#also this did NOT end up being drabble length oops

[the-real-treasure]

Wish Wish! Drabble #2

Knots and Ribbons

Main Masterlist: Here

Drabble Masterlist: Here

Read on AO3: Here

Most everyone in Baratie can tie knots. That doesn't mean they can plait.

(Drabble #2) [Baratie Age 9 1/2] Normal/Reader's POV Word Count: 765 (Drabbles are only supposed to be how long? oops)

"What" Zeff drawled, "happened to your head?"

The head chef was wrecked. The Baratie had only been open a few months, and it had already garnered a reputation for being one of the best in the East Blue. Zeff's pride was only matched by his exhaustion.

"DON'T SAY IT LIKE THAT YOU RINGWORM INFESTED PILE OF SHIT!"

He was not mentally prepared to come up to staff quarters at the end of the day to find a distraught 9 year old -9 and a half! It scares him that your correction can rattle through his mind like that- in the presence of an equally upset Sanji and Patty. The blonde boy was the one who screamed at him as his question sent you another wave of frantic tears. The blue haired chef was fussing over your hair in a panic, the normal looped up ponytail turned into a rat's nest, curls tangled into huge masses of knots pulled tight as his large hands tried to untangle them. He wouldn't be surprised if a rat did pop out of it, as you had a habit of sneaking the pests into and around Baratie, acts that often left you confined to dish washing when you refused to give up the critter's locations.

"I was just asking. What is this." He came up beside Patty and looked over the mess atop your head. He watches your shoulders scrunch up to your ears. Whatever the reason, this whole thing had left you embarrassed enough as is. "Patty, Sanji. Out of here." The boy's face immediately bleeds bright red and his mouth drops open in a fury, desperately and aggressively defensive of you at all times. "Don't make me ask you again little eggplant."

His mouth snaps shut and you both hear the click of his teeth as he turns, marching out to the small balcony area, where Patty joins him with no complaint.

"C'mere little donkey. Let's see the mess you've made of yourself." He took a seat and pulled you in front of him. He was right, it was a mess. It looked like someone had gone through their hair with instructions to secure it like ropes. "How'd you even manage all this?"

"There was a lady in the dining room." Your voice was barely above a whisper as Zeff began to untangle your knotted catastrophe. "She had the loveliest plaits and I just..." your quiet voice hiccupped, your tears starting to calm, "...wanted to see... if it looked as nice..."

"On you?" Your shoulders were up around your ears as you nod and he's proud of himself for learning your mannerisms like this, "Just you by yourself aye? Or did you get some help."

"Sanji wanted to help." As always though he voice it, you never did like him and the boy arguing. You continued as he worked through your hair, separating the now loose hair into sections "And then Patty saw and asked why he was making such a pig's ear and tried to do one, then they started arguing and I just thought her hair was pretty, don't be annoyed at them."

You tried to swivel your head around to him, but he tutted at you and grabbed your head, turning you back round to face forward. The room stayed quiet and neither of you see Sanji and Patty peering back in through the small window in the door, eyes and mouths wide as they watch the loud, angry and gruff Zeff swiftly and easily braid your hair in his large hands. You don't see their eyes never leaving the pair of you as you stood and spun on the spot, face beaming up at the old man as your long braid fell like a h/c chain down your back, matching the ones marking up your arms and across your shoulders. You also don't see Sanji sneaking out of your shared room hours later to where Zeff was sat alone going over the till from today in his office. You don't hear him ask Zeff to teach him how to do that too, how to make you smile like that over something so simple. You don't see the lengths of cloth hanging in less and less messy braids on the coat hook in Zeff's study.

And weeks later, after you complain about how annoying your long hair is being, muttering under your breath about just cutting it off, you don't see the shared smile between the blondes as you twirl with your expertly done braid that Sanji had tied with a loop of aqua ribbon.

[bangtaninink]

double prompt: “you said there’d be cake. where’s the cake?” + “make me.” + jimin + any au!

DRABBLE NUMBER......... 016 MEMBER............................ park jimin (jimin) AU......................................... sugar daddy

a small bell rings above your head when you walk into the café, which is the first and last bit of normalcy you're going to experience for the rest of the day. the café is almost eerily quiet; there aren't many customers in the vast array of leather seats on the floor, and for the few that are, they sit alone with a newspaper, tablet, or book keeping them company.

it's not hard for you to spot jimin. like always, he's chosen a table close to the corner, but not too far from a window.

"can i help you, miss?" a waiter asks; you don't miss the way she gives you a once-over, the corners of her lips twitching, the question snide and condescending. you're well aware that your messy bun, flannel shirt, ripped jeans, and sneakers stick out like a sore thumb in this café, sitting right in the heart of gangnam of all places, but you barely bat an eyelash at the waiter, already used to this.

"no, i'm good; i'm just meeting up wi--"

"_____."

you don't even get to finish your sentence when jimin calls out your name. you marvel, however, at the way the waiter's expression falls in an instant when it dawns on her that you're here for their wealthiest patron, that it's him calling for you, and not the other way around.

"coming," you call out, smiling sweetly at the waiter as you walk past her, leaving her at the front of the café, lips parted in shock, cheeks colouring with embarrassment.

jimin stands when you walk over to his table, smiling, arms outstretched to pull you into his embrace and press a soft kiss to your lips.

"hi," he says.

"hey," you reply, chuckling and sitting down in the seat across from him.

"i'm surprised you said yes to coming out today."

you shrug, saying, "you said there'd be cake. where's the cake?"

jimin rolls his eyes but chuckles, calling for one of the waiters; much to your delight, it's the same waiter from before, clutching a notepad close to her chest.

"how can i help you, sir?" she asks, avoiding meeting your gaze.

"a slice of the red velvet cake, please," jimin says. "and... drink, _____?"

"peppermint tea sounds good," you reply.

"a peppermint tea. that's all, thank you."

the waiter turns to leave, and you flash her a wide smile when she inevitably looks at you, holding back laughter when she lowers head and quickly walks off.

"what was that all about?" jimin asks, eyebrow raised as he takes a sip of his coffee.

"hmm? oh, nothing." he waits for you to continue, unconvinced. "okay, fine. she gave me... 'the look' earlier when i came in. no big deal. i was just doing that 'kill them with kindness' thing you told me to do."

jimin puts his cup down, looking calm as ever, but you can see the way he clenches his other hand into a fist, uncrossing and re-crossing his legs.

"she gave you 'the look'?" he repeats, fixing the pleat of his slacks. you laugh softly and shake your head.

"chill."

"no one's allowed to give you any kind of look."

"except you, i assume."

that seems to appease jimin, if the way he settles back into his seat is anything to go by, the corners of his lips turning up slightly.

"except me," he repeats with a soft hum. "how was class?"

"boring," you reply, groaning and thanking the waiter - a different waiter, you both notice - when he sets down your cake and tea. "i'm almost tempted to switch my major entirely."

"i thought speech pathology was, and i quote, 'your calling in life'."

"yeah, well, i'm starting to think twice about that because my professor's a dick."

"one professor shouldn't discourage you from pursuing your greatest passion."

"but it does when it's a mandatory class." you sigh, picking up a bite of cake. "i swear he has it out for everyone. he might be an expert in the field, but the man really needs to work on his people skills. maybe i should switch to business."

"oh, honey, you wouldn't survive business," jimin coos, reaching over to place his hand on yours.

"shut up."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"thank you," jimin says, taking back his card, slipping his wallet back into the inside pocket of his suit jacket before taking your hand, leading you out of the café.

"aww, i didn't get to say goodbye to my friend," you say, holding back a grin. you end up laughing anyway when jimin flashes you a look the minute he understands who you're referring to.

"you know, i was gonna say we should go shopping and kill some time before dinner, but i think i'll cancel our reservation and drop you off at your place so you can study."

"tch. make me." you stick out your tongue, scrunching up your nose. "it's friday. you don't study after your last class on a friday. how long has it been since you went to college, old man? surely you're still aware of the unspoken rules of college."

"who're you calling 'old man', grandma?"

"'grandma'?!"

"mhm, i can see a few wrinkles starting to form at the corners of your eyes there."

"wow."

you pull a face, letting go of jimin's hand to walk ahead, ignoring his high-pitched, almost childlike laughter, and the frantic steps that take him back to your side.

"okay, okay. i'm sorry. i was just kidding!" he says, his arms wrapping around your waist and pinning your arms down to your sides as he hides his face in the crook of your neck, where you can feel his smile against your skin. "there are no wrinkles to be seen, i swear to you."

huffing, you turn away from him when he lifts his head up to look at you. with a hum, he dips his head to press kisses all over your neck, chuckling softly when you flinch as his lips graze over the spot he knows you're most ticklish at, loosening his hold on you when you smack his arm.

"you're one to talk about wrinkles at the corner of your eyes," you say, eyes narrowed.

"mmm, but i only have wrinkles there because i'm so busy smiling at you all the time," jimin replies, nosing at your cheek.

"tch. you tell all your girls that?"

"there are no other girls, babe. there's no one else i'd spend eight and a half million Won on a new chanel bag for than you."

"wait. i don't have a chanel bag though," you say, eyebrows furrowed.

"yes you do."

"no, i don't."

"yes," jimin says, chuckling and nodding to the driver to open the car door for you, pressing a gentle kiss to your cheek. "you do."

you watch the driver bow his head in greeting before opening the car door, eyes growing wide at the sight of the matte black box, tied with a thick white ribbon, waiting for you on the leather-lined seat.

[onetwothreefarkle]

"High heels do look good on you."

Thank you, nonnie! @quillbriar also sent this prompt, so this is for Quill, too! It ended up getting really thirsty. Also shoutout to @starklysteve for the shopping idea! Also this broke 1k so it's a little beyond drabble territory. Oops. (Send me a drabble prompt!)

The department store was bustling with the weekend crowd. Carlos sat on a stool outside the fitting rooms, bouncing in excitement. Any second Seb would emerge dressed in a new outfit from head to toe, and Carlos was sure he would look good. The trick would be convincing him to splurge and buy something nice, even if it was a little outside his usual price range. Carlos wouldn’t mind covering part of it, if Seb would let him. They were shopping for dinner with his family, after all.

Somehow, despite being together for almost a year, Seb hadn’t yet met Carlos’ family. Carlos hadn’t even realized it until Seb brought it up. But it just so happened that his mother’s 50th birthday was approaching, and his sisters would all be back in town for it. Carlos hadn’t seen either of them in two years.

“How do I look?” Seb’s voice pulled him from his thoughts.

Carlos turned his head to where Seb was standing in front of the full length butterfly mirror, which reflected three extra Sebs, all from different angles, and his words died in his throat.

Seb was dressed in the outfit they’d picked together: a navy blue button-up embroidered with a pattern of silver roses, sleeves rolled up and hem tucked into a pair of skinny jeans in a deep olive green, and topped off with a pair of ankle boots with chunky cork heels, soft suede that matched the dark blue of the shirt, and a shiny silver zip down the side. Carlos swallowed dryly, taking in the way the buttons on the shirt seemed to be ever so slightly strained against the muscle of Seb’s chest, the way the tight jeans hugged Seb’s thighs, working together with the heels to make his legs look both impossibly long and incredibly strong.

“Well?” Seb said after a minute.

“You can’t wear that to my parents’ house,” Carlos blurted.

“Why not?” Seb frowned, examining himself in the mirror. “I think it looks good.”

Carlos licked his lips. “That’s the problem.”

Seb’s frown faded, replaced with an insufferable smile. “Oh. You like this."

Carlos stepped forward, putting his hand on Seb’s shoulder. “High heels do look good on you.”

“It’s not just the heels, though, is it?” Seb grinned, smug. “It’s the whole look.”

Carlos glanced around the fitting rooms to make sure the corridor was empty, before pressing a kiss to the sensitive spot behind Seb’s ear, nipping slightly as he did. “Mainly it’s the whole you.”

Seb held back a gasp. “Carlos!”

Carlos batted his eyes at him innocently. “What?”

“We are in a store!” Seb blushed red. “We’re here for an outfit for your mom’s birthday dinner.”

“I know,” Carlos sighed. “But you have no idea what you’re doing to me right now.”

“Oh, I have an idea,” Seb retorted, eyeing Carlos up and down. “Trust me.”

It was Carlos’ turn to flush. “Then let’s pick out an outfit and get out of here.”

“I like this one,” Seb glanced back at the mirror, and sighed. “I just don’t know.”

“I’m this close,” he pinched his index finger and thumb together, “to giving you a hickey in the Macy’s fitting rooms and you don’t know?”

“Okay, I know you like it,” Seb rolled his eyes. “But will your parents? I want to make a good impression on them.”

“My parents are going to love you,” Carlos reassured him. “Even if I have to force them.”

Seb chuckled. “I don’t know if that counts.”

“We’ll make it work,” Carlos returned his laugh. “A nice outfit like this will help, though.”

Seb nodded. “So you think they’ll like it?”

“Absolutely.” Carlos glanced at Seb’s reflection and saw there was still some hesitation in his expression. “There’s something else.”

“It’s not, I really like the outfit,” Seb’s eyes drifted down to the shoes. “I just, um. I don’t think I should buy the shoes. The rest of the outfit is on sale, but the shoes aren’t.”

“Seb.” Carlos shook his head. “Do you like the shoes?”

“Yes.”

“And you think they look good on you? They make you feel happy and confident?”

“Yes.”

“What would happen if you spent a little extra money on yourself?” Carlos asked gently.

Seb shrugged. “I guess nothing, really. They’re only a little bit out of my price range.”

“So, buy them!” Carlos threw his arms up. “You look hot, you feel hot, and a pair of shoes isn’t going to plunge you into debt.”

“I guess you’re right.” Seb still sounded hesitant.

“Seb, look at me.” Carlos pulled on Seb’s arm to spin him away from his own reflection. “You deserve nice things. You deserve things that make you happy.” He let his hand run down Seb’s arm until he was clasping Seb’s hand.

The worry in Seb’s eyes softened as he glanced down at their entwined hands. “Y’know, you make me pretty happy.”

Carlos wished he knew how Seb could get him hot and bothered and turn him into mush within minutes. “Sap.”

“You love it.”

“I do.” Carlos squeezed his hand. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” Seb stepped back towards the door to the cubicle. “I should change, and then we can get out of here?”

“I’ll be waiting.”

Fifteen minutes later, after Seb put his bags in the trunk of Carlos’ car, Carlos slid into the backseat of his car.

Seb raised an eyebrow. “What are you doing?”

“It’s a two hour drive back to the farm,” Carlos said matter-of-factly. “Do you want to wait that long?”

Seb flushed. “What if someone sees?”

“Tinted windows.” Carlos glanced around. “Also, this parking lot is practically empty.”

That was all the convincing Seb needed before following Carlos into the backseat and locking the door behind him.

Carlos wasted no time, climbing into Seb’s lap almost as soon as he was fully in the car. “Hi.”

“Hi.” Seb already sounded breathless.

Finally, Carlos closed the distance between them, kissing Seb like his life depended on it, and willed the rest of the world to melt away.

[klarolinelibrary]

Hi KC Readers, 

Happy Friday! 

We have another weekly releases for you to check out. The stories below were updated during the week of April 17 - April 23. 

Grab a snack and drink, then dive right into the new stories and reimagined characters of Klaus Mikaelson and Caroline Forbes!

FFN

Klaus POV - The Trouble with Spells (Chapter 21)

Author: ilovetf

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: I think the title is self explanatory. The Trouble with Spells as seen through Klaus's eyes and his POV. Over the years, people kept liking this story and some even asked for Klaus POV, so I decided to give it a try. Hope you enjoy it. All feedback is more than welcome. Good or bad.

Date of update: April 17 2021

SKULLS (Chapter 9)

Author: Lovely Vero

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Vampiro and El Diablo, aka: Klaus and Elijah Mikaelson, heads of the bikers SKULLS are fighting Gabriel Desperaldo, aka: El escorpión - head of the Spanish mafia - and his human trafficking in their city of Los Alamos in New Mexico. Never in a million years, did they imagine that the love of two captured women would change their life forever.

Date of update: April 17 2021

In the shelter of your light (Chapter 3)

Author: Clarity23

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Caroline expected to face some challenges when she decided to foster a teenage girl. But she did not expect that the girl's older, annoyingly handsome brother would be in the picture as well. AU

Date of update: April 17 2021

Everything and anything for you (Chapter 13)

Author: thelibrarianofalexandria

Rating: T

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: She had it all planned ahead. Graduate early, go to an Ivy League college, make her dreams come true. However, she has to change it a little when her whole life is thrown upside down and a handsome original takes an interest in her, the younger, shy, sister of Caroline Forbes.

Date of update: April 20 2021

You can't run from your past (Chapter 2)

Author: CookieDuo

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Caroline Forbes is an FBI agent with secrets. Three years ago she fell in love with a target before she helped put him behind bars, and she faked her own death. Now he's escaped from prison and he's learned the truth, about who she is and the secret she's been keeping since he got sent away. Now she has to run, but he's determined to catch her. And he always gets what he wants.

Date of update: April 20 2021

Take on the world

Author: Logan27

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Starts near the end of 4x14 (I would rewatch that episode up until Klaus comes out onto the porch just for a refresher). Caroline makes a life altering decision and takes a big chance in order to move forward, heal and discover.

Date of update: April 21 2021

A Failed Sacrifice (Chapter 4)

Author: CookieDuo

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: She ruined the sacrifice to save her own life, and in order to survive she turned to the only other vampire who'd been able to survive the wrath of Klaus Mikaelson. She gets away, and learns from the master, but when Klaus eventually catches up to her, her life will never be the same again.

Date of update: April 23 2021

AO3

Step Up Or Step Out

Author: ThrowMeAStory

Rating: E

Length: One shot

Summary: 4x16 au, Part 7. For Caroline it's been a long time coming.

Date of update: April 17 2021

no goodbyes (Chapter 9)

Author: deadofwrite (dead_of_write)

Rating: E

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: “Last night shouldn’t have happened,” Caroline whispered. Guilt. Shame. Regret.It was all the emotions he feared. And it was written all over her face. aka. a college/cheating au

Date of update: April 17 2021

Turned Off or Turned On?

Author: Anonymous

Rating: E

Length: Drabble

Summary: Caroline-that-has-flipped-the-switch seeks out one Klaus Mikaelson. Deep down Caroline knew that seeking him out was wrong on so many levels, he had been responsible for so much death and destruction, but that didn’t stop her. Truthfully, it made her want to go to him more, now that her emotions had been turned off. There was nothing from keeping her from having him. Had she had them switched on it was doubtful she even would have gone out of the door, she would have just wistfully thought about going instead. Thinking about what might have been.

Date of update: April 17 2021

One of a Kind, Two of a Kind, or the Three Musketeers (Chapter 10)

Author: Phandancee74

Rating: T

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Caroline recognizes how hard it is for Elena to be a doppelgänger, her fate predestined as well as her face. It's pretty tough being the last of your kind too though, and Caroline is determined to protect them both, with some very helpful Bennetts on their side. A fic that integrates Malivore and the larger supernatural universe into TVD from the start.

Date of update: April 17 2021

A Blonde, A Brit, and A Baby (Chapter 3)

Author: Books4eva180

Rating: T

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Caroline Forbes life is right on schedule for her Twenty-Year plan that she created at 16 years old: at 23 years old she is a junior editor at a magazine company in NYC and she has fantastic friends; one of whom is about to get to married. Life couldn't be more perfect or at least that was until she slept with a British asshole. What was only supposed to be a one night stand has turned into a life changing night because Caroline is now pregnant. Klaus Mikaelson has always enjoyed the simple things in life. Bourbon, art, and an endless stream of girls who are more than willing to fall into his bed. This all changes when he is forced to move to America to join his father's law company and he isn't even really his father. Then to make matters worse he ends up sleeping with a girl and even worse she ends up pregnant. Forced together in a situation that neither of them could have planned for will feelings blossom (yes they definitely will) Will Caroline be able to handle this life changing event? Will Klaus be able to escape the demons from his past? Will the both of them be able to provide a happy and healthy home for their baby?

Date of update: April 18 2021

Darkness Becomes Thee

Author: BelleMorte180

Rating: E

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Austria 1300s When Klaus met a young girl on a riverbank, he knew that he would one day come back for her. When he looked into her bright blue eyes, he could see a reflection of his own soul, a darkness that lingered inside both of them. When the young girl turned into a beautiful woman with a thirst for blood, his fascination with her turns into obsession. He wants not only her loyalty but her eternity, a possessiveness that is equally returned. or my "Caroline is the serial killer Elizabeth Bathory" au.

Date of update: April 18 2021

Reunited (Chapter 13)

Author: CandyCane1287

Rating: T

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Set after 5x12 TVD, where Caroline confesses what she did with Klaus to Katherine and Tyler hears. Katherine reveals that she’s dying and knows of a witch that could help her. But the witch is in New Orleans and that’s where Elijah and Klaus. Baby included but nice Hayley doesn't stick around. Also, Elena is supportive here.

Date of update: April 18 2021

A smutty anniversary (Chapter 6)

Author: kcatdino

Rating: E

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Caroline and Klaus celebrate 3 months together with a day full of smut.

Date of update: April 18 2021

american dream prom queen

Author: trashcanbarbie

Rating: T

Length: Drabble

Summary: “What would they say, if they knew you were here, on my birthday doing something almost…” she trails off, because she doesn't know the word. “Nice?” he suggests, then grins like a wolf, “They’d roll in their graves, my siblings.” “They're not dead.” He grins, and Caroline feels as if he’s laughing at a private joke when he says, “Aren't they?”

Date of update: April 19 2021

We are young (Chapter 12)

Author: kcatdino

Rating: T

Length: One shot

Summary: Basically, Klaroline flirt in front of their kids who they are barely older than, and Landon is appropriately confused.

Date of update: April 19 2021

Nowhere Else To Go (Chapter 2)

Author: NerdyNostalgia

Rating: G

Length: Drabble

Summary: Klaus has an unexpected visitor while in New Orleans and is determined to show her a good time. He isn't going to let this chance pass him by, and if it means he and Caroline get closer...well, that was a bonus. But is Marcel planning something?

Date of update: April 19 2021

Part of Your World

Author: perfectpro

Rating: G

Length: One shot

Summary: After trading the loveliest thing she possessed to a sea witch in order to walk on land, Caroline realizes that she'd accidentally bargained her voice away. Human legs shouldn't always feel this sort of pain, should they? With only a week to go before the spell wears off, the bargain can be undone entirely with true love's first kiss. The only problem is... Who falls in love in less than a week?

Date of update: April 19 2021

I Don’t Want You To Die

Author: klarolinexluv

Rating: E

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary:

Date of update: April 19 2021

Sibling Rivalry (Chapter 9)

Author: kcatdino

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: In which Klaus and Rebekah are both bi, their taste in men and women overlaps infuriatingly often, and they argue over their newest shared interest. Edit: This is going to be a full series now, I love it so much. Edit 2: Oops, I dropped a whole bucket of angst on Caroline's backstory. If only there were some Mikaelsons willing to help her work through it...

Date of update: April 20 2021

What Could Have Been (Chapter 37)

Author: TNaPKI

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: My impression of what Season 6 of The Originals would have been like post 5x13 where Klaroline becomes endgame. Is Klaus really gone or is there more to the story? Find out! FINAL CHAPTER out in a month!

Date of update: April 20 2021

The Salvatore Sisters (Chapter 19)

Author: 1Jemmagirl22

Rating: T

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Caroline and Davina Salvatore are Stefan and Damon's younger sister's, and they are far more than meets the eye. When Stefan and Damon's younger sisters show up during the beginning of season 2, what could possibly go wrong. The Salvatore girls have a dark past littered with their brother's enemies, the same enemies that just so happen to be their family. With Mikaelson's as husbands, miracle powers that could crush a Bennet witch, and whole life their brothers never knew about just how much have can these sisters and their family cause.

Date of update: April 21 2021

YOU ARE NOT HERE

Author: wincefish16

Rating: T

Length: Drabble

Summary: PROMT - HUMAN. KLAROLINE LOVED EAC OTHER, HAPPY IN A RELATIONSHIP WHERE CAROLINE IS THE ARTIST AND KLAUS IS A LAWYER. THEY HAVE AN ACCIDENT AND CAROLINE SLIPS IN A COMA. SHE IS LIKE THAT FOR 1 YEAR. KLAUS , AS A TRIBUTE TO HER STARTS PAINTING. DOES HE FALL INTO NEW RELATIONSHIPS?

Date of update: April 21 2021

Compromise Coffee (Chapter 3)

Author: BelleMorte180

Rating: E

Length: One shot

Summary: Caroline Forbes has a coffee problem; or better described as a crush on the cute barista, Klaus, who knows how to make her large, non-fat latte with a caramel drizzle and two extra espresso shots just right. After years of coming to Compromise Coffee, Caroline thought he would have made a move by now, but he hasn't. Caroline has decided that it is time for her to make the move herself.

Date of update: April 22 2021

Soulmate visions (Chapter 4)

Author: kcatdino

Rating: T

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: On your soulmate's eighteenth birthday, you see through their eyes for an hour, but they don’t know. And if your soulmate turns eighteen before you are even born, you never get a vision. Klaus gets his soulmate vision right after he orders Tyler to bite Caroline on her birthday….

Date of update: April 22 2021

Give Me A Sign (Chapter 6)

Author: PumpkinDoodles

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Caroline Forbes is happy that she left founders' parties, competition over guys she'd known since elementary school, and even Mystic Falls itself behind years ago. She's not second-best to Elena anymore. Even Liz would be proud of her new life working on the side of the law. Mostly. (If you need to compel someone into giving up stolen goods, is it really a crime?) Of course he's the one person from her past who comes looking for her. Klaus does that.

Date of update: April 22 2021

Secrets Inside Us

Author: 1Jemmagirl22

Rating: T

Length: Drabble

Summary: Klaroline as actors falling in love on set.

Date of update: April 23 2021

Destination Wedding (Chapter 2)

Author: PumpkinDoodles

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: The first rule of going to your ex's wedding is 'make sure you look good,' but Caroline's seriously worried that this British Guy is going to make her late. And she cannot be late to Rebekah Mikaelson and Matt Donovan's wedding at a Virginia winery.

Date of update: April 23 2021

There Is Nothing I Would Not Do

Author: ThrowMeAStory

Rating: M

Length: Drabble

Summary: 4x16 au, Part 8. Caroline and Bonnie reconnect.

Date of update: April 23 2021

Cloud 9: A Collection of Klaroline Fusions and Crossovers (Chapter 10)

Author: klarolineagainnaturally

Rating: G

Length: One shot

Summary: Various fusions and crossovers with Klaus and Caroline including Much Ado About Nothing, Ready or Not, and Tangled!

Date of update: April 23 2021

FFN/AO3

FFN: The Traitor and the Coward (Chapter 5)

AO3: The Traitor and the Coward (Chapter 5)

Author: Uppity Bitch

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Klaroline AU supernatural multi-chap - Original!Caroline has spent lifetimes running from her lover and his family. Despite the centuries of loneliness, she regrets nothing. Soon, she'll bring an end to this madness. Or bring the madness full circle.

Date of update: April 17 2021

FFN: Heartless to Heartfelt, Redone (Chapter 10)

AO3: Heartless to Heartfelt (Chapter 13)

Author: SmallTimeWriter

Rating: T

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: Daggered and buried deep within the ocean, Klaus has spent the last 9 years in a torturous state. Haunted by memories of the past and images of a child he never got to meet. Now awakened, but not the same. He is faced with a decision, can he forgive those who wronged him when a threat larger then they could anticipate appears? They must reunited to survive. All Main Characters.

Date of update: April 18 2021

FFN: Divine Intervention (Chapter 13)

AO3: Divine Intervention (Chapter 13)

Author: Uppity Bitch

Rating: M

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: This takes place in an alternate universe after Klaus seeks assistance from a certain blonde Norse goddess after Katerina has become a vampire and foiled his attempt at breaking his curse. Later chapters will follow this spicy "power" couple as they stir up all kinds of trouble in Mystic Falls. (Dark Klaroline) *Nominated for 2016 Klaroline Award - Best Original Story Concept

Date of update: April 19 2021

FFN: A Beautiful Symmetry (Chapter 154)

AO3:  A Beautiful Symmetry (Chapter 154)

Author: Uppity Bitch

Rating: M

Length: One Shot

Summary: A collection of random AU one-shots featuring Klaroline. *2019 KC Award - Best one-shot series* Chapter 154: Dimples and Domestics. The Mikaelsons are spoiled, selfish snobs — and unfortunately are art student Caroline and her parents' main source of income. At least she only has to put up with them over her summer break...

Date of update: April 21 2021

FFN: Through his eyes (Chapter 6)

AO3: Through his eyes (Chapter 6)

Author: TheAlllureOfDarkness

Rating: T

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: The story of Klaus and Caroline, from Klaus POV.

Date of update: April 21 2021

FFN: Judgment Call (Chapter 5)

AO3: Judgment Call (Chapter 5)

Author: Eliliyah

Rating: T/G

Length: Multi Chapter

Summary: As a Federal Agent, Caroline Forbes has always lived by a strict moral code. But when new evidence comes to light that Klaus Mikaelson, the first man she helped send to death row, may not be guilty hours before his execution, she begins to question everything she's ever known. As the investigation leads to the heartbreaking truth, she's forced to choose between right and just.

Date of update: April 23 2021

[jinmukangwrites]

i'm not a big fan of DC, but I have a general knowledge of it. Perhaps something to do with some some family bonding with the bat family? it doesn't have to be fluffy, but it would be nice to see that something nice is happening to this found family of people, even if it's small. good luck and may you have success and fortune in your future!

So this ended up not being a drabble. Oops. Listen, I've been wanting to write a camping-esque fic for a long time and somehow this just ended up being it. >.<

-o-o-o-o-

It is Dick's first camping trip.

He's young, bright eyed, and smiling like there's nothing to be down about even though Bruce knows they're both painfully aware it's only been a month since his world quite literally fell apart.

Bruce doesn't really know what he's doing, having not gone camping himself in what must be over a decade, but he still successfully sets up a decent tent large enough for four sleeping bags, but has more than enough room for two. Alfred is on a well deserved vacation, so there's no need to make room for a third one. It's just Bruce Wayne and his new ward Dick Grayson, alone in the wilderness with a bag of marshmallows open between the two of them and a campfire crackling in front of them. It's Dick that shows him how to roast the perfect "mallow", and that apparently involves shoving the entire marshmallow into the center of the flame and laughing maniacally until it blackens and chars. Bruce almost has a panic attack just watching Dick bring the flaming marshmallow out to his face to blow out the fire.

Bruce remembers the times he's watched people roast marshmallows in movies, and he decides holding it just above the worst of the flames until it's a golden brown is the way for him.

There's owls hooting softly around them when the moon reaches high enough to suggest maybe calling it a night. Another tell-tale sign is Dick ever so slowly leaning against his side, all bundled up in a warm oversized jacket; marshmallow, chocolate, and graham cracker residue dried to his lips and cheeks.

Bruce stares at watches for a moment, before smiling, something he thought he lost when he watched his parents die clinking back into place in his chest. Filling him with a warmth he never thought he'd ever have again.

He scoops Dick up and bundles him into his sleeping bag. Dick is out like a light, mouth open in soft snores, and Bruce frowns, a desire in him that he doesn't understand.

He pokes Dick's shoulder gently, making sure the child is asleep, and Bruce sucks in a lungful of air. Unsure and afraid. He runs his fingers through Dick's hair, lifting up his messy bangs, and slowly bends down and presses his lips against the child's forehead. He then backs quickly away, his heart pounding.

Dick was never supposed to be his son, but pretty early on Bruce discovered how much of a lie that was.

-o-o-o-o-

It's Jason's first time camping. His second time in the mountains as well.

Dick took him skiing for his first time, but Bruce at least gets to take him for his first night out in the fresh wilderness of the Appalachian mountains. Just the two of them this time, being as Dick is still angry with him. And while that hurts, Bruce is content with spending some much needed one on one time with his newest adopted son. (Because he knows now he made a mistake keeping Dick away at arms length with the word "ward", and now it's too late to take it back. He won't make the same mistake with this one).

Jason seems more concerned with running around and climbing trees than eating marshmallows. Surprisingly, more concerned than Dick was. Though that doesn't mean he still doesn't enjoy a marshmallow here and there, especially since a new kind has come out recently that makes the marshmallows even bigger and puffier when roasted over the fire. Good for nothing but sugar. Not that Bruce minds. He can't remember the last time Jason looked so relaxed as he stands and watches Jason marvel at a waterfall they've hiked to. If it earns that kind of wide eyed unashamed smile, Bruce would gladly invest in the company making even bigger marshmallows.

Bruce finds quickly that Jason also thinks Bruce makes marshmallows wrong. He knows this because as stuck the sugary monstrosity on his roasting stick and gently held it above the fire, Jason cried out in outrage.

"You're making it wrong!" He yelled as he grabbed Bruce's arm and dragged it away from the fire. Bruce is almost afraid that he'll demonstrate how to make a proper smore by shoving the whole thing into the middle of the fire to blacken it like Dick does. He doesn't want to know what kind of mess a marshmallow this size would make on fire, but the Jason shocks him by rushing into the tent and stumbling out a moment later with a colorful bag in his hands.

Starbursts?

"Where did you get those?" Bruce asks, trying not to sound amused that Jason snuck candy with him out on the trip.

Jason snorts, opening the bag and pulling out a pink square. "I asked Alfie to get me some, because I knew you'd be uncultured in making a freaking smore."

Jason then impales the unwrapped pink starburst on the roasting stick next to Bruce's waiting marshmallow. He unwraps a yellow one and puts it on his own stick. "The red ones are gross, by the way," Jason says, sticking his stick above the fire. Bruce huffs out a small laugh and puts his stick over the fire as well.

He's not sure what he feels about the taste of roasted starburst mixing with the marshmallow, chocolate, and cracker, but Jason eats enough to gain a stomach ache.

Bruce carries him to bed too, and tucks him in, and instead of waiting for him to fall asleep, Bruce carefully pulls Jason closer to his chest, and because his arms are full of legs and arms, he kisses Jason's forehead with a layer of hair between them.

Jason doesn't pull away. Just yawns happily, and falls asleep in Bruce's arms.

Bruce decides that camping trips for Jason is definitely a thing he needs to make a regular thing. Just to see his boy look so peaceful and happy in his arms.

-o-o-o-o-

It's not Tim's first time camping. But Bruce suspects it's the first time Tim actually has fun camping, as well as his first time making smores.

Dick's here this time too, the relationship between him and Bruce held together by paperclips and string. Which is saying something, as it used to be held together by nothing at all. Bruce is just happy that he's here and that they're civil enough with each other to let Tim be a disgusting, dirty, rowdy child in the mountains for the first time in his entire life.

Tim stood at the edge of the river, but ended up being shoved in by Dick, and they both came back sopping wet and laughing.

Tim picked at the bark of a large tree, but ended up in its highest branches when Bruce lifted him over his shoulders to give him a headstart.

Tim frowned at the marshmallow bag and sticks, but ended up with a mess all over his face, pupils wide in the firelight as the sugar gave him a rush.

Bruce roastes his above the flame and Dick tries to convince Tim that sticking the entire thing into the fire is the only right way to roast a good marshmallow. When Tim looks unsure and tries both with uncertainty, Bruce takes a chance and pulls out a bag of starbursts he almost decided to leave behind.

And once Tim tries the roasted starburst s'more, the rest of the s'more actually goes forgotten as Tim decides roasted starbursts is best left left alone—he snacks on almost the entirety of the bag, and Bruce tries his best to not let the stabbing in his heart ruin the moment. He wonders how well Jason and Tim would get along if Jason... But he shakes his head, choosing instead to point out the glowing little light in the forest that isn't the stars.

It's not Tim's first time seeing fireflies. But it's his first time running through the trees with a jar, holes poked into the top to capture them.

When it gets so late that even Bruce is beginning to yawn, he corrals his oldest and unofficial youngest into the tent and frowns at how even though the packaging said it's big enough for four people, it's still quite squeezed together with two grown men and a lanky young teen.

Bruce ruffles Tim's hair, squeezed Dick's shoulder, and for once Dick doesn't flinch at his touch. Just smiles and kisses Tim's forehead. Bruce is almost tempted to copy the action, the night feeling wrong without it, but Tim has parents.

Tim isn't his son. Isn't even his ward. He hugs Tim, and finds himself hugging him tightly, only letting go when Tim voices slight confusion.

They lay down in their spots, the silence of the world being interrupted once as Tim verbally complains about Dick's feet finding themselves under his legs.

"But you're so warm, baby bird!"

The sound of Tim's laughter is something Bruce wishes he had been quick enough to record, so he could listen to it over and over and over again.

Tim's not Bruce's ward. Or son.

But it's so easy to selfishly wish he were.

-o-o-o-o-

It's not Cass's first time camping. But it's her first time camping for something other than survival. Which means it's definitely her first time making s'mores.

Taking her out to the woods is nerve-wracking in a way that it shouldn't be. She's his daughter. Officially. Legally. Not by blood. Bruce doesn't have anyone who's by blood. But she's definitely the closest thing to it in his heart. She's different from the boys. He doesn't know what to expect from her.

She doesn't go out and get all gross and muddy in the river with Tim, and she doesn't take up Dick's bet to climb to the top of the waterfall. Instead, Bruce finds her sitting nearby with a notebook in her hands, her hand scribbling away at something with a pen. She looks up at him and smiles, but closes the notebook and sets it off to the side, patting the ground next to her. He takes her up on her invitation and sits down besides her, their shoulders gently touching. He glances at the notebook, raising an inquisitive eyebrow, but she just smiles and shakes her head. He doesn't pry. She didn't grow up with a whole lot of privacy, and Bruce isn't about to take some away from her.

She sighs and leans back into the soft grass patch she found, and he lays back too, shoulders still touching. They're silent for a long time, the only noises around them being the leaves rustling and the distant sounds of Tim and Dick trying to figure out how to lash a rope around a tree near the river so they could swing into it.

Bruce finds himself, not for the first time, missing Jason more than ever. Jason is alive. He's back. But he hates Bruce and wants nothing to do with Bruce. Jason would be all over getting that rope swing to work. Bruce can practically imagine his young voice screaming in excitement as he launches himself into the water.

He forces those thoughts away, because this isn't about Jason right now. This is about the beautiful, perfect young lady laying besides him. His daughter. He looks over at her, and her eyes are closed and her lips turned up in a slight smile. Her bare toes wiggling in the breeze.

And Bruce thinks that maybe it's a good thing Cass isn't out and about causing trouble and getting dirty, because maybe to her that's not what this trip is about. Maybe it's just about showing her that she can sit back, close her eyes, and wiggle her toes in the breeze and be safe without having to feel obligated to do anything.

Because she is safe. And Bruce will never let anything hurt her.

When they roast marshmallows, she watched with amusement as Dick interrupts Bruce showing her the normal way to do it by shoving his own into the flames. She watches as Tim shows her how to carefully make a roasted starburst that isn't too stuff nor too drippy. She watches as Bruce suggests making a s'more with a starburst. And she tries them all, a frown on her lips the entire time. When no strategy seems to stick out to her, Bruce almost panics, not sure how to make the night fun and full of sugar like he wants to, but then she pops a raw marshmallow into her mouth with a curious tilt to her head, and then a chunk of raw chocolate, and then a bite of plain cracker.

She then quickly gains her own stash of untouched s'more supplies and her roasting stick goes forgotten. Bruce doesn't know what's so much better about eating the ingredients raw, but the sound of her muffled laughter behind a mouthful of marshmallow and chocolate as Dick struggles to blow out a flaming one is definitely something Bruce will not complain about or try to change.

Going to bed is a hassle. He brought two tents this time, just in case Cass wanted to sleep alone, and at first he thinks that is actually what will happen. He hugs her before they go their seperate ways, the urge to kiss her round cheeks stronger than ever, but he doesn't get the chance. Or the courage.

But he finds he didn't need to worry, because when he, Tim, and Dick are all snug in their bags, the zipper of their tent goes down and Bruce has the air knocked out of him as Cass collapses on top of him, wrapped up in a fluffy pink blanket that she bought with Barbara. Bruce finds himself grinning as he shifts to make room for her between him and the snoring Dick, careful to not nudge the half asleep Tim too much whose under his arm on the other side.

Then, when Cass is nestled in his side, she does another thing that pleasantly surprised him. She presses her lips to his temple.

And Bruce falls asleep that night not knowing what he's done to deserve Cassandra Wayne.

-o-o-o-o-

It's not Damian's first time camping. It's not his first time making s'mores. It's not even his first time having fun while camping.

Bruce was thought to be dead for almost a year, and Dick was the one who got the honor of doing those first things with Damian.

But dammit, Bruce was going to try and do this with Damian anyway, even if Damian is quiet and unsure and distrustful with Bruce.

So maybe that's why Bruce thought it was so important for it to be just him and Damian this time. Maybe this is why he didn't ask Dick how Damian liked to roast his marshmallows, or ask Alfred if he needed to bring an emergency bag of starbursts, or even considered bringing a second tent just in case Damian wanted to sleep alone.

Bruce is Damian's father. His biological one. But he doesn't feel like it.

He wants to feel like it.

He woke Damian up at the spur of the moment and coaxed the boy into the car stuffed with a weakened supply of things to get them through a surprise camping trip. Damian was too groggy in the morning to ask much questions, blinking fully awake an hour into the drive and asking with a quiet voice where they were going.

And when Bruce answered they were going to camp, Damian didn't respond with joy or excitement. Just a quiet oh that almost made Bruce pull over the car and beg Damian to let Bruce in and let him see what he's thinking.

He keeps driving, all the way until he's at the normal spot by the river and a trailhead that leads to a waterfall. Damian walks the grounds quietly as Bruce sets up the tent, his footsteps sure and curiosity lacking. He's been here before. To Bruce's perfect camping spot.

And Bruce wasn't there.

The rest of the day goes about as well as could be expected. Damian hardly says anything to Bruce, the words he does say are tense and tight, like the very thought of saying any unnecessary words to Bruce is painful. Bruce tries not to take it to heart, so he continues onward. He takes Damian hiking, he takes him to the river, and eventually they both end up at the campfire in uncomfortable silence.

Bruce watches as Damian puts the marshmallow on his stick and holds it slightly above the flames, waiting patiently for the flames to lick the white sugar golden.

Bruce sighs and risks a joke. "Finally, a son that makes s'mores normally."

He didn't expect Damian to stand up with anger in his eyes before tossing the stick down and running off into the forest. The marshmallow left forgotten as it bursts into flames in the coals.

Bruce only hesitates a second before standing up and running after his son.

Because even if he's terrified Damian wants nothing to do with him, Bruce still wants to make sure he doesn't get himself hurt in the woods.

He eventually finds Damian sitting in Cass's spot. That perfect patch of grass that's perfect for laying down in and cloud gazing. Or, this late at night, perfect for milky-way gazing.

Damian isn't looking up at the stars though. He's curled up and glaring at his feet, something suspiciously wet trailing down his cheeks.

Bruce takes in a breath, hoping bravery would enter his lungs as well, and sits down next to his son.

They're silent next to each other, for a long time, until Damian finally decides to speak up.

"You came," he says, and Bruce wants desperately to launch himself forward and wrap the boy I'm a strong embrace. "You followed me."

"I will always find you," Bruce says, and Damian sniffs.

"If... If I wasn't your kid... Would you still..."

And Bruce remembers that Damian grew up being told he was simply a tool. That he had a purpose and he was only wanted because of that purpose.

He's asking Bruce if Bruce would have still wanted him, even if their blood wasn't the same. If Bruce had no obligation to take him in and give him safety and allow him to be the second half of the dynamic duo.

Or if he would have turned the boy away.

It breaks Bruce's heart.

So he slowly reaches around Damian and pulls him closer tightly. Damian sniffles and practically launches himself into Bruce's lap, arms curling around so small that it's not a complete hug, but it's tight enough to be one of the best kinds of hugs.

"I will always want you, Damian," Bruce whispers into his hair, pressing his lips onto his forehead before he can even consider the action. "You have no need to worry. I want you more than anything in this entire world."

And they sit there, holding each other, and Bruce wonders if this is what his own parents felt for him.

And if they'd be proud of him.

Bruce carries Damian to bed after they've both let out their emotions, and even though tent is large enough to have space, he keeps Damian with him, in his arms even as he climbs into his sleeping bag.

And he's never letting go.

-o-o-o-o-

It's nowhere near Duke's first time camping, or making s'mores, or having fun, or feeling safe. But it is his first time camping with Bruce and the rest of the family.

Dick, Tim, Cass, Damian, and even Jason are all here, and Bruce won't lie and say he didn't find it amusing how intimidated Duke needlessly felt to be on a family camping trip with everyone.

It's the loudest trip Bruce had ever been apart of. The children are back to figuring out that pesky rope swing—Tim snuck a grapple hook and had the decency to look a little ashamed when Bruce noticed it—and Cass is at her normal spot with her normal notebook. Duke looks unsure and nervous, not really knowing where he fits in with all of this.

Bruce adopted most of his children when they were all young, Cass being the exception but it wasn't like she had a good experience with her last parents, so it was almost like adopting her young. But Duke is different, he's a teenager, considering college and everything. He already knows how to drive a car. He'd already had loving parents. Bruce doesn't want to step in front of that, but he still wants Duke to feel welcome and loved.

One of Bruce's favorite things in the entire world is to watch Duke slowly exit his shell that he crawls into whenever he's nervous or feeling like he's imposing. The smirk on his face that appears when Dick calls him a genius for finally being the one to figure out the rope swing. The bubbling and nervous laughter when Jason slams a hand proudly at his back when he beats the rest of the family up the waterfall in their annual race. The excited chatter when Tim shows him the best climbing tree. The relaxed posture when Cass shows him something in her notebook, and the happy smile when Cass takes his feedback in consideration. The mischievous glint in his eyes when he and Damian get into a competitive spar with pool noodles.

Bruce finds his chest so full with warmth he almost thinks it's going to burst as eventually they all end up around the campfire with roasting sticks in everyone's hands except for Cass who has her own stash of s'more supplies. Jason and Tim fight over the bag of starbursts even though Bruce was sure he brought two. Dick laughs as Damian yells angrily about his flaming marshmallow catching Damian's on fire. Cass munches on a cracker and leans into Bruce's side. Duke sits besides them all, tongue sticking outside his mouth as he concentrates on making a marshmallow that isn't golden, but isn't completely raw.

No one bugs him on his strange "I don't want it burned at all!" comment, and they all include him in their jokes and bantering. The laughter becomes do loud that Bruce is sure the entire forest can hear them.

He relishes in it. Almost feeling like he might cry.

But he doesn't. The moon rises and be ushers the kids all towards that four person tent. It's too tiny, but nobody seems to care. Not even Jason who's only made one comment about Bruce being a billionaire who's definitely rich enough to afford a bigger tent.

Because, somehow, with or without Bruce, the family had ended up close and wanting to be close together. Dick doesn't complain as Cass lays herself on top of him. Tim only snarls a little when Jason jokingly stuffs his feet in the younger boys face. Damian crawls into Bruce's side like it's the most natural thing in the world. And Duke accepts the strong hug Bruce risks and gives him. Duke then lays down with his back against Bruce's free side and his legs on top of Jason, like a puzzle piece falling into place.

And the family all fall asleep to the sounds of nature surrounding them, and the soft snores of the people they all hold dear.

And Bruce thinks that taking in a kid who's just watched his family fall from the trapeze, a kid who tried to jack the batmobile, a kid who showed up with a camera in his hands and a demand to make him Robin, a kid who decided love and happiness was more important than the way she was taught and raised, a kid who decided he didn't want to be the weapon he was born to be, and a kid who only wanted to do good after his parents were torn away from him was without question the best thing Bruce had ever done.

And he wouldn't have it any other way.

[alpha-exodus]

writing tag game!

thank you @quicksilvermaid​ for the tag <3

AO3 name: alpha_exodus!

Fandoms: drarry!! almost exclusively lol, i did a brief stint in omg check please but i no longer write for it at all (and am not planning on leaving drarry again anytime soon tbh)

Tropes: wow i love tropes. umm is major character death a trope? haha oops! i’ve done a lot of Veela/mate bonding, enemies to lovers, friends to lovers, Auror partners, eighth year, and uhh. drinking? punching? are those tropes? well they’re tropes for me!! lmao

Number of fics: 47 (which is wild!!) - 28 for drarry, 18 for check please, and then that 1 time last summer my brain decided it wanted to write tomione - lol

Fic I spent the most time on: Hmmmm oh this was definitely my 100k check please assassin AU, but for drarry on the other hand... probably a cross between my two Erised fics - My Name Was Safest In Your Mouth and you, a violent desire. They’re pretty similar lengths and I spent a pretty long time thinking about and plotting both of them!

Fic I spent the least time on: i honestly could not tell you this? it’s probably one of my drabbles but it’s been So long i cannot remember 

Longest Fic: this would again be my 100k check please assassin au haha which i am Not going to link but can be found on my ao3 if you’re really curious

Shortest Fic: after consulting ao3 it seems like it is uhh... this 1.5k? soulmate?? drabble?? haha! who wrote this! certainly not me!!!!

Most hits: My Name Was Safest In Your Mouth with 45503! which wow!! that’s. a lot!! thanks friends!!!

Most kudos: this is also My Name Was Safest In Your Mouth with 2759!! i’m pretty sure this fic in particular jumped a couple hundred because of current events which i find funny

Most comment threads: again the check please assassin au LOL with 168, but my name was safest has 131 for drarry~

Most bookmarks: My Name Was Safest In Your Mouth  with 1100 - wow geez that’s a lot!! i hope it is bringing y’all joy!!

Total word count: 627,374!

Favourite fic I wrote: ohh actually i don’t know? hm. actually i am really happy with Your Tears Sting, Friend (warning: major character death) - i think it turned out well and i was really pleased with the emotions i was able to write there! it gets the short end of the kudos stick bc of the mcd but i still like it a lot :’)

Fic you want to rewrite/expand on: hmm i don’t know that i would actually do this but i did have some fun ideas for the you, a violent desire universe - would probably end up being pretty pwp but also like still working on their issues since i left them in a place where they still have a lot of repairing to do i think?? unfortunately i’m Not motivated to do that anymore but the ideas were there haha

Share a bit of a WIP or a story idea you’re planning on: i’ll share this one bc i think it’s fun lol

Then Malfoy opens his mouth and says, “Potter,” and Harry can see that some of his teeth have gone pointy, like—

Like fangs.

Since when, he wonders, did Malfoy become a vampire?

ty for reading! i really am just going to tag ppl who want to do it!!

[kingyeoms]

take a break

pairing: lee jihoon x reader (f) genre: smut warnings: slight swearing, unprotected sex (use a condom pls), slight marking, nothing too crazy summary: something about jihoon’s studio has you two feeling some type of way. word count: 1,150 a/n: my 1000th post on this blog!! also this was meant to be a drabble, but somehow turned into this whole thing oops :( ♡ best read on desktop, use mobile browser if you can’t read under the cut ♡

“princess, can you come here? i need a break,” jihoon swiveled the chair to face the couch, taking off his cap and tossing it aside before stretching his arms out towards you. you nodded, setting your phone on the coffee table, finding a comfortable position in his lap. his grip around your waist tightened, pressing a lingering kiss on your shoulder, resting his head in the crook of your neck.

“how long have we been here?” you giggled, watching the computer screen in front of you as jihoon clicked away, the screen returning to his desktop wallpaper - a photo of you two at the park that soonyoung had taken the other day.

“maybe three, four hours? doesn’t matter, just need you right now,” he murmured against your skin, his half-hardened length pressing against you. so this is what jihoon meant when he said he wanted a break. his hand trailed up your shirt, the heat of his palms pressing against your chest, “no bra today?”

“wasn’t feeling it today, but this is so much more uncomfortable, ji,” you whined, “can’t we move to the couch at least?” you wriggled in his lap, in an attempt to adjust your position, only to end up grinding against his bulge. jihoon cursed under his breath, his hands flying to grip your hips in place, pressing crescent shaped marks into your skin.

“too lazy,” he murmured, his fingers tracing mindless patterns on your inner thighs, “wanna ride me?”

“always making me do the dirty work, lee jihoon,” you laughed, getting up to straddle him properly, your arms snaking around his neck. he pushed your shirt up, his index and thumb finding your nipple, a soft moan falling from your lips. there was something about jihoon’s studio that radiated intimacy: the dim lights, sleek black furniture, neon purple wall accents; whatever it was, you knew it had to play a part in your boyfriend’s current mood.

“don’t act like you don’t like being on top,” he smirked, pulling you in to close the gap, his lips moving in sync with yours, “besides, i like looking at you.”

your cheeks flushed the slightest shade of pink, running your fingers through his hair, jihoon’s tongue sliding against yours, his fingers pinching and twisting your nipple. you rocked against him, his cock twitching against your clothed heat, desperate for something more than just friction. jihoon’s fingers tugged on your jeans, motioning for you to take them off. he helped you wiggle them off, pressing his thumb against the tiny wet spot starting to form on your panties. 

your hand slipped under the waistband of his sweats, finally freeing his cock from restraint. jihoon moaned against your lips, your thumb sliding across his tip, slippery with precum. he pushed your panties aside, fingers brushing against your glistening folds, “so wet for me, aren’t you baby?” he grinned, slipping a digit inside, then two, curling his fingers into you. you whimpered, your grip on his cock tightening along with your core.

“j-jihoon,” you stuttered against his lips, his fingers pumping in and out of you, your thighs uncomfortably sticky with your own juices,  “let me ride you already.”

“i thought you’d never ask, princess,” he smirked, pulling out his slick coated fingers, bringing them up to his lips as he sucked them clean, “god, you taste so good,” he licked his lips before lifting your hips as you guided him inside of you, his cock filling you up.

“f-fuck, jihoon,” you moaned, throwing back your head as your walls clenched around him. 

jihoon’s nails dug into your hips, his teeth grazing the crook of your neck, “you feel so good, y/n.. so tight for me, my pretty baby.”

jihoon pressed his forehead against yours, beads of sweat sticking to his temples, lips hungrily attaching to yours. your hips slowly worked up and down his cock, a bit too slow, perhaps. “princess, please,” he groaned, his hips thrusting into yours, “don’t tease so much.”

“you’re the one who wanted me to top today,” you mumbled, picking up speed, clutching onto jihoon’s shoulders for support. he grinned, planting a kiss on your lips, a hand wandering to your breast, his thumb rubbing circles into your soft skin. he took your other nipple into his mouth, teeth grazing your hardened bud, his tongue swirling your sensitivity. your fingers curled into jihoon’s shoulders, stutters and moans stirring in the back of your throat. 

he looked up, nipple still tucked between his teeth, taking in the sight of your eyes shut tight, mouth slightly agape, hitched breaths leaving your lips. he grinned, murmuring a “you’re so beautiful” against your breasts, now adorned in bruises of various shapes and shades of violet and maroon. if you were to ask him, this was why he loved it when you rode him — he loved knowing that he was the only one able to pleasure you this way, how only his name left your lips, how he was the only one who was able to see you like this, all fucked out and only for him.

the air was thick and musty, the smell of sex filling the studio, jihoon’s groans and your whimpers muffling the sound of his skin pounding against yours. your hand trembled, reaching down to your clit, two fingers rubbing against your sensitive bud. it was ironic — for someone who had a knack for keeping rhythm, his thrusts into you were asynchronous with your bounces. he placed his hand on the base of your neck, pulling you in closer, your bottom lip swollen in between his teeth.

“fuck,” he groaned, pushing back his sweat-soaked hair, thrusts getting harder and faster, “so fucking good for me, baby.”

“j-jihoon.. m-my c-clit,” you mumbled, your fingers numb from non stop rubbing. jihoon instantly put two of his digits into your mouth, coating them with your saliva before pressing them against your swollen bud. “f-fuck, j-jihoon,” the words tumbled out of your mouth in a mix of moans and whimpers, “i-i’m so c-close.”

“c-come for m-me, p-princess,” although he stuttered, his fingers acted quickly, rubbing circles into your clit until it came to you — in the form of tiny white dots filling your vision, an electrifying shock through your body. you rode out your high, jihoon gripping onto your trembling thighs. his thrusts slowed and staggered, pulling out to release onto your skin, thick, ropes of milky white spilling onto your stomach and thighs.

“you did so well for me, baby,” he grinned, kissing your shoulder before resting his forehead against yours. he pulled your hair back, tucking stray strands behind your ear before leaning in to press his lips against your nose.

you giggled, scrunching your nose before placing a kiss on his lips, “back to work?”

“you’re funny if you think i can go back to work after that. let’s go home, yeah?”

[thatmultifandomhoe]

Strawberry Cream and BBQ - 19

Pairing: Hybrid Hoseok and Human Reader

Overview: Your best friend knows she can count on you for anything, so when she asks you to watch her hybrid while she’s gone for a study abroad trip for four months, you can’t say no. But when these four months are over, things have changed in a way no one expected.

Word Count: 2,283

Genre: Hybrid AU, Fluff, Future smut, Angst, Best friends to Lovers

Warning: Fluff, a little itty bitty angst.

Master List

Sneak Peak - Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 6 - Part 7 - Part 8 - Part 9 - Part 10 - Part 11 - Part 12 - Part 13 - Part 14 - Part 15 - Part 16 - Part 17 - Part 18 - Part 19 - Part 20 - Part 21 - Part 22 - Part 23 - Part 24 - Part 25 (Final) - Move in Day: A SC&BBQ Drabble

©thatmultifandomhoe Do not repost, translate, or use my stories without permission.

You held the laundry basket against your hip, arm stretched out to the side as you walked down the hall to the last room at the end of the hallway. An earbud was in one ear, listening to your favorite music, occasionally nodding your head to the beat of it.

Hoseok’s heat had ended the other night, making it the first time in three days that you got to sleep longer than a couple hours. True to his word, he hadn’t been able to control himself after marking you, showing you another side of him that you never expected but you greatly enjoyed.

Entering the room, you hurried the best you could to the only empty washing machine, setting your basket on top of it to claim it, wincing while doing so. The only down side to rough sex meant that you were sore, and having a mate who enjoyed seeing you covered in hickeys, also meant that underneath your clothes your skin was dotted with various purple love bites.

Inside the laundry room, there were six washers and six dryers, five of which were already taken. The complex provided the machines, but the tenants had to use their own detergents and softeners, which you didn’t see as a hassle as some of the older tenants did. Against the left wall was a six-foot table in length, and a handful of black folding chairs incase anyone wanted to stick around. But there wasn’t anyone else in the room despite the machines running, so you didn’t feel guilty about setting your basket on the table.

You hummed along to the song as you got the water running, turning to separate the clothes. For the last three days, Hoseok and you were stuck to staying in the bedroom for the sake of keeping the rest of the furniture safe from your sexcapades. He already lived up to his promise of needing a new headboard, and you weren’t even positive if the sheets were salvageable at this point. With a shudder, your nose scrunched up at the thought.

As the washer filled with water, you tossed in a load of dark clothes, a mix of yours and Hoseok’s clothing. This was perhaps, the least exciting thing you’ve done since he came to stay with you. But it was the like nothing had changed. You were still you, the same woman who hated throwing all her laundry in the wash at once, unlike your neighbors who would rather toss it all in instead of separating them.

Since the task was so simple, your mind wandered to Sue and your friendship. You weren’t ready to say that it was dying, but you knew that it was nothing like it used to be. It felt like you were seeing her in a new light, one that painted her in a new light. During the last three days, your phone and Hoseok’s had taken turns with receiving messages from Sue, sometimes only minutes apart as she alternated between texting you. For obvious reasons you didn’t respond back. The only time you even touched your phone was when Hoseok went to go get snacks and food from the kitchen for you during the breaks. He didn’t let you leave the bed unless it was for the bathroom, but that was because he saw how sore and exhausted your body was.

You couldn’t help but shake your head, remembering how he had whined when you tried to go to the kitchen the first time after the first couple rounds. He knew exactly what was going to happen but you were being stubborn. It was a good thing he was right behind you when you stood, legs giving out at your attempt to stand. You had to reassure him more than once that you weren’t in pain.

Speaking of pain. Reaching up, you gently touched the bite mark on your neck with your fingers, only flinching a little. It was still sore and needed time to heal. How long it would take, you weren’t entirely sure. A sense of pride rushed through your body knowing that his mark was permanently there. You spent years, trying and failing to find the perfect man, only to realize he had been there all along. Tossing in the last shirt, you closed the lid. Maybe watching all those romance movies was starting to reflect on your life.

“Oops, I didn’t know someone was in here.”

Turning to look over your shoulder, you watched as two women entered the laundry room. They appeared to be a mother and daughter, sharing the same brown hair and thin nose. You knew the mother; her name was Mrs. Whitney and she lived three doors down from you.

“How are you doing hun?” Mrs. Whitney asked, adjusting her teal framed glasses as she went to the dryer against the right wall.

“Pretty good.” You answered, smiling when she looked your way. “Just trying too find the motivation to get a majority of the laundry done today.”

Mrs. Whitney chuckled as she put a basket on the floor. “Mind sending me some of that motivation when you find it?” With a glance over her shoulder, she gestured to her daughter who was sitting on one of the chairs, her eyes glued to her phone. “Better yet, send it to my daughter instead. Somebody doesn’t know when to set her phone down and help her mother.”

You pressed your lips together to keep from laughing. Instead you grabbed your own basket and tapped your fingers against the handle to give your hands something to do.

The daughter, realizing that she was being spoken about, lifted her head and forced a smile when your eyes met. She appeared to be around your age, young enough to have pink highlights in her hair and get away with it, but you didn’t immediately recognize her.

“You asked for company,” she told her mother.

“Yes, I did,” Mrs. Whitney agreed. “But I was hoping that you’d put the phone away too, Beth.”

Beth rolled her eyes, but she did put her phone in her pocket. “What would you like me to talk about?”

Leaning against the washer, you felt a pang of sympathy for Mrs. Whitney. You weren’t extremely close to her, but you were friendly enough to stop and have a conversation with each other if you weren’t press for time.

“Well, I think we have a new tenant living on this floor. I’m not sure what his name is, but I’ve seen him coming in and out. He’s a hybrid.”

You tilted your head to the side, biting back the smile that threatened to take over your face. No matter where you went, Hoseok managed to be the main story to any conversation as of late. “Actually,” you softly interjected. “That’s Hoseok. He’s staying with me while Sue, our friend and his owner, is away on the study abroad program offered at the college.”

Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed that Beth suddenly straightened up, her gaze focused on you.

Mrs. Wright on the other hand, just smiled. “Studying abroad? Well that’s exciting. Wait, Beth, don’t you have a friend doing that too?”

“Yeah, I’m friends with Sue too,” Beth explained. “She’s over in Hong Kong.”

If a dark cloud had the ability to form inside a building, you were willing to bet there was one hovering over your shoulder. You couldn’t recall ever seeing Beth, but the longer you look, she did seem familiar. She probably was friends with Sue. Even though it was a small town, the college attracted students from all over the state. If anything, you might have seen her in passing on campus.

There was just something about her that made your pulse race. Not like how it did when Hoseok was near. No. She gave you the same feeling you experienced every time you had to lock up the bookstore at night and had to walk around back to the parking lot where you kept your car. You felt nervous around her.

“Well isn’t this a small world,” Mrs. Whitney spoke, capturing your attention again.

You gave her a shaky smile, quickly nodding. “Yeah, small world.”

Shutting the dryer, she moved her full basket on to the table, pushing it against the wall to have space to fold her clothes. From what you could tell it was mostly whites and a dozen or two socks.

“That Hoseok, he seems around your age,” Mrs. Whitney sent you a knowing grin, obviously missing the mark that was on your neck. You knew that she meant well – things tended to go over her head sometimes �� but she truly was a sweet woman. For the first few months after you moved into your apartment, she was the only one to say hi to you and offer help when you needed it. “Is he seeing anyone?”

Beth snorted, drawing her mother’s attention. “Might want to clean your glasses mom and take a look at her neck. He’s seeing someone alright.” As if to prove her point, she pointed at your neck, her eyes narrowing when you reached up to cover the mark with your hand. But Mrs. Whitney saw it before you could hide it.

“Oh, I didn’t realize…” Mrs. Whitney’s hands grip tightened on the washcloth she had been folding. “I’m sorry hun, I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable.”

“It’s alright, Mrs. Whitney.”

The room went silent for a moment, the atmosphere so tense that it felt like it would suffocate you at any moment. Beth sat back in her seat, a smug grin on her face as she pulled out her phone.

“You know, he seems like a really nice man,” Mrs. Whitney softly said. “And as long as he makes you happy, then I don’t see any reason to dislike him.”

Looking up, you saw the gentle smile on her face that was meant just for you. “Thank you, Mrs. Whitney. Hoseok’s about the sweetest man you could ever meet.” Her smile widened as she began to fold her clothes once more, and you took that as your cue to leave.

You rubbed the mark once more before uncovering it, feeling Beth’s stare on it as you wished Mrs. Whitney a good day, hurrying out of the laundry room as fast as possible without drawing attention. Taking a shaky breath, your body moved on autopilot, the steps to your apartment already ingrained in your mind as your thoughts went elsewhere.

This wasn’t what you were expecting when you went to go do laundry. Obviously, there were still people who didn’t see hybrids as equals, but you didn’t think you’d run into someone who thought that way so soon. Especially someone who was a friend of Sue.

It didn’t change your mind or your feelings for Hoseok, you didn’t want to bother with people like Beth. What hurt was that she already had her mind made up about hybrids, and despite how sweet and understanding her mother is, she didn’t seem to be changing her mind anytime soon.

As you walked back into your apartment, you were still thinking about Beth when Hoseok walked out of your now shared bedroom, dropping a black garbage bag on the floor.

“Bad news,” he announced, scratching the base of his dog ears.

Raising an eyebrow, the corner of your lips curved into a smile as you guessed what was in the bag. “We need new bed sheets?”

“I’m thinking we should buy a bunch, that way if they get ruined, we don’t have to constantly go out to the store.” He had the decency to look partially guilty, but it was still amusing. Walking around the bag, he went to take the basket from you when he frowned, his tail stilling as he took in the not so happy look on your face. “Strawberry, is everything okay? If it’s about the sheets, I’m sorry. Ripping them was the last thing I planned to do.”

You shook your head though, effectively cutting him off. “No, it’s not that. Do you recall someone named Beth Whitney?” You asked, setting the basket on the floor. “Pink highlights, apparently a friend of Sue?”

He frowned as he thought about it, moving closer so he could slip his hand into yours. “The name sounds familiar, but I can’t picture her. I might’ve met her at some point, Sue and Colin always had people over. Why do you ask?”

“I ran into her and her mom in the laundry room,” you answered, stepping into his embrace. His arms went around your back as he looked down at you. “She was very interested in the fact that you were staying with me. Beth, that is.”

Hoseok tilted his head. “Well, that’s weird.” But he kissed your forehead and your body relaxed at his touch. These three days had been amazing, and to see you suddenly so sad didn’t sit well with him. “I wouldn’t worry about it though. She’s probably someone who’s nosey. Sue always had a few friends who couldn’t mind their own business. We on the other hand, have to go shopping for a new headboard and sheets.”

That made you chuckle, and as you went to retrieve your purse, you couldn’t shake the strange feeling. It was like a cold breeze that never died down. You tried not to think about it, and when the two of you left, Hoseok wrapped an arm around your shoulders as you headed for the elevator. His touch warmed you up, but you could feel a pair of eyes on you that didn’t go away until the elevator doors closed shut.

[imagineyoungjustice]

1.5k Followers Milestone Drabbles 9/10

Zantanna anon here: I'm here to get Terra to write more Z stuff bc she's so good at it. More adventures with Z and her civilian s/o. Maybe her s/o stays with her at the base after their apartment is wrecked by a villain? Just cute awkward interactions with the team and protective Zatanna. Bonus points if: They get startled by a bat family member appearing out of no where. Drabble would be great if it's still open. -Anonymous

Z anon I dearly love you. I also love this series. At least I think at this point it’s a series. Anyway this would be set sometime after the first drabble from the Halloween event that you can read here! I’m pretty sure I read somewhere that the Watchtower doesn’t have permanent residence options or it’s just that no one lives up there. Either way I gave it some rooms that are just for temporary use in order to make this drabble work -Terra

Tags: @ljblve @loverbug1123 @aworldwideapart @wallywestie

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           You gripped the mug in your hand, the warm liquid seeping through the ceramic into your fingers which gripped with a determined force as you willed the rest of your body to not betray your fear. You were lost inside your own mind, your eyes wide and blank as they stared into the contents of your drink. As if the faint steam rising from the surface would have given you the answers you sought, or the comfort you wished you still felt in your home.

           There was movement around you. Footsteps echoing off the walls, the sight crunch of a boot on broken glass that had the corners of your mouth tighten as you fought off a wince. Your apartment was in utter shambles: pictures lay strewn on the ground, torn off the walls with broken frames and shattered glass littering the floors, most of your furniture was either pushed over or destroyed, cabinets were left hanging open with most of their contents joining the glass. At some point, you dimly registered the dip of your tattered couch as your girlfriend, Zatanna, sat down beside you.

           “Whoever was here is long gone.” Batman’s voice broke you out of your own thoughts. You felt your stomach drop, knowing that they would just keep coming back until they were caught.

           Zatanna noticed your frown, one of her arms coming to rest on your back while the other rested on your forearm. “Don’t worry, we will find them. I’m not going to let anyone hurt you.” You didn’t really feel that much at ease from her words, your eyes taking stock at the destruction that was once your home.

           “What happened to the protection wards you had placed around the area?” Batman was addressing Zatanna directly, but you could still feel his gaze on you from underneath his cowl.

           “They were destroyed. No wards are perfect, anyone with a high degree of arcane ability could have gotten around them.”        

          You felt your attention drifting as they continued. Part of you knew this would have happened at some point, but it didn’t make the situation any less terrifying for you. Someone had been in your home, looking for you, or looking for Zatanna. Both options fueled the fear churning deep in your gut. Zatanna had always been careful, always tried to look out for you, to keep the bad parts of her job far away and distant from you. But now everything felt so real, so prevalent. The dangers were real, and you had been a fool to think that you would always be insulated from them.

          Someone dangerous had been inside your home, and you knew that you were no longer safe there. You would have to move, but to where? You didn’t have the funds to pick up and change locations, your shitty, minimum wage job didn’t leave you much in the way of extra funds after bills. You could move in with Zatanna? You mentally shook your head. Maybe you were ready to take that next step in your relationship with her, but you weren’t sure if Zatanna was, and you wouldn’t dare force something as big as that on her in a situation like this. But in truth, what other options did you really have? You couldn’t stay with family, if the person who did this was after you, it would only put them in danger too.

          You were so wrapped up in your own mind, that it took Zatanna several tries of calling your name for you to finally notice. “Hey, are you okay?” Her face was furrowed with concern, and you felt a pang in your own heart at seeing her poorly hidden guilt. This wasn’t her fault, despite how much she might think it was in this moment.

          You placed one of your hands over hers. “I will be, I’m just a little shaken up right now.” You gave a small smile as she squeezed your hand, though it quickly went away as you continued. “Where am I supposed to go now? I can’t stay here.”

          “We were just discussing that.” Zatanna said. Her grip on your hand tightened. “We believe that until we can be sure you’re no longer in any danger, that the safest place for you right now is among the rest of the League and the Team.”

          You frowned. “I thought Mount Justice blew up, and the Hall was decimated?”

          “They did and were, but you wouldn’t have been staying there anyway. To ensure your protection you’d need to be in a place where you’d be most protected, where the League could keep a constant watch for your well-being.” Batman began, coming around to stand in the center of your field of vision. He looked taller in the moonlight emanating from your sliding door to your balcony, illuminating his silhouette.

          Realization washed over you, your eyes growing wide. “You mean…”

          “Yes. You’d be staying in the Watchtower until we could be sure you’re no longer in any danger.”

          You felt the air rush from your lungs. The Watchtower? You stared at Batman in pure disbelief at what you heard come from his mouth. Perhaps your look came off more as panic than the shock that currently paralyzed your body and thankfully replaced your fear, because Zatanna was quick to speak up.

          “You wouldn’t be staying there alone of course! I’d be staying there too when I’m not looking for the person who did this. That way you wouldn’t be on your own.”

          You nodded your thanks, gaining some control back over your body. “Sorry I was just…surprised I guess that I’d be staying in the actual Watchtower.” You felt a little embarrassed in the moment and tried to quickly move on. “I should probably start packing what’s left of my things.” You started to get up, and Zatanna followed you to your room.

          “I’ll help you out. Some of the other Leaguer’s will be here later to bring what we don’t take with us the first time.” You nodded and made your way to the remains of your room, stepping around the glass on the ground. You picked up a few of the salvageable pictures as you went, some of friends and family, others of you and Zatanna. You set them down carefully on your bed as you searched for a suitcase. You went to open your sliding closet door, and shirked when it came off the track, falling to the ground with a loud thud and making you jump back.

          “Oops?” You said as you looked over to your girlfriend who had whipped around when she heard the noise. She was on the other end of your room seeing what clothes she could salvage from your dresser. She just let out a small chuckled and turned back to her work. You did the same, still trying to clam your racing heartbeat. Thankfully, your luggage was relatively in the same corner of your closet and largely undamaged. You set them down on your bed and began the long and careful process of picking through the remnants of your belongings and packing them away.

          The first rays of dawn would begin to appear over the horizon by the time you and Zatanna had finished your task. In the new light, you felt your heart sink some more in your chest as you could more clearly take stock of the damage that had been done. Zatanna placed her hand in yours, as if sensing your thoughts.

          “We’ll get through this, together.” You just nodded and squeezed her hand in yours. She gave you a small smile, and then moved to grab some of your luggage. “We should start getting everything to the Watchtower, unless we’re forgetting something?”

          “No, I think we have everything that survived ready to go.” She just nodded and handed you a few of the suitcases, following you out the door of your apartment for the last time. On your way you passed by the rest of your belongings piled up by the door, remembering that Batman said the rest of the League would stop by later to bring the rest. It was strange for you to see that pile, all that remained of your things. This apartment had been your first, and even though it wasn’t the best one by far, it was still the first place you could call your own. In a few ways, it hit you hard to know that this was how that first chapter of your life had ended, a few boxes and suitcases being all that remained.

          On the journey to the Watchtower, you spent most of it lost within your own head. Still, you were reeling from the events that brought you to this moment. The whole time, Zatanna was right next to you, some part of her always touching you in silent reassurance. That small warm feeling you felt within your chest was welcome. In truth, you weren’t able to process much by the time you actually did arrive to the orbiting station. The ride up in M’gann’s borrowed bioship had been silent, letting your exhaustion catch up to you and hold fast. Racking your brain through the haze, you realized it had been more than twenty-four hours since you had last slept.

          Zatanna had murmured something to the person waiting when you two walked off the bioship, his skin was dark with black tattoo’s running up the length of his arms. Cal? Kelder? You frowned as you tried to remember all the times Zatanna had talked about her hero friends, and match the descriptions to the names. Before you had a chance to ask, he turned around and left after giving you a respectful nod.

          “I asked Kaldur to wait and hold the introductions until after you’ve had a chance to rest. I know you’re probably exhausted.”

          You nodded, grateful, and let yourself be led down a separate hallway. The room you ended up in was actually rather cozy if you were in more of an alert mental state to take note of it. It wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t small enough to feel cramped in either. It had just enough space for a couple dressers, a closet, a bed, and a small attached bathroom with some space between everything to walk around. Across from the door there was a large window which showcased quite the breathtaking view of the cosmos and Earth. Through bleary eyes, you could just barely register where the bed was as you let the artificial gravity do its job and let you flop onto the soft blankets. There was a chuckle above you, and you wasted no time in pulling back the covers and making yourself comfortable.

          Before you could drift off, you felt your girlfriend place a light kiss onto your forehead. “Sleep well, I’ll see you later okay?”

          Wait, no. You didn’t want her to leave you alone. “Zeeee.” You knew you sounded whiny, but you couldn’t care less. She turned around to look with an eyebrow raised. You held up the end of the covers in invitation. “Please?”

          She sighed but had a smile on her face “Only because you said please.” You pulled her into your arms once she laid down and finally succumbing, drifted off.

          Hours later when you finally opened your eyes, you were thrown off by the unfamiliar surroundings. You sat up and looked around the room, your eyes widening in shock when you looked out the window and saw your whole ass planet filling three quarters of the glass. That’s when the events of the previous night came flooding back through your mind. You felt your heart rate start to pick up and had to take a moment to force yourself to take a stabilizing breath before you could freak out. You felt the bed move next to you and you glanced down to your right to see your Zatanna also in the process of waking up, you felt a little guilty about moving now that you remembered she was next to you.

          “Mmh. Morning.” She mumbled, bringing one hand up to rub the sleep from her eyes.

          “If it was morning when we fell asleep, I think it’s more likely that it’s turning night before anything else.”

          “Good point.” She sat up in the bed and wrapped her arms around you, looking up at you from where she had her head resting against your shoulder. “How are you holding up.”

          “I’m still kind of processing everything, but I think I’ll be okay.”

          She nodded in understanding and moved to stand up. “I’ll let you get ready, and after that I’ll take you on a tour of the place, so you know where everything’s at. Sound good?”

          “Sounds good, but don’t you also need a shower?”

          She smirked, and you knew exactly what was coming. “ekam em naelc!” There was a shimmering aura around her body for a brief moment and when it disappeared, it had her clothes and hair looking a lot fresher than they had been a moment before.

          You huffed. “Using magic is cheating.” She just laughed and blew a kiss at you as she started to walk out of the room, mentioning about being right back as soon as she had a chance to talk to Kaldur about something.

          True to her word, she was back in the room and waiting for you by the time you emerged dressed and ready from the small bathroom. As you let Zatanna lead you out the door and begin the tour, you could feel the pit of anxiety in your stomach start to grow. Just around the next corner could be anyone from Superman to Robin and every kind of hero in between. You were just an ordinary civilian who happened to be dating one of them, you didn’t really think you had much business being right in the middle of their HQ at all, yet here you were being shown the place that would be your home for the foreseeable future.

           By the time the tour was over you were struggling to remember all the different hallways and the places they led. You completely forgot about the fact that you would be meeting the Justice League’s covert team that you would be sharing a floor with until you turned the corner and saw them all gathered there in the middle of the grove that lined the bottom of the station. You felt your heart flutter in apprehension and tried to keep your gaze down as you were led over. Thankfully, the uneven ground as you transitioned from metal floor to grass was a good enough excuse to do so.

           Before you could even get a word out in the way of introductions, the sudden appearance of a teen in a bright yellow and red suit on your right had you shrieking and tripping over and exposed root, falling (very gracefully) onto your ass in front of everyone.

          “HeynicetomeetyouI’mtheoneandonlyKidFlashandohnoI’msosorryhereletmehelpyouup-”

           “Bart.” Zatanna’s voice was firm and he looked up at her with a sheepish grin.

          “Sorry, didn’t realize superspeed would have them feeling the mode.”

          “I’m fine, really.” You said, standing up and dusting yourself off. “You just… caught me off guard. I’m not exactly used to this kind of stuff all the time.” At a much slower pace, the rest of the team came up and introduced themselves, making your mind spin more as you did your best to also remember the faces to the names. By the time you two made it back to your room hours later, you were mentally taxed by all the information.

          Seeing your state, Zatanna chuckled and kissed your forehead. “I know it’s a lot of information to take in all at once, but I’ll be here with you the whole time, and the Team is here to help too so don’t be afraid to ask them if you need it okay?” You made a noncommittal noise and let yourself be positioned until the two of you were cuddling on your bed. “We’ll start looking for places for you to move into tomorrow okay? We’ll find whoever did this before long, and I want to make sure you’ll have a place lined up for when you’re ready for it.”

          You smiled and kissed her goodnight before allowing yourself to drift off once again.

          The days started to blend together, and most of the other introductions to the team went a lot less chaotic than the first one, a fact you were thankful for. Bart seemed to actively go out of his way to make sure he wouldn’t accidentally scare you with his speed again, making sure to deliberately not use it if you were in the same room as him. Mainly, you found yourself hanging around the some of the older members of the Team, the ones who had known Zatanna the longest -and the ones less prone to making you jump out of your skin, even accidentally- and some of the younger members of the League who got along well with Zatanna. Dr. Fate had approached you at one point, and awkward wasn’t an adequate enough word to describe how that went. Zatanna had told you all about what happened to her father, the deal he had struck with Nabu to spare your girlfriend from that fate, and you felt uneasy whenever he was around, knowing how much emotional pain Zatanna still experienced over the whole thing. Thankfully, Nabu seemed capable of taking a hint, and made it a point not to stick around you if it could be helped. When Zatanna wasn’t out looking for the one responsible, she was practically glued to your side. You weren’t complaining, this was the most you two had ever seen each other in go and falling asleep with her next to you every night was equally as good, though of course the circumstances could have always been better.

          Each day she promised you she was getting closer to ending this so you could work on moving into the new apartment she had helped you pick out, one that you were assured would actually be kept safe. The question to ask her to move in with you had been on the tip of your tongue ever since, but you still hadn’t worked up the courage to actually ask her yet. Every single time you thought you would actually get to ask her, you’d back out at the last second, mentally kicking yourself for being so afraid to ask.

          “Hey you must be Zatanna’s girlfriend it’s nice to meet y-“ Robin stopped his sentence in his tracks when you jumped and let out an embarrassingly loud shriek. You hadn’t heard him come in. As it was you had your hand over your chest to calm your racing heart, taking deep breaths to aid the process.

          “I’m sorry! You just came out of nowhere I didn’t hear you.” You were quick to sputter out an apology when you had calmed down enough to see that your newest guest looked a little guilty.

          “It’s okay, if anything it was my fault. There’s kind of a thing going around that us bats have a tendency to just ‘show up’ and I guess it’s kind of true.” He rubbed at the back of his neck. “Sorry for almost giving you a heart attack.”

          You let out a small laugh. “Yeah well in all honesty, I’ve been told that I’m just a little bit on the jumpy side.” The conversation lapsed into silence, both of you unsure of where to go from there. “So… you’re… Robin?”

          At the mention of his codename, he seemed to jerk back into awareness. “Huh? Yes, that’s me. Nice to meet you uh…”

          You quickly gave him your name and shook his hand when he offered it. Minor heart attack aside, he seemed to be just as slightly awkward as you were when it came to social interactions, something you were admittedly thankful for as it quickly became a bonding point between the two of you.

          That’s how Zatanna found you some time later. She darted into the room, calling your name with a certain glint in her eye and a wide smile that had your interest piqued. She was just a hair on the breathless side as she spoke. “I got him! You’re not in danger anymore!”

          “I’ll give you two the room.” Robin said, nodding to the two of you before slipping around Zatanna and disappearing around the corner.

          “Really? Who was it?” You were smiling now too, happy that you wouldn’t have that vague sense of looming danger over your head anymore.

          “Wotan actually, but don’t worry I made sure he won’t be willing to pull that kind of stunt again. I also made sure he wouldn’t have the means to track or find out where you’ll be living.” You pulled her into a hug, relived that you were no longer in any kind of danger. On the other hand, you had grown accustomed to the bustle of the Watchtower and had also grown to like having the other members of the League and the Team to talk to. Talking to them helped you feel closer to your girlfriend in a way you didn’t even know you were missing out on until now, being a spectator to an aspect of her life that you hadn’t really known too much about before.

          Most of your things had already been moved into the apartment when you had secured the lease, all that was left was to pack up the couple suitcases you had been living out of during your stay on the station. Saying your goodbyes to the Team was a little harder than you’d ever thought it would have been when you first got there, but you were able to placate most of their upset with a promise to visit, and have some of them over at a later date. Whereas the ride up to the Watchtower had been silent, with you lost in your own head, the ride back to Earth was full of lively conversation, both you and Zatanna talking about anything and everything as you used to before this whole thing had happened.

          The apartment was way nicer than the dingy shithole you had originally rented, and you weren’t even paying that much more than you were before, managing to secure a miraculously good deal for an apartment that was practically twice the size of your old one. Zatanna wouldn’t mention how she had managed to get a deal so good, and you weren’t quite sure you wanted to know. The only information you had been able to get from her was that she had help from a “friend in Gotham.”

          You left your suitcases by your bedroom door, taking a moment to relax on your crappy, temporary furniture with Zatanna. Your thumbs stroked the glass in your hands. The question was still there, lingering, just waiting for you to finally finish taking the plunge. “You know, this place seems pretty big. I think I’m going to feel lonely here all by myself.” You caught met ger gaze as she looked back at you, her eyes asking if you were saying what she thought you were saying. You took a deep breath; it was now or never. “Though I wouldn’t be opposed to sharing it with you… that is… if you wanted to.” You were nervous as you waited for her answer.

          She pulled you in for a passionate kiss. “I thought you’d never ask.”

[enkisstories]

What are you?

- A Detroit Become Human drabble - - Sometime 2039 - - AU: Deviant path Connor, revolution succesful -

“I’ve never before seen an android like you...” A mix of wonder and disbelief sounded in Detective Reed’s voice. And while Connor was standing across from him all relaxed, expecting a civilized exchange for once, the man followed up: “For real, man! I can’t believe someone blew good money on you! You’re butt ugly!”

“Cut!” someone yelled. “Cut, cut, cut!”

Laughing Gavin Reed dodged out of the camera’s range. And there, in the perpetual semi-darkness of the DPD’s cafeteria, the new janitor was already expecting him, one hand raised. They high-fived each other, still shaking with laughter. Meanwhile Connor was muttering something that sounded like “Kill’em with fire, both of them”, but that only served to fuel the other two’s amusement. In fact, Reed turned the janitor – a PL600 android whose nametag read “Daniel” – around by the shoulders for him to get a better look at Connor’s expression. He was rewarded with a wide, satisfied smile on the PL600’s face.

Now the director approached the duo, waving the movie script like a flag.

“Let’s assume everyone here is actually mature and you just forgot your lines!” the man addressed Reed. “You, detective, were to express bewilderment at the new android’s identity.”

“I know Connor identity. It’s like a fucking vegan in this regard, telling everyone the moment it enters a room.”

“Connor’s product identity, I mean. So you approach it and ask “What model are you?”…”

“Why would I do that?” Gavin objected. “It’s clearly spelled out on the jacket: RK800.”

“Because”, the director replied, patiently as if talking to a bunch of kindergarteners, “Connor will then preach its system specs and assorted information to you, aka the audience. CyberLife wants to sell that shit, after all!”

The janitor frowned at these words.

“So they want to sell PL600s again, too?” he asked.

“Nonsense!” the director dismissed the outlandish suggestion. “There’d be no gain in that!”

“But that’s how Markus won the revolution”, Daniel insisted. “By kissing Simon on the mouth right in front of the TV cameras. If exposing Connor to the spotlight serves to advertise its successor model, how much more must the audience crave to buy, uh, me, after seeing this?”

“Well, about that…” The director started, but then reconsidered and pressed the tablet he was holding into a script caddy’s hands, nodding to her in a “you tell’em” manner. After all, this janitor and his detective companion had proven to be of explosive temperament before. There was really no reason to remain within their range when the young woman could serve as their aggression sponge just as well.

The script caddy turned around the tablet to check whether her baby had gotten hurt while being held by her boss. She blew some unseen dust off the device, then looked up to Daniel and then down at Gavin.

“Thing is, in the movie Markus won’t be kissing Simon”, she explained. “He’ll kiss North instead.”

The announcement was met with various expressions of “North!”, “North?”, “Noooooorth…”, “North?!” and, in Lt. Anderson’s case, a tired grunt along the lines of “Oops, I dozed away, did I miss anything important?”

You had to acquire a quantum of de-sensibilization in their line of work, nonetheless a good number of the assembled officers, including two of the normally expressionless android beat cops, was glaring at the movie team now. Only Daniel didn’t bother with staring for long. He shot forward, grabbed the director by his collar and rammed him against the wall.

“Gavin, help me!” the android hissed through clenched teeth while holding the man.

The detective shrugged. “Yeah, right …” he started. “It’s, uh, okay. You, uh, can control yourself and stuff.”

“What are you babbling there?” the android replied, clearly irritated. “I need you to punch this piece of human trash in my place! You hit harder than me!”

The situation wasn’t helped by the Lieutenant coming fully awake now and trying to figure out what was going on here. Daniel and Gavin being violent? check. Connor looking hurt? Check. Tina Chen merely existing? Check. Everything was in order, just as always. So what had caused the ruckus? Ah, right. That one guy Daniel was holding had to be the culprit. Of course the janitor was lacking proper authority to make arrest. Hank raised his voice: “Connor, you take this rat the holding cells!”

“Never been happier to carry out an order”, the RK800 replied. He turned to Daniel. “May I?”

“All yours now.”

Connor took the movie director from Daniel, then he “glitched out” and “accidently” kicked man in the stomach where it wouldn’t show later. Then the RK800 turned his arrest over to one of the android beat cops.

The officers watched the android frogmarch the man away, all the while also suffering from a few glitches that ended in the human going “ouch” and “whimper”. One didn’t call Connor “that shit” here and got away with it. Even Reed and Daniel were using their jabs against the RK800 more like synonyms for “Good morning” nowadays. Hank had long since learned to distinguish those from actual insults, which were quickly retaliated.

“What is that about?” the script caddy asked, bewildered. “I’m not from Detroit. Frak, I didn’t even watch much of the news related to the revolution, thinking it wasn’t important. I know who Markus Manfred is, but the rest are just names with no faces to connect to. Sorry.”

“North used to be a fu…” Gavin started, but Connor interrupted him. “Android sex worker”, he finished the sentence. “Thing is, deviants have entered relationships, because our psychology isn’t so different from yours. But only a rare few are sexually active. Realistically in the movie you can have one main couple, with maybe one or two more getting teased, but not confirmed in canon. If North of all people is shown to exchange intimacy with another character, that will send a damn questionable message to humans and androids alike.”

While Connor spoke, Daniel filled Hank in about the details of what had really happened. The lieutenant nodded a few times, but didn’t take his order back. The only thing the man rued was that he couldn’t locate the script writer and arrest him or her, too.

“So, did Markus sign the same deal Captain Fowler was fast-talked into?” Hank asked. “Does Jericho have to perform a few “Starring real participants of the revolution!!!” scenes for your goddam movie?”

Several of the movie team members shook their heads. No, Jericho wasn’t required to have a part in this. Each and every one of the rebels would be portrayed by a human actor instead. What was another can of worms, altogether.

“I didn’t feel that helpless when CyberLife was still pulling my strings”, Connor spoke up. “Didn’t we win the revolution? I know we did, only it doesn’t feel like it. At all.”

“You aren’t getting payed to feel”, Gavin Reed remarked.

Connor shot the detective a long, thoughtful glance. Eventually he said: “But I am getting payed. As part of the team I’m bound to this farce, but I, Connor, have not signed anything. Getting out of the contract is as easy as quitting.”

“Quit policework? You?!” Gavin sputtered. “What the fuck, you’re threatening everyone’s job security already, and now your own, too?! You’re batshit-crazy, mate!”

“For real!” Daniel added. “Even if it is no longer what you ARE, it is what you LOVE!”

And giving up something or someone that was dear to one was just unthinkable to the janitor.

Connor grabbed them both and pulled them into a huddle.

“Of course I won’t! But make the public believe I might, that I will do! Before androids there was the internet and it is still a powerful tool in our hands! If the public sees what lengths I’m prepared to go to to distance myself from the movie, some will start thinking. Ey… a few, anyway.”

“And you’re doing this because of the kiss?”

“Because of everything, Daniel. But also the kiss, yes.”

“Ah! Fancy North yourself, huh? Or Markus?”

“No! Neither!”

“Then who? Simon maybe?”

“Or Hank?”

“I do not fancy any human or android!”

“Of course you’d say that. Now look…”

And while Reed and the two androids were arguing, Hank Anderson leaned back on his chair with a smirk. This was exactly the sort of trouble a young man should have to deal with: His co-workers teasing him about a love interest. Not sorting out the problems of all of androidkind. Connor’s plan had merit, that much Hank had to agree. But setting that plan in motion could wait until after the youth had had a chance to be alive today.

[jadeile-writes]

Fanfic Progress Update 39

Hello, and welcome to Fanfic Progress Update! Stay tuned to the end of this post for a spoiler-y glimpse into the next chapter of... no, wait! No Mini this time. You already had a long glimpse into Mini last week and the actual chapter will be published very soon. Instead, there will be a sneak-peek into Aceducation (previously known as No Touchy), just in case it ends up being the next thing I’ll publish. We’ll get new, fresh spoilers for Mini next week, I promise.

Current WIPs:

Adventure gone Mini

Fandom: Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild / The Minish Cap

Summary: Sidon is given his very own Sheikah Slate, the first replica Purah has managed to make, and sets out to travel with Link with the intention of registering warp points for convenient travel in the future. However, when a malfunction shrinks them down to the size of bugs, and they meet little people called the Minish, they have to change their plans from “fun adventuring” to “getting out of this mess”. Not that those two have to exclude one another. Link/Sidon.

Progress: Chapter 30 is the current latest chapter and was posted on 6th of November. Chapter 31 is done and will be posted on 27th of November aka next Wednesday. Chapter 32 hasn’t been started yet.

I update this fic every three weeks on Wednesdays. As a side note, the fact that I have another fandom now doesn’t meant I’ll stop writing this fic. My weekly writing hour will still be dedicated to Mini alone. I really want to see this baby finished, no matter how long it takes!

—–

Aceducation (previously No Touchy)

Fandom: Hazbin Hotel

Summary (temporary): Angel Dust takes notice of the fact that Alastor is not getting laid, and figures he should be a good friend and fix the situation. Namely by seducing Alastor himself. Alastor is not amused. Angel Dust/Alastor (kinda) … this is actually not a comedy fic, not fully anyway, despite this summary. Hence why it’ll be replaced when I post this.

Progress: 2 chapters out of 3 have been written, although the second one needs some heavy editing to pass my muster. I’ll start posting this once the last chapter is finished, and likely pace it out by posting every other day. No progress since the last update because of the fic below. But I intend to get back to this soon to get this out of the way and to keep my shiny new followers for this fandom happy. So, fingers crossed for this coming out next week!

—–

Shit, the Radio Demon is a part of my afterlife

Fandom: Hazbin Hotel

Summary (temporary): Husk is just a regular ass demon, minding his own business and living his afterlife mostly in misery. He’s been at it for about ten years when then the Radio Demon shows up and suddenly his life becomes a lot more interesting, whether he wants it or not. Husk/Alastor, slowburn.

Progress: Chapters 1-5 and 7 are ready. Also, about a half of chapter... 10-ish is written. Yay for slice of life with big time jumps; makes writing chapters out of order possible! My estimate for this fic’s length is currently at 15 or so chapters. So uh, epic-ish sized, after all. Oops.

I don’t yet know when I’ll start publishing this. It’s quite possible I’ll begin before I’m done writing all of it because I already have a sizeable buffer, but at the same time I’m hesitant because of Adventure Gone Mini; it needs to remain my priority when it comes to steady writing. This fic has been more inspiration spree driven and that’s why I’ve written like... 15k words in less than two weeks. Holy shit. Anyway, I think I’ll publish a new chapter once a week when I start doing it, and I really doubt I’ll be able to refrain from publishing the first chapter when I have ten chapters done, if not even earlier than that. Stay tuned!

—–

Other WIPs I’m not currently working on but intend to get back to someday:

PoE Drabbles (Pillars of Eternity)

DC Drabbles (Justice League)

Diaphanous Relations (Forgotten Realms, R.A. Salvatore’s books)

Rolling with it (Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild)

Possibly worth staying for (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power)

—–

That’s it for the WIPs! Here’s a sneak-peek into a brand new Hazbin Hotel fic, Aceducation! It’s from the beginning of the first chapter. (Note: the text may end up slightly different in the fic itself due to more editing happening before publishing). Enjoy!

The Happy Hotel – or Hazbin Hotel, as the building itself said nowadays – had been running properly for a few weeks now. It was still a bit of a ghostville as far as demons seeking rehabilitation went, but at least curious demons dropped by to check it out for a cheap laugh on a daily basis, which counted as publicity. Even better, some had actually taken to visiting the front desk that doubled as a bar semi-regularly afterwards for the surprisingly good drinks Husk mixed. The lobby turning into an outright bar wasn't quite what Charlie had in mind, although she did cheerfully thrust info pamphlets at the visitors, but Angel Dust was truly surprised that they now had that many faces around. Regulars, even. He had honestly expected to have the bar all to himself ever since it was made, with only the occasional appearance from Alastor to break the monotone. This was much better.

Speaking of the Radio Demon, who was currently sitting at the bar by himself and enjoying a glass of whiskey, Angel Dust had noticed something very peculiar and simply unfathomable about him over the weeks spent at the hotel together. Or a few things actually, all likely related to each other.

That’s it this time. See you next Saturday!

[withahappyrefrain]

i have 2 questions for but one for each these 2 writing pieces 1.) in your drabble for spider-man being a stranger to reader what made you go for a cute meet-up ending 2.) when writing/planning for countdown was there anything you had considered in terms of other iterations of soulmate aus or was the timer concept your 1st choice? Is there anything you had to cut out from countdown from your drafts upon final publish due to length or time that you’d be okay with sharing as headcanons

1) I'm a complete and utter simp for a cute meet-up. Also I'd feel like Peter would have that kinda luck, you know? He is finally bold and has a one night stand and oops, the one night stand has been the person his Aunt has been trying to set him up with for years. Also it was a fun reference to how Peter meets MJ in the comics! :)

2) so I did debate doing a few other things instead of the timers! I had seen a soulmate AU prompt that was like "you feel whatever feeling your soulmate is feeling" and it gets more intense as they get closer to you. And like, that had so much angst potential, just poor reader being like "good lord my soulmate is SAD, I need to find this person and cheer them up!" I also debated the idea of having a matching tattoo

I picked the timer concept bc I really liked it and thought I could switch it up with the whole "certain decisions can affect the time you have remaining". I really wanted to explore the balance between free will and destiny.

Headcannons/cut ideas are under the readmore

-i thought about doing a bit where reader mentions how living on the sixth floor of an apartment with no elevator will be 'interesting' with a sprained leg and Peter would just casually be like "oh, I can just carry you I have super strength" and reader is at first like O.O and then like "oh yeah duh you're Spider-Man"

-I also thought about having Peter still experience the events of No Way Home before meeting the reader and then when he talks to them at the hospital, reader mentions their childhood nickname being MJ (not due to initials). I thought it would be cute to suggest that Peter was always meant to be with reader, timer or not. But it was getting long and I figured he still gets his chance of redemption by saving them and that's still meaningful :)

-i also debated having Peter roll up his mask enough to reveal his lips and like, kisses the reader's forehead after he rescues her, as a way to reassure them that he's not just ditching them. But then I'd realized that if reader is injured, Peter would be more focused on getting them help than kiss them which like, 100% fair

[cruelwritersthesis]

how would luke react to nick? like i keep imaging it in my head, like maybe luke never went twith the whole over throw the gods thing, maybe the gods kinda enslaved him instead, who know? All i need to know is how luke would handle nick being in love with tori. (A drabble, full length thing, bullet point headcanons I DINT CARE I NEED ANSWERS)

i was almost like: yeah! here are some headcanons

*lists them out*

then was like…wait

this is my story. nick is my character, and while luke isn’t my character, i have created an au, which is my au with my oc, so these aren’t even headcanons they’re most def canon

tho…canon that are subject to change, should i ever like actually address this in my story XP

also sorry this took me so long, i’m home for winter holiday and was spending time with my mom and getting presents for my friends (at the biggest, bestest bookstore, i could live there if they’d let me)

anyway

so let’s say luke comes back to camp somehow, someway he’s back at camp

and like the camp’s pretty okay with it???

but luke def gets a lot of “that’s the scary blond guy with the scar?” from the young’ins and “oh great the scary blond guy with the scar is back” from everyone else

but uh, that’s kinda a tangent

luke’s back everyone!

tori can’t keep anything from him bc she’s tori and she loves him so fucking much

besides, she’s a terrible liar around him bc he knows all her tells

it’s worse bc he’s a son of hermes, who is like, the god of reading tells

hermes is a trickster, a con artist, of course he’s gonna know how to read tells what

anyway, at first tori kinda just forgets abt it as she do, but luke doesn’t fail to notice the wounded doe eyes nick gives tori whenever she interacts with luke

and so he finally brings it up

side note: luke is super territorial abt tori, so he notices anyone giving her any sort of eyes

and not like in a possessive, unhealthy way, he’s just like…he loves her so much and no fucking way is he gonna let anyone else take her from him

not that he thinks she’s just drop him like a hot cake, but bc he’s a jealous bastard

and so it tori, so like they’re made for each other

back to the main point, he brings it up to her one night, on the roof of the hermes cabin (shhh)

and she just kind of freezes for a moment, trying to work out the best way to break it to him

she’s a little afraid of how he’ll react. not that he’d ever hurt her, but she doesn’t want to see him angry and hurt

of course, he’s angry and hurt anyway when she finally does reveal what that’s all abt, but he can’t help it and she knows this

she def tells him everything: the magic tricks, the growing closer, the kiss (yikes™), the uh…the fact that nick is now hopelessly and helplessly in love with tori (oops)

and from that point on nick would most def be enemy 第一个 (which is basically “number one” in chinese hey everyone always uses spanish so i though i’d mix it up a little, also i’m chinese so) in luke’s eyes

at first, nick’s most def intimidated by luke

big shot–almost destroyed the world, then saved it, is now back at camp, is older, and has a scary scar on his face

but nick doesn’t show it, he closes off his emotions instead

and ppl perceive this as him backing down and being a little meek abt it

it’s bc of his heritage, having grown up in two diff cultures: chinese and american

in china, ppl are taught not to really show their emotions, esp the men so like he falls back into smth that’s comfortable, self-contained, and safe for him, which ppl then misconstrue as meek

putting up his walls protects him from the emotions he’s afraid to feel: the hurt to know that tori really is forever out of his reach, his anger and jealousy toward luke

luke and nick don’t interact at all, and since tori’s nearly always with luke, leaving nick little to no time to hang out with tori like he’s been doing (just as friends, but he’s never gotten over his feelings toward her)

luke just gives him glares every moment he gets, and gets overly touchy-feely with tori to make sure nick knows that tori is his

and yeah it sounds a bit possessive, but luke is also 110% tori’s too (she owns his ass, bruh)

it’s all mutual and respectful, anyway

tori, as per yuzh, is oblivious to the fact that luke may be, just a little, slightly jealous

nick just pretends not to notice luke

until it becomes too much and his more americanized cultural side comes out

nick gets kinda aggressive

but it’s like an inbetween of aggressive and passive-aggressive

he doesn’t outright challenge luke to a duel or anything

but if luke starts to glare at him as they pass, he’ll make it a point to glare back

one time he even shoved luke’s shoulder

that’s what starts the feud between the hermes cabin and the hecate cabin

officially apollo is swizterland

unofficially, bc tori will always side with luke (even if she says she doesn’t), the apollo cabin sides with the hermes cabin

her siblings grudgingly side with her, but they’re don’t exactly wish luke well, despite how much their half-sister loves him, but they love her enough to stand by her decisions

luke saved the world, it doesn’t look like he’ll be trying to destory it anytime soon, “we’ll let him live. fine”

side note: they def, at one point after luke’s return, kidnap him, tie him up, and interrogate him for tori’s sake

not that they really need to, knowing his devotion to her, but they gotta enact some kind of revenge

it kinda backfires bc luke is impeccable at undoing knots with his mind if he concentrates hard enough

but then he gets an arrow to the foot, so

tori’s not horribly happy hearing abt this, but knows that her siblings just did it bc they want to take care of her and love her

but her siblings do make luke’s life a living hell sometimes. any chance they can get, really

anyway, back to the main

capture the flag is terrible

hecate may wield magic, but you should never underestimate a con man or a trickster

not to mention they’ve also go the apollo cabin who has magic of their own

the rest of the cabins just kinda pick sides, make bets

it’s been unheard of amongst the pantheon of a hecate/hermes feud, so siding over old parents’ feuds doesn’t work in this situation

speaking of, the gods are having a grand ole time watching it all pan out on hephaestus tv

don’t put hecate and hermes in the same room tho

you bet your ass aphrodite is having a hay-day with this drama. she’s done enough meddling in tori’s life, tho, and she knows that no magic of hers is going to make this into a love triangle

luke and tori’s love for each other is too deeply intertwined, breaking that bond would literally kill them at this point and she’d rather not anger hermes or apollo

leave their kids alone dammit

zeus only allows this to continue–luke living, not necessarily the sit-com–bc the gods, even hera, is finally focused on someone else’s fuck-ups and not his (literally and figuratively speaking)

chiron has to break up fights daily, and does his best to keep luke and nick apart

tori is angry at both of them for letting their testosterone fuel their thoughts

she talks to them each, separately abt how immature and stupid they’re acting

“this isn’t high school”

“luke, you’re like 24 now, stop acting like a child”

“nick, stop provoking him and grow up”

it doesn’t work

tori then tries to reason with lou ellen, who doesn’t really want to hear it at first

mostly bc being in a feud is fun, her mom is finally getting recognition among the camp

tori goes to will to try and talk some sense in lou ellen then bc she’s tired of this fighting

despite, at the end of the day, always sneaking over the hermes cabin to snuggle with luke

only snuggles tho, bc she’s mad that he’s acting like a brat, maybe the occasional kiss

that’s right! no sex for you luke, sorry not sorry boiiii

nick stays at camp just to piss luke off, like he could leave, bc he’s def done enough training and he really should focus maybe a little harder on his school work and shit, but this is too fucking fun

he’s a vindictive little shit

tori’s tempted to knock sense into both of them, literally, when this goes on for weeks

instead she wails on them during training

chiron tried to get nick into a different class, but tori was having none of it

so she’s spars with nick, absolutely going all out on him

luke it’s a little harder, bc damn he’s good, but she lets her anger and annoyance fuel her enough that she certainly makes a point

tori explains to luke over and over again that she was just confused, lonely, and hurt

luke totally gets it, but his jealousy doesn’t fade, and the more nick provokes him, the more he feels the need to defend himself

so it’s just a vicious cycle of testosterone-induced mutual hatred jfc boys calm the fuck down

eventually, tori manages to convince lou ellen to help end this petty feud

so they end up locking the four of them–nick, luke, tori, and lou ellen in a room

lou’s there as a mediator

and tori is too, but she’s been known to get violent so, everyone thought it best someone else be there with her

this doesn’t solve anything bc men aren’t socialized to work things through with words *sighs*

thankfully a fight doesn’t break out tho

it almost does, but tori threatens them with a swear on the styx, and they grudgingly back down

so the feud continues with no sight in end, much to tori’s and chiron’s annoyance

and basically all the other cabins other than the hermes and hecate cabins

i’m not really sure how to end this definitively, but i hope i answered your question thoroughly enough

thanks for sending this in! it was actually really fun to think abt XD

[sp4c3-0ddity]

Lightning Round

For Lance Loves Ladies Week, Day 6:  Fluff / Pining

Pairing:  Lance/Pidge

Summary:  Lance, Pidge, and teamwork

Also this ended up being lighter on pining than I originally intended. Oops??

Cross-posted to Ao3 (where you should definitely read it because it’s longer than drabble-length and also includes humorous end notes)

At seventeen years of age, Lance had long since lost count of how many crushes he had.

For Lance, a crush was a fleeting thing, a brief attraction that lived in the moment, or, really, for however long he knew the person that captured his attention. And after that, well, out of sight, out of mind.

But Lance had never earned the misfortune of crushing on a friend before.

Maybe it was the isolation, seeing only six other people regularly. Maybe the frigid recycled air of the ship was getting to his head (or heart). Maybe it was his brain (or, again, heart) seeking a distraction from a war that seemed never-ending.

Or maybe it was just Pidge.

"Why does she do that?" Lance asked Hunk one day during a much needed break from combat training. He could see Pidge out of the corner of his eye, leaning against the wall and sitting cross-legged, one hand on her ankle while the other clutched a water pouch.

"Do what?" Hunk said, following Lance's gaze. He raised an eyebrow and turned back to him.

"I don't know," said Lance, waving towards Pidge, who pouted at him when she noticed. He flushed and put his back to her. "Just...that."

"Uh..." said Hunk. "Again, what's that?"

"Just...everything!" Lance exclaimed, gesturing. "Why does she blow her hair out of her face when she's frustrated, or smirk when she's just been proven right, or ramble when she's caught off-guard, or go all starry-eyed for tech, or give us all grief for being idiots, or--"

"Whoa, whoa!" Hunk interrupted, frowning. "Who are you calling an idiot?"

Lance sighed. "Me. I'm an idiot. Do you want to know why?"

"I can't believe you'd admit to this," said Hunk, smiling. "And all because you like Pidge?"

"She just--wait, what?" Lance glared at Hunk over his own juice pouch as he sipped angrily.

"You like Pidge!" said Hunk, his voice sing-song. "Oh my gosh, it's too cute. I can't wait to tell her!"

"Don't you dare!" Lance said, grabbing Hunk's arm. "Let me suffer in silence, thank you very much."

"You're not being silent right now," Hunk pointed out reasonably.

Lance opened his mouth, a smooth retort on the tip of his tongue, but Shiro interrupted to bid them resume training.

"All right," he said, "I'm going to have you pair up for the next exercise:  short-range combatant with a long-range fighter."

Uh oh, Lance knew exactly what was coming.

"Princess, do you want to explain the game?" Shiro called up to the control booth.

Allura's voice came over the intercom. "It's simple," she said.

Lance snorted; Altean combat games were never simple.

"This one is called 'Save the Gladiator'," Allura explained. "Two of you will attempt to 'save' the gladiator from the other two. But there is an obstacle course, at the center of which is the gladiator, and you will be under fire the entire time. Cover your partner, and once you have the gladiator you will have to escape the maze without it taking damage or the other team recovering it. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Princess," they all chorused.

Lance glanced at Pidge, who was looking at him with a bemused smile on her face, then darted his eyes towards Keith; both of them were short-range fighters, which meant...

"Lance," said Shiro, jerking him from his thoughts. "You're partnered with Pidge. Hunk, you're with Keith."

Lance slumped while Hunk snickered at him. What a friend he was.

"Lance and Pidge have fifteen doboshes to rescue the gladiator from Hunk and Keith," Allura said from the booth.

"Only fifteen?!" Lance said, alarmed.

"Scared we'll beat you, Lance?" Keith asked with a smirk.

"Oh, no," Lance said quickly, recovering his usual bravado, "I'm scared it'll be too easy for us!"

To his relief and glee, Pidge was quick to take his side. "Don't worry, Keith," she said, summoning her bayard. "We'll go easy on you."

"Ooh," said Hunk.

"Hunk, whose side are you on?" Keith demanded.

"Voltron's," said Hunk, grinning sheepishly.

"All right, enough trash talk," Shiro interrupted as the gladiator appeared in the center of the training deck. "Keith and Hunk, take your positions." When they retreated towards the center where the gladiator stood, looking very much like a trussed up damsel in distress, Shiro turned to Lance and Pidge. "You'll be starting at the edge of the maze."

"Because that went so well last time," Pidge said, shooting a look at Lance.

"Keith gave me bad directions!"

"No I didn't!"

"The maze will be visible," Allura quickly interrupted before the argument could escalate. "No one will be guiding you through it, so the walls being invisible would defeat the purpose of the exercise."

"Oh, good," said Lance, relieved.

Once everyone was in position, the maze went up. "You think the walls still shock?" Lance asked Pidge.

"Only one way to find out," she said.

"All right, begin!" called Allura.

"How do you want to do this?" Pidge wondered once they were inside the maze. They both had their shields up in preparation for the drones that would doubtlessly shoot at them once they drew closer to the center.

"What do you mean?"

They continued walking until they reached the first fork. "Can we check for dead ends and obstacles with your bayard?"

Lance shifted his grip on his rifle a bit, then shot the wall. He frowned as the wall absorbed the blast with scarcely a ripple of energy. "No," he said.

"Hmm," said Pidge. "Let's split up."

"Uh, let's not," Lance said. "There's a reason Shiro mixed us up the way he did."

A drone fired a shot from above and Lance put up his shield to cover both of them, Pidge huddling closer. "Okay," he said, grumbling. He shot the drone down easily as Pidge led them down a path at random.

"Fine," she said. "We won't split up." She raised the cuff of her armor and keyed in the maze. "But we need to keep track of where we're going in case we hit a dead end."

"Oh, good," quipped Lance, "I knew there was a reason I'd rather be stuck with you than with Keith."

"Stuck?" Pidge said, sounding offended. She put her shield at the appearance of another drone, which Lance promptly demolished with a single rifle blast.

"That came out wrong," Lance admitted.

Pidge only shot him an indecipherable look before leading him down another turn. When it proved to be a dead end, they doubled back on their path, Pidge making a note on her cuff's map, but not before attracting the attention of <several> drones.

One got Pidge in the shoulder. She gasped, clutching it, while Lance dove in to cover her. "Are you okay?" he asked once he took care of the drones.

"Fine," she said. "This armor is...it's good."

"Please, those drones aren't meant to hurt us," Lance scoffed.

"Then why bother asking me if I'm okay, genius?" Pidge demanded. She grabbed his arm and they continued down the path.

"Twelve doboshes remaining!" Allura called.

Lance groaned. "Great."

"We have time," Pidge reassured him. When they got to the fork that initially messed them up, they went the other way. At the next corner, they turned inside.

"We should be approaching the center," Pidge reasoned when they were attacked by another hoard of drones.

"We haven't seen Hunk or Keith yet," Lance pointed out.

"They might be guarding the gladiator more closely," said Pidge. "It depends on what sort of strategy they've taken. But knowing Keith...and Hunk..." She trailed off and, for some reason, smirked. "This will be too easy."

"Explain," Lance said as they rounded another corner and chose another fork.

"Simple," said Pidge. "Keith is brash, he'll attack to head us off without considering he's supposed to guard the gladiator. And Hunk may be reasonable, but he's not forceful enough to convince Keith to be patient."

Lance covered her from drone attack as she recorded their progress on her map. Meanwhile, Allura warned them they were down to eight doboshes.

"We'll probably have to worry more about Hunk's blaster," Pidge added.

"Makes sense," said Lance.

"So who do you want to handle?" Pidge asked with a smirk.

"If you're right, then we can both take each of them down," said Lance, returning her smile.

Her grin widened, and Lance's heart fluttered. Why was he so <warm> suddenly?

"Got it," said Pidge. "I can trip them up with my bayard."

They had to double back from dead ends a couple more times, dodging drone fire the entire way and each taking a few painful - though not damaging - hits. Finally, the nature of the blasts changed, and sure enough Pidge could see Hunk firing at them from a distance.

"Think you can stun him from here?" Pidge asked Lance as Allura warned there were only five doboshes left.

"Yeah," said Lance, hefting his rifle and sighting down the barrel at Hunk. "But where's Keith?"

Pidge moved quickly, standing with her back to Lance's and putting up her shield. Out of the corner of his eye Lance saw her shoot the grapple on her bayard, right as a sword hilt collided with his shoulder, knocking him into Pidge.

"Okay, we screwed up," Pidge conceded from beneath him.

Lance stared up at Keith, who smiled smugly down at him. "No, no, we can still win," he said.

"Can you?" said Keith. He positioned himself between them and Hunk.

Then something occurred to Lance.

"Hey, Pidge," he said, quietly enough that he thought Keith wouldn't hear.

"What?" she said.

"We're not at the center of the maze."

Pidge stared at him, eyes wide with alarm, as she checked her map. "Oh," she said.

"Oh," Lance agreed.

"Three doboshes!" yelled Allura.

Drones attacked indiscriminately from above, forcing Keith to dodge and shield as well, which ended up being their saving grace.

"If Hunk is over there and Keith is over here," Lance said to Pidge as they took cover, "then that means the gladiator is unguarded!"

"We can still salvage this!" Pidge agreed. She grabbed Lance by the hand, tugging him in the opposite direction.

"HEY!" Keith yelled from behind them.

"Ha, suck it, Keith!" Lance called from over his shoulder. The momentary lapse in attention cost him a hit to the knee though. "Ow," he mumbled.

Pidge snickered.

Finally, they spotted the gladiator tied up in a corner. "It's likely that Hunk can make it around from the other direction," said Pidge. "Cover me." She darted forward, but Lance held her back.

"I know we're almost out of time, but we still need to be a little more cautious."

"Ideas?"

"Hmm." Lance considered. "Use your grappling hook."

"It'll still be vulnerable to drone fire."

Lance looked up, his rifle following his line of sight. "Let me worry about that."

Pidge shot her grapple towards the gladiator. The line looped around its legs, and Pidge retracted it, pulling the robot in. As if the act had attracted them, several drones appeared and Lance started shooting them down, until he noticed a few shifting their attention.

Sure enough, there was Hunk at the other end.

"Two doboshes!"

"Ah, shoot," Lance hissed. He and Hunk were both forced to fight off drones, but by then Pidge had grabbed the gladiator.

"I'll carry it and guide us," she said. "You cover."

"Got it," Lance agreed, following her back the way they came.

Keith was waiting for them at the fork, his shield up to protect himself from Lance's fire. And Lance heard footsteps behind him, signaling Hunk's arrival.

"Guess we're doing it this way," Pidge said. She handed the gladiator off to Lance before he could say anything, then shot her grapple towards Keith. He leaped back from it, but unable to avoid it, it tangled in his legs, tugging him down.

"Agh!" he yelled, trying to disentangle himself.

Pidge tugged him towards them while Lance covered her, his shield angled towards Hunk, who still approached. A drone got him in the shoulder <again>, but at this point he didn't even flinch.

Keith still struggled against Pidge's grapple line, but then Pidge said, "Trade!"

"What?" Lance said, momentarily stunned as Pidge handed him her bayard and took the gladiator back from him. She activated her shield.

Keith managed to make it to his feet, but Lance understood what Pidge wanted. He pulled Keith closer, then, straining his muscles, he spun him around and swung him into Hunk.

They went down in a pile, the drones focusing on two weaker targets and giving Lance and Pidge a break.

"Ha!" Lance said. "In your faces!"

"Escape now, boast later!" said Pidge, swapping the gladiator for her bayard again.

"Right," said Lance, right as Allura warned, "One dobosh!"

They still had to dodge the drones on their way out, but with Pidge's guidance and Lance shielding, they escaped the maze with tics to spare.

Lance dropped the gladiator and fell over, exhausted, his arms sore. Pidge took off her helmet and collapsed next to him, her forehead resting on the cooler floor.

"Time is up!" Allura said, lowering the maze's walls.

Lance watched idly as Keith and Hunk lowered their shields and dismissed their bayards, slumping dejectedly on the ground.

Shiro approached them, kneeling to be closer to their level. "Well done," he said, helping first Pidge and then Lance into sitting positions.

Pidge leaned into Lance, resting her head on his shoulder, her sweaty hair tickling his face. He smiled, and though it was a bit of an effort on his part to remain upright, he managed to reach up and ruffle her hair.

Shiro and the princess both debriefed them on their efforts - what they did well, what they could still work on - over a hearty dinner of green goo. Lance hardly paid attention, too tired and sore and hungry.

And too aware.

Pidge sat between him and Hunk, who kept shooting a snide smile in Lance's direction (in contrast to Keith, who was still put-out by their loss earlier). She had her chin propped on her hand as she listened to Shiro and Allura, a glassy look in her eyes.

When they finished, almost everyone made their way to the common room, intent on some relaxation before bed.

"Better luck next time, Keith," said Lance, smirking.

Keith rolled his eyes but didn't bother retorting, keeping his attention focused on whatever he was reading.

Hunk had busied himself with an Altean puzzle of some kind, a bunch of interlocking pieces he was supposed to disentangle. Shiro, Allura, and Coran were in the corner, talking like the adults they were. Pidge was the only one missing.

Lance, bored, decided to find her.

He tried her room first, but was not surprised when she didn't answer. Then he made his way to the Green Lion's hangar, her most frequent haunt.

"Pidge?" he called. "You in here?"

Lance smiled when he spotted her, resting at her desk with her head pillowed on her arms. He approached and knelt next to her. "Hey," he whispered, "you gonna spend the night here?"

She jerked up, startled, her hand shooting out and clocking him in the throat.

"Ow!" he said, rubbing his neck. "Is that any way to treat your training partner?"

Pidge blushed. "Sorry, Lance," she said. Then she narrowed her eyes. "You were the one who woke me up."

"Because your desk doesn't make a good bed," he pointed out. "Come on, I'll walk you to your room."

"No, I have a lot of work to do." She rubbed her eyes, nodding towards the open holoscreens displaying a mixture of Altean and Galra text.

"Uh, yeah, you've done plenty today already," Lance said, grabbing Pidge's hand.

To his surprise - and pleasure - she didn't snatch it away. Instead, she huffed and stood. "Fine," she said. "Lead the way."

"You're going to come right back after I leave you, won't you?"

Pidge glared at him, then sighed. "I hate you," she said, allowing him to lead her away from the Green Lion and out of the hangar.

"No, you don't," Lance said, laughing.

"You're right, I don't."

It was scarcely a declaration of love, but the admission nevertheless brought heat to his cheeks.

"Ah, look how far we've come," Lance teased, smiling down at her. "A year ago you resisted my friendship and avoided me and Hunk outside of the simulator, and now here we are."

Pidge yawned, but Lance thought she smiled behind the hand that hid her mouth. "You could say our relationship has progressed by lightyears," she joked.

Lance laughed, his chest warm. He turned and wrapped Pidge in his arms, his chin nestled in her hair.

She stiffened, but before he could step away, she returned his embrace, her arms around his back, her forehead pressed into his collar. "You're a good friend, Lance," she said. "I don't...I don't deserve you."

"Sure you do, Pidge," he said, rubbing her back. Something in her tone broke his heart, and he needed to reassure her.

Pidge shook her head but didn't argue. Lance thought, Now, this is the time, tell her what she means to you and that you don't deserve her.

"Pidge, I--"

"Lance, Pidge!"

Pidge turned her head but didn't move away from Lance. There was Hunk, standing in the entrance of the Green Lion's hangar.

Lance glared at him over Pidge's head, and Hunk floundered a bit, looking sheepish. "Coran made this strange Altean dessert," he said quickly and apologetically, "and he and the princess insisted we try it."

"Okay," said Pidge. She shrugged and withdrew from Lance's arms, and he instantly missed her warmth. They followed Hunk back to the common room, and Lance glanced at Pidge from the corner of his eye.

"Later," he promised her.

"Later what?" she said, confused.

Lance shrugged and grinned. "We can figure that out, you and I."

She rolled her eyes, but the smile she flashed him was everything.

[seenashwrite]

The Nail: August 2017

The Nail isn’t about perfection. It isn’t about award-level contenders. It’s about seeing focus and effort and hard work radiate off of the screen.

And The Nail’s purpose isn’t to highlight genres of fics or specific ships or pieces written during a certain time frame - the sole focus is quality.

Character dimension. Writing with clever readers in mind. Solid world-building. Tension through boundaries. Crazy crisp dialogue. Incredibly tight plotting. Big emotion.

And though yours truly - nice to meet you, new folks, I’m Nash! - is editor of the list, the goal is for YOU to curate the content.

Read more about how all this came to be, find past editions, see what factors are considered when constructing the list, and how to get your recommendations in/be a curator HERE.

Hey, ramblers? Let’s get ramblin’.

For your reblogging convenience, here’s The Nail Master Post of Editions!

Quickie Nash Note:

As this project evolves, I'm still determining the best way to present it for easiest reader use.

And so, faithful followers of The Nail, you'll notice a touch of a categorization change-up. The lengths are still the m.o. vs. type ["angst", "fluff", etc.], but are now listed in order of word count, low to high. The rest of the categories remain the same, plus a new one that may or may not appear on every edition [you'll see why!].

I've also put a new page on my blog, mainly for authors, with explanation for things they may question regarding this format - things I’ve mentioned prior, but it takes up too much space. Some of the current FAQs are....

- Why did someone make up a summary/why didn't you use my summary? - Why did someone make up a title for my story/poem? - What are those Q comments? - Is Nash actually reading all of this?

One last thing: The Nail is meant to go out the first full week of each month, and was mostly ready this weekend, however I just wasn't in a jovial, woo-hoo mood, I made a brief post why, I've no doubt each and every one of you understand, but you have my apologies nonetheless as poor time allocation on my part meant this wasn't out at some point during the past week.

XO - Nash.

* ~ * ALL FROM THE WORLD OF "SUPERNATURAL” UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED * ~ *

- SUPERNATURAL SUPERSTARS - Organized by length.

THE BOY KING'S DEMONS  -   @rex-daemoniorum / @vengeuse WORD COUNT - 279

Sam understands that there are exceptions to even his own rules. 

Q: Nice detail, pertinents given painted the picture effectively/no belaboring; through-line present of Sam's ability to relate without spelling it out/written for intelligent readers; complexity of situation related in short amount of space

[Nash Note: Additional shout-out to @azazelsocks, who provided a high-quality prompt, as - if your humble editor may be blunt - most fic prompts are beyond lame. Well done, 'Socks.]

--> I cannot tag these folks, if someone could kindly let them know or give it a go in your reblog

CIRCUMSTANCES -  @jessmoorechesters WORD COUNT - 347 words As years pass, the Moores have often found their thoughts turning to Sam.

Q: While perhaps started as headcanon, reads third-person omniscient; emotional, rambling, almost panicked cadence/style/lack of caps/punctuation absolutely works for this subject matter; nice full-stop short sentence toward end; inclusion of poignant details/no unneeded detail

[Nash Note: I already had this on the list, had a couple informal suggestions to check it out, spotted it more than once in my feed - overall, this resonated with many of you, and rightfully so.]

DESIGNATED DUTIES  -  @fanforfanatic  WORD COUNT - 412

A tale about the seemingly ordinary things we do for one another.

Q: Moves at a crisp clip; heartfelt without bending sappy; several great lines/points of humor, prevents getting too heavy given the short length/action in question; nice cap-off/prompts reader to use imagination while not ending on a proverbial cliffhanger

HELLO, DARLING  -  @whispersandwhiskerburn  WORD COUNT - 789

Crowley and Billie have a little chat.

Q: Excellent use of vocab in descriptions; quick, crisp dialogue; spot-on characterization; kept story moving/pacing well done; didn't waste time on explaining things/rehashing things readers already know from watching the show/written for clever readers

SHAPE OF YOU  -  @winchester-family-business WORD COUNT - 1K [minus song lyrics]

In which Dean walks into a bar, has a drink, meets a woman, and whether it's for now or forever, it's definitely meaningful.

Q: A get-in-and-get-out in the opener, setting the scene with just enough information and moving on to the actual story/no wasting time with a long set-up; excellent use of a "gimmick", re: initial communication; nicely fleshed-out protag who has her own thing going on, which he respects, which is in line with the character we know; took a commonly used set-up and took it to a thoughtful but not belabored/shmoopy place

GOOD NIGHT, LITTLE KING  -  @moonlightcas WORD COUNT - 1.6K

At the age of six, Sam is visited by Lucifer.

Q: in medias res; excellent pacing; perfectly plausible in canon; slightly chilling and pressing and foreboding without being suffocating; timing of the name reveal is Absolutely. Spot. On.

ONE, TWO, THREE  -  @kathaswings  WORD COUNT - 3.4K

A trip to a bookstore turns out to be more than you - or Sam - could have imagined.

Q:  in medias res; structure that would please any screenwriter; meet-cute without being immature/shmoopy/saccharine, specifically - protag didn't turn into a pile of weepies or gigglies/displayed strength; nice choice to include action; solid ending/author knew when to step away from the keyboard

[Nash Note: author's inspiration is revealed post-story, however they kept a light hand/did not merely re-hash source material bit-by-bit & just throw SPN atop it, instead made it their own - points and gold stars for this, always]

SUNDOWN, SUNDOWN  -  @thayerkerbasy  WORD COUNT - 6.2K 

"Crowley was done. After hundreds of years and one last sacrifice, he was done. Except, somehow, he wasn't."

Q: in medias res; spot-on characterization; tackled character departure in unique manner that could have easily gone shmoopy/author demonstrated restraint in walking the emotional line/kept that slightly off-kilter tone; moved at quick clip/efficient structure/fluid; touched on things/events seen in show but did not belabor/used as tool vs. crutch; phenomenal end dialogue/last line

- POEMS & POETICAL PROSE - Mostly quick reads, these are actual poems of any structure & short [< 2K] stories that have a poetic feel to the narrative with appropriate use of poetic verbiage given the subject matter and / or setting; pieces in the less-than-300 words neighborhood are considered quality in their entirety, therefore no "Q" notations; organized by length.

SECOND FALLING  -  @vintagesam  WORD COUNT - 135

"Despite the silence in the church, the earth is deafening."

INTOXICATION  -  @copbydayfangirlbynight  WORD COUNT - 199

"Out of nowhere, these two guys you’ve never seen show up and slip onto the bar stools next to you."

THE LEGEND  -  @quailpower  WORD COUNT - approx. 300 words

Exploring the costs of immortality, and what one angel chooses to do with his time.

JULIET  -  @roxy-davenport  WORD COUNT - 1.7K [minus song lyrics]

A night in the life of Crowley's beloved hellhound.

Q:  HERE [Nash Note: Short version? Knowing when it is appropriate to inject "flowery" verbiage into a narrative. Hint: fits the time period and/or character, is kept crisp, to-the-point, and used sparingly, regardless]  

- MULTI-PARTERS - Stories with a minimum of 2 parts, max of 3-to-4, with modestly sized [1-to-2K] chapters; completed as of this list; organized alphabetically by title. 

None this time! [but I’ve got a couple bookmarked whose wrap-ups appear to be en route]

- SERIES SPOTLIGHT : SUPERNATURAL & SPN CROSS-OVERS - Works that are completed series, as well as ongoing / in progress series, with at least 3 parts published as of/prior to the edition of The Nail in question; unfinished series must have been updated within roughly 6 months of this post;  these are lengthier than multi-parters, getting into a 5K+ range per chapter; organized alphabetically by title.

MISE EN PLACE  -  @sp-oops  

A look inside the ways you  - and the rest of the family - help Dean deal with the effects of the Mark of Cain.

Q: in medias res; quick, crisp dialogue & pace; no heavy-handed/laborious descriptors of setting/emotions, whether internal or verbal; nice character development/casual, easy feel to character interactions; sex fit into plot organically/didn't feel forced; plausible reactions by Dean/Sam/protag regarding the complexities of the residual impacts of the mark; witty humor throughout; nice cap-off/author knew when to step away from the keyboard  

Curated by @smi727 , who said: "Stumbled upon this little beauty of a series recently. I was seriously blown away by the plot, the writing, the reader’s personality, everything! Please Nash, share this wonderful writer with the world!"

- RANDOM FANDOMS -   All types, all lengths, all the things that aren’t SPN but are still pretty damn super; organized alphabetically by title.

AGENT 15  [series in progress]  -  @bellamysgirl

[MARVEL - AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.]

"Agent 15 was one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s top agents - that all changed when a mission went terribly wrong... but Coulson found a way to drag her back."

Q: in medias res; moves at a quick clip/no time wasted on extraneous detail; well-done characterization of both known/O.C.; reads as if watching episodes/movie; nice format/use of time flip vs. heavy exposition telling another character about those events; keeps intensity while splashing in moments of camaraderie

VERY MUCH FAEBLOODED [drabble]  -  @mickeyrowan

[POTTERVERSE]

"She knows she’s different. She’s always been different... No place lets her forget this."

Q: Introspective without taking the reader on a deep, angst-filled dive; even-handed character portrayal; tone consistent; nice choice of event highlighting vs. a traditional narrative; well done on complementary kick-off/wrap-up

WHO YOU ARE [one-shot]  -  @blackcaptainrogers

[MARVEL - AVENGERS]

Bucky knows showing love takes on a variety of forms.

Q:  HERE

[Nash Note: Short version? Your audience consists of such variety, it’ll take your breath away. And, well...]

On that piece of white paper, Sam wrote, "Write about me sometime." And I typed something back to her, standing right there in her bedroom. I just typed, "I will.”  ― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower  

- ORIGINAL WORKS - Anything from haiku to novella; pieces in the less-than-300 words neighborhood are considered quality in their entirety, therefore no "Q" notations; organized by length.

IT IS SO TIRING TO BE DIVINE  -  @mythaelogy WORD COUNT - 52

"The architecture of your bones was built by conquerors."

MYSTERY GIRL  -  @inkskinned WORD COUNT - 111

"[A] girl who convinces you of magic, who flickers just a little on the edge of reality..."

I HAVEN'T LOOKED AT THE STARS IN A MONTH  - @poemsforpersephone  WORD COUNT - 125

"It’s an easy thing, to open a window, to step outside."

A TRADITION  -   @wakor-rising / @wakor  &  @sonatagreen   WORD COUNT - 189

"In peacetime, the ruler grows their hair long. In war, they cut it short."

--> I cannot tag these folks, if someone could kindly let them know or give it a go in your reblog

NEW YORK CITY TO RICHMOND  -  @haleyincarnate  WORD COUNT - 269

"I wonder if he knows that I can see the trying part of him..."

THE HOUSE OF GRUMLY  -  @erinnightwalker  WORD COUNT - 553

"Everyone knew that the Widow Grumly’s granddaughter was a werewolf."

Q: Sharp start with a phenomenal choice of an opening sentence; took a "historical fact", ran with it, and created a captivating world / plot in an incredibly short span of time; formatting, flow, verbiage crisp; nice & layered/written with a clever audience in mind

THE ADVENTURES OF ROXY AND JUJU   - @wheresthekillswitch  WORD COUNT - 2.4K  [part one/series in progress]

"JuJu finally relents and hands over the car keys to Roxy. It couldn’t possibly go more wrong than it did the last time Roxy drove…. right?"

Q: in medias res; crisp dialogue; absolutely engaging, witty characters developed in a short amount of space; vivid descriptors without being heavy-handed; leans into a vignette [character study] feel vs. hashing out a distinct plot; nice intro/kick-off for a series, though if author opts not to proceed, works just fine as stand-a-lone...

[...which is why I broke my own damn series criteria rule, so sue me. -N.]

- STUFF SO CREATIVE & UNIQUE, IT JUST CAN'T BE CATEGORIZED - What it says, organized alphabetically by title.

ENTRIES  - @cardinaleyes

An inside look into the journals of Team Free Will:

DEAN

SAM

CASTIEL

Q: an ongoing pseudo-series with a creative concept; keeps distinct style for each; bonus points regarding convenience for the reader by having a "home" for each character vs. all together in one blog

JEOPARDY

In which Team Free Will plays a game.

It began with a piece of fanart by @lastlabyrinth  ....

....which got some dialogue by @phantomrose96  ....

.... which got a follow-up by @casonly, and a nice wrap-up from  @guntheramvs 

Q: Written with sharp, quick-witted audience in mind; spit-take worthy humor; great characterization, spot-on in fact regarding our host for the evening; crisp, fun dialogue; excellent collaboration by all involved

[h/t  @waywardafbabygirl ]

JOURNAL OF A MAN OF LETTERS  -  @petite-madame

From the creator: "[This is] a diary in first-person narrative written from Sam's point of view. Once a week, I post an art and a ficlet inspired by an episode or a scene. I'm following the show timeline as close as I can but I'm taking liberty with canon here and there."

Q: Extraordinary, above-and-beyond, clearly evident care, devotion, countless hours put into this project, and it has paid off many times over - there is some of the most beautiful art you'll ever see, there are stories [have a sample] that will hit you right in the feels, there are moments ranging from light-hearted to introspection, and you even have an option of platform - go HERE for the LiveJournal headquarters. Phenomenal, top-to-bottom. I am not over-selling this.

TWO AGENTS MISSING, PRESUMED DEAD - @bohoartist & @piecesofscully

[THE X-FILES]

Two agents are missing - follow the twists and turns as clues are examined, leads are followed, and information is exchanged.

Q: The planning and execution throughout was nothing short of excellent; written/developed with smart audience in mind; methodology of storytelling unique and, more importantly, appropriate for how the authors chose to unfold the plot; format/use of images was spot-on; clear through-line and tone; mystery that was engaging, teasing but not frustrating  

[h/t @itssteaksauce ]

*~* Shameless Self-Promotion *~*

Happy Reading!  XO - Nash.

* Authors, I encourage you to express your appreciation to your curator(s). Readers, if you enjoy curator selections & found them to be of quality, I encourage you to not only give the authors feedback, but also thank the curator(s) for bringing the story/series to your attention. I suspect they’ll dig it. *

[webcricket]

The Lies We Tell Ourselves

Characters: CastielXReader ft. Sam Winchester

Word Count: 1503

A/N: Drabble request by @charlotteofcamelot – “Could I maybe request a super short drabble of Cas interacting – and I don’t mean sexually – with an overweight character that has body image issues, please?” Reader has serious self-doubts about their body. Enter Castiel stage left with the fluff. I have a theory that’s why he wears the trench coat all the time – extra pockets to carry more fluff. (P.S. You specified “super short” length, but my muse is not so great at following instructions. I had to give up editing it because more words kept getting added. Oops!)

This is pointless! I have nothing to wear! Your frustration grew more and more unbearable with each article of clothing hastily pulled from the closet and tugged over your round shoulders or yanked up too generous thighs and ultimately yielding the same unsatisfactory reflection in the mirror. Ten minutes. We’re leaving in ten minutes. You’d have settled for looking just okay at this point. You weren’t out to win any beauty pageants tonight. Far from it – only going out for cheap drinks and live music in a hole-in-the-wall bar with shitty lighting. But nothing fit right. Nothing made you feel good enough to go out with the Winchester brothers. Not with Dean and his gorgeous green eyes and charismatic personality and boy-next-door bod who managed to make flannel and layers simultaneously approachable and sexy. And certainly not with Sam and his devastating combination of a swoon-worthy sculpted muscular build and bottomless intellect for deep conversation – not to mention better hair than you on your best days. Ten minutes, ten hours, it doesn’t matter. I look terrible! Worked into a tizzy, you chucked your favorite oversized sweater at the mirror, knocking it from the dresser in a cacophony of shattered glass, and flopped defeated onto your bed. I’ll just stay in tonight. It’s not worth it.

“Y/N,” a sharp knock echoed on your door, Sam’s warm voice sounding from the other side, “you alright? I heard a noise.”

“Dropped something is all!” you half-shouted, scrambling to your feet. Making your way to the door, careful to avoid the glinting shards of reflective glass littering the floor, you quickly threw on a robe and cracked the door ever so slightly to assure Sam you were fine.

“You’re not coming out with us?” he inquired, astutely noting your casual state of undress.

“I’m actually not feeling well,” you lied, the well-worn excuse spilling from your pouting lips without a second thought, “you guys have a good time though.” Lying was easier than admitting the truth – you hated the way your clothes looked because no matter how flattering they might be to your figure, none of them could hide the fact that in your mind you were overweight. You knew every lump and bump and rolling imperfection hidden beneath the thin fabric, and nights like this the knowledge was so overwhelming it paralyzed your ability to participate in life.

“You gonna be okay?” he asked quietly, brow knitting in worry. “You need anything? I could stay back, order some pizza or something. That new series we wanted to watch is up on Netflix.”

Despite the genuine concern in his timbre, you were so far into the pit of self-disillusionment that you instantly rejected his offer of company, imagining he sounded wholly unconvinced of your feigned malady. He feels sorry for me, dammit. Sympathy offer to hang out, wonderful. “Nah, don’t let me hold you back. Got another bad headache. Already took Aspirin, just gonna sleep it off,” you winced and rubbed your temple for effect. You hated yourself even more for being dishonest with a friend.

“Feel better then,” Sam frowned, politely nodding goodnight, lanky legs swiftly carrying him down the hall to disappear around the corner.

And you did feel better – the receding thud of footsteps unburdening you of social commitment, freeing you to wallow in your insecurity without an audience for the night…or so you thought.

Comfy pajamas donned, freshly popped bowl of popcorn in hand, bunker to yourself, you made your way from the kitchen to your bedroom, ready to snuggle under the covers and get lost in a favorite movie – to be swept up in another universe, far away from the body image issues that plagued you. Rounding the hall corner, you stopped up short at the threshold of your door, unexpectedly catching sight of a familiar shock of tousled dark hair atop a tan trench coat.

Castiel stood in the middle of your room, blue eyes concentrating with indiscernible intent upon the various piles of discarded clothing scattered across the floor and dresser you had yet to remand to the closet. He held aloft a broken sliver of the mirror you must have overlooked when sweeping up, turning the shining piece over and over gingerly in his long fingers. The near inaudible shuffle of your socked feet drew his attention, striking blue eyes resolving their focus upon you as he spoke, “Y/N, Sam said you were unwell. I came to see if I could be of assistance.” Gesturing wide at the tornadic mess of clothing, head inclining askance, he questioned, “What happened in here? Are you okay?”

Your eyes stung with the pressing threat of tears. Telling a little white lie to Sam to persuade him to leave you alone was one thing – lying to the angel wasn’t an option. He would see through your deception, however innocent, immediately. And that would mean more questions. “I’m fine, it’s nothing. My usual clumsiness. You know me,” you tried to impart a chipper quality to your voice, avoiding directly meeting his inquiring gaze, brushing past him toward the safety of your bed.

He did know you, and he knew you were anything but clumsy. By virtue of the multitude of experiences weathered during his friendship with you and the Winchesters, he also knew humans could hurt in ways not obvious on the surface, and that they didn’t always know how to ask for help. Unconvinced by your explanation, insistent on providing whatever aid he was able, he gently caught your arm as you flew past, “Y/N, you know I’m always here if you need to talk.”

“I know,” you sniffled, trying to shake free of his light grasp. You couldn’t talk to him, not about this. The way you saw yourself, all your flaws bursting at the proverbial seams, wasn’t something he could fix with the tingling caress of his grace like some bloody wound or fractured bone. No, this literal weight, this encumbrance upon your very being, was something you condemned yourself to suffer alone. You wouldn’t understand. The thought screamed to be liberated as you fought to suppress it. How could you? Look at you, the very definition of angelic.

He released you, features fretfully falling as he observed you sink into the bed.

You felt his lingering gaze, endeavoring to ignore his continued presence as you fluffed the pillows behind your back and idly arranged the comforter over your legs.

He remained standing there in the middle of the chaos, awkwardly silent, expressly because you hadn’t outright refused his offer to talk. He would stand there patiently until the end of time if that’s how long it took you to either share what troubled you or ask him to leave.

“Cas?” you finally submitted to the quiet persistence of his demeanor, peering up to find his blue eyes fixed, gentle and undemanding, upon your countenance.

He listened, waiting for you to summon the fortitude to speak he knew you possessed.

“Do you ever hate yourself?” you unceremoniously spit out the crux of your problem, however ineloquent in its presentation. You searched his face for any judgement, discovering instead a sad shared empathy gloomily clouding the edges of his shining eyes.

Breaking off his steady gaze, he walked to the edge of your bed, motioning to the open space at your side, “May I?”

You nodded ascent, scooting over a bit further and smoothing the comforter so he could sit.

“Hate is a strong word,” he reclined against the headboard beside you, still not looking at you, admitting, “but I do frequently doubt my own worth.”

“You do?” you couldn’t mask your shock, “But why? You’re practically perfect – self-less, kind, intelligent, brave…handsome.” You blushed at acknowledging the last part aloud.

“That’s nice of you to say, but in truth I am broken, burdened by failure, perpetually disappointing those I love while trying to do the right thing, and trapped between Heaven and Earth and not truly belonging anywhere,” he disparaged, pausing before going on to glance over at you, bearing intensely earnest, “I could ask you the same thing, Y/N. What do you possibly have to hate about yourself? You’re the most beautiful soul I’ve had the privilege to know in the entire span of my existence.”

“I-I am?” you stammered, wetness blearing your vision and brimming over to streak your cheeks.

He wrapped an arm firmly around your shoulders, drawing you to his chest in a tender hug, confirming, “You are. And more important than you seem to know.”

You let yourself relax into his embrace – daring to believe, if only for a little while, that he might be right. Maybe you were too hard on yourself.

And Castiel likewise surrendered to the moment – for if this human, flawless in his summation, and whom he cared for so profoundly experienced the same crippling pain of self-doubt he did, then perhaps there existed some small hope he wasn’t as damaged and alone in this world as he led himself to believe.