#gotta keep my secrets close for plot reasons

[thebiggestfuckgiven]

Lore i

(for How I DIDN’T Become a Villain)

Note: This is based on fanon that is used and accepted by most of the phandom, with the addition of my own ideas on how the supernatural aspect of the DP universe came to be. I.e, the Ghost Zone/Infinite Realms, the title of Ghost King, the origin of Pariah Dark, and much more. 

• The Infinite Realms •

The Universe once began. We know how that story goes. The Big Bang, nebulas and planets and stars and light forming everywhere all at once. But there was something else. The Universe was alive, and everything living has something that gives it life. A mind, an engine, a (sub)conscious.

In this, the Universe had a void. An apparent one, at least. This void didn’t have tangible matter the way the Universe did, but it did have something. This void was nearly overflowing with it. Life Energy. It was no void at all, but a Source for all living beings in the Universe. In all Universes.

It had a different name, at first, but once Belief Systems started making their home in its center, thousands upon millions of them, it became the Infinite Realms. A kaleidoscope of energy, of life and death and everything in between. It is that which holds infinite ideas and infinite consciousnesses and infinite concepts and infinite infinities. It is that which holds everything together.

Something this large and this primordial to creation needed something else to take care of it.

• The Linkeepers •

That which is now known as the High King of the Infinite Realms has a true name: Linkeeper. Like all things, there is an origin. The First Linkeeper. They were born of the connection between the Universe and the Source, with the inherent purpose to look after their parents and to assure that neither took or gave too much of the other. They embodied the careful balance between Matter and Energy. That which lived and that which was Life. 

The role of Linkeeper changed, the tiniest bit, with each chosen inheritor. However, it was when it landed in Pariah Dark’s greedy, bloody hands that the role was betrayed, cracked to its foundation. No longer signifying balance and caregiver and protecter, the Ghost King took the helm and brought on a role of control, power, and conquest. The balance was thrown off its axis, and war prevailed. 

Linkeeper was lost to the dredges of unspoken stories (as there was no one to hear them anymore), and all that could be done to try and retain it was to lock Pariah Dark away and wait. To wait for a chosen inheritor to bring back the balance that had been so carelessly disregarded for nearly three thousand years.

P.S,

this is a shallow, tried-to-keep-it-short explanation of the lore that WILL make an appearance in the fic. I avoided going into certain details of the Linkeeper (like the inheritors/predecessors, their names, and their stories) because i’m reserving that for the fic. 

There will be around two more Lore-dumps, and after that maybe a sneak peek at the first chapter (if i have it nice and tidy by then). The actual, full chapters will take me a WHILE to upload (to my ao3 account), because i want to at least have five to seven chapters fully written out before i start posting. That said, hope you like what I have so far!

[xoxolilixx]

❤︎𝙇𝙚𝙩'𝙨 𝙛𝙞𝙭 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩❤︎

𝙃𝙤𝙗𝙞𝙚 𝘽𝙧𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙭 𝙗𝙞𝙢𝙗𝙤 𝙜𝙛!𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧

✩𝙨𝙪𝙢𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙮 - Hobie finds out the real reason for you being popular around headquarters, and his honored to fix the problem.

✩𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙨 - SMUT...with plot. A bit of sexism, name calling (whore, tramp), pet names, virginity taking, oral, unprotected sex(WRAP IT UP), crying

✩𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙧𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙚 - this is based on my Hobie brown x bimbo!gf oneshot, but it's not a part two or anything of that nature, but if you want to go back and read that, you can find it here. Anywho, I hope you guys like this story❤️😘

Hobie wasn't a chatter, not even close, but ever since you and him became a thing, he tried to make himself a lot less unapproachable. Instead of sporting a serious, straight-face and expression 24/7, he carried a soft smirk most of the time. The difference sounded small, but honestly it made him seem a lot nicer. More people started conversations with him when they saw him, he was let in on topics that no one bothered to talk to him about before. Topics like you.

Hobie always wondered why it caused such a stir when you and him got together, and it boggled you just as much. If only you knew what people was saying about you. Now, it wasn't a secret to you that people knew you. You were a social person and you talked to a lot of people, but what you didn't know was what people were talking about when you walked away.

Hobie was walking through one of the halls of headquarters, hands in his pocket as he stalked down the hall in his usual attire, the only thing that was different was the bright pink bow that was tied to one of his back belt loops, courtesy of you. "Hey man, you got a little sum back there!" Someone joked as he walked past. He couldn't help but chuckle as he turned to the person who was in the hall. He never cared to learn the names of the people around headquarters, so he definitely didn't know his name, but nonetheless he still interacted with him. "I know, my girl did it," Hobie smirked. "Your girlfriend that real girly one, with the short ass skirt and shit?" The guy smirked, the description of you made him internally twitch with irritation. "Yea, what about it?" Hobie smirked as he tried to keep his cool. "Ya know, almost everybody is plotting on her, right?" He smirked, pushing himself off the wall as he walked closer to Hobie, "she's like…top wanted in all of headquarters." "Really? Why's that?" Hobie's smirk hid his urge to throw him through the wall. "You really don't know? She's the only whore that still has her virginity," the random man laughed, "after that get together last month, everyone been trying to be the first to pop her cherry. It was honestly surprising, giving that she dresses like a complete tramp--" Hobie couldn't help it anymore, one super-powered punch later, and he was laid flat out on the floor. He couldn't help but think this is what he got for trying to be nice to people as he stomped away, his objective now to find you.

You weren't hard to spot, all that glitter and rhinestones made you look like a walking star. You were chatting with Gwen, a sweet smile on your plump, pretty lips as you rambled on about god knows what. It would've made his heart melt if he wasn't so irritated. You barely had time to register his arrival as he came over and scooped you up onto his shoulder like a stack of potatoes, "I gotta borrow her for a second," Hobie uttered to Qwen as he stomped away, a hand holding your skirt down as he carried you away. "Hobs! What's going on?!" You giggled, your legs kicking a little bit as he carried you to a secluded area.

"Love, what happened at the get together?" His rushed tone stirred up worry in your chest, "why?! What happened?" You asked softly, your big doe eyes full of worry as you looked up at him. "Just-- tell me what happened darling. Tell me everything that happened," he sighed softly, realizing that his tone ushered you into a worried state. "Well…nothing really… everyone was chillin', having fun, we started drinking, and we played a few drinking games and after that, gwen took me home cause' i got too drunk," you shrugged. "Then why are people talking about something that happened at the get together and how your a virgin and all this other shit love?" He sighed softly. His hands rested on your hips as a look of embarrassment and realization washed over you. "We were playing put a finger down, and someone said put a finger down if you've had sex, and I was the only one who didn't put a finger down, and everyone made a big ass deal about it," you explained softly as you looked down. He stood there for a second, his expression blank as he processed the information before letting a chuckle out. Was that seriously it? Everyone had the hots for his girl because she admitted to being a virgin?

"Is everyone really still talking about that?" You asked softly, embarrassment evident on your face. He couldn't help but chuckle some more. "Sadly darling, you're a bit of a hot topic~" he said, a sympathetic smile on his face as his thumbs rubbed circles into your hips. You let out a whiny groan as your face fell into your hands, "oh my god~ I was hoping they would forget about that, what's even the big deal?!" You whined as your face fell into his chest, his arms wrapping around your shorter frame as he shook his head at how stupid this whole thing was. People were over sexualizing you because you wasn't sexually active.

Suddenly an idea popped into his head, causing a smirk to spread on his lips. "How about you let me fix it?" He smirked, making you look up at him with a questioning look, but as soon as you see the smirk on his lips you know what he means. Intimacy wasn't hobie's favorite thing, but shit, he willing to do damn there anything for you. "You for real?" You asked softly, your embarrassment melting away into nervousness and excitement. "Of course darling, let me show you how good I can make you feel~" his voice sultry as his big hands gripped your waist "let me fix your problem, love."~

Your head was spinning. You felt hot and everything felt like it was moving too fast and too slow at the same time. Your heart was pounding in your chest and you were a inch away from breaking into a sweat and what made it worse was nothing even happened yet. "Jus' say the word love, and I'll stop, okay?" His tone was lighthearted but his gaze was serious. The nervousness was coming off of you and waves, and he only wanted to make this easier for you. "M'kay hobs~" you uttered with a little nod of your head. You were on your knees atop his bed, looking up at his towering figure. He was trying his absolute best to ignore the mind-numbing throb that was coming from in his dick as he looked down at the sight. He had a perfect view of your cleavage and the way your big pretty doe eyes looked up at him made him wanna shove his dick down your pretty throat.

"Go on and lay back f'me love," he gently ordered, and you mindlessly obligated, sweeping your legs from under your body, swinging them off the edge of the bed as you slowly laid back, giving him a good view of your entire body. Your thick chubby thighs and wide hips paired with the little chubbiness of your tummy and your perky tits sitting prettily in your hot pink bra that peaked out of your white tank top sent him mentally flying. "You ready darling?" He asked, his voice soft and caring.

With a simple nod from you he sprung into action. His hands sliding up your bare thighs, slipping under your sparkly pink skirt as he gently rubbed and gripped them before spreading your knees apart. Your heart thumped out of your chest as you watched him lower himself down to his knees, making his face level with your heat. You propped yourself up onto your elbows as you watch him bunch up your skirt. Hobie's cock twitched in his pants at the sight before him; you were wearing hot pink lacy panties, which matched your hot pink bra, and he could see the outline of your soft pussy lips and swollen clit through the soaked fabric. "Fuckk" he breathed as he paced himself. The sound you let slip past your lips when he gently pressed the pad of his thumb into your clothed clit made it harder for him to control himself. He had to remind himself that this wasn't for him, it was for you.

His thumb circled your clothed clit a few times before gently pushing on your sobbing hole, coaxing a few soft whines out of you before finally hooking his fingers onto the sides of your panties. You eagerly lift your hips as he tugs the flimsy-and damp- fabric down your legs. Hobie was happy to see that your nervousness were slowly melting away, being replaced by eagerness and excitement. Hobie's mind spun wildly as he caught a glimpse of strings of your wetness pulling away with your panties, you were fucking soaked.

You let out a breathy giggle as you watch him pocket your panties, but your giggle quickly turns into a moan when you feel his finger slip in between your folds. He could feel you clenching around nothing, he didn't even have a chance to slip is finger into you. "Relax darling, I got you," he cooed as his other hand reached up to rest on your lower stomach his thumb rubbing soft circles into your skin as he slowly slid his finger in. Fuck you were tight, he could only imagine how your tightness felt wrapped around his cock and he almost came in his pants.

You quickly found out that Hobie was a pussy drunk, his tongue deep in your soaked cunt as his thumb rubbed tight circles into your clit. You couldn't even squirm away from him as he coaxed moans and whines from you, his strong arms were wrapped around your thighs, keeping you right where he wanted you. You thought you were gonna die the first few minutes, but once he found the spot in you that made you moan the loudest, you were a goner. He was a messy eater too, the sound of him suckling hard on your clit only made your walls clench, which only made him suck and lick harder as he groaned deep in your pussy.

By time he finished his meal, you were two orgasms deep and your cunt was filled with slick and spit, the same mess that was on his face. You panted as you watch him get up off of his knees, thankful for the break, but your mind went wild when you heard his belt buckle and his pants zipper. Hobie chuckled at the sight of your eyes widening when you saw how big he was. 8 inches of pure girth. How the hell was that gonna fit in you?! "Hobs, I don't think it's gonna fit~" you whimpered softly as your thighs subconsciously closed. He could see the fear and nervousness written all over your face and he couldn't help but coo at you.

His hand gently grabbed your jaw, forcing you to take your eyes off of his lower region and lock eyes with him before deeply kissing you, his tongue slipping into your mouth. Your eyes rolled back as you tasted yourself on his tongue as it explored your whole mouth, a long string of saliva connecting you both as he pulled away. "Don' worry love, I got you, okay?" He cooed softly, earning a soft nod and a "m'kay" from you. "Remember, jus' say the word, and I'll stop," he reminded you. You were starting to relax again, allowing him to spread your thighs apart with his torso, until he reached down, grabbing his length so he could guide it in you.

His cock was twitching in his hand, leaking precum from the tip. It left you feeling excited and scared. He was just so big, but all your thoughts disappeared out of your mind when you felt his messy, precum slicked tip start to push past your folds, making you clench down as your head lolled back.

You were a complete and utter moaning mess, but Hobie stayed patient with you, pausing whenever you clenched too tightly and constantly comforting you and coaxing you through it. The sight of you under him, face scrunched up with pain and pleasure as strings of moans and whines spilt past your lips as he sunk deeper and deeper into your pussy was enough to make him cum now. "You doin' so good f'me darling, good fucking girl, so wet, so fucking tight," he grunted into your neck, sucking hickeys into your soft skin, his eyes rolling back as you clenched around him at his words. "Hobs! m'cant~ your too big~" you whined as your walls choked his dick. He looked down in between you, you didn't even make it halfway. " shhh i know love, but imma need you to relax for me. It'll fit, jus' stay with me now ," he grunted as you whined out, your cunt milking little bits of cum out of his dick.

By time you got past the halfway mark, you were in tears, clinging onto his arms, which was holding him up on either side of your head. His heart ached slightly as you looked up at him, tears spilling down the sides of your face as you panted, "d-did I do it? Is it in?" You whimpered, making his head spin, it felt disgusting how much it turned him on to see you crying like that. He bit back a groan as he looked down between the two of you again. His whole body momentarily went weak, your small, tight, weeping pussy, stretched wide around his dick. You only had two inches left. "Almost darling, your doing so good f'me, yea? Just a little more, okay? You ready?" He cooed softly, kissing away your tears. "m'kay~" you whimpered.

If he kept dragging this out with you, he was gonna bury before he even got a thrust in. He braced himself before slammed into you, forcing the last two inches into your pussy. Your eyes widened and a silent scream left your parted lips, wincing at the pain as Hobie quickly wrapped a arm around you, holding you close. "Fuckk~ good fucking girl, see love? I got you, its all in now. M'so proud of you darling," he could feel you clenching around him at the praise as you whimpered into his neck, fighting off the urge to scream out.

"Soo fucking big~" you cried softly as you slowly got used to the large intrusion. "Shh I know, I know love, but your doin' so good," he cooed as he waited for the signal to move.

Before you knew it, he was fucking you dumb, jerking your body deeper and deeper into the mattress with each thrust. The mixture of moan, whines, screams, and incoherent babbles left your lips as he held the back of your knees up, giving him the perfect view of your small pussy getting abused by his cock as you left a gorgeous ring of your juices around his base. He watched as your eyes rolled back when he hit that one gummy spot in you, groaning as you clenched down on him tightly. He would sometimes give your cheek a soft tap whenever your watery eyes rolled back, wanting to make sure you were still coherent enough to tell him if you wanted to stop, even if he knew that you wouldn't want to.

It only took a good few more thrusts in the right spot for you to cum all over his dick, clenching so tightly on him that he could move as you screamed out, forcing him to cum too as he groaned into your neck.

You both were a panting mess, your hair messy and hickeys all over your neck, and his arms all scratched up and his mouth and chin still covered in your slick. "m'like when you fix my problems," you panted softly, earning a deep chuckle from him.

[jiveyuncle]

"Fuck." Pidge hisses. "The ship's got an encryption software on it. Downloading any information off of it is going to scramble the information. It'll take days to decode."

"We can't wait days to go after him." Keith growls.

"I don't even know if we can wait for it to download." Hunk warns. The fire burns higher, inching its way up the body of the craft. "Pidge you gotta hurry."

"It's downloading! It won't go any faster!"

Keith slams the exit controls on his lion, and closes his helmet's face shield to switch over to using the suit's oxygen.

As the ramp extends out, Lance radios in. "Keith, what are you doing?" His tone is laced with nervous warning.

Keith pulls himself into the burning ship. "We don't need to download or decode if someone can just read the damn data, right?"

"While true, hypotheticals don't really help with our current situation." Pidge says with a bit of anxious exasperation. "I can't read Galran."

Keith finds Pidge in the cockpit, looking up at a small data screen. "I can."

"Keith, no." Lance breathes.

They don't have time for secrets and the hesitation that comes with keeping them. Fuck his history. Allura can strike him down so long as they get Shiro back.

Surprise! I drew/added one more artwork today! Here’s the last batch art from the fic.

Okay. So. The things I feel that the Humans-are-descended-from-Alteans plot would answer in canon:

+why Alteans look so Human,

+why a lion was hidden on Earth specifically,

+why Altea and Earth both have identifiable *lions* as fauna (headcanoning that lions were Altean pets/house guardians and that some were brought with them while fleeing),

+why Keith could sense the lion of Voltron in the desert,

+why all the locations around the lions glowed when they got near,

+why a crew of all humans were the chosen operators of Altean-made weaponry,

+why Lance got the Altean marks at the end of the show,

etc.

ALSO

Copy/pasting this rant I had about why I love it even more for this reincarnation AU:

Keith's current mom can absolutely still fit the canon version. It would make double sense that she didn't want the Galra to find the lion on Earth and why she left if the planet is crawling with [what she suspects is] the Galra's # 1 enemy (of which she's in love with) - to protect them. And with Keith being the child of a Galran and an Altean, it would make the storytelling symbolic side of my brain happy for him to be the reason they find the lions - the literal embodiment of unifying the two biggest enemies being the one to sense/wake the thing meant to bring peace? The person they thought started the whole Galra vs Altean divide being the evidence that they can in fact get along, and then living it himself? Uhg. Love. I wanted to write hints of it in the fic and even reveal it (I had several ideas of how and where), but it felt like too much to cram in. So, I'll probably just continue it with comic stips and doodles later.

Fic: Sure and Indelible on AO3:

[bubble-popping]

day 41 with more punznoblade :P this time with plot perhaps? (help i just wanted to make a stupid joke but then writer brain kicked in)

The sun was just barely peeking over the horizon when Techno made it downstairs. He'd awoken up to an empty bed, cold and lonely, but the sweet smell of cocoa and tang of oranges reassured his anxious self-doubt. Phil sat at the kitchen table, mug in hand. He smiled warmly upon seeing the piglin hybrid, seemingly ready to greet him when his brow creased and his lips quirked. "Woah, mate, what happened to you? You get mauled by one of the hounds?"

Techno paused in the doorway and reflexively reached up to touch his shoulder. His skin was littered with bite marks and round bruises, all colored angry reds and purples. (Not to mention the scratches down his back, but Phil obviously couldn't see those yet.) He glanced over to where Punz was standing by the stove, flipping pancakes and tending to cuts of bacon, dressed in Techno's shirt that hung off his lithe form. His ears bent backwards, only slightly down-turned. Embarrassed, Techno had come to understand.

"Uh, yeah. Close enough." With a barely held back smirk, he trudged by the older man to embrace the wolf hybrid from behind, and chuckled when he heard Phil choke on his tea.

"Mornin', honey," Techno murmured into the crook of their neck, just loud enough for those adorably large ears to hear.

"Good morning," they quietly replied, tilting their head to rest against his.

"Gave me a lil scare, ya know."

"Cuz I wasn't there when you woke up?"

"Ya know I need my cuddle bug..."

Punz scoffed, but Techno could feel the heat crawling up to their face. "Should I have left a note?"

"No," Techno laughed softly, pressing his lips to his cheek. "Jus' teasin' ya."

"Go sit down and wait for your pancakes," he huffed, pouting.

"Love youuu," Techno sang, nosing at his neck where he knew the smaller one was ticklish.

"Get off! I gotta focus." Punz tried to shy away, but Techno wouldn't let him go that easy. In fact, he held them tighter. The furiously wagging tail told him everything he needed to know.

"Not 'til ya say it back."

"Techno!"

"Say iiit."

"Alright, alright, I love you!"

"There, see? Was that so hard?" After one last kiss to their temple, Techno finally released them to join Phil at the table.

Phil was the only other person that knew about their real arrangement for two main reasons. First, Techno trusted him more than anyone, so he knew he'd keep silent about it. And second, his crows were simply everywhere. Even if Techno tried to hide the relationship from him, one of his chatty corvids would spill the truth.

Plus, the guy seemed to have an ancient, otherwordly wisdom in his old bones that meant he just knew those sorts of things. When Techno revealed it, he merely said, "Yeah, I figured."

But, no one beyond that. At Syndicate meetings, since Techno introduced them as the secret member Harpocrates, they remained at a safe distance; careful to refrain from lingering gazes or obvious gestures.

And it was so much more difficult than Techno anticipated. Keeping his hands to himself knowing how soft Punz's fur felt, knowing how it made them melt and smile in a way no one else ever saw. He really wasn't good at keeping secrets like this.

"So, what made ya come over so early, Phil?" Techno decided to break the comfortable silence, only mildly distracted by the slight sway of Punz's tail as they divided the food onto individual plates.

"Ah, yes, that." He dug around in his coat for a moment before producing an envelope from an inside pocket. "One of my crows told me you got some mail."

"Someone actually sent something?" Punz piped up, bringing over the three plates of chocolate chip pancakes and bacon. At the mouthwatering sight, he could almost forgive them for leaving him alone earlier. Almost.

"I told ya it wasn't a waste of time." Techno smirked at them.

"Yeah, yeah. Brag all you want." He waved him off, taking his own seat.

"Let's see what it's about then, huh?"

[medicinemane]

Among other things I think I'm just kinda fucking tired of conspiracy bullshit

I'm not saying shit never happens behind closed doors, but what I'm saying is I'm sick of everything being some mastermind plot by some global cabal when it's more like self interested pricks tend to look out for each other

When I want to tie two things together, say the concept that russia and China are friendly with each other, I'll do something like pull up an article on their joint military exercises (I'd do this here, but no one's reading this... ask me if you want me to track it down)... or I could talk about how russia is actually facing issues with more and more of their trade being done in Chinese Yuan because no one wants rubles (mhh... I think their trade with India is mostly being done in... I want to say Saudi Dirham... though looking up how to spell that it may actually be UAE Dirham, and I swear there was another currency or two)

Point fucking is that I can actually draw a line between things, a concrete line that uses verifiable information

I don't just say "this is totally happening, sauce? Trust this twitter guy bro"

People fucking suck at keeping secrets, there are conspiracies and we often find out about them pretty quick. Not all of them, but uh... people burnt out my patience, so now we're in the "extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof" phase

(You may not hand me a 1500 word document written by crack pots as extraordinary proof, you have to find me the exact paragraph and give me a reason to trust your source... you gotta give me the smoking gun)

[theonlyadawong]

ok now thinking abt how I want other re characters lives to end

CHRIS: dies in battle. If he and wesker died together, that would have been okay. if he had died during 6, that would have been great. now i don't know when he should die, but it should be before shadows of rose (im ignoring what canon says.)

JILL: after some epic battle she's just gotta retire and live her life in peace because capcom put her through waaaaaaay too much.

CLAIRE: she retired from terrasave but still does her own investigations and mentors younger journalists who also want to take down bioterrorists sometimes.

LEON: okay i have several options for him because his fan base irritated me last year and so i spent many hours plotting his demise >:3

1 - ada kills him. now this is just for sillies and just for me because it makes me laugh, however i know fandom would riot and that would give me a million headaches and also i just don't have a good reason why ada would do that :(

okay now serious ones

2 - government experiments (because hes got a cocktail of different viruses in him) on him making him a BOW and he ends up being the final boss in a game and his successor (helena if they keep going with her. and maybe sherry is there that sounds cool) is the one to kill him.

3 - dies in a blaze of glory killing a bunch of evil government workers. cue free bird by lynyrd skynyrd playing in the background (that is Leonard's Death Song in my head.) this would never happen because capcom and leon are a bunch of PUSSIES but it should he should blow everyone up.

4 - killed off screen by the government because he threatened to spill some horrible secrets. the main character (probably his successor helena and/or sherry again) has been solve the mystery of his death

MIA - dies protecting rose while the two of them are being transferred from one safe house to another. you would play as mia during this game and rose would probably be 8-11. the connections are the one to do her in but the bsaa would come at the last minute to take rose.

SHERRY: leaves the US government and works to help other people who were infected with bioterrorist viruses and still have powers in them. she'd also work as a mentor to rose.

JAKE: stays a mercenary (completely divorced from the bsaa and the us government) and then retires. he saved up a bunch of money. stays in contact with sherry.

PIERS: lives through six and replaces chris as he fucking should. he would also die in battle, but this happens when he's way older.

HELENA: leons successor. stays with the u.s. government, and my very indulgent wish is that she sells government secrets (for the greater good obvs) to spy agencies.

CARLOS: left the UBCS shortly after 3 and retired under a fake name to brazil. lives by himself but still works with communist forces. he gave jill his number if she had an emergency but they're not close friends

[marshmallowprotection]

Mystic Messenger Summer Title

Okay! You guys know the deal! A photo comes out and then I talk about how that makes me feel and what I can pull out of the photo. Well, unless you’re new here in which case, I say, hello! I’m your resident chatterbox that likes to put things to the surface that may stand out to me as a detail that someone else might not be able to notice for whatever reason. I’m excited to show the photo and talk about all the things I noticed!

Here’s the Summer Title! I was able to find one with nice quality which helps me out immensely in trying to pick apart the details that I’m looking at. So, let’s take a gander at the photo and then talk about everything that we see piece by piece while I cry my eyes out. This is a Mint Eye focused photo which means that it’s a marketed photo to included Rika, V, and Ray/Unknown.

The first thing that I noticed was something that I don’t think I joked about on my post but I thought about in my head! Which is, “Hey, wouldn’t it be fucking funny as hell if the RFA were the fish?” I gotta stop joking about that stuff to myself... it always happens. What I didn’t expect was that Saeran and V would be included in those fish but they are! They’re not connected to the RFA, but they’re floating in the water just as close. The one key factor is that Rika isn’t there.

Rika is only represented by herself in the boat. She has disconnected herself to the RFA and to everyone... she’s gazing back at everyone longingly but there’s no chance for her to go back because she made her choice and she will commit to that choice no matter what. You can tell she’s thinking about that as she sits above the surface watching longingly as Unknown comes to capture the RFA to force them back into her life.

That’s what she does. She wants to lure them in and take them from V so that she proves her point, saves them, and leaves V to suffer. That’s the context of her revenge in Casual/Deep Story. She wants to make him hurt like she’s hurt, and the way she assumes best is to destroy everything and make them stay in her heart forever... twisting them with elixir so they never leave and she never has to fear losing family ever again.

But, she’s so lost by the time CS/DP comes around that her original plan gets lost to her emotions and she loses herself... which is why you only see her force her hand on the family dream in Another Story. She’s still got an idea of what it is that she wants at that point, and it hasn’t just become a plot of revenge to make V bleed until he’s run dry.

It’s sad in most ways... but, I actually really like how Rika was drawn her because it plays homage to that idea. This is Savior Rika, this is the Rika that you meet in the Secret Endings face to face... the Rika that wants to make V bleed and suffer because that’s all she wants now. She has no reason to want him back... just to want to shove him in a basement and keep him alive enough to experience what she has and that’s “watching your family live happily while you suffer in silence.”

Now, if we look over at V, it’s telling of him to be in this spot. He’s watching... and even in his own life, he seems to be a spectator. He watches and doesn’t involve himself when he needs to do it. He’s always behind the camera and for better or worse, this describes him as someone who watches the fire and wants to do the best he can... but he hesitates, and he has to watch instead to document the big, bad, hurt that’s coming for his loved ones. You can see it written all over his face in this, too.

He’s tired.

He’s exhausted.

He’s on the edge of breaking down.

This is Secret Ending V, to me. The V who does what Rika asks and agrees to take you back to Mint Eye, foolishly assuming he can beg for Rika to destroy him instead of the others. He knows there’s no chance she’ll spare the others just to make him bleed, too, but he still tries this. He burns himself when it comes to the situation with Rika so often. We see it every time he gets close to her and he has the opportunity to make things right but he just kicks himself.

He’ll become Icarus to her Sun if he has to do it and it’s always painful to watch. He’ll fail not only himself but those around him when he hesitates.

Behind his camera is nothing but a man who gives up before he even tries, and it’s hard to see. But, you can see the fish is looking at him and looking at the RFA as if to say “will you let this continue or will you say something?”

And now we’re onto my lovely Unknown. You know I’m excited to talk about him since it’s been forever since we’ve seen his face! I love all of the Saeran’s. I do, I really do, but Unknown and Ray are my favorites so being able to see them will be what makes me happy every time. You can see his intention in this photo and we all know what he wants. He wants to destroy the RFA, give them to Rika, and then torture Saeyoung and Jihyun for everything they’ve done.

You know that he is determined to be able to capture them because the faster that he does that, the faster that he's able to get his revenge. It doesn't matter what happens to them in the end, he could care less. He doesn't have a grudge against any of them. It's not like he hates any of the members of the RFA that aren't the ones already mentioned.

Unknown needs them to do what he says so Rika gets what she wants… then he gets what he desires most of all. It's just the way The Story Goes. They have to go down before he can get what he wants. So, they're going to get captured and he doesn't care what gets in his way. They’re going to fail either way, and he will taste victory eventually... it’s just a matter of time and he’s happy to make the group suffer if it means they go down.

I think the painful part about seeing this is that the fish that's looking at him is a representation of that part deep inside of him that you think is destroyed.

That part of him that was once a child that didn't want to hurt anybody and just wanted to believe that he could be saved. There is still a part of him that is that child but it is so varied underneath malice, manipulation, and elixir that it's hard to see that person. That's one of the most complex things about his character. It's this fact that you can see he's suffered so much to get to where he is, but all he ever wanted was for somebody to save him.

He never did get saved. His brother never did come back to save him. So, as far as he knows, this is the only way that things can be. I think why they chose a clown fish isn't just to rag on him. It's more so that he's been disillusioned with transformation and lies. I feel like there's also an argument where it's talking about that says that he feels like he was a fool, or a clown*fish* for believing that his brother would ever come back for him.

He does insult his childhood self for believing that his brother would ever come back very often. The expression that the fish has on its face seems to say that it's not happy about what he's doing and I feel like it's a testament to the fact that his childhood self would not like what he's doing. There are some other theories about that but I will get to it in a second. I just need to make this joke.

In conclusion, can you believe this man is a clownfish?

Saeyoung is an octopus. Jumin looks like an Angelfish. I can’t tell what Jaehee, or Yoosung are, but they’re probably in a similar family to the fish that Jumin is. I can’t tell for sure what Zen is, either. There’s a lot of fish in the sea so it’s not the clearest thing to guess! I’d love to hear what you guys think about it, though! I’m sure someone else spotted the right fish... but it seems like the RFA is about to go into Rika’s giant tank!

And this is the RFA, as you can see. The eye colors were what matched with the situation so I knew right off the bat. Take a good look at them because this is the very subtle way of telling us that the RFA are fishies. It’s interesting that they did this because I don’t know if the fish are symbolic to their personality or whatever, and while I know a lot about marine life...

I can’t tell if it’s aesthetic, temperament, or what have you leading their choice to draw them as certain fish!

Jaehee looks like... “Are you seeing this shit?” Yoosung looks on the edge of angry and fearful. “Is this allowed? Is this allowed?” Jumin is checked out of this situation and is happily swimming away. Zen is unaware like usual and totally checked out because he’s a beast who can handle it and... hm. I’ll get to Seven in a second because I just noticed this in the background. Hey, Rika’s a jellyfish! She’s disconnected from everyone in the photo which only adds to my theory of being separated and how that plays out. She stings if you get too close... ouch. That’s rough, buddy.

As I'm writing this, I got a better photo for us to look at that! 

Unless Saeyoung is the clownfish... the eyes are golden... I believed the golden eyes was the clue for Saeran’s existence and connection to his twin but I had a lot more time to think on it! While it makes more sense for him to be the octopus because you can see that Unknown is coming directly for him in this photo unlike him going for the fish that are that much closer...

@rfaromance​ made a good point to me yesterday when we were very much gushing about what it could be! The octopus does not have a canon eye color and the MC is never going to be drawn with a face. It is a blank slate and that means that the octopus could be us, the player!. It might be misdirection that it is colored red to make us think that it's Seven like that so soon, or it could be the implication that this is the MC for Saeyoung... and that's why they're red...

Which would 100% explain why Unknown would be going for them directly. Take the MC, take over the RFA. It’s not a complicated theme since it’s what he does every time. The clownfish has golden eyes... but the octopus has little lashes on their eye... and and I do believe that this artist did slip in that style for the MC on the drawings where they’ve given MC eyes. The lashes are a bit longer in this specific style.

[changeling-rin]

(Kingdom Anon) Hello! I wanted to ask if we could get a post on how the Links interact with each other?

Like who they spend more time interacting with, whose powers are the ones they think are more interesting than the others, etc.

Thank you and we hope you have a nice day!

Okay so like. This is absolutely a thing that exists in my head, but I've never had to put it into words before (ironic, I know), so bear with me this might get a little ramble-y.

Mask and Ocarina are, of course, a matching set, and you will almost never find one without the other. At most, they're maybe ten feet apart if they can help it, and if they can't help it then they spend most of their effort trying to correct this. It should be noted that this is, most of the time, completely subconscious on both of their parts

Wind and Steam drift together pretty often, but especially more after they figure out that they're actually closely related. Wind likes to get updates on how his Hyrule is doing, and Steam just likes to feel close. Wind and Sketch drift together fairly often too, on account of each having met the other first, and of course Sketch and Steam are the mechanic duo, so they can be found talking shop at least once or twice a day. Somehow this all ends up blending together, and all three of them can usually be predicted to be clustered together

The Four are self-explanatory. So are RGBV. And so are the Four and RGBV put together. Four Sword Sets gotta have each others' backs

Dusk, Gen, and Lore are obviously and usually found with or near each other, for leadership reasons.

Speck and Shadow are an unlikely pair, but Speck's ability to seemingly pass through all Shadow's antagonistic traits and Shadow's inability to cope with this somehow ends up combining to form a... friendship? Maybe? At any rate, Shadow is least sarcastic when Speck is around and that probably means something

Lore, Blue, and Mask are all massive fans of messing with people's expectations, and so can occasionally be found laughing their collective heads off while plotting pranks

Realm and the Four are known to pair off, because they collectively have the best luck in keeping Realm in one spot

Speck and Red actually vibe together pretty well, due to them both thinking that small creatures are adorable and deserving of pets

Gen is overly protective of Sketch, specifically, ever since the Panic Attack, and can sometimes be found hovering a plausibly-deniable distance away

Sketch and Speck are the stealth duo, and they swap tips and advice with each other on going unseen

Everyone thinks Dusk's transformation ability is Actually Really Cool, and Dusk is still mildly confused as to what's so interesting about it

Vio is slightly jealous of Lore's ability to just. Pick up new languages like they're sticks or something. He would love to have that kind of affinity.

Once he finally shows off exactly what he can do with the weather, Wind's expertise is instantly in high demand

Mask would trade a lot of things to be able to see what Steam can

Steam is firmly of the opinion that his Train Summons is The Best Thing

Oni... is jealous of all of them. Not anything specific, and he'll never tell, but. They're free. (...it's been so long...)

It's generally agreed that if Realm could actually control where he's going, he'd be terrifying in his effectiveness.

And lastly (because this post is getting long, whoops), Lore makes absolutely no secret of the fact that he wishes he could make bombs the way Shadow does. It's not jealousy, exactly, it's more like he complains in the general direction of the sky about how cool that would have been

[catalists]

Chrome’s shadowgast fic rec list, vol 1

Well, well, well, if it isn’t the consequences of my own obsession with wizards. I might make another one of these eventually if y’all keep churning out absolute bangers, but in the meantime, here is a list of my top Shadowgast fic recs.

One rule here: I’m limiting this to one fic per author--but many people on this list have a broader oeuvre you should definitely check out.

Your disclaimer: this is not a full literature review, but rather my personal favorites. Caveat lector!

* = fic is rated M or E

sleeping in the shadow of an other self by nonwal | @nonwal

Essek has a moment to consider that gravity-based trust exercises have never worked for him, and then the spell hits. He leans back into it, falls, falls.

(In which Essek is resurrected by the Mighty Nein and framed for innocence.)

Okay, listen. If you haven’t read it yet, you’re missing out. There’s a reason it’s at the top of the list. 30k of absolutely phenomenal characterization of not only Shadowgast but all the M9 and the coolest plot to ever plot. Not only a fantastic first read, but a phenomenal re-read as well.

multitudinous echoes awoke and died in the distance by mousecookie | @ariadne-mouse

Caleb takes a step forward and stumbles.  As he catches himself he realizes something very odd.  His hands are shadowy and translucent.  His whole body is a shadow, in fact.  If he holds his palm up to the sky, he can see the stars twinkling faintly through it.

Sharp talons of panic dig into his chest.  He feels solid - if he grabs his own wrist, he has mass, but it is wrong.  Everything is wrong.  What is happening?

Prepare Fireball, commands a voice in his head.  

The voice is familiar.  

It takes him a moment to realize it’s familiar because it’s his.

An absolutely fabulous pre-relationship fic, written before the end of the show but you wouldn’t know it from how perfectly it nails the dynamic. Ariadne has written a ton of other fabulous Shadowgast fics and I encourage you to read them all--I’m just limiting this list to one fic per author to try and cover more ground.

Great Minds by bluebirdsongs

Essek uses more high-level dunamancy in battle, and Caleb tries to reverse-engineer it when he can't sleep. AKA What if we were both wizards and I cast Tether Essence on us to save your life?

This is a gorgeous fic, both for how it handles Caleb and Essek’s conversation--with profound deftness--and for the treatment of magic-as-math. A beautiful exploration of both dunamancy and Caleb and Essek.

to make a cradle of your palm* by renquise

Essek offers Caleb his spellbook, open to the page of a new spell.

As Caleb suspected, his adaptation of Essek's gravity spell was different in its conception, for all that the result was the same. The architecture of this similar spell speaks of a different thought process, a different set of basic assumptions. It is beautifully engineered, efficient in its use of components and energy: a simple spell requiring only a length of silk thread and yet capable of reaching over a great distance and causing great damage, if applied with intent to harm.

“If you would like, you can, ah. You may—" Essek gestures at his own throat, a quick, inelegant spread of fingers. "Test the application of pressure that the spell exerts."

It takes Caleb a moment to register what Essek is proposing. He is a delicate speaker, as always.

Oh man, this one just goes for the jugular (ha) in the most perfect way. The prose here, like everything renquise writes, is absolutely masterful, and the tension between Caleb and Essek is exquisitely rendered.

fist-fighting with fire just to get close to you by kaeda | @the-kaedageist

Caleb caught Essek’s eye across the dome, and Essek returned his small smile. “It would seem that it is trickier than expected to keep things on a…private channel,” Essek thought at him.

“Unfortunately,” Caleb replied.

“Unfortunately for all of us,” Fjord interjected.

(Spoilers for campaign 2, episode 138)

Kate has a fabulous gift for getting the Mighty Nein’s voices exactly right, and this fic is no exception. This takes the hive mind/telepathy of the eyes to its hilarious, heart-warming, logical conclusion and it’s an absolute joy to read.

(perhaps i may) elaborate by demonstration* by marsastronomica | @marsastronomica

After the second fight, they rest again. There’s still time left in the day, and they may as well push as far as they can. Essek and Caleb find time between action to talk. And negotiate.

This one is an absolute banger. The flirting! The tension! The incredible intense game of chicken that Essek and Caleb are playing this whole fic...it’s amazing, you can hear the dialogue in their voices, this is another one that I read and then had to tell everyone about. And now I’m telling you about. Go read it, it kicks ass.

I’ve been lost before (and I’m lost again, I guess)* by toneofjoy

Caleb has plans to take down his old coaches. Essek has secrets. They climb rocks, make new friends, explore professional boundaries, learn about consequences, and maybe even fall in love. It’s the Shadowgast climbing AU.

AUs can be a tough sell for me, but this one’s not. Half the joy in this is the fabulously vivid world that is built by the author who absolutely knows the ins and outs of competitive climbing and expertly shares it with the reader. The other half is the beautiful growing relationship between Caleb and Essek, which is a consistent joy to read. It’s still a WIP, but I promise it’s worth reading along.

the other things that make us* by saturday_sky | @saturdaysky

Essek returns, when he can, to the sanctuary of Caleb's home. The peace of it is a balm against the tedious peril of the road, which has more misery to share than Essek had ever thought. It's nice to have a place where he can lose himself: in a book, in arcane study, in the confusing allure of Caleb's smile.

It's nice. And the cats miss him, Caleb says.

[First chapter is a complete story. Second chapter will be a follow-up epilogue to it.]

This one hurts in the best possible way. I can’t highlight my favorite bits without giving it away, but the emotional beats of this absolutely beautiful post-canon fic are top-notch and the reveal of information is perfectly executed.

darkness to me is only water to the sea by treeviality

Essek knows how his story ends. There is a place in Rexxentrum where executions are carried out, wooden steps leading up to a wooden platform. There hangs a noose, swaying lightly in northern wind, while polished cobblestones shine bright in golden light.  

There will be birds, Essek imagines, and when the lever is pulled and gravity takes hold of him one last time, he hopes they take flight.

This now-AU take on Essek being arrested is lyrical and beautiful and the author has a tremendous grasp of language and also how to rip your heart straight out of your chest and then gently replace it.

---

And, if you’re still looking for fic, I have a few, but one of my favorites is:

we never do go over (we always gotta go through) by Chrome

In the last fight with the Tombtakers, Essek Thelyss bends reality to keep them all alive and pays the price. As he copes with the aftereffects of his own magic and the party takes the long journey back to the surface, Essek and Caleb finally confront what they are to each other.

or,

Five times Essek woke up with level(s) of exhaustion and one time he didn't.

[midrashic]

self-rec meme. reply with your favorite five fics that you’ve written, then pass it on to at least five other writers.

tagged by the glorious, the incredible, the inimitable @x-populuxe, whose fics you should check out immediately, starting with their favorites. everytime i see a new populuxe story @ikeracity​ & i throw a little party on discord. my examples are not so illustrious & also come embarrassingly close to the meme i did in 2021 about the fics i was proudest of having written in 2020! but here they are regardless.

KATABASIS

supernatural | destiel | 47k

Fortunately for the newly-condemned Dean Winchester, there's more than one way to resurrect an angel. Love, hell, and other myths.

originally for 2016 deancas reverse bang | this still might be my magnum opus, actually. it was my first moderately long fic, took me two years to finish (obviously, it did not get posted for the reverse bang), & gave me fits, & i still love what i did with the symbolism, the many layers of references, & dean’s voice. too bad none of my friends will touch supernatural with a ten-foot pole 😢 i mean. not that i blame them.

THE LAST LOVE SONG & TESTAMENT OF CHARLES F. XAVIER

x-men | cherik | 20k

When Erik is accused of domestic terrorism, Charles has no choice but to marry him to keep him out of jail.

for cherik week 2020 | actually i was on the fence about this one! ike almost had to bully me into picking a fifth fic at all, even though i felt the top tier of my fics was really only represented by four. then i remembered that erik likes starbucks pink drinks & count chocula cereal in this fic and was like. you know what? you did a good job with this.

A KRITIK OF PURE REASON

x-men | cherik | 27k

Texas: When Erik and Charles collide during their senior year of high school, they swiftly find out they make the perfect debate partners. But as secrets come out—and as they draw inexorably closer—more turns out to be at stake than the State championship.

for x-men remix 2020 | i’ve wanted to write a debate au since 2014, which i know because that’s when sherlock s3 aired & my first version of this plot was with sherlock & john. policy debate is--difficult--to explain to people who didn’t debate; it’s not so much debate as it is a highly ordered logic game, something rather like verbal chess--obviously charles & erik would’ve loved it. i’m extremely proud of all the comments that said that i somehow managed to make it comprehensible (with thanks to ben lerner, who also did policy debate in high school, & whose book the topeka school, in which he described spreading at the time of its invention, convinced me it was not in fact impossible to describe adequately), but what i really love about this fic is that it’s so! nostalgic! i poured the best parts of my adolescence into this fic & rereading it is reliving it.

AN AMATEUR PSYCHIC’S GUIDE TO REMEMBERING WHAT WAS LOST

x-men | cherik | 32k

Hong Kong, 2011. Erik Lehnsherr lives in limbo: scrounging up money to pay rent from gambling dens or the scrapyard, not using his psychic powers, not dealing with his PTSD. When a teenage fellow psychic shows up at his shithole apartment with a get-rich-quick scheme, he's pulled into a world he thought he left behind—a world of brutal powers, deadly government experiments, and a mysterious man with a suitcase who is going to change his life… again.

for cherik big bang 2020 | for a fusion with the terrible 2009 chris evans movie push, this still holds up! i keep going back to this again & again despite it being one of my least popular with the masses. i ended up really loving some of the side characters that i don’t normally play with, like irene & daken, and erik’s flashback to his romance with charles is one of my favorite portraits of a romance i’ve ever written. this was the last really action-packed thing i wrote, & i forgot how much i loved doing the pacing & the scene headings. i’ve gotta get back to long fics soon!

AS CLOSE TO HELL

james bond (craig movies) | 00q | 19k

O then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do. They pray: grant thou, lest faith turn to despair. —Romeo, Romeo & Juliet I.v.114-115 Or: Another day, another haunted house. But this time, it's James's.

for 007fest 2020 | a month ago, i don’t know if any james bond fic would’ve made this list, but honestly, the epistolary elements--as close as i’ve ever gotten (so far!) to writing the epistolary fic of my dreams--& a few of the lines from the final confrontation are, i think, some of my best! also, solomon the ghost cat: best oc of all time? perhaps.

tagging! @ikeracity, @insertmeaningfulusername, @castillon02, @redring91, & @lavender-lotion.

[markantonys]

A thought to consider wrt Nynaeve's radio silence is that communicating with Egwene mostly causes problems from her perspective. Egwene telling them not to return to Salidar forced them to turn to the Sea Folk & endure their bargain to stop the drought, then she gave them shit because saving the world might politically inconvenience her. Now Egwene clearly wants something of Nynaeve, but Rand needs her help (for more than the link), so if she doesn't talk to Egwene, she wont have to disobey her.

yeah i definitely see why nynaeve would want to be avoiding egwene! my thought is more that it's weird for her (and rand) to be avoiding elayne (and avi) so thoroughly and not telling them a peep of what they were planning and just sneaking out in the middle of the night without letting them know where they were going or what they were up to. nynaeve is extremely close to elayne at this point (they've been travel buddies and partners in crime ever since book 2, longer than any other pair of characters i think!) and she knows that elayne is also keeping secrets from egwene/the tower and would be trustworthy with this one. and the only reason i can think for rand dipping on elayne and avi with no explanation after telling them he loves them and bonding them is that he's still on his "gotta keep them away to protect them" bullshit, but that makes no sense when he's bringing min along and telling her everything. it feels like nynaeve acting OOC and rand nonsensically treating elayne and avi differently than min when he's supposed to feel equally about all 3 just because the plot requires elayne and avi to be kept in the dark about their activities (and even that, i don't understand - elayne and avi wouldn't leave their caemlyn duties and plotlines if they knew what rand was up to (if anything, having that clarity would make them LESS likely to panic and hare off after rand when they sense the cleansing happening) so from a plot/narrative perspective why can't they know?)

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL

May 2021 Wk 3

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs.

It’s a cray cray Friday when Vietnam gets its eng subs up before GMMTV Thailand. What alter-reality are we in? Well, the Vietnamese offerings are better right now anyway. (Oooo, feel that burn.) 

Ongoing Series - Thai

Top Secret Together Ep 2 - pulping it up in the best possible way. Sure sound and production values are pants, and in classic Thai fashion the editing in post is exacerbating (rather than fixing) pacing issues, but it’s still CUTE AF. I don’t even mind the added university storyline, because they’ve got good chemistry (and a confident gay fresher after a panicked gay hazer is an old favorite... what can I say, SOTUS was my first love). We aren’t spending too much time with any one couple, so it’s weighted a lot better than Brothers was, but also character development is slow. 

Siew Sum Noi Ep 2 - Unfortunately, it’s just too hard to find, plus no subs. I’m dropping it in the hopes it comes back on my radar some day. 

Y-Destiny Ep 8 - (Thurs) It’s rough having a ghost boyfriend, half your friends are scared, the other half think you’re crazy, and kissing shortens your lifespan. This was a cute couple even if I wasn’t wild about the surrounding story. 

Close Friend Ep 5: (Dear My Star/JimmyTommy) - about high school penpals. It had to rely entirely on voice over work as the actors only meet face to face at the end. It’s a good thing they are appealing screen presences on their own, with good vocal control. It’s hard to imagine any other BL pair carrying this kinda plot. It’s by far my favorite of the series so far, and I’m not even a big JimmyTommy fan. 

Fish Upon The Sky Ep 7 - no subs. Do we care? Not really. Because we have... 

Nitiman Ep 3 - currently my favorite out of Thailand. It’s the university Thai BL i’ve been waiting for since... when was the last good one? My Engineer? Yowza. Anyway we got: head on my shoulder, baby is a floppy drunk (but still wants to be in control), proximity alert, boyfriend’s closet, seme gets seriously jelly, and a cute twist on feeding him. There’s something fun and complex about Jin’s character. He’s not a panicked bi. He knows exactly what’s going on, he just hasn’t decided if he wants Bb or not. He clearly enjoys being looked after, the compliments, and the attention, but he’s not sure if he’s going to like what happens if he gives in. I like that twist on the usual tsundere uke archetype a lot, cautious rather than willfully obtuse or freaked out. We can see Jin realizing in stages: I like this person, I like that they like me, I like the romantic attentiveness. But in the background is... do I actually want to f*k him? It’s a dynamic we don’t often see on BL. 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

HIStory 4: Close To You (Taiwan) Ep 10 fin - the most ridiculous show using BLs worst tropes in a sort of weird smoothie of bitter greens and too ripe banana. The ending was the sappiest cheesiest thing ever, like cheese syrup tapped from the cheese tree. So of course I loved it, but I’m pretty sure I giggled through all the bits meant to be profound. Because, in the end, to tolerate this show at all, you just can’t take ANY of it seriously. RECOMMENDED (with some SERIOUS reservations and trigger warnings.) Full review here. 

Be Loved in House: I Do (Taiwan) Ep 1-2 - I don’t mind a damaged seme character but this one is a bit weird for me. Like creepy Cheese in the Trap level weird. On the bright side, the story has given our tsundere uke good motivation for his angst and great existing friendships, loyalty, and likability. Plus I’m invested in the cafe owner/innocent puppy side dishes. So if it’s only the seme character I’m not jiving with, and he’s the most established actor, it should all turn out fine. I believe in you, Taiwanese BL. 

Papa & Daddy (Taiwan) Ep 6 fin - speaking of belief. This such a good show but they gave us a cliffhanger ending. Now we must hope against hope for season two. That’s never guaranteed with Taiwan tho. So, I’m docking a few points and saying, RECOMMENDED so long as you realize it’s a cliffhanger. 

Love is Science? (Taiwan) Ep 1-9 (BL subplot) - this is a good het romance, but the fact that the BL subplot is a beautifully acted disaster bi + confident gay means you’re hearing about it whether you want to or not. Plus they just added in some GL! Come on! I gotta support Taiwan normalizing queer to this extent. They are fighting the good fight and if I also have to watch a career lady and her much younger softest straight boi get it on, too? Twist my arm with that service sub subtext. Go on Taiwan, TWIST IT. It’s on Viki. Join the revolution.   * Incidentally if you actually like the D/s het dynamic of this show, I highly recommend Japanese Kimi wa Petto - career woman keeps a hot young dancer boy as a pet. Oh yes, an actual pet, that IS the pitch. Never doubt Japan when kink is on the line. It’s also on Viki. Go get your kink on, thank me later. (If it helps: That was not a request.)  

Most Peaceful Place 2 (Vietnam) Ep 2 (AKA 5) - love triangles aren’t my thing, but if you’re gonna do it short form, by all means bring in the lead’s other BL pairing so the chemistry is on point. Now I've no idea who I want him to end up with. Can’t they just be in a poly triad? 

My Lascivious Boss (Vietnam) Ep 7 - I’m still enjoying it a lot. It’s still unabashedly queer and the tension is ramping up. We now have secret identity, blackmail, femme fatale, faen fatale, and incoming seme confrontation. Best of all, the series is still airing, which makes it longer than any other Vietnamese BL I’ve seen (aside from Tein Bromance - which is just too weird to count). 

Gossip - Thai BL 

SEVEN PROJECT TEASERS

No one is entirely sure what Studio Wabi Sabi’s Seven Project/7Project will entail. 

It might be like Close Friend (1 episode per couple, no linking), 

or Y-Destiny (2 episodes per couple, loosely linked), 

or The En of Love (4 episodes per couple, linked but independent consecutive stories). 

They’re giving the couple’s arcs separate titles. So each one would be what? Seven Project: Once Upon a Time or the like? We’re in Taiwanese title territory people and NO ONE WANTS TO GO THERE. Anygay... 

Once Upon a Time is the BounPrem (og UWMA) anchor story, and seems to be the most dramatic and likely saddest. These two can handle most of what’s thrown at them at this juncture, so it should be good. 

Vs Love is a BoomPeak (og Make it Right) university vehicle. Since I thought Boom was done with our nonsense, I couldn’t be more thrilled and surprised this pair is doing another show together. I don’t think either of them are the greatest actors but I find Peak very endearing and Boom charismatic on screen, so I’ll watch. 

Would You be My Love is the hotly anticipated SantaEarth launch. They’re a (cultivated) IRL ship and Earth is an established BL actor. They have great chemistry and high energy so this could be lots of fun. 

We are also getting a GL from this series from established BL actresses Samantha and Pineare. Nothing teased yet on that, but I’m looking forward to this installment the most. Also curious to see how the ladies handle the branding and promo side, not to mention the culture. (Thailand variety shows gonna force *girls* to play the Pepero game?) 

Secret Crush on You upcoming Thai BL with no release date, co-produced by and featuring (but NOT staring) Saint and directed by Cheewin (sigh) with all fresh faces. (Previously known as Stalker the series.) It looks like pure pulp and I’m not wild about the plot but could be better than expected as it’s adapted from a novel. Cheewin is an okay director when he has an actual story to follow. 

Don’t Say No the series. Coming from the producers of TharnType this is the JaFirst vehicle many have been waiting for. Friends to lovers + a good boy/bad boy pairing on a sports romance foundation. It’s basketball so they tapped Meen as well (he’s semi-pro). The bad news? You get one guess as to who is writing the darn thing? Yep it’s MAME. So, ya know, expect some slam dunk kidnapping, a light dribbling of rape, and me turning into a basketcase. AKA... 

Will I have to live blog this series in order to survive it? That seems to be the only way I can. So probably. Which means the bad sports puns will continue. Look, if I’m suffering, SO ARE YOU! 

Rumors of a new YinWar vehicle The Best Story (mini series) coming in July. Also rumors that their previously announced Love Mechanics (full length series) has either been delayed, is facing money issues, or is moving studios, or all three. 

Breaking News 

DELAYED (I’m talking these three off the watch list until we get new airing dates) 

Love Area’s release was pushed out but it got a trailer. 

Golden Blood was supposed to drop Weds but comments in MDL report that it is delayed due to C19.  

Love’s Outlet (Taiwan) is supposed to have started a 50 episode run (only 3-5 min each, what utter nonsense). Sadly, this delay is due to a surge in cases in Taiwan which was doing so well, but also doesn’t have many inoculations. 

Bad Buddy has started workshopping at GMMTV actual. 

Kang Insoo’s BTS for Nobleman Ryu’s Wedding is SO FLIPPING CUTE. You have to watch it. Trust me, I don’t rec behind the scenes stuff often. 

Next Week Looks Like This: 

Some shows may be listed later than actual air date for International accessibility reasons.

Upcoming 2021 BL master post here.

Links to watch are provided when possible, ask in a comment if I missed something.

[utterlyinevitable]

What happens when Ethan finds out he was mc’s first?

ooo I mentioned to @jerzwriter that I don’t think she’d every tell Ethan because she knows he’d be weird about it. 

Since I know nothing about these guys, lets bring the drama! The girl is telling him!!!! (also i’m ignoring the toxin plot)

@openheartheadcanons: Ethan x F!MC, firsts trope

Ethan Finds Out He’s MC’s First

She doesn’t tell him immediately. Doesn’t say anything the next morning either. Even if there’s a stirring in her that feels a little dishonest now that all the sensations he was pulling from her weren’t clouding her mind.

Then after her trial and they’re cuddled in their seemingly final moments of bliss, she still doesn’t tell him. There’s no reason to if she’s just losing him the moment he steps out her door. 

But then the fucker goes to the Amazon without a word or considerate acknowledgment for all that’s happened between them. For all that was said and done between them the last week. 

So MC is a little rubbed the wrong way and mad at him for the seemingly lack of respect. 

When he comes back and they work together they’re a bit at odds - total relationship regression with his promise to keep things professional and MC still having that nagging little feeling. 

Except its not nagging or little anymore. It’s a clawing, crawling, gurgling its way up her throat. The truth’s gotta come out sometime. 

Really, there’s a lot of secrets between them two. 

So their friendship gets better with time and the animosity dwindles away from the sting of the abandonment. Edenbrook is going under and they’ve been leaning on one another. 

One evening they’re leaving the hospital late and he offers her a ride. 

“I could really use a drink,” Ethan says to make conversation as they settle into his sedan. 

“Me too. Make it a triple.” 

Ethan chortles. There’s a pregnant pause. 

Then, “Fancy a nightcap?” 

“Sure,” she says. 

A nightcap turned into two into a bottle of wine over effortless conversation. 

He’d just went to fill up their wine glasses a second time when she leans against the kitchen counter, deep in thought. 

“I remember the last time I was here.” 

His voice is a little lower with his response; “I do too.” 

She could hear a heart beating in her ears and MC cannot tell if its his or her own. 

She takes the offered glass. 

Whether it’s the alcohol or the truth finally breaking free, she doesn’t know. But before she even has a chance to realize what she’s admitting, she says, “You were my first, you know.” 

Their eyes meet. Ethan’s frozen in place, the only telling feature of life is the way his brows are pulling together and his Adam’s apple bobs. 

MC takes a sip, watching him process this information. 

“I’m sorry... What?”

Now she’s certain she can hear his heart beating rapidly. His face has flushed crimson and he’s gripping the glass and counters edge tightly. His lovely blues are an ocean of swimming deep emotion. 

“I’d never... not before that night.” 

“Never?” 

She shook her head. 

His throat is dry. He can’t seem to swallow anything. So he sets the glass on the counter and steps back. Free hand carding through his hair. 

“Don’t make it weird. Please.” 

Ethan’s mouth open and closes like a fish. He can’t make heads or tails, can’t fathom anything at the moment. 

She’s imploring him. 

After a minute or two he paces, around the counter and stands in the open living room. Looks out the window then back to the counter. She’s standing with her back against the marble. In the exact same position as that night. 

Oh god, all the memories are flooding back in wanton fury. All he can see is everything they’ve done; he can taste her on his tongue as intoxicating that night as he is right now; feel her soft skin under his hands and wrapped around him. And its wrong. Oh so disastrously wrong! 

Questions swirl around in his head, so many questions. Why? How? What possessed her to tell him now? 

At last, he speaks, “I - I think it’s high time we call it a night.” 

So MC leaves him to his thoughts. Her conscience clear and without a single regret. 

________________________

a/n: i dunno 🤷‍♀️

Perma:

@lucy-268  @thegreentwin  @queencarb  @danijimenezv  @starrystarrytrouble   @terrm9 @interobanginyourmom @maurine07  @mercury84choices  @schnitzelbutterfingers  @the-pale-goddess @whimsicallywayward15  @mvalentine  @mm2305 @rookie-ramsey @drariellevalentine   @withbeautyandrage  @forallthatitsworth   @stateofgracious  @missmiimiie  @uneravine   @iemcpbchoices  @sophxwithers  @quixoticdreamer16 @lsvdw-blog

@adiehardfan @headoverheelsforramsey @dickgraysonsscrumptiousbooty @reputaytion-xiii @jerzwriter  @kachrisberry  @aishwarya26

Ethan:

@udishaman  @binny1985  @honeyandsunfl0wers @wingedhairstylemusicweasel @ohchoices  @dulceghernandez @blossomanarchy  @stygianflood   @openheartthot @senseofduties  @tsrookie  @kalogh @aworldoffandoms  @takemyopenheart  @casey-v @ethanramseylover @a-crepusculo @randomperson111   @anntoldst0ries  @aishaaaaaaah @estellaelysian @mysticaurathings @mayarambles

[invisibleanonymousmonsters]

2 A.M.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Fem!Reader

PROMPTS: 48. I called you at 2am because I need you. 50. I’m scared but won’t admit it so you take my hand 

Requested by @wonderlandmind4​

So, I’m not going to include #1, because I already did that prompt in another story. 

The Avengers are at the Tower for plot reasons. And just because I wanted it that way. Deal with it LOL. 

Bucky rubbed his eyes awake as FRIDAY announced that he was receiving an incoming phone call. He glanced at the clock on his nightstand and it read 2AM.

“Accept,” he muttered huskily to the AI.

“Wait, FRIDAY, no, no, no!” The call immediately came in.

“Hello?” Bucky asked with confusion.

He expected it to be Steve, who was on a mission with the entire team. It left Bucky as the sole “superhero” left in the tower. But he didn’t see himself as such. Bucky was crashing at the high-rise because he really had no place else to go. And he knew Steve would be disappointed if Bucky didn’t take him up on the offer.

“Bucky, hi.” A female voice said.

He squinted and then put it together. “Y/N, is that you?”

Y/N was Happy’s niece. Tony and Pepper were basically her aunt and uncle without being related. She lived in the city, and therefore was around the tower a lot. Pepper was constantly inviting her over for dinner. Sometimes she’d do her laundry there. If Tony ever had a party, she was invited. The rest of the team had befriended her. 

But Bucky...Bucky kept his distance – just like he kept his distance from basically everyone.

However, that didn’t mean he didn’t take notice of Y/N.

It was ridiculous how long it took him to realize that his eyes seemed to always be searching for her when she was around. He watched her at parties, always dressed in a fancy dress with her makeup a little heavier than usual. He would steal glances at her when she was in the gym. Apparently she didn’t want to pay for one herself, but there wasn’t a gym nicer than the one at the tower.

But just because Bucky noticed Y/N didn’t mean he talked to her. 

Bucky thought the world hated him. Once all of Hydra and SHIELD’s secrets were leaked, everyone knew exactly what he had done.

The Winter Soldier wasn’t someone people wanted to be friends with.

“Hi, I’m sorry. I didn’t want to call you. No, I told FRIDAY not to call you,” she was talking really quickly – obviously, stressed – and yet quietly, like she was scared someone might hear her.

Bucky sat up straighter, fully awake and now on alert. “Everything OK?”

“Yeah. Well, I mean, not really. I’m sure it’s fine. I’m probably being crazy,” her words were coming out faster and faster.

“Y/N, take a breath,” Bucky demanded.

She must’ve done as she was told because there was 5 seconds of silence.

“What’s going on?” He asked then.

“It might just be the storm…” Bucky looked outside his window at the lightning and heavy downpour. “But I swore I heard someone trying to get into my apartment. There’ve been two robberies in my building the last 2 months.”

Bucky already knew about that. He overheard Y/N telling Pepper, Tony, and Happy about it in the kitchen. She seemed pretty shaken up about it. One of her neighbors had to go to the hospital because the robbers timed it wrong and ended attacking the poor man in a panic.

Tony and Happy weren’t happy about Y/N living in what appeared to be an unsafe building. They both tried to convince her to move into the tower. When she refused, pointing out how ridiculous the idea was, Tony told her he’d just buy her a place that had a doorman and high-level security. Y/N refused that too.

It was the first time Bucky had ever agreed with anything Tony said.

“Can you hear anything now?” Bucky asked, taking Y/N’s concerns and fear very seriously.

“No. It’s hard to hear anything with the rain and thunder outside,” Y/N whispered.

Then she sighed.

“Listen, Bucky, I’m really sorry for waking you up. Pepper and Happy are in Germany for a Stark meeting. I was just trying to reach Tony…”

“Everyone’s out on an assignment right now,” Bucky explained. “I’m the only one here.”

“Oh…” Y/N said lamely.

Bucky could tell she did really feel bad, and was growing more and more embarrassed. “And you don’t have to apologize.”

“I’m just being a total spaz right now and–“ She stopped abruptly.

“Y/N?”

“I definitely just heard something,” she whispered as quietly as possible.

“Y/N, I need you to give me your address,” Bucky instructed calmly.

There was no answer.

“Y/N,” his tone more gentle this time, “you gotta give me your address.”

He was already moving around his room, grabbing necessary clothing. He moved with purpose, not even thinking about what he needed to grab.

Bucky listened as Y/N rattled off her address and apartment number.

He was grateful that her apartment was only a 10 minute drive from the tower.

“I’m on my way. Stay on the phone with me,” Bucky sounded like he did was he was on comms during a mission. Not that he’d done that recently.

“O-Okay,” Y/N stuttered in a whisper.

For a second, Bucky thought maybe he should talk to her, try to keep her calm, or make sure she knew she wasn’t alone. He’d be there soon.

But it was obvious that she was staying quiet so she could listen to any possible intruder.

Just when Bucky was two blocks away from her place, the line went dead.

“Shit,” he cursed under his breath.

He slammed his breaks just outsider her building, not bothering to turn off the car or try to park it.

Bucky would’ve shoved his way through the front door of the building with his metal arm and shoulder, but the lock had already been broken.

Now Bucky was more concerned.

He was quick and stealth as he went up the stairs to Y/N’s floor. He pulled out the gun from the back of his waistband.

With one floor left to go, Bucky suddenly heard footsteps running on the floor above him – Y/N’s floor. The footsteps were running toward the opposite side of the building that Bucky was on. Which meant they probably knew someone was on their way up and they were escaping through the emergency stairs on the other side.

For a moment, Bucky considered running after them. He knew he could catch them. They didn’t stand a chance.

But Y/N was now at the forefront of his mind.

He quickly made it to her apartment.

The door was closed, but he could tell from the scratches on the lock and handle that someone had been trying to break their way in discreetly.

Bucky took in a deep breath and knocked.

“Y/N? It’s Bucky. Can you let me in?”

There was no answer. He waited a few minutes and listened for any movements from inside the apartment.

Nothing. 

“Doll… I’m coming in, alright?”

With a quick twist of his metal hand on the doorknob, he was able to crush it to pieces. It should’ve been harder to do, but the building was clearly as old as Bucky and not kept up to code.

Bucky promptly put his gun back in his waistband, not wanting to alarm Y/N with just the mere sight of a firearm.

“Y/N?” He called out to the empty apartment. “It’s just me.”

But he knew where she would be. It was the most common place for people to hide in case of an emergency.

Bucky made his steps quiet, but noticeable, so Y/N knew exactly where he was in the apartment.

He made his way to her bedroom and stopped in front of her closet.

He knew that she knew he was there. He could hear her soft breathing that was still anxious and terrified.

Ever so carefully, he opened her closet door.

Inside Y/N was tucked in the corner, knees to her chest, with a kitchen knife in one hand and her dead cellphone in the other.

Bucky looked at her with only sympathy. 

He couldn’t remember the last time he felt as scared as Y/N looked. Fear had been beaten out of him long ago.

He kneeled down, his forearms balancing on his knees.

“Mind if I come in?” He asked casually.

She shrugged.

Somehow the giant super soldier managed to fit into the closet, making it feel even smaller than it already did.

“For the record… you aren’t crazy. There was definitely someone trying to get into your apartment.” Then he took in a deep breath, realizing he probably wasn’t making her feel any safer. “But they’re long gone.”

When he glanced down at Y/N, she just nodded in acknowledgment.

Bucky wished he was better with words. He used to be. Words used to be his specialty. But he’d isolated himself from everyone. Before that, he was a brainwashed assassin without a mind of its own. Bucky was out of practice.

Bucky slowed reached over to the hand closest to him, the one holding the knife. Gently, he took it out of her grasp and placed it far enough away from them that it wouldn’t accidentally hurt anyone.

Then he took her hand in his, gripping in tight enough to show her comfort. His thumb brushed back and forth over the back of her hand.

She squeezed in return, silently thanking him.

The closet was quiet, only filled with Y/N’s shaky breathing.

“I’m not gonna let anything happen to you,” Bucky finally breathed.

The words surprised him. He had no idea where they’d come from.

But they seemed to finally calm Y/N down.

“Why don’t you pack a few things, so you can stay at the tower for a few days?”

He half expected her to be stubborn and say she was fine, that he’d have to put up a fight to get her to go back home with him.

But Y/N just nodded numbly.

He nodded back and got up first so he could help her back onto her feet.

When he started to leave her bedroom to give her some privacy, she jumped forward.

“W-Where are you going?”

Bucky quickly turned around. “Don’t worry. I’m just going to be in the living room. I’m calling the police. Between your door and building’s front door, there’s enough evidence to prove that someone was trying to rob the building again.”

Y/N blinked at the him saying “again,” proving that he knew this had happened in her building recently.

She didn’t think Bucky ever paid her any attention. She was never offended by it. But he had just proved that he knew paid closer attention to her than she could’ve ever realized. 

20 minutes later, there was a knock at Y/N’s front door.

Bucky quickly answered to find two cops standing outside.

He answered all their questions, hoping he did a good enough job that they wouldn’t really need to talk to Y/N all that much.

“You live here?” One of them finally asked, realizing that his name wasn’t on the lease.

“No,” Bucky answered.

“It’s your girlfriend’s place?” They followed up.

“Uhhh…no. No, Y/N’s just a friend.” He felt awkward as he answered, but the cops didn’t seemed fazed by it.

Y/N finally came out of her room with a duffle bag.

The cops started asking her questions. Bucky stood guard, making sure they didn’t push her too hard or ask things the wrong way.

After seeing how shook up she was, he felt like he’d instantly turned into her personal body guard.

“Your landlord already called a locksmith to fix your door. He should be here in a few minutes. But you should take any valuables with you just to be safe.”

Y/N nodded.

When the cops turned to talk amongst each other and with the landlord, Y/N turned to Bucky.

“Can we go now?” She asked him meekly.

It was the first time she’d talked directly to him since he got there.

“Yeah, doll, we can go.” He ushered her out and, on instinct alone, put himself between her and the cops as they walked out.

Y/N was quiet on the drive back to the Tower.

Bucky had already texted Happy and Tony about what had happened. He assumed the whole team would know soon enough.

When they were in the lobby of the residential floor, Bucky shifted his weight awkwardly. He didn’t want to leave her yet.

This was the first time they’d ever been alone together and Bucky didn’t think he could go back to keeping his distance again.

“Uhh…Do you want me to show you where the guest suites are?” He asked as he scratched the back of his neck. But he knew that she knew.

She gave him a small, forced smirk. “No, I know where they are.”

He nodded.

“Hey, Bucky?”

“Yeah?”

“Would you want to just stay up and watch a movie or something? I don’t–I don’t think I can go to sleep any time soon?”

“Of course. I mean, yeah.” Bucky responded immediately.

“Let me just change into some sweats I packed. I’ll meet you in the TV room?”

“Y-Yeah. Sounds good.”

A few minutes later, Y/N joined him on the couch.

She asked him what he wanted to watch.

“Umm…I don’t-there aren’t a lot of movies that I’ve seen,” Bucky finally told her when she kept trying to figure out what he’d like. “Haven’t really tried to catch up on the whole pop culture thing like Steve has.”

“Oh…” Y/N muttered, realizing the mistake she made.

“Put on whatever you want. Really. I’m sure I’ll like it.”

Y/N clicked a few buttons and a quirky song started playing along with someone writing in a notebook.

“Almost Famous,” Y/N explained. “It’s one of my favorites. Always puts me in a good mood, no matter how terrible I feel. And this way, you’ll be able to get a crash course on the best bands ever.”

Bucky couldn’t help but smile at that.

The opening credits weren’t even over before Bucky felt Y/N looking over at him.

He turned to her.

“Thank you for…saving me tonight,” she told him slowly.

Her words were sincere, her eyes even more so.

“You don’t have to thank me, Y/N.”

“Figured you’d say that.” Then she seemed to be trying to work up the courage to say something else. “I’m…umm…I’m glad it was you.”

Bucky blinked at her small confession.

“Me too,” he finally agreed.

And then they both turned their attention back to the movie.

Halfway through, Bucky felt a weight fall onto his shoulder.

Y/N had fallen asleep, her body choosing Bucky as its pillow.

A soft and shy grin grew on his lips from the feeling and the sight of it.

Very carefully, he maneuvered her body so he could lift his arm around her and make it less uncomfortable for her.

She didn’t wake from the movement, only sighed and shifted a bit.

It wasn’t long after that Bucky fell asleep too.

——————————————

“Sam, I told you to leave ‘em alone,” Steve called out in a hushed tone.

“Not until I document this…”

Then Bucky felt the flash of a camera. His eyes snapped open to find Sam looking guilty with his phone pointed at Bucky and Y/N, who was still fast asleep.

“You have two seconds to get that phone out of my face,” Bucky warned in a growl.

He would’ve jumped up and snatched it himself, but he didn’t want to risk waking Y/N.

Sam winced and instantly fled.

Bucky glanced over at Steve, who gave him an apologetic look.

“Tony told us what happened. She OK?” He whispered.

Bucky shrugged. “She’s a little shaken, but I think she’ll be fine.”

“Well…at least you finally talked to her. Though I wish it didn’t have to be a break-in for it to happen.”

Bucky played the ignorant card. “What do you mean?”

Steve narrowed his eyes as if to say, ‘Don’t even try.’ “Bucky, give me some credit. I’m your best friend. No matter how discrete you are, I know when you have a crush.”

Bucky blushed and the looked down at Y/N.

What neither of the super soldiers knew was that Y/N heard Steve’s confession too. And she wasn’t about to let Bucky go back to ignoring her.

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

This request was put in ages ago. I’m trying to clean out my inbox. I have so many requests that are collecting dust. 

THIS DOES NOT MEAN MY REQUESTS ARE OPEN. THEY ARE NOT. 

Please don’t request things. And please don’t immediately request a second part to this. There is no second part. 

[moonlit-imagines]

Headcanons for being Tony Stark’s stepkid

Tony Stark x Potts!child!reader

warnings: alcohol mention

a/n: i rushed these so bad i just wanted to post dhhshsnsna

prompt: y/n is pepper’s kiddo!

it was just you and your mom for a long time

pepper and y/n potts

she couldn’t keep up with you sometimes, too busy dealing with the manchild that was mister anthony edward stark

speaking of—

“uh, who’s this?” -tony, pointing at you

“mr. stark, i am so sorry, the school closed because some kid set fire to the science lab and i didn’t have time to find a sitter—”

“no, it’s fine, no need to apologize. hey, kid, you wanna sit in the boss’s chair? i’ll let you run the company for the day!” *cue you nodding* “sweet, would you mind that, ms. potts?”

“oh? no, not at all” *mouthing* “thank you”

“so, uh, what’s your name? no, don’t tell me: ketchup.”

*giggling* “y/n”

“no way! that was my second guess!”

tony wasn’t used to being around kids

he had no idea that he was actually kind of good around them

despite a few minor hiccups

“you sit in my chair and im gonna spin you around, sound like fun?”

he spun you around WAY too fast and you were diiiiizzy, also you fell off the chair

“don’t tell your mom that we did that. she may be my assistant, but she scares the shit out of me. also, don’t say ‘shit’”

dude he just thought you were a cool kid!!!

“hey, you know, ms. potts, you dont really need to hire a babysitter anymore. y/n’s doing just fine hanging out here”

“how am i not surprised you befriended an actual child?”

she still took him up on his offer, you seemed pretty happy

when your mom worked late, you passed out in tonys office

tony and you had your own little secrets (like falling off the spinning chair), tony showed you around stark tower, and you practically lived there

“i got you a happy meal from mcdonalds!” -tony every day after your school

in all honesty, you weren’t the “popular” kid at school...not even close

but tony made up for it

“y/n! i found this old racecar toy in a box of old stuff, you wanna hold onto it for me?”

you kind of grew up in stark tower tbh? it was pretty cool

and as you grew up, you started to notice more

“mr. tony, do you have a crush on my mom?”

“do i what? no, no, i do—who the hell am i kidding? you caught me”

“called it!”

after that you did everything to try and get them together

when your mom was talking to tony, you would stand behind her and wiggle your eyebrows and just taunt tony endlessly

no! tony cannot remember your mom’s birthday for the life of him! you are his calendar now

“dude, why dont you just ask JARVIS to remind you?”

“i may be a genius, but that doesn’t mean i have common sense”

“wise words, sir” -JARVIS

when tony disappeared for 3 months you were so sad???? like you were not okay at all

no

and when he came back, he literally exited the plane saying “WHERE’S ‘T-POTT??’”

(your wonderful nickname. ‘t’ for ‘tony jr.’ and ‘pott’ for ‘potts’)

“my mom missed you”

“oh, i bet she did”

“you turned my child into you, tony. i will never forgive you for this”

“well, at least y/n was here to fill in for me, huh?”

tony wanted to show you the arc reactor but he was actually afraid of scarring you lmfaoooo

but he did let you in on the iron man secret (he knew you wouldn’t snitch)

and just to make sure:

“if you dont tell anyone, i’ll buy you a car when you turn 16”

“man, that’s like, forever away”

“good, maybe you’ll forget by then”

ur mom kinda maybe sorta found out abt iron man :/ she told you that tony was a bad influence

“mom! no, tony’s cool! he’s like a superhero”

“no, sweetie, he’s a rich guy with issues. we’re leaving”

that didn’t last long

not long at all

and soon they FINALLY got together

“jeez, i thought you two would never stop pining after each other”

“couldnt have done it without my wingman” -tony *fistbump*

“as thanks can i have my own iron man suit?”

“yes.” *pepper glaring at him* “no.”

sooner or later your mom and you moved into tony’s house and you got a really big room!!!!

it was completely decked out

king sized bed, flatscreen tv, mini-fridge, microwave, computer, your own bathroom with a smaller tv, a poster of tony??? (you vandalized it and put it in his workshop), and more!!!

okay you were spoiled

“do you like it here? are you sure i made the right choice?” -pepper

“are you kidding, mom? this is awesome! plus, you’re happy, i’m happy, tony’s happy, i think JARVIS is even happy!”

“i am, mx. potts. simply ecstatic” -JARVIS

pepper was really happy!! it was a pretty cool family

you started giving your school tony’s number if you ever got in trouble, you knew he’d cover for you

“mr. potts, is it?”

“sure”

“your child, y/n, punched another student in the face today. we’re very disappointed in their behavior”

“why’d they punch the kid?”

“well, the other student punched y/n first”

“HAH! thank you for wasting my time. send y/n back to class and call me back if something important comes up”

he literally gave you a high five when you got home

“i gave him a black eye!”

“i couldn’t be more proud. i mean, i dont condone violence, but self defense is a whole other story”

a little help in the workshop, tony asks you to hold the flashlight

“why don’t you get one of your robots to hold this for you?”

“are you kidding me, you’re complaining? we’re having stepdad/stepkid bonding time! and dum-e can’t do anything right, i dont trust him”

youve had a few theme park trips as a family ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

also tony has 100% told you to wait in the car and then left you alone for 2+ hours

“i’m not like a regular dad, im a step-dad. want some beer? you can have a little sip. i’d rather you do it in the house”

your mother actually does love how he actually cares about you!

“y/n is 12% my responsibility” -tony

“tony, you are impossible” -pepper

no avengering for you! pepper said no!!!!!!

disappointed but not surprised

iron man 3: y/n potts is put through the wringer

Text Message to Mr. Tony: bro you better come get your girl, me and happy are watching this other guy flirting with her. he’s showing her pics of his ‘big brain’

Mr. Tony: HE WHAT

Text Message to Mr. Tony: Tony he looks creepy i don’t want him to be my new stepdad do something!!!

anyways ur house kinda blew up and ur mom and you kinda got kidnapped and u were right abt that guy being creepy and thankfully no experiments were done on you but like your mom kinda almost died and her and tony were fine!!! all good in the end

you met mr. col. james rhodes that day

“aw, you’re the kid ive heard so much about” -rhodey

“you mean the coolest kid in the world?check.”

“you cant tell me you aren’t tony’s biological child, good god”

you got to meet the avengers later on too! (you’d already met natasha tho, only briefly)

“i know it can be a little overwhelming, right? meeting all these heros, legends even—” -rhodey

“oh, my god, is that thor? thor!!” -you, leaving rhodey in the dust

literally why does pepper trust you around tony something always goes wrong there were literally robots attacking, you were only at avengers tower bc your mom was busy with the company and she thought you’d be safe with the avengers. the AVENGERS.

“please dont tell your mom that i created a bad robot that tried to kill us. the robot will be the least of our problems” -tony

he made happy pick you up and you had to miss out on FUN and it sucked a lot

“it’s okay, y/n! i’m fun, too!” -happy

then your mom and tony took a break and your life got mega-boring for a while, but they weren’t separated for that long. you try not to think about it. it was brutal

Mr. Tony: Does she miss me?

New Message to Mr. Tony: I think so. Either that or she’s crying and drinking wine in the dark for no reason.

Mr. Tony: Damn it, now I feel bad. I miss her a lot. Oh, also, the Avengers say ‘hi,’ I’m in Germany with some bad news, I’ll explain later if you don’t see it on TV first, and I found you the perfect friend! His name is Peter and I think you’d like the school he goes to, it’s in Midtown. Smart kid school.

New Message to Mr. Tony: I’ll look into it, thanks. Also, I don’t like how those all connect. Please update me asap

watching the news to see several avengers arrested, cap on the run, and more!

“maybe it was good i didn’t fall in with the avengers”

tony and pepper finally got back together and you actually transferred to midtown high! peter and his friend group accepted you quickly, it was great. you and flash unfortunately had the most in common

you’d literally text happy right next to peter and he’d immediately reply to you. it hurt peter’s feelings

Momma: Sweetie! I’m working in the office late, leftovers are in the fridge, hope you have a wonderful day at school! 💕

👉👈the vulture tried to kill you for being tony’s stepkid, tony made peter promise to protect you

“y/n, you gotta stay out of harm’s way. mr. stark gave me an actual mission and it’s terrifying, i have to make sure you stay safe”

legit why the fuck was this old man tryna kill you bro grow up

anyyyywayssss your mom and tony got engaged!!

“wow, i thought the day would never come!!” -you

ppl told you tony isnt your stepdad bc ur mom and him werent married but who tf asked

why is the earth always in fucking danger

you and peter were just vibing on the field trip bus and all the sudden: space donut

“go! i’ll cover for you...FRIDAY, call tony”

“...hi there, little one”

“what the fuck”

“oh, so you see the aliens, too? well, at least im not crazy”

tony stark has left the atmosphere

you and your mom were kinda......not chillin tho

she and you didn’t sleep for a few nights, then ppl just straight up disappeared

plot twist: you survived the snap and your family was lucky to be alive, you even got a little sister who became a big handful!

only bad thing was all your friends dusted and you were pretty lonely

but watching morgan grow up kept you busy

“ahhh, shes so big!”

happy times in bad times

bad times!!!!! bc after five years thanos came back as thanos from like ten years ago. outdated thanos. obsolete thanos.

but you made your first and only appearance in the suit tony actually designed for you many years ago

you should have just stayed home tho bc that fight didnt pass the vibe check

“please dont tell me he...no, no, no, no, no”

you and your mom latched onto each other in tears, tony was one of the best people in your life, he made you and your mom two of the happiest people on earth

best stepdad a kid could ever ask for

taglist: @alwaysananglophile // @rorybutnotgilmore // @locke-writes // @sweetheartliz07 // @queen-destenie // @natasha-danvers // @lokihiddles // @frostedgiantfavs // @emygirl // @lotsoffandomrecs // @johnmurphyisbisexual // @teenwaywardasgardian // @pappydaddy // @captainshazamerica // @freya-xo // @ravenmoore14 // @purpleskiesstorm // @ofthedewthesunlight //

[queenofhearts7378]

Constellations Ch. 2

(Yes it finally has a title. Yes this is ending up multi chaptered. Yes there’s another part I’m writing. Yes I already have an outline for a vague plot....Yes I’m still blaming @ladylynse for this XD)

Prev. Chapter  -  Next Chapter

Danny was very much unprepared and underdressed for the time when some wizards fell out of his fireplace.

He paused in the doorway, spoon still in his mouth and cheeks full of cereal, as his brother stood up and brushed the soot off him with a displeased nose scrunch.

Danny swallowed. "And you couldn't just use the door?"

Honestly they're lucky his parents had left to chase down the Box Ghost earlier. Otherwise they'd be covered in a lot more than soot and ash.

Danny couldn't help the snort that escaped at the mental picture of Draco covered in ectoplasm and boiling in rage. 

Draco narrowed his eyes, seeming to pick up that Danny was making fun of him. "Using the Floo was quicker."

"....quicker than walking through the door."

"It's a wizard thing you wouldn't understand." Draco snapped back, his go to response whenever he couldn't argue against Danny's logic at the moment. 

"Uh huh. Anyways what are you doing here?" Danny asked, "You aren't supposed to be here for another two weeks."

Which was time previously planned for Draco to prepare for his summer in America while Danny finished school. Spend the two weeks after Hogwarts let out recuperating and making public appearances with his parents, then spend the rest of the summer with the Fentons.

Actually now that Danny was looking, it seemed Draco had come straight from school. His hair was lacking half its gel, he was still wearing his green tie, and his robes were a very boring black as opposed to the various greys and blues he flaunted around in the previous summer.

“Denebola, pleasure to finally make your acquaintance.” Drawled the man standing behind Draco.

“Hello creepy man that I have never met before,” Danny said, echoing his tone.

Draco choked on air as the discount Kylo Ren sneered at him.

“This is Professor Snape Danny.” A familiar please-don’t-say-anything-that-will-get-us-in-trouble tone coloring Draco’s words. “My godfather.”

Oh the potion guy. Danny remembers Draco talking about him now. He was friends with Draco’s parents, which didn’t really impress Danny that much as all of the Malfoy’s friends seemed to be really rich snobs or really racist. Mostly both.

But he was Draco’s godfather, the reason he got into potions, his favorite professor and someone Draco would willingly go to get advice from. So, Danny decided to reserve judgement till he met him. Well….he met him.

Danny looked Draco dead in the eyes, “My apologies.”

Draco closed his eyes in mortification, which made Danny grin internally. They were really getting the hang of the whole ‘speaking without talking to each other twin thing’. 

Professor Snape just scowled at him. “Where are the….muggles?" Disdain dripped off his words, instantly making Danny defensive. He had heard enough at Malfoy Manor about disgraceful, savage muggles from Lucius. Even Draco had echoed his father till Danny dragged him kicking and screaming into being a slightly decent person.

"My parents," Danny said, stressing the word, "Are working right now."

Okay maybe they were just being their usual trigger happy selves and running after Boxy, but there was no way he was telling Professor Snape that without it leading to an hour long discussion about ghosts. And Danny did not have time for that. He shoved a giant spoonful of cereal in his mouth as he met Professor Snape's eyes and-huh.

Draco never told Danny his godfather could read minds. He could feel the light brushes of a foreign mind attempting to gleam information from his surface thoughts. Danny didn't know if it was his wizard ancestry or halfa weirdness that made him sensitive to this kind of stuff. Either way, it was useful in keeping his secrets in his head from privacy invading school teachers.

Danny glowered at Snape and immediately thought of Rick Astley's Never Gonna Give You Up music video.

The two of them stared at each other for a minute, making Draco more and more anxious as no one said anything.

Finally Snape broke contact, "Where should his things go?"

Danny tried very hard not to smirk after winning that staring contest, "You can just leave them here, we'll get them later."

With one last displeased sneer, Snape turned to Draco. "I'm needed back at Hogwarts. I trust you are in good hands."

Draco nodded, still looking tense and anxious as hell.

Snape walked back to the fireplace. He paused next to Draco, "Take care of yourself Draco."

Draco softened under his glare, "I will Professor. Thank you."

Snape nodded and shot one more glare at Danny, who still had Rick Astley echoing in his head, before vanishing into the fireplace in a swirl of green fire.

Draco turned back to Danny and said, "You stress me out."

Danny snorted before walking back into the kitchen to put his bowl in the sink. Draco followed after him, looking at all the kitchen appliances with a barely hidden curious look.

"Something else we have in common."

"What are you wearing?" He asked with a nose scrunched in displeasure.

Danny shot him a look, "My pajamas, cause I just woke up. I haven't finished getting ready for school. You should probably change too."

"Why?"

Danny started for the stairs, Draco still following at his heels. "You can't wear robes to public school. I think you can fit in my jeans."

"What?!" Draco screeched, halting at the bottom of the stairs, "I'm not going to muggle school with you!"

"It's either that or stay here by yourself for hours." Danny said as he paused outside his room. Draco scrambled up after him. "Cause my parents won't be home for a couple more hours, after which you'll be alone with them till I get home."

Danny smirked at him, "My parents are going to be thrilled to see you, can you really handle their enthusiasm all by yourself?"

Draco could barely stand Danny showing various forms of physical affection, as proven last summer when Danny would throw an arm around Draco's shoulders and almost get hexed. And Ancients forbid Danny try to hug him. Draco might actually lose the wand and just punch him. Danny had spent most of their correspondence over the school year prepping Draco for the Fenton welcome wagon so he wouldn't hiss like a cat when he gets hugged. Okay, and maybe Danny just wanted to see his overdramatic brother's face as he is subjected to his parent's bear hugs. 

Draco scowled at him, "Fine. But I'm not wearing any jeans."

Draco stomped into Danny's room and slammed the door in his face. He heard the lock click as it was shut.

"Hey! I still gotta get dressed!" Danny banged on the door, "C'mon Drake it's still my room!"

Danny groaned before walking over to the bathroom. He phased through the wall and landed on the fire escape. It took a few minutes, but he eventually maneuvered to his window and slipped in.

Draco had dug into Danny's closet and pulled out the most dressy tux Danny owned and was in the middle of putting it on. 

"You are not wearing that."

Draco scowled at him, "It’s bad enough I'm lowering myself by going with you-”

“Lowering yourself?”

“-But,” he said loudly, “I absolutely refuse to wear common muggle wear. If I’m going to this school, I will not look anything less than my absolute best.”

Danny stared at him. “Drake you will be thrown into the dumpster if you wear that to my school. Let me just-”

Danny jumped on him, trying to remove the suit jacket from a struggling Draco. Draco shouted and tried to twist away, only for Danny to pull it over his head. Once Draco was out of sight, and swearing loudly at him, Danny subtly used his intangibility to yank it off him. And if he happened to remove all of Draco’s hair gel that he used to keep his hair slicked back….well, that would have gotten him thrown in a dumpster as well.

Danny tried not to laugh as Draco glared at him, his hair fluffed up and looking vaguely like an angry kitten. 

"Do you know how long it takes me to fix my hair? I have to completely redo it now! And how'd you get that off me?" He pointed at the jacket Danny was throwing back in his closet.

Danny grinned at him, "Magic."

Draco gave him a flat look.

"Anyway we've got to go, otherwise I'm gonna be late again, and get detention again, and you'll be forced to either walk home by yourself or stay at school with me."

Somehow Danny had managed to get dressed and drag Draco out the door with him, texting Sam and Tucker his plans to walk so they could meet up on the way.

"What is that?" Draco leaned over to squint at the phone in Danny's hand.

"My phone. I told you about it last summer."

Draco hummed, "I thought it was broken?"

"Yeah, cause your magic blew it up. My parents fixed it." Danny shoved his phone back in his pocket like Draco was about to blow it up again. "Now what happened?"

Draco shot him a glance, before letting his eyes flicker around them. "I did try to tell you muggle 'technology' and magic doesn't always go together."

"Drake, you know that's not what I mean." He said softly.

Draco was silent, his jaw clenched and his hands shaking before he shoved them in his pockets.

They walked in silence for a while.

"You'll get hurt."

Danny looked at him.

"I…." Draco sighed, "I've never…."

Danny waited silently for him to get the words out on his own, knowing that pushing him will only make him clam up.

"You aren't like us. And I don't mean that in any bad way!" He said quickly when he saw Danny's face. "But you know what my parents are like, and their friends are so much worse, and you're the first person I've ever had to worry about. I just want you to be safe."

Oh Ancients, that was a lot to unpack there. 

Danny had known something had happened during school. The two of them spent the school year exchanging letters, both of them wanting to stay in contact. Danny would tell him about his school, and his parents' antics, and explain random muggle technology to get Draco prepared for his summer with the Fentons.

Meanwhile, Draco had complained at length about Potter and a tournament and Potter being insufferable about a tournament. There was a furious letter about being turned into a ferret and how Potter and his friends keep bringing it up. Draco sent him about three feet of parchment around Christmas just making fun of Potter at a dance and how horrible he was. There was a lot about some famous Quidditch guy and then a lot about Potter’s friend stealing the famous Quidditch guy.

Draco complained about Potter a lot, okay?

But Draco never sent him a letter about the tournament results or if Potter got eaten by a bog witch or whatever it was he was hoping for the last task. He just showed up, two weeks early and clearly shaken about whatever it was that happened.

That isn’t a good sign at all. And Danny had eavesdropped enough last summer to get a decent idea as to what was going on.

“This is….this is about him isn’t it?”

Draco flinched, which was enough answer for him. Danny let out a breath.

“We can-we can talk about this later. I care about you too Drake, and I know your family is neck deep in this mess.” Danny bumped his shoulder, “You’re safe here, that’s why Narcissa sent you here right?”

Draco leaned against his brother’s shoulder, eyes still flitting across the street and his jaw clenched. “Yeah. We’re safe here.”