#it has copious Star Wars reference

[lostinadmiration]

I wrote a Halloween fic! 🎃🍁👻🍂

[steddieunderdogfics]

You Could Use a Good Kiss by Lostnadmiration

Rating: Mature

10,929 words, 1/1 chapters

Archive Warning: No Warnings

Tags: Halloween, Getting Together, First Kiss, Steve Harrington Has a Crush on Eddie Munson, Hellfire Club, Drinking Games, Underage Drinking, choose your own Vecna was vanquished adventure, Everybody Lives, i just wanted a Halloween episode where everyone could get into shenanigans without mortal peril, copious star wars references, nerds being nerds, The steve eddie and Dustin bond, the Alf costume in eddie munsons closet, steve as han solo, references to eddie selling drugs, no drugs consumed, Making Out, Star Wars Puns, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, romcom vibes, halloween party, Tina’s annual Halloween Bash, Robin Buckley & Steve Harrington Friendship, Wingman Steve, Eddie Munson Lives, background buckingham

Summary:

“You didn’t lock the door?” Steve glares daggers at Eddie. Eddie’s eyes rove over the door, around the frame from top to bottom thoughtfully, dart over to Dustin, then finally land back to Steve. “Guess not.” Eddie’s lips twist as he fails to fight back a wry grin. It’s nearly impossible to think right now with his mind swimming in liquor, but Dustin slowly fits the puzzle pieces together. The hands, the closeness, bruised lips, the breathlessness, the blushing caught out faces. Dustin reels, hears a sound leave his mouth that’s a mix of shock and outrage. “It’s not what it looks like—” Steve starts, but Dustin interrupts his feeble attempt to cover up their tryst. “Really? ‘Cause it looks like y’r playing tonsil hockey with my DUNGEON MASTER!” Dustin can feel himself shouting, feel his words slurring together ever so slightly, sluggish on their way out of his mouth.

Thanks for the rec!

This rec is a part of Challenge Monday. The challenge this week was Fics about Fall activities.

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[itsclydebitches]

It's weird to think Vol 10 of RWBY just straight up might never happen. much less further volumes. No matter how bad it got I would still have loved some form of ending but Barabas comments don't paint a hopeful picture. Alas fics of RWBY will go until the end of time.

It's very weird. Most shows I come across have either already concluded, or give their audience an estimate of when things will wrap up ('We're planning another two seasons and each takes us about two years to film, so...'). I have shows that unexpectedly get more content after providing an ambiguous, but still satisfying ending (Alice in Borderland), shows where each season is self-contained so it can end whenever without issue (Bake Off), shows that were cut short and had to scramble to wrap up (Sense8), and of course there are always shows that are straight up cancelled and can't do a thing to mitigate that... but RWBY feels almost, almost unique in this combination. It's a webseries rather than a traditional TV show. It's gone on for a decade with absolutely no indication of where it's heading. Each season feels threatened to the point where the fandom can no longer differentiate between a real cancellation concern and Internet exaggeration. The story has hit what's arguably its most important narrative peak - the team has traversed an alternate world, Ruby has "overcome" drinking the tea, Summer finally appears on screen - only for news of the story's future to remain frustratingly vague. Not only have we never had a sense of when RWBY's story will end, now we don't even have confirmation of whether it will end. That's such a frustrating way to approach storytelling given that your audience relies on some level of commitment to remain engaged.

I too want RWBY to finish up because I am not immune to the Sunk Cost Fallacy: I put this much time into the series and it needs to satisfy me with a conclusion, even if the conclusion itself will inevitably be unsatisfying. Outside of any normal disappointment with a story you love getting the ax, I generally don't mind embracing unfinished works. I read abandoned fics, watch cancelled shows, browse barely started comics, because getting a taste of the world is always worth it if it's compelling to me. I never regret meeting characters whose stories go untold because as a writer myself I can at least imagine that on my own terms. But RWBY? Losing it now would be a real kick in the teeth. I personally don't think the story is salvageable at this point, but at the very least fans deserve a conclusion: one that will likely please a lot of devoted viewers and allow critical fans to put a satisfying tick mark on the box in our heads labeled "RWBY."

Given its popularity I wouldn't be surprised if RWBY wound up cancelled and then concluded in a comics run, or a one-off movie. Beyond the fact that this would no doubt mess up the writing even more (now you have to iron out this mess of a plot on a time limit, in a new medium, with new authors!) it would, unfortunately, be kind of hilarious too:

[generic tour guide voice] "Hello. Welcome to RWBY. Our fandom is known for having copious side stories connected to the canon in confusing ways. Some are incidental to the main series. Some outright contradict it. Some are crucial to your understanding of the primary plot and must be engaged with in a timely manner. These texts range from comic runs to random bits of information in abandoned mobile games. Please note that this corpus did not grow naturally across decades of storytelling, as is the case with fandoms like Star Trek and Star Wars, but was rather cobbled together by RT in an attempt to 'fix' numerous, ongoing issues with the webseries. Our latest addition? The ending. Yes, if you would like to finish RWBY please refer to this index of sources that together provide a semi-cohesive conclusion to a ten year show. Now, on your left you'll see the ongoing brawl as fans attempt to determine whether this index is canonical or not. Please watch your step..."

[nebulousfishgills]

What's the first fandom you ever written for? Are you still into the fandom in question?

Ah, thanks for the ask, Nori!

I think the first fandom I've ever seriously written for is Star Wars in the previously mentioned abominable middle school fics. A few of our transgressions include: Cringey First Person POV, all of the characters were horribly OOC, the foundation was built on a since been proven very false theory I stopped believing in halfway through writing them, the COPIOUS Hamilton references (no I'm not kidding), and arguably the worst of all... crafting the perfect lesbian original character and not only making her a pawn for male character development, but we made her straight, blinded by our heteronormativity...

Since then my friend/co author came out as gay and trans masc and I came out as bisexual. That friend is on Tumblr but I'm not tagging them, I bear the brunt of this burden alone.

But I don't regret writing them. It was a time of unity and peace and it made middle school bearable. I fondly cherish those memories of meeting up on the Google Doc after school every day for hours and then printing all three of those suckers off to carry in my backpack to show my friends since I was so proud of our work. Plus those were my first corruption arc fics, a trope most of my writing is built upon nowadays.

And yes, I still am into Star Wars, have been since I was four. Dude, my roommate and I are dressing as Luke and Leia to meet Hayden fucking Christensen in a month for the local Fan Expo, I sure hope I'm still into it! My first ever real blorbo and I get to meet him with my roommate!!

Thing is, those were Sequel Fics and my character arc has made me vastly favor the Prequels, which were always my favorites as a kid. I was a Prequels Baby, born while they were coming out. Like, I don't hate the Sequels like a lot of people do, but those bad boys are flaaaawed. Rise of Skywalker is probably far and away my least favorite of any of the movies, also partially bc I saw it with my ex and that whole saga was an ordeal and a half... so from a certain point of view (ha), I'm not really super into the fandom of the Sequels as I once was.

Revenge of the Sith and Return of the Jedi will always be superior to me.

[mrs-dr-reid]

My Personal Steve Harrington Headcanons

Part 1/?

He can only identify actors based on the project he saw them in first, he doesn’t know any names of any actors (other than Farrah Fawcett). Like how he identified Michael J. Fox in Back to the Future as Alex P. Keaton from Family Ties? Yeah, that but for every other actor in existence

He loves spinny chairs. Like, you’ll go into Family Video and just see his dumb ass spinning around in the chair while completely zoning out. And even after you snap him back into reality, he’ll still spin around in the chair because he’s a doofus

When he can’t sleep, he gets in his car and drives down all the backroads in town. Eventually he ends up just parking behind the police department and knocking out in his backseat. Hopper has found him there multiple times on his way into work, but he just lets him sleep

He’s actually not half bad in the kitchen. He’s no Julia Child, but he can make a decent meal without burning the house down. You always tease him when you come home to find him bustling about in the kitchen with a dish rag slung over his shoulder, because he looks like a single mom of 6 in a 20 year old man’s body. He just sarcastically laughs it off before asking you to jump in and help him get dinner on the table (like a mom)

He always cheats at Monopoly. Every time. Without fail. And even when he cheats, Dustin still beats him, claiming that “karma is a cold, heartless bitch, Harrington”

Since both he and El are HORRENDOUS with understanding pop culture references, they compile a list from both the Party and the Older Kid Squad of movies and shows that they need to watch, and they designate Thursday nights as their “TV Night”, where he picks El up, they buy Eggos and other snacks, then they go back to y’all’s apartment and get all comfy before popping in the tape. You’ve come home from work or chauffeuring the kids around to find them passed out on the couch while the tv was on the static screen multiple times

He’s the biggest cuddle monster you’ll ever meet. Mostly because he’s terribly touch starved (fuck Richard and Gloria Harrington for not loving their amazing son), but also because after all the Upside Down shit, he just needs to cling to the person he cares about to make sure they don’t get taken away from him

He claims to hate it, but he actually loves it when you play with his hair. Not during the day, obviously, he puts at LEAST an hour of work into that mane. But at night time when you’re snuggling before bed, he likes it when you run your fingers through his soft brown locks and scratch his scalp with your nails. It helps him fall asleep better

Definition of a Golden Retriever Boyfriend. He’s always so excited to see you (even if you’ve only been out running errands for an hour), smothers you with kisses any chance he gets, and always has to have an arm around your waist or shoulders or be holding your hand, otherwise he might die

Expert blanket fort architect. No one knows how he got so good at it because he’s an only child, but you bet your ass if you guys are hosting a sleepover at your guys’ apartment, he’s helping the kids build a blanket fort to watch movies and consume copious amounts of junk food in. Even after they’re all in college and you guys are most likely married and getting ready to start a family of your own, a blanket fort is being made, damnit

He refers to his car as “your chariot”, but only when he’s picking you up for a date. The rest of the time she’s “old girl”, but always said lovingly with a pat on the hood, the roof, or the dash

He still isn’t 100% sure what the difference is between Star Wars and Star Trek, but at this point he’s afraid to ask because Dustin will crucify him if he does

Eddie somehow convinced him to listen to more metal music, so now some of the tapes he was gifted are in the Driving Around Town Rotation. Like, you’ll get in the car and Crazy Train is just blasting on the stereo, so he turns it down, but you still hear him mumbling the lyrics with 100% accuracy as you’re driving

Robin and Nancy managed to drag him onto the Skincare Bandwagon, so sometimes you’ll come home to find him and the girls on the couch in face masks and bathrobes gossiping like there’s no tomorrow. Steve is even wearing a headband to keep his hair out of the mask, because Robin forced him into one

Once during a sleepover with the Party, Will practically begs Steve to let him teach him how to play DnD, and of course Steve can’t say no to his big brown baby cow eyes, so he plops down on the floor and gets a beginner’s course in DnD. Dustin even helps him design a character, and the next time the boys come over, they bestow a fully decorated character binder upon him, and he joins their campaign. You can’t help but smile when you watch them play from the kitchen while fixing up snacks for them, because you can tell Steve still barely knows what he’s doing

Like Spencer Reid, he’s the biggest man-baby in the universe when he gets sick. His immune system actually sucks, and you would bet any money that his parents completely blanked on getting him up to date on all of his vaccines, so you end up having to take care of him. He’s usually asleep the whole time, but when he’s conscious he’s a whiny little shit, and as much as he gets on your nerves, you still adore him

He never had any pets growing up, so the second Hopper hooks him up with a big boy job at HPD and he’s living in an apartment with you (pet friendly by design of his master plan), he begs you to go to an animal shelter with him to see what they have. You end up getting a 3 year old Beagle named Arthur, and he might love that dog more than he loves you, but he’d never admit it

He’s a shameless flirt around you and is constantly dropping pick-up lines and shit like that on you, but the second you say something like “you’re such a pretty boy, Stevie”, he turns into an actual puddle because in addition to being a shameless flirt, he’s also the world’s largest simp

[un-beel-ievable]

Obey Me! Headcanons - The Demon Brothers react to a MC who owns a golden retriever 🐕

Author’s note: I'm home :3 Feel free to reblog, but please do not repost!! If you enjoy my writing, do leave me a like and/or a comment (and follow me to see similar content in the future :D)!

_____

Lucifer ☕

• When your dog first bounds over to greet Lucifer, it’s difficult to tell if the eldest born is a fan of your four-legged pal or not. The Avatar of Pride scrutinizes the ball of fluff as if he were a judge on a dog show —all the while as your dog vibrates impatiently by the front door with a tennis ball in its mouth. Perhaps it senses the need to be on its best behaviour if it’s to impress Lucifer.

• “A pet is a responsibility, not a novelty. I sincerely hope that you thought long and hard about the obligations of a pet owner before you went ahead with your decision to adopt. That being said, you appear to be doing quite well with your four-legged companion —they’re very well behaved. I have absolutely no qualms with you taking over Cerberus’s care when you return to the House of Lamentation; clearly you’d manage much more elegantly than my brothers. Perhaps Cerberus would enjoy the company of your charming pooch as well…”

• So Lucifer does like your dog. Not an entirely surprising revelation, if you’ve seen how he behaves around Cerberus in private. The strict no-nonsense archdemon turns into the softest dog owner that you’d ever have the pleasure of meeting; he’s all ear scritches and belly rubs. By the end of his visit, your dog is blissfully rolling on the carpet by Lucifer’s feet as the Avatar of Pride informs it over and over again that it is indeed “a good dog”.

• Perhaps you’ll even catch the small —but genuine— smile twitching at the corners of Lucifer’s lips as he does so.

Mammon 💳:

• In hindsight, perhaps giving Mammon a heads up about the presence of your pooch would have been a good idea.

• Despite your numerous attempts to reassure Mammon that the furry ball of enthusiasm barreling towards him is a Good Dog™, the terrified shriek that escapes the Avatar of Greed is shrill and ear-splitting enough to shatter your windows (Metaphorically speaking, of course. Rest assured, no windows were harmed in the writing of this headcanon.). When your dog leaps at him to nudge its head into his hand for scritches™ and headpats™, Mammon’s life flashes before his eyes. The only image that he can bring to mind before he passes out cold on your carpet is Cerberus’s terrifying snarl.

• When Mammon comes to, your dog is sitting on his chest —looking concerned and suitably chastised for accidentally scaring the living daylights out of the demon. (Even though Mammon refuses to come clean about how terrified he was. “The great Mammon? Afraid of a lil’ dog? W-What...What are ya talkin’ about? I wasn’t scared!”) The events that occurred over the last couple of minutes play on a loop in Mammon's mind. It finally dawns on him that your dog isn’t the ferocious beast that his imagination had conjured up, and his cheeks flush scarlet.

• Please give your demon a hug. I think he needs one. Or several.

Leviathan 🎮:

• If Leviathan had a pet ranking system, Henry 1.0 and Henry 2.0 would always claim the highest spots possible —the S-tiered, 5-star gods of the pet world. No golden retriever could ever worm its way to the top and snatch his love for them from under his feet. Sorry. But your dog is pretty cute, he’ll give you that.

• Too cute, maybe. Hey...um...you don’t love your dog more than you love him, right? What? Him, the Avatar of Envy, jealous? No! Of course not! Why would you make such an outrageous assumption? He’s not jealous —an adorable fluff ball of enthusiasm for the outdoors and joy is a way better than an icky otaku, after all. Leviathan doesn’t blame you for choosing your dog over him. Any sane individual would do the same...

• When you finally manage to reassure your demon that your dog is in no way competition for the affection that you hold for him, —he’ll always be your favourite demon, even if you have a dog. Even if you have a hundred dogs. Nothing is going to change that— he begins looking at your pooch in a different light. That’s right —as a potential cosplay partner. There’s this new anime that’s been released recently...Levi was wondering if you had heard of it? It’s titled: My Partner Is The Proud Owner Of A Golden Retriever And I’m An Otaku Who Enjoys The Simple Pleasure Of Collecting Merchandise and Cosplaying. One of the main characters happens to own a golden retriever as well, and if you’re willing to give him your blessing (the irony, I know), perhaps you’d lend him your pooch for an afternoon of cosplay and photography?

Satan 📚:

• Satan is a cultured demon who enjoys the company of four-legged companions, but he’s admittedly a fan of felines...not canines. Still, he prides himself on keeping an open mind towards new experiences, so he agrees to spend an afternoon with you and your dog (Even though he’d much rather be attending the opening day ceremony of the Devildom’s newest cat cafe. The things he does for love.).

• He performs some through research before meeting your dog for the first time; spending afternoon after afternoon in the sanctuary of his room reading about dogs and how to care for them. No number of books could prepare him for the real thing, however. When Satan first comes over to spend the afternoon in your home, he’s stiff and awkward —unsure of what to do with a dog. He ends up spending the first hour on your couch, sipping tea and spouting facts about golden retrievers.

• Show him the rope that your dog enjoys playing tug-of-war with, or the tennis ball that it insists on carrying in its jaws everywhere it goes. It takes a while for Satan to warm up to your pooch, but he’ll gradually learn to love —or at the very least, tolerate— your canine companion, even though he still firmly believes in the superiority of cats. Speaking of which, you’d accompany him on a date to that new cat cafe, right?

Asmodeus 💋:

• Oh! Your golden retriever is absolutely adorable! And gorgeous too —albeit not as beautiful as him, but that’s to be expected. There’s not a single individual in all of the three realms that could match up to his beauty. And your dog has such luscious fur too...dear Diavolo, he’d kill to have a haircare routine that’s as effective on his locks.

• Would you be willing to take a photo of him posing with your pooch? It’s for his Devilgram followers, of course —such beauty must be shared with the world, no? You’re not entirely sure if Asmo’s referring to his beauty, your dog’s beauty, or the shared, collective beauty of him and your dog. It doesn’t particularly matter. The two (three?) of you end up spending the entire afternoon orchestrating an impromptu photoshoot, and then spending the evening editing the photographs from said shoot for Devilgram.

• Generally gets along with your four-legged companion like a house on fire. There’s just one, itsy-bitsy issue.

• Your dog sheds. A ton. No matter how often you brush its fur, or how many boundaries you set about it not being allowed on the furniture, it seems determined to shed every carpet, sofa and bed that you own. Asmo never stops whining about the copious amounts of fur that now decorate every article of clothing he owns, but at least your dog seems happy to be able to leave its mark —on Asmo’s ensembles, of course, but also his heart.

Beelzebub 🍔:

• Corporate has asked you to find the difference between this picture and this picture—

• Asmo gets along well with your dog. Beel gets along with your dog even better. As one of the few only brothers who’s willing to spend any amount of time with Cerberus (granted, most of the time he’s only doing so because he’s been promised free food), Beel has grown into quite the dog lover. Your dog seems thrilled to be in the company of someone who appears to wholeheartedly enjoy its company —your dog is thrilled by the company of anyone who’s willing to give it their time of day, but still— and Beelzebub is thrilled to be in the company of a four-legged companion who appears to wholeheartedly enjoy his company. Beel is happy to spend whole afternoons playing with your dog...interspaced with the occasional snack break, of course.

• Speaking of which, Beel very much struggles with not giving into your golden retriever’s extremely convincing puppy dog eyes. Objectively, he knows that giving your dog human (or demon) food is a terrible idea —the last thing he wants is to be the reason that your dog has to take a trip to the vet. But your dog is so cute! And it’s looking at his food with such an intense longing in its eyes...Beel can relate to that. Surely a little nibble wouldn’t hurt…

• When you find yourself having to tell Beel off, suddenly you find yourself at the receiving end of 2 sets of puppy dog eyes; both Beel and your pupper are very sorry. They swear it’ll never happen again! Please don’t be upset…

• How are you supposed to stay mad at them?

Belphegor 🛏:

• ...listen.

• It’s not that he hates dogs. Honestly! He likes dogs as much as the next demon! But they can be loud and yappy and so incredibly energetic, and your golden retriever is more hyper than most. It always wants to go on walks, or play fetch, or make him throw its favourite tennis ball over and over again but refuse to hand it over so he has to engage in a slobbery game of tug-of-war to steal the ball from it —it’s just too much for the Avatar of Sloth. Just watching your dog zip across the room in a display of its endless amounts of energy is enough to tire Belphie out...is playtime over yet? He just wants to take a nap.

• Makes multiple attempts to talk you into allowing Beel to look after your dog. Just for an afternoon! His twin certainly has the energy to keep your hyperactive pup entertained for the whole day, and since you can be assured that your dog is well taken care of, perhaps the two of you could finally stay inside for once and take a nice, long nap. It’s been too long since he’s gotten to hold you in his arms…

• By the time Beel returns your dog to you, it’s all tuckered out from its day of adventures. As you’re thanking Beel for looking after your dog for the day, you catch him chuckling softly at something over your shoulder —Belphie and your furry friend, dozing off together on the couch. They appear to finally be getting along.

BONUS: I'm still not terribly comfortable with adding the (former) undatables to my writing repertoire, but my partner happens to be very fond of the demon butler...and I happen to be very fond of them. So just this once, just to see how it goes...

Barbatos 🍵:

• Oh? So this is the sweet bundle of fur that he’s heard so much about. It’s a pleasure to meet them at long last. Barbatos has always been fond of dogs, and your dog is quite an endearing creature to say the least...it actually reminds Barbatos of Cerberus when he was a puppy. How time flies.

• Treats your dog as if it were an esteemed guest of the castle. As long as Barbatos is around, you needn’t lift a finger when it comes to the care of your beloved pet. Keeping your dog fed and watered? Barbatos has it covered; the butler seems to have an in built in timer when it comes to feeding your dog —Barbatos serves its meals at exactly 6 in the morning and 6 in the evening. Not a minute early, not a minute late. When taking your dog out on walks, he carries a spare bottle of water for the sole purpose of offering it to your dog if it gets thirsty. Speaking of walks...Barbatos is more than happy to escort your pooch on walks in the event that you’re unavailable to do so yourself. Barbatos generally allows your golden to lead the way on their excursions, and is content with following along behind it to keep it out of trouble for however long it wishes to remain outdoors. If it were to tire itself out, Barbatos takes your dog into his arms and carries it the rest of the way home.

• Your pooch becomes very spoiled very quickly. It’s unclear if you’ve gained a butler...or if your dog has.

[shadynalittlesketchy]

A Guide to Vampire Media That Isn't Twilight, by Someone Who Consumes a Lot of It

I'm NOT here to bash Twilight, just provide some other fun bloodsucker media for y'all to enjoy :) if you have any recs of your own, hit me with those bad bois!

TV

Vampire Diaries- "a girl is torn between two vampires" is the plot for like 2 seasons but then it improves significantly. it's definitely very CW, but a lot of the vampire mythology is very very cool. and it doesnt hurt that the entire cast is ridiculously attractive. a great popcorn show! CW for blood and violence, parental death, and dub-con scenarios.

The Originals- a spinoff of TVD, but you don't really need to have seen TVD to watch this. It centers around the 4 original vampires (original as in like, the first vampires ever created) as they navigate vampire and other supernatural politics in New Orleans. Much less "teen angst" and much more "evil ancient vampires trying to be civil at dinner without murder" vibes. CW for blood and violence, and lots of spooky occult stuff taking place in graveyards.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer- literally my favorite TV show of all time. In addition to some killer vamps (team spike ftw!), there's weird demons, warlocks, werewolves- anything you can think of. it has great LGBTQ+ representation for its time, tackles social issues, and has a healthy dose of humor. CW for violence, supporting character deaths, vampire sex that destroys a building, and sexual assault.

What We Do in the Shadows- I don't usually rec comedies, but this one is too good not to. Loosely based off of the movie, it follows a group of vampire roomates in Staten Island. It is hilariously funny, and mocks just about every vampire trope out there. CW for copious amounts of blood, vomit, some pretty crass sexual humor, and dead raccoons.

True Blood- vampires in Louisiana, in a world where everyone knows vampires exist. it checks off all of my boxes for morally grey characters and weird supernatural happenings. it's an HBO show, so TW for blood/gore, violence, and soooo much sex and nudity.

Carmilla- technically a web series, not a TV show, but whatever. its lighthearted lesbian vampires, based off of the very old novella of the same name. great if you like vampires without the scare factor. and its free to watch on youtube!

Movies

What We Do in the Shadows- the movie the TV show is based off of. vampire roommates in New Zealand. also very funny, but less graphic violence/sexual references. created by and starring Taika Waititi, of Thor: Ragnarok fame.

The Lost Boys- awesomely cheesy 80's cult classic feat. Kiefer Sutherland with a bleach-blond mullet. it's fun and weird and has a cool aesthetic. it also has the same kind of vibe as the Goonies. TW for gore, and one icky scene with maggots.

Thirst

South Korean vampire drama with dark, aesthetically pleasing religious imagery. The mc returns from a mission trip with intense cravings for sex and blood and struggles to hold onto his humanity. super angsty and dramatic in the best ways. CW for copious blood and gore, spicy vampire sex, and sexual assault.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

a surprisingly good movie! has a fun, steampunk feel to it, and a pre-MCU Anthony Mackie, which is an added bonus. vampires kill honest abe's mother when hes a child, so he grows up to be an axe-swinging vampire slayer AND the president. this is not a movie to be taken seriously, but it is an awesome popcorn movie! CW for parental death, blood/gore, slavery (it is set during the civil war), and children in danger.

Interview With the Vampire

it is about as gay as a movie can get without the main characters actually being gay. it's a long, drawn-out story about a vampire and his life from when he's turned in the early days of america, until the present. the vampire is played by brad pitt, and he shares lots of longing glances and homoerotic blood drinking scenes with tom cruise. it is visually spectacular, even if the story is a little long. CW for blood/gore, child death, and sexual content.

Bram Stoker's Dracula

starring winona ryder and keanu reeves! it follows the book fairly closely, although it is a very 90s movie. it is WILD, but a classic and a lot of fun if you like vampires, or really any kind of supernatural shenanigans. CW for sexual content, and blood/violence.

Books

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown

non-traditional vamp book, by holly black (the same one who wrote the cruel prince). vampires live in fancy quarantined cities called coldtowns, and the MC ends up in one inadvertently. its a more dystopian/sci-fi take on vampires, but it still has a lot of traditional vampire fun thrown in, too. plus the cover is just gorgeous. CW for sex and violence.

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires

probably one of the weirdest vampire books ive ever read, but in a good way. its about a group of housewives who start a true-crime bookclub, but begin to suspect that their new neighbor is a vampire. its a really good female empowerment story, and it also explores white saviorism. CW for sexual assault, racism, violence, and forced pregnancy.

Lost Souls

Poppy Z. Brite's books are like a punk-rock, gayer version of Anne Rice. lost souls has great queer rep, and is funny and weird and heartbreaking all at the same time. it's about the lives of vampires in New Orleans, but it's very unique and unlike any other vampire story out there. CW for blood/violence, sexual content, and sexual assault.

Dark Lover

this book is the peak of smutty vampire romance novels. I usually read books like this just for fun, but its actually well-written and has a compelling story outside of the smut aspects. It's about a half-vampire woman who teams up with a vamp to kill the slayers that murdered his parents. just ignore the fact that the love interest is named Wrath. CW for tons of smut, and blood/violence.

The Beautiful

I would describe this as a classic vampire story- romance between a human and a vampire in victorian-era NOLA, complete with costume balls, mysterious murders, and a secret supernatural club. CW warning for mild sexual content, and violence. (It's YA, so there's nothing too graphic.)

Love in Vein

A collection of vampire short stories compiled by Poppy Z. Brite, but written by a variety of authors. there's some really different takes on the vampire myth, and it's interesting to see it played with in so many different ways. just an fyi- it gets weird af and pretty graphic. CW for body horror, blood/violence, sexual assault, and sexual content.

Bonus! Mini playlist

Bloodletting by Concrete Blonde

Black No. 1 by Type O Negative

Cure by Darling Violetta

Blood in the Cut by K. Flay

Holy Water by Bad Company

Decode by Paramore

Uninvited by Alanis Morissette

I Will Never Die by Delta Rae

Devil Inside by INXS

Death of Me by PVRIS

Hypnotic by Zella Day

Cold Blooded by the Pretty Reckless

Savior by St. Vincent

Psycho Killer by the Talking Heads

Transylvanian Concubine by Rasputina

Virgin State of Mind by Ks Choice

How Soon is Now? by the Smiths

Red Right Hand by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds

[dreamofmysoul-tsc]

Thought I’d try my hand at some TSC headcanons; if these are shit takes, please tell me😆

ok but, Kit with tattoos. I can see him with a Ronan-like back tattoo (when he’s older of course) if any of y’all have read The Raven Cycle 

I feel like Tessa would’ve loved the 1920s. I can see it being her favorite decade 

Similarly, TESSA KNOWS HOW TO DO THE CHARLESTON AND SHE’S GREAT AT IT (think Ksenia Parkhatskaya)

Thomas strikes me as a person who doesn’t like cheese; I have no evidence to back this up, he just gives me that vibe

Magnus owns a rhinestone cowboy suit. It’s purple and it has copious amounts of sparkly tassels on it

Jem’s favorite part about living in the 21st century is scented candles; he has at least two in every room of the house and he keeps a stockpile of them in the hall closet

Kit tries to show Jem tiktoks; Jem is either mildly amused or deeply concerned (it’s mostly the gen z humor)

Will is a shit cook

When Kit and Ash become friends (it will happen, I’m manifesting it), Kit makes Ash watch cheesy 80s teen movies, like The Breakfast Club and Dirty Dancing; Ash hates all of them

Simon forces Jace to watch Star Wars; Jace has never been more confused in his life

Izzy and Clary go out to lunch like once every two weeks to catch up/gossip (mostly gossip)

I like to think that most of Magnus’ furniture are authentic antique pieces that he’s preserved over the centuries (whether through magic or great care); it gives their loft a nice charm

Alec has walked in on Magnus having full conversations with Chairman Meow many times; the Chairman definitely has no idea what Magnus is saying, Magnus just enjoys the company

Once Cordelia is actually able to wear the clothes she wants to wear, she becomes obsessed with fashion; similar to Izzy, she’s always immaculately dressed

Matthew refers to James as “darling,” partially because it annoys James, partially because we all know he just adores Jamie

James’ eyes glow; I’m like 99% sure this isn’t canon, but in my head, his eyes have a subtle glow due to his ✨demonic heritage✨

Kit is afraid of bees; he’s not allergic, he’s just deeply afraid of bees

Hopefully these weren’t too boring! Feel free to add anything if you would like!

[juniperusashei]

The Illustrated Star Wars Universe by Ralph McQuarrie & Kevin J. Anderson - 5/5

I never grew up with any less than 6 Star Wars movies so reading this book as a child, I didn’t realize it was written in the interim between the trilogies. This book of Ralph McQuarrie’s concept art for the original trilogy was actually published in 1995, before Phantom Menace— significance I failed to grasp as a kid. This type of book could easily just be a vessel for McQuarrie’s gorgeous concept art, but instead it’s paired with gorgeous prose from Kevin J. Anderson, which is why this book existed so vividly in my memories all these years, and is what compelled me to order another copy.

This book covers the 6 locales visited in the original trilogy: Tatooine, Dagobah, Hoth, The Forest Moon of Endor, The Cloud City over Bespin, and Yavin 4. Additionally, it features Alderaan, which was not shown except for its destruction from afar, and Coruscant, which was probably concept art for The Phantom Menace! Every section is written as an in-universe travelogue. Tatooine is by a shapeshifting anthropologist, Coruscant by the Emperor’s propagandist. Anderson takes measures to ensure copious amounts of verisimilitude, but this sometimes got annoying. For example, the Endor section was “by” an Imperial scout with a lot of disdain for Ewoks and the RotJ foreshadowing was a little too on-the-nose.

But despite a few too many references to the movies, you don’t have to watch them to “get it”. If from previous reviews you think I hate worldbuilding, this is worldbuilding done right, different than Disney Wars because not everything is a reference to something else. This book stands on its own as an imaginative description of alien ecologies and cultures, somewhat like Italo Calvino’s Invisible Cities. It’s good worldbuilding because it’s slice of life in the strictest sense, considering matters of lesser consequence like cuisine, art and culture. There is no cohesive story, but one of my favorite anecdotes is a poetic fable in the Hoth section about two ore-mining robots dismantling each other for their ores. 

Since they basically cover all the planets that are visited in the old trilogy, there’s a necessary element of familiarity, because those movies were filmed in the pre-CGI era so Lucas et al. obviously had to seek out real-life (but still very exotic!) locations to film at. The culture parts are stronger than the speculative biology which isn’t quite as believable, so the best sections were the more populated planets: Tatooine, Coruscant, Bespin, and Alderaan.

My most vivid memories of this book from childhood were the Alderaan section, which makes it sound like an Ghibli-esque ecofriendly artist commune like Santa Fe, NM. For some reason, the idea of floating aimless hotels has stuck with me over the years. Small but believable details of little consequence like this are what makes this book.

[river--glass]

Reylo Fic Recs Long Ass Fics pt 2: Alternate Universe

Someone asked for fic recs 100K or over, so here they are. See Pt. 1 for Canon Verse or Alternate Canon Verse fics. (I haven’t read all of these- my personal comments are in bold)

Equilibrium by AttackoftheDarkCurses & thebuildingsnotonfire. (modern, E, 479K)

When Rey works up the nerve to ask Grand Master Luke Skywalker to train her, she makes friends and finds something deep and wonderful in the martial art known as Taekwondo.

She never thought the choice would change her life.

Alternatively, a (long) story of love, family, and Martial Arts.

The Heartbreak Prince by diasterisms. (Harry Potter, E, WIP) 

I swore I would never read Harry Potter AU’s or Works In Progress, but for this fic I broke both rules. This is, pun not intended, so magical in every way. It has me SHOOK and if somehow you haven’t heard of it yet, do yourself a favor and check it out!

In Living Memory by SpaceWaffleHouseTM. (multiple times, E, 221K)

Ben and Rey are rendered immortal after being struck by lightning at the precise same moment, and keep running into one another as the centuries drag on. Waffle’s stories are all amaaaaazing and you need to read ALL of them.

Hit Me With Your Best Shot by SageMcMae. (modern, E, 214k)

MMA fighter, Kylo Ren is suspended from the league and sentenced to community service at his uncle’s martial arts academy. There he meets Rey Niima, a recent graduate with a natural ability and incredible potential.

Soul Searching by OptimisticBeth. (AU, Modern, E, 205K)

A Soulmates AU in which Ben is horrified to find out he’s soulmates with his 16 year old student, ten years his junior. (no underage shenanigans) This fic fucked me up. The world building is so stunning. The story is rich with love and fluff, but oh the angst. Soooo much angst and emotional anguish and two people who are trying their best but just can't communicate for shit. The overall story is so beautiful and worth every heartbreaking moment. A happy ending WILL come!

Satan Wears a Rolex by AquaWolfGirl. (Modern, E, 205K)A Devil Wears Prada AU. Unfinished, but it’s fascinating and it ends well where it is.

Hiraeth by Ferasha. (1990′s, E, 204K)

An absolute angst and pain train of a historical war fic. This is not a comfort fic. It will fuck you up. But if you’re into that, the way they’ve woven canon plot in with the Yugoslav Wars is a masterpiece. It’s dark and gritty and will make you feel things.

Le Fin Du Fin by QueenOfCarrotFlowers @leofgyth. (Victorian, E, 196K) A Crimson Peak AU!!! This writer has never let me down.

A Proposal by Any Other Name by Lucidlucy. (Modern, E, 188) A Leap Year AU.

Salt in the Blood by Hagen. (9th century, E, 169K) Featuring pre-Norman invasion Ireland, selkies, love of the sea, and mythical creatures.

The Great Big No by dietplainlite. (1990′s, E, 165K)

Kylo Ren is third generation rock royalty, a reigning brat prince starting to feel the burn of the fame he reached for with both hands. Rey is an aspiring singer on the verge of a big break, provided her A&R guy still has a job by the time she reaches LA. Their paths have crossed briefly, disappointingly, before. What happens when they collide?

The Trail Bride by SecretReyloTrash. (AU, Wild West, E, 160K)

Rey Niima finds herself in a perilous situation when her husband dies at the start of their journey West. From the few bachelors on the trail in her party; she attaches herself to the best of her options- mysterious Banker Ben Solo. A really interesting, amazing piece. Lots of introspection, and a heart wrenchingly real look into abuse and recovery. I emotionally digested for days.

The Sacred Texts by Eskayrobot & Poaxath. (Modern, E, 159K)

Doing the Unstuck by slipgoingunder. (Modern, E, 158K) A When Harry Met Sally AU.

The Mating Service by AlbaStarGazer. (Modern A/B/O, E, 146K)

If Rey had known how quickly she would find her biological mate and alpha through the world wide mating service, 'Match,' she might have considered signing up years ago.

Unravel Me by UnderTheCancerMoon. (Modern, E, 145K)

Rey and Ben push and pull their way through their 20's, experiencing the love, success, loss, and challenges that make life rich.

Fire Away by Daisyflo. (Modern, E, 141K)

The Witch in the Wood by HarpiaHarpyja @thisgarbagepicker & Inmyownidiom. (Fantasy, E, 138K)

I cannot say enough good things about this fic. It’s serving you knight Kylo and witch Rey and so so many good feelings. Sure there’s some angst and dark magic and some struggles but mostly this is a lovely Ghibli-esque story about two people living in a treehouse and talking to animals and having a really good life! Everything HarpiaHarpyja writes is magic.

Snow Without Winter by neonheartbeat. (Renaissance, E, 138K) 

If you’re into serious historical fics (this once features catholicism and Rome in 1492) this is for you.

Lemon-hot Summer by IshaRen & pr3tty_g1rl5. (Modern, E, 130K).

In which Ben is the horniest virgin alive and Rey is bored and looking for something (or someone) to do.

Stranger Than Fiction by daxcat79. (Modern, E, 127K). Grumpy writer Ben and sunshine muse Rey.

Like Red But Not Quite by @kylotrashforever. (Modern, E, 126K) KTF is a god-tier reylo writer and you need to do yourself a favor and go read everything they have ever written.

Dark Water by LinearA. (1950′s, E, 125K)

The North Shore by @strawberrycupcakehuckleberrypie. (Modern, E, 125K)

Notting Hill vibes. Actor Ben meets shop owner Rey, and both their lives are changed instantly. It’s mostly about them both being smitten and starting a really good life together!! Lovely!

Stars In My Pockets (Wear Daisies In My Hair) by LostInQueue. (Modern, E, 125K). A Reylogan fic.

we could plant a house, we could build a tree by like_a_dove. (Modern, E, 124K).

An absolute classic. It’s about growing pains and growing feelings - the transition from childhood into adulthood and all the messy bits in between. God, it will hurt you. Badly. But it’ll be so, so worth it.

go i know not whither and fetch i know not what by voicedimplosives. (1990′s, E, 118K)

Russian Mafia AU!! A truly beautiful piece of work. Great plot,great smut, great Bendemption arc. It’s an emotional rollercoaster that’s fully worth the ride.

Souviens-toi de moi by Maniable. (Modern/historical, E, 117K)

Disconnect by Weatherbug02. (Modern, E, 115K) 

Candyleg by 5cents. (1950′s, E, 115K)

The girl was too young, but old enough to have a hustler’s-eye view of her own bleak future. The boys were paying her to do a snow job on a candyleg, but she was beginning to love her work and love Solo, and she decided to stick with him till death did them part...

Baby, It’s Just Biology by polkadotdotdot. (Modern A/B/O, E, 112K)

Only If You Want To by Violetwilson. (Modern, M, 111K)

Personal security expert (and occasional under-the-table hitman) Kylo Ren has a strong feeling about the cute dive bar waitress with the strange bruises and the vicious wit. She's either a victim or the weirdest criminal he's ever met. Possibly both.

Ileenium Manor by WaterlilyRose. (AU, victorian, E, 109K)

Leia’s maid Rey instantly hates Lord Ben when he comes to take over the household. She can’t hate him for too long as he starts to pursue her. If you’re in the mood for a sweet but angsty Lord/Maid fic, this is for you.

Kohelet 3:16 (Call Me A Cab) by LinearA. (Modern, E, 108K)

Ruby Woo Red by HeartSabers. (Modern, E, 107K) Featuring makeup artist Rey and TV star Kylo.

Sixth Year by witheyesclosed. (Harry Potter, M, 107K)

The one where Ravenclaw Rey gets paired with Slytherin Ben in Potions and ohmygod he’s hot now

Lockjaw by bitterbones. (zombie apocalypse, M, 106K)

A Song of Trash and Fire: Ben and Rey Make a Porno by HarpiaHarpyja & sunshineflying. (Modern, E, 106K) 

With the help of rich Unca Wanwo, flagrant misuse of Ben's creative writing degree, and copious amounts of coffee, Ben and Rey put together the porno of the century, starring themselves and their friends . . . with interesting results.

The Hypnotist by Pandora_Spocks. (Modern, E, 104K)

From a galaxy far, far away, soulmates Ben and Rey have been reincarnated on Earth to resolve their karma. Dr. Ben Solo is a charismatic hypnotist to whom present day Reychelle Lumen has been referred to for help with her nightmares.

Score by SpaceWaffleHouseTM. (Modern, E, 104K)

Ben's friends convince him to take the Rice Purity Test, but when he and Rey are revealed to have the highest scores of their friends, they quickly form a pact to beat Poe's out by the end of the semester. I loved this! Its so so sweet and funny and all from Ben’s POV. Sweet, sweet pining Ben.

The World Shifts (And I Am Better Here) by lachesisgrimm. (Fantasy, E, 102K)

Once upon a time there was a beggar girl whose parents sold her to a thief, and she was very unhappy.--In which prophecy is used with malicious intent, and the universe exerts itself to correct the problem.

for @scarletvizhlovers

[imagine-loki]

Atlas: Space, Venus

TITLE: Atlas: Space

CHAPTER NO./ONE-SHOT: 3/12

AUTHOR: fanfictrashdump

ORIGINAL IMAGINE: Imagine narrating episodes of Loki’s life with the Avengers based on the songs from Sleeping At Last’s “Atlas: Space” album. 

RATING: T-M

NOTES/WARNINGS: Welcome to my Sleeping At Last’s Atlas: Space challenge, aka Another writing project I do not have time for, but my brain insisted on doing.

This series will be less like a multichapter fic and more of a one-shot compendium, but that they all interconnect in one way or another. It will revolve around Loki and Becca’s relationship (Taking Turns, Glow, Helmet Heists–don’t worry, more Loki-Charlie stuff will be along) and I will use those one-shots as reference to the timeline. Each chapter will be one song, used as inspiration for the story.

Chapter 3: Venus

Summary: Two idiots cannot admit to themselves, much less each other, that maybe their friendship is a little more than friendship. (Happens between Helmet Heists and Taking Turns.)

Warnings include: language, unabashed staring at each other, fluff but in that awkward way that two introverts who like each other have, and maybe Loki has a pain kink, idk.

=

It was sort of hard to describe the sensation. The one felt when someone was staring daggers straight into her soul. Becca found that it was not the hair on the back of her neck standing at attention or the copious goosebumps that erupted over her skin that gave it away. It was just knowing. Knowing that he was there, lurking quietly in the background, trying his hardest to be one with the shadows until the second he decided he needed to pop out and startle her. He had all but failed the last three times he tried and it tickled her to no end.

“Pass me that soldering bit, will you?” She asked, holding her right arm out and slightly behind her just as Loki was due to dig her fingers into her ribs and give her a fright.

“You’re not clever, you know,” he grumbled, slapping the bit in her hand with frown.

Becca grinned. “I beg to differ, Mischief. I’m very clever.” The spark of the soldering iron reflected against her goggles for several seconds before the instrument was set aside.

Loki chose to let it go, knowing that running his mouth would not do him well. Even if whatever would escape his lips was nothing short of a schoolboy teasing someone he secretly admired. Instead, he tapped on the vambrace-shaped object she was working on, leaning onto the bench beside her with an easy smile. “What’s that?”

“Physical advantage,” she declared, casually. “I do well in missions, but only because I can run very fast. Not because I’m particularly skilled at combat. I’m giving myself some strength.”

The night sky once ruled my imagination Now I turn the dials with careful calculation After a while I thought I’d never find you I convinced myself that I would never find you When suddenly I saw you

With a whisper of a smile, she allowed herself a minute to watch him.

Loki was now used to hanging out in her lab while she tinkered with her toys. More than once, he offered some insightful recommendations on how to make armor more efficient, more durable, more beautiful. His affinity for weapons of war was second nature to him–an advantage that she could only dream of having. Sure, she was good at numbers and carefully crafting the perfect wafer thin circuit board that would add only a fraction of an ounce to an armor, but he had that easiness of experience. Of being assured that no matter what he saw in battle, he could adapt to it. She, on the other hand, could only hope for enough time to solve some differentials in her head and hope to whatever deity she subscribed to that plans worked in her favor. 

“Hmm. Strength.” He sounded curious as his fingers traced the delicate edge of the guard. Becca forced herself to focus on the present moment and dismiss the idea that she had been watching his fingers fiddle with her inventions for much longer than was proper. “Do you care to test it out? If you can deal with me, it’s probable you won’t die on the field.”

She snorted, rolling her eyes. “Charming, as always, Loki.”

“I’m only trying to make sure you continue to draw breath, Rebecca.” He checked her gently with his hip. “Come on. I’m bored. Fight me,” he threatened playfully, mimicking her rallying cry from whenever he was being particularly annoying. He might have been a little too attracted to seeing her riled. He watched her swallow thickly, in what he supposed was apprehension. Becca would have been glad to know that was what he thought, rather than knowing how she felt about watching him fight and the flutter in her chest that followed.

At first I thought you were a constellation I made a map of your stars and I had a revelation You’re as beautiful as endless You’re the universe I’m helpless in An astronomer at my best When I throw away the measurements

“Fine. Whatever.” She pulled the vambraces over both her forearms, taking care that the crisscrossing straps over her palms didn’t tangle.

They walked to the testing floor, side by side. No one was there at this time of night, which suited them both just fine. Loki shed the hoodie he was wearing to keep toasty, and tossed it aside on one of the work tables. Fidgeting, Rebecca stood tall, bearing her weight on her back right leg and turning to watch Loki as he easily stalked around her, looking amused.

“Have I ever told you that you look like a particularly startled deer whenever we spar?”

“You’ve mentioned it once or a million times, yes,” she hissed under her breath, bouncing forward and taking a swing. He dodged easily, arms clasped behind his back as he strutted.

“Don’t think so much, darling.”

Loki took a large step backwards as she feinted and swung again. With a smirk, he tapped her right cheek with his first three fingers.

This was what irritated Becca to no end. Whenever they would spar he would never dare even to make proper contact. Instead, he would poke, prod, or tap her gently–a movement that required both forethought and ample reaction time. It was his way of saying that he was breezing through the fight and she needed to step it up. He secretly hoped it also conveyed that he didn’t want to hurt her, but in her ire, he doubted she saw it as anything more than a slight to her abilities.

“Keep your hands up. You’d be on the floor right now had I any intention of returning the blow.” She growled, redoubling her efforts, each time with Loki either stepping away or maneuvering her in an opposite direction. “Don’t get frustrated. Focus on your instincts.”

Becca huffed, lowering her hands, shoulders slumping. “Why are we doing this? I never get a punch in.” She blew a tendril of brown hair away from her eyes and pouted.

Like a telescope I will pull you so close ‘Till no space lies in between

“You need to fight against the distance. Just because I can attack from where I’m standing, doesn’t mean you can. My reach is far greater than yours.” He put his hands on her shoulders and pressed gently until she bent her knees slightly. “You’re on the smaller side, but you have good balance and a strong core. Force your taller opponents to aim down–take away their balance and move closer.” He pulled her until she was a mere half foot away. “A blow at close range will hurt you less, should you be struck, but with the assistance of your instruments, you make a stronger impact on your enemy.”

“I don’t want to get punched,” she muttered, looking down at the floor.

Loki laughed. “No one wants to get punched, darling.” He had tilted her head up to meet her eyes and immediately cursed himself for getting into such a position. It would be too easy to betray her friendship for a taste of her lips, swollen from her insistent worrying of them with her teeth. “A-again. Let’s go again.”

Nodding a little shakily, she stepped back. It took a moment to shake away the tingles that had blossomed beneath her skin at his close proximity. The idiot couldn’t see the impact of his casualness on her demeanor. She breathed deep and got back into position.

I was a billion little pieces Till you pulled me into focus Astronomy in reverse It was me who was discovered

Loki attempted to rid his brain of the scent of brown sugar and vanilla that invaded his senses. He needed to focus on the task at hand. His look turned predatory. His movements followed suit. They circled each other for longer than either of them could even tell. Loki had the grace to move first. His elegant lunging startled Becca, who covered herself and shifted away. The strategy worked for a minute or two, before he reached out and wrapped his dexterous fingers around her neck and held her gently still; more a warning than a hold. She broke his grip and invaded his space, as he took a second too long to shuffle back. The left-handed hook that whacked him under the jaw caught him by surprise.

Then suddenly I see you

Becca gasped, covering her mouth with her hands in horror. Loki stood still, holding and working his jaw until it clicked noisily into place. She expected him to be livid; to loudly give her a piece of his mind, proclaiming that he didn’t harm her when they sparred, so why did she. Instead, she watched in abject surprise as he dropped his hand and he smiled what was possibly the most genuine and proud smile she had ever seen him give.

“That is what I want to see.” He stood back in position, though this time he had a fighting stance, smile still pulling at his lips as though it were a permanent fixture. He couldn’t be certain, but he thought that she could hear the thumping of his heart just as loudly as he could hear hers. “More. I mean again.” He made a vague gesture at her. “Come on. Please. Again.”

[sjrresearch]

Review of ‘The Seelow Heights (16-19th April 1945) – A Wargamer’s Guide’

By Steve Shann

Published by Nations in Arms Publishing

Available either at www.steve-nationsinarms.blogspot.com or Cavalier Books

56pp, Softcover

The fighting around Berlin in 1945 was some of the most desperate of the war in Europe and has attracted hordes of wargamers interested in re-fighting something that was a foregone conclusion. But the allure is there for wargamers. Weird troop types and mixed equipment for the Germans, and hordes of Soviets with tons of T-34s and JS-IIs. The final Soviet assault on the Heights and the approach to Berlin is the stuff wargaming is made of. It truly was Gotterdammerung in the East, a crescendo of fire, steel, and blood to end the Second World War in Europe.

It also makes for some great wargaming.

A lot of wargaming ink has been spilled over this last stand of the Wehrmacht, and Mr. Shann’s book is one of the better efforts I have seen. The book starts out with an introduction to the campaign, where Mr. Shann references his inspiration from Tony Le Tissier’s Zhukov on the Oder (This humble reviewer recommends anything Le Tissier does as good reading and wargaming fodder). Mr. Shann does an outstanding job of describing how the Seelow Heights makes for good wargaming, recognizing the Germans are at the wrong end of long odds while still mentioning the terrain and the willingness of the Germans to resist as long as they could for their civilians to get away. He paints a clear picture of the grim determination of the Soviets to “slay the fascist beast in its lair.” Shann goes on to mention that he is partial to the Rapid Fire rules and that the book is structured for those rules, but in this reviewer’s opinion, with a little work, you could make these scenarios work for games such as Command Decision, Fistful of TOWs 3, and Spearhead. Basically, any one stand equals a platoon of men rules will work well for the book.

Mr. Shann sets the scene with a good history of the German and Soviet forces involved. The Special Rules are smartly written for Rapid Fire, and I think you could adapt them for other rules sets with little trouble, assuming you even need these rules? I really liked the rules covering the Seelowe Heights and the marshy Oderbruch beyond. It is an example of good rules done simply to cover some complicated terrain types. I really like the way the Soviet morale ratings, as the Soviets by this point were reaching the bottom of the manpower barrel. They were drafting just about anyone into their ranks by the end, including former concentration camp inmates and slave laborers. It made for a very motley Soviet army, quite different from the honed Soviet army of almost a year before.

I like the focus Mr. Shann demonstrates, and I think he has found the “sweet spot” of the Seelowe Heights and where the Soviets made their main effort. He did a fine job of focusing the book on that, without extraneous effort on subsidiary efforts elsewhere. 

The scenarios themselves are very well laid out, and I am impressed by the excellent use of graphics, as well as the historical asides about the combatants and their eventual fates in the fighting. The photos are well used, and the maps are simple, clear, and good looking. There are twelve scenarios in all, set across the three days it took Zhukov to break through the German defenses of the Seelow Heights. I am partial to the first scenario, where you have two Soviet Rifle Regiments with Assault Gun support taking on a mixed force of German police units, and the grandiosely entitled “1001 Nights” Kamfgruppe, which consisted of three companies of SS Hetzers and infantry who had been previously guarding the V2 rocket launch sites. There were also all sorts of other troops. It is enough to make a gamer weep with joy!

All the scenarios are like this. Massive Soviet forces taking on scratch German units with a variety of troop types, you have got Fallschirmjagers, Panzergrenadiers, Police troops, Luftwaffe Flak, Volkssturm, Panzer Grenadier training units, Tiger II battalions, and even the 1001 Night’s Kampfgruppe, which even has SS Paratroops (yes, you read that right.) 

The scenarios start small and get progressively larger, which is always a good idea for any scenario book, in my opinion. Writing scenario books is like putting on a show - build to a conclusion, and make it a good one. Mr. Shann has done very well here.

My small complaints are that I wish he had made the book more rules agnostic, but that is more a personal pet peeve than something that really should affect the review. My other main issue is the lack of a works cited or bibliography. I always look for that in any wargaming product, as it will often influence my book purchases. I am sure Mr. Shann read more of Mr. Le Tissier’s work, and it shows here. Again, it is a minor complaint. 

All in all, this book is a gem and one I would encourage any wargamer to pick up. The only wrinkle for a lot of U.S.-based wargamers is the shipping costs (I paid $41.00 including shipping), but I would encourage wargamers here to see if On Military Matters can get copies in. I know the folks there, and if enough people ask, I am sure they will stock copies. 

I would say it is worth the money to pick this gem up and give it a shot if you play Rapid Fire, and if you do not pick it up and do some conversion work on the scenarios. Happily, Mr. Shann has made this a rather simple process with the copious research that has gone into this book. 

4.5 stars out of 5 stars

--

At SJR Research, we specialize in creating compelling narratives and provide research to give your game the kind of details that engage your players and create a resonant world they want to spend time in. If you are interested in learning more about our gaming research services, you can browse SJR Research’s service on our site at SJR Research.

--

(This article is credited to Jason Weiser. Jason is a long-time wargamer with published works in the Journal of the Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers; Miniature Wargames Magazine; and Wargames, Strategy, and Soldier.)

[steddieunderdogfics]

You Could Use a Good Kiss by Lostnadmiration

Rating: Mature

words, 1/1 chapters

Archive Warning: No Warnings

Tags: Halloween, Getting Together, First Kiss, Steve Harrington Has a Crush on Eddie Munson, Hellfire Club, Drinking Games, Underage Drinking, choose your own Vecna was vanquished adventure, Everybody Lives, i just wanted a Halloween episode where everyone could get into shenanigans without mortal peril, copious star wars references, nerds being nerds, The steve eddie and Dustin bond, the Alf costume in eddie munsons closet, steve as han solo, references to eddie selling drugs, no drugs consumed, Making Out, Star Wars Puns, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, romcom vibes, halloween party, Tina’s annual Halloween Bash, Robin Buckley & Steve Harrington Friendship, Wingman Steve, Eddie Munson Lives, background buckingham

Summary:

“You didn’t lock the door?” Steve glares daggers at Eddie. Eddie’s eyes rove over the door, around the frame from top to bottom thoughtfully, dart over to Dustin, then finally land back to Steve. “Guess not.” Eddie’s lips twist as he fails to fight back a wry grin. It’s nearly impossible to think right now with his mind swimming in liquor, but Dustin slowly fits the puzzle pieces together. The hands, the closeness, bruised lips, the breathlessness, the blushing caught out faces. Dustin reels, hears a sound leave his mouth that’s a mix of shock and outrage. “It’s not what it looks like—” Steve starts, but Dustin interrupts his feeble attempt to cover up their tryst. “Really? ‘Cause it looks like y’r playing tonsil hockey with my DUNGEON MASTER!” Dustin can feel himself shouting, feel his words slurring together ever so slightly, sluggish on their way out of his mouth.

Thanks for the rec!

This rec is a part of Challenge Monday. The challenge this week was fics about non-major holidays.

Know a fic that deserves extra love? Submit through our asks or the submission box!

[welllpthisishappening]

Happy Holidays! I'm dropping into some of my fave creator's ask boxes and encouraging them to Spread the Cheer by Sharing What You Created This Year! Before a new year starts, take some time to reflect on the things you wrote or created to bless the fandom this past year. Remind us all of the awesomeness you put out there in 2019, and feel free to tease us with things to come in 2020! Then pass this along to your faves, so they can share in the fun!

Oh my goodness anon, you are a delight! This is incredibly sweet and you are incredibly sweet and I’d like to apologize in advance because you can’t put read mores on asks and this is going to get a little long. Alright, here we go:

Multi-Chapters

All the Subliminal Things: Teen, 24K, Soulmates & Modern AU

All Was Golden in the Sky: Mature, 247K, Magic, New York City, not really the Modern AU it claims to be

The Period of the Long Change: Mature, 124K, Another Blue Line story in which Killian gets hurt, Emma gets stressed out and they kiss in public places

One-Shots: the Modern AU Versions

Pulling Your Punches: Boxing AU with unintentional secret dating and a copious amount of Star Wars references

A Very Noble Quest: Emma finds Killian’s car on the side of the road in a snowstorm, confusion ensues

More Famous Than a Yankee Can: Baseball AU, long-lost friends Emma and Killian meet again…while he’s playing right field in Yankee Stadium

What Used to Be Limes: Hockey AU, Disaster Rookie Killian Jones goes through his first year with the Rangers while not-so-secretly being in love with his best friend

Hitting Against the Shift: Mary Margaret is sick, so Emma begrudgingly joins the Storybrooke baseball rec league and has thoughts about Killian in baseball pants

Marking Up: Lacrosse AU, Emma and Killian’s friends set them up on a dating app & Emma has no idea there is professional lacrosse

A Rooting Interest: Hockey AU, Emma does Ruby a favor working the bar only to meet a nice guy who leaves a very surprising tip. Hockey tickets

One-Shots: the Canon Versions

Holding On: Emma loops her arm through Killian’s a lot when they walk. That’s it. That’s what this is about. 

Four Eyes: Hope needs glasses, which leads to Killian needing glasses, which leads to Emma having thoughts about her husband in glasses

Two-Shots

Have Your Cake [And Eat It Too]: Out of the Frying Pan, a copious amount of Captain Charming Swan family feelings and Kitchen Stadium competition

An American Haunting: Modern AU, Emma and Killian are historical reenactors at Colonial Williamsburg and there are…ghosts  

Christmas!

In the Air, There’s a Feeling of Christmas: The Festive Fic Prompt a Thon

Blue Line One-Shots

Practicing Trick Shots || Waiting for Puck Drop || Of Babies and Hockey Mascots || According to Sources || [Always] A Boast or Brag || The Pocket Square Incident || The City Championship || On the Road || Matt and Roland Pre-Season || An Unusual Redirect || Playing a Little Extra Defense || Game Show Antics || Pointed Opinions || The Fine Art of Going Viral || For the Hits || Matt’s First Game || Introducing Gritty || Welcome to the World, Peggy Jones || Of Hockey Thighs & Poorly Sized Jeans || Winter Classic 

Tumblr-Only Nonsense

Modern AU’s

Pace of Play (baseball!AU) || Out of the Frying Pan Kissing || Ballbusters (baseball!AU) || Puppy Love (baseball!AU) || The Rivalry (baseball!AU) || The One Where They Elope (baseball!AU) 

Canon

A Change in Plans (Canon, Future) || I Would Sing You to Sleep (Canon, Killian & Milah Underworld) || Quite Where to Start (Canon, post-Jekyll)

Tumblr Prompts

Move In Just a Little Bit Closer || Friends With Benefits || Baseball Pants || Reunion Kisses || Best-Friend Feelings || Shouting Feelings || High School Reunion || Cooking in Canon || A Little Jealous || Fake Dating Prompt || Heart Sharing || Unexpected Kisses || Kiss Cam || More Out of the Frying Pan Kissing || Canon Injury || Borrowing Clothes || Watching Peter Pan (Canon, Future) || True Love Magic (Canon, Future || Apartment Keys || I’m Too Sober For This || Halfsies on a Baby || Um, Surprise || 

[crvores]

SCORPIUS HYPERION MALFOY really is the spitting image of FROY GUTIERREZ, right? For someone only 22 years old, SCOR has been forced to endure so much. Yeah, that PUREBLOOD has been scraping by at the sanctuary since AUGUST, 2028, working as a HEALER-IN-TRAINING AND RESEARCHER in the DIVISION OF HEALING. HE is a CIS MAN and is known to be CAPTIOUS and DISMISSIVE but also FERVENT and RESOURCEFUL. Best of luck surviving through this.  

CHARACTER PARALLELS: Amy Santiago (B99), Claire Temple (Daredevil), Chidi Anagonye (The Good Place), Giles (Buffy TVS), Michelle Jones (Spiderman: Homecoming), Elizabeth Swan (PoTC), Spock (Star Trek), Clarke Griffin (The 100), Gregory House (House) suggested honorable mention Gizmo (Gremlins)

[tw for patricide/parental death, desc of blood, substance abuse/addiction, under the cut]

scorpius was living in a tiny flat along diagon alley, flooing in to saint mungos for his healing apprenticeship monday to friday. when the wards came down around wizarding london he was holed up as the chaos ensued below, frantically trying to floo call the manor.

when he arrived at malfoy manor after crawling out of a skylight and apparating to the road alongside the driveway he was greeted by the gates hanging off their hinges. though he can only speculate, due to his father’s continued reclusiveness and refusal to return to assist the death eater ranks a horde were nudged none-too-gently toward the isolated house.

draco opened his eyes after burning through a fever too high to be calmed by any spell from his mother’s wand. just as he had always been. upon returning to consciousness he didn’t immediately reach for his wand, a fact which both astoria and her son found to be terribly odd. no matter the ailment, the circumstance, the time, draco malfoy had always curled his fingers around the hawthorn like a talisman when waking since it had been returned to him after the war.

the ensuing twenty minutes are something which scorpius has begged to have scoured from his mind, yet he knows he can never let himself forget killing his father. it fundamentally changed him in a way that is irrevocable.

as he and astoria fled the manor, no hope of the two of them alone eliminating the inferi on the grounds and securing it, his mother clamped a hand around his wrist and attempted to apparate them to an old greengrass property, a magical panic room of sorts. scor was badly splinched and ended up dumped 80 miles away from where his mother had landed.

he gathered copious notes from observations of the inferi in his time on the outside. temperature recorded, time of day, wind direction, sentience, and activity were all meticulously written down in an attempt to conserve his sanity while on his own. scor feels as though he had no trouble discerning infected from the living when he was out there and when he was filled in upon joining the others he speculated that a part of his brain concerning the glamours had just been burnt out. unfortunately since arriving this has been completely disproven and he’s trying to work out if the fear response or any other factors had anything to do with it.

since arriving at hogwarts, half-starved and wild-eyed he has thrown himself into the effort with a single-mindedness of someone attempting to forget every aspect of their own life. he doggedly continues his healing work, any time not spent at the infirmary is glued to his workbench and harassing the living shit out of the research department. drawing up hypothesis after hypothesis from the bits of infected he’s managed to have the privilege to pick at. if anyone interrupts him or makes what he decides is an unnecessary contribution he has a horrid habit of biting their head off.

while before he would play up and sneer, act posher than posh and generally fucked with anyone who had a problem with his family, specifically his father, now he will go absolutely stone-faced and has several times nearly had to be restrained because he will go off like a tiny, weedy bomb with a dangerously extensive knowledge of human anatomy.

neglects a lot of his own needs; goes days without sunlight, only eats when prompted to, hardly sleeps. a mess but trying his best. has a dangerous habit of consuming dreamless sleep but guilt at using valuable resources is essentially the only thing stopping him from launching headlong into addiction. lily and various others have a tally going on how many times scor says the words ‘i’m fine.’ in a single week and he suspects theres a pretty wide pool on the betting now.

he’s not all bad tho!! he can be a right softy if he knows you well enough and always always always wants to help. just… he’s a lil prickly rn.

skinny and kind of sickly, he never had the best health as a kid. he scars very easily and bruises like a gd peach. pretty alright on a broom but he has no real interest in playing quidditch. he’s always cold, he’ll be sitting in direct sunlight and complaining about needing a scarf. yeah hes that dude.

kind of craves attention? while being an introvert sometimes he just wants someone to pay attention to him until he gets annoyed by it and tells them to piss off. fickle.

his url is the italian word ‘cruores’ which means flowing blood and the latin ‘cruor’ which roughly refers to coagulating blood; gore.

      Full Name: Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy Gender/Pronouns: Cis man | he/him Age: Twenty-two Birthdate: January 20th Parents: Draco Malfoy & Astoria Malfoy (née Greengrass) Siblings: N/A. Birth place: St. Mungo’s Hospital, England Height: 5’11” Weight: 56 kg Sexual/Romantic Orientation: Demiromantic Bisexual Nationality: English Body Alterations/Marks: Terrible splinching scars up his left hand, arm over to his chest and shoulder blade. 

                                  Blood Status: Pureblood Hogwarts House: Slytherin  Wand Arm: Right Wand: 11 2/3 inches, Willow, supple, Dragon Heartstring. Hogwarts House: Slytherin Pet: A crested toad named Jarvis. Special Abilities: None. Patronus: Arctic Fox

                                Personality Traits: brilliance, innovation, individuality, openness, social consciousness, inventiveness, practical skill and self assertion; lack of attachment to people and the “real world,” over-intellectualizing of the emotions, dismissiveness, a crotchety temper, rigidity, intellectual arrogance, and stubbornness. Zodiac Sign: Aquarius/Capricorn Cusp Moral Alignment: Neutral Good Core values: Loyalty, Knowledge, Hope Four temperaments: Melancholic  

HOGWARTS HOUSE BREAKDOWN 

Slytherin Primary and a Burned Ravenclaw Secondary.

Slytherin Primaries prioritize their own selves and loved ones first. Slytherins don’t feel guilty or selfish about this– they feel righteous and moral. The most important thing is to look after your own. Abandoning or hurting one of your own is the worst thing you can do.

A Burned Ravenclaw Secondary might want to be skilled, curious, and prepared, but they feel like they are (or like people think they are) limited, clumsy, or inconstant. Gathering knowledge, hobbies, skills, or tools is the right way to achieve their goals, but Burned Ravenclaws know that’s not going to work within their capabilities. So they take other paths and use other tools– maybe a Gryffindor’s bluntness, a Slytherin’s flexibility, or a Hufflepuff’s slow and steady dedication.

You may have a Hufflepuff Secondary Model.

Hufflepuff is the House of grit, reliability, and determination, and Hufflepuffs use those values to help live, act, and succeed. If you model Hufflepuff Secondary, you also value these things and like to live by them. You like to be hardworking, dedicated, and consistent– but you wouldn’t feel guilty for abandoning those values in the service of other, higher priorities. If there’s another, easier way to get what you want– you’d take it. You think hard work provides valuable rewards– and those rewards are why you work. The work doesn’t have persuasive value in itself.

the stillness of the world the moment you take the first step into fresh snow, cashmere and fine wool, the pearlescence of dreamless sleep draught, the scratch of a quill on parchment, faintly tremoring fingers, a shiver up your spine in a warm room, the exhilaration of a problem solved, a thunderous grey overcast sky, the bite of a stitching charm, sleeves rolled up to the elbows, petrichor, the burn in your eyes before a well of tears.

so excited to be back in this verse >:) 

[unimpressedperson]

Jackpot | pt. 3 [FINAL]

(Found this picture in @youthstuffs , thank you for posting it)

Genre: Fluff and Crack, I guess…

Warnings: None

Pairing: Kim Namjoon x @taesbetch , Kim Namjoon x Reader

Word Counting: 8.5k

Synopsis: Nya spent her whole life in Las Vegas, she would never imagine that local knowledge would ever be useful. However, her vision changed when Kim Seokjin appeared and introduced her to a few friends, film producers, whose needed guidance through Las Vegas underrated places for a movie. She agreed in working for them, and in that moment none of their lives would ever be the same. What happens in Vegas, not always has to be kept in Vegas.

A/N: Heeeeeeeey Nya!! Finally the last chapter! The oneshot has originally 20.958 words, so I decided to split it in three chapters. It’s the final one. The closure of this rhapsody (am I cocky, lol?), yeah. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I loved writing, ‘cuz it was fun talking about RPDR, movies, Vhope, Jeon Seagull, Namjoon, you, Dragon! Yoongi au spitting fiiire oooh, Star Trek references, etc :) Forgive any grammar mistakes.

- x - x - x - x -

Yoongi knew it. He fucking knew it in the moment Namjoon began contending about some girl willing to guide them through Las Vegas. He saw back in then that something would rotten up during the process. Nothing could ever go soft and swift, every damn time, Kim Namjoon would come up with some drama, or Hoseok and Taehyung would fight, or the pipes from their filming location would BUST IN GEYSERS FROM EVERY WALL AND FLOOR.

He could gain money by showing off his auguring powers. At least from some dumb folk like Namjoon.

They worked together for 10 years. A decade living through ups and downs, but what kept their Cinematography Company moving and succeeding was the timing. Namjoon directs a successful movie, then gets involved with someone, breaks up and directs a shitty movie. It was a cycle in which Yoongi never complained and watched happening time after time. In 10 years, Kim Namjoon proved to be a genius and that he acknowledge the romantic vicious cycle, never defying it by getting involved with someone after almost breaking their business.

In situations of risk like these, Yoongi takes over his Spock role and always gives good advices to Captain Namjoon. It was his Vulcan power, after all. The Enterprise never bankrupted precisely because everytime one of the bosses made a bold move or a bad decision, someone would soothe it with a better idea or stopping before happening.

This time, though, Namjoon was being a stubborn bitch. Yoongi considered the idea of poisoning him and keeping the whole company under his name and charge.

Oh, he really pondered and even searched for undetectable poisons, but their 10 years story spoke louder than the homicidal side of Min Yoongi.

Kim Namjoon and Min Yoongi met whilst working. They were producing the songs from a  soundtrack, after so many nights of writing and playing instruments, sometimes all by themselves, their similarities brought them closer. A beautiful and honest friendship blossomed, nurtured with honest, curses, talent, humor, sarcasm and a lot of partnership.

Eventually, their dreams became way too big and only working for a company wasn't satisfying them. With their savings combined, Namjoon and Yoongi registered a firm called “Enterprise Inc.”. They had the name and ideas, but only when Taehyung and Hoseok appeared that their machine began working.

Independent movies were becoming a trend, so their company grew and more people got hired to different task. Jimin, Jungkook, Emerson, Jade, Taylor, Shmaillah, Zariah and Robin were now part of their big family. They treated each other like relatives.

However, since not everything happened smoothly, Namjoon also had his flaws. Unfortunately, his passion and volatility affected financially their business and finances. Kim Namjoon loved loving, but his kind of love changes fast and finishing a relationship always turned him into a grumpy man.

His longest relationship lasted 1 year and a half, with an author and professor of Creative Writing at London Institute of Art, Barbara. Unfortunately, their break up made Namjoon extra unbearable, to a point where the actors hired would quit and the filming had to be stopped. His mood swings almost led Enterprise to declare bankrupt.

Of course Yoongi dated, actually he's been officially living with Emerson for over five months, but his personal life never affected the professional. Home feuds stayed at home, even because his girlfriend worked as head from the Enterprise's Marketing and Advertising department.

After discussing, they slept for four hours. Yoongi always valued his sleep and would rest whenever (and wherever) possible, but their argue made the atmosphere inside the room unbearable. Namjoon couldn't sleep as well, he knew Min was right, but and if he allowed himself getting closer to Nya, then doubtlessly at some point would end up falling for her. Namjoon was an assumed romantic mushy, but with a volatile heart.

They went to the buffet, dragging a sleepy Jungkook and an awaken Hoseok jogging, dancing, humming and texting his boyfriend, also animated and sending copious audios thrilled with the last night events. Even though it was already noon, people having breakfast could be seen all around.

— I can see a whole bunch of people with last night’s makeup smudged. Walk of shame, guys. - Jungkook murmured after drinking a whole mug of coffee.

— You walked in the hotel with someone else’s skirt, smudged makeup and cummed pants in a brown paper bag. Walk of shame, bro. - Yoongi grinned and stared at Jungkook.

— Last night was nuts, wasn’t it? - The younger one asked, sipping from his second mug. - We started in a bar and end up in a Ball. What the fuck, I love my life.

— Yeah. Crazy night. - Namjoon disassembled himself from the conversation with a sweep of hand.

Jungkook could feel the tension around. Namjoon and Yoongi were clearly pissed at each other, and it was palpable around. The air was borderline toxic with so much electricity. However, Jeon could rightfully guess why. In his time working for Enterprise Inc., that same negative energy surrounded them plenty of times before. Currently, everyone knew their financial situation, since two actors decided to leave the project in order to get away from Namjoon and his bad temper, and one actress who broke contract after being casted to a bigger production.

Min Yoongi and Kim Namjoon were great egos and minds. Working together represented war and success. They bickered, yet found ways to reconcile and respect each other’s differences, at least during toil days of finishing every detail, since both were also meticulous with lighting, angles, planning thoroughly even colours and shades. In fact, Jungkook graduated in cinema, but most of his practical knowledge was obtained by watching his bosses.

For a matter of fact, Jungkook could have chosen to remain in Korea and work with K-Dramas, movies or even MVs. Their cinematography industry was in constant growth, Jeon would never actually be unemployed, mainly with his fame as an idol. Even though his payment wasn’t the highest one, residing in London wasn’t impossible or uncomfortable, he could be classified as a wealthy lad, since the fame acquired during his boygroup years still paid him for image copyright licensing.

Jungkook was so famous in Korea, that every film produced by Enterprise Inc. sold like water on desert. Their film grossing came 6% from Seoul only. His stardom reached such a level that Jeon Seagull was mentioned beside great names like BIGBANG and Super Junior.  

When Jungkook became 25 years old, his biggest fan club in England during a whole month sent 25 roses to the Enterprise Inc. building daily.

Although, even with fame and constant proofs of how influential he still was, Jungkook felt good by being treated like a younger brother. No one gave him a special treatment or rolled out a red carpet whenever he walked around. Once, after having a small party at Yoongi’s place, he vented with his hyungs about fame and all, Min Yoongi stared at him blankly and said placid:

— I couldn’t care less about your idol life and shit. For me, you are Jeon Jungkook and works with film editing, you can even sing whilst doing your job, but it will never earn you a golden star.

It worried him watching his hyungs and main inspirations brawling, probably over Namjoon’s love interest in Nya and how it would affect his work. Also, Jungkook knew about money problems and thought about offering some cash to help and stabilize their finances, however everyone knew Yoongi would rather sell a kidney before accepting any loan.

— NOO!! - Hoseok yelled and punched the table, cell phone still on his other hand and eyes furiously staring at the screen. That unexpected behavior startled everyone.

— What happened? Did someone die? - Namjoon questioned, genuinely worried.

— No! But someone is about to! Taehyung finished watching The Umbrella Academy without me! I'm going to kill my boyfriend! - Hoseok declared and began typing furiously.

- x - x - x - x -

Nya felt an apprehension in the air, like something was off. Namjoon and Yoongi barely looked at each other, definitely not a subtle change from their past behavior. It could be only a hangover, or not. Well, she wasn’t in such position to question them.

Whilst Namjoon and Yoongi were silent, Hoseok and Jungkook were jamming to whatever played on the radio, creating choreographies out of blue and pulling the grumpy men. Maybe in a common day things were like that, very balanced: two neutrons and two protons.

Their last demand was going to thrift shops, and places selling wigs. Their desire was an order, so Nya chose “Opportunity Village Thrift Store” and Honey’s favourite place to buy wigs.

The ride to Opportunity Village seemed to last forever. Namjoon wanted to talk and have fun along with Nya, Hoseok and Jungkook, but Yoongi could consider it flirting and throw a homeric tantrum. Oh, he would die out of embarrassment.

Arriving was a relief. Yoongi stretched his legs and stared at Jeon. Before leaving the hotel, they decided that having Yoongi always sitting on Hoseok’s lap wasn’t fair, so using their best tool of democracy (a.k.a rock, scissor, paper) the last ones would play to decide who would flump and who would be flumped. In conclusion, maintaining a Jungkook steady during a car ride isn’t comfortable.

Opportunity Village Thrift Store looked huge. Garment tracks, clothing rails, huge baskets and hampers with colourful fabrics and shoes. It felt like a paradise and a warzone. Namjoon seriously considered the idea of diving in one of them, only to test how it feels like, but kept a composed behavior.

Nya got in and pulled a huge pink coat from one of the baskets, throwing it in Yoongi’s direction, whose first reflex was to deviate, watching the fabric becoming a puddle on his feet. He picked it up and dressed. Understanding it as an ice-breaker, everyone else decided to have their fun exploring what the store had to offer.

— I’m gonna pop some tags. Only got 20 dollars in my pocket. - Hoseok began singing happily, getting out from the fitting room with a huge ass fur coat covering down his knees, pink glasses and platform shoes.

Jungkook was with his body halfway in one of the baskets, but after listening the fitting room’s door opening, he stood up using a baseball cap, a t-shirt made of black tulle with Xs covering the nipples. Hoseok never behaved discreetly, but seeing him all dressed up and singing Macklemore, it made Jeon cackle and sit on the ground.

— You look like an asian version of Elton John on a budget! - Jungkook managed to utter between guffaws.

Before Jungkook died out of laughter, Namjoon showed up with a brown ushanka covering his lilac hair, white jacket with voluptuous shoulder pads and a brown clutch. Jung was about to pronounce something, when Kim opened a huge and glittery fan that was hidden inside the jacket’s pocket.

— You look like a cheap version of Adam Lambert, Jeon. - Namjoon sounded serious, but a quirk dimpley smile took over his features.

Everyone laughed and looked around for Nya, since Yoongi was anything but undercover with his bright pink coat, sitting on one wooden bench close to the fitting rooms, he typed something on the cellphone, a deadly serious face, not even paying attention to all foolery.

The woman emerged from the third and last fitting room. She was using a dress made of golden sequins, her cleavage in evidence and left leg standing out of a opening. Namjoon, Jungkook and Hoseok shut up and stared at her in awe.

— Can someone please make a joke so I will feel less embarrassed? - She muttered, cheeks getting warmer and redder with their eyes laying on her stunning figure.

— Nya, Big Bird from Sesame Street called. - Yoongi pronounced without looking at her, still typing and unfazed. - He wants his drag queen dress back.

They got back to laugh until tears were streaming down their faces, even Yoongi giggled a little. Everyone went back inside a fitting room, dressing back their own clothes and going out, looking for more funny outfits.

…

Namjoon and Nya would never understand or feel able to explain how, but somewhere between laughing at a pair of ugly ass shoes and grabbing more stuff to try on, they found themselves making out inside one fitting room. Sitting on the ground, her legs straddling him and his hands cupping her ass, their mouths connected and only separated looking for air (or taking turns in kissing necks), lips moving in sync and desperately grinding against each other.

After a few minutes swirling tongues and trading saliva, they stopped gasping for air, foreheads touching and now fingers intertwined, laying on Namjoon’s lap. Nya smiled and gave him a quick peck, without saying a word. They agreed in making out without pronouncing syllables, got there and began smooching, not a single sound needed.

Namjoon moved his hands and posed them on her waist, smiling whilst staring and decorating every feature from Nya’s attractive face. The dimples, oh those dimples, she held his face and began kissing those goddamn cute details. Namjoon moved his face a bit, getting back to peck her lips passionately.

— I don’t want to leave this fitting room ever again. - Namjoon whispered watching Nya hop off his lap and sit beside him, laying her head on his shoulder, a long arm enveloping around hers.

— If we are going to do something else, then we gotta leave. - Nya murmured and caressed his clothed knee, making small heart shapes there.

— I like the way you think. - His free hand lifted her chin leaning a little to kiss there again.

Before they could even think about continuing the make out session, a loud knock on the door was heard, startling them. Namjoon froze on his spot when a deep voice was heard, most specifically Yoongi’s voice.

— Kim Namjoon, why is Nya inside a fucking stall with you? - He sounded pissed off and it scared even the woman.

— W-who told something about Nya being here? - Namjoon questioned, trying to keep his cool.

— Who told me? A blue bird appeared to tell me. - His sarcasm sharp and killer like a knife, as always. - I COULD HEAR SOMEONE WHIMPERING FROM THE FRONT DOOR! AND IT WAS YOUR WHIMPERINGS!

Looking around, Namjoon tried to find another exit other than the door, in vain of course. Nya noticed Yoongi’s frown when he saw they kissing the day before, but would never imagine how against making out with her. By the way, why did Min even cared about it? Well, she didn’t understand, but Kim’s reaction surprised her: Glancing around desperately, fidgeting and anxious.

Did Yoongi carry a gun with him after all?

— Namjoon, you know I wouldn’t care about your romantic life, if you were capable of dicking down someone without falling in love and ruining our business! - Yoongi scolded profusely, words spitted like fire. The small man had flames inside his belly, always keen to burn whoever dared to cross his path and stumble. When their partnership became real and moneymaking, Namjoon’s creativity and intellect lost ground to Yoongi’s audacity, geniality and incredible honesty. Everyone in a meeting could witness how Min grows talking about money, market and tactics on getting attention, the same way Kim shrinks. 148 IQ points, tall and intimidating, but the business head looked like a human Hamtaro.

Indeed, Namjoon felt rickety closer to Yoongi. Who wouldn’t? Although their partnership equally shared in 50% of profit between them, who always controlled their accounts and hired people was Yoongi. Kim Namjoon was creative and smart, but Min Yoongi was ferocious, visionary, not afraid of facing bigger companies and calling attention to their work. Success depends on many more aspects than a well produced movie, knowing how to speak with business man, sell their product and spread their name. The universe knows Enterprise Inc., Mr. Spock always the mind, Captain Kirk their face and voice.

Namjoon wholeheartedly respected Yoongi, which was a mutual feeling.

It’s not like Yoongi was perfect and never made mistakes during their ten years career, running a filming company and producing polemical content.

Seven years ago, Min Yoongi dived from head to toe in a project about korean idols selling girls around the world, promoting prostitution and drug dealing. The movie was a mixture of documentary and fiction. Purposely or not, apparently the villain portrayed resembled a lot a certain manager from some big entertainment company and they were sued. Back in then, drowning in debts, Namjoon sat down and studied similar cases, learning with someone else’s past equivocation, he based their marketing on that judicial situation.

In the same way his sharp tongue and bold behavior made them big, Yoongi also caused a lot of trouble by saying something offensive. Once, Min Yoongi argued with a group of australian entrepreneurs, owners from a huge farm with mines around, a collaboration organised with Seokjin’s help was being discussed. Maybe joking about their political bias wasn’t the best choice of icebreaker, ‘cuz when they found themselves, Mr.Smith was red in anger and punching the table stopping himself from whacking Yoongi’s face.

However, Yoongi was right, Namjoon falls in love way too easily. Perhaps it was loneliness, or his massive levels of empathy. Fearing the loss of his company, Min Yoongi felt the grip and patience held along their trip fly away in the moment Jungkook and Hoseok appeared, but Kim and Nya were nowhere to be seen. Whimperings inside one stall, it was the last straw.

Nya and Namjoon got out the fitting room, red as beets. Yoongi had a hand covering his face, pissed off and trying to control his voice volume, not wanting to cause a stir.

— Why do you care? What happened of so serious? - Nya raised one eyebrow, still confused about Yoongi’s reaction about them making out. He would be sane to complain about public display of affection, but not the whole idea of someone kissing another human being.

— Namjoon is a workaholic, but also has a huge problem with loneliness. -  Yoongi slid the hand down his face and stared at her, dead opaque eyes. - Every single time he gets attached to someone and breaks up, who deals with his tantrums and childish behavior, grumpy face and irascible humour, believe me, wouldn’t be you, it would be me, our hired actors, and of course our ring of friends. He gets unbearable.

— But we are not dating or in love, if anything ever happened, it wouldn’t leave Vegas. You are overreacting. - She was clearly embarrassed with the whole situation, when did she expressed any feeling of passion? Nya flirted with Namjoon and mentioned sex, but never said anything about dating, falling in love, or whatever.

— Yoongi, you are being irrational. I’m not in love, we are just young, horny and getting along. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. - Namjoon backed up Nya, pissing the hell off of Min, who took a long and deep breathe.

— Exactly! What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, but you know who else will be staying in Vegas? Us. We’re coming back in a month and if you dick her down now, you will probably want to get another dose after. I want you fully focused on working in ‘Fierce’, not splitting your thoughts between tortuous falling in love and doing your job properly. - The shorter man spat, again fire coming off his mouth.

— I’m focused! I’m having fun, but also analyzing every place we’ve been to!

— Oh, you are focused, right? Focused like a fucking cannon under a drunk man’s watch! - Min Yoongi snapped, if he ever worried about not causing a stir, then it disappeared like Namjoon’s rationality. - Do you know what I was doing whilst everyone tried on clothes? I was trying to resolve some of our location renting problems and checking how the filming for our other projects are going. - He got closer to Kim, poking one of his long fingers against the taller one chest. - By the way, did you make any contact with Enterprise every since we landed in Vegas? Did you check your phone? Did you worry about anything other than inserting your dick in somewhere or someone?

— No, but… - Namjoon suddenly felt small and shrinking more and more.

— That’s what I thought! Your whole focused ass is whipped and willing to lose everything we fought for, all for one night stand with some random one!

— Shut up! - Nya yelled, flustered and vexed, stepping closer to Yoongi. - Don’t you dare referring to me as if I’m not here. Don’t you ever treat me like someone random, trivial. I’m not a random someone, I’m the one guiding you around Las Vegas for free. It may not be something as big as filming a movie, but it’s also helpful. - She poked Yoongi’s chest, he gave one step back, their discussion drawing attention from people looking around, Hoseok and Jungkook showed up. - Your posh ass can be rich, or the owner from a company, but don’t you dare talking about me like a brainless person, someone incapable of fucking with someone without growing fond of that person! Your friend can be sappy and weak minded, but I am not. You don’t know me, Min Yoongi.

— We better leave before anything else is said, right Joon? - Jungkook asked, pulling Yoongi by one arm in the door’s direction.

— Yes, please, I don’t think I can keep on guiding you guys, I would say I’m sorry, but it is not true at all. - Nya seemed gloomy, but also frustrated. They were discussing sexism and pre-concepts in a movie, but Yoongi’s opinion about her seemed far from awaken. Maybe it was more about Namjoon and his past relationships, but why couldn’t Min consider her vision? A relationship necessarily has to have two sides, and both agreeing with their terms. Even if Kim fell in love, nothing would ever happen again if Nya did not fancy it.

Women do have voices and their standpoint should be taken seriously.

Maybe Yoongi wanted to protect both parts from heartbreak or unhealthy obsession, but what a problematic way of showing his worries. Why couldn’t he just ask for Nya’s opinion? It’s not fair or right.

Nya watched them leaving, Yoongi frowning and Namjoon in shock, both being dragged down by Hoseok and Jungkook. Everyone inside the thrift shop staring at them, dividing their glances between Nya and the group.

- x - x - x - x -

Whilst packing their bags again, Yoongi checked his pocket list of goals for the travel. He concluded that everything needed was basically sorted, places chosen and their owners actually liked them, which would make it easier to bargain better renting prices. Their casting situation and debt with Nya could be solved within days and a few phone calls, since while Namjoon was flirting, Jungkook and Hoseok were doing some bullshitery, Min gave his cellphone number to a no number of people.

Staring at Namjoon and his gloomy eyes felt heartbreaking, but Yoongi knew that it was the right thing to be done. Kim needed to keep his head on the game. They only had one chance, and oh boy, Min Yoongi would hold it with claws and teeth.

Nya was a bewildering creature and, after filming everything, Yoongi would totally invite her to their premiere, however in order to actually having a Premiere, they first had to rent places, cast people, transport their shit, direct, film, edit, and first of all, not declare bankruptcy. Namjoon should’ve know better, acting like a horny teenager would be the death of them.

The lilac-haired man wished things could be different, but Yoongi was correct and sane: Kim Namjoon would never know how to balance a relationship with work, at least not without slipping at some point and getting hurt.

Namjoon was aware of his workaholic condition. All of his relationships got to dramatic endings after spending hours in a row inside his office, studio or even at home, but with a notebook almost morphing into his lap. Every single one of his past girlfriends were very understanding, and accepted that working represented over 80% of his life, routine and thoughts, but being pushed into the background felt tiring. Namjoon hurted himself so many times with that and promised to change, which never happened.

Let’s face it, his fate had nothing to do with a successful love life.

Truth be told, but never convinced. Namjoon thanked mentally Yoongi, he saved Nya from a very frustrating life beside him.

Hoseok and Jungkook didn’t dare to say a word from hotel to airport. No one felt the need. Silence seemed adequate and anything else would only trigger into bickerings. There was no energy or disposition to raise voices and argue.

Silence and rain, those words defined their travel back to England.

- x - x - x - x -

— Zariah finished the filming of “Beast”. She sent the files to Jimin and Jungkook, but I think they will need my help, since Jeon is stuck with all those sequential cuts Yoongi made during “Je M’appelle Carinè”, and Park is simultaneously working on the sound effects for our first animated short-film “Poundcake”, and in… Oh Jimin is recording the soundtrack to “Fierce”? I’m proud of him. - Taylor, a short, chubby young lady, with short brown hair and sparkling eyes, was standing in front of Namjoon’s office table, staring at her iPad and checking every information, whilst he stared blankly outside the window. - Should I keep on working as your secretary? Or can I help Kook and Chim Chim on editing “Beast”?

— What? What did you just say? - Namjoon looked at her, blinking fast and slowly getting back to reality. - Sorry, Tay. I lost myself in my mind again. It’s been happening more often than I would like to assume.

— That’s alright. - She pulled a chair and sat in front of him, placing the iPad on her lap. - What’s bugging you, Joon?

Namjoon gazed again outside, eyes oscillating between shining and getting opaque again. Where should he even begin with? His mind was hopping from thought to thought, concern to concern, and somehow, even filled with preoccupations, Nya always danced between daydreams and awaken nightmares. Despite trying his best to forget and move on, the lady with a contagious smile, beautiful eyes and the smoothest skin ever seen found her way back to divagations.

Enterprise Inc. wasn’t placed in a huge building, actually, they placed had to place a billboard outside to indicate where the firm resided. An ancient building about to be demolished, that’s why Namjoon and Yoongi could bid a whole four floor building for such a bargain. With its structure, the duo fixed some details and reformed every flat, turning into different studios. Every deck had a specific department: first video editing and animation (recently inaugurated by Taehyung and Hoseok after finishing their online animating course), second reserved to audio (both recording and editing, Yoongi built his office there) and characterization accessories, third filming studios, last everything related to managing (marketing, advertisement, Human Resources, Management, and of course, Namjoon’s office). No one would ever imagine how proud Kim and Min were of their achievements, every award and nomination resulted in motivation. They were succeeding, from the bottom and going higher.

Imagining himself waking up and heading to somewhere else, other than the building made of red bricks and black doors, that thought scared the shit out of Namjoon. He would never cooperate or live happily after declaring bankrupt and having to shut down his business, at least not after conquering so many prizes, awards, incredible movies under his name. No, closing doors would never be an option.

— Taylor, I know everyone is aware of how ramshackle is our financial situation. Those projects, “Beast”, “Je M’Appelle Carinè”, “Poundcake” and “Fierce”, are our last string of hope. That’s why we are rushing to finish and release them. - Taylor nodded, in fact, everytime Namjoon and Yoongi argued behind closed doors, rumours around the office were spread. - Specially “Fierce”, we are investing every dime left in that. It’s probably our most expensive and laborious movie, but we count on it to keep us working for a few more months. Two weeks ago me, Yoongi, Hoseok and Jungkook went to Las Vegas and rented places to film, but something happened there.”

“See, our guide, Nya, is the most dazzling creature alive. Not a single soul ever made me feel so impressed in my whole life, yet I can’t get attached to her. Not before finishing the filmings for “Fierce”, it would make me lose focus and possibly fuck everything up. It’s not my intention, but I can’t get her out of my head. Whenever I stop and think, she is there, dancing through my worries and thoughts.”

— Joon, why can’t you talk to her? - Taylor pushed her glasses down the nose bridge and raised one eyebrow. - It seems like by avoiding Nya, you are focusing in nothing else but her. Maybe this time your romantic curse was casted differently. You are not dating her, perhaps the vicious cycle is broken. Also, being unable to think about anything else won’t help you directing.

— I don’t know… - Namjoon pouted and laid his head against the wooden table, leaning the forehead there.

— When the filming to “Fierce” will begin?

— In two weeks. - Namjoon mumbled without raising his head, but now facing his brown walls. - We casted some american actors and actresses, our luggage is being packed, Yoongi made deals with every place to film, rented a house for the crew and us.

— You have two weeks to decide whether you want to invest in something with Nya, or not. It’s up to you. - Taylor made a flourishing movement with one of her hands, whilst standing up and staring again at the iPad. - Now about the “Beast” video editing...

— Go help Jimin and Jungkook. - Namjoon dismissed her and got back to his thoughts.

- x - x - x - x -

— Namjoon, you know I hate to accept when I’m wrong, huh? - Yoongi had an U shaped pillow around his neck, resting peacefully on a comfortable seat, whilst Kim typed on the notebook, adding some reminders on the script to himself. - But I think you should call Nya and ask her out.

— What? Why? - Namjoon turned his head and stared at Yoongi's unfazed face.

— You never had to take notes on scripts in order to work right. You are way a fucking genius, with 148 IQ points, had written masterpieces and composed glorious songs. - Min said without looking at his friend, but placing a hand on his knee. - In the past month you barely talked during reunions, you've been unfocused and divagating, also I spoke to Emerson, and she mentioned a certain talk you had with Taylor. Man, you need Nya and it's insane. You spent less than 24 hours by her side and now living without talking to her seems like a punishment. I don't understand how and why, but if contacting her during our permanence in Vegas will cheer you up, then I'm 100% supporting you. We need our leader, our main director.

Namjoon got back to typing without delivering a single sentence, Min’s hand still on his knee. Suddenly the space between their seats felt tinier, they were way too close and He needed to absorb Yoongi’s new position on Nya’s awe. Indeed, having his approval on looking for her was amazing, but how? During their trip to Las Vegas Min Yoongi said harsh things, leaving right after. Upon weeks of silence, even having Nya’s phone number saved, Namjoon never made effort to apologize, keep in touch or whatever. He respected Yoongi’s opinion, but his spitted phrases and dark tone made both parts highly uncomfortable.

He wanted and decided that looking for Nya was part of his plans whilst filming in Las Vegas, but embarrassment spoke louder and clearer. Namjoon wanted, but had no balls to accomplish it. At least not after remaining mute whilst Yoongi spat mean words at her, he could’ve defended their situation, stand up and put Min on his place. Well, what happened was far from ideal.

All Namjoon could think about, even before hearing Yoongi’s concerned and caring words about his mental state, was Nya, and what were the chances of her accepting to go on a date with him. Namjoon despised the idea of Nya evicting him.

Unlike Yoongi thought, Namjoon wasn’t in love before. It took him an array of nights stalking Nya’s Facebook page, checking her Instagram and reading how passionate her friends seemed to feel. Now, he felt obsessed and slightly uncomfortable with the idea of being dumped.

Nonetheless, Namjoon decided to pull himself together, grow a pair of balls and try. ‘No’ is a possibility, risking won’t harm.

Trying to gather some courage, the lilac haired man opened a new Word file and named “Captain’s Log”, getting in full Star Trek mode, he was Captain Kirk afterall.

“Captain’s log. Stardate -303753.640. We are arriving in the dusty and hot atmosphere of Las Vegas, a city located in the middle of Nevada, a state from United States of America, North America, one of the seven continents from planet Earth. My Vulcan friend, Mr.Yoongi, possessor of a great logical intellect is encouraging me to look for a human partner in our new location, specifically someone already acknowledged by Enterprise as homo sapien sapien, formed by carbon and XX chromosomes, turning it into a fascinating woman named Nya by her genitors. After our last expedition through Las Vegas, the relationship development between Enterprise’s Captain, yours truly, and terrestrial local resident Nya were harmed by Mr.Yoongi’s behavior towards her. Nevertheless, I’m willing to change our perspectives and get another chance.”

- x - x - x - x -

Saturday. A boring afternoon ghosting over Nya’s body, sitting on her couch along with Alexa. They were watching something about wildlife in Taiwan forests on National Geographics, a bowl with caramel popcorn between them and cups of mint tea. The curly-haired woman stared around her living room, noticing how the yellowish painting was peeling and slowly showing stripes of the white paint under it. Basically, her walls looked like an albino zebra. The purple sofa comfortable and everything else seemed pretty fitting, not needing to be replaced or moved. Oh, she was proud about her good taste in decoration.

Boredom hit Alexa like a truck and a deep grunt left her throat, almost scratching its way out. She grabbed the remote control and began zapping through channels, looking for something more interesting than animals mating or bullying each other.

— We should go out. You look like a mushy potato in that set of sweats. Is it yellow because you’ve been copiously using that for the past four weekends, or is it the original colour? - Alexa snorted, trying to combat boredom with jokes. - Honestly Nya, what the fuck happened? You explained something about Korean entrepreneurs, but as far as I know you’re not eager in investing on stock market, so I don’t know why their business would affect you. Did you get involved with one of them?

— No shit, Sherlock. - Nya mumbled and took a sip from her tea, trying to gather some words without sounding grumpy. - I have nothing to do with their business, but see, they hired me to guide them through Las Vegas. I’ve done that once before for one of their friends, the Seokjin guy I told you. Remember?

— Seokjin? The cocky and rich film producer? I remember him, he was funny and immensely confident, literally, I’ve never seen someone so sure about his looks. - Alexa kept her glance on the television. - Big dick energy at its finest.

— Yeah, him. - Nya avoided talking about Namjoon and cia, but now, completely alone with her best friend, it seemed like a good moment to vent. - One of the film producers I accepted to guide, he was funny, interesting, smart and a very good kisser, although, apparently someone deeply confusing. Like, I felt interest on him, but never said shit about being in love, unlikely what Yoongi understood and took as the gospel truth, his friend could cherish me with a thousand roses, but I would never date him and then break up, even because it takes more than 24 hours wandering around sin city and a good fuck for me to enamor someone.

“I don’t know how are the girls they know and usually go out with, but I’m not innocent. We don’t live in a book from Jane Austen. They claim to be so woke and liberal, discussing pre-concepts, sexism and homophobia on their scripts, but behaving and thinking like Mr.Darcy. Did they ever consider a scenario where women have voices and opinions? A scenario where I can easily say no and continue my life? See, I’m not hurt because I’m fancying Namjoon, but because from the moment they introduced themselves and their ideas, they seemed like progressivists, looking for equality, open-minded guys, willing to fight our biased society with their movies. However, Yoongi insinuating that Namjoon and I would ever date or engage in a long-lasting romantic relationship, without even considering my perception on it all, the possibility of the woman only looking for a good fuck. He literally throw a tantrum in a thrift shop about it, calling me some random one. The delusion hurt me.”

— Uh girl, I’m sorry about it. That Yoongi guy really assumed some fucked up things about you. - Alexa turned to stare at her friend, who didn’t spare a look from the television, even though she wasn’t actually watching it, only avoiding eye contact. - But you went through several deceptions along life, why is that different? What happened lately that you remain thinking about them? Or him?

Nya got tired of staring at nothing and met Alexa’s brown eyes, thick and beautiful eyebrows. She took her cell phone and found the long text Namjoon sent a few hours before, throwing it to the friend, keen to understand everything surrounding her grumpy aspect.

“Kim Namjoon [03/31/2019, 8h34min]: Hey Nya.

Sorry taking so long to contact you. I couldn’t find words apologizing my behavior four weeks ago. Unfortunately, there is nothing I can say now. I could’ve defended you, Yoongi acted like a jerk and said some hurtful things, which I don’t agree 100% with. I wasn’t in love back in then, but I understand his side from this story. Yoongi is worried about our finances, which I was the responsible for fucking up. Let me explain it all, expose the situation we unintentionally inserted you in.

A few months ago I broke up with an incredible woman who taught me a lot, but also couldn’t bear my working schedule and how I always set her aside. The career I built along with Yoongi always goes first, it’s my main priority, and I never learned how to balance ‘working Namjoon’ with ‘dating Namjoon’. The result of that break up was a moody me, who brought hell to surface and made two of our casted actors quit, they couldn’t deal with my humour (beside one who quit after receiving a better role somewhere else). It really cost us way too much, since they received for working day and we couldn’t ask their payment back. Also, when the infamous movie was released, the numbers were low and barely covered our bills and paychecks, media and critics criticized it harshly.

However, what happened is a vicious cycle which I’m stuck in. It’s one of the certainties from life: death, the ones most adaptable to change will survive and that I’m fucking up a relationship and then ruining a movie. Yoongi always found a way to contort it and put us back, saving our finances, but this time the loss was gigantic. Our company is solely relying on the success of ‘Fierce’, and a few other projects we will be releasing.

I’m not trying to find excuses for everything Yoongi spat to your face, he was rude and unnecessarily loud, but I’m begging you to consider his side as well. We are not up to losing our company, it’s our deepest fear. Min Yoongi and his stone cold heart is trying his hardest to get our butt off bankruptcy. I guess inside his head, he is willing to drag me away from anything considered as a distraction.

Now, enough of Yoongi and our financial trouble. Let's talk about feelings.

Yeah, I'm a lonely man and tend to get attached pretty easily. However, I wasn't in love with you. Nya, you seemed like someone really interesting and attractive, I'd rather chew my feet off than leave Las Vegas without kissing you. You are smart, independent, proactive, empathetic and friendly. Within hours being guided by you through Vegas, we saw how passionate you are about people you grew surrounded by, how you care deeply about them all and are willing to give up on money in order to help them.

By the way, our deal is still up and we casted your friends (Carol even gained a solo scene where she dances and Sasha got lines). Hopefully they already told you, but if they didn't and you are suspicious of my word, get in touch with everyone you introduced to us.

Continuing…

I wasn't in love with your back in then, but after two weeks thinking about it all and checking your social media (sorry about it :S), I grew fond of you. Everyone seems to love you so much and your heart is so big, couldn't help and now I, Kim Namjoon, am fancying you as well.

I'm not hoping to gain your mercy, but am willing to try and get your sympathy back. Would you go out with me sometime? Not in a romantic way, if you don't feel comfortable.

Again, I'm sorry about how it all began and hope we can fix it.

I'll be staying in Vegas for a while.

Thank you. Bye :) “

— First of all. Did he deadass structured the text like an e-mail? - Alexa looked up from the cellphone in time to see Nya grinning. - You are considering the idea of accepting his invitation? Girl, I ain't gonna tell you what to do, but that Namjoon doesn't seen to be a jerk, he could've just gave up, but he insisted and apologized. Did he actually casted everyone you asked to?

— Yes. Two weeks ago I received a text from Carol and Sasha, they thanked me and all. Tio Diego is also renting his bar for their movie. They also chose Paris as the main filming place, casting Honey too. - Nya felt divided, hoping on Alexa's opinion to define what should be done. - I'm still a bit hurt for what happened, but they proved their integrity by casting and renting everything and everyone I suggested. Namjoon apologized, gave me Yoongi's point of view and invited me to a date, giving me the option of saying no or defining if it's romantic or not.

— Nya, I don't see a plausible reason why you would say no. - Alexa’s hand snaked between them and landed on the other woman thigh. - You are only trying to find excuses because you are stubborn. If you want to, then go, get dicked down and you don't necessarily have to head back to him ever again. Even though he assuredly grew fond of you, it doesn't mean you obligatory have to engage in an actual relationship.

Nya huffed and slapped Alexa’s hand off her thigh. She hated when the girl with wavy black hair was right, and unfortunately Alexa seemed to never be wrong.

- x - x - x - x -

The night sky was clear and the air cool, wind making leaves from trees huff against each other and a chill run through everyone's spine. However, Namjoon felt sweat bidding down his forehead, anxiously shifting from one foot to another and resisting the urge to bite his nails.

The lilac-haired man was standing alone in front of Devito’s, same dining Nya took them the first night. His white t-shirt covered by a thin plaid shirt, jeans and white Converse, outfit plained specifically to seen laidback, since Nya chose the place and said it wasn't a fancy date. She was a ten minutes late and Kim had this crazy thought culminating in his mind, where she probably gave up and would call at any moment to dump him.

With 15 minutes of delay, Nya showed up dressed casually with a black Iron Maiden t-shirt, brown corduroy coat, skinny jeans and Vans. Her curly hair free and adorning the whole picture, no makeup, except for a cherry coloured lipstick. Flawless, Namjoon felt like his legs were made out of jelly and would collapse. His guts contracted in the same moment butterflies attacked his stomach. His mind hazing and suddenly his vocabulary vanished, being resumed by the extensive plethora of words pronounced by someone 2 years old, basically “bluh”.

The first half hour from their date felt weird. No one knew what to say, so small talk almost defeated them, but Namjoon decided to insist. Between eating burgers for dinner and dying out of embarrassment from going out in such situation, Kim decided to thank Nya.

His grateful words somehow touched Nya's heart. He sounded so sincere and whipped by her presence, that keeping the attitude of someone offended seemed pointless. Alexa was right, Namjoon liked Nya.

Goddamnit, Alexa.

Like a chain of gratitude, Nya thanked Namjoon for remaining faithful to his promise of casting her friends. He blushed and sipped on his fizzy cherry drink, grinning slightly, dimples marking their presence and reminding the woman why she thought Kim Namjoon was such a heartthrob beforehand.

Those dimples. Goddamnit, dimples. How can you be mad at someone desperately fluff with such a cute face? Nya wanted to stay loyal to her belief and hard feelings, but Namjoon's polite behavior, lovely face and insistence made it specially complicate.

Goddamnit, Namjoon.

Their body language clearly showed how the unsolved business led to a huge amount of sexual tension, Nya could bear it masterly though. Talking about everything and nothing at all, that's how Namjoon decided to speak his mind. What's the point of sitting and awkwardly pretend there is not an elephant in the room? Well, let's excuse it and set the pachyderm free then.

— Nya, I don't know if you are ever going to forgive me for not standing up for you, or whatever… - Namjoon's hand slipped swiftly closer to Nya's, touching her pinky but not holding it, avoiding more of an intimate contact.

— It's not that you didn't stood up or defended me, see there is so much more. Did you guys ever consider the idea that, I don't know, I could easily not want something serious with you? - She allowed his pinky to snake from her side and lightly take a hold of it. - I'm not mainly mad at you, disappointed with both Yoongi and you, though. For guys claiming to be so open-minded, then why is it so hard to assume I don't want a relationship? That I'm glad having something unofficial and leaving? Fuck, you make it so hard to believe you are an hypocrite.

— I'm not an hypocrite. I do believe in women's sexual freedom and ability to choose partners without necessity of commitment. I'm shitty at not getting attached, it doesn't mean that everyone else is also suckers for love. - His gaze was no longer on her eyes, but staring down to his own lap. - Indeed, we discussed my side, claiming I’d fall for you and ruin our project, but never considered your opinion, the possibility of you wanting nothing related to me. We behaved in such a sexist way, I’m profoundly sorry.

Their order arrived, someone almost spinning on her calves. Burgers and fries, so much cheese melting down the seeded bread. What a vision. If the conversation wasn’t in such an uncomfortable place, Namjoon would probably declare his passion for the juicy and greasy food in front of them.

The chit-chatting kept its slow pace. If National Geographics decided to make a parallel between their behavior and animals socializing, then they were trying to mingle, like Taiwan birds, Nya and Namjoon were singing in order to attract each other, hoping to link and connect. They got along once, why was it so hard to do it again? What wasn’t being said? Who was holding the cat inside the bag?

— I think I’m fancying you. - Namjoon finally took the cat out of the bag, or it could be a mice, ‘cause within seconds the elephant sitting on their conversation got up and left. Gone late, pachyderm.

— What? - Nya lifted an eyebrow. - I don’t know why I’m surprised, you said it in the message. Sorry, keep talking.

— When I closed all deals and rented everything we needed for the filming here in Vegas, my friends and my crew was all like ‘Heck yes, Vegas! Strippers, gambling, money, casinos, yaay!’, and even trying my best, the hardest, to focus on working and directing a masterpiece this script deserves to originate, all I could think about was you. - Namjoon decided it would be appropriate to look at Nya, she seemed unfazed, which made him nervous. - Travelling hours in a flying sardine can to see Nya! No one, except for the boys and Jin knew who you are, and kept on questioning me why so much anxiety and excitement over seeing you. And not even I understood. Working and wondering about what you could be doing really messed with my head. Nya, you messed with my head!

— Ok, Namjoon, it’s a lot of information. - She didn’t spare a look, he felt intimidated, but Nya’s behavior never showed any insecurity. - I don’t fancy you, but it doesn’t mean I cannot grow fond of you at any moment. However, in order to see it happening, you’ve got to insist. If you really want to be with me, then you’ll need to stick along, we’ve got to go out more, in different places. We can totally link up and have great sex today, but it won’t guarantee another row. Got it?

Well, Namjoon felt relieved. Nya was far from being mad at him. Oh, he remained willing to go out, as long as she was there.

In the end, if Nya and Namjoon’s story was something elaborated by Jane Austen, then it would be Sense & Sensibility. Nya and her sense changed how Namjoon dealt with his sensibility, breaking a vicious cycle, where engaging in a romantic relationship without previous thinking ruined all logical thoughts and mature behavior.

The end.