#i also have this whole writing advice tag you can look through!!!

[morethanmeetstheass]

I want you to know that your Blitzbee fic inspired me to write my own - I just gotta say…. HOW?? How did you get Blitzwing down so well? This man is confusing as all hell to write… Are you a wizard of some sort?

here's the thing about blitzy boo-- his canon characterization is fuckin weird and entirely made for comic relief, so most of how i write him is a completely fanon interpretation LMAO

but my main thing was to make sure that he really just feels like one dude-- i saw way too many fics before ROE that made him this weird DID caricature, and it was not only kinda uncomfy, but it was never how i pictured him. he's got SOMETHIN going on, obviously, but i genuinely dont think there's a human equivalent to it, which is why i made up the whole t-cog-processor-code discrepancy thing in kwz to sort of explain why he's That Way. fun fact: ROE was written for 10% passion, 90% spite bc i love blitzy so much and i was tired of him being written in a way that didnt feel right to me LMFAO

he's just a bot like any other, just with three different faces that swap around. nothing really all that special or vastly different from any other transformer. i gave him trauma bc im a bully (and he does have canon trauma from blackarachnia that unfortunately never made it to screen) and i just tried to make him feel... real, i guess? give him motivation and feelings. different speaking patterns depending on the face, as most of us have when we're in different moods-- when i'm mad, i stammer a lot, and when blitzy's mad, he yells and insults a lot. same vibe.

i also took some inspiration from his g1 characterization-- did you know blitzy actively betrayed galvatron in g1 and almost switched to the autobot's side? he fought alongside them and rodimus literally offered to let him join. then galvatron booted him from the decepticons bc blitzwing threatened him when galvatron tried to attack roddy. king shit. which contributed a lot to my interpretation of him as very Chaotic Neutral-- he has his own moral code, and though he is a follower by nature, he's only willing to follow those who align with his own morals.

(also, thank u very much-- i adore blitzy and writing him is so fun. it makes me so happy that people are inspired to write him like i do instead of as a hehehe mental illness joke)

[alchely]

My Top Gallavich fics

So, under the advice of the lovely @iangallagherisadeadman I've decided to compile a favorites Gallavich fic list along with a brief rec of each, this won't be a strict top 10 cause I'm not gonna torture myself into excluding some of these stories on some made-up self imposed arbitrary rules.

A bunch of disclaimers: most of these fics are long fics, going from 30k words up, I'm not purposefully excluding shorter fics, I have read plenty of them, but they do have a harder time sticking in my head months after reading.

Most of these fics will be explicit, just read the tags on the fic itself if you want to find out more.

Some of these fics don't have links because the authors chose to lock them and as such make them unlinkable, in order to read them you will need to go through the author's page while you're logged in your AO3 account.

This ended up ballooning out of control and is A LOT longer than ten fics, I apologize in advance :p.

YOU'LL NEVER SEE US AGAIN – spoonfulstar - 231k words

Mickey and Ian have been students at Marceline boarding school their whole lives, as their time at the institute draws toward the end they will start to discover many things, about themselves, about each other and about the world they live in.

THIS FIC! I CRIED! The number of fanfiction that are able to make me cry can be counted on a singular hand, the emotional stakes get higher and higher as the story goes on, leading to a beautiful and bittersweet climax.

This story will make you think and feel deeply about topics you'd never think a shameless fic would delve into.

I am obsessed with Mickey in this fic, he and Ian grow up in an environment that could not be more removed from South Side Chicago and yet his personality is still so recognizably and distinctly Mickey.

The story goes very dark at times, and the fic itself could be considered lengthy, but I assure you the author has made sure to not make you feel it. Those 200k words flowed so well the story did not feel long at all.

HELP ME (TEAR DOWN MY REASON) – wehangout - 34k words

Mickey is a detective and Ian becomes a suspect in an investigation except Mickey already knows him because he's his favorite dancer.

This fic falls under the umbrella of fics where “Mickey is so in love with Ian he does something unbelievably crazy”.

Oooh boy, this fic, it's written in second person (yes you've read that right), tbh out of all fics I've read from this author I think this one was the easiest to adjust mentally to the change in perspective.

I loved Mickey’s “love” in this, just… This raw connection to Ian, the perfect cocktail of feelings, I could read that all day long.

IN ANOTHER WORLD – Roryonic - 249k words

Mickey does not get sent to prison at the end of S5, what happens after and how his presence influences future events (mostly Ian, but also every other Gallagher as well as his own family).

As far as I'm concerned this fic is the closest to a perfect S6 and beyond fix-it. The dialogue writing in this story is so close to canon Shameless that I could picture entire scenes in my head with the actors playing the characters, with their body and personality quirks.

Sometimes I find myself describing this fic like it's the actual show's deleted scenes, “Look, Mickey has his own storyline! And Mandy is here! And the existence of Yevgeni does not become a plot hole!”

There are some Mickey lines in this fic that to me are as canon as if they'd been in the show. Absolutely iconic writing.

I love this author so here's a rec of some of their other longfics, however I highly suggest a lot of their other much shorter stuff as well:

BATTLESHIPS AND LOVE BOATS: Ian and Mickey start their “no strings attached” kind of sex relationship a little later than canon but their attraction and love is just as strong. This is a sort of High School AU that turns into a Prison AU that turns into something else and every shift is just as lovely as the next.

YOU SMELL LIKE LOVE: Ian and Mickey are childhood friends, to the point that the rest of the Gallaghers might as well consider Mickey a seventh brother, mmmh, I sure wonder how things will start to change. Look, I never thought I'd love a childhood friends AU for Gallavich yet here I am, if it's good it's good.

ME AND THE DEVIL: Mickey unconsciously calls for a vengeance demon and Ian Gallagher shows up at his door, because Mickey is a stubborn dumbass they fall in love instead. This story has a lot of twists and turns and the premise is only the very beginning of the story. I LOVED it!

THE INCREASINGLY POOR DECISIONS OF IAN GALLAGHER – Shamelessquestions - 309k words

Ian is a dancer in a club, he accidentally gets involved in the affair of a dangerous mafia don, but the true danger is the attraction he and the mafioso’s right hand Mickey feel for each other as soon as they meet.

What. A. Classic. Truly, an unforgettable story, and I don't mean this in hyperbole, I read this story around… 2016/2017 during my second round in the Shameless fandom, then I read countless other fics in a lot of other fandom and yet this story was the only one that my mind retained from back then, to the point that I could still remember some of the finer details as well as the final plot twists when I came back to reread it.

The plot is constructed beautifully and the original characters (part of the Shamelessquestions fanfiction universe, as they come back time and time again in every one of their AU to fulfill their role in the story) are just as vibrant.

What a story, truly.

Favorite original character in this AU: Sal, his downfall is so satisfying and yet so pitiful to read.

TEENAGERS SCARE THE LIVING SHIT OUT OF ME – Mellow_Yellow - 221k words

Ian finds something scary and calls Mickey for help, even though they had only reconnected that very day after two years of not seeing each other. Together, they get sucked into a situation they weren't at all prepared for. Can they even admit that they're in over their head?

The very beginning of this fic is SO cinematic it grabbed my interest from the very first scene and didn't let go until the end, DO NOT search for spoilers.

The only warning I'll give is that it does deal with a bit of gore and what I'm personally gonna define as slight psychological horror. That's it. Enjoy!

BROKE STRAIGHT BOYS – dancermk - 66k words

Mickey becomes a porn actor for a site where he has to pretend he's straight and not enjoying the copious amount of gay sex he's having on camera, enter Ian, another actor under the same agency and their off the chart physical chemistry.

This story has, needless to say, some really, really good smut. I especially loved their first time together, but every sex scene in this story is seared in my mind.

ETHERIZED AGAINST THE SKY – Snarfle - 213k words

So, I debated whether I should add this fic or not, but I think if there is one fic that will stay in my mind long after this Shameless binge of the past couple of months it's this one, and it should absolutely become one of those fic that everyone in the fandom should read.

After Mickey gets shot by Kash his life takes a completely different direction and he ends up in a group home where, through many difficult times, he turns his life around.

So many iconic moments in this fic, some funny as fuck, some sad, some so absurd that I'm surprised they weren't lifted straight from Shameless, one so gruesome in the very first chapter that I was surprised to have such a visceral feeling from just words on a screen. Yeah, this story will stay with me for a long time.

OLD RULES FOR NEW SIDE PIECES – Shamelessquestions - 217k words

Ian is a Fed and he spots Mickey looking suspicious in an art museum, the mutual attraction is overwhelming, Mickey is not what he seems and Ian is already with someone else, but that's not gonna stop him from pursuing what he and Mickey have.

Putting it as bluntly as I can, this fic made me face the realization that I love cheating fics (if the cheating happens to someone else to bring together the endgame couple). I have already reread this fic twice and I could probably go for another one and not get tired of it, it's that good, and out of all this author's fics it's probably my favorite.

Favorite original characters in this AU: It's a three way tie between Dre, Ivan and Carrie, they're all very captivating in this story.

Other fic from this author I'd recommend cause I really love their style:

LOST IN TRANSLATION: Ian meets a very attractive man while he's in Ukraine who doesn't speak English, a mere language barrier won't stop him from flirting for hours. (adorable)

YOU MAKE ME FEEL HUMAN – Dragona - 66k words

Ian is an assassin, he meets Mickey and thus begins a very sick love story.

To say I'm obsessed with this fic is an understatement, I suggest to everyone to just go read the original author’s own description of the fic, it sets the tone of the story magnificently.

This is an Ian Gallagher that almost resembles Jerome (also played by Cameron in Gotham) but like… a slightly more subdued and saner S1/S2 version of him. I love the layers that get peeled right in front of my eyes, the madness that creeps in a bit more every chapter. I LOVE this story.

DRIED INK - 87k words

This fic combines my two favorite Gallavich-specific tropes, one being ‘Mickey comes back from prison after s6, Ian is with someone else’ and ‘Ian cheats on that someone else for Mickey’

I love the Gallaghers in this and how unsurprised they are at Ian going back to Mickey right away. It's a little jewel of a fic.

Mickey tries SO hard to stop himself and Ian in this but their love is too magnetic, they're irresistible to each other.

THE QUESTION OF NORMAL – blue_newman - 92k words

Ian is a prison counselor, Mickey is in prison, they fall in love and it's beautiful and Ian is incredibly devoted to Mickey in this fic and I fell in love with them both in this.

KINDA RAW – catgrassplantdad - 6k

Quite simply this is my favorite short pwp fic.

Illustrating those “five times” in one night that Mickey references in 11x01.

This fic is so hot, I love it <3

QUATERVOIS – DodgerBear - 51k words

Soldier Mickey gets stationed in the middle of nowhere and meets a farmer called Ian who makes him question everything.

Falling under the same umbrella of “Mickey does something crazy for Ian” fics and this is why it stuck in my mind even if it's been a while since I've read it.

I LOVE this story, their dialogues and everything that happens in it. The setting is lovely and you will fall in love with the description of Ian’s farm.

Other fic by the same author that I also loved:

BURDEN OF PROOF: Cop Mickey gets caught in a legal battle between the two oldest Gallagher brothers, something doesn't feel right though…

THE WORDS HE DOESN'T SAY: Mickey is released before Ian in s10 and has to meet a court-mandated therapist. The story is from the therapist POV and goes AU from the beginning of s10 in that Mickey gets involved back into Yev and Svetlana’s life, the dialogue is, quite obviously, the main attraction of the story and it's really well done. (Also, written in first person).

THE MENAGERIE – CrossMyDNA - 147k words

Ian decides to re-explore his bdsm preferences at The Menagerie where he meets sub extraordinaire Mickey on his very first visit.

Shameless is undoubtedly the fandom that opened my eyes to what bdsm could be back in… approx 2016? When that other popular bdsm fic was still around *ahem*.

So it definitely feels like a sign that coming back into the fandom this fic now exists and is SO GOOD.

Obviously it's very explicit, the smut in this fic is one of the best I've ever read.

The chemistry between Ian and Mickey sizzles off the screen and can absolutely be felt even in moments not of the nsfw variety, absolutely recommended!

MICKEY MILKOVICH’S GUIDE TO FLIRTING – whatwouldmickeydo - 40k words

An s2 “missing moments” between Gallavich, completely canon compliant, all under the pretense that Mickey is following a step by step guide to flirting.

I wish this fic was describing canon moments, not kidding a single bit, I wish I could somehow magically manifest these scenes into existence they're that good and fit that well into canon.

M8TE – gallawitch - 53k words

Omegaverse fic where Ian and Mickey both start using an app and end up matching with each other, even though a connection is made almost instinctively, coming to terms with it with a sound mind will take a bit longer…

Hey,had to have at least one of these on here lol

I love omegaverse and this was everything I wanted from it, couldn't have asked for anything better really <3.

SHACKLED – MyRelapse - 19k words

Ian has a change of heart and he decides that Mickey IS the one he wants, even if he's still in prison, so he keeps in contact and goes through every hoop imaginable to have him back as soon as possible.

Reading this made me so happy like I could burst, love it.

WAITING ON MY OWN TOO LONG – Ride4812 - 266k words

This rec more than any other on this list is what I'm gonna consider self indulgent because it covers the trope I always craved to read in such a satisfying way: Canon AU where Mickey comes back from prison after 8 years, Ian has found someone else but the moment the two meet again they fall back into each other right away.

The series is made up of 4 smaller fics:

One more night

Something more this time

No more lonely nights

Ain't this life so sweet

(I will point out here and nowhere else that the last installment of this series has some segment that probably needed to be re-read a couple more times, but by that point I was too invested, and the quality fluctuates a lot only in certain parts)

The writing style is very direct and to the point, which I love, the smut is very present and written beautifully and most importantly never boring.

Ian is a MESS in this fic and had me Stressed™, mostly cause for some reason I can't handle too much casual depiction of drug abuse and addiction (I know, ironic considering the fandom).

Conflicts and resolutions are never clean cut, they don't necessarily resolve quickly or definitely or the way you probably imagine they should and I find this level of realism very satisfying.

Taking a bit of space here at the end to also rec a couple other Ride4812 fics that I also loved:

COUP DE FOUDRE - A model/photographer AU where Ian and Mickey fall in love the instant they meet and do some crazy things because of that.

HOPE HE MIGHT - A lawyer AU where Ian and Mickey are on opposing sides for the same client, an interesting murder mystery steeped in a religious cult.

Generally I feel like this author is really good at depicting just how unapproachable Mickey can be to anyone that isn't called Ian Gallagher and I eat it up every time.

WHAT THE NIGHT DOES TO THE DAY – andchaos - 9k words

A Gallavich childhood friends AU with a quite original arrangement for the story and the various segments of their lives. Very satisfying read.

RANSOM – BeckyHarvey29 - 112k words

Terry sends his sons to kidnap a Gallagher child to force Frank into paying back the money he owes, unfortunately for him Mickey and his brothers kidnap Ian, and a whole other kind of story unfolds.

Mickey and Ian falling in love in this fic is such a good read. I don't wanna spoil anything of how that or the kidnapping plot goes, since the two are so intertwined. Just know that it will be worth it.

UNDER LOCK AND KEY – Suzy_Queue - 106k words

Ian is assigned the night shift at his new job where he provides spare keys to his fellow college students stuck outside their dorm rooms. To make matters worse his shift coworker is the oh so infamous Mickey Milkovich.

I am magnetized by the way this author writes their pining for each other, their attraction and obsession, how it blooms and unfolds. This fic in particular had me develop a very bad case of tunnel vision, couldn't really turn away until I finished reading it all.

I still haven't read everything this author has to offer, but so far I also loved:

INHUMAN: A mysterious force starts attacking people close to Mickey and it all seems to lead to a mysterious redhead Mickey is oh so coincidentally obsessed with. Very cool paranormal story.

THESE FOOLISH GAMES: Mickey takes over as the boss of the local branch of a trampoline park, where Ian is one of the employees, they annoy each other to no end but what they don't know is that they're secretly texting each other.

IS THERE SOMEWHERE – andchaos - 48k words

Mickey is born with no words on his skin, convinced he's going to live a life of misery cause no one will ever say the words he's destined to hear, he's not a very happy guy. Here comes mute boy Ian who crashes into his life and won't let go.

A classic Soulmate AU, I love that like in a lot of other Gallavich fics their physical connection and compatibility usually comes before their emotional one, it is one aspect that I feel distinguishes their relationship to many other fandom’s ships.

LAST NIGHT AT THE VERONA GRAND HOTEL – the_rat_wins - 27k words

Mickey starts working at an ancient hotel who's supposedly haunted. Mickey doesn't believe in ghost stories, he is much more interested in this one guest he meets at night during his shift.

What a cinematic experience this fic is! Absolutely recommended, the length of it makes it so you can read it in the same time it would take to watch the same story in movie format.

Other fics by the same authors that have impressed me:

FADE THIS ONE TO BLACK: Ian dies of overdose in a pile of snow outside the club, when Mickey finds him there he vows to do anything to get him back.

I don't know why but this fic in particular gives off the vibes of being a pilot for a ya urban fantasy TV series, except we gotta imagine everything that comes after the first episode lol

NO LIE: Ian and Mickey are Soulmates and as such they can't lie to each other. This series is short and sweet and full of feelings, perfect

PARAGRAPHS – pink_ink - 100k words

Ian becomes a reading tutor for ex-convicts, Mickey is among them and Ian starts paying him more and more attention.

This is a story where they meet under very different circumstances and where they've lived slightly different lives compared to canon and yet they're still able to find each other in the end.

Also, sign me up for every fic where Ian has to work just as hard to help Mickey and care for him as the opposite, where Ian's brand of stubbornness is the only way to get through to Mickey.

I'm also adding a couple of ongoing fics, just two to not overwhelm too much.

NONE THE WISER – Loftec - ~218k words

Ian starts visiting Mickey’s diner, it takes a while and yet no time at all to warm up to each other.

I'm captivated by the author's writing style. I love Ian's and Mickey’s relationship. I love how they sort of take their time and yet pine helplessly for each other.

I'm obsessed with the fact that the whole point of the fic doesn't appear until two thirds of the way in cause the diner scenes were just too good to pass up on lol (and I 100% agree with them).

INTRO TO QUANTUM DATING – spoonfulstar - ~563k words

Canon Mickey and Ian meet in University. A college slice of life but drenched in the casual (and not so casual) darkness of canon shameless.

The dark humor in this is fenomenal and left me gasping laughing so many times.

Unexpectedly Ian in this fic is pursuing a linguistics oriented degree, which was what I studied when I tried university, the topics are explained in such an accurate way I have to assume the author studied them themselves and that this story is somewhat a reimagining of their own college experience because if not this would be an absurd amount of accurate research to make.

Reading this fic feels like living through the American college experience from the comfort of my home lol.

As I said before, this author's way of writing does not weight you down even with its length, the story flows perfectly from one scene to the next and before you realize it you've reached the end and you have to accept that 500k words weren't even enough.

Let's end this list with some quick recommendations

WHILE WE'RE MAKING OTHER (PEOPLE'S) PLANS - kyasticlikestea

Mickey is volunteered to organize someone's else's wedding after he managed to salvage his own so well, he'll do it, but his own Southside way.

THIS IS THE ROAD TO RUIN - bricoleur10

Ian and Mickey never go to rob Ned, the story unfolds differently from there. A fix-it with a lot of Gallavich longing , very good smut and some really good dialogue.

HEY, HONEY MINE (I WAS THERE ALL THE TIME) - serveteas

Mickey talks about his crush with Iggy and accidentally pronoun-slips. Short, to the point, funny af and I just really love it. Takes place after their fight at Kash’n Grab in s2.

AGAINST GLASS - AllThatMatters

Ian gets traded from one club to another as a dancer (and more) and ends up in the Milkovich family's club. This is a Mafia!Mickey story with some pretty tight sub-plots, I love his brothers in this.

ONE OF A KIND - fckyeahgallavich

Mickey breaks his finger and it has to be set in the hospital, chaos - of the homophobic kind - ensues. Protective!Ian, I wanna hug Mickey in this.

IAN THE FRIENDLY GHOST - Ravenheart

Ian is haunting an apartment and Mickey starts living in it, Ian is maybe starting to have a crush on him. This isn't angsty!

BLOOD IN, BLEED OUT - brewrosemilk, Whatsastory

Historical AU. Perfectly innocent bystander Ian Gallagher is thrown into the affairs of the Ukrainian Mafia back in 1954, his relationship with Mickey will span decades and he won't remain innocent for long, the mafia can corrupt anyone.

TEENAGE RUNAWAY - sadwhales

Ian comes to live and finish high school with his half siblings on the South Side, he's immediately captivated by a boy sitting under the bleachers, maybe his North Side naivety will catch his attention too.

GARDEN SONG - melwrtiesthings

A glimpse into their lives in their West Side apartment, a lot of initial angst due to a manic episode and then a lot of recovery and healing and learning more about themselves.

[ifeelloveeverymillionmiles]

Before Six years, five months, two days

Can we talk about how obsessed they are with each other before they even go on the subway?

At the Keepers meeting, as soon as they start talking they are touching elbows and arms, super close. SO much eye contact in the conversation and Lila is like TEXTBOOK flirting - her lips slightly parted through their whole convo, sexy face on, and so many mischievous glances at Five. Nonchalantly placing her hand on his chest to put on his nametag and like ???lingering??? Oh yeah Nancy, make sure that nametag isn't coming off, very thorough name tag application.

Then the cafe, obviously more touching of the face, more eye contact, and smiles. Am I imagining it or does Lila's façade drop a little and she looks kinda guilty about wiping the powdered sugar off Five's face when Diego sees them through the window? She's then laughing right after, but a part of me wonders if she wanted to touch Five, did, liked it, felt bad, then bounced back and started laughing before the scene was over.

Then we have two scenes with Diego in the van, one with Five and then one with Lila.

When Diego confides in Five his concerns about Lila and the "little Greek guy" it's a VERY clever bit of writing that is TEEMING with doublespeak, Five states:

"Whatever this is (him and Lila), it's nothing. You guys have a family, kids, a home, only a fool would give that up. Lila is no fool" Five looks almost remorseful as he says she's not a fool. IMO by calling it "this" Five acknowledges that there is something between them, but seems disappointed since he believes nothing could or would happen between them, but only due to her current circumstances.

Then Five states to Diego "Bury it. Deep. Cover that shit in concrete." which in this context makes way more sense for his own feelings (his growing affection for Lila) vs. advice you would give your sibling about concerns over their partner's potential infidelity.

Diego then states "You're a good brother." and the shot lingers on Five's face as he looks painfully guilty. We follow up with a long shot of Lila, peering at them secretly, which adds to the perception that this exchange may be more significant than what the surface-level conversation appears to be.

Also, at the beginning of this whole conversation, Five lies for Lila by saying "Well she has that book club" to Diego. I think it's interesting that Five's first instinct here is to be loyal to Lila and keep up her lie rather than coming clean to Diego. His loyalty is already to her over him.

At the New Grumpson Christmas festival, when Diego throws axes to impress her, she looks at him (very annoyed) for a whole 2 seconds then immediately starts scanning the crowd, super distracted, not caring what Diego is doing or saying (this is a little sad). What is she looking for?? Five of course. She quickly excuses herself from Diego and seeks him out, finding him trying to blink. Then there is all this cutsie talk about kegels. They keep their heads down in a little tet-a-tet, and look annoyed when Diego joins them and starts asking questions. I melt a little when Five says "Mulled wine for myself, egg nog for the Lady". They are already on the same page. They already consider themselves a team of two within this larger team.

Then the van conversation with Lila and Diego, we get a shot of Five's face as the convo is starting, which makes sense because they do speak about him in their fight/conversation. But what stands out to me is that once Lila confesses that she has been working undercover, Diego gets upset Lila states

"You're acting as if I had an affair"

to which Diego responds "This is even worse!"

and they cut to Five's face and he looks SO annoyed. To me, he's thinking "Wait, you're with Lila, you've gotten to settle down, be normal, have kids and you think Lila going undercover tangentially with the CIA is worse than her having an affair and losing all that?" which I think is crazy to Five because Diego has the normalcy Five craves, with the person Five has the most chemistry with.

And this is BEFORE all the subway stuff. I honestly think they left us so many breadcrumbs before episode 5 and I'm having a delightful and delicious time finding them!

[weirdsht]

For Your Safety - Alberu/Reader

a/n: this is like writing practice. I want to write more soft yandere fics but I can't so I'm trying to get a feel for it. Tips and advice are appreciated hehe, just note that I'm not a fan of overly violent yandere's

tags: male reader, fiance reader, yandere Alberu, hints of isolation, hints of possessiveness, nothing too bad, very self-indulgent

English isn’t my first language so there will be grammatical errors

Pls don't repost my work anywhere without my permission

Constructive criticisms and any kind of interaction are more than welcome

Requests are currently closed but my ask are still open (read pinned)

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Alberu is kneeling. The future king of the Roan Kingdom, the most promising kingdom right now, is kneeling while hugging someone’s leg.

Your leg

You’re the only one who can bring such a powerful man to his knees. The only one whose ground every step he will worship.

The love of his life.

Everyone knows of this. They know just how much the crown prince treasures you. How he will do anything to make you happy.

However, right now he was trying to appease you. Trying to make you do something something you do not like.

“I can fight too! I can also wield a sword if necessary.”

You tried to argue. Trying to not be swayed by the loving circles your fiance is tracing on your legs. His other hand playing with the ends of your coat.

“I know my love. But it’s better if you stay here. It’s difficult to know what White Star will do once you are out of my sight.”

Alberu argues back and you would have relented by now if he hadn’t been keeping you in his palace for months now.

“But I’m practically on house arrest! I can’t live like this forever!“

You huffed, annoyed at him and his antics.

“It won’t be forever. After everything is settled you’ll be able to go out again.”

‘Under my surveillance of course.’

The crown prince kept the last part to himself. While he understands your need to venture out he honestly thinks that the situation right now is quite fine.

You’re here, under his wing.

Under his watch.

Plus, it’s not as if you need anything or anyone else when you get him. He can provide you with anything you’ll ever want. It’s your right as his fiance.

So stop arguing with him already and stay in his palace like the good boyfriend you are.

“But…”

Your argument did not make it past your lips as he kissed you. Trying to silence you and end this whole argument.

And honestly, it’s working.

You have always been weak when it comes to your fiance. Everyone says that Alberu always adheres to your whims. What they don’t know is that you also always adhere to his.

One kiss and you’re putty in his hands. All of your previous concerns going away.

Just like right now.

Alberu knows this and always uses it to his advantage. 

“Please just stay here? Just for a little while longer?”

The quarter Dark Elf cupped your face with his hands. His previously kneeling figure is now on the bed with you. His legs trapping your own, as if saying that you won’t be able to leave either way.

“...Fine”

You relented and Alberu smiled at you, happy that you now see eye to eye. 

For a moment you think you saw his eyes glimmer with possessiveness. However, it was gone as soon as it arrived, making you think it had been your imagination.

Plus your lover who always has everyone’s best intentions in mind could never look such a way.

…Right?

“Wait does this mean I can’t attend the rewards ceremony?”

You tugged the hem of his coat. Begging for him to say otherwise.

“Don’t worry we’ll attend it together. I’m sure everyone will be even more happy once you grace them with your presence.”

Alberu’s hold moved onto your sides as he kissed your temple and you swear you melted again.

“But do stay by my side love. We suspect White Star will be watching as well.”

To be honest, if it was possible he doesn’t want White Star to even look at you. Even if it’s through a screen. You’re too precious for such a man to lay his vile gaze on.

Alberu’s hold on tightened and you became concerned.

“Love? Are you okay? If you want I won’t attend the rewards ceremony…”

Your fiance loosened his grip on your sides and shook his head. He laid his head on your shoulders, inhaling your scent.

“No no, you must be there. You must stay by my side…”

He reassured you as he continued to hold you in his arms.

“As long as you stay by my side everything would be fine.”

Alberu wasn’t just talking about the upcoming ceremony. It was a vow that he would uphold for as long as you lived.

Aren’t you glad to have such a loving fiance like him?

[hwanghyunjinenthusiast]

You and Me

AN: I felt compelled to write something based on the best song off of ATE so, here we are. Also, purple haired Changbin had a vicious hold on me so.

Synopsis: Changbin isn't what you're used to. He's uncomplicated. Fun. Casual. However, maybe that's what you need.

General tags and warnings: Seo Changbin x Fem! Reader, situationship/casual dating, one mention of past alcohol consumption, barely there angst and mentions of a breakup and not much plot.

Smut tags and warnings: While there isn't explicit powerplay, Reader does take charge and Changbin is more on the submissive side, petnames, dirty talk, oral sex (f. receiving), nipple and breast play (f. receiving), Reader is very into Changbin's body (she's just like me fr), strength kink, arm kink of sorts, piv sex without a condom and creampie.

Word count: 3k.

I will block you if you are a minor and/or have no easily visible indication of your age on your blog if you interact with me in any way.

“Hey!” he yells, shooting you a nasty scowl that only makes you laugh before turning his attention back to his needlessly massive television, “You totally cheated!” 

Things with Changbin are simple. Easy. Freeing. 

“It's not my fault you suck at Mario Kart, Bin,” you respond through laughter that causes your cheeks and stomach to start hurting. Your amusement only grows as you watch him still lose to you even though you're playing while laughing at him and his horrible gaming skills. 

You're not sure why he insists on playing when you both know how trash at it he is. 

“I swear you cheated,” he mumbles under his breath, though it's loud and clear enough for you to hear. You playfully bump your shoulder against his, “How would I even cheat in this game?” you bite back a giggle when you notice his scowl deepen from the corner of your eye, “I just think someone is a sore loser and can't handle getting their ass kicked,” you sing-song. 

“I am not a sore loser,” he argues, fingers mashing the buttons of his controller as his eyes focus on Bowser inching closer to fifth place with every button he all but smashes. “You're just a dirty, lying cheater,” he grumbles, his lips forming a thin line as his attention briefly shoots to your choice of Peach comfortably in second place. 

You elect not to give into his accusations. Simply letting your actions speak for themselves and smirking when you cross the finish line in first place. Again. Changbin crosses his arms and refuses to look at you for a few moments and you try your hardest not to laugh at the pout on his face and the way his purple bangs shadow his eyes. 

“Changbin,” you start, the struggle to hold back your laughter evident to even your own ears. 

“One more game.” 

The corners of your lips tick up without your consent, “Changbin, we've already played five rounds and I won four of them,” you respond. 

“Just one more. I know I can win,” he argues desperately. You don't think you've ever seen anyone take Mario Kart this seriously. His ego must be terribly bruised right now. 

“We had a deal, Binnie,” you remind him, your smile widening, “A deal that was actually over two, whole rounds ago.” 

“Fine,” he sighs dramatically in resignation and this time you do let the giggles bubble out of you. You can't remember the last time you allowed yourself to just…have fun before meeting the man next to you after one too many glasses of wine and swiping on Tinder. 

Minho had been incessantly nagging you to put yourself out there after things crashed and burned with your ex-boyfriend of five years. Saying that you were wrecked after he broke up with you last year would be putting it kindly. You're honestly not sure how you survived that but, a stubborn man who is arguably more cat than human and who loves you more than he'll ever admit likely had something to do with it. 

‘The best way to get over someone is to get under someone new. Or, on top of them. Whatever works for you.’ His advice was pretty horrible but, after spending these handful of months with Changbin, you can't say it totally sucked. 

You're startled out of your thoughts by a firm hand on your thigh, plush lips kissing along your jaw. You're not sure exactly when he moved but, you aren't complaining. Placing your controller down and letting your fingers run along his purple locks. 

“I really like this colour,” you say a little breathlessly, letting him push you down onto his couch and make himself comfortable between your thighs. You've found that it's incredibly easy to get in the mood when it comes to Changbin. A few kisses and groping at his massive arms and you're ready to go.  

He laughs softly against your neck, eager hands shoving your shirt up and exposing your breasts to the cool air of his apartment, “I've noticed. If I was a more insecure man, I think you cumming extra hard the first time you fucked me after I dyed it would hurt my feelings,” he muses against your skin, his warm breath combined with the way his firm hands gently knead your tits causing your mind to grow hazy and your clit to buzz to life. 

“I mean, it's still you that made me cum so, there's no real reason to feel insecure anyway,” you respond with a snort, arching into him when his soft lips press firmer kisses along your collarbone. Usually endearing eyes becoming heavier with desire with every second his mouth and his hands remain on your more than willing body. “True but, a lesser man would,” he replies, sounding increasingly more uninterested in this conversation and instead focusing on your hardened nipples and spanning as much of his hands as he can along your waist. 

You can't say you blame him. The fog creeping into your mind worsens when his warm mouth eventually takes the plunge and envelopes one of the nipples he's been sneaking glances at since you showed up braless hours ago. The determination to make sure you're enjoying yourself is one of your favourite parts of Changbin, as selfish as that may be. He's purposeful, even in moments where his passion overrides the rational side of his brain. His fingers experimenting with how to caux the most visceral reactions from you, his mouth testing to see how soft or hard you like it. Even all these months later, his curiosity and desire to see just how much and in how many ways he can make you feel good makes your head spin. 

The light drag of his teeth along your nipple causes your entire body to jolt. Your pussy clenching around nothing when his heavy gaze finds your lidded one through the wisps of his purple hair. God, it looks so fucking good on him. The memory of you two fucking each other close to unconsciousness the first day you saw him sporting it is a fond one and, makes for phenomenal spank bank material when he's too busy to let you bounce on his cock or fold you in half. Not one to be outdone, however, your hands drift from where they'd been clingy to his ridiculously hot shoulders (seriously, you never knew shoulders could be this attractive) to palm his biceps greedily. Changbin knows what his arms do to you. He knows just how stupid they make you and, you're 99% sure he wore this shirt that clings to him like a second layer of skin for that reason. 

It's so incredibly easy to lose yourself in the ministrations of his mouth and his hand and his delectable body. To lose yourself in him. Goosebumps rise in his wake as one of his hands hurriedly moves down your overheated body until it reaches the waistband of your tiny shorts. He isn't the only one who's picked up on a weakness or four during the months you've been frequenting each others’ beds. You learned fairly quickly that Changbin is obsessed with your ass and thighs and, will attach himself to them whenever you give him the chance. It's done wonders for your confidence.  

You'd pout at him for freeing your nipple from his mouth if he wasn't speeding his way down your body in record time. Every place he presses a wet, hurried kiss into burns and you know you don't really have any ground to complain because anticipation simmers in your veins when he helps you get rid of your shorts and discard them unceremoniously onto his floor. His eagerness might be your favourite characteristic of his, actually. He really acts like if he doesn't get his mouth on your pussy, he'll simply perish. Evidenced by the way his hungry gaze locks onto your dripping folds and he makes himself comfortable on his stomach. If your clit throbs at the sight of his arms flexing as they grip your spread thighs, that's between you and yourself. 

“You know, you never have to win a bet in order for me to eat you out,” he says, voice hoarse and heavy, the faintest hints of his breath hitting your bare pussy prompting your thighs to quiver. Glancing down at him, it takes a herculean amount of effort not to just grip him by his roots and shove him into you but, you persist, “I know,” you breathe, your fingers lacing themselves in his hair and toying with it, “but, it feels even better when you do it after I've won one of our little bets,” you finish with lopsided smile that you're certain is dripping with smugness. 

The whimper that escapes his plush lips is almost as satisfying as finally feeling him touch you. Changbin is excited and messy when he eats you out. He does it without abandon and without much build up. His fingers are determined to leave themselves imprinted into your thighs with how harshly he's holding onto you. His display of strength fueling you to tighten your grip in his hair and tilt your hips until there's virtually nowhere for him to go. Not that he'd want to go anywhere else based on the way he lavishes your clit with licks and his spit. The vibrations from his groans adds to the tension building in your entire body, shuddering moans of his name and an array of colourful curse words spilling from your lips. 

Your grip on his hair grows harsher when he sucks on your clit, albeit gently. If the pain is too much for him, he doesn't show you any indication of that. If anything, his mouth is even more determined and he drags you closer to him. You've always wondered in the back of your mind if just watching how strong he is would be enough to make you cum. You should really test that hypothesis one day. If nothing else, it would breed interesting results. 

His tongue presses into your clit in time with one of his sucks, forcing you to focus your attention back on the very hot man smearing your wetness on his face while the character selection screen watches on. His eyes haven't left you once. The lust in them is palpable and, your stomach twists pleasantly with the knowledge that he wants you just as much as you always want him. Even as your hold of his beautiful hair grows more frantic and harsh. Even as he uses his strength to hold you down so that he can make out with your pussy to his heart's content. Even when your own eyes flutter shut and the waves grow increasingly higher. His eyes never stop watching you. 

You're almost certain that and a hard press of his tongue are eventually what do you in. 

Changbin is never one to quit. He keeps kissing and lapping at you even through your oragsm, although not nearly as intensely as he was a minute ago. The buzz you feel to the very tips of your fingers is prolonged every time his soft lips press themselves into you and he loudly moans into your dripping folds. It's only when you weakly pull at his strands and tiredly call his name that he finally relents. Leaving your clit with a final kiss that makes you giggle. He truly loves to do the most. 

“Come here,” you gently command and he follows willingly. You kiss him lazily. Your tongue in search of every bit of your taste on his. Hands leisurely feeling as much of his firm torso and plump ass as they can. You smile into him when he jumps as your hands make their way under his too-tight shirt. Still, he lets you peel him out of it. Only separating from your mouth briefly so he can toss it somewhere to be forgotten about until after the two of you have exhausted each other. 

The sight of his bare chest causes your slick walls to clamp down painfully around nothing. The outline of his thick cock through the sweats low on his hips makes you realise, rather viscerally, just how empty you are and how much you'd very much like to be filled. Now. 

“What are you–” 

His question dies on his tongue when you successfully maneuver yourself onto all fours. His quiet ‘fuck’ brings a smile to your face. It's always fun using his weaknesses against him. 

“You look shit, you look so hot like this,” he practically whines, shuffling behind you in record time. Based on the rustling of his sweats and the lack of clothing joining the mess on his floor, you assume he just haphazardly tugged them down enough to free his cock. The image causing saliva to pool in your mouth and more of your wetness to trickle down your sticky, inner thighs. 

“That's very sweet of you to say, baby,” you coo, shooting him a look over your shoulder that prompts his cock to jump. Cute. “Now are you just going to stare at my ass or are you planning to actually fuck me?” You ask with a saccharine edge to your tone, swaying your hips for good measure. 

You bite down on your bottom lip to stop yourself from smiling too hard at his overeagerness. He shuffles closer to you in record time, placing a warm, firm hand on your hip while the other guides his fat tip to your pulsing hole. Whatever amusement you were feeling quickly dissipates when he starts to push into you. His hand shaking with every inch of himself he sinks into you. The stretch is always so fucking good with Changbin. Despite who knows how many times you've let him split you open, the first few strokes always take a bit of adjusting. 

“How are you always so tight?” He gasps out when his thighs finally meet the backs of yours. Both of his hands grabbing your hips fiercely in an attempt to ground himself as he shallowly thrusts into you. “And so fucking wet,” he groans, his entire body vibrating with the effort it takes not to cum immediately. You've learned that Changbin's stamina is simultaneously impressive and terrible. Terrible in that it honestly doesn't take all that much to make him cum. And impressive in that it only takes a few minutes until he's hard and ready to go again. It adds to the myriad of reasons he's so fun to fuck. 

“I'll tell you when you tell me how your cock always fills me ah, Binnie,” you mewl in response, your lashes fluttering when he picks up his pace and starts to stretch you out properly. His only response is a guttural moan and snap of his hips that forces you forward onto his couch's armrest. The smile on your face must look delirious with how fantastic he's making you feel, down to the very tips of your toes. You love when he gets desperate. Your walls sporadically clamping down on him with every ramble he mutters into the skin of your back and the sweaty, hard hold he maintains of you. 

“Fuck,” he gasps when you intentionally tighten around him and push your ass back onto him, “You're so–I'm–I'm close,” he heaves into your skin. His sweat drenched hair tickling your skin and his arms flexing around you with the effort it takes for him not to just cum into your perfect pussy. The constant twitching of his cock inside you is delicious and you feel like a woman possessed. 

“But Binnie,” you whine with a pout for good measure, batting your eyes at him over your shoulder, “It was just getting so good. You know I love when you fuck me with this fat cock of yours,” you emphasise your point by pressing back against him. A cocktail of desire and delight sitting in the pit of your stomach watching the way his entire body shudders and said fat cock twitches non-stop. 

“Don't you want to make me cum on it, bunny?” 

And just like he snaps within an instant. 

Your moans are swallowed by the fabric of his couch, fingers clawing into the material as the obscene noises of his skin slapping against your and his cock bullying your pussy echo through his living room. But your favourite part is always the sounds. His deep moans intertwined with his fucked out whimpers always make you throb in the best, most lust-induced way possible. The haziness clouding your brain makes it difficult to catch everything he imprints into your skin but, what does hit your ears is more than enough to send one of your hands between your thighs and draw frenzied circles into your swollen clit. 

He crumbles first with a broken, slurred moan of your name. His arms keeping you pressed to his hot, sweaty chest as his cock unloads rope after rope of cum into your more than ready pussy. The whines and jolts of his hips, pushing his release as deeply as he can into you, are what spark your own toe-curling orgasm. Well, that and a little help from your more-than-likely-pruney fingers. His grip on you tightens as your walls milk him for whatever he has left. You wouldn't be shocked if his hold on you was the only thing keeping you from completely floating up into the clouds. 

For a moment, your respective, laboured breaths are the only sounds in his living room (besides the long forgotten Mario Kart, obviously). Changbin, to no one's surprise, recovers first and pulls out of you as gently as he can. You always hate this part. Still, you cringe a little when he does. He's still for a second after that and you feel a smile splitting your face in half. 

“I can feel you staring,” you mutter, turning your head to look at him. There's no hint of shame to be found on his face and it just makes you smile harder. 

“Well obviously,” he responds with a huff, “I have a very hot woman on my couch who just let me cum inside of her. Of course I'm going to stare,” he says as though you asked him the most basic question he's ever heard. 

“You're so unserious,” you snort. 

“That's why you like me so much,” he retorts with an incredibly cheesy eyebrow wiggle. 

Well, he's not wrong. 

Reblogs are greatly appreciated.

Do not repost, edit, copy and/or translate my work. I do not give you my permission to do so, nor will you ever receive it.

Stray Kids Masterlist | Ko-Fi

[runningfrom2am]

requiem // part four

summary: according to coriolanus snow, his best friend had the most beautiful voice in all of panem. she had been training her whole life constantly to get where she was; being up for a residency at the most elite opera house in all of panem. singing was her passion. her true love; and when that got stripped from her in a second, his world became a whole lot quieter. he loathed every minute of it.

pairing: coriolanus snow x fem!reader

wc: 2.3k

masterlists / nav / requests

tags/warnings: opera singer!mentor!reader (blink and you'll miss it), she's kind of a prodigy!! p cool imo, mute!reader, bestfriend!coryo, friends to lovers trope ooo, mentions of graphic violence early on (particularly the prologue) but after that it's pretty safe, depictions of ptsd/trauma, mental illness and minor suicidal ideation but at least she's not entirely alone, descriptions of minor medical treatments and use of medication.

a/n: fighting for my LIFE trying to sort out my student loans rn. also i'm sick. butttt i did just finally get my hands on hogwarts legacy so that's eating up all my time. anyway that's a small update on my life.

also, reminder to follow @runningfrom2am-library and turn on my notifications there to join my taglist for this series!!

my asks are also open to talk about this series! (i do have emoji anons open now too!)

send me any and all of your thoughts! here!

series masterlist // playlist // pinterest board

three months earlier

"You could write her a song." Clemensia suggests with a shrug, tapping her pen against the inkwell, hardly looking up from it.

Coryo scoffs, shaking his head. "Don't mock me, Clemmie. I'm serious."

"So am I!" She laughs, facing her palms up against the table and looking across at him now. "She likes music, it's like, the only thing she likes. It would make her happy, I'd bet. Is that not the whole point?"

In the face of something so juvenile as asking his best friend to go to their graduation gala together, Coryo is stumbling. You were his best friend, yes, he could just outright ask- especially considering nearly everyone had already just assumed that the two of you would be attending together, but something about that didn't sit right with him.

Other girls were getting special things. Flowers, jewelry, notes, and love letters that he had genuinely heard that, on a couple of occasions, brought tears to their eyes. Not that he wanted you to cry, but... He wanted you to feel that he cared. It was important to him that you knew he really cared.

"It is." He grumbles, rubbing his forehead.

"Okay, then-"

"I'm not writing her a song."

Clemensia sighs, rolling her eyes. "It doesn't have to be any good. Maybe it's even better if it's bad! She'd get a good laugh out of it too."

"Yes, and then I'd never live it down." He says, pushing his hair back out of his eyes and trying to put his focus on the assignment they were supposed to be working on. "Besides, I didn't ask for your advice. I don't need it."

"Yes, you do." She insists with a teasing smile, reaching over the table and poking him in the shoulder with her pen. "You wouldn't have told me otherwise. You were just too scared to ask directly."

Coryo lets out a deep breath through his nose, shaking his head in quiet denial, but she can easily make out the pink tinge on his cheeks.

"Coryo, you know she'll say yes no matter what, right?" She adds, her voice softer this time.

"That's not... that's not what I'm worried about. Necessarily, I mean."

"Ah." Clemensia hums in response, taking the end of her ink pen between her teeth. "More like... you just don't want her to get the impression that she was a last resort?"

"She's not." He defends quickly.

She raises her hands defensively, a short and quiet laugh falling from her lips in the library. "I know. I know that. I'm just clarifying that you don't want her to get that impression."

When he doesn't respond, pretending to pour all his focus into taking notes again, Clemensia lets out a dramatic sigh. "I don't know, just ask her. She knows you well enough that I really don't think it matters. Just... when's the next time you're hanging out?"

"Not sure." He mumbles, scribbling down some notes that he knows are hardly legible.

"Well, what about after class today? See if she wants to go get coffee or something."

"She's coaching until seven."

"Tomorrow?"

"Rehearsals."

Clemensia lets out a huff. "This weeken-"

"Orchestra practice." He cuts her off this time.

"Panem that girl is busy." She sighs. "How does she even have any friends at all?"

"We make time." He shrugs nonchalantly, as if it didn't bother him that he hardly ever saw his best friend this late in the academic year. That was common for you, though. Usually come summer and fall you had more free time to share with him. And he was happy to wait- it wasn't like he didn't get busy during exam seasons too.

"Okay, well, now is the time to 'make time'." She exclaims sternly, leaning closer across the table and lowering her voice to a whisper. "Because I heard rumours that Sejanus Plinth was intending on asking her, and you and I both know that she is far too kind to say no. Even if he is District."

Coriolanus' jaw tenses at that and he grips his pen just a little bit harder. "Have you done question fifteen yet?"

He had already been thinking about that for weeks, and he would torture himself for another week before he finally took Clemensia's advice and "made time".

You had seen him since that conversation he had had with Clemmie, but that didn't mean he could ever get himself to actually bring up graduation outside of asking you casually if anyone had asked you yet. To which, the answer was always an unbothered "no", and a shrug that allowed you to mask the sadness behind your smile.

He didn't exactly "make time", though. His plan was quite the opposite. Knowing you had morning practice, he got to the academy early and shoved the folded up paper in your locker and practically ran down the empty halls to the library. No taking it back now.

'A note? That's so stupid! She's your best friend! Just ask!' His thoughts race at him, but that's exactly why he did it this way. He couldn't back out again now.

"Coryo," Your familiar voice says as you slide into the seat next to him, hair perfectly styled and uniform ironed flat despite the early morning you must have had.

He looks over at you, eyes slightly wide out of nervousness. "Uh, hey... How's, um... How's your morning?" He asks, trying his best to play it casual.

You smile, sliding the folded up piece of paper you had found in your locker back over to him. "Good." You answer, already going about taking out your books. "Yours?"

"Good." He nods, mouth dry as he stares down at the paper, looking between the sheet and you.

Silently, you nod for him to open it, a small smile on your lips.

He hesitates before opening it, the conscious effort it takes to not tremble taking over his nerves.

He curses himself for his own fears about what it would say, blinking a couple times before reading the note.

'Want to go to the grad gala with me? -Coriolanus'

And then in small, flawless handwriting, a swift and smooth print that lacked any hesitation, there was a new line underneath.

'Yes :)'

"I only tried on fifty different dresses to decide on the fit and style of what I wanted." You say with a slight laugh, unzipping the garment bag that held your dress.

Coryo was sitting on your bed, like he often did, hands fidgeting in his lap. Fifty dresses to him seemed unnecessary, certainly you looked just fine in the very first one all the way through to the very last. But he did understand how seriously your family took your dresses, for both your performances and events like the one you would be attending together.

"That's... that's a fair few dresses." He laughs with a small nod, gazing into your closet and away from you for just a moment, trying to get a glimpse at your performance gowns you had stashed in bags and lining the wall. It's a wonder you had room for everything, he knew you had never tossed or re-worn a single one- all large in either sheer poofiness and volume, or bright colours and patterns that drew the eye and held them hostage in your form. Sometimes both. Coryo was never sure if it was the intent to make you look like a princess from a fairytale, but a few times a year he got to see you look just like one. What he imagined them all to be, anyway, when recalling the storybooks his mother read to him and left on the untouched shelves in his should-have-been baby sister's nursery.

"Yes, well, I wanted it to be perfect." You hum, pulling the dress out of the bag and turning to him, holding it up against your chest. "Thoughts?"

Coryo nods in response, swallowing hard. The dress was stunning, and the colour was rich- it would compliment the tones of your skin and hair beautifully. He had very little technical knowledge of fashion, but what had trickled into his mind from Tigris would lead him to believe it would be complimentary to you.

But he had no idea how he would match that.

The last of his father's salvageable dress clothes was that shirt Tigris is working on for the reaping ceremony in a couple of months, and he couldn't possibly wear that twice. If she could even salvage it. Maybe he should ask her to prioritize making it into something that would better match your dress, or just wear it plain white with the black stripes to the gala instead, so he would at least feel worthy of standing at your side. Then he could wear his academy uniform on reaping day, and claim he forgot the occasion. Would that be believable?

No, of course not. That's the day the Plinth Prize will be awarded.

Hopefully to him. Definitely to him, he had to pray. He was never a religious man- no one really was anymore, but reading about it in pre-Panem history textbooks, he couldn't deny the temptation to beg some higher power for help.

The prize would solve everything.

"You like it?" You ask, drawing him from his internal panic and he nods, smiling.

"Yeah, yes. Wow. It's lovely." He nods, clearing his throat.

"Thank you." You grin, looking down at the dress and smoothing it against your leg a bit to try and get another good look at it yourself.

You let out a soft sigh of contentment before hanging it back up. "Anyway, do you want to do like a matching thing, or is that tacky?" You ask, turning to face him again.

Coryo purses his lips in thought, drumming his fingers on his lap. "I'm not sure. Are other people matching?"

You knew about his situation, of course, though he wasn't fond of talking about it. Obviously not, who would be? It never bothered you, at the end of the day he was still your best friend- even if he never let you come over to the renowned Snow penthouse unless it was some kind of emergency. Regardless, as far as the two of you knew, you were the only one outside of his family who had any idea. And you both intended to do everything you could to keep it that way.

"I think so, I heard some of the other girls talking about it." You say with a shrug. "Just something simple like a matching tie or something, we don't have to go crazy with it."

"Right." He nods, thinking it over.

"Here," You say after a moment, reaching into the bottom of the garment bag and pulling out a much smaller plastic bag with fabric samples in it from when your dress was made. "I asked for more extra than they would normally give for fabric samples, in case we wanted to match. I was hoping we could ask Tigris to make a tie or a pocket square or something, or maybe cover your cuffs with it." You suggest, sitting on the bed next to him and holding out the bag.

His heart aches as he reaches out to take it from your soft hands. It's hard to place, almost- whether or not it's gratefulness or loathing of the fact you had considered such a thing at all. Attending an event with a Snow should not include the accommodation of whether or not they could afford to dress accordingly.

The bitterness fades and settles into thankfulness for you, and all you do for him. Silently. Without discussion, without real, significant thought.

You could be friends with anyone; the girls with wealth enough to bathe in like your own, Sejanus Plinth, even, whose family quite literally bought their way into the Capitol. But you chose him.

Granted, when you chose him, you didn't have the slightest clue of the financial state of his family name, but even when you had stumbled across that fact, it didn't deter you. Coriolanus often wonders why, but who was he to question it? Hell, sometimes he wonders if the roles had been reversed, would he have been so gracious?

"Thanks." Coryo mutters, clearing his throat and nodding. "I mean, she's the expert, so I'll talk to her about what she thinks will work best."

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea." You agree with a soft laugh that makes him smile by instinct alone. He couldn't help it.

"Um, I meant to ask," Coryo says after a moment, tucking his feet up on the bed and sitting back a bit, getting more comfortable. "Did your coach agree to let you change your song for the year end gala? The one you pitched to her, that was really good. You did amazing. At least, in my opinion but I don't really know what I'm talking about."

"Thank you." You reply through a sigh, laughing slightly as you flop back on the soft cushioned duvet next to him. "But, yes and no. Yes she's letting me do something other than 'Never Enough', but it's not that song I showed her while you were there. She said it was too long and would disrupt the entire schedule, which, in hindsight does make sense and I wouldn't want to do that to everyone else."

"Well, what is it?" Coryo replies, eager to hear something new from you. It was special, he knew that it was. He had seen first hand how badly you wanted to do something else.

You smile, looking up at him as he leaned back on his hands next to you, blue eyes searching yours as if they could somehow portray the answer sooner than your lips- despite you knowing it would be a song he's never heard or even heard of before.

"I decided on something else. It's gonna be a surprise." You answer with a small, almost sly smile while you prop yourself up on your elbow, gazing up at him with your chin in your palm. "But you're gonna love it, I think."

You really hoped he would, at least.

While Coryo protests, tries to squeeze the information out of you in the light-hearted way only a best friend could, you don't budge. The song in title and content reminds you far too much of him; of his pretty face, and electric soul.

no taglist this time around!! my fics usually get over a hundred requests to be added to the taglist so instead i made a library! follow me over on @runningfrom2am-library and turn on notifs to get updates when i post new parts!!

[clockwork-ashes]

All You Have Is Your Fire - Part XI

Find Part I here :)

Summary: 'I can hear your heart beating through the stone.' For the briefest of moments, Lucien wondered if his mate would know exactly when his heart’s steady rhythm came to a sudden stop.

Note: A huge thank you to the lovely @bettdraws who deserves all the credit for the post that inspired me to start writing this :) Another huge thank you to everyone reading! ALSO please look at this post, I gasped it's so lovely. All of @teddyhoneybear's moodboards are stunning <3

Tag List: @anishake / @nocasdatsgay / @mybestfriendmademe / @talibunny30 / @halfbutneverwhole / @wishfulimaginings / @goldenmagnolias / @emmers-bens123 / @cauldronblssd / @xirose / @rarephloxes / @thehighlordishere

Lucien tried but failed to settle the racing and unsteady beat of his heart. 

Like the quick rhythm of hummingbird wings, Lucien could feel his own pulse fluttering softly in his throat. He was unsure of what to expect, what he might be forced to face once again within the walls of his childhood home. The unknowns created a deep sense of dread in his bones, the weight of his own anxiety unbelievably heavy.

Music could be heard, low and lovely, as Lucien led Elain with unhurried steps towards the looming oak doors just ahead of them. It was near haunting, echoing strangely along the empty stone corridors.

Elain walked close to Lucien’s side, each point of contact with him leaving a searing mark. Her arm was hooked through his, her shoulder pressed against him. 

Lucien glanced at her briefly. He had thought Elain was devastatingly beautiful from the moment he had laid eyes on her, she was even more so in Autumn colours. The emerald fabric of her dress had a stunning effect on her eyes, darkening them by a few shades so that they looked like earth after a storm. He found that there was something regal about the way Elain held herself, that if she set her mind to it she could convince anyone that she had been born to rule. 

Still, Lucien was worried. He did not trust his father, and he trusted his brothers even less. Eris had made it glaringly obvious that Elain’s well-being did not matter, considering he had brought her to Autumn. If anything happened to his mate, Lucien knew he would never be able to forgive himself. 

As though she could sense where his thoughts were going, Elain brought her other hand up. Slowly caressing Lucien’s forearm in a gesture meant to comfort, Elain did not look at him before once again taking hold of her skirts. 

Lucien’s shock was a shooting star, brief and fleeting. He was still finding it hard to believe that it was Elain’s choice to come for him, that she had considered his life worth the risk of her own. 

“Any advice?” Elain’s question was soft as she tilted her head and turned to look up at him. It cut through the music, drawing Lucien’s focus instantly. They had not spoken since the moment they had left their shared suite, Lucien’s hand had been shaking with tiny tremors after having placed the comb in Elain’s hair. 

Still walking, Lucien looked into Elain’s dark eyes, captivated. He had to remind himself that she was almost a stranger to him, and yet he felt as though he had always known her. 

“I have a whole lifetime’s worth,” he offered her a crooked grin, unsure of what exactly he should tell her.

Elain looked up at him through her long lashes. “Seeing as we don’t have all the time in the world,” her lips tugged up in a small, amused smile. “Try and keep it brief.” 

“No matter what anyone in that ballroom says, don’t let it get to you.” His grin faltered at her raised brow, and he wondered how he should phrase his next words so that they made more sense. “They’ll all be testing the waters, seeing if they can get a rise out of you—and me. Don’t let them.”  

“Isn’t Autumn fire?” Elain asked, "I would have thought everyone’s emotions were raging.” She blushed suddenly, her cheeks turning a deep scarlet, and she quickly turned to look straight ahead. 

Lucien continued to look at her, not wanting his gaze to fall anywhere else. “Just the opposite,” he shook his head, tearing his attention away from the pale column of Elain’s neck. “Our emotions, our reactions, even our flames…” Lucien shrugged, “everything must be tamed.” 

Elain hummed in understanding, falling silent as they approached the ballroom.

Lucien glanced at the guards stationed by the entrance, searching their faces, trying to see if he perhaps recognized them. On a phantom wind, the doors swung open, revealing the already filled and busy hall. The music grew louder, the sound of the string instruments full of longing.

Elain pressed closer to Lucien’s side, clutching at his arm tightly. So no one else could hear, Lucien leaned down so that he could whisper. His lips were close to the arch of her ear, not touching her, but he could have sworn that he felt her shiver. 

“Don’t worry, Elain.” He murmured, her heart beating faster. She seemed to have stopped breathing as soon as he finished his sentence. 

Her name.

Lucien still rushed to reassure her, “I won’t let anything happen to you.” He meant the words more than he had meant anything else in his long life. 

Her eyes wide, face tilted like she was his lover, set on placing a kiss on his jaw, Elain nodded. “I know,” she breathed, eyes locked for a moment before they both turned to look ahead. 

Together, arms linked, a united front, they entered the room. Elain nearly stumbled, and Lucien tightened his grip on her arm, pausing. He waited, allowing her the opportunity to carefully take in the scene before them. 

Looking like a forest, nearly a canopy, waves of High Fae dressed in the various colours of falling leaves gracefully walked along the floor of the ballroom. The incessant thrum of mingling, gossiping, rose above the sound of the music as everyone waited for the arrival of the High Lord. 

The sun had fallen, and no light came in from the arched windows that spanned the entire length of the walls. The shimmering chandeliers and the countless fireplaces were lit instead, casting flickering shadows that drew Elain’s attention. Lucien noticed that the musicians had been set up near the table strewn with refreshments and pastries, on the large room’s farthest side.  

No one turned to stare, but Lucien could feel eyes on him and Elain. He must look so different to them, and Lucien was struck with the sudden realisation that every faerie here would know his past, regardless if they personally knew him. 

It was a terrible relief that Elan was unaware of Lucien’s history, he thought, and that as a result, she would have no expectations of him. 

“Well, if it isn’t little Lucien Vanserra,” a female voice spoke from behind him, one that he easily recognized. Fighting the urge to wince, Lucien stiffened as he felt slender fingers trace along his back. He felt as Elain did the same, her spine straightening although she did not turn to see who had approached them. 

Instead, Lucien flashed his practised courtier’s smile. “Lethe,” he said, her name rolled off his tongue sharply, familiar. 

“Lady Lethe,” she corrected, her answering smile was all poison as she stood in front of them. Light brown hair pinned away from her face, falling in a long straight sheet to her waist, Elain’s eyes tracked Lethe’s every move carefully. In a decision that could only be considered a slight, Lethe did not look at Elain, did not acknowledge her presence. “I have lands to my name now.” 

Lucien bowed his head in an apology of sorts. “You have my condolences then, for your husband,” he added. Knowing Lethe, she had probably orchestrated the whole thing, killed the elderly fae she had married and taken everything he had owned after his death. That, at least, Lucien could admire. 

Lethe’s pout was dreadful, hardly sad, Lucien observed. “I’m terribly upset by it,” she gestured to her black skirts, the colour of mourning. Flames flared in her eyes. “May the blessed wind take his scattered ashes to only the loveliest of places.” 

“Despite whatever ordeal you have been through, I’m glad to see you look well.” Lucien maintained his friendliest smile, an ember of truth in his statement. “You look well, lady, untouched by time and lovely as ever.” 

“So kind,” a knowing smile graced Lethe’s sharp features, looking more like she was scowling. “You’ve certainly changed,” her eyes were the colour of dried blood as she took him in, “much more handsome now.” 

Lucien felt jealousy shoot through the bond, a rare possessiveness on Elain’s part as she elegantly cleared her throat. Nose in the air, chin held high, she cast a long look at Lethe, drawing the other female’s attention. 

With a small sniff, Lethe faced Elain fully. Much to his mate’s credit, she did not back away, matching the noble’s attitude. 

Lethe tilted her head, a predator. “Seems like your pretty mate agrees.” 

Without missing a beat, Elain responded, voice measured and unbothered. “My mother always said I would marry for beauty.”

Lucien was glad when someone clapped a heavy hand on his back, knowing exactly who it would be before he saw. When it came to Lethe, Kai was never far. Fixtures of his childhood, the two courtiers were his eldest brother’s closest friends. 

Lucien had not seen either of them since his exile, and had avoided both Lethe and Kai even if he had been in the Autumn Court on behalf of Tamlin. Eris had trusted them both, not only with his own life, but with Lucien’s as well. Lucien wondered if that was still the case, if Eris was capable of maintaining any type of friendship. 

“I suppose congratulations are in order,” Kai said, voice loud. “Good to see you, Lucien.” His smile was friendly and sincere, a clever trick to hide how dangerous of a male he truly was. He had always been kind to Lucien, kinder still to Eris, but his reputation in Autumn was one of cruelty. He offered Elain a deep bow, looking up at her with eyes the colour of dead leaves. 

Elain dipped into an elegant curtsy, releasing her hold on Lucien’s arm. “Pleasure to meet you,” she offered, never taking her gaze off him.

“Pleasure’s all mine, lady,” with the full force of Kai’s charming smile on his mate, Lucien had to fight the urge not to snarl. 

Kai was unbelievably lovely. Dark brown hair fell in loose curls to his shoulders, eyes an even darker shade were framed by sharp brows. He was dressed well, simply but no less flattering, his tan skin near glowing with whatever power he had inherited from his Spring Court mother. 

Lucien’s jealousy was ridiculous, considering he had known the male for decades and did not even think Kai was interested in females. Elain pressed closer to Lucien’s side, her hand gently circling his lower back, a lover’s caress. 

Kai tracked Elain’s gesture before he turned his attention back to Lucien. “Have you seen your brothers?” He asked, brow raised, Lethe next to him. 

“Which ones?” Lucien responded, although he was fairly certain Kai was looking for Eris.

Kai shrugged his broad shoulders, a frown tugging his full lips down. “Any of them, I suppose.”

“Eris came before us, the rest I couldn’t say,” Lucien felt Elain’s unease as she stood on the tips of her toes, attempting to look over everyone’s heads. She was probably searching for Cora, Lucien concluded.

“We’ve yet to see him,” Lethe offered, her nose scrunching in distaste.  

Lucien opened his mouth to respond when a sudden hush fell over the large crowd. The musicians came to a natural stop, ending their song beautifully, just as the High Lord and Lady of Autumn gracefully made their way into the room. 

His father was handsome in a jacket the exact shade of fresh blood, striking with the small golden crown on his head. His mother walked at Beron’s side, face serious, as they both paused on the area cleared of furniture and nobles in the middle of the room, the dance floor ready. 

“Tonight,” the High Lord’s voice boomed, “we celebrate the return of my youngest son.” A glass of wine, a red so deep Lucien nearly flinched at the sight, appeared in his father’s hand. Beron’s smile was sharp as glass as he raised his hand in Lucien and Elain’s direction. “And we welcome his lady, Elain Archeron of Night.” His father took a small sip of wine, indicating he was nearly done, his speech rather short so as not to take away from the festivities. “You and your mate have my blessing, Lucien.”

Elain smiled shyly, tucking a stray curl behind her ear that was both endearing and modest. Already she had fallen into her role perfectly, playing the game of courtiers and nobles well. 

The musicians played a cord, settling themselves as they prepared for the first dance of the evening. All eyes were on Lucien and Elain now, waiting, expecting them to take part. 

“Might I have this dance?” Lucien said softly, allowing every ounce of his longing to drip into the question, loud enough for those around them to hear. 

Lucien could imagine the whispers, travelling swift as a wildfire in the ballroom, all the nobles talking behind their hands about him and Elain. 

As Elain’s eyes locked with his, Lucien saw no uncertainty in her gaze. She playfully knocked her shoulder into his, a small laugh escaping her, embracing her role as his betrothed. “Do you even have to ask?” 

Lucien raised his hand, offering it to Elain. Delicately, her fingers traced his palm before she comfortably set her hand in his, a blush staining her cheeks. She smiled timidly up at him, sparks clear as daylight between them. 

As Lucien and Elain walked to the dance floor, Lucien hoped no one could sense their shared unease, hidden behind their false smiles.

[azullumi]

hello! i'm really in love with the way you write scara so i was wondering if you can write headcanons about him having a romantic relationship with the reader who is soft, nice, and gentle, especially to him, and at first, scara just refuses to accept that someone like them is inlove with them. thank you!

summary — wanderer when he’s finally treated right after years of misery and loneliness.

pairing — wanderer/gender-neutral reader

tags — fluff, him and a soft s/o sounds so sweet; headcanons

word count — 661

a/n — i hope this is what you were looking for, anon! knowing that you love the way i write scara makes me happy, thank you :))

This feeling felt so unfamiliar to him despite experiencing it many times because love never felt so soft. The love he knew was completely different from this. The love that he knew was violence and cruelty. The love that he was familiar with was abandonment and loneliness. This love was nothing compared to the love that he knew of.

Oh, darling, you're so sweet and tender to him and he just feels like a being who has never sinned in his entire life. Have you not seen the blood on his hands or you just refuse to do so?

Having someone as gentle and delicate as you loving someone like him who has such a great contrast with your personality with his roughness and sharp tongue was definitely something he will never expect and has a hard time accepting. I mean, if you were a bad person who has a horrible personality, has a mean way of talking, and everything, then you’ll just find someone who has a complete opposite of your personality being in love with you, how will that make you feel?

You deserve someone better, not someone like him. You’re not supposed to be with him, he knows that. He understands and knows that but he also wants you, he also loves you, maybe not in a way that you do to him but he loves you and doesn’t want to let you go. It took him quite some time to realize that and now he’s working on his feelings and making himself better just for you.

However, he's having a hard time as  he’s unsure on what he should do. He knows that he should treat you gently but how? He just doesn’t know what to do and he’s afraid that he might end up hurting you, just the thought of it fills him up with anxiety. People can break so easily and what if you'll shatter at just the slightest of cruelty?

The beginning of your relationship was filled with anxiety, uncertainty, and fear. He just refuses to accept that things are happening in this kind of way. Maybe, at first, he'll push you away and has himself closed which he hasn't realized might have hurt you until later on your relationship to which he apologized for.

What should he do? What can he do? A lot of questions are always running through his head and his thoughts feel like mud on clear waters, slowly staining his judgment and mind. He’ll seek guidance and advice from people that he knows— it's probably just Nahida though.

It is then that he'll realize that the path he's threading is a long one and that he's not alone in it. Realizing that you're in it and you're with him throughout this whole journey has helped in putting his mind at ease and relieving his anxiety. To have someone like you love someone like him felt like salvation in his soul, what do you even see in him that he doesn't notice?

Being with you taught him multiple things, lessons that he has learned and will forever cherish. Gentleness slowly weaves its way to his soul and binds his scars and wounds to him with just your delicate touch on his skin. Your lips tasted just like forgiveness and kindness has touched every inch of his body.

You're someone that he has never expected, someone that he will never think that he'll end up with but it's not like he regrets it.

Such tender and docile feeling of love was something that he never thought he'll be acquainted with but here he is and although he doesn't say it, he wants you to know that it was your gentleness that comforted him.

Patience is all that he needs, after all, he's still working on his feelings and trying to become a better person— not in personality but just as a better lover, someone who's deserving of your love and affection.

— navigation | masterlist

[604to647]

Carnival Fright Night

3.2K / Modern AU Din Djarin x Fem!Reader

Summary: Din takes you on a date to the carnival where you don't have as much fun in the Haunted House as he does, but he makes it up to you in the parking lot 😊.

Warnings: 18+ content (MDNI please), fluff with smut, established relationship, no implied age gap, public sex (car), fingering, unprotected piv sex, light degradation (use of slut/whore; affectionate), little praise kink, little daddy kink (just as a pet name, really), dirty talk (so much 🤷🏻‍♀️), lots of pet names (baby, bunny, pretty girl, pretty bird, etc.).

A/N: My first writing post! Eek! This is one of those one-shots that I mentioned in the previous post that can be read on its own, but can be slotted into the timeline/AU of the main Boxer!Din x reader fic that will one day, hopefully come to fruition 😊 (update: Series Masterlist). This my first time everything: writing for Din, writing smut, writing - so please be gentle but also I hope it's enjoyable! I don't have much practice with warnings and tags other than what I've seen as a reader (like, do I mention that Din and reader have a dog?), so any advice on making things more inclusive or informative is welcome! Thank you for reading!

“Let’s do the haunted house, pretty bird,” Din says excitedly, pulling you towards the spookily decorated mansion in the middle of the carnival festivities.  You’re hesitant – you don’t really like scary things and while you know that part of the fun is the adrenaline rush that comes with being scared, you don’t really want any kind of rush badly enough to voluntarily be scared over and over.  But Din looks like a big kid full of excitement and you can tell he’s looking forward to being your “big protector” in the house; so you hold on tightly to his arm and give him a small encouraging smile, not really sure if it’s more for him or yourself.  How bad can it be?  Just a few zombies and witches popping out from behind doors, right?

---

You want to cry.  It’s been jump scare after jump scare for the last 15 minutes; and it wasn’t fantastical Halloween characters, it was ax murders and creepy horror ghouls and some of them CHASED YOU! Din had you tucked under his arm, but as much as you tried burying your face into his side the whole time, you couldn’t really walk through the house with your eyes closed.  Not knowing what was around every corner had you on high stress alert the whole time and now that you’re finally out of the house, the come down from that state of anxiety is turning into distress rather than relief.

“We made it out, baby!”, beams Din – he clearly had a great time and thinks you’ve just been scared a little bit, for which he is ready to dispense some reassuring hugs.  You look up at him and trying not to let any tears fill your eyes, give him a little nod; then dropping his hand, you walk over to a nearby bench to calm yourself down.  You don’t want to ruin his fun and you’re already chastising yourself for being such a scaredy cat.

Din comes over and sits beside you, gently putting his arm around your shoulders and pulling you in so your head rests in your favourite nook underneath his jaw. “You didn’t have a good time did you, pretty bird?” He phrases it more like a quiet statement than a question.

You look up at him, ashamed, tears finally falling, “No, not really.  I’m sorry!! I don’t really like being scared.. or scary stuff.” You drop your head back down and snuggle deeper into his chest, crying softly. “I’m sorry I ruined your fun,” you mumble into his shirt.  With one sweeping motion, Din hooks the arm he has around you down past your waist and under your knees, gently hauling you up and into his lap.  His kisses your head, “You don’t have anything to be sorry for.  I’m sorry you got scared, bunny.”  That pet name snaps you out of your little self pity party, and you feel a familiar momentary pang of desire before you look up at him bemused, “You… only call me that during sex.” He grins down at you, “Trying to distract you.  Is it working?” You can’t lie, “Yes, a little.”

You wrap both arms around his neck and pull yourself up to his lips.  Din kisses you eagerly, and you can’t help but feel all the stress melt away as you open your mouth to his. You break this kiss only when you feel like things might be getting a bit too heated for the middle of a carnival and snuggle back into your Din nook; he hugs you tight, and laughing softly he asks, “Now that you’re feeling a little better, should we get you something to eat?”  You perk up at this and smile, nodding. Hopping off Din’s lap, you take his hand, pulling him towards a corn dog stand you saw earlier with Din chuckling behind you the whole way.

---

After a few snack stops, Din suggests some carnival games under the guise that the dog could use a few new stuffies.  You watch your boyfriend throw some baseballs at a tower of milk cans and can’t help but admire his broad shoulders and how his shirtsleeves tighten over his biceps as he cocks his arm back.  You smile to yourself thinking about how strong and safe those arms feel around you, and suddenly you have a flash of those arms flexing that same way when Din’s holding you by the waist while you bounce on him…like a bunny.  Ahhhhhh… it seems like his little pet name from earlier and the feelings it evoked hadn’t quite melted away the same way your Haunted House anguish had.   A wave of arousal washes over you as you watch your boyfriend knock over the cans and call to you, “Baby, do you think the dog would want a big teddy bear or a big dragon to tear apart?” You walk over to him with a smile, “Definitely a dragon.”  To this, the stall vendor hands you a purple dragon and you both thank him.  As Din turns away to check out another game he takes your hand, but when he feels that you’re not moving, he turns back with a quizzical look.  You step right into his space, cup his face with your both hands and look him directly in the eyes, “Din, can you please take me back to the car?”

“Sure, pretty bird, you want to go home?”

You shake your head shyly. Bracing your hands on his shoulders to push up on your toes, you lean in close to his ear and whisper, “No, I don’t want to go home… I want to be your bunny.”  Lowering yourself back down, you look up at him with an innocent smile. Din is smiling right back down at you, “Whatever my bunny wants.”

---

When you get to the car, Din opens the back seat door for you and takes a quick look around to make sure no one is watching before climbing in after you. He closes the door behind him, “Alright, show me what you got, bunny.”

You climb over his lap and straddle him, fluffing out the skirt of your dress from underneath you before sitting down, pressing your core directly onto Din.  With both hands you start carding his hair the way he likes, and Din closes his eyes as you plant soft kisses on his lips, slowly moving up his jaw line to his ear.  As you lightly nip on his earlobe, you gently grind yourself down on him, earning you a low groan from the back of Din’s throat.  Slowly, slowly your mouth makes its way back along his jaw and over to his other ear.  This time, you moan softly into his ear when you give him a little thrust.

“Bunny, don’t tease.”

You face him again and press your lips gently to his, saying between soft kisses, “I” “don’t” “think” “I” “ever” “made” “any” “such” “promise”.  You punctuate the end of your sentence by gently biting his lower lip and licking your tongue into his mouth when it opens.  You smile as you deepen the kiss; you can tell Din is close to breaking and taking control, and that’s exactly what you want. You’re so wet now from the kissing and the friction of sitting right on top of his growing bulge, you’re sure Din can feel your soaking panties through his jeans; it shouldn’t be long now before he snaps.

The next time you lift your hips, Din grabs your waist and pushes you back down rough; the action has you letting out a loud squeal of surprise which quick dissolves into moans as he holds you in place and starts kissing your neck hard.  You tip you head back to give him more access, all while still running your hands through his hair and gently grabbing at the curls near the base of his neck.

He growls into your neck right below your ear, “Is this what you wanted, bunny? For me to take control and take what I want?”

“Yes, baby, take what’s yours,” you gasp as Din’s hands leave your waist and move up to grope your breasts.  His mouth has started to trail down your throat and you close your eyes as your breaths become ragged.  You feel Din gently tug down the sleeves of your dress so that the fabric falls away from your chest; he use his finger to pull one of the cups of your bra down, revealing your nipple which he takes in his mouth.  He sucks and nips at your peak while you grind down harder on his clothed, hard cock. Din moves to give your other breast the same attention, and while he pulls at your nipple lightly with his teeth, he murmurs, “What’s mine, bunny?”

You can barely get out words, “Everything, daddy.”  Din brings his hands up to roll your other nipple in between his fingers while he comes off your breast with a pop, “I’m going to need you to use your words and be more specific, bunny.”

“Thes..th…”

Din doesn’t give you the reprieve you need to focus; if anything, he increases the pressure of his tongue on your nipple and your feel his hips start to thrust up to meet your downward motions, “Is my slutty bunny lost for words? Come on, pretty girl – tell me what’s mine so I can take it.”

“My...mm...mouth.”

Din groans as he kisses you hard on your lips, tongue diving deep and finding yours.  He hums against your open mouth, “What else, bunny?”

It’s getting hard to think, “…neck.”

One of Din’s hands leaves your breasts and moves up your chest, gently wrapping itself around the bottom of your throat.  You give a light gasp and when he slides his grip slightly to one side of your neck, you sigh and lean into it, giving him permission to suck and lick the other side.

Now your hands are the ones doing the roaming; running over his back, across the expanse of his broad shoulders, then gripping his thick upper arm muscles and pulling him closer, “Din…please.”

Din chuckles, “Please what, pretty bunny?  Where do you need me, baby?  Do you want me right here?” He moves both his hands down to your breasts again, “Fuck. Love these pretty tits of yours, bunny.” He gropes them roughly while keeping his mouth on your neck, growling when he starts to lightly pull on your peaks.  You cry out in pleasure, and start grinding on Din with a more vigour.

“Oh, was that it, bunny?  Just playing with your pretty tits has you moaning and bouncing like a whore on my lap – mmmmmmhmmm. This is all you need then?” Din smiles into your neck while taking in all your filthy noises.

“Y-yes…I mean, n-no, no, daddy,” you practically whimper, desperate for his touch where you need it most. “I need you to touch me, please… touch my pussy, please, Din. Please. Please.”

Din snakes a hand down between your bodies, fingers finding and running over where your underwear covers your dripping cunt.  You moan shamelessly at the relief that the slight pressure provides. 

“My needy bunny begs so pretty. And already so wet...mmmm.  Oh. Soaking. Is this all for me, sweetheart?”

“Yes, yes – ooohhhh, yes, y-yes. All for you, daddy,” you sigh as you bounce to grind against his fingers, finding a pleasurable rhythm that matches his light strokes.  He continues to alternate circling your clit and stroking your needy hole over your panties, “Wanna be inside this pretty pussy so bad, bunny.” You bury you head in the crook of his neck and nod mindlessly in agreement.

“Need to get your perfect cunt ready to take me, okay?  Your pussy ready, bunny? Mmm?”, he whispers hotly in your ear.  You kiss him hard, and snap your eyes open when you feel him pulling your panties to the side. You make sure he’s looking in your eyes when you say breathily, “No, daddy… it’s your pussy.  Your pussy is ready for you.”  Din hisses and without a warning, plunges two thick fingers into your core.  The stretch is delicious and you whine in ecstasy against Din’s neck.  He sets an urgent pace, reaching deep into you where only he can; making sure he doesn’t neglect your clit, he keeps just the right pressure on it with his thumb to keep your head spinning.

“That’s right, bunny – this is my pussy, it belongs to me, and I’m going to use it until my pretty slut screams and cums all over me.”

“Oh – fuck, Din, fuck…f-“

“I can feel you’re close, bunny.  Doesn't it feel good when your Big Bad Wolf takes what’s his?”

Hearing his refer to himself this way taps into some part of you you didn’t even know existed, pushing you over the edge and you cum hard on Din’s hand.  He continues fucking you through your orgasm, slowing his thrusts but never his stopping his circles on your slippery clit. “You did so good for me, bunny.”

 Your eyes close and you’re panting into Din's neck, resting your head on his shoulder, but you nod when you hear him say, “Gonna fuck you now my little bunny.”

Din slips his fingers out of your hole and you immediately want to protest the loss. “Shhhhhh… be patient, baby.  Daddy will be taking his pussy back in just a moment.”  You frantically help him unbutton his pants, and lift your hips so he can slide his pants and boxers to his knees.  You’re still hovering over his lap when he repeats himself from earlier, “Show me what you’ve got, bunny.”  Smirking, you wrap your hand around his thick, hard cock, give it a few firm strokes that has Din tilting his head back and closing his eyes with a groan. Giving him one sweet kiss on his mouth, you line Din up with your entrance and sink down slowly until he is fully sheathed in you.

“So full, daddy.”

“I know, bunny.  But you’re taking me so well, baby – just like I knew you would.  Always such a good little whore for me.”

His words leave you shivering with desire, “I’m your dirty little whore, daddy.  Just a little cumslut that needs your cock.”

“Fuck, bunny.” Din loves your dirty talk, “This pussy is squeezing me so tight.  So, so perfect.  No other pussy could ever make me feel this good.  Oh y—yes. You ready to bounce for your Big Bad Wolf, bun?”

There it was again, the new name for himself that has your cunt clamping down on his cock; you start to move, riding his dick slowly at first, then building up a smooth rhythm and giving Din an little extra mini bounce and squeeze every time he bottoms out in you fully.  Both of you are moaning without abandon, the kisses getting more urgent and sloppy.

“Use me, Din,” you beg. “Use me like your dumb bunny slut.”

Din starts fucking up into you at a punishing pace.  You can only imagine what the car must looking like from the outside, but you can’t bring yourself to care as he pulls your closer and closer to your next climax.

The noises coming out of you are obscene; your non-stop whines and chanting of his name broken only when Din’s mouth is pressed hard against yours, his tongue worshipping your tongue.

Din himself isn’t much more composed; stringing together barely formed thoughts of filth that get increasingly dirty:

“Taking me so deep, baby.  This pretty pussy is sucking me in so d-deep.  Fuck, bunny, feels so good. So good. You’re so good to me.”

“Let me hear those filthy noises, sweet girl.  Need to hear what this cock does to you.  Oh- ngh... Such pretty moans, fuck.”

“Such a good girl taking everything daddy gives you. Take it now.  Yeah take it, take it all, bunny.”

“My good girl is such a little dirty whore just for me.  No one else knows you’re such a slut, right bunny?  Only I know that you’re such a good slut. Ohh yes. All. For. Me. Mine.”

“This what you wanted, bunny?  You wanted your Big Bad Wolf to use you like the slutty bunny you are.  Fuck you until you’re dumb and screaming?  Don't stop now, sweetheart, need to hear you cum.”

“Daddy will give you what you want, bun.  Pound into you until you cum.  I know you can take it, it’s what you’re good for, pretty whore.  F-fuck, fuck.. yes taking it so well…. Uhhhhh you’re milking my cock.  I can feel you’re so close, bunny.  Come. Come for me.”

Din reaches in between you to swipe his thumb over your swollen clit, and with just one pass you’re wailing and coming from his filthy words.  He fucks you through your high, and continues to run his mouth with praise while he bounces you like a rag doll on his cock, chasing his own finish.

 “Came so good for me, bunny.  My good girl.  So good… ngh, fuck you always feel so good.”

“Love you so much, my pretty bird.  Love stuffing you full of me, and hearing all your pretty noises.  Will you make some more for me right now?  Oh yes, fuck yes, like that, baby. Always giving me what I need, love you so much.”

“Feel so good, pretty girl.  You’re so perfect. Perfect everything, perfect mouth, perfect tits, perfect pussy.  Perfect for me, all for me.  Fuck -uh, Fu- yes, all mine.”

You touch your forehead to his so he can see how blissed out you look, “All yours, Din. Only you, only for you.”  Din comes with a deep grunt, thrusting until he stills and shoots his load deep into you.  When he’s finished, you’re both still panting.  Foreheads still touching, you open your eyes to see him looking lovingly at you, almost with reverence.  He kisses you softly and you return every one of his kisses with equal affection. “Love you so much, baby,” you murmur against his mouth.

“Love you more, pretty bird.”

After taking a few minutes to calm down, Din makes a motion to let you know he’s about to move. He shifts you both, with his softening cock still inside of you, over towards the front center consol.  He reaches over with his long arms and pulls out a box of tissues from the front.  After you lift and feel him slip out of you, Din uses the tissues to clean you both before pulling up his boxers and pants and tucking himself in.  He helps you readjust your dress and watches as you smoothed out the skirt, before helping you out of the car.  After checking yourself in the side mirror to fix your hair and make sure you didn’t look too fucked out, you suggest going back to the carnival. “I think the dog might like that teddy bear as well,” you grin. 

“Anything my bunny wants.”

[ask-captain-keating]

Hello again!

It's that time of the week (overdue - I apologize), the time for a new poetry prompt! I once again had a lovely time reading your previous poems and greatly look forward to this new assignment.

This week's prompt: blackout poetry! Take an existing piece of text, and use the words available to create a poem. I recommend doing so with a book or a magazine to have a simpler time, though any long block of text could do the trick in theory. If you have no physical pieces that you can mark up, digitally blocking out words is allowed as well.

Here is my example poem from a Queen magazine - with a transcription provided in case you have any difficulty reading.

highlighted text reads: "real life vastly limits the vision of overindulgent efforts to create , master the distortion of beautiful emotion and taste the tradition abandoning reinvention . this person the public ignored was a star - though they refused to demand space"

Good luck, and now is a good time to note that any previous prompts are open to add to as well, submissions under past promps will NOT be voided and WILL be read.

Best,

John Keating

other ask blog tags: @first-unmanned-flying-desk-set @social-anxiety-and-poetry @phonecall-fromgod @radiofree-america @pittsie-boy @knoxious-overstreet @therealrichardcameron @tthe-cat-sat-on-the-mat @head-of-the-dinner-table @ginnylovestheatre @miss-chris-noel @lady-keating

P.S. A bonus poem as well as advice to make the process easier will be under the cut.

hehehehehe

surpriseee ur getting advice from admin!! ill be so entirely real, blackout poetry is a pain in the ass but the finished product is so worth it. my biggest piece of advice is to take a photo / scan / do whatever to ur text to get it down on a digital document, then go through and bold the words youre planning on using. this way u dont have to make any concrete word decisions until u have The Whole Poem. THEN u can go thru and start marking shit up.

also recommend choosing an author with a very wordy writing style, kinda tuff with like. simple??? texts

glhf

[firstkanaphans]

First of all wanted to let you know that I was in awe of your Eclipse translation. I love your fics in general. They are absolutely lovely (its a pun on your penname get it?)

Which brings me to my second point. I am currently translating a novella from one of my native languages to English at work. And I keep getting stuck. Do you have any tips on translation? What is your process like? Thank you!!!

Thank you so much!! I had a lot of fun translating that novel. If it wasn’t so time consuming, I would definitely do translations more often because it's a lot less stressful to transform someone else’s work than write your own. 

Translating The Eclipse was a 3-step process for me, although it’ll probably be easier for you since you’re fluent in both of the languages you’re working in. Although I'm actively learning Thai, I'm nowhere near fluent enough to translate a 500-page novel without assistance. (Why are BL novels so unnecessarily long??) So Step 1 for me was to run everything through Google Translate. When Google inevitably spat out something incomprehensible, Step 2 was to comb through the original Thai and translate everything word-for-word. I didn’t bother correcting grammar or trying to edit things to make them sound good, I simply got a very basic translation down on the page. From there, Step 3 was to edit that translation into something worth reading.

I’ve always had a problem with Thai novels specifically because the official translations read like car manuals. They’re boring and lifeless and god bless those of you who can actually read them, but I just cannot. I spend the whole book editing it in my head. I don’t think this is the fault of the novels, though! The Eclipse, for instance, is beautifully written. I just think these publishers are hiring translators who aren’t also writers. For a good translation, you need someone who can do both.

For example, it’s very common in Thai writing to use epitaphs instead of names when talking about characters (i.e. “the small one,” “the older one,” etc.). This is rarely done in English because it sounds clunky, but it serves a purpose in Thai where characters are often using their own name as a pronoun and the writer may not want to repeat their name yet again in the dialogue tag. If I had stopped at Step 2 above (like a lot of BL novel translators do) and kept the epitaphs intact, English speakers would have had a difficult time reading the novel. I had to make some changes so that the magic and meaning of the original stayed intact, but the writing was also appealing to an English-speaking audience.

I enjoy editing at baseline and there’s something so satisfying about taking a lifeless paragraph and making it sing. Just as an example, here’s the first paragraph of The Eclipse novel without any changes: 

The afternoon sun cast his shadow across the floor while Akk walked away from the building towards the Suppalo school gate. At this moment, that shadow didn’t seem as tall or long as him—the tallest male student in the Mathayom 4/1 class. The only thing that seemed to be the same was their shape, so thin it looked gangly.

And here’s what I translated it to:

The afternoon sun cast Akk’s shadow across the ground as he stepped out of the building towards Suppalo’s gate. At this time of day, his shadow was not nearly as tall as him—the tallest boy in his class. In fact, the only thing he and his shadow currently had in common was that they were both so thin they looked gangly.

It’s not a significant change, but it sounds much better. I think when some people make translations, they’re scared to change anything in deference to the original author, but I guarantee the original author would want you to change things if it makes their writing read the way it is supposed to. So I guess my biggest piece of advice to you would be to not be scared of putting a little of your own voice into the writing. Contrary to popular belief, translations do allow for some creative freedom as long as the original meaning remains intact.

I hope that helps! And good luck on your own translation. Like I said, it's time consuming, but worth it!

And since I’ve accumulated a surprising number of new followers since I originally translated the novel, here's a link for anyone interested in reading!

[potol0ver]

Howdy pardner 🤠🐴

You said you were begging for a request for Erik to worship someone. I don’t know if you’re doing specific requests, but here’s one if you’re up for it:

Musical!Erik x Y/N

Erik had a really rough day dealing with the manager’s bullshit or smthn like that. Y/N comes down to visit him, and sees how upset he is. They ask what they can do to help him, and after collecting himself, he half-smiles.

“You can let me admire you~” He then proceeds to thoroughly kiss and praise and tease Y/N (consensually) as a stress-reliever and a way to redirect his emotions.

#LetThisManGetWhippedForHisS/O

- Yeehaw Anon 🐴

OH HELL YES- i love this idea. Also im leaving this one open ended at the end to keep it GN, don’t worry i have a smut prompt waiting for me to write it so if you want direct smut it’ll be out sometime this week most likely <3

Tags; Soft dom Erik x GN Reader, suggestive towards the end, fluffy, simi smut, Erik being obsessed with you, chest play (not said to have boobs though), short and sweet

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The sound of Erik’s organ rang through the catacombs as you walked down to his lair. You knew the rehearsal went wrong but you didn’t expect it to go so wrong he’d be hitting his organ keys this hard. Breathing in and sighing you finally made it to Erik’s abode and well… he looked pissed. His wig and mask were off, and playing the organ while standing.

Walking closer you practically tell his name so he could hear you. Once he did hear you he whipped his head towards you with an angry expression that quickly softened seeing you there. Defeated he plopped down on his organs bench and placed his head in his hands.

“You have no idea how bad today went,” he said with a slight roughness to his voice, almost like his voice was sore from yelling, “Carlotta wouldn’t take the advice from the conductor, and by doing that sabotaging the rehearsal,” you stood beside him now placing a hand in his back as he ranted, “the ballet dancers were supposed to try out a new routine but since Madame Giry had family matters to attend to the ballet dancers looked like they had two left feet, and the prop people were too drunk to do anything on cue, it was a shit show.”

Holding back a laugh at his word choice, you just sigh and console him. “That truly does sound like a shit show, I'm sorry that happened my love. Especially Carlotta, my spine has chills just thinking about what she sounded like, and not in a good way.” Erik gives a slight chuckle as you sit on the bench next to him. “Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?”

Sitting up Erik looked at you with eyes and asked “Can we snuggle please?”

“Of course my love,” quickly standing up you lead Erik by his hand to the bed. Once you got to the bed you laid down, he followed by climbing in next to you and holding you close burying his face into your neck. Slowly rubbing circles unto his back he slowly started to melt into you, finally relaxing.

You were about to fall asleep when he started to kiss your neck. “Erik, you should be relaxing.”

“Please, I need to worship you right now,” he begged into your neck as he started to put his hands under your clothes. Given you always got flustered when he paid attention to you like this, you could only muster up a nod. Soon enough his hands started to undo your clothing, all while his kisses on your neck never stopped.

Once your chest was exposed fully to him, he gently started to massage your chest. You couldn't help but let out some small whines as Erik kissed his way down to your nipple and popped it into his mouth. Gently rolling it with his tongue, his hands worked on getting your lower half naked too.

Once your whole body was exposed to him, Erik just gently ghosted his hands over your thighs to your waist and back down again. As much as you loved this you needed more, your hips slightly rolled trying to gain any friction they can. “Please Erik, stop teasing me.”

“No no, please, please let me bask in you. You feel divine.” he whined against your chest, barely letting your nipple go when he begged. You could tell tonight was going to be a long night for you.

[adalwolfgang]

Gideon Grim | Random headcanons

A/N: These are quite literally random and all over the place. Special thanks to my friend, Mickey, for letting me ramble about this man and giving me some more cute headcanons.

Tags: @my-sanity-is-long-gone

Purs like a cat when you rub his back or run your fingers through his hair. Honestly any soft touch.

Likes comparing y’all’s hands together to see how much bigger his is than yours.

Will nonchalantly grab your hand and turn it around to kiss the inside of your wrist. Or better yet when you rest your hand on his face, he’ll turn his head to kiss the inside of your palm. Will also kiss your knuckles.

Will wear black gloves that are sorta thin so he can still feel you under his hands. Will never not be around you without his gloves on because he doesn’t wanna risk accidentally touching you.

When he’s not on tour, he’ll on occasion keep his hair down and will let you put little braids in it. By the end of it, he might accidentally fall asleep.

Will call you darling, sweetheart, my love, mi amor, etc. Honestly anything starting with “my”.

One day you compare him to a cat and that’s how the pet name “kitty” starts. He doesn’t really mind as long as you keep it private, he’s still got a reputation to uphold Yk?

If you ever dressed up in a stereotypical grim reaper outfit on Halloween, he’ll just roll his eyes while letting out a stifled laugh. He thinks you look like a lunatic but hey, you’re his lunatic.

Definitely reads in bed for you if you’re struggling to sleep. He’s got the perfect voice and attitude for it.

Going out to eat at a restaurant with him. Either you or him are a little bit (or a lot) picky, putting the food you don't want on the other's plate. He’s that whole “they asked for no pickles” but like 10x more scarier.

He’s definitely a good listener aswell! I mean he’s a motivational death coach. Dude is always listening to what you have to say and is your biggest supporter as you are his. He gets deeply touched if you take his advice on scaring for whatever reason or compliment the writing in his books. At that point he feels as if Cupid struck an arrow in his heart.

Smiles so wide if someone even mentions you, whether it be in an interview or at one of his dead talks.

Will definitely tease you when no one’s looking, whether it’s him simply touching you or making faces. If you show any reaction, he teasingly scolds you while a small smirk is edged on his lips.

Definitely likes listening to music like “hit the road Jack” or something similar and dancing with you. He’s a really good dancer and no matter if you stink at it or not, he’ll be swaying you around to the music.

Yk how like in some relationships, people have to get like accepted by their s/o’s family to date them? It’s the same for you and Gideon except it’s with his cat. Like if Muffin genuinely shows hate toward you, he doesn’t think it will work out cause Yk he loves his cat very much. But if it starts off bad and slowly muffin warms up to you, he thinks you’re a keeper. Or if you’re lucky and muffin immediately takes a liking to you, he’s already got a ring in hand.

OWill let you wear his cloak because he finds it humorous how it practically swallows you. More than once has he snuck up behind you and just wrapped his cloak around you like a burrito and carried you to any cushioned surface to cuddle. A man only has so much patience.

Okay now hear me out. Gideon is a swifte (or whatever her fans are called) but not like in the whole has a poster on his wall of her but like, listens to some occasional songs of hers and has some songs he genuinely likes. I mean, he had “Look what you made me do” as a song for one of his dance sequences.

I was also watching a radio podcast of his on Facebook and he literally mentions how he watches stranger things on Netflix in the underworld. He’s a stranger things fan. He definitely likes the demigorgons, and his favorite character is secretly Eleven. Basically that whole “I could be a good mother” but replace it with father.

Gives off girl dad vibes. Would spoil his child(ren) rotten the same way he spoils Muffin.

[bp-zb1fics]

can i req gyuvin x male reader where gyuvin wants to ask out the reader but protective YOUNGER brother gunwook blocks any chance he can get but right as gyuvin is about to give up reader asks gyuvin out? you can make this as funny as you like

The perils of asking you out

pairing: gyuvin x male reader ft. protective younger brother gunwook

genre: university au on some serious crack (same verse as sunbaenim), chaotic romcom vibes

tw/tags: love at first sight, protective brother, uni party, alcohol, getting drunk, flirting, junhyeon gives great advice, gunwook is 18 and can have a driver's license, hangovers, eating ramen, confessions, dates, gunwook isn’t trying to be scary — gyuvin’s just scared (and in love), a whole lot of chaos and comedic side comments

wc: 3068 😱

summary: gyuvin’s always wanted to ask you out but he has one big problem and it’s called park gunwook, your extremely protective little brother.

a/n this…hefty word count, srsly thought I wasn’t capable of going over 2k words when it came to requests but oh well. Perhaps it’s because anon (tysm for the req) said “make this as funny as you like” and so this is v much heavily infused w my brand of- err humor. This au was rlly fun to write as well~ Enjoy!

Check my pinned for more fics~

Gyuvin notices you on your first day of university freshman orientation. 

Now he won’t claim love at first sight. He found you interesting, is all. People are allowed to find other people interesting. He wanted to get to know you, which was fine. People should get to know other people. 

And okay, so what if he was in love, just a little, you know? People are allowed to fall in love with other people, goddamit. But it definitely isn’t love, probably.

People can also check the schedules of other people to see what classes they have together. Why? So Gyuvin would have opportunities to talk with you. 

And there’s nothing wrong with that. People should talk to other people. Social interaction is a basic need. The reason people have needs is so that they can function properly.

Right, proper, solid logic.

“Hi.”

You look up at the brunette boy who’s taken the seat beside you.

“I’m Kim Gyuvin.”

You smile, introduce yourself and say:

“Nice to meet you, Gyuvin-ssi.”

Gyuvin swears he can hear wedding bells. 

Which is okay. Totally fine. People are allowed to daydream about their wedding to-

Yeah fuck that.

It’s your first week of freshman year and Kim Gyuvin has a gigantic, humongous, big, fat crush on you. And that’s a fact.

__________________________________________

Gyuvin meets your younger brother when you two are about halfway through the first semester. 

Things are going well for you by all counts. While you don’t always run in the same circles, you’re always friendly in class and he’s more or less claimed the seat next to you for most of the ones you share. You’ve partnered up for a project and he’s offered to bring back the phone charger you forgot you lent him last time you worked together.

Eventually, you gave in, sending him your address after he repeatedly told you it wouldn’t be a bother. Unlike most first year students like him who lived in the dormitories, you stayed at an off-campus apartment building nearby. Gyuvin’s almost bouncing off the walls of the elevator at the chance to see you. Maybe he can even ask you out for dinner if you’re free tonight, he thinks giddily as he knocks on the door.

Unfortunately, all his daydreams die when the door swings open and he is greeted by someone who is definitely not you. They’re about the same height but the other boy still has about an inch on him and a whole lot more muscle, nearly bursting out of the door frame. Gyuvin’s about to apologise, turn around and look for the right apartment when he hears what he clearly knows is your voice calling out.

“Wookie! Who is it?”

Like an angel, you appear behind the boy, your face brightening up as you spot Gyuvin.

“Ah, hi Gyuvin-ssi. Thanks for coming all the way, you really didn’t have to.” You shoo the boy away although he manages to throw Gyuvin another dark look before shuffling back in.

“No, no, no worries at all, it’s really not a problem.” he reassures you weakly, still shaken from the encounter. You glance behind you and wave the other boy off once more.

“Don’t mind Gunwookie.” Gyuvin’s mind is definitely preoccupied by the soft white sweater you’re wearing and how cute and angelic you look in it. Yessir it is.

“He’s just staying with me for the weekend. Never thought my little brother would miss me that quickly, you know?” You laugh as Gyuvin’s mind finally processes what you’re saying.

Little. Brother. That unnervingly large, definitely intimidating boy that’s definitely glaring at him from where he’s seated on the couch was YOUR LITTLE BROTHER???

“I see.” Wow, real smooth Gyuvin.

“Are you alright, Gyuvin-ssi? Are you feeling well?” Your eyebrow furrow at his strange behaviour.

“No, no worries. I’m good.” Gyuvin replies hastily. Right! He’ll ask you if you want to have dinner. “I was actually wondering if you-”

“Hyung, what time are we going? I’m hungry.” And failed.

“Aish you brat, can’t you see that I’m having a conversation over here?” You scold before turning back to Gyuvin, apologetic.

“Really sorry about him Gyuvin-ssi, would you want to join us for dinner? There’s a good soondubu place just down the road that I’m taking Gunwookie to.”

“I, uh-” Gyuvin would have definitely leapt at a chance to have dinner for you if not for the 6-foot devil menacing at him, gaze promising death if he agreed.

“I actually had dinner already,” he said instead. You look even more confused.

“But it’s 4pm?” Right, way to go Gyuvin, so smart.

“I like having dinner early, it’s better for digestion.” He salvages with a total bald-faced lie.

“Huh, I should try that but I love my midnight snacks so-” God if Gyuvin could ever be more in love with you than this. Okay, come back to your senses, Kim Gyuvin.

“Oh, I hate to keep you from your dinner so I’ll get going now.”

You smile. Wedding bells- no, no, no stop it.

“I guess I’ll see you around, Gyuvin-ssi.”

Gyuvin smiles back dopily.

“Yeah, see you.”

The door closes and he walks back to his dormitory.

Asking you out is going to be harder than he expected. He thinks, shuddering at the memory of Gunwook’s dark glare when he opened the door.

As he rummages through his backpack, his hands pull out a very familiar cord and plug.

It’s your charger.

He might as well go die in a hole. Gunwook would definitely be happy to bury his body.

__________________________________________

Gyuvin eventually returns your charger. His dignity on the other hand? Well no one knows when that’s returning.

You’re not even annoyed about it. Laughing at him all good natured and teasing him about his very real fears but it's not like you know that (or Gyuvin’s ever admitting it).

“Did Gunwookie scare you off? He used to be like that when we were in highschool, challenged anyone that gave me trouble,” you chuckle while Gyuvin tries his best not to audibly gulp.

“You’re not going to give me trouble, are you Gyuvin-ssi?”

You’re trouble, he thought. Troubling my heart as we speak.

“I hope not.” he says instead, making you laugh even more.

The class settles down as your professor enters. You pat him lightly on the shoulder. His heart jumps traitorously.

“Don’t let my brother scare you off, Gyuvin-ssi, he might act all protective but really, he’s just a big teddy bear.”

Gyuvin definitely does not believe that but he appreciates the sentiment.

Love will have its challenges, he thinks as he watches you.

And no challenge, not even a terrifyingly overprotective younger brother who’s built like the hulk will stop him.

He’ll ask you out soon, he will.

Then Gyuvin realises the whole class is staring at him, even you.

“The answer to the question, Gyuvin-ssi?” The professor asks expectantly.

Shit.

You mutter the answer under your breath and he repeats it. The professor nods approvingly and moves on. You smile at him when he thanks you. 

Yep. He’s marrying you asking you out and nothing will stop him.

__________________________________________

The next time Gyuvin tries his chances is at a party.

Hosted by the university’s resident social butterfly, definitely in the running for Ms. Congeniality, senior Sung Hanbin, it’s one of the bigger events of the year for the second semester’s O-week. And Gyuvin was lucky enough to have received an invitation personally, having met the friendly senior at one of the uni organisations he joined. 

It was exciting. While he had attended his fair share of welcome parties during his own orientation, there had been rumours floating around about the party the seniors were planning to start their last semester with a bang.

It also just so happened that you were going as well, having been invited by a close friend of Hanbin. Gyuvin was confident. And a little liquid courage wasn’t going to hurt.

You arrived a bit later than he did, accompanied by your friend from the foreign student society of which you took part to improve your already excellent English skills. You’re greeted by Seok Matthew, a junior and another member of the society who happened to be Hanbin’s close friend and your invite to the party. 

Gyuvin was in deep, groaning to Junhyeon about how good you looked, your shirt cut low to show off your collarbones and multiple earrings adorning your ears. At that moment, you spot him and wave, making your way towards him. Gyuvin panics.

“Fuck, fuck, what do I do?”

“If you think he’s hot, you should shoot your shot.” Junhyeon offers, the very fountain of wisdom he is.

You greet Junhyeon before turning to the brunette and wow, your smile is dazzling.

“Gyuvin-ssi, how are you finding the party?”

“It’s great,” he replies by default, mind going blank. “Hanbin-hyung definitely exceeded expectations.” 

Come on, Gyuvin. You can do it. Summon some rizz.

“Do you wanna get a drink?” He manages, gesturing at his empty cup. You agree easily, and he leads you to the bar that's been put up. So far, so good.

Unfortunately for him, you recognize the blond bartender, immediately striking up a conversation.

“Ricky-ah!” Gyuvin reels back when you address him casually. “How’d you end up as the bartender?”

“Zhang Hao-hyung” the other says, naming another close friend of Hanbin’s. The blond’s eyes flick between you and Gyuvin as he polished one of the glasses. What for? No one knew. Most party goers seem to be holding plastic cups.

“So what can I get for you?”

Two drinks, six shots and three drinking games later and Gyuvin is holding on for dear life. Literally, he’s about to fall off his seat. 

The only good thing going for him is that apparently you’re a clingy drunk, latching onto his arm in a way that would definitely give him a heart attack if it wasn’t for all the alcohol he had in him.

“Gyuvinah…” you mumble sleepily as he struggles to keep you both upright. 

“Mmmmm?”

“You’re really handsome, you know?”

Gyuvin truly has no thoughts. He must be in some somaek induced hallucination or something.

“Seriously, the first time I saw you with your brown hair, you looked like a prince.” You continued on, oblivious to his inner turmoil.

Gyuvin suddenly felt way too flustered, his cheeks already flushed hot from the drinks.

“Would you wanna step outside? Get some air maybe.” He suggests.

“Okay!” You agree as you both stumble for the door, whistles and hoots following you.

“Get him, boy!” Someone, probably Haruto, your friend from earlier, yells. Gyuvin ‘s about to turn around and shush them when you groan and bury your face into the back of his shirt.

“They’re so loud, let’s goo.” 

You’re finally outside, sitting together on a bench outside the party venue. Gyuvin can’t get over the feeling of you leaning on his shoulder. Come on Gyuvin, say something to him.

“Did…did you mean what you said earlier?”

You lift your head up if only to squint at him suspiciously.

“Yeah…why?”

And then you smile, dazed, reaching out to pat his cheeks.

“So handsome Gyuvinah” you slur and Gyuvin finally has the nerve to take your hand in his. You stare at both of your hands.

“You’re holding my hand.” You say more of a statement, then a question.

“Yeah.” He swallows nervously, here it goes. “Hey, I was wondering maybe you’d like to go-“

HONK! You and Gyuvin nearly jump out of your skins as a car nearly scares the living daylight out of you. The headlights are bright and Gyuvin has to squint to see the driver as he gets out of the car. Oh no, it can’t be-

“Wookie?”

You say as your younger brother makes a beeline for you. You take a minute to look at him up and down and then look at the car behind him and gasp.

“You’re a baby!” You declare, shaking your head at him cutely. “Babies aren’t supposed to drive cars.”

“You texted me to come pick you up, hyung.”

You look adorably perplexed. “Did I?”

Gunwook’s ignoring you, glaring holes into Gyuvin’s hand still holding yours. Gyuvin drops your hand like a dead fish and you whine.

“Nevermind, Gyuvinah doesn’t like me anymore. Take me home, Wookie.” You say as Gyuvin’s mouth drops open and Gunwook hoists you up, half carrying you into the car.

His mouth remains open as the car drives off. Godammit. His stomach lurches. Gyuvin promptly decides to empty its contents onto the side of the bench. Classy. 

__________________________________________

After waking up with a raging hangover and a whole lot of regret, Gyuvin decides to regroup, maybe collect some of his dignity and self-respect again. If he can manage to find it, that is.

Thank god for the weekend, he thinks. One of his roommates decides to make ramyeon, all of them slurping silently and nursing their own hangovers.

And because Junhyeon is Junhyeon, he absolutely had to ask.

“So did you shoot your shot?”

Gyuvin groans. More like he shot himself. 

Junhyeon pats him on the back sympathetically.

“You’ll get there, bro. From what I saw, he seems pretty into you too, you know.”

A little ramen escapes his mouth and falls back into his makeshift bowl with a sad little plop. 

“You really think that?” Junhyeon steps back, clearly not ready for how intensely hopeful his roommate suddenly becomes.

“Okay hold up, woah there. I dunno what he thinks but I saw what I saw at that party. And you cute, bro, no cap.”

“But does he find me cute?” Gyuvin says forlorn again, shovelling noodles into his mouth.

“Well he gotta be finding something in you if he keeps hanging out with you.” Junhyeon offers because yes, he’s truly a well of knowledge.

Gyuvin tips his bowl back and finishes off the soup before staring at its empty state. So sad, truly a tragedy.

__________________________________________

There’s class the next day. And it happens to be one of the classes he has with you. God, how can he face you after that night.

“Hi Gyuvin-ssi,” you greet, back to formal speak much to his dismay.

“Hello,” he says and because he’s a simp little concerned, he asks.

“Are you feeling better after that other night?”

Your face falls. Immediate regret.

“Oh! Oh- um- yes I got home safely. Thanks for-“

And before you can finish, the professor enters and you start class. Now if Gyuvin wasn’t all nervous and fidgety, he would have noticed that you were in the exact same boat. 

When the professor wraps up and you begin to pack up your stuff, Gyuvin takes a chance to call your attention only for you to do it at the exact same time. You look at each other and laugh, the ice broken just a little.

“No, no you go first.” Gyuvin insists.

“Ah…” you hesitate, choosing your words carefully. “I just want to say I’m sorry for my behaviour the other night and I was wondering if you wanted to get dinner sometime? My treat, you know, for taking care of me.”

Gyuvin should assure you it’s fine. He should politely accept your invitation and say that taking care of you isn’t a bother. Instead, he sputters out.

“Like a date?”

You freeze. He freezes. You stand there for an incredibly long time (like 15 seconds, wow). Alarm bells start to go off in Gyuvin’s head. Finally-

“I mean…it can be a date if you want it to be a date?”

Alarm bells turn into wedding bells. Say it, Gyuvin, say I do.

“Totally…I mean, yes, I’d like it to be a date, very much.”

You smile softly before glancing at the time, your face falling again.

“Oh shit, I need to get to my next class, I’ll text you the details later, see you!”

Gyuvin watches as you rush out. It’s okay. He’s fine. Actually no, he’s not fine. But he did it. And it only took a whole semester and some but he’s finally going out with you.

__________________________________________

One blissful winter break later and Gyuvin’s practically skipping to your place. Maybe the chill bit at his skin and the wind whipped in his face but he didn’t care, he was finally going to see you, his boyfriend, again and the cold never bothered him anyway.

Your one date at the start of the last semester had turned into five, then ten dates until he was officially your boyfriend. Walking each other to their next class, holding hands, carrying your bag for you, all that good stuff. 

He’s even met your family over the holidays and you met his. Gyuvin would like to think that even Gunwook was warming up to him, just a little bit. He had come with you to support the younger boy during the CSAT exams and Gunwook actually thanked him once the exam was done. Still, he thought as he knocked on your door enthusiastically, that boy still intimidated him and he’ll definitely need to work on not flinching-

The door swings open and Gyuvin flinches. It’s like deja vu. 

“Hi hyung,” Gunwook greets him wearing what looks like a letterman jacket from their university. Gyuvin must be dreaming, definitely.

He’s about to pinch himself when you appear behind your brother.

“Gyuvinie!”

“Hello my aein~” 

No he’s definitely not dreaming and your brother is still there.

“Hi Gunwook!” He nearly squeaks out before you’re shoving the younger boy away to wrap your arms around your boyfriend.

Gyuvin’s brain promptly malfunctions but the next part of what you say brings him back online.

“Can’t you believe Wookie got accepted into our uni? He’ll be staying with me until we can find a bigger unit to rent, maybe you can live there too!”

“Sure…” Gyuvin said numbly, imagining all the ways Gunwook could fake his death after he dared to defile you. You frown.

“Don’t tell me Wookie still scares you?”

“No! No, what are you talking about?”

He definitely does. So sure, Gyuvin’s managed to make you his. But will your brother accept that? Well, that’s for him to find out. Because yes, it will be a long time before Kim Gyuvin realises that Park Gunwook isn’t as intimidating as he appears to be.

In the end, they’re both just big softies and they’re especially soft for you.

[thiswaycomessomethingwicked]

When you are writing a new chapter for a fic, how do you decide what to put in, and what to leave out?

I see a lot of advice about killing your darlings - whittling the scene down until it contains only what's necessary to advance the plot.

But I also see advice that says it's okay to include more than this, because you need to advance the characters as well, by giving them quiet moments in between all of the plot advancing parts.

I really struggle to find the balance. I love writing the quiet moments, and fleshing the characters out, but sometimes these moments run away on me, and I end up with a bloated mess that barely advances the plot at all.

Do you have a process or a rule-of-thumb you follow, to help you decide what does or doesn't make the cut?

How easy do you find it to remove stuff later, when you realize the story is better without it? Do you cry and have wine while you bury your dead, or are you a ruthless assassin? :)

Oh man, great question.

I’m going to answer for what for my original fiction. I don’t heavily edit my fanfics in any meaningful capacity, as any of my readers can attest, since that is my hobby and editing is work. Also, since it is my hobby, I am pretty self indulgent with what I include. I meander and wander all over the place with my plots and don’t keep them as tight as they probably need to be.

Exhibit A, the visual representation of the plot of Thus, Always 2.0 (one line being present day and the second being the past):

But for my original fiction, there’s a very long, drawn out process of editing.

For House of No Return, the current book (known as The Venetians in my tags), I wrote out the first draft. In that draft I put all the self indulgent stuff I wanted. Character studies, side plots, random asides, plot cul-de-sacs, and so on.

Then, when done, I rewrote the entire thing. Top to bottom second draft. This is because, by the time I was done with draft one, I knew my characters a lot better than when I started. I knew, more clearly, the story I wanted to tell. I had a better vision of how the plot should work.

Once the second (or third) draft is done, I let it sit. Ideally, you should let it sit for a few months. I don’t have patience and am riddled with a deep need to always be writing, so I can usually only make it a few weeks.

When I take it back out, I print out the manuscript and read it in one or two sittings. This is because I need to remember what the fuck I was doing. As I read, I make margin notes of where I bump or where things drag a bit. My second read through is much more methodical. I sit with a note book and jot out a detailed outline as I read. When I eventually type them up they usually look something like this:

As I read through the outline, that’s where I can see if there are baggy parts that need trimming. When I note them, I decide whether to completely remove, or shorten, or shift to another part of the story, or if I can convey any central information in other areas.

Sometimes colour coding helps – highlighting all the parts that are faster paced in red, the slower bits in green, the pure character study bits in blue (or what have you). The visual representation helps me, at least, see if there’s a part that’s bunched up with only one colour and may need to be broken out a bit.

I make edits to my outline in blue, usually, of what needs to be added or changed when I go to do the next big rewrite.

--

Throughout this whole outline review process, I’m also thinking through what sort of plot pattern/design best serves the story. There are a lot out there and each has a purpose and can strengthen aspects of the story that’s being told.

Good reference: Meander, Spiral, Explode: Design and Pattern in Narrative by Jane Alison.  

For House of No Return, it’s a pretty classic mountain form: start | rising action | point no return | climax | resolution.

Something a bit like this with the little plateaus representing times when the plot slows for a bit to allow the reader a break and an opportunity to sit with a character or an emotion or some new information.

These breaks can also ratchet up tension and help keep people on the edge of their seat. The horror genre is a great example of this. You know that when we’re having a quiet character moment, or a humourous moment, we’re about to get something horrific on the other side of it and we’re in trepidation until it happens. But the book can’t be all horrific moments or else the audience gets bored.

(Unless the author is Doing Something/There’s a Purpose Being Served in having 85,000-100,000 words of only horrific moments. Which can abosolutely be the case! Again, it’s about what you’re trying to do, how to best tell the story, and fundamentally what that story needs to be.)

Grief and trauma writing also benefit from the breaks. I think about this in fics where it’s all bleak torture and there’s no resting or lighter moments—it’s hard on the audience. Which, again, can be the author’s intent! And that’s fine! But usually if you want to keep people going with you on the journey you need to give them breaks. That is just reality.

So, when writing the classic model I would say write, write, write. Get every thing onto the page. Every little indulgement moment, every little character study etc.

Then think about how you want the story to be paced. Do you want it a heart pounding fast paced piece? Then yeah, trim it down to mostly bare bones with just enough breaks for character study/get the audience invested in who they’re reading about and to give them a bit of a breather. But it should be super tight, over all.

Steep, steep, steep – little moments here and there for a break – then shattering fall and people should be reading going “what the fuuuuck is going to happen next??” (Grady Hendrix is a master of this.)

 Some traditional mountains, though, are slower.

There's a long, langurous start. We’re all along for a gentle ride then it begins to build bit by bit until we realize we’re riding down the Tuscan hillside in a cart with no breaks.

This is the sort of story where you can really relish your character studies and soft moments between people and little side bits. But you do need to keep enough movement to keep the audience interested. This is one that is harder to pull off because the balance can be tricky.

I tend to write like this. Hilary Mantel has books that hit this kind of approach. Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic is a good example of a slow burn start but a good ride at the end. Laura Purcell’s The Silent Companions is another example.

-

All that said, not all stories need to follow the traditional approach! Some are meant to be tangled meditations. A lot of weaving, a lot of introspection, the story is more about the journey and not the destination. Sometimes the plots look a little like this:

Peak Literary Experimental Fiction shit right here. This can be a lot of character study, a lot of philosophical musings, a lot tangents or backtracking or jumping around a little. Justin Torres’ Blackouts is a great example of a meandering story that is as much about the characters and their conversations as it is about queerness and history.

Other stories are meant to be rolling hills or waves: up and down, up and down.

Jane Austin has a bit of a wave quality to some of her stories, not all, but some. Long, drawn out family epics that span generations tend to have this quality to them. Books like Pillars of the Earth tend to be more wavey than mountain climax.

-----

Anyway. I've done a diversion myself. Back to editing.

When I’m doing my trimming, I don’t have an exact process for determining what makes the cut or what stays. I go with my gut on a lot of it. Sometimes, there are scenes that are hitting the same note but coming at it in different ways.

Cristof’s anxiety over his friend’s gambling addiction, and his guilt around feeling as if he is enabling it, is something I overwrote in the first few drafts because I was trying to understand the psychology of their friendship and Cristof’s own inner demons. Therefore, as I trimmed, I picked three key things that the audience needed to know about Cristof and Jacopo and made sure those were captured. I cut and trimmed accordingly.

However, I do have some babies that get reused in different places once I realize the original scene wasn’t working.

This stupid joke was originally in a completely different scene and was said by different characters but that scene wasn’t working and so I had to cut it. But I was very enamoured with this little interaction, so I found a way to incorporate it.

-

It’s also important to remember that some character studies/the resting pauses can be brief. By all means write out the full seven page version but I bet it’s possible to trim it down to a really powerful short beat that can pack a bit of a punch. Writing out the full seven pages is sometimes necessary to get at the heart of what you’re trying to say. Then cut it back.

I had a full multi-page version of this paragraph:

But it’s a rest-beat in the middle of the apothecary/barbershop scene that is moving the plot along, and therefore this memory/character beat needed to be tight. Still, we get a bit of a glimpse at Cristof and Nicolo through it, and while it might not seem important on the surface, we do need to care about these two idiots and the fact that they’re dumb about each other and in love.  

-

Quiet moments can also be interspersed within action. You can weave them through, so you have:

Active Scene/Plot Moving

Restful introspection or memory

Back to the Active Scene.

If done right it can give a bit of a melodious, wave-like quality to what you’re writing. It’s not for every story, nor every scene, and shouldn’t be overused (I may be guilty of that), but it allows you to still get in those meaningful character moments without stopping the plot too much.

As for the ease with which I kill darlings? Depends on the darling. Some are easier than others. Some I like, but if I can incorporate the important bits in another fashion then I’m fine with it. The more I write, the more I edit, the more ruthless I become.

--

A lot of this is, fundamentally, all about practice and doing it a lot. And also all writing rules aren’t rules so much as broad guidelines and each story has its own needs and requirements to make it work.

Apologies for the long reply. I'm not sure it's what you're after but I hope it helps. There is, unfortunately, no "quick trick" that I have to do it. It's really just a very involved process.

[evienyx]

any advice for newbie fanfic writers or new writers in general? I always have trouble trying to "paint a picture/ describe a scene and happenings lol thanks :D

I feel like I say this every time, to the point that its like a cop-out answer, but, genuinely, you really do just gotta practice.

Its like with any type of art. You won't get better at drawing if you don't just draw. You won't get better at an instrument unless you play the instrument. I didn't really notice my writing getting "better," but looking back at the earlier chapters of Fractures and comparing them to my newer stuff, it's clear that I have.

Past that, I mean one thing I do is I read all of my stuff out loud. I try to see if the words that I've written put the right image in my head. "Painting a picture" is a hard thing to do with writing, and a lot of the time its less about the amount of words that you write and more about the way that you use a smaller amount of space.

Crack open a thesaurus. Don't use bigger, more obscure words just for the sake of using them, but find ones that might work better. At the same time, though, don't be afraid of common words. I use "said" quite a lot, even though a million English teachers will yell about how basic it is. Much of the time, though, the emotion comes from the actions the characters take outside of the dialogue tag.

There are a few things you can choose to focus on when it comes to "painting a picture" that will set an overall mood quite easily. One of the most simple and yet most effective is weather. Describing the sky, the time of day, what the sun looks like. It can add tension, or drama, or can even stand to emphasize the state the characters are in, like when its a nice day but they're going through something hard.

Everyone's going to have a different writing style, too. Sure, you can copy someone else's, but if you're just writing yourself without trying to emulate another author, you're going to have your own style.

Personally, I tend to do a lot of comparisons to describe things. I pinpoint a few details and call back to them throughout a chapter or a story. Oftentimes I like to get a lot deeper into the character's mindset and examine that for a good while before pushing the plot forward. One of my friends, on the other hand, is a lot more straightforward with her writing, sort of trying to tell it as it is. Both describe what needs to be described, just in different ways.

If you're really struggling with trying to figure out how to "paint a picture" in the reader's head, try thinking through the different aspects of the scene. Anything that you can describe. Then, pick what actually needs to be described to understand what is going on. The positions of the characters, the vague setting, things like that. You don't need to go super in depth, because the reader knows, even subconsciously, how to fill in a lot of the detail on their own. You really are just here to "set the scene."

As I said before, though, no matter what advice you take, the only true way to see solid improvement is through actively writing. It doesn't need to be stuff you publish, but I would encourage it, since feedback is an enormous help as well. Either way, though, just keep writing, and reading it back, and then writing again, and you'll see improvement, just as with any type of art.

(Also, and I mean this with my whole heart, for the love of god, Kill Your Darlings.)

(Thank you and goodnight.)