#hello! 500 years later i'm back!

[rebelquilled]

@sleetkissed

        "HUMAN PERCEPTION OF ART isn't what i would call profound usually." stated simply, accompanied by the shrug of her shoulders. "however, i attribute a lot of that in to the fact i don't understand human perception to begin with. art is a REFLECTION of these things. i may not be able to value you, but i'm not so blatantly shallow as to suggest it isn't art at all."

         attention was elsewhere, the response a dismissal from when her opinion had been requested. it was the nicest way she was going to offer that she didn't particularly care. if xayah were f u l l y open, she'd relent to the fact outside of dance, she wasn't much of the creative sort. rakan would have kinder perspective and offerings if he were present.

[cas-writes-genshin-stuff]

Their Pet

f!/nb! reader x Raiden Ei x Yae Miko

sub! reader / switch! Ei / switch Miko (no use of y/n) MDNI, Men DNI

basically, you get dommed by Ei and Miko (the reader is a munch and eats Ei out / Miko riding you / Ei using the strap on you)

CONTENT:

Word Count: 9,700

AFAB nonbinary reader, uses they/them pronouns (mostly androgynous, but slightly masc leaning)

reader is an Inu / Dog Youkai like Miko (has ears, no tail)

if you want to skip to the smut it's under three red lines (---) about halfway through. (smut is 4112 words long + like 1000 words of aftercare) (Smut Only Version)

smut (sad!sm/masoch!sm) (biting) (marking) (choking) (begging)(voyeur!sm) (oral) (straps) (riding) (masturbat!on) (safewords) (mention of collars) (mild overstim) (degradation) (praise) (denial) (aftercare)

(not really proofread, sorry. and also reposted because tumblr wasn't showing it under tags)

Masterlist Link

Ao3 Link

-

After the chaos that reigned the land 500 years ago, you had begun to travel around the world as an adventurer for a while, then upon returning to Inazuma and meeting the Traveler, you decided to help them with their commission

When you went with them up to the Grand Narukami Shrine, Yae Miko was surprised to see you. "Oh, hello little ones, Traveler, Paimon, and you. All this time I thought I was the last one and that you were lost along with all the other youkai"

Paimon and the Traveler were surprised. "You two know each other?" Paimon questioned

"You're also a youkai?" The Traveler added.

You scratched your head and sighed, "Haha, yeah... Yae Miko and I spent much time with the Ei, Makoto, and the other youkai back then. Sorry Traveler, I didn't mean to be deceiving"

Yae Miko scoffed "Ei and I thought you died then" she walked up to you "You've grown, still shorter than me though, that's surprising" She couldn't help but ruffle your ears "What have you been up to this whole time then?"

You looked at the Traveler "Well, after the war, I wanted a break so I started traveling all over. Recently, I joined the Adventurers Guild to help the people out with their missions and what not" A smile beamed from you, you couldn't wait to tell Miko of your travels

"Of course you were. I should've known" She chuckled

You tilted your head, and her words felt like they should've had a light insult at the end of them. Before you could ask what she meant by that she spoke again "Oh honestly, you couldn't have let someone know before you went on a centuries-long leave of absence?"

"Sorry, Miko... I-"

She interrupted "So for five hundred years, Ei locks herself in her own head, and you go on a wild adventure across the land like a stray dog. Children, you both act like children" She pressed her temples.

The Traveler gave you a dirty look. You put your hands up and mouthed sorry to them. And looked back at Miko, and decided that she could stand some light-hearted teasing.

"Sounds like you missed me."

"Did I say that?

-

Later, the next day Miko brought you to Tenshukaku to reunite with Ei. She had informed you that the Shogun was a puppet, and Ei took control when she wanted. When you entered, the Shogun sat emotionless, staring at you and Miko. "I've brought you an old friend Ei," Miko said as you both approached the Shogun. The moment Miko said EI's name, her stern look lessened.

"It's you" Ei stood up and walked up to you, an arm's length away. "I had thought you were lost like Makoto and the others."

"I'm sorry, I was wandering the lands of Teyvat for a long, long time" You bowed your head apologetically. "Guuji Yae had already chastised me for my lack of courtesy when I left" It was always a little surprising how you could go from rowdy to an eloquently worded individual.

You half expected Ei to be angry with you, instead, she placed a hand on your shoulder "We have much to catch up on then, don't we?"

"We have all of eternity to catch up" You reassured her, and then you fell to your knees, "I am loyal to the Shogun, the people of Inazuma, and my superior, Guuji Yae. Allow me to provide my services to you again"

Miko was surprised but amused at your demonstration of loyalty, and Ei was more glad to see you hadn't changed much either

-

Over the next few months, you remained steadfast in your promise to Ei and remained a member of the Adventurers Guild. But of course, you prioritized your service with Ei. During that time, you developed an especially close relationship with Miko and Ei.

Miko always had a knack for teasing, but Ei on the other hand was a bit different from when you last talked with her, as she also started to take much joy from teasing you too. They both greatly enjoyed getting a rise out of you, and spending time with them unfortunately meant that you took the brunt of their teasing.

So today, you decided to take a break, the guild had no immediate missions for you around Inazuma, so you chose to wait at the shrine for both of them. The shrine maidens said Miko had important business at her publishing house so you were left to wait patiently for them.

You waited on the stairs up to the shrine, hoping you'd catch Miko on her way up. The restlessness of waiting eventually got to you, and you climbed on top of the row of tori gates and started to hop from on top of each back and forth. After a while, you just sat on the gate, meditating with your legs crossed and eyes shut taking in the sounds of the wind and birds chirping away.

Finally, you heard the sound of heels clicking against the steps of the mountain. Your ears perked and your eyes opened to see who was approaching. Then you saw the pink-haired kitsune "Hey Miko"

"Get down from there, it's not very respectful of you to be sitting on those" She continued to walk past and under the gates. You hopped down and started trailing behind her.

"Need me to hold any of that?" You gestured at the stack of papers and books in her arms. She nodded and let you take half the stack. "What've you been up to today?"

She sighed, "Just meeting with the publishing team and hounding my writers about deadlines"

"Sounds like a drag" You sympathized with her

"It was"

You reached the top and Miko opened the door to a room in the shrine and made your way to her office. She pushed her door open with her elbow and stepped to the desk.

You shut the door and approached, putting down the stack of papers, then sitting across from her. "So what brings you here, you need something from me?"

"No, I'm just bored" You sighed and laid your head down on her desk.

She picked up a book from the stack and then set it aside. "No adventure to be had today?" Miko placed an elbow on the desk and rested her head in her hand looking at you.

"No, today is a day off. Plus last week's mission was exhausting. So many puzzles, and climbing, and fighting." Your voice was exasperated and tired. "I thought at least one of you wouldn't be busy today"

You heard Miko let out a light chuckle before she reached out her hand to pet you "Ever the impatient one." Her nails lightly combed through your hair and let yourself melt into the desk.

"Mm, are you done for the day?" You asked and she pulled her hand away, you lifted your head to look at her. "We could play that card game Karuta"

She sighed and leaned back in her chair then started rummaging through some draft stories "No, unfortunately, I'll be busy for the next two or three hours, Ei will be arriving sometime after that too"

You slumped in your seat and groaned, "Got anything for me to do then?"

She placed a light novel in front of you, "These have already been proofread for grammar errors, I just need to see how appealing the story would be to the general public so we know how many copies to print at the Publishing House"

"Okay, I don't mind that. Thanks" You took the unfurnished book and flipped to the first page.

"Good" Miko picked up the novel she was revising and took her pen out again.

You had gotten about halfway through the short book before it got inappropriate. You hadn't read such literature before, and this was a bit much. Miko heard your breath hitch in your throat, and she glanced up at you. You shifted uncomfortably in your chair, ears twitching. A familiar warmth in your stomach started to grow, and your cheeks felt like a flame. "Is everything okay?" Miko's voice pulled you out of the book world.

"You're a conniving fox Miko" You put the book down and crossed your arms.

"Am I now?" A corner of her lips lifted slightly.

"Yes." You were flustered and quiet, unlike Miko's consistently confident nature.

"Mmh, and you're a whiny dog" She tilted her head to the side "Well I did my job, you're no longer bored. It's what you asked me to do. Plus there wasn't much else I could have you could do" Miko said with a shrug, every sentence was laced with some sort of other meaning. She's said something similar when putting down you and Gorou.

The heat in your stomach and between your legs frustrated you, knowing you won't get any relief until later. You jerked forward, and your voice raised defensively slamming your hands down on the wooden desk "I didn't mean that-" "Now now, no need to get so worked up over it little one" Miko had that smug look on her face.

You folded your arms again "What makes a dog less than a fox, anyway, huh?"

Miko laughed "It's simple, your affinity for humans"

"That doesn't make sense, you also spend time hanging around people"

"Yes but after all this time, five hundred years without a master, you've clung to people. You've even joined the Adventurers Guild. Preferring to do things for others, and provide service and help without much in return"

You let out a scoff "So? That's not a bad thing"

Miko stood from her chair and walked around the desk to you, her hands lightly grazing your shoulders and the back of your neck "No, it isn't a bad thing. But in other words, dogs like you lack a lot of independence, without someone to guide you, you get lost and restless."

You let out a huff and then Miko leaned down to whisper in your ear "Tell me, did you find it hard being a stray out there without a master for a couple decades?" Her breath was hot on your ear and her hand snaked around your neck "With no one to direct your energy and skills were you more like a needy puppy or a wild beast?"

You refused to answer, afraid that what you would say would give her more ammunition. Though you'd rarely admit it, she was right. You enjoyed having Miko or Ei tell you what to do, and how to do it. It was true that without someone to take command, you were directionless. You drew more power when someone was there to guide and hone it.

You mumbled "Shut up..."

Miko's grip tightened around your neck, not restricting your air, but enough to fan the flames inside you. "You know I don't take kindly to disrespectful mouths"

"I'm sorry Miko" She let you turn your head to her "Forgive me"

"Not good enough, little one" She let go of your neck "On your knees, show me how sorry you are, and I'll consider going easier on you later" Since she saw your demonstration of devotion, she took a liking to you beneath her.

You slipped off your chair and down onto your knees. She put her hand out for you face down, and you took her hand into yours and repeated "I'm sorry, Miko" You kissed her hand gently "Please, forgive me" Your ears tilted down. She was being a lot more strict today.

A sadistic smile crept onto her face, she could tell you enjoyed this almost as much as she was.

A knock at the door made you jump, and as you were about to stand back up, Miko took her hand and put her pointer finger up in your face, a silent command for you to stay where you were.

"It's Ei" The voice outside said.

You looked at the door and then back at Miko, whose eyes remained locked on you as she said "Come in" You immediately looked down at your knees when you heard the door open, face painted completely red in embarrassment.

"Ei, you're a bit early, did everything go during your meeting with the Kujou Clan?" Miko asked her.

"It went fine, although I am still deciding on an appropriate punishment for the Kujou Clan. On other matters, what is going on here?" Ei asked, and you sunk your head further down towards your lap.

Miko took her hand under your chin and lifted it up "Oh, just ensuring our little pet here knows their place when it comes to their badly behaved mouth" She looked back down at you "Go on, greet your god"

"Hey Ei.." you stuttered a little bit. Kneeling before the two made your heart pound fast.

"Oh, you two" She strode towards you and Miko "I can never tell when it was you being a disobedient dog, or you provoking them. Which one was it this time?" Ei looked down at you giving you a chance to explain this situation. You glanced between Ei and Miko. Miko had an eyebrow raised wondering if you were going to try to throw her under the bus. While Ei, just looked at you sympathetically, she knew Miko could be a bit cruel with these things, she had been on the end of Miko's wrath before too.

"I-" You looked back down into your lap, "I said something disrespectful, I'm sorry"

Ei didn't believe that was the whole story and side-eyed Miko who shrugged. "Miko, don't be too mean to them. They've done nothing but help you and me." Ei defended you. It would be a surprise to others that Ei was a much more benevolent and forgiving person than Miko when it came to these things.

Ei stepped closer to Miko and wrapped her arms around Miko's waist affectionately, "Were you mean to our poor pet while I was away?" Miko's face was now slightly pink.

"Only a little more than normal, but I don't think the little one minded" Miko said before leaning in for a kiss while you watched. They both knew it drove you crazy sometimes.

When they separated Ei still held one arm around Miko, turning to you. "Come on," Ei put her hand out for you to take, helping you up from your knees.

When you stood you kissed the back of her hand, like you did to Miko. "Thank you"

Ei just smiled warmly at you "Would you both like to take a stroll? I found something I'd like to show you"

"Sure thing"

"Let me just put some stuff away first" Miko pulled away from Ei and moved to her desk to organize some things.

-

Miko went to tell a shrine maiden to prepare the private dining room for the three of you. You all started to take a walk down the side of the Mt. Yougou, there were very few people passing by you.

Ei and Miko were walking side by side while you walked a few steps in front of them. "You're also here earlier than I'd thought. Was there nothing that the Adventurers Guild needed from you today?" Ei asked.

"Yeah," You nodded "Gods, I was so bored. I waited around for Miko forever"

Your statement earned a laugh from Miko "My, you've lived for centuries and you call a few hours 'forever', how childish"

You stuffed your hands in your pockets, and spoke with a pout "We've all been separated for centuries, if I have the chance to be around, I'll be there. Is it so bad that I missed you two and the people from our time?" You looked over your shoulder to see their faces. You knew they appreciated the sentiment.

"Still charming as ever, aren't you?"

Ei nodded in agreement "That was a sweet answer, I'll give you that" You grinned at their replies and turned your head forward again.

"Assuming you guys are all done for today..." Your voice trailed off. You pausing for a moment "Would you like to play some Karuta or spar or whatever?" You took your pouch of water from your belt and drank a few gulps

"I was thinking we could play something else together for the night" You choked on your water. Ei's teasing didn't need to be long lengthy sentences like Miko's, her slightly suggestive tone was enough.While you coughed, you could hear the both of them giggling behind you. You wiped your mouth of the water and you were glad they couldn't see your face.

Halfway down the mountain, you could see some monsters down at the bottom. "What a nuisance," Ei said. Miko hummed annoyedly in agreement. "Do you mind taking care of that for us?"

Before Ei could finish her sentence, you stopped and turned quickly, then pulled your sword out and bowed your head curtly "Of course" You quickly started jumping down the stairs, you tripped and almost fell head first. When you caught yourself, you turned over your shoulder giving a small thumbs up, then jogged down the rest of the way.

"Honestly, we should put a leash on them" Miko jested, she looked at Ei when she didn't respond to her joke. Ei looked deep in thought. "Oh my gosh, you're actually considering it. Hahaha," Miko laughed until she was breathless, leaning on Ei who now had a red face. "Oh, Ei. You're too much sometimes"

You were again in their sights, they saw you down there fighting the hilichurls, and mitachurls. "It would just be of assistance when they're starting to get in over their head" Ei was trying to get the blush off her.

"That's rich coming from you Ei, you're always doing things in over your head as well" She nudged Ei teasingly with her elbow. "Plus what would the public say about having the little youkai on a leash?"

They kept their eyes trained on you as you slashed the monsters with your sword. You were trying to clear the path for them as fast as you could, putting in as much effort as possible. It would've gone much faster if at least one of them helped you. While you kicked and slashed viciously, little cracks of lightning could be heard being summoned from your fight, Miko tsked at your frenzied fighting "On the other hand, a leash might be a good idea"

By the time they made it to the bottom of the mountainside, the path was cleared, and Ei and Miko were arm in arm. You walked back to them breathing deeply. "Ah, that was great!" You stretched your arms out and put your sword away, you also took great pride in acting as their bodyguard.

"Do you have to be so brash? You almost went tumbling down the mountain side" Miko scolded you. You looked at Ei, to see if she'd support you again. "You could stand to be a little more tactful. We will still have to work on your manners as my chamberlain."

You rolled your eyes and sighed, "Okay, okay, fine." Then you took your place walking on the other side of Ei. Along the trail, the three of you enjoyed the silence, taking your time on the walk. The wind picked up a bit, and the cold air felt nice brushing against your skin after the light fight. You lifted your head up closing your eyes, breathing it all in, trusting your other senses to keep you from tripping over something. You felt Ei's soft hand against your upper back, moving up to scratch the back of your head.

You squinted your eyes open and saw how much Ei enjoyed giving you affection, Miko noticed this and rested her head against Ei's, it was a silent request for Ei to also give her affection. Miko would never beg for Ei's attention in public, but this way she could save her pride.

Ei let out a small breath akin to a light laugh and took the hand from your head to scratch Miko between her ears and Miko looked content. In domestic moments like this, everything felt at peace.

"We're almost there" Ei let us know as we approached a short tree. Ei let go of Miko's arm and approached a little nest, she crooked her finger and you came by her side again. You saw a cute little baby bird.

"Miko don't even think about doing anything shady" Ei gave her a look.

"I didn't kill that little bird, I just scared it off I promise. Though the look on your face was priceless" Miko said as she looked into the nest as well.

Miko had told you that since Ei went on that outing with the Traveler, she was more appreciative of things like this. You, however always had an affinity for tiny things. While you and Ei were doting on this little bird, Miko enjoyed observing your faces.

In a minute, Ei signaled for you to step back. The sun had started to set. "You've grown so fond of mortal beings Ei" Miko hooked her arm with Ei again "I never thought I'd see the day"

You got close to Ei and tapped her hand, there was no one really out anymore since you were close to the mountain, and it was getting dark but Ei looked around first before holding your hand. No one necessarily batted an eye when Ei and Miko were holding onto each other. Many now knew that Miko was her familiar, but you were new. None of you wanted any rumors to start, it sounded like a pain to deal with.

Your thumb rubbed Ei's hand affectionately, Ei squeezed your hand back.

-

After you got back to the shrine, and followed to Miko's room. You relaxed knowing no one would come toward this area without their Guuji's direct permission, so none of you were worried about a shrine maiden walking in. You started taking off all your gear, placing your gear and belt in the corner of the room. You all went to dress down to something more comfortable. When you stripped off your pants, you noticed a blood stain below where your knee would be, and then looked down at a rug burn scrape "Miko, do you know where I can get this cleaned off?"

She just rolled her eyes. "I'll have it fixed by tomorrow at noon. Meet me for dinner in ten minutes." She took it from your hands.

As she walked out you yelled "Thanks Miko"

You rinsed off, cleaned your wound, changed into a comfortable sleeveless t-shirt and boxer shorts, and started folding your clothes. While you were bent down, you felt Ei hug you from behind. "Ei?" She let you go and opened the door.

It was time to head to the dining room "Come along now" You followed behind her obediently.

On the low table, there were already, various sweets in the center, a bottle of sake, a teapot, and cups. One side of the table had a plate of sashimi. Miko walked in with her own plate of fried tofu.

You sat across from Miko with your legs criss-crossed, while they kneeled on the cushions. "Let's eat" You pressed your palms together, and they followed suit. You picked up the chopsticks and dipped the fish into the soy sauce, Ei was just eating the dango from the middle of the table and Miko looked especially happy placing each bite of tofu into her mouth.

The conversation was mostly just talking about the tasks for the next week. "I'll need your assistance as an escort when I meet with some diplomats from Liyue and Mondstadt in three days. We are to discuss terms of trade regulations. I have some rules outlined to protect the local businesses of Inazuma."

"Got it, what time should I be there?" You quickly agreed to her request.

"Ideally, the day before, since they will be arriving in Ritou early. I'd like you to be at Ritou when the ship arrives." She explained.

You got a little worried about how busy she was "You're still going to watch the fireworks with us the day after right?"

"Of course, I specifically planned this month with multiple days off, since you and Miko hounded me on it" Ei reassured you.

You had almost finished your plate when Ei told you off a little "Close your mouth when you chew," You immediately started doing as she said.

"Sorry"

"And again, be careful, you're always brainlessly jumping into fights, it's rather brutish" Ei continued to chastise you.

"Ugh, why does it matter? I can't die that easily" When it came to fighting, you didn't see why anything else mattered besides completing the task at hand.

Ei let out a sigh, "It's not so much about you dying but more about disorderly conduct. I can't have you acting untamed out there, what would they say about the Shogunate?"

"I know how to behave, there was no one really out there to witness that fight beside you two"

"We did just joke about putting you on a leash a little while ago" Miko leaned forward. The thought of it made you red in the face again, but you all weren't too keen on showing the nature of your relationship.

"Hush Miko. Don't scare them" Ei said.

"So, what? Look at them they clearly entertain the idea to some extent. How naughty"

Ei glanced at you, "Do you, little one?"

"I'm not engaging with this whole thing, it has trap written all over it" You turned your nose up.

Miko fake pouted "Now, that's no fun. You must be at least curious of what it'd be like in the bedroom"

"Oh, I'm sorry come here, is she being too mean to you?" Ei sounded sincere, but her face showed you otherwise.

"Hmph" Ignoring Ei, you grabbed the bottle of sake and filled your cup, downing it all in a couple of gulps, then poured another.

"Drinking isn't going to hide what you really want," Miko said after she sipped her tea, and then you downed your cup again. "Would you like it if I forced you to wear one?"

When you didn't reply, Miko reworded her question "How about this. Say the safeword if you don't want us to do that, or stay silent if you're open to the idea" You just cleared your throat and kept drinking the sake in front of you. The kitsune just grinned bearing her teeth "See, good pet. That can be arranged"

Ei was entertained enough by the banter unfolding and kept drinking her dango milk.

"Jeez Miko, you've been mean to me nonstop today" You rested an elbow on the table

"Did you mind?" Miko questioned.

The cup was again at your lips, and before you took another gulp you quietly said "No"

"Then I don't see why you make a fuss about it each time"

You sneered back"To protect some of the sanity I have left, when I'm around you"

"Is it your sanity or your pride? It's all the same anyway, by the time you're in the bedroom you're quick to obey us"

"Whatever" You murmured. "Why don't you guys join in on this sake?" Trying to switch the topic.

---

The entire bottle of sake was gone by the time you all got up to return to Miko's room. You had drank about half but you were only buzzed, not tipsy, or drunk. Unfortunately, it took a lot more to get a Youkai drunk. Miko told you to grab a pitcher of water and cups to bring back to her room, Ei opened the door for you, and you placed the water on the side table.

As soon as that door closed, they both pounced on you. Ei grabbed you by the front of your shirt collar pulling your face to hers, tilting your head up. Even without them wearing heels, they were still much taller than you. Miko wrapped her arms around your waist and started to pepper kisses along the side of your neck.

"You're so fun to toy with, little one" Miko's warm breath wafted over the skin on your neck, and then you felt her bite down on you, enough to hurt, but not to draw blood. You whined into Ei's mouth.

Ei pulled away with a gentle bite to your lip and let go of your shirt. You felt Miko pull your shirt to the side, exposing your shoulder. "Miko.." She kissed your shoulder and pressed her body against you before biting down hard. You felt her sharp canines sink into you, pulling a cry from your throat. "Ah!"

Ei slipped her pants off and sat on the edge of the bed "Does the pain feel good?"

Miko licked the wound she inflicted on you. "Y-yes," You groaned eyes closed as you succumbed to their will.

"Take your shirt off" Ei commanded. Miko left a soothing kiss against your shoulder, before letting go of you to sit next to Ei on the bed, her hand placed on Ei's thigh. You quickly pulled your shirt off and tossed it onto the ground leaving you only in your boxers. "Good pet, come here"

You fell to your knees once more before the both of them. Miko cupped Ei's face grabbing the archon's attention. "I want a kiss too, Ei" They both gave you another glance before giving you a show. Miko pulled Ei to her lips with one hand as the other drifted up her thigh.

You watched them, hoping they would let you join in quicker. Miko's hand eventually pressed against Ei's center and let out a quiet noise. You kept your eyes trained on her hand that now moved to the top of Ei's underwear slipping beneath, touching her clit directly. Ei gasped and moaned breaking the kiss.

The bite on your shoulder felt warm and the scene unfolding before you made that dull ache between your legs grow more uncomfortable. The sounds Ei made, went straight to your clit.

Miko pushed Ei's head to rest on her shoulder as she touched her, then took her hand to lift Ei's shirt so you could have a better view. Miko saw the pleading look you had and smirked when you squeezed your thighs together trying to get a little relief.

"Miko, Miko, please" Ei moaned out.

The kitsune teased "Please what, Ei?"

"Inside, I want your fingers inside," Ei said quietly breathing heavily. Miko did as she asked and slid her fingers inside Ei, curling them against her G-spot making Ei moan a bit louder. "Fuck-"

"Oh, Ei, what would people think if they heard such a word come out of their god's mouth?" Ei didn't respond verbally, but she spread her legs wider. Miko looked back at you. "Mm, so good for me" You weren't exactly sure if those words were for Ei or for you.

In your head, you were wishing that Miko was touching you, or that you were giving Ei the pleasure. Either way, you were the puppy silently begging at their feet to join in.

As Ei drew closer to her orgasm, her moans and breathing got more erratic, and she gripped Miko's shirt. "Ah- fuck Miko, Miko, Miko." Ei's voice got loud as she was on the edge, about to tip over. You let out an audible whine and Miko smirked. Right before Ei came crashing over, Miko stopped and slipped her hand out. "W-why did you stop?"

Miko moved behind Ei, supporting her so she would stay upright, then pulled Ei's panties to the side "Come closer, puppy" You moved between Ei's legs. "Please your goddess"

You wasted no time to press your tongue against Ei's clit, "Oh, my-" One of Ei's hands gripped the sheets of the bed and her head fell back against Miko. You lapped at her pussy eagerly, trying to build her orgasm again, you liked watching how she was coming undone.

When you sucked on the sensitive bud, Ei's other hand went to grip your hair, pushing your head closer "Harder, please" You obliged, of course, earning more moans from your god.

You decided to slide your fingers through Ei's wetness before sinking two fingers inside like Miko did and Ei moaned out loudly, as she tightened her grip on your hair. The pain from the pulling made you audibly whine into her pussy. "Look at them, they're having so much fun pleasing you Ei" Miko said into her ear. Ei looked down at you, eyes half-lidded, and her face was blissed out. "Are they making you feel good?"

"Yes, fuck- yes. Don't stop" Ei's voice was shaky. You wouldn't dare to stop, not now, not while she was writhing and moaning at your hands. Ei started to arch her back, pushing her hips into your face, so you kept your fingers and tongue at a steady pace. "M close!" She threw her head back again.

Miko nipped at her ear "It's okay Ei, come for us" Ei's body went taut as her orgasm ravaged through her body, moaning out your name and Miko's name. You kept at it while she rode through her orgasm. "Good girl" Miko praised her lover. You slowed your movements as Ei's back and thighs relaxed, and she let go of your hair. As you removed your fingers you kissed her clit and Ei let out a small whine. Miko fixed her underwear and kissed Ei's forehead. Then looked back at you, while you licked off the fingers that were once inside Ei, and wiped off your face.

While Ei was recovering from her high, you rested your head against her lap and the hand that gripped you now slowly pet your head. "Did I do a good job?" You asked, although you knew you did exceptionally well, you wanted to hear the praise again.

"So good, baby," Ei said as she ruffled your hair a little more.

After a couple of minutes, Ei finally sat up and you moved off her lap so she could stand. Ei then turned to look at Miko "It's your turn now love, take your pants and underwear off" Ei said and leaned down to kiss Miko quickly.

Miko moved closer to the edge of the bed, while Ei rummaged around in a drawer. "You look like you enjoyed yourself,"

"Mhm" You nodded, you definitely wanted to do that again. She made a come hither motion with her finger and you moved up so she could kiss you. Miko could taste Ei on your lips.

After breaking the kiss she asked, "Do you wanna take these off for me?" She lifted her shirt and you hooked your fingers underneath the hem of her pants and underwear, pulling them off in one motion, and throwing them to the side. You could see how wet Miko had gotten, your mouth watered at the prospect of pleasing Miko with your mouth.

Ei had taken out two harnesses, and she left one on the bedside drawer but walked back over to you with the other harness in hand. "Take those off, and put this on" Ei helped you up and handed you the strap. "How are your knees feeling, love?"

Your knees ached a little from being on your knees for a while. "A little sore, but they're okay"

"Okay, then we'll do something a little different first" You gave her a bit of a sideways look, wondering what she meant. You were a little hesitant to take your boxers off but did so anyway, adjusting the strap to your hips, while Ei decided to take Miko's shirt off too. Part of you relaxed knowing you wouldn't be the only one completely naked.

"Okay, now just lay down and wait a little longer," Ei said to you. You crawled onto the bed and laid down in the center comfortably. "Miko, kneel on the bed for me. Face them." Ei instructed her lover as she went to take off Miko's earrings, without something to weigh them down, Miko's ears lifted.

"Now what?" Miko asked.

Ei took Miko's right hand and guided it between her legs. "Touch yourself for me."

"Wh-" Miko was about to say something, but Ei raised an eyebrow and she stopped. It was a rare sight to see Miko act hesitantly like that, and you enjoyed every second of it. She only acted like that when Ei was in control. "Okay"

You watched Ei move behind the kitsune. Miko spread her legs wider and started circling her clit. Her hips bucked a little bit into her hand, and as soon as the little moans escaped her throat, Miko covered her mouth.

"Now, now, none of that Miko. I want to hear you" Ei teased while moving Miko's hand placing it in front of her, palm against the sheets. Miko tried giving her best glare but it only made Ei chuckle. "Faster now,"

Miko changed her movement from circling her clit to thrumming against it sideways, she tried keeping quiet, but loud moans still made it through.

Ei's left hand reached around Miko to play with her nipples. "Good girl, Miko" Ei rested her chin on Miko's shoulder and continued to toy with her. "Is it embarrassing to touch yourself in front of us?"

"F-fuck you," Miko tried to retort.

Ei just hummed and pinched her nipple hard, causing Miko to yelp "That's not very nice Miko. Try again" You watched Miko's hand move faster, some of her wetness was dripping down her thighs.

"Ye- yes" Miko's voice faltered and her ears drooped down.

Ei moved her right hand down between Miko's legs, fingers placed at her entrance. "Yes, what?"

Miko didn't answer right away, moans getting in the way of her words "Yes, it's embarrassing"

"See, was that so hard?" Ei rewarded her by pushing her fingers inside Miko.

Miko clenched her fist around the sheets. "Shit- ah. Ei!" Miko got a lot louder than Ei did earlier. God, you loved watching Miko get the same treatment she gave everyone else.

Ei egged her on "Oh my, you're so loud now, are you close already?" Ei's fingers moved faster.

"Yes! Ei, p-please keep going!" Miko's legs were trembling already.

Ei pulled her fingers out and had this devilish smirk on her. "Mm, not so fast, love" She took the hand that was toying with Miko's chest to pull Miko's hand away from her clit.

She was panting "Ei," She whined out her name "That's not- that's not fair"

"Patience, Miko. In due time, love" Ei's voice was sultry in her ear. Miko just let out a frustrated groan. Ei showed Miko the fingers that were inside her just a second ago, then pressed them against her lips. Miko opened her mouth and licked Ei's fingers clean while avoiding eye contact with you "I want you to come riding them"

Ei looked at you and pointed at a bottle that you presumed had lube in it. You grabbed it a little uncertainly, but Ei nodded, so you spilled some onto the toy and used your hand to spread it over evenly.

Ei pulled her fingers out of Miko's mouth. "Come on, Miko. They're waiting" Ei chose a slightly bigger toy than normal and Miko looked back at Ei hesitating momentarily.

Miko moved to you and positioned herself over your hips, still avoiding direct eye contact with you. You held the toy by the base, to help guide it in. "It's okay, Miko" You tried to make her feel a bit better. She finally looked you in the eyes but only to glare. But you just gave her a sheepish grin.

Miko finally started to let her hips move down and let out a deep breath as the tip slid in. When the toy was about halfway in, Miko whined at how big it was and paused. Ei moved behind her again, and kissed her shoulder blade "It's okay, you can do it Miko" Ei comforted her familiar, her hands carressing Miko's waist.

You proceeded to rest your hands on either side of Miko's waist "Fucking god-" Miko's eyes were shut tight, holding her breath You felt your stomach flutter each time Miko gasped as she sank a little further down.

You watched intently as Miko took the last few centimeters, seeing the toy completely inside your hips now flush against each other. You rubbed soothing circles with your thumb into her hip. Miko's weight pressed the harness into your clit, you were a lot more sensitive than you thought. She took a minute to adjust to the size before trying to move. "Take it slow," Ei was trying to soothe Miko from the pain of stretching around the strap with kisses across her shoulder and back.

Miko hissed back "I know" She started to grind against the strap and repeated again but softer "I-I know" You were resisting the urge to thrust up into her, but the friction of her grinding against you made it hard to resist. As Miko started to rock her hips faster, it brought some relief to the throbbing ache in your clit and you started to breathe heavily in and out of your mouth. Miko's movements transitioned slowly from grinding to moving up and down your strap, her panting turning into lewd moans.

You didn't want to thrust into her and accidentally hurt her so you opted to beg instead. "Miko, please go faster" your voice was breathy.

Miko leaned her upper body forward, placing her hands on either side of your head on the pillow, supporting herself to stay upright. "God, you're so fucking needy" Her tone was condescending but her voice was shaky and filled with pleasure.

Miko started to bounce on the toy faster, and you groaned still wanting more friction against your core, the urge to move your hips in rhythm with hers was unbearable. So you just tightened the grip you had on her hips. You could feel the wetness of your pussy leaking down onto the sheets.

You kept flicking your eyes from Miko's blissed-out face to the wet, obscene sounds of her pussy getting fucked. When she was moving at a quick speed, you couldn't help but slam her hips down to the hilt of your strap. Ei reveled in watching her two needy playthings desperately seek out more pleasure

"Fuck-!" Miko cried out your name. "More" She choked out. You started to push your hips into her, hands still firmly holding Miko's waist. When Miko would slide down, you would thrust up into her roughly, you couldn't stop the sounds from your throat now.

"A-am I going too rough?" You asked tentatively.

Miko growled "No, shit- it's good" Her sentence was barely coherent, and she placed one of her palms against your chest harshly, the weight of her leaning on you was her way of showing she was still in control of you. "Now, shut it and keep going"

You and Miko were so absorbed in the pleasure of one another, that neither of you noticed when Ei got up from the bed to put on the other harness.

Miko closed her eyes "Baby, you're so good. So so good" she said as she approached her orgasm. You were ashamed to admit it but, you had the same tension built just from her riding you.

The pressure of her hand made it a tad hard to breathe "Ah-Miko- I think I'm close" Fucking your hips into Miko wasn't just about her pleasure anymore, you were selfishly doing anything that gave your sensitive bud more pleasure.

Miko's breathing and sounds became more inconsistent. You wanted her to look at you while she came "Wait, Miko, l-look at me," You tried to keep your pace so Miko could finish first, but every inch of your body felt like it was on fire, and with your clit throbbing, you could barely hold on.

She opened her eyes half-lidded. Her sharp nails dug into the pillow, and then she suddenly let out a sharp cry. Sobbing out your name over and over. You didn't last much longer, seconds after Miko tipped over the edge, you felt the heat in your body explode like a firework. The both of you were just whining and chanting the other's name.

Miko let herself fall forward your lips crashing together, moaning into your mouth as you both rode out together. Your orgasm lasted a little longer than normal, you were still bucking your hips into Miko after her orgasm had already ended. She pulled away from your lips "Wait calm down I'm sensitive!" She told you.

You finally rested your hips down against the bed, and Miko collapsed on top of you, strap still inside her. You wrapped your arms around Miko hugging her, your heart was still rapidly beating.

The bed dipped as Ei went to sit next to you both again, she was rubbing Miko's back "You are both so amusing when you're needy" Ei let you have a long moment to recuperate.

Miko sat up carefully, and slowly raised her hips up and off the toy, you were prideful when you saw the entire toy and the front of the harness drenched. Miko then moved to lie next to you, partially slumped against the headboard, after all, riding you tired her out a great deal.

You refocused your attention on Ei, who was now wearing the other strap she had put aside earlier. "Are you up for round two, baby? We don't need to if you're too tired already, but I'd like to give you attention too." You still felt the post-high throbbing in your legs and clit.

"No, no, I'm okay. I want to" You sat up and before you could start loosening the straps of the harness, Ei was already doing it for you, pulling it off you, and setting it aside.

"You're such a good pet, pleasing us" Ei loved to praise when she could. "Sweet puppy, was so patient waiting for your turn" You looked to the side timidly, and Ei placed her hand under your chin, making you look her in the eyes and repeated "You did so good" Her words made you putty in her hands.

"On all fours, over Miko" You moved, to the position Ei told you. Miko's legs separated your knees, and you put your forearms down against the bed.

"Hello, again little one" Miko had already regained her composure after riding you. You sunk your head down to give Miko a quick kiss. "Still need more hm, you're insatiable sometimes"

"I would've been okay with just pleasing you both. I have fun doing that too. And I did already come" You replied. You couldn't see, but you felt Ei shifting behind you.

Miko chuckled "How generous of you. So you call grinding into me wildly just for me?"

"I-" She got you there "It felt good"

Ei interrupted Miko's teasing "Do you need my fingers first?" She ran a finger through your slit, surprising you.

"No, I'm okay I think," You said weakly.

"Excited aren't you" Ei placed her hands on your hips and let the strap move through your wetness. The toy grazed over your clit and you let out a needy whine. Miko just smirked at your reactions, and you shut your eyes.

She positioned herself at the entrance of your cunt and Ei pushed the tip in slowly, and you breathed deeply. "Gentle please, I just came" Ei let a quiet laugh slip out, as she pushed deeper inside, feeling it stretching your walls.

When it pressed against your G-spot you gasped and followed it with a groan. By the time Ei was completely inside, you felt full. It wasn't the biggest thing you've taken, but it still made your arousal drip down your thighs. "Are you okay?" Initially, Ei was always careful when using the strap, and let you get used to it inside. But you just wanted her to start moving already.

"Yes" You replied, and Ei took this as her cue to move. She pulled back and pushed in slowly. Fuck, you asked for her to go gentle but now you just wanted her to take you. She continued pulling in and out at a slow and steady pace for a minute, and then you begged "Ei, faster" Your voice was barely above a whisper.

Ei started to go faster for you, and your quiet sounds turned into loud moans filled with pleasure. Since your eyes were closed you didn't notice when Miko moved her hand until you felt her circle your clit. "Ah!" you cried, the sound seemed to echo through the room. You shot your eyes open to see Miko's devilish smirk under you.

You involuntarily moved your hips forward so Miko would press your clit harder, but Ei pulled your hips back "No moving little one". Miko smacked your clit lightly and you yelped, knowing that you would buck your hips once more. Ei slapped your ass making you yelp again, and pulled your hips back "I said stay still, baby"

You were stuck between wanting to push your hips back into Ei to make her go harder and wanting to grind against Miko's hand, but you tried your hardest to listen and not move. "Ha- harder" You begged again.

"Oh? I thought you said you wanted it gentle today" Ei put more power behind her movements, and your moans got higher and became more frequent. "Needy puppy, I guess it can't be helped." Every time the toy hit that spot inside you, every stroke against your clit sent waves of pleasure throughout your body. The closer you got to your second orgasm, the louder you were.

Miko taunted you "Try to quiet down little one, you don't want everyone to hear you" After saying that she rubbed your clit faster, in all honesty, part of Miko wanted you to embarrass yourself like that.

You let your upper half fall into Miko but kept your hips still, resting your head between the crook of Miko's neck, your back now arched. You pressed your mouth against her shoulder, trying to muffle your increasing volume. Miko took this opportunity to bite around the same spot she did earlier, but without breaking your skin open like last time.

Ei placed a hand in the middle of your arched back "Poor puppy, is it too much?" her tone wasn't remorseful at all, but the fake sympathy fueled the fire and you pushed your hips back into Ei, thankfully she allowed it, but she went ahead and started pounding your cunt harder.

Each sensation and each word said to tease you built that tension inside you, like a rubberband about to snap. You moved your head to uncover your mouth "Ah- shit, I-" You couldn't articulate a single sentence, let alone enunciate a word without a moan breaking it up.

"Pathetic pet can't speak, try again" Ei ridiculed.

You finally screamed out "Close!"

Ei stayed consistent with her movements, but the moment Miko thrummed her fingers faster against your clit, it sent you over the edge. In an instant, the heat in your core and stomach snapped and white-hot pleasure coursed through your body like electricity. you balled your fists and your body shook as you screamed into Miko's shoulder.

Neither of them slowed their movements, trying to prolong your orgasm as long as possible. They only relented when you started to quiet down, once it was all over Miko withdrew her hand from your center.

Ei didn't move but she was still inside you "You okay there little one?" She heard a small 'Mhm' from you. "Okay then, I'm gonna pull out, alright?" You whined, the movement was overstimulating but Ei was just as gentle and careful pulling out as when she first entered you.

After Ei was completely out and moved away to take the harness off, you let the rest of your body collapse on Miko, your entire body pressed against her felt nice. Miko could feel each thump of your heart "I can feel your heart racing out of your chest" She laughed a bit.

Your mind was hazy, but you could finally speak between deep breaths "I'm so tired"

Ei returned sitting on the left of Miko "I know, I know" Ei's scratched gently behind your ear.

You lay there for a couple of minutes before your mind came back to you, "Oh my god, it's so hot" You finally acknowledged your body screaming to get cooled off and you rolled off Miko, laying next to her right on your back.

"I know, your body feels like a furnace" Miko complained and sat up and touched your forehead. You sluggishly moved to sit upright as well and stretched.

"Let's go rinse off together then" Ei suggested. You swung your legs off the bed, limbs feeling like jello, and followed Ei to the bathroom. Ei she stripped off her t-shirt and underwear while Miko moved behind Ei to undo her braid.

You pulled the shower curtain open, stepped in, and then turned the knob of the shower on keeping it cold. The cold water beating down against your skin and your head cooled you down quickly.

After a minute you turned the shower warmer for both of them and had already put soap in your hair. Miko stepped in, and Ei followed seconds after. You rinsed out the suds in your hair and shuffled past them so they could rinse off too. "It seems like I should get a bigger shower installed," Miko said facing toward the showerhead while washing up. "Perhaps, if you'd permit me to sell entrance tickets to the shrine, I could renovate"

"Honestly, Miko. You're still on about that?" Ei chided.

Miko turned her back to the showerhead, letting the water wash out the soap. "It was merely a suggestion" You snickered at the conversation and chose to step out and then Miko stepped out with you. Ei took longer in the shower since her hair was so long.

Miko grabbed one of the towels on the counter and unfolded it. As you were about to grab one, Miko tossed the towel over your head and tousled your hair to dry it. "Hey! What're you doing?!"

"Drying you off, obviously"

The sound of the cloth rubbing against your ears wasn't really enjoyable "Miko, mind the ears!" Ei poked her head out of the shower to see what was going on and chuckled.

She pulled the towel off your head and your hair was all puffed up "All done" Miko had a cheeky grin and handed you the towel she used on you.

"Was that really necessary?" You grumbled and patted your body dry.

Miko took another towel and dried her hair, carefully avoiding her ears "I think so"

Ei shut off the shower and Miko handed her the last towel. You had wrapped the towel around your hips and fixed your hair with a comb in the mirror.

"What if I dry your hair off like that?" Ei asked and patted the middle of Miko's damp hair.

Miko turned on her heel and grabbed Ei's wrist. "Don't even think about it" - You all redressed in clean clothes, Ei and Miko were wearing just underwear and shirts, but you wore only your boxers, for you it was more comfortable to sleep that way.

"I'll be right back, I need to grab something before we sleep. Don't lay down yet" Miko told you before exiting the room, leaving the door open.

Ei took the pitcher of water you brought earlier and poured water into the cups, handing you one. "Thanks, Ei" You graciously took it and sat on the bed waiting for Miko to return.

"Did you enjoy everything we did tonight? I wasn't too rough with you, right?" Ei asked a bit sheepishly as she sat next to you.

You gave her a big grin "Of course I did Ei" You drank some water before talking again "I'd let you know if I didn't like anything," you paused again looking down into your cup. "Uh, you could be rougher if you wanted, I don't mind" You felt your face warm up saying that last part.

Ei noted out loud "I'll keep that in mind for next time then" and then drank her water too. "I'm just... troubled about the idea of hurting someone"

Miko walked back into the room holding a small jar. "Ei, there's a safeword for a reason" Apparently, Miko heard the last part of Ei's worrying from down the hall. "And before you ask, I have no complaints about tonight, have some more confidence in what you here" Ei nodded.

Miko stood directly in front of you and twisted the jar open. "What's that?" You asked, tilting your head to the side, as she dipped her finger in the jar.

"It's just some ointment for your shoulder" Miko lightly applied the cream onto the bite mark. "This jar is for you to keep since you seem to always be scraped up somewhere"

"This one was your fault though" You kidded.

"Hmm, I remember you saying that you liked it" Miko shot back and leaned down to apply some more of the ointment onto the scrape you got earlier.

"Thanks for giving me that, I'll keep it in my bag. It's really sweet of you"

"Don't mention it" Miko twisted the cap back onto the jar and placed it near your stuff.

-

Ei got comfortable under the sheets first, Miko cozied up to Ei on her left, resting her head on Ei's chest and Ei wrapped her arm around Miko. You went to dim the lights, and then Ei lifted the covers for you to get in, then nuzzled your face into Ei's upper arm.

"Sleep well you two" Ei told you both softly

-

A/N: i hope you enjoyed it, i really like the idea of a Youkai Reader from back then. I have some more ideas for this concept, so hopefully, there'll be more stuff coming out soon. (this is also my first genshin fic so please bear with me, I also have only posted like 5 of my works in total so yeah.)

(y’all want a part two?)

[groenendaelfic]

Hey,

haven't seen you around a lot lately. Just writing to check in. how is it going? Wish you a nice evening

it is going, thank you for asking!

Life has been very busy these past few months but is moving in a hopefully good and definitely exciting direction.

In this particular order (if memory serves correctly) I've:

decided to move halfway across the continent

marked the one year anniversary of the worst time of my life

had other people mark the one year anniversary of the worst time of my life with all that entails

quit my job (I'd been planning that for a while)

had my boss and hr offer to let me go instead and half my notice period to two months (aka 'give' me more money and facilitate my move, yay pity)

started looking for a place to live and organizing my move

found a new job in a slightly different corner of halfway across the continent (I start July 1st)

got my request for citizenship approved (epic timing guys)

found a place to live in an awesome area (I will be able to do all my errands on foot and my new job is only a short bike ride away)

told everyone I was leaving for sure

signed the paperwork to have my uncle in law take over the place here

had my cousin offer to move my stuff with his remodeled fire engine in exchange for gas and (bridge) tolls

did all the paperwork in the universe ever

started saying my goodbyes for now (I still have lots of family and friends etc here so I'll be back a lot)

had my cousin tell me he'd make a bro trip out of the move because his friends really wanted to see a basic bridge, and room and board plus no girls was all the compensation they needed for getting to carry my boxes

said thanks but no thanks to citizenship (sorry Wille, you'll always be my King)

was asked if I minded the move taking a bit longer because the guys wanted to stop for totally unplanned soccer (a not insignificant part of their motivation if not a deciding factor I dare say)

did more move and job leaving planning and paperwork

welcomed, fed and watered a bunch of guys really into soccer bridges and very disappointed I didn't have more boxes they could compete carrying

prepared a big lunch basket and said goodbye to said guys and my boxes

sat down to write this list wondering where I should celebrate midsummer (aka do I want to travel back and forth to get everything ready or stay until it's time to hand in my work laptop etc)

Phew, yes. Also a million other things which won't come to mind right now. Thank you to everyone who left me such kind messages btw. I appreciate them so much but am still learning to respond to kindness and compliments without awkwardness. They nevertheless give me life.

In more interesting news to everyone here I've also done a lot of writing.

Mostly on One Wild Summer, which has already grown into a monster, but I've been writing the exciting parts later on and still guesstimate a 15k or so stretch which needs bridging to get to all the fun stuff I've already written.

but also on The Prince and the Barista and As Long as We Have Each Other. I only need to make it coherent and once again fill the gap to where I stopped posting.

plus *cue exasperated sighs* I'm also 9k+ into a new fic! The (once more) absolutely most self-indulgent thing I've ever written in this fandom and something I swore I never would turn into a proper fic. Expect the prologue for that (which was meant to be 500 words and not 5k) soonish.

Everything else including regular updates not before mid to late July though I think. Because moving and starting a new job and life means busy times and while I can write scribble down connected sentences with half a mind, I can't beta read and edit with half a mind.

tl;dr: I am still writing yr fic and haven't abandoned my fics, but am also busy moving. goodbye cloudberries and lingonberries, hello wineberries vineyards and appleberries apple orchards.

[keto-keyes]

I Am You - Eternals Fanfic

Synopsis: 1,000 years after the Eternals split off, Deviants defeated, the unfortunate family comes back together to save humanity from its biggest threat. But they can't do that without talking, and if old rivalries still stand, that might be a little hard.

[This might be a two-parter or more] [Use of y/n, reader is nonbinary]

Let's GO!

"I will never leave you"

It had been about 500 years since Sprite had stopped believing those 5 words. And another 500 years on top of that since she'd last seen the person, Eternal, rather, who'd spoken them. But now she was following Ikaris and Sersi through a crowded Osaka airport towards the taxi port and bus terminal, trying to find the exact person who'd made that flaky promise - Y/N. "They're not gonna be here," Ikaris growled, "Why can't we just go get Kingo? He's agreeable at least."

"We need Y/N," Sersi reminded the Eternal of Flight, "Besides, if there's anyone who can get through to Druig, it's them."

"You just don't like that she's got more powers than you," Sprite teased, but secretly she was a little nervous. It hadn't just been a century since she'd last seen Y/N, it had been a century since Y/N told her where they were going to disappear off too. They'd specifically instructed her not to tell anyone, and now she'd broken that promise. "Uhh, hello, we need to get to Hyogo..?" Ikaris tried asking a taxi driver in english. Sersi covered for him with google translate.

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

An hour and 45 minutes later, they had arrived in Hyogo prefecture. Sprite looked around nervously. "There isn't enough ... EARTH for this to be where the fearsome Eternal of nature lives!" Ikaris mocked, rolling his eyes as he got out of the taxi.

"IKARIS!" Sersi scolded.

They kept walking. Sprite led them through the small city to a modest house near the school down the road. Ikaris knocked sharply. Sprite knew it was wrong to lead him and Sersi to Y/N, but they really needed to get their family back together, or else everyone on Earth was going to die. After a moment, the door opened enough to see Y/N's silvery-blue hair surrounding their features, then it promptly shut again. Ikaris stuck a foot in the door and heaved it open despite Y/N's hearty attempts to close it using their nature-given strength. They shot him a dirty look as he shoved his way into their house. Sprite pushed past Sersi and wrapper her arms around the shocked and annoyed Y/N, gripping their waist tightly. A second later, Y/N was returning the hug, gripping the shorter Eternal's hair in their fingers and pulling her close. "We need to talk," Sersi said as she too stepped into the room, breaking off the hug.

Y/N rolled their eyes. "We," they indicated between themself, Sersi and Ikaris with a finger, "Don't have anything to talk about. Please leave."

Sprite pulled Y/N down to eye height and murmured, "I'm really sorry I had to bring both of them, believe me, but we really need you. Everything's changed, Deviants are back, and we need to save the world again. Please help us."

Y/N breathed for a moment, contemplating. Then they nodded. "Make yourselves at home, I guess," they said finally, "I'll..uhh, I'll make tea."

"I'll help!" Sprite offered, eager to get away from the two ex-lovers and to spend more time with Y/N, who had always been her favourite.

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

The kitchen was silent except for the beeping of the oven and hiss of the kettle. Sprite didn't know what to say, or how to act around her sibling. They seemed so much more grown up than everyone else, especially Sersi. Maybe being apart had changed them. "Y/N... Ajak is dead," she said, internally cringing at the suddenness of the reveal.

Y/N didn't say anything. Then they did. "And the deviants are back and the emergence is happening," they added, finishing Sprite's thought, "I know. The question is, what are we doing about it?"

They glanced at Sprite, who was tearing up a little. "I'm sorry, I know it's hard for you. I wasn't as close to Ajak as the rest of you, that's all," they murmured, wrapping Sprite in a side hug.

The two Eternals stood like that, staring out the window into Y/N's small garden and watching the world go by together. Then the tea kettle started whistling and they were shocked back into the world. "We'd better get back to the two star-crossed lovers, hadn't we?" Y/N teased, nudging Sprite's shoulder, "I'll take the tea, you grab the cookies."

They walked back in to the dining room with the trays. "Break time's over lovebirds~" Sprite crowed, clanging the cookie platter down on the table and sitting loudly next to Ikaris. Y/N casually placed the four cups in front of the others sitting at the table like the leader of a parent's club setting up for a meeting, then took their own place. "So," Sersi started awkwardly, "The-world's-about-to-end-and-we-need-to-save-it-from-being-destroyed-in-the-emergence."

"And Ajak is dead," Ikaris added.

Y/N just stared at the two of them. Sprite couldn't help glancing in between Ikaris and Y/N like a child between fighting parents, and waited for someone to speak. "..I know," Y/N said finally, "What I was going to say was - how do we stop the birth of a celestial?"

Awkward laughter from Sersi faded into silence. "Ah... That's what we don't know. We were thinking maybe Druig could put the celestial to sleep, or Phastos could think of something," she murmured, pushing a useless strand of hair behind her ear.

"So why do you need me?"

"We need all of us to come up with a solution, Y/N!" Ikaris man-splained, "And Sprite said you were closer than Kingo."

"To Britain? Definitely not. To sanity, maybe," Y/N replied sassily, "But I would like to see Makkari or Kingo again. It's been too long since I spoke some decent slang. And, I can feel you wishing you were anywhere but here right now."

They pointed right at Ikaris' chest, causing everyone else to turn to them. "You can sense emotion?" Sprite asked incredulously, "Since when?"

"I can't. I can just tell cos the air soured around him."

Dull silence. Then Sersi pushed out from the table. She cleared her throat, dusted imaginary crumbs from her pants, and pushed her plate closer to the cookie platter. "Well, we'd better get going if we want to have saved the world this time next week."

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

Part 1 - fin

Tags:

@ethereal-athalia

@mystic-mara

[kelliealtogether]

I'm hoping to have one last fic typed up, edited, and posted by the end of 2024, but as the year is winding down, I figured I'd post a wrap-up of the works I've completed this year. So here they are, from longest to shortest. 😌

In Comes the Tide - 45k - Rated T

Performing a simple, polite gesture should not result in a marriage, but—Adam Parrish learned—this did not apply to selkies. The summer before his senior year at Harvard, Adam returns to the same small coastal town where he's spent the past two summers. Bussing tables isn't what he wants to do with his life, but the dockside seafood shack where he works is popular, and the tips the employees split pad his bank account enough to afford a more leisurely fall when he gets back to Cambridge. Little does Adam know he's in for a very surprising summer when a selkie shows up at The Sea Shanty and Adam saves his coat...

While There's Breath in My Body - 11k - Rated E

Adam Parrish had lived in Port Royal for twenty years. He’d been around ships for almost two thirds of his life. In all that time, only one ship ever raised the hair on his arms each time it came to port, and it was not the ship itself, but the man who stood at its helm. A skirmish could put a ship’s fate in someone else’s hands. A storm or a cannon ball could put it at the bottom of the sea. A rampant illness could leave it crewless and adrift, waiting for the next enterprising group of sailors to come on board. But a particular flag, a particular captain… Those raised Adam’s hair far more than any combination of masts, sails, and anchors ever would.

A Pirate AU

Hello, I'm in Delaware - 7k - Rated G

Has anyone ever told you that you look like a fed?” “I am a fed.” “And it’s disgusting how much you don’t hide it.” Adam Parrish travels the country covering up sightings of dreamt cryptids. When he gets called to Delaware to investigate a creature caught on home security footage, he asks for some help from a dreamer. His fiancé, Ronan Lynch.

The Magician Entertainment - 5k - Rated G

When Adam Parrish reveals he knows sleight of hand at a company team building event, he doesn't realize how big of a mistake he's made until one of his colleagues corners him a few days later in the office kitchen. The entertainment Declan Lynch hired for his daughter's birthday party bailed, and Declan has ideas about who can fill that void: Adam. Adam agrees — simply because Declan offers him the easiest $500 Adam will ever earn — though Adam's not happy about it. It's only when he arrives at the party that he realizes he might be able to perform some actual magic. With Declan's younger brother, Ronan.

Just Coffee - 4k - Rated G

The new barista at Fox Way Cafe was hot as shit. Or Ronan Lynch hoped he was new. That was the only reasonable excuse why the barista sucked at barista-ing and seemed to provide the fucking worst customer service known to man. The way the guy’s thin smile faltered when he asked someone how he could help them said he’d rather throw himself into an active volcano — or possibly a tiny metal pitcher of freshly steamed milk, given the setting — than take another order for a nonfat pumpkin spice peppermint patty latte with almond milk or whatever, but damn, Ronan would stand in line all day if it meant watching the new guy epically fail at providing a good customer experience. Ronan Lynch doesn't mean to become a regular at Fox Way Cafe, but when he sees the cafe's newest employee for the first time, he decides to keep going back again, and again, and again. At least until the new barista learns how to spell his name...

Rock Beats Scissors - 2k - Rated M

Really, if they wanted to keep things fair and equitable, they could have found some impartial way to make the decision. Flipping a coin. Drawing straws. Rolling a die. But being distractingly hard didn’t always allow for rational thinking, and for two eighteen-year-old boys who appreciated the more physical aspects of life, neither of them would have been willing to hit the pause button to scramble out of bed and find a quarter or an old board game. They just kept going until someone gave in, and no matter who put what where, they both ended up exceedingly happy with the results. Which worked. Until the first time neither of them wanted to give in. When Adam and Ronan can't agree on who's going to top, they solve their problem the old fashioned way: rock paper scissors.

The Singular Formula - 2k - Rated G

It was because he spent his nights on Adam’s floor awake that Ronan heard Adam talk in his sleep in the first place, and though he might not have remembered when he first heard Adam sleep talking, Ronan would never forget what Adam said. Seal off the wall. Don’t let the submarines in. When Ronan starts sleeping over at Adam's tiny apartment above St. Agnes, he learns something about Adam he hadn't known before: Adam talks in his sleep.

Safe Bet - 1k - Rated G

The guy tilted his head slightly as if to say fair, and he lifted a long, lovely hand to push a lock of dusty hair back off his forehead as he looked at Ronan. “I might be, but I hope not.” One corner of his thin lips twitched, then he said, “Because I have a proposition.” Ronan stared. Blinked. He had not anticipated his evening taking this kind of turn when he’d needed to get out of his older brother’s apartment. Ronan loved his brothers Declan and Matthew — who he’d come to stay with while he tried to make his life less directionless — but sometimes three Lynches under one roof was too much. Evenly, he said, “A proposition.” When Ronan Lynch is approached by a hot stranger at a bar, the last thing he expects is that he'll be drawn into the guy's scheme to win a bet against his coworkers.

I've got tons of pots simmering on my stove going into 2025, so here's to another year of writing about these two idiot assholes falling in love over and over again. 🥰

[green-like-the-sky]

hello! i hate to seem impatient, but did you receive my ask about your time travel au tomtom headcanons? i'm worried that tumblr might've eaten it. thanks! ^^

BESTIE I'M SO SORRY FOR THE LATE REPLY tumblr didn't eat it i just forgor

ok, tomtom time travel headcanons! this is long and rambling sorry

full disclosure i started tinkering with a time travel au for them right after i read The Mirror and the Light, so back in 2020(!). Since I got back into Wolf Hall recently, I decided to pick it up again. I don't want to give away all the plot points so some spoilers are under the cut!

they come through to modern London just before More's trial (opening scene of the fic posted here!). The Tower is a crossing point in my mind, so much has taken place there and so many lives have been lost that the temporal walls are thin. Other people from their time have crossed through too. Perhaps they meet up with them in the future... (they 100% do)

Cromwell is convinced modern London is not real, he's just hallucinating or having a fever relapse and it takes him a few days to come to terms with the fact that yes, they're really 500 years in the future. The things that have stayed the same (more or less) convince him. The Thames. The trees on Putney Heath. More being insufferable now as he was then.

More actually accepts the time travel pretty quickly but he pretends not to because he knows that will annoy Cromwell.

they are told by their host (spoilers!) not to google themselves, because they can't know their historical fates in case they ever get transported back to 1500s (nobody knows how the time travel works, or if it will happen again)

(the internet, generally, is astounding and More immediately wants to know what became of Erasmus and who the Pope is now)

Later they both confess to googling themselves anyway. Not to know what their own fates were, but what became of Gregory and Meg. Bonding moment!

After they have acclimatised for a couple of days they are let out to explore London on their own. They get lost on the tube. They go to a coffee shop and don't know how to order so end up just ordering what the people in line ahead of them got (iced mocha with whipped cream nearly kills More)

Cromwell wonders what he could have achieved in Henry's court, with internet access.

Cromwell also wonders what he could have achieved in Henry's court, caffeinated.

They contemplate starting a podcast (thankfully they are talked out of this)

Eventually Cromwell realises the insufferableness of More is not actually insufferable. Sudden overwhelming realisation that perhaps the reason he tried so hard to make him take the oath was that back then he was in love with him. More: didn't you know?

They hook up.

The fic ends with them having been in the future for four years and counting. They're both perfectly happy. More is a university lecturer (his knowledge of european reformation literature is astounding, his colleagues think!). Cromwell has been dabbling in law again. They've got a nice place with a little garden, plenty of room for More's animals (Cromwell makes fun but he does have a black cat of his own)...

ANNE is the only other person from their time period who also came through the doorway in the Tower. It happened just before her own execution so she is slightly ahead of them, in Tudor-timeline. She also has been in the future for 20 years, she's thoroughly established, she fits neatly in to modern London, she has a great job, she's divorced with a grown up daughter.

(her grown up daughter is the person who finds the Toms in the Tower, believes who they say they are and takes them back to Anne's flat the first night).

Anne slaps Cromwell when she first meets them in modern times. She ignores More.

Anne is annoyed they are there, but knows how they're feeling and what they need to do to survive in the 2020s. It's also nice to see familiar faces, even if it is them

They end up all going to a karaoke bar and get drunk, and, well, 500 years is a long time to hold a grudge.

The Toms' girldad instincts kick in around Anne's daughter. She's in the first year of her undergrad and More can't resist helping with essays. Cromwell bonds with her over the weirdness of them both being separated from family by half a millenium (she's desperate to know about her 'big' sister, Elizabeth I!)

I have rambled on a lot here sorry but that's a general overview! if you want to know anything else please do ask!!

[tarot-by-tabitha]

Hii!!

I'm here for the past life reading!!

My name like my username!!♐

I don't have a memorable childhood and mostly are gloomy and so much change when I was kid lol

But well... I recently remeber a memorable childhood from my dad... He bought me an Nintendo DS when I got a high score. That was unexpected from him lol

But years later he broke it and stomp it because my austistic siblings started to fight about my ds....

So yeah!!! :D...

Hello 🍂 thanks for sharing your childhood memories. I feel bad for your nintendo 🥲🥲

Sooo here your spirit guide connected me to one of your past lives around 500 BC-500 AD. you lived in Oceania, probably what now is known as one of the countries in Polynesian or Melanesian , Samoa, Tonga, Hawaii, Papuan New Guinea or Fiji.

Your Life in Classical Antiquity in Oceania

Life back then was simpler but full of mystery and deep spiritual meaning. You were highly respected in your community, known as a wise grandparent who have lived many years and gained lots of wisdoms. Your faith was very mystical, deeply connected with nature, the stars and unseen forces. People often came to you for advice because they knew you had unique understanding of the world ,seeing both physical and spiritual side of things.

A Hidden Love and Secrets

You had a secret love affair that had to be kept hidden. For some reason, maybe because of social rules or personal issue, this relationship couldn’t be known to others. It brought you joy but also caused you pain as the secrecy created distance between you and those around you.

You also had your own personal secrets. These were things you kept to yourself like spiritual knowledge or emotional struggles. The ascetic card tells that at one point, you spent a lot of time alone perhaps living like a hermit. This isolation gave you chance to reflect deeply on life’s meaning but it also made you feel distant from people around you.

Physical Limitations and Struggles

At some point of this life you faced physical limitation, an injury or condition that changed the way you moved. This may have been a permanent disability or a severe injury that didn’t fully heal. 5 of pentacles shows that you struggle with this limitation, and often felt left out or frustrated because you couldn’t do things the way you once could. It caused you emotional pain and made you feel isolated at times.

But despite that, you never gave up. You learned how to adapt and contribute to your community even with challenges your body faced.

Walking the Middle Path

One of most important lessons your learned in that life was how to walk the middle path, finding balance between extremes. Whether it was between joy and sorrow, light and dark, or isolation and community, you found peace by staying grounded and not letting things went too far in one direction.

Ace of pentacles represent strength you found by focusing on what truly mattered, staying connected to the earth, community and inner values. You learned that peace came from walking balanced path and not letting any one thing take over your life .

Your Role as a Grandparent and Guide

As a grandparent, you were seen as a wise elder, someone who had a lot to teach. You guided your family and younger generations, showing them how to find balance in life, even during hard times. You were patient and caring, always ready to share the lessons you had learned throughout your life. Even though you had your own struggles, you didn’t let them stop you from being a source of comfort and wisdom for those around you.

You probably shared your knowledge about spirituality and the mystical world, helping others understand life’s deeper meanings. As a grandparent, your role wasn’t just about family, t was about guiding people spiritually, teaching them how to live in harmony with the world.

Your Death and Transformation

Your life ended in fire, possibly a literal fire like a house burning down or in some sort of ritual. Fire was a powerful force in your life, both destructive and transformative. In many ancient cultures, fire was seen as a way to cleanse and transform. Your death may have been symbolic of that transformation.

It wasn’t a peaceful passing, but it was one with deep meaning. 3 of Pentacles suggests that even in death you left behind a legacy. People remembered you for the work you did, the wisdom you shared and the lessons you taught. Your passing marked the end of one chapter but it also symbolized a transformation, making way for new energy.

The Lesson for Your Present Life

In this life, the lesson of walking the middle path continues to guide you. Just like in your past life, you are here to learn how to stay balanced even when life pulls you in different directions. Whether it’s physical challenges, emotional struggles, or relationships, your strength comes from staying centered and not getting overwhelmed by extremes.

You may also still feel deeply connected to spirituality or the mystical just like in your past life. Whether through meditation, nature or personal rituals, you carry the wisdom of someone who has lived many lives and always in search for deeper meaning.

I hope you like your reading and please leave a feedback 💓 thanks

[strangecowplant]

Hello, regarding your cat, I wasn't able to read everything this is kinda rushed because I've had a long day, but do you need more money at the moment?

Also I'm a vet but like, in France, so I'm always shocked at the prices (in my area this kind of emergency would amount to like, around 300€, maybe 500€ if there's a repeat)!

Also, on a medical standpoint, were the vets able to know the origin of the blockage? Was it urinary stones, or stress? In my experience this kind of blockage has a tendency to become chronic in some cases if proper precautions are not taken! I wouldn't mind giving advice if you want, you can PM me I'll do my best to help and translate as accurately as possible.

Hi thank you so much for your concern, and I hope you're able to relax now! At the moment I have no idea if I need more money, its up in the air what the cost will be when i get there later today, I've still yet to even talk to my vet for a full update as he's been in and out of surgeries today but thank you so so much for asking!!! ❤️ I'll try and keep the main post as updated as possible once I get any news about costs or anything

But yeah the pricing is absolutely horrible here, theres no regulation and the cost of living is already debilitating enough, people who try save up funds for their pets have it wiped out from even the simplest vistis (their annual vaccinations are about $300, its hard to save much with that hit every year)

As for the cause, we aren't sure. Its unlikely to be stress related as hes an extremely chill and happy cat, nothing has changed with his lifestyle, his brother doesn't stress him out and all my animals are very close and loving to one another. The house usually is super quiet and relaxed too, him running around playing is usually the most noise the house gets! I can't think of a single time before this he was ever stressed aside from the normal wariness of being at the vet for vaccines/when he got neutered. Its also unlikely its from dehydration bc he's very good at drinking (he likes to have the tap water whenever i go into the bathroom, but he also happily drinks from any of the bowls around the house) and i feed them wet food mixed with some dry daily.

They didn't find any stones but the blockage was caused by struvite crystals, in fact they were able to pull one blockage out that was a milky mucousy stringy glob before his first catheter was put in. I also pulled 3 or 4 small ones the day before yesterday after noticing he was blocked and trying to do anything in my power to dispel them since I had no means to get him the help he needed then. His urinalysis came back positive for struvite but also mentioned the amount was 'few', he had no bacteria present and his ph was 6.5, theres maybe a chance he had a uti and dispelled the bacteria before they got a sample? Though I didnt notice any signs before that he was having issues. The lab notes mention the results fit with FLUTD/idiopathic cystitis but I really have no clue how or why, it was brought on so suddenly and he ate the exact same things as his brother who's fine (i will be swapping to a preventative food for his brother though because I'm now just petrified of it happening to him too) I suppose theres a chance its just genetic or random :/

Thank you for your help though, I'll definitely take you up on your offer and pm you! I have some questions I'd really like some advice on from a different vet

[ofmdbigbang]

Hello! Excited for this year's BB. I, like many others did not get a chance to participate last year and I'm hoping to this time.

However, I was wondering if the mod team could give a bit of a peek behind the curtain at any lessons learned and changes from last year to this year in event format?

Most of the complaints I heard about the big bang last year were accessibility related issues: That it was established so quickly after the show many missed it, that sign up periods were blink and miss it, advertising was very limited to small circles and only on Tumblr not Twitter or Instagram or many of the larger discord servers that got established later, etc.

Another was that timelines for check-ins for writers were rather inflexible and set to very specific styles of writing goalposts (completed words vs outlines) which were not friendly to ADHD or other types or writing/life-happens-at-irregular-pace authors.

And while posting complete works only to a Big Bang is understandable, a lot of authors felt the rule of posting all chapters at once, rather than dropping chapter by chapter over a release week or weekend, in conjunction with the lack of social media across all platforms to drive attention to the Big Bang and ending up with it competing with multiple other events at the same time resulted in a lot of people's best and longest works being buried, with fewer than average readers finding them.

Finally, much of this seems like it might have been done to make the bang simpler and less work on a mod team, which leads to the questions: Who are our mods? How many do we have coordinating for what was already such a large event on such short notice last year? The RBB was of a similar scale and it has been pretty smooth sailing but I know it has at least half a dozen main-team admins handling the project management, pair up matches, drops, pinch-hitting, the discord server, Tumblr, Twitter account, AO3 collection, and more.

I'm bringing this forward in the spirit of collaborative community and constructive criticism. I love Big Bangs and other large complicated fandom events and their history, and I know how difficult they are to run, especially for a first time in a fandom, and it disappoints me to hear about people having had bad experiences that put them off the idea.

I know some of the issues I mentioned have begun to be addressed already, like the new twitter account and what seem to be longer sign-ups, I just wanted to ask if there were other changes planned for 2023 and if you and the mod team wanted to make any comments.

Thank you!

This response is HUGE (500 word ask = 1.8k of response so enjoy that) so I have put it under the cut to keep it from cluttering up people's dash. We hope you (and our other followers) find it useful!

ASK TEXT IN BOLD, RESPONSE IN PLAINTEXT

Hello! Excited for this year's BB. I, like many others did not get a chance to participate last year and I'm hoping to this time.

However, I was wondering if the mod team could give a bit of a peek behind the curtain at any lessons learned and changes from last year to this year in event format?

First of all, we are thrilled to have you and thank you so much for the work you put into writing us a nearly 500 word ask! 

Most of the complaints I heard about the big bang last year were accessibility related issues: That it was established so quickly after the show many missed it, that sign up periods were blink and miss it, advertising was very limited to small circles and only on Tumblr not Twitter or Instagram or many of the larger discord servers that got established later, etc.

So the first thing you gotta know about the BB is that it’s run by a load of Fandom Olds - none of us have ever done fandom on twitter before and, as you said, the fandom was so new it was hard to see where most people were - we were all getting full up on Tumblr with the content, and so had no idea back a year ago what the twitterverse looked like for this (or any) fandom, so it didn’t occur to us to promote on Twitter, or really anywhere else. We have, as you spotted, changed that this year. 

We have also put out a longer signup period and are hoping to do more promotion generally of this event so that as many people as possible see it. We were quick to be sure we were on the OFMD Fandom Calendar (organised on Twitter) as well as getting promotions into some of the more established Discord communities. Many of these communities that you describe flat did not exist or were still pretty new and not widely known when we were in the sign ups for the event last year, so we weren’t able to get involved. We advertised in the Brainrot server as that was the biggest community that we knew of at the time (and one of our mods was mod there at the time too), but that and tumblr was all we had access to.

This event is huge compared to many events that this mod team have been part of - one of the mods is in a Bang in another big and well established fandom that has twenty five works in it - we collectively published over 100 in last year’s event, and we anticipate this year being bigger again as the fandom has grown and our promotional abilities have grown as well!

Another was that timelines for check-ins for writers were rather inflexible and set to very specific styles of writing goalposts (completed words vs outlines) which were not friendly to ADHD or other types or writing/life-happens-at-irregular-pace authors.

We would argue that strict deadlines can work for a lot of ADHD people specifically - sometimes the deadline is the only thing that gets you going. The wordcount minimums were explicitly because this is a project that’s about writing longfic - you can submit at the 50% check-in with 3k of prose but another 2k of plan if you want, but the point of the event is to write something long, and the check ins are to help people to manage their time. If they can’t get 5k done in the first half of the bang and don’t talk to us about it, then we can’t be reassured that they’ll hit the minimum wc for the whole event, and that might mean they let down an artist. (fwiw - Some of the mods think that the word count minimum is too small, as a traditional Bang has a 50k minimum, so we have made it more accessible in that way. (Mod Charlie: Look, technically this is a MiniBang, as it’s under 50k and I will die on this hill.)) 

The other thing to point out on this subject is that Big Bang events aren’t for everyone! There are so many events in this fandom that can work for all kinds of people with all kinds of writing styles - Bingo events, exchanges, prompt weeks, whumptober, mer-may... the list goes on! There’s no way that anyone can take part in every event, but you’ll find the things that work for you and you’ll create based on that. If writing longfic to a deadline doesn’t float your boat, then you can try something else this year, and wait until you’re filled with the urge to write longfic another day. We plan on running these events every year as long as people ask for them, and we hope that there’ll be at least a few people that keep wanting to come back and take part!

All that said, when we ran each check in we asked for a wordcount and also a self-determination of how finished you felt for your fic. We wanted people to feel like they’d done 50% of the work for claims purposes, but some were at 90% at that point, and others were at 40% but spoke to us and we organised with them that they could still take part as they knew they would have more time/opportunity in the second half of the bang to get things done. 

Our experience in other bangs is that people who take part in claims with very little done are much more likely to drop out and disappoint an artist, which is why we are very strict about that deadline specifically. People that drop out and let their partner down without talking to the mods are not permitted to take part in the following year’s event, as it can be devastating for the other party. We do have space in the schedule for extensions if people ask for them, they just have to talk to us. If people do have to completely drop out at any stage there’s no penalty as long as they talk to us and their partner about it before they disappear off the face of the planet. After all, we want to run this as an annual event, so people can always come back next year!

And while posting complete works only to a Big Bang is understandable, a lot of authors felt the rule of posting all chapters at once, rather than dropping chapter by chapter over a release week or weekend, in conjunction with the lack of social media across all platforms to drive attention to the Big Bang and ending up with it competing with multiple other events at the same time resulted in a lot of people's best and longest works being buried, with fewer than average readers finding them.

We can’t control competition with other events, unfortunately. Hopefully with better publicising of this event this year, others will avoid starting their own events that will clash with our posting dates (October 22nd until mid-November, most likely). 

Dropping the full fic in a single day is a feature of the bang, not a bug. This whole event is designed after the long-established big-bang format that these mods have regularly taken part in for many years, and is all about a big and sudden drop of fic out of the blue. (Not to assign homework to a tumblr ask, but you can read about the history of the Big Bang format on fanlore here) So the sudden drop of fic and generally discouraging people from explicitly promoting their own works is something that we want to keep (after all, it helps those that aren’t BNFs on Twitter or Tumblr and who are still amazing writers get their work seen just as much). 

However, something that we generally encourage and will be promoting more this year is that people who are taking part promote the event as a whole as much as possible, read, kudos and comment on each other’s works, and then once everything is posted they can big up their own work as much as they want. Will it have exactly the same effect as posting over time and posting twitter snippets each chapter and whatever else? No, but this does let more people get their work out to a wider audience on average. And while the creativity of the fandom is still insane, the quantity of fic dropping every day has started to drop off, hopefully giving these fics more space to breathe in AO3 and in people’s searches.

Finally, much of this seems like it might have been done to make the bang simpler and less work on a mod team, which leads to the questions: Who are our mods? How many do we have coordinating for what was already such a large event on such short notice last year? The RBB was of a similar scale and it has been pretty smooth sailing but I know it has at least half a dozen main-team admins handling the project management, pair up matches, drops, pinch-hitting, the discord server, Tumblr, Twitter account, AO3 collection, and more.

We have put together (which we meant to do before now but alas, time kept happening) some mod introductions on our Tumblr Page which you can go and have a peek at to see who we are! The event started last year with four people, and grew to six after a shoutout on the Discord for some extra help. This year we’re currently at four mods again. 

One of our mods (Hi, Charlie again, RVB Discord Builder, and BB Discord builder) is also on the mod team for the RVB and was able to both share lessons learned from last year’s BB with that team, as well as bring a lot of the insight that those guys had from their Big Bang and Reverse Bang experiences back to this team, so we do have an intimate knowledge of how that was run and how the work was divided between the amazing mod talent that was doing that bang. However, no two mod teams are alike, and so there will still be some differences in approach. 

On that note, if you have an organisational brain, love spreadsheets, can repeat the words “We emailed you this information” in your head over and over again without getting cross, and think that you can help out (not just you, nonny, but the collective you that might be reading this post) please feel free to reach out! This is a big project and we are a small team with real lives (ew) and so there are going to be some things that we miss, so some extra keen beans may well be helpful!

I'm bringing this forward in the spirit of collaborative community and constructive criticism. I love Big Bangs and other large complicated fandom events and their history, and I know how difficult they are to run, especially for a first time in a fandom, and it disappoints me to hear about people having had bad experiences that put them off the idea.

We definitely made some mistakes in the last event that we hope to not make again. It was difficult in many ways because the fandom was so new and young that we were watching a lot of the fandom settling-in process happen side-by-side with the event, and it was difficult to know how to best respond to a lot of what was happening. This year we hope that with a more settled fandom, a mod team with a bit more experience, and with more focus and opportunity to talk to you all in more places and answer questions, organise extensions, and generally be a little friendlier everyone will be able to have a better time.

The biggest change we’re looking at making this year is to make the claims process less stressful for artists - giving a longer period for claims and going away from a first-come-first-served method, which really gets the blood pumping but can make things really difficult for those in inconvenient timezones, or people who have other commitments that mean they can’t be there on the dot at whatever time it opens for them. Claiming can be the most stressful and difficult part of a Big Bang process and we want to try and make that less stressful for everyone.

One of the other changes that we’re exploring right now is a ‘mini bang’ type event that opens to people who either don’t make a deadline or have to drop out for other reasons - a collection for people that can’t keep to the schedule but want to be involved with the project. We’ve not ironed out exactly how this might work, so watch this space and we’ll see if we can make it work for this year. We want to emphasise that the point of the event is to post in the Main Collection - we don’t want signups that know they’re not going to make it to 10k or finished art by the October Deadline and just want to post to the mini-bang collection - but we do also know that sometimes real life just eats you alive (especially with posting being just after the new school term starts) and that IRL absolutely must come first, and we hate to see people not being able to stay involved because of stuff they can’t control. 

I know some of the issues I mentioned have begun to be addressed already, like the new twitter account and what seem to be longer sign-ups, I just wanted to ask if there were other changes planned for 2023 and if you and the mod team wanted to make any comments.

Most of the changes that we have are to do with how we’re hoping to respond to issues that arise, and our social media presence, which might not come up at all if everyone has a great time. From a mod perspective, the vast majority of the “big” tasks (sign ups, claims, matching, and posting) went very smoothly, so now that we know we’ve got that handled, we can put more focus onto making the event friendlier for participants. We’re going to be putting more information into the emails that we send out so that you have as much information as possible. We’re also putting a bigger emphasis on people joining our Discord Server so that people can talk to us more easily and we can better support people with amazing resources from previous years participants, the opportunity to hook up with an alpha or beta reader, and generally encourage people to take advantage of the amazing community of people that are here to help them write and draw the thing in their head!

Thank you!

At the end of the day, the purpose of the Big Bang and indeed any fandom event is to help people work with and potentially collaborate in a way that they might not otherwise, and enjoy a new way of exploring their favourite creative pastime. There’s nothing stopping anyone from publishing a longfic that they collaborate with an artist on at any time - we’re helping to provide a structure for those that might otherwise be too shy or too divorced from the fandom community to start these collaborations themselves. I know that I made most of my OFMD fandom friends through my Beta Reader for last year’s event and that there are huge communities of writers and artists that I know have come together through events like this, and that’s something that we are insanely pleased about. Fandom is about community and creativity, and we hope that you find the community that supports your creativity the best out there somewhere. 

And if you don’t see the event that you want to take part in - make it! The creators of most events just rock up on their social media of choice one day and shout “HEY IM DOING A THING”, and while not every event has 300 people in it, many years of fandom experience in this mod team will tell you that it’s the things you do that only have 12 people in them that can be the most fun and rewarding, even if you create something that only those 12 people read or appreciate. This event is much bigger than any of us could have predicted, and while that’s amazing we know it can be overwhelming, so if it’s not for you then that’s totally fine! 

[that-guy-sleepy-miles]

Hi. Just found out about the Hello Giant au and now I’m wondering about the lore. Like, why was Wùkōng imprisoned like he was? Did LBD manage this during Havoc in Heaven? Or was this for another incident? And on that note, what’s LBD like after that? Did she go down a similar route to canon, or is she living it up thanks to Wukong not being around to stop her and is just kinda waiting thanks to minor setbacks and stuff?

I've not had time to really really think this through, but I made an entire plot just for you! Here it is, with flavor doodles:

(please read this I worked really hard...)

If I'm to decide right now, I think they simply... didn't interact during the journey.

(or perhaps they did, but she wasn't imprisoned. or maybe she was, but for shorter! who goddamn knows!)

Wukong went back to his mountain after putting DBK under the mountain, and some people who have been doing a lot of planning noticed.

And got an idea.

^ LBD having an idea

LBD and Not Mayor fight Wukong, Not Mayor barely survives probably, LBD is a motherfucker and uses the baby monkeys against Wukong.

She gets him to submit to keep them safe from her. His plan was going to be to lure her into a false sense of security by pretending to submit and then y'know go get her ass

but LBD has been thinking BIG THOUGHTS so she's like "naw, get got, I'm taking your eyesight, dumbass!"

and so Wukong is like "aw what the fuck that's not fair" and she's like "TOUGH"

BAM MONKEY LOCK DOWN

now, LBD isn't stupid dumb, right? she knows Heaven could've stopped her but didn't because they don't like this fuckin' monkey, so she has a plan.

She's gonna make a perfect kingdom. Just to start, yeah? Perfect, perfect kingdom.

Sooner or later she'll kill god, but first things first, prove she's good enough for her destiny by making a perfect kingdom

and any time anything threatens her kingdom, she slaps them with big murder monkey

Fast foward 500 years, MK is being MK and stumbles across Red Son and PIF roleplaying the pilot

"Aight bet" says MK, and decides to do some improv

Everything follows the exact same plot of the pilot up until MK meets Wukong.

Instead of being led into an ancient cave and being told he's so monkey cool, MK finds a spooky abandoned mountain, walks into a spooky abandoned cave, and finds a spooky giant monkey. And then, like, plot proper starts yayyy, but this is just the lore.

*wipes brow* WOW THAT'S A BIG ONE UHHH HOPE YOU GUYS LIKE THE DOODLES! Here's all of them in one place, because I drew them all on the same canvas very obviously.

[wolfiafuntime]

Event: 🧋Shakes Shop🧋

 Hello! I'm Wolf. I like writing fanfic, and I used to write some X Reader's about a year or so ago, but I fell out of the scene due to mental health problems. I've recently come back to it, but I'm super insecure now, and I get really stressed about writing for others (I tried doing a request thing on Quotev but I kept making myself too sick to actually do it). I also have creativity problems.

 My solution to all of this? Easy:

 The 'Shakes Shop' Event!

Featuring: Obey Me! One Master to Rule Them All X (Aged Up!) Disney Twisted-Wonderland X (Modern AU!) Genshin Impact X Gn! Ice Cream Bartender! Reader

Imagine This: You've always loved cruises. Everything from the beautiful sights to even the smell of the air. And for a while now, you've been wanting to work on a cruise ship. So, you started looking. And pretty quickly, you found a new position opening for your favorite cruise line: The Crux! The position? Working as a bartender for a shop that only serves ice cream! Instantly, you made a resume for it and put it in. And a few days later, the Manager contacted you, and offered you a four-month contract that would get you $7,200. That's $1,800 per month. Which is $450 a day. Meaning you make $90 an hour!

Damn, why didn't you try to get a job like this sooner?!

Upon getting the job, your boss sent you a description of your uniform, their shop's menu, and a plane ticket to the Crux's next wet dock location. Which wouldn't be happening for another month... Which gave you enough time to quit your current job, sell all of your non-important and non-sentimental items, and spend some much-needed time with your loved ones before your departure!

You also had more than enough time to buy clothes for your uniform: A sleeveless white button-up, a pink vest, and pale white shorts. And, of course, you also had time to learn the menu- which was more customizable than you thought-:

Sizes: Small Cup (125-word range) | Medium Cup (250-word range) | Large Cup (500-word range)

Flavors: Vanilla (fluff) | Chocolate (reverse comfort) | Strawberry (romance (Adults only!)) | Blueberry (platonic) | Banana (crack) | Mint (dark)

Mix-Ins: Reeses Pieces Chunks (1st meeting) | Cookie Dough (reunion) | Oreo Bits (rivalry) | MnMs (yandere) | Mini-Marshmallows (day off/break) | Chocolate Chips (cold/injury) | Peanuts (bad weather) | Caramel (karma)

Toppings: Chocolate Syrup | Strawberry Syrup | Caramel Syrup | Blueberry Syrup | Whipped Cream | Chocolate Cream | Rainbow Sprinkles | Peanuts | Chocolate Chips | Cherries | Banana Slices | Oreos | Chocolate Chip Cookies

Note: Customers can only choose one size, flavor, and mix-in; but they can choose 3 of the 13 toppings (5 if one is a non-pourable!)!

Some Additional Rules/Explanations:

I couldn't decide what I was gonna do with the toppings, so I'm making them wild cards. Most of the toppings are related to something previously stated on the list (ex. strawberry syrup has a romance element while Oreos have a rivalry), but some (whipped cream and rainbow sprinkles) are for me to decide. Also, having 3 of one topping doesn't do anything.

You can only choose up to three different characters for your fic! They can be from any one of the fandoms; so you can have a 'Mammon X Grim X Aether X Reader' fic if you want to!

I can refuse/change part of a order/request if I want to. But I'll only do so if I've already written a similar version of the order/request!

Finally oders/requests for the event close on July 16th at Midnight EDT!

[tanoraqui]

Hello! If you are still babysitting the printer or in the mood to answer questions about your OCs, then would you please tell me more about coolest person ever Rawen? Uh, let me think of some questions, answer any of these or just if you have something else you want to share about her. . . Can she cook? Favorite color? Tell me about a time she saved Maedhros’ life? What does she think of Elrond when she meets him in Aman?

I am not, thank god. But I still love to talk.

I don't know if Rawen can cook... She likes to fish, and can do some simple but fantastic things with fresh-caught fish and a handful of herbs over a campfire.

Her favorite color is maroon. This is convenient in the Second and Third Age, post-re-embodiment, when she wants to wear just enough red to visually communicate "I'm not a Fëanorian(TM) anymore, but I'm not not either."

She was the one who finally pulled Maedhros back from the battlefield in Dagor Bragollach, when he'd been holding the gates all but single-handedly for seven days and seven nights, and when the Enemy fell back, stalking around looking for more. He wasn't badly wounded; she already was, in fact; she had to pick her way through corpses and cinders while limping on a cut hamstring and coughing from dragonsmoke. But nobody else quite dared confront their lord in those terrible weeks, however much they feared he would collapse from exhaustion and/or burn himself to ashes from the inside out like his father.

(She never fully healed from those wounds, perhaps because she didn't rest them. She died in the Nirnaeth 18 years later.)

I've mostly thought about Rawen after her re-embodiment, when she basically appoints herself whip of the regrowing Fëanorian faction (mostly re-embodied elves like her who aren't as single-minded about this as they used to be but this is still where some combination of loyalties and ideals lie, younger elves with a thirst for rebellion). Rawen ideally wants a Person to follow, but lacking a sufficient Person she'll take up a Cause; her Cause now is Peace and Cooperation in Tirion (and Everywhere Else if Possible). Arafinwë is good for this - it's his cause, too - so, while even after the War of Wrath he's kinda placid as a king for her taste, she's happy to work with him and nominally serve him.

4,500~ years later, Rawen is comfortably accustomed to being a key political player in her own right, rather than as Maedhros's right hand. She and Fingolfin both, separately, go out for drinks with Arafinwë periodically and complain about the other. (Arafinwë thinks this is funny, and regards it as one of his key kingship duties for maintaining peace and cooperation among the Noldor. He's right.) The Fëanorian faction, as they're still called, has grown and changed far beyond what it used to be, but at its heart are still an assortment of former kinslayers, most of whom served at Himring. 500 years of constant exposure to focussed white flame can make a permanent impression on a fëa.

Like many, in the late Third Age when it's commonly rumored in Aman that most people still likely to Sail will be doing so as soon as this last Sauron issue is wrapped up, Rawen's attitude toward Elrond is eager curiosity with a readied but pending-judgement communist!Bugs Bunny "our child/lord" meme. Imagine you wake up after 1500-odd years being dead and the handful of friends/former employees who survived everything, or at least survived longer than you are like, "Yeah, so, we did...kill people...a bunch more people...we helped adopt some kids, though! They turned out great!" And then everyone else who Sails or re-embodies for the next 4500-odd years confirms that. If Elrond lives up to his reputation, Rawen is totally ready to add him to her short list of people for whom she'd throw her/the Fëanorian faction's political weight behind should they ever ask, for the sake of what could have been if only they'd been Good at the same time they were Great.

(The short list is, in rough order: Nerdanel, Celebrimbor, Celechwes, Fingon.)

Then, just a few years before Sauron's fall, Findis makes her own famous Oath (CFtN Ch.15), holding her own fëa for ransom of the release of Fëanor and all his sons from Mandos; and Manwë declares that the Eldar will decide her and their fate the Eldar overall decide, yes, we'll let them come back; and then when Elrond arrives, he brings Maglor...

Rawen is dealing with political fallout, and trying to anticipate the next political fallout, and trying to arrange the circumstances of the next political fallout, and trying to figure out how she feels about this - how she should feel about this, how she does feel about this...

Righteous Disappointment, is what she more or less concludes that she feels. That she will feel, when she meets Maedhros again. How could he. How could he. She'd believed in him...

No, Righteous Disappointment is how she wishes she could feel, but she's too honest with herself - she probably would've counseled the attack on Doriath, as a best hope (the Enemy would've done it if they hadn't!). She doesn't think she would've counseled the attack on Sirion, but she's talked with people who were there, what those late days were like with darkness spreading and bitter, angry desperation in every breath of air and sip of water. She remembers much the same from the not-days after the Darkening. She knows she wouldn't have turned away at Sirion, much less turned her coat.

She adopts Elrond almost offhand. There's a lot going on. Maglor is...ill, basically, half-mad from isolation and guilt. He hadn't been her lord, but she'd respected him for the earnest effort he put into their cause, so even if she's not sure how much she wants to still be affiliated with the literal House of Fëanor, rather than a consciously idealized concept of the House of Fëanor, she's glad to see him and does what she can to help him heal. Mostly he seems to heal by hanging around Eärendil, seemingly without intent to claim the Silmaril, which is... (ignites a hope in Rawen's chest which she hadn't realized it hurt to be without).

Rawen is pretty confident that her conflicted feelings, plus the distance of time, shake out to sympathetic neutrality re: the literal House of Fëanor. Well, re: Maedhros, and about half the others. She's more Unimpressed with Fëanor himself, and Celegorm and Curufin she'd frankly throw off a cliff for their little spectacle at Nargothrond. If Nargothrond had joined the Union of Maedhros in force, if Doriath had joined the Union in force...

What actually happens, when she meets Maedhros again, is that she bursts into tears and apologizes for losing Himring, which he'd left in her charge when he rode to what became the Nirnaeth Arnoediad. Funnily enough, this is roughly the same emotional sequence of events that happened in the various reunions of Fëanor's sons with their father.

After that initial burst of emotion, she does calm down, and... Okay, listen. She was going to rationally re-evaluate him. She does rationally re-evaluate him. She still mourns what the Noldor could've been when they were fierce and fire-led...but they are fierce and fire-led still, just tempered with long ages of peace rather than swift and savage intent. And Maedhros re-embodied is also tempered with long ages of peace and thought, the wisdom of utmost regret and slow, slow, still-incomplete self-forgiveness...

So, y'know, a few centuries later...when all the Oath-takers including Fëanor himself have returned and proven themselves capable of peacefully sharing a continent - and sometimes even family reunions! - with Gil-Estel...and nothing more dramatic has happened than the assembled line of Curufinwës blowing up the Alchemists' Quarter... Rawen teams up with Satarissë Finrodiel, Celechwes and Arafinwë himself to get Maedhros elected High King of the Noldor. The Fëanorians are back, baby!

(Maedhros was not consulted. To be fair, Arafinwë literally never is, either. For instance, his blissful vacation only lasts one term - but the point is made. Peace, cooperation and re-unification in Tirion, and maybe even everywhere else!)

[heartsyncproductions]

Hello hello, welcome to a look back at 2023 as well as a contemplation of 2024! Throwing the graphic together made me realize I released a lot more things then I thought I did (as well as do a lot of creative work privately since I really only share a fraction of what I make). At the same time, 2023 was pretty weird creatively, so let's talk about it!

First off, I thought I'd share some stats because I grew a lot this year if we're only talking about numbers. I wasn't really expecting it at all since I admittedly do zero marketing most days but here's some stats:

Memory Ghosts hit 100 downloads this year

PRETTYBOY Inc. is Hiring! ended the year at around 1.3k+ plays

Burning Academia [demo] ended the year at 7.2k+ plays

Disruptive Compassion hit 200+ plays (and it was only released in mid December)

Hit exactly 500 followers on my itch.io account

I don't really talk about my writing, but I did make my novella What the Trees Stole available outside of itch.io, and I released a short story collection We are Connected this year as well! In regards to my webnovel, I took a break from volume two to do edits on volume one and I'm hoping to have those done to release the first volume on itch as well as other places that allow you to have a novel available for free.

Anyways, just looking at the numbers I hit so much more growth then I was ever expecting. Anything that hit 100 feels like a win to me, and the way two of the games I released blew past that is wild. With that being said, I felt completely disconnected from most of what I made this year.

I lamented about this briefly when I wrote my post mortem for Disruptive Compassion, but DC felt like the monument to the feeling that a lot of what I made creatively I felt disconnected from. I was working 50 to 60 hour work weeks for the first half of the year (hooray healthcare), and I think I spent the rest of the year burnt out from it. 2023 was also hard in a lot of personal ways, so maybe all of that contributed to me not feeling close to anything I made creatively.

It isn't that I didn't like what I made, it just felt like someone else made it. In my DC post I said it was like being an observer looking at something through a glass screen instead of being it's creator, and that's really the only way I know how to describe it. It also makes it hard to celebrate any of the ways I've improved (especially how much I've improved in regards to my games), because it doesn't feel like I improved because nothing feels like my work. It's been really weird looking at pieces I've made and not seeing any of me in it, somehow.

Again, it's probably just what happens when you have a bad year. But as someone who's been into story telling since forever, it's not really a feeling I'm used to.

Moving away from that so I don't end up ranting for a million years, let's talk goals. I'm going to be honest, I didn't do a lot of what I set out to do LOL. Things I did do, to a degree:

Game Jams: I did Otome Jam (Spring Boy, though I have plans to overhaul it, more on that later), Velox Fabula (PRETTYBOY Inc. is Hiring!), and Velox Turbo (Disruptive Compassion)

Connect with the Community: I think my goal for this was a lot lower then the average persons. I have pretty severe paranoia, stemming from a long time battle with a Specific Mental Illness I don't feel like naming since it's so stigmatized aha. Because of this, I really just wanted to convince my brain that commenting on a post that I enjoyed someone's work isn't weird, or to exist a little more on social media and not exist in the perpetual hell that is assuming the minute I do I will be stalked and doxxed or something. This is also why Discord is the Worst Space in the world for me, because it's impossible to observe it from the outside and deem it safe. You just...join and have to see for yourself which makes it completely inaccessible to my brain. With that being said: I think I did ok! I think doing the Velox Jams really helped with this and even if it was just a little, I managed to leave comments and talk a little about things I enjoyed this year. It might seem like the bare minimum to others, but it felt like some pretty solid steps to me.

Release another game: I released two short, finished ones and two demos! This was a lot more then I was expecting, and I'm pretty happy with it.

Aaaand I'm pretty sure that's all I did that was on the list. Putting it like this, I did a lot more then I thought I did. So much of 2023 was feeling like I was in a rut, that I'm glad it wasn't actually true. With that, leaves the last part of this post: 2024 goals.

Rework Spring Boy: I was going to start this sooner, but unfortunately, I can be easily distracted. Fortunately, in my break I made two short games that taught me a lot about game design and writing that I can take and apply to this! I'm excited for my plans for this game!

Released up to chapter 4 of Burning Academia: I never talked about this here because I thought having my 17+ IF with my 13+ games and writing felt...weird lol. Anyways, I started a Twine IF called Burning Academia (@burning-academia-if is the blog for it if you're interested) which was supposed to just be me trying out Twine. However, I have had a lot of fun writing it so far! Only the prologue is out and chapter 1 should be out late January! I'm hoping to have up to chapter 4 out by the end of the year.

Velox Formido: 36 hours, 2 themes, one game. I'm ready to suffer-

Community Connection: Continue working on talking about the things I like more while interacting with more people in the community! I also realized this year during Velox Turbo I'd like to work in a team some time, but that's more something I'm using 2024 to work towards so I can do something like that in 2025!

Writing: I don't talk about my writing anywhere near as much as I should consider I'm a thousand percent more a writer then a game dev lol. I'm hoping to edit and release volume one of my webnovel How to Bury Fairytales and finish the online first draft of volume two. I also want to finish and publish my dark fantasy/asexual love story novella 'Mercy Dreams' this year as well!

I should probably add a 'try to actually market this year' goal as well, but I know myself. It's not going to happen lmfaO. Anyways! If you read all of this thank you! These are always more of a list for myself then anything, but I do hope anyone here has enjoyed what I've made this year, and honestly thank you to everyone who has played my games or gave me a follow!

Hopefully 2024 I start to feel connected to my work again, and may I continue to grow and improve creatively!

[demenior]

Hey so, I know the second part of The Love It Takes series on ao3 was finished like three years ago and I don’t want to be That Person, but I wanted to know if you were still interested in writing the following parts you mentioned? It’s literally one of the most incredible things I’ve ever read and I’d love to get lost in that world again. I hope you’re still writing even if it isn’t that series! You’re a very skilled writer.

Hello! I'm overjoyed to hear that you're loving the series! And thank you for coming to follow up on it.

I technically have a large chunk of the next story written - it's not To Destroy a Man- and we'll call it Story 2.5 because it's set between To Become a Man and the (eventual) TDaM.

The reason it hasn't been updated/finished is two-fold:

1) I'm very focused on finishing a sequel story I'm calling Fealty 2 (as it is the sequel story to Fealty 1), and that has become something of a 100k monster, and,

2) to be honest I had a lot of big life changes (some good, some bad) and for about a year between 2022-2023 I was lucky if I had the energy/willpower/drive/whatever to string together more than 500 words in a coherent scene.

I'm hoping to be back on my drive and be writing a lot more this year. So hopefully Story 2.5 will be coming sooner than later! You can always subscribe to me or the The Love It Takes series on AO3 for updates, or follow me here on Tumblr (if you dare lol).

Once again thank you for stopping by! I'm so happy you enjoyed the series this far. It's very dear to my heart and I'm so glad it's being well received 💕

[dybdahlsvisitportugalspainfrance]

More of Lisbon. Hey - it's a big place!

September 4, 2023

We spent the morning exploring parts of Lisbon that we haven't explored on this trip. The weather was not perfect - with lots of intermittent rain showers and wind, but it is never the weather that is bad - just the clothes you have on to deal with the weather. So we were OK!

We met our bus driver, Paco and watched his amazing skills as he navigated forward - and backward - places this huge bus should not go. Our bus is designed to comfortably seat 53 people - so the 17 of us are quite comfy.

We started with a small tour of some places Mark and I had seen on the Hop-on/Hop off bus and then started to explore other places too. We saw the Portugal Parliment but my picture taken through a rain spattered window was pathetic - so "hello my dear friend, Internet."

We worked our way to the one neighborhood that survived the earthquake, fire and tsunami of 1755 - the Alfama.

The roads are small and twisty and many of the roads cannot be transversed by even the smallest vehicle.

The place is built into hills - so steps are everywhere. (That is our sweet leader, Carolina. That is Car-o-leena. FYI.)

These houses were built in the 1500s. Many are covered with tile for easy maintenance.

St Anthony is the patron saint of Lisboa and he was born in the Alfama. This cathedral was built on his birth place.

So the buzz on St. Anthony is that he is the patron saint of match making. Women hoping to find the man or their dreams come here and light a candle. Also he is the patron saint of "missing items". Can't find the car keys? Light a candle and ta-da!

To get to St. Anthony's just grab a trolley.

Shortly after our St. Anthony experience we stopped for coffee and an egg custard tart - Pastéis De Nata - THE Portuguese treat.

And - I can eat these. YUMMY!!!

Our walk eventually took us to the main square of the city - the square where the palace of the king and queen USED to be before it was destroyed by the tsunami in 1755. The new palace was built far from the sea after that event.

We continued exploring in the rain and saw the elevator

We kept walking and got to the main square of the city - the end of the line from the traffic circle from Marquis de Pombol. Check out the patterns in the circle. It is an optical illusion - because it is flat. Weird!

Some our group headed back to the hotel and some of us stayed on to enjoy - a local favorite - Bifanas (pork belly on a bun with mustard.) I couldn't have the bun - but the pork belly was yummy!

As we walked to the Metro we saw this...

Carolina explained to us that this atrocity was a recent find in the hidden history of Lisbon. In 1506 in the middle of the Portuguese Inquisition a congregation of this church...

...mainly made up of "new" Christians - former Jews who had converted rather than die or be expelled - experience a "miracle." The alter was suddenly illuminated and the priest fell to his knees overcome by this miracle, but a parishioner said - HEY - WAIT - that is only the sunlight coming through that window. The priest was enraged and demanded that this "doubter" be killed - there and now. He was - and then the "real" Christians fell on the "new" Christians and killed them too. Then it was buried deep in the history books to be found quite by accident 500 years later.

Now, this church, has a series of bad events. Fire and other things have haunted this place for 600 years. Karma? Whatever it is, it has never had the same power as it experienced before 1500. To quote my granddaughter. when we are discussing history- or new jewelry, "I'm intrigued!"

From here we took the Metro to our hotel. PERFECT. Many people did many different things - but I took a nap. Only 40 minutes - but just the right amount of time to re-charge for dinner.

We took a lovely walk down the Avenue da Liberdade until we reached the funicular. The weather was perfect!!! We had some" technical difficulties" so we waited, waited, and waited but finally - we were headed up. We arrived at the overlook that Mark and I had visited yesterday. We felt so superior knowing exactly where were were...

At the top of the funicular we had a wonderful surprise from Carolina...

A cherry liquor served in chocolate cups. SWEET!!!!! Then on to our Welcome Dinner.

We had a wonderful dinner and a Fado performance. Fado is a Portuguese tradition and is a UNESCO intangible culture designation.

It was so much fun!!!

Check this out - (these are not the artists we saw - but it gives you a good understanding of this art.)

Tomorrow we will explore the city of Sintra. New discoveries await. I love my life!!!!

Stay tuned.

[dreamingsushi]

Mystic Pop-up Bar - Episode 1

Hello there! Yes, I'm starting something else, because as of now, nothing that I'm currently watching is really a treat for me. I know this drama aired a few years ago, but I have been wanting to watch it for quite some time already and there we go. I have high hopes for it, I heard it's really good, so hopefully... this is going to be my reward for those two others that aren't all that interesting to me!

Weol-ju is the kind daughter of a shaman and she possesses the power to help people through their dreams. She happily helps anyone in need and gets a reputation for it which reaches the ears of the Queen. As her son, the Crown Prince is sickly and nothing will heal him, she summons Weol-ju to the palace and have her treat the prince. Doing so, they fall in love, which spreads a lot of rumours in town about Weol-ju and leads to her mom's death as she pretended to be Weol-ju and sent her away to protect her. However, Weol-ju, filled with hatred, curses everyone before hanging herself on the branches of the sacred tree. The pin her mom gave her falls down and something magic seems to be happening, but what? Who knows?

So, for having hung up herself at the sacred tree, Weol-ju was punished to help 1000 or was it 10,000 souls through dreams. It's also a 500 years sentence. As of now, she needs to help 10 more people and runs a street bar to lure customers in and reveal their worries to her so she can help. However, as of lately, business hasn't been doing as well as in the past, since delivery services cause customers to be lesser and lesser and people are more open about their feelings on the internet instead of in person. For the last 6 months, she wasn't able to help anyone.

Han Kangbae is a young worker in a store. Whenever he touches someone else, these people pour out their heart to him and say whatever they're really thinking. So he tries to avoid contact as much as possible. One day, at the store, a client treats badly her colleague, who has a great reputation since she won the best employee award five months in a row. Weol-ju also happened to be there and she went on a rampage to punish that arrogant man, which puts Mi Ran (best employee) in trouble at work. Kangbae tries to speak up for her, but the manager goes by the customer is king rule.

Later that night, Kangbae sees Mi Ran jumping in front of a car and he jumps in to protect her from the impact. Fortunately, the drivers stops in time and they're both safe. Kangbae suggests that they go to the street bar across the street to have some food. There, when Mi Ran touches his hand by accident, she reveals that the manager at the store has been harassing her, which is why she wanted to die. Weol-ju sends Kangbae away and serves the sleeping alcohol to Mi Ran so she can fulfill her wish in her dream. When Kangbae comes back, he can see the bar that no one else sees and ends up joining the dream. They punish the manager and convince Mi Ran to stand up for herself in real life too.

The next day, Kangbae thinks it was all a dream until he finds Weol-ju's hairpin on the rooftop at work. He remembers she promised that she could help someone change their personality, so he goes to find her. Meanwhile, she gets a warning that she's having only one month left to finish her task, else she's going to hell. So she remembers of Kangbae's abilities and decides to have him help her to complete her punishment in time. She agrees to help him on the condition that he gives his body to her. Meaning she'll possess him or that she wants him to use his empathy abilities for her? We'll see next episode.

So far, I'm very happy with this. The main lead is a powerful woman with a lot of personality. I adore her. She funny and feisty, it's a nice change from who she was when she was alive too. Really loved it. I'm waiting a little bit more to see who Kangbae really is, but so far it's nice to have a guy that is a little bit softer than domineering. And there's also Gwi something something, that I haven't mentioned in the summary, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to love this guy too. Really looking forward the next episode! I will have to restrain myself, because I can't wait to watch another and yet I've got other stuff to do today.