#can you tell i'm writing a power of love fix it fic with him or was this not glowing enough :'D

[phyrestartr]

Divine Favour | Sukuna x Kitsune!Reader (Pt.2) NSFW

W/C: 3.2k #NSFW, THEY FUCKIN', bottom!reader, top!sukuna, mild yuuji/reader, yuuji and gang are v early 20s, heian sukuna, male reader, typical kitsune shapeshifting, canon typical violence, morally grey reader, sukuna ignores feelings through the force of sheer willpower, unhealthy relationships, power imbalance, dubcon elements, blood as lube (SORRY), Sukuna unhinged horknee, ABO elements

A/N: I wanted to make this include more parts, but I am so flabbergasted and in awe of the response to this fic that I feel the need to feed y'all feral creatures LMAO. JKJK but 👀 Thank you for all the feedback and support! It really gives me the motivation to continue writing and to interact with the JJK community. I'm having a lot of fun!

tags: @kamote-kuneho @kamote-kuneho @nyanwko @kamote-kuneho @better-imagination-9 @3zae-zae3 @chibiduck @kiiyoooo @lukaijah

“What the fuck is this?” Sukuna drawled, an intense fury simmering through his being. His gaze couldn't tear free from you, not even to size up the blindfolded weirdo watching him intently. 

He shattered the coffin, freeing you from the makeshift cursed bath some freak had forced you into. He smoothed damp hair from your sickly face and searched for sparks of life somewhere in the cold stillness that'd overtaken you. And there was something. He found it, a little glimmer of vitality in the smallest, shakiest inhale. 

“Good,” he praised, brushing your hair back more and more to get a better look at your face. You looked like the frail little thing he saved all those decades ago.

“You know,” Gojo interrupted, but Sukuna paid him no mind, “If I didn't know any better, I'd think you actually cared about that kitsune.” 

“Then you don't know what this is,” Sukuna decided blandly. “Figures.” Kenjaku kept him off the record, huh? Guess that's a bonus.

“Oh? Do you wanna enlighten me before Yuuji comes back?” Gojo smiled, as if he really expected Sukuna to play nice and be honest with him. “Come on, come on, it's your chance to be vulnerable~” 

“Tch. Pretty damn sure the fox'll be the one to tell you.” His hand smoothed over your stomach and rubbed slow, gentle circles against your skin as reverse technique sought to bring you all back to him. “He yaps about as much as your insufferable ass does. Granted, he talks a lot nicer.” 

“Wow, rude.” Gojo sighed and clapped twice as if clapping on a light. “Okay! I've had enough bullying. Yuuji–” 

“Brat, don't you fucking dare–” 

Yuuji inhaled sharply. He blinked owlishly at your calmed expression, your eyes now closed and breathing now steadied thanks to Sukuna's aid. 

Aid. That wasn't something the king did. 

“Sensei,” Yuuji managed, voice quivering under the weight of memories’ emotion. “Can you fix this?”

Somehow, you were stuck in the throes of flirtation with the malevolent king of curses. 

“It may be courtship,” Uraume guessed, soft smile brightening their cold exterior. 

(They'd been smiling more recently, actually, ever since you completed that overcoat and presented it to them. Nary a day went by when they did not don the sentimental garb.)

But you weren't so sure; the event of courtship was serious business across all lucid creatures. Animals and creatures of primal existence sought out partners with favorable genes and strong constitution, whereas humans and the like yearned for merit or love in their coupling. You didn't quite grasp the way humans thought. Not yet. 

Well, save for flirting. You decided it was a sort of pre-courtship where nothing became serious and nothing was on the line, but frivolous touches and haughty words of praise ran rampant when those concerned crossed paths. 

Much like today.

(Much like the days before and after.)

You walked along the stone-paved path most mornings, lost in thoughts and mumbling to yourself bits and pieces of poems. Most were unfinished, but in their own time, verses would find one another and complete the incomplete. 

A groggy yawn hummed from the palace entrance. And moments later, Ryoumen Sukuna fell into step with you, grumbling and mumbling complaints about the nippy Spring morning while he tucked his arms away into his sleeves. 

He followed you, idly looking around the expansive space you'd helped curate and maintain when you weren't busying yourself with the girls or decorating clothing. The gardens weren't a mess before, not at all, but now they had a certain taste–trees and flowers were planted with specificity, stones were moved, paths reworked. You took the outside over completely. The king didn't mind. 

“Sukuna-sama,” you said, voice melting in kind with the morning frost. “I'll need to leave for a short while.” 

Sukuna quirked a brow and looked at you. You gazed upon the large, thick koi flashing their beautiful scales and ornate patterns of orange and white as they swam and followed you. Tch. How come even the fish were drawn to you? 

“And how do you think you'll accomplish that?” Sukuna tossed a rock into the koi pond, making the fish scatter. “Getting away from me isn't something you can do.”

You huffed and looked at him. “I understand. I simply seek your permission.” 

“Denied.”

“Ah.” You deadpanned. “Why?”

“You're mine; I decide where you go, how you breathe, if you eat. Or are you forgetting that?” 

You sighed and let your ears droop sadly with your tails. “Surely you jest.” 

“Are you laughing?”

You whined like a sad, sad street pup before cozying up to him, slipping your hands up his stomach and chest like you were supposed to. “Please?” 

“No.” 

You chittered and pressed your face against him, but didn't protest and complain much more. 

Sukuna’s thoughts whirled. The show was amusing, sure, but you didn't do anything without reason, especially when it had to do with breaking character and acting out like this out of–

Oh? 

Sukuna leaned down and sniffed you, searching for the intriguing coil of flowery citrus he nearly missed on the warming breeze. It was so, so faint, but decadent and alluring in a way that made the master of toxins cautious–most poisons tasted sweet, after all. 

You pulled your head back, shrinking down the slightest bit with your ears flattened against your skull. Your eyes, wide as a full moon, stared up at him, expectant. The touch of your hands on him never left, though.

“Brassavola nadosa.” Sukuna tilted his head. “You smell like it.” 

You blinked curiously, relaxing. “Is that so?” 

We don't have that orchid in the garden. Sukuna hummed and lifted a lock of your hair, catching another weak waft of the flower's faint scent. 

It's coming from him, then. Hm. 

“Tell me again why you want to leave the palace?” Sukuna asked on a hunch.

And that hunch doubled down when you fidgeted with the cloth of his haori and looked aside. 

“I wish to bear children," you admitted, shy and quiet. "To try, at the very least. Perhaps find a mate, too.” 

Children. You wanted children. After everything those sorcerers put you through for who knows how many years, you still wanted to mother a runt of your own. And you were willing to run off into the wild to, what, let some random man knock you up? Fill you with seed of unknown origin, unknown value, unknown potential?

Sukuna's ego flared. He leaned down to you, tilting your chin up to make you look him in the eyes regardless how small you felt in that moment. He deserved to witness you. You deserved to witness him. 

“You're not leaving,” he breathed, and he swore he could hear your heart break. “If you want a brat, you'll get a brat–only if you stay here 'n give up on those shitty thoughts of finding a sire out there.”

Your eyes scanned his face, tracing over serious lines and honest creases. Clearly, you searched for an answer–

“How?” 

–one that Sukuna didn’t have. Or maybe he did. Perhaps he just couldn't find the words for it. 

He scoffed and ruffled up your hair, unable to answer you. “You're not leaving. Not unless I say so.” 

The first time he let you go, he left scars. 

He found you in your chambers come early evening. Your tails swished and flicked as you sat amidst a nest of his robes and the missing linens from his chambers while you futzed over the embroidery of another haori, this time adorning the plain thing with the darkest scarlet one could find. Sukuna could already guess why. 

Your being burns as wildfires do. Lively. Emphatically. Devouring more and more so long as the earth lets you. Yet where you do not lay ruin, you grant warmth and light in a divine way. Wildfires are not such horrible things if one stays a respectable ways away. 

Your poetic nonsense irritated him to no end, but he fell enamored all the same; you spoke to honor him with every utterance of his name. You didn't try to kiss his feet nor did you bask him in compliments–you only spoke into existence that which hummed through your mind, unprovoked. It just so happened to be everything Sukuna liked to hear. 

So when he found you secluded away, beckoning so sweetly with intoxicating scents of citrus and gardenia, what choice did he have but to lay claim, to give you the brat you so sorely yearned for?  

You sensed him. Your gaze flicked to him, stoic and unmoved as ever, as the energy in the room built into suffocating silence, something like tectonic plates caught in deadlock, holding their disastrous energy, waiting for the right moment to devastate the world with a single, cataclysmic shift.

And of course, it was the impatient predator that moved first, setting a catastrophe into motion. 

The hours blurred together. 

Every minute of the chase was thrilling, invigorating, surprising–you were filled with tricks and traps, never slowing down for a second to think or doubt as the beast of a sorcerer pursued you through his palace, through the city below, and now into the looming forest in the mountains. 

Admittedly, he'd gotten carried away. He lost himself in the rush of it all, the adrenaline and pure, destructive desire pushed his self-control into unraveling just the slightest bit; honest attacks tore through space and time, hoping to maim and cripple you if they were to hit. And, honestly, the way you avoided his attempts to strike you down enthralled him as much as it enraged him–he was seconds away from unleashing his domain until a less-than-satisfying ripple of cursed energy tore across your thigh and put you down.

It was then, walking up to you, to his prey, that Sukuna remembered you weren't a sorcerer. Most would be able to stand and walk it off, maybe even heal with reverse technique, but you could only grasp at your weeping wound and grimace. Because you were not a sorcerer, you were a kitsune: a trickster, a creature full of mischief and void of cursed energy. 

Yokai. Not a human. Not a curse. Not like the rest of the boring souls wandering his earth. 

Sukuna pinned you the second you tried to make a break for it. Fangs and claws gnashed and tore into him while his hands strained to keep you down and rip those damn clothes free from your burning skin. 

Mating's never a pretty thing when it comes to nature. Humans like you made it something more.

Sukuna clasped a hand over your mouth and forced his weight onto you, ripping reedy yowls from your core as you twisted and turned, primal mind urging you to run, run, run, don't make this easy, make him prove his worth–

Rip.

Ribbons of what were once your robes fluttered to the ground, useless and unsalvageable. They were plain black, so unlike what you usually wore. You wouldn't miss them. 

“Make this as difficult as you want, pet,” Sukuna whispered as he loomed over you. His hand slid from your mouth to your throat when you stilled.  

“You know how this ends.” 

His pants were pulled down while another hand wiped slippery blood against your pliant entrance–and that was the only warning you got before he pushed into you. 

Where you should have screamed, you instead sighed. Your back arched off the ground like a work of art. Two hands gave up on holding you down in favour of gripping your waist and hips, pulling you closer to him, forcing you flush against his body. 

He noticed it then: a litany of old scars and discoloured marks shining against your skin. Marks left by those who did not deserve to taste such a delicacy. 

Unsightly.

Blood painted the grass. Cleaves and slashes ate away at those tainted scars, painting over the ugliness left hidden for too long–now, his marks would decorate you. Now, those hidden scars would mean something. They’d mean everything. 

Yet Sukuna's selfish maiming wasn't fitting the bill, and your antsy-ness was proof of it. You tried for the last time to pull from him, but his grip tightened around your throat. You gazed at him, then, eyes so wide and hungry, eager to fight or fuck–whichever came first. 

He braced over you and nearly winced as he dragged out of your suffocating heat. A sharp snap back inside loosened you, the glide of blood and slick aiding him. 

“I'll take you the way you need it,” he drawled as he built the pace quickly, already feeling his own obsession and excitement reverberating through his body, filling every fibre of muscle with electricity.

“Then,” he growled, leaning closer to your face. “I'll fuck you the way you want it.”

“More,” you sighed, digging your nails into the pillow you had your face buried in while the beast fucked you from behind. Sukuna groaned in compliance and lanced into your guts deeper, harder, faster than before–you were the only one that could handle the brutal way he let loose, and he was more than willing to indulge in that privilege. 

The hands all over you rose to the occasion, too; one had your tails fisted in his ruthless grasp, rudely holding you still and pulling you back against his hips; another rested on the curve of your ass, only moving to give a sharp slap or to knead your soft, perfect skin; the last two held your hips in a crushing force, his calloused fingers digging into your plush sides and sharp hip bones like you might disappear at any second. 

A sharp, sweet whine signaled the beginning of the end, as did the restless fidgeting and shifting in the king's grasp. Seeing you, a poised, powerful, mischievous being, come undone beneath him came to be one of Sukuna’s favourite sights, especially knowing it could only be because of him--only him. 

He leaned over you, his heavy chest pressing into your back as one hand released your waist in favour of fisting in your hair and tugging your head back and out of the futon you so desperately clung to. 

“Ah-ah,” he scolded breathily. “No hiding.” It was a familiar sentiment, one he had no problem reminding you of now and again. You had a horrible habit of trying to vanish when overwhelmed, after all. 

“Terrible beast,” you snapped back, scoffing indignantly when the deep bassy laugh of the man rolled through your body. “Horrible.” 

“You love it,” Sukuna growled back, grinning through every word. 

Something about it clearly struck a chord with you, judging by how fast you choked on your voice and came undone, legs trembling and body tightening around the too-big intrusion. The king groaned and bit at your neck, licking whatever blood beaded at the surface in between rushed, hushed words of praise for you and your efforts–most, if they heard the things he said, would call it out of character for the beast. Most didn't get to see beyond his raw power and crippling cruelty, however. 

Sukuna grunted and spilled inside you, pulling you back by your hair, hips and tail to ensure he forced every bit of his offerings deep into your core. Your body rocked and twitched against his, accepting all he had to offer you at the end of yet another coupling, before he let go of your locks and let you collapse face-first into the futon. 

He pulled out slowly, watching as every inch slipped from your abused hole before popping free and uncorking a dribble of whiteness from inside. He tutted and scooped it up with two fingers before stuffing it back in. 

“Oi, oi, are you even trying to keep it in?” He teased, smirking as you huffed. 

“You've exhausted me. I have no energy to attempt the impossible,” you lamented, nuzzling your nose further into the soft sheets smelling of cedar and fresh blooms–something so uniquely Sukuna. 

Your king sighed and gave your ass a firm few pats. “Guess I'll have to spoil you even more.” He settled onto his back and easily pulled you onto him, yanking you up to straddle his waist right where that second mouth laid open and eager to taste you. 

“This is uncouth,” you sighed. But you rocked back against the thick, heavy tongue pressing into your pliant heat, licking deep into you with a mind and hunger of its own. 

“Seems couth enough for you,” he commented, watching you ride his centre with rapt attention. “Little harlot's getting off on this, hey? Such a needy little brat.” 

His hands smoothed up and down your legs and sides as you shamelessly chased a second high. Your hands clasped over his as he took you into his hand and stroked you back to ample stiffness, the soreness of too many rounds of fucking making you far too sensitive to touch. 

“S-Sukuna-sama,” you stammered. “I can't–”

Sukuna's head tilted with a pleased smirk. “Ho? I thought you wanted to bear children? Are my offerings not enough for you?” 

You scrunched your face up into something of a prissy glare, but the shine clinging to your lashes and the shuddering of your body against his betrayed your crumbling demeanor. Of course, he was impressed with how his fox was fairing considering everything he put you through. 

He maneuvered you onto your back, grinning as you growled and weakly struggled against him. You looked perfect–stomach swollen, hair fanned out behind you, eyes teary but unable to tear away from the creature that’d tormented you for hours upon hours with no desire to give you a break. 

“Greedy god,” Sukuna lamented. One hand came to rest on your bruised neck again, fitting around so perfectly. “Nothing’s ever fucking good enough for you.” 

“You are.” 

That gave Sukuna pause. He stared down at you, all eyes looking over you with rapt attention as he tried to think. Tried to understand. Tried to parse those words and uncover what exactly you tried to convey. 

But it didn't click. 

“Tch. You're lucky I'm a generous god,” he scolded, releasing you from your torment in favour of collapsing down beside you for some much-needed rest. Not only did your beautiful body wear him out (not that he'd admit it), but your whimsical words wore his sanity thin. The worst part was you didn't even intend to damage him so. 

“I am truly honoured to merely be in your presence,” Your voice, light and dreamy as petals fluttering, laughed, and Sukuna's soul did something odd. 

He stared at the ceiling as you shuffled beside him, quickly returning to his side, donned in one of his haori and determined to make a comfortable nest of blankets and clothes around you both for the rest of the night–ah, morning? Huh. What an ordeal. 

You curled up next to him, shoving your back firmly against his side the way you often did when resting as a fox, and Sukuna huffed. 

“Turn to me,” he commanded, and you obeyed. 

He, too, turned to face you to envelope your lithe form with invincible arms and divine protection. Your soft purrs rolled through him, settling his wild spirit into a lazy tempo of an early morning stroll through a garden filled with one sort of white orchid: 

Brassavola nadosa. “Lady of the Night.” Your calling card. Your divine essence.

"Brassavola nodosa (Lady of the Night) is a medium-sized epiphytic or lithophytic orchid species boasting extremely fragrant flowers throughout the year. The blossoms, 4 in. across (10 cm), emit a citrus fragrance at night. Each flower features long, slender, pale green or creamy-white sepals and petals and a large, heart-shaped lip sometimes adorned with purple or dark red spotting." - gardenia.net

[jennydwren]

My Arthur: Some Night Thoughts

In between the cancellation of The Acolyte (there's still hope, Clone Wars came back) and the premiere of Rings of Power S2 -- and I PROMISE you that each and every dudebro I blocked in these situations on the former bird app either had crypto in bio or a timeline that was entirely focused on a sports team... I mean, why not think about RDR2? I want to think what it means that so many players speak of MY Arthur, like we all have little pocket Arthurs as pets. "I like my Arthur to be a scary bad guy so I keep him shaved bald." "Well, my Arthur looks his best with Level 7 or 8 hair and a Level 1 or 2 beard." "This time I'm making sure that my Arthur has the best satchel and the Legend of the East outfit." "I always pamper my Arthur before a hard mission. I buy him a ribeye steak at a saloon, get him a bath, and let him sleep just one more night in a hotel. I feed him up to Overweight before Guarma and Chapter 6." "My Arthur is high honor. He would never do XYZ." "Oh yeah? I think my Arthur loves being low honor and beating the crap out of people." "Weird. My Arthur's favorite missions are the dinosaur bones." All of these Arthurs are different and yet the same. All of them are doomed. You have to rewind the timeline and go back to a Chapter 2 save to have a healthy Arthur who can chat and sing with his compadres at the campfire. Nobody's Arthur, until you take him out of the game and into some of the absolutely and utterly beautiful fanart and fanfics, can succeed with Mary Linton, or Charles for that matter. The R* canon Arthur is always doomed. What does it say about us that we can't bear to let go of him, even though his own dialogue tells us he clearly sees the writing on the wall as early as Chapter 1? Is it just the natural human abhorrence of the reality that we too will someday die without accomplishing all that we wanted to? I can relate. Big mood, Arthur. In fragmenting into all of these disparate Arthurs -- Roger Clark has pointed out more people own copies of the game than live in Ireland -- maybe that's how the egregore, the Arthur conjured from the collective consciousness of millions of individual players, stays alive. Many writers of fanfics want their Arthur to be theirs. Not just a rough fuck on daddy's kitchen counter, although I've read that story too, and not just the Not Enough Beds trope, though that too was a fine story. They want to smash Arthur because who doesn't? But they want him to love them, despite R* Arthur having not one single solitary relationship skill. This new Arthur teaches you to draw (the preponderance of Arthur fics I've read involve a "you" reader). Your wish that he address you as he does a mare, "That's mah good girl," comes resplendently true. Sometimes, such are the fix-him powers of You that You and he escape the gang before the name Thomas Downes can be uttered. Arthur's heart beats for You and You alone. Sometimes he protects You from danger. Sometimes he accepts a free sample of sponge cake from You in a bakery. All of these Arthurs go out Arthuring all over the wrong but familiar RDR2 America, often with You at their side. Sometimes You even find him on the cliffside before his rattling last breath, and drag him to safety and a warm, dry climate. One Arthur I read was even saved by a doctor in Mexico with the only available treatment of the period -- collapsing part of the lung -- and recovered fully, having four kids with Sadie Adler and saving most of the RDR world along the way.

You can have your Arthur and play him too. Indeed, a fresh shot of Roger Clark's bravura performance -- combined, as he is the first to point out, with the animators' work, for example giving him the most delicious lower lip -- compounds the infatuation should it threaten to recede.

People suffer profound grief over this game. Of course, it is their own grief from non-digital life: "It is Margaret you mourn for" -- Gerard Manley Hopkins. Perhaps the loss of their Arthur and the way his surviving friends gradually adjust to the loss helps people make room for the holes in their own lives. But that's the thing. That's the comfort at the bottom of the grief pit.

Because once you find your Arthur, including within yourself (I don't just mean cosplay, but I've seen people of all genders don the stained blue workshirt, the suspenders, the neckerchief, the goddamn hat, and wear Arthur on their bodies)... you can't ever really lose him. He changes you. And that may be the strangest and most wonderful thing you can say about a work of fiction.

Keep sharing your Arthurs. The chibis, the young Arthurs cradling poor Isaac or reading to child John Marston, the AUs, the low-honor black coyotes and the high-honor 14-point stags. Marthur, Charthur, Albert Mason x Arthur. All the versions of him. Because they're also You.

[saintsenara]

I feel like in the Sirius/Severus fic I’ve come across the roles often tend to be quite gendered with Sirius either being jocky dom or service top vibes paired with a subby Snape who’s either cock hungry or somehow fragile or a bossy power bottom y Snape. Or the opposite with Snape as dominant and Sirius submissive, usually those ones lean quite into BDSM power exchange element or like caretaker/pet vibes. I’ve enjoyed both and also the rare few I’ve seen where they aren’t written so gendered and both enjoy a range of roles both literally position wise and power dynamic wise.

Wondering what your take is on the dynamic that best fits them in your mind? Obviously the inherent power struggle between them in canon lends itself to power dynamics being part of their chemistry but I can’t decide where I fall on thinking which side of the dynamic they each best fit, or if one where they switch is more in character

thank you very much for the ask, anon!

i don't have a fixed preference for the sexual dynamics in the snack i read - and i've definitely noticed the vibes you mention - but how sirius and snape would act in the bedroom is a question i've had to ponder quite a lot recently, since i'm writing some snack - the war of the roses - myself...

generally, i don't go in for a strict top/bottom division - so when it comes to who's putting what where, my view is that they'll switch.

when it comes to the power dynamic between the two, and the emotional response the two have to sex, i have more to say...

i generally see snape as somebody who's inclined to consider themselves to be inferior to their partner - and, as his canonical power dynamic with both dumbledore and voldemort attests, to think of himself as someone whose role is to serve - but not as someone who is submissive.

by which i mean, i think that snape would view his position in the dynamic as one of supplication, worship, offering, service. and so on. but that this would come without the consensual surrendering of control which defines a classic dom/sub relationship - and also without the consensual surrendering to being cared for which defines a caretaker/pet dynamic. snape canonically prizes his ability to deal with things on his own. i don't think he's someone who wants to be looked after.

what he does want, instead, is to be acknowledged by his partner as unworthy [a sinner who can never atone for what he has done] and yet loved anyway.

but - of course - this desire lurks behind a layer of self-loathing as thick as the earth's crust. and so i do think - at first - snape would be likely to give the impression that he was inclined to be standoffish - and, indeed, cruel - in bed. no negotiation, no aftercare, no acknowledgement that sirius is also involved... just a mess all around.

sirius, too, is someone who i think positions themselves as the worshipper in a god/worshipper dynamic. i particularly think this because i believe that unrequited prongsfoot is canon - sirius' devotion to james, especially after james' death, is quasi-religious. he too thinks of himself as a sinner unable to atone for his sins [as he tells harry in prisoner of azkaban, he thinks of himself as directly responsible for james' death], unworthy of being truly loved.

sirius' self-loathing canonically comes with a willingness to suffer. so, when snape lashes out... he's going to end up taking it.

that they're narrative mirrors is why i love snack as a pairing - and i like the way that this can be taken in any direction when it comes to the sexual dynamic between the two. egregious cruelty in an attempt to drive the other person away which gradually gives way to something tender, allowing each "worshipper" to realise that the other sees him as the "god"? sign me up.

the question i'd like to see more snack authors wrestle with, though? how much experience the two have.

i'll confess now that i never vibe with the characterisation of sirius - whatever his orientation is written as being - which portrays him as sexually [and romantically - i don't think the man's ever been on a real date either] experienced prior to going to azkaban.

this is almost entirely because of the unrequited prongsfoot thing - sirius strikes me as the sort of person who would endure his love for james in solemn silence, rather than seeing other people in an attempt to get over him - but i also think that, as much as i love the common fanon that the wizarding world is a queer utopia, it's going to be because someone from sirius' background would have a lot of extremely thorny feelings about being interested in men.

[including the fear that james would detest him for his sexuality. something i've done in the war of the roses is write james as someone who isn't a bigot, per se, but who - like many teenage boys - nonetheless assumes that his best mate is heterosexual, only discusses sex and sexuality with him with this assumption in mind, and makes plenty of casually homophobic remarks (stereotypes about behaviour or hobbies or appearance, etc.) which he never realises terrify sirius. if sirius ever came out to him, james would - of course - be nothing short of accepting. but sirius never feels confident enough to find this out.]

snape, too, was undoubtedly raised in a homophobic family - and he is canonically subjected to bullying which has a homophobic undertone - but he's someone who i imagine would embrace his queerness as a sort of "fuck you" to the world.

[not least because the masculinity of many of the death eaters - and voldemort's masculinity in particular, especially since, in snape's story, he serves a parallel role to dumbledore - is reasonably non-normative. voldemort is extremely easy to read as queer - and lucius malfoy's relationship with snape can also be read as having some sort of homoerotic undertone.]

snape is someone who - unlike sirius - has the opportunity to explore his sexuality after 1981 [even with the shadow of the aids crisis - which provides a really interesting context through which to examine snape's attitude to sexuality, pleasure, nihilism, and death], and so i really like mixing the idea that snape is the more experienced of the two in with the supplicatory dynamic described above.

[tornoleander]

I'm in the middle of reading wytyaa cuz I saw you mention it at some point and it sounded cool

Anyway, if wytyaa Jay and bbnb Jay ever met, and you somehow got them to traumadump on eachother, both of them would think "First Master, this guy went through hell. Compared to him I had it easy." Meanwhile neithed had it easy and both went through hell.

Might be wrong cuz I haven't finished wytyaa yet but I'm gonna go back to reading now byeeeeee

Oh I’m going to rant for a while because I love talking about and comparing these Fics.

YES, I can absolutely see both them sitting there and invalidate their own experiences. (Unless one of them gets a very important lesson about comparing Trauma)

Art under cut

Trauma dumping though? Currently I doubt wytyaa Jay would. And while bbnb Jay seems willingly to talk to his therapist there’s not a chance 16 year old him from an alternate universe will learn the extent of the shit I had to read through.

The have similar canon complaint story line, to an extent. Both fix my many issues with Cannon and add so much more. Both deal in forced labor extreme physical abuse blood wounds broken bones Starvation With emotional abuse from Nadakhan’s and the crew. But everything beyond that is where things drastically differ

Biggest difference being Explicit vs Mature

Wytyaa being vaguely 16+ and won’t go past implying anything sexual. So a lot is left to interpretation, which is usually easier to handle.

While Bbnb has be 18+ Does not shy away from anything….. no matter how much you wish it would most popular ninjago dead dove for a reason.

Wytyaa Jay is drugged out for the 2 months he has to deal with the withdrawal and wiped memories coming back to him. This scrambles the order you learn about what he went through. Vengestone sorta poisons him, the power suppression is painful and causes long term damage.

In the end Neither Jay is given a moment to feel safe and comfortable over months they are always in extreme danger this is the sort of damage that turns ptsd into C-ptsd✨

Like you said, neither had it easy they both went through hell.

But while comparing trauma is ultimately unhelpful experiences effect people differently both Jays are very traumatized I can tell you one of these was A LOT harder to get through as a reader. VERY much not the same reader experience.

Here’s are the fics with the obligatory READ THE TAGS and warnings at the top of each chapter. They are there for your safety when r themes of sa can be helpful and hurtful to some. Know what you can handle..

When you think your all alone by @mondothebombo

Bending but never breaking by @writing-hat

Both authors are awesome and have read each other Fics lmao.

Never posted this but a long while ago when both fics left off on angst for a long time I messaged them the same thing and got these replies.

The Audacity of hat to blame mondo lol.

If any of you like these fics follow me cause I have a lot of art coming. Also if you have any asks don’t be shy! I could rant for so much longer.

[glassofapplejuicee]

ok ok so the idea of a camp au has been floating around in my head forever and at this point i just need to put pen to paper! now i’ve never been to camp so keep that in mind. and god only knows if this will become an actual fleshed out fic or a WIP that will collect dust in my drive forever-

anyways, it's called Camp Spruce Trails (get it, Spruce Trails, ST?) and I'm imagining this au is still set in the mid 80s, but none of the upside down stuff happens ya know? or maybe upside down stuff happens while they're at camp? but i'm kind of leaning towards letting these guys have a normal childhood-

the camp itself is your classic 6 week sleepaway camp, there’s canoeing, arts and crafts, knot tying, competitions, campfires, etc. going to camp is a borderline religious tradition for The Party and they will do everything in their power to make sure they attend. one of their favorite parts of camp, is the staff:

Argyle Franco: 17, Kitchen, he isn’t huge with the kids but Jonathan convinced him to apply for the job, fridays are always pizza nights, he keeps to himself usually but cheers on his favorite campers during their games

Robin Buckley: 18, Blue Cabin Counselor, frazzled 24/7 but trying her best, wears the handmade jewelry from her campers like it’s made of gold, knows all the camp songs by heart, cries when camp ends, no longer allowed in the kitchen after the incident of ‘84

Nancy Wheeler: 18, Yellow Cabin Counselor, by the books and her campers know that, but they still have fun, always excels in the art competitions (much to Billy’s dismay), she's the most strict counselor however she takes great pride in her ability to get all the campers in bed by lights out

Jonathan Byers: 18, Groundskeeper(?), no one really knows his exact job title, he just sort of shows up every summer and nobody says anything, he fixes leaky pipes, kitchen appliances, pulls weeds, whatever needs done, he helps out a lot in the art cabin though

Steve Harrington: 19, Green Cabin Counselor, mostly stable but the coffee rings stained into his clipboard are telling, tries to be the "cool counselor", and if you stay on his good side you’ll be fine, however he will not hesitate to drag your ass to the office and call your parents if you step out of line

Billy Hargrove: 19, Red Cabin Counselor, parents hate him, but his campers are loyal, they demolish every single athletic competition, stole Eddie’s whistle (now annoys everyone with it), also no longer allowed in the kitchen after the incident of '84

Eddie Munson: 20, Lifeguard, but he sort of pokes his head in wherever he pleases, was deemed unfit to be a camp counselor so they stuck him as lifeguard, plays guitar around the campfire at night, multiple writes up for smoking on the job

if i were to flesh this out more into a full au fic (or more realistically, a series of ficlets??) you can bet your bottom dollar that there will be a giant love hexagon thing that will be going on as a subplot to the camp activities. i'm not even a huge multi-shipper or anything but picture it: Nancy asks Robin to watch her campers for a minute so she can go flirt with Jonathan? yeah sure why not. Nancy gets back and finds Robin sulking cause she's jealous? i'm sure Nancy would be happy to cheer Robin up with a kiss! Eddie and Argyle bump into each other smoking behind the shed? oh whoops my finger slipped and now they're shot gunning a joint. Steve find's Billy and Eddie chilling at Skull Rock? well shit now all three of 'em are making out a la Challengers.

[fairykukla]

My partner bought the DVD omnibus of the TV series Grimm. This was a while ago, but he will trot it out periodically.

I used to love that series, but I find it hard to binge on. The early seasons are excellent, but it really works better with a Monster Of The Week format. The mythology writing was never as good.

Cut for spoilers. If you click through you can see my new fic outline.

But I loved the idea; the stories in fairy tales help explain how there are people with a secondary characteristic; they have a part of them that gives them a certain amount of power, and it can manifest in subtle ways. They're called "Vessen" and there are people called Grimms who can "see" the other form.

Which gets us a really interesting furry show. My favorite character is probably Monroe; he's a Big Bad Wolf who is finding his path to inner peace through exercise, vegetarian diet, and playing the cello. He fixes clocks for a living. He's cute as hell. I was delighted with the complex character named Rosalie who winds up in a relationship with Monroe, and would watch five seasons of a sitcom of their life together.

But I have a really hard time forgiving them for what they did to Juliette, the love interest for Nick, the main character. Juliette is played by Elizabeth Tulloch.

And right away, they spin the story that "Nick has a terrible burden and can't tell his lady love." Which is stupid; Juliette is an intelligent, insightful, Veterinarian with an excellent BS detector. She is neither an innocent housewife "Honey, why do you have to keep working late?" Nor is she a domineering shrew "Why can't you take out the garbage!"

Once she finds out what the real deal is, she becomes a fantastic partner for Nick. She's brave, and strong, and supportive. A friend of hers comes to stay (trying to get out of a shitty relationship) and when the evil husband turns up, she is *not deterred* when he shows his inner nature to her. She just stares him down, and sharks, "Yeah. I'm not impressed." Then attacks him.

Yeah. That's my girl!

Then there's... This weird storyline. An evil witch keeps casting spells on Juliet, (including impersonating her to have revenge sex with Nick) and since this happens over and over again, a side effect is that Juliette gets turned into an evil witch herself.

Witches are called Hexan beasts, and they're all apparently power hungry and ill tempered. Once Juliette is changed, they go galloping for the "She's too powerful, she's been corrupted, we must kill her off" storyline. Then Nick married the evil witch who sexually assaulted him. Yeah. Gross.

I'm going to start writing a fix it fic.

I want to call it Grimm; the Brujah Chapters. I find it hard to believe that there are *only* evil, power hungry witches. Juliette is canonically Hispanic, and has cool stories from her grandmother. Maybe that side effect merely jump-started her magical heritage genes. Maybe, she leaves Nick, and goes out on her own to find her way in the world.

She discovers her grandmother's books.

She she has an affinity with animals. Starts helping strays.

She goes to stay with her friend, who is really delighted that they have this Vessen thing in common. Cue cute roommate stories.

She realizes that while Nick's "cop" approach to being a Grimm deserves some criticism, there are other Grimms out there who are far worse.

She sets up a new practice, and does a lot of stray rescue work, but discovers that she now has an army of strays who adore her and do her bidding.

[fellow-travelers-fic-recs]

Fellow Travelers Fic Recs | Time Travel Fics

💠 Authors: If your tumblr (or other socials) isn’t linked, and you'd like it to be, let me know and I'll be happy to add it. Or, if you are linked, and you'd rather not be, please contact me to remove it.

✨ Show the authors plenty of love with your comments and kudos on the fics you enjoyed after reading! Likes are lovely, but please reblog to share this content with your mutuals! ✨

🕰️ this is the last time i'm leaving without you by @startagainbuttercup | startagainbuttercup [7K] After saying goodbye to Tim and promising him to not write, Hawk's finds himself in the future, 70 years later. Will everything he learns in 2024 change the past? It totally will.

🕰️ is it over now? by @satelarry | satelarry [18K, WIP] Seeing the love of your life walk away without being able to tell him that you love him has to be one of the worst situations a person can go through. But Hawk decided to fulfill Tim's request, knowing it will be the last.

What happens when he wakes up, 18 years before, with the knowledge of what's going to happen if he makes the same decisions?

Does the ending always stay the same?

Or, the Time Travel AU in which the only thing ruining Hawk's plan is Tim's stubbornness.

🕰️ Again, only better by @madsmeetsmisha | madsmeetsmisha [14K, WIP] Hawk had no idea what was really going on here. All he knew was that he was back in 1954 and a completely distraught Tim was standing outside his door. And he also knew that he certainly wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

🕰️ Sands of Time (Turn Backwards) by @brouill3r | brouiller [17K, WIP] 1987 Hawkins Fuller is full of regrets for the life he's lived, though Tim once told him he regrets nothing. Hawk so wishes he could say the same.

In the still night air of a hotel room, clutching a cracked paperweight to his chest like it's carved of the finest gold, Hawk gets his wish.

Or, a time-travel fix-it fic that nobody asked for.

🕰️ Everything, Everything by tinypurpleghost💠[5K] Hawk wakes up in 1968, and everything is different.

🕰️ Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps It’s Real by drabbleswabbles💠[35K] And then it happened. The metallic screech of the gate, the shuffle of men stepping out beyond the prison walls. And suddenly there he was. His hair was shorter than he’d ever seen it. And his glasses were different. But it was him. Their eyes met. Tim stared at him in wide-eyed shock before recognition melted his features into a confused outrage.

Basically, a fix-it in which Hawk finds himself back in the early 70s.

🕰️ Send Back The World by Anonymous [2K, WIP] There is nothing so bitter as regret. And nothing so sweet as a second chance.

Or, Hawk gets yet another chance to fuck it up again.

🕰️ Til Time Itself Is Through by @bluebellsinburbank | ConsumingLove (Bluebellstar) [3K] Tim wakes, soft cotton under his cheek, cool silk covering his body. Bright sunlight streams through open windows, making Tim groan and bury his face in his pillow. It smells faintly like Hawk and his aftershave; heady and spicy and masculine. Tim smiles, curling his toes into the smooth silk below them.

Or, Tim Laughlin gets the life he deserves.

🕰️ this time imperfect by @startagainbuttercup | startagainbuttercup [7K, WIP] 1986. Marcus arrives at Hawk's house and gives him a box. Marcus doesn't know that paperweight in the box is a time traveling device. Will Hawk change anything? We'll see.

🕰️ I Reach for You (And You Bring Me Home) by @misstwentyynine | misstwentyynine [1K, WIP] In 1952, Hawk and Tim meet for the first time at a bar located in the enigmatic paradise of Fire Island, forging a powerful connection that continues to bring them together as their story progresses through space and time.

Or, The San Junipero AU

[bamsywrites]

So I just read the tooth-rotting incredible chapter 11 of And Comes Dawn.

He's made three rings. One of them is for Galadriel. On a scale from 1-10. How heartbroken/furious is the reader gonna be when she finds out that he made a ring for Galadriel.

Speaking of I keep trying to think of how Galadriel and reader would become friends. Because I feel that with how cruel Galadriel has been to reader that is a friendship that would be hard won but at the same time when she finds out he's Sauron and she's heartbroken I feel like Galadriel would be the one to embrace her and fix her hair and say, ''He's not worth your tears, he's worth your rage...and though he loves you dearly he fucked up and you need to show him that's no ok." I kind of also feel that maybe Galadriel would be the one to tell reader not to feel guilty that she's still in love with him after everything.

'And if you were what was at the end, there was no depravity he could not justify'. - Oh my heart! I LOVE that she's endgame for him. Like he's just so in love. It makes me fuzzy and warm.

"He'd seen the most beautiful of the elves, the Silmarils, the light of creation. Yet you were greater than them all.' - Yep. Definitely in love.

'he way you looked up at him, seeking his approval, it mirrored the expression you wore when you were on your knees begging for him. His fingers tightened on your hips, restraining from taking you on the table.' - erm. I need to see this. I need to see this now. They're just so smitten and insatiable.

'“Perhaps one day, if we are parted, I will wear it as a reminder of you when my heart yearns for you.”' - NOOOOOOO. PLEASE. The fact that you've set up that he's yearning for her when he goes on his little power trip in Eregion just breaks my heart. He just misses her. He NEEDS his sweet one. Oh, but what if they met on the battlefield at Eregion and he refused to fight her and she's still wearing his ring (and his heart leaps) but she sees the hair bow and she calls him Mairon and they stare at one another for a second and then just melt into one another's arms because fuck this. They're in love.

'“I don't intend to ever be parted from you,” he whispered softly, tucking your hair behind your ears. “I mean it.”' - NEITHER DO I DARLING. So I have questions about the ring (I've also just read Chapter 12) will he be able to feel her if she's pregnant. Just because I'm imagining immense jealousy that it's not his child, heartbreak because evil kicked puppy eyes cannot bear to think she's lain with another man (isildur is in for hell btw) and also would she be able to feel him in return (like when Adar is hurting him would she be able to feel him, to reach out and comfort him)? Not to mention if she gets physically hurt and he's not there would he be able to feel it? I'm also imagining the psychotic and emotional breakdown of the day she accidentally takes that ring off so she can have a bath or something just because he can't feel her. GODS these two need a happy ending.

THAT proposal speech! He's a stuttering mess. It was exquisite and touching and beautiful and he means it. He really means it. Honestly I love them together. So happy for the updates. You're writing and this story is amazing you've tempted me to be brave and start writing my own Sauron fics. Hope you have a good weekend and I can't wait for more.

P.S. I kind of can't wait for her to see him as Annatar. He's so handsome I question how she'll resist. Also it would interesting to find out if they get married or something would that turn her immortal/or into an elf or something because there's no way in hell he's ever living without her.

He's so pretty I want to cry.

Hes a very gorgeous man honestly who can blame reader for falling for him.

Thank you for your feed back!! I'm glad you enjoyed it so much. He really does love her and he really believes he's doing what's right by her. It's just that his idea of right is so warped and he is still willing to do plenty of evil for the sake of his Sweet One.

So to answer your questions:

For Galadriel,

Sweet one is going to be so distraught in general that finding out about the ring is not going to affect her too much. Their friendship is for sure hard won, I need to write it but I still feel I don't capture Galadriel all that well. These might be some like minor spoilers, but it's actually Elendil that says something to her about it. Basically Sweet One, who wants to stay in Numenor for the new beginning it offers, instead goes back to Middle Earth because she feels obligated to help the people and soldiers. Elendil brings this up to Galadriel and basically just calls her out for holding reader to this impossible standard. The relationship evolves from there and they do become very close friends, to the point that there's a statue in Lothlorien dedicated to Galadriels sweet friend.

For the ring,

Sauron will be able to know some of that. With the ring he hasn't perfected it yet to the point that he'd know everything but it does create a link so he can visit her in her dreams. That's how he'd know. It creates this beacon for that connection even if she doesn't wear it on her finger. She will need to wear it for the healing properties to work. If she's wearing it, he can feel if she has intense emotions and if she's hurt in any way but she can't feel him. That is a vulnerability he's not willing to give. He's vulnerable on his terms, when he wants and he may love her but he's not going to be that open with her.

There are so many psychological break downs to come lol.

Now, I have a question for you and some other readers.

What if love is not enough? What if his darkness too great, what if her morals too strong? What if the most angsty part of this series is that things still unfold the same way and evil prevails in Sauron?

[lifeisabiscuit]

Tamlin's sacrifice

My second acotar fic 😊 This one made me cry while writing lol. I hope you enjoy it!

Summary: Tamlin spends his last moments with an unexpected person and his best friend.

Read on ao3 or below

https://archiveofourown.org/works/58879219

Feyre could feel the power of the cauldron flowing through her and she knew she wasn't going to make it out of this. She could just hope that the cauldron would stop once she was gone.

Gone, dead just like Amren. Tears ran down her cheeks as she sent a message to Rhys. 'I love you. Take care of my sisters. Of our family. Thank you for saving me and making me whole'

"Feyre?" It wasn't Rhys who called her name. She thought maybe she had been hearing things until she saw someone walk up to her. Tamlin.

"What are your doing here Tamlin? Why aren't you out there fighting?"

Tamlin gestured to where he came in "There was a group of Hybern soldiers running up here, weapons drawn. I figured they were after something so I took them out. What are you doing?"

"I'm trying to" She winced as a rush of pain hit her "stop the cauldron. I'm not strong enough. I need- Go find Rhys. I need his help. I need his power"

She could feel him still standing there "Tamlin! Get Rhys n-" She yelped as she was pulled away and thrown to the side. Standing she saw Tamlin grab onto the cauldron, the power hitting him immediately.

"Tamlin! What are you doing? You can't handle this amount of power! You'll die!" Part of her relished in the idea of letting him die and being rid of him. But she knew she couldn't do that.

"Then go get someone else to help me but I'm not going to let you sacrifice yourself again! "

Feyre bristled at the 'let you' but as soon as she opened her mouth to argue there was the sound of a crack and she knew there was no time. Yelling out in frustration, she turned and ran, desperately calling to Rhys through the bond and getting no answer. Majority of the enemies had been taken out after her sisters killed the king so she didn't know why he wasnt answering. She was a few yards away when she felt a boom. She whirled around and saw smoke and debris coming from where she had left Tamlin.

"No..." She ran back quickly, halting at the vision before her. The cauldron had stopped emitting power. He did it.

He- Tamlin lay there on the floor, staring up into the sky. A hole shot through his abdomen. Feyre stepped forward to help when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned her head to see it was Helion. Thesan walking up behind him. They both looked at the scene in front of them.

"Can you help him? He-he stopped the cauldron but all that power... that deadly power went through him."

Thesan nodded "I'll see what I can do." Helion and Thesan both walked up to Tamlin and knelt down. Thesan raised his hand to wave over Tamlins body when his hand shot out and grabbed Thesans wrist. Pausing, They leaned over him to hear what he was saying. After a few moments of back and forth, Helion stands up and walks back to Feyre.

"He requests to see Rhysand. Can you" He points to his head "Tell him to come here. Preferably quickly, I don't think there's much time if Thesan can't heal him."

"Why does he need to see Rhys? How sure are we that he can't be healed?"

Helion shrugged "I don't know. He didn't say. But he was adamant that he needs to see Rhysand. As for healing, that power is something unknown. I doubt anyone has survived it being shot through them before. I'm honestly surprised he didn't die immediately. Thesan is trying his best."

Feyre nodded "Rhys hasn't been answering me but ill try." She moved farther away from the cauldron. 'Rhys? Can you hear me? I need you to answer me.'

A few moments pass and then 'Feyre? Where are you darling?'

Sighing in relief 'I'm by the cauldron. I need you to come here.'

'I'm on my way. Are you hurt? Did you and Amren fix it?'

Feyres heart clenched at the thought of her lost friend 'No. Tamlin did.'

"Tamlin?" Feyre jumped as she heard Rhys speak behind her. Whirling around she jumped in his arms.

Rhys, having just winnowed to her, held her tight before kissing her head "What happened? Why was Tamlin near the cauldron?"

"He said soldiers were coming to attack something up here. Me probably. So he followed them and took them out. When he saw me and questioned me I told him to find you but then he took my place at the cauldron. Said he couldn't let me sacrifice myself and to go get help if he didn't think he could do it. So I went to go find someone but then I heard a bang and when I went back....Rhys. The cauldron was going to kill me, I could feel it. If he-If Tamlin didn't come, it would have been me on that floor dying."

Rhys stared in the direction of the cauldron, taking in what she said "He sacrificed himself for you? To save you? Why didn't you call me?"

Feyre nodded "To save us. I did try to call you but I think the cauldron was blocking it. You never answered. Thesan and Helion are in there seeing if they can so anything for him but they dont know because the power shot through him. He-It doesn't look good"

Rhys shook his head "If they can't do anything then I'm not sure what can be done."

"He wants to see you Rhys"

"Me? Why? What am I supposed to do for him?"

"I don't know. He's requested to see you specifically."

Rhys looked thoughtful "Okay. Well then I guess we better go see him." They walked back towards where the others were.

Rhys stopped in his tracks when he saw Tamlin on the floor. Emotions sprang up, emotions he didn't think he could feel towards the other male anymore. Shock, guilt, fear, anguish.

He took in the surrounding area as he walked towards the others. As soon as he walked up, Tamlin opened his eyes and looked right at him.

"Rhysand."

"Tamlin."

Thesan gave Rhys a nod and pulled his hands away "I'm sorry Tamlin. I can't heal this. Whatever power is running through you, I don't have a cure for. It's like a poison running through your veins"

Tamlin nodded his head, resigningly "I understand. Thank you for trying" He looked up at Rhys "Can I have a moment alone with Rhysand?"

Thesan and Helion exchanged glances before nodding and walking back towards Feyre.

Feyre, having heard from them that Tamlin wanted to be alone with Rhys, started walking back towards her mate but stopped when Rhys looked at her and shook his head.

'I'll be okay, darling. I'll fill you in later'

Feyre hesitated and then nodded and walked away before winnowiing to her sisters.

Rhys looked down at the blonde male laying on the floor before making the decision to sit beside him "What have you done now Tamlin?"

"I couldn't let her die."

"So you decided to die instead? Were you even going to let someone else help you? Or did you just send her away so you could sacrifice yourself?"

Tamlin shrugged before wincing at the pain that moment caused "Better me than anyone else." He started coughing as a spasm of pain hit him, Spitting blood.

Watching his enemy, his old friend, knowing deep down this was the end made Rhysand scared and irrationally angry. He shook his head "You fool. Now is the time you decide to not be a selfish prick? You're a high lord, you have no heirs, no family. Who is going to rule Spring? You self sacrificing idiot!"

Tamlin shuddered a breath "You're right, I'm selfish. A fool"

Sighing and shaking his head Rhys calmed down before saying "No. No You're not Tamlin. What you did today, how you came through when we needed you, that was incredibly heroic and it won't be forgotten. You won't be forgotten Tamlin"

"I'm sorry Rhys" Tamlin took a breathe "I'm sorry...For your mother and your sister. I didn't mean...I never wanted to hurt you."

Rhys closed his eyes, trying to control the rage and despair at the mention of his lost loved ones "It's okay, Tamlin."

"No, it's not. It was an accident. " He breathed in against the pain "My mother asked, i didn't think she'd tell him. I was stupid. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry"

Rhys nodded "It's okay Tam. I understand. I'm..I'm sorry too, for your brother's and not stopping my father before he killed your mother"

Tamlin huffed a laugh "It's okay. They deserved it. But it's my fault. She-She loved him. Too much. I should have known. I'm sor-"

"Stop Tamlin" Rhys said, grabbing Tamlins hand "Just relax. Don't waste your breath."

Tamlin tried to focus on his shuttering breath, closing his eyes at the pain that came with every movement "I need you to pass some things on for me. Please."

Rhys nodded "I can do that."

"Tell Feyre that I'm sorry. I-I did love her but i wasnt what she needed. And tell Lucien-"

"I'm here, Tam" Lucien, having come as fast as he could after he ran into Feyre who told him what happened, said as he stepped forward and knelt on the other side of Tamlin, grabbing his other hand.

Tamlin smiled sadly "You always are. Luc, I'm sorry. You're my best friend. I treated you horribly and I'm sorry. But I love you. You're my brother. The brother I always wished I'd had" Tears were rolling down both of their cheeks now.

"I know Tam. I forgive you. You saved me when I had no one. I'll forever be grateful for you. I love you too."

Tamlin smiled and looked back at Rhys, smile fading "Rhys..." closing his eyes against a wave of pain " I can't...I can't hold on much longer"

"I know Tamlin. It's okay" Rhys squeezed his hand tighter "Everything will be okay. I've told Feyre what you said. She forgives you. She loved you too"

Tamlins eyes closed "Rhys....You were my best friend. I'm sorry for everything. I'm sorry I wasn't enough"

"You were, Tamlin. What you did today-"

"No. " Tamlin opened his eyes and looked at Rhys, regret and longing? Shining in his eyes "I wasn't enough for you. I-I loved you Rhys. I always have. I'm sorry"

Rhys smiled softly "I did too, Tam. You were my friend"

Tamlin shook his head "No. I loved you. More than a friend, more than a brother. I'm sorry I didn't tell you"

Rhys blinked "Tam..." He reached out and stroked Tamlins cheek "I loved you too."

Tamlin searched his eyes and then smiled "I guess that's why you can't stay away from me" His laugh turning into a cough.

"Shhh, stop, Tam. Take it easy. Just rest, " Lucien said, still beside Tamlin, a little shocked at his admission to Rhysand.

Tamlin laid back, closing his eyes "I can feel it's time to go. Can you- can I ask for a favor?"

"Yes, anything" Lucien said, Rhys nodding.

"Can you help me sit up? I want to feel the sun" Tamlin winced trying to sit up himself "one more time before I die"

Rhys looked at Lucien who nodded "Okay Tam. We can do that"

They both reached out and grabbed a shoulder and arm, gently lifting Tamlin up until he was sitting up. Both males sat on either side of him, close so he didn't fall back.

Tamlin looked towards the sky, growing weaker by the minute "Thank you both. For being here for me."

Lucien wiped his eyes and grabbed Tamlins hands, squeezing "Of course, Tam. I'll always be here for you"

Tamlin looked at him and smiled, then sighed "Can you look after our people? Help them find Sanctuary in other courts in case, in case there's no one to take my place? I failed them, I need to know they'll be okay."

"Of course. I'll make sure they are okay and safe. You didn't fail them, Tam. You did the best you could."

Tamlin nodded "I hope so. Thank you" He sighed and then turned to Rhys.

"Rhys, I-mmph" he was cut off my Rhysand leaning in and kissing him. Tamlin froze before closing his eyes and kissing back, reaching his hand up to softly cup Rhys' cheek.

Rhys, having spent the last few moments thinking of regrets before deciding to take a risk and give them both something to remember, threaded his fingers into Tamlins hair at the back of his head and deepened the kiss.

Tamlin couldn't help the soft moan that came out of his mouth as their tongues touched. The two made out for a minute until Tamlin pulled away sucking in a breath. He put his forehead on Rhys' "Thank you."

He winced in pain, a fresh set of tears falling down his cheeks "I love you, Rhys."

"I love you, Tamlin." Rhys cupped his cheeks "I always will.."

Tamlin smiled softly before looking over at Lucien "You'll be okay?"

"I'll be okay, Tam. I love you my brother"

"I love you too my brother" He said before looking away, back up at the sunset.

Resting his head on Rhys' shoulder, he smiled as he felt the other male drop a kiss on his head.

Squeezing both of their hands, Tamlin felt at peace in between the two people who have meant the most to him.

They both felt the loss as Tamlins hands loosened their grip and they both knew he was gone. Lucien dropping his face into Tamlins shoulder as he let out the sobs he was holding in.

Rhys looked down at Tamlins face. In this moment he looked like the young male he was when Rhys first met him. With tears in his eyes and a new hole in his heart, Rhys leaned in and gave him a last kiss, one of the few they've ever shared thanks to unspoken words and lost time.

He looked at his face one more time before looking up at the sky, hoping his lost love has found peace.

[steddieas-shegoes]

the sidekick to her own hero

it's that time again: weekly fic rec! once a week, i rec my top 3 (to me) fics by some of my favorite authors. always check out their full works/masterlist because what may be top 3 to me could be different for you! as always, read tags before indulging and please always reblog if you enjoyed something to support them!

this week is @sidekick-hero! sandy's writing is beautiful and i am constantly in awe of her ability to tell such a variety of stories with these characters. all of these are rated e so 18+/minors dni you know the drill. it's not on the list, but make sure to check out her bang fic with jen, too!

sandy's tumblr | sandy's ao3

i wore his jacket for the longest time   Rated E | 58,311 words This is technically a part two to what should have been a one shot with an open ending for interpretation, but we can all say thank you to @legitcookie for saying "no fix that right now" 😂 (you still need to read part 1 first btw). Favorite part: I'm gonna be honest, the whole thing is so good. But I think what drew me into this so well is that the first chapter is Hopper and Joyce just being the best support for Steve, showing him that he is human and makes mistakes and has the power to correct them. Nothing gets me like Steve having the parent figures he deserves.

Will you cleanse me with pleasure? Rated E | 8,462 words A birthday gift for @steves-strapcollection turns into a birthday gift for all of us! It's monsterfucking time. It's secret monster Eddie with super sweet Steve and they're so in love and fuck about it. Favorite line: "Good. They're mine ."

we tangle endlessly like lovers entwined  Rated E | 3,408 words Listen, the way we have all collectively fixated on Steve being a handholder during sex will never cease to thrill me. This hits almost everything I could need in a fic and it's just a short one shot. This is what I mean when I say Sandy is magic. Favorite part: Butterflies take flight in Eddie's stomach, filling his insides and chasing away his dark thoughts. He feels like he could float away if it were not for Steve's body anchoring him. Steve's hazel eyes look down at him, soft despite the hunger simmering in them, and he leans down to capture Eddie's lips in a surprisingly tender kiss.

[inlovewithalotoffandoms]

The Power of Love

Eli Hale x Fem!Reader

Summary: This fic is inspired by this scene from 'Back to The Future'

To follow along, begin the video at 3 minutes and 35 seconds.

You and Eli have been dating for a couple of months now. After school, Eli had Lacrosse tryouts for him to get on first line, but the coach said he was too soft. So now, you and him are walking on the sidewalk to the bench you always sit at together after school every day.

"Too soft? I can't believe it. I'm never gonna get the chance to play on the field." Eli says in annoyance.

"Eli, one rejection isn't the end of the world." You replied, glancing at him as you both continued walking.

"Nah, I just don't think I'm cut out to play Lacrosse." Eli shrugged it off like it was no big deal to him, but you could see it was a big deal to him. He just didn't want to tell you.

"But you're good, Eli, you're really good. And this gameplay of yours is great. You've gotta give it to the team." You encouraged as you continued, "It's like Doc's always saying,"

Eli cut you off, "Yeah, I know, I know. If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything." He turned his head to look at two girls passing by. You gently turned his head back towards you as you said,

"That's good advice, Eli." teasing him a little with a smile on your face.

"Alright, okay, Y/N, what-what if I give them the gameplay and they don't like it? I mean, what if they say it's not good? What if they say, 'That's dumb, it won't help us win'? I mean, I just don't think I can take that kind of rejection." Eli rants, sighing as he leans against the bench while you fix your shoelace. He then continued.

"What the hell, I'm starting to sound like Scott."

"Oh, come on, he's not that bad." You state with a soft chuckle as you smile at him. "At least he's letting you skip werewolf lessons tomorrow night." You added. He grinned at you as he pulled you by your hand to stand on the bench with him, saying,

"It's gonna be great, taking the Jeep up to the lake, throwing some sleeping bags in the back, lying out underneath the stars." his hand around your waist as he pulled you down to sit next to him.

You were blushing as you moved his hand away gently, "Stop it."

"What?" He chuckled innocently, smiling at you.

"Does Allison know? About tomorrow night?" You asked, knowing full well what the answer was.

"No, she thinks I'm going camping with the guys." He laughed. "Well, look, Y/N, she'll freak out if she knew I was going with you and I'd get the standard lecture of how she never did this stuff with Scott when they were our age. I mean, look, I think the woman was born a nun."

"She's just trying to keep you respectable, especially now that your dad's gone and she and Scott are looking after you." You state, gently touching his chin, letting go after a couple of seconds.

Eli then put his arm around your shoulder, "Well, she's not doing a very good job." He smirked.

"Terrible." You grinned, leaning in to kiss him as you closed your eyes. As you were about to kiss, you got interrupted by the horn of a car. You pulled away from Eli, sighing,

"That's my dad."

"Right." He mumbled.

"I gotta go." You state, getting off the bench.

"I'll call you tonight, babe," Eli states.

"I'll be at my grandma's. Here, let me give you the number." You explained, writing down the number on a piece of paper you had and an 'I love you' sentence at the top, giving it to Eli.

"Bye." You smiled at Eli as you kissed his lips gently before pulling away and walking to your dad's car.

He couldn't wait for tomorrow night.

[fallen-gabrielle]

Presidential/White House AU Headcanons compilation

Hello KND fandom! With friends from the discord server, we expanded the fake future from Operation: W.H.I.T.E.H.O.U.S.E. and made it an actual alternate universe/future.

I also decided to write a fanfic about it based on the headcanons we came up with 👀: Wrath of The White House, title suggested by @scarlett-v-the-fox. She also came up with a lot of headcanons about Lizzie's alien specie.

Many things come from the fact that President Uno gives major "I cheat on my wife with my secretary" vibes and we all just rolled with the idea. So yes, in this AU and fic, Adults!Nigel/Kuki is a thing and things get cra-zy between them, so I'm warning you, there will be a lot of adult stuff under the cut, such as freaky physical intimacy. If you don't like it for any reason, don't go further.

There's also a few things I left out from the list, because it would be kind of spoilery for the fic, but with this list you already know where you're getting yourself into, so no big surprises.

I will probably reblog this post when we explore the other characters not so mentioned here, but this is a good base to start.

Ok, are you ready for it? Remember, the following might make you uncomfortable so if you don't want to read it, just keep scrolling.

HEY I WARNED YOU, THERE WILL BE REALLY ADULT THEMED TOPICS, THIS IS MY FINAL WARNING, DON'T COMPLAIN ABOUT THINGS YOU DIDN'T WANT TO SEE CUZ I GAVE TWO BIG WARNINGS ABOUT IT! FINAL CHANCE TO TURN BACK!!!

The main things that can be hard to read are: kinks, torture, domestic and child abuse. All of this will be explored in some degrees in the fic.

We good? Okay, here it is then!

President Nigel Uno/Wrath -Won the elections through shady means: bribes, blackmail and other illegal stuff. -He made it possible for him to be President for life -He's in charge of the English mob, who he sent people to do the dirty work -He also has his personal army of demons as henchmen who helped him with the shady means to become president -He has powers, but he hides them very well in the face of the public. -The whole demon lineage is a family secret that he didn't even tell Lizzie. -He is known in the undergrounds as Wrath and you really don't want to piss him off. -His silhouette form is the classic pitch black suit, he has claws and a dragon tail, as well as straight horns on his forehead. His hair is messy in this form as well. -He's an asshole. He cares more about his hair than his heir (plz laugh at this) -He had many love affairs but only a few were consistant (a lot of one night stand). He only had one kid out of it with Rachel. -He uses a lot of hair gel. When he doesn't, his hair are messy just like his son's (they basically have the same haircut if not combed)

Nigel and Kuki (that's where the freaky bed stuff is, guys) -They fuck in secret but some people know what's going on. -They get crazy in the sack, with a shit tons of kinks. -Seriously, they try stuff in the bedroom, they're really creative. Tickling that Nigel actually enjoyed, Kuki liking having her hair pulled a little bit. They both bite and love it. -Their kinks involve leather, chains and extreme role plays (she has a collar with his name on it) -Technically they're switches, they take turns on who's the dominant one, but Nigel secretely likes being the sub in their relationship bc he gets a break from being in charge, and he gets praised. He can't hear "good boy" without blushing. -They can't go to specialized clubs because they can be regognized so they do it in private places -They have a code in little gestures to warn the other when they want each other. When she fixes his ties for exemple. -Their relationship is purely physical intimacy, there is no romantic emotion between them. -Outside of the bedroom, and off duty, they're just friends. -After the act, Nigel and Kuki share some fluff moment, where they simply like the presence of each other and like to snuggle. -She is serious, strict and stern as the secretary but in private with Nigel she loosens up and is a real tigress in bed. -"I will work late tonight honey" => is actually with Kuki -In the morning, Kuki likes to exchange her glasses with his just for fun, but one time they actually had to rush to get out and still had the wrong glasses on their faces. For those who didn't already know about them, that's how they learned what's going on -Kuki always travels with him on his trips

Nigel and Rachel (plus her family) -He had an affair with her during the early years of his marriage with Lizzie. -They're still in love even to this day -They had a daughter together named Lucy, 14 years old -Nigel loves his daughter very much, she's his little princess -He clearly has a favorite, and it's his daughter -They've been keeping their love affair a secret from everyone, mostly -Rachel is also hiding her daughter from most people's knolwedge -Rachel ended her relationship with Nigel and put an end to his secret visits to his daughter because things got sus and Nigel was also starting to change as he became greedier and lusted for more powers. He wasn't the man she fell in love with anymore. -Nigel sends her money to support their daughter but Rachel never accepted the money as it comes from corrupted/dirty money. -Rachel is the head of national security -She knows all the hacking tricks in the book. She can bypass a n y t h i n g -Harvey knows about the secret child and absolutely despises Nigel (and so does he)

Nigel and Lizzie -Lizzie is the same overbearing and annoying person as ever -Lizzie suspects that Nigel has an affair with Kuki Sanban. -She has no clue about Rachel and the illegitimate daughter. But when she learns that fact, all hell will break loose -She will especially be super mad that Nigel got a daughter with another woman and she didn't. -When she does get a confirmation about Kuki, she has to keep it down because the scandal would be too much to handle. Also, Nigel would be worse to her if she throws fits. -She doesn't know the extent of what Nigel is doing with Kuki, just that he's cheating on her with the secretary -When they do get intimate, it's the most boring stuff ever. -Nigel absolutely doesn't know she's an alien. When he finds out, he sends her to Area 51 -He will torture her to know why she was sent to earth

Nigel and his parents/relatives -Actually the only people he's not a complete douchbag to. -He really loves his parents and they love him too. He just never has the time to visit them as much as he would want to. -But they still never approved of Lizzie. They hate her. -Mrs Uno occasionally mentions divorce to her son so that Nigel would someday click and dump Lizzie -Nigel is also close to his uncle Benedict. He taught his nephew how to use his powers when he got them in his 20s.

Nigel and Shirley -They have a very cold relationship -Nigel doesn't care much for his son's existence except when it comes to his own image -Nigel is more neglectful towards his son than he is verbally or physically abusive towards him -Nigel insists on his son being proper all the time. -He combs his son's hair whenever he thinks it's not perfect -When Shirley gets his alien genes activated and apparent, Nigel absolutely hates it and cuts them off violently. -He always scolds Shirley for being ‘too noisy/agitated’ when they visit his parents because they’re old people so therefore they mustn’t be rushed. But Monty and Margaret really don’t mind their grandson for doing what a kid is supposed to do. -Shirley doesn't know his dad has affairs and just thinks he's always busy on business trip and extended meetings. -Viggo finding dogs’ collars in his dad’s stuff: "wait, he secretly has a dog? And he always refused that I get one myself !!!" Poor boy doesn't know what this really means

Shirley/Viggo -He's part human/demon and uvinea (alien part) -He doesn't know his true lineage on either side (yet) -At some point, he will start having flowers growing on his head -His vines can be torn apart and it hurts, but they will grow back -He doesn't know anything about his father's infidelity drama, including his older half sister -He really despises his dad in general -He admires Numbuh 1, whom he doesn't actually know that's his dad -I let you imagine the shock when he'll find out the truth xD -Leopold Lincoln/Numbuh 5'000 is his best friend -Shirley spends some times at the Lincolns', because Leo's dad is so much nicer than his own and wishes to have a dad like Leo's -Despite how dysfunctional his family is, Shirley still hopes that one day they could be a "normal family". -He loves his grandparents a lot (who doesn't tbh) -Nigel and Lizzie fight a lot for small things as well as the bigger ones (Nigel’s cheating for exemple) and it’s too much for Shirley so he goes to his grandparents’ place to have some calm and wholesomeness or sometimes to the Lincolns' -He hates the cold

Fanny & Patton plus friends -They're married and have a daughter -Her name is Sheila and her codename is Numbuh 860, soopreme leader -Patton is in the army but doesn't have a high position -He has to put up with Wally's bs all the time -He's away from home a lot -Fanny, as head of Nigel's security guards, records the shenanigans between the President and his Secretary and keeps the tapes as off-brand for herself. -She's actually supposed to delete anything scandalous about the President but eh, she sometimes blackmails Nigel with it. -She sometimes watches it with her colleague Chad and her husband when he gets back home -They all treat it like it's a fictional tv drama show -Therefore, they know all the dirty little secrets the President Uno has in the sack -She gossips about everything going on in the White House with her colleagues but makes sure nothing get out really (her boss is Nigel, remember) -Fanny actually does know about the Nigel/Rachel affair, because she is friend with Rachel -Fanny talks Rachel into watching the tapes. Rachel reluctantly agrees, and she's speechless until she mutters over halfway in, "Why couldn't we do any of that stuff? Damn."

Abigail Lincoln -Married to Maurice, he took her last name. -She was arrested under false accusations/She tried to organize a coup against his administration and failed -Nigel tortures her to get info from her (mostly about the knd) -She lost her right eye during one torture session -She was never decomissioned as she was tasked as a teenager and later as an adult to look after Nigel. Obviously she failed. -She is constantly tormenting herself about the fact she wasn't able to save Nigel -She was also part of Nigel's administration and she refused to help him in his corruption

Leopold/Numbuh 5'000 -His dad is Maurice -He's Shirley's best friend and always calls him by his nickname Viggo -He doesn't freak out nor is scared of his friend when he gets his powers -He kinda fanboys about it, actually, which makes Viggo cringe a few times -He writes and collect letters from the family for his mom. -He sneaks into the prison to bring her the letters and pastries his dad baked for his wife -He has to make his visits more sparce to avoid getting caught -“Dad misses you” “Dad brought you this” “Dad is working on your case” -He failed to protect his mom from being jailed and feels really guilty about it -He's a brave kid, but he still cries late at night for his mother. -His aunt Cree also helped raising him while Abby is imprisoned

[unecoccinellenoire]

I wish you would write a fic where Nathalie doesn't want history repeating and so gives relationship advice.

answering this over a year late because the special gave me some feelings about this: It’s painful to watch how Marinette’s mask drops the moment Adrien leaves the room; the girl’s smile fading, her shoulders sagging. Nathalie’s can almost feel the loss of the phantom weight of the person Marinette’s meant to be slipping off her but not without threatening to draw her to the floor on in exhaustion on her way.

She’d used to do that with Gabriel after all.

She sighs.

Relationships are hardly her area of expertise. When Adrien tries to ask for her advise she feels like a computer failing to find a file that supposed to be there. Nathalie has no idea full stop what a healthy happy relationship is supposed to look like.

But between herself, Gabriel and Emilie she has a pretty good idea of how it shouldn’t go, and if she’s supposed to be worthy of pretending to be Adrien’s mother, and of unearned freedom her former enemy turned conspirator of his happiness has granted her then she should say something.

Marinette, always so alert to any issue that might need fixing, even when she’s not Ladybug and it’s not her job to do so is looking at her now. A peril of shedding part of her own persona around her too.

Most even. Perhaps more than even Gabriel had seen. But that’s not the point.

The point is. "You shouldn't always put Adrien first."

Marinette frowns a little. "OK. Um. What are you talking about? Because if this is about his fa-"

"It’s not that.” She’s still not convinced what they’ve done there is quite right, but then Marinette does know Adrien better, know how to make him happier, than Nathalie does for all she’s known him a fraction of the time she has. “Earlier. That girl makes you uncomfortable. Why don't you just tell Adrien that rather than just pretending she doesn't and going alone with it all?"

She thinks about it. Nathalie can give her that much credit. Can see that same deliberation she’d seen on Ladybug’s face each time the heroine had called her Lucky Charm.

But then Marinette looks at Nathalie like she’s one of those additional heroes of hers, like she’s her friend and the superheroine is replaced with a teenage girl.

"Wouldn't that be," She gestures awkwardly, "overreacting? And being too clingy? Adrien loves me.” Her tempo seems to somehow increase on every word, before it slows with a “Right. Adrien loves me so I need to just calm down and not be so territorial, it’s not like everyone wants him anyway, I mean they should but-"

It’s somehow sounds less convincing than Gabriel’s speeches and Nathalie’s lost enough of her life to those.

She interrupts. "Is that you talking or something you've been told?"

Marinette’s jaw dropped as if affronted by this,  when she wasn’t by the former enemy she keeps on tight lead daring to comment on love life in the first place. "Alya cares about me- and she's always been my number one supporter when it comes to Adrien."

"I'm sure she does. And that she is. And I don't know you the way your friend does.” She has no interest in meddling in whatever support system Marinette has to manage to be the talented schoolgirl dating the famous tragically orphaned model, the hero of Paris, and the Guardian of powers that could change the world. Relying only on Nathalie is a recipe for disaster. Events have proved that. Nor is it that she can’t see why this Alya might have said it. “And you can be a little given to..."

"To what?"

"You're not the most,” she struggles over the word aware her response is being waited on, but unwilling to offend her and get this chance. “moderate of people Marinette. That's not a bad thing. But your friend might have been saying just the right thing in the circumstances if she was trying to help you calm down. Gods know I wish I-” but, “it doesn't matter. My point is you don't need to worry about this girl, Alya was right. Adrien does love you. But that doesn't mean that you can't tell him how she makes you feel. Especially as- it's not just jealousy is it?"

"It's not. I get this- feeling. I can't explain it. I know it sounds crazy but I feel like she's being drawn to put attention somehow, like my Miraculous is picking her out for me to pay attention to like a Lucky Charm. But that’s not how that even works. And it’s not like I’ve never seen threats that weren’t there before."

Her heart sinks at the confirmation she’s not seeing things there but she pushes herself to maintain her calm tone. "I think you sound crazy. Not at all. Maybe I should look more into her."

The gratefulness in Marinette’s “Could you?” scratches at the wound that is Nathalie’s heart.

Neither Ladybug nor someone who loves Adrien should be grateful to her.

Especially when it’s really nothing. Not when. “I’d be remiss not to. Not if she could be a threat to Adrien.”

“So Adrien is your priority?”

“Did you doubt it?” She allows herself the slightest frown to underline her point. “If it wasn’t for Adrien I’d have turned myself in. You know that. You convinced me of that.”

“I know but- Oh! That’s why you told me to tell Adrien. Because you knew that he needed to know and-“

“That’s a reason for him to know. That’s not why I said it.” She clasps her hands behind her back, digs her nails into her fingers and with a deep breath forces herself to get to the meat of the matter. “…what you said down there about wishing you’d sacrificed yourself for Adrien so he’d still have his father.”

“I know you two fell out.  And I know he made the wrong choices and stopped putting Adrien first but there was good in him. I know it. I saw the regret in his eyes- and and he defeated me! He could have made any wish he wanted to! Have reshaped all of reality and instead he chose to save you.”

The worst of it is that Nathalie can tell she means it. That she believes what she’s saying- believes what Gabriel had said. And she feels sorry for Nathalie for not having seen Gabriel’s last actions.

“Gabriel’s choices- what sort of man he was in the end isn’t the point here. I don’t want to debate that with you anyway,” now when that could mean admitting that a selfish part of her would prefer for her prior belief in Gabriel to have been wholly misplaced than for a girl he barely knew apart from as an unfavoured girlfriend for his son to have been able to reach him when she, his confidante of years, couldn’t, “but the point is that doesn’t matter. Gabriel could have been the best father in the world and that doesn’t mean that you should have considered sacrificing yourself just to give Adrien a father.”

“But…I- maybe I’ve given you the wrong impression. Being Ladybug is hard, but I’m not looking for a way out. I’m not suicidal or anything. I just want what’s best for Adrien.”

Nathalie winces. “You sound like me. That’s not a good thing.”

Marinette has more to live for than her. She can easily see the girl not resigning herself to losing her live like she had. She can see her fighting for not just her life but what she wants for herself like Nathalie never had. She can also easily see her throwing herself in front of Adrien to prevent his doom.

She looks up at Nathalie, a confused little line between her brows. “I don’t understand.”

“Why do you think I became Mayura?”

“Oh.”  It’s a quieter one than her exclamation earlier. But from her too-wide eyes no less consequential a realisation.

Nathalie wonders sort of relationship exactly had the girl had thought she and Gabriel had. Probably not the one they did anyway.

And it’s not any of Marinette’s business really, certainly not something she wants to talk about to someone who despite everything she is and has done as Ladybug is after all not even old enough to have started lycée yet.

But there are certain blanks she should fill in for her.

“I knew the price of the Wish you know. I was ready to die for him if that’s what it took to make him happy.” It’s oddly freeing to admit it. To finally say what neither she nor Gabriel had ever dared to say out loud. He must have known after all, between what she had said and that Miraculous on his chest. Stupid of her to have even thought otherwise when “And in the end- in the end Gabriel didn’t vindicate that devotion. But I think- I booked Adrien into therapy you know. He doesn’t talk about it to me. But he gives me worksheets. I think he knows I need it too.”

Once again her enemy offers her pity and tries to help someone who as far as she knows had never done anything for her. “Maybe you should go too then?”

“Oh Marinette. With my crimes? I’m not sure I need a therapist. I need a priest. But regardless I’ve read enough to realise that… how I felt. No. How I acted on my feelings for Gabriel did neither of us any good. Perhaps if I’d valued myself as much as I did him all of this could have turned out differently and Adrien would still have a father. A better father. But I didn’t. And you’re better person than me. And Adrien is a better person than his father. And that’s why you deserve to have a healthier relationship than us. And that means not making my mistakes.”

“I just want him to be happy.” Marinette chews at her lip.

Nathalie wishes she wasn’t laying another burden on the girl’s small shoulders even if it was for her own good. “And that’s admirable. But it shouldn’t be at the cost of yourself. Adrien has no idea what a healthy relationship looks like. How can he?”

“His parents-“

She stops her. “You saw what Gabriel did to Paris when Emilie died. Is that what you want to become?”

“I thought it was you you didn’t want me to be like.” There’s a challenge underneath her words there. She doesn’t want to admit Nathalie has a point.

But that’s an attempted attacked. Nathalie has an easy answer to. “There’s no one in this household you should emulate.”

Marinette bristles again. Her posture straightens. “Are you going to try to convince me to tell Adrien again?”

Nathalie can feel the firm line her lips press into. It’s not a conversation she thinks she can win, and she’s not even sure that ethically she ought to. Marinette’s the good person here, it shouldn’t be Mayura having misgivings here. But still, “We should at least tell him what he is.”

It feels like a fair compromise. It’s the important part surely.

And indeed Marinette seems to soften a little.

Nathalie wishes it didn’t remind her of had Gabriel had on occasion when she’d tried to  argue his son’s case to him.

“Maybe.” Marinette says. “You have a point. And it would fit with Monarch threatening his father.” A pause. “Do you really think I’m like him?”

“In many ways.” She admits. It would be pointless to do otherwise when there’s such obvious parallels that sometimes she thinks fate or some wielder of the Rabbit Miraculous must be laughing at them. “But that doesn’t mean you have to make his mistakes. Especially as in other more important whys you’re not like him at all. And yes, in some ways you’re like me. And I don’t want you to make my mistakes.”

“Sometimes I think mistakes are all I make. I decided Gabriel Agreste wasn’t Hawk Moth. I gave Félix a Miraculous because I wanted Adrien by my side, and I lost the entire Miracle box! I let my guard down at the wrong time and let Monarch make the wish. I lost the Butterfly Miraculous!”

She’s surprised at the ache in her chest. Many things catch on the scabs attempting to form there but seeing other people hurt doesn’t usually affect Nathalie the way it does other people unless it’s someone she’s had the time to grow close to. There’s someone missing inside her, the very powers of her Miraculous seeming like another ironic joke of some omnipotent deity.

Just like it shouldn’t be her trying to comfort Marinette. She’s barely able to comfort Adrien. She’s not even sure she’d helped Gabriel these days.

But somehow she’s the only person Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Adrien’s girlfriend, Ladybug, has right now.

“Marinette…most of those things were weren’t things you did. Félix chose to betray you and trade with Gabriel instead. Gabriel chose to be Hawk Moth, and then fought you over the Miraculous even as he was dying. Whoever has Nooroo now- they stole the Butterfly Miraculous while you were concentrating on saving the world. And you managed to something find the Gabriel I knew once inside Monarch and bring him back to the surface. I was frightened enough of the Wish he’d make that I thought both our deaths was the only- was the better option. You- I don’t know if he saw his love for Emilie in yours for Adrien or what, but somehow you reached him. Yes, he made his Wish but there was no casualty. No one suffered from it. It just saved me.”

For all she doubted his motives were wholly selfless the fact of the matter did remain that. He might not have been what she’d loved once but when he died he hadn’t been the monster she’d seen at the end either.

“There was a casualty.” Marinette’s voice is quiet but firm.

Nathalie barely manages to stifle her impulse to blink in susprise. “What?”

“There was a casualty. Adrien’s father. He gave his life for yours.”

“Gabriel was dying anyway. We both know that.” In all honestly Nathalie was surprised his trade had even worked. It hardly seemed like an equal exchange to trade two deaths for one. But maybe this combined creature Marinette had spoken of followed exact rules rather than principles and Gabriel had just taken on her illness too or some similar work around. “And, by the way I don’t recommend following that example of Gabriel’s either.”

“What?”

“Don’t sacrifice yourself for Adrien. He isn’t me. You’re not Gabriel. And your relationship isn’t ours.” They had an actual romantic relationship for a start. “He wouldn’t live through it. And too many people in his life have sacrificed themselves already.”

Emilie for his existence. Nathalie had attempted it for his happiness. Even Gabriel had done so from a certain point of view.

Marinette expelled air from her nose in irritation, but then the girl conceded in a way Gabriel never had. “You’re right.”

Then she shock her head and added, “I just wish I could convince Chat Noir of the same thing.”

[darthfrodophantom]

Heeeey, Darth!! Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💚

Hi Summers! What a great idea! I love this!

Here are the five favorite fics I've written, in no particular order (but maybe a bit of an order):

A Secret Uncovered Summary: When Danny's transformation is caught on tape, Danny has a whole new battle to face, including a press conference, Valerie, and, of course, school. But who is the mysterious ghost who set him up? And how much can he possibly mess up his life? Reason: This has always been my favorite of the pieces I've written. I poured so much love and work into this piece over (many) years. I'm so proud of it. I set out to tell a story of what it would be like if everyone knows (before Everybody Knows AUs became a thing and even before Reality Trip haha) and used it as a vehicle to show so many different reactions. I've had so much fun working on this. (And there may be a cross-post to AO3 very soon!)

Tortured Truth Summary: Danny's parents discover that the ghost boy is half human. Now that they've captured Danny, will he submit to torture and reveal himself, or is the revelation just the beginning of their problems? Reason: I'm starting with my old ones here! This is actually the first fic I ever shared with anyone, and it's also the first fic I've ever finished. While the torture is tame compared to today's standards, I feel like it has a great emotional payout and I enjoyed taking a micro-examination of the family unit's reactions and using Danny's illness as a way to force everyone to confront his powers.

The Red Vengeance Project Summary: With cameras strapped to their foreheads, Paulina and Star venture into the woods to bait the ghostly urban legend to appear in the hopes that Phantom will come save them. It seemed like a good plan in the light of day, but they get more than they ask for in the dark, claustrophobic, and dangerous woods. Reason: This was one of the first DP fics I'd written in a long time. It'd taken a break and just come back to the phandom to write this and another fic for Ectoberhaunt and I loved it. It brought me back to why I loved writing for this phandom in the first place. I picked this one over my actual first fic since coming back because I enjoyed writing this one more. I loved playing around with the different POV and I felt like it resulted in a really cool effect.

Micro-Unmasking Summary: Great timing prevented Danny’s secret from being revealed to Dash during their shared experience with the Fenton Crammer. But what would happen if his timing had been just a little off and Dash saw more than Danny wanted? Reason: This one's had a special place in my heart for awhile. I started it in 2009 and finally finished it in 2022! It was also just a fun topic that I enjoyed reading. I felt like I got to be a little witty in this one and I just really enjoyed writing it.

Prove That You Deserve the Answer Summary: After an argument with Jazz leaves Maddie feeling insecure about her role as a mother, she wishes she could understand her children better. She soon learns the dangers of making wishes around ghosts when she switches places with Jazz. But when this body swap allows her the opportunity to really talk with Danny, she realizes that maybe she can use this to finally see what's really going on with her son, and maybe find some way to fix their relationship in the process. Reason: I am so proud of this one. I sought out to finish a longer fic and I actually did it! I really pushed myself on this one, and I feel like it really paid off. I feel like the internal thoughts and monologues were so fun to explore and I loved writing from Maddie's POV.

And there are my five! This was a fun dive into my past works and really took some thought as to why they became some of my favorites.

Because this is a great idea, I'm gonna do some tagging! Maybe we can come up with a great list of reading recommendations from it by the end! I'm going to tag: @summerssixecho (you're not escaping your own idea lol), @underforeversgrace, @murphy-kitt, @nickelodeonstudios, and @lexosaurus

[captain19cb97]

ahh your fics are so cute i'm melting i love them sm! could i maybe request a super fluffy jungkook x reader fic where the reader is super shy about their laugh and always tries to hide it from him, but one day he tickles them or something and goes all heart eyed and lovey because he thinks their laugh is adorable and he doesn't want them to hide it anymore. i'm sorry if that's too long kwjdjsfjjwjd feel free to ignore it if it doesn't spark your imagination! <3

My gosh! Hii!! 👋🏻

Thank you so much! I love that you guys are enjoying them so much, it means a lot to me that you are.

Thank you for sending this, and don't apologize! The more you guys tell me about what you want, the better I can write something for you 🙃 Anyway, I hope you like it!

Requests are open!

-Em

Shy :: JJK

Pairing: Jungkook x Gn!Reader (It does read more as Fem!Reader, but there's no defining pronouns so I leave it up to you on how you want to read it.)

Word Count: 2523

Genre: Fluff with a sprinkling of suggestive 👀

Warnings: Cursing. Shouldn't be anything else, but as always, please tell me if you find something and I'll fix it.

I hope you enjoy it!! 💜

You’d been sitting on your couch, a drama that you’d seen probably a thousand times playing on your tv, while you were content to let the night just waste away, alone. You’d have a long week, and honestly, it had been pretty shitty- your boss had yelled at you a couple days in a row about something that wasn’t your fault, you spilled your coffee this morning on your way to work and ended up being late because you had to come back home to change- needless to say, you were happy to have the next few days off.

As you were debating ordering something to eat, you heard someone knocking on your door and immediately felt yourself frown. You hadn’t been expecting anyone to come over, and they would’ve texted or called you anyway.

Who just shows up, unannounced at someone’s place anymore? You thought as you crossed the floor to your front door.

You checked the display for your camera and saw Jungkook standing on the other side, a bag in one hand and something else in the other. You felt the butterflies begin in your stomach as you unlocked the door, pulling it open slowly.

Jungkook, who you only knew thanks to Jimin- your older brother, also happened to be your not-something-something, at the moment. You guys were floating between the lines of are they or aren’t they all the time, and frankly, the rest of the guys were sick of it at this point. It was obvious that you both really liked each other, and Jimin was doing everything in his power to just get you two together.

Mostly just so he would finally not have to listen to you or Jungkook complain to him about wanting to be with each other, but never doing anything about it because you both were worried Jimin wasn’t okay with it.

Jungkook’s face lit up the second you’d pulled the door open and you looked up at him with that shy smile he found so adorable. “Hi.”

“Hi, Kookie, what are you doing here?” You asked softly, as you noticed he was holding flowers in his other hand.

He smiled softly, “Oh, w-well, Jimin-Hyung told me you’d had a bad few days, so I thought maybe we could hang out for a bit and maybe watch a movie or two?” He held the flowers to you, “I thought you’d like these, and I figured you hadn’t eaten yet, so I brought food, too.”

You let out a small noise, taking the flowers from him, “They’re beautiful, thank you.” You stepped aside, letting him come in finally. “Let me put these in some water, you can go into the living room though, if you want.”

He nodded, watching you go into the kitchen as he took his shoes off, before he headed for the couch. “Sorry for not texting you or anything,” He called out, loud enough for you to hear him, “I thought a surprise would be nice though, especially after having such a bad week.”

You entered the living room, dropping onto the floor next to him as he kept pulling the food out of the bag, setting everything onto the table, and grinned, “It’s okay. You know I don’t mind you coming over.”

“Even unannounced?” He smirked knowingly down at you.

You pulled your bottom lip between your teeth for a second as you rolled your eyes, before shyly admitting, “Only if it’s you.”

Jungkook chuckled at the sight of your reddening cheeks as he slid some of the food towards you. He’d stopped at one of your favorite places just to pick up your favorite things because Jimin had told him about how your week had gone. He was a little upset that you hadn’t mentioned anything about it, any of the times you two had talked this week, but he also knew you probably only told Jimin because he’s your brother and he’d pushed about it.

“Thank you, for this. It was really sweet of you.” You said softly, a couple minutes later as you guys were eating.

He shrugged one shoulder and smiled down at you, “I think you’re really sweet.” He said back, watching you look away from him like you always did when he’d flirt with you like that.

You shook your head at him but didn’t say anything back, so you guys fell back into a comfortable silence as the rest of your drama episode played.

Once it was over, you both started cleaning up the mess from the food and were standing in your kitchen, a few minutes later, when you let out a big sigh, and Jungkook looked over at you.

“Heavy sigh, everything okay?”

You nodded, shooting him a shy smile, “Better now, yeah.”

“It wasn’t before?” He asked softly, matching the way you were standing, and leaned against the counter opposite you.

You shook your head a little bit, “This week kinda sucked, actually. Thank you for coming over with food and flowers. It’s exactly how I’d rather end a shitty week.” You smiled again, “And I meant it before, it was really sweet of you.”

He slowly pushing off the counter to stand directly in front of you, smiling as he caged you in, his hands on both side of you as he leaned on the counter behind you now. “And I meant what I said, I think you’re really sweet. And I’d do it again, in a heartbeat.”

You could feel the heat radiating off his body as he leaned towards you just a little bit more, his eyes roaming your face for a moment before you swore, they landed on your lips.

The guys thought otherwise, but even with all the back and forth that you and Jungkook had been doing these last few months, you’ve never kissed. Hugged a bunch, sure- you guys cuddled a lot, held hands sometimes, too, but you still haven’t kissed each other, even though there have been plenty of times that you could’ve.

You both just stood there for a moment, staring into each other’s eyes as the tension built, you could feel the heat rising on your chest as you resisted the urge to look away from his piercing brown eyes.

“Kookie?” You whispered, slowly reaching out and just barely taking hold of the hem of his shirt.

“Hmm?”

You could feel your heart racing as you gently rested one hand on his side, “Kiss me?”

He chuckled lowly, “Are you asking, or telling me, baby?”

Oh, that was new.

“What’s going to make you do it faster?” You challenged him softly, tilting your head to the side slightly as you grinned.

His tongue darted out to wet his bottom lip as he pushed air out his nose, “Say it again and find out.”

“Kiss m- “

You didn’t even get the words out, before he was crashing his lips to yours, one of his hands coming up to cradle the back of your head as the other landed on your side and pulled you towards him.

You gripped the sides of his shirt in your hands as you moved your lips in time with his, letting him lead the kiss, holding your head as he deepened it, and pulled you closer still.

You could feel his heart racing under your palm as you slid your hands up his chest, intent on wrapping your arms around his neck, until you felt his hand on your side, featherlight as he went to slide it around to your back.

You broke away from the kiss and couldn’t stop the giggle that tore out of you as you tried to jump away from him.

“That tickled.” You admitted, seeing the confused look in his eyes.

You learned pretty quickly, those were the wrong words to say, because you found yourself running away from him in the next moment.

“Come on! I have to know every spot you’re ticklish in, now!” He laughed, chasing you into the living room.

You screamed, trying to hold in the bubbling laugh as you moved to dodge him.

You had always been a little self-conscious about your laugh, so you tended to cover it up when you laughed at something around the boys. Jimin knew, but he didn’t know just how self-conscious you really were about it.

When you were in school, you’d been picked on a lot and it was just something else they used to make fun of you about, so you’d grown up, hiding it as much as you could. You’d giggle, and scoff in place of actually laughing, and if you couldn’t help but to really laugh at something- usually Hobi’s jokes- you would physically cover your whole mouth, to muffle your laugh.

You were always worried that if Jungkook heard it, he’d find it annoying or stupid or even ugly and wouldn’t like you anymore. You didn’t know, however, that Jungkook always hated watching you cover your laugh. He didn’t know why you did it, and he didn’t know how to get you to stop, because you’d avoid the conversation whenever it came up.

But you didn’t have much time to really think about it, because Jungkook’s tattooed arm was firmly around your waist as he pulled you down to the couch, caging you beneath him as his finger danced along your sides, and all you could do was laugh, yell and do your best to stop him.

“Kookie! K-Kookie, please!” You laughed, trying to pry his fingers from you, all the while, hearing him laugh with you. You struggled against him, laughing loudly as you desperately tried to plead with him to stop tickling you. “Jungkook, please! It hurts.”

He stopped, staring down at you as you panted, trying to catch your breath finally. You slowly peered up at him, your breath hitching in your throat once you caught his eyes on yours.

“What?” You whispered, your eyes darting between his.

“Your laugh.”

You stilled. Here it comes. “W-what about it?” You asked, already dreading hearing his answer. So much so, that you had to look away from him, hiding your face slightly behind your hands.

You heard him sigh softly, before his peeled your hands away from your face with one hand, and cupped your jaw in his other, turning your head so you were looking up at him again.

His eyes softened, “You have no idea how long I’ve waited to hear it.” He whispered back, gently running his thumb along your jaw, “It’s beautiful.”

Your brow furrowed slightly as you stared up at him in disbelief, “You-you don’t hate it?” He quickly shook his head, “Even though it’s loud, and annoying?”

He chuckled softly and shook his head again, “It’s not loud enough because I never get to hear it, and it’s you- it could never be annoying.” He told you, his hand still on your cheek as he smiled. “You don’t have to hide it. In fact, I wish you wouldn’t because I want to hear it.”

Your cheeks slowly bloomed with color as you leaned into his touch, “You do?”

He nodded, leaning down towards you slightly. “Very much, yeah.”

You couldn’t stop the smile that pulled at your lips as you met him half-way, “You’re not lying to me?”

He pulled back a little bit and pouted at you, “You really think I’d do that to you?” He whined; a joking tone laced in his words that made you giggle as you shook your head.

“I was just making sure.” You argued, still grinning widely at him as you giggled softly.

He scoffed playfully, sliding his hand from your cheek down to your neck before he slid it to the back of your head. He gently tugged your face up towards his with a wicked grin, “You have so little faith in me. Because of that, you’re getting tickled again.” He said quickly, before he was attacking your sides again.

You had no time to brace yourself, and you couldn’t hope to hold back the laughter he was pulling from you as you struggled beneath him once again.

“Okay, okay! I get it! I’m sorry, I won’t doubt you!” You yelled in between the laughter.

He stopped sooner than you thought he would, only to quickly lean down and connect his lips to yours in a short, but sweet kiss, smiling as he pulled away and looked down at you. “I could get used to this.”

“What?”

He smirked, a glimmer in his eyes, “You like this, beneath me and out of breath.”

You glared up at him and shoved his shoulder, “Really?!”

His shoulders shook as he let out a loud laugh, and you watched his nose scrunch up cutely before he looked back down at you. “I meant from laughing, you perv.”

You gaped, laughing slightly, “Shut up, no you didn’t! You said it like that on purpose.”

He gave you a devilish smile, leaning towards you again, “Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t. You’ll never know.”

You rolled your eyes, “I know you though.” You told him, pressing your lips to his for another chaste kiss before you relaxed into the couch below him, “I could get used to this, though.”

“And what would that be?”

“Kissing you.”

This time, you watched the color blooming on his cheeks as he chuckled nervously above you, looking away for a moment, “Me too. I’d been waiting a long time for that, too.”

 The rest of the night was spent, caged between Jungkook and the couch, while he tickled you to hear you laugh, and then letting him kiss you right after. And he loved every second of it, finally hearing you laugh- really laugh, every time his fingers made contact with your sides.

When he was getting ready to leave that night, both of you on opposite sides of your open door as you both dragged out the already long goodbye, he grinned softly down at you. “Promise me, that you’re not going to hide your laugh anymore.”

“Around you?”

He shook his head, “Around any of us. I’m serious, I want to hear it all the time.”

You sighed softly, and nodded slowly, “It’ll take a while, but I’ll try not to anymore.”

He wrapped his arms around you, pulling you close with a grin, “Good. Because if you hide it from me anymore, I will cry, knowing how beautiful it really is now.”

“You’ll cry?” You questioned, quirking an eyebrow.

He nodded, bumping your nose with his softly, “Absolutely. And I’ll just tickle you to hear it, if I have to.”

You giggled, “What a threat, Kookie.”

He smirked and squeezed your sides, making you jump and shoot him a look, “Fuck around and find out, baby.”

Well, you fucked around, and you found out, the next time you guys were together- finally as a couple, too- and you were happy to know, that none of the guys found your laugh annoying, or loud, or ugly, and they were all happy to finally hear you actually laughing, almost as much as Jungkook was.

[lirusstories]

Egotober Day 9: Red (Means I Love You)

Tw: Mention kidnapping, Murder

SONG FIC TIME I'VE BEEN WANTING TO WRITE THIS FOR ALMOST 2 WHOLE YEARS.

Unusual

They say strange fascination, infatuation

A lunatic

Chase bounces the ball to the ball across from them, as the hair on their arms stands up as a familiar warmth and electricity begins to thrum through their veins.

Call me what suits your taste, I just wanna taste

They smile to themself, they can’t exactly hear her, but they know what it means. Whatever the teleportation did was fixed.

And I've always heard it's what's inside that counts

They watch the ball roll lazily back to them, before they twitch their fingers, and it comes flying into their hands.

'Cause my insides are red

Chase looks towards the door as it opens. The Scientist and two Guards walking in.

And yours are too

“I’m very sorry Mr. Brody we need to take you somewhere more secure.”

And the red on my face

Is matching you

Chase tilts their head slightly, taking in the Scientist and the Guards, The guards are big, covered in expensive looking gear. 

”No” The voice, presumably 114209, Anti as Liru has taken to calling the voice.

“More Secure?” They question, doubt dripping from their voice.

And goodness you're bleeding

What a wonderful feeling

“Why, what happened?” They ask, feigning concern and confusion.

The Voice snickers at Chase’s innocent act.

You're down and you're pleading

That, Chase hears, it’s distant, but they know what it means, they can feel her power and anger and protective rage beginning to weave through the air like roots from a tree.

“Nothing Mr. Brody, it’s merely a precaution.” He’s not very good at hiding his nervousness, Chase notes.

My head is just reeling

“Okay…” Chase trails off, beginning to eye the guards with actually wariness now, they don’t seem very happening at Chase’s hesitance, “A precaution against what though…” 

Chase hesitates, wondering if they should before deciding fuck it.

The red means I love you

“What are you not telling me. Did you piss her off?” They ask, mouth twitching as they try to hide a knowing smile as Anti roars with manic laughter, seeming excited to finally see the hell she can raise.

Tasting your blood means I love you

That they can raise.

The guards seem to be itching to grab their guns as they stare at Chase as they push themself up.

The scientist's face twitches and Chase can’t help but wonder exactly what happened.

“We do this a lot Mr. Brody” Fucking Mr, If Chase gets a choice they’re dealing with the scientist personally. Only Liru gets to call them that. 

“We move people around to free up space, You don’t-” Chase holds up a hand, cutting the man off, he’s so baffled that he actually stops talking as.

The red means I love you

The red means I love you

Unfortunate

“Do you hear her?” They ask softly, looking back at the three men in the room. 

Chase can’t help but start to grin as Anti vibrates giddily.

They say such a shame, I turned out this way

“Grab him.” The scientist commands and the guards are quick to go round the table and grab them and pull them out of the room. 

Chase begins to giggle themself as they’re pulled out of the room.

A maniac

Anti suddenly goes silent, but Chase is too distracted by how thick the air is with her magic. With her fury and protective rage and Mania.

Well, yeah, I get manic when I cause a panic

Huh, Chase wonders as they pull them along before they start walking on their two feet again, following them to where they’re leading.

“Do you guys have people who like, go out and collect anomalies, for like, at least the last twenty years?” Chase’s asks, tone light and curious, hiding the simmering rage beneath the surface as they start to remember the long ago memories.

“Quiet.” One of the guards barks.

And of course, I'm excited when I see you around

But they can feel the confusion, Chase almost sighs with relief as they feel it, oh good, that's coming back to. 

'Cause my insides are red

And yours are too

“And were some sent to a city in Oregon to grab a girl about yay high with long blonde hair?” Chase asks, putting their hand to thigh height.

As they pass a small and dying plant, Chase notes to bring it home, they look through it for a sec, and they can see the confusion and wariness from the three of them and the knowingness from the scientist whose suddenly a lot more tense.

And the red on my face

Is matching you

“Oh you do?” 

“QUIET!” One of the guards shout, grabbing the back of their neck roughly, which is rude.

And goodness you're bleeding

What a wonderful feeling

“Because those three were disgustingly crass, didn’t even bother to give her some clothes when they nabbed her.” Chase chuckles darkly as Liru’s voice rings through the hall as the memory of finding her, ripping into one of their corpses as a terrified little girl who had just been kidnapped from am already horrific situation does.

You're down and you're pleading

My head is just reeling

The four of them are stopped now, standing in front of doors with a thicket of rose thorns continuously grow from underneath them and Chase takes the Chance to look back at them with a wicked grin.

“The red means I love you

Tasting your blood means I love you”

Chase sings along as they take a step away from them and before their minds can catch up, they hold their hand up as if they’re holding their revolver. And fires.

“The red means I love you

The red means I love you”

Chase watches as the scientist crumples to the ground following the loud bang.

The Guards watch frozen for a sec, the gun that wasn’t there a second ago nor on their person when they had collected the two (three) of them sits comfortably in their hand.

“You leave me high and dry

A rush comes to my mind at the drops”

Her music gets louder, happier now before Chase takes out the guards as well.

“Of blood you leave behind

Run as you might, my love will never, ever”

Chase steps over guard number one and picks up the little potted plant that seems to perk up in their hold and Chase rubs a finger on one of the dry leaves.

“Stop”

Chase sings along as the leaf starts wrapping around their finger while they make their way through the door, ignoring the shouting of more guards behind them.

The thicket parts for them and them alone as they search for each other, Liru suddenly feeling very giddy in the air, and they can feel her scratching at the back of their mind, excited to show them something.

Chase wonders if it’s a new power or a new friend.

“And I've always heard it's what's inside”

Either way Chase just wants to get out of here and go home and hope their kids didn’t worry too much.

“'Cause my insides are red

And yours are too

And the red on my face

Is matching you”

Chase sings loudly like they're playing a game of Marco Polo, hearing her amusement makes them happy, and the plant seems to feel that as it starts to grow.

“And goodness you're bleeding

What a wonderful feeling

You're down and you're pleading

My head is just reeling”

They sway as they make their way down the hall, stepping over dead bodies and dodging one or two hands of still living corpses as they reach for them for help.

Well fuck them, they’re a part of this freaky ass place that effectively kidnapped them from their children and then separated them from their partner.

Looking for Anti of all things, as if they haven’t been chilling in the back of their mind the past couple years.

Speaking of, he’s been awfully silent.

“The red means I love you

Tasting your blood means I love you

The red means I love you

The red means I love you”

Now Chase can properly hear her voice, which means she can hear them and rapidly making their way to them, Chase can already see her ballerina feet as she jumps around excitedly.

And sure enough, as soon as Chase turns the corner, there she is, jumping in the air and kicking her feet and the next thing they know she’s bolting towards them, horns aglow as the music filling the facility blasts from them, helping carry her voice with the melody.

“The red means I love you

Tasting your blood means I love you

The red means I love you

The red means I love you”

She barrels into them as they finish singing and Chase is quick to move the plant out of the way so it doesn’t get crushed, wrapping her in a just as tight hug.

”Guess what!” She practically purrs as she bounces around in front of them.

“What?” They can’t help but ask with a wide smile on their face before a, rather terrifying copy of themself pokes out from behind her with a grin.

”Hello Chase~” 

Chase jerks at the glitchy voice before realizing, “Anti?!”

The creature (Man?) grins and nods before stepping out behind her, basically wearing an all black version of his outfit minus the hat.

“Holy shit how did you?”

”I’ll explain later, and this little guy to.” She holds up a gold ring with runes etched into it.

”But it seems IRIS and us are going to be dealing with a lot more in the future, for now however.” Liru grins and lets out a spacey wing and Chase melts with relief.

”Well Mr.Brody.” Anti says mimicking the scientist's voice and Chase grimaces.

“If you call me that again I’ll kick your ass.” Chase bites back, they know Anti didn’t mean to insult them, but being misgendered for nearly a week straight by some crazy asshole scientist and giant corporation while being held captive was, a bit much to say the least.

Anti puts their hand up in play surrender, seemingly understanding before looking at Liru eagerly.

Chase welcomes the cool satin washing over them.

Tags: @malaboos-bodacious-blog @randowaffle @glitchyartist

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