#and i'm a sucker for polyships

[rossithepixie]

my favorite men are nearly all menaces and have beautiful eyes that they weaponize against me to get their way

[metalinjector95]

NEED MORE MAIZULEE FICS!

Alright! Now that I'm sucked into the lesbian Azula Headcanon, I'm instantly suckered into the Toxic Poly ship of Mai x Ty lee x Azula. Or just Tyzula in general. But God I'm hooked on some Maizula lately (Mai x Azula). ANybody got some fic reccomendations involving these ladies in a polyship!

[countlessrealities]

Ship Bias (for Morty)?

Ship bias meme || Accepting !

Canon-wise, I don't ship Morty with anyone, tbh. I do keep the crushes he has in my portrayal, but I don't care for any of them. No it even Jessica or his nameless girlfriend from the Vat of Acid episode.

All the ships I have for Morty have been developed through RP interactions and they all have taken some time to develop, which is something I love, because I'm a sucker for slow burns. And well, some are still on their way to develop, so they aren't actual ships yet.

Morty & Morty with @advnterccs: they are currently my OTP for Morty. I loved the way Rin and I built their relationship from best friends to mutual pining to crushes who have kissed each other but aren't together, to the moment they actually got together x'D Speaking of that, they had their first anniversary last New Year's Eve and damn, that's one of the longest ships I've ever had xD

Morty & Meg with @shctupmeg: they are sort of dating, but not official yet. I find it funny, because Meg had a crush on Morty all along, while he considered her just a dear friend. Tho, the moment she started to look elsewhere, he realised that maybe he did like her back that way x'D They had their ups and downs, but I think their relationship is maturing just right!

Morty & Fish with @imprvdente: Chloé and I had sort of started it with the idea that Morty and Fish would be BFF, but both our dumbasses ended up catching feelings xD This is another funny situation, because it's mutual pinning while they are both convinced that the other doesn't like them back. Will they ever get their shit together? Good question!

Morty & Marsha with @mnstcrsiiistcrs: Marsha sort of categorises as one of Morty's crushes. Cute, smart girl who gives him a smidgen of attention? Ofc he's gonna crush on her. There hasn't been any real ship talk, so for now I'm going to keep it as one-sided crush. Which is pretty much very IC for Morty xD

I don't have a 5th ship, because these four are the relationships I have for my Morty and who have taken a romantic turn, more or less. I guess the last mention could be Morty & Meg & Morty, since I have a polyship with Rin and Allie (which I adore with all my heart).

Tbh, I'd love for Morty to get another boyfriend. With Rin's Morty I wasn't able to delve into it, because we had the whole 'me from another timeline' thing to deal with and because out Mortys kind of saw our Ricks getting together and that gave them the epiphany they needed, but I want my Morty to experience bi panic the moment he realises that oh shit, he likes boys too xD

[roseofithaca]

If you're still doing the ask game, can you do Robin as you said he's your blorbo?

He is! Thank you anon!

Favorite thing about them: HE JUST SO CUTE! I'm a sucker for characters who appear one way but then completely take you off guard. Robin looks like your typical grunting simple caveman but then reveals himself to be the kindest, wisest, most mentally tortured character in the show. Add to that he's basically a human pupper. My previous blorbos (Thirteen, Arthur Morgan, Spike) have all had "Kitty!" vibes but Robin is pure Pupper.

Least favorting thing about them: That he didn't get to move on. :( The show was really playing into how desperately he wanted to go by the end. I was even certain that as soon as he felt "Christmassy" he would get to leave but it didn't happen. Let him rest! Also the incest...Just ew.

Favourite line: "She no porcupine!" / "I want my lawyer." / "Before you was moonah, before house was moonah, everything come, everything go, but always there, moonah." / "I miss a lot of people. But more come along."

Brotp: Canon is him and Julian. Chess husbands are so real, but queerplatonic imo. Fanon is him and Alison, he is her good boy.

OTP: I'm like the only person who actually thinks him and Mary were cute? Gremlin couple ftw. But really Robin/Mary/Annie is my favourite polyship and the only one I've actually written fic for so far.

Notp: Pretty much everyone except Mary, Annie, Julian and possibly Thomas.

Random headcanon: His whole going mad thing from the book is still an ongoing problem. He has more coping mechanisms now but still has bad 'spells', some of the ghosts help him through it but others have become so used to him just "being strange" they just ignore him and wait for it to pass like in Not Again.

Unpopular opinion: I think he was a good dad. For the time. For a man who had thirty kids and most of them probably with his sister. The way he talks about the importance of "raising children together, in peace and love" and watches over his animal friends when they have babies, how sweet he was putting Kitty to sleep, he seems to love just being around kids. I dunno if that's unpopular, it just always seems to be Pat or Cap who get talked about when it comes to dads and my boy was over here fathering future generations, as well as putting the work in to raise said kids - but he often gets passed off as too immature or uncaring, like forgetting the whole duality of his character and how he's never as simple as he appears to be. Like sure he probably picked those babies up by their ankles and carried them on his shoulders, but he never dropped them!

Song I associate with them: Starman by Bowie. My Tears Ricochet by Taylor Swift is so him/Sophie/Humphrey.

Favorite picture of them:

Just look at him, hims just the cutest little thing!

[seiya-starsniper]

Trope Game

Finally getting around to doing this! Tagged by the amazing @tj-dragonblade and @reallyintoscience, thank you so much darlings! <3

Rules: How much do these tropes affect your decision to click on a fic?

-10 -> very dissuaded

0 - don't care either way

+10 -> very enticed

nope -> if it's a hard no and you'd never click on a fic with that tag or or you even have the tag blocked or you'd insta click out of the fic if it wasn't tagged

Bonus points for explaining the rating and whether it's conditional.

Age gap: +8

Age gap is a pretty compelling trope for me, mainly due to the power dynamic differences and how those get addressed. In a dark fic, the power imbalance can make for good whump/angst if the writer really leans into. In a more romantic/fluff setting though, addressing the age gap and the power dynamics in a healthy manner is practically a requirement for me to enjoy the fic. In a pwp/smut setting, sometimes it's just hot to have an older person guiding a younger one.

Codependency: +3

Co-dependency can be a compelling trope for me, but I won't seek it out unless it's from an author I know and love, or it's recommended to me by someone who shares my tastes. If it's darkfic co-dependency though, sign me the fuck up, maximum whump and unhealthy dynamics let's gooooooooooooo.

Obsession/Possessiveness, jealousy: +10

Love this trope. Love it in dark fic when things get dicey between the two love interests and there's a power struggle, but I also love it when someone kills someone just because they hurt their lover, amazing trope. A++++++++

Opposites (grumpy/sunshine etc): +20

99% of all my favorite ships are some combination of this in canon and in fic. Give me all of it, all day, every day.

Enemies to lovers, Enemies with benefits: +10

Big sucker for this trope in all forms. I love antagonism that turns into something else and then oh no, we have to actually communicate about things. Or not. Or, for maximum angst purposes, a betrayal happens. (can ya'll sense a trend yet lmaooooo)

Friends with benefits: +5

Big fan of this trope in a PWP setting, but for anything else, it must also be accompanied by (see below trope) or I probably won't be super interested in the fic.

Sex to feelings: +10

Absolutely love this trope. Sex first, communication second. Lots of room for misunderstandings and heart to hearts.

Fake dating/relationship: +5

Fake dating is my guilty pleasure and I adore it but it's not a drop everything and read it sort of thing for me. It's gotta be propped up by some of the other tropes for me to find it compelling.

Friends to lovers: +5

Same as with fake dating. There's gotta be something else in there to make it more compelling to me, but I do love reading it (and writing it!)

Found Family: 0

This trope used to be a +10 for me but I think I've burned out on it over the last few years lol. Too many antis have used the excuse "ew you can't ship them, they're part of the same found family so it's incest!" and I am just...tired lol.

Not to mention so much fic I've read is often just the female and/or poc characters propping up the white mlm ship and slapping "found family" on the tags.

That said, I'm still a sucker for the trope as a whole, just not so much in fanfic.

Hurt/Comfort: +10

ANGST ANGST ANGST. My bread and butter. Give me all the hurt/comfort. Or hurt with minimal comfort. I love having my heart wrung out.

Love Triangle: -10

Unless the love triangle resolves into a polyship do not even show me a love triangle fic lol.

Poly, open relationships: +10

A++++++++++ trope. No notes.

Mistaken/hidden identity: 0

Mistaken and hidden identity to me are two TOTALLY DIFFERENT THINGS but I digress. Not my favorite trope and won't go seeking it out. This kind of goes hand in hand with amnesia fic too I think. I have read some AMAZING ones, but that's like 1 out of every 50 I try to give a chance to lol

Monsterfucking: +100000000000000000000000

Just, yes. Proud monsterfucker always and forever.

Pregnancy: -5

Meh lol. I like kidfic quite a bit, but pregnancy is just not that interesting to me in fic. I think the one exception to this is maybe omegaverse pregnancy fic, but I think that has more to do with the fact that I'm a slut for omegaverse worldbuiding than anything else. Human pregnancy though, could take it or leave it.

Second Chance: +5

I really don't care for this trope as a whole, however I have read some amazing ones recently for Dreamling so it's I'm giving it some points. This is probably due to the fact that I am also a slut for angst hahahaha.

Slowburn: +7

I love a good slow burn but I am also impatient as fuck so I'm docking some points from the full +10 hahahaha. Bless authors for 100k slowburn fics, you are the backbones of fandom.

Soulmates: +10

I LOVE SOULMATES. I love true mates, I love all the lore around having one person be your other half. But I also love people who subvert the trope in fun ways, people whose soulmates have died, people who don't marry their soulmates, immortal soulmates, people born without soulmarks, worlds where soulmates aren't perfect and sometimes your soulmate is also your worst enemy. I may love the subversions more than the actual trope come to think about it lmao.

Tagging with no obligation @aquilathefighter @eobardthawneallen @lyriclorelei @rooftopwreck @ferelden-loser @tryan-a-bex @bazzybelle @zigzag-wanderer @silver-dream89 @lenreli @valiantstarlights

[verybadatcardgames]

I love your Sightshipping HCs! I have to say, I've never really thought about it before, but it's a pretty interesting ship. ^-^

What about Joey for 002?

Always happy to have an excuse to spread some Sightshipping headcanons around :D

Onwards to the character ask!

Joey

How I feel about this character: I really do like him and think he's complex character. This guy is a true "ride or die" friend, yet he's played often as comic relief among the main cast, and he also gets treated like a punching bag throughout the series despite the hard work, effort, and integrity he puts into everything he does.

Holy shit, the wringer this poor guy went through during Battle City and Alcatraz, then for Mai to fixate on him and blame him for her troubles during Doma because... he can't read her mind halfway across the world and help her?? Yes, we can place some blame on Dartz and the Orichalcos stone for twisting her mind, but there wouldn't have been something to be twisted in the first place if Mai didn't have some sort of grudge towards him. I'm not downplaying Mai's trauma by any means and have many of my own thoughts on her Doma era and the PTSD that was inflicted by Malik, but I don't think it was very fair of her to put all of this resentment and expectation on a 16/17 year old boy who by all means considered her his friend and would have done, and did do, everything he could to help her once he realized how badly she'd been affected by the whole ordeal.

Then everyone (not just Seto!) proceeds to take a shit on him during the Grand Prix arc, like he didn't also help save the world for the third or fourth time in the previous season?? Come on!

I know he started out as Yuugi's bully and antagonized him, but he's long since paid his penance and he deserves more respect.

All the people I ship romantically with this character: I'm an old-timey Polarshipper, though I vastly prefer this ship when Jounouchi has some more life experience under his belt as an adult and can approach Mai from that growth and life experience.

Wishshipping is cute, and I also like Buddyshipping. I'm a sucker for friends to lovers sometimes.

Can't remember the ship name for Rishid/Joey but I like that as both romantic and/or platonic friendship.

I also like Puppy/Violetshipping, because I am also a sucker for enemies to lovers. Or just enemies to enemies who fu

My non-romantic OTP for this character: I bro-ship him with Vivian Wong. I know it makes no sense but hear me out

They're both athletic jocks who are hot tempered and are wholly capable of throwing hands and holding their own if a fight were to break out in a bar. They'd be right at home in a John Woo flick.

And I ship them both with Mai so they can bond over their impeccable taste in the same woman.

My unpopular opinion about this character: I just said I polyship Joey/Mai/Vivian. That's about as unpopular of an opinion as it gets.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: A whole episode where he gets separated from his group during the Ancient Egypt arc and meets a woman with red eyes that turns out to be the Red-Eyes Black Dragon, but she's more well adjusted and has a sense of humor compared to Kisara. She's aware of the stuff going on, but she actively makes an effort not to get involved because who wants to deal with that? But she ends up getting dragged into world altering situations anyhow because sometimes life just be like that and you gotta roll with the punches. Amiright?

my OTP: *points to everything above*

my cross over ship: He would totally fawn over Kumiko Yamaguchi from Gokusen.

He would also fear her, immensely.

a headcanon fact: He still likes to dress up as Marylin Monroe when he's by himself.

He would like to get a gig singing covers of his favorite songs at a classy night club in a sparkling sequin dress, but he's low-key haunted by the poor reception he received from the popularity contest in high school and talks himself out of it every time the thought crosses his mind.

[sailoreuterpe]

BLT - Game Night?

This story uses Prompt 27, game night. I adored writing this one! I'm a sucker for Partner 1 watching Partners 2 and 3 interact and just loving them together. T_T It's one of my favorite polyshipping-specific tropes.

[arqdyke]

Helloooooo acesabo anon here :D this has nothing to do with your gift, i'm just really curious what your favorite fic tropes are

hiiii acesabo anon :D! thanks for stopping by :3 im not super sure? im bad at picking favorite anythings really & i read a looooooot of fic lol. BUT. (and sorry in advance for how long this gets. under the readmore because i have no ability to talk less than a million words)

im pretty partial to outsider pov fics with more heavy worldbuilding/background building (and/or oc centric fics.) of course all dependent on quality but yk. and of course im a massive sucker for a (genderbend or not) lesbian modern au fic. it doesnt even have to be good for me to enjoy it. but im not sure that counts as a trope. oh and polyship fics but thats more tricky.

less conventional fanfic formatting stuff like uhh. screenplay scripts, letters, audio transcripts, etc. all rlly good.

fics that focus super heavily on like. a specific area of work/production are sooooo good. i.e. like.. ive read a fic that spent easily 50k/half the fic just talking about fiber & fabric production & the economic impact of certain developments involved and i LOVED it. it was as dry as a textbook + i didnt really care abt the relationship stuff accompanying it. and yet. i read all 100~k of it. tbh a fic doesnt actually have to say THAT much on whatever topic as long as its very clear the author has a deep passion for it & cant help but include a bunch of details abt it. instant elevation. again tho thats not really a trope?

^related to the above historical fanfic is SO SO SO GOOD. doesnt matter when or where the source material takes place if you put enough love research and effort into the setting to make it feel uniquely like that setting i am hopelessly endeared. which i guess is just to say i really like worldbuilding but . whatever.

sorry youve given me a topic i LOVE talking about.

umm more conventional 'tropes' i like are.. dimension travel, time travel, crossovers, transmigration, reincarnation- stuff like that. im pretty picky when it comes to what i actually LIKE in those categories but ill read pretty much anything.

oh and i love dream sequences. thats all i can think of rn though?

if you read all this thank you <3 hope it was entertaining and or informing. if youd like id love to hear your fave fic tropes as well!!

[in--somnium]

Who do you ship Cassia with? (canon or oc, active rp's or just wanted connections?)

((Oh gosh. Honestly? I think she's pretty easy to ship with plenty of muses, so, ya know, I'm open to most connections <3 Feel free to toss anyone ya want at her! She'd probably be easy enough to fit into most scenarios :)

That said, it's important to note that, although she hasn't decided on a label herself yet, I'd say she's actually more demisexual than really bisexual, but she's definitely biromantic. (I use bisexual / biromantic instead of "pan" because she was originally made to be written in, like, the 2005-2010 kinda area and the term wasn't so widely used then and she probably hasn't heard it more than in passing)

Okay, so now that that's all said-!

Cassia was actually originally created to be written in a polyship I'm writing with my friend, dhamp.iravidi (I'm not tagging anyone just so I don't annoy 'em ^^;), that takes place in the Cov.enant movie verse. She was made to be written with Caleb, initially, then to end up in a polyship that included Caleb, Pogue, and her oc Jayn! So of course I ship her with all of them- individually as well as all together <3

I've also started kinda plotting out another polyship with loyal.tybroken that includes Cass with Caleb, Pogue, and Reid. Hell, I'd ship her with Tyler, too, if anyone wrote him xD Really, I think she'd get along just fine with any of the 4 boys, so, ya know... <3 (I've also been writing her with fallenc.rowns' Reid and, though idk yet if I'd ship them (or if Reid's mun would ship them either), they're DEFINITELY fun to write together because they're so opposite to one another and she's kinda easily influenced for better or worse xD)

I've also been writing her a bit with souther.n-belle-o.utcast's Nilza which we've only just touched upon at this point... but they're certainly amusing and I would absolutely be open to shipping them if things go that way and they're up for it, too <3 (Again, I'm a sucker for "opposites attract" kinda stuff ^^;)

Then of course there's Doc! I will ship just about any of my muses with any of their muses, including Cass xD So we've been writing a bit of Cass/John.ny Sto.rm and Cass/Dan.ny Ket.ch, both of which have been fun already in very different ways~ We just started something with her and Mil.es Mor.ales hanging out, too, and while I'm not yet sure of which direction that'll go in- Doc, if you see this and you're interested in a polyship with Cass, Miles, and Kim, let me know xD

So I guess those are ships / possible ships / friendships that I'm actively writing (or, semi-actively writing since my writing, in general, is pretty slow going at the moment).

As for other ships? There's no one in particular that I've been, like, searching for with her? Though I'm always open to writing her in different verses with different types of muses of any gender <3 I don't care if they're ocs or canons or whatever, throw 'em her way and we'll see what happens!

That said, though, I'd really like more f/f ships for her (actually, more f/f ships just in general, please. I go by "Sapph" for a reason xD). Also just... off the top of my head... maybe Dic.k Gra.yson because I've just really wanted to write against him for-freaking-ever now because he's my fave ^^;

But, yeah! No specific wanted connections. Though there are some tropes and such that I really love and think she'd be fun for- like fake dating scenarios, or the sunshine/brooder dynamic, childhood best friends who get separated and come back together later on in life, on and off relationships, etc. Cass also gets easily attached and she's kind of a people pleaser, so she's prone to carrying on in bad/toxic relationships even when it's fucking with her metal health and wellbeing and should have walked away a while ago- so writing either the ins and outs of a shitty relationship could be interesting (I'm always up for darker plots so...) or something where someone is trying to help her LEAVE a bad relationship (could be just friends or friends to lovers, whatever) could be fun to write, too.

I don't know. Basically, just, yeah- I'm open to almost anything with Cassia. She's really versatile as a muse, I think, so I can kinda drop her in most verses and figure something out <3

With that said, anon, don't hesitate to message me if there's something specific you wanna write! I'm pretty open to most things!))

[tired-fandom-ndn]

@eat-the-beans-blog (I can't @ you, sorry!)

I'm very bad at wording my feelings but I'll try to explain why I ship them:

I like them both! I just really love Alastor and Valentino as individual characters and when I like characters, I tend to ship them together even if it doesn't make much sense.

I also just have a big thing for size differences. Valentino is very, very tall. Alastor is tall compared to humans (I think he's supposed to be like 7 ft according to Word of God?) but tiny compared to Valentino. I'm into that.

They're both super interesting characters with incredibly contrasting personalities, desires, interests, and ways of doing things and I think exploring how they would both work together and clash is really fun and a great way to explore both of them in general.

I like thinking about the differences it could make in canon, the way it would affect their relationships with their companions (particularly Alastor with Angel and Valentino with Vox) and the overlord dynamics, especially in a situation where Alastor stays an individual overlord instead of joining the Vees and creating a "typical" alliance with his lover.

It's also great as a jumping point for AUs, like my Vee!Alastor AU originally came from me thinking about Alastor's changing relationship with the other Vees as he and Valentino become more serious about each other.

I don't think I've ever really talked about this on this blog before but I am a HUGE sucker for outsider POV and this ship is great for exploring other characters' reactions to an unexpected relationship between two very powerful, very dangerous, and very unpredictable demons. Not just reactions from the main cast, but from Hell's general population.

Valentino and Alastor have a lot of individual potential for really interesting dynamics wrt romance and sex. Hazbin's setting makes it really easy to incorporate violence and death in ships in general, in ways most other canons don't really allow, and I think these two especially offer a lot of opportunities to explore a combination of violence, mind control, cannibalism, etc through a sexual and romantic lens.

They could make each other so much worse :)

(Kinda more seriously, I originally was a die-hard radiodust shipper when the pilot came out, as my older followers can attest, and that eventually evolved into my "VAAV" ship, which was a weird polyship between Angel, Alastor, Valentino, and Vox (with no actual valastor lmao). A lot of my posts for that ship do NOT fit canon anymore and I no longer really ship radiodust, but valastor is the ship I jumped to when radiodust shippers started really pissing me off and I refuse to let it go lmao)

Staticradio shippers please stop tagging your stuff as valastor, please I'm begging you, I KNOW that it works with their names but that's the ship name for Valentino/Alastor and we have so few shippers and so little content as it is, please stop getting my hopes up 🥺

[lilbitofkitkat]

it's just the dawning of our love

By nightwings (nauticalallusions)

Summary:

The thing is that death is common, really. People are too desperate, too willing to accept that a person is their soulmate and might save them from death. Koutarou, judging from the whispers in the back of his mind, has always known that he’ll probably die when he turns 25. It’s almost impossible to find more than one soulmate before a dreaded 25th birthday, after all.

Or: if you haven’t met your soulmates, you die when you turn 25. Even as a teenager, Koutarou is prepared for this eventuality.

Fandoms:

Haikyuu!!

Relationships:

Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou/Miya Osamu/Suna Rintarou | Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou | Akaashi Keiji/Miya Osamu | Akaashi Keiji/Suna Rintarou | Bokuto Koutarou/Miya Osamu | Bokuto Koutarou/Suna Rintarou | Miya Osamu/Suna Rintarou

Additional Tags:

Alternate Universe - Soulmates | Angst with a Happy Ending | Fluff and Angst | Discussions of death | Minor Miya Atsumu/Sakusa Kiyoomi | Polyamory

Rating: M • Category: M/M Multi • Completed • Chapters: 1/1 • Language: English

[giraffles]

We Kiss The Dusk Goodnight

this is an A/B/O au fanfic

because I have a Problem, here it the abo/omegaverse fic literally no one asked for but I’m in too deep now to stop. I really don’t know where this came from okay. JUST TAKE IT. and don’t kick me out of the fandom pls

warnings for language, some implied sexual content, and age gap. and actual smut eventually. I’M GETTING THERE OKAY. 

We Kiss The Dusk Goodnight (Bulge/Bruce/Manabu)

The next morning, over a third cup of coffee, Bruce delivered an ultimatum.

“We have to figure out who the hell it is,” he muttered into a mug, “Before they send half the station into a rut.”

Or, the omegaverse AU no one asked for.

you can also read the first chapter here on AO3!

He knew from the moment that Bruce slammed into him in the dark hallway that something was different. It wasn’t as though their relationship was new, or that meeting like this for a tryst was uncommon, but there was something heavier in the air between them. But what it was escaped Bulge, and it became harder to focus once he had a handful of Bruce’s hair and a mouthful of tongue. Trying to think about what may have changed took a backseat to getting their clothes on the floor of his quarters, and was suddenly irrelevant when Bruce started snarling possessively at him. Pack dynamics be damned; fucking with another alpha was an experience that never ceased to deliver. Or maybe he was just getting old, and any little thing would seem extra thrilling now.

     "Come on,“ was the near desperate whine as Bulge fumbled with the lube, "It’s been too fuckin’ long.”

He never would have described Bruce as wanton. Pushy, yes. A little needy, maybe, once in a while when some kid off their suppressants happened to walk by headquarters. Able to act downright devious when the mood struck him. And yet he’d never quiet seen him like this, bucking back, giving in, but also making Bulge work for every inch. And you know, he found he liked it. Gender and sexuality historians already had a field day with the SDF and the tight knit platoons that were both packs and most certainly not packs– they would have loved to have a look at a captain and his first officer falling in like this.

It wasn’t as though relationships of, ah, mutual benefits, didn’t happen. But those were usually throw away things, one night stands or scheduled with heat cycles, with attraction but not necessarily affection. Not the unwavering loyalty and connections that being soldiers-in-arms created. The SDF turned a blind eye to most incidents like this, as the higher ups (and by extension, the enigmatic supreme commander) didn’t care what they did as long as they got their jobs done. Ironic that a military organization had some of the most lax and open views on matters.

     "Damn,“ he swore, every sense on high alert, "Someone must be presenting.”

     "Fucking cadets,“ Bruce growled, his nails digging into Bulge’s shoulders, "They let them in way too young.”

It’s an empty complaint, because the age and timing of presenting could never really be guaranteed. Every time science and society thought they had it figured out, a new batch of outliners skewed the data again, proving that biology and evolution did whatever they damn well pleased. And that people don’t always like to fit into the molds the world set out for them. Strict roles were all but obsolete in this day and age, relics of times long past, even if some conventions died hard. Like the fact that most of those who ended up in combat units just happened to be alphas. Betas were most common after that, with omegas and the rest of the spectrum coming in last.

The next morning, over a third cup of coffee, Bruce delivered an ultimatum.

     "We have to figure out who the hell it is,“ he muttered into a mug, "Before they send half the station into a rut.”

Bulge agreed wholeheartedly, because the wheel universe stopped for no one, bodies going haywire or otherwise. “They may not even realize what’s happening.”

     "Fucking kids.“ Bruce repeated his sentiment from the night before. Bulge couldn’t admonish him, not when he knew it actually came from a place of concern. Someone could get hurt while in the wild throws of base desires. Scuffles might break out between unbonded parties, causing a headache for all involved and a HR nightmare. Most people could exercise discretion. Most, but not all. Bulge ran a hand over his face.

It was going to be a long day.

One long day turned into another, and then another, and they still couldn’t figure out who was running headlong into heat. Being in such close proximity to so many people meant that most went scent blind, and the prevalent use of suppressants dampened pheromones in general. Bulge hoped it was just someone who had missed a dose or two, or maybe some visiting family member, but something told him that it wouldn’t be that simple. If only for the fact that it came and went with such regularity that it had to be someone on SDF shifts. But without invading each person’s personal boundaries, it was impossible to pinpoint who. Performance in the Sirius platoon was already suffering; it was hard enough to rein his own short temper in, much less keeping Bruce in line and Manabu from butting heads with him. Louis was pointedly uninterested in the whole affair, and David did his best to diffuse situations, but everyone was on edge.

     "No, the other console Yūki, get it together–”

     "I have it together!“ Manabu snapped back, "Stop distracting me!”

     "Stop it, both of you,“ It honestly felt more like babysitting than leading a platoon through drills, "Get a hold of yourselves.”

Bruce huffed and Manabu went back to sulking, even brushing off Louis’ reassurances. The sooner they found whoever was the source of this, the better. For all of their sakes.

     "That’s enough for today.“ He sighed, even though it was early for them to be stopping. There was no point in continuing however when everyone was so wound up; He swore he caught David murmuring a prayer of thanks. At this rate, it was Sirius that would be having the first casualties, especially with the way Bruce kept fixating on Manabu-

Oh lord. Manabu.

If there were any merciful deities left in the cosmos, then please let him be wrong. Please don’t let it be the wide eyed and enthusiastic son of Wataru, too fresh and young and inexperienced to be dealing with such matters.

Bulge had always assumed Manabu was an alpha, like the rest of them. Like his father and brother before him. It would have made perfect sense from multiple standpoints, and regardless, he might be reckless and naive, but he wasn’t stupid. Not stupid enough to go off medications in an environment like this.

     "Manabu, a moment.”

     "What?“ Came the annoyed reply, though he quickly corrected himself, "What is it, captain?”

There was no easy way to start this conversation, especially with Bruce giving them a sideways glance as the rest of Sirius platoon disembarked. Sometimes his first mate did have some tact and stayed silent, leaving Bulge alone with a nervously fidgeting Manabu.

     "Manabu,“ he began anew, "I need you to be completely honest with me.”

     "About what?“

     "Tell me you’re on suppressants.”

Manabu went bright red, hands curled at his sides as though he was resisting the urge to cover his face. “W-who told you?”

     "No one. Everyone on the base can smell you, Manabu. You have been taking them, haven’t you?“

At that he did cover his face and sink into the nearest chair. Bulge felt a protective urge swell up in him, caught somewhere between concerned captain and alpha instincts.

     "Manabu, it’s alright-”

     "But it’s not,“ he sounded so utterly miserable, "It’s not okay and I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

     "Nothing is wrong with you.“ Frankly, Bulge was alarmed that he would think there was. Who on earth had lead him to believe that? Then he remembered Tabito, the tiny mining planet, full of nice people. Traditional people. Stubborn people. God damn it to hell. "Manabu, look at me.”

It took several long minutes, but finally those brown eyes peeked out from behind his fingers. He looked so small in that moment, so unsure and shaken. Bulge wanted to reach out to him but knew it was a dangerous idea. Even a simple touch could have catastrophic results.

     "There’s nothing wrong with you,“ he repeated instead, "It’s normal.”

     "But I’ve been on the stupid pills for forever!“

     "Sometimes they stop working.”

     "Are you serious,“ Manabu groaned, "Oh my god, just kill me. Better yet, let Bruce kill me. That’ll make him happy.”

If only he knew about the way the first officer sometimes looked at him. Because of course Bulge noticed, and couldn’t fault him for it when the traitorous thoughts had passed through his own mind. But this was Manabu, fierce and compassionate and utterly oblivious. “Can you, ah, take care of it on your own? Or should I find someone to help?”

Manabu returned to being covered in flush and made a strangled sound. What he would have given in that moment to have Wataru back, just for this awkward conversation. Bulge wasn’t cut out for family life, much less pack duties, an certainly not prepared to give a pep talk on someone’s first heat.

“I can do it, I’ll be fine,” And then softer, “Probably.”

     "You’ve got to be kidding me.“

     "Bruce,” he grumbled back, “Give him a break. It’s not his fault.”

     "I know it’s not.“ And yet his first officer was pacing in the break room, agitated and probably ready to pick a fight with the next man who looked at him wrong. Which is exactly why Bulge had decided it was better to stick close to him. "Of all the people, why did it have to be him?”

Fate was a cruel thing like that. It didn’t much care for the wants and needs of the individuals subject to it’s whims. Yet he couldn’t have agreed more.

     "It’ll be fine.“ He said, even though he was unconvinced of that. Manabu had said he would be okay, but the young man’s track record on things was less than stellar. Just how many times had he disobeyed a direct order or accidentally gotten himself into trouble? ”…probably.“

     "This is insane.”

     "There’s not much we can do about it, save removing him from active duty.“

     "Have you?”

     "Yes,“ he nodded, "I’ve put in for the whole platoon, actually.”

That stopped Bruce, who looked back at him in confusion. “Why?”

     "Because none of us are in any state to fight.“ And, he doesn’t say, there was no way he would be leaving Manabu alone at the base. Not a chance in hell.

     "Stupid kid.” Bruce said without heat. He was worried. He’d never admit it, especially not to Manabu himself, but Bruce worries after him. Sure, he shrouded it in snark and biting words, kept him at arms length to spare himself any future pain. But he did care. Just in a roundabout way.

He felt the unease acutely. The outdated, nagging animal part of his subconscious wanted him to go out and fawn over the omega, stay close, so close, to him and make sure he was alright. Which was unnecessary, and oppressive; Manabu was his own person. And, he could only hope, not too proud to ask for help if he needed it. Then again, he was notoriously stubborn.

Maggie from Spica poked her head into the room. “Excuse me sir, but there’s a… situation.”

Bulge felt his stomach hit the floor and keep going. It hadn’t even been more than a few hours. Bruce swore, and had dashed out the door before he could move.

     "I’m going to kill him,“ Bruce spat once Bulge had caught up with him, "And then he’ll never be a pain in my ass ever again.”

If the spike in pheromones was distracting before, now it was downright overwhelming. Sticky sweet and alluring, enough to make his teeth itch. Tinged with a hint of panic and desperation. He remembered Manabu’s panic attack from one of their first missions, remembered the way that he could crumble so easily under too much stress, even if he came back from each fall that much stronger. He was alone somewhere in these halls, lost and scared, and Schwanhelt Bulge was going to find him.

It took every measure of restraint he had in his being to not rush the members of Vega platoon and then to keep Bruce from doing the same. They were all in a circle, ringing a huddled mass in front of the vending machines, who he could see shaking from ten paces back. Bulge gathered up what little calm he could before speaking.

     "Murase,“ he began evenly, "What is going on here?”

The leader of Vega turned his scarred face to them, lips curled in a snarl. “You haven’t kept your pup on a tight enough leash.”

If he was seeing red, then Bruce had to be absolutely livid. Bulge didn’t normally buy into the stereotypes of alphas beings hot-headed and temperamental, but there was no denying the tension crackling between the two groups of men. Vega actually had less alphas than Sirius, but that didn’t stop their two betas from being just as aggressive as their peers. He could appreciate the no nonsense, tough as nails approach to their platoon; what he didn’t appreciate was them hassling one of Sirius’ youngest members. Especially one who at the moment was so vulnerable.

     "Why do you keep this whelp around, anyway?“ Murase grabbed Manabu’s arm in an attempt to haul him upright, "He’s fuckin’ useless-”

     "Unhand him.“ Bulge growled, enough alpha tone sneaking in to make even Bruce flinch beside him, "This is none of your damn business.”

He sneered, but let go of Manabu, who crumpled onto the floor once more. In an instant Bruce was between the Vega men and him, radiating an aura of bloodlust. Bulge had no doubt it would come to blows if the veteran SDF members didn’t back down. Yet after several agonizing minutes, they did just that, with Murase shaking his head as he lead them away.

     "You should keep a better eye on that pup.“ Was Murase’s parting shot, and Bulge stared them all down until they had gone round a corner, then out of sight. A soft whimper brought him back to the moment.

     "Good god,” He crouched beside Manabu, who was still curled in upon himself, shuddering all the while, “Manabu?”

His head shot up, brown hair tousled, eyes wide with naked fear. Bulge’s reaction was automatic, as he reached forward and gathered the smaller man into his arms, where he clung to Bulge like a lifeline. He was nearly soaked though with sweat and it was hard to tell if his trembling was from being cornered by Vega platoon or something else entirely. Manabu let out a soft sob.

     "I’m s-sorry, I’m sorry,“ he hiccuped over and over again, hands wound tight into the fabric of Bulge’s coat, "I’m s-so sorry, I’m-”

It was pure torture, being wrapped up in him like that, when he smelled so enticing and his skin felt so hot. Yet it was alarming, because Manabu’s distress became his own, putting his mind into danger mode. It was so confusing too, to have to choose between the feeling of wanting to bundle him up and keep him safe, or throw pretenses out the window and fuck him silly right there.

No, the second one was most certainly not an option, not without Manabu’s explicit consent. The idea that Bulge had even considered it for a moment was insane. But as Bruce had said, this whole situation was insane.

     "It’s alright, I’ve got you,“ were the words he managed to get out while his heart tried to hammer it’s way through his chest, "You don’t have anything to apologize for.”

No, it was Bulge that should be apologizing. He should have never left Manabu unprotected. So what if they weren’t a real pack; he was still the ranking officer, the highest alpha in their group. He had a duty to them all to keep them safe and cared for. It didn’t matter if it was on the battlefield or not.

     "Captain,“ Bruce hissed, "What should we do?”

A good question. A very valid question. “Go to his room and get all of his bedding, then meet me at my quarters.”

Bruce took off without any further prompting, leaving him with a wreck of an omega to somehow get back to his own room. Bulge shifted Manabu so he could cradle him bridal style, and tried not to think about how sore he was going to be afterwords. Manabu may have been shorter and slighter than his father and brother, and done growing at just past twenty, but he was heavier than he looked. Especially when he became dead weight in Bulge’s arms. The only thing working in his favor was the death grip Manabu had on his shoulders.

     "I’ve got you.“ He said again, knowing that repetition of reassurances was one of the few comforts he could give at this point. Manabu stayed deathly quiet.

His captain’s quarters would be the safest place for the boy at the moment. It had extra security measures, was further away from the general dorming area, and most importantly, had space to breath. Not that the accommodations for regular officers were lacking, but there was extra square footage came along with his captain’s bars. It wasn’t a luxury Bulge often got to take advantage of, considering how often they were off world or completing missions, but he was glad for it. Now they just had to get there.

More than one head turned when he stormed down the halls with Manabu in hand, but none of them had enough of a death wish to stop him or ask questions. There was no use trying to hide what was happening; anyone with eyes and a nose could tell. Besides, sudden heats or failed suppressants were bound to happen from time to time, and only the most petty or immature would hold it against someone. He made a mental note to ask Yuki later if she could find a different medication, or some other resources for Manabu. Certainly her expansive medical database would have something that could help. In the meantime, Bulge was resigned to his fate as a stand-in pack leader.

     "What were you doing outside of your room?” He wondered aloud, not expecting the silent and shivering Manabu to answer. But after a sharp intake of breath, he did;

     "I just wanted a drink,“ Manabu mumbled into his neck, "I’m sorry.”

     "It’s alright,“ he tried to think of something, anything other than the hot body pressed against him, "I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

A heady, impulsive promise, but it felt right. It felt like proverbial stars aligning and Fate taking the helm, and he let it happen. Consequences could wait until a later date, maybe when they were all more clear headed and fully aware of the repercussions. But not right now. Manabu let out a soft sound and buried his head into his shoulder.

Finally they made it to his door, where an agitated Bruce carrying sheets and blankets was already waiting. He knew the code to get in, Bulge had shared it with him years ago, but it seemed he still waited for permission even after all this time. A nice gesture, but unnecessary given their history. (Yet, this was also not the only hangup Bruce had, his relationship with relationships being rocky at best. Bulge had been there for most of them and knew it was hard to come out unscathed, and not to mention his own lovers lost.) Still Bruce was the one to punch the password in, and the first to enter, heading straight for the bed as he’d already figured out the plan. Bulge’s bed wasn’t terribly large, but it still dwarfed the tiny bunks given to new recruits, and therefore was perfect for nesting. Even if Manabu didn’t understand it completely, having a place to nest would undoubtedly help. He tried not to think about the implications of having an omega in heat in his bed, even if their options were limited. Destiny Station might have protected heat rooms, he wasn’t sure, and in any case he felt better by having Manabu where he could keep an eye on him.

     “You have to let go, Manabu,” Bulge sighed to him when he continued to cling tight, “You’ll be safe here.”

     “Don’t want to,” Manabu murmured back, “You smell nice.”

     “Nope, that’s it,” Bruce said through gritted teeth, beginning to physically pry Manabu off of him, “You’re not allowed to make more of a fool of yourself than you already have.”

Manabu made little unhappy sounds, but they got him onto the bed. His eyes were glassy, pupils blown wide, sweat sticking stray hairs to his face. Bulge had heard that the worst part of being an omega was the loss of autonomy— of becoming a slave to whim and instinct, left in a state that they were often taken advantage of in days of old. (And, as much he loathed to admit it, it still happened on backwater planets where society liked to backslid into unconscionable habits.) The amount of power he could wield over Manabu right then was ridiculous; and worst of all Manabu would let him do whatever he wanted. Whatever either of them wanted, actually.

Which was why Bulge was focusing on getting Manabu’s boots and coat off before hiding him under the sheets. Then he was going to take a bath in a tub of ice and try not to die.

     "Would you hold still?“ Bruce snapped at the younger officer, who was being very wiggly, trying to snuggle up to Bruce while he peeled off his SDF jacket, "Are they always like this?”

     "Yes,“ Bulge replied a little too quickly, remembering Catalina and the one time his off duty night happened to coincidence with her heat cycle, "Don’t be too hard on him. He doesn’t realize what he’s doing.”

At least the abject terror that had engulfed Manabu before was gone. Small things to be thankful for in a trying time. Fear was now being overtaken by desire, filling the room with heavy want, and he needed to get out before he went mad from it all.

     "I’m going to go get Yuki.“

     "But I’m fine now!” Manabu protested, and Bruce threw a blanket over him so that his next round of complaints were muffled.

     "Stay with him, I’ll be right back.“

Bruce sighed as he pushed more bedding on top of Manabu. "Yes, sir.”

[bloodsoakeddoodles]

Their dynamic before baby Trunks

[dramamelon]

Started outlining this sucker because it's speaking that strongly.

It jumpstarted my BB fic (which is most decidedly not Cyclonus/Drift) back into business in the process. I need to get so much more done on that. 😩 It's looking to be about the same length as my previous BB entries: 30 - 35k. I'm currently sitting at ~200 words away from 7k. Fortunately, the lengthy outline makes it easy to pace the chapters.

But, yeah, woo! More Cyclonus/Drift. 💖 (Along with so much else already sitting in my WIP pile.)

Desperately want to finish Polyship Week. Maybe I'll manage to sneak that bit of smutting in soon. If only the weather would stop killing my sinuses. (Hate being sensitive to barometric pressure. I deal with that far more often than actual allergies.)

And I'm rambling so, back getting more ficcing done while I can. :D

Mmmm, random CyGate mention in the wilds turned into perfect Cyclonus/Drift set up. (Mostly because my brain went "Gee, I still really cannot stand IDW!Tailgate, whatsoever." 😂) I will have to jot it down before it disappears. Because the world needs more Cyclonus/Drift, yes.

[chaos-burst]

please consider polyamory as your lord and savior

[polyshipprompts]

imagine your polyship finding that they all have clothes in their closets that aren’t their style and/or size... because it’s not their clothes, it’s someone else’s that they borrowed and just. never gave back

(alternatively, everyone leaves some of their clothes at each others’ houses so they don’t need to bring clothes with them when they stay the night)