#and i had trouble picking 7 favourites

[no-144444]

was it casual?-l.norris

Day 28 of fic-tober! fic-tober masterlist

summary: the seriousness of your relationship wasn't exactly clear... leading to unforseen circumstances... (18+)

mdni (18+ smut) (ur responsible for the content you consume, not me)

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He walked into his empty apartment. Monaco was a town where you either knew people, or you didn’t. He knew people, but people knew him more. Max F was busy, Carlos was in Spain with family, Oscar was over in England to see Lily, Alex was off supporting Lily in a tournament, George was with Carmen in Austria, Max (V) was too busy with streaming and fighting the FIA, and that left him all alone. 

His life had been getting quieter since the start of last season. People checked in less, his mental health went downhill, everyone has their eyes on him now. It had been months of lonely interactions, wasted opportunities, and a job that was slowly ripping him apart. He had to win, he had to be the best. 

Then there was a knock at the door. The tension in his shoulders dissipated, a smile made its way onto his lips, and he forgot about his troubles. 

You were here. 

He opened the door with a bright smile, and there you stood with his favourite takeout. The only person who made him feel normal. 

“Hey baby,” he smiled, letting you in. You stepped inside, placing the food on the table. “How was your day?”

“Busy, but better now,” you smiled and pressed your lips to his softly. “You?”

His heart warmed slightly. He never thought he’d be one of those guys. One of those guys who loved their girlfriend 7 months in, but here he was, heart eyes and all. 

“Busy, but better now,” he replied. You chuckled as he wrapped his arms around you from behind, resting his head on your shoulder. 

“What’d you do?” You asked. 

“Some simming, training, meetings and other boring shit,” He yawned. “Tired now.”

You nodded. 

“You?”

“Down in court today, Rich is doing well, I think the judge likes us,” you explained, mindlessly picking the carrots out of his dish and putting them in your own. “Don’t know if we’ll win though.”

“You will,” he answered definitively. “You’re the best solicitor ever.”

“I’m not a full solicitor yet,” you reminded him. 

“Still the best,” he shrugged. 

“Come on sleepyhead, have some food and we can go to bed,” you chuckled. He sat beside you at the table, and you two chatted about your days, not even bothering to clean up before collapsing into his bed. 

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You two had met at a bar in Monaco, you were friendly with Pietra due to a few yoga classes you’d done together, and Lando had been obsessed with you since then. You’d gone on a few dates that mostly ended with you in his bed or vice versa, and recently it had turned into more of a relationship. He hadn’t asked you out yet. He wasn’t your boyfriend. You hadn’t been on a proper date in months. It was confusing. You thought it was just casual. You really liked him, but he thought this was just casual, didn’t he? I mean, what would an F1 driver want with a regular law student in Monaco just starting her traineeship? He wasn’t your boyfriend, right? 

୨ৎ⋅୨ৎ⋅୨ৎ

You woke up with his arms around you, and quickly shuffled out of his bed. You got dressed, cleaned up after dinner from the night before, and off you went. Saturday, you had a lunch date with a few friends, and some errands to run. 

୨ৎ⋅୨ৎ⋅୨ৎ

Lando woke up cold and alone. It wasn’t crazily unusual for him to wake up alone when you’d stay over, but you’d usually tell him that you had an early morning, or something to stop you two from having a lazy morning. He checked the time, 10am. You must’ve left recently. He cursed himself for being such a heavy sleeper, and for sleeping so well when you were with him. He shot you a text about tonight. He knew it was slightly pathetic that he didn’t have anyone else to hang out with other than his busy girlfriend, but he didn’t really care. It was a great chance as well, since his parents were in town and might be able to swing by dinner. He knew it was early on, but he loved you, and he planned on telling you soon. 

୨ৎ⋅୨ৎ⋅୨ৎ

୨ৎ⋅୨ৎ⋅୨ৎ

A knock on the door, a familiar routine. He should probably give you a key. 

“Hey baby,” he smiled. 

“Hey Lando,” you smiled. “Sorry I was later than usual, the traffic was crazy and I didn’t want to cancel on you and-”

“So this is the girlfriend?” Adam, Lando’s dad, asked, a bright smile on his face. Your face fell. His parents were sitting right there, staring at you, looking at you, and they thought you were his girlfriend. He must’ve thought someone else was behind the door, maybe he’d cancelled and you didn’t get the text and his actual girlfriend was behind you and you were about to be kicked out and blocked, maybe-

“This is her,” Lando smiled, ushering you in. You shot him a look of confusion. He shot you one back. He took your coat and bag, and led you over to the table with a kiss on the cheek, his parents watching the whole display. 

“So Y/n, what do you do?” Cisca asked. 

“I’m a solicitor in training,” you explained. “Sorry that I was late, the traffic was insane and my firm is across the-”

“It’s fine,” she smiled. “We only got here 10 minutes ago.”

“Ok, good,” you chuckled nervously. 

୨ৎ⋅୨ৎ⋅୨ৎ

And with that, the dinner began. It was a maze of questions, jokes, and slight teasing, but by the end, you’d thought you did quite well. They didn’t seem to completely hate you yet, so that was good. As Lando closed the door on them, you put your head in your hands and groaned. 

“I’m sorry I sprung that on you, it’s just… they were in town, a-and they wanted to meet you so badly-”

“It’s fine,” you shook your head. “I just… I didn’t know I was your girlfriend,” you told him honestly. 

His eyes darkened, a hint of possessiveness playing behind them. “How did you not think you were my girlfriend?” “Well, for one, you never fucking asked me to be your girlfriend. Two, it doesn’t exactly make sense considering I’m just a law student, and you’re a fucking F1 driver. Three-” he cut you off with a kiss. 

He kissed you hard and heavy, pulling you into his arms, his grip bordering on bruising. “Jump,” he whispered against your lips. You obliged, jumping and wrapping your legs around his torso. He brought you to his bedroom, all but throwing you on the bed and rushing to take off his clothes as you took off yours. He got to work, finger swirling through your core as he watched your reactions. 

“So good Lan,” you whined, nails digging into his shoulders. 

“You fuck anyone else?” he asked, harshly scissoring his fingers into your entrance. 

“No-fuck- j-just you. Only you-shit!” you moaned. 

He smirked, lowering his face to your pussy. “Good girl,” he quipped, kissing at your clit as you moaned his name. You were his, he was yours. He needed to remind you of that. 

You were hot all over, desperate to finally get that release, but he was going too slowly. “Lan, quicker, please,” you whined, more than needy. You tugged at his hair, grinding down on his face as he smirked. It felt fucking amazing, his nose, his tongue, all of it. It was too much and too little all at the same time. You whined in frustration at the loss of contact when he pulled away, leaving you unsatisfied. He flipped you over, ass in the air on his bed and smacked your ass. “Lan-!”

Buried to the hilt in one thrust. Lando was clearly not fucking around tonight. “You’re doing so well baby.” he smirked. “Want you to cum on my cock.”

You nodded, letting him take what he wanted from you. 

“My fucking girl, isn’t that right?”

“Yes! Yes!” you moaned. 

“Fuck, good fucking girl, y’gonna cum on my cock?” 

“Yes! Yes!” you groaned, muffled by the sheets. 

“Who’s fucking you right now?” he thrust harder, messily kissing your neck. 

“You!” you screamed, getting closer and closer to your high. 

“And what am I to you sweetheart?” he gritted out. 

“M-my boyfriend!” you finally came around him, walls tightening as you moaned. He came shortly after, groaning as he pulled out of you. 

“You alright?” he asked, a bright smile on his face. You nodded softly, too exhausted to speak. “Did so good,” he pressed a kiss to your cheek and left to grab some glasses of water, and a towel to clean you both up with.  It wasn’t just casual.

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navigation for my blog :) (masterlist)

fic-tober masterlist

taglist: @anotherapollokid @theseerbetweenus @simbaaas-stuff @5sospenguinqueen @yootvi @linnygirl09 @lanadelray1989 @teamnovalak @gleeblegnarp

[fictoculus]

౨ৎ genshin men; love languages...

send a request!┊masterlist┊taglist applications

FEAT... aether, albedo, alhaitham, ayato, childe, diluc, gorou, heizou, itto, kaeya, kaveh, kazuha, neuvillette, scara, thoma, tighnari, wriothesley, venti, xiao, xingqiu, zhongli

A/N... ohemgee kaede is back ?!! i'm sorry it's been so longggg i've really missed writing, i think i js kinda lost my spark for a bit but i should be back to posting nowww hooray !! even if i don't come backkk (since i'm not fully certain) i hope you can still enjoy these hc drabble thingies nd also my previous works, thank you ♡

✧ quality time.

he wants nothing more than to spend time with you, to smell the sweet fragrance of your perfume as it dances in the gentle breeze. he wants to watch as your hair flows gently, each strand delicately swaying back and forth, as if to mimic the way he swings his arms when his hand is holding yours. just being around you gets him all excited, though you'll never catch him actually admitting it. he has countless photos of the two of you together, each one connected with a memory that will stay with him forever. he often finds himself looking over them late at night when he's missing you, wishing you were there to hold him, or tell him about your interests, even sitting in silence would suffice. he just wants to be with you, whether that be studying, sleeping, reading, shopping, eating - he doesn't care, he'll do anything as long as it's with you..

xiao, alhaitham, aether, heizou, wriothesley + your favs

✧ gift giving.

it's almost like routine. at least once a fortnight, he comes knocking on your door with some sort of gift, stops you in the corridor with a bag full of goodies, or has a huge bouquet of your favourite flowers delivered straight to your front door when he's unable to come see you. he goes through a lot of trouble behind the scenes to get these things together for you, but it's all worth it when he sees that pretty smile light up your face, eyes glistening with pure excitement as you see whatever he's prepared for you. his eyes, on the other hand, are full of love as he sees the outcome of his hard work; your happiness is of utmost importance to him. the gifts he gives come in all different shapes and sizes, anything from a snack you'd said you'd been craving to a ridiculously expensive piece of jewellery, but you know that no matter what it is, he put so much thought and care into picking it out for you; that's what mattered to you most. even if he didn't shower you in his love this way, you wouldn't love him any less - of course you wouldn't. you care about him, not the things he gives you (though you really do appreciate them). he loves you more than words can say, and this is his way of showing it.

zhongli, ayato, albedo, neuvillette + your favs

✧ physical touch.

he's all over you. from the second you wake up to the moment you drift off to sleep. 24/7. he just can't get enough. he's practically addicted to your warmth, the softness of your skin, scars and all. it no longer comes as a surprise when you feel his arms snake around your waist from behind, or even when he nuzzles his face into the crook of your neck, his hair tickling your cheek as he moulds around your figure. he can't seem to stay away from you. the second he hears your voice, or the mention of your name, even your footsteps (yes, he knows), he comes rushing over, immediately insisting on intertwining his fingers with yours. your contact is replenishing to him. no matter how tired he is or how many hardships he had to face that day, feeling you run your hands up and down his back or cup his cheeks, his mood is immediately uplifted.

itto, childe, diluc, tighnari, kaeya, kaveh + your favs

✧ words of affirmation.

"i love you" "i love you" "i love you" it's constant, over and over and over. he repeats it a thousand times, as if it's an ancient incantation, but he still doesn't think it's enough. he just wants you to know how perfect you are, how beautiful you are, how easy to love you are; he wants you to see yourself the way he sees you. he's desperate to talk about you, to tell someone how much he loves you, and who else would he tell than the person he trusts most? and so, when the two of you are finally snuggled up close, he'll whisper in your ear the most poetic words you've ever heard, trying his best to capture your essence, though to him, it always feels just out of reach. he knows he'll never be able to truly explain how he feels about you, because there are no words for that feeling he gets in his heart when he hears your voice, or lays his eyes on you, let alone thinks about you. he recites your own stories and little habits back to you as if you're a complete stranger to yourself, and honestly, you can't help but find it endearing. he loves you so much, and he always knows the perfect things to say to see that smile he treasures deep in his heart.

kazuha, xingqiu, zhongli, venti, neuvillette + your favs

✧ acts of service.

sure, he may not be so good with words, but not to worry, he makes up for it one way or another. it's the little things for him. every morning without fail, he'll pack your lunch and leave it on the kitchen counter for you, a little memo hidden inside signed off with his initials and a small doodle, as always. he'll iron your clothes and hang them in your wardrobe, all neat and tidy for when you get dressed the next day. he'll get up 15 minutes earlier than when you usually arise, cooking breakfast for you and letting the scent of crisp bacon waft into the bedroom and wake you from your slumber. he'll do anything for you, big or small; he just wants to make sure you know how much he loves you.

scara, thoma, alhaitham, diluc + your favs

thanks for reading ♡ want to read more? my requests are OPEN, so please feel free to let me know what you’d like me to write next!

TAGLIST…@maopll . @nyxmainex . @avensuersa . @moondrop-gummies. @lacunaanonymoused apply here

© FICTOCULUS 2024; please do not steal, translate, or repost my works as your own

[corviiids]

companion write-up to the fic i just posted, 'call me by', which is a lawlight bodyswap fic inspired by your name / kimi no na wa.

don't read this post without reading the fic lol it is not going to make any sense!! im posting this because i think the fic is (well, sort of intentionally) a little vague and it might be fun to provide more context for anyone interested.

you obviously can read the fic without reading this though. this is just a thought dump. :)

this is technically an au, but i wrote it to be theoretically canon compliant if you squeeze things around and close your eyes a bit (as long as you don't think about timeframes lol and how many days are lapsing). i did fudge their ages a bit because otherwise light would be about 15, and i wanted him to be 17-18 because i think that makes more sense for him at this stage in his life lol. otherwise, i think it's actually kind of fun to imagine this happening alongside canon.

light leaves notes in L's home when he's in L's body and vice versa. generally they leave notes at regular intervals. longer paragraph breaks means a longer period between.

the mechanics of the bodyswap for the purposes of this fic:

like in your name, a swap starts when they wake up and finishes when they go to sleep.

once they swap back, they can't remember the names or faces (or any other identifying information, like career titles or voices) of people they personally encountered.

this includes themselves (i.e. if light in L's body encounters himself, he will not recognise it as himself and won't remember himself when he's back in his own body) and other familiar people (i.e. light won't remember that L works with his father, light wouldn't recognise L if he met him in his own time)

but if a person could be identified with public information, then they can retain their memory of that person (i.e. L doesn't struggle to remember ryuga hideki).

light is two years before L. i loosely used the anime timeline, so the kira investigation kicks off in about 2006-7, which is when L is. light is in 2004.

light nicknames himself asahi for no particular reason and nicknames L ryuga hideki after his sister's favourite idol. LABB confirms that L likes to take his pseudonyms from his past, so i thought it would be funny if the reason why L named light&soichiro 'asahi' and himself 'ryuga hideki' in canon is because light-of-the-past came up with those names already. (in canon that means that light would recognise those names immediately of course.)

when light's dresser catches fire as a result of L's meddling, it's not exactly the same trap as the one light sets in canon, but i think it's something similar because that's the way light's brain works. it does minimal damage but he still gets in trouble haha.

L figures out who light is pretty early on, which is why he's so careful and reluctant when light persists in trying to connect with L outside of the swapping. he also (unbeknownst to light) starts concealing information about the investigation from light because he believes light will later become kira and doesn't want to give him an edge.

light knows that L is a famous detective, and might get a vaaague inkling, but i don't think it fully clicks for him.

the body-swapping stops right before the yotsuba sting in the helicopter. after it stops, light doesn't open L's note for a long time because he is hoping they will swap again.

after light opens the note, he realises that L had known perfectly well who he was and struggles to understand why L didn't tell him + why L emphasised so hard not to open that note until after they'd stopped swapping. he figures, or fears, that the reason they stopped swapping is because L died, which is more or less the truth.

the last note takes place in 2006 after light picks up the death note and finally puts the pieces together that he was the kira suspect that L had been investigating. at this point he realises that he has been given the chance he'd been hoping for to save L's life by choosing not to become kira. his choice whether or not to take it, but........

[slytherinsrule89]

Blaise Headcannons

Saved the best for last because I literally love him with my whole heart and soul 😊😌

- He’s a cat person

- Will always be holding your hand

- Always quietly making jokes to you in class and laughs a bit when you both get detention talking

- Man has a STARING problem. LIke always just has his eyes glued to you

- Literally knows everything. He’d always have the latest gossip and will tell you all the time.

- Has to constantly get the other guys out of trouble

- And if he does break rules(which he would) he’d never get caught by any teachers and the rest of the group is constantly trying to figure out how

- Has friends from other houses. They aren’t as close to him as the main slytherin group but you’ll still see him hanging out with them.

- Would love to play with your hair. He finds it very relaxing

- Personally I don’t think he’d be a player. I know a lot of people think that because of his mom but in my mind he wouldn’t be

- Speaking about Mrs. Zabini though, he would do anything for her and they have a really good relationship

- However the slytherin group is banned from going to his house because he refuses to let them thirst over 24/7

- Favourite subject is potions

- He’d have such good fashion taste and would love picking outfits out for you as well

- Likes bringing you to fancy dinners so he can show you off and he also just loves seeing the way your face lights up

- The best humour out of everyone.Like no matter what he always has people laughing

- Definitely has a sweet tooth and will only ever share his stash with you

- Good painter. He learned from his mom and will often paint little pictures for you to keep.

- Blaise is a hopeless romantic and I will die on that hill

- He’d literally be so good at writing you love letters and will always put a pressed flower in the envelope

- LOVESS candles so much and had like a billion in his dorm

- Also likes to read a lot and will often read a book to you to help you sleep if you ever struggle with it.

You guys really liked my last headcannons I posted so I thought I’d make more :) Hope you enjoy :)

[futfemfantasies]

Yellow - Mackenzie Arnold x reader

You woke up to a smidge of light peering through your window and a tight arm wrapped around your waist. You look at the time on your watch and it’s a little past 7:30 so you know that Mackenzie isn’t going to wake up for at least another hour. You turn over slightly and give her a soft kiss on the cheek, which causes the slightly older than you to scrunch her nose and turn over. This loosens her arm around you a little so it’s easy for you to escape. Once out of the tight hold, you decide you are going to go on a walk and to grab some coffee and bagels on the way home. After slipping on your last shoe and leaving a note on your pillow, you started your mini adventure.

You’d just moved to England from the US after scoring a deal with Arsenal so you are still getting used to the new country. Thankfully, since you and Mackenzie’s clubs aren’t that far from each other, you still see each other regularly. As you walk down the street, you see the familiar but old style shopping village you’ve grown to love. Turns out the country markets are on today and that makes you happy to explore peoples little handmade trinkets and fresh produce.

You first stop at a small flower stall and greet the old couple sitting in their slightly beaten up camping chairs, sharing a warm cup of coffee. All the different colours and aromas makes your heart burst with happiness, especially when you see this one shade of purple. It reminds you of the first time you saw Mackenzie in your national teams goalkeeper jersey. Having your favourite girl kitted out in your favourite colour did something to you. You didn’t realise how long you were staring at the flowers until you saw the old lady stand in front of you.

“You can just buy one if you want. I know a whole bunch is a bit much sometimes” the old lady offers.

You decide to buy three stems of the flower and she wraps it up nice and cute for you. You thank her and decide to give here a little bit extra for the trouble.

You walk down the next couple of stalls and see one of the new couples at Arsenal, Caitlin Foord and Katie McCabe. You talk to them for a while until you hear your phone ringing and see it’s Mackenzie. You bid them goodbye and that you’ll see them tomorrow for games night at Viv and Beth’s house. You quickly answer your phone and see Mackenzie FaceTiming you.

“Hey bubs, did you just wake up?” You ask as you look at a handmade jewellery stall.

“I did and you weren’t here. Where are you?” Mackenzie asks, mumbling into the comfy and fluffy blanket.

“I went down the street to get us some coffee and it turns out the markets are on. So I’m just having a look around, trying to familiarise myself with the area”

“Can you hurry? I’m missing out on my cuddles”

“I’ll be as quick as I can bubs. I love you”

“I love you more love. See you soon”

You look around the jewellery and see a pair of sunflower stud earrings. You pick them up and smile at the memory behind sunflowers.

On your four month anniversary date, Mackenzie took you to a sunflower farm in you hometown of Brisbane and you were in heaven. They had a clear patch where you could have a picnic and you both packed each others favourite foods and drinks. The patch was on top of a hill, over looking the beautiful mountains and the city below. You both had finished eating and you moved to sit in between her legs, watching as the sun slowing hide behind the high rise buildings, leaving behind a glow of oranges and pinks. It honestly made Mackenzie look like a goddess in your opinion. After a moment of comfortable silence, she told you those three words you have also had on the tip of your tongue also. You both sealed it with a kiss (or make out session) under the setting sun and it was truly a day you’ll never forget.

You give the earrings, along with the matching necklace, to the young girl to pay and again, told her to keep the change. She thanks you a lot before you head off down to the other stalls. You buy some more ironically coloured flowers, some matched Mackenzie’s eyes and one colour (in your brain), matching the way she smiles ever so lovingly at you.

You reach your final stall and see the most gorgeous yellow daffodils you’ve seen. Immediately buying them, you check the time and Mackenzie is texting you asking if you’ve ran away with the circus and that her ‘cuddle-o-meter’ is nearly running out so she’s going to die. You roll your eyes at the dramatics but decide to get the things you had come out for, coffee and bagels. You make a u-turn to your favourite coffee shop and order the usual for you both with cream cheese bagels.

You race home as fast as you can with two coffees and a bag full of flowers. Mackenzie hears the front door unlock and immediately goes to help you. Her eyes wide at the amount of flowers in your bag.

“What’s all the flowers for baby?” Mackenzie questions.

“I’ll explain later but please take the coffee”

You both sit on the couch and eat your bagels while you tell Mackenzie about all the stalls at the markets. Mackenzie’s heart swells up at how excited you get over the little things and it makes her smile even more (if that was possible).

“Okay presents time!” You say practically jumping out of your seat.

You explain all meanings behind the purple flowers to the sunflower earrings and necklace set and how Mackenzie hates earrings so you’ll wear them and she can have the necklace. Not once did Mackenzie get distracted or even think about not listening to you rave on about everything you bought her and the meanings behind them.

You finally got to the yellow daffodils. You turn and take Mackenzie’s hands in yours and she immediately tenses a little. You rub your thumb on her hand and she relaxes slightly.

“Mum used to tell me that yellow is the happiest colour. She used to say ‘yellow is something, or someone, that makes you so head over heels happy that you don’t want it to end’. Ever since we’ve started dating, I knew you were it for me. You’re my soulmate, my yellow. You’re the safe place I call home”

It happens all at once. The bottom lip wobbles. The single tear falls down Mackenzie’s cheek. The bone crunching hug that sends you flying back, hitting the soft cushions of the couch. You feel your shirt getting wet and you pull Mackenzie’s head up to see her with tears streaming down her face.

“Oh baby, I didn’t mean to make you cry” you mumble, wiping tears from her cheek.

“Marry me?”

You thought you heard wrong or didn’t hear her at all. When you don’t say anything, Mackenzie gets up from your lap embarrassed then you realise what she said. She turns to walk away when you grab her wrist, making Mackenzie turn her head to you.

“Yes”

“Yes?”

“Yes I’ll marry you baby!”

Mackenzie falls straight back on top of you and kisses you passionately. You pull her close when she pulls back quickly.

“The ring! You need your ring!” She sprints into the bedroom and before you could get up, she sprints right back out.

Mackenzie kneels on the floor in front of you before lifting your left hand and sliding the ring on. You tell her to stay there and you take a quick photo. She cuddles back into your arms and you cannot stop looking at the new sparkling piece of jewellery on your left hand.

“It’s gorgeous”

“Just like it’s owner”

“You cheese ball”

London being London, it starts to rain quite heavily so you both decide to cuddle on the couch and watch movies all day.

Who knew going for an early morning stroll on a day off would end up with you being engaged to the love of your life.

…………………………………………………………………………………………

A few weeks later…

liked by mackenziearnold, leahwilliamson, bethmead, matildas, stephcatley and 187,394 others

itsyn25: ‘yellow is something, or someone, that makes you so head over heels happy that you don’t want it to end’ 💍

view all 22,845 comments…

mackenziearnold: home ❤️🥺

// itsyn25: forever and always bubs ♾️

leahwilliamson: yay!! So happy for you both 😭🥹

// itsyn25: i love youuuu 🥹

caitlinfoord: I suppose you can join the club now…

// omg thank you! I totally haven’t been waiting 5 years or anything… 🥲😁

stephcatley: maid of honour dibs! 🙋‍♀️🤩

// itsyn25: I suppose 🙄

[the-colourful-witch]

The All the Young Dudes book covers project

I've been working on this fun project in my time off from social media. It consists of three illustrations to use as book covers for All the Young Dudes by MsKingBean89 on Ao3. This book has been the foundation of my involvement in the fandom. It's the first fic I read about the Marauders and I loved it so much! I laughed, and I cried, it was a real rollercoaster. After making the cover for A Brief History of Dragons by Eyra, I caught the bug and started thinking of more covers to illustrate. I loved working on the first cover, but I didn't love doing it on my tablet. At heart, I am a traditional illustrator and for this kind of illustration, I felt paper might work better. So I got to work. I knew I wanted to make three covers. From what I've seen online most people bind their own copies of All the Young Dudes in three parts: Year 1-4, Year 5-7 and Until the End. Therefore, I made three covers. I have not yet digitalized these illustrations, but I'll turn them into downloadable covers for binders to use for their book projects. I am working on binding my own physical copies of AtYD too :) It's fun! Right, to the covers. There's so much to say!

Book One

This is the start of Remus' life at Hogwarts and his friendship with the other Marauders. I wanted it to feel a bit like reading Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone for the first time. It's the realisation that magic is real, it's that first spark you get when picking up a book you instantly connect with. That was the feeling I wanted to incorporate in this first cover. There are a bunch of little easter eggs for the story and I hope you'll pick them all out. Let me know in the comments what you think they are. Also, for this project, I studied the language of flowers. I am not sure if all my information is correct, but in this one, I put dandelions in the top corners. Dandelions represent new beginnings :)

Book Two

The second half of the Marauders' time at Hogwarts. This part is all about love and loyalty; something I liked a lot! It's also the time when the Marauders complete their animagus transformations. The animals had to be on the cover! That, I knew for sure. I went for a forest theme for this second cover, because of all the mischief the Marauders got up to in the Forbidden Forest during full moons. I used flower language here as well. For every Marauder I picked a flower I felt represented who they are. For Peter, at the top, I chose Bleeding Heart and Belladonna. Both of them represent betrayal and death. Nice and cheery :) For Sirius, on the Right, I chose Bluebell, which represents loyalty. For Remus, on the Left, I chose Acacia, which represents secret love or forbidden love, because he's hiding his sexuality for most of the book. But it's a love flower and in his core Remus is caring and loving, despite his rough edges. For James, on the bottom, I chose violets. And violets represent love at first sight. I know we all know why <3 I like this cover a lot. The picture is a bit grainy, but like I said, I'm still working on digitalising.

Book Three

Last but certainly not least. This book is about war, love and loss. It was definitely the most challenging piece out of the three, but worth the trouble. On this cover, I put Hogwarts at the top, because that's where it all started and where it ends. On the bottom, there's a prophecy, which is about Harry and Voldemort. There are a few gravestones at the bottom. Very cheerful, I know, but if you pay attention, you see a Deathly Hallows on one of them. On the sides are my favourite parts. I like the lily flower in the arms of death, because it's obvious, but also beautiful. I like the Death Eater on the other side because it's spooky. The snakes represent rebirth and Slytherin House, which is important to the story of the Second Wizarding War, connecting good and evil. Once again I put all the flowers in this piece, scattering them around because they're all interwoven in each other's stories. Finally, I want to say something about the three central images. In the first we see Remus as a child. He's alone and scared of the big scary wolf. The three images are a timeline. It represents Remus' relationship with the wolf in him. At first, he despises it and is scared of it. And finally, he stands with it, not quite embracing it, but he's not scared anymore. In the middle, I wanted to show Remus with his friends, because they banished his fear whenever they were together. With his friends, the wolf didn't control Remus and he could control the wolf. I hope it's all clear. I loved working on these pieces and I hope you like them too!

[tagsecretsanta]

From @thundergirl007

From @thundergirl007 to @arwensarboretum

John and EOS

All 5 brothers spending quality time together (With John on Earth??).

I'm glad we're in this together" - said by any of the brothers.

Preferences: No shipping please. Rating: General Favourite character: John.

⋆⁺₊❅⋆ ⁺₊❆⋆

It’s strange, the way the heartbeat of Thunderbird Five almost blends into the nothingness when the space monitor is here constantly. A tranquillity that very few people will ever get to experience in the huge, wide universe.

The pulsing of the life support system, the humming of the radio, the hissing of the lights when the motion sensors activate as he moves around the space station.

Loud in its own right, completely silent in the best way.

And yet, from all the way up here - the vastness and emptiness of orbit - he can still hear the sound of what he believes to be Gordon blaring out Christmas songs around the Tracy Island villa.

“GORDON!”

The voice shouted down the radio grills, catching him off guard somewhat. Presumably to try and find the mischievous redhead through every available IR channel on our communications network.

“Scott sounds in considerable distress, John.”

“That he does, EOS.”

Weightlessly floating his way to the central control room, where the main communication centre is, EOS has already pulled up what appears to be Scott's irritated figure on the hologram.

The image was a bit hard to make out specifically what it was, but it looked like Scott was covered in dust. A fine white dust that caked him, like he'd walked into the worlds oldest building and fell right into a pile of old rubble.

A strange image for someone currently on Tracy Island.

"Everything ok down there, Scott?" John asked, doing his very best to suppress the laugh, as juvenile as that would be. He looked ridiculous.

"Can you find me our blond haired mischief maker from up there, John? I've got a bone to pick with him." He ruffled his hair and the dust flew off him in all directions.

"Scott appears to be covered in some kind of fine substance. For what purpose is unclear."

EOS' summary of the situation was apt, and he hoped that Scott hadn't heard her, although it would have been funny if he had.

"Why, what has he done now?" he asked, watching Scott's communicator signal move around the villa from Thunderbird 1's hangar to the lounge.

"Do you want to take a wild guess, brother?"

"Re-enacted the bathroom escapade from when he was 7?"

"Close, but not quite."

Scott's hologram then disappeared from the monitor, but John could practically hear him storming around on the island looking for the brother in question. Whether Scott knew he was in the lounge, "innocently" reading a book, is debatable. Either way, he was making his way there with a ruthless determination that he did not want to miss a single moment of. Gordon was certainly going to be in some serious brotherly trouble.

Now would be a seriously bad time for a distress call.

"Oh Scott!" said brother - sat on the lounge with his feet up - all smiles, was holding a comic book in front of him, "to what do I owe the pleasure this time?"

"Don't you act like you don't know!" Scott roared from the stairs.

"I swear, I didn't do anything -!"

"You made me look like the Ghost of Christmas Past, you stupid -!"

"Is this a situation that popcorn would be for, John?"

"Oh, yes it is EOS."

Virgil Tracy was just passing through Thunderbird 2's hangar to get to the lounge when he heard the sound of the space elevator docking in its place and decided to take a minor detour to greet the arrival.

As expected, John was still in his IR gear, with only a small bag of belongings brought down with him, and Virgil would bet money that they were books and underwear.

"Welcome home, John!" he greeted, opening his arms out for an embrace that John welcomed.

"Good to see you too, Virg. How was the journey back from Colorado?"

Virgil patted a hand on his stomach lightly. "Long, I'm definitely ready for some lunch. Running around a power plant really did a number on my appetite."

The pair made their way up the stairs and into the villa proper. The heat hit Virgil like a train as they entered the lounge on their way to the kitchen. It was something all of them had to get used to when they moved out onto the other hemisphere from where they were born and raised in Kansas. The scorching heat in the December months was something he just about managed to get used to in recent years, mainly because it was something of a family tradition to watch Home Alone and the Chicago snowfall was such a nostalgic sight that for just those moments, they forget that snow here in the South Pacific isn't possible.

Even if snow isn't a part of recent Tracy family holiday festivities, the lounge was still warmly decorated with tinsel and a tree up by the piano that everyone had helped decorate. Even MAX had helped put up the tinsel with Brains (although the less said about the methods, the better). Gold and red and blue trimmed the balcony and handrails, little bells hung from the lampshades on the wall, and a little singing robin statuette was situated with pride of place on the little table in the centre of the room. The poor little thing was their mother's, it was old and battered, the little "branch" it perched on has been broken and fixed, and Brains had tinkered with its mechanics to make it sing sweetly again, not the distorted noise it used to make years ago.

And lastly, perfectly placed on the tree, hanging from a middle branch, was the last family photo taken at Christmastime that featured their mother.

It's been put on that tree every year since she died, and that tradition will never change. The seven of them, smiling at the camera with a snowman in the middle of the frame. Little Alan barely as tall as the thing they had made, holding onto his hat and giving a wide, toothy smile. He probably doesn't remember that Christmas.

“Where is everyone? The kitchen’s just as empty as the rest of the house.” Virgil mused, noting that it didn’t even look like the automated kitchen module had been switched on to make anything for lunch.

John just shrugged.

“Oh well. I’ll put something on, we need to have a good catch up now you’re back with us.”

Lunch wouldn’t take long to prepare, especially given that all Virgil really wanted was a sandwich, and John probably didn’t want much more than that either. He simply took his spot at the dinner table, the one he always used down here, with a more careful than usual descent into the seat. Virgil made the pair the same thing. Ham and cheddar sandwiches, which they were both eager to dig into once Virgil brought the plates over.

It was nice, just the two of them. Aside from rescues and the occasional private conversation through their comms channel, Virgil didn’t often have one-on-one chats with John. Mainly because they were birds of a feather, very much enjoying their own company before anything else. John listening for distress calls, reading, studying the stars. Virgil playing the piano or painting in the lounge.

“Do you know if my packages arrived?” John asked.

“I’m not sure, I didn’t see anything yesterday, and today I’ve been in Colorado.”

“That’s a shame. No one is getting presents this year then.”

“I think we can live with that just this once John, it’s just good to have you earthside for a few days.”

“We’ll see if I feel the same way after 24 hours in gravity with both Gordon and Alan.”

“You mean you won’t even stay for Grandma’s Christmas disaster – I mean, dinner?”

“I think I can hear a distress call from 24 hours in the future, Virgil get to Thunderbird 2 –“

The pair laughed, and almost on cue, the sound of distant voices, running footsteps, and a crash from somewhere upstairs. Getting closer and closer with every passing second, the voices soon distinguished themselves to be Alan, Gordon and Scott.

“Come here! I will have my vengeance!”

“Gotta catch up first, slowpoke!”

The trio pounded down the stairs. Scott, then Alan and Gordon.

Scott looked like he had barely enough time to turn the corner from the stairs before the Terrible Two were on his tail. Not nearly as covered in whatever-it-was-powder as he was before, presumably all the running had dusted him off somewhat.

Right behind him were said terrible two, and they seemed to have suffered a similar fate as the eldest brother. From the smell of them as they ran past, whatever it was, was sickly sweet. Powdered sugar, perhaps? Either way they left a trail of sugar in their wake.

Scott had run around the kitchen island, and Gordon and Alan waited for him at either side, pinning him to his spot with an almost military efficiency that even Scott should have seen coming.

Did Brains invent a de-aging machine or something, what is going on with Scott?  He’s not acted like this since those boys were tiny terrors.

“Hi John!” Alan turned around and cheerily waved, before giving his attention back to the eldest brother.

“Good to see you Alan,” John chuckled, “and you Gordon. Scott”

“Not now, it’s payback time.”

“You started this, Gordon! Don’t dish it if you can’t take it!”

Virgil should not have been surprised that Gordon took advantage of his and Scott’s absence from the island to play a practical joke with Scott for him to find on his return. What was surprising is that Scott somehow fell for it regardless.

Finishing up the last of his sandwich, John stood up, ignoring the war games going on elsewhere in the kitchen. “Well, this has been fun. I’ll go get changed, can’t be looking like this all day, I’ll melt.”

“I’ll wash up then,” Virgil started to get up too, picking up both John’s and his own plate. “John.”

“Yes?”

“I’m glad we could all be here together for the holidays. Even if it seems that the house will be dusted with sugar for days.”

Virgil side eyed the footprints and trails of sugar from the kitchen floor to the stairs and dreaded to think what it was like upstairs in the living quarters.

“Glad to be here. Just like old times.”

Gordon was the one to break the stalemate over there, and he positively lunged for the eldest brother. Alan was quick to join him, and the three were all on the kitchen floor in a tangled mess of a pile.

Just like old times indeed.

[ijustwantgoodopinions]

Mako Moments

In light of recent news I wanted to draw some of my favourite Mako moments from the show.

Makoto is a character with clear outer and inner personas. She has a tough exterior, formed mostly from the perception of other people, but has a more genuine tendency towards calmness and sweetness. Emi Shinohara perfectly voiced both these aspects, giving Mako a seriousness the other sailor soldiers never had (consider episodes 45, R12, Stars5), yet was able to embody Mako's true nature of gentleness (R3, SuperS7). Though Mako is less exaggerated than some of the other soldiers, Shinohara also shined in Mako's more comedic aspects, namely her over-romantic tendencies and senpai obsession.

I find it nearly impossible to separate Emi Shinohara's vocal performance from my favourite aspect of Makoto's character — that everything she does is touched with a twinge of loneliness. She lives alone, only plants to care for, she picks up cooking and cleaning (among other reasons) in an attempt to counter her overwhelming physicality, and, of course, she's obsessed with a guy that turned her down. Neither the show nor the manga (though slightly in the live-action show) ever feel the need to have Mako "get over" these issues, it's allowed to just be. Realistically, no one from the ages of 14-16 is just going to get over deep-seated problems stemming from childhood that affect every single aspect of their personality and life. It basically forms the core of her being. It's very sad, and very real.

I imagine that somewhen in the infinite utopia of Crystal Tokyo, Mako eventually dismantles the gender-influenced insecurities that wracks her so. That she'll be able to engage in masculine presentation or feminine activities away from the gender binary, so she can cook, skate, and fight without thinking of the opinions of others. I don't think she will ever lose that sense of longing, but at the very least she'll learn to live without the constant need to attract. After all, she'll be running her bakery-flower shop with a (probably) wife that she loves very much. She'll always be lonely when alone, but she's never alone.

Redrawn moments are from:

Sailor Moon episode 25: Jupiter, the Powerful Girl in Love

Sailor Moon episode 29: Total Chaos: the Messy Love Rectangle

Sailor Moon R episode 9: Is Seijuro the Moonlight Knight? Mako on Fire

Sailor Moon R episode 10: Steal a Kiss From Mamoru! An's Project Snow White

Sailor Moon S episode 5: Protect the Pure Heart! A Three-way Battle

Sailor Moon S episode 7: Cold-hearted Uranus? Makoto in Trouble

Sailor Moon S The Movie

Sailor Moon SuperS episode 20: The Fated Partner? Makoto's Innocence

Sailor Moon Stars episode 5: Hell Demon Battle! Love Will Prevail

[luminousbeings-crudematter]

I can have my favourite bed time story which is " one of the 141 is picking me up at the hotel bar/ already in the airport and oh look at that we are in the same hotel" bonus points to my brain when it goes into unhinged territory, bc it's not at all a coincidence that you both stop at the same hotel. You are just to nice of a distraction to let go for now

see i love this, because Ghost and Soap fit into this deranged narrative by default, but you know who would really masterfully orchestrate a meet-cute after meticulous planning?

He makes you nervous, and you don't know why.

He's cute. His hat and headphone combo make him look young and approachable and hip, and it doesn't hurt that he smiles so wide that deep, gorgeous smile lines appears around the corners of his eyes. You should be counting your lucky stars - you've got the company of this heart throb on your 7-hour flight...but your instincts tell you that something's not right. You ignore them.

He talks to you a lot - asks you so many questions about yourself that you're starting to think of this as a date - but he's equally as generous on information about himself: Gaz. Army. Special Forces. The real special forces, he smiles mischievously. Going back home for a few weeks.

You end up telling him about yourself too. Went to Uni in the UK, so you're back now that you can afford to properly do the touristy stuff. He recommends a few cities and you thank him profusely - ever grateful to have recommendations from a local. When he jokes about happily being your tour guide, you laugh and brush him off.

He's kind enough to wake you up when the flight attendants arrive with lunch, you think you're going to die when you realise you'd fallen asleep on his shoulder. He waves your apology off immediately. You have lunch together and it does feel like a date. He's respectful and kind and funny, he listens intently, asks meaningful questions, and he's pretty.

You part ways at immigration. He wishes you the best of luck with your troubles, and you tell him to keep out of it. No promises, he responds easily. (You're disappointed when he doesn't ask for your number, but it's fine, you tell yourself. No point anyway. He's home to relax and you're going to be touring the country.)

So imagine your surprise when he's at the hotel breakfast buffet the next morning. You walk up to him tentatively, hands clammy. Did he...follow you? No. No, that can't be right, you never told him where you were going. But then? Coincidence? Has to be, he doesn't seem the creepy type.

He seems genuinely surprised to see you, and your doubt dissipates a little.

You end up having breakfast together, and he tells you how he'd completely forgotten that his mum was away. He's a bit shy, clearly uncomfortable as he admits that he'd found being in the house by himself a bit quiet, too lonely, and had checked himself into the closest hotel he could.

You're skeptical, but you believe it just enough for him to successfully convince you that - now he's got nothing to do but wait for his mum to return - he really wouldn't mind showing you around, actually! It's his city after all, and you do want that authentic city experience that only a local could give you, don't you? Ah, the tourist-y spots are all overdone and gauche, love, he'll show you the real city.

Three nights of playing tour guide and bodyguard and boyfriend, and he's sinking into you in your hotel room, one he's effectively moved into.

Been waiting for my cock in your greedy little cunt, yeah? Know you've been touchin' yourself to me every night. So fuckin' tight, love, you've been keeping her tight for me? Been months since you've let anyone in her, have you been waiting for me?

[autisticlancemcclain]

my friend @beloveddawn-blog helpfully sent me a list of questions to help me get my creative juices flowing in this massive bout of writing struggles i got going on. ily mwah.

1. Do you prefer in-denial Lance or pining Lance? How about Keith?

basic cop-out answer but it changes from fic to fic. in a more comedic fic, i like to go for lance who is both pining AND in-denial, aka he knows he’s in love and is mad at it, or i like to make keith like so painfully oblivious to lances blatant PLEASE DATE MEs that it’s funny. generally tho i go for gooey whipped mutual pining.

2. Do you prefer Keith to be baffled by Lance's flirting or just baffled Lance is flirting with him?

baffled that lance is flirting with him. the I Do Not Deserve To Be Loved -complex is my favourite complex to give keith bc i have problems and he’s just so easy to blorbo

3. What's your favourite episode and why?

i’m gonna be so real with you voltron was so bad that once i finished s6 at like 15 yrs old i vowed never to watch it again 💀💀 six years later this vow holds true. however i remember liking the first episode, the mermaid episode, the space mall episode, and the episode where keith chases lotor in the black lion and lance is like dude you fucked up. dumbass. but he’s very obviously fond and he’s THERE and they’re gonna fix it together and that is the first time keith realises that lance fully and completely has his back. that is the moment he fell in love to me

4. What's your favourite character beat and why?

i don’t know what a character beat is BUT i am a lance stan as you may have guessed. interestingly, i used to watch voltron with my siblings and as with all character things we did together, we each picked a favourite and then only that one character was allowed to be your favourite. lance was picked before i could pick him but i got keith (and thus have the most merch of him). and honestly….keith is kind of my favourite i never stop thinking about him and also i write in his pov the most (granted, about lance lol).

5. What's your favourite line you've ever written.

oh that’s a hard one! not to toot my own horn or anything but i’ve had some stellar lines, at least i think. i have a lot of lines that are profound or whatever but to this day i’m proudest of the “i’m anaemic” “oh i didn’t know you had an eating disorder” line like i made myself laugh out loud 💀

6. What's your favourite fic you've ever written

eighty percent of my fics are my faves bc i write to indulge myself lol. BUT i’m rly super proud of my look so good longfic, i love the applebees universe, and the beauty and the beast au is dear to me. i’m also obsessed with this fic that only exists in my head bc i have typed nothing yet. it’s a theatre school taming of the shrew au.

7. What is your favourite type of AU? Do you prefer complete AUs (like BatB) or detail AUs (that angsty thing you wrote where Lance leaves after the game show)?

i love modern aus really. i’m a fan of the mundane. as a close second i like redoing movies/songs/books that aren’t usually au’ed. and i like complete aus WAY better, i just have trouble actually completing them 😭😭

[bluelotuswrites]

i love ask games!!! is three asks excessive? three might be excessive… pick and choose if you don’t want to answer all of them!

🥤 ⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you l

🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairing

🎨 ⇢ link your favourite piece of fanart and explain why you like it

hope you’re having a good day and your wips aren’t giving you trouble <3

🥤 ⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you love

I'm gonna link a couple because I have lots.

butcherbird, fly away home One of Jason's instructors kidnaps Bruce fucking Wayne. This changes nothing, or at least that's what Jason keeps telling himself.

Six Degrees of Separation by @oliocelottafanfics Catatonic Jason is picked up by Penelope Garcia from Criminal Minds. It changes many things. Very good and fun

Melodyverse by @rainymeadows If you like Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright, then this is a fun continuation fic.

The Wayward Boy Instead of Jason going after his mother in Ethiopia, he instead enlists in the military.

Ed Elric/Marvel Fem!Ed gets transported to the MCU during Capitain America First Avenger movie. It's actually really good and I hope the author is doing well since it's been a few years since they updated.

The Volatile Verse Comics Jason crosses dimensions to YJ season 1 and becomes a big brother figure to Dick. It's locked so you'll need an AO3 account to see it.

Batman: Arkham Compendium Listen to me. When I tell you this is the best Arkhamverse fic, I mean it. It follows Jason's life in Arkhamverse from before and after Arkham Knight. The author left the fandom a long time ago, but I will forever love the worldbuilding that was put into it.

Not that big a distance really Bucky and Jason meet after Bucky goes to Jason's apartment address in NJ instead of NY. Bucky and Steve becomes kinda like a pseudo-dad figure to Jason.

Remnant Michael Afton is on the YJ Season 1 team and has super powers after the incident at Sister Location. He's 15-16 in this, and William Afton is one fucked up dude. It sounds like a concept that is so out there but it's actually really fucking good.

🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairing

Okayyyy so. I'm not really an active fandom shipper? I guess the only one I really am open about is Laywright. For them, I headcanon that during the 7 years that Phoenix was disbarred, he had met up with Hershel and was the person he knew in London. Also, Hershel helped him back on his feet and was a soundboard for Phoenix's idea for revamping the justice system in America.

For platonic pairing, I headcanon that Tim and Jason tend to have regular bitch sessions about the idiots in Gotham/family. Tim is a sassy little shit in canon and Jason is Jason. When their paths cross or Bruce has pissed them off again, they go to one of Jason's safehouses where Jason cooks and they bitch about whatever is on their minds. Dick is not allowed and regularly gets kicked out if he tries to butt in.

🎨 ⇢ link your favourite piece of fanart and explain why you like it

Oh god, my favorite piece??? You're evil. I can't have just one! Okay, okay.

So this is actually a painting the lovely @gremlinscogs did for their art class based off RitCoS. It's glorious, and it was sent to me in DMs but they gave me permission to post. It's really a beautiful piece that captured the vibes of the first fic in Red is the Color of Sinners perfectly.

(digital concept art version they did)

Also, this bad boy by @speaching back when we first started talking and I teased a small chapter bit I had written but hadn't posted yet. I went to bed and woke up to that, and thus started a chaotic friendship that has lasted for quite some time.

Speach also drew this one that never fails to make me laugh. Just the image of Matt aggressively shoveling snow sends me.

[steveinscarlet]

In celebration of Steve's birthday, here is a list of songs that were important to him. These are all songs that either he or Lorelei named as favourites of his, or that played a significant role in his life. I hoped this was going to turn out really happy, but our boy really liked sad songs so it's a bit of a mixture

@littlemissheavenonearth is trying to make an Apple music playlist that people can listen to, so will update if that happens

1) How many more times - Led Zeppelin

The song that inspired him to 'throw the classic guitar out the window' and pick up an electric

2) Free bird - Lynyrd Skynyrd

Steve's audition piece for Leppard

3) Heroes - David Bowie

A song about a love that can't last - I wonder who he had in mind when he listened to this?

4) Travelin' band - Creedence Clearwater Revival

A big John Fogerty fan, he once asked him for an autograph pretending it was for someone else rather than admit it was for himself

5) Under pressure - Queen & David Bowie

This one didn't come with an explanation, but it's maybe obvious why he liked it

6) Where have all the good times gone - The Kinks

🙁

7) Goodness gracious me - Peter Sellers & Sophia Loren

A silly song that he would sing as a duet with Lorelei - he loved doing funny voices

8) Because the night - Patti Smith Group

Aw, he's a hopeless romantic

9) Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence - Ryuichi Sakamoto

He collected soundtracks and hoped to compose for film and theatre after Leppard's popularity waned

10) Wonderland - Big Country

Steve really related to the lyrics of this song. I think it speaks to his troubles, but also his hopes for a better future. And you will take my hand, And be with me in wonderland

[superemeralds]

What's been your favorite place, or setting, to draw and depict in The Heart of A Monster?

now i think im known for not bneing able to answer things in a simple way. especially when i'm asked for favourites. picking jsut one would be unfair and untrue.

my boring answer is.,. all of them!?

it was a very nice challenge and learning experience, especially the places that I had trouble with. I can pick out somehting positive for every single one of them..

some noteworthy milestone type stuff:

Issue 4 was the first time i heavily referenced and actually used the sonic unleashed game to explore areas to really get some details in for the hub world location they visited! that process was super fun but ultimately ended up in me making too detailed backgrounds. Still a very important formative learning experience :3

I'm proud of the desert areas in issue 5. i think you can actually see how on page 15 it just CLICKED and i figured out how to use color in that setting, how to properly use the colros for shade and sunlight!

I'm also really happy with the depiction of arabic culture in that issue. I got a lot of comments from arabic readers thanking me for depicting their culture properly and making them feel represented. (especially the fact people have communal meals on carpets on the floor; as it is almost never represented at all in popular media)

the icy areas and areas in the ARK in issue 7 were a huge experimentation and ended up being so fun that i drew ALMOST 30 comic pages in 2 weeks. that issue was also the first time i actually did environment concept art beforehand instead of making the environment up as i go (yeah i usually just come up with the location the very moment i draw the final page LMAO i neeeed to stop doing that hoyl shit)

i had a lot of fun making up the chaotix office at the end of issue 8 too :3 built it in the sims for reference lol

im generally really bad at interiors, ESPECIALLY sleek sci-fi stuff. i think it really shows in issue 8 with the big disparity between outside and interior backgrounds. (honestly those pages are super embarassing to me but... the show must go on!) eggman-land is a very special challenge that I welcome :] having lots of fun actually! comparing my eggman base art to the art i made in issue 1 definitely makes me hopeful for the future.

especially with how i practised eggman-bases in my sonadow comic BLUE TIDE

[officialchristiancagebbgirlblog]

Punishment

Fic type: smut

Word count: 4281

This, I think, is the longest fic I’ve ever written holy shit. I’m not lying when I say this took days to write. I hope you guys enjoy!

You tease Christian from home while he’s out only to receive your punishment when he returns

Mention of: blindfolds, creampie.

Link to masterlist

Happy reading 🩷

“Are you sure you can’t finish early?” You pleaded on the phone. Being stuck in your shared hotel room while Christian was stuck at work training for an upcoming PPV was your least favourite part of travelling with him.

“No, honey, I have to keep going for another few hours, and then I’ve got a meeting about my match. I won’t be back until at least half 8?” You could hear the sadness in his voice; it bummed him out to know he had to keep going before he could be back in bed with you.

You sighed to yourself trying not to let it get to you, saying your goodbyes shortly after. Sure, it was only like 3 hours you had to wait but it didn’t change how much it sucked. He had already been gone since lunchtime for various interviews, work events. And at that point in the evening, you had exhausted all the channels on the television so nothing was grabbing your attention to keep you busy. All you could do was lay there on the bed and stare at the ceiling.

After what felt like 2 and a half hours but was only 1, you were still laying there. Not moving. Trying to come up with something, anything to entertain yourself:

“I could listen to some music!” You thought to yourself,

No. There weren't any songs that you could think of.

“I could go for a walk?”

But that involved dressing up. You were quite comfortable in your lingerie. Plus the weather wasn’t ideal…

“I could FaceTime my friends?”

Nah, they were going to be busy at this time for sure.

“I could maybe…have some fun? By myself?”

Absolutely not! Christian had made it very clear to never do that without his presence!

“I could…

I could tease him. Teach him a lesson for leaving me here with nothing to do!”

It was perfect. Show him what he was missing out on! You knew it wasn’t entirely fair on him as he didn’t have a choice. He had to be there today. But fuck that! He should know better than to leave you on your own.

But how to do it? You were already dressed in the right attire so there was no need to get up and put something on. Just imagining his reaction was enough to get your mind racing and it wasn’t too long before you picked your phone up again to start your photography session.

Taking a mix of photos and videos, you adjusted yourself into various positions so he could get a good look at your soft, warm body without revealing too much. You had to keep him hooked after all! It’s no fun if he saw everything through his phone screen!

It was daring, exciting to partake in this activity. The idea that he had to hide his excitement from others was exhilarating and you ate it right up. Perhaps the most daring thing, though, was the final video you sent to him where you lost control. All the photos that came out nice had been received, seen, and salivated over by him with red cheeks and a desperation to keep people from looking at his phone or asking him questions.

You got yourself all worked up that you forgot about his rule: no masterbation without his presence. So when you shot the video of your fingers under the soaked cotton of your underwear and hit send, the realisation hit 30 seconds too late of what you had gotten yourself into. Not only was it bad enough you took the video and actually sent it to him but he had seen it within seconds. Which of course meant you couldn’t delete it now. There was no hiding evidence.

7:45pm rolled around and you knew you were in trouble when he returned and didn’t give you the usual chipper smile and bountiful kisses all over your face. Instead when he entered the room, he stood at the foot of the bed with a growling frown. His cheeks were pink, his eyebrows were furrowed in an angry concentration, and his tight trousers proudly displayed his love to you. You should have been apologising, explaining yourself somehow. But the way the denim curved around his surely leaking cock was so distracting that you barely even noticed he took a hold of your ankles and pulled you down the bed.

Yelping as you were forced to sit upright at the foot of the bed, he placed two fingers on his right hand under your chin and forced your face upwards to look him in the eyes.

“You’ve been such a bad girl tonight,” he rasped with a slight upwards curl on the corner of his mouth, “I think you deserve to be punished for what you did tonight.”

Christian took a step forward closer to your face with his legs either side of you, trapping you in place. Not that you had any intentions of moving, however the idea that you couldn’t escape your fate was so delicious. He slowly started to unbuckle his belt making sure to take his sweet time. The leather squeaked slightly when he pulled it out of the hoops, and the metal played a sweet sound as it loosened and finally unbuckled. He took a step back as he worked on the zip of his trousers and finally the button, wasting no time in removing the clothing from his legs entirely. And there he stood before you. Tight black boxers hugged his hairy yet soft thighs, his cock even more prominent.

“Use your teeth.”

His tone was harsh, but his voice was soft and deep. You maintained eye contact with him as you leant forward towards the waistband with your mouth agape. You couldn’t help but giggle as he shivered to the feeling of your lips making contact with his body. Just as slowly as he removed his belt, you carefully took the fabric between your teeth and began to inch it down his long slender legs. He watched you the entire way down biting on his bottom lip to stop any pleas to go faster from slipping out. If the shiver wasn’t good enough, hearing him gasp in pleasure as his cock sprang free, slapping against his stomach surely did the job at soaking your panties.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, his boxers pooled around his ankles and he eagerly stepped out of them. Now kneeling on the carpet in front of him, he pulled you back up onto the bed. It was a far better view for him. Plus he wanted to know exactly where your hands were at all times. He couldn’t have you touching yourself now could he? Certainly not after your behaviour up until that point!

Taking hold of his now throbbing cock he took hold of your chin with his thumb and finger. With a devious smirk, he forced you to open your mouth wide for him. You stuck your tongue out for him to place the head on so you could begin relieving him. Beads of precum had formed at the tip just begging to be lapped up and tasted by you. And you were all too happy to oblige, using the flat of your tongue to clean him up. Christian’s head rolled back and his mouth fell open at the warmth and the wetness that suddenly appeared for him.

“Yeah, that’s it baby.” He purred as you began to gleefully take him deep into your mouth. His fingers tangled themselves in your hair as he took a rough fistful, rocking his hips with each pump of your mouth. It was clear he wasn’t going to last too much longer as moans began spilling from his lips, sweet nothings floating into your ears. The hair above his cock was beginning to tickle your face more than you liked so you pulled back to focus on the head of his cock. Still you kept his joy going by replacing the pumping action with your hand on his shaft. Going tip to tip with your tongue and his penis, you licked up and down, side to side, in circular motions keeping a steady speed to not rush his orgasm which was already fast approaching. But when your tongue began to dip into the slit of his head, he let out a breathless “oh god” and an “oh fuck!” before those sweet words were spoken: “oh god, baby, I’m cumming!”

As he whimpered out your name, sweet streams of hot cum shot out onto your still moving tongue. In normal circumstances, you would spit the cum out not being a huge fan of the texture but you felt it was deserved today. Once he pulled his still twitching cock out of your mouth, he instinctively reached for the nearby bin for you to spit out his seed. But you kept eye contact as you swallowed every last drop and showed him the evidence. His cheeks flushed a darker shade of pink and his eyes darkened at your actions.

“Stand up. It’s your turn.” He growled, pulling you up and pinning your front against the wall with an order to “stay there a second.”

You turned your head to watch him pick up a clean sock of his from the dresser. Somehow throughout your entire sex journey with each other, neither of you had thought to buy an actual blindfold. Surely by this point he had multiple odd socks that were looser than the other at this point. He returned to you, slipping the sock over your eyes and tying it behind your head in a tight, secure knot. He made quick work of removing only your bra, flinging it to a random corner in the room to be found hours later. Keeping your panties on seemed to excite him even more. He pressed his body against you, making sure your hair was moved out of the way to reveal your neck.

“Before we start, lovely,” he began, his dominant demeanour dropping for a moment, “if at any point you feel uncomfortable, you want to stop, tell me straight away okay? Don’t feel bad or scared to say it’s too much and we need to stop.” His fingers gently traced shapes on your shoulder as he whispered his concerned words to you, waiting for a response.

“I will, baby, I promise.” You smiled reassuringly over your shoulder, “I always feel safe with you and I want to do this really badly.” Although you couldn’t see it, he returned your smile and planted a gentle kiss on your cheek and then your lips, holding on for a second longer than he intended.

After receiving your consent to continue, he moved his kisses to your neck, sparing no time with leaving a trail of love bites down your skin on either side. He separated your legs with his which allowed his, once again rock hard cock to spring up between your legs, landing neatly between your folds through the soaked fabric. Beginning to rock his hips like he did before, the hairs on his chest and stomach tickled with each movement. He reached around to begin to fondle your bare breasts now leaving no space between your bodies.

“Does that feel good?” He cooed, his hot breath tickling your ear and sending a shiver down your spine. You couldn’t say anything so you just nodded. The roughness of his hands skyrocketed the pleasure as they kneaded your soft skin, taking some time to gently pinch your nipples. Mixed with the feeling of his slow thrusts you were in ecstasy. You let out a quiet whimper as your head rolled back onto his shoulder, his lips making their way back down to leave soft kisses over the marks he had made. There was a twinge of pain as your skin was sensitive but the moistness of his lips felt oddly soothing.

“Christian…” you gasped, “please I need more!”

Feeling him smirk against your skin made your body quiver and your legs feel like jelly. He guided you back to the bed with his hands on your hips before turning you around to face him.

“Mmmm…you look so beautiful right now!” You could hear the smile in his voice as he studied your face for a brief moment, “Let me get a good look at you, baby girl.”

Carefully he untied the sock trying not to catch your hair or hurt you accidentally. As it slipped off your face, you had to spend a second to adjust to the light, squinting hard before feeling comfortable enough to open your eyes normally. Christian’s hair was a little bit damp and messy from his enjoyment so far, sparse beads of sweat gently rolling down the side of his face before settling in his neatly trimmed beard. But despite the sweat, red skin, and mucked up hair, he had never looked so handsome and you found yourself leaning forward to show your love for him. There was no hesitation as he leant forward and closed the gap between your lips.

However the kiss, although full of love and a hint of passion, was short lived. That gleam in his eye from earlier returned as did his hard on which was just begging to be touched again. He pushed you back to lay down on the bed and took a rough hold of your legs to, once again, pull you down to the edge of the bed. Instinctively you tried to sit up but he held you down by your hips. The smirk returned as he shook his head at you for attempting to go against his order. That damned smirk. A part of you hated how it had so much control over you. You watched as he sunk down to his knees allowing his fingertips to gently slide down your thighs as he reached the floor. Licking his lips, he reached down to your thighs, making and maintaining eye contact with you. He left a trail of kisses leading up on either thigh being careful not to get too close just yet.

Every time he got close to the sweet spot you felt a small heartbeat on your clit. You were getting increasingly more desperate for his tongue to relieve you of the built up pressure.

“Oh god, you have no idea how good your pussy smells right now!” He moaned out, lifting your legs wide apart. He was becoming just as desperate as you were, practically salivating over the knowledge that he was about to be able to lick up every last drop of your excitement. He began to lick at your inner thigh where the crease of your skin started to become your right pussy lip. You fought back the sounds of pleasure by biting on your bottom lip hard enough to almost draw blood. The feeling of the top of his tongue trying desperately to slip under the fabric of your panties through the leg hole to get even just a hint of your taste was so intense. Clearly he had run out of patience as he grabbed either side of the waistband and yanked your panties off in one clean swoop to join the fate of your forgotten bra. He threw your legs over his shoulders as you watched him lick his lips with an almost silent “fuck!”, dipping his head down to return the favour from earlier.

The feeling of his whole tongue slipping between your folds to drag a slow, full lick from bottom to top was enough to make you lose concentration and let out a yelp of pleasure. You felt him groan against your wet lips sending a wave of pleasure upwards from the vibration. He said something in response which you didn’t hear as he parted your lips with either hand and delved in deeper, his tongue slipping into your entrance.

“You taste so good…” he barely mumbled, his mouth too busy to say anything else. You reached down to hold his head doing anything to reign in the feeling that was starting to become too much for you to handle any longer, but he was quick to grab your wrists before you even felt his slick hair under your hands. Christian looked up at you as he held them tightly on either side of your hips. Regardless of how much fun he was having, he was still determined to punish you for sending him those photos and that video. It could really go either way from here: either he was going to force an early orgasm so you were even more sensitive than you already would be, or he was going to completely deny you of that experience. He was still going to have his way with you but only one of you would be crossing that finish line.

His lips moved up north and hooked onto your clit, sucking roughly on that little button. Instinctively your legs tried to squeeze together from the intense pleasure, pressing against his ears. He took a hold of both your wrists with his left hand moving them to rest on your stomach to force at least one of your legs apart so he could reach you again. It took a fair amount of force to separate your leg from his head but he got there in the end, holding it as far away from his head as he could. His tongue flicked aggressively in all directions at your clit as you let out a strangled shout of his name, the pleasure being too much to stay quiet. Your hips lifted to his face as you felt your orgasm approaching which he sensed. He pulled off you with a satisfying pop, lips red and slightly swollen from the action. He spent a moment admiring his work, your pussy glistening and your clit throbbing from pleasure. Looking up to see your face, he let out a soft moan.

“Oh baby, that was a lot huh?” He teased, lips slightly pouting. Your face was beet red and hot, covered in a layer of sweat that continued all down your body and stuck long strands of hair to your forehead. With legs trembling, you pulled yourself up the bed to allow him to follow you, still on his knees.

“There’s a good girl,” he cooed encouragingly, “you ready for more?”

Admittedly you weren’t sure if you were. You were still so sensitive from him eating you out, you didn’t know if you could take a rough fucking especially for long. But as he moved your legs apart for the third time that evening, the concern left your mind.

“Please, Christian. I need you to fuck me!” You begged, becoming desperate for him again. He pursed his lips wondering if you deserved it.

“Hmmm…,” he wondered aloud, “maybe if you beg for it some more, I’ll fuck you?”

“You bastard.”

You spent a moment trying to think of the quickest thing you could say to get him to reward you. Perhaps you should apologise for teasing him before? That would surely get him to give you what you needed? Still watching and waiting for your pleas, he took a hold of his erection and began to rub it between your wet lips, making it infinitely harder to concentrate.

“I’m sorry I touched myself w-without your presence or permission. I shouldn’t have…” you swallowed thickly, the returning pleasure fuzzing up your thoughts, “I…I shouldn’t have done it. I promise I…I promise I won’t do it again.”

You looked up to see him smiling down at you, still teasing your vagina by rubbing with only the head of his cock. “What do you need from me, sweetie?” His voice was dark and lustful, needing to hear you say it one more time.

“I need…I need you to fuck me. Rough, hard, fast, in any way. Please don’t tease me anymore, I need- ah!”

He didn’t even wait to hear you finish, sliding his cock deep inside you. The feeling of him finally stretching you out was intoxicating. You both let out guttural moans as he wasted no time in burying his cock as far as it would go. Adjusting himself to a missionary position he began to snap his hips roughly pounding in and out of you. By that point, you had completely lost the ability to focus on anything but the feeling and the sound of his skin slapping against yours. Incoherent words fell out of both of your mouths. It seemed he shared your inability to create a coherent sentence. With your hands splayed across his back, you placed a kiss on his shoulder as he dug his fingers once again into your thighs. You were able to regain focus for just a moment as you tasted the subtle saltiness of his sweat on your lips.

“Oh fuck baby, I…I can’t last much longer,” you whimpered, “please, don’t stop!”

He simply panted in response, picking up the pace and angling his hips so he could hit that sweet spot. His lips brushed against the edge of your ear and you barely heard him whisper, “that’s it, tell me how good it feels.”

You really wish you could but you could only moan and whine in response, his thrusts being the only thing your mind could comprehend in that moment. That and your orgasm that was right there. It seemed that he picked up on the urgency of that feeling as he knelt up, pulling your hips with him so your legs sat on either side of him and your ass on his thighs. He stared you down, mouth hanging open, eyebrows furrowed in concentration as the pace he had set began to falter. Breathing heavily, he brought his thumb up to his mouth to suck on it for a brief second before lowering it back to your clit to rub circles on it. There was a growing tension in your lower stomach the longer he paired the two motions, which was moments away from releasing.

“Christiannn…” you whined out his name, your hips rocking and jerking with his, eyes squeezed shut. Sweat was dripping off his body and rolling down yours as he leant forward a bit to see your face closer. Your walls had become so tight around him as you teetered on the edge of release, just needing his encouragement. Your eyes opened to meet his and as he flashed you a sweet smile, you got what you wanted.

“Oh baby, please…cum for me!”

That’s all you needed, letting out a loud gasp and becoming still and tense. Rippling feelings of an intense release of bliss overtook your body as you came around his still thrusting erection. As you slowly came back down to Earth, you heard him whimper as he gripped your hips desperately. He lurched forward laying on top of you as his equally explosive orgasm hit, even stronger than his first one. His lips crashed against yours to stifle the noises of his pleasure not wanting to be too loud. After all, his pleasure was for you and you alone.

It took him a little bit longer to come down from his orgasm, eventually choosing to lay there still connected with you just trying to catch his breath. His face was buried in your neck, still quietly moaning against your skin, planting lazy kisses on the now bruised marks. Although the room was muggy and a little too hot with him choosing not to move over just yet, everything felt perfect. You traced random shapes on his sweat slicked back, your eyes glazed over in a post bliss. Finally he unpeeled his body from yours, the air cooling you down a little bit. As he gently pulled his cock out from inside of you, you felt his seed spill out from inside of you making you gasp and him chuckle at your reaction. He effortlessly picked you up to place you in the armchair near the bed as he began to clear the bed, not wanting to sleep in the now wet sheets. He had also, thankfully, turned the air conditioning on which helped clear up the room, choosing to also open the window behind closed curtains to let some fresh air in.

“I think I’ve…learned my lesson!” You mentioned, standing up to dry yourself off with a nearby towel. He shook his head with a smile, “I hope you have, otherwise I’d have to start all over again.”

Passing him the towel so he could do the same after new sheets were on the bed, you picked up the old ones and placed them in the laundry basket for him, climbing under the top blanket.

“I do want to say that it felt incredible as usual” you praised, as he slid in to lay next to you for a snuggle. He gently laid a kiss on your lips stroking your cheek with his thumb in response. You exchanged the usual ‘I love you’s as you settled down with bodies still buzzing in joy. He reached down to pull your leg over his hips so you were even closer, making you giggle slightly when he grumbled: “you’re so far away, what the fuck?” Planting another quick kiss to your forehead to hear you giggle one last time, he kept his lips near your face. Feeling the tickle of his breathing helped you drift into the best sleep you had in a long time. You continued tracing shapes on his skin which helped him drift away with you in a well deserved good night's sleep.

[hekate1308]

There Was Winter's Cold A Destiel Advent Calendar December 7

Masterpost

Now that Cas was all clean and fed (and had magic powers), Dean didn’t really know what to do. It was too early to go to sleep, and he didn’t want him out of his sight jus yet – what if he started water bending or whatever he should call it again? Granted, he was pretty sure his face had told Cas all he needed to know about that, but still…

He decided the best thing for them to would be to watch a movie, only he had not considered certain things, for example –

“But how do the pictures move?”

“It’s technology, man” he tried to explain once more. “I get that it’s confusing an all, but it’s just how it is. You know how – you know how humans can’t breathe under water and stuff? Well, this is… this is sort of the same, a thing we all accept and it’s part of our lives.”

It didn’t really work as a metaphor, but he would take what he could get.

And at least Castiel looked at him and nodded as if it made sense, so why not…

Dean had no idea what to settle on, but The Untouchables was running, and Cas seemed intrigued, and he would find any excuse to watch Sean Connery, the worst Irish accent in movie history be damned.

And it really was fascinating to behold Castiel – whether or not he was a creature, and now that Dean had seen what he got up to, it seemed like he very much was, which was still something he had to work through, but still – because he clearly had indeed never watched TV before. He had some trouble in the beginning – it was sort of like in Galaxy Quest, dean had to explain to him that yes, these were actors and not real people (and left out the part where this had actually sort of happened because the thought it would not help at the moment) but once he did get it, he was riveted.

And why shouldn’t it be? It was one of Dean’s favourite movie for a reason. Yes, that might have to do with his huge crush on Eliot Ness in that movie, which had taught him quite a bit about himself when he was a teenager, but still…

Cas quickly began to take this all as a lesson in humanity, which made Dean glad he hadn’t picked something like a war movie.

“But why would AL Capone choose to break the law?”

“that’s what some people do. Not good at following rules, that sort of thing.” He winced when he remembered how many “rules” he had broken to get where he was, but why, he had been a kid trying to make the best out of a bad situation, not that this would have helped him any if he’d gotten arrested, but hey –

“I just don’t see the reason for it.”

“Money mostly, or maybe the thrill and some people  are just assholes.”

Castiel actually contemplated that answer before replying, “I think being human is more complicated than being a water sprite.”

He could say that again. Dean still hadn’t gotten the hang of it, and it had been decades, so he certainly had no right to tell Cas what to do, but he really did need his help…

“Yeah, that’s how it is. You get used to it.”

“I might not have to, if my father decides my punishment is over.”

Right. Dean tended to forget that Cas did have a home to return to, if he wanted. And of course he wanted to – he had to want it, wouldn’t he? Why ever not? It was a special thing, a permanent home. He’d only learned that rather late for a human, but still…

“Cas, do you have any idea how long that might be?”

But he shook his head. “No, an uncle of mine was banished or three hundred years once…”

Dean was rather glad he wasn’t drinking anything at the moment. “Three hundred years, hm? What – how long do you guys live?”

“My grandmother is still alive, and she just celebrated her ninth hundred birthday.”

Dean decided to concentrate back on the movie.

It was a stupid thing to ask Cas if he could deal with the bed, but Decan couldn’t help it – normally, things must be.. rather wet for him, mustn’t they? But hey, whatever Cas wanted… he might do something with the hose, if…

He really was going insane, or at  least that was what Sammy would probably tell him.

“Yes, thank you Dean: Everything is very satisfactory.” They stared at open another again.

“Glad to hear it” he told him and then watched him disappear into his guest room.

Well, he would say one thing, he was certainly not going to get bored anytime soon, not if things continued in this way.

[daydreamingfuel]

Freak Like Me

Chapter 7

Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

AO3 // previous

Y/N has just moved to Hawkins from England with her parents and is starting at the high school in the final term of her senior year. Eddie immediately takes a liking to her and they become fast friends, deciding to take her under his wing and falling to her charms. This is Hawkins however and things are never quite as they seem...

WHOLE FIC TAGS & WARNINGS: gratuitous use of Y/N (I'm not sorry), friends to lovers, slow burn, mutual pining, eventual smut, semi-fix-it-fic, angst, injury, canon dialogue and events used, canon graphic violence, no main character death :)

Chapter Tags & Warnings: Arguing, bickering, banter, mentions of readers dad's job...cause that's not important at all..., the whole gang is in this one so that's fun, platonic Stobin, hints at Stancy, Eddie gets jealous of Steve, slight possessive Eddie, a fuckton of swearing, Dustin is a little shit, as per usual, Steve gets sucked into the Upside Down,

Chapter Word Count - 6.5k

A/N - so this one is up only a week following the last one cause I had a burst of inspiration and confidence in my writing so go me! this is, however, the only good thing to come of this week - my front door lock to my house completely fell apart so I've been dealing with that, and my girlfriend moved back to uni so I'm sad af. But my favourite Dungeon Master always helps.

She was paralysed by fear, déjà vu washing over her as flashes of the argument following Chrissy’s death flickered in her mind. The world blurred around her as she swam after Eddie, who had immediately started to swim back to the boat as soon as Jason dived down to get Patrick's body. Her entire body ached as she moved, catching up with Eddie, who paused momentarily upon hearing her come after him.

“Y/N we need to go, right now, come on!” He called out to her, the panic strong in his shaking voice as he pulled himself back onto the boat.

Still willing her arms to move and her legs to kick as hard as they could, her thoughts spiralled, going through every possible outcome and what she should have done differently before. She had a chance to do it right this time and, whatever the outcome, she would stay by Eddie’s side. Once she was back at back at the boat, and clambered back into it with Eddie’s help, the pair each picked up a paddle to get themselves away.

“We could still plead our case! Jason has seen that you didn’t lay a hand on Patrick - they have no evidence!” She pleaded, in a last-ditch effort as they rowed for their lives towards the shore, but Eddie was practically vibrating in frustration as they pulled themselves and the boat up onto the bank, covered the boat in the tarp and disappeared into the tree line. Eddie tried desperately to call Dustin on the walkie, but the water had seeped into the electrics of the radio and completely broken it.

“Jesus Christ!” Eddie exclaimed, the rage spilling over, “Y/N, come on, it doesn’t matter if there’s no evidence, they’re still going to pin this on me!”

“On us.” She corrected, making him stop in his tracks ahead of her, “I’ve been caught red-handed at the scene of the crime, just like you. If I wasn’t a suspect before, I definitely am now.”

He shook out some of the water from his hair and clothes as he processed how much trouble they were in. Stood between the trees with sirens echoing in the distance, but growing louder with each second, he stared at her in bewilderment, unable to conceal his worsening aggravation, “So what are we supposed to do, huh? Got any bright ideas?”

“Hey!” She snapped, “No need to get all pissy at me, it’s not like I’m the one killing people.”

“No! It’s not you or me - it’s a homicidal wizard from an alternate dimension. Let’s go tell that to the police, and get ourselves thrown in the loony bin in the process!” He snapped back, which made her pause to take a breath.

Y/N closed their eyes in thought, calming herself down somewhat. It was a meaningless fight; she knew that she couldn’t go to the police now or she’d be arrested on sight. They both would. She took a few deep breaths and rubbed at her clothes in a futile attempt to get warm, shaking out her hands afterwards in agitation. “Fine. Fine! You win.” Y/N said sharply, letting the ire seep into her words, “But if we are Bonnie-and-Clyde-ing this shit, I need to get a message to my mum.”

As they walked through the forest, night creeping into the early morning hours, they bickered about how exactly they were to get Y/N’s mum a message. At one point they considered finding their way to the house and leaving her a physical message, or talking to her in person, but quickly decided that it would be too risky for everyone involved. She didn’t want her mum to get in any more trouble. Ultimately, as they found a spot to rest for the night, they agreed that they would find a way to contact the others and ask that they deliver the message to her themselves in the morning. Shaking, Y/N slumped against the giant rock formation that Eddie had led her to and passed out, right as the birds started to sing.

Sunlight splintered through the trees, hitting her face in the morning glow, and soon the light was too much to bear, her eyes fluttering open. She woke to discover that she had been covered in Eddie’s battle vest for warmth at some point during the night and the man himself was nowhere to be seen. Panic settled in the pit of her stomach, twisting horribly as thoughts of her abandonment ran wild in her head. She clutched the vest tightly in her hands as she paced the clearing for any signs of his disappearance. The embellished denim was in desperate need of a was, much like everything they were wearing, but she cradled it to herself nonetheless. Subconsciously, she knew that he would never just abandon it or her, but her mind was too clouded with fear to think straight. A snapping twig alerted her to someone's arrival. She spun on her heels to see Eddie emerging through the trees, a new walkie in his hands.

Receiving his vest to his face as it was thrown at him, Eddie was greeted hostilely by Y/N, “Where the fuck did you go?”

“Good morning to you too, sweetheart. The walkie was drowned, I found us a new one,” He held it up as though it wasn’t already obvious in his hands, “I wasn’t gone that long, I was gonna wake you when I got back.”

“Next time, wake me up before you go.” She mumbled as he settled on the floor next to her, in the shade of the giant boulder formation. Finally cognitive, the fear that fogged her mind subsided somewhat, she was able to take in her surroundings and see where it was Eddie had brought her in the early hours of the day “Where are we, anyway?”

He fiddled with the buttons on the walkie as he spoke, eyes laser-focused on tuning into the right channel, “Skull Rock. It’ll do as a hiding spot for the moment, but it’s kinda infamous as a hook-up spot.”

“Oh really?” She questioned and he hummed in confirmation, tongue poking out of his mouth in concentration, not looking away from the walkie in his hands, “Don’t get me wrong, I’m flattered, but it’s kinda bad timing.” She teased, though her body did heat up at the thought, from both the exhilaration at the wild thoughts running through her head and the jealousy that plagued her at the possibility that he had been here with other people. She quickly pushed away both feelings, it was neither the time nor place to deal with either of those thoughts.

He snorted and allowed a small smirk to grace his lips, but it fell as fast as it appeared, as he finally found the right channel and pressed the call button on the walkie, “Dustin, can you hear me? Wheeler?”

“Eddie. Holy shit. Are you okay?” Dustin's voice immediately answered through the radio, the worry coming through strong, and Y/N sighed in deep relief.

“Nah, man,” Eddie confessed easily, his nerves still rattling him, Dustin's voice after so long causing the man to crack beside her. He ran a stressed hand over his face as he talked, “Pretty… Pretty goddamn far from okay.”

There was a pause on the line briefly before Dustin asked, “Where are you? Is Y/N with you?”

“Yeah, I’m here,” Y/N answered, huddled up to Eddie’s side, and leaning on his shoulder to talk, “we’re at Skull Rock. Do you know it?”

“Uh, yeah. That's near Cornwallis and-” Dustin started but was cut off by Steve.

“Garrett, yeah. I know where that is.” His voice was hushed like he wasn’t right next to the speaker, but standing near Dustin. Knowing he was there, and presumably would be driving, she called out to him, grabbing the walkie.

“Steve wait!”

There was silence for a moment before his voice came back through, “Y/N? What’s up, we don’t have much time.” His voice was dripping with concern and confusion, almost familial in tone – like a stressed dad, so she spoke as concisely as possible.

“Before you come to us, I need you to get a message to my mum.” Before she could be cut off, she continued, “And yes, I know that’s reckless, but I need you to do this for me, please, Steve – tell her to call my dad and his lawyers. And that I’m sorry.”

“Y/N, I’m not sure that’s the best-”

She cut him off, desperate, squeezing the walkie, “Steve, please!”

Her voice echoed slightly, as Eddie pulled the walkie from her hands to grip them tightly, until Dustin’s voice finally responded, “Hold tight. We're coming.” Y/N took a shaking breath, “We're coming.”

The static that followed echoed in the small space beneath the towering rock formation, they would be alone again for a while. Still very much shaken from the previous night, Eddie placed the walkie in the leaves at their feet and re-laced his fingers with Y/N’s. She immediately squeezed back, letting her body melt into his side, head nestled in the crook of his neck, arms wrapping around each other protectively. Eventually, she muttered, “My dad’s gonna kill me before Vecna gets a chance to.”

“Do you think his lawyers will be able to help?” Eddie fretted and Y/N nodded softly, “What does your dad even do anyway? You never talk about him.”

She sighed and sat upright, picking at her clothes that had half dried and were fitting uncomfortably, “He’s not really allowed to talk about his job, I know the project he was working on was pretty big though, had him staying late and stressed all the time. He had barely any patience or attention left for me or mum, but she got to see him more than I did at least. I know it’s something technical and sciencey, for a subsect of the Government - all very secretive.” She flourished her hands dramatically, before letting them fall back into her lap, “I know he’s good at his job, whatever it is. We were told when he was recruited by this Doctor, that they might need to transfer him temporarily without notice and it wouldn’t be negotiable, which put a strain on my parents' relationship - they’ve barely been apart in 20 years.” Finally, she turned her head to look at him, crossing her legs and resting her cheek on her hand propped up on her knee, “But the security incentive helped. Not just financially but the insurance and the lawyers should anything happen, in case of an emergency.”

“And this counts as an emergency?” Eddie asked her, not quite believing in his own importance. He didn’t need to say what he was really asking, as their eyes locked Y/N could see every emotion swimming in the dark chocolate irises – the distress, the anger, the exhaustion, the anguish. But also, the desperate relief, that she cared about him enough to take his side and stay there. To call in reinforcements on his behalf.

She gazed at him, hoping that he would understand, “Of course it does.”

An hour, then two, crawled by. Hungry, tired, and scared, Y/N and Eddie huddled together under the shade of Skull Rock. They barely talked, too preoccupied with listening out for any signs of life nearby. Steve wouldn’t be able to drive his car into the clearing itself, so their rescuers would be coming to them on foot. But the pair were acutely aware that foes as well as friends were on the hunt for them too. At the sounds of bushes rustling and twigs snapping close by, they tensed and scrambled to their feet, hiding behind the rocks and in the trees. However, their instinct to take cover was quickly deemed unnecessary as familiar voices were soon relieving their fear.

“Oh, boom! Bada bing, bada boom.” Steve, confidently strolled into the clearing, Dustin following close behind, “There she is, Henderson. Skull Rock. In your face, man. In your stupid, cocky little face.”

Dustin checked something in his hand, and looked up at the rock formation in bewilderment, “Doesn't make sense.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Steve rolled his eyes and started lecturing the young teen, “Even with it staring you in the face, you can't admit it. Can't admit you're wrong, you butthead.”

“I concur.” Feeling safer amongst friends, Eddie made his presence known, jumping down from the rock he was hiding behind, “You, Dustin Henderson, are a… total butthead.”

Dustin smiled in relief and immediately went to hug Eddie, “Jesus, we thought you were a goner.”

“Yeah, me too, man.” Eddie hugged back, avoiding his backpack, and looking over his capped head past Steve, to where Y/N was emerging from the trees behind Steve, “Me too.”

Scurrying over, Y/N poked Steve in the side, the yellow fabric of his jumper soft under her hands, “Hey stranger.”

“Hey,” Steve wrapped an arm around her and pulled her into a warm hug, “I knew you staying was a bad idea, but I’m glad you’re safe. You are okay, right?”

“As okay as I can be, Harrington.” She assured him with a half smile.

As Steve and Eddie gave each other a cursory nod and smile, Dustin pulled Y/N away for an embrace themselves, and she squeezed him tightly, rocking from foot to foot gently. They laughed lightly, as they expressed their relief at each other’s safety. Robin, Nancy, Lucas, and Max all wandered into the clearing, making Y/N smile more. Calling Lucas over, she gave him a quick squeeze before greeting the others, checking to see if they too were okay. Max had her headphones hanging around her neck, leading to the Walkman clipped tightly to her jeans, just as it had been the last time she had seen her, a look in her eye telling Y/N that she was too deeply aware of the danger they were all in. Robin in her endearing awkwardness, gave Y/N a wave and Nancy stood next to her, gave a polite ‘hello’ before she handed Y/N a grocery bag.

“Thank you, so much, I’m starving- Ed’s!” Y/N interrupted herself, and Eddie perked up at her call, scampering over to her, “Food.”

Eagerly, Eddie reached out and took some of the stuff that the group had brought for them, quickly taking the six-pack of beer that Nancy had, in fact, bought. As Y/N sat to eat, Steve rummaged through a large backpack, pulled out a Tupperware box and wandered over to sit by her. He handed her the tub with a folded-up piece of paper reading ‘For Y/N’ taped to the lid, “Your mom gave me this to give to you. I haven’t read it, swear, but she was shaking a little when she was writing it so I don’t think you should read it just yet. You know, with everyone around?”

“Yeah…thanks, Steve,” Y/N carefully pulled the note from the box and pocketed it, “How was she? Just, like…generally?”

“She definitely believes in you. She was terrified, of course, but, yeah she, uh…she didn’t really question it when we said what you asked, just thanked us, wrote the note, gave us the food and told us to be safe.” Steve seemed baffled by the interaction, standing up to leave her in peace, but Y/N just nodded and laughed lightly to herself.

Lost in thought, she could only reply, “Classic mum.” Eddie plonked himself hip to hip with Y/N as she opened the tub, finding disposable cutlery inside along with Y/N’s favourite family recipe, which she happily shared with him.

The group at Skull Rock gathered to debrief on the events of the past few days as Eddie and Y/N devoured Mrs Y/L/N’s cooking. Steadily, they told their fugitive friends that they had figured out that Vecna was linked to the infamous Creel murders in the 1950s, all the victims killed in the same manner by a mysterious force that was ultimately pinned on an innocent man, Victor Creel, who had been locked up for decades, driven mad by the memories. The previous night while Eddie and Y/N were hiding and running from Jason, they had been exploring the abandoned Creel house. In turn, Eddie and Y/N explained as best as they could what had happened and what they saw, the friends around them hanging on to every detail trying to piece it together with what they had been up to.

“When we got to the shore, I tried calling you guys, but, uh…my walkie was busted, man. Drenched. So, uh, I did the thing that I do now, apparently.” Eddie gave a cynical smile, “I ran.”

Y/N chuckled dryly, “And I followed. Though we kinda figured, it was that or be arrested for murder.”

Eddie hummed in acknowledgement of their brief spat the night before, before taking a huge gulp of the beer that Nancy had ultimately brought him before passing it to Y/N who too, took a swig.

“Do you know what time this was? The attack?” Nancy asked deep in thought, going over all the details. Y/N had heard about her particular proclivity for the details and piecing things together by Dustin, talking about how good his older friends would be at Dungeons & Dragons if they just gave it a chance.

Eddie nodded, “Yeah, no, I… I know exactly what time it was.” He fiddled with the strap of his busted watch, “My walkie wasn't the only thing that got soaked.” He threw it to her once it was off and she caught it easily.

“9:27,” Nancy confirmed her thoughts to the group.

Robin immediately got the hint and added, “Same time our flashlights went kablooey.”

“Which means what, exactly?” Steve, much like Y/N and Eddie, was still rather confused about the perceived link between the events.

Nancy, putting the pieces together, explained, “That that surge of energy, was Vecna attacking Patrick.” She threw Eddie back his watch, and despite it being broken he put it back on, the feeling of it not being there having weirdly unsettled him. It seemed as though a lightbulb turned on in Y/N’s mind as their combined events of the past few days clicked into place.

“Well, we're one step closer.” Robin said, seeing the silver lining to the situation at hand, “We know how Vecna attacks.”

“And where he attacks from,” Lucus added. A small ray of hope started to shine through the cracks, but wasn’t quite bright enough to wash away all of Y/N’s fear.

Max, having been cursed by Vecna herself, and already had an attack attempted on her, finished the thought, “So now we just need to sneak into his lair in the Upside Down and drive a stake through his heart.”

“If he even has a heart,” Robin added, doubtful, as though she could read Y/N’s mind.

Steve, who was standing by the rock where Y/N was sat, with arms folded across his chest, thought out loud, vaguely confused, “Stake? Is he like a vamp- Is he a vampire?”

Y/N could tell that his question was somewhat genuine, and also felt vague amounts of frustration from the others, so not wanting to add to that, answered, “I think it was a metaphor, but at this point who knows, he could be.” She reached up and squeezed his elbow softly, as she spoke without condescension, which Steve appreciated greatly.

Eddie tried not to pay any mind to how gentle Y/N was with Steve - refusing to let it bruise his ego as he recalled the frequent vulnerable moments she chose to share with him over the recent days - as he suggested, “A bullet should work on him, right?”

“I say we chop his head off.” Lucas offered bluntly, making Y/N nod in agreement.

“I’d say all of the above,” Nancy interjected, trying to stay logical, “but we can't do any of that 'til we find a way into the Upside Down.”

Max, aggravated at how complex the problem they needed to solve was, wished, “We need El to get her powers back.”

“Everything was way easier,” Steve emphasised, then looked down to Y/N and Eddie, “We had this girl. She had superpowers-”

“Superpowers. Yeah, you mentioned her.” Eddie replied, slightly cutting him off as he was distracted, watching Dustin – who had been pacing back and forth behind the little circle the group had formed as they talked, barely paying attention to what had been said. Deeply confused by the young teens' behaviour, Eddie asked, “Hey, uh, Henderson's not, uh, cursed, is he?”

And Steve answered, with an annoyance only known to that of older siblings, at their wit's end with their younger relation, “Cursed? No, no. He's fine. Mental? Absolutely.”

“Boom!” the teen in question finally shouted, turning to the rest of the group at long last, his voice echoing in the trees startling everyone except Steve. As he spoke, he stalked towards his surrogate brother, pointing a knowing finger at him, “Bada… bada… boom. I was right. Skull Rock was north.”

Steve was incredulous, “Seriously? You're serious?” and Dustin hummed in response, nodding with a smug little smirk, so Steve continued, “This is Skull Rock. Okay? You're totally, absolutely, 100% wrong. Right now.”

“Yes. And no.”

“Oh my God,” Steve ran his hands over his face, having to walk away from the boy.

Y/N, holding back a laugh at the brotherly rapport between the two boys, asked in confusion at the sudden outburst, “Dustin, what’s the point of this?”

Immediately, Dustin launched into an almost patronising but still endearing explanation of why he wasn’t wrong, “This compass worked correctly when we left the Wheelers'. Correct when we got in the car on Kerley. But it started to slip the further east we went. Now, it's way off. When I was leading us here, I wasn't wrong. The compass was.”

“So, you're using faulty equipment. You're still wrong.” Steve rebuked.

“Except it isn't faulty.” Dustin insisted before asking, “Lucas, remember what can affect a compass?”

Lucas seemingly understood exactly what his friend was trying to tell them, in a roundabout way, “An electromagnetic field.”

Dustin smiled and confirmed, but Robin asked, needing more explanation, “Sorry. I must've skipped that class.”

“Compasses work through magnetism, they’re built to point towards the magnetic north pole,” Y/N answered, her childhood days of performing little science experiments with her father coming in clutch, and receiving a few surprised looks from her peers as she continued, “But, in the presence of a stronger electromagnetic field, as Lucas said, the needle will deflect towards that power source instead, meaning the compass is technically ‘wrong’.”

“Exactly.” Dustin was practically beaming, “So either there's some super big magnet around here, or…”

“There's a gate.” Lucas realised, and Dustin nodded. A heavy weight settled in the air around them, Y/N feeling as though she should know what that meant with more certainty than she did. As the group theorised how and why this gate may have come to fruition, Eddie nudged Y/N in the side to get her attention. They shared a look that asked if the other was understanding the conversation, only to be met with equal confusion, which made them feel more at ease with their lack of inter-dimensional knowledge. They were broken out of this exchange however by Steve.

“Where are you going?” The question snapped them back to the group, seeing Dustin walking away from everyone, “Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey!” He paused at Steve's protests, “Eddie's still a wanted man. And now Y/N is a suspect too. We can't just go for a hike in the woods.”

Dustin, clearly agitated made one final plea, “This little steel capsule might be the key to saving Max, Eddie and Y/N.” He turned to the pair on the ground, gesturing to them as he propositioned them, “What say you, Eddie the Banished? Y/N the Exiled?”

“I say you're asking me to follow you into Mordor, which, if I'm totally straight with you, I think is a really bad idea.” Eddie paused, thought for a moment, before looking over at Y/N, “But, uh, the Shire…the Shire is burning.” As Eddie took Y/N's hand and helped her to stand, Dustin jumped in place excitedly, happy that they were going to test his theory. “So, Mordor it is.”

Steve, bewildered by the exchange and still peeved about Dustin's instance to be right, asked nobody in particular, with only Y/N picking up on it, “What is Mordor?”

“It’s the dark land from The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings- incredibly nerdy, don’t worry about it,” Y/N reassured him with a smile.

Once again, and growing fonder, Steve was grateful for Y/N’s patience after the constant teasing from his younger compatriots. “Thanks.” He whispered, before gesturing to the remainder of the food by her feet, “Get your stuff. Let's go.”

Trekking through the woods, playing follow the leader with Dustin - Eddie right behind him with a torch - Y/N found herself hanging back to talk to Steve, who was bringing up the rear of the party to make sure none got lost or left behind. Steve was familiar in some ways, a reminder of her past, with his previous ‘kingly’ reputation for being a bit of a teenage asshole, but Y/N was more deeply fascinated by his seemingly innate desire to protect the group – particularly the younger teens. Listening intently as he explained as briefly as he could, Y/N quickly learned that, much like herself, he had been caught up in the supernatural by accident, time and time again. He had only been trying to apologise to Jonathan when the Demogorgon attacked the Byers house, he didn’t intend to fight it off with a nailed baseball bat. And win. He had only been bringing Nancy flowers when he was roped into hunting a baby Demogorgon with Dustin, not knowing he would have to fight off an army of them to protect Dustin, Max, and Lucas. Of which he was successful. And he had just been working with Robin, “slinging ice cream”, when Dustin came to him with a weird message he had picked up – it definitely wasn’t the plan to be trapped in a secret Russian base and tortured, whilst still in uniform. Then live to tell the tale. Every time, he fought and tried to protect those around him, regardless of his own safety and how insane the situation was. Y/N decided that not only did she like Steve, but she deeply respected him.

In turn, she reminisced about her family and life back in England, glossing over the trauma quickly before circling back to the past few months since the move. Just as she was starting to gush about how Eddie and Hellfire had made her feel so welcomed, and why the stigma was so frustrating, they came to a standstill. Taking in their surroundings, Y/N felt a cold chill run down her spine.

“Oh, man. You gotta be shitting me.” Steve huffed and Y/N reciprocated the feeling.

“Yeah.” Y/N scoffed humourlessly, “I thought these woods were familiar.”

The sun had set whilst they were walking, and the moon high in the sky was once again reflecting on the soft waves of water in Lovers Lake. Y/N, glared at the water, trying silently to control her breathing so as to not alert the others of her rising panic, though it seemed her nerves were felt as Eddie moved to stand beside her, wrapping an arm around her waist, and pulling her into his side.

Tuning back into the conversation, she heard Nancy offer up a theory, “Whenever the Demogorgon attacked, it always left an opening. Maybe Vecna's the same way.”

“Yeah, only one way to find out,” Steve said conclusively, then turned to Y/N and Eddie where they were huddled together and asked where they had stashed the boat. With Y/N leading the way, they traipsed along the bank until they found the boat, haphazardly covered in the tree line. Pulling it off, they looked at the available seating, then at each other in confirmation of shared ideas. The older teens and young adults of the group quickly realised it would be up to them to test Dustin’s theory.

Steve and Eddie bickered slightly as they got the boat half in the water before each offering a hand to Robin to help her into the boat. Instead, she elected to use their heads for support as she stepped into the small vessel, thanking them as she passed. Eddie then stood up as Steve kept the boat grounded, both again offering their hands to Nancy as she too stepped in, though she did not notice Steve's offer, only taking Eddie’s hand.

“Sweetheart,” Eddie then gave a saccharine smile as he flourished his hand out to Y/N, trying to ease her obvious panic with theatricality.

She took his hand graciously and winked as she passed him, “Thanks, honey.”

Dustin, who had been watching, gagged, “You two make me sick,” he muttered to himself as he tried to gain access to the boat, but was very quickly stopped by Eddie.

“Hey, hey, hey, you trying to sink us?” He pushed Dustin back to land with a hand on the forehead, “This thing holds four people tops, okay?” Eddie didn’t want to upset Dustin or patronise him, but he also wanted him safe.

Seeing Eddie’s tactic to keep the children on land, Nancy assured him, “It's better this way, okay? You guys stay here with Max. Keep an eye out for trouble.”

“You keep an eye out.” Dustin snapped back at her, “It's my goddamn theory.”

Robin piped up, trying to establish some form of authority, “You heard Nance.”

“Who put her in charge?”

“I did.”

Nancy held her hand out to Dustin, “Compass.” He huffs in a small tantrum for a moment before handing it to her, with Nancy passing it to Eddie to hold as she got resettled on the bench. Once the four on the boat were sat somewhat comfortably, Steve stood up, threw Dustin's backpack at him, and pushed off from the bank, taking his seat next to Nancy as Robin and Eddie started to row.

“You said four!” Dustin called out, annoyed.

Steve whisper-shouts “Sorry,” back at him as they drifted further from the bank.

“Bedtime at nine, kiddos,” Robin shouted, baiting those still on land. Dustin flipped her off as Max rolled her eyes, Lucas just watched in vague amusement, “Miss you already!”

The row out to the middle of the lake was slow but steady, as Nancy watched the compass to make sure they were still heading in the right direction. Once they were far away enough from the shore that the young teens who stood on the bank looked like toddlers, Nancy called out for them to slow down. Stopping their rowing, the group turned to look at Nancy and the compass in her hands, which was flicking back and forth crazily.

Their stunned silence was interrupted by Dustin over the walkie, “Guys, what's going on? Come on, talk to me. What's going on?”

“Uh, Dustin, your compass has gone from kinda wonky to wonky with a capital ‘aah!’” Robin, hesitantly answered, awestruck.

Y/N emphasised, “It’s like the needle doesn’t know where to point - like it’s overwhelmed with electromagnetic energy. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

As Y/N talked, Steve started taking off his shoes and socks, confounding his friends in the boat. When questioned by a concerned Nancy, he replied, with a certain authority, “Somebody's gotta go down and check this out. Unless one of you four can top being a Hawkins High swim co-captain and a certified lifeguard for three years, then… it's gotta be me. No complaints, all right?”

“Hey, I'm not complaining,” Eddie reassured him, “I do not wanna go down there.”

Y/N nodded in agreement, peeking over the edge of the boat to stare at the water and shuddering, “Yeah, I’ve already been in this lake once in the last 24 hours, I’m not exactly desperate to do it again.”

Eddie reached into his pocket and pulled out a shopping bag with only a carton of cigarettes and a lighter in it, and emptied it into his lap as Steve stood up and took off his jumper, revealing his toned and hairy chest. Y/N glanced up at him from the movement, looking away before registering the sight. Once she did, her eyes widened slightly as she did a small double-take, and slowly blinked to fully process it. Having clocked the cogs turning in Y/N’s head, Eddie cleared his throat to snap her out of it, possessiveness bubbling up under his skin. He raised an eyebrow at her in question, which she vehemently ignored, not wanting to give him the satisfaction, and just shrugged in response. Nancy, however, was outright staring in awe at Steve’s body, despite having a boyfriend herself, which only Robin noticed, though she said nothing, smiling to herself instead.

Eddie, slightly aggravated, wrapped the now empty shopping bag around the torch he had been carrying through the woods and handed it to Steve, “Hey. Good luck.”

Steve took the not mostly waterproofed torch, looking over his shoulder at him, the light hitting his handsome features just right, eyes intense and focused, “Thanks.”

‘Damn.’

‘Wait, are you attracted to Steve?’

‘No…surely not.’

Slightly hating how the moonlight making Steve look ethereal made her feel, her heartbeat picking up somewhat, she looked over at Eddie as a welcome distraction. And though she should have expected it, Y/N shocked herself with how it didn’t help much with her heart rate, but instead increased it. Eddie had a cigarette hanging from his lips, the light reflecting on the water casting a beautiful shadow over his cheekbones and jawline. Y/N reached for the lighter in his hand and ignited the flame, reaching up slightly so he’d have to lean down to her if he wanted his cigarette lit. The glow of the fire shone in his eyes as he stared at her through it.

“Gross.” The moment was broken by Robin as she took the cigarette from Eddie's lips and threw it into the lake. In sync, Eddie and Y/N turned their heads to stare at her, mystified. As her eyes locked onto Robins, she tried to send a telepathic ‘what the fuck dude?’ her way and knew she had succeeded when Robin rolled her eyes with a small, victorious smirk.

Steve stood at the edge of the boat, breathing steadily and mentally preparing himself to dive down to the lakebed.

“Steve?” Nancy called softly, making him turn his head to look down at her, “Be careful.”

An apprehensive look flashed in his eyes, almost like guilt, as their eyes locked, but he nodded nonetheless and dove gracefully into the dark water. They sat in tense silence as Steve swam further and further down, with Nancy counting the seconds on her watch to make sure that he wasn’t submerged for too long.

Robin, growing more and more agitated, asked, “Where we at, Wheeler?”

“Closing in on a minute.” She replied, not taking her eyes off the watch.

Robin nodded, “Okay.” She made a noise of discomfort feigning ambivalence, obviously very worried about her friend. Y/N offered a hand for Robin to squeeze, which she grasped tightly.

Just as Eddie cleared his throat, uncomfortable in the silence, it was broken completely when the water gushed loudly as Steve resurfaced, making everyone on the boat exclaim in surprise, even more surprised when Steve said, “I found it.” He panted through his confirmation when Robin asked for it, leaning on the side of the boat as Nancy pulled wet strands of hair from his forehead with deep care.

“Dustin, you are a goddamn Einstein.” Robin said excitedly into the walkie, “Steve found the gate, we have a way to Vecna.”

“It's pretty wild.” Steve said through pants, still trying to catch his breath, arms holding him up on the edge of the boat, “It's more a snack-size gate than the mama gate, but still, it's pretty damn big.”

Right as he stopped speaking, he dropped off the side of the boat momentarily, like something was pulling him down. Everyone lurched forward in shock, but they all regained composure quickly and waited with bated breath to ensure he was okay and wouldn’t happen again. For a moment all was calm as they scanned the water before Steve was fully dragged under without a second to react. The group dissolved into chaos, all shouting after Steve, but it was pointless. He was unreachable.

“No! No!” Eddie protested, deeply stressed, “What the hell was that man?”

Robin was intensely distressed, staring back and forth between the dark water and Nancy beside her, leaning over the edge of the boat “Nancy, really, what happened?”

Nancy, however, ignored all questions and stood up, determined to go in after Steve, much to everyone else's panic. At the sounds of protests, Nancy could only tell them to wait where they were before diving in and swimming down to find Steve.

“Fucking hell!” Y/N cursed loudly, shaking, and running her hands up and down her temples as Eddie loudly swore to himself. Unbeknownst to them both, Robin quietly and carefully sat backwards on the edge of the boat, preparing herself to search the lake herself.

“No, no, no, no, no, no.” Eddie faced her, hands held out to stop her if he had to, “What are you doing? She said wait.”

Robin stared back at him, dismissively, her mind already made up, “Yeah, I heard her.”

“She's in charge,” Eddie tried, grasping at flimsy straws.

Robin scoffed and shook her head, “Are you kidding me?”

Y/N placed a hand on Eddie’s shoulder, “Eds she was bullshitting, and you know it. Nobody’s in charge.” Her voice was trembling slightly, barely more than a frustrated whimper.

“Don't you go. Don't you—” Despite his thinly veiled threats, Robin fully ignored Eddie and fell backwards off the edge of the boat and into the water.

Eddie immediately stood up in anger and fear, “Goddamn it! Son of a bitch!” he paced the small space of the boat as much as he could, staring at the water and contemplating what fate was worse, “Oh, this is so stupid.”

“This is really fucking stupid,” Y/N could only agree.

‘Don’t be a pussy.’

‘I’m definitely gonna regret this.’

In his blind panic, Eddie didn’t notice the cogs turning in Y/N’s mind until it was too late. She was standing, prepared to dive. “Y/N! No, not you too. Sweetheart, please!” But she was gone with a loud splash, “Shit!”

Swearing profusely as he questioned his own existence, Eddie’s mind was filled with paralysing fear. Thoughts of her drowning, being pulled apart, sucked into an alternate hellish dimension, tortured, and broken, flashed through his raging mind. Before he could register his own actions, Eddie dove beneath the water, his only tether to reality being the hope that she was still alive.

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