#it sucks to be in a ship and see everyone be so welcoming to shipping half of it with someone else

[beanarie]

i never wanted water once part 3

tommy is also breakup baking, prompted by my dear @sanguinarysanguinity

tw: mention of parent death, mention of child abuse

part 1

part 2

~

Gutierrez eyes him on his way out of the locker room. "Feel like no one ever sees you anymore. You coming back to the pickup game or what?"

"Oh." Tommy gives his damp hair one last rub from the towel. "I wasn't planning on it, to be honest. Too awkward."

Gutierrez frowns. "Why?"

"You know," Tommy says, wishing he didn't have to, "Eddie Diaz. I broke up with his best friend."

"Diaz hasn't shown in weeks. Probably got injured. You know how that crew is."

And that. Well. He and Eddie were friends. They became tight very quickly in a way Tommy hasn't experienced with many people. He shouldn't have thrown a connection like that away without at least trying to salvage it.

He sends a text, a polite, generic one asking about his welfare. Worst thing that can happen is Eddie tells him to fuck off and he's back where he started. He fully expects to be left on read.

He does not expect Eddie to tell him he's moving back to Texas because he's given up on his son deciding to come home. Eddie invites him to a pre-going away dinner at a bar and grill before he goes down South for a few days to scout out homes. And, no, absolutely not. But Tommy proposes getting a drink, just the two of them. Eddie very validly explains that he can't spare the time, since he's already started packing up his life and he's working overtime to save up for a down payment. Tommy gets it. He does.

The day after the dinner, Eddie calls him. "Hey, man. I know we're like two ships passing in the night, but I didn't want to leave without a proper goodbye. I still got some more shifts before I move for good, but the time will go by quick. We'll just stay on the line, okay? Keep me company while I go through my kitchen cabinets."

"It's good to hear from you," Tommy says honestly.

"So yeah." Eddie hums. "Why'd you do it?"

"Text you?" Tommy says. "I heard that-"

"Kinard," Eddie says, unamused.

"Yeah. Sorry."

"You just didn't seem the type to flee."

None of you know me as well as you thought you did, Tommy doesn't say. That's not fair to any of them. "I wasn't, in the past. Well, I tried not being that. A couple times. It didn't work out."

"Oh," Eddie says. "There it is."

"There what is?"

"You've got shit."

"Haven't we all?"

"Hey, I am not denying that." Eddie chuckles. "Do you plan on dealing with it, or letting it blow up every good thing you find until you die?"

"Jesus, Eddie."

"What's the point in mincing words? You did something dumb and destructive. What kinda friend would I be if I let that go without saying anything?"

"So what's the weather even like in El Paso? Does it ever get below 100?"

After a groan, Eddie lets Tommy talk about his shit, about Texas, parenthood, and chess clubs, for the rest of the call. Tommy can't say that he'll miss him. He missed him already and now he gets to continue doing so. All of this sucks.

Tommy tries his hand at gnocchi made with ricotta, lemon, and pepper that subsequently almost causes a fistfight during B shift.

Demetra favors him with a warm smile, taking in the large box in his hands. "Tom, right? Welcome! What's all this?"

"Tommy," he says easily, impressed she remembered his name at all. He hasn't been to this slightly dusty community center in five or six years. "Uh, this is garlic knots and mini calzones."

"Well, hey. You're even more welcome than before. Come take a seat."

December is a stupid time to rejoin group, many of the participants close to the edge from a cocktail of seasonal depression, missing dead loved ones, and generalized loneliness. Tommy knew it would be like this going in. He counted on it. Everyone will have so much to say that there likely won't be any time for him to open his mouth. He's not ready to spill. It will help to just soak in the atmosphere of unashamed honesty for a while.

At his third meeting, Cal, a slender guy in his mid twenties with a curly mohawk, keeps bringing up his mother. "She never wanted me to enlist," he says, "and now that I'm back home and struggling, she can't stop being all 'I told you so' morning, noon, and night. She never says it, but she is thinking it."

"Is she?" Tommy finds himself asking. "Or are you putting something on her that isn't there?"

"Maybe so." Cal pops one of Tommy's fried ravioli in his mouth and chews thoughtfully. "I don't know, I should probably give her a chance, think first about what she's actually saying before I react. But it's hard in the moment, you know?"

"Tommy?" Demetra says a minute later, making him feel like a kid being called on by the teacher. "How's your relationship with your mom?"

"Nonexistent. She died when I was fifteen." He crosses his ankles. "Fell asleep in the car on our way back from an away game and we couldn't wake her up. Heart attack."

Demetra frowns sympathetically. "That must've been hard for a kid to witness."

"I've seen so much worse since then. People shot in the head by machine guns, people covered in burns over most of their bodies..."

Demetra shakes her head slightly. "They weren't your mom."

He ducks his head, pressing his lips together. "True. It's just- That's not- It's not trauma. I don't fear falling asleep and not waking up."

"What do you fear?" Cal asks.

Being left, being hurt, being validated in his belief that no one will ever see him for all he is and choose to stick around. "Standard stuff, really. Clowns, taxes, drivers on the freeway."

He gets a pity laugh, a groan or two, and one outright glare. "Okay, okay." He exhales loudly. "Ending up alone by someone else's choice rather than mine."

"So you're cool with being on your own, as long as you're the one keeping everyone away," Cal says.

God, that sounds idiotic. "Yes?"

"You prefer it like this?" asks a woman about his own age wearing a green bomber jacket.

He shrugs. "It's not ideal, but as far as worst case scenarios go, it's okay. It's fine."

"It's spineless," says a gray-haired man with a Desert Storm hat.

Tommy doesn't flinch. "Yeah, that's kind of an inherent character trait. I keep thinking I got it licked, then it shows up wearing another face. Scared of my dad, so I joined the army and became someone he couldn't hurt anymore. Scared of people knowing I was gay, so I waited to come out until I was surrounded by brand new people. Scared of my boyfriend leaving, so." He pushes at the skin above his knees, kneading it. "So I left him first."

"You fall back," says Bomber Jacket. Her name is Annie or Angie. She has conflicted feelings about dating a man with kids. "It's easy to stop being scared when the thing that scared you is far away."

He hears Eddie. You just didn't seem the type to flee.

Demetra holds up a hand. Tommy's face must be doing something concerning. "No one here faults you for what you did to survive. Is it still serving you, is the question, or is that just what you're used to?"

He doesn't bake when he gets home. He drinks half the beers in his fridge and does a shockingly efficient job of cleaning his house, while drafting and deleting twenty-seven different texts. He then wakes up the next day, and goes to the pickup game.

Gutierrez scores four rebounds on him and doesn't shut up about it for the rest of their next shift. Tommy grumbles, and talks shit, and promises he won't have much to brag about next time.

[apenapaperandadoofus]

Oof it’s been a while honestly I’ve been going through itttt anyway part 12 of mom reacting to tgcf

Mom thought the Ho Ho scene was hilarious she’s a full Pei Ming fan now

Like when the bull part had happened she began to love him so much, she cried for like five minutes straight at Pei Ming being thrown by the bull lmaoooo like we had to S T O P for a moment she couldn’t

Also kept laughing at the spiritual exchange scene she can’t.

Was also flabbergasted at the sword magical girl transformation scene and I just thought wait until they do the transformer heavenly capital one pfttt.

Like I said previously she sat me down while she was sweeping and told me she thought the Wuyong Prince was the white clothed calamity and that that was Wuwu and he was angry and sad cuz his people died and I was flabbergasted at her guessing it. But then she also thought it was SQX?! 😭

When we saw SQX again tho she was SO happy she was the equivalent of my shaylaaaaaa and she was so sad but so happy

She keeps saying “omg Juan is so naughty now what the hell mister behave” now lmaoo

When the time came for the big bad reveal I asked her for a last guess and she didn’t say Jun Wu just the prince of Wuyong.

She at first thought it was that XieXie had a divided soul and was crashing out like “noooo no don’t tell me it’s XL don’t tell me it’s him” like I’m not kidding she was STRESSED

Like I paused for a dramatic moment and she went “WHICH ONE IS IT”

When it was revealed the Wuyong Prince was White No Face the book says “he knew it!” And my mom proudly went “so did I!!”

Then when Jun Wu was revealed she was like OH MY GOSH I KNEW WOHOO WASNT TRUST WORTHY

then she was disappointed at Ling Wen being evil rip

Was SO sad at Yin Yu dying she went through all five stages of grief I’m not kidding lmao she was like “NO HE HAS TO COME BACK RIGHT? RIGHT?”

Every time Jun Wu kept appearing now she was like oh fuck off

Also she was like “no if I could write a fanfic I would do this” (welcome to my moms now fanfic/ AU I guess? Lmao. She said she would make SQX work for Hua Cheng, then have Yin Yu not die and work in heaven, Shi Wudu come back as a ghost and surprisingly enough, have Pei Ming as emperor!

Mother supports the Pei Ming emperor propaganda lmao she said she doesn’t think XL would be into it. She said Pei Ming can be the emperor with Yin Yu as his assistant and the three tumors as well and I thought it was cute.

At the brocade immortal she immediately say “ask XieXie to kiss you 😏” she enables Juan’s behavior 😭 (tho considering my father is also a massive tease to everyone in general I understand why she likes the trait lmaooo)

When HC got hit by XL and was like what a nice punch Gege! She said “HES LIKE JINSHI FROM APOTHECARY DIARIES (we read it too) HES A MASOCHIST” and yknow what. Yes. Yes he is.

When we got to Jun Wu’d backstory she felt so sad for him actually, she kept going “no poor Wooho that’s so sad :(”and it’s nice to see her at least feel empathy for Jun Wu but still hate his guts for what happened lmao (I personally love Jun Wu as a character but hate what he did to XL. He’s an awesome bad guy tho)

She also sees the JunMei ship she’s a shipper she said “he’s his Hua Cheng” and yknow what. I can see some of it. They’re in their divorce era tho

We read Hua Cheng meeting MNQ and she thought it was HILARIOUS she was like “suck up to the father in law Juan you can do it” and kept laughing at MNQ’s distress pftttt it’s so funny how he’s like “I’m an ally but WHY A GHOST KING”

I don’t remember when but XL mentioned the ashes and mom got super horrified “NO DONT TELL ME HES GOING TO DIE AGAIN AMANDA HE BETTER NOT DIE” and I’m like 😀 honey you got a big storm coming

I think it might be one of her favorite books now cuz she tells me every time she’s enjoying it so much, she literally can’t stop thinking about it.

She also I think will read fanfics about it cuz I’ve mentioned some to her and she’s like “send it to me pleaseeee” and she also asked me to show her MINE and I’m like mom NO my ao3 account is not for your eyes. 😭

Anyway that’s all for now, we’re like halfway through book 7 and finishing up soonnnnn, I’ll give her general summaries of some danmei and see which one she likes.

Part 11

[burningcheese-merchant]

Alrighty. I hate saying this, but. I'm probably going to delete the ship discourse asks in my inbox. Too many in there now and my mind is too clear to want to answer them

I think we've all been harsh with each other recently. Shouldn't have had to sleep on that, shouldn't have taken me longer than a few minutes to realize that, but idk. I went to bed last night and woke up this morning and... remembered how old I am and that I have better things to care about lol. But seriously, this recent update has really gotten to people's heads, mine included unfortunately, so I think we all need to take a step back and reevaluate ourselves

To try to explain (not excuse) myself personally. I, my friends and acquaintances, and our little fan community have gotten so much harassment for so long that now that the story is sort of tipping in our favor, I felt... vindicated. TOO vindicated this time around lol. For years and years now we have all been viciously mocked, shunned, called misogynists, called abuse apologists, we've been told to kill ourselves, we've been told bad things should happen to our loved ones. I couldn't help but feel smug when episodes 7 and 8 dropped, and then episodes 9 and 10 pushed me into being legitimately petty and mean. Like, all of this harassment was already pointless, now it's even more pointless because BxA is canon. Sore winner, "they hated Jesus because he told the truth" type shit lol

But... That's dumb. All of this is dumb. They're just video game characters. I'm an adult with adult responsibilities lol. None of this is worth getting bent out of shape about, on any side. Nothing wrong with respectful conversation and debate, but it hasn't really been that this time around. It's been gloating. Teabagging. And that's not cool. So I'm sorry for that. I'm sorry if I've upset anyone with anything I've said. I'm happy about Eternalberry but I've gotten TOO happy haha. I've regained mental clarity and thus the realization that I've started becoming part of the problem. I'm genuinely sorry for that. I want to go back to regular dork levels. Being spiteful and petty sucks, even if it's "justified"

Since I feel bad for leaving those asks awaiting deletion, A) mea culpa mea maxima culpa to those who sent them, nothing against any of you I just want to put the discourse to rest, and B) they all more or less say the same things so I'll just go ahead and bullet point my responses:

TikTok is perhaps the worst social media app ever created, it is an actual blight on society to almost biblical proportions, you are a fool if you listen to anything anyone has to say on there, your first mistake was going there in the first place, Tiktok Delenda Est

Twitter is definitely the worst social media app ever created, it is a blight on society that John meant to record in the Book of Revelation but didn't know how to describe it properly because the internet didn't exist 2000-ish years ago, you are a fool if you listen to anything anyone has to say on there, your first mistake was going there in the first place, Twitter Delenda Est, let's all point and laugh at the Trump-Musk divorce instead

Hero/villain ships are as old as human civilization and fandom nerds today have gotten really uptight about them, it's dumb and honestly really bizarre considering how prevalent it is in almost every piece of media, if someone doesn't like the trope that's perfectly fine it's not for everyone it does get pretty dark but a lot of people seem to put on gestapo uniforms when they're brought up now and it's a waste of time and energy. No one is holding a gun to your heads you guys, you don't need to do it to anyone yourselves

It's nice that I've apparently managed to convince some people to be more open-minded about BxA and hero/villain shipping as a whole, welcome to the club glad to have you, I'm sorry you've had to see some of us do our "obnoxious clown" routine recently, don't worry I'm washing my makeup off rn

I'm disappointed but unsurprised that BxA fans have been getting death threats in places, unfortunately that's how it's always been and it will continue to be that way even if all 5 pairs marry and have sex onscreen. No amount of canonizing in the narrative will change some people's minds. No amount of reasoning or olive branches will make them realize how ridiculous they are. Just have to accept it and ignore them

Cookie Run Kingdom is Baby's First Fandom for a lot of people, and a lot of them are actual, literal children, so all the black and white thinking and lack of understanding and respect makes sense, sadly. This is why I put my age in my blog description haha

Rule of thumb for me personally is to just block people who post hate in ship tags tbh. Spare us both the trouble. I've only responded to one post ever, and it was because the person was asking an honest question in a reasonable way so I thought it was fine to engage. I'd rather not engage people who want to attack and not actually talk. Blocking does us both a favor, I don't have to see meaningless hate on my dash and in tags I follow and they don't have to see content about ships they don't like from me. Win-win

Now, with all that said, I want to say some things I've said before, but would like to reiterate loudly and clearly one more time:

You do not have to like Beast x Ancient. It's perfectly fine and reasonable if you don't. It's not for everyone. Whatever your reasons are, I believe and accept them. I post about them a lot because I love them a lot, and I like talking about things I like. I do my best to tag properly so my weirdo babble is easier to filter out. My posts are more or less just preaching to the choir, I think lol. It's fine if you don't like that, it's fine if you don't like BurningCheese or Eternalberry, it's fine if you don't like Beast x Ancient. I am not your mortal enemy if you don't like them. I'm happy to talk to and be friends with people who don't. I already do so often haha

Furthermore, I want you all to know that no matter what I say about ships I don't like, I don't care if you do like them. I am not out to get you for liking things I don't. Which dolls you decide you like to make kiss is not my problem. I am not your mother, I am not your dictator, I am not God. My opinions are just that, no one is obligated to listen to me or take anything I say to heart. Yes, there are ships I legitimately hate with a passion, but I do not hate the people who like them. Not at all. That's a stupid thing to dislike someone for. I talk to and am friends with lots of people who like things I don't, both on here and irl. The world gets really lonely really fast if you refuse to engage with people who don't march lockstep with you. Especially with regards to fucking Cookie Run lol

Let's all give this nonsense a rest now. This is dumb. I'm dumb. We're all dumb. Let's stop being dumb. I'm happy to coexist peacefully with others. We'll all live happier lives focusing more on things we love than things we hate

[blacktofade]

I am quite new to Tumblr and while I know that this isn't what you usually post you are one of the only rpf writers that I actively know of and you seem to know the community so I thought I would just ask you

But no pressure to answer if you don't want to

I am writing a nsfw fanfic of rpf Arizona Dads but it is reader insert and I have no clue how to tag these types of things on Tumblr. (Ex Twitter-User here 😬) especially since that recent discourse I am just afraid of tagging stuff incorrectly but since my blog is entirely new I don't think anyone would see this, if I don't tag it, right?

I'm just a little confused and thought I would ask, really hope you don't mind

Hello darling anon!!!! Welcome to Tumblr! I'm actually thrilled you reached out to me with this question cause I'm like a broody chicken where I want to tuck everyone under my feathers and keep them safe!

Tagging for MCYT fandoms has been a learning curve for me, so you're definitely not alone in your confusion. The advice I give is just from personal experience, so I welcome anyone reading this to offer corrections if need be!

Also, when I say maintag, I mean it's a tag on a new post you've created. Adding tags on something you reblog doesn't put that post in the tags for others to see, it's just for personal organization on your blog. (I've had people get mad at me for reblogging something with a "maintag" and honestly they can suck my dick to the base. That's not how Tumblr works.)

So, from what I can tell, if it's NSFW content, don't maintag "hermitcraft" or any CCs/characters. For example, if you're posting a fic about giving Tango the big time sloppy head he deserves, don't tag it with "tangotek". You should instead use a tagging system for your own blog. In this case, you could use the tag "t.angotek". It will stop the post appearing in Tango's maintag, but would be easy to navigate on your own blog.

RPF is a whole other can of worms, cause people don't like if you tag that with "hermitshipping". I tend to use "hermitshipping rpf", and I haven't been yelled at so far LOL

Ship tags are much harder when you get into multiple pairing territory. I think in your case, I might just be tempted to use an "arizona dad" tag. Maybe run a search and check what kind of content is in that tag first and decide if you want your post to show up there.

Then because it's reader insert fic, I'd use "reader fic" and/or "reader insert fic" tags.

Basically, sharing NSFW RPF content in this fandom is impossible in the maintags, so basically no one will see it, like you said. It really sucks. If you want it to be found, the trick is to make friends with The Perverts of the fandom, cause we all just reblog posts amongst ourselves lmfao

Start following RPF friendly blogs, cause we're a pretty small community but everyone is VERY friendly and willing to boost content.

[yoman-1386]

Here’s a quick story of how I accidentally ate out my co worker. My first shore duty was a big adjustment, see my first command was an all male ship so when I went to my first shore command it was really the first time I was working with females. And the males on my ship we always horny and fooling around I honestly thought that’s what was going to happen everywhere.

A few months into this new shore command I haven’t done anything and no one is being overtly sexual. That is until I accidentally walked in on a coworker pumping. I had never met her before today as it was her first day back from maternity leave. So during morning quarters they welcomed her back and made polite talk with everyone. Right after lunch I was helping a customer when I needed her help (she was more experienced and higher ranking than me).

I set off to look for her and went to the conference room where I opened the door and I saw her at the head of the table. Her blouse was dropped on the table, her undershirt pulled up and bunched around her neck and had pumps on both her tits.

That alone immediately got me hard and throbbing. But the longer I looked I saw she had her pants un buttoned and her hand in them. She was rubbing herself while she let the machine pump. She didn’t notice I was staring at her at first. Then she noticed, pulled her hand out and told me to shut the door! So I did. But I went inside the conference room before shutting it. She said no, you idiot, get out.

I began to apologize profusely and tell her I didn’t see anything and that I won’t tell anyone she was masturbating. She then got a little defensive at first denying she was. And I was like sell I saw you your hand was down your pants. It’s ok though. You don’t understand she said. Pump still doing its thing. I can see it sucking milk out of her tits.

She noticed the bulge that was in my pants and was like why are you hard? I was like wtf you mean why? You’re being milked and masturbating. That’s hott af. She was confused at first really? My husband hasn’t touched me since halfway through my pregnancy.

Without thinking I blurted out id eat your pussy right now. She didn’t say anything but carefully slide her pants and her panties down to her ankles and slide to the edge of the chair.

I walked over to her, got in my knees and ate her pussy which was already wet. She came on my tongue within a minute. I kept going and lapped at her pussy while the machine sucked her tits. She came a second time and then she pushed me away she couldn’t take it anymore.

That started our in office sex drive

[lemotmo]

Tired. Also heads up on the inbox stuff.

Q. How are you not upset or freaking out right now? This is not good in any way!!!

A. Okay so this is the last anon message I'm going to answer at least until after the episode. If you want to spiral in my inbox you are going to have to do it with your name. So for the time being anon message capability has been turned off. As for this ask, there is no part of this that is bad news in the grand scheme of things. Am I annoyed by it? Yes. Is it the laziest way to get there? Yes. But it's also objectively hilarious because he's not the one. None of this is about him. So while I am annoyed about how stupid this whole thing is, I also understand what they're doing with it. At this point I genuinely don't know how anyone can be confused by the storyline they're telling here. Episodes 9 and 10 exist in canon. They didn't occur accidentally. Buck is going to try to take an ex home to EDDIE'S house and attempt to have sex with them IN Eddie's bed. The entire thing is about Eddie. And it's objectively hilarious given who the rumored ex apparently is. The spiraling is baffling to me. They could be planning their wedding and someone somewhere would post a dooming speculation post and some of you would crash out immediately. I genuinely don't understand this pattern. Media literacy is a thing. We, and the journalists I might add, didn't invent the stuff we've been seeing since last season. Olive teased a slow burn. He teased wanting a will they/won't they. Welcome to the party people. Relax and let the story unfold. It's going one way and one way only. This part might suck but it's entirely temporary.

Thank you Nonny!

Yeah...

We haven't seen the episode yet, so I'm still cautious on whether or not these 'leaks' are true. So take all of this with a grain of salt.

First of all I owe an apology to the Nonny that came into my inbox a few days ago, talking about the exact scenario from those 'leaks' and that that might happen. I thought it was a ludicrous idea, but if this leak turns out to be true tonight, it will still be ludicrous but fact. So, wherever you are Nonny, I'm very sorry. I was wrong. It has happened before and it will no doubt happen again.😽

I agree with Ali all the way. I'm not angry, just confused by this show's insistance to continuously write up very strange scenarios when it could have been so much easier. But whatever? 🤷‍♀️

You all know that I was already convinced T would be coming back to play the last act in his plot device arc, but I didn't think the show would take it this far. I suppose Buck is having his own little crazy Vertigo moment here. It is what it is.

I'm not upset. I am going to get through whatever it is they'll show us of this very bad decision, because I know there's a light at the end of this tunnel. The man is head over heels in love with his best friend and if this is the way for him to realise it? Well, c'est la vie.

It'll all be part of buddie's 'will they won't they' romance. This truly is the slowburn to end all slowburns.

Silver lining? At least he didn't bring home someone else and we'd have to go through the whole cycle of people jumping ship going 'OMG Buck and that random woman/man' were perfect for each other. They are soulmates' phase. Better stick with the annoyance that we know than to add new unknown and unpredictable annoyances to this fandom.

Everyone should be watching this episode though. Don't let T stop you from watching and enjoying Buck's first moment of realisation in 7 seasons. Don't let T stop you from watching Buck crash out over Eddie. Don't let T stop you from exploring more strange Bobby lore. Most of all though... don't let T stop you from enjoying Aisha's directorial debut. It'll be wonderful if we could all support her as she deserves.

So I'll be sitting down tomorrow morning to watch the episode, as unspoiled as possible at this moment. I never open any social media on Friday morning and happily watch whatever story is about to unfold.

Heads up! For anyone who is giving me the shifty eyes for reposting Ali's updates instead of reblogging. Read this.

Remember, no hate in comments, reblogs or inboxes. Let's keep it civil and respectful. Thank you.

If you are interested in more of Ali’s posts, you can find all of her posts so far under the tag: anonymous blog I love.

[usedtobethelegendcreator]

Every time someone says “Alastor is overrated”, a year is taken off my lifespan.

It’s a common occurrence, really. The popular male character with a lot of fans that may or may not think he’s hot always, always gets shat on. I’ve seen it. You’ve probably seen it too. And it’s birthed out of bitterness.

So, when people say “X is overrated”, what proof do they have?

“He’s a bad character!” Oh? In what way? Is he badly written? Do you not like his character arc (if any so far)? Do you not like his design? Do you think you could design him in a way truer to the creator’s vision of him? Do you think he’s just a bad person?

“He’s replaceable!” Is he, really? Could you completely remove him from the story and see nothing change? Could you, without changing the story, erase him from that story? Does his presence serve no purpose in that universe? And, even if he doesn’t, would his world be a brighter place without him in it?

“He has too much screen time!” Does he? Or do you just think he does? Is he one of the main characters? This other character has even more screen time than he does, are you going to complain about them too? Are only the protagonist and antagonist allowed to be on screen for any significant amount of time? Are you complaining about how many lines he has?

“Thirsty fangirls are sexualizing him too much!” Welcome to the internet. That’s what thirsty fangirls do. Have you never heard of Rule 34?

“He’s a bad person!” So what? Lots of characters are bad people. Duh. Not everyone can have sunshine in their hearts and butterflies in their eyes.

“He’s ugly!” You think he’s ugly. Hell, maybe his fans think he’s ugly, too. But someone out there is always going to be attracted to the unconventional.

“He’s a villain!” Wow, you identified the antagonist! You deserve a gold star! You must feel so proud! Now, can you tell me why people have been sexualizing the Devil for centuries?

“He doesn’t deserve the hype!” The hype had to come from somewhere. Did it come from the show? Did it come from the fans? Either way, someone thinks he’s really neat, and told all their friends about it.

“He doesn’t deserve to exist!” His creator sure thinks he does.

“He sucks!” Cock? Pussy? Both? Neither? A secret third thing? Either way, it’s none of your business, now is it?

“People ship him with everyone!” It’s okay, you can just say you’re jealous of how much he’s getting laid in other people’s heads.

“He’s cliche!” And? Every character is, in some way, a cliche. You’re a cliche. I’m a cliche. Everyone’s a cliche. But is he doing something interesting with the cliche?

And yes, a lot of these are things I’ve seen specifically about Alastor. But if you feel this way about any character, well, answer those questions. See if you make sense to yourself. Because there’s a difference between just not liking a character, and hating just to hate.

[cookierunzombieau]

WELCOME FOLKS TO THE NEW COOKIE RUN KINGDOM ZOMBIE AU!! Main DNI List. You know who you are. (No pro, com, incest, adultxchild shippers here. That shit is NASTY.) "But Cookie's don't have canon ages!!! It's okay!!' Buddy, check the wiki and you will find the cookie's listed as children. I don't wanna hear it. Mod: I'm Mod Spooky, current owner of the AU, if I get my friends to join this with me then maybe there'll be more, idk yet. I go by any pronouns, and I'm a minor, do NOT say freaky shit in the ask box, please and thank you. TONE TAGS ARE APPRECIATED!! I cannot understand tone through text, so tone tags are appeciated!! Questions and info on the AU ↓↓

Green for AU questions and answers, blue for mod questions and answers!! "What's this all about?" Glad you asked! As if you couldn't tell by the name, it's a zombie/infection AU made by me! Spookee (or Spooky). Licorice Cookie wants to control cookies instead of just his bone servants so he goes and tries to make a potion to test his mind control on one of the members of the Cookie's of Darkness, but it doesn't go so well. He ends up making a potion that turns the other cookies into crumbly and soggy cookies! Just like zombies from real life!! "What are you making it on?" Cookie Run Comic Studio! "Why and how did you get this idea?" I'm an absolute SUCKER for Zombie, Infection, and Highschool AU's. I enjoy them greatly, and I even have a few idea's for ones for the Spooky Month fandom too!! "Why Licorice Cookie?" Because his dumbass would do that shit bruh 😭/silly/pos Dark Enchantress wouldn't do that, she wouldn't have even ordered Licorice Cookie to do this because they're not being controlled by her, but by the potion. "Why isn't it hand drawn?" Cause my art sucks doodooasswater. But for certain zombie designs (coming in the future maybe) I will be making them or asking my friend to make them for me!! Also I am NOT drawing shit for this because I own the AU here bruh. "How frequent will you update?" I have school, laziness, and overall instances of lack of motivation, so I really don't know. I will try to update atleast once a month if I remember! "Do you have a story and plot?" Not?? really?? I write everything without script or idea because I didn't think this through so like, I dunno. I'm just pulling this shit outta my ass, bruh😭🙏 "Will any ships be in this?"

It really depends on the ship and who stays alive or not. I'll try to include every cookie that's currently in Cookie Run (version 6.3.101 - Fire Spirit and Agar Agar Update.) Ships? I am unsure. I'm not much of a shipper unless we're counting Burning Spice X Shadow Milk, but even then it's unlikely, trying to keep everything as Canon as I possibly can. "Will canon ships be in this?" Although many are heavily implied (like PureLily) they probably won't be in this AU due to personal preference (I have a dislike for White Lily and others) and for some unwanted angst for the plot and storyline, I personally find it irrelevant. So no, any ships will not be canon in this. Friendships are allowed (Cone Cup Trio, Gingerbrave and his friends, the Ancients). "Are you taking fanart?" (if i get any lmao/silly) Yes I am! Just submit it through the ask box and I'll post it here so everyone can see it!! Or just @ me and I'll reblog it!/gen "Are you going to include the dead people in this?" YES!/pos. It's an AU so I get to do whatever, everyone who's dead? REVIVED!! Not giving any spoilers as to who is dead in the canon and who isn't. "Are you accepting help from fans?" No I am not/lh. Story and plot ideas? No thank you. Not taking requests from fans, I wouldn't like to be involved in drama regarding that./gen/lh IF YOU HAVE ANYMORE QUESTIONS THEN SUBMIT IT IN THE ASK BOX AND I'LL GET TO THEM I SWEAR!!/GEN/VPOS

[athenalynx]

princess and the not frog

synopsis:during a fight nanami gets transported to 1920's new orleans and happens to stubble into tiana while trying to find his way home

Tags:nanamixtiana,fluff,no spice(yet🤭)

authors note: if yall like chap one then ill drop chap 2 🔥 promise this isnt just a shi post nanamixtiana is the best ship in jjk 🫡

read time:8-10 mins

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

Where am I?” Nanami asked, looking around for clues to his whereabouts. He tried to recall how he got there. He was in a fight, and suddenly a portal had sucked him into the world he was now in. As he looked around, a sign caught his eye. It read, in big bright letters, “Tiana’s Palace.” Something told him that if he wanted any chance of finding a way home, that was the place he needed to go. He took a deep breath, mustering his courage before going in. He opened the door to the sound of jazz music filling the restaurant. Men in suits and women in fancy dresses were everywhere, which made Nanami feel a bit better about his situation because at least these people knew how to dress. He looked around before approaching the host stand.

“Excuse me, what is this place?” Nanami asked. The hostess gave him a funny look.

“A restaurant,” she replied. Nanami glanced at the food on the tables; he should have known. Embarrassed, he was about to leave when he heard, “Now welcoming to the stage the owner of this restaurant, Tiana herself.”

Nanami turned to see the most beautiful woman he's ever seen . She was wearing a tight, shimmery white dress that complemented her dark skin perfectly, and her curly hair fell gracefully on her shoulders.

“Hello, everyone!” Tiana greeted, scanning the crowd until her eyes met Nanami’s. She paused, almost believing in love at first sight. He was the most handsome man she had ever seen. He was tall, wearing a tight dark blue button-up shirt complemented by a leopard print tie, and had short blond hair. Tiana almost got lost in his light brown eyes before snapping back to reality.

“Thank you, everyone, for coming tonight, and--” Before she could finish, a man yelled, “Nice ass, sweetheart!” All the men erupted into wicked laughter as Tiana stood there, flustered, trying to collect herself. Before she could say anything, Nanami interjected, “Who said that?”

The men stopped laughing, pointing to a middle-aged man giving Nanami a sheepish grin. “That would be me, what about it?”

Nanami looked the man up and down before walking closer. Without saying a word, he punched the man across the face, causing him to fall back in his chair. Quickly getting up, the man tried to punch Nanami back, but Nanami dodged the punch and kicked the man in the stomach, followed by an uppercut to the jaw. The man fell to the floor, and Nanami was getting ready to punch him again when he felt someone hold him back. He looked behind him to see Tiana.

“Beating this guy won’t make things any better,” Tiana said.

“Sorry,” Nanami mumbled, keeping his eyes to the floor. He felt something he hadn’t felt in a long time: shame.

“It’s okay. Come to the back so I can fix you up,”Tiana said Nanami was confused on why she would say that before he looked down at his bloody knuckles he nodded and Tiana grabbed his arm leading him to a room that looked like her office. She sat him down and grabbed a first aid kit from one of her many bookshelves.

“You didn’t need to do that,” Tiana paused before adding, “But thank you. But next time, I can take care of myself.” Nanami smiled at her and said, “I don’t plan on doing it again.” Tiana giggled before asking.

“What brought you here? You don’t look like you’re from here,” .

“I honestly don’t know. I just got sucked up here by some sort of portal,” Nanami replied, he didn’t know why he told her for some reasson he trusted her with his life something about her smile made and her dark brown eye that were so easy to get lost in made it easy for him to talk to her making it sound like what happened to him was just a normal everyday thing. Tiana looked at him like he was crazy while wiping the blood off his knuckles.

“Where am I?” Nanami asked.

“You’re in the best restaurant in New Orleans,” Tiana said proudly. Nanami’s stomach rumbled.

“Maybe before I leave, I could try some of the food here?” Nanami asked.

“I could cook you something,” Tiana said with a smile before leading him to the kitchen.

“What are you craving?” Tiana asked as she tied her hair back.

“Something sweet,” Nanami said. Tiana nodded and said, “I know something I could make for you.”

“What?” Nanami asked.

“It’s a surprise,” Tiana replied with a wink.

“How long have you owned the restaurant?” Nanami asked.

“About a year,” she answered.

“I’m sorry, but I never got your name?” Tiana said.

“It’s Kento Nanami, but everyone calls me Nanami.”

“I’ve never met anyone with that last name. Where are you from?” Tiana asked.

“I was born and raised in Tokyo, Japan,” Nanami said.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you,” Tiana said with a smile.

While Tiana cooked, Nanami talked about almost everything they could think of: family, friends, work, etc.

“Your food is ready,” Tiana said, placing a plate in front of Nanami before coating it in powdered sugar.

“What is it?” Nanami asked.

“Beignets. It’s my mama’s recipe,” Tiana said. As Nanami took a bite, his eyes lit up.

“I think this is the best thing I’ve ever had,” he said before taking another bite.

“I told you you’re in the best restaurant in New Orleans,” Tiana said with a proud smile as Nanami quickly finished his plate.

“Can I have more?” Nanami asked.

“Maybe if you come in tomorrow, I could make you more, but you would need to pay,” Tiana replied.

“I know this is a lot to ask, but can I maybe stay here? I don’t really have a home. I could pay you to stay here if you want,” Nanami asked Tiana with pleading eyes.

“You don’t need to pay me. I don’t really know how you got here, but I want to help you,” Tiana said.

“Thank you so much, Tiana!” Nanami said before pulling Tiana into a hug. They hugged for a minute before snapping back to reality.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Tiana said before walking out. But before she could leave, she turned around and said, “You know you could stay at my house. I want you to be able to sleep in a bed if you want to.”

“Of course, I would,” Nanami said.

------------location change-----------

“Okay i'll get you some blankets for the couch.” Tiana says

Nanami nods looking around admiring the room's homie aesthetic; it makes him feel like he’s home even though he's in an entirely different universe. Tiana comes back with blankets and a pillow which she plops on the couch

“Okay that's all you’ll need for the night i'm in my room if you need me.” Tiana says before turning to leave but before she could Nanami grabs her hand and spin her to face him

“Can you not leave yet? Maybe we could watch Netflix or whatever you want.”

“What's Netflix?” Tiana asks

Nanami cocks an eyebrow and asks ‘how don’t you not know what Netflix is?”

“I don't watch that many movies. Im always busy and movies just feel like a waste of time.” Tiana says

“Netflix isn't a movie” Nanami says

“What is it?” Tiana asks Nanami thinks for a little before he says

“It's like a streaming service. It has a bunch of movies and tv shows from all over the world and you only need to pay 6 dollars a month.”

“What's a streaming service?” Tiana asks

“I'll just show you where's your tv?” Nanami asks when he turns around he's greeted by old box tv

“I've not seen a box tv since I was a kid,how old is it?” Nanami says

“It's not that old, only a year or two.” Tiana says confused

“What do you mean this tv got to be from the 1920’s or older.” Nanami says while examining the tv

“That was only 2 years ago.” Tiana says with a chuckle suddenly it hits Nanami

“What year is it ?” Nanami asks panicky

“Baby it the 1922.” Tiana says but that just makes Nanami feel light headed as he falls back on the couch keeping his head in his hands

“What's wrong Nanami?” Tiana asks concerned

“In the universe I'm in, it's 2024, I don’t even think I'm in a different universe I think somehow I traveled back In time” Nanami says

“So you're a time traveler.”

“Technically yes but that only gonna make it harder to get back home.” Nanami says with a heavy sigh sinking deeper in the couch Tiana sits next to him putting her hands in his and says

“Don’t worry we’ll find a way to get you home.” Nanami lazily looks at Tiana trying giving a half ass smile

“Thank you Tiana for everything.” he says before giving Tiana a hug tightly wrapping his hands around her waist

“I know this is a bad time to ask but how is the future?” Tiana asks Nanami lets Tiana out of his tight grasp

“Well for one we have bigger Televisions.” he says looking a the tiny box tv sitting on the mantel in front of the couch

“Well the future Is sounds pretty boring.” Tiana says playfully

“I don't think tv’s are boring.” Nanami says

“Well that because everyone on tv looks like you” Tiana says matter of factly

“What do you mean?” Nanami asks confused

“Have you ever seen a black woman on tv as anything but the side character who is the but of all the jokes?” ask’s Tiana

“I have.” Nanami says Tiana looks at Nanami with wide eyes

“Really?” Tiana asks

“Yeah, there’s a lot of movies and shows with black main characters.”

“Are there any black princesses?” Tiana asks hopefully

“Yes.” Nanami says

“Tell me everything.” Tiana says eagerly

“Well it’s called princess and the frog….”

Nanami tell Tiana the story of princess and the frog as she lays her head on his shoulder constantly asking him to keep going with a wide smile on her face by the time he’s done Tiana had fallen asleep he gently picks Tiana up and brings her to bedroom the house was small so it wasn’t hard to find Nanami gently lays Tiana on the bed giving her a light kiss on her forehead before he leaves he hears Tiana quietly say “wait”

Nanami turns around to see Tiana with her head slightly raised to be able to look at Nanami

“It's really cold, could you maybe…sleep with me?” Tiana asks Nanami nods and lays on his side to be able to see Tiana’s face

“You know your eyes are really beautiful.” Nanami says

“You don’t need to try and flatter me, my eyes are just brown.” Tiana says

“I'm not trying to” Nanami says kindly Tiana smiles

“It's not just your eyes that are beautiful, everything about you is beautiful. This may be sappy but you're probably the most beautiful woman I've seen.” Nanami says before he gets to sappy he says

“Sorry I know that really corny and-” before he could finish Tiana quickly gives him a kiss

“I'm sorry I shouldn't have done that, please forgive me.” Nanami gently grabs Tiana faces and leans in for another kiss before Nanami pulls away and says

“There is nothing to be sorry for.” Tiana smiles at him but Nanami can tell somethings wrong

"we should get to bed." Tiana says she gently wraps her hands around Nanami waist while resting her head on his chest

"good night" Tiana says before closing her eyes Nanami gives her a light kiss on her forehead

"good night." he says before he slowly closes his eyes to fall asleep

[dailydragon08]

Closing The Tomb

Pairing: Luke Skywalker x F!Jedi!Reader   Summary: The sequel to Darkness Calls. Luke deals with the consequences of almost using the dark side to save your life, leaving you in suspense of whether he'll re-implement the no attachment rule in his new Jedi Order. With the ghost of Obi-wan pushing him one way while Luke's heart is pulled another, secrets are revealed and friendships are left hanging on the edge of a knife. Warnings: Slight anti-Jedi/anti "no attachments" rhetoric, mainly against the stringent rules the prequel era Jedi had. Major angst, with Luke struggling a lot and feeling very guilty. Reader gets a brief, nondescript leg injury at some point that heals quickly (realizing I injure reader's leg a lot specifically so Luke can carry her lol), mentions of Luke having insomnia and PTSD, slow burn, mutual pining, angsty ending that will be resolved in the final part 3 of this trilogy. A/N:  Comments and reblogs are greatly appreciated, and my masterlist can be found linked in the pinned post on top of my blog. This fic is also included in my AO3 (DragonHeartstring360). Stay tuned for the final part 3 and enjoy!

**

You squinted to see through the oncoming smoky haze. Stars wheeled in a circle with a thin, glass-like pathway cutting through the middle of a dark sky. It glowed faintly, casting its reflections on none other than Luke’s terrified face. He stared straight at you before glancing at the two pieces of rope he was clinging to. Obi-wan Kenobi held one end while a man who bore a striking resemblance to Luke held the other. You recognized him as Anakin in his prime, except this Anakin’s eyes kept flashing yellow. Everyone looked at you before turning to each other, and chaos ensued. Obi-wan and Anakin both bore down on their ends of the rope and pulled as hard as they could.

Luke squeezed his eyes closed and grimaced, mumbling, “wait…no…I can find balance…with both—”

“No, you can’t,” the others said in unison before pulling even harder.

“Luke, just let go!” you yelled, but to no avail as the ropes suddenly wound their way up Luke’s hands to wrap around his arms like snakes.

Obi-wan and Anakin pulled even harder, and you could see the strain on Luke’s arms from where you floated above. You tried to yell your friend’s name again only to have him stare at you with horror—the eye closest to his old mentor it’s usual blue, the one closest to his father an ominous yellow—

Your eyes flew open as you hyperventilated. You clutched your bed sheets to reassure yourself you were home on the Redeemer before looking around at the cargo hold that Luke had lovingly converted into a bedroom just for you. You remembered how excited he was to show you the imperial shuttle once he’d finished his renovations. At first, you’d thought he was just excited to show you his work and were sad at the thought that he might leave soon after. There was nothing to describe the amount of relief and joy when you realized there wasn’t just one bedroom, but two—and Luke had proudly announced this one belonged to you and you alone and he’d love for you to travel with him, so you could both learn more about the ways of the Force and the jedi from each other and hunt for ancient texts and artifacts to help restore the order.

You sat up and took in the darkness of the hold. That had felt like an eternity ago and you could feel the anxious pressure building in your chest at the thought of things never being that easy, warm, and welcoming again. Luke had been avoiding you ever since the incident aboard the imperial cruiser. Amid some jammed communications, you had almost been sucked out of the ship’s porthole into space along with your attackers and Luke had barely saved you in time – but not before nearly slipping to the dark side to aid in his rescue. You knew he was ashamed of himself and could sense his turmoil through the Force any time the two of you were in close proximity (which was unfortunately becoming less and less). He was still polite, helpful, and kind, but there was a new distance and coldness to him that felt like a knife in your chest.

You swung your feet over the bed and half-heartedly stuffed some pants and shoes on. The fact that you were sleeping in an oversized shirt of Luke’s only added to your own turmoil as you shrugged a jacket over your shoulders. Padding through the dark, empty main hold of the ship revealed Luke’s bedroom door still wide open like it had been when you’d gone to sleep and R2 nowhere to be found. You quietly made your way down the landing ramp to where the ship sat on Khofar, where the two of you were hunting for yet another Force artifact to further your studies and the resurrection of the order. Crickets chirped as the moon hung full above with a gentle breeze. You thought how much you and Luke might have even enjoyed the peace of this place if he would just forgive himself.

Voices floated through the trees, along with the telltale whistles of an astromech and you followed, careful to make your footsteps as light and quiet as possible. A winding dirt path through the trees led to a small clearing with a fallen log. Luke sat with his back to you, and you recognized the glowing blue figure of Obi-wan’s ghost. R2 was nowhere to be seen and you wondered if Luke had sent him away. The idea that he had worried you; he took R2 everywhere with him and must’ve really been in a dire state if he told him to leave.

“…cannot tell you what to do,” Obi-wan continued as you quietly wedged yourself behind a tree trunk. If either of them sensed your presence, it didn’t stop them from talking. “It will be your order, after all. But I don’t think it was wrong for the Jedi Council to impose the no attachment rule during my time exactly for reasons such as this. One mistake does not guarantee your downfall, but as Master Yoda used to say: fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, and hate leads to suffering. A lesson your father unfortunately learned very well.”

“But there was still good in him,” Luke argued, his voice rough and strained from lack of sleep. This was the third night in a row he’d snuck off to converse with his Force ghost council—and would likely be the fourth day in a row of dark bags under his eyes. “And I managed to convince him to turn back to the good side and help defeat Palpatine because of our attachment. Isn’t that what you always thought was his destiny as the Chosen One: to destroy the Sith? How could I have convinced him to do that without our attachment? And I couldn’t even imagine where I’d be without Han or Leia…” His voice turned quiet and mournful. “Or Y/N.”

“This is your order, Luke. I cannot and will not interfere too much. There’s a possibility you could be right, and this could be a new age and era for the jedi where attachment isn’t as dangerous.”

“But without the danger of the Sith, wouldn’t that make it less dangerous? Couldn’t I make teaching about healthy attachment or connection versus unhealthy possession part of the training I give?”

A bird cawed low and long overhead and you glanced at the sky to see the first flecks of light shine through the trees. You hoped that didn’t mean Luke had been awake all night.

“Just because the Sith are less of a danger doesn’t mean the dark side is any less so,” Obi-wan continued. “You still need to be vigilant. It can still be a very slippery slope that’s difficult—near impossible—to come back from. The choice is ultimately up to you and I will respect whatever you decide. But keep in mind what you almost did because of your attachment.” He glanced quickly at your hiding spot before turning his eyes back to Luke. “More than one friend on this planet is waking, so I think it’s best you either start your day or get a few final moments of rest while you can. I will be here if you need further guidance on this matter.”

You stayed put behind your tree, but knew the resounding silence meant the ghost had faded into the morning light. Luke sighed long and hard before there were several rustling noises. When no footsteps followed, you peeked around the tree to see him sitting cross-legged in the brush with his back to you. For a moment, you admired the slope of it and how his perfectly tailored jacket clung to the toned muscle. Luke was so good at sensing you from much further away, there was no doubt in your mind he knew you were there. Was he choosing to ignore you? Or was he just really that tired that maybe he didn’t notice?

Either way, you suddenly felt very unwelcome and made your way back to the ship as quietly as you could. During your absence, R2 had also returned and was refilling Luke’s waterskin at the sink. He beeped sadly at you as you passed towards your room. You laid a comforting hand on his dome and knew he was feeling the weight of his master just as much.

With a wave of your hand, the hydraulic door closed behind you. You sat back on your bed, kicking off your shoes and flopping back to stare at the ceiling. What if Luke did decide to re-implement the no attachment rule? What would that mean for his relationship with his friends, his sister—with you? You doubted he’d send you away—at least, not at first. He’d never explicitly invited you to be part of his new Jedi Order, but he’d hinted at it several times. And why would he have made a whole bedroom in the Redeemer for you, reiterated that this was supposed to be as much your home as his several times, and still be taking you on Force-related missions with him if he was planning to give you the boot? But even if he didn’t ask you to leave, you weren’t sure how long you could handle this new cold and distant version of Luke. It was too painful—especially with your growing feelings for him, and what you had thought were his growing feelings for you. Maybe that’s why he was so afraid. He’d never really explained to you why his father fell to the dark side outside of something to do with a secret, forbidden marriage with his mother. But was that the whole story? You had a feeling not, but felt it wasn’t your place to ask either Luke or Anakin’s ghost. You’d never even spoken to any of the Force ghosts.

But if the old jedi had forbade relationships out of fear of it turning into a gateway to the dark side, weren’t they just giving into the very think they preached against: fear?

You sighed as you heard Luke’s boots thump up the boarding ramp. “Hi, R2,” he said sadly. You locked onto his Force signature in your mind, feeling his sadness, confusion, guilt, longing, turmoil, and a sense that he saw himself as unworthy to be the one to lead the jedi to a new beginning. Perhaps against better judgement, you sent a wave of comfort to him through your link and heard his boots stop on their way to his room just ahead of yours. You closed your eyes and leaned into the Force to sense every movement on the ship. His footsteps suddenly turned and halted just outside your door and you could sense him raising his hand to knock, then stop. He lowered it, then raised it, then lowered it again before running a hand through his hair and down the front of his face. He turned and quickly made his way into his room, and you could hear the muffled whoosh of the door behind him. The lack of returning comfort from him made your heart sink and you couldn’t help but wonder if it would just be best to get on a ship and go elsewhere, alone, after this mission was done to dull the pain for both of you.

~***~

Things remained just as stilted and awkward over the next few days as you and Luke stayed on-world. The jedi texts remained elusive, but the planet’s dangers didn’t. Many animals attacked you out of pure instinct to protect their home, and storms and rockslides from the nearby cliff were annoyingly common.

An animal had sunk their teeth deep into your leg at some point and Luke immediately went into protection mode, even carrying you to a secluded spot to clean and dress your wound. The return of his softness, care, and openness as he asked repeatedly if you were all right and if you could walk almost made you tear up in relief. However, once you confirmed you would be fine and could walk by yourself, it was gone as quickly as it had appeared. He still turned around to check on you many times as you continued your trek, holding out his hand to help you over any unsteady or slippery points on the ground. You relished the feeling of his warm skin against yours, eyeing your initials sewn in red on the new black leather glove you’d given him after his had been lost out the porthole. At least he hadn’t taken it off with a replacement he had lying around the Redeemer (and you knew for a fact he had some extras). That had to be a good sign—right?

Just as the two of you had put enough together to realize there was likely an abandoned temple somewhere up on the mountaintop, a torrential rain began. Luke was at your side in an instant, throwing his cloak over top of you and pulling the hood up over your head.

“This way! There’s an overhang!” he cried, R2 beeping urgently and zipping behind him.

He kept a firm hand on your back as he led you to a shallow lip in the mountainside that would perfectly shield you from the rain. It was small—so small, the two of you had to sit shoulder to shoulder while R2 tried to hide under a large leaf from a nearby plant.

The pounding of the rain almost drowned out the pounding of your heart in your ears as your and Luke’s breaths slowed. This was usually a time you wouldn’t hesitate to lean into Luke’s side or give his hand a reassuring squeeze, but you could still sense his deep anguish through the Force and decided against it.

The two of you had sat in silence before and it had always felt safe and comfortable. This time, it was the most awkward silence you’d ever experienced. You glanced at your friend out of the corner of your eye to catch his sad gaze before he quickly looked away.

“Luke, it’s okay—”

“I’m all right.” He looked anything but. The dark circles were still prevalent and he was beginning to look pale and gaunt. You hadn’t seen him eat much the past few days and he looked especially miserable in his soaked jedi blacks, his hair plastered to his forehead. You realized you were still wearing his cloak and tried to extend it so it wrapped around him as well. Where before he would’ve immediately leaned into you with a grateful smile, he kept himself stiff and stared straight ahead as if you weren’t even there.

“Luke, please, don’t torture yourself. I can guarantee you every jedi has done it at some point. It’s natural. It doesn’t make you—”

“Like my father,” he interrupted quietly, still staring off into the distance at something you couldn’t see.

“You’re nothing like him though,” you prodded gently, hoping this might get him to open up and let you back in. The distance of the last few days was about to make you crawl out of your skin.

“I am though. I have so many similarities to Anakin before his fall. I can’t become Vader—I can’t create another Vader. I—” He shook his head and turned away from you. “It wasn’t just a simple mistake. I have…to be a leader, I have to be able to set an example and protect people, I have to recreate an entire order…” He shook his head before turning to you, his face empty and distant once again. “I’m sorry. I’ll figure this out on my own.”

“But you don’t have to.”

Luke turned his gaze to his feet and was silent for a long time. “Once the rain lets up, we should make out way back to the ship. Then we can try to find a place to land on the mountain to find this temple.”

You sighed. “All right. It’s super foggy up there all the time from what I’ve seen though, so we’ll likely have to use the Force to land.”

He nodded before his silence once again felt like the closing of a tomb door.

~***~

A gentle tug on your nightshirt—well, Luke’s nightshirt—woke you from your sleep. You blinked your eyes open to see R2 by your bedside, chirping urgently with one of his retractable arms attached to the black fabric.

“R2?” you grumbled. “What’s going on?” You reached out through the Force to inspect the ship, realizing Luke’s Force signature felt much too far to be onboard. “Where’s Luke?”

R2 beeped again before letting go of your shirt and rolling towards the door. When you didn’t immediately follow, he whizzed back to your side and whistled again, this time more insistent before returning to the door.

“All right, all right, let me put some shoes on at least.”

You stuffed your feet into your boots, not even bothering to tie the laces in your haste before scurrying after R2. You followed him through the maze-like trees, doing your best to avoid the mud, but knew you’d be heard from a mile away with how soft the ground was. As you followed the astromech through the forest, familiar voices became clear and you couldn’t withhold your groan as you heard Obi-wan for what felt like the hundredth time this week. What bad advice was he giving now?

“…secret marriage with your mother,” he was saying as you neared the stumps they were both sitting on. “He seemed to fear something horrible happening to her in childbirth—or maybe even you and your sister. He seemed to think the dark side was the only way to save all three of you and allow you to live as a family.”

Finally sick of what was, frankly, Obi-wan’s bullshit, you stormed towards their spot. You were sure you looked extremely menacing in your pajamas and unlaced boots, stomping through the mud, but you didn’t care. “Maybe that’s because he was tricked!”

Luke looked back at you in surprise. The Force ghost sitting with him didn’t seem at all surprised by your presence, but you could see the sudden apprehension all over his blue glowing face.

“Y/N?” Luke said. “What are you—um—”

His eyes fell to your legs, but you didn’t give yourself a second to pause and think as you turned your attention to Obi-wan. “You know and have said yourself—because Luke told me—that no one in the order realized how dangerous Palpatine was, or at least didn’t act on their concerns at all, and just let Anakin get close to him because, by your own admission, you thought having an ‘in’ with the chancellor would be a good idea. You didn’t think for a second that maybe Palpatine was grooming him? That he was looking at the lack of comfort, safety, and being allowed to just feel your feelings like any sentient being should be able to do and played on that? You don’t think he provided everything to Anakin that the order wouldn’t specifically so it would all play right into his hands? And you still want to go around saying the ‘only’ reason he fell to the dark side was because he fell in love and had kids?”

“Unchecked emotions are not an option for a jedi—” Obi-wan began.

“I never said they were. But I’m tired of you making Luke,” you gestured to your friend, who was still staring at you in shock, “feel like he’s potentially ruined his entire future as a jedi because of one mistake he almost made—which I would like to point out he pulled himself back at the last minute and didn’t actually use the dark side—and if he ever makes it again, he’s going to become just like Vader. That’s not how that works and you know it. A jedi shouldn’t let their emotions control them, no, but to say they’re never even allowed to have them in the first place? That’s just ridiculous and you know it! If the jedi are going to hold everyone to standards of unattainable perfection, no wonder your order was so easily corrupted from the inside. Your order’s own hubris is what kept them from seeing what was happening right under their noses the whole time. No sentient being should be expected to never have ‘bad’ emotions or never make a mistake, and maybe if Anakin had felt more supported and like he had someone to turn to about his fears without getting excommunicated, he wouldn’t have turned so easily.

“Plus, we’ve met a few jedi who survived the Purge who went on to have ‘attachments’ and never fell to the dark side. I bet there were more jedi that just Anakin who had secret lovers and even children. You can’t tell me in a temple with ten thousand or more jedi that only one ever broke this rule because it’s so ridiculous and unrealistic to expect—”

Luke stood and put himself between you and Obi-wan. “Y/N, that’s enough. Please calm down. These accusations and the lecture aren’t fair to throw at Obi-wan when he’s just trying to help.”

Your eyebrows shot to your hairline. “You call this help? Ever since you started your nightly sessions with him, you’ve just felt even more guilty and confused and it’s only gotten worse. You’re not even sleeping or eating, and all over some rule that was likely hurting the order more than helping—”

“Y/N, stop—”

“No!” You gestured to the Force ghost’s crestfallen face. “Look at him! He knows I’m making sense. I overheard you the other night, and I think teaching healthy connection versus unhealthy possession to padawans is a great idea. They’ll feel supported while learning that there can be an unhealthy side to things if they’re not careful, but that having those feelings at a base level doesn’t make them evil and they can have someone to talk to about it without being villainized. You were so adamant about there still being good in Vader and bringing him back to the good side, even after everything he did. You know deep down that banning any and all relationships or ‘attachments’ or whatever you want to call them is toxic.”

Luke’s expression had become more guilty as you spoke, but now shifted to annoyed. “Whatever your opinions on this matter, you need to show Obi-wan more respect—”

“No,” Obi-wan finally said. “Stop.” He stood and took a few steps closer to you. “…She’s right. About everything.”

Neither of you bothered to hide your surprise as Obi-wan glanced at his feet before awkwardly folding his hands behind his back. “When I was a young padawan…very young, foolish and inexperienced…I was put on a mission with my master, Qui-gon Jinn, to protect a young woman from dark side agents who sought to terminate her and all the work she was doing to help her homeworld. We became close, and it was often just myself and her, since someone needed to stay behind to protect her while my master was the one to hunt down clues or chase our assailants away. We…” he sighed, looking up at the stars peeking through the tree canopy, “were naïve…and thought we were being careful…”

You sighed and shook your head. For all his blustering about “no attachments,” here he was revealing that he himself had broken the rule. You glanced at Luke as a gentle breeze blew through, rustling the branches above you. The fleeting moonlight revealed the shocked look on your friend’s face as he stared at his old mentor, and you could feel anger and slight betrayal building in his signature.

Obi-wan cleared his throat. “Anyway…I never knew during my lifetime, but once I passed to the Netherworld of the Force, I found out she had a child—our child. She never told me or the boy a thing about it and neither of them sought me out as a result. Luke, your father’s ghost could tell you more himself, but it’s likely true…his relationship with your mother was likely not the entire reason he fell to the dark side. We did allow Anakin and Palpatine to get close…and that was likely a mistake on our part. Palpatine had many years to subtly manipulate your father. The nightmares your father claims about seeing her dying in childbirth were perhaps even planted by the emperor himself. Perhaps if he’d felt he could be more candid without risking everything, things would’ve been easier.

“There’s one more thing I feel I should note while we’re all here…my son did continue the bloodline…and,” he took a deep breath, “his child—my grandchild—is…standing here with us.” He pointedly looked at you.

You stared back in open shock. You definitely hadn’t been expecting that. Luke turned to look at you, just as shocked. You couldn’t help but reach out to him for comfort, feeling the fabric of his jacket sleeve between your fingers as you gazed at a nearby tree, trying your best to process all the information.

Silence reigned for several minutes before Obi-wan interrupted with a hesitant, “Luke?”

Luke subtly slid his hand up so that his pinky finger wrapped around yours. The action nearly brought tears to your eyes, as it was the first return of physical affection you’d received in what felt like forever. “I just…” he started, then stopped, shaking his head. “You’ve been recommending that rule when you yourself couldn’t even hold to it…I feel a bit lied to, Obi-wan.”

“I’m sorry, Luke. Your friend here did give me her honest thoughts and it did give me a slightly new perspective. But you’re right, I should’ve been more forthcoming.”

“And to your own granddaughter,” Luke’s voice shook slightly on the last word as his finger tightened around yours.

“Yes…” Obi-wan turned to you. “I’m sorry. I was unsure how to reveal myself to you and didn’t want to confuse or upset either of you, so thought it would be best to keep some distance. But I see I have done that anyway and for that, I deeply apologize. But…yes, Y/N, you are a Kenobi. And Luke, I will support whatever you do or don’t decide to do with the new order. I trust your judgement and the two of you are both much wiser than I was at your ages. Whoever trains under either of you will be lucky to have you.” He sighed, turning back to his old pupil. “I sensed the turmoil in you, Luke, and just wanted to help, since I already lost your father to the dark side and didn’t want to risk losing you as well. But that is no excuse and I see I should’ve thought through my actions more beforehand. I am sorry.”

“I…I need some space to think,” Luke said before wrapping his whole hand around yours, giving you a gentle squeeze, and walking deeper into the forest. R2, who had been present and silently watching the entire conversation, began to follow him with a concerned beep. Luke placed a comforting hand on his dome. “It’s all right, R2, stay with Y/N.” You watched as the shadows of night swallowed him as he trekked deeper through the trees, leaving you and Obi-wan alone.

You sucked on your lip for a moment before turning your gaze to the man who was evidently your flesh and blood. “Well…um, hi, Grandpa.”

Obi-wan finally cracked a smile. “Hello there…I know I likely can’t say it enough, but I am sorry. Like I said, I was afraid of losing Luke to the dark side, but also afraid of watching you go through the same thing I did: the pain of losing someone you consider family and having to grieve them while they’re still alive.”

“I appreciate that…” You leaned against R2 as he whistled long and low. “But…I think the lessons from the past should be used to inform about the future—not cause fear that makes you run away from things and completely cut them off as options.”

“You truly are much wiser than I was at your age, and I am proud to call you my blood.” He paused, moving to clasp his hands in front of him so that the large flared sleeves hid them from view. “I think it might be best to give Luke some space until he feels comfortable summoning me again. If you are comfortable and feel you’re in need, however, please do not hesitate to summon me yourself if you feel the need.” He gazed at you for a moment before giving you another small smile. “I sense everything will be all right and as it should be with the two of you in time. Please, take good care of each other.” The ghost suddenly faded from view, his blue form scattering on the breeze like smoke before there was no trace of him left.

You sighed and buried your face in your hands. R2 gently bumped your leg as you groaned. “Maker, R2, that was…so much.”

The droid beeped sadly next to you.

“We should probably check on Luke, then head back to the ship.”

You followed the path your friend had taken to find yourself deep in the woods, only the scant slivers of moon through the canopy and the fireflies there to light your way. You sensed Luke’s Force signature getting closer and closer, until you heard soft voices floating over to you. Glancing between several trees, you saw Luke sitting with another Force ghost you recognized as Anakin Skywalker. They were deep in conversation and Anakin put his hand on his son’s shoulder as you heard the name Padmé float towards you several times. You quietly turned, motioning for R2 to do the same before leading him back to the Redeemer.

You barely dragged yourself up the boarding ramp before flopping down onto the couch in the main hold. The lights were dim, and you took an opportunity to let your head thunk against the back of the cushions. It was almost three in the morning and you were exhausted (but likely nothing compared to your counterpart), but determined to make sure Luke returned okay and headed to bed. You closed your eyes for a moment only to feel R2’s retractable arm poking your leg, surprised to feel metal against your bare skin.

You stared at the droid in surprise as he continued to poke your leg with questioning little beeps. You looked down and groaned as you realized. “Oh, for kriff’s sake.” No wonder you’d gotten some funny looks: before storming after Luke, you’d completely forgotten to put on pants and had lectured everyone in Luke’s shirt and your underwear. Sweet Maker.

~***~

You bit your lip as you gripped the Redeemer’s controls. “Okay, help me out a bit here, R2.”

The droid tittered nervously from where he was plugged into a socket near the pilot’s chair. You looked nervously at the thick fog that enveloped the ship. You…sort of knew how to fly? You doubted you’d be much help in a firefight the way Luke would, but you could at least get from Point A to Point B—at least when Point B wasn’t covered in mist so opaque, you couldn’t see an inch out the viewport.

“Stupid kriffing flying,” you mumbled, “and stupid kriffing mysterious Force temple aesthetic.”

Normally, you would’ve relied on Luke for this sort of thing, but after returning from his talk with Anakin’s ghost, he’d crashed so hard, he hadn’t even noticed you quietly come into his room to check on him this morning. He was still sound asleep when you’d gently pulled his blanket to cover his feet, soft snores pouring from his open mouth, his limbs every which way, and his hair in complete disarray. It was likely the first good night’s sleep he’d gotten in days and you wouldn’t rob him of that. It was now eleven in the morning and he still hadn’t emerged from his room, so you figured you’d just go ahead and get the ship settled by the temple so all he had to worry about was waking up and stepping outside. But now you realized that might not have been the best idea.

Relax, you suddenly heard Obi-wan’s voice in your mind. Breathe. Drop your shoulders. Now feel the Force.

You did as bade, leaning so your back was flat against the seat and closing your eyes. You sank into the comforting feeling of life around you, sensing all the animals on the mountaintop scattering to the trees and bushes at the sound of your engines. You sensed a line of statues on either side of you and let the ship slowly sink down to the nearby ground with a gentle thunk. You opened your eyes and sighed in relief as you felt the landing legs of the shuttle settle into safe, sturdy ground.

“What’s going on?”

You turned to see a bleary, pajama-clad Luke in the doorway rubbing one of his eyes with his fist. He hadn’t put his glove over his cybernetic, the hole exposing the wiring laid bare for you to see. The two of you had shared enough private (and sometimes embarrassing) moments that you were one of the few people he didn’t bother to hide it from.

“We’re at the temple.”

He frowned and you tried not to chuckle at how adorably confused he looked with his nightshirt, shorts, and bedhead. “You landed the ship in the fog?”

You half-jokingly pursed your lips at him. “Thanks.”

“No, I just meant—I didn’t—I mean, you’re definitely capable—”

You stood and gave Luke’s shoulder a gentle pat. “Why don’t you go get some breakfast so you can function while we’re in there?”

He nodded before turning and stumbling over to the small kitchenette he’d installed, giving R2 a friendly pat on the way and making tea for both of you like he always did. The past few days, you’d found your drink waiting on the counter with Luke nowhere in sight and couldn’t describe the relief that flooded through you when he did his usual routine of bringing it to where you sat at the table with a small smile and shoulder squeeze. You could still sense some confusion and worry in him and he was quieter than usual—but at least the little signs of affection were slowly starting to come back and he wasn’t avoiding you like the plague.

Once you were both ready (and more coherent), the two of you headed down the landing ramp with lightsabers ready at your hips and an astromech fast on your heels. Although neither of you had found a full-fledged temple in your travels, plenty of places that held Force artifacts also seemed to hold a large amount of ghosts, dangers, visions, and boobytraps. The mist was suddenly much easier to see through now that you had your feet on the ground, which could only be a result of the Force itself.

You followed an overgrown, cracked cobblestone path lined with statues that had been worn away by the weather. You could just make out shapes of what seemed to be different jedi of all races: some were so eroded, you couldn’t even tell what race they were anymore while others were missing limbs, heads, entire upper torsos, and the like. You glanced back at the ship to see you’d landed it perfectly in the middle of the path and couldn’t help feeling proud of yourself. You turned to see Luke glancing at you and chuckled as he sensed your thoughts through the Force.

“Don’t get too cocky now,” he said.

“I mean, I did a pretty good job.”

He gave you another soft laugh. “That you did.”

At the end of the path were some unstable concrete steps leading up into a dark, black pit of a doorway. Half of it’s old fashioned double doors hung crooked on its hinges while the other half lay flat on the floor. You could see the roof had holes in many places while some rooms had crumbling half walls with nothing to shield it from the outside, making you wonder whether the elements had wrecked this place or a battle had.

Luke held out a hand to help you up the steep, crumbling steps, keeping a tight grip on you until you stood at the mouth of the void. The two of you took a deep breath in unison before descending.

~***~

The relief flooding through you as Home One came into view was indescribable, and you could tell Luke felt the same way from the pilot seat next to you. You glanced at him as he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, letting R2 take over. After several hours, you and Luke had managed to find the ancient jedi texts you were looking for inside the temple. Ironically, they had mentioned the no attachment rule themselves, but with a twist—categorizing them as a specific form of unhealthy possession instead of the encouraged healthy connection, just as Luke had described to Obi-wan. It seemed “no attachment” equating all potential relationships was added later. When you’d pointed this out to Luke as the two of you sat hunched over the old parchment, he’d merely nodded before moving on. But you could feel the conflict deep in him, as well as a bone-deep exhaustion that seemed it would take more than just a day or two off to undo.

Just as the Redeemer neared Home One’s hangar, Luke took the controls back over and expertly landed the ship in the bay. He kept his hands on the controls for a few moments and gazed out at the hustle and bustle in front of him, completely lost in thought.

After a few more minutes of this, you gently touched his arm. “Um…Luke? Are you all right?”

He startled before nodding. “Yes, sorry.” He unbuckled himself before standing with you and gesturing for you to go ahead of him. He hung back a few steps as you descended the boarding ramp and you felt your stomach twist as you sensed not all was right with him. Once your feet had hit the floor of the hangar, you turned to see your friend and his droid had stopped several steps up.

“Are you coming?” you asked, fearing the answer.

He hesitated, glancing behind you for a moment as Leia strode over to you from the other side of the bay. “I…think I need a few days to myself to work through everything. This was a lot to process, and I sense some important decisions about the new jedi order need to be made before moving forward.”

You sighed and let your shoulders sink, avoiding his gaze. You had hoped after everything that happened on Khofar, things would go back to the way they were before. Now, they were apparently in jeopardy all over again.

Sensing your turmoil, Luke descended the final few steps of the ramp to stand in front of you, putting gentle hands on your upper arms. “I will come back, I promise. I won’t just abandon you. I just want some time and space to myself to think and not be distracted by all the hustle and bustle of people through the Force.”

You fought the telltale burning of tears in your eyes. “But you’ve always taken me with you when you needed that before.”

“I know.” His own eyes reflected your sadness right back at you. “But you haven’t done anything wrong, and I promise this isn’t goodbye. I just need two or three days, then I’ll be right back. You have my word.”

“Luke!” Leia called with a smile as she got closer.

Luke raised his hand to wave before turning back to you. His eyes turned sad again as he gently wiped a tear away from your cheek you hadn’t realized escaped. “I’ll come back for you, I promise.” He hesitated, staring into your eyes for a moment with lips stretched thin, before taking your face between his hands and leaving a soft, lingering kiss on your forehead.

You tried not to cry even more as Leia finally caught up with you, wrapping her brother in a tight hug before looking at him in surprise. “You’re leaving again?” She glanced at you where you stood rigidly gripping your bag’s shoulder strap amidst the usual chaos of the hangar. “And Y/N isn’t going with you?”

“I’ll be back before you know it,” Luke said, trying to morph his face into something reassuring, but you could sense his own anxiety pouring through your connection. “Just two to three days.”

Leia glanced at you again before turning an almost scolding look on Luke, crossing her arms over her chest. “Jedi business?”

“Yes,” Luke said, quickly turning to go. You knew from past experience he was rushing to leave before Leia’s commanding tone made his resolve crumble. “I’ll have my comm on if there’s an emergency.”

And just like that, he and R2 disappeared into the ship. As the boarding ramp slowly closed, you had half a mind to jump in anyway and insist he take you with—but that wouldn’t have helped anything. And to be honest, after the experience of the last three days, you were much too exhausted to fight anymore.

You and Leia took several steps back as the Redeemer slowly rose up, turned, then sped out the hangar’s opening towards the darkness. You bit your lip to avoid a show of emotion in front of the princess—you’d never had to watch the ship you had come to know as home leave without you and it was jarring sight. Would your room ever feel the same again? Or would Luke decide he would honor the no attachment rule anyway, and your relationship would turn into something permanently cold, distant, and formal? Just two jedi who work together instead of two good friends. It didn’t help that he hadn’t given you any indication which way he was leaning.

“Okay,” Leia turned to you, arms still crossed over her chest and her brow stern. “Now what’s really going on?”

You finally met her eyes, unable to hold back the tears anymore as you continued to suck on your lip.

Leia’s fiery resolve crumbled and she immediately wrapped an arm around your shoulders. “Hey, what’s going on?” Some annoyance reentered her gaze. “What did my brother do?”

“Um,” you warbled, wiping some tears away with your sleeve as they fell down your face, “it’s a long story.”

Leia gently rubbed your back. “Well, it’s time for dinner.” She started gently leading you towards the back doors. “Why don’t we both order some food to my quarters and you can tell me all about it? See if I can help?”

You merely nodded, desperate for comfort as you leaned into Leia’s embrace. Once at her quarters sat in front of a healthy smattering of food, you tearfully told her everything. When you got to the part about Obi-wan’s bad advice, she groaned with a sweet Maker, staring at you in shock when you revealed he’d told you that you were also a Kenobi. She sighed and face palmed again at some of her brother’s actions and ended the story with a look on her face that was so annoyed, you knew that look alone would’ve shut the entire problem building over the last several days down in seconds. She tried to reassure you that Luke didn’t have it in him to leave you as the two of you ate, but you could sense her own frustration and worry through the Force.

After eating, you used her attached refresher to wash up, cry for a few minutes in private, and splash some water on your face so you weren’t a spectacle walking back to your own quarters—which hadn’t been used in months with how often you’d been out and about with Luke on the Redeemer. You realized you’d come to think of that set of quarters as your room much more than the one here on Home One and the thought almost made you cry again. You sniffled before sighing and doing your best to keep it together long enough to say goodbye to Leia and walk towards your own bed.

As you reentered the main area of the princess’s apartments, you found them empty, but could hear her voice floating from a side room. You quietly made your way forward to see her in a small den, sitting agitated, straight backed on the edge of a chair with a comm close to her mouth. You couldn’t make out the words, but heard Luke’s voice float through the comm back to her and it felt like your heart twisted and dropped into your stomach at the sound.

“Luke, you know I love you and I understand the immense pressure you’re under,” Leia replied, her voice quiet but still filled with a firm sharpness that brooked no room for argument, “but you need to get it together—”

You quickly escorted yourself out, your speed walking just a step down from running towards your room as you kept your head trained on your feet. The burning in your eyes was building again and you felt your chest constrict the closer you got to the familiar, but lately unused bedroom door, and couldn’t help reliving that feeling of a tomb door booming closed between you and Luke, sealing your fates.

~~~~

Taglist (please let me know via comment or DM if you'd like to be added): @kaleidoscope1967eyes @masterlukessaber @coffeeorsomething-irl @lxstfathier @rogue-kenobi @sonofthedunes @pomplalamoose @lex-the-flex @myevilmouse @ilovemarkhamill @goddessesofeverything @acupnoodle

[liliesmultiverse]

⋆ˊˎ-•̩̩͙- *̩̩̥͙ things i'm most excited for in my home reality!!

: ̗̀➛ my relationship. this is what i’m most excited for, my relationship with aaron. we’re quite literally soulmates and i don’t care if it’s cheesy to script that. it’s a private relationship because honestly it’s nobody’s business but ours. we haven’t even told our families yet but they’ll find out at christmas. we don’t exactly plan on announcing it publicly anytime soon. we aren’t gonna hide it though, we’re just gonna let people speculate until we are ready to officially come out with it. and oh my god, i scripted he has a few tattoos as well but there’s one that i absolutely love & am 100% gonna lick. eventually. anyways… just look up james potter tattoo and you’ll see what i mean.

: ̗̀➛ my parents relationship. i absolutely adore my mom, she’s my favorite person in the entire universe and she deserves someone who’s hopelessly devoted to her. like my dad (chris) absolutely adores her and practically worships the ground she walks on. he brings her to every single one of his movie premieres and all of the award shows. he spoils the absolute fuck out of her and is just absolutely in love with her.

: ̗̀➛ the greenhouse. okay, so i scripted me & aaron have a greenhouse a few yards away from the house and it’s huge. like it has two stories, huge. imagine the greenhouse from hogwarts legacy, okay? it’s really really beautiful too. intricate glass, ivy crawling up the sides in random directions, a cobbled-dirt path leading from our back patio to it, fairy lights lighting up the path. we only have plants on the first floor right now but we hope to eventually have plants growing on the second floor too.

: ̗̀➛ my fans & community. definitely one of my favorite parts. there’s a ton of extremely talented editors, fanfic writers, etc. everyone is extremely kind as well and my community is very welcoming. it’s a free & open space where you can talk about anything, even shifting. no hate happens and anyone who tries to is completely ignored and blocked immediately. they’re also very patient and treat me as a human instead of demanding content on a daily basis, which makes me feel bad bc i haven’t been streaming on twitch or uploading youtube videos since my break-up with reneé :(

: ̗̀➛ winter snow. starting from the first day of the season to the last day of the season, it snows all season long no matter where i am in the world because having lived in a state that rarely gets snow in this reality fucking. sucks.

: ̗̀➛ stargazing. i’ve scripted there’s absolutely no light pollution, never has been and never will be. i want to be able to enjoy late night stargazing picnics with my boyfriend. i want to be able to search for constellations and point them out happily when i find them. i just want nights with a sky filled with stars.

: ̗̀➛ the marauders fandom. i have made some major changes to this fandom because holy fuck, i love the marauders but the fandom sucks in this reality. for starters, it’s a lot less toxic. everyone’s headcanons & opinions are respected and haters are blocked immediately instead of being interacted with. like my community, it’s also open and welcoming to any new fans. i did script a certain ship (not starchaser) was a lot less popular so it doesn’t appear in nearly every single fic and that a certain fanfic doesn’t exist as well. i’m not saying which ship & fic but the two coincide so i’ll let you guess.

: ̗̀➛ the food. oh my god the food. it tastes 1000x times better but especially when aaron cooks for me. he’s an amazing cook and is even learning how to cook italian dishes. all the food he makes is completely homemade as well so just ughhh. i also scripted that water tastes like cherries.

[ladymirdan]

Warning, fandom rant.

I was gonna piggyback ride off Tagedezorns post about falling out of love with the fandom.

Dont get me wrong, I still fucking LOVE 40k.

Im having a great time painting my minis, reading the lore, reading and talking with the BL authors on twitter or talking the ears off the staff in my local GW (don't worry, they love it, and they have some fantastic HC’s too!)

But the rest of it is sadly losing its appeal for me as well, and it saddens me to see other fan artists or writers feeling the same, I thought it was just me.

When I first started to become active in the shipping fandom about a couple of years ago it was fantastic. I felt so welcome and wanted, I had never gotten a reception like that in any fandom before. I even faced my fear and started writing fanfiction, and people seemed to love it.

But the last months/year it feels like it's all gone. As if Tumblr has died, it feels like I'm shouting into the void. (I have a few people who still interact on my posts and I see you and I love you). But I have eightdoubled my followers last year, but that hasn't resulted in any more interaction, other than a few more likes. But to be fair, likes does nothing.

Im not an influencer or a content creator, and I have zero aspirations to become one. That is why I stopped doing tiktoks. I do not want to chase trends or algorithms, I want to be unhinged about my blorbos and see people being unhinged about their blorbos in turn.

I love the intense passion fandom can have, even when it's not a character I'm personally into.

I really don't want Tumblr to die. I have tried Discord and it was the most alienating and disheartening experience I've had since like high school.

When I first tried it out it was soo much fun, but as time went on, more and more people who seemed to like me stopped posting on there, and more and more whenever I posted I just got straight up ignored.

I could post in a channel that had been dead for weeks, and suddenly people started posting about other things, everyone ignoring what I wrote. If it happened once or twice I wouldn't have bothered, but a dozen or more times? It just fucking sucks. I noticed how it started affecting my mental health, trying to reach out and talk to people, but just being talked around and over. So I just stopped posting.

If someone doesn't like me on Tumblr I won't notice or get sad, but seeing it happen in real-time just fucking sucks.

And also, on Tumblr there is always the off chance that your post gets necromanced. That just doesn't happen on Discord.

And another thing that has happened a lot is I write a fic or a Tumblr post. It gets zero interaction, and I'm like “oh I guess no one is interested about that,” and then I see that someone has just reposted my fic/post in a discord and people are geeking out over it over there.

I'm not a paid artist/writer. I do what I do because I want to geek out over something, preferably with someone else. But I effectively become removed from my art. People are discussing it, just not with me.

Dealing with being unliked as a person fucking sucks. Especially when it's supposed to be your hobby-fun-time. And it is making me not want to post stuff anymore.

[dr-futbol-blog]

Allies, Pt. 5

The wraith queen and her entourage make their way through Atlantis from the promontory where their ship had touched down to the gate room where the welcoming committee is waiting for them. As already mentioned, McKay is not there with them. In fact, out of everyone that had been in the meeting room discussing this, he is the only one not welcoming the wraith queen to Atlantis. And what makes it even more striking, makes it all the more strange that he is not participating in it is that he seems nonetheless interested to see her. We find McKay hanging out at one of the doorways along the way of the entourage, trying to get a good look at her, craning his neck and probably standing on his tippy-toes and everything.

It is very obvious that McKay wanted to see her, and yet he is the only one of the senior staff, of the people that had been in the meeting where they had decided to go ahead with this, and even largely due to his excitement over the prospects -- and yet he is not allowed to come meet her. It is very clear that he is not allowed to be there, that Sheppard will not let him. While they have the hallways lined up with guards, the soldier standing in front of McKay and blocking his way with his finger on the trigger of his P-90 is symbolic of why he is being kept away, of why McKay had apparently had to sneak in to get peek. In fact, McKay is the first of them to get a look at her.

It is not as though McKay is not important enough to be included, that he has to hang out with the plebes watching from the sidelines while everyone else is invited to welcome her. It is also not a case of him having been too busy or otherwise occupied to attend because evidently he is not. It is clear that it had been Sheppard's decision to exclude McKay from the proceedings, not his. And it is not because he is being ostracized or what ever people think is happening here. McKay is an important asset, both to Atlantis in general and to Sheppard personally. We get confirmation here for the fact that Sheppard has a tendency to remove McKay out of the way of unnecessary risks.

Weir: I'm Doctor Elizabeth Weir. Welcome to Atlantis.

The wraith queen saunters in with Michael and another wraith in tow, looking not unlike a drag queen. The welcoming committee is coming down the stairs to meet them, apparently having stayed on the Control Platform near the monitors up until it was time to meet with her personally, the Lanteans coming down as the wraith climb up as though to meet in the middle. As mentioned, Ronon and Teyla are both present for this, and you could argue that Ronon is there to secure Sheppard and Teyla is there because of her connection to the wraith and her personal connection to Michael. But then Caldwell is also present, the captain of the ship they are hoping is sheltering them from the hive, all of the key personnel here to meet up with her. Apart from McKay. It is no so much the absence of McKay that is peculiar as it is the presence of everyone else but him when he so obviously wanted to see her.

Note the way they come down the stairs with Sheppard walking slightly behind Weir and to the opposite side of her from the wraith. He has to go around her to come face to face with the queen. This means that they are going out of their way to show us that Sheppard is not putting his body between Weir and the wraith, that Sheppard is not guarding her with his life, is not offering up himself as a human shield to protect her. This is made all the more pertinent by the fact that there is an actual scene later where they make it clear that protecting one's superior is something to be expected from members of a leader's entourage, their companions. Later, when McKay has finally been allowed to meet the wraith personally with the apparent stipulation that no one lays a hand on him, they have the following exchange:

Dex: You don't touch him! McKay: He was guiding me down the hall, not sucking the life out of my shoulder! We are sorry. Say you're sorry! Wraith: That will not be necessary. He was protecting his superior. I would have done the same.

We are explicitly told that being protective of the one that is most important, most prized is instinctive behaviour to both the wraith and to humans. It is one of the things that is common to both species being that, according to Michael, humans are more like the wraith than they would like to admit. And we have seen that Sheppard is capable of being protective, of offering up his own body and his life in keeping others safe. We have seen him do it, after a fashion, with Norina in Inferno (S02E19) and genuinely with Avrid in Epiphany (S02E12). But most often we have seen him do it with McKay. McKay is the person Sheppard has an instinctive drive to protect with his own life, with whom he does not have to think about putting up his own body between him and danger. He does it unthinkingly because McKay is the most important thing in his life. And so we see him very obviously not put his body between the wraith queen and any of the people marching down the stairs by his side, even though we are able to see how on edge he is by how his hand lands on the handle of his gun, holding on to it like a security blanket.

And so Sheppard stands face to face with the queen and unlike the others -- possibly, although not certainly, excluding Ronon -- he has actually faced off with wraith queens before, and he does not exactly have warm and fuzzy memories about these previous encounters. We had learned previously that the queens are powerfully telepathic, and as the queen now looks around the gate room, likely the first wraith queen ever to set foot in it, we see how the soldiers lower their weapons as she looks at them. She may have compelled them to do it or they were just impressed by her sheer presence for, as a female of Sheppard's stature, she is indeed an impressive sight to behold.

Weir: My people are willing to work with some of your scientists, but no more than three wraith will be allowed on this base at any given time. Sheppard: They'll be subjected to extensive searches that we'll perform at random intervals. Any harmful weapons or materials found on your-- your fellow wraith...

Next, we find that the wraith queen has been escorted to Weir's office ("Really, your office?") where she is seated opposite Weir, not really like they would treat any foreign dignitary that they have usually brought into the meeting room but more like someone that had been brought in to be reprimanded. Weir and Sheppard seem to be laying down the law, recounting the conditions they have for this relationship to proceed. There are armed guards standing behind the wraith queen, not unlike there had been when they had allowed the Genii Ladon to come negotiate with them in Coup d'État (S02E17) but in contrast to that, Weir herself has agreed to sit down with her, a courtesy that she had not given the Genii. Weir is a world class diplomat and likely understands that, while they are taking some obvious precautions here, it is important to meet someone where they are for negotiations to bear fruit.

What is interesting is that Sheppard remains standing -- and many people have interpreted this as Sheppard "standing by" Weir, as though him standing next to her was some significant indicator of his feelings for her. However, observe how his pelvis is turned away from her like it always is, the masculine display of his assets here directed toward the wraith queen (not intended to entice her but to challenge, an attempt to measure up against her). Sheppard is keeping his hands on his hips but although his hands are akimbo like they had been when he caught up with Teyla earlier, they are now held lower and more loose on his hips, this posture emphasizing his... precision missile in a way that the earlier pose did not. While you can bet your bottom dollar that Sheppard is not sexually or romantically interested in the wraith queen, his energy is nonetheless directed toward her, she is the natural focus of his attention. Sheppard is also standing at the side of Weir's desk which forms a kind of a barrier between him and both ladies. Note also that Sheppard seems unable to force the words "your people" out of his mouth, having to amend it to "your fellow wraith." They are all struggling with this.

Sheppard: We'll consider it an act of aggression and immediately destroy your ship. Weir: We are also monitoring all of your transmissions... Wraith Queen: All we want is the retrovirus. It is the key to ending a civil war that could go on for centuries. Impose whatever conditions you wish. Let us begin.

Weir and Sheppard are laying out the conditions the Lanteans have for allowing any wraith into the city and, being that Sheppard is responsible for security, we can presume that most of these conditions and stipulations come from him, are precautions that he had insisted on taking. They are aware that this requires them to go out on a limb but they are once more faced with the same dilemma as McKay had faced in Trinity (S02E06) and Beckett in Michael (S02E18) of whether the potential rewards outweigh the risks.

We end the scene with Sheppard looking at the wraith with an inscrutable look on his face, possibly trying to weigh the risks in his mind, to go through everything they had thought of to see if there was something he had missed. The queen presents this as an opportunity to end a war, be that she is referring to one internal to the wraith, nonetheless managing to dangle a worm on the hook that looks very appetizing to all of them. At the same time, her reference to imposing conditions in order to end a strife may also remind Sheppard of something else, something more personal. Even though it seems clear that Sheppard and McKay have reconciled, we cannot be sure what had finally resolved the issues that had been keeping them apart. Perhaps one or both of them had had some conditions they had to impose, and we do see both of them make an effort to do things in a way that is considerate of the other's feelings in this episode. McKay staying away when it was not necessary for him to be present may have been one of them.

Continued in Pt. 6

[20dollarlolita]

Hello everyone and welcome to the 20dollarlollita February Challenge:

This February it's the "Literally 20 dollars lolita challenge."

The challenge is, during the month of February, add something to your lolita wardrobe. Your budget is $20.

If you want to make something, that counts. If you buy a cute bracelet at Claire's, that counts. The real winners are the people who add something new and fun to their EGL Fashion Arsenal. (Also, post your addition! Allowing other people to see what you're able to add for an accessible price point inspires other people and helps the community as a whole!)

Tag it, uh, *makes up tag right now*, uh, 20lolitaFEBchallenge, unless anyone comes up with a better tag.

EDIT: @trickstercheshi DID come up with a better tag. #LITERALLY20dollarlolita

Fine print:

If you think it's cheating, maybe it is. You're the master of your own destiny. $20 budget does not include shipping, bribery, gas money, wear and tear, or labor and delivery. If you want to spend $1 on an item and $60 on shipping, I don't understand you, but it counts as spending $1. Fabric in your stash doesn't come out of the $20 budget and neither does thread, unless you feel like it's cheating, and then it is. The goal is completion and not competition. Enter at your own risk. Shein and Temu and AI 'art' aren't banned but someone will mock you for using them, so you make your own decisions about if they are to be used. Items made out of bacon are prohibited where applicable state and local laws are enforceable. If you don't like the lighthouse, you suck.

[zadr-day]

Why ZaDr?

Think of every worthwhile rival ship that has ever existed; dip it in a poison coating of cynical worldbuilding, sprinkle it with a topping of shunned existence, and let the devil kiss it with a waxy pair of slimy, scifi alien lips. Only then, will you  have yourself a sample of what ZaDr has to offer. These characters are compelling in themselves; one being a bizarre and paranormal obsessed clone of Earth's greatest scientific mind, the other a malfunctioning spaztic robot ant from beyond the stars. Each of them ostracized, for one reason or another, largely by virtue of their own passionate past mistakes.Those mistakes, failed efforts to be seen as worthwhile, to be praised, to be loved. But then you set them against each other, as enemies. As mirrored foils. Neither of them in the right, gray morality reigns supreme as they are  purely obsessed with their own selfish reasons for self aggrandizement. Anything “good” that might happen as a result of their actions is always cast in the light of unintended circumstance. The true fight is with reality itself, while the sharp end of that crushing conflict is pointed towards the only one who could possibly understand what they’re going through. In the world of Invader Zim, every mentor, leader, parental figure, teacher, adult, child and Invader, feels more real by virtue of misanthropic absurdity. Their inability to provide the support and guidance for the main characters to function in a healthy way, is so very like the absence of nurturing many people feel in their youth. To anyone who has experienced life at its worst growing up, these caricatures of the real world provide a powerful sense of being seen. There is something radical about a story that isn’t written with any other moral than “ this living in society shit sucks”. That speaks to people, and continues to speak to me. ZaDr has always smacked of tragedy, in that you know things will end badly for everyone involved, but it’s still impossible to look away as everything is set ablaze. Two headstrong protagonists, locked in a battle of opposing wills and addictive delusion. It makes the sweetness sweeter, it makes the pains of grand fantasy ache deeper, knowing that these two characters are ultimately fighting losing battles for pitiful reasons.The denial of personal failure, the stubbornness to find purpose. In all of reality, all they truly have is each other. To see that dynamic and ship them is to say that love is possible even in the most dire of circumstances. Time and time again I find myself returning to ZaDr. I think something about the dynamic speaks to the part of us that knows things are wrong and that the fight against it is worthwhile. And that struggle, while futile, can still hold a tremendous amount of personal importance. It speaks to failing, and having the strength to get back up to try again. No matter the odds. For a pairing hated by its own creator, the fixation that Zim and Dib have on each other is an undeniable magnetism seen by the fandom since the launch of the cartoon, all the way back in 2001. This ship has staying power, and after over two decades has failed to fall into total obscurity.  Those touched by its effects have gone on to create resonant, deeply meaningful works. This blog, and the posts that I make on the topic, are my way of giving back to the ZaDr community. By displaying the stories of triumph and tragedy put forward by the IZ community, I hope to welcome new fans and give back to long standing fans by providing a living archive and blog space. I look forward to sharing the wonderful talents of so many artists with you all. Happy first ZaDr day of many

[star-lights-up]

click to see better lmao, tumblr always messes with the quality we've got a "meet the blorbos" page on the way too i just have to draw it first :D

Hi there! I'm Daisy! I write (and read) tons of fanfiction! Currently, I only have Cherik-centric work (from the X-men fandom) but I'm hoping to expand soon and write for some of my other ships as well!!

You can find me on ao3 @ star_lights_up

All my work is rated teen or under. I'm not comfortable writing content with a higher rating than that, so if you're not comfortable reading that type of stuff, my work is always safe for you! I also include trigger warnings (where there are triggers) at the beginning of my works. <3

I am a minor. This blog is safe for minors. (though I do swear a little? Nothing awful, though!) If you're a creep, FUCK OFF (there's that swearing I talked about).

This blog is a safe space for EVERYONE, regardless of your gender, ethnicity, sexuality, etc, WHATEVER, as long as you're not a jerk you're welcome here. <33 (hate, towards me or towards anyone else will not be tolerated.)

My main fandoms (and interests in those fandoms) are:

Star Wars (Reylo and Stormpilot, anything about Din Djarin, minor Obitine)

X-Men (Cherik, Emmoira, anything about Peter or Jean)

Marvel (Anything about Loki, minor Sam/Bucky and bishova)

Agents of SHIELD (Fitzsimmons, anything about Daisy)

I am also trying to make the tag #thegreatcherikrevivalof2024 a thing, because I don't have anything better to be doing with my time. It kind of.... worked? (CHERIK NATION WE NEED T-SHIRTS)

My other tag that i'm trying to get is #rip charles xavier's hair because apocalypse was a TRAGEDY. He was so pretty ):

And here's a little bit about me outside of all that:

I'm a full time student (unfortunately, it sucks).

I draw quite a lot, you'll probably see some of my art on my blog.

I love reading and writing things that aren't fanfiction too! Some of my favorite books are Fangirl, Hurricane Wars (Okay, I know that USED to be fanfiction but, c'mon, I get to count it as a real book now) and the Testing trilogy (Hunger games but done better. I will fight about this.). I also drafted a novel last year, which I may or may not finish up and publish on Amazon. Only time will tell.

I am a songwriter, I love singing and playing the guitar!

I'm a total science nerd, especially for Astronomy and Genetics. I also love pretending that I understand quantum physics because I watch too much TV.

That's me! Feel free to send me an ask if you have any questions, or just want to say "hi." (:

If you're a creep, I have no qualms about blocking you, so don't waste your time.

- Daisy <3

The Cherik tiktok au is at: #cherik hear me out au #cherik tiktok au (It also now has a masterpost here)

My X men ships list here

Random Cherik AU ideas stored here