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forabeatofadrum · 11 months ago

Text

A beautiful day in the neighbourhood

Summary: Kurt goes home to Lima for the holidays. There, he meets his parents' new neighbours, the Andersons. Kurt specifically is drawn to their youngest son, Blaine.

Notes: Hello everyone! This is my Klaine Secret Santa gift for @twinkkurt! I was a bit nervous when I got your username, because I love your art so much and I, uh, wanted to impress you. I hope you like it. I really liked writing it.

An additional thanks to Beth @quizasvivamos, who helped with brainstorming the title.

Happy reading!

AO3 | S&C

Kurt’s staring out of the window of his parents’ house with a wistful smile on his face.

He loves New York with his whole heart, but he has to admit that Lima has its charm. Back when he was a teen, he never thought he’d think this way.

Maybe now that he no longer lives here, he’s able to look at it in a different way. It’s nice to be here, with the knowledge that he’ll eventually go back home. Besides, New York is too loud and eccentric and a part of Kurt thrives because of it, but another part of him has learnt to appreciate this quieter atmosphere of Lima.

Oh, and it helps that Kurt never has to run into anyone from high school ever again. All his closest Glee club friends have left Lima as well, so he has no reason to seek out anyone who might recognise him from school. No longer being a high schooler is definitely the biggest perk of living in New York. High school was the main reason he couldn’t ever appreciate the quiet life here, because his life was never quiet. He could never appreciate the small tight-knit community feel, because he didn’t feel like he was welcomed into it.

But now he’s an adult who only comes back to Lima every now and then to see family and friends who are also visiting.

Kurt sighs as he watches a neighbour walk his dog. The neighbour sees him staring and smiles and waves. This truly is different from the rapid pace of the big city. His neighbour in New York barely gives him the time of day and she’s moving out within a few days. Kurt will not miss her. This man, on the other hand, has already shown Kurt more kindness in these few seconds than the other neighbour has in years.

Also, Kurt’s never seen this man in his life. He certainly doesn’t remember him.

“That’s Mr. Anderson,” Kurt hears.

He looks over his shoulder. His dad is sat on the sofa with a book open on his lap, but he also noticed Mr. Anderson walking past the house.

“Is he new in the neighbourhood?” Kurt asks.

His dad nods.

“Yes, he and his wife moved here a couple of weeks ago from Westerville. Apparently they had been planning on moving to a smaller house ever since their youngest son moved out.”

“And they moved to a random suburb in Lima, of all places?” Kurt asks, bemused.

His dad barks out a laugh.

“I know it’s hard to believe for a big city lover, but people still willingly move to the Midwest,” his dad says with a jokey tone.

Kurt moves away from the window and forgets about Mr. Anderson. Instead, he cosies up against his dad and he watches a rerun of Drag Race. His dad keeps reading, since he’s not bothered by the noise. Carole later comes into the living room and when she sees Drag Race is on, she eagerly joins Kurt.

This is what Kurt loves about Lima.

This is what he misses the most when he’s in New York.

This is also one of the moments he misses his brother, but he doesn’t want to bring it up when Carole is trash-talking the judging section. Besides, Kurt’s pretty certain she misses him too at this moment. It goes unsaid.

He and Carole watch three episodes in a row when the doorbell rings. It’s the delivery of groceries. Kurt’s dad gives the delivery person a huge tip to celebrate the holidays and the three of them put them away while chatting about the holiday plans. Tomorrow, some extended family members are coming over for Christmas and Kurt and Carole are going to cook a grand meal for everyone, while Kurt’s dad is going to set up a makeshift bar.

Everyone is going to be perfect.

Hopefully.

But when Kurt and his family are finished putting away the groceries, Kurt realises that they’re missing an ingredient.

“Rosemary! Carole, we are missing the rosemary!” Kurt exclaims. He checks the receipt again, but it really isn’t on it. Which is good, because then they also didn’t pay for it, but they need the rosemary.

Carole realises she forgot to order it, which can happen, but now Kurt’s fucked.

“Calm down, Kurt,” his dad says, “I will drive to the store tomorrow morning before the guests arrive.”

“I appreciate it, dad,” Kurt pouts, “But Carole and I need to start now, because it needs to be in the fridge overnight!”

“Ah. That’s… a problem,” his dad admits.

But then Carole lets out a small gasp.

“Wait a second! Burt, doesn’t Pam have a little herb garden?”

Kurt’s dad thinks it over.

“Yes, she does,” he answers, “But it’s winter, Carole.”

“But she might have some that she’s harvested earlier in the year,” Carole points out, “And Pam is a more experienced gardener. If there’s a way to keep rosemary alive in winter, then she’d know it!”

“Oh, you have a point there. Can we ask if she has some to spare?”

“I think we can just ask her. She wouldn’t mind,” Carole continues, “Kurt can go, because he knows how much we need. He found the recipe on the internet!”

“Brilliant,” his dad says, “Great plan, Carole.”

“That’s why you’re married to me,” Carole jokes.

Kurt waves his arms to get his parents’ attention.

“Hi, hello,” he says, “I love this idea. Who’s Pam?”

“Pam Anderson, the new neighbour,” Carole answers.

“Mr. Anderson’s wife,” his dad adds for clarification.

“On it,” Kurt says.

Carole tells Kurt that the Andersons moved into the house left of theirs, which delights Kurt, since he never really liked Ms. Johnson and her weird grandson anyway. He grabs his coat, since it’s very cold outside, and tells his dad and Carole that he’d be back soon.

The Andersons have a festive wreath on their front door and it makes Kurt smiles. He rings the bell and waits for Mr. Anderson or his wife to open the door. He can already hear the dog bark and his smile widens.

The door opens and Kurt’s ready to introduce himself and ask if Pam is around, but when he sees the man who’s opened the door, he’s rendered speechless. It’s not Mr. Anderson, but it’s another man. He must be around Kurt’s age and he’s dressed in a cozy sweater with a cute checkered bowtie to top it all off.

Kurt’s dad mentioned that the Andersons have a son and this must be him. Kurt assumes he’s also visiting family for the holidays.

“Uh, hello?” the son asks after a short silence. He looks a bit confused and Kurt realises he’s standing on this porch in complete silence, staring at him.

Right. Not a great first impression.

Kurt quickly composes himself.

“Hi, uh, my name is Kurt,” he says and he mentally high-fives himself for being able to sound coherent, “My parents live next door. The Hummel-Hudsons.”

A look of understanding crosses the man’s face. Now Kurt is no longer a random person that came out of nowhere. That’s progress.

“Anyway, my stepmother said that your, uh, mother might have some spare rosemary? We don’t have any and we really need it for the recipe that we’re trying out.”

The man steps aside so that Kurt can come inside.

“Come on in, it’s too cold to wait outside.”

“Thanks.”

Kurt follows the man to the living room where he’s greeted by an enthusiastic dog. There are three other adults. Kurt recognises Mr. Anderson, but there’s also a woman, presumably Pam, and another man who looks slightly older than the son. The son and Kurt explain the situation and, as Carole predicted, Pam is eager to help out.

“Oh, I need to go outside to harvest some,” Pam says.

“If it’s too much of a hassle-”

“Nonsense,” Pam cuts him off, “I’ll be back in a jiffy. Blaine, can you find my easy shoes?”

“They’re probably still at the back door where you left them, iná,” the son, who’s apparently named Blaine, says.

“Smartass,” Pam jokes.

Kurt tells Pam how much he and Carole need and Pam goes outside. Kurt’s standing awkwardly in this family’s living room, but luckily, the dog takes an interest in him, so Kurt has something to do.

“You like pets?” he says while petting the huge Bernese mountain dog.

“Oh, she adores them,” Blaine says.

“Who’s a good girl?” Kurt coos.

“Well, she wasn’t a good girl earlier today when she made me walk five extra blocks,” the still unnamed man says, “She’s strong and doesn’t listen when she doesn’t want to.”

“She got that from you then, Cooper,” Mr. Anderson teases.

“Dad!”

Kurt smiles. He likes this family. He can see they all treat each other kindly and that they are close, the same way his family works. Pam comes back with a handful of rosemary for Kurt and he thanks her profusely.

“No biggie,” she says, “Happy holidays.”

Blaine walks Kurt towards the door and they don’t say much, which is fine by Kurt, because then he has less opportunity to embarrass himself. He hopes he isn’t red in the face and if he is, then hopefully Blaine will think it’s because of the cold.

“Thanks again,” Kurt says and leaves.

Once he’s back in his own kitchen, he hands the herbs to Carole, who’s delighted. She’d already started meal prepping.

“Did you know that Mr. and Mrs. Anderson’s sons are visiting?” Kurt asks.

“Oh, no I wasn’t aware.”

“Me neither.”

“Have you met him- them before?”

“Only Cooper, the eldest,” his dad answers, “He helped his parents move in. The youngest couldn’t make it because of his studies. Cooper is… interesting.”

He and Carole share a private smile and Kurt needs to remind himself to ask about that later, but now he has a more pressing matter.

“And the youngest?”

Carole shrugs.

“Pam says he barely has time to visit, which everyone dislikes, but we get it.”

Kurt also gets it. He wishes he could be here with family more often.

“I did hear that he lives in New York as well!” Kurt’s dad says. Now, that is interesting. “Cooper lives in LA, and Blaine lives in New York. I mean, he’s called Blaine, right?”

He directs that last question to Carole, but Kurt answers it.

“Yeah, he’s named Blaine. I just met him.”

“Oh lovely,” Carole says, “What are the odds? Maybe you two can meet up in New York.”

“… I barely know him, Carole,” Kurt says quietly.

“So?” Carole says back, “Nowadays, people your age meet each other online. I don’t think that barely knowing anyone is a barrier these days.”

“She has a point,” Kurt’s dad adds.

“Alright. Alright,” Kurt says.

The truth is that it sounds nice to get to know Blaine a bit more. Kurt’s not stupid. He understands that he finds Blaine cute. It’s been a while since he met a guy who immediately renders him speechless, but Kurt also knows from experiences that looks aren’t everything. He’s here in Lima to see him family, not to jump on the neighbours’ son.

He and Carole continue their meal prepping and the conversation moves away from Blaine.

The next day is filled with joy. Kurt barely has time to see his dad and Carole, so he definitely doesn’t have time to see his extended family.

Everyone likes what he and Carole prepared and Carole points out that everyone should thank Pam as well.

After dinner, Kurt’s aunts prepare the desert and Kurt’s younger cousins beg him to go outside with them.

“Come on, it’s snowing!”

Kurt has to admit that snow also is more enjoyable here than in New York, because in New York, snow feels more like a nuisance blocking Kurt’s way. He’s constantly busy, getting from one place to the other. Here, Kurt has no reason to leave the neighbourhood today. They all go outside to make snow angels and what not.

Suddenly, Kurt hears a somewhat familiar voice.

“See, Squirt, people in this neighbourhood know where it’s at!”

Kurt follows the sound of the voice. Cooper is standing in the doorway of his parents’ house, decked out in winter clothes. Kurt can see Blaine behind Cooper and he’s shivering. He’s talking to Cooper, but he’s too far away for Kurt to understand.

“Coop, close the door,” Kurt can make out at one point.

Cooper says something back before going outside and closing the door behind him. Then he waves at Kurt.

“Hi, merry Christmas, forgive my stupid brother,” Cooper says loudly, probably so that Blaine can also hear it, “He’s a New Yorker, so he doesn’t appreciate snow enough. But I barely see this white goodness in my life, so I am out and about!”

“Tell your brother that I am also a New Yorker so he has no reason to stay inside,” Kurt jokes and Cooper’s eyes widen.

“Great idea!” he says and immediately goes back to the house.

Kurt and his cousins watch how Cooper’s locked out and how he’s demanding Blaine to let him in.

“Who is he?” one of Kurt’s cousins ask.

“Son of the new neighbours,” Kurt answers.

“Is he also coming out to play?”

“I think so.”

“Cool.”

Cooper manages to get in and five minutes later, he and Blaine come outside. Cooper immediately bonds with Kurt’s younger cousins. Blaine stands aside and Kurt takes a deep breath. He can be sociable. He’s a kind neighbour!

“Hey,” he says casually.

“Hi.”

“Not the biggest fan of snow, I hear?”

Blaine shrugs.

“I am, actually, but I just don’t feel like hanging out with my brother in the snow.”

“Why is that?” Kurt looks at Cooper, who’s started building a snow hut with Kurt’s cousins.

“He’s cool, pun intended, with other people, but ever since we were little he’d be kind of an ass. He’d try to put snow down my back, for example,” Blaine explains.

Kurt winces. That is kind of a dick move.

But at least he still has a brother. And even though Blaine sounds genuinely irritated, Kurt understands that Blaine doesn’t actually hate Cooper for the snow thing. After all, Blaine still could’ve stayed inside.

“You did come out here,” Kurt points out.

“I kind of have you to blame for that,” Blaine teases.

“Oh?”

“Cooper said you’re from New York. I had been using my New York status against him.”

Kurt laughs.

“Oh, don’t get me started on snow in New York.”

“Pffff, yeah,” Blaine says, “Good thing the subway is underground, but getting there, trudging through a thick layer of snow? Hell.”

“Hah, yes!” Kurt says and they fall into a comfortable silence. They watch everyone else have fun, and Kurt has an idea. He bends down to make a little snowball and shows it to Blaine.

Blaine raises an eyebrow.

“Now that your brother is occupied with keeping my cousins busy… are you in for a snowball fight?”

Blaine has an amused look on his face.

“You know what. Why not?”

Kurt’s aunts asked everyone to come inside, since dinner is ready. Kurt and his cousins are huddled together around the table, getting warm again. Everyone had a lot of fun and time flew by. Kurt didn’t even realise that his aunts were asking him to come in, since he was running around like a madman, trying to hit Blaine with his massive snowball.

And now Kurt’s enjoying his desert, but he’s still thinking about Blaine. It was really fun, so maybe Carole is right. Maybe he can ask if Blaine wants to meet up in New York.

What’s the worst that can happen? Blaine can say no.

Okay, that thought is terrifying.

But he can also say yes.

Kurt doesn’t actually talk to Blaine the day after. He only sees him in the morning, when Blaine passes the window. It’s his turn to walk the dog. Kurt and Blaine wave at each other, but that’s it.

In the afternoon, Cooper walks the dog and in the evening, Mr. and Mrs. Anderson take him out. Kurt’s almost sad when he doesn’t get the chance to wave at Blaine.

Mr. and Mrs. Anderson are out of sight and Kurt lets out a pathetic, sad sigh.

“Dear lord, just ring the bell already!” his dad says.

“What do you mean?” Kurt feigns ignorance, but he’s not surprised that his dad sees right through it. His dad has always known him the best.

“Don’t think I missed the smitten look on your face, kiddo,” his dad laughs, “Your thoughts were elsewhere. And your cousins mentioned that you and Blaine seemed to hit it off.”

“He is really nice,” Kurt admits.

His dad hums.

“And handsome.”

His dad hums again.

“And he lives in New York.”

“He does!”

Kurt looks outside again, because for a split second he stupidly believes he is in some Hallmark movie where Blaine appears outside his window to express his adoration.

There’s no one, obviously. He and Blaine have only known each other for a short time.

But as his dad and Carole point out, this doesn’t have to be the end of it. Kurt goes home to New York just before New Year’s and then he might meet up with Blaine and get to know him better.

Then Kurt thinks: Fuck it, he deserves a cute holiday romance.

“You know what, dad? I will go see him tomorrow.”

“Wonderful!” his dad says, and he’s so genuinely happy for Kurt, it makes Kurt’s heart swell.

“Burt says you’re going to ask Blaine from next door out on a date,” Carole says during breakfast and Kurt almost spits out his food.

“Dad!”

“What?” his dad asks, not bothered at all.

“I didn’t say that,” Kurt quickly says, “I said I am going to ask if he wants to meet up once we’re back in New York.”

“With the intention of dating him.”

“With the intention of getting to know him,” Kurt corrects, although he mentally adds ‘and potentially date him later’, but his dad doesn’t have to know that yet, although as usual, his dad knows better.

“You can get to know him on a date,” Carole says, feigning innocence.

“Oh my god,” Kurt hides his head in his hands.

“Don’t mind us, Kurt,” his dad sounds amused, “Or, don’t mind Carole. I don’t want to invade your privacy. You do what you want to do.”

“Hey!” Carole says back.

“Oh my God,” Kurt repeats, with his head still in his hands, but he can feel the smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

He acts embarrassed, and maybe he is a little bit, but he’s also glad to have such a supportive family.

They really want him to be happy. Kurt knows so many people who don’t have it as good as him, so he’s not taking this for granted.

If Finn were still around, he’d volunteer to be Kurt’s personal wingman instantly.

“Alright, alright, I’ll keep you guys up to date,” Kurt relents, “I plan on seeing him later today.”

Kurt smells the opportunity for a little fashion moment, so he needs to make use of that. Most of his wardrobe is still in New York, but he likes to dress for the occasion, and asking his neighbours’ son to hang out is definitely a big one.

The conversation shifts to other topics, like his dad’s garage or Carole’s latest interest in diamond painting, and they finish their breakfast. Kurt helps out with the cleaning up and then it’s time to go up to his room to rummage through his limited wardrobe.

He’s going through his closet when the doorbell rings. Kurt doesn’t pay attention to it, because he can hear his dad moving around to open it, but his interested is piqued when his dad says it’s for him.

Kurt hastily puts on some clothes, since he was a bit undressed because he was trying on outfits, and he goes downstairs.

He stops halfway on the staircase when he sees Blaine in the hallway.

“Hey,” Blaine says.

“Hey?” Kurt says, unable to hide his confusion.

Oh, he also looks terrible. He picked the worst combination of clothes in his rush to get down.

Of course this happens to him when Blaine’s at the door. And don’t even mention his hair. It’s a monstrosity! Of course Blaine looks prim and proper.

“I’ll leave you two at it,” Kurt’s dad says and promptly turns around to leave, although once his back it towards Blaine, he winks towards Kurt.

The mix of embarrassment and happiness about his dad and Carole’s interest in Kurt’s love life returns.

“Hey,” Blaine says again.

“Oh. Hello,” Kurt finally comes down.

“I kinda wanted to talk to you before I leave.”

“Leave?”

Blaine nods.

“I’m flying back to New York later today,” Blaine clarifies.

“Oh.”

“I need to move apartments, so I couldn’t stay for longer,” Blaine continues.

“Right.”

“Which sucks, because I like seeing my parents.”

“Yeah.”

“Cooper not so much,” Blaine says, but again, Kurt can hear the jokey undertone.

Kurt smiles.

“Yeah.”

“But, uhm, I kinda wanted to ask if I could see you again? In New York, I mean? To, uh, chill?”

“To chill, huh?” Kurt says, amused, and Blaine turns a bit red.

“Weird choice of words,” Blaine agrees, “But what do you think?”

“Yes, sure,” Kurt tries to act casual and cool, but his mind is reeling. Blaine wants to see him too! Man, the moment Blaine’s out of the door, Kurt will probably jump up and down with excitement.

“Neat,” Blaine sounds relieved, “Can I have your number then?”

“Yeah!” Kurt answers and they exchange numbers.

“Alright. Cool. I mean, yeah, cool!” Blaine stumbles a bit over his words, which Kurt finds endearing.

“Cool,” Kurt echoes.

“Then see you soon!”

“See you soon,” Kurt says back.

Blaine leaves after that and as predicted, Kurt leans against the front door with a huge, disbelieved grin on his face. He might look like utter shit and his hair is a mess, but who cares, cause Blaine wants to hang out with him!

“And?”

Kurt looks up to see Carole’s head peeking around the corner.

Kurt’s smile widens.

Kurt isn’t in a rush to get back to New York, since he wants to savour every moment with his family and he meets up with friends, but knowing that Blaine is waiting for him in New York does make him more eager to leave.

Okay, Blaine isn’t actively waiting for Kurt, but Kurt can dream, right?

They’ve texted a little bit over the past few days, but now that Kurt’s actually leaving, he sends more messages.

“Kurt, get off your phone! We need to say goodbye!” Carole scorns, but it’s nor serious. Besides, she has a point. His dad and Carole and about to drive home from the airport, and Kurt’s on his phone to text Blaine.

“Sorry,” Kurt pockets his phone.

“You’ll see him enough,” his dad says.

“Ideally, yes,” Kurt says with a smile. He’s shooting his shot.

Not immediately, though. He doesn’t want to come off as overeager. He’s going home now, then he’ll celebrate New Year’s tomorrow with some friends, and then he’ll see if he can meet up with Blaine.

He and his parents say goodbye. As usual, the hug between him and his dad lasts a long time, but it’s time for Kurt to go. This really is the worst part of going back home. He knows his dad and Carole will miss him too.

New York is messy, loud, and gorgeous.

He takes the elevator to his floor. Then, he stops in front of his door and casts a look to his neighbour’s door. There’s a new rainbow doormat in front of it, which Kurt sees as a confirmation that his shitty neighbour is truly gone.

Once he’s inside, he lets out a sigh of relief. He’s so ready to just unpack and relax. He’ll need to do some groceries later, but now he wants to “chill”, as Blaine said.

So that’s what he does. He unpacks, makes some coffee, and browses social media on his phone in peace. He texts Blaine, telling him he’s arrived home, and he also checks in with some other friends about tomorrow’s New Year’s plans.

Yet, life continues. Groceries are part of adult, independent life. There’s no grocery delivery here for Kurt, so Kurt sighs and decides to just do it instead of procrastinate, which is something he’s proud of. He put on appropriate winter attire and grabs a shopper.

When he’s outside and turns around to lock his door, the neighbour’s door opens. Kurt doesn’t really pay attention, since he needs to lock his door. He’s forgotten once before, so he always pays attention here.

Once everything’s locked up, he turns to his side to introduce himself, since unlike his previous neighbour, Kurt does have manners, but his words die in his throat.

Blaine is standing on the rainbow doormat with a surprised look on his face.

“Hello neighbour,” he’s the first to break the shocked silence.

“Hello.”

“Long time no see-”

“What a surprise-”

It falls silent again, but it’s not an awkward silence. In fact, Kurt’s amused by this whole situation, because what are the odds? Blaine’s shocked expression has also been replaced by a more amused one.

“You’re my new neighbour,” Kurt sounds disbelieved.

“I see,” Blaine says back, “Hello, neighbour, again.”

The two of them laugh.

“I’m… going to go,” Kurt holds up his shopper.

“Oh,” Blaine opens the pocket of his jacket and takes out a folded up shopper, “Groceries?”

“Yes!” Kurt says. This is so weird. “I just got home from Ohio, so I have absolutely nothing.”

“I get it. Anyway, great to see you. I’m new here. Where do you get your groceries?”

“You haven’t done any grocery shopping since you moved here?” Kurt asks.

Blaine turns a bit red.

“Uh. No. I have.”

“Okay?” Kurt says with a frown.

“Sorry,” Blaine says and then lets out an awkward laugh, “This- I- Okay. I didn’t know how else to ask if you wanted to hang out now.”

Kurt’s eyes widen in surprise. Neither of them had made actual plans to “chill” yet. Kurt didn’t want to seem to eager, and Blaine hadn’t made any concrete suggestions yet.

Kurt’s down to hang out, even though he didn’t expect their first meet-up in New York to be for grocery shopping, but then he also didn’t expect Blaine to be his new neighbour.

“Sure,” Kurt says with a smile.

And that’s how they end at a coffee shop called Think Coffee instead of the grocery store. Kurt’s reasoning was that it’s easier to get coffee beforehand and before Kurt could apologise for randomly suggesting a coffee date (is it a date?), Blaine agreed to it.

Of course, they discuss how funny it is that their parents live next to each other, and now they also live next to each other.

“My dad mentioned that your family is originally from Westerville, I think?”

Blaine nods.

“Yes. Cooper and I went to a boarding school there, but we were day students. Do you know Dalton Academy?”

The name does ring a bell.

“From the Warblers?”

Blaine looks amazed.

“Yes!” he utters in disbelief, “That’s my former glee club!”

“Really?” Kurt asks, “I’m from the New Directions.”

Blaine shoots him a quizzed look.

“McKinley High, in Lima,” Kurt clarifies.

“… That sounds familiar.”

“This is insane,” Kurt says before taking a sip of his coffee. He needs to let this sink in. The day has certainly turned out to be different than expected.

“Yeah. I’m a Dalton boy.”

“And then your parents moved to Lima of all places, when you graduated.”

Blaine snorts.

“I know right?” he says, but then he smiles, “Although, it led to me meeting you, so I cannot hold it against them anymore.”

“I agree.”

“And you? Did you grow up in that house?”

Kurt shakes his head.

“No, but I did grow up in Lima. My dad got married to Carole a few years back, and then they bought that house for the four of us to live in.”

“Four?”

“Me, my dad, my stepmother and my stepbrother,” Kurt answers.

“I didn’t know you had a brother!” Blaine sounds surprised, “God, I hope he’s not as bad as Cooper.”

“Oh… Well… No,” Kurt says slowly.

“Did I miss him during my visit? I mean, my parents never mentioned him, so does he live out of the state?”

Kurt sighs. This part is always hard, painful, and eventually awkward. He didn’t plan on bringing up the dead brother story, but on the other hand, he does want to get to know Blaine and he hopes Blaine wants to get to know him as well. Well, it must be. Otherwise Blaine wouldn’t have joined him on this supposed grocery trip.

“He died, actually,” Kurt says quietly.

As expected, the silence stretches out and it becomes more awkward and awkward.

“Oh. Kurt. I’m… sorry,” Blaine eventually says, although he seems a bit lost for words.

“It’s okay.” It’s not, but it’s okay that Blaine doesn’t know what to say. Kurt can’t blame him. How do you properly react to hearing a young person died?

“Oh, shit!” Blaine suddenly exclaims, “And here I am, complaining constantly about Cooper! That’s such a dick move!”

“It’s okay,” Kurt says again, “You didn’t know. And besides, it was fun to see you two interact.”

“Yeah?” Blaine asks.

Kurt hums.

“Yes. It’s clear that your complaining and his teasing comes from a place of love. Me and Finn would do the same. God, you have no idea how many times I complained about his habits, or how many times he’d playfully tease me for my brooch collection.”

Kurt would give anything to hear Finn playfully mock his hippo brooch again.

“Can you tell me about him?” Blaine asks.

So Kurt does. He tells Blaine that he and Finn didn’t really like each other at the beginning, but then they both joined glee club, although it turned out that Finn got blackmailed by their glee club director who had planted a stash of weed in Finn’s locker. (“What?” “It’s not important, Blaine.”) That’s how they slowly became friends, and Kurt eventually developed a crush on Finn and decided to pair up his dad and Finn’s mom in an attempt to get closer to Finn. (“Excuse me?” “It’s in the past, Blaine.”) But eventually their parents got married and Kurt’s crush died out and they became stepbrothers. It was a bit rocky at the beginning, but they grew to love each other as family and dropped the “step” part quickly.

“So yeah, we didn’t always see everything eye to eye, but that’s just how family is. I miss him, especially now, during the holidays.”

“I can imagine.”

“The entire family always shows up, and it’s glaringly obvious that someone is missing,” Kurt laments, “I don’t like to dwell on it, neither do my dad and Carole, but it’s on our minds, especially when I see my cousins together, or when you and Cooper banter. But it also makes me think of good memories with him, like the time he and his friend Puck dressed up in Star Wars outfits for Christmas.”

“Oh. Amazing.”

“Or when Carole told Finn he needed to help out for Christmas dinner, and he burned it all down, so we ended up eating soup out of a can that year.”

Kurt chuckles and Blaine also lets out a laugh.

“He sounds lovely,” Blaine says.

“He was. Most of the time.”

They laugh again.

Kurt lifts his cup to get another sip, only to find it empty. Blaine also wiggles his cup around.

“Time flies,” he says.

Kurt hums in agreement. He gets out of his seat.

“Grocery time?” he asks.

“Oh. Yeah. Groceries,” Blaine sounds bewildered. It’s that Kurt definitely needs to eat, otherwise he also would’ve forgotten.

Kurt leads them to the grocery store he always goes to, which is one that Blaine hadn’t seen before, so that’s a nice extra. Kurt needs to buy a lot, since he just got home after a trip to Lima, but Blaine only needs some things. Still, he sticks around to talk to Kurt and so that they can walk home together.

“Hello neighbour.”

Blaine looks a bit surprised. He probably didn’t expect Kurt to just knock, but Kurt’s feeling daring. Yesterday’s coffee and grocery trip-slash-date was a lot of fun and Kurt decided to just go for it.

“Hello,” Blaine says back.

“Do you have plans for this New Year’s?”

“Yes?” Blaine says, which is fair. Kurt should’ve expected that. “But why are you asking?”

Kurt’s asking because he woefully fantasised about kissing Blaine, if he wants, when the clock hits midnight.

“Oh. Well, I am meeting up with some friends and I wanted to see if you wanted to join, but it makes sense you already have plans.”

Kurt’s about to awkwardly say goodbye and admit defeat, but Blaine stops him.

“I’m meeting my friends at eleven in the evening. I still have time. When will you meet your friends?”

“Also later today,” Kurt answers. Around ten, or something. It wasn’t very clear. It’s more one of those “drop by whenever you want” parties. He just wanted to check if Blaine were interested in joining.

“Sooo,” Blaine draws out the word, “I don’t think I can make it to your friend’s party, but what are your plans now?”

Now? Well, Kurt planned on binge watching trashy TV, order food and wait till it’s time to go see his friends.

“Nothing. I am free,” Kurt answers.

Blaine opens his front door further and steps aside.

“Feel free to come in, then,” Blaine says with a smile and how can Kurt refuse. He didn’t plan on this, but he isn’t mad about it.

“Thank you.”

Blaine gives Kurt a small tour of his still bare apartment. It’s clear that he’s only just moved in. Blaine tells Kurt that beforehand he lived in a shitty dorm room, so he was ecstatic when he found this relatively cheap apartment.

Kurt can relate. He used to live in Bushwick in a place that didn’t have proper walls. This building is still not the most luxurious, but it is an upgrade!

“My dad mentioned you moved here for your studies,” Kurt recalls.

Blaine nods.

“Yeah. I’m go to NYADA. Maybe you’ve heard of it.”

Oh, Kurt’s heard of NYADA. He got accepted into NYADA as well, but he turned it down to pursue an education in fashion instead. But he knows how hard it is to get into NYADA.

The conversation quickly turns into a long and winded discussion about the current Broadway season and how other shows got robbed at previous Tony Awards ceremonies.

Blaine also shows off his new coffee machine (“Got it as a Christmas present!”), so Blaine makes Kurt a fancy cappuccino. It’s so comfortable to be around Blaine and Kurt’s glad that Blaine likes him too.

An hour later, they’re on Blaine’s couch, huddled underneath a shared fleece blanket, and they’re eating snacks that Kurt brought over from his place while watching a Broadway bootleg. Kurt adores this show, but he’s having a hard time paying attention to it.

How can he, when Blaine’s so close?

He keeps staring at Blaine, so of course Blaine notices at one point.

“Something on my face?” he asks with a jokey tone.

Kurt doesn’t answer. He knows what he wants. He puts his hands on Blaine’s cheeks and pulls him in for a kiss.

Blaine kisses back and he wraps his arms around Kurt to pull him even more closer.

Kurt had wanted to kiss him at midnight, but he couldn’t wait any longer. There are no actual fireworks now in the background, but that doesn’t matter. Kissing Blaine already feels like fireworks are going off.

They keep kissing until they remember that they need to breathe.

“Woah,” Blaine sounds out of breath.

“Woah indeed,” Kurt echoes him.

The two of them stare at each other before Blaine throws himself on Kurt and kisses him again.

Later that evening, they’re finally finishing the bootleg. They got a bit preoccupied, so they weren’t able to watch all of it.

Both Kurt and Blaine cancelled their plans. They want to spend this New Year’s with each other. Outside, the city of New York is alive and bustling, filled with people who are ready to go wild and party. But Kurt and Blaine are fine, cuddling together in Blaine’s new apartment in their neighbourhood.

It’s a perfect way to start the new year and Kurt wouldn’t have had it any other way.

End notes: Here ya go, Arden! Your wishlist was an absolute delight and I actually had a hard time narrowing it down, because I wanted to include as much as possible. This fic uses the "genre: alternative universe", "genre: fluff", "genre: romance", "location: Ohio", "location: New York", "age: young adult/college", "designer!Kurt", "actor!Blaine", "preferred theme: holiday-themed" and of course "other favourite tropes/story elements: neighbours".

Happy holidays!

#holy fuck I wrote #2023 #klaine #glee #oneshot #klainesecretsanta2023

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ltwharfy · 1 year ago

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What are some of your favorite quotes from Bob’s Burgers? Can be a top five, can be from a specific character or episode, can be from the movie, anything you want!

Doing a list of my overall favorite quotes would be soooo hard; I think I would end up turning it into a top several hundred list for fear of missing one. And that would be a lot of work! So instead I'm going to narrowly focus on one character in one episode.

Here's my list of favorite Louise Belcher quotes from "Sleeping with the Frenemy":

(to Tammy): "That's lip gloss? I thought you'd always just finished eating rotisserie chicken." (The way she says "just" is probably my second favorite Kristen Schaal pronunciation of a single word in the series.)

"Geez, Tina. A boy comes in here looking for a girl who works in a restaurant with lots of snot, and he doesn't meet you."

"We can pull this off. And all it's gonna take is a couple telephones, ear-buds, a little luck, big hats, potted plants, more luck, precision timing, some sort of a distraction, and a little luck." (I genuinely wish I could memorize this line so I could say it whenever I'm expected to come up with a plan/idea)

Tammy: "Sounds doable." Louise: "Well, I wouldn't go that far. But if it doesn't work, at least it'll fail enjoyably." ("Failing enjoyably" just seems like a good life goal, honestly.)

Linda: "Tammy's really going though the paper goods there." Louise: "She's the same with TP. She really lays down a nest." (If I am ever asked to comment on anyone's TP usage, I will say this.)

Linda: "This whole thing...it was a Cyrano de Burger-ac!" Louise: "Cyra-yes de Burger-ac!" (I love Louise playing off Linda here, and her enthusiasm in delivering the line. Also, I kind of regret not thinking of Cyra-yes de Burger-ac as a username when I was signing up on AO3 and tumblr.)

Two non-Louise bits from that episode that I have to acknowledge: Gene (entering the room topless right after Louise's fail enjoyably line): "If you need a distraction, how 'bout these wubba-wubbas?"

Also, the part about how the Pestos always go to Cooperstown, New York, but J-Ju apparently doesn't know what the Baseball Hall of Fame is might be the "Bob's Burgers" joke I've overthought the most. I'll do a post on it someday.

#bob's burgers #favorite quotes #sleeping with the frenemy #louise belcher #tammy larsen #linda belcher #gene belcher #tina belcher #thanks for asking!

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theallianceofcelestials · 6 months ago

Note

in your last post you mentioned an au youre working on. what is it about❓👀 got me interested ngl cuz the dimension w/ that old moon and sun is already kinda cool and i lwk want more of it. sso yk maybe share❓❓🙏👀

Oh golly, I didn't think someone would actually read my ramblings in the tags, haha

But yes, I'm helping a friend with an AU she's working on, and I'm helping her flesh some things out. This AU is a smaller part of the overall story.

My username is kind of a reference to it too, a little inside joke between her and I, lol. We've also created an AO3 account, which will be shared between us, but there's nothing on it yet. ��(￣▽￣)╭

So, one of the biggest differences between the AU and the dimension shown in the episode "A Place Where It NEVER HAPPENED!!! in VRChat" is that Earth is there, as I've mentioned in the tags.

They've also all got codenames because the main AU is kinda centered around a collection of different dimensions, and I'll from now on, refer to the characters by these codenames.

Earth: Meadow

Sun: Daffodil

Moon: Waterfall

The other big difference is that The Creator is alive.

Funnily enough, Meadow was the first character to appear from this dimension, and her brothers came to be, when my friend and I started fleshing things out.

So, Waterfall never left any of his homicide code in Daffodil, much like the Moon from the episode. But unlike that Moon, he deals with the homicidal violent urges differently. He hunts animals, that his siblings cook so they all could eat it, or donate the meat/food, and he has punching bags in his room! And all around the house. His friendship with Monty hasn't really kicked off yet, since the events leading up to that never happened. And he has the Star still. Hid it better, than our Moon did, haha...

Since there was no killcode being left behind that could grow into an Eclipse, who in turn would make Bloodmoon, Daffodil has no July 16th related trauma. And technically, since there was no July 16th, Dazzle wouldn't be a thing either, now that I think about it. Or at least not how we know them. Huh. His personality is similar to early portrayals of Sun, friendly, energetic, gullible, with the tiniest bit of sass he has nowadays.

And Meadow is in the first Earth body, and thanks to her, Waterfall and Daffodil has healthier ways to solve issues that could come up. She's also adored by her big brothers, naturally, and they would do anything to make her happy. Waterfall offered to pay for her studies if she decides she'd like to be a licensed therapist, or anything else she'd wish to be.

And you can imagine the shovel talk to end all shovel talks, when the brothers find out Monty has taken a fancy to their dear baby sister, lol.

Waterfall's got all his bunkers, but they live on a nice secluded island instead of one of the bunkers. My friend is not yet sure if it's the same as the island house from canon or nah.

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turtletaubwrites · 6 months ago

Note

if it's not too personal i'd love to know where your name comes from. does is come from the german "turteltaube"/"turteltäubchen"?

Omg, I have been WAITING for this day. Thank you so much for asking me this question 🥰🙏 My username has the most ridiculous story 😅

My partner is German, and he moved to the states when he was a teenager.

But no. That’s not where it came from.

Silly Turtletaub origin story below the cut (I'm sorry! 😅)

(tumblr is weird about sliding cut lines around on ask posts, so if you see text below this line, it's not my fault, lol!)

About 10 years ago, we were watching a show together (Jericho - it was cancelled). It was very dramatic, both of us would be tense.

At the end of every episode, the executive producer’s name would pop up on the screen.

Both of us would compulsively mumble the last name, “Turtletaub,” and then giggle, the tension from the dramatic show released.

We’ve got that neurospicy echolalia, so of course we started saying, singing, and yelling it randomly.

It then morphed into a series of silly pet names and noises, some of which we still use to this day.

"Twisty tubey turtle taubs"

"Tube taub"

We would just bellow "TAAUUBTAAUUBTAAUUB" like some demonic mantra

"Tube hole"

We still call each other “tube” more than any other pet name (even more than our original, “nugget/nugs.” We occasionally do a “nug tube,” or a “tube nugs”)

Pretty much daily, one of us will yell from across our open floorplan, “how’s my tube?” “Are you a tube?” "You tubin' over there?" “Hey, tube hole, want anything from the ‘Up World?”

Neither of us remember when/how "taub" got turned into "tube," but it has stuck with us.

When I first got invited to Ao3, I didn’t think I’d ever write or post anything, so I just picked the first thing I thought of. I was going to try to change it, but I was too impatient. I wanted my first fic out immediately, so I just went with it.

Partner and I still giggle pretty regularly that it’s my username. Whenever I show him one of the amazing comments y'all gift me with (tysm! 😭) that refer to me by the username, he mumbles it the way we did on that shitty old couch, and then I mumble it back until we dissolve into the sillies for a couple of minutes.

When I'm at my desk he often asks me, "are you turtletaubin' (or "tube holing" - again, sorry!) over there? You writing the smuts for all your tubes?" (Yes, you are all my tubes now, and I am so sorry!! Please forgive me 🙏🏼)

It feels so ridiculous, but it has made us laugh for a decade now. I don’t even remember much of that show besides the fact that it was tense, and dramatic, and we loved it.

So it has nothing to do with turtles, or turtle doves, or German words.

Just a couple of giggling weirdos watching a stressful show, and then being obnoxious with each other for 10 years 😅😅😅

Now you know.

Now you may all yell these silly noises with me.

Now you are my tubes (*said with the highest of praise and affection, I swear!!)

edit: just now realized that we haven't even been spelling it right, lol

#i am so sorry 😅#we are fucking insufferable #turtletaub responds #anonymous #about lynna #turtletaub shitposting

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ao3screenshotss · 2 years ago

Note

if it's possible could you please rec your favourite bungou stray dogs fics??

OH MY GOD YES THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ASKING ABSOLUTELY I WILL

update now that i've finally finished compiling them: this was so fun to do but a nightmare to choose (there are too many good fics) - thank you so much anon for asking it was so nice to go through my bookmarks again!!! but these are only a few of some of my favourite bsd fics.

i've got 25 here (i'll need to put them underneath a read more it's so so long omg) but if you'd like anymore, my primary blog is the same as my ao3 username and i have a lot of bookmarks there!!! they're all wonderful and i'd recommend all of them. anyways, i hope you enjoy!!

(side note: i tried to post this before the latest and last bsd episode came out and i hope i made it just in time)

And if I'm blinded, will my eyes become the planets? by Yui_Kuromori (5k) - not rated

- I need to leave for a few weeks.

He tells the president in a particularly sunny afternoon. There, with the sunlight filtering through the window, the man’s hair seems to glow golden, and the lines on his face are even more pronounced. Atsushi swallows nervously and does his best not to back off. He looks up, and meets Fukuzawa’s somber eyes and feels a bit of sweat trickle down his neck.

The president sighs and closes his eyes for a second. Runs his hands through his hair, and Atsushi already feels bad about all the problems he’s causing the man. He’s about to apologize, really, when Fukuzawa pronounces tiredly.

- I understand.

They leave to get to know themselves.

( the soft whimsical road trip AU no one asked for)

I am genuinely so in love with this fic you don’t even understand - i find it really quiet and comforting. DEFINITELY underrated - it’s one of the fics i’ll always recommend

TIP: read in the middle of the night before you go to bed!! i’ve read it so many times and this personally was my favourite time to read it

yokohama bay hotel by spirallings (9k) - teen

Ryuunosuke started his channel, originally, as a means to make his sister smile and laugh when they lived in that oppressive house. It grew far beyond that and allowed them to escape, and now it's his means of income: but he has always kept a tight lid on his privacy, separating his personal life from the persona he puts on YouTube and social media accounts.

While struggling to come up with ideas, he clicks on a video on his recommended feed and it leads him to the work of a reclusive musician under the penname Byakko Chain. All Ryuunosuke knows about him at first is his singing voice, his hands, and his guitar.

And those walls come tumbling down.

this fic i think is one i didn't expect to love as much as i did - i actually just reread it, but the comment i wrote before was that i didn't remember what happened in the fic, i just clearly remember how much i loved it - the first half was amazing but it's definitely the second half that ties it altogether

also i think the way the author writes makes it so easy to imagine - like,, the imagery isn't overdone but you can kinda see what it's like and it's so sweet (it actually reminds me of one of my favourite study with me's set in yokohama - also a rec!!)

TIP: id just say somewhere quiet where you can listen to music - i could easily read it during the day but i just prefer comforting fics late at night cause they make me feel like when i wake up i can actually live out what happens in the fic (obviously i can't but it's nice to dream)

An Awkward Encounter by SapphireSunstone (4k) - teen

Imagine you're trying to leave your secret boyfriend's place only to be met with your co-worker who is also trying to leave his secret boyfriend's place and in the middle of arguing you see your secret boyfriend's co-worker and you see a glimpse of his secret-boyfriend.

Chuuya and Akutagawa's walks of shame seem to follow a similar path.

fluff and crack, what else could you ask for? side note: it also reminded me of a post i saw a while back by @hoshiumiumi (please look at their latest poe art it’s so pretty!!)

TIP: no tip, read whenever!!! might smile though so don’t read in front of your parents/friends if they’re the type of people who ask ‘oh what are you smiling at? are you texting someone?’and you don’t wanna tell them that you read fanfic

Into Your World by leedonghyucks (110k) - teen

A case gone wrong had caused Atsushi and Akutagawa to be transported to an unknown universe set 200 years into the future, where Abilities (now known as Quirks) were as rampant as ever. The renowned new Double Black have faced many fearsome enemies but can they survive the trials and tribulations of hero high school?

Spoiler alert: Barely.

a bsd and bnha crossover!! i actually remember a few of my screenshots from this - it’s a bit long compared to my other recs so far but very good

TIP: DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE HOMEWORK YOU WILL NOT STOP READING THIS

Plate :( by forest_raccoon (4k) - teen

It's an accident, for once. He was actually following the Official Household Chore Schedule and doing the dishes while Chuuya was out getting groceries. But one of the plates was slipperier than he expected, and as he attempted to dry it, it fumbled just enough out of his grip to crack against the countertop, chipping a bit off the edge.

It isn’t one of Chuuya’s fancy plates. Dazai is fairly certain that Chuuya has no particular attachment to this dish at all, actually. It’s plain white and utilitarian, part of a larger set.

So Dazai can’t explain why he’s frozen in place, rooted to the floor by some welling emotion he can’t quite pinpoint.

(Alternatively: local brilliant strategist has a slight meltdown over small uncontrollable part of everyday life)

by @sensitiveheartless!! a wonderful artist and author - definitely recommend reading other fics of theirs. this one hurt me but it was so good - they also made a comic/drawing for this!!

Interest Check by featherx (12k) - teen

“I read your work in the school paper!”

“O-Oh?” Poe fixes his posture a little, and resists the urge to straighten his ribbon. He knew he should’ve tied it a little tighter than he usually does this morning. “Er… W-What did you think?” If there’s anything he takes pride in, it’s his writing; most people are turned off easily by the horror themes he likes to use so much, but on the occasion someone does appreciate them, it gives him a feeling not unlike butterflies in his stomach. If Ranpo, of all people, is the latter…

“I figured out who the murderer was in two paragraphs,” Ranpo says, holding up two fingers, like he really needs to drive the nail in deeper.

—Or, Poe writes a whole musical in an effort to impress Ranpo.

this one i recently read and fell in love with it was so adorable!!! they're both ridiculous and i love them for it <333

life's like an hourglass, glued to the table by ephemerality (2k) - teen

Outside, there are sirens.

"I called the police," the helpful cashier announces from the storage room.

very hilarious - imagining what is going on in this fic may or may not make you wheeze - it definitely made me wheeze

playing the hero by FallenNiji (118k) - teen

“How’s U.A.? Does it live up to the general public’s expectations?” Ranpo, walking with his hands crossed behind his head, wondered.

“I literally witnessed an attempted murder, discrimination, bullying and experienced a Villain attack in the first month here, Ranpo-senpai,” Kyouka deadpanned.

“Is that a yes?”

(or: izumi kyouka, reformed assassin turned detective, infiltrates u.a. and more or less willingly surrounds herself with well-known pro-heroes and other such law-abiding citizens. what could possibly go wrong?)

i will admit that i can't remember much about this fic apart from i love the character interactions as well as the characterisations and i'm always looking forward to reading the new chapter - i've also posted a lot of screenshots from this fic if yall want like a taste or something

I Was Screaming Your Name Through The Radio by ElectricSplatter (256k) - mature

“Four months from now will be the seven year anniversary of when you and Osamu Dazai released your hugely successful first and only album Double Black and its diamond single Corruption. After performing with Dazai earlier this year, are you planning anything special to celebrate?”

“Corruption is insanely overrated, and I would prefer to never hear Dazai’s voice for the rest of my fucking life.”

i don't think i can bring myself to go through the pain this fic put me in again but it's really really popular for a very good reason - you definitely have to read it at least once

O expectations, stale and dismal airs, leave this body of mine! by aptlydapper (20k) - teen

Apparently, Chuuya has a signature(s).

Apparently, removing that signature(s) renders Chuuya basically unrecognizable.

Apparently, this works on everyone.

Chuuya would have liked to know this before getting accidentally recruited.

this one is WONDERFUL - i love the story in general it's such a cool concept and it's such a cool ada chuuya au - please read it at least once

love at first sight: coffee shop edition by setosdarkness (2k) - teen

Dazai and Chuuya get stuck in the rain, and end up sharing the only available table at a busy coffee shop.

[or, plot twists in my meet-cute coffee shop AU? it’s more likely than you think]

literally anything by setosdarkness is good - they're a complete icon - one of the backbones of the bsd fandom. i won't spoil it but it was very good - also recommend all 951 (!!!!!) fics of theirs

S(he) Came In Through the Bathroom Window by PocketsizedDinosaur (2k) - teen

Atsushi deals with Akutagawa's unusual (and inconvenient) habit of not using the door.

i don't really remember what happens in this fic but i remember loving it very much and that it also hurt me very much - double hit but perfect

360 degrees by setosdarkness (11k) - teen

Chuuya gets cursed by an Ability that forces him to eternally live out his biggest regret. Unlike the other victims who end up killing themselves or hurting others, Chuuya goes into a coma.

For his biggest regret is—

[groundhog day AU with a twist, where Chuuya relives the day Dazai leaves the Port Mafia over and over and over and over—]

OH MY GOD I LOVED THIS SO SO MUCH I READ IT LIKE A YEAR AGO BUT IT WAS SO GOOD

The Next Day by psychodaog (10k) - general

Atsushi wakes up in filthy rags and dried blood. He remembers the cage so vividly and it feels real.

It looks like the place he used to call "home".

(Atsushi travels back in time AU)

a WONDERFUL atsushi travels back in time au - i need to read more of these!! if anyone has some recs please send them in!!!

Striped by AliceinHyruleBastion (8k) - teen

Atsushi found his soulmate. No big deal. Until he comes into work one day with soulmarks on his face and the office demands an explanation.

SSKK soulmate AU shenanigans with a dash of battle, sass, and angst on the side!

sskk soulmate au!! so so wonderful - i also loved part 2

pull the trigger tighter and watch our distances explode by niwakaame (oolongteas) (8k) - teen

The world looks like a big spider's web, colorful, and bright and full of light.

In which Nakajima Atsushi sees the strings of fate, and beyond that.

i forgot to bookmark this and looked for it for AGES it was absolutely amazing i loved it

You're All I ever Wanted by iheartryuu (2k) - teen

“Chuuya,” Dazai mumbles, nudging the side of his face into his partner's neck. The redhead doesn’t move, doesn’t talk. He doesn’t make a single sound. He just needs this moment to last. He doesn’t want to face what will happen when he lets go and is forced to look into Dazai’s face.

“Chuuya.” Dazai speaks with a gentle voice. “Break my chains.” Chuuya shakes his head. He rests his forehead against Dazai’s shoulder. The brunette sighs, taking a gulp. His next words almost come out as a desperate whisper. “Break my chains so I can hug you back.”

Chuuya feels his throat tighten. He didn’t expect his partner to say that. So he shakes his head once again. His voice fans against Daza’s ear, sounding smooth. “If I let you hug me back, I don’t think I’d ever be able to let go.”

— aka, what should've happened when they met again for the first time in four years.

i think this nearly made me cry - or actually did - it was so so good

The Weretiger's New Houseguest by xxSoliusxx (31k) - teen

After a misunderstanding and surveillance tape proof, Akutagawa is faced with the daunting threat of the Port Mafia. He finds himself wounded in the pouring rain, standing on Atsushi's doorstep.

i only remember some parts of this very clearly but i remember it was all wonderful!!!

Dazai Undercover by Bibliophile109 (6k) - teen

“I thought the new employee was recommended by the Special Abilities Department,” Kunikida says weakly.

The man waves his hand carelessly. “Yes, yes, Father knows someone there, it’s all very convenient. Say, would you happen to know when the lunch break is?”

Dazai puts a bit more effort into hiding his Mafia background from the ADA, and ends up pretending to be a spoiled rich kid.

ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS - I JUST REALISED I FORGOT TO SUBSCRIBE AND IT HAS NEW CHAPTERS IM GONNA READ IT THE SECOND I FINISH THIS LIST

to build a home by lonelydoctors (5k) - general

”You have got to stop looking so shocked every time I visit, Poe-kun,” Ranpo says with a grin.

“N–no, but…I thought–I guess I just–“ Poe takes a deep breath and starts again, “I thought the Agency is supposed to be on a work trip in Shinagawa today. How did you even get here by yourself?”

Ranpo straightens his posture and shrugs casually, “Why, I took the train of course, Poe-kun.”

“You what?”

this one was SO adorable - according to my bookmarks i wrote "my GOD they own MY ENTIRE HEART"

This Color Ain't It by justcallmedude (108k) - not rated

“President, I understand Tanizaki, but Kenji?” Kunikida looked about ready to snap his pen in half as he, along with most of the people in the room, stared at their head. “Kenji’s methods are anything but ideal for an undercover mission! Please reconsider!”

“It is true that Kenji’s way of handling cases is unusual,” Fukuzawa agreed. “However, it is because of his ability to talk to people that I feel comfortable assigning him as our undercover agent with Tanizaki.”

- - -

Kenji Miyazawa is the ADA's naive detective given his possibly most difficult task to date: infiltrate UA and find the student spy before the heroes become aware that there is a traitor amongst them.

earlier in this post i included a kyouka goes to ua au, this one's a kenji goes to ua au and i loved them both very much!! i love kenji's characterisation in this it's so cool

Kiss My Wounds by bloodyinspiring (62k) - teen

The mafioso inhaled deeply, chewing the inside of his lip as he formulated his thoughts together before speaking, and looked the detective in the eyes. Gin told him to go for it, and when push comes to shove, bribe the guy. But money might not fix this if he mortified himself for eternity to come when he uttered the words...

“Marry me.” ~

A lot can happen within the three months of summer... Some people get the dream job they wanted, some graduate from school, and maybe others take on a new hobby with all the excess downtime they received (or thrown in jail like Dazai).

In Atsushi's case, he didn't expect to be proposed into a fake marriage with the one and only: Akutagawa Ryuunosuke

(Occasionally on hiatus due to university but ongoing!)

THIS WAS SO GOOD OH MY GOD I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT TO SAY BUT IT'S DEFINITELY ONE OF MY FAVOURITES

pull out your pen and write down your memory by Seito (75k) - teen

Instantly three things occurred to Shirusu.

First, fuck, this was the world of Bungou Stray Dogs. Second, given the appearance of Dazai Osamu standing in front of her, she had landed some time relatively close to the Dark Era. And third, these words slipped out before she could stop them.

“You’re asking me out on a date?! But you don’t even like women?!” Shirusu blurted out.

And Dazai blinked back at her in surprise.

Ah fuck.

im a sucker for isekai sometimes and this is one of my favourite ones

ataraxis by lurochu (46k) - teen

For the first time in his life, Chuuya wished Dazai was there. With one touch, he could quiet Arahabaki and give Chuuya peace of mind, peace of mind that Chuuya desperately craved. But that bastard never was there when he needed him anyways.

Chuuya's slowly killing himself and Dazai's half to blame. (discontinued)

as you can see in the summary this one's unfortunately discontinued but i remember reading and loving this so much

All hail our lord and savior Chuuya Nakahara by BlowingYourMind

a series with just a lot of chuuya fics and they're all wonderful! my personal favourites are Let me help you - His dark eyes got a little lighter - Baby Executive - The worth of a subordinate in Chuuya Nakahara's eyes - Yokohama public High School- almost as crazy as their pep rallies - Learning experiences - Chuuya Nakahara's issue with Black Coffee - "You stole my wisdom?!", and Don't break the honeycomb. although these are just the ones that i've read recently or remember really well!! i think all of the fics in this series are worth reading

#live review: there’s a noise outside my window that sounds like a crossover between a horse and a chicken and it’s so loud im going to die #update: i just heard the most ‘i don’t laugh cause my laugh sounds stupid�� laugh from like a bird or something #it was the most HEHEHEHE in a scratchy voice thing #note - like one week after i started this: I'M SO SORRY I'VE BEEN STRUGGLING TO WORK OUT WHAT TO PUT ON THIS WITHOUT MAKING IT TOO LONG #im trying to get it out before (my) 12oclock so i can get it out before the new bsd episode (for me it comes out at 1am)#bsd fic recs #fic recs #replies #anonymous #bungou stray dogs #bungou stray dogs fics

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yolowritter · 11 months ago

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Volpibug AU (better title pending)

So, it's this time of the month again, for me to drop a post in the tumblr void and then vanish again until next called upon! But! This one...this one is good! Like, "I'd need > 50k words of worldbuilding to write this" kind of good!

Quick story time: I recently wrote a Lilanette ficlet based on an ask I saw here on Tumblr. I won't get into the hows and whys, it's on my Ao3 acc (I have the same username). Anyway so while I was writing it, I added the line "and with her (Lila) necklace being all too magical" as a little easter egg, to say that she actually has the Fox Miraculous in this AU. Then...then my brain Did A Thing™. So it's a full AU now. Here's the context! Or at least...part 1, meaning the pre-story setup and up to the "Volpina" episode itself. I'll do a part 2 of this post to talk about the Lilanette lovesquare, because it keeps me up at night and I will share that with all of you very soon! Since Tomas Astruc has so gracefully and respectfully decided to actively depict 1940s Paris in S5, I am shamelessly using that mistake to make something I think is cool! So, while Fu and Marianne were in Paris, there was someone who helped them hide. A young woman from Italy, whose family had moved to France so her father could avoid the draft. The three become friends in the short time they know eachother, and she happens to learn that Fu is carrying a box full of magical little creatures with him. Therefore, she understands they need to escape, and promptly decides to try and sneak them out of Paris. But...we get to the scene where Fu and Marianne are being chased (the one from Evolution), only she's with them, and they're losing ground. So she begs Fu to let her take the Fox Miraculous and distract the soldiers while they run away, promising to come find them once it was safe. And so, with little time left to spare, Fu makes the gamble and passes Trix to her. She then tranforms and promptly makes an illusion to let him and Marianne get away before also going to hide. For the remainder of the War, she stays in France and devotes her time to help whoever she can escape, through conjuring minor illusions and such. She ends up being an unsung hero, and some years later she and her family move back to their old home in Italy. So...you're probably asking me what in the name of Gabriel Agreste's secret butterfly room does this have to do with Lilanette? Well, said woman (who I've yet to think of a good name for) is actually Lila's grandmother! I know, huge shock! Her superhero name? Why, Volpina of course! When Fu and Marianne return to Paris to come find her, she's unfortunately long gone. Therefore, we have 3 missing Miraculous. The Peacock, Butterfly, and the Fox. They stay in Paris (and yes this time they didn't split up, because I want to make Marianne happy okay?) like in canon, deciding to protect the remaining Kwami rather than go around the world searching for a woman they can't find. Conclusion, Trixx stays with Lila's family. Now, our beloved liar's grandmother has a daughter, who marries a man and also has a daughter, Lila. Listen, I do not want to open the can of worms of "Lila has at least 3 moms actually" because as cracky as it is...just no...not until they explain it clearly. Anyway her mom's marriage falls through, and through this time Lila stays with her grandmother, where she happens upon an old necklace she's held onto all this time. Cue Trixx showing up again, and Lila's grandmother explaining what a Miraculous is, and telling her the stories of her and the Fox Kwami's adventures. I'd assume this happens pretty much right before Lila comes to Paris, for a few reasons I'll explain in a bit. Anyway, Grandma Rossi gives Lila a crash course on how the Miraculous works, and swears her to secrecy, since nobody can know about Trixx, before passing the necklace to her when it's for her and Madame Rossi to come to Paris. The conclusion?

Lila isn't lying in the "Volpina" episode. She really is the descendant of a superheroine, and very proud about it because she loves her grandmother! It's also worth mentioning that because I genuinely hate how 2-dimensional they've made her in canon, this version of Lila is an actual character with positive and negative influences in her life. She still barely sees her mother and craves being the center of attention, but above all, through her grandmother's stories she got to see her friendship with Trixx, and is obsessed with the idea of having such a genuine connection with another person. So, she's not a manipulative psycho who's in it for the fame and glory, rather she just wants people to like her and hates being ignored or brushed aside, as her mother so often is forced to do because of her busy schedule. Lila may not be the most empathetic, kind or gentle soul around, but she's not sadistic or heartless like in the show. Now, when she transfers to her new school she's eager to make friends, so naturally she uses her cunning to quickly get people to bring up their interests and then spins stories of her relating to those things. For example, Juleka really likes Jagged Stone's music? Why, Lila has had a front-row seat to one of his concerts and absolutely loved it! She "knows a guy who knows a guy" who might be able to get them tickets if he ever comes to Paris, and hey, they should totaly go together sometime! Stuff like that, to become popular. She goes about her day telling the same lies she did in "Volpina" (Alya mentions a few at the beginning). Cue Adrien Agreste, locally famous teenage model, coming in with a book that has superheroes all over it. Lila is very interested in making friends with him, for obvious reasons.

When Ladybug shows up to scold her for lying about being a superhero, Lila barely holds back from transforming then and there, only because her grandmother had made her promise to not reveal the Miraculous to anyone. Unfortunately...that only gets her as far as being out of view before deciding to go for it anyway, despite Trixx protesting. Same exact thing with the fake meteor shower happens, and Hawkmoth is very curious as to what exactly is happening. Gabriel, being Gabriel, decides to wait and see what's going on. Ladybug and Chat show up, and she immediatelly accuses Lila of being an Akuma. Lila of course has absolutely no idea what those are because it is her first day here, but the more Ladybug scolds her the more she realizes that it's nothing good. Chat steps in as he did in the episode, defending her because Marinette is not being very logical right now. Long story short, Volpina asks about what exactly has been going on in Paris, and they give her the rundown on what Akuma are and who Hawkmoth is. Understanding this, Lila thinks to herself that Trixx...had a point. She probably shouldn't have exposed herself like this, and needs to find a way to get out of this situation. How does she do this? Oh, by pretending to be Akumatized of course! She conjures an illusion of Hawkmoth and then jumps Ladybug (mostly because she's mad at her for embarrassing her earlier) and then loses on purpose, "accidentally" falling off a ledge as she detransforms. Thankfully she's fine, and promptly thanks the heroes for saving her. Ladybug agrees to be "friends" with her, and is more focused on the personal situation than the lack of evil magical butterfly. I'm sure that won't affect the story in any major way. If you couldn't tell, I'm being sarcastic! Chat takes Lila back to school and tries to comfort her by saying she's kinda cool, and Lila lies to Adrien when he "happens to walk by her", telling him that she really wasn't ever a hero. Eventually, Marinette comes back to school just as Adrien is agreeing to be Lila's friend, and promptly decides that it's better to keep her "rival" close, telling Adrien that she's also his friend. Of course, he's overjoyed at having made two whole friends today (Nino is fondly shaking his head in the background), and that's the end of "Volpina". For those curious, yes the Grimoire still goes to Fu because that scene doesn't change. The only different thing is that both Fu and Gabriel suspect the real Fox Holder to be in Paris, but only Fu knows that this Miraculous has been missing since Nooroo and Duusu just...wouldn't know that. Tbh, I really want to write this AU sometime soon, but I'd also like to hear your thoughts on it! I know this post is mostly just a huge backstory rant, the real good stuff comes in part 2! Anyway, time for me to disappear yet again, but I'll be back soon with more!

#miraculous ladybug #marinette dupain cheng #lila rossi #lilanette #fic ideas #fic prompt #3am thoughts #i kid you not this Au kept me up at night #just writer things #send help #my wips #no chance I'm writing this anytime soon #not a one #but here it is #for your entertainment #trust me part 2 is all the Lilanette fluff you could ever ask for!#anyway goodnight #volpibug au

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numptypylon · 10 months ago

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whered the username come from

I needed one that wasn’t taken? 😅 In a rare moment of foresight, back in 2020, I tried to think up something too dumb to run the risk of being ‘taken’ on other platforms, in case I decided to branch out from my OG numptypylon online presence on Ao3

I always liked the word numpty, I’d just watched an episode of Endeavour titled ‘Pylon’ and learned that new word (I’m an adult, lol, just not a native English speaker), and am a big Monty Python fan, I think that’s how it happened 🤔

#ask #thank you for asking!

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pagerunner-j · 1 year ago

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All right, all right. This is a bad idea! I've been trying not to cross these streams for a long time! But: fuck it. Who fics ahead!

Long story short: I used to write under another pen name. I stopped using it and deleted my old journal after some personal crap, which still makes me feel sad and stupid, and I'd wanted at the time to scrub the slate clean. Some of what's still kicking around under my old username, though, includes stories at whofic.com, which predates AO3 and still exists, doing its Whovian thing.

So after recent fandom flashbacks, I've been rereading my old stuff. Which has been...interesting!

Obligatory disclaimer: oh, god, do I want to edit everything. These date back as far as 2005, and so certain old habits linger, like the fact that I hadn't yet gotten over my torrid love affairs with the semicolon and the ellipsis. I want to fix the occasional dips into overwrought nonsense. I'm also looking at some of the more adult content and thinking, "Okay, that went from 0-60 a wee bit fast. Calm the hell down, self."

BUT: there's also stuff here I like! And about which I'm thinking "crap, I used to be good at this," because I can never leave myself alone!

Anyway, here's a few stories from the "this does not shame me" pile, plus notes:

Gen

Translations (Ten/Rose) Original description: There are some things the TARDIS doesn't translate, and some secrets of the Doctor's left unexplained. Rose is setting out to find out why.

Probably the best thing of mine on this archive, and one of the most developed narratives. The sneaky, sneaky merchant, whose storyline never quite gets resolved (on purpose), was one of my better ideas. The other was Rose interpreting the TARDIS console's layout as looking like a Gallifreyan word. And, for that matter, Rose's name looking like an actual flower. Thank you, DW designers, for a completely impractical but extremely cool-looking written language. Also, the fact that the marketplace has thirteen floors, and they were on the tenth? Yeah, yeah, that was on the nose. I note that since then, the showrunners have thrown the Doctor's thirteen-regenerations limit out the window, for perfectly understandable reasons, but it was still kicking around at the time.

Roundabout (Nine/Rose) Original description: Time and possibilities keep turning. an exploration of the Doctor and Rose's relationship throughout the series. Spoilers for all [first season] episodes.

The other one that I'd file under "hey, you wrote a story! And it's not bad! Good job, self!" file. I really loved Nine and Rose, and I went to town with it here. I also got completely self-indulgent in a few places. As one does. The scene at the club is my favorite on that account. This quip of Jack's to the Doctor was, among other things, a sidelong nod to a few of my feelings about American polarization, and believe me, It's worse now: "It's Saturday night. We're in one of the last great cities of post-Dissolution America. And the most handsome man in the club has just bought you an Electric Comet. Do yourself a favor. Get drunk." Also, the reason Rose thinks she knows the music that's playing is that it's 110% a quote from a Billie Piper song. I don't think anybody ever noticed, but it's there.

Outgeniused (or: How to Get Fired From the Apple Store in Three Easy Steps) (Ten, OC) Original description: Kate Stowe's seen a lot of strange problems come up at the Genius Bar, but this one qualifies as the strangest she's seen yet. Presenting a bit of shameless insanity, featuring the Doctor, a race of aliens with quite inconvenient taste, and several unorthodox ways to break your iPod's warranty. (In other words: crackfic ahead!)

I really wasn't kidding about that last line. This one is unabashed ridiculousness, inspired by your author doing a seasonal stint in Apple retail that left a goddamn mark. Sadly, the Doctor never swung by my store. A lot of real-life tidbits did make their way into this story, though. And despite all odds, it's got a plot! Fun facts (for nerds): the product line was accurate as of the time I wrote this. The iPod shuffle disclaimer I was talking about? That was absolutely a thing. And my favorite line is still the Doctor apologizing for not getting AppleCare, because I had to pitch that to so many people. I have never once bought it for myself. No regrets. Don't tell Tim. Also, apparently the UK really has gone all-in on Black Friday since I wrote this. I have to ask: why? Why must you import the worst of our capitalistic excesses? You really didn't have to! Le sigh.

The Naughty Bits

A Matter of Timing (Ten/Rose) Original description: In matters of love, sex and the technicalities thereof, somebody better be thinking ahead. Rose/Ten, post-Journey's End.

Short, sweet, and silly. This one's about Rose and the clone of Ten off in their parallel universe, and exists for the sake of the conversation they're having, which is in part about the mechanics of that whole cloning thing. Although it's mostly about the sex. Which they are absolutely and enthusiastically having the whole damn time. ("Haven't ever seen that on a clock" is still my favorite line.)

Slightly Psychic Confessions (Nine/Rose/Jack) Original description: Getting caught with slightly psychic paper in one's hands can be a dangerous thing indeed.

Like it says on the tin. 90% of the reason this was written was so I could play with the props, and the dialogue (both spoken and psychically transcribed) is the part I most enjoy, although I've been told the rest of it's pretty okay too. ...yes, the rest of it is a threesome. Stop looking at me like that.

Selfish Dreams (Ten/Rose) Original description: Wherein solutions to lingering nightmares lead to a different sort of sleeplessness. Slightly spoilery through "The Satan Pit."

Sometimes I get creepy, even with characters I love and will ship forever. This one was mostly me thinking through some of the...potentially fraught...implications of Ten's psychic abilities, and is one of my "I guess I'm preoccupied with nightmares and dreams, because I'm gonna come back to that in a few different ways" stories in this archive. Anyway, none of what they're up to here is what I'd consider a good idea. At least Rose enjoyed herself, though.

Forgetting the Nightmare (Nine/Jack) Original description: In which neither the Doctor nor Jack can get any sleep, but for very different reasons.

As I was saying. This is about a plot point from the show I'd forgotten about since writing this: Jack's two years of missing memory. (So, yes, apparently mine's missing too. It's been A LONG TIME, okay?) He's having some issues coming to terms with that. So how do I decide to have them address it? Boinking on the TARDIS floor, apparently. ...ahem. Anyway, as is the case with a lot of the shit I wrote, it's a little emotionally messy. It also hints at a few things that are still very much up for interpretation. Less in need of puzzling out is that yes, the two lost years are represented by the two burned-out lights on the console they're trying to fix, because I am occasionally as subtle as a brick.

Beyond Locked Doors (Ten/Reinette) Original description: A glimpse into Reinette's memories and dreams throughout the events of "The Girl in the Fireplace."

Yeah, this is one of those that dips into being overwrought, and yes, my inner editor is bitching at me about sacrificing clarity in the process. But writing from Reinette's POV was a fun exercise. It's a very different flavor from everything else here. Also, just to get this stated, you still can't tell me that the "dance with me" line in the show and those two disappearing off screen together wasn't also Moffat being subtle as a brick with his metaphors, so I still feel justified in writing this one. The (implied) sex was canon and I will die on that hill.

So Brief, In Bloom (Ten/Reinette) Original description: Wherein the Doctor thinks of other ways this could have gone.

And now...things go south. I'm pretty sure I'm the only weirdo who cared about this story. It is, let's be fair, also weird. This is about Ten being haunted by the idea of what might have happened if he did get Reinette to come along with him, and what the ramifications of that change might be. Not overtly stated, but it's there, is that in this alternate timeline, Rose didn't take well to this idea, and eventually left. The result is some Seriously Conflicted Feelings. And some ill-advised attempts at banishing them. I once got a comment on my old journal from somebody who didn't understand the last line. it's oblique on purpose, and you're invited to imagine your own version, but what was going on in my head was that back in the actual timeline, Ten absolutely had his way with Rose against that very same wall to try to scrub the idea of the other timeline out of his head. Considering that the wayward strand of hair he found could have belonged to either her or Reinette, though? It...didn't exactly help.

A Laugh Like Thunder (The Master/Lucy) Original description: The Master and Lucy on the eve of destruction, thinking of what's to come. (Spoilers through "The Sound of Drums.")

I'm including this here solely because I'd forgotten about it until I trawled back through my archive, and was thus smacked upside the head with the facts that A: it existed at all, B: this thing went places, and C: I started it off with, "On the eve of destruction, the Prime Minister tied his wife to the bedposts and began to think of another man." Go off, self.

#doctor who #fics

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cellsshapedlikestars · 4 months ago

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What fandoms/pairings did you get into before Jonsa? Or the first work/story that made you discover fanfic?

Just randomly sharing, broke my phone other day and looking for my downloaded fanfics made me look even further back.

😭 Final Fantasy VIII rpg game was 25 years ago and beloved fanfics of it published 20 years ago (still there in internet).

Also realized my love for broody, sulky male protagonists with angry chip in their shoulders and female characters that receive hate just bc they’re “princess”-y, “damsel-in-distress” not-the-strongest type was there too. (Prob started it.)

(we def share a ship preference for broody/princess lol)

It's been so long, I can't remember how I found fanfic. Probably in my Sailor Moon phase (elementary school-ish) because I absolutely wrote Sailor Moon fanfic. (I never posted it online or showed anyone, though. I can distinctly remember writing a Sailor Pluto fic where she's still alive after all the other sailors are killed, and she just stands there as the keeper of time waiting sad and alone for millennia for them to be reincarnated. Really fun and chill story, 12 year old me!) I can't remember any fics specifically that I read, though there was this website that used to MST3K "bad" Sailor Moon fanfics, and I remember reading a lot of those. I didn't ship anyone in Sailor Moon.

If you want to know about any prior ships/fics I wrote, below the cut!

Considering how much media I have consumed over the years, I don't tend to ship very hard. I tend to go with what the piece of media tells me the ships are tbh. Jonsa is the first that wasn't canon.

InuYasha

The first fandom I had a ship for, and the first fandom I actively remember reading fic for. I was big into Miroku/Sango. Never wrote anything for that, though.

Harry Potter

I did vaguely ship Harry/Ginny while the books were coming out, and even wrote a few chapters of an alternate book 2. That was on ff.net and is probably purged at this point. I could not tell you what my username or the fic title were lol.

Later, I dipped my toe into the Marauders/Jily fandom, but never went all out, because by that time, I'd become disillusioned with Harry Potter. Every once in a while, I'll go read a Jily fic.

Buffy

While this is my favorite show, I didn't ship too much. I kinda shipped Buffy/Spike (have thoughts on it now) and also Angel/Cordelia. I never read nor wrote fic for either of these pairings.

Veronica Mars

Veronica/Logan. Read some fic, never wrote anything.

Skins

I wrote a one shot for Sid/Cassie. Posted on my old livejournal and now re-posted to an alternate ao3 account. I don't hate it. I'd probably change some things if I were writing it now, but I think it's pretty solid.

(No, I just re-read it and it's very solid. Kinda proud of this one)

Glee

I am SO embarrassed to say this, but I wrote a Rachel/Puck one-shot after the episode where they decide to date because they're both hot and Jewish. It wasn't a super shippy fic and mostly centered around him telling Rachel Quinn's baby was his. I stopped watching Glee after the first season lol and did not repost that fic from my livejournal to ao3. It can die on livejournal.

Elite

Carla/Samuel!! LOVE me some poor boy/rich girl dynamics. I got really into them and even read some fic, though there wasn't much out there. Never wrote anything. Have debated writing a Jonsa Elite AU

The Other Fandom

Now. I have hinted in the past that I used to be in another fandom that I wrote fic for.

Oh, the OC. You held my heart for so many years (well. 2 years). I wrote so much fic for you (mostly in the first year, kinda fell off and did more experimental stuff in the second).

That fandom was the O.C.

I'm kind of afraid to say the pairing, because there's only 1215 OC fics total on ao3, and for my pairing is not one of the popular ones, and I wrote about a quarter of those, so I feel like you could find my alt account pretty easily...

I dunno. I'm a little embarrassed about some of the fic I wrote back then. Some of it is SO unnecessarily dramatic (AND IN FIRST PERSON. I HATE FIRST PERSON POV!!). I also wrote a wild amount of smut for someone who didn't really know what the fuck she was talking about lmaooo. I've spoken a lot about how skittish I am about writing smut now, but as a teenager I was cranking that shit out. (ok I actually just looked and it's only 5 explicit fics, but still. That's about 1/5 of the fics I wrote)

I'm probably making too much out of it, because there are some fics I'm proud of, but enough that I'm embarrassed by that I have yet to be able to publicly say what my apt account is

#cellsshapedlikeasks #this got long #i don't talk about my past fandom on here a lot #and so I rambled a bit #sorry!

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mollybecameanengineer · 2 years ago

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Incubo

Summary: The week before Scully goes on maternity leave, she and Mulder head to New Jersey to investigate a series of suspicious deaths. However, neither of them could have predicted how personal it would become.

word count: 7686 | Teen | MSR | @today-in-fic

Read on AO3 or check out the first chapter below the break

This is part of an episodic series called A Second Chance. All the episodes are collected, in order, using AO3’s series feature. The concept of the series is to rewrite seasons 8 and 9. It deals with Mulder’s return from the dead, the birth of William, and Mulder and Scully trying to juggle family life with impending doom.

If you don’t want to read the whole thing, but want to read this story, here is what you need to know…

Previously on A Second Chance: Mulder has returned to the living. Scully is pregnant with what she believes to be their child, but Mulder has doubts. However, he has publicly acknowledged the child. Mulder and Scully are now living together. Since he was declared dead, Mulder had to be re-hired by the FBI, rather than having a job to come back to. Reyes has been partnered with Doggett since This Is Not Happening.

Chapter 1

Today was Mulder’s first day back at the FBI – and it wasn’t going well.

He and Scully had gone back and forth about him starting before or after the baby was born. But after the debacle with the oil rig, he wanted his badge back. When he’d received his official offer, he filled out the paperwork and requested to start as soon as possible, though it meant he’d have to take unpaid leave when the baby came.

But now that he was sitting at his desk (or Scully’s desk, he wasn’t sure who had ownership at this point), trying to log on to the computer so he could do hours of mandatory trainings, he questioned why he had been in such a hurry.

Glaring at the screen, he tried again:

username: fmulder

password: tru5tn015cully

The computer told him, yet again, that his username and password weren’t recognized.

If it had been just him and Scully in the office, he would have been cursing and possibly kicking the trash can by now. But with Doggett and Reyes quietly typing away at their desks, he felt like he had to restrain himself.

Scully came over and started looking through the file cabinet. She was wearing loose pants, a sweater, and flat dress shoes – all concessions to being 36 weeks pregnant. Whenever she was near, he wanted to reach out and touch her, caress her stomach. He didn’t understand why this was – before he had been abducted, he’d liked to touch her. But now it felt like more of a compulsion. He chalked it up to evolution. He was trying to possess or protect his mate, or some such crap.

Again, he wished Doggett and Reyes would get out of his office, so he could hold her.

“Why aren’t you doing those trainings?” Scully asked, glancing at his computer screen.

“The stupid thing won’t let me log on.”

Scully came over and leaned against the desk. She looked uncomfortable. It was probably a good thing this was her last week at work, before maternity leave. Mulder didn’t relish the idea of weeks in the office without her, though she thought it might give him a chance to bond with Reyes and Doggett.

Maybe he could convince Skinner that four of them in this office was two too many. Though maybe he should also lay low, because his boss had done some fancy finagling to get a fourth agent assigned to the X-FIles.

Scully looked at his computer, then down at his onboarding paperwork. “That isn’t your username anymore.” She pointed to the paper. There, clear as day, it said his email was [email protected].

“They changed my email?”

Reyes spun around in her chair. Evidently she’d been listening. (All the more reason to get the interlopers out of their office.) “I just sent you an email. It’s fmulder, right?”

“It was,” Mulder replied.

“It didn’t bounce back. Let me check the directory.” Reyes turned back to her computer, while Mulder typed in the new username. This time it worked, he was in. He started up Outlook, and waited for the emails to load.

Scully had gone back to her rummaging (he wondered what she was looking for). He was half watching her, half looking at Outlook, when Reyes spoke again. “Um, Agent Mulder? I think you have a problem.”

For a moment he thought she was talking about his staring at Scully, but then he saw she was still looking at her computer.

“What is it?” Scully asked, walking over to Reyes.

“There’s two Fox Mulders.”

Mulder joined them. Sure enough, in the directory, there was him, with his picture from 1986 and fmulder email, and then him again, with the picture he took this morning, and his new fwmulder email.

Scully looked up at him, smirking. “What do you think? Doppelgangers? Alien Bounty Hunters?”

Doggett spun around in his chair. “Well, whichever Mulder you are, I think we have a case.”

-----

Doggett and Reyes had left for New Jersey several hours ago, leaving Scully and Mulder (who was still doing trainings) behind. They had asked Mulder if he wanted to come along, but he’d declined. Scully wasn’t surprised. A man had shot himself in the head – it didn’t seem like an X-File.

“Six down, two to go, Scully,” Mulder said, making a show of closing the window on his computer.

She gave him a fake smile and a thumbs up. He’d been announcing stuff like this ever since Doggett and Reyes left.

He seemed more himself once they were gone. She understood that Mulder was protective of their space, but at some point he was going to have to accept that the X-Files wasn’t just them anymore. Scully viewed the inclusion of Reyes and Doggett as a good thing, particularly with the baby on the way. She didn’t know how else she and Mulder could keep the X-Files open.

“Hey Scully,” Mulder called to her, already clicking through his next training. “Did you know that the videos that aren’t mine that used to be here is a type of sexual harassment?”

She looked up. “Yes. You didn’t?”

He shook his head.

Scully was surprised. “You actually thought it was appropriate that they were here?”

“Well, no, I guess not. I never thought about it.”

Scully sighed. For an intelligent man, he was oblivious sometimes.

“Did you feel harassed?” Mulder asked, seeming genuinely concerned.

Scully considered his question. At the time, eight years ago, she hadn’t felt harassed by the porn. She had thought of it more as a concession to being in a male dominated field. She had been much more bothered when her co-workers tried to touch her or called her ‘honey’ and ‘sweetheart.’ Or the hundreds of ways they excluded or belittled her. A little porn had been low on her list of grievances.

But that didn’t mean that she had been totally comfortable with its presence.

She tried to distill her complex thoughts. “I thought it was unprofessional, but I wasn’t offended.”

Mulder, looking appeased, turned back to his computer. “Actually,” he said, scrolling, “we do a lot of the things on this list.”

“It’s only harassment if it’s unwelcome.”

He playfully leered at her. “Oh, so you welcome my,” he turned back to the computer, “aggressively asking you out on dates?”

She rolled her eyes. “Mulder, you’ve never asked me out on a date, aggressively or not.”

He stood, and came over to where she was sitting. He leaned down, invading her personal space. “Well, maybe I thought you’d think it was harassing…”

“Why don’t you try and find out?”

Her lips were on his before he could respond. Though it was wildly inappropriate for them to be making out at work, Scully figured some light fooling around couldn’t hurt anything. Mulder had just started kissing her neck when they were interrupted by the phone.

“Scully, I’m pretty sure that was sexual harassment, but I’m not sure who was harassing whom,” he said, as he returned to his desk to answer the phone. “Mulder.” He paused, then said, “Hold on, I’m going to put you on speaker.” Mulder pushed a button, hung up the phone, and said, “Ok, go ahead.”

Doggett’s voice came through the phone. “Like I was saying, this body is pretty weird. The ME can’t make heads or tails of how a man was shot in the head but there isn’t any sign of a firearm being used.”

Scully stood, and joined Mulder. “You mean there isn’t any powder residue?”

“Not just that,” Doggett replied. “There’s an entry wound, but no exit. Yet the ME couldn’t find a bullet.”

Scully exchanged a look with Mulder. “That is odd.”

“That’s what we were thinking. Look I don’t know if you can, but getting your insight on this one would be a real benefit, Agent Scully.”

“Can you send the body here?” Mulder asked.

“It probably won’t get here before I go out on leave,” Scully cut in before Doggett could reply. “It’s only a four hour drive to New Jersey. We can leave after my doctor’s appointment this afternoon.”

“We’d really appreciate it,” Doggett said.

Mulder shrugged. “If you think you can make the trip.”

Scully nodded and after making arrangements with Doggett, Mulder hung up the phone.

“This reminds me of that man from Nevada–”

“Crump,” Mulder interrupted. “Mr. Crump. Do you think the military is testing those radio waves again?”

Scully shrugged. It was possible. Though if they were, she hoped it ended better than last time.

Keep reading on AO3

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lusthurts · 1 year ago

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Fic Writers Tag

got tagged by @daisyishedwig, thank you :))

and I'll tag @vrt77 and anyone else who wants to do it!

how many works do you have on ao3?

I only have 10 on ao3, I originally started writing on fanfiction.net in like 2011 or something, and no one will ever get that username out of me lol I would've deleted the account but I don't want to be the kind of fic writer that deletes things just because I'm not proud of them anymore.

I used to cross-post everything from ao3 on there because it's the roots of why I enjoy fanficiton, but I don't anymore, mostly because it's a lot of work and I get frustrated with not being able to tag things + having to write super short summaries.

2. what's your ao3 word count?

currently at 345,703 & will be at about 400k when I finish posting my wip

3. what fandoms do you write for?

Glee, and it's surprisingly always been Glee. That's taken different forms over the years, like there were several years where I wasn't posting anything and was just doing some silly little instagram rp with some great friends I made. But Glee is how I discovered fanfiction in the first place, and it's consistently been the one fandom I feel connected enough to write this much about.

I have dabbled in other things over time - wrote a Girl Meets World fic I never finished, got really into some teen shows like Pretty Little Liars, 90210, Gossip Girl, etc. when I was a teenager. But I've pretty consistently only posted glee fics.

4. top 5 fics by kudos

For Real This Time (280), Something More (180), How Bright We Burn (178), slipped away like a bottle of wine (120), and invisible string (102)

5. do you respond to comments? why or why not?

Yes, I try to respond to every comment unless it's super short/I have nothing to say. I usually try to avoid spoilers, and I generally like to treat comments more as my opportunity to make friends/chat with readers about the characters/the ship/the plot.

6. what is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Definitely 11:11, it's a canon compliant one shot about slushy-gate which basically just involves Sebastian and Blaine both independently being angsty about everything that went down and wondering what went wrong in their friendship, and by the time Sebastian comes around and apologizes, it's too late.

Some of my other one shots don't necessary have happy endings, but they do have optimistic endings, so I think 11:11 is the only one that counts as straight up angst.

7. what's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I think Something More - don't wanna spoil it, but I think that's the nature of writing a fic where the characters are a little older and you can just feel that the happy ending is permanent, rather than when they're teenagers and happy endings can be very short lived.

8. do you get hate on fics?

Not really, and I can be kinda sensitive lol so I'm glad I don't.

Most of the time if I do get hate, it's not criticizing me as a writer but rather criticizing the way the characters are behaving (which I guess is a reflection of me as a writer because sometimes it's because they don't like the way I've written characters), but I can move past that pretty easily because I realize everyone has different head canons, especially for characters like Sebastian who get like less than 10 episodes of canon screen time.

9. do you write smut? if so, what kind?

Not really? I mean, some of the things I've written toe the line between smut and fade to black (like How Bright We Burn, For Real This Time, & The Way I Loved You, mostly) but I like to think I do so in a way that is way more focused on feelings and emotions than what body part goes where. Even in How Bright We Burn where sex is like a very big part of their arc, most of the way you know what's going on is from Blaine's inner monologue or Sebastian's jokes, not so much from me just like describing the scene.

I mostly don't think I'm great at writing smut, and I've found I really like the style of writing about sex that like Casey McQuiston uses in "Red, White, & Royal Blue" where it's not smut but rather indirectly describing what's going down with a huge focus on the emotions at play. If you've read the book, I feel like you'd understand what I mean, but I don't know how else to describe it.

10. do you write crossovers? what's the craziest one you've ever written?

I do not, mostly because there's not really a fandom I'm as passionate about as Glee that I feel like could go well together. I do hope some day I find the inspiration to write a Flash/Glee crossover fic, but who knows. Back in like 2011 when I first started writing fanfiction, I would sometimes include like one or two characters from other fandoms, maybe as like a roommate when a character went to college or as some background character, but nowadays I prefer to write OCs for those purposes.

11. have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of, but who knows honestly. I did have some writing I did on a fandom Instagram at one point + some edits stolen, and it was crazy because they blocked me so that I wouldn't find out but didn't bother to block any of my friends.

12. have you ever had a fic translated?

nope :) I feel like someone asked me once if they could, but I never heard anything back from them after I said yes.

13. have you ever cowritten a fic before?

No, but I did some Instagram RP back in the day that felt very much like co-writing. I had this Klaine RP that really helped me develop the way I write Blaine, and I think I had a Blam one too. But I enjoyed writing the friendships a lot more. I was Blaine and really close with someone who played Tina & someone who played Brittany, so those friendships became super important to me.

14. fave all time ship?

I mean,, my favorite to write is Seblaine and I'm obsessed with them. Their relationship is so special to me and I've never enjoyed writing about anyone as much as I do with them. I've been a Glee fan since I was in middle school when it was still on air, but I never really shipped them to this extent until I rewatched for the 800th time during the pandemic. Since then, they've been my OTP. They're both just very dynamic characters with infinite writing potential, and I love that neither of them is perfect, and there's so much from canon left unsaid that I get to explore. I'm also a sucker for friends to lovers and enemies to lovers, and Seblaine has elements of both.

But some other favorite ships include Wolfstar (Harry Potter), firstprince (Red, White, & Royal Blue), Gallavich (Shameless), Shara & Chloe (I Kissed Shara Wheeler), Evelyn & Celia (The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo), Nick & Jess (New Girl), Barney & Robin (How I Met Your Mother), & Jake & Amy (Brooklyn 99).

15. wip you want to finish but doubt you will?

I honestly don't have many of these, mostly because I tend to write entire projects at a time then move onto something else, at least with fanfiction. But I do have this little spooky halloween one shot au I started like two years ago and haven't felt motivated to finish because I'm just not good at writing spooky things.

I also have this sort of longfic I worked on for a really long time as a way to deal with something going on in my life, but I doubt I will ever finish it or post any of it because it's lowkey traumatic (deals with like car accidents & the death of a child) and I doubt anyone would be interested in reading something like that. It's Seblaine but involves a lot of Glee characters I haven't written beyond brief scenes in like 10+ years, like Finn, Rachel, Quinn, etc.

16. what are your writing strengths?

I like to think I'm good at writing like anxiety and very detailed internal monologues. I sometimes feel like I include too much of it, but it's always come very naturally to me. I also think I've gotten a lot better in the last year or so at writing funny side characters and dialogue in a group setting.

And I think I've gotten a lot better at writing chemistry and building that chemistry over time instead of skipping to the good part right away - the evolution of that skill to me is very apparent in how I wrote For Real This Time vs. How Bright We Burn.

17. what are your writing weaknesses?

lol smut

I also think I tend to not trust myself enough and end up writing exactly what's going on instead of like implying it. I just want readers to understand so bad that I sometimes feel the need to explicitly say what a character is thinking or feeling, which isn't always what you want, especially when it's a character whose POV I'm not writing.

Also I think my sentence structure can be kinda not great. I write really long wordy run-on sentences too often when it should probably be reserved as a narrative device.

18. thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in a fic?

I know a lot of French - I took it for five and a half years and keep up with it on Duolingo so I don't forget anything. I wouldn't call myself fluent, but I can generally understand it in reading and writing. That's the only language I'd be comfortable writing in other than English, which is SO convenient because you know who else is fluent in French? Sebastian ;)

19. first fandom you wrote for?

glee! nothing has changed lol

20. fave fic you've written?

How Bright We Burn! It is my nature that whatever I'm working on at that moment is my favorite thing. I'm really proud of the slow burn in that fic and the character development work I've done for Blaine and Sebastian but also for the side characters like Nick, Jeff, etc. and even my OCs like Ethan. But I'm even more excited about the sequel because it's something I've never really attempted to this extent before, and that's the thing that I'm actively working on since How Bright We Burn is done other than some minor editing.

also gonna shout out 11:11 because I think that is the best job I've ever done with writing angst, and it was both challenging and rewarding for me to write

#lusthurts fics #glee #seblaine #fanfiction #writing #ao3

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