#bc then *I* feel bad for missing the call!!!! good grief!!!

[swinging-stars-from-satellites]

people stop calling me at 8am challenge

[vxsellie]

UHH IM THER PERSON WHO ASKED FOR FIREFIGHTER!ElLLIE HEADCANONS AND TBH IDRM😇

synopsis. more aflame headcannons bc anon sent a second ask saying they actually want it to be specific LMAO

notes. when i tell you my inbox is flooded with questions about aflame / whether there will be a part two / etc etc etc, i mean it's FLOODED. ive said no to a part two, but i decided doing this for u guys might settle u down & put a rest to the millions of asks i get daily on that fic also! i already posted a small thing about ellie & the reader's life together following the story, but i will be repeating things from that post

warnings. mentions of grief (unnamed character dw), discussion of infant death (also unnamed but still a bit heavy), eventual sex (not necessarily smut but enough that i feel i should put a warning)

𐙚 after everything, you ended up staying with ellie for about a month

𐙚 okay so you obviously ended up staying with her & lived happily ever after

𐙚 but lets yap about the slow burn era that inevitably took place beforehand shall we

𐙚 first of all! for the first two weeks, she gave you her room and insisted on sleeping on the couch. you, of course, felt horribly guilty. but ellie was set on giving you the good option & she's quite the force to be reckoned with when she's arguing.

𐙚 so you eventually just gave in and slept in her bed.

𐙚 it was warm and clean and smelled like her. you loved it. the only thing it was missing, however, was her.

𐙚 to make matters worse, you knew ellie was only a short distance from you & yet it felt like you were eons apart. you felt the empty space in her bed like a hole in the earth, always hard to face whilst simultaneously always begging for your attention.

𐙚 understandably, these two weeks spent in separate sleeping quarters was nigh unbearable for you. but you felt out of place to bring it up. i mean, you'd only known her for a short amount of time. who were you to tell her to change the layout she'd si graciously designed for you?

𐙚 you spent the nights yearning for a woman whose touch you'd barely known, cold despite the heavy blankets atop you.

𐙚 but the days were amazing.

𐙚 you'd developed the habit of cooking breakfast after making it that first morning as a thanks for her hospitality. but after seeing the bright look on her face, you'd instantly decided you wanted to make her breakfast every day for the rest of your life.

𐙚 then, following breakfast, you'd get ready in the small bathroom. the first few days, you bumped into one another an immeasurable number of times, ellie apologizing over & over for the lack of space. but you loved it. it felt more intimate, seeing her rush while brushing her teeth because she'd woken up late. it felt like a life you could get used to. one with her.

𐙚 ellie continued to go to work, throwing on her uniform that you tried your hardest not to swoon over seeing her in. that thin black tank top she wears without a bra? fuck you had to force yourself to look away when she stretched her arms up to brush her hair.

𐙚 when she was gone, you spent your time looking for a new place to stay, lazing about the couch with the tv playing low in the background.

𐙚 oh and also! your fucking boss fired you. despite having worked at that stupid grocer for a year now, he didn't hesitate to fire you after missing a few days. you'd even told him that your apartment burned down. he was insistent that punctuality was key. god you hated him.

𐙚 though, your hatred dulled in comparison to the pure rage ellie felt when you told her the news. she was absolutely appalled that someone could be so inhumane as to not give a damn that your home was now a pile of ash on some pavement. she begged you for his number, promising not to say anything bad. but you knew her better than that. you knew she'd call him insults that'd destroy his elderly pea brain. so, apologetically, you refused her his phone number.

𐙚 so, while ellie was away, you also browsed your laptop for open job opportunities near you.

𐙚 ellie said that she could talk miller into hiring you, but you weren't so sure the life of firefighting was for you. plus, you liked seeing ellie in her uniform without having to experience the obligations that come with it.

𐙚 when ellie got home from work every day, she'd be sweaty and gross and exhausted. she'd formed the habit of flopping down on the couch as soon as she gets home, but you've managed to rid her of that once you saw the grimy muck she'd left on the cushions. she's now learned to shower and change before getting on any furniture. honestly, she seems to like that habit more anyway. she refuses to admit it, but you can tell she enjoys the warm water relaxing her muscles and washing away her fatigue.

𐙚 amber also loved it there, alternating between cuddling up with you in ellie's bed or snuggling at ellie's feet on the couch.

𐙚 well, until the day you guys decided to sleep in the same bed.

𐙚 she had come home after a particularly taxing day at work — the first rescue she'd carried out since saving you. it was a single mother and two twin infants. one of the twins didn't make it, sending the mother into a grief ridden spiral. she was sobbing and angry and needed someone to blame. she ended up blaming ellie, the woman whose name she didn't even know. it was horrible. not that ellie could blame her for it. grief comes in every shape and form, and for this woman she just so happened to take the sharp end of the sword.

𐙚 ellie, being who she was, stayed relatively composed during the event itself. the woman banged on her chest as she wailed, shouting that she should have done more and she would have preferred to have burned.

𐙚 eventually, one of Ellie's coworkers dragged the woman away from her and ellie was excused to go home early.

𐙚 when she got back, she was absolutely distraught.

𐙚 you had just made a new recipe and were waiting in the kitchen for ellie to return with a bright grin on your face. but the moment she walked through the door, your smile shattered.

𐙚 her uniform was scorched and torn, her face lined with filth. and, oh, her expression was heart wrenching. her lips were parted, eyes blank as they stared at the floor. she trudged into the living space, shoulders trembling ever so slightly, and flopped down onto the sofa in a manner you hadn't seen her do in quite some time.

𐙚 you were quick to rush to her side, crouching down beside her as you asked what happened. in a shaky voice, she explained that she'd gotten a baby killed. the pure regret and guilt in her tone made your heart crumble a little in your chest.

𐙚 you moved to sit on the edge of the couch, pulling ellie into your arms as you held her. the feel of your body against hers was all it took for her to break down into tears.

𐙚 she tried her hardest to remain dignified, tears falling silently. but when you began to run your hands through her hair and mutter sweet words of consolations, her cries were less orderly as she clung to you and repeated over & over how it was all her fault.

𐙚 for the rest of that night, she was unable to leave your side. she made you sit on the toilet while she showered. then she made you stay in the bathroom while she changed (you turned around). then you two ate dinner together on the couch while watching a funny adult cartoon to cheer her up, your legs touching at all times.

𐙚 so, when it came time for bed, you'd have been cruel not to offer her the empty space beside you.

𐙚 to say she was excited would be an understatement.

𐙚 you guys laid in silence for a bit, comfortable in the company of the other. but then she spoke into the darkness, her tone thick with the weight of all she'd bore that day. she explained everything in more detail, telling you the story without the bias of her guilt.

𐙚 her voice cracked when she got to the boy's death, her voice pitching higher as she fought a second wave of tears.

𐙚 you shifted toward her, sheets rustling in the darkness. you felt around for her, hand eventually finding her body. you pulled her into a warm embrace, holding all of her vulnerability and grief in your two arms as she relaxed into you, melting against the foreign gentility.

𐙚 after that night, you guys started sharing the bed.

𐙚 amber loved it, of course. both her people in one space? absolute heaven for the elderly cat. some nights, she would curl up in the crook behind your knees & other times she'd find comfort atop ellie's face, causing her to wake coughing and hacking up balls of fur.

𐙚 your guys life was one of (much deserved) bliss and domestic comfort after a long period of difficulty.

𐙚 you had yet to do anything actually romantic. but sharing the home felt just as intimate as kissing would have been. though, you ought to admit, you definitely had your fair share of fantasies when it came to that.

𐙚 anyway!

𐙚 and all the while, you sought out a new place to stay

𐙚 you didn't want to move out of ellie's tiny cottage of a home, but you'd have felt horrible asking her to stay permanently when your relationship wasn't even a solidified thing just yet. and so, you searched the internet for worthy places to house you.

𐙚 ellie avoided the topic of you finding a new home, changing the subject whenever it came up & trying to distract you with something else whenever she saw you were looking at houses. you caught on to this, of course. but frankly, you found it endearing and just let it be. you didn't want to draw attention to her blatant distaste for you leaving, for fear that it'd embarrass her. so you feigned oblivion.

𐙚 ellie went with you to every open-house, claiming she just wanted to watch out for creepy realtors. however, whenever you seemed to genuinely like a house, ellie would find something to complain about to make you no longer want to buy it

𐙚 at first, you let it slide because you knew the two of you were beginning to form some kind of bond.

𐙚 but you eventually had to butt in when you spotted her paying off a realtor when they'd both thought you were checking out a different room. she apologized endlessly for it, but never gave an explanation until you practically forced it out of her, asking what the hell she thought she was doing.

𐙚 that's when it all unraveled.

𐙚 on the property of some random shabby house in an impoverished neighborhood, in a kitchen composed of rotted wood cabinets and peeling wallpaper and chipped floor tiles, ellie confessed her feelings for you. and it couldn't have been more perfect.

𐙚 the realtor had obviously left the scene beforehand, fleeing from shock when you'd walked in on him accepting a wad of cash from ellie.

𐙚 and there you stood, in the hollow house, her words of adorations echoing off the walls. her eyes were everywhere but your face, avoiding making eye contact with you. eventually, you'd grown sick of her rambling and just grabbed her by the cheeks and kissed her.

𐙚 it was a quick peck. a small pressing of lips, just to test the waters and silence her uncertainty. when you pulled back, her face still between your hands, her pupils were blown and her jaw was slackened. you laughed at her, a chuckle rumbling your chest.

𐙚 she gasps, offended by your judgement. but you couldn't stop laughing. she eventually reconnected your mouths, her turn to silence you.

𐙚 this kiss was far more passionate, her hands coming to rest on your hips as her tongue slid across your lower lip. you opened your mouth to allow her entry & she took it vehemently, tongue exploring the warmth of your mouth.

𐙚 from then on, you guys were inseparable in a whole new fashion. the moment you'd gotten home that day, she dragged your straight to the bedroom and memorized the curves and dips of your body with her tongue, giving so much care to your being that you were sure she'd eventually run out of love to give.

𐙚 your hands gripped the tufts of her hair as she buried her face between your legs and continued her memorization down there, your head thrown back in pleasure.

𐙚 you'd eventually lost count of how many rounds the two of you went, a thick layer of sweat clinging to your skin as she shyly asked if you had anything left in you. and of course, you could never deny her anything. you giggled before rolling over to tackle her to the bed, eyes full of nothing short of love.

𐙚 you two only stopped when pounding could be heard on the door.

𐙚 ellie rushed to pull her clothes back on as you did the same, her voice shouting at the visitor to just wait a damn second. though, when she opened the door, it was agnes.

𐙚 she pushed past ellie and went straight to you, though you were still pulling a shirt over your head.

𐙚 she beckoned the two of you to the living room, you and ellie both flushed and out of breath as you sat down across from her. every time you two made eye contact, you had to look away before you hopped right across that table and fucked her again.

𐙚 agnes made small talk for a little bit, asking you about work & whether you'd found another place to stay. though, when you shyly explained that you were planning to live with ellie, she scoffed loudly and said,

𐙚 "oh, finally! i was waiting for one of you to tell me. i'm not a fool, dear, i can tell you've been fucking like rabbits. just didn't know i'd have to force it outta you."

𐙚 from there on out, it was no longer awkward. she was herself again, making suggestive comments to you and passive aggressive ones to ellie. and when amber came up to her for cuddles, she stayed for another two hours just holding the cat.

𐙚 needless to say, you and ellie managed quite well. you have yourself the most perfect life you could ask for and all the family you could need (even if it's just agnes barging in on you guys whenever she pleases). honestly, you couldn't ask for anything else.

[athenasparrow]

No. 20 - Old | Jily Micro March

Thank you for the prompt @jilymicrofics 😘

Summary: In which Euphemia isn't the only one in the family who can incite shenanigans : )

Read on AO3 | 1533 words

WhatsApp Chat

Private : Lily Evans, Kingsley Shaklebolt

Kingsley Shacklebolt : So how did it go?

And I need to know immediately bc not sure what to buy...

Ice cream to cheer you up?

A bottle of wine to drown your sorrows?

Boxing gloves to kick some ass?

Lily Evans : Can I choose all of them?

Kingsley Shacklebolt: That bad?

Lily Evans : And worse : (

You should be lucky you found a nice man.

They’re all gone.

Not a single good one left!

Two bottles of wine?

Kingsley Shacklebolt: I did snag a good one ; )

There are still a few out there Lils! We will find you one.

Two bottles? Easy peasy lemon squeezy

Lily Evans: Doubt it

Yes two, to fix my current state: stressed, depressed lemon zest 

Or simply wallow in it.

Haven’t decided yet.

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

WhatsApp Chat

Private: Lily Evans, Alice Longbottom

Alice Longbottom : Hi Darling!

<attachment>

<attachment>

<attachment>

I told him to wave to his godmother, but apparently pesky motor function isn’t happening yet.

Lily Evans: You don’t know how much you just brightened my day! Look at those chubby cheeks!

Don’t insult my godsons motor skills - he’s only three months old.

He’s got the best motor skills ever. Give him big kisses.

Alice Longbottom: Why does your day need brightening? Are you alright?

There’s a reason you’re his favourite.

<attachment>

Oh look, that sort of looks like a wave

Lily Evans : Nothing to worry about, just another bad date

King is coming over late to help me wade through the “grief”

He’s bringing lots of wine.

I’m fine really, this dating life is just getting quite old, you know?

I might just take a break from it all.

That’s totally a wave Xxxxxxx

Alice Longbottom: Oh you poor thing : (

That sounds amazing, I am jealous of you Lily!

Eh I feel that, but once the right one comes around it won’t feel so tedious, I promise x

Want to come over this weekend and see Neville?

Lily Evans: You better be right Al!

You know I do.

I’ll bring lunch : )

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

WhatsApp Chat

Private: Petunia Dursley, Lily Evans

Petunia Dursley: <attachment>

Please choose a gift from my list for my birthday

Don’t use red wrapping paper, it’s hideous

Lily Evans : Red paper coming right up See you Saturday Tuney.

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

WhatsApp Group Chat

Members: Kingsley Shacklebolt, Blake Rathborne, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin

Remus Lupin: Does anyone happen to have an extra wallet with their stuff from last night?

Blake Rathborne: Nope, nothing here sorry

Didn’t think you’d leave your wallet in your pocket Remus.

Gay clubs get a bit handsy

Sirius Black: Remus loves it when I get handsy with him ; )

Remus Lupin: That is irrelevant since it wasn’t, in fact, my wallet

James’ is missing.

Kingsley Shacklebolt: Well that makes more sense.

Straight men, honestly.

Sirius Black: LOL

Remus Lupin: ????

I’m going to assume nobody knows about it then??

I’ll email lost and found at the club on the off chances it turns up.

And break the news to James that he’ll have to cancel his credit cards.

Kingsley Shacklebolt: Posh bastard.

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

WhatsApp Chat

Private: Sirius Black, Kingsley Shacklebolt

Kingsley Shacklebolt: Did you post it?

Sirius Black: Yup Did it this morning

Should arrive over the weekend

Can’t give Remus time to get suspicious

WhatsApp Group Chat

Members: Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, James Potter

Sirius Black: Rise and shine sleepy heads

Good news Prongs, found your wallet

James Potter: After all that shit you gave me last night you have it?

Remus Lupin: That’s great. I’ll call the club when they open and tell them to ignore my email

Sirius Black: Found, not have

Club has posted it to you

Remus Lupin: A club we live fifteen minutes away from has posted us something?

James Potter: lol yeah, I’ll just go grab it now

Sirius Black: dunno too late I think

Said they’d posted it

James Potter: Okay fine

But with my wallet gone, you’re buying me lunch Padfoot

Sirius Black: I’ll be there in 10

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

WhatsApp Chat

Private: Lily Evans, unknown

Lily Evans: Hello! Realise this may seem a bit random, but I think someone just accidentally mailed me your wallet by mistake?

I hope this is the right phone number, but if it’s not and you know a “James Potter” could you send through his contact details please? - Lily

Unknown: Oh, hello Lily! Yes, I’m James. So sorry about that not sure how it happened.

I can come by and pick it up?

A relief to know where it is.

Unless you’re not comfortable with me coming

I can meet you somewhere

Or feel free to leave it on a bench or something

Hmm, that sounded like a drug deal

*Unknown number changed to James Potter

Lily Evans: You can come by, it’s fine

I’m sure we can manage without the drug deal

This is me <maps.google.com/droppedpin>

James Potter: But what if I’m a serial killer???

I’ve always wanted to be part of an illicit drug drop

I’m pretty sure my mum would murder me though

But might be a rather exhilarating experience 

I’m on my way

I am happy to meet on the street if you’re more comfortable!

Lily Evans: I’m pretty certain serial killers don’t announce themselves like that

And wouldn’t suggest public spaces for meetings

And lol, wouldn’t you be into killing men anyways?

Incase you didn’t know, I’m a woman,

Unless your sexuality has arisen from a deep-seeded hatred for women?

Exhilarating for a moment maybe, I’m sure the night spent in jail would bring the excitement right down.

Neighbours are moving today so just come on up. 

Apartment 526

James Potter: What? I’m lost now

Lily Evans: What??

James Potter: Why would I be into killing men or hate women?

I’m in your lobby

I’m coming up

Lily Evans: Because of the sexual aspect of serial killers?

You know? Because you’re gay you would kill men???

James Potter: I think there’s been a misunderstanding here

I’m not gay

Hold on I’m on your floor

Is it okay if I come to your door?

Cut for eventual smut

Lily frowned at her phone and moved to her entrance, grabbing the package from the console and heaving the door open.

She glanced to right to see a a very fit man with ruffled curly hair, black jeans and bright hazel eyes that danced behind his square glasses.

A very gorgeous man who was apparently not gay.

“Hi” she called “I’m just over here”

He threw a lopsided grin at her and started making his way over.

“I’m Lily” she said extending her hand and smiling at him when he reached her door.

“James. As you already know” he said grinning ruefully.

“Not gay James” Lily corrected him, biting her lip as a laugh bubbled out of her.

“Yes. Why did you think that?” James said, his brow furrowed “I’ve never been told I give off a gay vibe”

“You don’t” Lily said “but…well…look” she extended the postmarked package his wallet had arrived in.

“What?” he said glancing down at it.

“Well, the return address is a gay club” she said laughing “I’m sorry I made assumptions, but”

“Oh yeah right, of course” James said laughing awkwardly “nope, definitely straight, just there with my mates”

“It’s a fun club” Lily agreed “my friend Kingsley loves it. Used to go there every weekend when he was single”

“Kingsley Shacklebolt?” James asked suddenly.

“Yeah, that’s him!” Lily said smiling “I think he was there this last weekend with his boyfriend. Did you meet him?”

“Yeah, I’m Sirius Black’s brother”

“Oh I have heard about you. I suppose I just didn’t put the dots together” Lily said smiling at him. God, he was fit .

A clap of thunder alerted Lily to the fact that the sky had suddenly decided to open and her sofa was about to get drenched.

“Shit” she cursed running to yank the window closed.

It was easier when a second pair of joined, helping her move the old window back to latch closed.

Lily felt her breath hitch as she registreed the hot press of his body against hers.

He seemed to realise he was flush against her.

“Sorry” he said hastily, stepping back to create distance between them.

Lily suddenly felt overwhelmingly hot even though the cool thunderstorm had blown in a draft.

Her eyes flicked over his soft lips where his tongue darted out nervously. Lily had the sudden urge to taste him. She pulled her gaze away to meet his own, only to notice it was darker than when they’d last locked eyes.

Fuck.

Lily wasn’t even aware she’d moved, but her mind came back into her body at the sizzling feel his lips left on hers. 

He was delicious.

She fought the moan he pulled out of her, before giving in when his warm hand slipped under her shirt.

“Shit, you sound amazing” James murmured.

Lily lost herself in his lips until his hand traced a questioning circle around her thigh and she became aware enough of her surroundings that she realised they’d migrated to the couch.

As she pleaded with him to touch her, a faraway thought crossed her mind.

Perhaps dating wasn’t getting old after all.

[lloydfrontera]

I bet ksh wrote the "what if Lloyd wasn't a useless drunk" fic right after ppl who read the "Lloyd dies at the beginning and everyone is better off bc of it" fic accused him of hating Lloyd's character lmao. Just to be like "see i don't hate him (more than normal fans do)!" And then it started new discourse about the only palatable way Lloyd was avoiding death/getting significant screentime in his stories was if he was totally ooc lol

about this au

askhdjksah "see i don't hate the guy!" (<- wrote a completely different guy with the same name)

some people accused him of character bashing and even when most of his readers pointed out that he wasn't writing anything that wasn't either canon or completely in character, suho still decided to see if he could write a fic that involved lloyd frontera as a main character without being an antagonist. and it turned out it was really fucking hard lol

so he just. changed a few things. couple little nothings.

the thing is i can kinda see suho. despising. lloyd's character alskhkda

is just that. the guy has everything he would kill for. he has his parents, a little brother, financial stability and a potential loyal friend right there and he wastes all of it by being a complete bastard. he would want to wring his neck sooo bad ajkskda

maybe in a particular bad night when he misses his parents, feels really lonely and only had one cup of ramen to eat the entire day, he reads a part of tkbi where lloyd acts especially nasty and gets really bitter so he writes a rant fic about how things would've been so much better if lloyd had just died and stopped making his family miserable.

once he gets it out of his system, he probably feels a bit embarrassed about how angry the fic turned out but he does see a glimmer of a good idea there so he turns it into a tamer version of an outline, where he strips away most of the raw emotion and changes it into a bittersweet tale of how the death of someone irrevocably changes the lives around them in ways that sometimes aren't predictable.

it's not even a "he died and everyone was happy about it" fic as that would be 1) in bad taste and 2) not in character. it would've been more about how lloyd's death paralyzed the fronteras so much in their shock and grief that some key events in their downfall would've been missed. how the absence of abuse would've allowed julian to flourish onto himself even as he dealt with mixed feelings about the way he feels about his older brother and whether he wishes to forgive him now that he's dead but can never make amends to him. like. that kinda thing.

and because it turns into a genuinely good fic it escapes containment from ksh's usual readers circle and ends up being a hot topic into the general fandom.

which is divided between those who think is a very bittersweet fic that doesn't bash the character but does point out his canon actions and depicts his death as tragic while acknowledging the consequences both bad and good it has. and those who think it's still in poor taste to write something that basically boils down "if he died everything would've been okay" and point out the narrative itself does carry heavy negativity against lloyd.

it is. messy.

suho isn't really affected by the criticism he gets but he does try not to project too hard onto his fics and some called out it almost seems personal so he kinda panics and writes something that deflect the accidental emotional vulnerability that slipped through and writes the other fic and he even makes lloyd suffer just a little bit in this one. compared to what the fic would actually be if he was being more honest. it is after all an attempt at making it seem like he doesn't hate the guy (more than normal that is) lol

of course that fic starts other kind of discourse but! i do see lloyd being a divisive character in the fandom in general, a lot of people would really dislike him based on his abuse on julian, his meanness to javier and the contempt he shows for his parents, but i can also see some people woobifying him and thinking he just needed some,,, idk, love ig?? (*cough* ignoring the fact he had a family that loved him and he alienated by his behavior *cough*). so the discourse that ensues after his second fic is less targeted to him and more in line with the discourse that would surround og!lloyd anyway so it's fine.

i also kinda love the idea of suho being the kind of cryptid writer that doesn't really leave author notes or has any online presence besides their ao3 notes. so he just drops the most compelling pieces of fiction people have read in the entire year and then vanishes again, only replying to nice comments with a "thanks!" or "happy you liked it :)" and a "👍🏽" or "ok" to assholes.

so he drops his "Lloyd dies at the beginning and everyone is better off bc of it" fic, drops from the face of earth to everyone else, sees the discourse it starts, writes the "what if Lloyd wasn't a useless drunk" fic, drops it and then sees an even bigger discourse start all without commenting a single thing about it askjdksa

he drops two consecutive atomic bombs on the fandom and then dips out. he has two jobs he's got no time for disk-horse after all aksdjkla

[atopvisenyashill]

That’s a really good meta son the Sansa sister comment thank you 😭 I was the original anon there. You explain it so well and it makes so much sense like that because that really is how Sansa contextualizes her grief. The thought of Sansa grieving and wishing she’d been closer to Arya is very tender. Generally I wouldn’t have even called it an example of Sansa being “cruel” because like. It’s a thought. Not an action or something she said. Like people love to cite her wishing to slap SR and say it’s cruel but like she didn’t even say that. She thought it. She’s a kid being forced to play mother to a very demanding child. Of course she’s going to feel frustrated sometimes. I also do think many fans go with the least sympathetic interpretations of Sansa and Arya’s relationship. Like the staunch refusal to acknowledge that Arya remembering knowing a girl who loved lemon cakes was her thinking of Sansa. Arya fans insist she was thinking about herself but she doesn’t refer to herself as someone she knew. It seems painfully obvious to me I don’t get how people misinterpret that unless it’s on purpose. But anyway rock chewing anon I get your frustration I do but I got exactly the analysis I needed to understand the passage plus it was never meant to be like. “This is an example of Sansa being cruel” more just like. This seemed out of character because I do NOT think about her like that

yes i fully agree that just bc you think something uncharitable doesn’t mean you’re ~bad~ especially if you don’t say it out loud. we all think real shitty stuff from time to time, especially when we’re already upset, what matters is how you react to the situation. And like you said re: sweetrobin - she doesn’t slap him! she’s not even mean to him and in fact when he’s terrified as they’re going down the mountain, she makes him feel better by building up his confidence and letting him hold into her instead of telling him to man up or something similar. Sansa can be incredibly bitchy in her thoughts but she's always very aware of what she says out loud and how it will affect the people around her; she's a grump like any 13 year old lmao, but she's a conscientious one! I find it sweet of her that even when she's sitting there thinking "damn this kid is so fucking annoying" she's always aware that just saying that is cruel.

and YEAH i absolutely agree that a lot of fans will look at their interactions and just take the absolute most uncharitable read of whatever Sansa is doing re: Arya and completely exice Arya's love for Sansa from her thoughts. And it's just crazy to me because imo the only other person Arya longs to see more than Sansa is Jon and that's her absolute best friend. For both girls, I think their grief over each other is just so obviously present; they were so different, always missing what the other really means, never able to truly understand each other, and now it's just too late (or so they think) to ever make it up each other. I think Arya longs just as desperately as Sansa to meet again and attempt a more meaningful understanding of each other, I really think for both of them, that's one of their top hopes! Return home, see the sister they never understood but spent the most time with, and love her again no matter how weird she may be. When you cut that out of both of their stories, I think it really weakens their arcs and weakens the longing to go home. Their grief isn't just about the family members they had perfect relationships with; it's also about the fact that they could have one day had a better relationship and now it will never happen.

and yeah lmao that's why i wasn't trying to drag you too much with rock chewing anon, i do get the frustration people have with how much people just refuse to understand what Sansa is going through and how her thought process works, but she is admittedly kind of a hard character to dig into because of how internal she is as a character. but that's why we analyze and pick them apart to understand them better!

[baelatargaryen]

how do you like season 2 so far?

how long have you got cause i could go on for ages 😭

that being said, in reference to season 1, that's a hard comparative to make, especially having seen only the first three episodes. the first season was obviously setting up everything that's happening now and establishing characters and was structured completely different so it's not easy to compare.

in terms of character... i cut out a whole paragraph here on a comparative to got bc i didn't want it to get too long, but the main difference between got and hotd is that hotd shot itself pretty early in the foot with characterisation and significant changes and now it has to reap the consequences of it. regarding hotd s2, thoughts so far....

the bad:

aemond and alicent's plotlines are the weakest. the show doesn't want to commit to either of these characters being an antagonist which is partially the problem, but it's also made the odd decision that their storylines have distanced them from the immediate cast at times and that's made them feel like they're on the outside of the events occurring and slightly side-lined.

alicent and cole's relationship really could have been done much better, and i think the route they've gone down has slightly cheapened certain scenes. and frankly, it's kind of a let down how little passion or tension there is in the scenes, like personally they've somehow made them boring to me.

the less said about rhaenys' character, the better. eve best is such an amazing actress and yet rhaenys has become a sort of mouthpiece of the writers themselves to pontify to us about the futility of war and both-sides-esque arguments. we get it.

certain things are just beating a dead horse over and over again. how many times must the show attempt to answer the question of daemon's loyalty, and whether he wants to be king. how is this arc not resolved yet? or

having the dance centre around the misunderstanding of a prophecy was a mistake and having revealed that to alicent last episode was a mistake too i think. it's lessened her character for it, and now it's also taken the genuine tension or dramatic irony out of the rest of the season. her character feels completely aimless.

the good:

perhaps calling this "good" is a misrepresentation, regardless i kinda appreciate the show clearly trying to over-correct itself in regards to some writing decisions made in s1. that being said, it's unfortunately too little too late. still, i do find it kinda funny. if only they had started here from the get go, it would be a better show for it.

baela & rhaena & jace finally having some scenes that establish how they feel about the conflict and their role within the family. i'm excited to see more of them all!

the entire daemon in harrenhal arc is interesting to me and i always jump at a fantasy element, one that i felt has been really missing from the show despite the fact we have literal dragons — somehow it has felt less fantastical thann got in regards to that, so the harrenhal arc is a welcome surprise to me.

helaena has been a welcome surprise to me, i think phia saban killed it in episode 1 and episode 2 and i'm kinda curious where they go with her character.

i do like the set up of some new dynamics as well; the tension between rhaena and her family, or larys setting his eye on aegon now that alicent has lost her seat of power.

stand out actors for me so far: emma d'arcy, matt smith, eve best, tom-glynn carney, phia saban and rhys ifans.

current episode rankings for me:

episode 2 — rhaenyra the cruel (best ep so far)

episode 1 — a son for a son

episode 3 — the burning mill (the weakest episode so far imo)

at the moment, it's hard to compare the episodes. my favourite s1 episode was lord of the tides, at which point we've been with the characters enough that the emotional payoff was significant.

ep 2 was my favourite bc of the writing centred around the emotional fallout — rhaenyra and daemon's fight, aegon and helaena's grief over their son, even the cargyll fight is centred around their relationship. that being said, ep 2 didn't make me as emotional as rhaenyra's grief in episode 1, or jace breaking down trying to relate his time in the vale/the north to his mother. if they had handled b&c closer to the books, i imagine episode 1 would have been the no. 1 for me.

[no-shxme]

I JUST READ EVERYTHING THAT WENT WRONG OVER THE SUMMER I AM GOING ABSOLUTELY FERAL IT WAS SO GOOD VJHFRUJZKOIEFUJRDFK I CANNOT GET ENOUGH OF YOUR WRITING YOU WRITE THEM SO WELL I LOVE YOUR WRITING AND YOUR CHARACTERIZATION OF RHAAST AND KAYN SO MUCH quite honestly i would really love to see more of that au and/or the backstory, particularly the first wave, everything you wrote feels so REAL, i can feel it sink so deeply through me that it reaches into my soul, i cannot thank you enough for suggesting that to be my next read because it was SO GOOD, you are extremely talented and i seriously cannot get enough of the way you write rhaayn and the way they long for each other in the most arrogant and desperate ways, seriously your fics are SO GOOD

AHDFSILDFLSIK THANKS ;W;W;;W;W; im just glad you liked it bc it wouldve been embarrassing if i recced something and you didnt like it SOB

im pretty sure i revealed this on twitter like a looong time ago when i first finished the fic but iirc in this au during the first wave Kayn almost died and during his red haze coma is when zed died, so when kayn woke up and he was gone it was really bad, bc he never got to say goodbye or really call him dad much or anything. unresolved grief.

OH i found the thread hang on.

early on when i was making the fic i drafted a list of who did and didnt survive the apocalypse. there's some champs missing but its bc in my eyes they weren't au relevant enough. (sorry)

also this single tidbit

all that being said, i have a sequel that floats around but i havent committed to it, though its mostly plotted. the mood just hasn't hit me right compared to other projects.

[luckyqueenreign]

Ozzy obsessed anon here again.

Back with cursed thoughts and hypotheticals.

So remember at the beginning when Amelia came in and she was going after Ivy’s guy and in the challenge she went after Ozzy too the first challenge. Now remember also everyone thought Amelia was going to pick Ozzy when the public paired her with our guy.

I was thinking more about that and the fact that Amelia seems to be chasing the guys that are into us not her. I feel bad for her yes but she IS chasing our sloppy seconds and it IS weird like I would NEVER do that to my sister. Like every time someone has shown interest in us she then starts to go for them like. We were already couples with LJR, Roberto chose us for the date, and Ozzy has not hidden his interest in us at the challenges or when we are talking 1 on 1 AND we know Amelia saw us this past volume chatting and where she says there’s just something about the way he looks at you.

Now I know you probably see where I’m going and it’s why I called it cursed. 💀

So what if Amelia, not immediately but in the future when we finally get with Ozzy or are about too for the the absolute time (cause I think the Elliot stealing us is probably bang on the money at next recoupling) she starts to pursue him too. Omg what if she asks us to give her a shot or we finally see her be angry about wanting a chance too. OR coming up with a narrative and a way to make it seem like he’s interested in her when he’s not. Like a it’s not what it looks like thing. I wonder if at some point it’ll be like s1 Cherry who mirrors what you say to her and how you treat her and goes after who you like but more subtle. I don’t think we have anything to worry about it because Ozzy would not reciprocate like if Ozzy liked Amelia at all he’d pick her at the challenges and would never have told us he likes us 1 on 1.

I don’t think this discrepancy in the Zeph story is going away though. He is coming in, he’s definitely gonna be the unknown islander in the files I’m positive on that. I think the issues between MC and Amelia are going to reach a tipping point. My money is shit will start going south at Movie Night. I definitely think we are going to see some shady shit from Amelia that night.

I feel like we are missing major things about Amelia. That could be happening on the dl right as things are going along now. Like how the secret garden kiss happened. There’s more I just feel there’s more. I’m curious to see if Amelia is interested in Elliot too. I’m sure she will be. It’s a 8/10 chance she will be.

If Amelia had us skip prom because she didn’t want to see us with Zeph. I wonder if in that scenario we fell asleep early what if she snuck out to go to prom saw Zeph and said we weren’t feeling well.

Another note based on what Ozzy tells us about family and basically that he has a difficult relationship with his brother we all assume. I wonder if we will help him with that. Help them talk it out or something. And if it’s a mirror for our own relationship with Amelia. We are unaware the relationship has some strain but from Amelia’s pov it’s obvious she resents or is jealous of something. I think Marshall is going to be unaware of the strain on his and Ozzy’s relationship.

I would love to see Grace show interest in Elliot though. 👀 Imagine she’s into him but he steals us and Ozzy is pissed cause he wants us and was going to choose us. I’m living for the angst and that would just make that soooo good. Poor Grace, not trying to cause her more grief, but it would be sooooo good. The drama and cliff hanger for that would be so delicious.

🫣🤭😳🙃😭 those were all of my emotions reading this bc OH. MY. GAWD. IMAGINE?!?!?! Bc you’re so right there’s so much about Amelia we do not know. They keep showing us tinyyyy hints that Amelia def feels less than MC. The fact that the Zeph stories don’t match up is so sus. And why did we not get the chance to question Amelia about that?? I need to know about prom night asap!! Bc I like ur theory and think it’s right.

I would DIE for the angsty stolen recoupling moment with Elliot!! So I really hope that happens.

[drifloonz]

hmm.. do you have any favourite Pokémon/Poképasta characters? If so, what do you like about them? Or.. if you could make your own Poképasta character, what would their concept or design be? Or name in general, you don’t have to do a fully fleshed out backstory for them. Orrr, what’s your favourite thing about being on the internet or being in a fandom?

i... to no ones surprise, reaaally like steven. glitchys up there, but i think his og pokepasta sort of sucks ( which is not an unpopular opinion ), but strangled red ( specifically strangled red, strangled and doors open are... neat, but sort of badly written and way more stereotypical ) is just... mwah. chefs kiss. stories about grief and abt a depressive spiral that gets worse and worse AND you get to see how he was like before it? soo good. you can argue the missingno plotline in it was unnecessary which i could agree but i think its just cool more than anything else, esp since most pokepastas based on gen 1 use it or other glitches in the 1st gens for horror a lot, which i think is interesting. missingno can be many things!

i like to think logically that glitches and stuff in game prob exist in the pokemon universe as well, since... well.. pokemon can be turned into data. you put them into the pc. missingno likely just exists and is a heavily corrupted pokemon that is not supposed to be there, or a glitch that the pc or something made real.

therefore, miki probably was "healed" because missingno "filled" her "missing data" or something like that, but i like to keep it more vague and ambiguous too. you can do a lot with strangled red and steven, miki, and mike too which just intrigues me. once again read lessons in guilt and grief and faulty on ao3. they explore this and steven, mike, ( and daisy who doesnt get enough attention ) in a way i 100% agree with and enjoy .

as for other characters i obviously enjoy glitchy but i much more enjoy the like... post-fnflull version of him cuz' in his original popularity he was just sort of prettyboy red who was also a creepypasta but ppl barely drew him like he was one ( i like fnf lulls interp bc of how his body constantly stutters and how when hes irate his mouth just stretches and shit like that. gmod ragdoll with broken physics ass mf ). also as said before his pokepastas sort of forgettable but i do like the concept of a red stuck in a game self aware bc im allll for that shit. i am an IHNMBIMS fan, i love AM, i love self aware AIs that feel trapped and take it out on every1 else or cope with it in Some Way... very interesting concept, idk.

honorable mentions for pokepastas that ppl prob know that i do not talk abt a lot that i like the writing or concepts for are DISABLED and Hell Bell.

hell bell you could argue has a stereotypical 'pasta ending of "ooooh you die in the game you die for real" but idk i eat up the way they did it in hell bell bc the person doesnt die but they sort of do since nobody can see em anymore ( iirc, i hvent read it in a bit ). also uses gen 4 which as someone who started mainline games with diamond and pearl respectively, i enjoy that a lot.

for DISABLED, its not super deep or scary or anything ( ok well its scary for the narrator obviously ) but its another one that just sorta makes me feel bad in all the right ways.

i have concepts for pokepasta aus of my ocs and some side characters but they arent pokepastas theyre just like... ppl who live in the world ( of fnf lull usually since i like to think everything there is connected and coexists somehow ), but i am not original to save my life so i dont think id make an actual pokepasta anytime soon, lol. the closest i got was making a super horrible choose your own adventure where you played as a cubone on deviantart when i was like idk 9

as for internet and fandom stuff, i dont associate myself w fandoms or fandom terminology and unironically i just start to call myself an "enjoyer" of things, bc i dont like being associated w anything... fandom oriented a lot of the time anymore. a lot of fanonization of characters also sucks. i do think the pokepasta fandom has some funny fanonizations though. like yes dilfify that man ( @ steven )

also esp for pokepastas bc i have Hyperfixation Shame. its why i have a sideblog for it, both so it has a concentrated place to go and so no one knows i like it enough to write abt it lol

thank u 4 asking :]!

[dykefever]

Okayyyy I finished tsasog and without further ado here is me simping:

God I missed your wolfstar the UST, the chemistry is unparalleled. I need my wolfstar pathetic and intense and pining mutually right off the bat and you delivered. Don't think I didn't see Remus's reaction when he caught sight of Sirius in his church that first time!

Ok some of my fave metaphors (not incl. religious) that have stuck with me: spit watermelon seed for Lola. Holding a cherry pit under his tongue waiting for Remus. That whole description of James in the last chapter omg.

Having never watched Fleabag bc of the triggers, to me, the way you described missing your dead friend, and what it felt like for Sirius right after she died-- it's accurate. All of it. Thank you for treating it tenderly and honestly. It made me feel less crazy tbh.

Ok onto the Hot Priest bit. Again, only you and only wolfstar will have me buying into The Hot Priest (like yes, Sirius, Get On Your Knees for Remus where you belong. The fingers on his tongue, like he is receiving the Eucharist, the Body of Christ, only hello it's the body of Remus John Lupin). I weirdly grew up with a brand of priest where being hot was part of their whole thing to like "attract people to God" but then like try being fifteen and in confession and having to tell said priest you let your bf touch your boobs shit got weird.

ON THAT NOTE. I am FERAL for all the religious/sacrilegious metaphors and perversions and commentary. I already talked about Sirius receiving "communion," but Sirius crucifying himself on a FIRE ESCAPE with his pathetic love for Remus? Perfect. If you ever need a beta for that shit PLEASE let me put my catholic education to werk. I once wrote a metaphor comparing a sex facial to the baptism of Jesus in the river jordan. I got a lifetime of knowledge.

I'll end with this: Remus, after he leaves the church and goes to Sirius and professes his love-- that experience was beautifully depicted. Remus saying that religion is a source of goodness and truth and peace, and if you aren't experiencing that, then it's not what you are meant to be doing: SO TRUE. And then there's that feeling of freedom and happiness and joy you have when you are brave enough to truly follow your path, even if it means giving up an identity and a life and a truth you once believed. It's terrifying but exhilarating once you make it to the other side. But yeah, that idea of bone-deep, constant "suffering," as Remus called it, while staying in the church, and then realizing that that is not what church or God or love should actually feel like- that is the *only* way a truly devout person will ever have the strength to walk away from it. You nailed it.

Hope this ask isn't too unhinged but like what is the point of fandom if you cant pull shit like this amirite? Thank you for sharing your writing-- you are doing the lord's work. xxooo

hello hello!!!! i love this ask definitely not too unhinged thank you for all ur lovely words :-) and thank you for including the bits from the last ask i somehow deleted 😭😭

i actually can’t write r/s without UST and like intense amounts of pathetic pining it just doesn’t make sense to me thank you for seeing my vision and loving it!! i’m really honoured you read this work despite it having some triggering material for you - and then also feeling i honoured the events that happen and treated it well. whenever i write difficult topics (grief, mental health struggles, unhealthy relationships etc) im always trying to approach it with care and honesty and vulnerability! drawing from what i know and how i think that character would also react to these events. but yeah thank you :-) particularly irt religion which i have some knowledge of but not hugely, i actually ended up doing a lot of research and like reading priest’s experiences in the church and why they chose the profession etc and then why some leave. and i’m glad the last part resonated because religion isn’t inherently evil or bad and i didn’t want r to be like i don’t want any of it! but to actually connect with his faith again to realise that the way he was practicing and engaging with his religion was no longer healthy and no longer the best way to like connect with it and god!!

and damn i wish i had gotten you on board for the religious metaphors 😭 you would have taken it the next level aidjfjw but thank you so much for all these lovely words!!!! just loved reading all this :-) xxxx

[kitten4sannie]

I’m not done praising you

I couldn’t stop thinking about that yunho fic today it’s so damn good 😫 I normally dislike AI type of stuff (ex machina scarred me) but this was so unique and gut wrenchingly sad :( to have a cyborg that’s a copy of a loved one that you lost and you can’t exactly move on from their death (I’m assuming he died) because if you ever miss them or feel overwhelming sadness, you can just call your cyborg and there he is :( I guess it’s a good thing but also a bad thing because u can never move on and be at peace and he’ll never be the way you remembered him as much as you try to ignore that fact.

I’m sorry if it’s weird that I’m saying all this over a smut but it was so good that I forgot it’s smut 😭 I have to know, how did you come up with this idea? It’s just so unique and interesting. You don’t have to tell me tho!

“i’m not done praising you” i’m on the floor rnnnnn sobbing ;; ohh god ex machina was so traumatizing fnr i feel that 😭 yes exactly!! it’s def comforting bc you’d be able to keep him looking and “acting” like your loved one but it’ll only lead to more pain bc it’ll never be quite right and plus you’ll never be able to move on from it and just be stuck in the same endless loop of temporary comfort and a deep sense of grief that won’t be healed until you face reality 💔

nooo it’s not weird at all!! i love discussions like this plus it was smut mixed with a really sad concept so it wasn’t like it was just filth on its own lol. so originally i wanted to write a prometheus themed story but i realized that would have to be so much more fleshed out so i’ll def be saving that for later! so instead i just went with the android thing but i was like ohhh what if the android resembles yn’s lost love?? and then i just kinda wrote it out to see where it took me :)

[puppy-phum]

I tried to format this with a comma and a capital letter to show where a new line is in these songs/quotes bc tumblr hates formatting!

"Don't you ever, Tame your demons, But always keep them on a leash" - Arsonist's Lullabye, Hozier (maybe vegaspete or beyond evil?)

"And from these rooftops, I'll scream your name, Bravely to the dark" - Tyler Knott Gregson (rooftops always give me patpran vibes but anyone else if good too)

"How much should my longing fall like snow, Before the days of spring return, friend?, Snowflakes fall down, And fall apart little by little, I miss you, I miss you, I miss you" - Spring Day, BTS

Also basically any of Do I Wanna Know by the Arctic Monkeys gives me patpran vibes but idk if this is a basic choice? It could be overused but im not sure but anyway!! "I dreamt about you nearly every night this week, How many secrets can you keep?, 'Cause there's this tune I found that makes me think of you somehow and I play it on repeat, Until I fall asleep, Ever thought of calling when you've had a few? Because I always do, Maybe I'm too busy being yours to fall for somebody new."

Also I'm happy to take literally anything for The Eclipse (I feel like I really dont see many edits of it? But I feel like its difficult to pin down a specific vibe because it was so much grief but it is maybe my favourite right now!) or Between Us/Not Me/Bad Buddy/Vice Versa/Beyond Evil!

hello lizzie ^^ i hope you've been well!

this is for you!

i hope you like what i came up with even when i took some liberties with the prompt. you gave me so many options to choose from, so many good options, but ever since i first got this ask, i was fixated on that hozier line. it just seemed to fit beyond evil so perfectly and i was so excited to make something for that drama bc i never did back when i watched it. thank you so much for it! (and also special love for throwing spring day at me, it made me smile fondly ♥ maybe i'll end up using it when i find something fitting to use it for)

(more blabberings under the cut bc this edit made me think some thoughts!)

first of all, i have to admit that i have almost forgotten everything that happened in beyond evil. it's been over a year since i binged through it and it never stuck with me the same way as, let's say, the devil judge did. but i still found it super interesting and with this prompt, i came to think about the themes in it once more. i came to think about the story, and the world, and the people. most of all, the people.

bc, second of all, i am obsessed with the dynamic of our two main characters. they are like fire and ice, and they struggle to understand each other bc of it. joowon is young, righteous, hopeful, and naive. dongsik is older, has already seen the cruelty of the world, and knows how much it can hurt. but he has not given up, and instead, there is this plan and then –

well. joowon comes and messes it up. kind of. tho he also becomes dongsik's ally, and then comes to see how unfair the world can be, and watching all of this happen hurts dongsik who, until then, has not shied away from sacrifice. he has let the people around him be hurt. he has been selfish in that sense. and then this one person more threatens to tip him over.

so, i had thoughts. and then i somehow tried to put all of them into this edit: the differences between joowon and dongsik, their individual journeys, their joined moments. there's dongsik with his undying fire, the only thing left pushing him through as he loses, and loses, and loses again and again. there's joowon with his one goal: to serve justice. he's willing to try and reach this goal by any means necessary. he almost becomes blind to how impossible reaching it can be.

they both have their demons. dongsik's are vengeful, full of years-old rage. they're simmering somewhere behind his smiles and in his stern eyes and under the tears he so unwillingly sheds. he cannot tame them despite all the time that has passed. he doesn't want to.

and then there's joowon with his newly found demons, the ones that are out of his control, the ones that would like to drive a bullet into his father's chest or smash a golf club into his head. the demons that turn the calm and collected detective han into someone he didn't know he could be. the demons that are born out of his old and new grief.

the caption seemed to put all of this so nicely. it's one of dongsik's lines said to joowon. there's something scary about how far ppl are willing to go out of love and attachment. we're terrifying creatures once someone takes something we care about away from us.

i hope you didn't find my ramblings or the edit itself boring. i personally love the simplicity of it all. i haven't done anything black and white in a long while so this felt refreshing and fun.

thank you once more for your prompt and have a good weekend ♥

[ebbarights]

living+ liveblog under cut

had a good day then a bad day then went for a run and now it's a good day again. let's see if this changes things

logan jumpscare omg

okay i didn't fucking miss him lmao. disregard previous posts

he's against powdering his face because that's gay

literally googled lorene scafaria yesterday bc she directed hustlers and her name sounded familiar only to realise i know her as bo burnham's partner kms

barefoot swede tw

matsson with his affected lisp maybe you should hang out with roman instead of shiv who's too good for you

i have skarsgård stockholm syndrome (lol) bc i've seen him in soo many things lately

the first meeting me when i lie

TWEETS AND DRUG RUMOURS glass houses ken

a friend sent me a roman fancam the other say bc i told her he's my favourite character and it kind of annoyed me a tiny bit bc. that's not what this is but also. lbr. it's exactly what this is

roman facial tic comeback!! honestly my favourite thing kieran does

i want someone to do a hug counter per episode/season when this is all over this one is off the charts

shivyyy :'((((

roman you're not ready to fuck. you never are and i love that about you

ANNABETH GISH????????? MY LOVE

why does she give him advice about grief tho. 'it just hasn't hit you yet'? she's right but that's a really weird thing to say to a stranger

sidenote i have german subtitles on this episode because i was eating and they're the only ones available and. everybody is using like. the formal you? and that's so weird. i don't think they should do that. they're all using first names

the segregation comment should be so telling for those guys who think roman is actually right-wing. he knows shit about all ideologies he just doesn't give a shit!! (that would be very bad irl but in the show i think that's an important distinction)

roman you can't just fire people because you brought it up

is ... the presentation that day? and kendall wants to build a house? dude do you know anything about anything

who is tk. shiv lore unlocked

i used to play something like bitey with a friend in school but with. i think it's called indian burn in english? don't think that name's okay but idk what else you would call it

why is greg there

kendall looks exhausted

roman with the you're fired is like a little kid who just learned a new trick

oooh no i know that gerri outfit i know what comes next :(

this conversation hurts but also this is lifeblood to me

oh so it wasn't your dad will wash you away it was the money. that's such clever editing

roman's on such a power trip it's crazy. maybe post-grieve a little that'll make you feel better

the way he immediately regrets it and his mouth when kendall says he shouldn't is actually killing me dead

tomshiv wouldn't survive a day in a trailerpark

kendall sounds so sad when he talks about the clouds

kendall baby you're so manic and the sibs totally know it

roman pulls him out of it straight onto the other side and then leaves him alone with it that's horrible. i get it but it's horrible

is the fingers to the forehead thing a grounding technique

it's still so crazy to me that their dad just died. like JUST died. and now they have to do shit like this because the company's toast otherwise. something capitalism something humanity etc

ROMAN HUGGING THE HUGE PILLOW LMAOOO

maybe i'm an idiot but why would the guy ask him about matsson's tweet that he obviously hasn't seen?

somebody stop this how long will kendall talk about the tweet this is on l to the og level

literally laughed out loud when roman showed hugo that matsson deleted the tweet

roman in the car 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

(though the people who said roman was seriously genuinely for real horny listening to that make me fucking angry. necrophiliac believer bullshit)

the MUSIIIIIIIC

[cdroloisms]

uhhhh ,, , hi ??

i feel bad bc i havent been here in. LITERALLY forever lmao - hope you guys r all doing good!! ive been working on some stuff but it’s been pretty slow going, and school is also A Thing, so i definitely havent been writing as much as i’d like. 

as an apology, have this? really self-indulgent feel-good syndicate + c!dream centric oneshot bc i felt like writing this so u know. why not. 

tws: implied torture, abuse, self-harm, disordered eating, starvation mentions, prison arc themes - overall everything’s just blink-and-you’ll-miss-it mentions, not too much angst here for once! c!sam and c!quackity critical, sorry guys but we r still in the prison arc and they still r on their “fuck human rights” arcs. 

Dream leaves.

 It’s a surprise - or maybe it isn’t one, Niki isn’t quite sure. She’d never grown to quite trust the man, she knows, and she can’t really tell if the bitter twist of emotion that swells up her chest when Phil comes to her city with the news is betrayal or resignation - what can she say. She’s gotten more than her fair share of broken promises. They don’t exactly faze her anymore. 

 None of them seem all that surprised, save Techno, who entirely fails to hide the worry that flickers over his face when he calls the Syndicate meeting to officially inform them of what’s going on. She shares quick, careful glances with the other members when his back is turned - despite how many times he’s been burned, Techno still seems so adamant at holding onto every thread, trusting all too easily those who would use and leave him behind without a second glance. He can handle himself, she knows. Still, that’s not going to stop her from slapping Dream upside the head for being yet another worthless person to betray her friend’s forgiving nature. 

 Nothing much changes in the next few weeks. Niki has to admit, it’s strange without Dream around - he’d not been an ally, much less a friend before dipping completely, but he had been some sort of constant - and Niki is self aware enough to know that she misses him, a little, the same sort of way you might miss an old routine once it’s gone, if only for the familiarity. She still visits Techno and Phil with various baked goods, knowing that Phil would have his hands full just keeping Techno from running himself ragged - makes sure to check on Ranboo, whose nerves have inevitably returned with Dream’s disappearance. To be honest, she doesn’t worry as much as he does - ally or not, she’s spent enough time with the Dream that had left prison to expect that he won’t exactly be able to get himself very far should he come for the four of them, and doesn’t particularly care about he might pull with the rest of the server - if things get bad, she’s sure Phil and Techno will have it handled. She asks Phil, once, what happened, and he shrugs. 

 “I don’t know, mate,” he heaves a chest to the side, pulling out a stack of stone blocks that Niki gladly holds for him. “One day we woke up and he was just- gone. Everything. Was like he wasn’t ever there at all.” 

 Niki hums. “Why’d you think he’d do something like that?” 

 “If I could understand half of why Dream does what he does, we wouldn’t be having this conversation now, would we?” He smiles at her from behind a crate. “Shall we bring these things upstairs and start on dinner?” 

 Niki laughs, knowing that the conversation about Dream is over. “Of course, Phil.” 

Dinner is a welcome distraction; all of them have gotten better at cooking in recent months, between her baking and the veritable library of recipes Phil knows that she’s never even heard of, but Phil is still the only one she really trusts to hold his own behind the stove - Ranboo is still a little too nervous around water, and fire, and much of everything, and though Techno can be a perfectly capable cook, he’s been distracted as of late. She has a strong feeling that left to his own devices, he’d just grab a stack of steak and disappear for another few weeks, searching the server for information. 

 Honestly, she’s a little thrown off by his behavior - he’d not done anything like this with Tommy, if she remembers right, and had hardly seemed affected by Wilbur’s betrayal on the Sixteenth at all (then again, she was a little too lost in her own head to notice if he was.) She tosses her head over to ask Phil, who’s leaning over a few carrots he’s slicing to throw into the stew he’s making, and the man pauses, frowns. 

 “From what I know,” he starts, words slow, careful, ��they’d spent three months in there together, and the conditions weren’t exactly- stellar. According to what Techno said, I’d assumed they had come to some sort of understanding.” He goes back to the carrots, expression dipping into shadow and out of sight. “Guess I was wrong.” 

 Niki hums. She can see it, sort of - spending months together with someone, no matter how insufferable, probably would end with some degree of attachment - she thinks back to plotting through sleepless nights with Jack, anger and grief leaving them simmering, crabs in the same pot of boiling water, remembers looking into his dead-eyed gaze and seeing her own stare back - and feels a brief pang of guilt. Besides, Techno is Techno. She’d never met someone so willing to forgive, understand, reach out despite everything that’s happened - for Dream to take advantage of that feels almost too obvious. Of course he would - what were they all thinking?

 “He’s Dream,” she says as if that explains everything, flipping open the oven door and feeling a wave of heat blast her face. Phil hums lowly, understanding. “I hope Techno will be alright.” 

 “He’s tough,” Phil cracks a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes, “And he has us on his side. He’ll get through.” 

 Niki opens her mouth to reply, only to be interrupted by the front door slamming open. Outside their quaint little cottage, the wind howls - it sounds like the beginning of a blizzard out there, flurries painting the world in a thick blanket of white. In the door, Techno strides into the entrance with loud, decisive movements, shutting the door loud enough to make the walls shake. Inadvertently, Niki finds her eyes drawn to the small pile of snow that he’s tracked into the house - Techno’s usually so careful to kick it all off on the porch, never liked it much when there was a pile of melting ice and snow dampening the floorboards and soaking into his shoes. He huffs harshly, stripping off a snow-dusted scarf from his face - a long, multicolored abomination that had been the product of her attempting to teach Ranboo how to knit. Phil has reached his side, hands splayed over his upper arms, eyes soft in the corners from concern. 

 “Techno, mate-” his tone is chiding but his movements gentle as he brushes snow off of Techno’s signature cloak, “you’ve gotten snow everywhere. What were you doing, dueling a blizzard?” 

 Techno shakes his head, not meeting Phil’s banter as usual, fur sticking up from the snow melted into it. His voice is gruff and holds little humor - unconsciously, Niki feels her shoulders tense. 

 “Phil, call a Syndicate meeting.”

 ---

 Phil, per usual, is unrelenting, so it’s not until a quick dinner and some hurried messages to their final member later that the Syndicate is gathered in their meeting room, Techno pacing the length of the room as they wait in their respective seats. He looks less frazzled than he did when he first entered the house, in part due to Phil’s sitting him down to eat and picking through his fur to smooth it out of its windblown spikes and tangles - Techno had grumbled at him to stop preening him, but looked a lot more relaxed by the time they were all finished with their food. Still, his ear flicks periodically, twitching toward ssome sound that Niki can’t hear, movements tighter and jerkier than she is used to. He’d always been a little flightier after the prison, but not quite like this - everything here feels like that but dialed up to eleven. Inexplicably, it reminds her of Dream. 

 “Techno?” Phil gestures towards his seat, prompting, and he settles into it with an obliging huff. 

 “Y’know, Phil, the code names are kinda pointless if we never use ‘em,” he says, words carrying no real heat - he looks back at the rest of them, lips thinning into a line. “Anyway. I called this meeting because I found a couple leads on Dream.” 

 “O-oh,” Ranboo stutters, tail lashing behind him. 

 “You don’t have to do anything that you don’t want to, mate,” Phil reminds him gently, a sentiment that Niki affirms with a determined nod. 

 “There’ve been some reports- rumors, really,” Techno says, calling their attention again, and they all turn towards him, “of increased activity around the prison again. The Warden spending more time on its grounds, movement seen around the walls and around the portal- so I decided to go check it out for myself.” 

 Niki frowns, and watches as Phil does the same beside her - Techno had seemed to avoid the prison if he could help it, save for when he went on the initial mission to break Dream out. It was no secret to them that he didn’t exactly like the place. 

 “We could’ve helped if you asked,” Phil reminds him, and Techno shakes his head. 

 “I know, Phil. It’s just- that place is bad news. I’d rather keep you guys away from there if I can-” his hand goes to his head with a poorly hidden wince. “Sorry, Chat’s a little- worked up, at the minute.” 

 “Sorry, we’ll stop interrupting you,” Niki says, cutting off Phil before he says anything else. “So you went to the prison?” 

 Techno takes a second to gather his thoughts, mumbling quietly in the way that usually means he’s telling off Chat. “Right- I decided to stake out the portal. The rumors were right- Sam has been hanging around there, entered and left the prison four times yesterday. And today-” he hesitates, expression visibly darkening. “This morning, about an hour after the Warden arrived, Quackity came to the prison and went through the portal. He left the grounds about six hours later.” 

 “Quackity?” Niki frowns, eyes flicking over to how Phil has stilled in his seat. “What is Quackity doing at the prison?” 

 Phil ignores her question, reaching towards Techno, something indiscernible in his gaze. “Mate…”

 “He smelled of blood when he left,” Techno says, words sharp, and Niki feels her heart skip a beat. “Warden left about half an hour after, and I came back here.” 

 Ranboo clears his throat, sounding tentative. “Okay,” he drums his hand on the table when they turn towards him, eyebrows drawn, “but what, exactly, does this have to do with, uh, Dream?” 

 Techno and Phil trade glances, one of their bouts of unspoken conversation that Niki’s grown extremely used to. They seem strangely hesitant, she notes internally, Phil looking towards Techno with a question written clearly in the planes of his face. Techno sighs, a long puff of air through his lips as he closes his eyes and turns his face towards the table. 

 “You know how Dream was- injured,” he starts slowly, looking back up at them. Niki shifts uncomfortably - of course she noticed, it was impossible not to - if not the bandages that peeked under his sleeves and the cuffs of his pants, then how skinny he’d been, all skin and bones curled up uncomfortably in a pile at the corner of Techno’s couch. She’d not know the extent, by any means, and had always assumed that they’d been self-inflicted - she’d been in a bad enough place on her own before to know how your head can make you want to hurt, sometimes, how eating food can feel like choking on sawdust and the world could feel so much smaller when focused into delicate pricks of pain. Phil’s eyes are trained on Techno - on his face, then on the pinkish raised skin of a still-healing scar along his forearm, and she feels understanding settle like a rock in her gut. 

 “The Warden had apparently been lettin’ Quackity into the cell to torture Dream for the revive book,” Techno trails off, eyes narrowed and seemingly fixed on a random point of the opposite wall. “By the time I go there, it’d been goin’ on for months.”

 “But wait,” Ranboo’s tail moves even more erratically behind him, “You mean you think he’s back- there? How?” 

 “He has to be back in the prison,” Techno points out. “I can’t imagine anyone besides him that the two of them are goin’ to just start torturin’- Sam had been iffy about the whole thing when Quackity started in on me. It has to be Dream in there again.” 

 “But how did he get in there, then?” Ranboo asks, visibly confused. “Last time it took the entire server to lock him up!”

 “There were no signs of a struggle,” Niki points out, matter of fact. “I believe you, Techno, but I don’t really know how they managed to drag him back so easily. I can’t imagine he was jumping at the chance to go back in there.” 

 Techno shakes his head with an uneasy sigh. 

 “I have a feelin’ of what might’ve happened,” he says quietly. “And I really hope that I’m wrong and he’s less of an idiot than I think he is.” 

 ---

 They set out to investigate - and maybe attack - the next day, Techno and Phil taking on the bulk of preparations as Ranboo stays behind. He’d been understandably uneasy about the whole mission, so they’d left him back by the Syndicate room to set off their pearls in case anything went wrong. (“By the end of the day,” Techno had said, giving Phil a look with the corner of his lip quirked upwards, “don’t be like Phil here and think I meant the end of the month, alright?”) They’d all be supplied with armor and weapons, thanks to Phil, but she’d been handed the bulk of their potions, arranged neatly in her inventory by type in case they’d be needed. She lingers in the back of the room as Phil and Techno chat amiably over the sound of making last minute repairs on their armor, listens to Techno’s ceaseless reminders for Phil to be careful, watches as they make sure that their stasis chambers are properly prepared should they need them.

 (She watches as Phil nudges Techno’s shoulder when he lingers behind a certain chair, empty as long as she’s been part of the Syndicate, the fountain behind it bubbling quietly without a pearl inside. Techno sighs, expression strange. 

 “Should’ve set him up with one,” he says, quiet, and Phil pats him on the back. 

 “You couldn’t have known, mate. We wanted to wait a little before telling him about the Syndicate, remember?” 

 Techno hums, noncommittal. “Still.”)

 They Nether travel to the site of Techno’s lookout, which ends up being a little shambling thing with dirt walls dug into a small hill looking towards the prison portal, having hardly enough space to fit the three of them. Phil looks at it with no small amount of apprehension, and Techno shrugs lightly, wearing an expression that makes Phil turn to him with a look that makes Niki break into giggles. Techno crosses his arms- “in my defense-” and Phil looks up at the dirt ceiling with a long-suffering sigh. 

 “You couldn’t have made this a little roomier, mate?” Phil asks, voice dry as kindling, and Techno raises his hands by his head. 

 “Hey hey, it’s discreet, it gets the job done, it’s perfectly structurally sound-” the sound of the leftmost wall crumbling, along with the cloud of dust that puffs from it and fills their tiny space, undermines the tail end of his statement and leaves him sputtering, Niki falling into another fit of quiet giggles. Underneath it all, Phil sighs again, raising his wings behind him. 

 “...these are going to take so long to clean out.” 

 To his credit, Techno looks sheepish. “Sorry, Phil.”

 They sober up quickly; Techno turns around to the opposite side of the hill, where he’s hidden some peepholes inside the dirt - Niki settles herself by one, leaning forwards to put her eye to it and catch a glimpse of the prison looming over the water. It’s been repaired since the breakout, she notes, the gaping hole in the roof completely gone and replaced with obsidian, as intimidating and undamaged as it had been before, if not more so. Phil makes a considering sound from behind her.

 “Same plan as last time?” He asks, and Techno shakes his head. 

 “They’ve probably reinforced it, and Dream’s blueprints won’t include anything new the Warden’s added. I wouldn’t be surprised if they moved Dream to a different location completely. We don’t want to draw too much attention, either, we were cutting it pretty close during the breakout.” He narrows his eyes. “I was thinking we’d try something a little stealthier, this time. “ 

 He gestures at Niki, who blinks back at him with wide eyes. 

 “You got a couple of invis potions for us?”

 She distributes the potions among them all, one regular and two splash potions of invisibility each, and Techno points towards the prison once she’s done. 

 “The most important thing is to get through the portal,” he says with a grim expression. “Worst comes to worst, once we’re inside we can always blast our way through - but gettin’ through that portal is our first priority.” 

 Phil narrows his eyes at him. “The portal is locked, though. We’ll need to follow someone else inside- and I’m pretty sure Sam uses pearls, so he’s out.” 

 Techno nods. “Which is why I’m bankin’ on the prison gettin’ another visitor today. We’ll just have to wait.” 

 Niki swallows. “Do you mean-”

 “Quackity?” Techno turns away, not quite meeting her eyes. “I’m not totally sure, but he’s not exactly the type to just give up on his goals. He’s pretty predictable- an empire needs an emperor, always needs something new to rule- you know the type,” he says, tipping his head towards Phil. “He’ll be mad at Dream for disappearin’ on him and won’t miss the opportunity to prove he has the upper hand again. I’m not sure that he’s going to come today-”

 “-but you wouldn’t really be surprised, either,” Phil finishes for him, eyes steely with cold determination. “I trust your judgement, mate. Just stay safe- from what I’ve heard, Quackity has been...erratic.” 

 “When is he not,” Techno huffs a short laugh, shaking his head. “I’ll be fine, Phil. Just be careful, both of you. Don’t get too close. And if things get messy- which is what we’re tryin’ to avoid, by the way- then don’t do anything too risky. Our priority is gettin’ in and out alive.” 

 “We can handle ourselves, Techno,” Niki reminds him with a small smile. “And Ranboo is there in case anything goes wrong.” 

 “Alright, then. Here’s the plan.” 

 ---

 It takes quite a long time for Quackity to arrive, long minutes that Niki spends fidgeting in the corner of the room, brushing her hands over seams of the netherite plates that Phil had shoved into her hands, back at the Syndicate room. The set is inexplicably light - not weightless, by any means, as it is still netherite, but not nearly as bulky as any set of netherite armor she’s owned or seen in the past. The runes are precise, lines thin and exact, written with graceful strokes of lapis. 

 “Phil’s the best metalworker I’ve ever met,” Techno tells her with a small grin, catching her in the middle of tracing what she can make out as an Unbreaking rune along the metal strapped to her forearm. “But then again, he’s had the time to practice.” 

 “Are you calling me old again?” Phil huffs, and Techno flashes a smile her direction before looking at Phil with a slight grin. 

 “Well, Chat is,” he says, lips twitching when Phil glares back. 

 “You can’t just blame Chat every time you insult me, you little shit,” Phil groans, and Techno only grins wider. 

 “Phil, my ad revenue,” he complains, a dramatic lilt to his voice that has Niki stifling a snort, and Phil’s glare only grows deadlier. 

 “You’ll have more than your ad revenue to worry about if you keep this up,” he mumbles, going back to keep watch at one of the peepholes and stilling as he does. “Shit- Techno, Quackity’s here.” 

 Techno straightens up, hindered slightly by the low ceiling of their room. “Alright- we all know the plan, right?” 

 Niki nods in the affirmative, pulling out a splash invis and letting it settle in her hand, the glass cool beneath her fingertips. She reaches into her inventory and lets her armor fade into it, takes a deep breath and watches as the two across from her do the same. She doesn’t wear armor often, but so close to the prison, feeling mining fatigue settling deep into her bones - she’s never missed the security it offers more. Techno keeps watch, waiting- drops his arm in a signal. Now. 

 Niki throws the potion at their feet, flinching back at the sound of shattering glass and feeling its effects seep into her skin. When she opens her eyes, she can’t see anything but the inside of the room that they’d holed themselves in and the faintest of wisps rising from where their feet must be, curling around the grass. 

 (Please let this work, she begs to no one in particular as they walk towards the prison. And if you can hear me- please keep us all safe.)

 She hardly breathes as they follow Quackity across the path, holding someone’s hand in her own - Phil’s, by the feel of it - careful to muffle her footsteps in the grass and stand still whenever Quackity’s eyes come a little too close. Thankfully for them, he seems focused, hardly stopping or looking around at all as he walks towards the prison’s portal, movements stiff as he walks forward. He punches the button on the wall particularly harshly, and Sam’s voice comes crackling through a speaker a second later. 

 “I’m here for my visit,” Quackity says, punctuating the sentence with a snort of laughter that doesn’t sound particularly sincere. Niki hasn’t seen him in a long while, not after everything that happened in Pogtopia, and she feels a chill worm down her spine - this man looks nothing like the one that had laughed and danced and sung at her birthday party what feels like an eternity ago. What happened? 

 Sam sighs, the sound turning into a sharp burst of static through the speakers. “Hello Quackity,” he says, voice deep and tired. “Please step into the portal after I tell you to and then wait on the other side.” 

 “I know the drill, Sam,” Quackity rolls his eyes. “Just because the bastard was gone for a few weeks doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten how this damn place works.” 

 “Just going through protocol, Quackity,” Sam replies, and something about this response has Quackity exploding into a brief fit of laughter, the sound grating against Niki’s ears. She feels her grip tighten on Phil’s hand, air caught in her throat. 

 “Protocol- ha. Whatever you wanna tell yourself, pal.” Quackity smiles, cold and cruel, and Niki tries not to think about how she’d seen that same grin on Wilbur, eyes sparkling from the light of the lanterns hung from the bridges and walls of their ravine, remember how she’d looked into them and realized her old friend wasn’t there, anymore. Quackity disappears into the portal, and after a second, the hand around her own pulls her inside of it too.

 On the other side, Quackity taps his foot impatiently, crossing his arms and waiting- Sam’s voice comes through the speakers again, words clipped. 

 “Go through the portal,” he says, and Quackity does- once again, they wait for a second for his body to disappear, then go within it themselves, pressed close enough together within its frame for Niki to feel the warmth of a wing wrap around her shoulders for a quick second before they’re out of the hot, stifling air of the Nether and into a large, neatly made lobby of blackstone and quartz. They duck into a corner, watching as Quackity moves towards the front counter, the Warden waiting there with his arms crossed over his chest. He looks- tired. His movements are slow, footsteps loud against the floor, shoulders tense and back hunched. He walks around the counter, sword strapped to his belt, and Niki feels her breath hitch at the sight of dried blood still stuck to the blade in patches and splatters.

 “He ready?” Quackity asks, holding his hands out - Niki catches a flash of metal as Sam drops something into them, watches as Quackity raises what ends up being a pair of shears, dangerous-looking and gleaming with enchants, to the light. 

 “Yes,” Sam says, side-eyeing Quackity with a small glare. “You know, it’s supposed to be your job to clean those things off when you’re done with them.”

 “I told you, busy day back in Las Nevadas yesterday,” Quackity waves a hand- “I’ll do it, alright? Don’t get all pissy now. What happened to being partners?” 

 “You said we’d be done with this months ago, Quackity,” Sam sighs, and Niki feels a light tug on her arm as Quackity and Sam begin to walk towards the wall to the right of them, breathes in slow and deep as she follows Techno and Phil towards the others. The wall yawns open with the hiss of redstone firing and pistons pulling blocks upwards, opening into a dark hallway that feels like entering the maw of some sort of giant, insatiable beast. They step inside as one, and the door shuts behind them. 

 “We’ll be done soon enough,” Quackity says, and Niki feels hairs rising on the back of her neck. “Trust me.” 

 They stalk forwards through a labyrinth of blackstone, Niki brushing the palms of her hand against her clothes when it goes clammy from adrenaline. Halfway through, she pauses to tip back a second potion of invisibility, careful to keep her movements slow and steady as not to make a sound - the liquid is silvery, cool and light on her tongue, and she lets the effects wash over her with her breath caught in her lungs before moving forward. The tunnels are simpler than she’d expected, bearing little obstacles or checkpoints - Quackity makes a wry comment a second after (“Guard tunnels today, huh? Appreciate the hustle, pal-”) that confirms her suspicions. Despite the potion particles still whirling around their bodies and the sounds of their footsteps, too loud in her own ears, they manage to make it forwards without much trouble, entering a large room with a doorway filled completely with a curtain of lava. 

 “Set your spawn,” Sam says, still stoic, and Quackity rolls his eyes again before doing as told. Niki keeps looking back at the lava flowing past the wall, its heat filling the room and making her already slick palms even worse, and Sam moves to the side to flick a lever, eyes trained on the lava slowly bubbling in front of him. 

 “Give me your tools?” Quackity asks, and Sam sighs before doing so - Niki watches as he hands over a netherite axe, then potions, then a few raw potatoes that Quackity accepts and puts into his inventory. Sam raises an eyebrow once he’s done, hand tight around the handle of his trident. 

 “You bring your own sword, today?” He asks, seeming irritated, and Quackity shrugs. 

 “Sorry pal, I need to make a new one. Guess I’m borrowing yours again.” 

 Sam sighs again, louder, and hands over his sword as well, watching as Quackity swings it a few times experimentally. The blade skims a little too close to her on one swing and she can’t quite help the squeak that escapes her lips as she throws herself out of the way, feels her heart hammer in her ears as she backs up against the wall. Please don’t hear that please don’t hear that please don’t hear that please don’t hear that-

 “Quackity, wait.” Sam raises a hand, ear twitching as he looks over in her direction with narrowed eyes. “I think I heard something.”

 Oh fuck.

 “Well, guess show’s up then,” Techno drawls, and both of them whirl towards his voice, giving Niki enough time to pull her armor back on, scrambling to get her sword and shield in her hands as Phil does the same besides her. Pieces of armor appear where Techno is standing, then a bucket of milk- oh, why must her friends be so dramatic- and Techno’s standing there, smiling sharply, with Orphan Obliterator held loosely at his side. “Let’s get this done, then.” 

 As one, Techno and Phil blur into action - Techno moves forward to catch the prongs of Sam’s trident on his blade as Phil parries Quackity’s blows with his own sword- they move fluidly, easily covering each other’s backs as the room devolves into chaos. Niki remembers their guidance as she flits in and out of the fight, scoring quick hits to keep the Warden and Quackity off balance while remaining out of range from their weapons, and it’s not long before both of them have fallen with a spray of items and experience orbs scattered all over the floor. 

 Techno moves over to block off the exposed face of the bed with a block, looking over at the two of them with an uncharacteristically severe expression. “They’ll be back soon- we have to move fast. Niki, you have those fire res, right?” 

 She nods as she reaches into her inventory, finding the potion’s orange-pink glow and smashing it at their feet. They dive into the lava together, Niki scrambling to keep up, her arms struggling to move through the thick lava, loses sight of both until she flails into something directly in front of her and hands are pulling her up out of the lava. 

 “There you go, mate,” Phil smiles down at her as hauls herself to her feet, making a face at the feeling of the lava clinging to her clothes. “Yeah, swimming through lava isn’t exactly fun. You good?” She flashes him a thumbs up, and he laughs- “Niki, you’re still invisible.” She flushes pink- right.

 A few sips of milk later, she gives him a proper thumbs up, and he laughs, loud and bright. She looks past him to where Techno’s crouched over something- someone, she realizes with a start, in the corner. Dream’s back in prison clothes, ragged and ill-fitting, and he’s curled up with his back towards the front of the cell, shaking enough to be obvious even from where she’s standing. Techno speaks lowly, voice barely more than a deep rumble in the air, almost inaudible.

 “You there, Dream?” 

 She watches as Dream turns his head, looking up with wide, bleary eyes. His hair flops in front of his face, and something within her itches to brush it out of the way. “T-Techno?”

 “Yeah nerd, who else?” Techno smiles, and Dream seems to blink awake, drawing himself up with a shuddery breath. 

 “Techno- it’s a trap- what are you doing here?” he hisses, and Techno gives him a look, deadpan.

 “Yeah, yeah, it’s a trap- come on, Dream, we’ve been over this by now, bro. You have to know that their traps aren’t goin’ to do anything to me by now,” Techno rolls his eyes, reaching forward to steady his hands on Dream’s shoulders when the other man sputters and struggles to breathe. “Easy, now. Geez, you wanted to prove me wrong about being homeless bad enough that you came back here? We could’ve just made you a house, you know. You didn’t have to go this far.” 

 “I- they were gonna kill you,” Dream breathes, face twisted up uncomfortably, and his eyes flick past Techno’s face to where Phil and Niki are standing at the opposite wall of the cell. “All of you- they said-”

 “And that’s what I thought you’d say,” Techno groans. “Come on, you idiot, I thought you were smarter than this-” 

 “They were right there, Techno!” Dream fires back, eyes alight. “You- they were right there, what were you thinking, they could’ve-!”

 “And my best friend is a necromancer, remember?” Techno shakes his head. “Come on, Dream- Sam and Quackity? You know we can handle them in a fight, especially when you can just revive us if anything goes wrong. You don’t have to do this whole self-sacrifice thing, bro- there’s only so many times I can break into the same prison, y’know.” 

 “You’re so stupid,” Dream huffs, but he leans in anyway, head just barely settling against Techno’s shoulder. “I- I can’t believe. You’re so dumb.” 

 “Hey, don’t be sayin’ that to the guy that’s breakin’ you out of prison,” Techno laughs, slinging Dream over his shoulder with an easy motion and laughing harder when it makes him yelp. “That’s just bein’ ungrateful. You’re making Chat sad, man, and when they’re sad they don’t subscribe-” 

 “I regret this entirely,” Dream says, voice muffled against Techno’s shirt, tone completely flat. “Put me down- you idiot- I’m staying here. You’re worse than Quackity.” 

 “Rude. Now you’ve really made Chat mad. I demand an apology-” 

 “Boys, boys.” Niki can’t help giggling, watching the way their gazes snap towards her, rolling her eyes as she moves forward with a few potions held loosely in her hand. “Dream, do you want a health pot?” 

 Dream seems to deliberate for a second, before nodding at her, expression slightly strained. “...sure.” 

 “You two can finish your argument after we’ve broken out of the biggest maximum security prison on the server,” Phil drawls from behind her, arms crossed at his chest. “Come on, now, before Sam gets back.” 

 “Isn’t this the only maximum security prison on the server?” Techno asks aloud, an amused expression on his face - one that only gets worse when Phil glares at him with one ice-blue eye. 

 “Shut-” he sighs, shaking his head. “You two are chaotic little shits, you know that?”

 “Don’t compare me to him, Phil,” Techno complains, Dream mirroring his words with muffled protests of his own, and Phil breathes another drawn-out, long-suffering sigh as he rubs at the bridge of his nose. 

 “Niki, give us some fire res please?” 

 She finds the potion bottle between giggles, throwing it to the ground as she tries to choke down the laughter rapidly bubbling up her throat. “Of course, Phil.” 

 She looks back at Techno and Dream before jumping into the lava, the two of them once again lost in some sort of argument, Dream draped over Techno’s shoulder. He’s breathing easier now, she notes, and Techno looks looser too - a little less tense, leaning back with a perpetual quirk to the corner of his lip as they fire insults back and forth. This is familiar, she recognizes with a soft twist in her chest, the same way that Phil and Techno can finish each other’s sentences and look at each other with laughing eyes sharing the same memories of the past, the same way Ranboo watches Techno’s every step as he adjusts his stance and lifts his sword and Techno laughs and calls him a main character in turn, the same way she and Phil will settle together on the porch over cups of tea and sit at each other’s sides for hours. The rhythm between them is one well-established, the road well-worn - she imagines them, huddled in this dingy cell for months together, and breathes in slow and deep. 

 “Come on,” she smiles, making sure to keep it on her face when Dream meets her eyes with wide, startled ones of his own. Dream still isn’t an ally, and isn’t a friend. 

 But - she watches as he smiles back, something inexplicably warm in her chest - maybe, one day, he could be.

[jackiebrackettt]

ok im gonna follow the rpverse blogs but ive missed months and months of their lore since dsmp!cranboo died so would it be possible for U to like summarize what's happened since then? im asking U cos I see how invested in the rp blogs U r its ok if U cant

wait okay I know tubbolul has a lore summary thing I thiiink it might be in the pinned but I’m also not sure how up to date it is. also I’ve only followed non-benchtrio rpverse blogs recently. umm okay I’m going to try my best under the cut bc I have cranboo memory so it’ll be a bit rambley:

siiince cranboo died okay so I might just sum up each individually and see how that goes:

memorybooks: died like how they did in canon but made a deal with dreamxd (don’t remember rp blog name sorry) to come back for a week I think? and the condition was he needed to build a house by the end of the week. did not do that instead spent time readjusting to being alive and hanging out with his family. eventually got foolish (sharktotems? oh god I need to check names huh) to build the house? but it was said they could had to build it so built another one. just before she died again I’m pretty sure she made a deal with kristen (also don’t remember rp blog sorry) to extend the deadline until New Years so he could experience at least one Christmas with his family. also there was a whole rpverse event dance that was planned since b4 he died so benchtrio went to that. he died again New Years Eve. I think maybe a week into this a lot of the rpverse gods had a meeting and decided to bring ranboo back for good? and let’s just leave that there for a bit

Ghostboo: ghostboo spilled a bunch of Ranboo’s memorybook secrets to everyone

Tubbolul (not going into as much detail since it’s already on a doc) spent most of this time dealing with grief badly and also trying to figure out how to bring ranboo bad. originally didn’t know about the deal and that ranboo would only be back for a week until I think just before time was up. after ranboo died again worked on weapons (nukes) to try and confront dreamxd and threaten dreamxd into reviving ranboo for good. dreamxd called her bluff and ripped out her eye. was originally very distrustful when ranboo came back to life. oh wait before ranboo was brought back him and tommy moved to petalsborough/petalsbrough (tubbolul has a tour of that on the pinned post I think) which was a way to get away from the server.

tmmyrp: I don’t remember exactly when it happened but tommy was having conversations(/arguments) with subtotechno and like.. becoming friends with him again. also just in general trying to support ranboo and tubbo while also dealing with his own feelings about ranboo dying. not a lotta communication going on between these guys. also idr when it happened but he locked ranboo and tubbo in a room so they could chat about their problems. has a chicken named Gertrude who’s a dreamon and yeah moved to petalsborough with tubbo

bestnightmares/dream/exile 2 arc:

part of the reason they moved to petalsborough was bc it wasn’t safe with dream about - who starts actively talking with them but since no one knows the locations of petalsborough they’re just shaken but feel safe. during this time where ranboo has been newly revived he ends up getting caught by dream bc he went to the mansion (can’t remember why sorry) who reads through his comm to get petalsborough coords. around this time ranboo is also freaking out about his connection to dream and starts debating leaving petalsborough bc she thinks it’ll make it safer for tubbo and tommy. tommy and ranboo talk a little about how ranboo helped trap tommy in the prison. ranboo does end up leaving - I’ve written so many diff versions of this idr what exactly happened.

during this time subtotechno was bitten by Gertrude and was becoming possessed?/essentially turned into a mob. him and Philza (angelxxreaper) end up getting tubbo’s help (I thiiink tubbo might’ve needed something from them too but idr) since ranboo left, tubbo takes michael with him. there’s a snow storm that happens around this time so he ends up staying over. tommy is in petalsborough entirely by himself and then exile 2 happens. I content blocked this part so idk exactly what happens but he died and was revived a lot. tubbo essentially has to canon kill techno to stop the possession so he does. they sort of have a conversation and end up on okay/good terms. also during this tubbo and techno catch on to what’s happening and eventually ranboo comes back to petalsborough and realises what happened. them + Phil work on a plan to kill dream and save tommy. which is enacted and yayyy rpDream’s Dead ^_^

a lot of just sort of chilling from there on..? idk why this specific section is gone from my memory but they hang around petalsborough for a bit and tubbo works on projects and stuff. eventually tommy moves back to the mainland and then I think ranboo says he wants to as well? tubbo is a little iffy on it but eventually agrees and they move back to the mansion. I am not confident and will need to think some more so be aware I might reblog this (I’ll @ you ig) but I think it’s all mostly chill plot-wise from here on out for them? Ranboo and tubbo are thinking about adopting another child and are getting their place ready for that

Phil and techno recently started having issues with this ender King guy and sorry I’ve been busy so haven’t been able to follow along their plot as closely but I did see the finale bit and techno was paralysed + threatened with death and Phil became like.. a god or something I think and killed ender to save him

Songbird-sunrise (wilbur) and casinoroyale (quackity) have been chatting a lot. Umm before that Las Nevadas was abandoned while quackity was looking for Charlie and wilbur spent a lot of time sort of vandalising the place in like an attempt to get noticed by ppl. had some convos with Phil, techno, tommy and ranboo (and a couple very awkward ones with tubbo) and techno built him a house bc he was just living out of the burger van. also he canonically sometimes hallucinates a version of cranboo (girlboycranboo I think is the blog name? I’m pretty sure it’s run by met but idr) wilbur is in general trying to deal with revival and his actions b4 he died and everything

casinoroyale I admittedly only just followed so you know as much as I do but he’s commissioned tubbo for a pair of prosthetic wings so he can fly and that’s what tubbo’s been working on recently. and in general in still sort of looking for Charlie I think? but keeping that to himself

ummm I think this is everything! I recommend checking out some of their pinned posts bc it might have recaps - at the very least tubbolul’s does. hope this helps a bit ^_^

[red-doll-face]

I just found your blog and I LOVE IT.

If I might ask: What’s your saddest dbd headcanons (killers or survivors)

Call me crazy, but I must know! ❤️

Ohh this one was a good one but it hurt me so badddd, ahhh. I’m glad to share , I have some bad dbd brain rot lmaooo I didn’t do every character so I hope these are ok 🥺 these are a bit long too

Sad Dead by Daylight Hcs

Claudette Morel:

Claudette is one of the criers. Probably cries while getting mori’d and can't help the tears during the really bad matches. Her pain tolerance isn’t very high, hence the willingness to waste time healing herself if it means she can stop being in so much pain.

Meg Thomas:

Spends time alone thinking about her past life. Her mother is a subject that makes her really frustrated. People mentioning their moms makes her a little standoffish. Wishes she had a chance to say goodbye in some way.

Ace Visconti:

Ace doesn't have much family to even miss him. He wonders if they noticed he’s gone or hasn’t come back. Maybe they think he hit big bucks and left them behind. Ace is stuck really. Even if he were to go back, he’d be dead or working off his debt.

Feng Min:

Gets super mad when she loses, it makes her so angry that she doesn’t control the trials. She blames other people for her losses but actually is very critical of herself. Casts the blame on others so she doesn't have to face her own mistakes.

David King:

All of his perks are about putting his ass on the line for his teammates yet everyone seems to think he’s selfish and a dumb brute. David doesn't know what to do to be more approachable; genuinely wants to be seen as a friend.

Laurie Strode:

Laurie never got the chance to mourn her friends. She thought she won. Finding out she’ll never truly escape Michael or be able to forget him makes her so mad. When she gets Michael in trials she makes sure the glass in her pocket is extra jagged and serrated.

Jane Romero:

Jane only wanted recognition and acknowledgement. Everything she's worked so hard for feels like a waste for her now. She should have spent more time on herself or with her father. Jane feels like she has no purpose anymore besides running and screaming for the enjoyment of the entity.

Yui Kimura:

Yui can’t stand the Clown or the Stealth Killers. Reminds her of bad memories. When she loses against killers like ghostface, she is especially angry.Her fighting spirit can’t help her actually get back at them.

Zarina Kassir:

Spent so much time fighting inequality only to spend the rest of her life where the odds are never in favor of the survivors. Where the oppressed are destined to lose. Each one of the people is subjugated, both killer and survivor and there's nothing she can do to free them.

Cheryl Mason:

She's been through literal hell and back just to end up in a weird recurring nightmare. At least Silent Hill had an escape. She's killed a god and somehow someone her size with a boxcutter can kill her? Huh.

Élodie Rakoto:

Feels guilty over the loss of her parents and feels extremely disillusioned by this realm. It's so much more boring than she thought it would be. All of her searching and traveling was not worth this shithole.

Steve Harrington:

Steve, though 18, is very much still a kid. Steve is naive about certain things and his optimism gets chipped away at a lot. Wasn’t too enthusiastic at having to care or look after Dustin and his friends but misses having people to protect.

Jeff Johannson:

Someone who definitely ends up taking hooks for people and ends up dying. Has a reputation among the killers as a survivor who is easy to leverage during the endgame because he will try for that save.

Kate Denson:

Feels very lucky to even have her guitar. The other survivors didn't get to bring many things with them. Makes her feel a little bad when she Often feels too worn out and exhausted by the trials to play it.

Quentin Smith:

Unfortunately stuck in pseudo-hell with his abuser. Gets really anxious against Freddy. Leans on his fellow survivors. Will sometimes accidentally bring Freddy to others in an attempt to get Freddy the hell away for him.

Evan ‘The Trapper’ Macmillan:

Actually has tried on numerous occasions to remove the metal rods and shrapnel embedded in his skin. It hurts like hell and just when he thinks he’s got it, he loses grip. These attempts never work.

Philip ‘The Wraith’ Ojomo:

When he’s alone, Philip will try and talk to himself. His vocal cords are warped, his voice a scratchy growl and garbled gurgle. He remembers what he used to sound like but he tries talking less and less.

Max ‘The Hillbilly’ Thompson Jr.:

Besides being named after someone who locked him away for most of his life? Max has to rest a lot between trials. The constant movement puts strain on him and causes him dull pain. His back causes him a lot of grief. The Entity is barely merciful.

Michael ‘The Shape’ Myers:

Meant to be forgotten by everyone who ever knew of him and he knows it. Loomis, after deciding that Michael couldn't be ‘fixed’ just hoped that the system would swallow him. If it weren't for the entity, Michael knows he'd either be dead or caught and back with Loomis.

Bubba ‘The Cannibal’ Sawyer:

Used to be one of the nicer killers to go against and might have been sweet to certain survivors who deserved kindness. But the Entity punished him for it. Bubba isn't very nice anymore. Probably a little meaner to avoid being in trouble again.

Amanda ‘The Pig’ Young:

Another one down to give second chances, much like the second chance she saw in John Kramer. Doesn’t do this a lot however, therefore escaping the ire of the Entity. She’s spent a lifetime hurting others emotionally and physically. Now, she’ll spend an eternity.

Rin ‘The Spirit’ Yamaoka:

The pain and anguish is so heavy but time is no cure in a place where time is nonexistent. No happiness to replace her rage. Especially in a place where her anger is a weapon for a greater power. Also has tried to pull the glass out of her skin and press her limbs back together. Can’t stand to see herself in the mirror.

Adiris ‘The Plague’:

Her body is always on the precipice of falling apart. Her skin rots; her flesh aches and feels like it will tear away at any moment. She is immortalized yet so close to death. Her body hurts so much but she has a purpose to serve. (makes me even sadder bc jannneeeee my mainnnnn😔)

Kazan ‘The Oni’ Yamaoka:

Misses his son. Never got to see him grow up, considering he;s already met his descendant. Proud from a distance because that's all he can be. The beginning of something so angry that it passes down his family line.

Caleb ‘The Deathslinger’ Quinn

During his life, was under the control of people who made him work for their gain who used him. The Entity emphasizes the killers as a position of power but Caleb does much of the same here. Works and works. Never for himself.

Pyramid Head ‘The Executioner’:

His existence has always included pain. He’s not quite sure what it’s like without it. He’s made several efforts to take the pyramid off. It pulls painfully at his neck. Makes awful groaning noises and roars.

Ji-Woon ‘The Trickster’ Hak:

Has never been much more than entertainment for other people since he was a child. Never expected to be much more. To the point that now, if he doesn't feel impressive in some way, he feels incomplete. The entity is his way to really indulge his ‘true artistry’.

Yun-Jin Lee:

A bit selfish when it comes to surviving. A few people around the campfire dont like her for that reason. Some of the meaner people will even leave her behind because they remember all of the times Yun-Jin might have done something similar.

Thanks for reading!!! I’m sorry I don’t post often but I have Shit ton of hw and I recently started a new project sooo ya know 💖💖💖