#for those that reblogged you’ll have to resend

[spamlets]

[repost now that i’ve opened my ask box]

ATTENTION all artists with mothleys (moth stanleys) and mothrrators (moth narrators)!!

I want to draw all of our little guys interacting! If you want to be included, please drop reference sheets either in my ask box, the reblogs of this post, messages, or if you have my discord feel free to send it there!

[2346khith]

Before beginning, does anyone know how to make your post the first post in your because I want everybody who enters my blog to see this post first.

Okay so I’ve decided the post this to ensure my blog run along much smoother and it is the basic guidelines on my ask box. Specifically the rules.

1. Do not resent your ask. I swear if you put and ask in that is exactly identical to another ask you sent, I will block you or mark you as spam. I’m a very busy person. Most of my day is at school and the other part is working on homework leaving me very little time to actually do anything else that I like. If I do not respond to an ask of yours, assume that I’m busy and do not just resend the ask again because then I won’t listen. Just wait for me to respond and eventually I will. But if you just constantly spam the same ask, that only going to put more work on me to sort things out which means less time to focus on other people ask, and as you can see from my blog some of these ask are important so by resending the same ask over and over again you will be taking time off of other people questions so just take your time.

2. This is less of a rule like the first one and more of a warning about myself. If you haven’t seen from my bio, my blog is usually dedicated to looking at other blogs, not for posting so I just want to warn you about something’s when it comes to asking me. The fandoms you’ll see me posting about on this blog include Mortal Kombat, Marvel, Scp, occasionally popcross studios, maybe stuff about yautja, and dragon ball, and transformers(this list might change in the future) I might post or reblog about other stuff but do not take those as sign that I know something about them like say a certain anime that I like Aus and fanart of but I have no idea how their world works. As for what else to ask about, my ask is mostly there for facts about any au I might be posting about or for my personal opinion or a place where you guys can give me ideas and help me out on a subject in said fandom. You can ask me question about the actual canon form media but in not an expert on nay franchise so just know that my scope is very limited.

3.And most importantly this is an lgbtq friendly blog so no homophobes, transphobes, terfs, racist or overall douches.

And yeah that it. Don’t constantly resend ask, focus more so on those specific fandoms, use ask for au talk, personal opinion or help each other, your allowed to ask about questions in canon but I might not have the answer too but most importantly have fun and be kind.

[nothorses]

Quick ask updates & clarifications:

- Whoever sent me the multi-part ask this morning, I only got 1-3! Tumblr may have eaten the others, feel free to resend things.

- I’m happy to toss some blog recommendations out for groups I haven’t answered asks about before, but if you’re asking me for better recommendations within those groups, or if I’ve answered an ask about them before, it’s likely I won’t answer. (I’m also not very good at recs, I’ve got so much ADHD and this blog is like 8 years old. You’ll have better luck doing your own research.)

- If yall send me heads-ups about people I’ve reblogged from/follow/etc., I will most likely not publish those asks. I do investigate those things & delete/unfollow/block if they check out, though. I appreciate them a lot of the time, I’m just not interested in starting drama!

- I am busy as fuck lately, my blog’s gonna be on the quiet side for the foreseeable future. I am working through asks and scheduling posts, though!

[itsscrystal]

Just Wanna Say “I Love You”— a Sakusa x fem!reader short series

level 3 - chance

[masterlist]

“Movie night!! I’m choosing the movies!!” [y/n] screeched as she jumped onto the couch. Suna sighed loudly. “I’m not going to watch if it’s Titanic. We’ve watched that one at least 5 times already.” “4 times,” [y/n] corrected. “Since you got the number of times we’ve watched this wrong, let’s make it right by watching it one more time!”

<a/n: now let’s fast forward to the end of the movie>

“Did you see that? Did you??” [y/n] cried. “This is so unfair! Why does he have to die? Like, why?” Suna sighed for the nth time and dragged himself towards his room. “I’m going back.”

(The Suna back then would not even stay for movie night. Sappy romantic movies irked him. The Suna now only stayed for [y/n]. After all, if he was caught staring at her, the excuse “I’m just judging you” can be used then.)

Grabbing his phone, he quickly texted Osamu. She’s too beautiful was all he sent. The reply said sooo have you finally made your move, lover boy?

Suna: No. Are you crazy?

Osamu: One day your true intentions will be revealed.

Suna: *sighes* I know, but I still need a little more time? And if she doesn’t accept my confession, I’m staying at your place again.

Osamu: Are you kidding me? Okay please don’t confess.

Suna rolled his eyes at the dimly lit screen.

Osamu: …

Osamu: You still there? I’m just joking.

Osamu: Hey. It’s okay. You’ve said that she’s not in any relationship right? Not even once right? So it means you stand a chance. You know so much about her. It’ll be fine.

Suna Okay, next week. I’ll do that next week.

Osamu: Dude you say that every week—

<suna has left the chat>

Osamu: OI! SUNA YOU BETTER COME BACK

——————————

[y/n]: Sakusa-san? Are you still alive?

Sakusa: Oh sorry I was busy. I could only reply back now. How are you?

[y/n]: Yep, still the same. Haha.

[y/n]: ...

Sakusa: Do you want to hang out on Saturday? With Komori and I.

[y/n]: That’s tomorrow??

Sakusa: Yeah…?

[y/n]: I DON’T HAVE AN OUTFIT READY I’M GOING TO SEARCH FOR ONE NOW

<five minutes later>

Sakusa: So you’re coming?

[y/n]: OF COURSE

[y/n] reread that message. Nope, she sounds too desperate. She was going to delete the message and resend another, but Sakusa had read it already. Uh…

After telling herself to calm down and stop panicking, [y/n] realised that she has to continue the conversation. Since… Well, she still has no idea where she’s meeting the duo.

[y/n]: so.. where are we meeting?

Sakusa: The café. You know, the one outside our high school.

[y/n]: ah, the ice cream one

Sakusa: The one where high school “Shigeru-kun” confessed to you

[y/n]: ???

[y/n] was surprised. How does he still remember it?

<Sakusa has left the chat>

——————————

“Not smooth bro. Definitely not smooth.”

Ignoring his cousin’s words, Sakusa placed his phone on his bed and asked him, “Remind me why you’re here too?”

“Because we’re here to celebrate your sister’s birthday! Since everyone could make it this time, we have to be back here in Tokyo too.”

“No, I mean, why are you here in my room?”

“Aw, Kiyoomi you’ll hurt my feelings! I’m just looking out for you!”

Sakusa tossed him a hand sanitizer to clean his hands before telling him to stop peeping behind him and instead sit on the chair next to his study table. Or what used to be his study table.

“Kiyoomi what’s this? ‘just know that I’ll always wait for you, ‘kay?’ Isn’t this [y/n]-san’s handwritting?” Suddenly alert, he snatched the square piece of paper from Komori’s hand. “Don’t touch my things,” he said stiffly. Komori eyed the once-bright yellow paper and remarked, “okay you know what? You definitely have a chance. It’s a 90% chance that you’ll be fine.”

“Really?” Sakusa frowned, not happy that it’s not a 100%. Komori laughed a little at his expression. “Yeah. That’s always better than nothing right?”

a/n: the last time I watched Titanic was more than a year ago but the plot was actually quite good!! (those who haven’t give it a try do watch it!) this chapter’s more like a filler chapter to introduce the next chapter.

a/n: hopefully y’all have enjoyed this chapter! as usual, likes and reblogs are appreciated! thanks :)

[firelxdykatara]

Hey, so I was wondering, how can we know if you’re ignoring an ask, haven’t gotten to it yet, or have forgotten about it and we should resend it like you once suggested? If you’re ignoring it for whatever reason how do we know not to resend it and pester you with it? Also are there any topics you’re uncomfortable getting asks about or are just sick of talking about so we know not to do that anymore? I know some people are sick of talking about discourse for example or find some things triggering

Honestly, unless the ask that was sent to me was hateful and vitriolic (I occasionally respond to anon hate, but sometimes I just don’t have the spoons for it, and I’ve gotten some truly disgusting and triggering asks before [like the ‘graphic depictions of what i wish would happen to you’ sort] that I deleted immediately because I didn’t want to subject my followers to having to see it), chances are good I’m not purposefully ignoring it.

The exception tends to be submissions, especially when it’s just links to posts--submissions are unwieldy and difficult to respond to because it’s hard to delineate between what was submitted and my response, and I don’t tend to appreciate being used like some kind of an attack dog to respond to someone else’s posts, especially if they’re particularly old (someone was sending me links to meta posts from like five years ago for a while, and I just kind of quietly ignored them). That said, I’ll usually check out the post in question and sometimes it’ll trigger my need to wordvomit, but I’m more likely to respond if it was sent as a regular ask rather than a submission cause I’m lazy and asks are easier.

As far as things I’m uncomfortable with or sick of--not really? At least not fandom-related--I don’t care to get into political discourse (you’ll notice I very rarely reblog politics on this blog), but just about anything fandom-related I don’t mind rehashing, and when I do I’ll make a post about it. (For example, I’m still getting people sending, usually via submission, bits of anti ironwood meta from RWBY and I’m just not interested in getting into it any longer, because that fandom in particular is allergic to nuance and I don’t believe any of it is being sent to me in good faith. In that case, though, I made a post about it. That’s the only example I can think of, though, of things I just don’t feel like talking about anymore.) In general, especially when it comes to things I’m salty about, I’m always willing to open those floodgates--but sometimes when I first get the asks I don’t have the energy to dive in at that moment, and then time passes and I forget to go back for it.

In any event, if it’s been more than a day or two since an ask was sent to me and the asker is still hoping for an answer, please do send it again! Seeing it pop up again in my inbox will remind me that I got this ask before, and let me know that someone is still waiting around looking for an answer (there are some asks I keep wanting to go back to but then I’m like ‘this was sent anonymously they probably aren’t even looking at my blog anymore’), and when I get doubles like that I do try to respond! I won’t feel pestered, unless (and this has happened before) you send the same as like five times in as many hours, at which point I feel like I’m being trolled and am more likely to ignore the ask just for spite.

Some asks take me longer to get to than others because I have a lot of Words to say, and sometimes I wind up getting halfway through a response and then save it as a draft so I don’t lose it and then kind of forget its there, so getting the ask again would remind me to finish it!

EDIT: Oh, something I forgot to mention--sometimes I get really lovely messages, and sometimes I respond to anon or off-anon love but sometimes I leave it in my inbox because I like having something nice to look at without having to dig through my asked tag for it, and it gives me the warm fuzzies inside. Please know that if you’ve ever sent me a nice message, even if I didn’t publicly respond to it, I saw it and it probably made me cry with happy feelings, and I love you for it <3333

[justsomeheadcanons-bruh]

Read Before Submitting. Please.

MINORS DNI

Sup! I’m Ryder. I’ve been writing headcanons and fics for over fifteen years. I used to run a plethora of other ask blogs, however, over the years, I lost interest or they died. Or both. So, instead of trying to keep track of about 12 different sub-blogs AND log ins, I’m just popping it all into one place so that mayhaps I will be less overwhelmed. Or something. Unlikely but. I had the urge to write some angst fics and here we are.

Please keep headcanons limited to three characters each ask. You can send multiple asks.

For scenarios and drabbles/ficlets, one character per ask.

If I don’t respond, feel free to resend - one of three things has happened.

Tumblr ate it.

I didn’t want to answer it, so I didn’t.

I’m working on it and it’s in a WIP somewhere. You’ll see it someday. Maybe.

I don’t mind repeats, but, be nice. I work with the general populace every day in my career, and there I have to let them walk all over me. Here, it’s my ask box, and my rules, so. :3

I will accept all asks, but whether or not I will write for them is not guaranteed depending on the material and if I’m comfortable with it or not. 

In the past, I have shied away from things outside of my purview - I am a queer mid-twenties white woman. I would rather uplift community voices instead of trying to speak over them - especially in the case of trans and people of color in our communities. So I may put them out to the community to answer. I will always reblog and tag those that respond, because you’re awesome and deserve to have your works recognized.

Also. This will not be fancy. 99.8% of the time I’m on mobile. So whatever formatting Tumblr is feeling that day is how it’s going out. Sorry not sorry.

Now, onto the nitty gritty that you’ve all been waiting for:

Things I Cannot/Will Not Write:

Excessive Gore and Violence

Self Harm & Suicide

Non/Dub Con

Incest

Abuse

Approved Fandoms

Video Games:

Stardew Valley

Dragon Age

Mass Effect

Baldur’s Gate 3

Fallout (3, 4 and NV)

Pokemon

Fire Emblem: Three Houses

The Wayhaven Chronicles

The Arcana

Mystic Messenger

Anime:

My Hero Academia

Bleach

Naruto

Jujutsu Kaisen

Fruits Basket

Fullmetal Alchemist

Yu-Gi-Oh (The Original, I’m Old)

Soul Eater

I probably forgot some, so if you have something and it’s not listed, feel free to send it.

For the accounts I still have log ins for, I’ll start moving stuff over here so I can archive all at once so. Be on the lookout.

[minatozaki-sana]

Can you help me with one kind of stupid thing? How can I start rping on tumblr? Like... How do i plot and interact?

we all had to start somewhere, so this is a more than valid question ! first off, here and here are two pretty extensive guides to tumblr rping, but i’ll try to cut everything short under the read-more and have it be more up to date. also if you have any more questions or want more details on a certain topic, don’t be afraid to ask again !

i. types of rps.

since you found this blog i hope it’s safe to assume you somewhat know your way around the rpc ? but just in case, the following tags are most popular for different type of rps: appless rp, bio rp, skeleton rp, semi appless rp, twitter rp and lsrp. there are also a good amount of subcategories for rps, for example apartment rp, mumu rp ( multi-muse ), new rp, pairs rp, etc. it all kind of depends what you’re looking for but for starters i’d recommend appless rps as they’re the easiest to step foot in.

all of the above are group roleplays with set rules, but if you’re not into that, there’s also indie rping. the main tag is indie rp with different subcategories as well. the indie com is more laid-back as you basically write down your own rules ( always make sure to read other ppl’s rules as well ) and you can take as much time for your replies as you’d like opposed to groups where the time limit is 2 - 5 days nowadays. though, i’d only rec the indie com for people over 18 as it has many muns who like to post smut starters without properly tagging them but using nsfw gifs. also there are quite a few nasty ppl out there who like to write inc*st or non-consenting threads which just .. yikes Blocked.

ii. joining a rp.

as you’re browsing the tags, you’ll hopefully find a rp you like and would like to join. please, please make sure to read the plot, rules and if applicable faq pages completely and if it’s a new rp also scrolling through the blog itself just to avoid possibly joining a rp that allows something ( or someone ) you’d rather not be affiliated with. in case everything’s fine and you went through all the pages, it’s best to have the taken / characters page open along with the application format just to avoid using a faceclaim ( the celeb you’d like your character to look like ), name or even label that’s already in use. 

most admins are very adamant about the app format not being changed ( ex. all lowercase or certain words in uppercase, etc ) so please listen to them otherwise they’ll ask you to resend the app or they’ll have to change it on the taken page. it’s always good for an admin to see that their members actually care about what they created.

most apps ask for a faceclaim, name, age, gender, pronouns, label ( + tag ), occupation, positive and negative traits ( + tag ) and sometimes a fun fact, their zodiac sign, what they googled last, a movie / song / show they love, etc. basically just send in your app as soon as it’s finished ! below you’ll also find an old app of mine for an appless rp.

iii. setting up an account.

hopefully you know how to set up an account on tumblr, but if not, the first guide covers it  well. as soon as your account is set up, install new xkit ( without it you basically won’t be able to write replies ). select xkit on your dashboard and install the following extensions ( click ‘ get extensions ‘ ): anti-capitalism, drafts+, editable reblogs ( the most important ! ), go-to-dash, no recommended, old sidebar, old stats, one-click reply, outbox, timestamps, tweaks, xinbox. as for tweaks, go back to ‘ my xkit ‘, find ‘ tweaks ‘ and try to see what you like best.

from here on i recommend following the steps from the first guide, starting at ‘ THE ACCOUNT: AESTHETICS ‘ as i basically do the same. here’s also my theme tag along with a general one.

iv. writing your intro.

now before you’re able to plot with others, you’ll have to write an intro. it’s essentially just to introduce yourself with a small blurb and then elaborating on your muse ( character ). below you can find an example in the form of an old blog of mine, it was for a skeleton rp, but basically it’s the same for appless rps ( except that i never write a bio or create a headcanon page for those ). if you follow the link to the intro, you’ll see a load of text.

the first thing i always do for my intro is add a gif icon ( usually 100x100 pixel or below and you can find them by typing in https://www.tumblr.com/tagged/danielle-campbell-gif-icons for example ), write something small about me / the rp and then add the app format under a read more. everything underneath is the muse’s backstory, personality and wanted plots. ( also as a tip it’s always good to trigger warn your writing. )

v. plotting.

this is often dreaded due to bad past experiences or anxiety but honestly.. keep calm during this. plotting is actually one of my favorite things and i tend to ramble a Lot while talking to strangers so as long as you’re passionate about your muse it’ll work out. and if someone’s not interested in plotting with your muse someone else definitely will. as a true flop i didn’t include any wanted plots in my intro, but i’m also very spontaneous regarding connections aka i’ll read their intro and think of a plot that could work and let them add onto it bc only the mun knows their muse best. if you need any connections idea though, here and here are a few.

as for approaching someone, most of the time i’m looking for something in their intro i could use to bond over outside rping, like with my intro it could be a shared interest for dc and / or marvel. or honestly just compliment them on their muse bc i love doing so when you can really feel they put a lot of effort into creating them. alternatively just quote a vine in all caps.

one thing to avoid doing is sound soo very monotone when you can clearly see that they’re excited to plot and you just don’t seem to care. sharing excitement is a good thing while plotting and the rpc in general !

vi. replying.

plugging in this guide one last time bc the last part covers all of it !

vii. extras.

make sure you’re only following blogs from the main rp’s blogroll to avoid confusion.

if you want to leave a rp, please message the main. a simple ‘ hey ! i’m afraid this rp isn’t for me ‘ or ‘ i won’t have time to dedicate to this rp ‘ will do. it’s always better than to just delete or switch to another rp.

it’s nice to check the starter tag from time to time to make sure new members feel welcome ( most if not all rps have their own starter tag which can be found on their blog ).

in case you join a rp that has meme days, don’t be afraid to ask the admins for help even if it’s just to find some to reblog ( museinspo has a tag for them as well along with other musings blogs ). in addition it’s polite to send everyone a meme to answer / reply to.

museinspo’s navigation might also help clear up a few things, plus it’s a great blog for character creation and development.

hopefully this was beginner’s friendly ?? and happy rping !

[i-write-shakespeare-not-disney]

Barrio Slums and More Ch. 8

Click Here for Chapter 1

Click Here for Chapter 7

A HUGE THANK YOU TO ARIN FOR COMMISSIONING THIS PIECE!!! I was so excited to be able to work on it again. The commission came as a surprise, and honestly it made me smile for the rest of the day. Thank you for supporting me and helping me reach my goal!!! (With the commission you gave, I’m posting two chapters. This is the first. I’ve yet to write the second aha).

Feedback appreciated– Please reblog!– Let me know if you need translations!

*Remember to go to the Original Post if the READ MORE link doesn’t show!*

The sharp ring of a phone ripped through the silence of the house. Lance jerked up, a cold chill spreading through him as his brain woke up enough to process the fact that his phone was ringing. He fumbled for it and answered before looking to see who it was.

“Hello?” he said groggily.

“Hey Lance, sorry to wake you, but have you seen Keith?” Lance remained quiet and pulled himself into a proper sitting position. “Hello?”

“Hey, yeah, sorry I'm still waking up. What do you mean have I seen him?”

Shiro sighed and cleared his throat. “Michael's been looking for him all night. He said they had an argument then Keith lost it and hit him before running out.”

Lance's blood boiled. That sick son of a bitch was actually pinning the blame on Keith? And when his friends saw how hurt he was? What would the excuse be then? He reigned in his anger and scoffed. “You don't actually believe that, do you? I don't know Keith as well as you, but he's not violent. And if he ran off without his phone to contact you, maybe you should ask what he was running from.”

There was a beat of silence then Shiro asked in a soft voice, “How do you know he doesn't have his phone?”

Lance sucked in a breath and shut his eyes. “Logical deduction. I'm assuming you've all tried calling him and he would at least call you of he had it.”

Another silence. Then, “Look, Keith is like my brother. Can you just promise me he's safe? That he's okay?”

Lance bit his lip before replying, “Yeah. He is now.” Then he hung up because he didn't know if they'd look for him or if he'd fucked up or what Shiro thought of everything. If Shiro told Hunk, Hunk would probably find Keith because he'd been to the house before. Lance just hoped his memory wasn't good.

He laid back down, putting his phone on silent. But he couldn't sleep anymore. He tossed and turned and fussed, waiting for that ominous knock on the door.

Instead, he heard footsteps. He glanced up and saw Keith's silhouette moving toward the kitchen. The light came on and Lance sat up as he listened to the light thud of cabinets being opened and then the sound of water coming from the fridge.

Once the cup clattered into the sink a few moments later, he saw Keith coming back. “Keith?”

“Oh! Jesus, Lance.” Lance bit back a smile. “Sorry did I wake you?”

He frowned and shook his head. “No, I've been awake for a bit. Why are you awake?”

He stepped closer to the couch and Lance pulled his feet into his chest for Keith to sit. “Nightmare,” he answered as he sat. Lance was relieved to see his injuries weren't swollen anymore.

“I didn't hear you.”

Keith shrugged. “I'm not really loud about my nightmares. I just sort of wake up in a panic.” Lance didn't respond but he kept his eyes on him. The moonlight made him look silver.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he murmured. Keith smiled and shook his head. “Well, since neither of us can sleep, how about some Spanish lessons? I’m afraid you’ve been slacking.” Keith scoffed and bit back a smile, shifting where he sat so he was facing Lance.

“Try me. I’ve been using Duolingo too.” Lance laughed, covering his mouth to stifle the sound.

He began giving Keith basic words to translate, their hushed whispers seeming a thousand times louder in the silence. “Well you’re pretty good, Mullet. Soon you’ll be an honorary Latino.” Keith smiled, causing creases to form on the side of his eyes and a small dimple to form on his right cheek.

“So how’s the college stuff going? Do you know if they’ll let you back in?”

“Not yet. I’ve written to the dean, the president, the founder. I don’t know if they’re getting my emails, but I’m resending them weekly. I just… I know there’s nothing wrong with community college, or with U of H, but… after the big fuss I made about getting out of here and everyone being impressed because it’s a private school, and….” He sighed and shrugged. “I don’t want to give up on it.”

“I understand,” he answered. “You wanted to get out of the place you’ve been trapped in all your life. You want something more.” Lance looked at Keith sadly, wishing he could kiss away every single bruise and cut that marred his face. “I get it.”

They sat in comfortable silence for a while before Lance spoke again. “Jorge isn’t that bad,” he whispered. Keith looked over at him in confusion. “I know it seems like he’s just an asshole, but he’s not. When we were little, he was seriously the sweetest kid you could meet. He went with me everywhere, and sometimes it was annoying but… we were the only boys, you know? I was always dreading the day I had to leave him here, because I know how hard it is to be in charge of everyone else.”

“I never thought he was an asshole,” Keith murmured. “I just figured he was protective of you. Trying to keep me in line or something.”

Lance shook his head. “No he’s never been like that. He was always… all smiles and jokes. Like me. With anyone he met. It’s not just you right now. He’s been acting up with me, with my mom. And I’m worried. He won’t talk to me, and I don’t know why. I remember high school. I remember the stupid shit I did there. The stuff I got pressured into, or the stuff I hid from home. I’m scared he’s going through the same and he won’t talk to any of us.”

“Well, if I can offer any advice at all, it’d be this: don’t give up on him. When I was in my foster homes that was the one thing I’d hope for each time. That I wouldn’t be too much of something- too shy, too troubling, too awkward, too distant, too needy. Anything so they wouldn’t give up on me.”

Lance was always caught off guard when Keith mentioned his past like that. The foster homes, the lack of family. He was so put together, it was usually a reality check for Lance. “I’m not a person who gives up on people,” he answered. “Especially my brother. I just wish he’d stop pushing me away.” Keith’s hand slid into his. Lance looked at him and Keith offered him a smile. Then he yawned and leaned his head on the couch. “You should go to bed,” he chuckled. “It’s almost four in the morning.”

Keith groaned and shut his eyes. “What am I supposed to say when your siblings ask about my face?” he whispered.

Lance’s heart tightened and he had to fight the urge to pull Keith into his arms and keep him there so nothing could ever hurt him again. How could someone so beautiful have such an ugly life?

He squeezed his hand and smiled. “I’ll make something up. Don’t worry. I’ll get you in the morning, yeah?” Keith nodded and stood, ruffling Lance’s hair before shuffling back to the room.

***

The next morning, Lance woke up to someone spritzing water on his face. He groaned and opened his eyes to find Jorge with his hand in a cup of water, flicking it at Lance.

“Bobo, what the fuck?” he muttered, jutting his arm out to hit him.

“Why are you on the couch?”

“Why do you care?” he grumbled. Suddenly water splashed against his face and he sat up, gasping. “I’m going to kill you!” he shouted, lunging for his brother. But Jorge was quick and he was out of his reach before Lance could fully stand.

He started chasing him around the house, managing to bring him into a headlock. “Get off!” he shouted.

“You shouldn’t have thrown water on me, you little shit!”

“What the hell are you two doing?” their mom snapped as she left her room. She looked exhausted, and she had a hand at her head. “Coño, I need you to stop yelling.”

“Hangover, Ma?” Lance teased. She gave him a cold look. Then his sisters came into the dining room, Emily and Alexia fighting each other to see who could get to the princess cup first.

Jackie came in looking like she was still asleep. “Those girls don’t understand the sanctity of Saturdays.”

“Call your tia Carla, tell her to bring some carnitas and barbacoa-”

“Wait no!” Lance yelped. She winced and glared at him. “Ma, Keith’s here, remember?” Her face sobered and she frowned. Lance could almost feel Jorge beginning to complain, so he held up a hand to stop him. “He needed some help yesterday. He’s a little.... Hurt. So can you guys just not comment on the injuries?”

“Hurt?” Jackie questioned, pulling Alexia into her lap as she prepared some chocolate milk for her.

“Kids, just don’t say anything okay?” Dani said. “I’ll make some pancakes. And I’ll explain to Alexia and Emily.” Lance nodded and went to his room, ignoring his brother’s glare.

He knocked and opened the door slightly. “Keith?”

“I’m awake,” he called back. Lance opened the door and found him sitting up in bed, reading one of his books. “Sorry, I woke up kind of early…. I should’ve asked, I’m sorry,” he said getting up to put the book away.

“Hey, it’s okay. Books are meant to be read.” Keith relaxed and chuckled nervously. “I talked to my siblings. I didn’t really explain, but they’ll leave you alone. So whenever you’re ready to come and eat some pancakes….” He stepped toward him and tilted his face up. “You mind if I reapply some ointment?” Keith shook his head.

Lance left then returned with a tube of ointment and a rag to clean his face again. He made sure to be gentle, afraid to put pressure. His brows furrowed in concentration and Keith chuckled, his breath warm against Lance’s hand. “You know, you make it really hard not to try to kiss you.”

Lance’s eyebrows shot up and he felt himself turn red as he tried to hide his embarrassment. He bit his lip and smiled at Keith. “Well it’s not easy for me either.” He covered the ointment and clasped his hands together. “There. I’ll see you at the table.”

“Okay,” he murmured as Lance walked out.

Once he shut the door, Lance allowed himself a wide dopey smile, and a full-on blush to coat his face. He rubbed his face then went to join his family, helping his mom make pancakes while his siblings set the table or served drinks.

A few moments later, Lance heard the inevitable gasp from his younger siblings. “Cabito tiene lele, Lansh,” Alexia screeched, coming into the kitchen with a panicked face. Dani looked at her and frowned as she tried to calm her down. Keith came into the kitchen, his face red, his eyes downcast.

Dani looked at him, her eyes going wide as she looked at Lance. Lance hoped the look in his eyes was pleading enough for her not to panic. She looked back at Keith and ushered Alexia to sit down. “Cariño, how many pancakes would you like?”

“Um, three?” he answered. She smiled and nodded. Only Lance could see the distress in her eyes. And when she turned away, facing the stove again, Lance saw her eyes welling with tears. “Is there anything I can help with?”

“No, I think we just about got it. Did you still want me to call Beto?” Keith nodded. “Okay. Well, here’s some pancakes that are ready, go ahead and take those over to the table.” Keith took the plate and left. When he did, Lance turned to his mom and touched her shoulder. “Ma?”

She shook her head. “It was like seeing Carla all over again, mijo.” She sniffed and wiped her eyes. “I’m fine. Go sit. I’ll finish.”

Lance bit his lip but did as he was told. He sat next to Keith who was eating self-consciously as Jorge and Jackie very obviously tried not to look at him. Then, “Are you Lance’s boy girlfriend?” Emily asked.

“Wh-what? Oh, no,” Keith chuckled nervously. “We’re just friends.”

“Boy girlfriend?” Jorge questioned.

“Yeah. Like a girlfriend, but a boy.”

“That’s boyfriend,” Lance pointed out.

“Yeah, but you’re a boy, so you have girlfriends, and since you said you like boys, you can have boy girlfriends.” Keith and Lance stared at her, trying to find a response.

“It’s hard to argue with logic like that,” Jackie supplied. “But she has a point. I think we all thought you were dating. Lance hasn’t brought anyone home s-”

“I think we’ve fully established that we’re just friends, guys. Now can we eat in peace? Thanks,” he interrupted. He dug into his pancakes while Keith smirked at him. “Pass the syrup?”

Breakfast went by fine once Alexia stopped insisting on trying to put ice on Keith’s face and the talk of dating had subsided. Dani joined them and thankfully, the others didn’t seem so distraught by Keith’s injuries anymore.

While Lance was putting up the dishes, Jorge gave him a strange look, which stopped him in his tracks. Lance stared at his little brother who seemed like he wanted to ask something, but also didn’t want to sound like he cared.

Then-

“So he gets hit?” Lance heard Jackie stop washing dishes as she looked over her shoulder. Lance gulped and nodded. “Oh.” He looked away then left, leaving Lance feeling nostalgic for the moments when he and his brother were closer.

Jackie continued washing, and Lance joined Keith on the couch where he was watching a cartoon with Alexia and Emily. He pulled his phone out and messaged Beto to stop by later briefly explaining that Keith wanted to see him and that he was hurt. He didn’t say why, but he knew Beto would know. Then he sat next to Keith and gave him a smile.

He looked better than he had the day before. The bruises and cuts were still clearly visible, but they didn’t look so swollen and dirty anymore. Emily tugged on Lance’s arm and whispered into his ear, “You should ask him to be your boy girlfriend. He’s cute.”

Lance felt his face go red and he noticed Keith trying to suppress a smile, pretending he was watching the television. “I know right?” he whispered back. Keith broke into a full on smile and nudged his foot against Lance’s.

About half an hour later, after an episode of the girls’ favorite show, there was a knock on the door. Keith and Lance both tensed, but didn’t have time to tell Jorge to wait when he opened the door. “Oh, hey Beto. What’s up?”

“Lance texted me.” Jorge hummed and gestured to the couch. Keith relaxed a bit and Beto walked in with his easygoing smile. It faltered when he saw Keith. He didn’t say anything but his jaw clenched and his smile was gone. He greeted Lance by pulling him up into a half hug and gave Keith a fist bump. “I expected a call from you before, vato,” he said.

“Yeah. I guess I was building courage. I don’t think I have a choice now.” Beto nodded and tilted his chin. Keith scowled and pulled away. “I’m not running. I’m not hiding. My only choice is to fight back.” Emily jerked her head over at the words, confusion clear on her features.

“Girls, we’re gonna go outside okay? Stay inside, it’s hot,” Lance said. He nudged Keith and they stood, going out to the patio. “Personally, I don’t think he should go back. Tell me you agree.” Keith glared at Lance, but it faltered when he looked at Beto.

Beto looked at Keith, inspecting the injuries. “No shit, I agree,” he said. “But your little boo thing here probably won’t listen anyway.” Lance groaned and Keith shrugged. “I’m gonna help him, primo. Don’t worry. But if you wanna watch, you gotta keep to yourself. I don’t want you babying him.” Lance huffed and crossed his arms. “So… when we starting?”

“Soon? If I don’t get back… He’s going to look for me. And I’m tired. I don’t want this happening anymore. But it has to be foolproof. The last time I fought back, he just kept coming at me worse.”

Beto scowled, his lip curling in disgust. “Yeah, that’s what they do. Control. But you don’t seem like a dude who likes being controlled.” Keith kept his gaze steady on him, eyes narrowed. “We can go to my place. I got a workout room I haven’t used in months. I’ll have Nina go too, if you still need that fake date. Just so it’s not too awkward.”

Lance glanced at Keith but Keith just shrugged. Then he turned to Beto. “I don’t have a car right now. And that party is this coming week. I don’t know if he’ll wait all week for me to go back, or if he’ll go back to his classes.”

Before Beto answered, Lance said, “I’m gonna tell my mom we’re going. I’ll drive you.” He walked inside, leaving Keith with Beto.

His mom was doing laundry, hair pulled up into a bun as she loaded the clothes. She noticed him and smiled, tilting her head in question. “You okay, mijo?”

Lance nodded and bit his lip. “Yeah, I’m okay. Um, Beto wants us to go over to his place for a bit, I was wondering if that was okay? And if I could borrow the car?”

“What are you doing at Beto’s?” Lance shrugged, and it wasn’t until his mother had finished loading the laundry and the washer began spinning that she looked back at him with a hand on her hip. “You’re not forgetting your priorities, are you Lance?” she asked. “I know you care about that boy, but you can’t just forget about college. You said you were going back-”

“And I will. I’ve been working on scholarships and stuff. Emailing the school and professors. I even started a few applications to other universities too. I’m not ignoring it, Ma. I swear.”

She sighed and looked at him with a steady gaze. Then she nodded. “Be careful. Text me if anything.” She made the sign of the cross on him and kissed his cheek.

Lance hugged her and left. Outside, he saw Beto and Keith sitting on the steps. They heard him open the door and turned as he jingled the keys. “Let’s go,” he announced. Keith nodded, and he followed him to the car as Beto got into his own car. “Hey,” he said as Keith buckled himself in. “You’re sure about this? You’re okay?”

“I’m fine, Lance. Really.” He smiled and Lance’s heart constricted at the sight of his healing wounds. He prayed this would work. He prayed he would be okay.

***

Beto’s place was cleaner than Lance expected it to be. He’d imagined the stale smell of beer and bottles and cans to litter the floor. But it actually smelled… clean. And there wasn’t a lot of furniture, but it seemed cozy enough. Beto led them to a small room that had a few exercise equipment that looked like it had never been touched.

“Where’d you get all this from?” Lance asked, eyeing the weights.

“A friend.” Beto pulled out some tape and gestured Keith over. “I know you ain’t gonna have tape when you gotta fight him, but this is practice. Gimme your hands.” Keith held out his hands and Lance watched as Beto wrapped the tape over his knuckles. “Alright, so number one rule, keep your eyes on him. I got that from Carlos. Don’t let them know they intimidate you or scare you.” Keith grit his teeth. “Eyes on mine, always.”

“That’s what got Carlos killed,” Lance muttered.

Beto glared at him. “Shut up, primo, or you get kicked out.” Lance huffed and leaned against the wall. “Alright. So when he punches, what do you do?”

“I block my face,” Keith answered. Beto gestured for him to put his hands up. Keith brought his fists up, covering his face. “That’s like�� rule one, right?”

“Yeah. But you doing it wrong.” Keith frowned and Beto swung, stopping his fist a centimeter away from Keith’s ear. “You’re out like a light. You gotta block the side of your head and your neck if you wanna be safe.” Beto repositioned Keith’s arms so his hands were interlocked at the back of his neck and his elbows were out. “Now, I can’t hit you there. And-” He faked a punch forward. “I’ll prob’ly hit your elbow which is gonna hurt like a motherfucker.” Keith nodded and sighed.

Before they continued, the doorbell rang and Beto gestured for Lance to answer the door. He left the room and opened the door to find Nina looking out at the street. “Hey,” he greeted.

She turned and smiled at him. “Hey!” She kissed his cheek and let herself in. “Where’s Beto?”

“Training room.”

“Is he finally using my brother’s equipment?” Lance furrowed his eyebrows and followed her as she walked back to the training room. “Roberto,” she sang. “Oh my,” she said, stepping back. “What happened to his face?” she asked, looking back at Lance.

Keith and Beto were busy with the “right” way to punch and the best places to punch. Lance took a breath and shook his head. “You can ask him when he’s done.” She furrowed her eyebrows and looked back at the practice. “So… how do you know Beto?” he asked.

Her lip twitched. “We met at a club. He was upset so I figured he could use someone to talk to.” She shrugged.

“Do you… like him?”

She looked over at him with a knowing smile and chuckled. “No, no. He’s a great guy, but it’s not like that.” She looked him over and raised an eyebrow. “So why exactly do you need a fake date?”

Lance groaned and tried to figure out how to explain without sounding like an idiot. “I sort of said I’d have one named Selena before I realized it was a bad idea since I don’t have a date.” She nodded and looked at Keith questioningly. “He… it’s complicated.” She hummed and crossed her arms, sitting on the bench press while she watched.

“Look, man, you gotta take all that fear and anger-”

“I’m not scared of him!”

“Then why do you feel trapped?” he snapped back. Keith scowled, his limbs shaking. “You’re scared, ‘ta bueno. But you use that shit to be stronger. Put it into the punches, the blocking.” Keith glared at him, breathing heavily. “You pissed at me? Okay, then show it, pretty boy!”

Keith shouted angrily, punching the mat Beto was holding. Lance was fighting every instinct to intervene.

It went on for a while, watching Keith, bruised and scarred as he placed more strength into his punches until he was able to push Beto back against the wall with the mat. “Okay, okay, easy,” Beto said. “Lance!”

Lance moved immediately, pulling Keith back as he lunged forward, mumbling insults under his breath. “Hey, hey, hey, it’s okay,” Lance murmured, wrapping him in his arms. Keith was shaking. “You’re safe. He’s not here.” Keith screwed his eyes shut and leaned against Lance as though all of his energy had decided to leave him at once. “It’s okay, you’re safe. You did really well.” Lance looked over at Beto who came with a bottle of water.

“You’re strong, dude. You did good. Here.” Keith took the water and chugged it down. “Let’s find something to eat.” He gestured for them both to leave the room with Nina in front of them. When they reached the kitchen, Beto looked over at Nina. “So chaparra, how’s Danny?”

“He’s good. Wondering when you’re stopping by again.” Beto looked over at her and snorted before tossing two cups of ramen at Lance and Keith. “So, your name’s Keith, right?” she asked, diverting her attention. Keith nodded. “And… you’re cool with me having to be Lance’s fake date and stuff?”

Keith looked at Lance and blushed. “Um, yeah. It’s cool.” He shrugged and filled his mouth with ramen noodles.

“So, um not to pry, but what’s the story here. You two dating or not or… what?” she asked, glancing at Beto then at Keith and Lance.

Lance looked over at Keith who was looking at his hands. Then he looked up and sighed. “I have a shitty boyfriend. But I like Lance. That’s about the gist.” She hummed and nodded, and if she had more questions she didn’t ask them. “Um, by the way, Lance…. Beto said I could stay here for a while. That way you don’t have to keep sleeping on the couch.”

“Oh. Okay,” he answered. He glanced up to see Beto and Nina mumbling about something. He turned to Keith and nudged him gently. “What are you going to tell your friends?”

“That I needed a break. And I left. And I crashed at a hotel.” He shrugged. “I’m not really worried about them.” He gave him a small smile and took his hand once they’d finished eating. “You should go home. I’ve stolen you away long enough.” Lance shook his head, but Keith gripped his hand. “It’s okay, really. I’m fine. Come on.” He stood up and Lance followed, waving at his cousin and Nina.

They stepped out to the heat again and Keith leaned against the door, shutting his eyes and taking a breath. “You know,” Keith sighed, “It feels good not to have to hide it. You guys don’t look at me like I’m a freak, or like I need pity. And it feels really good not to wear a jacket in this heat.”

Lance chuckled nervously and kicked at the ground. “Yeah.” He bit his lip and saw Keith looking at him with a questioning expression. He couldn’t bring himself to say what he thought. That Keith’s running wouldn’t be out of cowardice, but out of a need for survival. That he didn’t have to face that guy ever again.

Lance wanted so desperately to save Keith, but he knew Keith wasn’t one to be saved by anyone. And if Lance kept trying to convince him, he would end up pushing Keith away, and that was the last thing he wanted.

So instead of saying everything he feared and wished he could do for Keith, he only said, “Don’t push yourself too much. And come by my place to eat because you’re not living off of Maruchan for the next however many days. Got it?” Keith laughed and nodded.

Lance didn’t want to leave. And he knew Keith could tell. That was fine. “Can I ask you something?” Keith whispered. Lance hummed and let the tips of his fingers graze Keith’s. “You’ve got this hardcore stance on… cheating. And I get it, I do. Cheating is shitty.”

“But… why can’t I make an exception in your case?” Keith grimaced then nodded slowly, intertwining their fingers, like he was afraid the question would make Lance walk away from him. “The simple way to put it is…. I got cheated on. I hated how it felt, and I vowed never to be that guy in the future. And I want to stick to my personal promise because if I can’t trust myself to keep promises, then... I’m kind of fucked.”

Keith furrowed his eyebrows and took a deep breath as his soft, indigo eyes looked at Lance coolly. “Whoever had the audacity to cheat on Lance McClain is an absolute fucking idiot,” he said. Lance smirked and looked down to hide the severity of his blush. “Well, I hope that at least this is okay.” Before Lance could look up, Keith placed a hand on his cheek then kissed the other with slightly chapped lips for the briefest moment.

After managing to catch his breath, Lance chuckled and nodded. “Yeah. That’s okay.” He looked at Keith and tugged on a strand of hair that had fallen forward from his low ponytail. He leaned in and kissed his cheek lightly before smiling shyly. “I should get home.”

Keith nodded and smiled. “See you later, Lance from high school.”

Lance smiled at that and then left to return to his car.

--

When he got home, his sisters were cleaning, but his mother and Jorge weren’t there. Daniela’s door was shut, so Lance figured she’d be in there with him, probably talking about his attitude lately. Lance planned to simply call in that he was back before stepping away.

Then he heard a piece of the argument.

“-special treatment! He just goes off whenever the hell he wants, and you don’t even do anything about it!”

“He’s a grown man, he’s been living on his own in college, it’s not like he lives under me anymore!” his mother shouted back, louder than Jorge in an attempt to get him to quiet down.

“He got kicked out of the stupid college! You and everyone else in this stupid family just focus on him! You have other kids you know? Maybe if you stopped fucking playing fa-”

There was a sharp smack and Lance put his hand to his mouth. His mother had never hit them. Sure, she gave Alexia or Emily a quick smack on the hand or their butts when they acted up, and even Lance himself had been subjected to La Chancla as a child. But once they reached a certain age, the form of discipline sort of faded. Lance couldn’t remember the last time he was spanked, much less Jorge or Jackie. But there was no doubt in his head that the sound he’d heard was his mother slapping Jorge into silence.

“You do not speak to me that way, young man. I didn’t raise you to be like this-”

“You barely even raised me,” he heard Jorge’s shaking voice respond. Then the door opened and Jorge slammed into Lance, his eyes wide, angry, and filled with tears. Lance’s eyes fell to the red mark on his cheek and the spit that left Jorge’s mouth as he tried to get a grip on his breaths. Jorge glared at him and pushed past, slamming himself in his room.

Lance felt sick to his stomach. He pushed the door open and found his mother on the edge of her bed, one hand at her mouth, the other shaking slightly as she stared at it. “Ma?” She looked at him with tears in her eyes and Lance felt like shit for having left at all. “What happened?”

She rubbed her face and shook her head. “He’s misbehaving so much, I don’t know what to do anymore. He keeps blaming it on different things, making excuses.”

“Misbehaving? The talking back, right? He’s a teen, Ma, that-”

“No, not just that,” she interrupted. “I didn’t tell you, because you were just about to come home from your finals in December.” Lance frowned and waited. “I had to babysit my boss’s grandkids. It was just one night. I left Jorge in charge, the girls asleep. Jackie called me around one saying that Alexia had gotten sick and she couldn’t find Jorge.” She sniffed, her lower lip trembling, more tears sliding over her cheeks. The sight made Lance’s stomach churn. “Mrs. Williams came home when I told her. I kept calling Jorge, but he didn’t answer. And then I got a call from the hospital. He’d taken something, wouldn’t tell me or the doctors what it was. He kept saying they put it in his drink, that he didn’t know.” She sighed and looked at the wall where she had a picture of the Virgen of Guadalupe. “He wasn’t supposed to be out in the first place! It’s not the last time I’ve caught him sneaking out, Lance. The way he talks to me sometimes… I swear he hates me.”

“No, Mami. Of course not. He’s just… being a reckless teenager. He’ll figure it out, okay? I’ll talk to him. I can handle him, I know how to keep him calm.” He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her temple. “It’s alright, Mamita. Breathe.” He rubbed her shoulder and held her as she pulled herself together.

Once she had composed herself enough, she gripped his hand and left the room. Lance went to Jorge’s to see if he could find a way to talk to his brother and figure out what the hell was going on and what the hell had changed since Lance left.

He knocked on the door, but there was no response. “Jorge, it’s me. I just want to talk.”

“Fuck off,” a muffled voice answered.

“Jorge, come on. Just open the door. What happened with Mom?” No answer. “Jorge!”

“Leave me the fuck alone, Lance!”

“I’m gonna break down this fucking door, I swear.”

“Sounds to me like Keith has a thing for abusive assholes!”

That made Lance step back. The anger he felt made his entire body heat up. He heard a door open and found Jackie coming out from her room with a trash bag. “Seriously, just… it’s best if he’s left alone. He’ll leave the room like nothing happened in an hour. Don’t stress, bro.” She walked away and Lance sighed heavily, wondering once again when the hell his little brother had changed so much.

He wanted to blame it on adolescence, but… something in his bones told him that wasn’t true. And whatever that something was, it left a nasty, heavy feeling in his chest.

Lance managed to walk away from the door to help his sisters clean up before settling to watch a rerun of an old Mexican sitcom he used to love as a kid called El Chavo del Ocho. It was something they could all watch because Alexia understood it unlike SpongeBob where she just watched the movements and the colors with Emily. Surely enough, just as Jackie said, Jorge came out of his room an hour later. He didn’t acknowledge anyone, walked with his arms crossed as if he were making a point about still being angry, and scavenged the pantry for a snack.

Lance tried to catch his eye, but Jorge simply grabbed his snack and went right back to his room. The door didn’t slam, which Lance took as a good sign.

The sound of a car in the driveway made Lance peek through the windows. There was a nice black Escape parking along the curb, which confused Lance. Then he saw the familiar faces of Keith’s friends along with one unfamiliar. Another uncomfortable churn of his stomach.

“Jackie, stay with the girls. I’ll be right back.”

“Where are you going?”

“Just right here in the yard. I’ll explain in a bit okay? Don’t wake Ma up; she needs rest.” Jackie frowned and nodded as Lance left the house. “Hey,” he called out, meeting the group halfway.

The unfamiliar one, Lance assumed it was Michael, glanced past him into the house. He wasn’t anything like Lance had imagined. He was a scrawny guy, taller than Lance by about an inch or two, with floppy black hair. He looked like an average guy, a face easily forgotten in a crowd. He had incredibly green eyes though. The kind that changed in the light. But his features were soft, making him look younger.

The only thing that made Lance absolutely certain that this was Michael was the large bruise on one side of his face. He recalled Keith saying he’d hit him with a wok.

“Hey Lance,” Hunk said tiredly. “This is Michael. Keith’s boyfriend.” Lance looked at him, finding his green eyes on him already. There was something about them though that set Lance on edge. They were… detached. Almost empty. “Have you heard from Keith at all?”

Lance frowned and shook his head. “I already told Shiro I hadn’t.”

Michael growled and started for the door to the house. “Look, Keith- he has a habit of exaggerating. So if he’s hiding in the house-”

“I said, I haven’t heard from him,” Lance interrupted as he stepped in front of him and pushed him back, barely able to quell the anger in him. He had a face to go with the name now. He could picture Keith beside him. He could picture him happy in the beginning, then the change as Keith told him. And with this guy trying to discredit Keith in every way he could, all Lance wanted to do was throw everything in his face. “I don’t know who you think you are trying to barge into my house, but I have younger siblings that I don’t need you traumatizing.”

Something flashed in his eyes and Lance felt his mouth go dry. He noticed the clench of Michael’s fists, the flex of his arms, revealing that he did indeed have muscle despite the thin look.

“You’re hiding him,” he accused.

Lance scoffed and shook his head. “You’re ridiculous.”

“Okay, Michael chill. I know you’re worried, but Lance is a good guy,” Hunk said. “Lance, do you mind if I went in? Just to assure him that Keith isn’t in there.”

Shiro tensed, and Michael smirked as though he’d caught Lance in a lie. Then Lance said, “Yeah sure. I’ll go in with you so my sisters don’t get worried. My ma’s asleep though, so be quiet.” The smirk faltered and Michael kept his eyes on Lance as he retreated with Hunk.

He went inside and went to the kitchen, getting Hunk a drink if only to relax the expression on Jackie’s face. “Keith’s dating that guy?” Lance couldn’t help but scoff.

“He’s not usually this… abrasive. He’s just worried about Keith.”

Lance hummed and handed Hunk a glass of lemonade. “He’s not here. I don’t see how you can be more worried about Michael than Keith. If Keith ran off and can’t be found, don’t you think there’s a reason?”

“Shiro said that too,” Hunk sighed. “But… I don’t know, I mean look at Michael’s face.”

Lance clenched his jaw. “You’ve known Michael longer than Keith, huh?”

“I’m the one who introduced them.” Lance’s lips parted in shock. “Michael’s mom worked with mine since I was a kid. I only met Keith through Shiro when we’d group up.” Lance nodded, reminding himself that Hunk had no clue, he wasn’t to blame, he just didn’t know.

“I’ll tell you if I hear from him, okay?” Hunk nodded and left the house with Lance to meet back up with Shiro, Pidge, and Michael. “Drive safe.”

Michael left first, angrily revving the engine. Hunk and Pidge followed. Shiro looked at Lance and softly asked, “He’s not here?” Lance shook his head as discreetly as he could. “But he’s okay?”

“Safe,” he murmured without moving his lips much.

Shiro’s eyebrows furrowed together and he nodded. “Tell him I’m here for him. Whatever the hell is going on, he can talk to me.” Lance nodded and Shiro walked back to the car which sped off smoothly as soon as he got in.

Click Here for Ch. 9

[daily-dose-of-naruto]

Replies~

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Comments, impressions and feedback

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Admin Shadow’s is moonflower04. She reblogs stuff from Star Wars, Naruto, GoT, Yuri on Ice and a lot other stuff. 

You already know Admin Nunu’s blog, is the-hidden-will! Is right no her presentation...

And Admin Song’s blog is lasympathetique, which is fortunately tied to her Ao3 account.

Match up requests,  Authors' rights (【・_・?】) and others

We are not currently making Match-ups and is uncertain if we’ll make them again. But, if we ever decide to write them again, we could do them for OCs. Sorry ~Admin Night

In theory, their are not the same thing, but we tend to take a while to answer to match-ups! And right now, they are closed. Also, we don’t know if we’ll make match-ups again. But keep a close eye, maybe we’ll open them again! ~Admin Night

Well, the prompts aren’t ours, they have been going around tumblr for a while. I think the creator is  fairy-tale-babes, but I don’ think I’ll be a problem if you use them, but reblog them form them! About the headcanons we make around those prompts, I think it’d depend on the admin who wrote them. So you refer to that,  send us a message with the title of the headcanons so the author can decide! ~Admin Night

Cool, we are inspiring people! We’ll love to have a link to the fanfic if you write it. BUT -and it is kind of a big but- please tell us which headcanons you want to use. We are not a mind hive and it’s better that the admin that wrote them gives you permission. ~Admin Night

I loved so much writing that! I also love that you liked it, proud Night is proud. Unfortunately, we don’t have more polyamory headcanons (′︿‵｡). Send your request’s when the askbox is open Deidara x Reader x Sasori, for example. Also, have a link to our masterpost, maybe you’ll find something else you like? ~Admin Night

NOooo! Now I can’t stop imaging that... ~Night

Requests sent when the askbox was closed 

under the cut

All of these are very cool, and we’ll surely write them if you resend them when we open the ask box!

[scriptlgbt]

Cleaning up

Hi! Mod Scix here! We’re trying to cut our way through the inbox, and I’ve compiled a few similar asks. This post will be a lot of ask and very short answer. Please understand this isn’t me being rude, I’m just trying to be efficient so we can get less behind. (hee hee, “behind”)

The first category of questions are errors:

Anonymous said:

(nb 2/3) They’re feminine, but choose against HRT/surgeries (maybe later?) bc they’re on PREP and the combination might lead to lower bone density (they’re a MedSchool stdt, they’d know). And they’re on Prep bc their boyfriend, the protag, is Poz, but their relationship isn’t healthy (constant arguing and protag trying to decide NB-char’s career for them). But NB-char puts up with it for years. Partly for love, partly bc protag accepts their gender, and they think they won’t ever have that again

Anonymous said:

Clarifying a few things about my ask (I'm the anon with the love triangle): 1. Gender/sexuality is of minimum importance in this story. Tough to explain, but the MC doesn't really have a concept of those issues? She's afab but agender for all intents and purposes. 2. The relationship between the two men is way healthier/happier than that between the MC and her ex. 3. There's no animosity between the MC and her ex's current partner.

Sorry, the rest of your questions are missing. If it's still a relevant question, please resend.

The next set I call research:

@teal0cean said:

Hello!! Love you guys! I wanted to ask if you know about the history of HRT for trans males. As in. What was or wasnt available or how the process of transitioning was during some historical period or other (im interested in early 20th Century!)

@yevie said:

Do you have any information on what sorts of resources/information would be available for a (lower-middle class, 20 year old nursing student in a metropolitan area) trans man in 1995? [Resources in terms of both social transitioning, especially in his academic and work setting and also resources in the whole LGBT community aspect and having access to the language to describe his experiences.] (He's also gay and ace, if that's relevant.)

Anonymous said:

I heard theres discourse about the terms FTM/MTF/etc. whats that about??

Anonymous said:

So I've always wondered about this, but I don't to seem like I'm insulting anybody. :( I just really want to know how it works... but I'm to scared to ask so I'm going to drop it here, because I think you will understand! :) (1/2)

You see, If a female decides to do the transision to male. How will she get the male genitalia and loose the female one? I really want to know. Does it hurt? (2/2)

Anonymous said:

How and when do people realize they might be homosexual?

Anonymous said:

Can you think of any really good ideas for a short LGBTQ film? Thank you!

Anonymous said:

Do you know where I could read a bit more about lgbtq+ stereotypes so that I don't do it myself?

Anonymous said:

What is bi/tri/polygender

Anonymous said:

I am making a documentary so i need a good script on it in hindi, would you be able to provide it?

So these are all research questions. Not actually what we are here for, though we do sometimes dive in. The first couple may be tougher to find using google, but the rest are pretty easy to dig up. Or else need to be reworded to narrow the focus. And sometimes the questions we get have built-in assumptions that kinda make it impossible to answer fairly.

Like the assumption that we write Hindi.

If anyone wants to answer these, please be civil.

The next section is the quick answer:

Anonymous said:

Do any trans men choose not to take hormones, even if they're available to the person? I know this answer would really vary from person to person, but I'm thinking of writing a trans man who doesn't want to take hormones, and I'm not sure if that would be considered unusual or not really understanding of the desires most transgender people have.

@pan-at-thedisco said:

Is it plausible for a trans boy who can definitely afford transition surgery to choose not to? Is this something that happens often?

Yeah, transfolk sometimes choose not to get surgery or take hormones. Don’t worry about “often,” it’s fiction.

Anonymous said:

Hello there, I have this male character that I wrote a long time ago and only recently have I been seeing him as bi, now he has crushes on guys but he still ends up with a girl. I can't help but feel like I "cheated" in a way by making a bi character have a hetero relationship but I don't want to change his relationship. I just want to hear your opinion about this.

It's not a hetero relationship, because he is in it. Just don't write it that the new relationship is fixing him, or more real, or anything like that.

Anonymous said:

I want to ask about usage of the word "queer" not in reference to a person or their gender/sexual orientation. Its original meaning meant "strange." It later became a slur, and has now been reclaimed by some in the community. I'm wondering if it's still okay to use it in its original meaning (i.e. "In front of him was the queerest fog he'd ever seen.") or has the evolution of the word has made that no longer acceptable, even if you're writing period/a specific atmosphere?

Go for it! Just be aware it sounds kind of old-fashioned.

Anonymous said:

hi! do you think it would be considered ok for a nonbinary character in a historical setting to use their language's equivalent of "it/its" pronouns? i'm cis and i'm worried people will take it the wrong way, but the character just wants to be convenient as their language only has one set of gender-neutral pronouns and it's for inanimate objects

No. If it's a fictional language, then it can have a gender-unspecified pronoun that doesn't only refer to objects.

@dreamwishing said:

I have a rather odd question. Odd enough that I'm not sure where to ask. This may not be the right place, and if it's not, maybe you could point me in a direction? That would be great. Everyone asks how to avoid stereotyping lgbtq+ people, but...how do I avoid stereotyping homophobes and the like?

...make them rounded, complete characters with more than one thing in their life.

Anonymous said:

I have a villainous character who is a combination/amalgamation of various people of different genders/sexualities, and they don't have a gender. I'm planning to refer to the character with they/them pronouns, and it just doesn't feel right to give them a gender. But since they're a bad guy, would it be... what's the word... transphobic (I guess? you know what i mean) to portray them as agender? I have other agender characters, if that makes a difference. (It's fantasy btw)

Having other agender characters -- well-represented -- solves the issue for you just fine. Also, make the villain interesting. I love a good villain. 

Anonymous said:

Will the mod/s be monitoring the comments at all? I've seen quite a few hateful replies and reblogs toward nonbinary and demisexual people. I would love to keep following, but it sucks having to be subjected to people invalidating my gender and sexuality in the comments.

There is nothing we can do about comments. "Never read the comments" is often a good idea. Alternately, block the blogs that are evil, and you'll soon find it was the same few all along. Anything really terrible, let us know so we can block them ourselves, and let our readers know.

That was a lot of work. I know it doesn’t look like much, but it took me a few hours and I’m wiped. Some kinds of work are more labor than they appear, and this is that kind of labor.

Still and all: love you all! Just not that way. 

~~Mod Scix

[gemsonacharity-blog]

Gemsonacharity Beach Day Art Exchange 2017

Hello everyone! We’ve decided to do a summer art exchange, and thanks to Mod Kay (who came up with the idea!) we’re doing a Beach Day Art Exchange!

Here’s how this one is gonna work!

Everyone who wants to participate needs to fill out >>THIS GOOGLE FORM<< by July 7th, 2017 at midnight

On July 8th we will post a numbered list of everyone participating, and then send everyone an ask with a number. Once you have your number, you’ll go to the list of people, find the number we gave you, and that’s the person you’ll be making art for!

Once we’ve sent all of the asks, we’ll make a post to tell everyone we’ve done so! If you don’t get yours, let us know and we’ll be sure to get it to you as soon as possible!

You’ll start revealing your gifts on July 15th, but you have until July 29th to post the gift! If you feel that you cannot get it in by the deadline (which is midnight of the final day, like always!) feel free to talk to us and we can work something out!

When it’s time to post the art (July 15th through 29th) then you’ll tag it with #gemsonacharity like you do for normal art entries for the raffle, and please include in your description who the art is for! (As in, their url!)

We’ll reblog all of the art and tag it as #beach day 2017 along with the url of the recipient!

RULES - (Please read!!)

The theme is gemsonas, so all requests must be gemsona related!

Additionally, this is a beach day/summer exchange, so your piece must be beach related in some way! (Swimsuit, through the background of a beach, etc. You don’t have to draw a background, but the piece must be summer related!

In your references, you MUST have a reference (which can be from google!) of a summer outfit for your gem!

You can request NSFW, gore, and body horror, but please don’t make them the only option, since people may not be of age or are just uncomfortable with it. You and your gem must also be of age (no characters clearly meant to be underaged, that is) if you wish to request NSFW.

In the same note, don’t make NSFW/gore/body horror for someone who hasn’t asked for it.

Put explicit works under a readmore and tag it accordingly.

Remember that this is a big commitment! If you bail after entering, you’ll leave someone without a gift! We can figure something out in terms of compensation art, but you’ll still be put on our blacklist until you’ve done your part.

Don’t reveal who you are to your assigned person before posting the art! If you have questions/concerns over their request, ask on anon, or go through us to help you.

You don’t have to do all of the requests! Only one is required, but there’s nothing stopping you from drawing multiple if you should so choose.

We will try and pair people based on their preferences (giving and receiving). People with less specific preferences will still be paired up, but may not be as perfect as those with specific matches. Either way, no complaining about who’s making art for you, or who you’re making art for! Let’s be nice people, yeah?

If we noticed you ignored the rules while reading the application, your application will be discarded automatically. You’ll be sent an ask about it, and will be more than welcome to resend should you fix the issue.

What if I don’t have a gem but I want to make art?

Well, if you don’t have a gem, and nobody you know has one they would let you borrow for the exchange, then feel free to send us an ask and we will help find someone willing to let you enter with their gem!

If you have any questions, they may already be answered in the about. If not, feel free to ask us!

Have fun everyone!

[gemsonacharity-blog]

Fusion February Art Exchange 2016

Hello everyone! So, since our Secret Santa Exchange was such a hit, we decided to make an exchange solely for fusions! 

So, here’s how it works.

Everyone who wants to participate must fill out >>THIS GOOGLE FORM<< by February 5th, 2017.

On February 6th, we will post a numbered list of everyone participating, and send everyone an ask with a number. Then you go to our list of people, find the number we gave you, and that’s the person you’ll be drawing for!

We’ll make a post once we’ve sent all of the asks, letting everyone know we’ve done so. If you didn’t get yours, please let us know! We’ll get it to you as soon as possible. 

You can start revealing your gifts on Valentine’s day (February 14th) since fusions are all about relationships!

Don’t worry though, you have until the last day of February (February 28th) to actually post it, so you have ample time to make and post the gift.

Once you’ve made the art, and it’s February 14th (or later!) tag it with #gemsonacharity like you do with normal art entries for the raffle. Make sure to include the url of the person you made it for, of course!

We’ll reblog all of the art and tag it as #fusion february 2017, and the url of the recipient. 

RULES - (Please read!!)

The theme is gemsonas, so all requests must be gemsona realated!

Additionally, this is a fusion exchange (/relationship exchange). Please don’t enter if you aren’t comfortable drawing more than one character, or at least one character with multiple body parts in the same piece.

The exchange is, of course, for fusions, so don’t include requests that aren’t fusion related in some way or another. There will be other exchanges for single gems later.

Poly relationships / 3 or more gem fusions - they’re fine, but please don’t make them the only option.

Asking for fusion designs - these are fine, but they cannot be the only request.

You can request NSFW, gore, and body horror, but please don’t make them the only option, since people may not be of age or are just uncomfortable with it. Your gem must also be of age (no characters clearly meant to be underage) if you wish to request NSFW. 

In the same note, don’t make NSFW/gore/body horror for someone who hasn’t asked for it.

Put very explicit works under a readmore and tag it accordingly.

Remember that this is a big commitment! If you bail after entering, you’ll leave someone without a gift! We can figure something out in terms of compensation art, but you’ll still be put on our blacklist until you’ve done your part.

Don’t reveal who you are to your assigned person before posting the art! If you have questions/concerns over their request, ask on anon, or go through us to help you.

You don’t have to do all of the requests! Only one is required, but there’s nothing stopping you from drawing multiple if you should so choose.

We will try and pair people based on their preferences (giving and receiving). People with less specific preferences will still be paired up, but may not be as perfect as those with specific matches. Either way, no complaining about who’s making art for you, or who you’re making art for! Let’s be nice people, yeah?

If we noticed you ignored the rules while reading the application, your application will be discarded automatically. You’ll be sent an ask about it, and will be more than welcome to resend should you fix the issue.

What if I don’t have a fusion but I want to join in and make art?

Well, if you have absolutely no fusions (or not enough gems to make a fusion) you can always enter someone else’s fusions! 

If you don’t know anyone who would be willing to let you use theirs, you can ask us, and we’ll find someone for you to pleasantly surprise. (We’ll ask for a call of volunteers to offer their gems)

OR

If you have at least one fusion done (with no canon gems) and it’s down as your first request, but you want to make more than one request, you can ask for a fusion design in your second request!

You would need to include the information of the two (or more) gems in the fusion (excluding canon - you only have to say like, “Garnet from canon” or “Peridot from canon”, and it’ll be fine!)

If you have any questions, they may already be answered in the about. If not, feel free to ask us!

Have fun everyone!

-Mod Alex