#fic snippet meme

[novelconcepts]

96 with newly rescued taivan

96 - POV Outsider

The survivors are all strange. They communicate wordlessly more often than not, their voices low and animal. The way they're looking at the rescue team, you'd think they'd been approached at gunpoint, their peaceful home obliterated by interlopers. The way they're looking at the rescue team, you'd think they didn't want to be rescued at all.

They're all strange, but the strangest of them is the pair near the back. A redhead with horrible scars and a slim Black girl with hunted eyes. They stand shoulder to shoulder, their heads held high. Their hands are clasped, and when one of the team attempts to guide them apart--trying to search for apparent injury--they flinch. The redhead's lip snarls back from her teeth. The Black girl shakes her head, clenching her free hand into a fist.

You'd think they were in immediate danger, not coming out of it. You'd think they were standing at the cusp of some fresh hell, rather than being swaddled in blankets and coaxed onto a helicopter. Of course, maybe it's that last part sparking such fear; the last time any of these kids were in the air, their lives ended.

It's as good an explanation as anything, for how they nestle near to one another, leaving no gaps to be exploited. A scrawny girl with blonde edging the ragged ends of her hair sits at the very middle of the pack. On one side sits the boy with hollow eyes; on the other, the tallest girl, who does not so much as blink when offered a granola bar. She takes it, automatically tearing it into seven pieces. You'd think there weren't plenty more in the supply kit. You'd think she would see as much before dividing and offering up her snack to the others.

The two at the back, the redhead and the Black girl, stare at their pieces. Turn them over in the hands not currently knotted together. They look to each other; the redhead's mouth twists as if in amusement. The Black girl lowers her chin, eyes fluttering shut. They eat slowly, in tandem, never taking their eyes from one another's face. It's strange, how close they sit, practically nested in the same seat. It's strange, how--the food dutifully consumed--they strive to press even closer.

There's something about them. Something that transcends the easy friendship of other girls their age. Something larger, more expansive, obsessive. As if to break skin-to-skin contact is to welcome pain. As if to release the stark-knuckled grip they have on one another is to fall from this helicopter, to plummet into gravity's violent embrace.

You'd think they don't want this. You'd think they were happier where they were, a tiny, unlikely band of children playacting as explorers. You'd think whatever left those scars, hollowed out those eyes, built them into a wary, mistrustful hive was preferable to the strangers offering them salvation.

They are strange, the survivors, and perhaps they have every right to be. Even so, watching them is a haunting affair. The way they cling to one another. The way those two in particular strive to occupy a singular space. The way their hands interlock, interlace, an unbreakable chain.

You'd think they fear, more than anything, what might come next.

[mylittleredgirl]

🌹 sparky <3

“Marry you.” She gapes at him like he’s the stupidest man in two galaxies. “John, right now I want to kill you.”

--

send me a 🌹 [and a pairing/show if so inclined] and i'll share something from a wip

[dapper-lil-arts]

i for one fucking adore the pony posting. keep doing your thing 👍

i got you. enjoy the finest cuisine ~

[meadowziplines]

ohh for the wip game - 😭 (i love angst)

one i've been reliably informed is destroying people's souls (not posted yet, but will have a hopeful ending). the google doc is titled "this time tomorrow || the rovers they sing"

The beginning of what might be the end starts when Hob tells Dream about Laika.  "She was just a stray they picked up off the streets and – she didn't know, Dream. She didn't know they weren't going to bring her home." Dream's eyes are starry, as they often are. A comet flashes by, appearing in first one eye, then the other. Hob doesn't know what he wants Dream to say. His otherworldly friend closes his eyes, then opens them. "The technicians preparing her for launch in the Sputnik 2 spacecraft kissed her goodbye."  [...] And here, at the National Air and Space Museum, Hob stands in front of an exhibit on Laika the dog, with Dream, lamenting the lost dog. Where Dream tells him about the technicians kissing Laika good-bye. The leaving. The good-byes in airports. "Is there something you want to tell me, duck?"  "Her name was also Kudryavka, Zhuchka, and Limonchik. One dog of many names."

ty for the ask c:

ask game post here

[birbleafs]

For Liz, because she enables all my Kavetham brainrot ideas lol 🔥 We were keysmashing on twitter 2 days ago about a True Love's Kiss AU, with my spin on unconventional love declarations/proposals + Kaveh's propensity for intrusive bad thoughts... and this edit happened. Dialogues here are all written by me this conversation sounded funnier in my head, sorry not sorry lol.

Copy-pasted details about our ramblings under cut for posterity:

True Love's Kiss AU, wherein Kaveh would rather travel the world, braving all the dangers of the wild and fighting monsters to search for Alhaitham's "true love/soul mate" than to face and accept his own real feelings for Alhaitham lol. Kaveh searches all corners of the world for weeks, all while reflecting over his complicated relationship with Alhaitham. But being no closer to finding an answer, he finally brings home someone he deems an ideal mate for Alhaitham—only to realise how he still simmers with the pain of envy, internal conflict, and a strange sense of loss when he sees the chosen mate getting along fairly well with Alhaitham over time. There and then at the altar, when Nahida begins reciting the marital rites, Kaveh suddenly comes to the realisation that Alhaitham has not looked at said chosen mate even once the moment the ceremony began. Instead, Alhaitham’s piercing teal gaze is fixed upon Kaveh’s the entire time—impassive, unreadable nearly to all present; but to Kaveh, the barely imperceptible tenderness, affection and deep yearning is mirrored and burning tenfold then in Alhaitham's expression, akin to that very same ache that's pulsing within Kaveh’s own heart. Unable to bear the weight of Alhaitham's unguarded gaze, Kaveh finally, finally realises that Alhaitham is his true love. He raises his hand and voice to halt the ceremony, already midway through apologizing to all present for his awful behaviour and the disruption when he suddenly realises that Alhaitham had also raised his hand at the same time as Kaveh to voice his own objection. Tl;dr they finally both accept their soulmateism, share true love's kiss and got married. The End.

[cerenemuxse]

God, i hate her so much smh /s

[naffeclipse]

Y/N:

Vanessa, if she was, in fact, there:

[junemermaid]

Writing patterns

Rules: List the first line of your last 10 (posted) fics and see if there's a pattern!

1. "He won't be coming back. You know that, don't you?" Xia Dong spoke behind Mu Nihuang. (Flowers in Dreamland Weather, Nirvana in Fire, Mu Nihuang x Xiao Jingyan x Mei Changsu, ot3 porn that grew a backstory)

2. This is the story: in the holy heart of the world, a heretic kneels down, and entreats the exalted dead for power. (Servant of the Spiral, Shadowhunters, Alec x Magnus, SH/Final Fantasy X fusion)

3. On the day that is going to define the rest of his life, Alec jerks awake to the gentle chiming of his phone and proceeds to fall off the couch. (Talking With Strangers, Shadowhunters, Alec x Magnus, university AU w/ fake marriage)

4. Magnus stepped off the coach onto the grizzled asphalt of the tiny bus station and thought, not for the first time, You're out of your head, Bane. And the next bus service out of this place is the day after tomorrow. (The Stair Into the Sea, Shadowhunters, Alec x Magnus (& Maia), The Novel about ghosts and lighthouses and second chances)

5. Magnus stepped out of the bathroom, clad only in a towel, anticipation prickling his throat. (the black honey of summer, Shadowhunters, Alec x Magnus, porn with a tender D/s vibe)

6. Far across the ocean, in a kingdom whose name is lost to time, there lived a young prince. (The Underwater Heart, SH, Alec x Magnus, fairytale AU)

7. Isabelle has a problem. Like a not insignificant number of her problems, it starts with a kiss. (Bramble, SH, Clary x Isabelle, canon divergent first kiss w/ complications)

8. Magnus weaves through the crowd, a tin mug held high in each hand. Alec watches his progress as he ducks around a server with a flourish of apology, a quick, glittering smile. (From the Green Shadows, SH, Alec x Magnus, SH/The Witcher fusion)

9. Magnus collapses into the pillows with sticky, boneless satisfaction, limbs going every which way. Alec presses a damp kiss on his brow. "Be right back." (is it bright where you are, SH, Alec x Magnus, tough pillow talk)

10. On his thirtieth day as a lightkeeper, Alec woke to find a girl in the parking lot. (The Birthday of the Sea, SH, Alec & Maia, side story to The Novel)

God, I really haven't written much in the last few years. The oldest of these was posted four years ago! (The counterpoint is that I have several long-running longfics right now, which means a smaller number of stories.)

I think these show I tend to start in medias res, or else with a distinct image or line—the hook, as it were. I am also amused that two of these have Alec waking up, and a whopping four start with Magnus and some kind of movement. The two fantasy/fairytale stories pull back a bit to establish worldbuilding and backstory first.

Overall, this is a reminder to finally rewatch Shadowhunters and get serious about finishing at least some of my WIPs in that fandom. Had I but world enough and time.

Tags for: @electricshoebox, @lynne-monstr, @faejilly, @neekerbreeker, @pikkugen, @sleepsonclouds, @lightwormsiblings, @frudence, @vaynglories, @circumference-pie

[astromechs]

how about 💕 kissing somewhere other than lips please and thanks

this takes very non-specifically in my college AU because i missed them; jyn and leia share an apartment and that's all you really need to know for this one :) from this list; also on ao3!

The creak of her bedroom door opening might as well be nails on a fucking chalkboard right now, with the way that the sound absolutely grates on every single one of Jyn’s last nerves. On top of all the congestion in her sinuses causing so much pressure that she can’t think straight and the fact that more trips out of her bed leave her falling to the floor than not, she doesn’t need this. Hadn’t she told Leia to leave her alone? Even if she hadn’t, even if she’d literally fever dreamed saying that, Leia should know better than to barge in here.

She groans, and refuses to open her eyes. Says to the door she’s not looking at, with all the strength she can muster:

"Fuck off —"

"Is that how you say hello to everyone who comes to bring you soup?"

Well, that isn’t exactly the voice she’d been expecting to hear cutting her off.

Jyn cracks one eye open and lifts her head to find Cassian standing on the opposite side of the room, just barely through the doorway, holding a bag that, she can see through the plastic, contains various tupperwares of food. It’s not that she isn’t glad to see him, because there’s always a part of her that is, but there’s: one, the obvious, and two, the fact that the small smile just barely visible on his face is too amused for her liking, which remains even as her scowl deepens.

Still, though, he has the decency to let it drop as she starts the slow process of propping herself into a sitting position. Considering the past few days, she considers it a victory that she manages to get three pillows standing comfortably behind her back while only wanting to flop back down to the mattress once, and the ringing in her ears actually manages to stop after a few seconds.

By the time she’s settled, her head feels clearer than it has in days.

“After I didn’t hear from you for a while, I figured things had to be bad.” He lifts one shoulder in a shrug as he gives his explanation, dropping his eyes to the floor and awkwardly shuffles on his feet. “So I texted Leia. She let me in.”

In that moment, it feels like all the breath has been knocked out of Jyn. Not in a way that means she’s about to start coughing, but — this is such an incredibly kind gesture that she doesn’t know what to do with it. Even her lingering anger at Leia fades. Her mouth opens, once, to let some form of words out that she never finds; she sneezes before she ever gets the chance, and by the time that’s dealt with, she forgets what she’d even been trying to find in the first place.

Eventually, all she manages, in a soft voice, is, "Don't get any closer." She sniffs, emphasizing a point that really shouldn’t have to be emphasized, just looking at her. "I'm a biohazard."

He shrugs again. "I'll take my chances."

"You're a f—" she starts, but then that’s when the coughing attack comes, the fifth one she’s had in the past half an hour, with really shitty timing this time. And fuck, she thinks they’re getting longer and longer every time.

"What was that?" Cassian asks when it finally subsides, a twinge of mischief in his voice that she can also see returns to his smile. "Didn't quite catch it."

"I was going to say —" The last of her coughs sputter out, and she’s forced to reach for the water bottle beside her bed before she can continue. "That you're a fucking idiot. But now I'm adding asshole to that list, too."

Cassian, the asshole, actually laughs at that, and he makes no attempt to hide it. Granted, she must look as pathetic as she sounds, so any threat or otherwise coming out of her mouth has to be hard to take seriously, but that doesn't make him any less of an asshole. That doesn't make her less likely to scrunch her stuffed-up nose and purse her lips into the best approximation of a pout that she can manage right now, which, of course, doesn't make him less likely to just laugh harder.

But she's been stuck in this apartment — this room, specifically — for days now, and the way that she can see his eyes light up from that laugh even when he's still barely through the doorway has her heart skipping a beat and her congested chest suddenly light with a stupid sort of feeling that comes close to something that might be described as giddy.

Ugh, she really is pathetic — for all the obvious, and for reasons that have nothing to do with the collection of empty Kleenex boxes strewn all over her bedroom floor.

That doesn't stop him, though, her patheticness. He does, in fact, take his chances, stubborn fucking idiot that he is, stepping across the room until he's by her bedside, close enough to set the bag of food he's carrying onto the nightstand. Kicking his shoes off of his feet, he sidesteps the Kleenex boxes to climb up onto the bed, settling comfortably just beside her as she shifts, unconsciously, to make room for him; he’s warm and soft, filling every desperate need for comfort that she hasn’t even bothered to acknowledge.

He presses a gentle kiss to the top of her head, and she closes her eyes and rests her head against his chest, too tired to fight anything at all, much less the one thing she wants most in this world.

There's no question that he'll end up sick, too, within the next three days, if that; maybe she’s never been great at biology, but even so, Jyn is positive that she has to still be actively contagious, and cuddling a sick person definitely isn’t going to do him any favors.

But there’s also no question that when he inevitably is, she’ll be returning the favor.

[sssammich]

hello quizno’s! :D

👀 Do you have any WIPs that you would never let see the light of day? If yes, what are they about?

🖊 Post a snippet from a current WIP.

😈 Is there anything you enjoy doing that you think your readers hate?

👩‍🏭 If one of your fics was going to get you arrested, which one and why?

💋 so about this rojascorp you mentioned…….

:D

lmao thank you sidetwang

thanks for copying and pasting for my benefit

👀 Do you have any WIPs that you would never let see the light of day? If yes, what are they about?

hmm idk actually; they're mostly probably wips from fandoms that i have since left or just never knew what to do with. that's kinda boring, but there really aren't, like, secret wips. i try to finish my wips even if it takes weeks/months/years. for example, there's a grief fic i wanna write about for revue starlight that's been sitting in the lazy susan since 2022 and i think i'm only now ready to write it.

but there are also some wips that i think have just passed its time and that i probably won't touch again (but never say never!)

🖊 Post a snippet from a current WIP.

oh very well this is actually for my rosebird (summer rose/raven branwen from rwby) divorce AU that i was thinking about; was able to write out like 2k of it this past weekend. i'll post the snippets after the cut because i am sometimes considerate. and also i just decided to make it a little baby love triangle with vernal because i am so nice

and also because you probably do not give a shit about that, i added a snippet for a supercorp romcom i am thinking about!

😈 Is there anything you enjoy doing that you think your readers hate?

god uh idk what do my readers hate? please tell me anonymous is turned on

thinking about this though i guess maybe i enjoy using 'says' or 'said' 98% of the time and maybe my readers hate that honestly im not sure just tell me it's fine yall can be honest

👩‍🏭 If one of your fics was going to get you arrested, which one and why?

lol what does this even mean!!

uh i mean i would say dickfic has some potentially incriminating mail tampering crimes and maybe dolores is not so wholly innocent so who knows

(am i an idiot? please tell me if i did this bit wrong)

💋 so about this rojascorp you mentioned…….

which one? the sad one or the happy one?

sad one: it's based off of a sad song and i am very excited about that. it's a breakup fic, im just gonna be upfront about that

happy one: it's a reunion and a coming back together.

they're modern AUs i think because im incapable of writing any real AUs

oh maybe that's something my readers hate, that i can't write AUs lol but i enjoy them

ANYWAY thanks for sendimg me these questions

fanfic ask game

fic snippets below the cut

rosebird snippet:

She's not immune to cabin fever, so she leaves the wreckage of her house and drives her truck downtown, parking it right in front of one of the three competing bars they have on Main Street.

When she pushes the glass door forward, the bell above it rings. She glances up, looks at the patina of the metal before meeting the bartender's eye.

Without a single word, Raven walks up to the corner of the bar just as the bartender approaches with a rag thrown over her shoulder.

"What're you having?"

"Just a beer for now."

"What kind?"

"Whatever's available."

The bartender studies her, but Raven just scans the room before taking a seat on the empty stool. She watches as the bartender takes a glass and flips it right side up before placing it under the draft spigot, tilted to the side until only a sliver of foam sits at the very top.

"Tab?" the bartender asks just as she places the glass in front of Raven.

Raven nods just before taking a sip of her beer.

The bartender leaves her alone, especially when a gaggle of girls walk in for some type of girls' night out. Her red eyes trail after the giggling movements of the six women sitting around one of the big tables towards the center of the open room. The regulars pay them no mind, even as their volume increases.

She scowls when a group of young guys filter through the bar and multiply the volume when they meet with the young women already there. So much so that she downs her scotch and orders for another.

The bartender quietly places another glass in front of hers, smirking at her, like they're sharing a secret. She just nods, pushes the empty glass from her hands in exchange.

"You new around here?" the bartender asks, leaning forward on her left side, her sleeve tattoo in full display. She's a bit on the younger side for Raven's tastes, but her short pixie cut and pale blue eyes have caught her attention.

"Depends."

"Haven't seen you around here before. I'd notice."

She lets out a small amused chuckle, wonders how much this woman believes this line she's giving Raven. "New enough."

"Where do you live?"

"That's at least a four drink question, and we're only on two."

The bartender plucks two shot glasses from underneath the counter and pours rum into both of them. She then slides one by Raven's hand, nodding towards it when she grabs hold of the one in front of her.

She plays along and grabs the shot glass, holds it up where the bartender clinks it and keeps her eyes steady when they both shoot, their hands dropping at the same time onto the counter.

"Now that's four," the bartender states.

Raven shakes her head at this woman's audacity all while the heat of the rum courses down her stomach. "You don't need to worry about where I live."

The bartender laughs at having been bested. She's just about to say something to Raven when someone calls for her, the name Vernal coming out from one of the regulars at the opposite end of the bar.

"Duty calls," Vernal says before retrieving the shot glasses and placing them in some bin under the counter. Raven doesn't say anything, just watches the woman leave to take care of the other patrons.

For the next ten minutes, she watches Vernal walk the length of the bar to create and serve so many drinks at once. It's impressive, all told. Every now and again, she catches Vernal turning towards her, like making sure she hasn't left yet. She doesn't, not right away, happy to nurse her beer. At one point, Vernal throws her a wink when she sees Raven's eyes dip down to her ass only to come back when their eyes meet. She's only a little bit ashamed, but she doesn't react, just takes a sip of the last dregs of her drink.

When the last drop of her beer passes through her lips, she quietly places her glass on the counter. Slowly, she slips her hand to the pocket of her jeans and pulls out a few folded bills. It's not until she sees Vernal preoccupied with some new customers that she decides to slink away from the bar, tucking her payment and generous tip under her empty glass.

She slips out right behind a couple definitely on a date walks in.

supercorp romcom snippet:

When Lena finds a stack of mail on her desk first thing Monday morning, she doesn’t expect a wedding invitation. Glancing at the K. Danvers at the top corner of the envelope, she frowns when nothing comes to mind with that name. She thinks perhaps it’s one of her employees that she’s just not familiar with. With a smooth swipe of her gold albatross-designed letter opener, she opens the envelope and tugs at the card inside.

She’s surprised to find the invitation reaching her desk, since Jess normally screens these letters for her

Her eyes furrow in confusion when she reads the card.

You are cordially invited to the wedding between Kara Zor-El Danvers and Future Spouse

That gives Lena pause. Future spouse?

She skims through the rest of the wedding details. She then presses the intercom button for her secretary.

“Jess?”

“Yes, Miss Luthor?”

She rolls her eyes at her secretary’s adamant insistence of referring to her by her last name despite her efforts to have Jess call her Lena.

“Can you run the name Kara Danvers through our employee roster?”

“Yes, Miss Luthor. I’ll send it right away.”

When she hangs up, she turns to the smaller card insert with the RSVP request. Her first inclination is to decline, if not altogether just hand the entire thing to Jess to take care of. Yet it’s the term Future Spouse that has her pausing, her curiosity quite piqued at the thought of a mystery spouse. Does this Kara Danvers not really know?

With a thoughtful tap of the card against her chin, she decides there’s no reason to expend energy thinking about it now. She’ll find out soon enough when Jess gets back to her.

[eirenical]

I got so excited to send you flowers that I forgot to specify a fandom! Guardian, if that works for you still!

*laughs* That absolutely still works for me, @flamingwell. XD

...only you're getting 3 sentences per flower, because I didn't want to cut any of this paragraph. XD

***

Shen Wei took in this new vocabulary as he did everything else, with wide eyes and a quick mind.  Zhou Yiwen never ceased to marvel at it.  He had found Shen Wei barely more than two months ago, half buried in the dirt of a mountain field, like a fabled hero out of a xianxia novel—dressed as such, too—and barely able to understand one word in 100 that he spoke to him.  Every day since then, Shen Wei had soaked up the language like a sponge, only hanging up on words for things that he had never encountered.  Like the fire extinguisher.  Like the television.  Like the microwave.  All the amenities of modern life.  Even flushing toilets had been a discovery.  Showers had been a revelation—hot showers even more so.

[novelconcepts]

100, taivan

100 - For Me?

"For me?" Van's eyes are huge. "No. That's okay. You should keep it."

Taissa frowns. "What? Why? I don't need it."

"I don't either," Van says, too quickly. She glances at the small black box, RCA stamped on its front. There's a hunger in her gaze Taissa's only seen in movie theaters and Blockbuster aisles. Tai raises an eyebrow.

"We have two at my house. You only have one. You think we should keep three?"

"There are three people living there," says Van. She clearly feels this is reasonable. It says a lot about her, Taissa thinks, that she probably doesn't even register. The idea that all three inhabitants of the Turner household would retire to separate rooms to watch separate shows is buck-wild.

About as wild as imagining Van sitting down with her mother to enjoy Wheel of Fortune or ER or whatever. Hence:

"It's for you," Taissa presses. She grabs for Van's wrist and slaps the remote control into her palm. Then, when Van actively tries to drop it, she folds each freckled finger into place. "Stop being weird."

"You're being weird," Van grumbles. "Who gives someone a damn TV for no reason?"

"It's not no reason. We won it in a stupid raffle through Dad's work. We don't need it. You don't have one in your room. Look, it's got a VCR and everything." She gesticulates wildly at the backseat of her parents' car. "It practically has your name written on it. What, you need me to spray paint it on the bottom?"

Van makes an abortive little noise. "Don't you dare."

"Then take it," Taissa insists. Van hesitates.

"You're sure? Really?" Then, a slow grin spreading over her face: "I mean, you even buckled it in. You sure you didn't get too attached?"

"I invoke visitor's rights," Taissa drawls. "Whenever I see fit."

"Wait, first it was for me, now we're co-parenting?"

"Since you made such a stink about it--"

A low chuckle bursts from Van's chest. Her fingers loosen around the remote; she considers it for a minute before stowing it in the back pocket of her jeans. Then, her cheeks reddening, she makes a show of looking around at the enormous audience they don't have.

"Thank you," she says awkwardly, and kisses Taissa's cheek. It's small and stupid, way less than what they spent an hour doing after school just yesterday, but it vibrates down to the bone. Tai grins back.

"Thank you, for dropping the dumbass routine. Help me carry this sucker in, and we can take her on a maiden voyage."

Van lights up. "X-Files is on in ten minutes."

Taissa does not actually like X-Files, but she does like watching Van talk to Scully all episode-long. She sometimes thinks watching Van watch television could be a show all its own.

"Deal."

[mylittleredgirl]

🌹for anything SGA?

John has never considered himself a kinky man. It’s not like he’s married to the missionary position or anything, and he’s a lifelong fan of live-and-let-live in the bedroom, but he doesn’t get how it’s supposed to enhance the experience of sex when it’s just putting complications in the way—made-up narratives, rules, equipment. The guys in the barracks used to pass around a catalog full of all kinds of weird shit, gags and clamps and riding crops. John read it cover to cover and wondered what the fuck was wrong with the first guy who looked over the expanse of a warm, willing, naked woman and felt he needed to accessorize.

So he’s boring, whatever. Vanilla. It’s women and sex and John can’t imagine ever having so much of it that he’ll get bored.

And then—well. Antarctica.

---

send me a 🌹 [and a pairing/show if so inclined] and i'll share something from a wip

[spidereticas]

Okay I both love and hate that you picked this one because it's the concept I'm probably the most excited about, but also the one I’ve done the least amount of work on so far lol

Basically I wanted to write something that digs a little into the fact that Hobie is almost certainly very anti-cop, but dating Miles, whose dad is, of course, a cop. Miles obviously has a very real anarchist spirit to him (also hello, Uncle Aaron!) but I imagine he's also probably internalized some ideas that Hobie may not necessarily agree with (consider for instance, the question of whether the institution of policing can be reformed or if it is fundamentally corrupt). So I thought it would be interesting to explore that as a point of tension for them to navigate through.

The starting point in my head is Hobie getting arrested on Earth-138 during a political demonstration, and maybe initially not telling Miles about it, and Miles maybe feeling some type of way about Hobie not telling him. And that would be the catalyst for them to finally kind of talk about all this stuff. Here's a little snippet of a possible conversation:

"Alright, say you join a group that's doing some bad shit, because you wanna try and make it better from the inside," Hobie says. "But it's going real slow, yeah? So slow, that the whole time you're in there, they're still going out and doing terrible shit and you're letting them. So what's that really mean then?" A tilt of the head, a raised eyebrow. "Did you actually change anything? Or did they change you?"

"But isn't that basically what you did when you joined Spider Society?" Miles points out. "Tried to change it from the inside?"

"No," Hobie says flatly, crossing his arms. "I joined up to help one person. Two people, once you came along, Brooklyn. Soon as I did that, if you'll recall, I fucking quit."

And yeah okay, Miles thinks, that is pretty much how that all went down.

"Look," Hobie continues, tone a little more gentle now. "My Captain Stacy? Yeah, man's had good intentions too. I had a bit of sympathy for him. But the police were still shit. And they were shit right up until he died."

[jamiesfootball]

👀👀👀

From one of the gift fics (that will pretty please be finished soon)

Isaac nodded. "That's right. One haircut a year. People usually save them for a special occasion."

Jamie grinned. A bit defensive, that one; even when he was smiling, there was something elusive about it. It made Isaac wonder sometimes if it was maybe a teammate who coined the 'Baby Shark' chant after all.

"Nah, thanks. I'm good mate. Already got a guy, but if I'm ever in a pinch I'll let you know, yeah?"

Bold words, considering Jamie's hair looked like a men's regular cut from any overpriced salon.

Isaac tsked. "Your guy doesn't have my skills. Come on -- you know what? I'll give you a freebie. Let me bring your sides in a bit." He demonstrated with his fingers, running a line through his hair. "If we trim it down at a sharper angle--"

The resounding smack of Jamie knocking his hand away echoed through the locker room. A few of the guys turned to watch -- even Roy Kent looked up from icing his knee to eye the proceedings.

Jamie brushed off the scrutiny like it was old habit, pulling up a smile made out of shell and distance.

"Said I'm good man."

Without changing, he picked up his boots and left the room.

[im-a-king-baby]

I love ELYN, it was a wonderful read. 🪷

<333

Today's bonus scene is a post-epilogue snippet, because Kevan is one of my favourite characters who barely appeared in the actual fic XD

Under the cut for maaaajor ending spoilers! Go read ELYN first!

“The band should have arrived,” Simon checks his phone, for about the twentieth time since getting out the car that had picked them up at the airport. “Normally we’d meet in the bar, have a drink.” He looks across the lobby to the hotel bar, racks of liquor stretching up to the ceiling.

Wilhelm catches his hand. “The schedule I got said we were meeting for dinner,” he says. He’s pretty sure Simon knows that, but sometimes it helps to have someone else say it out loud. “So let’s check in, and you can have a shower while I ask Farima what time.”

“Right.” It takes Simon a second too long to drag his eyes away from the bottles. He keeps tugging on the straps of his backpack, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

Wilhelm had asked widely around for advice on how he could support Simon going back to playing live shows but the consensus from everyone was just, ‘It’s going to be hard, but if he wants to tour again you have to start somewhere.’

“Hey! Si…imon!”

Wilhelm barely has a chance to jump before someone is bounding across the lobby. He’s a huge man with long black hair dressed in a leather jacket with silver studs and for an instant Wilhelm wonders if he should be throwing himself in front of Simon - where are the bodyguards when you need them?

Then he registers that Simon is laughing. “You can keep calling me Simme,” Simon says, stepping past Wilhelm so the man can pull him into what looks like a bonecrushing hug. “I don’t mind.”

“Oh thank god,” the man says, letting Simon go and stepping back. “Farima keeps sending emails about ‘Simon’ and I’m like ‘who?’ every single time.” He notices Wilhelm for the first time, slightly off to the side in his carefully nondescript jumper and jeans combo. “Let me guess, you’re the boyfriend formerly known as Prince?”

Simon snorts. “Kevan, this is Wilhelm. Wille, Kevan. He plays guitar.”

And now Wilhelm remembers him from the Faktory, standing off to the side of the stage with a red guitar. And the name, too. Kevan was the person Simon called in Bjarstad, the one who told Candace where to find them. Wilhelm’s first instinct would be to keep him far away from Simon, but he’s aware that - as much as he doesn’t like it - the Candace Issue is more complicated on Simon’s side.

Simon met her for coffee, when he was in L.A. and Wilhelm was stuck in class a million miles away, and Wilhelm’s phone left imprints in his palm he was gripping it so tight waiting for a phone call that didn’t come, just a text two hours later: she’s gone, all still standing and heading to the airport. See you soon xx

Here and now, Simon seems relaxed for the first time since they entered the lobby, flicking the studs on Kevan’s jacket and saying, “Did you listen to the EP?”

“I did. Not really my thing,” Kevan says, but with a grin as though this is some shared joke between them. “But we can add more guitar solos when you record the full album.”

Simon snorts a laugh, like he hasn’t been up all night for the last week worrying about The Full Album. “Let’s get through these shows first.”

“Speaking of, I did need to catch you.” Kevan’s smile drops. “There’s a problem with my schedule.”

Fuck. Wilhelm steps a bit closer to Simon as his laugh dies and he casts a desperate look towards the check-in desk and escape. “The schedule isn’t really my area,” Simon starts. “Can you talk to Farima about it?”

“No,” Kevan says. “I think I need you.” He’s already pulling out his phone. “See, I’ve got the dinner tonight, rehearsals tomorrow, shows Friday and Saturday, but in the middle I have something called a ‘day off’? I told them, this is a Simme tour we don’t do that here -”

The tension drops entirely out of Simon’s body. "Oh my god," he says, shoving at Kevan’s shoulder, the kind of easy roughhousing that he would've done with Ayub or Rosh back at school. “You’re such an asshole.”

Kevan uses his height advantage to ruffle Simon’s hair then takes off running before Simon can retaliate. Simon is laughing, but pauses to kiss Wilhelm’s cheek and shove his backpack into Wilhelm’s arms before chasing Kevan across the lobby, scattering guests and hotel staff in all directions.

Wilhelm slings Simon’s bag over his shoulder and heads to the desk, only glancing back every other second. “Simon Erikkson and Wilhelm Kassel, I think our bags have already been dropped off.”

She digs out some paperwork for him to sign - he’s still figuring out his signature, still forgetting to respond for a minute when he hears ‘Mr Kassel’ - and she’s coding up two keycards when Simon stumbles back up against the counter, breathing hard.

“Hey, sorry. Didn’t mean to abandon you,” he says, and Wilhelm can’t blame him for it when he’s still smiling like that, lighting up his whole face.

He had kind of understood what Simon said about wanting to be back on stage - in that he could see it was something a person might want, even if the idea of doing it himself made him want to throw up - but he’d thought the touring was a necessary evil that went with that, not something that could possibly be enjoyed. When Simon had arranged these first shows for Spring Break so Wilhelm could come along, Wilhelm had just assumed it was so that he’d have someone other than Farima there to fall back on.

But as Kevan falls into step with them on the way to the elevator, talking about dinner plans like booking a table at a restaurant is the most outlandishly posh thing that any person has ever done, he realises maybe for Simon it was about showing Wilhelm this other side of his life. To show that he’s not alone out here.

“Di was asking if we need to dress for dinner,” Kevan says. “I said I didn’t think we should go naked but I’d check with you.”

Simon elbows him in the side. “I think we can be us,” he says. “It’s not -” he pauses as Wilhelm presses the button to call the lift, waits for the doors to open and them to step inside before he continues. “It’s just to keep it out of the bar, you know?” Wilhelm steps closer, so their knuckles touch and Simon gives him a sideways smile. “Things are going to be a bit different this time.

Wilhelm half expects Kevan to make another joke, but Kevan nods, like he gets it. “You let us know what you need, yeah? We’re all rooting for you here.”