than a few minutes but the entire time, my heart beat wildly in my chest. It was something Jesse noticed but didn’t bother to tease because with a wave, he disappeared back into the house leaving me alone again on the porch.

The sunset had broken over the horizon, painting the grass in a glow of oranges and slight pinks. It all paled in comparison to the brightness that radiated from the woman next door as she stepped back out, pausing for a moment to roll up the sleeves of her sweater. 

“Shit,” I muttered when I saw the band on her left wrist vivid with a glow. 

Holding my breath, I yanked up the sleeve of my shirt hoping to see my own band glowing but felt my stomach drop when it was still that stupid red color. It was foolish to think that this gorgeous woman who moved in next door would randomly be my soulmate. Things didn’t work out that easy for me. I’d been dealt a shit hand in life so I should have figured that this wouldn't be any different. 

My soulmate isn't out there. I should learn to accept it. 

“Excuse me?” 

I whipped my head up from my wrist over towards the house next door, giving a very awkward wave to her. 

“H-hi,” my voice shook, showing my nerves. 

She gave me a warm smile nonetheless. “I’m sorry if this is weird but do you know when garbage day is? I’ve got stacks on stacks of boxes that are taking over my garage.” 

Her giggle danced in the air over towards me, wrapping itself around my heart, and I had to tell myself not to get attached by her damn laugh. If her bind was glowing while mine wasn't, that only meant one thing. 

“Uh, Thursdays,” I said after clearing my throat. “Recycling is every other week.” 

“Thank you,” she beamed with a tired smile. “We just moved in and the relator failed to mention that.” 

Stuffing my shaking hands in the pockets of my sweats, I did my best to not let her realize how the way she was looking at me affected me. 

“Well, if you need help or more tips on the neighborhood, I’m your guy,” I said with a lopsided smile. 

Even from the distance between us, I could still see her brow peak while she crossed her arms. “That’s very nice of you, thank you. But I don’t even know your name.” 

“It’s Noah.” 

Very briefly, the bind around her wrist flickered which didn’t seem to phase her because she gave me a curt nod. “Well, Noah, it's nice to meet you. I’m Y/N, your new neighbor.” 

I leaned against the fence that surrounded my porch. “Welcome to the neighborhood, Y/N.” 

Both of us stood frozen for a few beats, staring at one another, and as I felt an urge to ask her something, someone exiting the house made my body go rigid. 

“Love?” He called out towards Y/N, resting a hand on the frame of the door. “Do you need any help?” 

All it took was once glance at the man's wrist to see the matching glow with Y/N’s, indicating what I already knew. 

She had found her soulmate. 

You met her less than two minutes ago, idiot. Stop being so heartbroken. 

“What are you doing, Eric?” She nearly rushed over to him. “I told you I would bring in the rest of the boxes. You should be taking it easy.” 

Feeling suddenly out of place, I pushed myself off of the porch and dragged my feet back inside, doing my best to ignore the way I had once again got my hopes up for this soulmate bullshit. 

READER

“Are you alright?” I asked Eric, slowly helping him back into the house and over to the couch. 

Even though we moved in this morning, we had a moving company bring all of our heavy furniture a few days ago and set it up. Anything to help take the load off of Eric and I since it was me that did most of the packing and unpacking. 

He playfully pushed me away and sat on the couch himself. “I’m fine, Y/N. I just wanted to make sure you were still doing fine unloading the truck. It needs to be back by 8 tonight.” 

I nodded while throwing the blanket over his lap and quickly adjusting the black beanie on his head that came askew. “I have three more boxes to bring in. Will you be fine alone while I take the truck back? I can call someone to come stay with you.”

This caused Eric to raise a brow. “Who? We don’t know anyone here.” 

Right. Nearly forgot that. 

“But I’ll be fine. I already told you I can take care of myself for a bit. It’s mostly when you’re gone for the entire day that it gets rough.” 

Guilt filled my veins for a number of reasons so instead of unpacking the rest of the truck, I sat on the couch next to him, wrapping my arms around his midsection to feel his familiar warmth spread to me. I traced the various tattoos on his arms with my gaze, burning them into my memory so I could never forget the way they looked. 

The way he looked. 

“Your mustache is getting long,” I giggled while glancing up at him. 

With everything going on in our lives the last few weeks, Eric had basically forgot the upkeep to his mustache. Not that I ever complained though, I loved how that was the only facial hair he kept. 

“I know how much you love it,” he winked and pressed a weak kiss to my forehead. 

We laid there for a moment on the couch, enjoying each other's presence in our new yet quiet home. Things would be different here, they had to be. We gave up a lot to move to this city because of the opportunities that awaited us. 

“I met more of the neighbors,” I spoke after some silence. 

“Yeah?” Eric asked, running his tattooed fingers up and down my arm. 

“Noah. He told me trash days are on Thursdays. Recycling every other week.” 

He hummed. “Is that the one who always seems to be eating some sort of fruit?” 

I giggled while playfully smacking his chest. “No, that’s Jesse. He’s the one that recommended this great taco truck a few blocks down. I was thinking maybe I grab some on the way back from dropping off the truck. Our car is at the UHAUL place so I’d drive it home.” 

“Home,” Eric repeated the word. “I never thought we’d call California home. I thought we’d be stuck in Ohio forever.” 

Tucking my legs underneath me on the couch, I buried my face deeper into Eric’s sweater desperate to have his scent tattooed into my skin. 

“We had to move though, Eric. The cancer units here are far better than Ohio,” I reminded him, doing my best to not cry. 

I’d spent the last couple of months crying because of not only Eric’s cancer coming back but the news of this time, the chemo might not stop it from spreading. We refused to give up hope so one of Eric’s doctors recommended a program out here in California that was testing some new age chemo, one that possibly could help Eric's type of cancer. 

“Which reminds me,” Eric sighed. “My chemotherapy appointment has been moved up to 8 a.m tomorrow. Is that alright?” 

Blinking away the tears, I nodded with a long sigh. “With my new job, I can work from home and clock in wheenver just as long as I work a full eight hours.” 

His tender touch lifted my chin, forcing me to look into his brown eyes; ones that had lost their light over time. 

“I hope that you remember days like this, both of us sitting here together when you're living somewhere new. These things were never clearer in my head especially when peace was in our home and needs were met. Before my cancer.” 

“Eric,” I choked out. “Please don’t talk like you’re already gone. You’re still here, in my arms. We need to focus on that.” 

Reluctantly, he nodded, knowing that he wouldn’t win this fight. It was one we had often, him trying to tell me not to dwell on his death for long if it came. He wanted me to be happy. But the glowing binds on our wrists for each other gave me hope that Eric would overcome this, like he had before. 

Forgetting about the boxes that needed to be unpacked, I let my eyes flutter shut with the sounds of Eric’s soft snores pulling me down to a slumber that my body had been craving. I couldn’t help but wonder of all the new opportunities we’d find here and possibly new friends as I thought of my neighbors, ones that seemed to be somewhat friendly. Especially the one with the longer hair out of the bunch. 

Noah. 

Exhaustion had taken both Eric and I, us falling asleep in each other's arms on the couch. Neither of us noticed our red binds flickering like a home losing its power in a raging thunderstorm.

[star-hoon]

number one girl

"I'd give it all up if you told me that I'll be, the number one girl in your eyes"

₊˚ ‿︵‿︵‿︵୨୧ · · ♡ · · ୨୧‿︵‿︵‿︵ ˚₊

[WORK IN PROGRESS!]

PAIRING. sunghoon x fem reader (best friends-to-lovers! au)

WARNINGS. profanity, (will be updated once complete)

WORD COUNT. (will be updated once complete)

SUMMARY. you always admired your best friend sunghoon. but when did that admiration turn into something...more?

DISC. this story is entirely fiction & does not reflect any real events of the idols mentioned.

AUTHOR'S NOTE. omfg this was so cheesy

pls give me feedback, i'd love to improve my writing so any and all critique is welcomed <3

you can still remember the first day you met sunghoon.

it was the first week of the semester at university and in physics class you were partnered up with jake, the handsome austrailian student (much to the other girls' dismay). although you of course could admit jake was very charming and handsome, you saw him as a lot more than that. he was smart and always patient to give you some extra tutoring when you didn't quite understand what was taught in lecture, genuinely kind, and it was so entertaining to see him never pass up a chance to show you a new picture of his dog layla.

jake invited you to his birthday party at an arcade that also had things like escape rooms and an ice skating rink. you've never met any of jake's friends before so you really didn't know what to expect but after some drinks and games in the arcade, it wasn't too hard to ease your initial nerves around the group of strangers.

"you HAVE to see sunghoon ice skate, i swear he's more coordinated on ice than walking on the ground..." wonyoung says to you as the group walks to the ice skating rink. she was one of the girls there that you got along with really well and she was super friendly right off the bat.

"really? huh... sorry i'm really bad with names, who's sunghoon again?" you nervously laugh to her.

she points to the dark haired boy laughing with heeseung as you all get in line to get you ice skates.

"he used to compete in international ice skating competitions...almost working towards olympic level. but he decided to drop competing to focus on his studies. don't let him try to convince you he just 'skates for fun'... you'll see what i mean," she had a lingering fondness in her eyes.

you couldn't help but to wonder what wonyoung meant but you got your skates and laced them on the benches lining the rink of ice.

"before we all get in the rink, i think it's only fair sunghoon gives a little show before we all totally eat shit on this ice" jake announces to the group, everyone laughing along with him.

your gaze falls on sunghoon, noticing the faint blush on his cheeks with all the attention now on him. you see his faint smile and waving his hands, declining jake.

"oh cmon sunghoon! please! some people here haven't seen you on the ice and you've been telling me you've been dying to skate again..." sunghoon finally gave in.

"fine fine, only because it's your birthday," sunghoon jokingly rolled his eyes. everyone cheered as you all gathered along the wall of the rink. the minute sunghoon started gliding along the ice, it was like a switch flipped. you felt like the person you were watching wasn't that shy boy you briefly met a few hours ago. his aura radiated a confidence but also a sense of comfort. you could feel his emotion with every turn and twirl. you could see his visible passion and love of skating. he was smiling so wide, his fangs poked out and you couldn't help but to smile as well. it was the kind of smile you wanted to stare at forever.

he was freestyling to whatever music that was playing over the speakers of the skating rink but you could tell he didn't need choreography to shine brighter than any of the white fluorescent lights in the building. you understood what wonyoung meant, he truly looked more comfortable on ice than on the ground—and you grew more and more curious about sunghoon.

when he concluded his impromptu performance, you all applauded and jake along with the other boys entered the rink cheering sunghoon on, hugging him and ruffling his hair. you entered the rink, you heart hammering out of your chest in nervousness and anxiousness. you've never ice skated before and you already knew you would make a total fool of yourself in front of everyone.

"wonyoung, i've never ice skated before...can i hang on to you?" she chuckled at your nervousness, finding you adorable.

"of course, here hang on to my arm until you get the hang of it. we can stay near the wall" the few circles you did around the rink was less you hanging on to wonyoung and more you having a death grip on the ledge of the wall—stopping every 2 feet feeling beyond imbalanced. you let go of wonyoung making a full stop.

"i'm gonna rest for a little bit, you can go hang out with the others" you stated trying to cover your labored breath.

"are you sure?" she questioned. "yeah! go for it! i'm just gonna take a breather, i'll join you in a sec" you reassured her. she gave you her signature sweet smile and skated towards the rest of the group.

after a few moments of watching the rest of the group from afar, you attempted to skate towards the center of the ice to join the rest of the group. without knowing still how to maintain your balance and the wall no longer within arms reach, you knees completely buckle under your weight. you were pretty much bracing for impact to have your hands and knees to collide with the harsh coldness of ice at your feet. before you could even fully comprehend it, you felt a pair of arms catching you, slightly easing your fall.

"woah that was a close one. are you okay?" it was sunghoon. his face was close to yours, close enough for gaze to fall on the concerned look in his dark orbs and the mole on his cheek and nose.

"y-yeah i'm fine! t-thanks for saving me, i totally ate shit." you joked, a cold sweat running down your spine in utter embarrassment.

"no worries, thankfully i got to you in time. and don't even worry about it, being on ice takes a ton of practice." his arm still holding onto yours helping you get up. he guides you both back to the wall.

"you're really good at ice skating by the way, like crazy good" he let out a soft chuckle at your compliment blushing. you knew he probably heard that a million times before.

"thank you, it's y/n right?" you nod.

"can i ask why you quit? wonyoung told me about how you used to compete but left to focus on school," the echos of the group's chatter and laugher being background noise to your conversation.

"yeah that's the main reason. i guess that's the simple explanation i give people..." his voice trailing, as if there's more to the story. you raise your eyebrows at him, hinting at him to keep explaining.

“it got pretty lonely in all honesty. competing i mean. i made friends through skating and stuff but when i trained and performed in a competition…i was alone through it all. it made me start to dislike the sport all together…” he sighed. “…and that was really hard for me. and i decided to step down from competing and just skate as a hobby now.”

he saw your solemn expression and reassured you the best way he could. “but it’s good now. truly. i think skating in a setting like this, with friends and just having fun healed my relationship with it.” you both looked out to the group, laughing in unison seeing ni-ki chase jake excitedly.

“basically the best way i can describe it being on the ice now feels like reuniting with an old friend…” sunghoon expresses, putting his hands in his jacket pockets.

“wow, i had no idea. thank you for telling me. for what it’s worth, i think you’re really brave.” you caught him tilting his head with a questioning look.

“well, i mean it takes a lot of courage to give up sometimes. especially something you put so much time and energy into…i feel like so many people think it's automatically a waste or a shame to give something up. but sometimes its just a redirection and sometimes its for the better.”

“y-yeah, exactly…” sunghoon looked at you stunned. you’re the first person to openly and fully understand his story and he didn’t even need to explain it to you his reasoning.

“i think you’re the first person who actually understands.”

you hummed in delight, smiling at him. “looks like we’ll get along pretty well”

“yeah i guess so” he smiles back.

you could feel the sincerity and warmth in his smile. it was different than the ones he gave you earlier. it was a smile you wanted to see again and again.

since that day at jake’s birthday, you and sunghoon have been inseparable. he was your best friend and you trusted him more than anyone else in the world.

he was reliable, he understood you in every way, and he accepted you even at your lowest—not judging you about your past.

you and sunghoon slept over at each other’s apartments all the time, even having each other’s a spare key.

sunghoon crashed at your place that previous night, you two pulling an all-nighter studying and your apartment being closer to campus than his. you two would sleep in each other’s bed but always staying on each other’s side—simply sleeping side by side, most of the time with your backs facing one another.

he had class earlier than you—his dreaded phone alarm going off, both of you stirring awake.

you pulled the covers over your head, groaning at the awful triggering sound of the alarm as sunghoon shut it off. he laughed quietly at your misery.

“hoon, why the fuck did you sign up for an 8am calculus class. who even voluntarily does that…”

"guess i'm a masochist," he sarcastically states, stretching and letting out a yawn. he reaches over your half-awake body, still covered by the blanket still to grab his glasses off your nightstand.

he basically puts all his body weight on top of you, borderline crushing you in the process dramatically reaching towards the table, a mischievous smirk on his face fully aware of his actions.

"hoon! ughhhh you're so annoying, you're crushing me" your voice muffled under the sheet. he laughs, amused by teasing you especially early in the morning when you're the grumpiest.

"sorry my bad" laughter still littering his voice. when you finally feel his weight off your body, you pull down the sheet from over your head.

you didn't realize sunghoon was still hovering over you, his arms on either side of your upper body. his gaze held something different in it, something you've never seen in his eyes before.

was there something in the air? were you starting to fall ill?

you and sunghoon joked around all the time and were in close proximity of each other all the time. maybe seeing each other at embarrassing moments one too many times, but this felt different.

the blue tint of the morning light peeking through your curtains illuminated his figure above you. the white tank top he always wore to sleep emphasized the contours of his defined arms, the thin silver chain adorning his collarbones reflected specs of light. and his messy hair and glasses wasn't helping your suddenly and unconsciously racing heart.

he was close. like really close. maybe too close for two people that were just friends. the air around you two felt thick and it was like you were holding your breath, maybe you were.

sunghoon slowly raised his hand, using his finger to brush a stray hair away from your face. and you swear his gaze wandered from your wide eyes to your lips. his touch lingered down to trace your jaw slightly.

he suddenly pulls away from your body, rising from the bed. he grabs his hoodie draped over your desk chair pulling it over his head and walking towards the bathroom—as if nothing had happened.

— should i continue writing?

taglist (open!): 

@laylasbunbunny @blackberryrains @luv-jungwon106 @woniebae

@gudkc @enha-stars @dimplewonie

thank you so much for reading, please let me know what you think <3

reblogs, likes, comments & shares are always appreciated!!

[thatgirlwithasquid]

ooo okay this looks fun (and i am procrastinating like a bitch rn so...)

Hm, I'm not sure. Maybe The Naming of Hobbits by @andhumanslovedstories? It was one of the first fics I read when I got into using AO3 and I remember it giving me a good giggle. I really should go back and reread it. It must've been years since I've read it by now... And yet I still think of it fondly as 'that funny The Hobbit fic' so it clearly left a very good impression :)

So many. So many make me cry. I've reread Time Falls Away by @not-close-to-straight like three times I think? And each time the line 'I don't know this part of the story' has me UGLY SOBBING. Love it. Absolutely an amazing read. I still haven't worked my way up to the third fic in the series cause the emotions are still too strong rn, but I am very excited for whenever I finally do! I also gotta mention All Is Fair In Love by @stranger-awakening cause OH MY GOD nothing has ever hurt me like this fic hurt me. The pain. It just kept getting worse. It was so good but I needed frequent breaks when reading cause the emotions were So Much. I'm also just realising I never kudosed that fic and OMG I AM SO SORRY. I was too caught up in the throes of agony, I apologise!!

My comfort fic is definitely Petey and Wade discuss the proper way to go about vigilantism (and maybe they fall in love too) by @isadancurtisproduction. I have read that fic at least once a year since I first came across it. I love it so much, it's insane. It may even be my all time favourite fanfic

I am gonna have to say Rapture by mia_ugly on AO3. I read it out of morbid curiosity and I have not been the same since. This is the fic that introduced me to this type of time travel fics, where the time travel muddies the relationships and makes everything angsty and confusing and secretive. It is my FAVOURITE kind of angst and I have read multiple other fics with the same trope since. I adore them <3

Oh, 100% @sheena-is-a-punk-rocker. Since I read all your quinnflag fics and loved them so much I started on my own quinnflag wip. Started off thinking 'how would they have gotten together before The Suicide Squad?' like they are in your The Suicide Squad but Rick and Harley are already dating series (which is such a fun read and deserves all the love!!) and my wip has become its own thing from there :)

Lol I'm not the best authority for this since I do not read much fic for either of my main fandoms (sorry Stranger Things and The World of Mr Plant!) but I definitely think @kittyphoenix12-xx's work deserves so much more love. I need to read more of your fics, babes, cause the ones I have read are SO good. I TREASURE that cunningway fic you gifted to me, and getting to beta a couple of your works was such an honour. I especially loved the stars look down and know, cause it's so so sweet!!!

Good question... Commenting, I guess. That's the obvious answer. And I really need to work on it myself (and I'm trying!!) but we could always do with more commenting. Authors love seeing it so we need to do our part more (which is why I'm tagging the authors in this despite being a bit nervous about that lol, cause you guys deserve hearing how wonderful I think your fics are :) )

I really don't know. I don't like telling people not to do things cause I think that's just rude. Fanfic is for fun, and if you like doing something that someone else thinks there's too much of then fuck them! Have fun with it cause that's all that matters. I see people complaining about certain things from time to time and just think 'well... you could just... not?' Maybe that's what I wish there was less of in fandom: people feeling the need to make a fuss when they don't like something, cause most of the time when I see it it's over the most non-problem things.

Alternative Fic Recs

Fic recs are a great way to introduce people to stories you love. But instead of a list, you could try this format instead? I've tried it before and I really liked it, as it made me think about the fics I've read differently.

This isn't a tag game or an ask game. You can copy, repost, reblog, share and edit this at will if you're looking to do a fic rec :)

The fic that's made you laugh the most?

What's a fic that makes you cry?

Your fave comfort, silly fic?

The fic that made you try a genre or a trope you wouldn't normally read.

An author that's inspired your own fic writing (if you're an author), or your TBR list (if you're a reader).

Your fave "underdog" fics/authors in your fandom(s). Those that you feel are underappreciated and deserve some love.

What's one thing you wish writers/readers/the fandom did more of when it comes to fanfiction?

What's one thing you wish writers/readers/the fandom did less of when it comes to fanfiction?

[the-blind-geisha]

In Other Words, I Love the Real You

Desc: Princess Peach expected to merely entertain royalty and agree on an alliance with this king. Nothing more. What she didn't expect was how easily she'd fall for King Bowser when he actually was the better version of himself in this disguise.

Rated: 18+

Words: 5,619K

A/N: Story commission for @untoldsoup! Keep in mind, this is not canon to his awesome comic works he makes! It was a fun idea he commissioned me to write, and I was so excited to write for this! 👀

I used Bowser's name over Koopa in the beginning, as Bowser didn't get his true name in the series till later.

Artwork by @untoldsoup!

Princess Peach was hardly a stranger to entertaining guests of nobility, but this letter came promptly out of nowhere in regards to a king wishing to have a moment of her time when it came to him and his people. She made certain her crown was in place, eyeing Toadsworth out of the corner of her eye. 

“You said his name was King Bowser?” The princess couldn't help but feel that name sounded a bit sinister. Maybe it was no thanks in kind to how many kings about the many worlds were hardly kind people. 

But she had to remember never to judge a book by its cover—in this case—it would be his title. It would be the king’s caliber she would judge over whatever exchange would take place.

“Indeed, Your Highness! Says he comes from a far off kingdom to which he…failed to mention in his letter.” Toadsworth couldn't help but find that a bit odd. Normally royalty would state where they hailed from.

“Interesting…” Her words trailed off, gloved hand to her cheek in thought. “It would be wise that I do not enter this discussion ill-equipped then.” It was there she headed for her bedroom door, finding herself properly prepared for the meeting.

Toadsworth scurried after her, staying in pace with her every move to the best of his mobility. “You read my mind then, princess. While I would like to believe the best in everyone, it is better we have some power ups nearby in case this is another scheme of sorts.”

She smiled down at her adviser. “Let us hope we are overreacting at any rate, but please—do see to it that the guards are prepared, and I at least have a fire flower at my disposal.”

Taking to her throne nearly an hour later, she anxiously awaited for whoever was to greet her. Would it be another trap? She had grown tired of those. All of her thoughts were drowned out when one of her Toads bowed before her to announce this king’s arrival.

“The Mushroom Kingdom proudly welcomes King Bowser and his advisor, Taika the Wise.”

The doors opened, having Princess Peach on the edge of her seat as the light from outside blinded her ability to see who was truly entering the throne room. Soon, the light subsided, allowing her to take in the sight of the two visitors.

They were human. Their figures said that much, but the advisor was a bit harder to see. They were hunched over with a gnarled wooden staff that they used to walk (or so it seemed). A blue, hooded robe covered most of their form, but she could tell they had a white beard with wild white hair to match. That made it impossible for her to even see his face.

But that was hardly the face she cared to examine after a point. This King Bowser caught her sight right away. His red hair was hypnotizing at first glance, but his eyes, holding a power all on their own, stole her attention away with ease. Noting that only a cape seemed to dress his upper half, she tried to still her desire to point it out.

For all she knew, it could be a clothing choice in their kingdom. It was best not to ask and offend him.

But as Peach’s eyes scanned him for anything out of the ordinary, it was there that a spiked shell on his left shoulder made her heart squeeze in fear. It reminded her so much of the Koopa King’s. Her fingers curled ever slightly on the throne’s armrest, doing her all to remain professional as she watched him bow.

“Princess Peach, it is an honor to be here before you.” Bowser waited so long to approach her in such a neutral way for what felt like years. Now with this magical crown that allowed him to dawn the appearance of one of her own kind and Kamek’s powers at his side to hide away his horns at least, everything was so much easier.

He felt like a new being all together.

“Greetings, King Bowser. You may rise.” When he did so, she too took to her feet and headed down the steps to find herself face-to-face with this foreign king. “However, I must say that I am a bit saddened to not read where you hail from.”

Even if her tone was playful, Bowser couldn't help but recoil a bit hoping she wouldn't mention that part. His attention shifted down to his advisor, feeling their eyes staring at him from even the darkness of the hood. It was a voiceless means of encouragement. That would do.

“I preferred to have said it to you in person, my Lady. What fun could be had if I told you everything in the letter?” He opened his hand, hoping she would take it and not be repulsed as she often acted around him. “Otherwise, my journey here would have been meaningless.”

Peach cocked a brow at his confession, a small smile forming upon her beautiful lips. “You have quite the way with words, Your Majesty.” Her hand slid within his, which prompted the king to kiss the back of her hand. Her heart fluttered, never expecting such a gesture.

“But to answer your question, I hail from the far east. It’s known as the Piranhabons Kingdom.” It was a bold statement to make, all things considered. But Petey wasn't there to whine about it, and Bowser wasn't blind—he saw her looking at the spiked shell on his shoulder earlier.

“Piranha?” Peach’s fingers touched upon her lips in thought. “So I’m assuming your kingdom tends to have quite a few piranha plants?”

Bowser wondered the better way to go about this, without bringing so many eyes upon him into the mix. He could proudly say most Toads were hardly clever, but it was Toadsworth he worried over. Even now, he could feel that old man staring at him in a way as if to hope the king would slip up.

“May I ask that we continue to talk about such matters elsewhere?” He looked about the castle’s throne room, finding it to be as lavish as ever. Still, it felt a bit suffocating to say the least. “You could give me a tour of your castle or your kingdom.”

Peach let a small laugh slip from her painted lips. “The kingdom might take awhile, so, castle it is.”

The Koopa King felt like he’d be pushing his luck if he tried to ask to hold her hand or anything like that again. But he couldn't deny how nice it felt to actually be able to kiss even the back of it like that. She didn't contort her face in such a way that made it look as though she wished she could squash him.

To say it felt nice was an understatement.

Stepping to the side, Bowser bowed with his arms motioning for her to lead the way. While he could easily say he knew these walls inside and out like his own, it would be nice to see what she herself had to say about it all. 

“Taika…” It was so odd calling Kamek that, but he insisted on the name. “Stay here and keep Princess Peach’s advisor entertained.”

“I have a better plan,” Peach interjected. “Toadsworth, why don't you show Taika around? I am sure he would appreciate it.”

There was something in the old Toad’s expression that would assume he would have much preferred to stay beside the princess. While he could hardly do anything to protect her, he would rather be certain that he was at least some sort of obstacle to keep evildoers from attacking her.

“I, umm.. As you wish, Your Highness.”

The moment she opened the doors and headed through the winding hallways, she playfully smiled as she glanced over her shoulder at the king. “Alright. We’re out of prying ears and eyes…”

Those beginning words made him tense. Did she actually figure him out?! How could it have failed?! The disguise was perfect!

“...Tell me a bit more about yourself,” Peach concluded, putting Bowser a bit more at ease.

He rubbed the side of his neck, sighing out his relief. “Oh, well…to answer your first question, there are quite a few different species of piranha plants out where I rule. The usual fair take up my castle grounds, though. And the Megasmilax is more like a guard of mine.”

Bowser was relieved that he managed to run himself through this speech idea back at home. He knew he couldn't sell the thought of being a king from a foreign land if he didn't jot down a few notes about this fictitious world he came from.

Peach inhaled sharply at the name. “Megasmilax?! I remember that creature not far from my own castle! It nearly took it over, had it not been for the Mario Brothers.” She inched a bit closer to Bowser, curious as to how he even managed to keep such a powerful thing under his command. “Are you certain you aren’t just being held captive, Your Majesty?”

He laughed at her playful tone, which clung to her question. “Of course, he is a bit of a handful, but once you manage to keep piranhas under control and treat them well enough, they return the favor.” Bowser tried to shrug it all off as though it were hardly anything huge.

It was there her attention returned to the spiked shell upon his shoulder. “I couldn't help but notice your rather interesting attire choice.”

“Ah. That.” He had to think of a story. Quickly. Unless she wanted to visit, he should be in the clear to lie about a few things here and there. “It came from a Spiny Boss type—we have quite a few of those Spinies in my kingdom. They can prove to be quite a handful.”

It was disheartening to talk down about his own people now and again. Yes, they could be slackers and some could rightfully get on his nerves, but a lot of them were hard workers. 

Princess Peach could hear the odd sorrow buried in his tone when he spoke of such a thing. “Oh. I see. Perhaps it is for the better we get down to business, shall we? What has brought you to my kingdom at such a short notice? You said it was urgent.”

Bowser cleared his throat as he gazed upon her without fear.

Without fear… how odd it was to admit that he was nervous to look upon her with such confidence once more. Eyes were usually the window to the soul, or so he remembered the princess herself warning him sometime ago. The last thing he wanted to do was give her too much of a peek inside of him. She mustn't see the true monster inside.

But even just then, he found it almost difficult to look away. To say she was beautiful almost felt insulting. There had to be a better word for it, but if there was, it always escaped his grasp.

“I heard you have problems with the monstrous turtle king from the Darklands.” He was trying so hard not to insult himself too much, but he really had to offer the thought that he was there to help in some manner.

Peach rolled her eyes. “Yeah, the Koopa King. He can indeed be quite an annoyance.”

Bowser flinched, as those words hit harder than any attack Mario could even dare land on him. “He seems quite persistent, or so I was told from my area of the world.”

After all of the wandering, Peach managed to find her way towards one of the balconies that allowed her to see out and about her glorious kingdom. Her gloved hands gripped the marble handrail while attempting to push the fear from her mind. “He is, but I must ask…” She stalled for a moment, turning to look at Bowser with a raise of her brow. “...what exactly do you hope to bring to my army?”

“Magic and strength,” Bowser answered without hesitation. “While my own advisor is well versed in magic abilities, I am able to handle such powers as well. They even exceed his.”

“May I ask what kind of magic it is?”

“Attack magic, among many other types.” He avoided the use of saying black magic, or he knew that might give him away. Maneuvering his fingers above his palm, he was able to conjure up a flower in his possession.

While Kamek and even Junior needed special items to call upon the magic they used, Bowser hardly needed any of that. Not to say he’d turn down any magical item that could asset him, as it could easily amplify his powers. With the rose in his possession, it was there he offered it boldly over towards the princess.

Peach looked at the gift with such confusion that Bowser worried he may have overdone it. But the expression swiftly melted into a sweet softness that encouraged the tension within him to relax.

She accepted the gift, bringing it to her nose with a pleasant hum at the aroma. “Very well, my King.” Peach kept the gift close to her chest. “I will gladly accept this proposal of yours. But still, I must say, I know so very little of your kingdom.” She thought about where to take this conversation next. “How about we talk about this all over dinner? Just you and me. Nobody else.”

Bowser’s gasp was hardly quiet, as his excitement bubbled up within him. Fist to his chest, he bowed. “It would be such an honor and a pleasure, my Lady.”

Princess Peach shook her head at his gestures. “There’s no need for formality anymore, King Bowser. Just call me Peach.” Her gloved hand touched upon his shoulder, lighting a fire within him that was hard to ignore. “And there’s no need to bow either. I promise, it’s alright.”

For the first time in forever, he smiled in return. “Then yeah. Same for me. Please, just call me Bowser.”

“Bowser it is then.” Her fingers twirled about the rose, reminding herself it would be for the better that she put the flower somewhere safe. Even if it was spawned by magic. “One of my guards will take you to a spare room in my castle.” It was there she turned and headed back inside. Beckoning to one of the Toads, she relayed the orders to him before her eyes laid upon the king once more. “I am to assume you’ll be staying the night at the very least?”

He was so lost in her vision. Never had he been able to be so close to her without her recoiling in utter fear or disgust. She was looking at him as though he were her equal. If he could cherish this moment forever, he would.

Peach found his silence odd, making her worry he may have been offended by the offer. “Bowser?”

All it took was her soothing tone to beckon to him. “Y-Yes! Of course. I would think a week would be more than long enough, if that’s not too much of a burden.”

Peach smiled, shaking her head. “No trouble at all. I will see you at dinner then, Bowser.”

Bowser and Kamek reunited, making their way to the lavish bedroom they would be allowed for their week stay. The entire room was a beautiful white marble with power star designs tucked away at the top of some of the pillars. A rug was the only thing separating the two canopy beds, making it appear as though it perhaps were an extra bedroom for some visiting royalty.

When the doors closed, leaving them alone, Kamek hurried to his king’s side. “A week?!” he asked in a raised whisper. “Sire, I appreciate your dedication to your heart, but… it would be wise to make certain we don’t test the limits of this power! That crown could possibly only do so much!”

Bowser was careful when he touched the Super Crown, not wishing for it to be removed so soon. “It’s fine, Kamek,” he grumbled, trying to ignore the old man’s worrisome attitude. “I know what I am doing. Besides, you have magic that can spawn a better bed fit for my actual size—don't you?”

The old wizard sighed, nodding. “Of course I do. But that’s beside the point! If you truly wish to have the princess’ heart, it is wise you don’t push things too far too soon. We still need to have moments to return home. What if the crown is akin to a power up? You could take damage or the power could be exhausted to where you could return to your actual self before her!”

“I know the risks!” The King roared angrily, prompting Kamek to be silenced. “But, it would take quite a bit of strength to ever wound me and release any hold a power up could be placed on me. As for its limits, magic can rest just as we do,” Bowser insisted with a low growl accompanying his words.

Kamek could sense he had lost a part of the king somewhere down the line. It made him feel dreadful. Bowser was no doubt drunk on the very thought of having Peach for himself. “I must say, I am surprised you granted her your true name.”

Pushing from the bed he had sat upon, Bowser made it over towards the vanity in the bedroom. “I know.” Again, he was trying not to be mean to his own adopted father in the matter, but to say he was intoxicated on the day would be putting it mildly. “I know what they say… that there is power in a name, and no matter where you are, magic can easily reach you to do more harm should anybody in this world have it.”

It was there he boldly removed the crown to watch as he turned back into the giant, hulking beast that laid underneath it all. Smoke huffed through his nostrils as he continued.

“But if I trust anybody with my true name, it would be her.” His brow furrowed, staring down his reflection that he still saw as imperfect. “Besides, I am no coward. I will tear apart any and all who dare try to take me down.”

┌── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──┐

That one week became far longer, as the king couldn't help himself when it came to entertaining the princess in hopes to obtain her heart. He did everything he could to distract her and her peoples’ minds whenever he had to actually go back to the Darklands to tend to something. Never did he want a sliver of the truth to bubble to the surface.

The Koopa King couldn't help but enjoy the stories he fed her. While not all of what he said was fictitious, he left a good bit of the lava part out when it came to his kingdom. That should be enough to throw her off from the truth underneath it all.

“All these talks about how you have such gorgeous cherry blossom trees and a pond full of multicolored Cheep Cheeps…it makes me wish I could have a moment to spend with you in your kingdom.”

Hearing Peach say such a thing, the king swallowed his fear. “More than anything I would love to, but now would be a bad time.”

He was running out of excuses. Even with having his troops at his side under their own illusion veil, Bowser was worried when the cover might be blown. The Koopas were awful at trying to act like humans. To excuse away their awful hunched over position, he just said the majority had been through a lot, but were still willing to fight.

Peach gave him a playful side eye, sighing shortly after as she knew another excuse was coming. “And how will the Mushroom Kingdom protect yours if I am left in the dark as to where it could truly be? Would you not wish to have a warp pipe put in place so we could always be connected?”

All the things he dreamed of her saying were being spoken before him, and yet, he had to keep denying her. It made him frown, thinking of the best way to talk to her about things he really wanted to know.

“Princess, may I be personal with you for a moment?” He reached over, taking her hand within his own. Over the many days they had spent together, Peach had warmed up to the thought of this strange king holding her hand in such a way. There was not a single part of her that fought him on the gesture.

She tilted her head, fingers gripping his own hand rather tightly as if to offer some form of reassurance. “I am listening.”

They were alone in the royal courtyard. That would be enough. 

“I was curious—seeing as I’ve heard why the Koopa King continued to speak with you so often—is there a reason you do not return his love?” He tried not to sound so defeated asking that, but his expression faltered all the same. Bowser worried what her answer may be.

Peach sighed, as if frustrated to be confronted with such a question. Her hand slid from his as she ventured over towards the fountain not far from where they stood. Gazing down at her reflection, she blew a sigh out of the corner of her lips. “That beast thinks that forcing me to love him will do any good to the two of us.”

Bowser bit back the desire to tell her that it was the only way to get her alone. Hearing the title of ‘beast’ made his heart twist in agony. “Sounds to me like you view him on the outside as a monster.”

“He is a monster to me because of the way he behaves!” Peach snapped, as if offended the king would think her to be so shallow. She turned, hand upon her bejeweled chest as she continued, “The Koopa King could look like any creature in this world, and I would gladly consider his love, if he wasn't so selfish and stubborn!” 

“And… what about me? Have I been a monster to you these past several weeks?”

Peach found the question odd as she approached him, grabbing his hands to hold them tightly. “Why would you ever think that? It’s been a delight to get to hear about you and your people.”

The truth hit him far harder than he expected. Breathless, he found himself fighting over the thought of just keeping the crown in place and ignoring his past life. But one way or another, he and herself would have to face the truth.

“I wish I could continue with this.” His tone was heavy with defeat as the desire to be honest was eagerly winning out. Moving his hands from hers, he took a few steps back. “But, will you continue to believe me if I told you that I love you too much to continue this lie?”

“Bowser…?”

His fingertips reluctantly grabbed the Super Crown, removing it from his head to allow the illusion to fully melt away—Kamek’s powers as well. The sight of it made Peach recoil in horror as she backed away in fear of what he would dare try to do with her now.

“You…!”

It was a nightmare. Her eyes no longer held joy and admiration—they, once again, held nothing but fear and disgust. She was gawking at him with such horror that all the beautiful moments the two spent together were melting away into oblivion. He couldn't help but feel as though she lied. That it was indeed this version of him that she hated.

Maybe if he were a beautiful human king… this would all be different…

“Forgive me. I can’t stand to see you looking at me like this. I promise to merely grab my things and leave.” Bowser placed the crown back upon his head, making it easier for him to flee from the scene without drawing attention to himself.

Peach could hardly get a word out to him as he seemed to run back to the castle in hopes to warn Kamek and see to it that his people as well left and were all safe. She hurried after him, calling for the guards to see to it that her own swiftly put in place plan could be set in motion before it was too late.

Bowser just needed to make sure that Kamek was at least the first one out. While he knew that the old wizard could handle himself, Bowser still would prefer to be the last one to head back home in case something went wrong.

There was no knock at the door. It merely swung open as Peach made her way inside. “You ran off before I even had a moment to talk to you.”

“Your voiceless expression said enough.”

“I was in shock!” Peach insisted, grabbing his hand to make him stop with the nonsense. “You lied to me…So what else did you lie to me about? Were all those sweet things you said to me a lie as well?”

Bowser recoiled in disgust. “Of course not! I meant every single one of them!” He huffed through his nostrils. “In fact, I’ve said them before to you when you only saw me as a monster. You just never bothered to listen!”

Grabbing onto the spiked collar, she forced him down to her level to where their lips met.

The king’s eyes widened, not expecting such a bold action. In fact, he half expected her to slap him. The joy within his body nearly brought him to his knees, but he dared not move in fear she would regret her actions. The kiss was simple, a mere act of honesty before she pulled away just a bit to look into his burning eyes once more.

“I am listening now,” she whispered, allowing Bowser’s lips to taste the warmth of that sentence.

Still, the negative voices were loud. “Only because I look like this.”

“No,” Peach scoffed with a shake of her head. “Only because you showed me a better side of yourself.” It was there she reached up and knocked the crown off to the side to prove her point.

The crown didn't shatter. It merely rolled upon the ground as the magic released its hold upon Bowser, prompting him to transform back into the fire-breathing Koopa he was underneath it all. He almost felt naked in the moment, had it not been for her sweet kiss earlier to subdue the tension a bit. It was there his claw curled under her chin, urging her to gaze upon him all the more. 

“It will prove a challenge to kiss you like this but…” The flat of his tongue rolled across the nook of her neck, as his hands went to work removing her dress without destroying it in the process. “...not impossible.”

Peach tilted her head to the side, a small moan slipping from her lips in the process. As her gloved fingertips caressed his scaled body, she couldn't help but do her best to urge for more.

Bowser was too drunk on the moment to question whether this would be a good idea or not. 

When she felt him about to pull away, Peach found her lips trailing down from his broad chest to his stomach and beyond. “We will be left alone.” Upon her knees, she winked up at him with a teasing smirk. “I made certain of that.”

He couldn't think straight after such an honest admission. Even with her gentle touch, it was more than enough to light a far more intense fire in his belly as she continued. Bowser closed his eyes, soaking in the trail that her caress left. The moment he felt them upon the base of his cock, he huffed through his nostrils.

“I would hardly think you to be in pain,” Peach teased, letting her lipstick mark every inch of him as she trailed from base to tip. She admired the interesting texture that caressed her lips in return. It was erotic in its own way.

“Hardly in pain,” Bowser confessed, his hand removing her crown in return so that he could fondle each gold strand in loving want. “More as though I am embraced in a dream I never wish to wake from.”

“It is quite the dream if we are both sharing it.” Her palm stroked the underside of his erection, only for him to grab onto her wrist and urge her away. It shocked her, making her assume she did something wrong.

The tip of his claw touched the gloves she wore. “Remove these. I want to feel every bit of you.”

With a smile, Peach did as he asked. The gloves accompanied her dress. She resumed what she was doing.

That euphoric warmth made his teeth clench as his palm rested on the back of her head and urged her lips to the tip of his erection. Even though she knew what he wanted, Peach played against him a bit. The way the princess saw it was revenge for times past.

But she could only fight him for so long. Her tongue flicked across the head of his cock before finally letting her mouth tend to it with a throaty moan that could easily be heard.

With a vocal cry of pleasure, the Koopa King nearly fell to his knees. He remained firm. He let her adjust to the size of him before guiding her head up and down on his length. The tight warmth of her throat embraced him soon enough, and it was there he worried he may cum far too soon.

Was he that needy for her all this time? It wouldn't surprise him, but he was hardly sober minded to think too deeply on it all.

Her hand caressed his sack in the process, and while she couldn't make it all the way to the base of his erection, it hardly mattered. Beautiful blue eyes stared up at him through her heart shaped bangs that were a bit of a mess about her features. It was there she steadily pulled back to the head of his erection with a lewd pop of a sound when she finally found her throat and mouth freed.

The string of saliva broke the connection that they had until the king found his palms on her shoulders and urged her onto the rug that decorated the floor. He didn't care where they were. He wanted her. He needed her.

It was her turn to trail her fingers through his hair, watching as the fiery red strands slipped through her caress. “So impatient. Like always.”

“With you, it’s hard to remain patient,” Bowser insisted, his own hands trailing over the perfect curves of her body. He found himself enjoying as her skin seeped through the tight hold he had upon her, as he guided her closer to the head of his erection.

Maybe she felt some sort of nervousness to the act. But all the same, she reached up and touched his cheek to try and settle whatever worries he may have had. “I can handle it,” she whispered, breaking down whatever barrier of doubt there was between them all the more.

His grip tightening upon her hips, he felt the sweet, erotic kiss of her entrance touch upon the head of his cock before urging it ever steadily down the length of him.

Peach arched her back off of the ground, a sharp cry of ecstasy filling the room as the ridges of the Koopa King’s cock encouraged her own euphoria all the more. The erotic knot within her stomach tightened blissfully as the king assisted her small frame upon his length. It was a lustful dance that had her lidded eyes gazing drunkenly up at him.

Both of their breathing grew louder and closer together where neither one of them needed to speak a single word in regards to how they felt. Bowser could even feel the warm squeeze upon his sensitive length, knowing she would cum soon.

He inched forward, sheathing himself completely within her as he pressed his forehead against hers. Lips curled as he felt himself unable to keep his climax at bay for much longer, and it was there the warm rush of his release filled her to where his cum seeped between their connection and marked her inner thighs and the rug beneath them.

“B-Bowser…!” Peach cried out in pleasure, as her own orgasm uncoiled within her body and allowed her to mark him in kind. A pleasant sigh hissed through her clenched teeth as her fingernails pricked at his skin while riding out her orgasm.

The king caught himself, not wishing to accidentally crush her with his weight as he hovered over her with sweat beading from his brow. He was assisted in returning to himself when Peach’s bare palm caressed his cheek.

“Was it everything you wanted, my King?” she asked, her words weak from the aftermath of it all.

He took her hand, keeping it there upon his cheek as he wished for it to remain where it was for as long as she would allow. “Everything and more, my Princess.” His lips found their way to her cheek, and then to her neck where he held her tightly there in a loving and protective embrace.

END

[6rookie-writer0110]

Crossing over

Darcy Lewis x Male Reader

Request - Darcy x thors son. He was banished to midgard with his father.

You and your father crashed into the earth and you hit the ground hard. The ground cracked and you are not feeling hurt, because you healed rapidly.

“How can he do that to us!?” You screamed.

Your grandfather Odin banned you and your father from Asgard. You and your father just crashed into earth in the middle of a small town. You are feeling angry and betrayed and you look around.

“So we can't go back home ever?” You asked.

“We can't go back because I saw father destroy the portal our only way,” Thor said.

“Didn't you been to earth before?” You asked.

“One time, but I don't remember how I got back home to Asgard,” Thor said.

“What are we going to do?” You asked.

“Jane Foster will help us,” Thor said.

“Who?” You said.

Your father starts to tell you how he met Jane Foster. It didn't take long for him to find Jane’s van and she saw him. When you saw Darcy you developed a crush on her.

“Why did he ban you and your son from Asgard?” Jane asked.

“It’s a long boring story,” Thor said.

“What about your powers?” Darcy asked.

“Don’t worry about that, beautiful. I will still protect you. You should be my wife” You said boldly.

“I don't even know your name and I’m not your wife, but thank you for the compliment,” Darcy said.

“My name is Y/N. When should we start planning for our wedding?” You said.

“Slow down,��� Jane said.

You winked at Darcy. Then your father told them what happened back home. You and your dad go to their camp and they start to about their new project. Jane is going to let you and your father stay with them for a while.

“So you and your dad have the same powers?” Darcy asked

“Yes. We would combine our powers during battle but I have other skills too” You said

“Asking every girl to marry you?” Darcy asked

“No. You are the first, Darcy and I mean that” You said.

You were serious about it and she did believe you.

“First time on your earth?” Darcy asked

“Yes, but my dad said he was here before,” you said

“Oh, yeah. The first time he tried coffee was funny” Darcy giggled

“What is coffee?” You asked

“I forget coffee doesn't exist in Asgard. But I will show you, just follow me” Darcy said.

You follow her to the diner and she starts to explain about coffee. She made you try iced coffee which you liked the most. Then you tried black coffee and you hated that one, but she laughed because of the facial expression you made. You just ordered more iced coffee then you tried lattes and you loved it. You were about to throw the coffee mug onto the floor but she quickly stopped you.

“Don’t do that. Just ask for another one, just ask Y/N” Darcy said.

“Just ask?” You said

“Yes. Your dad did the same and he broke so many mugs that day” Darcy said

She lets go of your wrist and you don't break it. She ordered more coffee for you then you started to try the food.

✯ ✫ ✯ ✫

You are still on earth with your dad but he is spending more time with Jane. You don't mind because you get to be with Darcy and you keep flirting with her.

“Earth is so much better” You smiled.

“You never left Asgard?” Darcy asked

“I have been to other realms but never to earth. But now I have a reason” You said

Darcy couldn't help to blush and she tried to hide it, but you noticted it. You enjoy listening to her talk and you ask her questions about earth.

—

Darcy takes you to a bar to show you how people have fun. You and Darcy are sitting together and you tried your first beer.

“Do you like it?” Darcy asked

“Yes and I will get another one,” You said

“Don’t break the bottle, Y/N” Darcy giggled

“I won't do it” You smiled

You head to the bar to ask for more beer. Darcy waits for you to come back but her ex-boyfriend sees her. She didn't want to talk to him but he still went towards her to talk.

“Hey, Darcy. You haven't been returning my texts” He said

“Because we aren't dating anymore and stop texting me,” Darcy said

“Come on don't be like that. Maybe we can hookup -” He said

Darcy told him no but he didn't listen. But you arrived with the beers and put it on the table.

“This is a private conversation, walk away,” He said.

“Is he bothering you?” You asked

“This is my ex-boyfriend and he doesn't understand the words leave me alone,” Darcy said

“You heard her walk away,” You said

“I’m not going to listen to you. You walk away or else” He said

“Or else?” You said.

He tried to punch you but you dodged his punch. Darcy gasped then you punched him in the face and then in the stomach. Everyone is watching, You grab him by his shirt and throw him out of the bar, and he is in pain. He gets up and starts to run away and she is speechless.

“Wow, I can't believe you did that, Y/N” Darcy said

“I couldn't watch him harass you while I do nothing. Are you okay?” You said.

“Thank you,” Darcy said

You and Darcy are standing in front of the bar. She is standing very close to you and you kiss her on the lips. She puts her arms around your shoulders and she starts to kiss you back.

“Let’s get out of here,” You said

“I like that idea” Darcy smiled

She starts to kiss you back and you start to smile.

You and Darcy go home together. And your dad is sleeping on the couch with his mouth open. Darcy grabbed some chips from the kitchen and she sat next to Thor. She gets an idea and you watch her put one chip in his mouth, he doesn't wake up. You and Darcy are trying not to laugh too loud.

“Shhh, don't be loud” Darcy whispered

“Let me try” You whispered

You grabbed a chip and put it in his mouth. Darcy grabbed her phone, and she started to record you and her putting chips in his mouth. Then you and Darcy took selfies with your dad and he hasn't woken up yet. But Jane came home and she was loud then you and Darcy moved away from him. Thor starts to wake up and he is confused as to why chips are in his mouth

“Did you fall asleep while eating chips?” Jane asked

“I don't remember,” Thor said

But he starts to eat the chips while you and Darcy laugh in the kitchen.

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 111 (Making Progress on the Case?)

Conrad gave Malcolm's video to a tech at work the next day, and while they worked he updated the police chief. "I'm sure it's him. When the video comes back, we'll know."

"The precinct still won't send you to George Brindleton's villa in Sulani until the video can be analyzed, Gordon. I know how badly you want to get there, but you can't take any more of this investigation off grid. You've got a lot of nerve getting Judge Morrison to rush a warrant on a Landgraab. I don't care how well you think you know him."

"I'm sorry, Chief. I've been getting a little desperate to solve this one, and because he's a Landgraab, I knew you'd tell me to hold off if I asked for permission first."

The chief rolled her eyes. "One of these days your instincts might fail you, Lieutenant, and all that risk you take won't have reward."

Two officers entered the room after a knock at the door. "Lieutenant Gordon, we brought in someone you're going to want to talk to. She says she's an ex-girlfriend of Rafael Bonilla."

Immediately, Conrad knew who he meant. Melissa Ramsay. He'd found old social media posts from a deleted account with their photos. He found her in the police database, subject to an outstanding warrant after a bust Rafa had also been involved in when they were sixteen, and had put out an APB on her almost a year ago.

He entered the interrogation room, and she looked at him nervously in her orange jumpsuit. "I wasn't trying to avoid arrest. I thought it was all over, I swear. I was only there that night because I loved him. I didn't do anything."

Conrad could relate to her predicament. "I'm not trying to reopen an old case against you, Miss Ramsay. Your record after the bust is clean. But it's rare for someone who becomes their high school valedictorian not to continue to university. You've been harder to track down than most who have nothing to hide."

"I don't know what you want from me. I work in a flower shop. I can give you the name and number for my boss."

Conrad nodded, letting her write down the information. "When's the last time you spoke to Rafa Bonilla?"

"I don't remember."

"A few months ago. That's the last time I spoke with his sister, Ximena. And you might not know this about me, but over a decade ago, I loved her like you say you loved Rafa. So you don't forget."

"Maybe I didn't love him enough."

"You loved him enough to be there that night."

Melissa frowned. "We finally broke up three years ago and I haven't seen him since."

"Do you have any idea where he might be, or who he might be with?"

"I don't know. After the bust we didn't talk about his work, but it was always the problem between us until I finally left."

Again, Melissa's story rang true to Conrad's experience. "Did you know he's wanted by San Myshuno PD?"

She nodded. "I had nothing to do with those busts, either."

"I know that, Miss Ramsay. Do you think Rafa's on the run?"

"Maybe he finally got away from his sister. He knew she was dragging him down, but he didn't know what else to do with his life so he did whatever she asked. They had this loyalty that he couldn't shake. I begged him and I tried to deal with it for years, but finally I had to accept that she won and I walked away from him."

"If he ran, where would he go?"

"I really don't know, Lieutenant. He didn't talk about what he wanted to do because he thought the cartel was his only viable option."

"Has Ximena tried to find you since Rafa went missing?"

She shook her head. "She hated me so much, I don't think she's spared a single thought for me since Rafa and I broke up. She never wanted me around to begin with."

Conrad gave her his card and let her go, asking her to call if either Bonilla happened to reach out after so long. He hadn't learned enough from Melissa to justify a work trip to Sulani to find Rafa, but if Melissa was telling the truth, he'd been given valuable insight into Rafa's mind.

Ximena thought Rafa was happy to work at her side, running drugs and weapons for the cartel. But maybe the reason Ximena had been no real help in the search for Rafa was that she truly had no idea where he was. Maybe he'd been in hiding for years - from his warrants as well as his vicious sister.

He was beginning to get excited - the end of this very long tunnel might finally be in sight, but his run of luck couldn't last forever.

Frowning, the young officer who worked on his video approached him toward the end of the day. "I'm sorry, Lieutenant Gordon, but the facial recognition software couldn't pick up enough of the man's face in the video recording to confirm a match with Rafael Bonilla."

Conrad sighed. Though it felt he'd taken two steps forward and two steps back, forced to keep looking for evidence connecting Rafa to Sulani and the Brindletons, he still felt as though he was on the right track.

He returned home to his family that night, finding Ash and Lavender in the kitchen with a book.

"Give Twee, Dada! Pease?"

Lavender crossed her hands on her lap and smiled, melting any possible opposition. Not that he ever turned down a chance to read the kids a good story.

Heather gave Gord a bath while Conrad read, getting the kids ready for bed before a freshly-shampooed Gord bounded up the stairs to say good night.

"Nigh-nigh Go-dee," she said, patting his head gently as he leaned in for a nuzzle. "Go-dee wet!" She laughed wildly and wrapped her arms around him. "Lovey!"

Conrad's gorgeous family was a constant reminder why it was so important he find the Bonillas and move forward with his picture-perfect life. ->

<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 2.1 Summary

Gen 1 Start | Gen 1 Summary

[cantcompetewhereudontcompare]

In the Louis/Liam Gallagher post, you mentioned writing a post on Louis being a homophobic bully

You then said this:

"Louis cheated on Hannah with Eleanor and at first Hannah didn't know, so she and Louis were on good terms, but she has been openly very negative about Louis ever since late 2011."

Do you remember Hannah's brother tweeted that Hannah had caught him cheating with a man? And before that, while Louis was on X factor someone tweeted that Louis had bullied another boy at the school for being gay. That, and your other comment below

"think he's still trying to market himself this way because deep down he still wants the acceptance of his high school buddies and other men like them"

seems to represent, in my opinion, someone who willingly mocks gay men, or those who don't fit into a particular role, because it's not deemed cool by his friends. I'm not trying to turn this into a "is he gay, is he straight" discussion but reading your post, breaking down his people pleaser personality in a way, has me thinking that if he was gay or bi, he wouldn't want to come out because it wouldn't be seen as "cool" by his friends, or fit in with his faux Liam Gallagher tough guy persona. I think the only reason he stayed close to his Doncaster friends is because they're the only friendships he had so he feels the need to impress them. He didn't seem to bond with or make long lasting friendships in his time in the band. Sure he had Zayn, Liam and so on, but there isn't a real genuine friendship between him and anyone outside the band from that time.... compared to someone like harry who was always networking

I think his sexuality is somewhat important in all of this Liam Gallagher wannabe character he's playing because it seems to mirror his behaviour in high school (bullying gay people to fit in with his friends and putting on an act, and now he's laying on this chav act very thick to replicate his friends' behaviours to fit in. Seems to be a pattern)

I understand this message might be crossing a line discussing sexuality, but I would be interested in your opinion on how he wishes to be perceived by his friends, and the bullying claims

I'm going to quote stuff you say to answer, because this is very long.

Do you remember Hannah's brother tweeted that Hannah had caught him cheating with a man?

This didn't happen. Louis cheated on Hannah with Eleanor, not with a man. How do I know this? Well, Alana Burton.

Harry started working at W. Mandeville, a bakery in Holmes Chapel, when he was fourteen years old. Alana also worked there, she's from a nearby town that I'm not gonna name out of respect for the fact that she's not a celebrity and is quite private (Larries have spread this, though). Alana is two years older than Harry, so after a while working together, she moved to Manchester to go to university. She met Eleanor Calder there and they became roommates.

Harry then got put in 1D, they came in third in the X Factor, and then they toured with the rest of the contestants of that season. These are some of the X Factor tour dates:

Harry invited Alana to go to one of their shows — we don't know which one (presumably one of the Manchester shows). Alana brought friends, Eleanor being one of them. This is why they've always said that Louis introduced Louis and Eleanor.

Larries interpreted Harry being uncomfortable about this as him being heartbroken or jealous... No, he was probably perfectly aware of the fact that Louis had cheated. Harry got along really well with Hannah.

Larries also lied and said that Harry didn't get on with Eleanor, but that's absolutely not true.

This is Harry and Eleanor hanging out a few years ago. And yes, that's Eleanor. This is the pub right next to Harry's house, which Eleanor is been known to frequent. You could also see her dad in the video.

Anyway, tangent over.

This is the story Alana herself tells to her friends. There was a Larrie here a while ago who openly talked about this because she allegedly met one of Alana's friends. She gave details that the fandom didn't have at the time, like the fact that it happened during the X Factor tour.

Why did she do this? Well, when confirmed that he was about to become a father, Larries created a disgusting blog with "receipts" where everyone would submit theirs. She tried to use this as a receipt against the validity of Louis and Eleanor (I don't remember what her logic at the time was) and it backfired. As far as I'm aware, the posts are deleted. I THINK this is the Larrie that spread the "receipt":

I can't find anything else about this on her blog, but I'm pretty sure it was her and she just deleted everything. This is one of the OG huge Larrie blogs talking about it years later:

I don't generally take what Larries say seriously, but the fact is that all of these things align with what members of the band have said, with Harry hanging out with Alana (even their families together, as per the pictures I posted above), and with things I detailed in a second.

I mean, Louis himself had already sort of said it to Seventen Magazine (July 2012):

He didn't tell the entire story because in March 2011, Louis was still VERY MUCH with Hannah. In fact, she posted this pic on Easter, a month later:

And they wouldn't break up until July. Hannah took a break from Twitter July 17. I can't post her tweets because her account has been deactivated for years but I can post fan reactions to her tweets:

This next screenshot I could find on Google. Read it bottom to top, it starts July 17 and ends July 24. But basically, after her Twitter break, on July 24, Hannah vaguely referenced that she and Louis had broken up but that they were on good terms, to which Louis agreed.

Obviously, at the time, Hannah had no idea that Louis had met Eleanor several months prior and had... let's call it "kept in touch." Stanley Lucas was one of Louis' best friends (Louis even bought Stan a car). This screenshot was taken in 2015, when Eleanor briefly reactivated her Facebook after she and Louis broke up. Stan had a private profile, but a fan had a friend in common with him and...

(Don't ask me for the source of the screenshot because it's completely lost to time. I just tend to save stuff. I actually found this buried in my Google photos account recently when I was cleaning up).

The timing is........ incredible. And to make matters worse, Eleanor's cousin, Emily, was a huge 1D fan since their X Factor days. She was kept in the dark about Eleanor and Louis knowing each other until after he and Hannah broke up and almost immediately:

I can't embed for some reason, but here's the link

He also followed her on Twitter and called her on the phone:

As far as she was aware, at this point, Louis and Eleanor were "just friends" and she wouldn't find out they were an item until it became public knowledge. Why? Because, well, she was a child, and she was a 1D fan, so she knew perfectly well that Louis had a girlfriend until LITERALLY two weeks prior to following her.

Larries took Emily's lack of knowledge of the situation as "proof" of it being all fake, instead of the fact that she was lied to and told 1% of the information. She was told that Louis and Eleanor had known each other for a while, but she didn't have the full context:

Sugarscape, a popular media outlet at the time that had a lot of interviews with 1D, said that someone spotted Louis with a brunette girl at V Festival (August 20/21 2011). I can't find the original article because Sugarscape has gone offline since then, but I can find an archived version of a second article where they reference it, a year later:

Eleanor confirmed it was her:

Sugarscape wrote this second article because Louis had given an interview where he said that he and Eleanor didn't know how long they'd been together:

Larries also used this as proof that their relationship was fake, but... he couldn't say how long they'd been together BECAUSE THEY CHEATED. Not because he "didn't know" or because "he didn't care" or any other Larrie-backward-ass-logic. He did know, but if he admitted it, he was basically spelling out that he had cheated on his ex for months.

Notice how Sugarscape corrects Louis, who said they'd been together for 6-8 months. They're like "no, actually, it's at least 11." And, no, actually, it's MORE.

So, when you say that Hannah's brother said Louis cheated with a man.... no girl. He cheated with Eleanor. At first, Hannah didn't know, but she probably did realize it eventually, and that's why her brother was upset. This is what he said (a year+ after the breakup, and a month after the Sugarscape article I linked):

He used a gay slur, and that's why Larries say that George accused Louis of cheating with a man, but that's... not true. You can see from his profile picture that he was a literal child. He most likely just used that slur because it was the worst word he could think of and had no idea what the implications were. Louis had been with Eleanor, very openly, for a year. They were first spotted together in September 2011. Eleanor then confirmed that they were together IN AUGUST.

You think that Louis not only had a parallel relationship with a man, but also that his ex girlfriend's little brother (I think he was literally, like, 12), knew about it and tweeted about it openly?

And the proof of this is one word that can be very easily explained with logic? As opposed the mountains of proof of the opposite? Not that OG Larry blog believed George was alluding to Louis cheating with a man, and she was so delusional, she believed that Hannah was "a friend who was doing Louis a favor."

And before that, while Louis was on X factor someone tweeted that Louis had bullied another boy at the school for being gay.

"Someone" didn't tweet this. Three separate people did, over the course of eight years, including the gay boy himself. One day I'll make a post about it.

That, and your other comment below "think he's still trying to market himself this way because deep down he still wants the acceptance of his high school buddies and other men like them" seems to represent, in my opinion, someone who willingly mocks gay men, or those who don't fit into a particular role, because it's not deemed cool by his friends.

Or because he's an asshole? Just saying.

I'm not trying to turn this into a "is he gay, is he straight" discussion

You absolutely are, babe. Own up to it. Louis has said he's straight, and there's literally no reason whatsoever to believe he's lying or that has changed.

but reading your post, breaking down his people pleaser personality in a way, has me thinking that if he was gay or bi, he wouldn't want to come out because it wouldn't be seen as "cool" by his friends, or fit in with his faux Liam Gallagher tough guy persona.

I know it's painful to accept the fact that an artist you like is an asshole, but you're doing too much. He's straight. He didn't cheat with a man — a child simply called him the f slur because he thought it was a good insult. He cheated with a woman, has consistently dated women, he got a woman pregnant. He used to pile girls into vans while leaving clubs wasted and high off his face. He's straight and he's an asshole. He's not secretly gay and trying to fit in.

What you're doing is called self-soothing.

I think the only reason he stayed close to his Doncaster friends is because they're the only friendships he had so he feels the need to impress them. He didn't seem to bond with or make long lasting friendships in his time in the band. Sure he had Zayn, Liam and so on, but there isn't a real genuine friendship between him and anyone outside the band from that time.... compared to someone like harry who was always networking

I can actually agree with this, in terms of him feeling the need to impress his friends. But this doesn't justify his treatment of that boy or make it any less embarrassing. He's a grown man. Can I empathize? Sure. Can I also say that he should work on it? Absolutely.

I think his sexuality is somewhat important in all of this Liam Gallagher wannabe character he's playing because it seems to mirror his behaviour in high school (bullying gay people to fit in with his friends and putting on an act, and now he's laying on this chav act very thick to replicate his friends' behaviours to fit in. Seems to be a pattern)

He's straight. There's absolutely no reason whatsoever to think he's not straight. He's 100% straight. He bullied gay people because he's a dick. And it's not the only homophobic thing he has done. He literally kicked rainbow flags off the stage for no fucking reason in the middle of concerts, and his friends were nowhere near when this was happening:

This is a gay 1D fan who tweeted about it one of the multiple times it happened:

As I said, one day I'll make a post... this is just one of the many many things he's done.

I understand this message might be crossing a line discussing sexuality, but I would be interested in your opinion on how he wishes to be perceived by his friends, and the bullying claims

It's not crossing a line. You're fine. It's just that you're not well-informed, which I'll chalk up to the fact that disinformation runs rampant in this fandom. It's why I made this blog lmao. I can't blame someone who (I'm assuming) comes in later and sees all the random things people took out of context. But... yeah. Louis is not a poor self-hating gay. He's just a dick.

[evecolourshock]

....aaaand now i have fic

Apologies to all my RP buddies, stepping back from RP has made the stories runneth over

Tron hesitates, and then sinks into a booth Sam reserved for the this needs a drink kind of explanations. It is, he admits, a useful system given how little Sam knows of his father's work and Tron's own (admittedly patchy) knowledge of how things were before Clu messed with them.

"What's up?" Sam greets Tron, worry creasing that young face. "What happened, is something-"

"Nothing is more wrong than it was when you left eight millicycles ago." Tron soothes. It... kind of works. "More... I'm aware my question earlier was strange, and offer explanations." Because that's something he's learned to do, now. Explain.

Tron wishes he had this new skill when Beck- not going there.

Sam motions at him to go on.

"You'll have noticed by now a lot of things are named after me, and I keep on asking you to change them." Tron decides to start. Sam nods - that's good, he's aware of what Tron's on about. "I didn't have anything to do with the initial naming, that was all your father." Tron sips at the low-grade energy already on the table - it's nice on his scratchy throat, and if he wants a higher grade he can order it. "He... went a lot overboard with it, and I didn't notice."

Sam grimaces, aware of just how many things are named Tron-somethings. He's had to change a lot of them, and there's still more to go.

"By the time I found out... well. Too late to change it, and he didn't listen to my protests. Especially when I told him it was past flattering and well and truly into terrifying. In hindsight... it explains Clu. Or at least some of Clu's actions." Tron winces, reflexively hunching to protect his chest, feeling a phantom blade carve in again. Sam's hand on his arm brings him back to the now quicker than he would on his own (Beck, where's Beck-). "I was genuinely concerned he'd given you my name too."

"He tried." Sam tells him, and Tron's core sinks. Sam deserves better than to be saddled with that- "Mom overruled him. Gave me her dad's name instead and claimed family tradition. How true that is... I don't know. Never met that side of the family, or at least I don't remember."

"Your mother-" Tron takes a fraction of a picocycle to process this new User word, identifying within an error margin of 0.379% that it relates to the Jordan Flynn told him about, "-was an amazing woman, with the patience to put up with Flynn's antics and the strength to not let him get away with too many of them."

That startles a laugh out of Sam, and Tron smiles as best he can too. Sam's joy is infectious (rather like someone else Tron... knew, ow that hurts, leave that topic alone).

"Yeah." Sam murmurs, once the laughter fades. "Yeah, I bet she was." They sit in silence for a while, Program and User, contemplative and companionable.

"We were about to start work in Argon, right?" Sam doesn't question why Tron wants the desolate, burned ruins of a little port town restored, trusting there to be a good reason for this diversion of resources to a place that shouldd be low on the priority list. "Anything major to change there?"

"Nothing named after me, but..." Tron steeples his hands, the way he always does when nervous. "Could we... adjust the main square?"

"What to?"

"A memorial garden and park." Tron looks at the energy shimmering in his glass. Sam's been adding these relaxation spaces, indignant about the lack of peaceful areas to rest, and introduced plants for both the novelty and calm they bring. "Three connected but separate areas."

"Easy." Sam tells him confidently, and he's right now the jitters have subsided. "What would you like them named?"

"Renegade Park." Tron answers immediately, sure of it. "One garden for Beck, the other for Bodhi." Even now, he remembers. Beck had talked at length about Bodhi - the Ram to Beck's Tron, if Tron had to compare it. "...and maybe name an office block for Cyrus. That one's... something of an in-joke as well as a memorial."

Sam smiles at him, and for a moment Tron sees another adored fluffy-haired menace in his place. "I'll see what I can do."

Kevin: I can’t believe you didn’t get the hint. Like, I made so many things because you wanted them. I named tons of stuff after you. Like, Tron Cycles the unit of time, your Tron Tower, in Tron City, in the Tron system-

Tron: The what.

Kevin: This is the Tron system. That’s its official name in the source files, haven’t you seen?

Tron: KEVIN.

Kevin: What? I thought you’d like it!

Tron: There is a point where it goes past flattery and into terrifying!

Kevin: I’d say I should’ve stopped at the city, but obviously the system came first… Oh yeah, and I keep calling Alan ‘Tron’. Hehe, get it, because I thought you were Alan that first time and now the shoe’s on the other foot-

Tron: *faints*

(Later)

Sam logging in: Samuel T. Flynn.

Tron: what does the T stand for

Sam: Timothy. Why?

Tron: oh thank god

[gingermintpepper]

hi I love your tags so so much! they were so sweet and so interesting and creative and the whole Aphrodite type of beauty thing sounds really interesting do you have any articles and recommendations to read further into it??

-hogoflight

Hello my fine feathered (I am assuming possession of feathers if you are, indeed, capable of flight) @hogoflight! I'm always always happy to hear that people appreciate my frenzied rambling in the tags :D! I have a lot of articles and recommendations :D!! Ancient Greek notions of beauty and representations of it in their art and sculptures is a pretty well studied topic! There isn't any way for us now to know definitively what the beauty standard was (it varied widely from region to region and culture to culture after all) but here are a couple of my favourite reads about Aphrodite and what her representations tell us about idealised beauty!

Probably the most empirically extensive one I can list is Krönström's thesis which compares statues of Aphrodite and literary text referring to both the goddess and mortal women to determine physical ideals for women in five specific eras of Grecian antiquity. Including measurements of the statues there are many descriptions of Aphrodite as 'curvy' with a 'voluptuous figure' and with 'ample buttocks and bosom'.

"When the beauty traits are described in the texts, they are never extreme or anything that could not be found in normal people just that they are more beautiful in every aspect. Furthermore, the sculptures’ physical forms look healthy, they are tall and have distinct curves. Great examples of this are the Knida sculpture and de Milo (the Melian) sculpture."

Of course, these images are still idealised, and there was still a concept such as 'too fat' or 'too skinny' found in written records (and this thesis even includes analysis of pornographic writings and descriptions of the fashion and stylings of pubic hair of women from different regions!!) but from an interpretational standpoint? There is absolutely no reason why these can't refer to a fuller figure. Height was also a very important factor after all and over the course of many eras, it seems like being well proportioned in addition to the length and appearance of one's hair were the most important factors (and, like Apollo, greater beauty was given to those with curlier hair)

Mireille M. Lee's 'Other Ways of Seeing' essay which talks about the forgotten female viewers of Knidian Aphrodite which is also extremely illuminating on how Aphroditic sexuality and sensuality was perceived totally differently from the well documented male voyeuristic gaze (which was overly preoccupied with the statue's nakedness and therefore over-sensationalised the statue's physical appearance) vs women's perspective on the statue which is more centered on the beauty of simplicity in Aphrodite's garment and decoration and in her power and ability to captivate both in her finery and without it. I think it's especially useful in exploring the importance of finery, jewellry and adornment in representations of Aphroditic beauty.

"Some of the small-scale copies are heavily jeweled, especially those from the eastern Mediterranean, for example the Hellenistic gilded terracotta statuette in the Çanakkale Museum (Fig. 5) in which the goddess wears, in addition to the armband on her (right) arm, the following: a necklace with multiple pendants; cross-bands extending over both shoulders and hips, with a cascading pendant in the center; a coiled snake armband on the left arm and another snake on her left thigh, and a twisted anklet on her right leg. (The left leg has been restored, and might also have featured an anklet.)"

"Jewelry is especially associated with Aphrodite in Greek literature. As seen above, in the Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite, the goddess adorns herself with gold jewelry, dress-pins, and earrings in the shape of flowers (162–3)..."

Finally, and to me, the most important one in the argument for an interpretation of Hyacinthus as fat, beautiful and fundamentally Aphroditic comes from Brilmayer's brilliant brilliant thesis done on Aphrodite's work and influence in Archaic Greek Poetry which does away with all of that masculine preoccupation with physical proportion, measurement and bodily ideals for a focus on a Sapphic Aphroditic ideal centered in clothing, ornamentation and, most importantly cunning as symbols of Aphrodite and ultimately a feminine idealised form of beauty. This paper also discusses Pandora and Helen in these terms and it is just kind of a wonderful read tbh.

"Combining Homeric and Hesiodic elements with her own ideas, she [Sappho] alters the way female beauty is viewed. For example, the Homeric war chariot – a symbol of male, military prowess - comes to symbolise the totality of Aphrodite’s power uniting in itself male and female qualities. Having addressed the concept of beauty directly, Sappho then concludes that beauty lies in the eye of the beholder. With the help of Helen of Troy and her beloved Anaktoria, Sappho sets out to reinvent the concept of female beauty as a godlike, subjective quality that may be expressed in many ways, yet remains inspired by Aphrodite."

The conclusion to all of this of course is that Aphroditic ideal beauty is much more fluid compared to its stricter Apolline masculine standard. The nuances and understandings of both are of course, constantly being studied, analysed and scrutinised but really, if Dionysus who was both bearded and clean shorn, effeminate, birthed and rebirthed (and twice gestated!) and strongly associated with vegetation can be popularly portrayed as fat and handsome, why can't Hyacinthus?!

[moeblob]

Deacon loves two things: Ymber and digging himself a grave.

Fulj hates one thing: Deacon.

[kissingarthurclaus]

Happy Mexican heritage day, by the way! Thanks to my whitewashed-ass mom I didn't grow up with that much of the culture, but I'm proud to be a part of it nonetheless!! 💖🇲🇽💖🇲🇽💖🇲🇽💖🇲🇽💖🇲🇽💖

To celebrate I'm gonna imagine showing my f/os things from Mexican culture where applicable > u <

[saintsenara]

today's @hprecfest theme is "a fic with fanart", which i'm using to promote all the absolute superstars who have been kind enough to create art for my stories - next up is this, the fifth piece drawn by @epigaea-repens for bookbinding, with a summary of why wee tom and the concept of happy ever after is so compelling that i completely agree with.

and i'm delighted to see salazar riddle nation beginning to rise up. and i think the gorgeous, gorgeous girlies [gender neutral] who are having their passports stamped at the border deserve a little treat... from metallurgy, bookbinding's upcoming sequel...

[i will give a prize to anyone who can tell me why three of the six riddle sons are named patrick, columba, and timothy.]

He swept into the staffroom and began to make himself a cup of tea, while the six of them followed him, squawking with outrage.

Sadly, their chorus did nothing other than bring on what Salazar (privately) thought were his father’s two most tedious habits: affecting an air of superiority and giving lectures.

‘What is it that I am always telling you, boys?’

They exchanged glances - some of them more sullenly than others - before Salazar decided to select Marv to answer by elbowing him firmly in the back. ‘That anyone’ - he trod on Salazar’s toes in revenge; Paddy snorted - ‘who fails to pay attention to the Muggle world is a fool.’

‘And what else?’

‘That - unlike you - most of the country is too stupid to realise it.’

Dad preened. ‘Precisely. And Cygnus Black very much falls into that category…’

Salazar was having none of it. ‘You thinking Cygnus Black’s an idiot doesn’t change the fact that you’ve just paid him fifty galleons for a painting, even though you’d told him it was worthless! Dad, they were laughing as we left!’

He could literally hear his father’s eyes rolling - and could picture it too… it was a quirk both Columba and Merope had inherited - in a way which clearly communicated that he was about to be called an idiot. ‘Salazar, if you restrain yourself from this sense of righteous indignation you might remember that this is not quite what I said.’

‘Yes you -’

His father turned around, an expression Salazar might have described as pure evil on his face, and took a malevolent sip (which - if you’d asked him only moments before - Salazar would have said wasn’t a viable way to describe someone drinking) of his tea.

‘I told Black the painting was worthless on the magical market and would only command a courtesy price in galleons… He is the person who chose to interpret that as meaning it was worthless full stop. And why did he do that?’

They all exchanged glances again.

‘Because he’s an idiot?’ said Tim.

‘Got it in one, poppet.’

He wrapped an arm around Salazar’s shoulders and steered him  - his teacup bobbing along behind them - into his office, where the painting lay, wrapped in its unassuming brown paper, on his desk.

‘It has accumulated a patina of grime from being kept in Black’s shoe cupboard, I’ll concede that…’ he said, unfurling it from its package with a wave of his hand. ‘But, since we - unlike that entire family - are not morons, we can clean it up rather nicely…’

‘I still can’t see how -’

‘I know you spend most of your time at the Courtauld drinking and sleeping around, Salazar… But surely you’ve still managed to stagger into enough lectures to pick up that fifty galleons is a bargain price’ - he tapped his wand against a flourishing signature on the bottom left of the canvas - ‘for a Monet…’

I continue my ~Turtle bender: Tom and Myrtle with babies in Croydon! I am just swimming in obsession with this ship right now, and I've been thinking about why, because it's turned out to be an unusually niche yet lasting interest of mine. I think there's something really compelling about Voldemort, who is almost by definiton evil within the context of the original narrative, just living an ordinary happy life. There's a lot of stories about him being variously malicious and dysfunctional in all sorts of scenarios and I love them!

But I really love taking this charactor who I think was intended to be quite a flat villain, and taking all of the little details that suggest a whole person, and subverting the narrative presented to us by Dumbledore and by the whole framework which posits him as a sort of source of truth by having Tom Riddle not be someone essentially evil from birth, but someone who happened to be funneled into the role he took in the story by a particular, unjust, set of circumstances, and who could have been almost unrecognizably different in slightly different circumstances, without losing anything about who he essentially was.

I like the fluff but what makes it soo compelling is I think involving a character who is just totally doomed in the original narrative of Harry Potter, and exploring how Tom Riddle's personality and position in life can lead in all different directions. It adds a wonderful layer of complexity to an otherwise rather simple happily ever after, because every bit of it is a refutation of the idea that comes through again and again in Harry Potter that a poor, offputting, unpleasant child will never grow past that, will in one way or the other carry that with them, ever magnifying, through life. We have a lot of stories about orphans who are sweet and good and are rightfully rewarded for it and orphans who are secretly princesses and attain their inheritance, and Harry Potter is that sort of an orphan. One who had loving parents, has a background to be proud of, is embraced by the wizarding world, and ultimately rises to the occasion and saves it. Tom Riddle is the product of grimy, tragic, profoundly unromantic circumstances, and carries the marks of early neglect, and it's so wonderful and fun to let him stay kind of weird and a bit sinister and ultimately happy and normal not by birth, but by choice.

Anyway I guess this is sort of preemptive Subluxation fanart @saintsenara

Salazar Riddle is a Ravenclaw in my heart because I just think it's sooo funny and he's gotta be his own person

[bayofwolves]

thinking about writing a little something in the original universe about abeke's adult life where she continues to deal with her grief over shane, who really did die in the burning tide. jumping around to different time periods: she's the new face of greencloak leadership, she's married (but her husband notably doesn't make an appearance), she has a daughter. her life is a dream. but with each of these milestones, she is reminded of shane. the person she might have had this life with if things had been different.

i don't usually like to delve into canon past the return because thinking about shane's death makes me feel sick to my stomach. but this is too good and beautiful and tragic of an idea to pass up.

[nejackdaw]

Thinking about that time in our first campaign my character's dad (adoptive, a very important baron) almost died.

Apparently, he was supposed to. He was not supposed to survive contact with the lich. Don't even ask me how or why we got to the lich, genuinely all I remember is panicking because all of a sudden he had like five hit points and as the party schemer I had two thoughts that erased my awareness of everything else: (1) MY FUCKING DAD (2) THIS LICH IS GOING TO KILL US.

See, my job is finding ways to get us out of things, and as a wizard, I was well equipped to handle that. Except thought one, "MY FUCKING DAD," took priority over EVERYTHING ELSE. My little wizard was orphaned and down his only brother. This guy was all he had. His whole world. World's #1 dad.

... And the lich almost one shot him. He was collapsed on the ground and struggling for breath. This did not register as a cinematic moment to me because I was PANICKING. We roll initiative.

The lich rolls highest. I'm frantically looking through my notes to see what's available to me. Tries to kill me, too. Counterspell.

My turn. Throwing ALL CAUTION to the wind, plan only vaguely half formed, I run up to the baron and tell the DM I'm going to drag him back to the party.

"Your speed is halved from carrying him. You can't make it in 15 feet."

There's dead silence. Everyone is waiting for my response. Seconds of silence. "What are you going to do?" (DM speak for "please hurry up.")

"... I'm a tabaxi. I can make it in 30."

I double my movement speed and drag him back there anyway, to the confused relief of the party. Our sponsor (MY FUCKING DAD) is safe for right this second, but how are we going to fight a LICH?

"Anything else?"

"... I have a scroll of teleport in my bag. And I'm within 10 feet of everyone." Most importantly, I'd DUCKED BEHIND A WALL OF BARRELS AND CRATES so the motherfucker couldn't see me to counterspell.

There's dead silence for a few moments. The voice chat proceeds to blast my eardrums with excited cheering and laughing. The DM and I both pull up the spell. "Roll for it. Where are you going?"

"Home."

I roll a 99. We vanish from the lich's lair and are deposited, battered, bleeding, without guidance, in the charred, crumbled ruins of what had been the baron and I's residence. (It had not been that way until very recently. It was news to me.) There's relieved silence. There's an emotional reunion in what remains of our living room. I cast Tiny Hut in a defensible corner of the ruins after we all chat and we get what sleep we can.

(The DM would later confess that the baron wasn't supposed to survive and he had to change his plans now lol. We were supposed to be cut off from all resources at that point. My dad showed up in the final fight since he'd survived TWO murder attempts [ig the BBEG was the third lmao] and, well. I schemed then, too.)

[infizero]

currently having a hamilton moment .

[saturnsuv]

update <3