#like tags are nice and stuff but. on the fic itself is where i can go back and read through
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demaparbat-hp · 6 months ago
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Hi Dema!! Your art is fantastic and even the lineart is awesome! Solid and confident in where it's thick and where thin. I really like how your style has characters look more realistic and they have specific consistent features. Your blog has a pleasant atmosphere, and you're skilled in weaving AUs! There's a lot of details and structure, and I'd like to ask if any of them have a full story arc? Could you do a list of all of the AUs? Is there a motif that you especially like that repeats in any of the AUs? And whenever you add comments to my stuff in the tags I literally smile, it makes me want to keep at my plan to create everything I have in mind. So I'd like to spread this joy! I hope you have a nice day! (from late-draft ^^)
Hello, Late-Draft! I wasn't expecting this ask at all but I'm so glad to have received it!
First of all—I'll try to hold myself back from giggling like a schoolgirl. I'm having a sempai noticed me moment over here and that's just embarrassing. So give me a second to compose myself, if that's alright?
Okay, I'm back.
Now, on to business.
Character design, especially when it comes to facial features and how they're unique to each person, has always been a passion of mine. I always try to have a solid design for each character. I choose which features feel like the character in question, which face feels natural to draw, and go along with it. I love drawing Katara as much as I love drawing Zuko. Meanwhile, I seem to be on a never-ending battle against Sokka's features. Woes of an artist, I suppose.
Character design is actually one of the reasons I love your work so much, in case you hadn't noticed. I'm currently experimenting a bit with a different style... Hopefully it won't be long before the artwork is done and I can share it over here. I'm so excited for everyone to see it!
Now it's time for the reason we're all here.
I have said it before and shall say it once more: AUs are my lifeblood.
I love them so much! Building them, daydreaming the scenes, thinking of the characters and how they differ from their canon versions. The arcs and the themes and the worldbuilding. Building AUs is my passion, and I have so many of them!
There are a lot of motifs and themes that tend to repeat themselves in several of my AUs, I believe.
You'll notice that most of my stories are Zuko-centric, with a heavy emphasis on grief and humanity. There's the question of what makes us human and how to move forward when the whole world seems to push you back. I put a lot of stock in metaphors and symbolism within the narrative itself. I'm especially interested in the nuance of war and how it affects people emotionally, physically, and psychologically
I also tend to reutilize some elements of the lore and/or worldbuilding! Such as the Painted Lady's backstory, or the existence of War Children within the ATLA universe.
Now, the list!
I think I'll start with my current project, if that's okay :)
For the Spirits (New Gods AU)
Zuko was a child when he met Agni. Then, the spirits started coming to him. Eyes hidden in the hallways, voices pleading for help, for recognition, for remembrance.
Zuko could see Agni. He could see the broken remains of a Great Spirit and the empty smiles of amnesiac ghosts.
And they could see him in return.
I've been working on this AU for a long time, but only now did I get the chance to start writing the fic (linked up there!). I'm extremely excited about FTS and where the story will lead us in the future, but I'll try not to spoil too much.
It's a Zuko-centric story, with a heavy emphasis on Spirits and humanity. I'd like to add a warning for depression/mental health issues.
To Hesitate (Lee & Kya AU)
As she watches Lee and Kya avoid each other's eyes from across the room, the phrase comes back to her, swift and silent:
"To hesitate is to lose."
.
As Song treats the victim of an unfortunate interaction with a rare poisonous flower, her day takes an unexpected turn when it becomes apparent that the old man's nephew and her assistant have history.
A vivid history.
The Lee & Kya AU is a vibe, a feeling. It's probably one of my oldest AUs out there as well as one of my dearest.
A classical Lee and Kya From The Tea Shop AU, full with wholesome fandom tropes such as: fake (but not really) dating, fake identities, Ba Sing Se shenanigans, vigilante stuff, White Lotus missions, Iroh is a great Uncle, Zuko is an awkward turtleduck, and, of course, the fluffiest fluff you'll ever see.
Other than that, Lee & Kya is probably one of the less plot-focused AUs I have. However, that doesn't mean that there aren't scenes I can't wait to write or a canon divergence or two where Zuko is concerned.
(I have another fic posted but I'll leave that one to the end. You asked for a full story arc and, oh boy, does Soundless deliver.)
Kintsugi AU
Closer to being canon-adjacent than canon-divergent, Kintsugi is yet another Zuko-centric AU (and are we not noticing a pattern over here?).
I'd love to explain it in depth, but I believe the caption of the artwork linked above does a better job at explaining than I ever will.
Kintsugi is the art of decorating your scars with pieces of Agni.
In the Fire Nation, the amount of golden marks are a sign of status. Only the Royal Family can afford to seal every single wound with Kintsugi. Such is the weight of this tradition that, among the ones with Agni's blood, it is the highest mark of dishonor to have a natural scar, for it proves you aren't worthy of the privilege.
After the Agni Kai, Ozai forbid Zuko's scar to be sealed with Kintsugi. The boy wasn't worth his title, his traditions or his pride. Zuko would be broken, but he wouldn't be beautiful. Not anymore.
(And sometimes it's easier to pretend he never was)
Kyoshi Warriors AU
One of my absolute favorites!
In this AU, Ursa took Zuko and Azula with her when she was banished, so they could start anew. With help from Iroh and the White Lotus, she managed to relocate her freshly burned eight-year-old child and her crying daughter to Kyoshi Island.
Years later, when Avatar Aang and his companions first arrive at Kyoshi Island, they're met by the Kyoshi Warriors and their leader, Noriko of pale skin and warm brown eyes.
The Gaang leave Kyoshi Island many weeks later with a new companion. And if Jian Li, with his war paint and his scar and his dual dao, gives the island that he has called home for so long one final, longing glance as they fly away on Appa, they pretend not to notice.
Hunters AU
We're starting to dwelve deep into dangerous waters!
This is a Katara Joins Zuko In His Quest To Find The Avatar AU, with a twist!
This AU was born as a writing experiment. What if we take Katara's character, and change one of her core characteristics? Katara, who looked up to the Avatar as a saviour figure, now blames him for leaving and allowing the Fire Nation to wage war on the world.
Then comes Zuko, a banished Prince with a crew full of traitors and his own agenda. Zuko wishes for nothing more than to dethrone his father and end the war. He is a White Lotus member, an honorable, driven young man, and he has a plan.
The catch? He needs to take the Avatar to his father if he wishes to regain his title and be able to rightfully take the throne. Oh, and he will deliver the Avatar to the Fire Lord—but nobody said it had to be in chains.
Halfblood AU
I watched Blue Eye Samurai a few months ago and it destroyed me. The idea of a half-blooded child dead set on getting revenge for their very existence stuck with me, and this AU was born.
Kanna made a life for herself in the Earth Kingdom after leaving the North. Katara was raised by her grandmother in a small village, being taught to hide her bending if she wanted to live peacefully in a place she was only half of. Her mother had died in childbirth. Her father, a nameless warrior from the Southern Water Tribe who had loved Kya and left her behind, didn't know of Katara's existence.
Katara took over Kanna's clinic after she passed away. Always taking care of others. Always suppressing her need to bend. Always wishing for more.
One day, he arrived. A half-child, just like her. But while she was of Water, he was a son of Agni. He was searching for the man who brought him to this world. The man who scarred him. The man whose face he couldn't recall, whose name he did not know. The man whose specter had chased his mother to her grave. The man who would die at his hand.
The answers were hidden in a small teashop deep within Ba Sing Se. Lee offered her a way out, and Katara took it.
Soundless (Uiscefhuaraithe)
Katara of the Southern Water Tribe has hands scarred by fire and great talent, though no teacher.
Zuko is a mute War Child, a herbalist and healer, and the Blue Spirit. He bears the mark of fire, and the scar of the blade that took away his voice.
The first time they met, the Blue Spirit had just saved her, tough not before her hands got burned. The second time they met, his name was Lee, and he was healing her.
They live in war and they will fight, if not for the world, then for themselves.
You asked for a full storyline, and I shall deliver!
Soundless is probably the only AU I have fully planned. Three-books, Azula redemption arc, role-reversals and all.
This AU has everything. From travelling through the Earth Kingdom together, to odd character team-ups that somehow manage to work, and a major goal/conflict to resolve.
Zuko and Katara must find their way to Omashu in an Earth Kingdom ravaged by war as they also grow to understand each other, themselves, and the world around them. They meet with new and old alliances, keep their ears open for rumors of the Avatar (They say he is an airbender, Lee. Do you truly belive that?), and do their best to always be two steps ahead of their pasts.
Meanwhile, both the Northern and Southern Water Tribes are searching for the runaway heiress, Aang must find his way alone on this new, hostile world, and Azula must face the revelation that, despite what her father has stated for the last two years (liar, he lied at her! Her! He lied he liedliedliedlied), her brother might just be alive.
I'm sorry for making this such a long answer! I just get very excited about these subjects and don't know when to stop. If you made it all the way down here: thank you again.
I hope you have a good day ❤️
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sokkastyles · 10 months ago
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I have a question, I know we know that shipping does not equal morality. And I get that, and I really like that. However, on my other blog, that should have been my main blog (yes I am that dumb). I have talked about Aang's non-consensual and criticized how Kataang is written, however, if you ship Kataang I won't come for your throat because that's not my style. I know the few misogynists/antis on here and on Twitter, and I don't want to let a few bad apples be my impression of a fandom, that's not fair, So now I'm side-eyeing myself over my past remarks. Likewise, I know shipping is not equal to morality, but I also want to criticize Kataang because of how flawed it is and how wrong that kiss was (and other things). I have no idea what I'm saying because at this point I'm rambling. What do you think?
Well, there is a difference between criticizing a ship and criticizing canon. I don't honestly care what people ship. I use the antikataang tag because I don't want to argue with people who do ship it, but that doesn't mean I won't be critical of what is in the show. I think expecting people not to engage critically with media is absolute nonsense. But there is a difference between engaging critically with the actual media and criticizing people's fanon or headcanons, which is where you get away from critically engaging with canon and move into the area of criticizing other people's opinions, which is how arguments start.
Like, there isn't really any actual concrete argument you can make to criticize zutara, because zutara does not exist in canon. It's all fanon and headcanons and speculation. And criticizing other people's opinions just makes you look like a dick.
You also have to take into account the intention behind something. The thing about the way Katara's relationship with Aang is presented is that we're supposed to root for Aang to get Katara, and every obstacle towards that end is just there to create dramatic tension for the male point of audience identification. That's the real problem with the noncon kiss, and people who are critical of it are right to point it out.
In contrast, when I say shipping isn't morality, I'm talking about people who write, let's say, dubcon zutara fics. Fanfiction as a genre is largely female-centered fantasy. Yes, even those lurid fics you're thinking of. People write and read these fics for completely different reasons and have completely different expectations than when watching a series like ATLA. Trying to say that someone can't criticize the way the show presents Aang kissing Katara after she said she was confused as a mistake to be glossed over (that is forgotten as soon as it happens) because they also happen to like reading darkfic is nonsense. There's also a long history of women's interests being policed that informs my views here, vs the fact that consent has only fairly recently become a conversation in mainstream media. You have only to look at the way the show itself portrays Katara having interests (especially in boys) outside of Aang as dark and dangerous to see this happening in ATLA itself. Or the way the creators got away with saying that zutara shippers are doomed to end up in abusive relationships while painting Aang as a typical Nice Guy stereotype who expects Katara to magically become his girlfriend (and gets angry when she doesn't) and seeing nothing wrong with it.
The thing is that zutara, if we look at the way it's written in canon as a metaphor for a romantic relationship, follows the same tradition of how fanfiction has historically existed as an exploration of romantic and sexual dynamics. Those conversations about consent are actually happening and being explored in fanfiction, even the dark stuff, whereas relationships that are presented as "wholesome" often push us to NOT have those conversations. So when I say shipping isn't morality, what I actually mean is that noncanon shipping and darkfic actually has more of a moral leg to stand on than uncritically engaging with relationships on the grounds that Aang is the hero so his goodness and worthiness to get the girl should just be assumed. Zuko has to work for his right to be in a relationship with Katara because he didn't start out from a place of goodness, and that, on its own, is very female centered because instead of starting out from the perspective of the male hero deserving a relationship by virtue of being the hero, we see the idea that a man has to work to gain a woman's respect and affection.
So it's not so much that I hate KA, but I hate the idea that we should engage in it uncritically. And that would be true even if it really was the most wholesome relationship in the world. The same thing cannot be true of zutara because even the darkest of darkfic are about women centering themselves in the narrative and engaging with power dynamics in ways that are subverting patriarchal norms about relationships by definition.
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thevampiremarie · 2 years ago
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Summertime Sadness (part 2)
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Simon "Ghost" Riley x reader
Second chance romance, heavy angst, hurt/very little comfort
Ten years ago: the first time you met Simon
Today: the first time Ghost meets you
Tags: mental illness, therapeutic boarding school, self harm, suicide attempt/suicidality, self harm, abuse, parental abandonment, much the same as last chapter. This fic is unedited because I don’t feel like editing it lol. If you see spelling/grammar issues, no you didn’t.
TEN YEARS AGO
Reader POV
-
It’s intake day.
Intake day happens once a week, always on Wednesday.
You don’t know why they pick Wednesday. It seems pretty arbitrary, doesn’t it?
On intake day, the nurses and counselors make all the current residents of the inpatient program line up to greet the newbies. You actually look forward to intake day. Everyone here is so boring and routine; your roommate never speaks unless spoken to and she always keeps her earbuds in. On intake day, the hope that someone nice will be admitted survives for the few hours of the intake itself.
It usually dies right after. There was one polite girl who smiled when you waved last week, but she was transferred to a different facility that night before you could learn her name.
You’ve been here for three weeks, so that’s three intake days.
You’re not sure why you’ve been here so long. It seems a little excessive; you’d think by now they’d realize your stuff isn’t so bad and maybe you could transition to outpatient appointments?
It’s a little dissociation and some minor depression. Not bad at all.
But your doctors agree, albeit gently, that you should stay for the full five month course.
The program isn’t so bad. The facility sits on a sprawling multi-acre property in the British countryside, where everything is beautiful and verdant and always chilly. It’s lovely. The tea is good. You’re getting used to how they take it here. It’s nothing like the sweet tea you drink back home.
You suppose that’s another reason why they won’t let you go home even though you’re okay; there isn’t a home to go back to. Your dad hasn’t looked you in the eye since Mom left. At least the orderlies here greet you in the morning.
(What Dad doesn’t know is that before she left, she told you she loved you and to wait for her. Soon, she’ll take you away from this place and you’ll never have to see your dad again.)
Before you head to the foyer, you check your hair in the mirror of your room’s suicide-proofed bathroom. A young teenage face stares back at you with cheeks flushed red from the sun. You trace your deep smile lines with the tip of your finger, then practice smiling. You would have feel better about moving to a therapeutic boarding school if you’d been greeted with a smile.
At first, you think the newest crop of poor souls will be uninteresting at best. Listless rich kids detoxing off Mommy’s coke, frightened preteens who’ve never been away from their parents for an extended period of time, and a few teenagers straight from an ER, IV bags and all.
And then you see him get off the bus last.
He’s tall, towering over everyone else. A lanky, almost skeletal build, with a bored, aloof expression on his face. He hides the Zippo lighter he was playing with in his sleeve before the nurses catch and confiscate it.
There’s something horrifically severe about him. He can’t be more than a couple of years older than you, but he carries himself like he’s a blade and the world is filled with monsters.
His eyes are large and dark, rich brown irises rimmed with pale blonde eyelashes. And they’re kind, even though he would probably hate having that pointed out.
You decide then and there that you’ll befriend him. He could use a friend; everyone here does. He’s beautiful in his sharpness and elegant in his abrasiveness. Maybe you can coax more of that hidden kindness out, show him that it’s worth more than his anger. You wouldn’t be able to stay away if you tried.
You both like playing with fire, though you prefer less literal ones.
-
TODAY
Ghost POV
-
Your smile fades swiftly as if it was never there to begin with.
There are two ghosts in this room. That’s what you are; a ghost of the girl he knew.
He watches and waits for you to shift uncomfortably and start blabbering to fill the silence like you used to. “Why’d you make them call me?” Ghost asks when it’s clear that you won’t.
As soon as you explain, he’s out of here. Ghost meant it when he said he never wanted to see you again.
You’re the last living reminder of the past he’s tried so hard to kill. The beeping sounds of your heart monitor spell out his mistakes in a grating, irritating rhythm.
Your answer disappoints his expectations. “I didn’t actually think you’d show.” Ghost doesn’t hear any wistfulness or longing in your voice, anything that would tell him that you’re clinging on to the boy you thought he was. Only a bone-dry and hollow statement of facts.
“What do you want?”
You ignore his question. At fifteen, you were good at that. At twenty-five, you’re better. “You got any cigarettes I could bum? You look like you still smoke them,” You say as you fiddle with your torn, bleeding nail beds with the classic anxiety of nicotine withdrawal.
He does that too when a mission stretches too long without a resupply and he finishes his cigarettes early to stave off hunger.
Ghost remembers fighting with you over the pack of smokes he smuggled into the program. He would hold it way above your head and laugh as you struggled to reach them. But you never gave up - they were bad for him, and you liked him too much to see him die of lung cancer.
He remembers the determination in your eyes and your unwavering faith that he could be saved.
“They’re bad for you,” Ghost echoes.
If you remember that moment, you don’t show it. “You know what else is fucking bad for you?” Your tone is so acerbic that it gives him whiplash.
He can’t resist taking a shot. “What, being a prick?” You just… bring out the worst in him. You make him feel as unhinged and unmoored as he was when you first met.
You roll your bloodshot eyes.
“I wasn’t going to call you out on that. I was going to say benzos and vodka. Also throwing yourself headfirst off a bridge.”
“Oh.”
What is he supposed to say to that?
“Why did you come?” You ask after a long moment of quiet interspersed by that fucking heart monitor.
Ghost grinds his teeth into each other as he reflects. He hates doing that; the inside of his skull is a bad place. “…I don’t know,” He admits. Coming here was a mistake; Ghost understands that now.
The foul taste on the back of his tongue is guilt. But why? You did this to yourself. You brought him here to play games and fuck him up, so why is he the one who feels… bad?
You sigh. “Simon-“
“Ghost. It’s Ghost now,” He cuts you off with more violence than necessary.
Your mouth settles into a tight, pained line. “Ghost. Go away.”
“But you called me here.”
That provokes a reaction.
Ghost sees it and immediately wishes it hadn’t.
You stare him straight in the eye, your dilated pupils peel back his mask and see the face underneath. Your skin is tinged gray and your bottom lip blooms red with blood from where you’ve bitten through it.
He wants back the child sobbing for his forgiveness on her knees, who looked at him like he hung the stars in the sky.
“And it was a mistake, and I should never have done it, and I just wanted the satisfaction of knowing you weren’t going to pick up the phone. That I was truly alone.”
So the memory of him is a knife you’re using on yourself. Fucking disturbing.
“Oh.”
You raise an eyebrow as you wave. “Bye.”
Right.
That’s it.
Though your dismissal rankles, Ghost does as you ordered and takes his leave of you.
His work phone vibrates a few times.
Only one person calls that it. “Captain,” Ghost greets.
Captain Price clears his throat on the other side of the line. “Lieutenant. When can we expect you back?”
‘Tomorrow’ is on the tip of Ghost’s tongue.
He’s never taken a day off in his career, which means he’s got at least a year or two in built up vacation time. “I’ll be gone for a while longer, sir. Not sure yet how long,” Ghost answers promptly.
It’s only for a few more days, a week at most. Long enough to make sure you won’t try to kill yourself again, long enough for the guilt freezing his blood and choking his lungs to fade.
“Alright, Lieutenant. Keep us posted.”
“Yes, sir.”
TAGGING: @devcica @igotmajordaddyissues @almightywdm @copiasratscheese @nerdyreaderpapi @schmelscorner
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cassidy273 · 2 months ago
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What different Ao3 tags mean
This post is for people who are starting to read fics on Ao3, or just people who don't get some of the tags.
Fluff - Basically just nice and fuzzy feels
Lemon/Lime - I don't think I see these tags too much on newer fics, but I used to see them all the time when I still used Wattpad. Lemon means that the fic contains graphic sexual stuff, and lime means that the fic contains sexual situations without being graphic.
Watersports - This is one of the freaky tags. Do NOT make the same mistake I did when I first went on Ao3, and assume that this is for fics about actual water related sports. This tag is for fics with piss kinks.
Dead Dove: Do Not Eat - This tag is for fics with themes that may be considered problematic/not morally okay, and it's basically a warning to readers to mind the tags. I didn't know what this meant a while ago, and I read a very graphic fic about a guy murdering his boyfriend during sex...consensually.
Angst - Just angsty/sad feels.
Whump - If I'm being honest, I didn't know what the fuck this could even mean when I first went on Ao3. It's basically just hurt/comfort, but emphasis on the hurt. I'm honestly too scared to read fics with this tag just in case I cry lol.
Crack - A fic that was written as a joke/parody that is not meant to be taken seriously. Like, you wouldn't leave genuine criticism on a smutty Shrek/Christine Daaé fanfic with the tag Crack/Crackfic.
Hurt/Comfort - The title kinda speaks for itself, but it's basically a fic where a character gets sick or feels bad emotionally, and another character comforts them.
Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics - This means the fic contains stuff from the omegaverse such as alphas, omegas, and betas. I remember forgetting to read the tags a while back, and when I started reading the actual fanfic, I was so confused as to why Christine was talking about Erik's pheromones and stuff like that. I'm not gonna explain too much about the omegaverse, but y'all can google that stuff yourselves if you want. There might be some sexual stuff, though.
Vore - This is basically just a fetish where someone wants to eat someone/be eaten by them.
I might make a follow-up to this but idk.
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leftoverbriocheloaf · 1 month ago
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Fanfic Writer Interview!!
@xerx thank you so much for tagging me!! I'm honored and v excited to answer <3333
How many works do you have on AO3?
Right now I have 29 works on AO3!! That's kinda crazy to me just because I only started posting last summer and didn't think it would go anywhere,, but almost 30 and still going strong!!
Your top 5 stories by kudos/likes:
Language Barrier: I'm genuinely shocked this got so popular?? I'm happy to know that ppl love the "didn't think you could understand my language" troupe as much as I do!! It's one of my shorter ranpoe stories at 2.3k (I like to write longer fics bc I hate myself apparently) but I love it dearly <3
Interesting?: I loved writing this fic!! I am insane about them and continue to be!! It's also ranpoe (I wonder if you can guess the ships I like,,) and also my second longest fic ever at 32.6k. It's a high school au bc I love them living happy lives and being normal (ASAGIRI PLEASE) with a healthy(?) amount of rivalry on Poe's part! It's also one of the few fics where I bounce around in POV, which is something I love doing but find really hard
Good Shot: What can I say. I saw Poe w a sniper and went HOT what who said that. not me. But I also decided that he and Atsushi would make great friends (which led me to deciding they're siblings and writing a whole story about that) but I'm just a sucker for Poe adopting random members of the ADA by accident. Ranpo is just really proud of his bf. This one is also shorter at 2.8k but I got to write a really cool (totally not biased) fight scene so it's one of my favs
Feelings Are Difficult, Even For Geniuses: Guys this was one of my first fics I swear I've gotten better at naming them (I have not). 9.0k words of mostly Poe getting beaten up I have no words,, It's a bit more graphic (violent not sexy unless youre into that idk) than most of my stuff and definitely one of the more angsty ones, but it has a happy ending so dw he's fine
Henna Berries and Padisarahs: Ok this is where I shamelessly admit I'm a genshin player and while I haven't played in. forever. the sumeru quartet grabbed my heart and threw it out the window. Cyonari for the win. 5.2k and soulmates!!
Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?
I do!! I love comments SO much y'all have no idea how much they mean to me,, They've made me so much more confident in my work and eager to share my stuff and I really appreciate it!! I try and respond as fast as possible (I have responded to a comment within five minutes before and I still wonder if that commenter thinks Im a freak) but sometimes I'll hold off until I can finish the next chapter (if applicable). I also am a huge yapper (if these responses didn't make that clear) so I love talking to you guys <3
What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?
Tbh I don't really write angsty endings?? I might eventually, but they make me so sad :') Which. they're supposed to. I'd have to say Feelings are Difficult, Even for Geniuses only bc the fic itself is angsty and it's implied that Poe is gonna have to work through some shit emotionally after the events of it? It might be An Author, a Raccoon, and a Reaper though.
What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?
This is gonna be hard bc every single fic is a happy ending tbh.. Give it a Shot! is an octopath traveler ii fic that I loved writing the ending for (guys you should read fics from the octopath fandom they know whats up) but For the Hell of It might be my favorite ending that I've written!!
Do you write crossovers?
I haven't written any crossovers,, Mainly bc I feel like the fandoms I like are all just too different? I haven't found any ways to mush them together but maybe I'll write one eventually!
Have you ever received hate on a fic?
Nope! Everyone's been really nice :)
Do you write smut? If so, what kind?
Sorry y'all I'm a sex-repulsed ace so it probably won't happen? I mean never say never tbf but seeing as my face literally burns when I write two characters kiss it probably won't be soon lmfao
Have you ever had a fic stolen?
I don't think so? I hope not?
Have you ever had a fic translated?
No :( I'm hoping to get good enough at Spanish to translate my own fics though!
Have you ever co-written a fic before?
Yes! But not any that I've posted,, I'm working with my irl friends on a few different fics, but they're still in progress :)
What’s your all-time favorite ship?
Guys i can't choose. don't do this to me
(ranpoe, criminos, sskk, kohiiai, cyonari, xingyun, chiakana, dan heng/march/stelle (idk the name) are all favs tho)
What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?
Ok one of my favorite fics that I'm writing is a fic about Higuchi getting amnesia before the events of the main series and slowly getting her memories back but finding herself outside of akutagawa its like 50 pages so far but im not even done w the guild arc.. im hoping i can finish it but we'll see!! I just think Higuchi deserves love and a MC moment <3
I also have a fic where Poe uses the book after they've lost to send himself back in time to try and fix everything! But (in my fic at least) Arahabaki is outside of the rules of the book, so Chuuya also retains his memories,, I just think they could be a very interesting duo and have a lot of potential as begrudging allies (and guys. mafia poe. guys) but it's very long and idk if I'll be able to see it through (T-T)
What are your writing strengths?
I think I write dialogue well! I have trouble working through certain characters, but I like writing two really smart people bc I have to strike a balance between having them not mention things (bc they're obvious to them) and still letting the reader know whats going on.
What are your writing weaknesses?
I have a lot of trouble continuing fics bc I have so many things I want to write that I usually overwhelm myself trying to string plot points together,, Scenery is also SO hard for me to write idk why (@xerx we're opposites lmao <3)
What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?
I think it can be done well, but I usually prefer to italicize and just say in the notes that a character is speaking in another language so readers can understand what they're saying. However, if you're writing a story where you don't want the reader to understand either, I think it can be really interesting!
What’s a fandom/ship you haven’t written for yet but want to?
Honkai Star Rail,, and Dungeon Meshi (farceille my loves)
What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?
I think it's a tie between For the Hell of It and A Hop, Skip, and Jump (Back to the Castle)! I love my aus, if you couldn't tell. But royalty aus will always have a special place in my heart (and that fic is certainly not the last royalty au i'll be writing for ranpoe) <3
Tagging: @jeaninthetrees, @amythecinnabunny (if you have an ao3 and I didn't tag you you should lmk so I can :)) )
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foolsocracy · 2 years ago
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Do you have any fic recommendations? I've just read the open road and other anesthetics, which was good, but I'd love more Noir content.
oh boy do i
Here are a few fics i have on hand! If I have time or stumble across more, I can make another post/add to this one. Heads up, the open road and other anesthetics is pretty light hearted and these probably will not be. so say vigilant LMAO (its noir, ya know?). If you wanted more spiderverse centric fics rather than noirverse let me know i'll see what i can pull together.
Burning Matches by HopelesslyLost (complete) 344,746 words
Cant have a Spider Noir fic rec list without the gospel itself. Definitely on the whumpier side, lots of "this guy can never catch a break huh" but very good! Takes the noirverse and makes it so so cool. I pull a lot from this fic. Great stuff Its a post ITSV setting and features a great deal of everyone but Pete is def the focus. The spider gang is trying to get back together, but when they get to Noir's world things don't go as planned. Heavy on the found family. Heavy on the angst. Love Noir's relationship w/ Miles' parents
The Wind Follows by HopelesslyLost (incomplete) 99,501 words
Goes along with Burning Matches as a side story of Pete infiltrating the KKK to get them tf out of NYC. Very heavy handed on the angst. Even whumpier than Burning Matches. Where it stands right now, it ends on an incredibly low note, very much like Eyes Without a Face. Peter's kicked while he's down & physically incapable of getting a win. But Peter does kick Nazi ass which is always nice to see If you like the noirverse HopelesslyLost writes this is very interesting! Gotta be my fave part of this fic. I love seeing Noir Cage, Daredevil, and Tony Stark. Plus the who "cursed" situation.. mwah
i'll go back to december by snapplebee (incomplete, recently updated) 14,503 words
This fic reminds me of the open road and other anesthetics, but if it was a little angstier w/ Noir. The spider gang is hanging out for the holidays, Noir doesn't know how to fuckn relax.
Catch a Tiger by the Tail by Gruoch (completed) 40,049 words
Just finished this one today! Was very fun. It's an MJ spider-man (her POV) and a Black Cat Peter. Gwen Stacy, a dancer at Felica Hardy's place, is found dead. Her fiancé, Peter Parker, is found dead soon after. Its very much a mystery! TBH i think i was out of it reading this because a twist got me that I'm almost positive was obvious from the beginning LMAO. Slight Peter/Johnny Storm as well
Between Midnight and Dawn by Gruoch (incomplete) 14,158 words
Prequel to the previous rec. I love this one and I'd do anything to see it update again. Shows you how Peter got to be the Black Cat, he has cool run ins with the Dare Devil and Stark, all the fun noir folks. Heads up on the dysfunctional found family tag, thats for sure Peter and Felicia. But they're strange in canon anyway so its not really much of a surprise.
He Sleeps in a Town of Darkness by luckystarsandgarters (complete) 21,278 words
This is the fic i mentioned a post or 2 ago about Johnny Storm being a drag performer. I really love the atmosphere of this fic, I thought it was pulling from an offical comic thats how well it got me. This one's Pete/Johnny Storm! They're cute. Lots of focus on the gay subculture of the 30s I think.
Trust by Ackerhardt (complete) 6,989
Peter & Jean De Wolfe vs the world. Quick read in the classic noirverse. Jean is fun we should talk about him more tbh. Peter/Jean actually! Just colleged aged guys taking on crime in the city.
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my-pjo-stuff · 4 months ago
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Opinions on lukercy? *asks deviously*
I mean...idc? Like, Lukercy ain't really my cup of tea- but it's not like I hate it or something. I don't rly do PJO ships besides Thaluke- and even there I'm just as good with them being platonic. So Lukercy, like any PJO ship, is just sort of ...there, at least for me. But I genuinely love the shippers! Like even if I personally don't ship it the guys that do are some of the chillest, most respectful non-toxic fans in this fandom. Which...okay tbf the bar is in literal hell- but I do genuinely mean it! To share a little anecdote here- So when I first read the PJO books I had this series up on my main where I posted my thoughts and reactions to the chapters. This obviously attracted some older fans who talked with me and commented, all really nice and innocent stuff. Thing was, I was always very pro-Luke ever since TLT. I genuinely loved the guy- to the point where he unironically was the main draw to the books for me. In comparison, I didn't really care for Percy and CHB people, as I found them rather bland compared to the TA demigods all things considered.
Which- out of context that is nothing bad! Absolutely not- it turned into one though when someone at some point asked my thoughts on Percy/Percabeth. I replied to them with the things I said above, that I find them rather bland compared to Luke and that I don't rly care too much for them. And MAN when I tell you that reaction was WIIILLDDD. They went on like an 8 messages rant in the notify section of that post about how I "just don't get it" and "Am so unfair" and just "judge characters on the amount of trauma they have" 💀 Genuinly that is a forever PJO fandom core memory now. They even demanded me to talk about and dig into Percy like I did with Luke because they "knew that I could do it since I did it with Luke". That shit was crazy- they sounded like my teacher wanting me to write more in a poem analysis or sum T-T Fr the only reason I didn't block them then and there was bc previously they were pretty active with my posts and nice to me- had that user been a stranger they would have been blocked SO fast. After that they just interacted less and less with my stuff and I haven't spotted them in my notes since lmao. So yeah, that's my fun story of how a Percabeth Shipper/Percy fan basically demanded that I go and analyze their favs just bc I could do it, and they wanted me to. And, well- say what you want but that certainly never happened with any Lukercy shippers XD Some of my oldest PJO mutuals and friends are Lukercy shippers actually, genuinely great ppl! I think all the hate you guys get is just genuinely weird af like??? It's a fictional ship between two fictional characters, calm down man. Yes I can see how some ppl might be uncomfortable with it and would prefer to just block the tag and users who like it entirely- but it ain't that deep. Go outside. Hug your family. Get some hobbies. IDK just stop treating a fictional yaoi ship like the plague itself. At this point it just straight up borders on weird how worked up some ppl get XD I do read some fics and like some art, mostly bc, again, a good amount of nice mutuals of mine ship it and I'm just supporting their work. TL:DR : Not my cup of tea, but I love the guys who ship it and never had one single bad experience with them. As opposed to everyone else. Also ppl should stop hating on it so much and just move on if they don't like it.
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memo-blogs · 6 months ago
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Here With Me (Part II)
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Part I Pairing: Spawn Astarion x female Durge Tav
Tags: NSFW, angst, fluff, processing trauma, a trauma flashback, choking, questionable sex that turns into not-so-questionable sex?, oral, light hints at dom-sub stuff, hints at Tav being bratty - it's a wild ride but ultimately kinda wholesome??
Summary: In part 1 Tav said to stop and walked away from Astarion and sexy times because he wasn't all there, and Astarion tries to push past his traumas too fast, resulting in some icky bedroom things that Tav manages to navigate into not so icky but very fun fun bedroom things. In short, Astarion takes some babysteps in being present and enjoying bedroom time. :D
A/N: This is a three-parter series where things are oof before they get nice and spicy. Still waiting on my AO3 account, who knew you had to queue for one for like 2 weeks!? If and when I get one, there is spicier than Tumblr allows fanart inspired by this fic available, huhu. Hope you like! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I love you” Tav repeated. “And I can’t do this when it feels like you’re still letting yourself be used.” She put on a nightgown and walked towards the door, stealing one last tearful glance at her vampire companion. “It hurts us both when you do.” And with that, she left. Quietly, Astarion closed the bedroom door behind Tav. He walked up to their shared, empty bed. Suddenly he grabbed a pillow and, screaming, flung it at the wall. He collapsed on the floor, sobbing.
“Where do you go, when we make love?” Her words haunted him.
“Why do you perform like this is a duty where you try to be as little a part of it as you can?”
“I cannot bear the thought of making you please me. I had hoped I was your equal. Your lover.” “I can’t do this anymore, Astarion.”He hated how sharp she was. Hated it, and also loved her so very much for it. She was right, and he knew she was. He had just hoped maybe, just maybe she hadn’t noticed. She hadn’t commented on his lack of presence in a long time… if he was being honest to himself, he had been a little disappointed, thinking she neither noticed or cared. But how could he demand she would, when no one else ever had? She had clocked it the first time they made love. Asked him where he went – he had given his usual charming lies, and they both left it at that. Now that he thought back, Astarion had seen her looking at him, especially during their intimate moments, as if with a sad question in her eyes. And, like a coward, he had run away from that look. Just like he had run away from what he had to do to survive. He sat on his knees, staring at their bedroom floor for a long time, reminiscing how he needed to escape to not go insane when he was still enslaved to Cazador. He wept at all the innocent people he had lured to their demise with his sweet lies and empty promises. To angrily claim he didn’t care was another lie to protect his heart. Tav’s mournful face swam back into the forefront of his thoughts. 
“Am I someone you need to forget?”The question itself was almost unbearable. In his 200 years of existence, Tav was the first one to truly see him. The one who saved him, the one who had loved him with all his good and bad qualities. Of course she noticed he faded away during sex. Astarion felt a tear roll down his cheek again. Of course she would care.. and want him to be there. But what if he couldn’t do it? Break down these walls he’d built to protect himself for so many years. Would Tav leave? The thought made Astarion feel afraid, and alone. He wasn’t used to feeling this exposed. He began to walk around as he reasoned with himself. Tav would not leave him over this, but it would make her sad. She was already so very sad. He loathed her being sad. But she was right to ask – and that was the impetus here; she had asked, not demanded. She had never made him do a thing. So whatever was happening now, he was doing to them both. Didn’t Astarion want to be present with Tav? I mean, why wouldn’t he? Now that he thought of it, it felt… well, ridiculous. Of course he wanted to be with Tav more than anything. To be closer to her, to feel her. Without thinking, he had wandered through their home, finding Tav sleeping on their living room couch. She was crying in her sleep. He looked at her and his heart ached. All this time with her, and she had seen him. Accepted him as he was, at his lowest, weakest. At his worst. She had given everything to him. She saw him, she looked at him with a love so complete it made Astarion dizzy… while he held back and escaped. He was like a shadow escaping the sun. Too afraid to be present in the bedroom, of all places. The one place where he had held some sort of dominion for so long. It hurt to admit. He quietly knelt beside his sleeping Tav, and gently dried her tears. “I had hoped I was your equal.”He hadn’t realized how little he actually gave her, or how hard this was for him. Astarion gingerly stroked Tav’s hair. She seemed to sleep easier, being cared for. Astarion found himself smiling. Gods, how beautiful she was. How easily she seemed to love. He kissed her forehead. “You’re right, you know. I’m so sorry love… you deserve better”, he whispered to the night, not expecting her to hear in her sleep. He wasn’t sure how, but he was going to make this up to her. He got up to leave, when he felt a gentle tug on his robe. “Hey”, Tav whispered. 
He turned back around, heart racing. “Hello love.” “You okay?” “I – well, no. Or I don’t know.” Astarion sat next to Tav on the sofa. There was a heavy silence as both waited for the other. Astarion finally broke the silence with “I’m sorry.” “I heard”, Tav replied. “So, what now?” “Ah, well… I suppose we try again and this time, I do it right… right? I’ll be honest darling, I feel utterly lost at sea. I feel… vulnerable.” Astarion couldn’t even look at her, but he did want to make an effort. He felt a wave of comfort wash over him when Tav leaned next to him, pulling his arm into a hug. “It’s okay. We have our entire lives ahead of us, and we can take it slow. One step at a time, you know? It doesn’t have to happen right away.” “I do want to try. So how would I… how does this work?” Tav couldn’t help herself, and she laughed. “Are you telling me you, Astarion, prince of the night and the doom of many a lonely being looking for love, are at a loss how to proceed?” “Laugh all you’d like.. I know how to flirt with you and how to pleasure you, but...” He paused to look for the words. “I’ve never been with anyone in a way where I uh… gave myself to them.” He looked at her, feeling oddly shy. “Not in the way you’re asking me to.” Momentarily the truth of Astarion’s life pained her, but then Tav smiled. “Oh, so am I to be your first?” She mimicked his mannerisms, twirling her hand. “I’m honoured.” She kissed him. “It’s easier than you think, don’t worry.” Tav held his hands. “Think of me. Of what you love about me, of the things that make you desire me. And know you can have me…” She leaned in to Astarion’s ear and gave it a nibble. “...And have your way with me.”
Astarion felt a rush of arousal. “Are you sure?” Tav nodded, her robe conveniently sliding off one shoulder and showing her deliciously freckled skin. Time stood still as Astarion hesitated. Then, he lunged at her. His kisses were forceful, and his hands wandered up and down Tav hungrily. She gave a surprised moan, but caressed his back encouragingly. They both disrobed entirely while at it. He paused to look at Tav who looked right back at him. They were both breathing heavily. He didn’t know what he saw in Tav’s eyes but looking at her was… he felt scared he was losing control. He couldn’t. He wouldn’t. He grabbed Tav’s throat. She gasped but didn’t resist. He pushed her down into the sofa and pushed his tongue in her mouth. He felt her respond to him, ever so softly. He pulled away from the kiss with a growl, using his hand to find her breast to squeeze. She moaned and bucked slightly, but he didn’t linger. His hand was sliding downwards already. “My, my,” he remarked when he felt her wetness. “I’m flattered, darling.” He did not waste time but lifted Tav’s hips up and pushed inside. She gasped and looked at him, bewildered. But also with absolute… what was that in her eyes? It scared Astarion to look at. He put both his hands on her hips and thrust himself into her violently.
He thrust again. A moan, almost pained. The boy was young, and youth in general is pretty. It was a small comfort - Cazador had been particularly angry with him that night. He knew he had to hurry with this boy, and bring him back to his master… but the art of seduction was the only good part of his existence, and he wished to linger, just a while longer. He pulled on the lad’s hair, angrily pounding away, hoping for a moment of release, of comfort, of a good feeling, before he had to return to Cazador’s palace, his prison, the rats, the disgusting rats… if he would even be allowed to feed. He put his hands on the boy’s throat as he kept thrusting. Did he wish to drink the boy, or to strangle Cazador? Maybe both. Maybe - “A-astarion...” Tav wheezed. Astarion felt himself waking. What happened? He saw Tav’s hand on his arm, softly caressing him. He saw himself, on top of Tav, both his hands around her throat. Too tightly. She was having trouble breathing. He was inside her but it… it felt… wrong. This wasn’t what he wanted. He had vanished, again. Not away to something more pleasant, but to one of his many, many victims. He had been so afraid to lose control, to lose his power… to be vulnerable that he had… he let go of Tav’s throat as if it burned. “I-I, I’m sorry, I don’t know what I -” Suddenly he was embraced. Tav was kissing him, long, gentle, reassuring. She was sitting on top of him, in his arms, her arms caressing his back comfortingly – and she gave a small squeeze to his member, as he was still inside of her. “Shh”, she said. “I’m okay. We’re okay.” Tav smiled at her. “Bhaalspawn, remember? I've been through worse, and I’m practically the expert on losing your mind. I pulled you out of it.”  She held his face and pulled him into another soft, loving kiss. “You’re safe with me. I will never hurt you. You didn’t hurt me.” She danced slowly back and forth on top of him and he felt close to losing his mind with how good she felt. She leaned back down onto the sofa, still coaxing him to move, to do as he pleased while rocking back and forth around his dick. “Please don’t go. Whatever you want to do, do it here with me. See me… please.” She looked desperate, almost. “Show me what you would like. What would make you stay?” He felt stupid. Just like an utter idiot – he shouldn’t have rushed this. But gods above, did he want this. And gods below, was it terrifying. He was standing at the threshold of a door he had held shut for as long as he could remember, one of the very few sanctuaries he had had in his past. But that was in the past. He was here now, with Tav, and… she was right. He knew she was. He felt it in his entire being that she was. Unsure, he looked into her eyes and saw nothing but love and the thing that had felt painful – trust. He had used and abused trust so many times, it terrified him to... trust, as he knew very well how easy it was to abuse. This was Tav though. He met her gaze, and smiled. Suddenly, it was as easy as breathing. He crouched over Tav and leaned in for a kiss. It was long, exploratory – as if he was reaffirming their feelings for one another. All he found was love. He could taste it on her tongue, feel it in the softness of her lips. He gave her a playful bite on her lip and Tav giggled. He pulled out of her and sat. “Anything I want?” He asked.Tav nodded eagerly in response. He pointed to the floor in front of him. “On. Your. Knees.” Tav got up from the sofa and obliged, settling on her knees in front of Astarion. She was practically giddy to be given commands, and Astarion found himself having power without any of the ick of using someone attached. He leaned closer to Tav, showing a toothy grin while he uttered: “I wish… to be drunk.”
Tav looked at his still very much hard cock, and smiled. So far, Astarion had always pleasured her – she had been too shy to ask, and he had never asked her to please him. But secretly, she had always wanted to taste him. She traced her hand up and down his dick. She was absolutely entranced by every little twitch she managed to elicit from him while exploring. He seemed especially sensitive at the tip, which was softer than the shaft to the touch. She leaned in and kissed it, and heard Astarion sigh in delight. She used her hand to rub his length, while using her mouth on his tip. She felt more aroused to taste herself on him; a reminder of what they were just doing, and what they might be doing again. She softly wrapped her entire mouth around his cock, feeling around with her tongue. “Oh gods, yes darling”, she heard him mutter.
Tav couldn’t remember much after that. She was so deeply focused on playing with Astarion that she swam back to a form of consciousness only when he panted out; “I’m going to come”. She took him out of her mouth, still using her hands to gently play with the now erratically bucking Astarion. “How do you want to do this?” she asked, smiling in a way that would put any devil to shame. “Drink me!” he rasped, on the verge.
She smiled and plunged again with a vigor Astarion didn’t know she had in her. He had felt the climax ebbing away when she slowed down to ask, but now it rose again with a vengeance. It was all too much, her hands her mouth her lips her tongue and how she was pulling him towards her. He came with a moan and shot inside of her. Slowly, he pulsed the last of himself inside her. He flinched, feeling overly sensitive when she gently slid her mouth off of him. While maintaining eye contact, she swallowed. Part of his seed was dripping down the corner of her mouth. Apparently his load was too much to contain. She smirked and showed him her tongue. He was impressed, amazed and so in love with her. He pulled her up from the floor into a kiss. “That” he said breathlessly, “was a lot of fun.”
“See what happens when you’re with me?”
“Alright alright. You don’t need to harp on about how infuriatingly right you were.”
“The only thing hard about it, was you.” Tav said and playfully poked his penis. Astarion laughed and held his darling. “No, truth be told, that was one of the scariest things I have done in my life, and I’ve fought a Netherbrain… but who knew facing your fears could be so utterly delicious.”
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bluejaysandblackbats · 9 months ago
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Hair Trigger
Fandom: DC Comics, Batfam, Superfam, YJ98
Summary: A junior at Gotham University, Jason finds it difficult to conceal his worsening mental health from his family and his friend, Jon Lane Kent. Family secrets are revealed and boundaries are pushed as Jason and Laney struggle to navigate through school, their romantic feelings, and their trauma. Could the reintroduction of Laney Kent be more trouble than it's worth, or is it just what Jason needed to confront the demons of his past?
I will also do trigger warnings for chapters and if there is smut I have the chapter(s) tagged so you don't have to worry about nsfw in the fic if you're just here for the story itself.
Chapters: 5/?
Characters: Jason Todd, Jonathan Lane Kent, Bruce Wayne, Clark Kent, Lois Lane, Cassandra Cain, Tim Drake, Conner Kent, Natalia Knight, Jonathan Samuel Kent, Cassie Sandsmark, Chris Kent, Bart Allen, Original Character(s)
Relationships: JayLaney, Clois, TimKon
Additional Tags: University AU, No Powers AU, Sharing A Bed, Romance, Angst
Chapter Five: Image
Clark hesitated a while before knocking on the door. Laney answered the door and turned to go back to cooking dinner without so much as a greeting. "Where's your roommate?" Clark asked as he shut and locked the door behind him.
"She's out of town for the weekend. Where's your stuff?" Laney asked as he washed his hands and checked on the food in the oven.
"It's in the car. I just wanted to make sure you were okay with me staying this weekend?" Clark asked. Laney nodded. "I'm gonna go get my things then, and I'll be right back..."
"Okay... Dad, do you want onion on your burger or no?" Laney asked.
"Onion is fine, thank you," Clark replied as he walked out the door and went back downstairs. He carried his clothes for the weekend in a duffle bag and his air mattress under his arm.
This time, Clark took the elevator instead of the stairs. He opened the door with one hand, and Laney came back over to take the air mattress and set it aside. "How do you like your classes? I remember you said you changed your major," Clark asked.
"I like it... I'm a music therapy major now, by the way," Laney answered as he took the food out of the oven and made Clark's plate. "What're you working on? Anything I should know about?" Laney asked. Clark placed his phone on the counter.
"I interviewed an influencer in Bludhaven," Clark replied, "And we talked about the future of marketing, which used to be your major."
"Yeah? Send me the link when you post it... It sounds interesting," Laney whispered as he poured Clark a glass of milk and poured himself a drink. "Here you go, Dad."
"Thank you," Clark smiled as he bit into his burger. Laney started to eat and took a sip of gin. "You drink?"
"Mhm, not on school nights, though..." Laney replied after taking another sip. "Also, I figured that we would eat before talking about anything serious."
Clark took a sip of his milk. "Oh, no, I wasn't judging you. I was just making an observation," Clark replied, "What's your roommate like?"
"She's a sweet kid. She's a freshman, never lived away from home before, theatre major, and she's a genuinely kind person to be around. It's like having a cool little sister around," Laney answered as he went back to eating, "And don't worry, I'm being nice to her. How're the boys?"
"They're doing good... Chris tries not to show it, but he misses you a lot," Clark confessed, "He won't let anyone move anything on your side of the room."
"I'll talk to him soon," Laney whispered, "I miss him too." They continued to eat in silence for a while, and Laney finished his drink.
"Laney, I can't do this... I just wanna know what happened? I wanna fix things—."
Laney got up and poured himself another glass. "Can I ask you a question first? When you sent me away, why couldn't you just say you loved me back?" Laney asked. He leaned in, tapping his nails on the counter. He took a swig of his second drink.
"Because if I said it, I never would've been able to send you away. All I wanted to do was take it back," Clark whispered, "Lane... What happened?"
"I had no one to hold onto, Dad," Laney started to cry, "And the boys there... They weren't kind to my weakness. I wasn't even there a whole week before they started in on me... And yeah, I probably had it coming to me after all the mean things I'd done in my life, but this was so different." Clark reached for Laney's hand, and Laney recoiled violently. Laney poured a little more gin into his glass. "And my counselor... He was the only one at that school who I could talk to. So, I did, almost every day of those two years... And that's why you couldn't find me on the last day of school..."
"I don't understand," Clark murmured. Laney shook his head.
"No, no... You don't get why that day was so bad for me. I let him take me off-campus. He said he wanted to take me to live with him, and I wanted to go.
We got about an hour away from the school, and we passed by this field, and as much as I wanted to leave with him, I started crying... I told him that I was sorry. He took me back to a restaurant right outside the school and told me to go inside and call the school, and when I got out of the car, he drove off, and I never saw him again," Laney explained as he finished his drink and Clark grabbed the bottle before Laney could pour himself another glass.
"Laney, look at me," Clark pleaded with him, "Laney—."
"It's okay if you hate me for trying to replace you. I want you to be mad at me for it—."
"Why would—?"
"I didn't know what else to do! I lost my best friend, I lost you, and all I wanted was someone to say it back," Laney's voice broke, "I just wanted somebody to care."
He jumped as soon as he felt himself being grabbed and embraced, and Laney couldn't move until he heard his father's voice whispering, "I care... I love you, Laney. I love you, and I'm sorry." Laney wrapped his arms around his father, and as soon as Laney regained his composure, he let go.
"I thought I wanted to be mad..." Laney stepped away from the counter and sat on the couch. He let out a few shaky breaths.
"Can I put the gin away now?" Clark asked innocently, and Laney let out a shaky laugh and nodded.
"You can put it back... So, you're not mad at me? You're not gonna say what I did was crazy and irresponsible and that I could've gotten killed?" Laney asked. Clark pushed up his glasses.
"Laney, I'm just happy that we got you back... Do you remember what you were like when we went to that restaurant to come and pick you up?" Clark asked. Laney shook his head. "You looked like you hadn't slept in days. You were shaky, out of it... You kept telling us you'd give anything just to go home and go to bed. You wouldn't say anything else. You slept on the couch in the living room for weeks."
"It took everything in me not to punch Conner in the face for saying I was scared to sleep in my own bed," Laney chuckled.
"I'm glad that you didn't do that," Clark smiled, and he got up to wash his hands, "You're so much like your mother."
"Stubborn?" Laney asked.
"Driven," Clark replied. Laney went to wash his hands in the bathroom, and he dried his hands on the towel.
Laney turned on the tv, and Clark washed the dishes. "Dad, you don't have to—."
"But I'd like to just this once," Clark interrupted. Laney nodded. Clark's phone rang. "That's your mom."
Laney put the phone on speaker. "Hi, Mom..." Laney answered.
"I just wanted to call to see if your father got in alright... And the boys wanted to say goodnight," Lois whispered.
"Hi, Sammy! Hi, Chris!" Laney exclaimed. The boys both spoke at once in a jumble of words that Laney couldn't quite make out.
"You're not mad?" Sammy asked.
"No, I'm not mad. How was your field trip?" Laney asked.
"It was good. We went to the exploratorium," Sammy answered, and he went on to tell Laney about what he did there.
Then Chris mentioned something about missing Laney, and Laney smiled to himself. "I miss you too," Laney whispered.
"We're making pizza for dinner. Did you eat already?" Lois asked.
"Mhm, Laney made burgers," Clark answered, "Oh, and boys make sure to start your homework and chores before Sunday." Chris and Sammy groaned. Clark dried the dishes and put them away in the cupboards.
"Loving the enthusiasm," Lois joked, and she sent the boys back to the kitchen before she asked if things were going alright.
"We're okay," Laney whispered. Lois made a humming noise.
"Good. I love both of you," Lois whispered.
"Love you too, Mom," Laney replied.
"I love you, Lois," Clark replied, and they hung up. Gus came out of Laney's bedroom and stood by Laney's feet.
"Oh, hello, handsome. Dad, this is Gus Gus. Gus Gus, this is Dad," Laney introduced them. Clark followed Laney and Gus to the couch. Laney rested his legs on Clark's lap as he watched tv.
"You still watch The Wonder Years?" Clark asked, and Laney nodded.
"It's kind of what I imagine you were like as a kid," Laney replied.
"Huh," Clark nodded, "That's fair."
They didn't say much as they continued watching tv, and Clark looked over to say something at Laney, and Laney lay fast asleep with his mouth open. "Laney? Lane, wake up." Laney started to snore. He moved Laney's legs and picked up Gus, and moved him to the side. "Laney?" Clark asked a little bit louder, and still, Laney didn't stir. So, Clark picked him up and carried him to bed while his mattress blew up in the living room. He pulled the blankets over Laney and was startled by Laney grabbing his face, still half asleep and pressing a kiss to his cheek.
"You're going already?" Laney whimpered. Clark chuckled, realizing that Laney was a little bit drunk, and he let out a breath. "Don't go. Not yet," Laney wiped a few tears away with his sleeve. "I don't wanna stay here by myself," Laney mumbled as he cried.
"I'm not going anywhere. I'm just getting ready to go to bed. I'll be here when you get up," Clark reassured him, "I promised I'd be here the whole weekend, remember?"
Laney turned over on his side, and with his eyes still closed, Laney uttered, "I remember... But I wish you could stay longer," in a half-broken whisper. Clark smiled and pushed Laney's hair back.
"Goodnight, Laney," Clark whispered, and he closed Laney's door on his way out. He unpacked his duffle bag and grabbed took some of his things to the bathroom.
After he took his shower, he looked around for where Laney kept his extra blankets. He found a comforter in a bin in the coat closet and placed it on the mattress. He left the tv on for a little while before taking his glasses off and going to bed.
Clark woke up a few hours around two in the morning to a loud thud. "Fuck," Laney winced, and he opened the door and stumbled to the bathroom in the dark. He came out of the bathroom a minute later, and he stopped in his tracks. "Hiya, Dad," he greeted him casually before going back to bed. Clark turned over on his back and chuckled to himself.
The rest of the night was calm, even for Laney, who couldn't recall the last time he slept so peacefully. He didn't awaken again until eight that morning to the smell of breakfast. He stepped out of his room, and Clark greeted him. "Good morning, how're you feeling?" Clark asked.
"I don't remember going to bed," Laney yawned.
"I carried you to bed," Clark answered as he flipped their pancakes.
"Well, that's embarrassing..." Laney went to the bathroom to brush his teeth, and he came back just as Clark finished making his plate.
"Did you mean what you said about wishing I could stay longer?" Clark asked.
Laney dug into his breakfast and shrugged, "I kind of remember that... Hey, Dad? I really am glad that you came this weekend. I know I wanted to leave things alone, but it means a lot to me that you cared enough to come and spend the weekend with me." Clark took a sip of orange juice.
"It's because I love you. I really do, Laney," Clark answered.
"I love you too, Dad," Laney whispered as he picked over his apples.
Clark reached across the counter and nudged his hand. "Eat your apples," Clark instructed gently. Laney laughed.
"Can I have another sausage?" Laney asked.
"Finish some of your apples, and we'll talk," Clark replied.
Laney ate his pancakes with the apples. "Are you gonna tell Mom about the stuff I said?" he asked, his mouth half full.
"Do you want me to?" Clark asked. "She doesn't tell me about what you two talk about in therapy." Laney furrowed his brows. "You didn't know that?"
"I dunno. I figured Mom told you everything. I don't expect either of you to keep secrets from each other on my behalf... I don't talk about you there. I mostly just talk about my nightmares and the fact that I try to bury my feelings out of fear," Laney admitted, "And you can tell Mom what I said. I'll probably bring it up in therapy anyway."
Clark pushed his glasses up and finished his breakfast. "You have nightmares still?" Clark asked.
"Mhm, it's nothing that I can really put into words. I just know that some of them are caused by sleep apnea... And before you say it, Mom is already trying to force me to get a CPAP machine. It's not that bad—."
"Laney, I just heard you say you don't really need to breathe while you sleep—."
"Oh, Dad, come on. You know that's not what I said," Laney replied as he went back to eating. Clark took a deep breath.
"Sorry, but I'd feel a lot better if I knew you were doing something about that," Clark replied. Laney put his fork down and started eating his apples with his fingers. "Laney, are you telling me that you go to therapy for sleep apnea?"
"Of course not! I go to therapy because I compartmentalize," Laney snapped, "I started feeling like I had to be completely different people at school, at home, at work, just to survive. I can't date, I can't ask for help outside of therapy... I feel like I'm just waiting until the next party so that I can self-destruct... And I called Mom, telling her that I wanted to die on New Year's Eve last year, and she picked me up from the pier." Laney swallowed hard. Clark put his fork down.
"Jonathan... I didn't know—."
"Yeah, well, I'm working through it... It's not as bad as it was before, but I still struggle," Laney whispered, "I thought you knew that much, at least."
"I didn't know any of it. Laney, if you think that I don't think your feelings are important—."
"That's not the problem. It's the fact that I remember how it felt to be able to tell you this stuff, and now I feel like I want to tell you when I don't feel good," Laney coughed into his elbow, "But I feel like I don't deserve it anymore."
"Don't deserve what?" Clark asked.
"I don't deserve to talk to you about things," Laney replied, "And I know Mom tries, but she and I are so much alike that I feel like talking to her is the same as talking to myself."
"Laney, I love talking to you kids. I like knowing what's going on. Even in Conner's life, and let me tell you, sometimes I wish there were things that he would keep to himself," Clark joked, and Laney let out a little laugh. "And I'd pick arguing with you over whatever we've been doing for the past couple of years. I missed being able to go beyond just small talk with you.
I like knowing that you hate the space that's grown between us just as much as I do... And if you want me to do all the work and ask all the questions, I'll do that. Okay?" Laney forced his tears back and nodded, and Clark got up and embraced him just as he did the night before. Laney shut his eyes and let out a sigh as he let his father hold him.
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celinou · 9 months ago
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Thanks @lenorelovesmax for tagging me 🤍
1. How many works do you have on AO3? 2, currently. Well, more like one and a half baked scene that has no context, to be more accurate.
2. What's your total AO3 word count? 194.036 words.
4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos? I have like the one fic, the other thing has 2 kudos. So... - A Walk in Chiaroscuro (354)
5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? Yes, absolutely. It's pretty rare when I don't. I like to tell people that I appreciate their support and comments or to answer questions they might have about the story or the choice I made.
6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? I don't do angsty endings. I'm too old and too jaded by life to appreciate them anymore. I'm at a point in my life where I need to know there's hope and happiness at the end of the line.
7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? I'm guessing there will be some kind of repetition since I've only published Awic... Soooo, it's a Walk in Chiaroscuro! ...but if you want to know about the ones that I keep in my drawer never to see the light of AO3, the happiest ending goes to Let's Write a Love Story (it's a Homestuck fanfic)
8. Do you get hate on fics? No. I'm writing in a mostly dead fandom so far and for kind of a rare pair so, people have been starved of content. They were so nice and sweet to me in the comments.
9. Do you write smut? I wish! I don't have the chops for it but I so wish I could write good smut! Honestly it's something I really want to push myself into exploring. Unfortunately your girl is a bit too vanilla in her taste which makes for poor reading. I don't fear being bad... I fear being boring, you know?
10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've ever written? I've never done that, no. But who knows what future will lead me to write.
11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? No. I don't have enough reach to be the target of theft.
12. Have you ever had a fic translated? Nope. And tbh I don't have the patience to translate it myself in my native language.
13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Could have... but no. There was an attempt at a joined project for Dragon Age but, unfortunately, it didn't work out in the end. I'm not abandoning the idea of writing for Dragon Age but I'll probably go in a very different direction since it would be a solo project.
14. What's your all time favorite ship? I... don't have one... Yeah, I'm not much of a shipper at the core. I mean I did write for Caulscott but I practically ship Max with everybody in LIS so... I was more interested by Nathan's potential as a love interest more than the ship itself. Outside of LIS... I can't think of any ship rn, I'm afraid.
15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will? Tough question. If I abandoned a project I don't consider it a WIP. It's a dropped thing that goes in the reusable idea bin... and if I'm still working on it, I don't go into thinking I won't finish it. So, it's hard to say really. To not leave you with such a vague answer, I'll give you this: the fic I planned to write about the Hidden Object Games series Dark Parable, that never took off and never will (for I have better/much more attractive projects to work on). It's a dropped thing. But now you can see I have weird and obscure taste.
As for original projects: I have a Horror RPG project that probably won't ever see the light of day, called: The Clockmaker. (because I realized I'm shit at pixel art, tragic)
18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic? Hum... No. I don't mind people doing it but I tried it myself in my pirate epic and, let me tell you, I'm not that good a multilingual as to be witty in more than 2 languages. I found what I wrote cringe af when I read back my text in the editing phase and scrapped it all out.
19. First fandom you wrote for? Homestuck. I started writing fics very late in my life. (I wrote original stuff before that)
20. Favourite fic you've ever written? A Walk in Chiaroscuro. Because it's the only fic I went into unafraid to write what I wanted without thinking about who might read it. And to this day it's the truer work I've put out. Not the most personal by any stretch but the one I indulged in the most. And I'm so proud of it. Flaws and all.
I tag @sourrind and @momochizoey if you feel like doing it. And everybody who'd want to as well, consider yourself tagged, friend!
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eemamminy-art · 27 days ago
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1, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 9 for the fic writer asks!
1. Do you prefer writing one-shots or multi-chaptered fics?
At this point, I think I prefer multi-chapter! In oneshots it's like, 2k - 5k words or so, and that's it so you gotta make it count. I found I would be agonizing over word choice and flow and how technically good the writing itself was more than just trying to tell a compelling story. In a multi-chapter fic, it's far too long to worry about every little paragraph or sentence, so I can see the big picture and focus on other things :3 Not to say I don't care about phrasing in multi-chapter too, but I think I'm more likely to seek out repeated themes and motifs than just seeking to make punchy lines. Like for example, in my stardew long fic, I have a repeated mention of movie cliches and tropes when Alex is agonizing over how to express his feelings, to show that he isn't personally all that experienced in relationships and looks to outside sources to model the behavior. And also to tie it off nicely with a particular scene that's related to that same theme (yet to be posted, I don't wanna spoil it! You'll see very soon, like in a few weeks from now)
2. Do you plan each chapter ahead or write as you go?
For oneshots, I write as I go. In my multi-chapter fic, I have an outline of the entire story-- all 68 chapters of it!! My friend who is an excellent writer and I hold in really high regard with this stuff showed me how he does his outlines which is as an excel spreadsheet?? 👀 Totally rocked my world, so I've been able to easily visualize and plan out everything I want to put into my story! And I can also include data like word count or planned posting schedule dates, and I have separate tabs in the spreadsheet to keep track of things like ages and birthdays too!
4. Where do you find inspiration for new ideas?
I get a lot of my ideas when I'm waking up/falling asleep or doing something that doesn't require much thought. Some aspects of drawing don't really take up brain space for me so at times I'll be rendering or something and an idea just hits me out of nowhere! But it's usually when I'm waking up or half asleep still that I get the most of my ideas!
6. Do you have your work beta'd? How important is this to your process?
I don't, mostly because I'm a perfectionist but also because a lot of good stuff happens when I'm editing. Often times I will add literally hundreds of extra words even on a third or fourth pass of editing, and I just feel like it wouldn't work out as nicely if it was a beta reading it over and maybe giving me feedback.
8. Do you prefer the beginning, middle, or end of a story?
Middle! I'm honestly so bad with endings. I have a ton of oneshots sitting half-finished in my google drive that are just like. Total banger ideas that maybe even I worked out a beginning for, but I have NO clue how to wrap it up. I think this is obvious in how I open and close chapters in my long fic too, there's a lot of cold opens and then ending on like, idk, some dialog or something haha
As it is I've been already working on the ending to my long fic, because I know it's gonna take a lot of work to iron it out to be just what I envision it to be, so the finale is on I think the third draft currently and still a long way off from being done. But I'm being prepared so I don't hit a snag in a few months down the line when I get to it!!
9. Do you comment on stories you read?
Always!! I read very infrequently because I have difficulty reading, so whenever I do read something, I always make sure to leave a comment! I like to compliment and encourage others! I try to always leave a nice comment in the tags when reblogging art as well, it just feels good to me :3
Get to know your fic writer! Ask meme
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spurious · 10 months ago
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🍓, 🌻, 🍄, 🍬, ❄️, 🌿, 🐝, and 🧩, please?
fic writer truth or dare asks
🍓 ⇢ how did you get into writing fanfiction? uhhhhhhhhh I was like 13 or something and I found out what fanfiction was and started writing it immediately? thankfully that stuff is lost to time lmao. 🌻 ⇢ tag someone you appreciate but don't talk to on a regular basis SO MANY PEOPLE. i'm shy and also unfriendly lmao 🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings John unironically uses "buddy" as a term of endearment. 🍬 ⇢ post an unpopular opinion about a popular fandom character ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh i'm so bad at coming up with answers for things like this! in part because i think i have cultivated a fandom experience where most of my strongest opinions are generally shared or mutually respected? unpopular in japanese kanjani fandom opinion: yokoyama yuu is a bottom, fight me ❄️ ⇢ what's your dream theme/plot for a fic, and who would write it best? i feel like my dream theme is to be surprised? i want to read something i never would've thought of! but also, the first thing that came to my mind is that i would love to read a take on a full canon timeline mcshep retelling by @alienfuckeronmain, with all the slow burn and angst that would entail 🌿 ⇢ give some advice on writer's block and low creativity sometimes it's gonna happen. try not to beat yourself up about it. it'll probably come back when you least expect it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them @audioletter my wife, the light of my life, the person who makes me believe i can be more and better 🧩 ⇢ what will make you click away from a fanfiction immediately? oooh man this really depends on my mood actually, and also what the fic is offering to me. I will read some pretty dogshit writing if the story itself hits some of my particular kinks because I can just make it better in my head. Big general fic turn-offs are sloppy POVs, hair-based epithets, really rampant spelling/grammar problems?
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ckret2 · 10 months ago
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saw your recent reblog about feedback and, though I’ve been occasionally gushing in tags, you deserve to hear what I tell my friends! In general, your writing style is perfect at capturing the timing and delivery of the show itself. I’ve never read a fic i’ve been able to visualize more clearly than this one. You write each character so well that between chapters it feels like i’m right back where i used to be, waiting for new episodes again. I do think you haven’t *quite* solved your side-character-ification (applejackification?) of Dipper problem yet, but other than that you’re doing an astounding job at balancing all the characters and their interactions with each other and with bill in a way that feels natural (plus with these more recent chapters i’m seeing lots of good dipper stuff so you’re definitely getting there with him too! besides, it is nice to see Mabel get the spotlight after all these years anyway. healing, even.) You know exactly how to control an audience’s emotions, you know when to drag something out and when to shut it down, you know when to cut off a conversation and when bring up the fact it was cut off later. Little foreshadowings like the loose tooth are well-planted and plot beats like lucid dreaming are dropped and picked back up delicately and with precision, like pressing piano keys. i don’t doubt for a second it’s all a part of some grand instrument, though i wouldn’t be surprised if you told me most of it was improvised - another way you’re just like the show was. you’ve done the episodic-and-serialized thing better than at least half of all silver-age cartoons that have attempted to do so! I adore the way you show kindness to all characters in your scenes, from gideon’s characterless mother to the little freak himself. It truly feels as though you pick no favorites, and that’s something you do better than the show did tbh. Not that TBOB needed to hook me in with a marketing campaign, but hypothetically, in a universe where I didn’t own a hand-sewn bill cipher throw-pillow and yet somehow still found this fic, I would definitely be excited for it after reading! you’re gifted, and i hope this does numbers on AO3. I truly cannot stand hazbin hotel, but I may go back and read your other works once this one’s over, just to hear your narrative voice. it’s a voice worth hearing, and may it be forever amplified.
oh WOW thank you so much??? 😭 this is SUCH a sweet comment and it means so much to me that you took the time to write all this!!
APPLEJACKIFICATION... that made me laugh. Dipper will get some serious development before the end of the eclipse plot and he's key in the next plot, so I think that'll help him make some progress. But yeah—he's not gonna be as important as Mabel, but I do want to make sure he has a plot that stands on its own, smaller though it may be.
It's 2/3 planned, 1/3 improvised. 😁 I've got a lead time of about 15 chapters between what I've posted and what I've written, so I can do stuff like write the poppet chapter, write the tooth fairy arc, edit the poppet chapter, realize that as long as I'm giving him a bloody lip maybe I can loosen his tooth, edit the tooth fairy arc, have him mention that that tooth was loose. And many chapters I haven't written or outlined yet I have loosely planned in my head so I know how to aim toward them.
Wanting to show kindness to all the characters and wanting to give as many of them an internal life as possible is so important to me, and I'm so glad that's showing through so far!
And honestly I think "I hate [xyz] but I'll read it if you're writing it" is the highest compliment. 😂 All my hazbin fics were written pre-season 1 when all we had was the pilot, a couple comics, creator comments, and some Helluva to go by; but idk maybe you'd consider that a plus lol. (If you're interested, on ao3 I've also written Transformers, Godzilla, some Pokémon, and a smattering of other things.)
Thanks again for sending such a nice message!
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weirdthoughtsandideas · 4 months ago
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So, I mentioned the other day that there are some oneshots/drabbles that I feel like if I leave them on ao3 I'm just gonna end up deleting them later. Especially regarding "bundle fics", where every chapter is just a tiny little drabble or oneshot with a certain theme. I often have lots of ideas, end up posting like 3 drabbles and then abandoning it, and then like a year later deciding to delete it.
But I decided, hey, maybe someone wants to read them? So I decided to post them here on tumblr. I'm gonna make a tag, "Sara's dcla tumblr fics" so that they can easily be found.
I'm gonna start by posting all the parts from my former bundle I called "If Luna had a little brother" - Basically, I had a dream like 2 years ago that Luna had a little brother and then I wrote some small scenes with that scenario. All of them take place during S2, and I later had ideas for some stuff happening in s3 too. Her brother's name is Alonzo, by the reason being that was his name in my dream.
I'm gonna post them in separate posts, starting with the first one. Very nicely titled:
Ámbar "kidnaps" a child
Luna woke up confused. She had an odd dream. She was at a party at Jam and Roller, when suddenly it all became really distorted… then she was in her room, and there was smoke outside her door…
Right as she sat up and tried gathering her thoughts, she heard some short breaths coming from someone outside of her door. The door handle soon opened by itself, but no one came inside. Or, well, not until she looked down at the floor. 
“Good morning!” she giggled.
The little baby continued to crawl his way up to her bed. 
“Morning, hija!” Monica said, walking into the room. She lifted the baby up and placed him on Luna’s belly. “He’s been up since 5 and hoped his big sister would wake up soon.”
“Is that true, hermanito?” Luna giggled, petting him. “Well, you’re gonna get used to me sleeping in late!”
“He helped me make you some breakfast! Put on your school uniform and come downstairs.”
“I’m sure he made all the food on his own,” Luna joked. 
“Absolutely. He’s an infant chef master!”
Monica and Miguel had been talking for several years about how nice it would be to have another child. Luna had been positive about having a little sibling as well. Due to all the moving around, the plan of adopting another child had not come to a reality. All until a few months ago. 
Monica and Miguel had, out of curiosity, searched around for adoption agencies in Argentina. Suddenly, they got in contact with one and before they knew it, they called them. A little boy, only a few months old, had lost his parents in an accident and needed a home quickly.
They said yes to adopting him immediately. 
Luna loved him since the first time she saw him. She embraced her role as a big sister very quickly.
“What’s his name?” Luna asked.
Her parents shrugged.
“It’s up to us to decide,” Miguel said. “What do you think?”
Luna held him up into the air. “You shall be named… Alonzo!” She then giggled. “Just joking.”
“No, wait, I like that name,” Monica admitted.
“Me too,” Miguel said. “He looks like a little Alonzo.”
Luna bounced him. “What do you say, kid? Do you wanna be named Alonzo?”
The baby shrieked.
“He loves it!” Luna cheered. “All hail lord Alonzo! Woo!”
All of Luna’s friends loved her baby brother. Simón got along with him the best. Since he had several younger siblings and cousins, he was good with handling children. 
Last time he saw Alonzo, he put his beanie on him. Poor Alonzo disappeared under the large hat, causing Luna and Simón to laugh. 
Jim and Yam had met him briefly and just the sight of him made them offer to babysit him at any moment. Nina was a little awkward around him, as she was not used to being around babies. But, she did find him extremely adorable and had slowly petted him when she saw him. Luna had tried to make her hold him, but she said she wasn’t ready for that.
Someone who did not really get Alonzo was Ámbar. Granted, even if they lived in the same house, they rarely met, as he mostly was kept with his parents in the staff’s wing. But, there was one instance where she had more of a… close encounter with him.
It was some days after school started, and Luna was a bit sad after falling out with Matteo. She was holding Alonzo as he drank from his bottle.
Ámbar came into the kitchen. “Lunita! I heard about…” She noticed Amanda, as well as Tino and Cato, walk into the kitchen and make noise. “Wait, maybe we should speak alone. Come with me to the living room.”
“Oh…” Luna said, as she was still holding her brother.
“Bring him with you, he’s barely a person anyway.”
They went to the living room. 
“As I said, I heard about you and Matteo… I wanted to apologize, but I warned you! He’s not good for you!”
“Yeah…” Luna sighed.
“I just need you to know, I’m here for you. And I know how you feel, because I’ve been there myself.”
“Thank you, Ámbar.”
Alonzo started to tug on Luna’s pendant, trying to put it in his mouth.
“No, no,” Luna said, guiding his hand away. 
“Is it weird having a baby brother?” Ámbar asked.
“Not at all! He’s wonderful. Aren’t you?” She blew raspberries on Alonzo, causing him to giggle. 
“Well, I’m sure he is…” Ambar said.
“Do you want to hold him?”
“Me?”
“Yes!”
“Uh… okay…” Luna very quickly handed him over. Ámbar held him, unsure what to do. Alonzo grabbed her shirt and tugged it. “Eeh… what is he doing…?”
“He’s just curious about you!”
“Ok, why is he… what do I… help…”
Luna found her nervousness amusing. 
“Can you take him, I…”
“Of course.” Luna let out a chuckle as she grabbed Alonzo back. 
That was the only real interaction Ámbar had gotten with the Valente baby, but today that would change. 
She was mad at Luna for getting more love from people online than she did. She wanted to ruin things for Luna. 
She walked downstairs in a grumpy mood. At the same time, in the kitchen, Luna was opening the fridge to get a snack. Monica was preparing food, and needed to get something from another room. She quickly walked away. Alonzo was sitting on the kitchen floor, just playing with a toy. But, he soon got curious to explore, and started crawling out in the dining area. Luna did not pay attention, as she was busy fixing her snack. 
Alonzo crawled through the dining room towards the downstairs entrance. This is when Ámbar was standing there.
”What to do about Lunita…” she muttered quietly to herself. She then felt something on her foot. ”Huh?” 
She stared at the baby in front of her. 
”You must have escaped from the kitchen. Let me guess, Luna was watching you.”
Alonzo just stared at her shoes. 
Suddenly, Ámbar formed an evil grin. ”Luna is watching you… she must be looking for you… it would be so sad if she couldn’t find you…”
She picked him up. ”Come on. We’re gonna play hide and seek…”
”Eeh!” Alonzo gurgled.
”Hush… we don’t want anyone to find us.”
She carried him up to her room, where she made sure to close the door. She put him down on her armchair. 
”Now… we just wait…”
She stared at him for a brief moment. He stared back. 
”Ok, just some ground rules in my room. No crying, it’s gonna be too loud. No drooling, that’s gross. And no diaper usage. You need to hold it. Got it?”
Alonzo blinked.
”Good.”
At the same time, Monica came back to the kitchen. 
”Luna, where’s Alonzo?”
”On the floor, isn’t he?”
”No, he’s not on his playmat…” Monica sighed, ”Oh, he loves to crawl away, he’s worse than you, Luna, and he can’t even walk!”
”Well, now we have proof we’re related!”
”No time for jokes now, we need to find him…”
Luna shrugged. ”He can’t have gone that far. Alonzooo!”
No response. Miguel came into the kitchen.
”Miguel, have you seen Alonzo?” Monica asked. 
”No. Did he crawl away?” 
”Yes…”
”Maybe he climbed up the stairs!” Luna suggested. 
”That is possible,” Miguel said, ”He has tried to do that before.”
The three of them went upstairs to check.
Ámbar sat on her bed, smiling mischievously at her brilliant plan. ”Oh, I’m sure Luna is getting yelled at right this moment! They have no idea where the precious little baby is…”
Alonzo smiled at her as he let out a happy coo. 
”No, they can’t find you!” Ámbar cooed. She then frowned at herself. Why was she baby talking to the baby?
Alonzo giggled.
Ámbar took a deep breath, trying not to be consumed by the cuteness.
”Alonzo!” Luna called. 
They met Amanda in the upstairs hallway. 
”Amanda, have you seen our son?” Monica asked. 
”No… why, has he disappeared?”
”You could say that… he was just in the kitchen.”
”Oh no, I think I left the supplies closet open… I hope he’s not in there, there’s cleaning supplies in there!”
They all hurried downstairs to look in the supplies closet next to the kitchen.
Alonzo put his hands on the armchair and slowly lowered his mouth to lick it.
”No!” Ámbar exclaimed. ”No drooling, and no licking my chair!”
She picked up the baby. 
”I have a feeling they are super worried right now… they probably think you’ve been kidnapped. Which… you have. I’ve kidnapped you!” 
Alonzo laughed, which made Ámbar just want to baby talk with him more.
”Yes, I’ve kidnapped you! Yes, I have! Who’s a kidnapped little baby? You are! Yeaaah…” 
Suddenly, she stopped her tracks when she realized someone had opened her door.
”Ámbar…” Sharon said, ”Why is there a baby in your room?”
Ámbar stared at her. ”Uh…”
”Is that… the Valentes’ infant?”
Ámbar didn’t answer that.
”What is he doing in your room, Ámbar? Answer me!”
”He… came here! Yeah! They have no control over him, madrina! He just arrived in my room!”
Sharon crossed her arms. ”And you expect me to believe he climbed all of these stairs?”
”Yes?”
”I just got to know from Rey that the Valentes are looking for their infant. He was in the kitchen and mysteriously vanished.”
”So odd!” Ámbar exclaimed. ”They better keep a better eye on him.”
Sharon sighed. ”Give me the child, Ámbar.”
”No.”
”What do you mean no? He’s not gonna stay in your room. I’m already disturbed from opening the door and seeing you with him.”
”But…”
”No buts. Give me the child, Ámbar!”
Ámbar scoffed and handed him over. 
”I’m gonna return him to his parents. We will talk about this when I come back.”
She went out in the corridor, where she met Rey.
”You found the baby!” he exclaimed.
”Yes, he was in Ámbar’s room.”
”Ámbar’s room?”
”She took him… I need to talk to her. Take him to his parents, will you?” She handed the baby over. Rey did not seem too thrilled about that.
”… absolutely, miss Benson.” 
Sharon nodded and walked back to Ámbar’s room. 
Rey looked at the infant. ”You have no idea what kind of house you have moved into. You need to be careful.”
Alonzo stared at him, and then rather loudly used his diaper. 
”Okay…” Rey cringed. ”The sooner you get to your parents, the better.”
”Alonzo!” Luna called into empty space.
”Looking for this?” Rey walked into the kitchen, holding up the little boy.
”Alonzo!” Luna ran up and grabbed him. ”Mom, dad!”
Her parents came rushing over, and started kissing and hugging their baby. 
”Oh, where was he?” Monica asked. 
”Your son got somewhere he shouldn’t be. I suggest you have the doors closed when he’s in the kitchen.”
”Absolutely,” Miguel said. ”Thank you, Rey.”
”Just be more careful next time. Also, I think he needs to be cleaned up… just thinking…”
Luna sniffed on Alonzo. ”Yep, you need some changing, hermanito!”
”I’m gonna give him a bath, who knows where he has been?” Monica said. 
None of them would ever find out about Ámbar ”kidnapping” him. Although, after this day, they noticed Ámbar sort of smiling around him more. 
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piningbuddies · 2 years ago
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temptation tuesday/wip wednesday
i've been tagged in stuff the past couple of days by @usercowboy @swiftiebuckleys @buddiefication @madneysjee @gayhoediaz @wh0re-behavi0r so i decided i'm combining the two and giving you snippets from TWO (2!!) different fics wow!!
from 5+1 eddie dating fic:
Vanessa's...pretty.
She's tall and slender and she has a contagious laugh, and in another life Eddie thinks that...maybe. Probably. They'd have had a couple more drinks together, both letting go of their inhibitions. She'd probably have found some excuse to touch him, a playful swat, and Eddie would've turned up the smoulder. He'd have waited for her uber with her at the end of the night, wrapping his jacket around her. Then he would've locked eyes with her, a question speaking a thousand words as he leaned in, their noses brushing, but—
But Vanessa's not over her ex, she says. Her smile is pretty too, as apologetic as it is as she tells him you're a really nice guy, Eddie. Eddie thinks he should feel disappointed— hurt, maybe. At the fact he got dressed up so nice for someone to not even give him the time of day. But he doesn't. He just feels relieved. His shoulders drop as he downs the rest of his drink, and all he can think of is home and bed and Christopher's science project and Buck's lasagne and—
Eddie doesn't know what to do with all of that.
from 6x18 spec:
Opening his eyes is a feat in and of itself, feeling like there's weights on both of them. He blinks a couple of times, disoriented. He can't quite put his finger on why, yet, but everything just screams wrong. He tries to move past the pounding in his head to figure out what happened as he slowly sits up, coughing and spluttering as he looks around. They were on their way to the hospital, Chim was working on the patient—
Eddie's blood turns to ice instantly. Chimney.
"Chim!" Eddie shouts, a hoarse thing that's swallowed by a cough. He looks around frantically, the lack of light in the back of the ambulance serving to aid the nasty concussion he probably has brewing. A pained groan cuts through the air, making Eddie stop in his tracks. "Chim?"
"'m here." a quiet voice mumbles. "Can't get up though."
"Okay, alright, stay where you are." Eddie says, climbing over the medical equipment strewn on the floor. "Are you hurt?"
Silence fills the ambulance for a few seconds, an uneasy feeling settling in Eddie's gut. "Chim?"
"Eddie, I— hah, I'm bleeding."
"How bad?" Eddie demands, throwing miscellaneous medical equipment over his shoulder, nausea filling his gut as he sees a small puddle of red spreading across the side of the ambulance, a sick imitation of a work of art.
"I'd say pretty bad."
i'm not sure who's done it yet uhhhh @capseycartwright @trippedandfell @henswilsons @clusterbuck @burnthatbridge step up to the mic pls xxx
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steddieas-shegoes · 2 years ago
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Call Me Sunshine, Send Me To Space
Everyone has really loved this one on tumblr and on AO3. The tumblr app is a fucking nightmare (affectionate) and resets itself as if it has short term memory loss and people have mentioned that halfway through reading something, they lose it, and have to try to find it again. I know it’s happened to me plenty, so I wanted to also post the AO3 chapter by chapter links here so you don’t have to worry about losing it! 
Chapter 1: nothing in life is permanent, but tattoos and you and me Chapter 2: crashing to earth, your hands hold me down Chapter 3: can't be alone for long, you're the company i need Chapter 4: touch me just enough, send me closer to the sun Chapter 5: something’s different here and now, come and part the clouds Chapter 6: this flying feeling, it's natural babe Chapter 7: he drops, we fall Chapter 8: keep your fingers there, inside, where they belong Chapter 9: i love you, do you know how much Chapter 10: sweetheart, sweet thing, my love Chapter 11: you deserve to feel beautiful, say it with me Chapter 12: a lifetime of breakfasts with you Chapter 13: testing the binds of these hands you've tied up, cutting the rope that holds us Chapter 14: my love is not a loan, you can feel it in your bones Chapter 15: easy to love, even when it's hard Chapter 16: no cloud can cover my shine Epilogue Bonus Buckingham Chapter        
I plan on keeping my tag list open on here until I reach the second to last chapter (which won’t be for a while so don’t hesitate to ask to be tagged!), but as a backup I do recommend subscribing on AO3 if you’re invested. Sometimes I post from my phone (shocking and risky I know) and the tags don’t always work because as I said above the app is a fucking nightmare, and also I am forgetful. 
Everyone has been so fucking nice it blows my mind. I have no clue what I’m doing, just here to have a good time, but you guys have been so supportive and I cannot tell you how much it makes my day to see your likes, reblogs (with the most insane tags please continue to do that omg), and replies. And not just with this, but with ANYTHING I post. I haven’t had something that’s for me in a really REALLY long time, and this has been something that gives me a lot of happiness. I’ve never been a confident bitch, and I’m still not, but I’m working on it and letting myself enjoy being a part of the fandom more actively than just reading whatever everyone else posts. 
This also feels like a good post to say that if you feel I miss any tags on AO3 as this goes on, please let me know! I never want anyone to get surprised by something. I update the tags as necessary for every chapter, but I’m human and may miss something or may consider something a tag that’s already there that may be a new one to others. This goes for ANY of the stuff I post on there, but especially the chaptered fics like this one. 
SENDING ALL MY LOVE ALONG THE WIRE BABES ❤️❤️❤️
-Mickala
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