#man i hope they make up eventually they both need friends badly

[hydrachea]

Don't know if you know this, but way back in 1.1 there was this web event with both Childe and Zhongli where you essentially hang out with them in Liyue harbor. The event dialogue is up on the wiki if you wanna check it out. I just think it's neat

I'd heard of it but never took the time to read the story, I see I'd been missing out. That was such a wholesome little event, it had so much heart! I hope something else like it comes back eventually, I really like this sort of stuff.

[seungfl0wer]

I need some angst pleeez I love ur writing and would love to see more angst pleez break my heart

So I wanna request something like them calling you clingy or just bothersum? Take ur time tysvm <33

~Sunny ☀️

*Felix Calling You Clingy*

Hello there dear, so I started this and realized I’m probably just gonna have to make this into a small series. So you’ll be getting them all just spread out I hope that’s ok! Also thank you so much for the kind words i greatly appreciate it so much. I hope you like this. I started with Felix first for some reason his just kinda came out so here the first out of 8🩵

Includes: Texts messages, mentions of depression, arguing (of course has a happy ending they all may not though)

Small edit to put one of the messages is a small messed up I forgot to delete a line and I really don’t wanna go back through all of it and redo it😅 I’m sorry

Others here:

Bangchan , Minho, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han, Felix, Seungmin, Jeongin

-🩵

Lix seemed to be avoiding you lately. You knew he was always pretty busy due to him being an idol however even when he had time off he just never wanted to spend time anymore. It’s been a good 3 weeks with no seeing him. With how he’s been acting and how life’s just been in general it made you depressed. You just kinda felt like you were doing everything wrong and weren’t good enough for him anymore.

It was 4AM, You were tossing and turning just feeling all the weight of everything on you. Your mind was just thinking of everything and anything. You wanted so badly just to message Lix, you really needed him right now. You kept going back and forth on whether you should or not, not wanting to bother him so late with your cry babiness. Before you knew it though you were already typing to him. You knew he was awake by the little green mark that showed he was playing a game you both use to play together. So he was up and online.

You couldn’t respond anymore. Your heart was breaking, you started bawling. All you could do is reply with a “k” which he hated. Which you also hated and only used when you were upset. You grabbed your pillows and all the blankets you could find and made a nest on your bed. Curling up into a ball. The blankets soft against your skin as you buried your face into them. They were the only comfort you could feel right now. You eventually ended up crying yourself to sleep.

How could the man you love say such things to you? How could he just spit so much hateful venom at you. Why not just dump you, just get it over with if he was so unhappy.

The next morning you had woken up to more texts:

Your chest tightened you reread the messages about a million times. Your mind started to spiral a bit. You wanted to cry wanted to yell wanted to beg him but you didn’t. With all the emotions and all the stress lately you went almost numb. The next couple days went by and you started to try and do things to help yourself. You went out with some friends, kept yourself busy with you hobbies and even met some new people online to play games with. One of the best things you decided though was you erased all of Felix’s messages. You couldn’t sit and reread all the stuff that was said. You couldn’t keep making yourself feel the hurt.

You knew lix well, you guys have been dating for almost 2 years now. Did he go about everything in a horrible way? Of fucking course. Are you just gonna forgive him for what he said easily? No, fuck no. However, you knew lix well enough to know what he said is probably eating him alive. Because he does love you and you know that. But he’s a human and sometimes we are just prone to being really fucking stupid sometimes.

After about a week and a half of radio silence on both ends. He messaged you.

After that you two texted a little here and there. He even FaceTimed you a few times just to show you the scenery. When he eventually came home you two sat down at your house to talk.

Felix kept apologizing, both of you were crying by the end of the conversation. Felix told you it wasn’t about you being “clingy” per-say he said he loved being around you but he wanted to make a day when he was off to just do something by himself. Even if it was just a few hours. He said how he felt like he just never gets alone time. How it’s either go go go with schedule, doing stuff with the members, coming to your place. He feels so stretched thin and that’s why he blew up.

He know he did wrong by doing so but you get it. Man could be taking a shit and someone would be trying to talk to him about his job and something. He doesn’t ever get time for himself. You both agreed that you’ll give him space. And the days he’s doing his own thing you won’t text him until he texts you.

He also wanted to assure you he doesn’t think you’re clingy, he loves how you are and wouldn’t change you for anything. He said what he said out of sleepless rage. But he knows he fucked up.

You both needed that night in a pillow fort he built for you, eating snacks, talking about other things and just cuddled up together. You missed him. You missed him so fucking much. Missed the sweet smell of his cologne, his beautiful bright smile decorated with little Hershey kiss freckles, and the most warm comforting laugh in the world. You laid in his arms through the night, it filled with such deep conversations, crying, laughing and more crying but out of happiness this time. You thought to yourself “we are gonna be ok, everyone has arguments but our bond is strong.”

💙 if you’d like to read more of my stuff you can find it Here: Master List . Thank you for reading and if requests are open or you just wanna talk feel free to send me something🩵

[buckrecs]

Do you have any "exes to lovers" Bucky fanfic recs for me? 🥹

Exes to Lovers

masterlist | req masterlist

I would never leave my bby boi . .. …🧎🏻‍♂️but these fics were so good

ONESHOT

even more by @real-jane

The love of Bucky's life left months ago. After months of agonizing over what it meant to be apart, they wonder if it's possible to find their way together again.

Understudy by @wkemeup

Bucky knew after he'd ended things, you'd eventually move on. But when he's confronted with the reality of you with another man, he's certain it will tear him apart

goodbye by @lovelybarnes

“enemies to lovers with bucky”

Promises, promises by @babyboibucky

You believed that promises are meant to be broken but Bucky always proved you wrong. Until one day, he proved you right.

Heartbeat by @delusionalwriterr

“Call one of your exes and ask them why it didn’t work out.”

jealousy and james buchanan barnes by @bucky-bucket-barnes

You and Bucky had had an ugly breakup months ago. He mistakenly thought he had moved past his feelings for you, until he saw you hanging out with another guy at one of Tony’s parties. He appears to be having some difficulty containing his jealousy, to say the least.

and then there were none by @bucky-bucket-barnes

It had been two months since Bucky and you broke off things. In a moment of heartache and weakness, he couldn’t help but call you just to hear your voice again. You spend the night trying to patch up what happened between you two.

After All This Time by @bucky-bucky-bucky-bucky

impending danger puts you and your ex, Bucky, in close quarters.

Yours by @jadedvibes

You broke up with Bucky right before college to pursue your career goals across the country. You didn’t think the first time you’d see him again years later would be in your office after he was arrested for a crime you know he didn’t commit.

In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning by @hopelessromantic423

After breaking up with Bucky, you miss him greatly but you don’t feel it’s your place to contact him. One sleepless night, Bucky shows up at your doorstep and you two reconcile.

morning after by @alisonsfics

accidentally running into one your roommate’s flings the next morning was sufficiently awkward. what makes it worse is when one of her flings is your ex-boyfriend.

was your favorite by @quietmyfearswith

in which bucky barnes still lives with his ex-girlfriend following their break up.

Understudy by @wkemeup

Bucky knew after he’d ended things, you’d eventually move on. But when he’s confronted with the reality of you with another man, he’s certain it will tear him apart

Incomplete by @ro-is-struggling

When your relationship started to have problems you and Bucky agreed that the best thing to do would be to break up. At the time it had sounded like the only option you had left. But now, several months later, Bucky was beginning to wonder if he had done the right thing because the pain in his heart and the emptiness in his chest only seemed to grow with each passing day.

Trying Not To Love You by @waiting4inspiration

Bucky thinks that trying to forget his love for you after your break up But he realizes that the more he tries to not love you, he finds himself loving you more

stay as long as you want by @buckysblanket

I Hope You’re Okay by @breadqueen95

Bucky is filled with doubt and confusion after the events of Endgame. He breaks up with Y/n, reacting badly to his instinct to isolate himself. She’s more than a little confused; they’d fallen in love in Wakanda. What had changed? Months later, Sam is the only connection they still have. Set during the events of TFATWS, can Sam get his idiot friends to finally get over themselves and admit how much they still need each other?

SERIES

Looking For A Heartbeat by @justreadingfics

You and Bucky used to be in a relationship. Feelings were hurt, you left. Now,  it’s been two years and you’re back. You both will handle the reunion well, won’t you? 

His Wedding by @jurassicbarnes

Bucky and you are exes. He moved on but you couldn’t. Since you both are still friends, he asks you for a favor – a ridiculous one. You reluctantly agree, not thinking of the future consequences you’ll have to face. You just hope everything will be fine. But it doesn’t always work out, does it?

.

d

.

z

.

.

Bucky and you are exes. He moved on but you couldn’t. Since you both are still friends, he asks you for a favor – a ridiculous one. You reluctantly agree, not thinking of the future consequences you’ll have to face. You just hope everything will be fine. But it doesn’t always work out, does it?

[matchesarelit]

Imagine If You Will… (Trinkets, Spencer Agnew x gn!Reader)

Being in love with one Spencer Agnew was tortuous for all the reasons it was undeniable, he was kind and thoughtful to a fault. So how do you bury feelings like these? Badly and in a way more painful than you realize.

Smosh Masterlist

Warnings: Angst, Fluff, Happy ending, primary school insults, heartache, Unrequited requited feelings.

Wc: ~2.8k

Permitting your legs to give out you flopped down onto the tiny couch, dramatically shielding your eyes from the harsh fluorescent lights. You released an exaggerated sigh to announce your entrance and two feet away, Spencer eagerly watched your performance, shaking his head at your regular antics a giddy smile danced across his lips accompanied by a giggled greeting.

Often growing tired of the plain nature of your own workspace, you often ventured to the gamer zone, as you called it, whenever you found yourself in need of a break. The variety of figures and art littered around the makeshift room was comforting, this was in part due to the presence of the man just a few steps away and his interests. Many hours worth of breaks were spent listening to explanations of his collections, his ramblings were comforting and the spark present in his eyes while Spencer spoke put a warmth in your chest. Looking at the man beside you as you did now, however, was something you had tried to avoid every time, and every time, you failed within seconds.

Peeking tentatively through a small gap, you studied every minute detail of his presence, hoping, begging your mind to commit it to memory. Dark curls sprawling in every which way caught the light like a halo. Inked sketches stretching out from beneath his sleeves coated him in his personality. Gleaming gemstones are trapped behind his wire frames yet still sparkle like stars in the countryside.

Although a supremely comfortable couch, for an office space at least, your favorite position to sit in his presence was nestled into his side at his desk. That placement however was not as comfortable as it seemed as it meant you were sitting on an old desk chair made of plastic that dug into every ounce of flesh it touched. Spencer's warmth was worth it nonetheless, the trance he put you in allowed your mind to drift; more often than not to a scene of the two of you curled up together lips moving in sync as your hands tussled through his hair. You'd fallen for him hard and fast over your first year at smosh, now six years later you still needed to wrestle your wandering mind away from such thoughts almost every time the two of you were alone. Over the years you had caught yourself fantasizing of spending your life with Spencer in all sorts of ways, all of which only managed to twist the knife in your gut, your own mind reminding you of the life you could never have.

You hadn't dwelled on these feelings for the whole time you'd worked together, Selena and Rock were a godsend as they pushed you into blind dates and nights out in an attempt to give you a reprieve. To their credit you'd been in a couple of relationships, one lasted just months but the other continued for a year and a half before he called it off in a cacophony of insecurity and accusations. Although Spencer and you had no history of romance, your status as best friends and hard-to-hide admiration for the man had wrought a bout of concerns from both of them and while they weren't entirely wrong the accusations had wrought an unshakable cloud that eventually tore both relationships apart.

In the aftermath of your breakups both Rock and Selena had held you as you cried, terrified you would have to choose between finding love and having Spencer in your life. As weeks turned into months, they grew more astute in their advice, urging you to end the suffering of not knowing, "If you told him how you feel you could make the decision, I know the thought that it might come to losing him is painful, but you can't continue this way. It's paralyzing you and hurting you in the long run."

It was a conversation the three of you had had time and time again throughout the years, it often left all of you in tears; you were terrified of losing him, and they were heartbroken witnessing your pain over and over.

Craning your neck from the arm of the couch you admired the back of his head; he'd recently let his hair grow out and your attention was continually grabbed by the way his curls bounced at his smallest of movements. At this moment however, a small blurry pink blob obstructed your view, shifting your attention to the small figure on the side table you noted a small piglet sitting atop a toilet while reading a newspaper.

An absurd snort left your nose as you brought it up closer to inspect it, the sound pulling Spencer's attention to you and the focus of your giggles. What was strange about the little pig was that he had been placed inches from where you lay your head in a place where no one who worked in the department could see from their desks, the toy was also angled to face you. Soon enough, as you moved to return the figure to its place Spencer spoke up, "I knew you'd think Chaddius was hilarious. That's his name by the way; Chaddius."

"I like it, it's very dignified and it suits him well."

"I-uh, I got him in a gatcha a few months back and found him again over the weekend and thought you would get a kick out of it, so I thought I'd put it there for you."

"Y-you put him here, for me? Spencer I-" mouth agape you looked back and forth between the small figure and the man above you.

"Well, you're in here all the time, and you said you struggle to have Knick knacks on your desk as you either get distracted or they get in your way so I thought I could brighten up the little breaks you spend in here." The awkwardness of his rambling passed you by as you sat dazed by the sentiment. You wasted no time in thanking him but finding it difficult to stop yourself you continued. "I love him. I do, but you should know I come here because it makes me so happy to hang out with you, being here is plenty bright for me, so you don't need to worry about me, okay?" he turned back to his computer a short "ok" leaving his lips before being followed by a whisper too quiet for you to hear.

The rest of your time there was spent in an uncommon silence before you left with a wave. Stopping by the bathroom on the way back to your department, you glared at yourself in the mirror before murmuring mockingly, "PlEnTy BrIgHt FoR mE... dOnT wOrRy AbOuT mE." Christ why couldn't you just leave it at thank you, he was being so kind and you felt the need to stop him. You knew his kindness came from friendship and your mind was already twisting it into something more and that felt wrong.

Are you really his friend? You clearly have ulterior motives that's for sure, but being completely honest if you saw him marry another girl, sure your heart would break but every other part of you would be ecstatic at his happiness. Does that make it better? or just more pathetic?

Jeez, this line of thinking was only ever going to hurt. Putting on your most aggressive metal music selection on your headphones, you sat at your desk and started to work, trying absolutely anything to stop your mind from returning to him for the rest of the day.

At the end of your workday, you moved to leave, Gluing your eyes to your phone screen you kept your head down as you speed walked past the game desks and out of the building.

Over the weekend, despite your inner conflict, you had settled on spending your breaks at your desk, perusing Instagram and Reddit threads. That only lasted about 5 minutes.

A Slack message lit up the corner of your monitor; "You okay?". This was unexpected, you always thought you were a nuisance, up till your last visit at least, that you were more of a bother than he let on, you never expected him to notice your absence let alone worry enough to ask you about it. Typing out a quick excuse a cringe of guilt twitching your face and closing your eyes as you hit send; "Yeah I'm okay, just chatting with Tommy and Rock, probably won't make it over today." You even hazarded a glace in the two men's direction where you had seen them earlier talking by the window. Feeling a slight discomfort at the lie you went to join them, hoping the conversation was one you didn't have to put a lot of thought into.

The rest of your days were spent in solitude, finding yourself dissatisfied with the company of anyone but Spencer you quietly slouched deeper and deeper into your chair as the hours passed you by.

Until the day of the third hide and seek.

At this point it had been over two months since you stopped visiting the scruffy gamer in his zone. You'd felt withdrawals for a while and had caught yourself walking almost all the way there more than a few times. Movement on the other side of the office tore your attention from Kiana as she announced filming was about to start, little above a blur as he scurried from his desk. Your eyes however lingered on the space. More specifically on the end table by the couch. The top of the dilapidated wood piece was consumed by dozens of figures. Some alongside Chaddius, animals atop a latrine. Some birds perched in various precarious yoga poses. All of varying sizes and colours yet all sharing one. notable. trait. Every single character was turned to face the couch. Your couch.

There were over 50 little dudes.

Well beyond fifty work days since you kept yourself at your desk.

More than five-zero days that that curly-haired gremlin king must have gently placed a new figure there.

Just.

For.

You.

To leave them lonely and purposely collecting dust. Just for you to leave him hangin. To leave him clearly missing your presence. But wait. I hear you say,Surely if he was missing you this much he would have reached ou-. He did though Didn't he? You were the one who left. You were the one who lied. You were the one who avoided him like the plague.

A hand jostling your shoulder broke your spiraling thoughts Tommy was eyeing you suspiciously from your side not stopping as he passed you. "Come on, there's thirty seconds." calling back as he strolled backwards towards the kitchen he continued. "And you're right by the way; what you were thinking. Silly plan my guy."

Leaning forward into a hurried scamper you rushed to find somewhere to hide, your clever spot and disguise long forgotten and much too far away. A hand shot out from the nearby cupboard pulling you to stumble inside. Following the hand, and connected arm up you met Spencer's pouting gaze. Mind still a haze the yelled countdown drowned out by the thumping of blood through your ears, you turned on the spot to leave the small space.

You never took a step, hand on the knob, feet refusing to budge. Casting a glance down you noted the boots that covered your own, the toes of his shoes pinned our own to the floor. The sight would be comical if he didn't look as defeated as he did, a new glistening shine visible in his eyes despite the darkness.

"Please. Don't."

"Spencer I-"

"You're avoiding me. Why?" his voice was harsh but that dissappeared quickly as he shuddered, dragging a forceful hand down his face, his features warped and spread the wetness that had quickly begun to pour down his cheeks. "You never come by on your breaks. You barely look at me in meetings and all but flee when I try to talk to you. Please just tell me what I did. I'll understand. I just need to know. please. I miss you."

"Spencer I- I- haven-"

"Yes, you have been. At first I understood you might be busy but week after week you never said a word to me. I noticed, Everyone noticed."

"He's right we all noticed"

Your jaw hung open as your eyes scanned the darkness, "Who-"

"God, now tell the truth! or feel my fur-" The voice fell into silence as voices were heard outside.

Taking a moment in the silence as the man in front of you was, for the moment, distracted by the game, you collected your thoughts before beginning in a whisper; "You're right, but you know that. I just couldn't let myself do it anymore. Every moment around you was torture, every kind act was a punch in the chest. It was getting worse and worse and I couldn't keep letting it happen. I hated it all."

Allowing yourself a breath you lifted your eyes from your shoes, and the sliver of light illuminating your shoes from under the door, to his eyes. A hurried gasp darted into your chest at the tears streaming down his skin, gathering to drench the neckline of his tee, you stuttered incoherently, frantic to calm his distress.

"That's not what they meant. Give them a moment." The voice, seemingly coming from above, soothed Spencer in a hushed coo before morphing into harshly spat mutterings directed at yourself. "Jesus Christ, tell him plainly you maniac."

"I'm in love with you." If your voice before was a whisper, this was the fluttering of butterfly wings in a thunderstorm, yet your tone remained even. "I've loved you for years now, I knew it was useless; you are so perfect you have this glow of joy and beauty that never leaves and I could never compare. I tried to stop loving you this way, I wanted to be the friend you thought I was. But every kindness was twisted into something more and my mind ran rampant. I felt-I feel disgusted by myself, You have always been nothing but an amazing friend and instead of treasuring what we had I couldn't help but dream of more."

"There we go"

"Yo-" He was interrupted by a sudden light that blinded the pair of you. His grip on you tightened at the shock, only softening as the new voice sounded through the space and your eyes began to adjust.

"Gotcha! Final ten and nine you guys" Arasha, the seeker, had found you yet as you resigned to leave the space at your loss you found the man inches away from you still, a shocked expression stained his cheeks until it didn't. Suddenly he was animatedly talking to the cast member about being upset at being found so fast and vowing that next time he'd win.

Prying your feet out from under his own you turned on your heel all but running from the space feeling more crowded than you ever thought possible. The hand that had encircled your arm fell to his side as you left him there, but he was not far behind as he jogged to catch up with you.

You burst through the door of the bathroom, stumbling to brace yourself against the sink chest heaving with harsh sobs as your cheeks were flush with tears. Hatred saturated your expression as you glared into the mirror, You cursed yourself for all that had happened over the last twenty minutes. Over the last two months. And over the last seven years.

Then the door flew open. Then there he was looking into your eyes. And How on earth could you blame yourself, not only did he look amazing even in the worst of situations, but here he was checking on you despite your-

No,

Stop that,

Stop thinking.

Listen to him his lips are moving,

He's talking,

dumbass.

"I can't believe we could have worked this out so much sooner. Seriously you think way too highly of me, There is no world where I buy 62 Gatcha toys and give them all unique names just for a friend, Not that you aren't a friend. I Just- Funnily enough, I felt the same way, thought I was tainting our friendship with my pining, But I also think it just makes what we have deeper, we know each other so well and care so much."

"Wait, what ar-"

"JESUS FUCK!" The voice from moments before was joined in a sort of chorus from the other side of the door.

the door opened crashing against the wall, a large group, presumably those already found, led by Jeremy, stood with a mixture of exasperated and laughing composures studying the pair of you over the threshold.

Jeremy alone continued; "Y/N You love Spencer in a-" The group behind him turned their backs arms stretching around themselves as they erupted in kissy noises. Jeremy mimicked those same noises as he continued, "In a mwehmwemme way and Spencer you love Y/N, also in a mewmwemwe way. Now kiss!" He stepped back and let the door swing shut with a slam, leaving the two of you more or less alone.

"Look, I'm sure they're just a bit carried awa-"

Your rationalization was interrupted by his lips against yours, the tension had boiled into an overflowing need. His silken lips left your own almost immediately as he wound his arms around your shoulders holding you tight into his chest. Wrapping your own around his chest your hands fisted his shirt as his did yours. All space between you was gone as you pulled each other impossibly closer, sitting in the silence you held back tears unable to shake the lingering stress and fear. Head buried in the nape of his neck you failed to remain silent for long, yearning to hear the words come from him, desperate for confirmation to quiet your racing mind, "Does this mea-"

"I love you, with everything I have, please never doubt that."

[a-reader-and-a-writer]

I love no words! Love the twist! Would you mind writing a follow up where the reader meets the daggers, and Jake has to explain how he has a soulmate without having a soulmate tattoo? Takes rooster and fanboy little extra time to understand.

Thank you so much anon!!! No Words is absolutely one of my favorite things I have ever written and it brings me such joy anytime someone new discovers it! 🥰💞

I'm not sure if you just read the fic or the Extended Version but I did go into a bit of what happens afterwards with Jake and Reader in a series of reblogs.

I'm sort of on a writing hiatus at the moment, but I did come up with some HCs for your request because I do really like it and it inspired me. I hope you like them:

Jake still can't fully believe he has found his soulmate after so many years without hope so it takes him some time before he's ready to introduce you to the Daggers (you understand and allow him to take as much time as he needs). However, they all notice something has changed and that Jake will disappear more and more often, to the point he is almost never at The Hard Deck anymore. But whatever is going on, he seems happy so they don't push it.

When Jake finally feels ready to introduce you, he makes a big deal about it. Penny was the only one at the bar the night you two met who knew Jake, so she's been in on the secret the whole time and helps him plan a special beach barbeque for the big announcement.

Jake told you to get there a little later so he could share the news with everyone first. When he tells everyone he finally found his soulmate, he is met with mixed reactions: Payback, Fanboy, and Phoenix seem completely supportive and happy for him, Coyote congratulates him but Jake can tell he is a little unsure about things (Coyote has known Jake the longest and knows how much this not having a soulmate thing has hurt Jake in the past so he's happy but also doesn't want to see his friend get crushed if he is wrong), but Rooster and Bob just share an uneasy look and hang back. When Jake confronts them, Bob tries to brush it off and says he's happy for him, but Rooster doesn't pull any punches. He knows that Jake has been getting more depressed and hopeless about his lack of soulmate tattoo lately and he thinks Jake is just fooling himself because he wants it so badly. Rooster tells Jake he needs to face the fact that he doesn't have a tattoo because he doesn't have a soulmate and this charade is just going to destroy him once he comes to his senses.

Before Jake can respond, you arrive and immediately link arms with Jake as you plant a big kiss on his mouth. You point to Bob and Rooster questioningly, and Jake has the biggest shit-eating grin as he drapes his arm over your shoulder and introduces them. He then tells them your name, and you pull out a marker and scribble something onto Jake's arm. When you hold it out to show them--flashing them your own soulmate tattoo in the process (a familiar phrase they've heard Jake use before) --and they read "I'm Jake's soulmate". You sign something to Jake and as he struggles to figure it out (but gets there eventually due to the online classes he's been taking), all the pieces click and Rooster and Bob sheepishly shake your hand. Rooster then pulls Jake aside and apologizes for what he said, but Jake just shrugs it off because he knows Rooster was just trying to have his back. Rooster is amazed by that reaction, but as Jake turns back to you, Rooster can see how Jake has already become a better man in the short time he has known you.

The rest of the barbeque is a lot of fun and you get along great with everyone (Phoenix even reveals to you that she can sign but you both decide to keep that from Jake for now which Phoenix will use against him later). Jake rarely leaves your side and when he does, he can't take his eyes off of you. All the Daggers recognize that indescribable pull between two people and any last lingering doubts that the two of you aren't soulmates fade away.

[lissa612]

It’s sorta crazy how a stupid TV show has been able to trigger my anxiety so bad, but it makes sense when I consider all I had been using my hyper fixation on it to distract myself from. Alas, my anxiety has brought back my insomnia which means I wake up sometime between 1am and 2:30am every morning and just MIGHT start feeling ready to fall asleep against around 5…When my alarm goes off to get ready for work.

But it leaves me a lot of time for random pondering. And this morning got me thinking of one thing that either pisses me off or gives me hope (I guess I’ll know eventually…)

They didn’t need a character like Tommy for Buck’s bi (? Maybe - That actually hasn’t truly been confirmed in canon 🙄) awakening.

This is going to sound a lot like some of the anti-Tommy talking points, but please stay with me.

It really COULD have been any good looking, cool guy who did it. Imagine Johnny, a 40yo adrenaline junkie sport type that Buck and Eddie meet during a big emergency the way they met Ali. Now unlike Ali, Johnny keeps it together during the emergency and like Ali helps them save himself and others. Could even make him a military man. Now they could leave this emergency all having one another’s numbers and something along the lines of 7x04 still could have happened.

Buck calls Johnny to see his fun exciting job/hobby, but Johnny is pulled away when Eddie shows up for them to go do something they’d already planned. Buck isn’t complaining to Maddie about Eddie spending all this time with the new guy, but it’s not the cool pilot she already knows about but the cool free climber or whatever they met on a call. The same conclusions are still met with the conversation. Maybe the basketball game isn’t strictly first responders…Chim doesn’t have quite the same idea what’s going on since he really doesn’t know this guy, but he gets that Buck only asked him to the game because Eddie was bringing his new friend. Things still go badly for Eddie’s ankle and Johnny comes to the loft to apologize. There’s no talk about the 118 family, of course, but perhaps some other vulnerability about friendships and a kiss. There’s a date that still goes to hell. There’s coming out to Maddie and Eddie. There’s the coffee meet up. They could still have Buck go balls to the wall and invite him to the wedding despite him only really know Buck and Eddie. Johnny wouldn’t go to the bachelor party and maybe he comes to the hospital, maybe he doesn’t.

Their relationship does what Buck’s relationships do when there isn’t much connecting the person to his teammates or the plots of the show. Bobby can only say that Buck seems happy and settled…He can’t pass judgment on a person he doesn’t know. And they go through the dramas of the 118 together until something triggers a desire for a big move forward for Buck…And the same sort of break up happens.

It’s sad. It’s probably still a bit offensive. But there was never any loss to what could have been brought to the show overall by the departure of Buck’s latest partner, even if he was new in some ways.

But that’s not what happened.

They decided to bring in an established character that could be molded into what they wanted. A firefighter. Better yet, a firefighter PILOT on a show about firefighting that could use some fresh emergency plot ideas. A character with history in the house that holds Buck’s family. With Chim and with Hen and even with Bobby if it’s not nearly as much since Bobby wasn’t his open hearted self back when Tommy was there. And Tommy wasn’t either.

So you have this character who is compatible with the job. He can make for interesting storylines outside of relationship ones. There isn’t going to be a lame break up because the job is dangerous. There isn’t going to be a betrayal based on their mutual prioritizing of work since they would both understand how the work needs priority. You have things you can explore putting the character in pairings with practically every other main and have it make sense.

All that potential by choosing to go with this character that fits so well to just NOT do any of it.

That’s the real loss I am feeling as a fan of the show from the beginning.

And yeah, I shipped BuckTommy and I had hopes for things I wanted to see between them because Buck is my favorite character and I love seeing him shine. I’m heartbroken by his heart being broken. I’m heartbroken because I saw all this potential that I assumed professional storytellers would also see and not squander. That assumption left me blindsided when it seemed they did squander it.

And everyone saying it was written on the wall - It wasn’t. Yes, Buck’s relationships always fail. That’s how things work - Relationships fail until one WORKS. And this one seemed like it should work. Unless you are watching through goggles telling you without a doubt Buck’s endgame lays elsewhere, there was no warning that this is what would happen at the 6 month mark of the relationship.

And it seems like a really dumb thing to do, to let go of such an interesting tool you have available to you as a storyteller. You didn’t have to make the character such an asset to you and the story.

Maybe I’m jumping the gun and they do have plans for possible stories in the future. Awkward emergencies with the 118 and 217 on a scene together for some reason that will use some of that potential. So maybe there is some reason to hope.

Or maybe it is just wasted. And I’m pissed as a fan of the show and as someone who feels emotionally whiplashed by 8x05 and 8x06.

I guess we’ll see. I refuse get my hopes up. Perhaps I’ll watch the show live tonight…Depends if being up at 2am means I’m exhausted by 6:30pm again today (I was only able to force myself to stay awake until 8pm last night). I’ll watch eventually regardless. But I’m probably back to watching the show the way I did before and how I currently watch Ghosts and Tracker…When I remember the show, I’ll binge what I missed. Or I’ll turn it on if I remember during the timeslot. It’s no longer must see TV for me that I will make plans around.

Anyway, done rambling…

[haveyouseenthisskeleton]

Hello!

Can I request something the Horror Group and both sets of dance bros?

My request is this, when S/O was younger they were a professional dancer but after an accident to their legs s/o could never dance again without strong pain.

S/O told there skeleton lover but it’s obvious they miss dancing

Thank you!

Horrortale Sans - He understands. There are a lot of things he used to do he can't do now, all because one person he thought was a friend turned out was not. That's ok though. With time, you learn to cope even if it's still bitter. Oak is nice to you all day after that, just making sure you feel like you're not alone.

Horrortale Papyrus - Welp. Same. He tells you he used to jog every morning before Undyne fucked up his back so bad he almost stayed paralyzed. He missed being able to be his energetic self like before and running around to annoy people. Now he just feels nostalgic and sad :( But that's ok, you can be sad with him, it will probably reverse the sadness around.

Horrorswap Sans - He stays strangely silent, just staring at his missing arm Then he suddenly leaves the room. Sorry, he doesn't like to talk about his disability. It's still too recent and he struggles a lot with accepting he can't do things the way he did anymore.

Horrorswap Papyrus - He gently hugs you to comfort you. Or to comfort himself, he's not sure anymore. It just feels like a situation where you hug people. Honey tells you that with how science evolves, he hopes someone will find a way for you to dance again.

Horrorfell Sans - That's fine. You can't move your booty like before, but he assures you that you don't need to dance to have the best booty in the whole world. You don't even know what to say to this. Sorry, Copper is not the best at comforting people, he doesn't have the social skills to do so. Forgive him, he tried.

Horrorfell Papyrus - He's sorry for you, he knows the feeling. But that's ok, there are many ways you can practice without hurting too much, like underwater. He has therapy sessions to help him with his legs every week in a pool, he could take you one time to see if you like it. He's sure you can find some way to have fun. He also wants someone so badly to have fun with him. It feels lonely sometimes facing his disability all alone.

Dancetale Sans - Welp, he's your man for this. What if he has some ways to help you with this? He's a dance instructor and he actually has a specialization for people with disabilities. He will gladly help you to have your moves back and with caution so you don't overdo yourself.

Dancetale Papyrus - He's very encouraging and tries to push you so you can know his brother a little better. He wants you to join Rambo special classes, he's sure 100% that you will find what you need there. Unfortunately, he's a bit too energetic to join. He's too scared he might accidentally hurt you if he goes a little too far. But Rambo knows the tricks and he's sure you'll dance again eventually, trust him.

Dancefell Sans - He completely stops to dance because he loves you and he knows it might hurt you to see him practicing. He doesn't miss it that much, he just doesn't want to hurt you more. You two can find another sports activity that you can do, and he'll gladly join. He's not difficult, as long as he's with you, he's very fine!

Dancefell Papyrus - Tango is probably not the best match as he's way too energetic and has a hard time to focus on things. He often accidentally outpasses your boundaries, even if he means well, and he might hurt you eventually, despite having the best intentions. He would try to be better, but he can't really change how energic he is and he would just feel guilty and frustrated looking at you gets sad because he has to dance to feel better sometimes, which he really doesn't want. He want the best for you, he's just too clumsy to really be helpful.

[beestriker015]

Princess Peach x male s/o headcanons

S/o is one of the few humans living in the Mushroom Kingdom, and has been a friend of the princess since they were babies.

As time went by and the two grew older, that friendship began blossoming into something more.

Eventually, with some encouragement from both Mario and Luigi, the princess confessed her feelings to s/o.

“I love you s/o, and I wish to be with you. Please know that if you don’t feel the same way about me, the two of us will always be friends.”

She says with a smile, awaiting his answer.

“Peach, I had no idea you felt that way about me. To tell you the truth, I’ve had feelings for you for a long time now. I love you too Peach.”

Upon hearing this, Peach brings s/o into a warm embrace, thus marking the beginning of their relationship.

News quickly spread throughout the kingdom that the princess has found a suitor, much to the couple’s dismay.

“I’m so sorry s/o, I didn’t expect word of our relationship to get out this fast.”

“Well, everyone was bound to find out some time. I just hope we won’t be hounded by the press too badly.”

Much to the pair’s surprise, the citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom were very respectful of their privacy and were happy that the princess found someone to love.

“Thank you, all of you. I am honored to be the princess of such amazing people.”

Peach addresses her subjects with a grateful smile on her face during the official announcement of her relationship with s/o.

“If the princess has a suitor, that means she’s gonna get married right?”

A Toad asks as the crowd begins chatting amongst themselves.

Before Peach could speak up and tell them that she and s/o aren’t planning on getting married at the moment, another Toad joins the conversation.

“Yay! Let’s give a big cheer for Princess Peach and s/o! Congratulations lovebirds!”

The crowd begins cheering as Peach and s/o blush and exchange glances.

“I mean, it’s not like I’m opposed to getting married to you s/o, but I don’t wanna rush things.”

“Yeah, I know what you mean. I definitely wanna marry you someday Peach, but only when we’re both ready.”

He kisses her, flustering the princess as a series of awws are heard from the crowd.

By request of his girlfriend, s/o moves into the castle.

“Welcome to your new home s/o! If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“Thanks babe, I guess this means no more slinking off to my place huh?”

He smirks as the princess laughs a little.

“I suppose not. As long as I get to be with you though s/o, it doesn’t matter.”

Before s/o moved in with her, Peach had a tendency to sneak out of the castle to go visit her boyfriend, causing everyone (specifically Toadsworth) to panic that their princess has gone missing.

Speaking of going missing, whoever Bowser kidnaps the princess for the umpteenth time, s/o joins Mario to go rescue her from the Koopa King.

“Bwahaha. I heard Princess Peach was dating someone, but I didn’t expect it to be someone so wimpy! You and that stupid plumber should just go home! The princess is mine now!”

“We’ll see about that Bowser! Mario, let’s take him down together ok?”

The mustachioed jumper nods as they prepare to fight, with Bowser ending up defeated as per usual.

“We make a great team man, now let’s save Peach!”

After rescuing the princess, she rewards the two with a cake (and giving s/o an affectionate kiss).

“Thank you s/o for helping Mario rescue me.”

“You’re welcome babe. Besides, what kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn’t do anything to save you?”

The princess smiles and gives her boyfriend another kiss.

“You are an amazing boyfriend s/o. I love you so much.”

“I love you too Peach.”

Being incredibly wealthy, Peach loves to spoil her boyfriend with gifts.

“I love you Peach, but you don’t have to get me all these things, not that I don’t appreciate it.”

“I know, but I just can’t help it s/o. I’ll try not to overdo it.”

She says knowing that she already bought him a really expensive thing he’s always wanted.

Whenever Peach competes in a kart race, s/o can be seen in the stands cheering her on.

“Go babe! I know you can win this!”

Hearing her boyfriend’s support always drives her to do her absolute best to win.

Even if she doesn’t get first place, s/o always runs up to her after the race ends and praises her nonetheless.

After being together for quite some time, s/o decides it’s finally time to propose to his girlfriend.

“I’m nervous Toadsworth, I don’t know if I can do this.”

“There’s nothing to be nervous about my boy! The princess absolutely loves you, I’m sure she’ll be incredibly happy when you ask for her hand.”

“It’s not that I think she’ll say no, I just…what if I mess it up?”

“As long as you speak from the heart, you’ll be fine s/o. Now chin up! The princess is waiting!”

S/o nods and thanks Toadsworth for the confidence boost as he goes to the balcony where his girlfriend is waiting.

“Oh. Hello s/o. Why did you want to meet me out here?”

Not answering her, s/o gets down on one knee and pulls out a beautiful ring as the princess gasps.

“Peach, being with you has made my life worthwhile. I love you with all my heart, and want to spend the rest of my life with you. My love, will you marry me?”

She nods rapidly with tears in her eyes.

“Yes s/o, I will!”

Once she puts the ring on, Peach pulls her now fiancé into a passionate kiss.

When the day of the wedding comes, Peach has Daisy as her bridesmaid, with s/o having both Mario and Luigi as his groomsmen.

“Do you Princess Peach take s/o as your husband for as long as you both shall live?”

The minister Toad asks as the princess smiles.

“I do.”

“And do you s/o take Princess Peach as your wife in sickness and in health?”

S/o nods.

“I do.”

“Then by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife!”

Peach and s/o seal their marriage with a kiss as the entire kingdom celebrates the two’s marriage, except for a very upset Bowser, who was watching the ceremony from aboard the Koopa Cruiser.

Going from childhood friends to lovers, there’s no doubt that Peach and s/o’s love for each other is so strong that not even Bowser’s constant kidnappings can put a strain on it.

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

Hello, I hope you’re well. Genuine question, I know it’s joked about quite a lot, but what do you think Edward’s reaction would’ve been if at some point (probably before we get to breaking dawn), Bella had suggested that Edward, Jacob and her were in a polyamorous relationship. She loves both of them and she just can’t choose, so she decides that’s the only solution? Likewise, how would Jacob have taken it? (I imagine not quite as badly as Edward?)

For the Love of a Woman by me and @therealvinelle

Leech in the Rain by me and @therealvinelle

Caveat

This wouldn't happen both because it didn't and because that's not really what Bella wants. Bella's in this weird situation where Edward and Jacob are both gaslighting her into believing she wants a sexual relationship with Jacob. Now, she does find Jacob attractive, and she is very emotionally close to him, and things are deeply awkward at the wedding when they slow dance in a way that would have had me raising my eyebrows had I been there in person, but that doesn't seem to be what Bella wants from him.

What she wants from Jacob is for him to remain her best friend and emotional support. Jacob is the one who insists this is a romantic love, that she loves him as much as she does Edward, while Bella goes "... nooooooo I think it's difffereeeeeeeent" and neither Edward nor Jacob listening to her about it for their own reasons.

Add to that that Bella's terrified of jeopardizing her relationship with Edward. She will (and did) absolutely drop Jacob to keep Edward, 100%. Jacob makes it clear many times, even leaves town, and Bella agrees to marry Edward and turn into a vampire knowing Jacob has said he will be out because she can't lose Edward.

She's not suggesting to Edward that she actually does want to sleep with another man, let alone Jacob, who Edward has accused her of wanting to/wanted her to be with Jacob instead of him. This could cause their relationship to collapse, the Cullens to move, and Bella to not become a vampire.

And of course, that Jacob was very clear that he despised Edward/vampires in general and could barely tolerate let alone sleep with one.

It was very clearly made into an ultimatum: Bella could not choose both.

So, Bella chose Edward.

(The caveat to this caveat is that Jacob and Edward might suggest this: in which case Bella would cry, end up having to get turned by Carlisle, and Jacob/Edward takes off.

The other caveat being Leech in the Rain when Bella is safely turned but her life has utterly imploded, Edward's falling apart emotionally, and her seeking comfort from Jacob turns into "let's make a threesome tee-hee")

But She Does It

Bella summons her courage after having been made to believe she wants both Edward and Jacob sexually. She's an unconventional modern girl, marriage is stupid anyway, and she's in true love with Edward and Jacob in different ways but the same way so that's all okay. You can't choose love, you know?

So, Bella deep into the night comes up with the solution: she will fuck them both and live happily ever after.

This idea lasts 0.01 seconds.

Edward says "no" firmly. He wants to get married to have sex with her/before he turns her, he doesn't want to sleep with Jacob, don't be ridiculous Bella.

However, Bella, if you do want to choose Jacob, Edward will disappear out of her life like the morning mist never to have existed in the first place. He loves Bella, of course, but he believes she should live a human life and Jacob is technically better for her. Even if she loves Edward, she should choose Jacob. Woe.

Bella backtracks hard.

Then Edward backtracks because actually...

To have a relationship with Jacob, Bella would need to be human. If Edward has to suffer being in the room and watching them go, he'll do it, if it keeps her human. Jacob, too, might go for it so long as Bella will remain human even if it means sharing.

Jacob, while reluctant, is eventually amenable as he too would do nearly anything to keep Bella human.

We end up in a For the Love of a Woman variant, where Bella quickly realizes she doesn't like this, as Jacob and Edward are talking about her only fucking Jacob in front of Edward while he does nothing and Bella stays human.

No amount of backtracking gets Edward and Jacob to go back to the way things used to be.

Bella ends up having to dump them both, becomes a vampire, and is very sad.

[imaginespazzi]

Nivi, you’ve done it again. Whenever I think a chapter can’t get any better you always out do yourself.

I loved the opening scene at the championship game. The UConn ND interactions were fun. What team is KK on? It didn’t seem like she was on the Wings with Paige and Ice or the Valkyrie with Jana and Azzi. Also, was Lou still on the Wings when Paige got drafted? Did they win a championship together? I hope they finally got to play together, I need it to happen in some universe 🙏🏻

The collateral damage gets me every time because their lives are so intertwined. The way you wrote that scene I just felt everyone’s perspective, and that’s a credit to your writing. (As an aside I just joined a book club and the book I had to read was terrible. The author was explaining everything without making you feel anything and that’s such a terrible combo) So then coming back and reading this chapter was such a breath of fresh air because you make the reader feel everything. I felt KK being disappointed and hurt that she felt like Azzi was running away again, when really she missed seeing her friend, and was frustrated that they kept coming back to the same place. And I felt Jana being protective because she see’s more of Azzi’s perspective after being around her the most. I also felt Paige and Azzi’s guilt of having done this to the people they love.

Ugh that damn phone call that Paige obviously does not remember 💔 I feel like it’s gonna come up again, and I’m curious and scared to see what Paige’s reaction is going to be. Especially knowing how much it has left a scar on Azzi. That’s gonna be such a hard revelation to hear and process.

Ahhh using their numbers for the floors was a nice touch. 3 & 5 for Azzi, but then getting off at 5 for Paige. Also using the 2 floors to make Azzi’s number to show she’s complete when they are together, and then Azzi goes back to being incomplete when she leaves.

Paige opening the door and Azzi was right there 🥹, Azzi being self conscious about her post pregnancy body and Paige already has it ingrained in her memory 🥹 So wait how many times have they hooked up since their break up? Only twice? Was the start of this chapter their first time sleeping together post breakup? Or did they hook up more but only twice since Azzi had Stephie? Of course the tattoo would be purple, Azzi just couldn’t help herself huh? 😭

Awww Azzi finally saying what Paige needed to hear so badly, that she wasn’t a secret. Man, Azzi has done some serious emotional heavy lifting for Paige in the matter of a few hours. She agrees to go to the bar with Paige, she confesses that Paige is the exception to all of her rules, calls her baby again, supportively tells Paige she’ll catch her during an intimate moment that holds so many meanings, Azzi leaving but coming back, and then finally telling Paige she isn’t a secret and doesn’t want to hide her. Omg we’re finally getting some progress with these two idiots and I love it so much 🥹

lol I love everyone being a menace around them, Katie was enjoying that entirely too much.

Stephie is a top tier manipulator and I love that for her, she really is a genius. She was already promised ice cream, fries, and the park from Paige for not getting to go to the bar and still manages to add on more junk food because she was sad they had a sleep over without her. And finally Stephie’s manipulation works in Paige and Azzi’s favor. I’m sure Katie had the biggest knowing smile on her face when that happened too.

Excited to see where you take us in the next chapter 🙂‍↔️

——📚

Thank you bestie <3

I think KK's on the Sky? I have no reason for this other than I just like the Sky and vibes lmao. Yeah Lou would have still been on the team when Paige got drafted (2025) but I don't think she stuck around for long and eventually chose to play in France long-term.

Both Jana and KK are completely valid. KK really just misses her friend and Jana's the one who's watched her friend breakdown (remember she was there for the phone call) and so it's only natural that she's rather protective over Azzi now.

They've only hooked up twice since Azzi got pregnant and there was never any overlap with Olivia. However was there a time before that? Guess we'll find out!

YES! Azzi's taken so many baby steps in their relationship and I'm glad y'all see it took. Like my girl is genuinely trying even if there's still some hesitation at certain times.

One thing Stephie knows how to do is get her Miss Buecks to give her what she wants and trust she will use it every damn time.

[mysterious-moonstruck-musings]

honestly, this was probably the best thing to happen to Dieter. So while I’m gutted he and everybody else had to go through this, it can only go up from here!

but also… he called Talia in that moment 🥺 that just kinda makes me 🥺😭😭

And also. I’m gonna say it and I know I’m probably alone with this but man… I found Lauren kinda annoying this chapter lmao 😂 like I know where she’s coming from with Talia not actually dealing with her shit but come on.. cut her some slack? Her famous actor boyfriend broke up with her via a phone call and then got permanently drunk while basically the whole world was watching.

I just found her a bit too righteous and pushy. Also the song choice for her, that was kinda messed up? It’s not like Talia wanted to break up with Dieter?? She didn’t have to show or prove anything to him really, so I just kinda didn’t like that tbh!

But this chapter was great!! I wish I could just continue reading to find out what happens next because aaaaaaah!! I’m so desperate for them to reunite when whatever was up with Dieter is finally better. I feel like he’s gonna be so sorry and I can already see him in a hospital bed looking all small and sad and puppy eyes 🥺

Thanks for the message anon! Looks like you’re putting me to the test today. 🤣

This response includes spoilers for chapter 24 of Destiny & Deliverance below the cut.

It’s definitely a good thing that it happened the way it did. It could have gone very badly if Dieter hadn’t of made that call. I think once it’s revealed what is going on with him, everyone will be surprised and realize it should never have happened at all. It is sad for all involved obviously…and to think, these types of things really do happen every day.

Yes! Talk about drunk dialing…The fact that he called her tells us he was ready to stop fighting his feelings. He wanted to fix it and he knew he fucked up. Unfortunately, he was too messed up to really get any of that out. It did hit the feels extra hard though. I also love that Talia didn’t hesitate to go to him once she realized something was off. She’s going to take care of him no matter how big of an ass he has been. She loves him too much not to.

So Lauren…I think it may help to have some insight on where she’s coming from. Let’s remember, it’s been several months since Talia and D split. Also, we have to consider Talia’s history. Lauren knows that Talia holds things in and will self destruct over it. She did it with her marriage and she’s doing it even worse with D. Lauren just wants to get through to her and prevent something bad from happening (again). Keep in mind, Talia knew an awful lot about alcohol poisoning. We will circle back around to that topic eventually. So, Lauren starts taking a bit of a tough love approach. Sometimes, that is something you have to do with people (trust me, I’ve been there). It’s truly coming from a place of love for her friend. She’s worried about her.

Now, on the flip side of that, Dieter was one of Lauren’s few close friends too. Talia wasn’t the only one who lost him when he hit that self destruct button. Lauren is also now dating D’s brother and sees the affect D’s spiral is having on Alex too. She is privy to information that Talia doesn’t have. She has communicated with Dieter and tried to talk to him just like his family has. Remember in chapter 23 when she said, “You’re both so fucking stubborn”? She was totally working behind the scenes to sort D out and getting nowhere with him. Why? Because he had convinced himself that Talia was moving on and didn’t need him in her life. Outwardly, Talia seemed to be ok with the split and he didn’t believe Lauren when she told him otherwise.

Now the song… was it messed up? Yes, a little. Lauren honestly wasn’t expecting that type of reaction from Talia though. However, Lauren did hope that it might make Talia think about how she was really feeling. It worked, a little too well.

As far as Talia having something to prove to D…you’re right, she didn’t have anything, but Lauren did. Lauren wanted D to know that Talia was in fact hurting over the split and missed him because he didn’t believe it. We have to remember, at this point D is not speaking to the family (or Lauren by extension) and she was looking to reach him any way she could because she knows how bad off he really is. The family is grasping at straws by this point. She saw the situation as an opportunity.

So long story short, Lauren really is stuck between a rock and hard place. She’s trying to navigate it the best she can, but it’s to the point where they are all getting a little desperate.

Hopefully that gives a little more insight into Lauren’s POV on everything. She really has no malicious intentions, she just wants her friends to be healthy and happy.

They will be reunited eventually. It’s going to be a long road for him, and Talia too. And yes, there will be a lot of sad puppy dog eyes in the coming chapters. 🥹

I’m happy you enjoyed the chapter. Thanks for following along on this little adventure! 💜

CC: @rhoorl @bitchwitch1981 @readingiskeepingmegoing @runningmom94 @for-a-longlongtime @hisandsnakes @chaoticfestninja @survivingandenduring @partyofone3413 @cakipy-blog @titlee78 @poodlebae @guelyury @missladym1981 @maried01 @alokaerza @samiamproductions @misstokyo7love @themonadiaries-blog @madnessofadaydreamer @darkheartgatita @avastrasposts @weho2kcmo @harriedandharassed @tkchaos

[dirtytransmasc]

Paz and Quaritch (plus spider, because he was the one part of their relationship that remained untainted).

I think they were such an interesting, yet unexplored, piece of avatar, so I explored it and here are my headcanons, they are true, simply because I said so, and if you don't like it perish leave. (these aren't in any particular order, I wrote them as they came to mind)

quaritch was never good with the whole compliments thing, so he made up for it through putting down anyone who said something negative (think something like the line form Donna by the Lumineers "You told your daughter she was ordinary" as if to insult anyone underestimating her). he shoves her accomplishments in the faces of anyone to underestimates her, making sure that if he can't give lovey-dovey compliments, he can sill show how proud he is of her.

they weren't the best couple, as they were victim of their circumstances. they can't go on rates and barely get any personal time together. miles is an emotionally stunted man who never took time for relationships outside of her. so they struggle, conflict typically turns into screaming matches and slamming furniture; but paz never once thinks miles will hurt her or their son, and he doesn't, no matter how angry and heated he gets, he could never even fathom hurting paz or spider

she was the last thing he thought about when he died. he didn't know if he was alive, if he would see her again, if he wanted to see her again (he didn't know if he believed in heaven or hell, but if they were real he didn't want to, she didn't belong in hell).

they met on her first day in pandora, they had sorta known each other before, only in passing, but they got to know each other on pandora. hooking up wasn't their intent, not at first, but it just sorta happened. she'd been assigned to his platoon, they became friends, and then more than friends. in such a hostile world they became each other's lifelines, and the squad (her + the people who made up the recoms) became family. spider solidified that family

when he found out she was pregnant, for just a split second, before the worry about code and procedure and higher ups, he was over joyed. then it was his worst nightmare because he was worried for her, sleeping with your superior was bad enough, getting pregnant, on pandora of all places, was something so much worse. but he could never bring her to get rid of the child, the words lingered on his tongue, they both knew she should, that there were ways to do it under the table, but he couldn't.

they both loved each other, quaritch more than her, surprisingly, though he didn't know how to show it. he was never shown actual love. In his little chunk of the world, he had never even seen kindness, let alone love, so he had to guess each step of the way with paz, and he knew he failed, he failed horribly, and he hoped she would forgive him for that.

when she was pregnant he pulled strings as long and far as he could to keep her on light work, desk work in the middle few months before she started showing. had her medical care kept under wraps at his own dispense and out of his own pocket. when she was eventually found out he did everything to keep him, the father, anonymous, so she'd get in as little trouble as possible. he snuck around constantly to see her, bring her things from the kitchen that she was craving, stayed with her as much as he could when she was sick or needing company.

he couldn't be there for spiders birth, no matter how badly he wanted to, but he was sneaking into her room with the squads help, to meet his son. the look in his eyes when he looked at her and the baby made her melt, it was the first time he looked completely blissed out with happiness.

he cried when he held spider, holding him in one arm, holding paz in the other. the only two people he truly had in the world, right there with him. he looked at this perfect little baby, the one he helped make, and saw such beauty and happiness.

he was flattered when paz named the little one miles, though he worried, he couldn't convince her to name him anything else, so he helped create a cover story for her.

if he could, he would have kept her out of the field for the rest of her life, but he knew the sky was where her heart felt at home. he regrets letting her fly that day.

when he became a recom, the first thing he did, was track down the little trinket box of his, he found it untouched at hellsgate, hidden in the floorboards of his old room. it held all he had left of his son and lover; a few photos, some medals, a hardrive, a ring, a few notes, and 2 little figures. the photos were mostly of paz, in all her glory, her perfect smile, her beautiful eyes. the metals were both his and her's but they were the ones they thought were most important. the harddrive had videos, logs, other photos of their lives, spiders short life, the squadm their family. the ring was supposed to be the one he would 'propose' with, he doubted they could ever actually marry, but the ring was just supposed to symbolize them. the notes were their little attempts at younger love, mostly confessions, asks for meet ups, the note she gave him telling him he was a father. and the figures? they were spiders, he doesn't know who hid them there, he knows he couldn't have, spider had them the day he died, the kid was just starting to hold himself up, miles had given him a toy amp suit and a toy scorpion, so he'd always think of his mama and papa. he'd gone to see him in the nursery playing with them right before he left for battle, had a gut instinct he wouldn't see the little shit again. he was right. he would never know who hid them away, but it broke his heart in the best way possible. his life, his love was here, and that's all that mattered.

when out in the field, he searched for paz, using what little info he could get on her position in battle to try and track down her remains. he didn't need to though, spider already had, and he said there wasn't much left, not besides her dog tags. he took quaritch to where he hid them, and from that day on he wore one of them and spider carried the other.

he loved spider with everything he wasn't able to love paz with. this new life gave him a new chance, and he wasn't gonna waste it.

this is for @natasha-devkina sorry this took so long, I sorta forgot for a hot minute.

[milogreer]

blake 🤗

rubs hands together like a supervillain. ↳ send me a character!

My first impression: BASTARD. i’ll kill you. get away from sunshine and bestie or i swear to god i’ll gut you like a fish you FREAK. etc LMAO i remember first listening to his confession audio and going to courtney like “he has been talking my fucking ear off for what feels like three hours!!!” 😭😭 he somehow managed to ride the line of annoying dickhead and actually scary villain and i absolutely couldn't stand him

My impression now: oh my god i have not been this brand of obsessed with a character in years. like. he is in my head CONSTANTLY, i’ve listened to the balance three times and i’m considering a fourth, i have at least two more rambles about him/bestie to post, he’s got the longest playlist out of all my redacted playlists. if he had merch i think i’d go broke. it’s brutal man i want him back so badly. i miss that freak.

A favorite thing: the devotion !!!! say what you will about his methods and i’ll likely agree with you but oh my god his devotion … to see the person you love the most die in your arms over and over again no matter what you do to change it and be so wrecked by it that you get involved with a cult trying to contact ancient gods for just the CHANCE to maybe save them. doing unimaginable things in your pursuit to keep them safe. to be so obsessively in love that it makes you delusionally cocky enough to look the god who just said they shaped your reality in the face and say “i’ll do whatever you need, as long as you save my love.” he's CRAZY

Least favorite thing: he is so fucking stupid LMFAO. like it’s a fantastic character trait to be so blinded to reality because he’s got tunnel vision but you can’t help but be like what the FUCK are you DOING when he does shit like dropping the ward to kill himself via shade so he can do exactly what brachium said not to. truly the guy in a horror movie you yell at for doing something so inconceivably stupid to push the plot forward and i wanna strangle him for it sometimes

Favorite line/scene: sigh … the last scene in “falling for your yandere childhood friend” … the switch on “i won’t be able to give you space” ?? COME ON. it made me sick on my first listen but now it makes me sick in the opposite direction 🫣 ughhh that scene is just so good because it’s really easy imo to go through this audio out of context of the balance overall and trick yourself into thinking like, oh, he’s just kind of a guy. aww. and then it switches and it’s like HUH?? “the things i think about you, how much i want you, it’s the stuff you’re not supposed to say out loud” + “if you pick this, it’ll be all of me - and we both know a lot of that’s not pretty” ?? oh it is so delicious.

Favorite interaction that character has with another: :modcheck: “looking for answers with your dreamwalker boyfriend” when he comes in to talk to elliott and sunshine 😫 i’m such a sucker for condescension and it just oozes out of him here. the patronizing little hums after “can i call you eli?” and “that deathwalker friend of yours really left you out to dry, huh?” and “but don’t worry. i’m sure he’s very proud of you.” >>>

A character that I wish that character would interact with more: I WANTED BRACHIUM TO BEAT HIM UP i’m so disappointed he didn’t get to feel brachium’s wrath bc he deserved to after putting sunshine and elliott through all that bullshit. i hope they face off again eventually somehow

A headcanon: when he turned 18 him and bestie went and got little tattoos out of one of those roulette/mystery egg machines. i haven’t decided what they got or where yet though because i’m too indecisive! he also has a snake tattoo like this :)

A song: I HAVE SO MANY. but the one that kicked off my blake obsession is explode by mother mother so it’ll always be one of the most important ones 💘

An unpopular opinion: kind of suggestive so i won’t Get Into It but i don’t think he’s as dominant as perhaps he would seem to be … i’ve been really back and forth on this though so don’t quote me here

[backtothedisaster]

You asked for asks on Fl4k and Zer0 so here I am

When playing as Fl4k and you first meet Zer0, they comment that Zer0's familiar to them. Why do you think that is?

Also, what's your story for how they wound up together? What prompted them becoming a couple?

Is it a sexual relationship or an asexual one?

Does Zer0 have a favorite pet of Fl4k's?

What does a typical "date" of theirs look like?

Does Fl4k know and/or care about what's under Zer0's suit, or are they just kinda like "it's irrelevant, because Zer0 would still be the same person whether I knew or not"?

Barrage of questions, obviously don't have to answer all of them I just adore these two. Tbh they're my faves of their respective games.

anon i think we're friends now? legally speaking

When playing as Fl4k and you first meet Zer0, they comment that Zer0's familiar to them. Why do you think that is? - honestly i dont think about this nearly as much as i should because its such a good concept. i think theyve definitely encountered eachother before (like Long long before. maybe during fl4ks archivist days. personally i think since zer0 and fl4k are both nonhuman they r probably significantly "older" than the rest of the raiders at least like..physically? if that makes any sense. Especially fl4k. i think it hasnt been *that* long since they gained sentience probably only a few decades or so but theyve been around for a. very long time) i really like the idea that zer0 is some kind of man-made alien cyborg...thing? so maybe they had the same/similar creators (considering they share some abilities) Either way i hope so so bad we get an actual canon explanation eventually

Also, what's your story for how they wound up together? What prompted them becoming a couple? - i dont think they ever formally acknowledge theyre together or whatever they just kind of fall into it. after they meet eachother on promethea they get really into this weird alien/robot courting thing of giving eachother bits of dead guys or loot or whatever like theyre fucked up cats. and from an outside perspective they hardly ever talk directly. And it confuses everyone around them so so so much but they both know exactly what theyre doing. its like evil flirting

Is it a sexual relationship or an asexual one? - sexual wahoo

Does Zer0 have a favorite pet of Fl4k's? - broodless ... she is very loyal and focused but also calmer than the rest of them i think. zer0 likes that. Close second is mr chew because who doesnt love the dog lets be real

What does a typical "date" of theirs look like? - tbh they just go out and kill things together and thats like the closest approximation of a date they can get

Does Fl4k know and/or care about what's under Zer0's suit, or are they just kinda like "it's irrelevant, because Zer0 would still be the same person whether I knew or not"? - i think fundamentally fl4k is driven by the desire to know exactly what zer0 is and where they came from (i think this goes both ways but its especially true for fl4k) so obviously they want to know so badly whats under the mask. still though if they did know i dont think it would change anything about their relationship too much...i think they just want to know everything about eachother and their pasts. (speaking of which i have a solid concept in mind for unmasked zer0 i just. really need to draw it)

[creativecuteness]

Total Slaughter Island Chapter 3: Away with the Wind She Goes

A/N Sorry this is a little late. Didn't get a chance to edit this until today ao3 and fanfiction.net links will come a little later. Enjoy the last chapter of this story for a little bit, I hope to update this next month.

 Chef’s outburst caused a mixture of yelps, startled gasps, and whispers throughout the room. It wasn’t like the stone-cold man to get this riled up and panic; even his fiancée was shocked and not used to seeing this side of him.

“Chef?! What did you say?!” Emily spoke, breaking the hushed silence.

“I know who did it! I can’t believe I didn’t notice it sooner. The mask, those overalls, the crazed look in their eyes as they took Ezekiel away—it all points to one person—Hook’s McGrady.”

“Huh?” Everyone gasped, very confused.

“Uh, Hook’s McWho?” Emily questioned, wondering if Chef was just making stuff up.

“Hook’s McGrady,” he repeated in a spooky voice, “someone I haven’t seen since my time during the war.”

Knowing Chef was about to tell one of his famous tales, someone turned off the lights as Chef turned on a flashlight and pointed it at his face.

“His name was Sean Phillip; the two of us met during our training days. While I was strong and burly, he was more like a water boy; however, he was a kind spirit who got along with almost everyone. Heck, the two of us even became best friends. We told each other everything; we had each other’s back. He told me he joined the army cause his mother was sick and was the best way to provide for her, and I promised to help him reach that goal. A promise I was never able to fulfill, it all came crashing down June 13th. We were passing through enemy lines when a sneak attack backed us into an old shack. It was old and brittle, perfect to annihilate an enemy. It all happened so fast. An enemy soldier threw a grenade in, and just like that, boom, the shack collapsed with us inside it. And yet, by some stroke of luck, we lived. However, we were badly injured, and some of us needed surgery to even walk again, and sadly, Sean was one of them; his hands were both dislocated and burned beyond recognition. You should have seen the side of his charred face; it was awful.

Long story short, his hands needed to be amputated, and he wore hooks as makeshift prosthetics. That’s how he got his nickname. I remember promising him once we returned to civilization, we’d get him real prosthetic hands. We tried to be respectful and lift his spirits, but it was fruitless. We knew he was a broken man. His hands were special, man; he had the best trigger finger in our troop, and without them, he was nothing.

And it gets worse; there were a few groups who began mocking him for his disabilities; their words, no matter how hard he tried to brush it off, got under his skin. They even made me feel small when I tried to stand up for the poor guy. To the point where I just held my tongue and ignored the growing tension, but that doesn’t even cover my greatest mistake; it was our toughest mission yet. We were about to invade enemy lines; we were split into two teams, one held the front lines while the other invaded the base. My team consisted of me, Sean, and a group of bullies that wouldn’t leave the poor man alone. We tried to get by without any incident, but eventually their teasing became too much, and Sean had a full breakdown. We were spotted not long after and made a run for it, fighting through the chaos as we made our escape. In doing so, Sean was caught. I desperately wanted to go back and save him, but my comrades convinced me that he wasn’t worth it.

As I left with the others, I heard him scream, saying we’d pay for leaving him behind. In the end, I broke the biggest rule in the army: “No man left behind.” I’ve kept this secret for years; I know his ghost has been haunting me, and now he’s returned for revenge.” Chef concluded his story as someone turned the lights back on.

“That’s an interesting story, Hatchet, but I don’t see how any of this is connected to...

“You don’t understand, man!” He shouted, banging his fists on the table once again, startling everyone witnessing. “This whole thing is my fault. I told Chris to bail because I was terrified of facing my past, and now those kids are gonna suffer for it. Which is why...” The army man took a deep breath, “I volunteer to rescue the campers and beg Hook for forgiveness.”

Everyone was stunned silent, not that anyone would oppose Chef’s offer better him than any of them.

“I also volunteer!” Dakota stood up,

"Wait, Dakota, no.” Chris whispered, not wanting her to get killed.

“I’m going, Chris, and that’s final. I told you before if you won’t rescue the campers, I would.” She spoke seriously, determined to get everyone home safely.

Chris sighed, knowing nothing would change their minds, and stood up.

“And where do you think you’re going, Mclean?!” The C.E.O. spoke disapprovingly.

Chris put his arms around his surrogate daughter and fiancée, for once he was ready to take responsibility for his mistake. “I’m going with them.”

"Wait, you are?!” Dakota gasped; a part of her hopeful, but the other part honestly didn’t want him to come.

The former TV host nodded and said, “It’s my fault the kids are even in this mess; if getting us off the hook is recusing the campers, then I’ll do whatever it takes.”

“I’m afraid just saving the campers won’t cut it. If Ezekiel isn’t the only one dead, the deceased’s parents will take legal action against us. And I refuse to let that happen.”

“So, what are you saying?” Dakota questioned, fearing the mission was going to be called off.

“To put it simply, I want that killer’s head on a platter.” The C.E.O. instructed, “You have three days to get the campers off the island, recover the dead bodies, and catch the killer—nothing more, nothing less. Understand?”

“Three days, but that’s...

“Just enough time for you to get in and out. I doubt it’ll take you more than a day to locate the survivors, and considering Chris has a map of the area, you should have no trouble finding your way around. Now with that meeting adjourned.”

Everyone piled out of the room without saying another word other than bidding the threesome good luck on their mission. Which Dakota knew she needed as she and Emily left early to pack some things.

Chef was going through drawers and his shared closet, grabbing anything and everything that was deemed a necessity, when Chris knocked on the door.

"Sorry, bud, I can’t talk now; we’re leaving early tomorrow morning, and I need to get our stuff in order.”

"Look, I know you’re busy, but was that story you told the C.E.O. true? Or did you make it all up to help Dakota?” Chris wondered,

His lover dropped the clothes on the bed and grabbed Chris by the shoulders, which shocked the shorter man. Who rarely sees his significant other act this serious, “Chris I can guarantee that story was one hundred percent true. However, I may have lied when I said I left Sean behind.”

“Wait, what do you mean?”

Chef sighed deeply, putting his face in his hands. “It’s my fault Phillip died; we weren’t invading enemy lines. Those bullies who mocked Sean forced me to lock him in the gas chamber at home base. I was forced to see my best friend die before my eyes and did nothing about it. I ran like the coward I was, and I never told anyone the truth; instead, I lied, saying I witnessed the whole thing and ran away to get help. The ones involved were punished, but the guilt has been tearing me apart for years.”

“That’s why you weren’t opposed to leaving the campers for dead, wasn’t it?” Chris asked, putting a gentle hand on Chef’s shoulder, who merely nodded, tears filling his eyes.

“I know we made a mistake leaving them, but I was scared too. I’ve seen Grady in my dreams; whenever he shows up, something horrible always happens. He’s returned, Chris; he’s after me, and this time I don’t think I can run anymore. He’s going to catch me; I just know this’ll be my finally days on earth.”

“Look,” Chris started, not really sure how to comfort someone who’s been haunted by the past. “I don’t know what’ll happen, but I promise, everything is going to be okay. Surely the kids are fine. I mean, how many could have dropped dead in a span of a month?”

“Sadly, many Hook’s is crafty; he won’t let anything out of his grasp.”

Chris sighed as he pulled his fiancée into his embrace. Chef held his lover tightly, feeling this could be the last time they'd ever see each other. Chris continued reassuring the man that everything would be okay, knowing they'd sort things out.

“I sure hope you’re right, Chris.” Was all he could say.

The next morning, Dakota was alarmed to see cop cars lined up outside. She immediately ran inside to see officers questioning employees. The young girl was about to ask what was going on when she heard a voice.

“Psst in here.” The brunette searched for the source when she noticed Emily’s hand giving away her location. Dakota ran to the door and was dragged into the basement, where her friend and two others were waiting in the dark.

“Phew, here I thought you were next.” Emily sighed,

"Emily, what’s going on? What’s with the cop cars?”

“It’s all over, girl; they’re out for our arrest.”

“For what?! Chris and Chef are the ones responsible for abandoning the campers!”

“No, this has nothing to do with that; this is a completely unrelated incident.”

“But you said—”

"Okay, fine, it’s slightly unrelated, but the order of events that lead to this point is only partially related.”

“What?”

Emily sighed. “Allow me to explain. The C.E.O. is being accused of some shady dealings behind the scenes; someone was able to dig up some dirt on the dude, and now they have a warrant to investigate us. Also, they want the location of Camp Wawanakwa; parents are getting impatient, and they want answers now.” Her friend informed her,

“Excuse me, Senorita?” A Hispanic boy came forward and asked, “Is it true you’re volunteering to get the missing kids back?”

“Yeah, but I’m not going alone; my boss and his fian… I mean, good friend are accompanying me.” She explained, and the boy hummed in thought, "Wait, hold on, who are you?”

"Oh, right, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Alejandro Burromuerto, and this is my acquaintance, Sierra.” He introduced himself as Sierra waved excitedly.

“It is so nice to meet you. I have a blog that’s been documenting the entire ordeal, and might I say your friend Emily has told me how you’ve been fighting tooth and nail to get the network to send out a rescue? I was hoping you’d be interested in an interview, perhaps? My fans will go insane.”

“Um, sorry.” Dakota smiled uncomfortably, backing away from Sierra’s excitable energy. “I’m not taking any statements right now; maybe another time.”

Alejandro patted Sierra’s shoulder to get her to back off, upon realizing she was making the other girl uncomfortable. She took a deep breath to compose herself and got out of her face.

“Sorry about that; I tend to get a little excited about my passions; I get it from my mother's side.” She explained,

“It’s fine.” Dakota sighed, understanding the tanner girl perfectly. “Just try to control yourself, and we’ll get along swimmingly.” She held out her hand as the two shook it. “I’m Dakota Natalie, by the way.”

“We’re assuming you work here?” Alejandro asked, and the two nodded.

“More like my dad works here; Chris was somehow nice enough to give me an internship here.” She explained,

“I’m an intern as well.” Emily came forward, “But only in the summer; I’ll be out of here come end of August. Though considering we’re under investigation, I should probably just bail before they arrest me.”

“Yeah, something tells me you should do that.” Sierra awkwardly agreed,

“So, is there a reason you’re here? Or are you a part of the feds who are here questioning people?” Dakota wondered, turning to Alejandro,

"No, no, we’re not with them; we snuck in.” Sierra proudly announced, shocking the two interns,

“You snuck in?!” They exclaimed, 

“Okay, first of all, that was very reckless of you. What if you were caught by security?! Second of all…” She paused "Wait, how did you even get in?” Emily wondered,

“We disguised ourselves as delivery men and waltzed right in.” Sierra winked, “It was surprisingly easy.”

“We came in hopes of discovering insider information to help investigators. It appears the urgency of the situation is reaching its boiling point, and we wanted to help. However, once the police came, we panicked and have been hiding down here ever since.” The Hispanic boy explained,

“That was until I found them; considering no one ever comes down here, I knew this would be the perfect hiding spot.” Emily smirked,

“You found them by chance, didn’t you?” Dakota asked,

“Yes.” She confirmed losing her confident demeanor,

"Look, as nice as it is to meet you two, we have to get out of here. I’m leaving to save the kids, and you two can’t be seen.”

"Wait, hold on, we can help you.” Sierra offered hastily, “You only have a limited time to save everyone, right? Alejandro is a world traveler; he and his dad went around the whole world a few years ago. And I have exclusive scoops on the campers; we’ve been planning infiltration for months. Please let us come with you!”

Dakota pondered this for a minute and realized the extra hands wouldn’t be horrible if what Sierra said was true. The two had some experience. “You two do realize you’re putting your lives in danger, right? There’s a killer on the island, and I doubt they escaped; are you two willing to put your lives on the line for the call of duty?”

“Trust me, we are more than willing to sacrifice ourselves if it means avenging those poor souls. We know about the risks, and we promise to proceed with caution.” Sierra understood,

While she wasn’t one hundred percent convinced the two could handle themselves, she knew time was running thin, and if the police were here, Chris and Chef would have bolted. "Okay, you two can come on one condition; don’t get in the way, and try not to get killed.”

The two nodded, agreeing to the terms. “We promise.”

“Okay, Emily, distract the cops while I track down Chris and Chef. I hope you two are ready because we leave now.”

Emily saluted, “You can count on me, girl.” Then she ran into her friend’s arms for a tight hug, “Good luck out there; please promise me you’ll come back safe.”

“I can’t guarantee that, Emily. However, if Chris pulls a bait and switch on me, I plan to haunt him for the rest of his lousy life.”

The feisty girl giggled, already imagining the hilarity of Chris dealing with an unwanted guest. “Alejandro and Sierra, you better get my girl back safe.” She said running upstairs as the remaining threesome slowly followed.

Getting out of the building and finding Chris and Chef were easier than expected. After a brief explanation on the two newcomers, Chris begrudgingly allowed the two to come much to their joy. Chef explained the boat ride to the island would take a few hours, so Sierra showed her teammates the information and background she had on the campers.

“Wow, Sierra You really went all out; if it weren’t for our circumstances, I’d say you were some crazy stalker.”

The other responded uncomfortably, shifting her weight. “Well, you’re not far off per se.” She spoke, trying to laugh it off.

“Wait, what’d I say?”

“What you spoke was the truth.” Chef explained, “When we were doing auditions, we considered putting Sierra in; however, after a quick background check, we found out she had a restraining order on her head and charges for stalking and harassment. The network didn’t want to risk anyone’s safety in case she got handsy, so Duncan got in instead.”

“Yes, because safety was your true priority considering the challenges you laid out.” Dakota deadpanned, "Also, doesn’t Duncan have criminal charges on his hands?”

“Ha!” Chef laughed. “That boy’s got nothing on her; he does petty crimes he’ll hopefully grow out of once he matures. Sierra’s a full-on menace to society; if you ask me, she deserves to be behind bars.”

The girl in question shrank into herself, knowing Chef made a valid point; what she did wasn’t her proudest moment, and she’s been teased and bullied for her experience even more than her daily average. She was a social outcast who weirded out everyone who met her. And the stalking incident didn’t help her reputation; it made it worse, considering many of her classmates pray she’ll slip up and end up in jail for life. But she deserved it, considering she didn’t realize how wrong and inappropriate her actions towards her crush were at the time.

"Chef, that was so uncalled for.”

“No, he’s right.” Sierra spoke, then sighed as she began to explain herself. “I developed a crush on a boy that was very unhealthy. I snuck into his house once and was caught. His family called the police, and I was taken to a mental hospital, where I spent three months receiving treatment for my obsessive behavior and therapy. I received the restraining order shortly before I was released, and never saw him again. He changed schools when I returned, and for all I know, he could have moved out of state. But I promised myself never to do anything like that ever again.”

“So, did this happen before or after you auditioned?” Chris questioned, raising his eyebrow,

“Shortly after, I thought getting on the show would be a way to start fresh; though, considering what happened, I dodged a huge bullet.”

“Actually, Sierra, you dodged a whole nuke.” Dakota laughed, then turned to her other teammate, “What about you, Alejandro? What’s your tragic backstory?” She questioned adding air quotes to tragic and backstory

The tanner boy sighed deeply, rubbing a hand through his hair. “I wanted to see an old girlfriend of mine.” He revealed,

This peeked everyone’s interest: “Ooh, do tell.” Sierra pushed,

“Her name is Heather; I’m sure you’ve heard of her; she was cast for the show.” He stated, holding up a picture of her, she had long black hair and was wearing a red crop top and green denim shorts. Dakota squinted, realizing the shape of her eyes and face suggested she was of Asin descent.

“We met during middle school. You know, I’ve always saw Heather as the most deadliest black rose in a bouquet of wilted flowers. Her and I had similar competitive natures; we loved coming on top; however, that was our downfall.”

“What happened?” Dakota asked,

The boy smiled bittersweetly, a look of longing in his eyes. “Long story short, my competitive nature got the better of me, and I backstabbed her. I cared more about winning than I did about my own girlfriend; the look of heartbreak on her face still hurts me to this day. I would do anything to apologize and make things right.”

“Sheese sounds like a pretty messy breakup.” Dakota understood feeling kind of bad.

“Oh, it was; I’ve never seen her that angry. The last thing she said to me was that I was an eel dipped in grease, and we were through. She got me back though; it ended in me getting expelled, but I took a trip around the world with my father shortly after and did a lot of soul-searching. When I caught wind that she was signing up for this new reality TV show, I figured I could finally make things right. And now I may never see her again.” He sighed, knowing the chances of his ex being alive were next to null. Dakota’s heart broke, knowing he might not even get the chance to say goodbye. She felt her anger flare up, cursing Chris for everything and the network for not acting faster.

As the group fell into silence, Dakota returned to the edge of the boat, Chris not having moved from his spot since they departed.

“Why are you helping me, Chris?” She spoke, breaking the spell of silence that was cast between them. “We all know what you did; surely repairing our relationship isn’t the only thing on your mind. Are you doing this out of sympathy? Maybe guilt has finally caught up to you. Or is it because of the wave of threats that threaten to destroy your career?”

Chris was dumbfounded at the younger girl’s accusation, but if he was being honest with himself, even he didn’t know why he allowed himself to be dragged back to the island with the premise of Chef’s Ghost Story. But Dakota was right on all accounts; he wanted his relationship with her repaired, he wanted to get back into the good graces he lost, but most importantly, he wanted to know why a killer targeted him and twenty-two other teens. What did he do? No, what did they do to deserve this fate? Why did he run? Why did it seem every outcome would have led him back here, no matter what? As he let his thoughts run circles around him. Dakota opened her mouth to speak his thoughts for him.

“If you ask me, I think you’re doing all this because you miss being a hero in the eyes of the public. Why would you care about anyone other than yourself?”

"Look, Dakota, you’ve got that all wrong.”

“Save it, just...” She beathed uneasily as if hearing her own words hurt her. “Let’s just find them; we have three days, and we don’t know what’ll happen if we take an extended vacation. Find the kids, catch the killer, and recover the dead bodies if there are more than one. Easier said, then done, but it shouldn’t take long.”

The two stared at the setting sun as an island came closer and closer into view. Dakota felt an odd sense of foreboding in the air, and while she’s never felt the feeling to pinpoint it, a voice in her head told her the island was haunted by the souls of the deceased. Whether it was the campers or if the killer murdered before anyone stepped foot to film was unknown to her, but she had a feeling they were about to find out as a foghorn sounded and Chef’s booming voice yelled,

“Land Ho!”

[beanghostprincess]

Anon who suggested Hiyori×Kuina here.

I was elaborating on the whole "Kuina is alive and training in Wano" what if and something occured to me: imagine Kuina meeting Ace and instantly becoming best friends with him

They could have a similar first meeting to Ace and Yamato. They chill out one night, talk with each other sharing their dreams and ambitions, and they learn that they are both very similar actually.

If you think about it, Ace and Kuina were both oppressed by a society that hated them due to the circumstances of their births. Ace being the son of a criminal, and Kuina doing something in a male dominated field. Both struggled with self hatred but eventually found people who loved and supported them. They would both end up respecting each other a whole lot as well. And they would defenetely end up sharing stories about their younger siblings, Ace would warn her about Luffy emerging in a few yeats and Kuina would then tell him about Zoro likely doing the same as well.

But eventually Ace leaves, not before exchanging vivre cards tho. Kuina would keep herself updated on what happenes outside of Wano of course, so she woukd learn about Zoro and Luffy being on the same crew. She is surprised about this coincidence but also extited about the possibility of her and Ace meeting them again and the four of them hanging out togheter. After all they will have catching up to do, she wants to meet Luffy and Zoro has to meet Ace.

Except that never happens. Kuina would helplessly watch as Ace's vivre card disintegrates in her hands, becoming smaller and smaller until it ceases to exist, and the news about Marineford arrive shortly afterwards. Suddentely everything is just awful. One of her best friends in gone and his beloved brother that she hoped she would one day meet has been severely injured and has dissapeared. She can't stop thinking about them, and Zoro. Just how badly he must feel about not being with his captain in that moment. Kuina knows him very well, how hard he can be on hinself. She knows full well how he is hurting just as much as her.

But she made a promise. One with Zoro, and another one with Ace about one day meeting Luffy. So she keeps training, harder than before. She wants to be strong, the strongest swordsman and the strongest person ever for the people that believed in her, but also for herself.

Once Luffy finally arrives at Wano, she embraces him in a hug, being finally able to see the great man she was told about in person. They have a lot of cathing up ti do.

But on a more humorous note (cause this ask got pretty depressing) Ace and Kuina both pulled some fine bitches from this great country of Wano.

HELLO ANON I'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT YOU ALL DAY I AM SO GLAD YOU CAME BACK BECAUSE MY MIND HAS BEEN FILLED WITH HIYOKU ALL DAY (yes that's their shipname now) AND I NEEDED YOU BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!! HEY HEY HEY <333333

I mean, if you take into consideration that Kuina probably moved to Wano the second she was old enough (meaning, idk, say 17) to train (while Zoro went on his own journey too and followed what happens in canon, but his ambition is basically wanting to be the greatest swordsman by having this competition with Kuina yadda yadda) then it sort of makes sense that she and Ace met. I mean, you could easily just say that when Ace arrives she's there too and she's the one trying to protect Tama and the other citizens from Ace. And then it's when Ace shows he's the nicest person ever and they start talking and becoming friends.

Side note -> 17 y/o Kuina moving to Wano and meeting a 21 y/o Hiyori (I think she's 4 years older? I'm awful with numbers maybe not. Because she's technically one year older than Zoro and Zoro's 21 so she'd be 22 now? And Hiyori is 26, right? So 4 years) and having a crush on her and wanting to protect her because she sees the kindness and pain in her that nobody else does?? And she becomes extremely devoted to her and her protection while she trains. It makes me melt. However, I don't know if I want Kuina to know about Hiyori's identity because she told her at some point and Kuina kept it secret and protected her alongside Denjiro or if it's better that Hiyori kept it from her to protect her too and then the whole Wano drama happens and when Kuina finds out, Hiyori feels all guilty for lying to her but she doesn't care because she knows that even if her name was a lie, she has always been honest about her heart to her. (<- poetic devoted lesbian can't let go of her princess). Anyway, getting too carried away with the girls, I'm sorry.

And I- I absolutely love this. I'm sure Kuina would love Ace, and Ace wouldn't stop talking about Luffy to her. And tbh she would be the same about Zoro. They just wouldn't stop saying how bad they want to see them again and how proud they are of them. They'd talk about their dreams and Ace would believe in Kuina's wholeheartedly. He'd say he's waiting for the time in which she becomes the world's greatest swordsman impatiently. He's dying to see it. They both feel a bit left out in the world because of their different situations and they'd get each other so well!! And I can't stop thinking about Ace being like "Oh, yes, I almost died a couple of times. Being a kid in the woods is fun but, uh, fucking hard sometimes" and she's like "Well, at least you didn't fall down some stairs and almost died. That happened to me and Zoro wouldn't stop reminding me it would've been such a ridiculous death for me". Because I just find it funny that she actually almost died but didn't. Funny story to tell.

Then Ace dies, and her hopes of meeting him again are ruined. It's awful. She doesn't want to tell Tama because she keeps waiting for him and it would destroy her. So she keeps it to herself but Hiyori knows something is wrong. She doesn't want to insist if Kuina doesn't want to talk. But it's alright, because Kuina keeps saying things are going to change for the good in a few years, and Hiyori trusts her (swordsman's) words.

Side note² -> I just know they both take care of Toko. Those are her moms. I just know.