#about 3500 words total

[docholligay]

Ep 5: Bullet points 

Hello! This is about up to Episode 5 of Yellowjackets, and ONLY episode 5 of Yellowjackets. I have not seen beyond the fifth episode, at all, and know NOTHING about this show. Please do not spoil it for me.  Things that are spoilery in nature, for me, include: saying things like  “Just wait!!” confirming or denying anything I put forward, outside information about the cast interviews or creator statements, leading questions like “Do you think “blank moment” means anything?” etc. Remember  that Y’ALL HAVE SEEN THE SHOW AND I HAVE NOT. This informs the way you  talk about things relating to the show. Just be really careful is all  I’m asking. Also: If there is LITERALLY any stance I  could take on this show or character that would make you upset, please  just fucking block the tag

If you WOULD like to discuss the show and my takes on it, the Discord is right here! I don’t go there, so it’s a great place to get every emotion out.

Please thank @sailorsunspot and @moonlight-frittata for backing this odd way of doing a liveblog, and remember my tip jar is always open

Also loving the stage that’s being set of ‘feeling bad for Jeff’ who is making a distinct effort here to try and engage with Shauna we love a complex narrative, we love Shauna looking like a real asshole. 

I adore what a dumbass Shauna is to think she can hide being pregnant from all of these girls, this is never going to happen, no. 

Boy do I wish actual hunting was as easy as hunting in Yellowjackets

“I looked him up,. He doesn’t exist” what an interesting thing to make note of

How much shitty eyeliner does nat have and how long will she continue to wear it?

I find it so fucking deeply suspicious that Misty catches the symbol in the photos. I know she’s a citizen detective, but, that absolutely should not be something one can catch from random photos that are not of the pattern itself. That’s an insane amount of mental mapping. 

Jackie’s parents giving Shauna the uniform feels borderline cruel. 

Hey, captioners, it’s “speak your piece” not “speak your peace” 

I did not like putting this in any of the essays, because it didn’t really fit, but I absolutely love the infinity symbol, as an idea that they will always be dying here, they will always be here, they will never, in a sense, get to leave this room. 

I should have seen Shauna being pregnant with Jeff’s baby.

[dreamwritesimagines]

Sunshine [6] - Middle of the Night

AN: My loves, thank you so so much for your wonderful support and lovely comments and HCs! ❤️ You’re amazing! ❤️

I hope you like this as well, and please don’t forget to tell me what you think, thank you! 🥰

Pairing: Logan Howlett x Female!Reader

Summary: Drunk calls can lead to sweet moments.

Word Count: 3500 

CW: Violence, explicit language, mentions of sex, drinking, getting drunk, throwing up

Series Masterlist

To be completely honest, getting drunk was not in the plans tonight.

You were supposed to have one drink and go home but in your defense your best friend had tricked you with that two for one deal and now you were on your fifth cocktail, giggling at the story of her latest date.

“Listen, if you like him, I can totally normalize him living with his ex for you,” you told her and she made a face.

“How?”

“The rental market is in shambles.”

She let out a laugh, then shook her head.

“Nope.”

“Capitalism is fucking all of us—”

“We’re not doing that,” she said. “I mean how would you feel if Logan was living with his ex?”

“Logan hasn’t asked me out,” you pointed out. “Which is more reason to believe he doesn’t like me like that.”

“The guy maimed three people for you!”

“It could’ve been a friendly gesture!”

She threw her head back. “You’re not serious.”

You shrugged your shoulders, then downed your drink and motioned for another one.

“Listen,” you said, your mind all fuzzy. “Do I want Logan? Yes. Do I dream about us living happily ever after? Yes. Do I have very detailed fantasies about him breaking my bed? Also yes. But we don’t—”

“I’d just like to remind you that while you don’t have enough money to buy a new bed,” she interfered. “I will buy you a new one if you break it while the hot lumberjack is fucking your brains out.”

“Thank you, you’re a true friend,” you said solemnly as the waitress brought you your cocktail and you thanked her, then turned to Julie. “Jamie wants him to be terrible in bed so that I’ll snap out of this.”

“Doubt it,” she said. “The guy has been around since the mid-1800s, I’d assume he has some experience.”

You tilted your head, then gasped.

“Oh my God!” you said, reaching out to grab her arm over the table, almost knocking over her glass but she caught it before her drink could spill on the table. “What if Jamie is right?”

“I literally just said—”

“No, he was alive in mid-1800s!” you said, making her frown.

“Yeah?”

“What if he is like Edward Cullen and waiting for marriage?”

“That man is a whore!” Julie snapped, flailing her hands. “I’ve heard the way he speaks to you, he’s a slut—there’s no fucking way. He’ll break your bed any day now.”

You heaved a dramatic sigh. “To repeat, he hasn’t made a move.”

“To repeat, I think maiming three guys for you counts as making a move.”

You sucked on the straw of your cocktail, the happy warmth of alcohol buzzing in your head.

“So you think he likes me back?”

“I’m pretty sure he likes you back.”

 You grabbed some popcorn from the bowl on the table.

“Yeah well,” you said. “I guess we’ll see.”

“Why don’t you ask him out?”

You pulled your brows together. “I can’t do that Julie!”

“Why not?” she asked. “Is it the 1800s? Will people call you a harlot in the town square?”

“No!” you said. “No it’s just…”

“When was the last time you got laid?”

“That has nothing to with the situation,” you said and took a huge sip of your cocktail, making her grin.

“Remind me, when was it?”

“It’s been some time.”

“So why aren’t you climbing Logan like a tree?”

“I’m trying!” you whined and she motioned at you.

“Drink your cocktail. The whole thing.”

You nodded and downed your drink, your insides getting even warmer as you put your glass on the table. Julie grinned, and pushed your phone in your direction.

“Now call him.”

“Julie!”

“Just ask him out!” she said. “What’s the worst thing that could happen?”

“He could hang up on me.”

“He’s not gonna hang up on you,” she said. “Listen, that guy has been picking you up from work, calling you princess, saving you from creeps and sniffing your hair...”

“We’re not so sure about the last part.”

“Yes we are,” she said, pointing a finger at you. “Call him. You’ll be too much of a chicken to ask him out when you’re sober, so do it when you’re drunk.”

You let out a whine, then took the phone into your hands, heaving a sigh.

“What if I’m not his type?”

Julie rolled her eyes. “Somebody really needs to fuck you in front of a mirror.”

You scrunched up your face. “Oh I could never do that.”

“You should, it’s fun,” she said and nodded at the phone in your hand. “Call him.”

“But—”

“Do you want to fuck him, yes or no?”

“I want us to live happily ever after!” you said and paused for a second. “And yeah I want to fuck him. A lot. Day and night, multiple positions.”

“Call him.”

You took a deep breath, then nodded to yourself.

“I’ll be back,” you said and stood up from the chair, stumbling as the room spun around you but you grabbed the back of the chair and sat down again. “Shit, I’m too drunk.”

“It’s not that loud here,” she said. “You don’t have to go outside.”

“Okay,” you said and found Logan’s name, then touched it and took the phone to your ear, your heart pacing in your chest. You drummed your fingernails on the table, frowning to yourself, then lowered the phone.

“He’s not answering,” you said and ended the call, then turned to Julie. “Maybe he’s busy or something?”

“Yeah, didn’t you say they went on missions?”

“That’s what I heard,” you said and heaved a sigh. “Oh well. It was worth a shot.”

Julie shrugged her shoulders.

“Yeah,” she said and thought for a moment. “We should get shots.”

You gasped, and clapped your hands together.

“Yeah!” you said. “Yeah let’s get shots!”

                                                   *

Since Julie’s place was closer, you had split the taxi fee and dropped her off first before the taxi took you to your place. As it turned out, the shots were a bad idea because you had to rush to the bathroom to throw up as soon as you stepped foot into your apartment, but after you brushed your teeth and washed your face, you were still not sleepy.

On the contrary, you were pretty energetic.

…And hungry.

Starving, actually.

You hummed to yourself as you opened the fridge, then tilted your head. Nothing in your fridge looked good enough, so you grabbed your phone to order, but then scoffed when you saw the delivery fee.

“Absolutely not,” you murmured and grabbed your jacket to put it on, then grabbed your keys before walking out of the apartment. The buzz of the alcohol was still in your system despite you throwing up, so you hopped down the stairs and stepped out of the apartment.

Walking did help the nausea and your head spinning, and you were just passing by a shop when the fish tank caught your eye, making you stop in your steps.

Fish.

Interesting.

You stared at the shop window, nearly hypnotized by the lively colors and the fish swimming in the huge fish tank behind the glass but snapped out of it when your phone started vibrating in your pocket.

Logan.

“Oh fuck,” you muttered to yourself as you stared at the name flashing on the screen, your breath hitching. “Oh fuck, oh fuck…”

You took a deep breath, and touched the screen, then took the phone to your ears, your heart pacing in your chest.

“Hey!” you said, your voice going a pitch higher. “Um, what’s up?”

“Hi princess,” he said, his deep voice making you bite at your lip. “Didn’t hear you call, sorry about that.”

“No problem,” you said with a giggle. “Jesus, fish are pretty. Did you know they were pretty? I didn’t really pay attention to them but—oh my God. I’m so buying Theo fish.”

“What?”

“No seriously, he wanted it, and these things are tiny and it’s not that hard to take care of fish, is it? I mean it can’t be harder than taking care of orchids, Nik bought some for me and those things are goddamn suicidal, I tell you.”

“…Are you drunk?”

“Tipsy,” you corrected him as you fished your gloss out of your purse to apply it, staring at the window. “Tipsy-ish? This store is open right? Yeah, I see someone inside—”

“Hold on, you’re drunk and outside?” he asked. “Alone?”

“Yeah but it’s fine,” you said. “I stepped outside for some fresh air and I’m gonna get food but I got distracted by this aquarium—I’ll buy two fish and then put one of those fake trees and stuff into the tank—”

“Stay put, I’ll be there.”

“You don’t even know where I am though?” you said, looking around the street. “I’m close to my apartment but like I said, I need to eat something and Theo needs fish—”

“I’ll follow your scent, stay put,” he said and hung up, making you hum, and then put the phone into your pocket and entered the shop to smile at the owner.

“Good evening sir,” you said. “I need one orange and one white fish please. My son will name them Cheeto and Popcorn.”

                                               *

Logan found you as you were leaving the fast food place, holding the paper bag full of French fries tight with the small fish tank tucked in your other arm. You put the paper bag on the lid on the tank as the roar of the motorcycle made you lift your head and you looked over your shoulder.

Jesus Christ, he was too hot.

You could swear there were flying hearts circling your head as he got off the motorcycle and made his way to you, his herculean figure making you sigh before you looked up at his handsome face, your heartbeat getting faster.

“Hi sweetheart.”

You blinked up at him, still hugging the tank to your chest. “Hi. You’re very handsome.”

That made the corners of his mouth twitch into a small smile before he tilted his head.

“How much did you drink, again?”

“Um…” you bit inside your cheek, looking up at the dark sky to calculate in your head. “Six cocktails and a couple of shots. The shots were Julie’s idea though.”

“Right.”

“Hold this,” you said, pushing the tank into his arms before grabbing the paper bag to open it. “Ugh, I’m starving! Are you hungry?”

“Nope,” he said, still smiling. “Go ahead.”

You hummed a song to yourself as you dug into the fries, and cleared your throat, trying to focus.

“You didn’t have to drive all the way here,” you said. “My place isn’t far.”

“Mm hm, and you’re drunk.”

“Tipsy,” you corrected him as you chewed on the fries with him walking beside you. “I swear to God, potatoes are the best vegetable to grace this earth—what were you doing when I called? Am I keeping you from something?”

“Nope,” he said. “I was walking around the halls to make sure everything was alright, I didn’t take my phone with me. How about you? Fun night?”

“So much fun!” you said as you popped a couple of fries into your mouth. “Julie is seeing this guy—well, they slept together, and apparently he’s still living with his ex and it’s like a huge red flag for her, but seriously the rents are insane nowadays so I don’t—Logan, what are your thoughts on premarital sex?”

That made his head whip around and he stared at you while you calmly chewed on the fries, waiting for his answer.

“…Huge fan of it?” he said after a beat and you nodded your head.

“Same here,” you said as you started walking again. “Did you—um, so do you count as Victorian or Georgian? I always mix those two up for some reason.”

He pulled his brows together. “What?”

“I watch a lot of period movies, I think yearning is the most romantic thing in the entire world, that hand scene in Pride and Prejudice changed me as a person,” you said as you reached into the paper bag to pull out more fries. “Um, I have a lot of questions for you and I know you’re this cool and mysterious guy so you can just say yes or no.”

He stifled a laugh. “Sure thing, hit me.”

“Did anyone give you their handkerchief?”

“No.”

You gasped. “No one gave you their handkerchief? What a bunch of assholes!”

“I had other priorities in mind during those times, sweetheart.”

“Yearning is a priority, Logan,” you said wistfully. “Next question, were you ever accidentally engaged?”

“How does one get accidentally engaged?”

“People see you talking to each other without a chaperone.”

“What?” he asked with a grimace. “I don’t—no.”

“No wonder why you like modern times better, now that I think about it,” you murmured as you looked into the bag, then heaved a sigh when you saw only a couple of fries in it. You grabbed them and threw them into your mouth, then scrunched up the paper bag to throw it into the nearest trash can. “Do you like Cheeto and Popcorn?”

Logan pulled his brows together. “Come again?”

“The fish!” you pointed at the small fish tank he was holding in one hand and he looked down at it, then chuckled.

“Right,” he said. “They look nice, sweetheart.”

“Right? Theo will be very happy, and—is there any rules against pets at the school? Because he will want to take them there.”

“We can bend the rules a little for him, it’s fine,” he said, making you smile at him brightly.

“Aw thank you!” you said as you licked your lips, then looked around before turning to Logan. “Logan?”

His eyes held a soft light in them. “Hm?”

“Can I see your claws?”

He frowned slightly but unsheathed his claws. “Why? I don’t see any threats, do you—”

He was cut off when you held onto his arm to lift his hand a little to see the blur reflection of your face on the metal, then dabbed at your lip gloss that had smudged a little with the tip of your finger. You could feel Logan staring at you so you lifted your gaze for a moment.

“What?”

“…You—you know I’ve hurt a lot of people with them, right?”

“And now you’re helping me fix my makeup with them,” you said with a shrug of your shoulders. “Things can be of multiuse.”

He didn’t comment on it as you rubbed your lips together, then dropped his hand to beam at him. “Thanks!”

“No problem,” he managed to say with a small chuckle. “You are something else, you know that?”

“I’m taking that as a compliment,” you said happily but before you could thank him again, you noticed two guys staring at him, no doubt because of the claws. You could feel the sudden rush of anger sparking to life as you narrowed your eyes at them.

“What?” you snapped, making them snap out of the haze, exchanging glances. Logan raised his brows, his lips twitching as if he was amused. “What are you looking at?”

“Nothing,” one of them said. “Just claws—”

“Yeah, so?” you asked him as you took a step towards him but Logan put his hand over the back of your neck, gently pulling you back, looking like he was trying his hardest to keep a straight face and not burst into laughter as the guy stepped back. “What, do you wanna fight or something?”

“…No?”

“Then fucking act like it, how about that?”

“Your girl is aggressive, bro.”

“That she is,” Logan said, rubbing his thumb over the back of your neck. “Come on, let’s get you home.”

“It’s rude to stare, okay?” you told them over your shoulder as you started walking beside Logan. “No seriously like, didn’t your mom teach you anything? Call her, let’s see what she’ll say about you staring at strangers!”

Logan pursed his lips together to control the chuckle vibrating in his chest before he cleared his throat.

“Unbelievable,” you grumbled. “No seriously, even Theo knows not to stare at people and he still believes in Santa! That’s no excuse, what the fuck was that? You should’ve let me kick his ass!”

“I think you scared them off enough.”

“Good!”

“Do you always look for fights when you’re drunk?”

“I’m tipsy and I have zero tolerance for disrespect, Logan,” you pointed out. “I mean honestly, who raised these boys?”

Logan bit back a smile, then nodded in the direction of your building.

“Come on,” he said and you pulled out your keys, but then dropped them with a gasp. Logan picked them up, then opened the building’s door for you.

“It’s kind of like a handkerchief situation when you think about it,” you said happily as you climbed the stairs. If you weren’t so drunk, you would’ve noticed earlier that he was in fact in your building but it only dawned on you when you stopped in front of your apartment, then held your breath.

“Logan?” you asked, your heart beating faster at the possibility. “Would you like to come in?”

“I’ll just make sure you actually go to bed and not wander off to the street completely drunk,” he told you and you pouted your lips as he opened your door for you.

Stepping into your apartment, you yawned and looked over your shoulder as he closed the door behind him, then held up the fish tank.

“Where do you want to put it?”

“The kitchen is fine,” you said, pointing at the kitchen and he made his way to the kitchen while you swayed on your steps, making your way to your bedroom to fling yourself on the bed, kicking off your shoes. You heard the sound of water running before the footsteps came closer and you sat up in the bed, tucking your legs under you. Logan entered your bedroom, his hazel gaze focusing on you for a moment before he shook his head slightly and handed you the huge glass of water.

“Drink it.”

“Oh I’m not thirsty.”

“Drink it,” he repeated and you heaved a sigh, then took a sip of it before lowering the glass to your lap.

“I’m pretty sure those cocktails will knock you out but off the chance that you wake up still drunk, I need you to promise me—” Logan started but a tiny lint on the skirt of your dress caught your attention, making you distracted. You pulled at it with a frown but felt Logan tilt your chin up so that you could look up at him.

“Eyes on me princess, look at me.”

You could feel the warmth spreading through you as your eyes met his, pleasant goosebumps rising on your arms as you blinked up at him in adoration.

“Your voice is very deep,” you murmured and he smiled slightly.

“Did you hear a word I said?”

You thought for a moment, then shook your head.

“Don’t wander off to the street if you wake up in the middle of the night,” he said. “I need to get back to the institute but—”

“Or you could stay?” you asked, your voice soft in the quiet, dimly lit room and a shadow moved behind his hazel gaze, making your heart skip a beat. You knew he knew what you meant, and hope filled your system, making you feel nearly lightheaded at the possibility of him feeling half of the fire running through your veins.

You could swear there was some sort of invisible lighting crackling between you, making your breath catch in your throat as he traced your bottom lip with his thumb, making your eyes flutter close for a second before you looked up at him again.

“Logan…”

“That is not happening when you’re drunk, sweetheart,” he said, his voice low and you pulled your brows together.

“It could.”

“It won’t.”

 You bit inside your cheek, blinking up at him and he frowned as if trying to pull himself together. His knuckles brushed over your cheekbone softly before he withdrew his hand, then leaned down to press his lips to the top of your head, making you heave a sigh.

“Call me when you wake up tomorrow,” he said before he pulled back, then walked out of the room.

You heard the front door open, then close and you let out a whine, then let yourself fall back on the bed, pressing your fingertips on your lips. A giggle you couldn’t stop climbed up your throat and you lowered your hand, then took off your dress to throw it to somewhere in the room before grabbing the covers to pull them over your head, a huge smile curling your lips as you closed your eyes, sleep pulling you into its warmth.

7 - Heat Wave

[okaylikeschaewon]

Vocals

~3500 words, KAMPFyre Part 1, smut

Was this girl serious? Could someone actually be this naive?

“So does it work?”

“Uh, I’ve heard it’s very effective,” you answered cautiously, still not entirely sure if she believed the theory. “It’s totally up to you if you want to do it, though.”

“I do!” she replied without hesitation. “Please, if it’s good for my voice then please do it.”

“Alright, follow me,” you instructed while walking down the hallways of the stadium into a small office. “Take a seat.”

She sat down with her hands in her lap, looking up at you expectantly. She was rather cute with her hair all tied up and her baggy, casual clothes. Since you already made it this far, you decided to try pushing it just a little bit more.

“It could get a bit messy,” you explained while leaning on the desk in front of her. “If you want to keep your clothes clean, I don’t mind if you strip.”

“Oh,” she hesitated. “Do people usually do that?”

“It’s pretty normal, but it’s totally up to you.”

“Will anyone else be coming in here?” she asked, looking around the room nervously. “And there aren’t any cameras right? I could get in a lot of trouble.”

“Whatever makes you more comfortable, remember I’m just here to help you out,” you added casually, hoping she wouldn’t get suspicious. “To answer your question though, no one else will be joining us, and there are no cameras.”

She thought about it for a second before shrugging and taking her sweater off. Just as she said, she was wearing nothing but a peach colored bra underneath her top. Then she stood up to take off her sweatpants, revealing matching underwear. After folding her clothes neatly on the side of the desk, she took a seat in front of you again.

“Have you ever seen one before?” you asked, standing up straight in front of her and gesturing to your crotch.

“Only in a science book, never in person,” she answered, staring between your legs. “I’m sorry, I don’t really know what to do.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll guide you,” you reassured her. “If at any point you want to stop, for any reason whatsoever, just let me know.”

She nodded obediently, still fixated on your crotch.

“I’m going to take my pants off, alright?” you said cautiously, not wanting to scare her. Slowly, you lowered your pants to your ankles, followed by your underwear. With your cock out in front of her, you stepped out of your clothes and kicked them to the side. “Ready?”

“What do I do now?” she asked, looking up at you.

“Put it in your mouth.”

—

“Some of these girls are fucking gorgeous.”

“Seriously, did you guys see that red haired girl,” you asked, taking a sip of your cocktail. “Some group called Momoland or something?”

“Oh yeah! She’s the only one I even remember from that set,” the first man commented. “I bet she gives great head, too.”

“What gave you that idea,” the second man laughed. “Aren’t these girls banned from seeing guys?”

“Really?” the first man gasped. “What a waste, I heard it makes you a better singer though.”

“What are you talking about,” you laughed, putting down your empty glass. “I gotta get going, but that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”

“No really! I swear it helps with singing,” the first man argued. “One load down the throat and these girls would sound so much better.”

The second man smacked him lightly on the head while the three of you laughed together.

“Alright it was nice meeting you guys,” you chuckled. “Maybe I’ll catch you guys again after the show, we’ll go grab some more drinks.”

“Cheers buddy.”

Still smiling to yourself, you left the two guys behind and took a couple of steps into the hallway when you heard a voice behind you.

“Excuse me.”

You turned around to see a cute girl standing in the hallway, staring at you.

“I don’t think you’re supposed to be back here, this area is for staff only.”

“I’m actually one of the performers,” she said shyly.

“Oh, sorry,” you apologized, noticing her artist badge around her neck. “What can I help you with?”

“I don’t mean to intrude, but I overheard your conversation as I was heading back to our room.”

“Uh, sorry, I hope you aren’t offended,” you replied quickly, worried that she might report you.

“No, not at all, I was just wondering if it was true,” she said while walking up to you.

“Which part exactly?”

“The thing about the voice, your friend said something about one load making you sing better?”

“One load?” you coughed, unable to believe what she just said.

“I don’t really know what it means,” she said casually. “What is a load?”

“Is this some sort of prank?” you asked while looking around. “Am I being tested?”

“No, this isn’t a prank,” she said earnestly while holding up her pass. “Here, look, my name is Winter. I’m part of a group called Aespa, we’re performing tonight.”

If this was fake, it was pretty elaborate, you thought to yourself while observing the badge.

“I’m super nervous for today, if there is some sort of trick that will help my voice, I’d love to try it,” she continued. “I’ve always been into these kinds of superstitious things, it’s a bit embarrassing.”

“Well, if you’re being serious,” you replied, handing her pass back. “He was basically saying if a guy… umm… deposits inside your throat, it will make you sing better.”

“Deposits?” she repeated, tilting her head.

“Like, you know, a load. His sperm.”

“Oh,” she gasped. “That’s called a load?”

—

“I’m sorry, I feel like I’m not doing a very good job,” Winter apologized while slipping your cock out of her mouth. “Does it usually take this long?”

“Oh no! You’re doing just fine,” you replied, giving her shoulder an encouraging squeeze. “It’s only your first time, don’t feel bad about it.”

“I don’t mind continuing, but if there’s a better way to do this we could try that.”

“There is one thing we could try,” you suggested as an audacious idea invaded your mind. “Some girls will have sex with the guy for a bit, just to get him ready, and then quickly put it back in their mouth.”

“Would you be willing to do that for me?” she asked innocently, looking up at you.

“Of course, I’d love to help you out,” you answered, trying to hide your excitement. Was she really about to let you fuck her? “Only if you want to do it.”

“Oh I do I do!” she replied happily. “I don’t really know how, though, I’ve only read about it.”

“Here, come sit,” you took her hand, guiding her to a little couch on the side and laying her on her back. “Is it fine if I take off your underwear?”

Without responding, she reached down herself and slipped her panties off, exposing her shaven pussy - so cute and pristine.

“Is it going to hurt?” she asked nervously, her legs spread wide while she slowly rubbed herself. “I’ve touched myself before, but I’ve never put anything inside.”

“I’ll be as gentle as possible,” you said while crouching down between her legs, admiring her lips. “I’m going to get you a bit wet first, to make it easier, alright?”

She nodded at you before moving her hands up and placing them on her stomach.

“Just try to enjoy this, it should feel good,” you instructed as you moved your face between her legs.

That first lick of her inner thigh made her whole body jolt. This girl was sensitive. Slowly, you rubbed your tongue around her folds, licking up and little bits of her juices that had already started spreading. She tasted so clean, her pussy was made to be eaten. The biggest travesty was knowing that it wasn’t eaten daily.

As your tongue moved closer and closer to her entrance, her breathing accelerated. She was already getting wet - you couldn’t wait to taste her fully. Without further ado, your tongue made its way towards her pussy. That first lick up her slit immediately overwhelmed your taste buds, her delicious nectar filling your mouth. When your tongue made it to her clit, her wide-spread legs clamped down on your head.

“Sorry!” she gasped, quickly spreading her legs again.

“It’s fine,” you quickly reassured her before immediately pressing your mouth against her again.

Again, her legs began to close, but this time she controlled herself before squishing you - not that you would have minded. You began to explore, licking and tasting every bit of her pussy that your mouth could reach. The goal was just to get her wet, but you were addicted.

“That feels really good,” Winter moaned, finally allowing herself to be vocal.

Her lower body began to squirm. You gave her pussy a couple final licks before sitting up, admiring the mess of fluids between her legs - She was ready.

“This should also feel really good,” you said, wiping your lips with the back of your hand as you slid a cushion underneath her butt. “I’m going in now, alright?”

“Okay,” she whispered, looking up at you in anticipation as you lined your stiff cock up with her entrance.

The excitement was driving you insane, a tiny bit of precum had already formed on your tip. You couldn’t believe this was actually going to happen. You slowly pressed your cock against her folds, having her pussy spread apart for you.

“Holy fuck that’s tight,” you moaned, pausing for a moment. “Let me know if it’s too much.”

“I’m- fine-” she stuttered, her eyes shut tight.

Another inch. Winter inhaled sharply as your third little push went forward. Your cock was halfway inside her now, begging to go deeper. You pushed again, going until your cock was almost entirely inside her, when she let out a little squeak through her closed mouth.

She was frozen, completely still, until you carefully pulled your hips back. She released that breath slowly, her entire body relaxing before your eyes. You pressed forward again, not going as deep, holding yourself inside her to get her adjusted.

So unbelievably tight, but luckily she was also soaked. Using her breaths as guidance, you began to slowly thrust into her. Your cock only ever made it halfway, but you wanted to ease her into it. She did feel amazing, her inner walls were squeezing your cock in all the right ways, gently contracting each time you thrusted.

“Is it working?” she asked through gritted teeth, still keeping her eyes shut tight.

“Yeah, you’re doing great,” you moaned back, grabbing her waist for support.

After going at it for a bit, you decided to push deeper. Her body was quickly adjusting, and soon you were going three quarters of the way into her pussy with each thrust, making her whole body jiggle each time.

She began to heat up: a lot. The contractions of her pussy began to come quicker and quicker, squeezing your shaft, fighting your movements. She was getting tighter the more you fucked her, and at this point she was probably tighter than when you started - but she was also much wetter.

As you continued to plow her tightness, you slid one hand over towards her clit and began rubbing. This finally got her to moan freely. That shy wall she was hiding behind shattered, and she began to cry out in pleasure. Your cock began to twitch at the sound of her voice, nearing your own orgasm.

It had probably only been a couple of minutes at most since you started fucking her pussy, but you knew you wouldn’t last much longer. She was so tight. Her tiny body began to shake, trembling as you relentlessly fucked her.

A slur of words slipped out of her mouth, she was gasping, trying to say something while being denied by the pleasure of her body. Then, her pussy clamped down on your cock, squeezing it harder than ever before.

“Ahhhhhhhh,” she moaned, drawn out and without care for controlling the volume. Her orgasm took over, her whole body began to move up and down.

At this point, you completely forgot what your goal was, and the sight of Winter’s arched back made you burst. She was still cumming as you began to paint her insides white. You grunted, gasped, moaned, nothing was in your control anymore as her pussy convulsed on your shaft.

It went on for a bit, before you finally regained your senses. At some point during your orgasm, you had fallen forward onto her body. While laying on top of her, you felt your cock pulse every few seconds, unloading the final bits of your climax inside her pussy.

“I came… inside…” you gasped, lifting yourself up and looking down at her.

“Did I do something wrong?” she asked tenderly, still in her blissful state. “Am I supposed to swallow it still?”

“No, you didn’t-” you began before pausing as the realization of what she just said hit you. “That might be a bit difficult.”

“Oh, are you able to try again?”

“You… want to go again?”

“Sure, why not,” she answered, sitting up slightly. “It felt really good, and it looks like this way worked a lot better.”

“Uh, sure, I don’t see why not,” you responded while getting off her. As soon as you pulled out, a glob of white goo spilled out of her.

“Is that what I’m supposed to swallow?” she asked, observing the bit of your cum that was on your tip. “Do you mind if I taste it?”

This girl had to be fucking with you, there was no way she was real. Either way, you walked around the couch and held your cock right in front of her mouth.

“If you want, yeah.”

She leaned forward and stuck her tongue out, collecting your cum in her mouth. She took one big gulp before shuddering slightly.

“It’s… weird.”

“We don’t have to keep doing this,” you said, starting to feel slightly guilty.

“No, please, your friend said it’ll help with my vocals, right?” she asked, her eyes hopeful.

“He did.”

“Then please, I’m sorry for messing the last one up, please try again,” she begged.

“Alright, just give me like thirty seconds,” you said, grabbing your cock and stroking it back to hardness.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” Winter asked while sitting up straight on the couch, watching you stroke yourself.

“Uh yeah, here,” you let go of your cock and stuck it forward for her to stroke.

While you expected her to grab your cock, she shocked you when she put it in her mouth and started blowing you again.

“Oh fuck, that works,” you moaned as her soft lips enveloped your cock.

Surely this had to be a dream. If it was real, then you figured you’d have to look more into this Aespa group. It didn’t take long for you to get ready for round two.

“You’re already getting better at that,” you encouraged her while pulling your cock out of her mouth. “Here, this time come over here.”

Following your instructions, she stood up from the couch and walked over to the desk. You pressed down on her back, bending her over it. With her ass sticking up, it took a lot of strength to stop yourself from shoving your face into it.

“This time, before I cum, I need you to quickly turn around and get on your knees,” you instructed her.

“How will I know when that is?” she asked while looking back over her shoulder.

“I’ll pull out,” you answered. “I’ll also give you a little pat on the butt, alright?”

She nodded once before facing forward again, bracing herself. You stepped up behind her, rubbing your tip along her slit - squishy wet noises filling the room. Her body was much better prepared this time, and you slipped in with ease. It wasn’t until you went about halfway inside her that her pussy convulsed, that tightness returning immediately.

This time, you pushed all the way in until your hips were pressed right against her ass. An emphatic moan escaped her lips as you pushed as deep as you could. While you pulled back, her pussy lips were gripping your cock, fighting to keep you inside her. At the same time, when you pushed back in, her tightness was fighting to keep you out.

Her body felt unreal, this girl must have been created in a lab or something. You leaned forward, placing your hands on her shoulders, before finally getting into a rhythm. This time, you were fucking her much harder. Her cute little ass rippled each time your hips slammed into her, and the once shy girl was now squealing each time your cock went in.

As much as you wanted to savor the moment, your body didn’t care. Your hips were relentless, plowing her tight pussy while her cute little butt went back and forth. One of your hands moved off her shoulder and pressed hard into her lower back, making her arch herself. She looked so fucking sexy from this angle.

Winter deserved some praise. With how hard you were fucking her, and her lack of experience, she took it quite well. You thought about slowing down, giving her a second to catch her breath, but her constant moans of pleasure kept you going.

Slap slap slap, your hips rammed her ass. Each thrust went as deep as possible, but you needed to go deeper. With your cock balls deep inside her, you grabbed her leg and lifted it onto the desk. She almost fell over, balancing on one foot, but you quickly grabbed her hips to steady her.

With your fingers pressing into her hips, you resumed the thrusting - this new position scratching that itch inside you to go deeper. Her moans, her tightness, her cute butt, everything happening in your world right now was pushing you to the edge. You never could have predicted your second orgasm to come so quickly, but here it was.

Not wanting to mess it up again, you slammed into her one final time with all of your power, making her entire body shake as she screamed out. Then you quickly pulled out, all the way, letting go of her body entirely. You lifted your hand up high, and then you brought it down hard onto her ass, the sound of the slap echoing in the small room.

Without missing a beat, the cute girl quickly turned around and got into her knees. She looked right into your eyes, unable to contain her excitement as you stroked your cock in front of her face, dripping her own juices onto her chin. As soon as she opened her mouth, you shoved your cock down her throat.

After her initial reflex, she quickly calmed down and let you use her mouth freely. She sat there while your cock went in and out, nearing that divine orgasm. You grabbed her head with both hands and started to properly fuck her mouth, the same way you fucked her from behind just a second ago.

Finally, your cock unloaded, giving her exactly what she was begging for earlier. She looked so pretty with her mouth spread open around your shaft. You pressed forward, as deep as her throat would allow, holding her face to your crotch as you pumped her full of cum.

“Oh fuck,” you moaned quietly as she took your entire load. You tilted your head back and closed your eyes, enjoying the warmth of her mouth as her tongue rubbed against your tip. “Almost done.”

As soon as you let go of her head, she pulled back and started coughing. You crouched down next to her, rubbing her back gently.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she coughed, her saliva dripping out of her mouth and onto her thighs. “I think I swallowed most of it.”

“You did a great job,” you said awkwardly, the realization of what you just did hitting you. “Here, use this,” you added while handing her some tissues from the desk.

She wiped her mouth a few times before looking up at you and smiling.

“Thank you, I think I can feel it working already,” she said softly.

There was no way this was real. You refused to believe it.

“Yeah, I’m glad I could help.”

---

A/N:

I have no idea how this happened. Randomly got kinda horny for Winter, quickly wrote up something I thought about back when they did some music festival. I don't actually think Winter is dumb, this is just silly fiction, don't be offended!

Wrote this up in one night, forgive me for any sort of mistakes. Barely proofread this one to be honest. Hopefully someone out there enjoys it, I'll probably at some point write a Karina bit following this one.

Regarding other works, Dating Seraphs Chapter 5 is making a lot of progress, this fic was just a short distraction, so expect that soon!

[vanguard-if]

hi everybody, making some grammatical fixes and cleaning up what i have of chapter one. im hoping to have the update out today or tomorrow after bug fixing ❤️❤️

this chunk of chapter 1 is ~3500 words, making Vanguard around 15.5K words total. i estimate it’s about 1/3 ish of the full chapter, so there’s still more to come (take this with a grain of salt). when completed, all ROs will be introduced. in this small chunk, you’ll get to meet one more RO out of the bunch.

this was so awfully delayed, but i think you guys will enjoy what i’ve written so far. i’d recommend playing from the beginning, as ive added some extra little tidbits and fixes. be on the lookout!!

[rjthirsty]

I got it into my head that I wanted Gilbert's and Roderic's relationship to be super toxic. Like, what if Gilbert really lost his good heart? And what if Roderic was more like a servant than a friend? Like, how fucked up could I make this dynamic?

Well, as always, I threw the idea to a (very drugged up) friend of mine (who is normally not drugged up) and she went crazy for it. (It was probably the drugs.) So I gave into the demons in my thoughts and wrote some stuff that puts both characters in a very poor light.

Wonderful Torment

Gilbert/Roderic

3500 words

Tags: Dubcon, manipulation, power imbalance, smut, come swallowing, thigh fucking, hand job, degradation, Gil's a total creep in this one, not really somnphillia.

Gilbert shoved his gloved finger between his teeth, biting the tip and pulling his hand free. It wasn't enough for him to simply gaze upon Roderic's underwear, his perverse pleasure came from touching the garments that often sat next to his servant's genitals. It came from knowing that Roderic's cock brushed along the same fabric that his fingers stroked right now. It came from escalation of his degenerate behavior towards Roderic and his belongings, pushing his desires into him and watching the other man give in to the inevitable. 

It hadn't always been like this, but some years ago something flickered on in Gilbert and his sexual awakening became more than he could bear. Unable - and unwilling - to bring a woman into his bed, he turned his sights on the only person available to him, Roderic. He had brought Roderic in when they were still children, and while he wouldn't say he treated his servant well, Gilbert offered him a better life than he had had before and one he would never be able to achieve once he, himself, was no longer part of the picture. 

And so, little by little, Gilbert had begun pushing the boundaries on their relationship as master and servant, and Roderic had given in each time. He knew he could just take Roderic if he felt like it, but there was very little enjoyment in that sort of thing. No, he wanted Roderic to be the puppet in his hand that obeyed his every whim and deep down wanted the treatment that Gilbert gave him.

His cock throbbed, held hostage by his trousers pinning him in an uncomfortable position. Hastily, Gil spit his glove out, catching it with his free hand and setting it on the dresser. Snatching Roderic's undergarments up, he fumbled with his pants and belts to release his erection, roughly tugging his cock free and delighting in his own manhandling of his manhood.

The tip of his dick dribbled his excitement, which Gilbert wiped away as he teasingly dragged Roderic's pilfered underwear over the head of his cock and snugly down his shaft. He wrapped his cock in the fabric, using it as a shield between his hand and himself, imagining rubbing himself against Roderic's clothed crotch instead.

It was a fantasy that he revisited often. The two men shared a bed; he had no reason for Roderic to sleep in another room when they were so close already. And if his illness took him in the middle of the night, Roderic would need to be the first to find him. But having Roderic's warmth pressed against him every night caused his desire for his servant to grow and seep into his subconscious, painting the picture of fucking him instead of his hand in his dreams.

The same thought circled his mind again and again, and while he hadn't yet let his cock touch Roderic himself, he had no qualms about rubbing against Roderic's clothing to climax, and had, in fact, done it a few times already.

Gilbert moaned, his eye sinking closed and his cock sliding into his covered and closed fist. His thrusts were slow, purposeful, titillating as he focused on the stimulation to his sensitive skin.

The thought of taking all other undergarments from Roderic's dresser and leaving this one soiled pair for his servant to wear had him squeezing himself in delight. His cum hardened into the fabric. Roderic having no choice but to keep his release next to his skin.  Or would he forego the garment entirely? That was arousing in its own way. 

He wondered what Roderic thought the first time he left a gift for him. He never mentioned it. Did he debate on what to do about it? He hadn't said anything the other times either. Was he keeping a collection? What a pervert.

Gilbert saw the way Roderic looked at him during dressing and changing and bathing. The way Roderic's eyes wandered over him. The way he glanced at his cock and would quickly look away. It flustered him. He had certainly been entertaining similar ideas long before Gil. What a deviant.

No wonder he didn't say anything about the sperm covered clothes Gilbert left him. He probably touched himself while holding the soiled material. Spilled his own seed on top of Gilbert's.

Roderic kneeled to Gilbert, who had dropped into his padded chair in his private quarters. His master had been overseeing the training of new troops, and Roderic, himself, had performed a few spars to demonstrate his combat expertise. Gilbert was easily winded. Despite his ailments, Prince Gilbert still managed to give some instructions, perfectly masking his illness and the exertion it took on him.

Did his groin ache just as much as Gil's did at night when they were nestled together? It had to be worse for Roderic. And if it wasn't, he'd make it worse for him.

Now, the two of them had returned to the only place Gilbert was able to drop his mask of a healthy general, and immediately he had fallen into the closest chair. Roderic took care of the tasks that had long become unspoken and expected for him to perform. At his master’s feet, he had unlaced one of Gilbert’s high boots and removed it already, working on the other one with practiced motions.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gil’s shoeless foot move as he pulled the laces on his other boot, but when Gil’s foot bumped his inner thigh, that was when Roderic glanced down, twitching out of surprise. Gilbert slid down in his chair to move himself closer and Roderic held perfectly still, uncertain what was taking place.

It became very clear a second later when Gilbert’s foot pressed against his flaccid bulge exactly what was taking place.

Roderic remained silent, unsure of what to do. Prince Gilbert had been acting more and more forward with him in recent months, and while it wasn’t completely unwanted, it was entirely inappropriate for a master and servant to engage in such a way. At first, when it had all begun, he thought if he ignored the overtly sexual displays that it would eventually come to an end on its own. However, ignoring Gilbert seemed to only drive him to be less subtle.

He had found come on his clothing, more than once, since then. Sometimes, while bathing, Prince Gilbert would openly masturbate with Roderic in the room, other times even while speaking with him. There were times he had woken to feel Gilbert in bed rubbing against him, and he didn’t dare investigate how many layers of clothing Gil had on. It wasn’t his place to question his master, and he made sure to keep quiet.

This was the first time, however, that Gilbert had directly made an effort to touch him in such a way, and it sent several different thoughts and feelings that Roderic was attempting to silently wrestle with spinning through him.

Flattery. A prince was choosing him, an orphan, a servant, and yes, while he was aware of what his presence was meant for, he was still just an aide to the First Prince. The things Gilbert did were troublesome and disgusting, but it was directed at him and that made him feel…

Unease. Roderic had never shown an interest in the First Prince, he was certain to keep his place. A thick feeling slithered over his skin at how wrong this was. He knew his master was taking advantage of his position by harassing him, but what could he do about it? It was his lot in life to put up with this.

Arousal. As Gilbert rubbed his foot into Roderic’s bulge, he could feel himself getting hard. It felt good. His body knew it felt good, and his body was responding to the stimulus. It wouldn’t be long before he’d find himself uncomfortable from the position he was in and the way Gil worked his crotch.

Roderic took a breath and returned to the boot he was removing from Prince Gilbert’s other foot, trying not to think too hard about the way the prince rubbed harder in response to his stiffening cock. He just wanted to finish this and be done with the chore. He didn’t want to think about how he edged his knees wider, clearly a slip of his footing under him.

Setting Gilbert’s second boot aside, Roderic knew that he couldn’t stand without giving himself away, and wouldn’t Gil love that? But Gilbert continued to grind into his groin and things were just going to become more difficult the longer this went on.

Keeping his head down, his eyes to the ground so his master couldn’t see the need in them, Roderic inquired, “Is there anything else Your Imperial Highness needs of me?”

“I haven’t given you any other tasks for today.” Gilbert stated, pointing out that Roderic had no reason to be leaving their shared room.

“No, of course, Prince Gilbert.” 

“I’m considering an early bath.” Gilbert hmmed thoughtfully, finally pulling his foot from Roderic’s hard bulge.

“Understood.” Roderic rose from his knees to start the bathwater for Gilbert, one of his many jobs as Gilbert’s sole attendant. Thankful for his long cloak hiding his form, he didn’t have to adjust himself until he was out of sight. But as soon as his hand brushed against his excited cock, a pulsing desire burned in his pelvis.

Roderic slumped against the wall of the large bathroom. His back and hooded head laying on the cold stone, and his hand over his crotch palming at himself through his pants. This was wrong on so many levels, and the fact that he seemed to enjoy it had him feeling even more perverse than the fact that Gilbert seemed to enjoy doing it to him.

Roderic felt Gilbert moving in the bed behind him. Sometimes the First Prince would have nightmares. Sometimes Gilbert would wake in a panic, breathing hard and getting his bearings while Roderic’s job was to pretend like he never noticed. And so, as Gilbert moved around, and the bed shifted from his weight, Roderic waited, listening, attempting to discern what was taking place.

In his head, he told himself he had to stop rubbing his dick, but it just felt so, so good. Just another few seconds. Just another moment longer before he returned to work as Gilbert’s servant. This was so fucked up. He was so fucked up.

The covers shifted, Gilbert sliding down into them again - it was a familiar feeling Roderic was used to. Next, he’d feel Gilbert snuggling up behind him, trying to warm himself against Roderic’s normal body heat. And sure enough, Gilbert wiggled and shifted behind Roderic, moving closer to him. With eyes already closed, and events seeming to settle down, Roderic started slipping back into the darkness of sleep– until Gilbert cursed under his breath and Roderic felt the prince’s hand on his hip.

The feeling like something was very off gripped him, just as Gilbert gripped Roderic’s pajama bottoms and eased them down his thighs. Roderic held his breath. Was… he being undressed? Gilbert’s sexual advances had only continued to escalate, and while his first thought had been of his master’s nightmares, it seemed he should have recalled the several other times in recent months that he’d woken to Gilbert humping him.

Roderic bit his lip, trying to think of what to do. He should stop whatever was about to take place, but… if he said nothing, if he waited to see what Gilbert was planning to do, then… it would be okay to wait to see, right? He didn’t want to jump to any conclusions. 

Something warm and wet poked his leg. Something stiff and cylindrical pressed into his thigh, slipping between his closed legs. It took him no time at all to understand what it was that Prince Gilbert was doing. It didn’t take much to understand that somehow, Gilbert had lubed himself up and his cock was now gliding between Roderic’s thighs. Did he really think he was sleeping? Since he pretended this long, was it too late to make it known he was awake?

Gilbert quietly cursed again, having pushed his dick fully between Roderic’s legs. Roderic could tell from the way Gil’s thighs touched his. Roderic could tell from the way Gilbert’s cock twitched between his legs. Fuck, it was hot, but gods, this was so very, very wrong.

Roderic held his breath, and behind him he could hear Gilbert breathing almost too heavily and too quickly for how still the both of them were lying. Was this it? Roderic still had his underwear on, and Gilbert was clearly just sitting there with his cock between Roderic’s legs. That was okay, right? It wasn’t so bad. If that’s all that was needed for his master to find some peace, it really wasn’t so bad.

His heart thudded hard against his ribs. He slowly let out a breath, trying to ease back into normal breathing. The room felt tense, like Gilbert was waiting for him to confront him. Roderic pulled the blankets up to his shoulder, clutching them to his chest. Just as slowly as he had pushed between Roderic’s thighs, Gilbert slid the length of his cock back out, pulling even the tip of his dick out from where he had nestled it.

A few seconds passed and Gilbert repeated the process. Slipping his lubed up cock between Roderic’s thighs at an agonizingly slow pace. It twitched and throbbed, and before long, Roderic felt his own cock twitching in response. Now he really couldn’t say anything. What type of person gets turned on by being taken advantage of while sleeping?

Inadvertently, he flexed his legs as he cringed in embarrassment, turning in on himself, and Gilbert groaned. Roderic drew in a sharp breath. The sound Gil had made was incredibly sexy, but he might have given himself away. Silence. No movement besides the throbbing of Gilbert’s dick and his own.

“It’s okay to keep sleeping,” Gilbert whispered. “Unless…” As if to propose the possibility of what could happen, Gilbert slowly drove his hips closer to Roderic and gave several small thrusts as he stroked himself between his thighs.

Gilbert pushed his chair away from his desk, heaving a dramatic sigh. It had been a long day full of paperwork and he was ready to find a way to work off the stress. His eye shifted to Roderic, waiting in the room for his next order. His attendant was so dutiful and obedient. It had been a struggle for a while there, but after some time and more than a few encounters, they had managed to find a rhythm that worked.

There was a war waging inside Roderic at the possibility and the shame that came from that thought. If he kept quiet, if he pretended to keep sleeping, he wouldn’t have to make a choice and that would leave him free of whatever took place. He squeezed his eyes closed, hyper aware of every heated breath Gilbert blew on his back.

Kicking at the ground, Gil turned his chair to give him room in front of himself - enough room for a grown man to kneel. “Come.”

He only needed to say one word and Roderic swiftly crossed the distance between them and dropped to his knee in front of Gilbert. “Give me a quick one.” Gilbert ordered. 

Roderic began to work Gilbert's pants loose with ease from years of changing his master. Though now it wasn't for the reason of dressing or disrobing, it was for something the two of them had progressed to in an unnatural manner. It was for Roderic to be used by Gilbert for his own pleasure.

Roderic's hands were warm as they adjusted Gil's cock, pulling him free from pants and underwear - much warmer than Gilbert's own hands. Gil hated the way his cold fingers felt on his cock, which led to the perfect reason for Roderic to assist him with this matter. What was his attendant for if not assisting in things he found unpleasant?

It had taken some coaxing and coaching to get to this point, and Gilbert wanted more than the occasional hand job, but everything took steps to move a piece across the board. This was but one of them. To think that a few months ago Roderic wouldn't acknowledge him at all, and now he could get him to squeeze his cock for him. To stroke him to climax. How much more could he get if he continued advancing on him?

Roderic pumped Gilbert's dick. Despite the lack of lube, his hand slid over the soft skin of his cock so, very, nicely. Gilbert gently pulled back Roderic's hood to look down at the near twin of himself, his red eyes focused on Gil's cock and the way he was working it. So serious.

“You can enjoy it, Roderic.” Gilbert teased. “You don't have to act like you don't.”

Roderic glanced at Gil for a fleeting second before averting his gaze. Bingo. It seemed like it was time to push a bit further.

“I won't tell.” Gilbert promised. “I'm very good at keeping secrets, you know. Slow it down, I've changed my mind.”

His servant did as instructed, slowing his strokes on his shaft.

“I know you like it. I know you've been silently hoping for more.” Gilbert bit his lips to keep down a moan, enjoying the steady rhythm of Roderic's hand.

“You don't have to say it. Your silence speaks plenty. Even from the beginning. What did you do with those clothes of yours I soiled? You touched the dry cum, didn't you? Curious to know what it felt like. Wanting to experience it first hand. Did you fantasize about me?”

Gilbert chuckled. “You're such a pervert. You should have scrubbed them out right away, but you didn't.” Roderic squeezed on his current stroke and Gilbert let a moan slip free. It seemed he got a little excited about being degraded. Gil could work with this. 

“You still have them, don't you? Hidden away to touch and hold against you while you keep your deviant desires to yourself. Roderic, I'm hurt you don't think you can be honest with me. Haven't we– nngh– been close for a long time? Haven't we done things that people who trust each other do? In bed. At night. When you pretend to sleep.”

Roderic's cheeks flushed. Gilbert wrapped his hand around Roderic's, taking the lead on pumping his cock. His hips moved in rhythm, fucking into Roderic's hand.

“Oh, yes, I knew you were awake. Nnh. Every time I rubbed myself against you, I knew you were waiting for me to go further. Mnh. Begging to be used more each time. Ah. And when I fucked your thighs the first time, I know you came, a sticky mess inside your own underwear.”

Roderic continued to stare at the ground, letting Gilbert fuck his hand.

“I let you touch me, Roderic. Hnnh. Let you get your hands on my cock. And you let me fuck between your legs and got off on it. Don't you want to come clean? Be honest that you want me inside you?”

“You don't have to pretend with me. I'll accept every dirty little perversion you have. Nngh. Look at me.”

Roderic snapped his red eyes to Gilbert immediately. Heat danced inside them, vulnerability as well. “Come here and open your mouth.” Gilbert's heady whisper came between panting breaths.

Roderic obeyed, leaning forward and opening his mouth. He understood what was about to happen. He moved directly to the head of Gilbert's cock as he squeezed Roderic's hand near the head of his shaft and milked his orgasm to fruition. Gilbert pushed the tip of his cock between Roderic's parted lips just as his seed spilled, spurting into Roderic's mouth.

“Swallow.”

The way Roderic's lips closed around the head of his cock before pulling slightly back so he could fully close his mouth was divine. Roderic swallowed dutifully.

[realjonahofficial]

Ruminations on boss monster SOUL power transfer and aging

So, uh. That one bit of Gerson dialogue. What did he mean by this???

Taken from Hushbugger's Undertale Dialogue Dump page on Github.

There are a few different headcanons/theories about how exactly this piece of lore should be interpreted – and, specifically, what its implications are regarding the children's growth rates in different scenarios. So, let's discuss it.

Personally, I'm REALLY not a big fan of the one that implies a boss monster whose parents die would be stuck as a child forever??? For instance, how would this theory of power transfer work with boss monster families that have 3+ children? Because like. Some couples having at least 3 children would be the only way for the population to to ever grow in size (unless we also headcanon that new boss monsters just spontaneously appear sometimes or something, which has absolutely no basis in canon lore). And by that logic, generations of this happening would eventually yield boss monsters who stop aging stupidly young. Not to mention, what about boss monster kids like Asriel, with no biological siblings? Would them getting both of their parents' SOUL power mean they go through super-puberty that turns them into double-mature adults??? So, yeah, not only would this all have pretty horrific implications regarding boss monster dating, but it'd also just be... really cursed worldbuilding that falls apart when you give it in any amount of serious thought. That's why I think it's a lot more likely that SOUL power transfer is simply that: a transfer of power.

I think Gerson's word choice is key here: "causing the child to grow" – rather than "mature", "age", or " develop" – "as the parents age" – as in, "into old age", becoming physically weaker due to giving up SOUL power.

I believe it's FAR more likely that, if a boss monster was orphaned, their growth would be stunted and their power would never reach its full potential – something more akin to malnutrition, rather than them literally being frozen in time; this would also happen, but to a lesser extent, to a boss monster who has to share their parents' SOUL power with more than one other sibling – and, inversely, a boss monster who's an only child would inherit both of their parents' power, growing far stronger than either of them separately by the time they become an adult.

This would also explain Asgore's absurdly high stats compared to Toriel's – like. ok. he has 8 times her total HP??? If we are to assume Asgore started out with similar stats to Toriel, plugging the numbers into the LV-based HP calculation formula the game uses for Frisk – 3/4 base HP + (1/4 base HP * LV) – gives us this equation: 330 + 110*LV = 3500. Solving for Asgore's hypothetical LV, then, gives us LV of roughly 29. Which might not sound that bad... until you realize the EXP required for getting to LV 19 is more than than all of the EXP it takes to get to LV 18 combined. Even assuming the EXP you get from killing just one human is equivalent to killing every monster in the Underground, while also assuming that the amount of EXP you need to level up no longer increases after you've reached LV 20 for some reason... it still wouldn't be enough to explain Asgore's dummy thicc HP bar after killing only 6 humans, if we are to assume his base HP is at all similar to that of Toriel. (Accounting for the possibility that monster history books lied, or at the very least didn't tell the full truth when stating that "not a single human SOUL was taken" during the war just leaves us with another problem: Toriel's also a veteran, and in fact seems a lot more comfortable with the idea of actively going to war as opposed to Asgore's approach of stalling for as long as possible, so if monsters actually were getting insane amounts of EXP by killing humans during the war, how come her stats are still so low? Killing even just a few humans would beef her up quite a bit; again, it's only once the numbers get higher that you see the sharp increase in EXP required to level up.)

I think Asgore was born into royalty, and Toriel married into it. Again: if a pair of boss monsters had only one child, that child would have the combined power of their 2 parents – now, let's suppose a family decided to do that for many generations.... with each new kid in such a family, the base power of the resulting offspring would grow more and more and more, wouldn't it? Perhaps one such family also has the means and prestige that allows them to easily find suitably strong partners for their kids, further increasing the rate at which the family's power would grow. (Also, the idea of Toriel originally being a commoner is further reinforced by the fact that the surname "Dreemurr" is confirmed to come from Asgore's side and, at least as far as we know, Toriel just... doesn't have her her own surname, as she switches to just going by "Toriel" after the two break up. Given that we only have about 3 examples of surnames within the Entirety Of The Underground, it appears that family names just aren't really a thing used within monster society, unless said family is really notable in some way).

...I may or may not be overthinking boss monster biology.

[fcble]

TW for stalking. Inspired by videos like the one in the source link.

Despite being closer to nugudom than BTS-level fame, Fable’s Haksu has been the victim of numerous sasengs ever since his debut. They range from more annoying than normal fans to people committing crimes, with a stronger emphasis on crimes.

MARCH / @haksubak

The most is known about Twitter user haksubak, who once posted her entire government name in a picture of her passport and a plane ticket to Seoul. To protect some of her privacy, her first name is Michelle, though she goes by March online. She’s presumably Chinese American, based on her Chinese middle and last names and American passport. As the biggest name in Fable’s English-speaking fandom, she’s seen as an authority on most things related to Fable. She’s supposedly OT8-biased, but anyone who’s ever followed her knows that she likes Haksu the most. She probably doesn’t even know Intak’s name. What most people don’t know is that her reputation was built on some very sasaeng-like behaviors. From the creation of her account in early 2021, she’s always known everything there is to know about Fable’s official schedules and some of their unofficial ones. She used to post about university performances and filming schedules before the fancafe ever did. No international fans ever fact-checked her on those tweets until she jumped on the Zenith Entertainment leaks bandwagon at the end of last year and correctly predicted all the stops and dates for Fable’s world tour.

March is most commonly associated with a GoFundMe scam from the end of 2022, where she posted about needing to pay for surgery for her dog. She surpassed her goal of $3500, and everything was fine for a while. A few months later, one of her friends fell out with her and posted DMs where March bragged about scamming other fans to extend her stay in Korea. She doesn’t even have a dog. She’s been exposed multiple times for both her sasaeng behavior and for scamming people, but her status as the most popular international Fable fan account continues to remain untouched. 

EUNMYEONG / @eun__myeong

One of the earliest sasaengs on the scene, Eunmyeong has been a constant and constantly disliked presence since Fable’s debut. Her account dates back to late 2018, and her username is an obvious play on the word 운명 (unmyeong), or destiny. It was also one of Haksu’s most used words shortly after his debut. It was his destiny to debut. It was his destiny to meet his fans. It was his destiny to piss Mingeun off so badly in their debut era that they didn’t speak on camera for two months. You get the point.

Since then, Eunmyeong has proven herself extremely dedicated. She attends multiple fansigns every era, and is probably a good percentage of Fable’s total sales. She’s posted pictures of the stacks and stacks of albums she’s purchased and the shreds of the inclusions featuring members other than Haksu. In the short promotional period of Fable’s last release, she attended all four fansign events. In comparative fansite photos, Haksu looks a little less pleased to see her each time.

Opening her Twitter media at any point subjects you to dozens of pictures of one of Haksu’s photocards held up in front of an apartment building at all times of day. She’s confirmed multiple times that the building she loiters in front of is Fable’s and offers to give other sasaengs the address for a certain price as long as they don’t bias Haksu. Most pictures of the inside of their building, all the way to right outside their apartment doors are her doing. She’s stated multiple times that she also knows what the interior of their apartments look like, but she’s never posted any proof. Not that we want to see any proof.

H.VEN / @chunguk97

H.ven, pronounced “heaven,” is among the most infamous of Haksu’s sasaengs. She first went viral in late 2020 for attending a fansign in a wedding dress. While it seems like that could be the action of a normal but intense and slightly deranged fan, she re-appeared in different wedding dresses multiple times over the next couple of years. She’s also attended all the stops across both of Fable’s world tours except one: the one where Haksu wasn’t there. She posted a picture of her collection of VIP badges, which could probably pay for a year or two of my college education. At the end of their tour, she was the main character of a now extremely iconic airport video of Andrew stepping in front of Haksu and shoving her aside. He shouldn’t have to do that, but I wouldn’t complain if he did it more often. 

As if all of that wasn’t enough, H.ven has also thrown hands with airport security not once, not twice, but at least three separate times. Other fan accounts have reported times where she was literally dragged, kicking and screaming, out of the airport. Oh to be a fly on the wall when that happened. During the pre-recording of one of Fable’s music show performances last year, she reportedly fist-fought a fan of another group for a spot close to the stage. According to hearsay, they were both removed from the venue and restarted their brawl the next day at the next pre-recording.

The mainstay of her Twitter account is an ongoing thread of her appearances in the background of official Fable content. She’s been featured in over half of Haksu’s vlogs since he started uploading them in 2019, usually standing around somewhere in the background with her face blurred out. She compiles screenshots and video recordings in tweets anyway. Her thread has gained enough infamy within the fandom to be compiled in YouTube videos running twenty to thirty minutes long.

RIA / @a2uz7ha3k1

With a keyboard smash username that strikes fear into the hearts of kpop stans and idols the world over, Ria is known for buying and selling phone numbers. Her journey as a Fable sasaeng around 2022, when she started offering Haksu’s cell number for sale. She was probably annoyed by H.ven in her mentions every day asking about him. She also offers Byeonghwi, Kiyoung, and Andrew’s numbers for lower prices. Her accounts usually don’t last more than a few days or weeks before being mass-reported by sudden alliances of different fandoms and then deleted. It does nothing to deter her. She hits her keyboard again and is back to selling phone numbers within the hour.

She seems to specialize in doxxing. She was the first to announce that Jaeseop moved out of the Fable dorms and in with his girlfriend, later adding on her full name, workplace, and parents’ names. Eunmyeong didn’t have anything to say about that and she spends all day outside of Fable’s building. Ria was also responsible for a leak of Haksu’s private Instagram that made few waves other than outrage over the invasion of privacy because everyone discovered he was pretty boring and he didn’t post anything too different from his public Instagram. Somehow this did nothing to curtail anyone’s interest in him.

[cookinguptales]

god tho so I'm researching Minoan sealstones for Fic Reasons and I stumbled across the Pylos Combat Agate, which is a sealstone (in other words, a seal made of carved precious stone or gold that was used to create a relief in clay or wax) that was found in a grave in Pylos (Greece) in 2016.

(all photos via the University of Cincinnati)

They used photomicroscopy to take that last photo, because this entire sealstone is 3.6 centimeters long, or about an inch and a half.

and it is

*deep breath*

3500 YEARS OLD

This thing is estimated to be from 1450 BCE.

Y'all, I am losing my mIND. Apparently, experts think that it had to have been carved using a magnifying glass? Which is nuts because they've never found any sign of anything like that from that period.

It really just goes to show how much we've lost from ancient history, y'know? We have our assumptions about technological abilities and art history, and then we find one little rock that totally upends everything we thought we knew -- and then you have to wonder how many equally beautiful works of art there were back then that were just lost to the ravages of time.

I mean, we know that fragile, delicate things break more easily! So god, like -- can you even imagine what must have existed back then that we don't know about? How many gorgeous things have disappeared without a trace?? because they were just never designed to be sturdy??? they were designed to be beautiful?????

Guys, I can't stop looking at this thing. Can you even imagine creating something like this with the technology they had back then? How long it would've taken? The skill it would've required?

This little sealstone is making me pace the halls, I'm so excited!!!

(and if you'd like to know more, here's an article from Smithsonian magazine about it, and here's the researchers' Palace of Nestor excavation webpage!)

[nostalgia-tblr]

PORN! \o/

There's Plot too, but I know why people click on E-rated fics, I'm not naive just pretentious.

Title: Convenient (3/?) Fandom: Loki (TV 2021), Thor (Movies) Rating: Explicit Pairing: Loki/Sylvie Wordcount: about 3500 for this chapter (8600 total so far) Additional Tags: Childhood Friends, Princess Sylvie/Servant Loki, Class Differences, Power Imbalance, Marriage of Convenience, Alternate Universe, Royalty, Secret Relationship, Period-Typical Sexism, (not sure what period it is though tbh), Sexual Repression, Masturbation, Wedding Night, Loss of Virginity, Unironic Use of the Word ‘Maidenhead’ (sorry), Unplanned Pregnancy, adding all the tags from the start just so you know what's involved before you commit

“I’ve got a plan,” she said, trying to stay calm as she prepared to draw him into her plot. “I can’t marry the prince if I’m already married.” She said this with a significant raise of her eyebrows, trying to get her point across without having to spell it out.

[connorswhisk]

How about a story where Javi reunites with Clementine and meets AJ and the rest of Erikson’s kids.

lol sorry this took so long! was working a lot this week and also this prompt itched my brain in just the right way so...have 3500 words of garcías and ericson's fluff xD

also on my ao3!

He hears about the Delta, the child soldiers and the boat and how everything went to shit. Rumors abound, they always will, and it’s not like communication is super efficient in the apocalypse. But every new detail of the story that Javi picks up on solidifies more and more the feeling in his gut that the Ericson kids’ mysterious leader is Clementine, the small boy at her side Alvin, Jr. He thinks he’s jumping to conclusions, seeing things where he wants to see them, but…

“It’s her,” Gabe says with conviction. The wispy mustache he’s been trying to grow sticks out dark against his upper lip - he’s proud it’s as thick as it is, even if it’s mainly peach fuzz still. “I know it’s her, Javi. It’s her and it’s AJ, and we have to go and see them.”

“It’ll be a dangerous trip,” Javi reminds him, but they both know that neither of them give two shits about that.

They leave Richmond on a cold, drizzly morning that feels silent and misty as the grave. Conrad, Eleanor, and Lingard see them off at the front gates - the rest of the council stepping up while Javi’s gone. David says goodbye, too. He’s grayer at the temples and lined in his forehead ever since they lost Kate, but when he hugs his son, Gabe hugs him right back.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?” Javi asks him.

David smiles, sort of sadly, like he always does these days. He shakes his head. “Clementine’s never been my biggest fan,” he reminds them. “And I’m not exactly hers, either. Just…Just make sure that AJ is ok. That’s all I really want to hear.”

Javi nods. He hugs him. “No one loves that kid more than she does,” he consoles, and David nods back, resting his chin against Javi’s shoulder.

It takes them a day or two to make it, driving discreetly on the backroads and watching out for muertos or - usually worse - other people. Javi knows Ericson’s was once a school for little delinquents; he’s not sure if he’d classify Clem as a “troubled kid” necessarily, but he looks at Gabe and remembers that every kid is troubled these days.

Gabe raises his eyes to the wrought-iron gates and swallows, hard. It’s been years since he saw Clem last, and he hopes he doesn’t act like a total idiot in front of her.

They both sort of ignore the body of Abel, propped against the tree. They step up to the gates and Javi goes, “Hey in there!”

A mop of ginger hair appears from over the lip of one of the watchtowers. “Who are you?” Willy demands, Marlon’s old bow primed and ready in his hands. “What do you want here?”

Javi raises his palms, calmly. “We’re not looking for any trouble,” he says. “We’ve heard about this place. All about you guys, and how you took out the Delta. We’re pretty sure you’ve got a friend of ours with you that we haven’t seen in…a long time.”

“Bullshit,” Willy calls, sniffing slightly. “You don’t know anyone, you just want our stuff. No adults allowed.”

“I’m 17,” says Gabe. He rubs self-consciously at his upper lip. “If we could just - “

“I don’t care,” Willy interrupts, knuckles whitening on the grasp of the bow. “You’re strangers, and we don’t mess around with strangers. You’d better leave, or I’ll shoot you both full of arrows.”

“We have no weapons,” says Javi, raising his eyebrows at this menace of a 14-year-old boy. “We’re not being aggressive. You’d kill us, just like that? Defenseless?”

Willy’s eyes narrow. “You don’t know - “

“What’s going on?” A new head pops up, dark and full of curls and - 

Javi’s never seen the kid in his life before, but somehow, he just knows. “AJ?”

The young boy frowns. “How do you know my name?” he asks, sizing both Garcías up carefully, hand ready to stray for his gun and aim for the head if he needs it. “I don’t know who you are.”

Javi smiles - God, what a relief. “We’re friends of Clementine’s. Please. If you could just send her out here, she’ll tell you.”

AJ’s face is carved from hard stone. “Who are you,” he demands.

“I’m Gabe. This is my Uncle Javi.” Gabe scratches at his forearm, a bit awkwardly. “My dad…He had you for a while, when you were a baby.”

AJ says nothing. Have they blown it completely? All this travel, and for what? Javi desperately wonders what he can say to convince him they’re not a threat...

Gabe is simply terrified at the thought that the reason they haven’t seen Clementine yet is because she…isn’t around anymore.

But then AJ asks, hesitantly, “Your dad is…David?”

Gabe nods, enthusiastic. “Yeah. Yeah, David, that’s him. Is Clem in there? Is she ok?”

“I’ll be right back,” AJ says. He pats Willy on the shoulder. “I think you can put the bow down. They’re not going to hurt us.”

Willy complies, but he isn’t in any way happy about it. New people can never be trusted, even if they know Clementine. Lilly knew Clementine, and Lilly killed Mitch. If Mitch were still here, he wouldn’t like these new guys, either, Willy’s sure of it.

The gates creak open. “Ok, you can come in,” AJ says, and turns back without waiting for them to follow. 

And around the corner of the next hedge, propped up on a pair of crutches and beaming brighter than Javi’s ever seen her is - 

“ Clem! ” Gabe can’t stop himself from dashing straight for her, even if AJ looks alarmed and Violet, clinging to Clementine’s wrist, goes reaching for her cleaver.

She doesn’t have to use it; Clem opens her arms wide and pulls him straight into a tight hug.

“You’re so tall,” she says, amber eyes twinkling with tears. They never used to twinkle like that, not unless she was reminiscing about AJ or Lee; the look suits her. “I - I can’t believe that it’s really you. And your hair is so long now!” She smirks. “Though I see you’re still wearing the same ratty old beanie.”

“Shut up,” says Gabe thickly, eyes red, and then he looks down at the ground and he gasps, loud, because - 

“Holy shit,” exclaims Javi. “Your leg!”

Clem rolls her eyes. “It’s good to see you too, Javier. ”

Javi laughs, sort of crazed, and embraces her in a bear hug. “Sorry. I just…It’s been so long, and - what happened? When did it happen?”

“It’s kind of a long story,” Clementine says, and Violet snorts. That’s an understatement.

“I saved her,” AJ proudly proclaims.

“Yeah.” Clem smiles. “Yeah, he did.” She fixes her stance, shifting onto the makeshift prosthetic that Willy screwed together for her. “Come on, let’s sit. We can catch up.”

At the picnic table, Violet mutters to Clem, “I’ll be right back.” New people, she’s never been comfortable with them at first, even when the new person in question was once Clementine. Clem nods, brushes her fingers against the denim sleeve of Violet’s jacket. “Check in on L,” she says, and Violet nods and presses a kiss to Clem’s cheekbone before shuffling towards the school.

Gabe blinks, surprised. “Is she…like, your girlfriend?”

“Yeah.” Clem grins like an idiot, but maybe it’s all right to be an idiot when you’re in love. “Yeah, she is.”

“Oh,” says Gabe. “Neat.”

And he’s happy to learn that he one hundred percent means it.

Clem tells them about the ranch, Lilly and the Delta and Marlon and Minnie and James. She tells them about the bomb, Mitch’s Masterpiece, and  - she tells them about the bite, what exactly went down in the old barn.

Javi and Gabe tell her about Richmond. How things are holding up, new policies they’ve implemented, the fact that Jesus still swings by every now and then to visit and warm Javi’s bed for a few nights. “You got a girlfriend?” Clem asks Gabe, halfway joking, and Gabe shrugs and says, grinning, “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

And Clem just laughs. She turns to Javi. “Do you still play ball? I’d ask you to teach me, only my balance is super fucked.”

“Swear,” says AJ.

Clementine smiles. “But maybe you could give AJ some pointers. Kid’s got crazy aim - I bet he’d make a sharp little pitcher.”

“Hey, I’d love to,” Javi says. “I’m sure we could rustle up a baseball or something like one from somewhere around here…”

“What’s a pitcher?” AJ asks. “Like those big jugs we drink water out of?”

“It means you get to throw the ball,” says Violet, returning to the table with Louis in tow. “It’s…fun. I used to pitch when I played softball.”

Javi, because he’s just got to get to know the person Clementine is dating, smiles at her. “That’s badass. Softball’s a great game.”

She blinks at him, surprised. “Yeah,” she says slowly. “It was.” She thrusts a hand, awkward and stiff, in front of herself. “I’m Violet. Sorry I didn’t introduce myself before.”

“Javi.” He shakes the hand - it’s cold and a little clammy, but who is he to mind? “This is my nephew, Gabe.”

Gabe nods at Violet, wordlessly. Violet hesitates for a moment - nods back at him.

Louis starts frantically tapping at her shoulder. “What’s up?” she asks him, eyes immediately jumping to read at his slender musician’s fingers. “Everything good, Lou?”

He points at Javi. JG, he signs excitedly, gesturing to his former hero animatedly. JG, he was famous.

“Yep,” Clementine confirms. “Javi here was a celebrity before all this shit happened.”

I’m Gabe, Gabe signs. What’s your name?

Louis’s eyes brighten. Louis, he signs back excitedly. Nice to meet  you, Gabe.

Surprised, Clem asks, “You know sign language?”

Javi laughs. “He and Mari would have secret conversations in the backseat of the van all the time. It used to drive me and Kate crazy. ”

And, like always when those two names are mentioned, the tension in the air turns a little sadder.

“He can still hear you,” AJ pipes up, matter-of-factly. “Lilly didn’t cut off his ears. Only his tongue.”

“ AJ ,” Clem hisses, but Louis shrugs.

What? It’s the truth.

“Jesus,” remarks Javi in despair. “You’re all still so young…none of you should have had to go through any of this.”

“Well, we did anyway,” Violet mutters under her breath, and Javi grimaces.

Marlon would have liked you, Louis says, gesturing to Javi. You were one of his favorite players.

Gabe translates for him, and Javi barks out a laugh. “Yeah, I guess if he likes gambling fuck-ups. Screw-ups, I mean,” he amends as AJ opens his mouth.

Marlon never cared about that. He thought you were the shit.

Javi smiles. “Good to know I still was to somebody.”

Come on, Gabe, Louis says then, smiling wide. I’ll show you my wicked piano skills.

Gabe doesn’t look to Javi for permission before he goes; nor does Javi expect him to.

A small whine sounds from somewhere near Javi’s feet. “Hey!” he exclaims, seeing the large pitbull watching him expectantly. He reaches out to scratch her between her ears - God, he can’t remember the last time he saw a pitbull. No one in Richmond keeps one.

“That’s Rosie,” Clem explains. “She’s a sweetheart. I guess she’s warming up to you quicker than she did with me.”

“I’ve always been a pretty big dog person,” Javi tells her, letting Rosie lick at his palm. “Man’s best friend, right?”

“Or woman’s,” says Violet.

“So, you really know these guys, Clementine?”

Ruby sits down at the table, Omar and Aasim in tow. Willy stays behind - someone’s got to keep on watch, and Willy still doesn’t trust these Garcías any further than he can throw them. Even if the tall guy with the beard seems like a total badass.

“They helped me out at a time when I really needed it,” Clem says, smiling. “I can 100% say that I wouldn’t be alive without Gabe and Javi.”

“Right, like you haven’t saved our lives more times than we can count,” Javi counters. He smiles at Ruby - fortunately, he comes off as friendly and not a complete creep. “And I’m sure she’s saved yours, too.”

“Definitely.” Aasim’s fingers tangle between Ruby’s, laid out together on the old wooden table-top. “We’d be screwed without Clem.”

“And without AJ,” says Omar as he socks the kid good-naturedly on the shoulder; AJ beams with pride. 

“You know, I never liked you while you were playing in the League,” Ruby tells him, no bullshitting. “Marlon and I would argue about it all the time. ”

Javi shrugs. “Fair enough. I didn’t exactly keep a great name for myself. Besides, none of that shit matters. Not anymore.”

“Swear,” AJ points out. “You all like to swear a whole fucking lot.”

Javi laughs aloud. “ Hey, ” Clem admonishes, but there’s no real heat behind the words. Ruby reaches over, flicks AJ lightly between the eyes. “ Be nice, ” she warns, smiling down at him.

Aasim departs to find Gabe and Louis in the music room. Louis is tapping out something vaguely Elton John-shaped on the keys when he gets there. Gabe watches, his head bobbing to the beat, a soft smile playing at the corners of his mouth. 

Louis stops playing, points out Aasim and signs his name for Gabe. Gabe nods at him. “I’m Gabe. I was just telling Louis how great it is that you guys have a way to play music. If there was a piano at Richmond, people would be all over that thing, I bet. Do you play?” he asks Aasim, curious.

“No way,” Aasim snorts. “Sorry. I just don’t have a single musical bone in my body.”

Louis rolls his eyes, grinning, before starting to twiddle out another slightly off-key ditty on the ivories.

“So then what do you do?” Gabe asks him, interested.

“I read.” Aasim shrugs. “The stuff I can get my hands on, that is. I keep a journal, too. Just about everything that goes on here at Ericson’s, like a log book, kinda.”

“Why?” asks Gabe. He’s genuinely intrigued. 

“Someone’s got to remember us, when we’re gone,” Aasim answers.

Gabe is silent for a moment. “I used to really like the Artemis Fowl series,” he says, and Aasim beams.

When Gabe exits the building, headed to dinner with Louis and Aasim, the first thing that happens is that a giant boulder of a dog slams into him and starts licking all over his face. 

“Rosie!” AJ says. “Down! Bad dog!”

Gabe only laughs, and goes to scritch her under her chin. Javi smiles - God, they gotta get some sort of pet back at Richmond for the two of them. His nephew seems like he would benefit from having another friend around - and hey, probably so would Javi.

Kate would have liked Rosie too, he thinks. She was always a dog person.

Gabe thinks, Dad would love this fucking dog.

“You can stay here tonight,” Clem tells the two of them. “I’d say you can stay as long as you like, but I know you’ve got your own people. And a couple extra mouths to feed wouldn’t exactly make things easier for us.”

Javi nods. “Speaking of food…what’s for eating?”

“Usually Omar makes some kind of soup or stew, ‘cause it’s easiest,” AJ reports knowledgeably.

“It’s easiest,” Omar echoes as he approaches the picnic table, arms laden with plates of dinner. “But it can get pretty boring after a while, don’t you think?” He sets the platters down, and grins. “I know it’s not much. Would have worked a lot better if we had actual corn husks instead of just leaves - I’m still working on finding a good alternative. But it’s just the way my abuelita used to make them.”

Javi can’t help - his eyes overflow with tears. “Dude,” he croaks, grabbing one of the fish tamales, unwrapping it, and groaning aloud as he takes the first bite off his fork. “ Dude. The last time I had a tamale was - man, I don’t even know!”

“I do,” says Gabe, grinning sentimentally as he takes his own food and passes the plate along to Louis. “They were the last thing abuelo made before he - “

“Oh.” The guilt, even years and years on, at not being present for his father’s death still eats away at him. “I didn’t realize.”  Reverberating around his ears, Javi can hear the horrible crack of his bat splitting open his father’s skull. 

He’s soon snapped out of this, though, when he realizes that Willy is perched across the table from him and staring, very intently, into his soul. 

“Can I…help you?” asks Javi awkwardly.

For a moment, Willy says nothing. Then he decides, very loudly, “You’re cool, Javi. You are hereby cleared of your status as a threat to Ericson’s and its people.”

“Willy, they’ve been cleared for hours, now,” Ruby says, exasperatedly. 

“Not by me!” 

Javi smiles. “Hey, no worries. Glad to know I get the seal of approval from the big man in charge.”

Willy beams, puffs out his chest.

“What about me?” Gabe asks him. “Do I pass inspection, sir?”

Willy narrows his eyes. Zeroes in. Scans the guy up and down, up and down. “…All clear,” he eventually decides. “Though the beanie makes you look like a total dork.”

“ Willy, ” Clementine chides. “Don't be rude.”

“You didn’t let me finish. ” Willy shakes his head. “You’re a total dork,  but …” He looks at Gabe decisively. “Mitch woulda liked you.”

“Who’s Mitch?” Gabe asks once Willy’s scurried off to the battlements again. “What did he mean by all that?”

“Trust me,” says Omar. He grins. “That’s the highest praise anyone can receive from that kid. Looks like we found Willy’s new favorite.”

“Then he really must not be so bad, if Willy thinks he’s cool.” At Gabe’s hesitant expression, Violet flushes. “That was supposed to be a joke. Haha.”

“Oh.” Gabe flashes her the thumbs up. “Good one, Vi.”

Violet’s lips twitch into a small, quiet smile. “… Thanks, Gabe.”

Then someone tugs at Javi’s shirt sleeve. “Can I…ask you something?” AJ says, his voice so low, it's nearly a whisper.

Javi leans down to better reach his level. “What’s up, buddy?” he questions, slightly concerned. “Do you need Clem for something?"

“If I needed Clem, I’d be talking to her,” AJ says bluntly, and Javi shrugs. “No, it’s just…Your brother. David. I wanted to ask you, not Gabe, because…David is his dad. He might see him different because of that.” AJ blinks, his big brown eyes so, so serious. “Clem says that David took me from her. But…she also says he watched over me while she was gone.” He swallows, shuffling his feet in the dirt below. “I know he did bad things. But…do you think he’s a bad person?”

“No,” Javi is able to tell him with complete honesty. “My brother’s been through a lot. He’s lost a lot, and he doesn’t always think before he acts.” He smiles, soft. “Whatever he may have done in the past, he’s much, much better now. And I know he’ll be so grateful to know that you’re doing all right.”

AJ nods, solemn. “Ok. Thank you. That’s helpful.”

“Hey,” Javi says. “No problem at all.”

“All right all right all right,” announces Aasim loudly as Louis starts to shuffle a deck of cards back and forth between his nimble fingers. “Who’s up for a game of War?”

Gabe grins. He sits down next to Clementine, Violet on her other side. “Count me in for sure.”

AJ pouts. “War is only for the older kids. Usually when they play it, I go off and draw.” He fixes Javi with a scrutinizing stare. “Do you know how to draw?”

“Stick figures.” Something nudges against his knee. “Hiya there, Rosie-girl. What’d you find?”

The pitbull snuffles, pleased with herself. Into Javi’s open palm, she drops a faded, dirt-stained ball.

Javi grins. “We could draw,” he says. He pulls his bat from its usual spot against his back. “Or…I could teach you how to play baseball.”

AJ’s face lights up like the Christmas trees he’s never once seen in his life. “Let’s do that,” he exclaims. “Clem, we’re playing baseball!”

And together, in the twilight shade of the former Ericson’s Boarding School, that’s exactly what they do.

[bartletslesbians]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to five other writers! 💗

Ahh thank you! (I was also tagged for this by @onekisstotakewithme so I'm gonna do both at once, thank you both!)

So I only started writing TWW fic in July of 2024 and I feel like I'm slowly starting to get the hang of writing these characters, so as much as I enjoy the earliest fics I wrote they're not really my favourites anymore cause (I like to think) I've improved character-wise?

My personal favourite is also the longest and currently the only WIP I have up: a feeling so peculiar. It's very angsty, though it'll have a happier ending, and it's a canon-ish AU? Where everything's the same except it starts with CJ surviving a suicide attempt somewhere at the start of season 4. It's a lot of recovery angst and Leo & CJ having an intense father & daughter relationship connecting over trauma. It's one of my favourites cause I'm proud of myself for having written 74K for it already, and I've really enjoyed exploring the different character dynamics and CJ's mental state through it all!

something they can't take away is kinda similar in that regard, in the sense that it's Leo and CJ being able to connect a little over shared mental health experiences. It's based on Leo's quote about addiction and eating disorders, and it has CJ developing an eating disorder in the aftermath of the shuttle leak. It's set on Christmas eve, almost 5K words. There's a hopeful ending. It's one of my favourites because I love exploring CJ's whole well-being during season 6 and 7, and just because I love her relationship with Leo and how well they can really get each other through different experiences.

grilled cheese & princess dresses total gear-shift from the last two bc this is pure fluff. It's a post-administration CJ/Andy fic set on Christmas eve. They're making dinner, Molly and Huck are there, it's a year since Santos took office. CJ's officially a stepmother and the whole thing really is just a happy cozy family having a nice evening and CJ thinking about how damn happy she is with them. It's one of my favourites because it's fun to indulge in fluff, and I'm just a sucker for some happy femslash. It's simply cute.

might just get away with it is also femslash, but it's smut, just 3500 words of PWP for CJ and Carol. I can never decide whether I like CJ/Andy or CJ/Carol better as a femslash ship, and I'm glad I don't have to choose. It's a post-episode of 100,000 airplanes, the ep in which CJ tells Carol "get on the couch, I'm gonna do you right now". In this fic she, well, does that, but feels guilty about it too bc of the whole assistant (and Catholic) thing. It's one of my favourites both because it's the first TWW smut I ever posted, because I love this ship so much, and cause I just really enjoy taking small bits from episodes and just going with them lmao

and finally all they keep asking me is tagged CJ & Andy bc those are the characters interacting, but really the fic is all about Andy/Toby; it's a few weeks after the twins are born, and CJ asks Andy what actually happened at the house. Andy gives her perspective. For this one, it's among my favourites because it was difficult to write and I'm kinda proud at how it turned out? I really tried walking the line between letting the character be as angry and upset as I imagine she would be after the house proposal, while continuing to show that love that there is between Andy and Toby, and not making it feel like character bashing of either of them. It was a bunch of complicated actions and emotions and I think I did a good job keeping it that way?

This was fun to think about!

If you want to, I'm tagging @thebartlets @sp3mily @hawkp and @atearsarahjane for this!

[babyblue711]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thank you for the tag, my darling @itbmojojoejo 💙

1. How many works do you have on ao3(or masterlist)? - I've only ever uploaded to Tumblr. I have 4 stories total (but all have multiple parts).

2. What’s your total ao3/tumblr word count? - I literally never counted until now - 66,700 (plus an additional 3500 in the works)

3. What fandoms do you write for? - Mostly just Ewanverse (Salad Days, High Life, and TLK) but I have recently dabbled in HOTD (Modern AU Aegon & Aemond)

4. Top five fics by kudos - I'll just do top 3 with the most notes since I don't have many fics: Temptation Part 1 (Ettore/High Life - DD;DNE), Surrender Part 1 (Aegon Modern AU), Redemption Part 1 (Will- Salad Days)

5. Do you respond to comments? - YES! It is the BEST part of writing!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? - I'm a sucker for happy endings. Temptation was definitely angsty but the ending of Part 2 of Surrender could also be considered a different sort of angsty (wiggles eyebrows).

7. What is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? - Definitely Redemption (Will - Salad Days) but I'd say Devotion (Osferth - TLK) is a close second.

8. Do you get hate on fics? - No, I think I would crumple and cry if I ever did!

9. Do you write smut? - My fics are porn with little plot 😈

10. Craziest crossover? - Haven't considered but now you got me thinking!

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? - I sure hope not.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? - Not to my knowledge

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? - No, I think that would be difficult to blend creative ideas but kudos to those that do it!

14. All time favorite ship? - Call me crazy but I happened upon the most beautifully written fic on ao3 with the most unusual pairing but I instantly fell in love - Aemond x Aethelstan (TLK): A Red Dawn Rises by Avonne. Give it a read!

15. What’s a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will? - I literally fell hard for Aethelstan when writing Devotion and I tried my hand at writing for him. I do not think I will finish his story but I dearly love the character.

16. What are your writing strengths? - The smut! It comes most naturally despite never writing smut (or anything actually) until I published my first fic last summer.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? - Comprehensively telling a story without needing a ton of words to do so. I am working on keeping my fics shorter while still conveying a complete story without going overboard!

18. Thoughts on dialogue in another language? - I like it but I also need to know what they are saying so I can follow along.

19. First fandom you wrote in? - Ewanverse - Will from Salad Days

20. Favorite fic you’ve written? - Devotion is my personal favorite, there's just something calming and sweet about Osferth and his story flowed from my brain effortlessly.

No pressure tags for funsies/to help you procrastinate (sorry if you've already been tagged): @myfandomprompts @arcielee @sylasthegrim @thekinslayed @theoneeyedprince @inthedayswhenlandswerefew

[justkending]

Finding Memories. Chapter 17.

Series Summary: Waking up with little to no memory of her past, and being saved by a group of individuals who call themselves heroes, sends a long time captive for a whirlwind trying to find some form of grounding in this world she quickly learns runs on chaos. But she’s not the only one trying to figure out her forgotten backstory. Bucky Barnes, along with the other Avengers, can’t help but sense that there is a lot more to the whole situation than a diagnosis of amnesia. Her background slowly starts to come forward in pieces of her past and hidden information discovered. Who is she? And why was she in the room they were meant to destroy?

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Enhanced Reader 

Word Count: 3500+

TW: Torture, cussing, gore, PTSD, triggers.  

Chapter 17:

As soon as the two walked into the training room, Wanda and Nat were already there pacing and growing nervous with each passing second.

"Oh, thank God," Nat sighed, dropping her head in relief and walking towards them. "We heard what happen when we were flying back."

Wanda analyzed Y/N and knew instantly how scattered she was mentally and emotionally.

"We're ok, but I'm more worried about the why in this whole situation," Y/N was quick to the punch. Not leaving any space for questions and harping on what they couldn't go back and change.

"We saw the footage," Nat spoke up, letting her know she didn't need to worry about briefing them. "Nice block by the way. Don't remember something that powerful coming up in practice."

She had a sense of pride in her voice, and Y/N was happy to see someone show some casual reactions to it all. She needed some form of normalcy.

"That powerful?" Bucky spoke up, his eyes showing confusion. "Meaning, you've done something like that before?"

Y/N turned to him, where usually she would be bashful and ambivalent in this kind of situation, it wasn't the energy she had stepped into as of the last couple of hours.

"I'm sorry I didn't get to tell you about everything we've discovered in our time of training. I was seconds from telling you everything when that man appeared," she explained promptly.

"Oh, you were?" Nat smirked some, but the two didn't pay mind to it.

"So a lot of the things we're about to talk about are going to be..." she hesitated not sure how to word it. "Startling?"

"Why do you say that like a question?" Bucky tilted his head some, slightly worried.

"I don't know how you're going to take it, but just promise that we've been safe about it," she put her hands up and walked back to Wanda and Nat.

"How did you do it?" Wanda asked. "We've only been able to muster up a fraction of what you did."

"Yeah, nothing big like that has happened since the day I threw a hit at you," Nat added.

"Wait, a hit?" Bucky spoke up, but they ignored him and continued on with their talk.

It was likely there were going to be a few concerned interruptions from him as they kept discussing their adventures together.

"I don't know. All I could think about was keeping Bucky safe, and the next thing I knew, there was an entire shield of energy in front of us," Y/N answered.

"How did you see him?" Nat asked, crossing her arms as she concentrated on the details.

"I just did. He didn't look like you guys look now. Something about his outline and lighting around him was different, but he wasn't hard to miss," she thought out loud.

"And the gun? How did you stop it?" Wanda asked now.

"Same kind of instinct when Nat tried to punch me."

"I'm sorry. Punch?" Bucky was wide-eyed listening in on everything.

"It was for an experiment," Y/N brushed off trying to emphasize how little of a deal it was at the moment, but Bucky couldn't seem to accept that.

"Experiment, huh..." He tried to hide his concern. "Yeah, makes total sense," he nodded, placing his hands in his pockets. "Punching people as an experiment is something Steve used to do too," he mumbled under his breath. "Look where that got him."

He stepped a few feet out of the circle realizing all questions would need to be asked at a better time because he wasn't going to be able to bounce back from the quick and nonchalant answers right now.

And knowing Nat and Wanda, the new information was likely to become more offhanded and stressful if he thought about it too much.

"You seemed to do everything in a way like it was natural. Did it feel that way?" Wanda asked, knowing the personal side of things.

"That's a good way to put it I guess," Y/N nodded, looking down as she tried to think back to the feelings and thoughts that came to her at the moment. "Putting the barrier up, or whatever that was, felt like second nature. The instinct was without hesitance and it was like I trusted myself to know what to do even if I don't ever remember being able to do something like that."

"You did a hand gesture," Nat pointed at her hands, Wanda and her following her finger. "Was that what made him appear?" Y/N looked at her hands carefully. "I know a thing or two about muscle memory and that looked like a product of that."

Bucky turned back, still giving them space, but watching as Wanda and Y/N studied her hands carefully.

Y/N never responded to Nat's question or comment, but instead looked at her hands as if they were some kind of bomb. Not in fear that it would go off, but in fear at what all it could do.

"I have a suggestion, but we may want to clear the room," Wanda spoke up looking at the two in front of her. "And by clear the room I mean, you two need to watch from outside." This time her look was pointed to Nat and Bucky.

"I don't think we should-" Bucky started when he caught onto what she was getting at, but before he could finish the thought, Nat was already turning him around and shoving him to the exit.

"Have fun. Don't blow up the place," Nat said as she walked to the doors with the soldier in front of her resisting.

Once on the other side of the industrial Stark tech that acted as a protective screen for the non-magic wielders, Bucky didn't stop glaring at Nat.

"I can feel your eyes, but I'm not getting into this with you right now," the redhead spoke up as she stared straight ahead. Seconds passed and he never let up on his stare. "You're being a grumpy old man. Stop it."

"I'm trying to keep her safe."

"Yeah?" Nat sassed, turning to him. "Then congrats you're already doing that." Bucky lowered an eyebrow at the angry compliment.

"What-"

"She's not hurt and she's alive right?"

Bucky rolled his eyes knowing this talk.

"Don't start with that."

"Oh I'm just getting started with that," she mocked his voice knowing he need the bullying some. "And she's currently in the room with the person best capable of keeping her safe given the scenario of invisible men and siren shriekers." The hint at the information only Tony and he knew of at the moment made the surprise in his eyes very evident. "Yeah, I know about you're little mini-team meetings with Stark. Thanks for letting me in on that by the way."

"It happened last night and you were headed out on a mission!" Bucky defended, now acting more like an angsty teen than a grumpy grandpa.

"Oh, did Stark not supply you with some way to communicate with people that aren't 5 feet in front of you? I think there's a storage closet around here somewhere with some of the most highly intelligent technology in the world to help you with that next time."

Bucky rolled his eyes and turned to the screen knowing he was in the wrong this time and wasn't going to dig himself into a bigger hole.

She followed suit and knew she won and turned back to monitor where Wanda was instructing Y/N on her idea.

"Oh and by the way. There better not be a next time. I'll kick your ass if there is," she said casually.

Back in the training room with luckily some of the more reinforced walls, Wanda had stepped Y/N through a few things she wanted to try to see if she could dig deeper into the powers she used to uncloak the man.

"Ok, I'm going to make that body dummy seem to disappear. I want you to try and remember the movement and thought process you did earlier. Don't force it and don't try and think too hard. It's all about the intentions," she noted.

And in the distance, Wanda did a twist of her hand and the body dummy vanished from sight.

Y/N looked at her apprehensively before taking a step and looking at her hands.

She thought back to the hand gestures. She connected her wrist, left her palms open, and twisted them to the right.

And the mannequin seemed to appear some, but it looked to only show when her hand scanned it before vanishing again.

"Try again. You have the motion, but you have to imagine it reappearing too," Wanda coached.

Y/N used her notes and took her hands apart before starting over. She took a breath before connecting her wrist again and following the motions. Now using the motion without thought, she concentrated on what the mannequin looked like and where it stood.

The dummy appeared and showed it had never left.

"Ok, so you're a quick learner," Wanda grinned impressed.

_____________________________

On the other side of the glass, Bucky was frozen trying to process the things he was seeing. He had known her powers were going to come up eventually, but watching someone who seemed oblivious to her abilities beforehand, go to doing what she was doing now... He couldn't seem to comprehend it.

"You guys knew about this?" Bucky asked.

"We knew something happened to her the night at the art show. She came to me that night. Was terrified that she turned into another person and couldn't remember what she had done to that girl that ended up in the wall."

"Another person?" Bucky was upset he didn't know that.

"She blacked out. A common thing with PTSD as you know," Nat shrugged. "Especially since she hadn't done something like that before."

"What'd you do to help her?" Bucky asked, for personal reasons.

"Trusted she could make a decision for herself," Nat gave her signature smirk. "All I could do after was lend support."

"You say that like it's an easy thing," Bucky chuckled, feeling at a crossroads with himself.

"Why wouldn't it be?" Nat shrugged unbothered.

"Because sometimes people aren't looking out for themselves in their choices. They could end up hurt," Bucky responded.

"And either way is it your life's mission to tell them they can't do it their way," Nat asked.

"It's not my life's mission," Bucky snarked.

"Then move on. You can give people guidance and advice, but they don't have to take it. Again. It's their. Choice."

Her wording made it seem like a common knowledge statement that he was just learning.

"She's been hanging out with you too much," Bucky shook his head with pursed lips and looked back to Y/N and Wanda.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she huffed, fake offended.

"The conversation I had in the hall with her while fighting her to get some rest before coming here, sounded like a conversation you and I would have. Not me with her."

"Oo, so the two love birds finally had their first fight. How sweet?" she gushed in an exaggerated way before giving him a shit grin.

"Love birds? -" Bucky started to question.

"Glad to know that I'm rubbing off on her. I'm all for a woman learning to say Fuck Off to men," she nodded in pride. Bucky gave an offended look. "I mean all men deserve at least one or two Fuck Off's now and again. No one's perfect," Nat shrugged.

___________________________

"Ok, so we have the disappearing and reappearing down. And apparently, you can undisguise anything without knowing what it looks like," Wanda listed the few fields they explores. Can we try something a little different?"

"What kind of different?" Y/N asked curiously.

"Less hide and seek and more..." she balanced her hands back and forth. "Can you use the force?"

Y/N turned her head impressed with knowing the reference thanks to movie nights.

"Are you quoting Star Wars right now?" Y/N grinned.

"Yeah, I just wanted to lighten the mood some," Wanda grinned back. "I'm sorry you're going through this." Y/N raised her hand ready to say something, but Wanda already knew. "I know, I know. I shouldn't be apologizing, but I hate that you have to rush into learning about this for this reason and you can't just explore it for yourself."

Y/N had been thinking about that too. She had been gifted with over a week of time not worrying about people out to get her. She had been able to heal and learn about herself again at a pace that seemed comfortable and safe.

And ever since the museum incident, she's felt like her pace quickened and she can't seem to catch her breath.

In a perfect world, she would have been able to have all the time she needed before going up against her demons. She would have time for full growth before getting justice for herself.

Although, in the perfect world she could have no demons and she wouldn't have the trauma that hangs over her like a cloud.

"It's something I'll have to come back to, but for now I need this more," she responded.

It was a harsh way of thinking, but she wasn't seeing many rainbows in the hurricanes she was being thrown into.

"Well, step by step then. We are going to figure this out," Wanda smiled softly. "Now as for the force," she raised her hands in her own practiced manner. "I want you to try and lift something over on that weight rack."

Y/N turned to where she pointed and carefully yet casually, Wanda set the example of what she meant.

As Y/N raised her own hands, nothing happened immediately. She closed her eyes trying to concentrate and Wanda was quick to correct her.

"Don't actually force it. Focus on the intention and visualize it."

Y/N relaxed her tension some and shook her head out of her nerves.

"Focus on your breathing."

She followed her instructions and soon she was relaxed enough to try again.

And one of the weights lifted in the same kind of purple haze she had seen most of her energy form into.

In shock, she dropped the weight and they both turned to each other with mouths wide open. Wanda let out one single HA and they both squealed before running to each other and hugging.

"Look's like you guys figured something out," Nat's voice was heard and they turned to the two.

"Look like Y/N has a lot more tricks up her sleeves that we need to discover," Wanda smiled nudging her shoulder while in a side hug.

"It's impressive," Nat smiled. "Right, Bucky?" she elbowed him behind her and he let out a grunt not expecting the hit.

"Jesus," he huffed, giving her a small shove back. "But yes. That was," he looked to Y/N who was waiting for his response with a small smile. "Impressive. Really impressive," he smiled, happy to see that she was happy.

"We still have a lot to discover, but clearly we're going to make some pretty fast progress," Wanda jumped in, squeezing her into her side one more time before letting her go.

"How about we go grab some lunch and we can talk about anything else we need to first," Nat offered. Bucky looked at her knowing she was mainly asking for him for his sanity of keeping Y/N taken care of.

"I think lunch is a good idea," Wanda agreed.

Y/N agreed and therefore Bucky agreed and they went to the kitchen to carry on with their personal investigation.

As Wanda prepared some easy and fast chicken noodle soup for the group, Y/N continued to debrief them on what happened.

"So same thing when you kept him restrained?" Nat asked, handing Wanda a spice and following Y/N's story. "You just knew what to do?"

"I guess," Y/N shrugged.

"Did you know the man?" A new voice entered the space.

Everyone turned their head to the entrance of the room and in walked Tony with a file in hand with a look of intrusivity proudly on his face.

"What?" Nat asked harshly, not caring for the tone he was bringing to the conversation.

"I said, did you know the man? Y/N," he smiled, but the people who knew him best knew it wasn't a genuine one.

She looked to Bucky, furrowing her eyebrows at the questioning, but he was too busy staring daggers at Tony.

"We're trying to have lunch. This can wait," he said sternly.

"That's fine. You guys go ahead and have your lunch. I just need one answer to my one question and I'll be on my way."

He was putting on a show for Y/N trying to make her think it was a simple question he needed for research and not as much as the paranoid micromanager he was trying to be.

"And I said it could wait," Bucky repeated, never turning away from him.

"It's fine, Bucky," Y/N said trying to assure him that it really was by putting a hand on his shoulder and leaning so she could see Tony better. "It's nice to see you again Tony," she smiled, throwing him off some.

He sent her a nod with pursed lips, not expecting a kind reaction to his harsh question.

"Can you repeat what you said?" she asked. Bucky, Wanda, and Nat were all confused at what was happening but let it play out anyway.

Tony furrowed his eyebrows at her question but asked it again. Now having to say it a third time, the tone was much less demanding and actually a question.

"The man out there. The one you Obi-Wan Kenobied out on the trail. Was that someone you knew?" he asked, but with much more curiosity than fury.

"Truthfully, I barely got a look at him at first," she shrugged, placing her hands on the table. "But I snuck the file on him and caught a peak at his name and picture."

Bucky turned to her shocked.

"How did you sneak a file?" he asked alarmed by this news.

"Someone was looking at it while they were watching me downstairs earlier. They laid it down for a few seconds when they got called to fix something," she shrugged. "I got a good look at the picture and saw the name."

"And did you know him?" Tony was walking to the counter now, realizing this conversation wasn't going to be the fight he prepared for.

"I'm not sure," she said a little disappointed in the news herself. "But something in me told me to do exactly what I needed to do to restrain him. It was like a memory I guess. Muscle memory kicked in and that makes me think that I do know him."

"Or you've fought a lot of assholes in your life," Nat hummed, biting a carrot.

Everyone ignored her but Wanda who gave her a small hip bump.

"Do you think if I brought you down to the holding room you could get an in-person look and see if anything clicks for you?" Tony asked.

He knew the question would be pushing a boundary, but he wanted one person to answer and it wasn't the man staring at him as if his thoughts alone would disintegrate him.

"Actually-," she started.

"No. Nuh uh. Not happening," Bucky shook his head and raised his hands. "She's not going down there, Stark."

Tony completely ignored him already knowing what his answer to the question would be, hence why he didn't direct it to him.

"What do you say, Y/N?" he asked, emphasis on the "you".

"I think that-" she started again.

"It's too soon," Bucky shook his head, not even considering the ideas going around. "It hasn't even been 5 hours since everything happened."

"Barnes," Nat interrupted and Bucky snapped his attention her way. Her look alone was one of annoyance and disappointment. "He's not asking you. It's not your choice," she reminded him of their talk from earlier.

"But-" he started again.

"Butts are for kicking," Nat shook her head and raised an eyebrow at him, silently communicating to him that his was going to be the next one kicked if he kept talking.

He wanted to argue. That's all his brain wanted to do... But he knew he was wrong. He knew Nat was the voice of reason when he wanted to continue to protect her his way.

He let out a deep breath and waved the conversation on, sitting back in his seat for Y/N and Tony to see each other better.

Y/N took note of him letting her have control over the situation and was thankful. Though she sent her thankful smile to the redhead that helped in the threat.

"He won't see you since you'll be on the other side of the glass," Tony explained. "And you don't have to even talk to him."

"You don't have to convince me," she said with a careful breath of her own. "I think I need to see for myself who he really is."

Feel free to follow me on Wattpad too and vote on any of your favorite chapters:) It helps promote my story & also makes my brain release tons of endorphins everytime I get a notification about one of ya’ll❤️

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[nowoyas]

Edible Arrangements 38

First - Prev - Next - M.list - Read on Ao3

A/N: no news from the front!

Summary: Izuku's nightmare scenario, and the silver lining. For just a moment, he catches a glimpse of you among the despondency.

Warnings: none as far as I'm aware!

Word Count: ~3500

"Dr. Midoriya, it's a pleasure to meet you! Thanks for agreeing to meet with us on such short notice." Ochako smiles bright, sticks out her hand to shake.

Izuku goes through the motions of it all. "N-no, thank you!" Dammit. Stop stuttering. "Please, have a seat, both of you.”

"Thank you!" Ochako sits, and then gestures kindly to the ghost in the room. "[name]?"

[name] looks up for the first time. Izuku's not sure what hurts more—the complete blankness on their face, or the total lack of recognition. They shuffle to the chair beside Ochako and plop down.

"S-sorry for the mess, by the way! It's been crazy, taking over for Dr. Hakamada while keeping up with my own classes, so I'm afraid I haven't really had the chance to settle in to the new office yet! But I promise, it really is nice to meet you both!"

Shit.

[name]'s hollow eyes snap up to look at him, and for the first time since they walked in, he sees a flicker of emotion. Wounded.

Fuck. He should know better than to lie in front of them.

Their eyes drop to their lap, and one hand reaches out to Ochako's sleeve. "Ochako," they whisper, just loudly enough to be heard. "I don't want to be here. He's lying."

Ochako's attention snaps to them immediately. "[name], honey, I'm sure he's just stressed out," she whispers back. "It's got nothing to do with you."

"Um, i-is everything okay?"

Ochako flashes a brilliant smile. "Yeah! [name]'s just a little over-worried about you possibly disliking her. But you're just stressed out, right?"

He nods. "Yeah. All of this has been... a lot. I'm sorry if I came across as unenthusiastic, or... or anything like that. I've gone from teaching three courses to six, but I shouldn't let that affect this, now. Truly, [name]." (Don't say it. Do not say it. If this pings their quirk—) "I'm really glad to see you here."

He said it.

They're watching him with raised hackles and the kind of look you see on a puppy caught in a rainstorm. When he says the thing he didn't want to say, he feels sick to see the way their shoulders relax, just the tiniest amount.

He wasn't lying.

He should have been.

They turn back to Ochako, whisper again. He’s not sure they know how to really be quiet. "I’ll stay."

She smiles at them, then turns her attention back to Izuku. "Alright. Thank you for that. Now, this meeting is mostly just to iron out [name]'s accommodation needs and boundaries for the semester going forward. We'd also like to set up meeting times, maybe once a week in the leadup to the summer session, to help iron out the things [name] should be reviewing in anticipation for the course and prepare them to return to school. After the session starts, my boss believes it'd also be helpful to continue these check-ins, either as tutoring sessions or to discuss anything in class that isn't working well for them. I understand that you have a lot going on, Dr. Midoriya, so we'll happily work around your schedule. Unless there's something you need to work around, [name]?"

[name] shakes their head.

"Okay, great! So, Dr. Midoriya, when works for you?"

"Fridays," he replies automatically. Give him the weekend to recover from seeing them.

Every week. He doesn't just have to make it through the lectures, he has to see them, one-on-two, once a week, every week.

This is a nightmare.

"I tend to make Fridays easier days for my students!" he explains, too quickly. "This also means it's an easier day for me, and I don't have office hours that day right now, so I can easily accommodate the two of you! I-I think it'd also be best, as a way to end the week and start your respective weekends! That way, you can have the weekend to go over anything refined in any tutoring sessions, and we can start each week off with a fresh mind! How does that sound?"

Ochako nods along. "That sounds like a good idea! [name], what do you think?"

All her cheer and efforts reward her with a shrug.

"If it doesn't work for you, you can always tell me later, okay?"

They nod, staring down at their lap. Izuku makes a show of checking his schedules starting in May, looking for the best time. "It looks like Fridays after lunch are generally good for me. Does that create any conflicts for either of you?"

Ochako shakes her head. "All good here! [name]?"

A tiny shake of the head, nearly missed.

"[n-name]...?" Izuku tries, cursing himself when it comes out a stammer. Cursing himself for saying your name at all. "Is there a better time for you?"

"No," you whisper into the room. "I don't really have much of a schedule, Dr. Midoriya, so it's up to you and Miss Ochako."

Ochako, for her part, looks stunned for a moment. "O-okay! Don't be afraid to speak up if something doesn't work for you, okay?"

"Okay."

He has the sense that this has been a stride for them. The fact that that, alone, was considered a stride in Ochako's eyes has his heart twisting even worse.

"Great! So, we'll meet up every Friday at one o'clock, unless something gets in the way. Now, [name], Mina told me you were worried about how having an aide would look to your classmates, right?”

"Mm."

"So, Dr. Midoriya, I wanted to ask that you not call attention to [name]'s situation at all. Right now, they're not really able to complete projects such as presentations in any capacity. I have faith that longer-form projects can be tackled effectively with the right mindset, but given their lack of wordiness at the time..."

"Right, of course! I had a presentation planned for the class, but I'll make the offer to all students to choose between presenting as a group or writing individual papers. That should also be good to not call attention to your role, r-right? I can hand out exams to you, too, Ochako, but there won't be the expectation of you completing them." He finds himself reaching for a notebook, writing even as he speaks. "And of course, I'd be happy to provide additional help during our weekly meetings, if you and [name] would like! I know it can be really hard sometimes, so anything I can do to help, I'd like to!"

She smiles. "That'd be great!"

The meeting continues on. Between him and Ochako, and [name]'s rare affirmative noises, it becomes productive indeed, and by the time the pair of them leave Izuku's office, he's feeling much better about the semester, even if he's not feeling better about them being here at all.

On their way out the door, Izuku finds himself speaking before he can stop himself.

"[name]?"

They pause and look back at him.

For just a moment, it's you. Curiosity in your eyes. A tilt to your head, subtle and questioning. In the next moment, you’re gone, and they're staring at him blankly.

"Um, I just wanted to apologize for earlier. I really do want you to succeed, and I never should have let my own personal issues give you the impression that I didn't want you here or didn't want to be here."

"Okay. Thank you."

"My goal as your professor is to help you succeed, no matter what. So please, don't hesitate if you need any help at all, okay?"

"Okay," they repeat. "Thank you."

~

The smell of the household's dinner meets Ochako's grateful nose when she brings [name] back to their apartment. It really is a great location—a ten minute walk from campus. They didn't even have to take their car. [name] doesn't even need a parking pass unless they really want one.

"We're back!" Ochako calls into the room.

Mina's voice calls back from the kitchen: "Welcome back, you two! I've just started plating up dinner."

[name] walks further into the apartment, and Ochako follows, just in case there's any last things she needs to handle before she heads home.

"Thanks for helping [name], Ochako. Since you're here, want to stay for dinner?"

Ochako shakes her head. "No, that's okay! I appreciate the offer, though. I don't want to impose."

[name] gives a sharp look. "She's lying. She wants to stay."

Mina laughs. "We've got the expert on the case. I won't force you to stay, but you really are welcome." She flashes a sly grin [name]'s way. "You'd like it if Ochako stayed, right, [name]?"

They nod. "She's nice."

At that, Ochako melts a little. "I'll stay, but only because [name] wants me to."

"Liar."

"Guilty. Is there anything I can do to help set up?"

"Have a seat. [name], your physical therapist wanted you to practice things like setting the table and getting dishes down, right? Do you want to get down some plates for me and set the table?"

"Okay."

They move like a ghost: past Mina, to the cabinet where they've been storing dishes. When they disappear into the dining area with them, Mina turns to Ochako.

"I can't thank you enough for helping them. They're already doing way better just from getting out today."

"No, no need to thank me! Honestly, I should be thanking you and the rest of [name]'s friends. It's obvious that you care deeply for them, and are willing to put in the work to help them get better."

"It's just what friends are supposed to do, right?"

She sighs, rests her chin in one hand. "You would think, but a lot of the time, we get clients who have no one and live alone, or worse, live with family members who only have their own interests in mind. It's really hard to help someone when their environment is working against them. I do my best, of course! But in cases like this one, it's much easier knowing that they're coming home to people who want them to get better for their own sake."

Quiet footsteps at the entry to the kitchen.

"Drinks?" [name] asks.

"Ochako, do you want anything?"

"Water's fine, thank you! But I can get it myself—"

"No," [name] cuts in.

Mina laughs. "Their physical therapist wants them to practice pouring drinks, too. We're working them up to being able to do daily life stuff all unassisted, and they're making great strides. Think of it as helping them with their PT!"

"In that case..." Ochako sits back and watches as [name] gets down four glasses. They're diligent, and the other two in the room watch.

"Don't forget to let Tsuyu know dinner's ready, and ask what she wants to drink, okay?" Mina prompts. They set the glass of water in front of Ochako and scamper off.

Actually scamper.

The sight has Mina's jaw dropping. "I think there's more life in them than I've seen in months."

"I thought so, too! They've really made big strides today. You should be proud! It's clear that they're wanting to get better, too. They're still not very open with their emotions, but they're trying hard! They even told me earlier today when they wanted to leave."

Mina goes stiff at that. "Did something happen?"

[name] joins them as they're moving to sit down with dinner, Tsuyu at their side. "Dr. Midoriya was lying when he said he was pleased to meet me, so I wanted to leave. But he explained that he was really stressed and that he did want to help me succeed, so we decided to stay."

Now, Ochako's not an empath or anything, but she's not stupid and she can definitely sense when the temperature in the room suddenly feels like it's dropped several degrees. The expressions on both Tsuyu's and Mina's faces mirror each other, and Mina nearly drops her plate.

"Sorry, who did you meet today?"

"Dr. Midoriya. He's taking over Dr. Hakamada's classes."

The sheer awe at them coming out of their shell for such long sentences is nothing compared to whatever the hell emotion Ochako is witnessing roll off of [name]'s roommates right now.

"Is something wrong?" they ask, tilting their head.

"No, no!" Mina says. She cringes a moment later—[name] is almost attempting to glare at her.

"Mina."

"Just—tell us about the meeting and this Dr. Midoriya while we eat!"

"I have to get Tsuyu's drink, first."

They disappear into the kitchen, and return with two filled glasses—one for Tsuyu, one for them. When at last they've sat, it's clear the roommates are hoping the topic of conversation will have moved on, but...

"The meeting went well. Dr. Midoriya looked really tired, but pretty. He had sharp teeth. He's a bit overwhelmed with taking on Dr. Hakamada's work, though."

"I can imagine," Tsuyu says. "Was he already a professor before?"

"Mhm. He said he's got nine classes now, but he still found time to have me and Ochako for meetings once a week. I think he's really eager to please or something."

Wow. They're really, really talking. "The three of us have meetings every Friday at one o'clock moving forward. He's going to be altering some course material to avoid bringing attention to [name]'s situation, and acting as though I'm a student to avoid calling attention to me. [name] has expressed that they want to blend in as much as possible, after all!"

[name] nods. Tsuyu nudges their side. "Don't forget to actually eat."

"Oh. Sorry." They turn their attention to eating, their movements robotic.

"I think this summer session will be really good for them. Beyond the activity walking to class and getting out of the apartment a little bit, it's clear this has been good for them!"

"Do you think so?" [name] asks, looking up from their plate.

"Mhm! Look at how much you're talking after that!"

"Hm. I didn't notice."

Ochako, for her part, pretends not to notice the concerned looks Tsuyu and Mina give each other. She steers the conversation away, and they keep up a good chatter until plates are cleaned and it really is time for her to go.

Tsuyu rises to collect the plates, and Ochako is right there with her, insisting even when everyone else tries to make her sit. A meaningful glance is all that gets Tsuyu to let her follow her to the kitchen, where, immediately, she's whispering to Tsuyu. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see Mina leading [name] further away from the kitchen. Bless her.

"Okay, I have to ask. What's up with yours and Mina's reactions to Dr. Midoriya? Is there something I should know about?"

Tsuyu sighs, grabbing the plates from Ochako to clean. "[name] used to be in love with him."

Oh. She's suddenly very glad that Tsuyu took the plates from her. "Well. That wasn't exactly what I was expecting."

"They lived together for a while before all this happened. [name] has basically completely forgotten he existed, but he... let's just say, none of us are very happy with him. For one thing, that he's completely disappeared from their life when all this is going on."

"I... I see. That would explain a lot about how he was acting."

"How was he acting?" She arches a brow her way.

"Oh, you know... really nervous? And the fact that [name]'s quirk caught on him saying it was nice to meet us. If it wasn't their first meeting, and he knew that, I can totally see their quirk reading it as a lie! But he also just seemed... really sad."

She snorts. "After he abandoned them like that, he can be as sad as he likes. If we'd known they would end up in his class, we would have found some way to steer them away from it.”

Ochako thumbs at the strap of her bag, feeling the texture change as it runs across her thumb pad. “I don’t know the full story, and please don’t take this as me defending him, but is it possible he’s grieving this in his own way? Maybe he doesn’t know how to approach them after they—“

Tsuyu shakes her head. The plates get set down a little too hard. “You really don’t know the full story, kero. And even if you did… you don’t grieve someone’s memory loss by kicking them out of your house and making them fend for themselves financially. Among everything else.”

“Right.” She swallows down the odd feeling in her throat. “Right. I’ll… keep an eye on him, okay? If [name] seems like they’re backsliding, I’ll advise moving them into another course. I’m sure Dr. Midoriya would understand, too.”

“He’d better.”

~

Dr. Midoriya Izuku has earned far too many degrees to be anything but an expert on the subject: It does not, in fact, get better.

It doesn’t even get easier.

The first Friday meeting, he had prepared for. He’s spent the past week organizing a general breakdown of what [name] needs to review to succeed in his class. He’s sourced a book that he thinks will help, fuck, he’s even brought a book on how to take notes and succeed in college, in case they’ve forgotten that, too. He’s rehearsed his lines in the mirror a thousand times, and it took everything in him to stop preening in the bathroom mirror in the hour leading up to the meeting. He even nearly forgot to eat lunch.

He also opened himself up to making a crucial mistake.

Ochako had greenlit the move, sure, but still.

Sbeve is curled up in the chair meant for [name]. He’s been nothing short of despondent. If a cat can sulk like a teenager, Sbeve is doing it, and doing it better than any teenager could. And yeah, he gets it. He misses them, too.

More than he wants to admit, he misses them. Which is probably why he made this stupid decision to begin with. Sbeve was always their cat, after all. The both of theirs, but [name]’s in particular. Their kitten. Their baby. Sbeve stuck by his side until [name] came home, and then would leave him until they came to find him.

So, really, this is for Sbeve’s benefit. Not his. He doesn’t need to see his cat curl up on the love of his life’s lap again. And Ochako really did sign off on it!

So he waits. And he waits. And he checks the clock approximately four hundred times in the hours between 12:42 and 1:00, and eight hundred more in the hours between 1:00 and 1:08, when at last [name] and Ochako walk through the door.

The effect is instantaneous.

Sbeve is out of their chair, scaling up their leg like nobody’s business, curling up in their arms before they’ve even really registered what’s happening and meowing at the top of his lungs all the while. He’d made sure to feed Sbeve before they came, to prevent any vampire kitten incidents from occurring.

“Um,” they say, voice pitching high with confusion and life, “hello…?”

Izuku can’t contain the little laugh that escapes him. “Mx. [name], Ochako, good to see you again!”

“Sorry we’re late, Dr. Midoriya.” Ochako’s voice is cold, her expression guarded. But maybe he’s imaginging that because he knows she should hate him. “I hope you weren’t waiting too long! [name] had a bit of a rough start to their day.”

They nod, almost instinctively pressing a tiny kiss to Sbeve’s head. Izuku’s heart wrenches.

Yeah. This was a catastrophic mistake.

“Sorry,” [name] mumbles. “I had weird dreams and they threw me off.”

“Hey, not a problem! What matters is that you’re here. And that, apparently, my cat likes you.”

“He’s really soft. And little.”

“I’m considering having him trained as a therapy cat, but he has a little bit of a biting problem I’m trying to fix first. Small warning! He bites!”

“He does?” They—you—tilt your head. “There’s no way. Sbeve’s just a little guy.”

It’s the little flashes of you that get him. The tilts to the head, the bits of life that return to your voice for shreds of shreds of moments. The personality that bleeds through even though half the time, you are just a memory piloting a ghost.

Ochako seems startled by it, too, though he can’t fathom why. “[name], Dr. Midoriya didn’t… tell us his name…”

Oh.

Oh, that knocks him flat.

You remember Sbeve.

“Didn’t he?” [name] replies, and the moment, the you-ness is gone. “Sorry.”

“I-I did!” Izuku stammers. “His name’s Sbeve!”

Also a wrong move, because now they’re looking at him oddly, because they know he’s lying even if Ochako thinks he’s smoothing things over. He has to take control.

“A-anyways! Let’s get started on this meeting. I took the time to prepare some resources I thought would be helpful, and this book in particular is a great primer for my course!” He slides it across his desk, before they can call him out on his lie or Ochako can realize they clocked it.

And maybe the meeting goes well after that. Maybe there’s no more flashes of you shining through, and there’s no more slipups where they know things they shouldn’t, and Izuku doesn’t have to think about what he’s done.

Just maybe.

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[pengolodhs]

days two through thirty

Well, that was a month! After an optimistic start, I ended up restarting on day 4. I'd written about 3500 words and just wasn't loving it. I rethought my approach to what I'd written and started from scratch and got about 8000 words on that before deciding that I hated the characters, hated the plot, and could not imagine spending another word with them. So I started over again on day 10 and that went much better, but then I went out of town for a few days and got thrown off and didn't end up writing a word for about a week. I was only at about 16k on the morning of the 25th and was, like, "Is this the year I fail at this? Should I just not even try?" But by the night of the 25th I was at about 25k. Was a little over 32k by the next night, and then have averaged 4500 or so every day since. And finished it all with a little more than an hour to spare. So somehow another successful year! Creativity challenged. Glad I powered through; I'd have been so disappointed in myself if I'd just given up. Total words: 50349

[tokkiasnanowrimo]

nano | day 20

words: 1,716/1,667

notes: no i didn't stay up late writing, no i didn't forget to post an update, i just got lazy and then i got caught up in thinking about a personal trainer natsu au lol i am at the point in the challenge where i feel i am losing a bit of steam. i'm mostly adding stuff to existing scenes--which is good because i have a lot of holes that need to be filled, but i feel like i'm getting stuck a lot and not knowing where to start when i go to write at the start of the day. i feel like there's a big chunk missing at sort of the beginning of the fic but i'm not sure what to add and it's beginning to frustrate me. i need to hash it out but right now i don't have the time to really think about it, i only have time to write. that's why i'm not getting big numbers above what my minimum is anymore, because i worry that if i work too much on it i'm going to start resenting this fic altogether. i don't want that to happen because i'm nearly 40k words in and that would feel like a waste plus like 50 people voted for this. idk why because this au feels boring as shit but whatever. i'm getting good multichap writing experience for later for some reason this fic is turning into something of a sickfic because the document that is dedicated to natsu getting hit by a car and lucy taking care of his is like 5500 words and my second longest document is about 3500. my docs are separated by topic and not by chapter (which i get is a weird way to do it but it's been working for me thus far), so those 5500 words are spread across about 3 chapters but i need to figure out something to sort of make it so it's not just oh look at poor little injured natsu. i have a mini lucy arc that i've mostly written that i'm thinking i could shoehorn in there but i'm not entirely sure it would work? the timeline is so deeply murky, i have like 5 and a bit arcs planned in my head, and 4 written out, i know where 2 of them go and i don't know how the rest of them fit. i keep putting the timeline planning off in favour of just getting words down because this first draft is going to need to be just absolutely torn to shreds next month, but i may be writing myself into plotholes if i don't figure it out soon, ahahaha,,,,, anyway if you read all of that wow congrats i'll give you a kiss on the forehead

quote: She wasn’t exactly sure when it had become “her” side—she didn’t particularly have a preference when she was sleeping on her own, but now that Natsu was there, they seemed to have an unspoken agreement on who was sleeping where.

total word count: 36,6977/50,000