#any scene where ren cracks >>>

[justafriend-ql]

You seem... confused. F4 THAILAND Episode 6

[hiskillingjar]

hi!!!!! can i request some hcs for lawrence oleander and ren hana with a fem (or gn) reader that likes to dye her hair a lot and has many piercings????

i hope you have a very good day!!!! :D

for sure! i've never done hcs before but i'll have a crack at it

also i know you asked for law and ren but i'm a strade enjoyer so i'm including him too pbltttt

ren 🦊

ren obviously loves it lol

like he's pretty high aesthetic already so he lovesssss a partner who has a specific aesthetic to em, especially if it's colourful and cute!

you wanna dye your hair? great, i've already gotten the bleach and all the colours you could want!! and all the special equipment for it too!! :3

he'd be hopeless if you asked for help though lol. like bleach stains where you did not want bleach

as soon as you were finished, he'd gush all over your new colour and compare it to an anime character he liked

"does that mean you could cosplay xyz pairing with me now?" like the idiot man he is

he for sure likes the piercings too. they make you look so tough and cool (despite being so sweet on him <3)

might encourage you to get more, especially nip or genital piercings, under the impression that they'd make sex more fun lmaoooo

lawrence 🥀

law isn't someone who's super aesthetically minded so they might not totally understand the motivation to dye your hair all the time

it takes so much effort to dye your hair so why do it so often, and all by yourself? you're getting it all over the bathroom! okay, okay, fine, i'll help you...

they'd be pretty gentle and patient in helping you dye your hair. they'd like the opportunity to be closer to you <3

never mind the intrusive thoughts they might have washing all the dye off in the shower. never mind all that!

(and might take a few snippings of your hair from the bathroom floor to keep...maybe)

they like the piercings normal amounts

might fiddle with them as a stim. don't wear hoops or danglies or they will get tugged on

they'd probably understand piercings in a similar way to their tattoos. maybe they'd even think about getting a stud or two themselves, just to see how it feels

what are your thoughts on tattoos? they might like those...

strade 🔨

he's pretty neutral about the hair dye and any. like, aesthetic choice you go for.

that's something you'd do with ren on a whim and he barely notices unless he sees a stain somewhere

"oh you dyed your hair?" yeah strade, i did it like three days ago, did you just notice? what is wrong with you?

he'd make snarky comments here and there but not really say anything

PIERCINGS THOUGH??? 🥵🥵🥵

strade was a bisexual in the early two-thousands german alternative scene (in my minds eye) so he'd FOR SURE be into piercings (and any body mods honestly)

has his own piercing scars hehehehe

ear piercings? the more the merrier! facial piercings? the best!

nipple or genital piercings? the man is a feral animal

might be so inclined to help you out with a few himself! i pierced my first boyfriend's ears with a needle, i can totally pierce your clit if you stop squirming~ <3

would absolutely pull at them to tease you (might insist on hoops through everything just to give him a better chance to pull)

would for sure push it too far and rip em out too <3

[liloinkoink]

today i offer you a dramatic no context scene from the middle of a beauty and the beast au. tomorrow? who knows...

After the seventh time Ren falls asleep in with Martyn in his room, Ren gives him back his knife.

He’d taken it the day they met, along with all the other trinkets Martyn had been collecting since he first stepped foot in the castle. Martyn hadn’t understood the point, then—sure, take back everything he stole, but what is Martyn going to do with a knife? With deadly claws and a long reach, Ren could tear his throat out long before he could do anything with a dagger. Martyn wouldn’t even dream of being able to get close with his stupid knife. Why even bother taking it except to demoralize him even further?

Lying against Ren’s sleeping body, Martyn understands.

It would be easy, is the thing. Ren sleeps light, but he’s adjusted to having Martyn around. He’s no longer cracking his eye open every time Martyn shifts his legs, doesn’t raise his head whenever Martyn touches his side. He wouldn’t see it coming at all, and it would be his own fault for trusting a stranger to brush the dirt and knots out of his hair.

Ren is an idiot. Giving Martyn his dagger back will be the last thing he ever does.

Martyn sits up slowly, listening to the sound of Ren breathing. It doesn’t change, not even as Martyn pushes Ren’s tail out of his lap.

He always sleeps well on the nights Martyn is in here, doesn’t he? Might have something to do with how long he fights falling asleep, trying his best to talk to Martyn for as long as possible. Martyn is starting to recognize the signs of when he’s losing that fight—his eyes close, though he shakes his head to try to keep them open, to keep his gaze on Martyn as long as he can. His words start to trail off, no matter how desperately he struggles to keep up their conversation, until his words turn dreamlike, incomprehensible. The constant wagging of his tail slows to a gentle tap, then stops entirely.

Ren’s insistence on fighting off sleep has never made any sense to Martyn, either, but so few things about Ren do.

Not that it matters now, anyway.

Martyn turns, as slowly as possible, back toward Ren. Still, he doesn’t react, not even a twitch of his ear. He’s fast asleep, has no idea what’s coming for him.

Carefully, without breaking his stare, Martyn reaches for his dagger.

Ren hadn’t thought anything of Martyn setting it on the side table, in the place where the brush usually goes. Hadn’t thought anything of giving it to Martyn at all, the little blade held proudly between his teeth.

Maybe it had been a taunt—Just one of his own fangs had been the size of Martyn’s weapon. Martyn isn’t sure if he believes that, though.

Ren… doesn’t seem the type.

Ren is trusting. Far, far too trusting. Martyn had lasted one day, one day of Ren’s posturing, and the king had folded immediately to following him like a pup. Bringing his meals, assigning him easy tasks, accompanying him throughout the day, convincing him to rest when the sun sinks to the tree line, inviting Martyn to sleep at his side.

Martyn holds the dagger in his right hand, now, knuckles white around the hilt.

For a monster, Ren is naive. His eyes shine with joy as he stands at Martyn’s side, as though that’s something he should be happy about. Didn’t anyone ever tell him? There are things crueler than beasts running around these woods.

Martyn reaches out, slowly, with his left hand. He feels around Ren’s fur with his fingers, looking for Ren’s pulse. He feels it under his fingers, a steady rhythm. Martyn glances to Ren’s face—Still does nothing. There’s not even a flicker of his eyelids as Martyn feels for Ren’s ribs, finding the space between them.

It’s the smart thing to do. Martyn needs a safe place to stay, one where he won’t be found. This place is safe…ish, minus the beast whose mercy Martyn lives at. Ren may be kind for now, but the limits he places on Martyn’s freedoms are dangerous.

Martyn can’t eat, not properly, not when Ren can't cook and keeps him from the kitchen. Keeps him from the gardens, too, and the armory, and that keeps his strength in check. He’s constantly helping clean and repair the dusty, crumbling rooms, which gives him less energy to fight back. There’s a lot of this castle Martyn doesn’t know, and Ren has been here for years. Ren is powerful, and Martyn knows from running his hands through the fur that Ren is all muscle beneath the coat.

Martyn can’t leave. He can’t go home, and he has no one else to hide with. He needs this castle. He needs this place, all of it. Ren stands between him and the perfect haven.

And Ren, fool that he is, has given Martyn a knife.

Martyn draws his hand back, away from Ren’s heart. Both hands close around the dagger’s hilt. He'll never need to worry about a thing again, so long as he buries it up to the guard.

Martyn raises his weapon high above his head. In the faint light of the moon, the blade glows a dim, cold white.

Martyn is calm as he holds the blade in the air. His breathing is silent, mouth set into a firm line. His eyes are steely sharp, zeroed in on the space between Ren’s ribs. It’s basically black, dark fur hidden by the shadow of Ren’s legs, where Ren is curled around himself. He'd be curled up entirely into himself, hiding his heart and every other vital thing, if it weren't for the fact he left space for Martyn to lean against him.

Martyn, fool that he is, takes a glance at Ren’s face.

Ren looks content. His snout lies in the square of light from the window, gently illuminated against the white sheets, soaking in the midnight moonlight. In the still of the night, Martyn can see clearly his soft breathing. If Martyn had to guess, he would say Ren isn’t even dreaming, at a sort of peace second only to that found by the dead.

Not that Ren’s death will be peaceful. It will be fast, sure—he’ll be dead before the stain of his own blood sullies his snout, but bleed he will. Will he be able to move, Martyn wonders? Should Martyn be prepared to dodge? Or will Ren’s body continue to hold as if to fit him, even in death?

Will he even have time to know who killed him?

Martyn hadn’t understood the point of taking his knife. The weapon is too close, too personal—he’d never get a chance to use it, not before Ren could stop him, not unless Ren was an idiot.

Will Ren have time to open his eyes? He’ll see Martyn immediately. He’ll know what Martyn has done, what Ren has allowed him to do so very easily. Even as quickly as Ren will die, he will know what Martyn has done. He’ll understand his mistake.

Knives are personal like that.

Personal enough Martyn knows that he’ll see Ren’s eyes, when they open. Martyn himself will know, intimately, the exact moment Ren understands what Martyn has done.

Ren’s eyes, when he’s happy, seem to glow. It counters the fact he can’t smile without looking like a monster, the way they shine with the light of the sun. What will they look like, in the dim glow of the moon, as that light fades? Will it die with him? Or will it go just a beat too soon, in the moment Ren understands what Martyn has done to him?

If Ren opened his eyes now, what would he see?

Martyn holds the knife above his head, though he does not manage to keep it very high. He frowns, biting his lip on the inside of his mouth. His eyes are wide with a growing, pleading horror.

The only thing that stops Martyn from slamming the knife back down onto the nightstand is the fear Ren will hear it.

Tomorrow, Martyn will take Ren’s face into both of his own and scratch every spot he knows Ren likes, listening to his laugh and to the way his tail thumps against the bed. He’ll move to Ren’s back when the weight of Ren’s eyes starts to crush him, running his nails up and down along Ren’s spine, keeping his hands from following Ren’s ribs too far down. Ren will laugh, will relax, will sigh and roll so that Martyn can more easily access his stomach, and Martyn will feel so suddenly and violently ill that he has to leave the room.

Tomorrow, Martyn will duck away the moment he’s able, taking the mop and bucket to the worst, dirtiest, most disgusting corner of the castle he can find, and he'll scrub away like it will clear red-black shadows from the back of his mind. He’ll wave Ren off once, twice, three times, shooing away his food and his company, up until all the blood is gone and there’s nothing left to clean.

Tonight, Martyn settles back into the space Ren makes for him at his side. He pulls Ren’s tail back across his lap, and notices, not for the first time, how perfectly he fits.

[reserved-system]

February Stars [HSBB]

Picture this, you're on a losing streak in life. Maybe you're having car troubles, just got dumped, or you bombed that test you thought you studied well enough for. Some time passes someone new is introduced into your friend group and at first you don't click, maybe you have a few interests in common, sure but it's like you only manage to see them at parties. You stop partying for a bit to get yourself back together and a close friend reaches out and invites you to their party, and you decide fuck it and go. During the party, you notice that friend from the group you don't know very well and decide to take a chance.

Now you may be left asking, what happens next? I guess you'll just have to read the wonderful fic this piece is based on!

[Link here!]

Hope did a wonderful job and tugged at my heart strings a little bit (/pos) and above all else had us cracking up the entire time we worked with them and the rest of our team! Let's go show them some love, shall we? Yet another massive shout out to the mods and admins for putting this event together! Check out the #hsbb 2023 tag for more works and fics like this!

Extras under cut - Wips, rambles, the whole nine yards, you know the drill!

GOSH. I don't know where to begin! How about with some stats?

This piece seems like it didn't take us as long as the first piece did because we actually scrapped our original piece and opened a new canvas. So over the roughly 2 month span, this is how we're looking!

Then we get to move on the the original sketch <3 So what I was going for was the ending scene when they're laying in the grass holding hands and Jimmy is talking to Tango. So this piece is a top down view which I've never attempted before so it was interesting trying to figure that out!!

ALSO. You can see us here playing around with our new art style ;^]

My one regret with the piece is I wish we kept the canvas zoomed in to the point all throughout the piece. You can tell where we zoomed in a lil too close by the thinner line weight in some areas but other than that I still like it. I loved working with the thicker lines.

So we once again failed to get any in progress shots of the background, just some shots in between the shading and the back lighting.

Colors colors colors! You can actually see Tango has a different facial expression in these. We played around with in for a few days until we found something we liked. You can also see us play around with other colors too.

And one last shot to appreciate the shading. <3

And now, bloopers!

Just a small collection of concept sketches from our first, scraped piece! It would've shown the rest of the backyard, porch, and Ren partying in the background.

Anyways, thank you for reading our rambles! Whether you're here from a reblog, from the fic itself, or were already following us. I hope you enjoyed! Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for the rest of our pieces for the event.

From the Reserved System, Happy HSBB everyone!! <3 <3 <3

[yingren]

“No, I-I’m okay. It was just a nightmare. Go back to sleep.”

HURT / COMFORT : STARTERS / accepting.

her voice pierces the stillness, sharp and sudden, like scissors slicing through fabric or a blade cutting cleanly through air, drawing all of ren’s attention to the scene beside him. he isn’t asleep, he rarely is these days, but mya doesn’t know that. it’s evident in the startled words that tumble from her lips as she jolts awake, shattering the fragile quiet. for a moment, ren has no response, though the abrupt movement nearly startled him.  

the hunter remains still, seated in the same position, his head turning slightly to assess her reaction. his sharp gaze lingers on her, checking for signs of distress, ensuring that she isn’t in any physical pain. that’s the reason he stayed, after all, an injury she’d sustained had looked serious enough to warrant someone keeping an eye on her. a couple of drinks had sealed the arrangement: she could sleep, and he would wait. well, that wasn’t the whole truth. ren had told her he’d rest too, a small, necessary white lie in the moment. but, as was often the case, he couldn’t sleep. not tonight. not most nights.

“ your nightmares, do they plague you ? ” it isn’t often ren witnesses such a reaction, and perhaps that’s because he so rarely spends his nights in the company of others. for him, the dark hours are usually reserved for solitude, untouched by the presence of another. even his own nightmares, once relentless in jolting him awake, have ceased to manifest in such an abrupt manner. he’s had centuries to grow accustomed to their torment, to endure their horrors as if they were merely another inevitable part of his cursed existence.  

the soft thump of his book snapping shut echoes in the quiet room, and he places it on his lap, shifting his back against the headboard to settle more comfortably. there’s a deliberate distance between him and mya, a careful space he maintains out of respect for her privacy and, admittedly, his own sense of ease. proximity has never been something he actively seeks unless necessity calls for it - a wound to inspect, an injury to mend. beyond that, ren remains content with the distance, unbothered by any lack of closeness.  

that said, mya’s presence is a welcome reprieve from his usual isolation. her company breaks through the silence that often feels deafening, a quiet reminder that he doesn’t always have to endure it alone. there’s a simplicity in her being here, one that ren has come to appreciate in ways he doesn’t often articulate. but as much as he values the space he keeps, he can’t entirely ignore the unease in her sudden movement or the lingering traces of distress etched into her features.  she matters to him now, and because of that, he finds himself unable to look the other way, even if comfort isn’t something he’s often called to offer.

the hunter extends a hand, fingers curling around the edge of the blanket as he gently pulls it higher over her shoulders, a small gesture of comfort from a man who seems more suited to haunt the shadows beneath the bed than to care for the one resting in it. the irony isn’t lost on him, though he doesn’t linger on the thought.  

the moment settles, still and quiet, like an undisturbed pool of water, its surface untouched by even the smallest ripple. ren remains motionless for a beat longer before his attention drifts back to the book resting on his lap. he flips through the pages, finding where he left off, though his eyes skim the text without truly absorbing it. the words blur together, their meaning slipping through the cracks of his distracted mind.  

by morning, he won’t recall a single line, the story as foreign as it was when he first opened the book tonight. but that hardly matters. reading isn’t about comprehension right now - it’s a distraction, plain and simple. one he sorely needs.

“ sleep. the sun isn’t even up yet, you have time. i’ll be here. ”

[linmelon3o]

Memories of the Past

We have learned from the many years that we have been trapped that we are somehow linked. It started with Grian of course. He was the first victor. Then Scott got his victory. And now me. I never really understood why we were here until I joined the realm of victors. That’s when the visions came flooding back like an ocean. I saw a beanstalk in a field full with wheat, I saw a giant moon plummet toward me, and (most disturbing of all) I saw a giant purple eye bleeding with so many scenes I could not comprehend what was going on.

Then I woke up.

I had no clue where I was when I saw a familiar face staring up at me.

“You‘ve been out for a while there!”

It was Scott, but it wasn’t. He had bright red blood all over him, a dark wooden bow, and a bright blue sword in a sheath at his side also covered in blood. As I looked up at him I also noticed a bright blue star tattooed on his right arm. He helped me stand up onto my very shaky feet with a smile and said

“It looks like the flashbacks came through. I figured as much.”

“Where am I? What-”

“One question at a time Pearl!” He said holding up his hand to tell me to stop. I glanced around the blank room but I quickly became dizzy from the emptiness.

“This place” he said looking around at the blank space with a melancholy sigh “this is called the infinity room. It is where our consciousness goes when in between the Life games.”

“Why have I never noticed this place before?” I asked as I walked into what I thought was a weirdly shaped wall and fell onto the ground. It was hard as a rock

“Ow!”

“You better be careful!” Scott said rushing over not to me but to the white thing I stumbled into! I stood up a little frustrated and just as I was about to get annoyed with him for not helping me up I noticed that it wasn’t a wall at all, but a statue. As I inspected it closer I recognized it as a face that I knew.

“Is that…” I said my face going almost as white as Jimmy’s face was, frozen in fear from his death. In his eyes I could still see the reflection of an enderman reaching out a black, purple clawed, arm.

“Yes.” Scott said sadly as he looked at it and checked very carefully to see if there were any cracks in the marble statue. I looked around and realized that there were many other statues that looked similar to Jimmy’s but they were all the members that I knew from the life games. I saw the faces of Bdubs and Impulse cowering in fear with a red reflection in their eyes, I could make out the anguish on Joel and Etho’s faces as they were surrounded by lava, I saw Martyn in a cave clutching his side, and I saw Ren as falling dripstone split his skull. I shuddered as the memory of my championship reached my mind. Then I thought of something. I looked at Scott.

“If the marble statues are not the winners, where’s Grian?” Scott looked at me and pointed to a corner of the room where I could just spot a faint purple glow and a sandy haired head that I knew.

“I wouldn’t talk to him too much. He has had the worst flashbacks from this game.” He turned away and started toward another statue which I recognized as Cleo. I walked a little closer to Grian and suddenly saw a series of old memories flood back to me. I saw the bleeding purple eye but I also heard a voice in my head but I couldn’t make out any words. I fell back to reality and awoke again rubbing my temples. I did in fact have a vague sense that I knew what was going through Grian’s head but I couldn’t quite grasp why.

“It’s best not to think about past lives too much” said Scott moving my hands away from my head.

“It only makes these next few months harder.”

[ramenboba]

TLJ 2nd watch in 2024 commentary.

Part 2.

This film feels quite like a play at times - I guess it ties in with what cast members have said about it. That it felt like an indie project, kind of.

But really - it is so thoughtful. I really don’t have any criticism against it as a movie, but I would like to express my sadness about the fact that it does belong to a franchise called Star Wars.

Which is owned by a big company called Disney. Who has shareholders who wanna make big bucks. Which is cool and I get it…It really isn’t my place to say it but I’d really like to get a sequel to TLJ. Even Trevorrow’s Duel of the Fates would do!!

TROS slander incoming.

Ugh I hate how Kylo is just annoying and doing his villain stuff in 2/3rds of the movie and then just pulls a 180 after his mom reaches out to him with the force? Couldn’t she have done that earlier?

Like, his whole villain arc wasn’t that he wanted to be EVIL per se, he just wanted to take charge of his own fate in a way. That’s why he’s so obsessed with killing his past (and his dad) - because of what it represents, not that he actually wants to do the action.

And that’s where his conflict comes in - because he’s on some level painfully aware that he’s only doing this to destroy his previous identity and construct a new one. Which is why he feels like an imposter and breaks the mask - he doesn’t want to be one.

And yes, IRL he could’ve started spiralling back into his “masked” Kylo Ren identity andwhatnot, but we all know that they made that a plot point so they could sell Kylo Ren merch with the cracked mask. I don’t make the rules.

TLJ criticism

1) Too much going on.

- Some choices were def made just to fit everything in.

For example, Rey (main character) kinda dissapears in the continuation of the 3rd act. Maybe they could’ve incorporated her into Kylo/Luke’s confrontation scene, for example, she loses to Kylo in the duel, Luke saves her. But for that we’d have to rewrite the last 1/3 of the film. That would also put her and Kylo on equal ground on saber duels lost/won and would give her a reason to train in 9.

Finn doesn’t get to sacrifice himself (which would have been a better end than getting no character arc at all from rhe next film), because that would take focus away from Luke’s sacrifice.

2) Kylo doesn’t look as pretty as he did in TFA (I’m not 100% serious with this one), but I’m sure it was a concious choice to make his hair less fluffy and curly and to let Driver wear less concealer so that Kylo could look as desperate/weak as possible to reflect his mental state.

3) Music was better in TFA :(

4) Too much going on.

Having said all that, I’ll never be a Sequel Trilogy hater.

Things I really liked

1) Everything about Luke’s arc

2) Kylo’s story, it taking a darker turn

!!!Everytime Hux and Ren interact on screen there’s god-tier tension or ACTUALLY funny moments!!! Which I love!

!!!The part where Rey and Kylo both incorrectly project their hopes and desires on one-another just to be dissappointed!!!Peak drama, and realistic for once! Unseen for generations!

3) The serious atmosphere

4) Poe was funny idk he just looks so annoyed for the entire Holdo arc I think that’s funny

5) Finn & Rose are 2 cute cinnamon rolls

[erabundus]

anonymous &&. said... What's something that makes you happy about writing your muse? Is it their personality, their mentality, or something else entirely? Also, is there something you'd like to explore with your muse in general, but haven't had the opportunity for it?

honestly,  i  think  the  answer  is  a  mix  of  all  of  the  above?

i  started  playing  genshin  directly  after  unreconciled  stars  rolled  out  purely  because  i  saw  some  fanart  and  clips  of  scaramouche  and  just  found  him  absolutely  delightful  —  and  i  do  mean  that  unironically!  there's  a  very  specific  flavor  of  mean  and  prideful  character  that  really  clicks  with  my  brain.  there  is  literally  no  logical  explanation  for  it;  i  just  find  them  deeply  endearing  when  they're  being  objectively  terrible  people.  it's  like  the  same  feeling  of  "aww,  little  guy"  you  might  get  watching  a  racoon  scuttle  away  with  a  stale  pizza  crust.  scaramouche / wanderer  really  fills  that  niche  for  me  —  i  think  his  personality,  his  dialogue,  his  mannerisms  are  genuinely  the  most  entertaining  thing.  the  scene  of  him  terrorizing  his  subordinates  has  lived  rent  free  in  my  brain  for  years;  he  is  THE  funniest  genshin  impact  character,  no  i  will  not  take  constructive  criticism.

so  it  goes  without  saying,  getting  to  write  ren  is  just  an  incredibly  fun  experience  for  me.  he  is  such  a  strange  person,  and  that's  without  getting  into  finer  intricacies  of  his  psychology.  he  will  just  say  the  most  out  of  pocket  things  with  his  whole  chest  and  not  an  ounce  of  shame.  it's  not  in  a  "haha,  he's  so  random"  kind  of  way  either  —  because  there  is  genuine  thought  and  reasoning  behind  what  comes  out  of  his  mouth.  there  is  also  no  filter  whatsoever,  and  that  combined  with  being  such  a  naturally  intense  person  leads  to  situations  where  he'll  point  blank  tell  heizou  to  try  killing  him  if  he  ever  makes  kazuha  unhappy  before  casually  going  on  to  make  dinner  plans. he's very quotable.  also  i  think  the  quirk  where  he  deliberately  exaggerates  his  nature  as  a  villainous  person  is  just  kind  of  funny.  (  even  if  it  does  stem  from  an  unhealthy  place.  )  sir,  sit  down,  you  were  feeding  stray  cats  fifteen  minutes  ago.

beneath  the  blunt  veneer,  he  is  incredibly  awkward  —  and  again,  not  in  any  sort  of  glamorized  cutesy  way.  say  it  with  me:  ren  is  weird.  he  had  to  teach  himself  how  to  emulate  humanity,  and  there  are  cracks  in  the  façade  —  as  well  as  situations  wherein  he  just  doesn't  care  to  maintain  it.  he's  a  menace. it's easy to miss because he has such a strong personality and presence, but if you ignore the snark and theatrics and look at what he's actually doing, it becomes obvious.

but  i  also  find  the  way  his  mind  works  just  deeply  fascinating.  one  of  my  favorite  things  about  roleplay  in  general  is  choosing  a  singular  character  and  breaking  down  how  they  think.  i  spent  years  writing  a  muse  with  literally  eight  whole  lines  of  canon  dialogue  —  but  those  eight  lines  were  enough  for  me  to  build  an  entire  psychological  profile  and  backstory  out  of.  in  comparison,  wanderer  has  so  much  content  for  me  to  pour  over  and  i  am  thriving.  he's  deeply  sympathetic  and  completely  insufferable.  he's  messy  and  makes  terrible  choices  and  pushes  everyone  away,  but  he's  absolutely  terrified  of  being  alone.  he's  self  loathing  and  confident.  his  understanding  of  the  world  is  warped  and  cynical,  but  he  still  possesses  a  system  of  morality  (  even  if  "morality"  is  a  very  generous  term  )  he  tries  to  operate  by.  his brain is a big spaghetti pile of contradictions that somehow manage to work together. i can literally ramble about him for ages but this post is getting long enough. it's  just  so  refreshing  to  be  able  to  write  a  character  and  not  feel  obligated  to  smooth  over  their  flaws  —  because  it  affords  me  the  opportunity  to  have  him  grow  and  develop  from  them  in  a  distinctly  organic  way.

and  that  kind  of  feeds  into  what  i  want  to  do  with  him  in  the  future.  i  generally  don't  try  to  stick  too  rigidly  to  any  kind  of  clearly  defined  roadmap  for  character  development.  (  though  i  do  like  to  sprinkle  in  subplots  and  story  arcs ...  i've  been  wanting  to  do  a  big  dash-wide  event  at  some  point,  too.  )  i  tend  to  run  my  blogs  like  they  all  take  place  on  one  continuous  storyline with minor branching paths here and there.  if  your  muse  interacts  with  ren,  i  would  absolutely  love  to  keep  writing  with  you  and  building  on  that  relationship  —  whether  it's  a  positive  or  negative  one.  force  this  man  to  socialize.  throw  him  off  a  cliff.  it's  all  very  fun  for  me!

[tokufan400]

Ruby lied to ironwood because she saw how erratic ironwood was acting in oppressing mantle.

Yang and Blake went to Robyn because Ironwood was being uncompromising and saw no problem with sacrificing half his kingdom to get whatever he wanted in addition to refusing to help Robyn protect Mantle.

And yet Ruby was able to understand why Ozpin hid the truth.

And Yang and Blake were able to get Robyn to work with Ironwood and Ironwood to work with Robyn.

Team RWBY supported ironwood's satellite plan. They just saw so many alternatives to him oppressing the poor people. Which is funny, because fascism involves oppressing the poor, and ironwood's "you're either with me or against me" mentality was present all the way back to volume 2.

RWBY is actually better written than what people give it credit for, but it requires paying attention.

For example, these same Ironwood apologists claim that "Yang is no longer fun" after v4. We see her playing pranks, laughing happily, taking part in fun activities, cracking jokes. But again, just as Ironwood apologists ignore the good Team RWBY does and ignore anything bad Ironwood does? They literally refuse to pay attention.

Here's an example

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/14078581/1/In-Attention-To-Detail

Take a look at this fanfic detailing how Ironwood's "I'm gonna abandon everyone in Mantle just like I abandoned Beacon after forcibly asserting myself in charge" was completely doomed to failure.

"Are we even watching the same show?" Given how Adam apologists literally made up an entire 5 hour backstory for a dude introduced as a mass murdering wannabe?

No, we're clearly not.

I never said I disagreed with Ruby's choice to lie to Ironwood. I understand why she did and, at the time, it made sense. I feel that if things didn't go to hell, then she would have told Ironwood the truth in a calmer situation. I'm not upset that Yang and Blake told Robyn about Amity. What frustrates me is that they didn't tell the other's that they did so, and when it came to light, no one called them out. You could argue Ren and Ironwood kind of did that, but they where not in the right head space any way. Ruby and Weiss should have called Yang and Blake out, or just given them a cold stare, but they did nothing! if the party happened just after the Robyn scene, then I would let it slide a little, but we don't get an exact amount of time between then, so they had loads of time to tell the others. Sorry about the mini rant in the second half, but that Robyn scene is honestly one of the only frustrating scenes in the show to me.

[lostgirl1428]

So I like write bits and peices of stories of my OC depending on my current hyper fixation….anyways my current hyper-fixation is Doctor Strange and look…SOMETIMES I QUESTION MY SANITY. Yes Ren is an alcoholic, junkie succubus among other things….and yes she has a boston accent…I do too…leave me alone.

Also I kinda took influences from both the comics and movies but mostly the comics if you couldn’t tell

Anyways idk I crack myself up this had me giggling.

This is all self indulgent there’s like a 5% chance this actual fan fic will ever see the light of day despite me having an AO3 account.

…..

Ren opens the door only to step right into the Sanctum’s kitchen where Wong and Strange are enjoying their breakfast…that is if you consider a mystical slug monster with six legs and eight eyes breakfast. Strange reads the newspaper as he begrudgingly devours his monstrous breakfast while Wong busies himself with preparing the coffee.

“That’s… cute…” Ren says with an amused smirk on her face looking at Strange as he gags over his morning meal.

He gives her a brief glare and mumbles something along the lines of “yeah… tastes like the botulism.”

“Oh I bet.” She snickers.

“Good morning Miss Samael.” Wong greets and hands her a cup of black coffee. She hums a thank you in response and sits down at the table across from Strange. Strange peers up from the newspaper only to watch Ren procure a bottle of everclear from thin air and proceeds to dump what Strange can only approximate to be three entire shots into her coffee. He stares at her for a moment in bewilderment as she takes a sip of her concoction and gives a half hearted smile to the sorcerer supreme.

“Did…did you just make a poor man’s Irish Coffee?” He asks with a disturbed look on his face.

“Yeah something like that…look you should be the last person to judge my choices of early morning consumption.” She responds with a smirk, promptly downing the entire cup.

Strange gives a sigh in response. “At least regular food doesn’t turn to ash in your mouth.”

“…Well no, but I can’t consume it regardless.” Strange looks up at her quizzically but before he can ask she gets up. “Thank you Wong, Strange, it was nice to have a real bed for a night but I should get the fuck outta here ….that is if this place will let me.” She says, referring to the Sanctum itself.

“You can stay, you know.” Stephen quickly says and she looks at him with a seemingly sad smile on her face.

“No, I can’t, I told you, you wouldn’t survive living with me…besides I’m fuckin’ starvin’.” She responds.

“Oh I’m sure we’ll manage.” Strange says with a reassuring smile and Wong jumps in.

“We have plenty of food here Ren.” Wong adds, receiving a questioning look from Ren and a concerned look from Stephen.

“I appreciate the sentiment Wong, but unlike the monster nommer over here I can’t consume any food at all. Also…I’m positively fuckin’ terrified of what lurks within your refrigerator.” She explains and Strange nods in response.

“Yeah…uhm… don’t open the fridge. Unless you’d like to fight for your life.” Stephen says in a warning tone.

“You can’t eat food?” Wong asks curiously.

“No I cannot,” she explains. “I just get sick and throw it up, I can only feed off of other’s sexual auras which, let me tell you, can be a pain in the fuckin’ ass…literally.”

Wong and Strange give each other a look and Stephen sighs. “I mean…I can…” he starts but Ren cuts him off once again.

“No you cannot…not right now, well I mean you can, and…” Ren looks him up and down, “Fuck yeah I’d be down…after you brush your teeth… but you’re human, I’m starving to the point that I’d accidentally fuck you to death.” Ren explains.

“Well that sounds unpleasant.” Wong says and Stephen gives a look of disagreement.

“Quite the opposite actually, most people die with a smile on their face.” Ren shrugs.

————

Bonus current work in progress on a drawing scene.

I swear one of these days ill make a whole ass background post on my OC and all the scene drawings I’ve been doing but today is not that day.

[he1ian]

*lies seductively on a table* tell us more about masked chimes au convex 🌹

might as well ramble to you anon since we have nothing specific out there yet

(beware this is mostly crack that has its serious moments so a lot of this will sound ridiculous)

so they're the typical case of roommates. casual guys, cub works in retail and scar is like a barbie, he does it all - no one can specify his profession, the only thing that's known is that he's rather wealthy

cub is a supervillain (the jingler) - he just honestly enjoys being a little shit + has an excuse to work on some tech... in a garage... that no one checks... completely unsuspicious...

scar is childhood best friends with mumbo and grian, the latter a detective, and hears about him working on the case of the jingler and making barely any progress, "someone would have to be crazy enough to face him in combat"

and i need you to know mc scar is a BASTARD, absolute worst person ever, do not trust him and is an attention whore so he decides to create a hero persona for himself as well but instead of actually working on it he just rips off the jingler and creates the jangler

long story short he offers his services to grian and his team (doc and ren, they're more the tech guys than actual brains of the investigation) and grian, desperate, accepts

jingler strikes again but this time this random guy appears until he notices that it's HIS random guy (he genuinely doesn't know how no one else recognizes it's scar. it's the most obvious thing ever, fucking cartoon logic) and come on, he cannot just murder scar, so after some pretend fighting he flees

it doesn't really solve anything yet but it's the first time someone managed to defeat the jingler (or more so, not get killed by him) so it's a new spark of hope for grian

scar never had to face anyone other than cub, i mean, he's the jangler - meant to oppose the jingler but he has made a proper name for himself among other heroes and villains (they don't know he's a loser. they don't know he can barely fight. they don't know the jingler has a soft spot for him)

one day he gets himself in quite the situation (a fight against iskall and mumbo [who are a villain duo]) and loses, almost dying (it's also where the burn scar on his face comes from)

it's an entire scene written in detail, i won't torture you, but basically it ends in cub, as the jingler, scooping him up and escaping to tend him and reveals himself, offering scar to join him (he knows scar's a bastard, that he doesn't care about the greater public good, that he just wants the attention) (he also basically tells him that he sucked at being a hero - 😭😭😭)

after that starts, what me and my friends like to call, act 2 and they're basically teamed up as villains working together, after that they're like the same entity in the story against everyone else

[14dayswithyou]

one sided enemies / lovers ren x mc fic where the high tension point of it is mc trying to stab ren while he’s “asleep” only for him to open his eyes and grab their wrists as they try and aim for his throat only for him to look them in the eyes and say “you’re really beautiful”, 25k slowburn, pinning, childhood friends to strangers to one sided love/hatred, not updated since 2018

A/N: Hello angels! Sorry I haven’t updated my multichapter 14DWY AU in a while! I got married, had three kids, divorced and then immediately got remarried again, came out of a 3-year coma due to my lack of copium, and recently adopted a dog :D Also I had to undergo surgery because I was suffering from sugondese, but I'm back now with another chapter! Plz enjoy!

pairings: MC x some pink haired guy idk i haven't played 14dwy

tags: over 25k word count, enemies to lovers to strangers then back to friends but not really, slow burn, only one bed, mpreg, stabbing (but not the sexual kind), pining, lemon/smut scene, mafia!au, etc.

Now was your chance. You finally had the opportunity to kill the fucker that had been embezzling funds from your Mafia father’s company. The timing was perfect... you had seduced him with your super hot appearance and slipped sleeping pills into his drink like a creep who belongs in jail. Now he was unconscious in your bed (there's only one bed in this huge expensive $$$ mansion) because you're not a monster who lets your enemies/lovers sleep on the ground.

Getting closer to the sleeping dude, you noticed that he was sleeping with a cheap ass face mask and sliced, dollar store cucumbers on his eyes… Like wtf… If he could steal over $1,000,000 from your father, you’d think he’d be able to buy something more expensive? Cheap ass….

Anyways it doesn’t matter because now you're looming over him and ripping off his $2 mallwart self-care products and staring at his prone and vulnerable form.

Wow... he actually looked.... beuatiful????

No-- stop it Y/N M/N L/N! this was not the time to be falling for the enemy! after your recent break-up with Teo -- the son of the rival mafia and the guy you were once in an arranged marriage with -- you were in no position to date again. But... wait… who said anything about dating? oh wait I did because I'm the narrator lol

Shaking your head and letting your H/L H/C hair loose, you draw your knife and angle it at the pink-haired ex-yakuza heir (your father and his mother are rivals as well). But before you could go for his jugular or smth, his eyes flutter open and lock onto yours.

It was as if time stopped and nothing else existed outside of your bedroom walls. You were captivated by his striking blue orbs and soft, dewy skin. He looked like an angel sent from heaven — but in the form of your childhood friend. aka the one you met on the playground all those years ago.... sakura blossoms were blowing in the wind which was romantic, but didnt make sense because corland bay doesn’t take place in Japan (omg 14dwy lore?? in my crack fic????)

Memories come flooding back, and it was as if the pink-haired guy was remembering them too — if the way his eyes softly trace over your features was any indication. How could you kill him? Did you want to kill him? He was nothing but kind to you, despite the fact that he literally stole money from your family and tried to kill you ex. And wtf why am I actually putting effort into this???

Shaking your head again (i don't know that many descriptors), you strengthen your resolve and press the blade firmly against his heart instead. But ya mans must've been made out of steel or something because you haven't drawn blood yet? tf?? anyways, before you could notice, he wraps a large and veiny hand around your wrist and softly murmurs something under his breath.

For some reason you forgot how soft and breathy his voice sounded, and for a moment in time, you found yourself falling for him. ah shit bois it's the beginning of the enemies to lovers arc!!!!! yehaw 🤠 ok anyways

Before you could say anything, he cuts you off "You look beautiful”

"How can you say that I'm literally wearing a balaclava right now? :/" you say, “I’m going for that mysterious vibe”

"Yeah but I know the real you, the you that's underneath that balaclava."

it was sweet, but you knew better than to trust the words of your enemy/lover. "Ok but what if I told you I was wearing another one underneath”

"yeah that's valid i'm literally wearing two sweaters rn"

"oh sick" looking down you notice that he wasn’t lying “nice I love the complimentary colours. very neutral and very based uwu”

"y-y-y-y-eah" he blushes "sorry i forgot that i'm supposed to be haruko rn"

"oh shit!! you like attack on giants? my man!!!!!"

"i-it's pretty pog ^^ anyways," he looks at your really cool and expensive gucci blade that was pressed against his heart. "weren't you going to kill me?"

"oh yeah" drawing the knife for the 69th time, you position it again before looking into his ocean blue cerulean cyan orbs once more. "this is for stealing money from my dad… the richest mafia don in all of corland bay…. he's a great dad btw because my mom tried to sell me to one direction-- anyways I'm rambling now. time to unalive you hehe"

but... you couldn't do it. You couldn't kill your childhood friend, your twin flame, and the man you harboured secret feelings for. He was too pretty and too Baby to kill. look at him. Would you really murder a guy looking like that? Jail time for even thinking about harming such an innocent soul :/ and so, you retract the blade and dramatically look off into the distance.

"I.... I can't do it."

"here i'll do it then." and then he grabs the knife and straight up stabs himself.

"MY BROTHER IN CHRIST WTF???"

"you wanted to kill me, and I only want what you want. it's logic :)"

"omg the rapper? anyways that's not what I-- you know what? yeah okay sure bet"

and just like romeo and juliet, you stab yourself as well so you could be with your lover in the afterlife. But you didn't die quick enough, so you had some time to kill on the ONLY bed in the mansion. so u woohoo with each other before kicking the bucket

you see ren in the afterlife and that’s when you realise that one of you were pregnant. yeah.... now this is the annoying part of every fic where they introduce the unwanted pregnancy arc. but that continues in chapter 69 so stay tuned! I should be able to update this next week if nothing goes wrong :)

-- THE END --

A/N (for real): if y'all want an actual serious scenario with this prompt, lemme know lmao

[hotchnerbby]

“Why won’t you come to me”

Kylo Ren x Female Reader (previous Ben Solo x Reader during Jedi Temple days)

Summary: After killing Snoke, Kylo asks you to join him and to rule the galaxy by his side, but something keeps you from accepting.

Author’s Note: This is my first time every publishing  my work, so please me gentle. My inspiration for this piece came from a scene I watched from the 2011 Jane Eyre where Mr. Rochester confesses and Jane ends up leaving him out of respect for herself. No use of Y/N (obvi.). I hope you guys like it!

Word count: 798

My Masterlist

     Pain, pain is all you feel in this very moment. Not from killing Snoke's guards, but from standing in front of the man you once loved. Those stolen kisses in the middle of the night, sacred promises you and Ben told each other you would keep, memories you shared while as students at the Jedi Temple, now laid in tainted tatters.

     Only Kylo stands before you now. No longer the Ben you loved. No longer the Ben you shared your first kiss. No longer your Ben. Your body feels heavy, the pain in your throat throbbing unbearably, and the tears that you have shed countless times for Ben are threatening to fall once again.

     Kylo approaches you, pulling you out of your trance. He embraces you tightly. What surprises you the most is not his touch but the fact that he still feels like Ben, still smells like Ben. It only mocks your pain and pulls you into the possibility that you might not have known the true nature of Ben Solo.

     "It’s time to let old things die, Snoke, Skywalker, The Sith, The Jedi, the Rebels. Let it all die. I want you to join me." Kylo pleads. There is a desperation in his voice, something that you had not heard since the night he destroyed the Jedi Temple and asked you to leave with him and join Snoke.

     "We can rule together and bring a new order to the galaxy. Please join me." Kylo is caressing your face now, there is a gentleness in his voice, one reserved only for you. You almost all fall for it allowing yourself to melt into his touch, but the image of dead students appears in your mind. The blood of innocents, your friends, soils the Jedi Temple grounds, it is what keeps you from falling for Kylo's words.

     "I can't." You say weakly, tears now falling freely down your face. “Not after everything you have done.”

     Realization dawns on his face at your words. “You are still upset about that night. You must understand, Luke was going to kill me. I did it to protect myself, to protect you!” He says earnestly.

     “But those kids, my friends. How could you?” Your voice cracks now, any attempt you had to control your emotions is long gone.

     “That is all in the past now. Please you must believe me. Together we will bring peace to our new order, and no one will need to die. We can live happily, together and I will love you until the end of my days. Please join me.” He pleads once more.

     Overcome with too much emotion to speak, you frantically shake your head no. You can’t bring yourself to do it.

     “So you would rather drive me to madness then? You would rather leave me than to be with me, at my side, as my wife, as my Empress?” He agonizes.

     “I must respect myself. I cannot be with you when I know the lengths you have gone through to ensure our happiness.” You gasp, suddenly feeling that pain in your throat throbbing even harder now.

     Kylo is weeping now, tears streaming down his face. His hands then move down from your face to softly grip around your neck.

     “I could bend you with my hands.” He whispers through gritted teeth and tearful eyes. “A mere reed you feel in my hands.”

     You backup now as Kylo collapses to his knees and painfully grips your waist. “But whatever I do, I cannot get at you. Why won’t you come to me of your own free will?” He confesses. Finally releasing himself and baring his innermost desires to you as sobs rack his body.

     Kylo’s confession suffocates you, here kneeling before you is the man you once loved, promising to give you everything you could ever dream of, but the weight of condoning his actions eats you alive. You are tempted to accept; you desperately want to accept. Glimpses of a future with him flash before your eyes, intimate moments you could share, a family you could build together.

     But the screams that night, the blood on his hands and face when he found you. These memories have plagued your thoughts and nightmares all these years. These memories alone are enough for you to muster up the little strength you have to pry his hands off your waist.

     You tell him goodbye, barely above a whisper, and proceed to turn your back to the man you once loved. You hear his crying get louder and yours does too, but you march onward never allowing your steps to falter. Finally accepting the fact that your Ben died the night that the Jedi Temple was destroyed, and it was Kylo Ren that killed the man you loved.

[pavvo20]

The Spark - Chapter One - Interrogation | Poe Dameron

Pairing: Poe Dameron x OC

Summary: When her childhood best friend recruits her during an undercover mission for the Resistance, Captain Kara Embers embraces her family legacy and joins the fight against the First Order. As the secrets of her past come to light, Kara never expects to be training with her mom’s best friend, flying her father’s ship, and falling in love with the Yavin-4 boy who always said he’d be the galaxy’s best pilot. 

A/N: If you’ve found this.. Hi, I’m new here. I’m also a little new to the Poe Dameron fanfiction world as a whole. That said, after spending months as a lurker, I finally decided I’d take my own crack at a story. Apologies in advance for the roughness and the “rusty” writing -- I used to write so much when I was younger and haven’t taken a crack at fiction in a few years. You heard it here first. :) 

Timeframe: This story takes place right around The Force Awakens (i.e. Poe’s Interrogation Scene), but as it continues it may stray into the other chapters or establish it’s own timeline. We’ll see where this adventure takes us. 

NOTE: Poe Dameron and Star Wars aren’t mine, and I certainly don’t claim them to be. Credit goes to George Lucas and the brilliant minds over at Lucasfilm for these incredible characters and a bit of the story line here. 

Warnings: violence, language, sarcasm, moodiness, whump.

He slowly opened his eyes in the dimly-lit interrogation pod, his head pounding and muscles protesting. They had come at him with fists, boots, and several volts of electricity in hopes he’d spill his gut. He had to give them a little credit; it had been at least three or four hours of beatings before the troopers decided to break for dinner. Poe smiled to himself as his gaze drifted to his restraints. He held the Resistance record for enduring brutal interrogation methods and torture. These guys could be at it for days and he’d likely give into his injuries or dehydration before he’d ever give up any intel. 

Least that’s what he thought. 

His body involuntarily shivered seconds before his pod door opened to reveal Kylo Ren. The feeling was reminiscent of the chill he felt when shoved before the First Order leader only hours earlier on Tuanul. Poe remembered the pain on Leia’s face as she told him more about Ren in a debriefing only a few weeks before. General Organa was one of the strongest women he knew and seeing her like that tore at his heart. 

“I had no idea we had the best pilot in the Resistance on board. Comfortable?” 

It took all Poe had not to snort. 

“Not really.” Ren ignored him as he stepped closer. Poe shifted slightly in his restraints. 

“I’m impressed. No one has been able to get out of you what you did with the map.” Poe’s eyes stayed glued to the emotionless expression on the man’s mask. 

“You may want to rethink your technique.” Ren reached out, pushing with the Force into Poe’s already racing mind. The pilot’s fists clenched as he tried like hell to keep Ren from getting too far into his head. Leia had taught him a few ways to protect himself from Force intrusions – and when he felt Kylo bear down on him with enough pressure that it felt his head was truly going to explode – he knew they were working. Poe squeezed his eyes shut and choked back a yelp as his head slammed hard into the interrogation chair. He wasn’t sure how much more of this he could take. 

“My mother has taught you a few things hasn’t she?” Ren sneered as he relented for a moment and the pilot’s sweat poured down his face causing his various wounds to sting. Poe’s eyes stayed shut as he tried to shake his head, hoping to get his new migraine to subside a bit. “You’re stronger than you look.”

 “The Resistance won’t be intimidated by you.” Dameron growled, now glaring at Ren with every ounce of courage he had left. Poe bit back a scream as Kylo Ren retaliated by pushing back into his mind. The Force ripped through his memories like they weren’t even there, barreling like a battering ram into his mental defenses. Ren smirked as he could feel the Resistance commander breaking under his power. 

“You can make this stop, Commander. All you have to do…” Ren leaned to the writhing man’s ear; “...is tell me where the map is.” The Supreme Leader took some sick enjoyment in watching Poe struggle to protect himself in vain. He had to admit that he was strong - cocky even - and definitely a man his mother would trust. 

Poe reminded Ren a lot of his estranged father and hadn’t changed at all from when they were kids. Kylo flipped through those memories in Poe’s mind, stalling for a few moments as he sensed the man debating whether or not he’d surrender to his torment. Ren knew better than to get hopeful. Poe was far too headstrong to give in just yet…and he just wanted to see how far the pilot would go.  

“Never.” Poe ground out between clenched teeth. His breath was ragged as he strained against the chair, struggling to keep up his defenses against the Dark Jedi. He wished he could take this fight out of his head. All he wanted was to crack that insufferable mask that cloaked his childhood friend’s face. Poe tried to focus on happier thoughts, maybe that would throw him off. 

“I’m sure General Organa would be so proud of you right now, Commander.” Kylo teased, forcing himself even further into Poe’s memories. He could feel his anger, pain, and helplessness starting to get the better of him. There wasn’t too much more the rebel could take.

“I… won’t…” Poe stammered as his body betrayed him. Ren was so close.   

“Where is it, Dameron?” 

“No. NO!” The Resistance commander felt his enemy slip into his mind completely as he roared in agony. His body slumped against his bonds as it no longer could sustain a fight. Ren paged through each thought, finding not only what he needed…but plenty of things to torment the man with for a little while longer. He leaned back to be only inches from Poe’s face, sensing his inner turmoil. The man was broken, vulnerable, and weak. Ren had him right where he wanted him.  

“Next question Commander. Who’s the girl?” Fear flicked into Poe’s eyes as they snapped open and trained themselves on the dark lord.

“Just a cadet.” Poe rasped, his throat raw from screaming. Ren could feel the pilot finding what little strength he had left. Clearly, this “cadet” was someone close to his heart.  

“You seemed rather protective of just that cadet, Commander. Didn’t my mother teach you to not play favorites?” Poe’s glare burned through Ren’s mask and the knight smirked. “Then again, you weren’t even her blood and she loved you more than me.” 

“You know that's not true!” Poe barked, now enraged. The man loved Leia like his own mother, whom he lost when they were kids. Ben Solo knew that. “She still loves you. The real you.” 

“That part of me is dead.” Ren snapped, closing the Force around Poe’s throat. The pilot gasped, frantically struggling for air as Ren worked to soothe his inner rage. He wasn’t done with Poe yet… and he certainly couldn’t kill him without an audience. He’d save that for when he infiltrated their base. Kill Poe in front of his parents and the Resistance. That’d certainly send a message. 

He released the man’s throat and turned from him briefly to remove his mask. 

“You..” Poe started, coughing as his lungs refilled. “Know damn well that part of you is still there.” He gazed at his former friend, all he could see on Ren’s face was twisted pleasure. 

“Enough.” The two men stared hard at each other for several minutes. Inspecting what they thought they knew about each other to what was actually in front of them. Poe noticed little signs of Ben Solo in Ren’s face as his eyes fell on the gold chain around his neck. Only at that moment, did Poe wish he could have read the man’s thoughts. 

“So Commander, who’s the cadet?” 

“Do you really think we’re just going to chat like we’re old friends now?” Poe quipped. He may have been weak but he’d be stubborn till his dying breath. 

“She clearly means something to you.” 

“What’s it to you?” The pilot growled, his brow furrowing as he tried to piece together why Ren would possibly be asking. He’d already tore through his mind. Why wouldn’t he just do it again? Poe figured it was him truly rethinking his technique. He kept his smug smile to himself as the realization rippled through his pounding head. He knew how to play this game too.

“Kara is it?” Kylo leaned against the wall of the pod, raising an eyebrow as he caught his captive off guard with his question. Poe’s features flashed terror before they settled on frustration. 

“Again, what’s it to you? She’s nothing special.” 

“You’re a gifted liar, Dameron.” Ren scoffed sarcastically. “Always have been.” The restraints around Poe’s wrists and forearms rattled as he tested them once again. 

“Get out of here, Ren. This is getting old. You have what you want.” 

“I’m far from finished with you, Commander.” The newfound confidence and bravado contorted back to sheer agony as Ren tore into the pilot’s mind once more, looking specifically for details about his mysterious cadet. 

His memories of her were certainly different then his other romantic memories. Considering many of them were brief, sexual, and laced with alcohol. Almost all his memories with Kara were sober, soft, and grossly more serious. 

Kara was an athletically built young woman around the same age as the Commander. Her brown hair faded to a light blonde at the tips and she often wore it in a ponytail so it would stay out of her face as she worked. She too was a gifted pilot. Her father was a mechanic for the original Rebellion, regularly servicing the Falcon and Luke’s X-Wing. Her mother, also absent from her life at a young age, was Force-sensitive. 

Ren’s heart skipped a beat when he saw his younger self in the man’s head again, this time flanked by the young female cadet. 

They were silently laughing as they hid inside a crate, waiting for a young Poe to find them in a rousing game of hide and seek.

“Hey, shh!” He said to Kara, who couldn’t believe that Poe hadn’t found them yet. Especially since he’d already walked by them twice. 

“Ok, sorry!” She whispered. It wasn’t long before she almost blew their cover again. He sensed Poe coming back and he pulled the girl closer to him, making it hard to see them in the cracks in the wood. Kara’s green eyes found his in the dimly lit garage, a smile plastered across her face as the anticipation of being caught rose between them. Poe’s footsteps stopped at the door again. Ben’s eye never left the girl he had against his chest, but to keep her from giggling - and selfishly acting on feelings he barely understood - he kissed her. 

Kara pulled away in shock and stood up, the game was over. 10-year old Poe looked at her completely confused. She looked down at Ben, her fingers grazing her lips as she tried to piece together what had just happened. 

Her eyes darted between the two boys before she finally said: “I’ve…uh… gotta check with my dad about something.” Ben, embarrassed by her rejection, didn’t move from the crate. Poe came over to sit with him silently, like the good friend that he was. Ben could feel in the Force that Poe was guessing at what had just taken place but he never asked out loud. He just was there, ensuring he wasn’t alone. 

Kylo felt a pang in his heart as he saw the rejection again in real time. He had never told anyone about that day and he had hoped that Kara hadn’t spoken of it either, but that clearly wasn’t the case. Poe had gotten the story from her after he had left to train with his Uncle at the Temple. 

Ren could feel his rage beginning to boil again and this time he let it fester, forcing himself further into Poe’s thoughts. He wanted to know how they found each other again. 

What were they to each other now? 

He could feel his captive starting to relent to his intrusion, his initial cries had turned to harrowing groans. 

Ren went digging, learning that Poe reconnected with her on a mission to collect his BB-Droid. Poe convinced her to join the Resistance after being apart for decades, and she abandoned the Republic Navy for the rebel cause. 

It sickened Ren to see that they had just picked up where they had left off so many years ago. They trained together. Flew perimeter checks together. Drank together. She quickly climbed the ranks to become Poe’s second in command only weeks after arriving. He had entrusted her with the BB Droid on Tuanul - just before they captured him. 

And she had gotten away. 

Ren pulled back out of the man’s mind, a sick smile on his face as Poe barely hung on to consciousness. He leaned close to the Commander once more, picking up his mask and putting it back on before he spoke;

“Sleep well, Commander. We’ll tell your girl you said hello.” 

Before Poe could react, Ren force-pushed his head into the interrogation chair and knocked him out. 

[iftheshoef1tz]

Since i answered some of your questions on someone else’s ask, @legionsofthehungry, i figured I’d make a separate post and condense a little!

Why did you decide to write about azriel and eris, a pairing many consider a crackship but could be categorized as a rarepair?

I definitely consider it a rare pair, not a crackship, since az and eris have had several (very memorable) interactions in canon. When i first read acotar last year and decided to delve into fandom for the first time since 2016, i thought i might want to write something, but i felt i didn’t have anything interesting to say for feysand or nessian, despite loving those pairings. I’ve always loved me a good ETL, and i discovered azris on reddit, where i first started interacting with the acotar fandom. It just felt right!

Was it something that came to you full-form? Or were you surprised at any point by the story wanting to go in a different direction? How much of the story do you have outlined in advance?

It cracks me up to tell this story (so i tell it all the time) but originally obpbl was intended to be only 2000 words. No, I’m not missing a zero, lmao. Then, i was like, oh, it’ll be 25k. Then, maybe 75k. And then i got to 150k and was like ?????? Guess I’ll never know!! Helena and Kyros weren’t originally intended to feature so heavily; kyros was originally supposed to be evil! But i realized i wasn’t particularly interested in writing that angle for the story and thought it would be more thematically interesting to have this golden retriever dude really upending azriel’s conception of the kind of people who live in the hewn city. And i meant to keep thanatos around for longer, but it felt kind of stuck when i tried to keep him around, so he literally had to go to the chopping block, haha.

As for planning, i originally wrote about 7-8 scenes in the first, like, week of writing, and then started fitting the pieces in around them, using those pre-written scenes as kind of structural pillars to build towards. But i took so many detours along the way - like the mating ceremony originally wasn’t going to happen before i daydreamed up the “are you a sadist, lady elain?” bit, and most of the interactions with ren were written and then HEAVILY edited after i decided on the events that just happened in chapter 35 back in august. I think i usually thought ahead in the plot about 7-8 chapter ahead of where i was writing, depending on what the characters ended up doing. (The gay sex cabin chapters were only supposed to be one long-ish chapter HAHA)

How long have you been a fan of acotar> did you read tog/crescent city? Are there other fandoms you’re a part of or would like to write about next?

I read acotar in October of 2021! I started cc earlier this year and devoured them (bryce quinlar can step on me and i would thank her), and I’m slowly working my way through tog because of writing/work commitments (chaol is my sweet dumb son and i love him; manon could step on me, preferably at the same time as bryce, and i would thank them both). I’m not really part of any other fandoms at the moment, though my last one before this was teen wolf, and i have been reading dramione fics on the side when i have the time/mental bandwidth. I’ve written one cc fic (High For This), and i am planning an eventual sequel, as well as a what-if about Sam Cortland with the summary inspired by Slaughterhouse 5 - Listen: Sam Cortland has come unstuck in time.

Do you have other hobbies you engage in or is writing something you devote most of your free time to (or even do professionally)?

Writing right now is mostly what i dedicate my free time to, but i also do needlework (my page’s header is something i stitched for a friend!), i love to bake, and i am learning how to make hand bound books! I’m very glad I don’t write for a living, to be honest. I teach music as my day job, and going to school for it sucked out a lot of the joy of making music, and i don’t want that to happen to my writing too. Although, I’ve been encouraged to write some original stuff, so who knows what’ll happen!

[words-with-wren]

Hello! I really liked the fic, absolutely amazing. I’m a bit curious if you’ll write a part 2 or something to it? Like finding Scar or so? Ofc you don’t have to. Anyways, I hope you have a day/night/evening!

aaah thank you!!! I honestly wasn't sure if I was going to do a sequel, but then I sat down and did. So just for you, dear anon, enjoy! :)

(cw: There is a tiny bit of derealisation in the fourth paragraph)

Grian can’t focus on his book. Not that he’s ever been much of a reader, but he’s at least pretending at the moment. Because pretending to stare at a book is better than acknowledging where he is right now.

Scar is still motionless. Still, lying in bed with Jellie curled on his chest like he has been for the past week since they found him. Today is the first day Grian brought up the courage to visit.

Everything still feels loud. Big, bright. Ren had given him a spare pair of sunglasses, which helped with the light a little and he was needing them less and less. But there was still so much, and he had only been out of the void for a few weeks.

Sometimes, he wonders if he’s still there and if he slipped into Void Sleep himself. Maybe this all is a dream he came up with to amuse himself. Maybe he never left the clutches of the void.

It feels more real now that they found Scar. He was alone, drifting motionless through the void. Unconscious - when he had been taken by the Void Sleep, Grian wasn’t sure. But he did know Scar had been alone when it had happened.

He stares at his book.

What was it like, drifting alone? Part of him thinks he knows. Part of him doesn’t want to think about how he knows.

He gives up pretending and folds the book closed, not bothering to bookmark his place. It’s not like he’s actually reading it anyway.

Scar’s chest rises and falls slowly, the only sign he’s alive. He’s pale, he’s thin, he looks sickly. Grian knows that he would recover - Mumbo and Impulse are both almost ready to be discharged from the hospital wing of the ship, and Pearl cheerfully teases him from her bed.

Scar would recover, Grian knows. But…

But he still has dreams, dreams of the void and of eyes Watching him and of being alone. So desperately alone. And Mumbo’s eyes are haunted whenever he looks out the window of the ship. And Pearl couldn’t sleep for a week after she woke up without Grian curled beside her. And Impulse still struggles to sleep through the night without jerking awake.

Scar was alone.

Because Grian had let go.

He’d run the scene through his head a thousand times. Scar had drifted, slipping out of reach. And Grian - one hand holding Impulse, one hand holding Mumbo - hadn’t gone after him.

Maybe he could have. Maybe he could have moved everyone closer so Scar could grab on. Maybe he could have thrown the others to Scar, so if someone had to be alone it was Grian. Maybe, maybe maybe maybe.

There were so many ways he could have changed things. So many options and all of them meant Scar didn’t have to be alone.

“I’m sorry,” he says softly. “I’m sorry I let you go. I’m sorry I let you be alone. I’m sorry. I never meant for that to happen.”

“No.”

Grian blinks, looking up, seeing Scar’s eyes open slightly. He smiles weakly, a cheerful, lopsided grin that’s so Scar.

“What?” Grian says softly, reaching forward to grip his friend’s hand.

“You didn’t let go,” Scar says. His voice is hoarse, cracked. Like he hadn’t spoken in a while, like he had screamed until his voice gave out.

“I did,” Grian says, and he squeezes Scar’s hand, trying to fight back tears. “I let go. I watched you float away. I -”

“I let go.”

Scar’s voice is almost too soft to make out, and Grian isn’t sure he heard it correctly.

“Wha-?” he starts, his voice dying in his throat. That doesn’t make any sense. He must have heard wrong.

“I let go,” Scar says again, and this time Grian’s sure that’s what he says. “I -” He closes his eyes, and for a moment, Grian wonders if he’s slipped back into Void Sleep. But his eyes open again, and he flashes that lopsided grin.

“Why?” Grian asks, his voice cracking. Why would Scar let go - why would he drift alone into the Void? Why would he leave?

“I… my fault,” Scar mutters. “Impulse fell asleep and I didn’t want…” He trails off, shutting his eyes again. He’s tired, Grian can tell, but he needs to know so he squeezes Scar’s hand again. “I didn’t want to see everyone go,” Scar whispers. “So I left.”

“I - I could have stopped you,” Grian says, and he’s surprised at how steady his voice is. A large part of him wants to break down and cry, but he did enough of that when they were first rescued.

“No,” Scar whispers. “I’m sorry,” he whispers after. He shuts his eyes, and Grian can see the edges of his face shining with tears. And there’s more meaning to that apology, Grian knows.

He wants to be angry. Maybe he will be, once Scar is in more of a state to be angry at. Maybe he’ll shout and glare and rage about how Scar had left and how he had been so afraid and how they should have stuck together and maybe even how Scar had dropped them in the void to begin with.

But now, Scar is slipping back into sleep, and Grian is too tired for anger. So he squeezes his friend’s hand and just sits.