#it feels like some sort of teenage drama

[randomfandomisuppose]

Bro who cares if the ship is canon. It doesn’t matter, it’s fandom. It doesn’t have to be canon, reality can be whatever you want it to be. It’s more fun if you go “fuck it”. Have fun in fandom. Ship what you want as long as it doesn’t hurt real people. Ship crackships for the sole reason of “the relationship seems interesting to me.”

Do what you want as long as you use content warnings and aren’t being fucking abusive.

Some ships are not healthy for the characters, and as long as there’s content warnings it’s fine. Shipping is as much about exploring and analysing possible relationships between characters as it is about “aww they’re so goddamn cute together.” You can avoid it if you do not like it. If it reminds you a bit too much of the grim and gritty world outside where awful things happen, that’s fine! There’s some stuff I wouldn’t read either! That’s your preference! But some people like exploring darker topics.

If you stop caring about which ship is “beter” and which ship is “canon”, boom. Every ship war imaginable avoided. Fuck that shitfest.

I’m so tired of that side of fandom I just want to see stupid memes and random characters cuddling and occasionally project trauma onto the most convenient candidate is that too much to ask for-

[gibbearish]

yknow what bugs me is when ppls criticism of YA media boils down to them just not knowing how teenage crushes work

[victory-cookies]

nothing like a little friend drama to spice up the morning. lord

[fallingskiesandrisingseas]

But what was most baffling to all that met the Pevensies after they came back was that they were kind.

Really. Not pretending, not because they were insecure. True, empathic. Far too understanding for children their age. They all have music in them.

Peter’s hands feel too small for him, but he shakes hands all the same. Gentle pressure. There is nobility behind those eyes. Eyes that always border on the supernatural sort of blue, especially in the dark.

He plays the guitar, gently coaxing otherworldly sounds out of an instrument that did not know it could be played like that. He helps his siblings with their homework, is taller much faster than his peers. Seems to take up more space, even though no one understands how a teenage boy manages that.

He doesn’t like doing nothing, ever. He instructs his classmates in grammar, gives away figures he cuts from wood with a knife that seems too sharp for a boy that small. He never hurts himself, though.

As the years pass, Peter grows strong. But he is gentle. He does not seem to be brash, even when many of his friends are. Peter keeps his emotions in check. Noble. Not undangerous, but not belligerent. Peter only ends fights, and only with people that deserve it.

He offers advice, a pat on the back. Teachers wanna dislike him, some do not like the look behind those eyes. Most find they cannot. Peter is popular with both adults and children, speaks sense and laughs often.

Peter is kind. Pious, devout. His faith is unmovable like rock. Did the kids meet God on the estate of their uncle?

Edmund plays the violin. A sad Edmund is a rare sight, but when he plays sad he can keep his whole floor awake. Somehow, Peter always finds h him quickly, effortlessly attuned to his brother’s moods. They play chess, then. Their chess master must have been a champion, Ed beats people with ease. He’s usually not smug about it.

Ed speaks politics and war in earnest, accepts critique graciously, is elegant in a way Peter never manages. Peter speaks frankly, but Edmund can wrap words up real nice. He doesn’t mince words, but his classmates grow into liking the sound of his voice. They appreciate that Edmund does not lie, even when speaking tactfully. Edmund can dial the temperature in a room, change it to suit himself.

He, too, laughs often, but Edmund is known to smirk. He likes being right and he often is. He’ll entertain anyone with a good story, always seems to have the right information to help you out. Remedies to illness, connections, job openings, how to sneak out of PE.

He’s a spider in a web. A bit reserved for a 11 year old, and oddly well-connected. A real ghost when he wants to be, but he never scares people with it.

Aslan would not approve of that. He believes in God as well, but much more intellectually. He’s got the intelligence to back it up and wit to match. A scholarly belief, but not lacking conviction.

Teachers like his enthousiasm, remember a moody nagging child when he left and see a secure young man come back.

Edmund will stand up for what is right. He gets into some trouble like that, but his verbal agility saves him always. Edmund has strong principles and will not bend them for anyone. No matter the trouble he gets in.

The bond with his brother is unbreakable. They even walk the same, chest out, left hand on their belt. They seem most at ease when fencing.

Susan was always warm and tenderhearted, but when she comes back there is a difference.

She seems to have gained authority. It’s real strange watching a 13-year old use her beauty like a grown woman, but Susan has learned to wield it, to stun people so she can creep under their skin. People LISTEN to her now.

Her wit is like a knife, but she avoids cutting deep. Susan is reasonable, and strong, and principled. The little drama others get involved in does not bother her, and she seems immune to petty insults. She has killed before, with her hands.

She will do it with kindness now. She is not very approachable ( that would be Lucy ), but she is kind. She used to mother over her brothers and sisters, but now that they have raised each other in a court full of magic she has gotten more relaxed. They listen to her on important issues, trust in her judgement. Her brothers does not deem himself more important, she is both well-spoken and well-respected by her siblings. Equal. It baffles the old men that teach her. Irritates them, too.

There is an air of mystery around her. Half a look is enough to get what she wants, Susan’s friends laud her security in herself, her Mona Lisa smile. She seems to temper moods easily, makes people feel at ease.

She most of everyone exudes royalty. It’s the grace. Susan plays the harp, her long fingers dancing across the strings like she’s had a lifetime of practice. She’s elegant, never caught off guard. Jamais faux pas.

She does not get angry. She knows who she will be. She is anxious to become an adult, yes, but she only wishes to look how she feels. Not to look differently. Yet the wish to be taken seriously, to have someone see you as an adult, it makes her surprisingly similar to her peers.

Her friends have not been old yet, is all. But Susan is calm and collected. People see her as someone you can tell a secret to. She never hurts someone, is usually a neutral party, speaks sense to adult and kids alike. She is not ignorant, however, will use every trick in the book to keep the peace. She knows when to go nuclear. Vis pacem para bellum.

Lucy is a sun in human form. She has a joie de vivre that is unmatched, is gay and golden-haired and never in a bad mood.

Lucy is kind by default, does not turn it off, does not turn it down. She’s witty and funny and quick on her feet. She has been grown before, yes, but enjoys being young for a few years more. She dances, sings old tunes. Her voice is her favorite instrument, you can usually hear Lucy coming.

Whistling a tune in the halls is known to improve the moods of everyone who hears it immensely. Young girls need to figure out who they are, but Lucy knows, knows what she’ll be and who she likes and what kind of people she wants to be around. She is not pretending, never moody. She can get sad, of course, but her older brothers and sisters are always nearby when that happens.

Lucy is genuine and fierce and convinced, immovable at times. Admired for her drive, but respected for her empathy. She speaks to everyone, often distributes flowers. There’s no naivite in her at all, she simply wishes to be like this so that the world may imitate her. She likes to see people prosper, is the first with praise.

She will go far, is the consensus. There’s steel beneath the soft exterior, Lucy has fire below the flowers. She’s well-liked and well-loved. She has love in spades, it seems, animals and stragglers and misfits and outcasts. She’s popular, her room is a good place to get a cup of tea and someone who will listen to you for some time. After a while she no longer bothers with the door.

That a heart that size fits in a girl that small is a mystery to many. Lucy does not think it is a mystery at all. It is the heart of a lion.

Her faith is as vocal as the rest of her, she sees it confirmed in all that is beautiful, all that is kind. She never tries to convert anyone but there are several people who have told her that version of God is someone they would like to know.

The Pevensies often see each other at parties, where they like to stand together. Edmund knows about everyone, everyone knows Peter, everyone likes Susan, but it is Lucy who knows everyone.

They are kind, but not weak. Peter gets his knuckles bloody sometimes, Edmund does not abide by the rules of unjust teachers. Susan and Lucy solve their problems differently but no less effective. Kindness is their usual way of operating, but they are still kings and queens. They will not allow cruelty, will not let bullies go unpunished.

They are sure of what they are and sure of what comes after death and this makes them kind. Kind , not harmless. Kind, not spineless. Kind, not ignorant. Kind, not naive.

Kind despite. Maybe kind because. The kings and queens of Narnia are proud of what they are, honour the teachings of their lion friend. Kind.

When the crash happens and three siblings die, everyone they know mourns deeply. Without them, the world is less kind.

[bunnys-kisses]

can i place an order under sainz's name? i'd like a banana bread and a nanaimo bars, plus a coffee with an extra vodka shot, pleaseee. OH and maybe some tea too (if you're up for it) thanks a ton!

the bakery menu

there are still so many delicious treats on the menu! so feel free to submit your own order! as for this order, i love a anon who knows what they want! being rivals with mister carlos, say no more! the drama! the action! the smut!

banana bread ("i'm going to fuck that sweet pussy of yours until the only word your little brain can form is my name.") + nanaimo bars ("who's my pretty girl? c'mon say it.") + coffee (rivals) + vodka shot (rough sex) served by carlos sainz jr. order up!

cw: smut/pwp, rivals (to lovers) au, driver!reader, rough sex, hot seat/reverse cowgirl position, humor, slight hair pulling

red bull racing had two stars, after the departure of checo the previous season, the team had brought someone else in. you. first woman f1 had in a long time. most sort of laughed off your stint on the track as a novelty, until you ended up on podium in your first race.

you even had you teammate a little worried.

that was how you ended up as carlos' rival. it wasn't that carlos was mad that he was being beaten by a woman. it was how you were all smiles and 'good luck's to other drivers. you were so civil and sweet, that it made carlos want to beat you even more. to him when you shook his hand after the japanese grand prix and gave him a dazzling grin, it felt like rubbing salt in his fourth placement.

"you'll get them next time, carlos. season's not over yet!"

carlos wanted you, the way that a wolf craved rabbit. he wanted to sink his teeth into you. he wanted to feel you under him as he took you apart and licked every inch of skin. even a possessive part of him wanted you in the bright ferrari red colours, showing that he staked a claim on the newest hot shot in formula one.

he honestly thought he'd never get the chance. until you showed up at his hotel room right before the spanish grand prix. you looked at him and then grabbed him by the front of the shirt and pulled him into a searing kiss.

carlos heard laughter and when the kiss broke, he saw oscar and lando nearby laughing. when he turned back to you, you were looking in shock with your hand still in his shirt.

before carlos could say anything you looked over to the pair close by and went, "see. nothing." but you were pulled into another kiss which you melted into. carlos could taste the wine on your tongue.

oh, you were getting drunk with the mclaren boys and this was all some stupid little dare. so when you pulled away once more and tried to apologize. he placed a hand on the top of your head and said, "why don't you come inside and get some water. and away from them."

oscar piped up, "you can't take away our drinking buddy."

carlos replied, "you two can drink alone." before he shuffled you inside and closed the door. play stupid games, win stupid prizes was all he thought before he had his hands on you once more. he took you by the waist and pressed a series of kisses up against your cheek and neck.

you were trembling like a leaf against him.

"tell me to stop." he said. this was a line that would be scary to cross, but he could feel your heat through your clothes and against him. a little fantasy come to life.

normally so steady in your tone, your voice was shaky when you said, "i don't want you to stop. i'm so sorry, carlos. they thought it would be funny and whatnot and i-"

he held the back of your head and made you look to him, "you didn't need a dare for you to come here. now, have you had too much to drink to do anything?" he didn't want to hurt you, maybe a little play in the bedroom but not real hurt.

he was your rival, not your enemy.

you held onto the front of his t-shirt and replied, "i want you. that was what the whole dare was. they thought i didn't have the balls to kiss you. i know, it sounds like we're teenagers. but they got two glasses of wine in me before i was stomping over to prove them wrong."

he laughed and held onto your hips, who's my pretty girl? c'mon say it." he saw your expression change before he pulled you in for a tight kiss, his hands went to the slope of your ass and grabbed onto it tightly.

"don't make me blush!" you squeaked

he loved this side of you, so different from the humorous, head strong driver, "oh, you'll be doing a lot more than blushing." then guided you towards the bedroom.

he noticed that you were in nothing but stretchy shorts and a big white t-shirt with printed socks that you had pulled up past your ankles. he saw that the socks had little lions on them.

he sat down on the bed and beckoned you to sit on his lap. he wrapped his arms around you and pulled you into his lap. his laps were on your clothed back, he yearned to get you naked.

"how do you like it?" he said, his lips close to your back, "how do you want me to fuck you?"

you swallowed, "rough. i always imagined it rough. i see how you look at me after races. when i narrowly beat you out, it looks like you want to eat me alive."

he chuckled, "maybe eat you out, but i think i could never hurt you. not on purpose."

you looked at him, "you suck as a rival."

he remarked, his hand on your chin, "then i guess i'll have to be a lover then." before he let go of it and took your shirt by the bottom and pulled it up over your head, leaving you in tight shorts and a cute grey sports bra.

he let you get up to full get unclothed. he did the same, when you caught sight of his cock you swallowed. the size was impressive and made heat pool in your core. he leaned back a little and looked at you in front of him. he grasped his cock and stroked it, "like what you see?"

you nodded as you pulled down your panties. you saw his expression change and you asked, with a little more confidence in your tone, "do you like what you see?"

he responded, "i bet it'll feel even better." he watched you get in his lap, but you were facing towards the door of the bedroom in a hybrid lap sex and reverse cowgirl. it gave him perfect access to the sight of your pretty ass.

there were little pleasantries exchanged between his cock and your pussy before you sank down on it. your hands on his knees as you started to ride him.

carlos' cock fit nicely in your aching sex. you were already drenched from his kisses and the notion that you'd get to have sex with him. your core throbbed with a deep want as you were fast with your thrusts.

he grabbed your hair tightly and pulled your head back so he could kiss at your neck. he kept you close to him, holding onto you like you were going to run away. he met your thrusts, they were a bit more brutal as his cock hit the back of your pussy.

he said to you, "i'm going to fuck that sweet pussy of yours until the only word your little brain can form is my name."

"is that a promise?"

"yes." then held your hip and hair as he started to thrust harder, fully taking hold of the situation. you may be physically on top, but carlos was the one in charge. savoring every moment that he got to bed his little rival. or rather lover, now.

the pulling of your hair felt good, the roughness of his movements made you grow wetter with each heavy stroke.

"carlos." you panted.

"that's it. fuck, you feel so good for me." he responded, his grip was a little tighter on you. he loved watching you meet his pace and bounce on his cock. next time he'd make sure to keep you front facing so he could see that pretty face of yours. he was certain there was going to be a next time.

"i don't want to be your rival anymore." you panted.

he looked at the back of your head, those beautiful brown eyes gazed at your back side as you worked his cock. he licked his lips and said, "then why don't we become lovers, then?" he smiled when you made a soft moaning noise, his hand in your hair went to your neck and pulled you against him. he bit at your shoulder and collarbone as he pinned you to him and thrusted up into you. "what do you say, mi amor?"

you panted, "please, carlos. i want to be yours."

he laughed, "that's what i like to hear. your name sounds so good on your tongue." he kissed behind your ear with a sense of tenderness. you were bouncing on his lap, the both of your naked on the expensive hotel bed.

he moved against you and kissed the nape of your neck as he bullied his cock into you. his grip was tight on you and it made you pant and whine for more. he fit so good inside of you.

"please, ah, carlos!" you moaned as you clutched onto his strong arms. you kicked out your legs and your cunt tigthened around his length. the pleasure caught up to you and you whined through your orgasm.

part of you prayed no one else in ferrari heard you, carlos' pace was still relentless as he moved against you. you felt so good seated on his cock, he knew your pussy was so pretty and wet.

"that's it. that's it." he panted in your ear, his voice hot and ran through your overstimulated body. he rutted against you before he gave one last thrust then spilled inside of you.

he came and it left him feeling very good as he slowed the pace down and relaxed against you. his arms still around you but his head on your shoulder.

you wanted to kiss him, but your limbs felt shaky. your head felt heavy as you came down from the intensity.

"mi amor." he said.

"shh. shh." you panted as you wiped the sweat off your forehead. it felt nice just being held by the other driver.

you soon tumbled into bed with carlos, your bodies pressed together. his forehead against yours as he laughed a little. he held your face for comfort. he said, "that felt good."

you nodded and kissed him on the lips, "i hope you know, just because you're not my rival doesn't mean i will go easy on you. it'll still be a battle of the track."

he dropped his hands down to your waist and went in for another kiss. which was followed by a few across your cheeks, "of course, i wouldn't want it any other way. but, i still will come out on top. i want to fuck you in front of the a nice shiny trophy."

you laughed and replied, "oh don't worry sainz, next time i win we can do that." then winked at him.

-

the next morning, in the early hours, you exited carlos' room with a prayer that no one saw you. as you carefully closed the door behind you, you heard your name and looked over.

you were met face to face with your teammate. your eyes went wide as you tried to play it off, "oh hey there... bud."

"what were you doing in carlos' room?" he asked.

you shrugged, "oh, you know how it is. a few drinks and fast asleep in front of the television." you laughed it off, "no big deal."

"right."

but something clicked as the two of you looked at one another. it was tense between you two for a moment before you had to ask the question, "but max." you said, "why are you in ferrari's room area too?"

you two would never speak about this ever again. <3

[cinnamonest]

In desperate need of older reader content

:(((

//Big age gap with ambiguously aged teenage boys, cheating on NPC husband, dubcon (reader is kinda consenting for once lmao but the first time is questionable in how it begins)

I've had this modern AU idea rotting in my brain for AGES anon, I hesitated to make it but you’ve given me courage, bless you anon

Consider Xingqiu + Chongyun and the sweet older lady that lives in the neighborhood… a neglected housewife with a husband who’s always absent, always on “work trips” and being generally suspicious and never pays you any attention…

You have the typical boys-next-door of the neighborhood — well, they're not actually right next door, one lives a few houses down, the other in that fancy rich neighborhood adjacent to yours — but the two come around your house quite a lot. It's kind of sweet how you've gotten to watch them grow up, you remember when they were very little, running by your house with bikes or kites or whatever they were playing with, and watch them slowly get bigger and older, hear their distant voices chattering get deeper and lower over time.

Sometimes you wave, they wave back.

They come to recognize you. They pass by when you're doing yardwork. You exchange a hey, boys! with a mutually enthusiastic hi miss!, and occasionally, you tell them to be safe because it's supposed to rain soon or because it's getting dark, met with a don't worry, we will! reassurance of some kind.

They're so cute, so endearing. You go out of your way to say hi each time you see them.

Eventually, you finally have a direct, up-close interaction — it's a particularly hot day, you call out to them to ask if they want something cold to drink, and they gladly take you up on the offer.

They're so cute, you think. Teenagers now, bright-eyed and full of that youthful sort of excitement and bliss, not yet old enough to be worn down by the difficulties or mundaneness of life nor have a damper put on their overly-positive outlook on life and the world. You find yourself smiling as you ask them questions about school and what they like to do and their plans for the future and they respond gushing with visible excitement and energy.

And then, they swing by the next day, sheepishly making their way up to you to ask if you have any more. You laugh and smile and tell them of course.

The same thing happens the next day, and the next day. You go out of your way to get some teen-boy-approved type of snacks the next time you go grocery shopping, which end up rapidly disappearing from your fridge and pantry.

You learn them, their similarities and differences, their interests and strengths. Xingqiu is more the academic type, Chongyun is more involved in athletics. You listen to them excitedly ramble about the “important” things going on in their lives, high-school level drama and such, the sort that seems to be of a much greater significance and weight to kids their age, who have no frame of reference for anything more serious than that. You give exaggerated reactions of awe and pride when they boast about their achievements, and it does warm your heart to see that that always makes them more excited to keep going on about it.

With that, you develop a very… wholesome sort of relationship. They start coming by more often.

And more and more often. Nearly each day. It's a very strange situation, yet it just feels natural because you get accustomed to it — instead of going back to their own homes, they head to your place right after they're let out from school. You feed them (they're teenage boys, they're eating more in one sitting than you do in an entire day), talk to them, you've even helped with homework every now and then, for subjects you're knowledgeable in. They seem to really love coming over to your house, and, well, you're often very lonely, and you appreciate them as well.

The neighbors have all seen them going to your place each day, some of them jokingly ask how “your boys” are doing. It’s endearing, really, and always makes you smile.

You know it's not exactly normal, but at the same time, if they trust you and depend on you and cling to you so much, they must not have another source for that — from what they've said, both have very busy and/or somewhat emotionally distant parents, which makes you feel bad for them, tugs at your heart, makes you feel like you should be sure to be there for them and be available when they need you. Like you have a responsibility to be there.

Which leads to you taking on perhaps an even greater role of keeping tabs on them, being responsible for them. You even get a call from the school once when one gets sick, asking you to come pick him up, which he thanks you for repeatedly, but still doesn't seem to treat the matter as quite as unusual as you feel it is. Regardless, you find yourself taking him to your house to recover rather than his own, at his own request.

They're almost a little too comfortable, but it's more comical to you than anything — they reach a point where now, they just come sauntering into your house after school, backpacks dumped onto the floor and flopping onto your couch as if it were their own house. One time when you were home alone, you went out to get groceries, only to nearly have a heart attack when greeted with a hello! as soon as you stepped through your front door when you came back. Turns out they figured out you keep a spare key under the welcome mat… they help you put the groceries away, though. Such sweet boys.

Yes, they’re sweet, helpful, bright-eyed, energetic… even if sometimes, they get a little strange.

Nothing that isn't standard teen boy stuff, though, you tell yourself. You find evidence of their presence in oddly private areas of your home — your bedroom door hanging open when you're pretty sure you shut it earlier, an open drawer, missing clothes, so on and so on.

It's odd, but you don't exactly know how to really go about confronting them, the idea feels awkward and uncomfortable. Not to mention, doubt and paranoia cloud your reasoning — what if there's a perfectly legitimate reason, and then you ruin things by making false accusations? What if you're imagining it? You ultimately decide to try and shake off the creeping feeling of something being wrong.

Worst case scenario, they're being… weird. But teenage boys are like that, aren't they? Raging hormones and all. It's a little unpleasant, but you're sure they'll mature out of such behaviors, if that really is the case. It's nothing too serious.

And then they start getting touchy.

When they help you carry things in (so sweet of them, isn’t it?), you notice that over time, they grow comfortable with your arms and hands brushing against each other. They stand closer to you when leaning over to see what you’re making whenever you’re running around in the kitchen (of course, usually accompanied by asking if it's for them or if they can have some), shoulders bumping against yours. They scoot their chair much closer to yours when you’re helping them with their homework, eventually to where your thighs touch.

Waving goodbye when they go home at the end of the day turns into big hugs. Both of them do so in a way that you just can't shake the feeling of being somehow wrong. Xingqiu pulls your chest against his perhaps just a bit too firmly. Chongyun holds his hands lower down on your back than you feel comfortable with. But then they both flash you such sweet smiles and promise to see you later, and your momentary concerns feel trivial.

Your naive belief in their innocence begins to fall apart, though, because Chongyun is significantly less skilled at keeping up feigned ignorance.

The idea that you were being paranoid, or imagining things, quickly begins to fade from your mind when you notice how blatantly sheepish he begins to become as time goes by. He stops looking you in the eye, stammers and fidgets and squirms when trying to speak to you. As if feeling guilty, as if having done something wrong.

Xingqiu is much better at it — almost scarily so. If it were just him, you'd never notice a thing, and you’re not sure how to feel about that realization. You’re pretty sure he could do something right in front of you and then convince you you did it instead, with how flawlessly he can change his tone and expressions and answer questions in ways that not only fail to answer, but give the impression of an answer, then distract away to another topic before you can even think enough to realize what a non-answer the response he gives is.

You only caught onto it one time, and then when you started to think back, you realized how many times he’s done the exact same thing in the past, all without you ever realizing… those rich business families must have some kind of genetic predisposition to conversation manipulation. Still, it’s nothing malicious, he didn’t do anything wrong, you’re pretty sure at least… he just seems to steer away from anything having to do with the odd occurrences of things that go missing or were different from how you left them.

Still, it reaches a point where you really can’t delude yourself.

But it's nothing serious. It's not enough to warrant saying anything. That’s what you tell yourself.

Because if it were that serious, you’d have to say something. And if you say something, well, that’s… hard. Awkward. Difficult to summon the gall for, especially towards two young, innocent boys who have never done anything really bad to you, who have always been so helpful and sweet, who are just being the way boys that age are, right? It’s ultimately harmless.

You’d ruin things between you all, you’d hurt them. You can’t have that. They’re too precious. They keep you company, they help you out, you’ve gotten so used to their presence in your life, you can’t have that ruined. Thus, you say nothing. Yes, it’s all just normal, it’s no big deal. Soon enough they’ll start getting involved with girls their age anyway, and stop messing with you so much.

Except there's one more issue... that thing where they seem to really not like your husband.

The moment he comes up, they both take a negative attitude. Granted, one day you do end up more or less breaking down as you find yourself venting and lamenting your miserable marriage — how he’s never home, how he’s always doing suspicious things that hurt your heart, how he never treats you to anything, never remembers anniversaries or birthdays, never says anything nice to you… you only pause and start stammering apologies when you notice how quiet they both get, but they insist it’s fine, and follow up by muttering about how you deserve better… you smile and pat their heads.

You really meant the whole thing as mere venting, so it makes you feel bad when, seeing as your birthday falls very shortly after that conversation, they both get you things on said birthday. Chongyun’s is something he made himself, albeit on a very low budget, Xingqiu’s is the inverse, some piece of jewelry that’s the most expensive thing you’ve ever owned… and they remembered even when your husband didn’t. It makes you feel guilty, like maybe you baited them by inducing their pity, but they both seem so happy to give you something, and even when you say they didn’t have to do that, they insist they wanted to… maybe it’s alright, then. They were already sweet to you too, of course, but you notice that they give you compliments and such more frequently too.

Regardless, you notice that even before your complaining, they both sort of scowl when your husband is mentioned, even more so after you reveal the rocky state of your marriage. There’s an unmistakable resentment in some comments they make — you start talking about how you’re worried that you spent too much on groceries and will make him mad, to which you get a scoff and a ‘well who cares what he thinks?’, or, when you’re worried the house isn’t presentable enough for your husband coming home, you get a shrug and mutter, ‘he can just deal with it…’

Your husband doesn’t exactly care for them either. You mention it to him because you feel you should, although apparently neighbors already informed him of the matter. You get a few gruff comments about how bizarre and inappropriate it is that you’re letting two teen boys just sit around in your house. Every now and then, you get snapped at in irritation about a piece of a wrapper left on the sofa or a pencil left on the table, how it’s because you let those damn teenagers stay in your house, how you’re draining his hard-earned money on feeding them, so on and so on.

They only actually interact once, seeing as the man gets home so late each day that it’s usually long after both boys have left for the day, but one time their presence does overlap — it’s very awkward. You didn’t hear the car pull up to the house, so when he comes walking in, the two boys quickly get their things together and scurry out the door, all without exchanging a word, although the tension and glaring is palpable. You’re reminded that he tolerates you having them there, and that he had better not come home to find them in his house so late again. You nod your head — but you still let them stay fairly long each day… now they make no attempt to hide their disgust each time you mention your spouse.

Their increasing negativity towards him, their increasing affection towards you — there’s a sort of tension that builds over time. Every party involved feels it, you’re certain, one of those things where everyone knows what’s happening and no one acknowledges it out loud.

By the time it happens, they're so comfortable that it's practically nonchalant, and for you, well, somehow you don’t feel particularly surprised. It feels more like something you knew was going to happen, but maybe pretended in the forefront of your mind that you didn’t know, that it wasn’t inevitable.

Likewise, it happens so quickly that you barely register anything as it happens, it doesn’t sink in as real until it’s too late and you’re already too far into it.

You don’t remember, afterwards, exactly what you were doing — were you helping them with homework at the kitchen table, or were you all watching a movie on your couch beforehand? You’re not sure. You only remember feeling an unusual palpable energy in the air, them looking back and forth at each other as if to confirm to move ahead with some premeditated plan. You remember that it was Chongyun that initiated it, to some extent—

I— I mean, we wanted to, uh, talk to you about something, and, ah…

He seems to lose his words halfway through, and sort of pathetically looks over at the other, as if silently begging for help, which is met with a sigh and a few back and forth comments as you stare on in bewilderment — that ‘no, you were supposed to do that part,’ or ‘no, YOU were supposed to do that,’ so on and so forth, until they both seem to just give up on whatever the plan was and go for it instead.

That’s where it becomes a bit of a blur. You don’t remember which one grabbed you first, which one’s mouth met yours first.

You think you said a few things to deter them, obligatory statements of how I can’t, I’m married and the other standard lines you’re supposed to say because you have some sense of guilt and honor, don't you? You have to deny them the first time, it's only right.

And yet, you’re pretty sure your resistance didn’t last long.

The reality of it all doesn’t sink in until you’re at the point where you can no longer bring yourself to care, too lost in excitement and ecstasy and basking in the feeling of being so intensely desired, until you’re on your knees with one in your mouth and one from behind (although later, you can’t recall which was which at first — they switched up a few times, you’re pretty sure). You don’t even remember how many times they came inside you, only that you felt some vague alarm the first time, but stopped caring soon after, letting yourself be bent over your couch and put on your knees on the floor, letting your mind melt away, focusing only on pleasure and longing and, in the back of your mind, a twinge of guilt knowing that maybe you knew this was what they wanted all along.

Good thing your husband was on another one of his business trips. You’re pretty sure he’d be furious to know you took them upstairs and continued all night long on his own bed thereafter, eventually all falling asleep there too, with you sandwiched in between… only to wake up and go at it again the next morning. It’s Saturday, after all, they have to fill their time with something other than school.

You have different sets of issues, after that day. You’re not worried about their affections being inappropriate — you’ve long since accepted that, now you’re just a little worried about how they keep pressuring you to divorce and move in with one of them (Xingqiu reminds you his family is very very wealthy, this in turn upsets Chongyun, who insists he’s trying to ‘win you over’ which is ‘unfair’ to him). You don’t worry about your missing clothes or their touches, those are no longer an issue… now your biggest concern is keeping their voracious sex drives at bay, which it turns out you severely underestimated, and you have TWO to deal with on top of that, practically getting pounded and plowed at every opportunity.

Then you have to worry about how virile they probably are… you’re not on birth control, seeing as your husband has demanded you have a kid. He might get one, even if not how he expected… and then you have to worry about giving both boys equal affection, lest you hurt one’s feelings or make them jealous… and then you have to worry about your poor weary body, which can barely keep up with them…

And, of course, you worry about the inevitable, knowing that it’s only a matter of time before things fall apart, one way or another. A matter of time before they decide to ‘deal with’ your husband — you heard them use that exact verbiage muttering to themselves, only for them to go silent once they saw you. A matter of time before they do something, and you get the feeling that you're not going to like whatever something is.

Yes, you know things can’t stay in this limbo forever… and that worries you, no matter how much you try to put it off and pretend things are fine and tell yourself you’ll cross that bridge when you get to it, only to find the bridge is growing closer with each day. After-school threesomes on a limited schedule can only keep them content for so long, especially when they've already started to push the limits of how long they can stay, how many times they can go, insisting you can get one more round in before your husband comes home.

At least you’re pretty sure no one else knows. The neighbors still ask you how “your boys” are, and seem to do so with endearment, with no trace of any concern or outrage or disgust.

You haven’t changed your answer in all the time they’ve asked — you always smile and say they’re doing just great. Perhaps that’s even more true now than it was before.

[loudclan-clangen]

sort of an out of the blue ask, but I remember when Weed was first introduced, she and Tundrafrost were said to be old friends and they were being pretty touchy and blushy with each other and Chickadeeblur seemed kinda jealous. Did they actually have a thing for each other, or did Chickadee just misinterpret it that way?

…also I can imagine Weed sort of being the wine aunt to Tundra’s kids and that’s cute to me lol

Tundrafrost and Weed did in fact "have a thing" in their much younger years. Tundrafrost and Chickadeeblur didn't grow up in the valley, and throughout their journey to it Tundra had many non-serious flings, of which Weed was one. When Weed was looking for a place to settle down for her old lady years, she reached out to Tundrafrost, whom welcomed her to the clan. Chickadeeblur had no real reason to be jealous, as she has no interest in taking a mate at this age, and the three are very good friends now. You're so right though, they definately do a kid trade where Tundra and Chickadee get to enjoy Cavepaw's baby phase and take him exploring out of camp to get his energy out while Weed settles down to talk Kingfur, Sockeyepelt, and Chumpaw through their standard teenager drama.

*bonk* *bonk* *bonk* *bonk* *bonk* *bonk* *bonk* *bonk* *bonk*

hehe, love it!

I try to keep the names the game gives me if it doesn't contradict with the setting. Things like "Owl", "Weed", "Jagged", or "Fierce" while not being Alaska specific are things or ideas that would be accessible to the cats and therefore I leave those. But names that do contradict or just seem boring to me I do try to change to something similar but more specific. Sand -> Silt, Chicken -> Chickadee, Prarie -> Tundra, Dog -> Dogwood, etc. It's not that any of these couldn't exist in nature in alaska, they just didn't feel like they fit the story at this point. In the first couple of hundred moons I tried to make sure that litters were named thematically based off of the oldest kit's name and their parent's personality, but after time this just became too much work and I think the random names are fun too. That's why the Tundra x Chickadee babies are all types of salmon and the healer kits all have long plant names. Some themes are definately looser than others. I do definately change the sillier names and try to balance out the "weird", for example, the fish babies all have pretty plain suffixes because their prefixes are pretty out-there and nothing else seemed to pair very well with them. "Kingflight" is just a little much, to my ear at least. Also the healer kits will have short suffixes because their prefixes are so long and just from a purely mechanical standpoint I can't fit "Dogwoodcaterpillar" or "Rosehiptadpole" in a comic panel.

Thank you! And go for it! I'd love to see people use my ideas in their own ways! If you want to give a little "insert idea inspired by @loudclan-clangen" I'd appreciate it a ton, (mostly cause I want to go see what you guys are making), but if not that's totally fine. I'm definitely not the first person to do a lineage challenge, but I'm glad that you like my system!

[starlit-typewriter]

Genshin SAGAU, Creator of Teyvat, but not Humanity Part 5

This chapter was like pulling teeth, I swear I switched POV's like 3 times.

Thank you guys so much for reading! Just as a heads up future chapters will be much much slower to update since real life hast decided to reassert it's presence. That being said, enjoy!

Warning for Spoilers up to 4.6

Masterlist | Prev Part | Next Part

~~~

The sharp edge of a sword hovered extremely close to your face. Its wielder's furious golden eyes stared you down.

“Who are you, how did you get here?” They demanded, their floating companion hovering behind their shoulder anxiously, watching this exchange.

For some reason, even though your life was being threatened, you struggled to feel any sense of fear or urgency. That’s probably something you should revisit when you didn’t have a sharp weapon pointed at you.

But you did, so you should pay attention to that, shouldn’t you.

Oh, but you haven’t, you’ve probably been silent for a while, getting lost in thought.

You redirect your attention back to your current situation. 

You are in this fancy bedroom you don’t recognize, whilst being threatened at sword point by a pretty teenager you don’t recognize.

Great, go brain, you can do things!

You took a deep breath, preparing yourself for an explanation.

“I don’t mean any harm,” you say, slowly. 

The teen in question didn’t seem to believe you. They narrowed their eyes further, actually they were really pretty. Not just the teen themselves, though they are quite pretty, but their eyes sparkled like molten gold, not a common eye color at all.

Now that you think of it, are golden eyes even real? Don’t you need contacts to get golden eyes?

Oh wait, you’ve gotten off track, you’re being threatened.

They were saying something, their mouth was moving and you missed all of it.

You blinked, “sorry could you repeat that I didn’t hear it,” you asked politely, hoping they wouldn’t get mad at the request.

Oh looks like they did, considering how they’re clenching their teeth, they don’t look particularly pleased with you.

Well, you suppose it is rather rude to ignore someone mid confrontation.

Why were you in a confrontation anyways, you weren’t a particularly confrontational person, you liked to avoid drama whenever possible.

You probably shouldn’t be here, you realized. It’d be nice if you were somewhere else, like a nice park or a meadow or something.

Just as you finished your train of thought your surroundings changed.

The chirping of birds and the warmth of the sunlight distracted you from your earlier train of thought. 

You were in a lovely meadow, with beautiful golden flowers and a gigantic tree with blue crystalline branches.

It seemed rather empty though, which was a bit of a shame considering how nice it is, but you were hardly going to complain about having the entire place to yourself.

You started walking through the meadow, when a slight pain in your foot distracted you.

You checked to see that you were pricked by a rather sharp piece of gravel. 

That’s weird, why are you barefoot outside? Now that you think about it, your clothes are rather strange.

It’s this white flowy garment, reminiscent of the clothing worn by Ancient Grecians. 

But you weren’t cold at all, it was honestly quite comfortable. 

Wait, what were you thinking about again.

Oh right, you’re talking a walk in this pretty meadow!

~~~

The Wanderer, or well, Hat Guy as people now know him sighed as he flipped through a tedious book about the Origins of the Production of Wood Lacquer in Inazuma and its Effects on Weaponry. 

Unfortunately for him, I was there, does not count as a citable source if he doesn’t have the receipts to prove it. Now he has to sort through all these old books to find one with the information he needs to prove his point.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a familiar figure examining the shelves.

It seems that they noticed him too, judging by the white haired fairy’s flailing. How troublesome.

“What are you doing here,” she whispered fiercely, at least she had enough decency to not raise her voice in a library.

He looked over at his piles of books and papers covering his workstation, and then back at her, wondering if she actually expected an answer to such an obvious question.

She seemed to realize that too, considering the sheepish look she adopted. “Well, you can’t blame me for being curious. You don’t seem like a big library kind of guy.”

“I’m not,” he replied curtly, turning back to his workstation. “Trust me, if I had it any other way, I wouldn’t be here right now.”

Yet somehow, him turning his back to them and ignoring their presence wasn’t hint enough of his lack of enthusiasm to engage in conversation with the two, since they ended up hovering over his shoulder, attempting to read his papers and more importantly, distracting him from his work.

He swears, if he could get a headache, he would. He ends up slapping his hand on top of his notes, disrupting their reading and whipped his head back to give them the most annoyed glare he can.

It doesn’t work, because of course it doesn’t.

Instead the Traveler just gave him a smug smirk, they did this on purpose to annoy him, which makes it worse because he fell for it.

“What do you want,” he gritted out, knowing they won’t let him have his peace until they’re satisfied.

“I need to speak with Nahida,”

Wanderer scoffed at that, “then why are you bothering me? Did the Matra turn you away at the door and now you're begging for my help to get you in?”

“Not at all,” the Traveler smiled, “I just wouldn’t mind your insight on the topic as well,”

“Plus we couldn’t find her in the Sanctuary of Surasthana, ” Paimon chimed in.

He couldn’t stop himself from pulling a face at that inane statement, “Why would she be in the Sanctuary of Surasthana?”

“It’s where we’d meet up with her before,”

“That’s because she didn’t have any rooms or offices of her own,” he explained slowly, like he was talking to a child, well he probably was considering the intellect of the white haired one. “Why would she willingly go back to her prison of 500 years when she now has the resources of all of Sumeru to build herself a new place.”

The white haired fairy in question made an exaggerated face of revelation that he couldn’t help but roll his eyes at.

He looks at his notes longingly, well not quite longingly, it’s still quite annoying, but its bound to be less troublesome than whatever the Traveler has planned.

Sighing to himself, he gathered up his notes and research and headed to the exit of the House of Daena, the Traveler and Paimon hot on his heels.

The three made their way up the winding paths of the Akademya. The puppet ignores all the glances and whispers garnered by the students and visitors alike, and moves as fast as he can without breaking into an outright run.

It doesn’t take long for them to arrive at The Dendro Archon’s new residence. Designed by the Light of Kshahrewar himself, its a beautiful structure with many windows and balconies, designed to be everything the Sanctuary was not. 

He headed straight in, the Matra having long gotten used to his frequent comings and goings with the Dendro Archon. He honestly doesn't know what reasoning they’ve decided on to explain why Lesser Lord Kusanali spends so much time with him, and honestly he couldn’t care less. It’s simply the fact that they couldn’t keep their mouths shut and now he has to deal with complete strangers coming up to him in an attempt to learn more about her.

He could hear the other two, awing at the architecture as they made their way in. Privately he did appreciate the architect's tact in designing this building. Whilst still made in the classic rounded Sumeru fashion, he managed to avoid any references to the Sanctuary of Surasthana, ensuring that there weren't many large empty spaces or darkened ceilings.

He knew she still avoided the building whenever she could, even though she rejected his proposition to have it torn down. It’s a curious relationship, for whilst it was her prison for so long, it was also the only place she knew and could call home.

Regardless of the matter, it wasn’t for him to pry.

Before long he had reached her office, offering a cursory knock before barging his way in. If she had a problem with his way of entering her rooms and offices she would've long told him to stop, but she didn’t so he didn’t.

It was a lot messier than he’d seen it last. Papers and reports scattered around the office, stacked in messy piles on her desk.

Lesser Lord Kusanali blinked up at him from where she was seated, before breaking into a smile when the Traveler and Paimon walked in.

She greeted them with enthusiasm, moving out from behind her desk to talk to them properly.

He tuned out the rest of their small talk, it was nothing more than empty pleasantries to fill the air before they got the actually important parts that were relevant to his presence.

“-ject Stuzha,”

He blinked, focusing back onto the topic of conversation. 

“Hmm, I must admit I haven’t seen many records on this project before,” the Dendro Archon said, her expectant gaze turning to him. 

He couldn't help but bristle slightly at the attention. “I’ve already given you most of the information I have about the Fatui.”

“Most is not all,” she replied simply, “and besides, from what the Traveler just said it seems to be something they’re mobilizing all their forces on.”

Logically he knew that it would be in everyone’s best interests if he told them all he knew about the project, but old habits die hard. The Tsaritsa’s court was nothing more than the world most extensive chess game. Every action and movement had to be calculated to give the player the best advantage, every scrap of information hard won. 

As much as it rankled him to admit, he was only the 6th Harbinger and the Director only gave out as much information as was strictly required, no more no less. But he did have some information, some he was given, some through sleuthing and others through his own conjecture.

He warned them of that before launching into an explanation of what he had seen and figured out.

“From the timing of things, it is clear that Project Stuzha is related to the gnosis, especially since the only one of the seven that they’re missing is the Pyro Gnosis.” His audience nodded at that assumption.

“It’s also related in some way to the state of things in Teyvat and the survival of humanity as a species. As things stand, Teyvat is becoming more and more inhabitable for regular humans. With ley line disorders, abyssal energy and dead godly remains lurking about. Project Stuzha is supposed to fix that, permanently.”

“But how,” Paimon interrupted, her head darting back and forth in confusion. 

“No idea,” he shrugged, “All I know is that it has something to do with the Abyss.”

“The Abyss? I thought that place had nothing but monsters and dead gods?”

Wanderer shook his head at that, “That’s just a common misconception. There’s actually the remains of an entire world down there. A human world.”

Both the Traveler and Paimon looked shocked at that statement. 

He’d already shared this information with Lesser Lord Kusanali so she didn’t look surprised, but she was deep in thought.

“I didn’t know that there were entire realms banished to the abyss, and I thought Enkanomiya was creepy.”

“It wasn't banished,” he refuted, “From my investigations, it seems that the civilization was built and founded there.”

There was a moment of silence as they contemplated his words.

“That brings up more questions about the origins of humans,” Lesser Lord Kusanali commented, “Irregardless of that, I believe you had another question for us Traveler?”

“Oh right!,” Paimon chimed in, looking over to the Traveler who stepped forward.

“We’re looking more into the blessings that keep happening and we'd like to hear your opinion of it.” They paused, looking between the two of them.

“Ah,” the Dendro Archon paused, looking at Wanderer.

“The thing is, we've already tried,”

“And failed.” He couldn’t help but add, to quash any hope that the duo may have.

“What do you mean by failed!” The fairy gasped.

“Well, that’s not exactly the case,” she tried to reassure. “It’s more like, there weren’t any results where we were looking. ”

“That’s just another way to say you found nothing!”

“Actually Paimon, finding nothing gives you a lot of information about where it is found!” She explained. “The thing is, the blessings we experienced aren’t connected to Irminsul in any way, so we can conclude that it originated from somewhere outside of Teyvat.”

”Does that mean that it can’t be tracked?” The Traveler asked, 

”Hmm, well from our experiences, it’s quite easy for those who’ve been blessed to recognize each other since they can feel each other’s blessing, but the range for that is no more than the size of two Sumpter Beasts.”

That was an irritating experience, having to stand in the middle of Sumeru City for hours as that annoying forest watcher had to try to find him through only his blessing. It took over half the day before they concluded that the energy of the blessing was far too weak to use as a tracking mechanism.

Thankfully, any experiments they had were benign and didn’t involve anything close to what he imagined that damned doctor attempted to inflict on Tartaglia before being shut down by the Tsaritsa. 

If that were the case he’d probably have hated the flame flickering in his hollow chest a lot more. 

Well, hate is a strong word. He didn’t deny that having the blessing made him a lot stronger than he ever was previously and on some level is grateful for its calming warmth. But a private part of him wished it had appeared to him sooner.

Logically he understood that the blessings were in some way connected to the Traveler and that they hadn’t appeared until well after his appointment as a Harbinger.

But the other small quiet part of him wonders just how different his life could’ve been had this blessing appeared before that. 

Would he have been able to save Niwa, or that little boy. Maybe even the Sho-

No

He can’t go down that train of thought.

What’s done is done and all he can do now is attempt to make amends and move on.

He tuned back into the topic only to find them talking about some kind of dessert they had in fontaine. Ugh.

He waited,

And waited,

And waited some more.

…

This conversation was taking too long.

And he isn’t even in it!

“Can I leave,” he butted in, realizing that their conversation is never going to go back to anything useful.

“Oh I’m sorry, are we interrupting your incredibly important work about glazeworks or something,” Pamon mocked.

Ignoring her he turned to the Dendro Archon who looked delighted. 

“You’re still working on the new essay?” She exclaimed, clapping her hands together in delight. 

He felt his eyebrow twitch in irritation. “I would’ve had it done a week ago, if someone actually let me use accurate sources,” he snapped.

“Oh come on, it’s not so bad. Besides, how are you going to explain how Hat Guy knows so much about ancient Inazumen weapon crafting techniques that have been lost to time.”

“You could vouch for me,”

“But that wouldn’t be fair to all the other students now would it.”

He took a deep breath, remembering how he’d already tried and failed to argue his case a week prior, “so can I go or what?”

“Oh course, what kind of Archon of Wisdom would I be if I prevented learning and research!”

He took that as his cue to leave, stomping out of her office, faintly hearing the fairy commenting about how she’s surprised that he’s actually doing his schoolwork.

As if he’d let some inconsequential mortal get better grades than him.

Besides, being the top of his class means that he won’t have any irritating students come up to him and ask if he needs help or offer tutoring.

Of course, being top of his class also means that there are now people coming to him to ask for tutoring or help. 

But at least those are easier to turn away.

Hopefully he doesn’t get interrupted anymore today, if so he should be able to finish this reference by tonight. 

~~~

Masterlist | Prev Part | Next Part

Things are heating up huh!

I wonder where our dear creator has found themselves. Oh and don't worry too much about their state of mind, that will come up again soon!

Taglist: @bunniotomia,@lucid-stories, @ymechi, @chocogi,  @ra404, @ash1, @esthelily, @tottybear, @mmeatt, @quacking-simp, @reemthetheme, @universallyenthusiastsage, @resident-cryptid, @fantasyhopperhea, @thedevioussmirk, @etherisy, @naynayaa

Once again, my ask box is open if you'd like to join the taglist or just leave comments or questions. I promise I don't bite!

[lazycats-stuff]

Hellooo, I was wondering if you could write a fic on how the bat family would react to the male reader having a mental breakdown. The male reader always acts like he is the best. And all of a sudden he just broke down and started crying and they all feel bad for him. Idk if this makes sense I'm sorry 😭😭

It does, don't worry. My poor baby boy...

Summary: (Y/N) thinks he is the best. The pressure amounts and eventually (Y/N) breaks.

Warnings: mental breakdown, (Y/N) is just lost, supportive family, crying, (Y/N) is just overwhelmed, everyone feels bad

This has been a long time coming. It was inevitable and honestly not that surprising. (Y/N), one of the Wayne kids, often felt the pressure from both his normal life and his hero life. When you are a Wayne kid, everyone's eyes are on you.

You are criticized for every little thing you do. Something that a normal teenager does, (Y/N) is criticized. He knew he shouldn't take it to heart and Bruce often told him that, the papers just want some drama and more reads and clicks.

Of course, (Y/N) has tried to let it go, but it has been going... Well, as well as you would expect it. (Y/N) has honestly tried to let it go, but the words have hurt. From the papers and from the many people online who put their hate out there.

(Y/N) had always assured his family that he is fine and that those comments are not affecting him.

Now that is one big fat lie.

He didn't want anyone to worry. Damian and Jason would fly of the handle and then there would be real trouble and actual backlash. (Y/N) didn't think he could handle the pressure of it.

Not to mention that there is the pressure of being a vigilante under his father, under Batman. Batman or rather his dad, is a legend. Batman became a boogeyman for many criminals, both in Gotham City and all around the world, of course depending who you are and how powerful you are.

Batman is coming for you.

Of course, there is always pressure when you are out in the field, but people have an impression that you are going to be great, just like Batman is and not some sort of d-tier vigilante. More so when Batman doesn't have any type of powers.

Just a human in peak physical and mental condition.

Now that is hard to beat, no matter how you look at it. And if (Y/N) made a mistake on the field, he would take it really hard. Everyone knew that mistakes were normal, but (Y/N) is taking it way to seriously. He just wanted to be the best.

But every ambition has it consequences. Every single one of them. (Y/N) has been more exhausted, he found it hard to smile anymore and before he smiled a lot.

There were times when he cried in his room, seemingly out of nowhere. Of course it isn't seemingly. The pressure from every single part of his life was piling and he couldn't identify it. For now at least.

He didn't notice how he withdrew from everyone. How he lost interest in doing things he loved doing before. He just focused on being the best of the best.

He had to be. Failure is not an option.

Bruce never pushed for perfection and he never will. He only wanted them to be able to protect themselves. Not to mention, every part of them gets sharpened. They are able to think quickly on their feet, observant in their environment...

But of course, there are the negatives. Mental battles and nightmares, not to mention trauma that comes with this... But there have to be both negative and positive sides for something to work.

The patrol was pure hell tonight. Nothing went right and (Y/N) got his ass handed back to him tonight. It seems like everyone targeted him tonight. Every single villain. (Y/N) was utterly pissed and frustrated. Bottled up feelings from months before didn't help at all.

He just wanted to go to his room and sleep. Just sleep it off and then punch boxing bags in the gym. For at least an hour. Or two. Depending if he is exhausted or not.

" (Y/N)? " Bruce called out to his son, who stopped on his way to the locker rooms. (Y/N) turned around, hands itching to take this suit off and just get under a warm shower.

" Yes? " (Y/N) asked, trying not to sigh.

" I need to talk to you about tonight. " Bruce started, thinking how to approach this. (Y/N) sometimes got frustrated and he would just blow up.

" I just want you to know that one night doesn't define you. Is it awful? Yes, but you can't always be that good. Some nights you are the best you can be and some you are just God kill me please. " Bruce started and (Y/N) looked down.

The boys were still in the cave, looking at the interaction. They felt that something was off with (Y/N) for some time now, but they couldn't approach him until they had more evidence.

Now they could see if Bruce is going to have some success with him.

" Not for me. "

" What do you mean? " Bruce asked concerned and confused.

(Y/N)'s eyes widened and now he knew he slipped up.

" What does it mean? "

" It means I'm always best. Not just one night. " (Y/N) started and Bruce tilted his head.

" What do you mean always? " Bruce repeated.

" Just like you heard, always. Doesn't matter with the suit on or off. " (Y/N) said and his voice cracked slightly at the end. The boys glanced at one another. Uh oh.

" What? "

That one word and sheer fact that Bruce couldn't understand pushed him over that edge. Everything boiled over and he couldn't even contain it anymore.

" Because everyone expects me too! The media, the other heroes, everyone! No matter what I do it seems that everyone has something to pick on! " (Y/N) yelled, his voice echoing through the cave. " No matter what! So by becoming the best I could, I could avoid the criticism! " (Y/N) yelled and afterwards he started crying.

Bruce wasted no time in hugging his son tightly. His poor son. The others joined in. They all felt bad. How didn't they act on their gut feeling?

How could they have been so stupid and blind?

" Oh my son... " Bruce said into (Y/N)'s hair, feeling the way that (Y/N) shifted to completely hide his face. " Why didn't you tell me? Or anybody else? " Bruce asked and (Y/N) didn't bother answering.

Not that he could anyway. It has been to overwhelming for him. He is taking out the feelings that were bottled up for a long time.

Everyone the others hugged (Y/N) tightly too. Their brother was suffering and they were too blind and to scared to approach him. How stupid could they be?

But they were going to make this right. No matter what.

[dairy-farmer]

Another soulmate au ask lol

Theres a lot of angst and drama potential for bats stealing eachothers soulmates (Tim ofc). Especially considering how often they die/fake their death/fake being evil/straight up alienates everyone they care about

Jaytim is a tragic example. Never even got to know eachother and then his dad or brother swoops in to *comfort* Jasons grieving kid soulmate? Cue typical Red Hood shenanigans when Jason returns. Maybe in his rage he feels he has to punish his soulmate, or maybe he just wants to kill anyone who touched him. Either way, he's stealing him away. (Also it would really fuck with Jasons inferiority complex if even his literal soulmate seemingly fell for perfect Dick Grayson)

Bruce has abandoned his kids plenty of times, like when he was accused of murder or when he made JPV batman. Plenty of opportunity Dick to snatch up Bruce's poor neglected soulmate. Dick doesn't have one. And really, Tim should be Dick's, considering how they met and how Dick shaped Tim's whole world.

The Brucequest/Red Robin era is a good time for Jason to snatch up Tim (from whoever he belongs to in this scenario). He could also suceed in either seducing Tim, or claiming Tim by force during the battle of the cowl.

Alternatively, since there is such an age-difference vetween Tim and his soulmate (either Dick or Bruce), Tim and Jason (pre-death) organically fall in love instead. His soulmate just has to bitterly stand by and try to not sabotage his son/brother's happiness.

I also like a reverse robin version of this where either Bruce or Damian is Tim's soulmate. Tim is some jaded Red Hood type of vigilante and having any kind of relationship with those two is out of the question if he can help it (no matter how hard they try to win him back). But who can resist the sunshine of a persistent young Dick Grayson? All Tim did was help him get justice for his parents.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!THE BATS STEALING EACH OTHERS SOULMATE IS SOOOO GOOD!!!!😍😍😍😍😍😍!!!!!

the dicktim one especially!!!! the idea of dick NOT having a soulmate makes so much sense- his bad luck with love, the way it always fizzles out, the way he's on and off again with girlfriends but never able to really lock it down.

in many ways people see dick as just a "fun time" rather than a serious partner. afterall why would they want dick when they already have their soulmates destined for them.

not dick though. dick doesn't have a soulmate. and while it's not particularly rare it is very uncommon. there are support groups of course, blogs with people living life eternally without a soulmate, trying to make it seem like its not so bad. and most days dick tries not to get too down about it. but its hard.

he's tried not to be resentful towards bruce about it.

bruce, unlike dick, DID have a soulmate. in fact he had two.

his cup floweth over and dick tried so hard not to think badly of bruce because of it because it really seemed that things ALWAYS worked out for bruce. being born handsome, a billionaire, and an overflow of soulmates.

he doesn't learn tim is bruce's other soulmates until he's been robin for awhile.

it's pretty widely acknowledged by gotham and everyone that selina kyle is bruce wayne's soulmate and the two of them gallivant through galas and rooftops whenever the two are in the middle of one of their affairs that comes like a seasonal bout of depression.

as a teenager dick had always quietly pitied bruce's other unnamed soulmate who'd be competing against selina for the scraps of a place in bruce's heart.

never did dick expect to be spending a saturday night hanging out with them while bruce was out with catwoman given the rumors she'd blown back into town.

dick feels a sort of...heaviness sitting with tim and sorting through the manor's dvd collection while tim's soulmate was out messing around.

of course nothing between bruce and tim could happen- tim was thirteen. but still....it was a matter of respect.

dick didn't feel good knowing bruce was blatantly messing around in front of his soulmates face it just felt...wrong.

but dick does not say this. does not confront bruce about it because he already knows what bruce would say. something cutting and deep because the two of them aren't on the best of terms.

bruce could be so unthinkingly cruel and dick just knew he'd use the sore spot of dick not having a soulmate to question what right dick had to accuse bruce of being cruel to his soulmate.

and maybe he was right. maybe bruce's past behavior with him or with jason had no bearing on how he'd treat tim.

dick should've known he'd be wrong.

bruce drops tim at the slightest inconvenience, foisting him onto dick or onto alfred.

often times dick patrols with tim while bruce is off on one of his lone quests.

dick knows that things between tim and bruce are...weird.

the whole fact that they're soulmates also doesn't help.

but dick notices the stuff. notices how bruce has incredibly...strict expectations of tim.

and dick knows it's partly because of the loss of jason but also he's almost certain that tim's role as his soulmate also plays a role.

dick knows that the reason bruce and selina have frequent fallouts is because bruce wants selina to be a certain way and she adamantly refuses to be.

but tim....if bruce asked him to jump tim would beg to know how high. tim bleeds a need to be useful to bruce, to meet his expectations.

often that's what he and tim talk about, tim asking dick how he can be a better robin.

and dick, god. he pities the poor thing for having bruce for a soulmate. for being eternally tied to someone who would always find him wanting no matter how hard he tried.

dick should know. he'd been in tim's shoes.

so dick...tries to be nice. that's it that's all he tried to do at first.

opening his home, offering warm meals, kindness, affection. the sort of thing dick would have liked someone to do for him.

dick doesn't even realize he's trying to poach tim away from bruce until he's spending an afternoon just quietly thinking of tim.

he and tim are tied together in such remarkable ways. tim was there, on that night the day dick lost everything and his life changed forever.

tim was there, has been there, in the backgrounds and shadows all of dick's life. dick once goes into tim's room and sees his posters and 'flying graysons!' memorabilia still hanging, and it sticks in his head for days.

tim is soft and sweet and he soaks up dick's attention. he plays with dick and rough houses, laughs, and makes fun of him and he's...so easy to love.

and tim is young and he's so unsure of the bigger 'adult' world that bruce has locked him out of as a soulmate and so...when he comes to dick curious and full of questions...dick helps.

and afterward while he's lying in bed naked with tim fast asleep on top of him he doesn't feel...bad about it.

dick feels no guilt over fucking bruce's soulmate, he should.

yet dick finds it so easy to do. again and again.

sex with tim is good, it's perfect, its better than anything that dick has ever felt before.

maybe it's because tim is so new at it and adorably clumsy. the way he straddles dick's hips and bounces up and down, struggling to find a good rhythm of fucking himself on dick's cock. tim fits like a glove around dick, it's like his little cunt was made for him.

dick marvels at tim's adorable tits, so small and so pink and easily distressed when dick gropes one to keep tim's body pinned as he kneels between his legs and fucks all the way into tim's warm, velvety hole. tim's cunt gets so red and throbs from the friction of dick taking him over and over but tim never once complains.

only moaning and whining, arching and making sweet little sounds to ask for more, to ask for him to keep going.

kids, dick couldn't help but chuckle.

tim is young and puberty is a killer so more often than not tim is writing on him and trying slip their clothes off because he's a budding little nymph.

and dick well...it's the first time he's had a partner who can actually satiate his sexual appetite.

things with tim are good. bruce is barely even a thought to either of them.

dick is breathing hard with an iron grip on tim's waist, snapping his hips hard and fast against tim to bury his cock as deep as it will go while tim makes softly gutted noises. dick is basically operating on a purely primal, animal brain when his detective senses tell him he's being watched.

it's not enough for him to stop though. but to avoid tim noticing and panicking dick pulls him into a deep kiss, swallowing his sweet noises as he slows his thrusts into a grind. he gently fucks tim's tender hole, groaning at tim weakly clenching around him, he sweet attempts to help dick cum.

the feeling of eyes on the back of his head intensifies.

dick has an idea of who's watching them but wants to save tim from the confrontation so he puts his back into it.

he speeds up, punching his cock into tim at a punishing pace, staring down at the pink, wet twitching seam swallowing him and letting a wad of spit fall out of his mouth and land directly on tim's baby clit.

dick's fingers are calloused and rough and tim can't help the startled bunny noise he makes when dick starts pressing down on his clit at the same time as he grinds in. the friction has tim's body trembling.

dick is not a sweet and kind lover. he is hard and fast and often times cruel with the way he bends and fucks and plays.

but tim never denies him not even in inch of his body to do with as he pleases.

and as thanks dick fucks tim so hard his eyes roll to the back of his skull when he passes out.

dick finishes quickly afterwards, muffling his grunts behind bitten lips as he wetly slaps his hips together with tim's after every wave of his orgams.

tim's poor pussy is still twitching when he pulls out, red like a freshly spanked bottom and puffy. dick delightedly watches fresh cum drip out in thick spurts for a few seconds before pulling out a plush blanket and covering tim's nude body.

then he makes his way to the fire escape window by his kitchen where bruce is waiting for him, his lips pressed so tightly together they're white.

it's hard to keep their voices down, bruce half dragging dick out so they can talk freely on the roof.

dick knows why bruce is upset. it's probably not a good feeling to walk in on your soulmate getting fucked by your son.

"what is the matter with you?" bruce asks, voice deep and ragged like a bear's. "tim is a child-"

and dick doesn't try to stop the scoff that rips out of him. tim's age is hardly a factor. plenty of soulmates with age gaps start fucking out of the gate.

bruce quietly stares at him, the air around them heavy.

"tim is not your soulmate."

and that dick adamantly denies. because he is. he IS.

dick can feel it. he knows it like he knows his own hands.

what he and tim have is real. and dick was not going to stop just because bruce was unhappy that dick was giving his spare the time of day.

at that bruce's jaw tightens. and dick can tell he's restraining himself from doing or saying something.

bruce says nothing.

so dick turns to leave. he can feel this won't be the last time they'll have this conversation. dick can feel it.

but for the moment it doesn't matter.

dick's soulmate is wating for him.

[dukeofdelirium]

https://www.tumblr.com/xabura/752028677741608960/bryke-confirming-that-katara-loves-aang-like-a?source=share

I gotta ask you something? Apparently there was a behind the scenes interview and Bryke compared Katara loving Aang like a babysitter or to a younger brother. This confuses me so much. Especially seeing as this is from the creators who are Pro Kataang as far as I know and the show itself contradicts this as Katara doesn’t view herself as babysitter or Aang as a younger brother despite what the ZKs will say. What does this mean? Are the ZKs right? 😱

Zutarians are so obsessed with trying to find canon “validation” for their fanon ship that they’re digging up shit from almost 20 years ago and then misconstruing what Bryke even said 😂

Bryke didn’t literally say “Katara and Aang are like siblings and her role in the story is to be his babysitter”. They were talking about how they liked teenage drama stuff and always found it fun and engaging, which is why they then began discussing common tropes WITHIN said genre of “teen drama” which is a younger guy liking an older girl and how said girl usually viewed him more platonically at least at first.

They were literally just discussing different things that they found some sort of inspiration in or that they wanted to play on in some manner in their own storytelling. They weren’t literally discussing Kataang itself as it is written when they mentioned genre tropes 🤦🏻‍♂️ they then go on to say they feel that Katara is really the “heart” of the group while Aang is the “spirit”, and that Katara is really the first person Aang feels a deep connection to and that she and Sokka are like his new family. They are also strictly discussing book 1.

Bryke drawing some kind of inspiration from teen drama and its many tropes doesn’t make anything in their show a 1 to 1 replica or iteration of such. Writers know how inspiration fuels their own work, and I say that as a writer myself. Small things can spark ideas of your own, especially if you enjoy the tropes and genres already which bryke literally said they frequently watched happily.

It’s crazy to me that they still try so hard to invalidate kataang by failing to actually listen to anything bryke is saying as they meant it. The whole behind the scenes thing was also not even for ATLA itself but was rather over the M Night movie. Like???? Zutara is never gonna happen, stop trying to make it happen 😂 kataang is canon and endgame. “reeee they’re siblings!!!!!” they had 3 kids 💀

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

How would you write Lila?

Really depends on things like how many seasons I had to fill, when I had to introduce her, if I had to give her the butterfly, and what I was doing with Chloe since Chloe and Lila are functionally the same character for most of the show. You do not need two petty mean girls to cause interpersonal drama. Either redeem one or don't let them overlap!

If we have to keep the butterfly as the villain to maintain the formula, then I'd make Lila a sentimonster created by Nathalie and introduce Lila at the start of season four. The linked post goes over my pitch for that rework, but while I like the concept, I don't like the butterfly being the designated evil miraculous. It just feels so bleh. Fives seasons of fighting and we're still right where we started: the butterfly in the hands of a villain that the heroes have no clear plan to defeat. You could start the story at season six and miss almost nothing (thus my constant theorizing that season six is a soft reboot.)

So let's take this post in a wildly different direction and talk in depth about evil spy Lila!

Almost any idea I have for Lila is going to involve some bigger plot to explain her lies and manipulation because they're just so over the top! Plus she's 14! How did she become this good at lying? Canon needs to give us some logic to explain all of this. Magic is a good excuse. So is training or even training and magic!

In this AU, Lila is from some sort of evil organization that uses their power for evil purposes (there are lots of routes you can got with this from evil magic to evil company, so let's stay high level and not commit to a path). The organization sees the miraculous being used in Paris and sends Lila to Paris to try to get her hands on the miraculous. Lila is specifically sent because of the Ladyblog. The organization views Alya as an easy in and so they send a teenage member or someone's kid who desperately wants to be part of the group.

This new Lila shows up claiming to be a Ladybug superfan, which instantly bonds her to Alya. Marinette's dislike of Lila now stems from Lila wanting to know all of Ladybug's secrets, which obviously raises red flags for Marinette, but not for Alya because Alya wants the same thing. In fact, Alya is really baffled why Lila's obsession rubs Marinette the wrong way because Marinette has always been fine with Alya having the same obsession. We know that the answer is that Marinette trusts Alya, but Lila is a wild card, but of course Alya doesn't know any of that. This makes the Marinette and Alya clash over Lila a lot more complex because it's no longer about lies. It's about trust and Marinette has no way to explain why trust is a factor without outing herself as Ladybug.

Lila can still tell lies and manipulate, but it's now all around getting close to Ladybug and learning everything she can. You can even have the Adrien conflict maintained with it now being Chat Noir wanting to be nice to fans while Ladybug is hard on the bad vibes train since Lila is so uncomfortably obsessed with her, another conflict that makes way more sense than what canon gave us. Adrien is just immune to weird fans and doesn't know that Ladybug is being bombarded with Lila's obsession every day at school.

This means that Marinette's Lila aversion is less her knowing something and more her being understandably uncomfortable because identity shenanigans, which is another nice complexity as it lets Marinette struggle with not knowing how to approach the situation because she knows she has no hard logical reason for her feelings, but she just can't get passed them. This could lead to some good lessons for kids on healthy relationships with celebrities/internet personalities and how you don't really know that person or have a right to their private life. It is, in fact, totally normal for your favorite celebrity to find your obsession a little creepy and block you when you cross lines. (This could even be a growing moment for Marinette re her crush on Adrien since it's written like a celebrity crush, though my personal preference is to just fix the writing around that to a more normal teenage crush. Even there it could be a growing moment, just a more nuanced one.)

There are a lot of ways to resolve this plot. Whatever you pick should see Lila outed and, in the process, we learn about the evil organization, giving us a new big bad for the heroes to deal with. Something that isn't tied to the miraculous and that is so big that it might justify having a big team of heroes to fight the new evil? Just a thought.

[foreheadkiss3s]

tate langdon x gn! reader.

trigger warnings : really sad thoughts going through the readers mind. i let my drama queen take over and everything came out too dramatic.

angst/ fluff at the end if you squint your eyes really hard.

this is so messy, really, it’s just a drabble i wanted to put out but i think i’ll probs end up deleting it since i feel like it’s cringey. also, english is not my first language so whatever (and wherever) mistake you might find, please bear with me.

I know it might be confusing, or even worse, not make sense at all. but i just let my messy thoughts flow and that’s the result.

just to get things a bit more clear, tate is still alive and dealing with his situation back home while reader is the only friend he managed to make in high school. the reader was at the house, not the murder house ( let’s just assume the reader’s house it’s near that ) and tate just presented himself there after the reader became distant with him.

« I’m sorry. »

You know about those days, when you wake up and your eyes reflexively land on the window? And then they wander up, and get to notice the soft hue of the blue sky, lightened up by the sun? And it’s almost as if you could feel the warmth of the sun rays seeping through your window?

Perhaps it’s the warmth of the covers, the cozy feeling that you get every time when you just wake up and that later on makes you whine because you know you’ll have to leave that warm place soon to get up and get ready for school. But it’s almost as if you had a restart.

For five minutes— sometimes even less, it depends on how much it takes your brain to process the world outside of your mind again— you get to feel like you’ve just been reborn, and that everything would be alright.

But then it all comes crumbling down.

Your brain registers where you are, the reality you live, and the obnoxious routine you have to do everyday. Get up. Brush your teeth and hair. Skip breakfast because you’re always late. Get dressed. Go to school. Wish to get home during and in between classes. Get finally home, but then you get frustrated because it’s always the same damn thing.

You don’t know what it is that frustrates you, that angers you so much and sometimes even makes you cry. That drains you, leaving you so exhausted that you end up falling asleep only to wake up the next morning and experience the same thing again.

Perhaps, you think, that you’re crazy. Maybe you’re spiralling out of reality. Maybe you’re just being an ungrateful teenager. Maybe, maybe, maybe.

Maybe you just want to sleep forever.

But, when you think you can’t take it no more, here comes Tate.

Sometimes you think he’s weird. Not in a bad way, you think he’s just.. weird. He’s one of the most pessimistic people you know, always looking down on the human specie and labelling it as some sort of stupid being. Yet, when it comes to the state you’re slowly falling in, he seems to suck it out of you.

You don’t know how to explain it properly— you don’t even understand it yourself, but it’s almost as if he is a sponge. Just by staying near you, he sucks all the darkness away. He’s like a black hole, but instead of absorbing everything he just absorbs your darkness. Or perhaps he’s just a little hypocrite that doesn’t allow you to be pessimistic just like he is.

Even though you know.. you know that referring to Tate as pessimistic is the least you could call him.

You hate it when he gets clingy, and that happens very often. Who are you kidding? it always happens, hence why you always resort to unkind ways to get him to leave you. You just want to be alone sometimes.

Tate might argue with you and say that it’s more than sometimes, it’s always.

You’re not a good person, you know that. You’re selfish and you don’t care who you’re hurting when it comes to you and the decisions you make.

You didn’t care when you started hanging out with a boy and spent less and less time with Tate. Why did you do it though? You still question yourself.

Yeah, he might be clingy, attached to your hip, dependant on you and the list could go on just like that. But he was the only one that showed you how much you mean, or perhaps, how much you could mean to somebody.

You never thought it possible that a being could be so much for another being.

Tate is your only friend. Even though you’re not sure of that anymore since all you did for the past few weeks—maybe month, was avoiding and ignoring him.

At the beginning it was just to get a little time alone. But then it started becoming more of an avoidance, and now? You thought you were avoiding him out of shame.

But he was your only friend, and you pushed him away for what? To test if you could feel something different than the void you were currently drowning in? How could you have been that selfish?

His eyes seem to be asking you the same questions as he stares deep down inside your soul. His kaleidoscope honeyed eyes.

« I’ll.. » a sob breaks his voice, and his attempt to hold back his tears fails, making the tears break through and fall down his cheeks like diamonds, «.. I’ll leave never bother you again if that’s what you want »

For the first time in weeks you feel something so authentically powerful that it almost knocks the breath out of your lungs.

You’re sat there, on your messy, still unmade, bed as you’re looking into his eyes. And he stares back at you almost as if he has already been there, in that position— unwanted and thrown to the side, times and times before. But still it causes him pain.

It’s a subtle but yet stinging feeling. Like a cut being slit open again by a sharp dagger with its blade covered in salt. It’s a swift movement, a methodical cut, because it always seems to be hurting in the same spot.

You don’t say anything.

« You’re just like her. » Constance. Tears stream down his face like pouring rain. His voice taking the resemblance of a wave as sometimes it gets higher and other times it comes crashing down, stopping abruptly to let his tears fall down silently.

Just like rain in the ocean.

Silence fills the room yet again.

« Please.. p-please.. » How come that he’s the one begging you and not the other way around? What is he pleading for?

You frown looking at him, still staring into his eyes like a stone cold bitch. And you might’ve even been one to someone else’s eyes. But not to his.

You were just as hurt and lost as he was.

He got down on his knees, sliding on them on the carpeted floor until he was by your legs, as you were still sitting down on your bed. He sobbed and sniffled as he got in between your legs and let his head slowly come down to rest on your lap. «..d-don’t leave me.

you’re the only thing I have left.. y-you don’t have to do anything just.. p-please.. please I need you. You’re everything to me.. I-I’m.. I.. »

How could you have let everything spin out of control?

You were sorry.

You were so sorry.

Your vision became so blurry, almost as if a plastic wall was swiftly building itself up on your eyes, until it broke down and you felt warm droplets of water strike your cheeks. You were sorry as you could see the hurting boy sobbing on your lap because of your selfish behaviour.

You didn’t know what had happened to you to get you to this point, to hurt mindlessly like that the only person that cared about you. But you knew you were sorry and you wanted to wipe everything you did away.

Your hand, slowly, made its way on his head covered by the soft honeyed hair. You let your fingers slip and comb through the strands of his hair while you finally felt something.

« I’m sorry. » a broken whisper left your mouth.

just wanted to apologize again as i’m sure it came out more cringy than anything, but if you have some advice to give me please feel free to leave a comment ( or just straight up tell me to stop writing and never do it again 🤪 ).

[gizkasparadise]

So as someone newly into cdramas (I tried and failed to get into the untamed), I found your blog and ended up watching, in no particular order: the romance of tiger and rose, LBFAD, the story of Kunning palace, and a journey to love (which absolutely broke me, one, and two, was hilarious to watch right after Kunning palace, because mental stability). Do you have other recommendations specific to costume dramas?

yessss i love all of those!!! AND YEAH I GOT SOME RECS

if you're craving the more historical/non-fantasy side of things, check out:

monarch industry/the rebel princess. A+ characters, A+ plot, A+ production value. you'll have to suspend some disbelief with mid to late 30 year olds playing teenagers in the first handful of eps, but it's so so good and fun and addicting. if you're not feeling the male lead at first, dw he grows on you with a vengeance

love like the galaxy. if you loved the sort of gremlin x unhinged aristocrat kunning palace gave you, this one's worth a shot! the first 3ish eps were not the best, but once it gets going *chef's kiss*. the FL is the same as romance of tiger and rose if you liked her!

the sound of the desert is an older drama, but it's great if you (like me!) love a competent female lead, an old school/true-to-form slow burn love triangle, and for a second male lead upset in the romance department. there's some narm charm to this one (the FL was...kind of raised by wolves...) but i enjoy the hell out of it

goodbye my princess is a masochism tango of an experience where you spend a good 80% of it wishing the male lead would die in a ditch. but it's gorgeous and an excellent tragedy if you want something to just fuck you up for 50ish eps

if you want costume dramas with a side of CAMP, check out

the double is what im currently watching and it's so gd fun and extra. sort of like story of kunning palace and a telenovela and a shoujo academy manga had a love child in terms of vibes

familiar stranger is not good in a plot sense, but it's so off the rails and addicting and batshit it's a great watch if you wanna just turn off your brain and grab the popcorn for a couple hours

if you wanna swing some fantasy into your costume viewing..

lost you forever is fucking incredible. it's not as EXTRA as cdrama fantasy can get (the first act in particular is very grounded!!) so it might be a good drama to test the waters between historical costume and fantasy costume

love in redemption is my favorite cdrama of all time. camp! queer! feminist! i just love it i love it i love it

[canyousonicme]

Q&A with Alex Kingston, who plays Sheila Bellowes on Steven Moffat's upcoming ITV black comedy, "Douglas Is Cancelled"

(Air date: 27 June, 2024)

What appealed to you about Douglas Is Cancelled?

I'd say what appealed first of all was that the piece was written by Steven Moffat. I would do anything that Steven wrote because he's just such a brilliant writer.

The characters he creates are such a delight to play. I've had that experience of working with him on Doctor Who. It was just a joy to read the script. I laughed out loud. I even cried with laughter in some places. It's so superbly written.

Were you also taken by the idea of playing opposite Hugh?

Absolutely. Oh my gosh, Hugh and I have worked together many times over the years. We go way back to literally when we were teenagers. And so, I was definitely attracted by the opportunity of working with Hugh again. We already have that shorthand between us. That relationship doesn't need even to be acted because we know each other so well and are so comfortable in each other's presence. It's not a new person who I've got to get to know, so that married relationship was already a given. I was thrilled to have the chance to do that.

How would you describe Sheila?

She is amoral, she is ruthless. But I'm assuming that's what the paper wants. I'm also guessing that in the world these sorts of people inhabit, in order to get a good story, they have to be prepared to throw even their best friends under the bus. To be in that position as the editor of a national newspaper, you've got to be not only incredibly ambitious, but also, I would imagine, highly-strung because you are carrying a lot of responsibility on your shoulders. It's just a joy to play somebody who's so on the front foot. Sheila is also really inappropriate. That's what's so great about the script because all the characters behave inappropriately in a world where we're supposed not to anymore. I don't feel like I'm that sort of person at all, which is why it was great fun to play!

How would you summarise the relationship between Sheila and Douglas?

I would definitely say that she wears the trousers in the household. What's so interesting is that they are this high-powered celebrity couple at the start of the story. He is the nation's favourite news broadcaster, and she's this very, very successful editor of a hugely popular newspaper. But I rather like the scene that Steven wrote for them where they are on holiday because that shows a little bit more of who they are as a family before all the stuff hits the fan. They are a unit, and they love each other. But it is an unusual marriage. She is very strong, and he just allows her to be like that. If Douglas was a similar personality to Sheila, the marriage wouldn't ever have lasted. But he just lets her sail on forward, and he's in her slipstream being dragged along.

How does Sheila get on with her daughter?

The relationship she has with her daughter Claudia is much more volatile because her daughter is actually a bit more like Sheila. She's got a bit more fight in her. In a way, Sheila is terrorised by her daughter as she can't hold her daughter down. Also, Sheila doesn't understand young people and all these words like "boomer" that drop out of their mouths. For Sheila, it's just so frustrating. She thinks, "Who is this person we brought into the world who seems like a creature from another planet?"

The drama has lots of very topical things to say about cancel culture.

Yes. It's really interesting because Steven originally conceived this as a stage play several years ago. That's what I found so brilliant and so prescient about it. Steven was working on this way before all the recent scandals involving popular broadcasters. Obviously, cancel culture was already swirling around then, but I feel like Steven has the courage to put the conversation on the table in a way that is super important. But he does it in a darkly comic way, which allows people watching to laugh, but hopefully also to be able to have conversations and ask questions such as, "Where are we going with this? And how dangerous is this becoming?"

What do you hope audiences might take away from Douglas Is Cancelled?

I hope people will be a little bit more thoughtful and a little bit more careful about how they treat people or what they say about people. We need to be more conscious and kinder and aware of other people's feelings and how they wish to be perceived in life. But I think some men of my generation struggle with having to make those changes. I certainly remember sitting in the pub as a young person and hearing jokes about women that were awful. Men would safely say horrendous stuff. But that's just how it was, and you just had to suck it up. But men cannot behave like that anymore. I think there are still elements of our generation that struggle to remember to be a little bit more thoughtful before they say something. That's not out of malice. It's because they're still trying to learn the new rules of the world.

After many years working together on Doctor Who, how did you find it being reunited with Karen?

It was a real joy. It was great just spending time with her. It was very funny because she played my mother in Doctor Who. So it was really lovely to do something different with Karen, and for us both to explore this new relationship together. In Douglas Is Cancelled, there is one big scene that we have together in the toilet. They're these two alpha females who are prowling around each other, and they both absolutely know each other's game.

Did all the cast get to hang out together on set as well?

Yes. When everybody came together for the grand finale, we ended up sitting in the studio control room between scenes, all just chatting, reminiscing, sharing, messing around. Working on Douglas Is Cancelled was just a lovely, lovely, lovely experience.

[misguidedasgardian]

I need to (13)

... Beat your ass

MASTERLIST

Summary: tie your hair up, put glitter on your face, wear whatever grey, blue or green you have in your closet, prepare your favourite hot beverage and grab a blanket… it’s the first game of the season!

Pairings: Cregan Stark x Fem!Reader 

Warnings: cursing, implied smut, talks about contraception, fluff, a bit of angst, might miss some warnings

Wordcount: 2.5 k

Notes: Sorry for the delay my loves, I had a dilemma with the storyline ANYWAYS… I can’t wait to publish the summer special chapters! But they are in the middle of the semester! Haha I’m gonna rush things a bit… I want to say this is my comfort fic, and I want to repeat the fact that this is some sort of romcom, and as such will have silly problems that they will face… but nothing much angst after the first chapters with Aemond… more like “PG 13 teenage/college drama” sort of drama… perhaps some gossip girl level drama haha

“I don’t want to go to class”, you whispered, caressing Cregan’s chest as he hummed his approval of your statement, “I want to stay here all day with you”

“Me neither”, he chuckled, “but we have to go”

“I know”, you sighed deeply, gaining strength to leave this bed, the sun just appearing in the horizon through the window, “.... I was wondering…”, you said softly, perhaps you were getting ahead of yourself, but you needed to know

“What?”, he said, his finger tracing indivisible figures in your back

“Are we… becoming exclusive?”, you asked, the softest way you could think of

“I don’t want to be with anyone else”, he said softly, you smiled widely

“Great, me neither”

“Good”, your chest soared with happiness

“So with that out of the way…”, you said, looking at him, “what are we going to do in the future?”, you asked

“What do you mean?”

“As a contraceptive… if we are… you know… monogamous…”

“Whichever you feel comfortable with”, he said softly, “but after that I might have a problem with abstinence”, you laughed

“I can go back on the pill”, you suggested, even though the idea didn’t attracted you

“I thought they have a lot of side-effects”, he said gently

“Yes I know, but it’s worth it if we can… do it without further protection you know…”

“No, I won’t be silly, and I’ll wrap my willy”, he sang sing, with a teasing smile he booped your nose, you just laughed

“Cregan, I can take them”

“No”, he said grabbed your face softly with his hands, “not in my account, I’ll put a condom, two if I need to, and besides… love making is more than me just plunging my cock into you over and over, we will figure it out”, he whispered sweetly, and leaned in and kissed you softly, “you are not taking those for me, not if you don’t need them”, he said

“But I want us to be safe”, you said, “and I want to feel you”, 

“You will feel me”, he said, kissing the top of your head as he held you in his arms. You almost purred, “you felt me last night didn’t you?”, he teased, you smiled and nodded, “but we will have to try another time  because we HAVE to get up”, you growl, hiding on his chest

You had a walk of shame to walk, and Cregan had a shower to take, so with a longing kiss, and after he served you breakfast, you parted ways

“Are you going to watch me train?”, he asked sweetly

“Of course!”, you teased

“Can’t wait”, he purred as he accompanied you to the door 

You didn’t saw Jace as you left their place, maybe he had spend the night elsewhere 

The day flew through you

You didn’t even care when your lead designer asked you “what did you smoke?”, when you were pitching the design for a new terrace.

You didn’t care, everytime you moved… you could still feel him, Cregan, and you wanted to giggle like a little girl

You were dating Cregan

You had sex with him! 

Oh you were so excited 

Even though you were nervous too, gods, how were you supposed to take this??? 

Did you go slow? Could you text him? How did you act with him in public? 

Gods

What stage were you at?

Dang it 

While you were changing classes, your phone dinged

Thinking of you, can’t wait to see you later ❤️

It was Cregan! Heart emoji and all, and you melted

You had no reason to be nervous

Cregan was showing himself to be the kind of guy that didn’t ask himself the same questions you were having, he just did it! He was thinking of you and texted you, that’s it

So you giggled, and texted back 

Aren’t you tired? because you’ve been running through my mind all day long ❤️🤭

The damage was done, you thought, as you put away your phone, it dinged inside your bag, and you giggled excitedly

“Ohhh someone got railed last night!”, laughed Rhaena as she sat by your side in the common room of the ADA

“How do you know!?”, you asked, laughing nervously

“Oh I can smell on you!”, she giggled, “figuratively speaking, bitch you glowing”

“Thanks”, you giggled

“So you and Cregan?”, she kept teasing

“Are you a witch?”, you asked back

“Nah, just a very observant person”, she said simply, shrugging

Your phone dinged again, and you decided to pick it up

HAHAHA A CLASSIC! My lady, I will have to start charging you rent… because you have been permanently living in my head

You giggled silly, answering with another cheesy pickup line

“Ah, young love”, Rhaena sighed dramatically

“Do you sometimes get this feeling like… “it’s too good to be true?””, you asked her sincerely

“Yes”, she said, “I would say that usually is… but with Cregan? Not that much, he is as good as it gets”, you smiled dreamly

“Good to know”, you muttered, “what are you going to do in the summer?”

“We are like two months away!”, she mocked, “but we are going to Pentos with my family”, she said

“You are not going to the lake?”, you asked, she shook her head

“We haven’t been there in years!”

“So sad”, you whispered

“Anyways, why are you asking?”

“I don’t know”, you laughed, “I just… now that I reconnected with Jace, I just wondered…”

“Those summers were fun!”, she said with a smile

“Totally”

You had lunch with Rhaena and then another class, and you were ready to freeze your ass on the bleachers for your boyfriend

You met with Sara just outside campus, and together you walked towards the football field, just on the other side of the campus and the city

It was still chilly, though the snow had resided only on the mountains 

When you got there, they were already warming up on the field, so a kiss was out of the question, but both of them waved at you as they saw you approaching, and even from the bleachers you could hear their teammates mocking them.

“Sooo…. How was it?”, asked Sara teasingly

“I’m not going to discuss this with you I’m sorry”, you laughed, and she stick out her tongue in a mocking/disgusting manner

“You are right, I went too far, but what I would like to know is… are you continuing your… thing?”, she asked

“I think so”, you murmured with a silly smile, and she almost jumped from joy, “what about you and Jace?”

“I think so”, she repeated with a complacent smile

As you got distracted talking to Sara, you missed your boyfriend struggling in the field

As always, they practised amongst the team, divided in two.

You knew little about football, it was a sport practised mostly in the North, so you didn’t notice anything strange, until almost at the end, Cregan removed his helmet and you could see the pained expression on his face, he grabbed his side.

“Perhaps you should rest, cousin”, muttered Robb removing his own helmet

“Screw ou Robb!”, that surprised you, you had never seen him like that

“I’m benching you”

“Fuck off”, he removed himself tot he side of the field, taking a sip of water of his plastic bottle 

You frowned when you saw him, he looked tired and sad, even from afar, you shared concerned looks with Sara

But as soon as he saw you, in the top of the bleachers, he smiled brightly, waving at you.

You felt warm spread all over your body, but yet there was something else…

“This is bullshit!”, demanded Cregan as he rubbed his face with his hands in tiredness

The boys wasted no time in filling you in on whatever happened in training, only after you went back to the apartment. Robb was pushing Cregan out of the team, even though he had made varsity fair and square, even though this was his second year playing the sport, his cousin was the captain, he had a couple of more years of experience.

Robb was trying to ruin Cregan, first in that party that night when you kissed, then at his own apartment, now at the playfield 

You and Sara shared looks, and couldn’t help but laugh.

Jace and Cregan looked at you surprised

“What?”

“That basic bitch is pulling a mean girl on you both, that is what’s going on!”, you laughed.

The basic bitch in question was Robb 

“A mean girl? What does that mean?”, asked Cregan

“Oh you poor naive summer child”, mocked Sara, “Let me guess, you are better than Jace, but still, he got in, and you got benched”

“True”, admitted jace

“He made you say something in front of everyone, in turn diminishing your teammates and your best friend?”, you asked him, they shared looks

“Yes sort off”, he mumbled, not his finest moment 

“Jace did something not quite spectacular but got blown out of proportion, leading to them inviting him somewhere to eat or to a party where Cregan wasn’t invited”, guessed Sara, Jace was embarrassed, his cheeks pink with shame

“Yes actually, they added me to a group chat”

“And they asked you not to tell Cregan”, you said then

“Yeah, sorry mate”, he whispered

“I forgive you bro”

“That’s sweet”. Mocked Sara

“Alright, so, what’s next?”, asked Cregan, you both shared looks

“Your sport, check, your best friend, almost check… only three things follow”, you said

“What?”, he asked, scared

“You education, your family”, you said pointing at Sara, “and… me”

“Alright so he is trying to cut me off, but why?”, he asked, scared

“He is jealous”, you suggested

“Of what?”, he asked, “he has his parents, he is… objectively handsome, he does great in school… what could he possibly be jealous of?”

“You clearly have something he wants, or he is jealous about”, said Jace

“He is popular, he is drowning in women, he is successful…”, he tried

Your phone dinged, and even though you didn’t have his number, you could see it in his ID, no nobody’s surprise, it was Robb

You showed Sara and she snorted

“Just in time”, you said, bored, you opened what he had sent, a picture of Cregan, taken from behind, hugging some girl, “apparently, darling, you are cheating on me”, you said, showing Cregan the picture, he paled

“I didn’t!”, he said, hurried, “I swear, this looks like Arra, but…”

“I know”, you said surely, “he wants to split us up, like we said, friends, family, girlfriend”

“BUT WHY?”, asked Cregan

“He can’t deal you do as well as he does”, you tried, but he shook his head. “Arra! Did he like her?”

“No possible way”, muttered Cregan, “he and his friends used to bully her because when we started dating she… looked very differently”, he said softly, looking away

“So what do we do?”, asked Jace, “how do we stop this?”, you and Sara shared concerned looks

“I don’t know”, you whispered sadly 

“You know what? Jace you stay in football, I’ll change…”

“What? Why?”, he asked

“I’m messing in his territory, I better leave him alone, besides… the captain of the rugby team owes me, so I will call him”, he muttered 

Jace frowned but nodded

It was what it’s best for everyone involved, Cregan raised from the table, scratching the back of his head and went to the bathroom 

You sniffed

“What’s the matter?”, asked Sara, concerned 

“Nothing is just… I knew nothing about football so I payed for a subscription for a youtube channel for this creeper teaching the basics and now I won’t need it”, you explained, Sara barked out a laugh, “and besides I had pre-ordered Cregan’s football shirt and number for me”

Sara laughed even more.

It was night and a friday, so you found yourself cuddled up with Cregan on his bed, still dressed, just cuddling watching tv over his bed

“Are you alright?”, you asked him, he caressed your back as he hugged you tightly by his side

“Yes”, he said shortly, “I still don’t understand why he is acting this way, we used to be so close when we were young, but, I don’t mind the football thing”

“You will grow out of it”, you assured him, caressing his chest

“I’m sure”, he whispered… “Even if I’m out, I talked to the coach, I will play tomorrow, even if they bench me for half of it, I would love to see you there”, he whispered

“Of course I will”

The energy all around a football game was electric, made you feel ecstatic… the music blasting presenting the teams like they were gladiators, people cheering, colours, glitter on your face. 

You had on a Winterfell Jersey with Cregan’s name on it, colourful bows in your hair and glitter on your face, and Sara was there next to you screaming like a woman possessed, wearing Jace’s number.

It was contagious

Like you said, you didn’t care for the sport until Cregan, now you felt so energetic, screaming the team’s name

They were playing against White Harbor, mortal enemies according to everyone, and you were met on the bleachers by Baela and Rhaena, and the rest of your group of friends 

 When the winterfell team entered the field everyone lost it, they were playing at home, so it felt extra-special

Where were not going to lie… once the game started you had trouble identifying who Cregan was… but still you managed to sync in with the rest of the crown and scream, chant or boo accordingly, to your own amusement 

There was again… another sentiment of freedom and relief, that you could goofy around and nobody would care, nobody will chide you

It was refreshing 

What has gone over you? You wondered

A few months ago you were a mess, and now, here you were, having the time of your life… 

You were so lost in your thoughts, that you missed the playout…

Robb and the team completely neglected defending Cregan, which cause the other team to find an opening, letting them tackle him without mercy, it was a nasty movement that threw your boyfriend a few feet away tumbling into the grass

Everyone gasped but he was soon on his feet, grabbing his side 

Cregan was benched then, and even the crowd booed the decision 

Cregan took out his helmet and looked for you in the crowd, once he found you he raised it in the air 

He looked so hot, sweaty and bothered, you wanted to give him a hot shower and rub his muscles with a sponge and…

Get it together.

You smiled widely at him, greeting him, oh you couldn’t wait to pamper him after this… and again… really?

It had been a nasty movement, Cregan was hurt and Robb had let it happen, and in Cregan’s mind, violent thoughts began to take shape, the need to tackle his cousin on his own was mainly present, but he couldn’t do that… not like this

A family feud was looming 

Summer was coming 

A love was settling

Cregan’s emotions were heightened as yours when he saw you wearing his jersey, chanting his name and cheering for him. He couldn't believe it either, then in such a short time, there you were, perhaps it was too soon to say, but he couldn't wait either, to spend as much time as he could with you.

Summer was coming

Notes: i WANTED TO GET THIS CHAPTER OUT THERE, LIKE I said... SUMMER IS COMING! HEHE CAN'T WAIT! Sorry for the long wait! <3 love you all

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