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thetypedwriter · 5 years ago

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Chain of Gold Book Review

Chain of Gold Book Review by Cassandra Clare

I know what you’re thinking.

Oh. My. God. Another one?

How can she possibly be cranking out these 5,000 long page novels year after year after year?

I think the exact same thing and yet….

I still read them. Every single one. Well, except for some of the companions, guides, and novellas that accompany them because come on nobody has that much free time. And we don’t talk about the show Shadowhunters that Freeform monstrously created. Ever.

Except for Cassandra Clare maybe, since, you know, she wrote them. Or co-wrote them. Or kinda wrote them. Whatever, the true authorship isn’t important here.

What is important, however, is that there is a new Shadowhunter series on the horizon and THAT IT IS NOT TY AND KIT. I REPEAT. This new massive compendium is not the next installment of the Dark Artifices. Instead, it is an entirely new-but-not-new-Cassandra-Clare style book for the newly developed The Last Hours series in which no one asked for nor expected.

You might be asking yourself: do I need to have read the other 76 books in order to understand this one? Cassandra Clare and others will have you believe no. They’ll say, “Nahhhh, don’t stress, it’s a new cast of characters!”

They are dead wrong.

I mean, I guess you plausibly could but you would be horribly confused and befuddled for the entire sequence. I was largely confused and befuddled for the entire sequence and I have read most of the other 76 books-which, is a joke, of course, except not really, since the current canon world spans 14 main books across multiple timelines (all of which are the opposite of miniature by the way) and at least five companion novels and counting that are more important than they let on.

It is extremely, extremely daunting for new readers.

That being said, as we are all stuck at home quarantined due to coronavirus, you probably have a lot of time on you. Just gonna say that Amazon and Barnes & Noble deliver, folks, jump on it. E-books also exist if you do not have room to house these monstrosities, a problem I do not blame you for.

Now that all of that is out of the way, what is this new book about and how did I feel about it?

Well. To start, this new series takes place in the late 19th century in London, a setting we’ve seen before in The Infernal Devices, the first of the canon spinoff series.

This new series mainly tells the story of the children from the first spinoff, with highlights on Tessa, Will, and Jem. As most of Clare’s books, this one also has alternating POV’s. This particular installment switches mainly between Cordelia Carstairs, James Herondale and Lucie Herondale with little snatches of others in between.

To make this overly large series very, very simplified and contained, here is my plot summary:

Girl moves to London. Girl is in love with her best friend’s brother (a little cliche, but okay, Clare). Brother is a special little nugget that can see the demon world because his mother is a warlock (cue Infernal Devices here). His sister, the other special nugget and said best friend from above, can talk to ghosts, but not only that, she can also command them. The applause sound goes here.

There are demon uprisings. Some shadowhunters get poisoned while everyone runs around incompetently trying to find a cure, but don’t worry it’s none of the main characters so you don’t really care. The brother special nugget from above is also pretend in love with a girl with a very dark home life that reeks of manipulation (cough cough obviously the bracelet is bewitched in some way) and is somehow enchanting him to do her bidding, but is really in love with the new girl that’s in love with him. Gasp.

Special nugget also has a best friend that is most likely a bisexual alcoholic and the girl who moved to London has a drunkard father who’s currently in prison and a brother who was previously a bully becasue he was gay (amongst other reasons) and is not as much of an asshole, but is still an asshole. Unrequited love is also strewn about handomsely.

Yup. That about sums it up.

If you’re confused, then that’s okay, as the book is confusing.

Plot aside, this book was enjoyable to me for one main reason: it’s a shadowhunter book. Despite all the jokes I’m making on its behalf, I do love the series. It’s expansive and interesting and angsty and romantic and most of the characters and action and plot twists are really incredibly good.

Truly.

However, this book, for me personally, was more on the burdensome side of the Sahdowhunter lore rather than the uplifting one that added to it, even if I did buy it the first day it came out.

Clare throws so many characters at you in this first installment that it’s actually impossible to keep track, primarily because no one other than the true main characters are ever clearly defined or characterized or shown significance in any way and also because THEY ARE ALL DAMN RELATED IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER AND BECAUSE THEY ALL HAVE THE SAME FUCKING NAMES.

I’m not even kidding. How Clare got to her original series and The Dark Artifices series without having incest galore is a miracle to me. The same people in the same families fall in love every damn time that at this point they all have to be interconnected Slytherin pure-blood style.

We didn’t need a sickly sweet epilogue of Tessa and Will’s wedding day at the end of the book. We needed a well drawn out and thoughtfully labeled shadowhunter family tree in full color because this shit was so confusing.

This was a big turn-off for me. It was almost as if Clare was suffering under the expansiveness of the world she had built, which is why the book was over 600 pages when it really could have easily been half. The last 90 pages read as an annoying epilogue that should have been twenty at most but just kept going and going and going like a Geico commercial.

She has so many characters with so many names and so many little tidbits about them that it was actually alarming. I get it if Clare knows who everyone is, that’s great. She’s the author. The point is, however, is not so that the author understands, but the readers do too. I can say with 100% certainty that no one understood who everyone was unless they study the main series every night before they go to bed, which is largely impossible.

In addition, this particular story is just...fine. It’s fine. It’s not the best of Clare’s work (Dark Artifices, baby!) or the worst (I don’t know...maybe Red Scrolls of Magic) but it gets the job done. I don't hate the characters like I have some others of Clare’s creations, but I don’t love them either.

James seems to be like every other male character that Clare has ever created, Cordelia seems...okay. Lucie is rather annoying, as is Grace and her mother Tatiana, who are so evil it’s stupid. Thomas and Christopher don’t matter in the slightest and neither do the parents, which is a shame considering they were the main cast in Infernal Devices. Jesse was...alright.

Honestly, the best characters in my opinion were Matthew Fairchild and Anna Lightwood. I would have loved a saucy, dramatic Oscar Wilde inspired entourage where they were painting the town red and smashing stereotypes all over the place.

But no. We get the main love story of James and Cordelia, the new girl and the best friend’s brother. Which has never been done of course. Super unique idea.

Cue eye roll.

In the end, odds are, if you are going to read Chain of Gold, you were going to read it to begin with because you’re a Shadowhunter fan like me and you’ll gobble up anything Cassandra Clare throws at you, whether good or bad. If you’re interested in picking up a book, this is not the book to start.

If you want a super long, mostly tantalizing read that will take over your life for the next few months then I recommend starting with the OG City of Bones and painstakingly making your way from there. You’ll most likely not regret it, even if your bank account and your heart will be crying by the end.

Recommendation: Shadowhunter fans unite! Chain of Gold is out and ready to be devoured! Everyone else, either stand back or pick up a book and get reading because this book is on a train that will keep chugging and chugging forever.

Score: 6.5/10

#chain of gold #shadowhunters #cassandra clare #the mortal instruments #book blog #books #book review #Book Recommendations #ya fiction #YA Books #ya book rec #jem carstairs #will herondale #the last hours #book series

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lovebubblechoices · 5 years ago

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Out of curiosity

Hey guys!

Next Saturday, the whole Choices fandom will be giggling of joy and happiness with the long awaited return of our favorite doctor and the best crew of best friends ever. That being said, I’m curious to know what you are expecting in particular of this Book 2. This post will mainly be orientated Ethan/MC since he’s my LI.

As for me, I am expecting a lot of drama. I hope that we won’t be disappointed in any way… that would seriously s*ck! To be fair, it is kind of clear that we will discover a new MC - a more confident and bossy one as far as the own intern thing is concerned. At least that would be quite logical since MC saved Grand-Mentor as like to call Naveen. And I guess I also want to them insecure and jealous as far as Ethan J. Ramsey is concern (for those of us who are romancing him but… I’m pretty sure PB won’t make the difference and that MC is written all the same whether you romance him or not.) On that same level, I literally crave to see Ethan Jealous Ramsey cause of the new intern. I can’t wait for the witty piece of mind he will throw on the poor intern and MC for bad management. If this happen, I’m gonna cry litters of tears (tears of joy of course)

I hope that the storyline won’t be expected and dull. I mean they put so much effort in the first book… I would like very much to see a love triangle thingy situation BUT it has to be well written and meaningful. To cut it short, I’m so ready for another run of Slowburn. PB better makes it good… !! Other than that I don't have much to say, apart from I want a very well written and meaningfull sex scene - I do not care much about the location where it will happen. True, nonetheless I have my kinks but you know… I’m not complicated, I have simple tastes and as long as it is well written...

I hope that Aurora will have a Becca situation i.e. becomes a LI by the end of Book 2. If that’s the case, I’m already planning on reading OH 2 twice because I’m het but I must admit that Aurora is a very beautiful lady and if romancing her gives us the possibility to have an interesting backstory on her… I’m in!

NO REDEMPTION ARC FOR RAT and I can’t write it big enough : NO RAT. But a new one to hate for this new year is actually fine by me

BABY ETHAN AND ETHAN’S DOG : an obligation at this point to calm the frustration down.

More Sienna and Elijah gossiping (with Naveen’s), More Zaid and Ines (couple goals) I mean, LOOK. AT. THEM. Bryce flirting with everyone again like the scapel jokey he is. Rafael being the superman we discovered in Book 1 and Jackie, well… I didn’t like her much in the first installment of the series so I would like that to change for book 2. Also I’m pretty sure Harper will gain importance throughout the book - In a good or in a bad way I can’t tell but her lines are blurred as far as I’m concerned. Declan Nash with Rat in business maybe?

PRAYING FOR DR RAMSEY IN A TUX AGAIN

#open heart #OH #oh2 #choices #choices you play #ethan ramsey #mc x ethan ramsey #wishes

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serenhyunjinity · 5 years ago

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apénanti [bang chan]

“i hear you’re into greek mythology”

SKZ BANG CHAN || CHRIS BANG

warnings: probably inaccurate descriptions

a day. finally i would be visiting greece, athens precisely, was near. greece was probably the most interesting country to me at least, and i couldn’t contain my excitement once the professor announced that twenty students had been selected to go on this whirlwind of a trip. how typical, out of the 2000 students that signed up to it, i was chosen.

meanwhile here i was, sat on my bed staring at the mounds of clothes which i was about to attempt, and most likely fail, to put into my large suitcase. the only bad thing about this certain trip was the fact my best friend and roommate, hayoung, did not get selected, meaning i was bound to be alone during a majority of my stay.

“i heard jinyoung is going” the short haired girl wiggled her eyebrows teasingly as she sat on the bed opposite mine, plugging in her charger to the wall behind.

“that’s nice to know” i mumbled as i squeezed the case together, just about zipping it up fully. “i’m not going there just to form relationships, i want to widen my knowledge on greek mythology not the science of romance”. saying this, hayoung let out a groan of annoyance as she stared directly at me.

“y/n you’re going to be there for four days, i’m sure you will have time to socialise too” i mean she was correct, but truthfully i just wanted to discover more about the culture, not eat someone’s face off in a drunken makeout session. “seriously though, it’s jinyoung, you’ve liked him since forever” she chuckled as i sighed deeply.

jinyoung was and has been my crush since i was the mere age of twelve, ever since he helped me with some math question which was probably easier than anything i’ve ever studied in university. he’s smart and handsome to say the least, but it’s obvious that he isn’t looking for a relationship any time soon. i mean he just broke up with a girl who he had been dating for around two years, all because she dissed the harry potter series.

“i don’t even want to date him” now that, was a blatant lie. “i barely have time for myself, let alone a relationship” a loud sigh was heard from the other side of the room. it was true though, 99% of the time i’m either studying or writing up presentations in a small café nearby, it would just be unfair on the partner if i did end up dating.

“you can’t be single forever y/n, who knows maybe you’ll find a cute greek boy” the shorter girl winked as she moved out of her spot, grabbing a magazine. “oh crap i need to go to class” i chuckled as she ran out of the room, sliding on shoes and dashing out of the door.

only sixteen hours, hopefully it would be at least a bit eventful.

time had passed by extremely quickly, i now sat on the airplane seat, beside a girl with headphones larger than her actual head and the dance major seulgi, who was reading some kind of romance book. from the corner of my eye i could see jinyoung, who had his eyes focused on a book which looked way too complicated for a casual reader.

the journey passed by after many hours, mainly consisting of me sleeping or reading about the gods within greece. although aphrodite always caught my eye, dare i say that she was indeed my personal favourite goddess. being the mother of cupid was truly something, although i’m not totally into romance, somehow i just couldn’t help but feel invested in the story of aphrodite and her family.

one by one, we stepped off the now landed airplane, the heat immediately hitting me in the face like fire. it definitely was a contrast to the slightly colder weather of where my university resided, but i was not complaining in the slightest. to put it lightly, it felt like pure bliss.

going through the city of athens on the coach was a long but interesting journey. seulgi still sat beside me but i could spot the old fashioned buildings which were a white tone, matching the whole typical aesthetic of the city. never in my life had i seen a place as beautiful as one like this.

it was now the next day, which meant i could finally explore the culture without anyone holding me back. that was possibly the best thing about this trip, the professors wanted to explore too, so you were allowed to wonder around as long as you didn’t stray out of the general area.

so that’s how i ended up here, standing outside of a large building covered in vines. the stone was either a chalk or a marble, but it looked stunning to say the least. it actually surprised me how it was able to hold itself up despite being thousands of years old.

i grabbed my camera and captured photos that would end up in my notebook, documenting the information that i would have gathered from my stay here. strangely enough though i didn’t find too much about the mythology that i expected. i knew everything that i had researched here, which was kind of disappointing but i should have expected it.

“they’re beautiful aren’t they?” a manly voice made it’s way towards my ears, causing my head to immediately turn to the one who was attempting to make conversation with me. little did i expect to see a boy who probably was only slightly taller than me, with white hair looking in my direction. he wore a white shirt which was not fully done up and black jeans which complimented his body well.

“y-yeah they are” i gave him a small smile before turning back to the building, capturing a few more photos before placing the camera back into its case.

“i hear you’re into greek mythology” i stopped what i was doing and looked up at him, confused. do i know him? he must’ve sensed my confusion as he chuckled, causing my heart to speed up in its pace. “i suggest going to olympus, you’ll find out more there” intriguing, maybe i should go there.

“oh thanks, are you from here or are you visiting?” i attempted to keep the small talk flowing as i moved to another white building which looked almost exactly like the one before.

“i guess you could say that i was from here” he nodded slightly and this gave me enough of a chance to look at his features carefully. he was beautiful. somehow i felt a sense of attachment to him, it was odd but i could get used to it, seeing as it’s much better than being uncomfortable at least. “do you want me to come with you?” he spoke and i hesitated, i don’t know whether or not the professor would actually allow you to travel so far.

“sure i’ll ask my professor” he smiled back and handed me a piece of paper. “call me if you are allowed then” the dimples on the side of his cheeks peeked out as he began to walk off.

eventually professor lee agreed, but that didn’t stop him from hesitating slightly when i mentioned i would be going with a boy that i had met just hours before. the first day here had been a success, although i was desperate to find out more about the gods and goddesses that once roamed greece, at least in ancient tales.

so now here i was, sitting on a bus with the white haired boy sat beside me, with his earphones in his ears. i gazed out of the window, we made sure to leave as early as possible so that we could explore for longer in the daylight. the sunrise illuminated the area below, causing an orange blanket to cover the buildings and fields. with a click of my camera, it was the beginning of a long journey.

three hours later, the bus stopped, we were here. masses of tourists hopped off the vehicle and disappeared from sight, wanting to explore immediately. i learned that the boy who i came with was named chan, but also went by the name chris. talking to him was interesting, he just sounded so invested in the mythology, particularly ares, the god of war.

the mountains sorrounded the area around us, seemingly going on for miles, i’m just glad that they had installed a lift to reach the peak, so that we could view the architecture. mine and chris’ conversations mainly consisted of our favourite foods and our lives back at home. i learnt that he was working to become a producer but he would give tours around athens as a side job.

now here we were, standing in front of a large building which had a red border sorrounding it, preventing anyone from actually touching and damaging the piece of history. chris went silent, his eyes focused on the architecture, as if he was looking back at a part of his own background. “isnt it ironic that ares married aphrodite, they were complete opposites” he chuckled and i nodded slightly.

it was true, the god of the unpleasant aspects of war married the goddess of love and beauty. it kind of was like a ying and yang type of scenario. it felt like we had been in the same area for hours, gazing at the white walls that were surprisingly not too cracked. most of the tourists had left the mountain, as it began to get colder as time went by, but neither chris or i were affected what so ever.

“i’ve always wondered how ares felt about zeus and hera despising their own son” as soon as i had mentioned that, the boy standing before me froze in his spot, before looking down at the lack of grass underneath our feet.

“he hated it” he chuckled but it didn’t sound sincere, almost as though he was finding the two gods pathetic. and with that, we kept walking. that was until a bolt of lightning erupted out of nowhere, with dark grey clouds smothering the previous blue skies.

“what the fuck” i muttered as i stopped in my steps, but chris wasn’t fazed, as if this was a daily occurrence for him. was i dreaming? no maybe it’s just a very random storm. another thunderbolt hit the ground and i jumped in shock, i’m gonna get fucking hit.

“father not now...please” chris looked up and sighed deeply. did he just say father? i’m so confused. that was when the sky glowed and a boom sounded, but it sounded like a voice in the faintest. “please don’t” he was now pleading, begging on his knees. is this some sort of joke?

suddenly i felt dizzy, my body feeling light as i glanced up at the sky once more. my ears vibrated and a high pitched noise took over, until a voice caused me to stop in my steps. “aphrodite” i looked around, nobody but chris and i stood. the voice was manly, like the typical movies where they have an extremely deep voice of a god. my eyes closed and before i knew it, i was casted into a deep sleep.

my eyes fluttered open, i was in a place which was a bright shade of white, the bright sky lit up the area. it felt unfamiliar yet so familiar, maybe i was still dreaming. i gazed down at my clothing, the strips of gold covering the white robe caught my eye immediately, diamond and gold jewellery covered my arms.

soon enough i lifted my body off the extremely comfortable bedding and looked around properly. expensive furniture covered the room, until i saw myself in the reflection of the mirror, a glow sorrounded my form and i gasped at the sight. i’m dreaming wake up y/n. although despite the many times i pinched my skin, it was clear, i was not dreaming.

there was not a door covering the way into the room, so i stepped out and was met with a figure standing near the living area which surprisingly wasn’t too far away. it was chris. he was dressed so differently from the last time i saw him. he now adorned a long, robe which showed a large portion of his muscles which looked too good to be true.

“chris what the fuck is going on” he jumped at the sudden voice, before turning to face me. a small smile placed itself on his lips as he got up.

“i finally found you aphrodite” excuse me, what the hell did he just call me? i laughed out loud but he didn’t budge. “finally i found you in your human form after all of these years, i thought i lost you” he unexpectedly wrapped me in his embrace, but i couldn’t help but hold myself back and insisted on doing the same to him too.

“chris-” i couldn’t finish my sentence, still too shocked to say anything.

“my love, you must’ve lost your memory, have you ever wondered where your love for mythology came from?” to be honest, i just remember suddenly having a love for it and it kind of just stuck.

“am i dreaming?” he laughed and shook his head, oh god even his laugh was perfect.

“i’m so glad i found you again aphrodite, but let me introduce myself as you may have forgotten” he trailed off before coming closer towards me. “i’m your husband, ares, and i fought so much battles to find you”.

masterlist

i’m crying this is so bad

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nickireadstfc · 8 years ago

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The Foxhole Court: A Summary - The Exposition Court

Exposition! Legit so many fucking character introductions! ‘!!!!!!!!’ moments! Foreshadowing! Show, Don’t Tell! Opinions! Predictions that will no doubt end up being Absolutely Fucking Ridiculous! Yay!

Sounds good? Then it’s time for Nicki to sum up the Foxhole Court.

In 2013, now-renowned author Nora Sakavic blessed us with The Foxhole Court, book one of the All For The Game trilogy. In this first installment of orange gay sporty murder shit, protagonist, runaway and professional sassmaster Neil Josten signs with the Palmetto State Foxes, a ragtag sports team of outcasts and lunatics, in order to escape his Fucked Up Past™.

On his team he finds Kevin, a childhood friend of his with an equally Fucked Up Past™, and Andrew, a messed-up murder maniac on meds. They play Exy, which is the three-way lovechild sport of lacrosse, ice hockey and bad decisions, and Kevin takes it upon himself to train Neil into the prodigy he sees in him.

But The Plot is coming for them: Kevin’s childhood abusers, Riko and Tetsuji Moriyama, and their team, the Edgar Allan Ravens, have come into their district, and they are set on taking Kevin back to their magical land of abuse and kind-of slavery, destroying the Foxes’ athletic reputation and generally fucking up everyone’s lives.

But the Foxes are not going down without a fight, and after an epic smackdown between Riko and Neil on national television, Neil is accepted into their dysfunctional family of fiercely protective psychopaths, and together they stare down into the abyss of whatever fucked-up shit is yet to come.

And that’s the Foxhole Court for you.

Did I like it? Hell fucking yes.

Do I think it’s probably going to be the weakest out of the three? Also hell fucking yes.

Let me explain.

The Foxhole Court mainly consists of one thing: Exposition. Nora Sakavic takes her sweet time introducing Neil as a character, unfolding both his backstory and his personality bit by bit, and introducing everyone else the same (although we are clearly not done with the backstories by any stretch of the imagination) as well as giving us a good feel of what Exy is and why we should care about this orange sportsball.

However, one tiny unimportant thing is kind of suffering under all that, and that is the plot.

Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE exposition. I love getting to know characters, I love them having plot-unrelated banter, give me all that good shit. There hasn’t been one bit in TFC where I was bored or wanted to skip ahead (which, if you know my attention span, is a big thing). But we can’t deny that not much has happened so far.

In fact, there have only been five parts in this entire book where I was truly off my socks, either in excitement or shock or just general WHAT THE FUCK-ness:

When we find out Kevin’s (and Neil’s) backstory, fucking wHAT, I was blown away. I had not expected the book to be this serious. A+

The entire club scene with the monsters drugging Neil and Nicky kiss-raping him. I had stuff to say about that.

Neil telling Andrew like 80% of his Troubled Past™, I am deceased

THE MASTERPIECE THAT IS NEIL SASSING THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS OUT OF RIKO CAN I GET A HELL YEAH

Seth overdosing being murdered by Riko, aka the latest installment in our popular series WHAT.

And while everything else has been lovely as well, this speaks volumes for the plot which has, up until this point, been kind of on the down low, save for the moments mentioned above.

The good news is: In all likelihood, Seth’s death at the end of the book marks the point where exposition is now the fuck over. Dramatically, it would make sense to now stop fucking about and get down to business, to defeat the huns Ravens and really get to grips with the plot now in the second and third book.

(( Also, side note on the Seth situation: Let’s take a lil look back at chapter 6:

“The death threats were creative, though,” Nicky said. “Maybe this time they’ll follow through and actually kill one of us. Let’s vote. I nominate Seth.”

Like wHAT KIND OF SWEET ASS FORESHADOWING.

Huge thanks to spookymiscreant for pointing that out. <3 ))

As for writing style, I’m pleasantly surprised. Self-published authors sadly often tend to tell too much and show too little, they describe lots and lots of things the reader could have figured out on their own and it takes a lot of immersion out of the reading experience.

Not so our dearest Nora, oh no. I’m immensely enjoying how she often just hints at feelings or thoughts of characters with just little details she drops every now and again. This works so well because those details often aren’t consciously recognized by a quick reader, yet they are vital in shaping our views of characters and scenes, providing true immersion and a full reading experience. Top notch, A+, 10/10 would author again.

(I’m too lazy to look up examples for that right now, but you all know what I mean anyways, and I’ve pointed a lot of things like this out in my recaps as well because I LOVE IT.)

Now, characters! Where do I fucking start. I’m thinking I’m just gonna throw my opinions on each of them in here and see whether they’ll change throughout the next two books.

Neil, my son. I’ve really, really grown to like him. Homeboy is still majoring in Extra and Dramatic, and I will still drag him mercilessly for it, but I like it. I like his style of narration, I care for his emotional well-being, but most of all, I like his sass. Seemingly every time he has to speak to someone for more than three sentences, he just cannot help but be the savage comeback prince he was destined to be, and I’m living for it. I hope he has lots and lots of dialogue in the next two books. I’m still not over that Riko scene. Love him.

Kevin is... I don’t actually have a clear opinion on him yet. I find him interesting as a part of Neil’s history – still not sure whether I’m buying that he doesn’t remember Neil at all –, I was stunned by his backstory and I absolutely want to fucking gut Riko for everything he’s done to Kevin, but that’s about it so far. He just….. didn’t click with me yet. Let’s see what comes around in the future.

Andrew is growing on me, I think. I’m not his biggest fan yet – he did do some fucked up shit (//eyes the club situation YET AGAIN//) and I absolutely hate him when he’s on his meds – but he’s v v interesting, both as a character and because of the med situation. And honestly, I think this is exactly what’s intended with him. Andrew was not made for immediate attachment, he was intentionally written to grow on you. And I kind of like that, it makes his character more round, more fully-formed, gives him more dimension. Also, I love him in combination with Kevin and Neil. Also just with Neil, obviously. He’s buying him clothes. Who is chill about this, not me.

Nicky……… My problematic sunshine idiot, I still have a very complicated relationship to him. I think Nicky is (as far as I've read) a wonderful example of a fuckboy who means well, meaning someone who does shitty things as a joke/bc he doesn’t think about them/bc it’s been socially engrained in him that they are okay to do (see: the kiss thing), but realises they are shitty afterwards and wants to better himself. Also, I’m just really, really grateful to have someone who brings a bit of laughter into this angsty shitshow. And gayness. Oh, how I am grateful for the gayness. Actually, who are we fucking kidding, I still love Nicky.

Aaron – who even is Aaron, seriously. I still know literally next to nothing about this dude. Apparently his mother was quite fucked up. Not close with his twin brother. Okay. Next!

RENEE, my daughter, my love, my darlingest little murder snowflake. We still don’t know much about her, but for some reason she just instantly clicked with me. She is so unbelievably kind and sweet and probably hiding like, three axe murders. GIVE ME ALL HER BACKSTORY AND GIVE IT TO ME NOW. She is probably my second-favourite character so far, together with Neil.

I’ve gathered that quite a lot of you like Matt?? I can see why, I guess. He’s a ray of sunshine as well, and an unproblematic one at that. He probably would have deserved to be captain as well. Tall Billie Joe is a good egg. <3

Pretty much all of that goes for Dan as well. Good human being, good team person. Takes no shit. Very Gryffindor. I’m wondering what her backstory is tbh, because so far, she seems like an actually stable, healthy person, which we all know cannot be true in Foxland.

I’m still sort of indifferent to Allison. She hasn’t given me reason to hate her yet, she also hasn’t given me reason to like her. I feel bad for her because of Seth’s death, though.

And Seth… Well. We kind of discussed that already.

As for the Parent Triumvirate: Idk if this ever came up, this may be news to you, but hAVE I MENTIONED I REALLY REALLY FUCKING LOVE WYMACK. Seriously. He is my favourite character, from chapter fucking one. He is the only person who can rival Neil in terms of unbound sass, which makes him great to begin with, but most importantly, he is caring, compassionate, and just the fucking kindest person in this book, yet takes no shit and doesn’t baby anyone.

“Did you think I made the team the way it is because I thought it would be a good publicity stunt? It’s about second chances, Neil. Second, third, fourth, whatever, as long as you get at least one more than what anyone else wanted to give you.”

This is the best thing anyone has said in this entire book fucking fIGHT ME. HOW DOES ONE NOT LOVE DAVID WYMACK TO THE HEAVENS AND BACK. #dicksoutforwymack

Abby and Betsy are both shaping up to be Really Cool People as well. As well as with Wymack, I love their “I’m gonna be supportive kind and good to you, but I’m not going to take any shit from you” attitude, which is precisely the way to run a team as dysfunctional as the Foxes. A+ parenting, 10/10 would love again.

Lastly, some predictions about what will happen within the next book! We’ll see what came true. I cannot wait to cringe at myself and my idioticy/blissful unawareness eight weeks from now.

They’ll deal with Seth’s death – some better, some worse

The banquet thing will happen and it will be hella awkward and hilarious and something Super Dramatic And Important will happen

Neil will master the Raven drills Kevin is making him do and it will be EPIC

Andreil will continue having Important Gay Moments™

The “Kevin and Riko know Neil” situation will not be addressed (!) (I’m expecting that to be in the last book, near the final epic smackdown)

Neither will we meet Neil’s father (again, last book)

However, we will meet Tetsuji and shit will go down

Also, we’ll meet some Ravens I suppose, since it is the Raven King after all. There was this Jean guy?? I’m intrigued

We will find out Renee’s backstory

We will find out something – if maybe not everything – about the Minyard-Hemmick backstory

Some more kisses will happen. I don’t care who kisses whom. Probably not Andreil (yet). Let it be Abby and Wymack. Aaron and his irrelevant girlfriend. I don’t care. Give me kisses.

And now all that’s left for me to say is, again, thank you thank you thank you to all of you who read this blog. All of you who give me your thoughts and comments on everything, who keep this project going and who drag my motivation back in by its hind legs every time it wants to run screaming into the other direction – you are the sole reason this thing exists. You all rock and I love you infinitely.

We’ll meet again next Sunday with The Raven King. xx

Side note: I’ve gone through the blog and organized all asks/replies dealing with frequently discussed topics, go check them out! All links are listed on the Read All Chapters page as well.

The demisexuality discourse

The mental health discourse

The Seth discourse

America vs Everywhere Else things

Side side note: Remember when I said I was going to rename all the chapters Percy Jackson style? So I may…… be doing that soon…….. keep ur eyeballs peeled friends!!!

#tfc #the foxhole court #aftg #all for the game #nicki reads tfc #[the last five years voice] it's over it's done #this was fun I'm gonna do those after every book I think #wheeeeeeee #edit: edited the parts where I used the m word as I realized it was Not Fucking Okay

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ellipsesarefun · 8 years ago

Text

Reunions.

Series: Mundane AO3 link

Summary: In which they set up a party, eat and dance, Yuri gets drunk, and spills his love for his best friend. And forgets.

He was finally allowing himself to drink any alcoholic beverage in front of all his friends on his twenty-first birthday.

On the heavy insistence from his friends of course (mainly Mila, Sara and Leo). Yuri never did so before due to his capricious behavior of his drunk self (also noting the aforementioned memory haze that comes with the hangover). The only person he was brave enough to see him in this manner was Trista. It was not only because she was his roommate or she has a secret stash of the classiest alcohol her wealthy aunt ships from her home country, but he has infinite trust in her. Rarely does she call out on his embarrassments or tease him over nonsensical matters and has a sense of understanding that he is eternally grateful for. He will always be eternally grateful for. It somehow also helps that she herself has a number of embarrassments during her drunken state, including to twerking to Anaconda when induced from five glasses of vodka tonic (this coming from a seemingly shy and reserved individual). The party was held at the Nikiforov-Katsuki/Katsuki-Nikiforov residence. The two have been married for a few years and may soon adopt a new pup, after Makkachin's death two years prior. The old man himself also (with the indirect help of Tine and her magic wine) managed to obtain a built in mini bar that was once a portion of their kitchen. The living room furniture was spotless, dusted and wiped yesterday. The short-legged table was draped with a handmade tricolor yarned mat (crocheted by none other than Trista herself) and miniature horticulture on top (another courtesy to Trista). The lawn outside was properly mowed. The backyard already consisted of a badminton net at the center, music equipment set on one side near the house window facing the living room and a banquet of party food parallel to it. At the front stood Trista and Yuri chatting alongside Yuuri and Viktor gazing at their front lawn (must be a married thing, they all think and it's true). Trista carried a list on her clipboard. "So we got all the food and shit, plus now that the minibar is installed, I can bring in some wine." She said, scribbling whatever on the paper. "Tch," he crossed his arms, "Seriously? Wine?" "Hey, hey, you do know my rich ass aunt brings some mighty fine wine." She argued, "She may be selfish with her money but if she's somewhat considerate enough to gift me some wine every birthday then I won't complain." "Right.." "Anyways, should we invite JJ?" A low resigned grumble came.

"What do you think?" The grumbling ceased but the scrunched up face remained, "Didn't want this party in the first place." "It's your birthday, anyway. You'll like it, I swear. You're getting older. Have some fun." She assured, ignoring his rolling eyes. "You're not getting younger, either." He retorted. A slap on his head was returned. "Hey, hey, mind your manners, young man." She chided lightly in teasing undertones and he stuck out his tongue in reply. Trista lifted the clipboard to his face, "Is this alright?" He hovered over her shoulder with a frown. "Yea whatever, as long as Beka and Leo DJ and not him." He said and Trista held back a snort. "What, his music not cool for you?" "I used to hate his guts, but he's still a dick and his music's "eh"." He veered away, peering at the backyard ahead, "Leo's pretty good. Beka's the one that's got style and taste." She shifted her gaze at his contemplative face. "He must be really something, huh." There were specs of emotion on his face and she hid her smile under the guise of her faux innocence. "You keep saying that." This was a familiar conversation they've had for quite some time, probably for a few years. They come in varied sentences and responses with the gradual leak of emotions that have been brewing beneath. They always end with the same denied responses. "It's true for you, anyway." It is. She is merely a bystander witnessing the apocalypse, unwavering and ever-present. Yuri is somewhere among the catastrophe, maybe washed away by a tsunami or flown off with a hurricane or tornado. This was not her problem anyway, only to check if he was still surviving and attending to his wounds. She aids him whenever she can, but she can never stop the storm because it's his mess that conjured up from the depths of his own mind in the first place. (Sometimes, she acts like some wise Guru dropped from the heavens that it annoys him every time her face morphs into that all-knowing, perceptive gaze.) Yuri chews on his lip and veers away from the backyard, already pacing towards the car, Trista following from behind. They bade farewell to the couple before driving away to buy other things.

(509--509)

“You do know crushes fade away, right?”

(509--509)

Going to the mall for clothes, food, books and other friend shenanigans is one thing but throwing all expenses over a small party with a surplus of garbage food is another thing.

“Isn’t that a little too much?” Yuri scrutinizes the amount of garbage food on the cart. It seemed a lot for just a party, even for a day. It may span for weeks.

“Eh, it’s fine.” his roommate waved an arm in dismissal, “Everyone might be hungry.”

It was a consensus decision (albeit reluctant on a certain someone’s part) not to consume such waste, mainly due to his roommates erratic and ravenous appetite and the insistence from both Porky and his balding husband that she take a break. From chips and cola and everything that brings the wrath of her stomach and her bowel and dysmenorrhea that consistently aches.

“You mean you’ll get hungry.” he added and she scoffed at him.

“Not completely true. Yuuri-senpai will help me finish all of it.” (and it’s true; the two were known for finishing a whole gourmet of anything) Trista turned to the ginger-haired woman beside her, who was grabbing an armada of Cheetos, “Right, Mila?”

“Of course!” She agreed, wholeheartedly dumping the Cheetos into the cart, “Sala and I will be eating these too, y’know! Yurotchka shouldn’t bother into our affairs. After all, what’s a party without junk food?” They grinned simultaneously, filling the cart continuously. Yuri outwardly grimaced at the overwhelming size.

“Don’t you think that’s more than enough for a few people?” He asked again, and the women brushed his warning off like swatting a fly with a hand.

“It’s called after party, Yuri.” Trista reasoned. Weak excuse.

“Yea!” Mila chimed in again, “Junk food untouched are the best! Especially since no one but us is gonna gobble this after.”

He palmed his face and huffed out a sigh. Seriously. They’re gonna waste their stupid dollars with all that shit polluting in their cells.

“Beka,” he barked at the brunet that was wordlessly standing behind him, “Do something.”

The man merely shrugged (and it was barely even one like this was all just a mundane thing) and said, “You know she’s not gonna listen to you, Yura. leave her be.”

“That’s right!” Trista added, “Otabek, can you please accompany Yuri some place where he can’t scold me?”

A glitter of a smile shined on Otabek’s face for a brief second and vanished that followed by a, “With pleasure.” He shifted his eyes to Yuri, “Let’s go. Yura.”

“Ugh. You two will be the death of me.” After a farewell and a sassy comment, the two left the supermarket and bought drinks at the nearest cafe they (used to) frequently visit. They took seats near the entrance and talked. Just like how they did in high school.

“So, how’re classes?” Beka asks as he casually places his lips on the straw to lightly suck in the iced caffeine. Yuri snaps out of his reverie and his nails snugged into his pale skin as an urge to focus his eyes at some other point.

“You know. Science-y stuff.” That was the lamest reply he’d ever pull out after the many moments of creepily eyeing his body parts for more than the usual amount of time, but Otabek deserves to have the “bestest bestest friend in the whole wide world” badge because his silence over such matters is a virtue and he asks, “I don’t know, Yura. Philosophy, remember?”

“Yea, you and your,” he gestures wildly for effect, “Ancient wisdom.” The man across him rolls his eyes.

“Sure, Yura, sure...”

“Yes.” He agrees, “But anyways, it’s... okay, I guess? Everyday, I always have a spare lab gown (and I have around four lab gowns already) stashed in my locker when there’s a lab class. Science calculators are always needed and the stat we go for is ANOVA and shit. There’s also the basics. Like in mitosis, there’s PMAT, but then it takes around a few courses to get that there are proteins that affect other biomolecules like sugars, enzymes, or even more proteins. Like fucking Cell Biology.”

“Damn.”

“Yep. Cell Biology was awesome, because, y’know, it’s the cells and shit and you learn all those kinds of shit.” He goes on, the tense atmosphere he brews suddenly waning and disappearing, “I didn’t even know the ER and Golgi Body had anything useful until Cell Biology. But it’s just so damn complicated. So much to read and so much weird words.”

“Aren’t they usually Latin?”

“Fuck Latin, Altin.” A snort comes, “It’s fucking shit. But it’s okay sometimes. How about you? Bet you’re as hardcore as Jean Paul Satre or geeking out over Albert Camus.”

“I guess. We read. And read. And discuss. And write essays. And debate.” Yuri nods, sharing his sentiment from the number of thick books Trista has in their apartment.

The rest of their caffeine drinking flies by through exchanged tales of their college life. From frat boys, to horrible makeouts in empty halls, to terror professors who don’t curve their grades, they’ve covered the entire months that Skype doesn’t do justice. Any social media-based conversation cannot fully acquiesce the ache in his chest every time he thinks of the growing distance between him and Beka.

He’s not sure if there is but he worries.

“Some friendships from high school fade away. Some don’t. There are people who come and go in our lives once in a while and in several occasions, people can just leave without saying good bye and in the rarest ones, they still communicate with you, regardless of the distance between you. The ones who do those and make a heavy influence in your life matter than the nameless acquaintances you meet in any class.”

Trista’s words echoed in his head. It’s true. He has those friends. He gets a call or a Facebook chat from the maybe boyfriends / weird bestfriends Leo and Guang every month or so. Trista frequently shares her old notes and drawings, occasionally chiming in with some quick mnemonic devices and all the how-to-do-shit in labs, like titration shit. In every two weeks, he receives a care package from his stupid cousin and Porky. Mila and Sara share gossips with him and Trista whenever they visit. Even Georgi sends a post card from time to time (and there were some occurrences wherein he responds in kind, wishing him well).

The brunet right in front of him with his Kazakh phrases and smooth tongue has been with him through and through until the present time. Otabek sends the best care packages every week (they usually contain a couple of tiger face merch with a couple of crochet things he made once in awhile). He calls and texts as often as he could, topics range from the most random to the most serious.

Yuri saves most--if not, all-- of their online conversations, from Skype, to Facebook to Snapchat to Tumblr and down from their most recent to the oldest one. He screenshots some Tweets that were the most memorable from Beka’s account and a few stories from Snapchat. His download folder in his laptop was filled with DJ Bek’s remixes that he replays in the late night cram sessions and crippling insomnia that knaws him at the chest when the thought of losing his best friend pops up. There were traces of Otabek Altin around him, even when his physical presence remains absent.

That does not mean that there were issues. Issues as in no sign of communication that may elongate to more than three months, as in the wordless calls in three am and falling asleep at the sound of their voice when they’re too tired to pursue any conversation, as in the delayed replies from the lack of internet connection, as in misinterpreting facial expressions and/or curt replies that imply on the possible vexations that either of them harbor in some of their Skype calls.

(His thumbs pause over Beka’s name in his speed dial contacts in desperation to rant over any aspect of his day but gradually loses the courage to press the call button.)

“Are you alright?” His best friend inquired, stoic mien screwed with concern. Even with the distance and academic work pushing them apart, Beka somehow has a sixth sense to his well-being.

(He appreciates it.)

“Ah yea,” Yuri waved it off with a hand, “Just thinking about things..”

“About what?” Beka crosses his arms over the table and leans slightly.

“About us, really. How we’ve come this far ever since High School.” Yuri added with a casual shrug and a gentle smile graced the brunet’s face.

“Never thought you’d be this sentimental.” A roll of the eyes praised his comment.

“When you’ve been living with a woman filled with schmaltz, then there’ll come a time I’ll be as sentimental as she is.”

“She’s grown on you, hasn’t she?”

“She’s a little sister and a big sister at the same time, how can I not?” He rolled his eyes again in effect. She was physically hundreds of meters away but he’d tell she’s laughing her ass off somewhere.

Their rapport ensued through other topics, till there was no caffeine left in their plastic cups but ice. Yuri checked his phone as the clock on his lock screen chimed at five. Several messages from his friends were displayed, with 15 missed calls from Mila and Viktor. Something shifted at his side and he looked up at the sudden outstretched hand. A second of silence came before Yuri noiselessly grasped his callous palms and pulled himself up to a stand. Otabek released his hold and they ushered their way out of the cafe, Yuri three paces behind and a dazed look upon his face.

(509--509)

“You do know crushes fade away, right?”

“Can’t they fade away any faster?”

(509--509)

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY, YURI!” The group cheered, all huddled in the Katuski-Nikiforov/Nikiforov-Katsuki backyard. Kiira started blasting the whole yard from Leo’s iPod as they all dispersed to either dance on one side or grab some food from the buffet table.

The party wasn’t much of a drag, really. If he was absolutely frank to everyone, he could say he was glad to have their presence in his life. Everyone greeted with presents. Some were food, some were plushies (he got a Otabear from Beka), some were remixes, and everyone was creative.

(At the back of his mind, Yuri felt loved. He thinks to himself that Dedushka need not have to worry about him so much from beyond the grave.)

Yuri sat on one of the laid out mats, taking his time with his chicken. On either side of him were Ji, who was bubbling with laughter over internet nonsense with Trista, and Beka, who was eagerly listening to Emil’s something (he’s not sure, it’s a bit noisy here). Beka and Emil go to the same university and share a few classes together.

He surveyed the area with nostalgic amusement. Like always, Viktor owned the dance floor with his fluid movements and hip bumping as Katsuki watched from the sidelines, cheeks flushed and Yuri couldn’t quite tell if he was exasperated or aroused by his husbands’ naughtiness. Giacometti arrived the scene with a dancing pole (it’s only seven o’clock and he brought a fucking dance pole already; where the fuck he got that shit) and mass cheered and whistled as he twirled around the steel metal in his underwear. The rest were swaying and grinding on each other’s bodies (he could catch a glimpse of Sala and Mila goofing off). Phichit was mingling around, sometimes sitting with Seung-Gil in one of the mat, even with Georgi (Seung-Gil, Phichit, and Georgi? What are they talking about over there?), sometimes whooping at Giacometti’s show, and sometimes taking pictures and selfies of anyone and everyone that most of his notifications on Instagram were piled up from Phichit’s tags.

Yuri chanced a glance at his best friend beside him, still conversing something so serious with Emil. The ash blond man beside Beka chortled, pausing his drink to respond in witty remarks. Okay, so maybe not so serious, but he has to admit. Even with that wonted stoic face, age has done nothing but generous to Beka. It’s noticeable from his chiseled jaw, down to those reformed muscles (he’s had those in high school, but they seemed a little more toned, if that was possible), to the callous hands now thicker and larger (nice to hold) and that glint of a smile that reappears every now and then. Yuri looked back down at his untouched food, a curve forming on his lips.

(Oh, Dedushka, they never change. It’s been years since we’ve come together like this but they never change.)

The night grew longer and the party grew wilder when alcohol was passed around. Katsudon managed to avoid the inebriated scene altogether (which was lucky for him, because he’d given several lap dances when he met Viktor in his youth). Trista wasn’t, as she now took the stage with another free style to Era Istrefi’s Bonbon. Minutes later, he was given a glass of alcohol (vodka maybe? he wasn’t sure) and somehow, he was ushered to dance among the wild mass of people. His hips and limbs swayed and he could vaguely hear Jason Derulo’s Swalla. All his senses merged together in an ineffable blob but he couldn’t give two fucks, already hypnotized by the swinging bodies around him.

(509--509)

“Tris, that really isn’t helping.”

“It takes time, ya know. Usually they fade away when you get to know the person better. You can become friends. Best friends even.”

(509--509)

Alessia Cara was blaring up the speakers for the past hour or so. Hours. He couldn't tell, not with the vodka swimming in his cells. Yuri surveyed the backyard. The mass of dancing bodies swirled his night vision, feeding into his dizziness. He stumbled and swerved until finally he realized he was standing in the living room. Everyone was buzzing with party fever and his friends seemed busy with other things. There was Trista at the mini bar, catching up with Mila and Sara over drunken shenanigans, who were now engaged since last month (they were also probably arranging a blind date for Trista as well; he overheard that they were adamant on snagging a boyfriend for her). Leo was somewhere by the minibar as well, lounging around his still maybe boyfriend Ji (those two are idiots; but they were one of his bestfriends). The stupid couple was also there, with shmaltzy conversations and all the sappy bullshit (gods, it's been years and they're still the same annoying and disgusting couple). It was a pretty mundane scene, if you ask him. Only, it was more distorted due to his drunken state. He could recognize others, at least tried to with his lack of coordination. In the haze, he could find Otabek sitting at the edge of the couch, sipping red wine like he was some god. He knew that undercut and that leather jacket anywhere, despite sharing a similar hairstyle with stupid JJ. A smile carved on his face. He awkwardly sauntered towards the man and plopped himself on his lap, earning a startled gasp from the latter. "Beka," Yuri cooed, spilling himself all over his chest and hanging his arms around the nape of his neck. The latter choked on a reply. Yuri supposes he was too stunned to move any of his limbs. If he wasn't so inebriated, he would have caught a glimpse of a smile on Otabek's face. "Yura." With steady, hesitant movements, his arms snaked around his waist, grip as light as a feather, "You drank too much." The blond managed a chuckle and snuggled his face on his tanned shoulder. "Nope!" He replied, voice rumbling on his skin, "This is how I- y'know... usually drink!" A hiccup passed. From here, Yuri could feel light and constant touch of his phalanges splayed all over his waist that he couldn't help but purr and to continuously rub his face on that firm, defined, tanned shoulder. It was as though he were marking his territory. His Beka.

“Check it out! Our little princess is all over our DJ!” some moron hollered from some place but Yuri paid no heed. He’s not a Beka after all and this wonderful dark knight is his territory for the time being. The rest of the people might have notice for he heard shuffling and whispering and teasing. Yuri could hear Trista laughing at the background (little bitch had too many glasses of vodka). He would’ve barked a mean reply but that would mean letting go of this.. whatever this was.. this lucid daydream that he’d always have from time to time.

“You smell so nice.” He cooed again, sniffing the cologne he still uses since he met him. Otabek’s shoulders tensed and the limbs around his waist gripped tighter.

“You should go home.” But he didn’t want to go home. That meant letting go of this Beka, his Beka, and that meant never having to hold him like this ever again.

“No.” Yuri latched onto his neck in a tighter grip, “I don’t want to let you go.” There were “aww”s and “how sweet” that swept past his ears yet still, they drowned under the gasps of the man below him.

“Yuri.” his name tingled in his ear with a silent command but he shook his head again, adamant with the irrational decision to stay in the arms of his best friend. Beneath, he could feel his pectorals rise and fall as he drew a long sigh. He purred some more. His body heat is paradise.

There was squirming, a sign Yuri saw as Beka’s attempts to stand. His fantasy was not short lived, however, when his hands shifted downwards slightly to cup the cheeks of his butt, emanating a whimper from Yuri that only can hear.

Beka slowly stretched his legs up, keep his hold on Yuri as he did so and Yuri took the chance to snake his legs on Beka’s waist. The small tent on his black jeans was felt right on his own tight leggings that Yuri could feel the small tremble in his steps as he carried Yuri to another room, a guestroom at the second floor. The mindless chatter of his friends and acquaintances went back to normal, as if this little moment occurs on a regular basis.

(The idea of this intimate cuddling being a regular occurrence elated the blond, all still knowing that they never discussed the ambiguity of their relationship.)

Moments later, he found himself in his bed, the upper portion sat upright and a blanket draped over his shoulders. His Beka sat on the chair by the bed, facing with him usual stoic mien. Under his intoxication, Yuri could find traces of tenderness among that emotionless facade that Otabek shows everyday. he was only an inch away but there was still a distance lingering between them.

“Come here.” he croaked, waving an arm on the empty space beside him. When the man shook his head, he patted his arm repeatedly, “Please Beka.”

“Yuri-”

“Please Beka.” Using his nickname in that tone would rile him but he didn’t care. He wanted his Beka here above there cotton sheets of heaven. Sooner than later, he complied, laying his body on his side. Maybe it was the alcohol and maybe it was wishful thinking but there was that look again. That tender and unorthodox gaze that Yuri catches a glimpse frequently as the years pass by. They began to appear more often than not. Somewhere in his mind whispered that those were only reserved for him and that maybe...

Maybe..

“What’s on your mind Yura?” The object of his affections asked, as if sensing the invisible pandemonium screeching in his mind. Yuri parted his lips, but no syllable came, his larynx all dried up, consumed by the thoughts swimming around. He wordlessly shot out his hands to cup his cheeks, fingers praising the slight stubble by his mouth. How he’d love to do this with him every single day in a bed as soft as this. Otabek closed his eyes and his face softened, melting into the touch with minimum effort. In this little bubble of safe haven, Yuri supposes that this might be the only time he’d lay as defenseless as this, that his walls are as low as he allows it to be.

“I wanna kiss you.” He said, earning a light gasp from the man. He wandered over his surprised look with unwavering immensity, “I want to go out and take you on dates and ride on your motorcycle till we find a park to stop and admire the sunset. I want us to try out those fancy restaurants just for the heck of it. I want us to laze around in bed all day, doing nothing but watch our favorite shows on your laptop or listen to those remixes you play. I want to do all those things with you.” To this, Otabek opened his mouth to respond but Yuri stopped him with a brush of a kiss on his lips, continuing, “But I can’t. Probably am fuckin’ the relationship up already by tellin’ you things that friends--best friends-- should never hear but I don’ think I’ll remember any of this tomorrow. There’s nothin’ to regret if I don’ remember anyway.” He pushed himself to his knees, hovering above Otabek with a timid smile dawning on his lips, bittered by the words he spilled and the harsh regret that drops after with a tear stain on the bedsheet.

He could feel his vision blurring and his cheeks watered by the the tears. His smile was still there, kept frozen by the lingering euphoria from the affections he so initiated. He couldn’t decipher the mien of the man below him, face uttered in astonishment but somehow catches those eyes as crystal as his own eyes were. There were no waterworks on his face, as though trying to keep them still on his eyelids.

Once more, Yuri placed a steady palm on Otabek’s cheeks, reclining his body and tilting his head till their foreheads touched. Their breaths were in sync, and it took all of Yuri’s self restraint from feeling those lips again.

“When the morning is here, and I’ve already fallen asleep,” he begins, voice whispering against the still atmosphere around them, “Don’t mention anything about what I said and did. 'Kay, Beka?” His eyes suddenly grew wider a fraction, body solid as a rock.

“But Yura-”

“No,” He cut him off, the firm grip on his cheek gradually waning, “I love you. A lot more than am suppose’ ‘to. 'S better if you keep silent about this.” His eyelids began to droop, deep slumber gradually sinking his body, “I don’t wanna fuck this up.”

“Yura..” and the blond let his vision fade to black, mute to the senses of his surroundings.

When he wakes up, Beka will be gone. Yuri will have a hangover and maybe only little remnants of what occurred the night before will only be remembered. When he does wake up with those, he’ll only think to himself that it was just a wonderful dream.

A dream that he was in Beka’s arms.

(509--509)

“Hey Tris, you better swear to your god, because if this gets out-”

“Can it, Yuri, I know. Not telling a soul about your love for best friend. Copy that.”

(509--509)

Yuri woke up to the thrum of his head ache and the sunlight spilling over his sheets, eyes cracked of dried sand. He shifted his body to the left and found a letter, a glass of water and a pill on his side table. "Sorry I had to leave. We can Skype later. I brought a glass of water and a pill for you to drink when you wake up. Take care. -Beka." Ah.

#otayuri #otayuriwc #yuri plisetsky #original female character #otabek altin #viktuuri (a bit)#milasara

17 notes · View notes

debussyanddarcy · 8 years ago

Note

for the writer meme: all the multiples of 4. : D

why am i not surprised

4. Do you have any writing habits/rituals?

answered here

8. Do youhave any writing buddies or critique partners?

hm. not really, i don’t think? i work best alone though sometimes i’ll vent to @kixboxer or @kevystel or @sonatine depending on who’s around at the time :D

12. Whichstory of yours do you like best? why?

oh boy this is... difficult. i mean. i like all of them for different reasons? i’d probably have to say the merry-go-round of life in terms of “completeness”; that is, i do feel that this is the fic that has the most fleshed-out world and probably the most solid plot, but how to raise a tiger still remains my favorite universe and i think about going back to add to that series all the time

16. Coverlove/dream covers?

i don’t entirely understand what this means. do you mean like, a book cover? since we’re playing primarily with fic here i’m gonna go ahead and interpret this as accompanying art and i am still sort of in love with the art @tourloos made for the merry-go-round of life so let’s go with that

20. Anyadvice for young writers/advice you wish someone would have given you early on?

what am i qualified to give advice now

idk. experiment? don’t limit yourself? write what you love?

24. Do youremember the moment you decided to become a writer/author?

not. really? i mean, i guess i’ve just always been imaginative and i remember reading books and watching stuff on tv and thinking, well okay but what if we did THIS and what if THIS AND THAT happened and then at some point that transferred into actual writing

28. How doyou stay focused on your own work and how do you deal with comparison?

i mean... it’s difficult? if i have a deadline to meet i’ll certainly try to stay away from ao3 and tumblr fics so that i won’t have room to compare my stuff to others’ and fall into a neverending pit of anxiety and despair. i think at the end of the day, it’s just: you write you? and there’s no sense in comparing yourself to other people. easier said than done, and this is probably really trite and useless but there’s only so much you can do, i guess

32. Onaverage how much do you write in a day? do you have trouble stayingfocused/getting the word count in?

i don’t really pay attention to word count “goals” but i like to try and at least get one scene down per day if i’m working on something

36. Post asnippet

this is where i cheat and say i can’t because i don’t actually have anything i’m working on it right now! i mean i kind of want to turn this into a proper fic someday but i haven’t really gotten anywhere with that

i also have the vaguest beginnings (only in my head atm) of a third installment to the how to raise a tiger universe (although it could potentially also work in the in wine we trust universe lbr those two started blending together for me a long time ago) featuring ace!viktor and idk what sort of response i’d get from that but i think it’d be a fun project to take on

40. Do youlook up to any of your writer buddies?

all of them! i feel like everyone here has such a original style and just brings something so different to the table. we are totally spoiled, tbh

44. Why (andwhen) did you decide to become a writer?

i feel like this is the same answer to number 24. i don’t have any original work, just fanfic, so it really boils down to a thirst for more details, something deeper than canon lets us see; to play with these characters in different universes and engage with them in different contexts, etc.

48. Do youprefer to write skimpy drafts and flesh them out later, or write too much andcut it back?

i guess the first, if i had to choose? i typically will sit and pick at a scene until it’s to my liking so idk if either of these options really correspond to how i write

52. Who doyou write for?

maybe this will sound selfish, but most days, it’s just for me -- i can’t really remember how it was that i first got into writing, but nowadays, it’s a form of stress relief. there’s a reason i mainly write fluff, you know, and it’s so i can escape from how annoying and tragic real life actually is

but of course i love gifting my friends with fic too!

#replies #writing #more than you ever wanted to know about my ~process #kixboxer

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wbwest · 8 years ago

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New Post has been published on http://www.williambrucewest.com/2017/04/07/west-week-ever-pop-culture-review-4717/

West Week Ever: Pop Culture In Review - 4/7/17

So, last night I became the last person in America to see Get Out. As I joked on Twitter, I’m totally getting a divorce now. No, I kid, I kid. Like everyone said, it’s really good, though it may be a tad overrated. Just a tad. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, Get Out is the story of Black man Chris Williams who joins his White girlfriend Rose Armitage on a visit to her parents’ home for the weekend. And then crazy shit starts to happen. I can see what the appeal of the film is. I really can. But I’ve got to level with you: this movie hit a little too close to home. Yeah, I know that one Black reader I have is like “That’s what you get for datin’ them White girls!” No, seriously, I probably would’ve ended up just like Chris. First of all, I have a thing for Allison Williams. Even as bitchy, self-centered Marnie on Girls, I still have a thing for her. When her father fell from grace, I just wanted to tell her everything would be all right. So I would’ve taken the bait. In addition to that, I’ve dated that kind of family. Yes, in those cases, you’re dating the whole family. They had the same socioeconomic status as the Armitages, their friends were the same way, with the same weird questions. Sometimes you don’t realize how Black you are until that’s ALL you are to some folks. What some folks saw as just fun entertainment is something that I kinda lived. They’d do weird shit, where I felt like they were testing me. I remember the first time I went to stay for the weekend, they put me in a room with, like, three Rolexes just laying about like they were nothing. No, I don’t think they would’ve killed me, but I can totally see how something like this could happen. Meanwhile, I’m here thinking that I need to get me a friend as good as TSA Rod. I’ve got a lot to unpack from that movie right now. I’d love to have a conversation with Jordan Peele, ’cause that movie came from a place of experience. I wonder if I’d ever see it again, or if it’s like Bamboozled, where it’s just gonna make me hate White people for a while. Naw, I can’t hate y’all. You’re the only ones who read my site!

In movie news, it was reported that Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg are set to produce a film based on the Image comic Invincible. I used to read the series back when I worked at Diamond and got the hardcovers for free, and I really loved it. It follows Mark Grayson, who’s half human and half Viltrumite. His father, who’s full Vultrimite, is the hero known as Omni-Man, and Mark seems to have inherited a lot of his powers. Mark becomes the hero Invincible and a bunch of other stuff happens. Hey, what do you want from me? I only read the first 48 issues, and that was, like, 7 years ago. The thing I like about the series is that Mark is allowed to grow and change. People die and stay dead. In comics, there’s always the approach where they give the semblance of change without actual change, but that’s not how Invincible works. I mean, he’s currently married with a kid, and they haven’t resorted to having the Devil erase it all, unlike some heroes… Anyway, I like the idea of a movie, but I don’t know if Rogen and Goldberg are the guys to do it. After all, they’re the team behind AMC’s Preacher – a show that I’ve yet to really hear anything good about. Mainly, I heard season one was just boring. So, I guess we’ll just have to see what they bring to the table.

In other movie news, Scarlett Johansson’s live action Ghost In The Shell adaptation bombed, and the congregation rejoiced. There was a lot of controversy surrounding the film because it was felt that the main character, played by Johansson, was whitewashed. They felt she should’ve been portrayed by an Asian actress, and even the studio is now saying the movie failed to meet expectations due to the whitewashing controversy. I’m really not educated enough to weigh in on this one. I mean, I’d always heard that Japanese identity politics went a little deeper than we might think, which is why their cartoon characters always have blue hair and shit, but never really look Asian. But again, before I say something uninformed, I’m gonna bow out of this one. For a better understanding of the controversy, check out my friend Jenn’s post on the film.

Speaking of outrage, there was a Pepsi commercial that ruffled some feathers this week. I’d post the video, but Pepsi is trying to scrub all reference to the thing. In it, Kendall Jenner breaks away from a fashion shoot to join a peaceful protest, capping it off by offering a stern looking cop a Pepsi. He accepts, takes a swig, and everyone rejoices. The problem, however, is that the ad was kind of tone deaf. It seemed to trivialize the act of protesting, and to add insult to injury, it installed a pretty White girl as the face of the protest. Now, I saw the thing, and it was hamfisted, but I’m not sure it was worth all the threaded tweets and thinkpieces that it generated. Like, I get why folks didn’t like it, but I’m not sure I’m “woke” enough to see the whole matter. Anyone wanna weigh in on this one?

In television news, Disney Channel officially ordered Raven’s Home to series. Serving as the sequel to That’s So Raven, it features Raven Symone reprising her role as Raven Baxter, only now she’s the divorced mom of twin tweens. She also lives with her best friend, Chelsea, who’s ALSO a divorced single mom. Things start to get crazy, though, when Raven’s kids start to exhibit her psychic powers. See, that was always my thing with that show. Sure, I was too old for it when it was a hit, but I love a good tween TV show. That said, I feel like Raven and her friends could’ve had zany adventures without the whole psychic powers gimmick. I mean, the kids of iCarly didn’t need superpowers in order to be entertaining. The psychic stuff made it too much like a mystical tween Three’s Company which, on paper, sounds perfect, but isn’t that great in execution. Anyway, I just typed all this to justify posting a pic of costar Anneliese Van Der Pol. This whole thing just sounds like Fuller House with powers. I’ve got no nostalgia for the original show, so I doubt I’ll be checking this out.

In other TV news, Freeform has ordered New Warriors to series, featuring fan favorite character Squirrel Girl. I’ve got to admit that I know next to nothing about that character except that she was the nanny to Jessica Jones and Luke Cage’s daughter, Dani. I know she was a Great Lakes Avenger, but she was never a New Warrior. Still, they’ve been trying to find a vehicle for that character FOREVER, so I guess they finally figured it out. Based on how WB/DC has handled Powerless, I’m not too eager to see another comedy set in a comic book universe. The one bright spot in the whole thing is that Kevin Biegel is rumored to be the showrunner. Not only does he follow me on Twitter, but he’s the creator of the Fox series Enlisted (which I loved), and he co-created Cougar Town. Knowing that, I think the show is in good hands. I still feel weird about being a 35 year old man watching Freeform. It’s like you’re paying for The CW. The news, however, makes me sad that The Middle is still going. If you didn’t know, a few years ago, when it looked like the writing was on that wall for that show, Eden Sher had a meeting with Marvel. While we don’t really know what was discussed, her name was thrown around in the same discussions of Squirrel Girl. With The Middle already renewed for next season, though, that takes her out of the running. Sucks because I think Sher’s perky, Sue Heck personality would be perfect for Squirrel Girl.

Things You Might Have Missed This Week

Barry Manilow came out as gay, which makes me realize that he’s actually been singing about Man D all these years…

Speaking of gay, on Doctor Who it was revealed that The Doctor’s latest female companion, Bill, is gay. I mean, her name is “Bill”, so, surprise?

NBC ordered 2 additional episodes of the Will & Grace revival, bringing the total up to 12.

Also in the Department of Things We Don’t Need, there are apparently outlines for 14 more Transformers movies

youtube

I’ve written about my love of The Undertaker a few times here on the site. Basically, he’s a relic of a bygone era in professional wrestling – an era of kayfabe, when enemies wouldn’t fly on the same planes together, or be seen hanging out together at IHOP. He’s from a time when people had flashy names and in-ring gimmicks to set them apart. The industry has changed a lot since then, but you could always depend on Taker. If I were to be a professional wrestler tomorrow, my in-ring name would be Bruce Williamson. That’s how they do it now. Other business ventures came along, like Total Divas, which even further blurred the lines between real and fake, but you could always depend on Taker.

In recent years, he’s basically been a part-timer. Ever since The Streak was broken, there wasn’t really much need for him to be around. The mystique was kind of gone by that point. But, like clockwork, he still showed up to Wrestlemania and did his job. In my heart, I knew the end was near. I’d always said that, given some advance warning, I’d even try to attend his final show. He means that much to me. Well, I didn’t even get to watch his final appearance, which was last Sunday at Wrestlemania 33. The card looked weak, and I felt I had better shit to do. Little did I realize I’d be missing history in the making. The Undertaker jobbed to Roman Reigns, narrowly missing out on his 100th pay per view victory. While the rumors of retirement had been floating for years, no one was ready for what would happen next. He donned his signature coat, gloves, and hat, and took one last look at the crowd. Then, he removed them, placed them in a pile in the center of the ring, and walked away. He kissed his wife, pretty much breaking character, and proceeded to walk up the ramp, where he was lowered until he disappeared. As the crew dismantled the ring, they refused to move his belongings – a gesture of respect to the man who brought us all nearly 30 years of entertainment. I hate that I wasn’t there, but I especially hate that I didn’t even watch it. Sure, in this technological age we can always find what we’re looking for, but I feel like I let him down. He doesn’t know me, doesn’t give a shit about me, but I know him, and I thank him. So, with that in mind, Mark Calaway, AKA The Undertaker had the West Week Ever.

#Comics #Diamond #Image #Movies #Politics #Race #Relationships #Television #West Week Ever #Wrestling

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