#maybe i should start posting the star trek one

[toboldlywrite]

I made the mistake of making Spidersonas of Star Saga characters just for fun and now my brain is drowning in a whole-ass AU

[deakyjoe]

Absolution

Pairing: Obi-Wan Kenobi x Reader (afab, fem)

Category: smut, sex pollen

Summary: Obi-Wan really should have let his curiosity go and avoided that flower.

Warnings: 18+, smut (!!), sex pollen, slight dubcon (because of sex pollen but all consensual), unprotected p in v sex, master kink, slight sub!obi-wan, slight dom!reader, reader talks obi-wan through it basically, suggestions of inappropriate use of a lightsaber, virgin!obi-wan, religious guilt, hints of reader’s past feelings, reader kind of ignores some Jedi rules, kissing, multiple orgasms, overstimulation, a lot of talks of fluids I feel, slight angst I guess, let me know if I missed anything!

Word count: 4.9k

A/N: Happy May the Fourth! Happy Star Wars Day! Wrote an Obi-Wan fic last year so thought I’d keep up the tradition this year as well. It’s not the best thing I’ve ever written, certainly not the best smut, but I did end up rushing it a little to get it posted today so… sorry! This is for @lightwxlker who I told about this over lunch at uni <3 (feel free to read but please never look me in the eye again if you do). Can’t wait to see you later to see The Phantom Menace!!

Consider buying me a coffee :)

Absolution:

(Noun)

Formal release from guilt, obligation, or punishment.

Declaration that a person’s sins have been forgiven.

It felt like you'd been trekking through the dense forest for days. Really, it had only been a few hours. But with no end in sight, and Obi-Wan's continuous promise of almost there, you were convinced that the two of you had been lost for about a week.

The Jedi had told you that you were in search of a hidden community that had answers to some questions that the Council had about... something. You didn't know. You rarely paid attention when Obi-Wan explained these things. As much as you respected him, these briefings started to sound the same after a while. It was the thing he reprimanded you for most often.

"Can we-" You wheezed. "Can we stop for just a minute?"

"Soon." He called over his shoulder simply, pushing aside a leafy branch for the both of you to pass through.

You considered pushing him over, tripping him up maybe, and even just stabbing him with your lightsaber. Just to have a break for a moment. It was unclear how he managed to walk through dense forest for hours on end without even a hint of fatigue peeking through. You envied him for it.

Luckily, your prayers were answered when a clearing appeared. It was small, sheltered by the canopy of trees above you, but it was a good place to stop. You didn't even have to say the word, Obi-Wan already knew what you wanted.

"Fine, rest here for a moment." He sighed, pointing at a rock.

You collapsed quickly, thankful for the brief reprieve, and watched as the Jedi made a slow circle around the clearing. He was inspecting every little thing there was to see. If there was one thing you had in common with the man, it was your curiosity and thirst for knowledge.

"Rather fascinating." He mumbled to himself, ignoring the burning of your stare on his back as he moved, poking at a fungus of some kind with the tip of his finger.

"Be careful. It might be poisonous." You warned, stretching out your legs in front of you.

"I know my living organisms." He replied steadily, pulling up and moving on to the next one.

It was a flower. Rather large, with pinkish petals and an indigo centre extending on from a bright green stem. It looked vaguely familiar to you. You racked your brain, thinking about the botany books you'd spent your spare time reading when Obi-Wan had insisted that you should know more about the planets you were constantly visiting.

Nothing was coming to you. Maybe you hadn't seen it in one of those books. Your head tilted as you watched the Jedi stroke gently at the petals with the backs of his fingers, mumbling about how it felt soft, and something came back to you when the flower seemed to move of its own accord.

"Get back." You shot up from the rock you were previously sitting on and took a quick step towards him.

"It's fine." He insisted, not looking at you - too entranced by the flower as he continued to caress the petals. He didn't know this one. He found it intriguing.

You remembered where you'd seen the flower before. A book hidden deep in the archives, where you ventured when you knew no one was looking, part of a collection of things that the Jedi were not supposed to have interest in.

Your pace picked up as the flower curled in on itself, the fleeting look of disappoint clear on Obi-Wan's face, reaching for his shoulder to wrench him back.

"No! Obi-Wan, stop!"

But it was too late.

As you made contact with his robes to pull him away, the flower blossomed open. A bright cloud of purple pollen burst out and coated the two of you, settling itself over your skin and infiltrating your lungs, and therefore your blood stream, as you breathed it in.

You coughed, scrubbing at yourself to try and get it off. But you knew you were past that.

The Jedi turned to you, surprised to see the panic in your eyes. "It's just flower pollen, nothing a little water won't wash away."

Your voice was shaky as you spoke. "What have you done?"

He frowned and glanced back at the plant. It wasn't one he recognised, granted, but he also hadn't been warned of anything dangerous in this area. So he really wasn't concerned. "I don't understand. What's wrong?"

"It's a flos venerem." You whispered. "We need to find shelter."

As you turned around in a slow circle, trying to decide which way you were more likely to find somewhere to figure everything out, Obi-Wan watched you with a curious gaze.

"And what is a flos venerem?"

You scoffed over your shoulder at him. "Do you ever read?"

You knew it was an unfair question considering the place you'd read about the flower wasn't one he, or any other Jedi, frequented but you were angry and frightened. Angry at him for not listening to your warnings. And frightened for yourself since you knew what the flower was going to do to you.

He looked on as you closed your eyes, feeling out with the Force. "Now is not the time to insult me. Tell me."

You whirled on him. "It's an aphrodisiac. A powerful one. And if we don't find shelter soon then you're going to be doing some strange things to these trees."

Obi-Wan frowned, puzzled by what you were saying. "Is there a cure?"

You laughed humourlessly, turning away from him again. "Is there a cure? Is there a cure, he asks. Ha!"

"An antidote?"

"No, there's no antidote." You hissed.

The effects of the pollen were already weighing on you. You imagined Obi-Wan was also feeling something as well, just unaware of it. At least you knew what you were supposed to be feeling. The Jedi Knight had no idea.

Your mouth felt dry, like sand on your tongue, and your skin was hot to the touch. A dull headache was forming at the base of your skull too and you knew these sensations would only get worse if you didn't do what the flower wanted you to. There really was only one way to fix it. But you couldn't find it in yourself to tell your companion the solution. You were ignoring the heavy feeling in the base of your abdomen.

Sensing your apprehension wasn't overstated, Obi-Wan pointed back in the direction you'd come from. "There was a cave a little while ago. We can go there and you can tell me more about this... aphrodisiac flower."

You only nodded, lacking the strength to tell him that you wouldn't be able to listen to his voice out of fear of what bodily responses that would cause in you. Your existing attraction to Obi-Wan would only be increased by the influence of the plant. And you were scared what you'd do, or what you'd suggest, to ease the feelings.

You started marching in the direction the two of you had come from, jumping away from Obi-Wan as he fell into step beside you and his shoulder brushed yours.

"Keep- keep your distance for a while." You muttered, pushing away the lick of heat that had shot through you at his proximity.

He frowned back at you, feeling bad for making you so clearly uncomfortable. "My apologies."

"It's okay. I'm just-" You cut yourself off with a groan.

Obi-Wan's stomach lurched at the sound. "You're just what?"

"The flower is making it difficult to be next to you." You turned your head away from him, desperately trying to breathe in the clean forest air and nothing else. But all you could smell was him. The scent was so strong that you could practically taste him, his skin, and it was making your mouth water.

"You're already feeling the effects of the flower?" He hummed, pondering. "I feel nothing so far."

It wasn't true. But he was completely unaware of what he was feeling. He put the dry mouth and headache down to minor exhaustion, the hike through the forest finally catching up with him. And the stirring he was feeling... down below was foreign. The Jedi secretly believed that maybe he was immune to the flower's influence.

He was severely wrong.

You glanced back at him, instantly looking away when you caught his wide-eyed gaze. His eyes were so blue, so familiar.

You marched ahead of him, ignoring his quiet protests as you urgently sought out the cave. It came into sights quickly and your pace picked up, practically running towards it now. When you reached it, you discarded your top layer of robes, the heat your body was producing making it feel as if you were melting, and left your lightsaber by the entrance to the stone shelter. You feared what you may do with it when the flower's effects got even worse.

Obi-Wan followed closely behind you and watched with curious attention at your actions, slightly puzzled when you made your way towards the back of the cave and sat down facing the wall.

"Sit over there." You pointed over your shoulder to a spot far away from yourself. "I need to think."

"Trying to remember an antidote?" He asked, wondering what there possibly was to think about right now. And without his help as well.

"Sure." You sighed, closing your eyes as you took a deep breath. You weren't thinking about an antidote since you knew there wasn't one. You were considering your options. Even though you knew they were limited. Very limited.

He trusted your word however, which was mildly foolish of him, and took a seat where you'd instructed him to do so. He kept his gaze on you, fixated on the back of your head, as he observed your breathing pick up and then slow back down several times of the course of a few minutes.

What Obi-Wan failed to notice was how his breathing was in tune with yours, increasing when yours did and lowering when yours did.

It didn't escape him though when the flower's influence started to manipulate his body even more. The dry mouth, dull headache, rapid heartbeat, and hardened dick were becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. And Obi-Wan couldn't stay in denial for much longer.

So he called out your name.

Big mistake.

You jumped at the sound, having to bite your tongue to prevent noise slipping from your lips, and glanced at him over your shoulder."Yes?"

"I believe the flower is finally setting in." He decided that was the best way to put it and not that the sight of you was making him think things he hadn't even considered since he was a lot younger.

You looked at him silently for a second too long, eyes flicking downwards before moving back up to meet his again. "Meaning?"

His brows creased for a moment. "You know."

You did. So you turned back towards the wall and stared at it. "I'm thinking really hard about it, okay? I'll work something out."

Lies.

Time progressed slowly, moving at a sluggish pace that had you wanting to claw your way out of the cave in temporary insanity, and you could hear Obi-Wan's condition growing steadily worse by the minute.

You were finding it a lot easier than him to control yourself, probably due to your more extensive knowledge on the subject of simple carnal pleasure. But Obi-Wan was losing it.

You kept your eyes focused on the stone in front of you, desperately trying to ignore the sounds that Obi-Wan was making behind you. The breathless whimpers that were leaving his mouth were heavenly to your ears, creating a pulse that shook through your body regularly. Despite the sounds making you feel good, it was getting harder and harder to stop yourself from giving in and crawling over to him. Especially since you could hear him tearing off at least one layer of his clothing.

"Obi-Wan, please be quiet." You whispered, just loud enough for him to hear.

To the Jedi your voice sounded husky, tempting almost. "I cannot help it. Please help me."

His voice was desperate, almost whiny, as he begged you for some sort of assistance. If only he knew what that assistance was.

You squeezed your eyes closed, resting your face in your hands. "I'm trying."

It was a lie. You knew that nothing could be done. The passage from the book you'd read about the flower had been very clear. Death was inevitable. Unless you engaged with someone... intimately.

It was the only method that would get your bodily reactions to calm down. If not, the next few days would be painful for the both of you. You'd be extremely aroused the whole time, heart racing at a million beats per minute, sweat would pour out of you and cause severe dehydration that would be impossible to remedy, and finally your body would give up from the sheer exhaustion of trying to handle it all. Then, you'd drop dead.

Just how exactly were you supposed to voice that to Obi-Wan, the man who'd boasted about his ability to follow the Order's rules for years, that the only way for the both of you to survive this was to sleep together? And how were you supposed to recover from possibly finally having the man you'd wanted for so long for just one night and then never again?

"I can sense that you're keeping something from me."

Your head snapped up at his statement. He was correct, sure, but you hadn't expected him to pick up on it in his state.

So you turned around to look at him, legs crossed in front of you and back against the wall to keep yourself as far from him as possible.

"There is one solution that I know of." You confessed, still thinking of a way to tell him.

"Just tell me. I know it's troubling you. It's okay." Obi-Wan's tone was soft and comforting.

You took a deep breath in. "You won't like it."

"Do we have a choice?"

You let the breath out again. "Death."

He released a tired and humourless chuckle. "I can assure you that I'll prefer whatever solution you have to death. So tell me."

You debated what words would spook the Jedi less. Were you clinical and informative? Or soft and subtle? The sweat dripping from his temple, begging to be licked away by the tip of your tongue, was telling you to be harsh and raw with him.

Your gaze fixed on his mouth. "We have to have sex, Obi-Wan. Multiple times probably." The last part was added on for emphasis, meant to draw a reaction out of him.

He gave it to you. His already flushed cheeks reddened some more, eyes darting away from yours momentarily. It's not that the antidote was unexpected, he figured that it would lead somewhere like this considering the two of you had been contaminated by an aphrodisiac, but he thought maybe that there would be another solution. Or that you'd at least beat around the bush a little more.

Obi-Wan didn't know how to tell you that he'd never done something like that before so wouldn't even know where to start.

Little did he know that you were already well aware of that fact.

"I'll guide you through it." You paused. "But once we get started I don't think you'll need much guidance. The effects of the pollen will probably lead you."

His eyes snapped back to you, a frown pinching between them. "And what do you know of it?"

"Obi-Wan..." You mumbled, tilting your head down slightly to give him a meaningful look.

He didn't look thrilled at the notion.

You scoffed, annoyance bubbling at his obvious judgement. "We all have a past."

He knew what you meant. Sure, everyone had a past. He just didn't realise you had that sort of past. Still, he realised he had no place to pass judgement against you.

Heat pulsed between your thighs at the sudden wide-eyed apologetic look he was giving you. A groan rumbled in your chest and you squeezed your eyes shut.

"I see that this is hard for you." He whispered and you attempted to hold back a laugh thinking that this probably wasn't the only thing that was hard. "So, how about you come over here and... show me what we have to do."

You looked back at him, surprised by the boldness he was showing. Yes, he wasn't a shy man by any means but you thought he'd have been a bit less confident in this situation. Or maybe the whole thing would just be so meaningless to him that he thought it'd be easy.

Obi-Wan could feel random muscles in his body clenching as you stared at him. He'd never felt like this before. He'd always known that you were beautiful, it was impossible to ignore, but he'd never thought much else of it. But now? He couldn't do anything else apart from think about it.

You slowly pushed yourself up from your seated position and fell onto your hands and knees, too tense to stand up, and made your way towards him steadily. He was surprised to find himself practically buzzing at the sight of you crawling towards him, a ravenous look on your face. You stopped about a foot in front of him, looking up into his eyes through your eyelashes.

A hand reached out for you.

You took it.

With his help, you settled yourself over Obi-Wan's lap, a leg either side of his thighs so you straddled him. You didn't let your weight rest on him just yet, wanting to check in quickly to make sure he was okay. It was taking everything in your power not to start touching him all over despite your overactive brain basically screaming at you to do so.

His eyes moved rapidly, taking you in as he searched across your body. A hand landed on either of your hips, encouraging you to move closer to him. So you did, chest pushing slightly against his and weight pressing into his lap as you sat down. The both of you let out a sigh at the contact, pain eased for just a few moments.

It was then that you noticed you'd sat on something extremely hard.

"Is that a lightsaber in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" You chuckled, about to reach down to remove the weapon from the inside of his robes.

But Obi-Wan's eyes flickered over your shoulder to somewhere behind you. Slowly, you turned to see what he was looking out, a small pinch between your eyebrows, and saw where you'd discarded your own lightsaber earlier. What you were surprised to find was his lightsaber resting up against a rock beside yours.

"Oh." You croaked and looked back at him, eyes shooting to his crotch for a brief moment. "You are just happy to see me."

"The flower." He grumbled lowly.

Your heart fell momentarily, your face along with it, before you recovered and looked downwards towards his chest. "Right, of course."

Realising he'd made a fatal mistake, Obi-Wan placed a finger under your chin and tilted your head up to make eye contact again. "A combined effect of the flower and... you."

Your mouth dropped open for a second, dazed by his statement, before a smile blossomed along your face. "There was one thing I forgot to mention."

"And what was that?" His eyes were fixed on your mouth now.

"The flower's effects are stronger and fast acting if you are already attracted to the person you're with at the time of exposure." You leaned towards him closer, the tips of your noses brushing against each other. "I expected to feel the influence at least an hour or two before you did, Master."

A soft sound, somewhere between a moan and a whine, escaped his lips at the use of the title. It surprised you, you hadn't thought he'd be into that kind of thing. You didn't give him a chance to give you a real response though, the noise he'd just made finally pushing you over the edge.

You cupped his face in your hands and kissed him, thumbs swiping over his cheeks to wipe the purple pollen away. He let out another sound at that, this one more shocked, but equally as unrestrained. Your mouth opened just in time to catch it and swallow it against your own moan at finally feeling his lips melding with yours.

Usually, in the past, you’d have some sense of patience in this situation. But it’s like the feeling of his skin under your palms and his lips against yours, your tongue in his mouth, sent the pollen vibrating in your bloodstream. And before you knew it, your hands were tearing at his clothes, absolutely desperate to get them off.

And while Obi-Wan was a little more hesitant than you, inexperience slowing him down, once he felt how eager you were he could only join in on the action. His hands were soft, almost silky, like they hadn’t ever seen a day of hard labour in his life, and they sent warm bursts of electricity through you as they slid against your skin.

All barriers between you were removed in less than a minute, although time seemed to be flying now that you’d actually gotten beyond just staring at each other and ignoring all feelings your body had been screaming at you to address.

“Do you know what comes next, Master?” You questioned, wondering how out of practice he really was.

Obi-Wan seemed to pause, taking a long thought, before saying anything. “I’ve never done this before.”

“I know.” You said and he seemed both embarrassed and surprised. “That’s not what I was asking. Do you know what happens?”

“I’ve heard things.” He admitted slowly.

Up until this point you’d been trying to avoid looking down at his naked body. Sure, the two of you had been pretty enthusiastic in taking the other’s clothes off but neither of you had verbally stated what you were comfortable with actually doing. That didn’t mean you couldn’t feel every inch of him pressing against you though. Somehow in the tumble of robe removal, you’d slid forward on his lap which had caused your torsos to connect. And you hadn’t bothered to move back again.

You searched his face for any sign of discomfort, finding none. “Can I touch you?”

He sputtered. “You already are.”

“No-“ You took a deep breath. “Can I touch you… down there?”

You were hesitant to say certain words to him, cringing at just the thought of them coming out of your mouth and entering his ears. You shouldn’t be shy about this, having done this countless times before. But now you were doing it with Obi-Wan, someone you admired with the deepest affection, it felt different. A good different but different nonetheless.

“Oh.” The flush he’d been sporting across his face stretched to meet the tip of his ears and you reached up to tuck some hair back away from them. “Yes, you can.”

You could see that the lust the flower caused had taken over all rational thought as his irises, usually so blue and bright, had been consumed by his pupils dilating. Was this a good idea, you silently wondered? Did he truly want this? Or was the flos venerem speaking for him?

Before you had the chance to ponder over that even more, the animal instincts in your brain took over and your hand was wrapping around his, pretty sizeable, cock.

He hissed at the sensation of your warm palm touching him and you observed his reaction with hungry curiosity. You liked the way his eyes fluttered closed and his teeth sunk into his bottom lip, the way his head snapped back against the cave wall and he didn’t even seem to notice that it should’ve hurt. He was too absorbed in the pleasurable way that you were touching him.

You were touching him.

Obi-Wan felt as if he were flying amongst the stars.

Your hand slid up and down his length, taking in every minor reaction he gave you to see what he liked. The answer was: he liked all of it. No matter the pace of your strokes, the pressure of your squeeze, or the angle of the twist, Obi-Wan revelled in it all.

Every sound he made caused what felt like a flood to pour from between your thighs, skin prickling with flames of desire. You increased the speed of the pumps against his shaft, feeling him twitch in your hand. Obi-Wan started babbling to himself, something you couldn’t quite understand but realised were certainly happy mumblings. It didn’t take much more until he was orgasming, cum spurting out of him in hot ropes and coating both of your stomachs.

You weren’t surprised to see that he remained hard. At least the botany books hadn’t lied to you about the multiple times thing.

“Need you inside me now, Obi-Wan.” You whispered, pleased when his eyes seemed to spark with something akin to excitement. Pushing yourself up slightly, you took him in your hand again and aligned him with your entrance. Notching him against you, you inched down onto him slowly, feeling your hips stutter willing you to go faster, and watched his face scrunch up in pleasure.

“Does that feel good?” You asked despite knowing the answer. You just wanted to hear him say something, even a noise of approval would work for you.

He nodded rapidly and whined. “Yes, yes.”

Pleasure rocketed up your spine, walls clenching around him and he whimpered again. His hips bucked up underneath you and your eyes rolled back in your head.

He did it again.

You came.

A shocked laugh escaped your throat as the orgasm rippled through. You hadn’t realised it would be that easy but given that you’d denied yourself any friction and stimulation for way too long considering the situation you were in, it only made sense.

Obi-Wan’s eyes widened. “Did you just-?”

“Yes.” You sighed and rocked your hips against his, thighs still trembling with the aftershock.

“Stars-“ He gasped, head falling forward to bury his face in your neck. You smiled at the feeling of his beard scratching against your skin and moved faster.

Time became a haze, multiple orgasms rolled into a blur, and before you know it you felt like you couldn’t move anymore. Your legs ached, your body dripped with sweat and your breathing was shaky and uneven.

But you were determined for one more.

Obi-Wan gasped about it being too much but couldn’t stop himself from continuing to thrust up underneath you. Which you were thankful for considering you could feel your thighs cramping up and barely managing to support your weight. His arms locked around you, trapping you against him, as he pounded into you urgently like he was chasing something. He was really. And you could understand.

“Come on, Master, just one more.” You murmured against his temple.

It took only those words of encouragement for Obi-Wan to spill inside you once again, the feeling of that setting you off as well. And finally the two of you relaxed, the pollen’s effects wearing away.

The two of you sat against each other breathless for a moment before you eased up off of him and settled beside him. He immediately collapsed against you, sliding down until his head met your lap. You placed a hand in his hair as his breathing slowed down to a normal pace.

Now that the high had passed, guilt was setting in.

“What have I done?” Obi-Wan croaked, burying his face against your thighs.

You froze, knowing you should be feeling this same shame but not finding it in yourself to care. At least not right now. “It’s okay.”

“No!” He almost wailed. “I broke- I broke rules. Sacred Jedi code.”

“You had no choice. It was either that or death.” Tears stung at the backs of your eyeballs, willing yourself not to crack and break down. He needed you to be strong. “There was no other way.”

He knew you were right, a small seed of relief buried deep in his chest. He didn’t have another choice. But then there was another matter…

You continued to try to make him feel better. "The council will forgive you, Obi-Wan. It couldn't have been helped."

The Jedi could only nod in reply. That wasn't what worried him anymore, your logical argument had been enough to reassure him of that. What did worry him is how much he wanted it to happen again.

He glanced up at you. "What about you? Can you forgive me?"

You paused, hand stilling against the side of his head. "There's nothing to be forgiven."

"Please." He whispered against your skin. "Please just-"

It hurt you to hear the break in his voice. A man, usually so confident, reduced to this. All because of something out of his control.

You took a deep breath, stared straight ahead at the cave wall opposite you, tears in your eyes and a hand combing through his hair. "I forgive you, Obi-Wan."

A/N: I listened to Star Wars ambience on YouTube as I wrote most of this. Hope you enjoyed!

[thedexcat]

VotV Speculation Megapost

(For posterity's sake, the latest major release is 0.8) (Also, buckle in. This post is a long one.) (Edit 9/20/24: Added Addendum 1) (Edit 10/14/24: Added Addendum 2) It should be extremely obvious, but spoilers ahead.

As we all know, Voices of the Void has a "story breadcrumbs" approach to its plot. Combine that with its alpha status, and we're left with a lack of hard answers. However, some pieces did seem to click into place. This is far from anything definitive, but here are some of the conclusions I've drawn. Let's start with everybody's favorite:

Part 1: The Arirals

god i want one to hold me like that

You know em. You love em. Like 90% of the fanart is about them. But the question is... what the hell are they doing here? Judging by the fact that they construct a campsite in the facility, they clearly expect to be here for a while. A common interpretation I hear from people is that the ones out in the facility are either political refugees, or just some sort of benign "tourist group". I've personally come to a different conclusion. Let's consider what they brought with them.

Exhibit A: The weapon (left)

The weapon they drop around Day 24 is no mere Star Trek phaser. If you drop it in the main building, pretty much EVERYTHING in the building is going to be sent flying from the resulting blast. Not only that, but the "human-wieldable" version that can be unlocked for the sandbox mode has one hell of a fire rate. Something tells me that there's no way in hell this thing is a civilian-grade weapon. And, as established in a previous post of mine, they're kitted out in full-body armored stealth suits.

Exhibit B: The stealth suit (Kerf dutifully remains there for scale)

These aren't tourists or runaways. They're goddamn Black Ops. But you're probably asking, "If that's what they are, then why do they have nothing better to do than to steal shrimp and prank you?" Don't worry, I'll get to that later. Eventually. Maybe.

For now, let's move on to a third thing of theirs: The letter to Kel.

Exhibit C: Esraniki's Letter (D-, see me after english class)

This is the letter left at the Ariral camp if you have maxxed reputation with them. There's one line in particular that's always stood out to me. "GET WE HOME YOU GET DEATH AVOID" So... why can't they go home? Let's review: A: They have perfectly functional spacecraft parked right behind you. Even if they were broken, surely some random Pre-FTL primitive wouldn't be able to help with a mechanical failure in their technology. Hell, they buzz you at the radio tower with one. So there seems to be nothing physically stopping them from leaving. B: They've come kitted out with some serious weapons and armor C: Something in the facility is drawing the attention of all manner of extraterrestrials (and ghosts and demons. are 'metaterrestrials' a good word for them?) So my take? They're monitoring something, waiting for an opportunity to act upon it. (In keeping with the Patch Note naming convention, I will be calling this unknown something "The Threat") Not only that, this 'opportunity' may only open up with the assistance of a human. But what could Dr. Kel possibly do that an Ariral couldn't? Well, I can think of one thing he can do better... Interface with human technology.

Exhibit D: Ariral Communique (quality: shit) Computer technology isn't some universal constant. You can't make a program and expect it to magically run on alien technology with an unknown architecture. This ain't Independence Day. The fact that the Arirals barely managed to send a heavily-garbled message to Kel's computer, quite frankly, speaks of an extreme amount of effort on their part. And it was all just to say the word "OUTSIDE".

If The Threat has some ties to human technology, then perhaps Kel actually could be more qualified to deal with it than the Ariral Black Ops. Hmm... An unknown threat with ties to human technology. Could it possibly involve...

Part 2: The Incredibly Suspicious Bunker

"I left a 'Do not enter' note on the floor. That'll stop people from investigating!" This damn thing is quite obviously, as TVtropes would put it, The Very Definitely Final Dungeon. It is my firm belief that this is what the Arirals were sent to monitor, and where The Threat can be found. But we can't really get much further in than a few doors. So... what's in there? An easy assumption to make is that it's some sort of fallout/storm shelter. But something nearby might tell a different story...

Exhibit E: *squints* ...Liberty Prime? If you take a metal detector over to the bunker entrance, you'll quickly discover a buried drive nearby. The image you just saw is its contents. It's clear that something is being depicted here. What exactly it is, well, that's hard to say. but if you look at that teeny tiny thing at the top, you'll see something that looks like the Alpha base and its radio tower

oh god we're getting into crusty duende video territory now

What this says to me is that there is a colossal something underneath the base. Some sort of mega-facility? Unnatural cave formations? Something else entirely? Or I could be looking at it entirely wrong. But the point is, it's very likely that something extremely expansive is down there.

What if we could just take a peek a liiiittle bit further in? Well, there is ONE way...

Exhibit F: The Least Cursed Elevator in Horror Fiction

Roughly around 3:33 each night, there is a chance that a camera inside the bunker will become active. It's monitoring what appears to be a heavy-duty elevator coated in blood. An elevator like this would also indicate something buried deep underneath the base. Say, this elevator seems familiar...

Exhibit G: Monique Santificer's Extremely Ominous Foreshadowing

...Huh. I'm sure that only means good things. So we have a Hellivator and evidence that there's some place that you'd need a Hellivator to get to. Are there any other clues around? Well, there's that handy instruction book on robotics. You can make your own little friend!

POV: You're 5'11 and she's 6'0 And... Oh! looking back at that camera, it looks like someone else made their... their own... friend...

Exhibit H: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA- ...I don't think they followed the instructions to the letter. So it seems the people in the bunker were working on combining robots and, er, 'biomass'. I don't think our meaty friend here is The Threat itself, but I do believe that it is some aspect of it, or at least a result of it. And whatever The Threat is, it seems to be "leaking" out of the bunker. After all, this toothy bot here seems to have little siblings burrowing out from underground!

Exhibit I: should start running Kerfus. Kerfur. Whatever name they have, they love you! Such a shame that the flesh inhabiting their chassis does not.

they seriously recalled the ++ models over a little thing like this, smh Something deep underground, cursed flesh, and occult sigils. Hmm. Things would tie together neatly if there were, say, some sort of demon around associated with flesh and dark depths.

Part 3: Furfur (and conclusions)

"I WATCH YOU SHIT AT NIGHT" The Great Earl of Hell and raw flesh afficianato, it's Furfur! Demonology refers to him as a liar, but also a teacher of secrets. And he seems to really really like flesh. Not bones, though. He's always leaving those behind.

They say that if you burn an offering of flesh at his altar, he'll give you a marketable Furfur plushie!

The children who survived loved them! Interestingly, there's a certain location connected to Furfur: The bottom of the well. If you pass out at the bottom of the well, you will end up in a (dream of a?) mysterious structure.

Exhibit J: all shall be well and all manner of thing shall be well

A few things of note in this place: -More demonic sigils -The only 'exit' is a tunnel leading upward with a broken ladder. And even if you could reach up there, Furfur's giant skull-face is blocking the way. -A unique knife, which when examined in the inventory, says that it was found "deep underground".

How very interesting that this flesh-loving demon has his own little place down in the depths of the earth. And you say the bunker reaching downwards has been spawning horrific robot-flesh amalgamations? Robots that are specifically of human design?

Well then. So here's what I think is going down:

no i'm not crazy it's invisible alien catgirls versus demon cyborgs you weren't listening were you?

-Some scientists from before did a Very Bad Thing in the bunker depths. If I had to venture a guess, it's that they bargained with Furfur for secrets of the flesh, perhaps in the pursuit of cybernetics, biocomputers, or somesuch. This resulted in the Very Bad Thing happening, thus creating The Threat. -The Threat was contained to some extent, but is starting to noticeably leak out. It is also severe enough to have drawn extraterrestrial attention. -The Arirals have sent a squad to monitor the situation and act if necessary. Seeing as there's been no urgent need to act as of yet, they are bored out of their skulls and taking it out on you. -The fact that the bunker hasn't been blown up by catgirl black ops already says to me that the situation down there is delicate, and a 'guns-blazing' approach would be inadvisable. Not only that, but The Threat seems to be tied to technology they have little knowledge of. They would most likely need outside assistance if they want a 'clean' resolution to the problem. -And wouldn't you know it? Right there in the facility is some nerdy, crusty, half-crazed twink that seems to be very proficient in handling human technology. How very convenient.

"average person eats 3 roaches a year" factoid actually just statistical error. Dr. Kel, who-

That's how I think this ties together, personally. Of course, there's always unaccounted for 'loose ends' that may or may not be tied to the Bunker Conspiracy (the rozital pit in particular has been bugging me with its vagueness). Plus there's always the chance that I misinterpreted things like a dumbass. There were a few other smaller things I wanted to cover, but my fingers hurt from typing, and my ability to hyperfixate has its limits. And sorry if the screengrabs are a bit mismatched, I've already spent hours on this post without having to get screenshots from the game myself. If anyone actually read through this monstrosity of a post, congratulations! If you're as deeply brainrotted as I am, feel free to point out the reasons I'm dumb and wrong :)

Addendum 1: Meta Aspects

no, not this. wrong place. wrong time.

Every now and then I hear talk of lore clarifications in Discord servers, Google Docs, etc. Will I be covering these?

(source) The reason? I want to give my impressions based purely on the work as published. Death of the Author and whatnot. The furthest I'll reach 'outside' the games are those ambiguous little teasers on YouTube, which you don't have to be in any 'specific server' or anything to see.

haha what if funni meme robot was irreversibly corrupted by the horrors?

Think of it as me giving a form of feedback on how the game is presented as an isolated work. Anyway, I'll be posting another Addendum later, connecting more demon stuff to the bunker. Fun! One thing I intend to investigate between then and now is a rumor of a very poorly documented... item interaction. As a little preview, consider this note.

It seems, in my pursuit of knowledge regarding a mysterious bunker in an incomplete videogame story, I find myself investigating a skeletal entity of ambiguous origin described as having a single glowing eye. God. Fucking. Dammit. Every time with this shit.

This always seems to happen whenever the protagonist is bullied by tall monstergirls

Addendum 2: Classified

Progress on my investigation has been slow due to a combination of poor RNG and real-life stuff. Fun fact: I've never encountered the fossilhound in my many months of playing, and it looks like that won't change anytime soon!

I'll get you one day, ya boney bastard. In the meantime, it seems that someone has leaked classified pokemon data communications from our employers...

And just who do we encounter within the first few weeks?

Our classified documents are their vacation photos

So it seems that at the very least, our employers seem to be aware of the Arirals. So to what end do they want to draw them out? And why would the Arirals show any particular interest in a human presence in this facility specifically?

They clearly seem to be hiding their presence from the world at large with their cloaking ships and whatnot, but they seem almost eager to grab the attention of anyone working at this particular site.

And, as everyone already knows, Arirals are certified Goobers. They form like 3/5ths of the Counsel of Goobers*. The ones we encounter at the very least are very much not what our employers expect to kill us. So our employers are also aware of the existence of some other threat, possibly even THE Threat. *the remaining members are Kerfuses and Dinguses

Truly an incomprehensible menace from beyond the stars. (source)

Personally, I feel like this all feeds back into my previous thoughts. There is clearly a Threat at this location, and the Arirals probably believe that they may need human assistance to do something here. Or maybe I'm just biased towards whatever random thoughts got cooked up in my head.

Anyway, hopefully next time I'll be back with reports of yanking the lifecrystal out from the Fossilhound's head and shoving it up its ass. I am so, SO sick of trying to get that thing to show up.

[princesscolumbia]

Star Trek Captains, A Review and Categorization

Star Trek is a show about a Neo-military organization that has rank structures, ships, and fights wars, so naturally there's plenty of captains to talk about, but for this post I'll be highlighting specifically the main cast captains, in something resembling chronological order. (But, I mean, this is Star Trek, so even that's kinda up in the air)

Captain Archer

That Guy who had to hand crank the warp engine up-hill both ways in the blinding ion storm. We don't need no stinkin' Prime Directive! Remember The Alamo Pearl Harbor 9/11 Florida! But...uh, maybe don't be dicks about it, not everyone who looks like the ones responsible for that thing we're never going to forget actually wants us dead. Got transformed into an alien, got possessed by another alien, slept with a couple more. Never got pregnant, though (that was his chief engineer)

Scorecard

Ships commanded: 1

Wars started: 0

Wars ended: 3

Times on screen naked: 1

Nazi facilities destroyed: 1

Category: Grampa

Captain Pike

Midlife crisis? What midlife crisis? Everything's fiiiiine. Now eat something, it'll make you feel better. I'm not mad, I'm just disappointed. Number One, don't tell me I can't adopt more kids, I don't care that they're from the future they're mine now. Besides, we've already got a whole ship-full, what's two more?

Scorecard

Ships commanded: 2

Violations of the Temporal Prime Directive: -3 (yes, it's an irrational number, we're talking time travel, people!)

Musical Numbers Participated While On Duty: 3

Hair: Really Great

Category: Dad (or DILF if you swing that way)

Captain Georgiou

You will be captain when you can snatch the stone from my hand.

Scorecard

Ships commanded: 1

Protege's who required a redemption arc: 1

Awesomeness: Transcendent

Category: Gone too soon, also, MILF who can kick your ass

(Edit: Courtesy of @cheer-me-up-scotty for pointing out an oversite on my part)

Captain Burnham

Cosplays as a Vulcan 'cause she's jealous of her adoptive brother. Accurately called an audience-stand-in-self-insert-mary-sue (shut up, Star Trek fandom invented the Mary Sue, it was a term coined by women fans, so shut up!), but by season 2 she actually gets interesting.

Scorecard

Mommy Issues: Has a subscription

Moms: 4

PTSD inducing life events: Like, all of them

Ships commanded: 3

Mutinies led failed: 1

Category: That One Cousin who married surprisingly well and made something of herself in spite of all expectations

Captain Kirk

Golden retriever energy, would be the Useless Bisexual Himbo if he didn't have so much game. Probably smarter than he lets on. Polyamory King and certified Alien Fucker. Boyfriend is a half-space-elf, main sometimes-girlfriend will go on to create the deadliest super-weapon ever built by humans by accident.

Scorecard

Number of Klingon Bounties on his head: [CLASSIFIED]

Number of women he's slept with: [CLASSIFIED]

Nazi regimes toppled: 1

Number of times he should have had a test that determines if you can stick your dick in it that got named after an upstart from that other science fiction show instead: 1

Ships Commanded: 3

Ships He's Stolen: 3

Category: Slut(affectionate)

Captain Kirk (the other one)

Golden Retriever that got left behind when his family moved away and had to lead a ragtag team of a crotchety older dog and a wet cat on a journey...

No, wait, hold on...

Right! That's the one!

Scorecard

Times he should have been kicked out of Starfleet: At least 4

Ships commanded: 3

Ground transport destroyed: 2 (that we know of)

Number of middle fingers given to Admiralty: 2

Category: Bad Boy

Captain Picard

You know that guy who you see going to the library all the time and always seems to have his nose in a book and always seems to be telling people off for breaking the rules and doing dangerous shit? You'd never know it but he used to be That Guy in college who got, like, ALL the girls and is going to be the Hot Grampa that you don't know how he has that much game, but he got it.

Scorecard

Ships lost in the line of duty: 2

Number of times he married and then estranged his best friend's wife who named their son after her dead first husband: 1

Number of toxic omnipotent and omniscient boyfriends who are obsessed with him and spends their spare time playing with ponies: 1

Category: Inexplicable Sexyman

Captain Badass Sisko

The Cool Dad with baggage. He's got game, but he's got priorities as well, and DON'T mess with his son or you won't even exist anymore to regret it. BLM before it was cool. Led a civil rights riot two centuries before he was born. Space Jesus who can make the best jambalaya you've ever had. Fought and won a war, punched a god, then became one.

Scorecard

Civilizations saved: 4

Native Cultures Treated With the Respect They Deserve: Many

Times He Bent the Rules so his CMO could get some nookie from a Cardasian spy plain, simple tailor: The counter broke

Successful black-ops assassinations completed: 1

Category: BAMF

Captain Janeway

THE single most decorated captain in Starfleet history. Successfully dropped the hammer on dozens of petty tyrants, oppressive regimes, roaming mass murderers, and the Borg. What Prime Directive? Your Mom. Also, probably slept with your mom, that's how much she is the Domme-est of Dommes. She told the Borg to use the safe word...and they DID!

Scorecard

Borg Daughters: 1

Times she told the Borg to step off: 3 (or 4...or 5? Honestly, with the time travel shenanigans it's hard to know for sure)

Nazis she's personally shot: 1

Category: Mistress, but it's "Ma'am" to you

Captain Freeman

She's angry AND disappointed! She's just as good as all the other captains in the fleet, and the good ones know it, but all the rest? They see "cali class" and assume all they're good for is the jobs nobody else wants. But jokes on them, because thanks to that attitude her crew are the flippin' Jacks and Jills of all trades and are more capable of fixing AND fucking AND "fucking" shit up than damn near anyone else!

Scorecard

Times the ship has nearly been destroyed but she and her crew got through it: ...uh...how many episodes are there? And then there's the times that get casual mentions that we never get the details on!

Daughters who should probably be captains now if they were at least a LITTLE more respectful and didn't actively try to piss off Admirals: 1

Times the Cerritos has had to be rebuilt to the point it might as well be called "The Ship of Cerritos Problem": At least 4

Category: Your mom...get back here, I'M NOT DONE TALKING TO YOU!

Captain R'El

Cinnamon Roll, just let m'boy into Starfleet! He just wants a home and a family! I'd like to see full-grown captains who can keep up with half of what this Best Boy is capable of!

Scorecard

Number of species his genetic code is made up of: All of 'em. Even the GODDAMN Q!

Number of Janeways he impressed the socks off of: 2

Quality of his Janeway impression: Bad

Number of Ferengi he out-Ferengi'd: 1

Nazis punched: Give him time...

Category: Teenage Boy Who's NOT GOING THROUGH A PHASE, MOM!

Should I do Captains Shaw and Seven? How about Alternate Timeline Tripp or Future Chakotay? (Going too far down that rabbit hole will eventually lead to Imperial Kirk and Captain Spock from the movies.) Let me know in the comments.

Next Post in this series

[hyuuukais]

⋆₊‧⁺˖⋆˚.⋆ ͙͘͡★ LOOK UP TO THE STARS

pairing ▪︎ han jisung x fem reader

synopsis ▪︎ sent out on a mission to a neighbouring QZ that's gone radio silent, y/n falls into the hands of a post-rebellion group after things go terribly wrong. giving up on rejoining her squad, she joins the group on a trek to find a missing member, the group leader's sister. what's supposed to be a not-so-simple trip out and back to their base becomes a one-way ticket to the end of everything they know.

warnings ▪︎ general, amputation, slight inappropriate touching on reader nearing end, yn and another character get into an argument where her insecurities are used against her harshly

MASTERLIST | PREVIOUS | NEXT

CHAPTER FIVE ▪︎ LET ME BE OKAY AGAIN (8.4k)

Infected fill the emergency wing, still in place with twitching bodies and emitting low groans and cries. A lot of them have their heads hanging down, swaying slightly with light jolts upward. They don't appear to be aware of their surroundings, not even sparing a glance at the door as it opens. Some lie in emergency beds, every single one full, their bodies sticking to the beds unmoving. Dark veins creep up their necks and arms, any limb visible to the eye; you assume they've been here since the outbreak, so far gone they're dormant. Sneaking though should be easy enough, that is, as long as you're able to maneuver through the narrow passages their bodies create.

"Everyone knows the drill. Stay low, stay quiet, and stick together." Chan looks everyone over. "Seungmin, you stay here. With your leg, you won't be able to move as fast."

"I'll be fine-"

"No, he's right," Felix cuts him off. "A wound that fresh could get infected easily. Maybe you can stay and help Jisung and Chaerry get in?"

Seungmin grumbles but agrees to stay behind, moving to an area with better cover in case soldiers or infected come stumbling around. Following Chan, you move in. Glass crunches underneath your feet and you pause, but no one is alerted. The infected closest to you makes a kind of whine, high-pitched and long. You keep going and its hand brushes against your shoulder lightly. Fingers slide over the back of your neck, but drop moments later, and you can breath again. You can't imagine how lonely it must be.

As you move past the beds, you can see better now how the infected are hooked up to IVs, syringes and bandages making a mess all over the floor. You notice some of the infected are doctors and nurses as well as patients, their blue scrubs torn and dirty from both caring for the hungry patients and from turning themselves. In front of you, Hyunjin slips on a long, plastic tube, barely catching himself before he tumbles directly into the legs of an infected and you can't breathe until he gains his balance. He looks back at you, your own eyes wide as he gives you a thumbs up.

A thumbs up? Really? You think. I will cut your hand off.

Continuing through the bodies, thoroughly disturbed by the scenery, you reach what looks like a waiting room. Similar to the beds, there are infected sitting very still, too still, in the chairs, every one of them occupied. With the eerie silence, it's hard to imagine how busy this hospital must have been during the outbreak. Behind the desk is a zombie dressed in scrubs so bloody, you can't tell what the original colour was intended to be, a large bite mark on her neck and left hip. Her hands are still resting on the keyboard in front of her, fingernails crusted with the same blood that decorates her body. You're starting to lose hope of ever finding these people.

Chan gestures you close. "Look up."

There's a sign above with an arrow; OPERATING ROOMS. You look around at the others, all of them either looking up too or nodding as you make eye contact. As you begin to crawl in that direction, something sharp pierces through your hand and you bite back a yelp. A long needle sticks out of the back of your hand, spurting blood from the end, the warm liquid dripping down your wrist from the hole.

"Breathe," Jeongin whispers. "In, out. In-" He pulls it from your hand and you wince. "-out. In, out."

You try to control your breathing as he takes his medical pouch out again, a sliver of his stomach revealed as he does so. Taking out a small bottle of alcohol, he continues to instruct you to breathe as he pours it over the wound. Squeezing your eyes shut, your mouth falls open in a gasp and you're barely able to regain your breath pattern. Jeongin wraps bandages around your hand, securing it in place tightly.

The rest of the group has already moved on past the doors you assume lead to the operating rooms, you and Jeongin last to join. All it takes is one misstep and Jeongin has fallen over, grabbing onto a crash cart with no luck. It comes down with him over his body and you're so focused on lifting it off of him, you don't notice the growing cries coming from your right. Chan pops his head through the door, rushing over when he sees the situation. He helps lift the cart, Jeongin letting out a small 'ah', as he shuffles out from underneath.

A zombie comes hurtling into the wall beside you and your neck cracks as your attention is stolen. It jumps at you, but the movement is sluggish and you're able to sidestep out of its way. Jeongin flips onto his back as the zombie is about to fall onto him, grabbing the gun from his side and releasing a shot.

"Fuck." You hear Chan whisper, not that there's reason to now.

The infected are awakening one by one, some moving toward you faster than others. A smaller one that barely comes up to your hip flings itself forward, latching onto your leg and, to your horror, starts to climb up your body. Jeongin takes another shot, piercing it in the temple and it falls to the ground. He scrambles backward pushing open the door Chan came out from.

"C'mon!" He's motioning aggressively to the open door.

"Chan!" You grab his arm, pulling him out of the path of a zombie just in time. "Let's get out of here!"

The three of you scramble through the door, but it swings to the other side allowing the zombies easy access to follow you. Most are still slow from their long slumber, however they're gaining speed rather quickly as you dash down the long hallway, barely pausing to test the open doors. Since Chan came back for you, he's no help in knowing which one the others are behind. The gap between you and the horde is getting smaller and smaller by the minute and soon enough, they're right on you again. Panic swells in your chest as you test the last door, the handle moving but still not opening. Something is keeping the door shut from the other side.

"No! No, please, no!" You cry out, both hands on the doorknob as you push your whole body weight against it again, again, again. "Fucking open!"

Finally, the door opens and you go tumbling through right as several infected reach out for you, eager for a bite. Chan and Jeongin are close behind, guns firing as you push the door closed. You don't register the other bodies moving to push some kind of metal cabinet in front of the door, too distracted by the blood rushing to your head. Someone grabs your arm and you jump, fist flying up to meet their head. They grab you by the wrist seconds before it can connect with their skull, hushing you and soothing you.

"It's just me! Y/n, it's just me." Hyunjin lets go of your wrist, letting it drop to your side limply. "Hey, hey, hey. You with us?"

You hold on to the hand that comes up to cup your face. There's banging on the door, but the cabinet in front is heavy enough to keep the infected out, for now. Hyunjin helps you up carefully.

"I'm here," You say, voice shaking. "I'm here."

Glancing behind Hyunjin, you can see a rusted metal sink lining the wall beside you, and through the window, you see a group of people huddled around a surgical table. "Is that them?"

"Yeah. How lucky are we that they were in the only unlocked room?" Hyunjin shakes his head. "Like you, we had to push through the barrier, but at least with you I recognized your screaming." He pauses, jaw clenching. "Who shot the gun?"

"Jeongin, but don't-" He's already turning to the kid, staring him down.

"Why?" He gets close to his face. "Why did you do that?"

"Sorry, I didn't want my face eaten," Jeongin replies. "Besides, they were already alerted before I shot. The difference is either I took that risk and stayed alive, or I didn't and I'd be lying dead in that hallway, Y/n and Chan probably dead with me."

"How about we don't argue and instead get them talking, yeah?" Chan pushes the two apart, angling his head to the window.

Three people stand around the table with a map and various medical supplies laid out in front of them. You watch them from behind the glass, two women and a man exchanging words and glances, even some laughs. How are they laughing with the danger so close to you? One of the women are in what appears to be a lab coat that's been ripped in half then sewn at the waist to reattach the bottom half, conserving the pockets. Her hair is cut short in a faded pink, the other woman with long, dark locks. Chan nudges your arm and you break your stare, taking one last look at the barred door before walking into the other room.

"We still need to get to the pharmacy though," The pink-haired woman says, her accent similar to Chan's. "The girl's infection will spread if we don't get ahold of those antibiotics and soon. It's the whole reason we're out here!"

"The whole reason we're out here is because you couldn't let some random girl we found in a ditch die because of your own guilt." The man bites. "Leaving her would have meant we'd never be in this mess. You'd still be safely hidden, dead to the world."

"Maybe I'm sick of being dead to the world!" She looks over at you, looks back at the man, looks back at you, and straightens her posture. "Sorry, bad introduction." She laughs awkwardly, sticking a gloved hand out. "Lily."

"Y/n...?" You accept her hand; from in here, you can't hear the banging as well. "What's up?"

"I take it you heard our transmission?" She asks and Chan nods. "Kind of a stupid idea, to be honest, but thanks for coming out to save our asses. Even though, you know, you're stuck with us now, hah. Listen, we still need to get to the pharmacy which is back downstairs, but we have no way through here. Any ideas?"

You take a look around the room, momentarily making eye contact with the other woman, but look away again quickly. Spotting something above you-

"What about the vents?" You suggest, pointing upward.

"The vents-" Hyunjin looks up. "Oh, it's actually kind of big."

"Lift me up." You grab onto his shoulders and he hoists you up, using the momentum to grab onto the vent and pull. Hyunjin lets go of you and you drop with the metal swinging down, his arms catching you as you land back on the ground. "This one goes up and to the left, got anything grippy to put on your hands? It's not a big distance upwards, but if your palms are sweaty you may need it."

Lily offers latex gloves, the only thing available. You move the table over, stepping onto the map of the hospital. A map of the hospital- you look back down, memorizing it as Lily gathers the medical supplies scattered around your feet in your peripheral vision. Standing on the table, you can just barely grip the edge of the inside vent with the tips of your fingers, bending your knees and launching yourself up. Slipping just a bit, you manage to grab on with one hand, swinging your body to grip it with both. Suddenly you're thankful for all the physical training you had to do at the QZ, using your upper body strength to pull yourself up and into the vent. After you shuffle forward on your hands and knees, you hear someone join you, looking back to see Hyunjin climbing in.

"Couldn't let anyone else have this view," He jokes, and you roll your eyes, suppressing a dumb smile.

"Shut up." You mumble.

When you reach another vent grate, you pause to squint through the spaces and see where you are, trying to keep the map in mind the best you can. At one point, you hear voices, looking down to see some familiar faces.

"Your Captain will hear about this, but I'm sure you know that." Officer Song sits behind a desk, contents pushed off to the side. "You'll be in big trouble messing up this badly."

"I already told you, I don't know how they got out. Lucky for me, my Captain trusts me." Minho says through gritted teeth, fists clenched on the arms of the chairs his hands rest on. "How many hours do we have to spend saying the same words different ways?"

Officer Song says nothing in response, but you can imagine the scowl on his face as he gets up and walks behind Minho, stopping a few steps away from the chair he’s in. He glances back, and Minho keeps his head forward like a good soldier.

“I know you two have history,” Officer Song says, looking back to where you assume the door is. “Admit to helping her now, and your punishment won’t be as severe.” Minho stays silent, and Officer Song sighs. “Suit yourself.”

“What’s the holdup?” Hyunjin taps your calf and you jolt.

“Nothing.” You whisper, watching Officer Song step out of view with the door shutting quietly behind him, and continue on.

There’s no point in lingering on a dead conversation. With the map in mind, you take a right turn into a dead end. Underneath is a dark hallway, but you should be close enough to the pharmacy now to sneak through without much risk of detection from soldiers and infected alike. Opening the grate, you drop down carefully, landing with a soft thud. Hyunjin is looking at you from above waiting for a signal to follow after you. You’ve dropped into a long hallway that appears to be unoccupied. It’s dark, no lanterns or candles to light the way like the wings the soldiers are in. Directly in front of you is a supply closet, patient rooms taking up the rest of that side of the hallway; behind you is a bench with a worn backpack sitting on it, an office door down a few feet away.

Lifting a hand over your head, you wave two fingers to let the others know it’s safe to continue. At the end of the corridor there’s a sign directing you to the pharmacy, and you’re there before you know it. It’s small, the glass partition protecting the medication behind the counter somehow still intact. The door beside the counter is locked and Chan takes the lead, pushing against it with his full body. It doesn’t budge. Straining your neck, you can just barely see a filing cabinet pushed down, the heavy drawers keeping the door shut.

“We could break the glass?” You suggest.

“And alert everyone in the vicinity?” Chan looks at you, shaking his head. “We need another way in.”

You cross your arms, eyebrows furrowing in thought. How else can you get in? There’s no other door that you can see, at least, not on this side and-

Glass breaks behind you and you startle, spinning to see Lily moving an arm away from her eyes, an axe in her other hand hovering over the counter. “What?” She brushes the glass away with the sleeve of her coat. “We’ll be in and out in no time, so let’s just hurry and get the stuff we need and leave. Whoever heard that won’t be here that quickly.”

"Where did she even get that...?" Felix mutters, probably to himself, but you agree.

She's climbing over the counter before you can blink and you join her quickly, rummaging through empty bottles to find what you need. Lily runs through a list of what she's looking for, but every bottle you find is either the wrong thing, or there's nothing left. You're starting to lose hope, the others joining you on the other side of the counter and taking the back end.

"I think I found it!" Jeongin calls out, jogging to the front with a few small containers.

"Yes! This is perfect. I'm surprised you found so much." Lily smiles, taking the bottles and slipping them into a pouch hanging on her belt. It reminds you of Han. What the fuck?

"We should go now," You clear your throat, nodding your head to the door. Now that you're on the other side, Chan and Felix work together to lift it up. It's not even all that heavy, but a drawer had gotten jammed under the door handle.

You're about to head down the hall that should lead back to where you came from, able to bypass the group of zombies, when you hear someone call out. "It came from here, sir!"

"Shit." You stick an arm back to halt movement. The voices get closer and the others hear them too now, starting to hurry down the other side of the hall when the beam of a flashlight shines down the connecting hall at the end.

"Where do we go?" Hyunjin whispers harshly. "We're essentially trapped!"

Down one end, there's god knows how many people looking for you, and on the other, you can only see the beams of two flashlights.

"This way would be better, there are fewer people," You tell Chan, grabbing onto his upper arm to get his attention. "Yes, I know, 'you don't know that for sure', but I'm willing to take that chance."

"Okay." Chan says; you find yourself a bit surprised he's taken your advice, again. "Everyone hear that? We go down that way and take them out quickly and quietly. Felix and Hyunjin, I want you both to lead since you're our best in close combat. Y/n, stay close behind with your gun drawn. You're lucky you scored that thing." He gives one last look down the hall where the voices get louder and louder. "This'll bring us back to the side of the operating rooms with that group of infected, so once we get through those doors, run."

As you approach the light, your breathing becomes rapid. The thought of potentially having to harm people you knew now that Minho is in the picture has your mind running a million different scenarios. Although he's outside, the thought that Seungmin may be having a similar stream of thoughts runs through your mind as well, wondering if he's thinking about his old friends in the squad, or if he's moved on enough to be able to do what may be necessary.

"Yeah, so then he fucking yanked me by the leg- oh what the hell? Fr-" Two guns are pointed at your group before you all have your weapons out, causing them to surrender immediately. You know they're thinking they'd rather deal with the consequences of letting a few strangers get away than get themselves killed. "Wait- Y/n?"

One shines her lights out of your eyes and you recognize her. "Yeji?"

"Oh my god, Y/n!" She shoves between Felix and Hyunjin, pulling you into a hug. You give Hyunjin a look to silently tell him it's okay and his fists unclench. "We thought you were dead, me and Yuna. Minho is here, have you seen him?" She looks behind you. "Who are these people?"

"We don't have time-" Lily tries to speak, but is interrupted by shouting down the hall; you've been spotted. Yeji is going to get in big shit if she's seen hugging you, so you push her away hard enough she lands on the ground.

"There! There they are!" A group of about six or seven come around the corner, all advancing on you.

With no time to think, you do as Chan said before and run, heart aching as you hear Yeji call out your name from behind. You don't look back, staring hard at the double doors you're approaching, seeing a blur of movement through one of the windows. You know it's the infected, opting to use the other door as you push through with a force you didn't know you had, the door hitting the wall with a crunch, and the handle getting stuck in the wall. Everything in you wants to turn around and see that everyone else has made it through, but you don't stop running until you hear a shout. Almost to the doors, but someone is in trouble.

One of Lily's crew, the man, has been jumped by an infected, and Chan has stopped to help him. For a moment, time freezes as you watch another infected attack Chan, pushing him onto the ground as the man beside him is getting bitten in the neck, blood flooding out of the wound. There's no chance to save him, no hope for him as his screams of agony are drowned out by the rumbling sounds of other infected and gunfire. You didn't even learn his name. Someone pushes you toward the door, urging you on; Lily.

"No! No, we can't leave him," You plead, seeing Chan struggle to keep the infected's teeth off of him in the back. "I'm not leaving him!"

"Y/n, go!" Hyunjin is beside Chan now, choking the zombie from behind, allowing Chan to roll to the side. Others are catching up and you bring out your gun, shooting any that come near the two. "I've got him- aah, fuck!"

Too focused, you can't see what's caused Hyunjin's cursing, moving closer to help Chan up. The infected drops from Hyunjin's arms and he grabs ahold of you and Chan's shoulders, pushing toward the door aggressively. Light burns your eyes as you exit, already spotting the others in the truck. Outside, Han has parked just a bit further down, closer to the fence he'd have come in by. You jump in the back and help the others in, noticing Jeongin's limp has returned as well as Chan stumbling more after the attack. Infected try to make their way on, but the soldiers who are after you unintentionally help you by shooting them off your truck as Han speeds away. It's bumpy and reckless, but you calm down with every kilometer between your people and that damn place.

"Hyunjin, what- oh, oh no." You look behind you at Felix's words to where he and Hyunjin are leaning against the back windows.

A decent-sized bitemark covers Hyunjin's left forearm, skin torn and bloody; the sight makes your eyes water, barely blinking back the pain as you look up and meet his eyes. As your own travel back up his body to his face, you can see the way he's breathing too heavily, too quickly. You see the way his eyes mimic yours, tears threatening to spill over as he tears them away from the wound and to you. His mouths moves like he wants to say something, but soon his attention is turned to Jeongin undoing his belt at the speed of light.

"Switch sides with me Lix," He orders the older man.

"What are you-" Hyunjin is cut off by the two stumbling over his long legs.

"Hold him back." Jeongin says, just loud enough for Felix, but you catch it too. "Hyunjin don't fight this, please, it'll only make it worse. Y/n?" He nods you over and you obey. "Can you hold this arm out straight? I can't have him moving it."

It finally sets in what's happening, for both you and Hyunjin.

"Jeongin don't fucking do this." Hyunjin tries to move away, but Felix's grip is strong. "Don't do this! Chan?" You almost forgot he was back there with you, but he's in and out of consciousness himself, three large, deep scratches running across his abdomen. "Chan, please, you know they can't do this. You can't do this, I'm begging you. God, I'd rather you let me die-"

"Don't say that." You snap and his attention turns to you again. The look on his face is enough to break your heart.

"Y/n, can I have your knife?" You nod, passing the knife strapped to your leg over to Jeongin. He tightens his belt high on Hyunjin's arm, prepping him as well as he can in the back of a moving truck.

"Y/n, please," Hyunjin begs; you're his last hope. "Stop this. I can't- I can't- fuck! If you love me, if you really love me, you won't let them do this. Just take the blade and make it quick, don't let me suffer. Don't let me turn into one of them."

His words turn hysterical and you watch as he tries to back away, blocked by Felix behind him. Hyunjin's legs kick up in an attempt to get away and the grip you have on his arm grows tighter. You know you're doing this because you care about him, because you want him to survive, and you know he can't see it like that right now. Jeongin presses the blade to his skin, lifts it up, then crashes down with precise force. It only goes halfway and Hyunjin cries out, head rolling back with his eyes squeezed shut.

"Stop... please, stop!" He sobs into Felix, too weak to fight back now as Jeongin goes in for another slice.

This time the limb comes off, becoming limp by his side. Jeongin is quick to bring out a lighter from his medical pouch, cauterizing the end of his arm the best he can at the moment. It's rough work, but it'll have to do. Hyunjin stares in horror as Jeongin tosses the arm over the side of the truck, focused on wrapping his arm and getting to Chan next.

"Hyunjin," You finally speak, scared of his reaction.

Looking up at you, but he's not looking at you. His eyes are unfocused and his mouth hangs open slightly, wet trails down his cheeks dripping down his neck. Sweat shines above his brow, above his mouth. Felix climbs out from behind him, smoothing his hair out of his face, but Hyunjin continues to stare blankly ahead. You can hear Jeongin calling out for Felix, something about getting bleeding under control, but your attention is fully on the man in front of you. He trusted you, and in his eyes? You betrayed him.

"Hyunjin... speak to me," You crawl next to him, holding his face in your hands and turning him to look at you. When your eyes finally meet, his are cold and unforgiving.

"How could you do that?" His voice breaks. "How could you let them do that?"

"It was for the best-" Hyunjin scoffs.

"You should have let me die-"

"No, I already said no. None of us are leaving you behind." Anger builds within you, creeping into your chest and up your throat, hot and wet. "Despite whatever you think."

You can feel the truck slowly coming to a stop; you didn't even realize you were out of the city. Han parked up a long driveway leading to a country home, two stories high with trees lining the front of the yard, hidden from the street. Truck doors open and close, but you're still focused on the man in front of you until someone is trying to tug him away.

"Shit, what happened?" Han nearly shouts as he rounds the truck, eyes darting between his friends. "Someone answer me! What happened in there? Why is he missing and arm and why is Chan... Chan?"

The truck dips under his weight as he stumbles on, panic radiating off him in waves as he grips Chan's shoulders, his face, his arms, wherever he can reach. You see now they've stripped him off his shirt to get to the wound the infected left behind, his shallow breaths clear in the golden sunlight. His eyes are half closed and he tries to speak, but it comes out too quiet; he's lost a lot of blood, it pools around his legs and seeps through the bandages Jeongin and Felix applied.

"Is he gonna make it?" Your voice rings out through the silence that's fallen over the group, wincing when no one answers.

With an arm under his left side, Felix joins Han in taking his right, and they haul Chan out of the truck, bringing him to the porch of the house and setting him down on an old rocking chair. It's only now that you spot Lily and the other girl heading the opposite direction as everyone joins the other three, speed walking down the driveway without looking back. Although you know you should join the others, you jog up to Lily instead. She's the whole reason you're out there, the reason Chan and Hyunjin barely made it out alive. Still no info about Chan's sister, you need to at least try to find something out before they're gone for good.

"You're leaving? With everything that just happened, you're leaving?" You can't help the venom in your voice. "They could have died, and you're leaving? We came out there to help you! You can't even give us the information we want? Who do you think you are?"

The girl with the dark hair turns around mid step, walking backwards and somehow still keeping pace with Lily. "We called for a rescue, not to give up precious info or resources we have. Who do you think you are, demanding that from us when you don't even know us?"

"Lia, please," Lily stops walking, looking at you with something like guilt in her eyes. "What do you want to know?"

"Are you serious?" 'Lia' scoffs. "Either you've turned dumb or don't care anymore-"

"Can you stop it?" Lily asks sharply. "I'm trying to speak. Y/n, listen, I can't say much because I don't want to put everyone else in danger, but there's a town by the coast with a large bunker. You can find us there, okay? You can find the girl there. Take care of your people."

With an awkward wave, she backs away and leaves you staring as they fade into the horizon. Obviously, you can't follow them, you can't leave your people... when did they become your people? Turning around, you see that Hyunjin is still sitting in the back of the vehicle with Han crouched next to him. Admittedly, it's a strange sight seeing them not at each others throats, but to be fair Hyunjin did just get his arm cut off, so. Han helps him up and out of the truck, eyes coming up once, twice, meeting yours as you approach and you freeze. Hyunjin looks at him, questions why they've stopped, follows his gaze to you. The air turns cold around you. All you want is to run up to him, help him, comfort him, but the look on his face makes you shrink away. Before you can even think about saying anything to him, he whispers something in Han's ear and they head toward the house without a second glance.

-

Later that night once everyone is more or less settled in, you hear Seungmin shouting from downstairs.

You'd been with Chan for the better part of the evening, sitting by his side as he sleeps. Jeongin has already had to redress his bandages once since arriving and you're worried about him making it through the night, the amount of blood leaving his body extremely concerning. Each of you have taken on the role of looking after him, making sure his heart is still beating and his lungs are still breathing. In the case of any emergency, you're to grab the walkie-talkie you stole from the soldiers that now lies on a white, peeling nightstand and inform Jeongin or Felix, whoever has the other end at that moment. You know right now it's Felix, he'd called up to see how you were doing not too long before the sudden disruption.

"What's he going on about?" You ask into the device. "He knows I'm on Chan duty right now, doesn't he?"

It takes a minute for Felix to reply. "Yeah, hold on. I'll take over for you in a minute cause you might wanna take a look at this. You're gonna love it."

This concerns you ever so slightly. What could be so important, or just plain cool apparently, that you need to see it so soon? What do you like that could give Seungmin this reaction? He knows you like to collect charms you come across, something you might find on a necklace, but you know that if he found one he'd wait to give it to you later. Or he'd come in quietly and give it to you now, so what else? Knives? You've retrieved yours from the truck, but they are getting a bit dull now. Really any kind of blade would pique your interest, but in an old country home like this? The only evidence of people having lived here were some worn cookbooks knocked onto the kitchen floor and a few personalized crochet blankets on each bed in the house. You're certain this belonged to an elderly couple, so a hidden weapons stash seems unlikely.

"That leaves..." You think for a moment. "Pencils and paper, a guitar, photos of animals in hats... wow, I really didn't get out much in the QZ, huh?"

You laugh at your little joke and lack of real, actual interests. Growing up mostly in the quarantine zone had limited what you could discover, leaving you to mostly occupy yourself with studying, working out, or drawing. Minho had started to bring you little trinkets once he started venturing out, things he thought you might like, that's where the charm thing had started. He always had one of a paw print around his neck and you always wondered where it had came from, asking him all the time, but he never answered, always brushing it off. One day you had asked him if he'd ever be able to help you make your own, even if you didn't know how to, and two days later he came home with one he'd found while clearing out a town on a nearby outpost. Your fingers come up to the chain around your neck, finding the small star shaped piece of silver.

"Y/n?" Felix brings you out of your thoughts. "He's in the basement."

"God, what did he find down there?" You ask no one in particular, rubbing your forehead. "Thanks Lix."

You freeze as you pass him, never having used that nickname with him before. In face, you haven't used a nickname with anyone, not including Han. Even Chaeryeong you only called Chaeryeong, never Chae or Chaerry, like most the others do.

"Lix... I like that." You can hear the smile in his voice and hear the chair creak as he sits down, your nerves calming and allowing you to rush down the stairs to see what all the fuss is about.

"What is seriously so much more important than watching over a dying friend- woah." The words die in your mouth.

So, turns out secret weapons stash wasn't too far off. Seungmin is holding what looks like a long, gleaming machete in one hand, and a baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire in the other. He looks-

"Deadly." You exclaim, running your hands over the blade as he hands it over. "Holy fucking shit dude."

"Technically not as important as watching over a dying friend, but I couldn't wait to show you," Seungmin lets out a small smile, something for only you to see, and you can't help but return it.

"Have I ever told you you're my favourite?" You lean the machete against the stairs and throw your arms around his neck seconds later. "Cause you are! You're my favourite."

"Favourite what?"

"Favourite menace." You laugh as he shoves you off. "My favourite pain in the ass."

"Isn't that Han?" You nearly smack him.

"Shut up right now." Ignoring his continued teasing, you look around the rest of the basement. "Mostly junk?"

The dirt floor doesn't stretch far, just big enough for a small family to take shelter in case of emergencies. In one corner, there's an old freezer held open by a broken cane, and inside must be where Seungmin found your new weapons. There's a few more baseball bats with different modifications, spikes, nails, more barbed wire. As cool as they are, you like to stick to something a little... sharper, more precise? Underneath are a couple of dull knives, so you opt to keep the ones already sheathed on your body.

"Anyone else know about this?" You ask, turning back around to see Seungmin admiring his new bat. He doesn't look up when he answers, playing with the weight and feel of it in his hand.

"Just Felix. I was going to tell Han and Chaeryeong when I got back upstairs since the other freezer-" other freezer? You look at the opposite wall and see it, "-over there has some stuff too. Not much to look at, just a couple of handguns and mods they might be able to attach to their sniper rifles."

Nodding, you walk over and take a peek in- not much use to you. "And Hyunjin?"

"He's resting, so someone can tell him when he's up," Seungmin shrugs. "Something happen between you?"

"Nothing," You say, a little too quick.

"Good," He sighs. "I didn't want to know anyway."

-

You've returned to your spot next to Chan, helping him sit up when he wakes and spoon-feeding him soup Chaeryeong found in a cabinet on the main floor despite his protests.

"I can feed myself," He grunts, moving his head away from the utensil.

"You can't even stand, so shut it and eat." Normally, you would never had dreamed of speaking to Chan like that, but at that point he was getting on your nerves a bit with all his refusals. After that, you managed to get into a light back and forth banter, relaxing with every comment.

"Say ahhhh," You smirk, waving the spoon in front of his mouth.

"Fuck off."

"No, ahhhh," You say. "Did you hit your head too?"

Everything was going surprisingly smoothly considering what happened just hours before. The bleeding stopped for the most part and Jeongin was able to find enough thread in a basket on the main level to sew up Chan's wounds properly, and he only passed out once! When he came to, you wiped his face down with a cloth dipped in lukewarm rain water from outside, talking him down from the sudden panic he woke with. You reassured him that the others were fine, even Hyunjin, who was almost a little too fine. Up until now, you still haven't talked to him, not since seeing the look on his face when he exited the truck with Han.

"He'll come around eventually," Chan sighed. His face is even paler in the moonlight, but you hope getting some food into him will help him regain strength quicker. "He's just... stubborn."

"Tell me about it," You grumble. "Who in their right mind would rather die than cut the problem off? If you're able to be saved, wouldn't you want to be?"

"In this world, I think there are a lot of reasons to not want to be saved," Chan says grimly. "Chaeryeong is coming up here soon, yeah?" You nod. "So, why don't you go talk to him? Clear the air, or at least try to?"

"I'll try..." You agree reluctantly. "Not that it'll go well."

"You don't know that." Chan says softly.

But you do. If you know anything about Hyunjin, it's that he'll draw this out as long as possible. Once, you were witness to Hyunjin refusing to talk to Jeongin for three weeks after he accidentally tore a large hole in the back of his favourite jacket. This will not end how Chan thinks- or hopes- it will.

Careful not to be too loud, you open the door to Hyunjin's room and peer inside only to find him missing. Panic briefly swells in your chest until you hear a familiar laugh coming from downstairs, a smile instinctively forming on your face before you remember the reason you need to see him. The stairs creak underfoot, groaning under your weight and for a moment you grip the railing harder, scared you'll fall through the old, most likely rotting, wood. Around the corner, you see Hyunjin sitting in the middle of the old couch, quilt thrown over is shoulders. His face is lit up by dim candle light, eyes closed as he laughs harder at something Felix says to him. The first to notice you is Jeongin, excusing himself to check on Chan despite the walkie-talkie sitting idly on the table, not even a crackle to be heard. At this, Han looks up and sees you standing in the doorway, offering a weak smile. You feel sick.

"Hyunjin, can we talk?"

"I don't know. If I say no, will you cut off another limb?" He jokes harshly, observing your reaction, but you offer him nothing. "Speak now."

"Don't talk to her like that-" Han sits up straighter, giving Hyunjin a look, but he's cut off.

"Stay out of this," Hyunjin side-eyes Han.

"I didn't even do the cutting-" You start.

"No, but you let it happen." He sits up, blanket falling down around his waist. "You offered the knife when I begged you to stop. I am nothing without this arm. How long until Chan decides to ditch me on the side of the road when he realizes I'm of no use to him? What then? Did you even think of the consequences? No, because you never do."

"What's that supposed to mean?" You ask, voice hoarse.

"You never fucking think! The gas station, you remember that? You could have gotten yourself killed because you don't use your brain, if you have one." His words sting, but you keep listening, internalizing every last bit of venom. "It's a wonder you've made it this far. Hell, even back when we first found you- if you didn't hesitate to run, you would have been back with your squad right now living that cushy life you dream of."

"You think I liked being there?" Your own anger is rising. "And you think I liked witnessing your arm getting amputated? You think I purposefully put myself in these stupid, harmful situations for the fun of it?"

"It sure seems that way to me."

Beside him, Felix shifts uncomfortably. "Maybe we shouldn't-"

"We're all thinking it Felix, you said it yourself. I'm just voicing it."

"Felix?" Eyes stinging, throat burning; you can barely address the boy in front of you.

"That's not what I said," Felix sighs. "Not... exactly. Only that I had doubts about trusting you and your ability to keep up in a fight. But that was before I got to know you! Obviously, I don't feel the same now!"

Part of you believes him, but a much larger, self-loathing part of you overwhelms you with thoughts of inadequacy.

"C'mon," Hyunjin scoffs. "You told me no less than twenty minutes ago you were afraid she'd get us all killed."

"What?" You can barely breathe.

"No, I was joking. Hyunjin don't-"

"Don't what? Y/n, do you want to hear what we all think of you?" Now he stands, pointing a finger at your chest when he comes close to you, breath on your face warm and suffocating. "Felix here thinks you're the weakest link, other than himself. Han hates you, but you already know that. Jeongin is sick of having to patch you up after yet another careless move. Chaeryeong... well, she might be the only one to tolerate you. Seungmin wishes he'd left you under that piece of wall all those months ago, and Chan?" Hyunjin whispers in your ear. "He wishes he never picked up another stray, at least, not one as useless as you. Face it, you're a liability."

One tear escapes as you take a shaky breath in, out, in, out. All of your fears and doubts about your place in the group have been laid in front of you by someone who was supposed to care about you, someone you confided in with those very same thoughts. He knew right where to dig, where the chink in your armor is. Your own blade is stuck between your ribs twisted by his words, leaving you with a bitter taste in your mouth.

"Then I'll leave." You whisper, right as Seungmin joins the four of you. Up until now he'd still been in the basement, but must have heard the commotion. You can hear the crackling of the walkie-talkie, Chan on the other end asking what's going on, but you just pick up your bag, long abandoned by the front door, and head outside.

"Y/n!" Seungmin runs in front of you, blocking your way. "What are you doing?"

"Leaving." You move forward, but he keeps blocking you.

"Did you hit your head or something?" Seungmin frowns. "You're not thinking rationally-"

"So what? So what if I'm 'not thinking rationally'?" You shout, voice wet with anger. "Why should I care what you think, or any of the others, when none of you have the heart to tell me how much of a fuckup you think I am? I'm sorry for getting my leg crushed, sorry for forcing you to stay by my side. I'm sorry for being the reason Hyunjin's arm is laying on the side of the road in the middle of that fucking city, and I'm sorry for not living up to everyone's expectations!" You push him away from you. "We both know I've never been the best at this. It's either I'm too soft, I'm too weak, no matter how hard I work. Clearly, I'm only bringing the group down, so you know what?" You look him directly in the eye, unable to read the look on his face. "I'm doing everyone a favour and leaving, probably off to get myself killed. Not that any of you would care enough to, but do not think about following me. They're your family now. All I've got is me."

Storming off down the long driveway, you consider taking the truck as hot tears run down your face against your will. With your luck, you'll crash the car because you can't see, and no matter how angry you are, you know how important it is for Chan to find his sister. May as well stop screwing them over and let them keep the truck, they'll get there faster. Maybe this whole thing will be worth something in the end, but all you want to do right now is-

"Fuck!" You scream once you're far enough from the house, kicking up some earth with your toe.

All you want is to knock on Minho's door and ask to stay with him tonight; I had another nightmare- That's okay kitten, you can sleep here tonight, I won't tell anyone. You want his warm arms around you and him telling you it'll all be okay. As long as you have him, it'll all be okay. He's your big brother, he'll never let anything hurt you; it'll all be okay. But it isn't okay, nothing's okay right now. Everything is hurting you and nothing is okay. Your legs collapse under you and you fall hard, scraping your hands as you try to catch yourself on the gravel road. A van passes you as you heave, slowing down and pulling over a few metres ahead. Someone is walking toward you, but all you see is the ground coming closer as you lie your head down and sob.

"What's going on, little lady?" A hand touches the small of your back, the other holding your shoulder in an attempt to help you up. "Everyone leave you? Or you left them?"

When you look up, you start to recognize the man in front of you through your blurry vision and try to back away. "Get away from me."

"Now, why would I do that?" The grip on your shoulder is painful now, forcing you up. "You'd run off."

With his hand now fisted in your hair, he starts pulling you in the direction of his van. You fight him, thrashing and shouting before he throws you to the ground with a kick to the stomach for good measure. Coughing, you try to get up which earns you another kick, this time to the back, and his foot stays, pinning you against the ground.

"I would stop if I were you-"

"Dude, how hard is it to round up one little girl?" Another man appears in your vision, someone else by his side.

He pushes the other guy off you with a light shove, picking you up by the underarms. You haven't seen this guy, he wasn't at the gas station and neither was the woman at his side.

"Hold her, I want to check her over." He passes you off to the guy behind you and he holds you up by the waist. "She's out here all alone, could be no good."

"Even if she's bit, we can still bring her back you know," The woman complains.

"Not the same." His hands travel up your sides, lifting your shirt above your comfort level as he goes and says nothing.

Next, he roughly takes your jacket off and flips you over in the other man's arms, bracing yourself with two hands against his chest. With your jacket discarded on the side of the road, he lifts your shirt again and trails two fingers over your spine, making you shiver at the contact. You feel his hands move down your body and cringe at the feeling of his touch. Thighs and calves examined, he hums in approval. At this point your body is feeling numb all over, the foreign touch overstimulating you and making your brain fuzzy. Breathing is taking more effort than it should and you go limp in the man holding you's arms when you can no longer hold yourself up. You barely register the gunshot until you're suddenly on the ground over top a dead body.

"Get him." You don't see where the man is pointing to, but you see the woman run out with a gun drawn.

She's quick, back in no time holding a man by his collar, hands bound behind his back and a new sniper rifle over her shoulder. You realize who you're staring at slowly.

"Han...?" You whimper.

"Shh, it's okay." He manages to wiggle free of the woman, dropping down next to you. "If they lay another hand on you-"

With a grunt, he's hitting the ground and a trickle of blood is spouting from a freshly split eyebrow.

"Help me get them both in the van, now."

---

notes ▪︎ sooo some stuff happened 🫣 what do u think will happen next !!

─── taglist : @chaeryred @toplinelix @channie-143 @staysinbloom @manuosorioh @hanjisunglover @xxstrayland @puppyminnnie @hanjsquokka @kpopsstuffs @ot8girlfie @quokkabite @linoslawayslinos @reapers-lover @hannieslittlerockstar @kiki0113 @nishiriks @nxtt2-u @moonlightjam @hannieslovebot

green means i can't tag you

[ineffable-endearments]

Hello, everyone!

In light of Neil Gaiman's comment that Amazon is close to officially renewing Good Omens but hasn't done so yet, I think those of us who can should start sending physical postcards to Amazon Studios!

The TL;DR of this post is that you can easily send a postcard from MyPostcard.com for about $3 (USD, I'm sure other currencies can vary). The Web site will print and mail it for you, so you don't have to do any printing or mailing yourself. The postage is included in the $3.

If you don't already have an image or card you want to use, you can just use one of mine above. Some of them are small because of small source images, but the site seems to resize them appropriately for the card. There are bigger versions in a Google Drive folder that you shouldn't have to be logged in to see.

You can send the postcards asking for a third season of Good Omens addressed to Jennifer Salke and Vernon Sanders, co-heads of Amazon Studios, at:

AMAZON STUDIOS 1620 26TH STREET, SUITE 4000N SANTA MONICA, CA 90404 USA

@fuckyeahgoodomens was the first to post this contact information for Amazon, so thank you, Ixi.

If it's something you don't mind, I would very deeply appreciate reblogs on this, since it works better if lots of people see it! No pressure if you don't want to, though.

And if you have Questions, click through below for my reasoning on all this.

Why should we send postcards to Amazon Studios?

We've made lots of noise online about renewal, and we've done a lot of streaming Good Omens. But I haven't seen much discussion of sending physical mail or, specifically, postcards.

Mail takes up space in the real world. It's slightly harder to ignore than email. It's way more attention-grabbing than posts on X or Tumblr or any other social media site. Because postage is required, physical mail can also appear more "committed."

Postcards specifically are great because of their convenience for the recipient. No one has to open them to read them. All it takes is a quick glance to see what we're asking for, and realistically, a quick glance is the best we can ask for in a corporate office. That's why I'm emphasizing postcards over regular letters (although really, anything helps).

Is sending postcards really going to motivate Amazon to make more Good Omens?

Postcard and letter-writing campaigns have helped get shows renewed in the past. Star Trek: The Original Series is a good example of a series that got another season after a letter-writing campaign. This article has more examples.

We don't actually know what's going on in Good Omens's case. Maybe postcards would make a difference; maybe they wouldn't. We can only make our most determined effort at making sure we're heard, and sending mail is part of that.

The cost of sending a postcard is too much for me.

I understand that sending a postcard will not be an option for many of us. This post isn't intended to try to push you into spending money you don't have. If you still want to find a way to participate, you can also send an email to cs-reply@amazon.com with your comments about wanting Good Omens 3. It's not physical mail, but it is still a personal message from a customer.

In fact, people who are sending postcards might want to follow up with an email, too.

Do we have to use your postcard designs?

No! Not necessarily! You can use anything.

As long as the message you write includes how much you want Good Omens 3, your postcard's image doesn't necessarily have to relate. You could send a souvenir postcard that says "Greetings from Los Angeles, CA / Tadfield, England / etc" from your local post office and just write your message on the back.

Technically, even a plain index card should be thick enough to mail as a postcard, at least by USPS standards. Just write your desire for Good Omens 3 on it, put a stamp and Amazon's address on it, and make sure it's at least 90mm x 127mm (3.5in x 5in).

Isn't Amazon Studios going to notice a bunch of postcards being mailed from the same Web site?

I'm sure they will. But the messages will each be unique, and again, they'll know each card represents a person who had to order the card and postage themselves.

Speaking of unique messages, what should I write?

One sentence is enough. Definitely indicate that you want Season 3 of Good Omens. If you want to add more, you could also write a sentence or two about how much you love the series so far.

Above all, be polite and straightforward! Remember that sarcasm and jokes often do not come across well in print, so it may be best to stick with simple statements that can be taken at face value.

What address should the cards go to?

The co-heads of Amazon Studios appear to be Vernon Sanders and Jennifer Salke; you can address them by name, although I'm guessing it will be someone else who does the reading/glancing.

Amazon Studios's address is:

AMAZON STUDIOS 1620 26TH STREET, SUITE 4000N SANTA MONICA, CA 90404 USA

Where did you get these images?

The images for the nightingale postcard and the Crowley postcard are screencaps from directedbypiper.

The Please Do Not Lick the Walls and Fell the Marvelous posters were downloads from the Amazon X-Ray feature.

The Nice and Accurate Prophecies postcard was adapted from cover art I did for A Nice and Interpretive Fanzine. Most of it is my own, although the mottled background is an extremely blurred version of a free stock texture from Pixabay, users chrisfiedler and/or humusak.

The bookshop postcard is a promotional image from Amazon used in a Den of Geek article.

[procrastinatorproject]

And here we are! This blog probably won’t have much original content for now, it’s mostly for reblogging things in one place and helping people find stuff they like/blogs they want to follow/cool nerds that like similar things as they do.

Maybe, if I really have a lot of brain space, I might try my hand at organizing that fanfic book club I have been dreaming of for absolute ages. But I know better by now than to make promises.

Tag the blog (or me directly, if you forget the name of the blog) if you have stuff you want me to reblog, otherwise I’m gonna draw from my own dash and the general picard- and character-tags for now 😁 We’ll see how that goes.

I dug through those tags for a few hours today and MY GOD, there is so much amazing stuff!

And if I can figure out how to make the tumblr archive work for me (I know there are Ways™), I’ll probably try and dig out some stuff from the season 1 heyday back in 2020. Help revive some of that Star Trek: La Sirena spirit that amazing people have been kindling for the last couple of months.

So… activate your favourite emergency holo, grab your Fenris Ranger beacon, macke sure you’re all stocked up on the brie and Château Picard, and LET’S GO!!!

What is Star Trek: La Sirena?

Most fans and more-than-casual viewers of Star Trek: Picard would probably agree that the three seasons of the show form something of an anthology. It was never officially called that, and some of the characters appear in (almost) every episode. Even some events and backstories do get referenced across season boundaries. But at the end of the day, each season is very self-contained, and many themes, storylines, and characters are limited in scope to one or two of them at the most.

Even the characterization of recurring characters can differ between seasons, from more superficial details (Agnes Jurati going by "Agnes" in S1 and "Jurati" in S2) to some deeper shifts (Elnor seeming more concerned with honour than candour in his brief season 2 cameos).

As such, some of us fans were thinking it would be helpful to have a shorthand with which to differentiate between seasons. Say you're interested in reading Saffi stories that centre the characters, themes, and characterization from season 1. It might be difficult to filter for that, since the "Star Trek: Picard" fandom tag on AO3 will contain fic that is set throughout all three seasons, and it won't always be clear where in the anthology it fits.

Or you might be writing stories about season 1 Agnes that you know won't sit right with people who expect season 2 Jurati when they filter for "Agnes Jurati", and you want to make it clear which version of the character you're writing about without using convoluted tags.

Enter Star Trek: La Sirena (suggested abbreviation: LAS). In essence, this is a shorthand to describe the first part of the Star Trek: Picard anthology. ST: LAS stories, art, gifs, meta, memes, etc centre around the characters, events, relationships, and themes from PIC season 1. They can be prequels, set during season 1, or take the end of season 1 as a jumping-off point to spin new stories from there (think: the sort of art/meta/fic/... you would have made before season 2 came out or if the show had been cancelled after season 1).

A Few Examples (or: is it Star Trek: La Sirena?)

A fic about the crew of La Sirena going on wild adventures after the end of season 1? That is basically what this tag was invented for! A gifset of Elnor and Soji's outfits throughout season 1? Absolutely! The story of how Seven came to join the Fenris Rangers, exploring her relationship to the work and what it means for her characterization post-Voyager? Yes please! Meta about how Hugh would have survived the crash of the Borg Cube and what the protected status of Coppelius and the defeat of Oh's armada mean for his work with the xBs? We'd be lucky to have it! A fic about how Raffi and Rios met that involves six OC's and a bunch of semi-sentient holograms? Sure! A Victorian AU, where Jean-Luc Picard, Duke of La Barre, has to navigate the uncertainties of (near) fatherhood when he suddenly finds himself with a young ward, Dahj Asha, after the mysterious disappearance of her parents overseas? Hell yes! (Also: Zhaban is his butler and Laris his housekeeper. Just saying.)

On the other hand: A discussion of how season 2's evil!La Sirena compares to her prime-universe counterpart? Doesn't really fit. A fic about Agnes and Shaw meeting at the academy and becoming fast friends? Also not really, since Shaw is very firmly a season 3 addition. Meta about Seven's changing hairstyles from VOY to season 1 to seasons 2 & 3? That is more general PIC territory, rather than LAS specifically. A gifset comparing the Troi-Rikers from TNG with their appearance in Season 3? Probably not. Not even if it also includes season 1.

All of these things are wonderful and we're lucky to have them in the Picard fandom! But they don't necessarily fit the brief of "Star Trek: Picard, if it had been cancelled after season 1."

Of course, none of this is an exact science! Say you wrote a post-canon story back in 2020, before we got any details about season 2. And say, by sheer coincidence, it includes Agnes breaking up with Rios and going off on a diplomatic mission with Soji, while Rios and/or Raffi join Starfleet. Does that fall under the LAS umbrella or not? At that point (and many, many similar ones), I'd say it's up to your own best judgement.

Where do I find/post Star Trek: La Sirena Stuff?

A bunch of people have started tagging their tumblr posts with "star trek la sirena" (or "star trek: la sirena". I'm afraid the variability is a cornerstone of the Trek-tumblr tagging experience 😅). It's not much yet, and a lot of things are reblogs, so they won't show up in the regular tag search. But hopefully, we can get this tag into more wide-spread use to make it easier for season 1 enthusiasts to find stuff they're interested in. (If you tag this blog in the replies to a post you think fits the brief, I will reblog it!)

Some writers have also added "Star Trek: La Sirena" to the fandom tags of their relevant fics on AO3. It's usually in addition to "Star Trek: Picard", since it falls into both categories, so it's more an additional filtering option/sub-fandom.

I'm not entirely certain this tagging is going to be permitted by the AO3 tag wranglers. I have written to AO3 support about this and am currently still waiting to hear back. I think there are precedents for similar sub-fandom distinctions, but I'm not sure what the logistical considerations might be behind canonizing a new fandom tag. If AO3 comes back asking people to re-tag their fic or deciding they won't be able to canonize the "Star Trek: La Sirena" fandom tag, we'll decide on a different tagging convention. I'll post here if and when I get a reply to my email.

Speaking of:

A Quick Note on the Role of this Blog

I'm not the fandom police. At the end of the day, this is an entirely made-up category, and how you interpret its boundaries is up to you. My goal here is not to exclude anyone or tell people they're doing fandom wrong, it's to make it easier for fans of one specific part of a very heterogeneous show to find art and stories and discussions they're interested in.

I want to really emphasise this: I'm not the high priestess of this fandom tag. I'm not the authority on what does and doesn't count. If you have a story or post that you think might be well-suited to be tagged as "Star Trek: La Sirena", but you're unsure, I'm happy to chat about it and give you my take, and/or to reblog it here and hopefully open the floor to others' opinions. If you think something I posted or reblogged doesn't really fit, please let me know, I'd be happy to hear your thoughts!

Mostly, I just want this blog to get the ball rolling for people in this corner of the Picard fandom to find each other and have an easier time sharing their work and their passion with each other.

So, that's what I'm doing here. If you have any ideas for events we might get up to as a community (I still dream of one day having a fanfic book club :D), posts you'd like me to reblog, meta you'd like to share, or anything else that might bring your fellow fans joy, I'm always eager to hear about it!

Thank you for coming along on this ride on our little speed freighter! I hope we'll all find community and a lot of fun with Star Trek: La Sirena!

[theearthwassoup]

4 and 5 from angst 3 from fluff wanda x reader angst with happy ending maybe reader thinks wanda is cheating on her because she’s distant and hiding things but really wanda is just planning to propose

yellow rose, diamond ring

a/n: hi! Thank you so much for this request!! Angst, angst, angst, i could read/write it all day lol, also so sorry for the late post

word count: 1.7k

warning(s): miscommunication | mentions of cheating | insecurity | happy ending

4: “don’t lie to me” 5: “am i not important to you anymore” 3: “i can’t imagine a world in which i don’t adore you”

You were getting tired of this, tired of the pain, the distance. Leaning against the counter, you stared aimlessly at the smooth marble, a hint of your reflection staring back at you. Wanda left about an hour ago for some work meeting but by the way she smiled at her phone and walked out the door with a wistful look in her eye, you knew she wasn’t going to work. She had been acting like this for a while now, taking forever to answer your texts, not answering your calls, running late for your dates. Combined, her actions sent a sinking feeling into your gut and you bit on your knuckle to keep your sobs at bay.

Maybe you had done something wrong? Was there something you said that pushed her into the comfort of another’s arms?

You realized she had forgotten that tonight was movie night, a somewhat sacred tradition of your relationship. The bowl of cold popcorn sat next to you on the island, taunting you. You debated knocking it on the floor but instead decided to pick it up and eat a few popcorn pieces. You made your way over to the couch, where the end tables were covered in sweet snacks and soda cans that would fuel the two of you through your marathon. Collapsing on the couch, you curled into your blanket and continued to shove popcorn in your face. You turned on the TV and started watching old reruns of the original Star Trek. It was far from the marathon of Sandra Bullock rom-coms you had planned but it lifted your spirits a bit. You were starting to actually get invested in the plot when you heard your door open. Wanda was smiling at her phone, biting her lip as she did when she was excited. It made you feel suddenly freezing and you tightened your blanket around you. Wanda looked up, her happy expression fading away into one of confusion when she saw the TV on. Making her way to the couch, she looked at you, scrunching her eyebrows.

“You started without me?”

Her voice almost sounded hurt but you brushed it off. scoffing, you refused to look at her, merely raising the volume of the show. Wanda raised one eyebrow at your actions, even more confusion taking over her. After a few minutes of Wanda staring at you and you pointedly making the effort to not look at her, Wanda came to stand in front of the TV, turning it off with a flick of her fingers. You were about to protest when she looked at you sternly.

“What’s going on, Y/N?” Her voice was soft, worried, but it did little to comfort you. You knew that this was the start of the conversation you dreaded to have. When she tells you of her lover, the person she’s been leaving you for.

“I should be asking you that.”

You couldn’t stop the words from spilling out of your mouth, making Wanda do a slight double take.

“Wha-”

“Where were you tonight, Wanda?”

You noted the slight panic that alit in your girlfriend’s eyes and it took everything in you to not release the tears gathering in your eyes,

“I told you, baby, I was at a meeting?”

She answered like she was asking a question, fiddling with her hands, a nervous habit of hers. You stood up, blanket dropping to the floor as you glared at her.

“Don’t lie to me.” You seethed out, traitorous tears falling down your cheeks. Wanda gasped, taking a step forward, hands reached out to comfort you. But you stepped away, shaking your head.

Wanda’s heart rate increased, panic and confusion gripping her heart. She didn’t know what was going on, why you were acting like this, why you were looking at her with such pain in your eyes. All she wanted to do was gather you in her arms and hug you so tightly that whatever was antagonizing you would disappear from your mind. But you weren’t letting her near you, keeping your distance in a way that sent fear shooting through Wanda’s heart.

This wasn’t how she wanted the night to go, this isn’t what she planned.

“I-I can’t take anymore of this Wanda,” you choked out, more and more tears streaming down your cheeks and staining your sweater, “You’ve been so distant, hiding things from me, lying about where you’ve been going. It’s been three weeks of this Wanda, three weeks of me wondering what I did wrong.”

Wanda’s eyes widened and she replayed her actions in her mind, grimacing at what she found. She had been distancing herself, unbeknownst to her conscious thoughts, putting you through what she imagined was emotional hell. Wanda opened her mouth to speak but you continued.

"Wondering why you've decided I wasn't enough, Wanda. Who-who did you meet that took all your attention? You were late to movie night, Wanda! We never miss movie night. It's-it's like you forgot all about me," you spoke through your sobs, wrapping your arms around yourself as a protective shield. Wanda tried to intervene, desperate to explain herself, to salvage what little of her perfect night was left, but then you whispered the words that completely shattered her.

"Am I not important to you anymore?"

Wanda powered forward, wrapping her arms around you as your head fell against her shoulder, tears painting her own shirt. One hand cradled your head as she grasped you tightly with the other.

"Y/N, oh my love, you could never not be important to me."

You continued to cry, confusion and weeks of emotional hell swirling like a storm in your mind. You pulled back from her shoulder but made no move to leave Wanda's arms, a motion she took with a flicker of hope. Swallowing, you asked the question at the forefront of your mind.

"Is there someone else?"

Your voice was broken and hoarse, scraping against Wanda's heart as it broke into pieces. Part of her felt angry you could ever believe she would stray to another but another part of her mind screamed at her, how could she not? look at how you've been treating her these past weeks!

Wanda sighed, cupping your face in her hands before maneuvering you to sit on the couch as she knelt in front of you, hands tangled in yours.

You were frozen with anxiety and fear, your heart beating loud and fast, your eyes wide as she rose her head to look at you. While you were expecting guilt and apologies, all you saw was an endless ocean of love, with an unspoken apology shining in her eyes.

"Y/N, there's no one and will be no one else. You're the one for me and I fear I messed up what was supposed to be a hopefully core memory tonight."

She took a deep breath, pausing as she continued to look at you. You realized she was asking you if she could explain. Shakily, you nodded, a thousand thoughts in your mind but doubt was no longer one of them. The pain of being cheated on was still present but it was conquered by the truth you saw in Wanda's eyes and heard in her voice. Wanda smiled, equally nervous, before continuing.

"The reason I've been distant, lying about where I've been, hiding things from you is because I didn't want to ruin it but," she laughed without humor, angry at herself, "It seems I already have."

You squeezed Wanda's hands, making her look at you after she had stared at your joined hands, self-deprecation clear in her eyes. You looked at her, confused but no longer crying.

"Ruined what?"

Your soft voice made Wanda spill a few tears down her cheeks. She unclasped one hand and gestured around at your living room, the TV, the popcorn, the snacks.

"You love our movie nights, you always put so much effort into planning which movies to watch, which snacks and drinks fit the 'aesthetic' of the movie. I thought that tonight would be a perfect time than ever, considering your choice of movies," Wanda took a breath before reaching into her pocket to pull out a small black box. You gasped, your heart now beating fast for a completely different reason.

"During 'The Proposal' I was going to well," she waved the box a little in the air, "propose. And then hopefully spend the rest of the night watching movies with my fiancée, I even had a little speech-"

"Ask me."

You interrupted Wanda, whose eyes shot up to meet yours, widening. You smiled, lifting your chin in false bravado to cover up the rapid jittery feeling flooding your body.

"How would you know if you ruined anything if you don't ask me, Maximoff?"

Wanda's mouth opened and closed and you giggled at the resemblance of your girlfriend to a fish. After concluding you weren't joking, Wanda settled herself on one knee, opening the box and taking a deep breath. You gasped at the ring, the band and stone straight out of your fantasies.

"Y/N, love of my life, these past years have been the best of my life and I am eternally grateful to have met you. I can't imagine a world in which I don't adore you. I would love to call you my wife, so-"

"Yes!"

You blurted out before slapping a hand over your mouth, laughing at yourself.

"Sorry, sorry, continue!"

Wanda smiled at your happy expression, glad to be rid of the horrid tears she had caused.

"Will you marry me?"

You shot forward, wrapping your arms around her neck, causing Wanda to tumble to the ground, barely missing the ottoman. You nodded as Wanda pressed kisses into your hair. You sat up, straddling Wanda's legs as you plucked the ring from the box and slipped in onto your ring finger.

"I guess.."

You spoke faux nonchalantly, laughing as Wanda raised her hands to tickle your sides.

"You guess? Gee, thanks for the enthusiasm!"

You laughed, swatting her hands away. Wanda laughed too before sitting up so you were in her lap, pressing a sweet kiss against your lips.

"We still need to talk about what I did."

She whispered, brushing a strand of hair behind your ear. You nodded in agreement.

"We will. But for now, let's enjoy being engaged by watching Sandra Bullock movies."

Wanda laughed at that, picking you up to drop you on the couch. As you cuddled against your fiancée and listened to the opening music of While You Were Sleeping, you felt the tense atmosphere of the past three weeks melt away and your future with Wanda shone bright ahead.

a/n: I hope this was good! thank you for reading!!

[jonathan-cranes-mistress-of-fear]

Hey, I just wanted to thank you for supporting Scarecrow x OC/self-insert. I'm tired of people who hate on creators who try to have fun or tell they own stories. As much as I like comics characters I'm sucker for OC's and what they bring to the table, because each is unique and brings different dynamic to the table! I Recently found two blogs with Oc I observe with interest. One being @mask-knife-is-scarecrows-girl, I find they Oc Meg Crane cute and I have great fun reading they posts. There is also @amor-god-of-love, of which I saw the picture of "I'll cut your throat..." from Princess Mononoke involving Jonathan and they OC and I fallen in love with it. Seems they Oc is love based and I'm sucker for good love Vs fear dynamic. Anyway sorry for rambling, but could you give your opinion on why people hate OC x Scarecrow so much? We should encourage such creativity not put creators down because of it.

Love your blog <3

-Anon

Hi! I love this ask! OCs are frequently disliked or at the vesy least, ignored in the fandom. The best advice I could give anyone with a self insert or OC is to never stop creating. Your audience will come. I did not start out with nearly 7k followers, it took me nine years to get to these numbers.

Fandom loves regular posts. Case and point, I watch game grumps every day and have made it part of my daily routine to watch new episodes at lunch time. Becoming part of a persons routine is a VERY high complement and I'm sure there's people who are checking my blog in the same manor. (I mean, I know there are, I see the notifs)

It's not that people HATE Scarecrow/selfship/OCs it's that people don't want to jump into something that they can't relate to, for whatever reason. If could be their sexuality, gender, etc..or simply that they don't know this OC and the creator has not pushed them enough.

I had an OC in the past, and I always got questions about her. One, because I made a lot of posts about her, and two because I had followers who luckily enough, wanted to know more. Give them some breadcrumbs! I don't really talk about this character anymore, but maybe one day I will bring her back.

Also! Mask Knife is great btw! I adore reading her posts!!

I absolutely agree we should support creators but OCs are like original art, you gotta post frequently, until your audience finds you. And they WILL find you, but you can't give up. If I stopped posting in 2016, I imagine the fandom-scape for Scarecrow would be different.

OCs and Self inserts are nothing to be ashamed of, we've been self inserting since the beginning of fandom way back into the star trek days. Also, I don't know ANY OC who isn't at least A LITTLE bit of a self insert. OH! And if that one weird artist can self insert himself into the freaking PPG reboot, then y'all shouldn't feel shame making fanfic and fanart

[howlingday]

Team RWBY face off against White Fatalis from Monster Hunter.

COLD RAGE

"Are we there yet?" Yang yawned, walking at the rear of her team with her hands folded behind her head. "We've been walking for hours."

"Will you take this seriously?" Weiss chided from beside her leader in the front. "This mission was ranked five stars and handed to us specifically. We're essentially being told to fight on the same level as headmasters!"

"Is that weird for anybody else?" Blake asked, walking between Ruby and Weiss in the front and Yang behind. "If this mission is so dangerous, then why only send the four of us?"

"Apparently, the one who posted the mission said they didn't want to risk spending more than he needs to." Ruby said, tapping at her scroll. "The five star was actually something agreed on by the headmasters."

"It's still weird." Weiss said, cupping her chin. "Why only send us four without a headmaster?"

"Maybe it's to test us?" Ruby smiled.

"Maybe it's to be bait." Blake worried. A cold wind blew, making her shiver. She then felt an arm drape over her. "Huh?"

"Don't worry about it." Yang smirked. "Whatever it is, it won't stand a chance against Team RWBY!"

Yang pumped her fist into the air, making Blake smile. Ruby giggled as Weiss rolled her eyes. The trek uphill became a lot easier, though the cloudy sky did little to improve morale any further. Looking ahead, the team saw the path open up where it had previously been blocked by an avalanche. Upon passing over the crest, they eyed their mission objective.

"There it is." The team stopped, looking over the frozen remains of the former Castle Schrade. Legend said that a once great kingdom, now long past, was ruled by a good king. But then disaster struck and wiped out everything and everyone within the kingdom in a single night. Blake looked to Ruby. "What's the game plan?"

"Hang on, I'm getting an update from the headmaster." Ruby tapped her scroll. Her lips then pursed as she scrolled through the message. "Uh oh..."

"Uh oh?" Yang repeated. "Why uh oh?"

"Uh..." Ruby started. "Oh, well, um, see, the thing is that we... might need to go back?"

"Go back?" Weiss repeated this time. "Why in the world would we need to go back when we're so close?"

"Well, it's kinda because of the ranking."

"See, I told ya it was nothing to worry about." Yang said, tapping Blake's shoulder with her fist. "Rank's probably only a three at best."

"Well..." Ruby winced. "See, um, the thing about that is-"

"Oh, will you just spit it out already!" Weiss barked.

"SIX!" Ruby yelped, covering her head.

"Six?" Blake repeated, completing the set. She then asked for clarity for what she feared the only logical answer. "Six what?"

"Six... stars. This is a six stars mission."

The wind blew again but had no effect on the already chilled team. Their battles against Salem's Inner Circle, in which they had assistance from far more experienced huntsmen and huntresses, were four to five stars. Six was an all-headmaster emergency, as in it required ALL headmasters to accomplish the mission. It wasn't until somebody spoke up that the long silence ended.

"So, what do we do now?" Blake asked.

"Obviously we retreat!" Weiss shouted.

"Should we really leave the mission like this when we're already so close?" Ruby asked. "What if the threat only just got bigger and us leaving would only make it worse?"

"It sounds like a stretch, to be honest, Rubes," Yang sighed, shaking her head, "but it's also your choice. What's the plan, Leader?"

Ruby stared down at her scroll, then looked to the ruins of Castle Schrade. Something about it seemed to be calling to her, though it was more like a monster luring its prey than a friend beckoning their ally. She took a deep breath, then turned to her team.

"Here's my plan..." Ruby said with confidence. "I'm going to message the headmaster, let him and everyone else know that we're going to continue the investigation." At this, Blake and Weiss noticeably stiffened. "It could be nothing, but if there's a chance that there's something there that could hurt more people by us just sitting around and waiting, then we should at least try to slow it down." Though it wasn't by much, her team softened. "And if things get really hairy, then we'll pull back and regroup with the headmasters, who are probably on their way."

"Getting hairy, huh?" Yang grinned. "Sounds like we'll need a Schrave and a haircut~!" Everyone groaned. "Huh? Get it~?"

"You're gonna get it if you don't keep quiet." Weiss grumbled. "And while I can't say I like the idea of us charging headfirst into danger without knowing what's waiting for us, I like the thought of us doing nothing even less."

"Agreed." Blake nodded. "And if we can keep it stalled long enough for people to evacuate, then it's all the better." She then rubbed her arm a bit. "The headmasters are coming, right?"

"In the message, I got told that they were coming to relieve us of our tasking." Ruby answered.

"Not even sending somebody else in?" Yang whistled. "This thing must be pretty serious."

"Unlike some of us." Weiss said, getting a giggle from Blake.

Ruby tapped her scroll to message the headmaster. She'd likely get told to fall back and might even be scolded via some form of a strongly worded e-mail, but she had to hold firm. Especially when such high stakes were at play. She looked to her team as she pressed 'Send'.

"Ready, guys?"

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

Walking into the ruins of Castle Schrade was an eerie experience. Once a mighty and near-impervious fortress, what remained was little more than rubble upon rubble. Old weapon racks had become decayed wood piece that once held rusted swords and spears now strewn about the charred floor. Atop short-reaching steps were ancient bowguns that still functioned, in theory, but were unlikely to last longer than a few shots, if even one. What calamity that had befallen this once noble military outpost had rendered it completely uninhabitable and indefensible.

Blake rubbed her hand against the cold stone as she walked by the long-destroyed pillar. Her cat-like ears twitched and a shiver ran through her body. Looking over the ruins, she voiced her suspicions to the team. "Whatever did this wasn't a natural disaster."

"I think that depends on your definition of natural, huh?" Yang agreed, looking over the scorch marks on the wall. "Whatever happened here happened a long time ago, right? Has to be something unreal to leave scars this deep."

"Anything from the headmasters, Ruby?" Weiss asked.

Ruby tapped her scroll, hoping for an update. "Nothing new." She sighed. "They said they were on their way, but they couldn't give an ETA clearer than 'as soon as we can'."

"Ruby, I don't think we should be here." Blake said, looking to her leader. "I think this is way above what we're capable of."

"I hate to say it, but I kinda agree." Yang gave a sigh. "The last time we took on something capable of destroying a city, we nearly got wiped out. This..." She gestured to the smashed walls and collapsed arches. "This is way beyond that."

"I know, guys." Ruby nodded. "I'm nervous, too, but... I don't want to think about what would happen if..."

Dark clouds started to swirl above. Not just dark, but blue with red lightning. In the distant sky above, the shining sun was blotted out by a swirling mass as a dark circle took it's place. From the hole in the sky, in perhaps reality itself, like something out of a nightmare, a silhouette made its approach to the castle.

As it drew closer, the monster became much clearer to see. On beating wings, a reptilian beast with silver scales and snow-white hair made its descent onto the failed fortifications. With its long, ancient snout, it bellowed its declaration as red lightning crackled across the sky above. Team RWBY readied their weapons in defiance to the ancestral wyvern, White Fatalis.

With a thundering crash to match the sky above, the dragon-like monster spread its wings and let loose a mighty roar, shaking the ground and huntresses beneath it. The girls split apart, Weiss and Yang circling one direction with Blake and Ruby going the other. Leaping ahead of her Faunus friend, Ruby swung Crescent Rose around onto the scaled hide, only to find the blade bounce off without leaving so much as a scratch.

"It's too tough to cut into!" Ruby called out, hoping Weiss and Yang heard from the other side. Blake readied a cartridge of ice dust and loaded it into Gambol Shroud. "Look out!"

Blake was lifted off the ground, her former position swept away by a massive white tail. Before she could thank her leader, she shoved her away in time for red lightning to fall from the sky between them. Looking over to White Fatalis, it lowered its head from what seemed to be a roar to the skies. It had control of the weather and could call forth thunderbolts to strike its foes.

"Ruby-!"

"I saw!" Ruby replied before Blake could say anything. "I've never heard of Grimm doing that!"

"I have, but it wasn't red like that."

"What dust do you have in right now?"

"Fire." Blake lifted her weapon. "It's white and covered with fur, so I thought-"

"Got it." Ruby pulled out her own cartridge. "Do you think Weiss and Yang are okay?"

"We're fine." Weiss said, panting next to Blake.

"You don't look fine." Blake noted. "And where's Yang?"

Weiss pointed to the blonde brawler currently wreaking havoc on the monster ahead. Checking Weiss' aura, Ruby saw that she was already low in her reserves. Without saying a word, Blake ran in, opening fire on the titanic for. If she missed, she missed. If she hit, she hit. If she hit Yang, then it would make her angrier at worst. And she was already blazing with rage.

Yang crashed into the monster again and again, colliding like a comet with the white dragon, noticeably knocking it to the ground. Blades did nothing to pierce it's hide, but blunt force weaponry seemed to be doing the trick. Either that, or the flames of Yang's semblance made it noticeably weaker. Blow after blow was delivered, until finally the beast could take no more and fled to the other side of the ruins.

That's when things got worse. Either out of rage or pain, or a mixture of both, the scales around its eyes and chest began to glow red, like blood had been spilled in excess, and it bellowed a mighty roar that shook the world around them. In a blink, the monster was on top of Yang and slammed its claws down on top of her. She'd barely managed to dodge, and the near miss caused her to trip and roll on the ground.

"Yang!" Blake threw Gambol Shroud to her partner and, on her catching it, pulled her away in time as a lightning bolt came crashing down to where she was.

It was at this point that the sky itself was rumbling with rage. Beneath their feet, with little doubt in the danger presented and little room for shelter from the incoming danger, light began to glow all around, save for beneath the beast itself. All of Team RWBY rushed in, getting as close to the enraged monster as they could, as red lightning danced across their battlefield. Pillars crumbled and rubble was reduced to more rubble. Most concerning of all, however, were the less solid structures like the weapon racks and bowguns, which were destroyed with little evidence of their existence. Had any of the team been caught by this attack, then it was very likely that this mission would no longer be a problem for them in the worst possible way.

"What do we do, Ruby?" Weiss asked.

She looked to her sister. "Yang, when you were punching it, did it look like it was getting hurt?"

"Well, I don't think it's putting on this light show because it likes it." Yang answered.

"How much fire dust does everyone have?"

"I have enough for myself and to refresh one of you if you run out." Weiss replied.

"Okay, then stay out of the way until your aura recovers." Ruby said. "We can swing by to refill if we need to. Yang, stay angry and keep hitting him."

"On it~." Yang grinned with red eyes still blazing.

"Blake, you and me will shoot from a distance." She looked out to see the lightning die down. "Everyone ready? Let's go!"

Once the crimson lightning storm had settled, Yang immediately leaped out from beneath her mighty foe and began her head-first charge into the monster. Weiss, using as few glyphs as she could, retreated into an alcove and watched as her team spread out to avoid being hit all at once. Ruby ran to the beast's left, peppering its wings and hide with fire dust rounds while Blake used her ribbon to pull herself to the remains of a column and swung around and unloading a magazine of fire dust into their foe's left side.

With a loud cracking sound, the white wyvern reeled in pain as its horn snapped off from Yang's strikes. Tossing her down, it jumped into the air and landed on top of her, using its weight to crush her. The blonde brawler struggled beneath her enemy's mountainous strength, finding her semblance failing her to keep the giant held aloft.

"Yang!" Ruby cried, looking around for something to do more damage. It was then she noticed a ballista hidden away, untouched by battle and ready for use. Using her semblance to arrive sooner, she aimed the ancient weapon at the ancient devil, lining up her sights to the back of its scaled neck.

Click! Shoomp! Shing! Thunk!

The massive gear rattled and shook in place as the ballista released the ancient missile. Time, however, was not on the weapon's side as it's rusted metal and frayed wire broke and snapped, thankfully waiting until Ruby had already fallen over from the kickback to avoid being struck by the shattering apparatus. Climbing to her feet, Ruby awed that her target had been struck, though not where she had intended.

In her haste to strike a killing blow in the neck of White Fatalis, she'd failed to account for its shifting form. However, this proved to be a boon as the shifting monster had moved itself just right to be struck through its right eye. With a piercing scream, it fell over, thrashing on its side and release Yang from her weighted prison. Ruby ran out to her sister's side, though Blake was already there to help her to her feet. Together, the three unloaded every fire dust they had into the flaming red core of the raging cataclysm. With a few short clicks, they were out of ammunition.

"Weiss!" Ruby shouted, noticing the shattered building where Weiss had retreated. Terror gripped her heart.

"No need to shout." The heiress huffed. "Here." She tossed the remaining fire dust into the air before spun her rapier and stabbed it the ground. A glyph appeared ahead of the team as a giant, flaming knight took form. Jumping from Blake's hands, Ruby took hold of the fire dust and loaded it into Crescent Rose.

"Hey, Blake." Yang tossed her fire dust. With a crack of her knuckles, her hair flared to a golden shine. "I ain't gonna need it."

In a coordinated assault, the team of four huntresses unleashed a blazing fury unlike any felt before. White Fatalis screamed on the ground as it thrashed against its attackers, tail whipping around before it was cut off by Weiss blazing gigas. Blake moved to the side, carefully aiming inside the massive maw where it was likely weaker than its snowy scales. Ruby fired into the exposed wound of the eye, hoping for a quick end through the brain to end the monster's pain, though the scenario grew more and more hopeless with each pull of the trigger.

Yang blasted punch after punch at the red core, ignoring how red it was making herself and the ground around her. She could feel the blood burning her skin through her aura, but she didn't care. All that mattered was taking this thing out.

However, despite their efforts, it rose to its feet and bellowed a ground-shaking roar. The sky filled with black clouds that blotted out any light, save for the largest red thunderbolt zooming through the air to the highest object it could...

"RUBY!" Her team cried as red light vaporized any remaining rose petals. Tears filled their eyes as the petals drifted into ash. The clouds began to part to reveal the shining sun once more. It was as though the heavens wished to aid in finding the missing leader. Sadly, she was nowhere to be found.

Until they saw that the clouds had been perfectly cut. Like a scythe through its harvest tasking. And from the clouds, they saw a red dot growing bigger and bigger. In a red spiral, they saw Ruby Rose, weapon in hand as red electricity danced across the blade of Crescent Rose. In arrogant defiance, White Fatalis took flight and charged the descending huntress leader.

In a scatter of rose petals, the ancient wyvern was split in twain, blood spilling from its severed torso and body. Its chest smashed into the ground before Team RWBY while its body destroyed what was left of Castle Schrade. Landing atop the head was their team leader, dizzy and stumbling before falling off. Yang ran and caught her little sister, grateful she was alive.

"Ruby!" She called.

"How did you do that?" Blake asked.

"Since when could you do that?!" Weiss shrieked.

"Well..." Ruby chuckled. "I just changed my scythe and..."

"Team RWBY?" The girls looked over to see their headmaster, accompanied by other headmasters who each had their own variant of shock on their faces, approached them. "I believe I told you to abort this mission." A smile then grew in place of a scowl. "But I am grateful for both your initiative AND your productivity. I believe you have a mission report for me."

"Uh..." Ruby stood to her feet, looking back to the slain monster behind them. "I think this speaks for itself, doesn't it?"

"It does, but..." The headmaster leaned in with a smile. "I'd like to hear your side of the legend."

[aclowntiny]

May the Flirts Be With You- Seonghwa x Female!Cosplayer!Reader

It adds years to my life as a massive Star Wars nerd that a member of one of my ult groups is one too 🫶🏻 him making a May the 4th post = instant serotonin. It's 3 weeks late, but here's a corny little fun post for SW Day 😁

Word Count: 2394 | Conventions, Nerds to Lovers lmao, that trope I've accidentally created where Yeosang plays cupid | Warnings: the con is really generic because I didn't want to rip anything real off too much & have it be something they couldn't go to lmao, plus that way I could make other popular sci-fi references >:3

“Isn’t the cloak a bit much?”

"Come on," Seonghwa half-jokingly whined, "you said you were going to appreciate everything."

Yeosang had joined him at a sci-fi convention, something Seonghwa had always dreamed of attending. Artists sat at tables showing their amazing creations, groups of friends and family took pictures with signs and props, and of course the place was flooded with cosplayers and merch. They'd even passed by the 501st Legion.

"I do," Yeosang assured him, nodding towards an artist table stocked with hyperrealistic head sketches of the classic Star Trek cast, "like look at those. I don't even watch the show and I kind of want one."

"That's why they say these cons are so expensive, like look over there!" Seonghwa pointed eyes widening. "There's a guy selling discontinued Star Wars lego sets!"

"Oh, boy," Yeosang muttered, but with a smile as his hyung dragged him over to the man's table, where he started eagerly digging in, that childlike wonder Yeosang knew so well starring his eyes.

"This is a fun little ship," Yeosang commented, picking up a small packet, "I like the yellow."

Seonghwa turned, then gave a nod. "The Naboo Starfighter! That is cute, you should get it for your shelf."

"You know what, maybe I will."

"That's the spirit! As for me, I'm between the AT-TE and the TIE Advanced set."

"Go with the cheaper one."

Seonghwa stuck his tongue out at Yeosang, who mirrored the gesture, then giggled in spite of himself. He wasn't the only one who made the sound, though; Seonghwa swiveled around, ready to greet another lego enthusiast, but what he saw had his fingers involuntarily loosening, almost sending the (slightly overpriced, in his opinion) AT-TE set tumbling back onto the red-and-black tablecloth.

It was a girl, a young woman about his age, dressed head-to-toe in a perfect Princess Leia cosplay. And not the classic white outfit, but the Bespin gown and cape.

You made the red outfit look classically beautiful, and whether it was all your hair or some sort of wig or extensions, you'd braided it just right, the loops falling back and at each side of your face, which was focused on Seonghwa with a smile.

"Oh, sorry, you two were just funny. You look like a Jedi and his padawan having a spat."

Seonghwa tore his eyes off of you long enough to regard Yeosang. "I told you I looked like a Jedi!"

"You sure do," you added, tilting your head toward the boxes in his hands, "what are you looking at getting there?"

Seonghwa shakily lowered the AT-TE back to the table. "Oh, well, I think I'm going with the TIE Advanced set."

"Good choice," you loudly whispered, leaning a bit closer, "355 to that one's 794. A little under half the pieces, but a quarter of the price."

"That's what I thought, like the TIE is way more iconic too, sorry Battle of Utapau."

"Yeah, I'm more into the OG movies myself."

He nodded toward your cosplay. "I see that. Did you make that yourself, or buy the pieces?"

"Oh, no, I made this."

Seonghwa feels his jaw drop, warmth pooling in his chest at the way you giggle again, this time at his expression, which rises from shock to a wide, awed grin. "You- you really? How do you do it? How long does it take? One of my roommates just customizes regular clothes and it seems like he can spend hours."

"Oh, yeah, hours is about right," you chuckle, "but it feels like the hardest part is finding the right fabrics sometimes, like these thicker ones aren't at every fabric store."

"Yeah, you really sound like my friend," Seonghwa jokes, "but you look way better."

He flushes the moment the words leave his mouth, immediately stuttering backtracks. "Well, um, that is, I mean, he doesn't do cosplay, more just like paint and cutting stuff up and-"

"Don't worry, you wouldn't believe how many creeps have told me I should have gone with the slave look," your voice cuts into his ramble, "I'm not offended. I actually appreciate it, um...what was your name again?"

"Oh," he lit up, "Seonghwa. This is my first convention."

Introducing yourself, you smiled and waved a hand at the legos he paused the conversation to purchase. "And it looks like you're getting something out of it already."

"More clutter for his room," Yeosang supplied.

You laughed. "You don't want to see mine, then. Besides, I can't help but notice you bought a ship too."

"A tiny one!" Yeosang sheepishly defended himself, quickly laughing at the m-hm sound you made.

"That's how it starts. Get him addicted, Seonghwa."

He nodded. "I'm trying."

"That's the spirit," you said with a mischievous grin.

Seonghwa nodded, then felt his eyes start to lose focus from looking at your own. "Er, well, we'll see you around, (y/n)!" He waved, starting to turn and walk away with Yeosang, who immediately shoved him.

"Whoa, what's that for?"

"What do you think you're doing?"

"Getting back to the convention?"

"Don't you think you should talk to her?"

"What, and follow her around like a weirdo?"

"No," Yeosang fought, "invite her to go check out the voice acting stall or build your legos together or at least just take a picture with her to remember her by if you're too scared to do anything else."

Seonghwa frowned slightly. "I'm not scared."

"Ok," his long-haired friend shrugged, "then prove it."

"I will," he said with a satisfied smile as he turned on his heels, heading back for you.

"Oh, hey, (y/n)?"

You turned around too, white cape billowing around you like angel wings. He swallowed, trying not to stare too hard.

"Can we take a picture? I- I haven't really gotten many pictures with cosplayers, and-"

"Sure!" Smiling brightly, you accepted his proffered phone, taking a couple selfies that left Seonghwa feeling like a boiled lobster, he must be so red. He wasn't expecting you to put your arm around him, but he sure wouldn't complain, either. You also had Yeosang take a few head-to-toe ones so you could see your full outfits and the poses you guys did.

By the time you were done, you both were laughing, especially at one selfie you caught of all three of you where both you and Seonghwa posed and Yeosang just had the most confused expression. In another, you reached behind you to the book stall, each picking one up to pretend to read. Seonghwa made a shocked face at James Luceno's Tarkin, Yeosang mimed intense focus on Timothy Zahn's The Icarus Hunt, and you pretended to laugh at the bowl of petunias in Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

"Well, thanks!" Seonghwa exclaimed after your photoshoot, trailing off before Yeosang elbowed him from behind. "Er, well, I was wondering if you are on any social media for your cosplays?"

"Yup," you nodded, closing out your Photos app with a smile at all the new shots of you guys that had been added to your phone and sliding over to instagram, "Here's where I post a lot of my photos, but if you want to see anything more in-depth or show your fashion designing friend, I can give you my youtube."

Wow... "You have a cosplay youtube? That's so cool! I bet it's a lot of fun!"

"Sure, it's where I track progress, share my processes, and do hauls and stuff too. Oh, and these guys," you shook the box of lego you'd bought at the stall that introduced you, "will get built on there, too. Hey, would you wanna be in a video?"

This time, no elbowing was required. "On your channel? Yes, of course! We could build our legos," Seonghwa replied, feeling excitement rush to his face as he strolled past a life-size Dalek, fingers reaching out to gently brush the smooth dome atop the metal structure.

"For one, yes," you said, a hand reaching up to straighten your Leia braids, "but how would you feel about modeling a legit cosplay?"

His eyes flew open. "You'd make me a whole outfit?"

"Well, I need practice doing men's fits too," you giggled, swerving around a couple dressed as Zoë and Wash from Firefly, "and you have, like, perfect proportions."

Seonghwa's mouth opened and closed a few times, but he didn't know what to say to that. You didn't say any more, either, your interest suddenly captured by a stall selling Padme-inspired jewelry, including one thick silver choker that honestly captured Seonghwa's eyes too...

"So, uh, would you be interested?" You glanced back and forth between the stall and Seonghwa, the way your eyes peered up at him involuntarily raising the corners of his lips.

"As long as my outfit is as pretty as yours."

~

"Everyone's commenting asking if you're a professional model," you giggle at Seonghwa, glancing up at your phone as you hand him the bright orange brick separator.

He pries apart two misplaced lego pieces before meeting your eyes. "Me?"

"Yes, you," you fire back, closing your phone and leaning a bit closer, scanning first Seonghwa's progress, then his face, "have you seen yourself?"

Heat creeps back into his cheeks. "Yes, but I've seen you, too, so I know they should be asking that about you, not me."

"Wow, that was really smooth. No wonder I dressed you up as Lando," you grin, resting your chin on your hand.

Seonghwa just gazed into your eyes with a fond smile. That had been a long, but amazing, process as you got measurements, pinned him still until he was stiff all over, but put hours of work into detailing a masterpiece, complete with a cape of his very own. All the standing around was so worth it to feel the way your hands gently grazed his sides, to hear you laugh at his little comments and even feel it against his neck when you were working on his shoulders, to always make sure you were stopping to take care of yourself, too, and hear how grateful you were when he reminded you you were doing amazing, no need to push yourself. Watching the transformation, your busy hands at work, getting to embody a piece of the universe he loved so much, all of it made for some of the best weeks Seonghwa had had in a long time.

"That was fun," he commented, attaching two more pieces to the wing of the ship he was building.

"Yeah," you agreed, "especially when you almost kissed me."

Seonghwa reddened, stiffening and lowering the wing in his hand slightly.

It had happened one of the last times you'd met up when you were attaching his cape, hands on his shoulders. He'd relaxed too much, falling into watching you work with dazed eyes, dreaming of leaning in, and then you pulled a little too hard, sending him surging forward, his face almost crashing into yours. He'd managed to catch himself just in time and you'd edited that part out of the fitting video of course, but that moment, your awkward but thrilling almost-kiss, had been living rent-free in Seonghwa's mind ever since then. A part of him wished he'd just managed to fall all the way, but that also wasn't how he wanted your first kiss to go. If you liked him back, which Yeosang and Hongjoong insisted you did. Hongjoong had even taken to texting him 'May the flirts be with you' before he went to your studio, which strangely had encouraged him on a couple occasions to just say the compliment or to brush your hands a little when he handed you supplies or made sure you had water.

"I'm so sorry about that, I really was just clumsy and-"

"It's all right," you smirked faintly, putting the constructed cockpit in your hands down, "I was ready for it."

Seonghwa's brows furrowed as he fully set the wing down. "You... you..."

"Wait, I'm sorry, did I read things wrong? I thought we were flirting. But if not, I'm so sorry! I'm not good at this," you confessed, "you know what they say about nerds and all."

Any and all dissatisfaction about Hongjoong being right dissipated into the great sparkly abyss of joy rising and thudding out of Seonghwa's chest because holy cow, the super cool girl who makes Star Wars outfits and builds lego with him and doesn't laugh at his ASMR is interested in them? Sure, let him and Yeosang rub it in Seonghwa's face. He'd endure anything if it meant getting closer to you.

"I didn't want to make you uncomfortable, either," he chuckled, grin widening by the second, "but yes, I was. My roommate even started texting me to hype me up before I visited you, look!"

He showed you the text, which was followed by a gif of Han Solo and a whole bunch of teasing ㅋㅋㅋㅋ.

"I was worried you were going to see all the youtube comments teasing me about my obvious crush on you or how cute we were together!"

His eyes widened again. "So you have an obvious crush on me?"

"Seonghwa," you folded your arms, "you don't exactly want someone to kiss you because they're like a brother to you."

"Right, right, sorry, it's just so hard to believe a real-life space princess like you is interested in a lowly smuggler like myself."

"Ok," you snorted, "that was corny."

"I was trying to be corny."

"Good," you tease, leaning in closer until your nose is almost brushing his, "I like corny."

"That's why you like Attack of the Clones. It's the dialogue."

"It's the childhood appeal and you know it! I always say they got a little confident in their millions with some of the writing, but something in it really captured a youth vibe. It's like what they did in Twilight, but better because of the rest of the worlds happening around it-" You rambled, distracted by Seonghwa's claim.

Seonghwa, meanwhile, could only stare at your animated gesticulating and think how you're most definitely the girl of his dreams. "Ok, seriously, please kiss me."

“Alright, but we’re definitely doing the cape yank next time,” you comment as you lean in, letting Seonghwa take one of your hands, the other pulling you in softly by your cheek until your lips met.

[ectogeo-rebubbles]

I have kind of a niche Garashir fic idea I want to write but I’ve never posted anything publicly before, so I am nervous. But I can’t seem to get over the idea? You’re one of my favorite fic writers, any advice? 💕🥺

Ooooh, you gotta try to write it!!! I always love to indulge my new ideas that are driving me insane as soon as I can hehe (because part of writing often has to be done after the initial idea no longer excites you quite the same way).

I like that you said it’s a niche idea, too! I do enjoy most of the common fanon tropes and worldbuilding, but it’s always so refreshing when people add something brand new to the Garashir body of literature. And the nicher and stranger the better, in my opinion!! One thing about writing something niche is that maybe it won’t get the same amount of attention as quickly as something that has broader appeal, HOWEVER... I can tell you from experience that when your niche stuff does find its audience (which may take patience and persistence) that audience will likely go absolutely WILD for it. And I always find that very rewarding <3

Is the reason you haven't started yet because you don't quite know how to start? If that's the case, I would recommend writing an outline first. I even sometimes will outline really short oneshots lol, not because I think I really need to, but because that way i at least have a good record of my idea and ALSO because sometimes I can trick myself into just starting to write by taking notes on in outline format until I get to the part I'm REALLY excited about, at which point I realize I'm just writing full sentences instead of notes and I just let it flow from there and go back to fix the beginning later. XD You could also just try to summarize the plot for a friend, that often reveals to me where any structural issues are tripping me up, and identifies what I need to think about more before I set words down on the page.

Idk if you haven't written before or if you just haven't posted any of it, but I want you to know that a few years ago, when I was easing myself back into writing, I worked on writing like 3 or 4 different garashir fic ideas privately before I actually figured out which idea I wanted to write all the way to the end and actually post. Most of those first wips never got posted (and my wip graveyard is still massive and always growing lol) and that's for the best bc I either got bored of the idea or could not yet achieve the story in the way I wanted to. Which is NOT to tell you that this is inevitable or that you should let your inner editor shut you down, but I just want you to know that it's perfectly okay and normal to, like, have to noodle around a bit before you've written something you're happy with.

Speaking of your inner editor, you gotta tune them out while writing a first draft. Don't even worry if the sentence makes sense, just get the words out, and then get the next words out, and then the next... If there is something stopping you from writing the next sentence (a name you need to make up, or something you need to research, or uncertainty about what a character would be doing, or even if you are just blanking on a word) and you are trying to maintain a flow of writing, then write a note for yourself (e.g, "[insert title of a Cardassian novel here]" or "[Julian makes some kind of expression. Surprise? Anger? idk]" or "[synonym for sinister, bc I've used sinister three times this fic already]") and then MOVE ON. You can go back in and fill in those blanks later.

Also, I really really really really like the writing advice of thinking of your first draft as your worst draft or stupidest draft. It's so true and it helps take the pressure off. One related amazing thing about writing star trek fanfic is that if ever you begin to doubt yourself, you can just fondly think about a beloved episode of Star Trek where something very silly or buckwild happens in a very contrived way, and then remind yourself that people LOVE that episode anyway. This is a genuine way that I have reminded myself not to be so harsh on my own writing lmao.

I really working with beta readers, but I know that's not something everyone enjoys and it's def not required. Still, a beta reader can give feedback on your writing to make it clearer, and they'll likely become invested in your fic and will cheer you on, and if it’s longer than a oneshot you can have someone to talk it through with during the writing process. But it might be hard to find someone you work well with and everyone’s beta reading style is a lil different, so I recommend always being very clear about what kind of feedback you want from them (grammar/typos, plot structure, clarity, brainstorming ideas for how to fix this plothole, does this one specific line of dialogue work, etc! whatever aspects you are uncertain about and want help with for that specific fic). And you should know that it’s okay to not take someone's recommendations too, it’s ultimately your fic, so anyone giving you feedback should just be trying to help you achieve your own vision. Still, even in those cases where you don't go along exactly with their idea for what to change, knowing what parts confused them can help you figure out how to get your vision across more clearly.

If you think concrit might actually be demotivational and intimidating (totally get that, back in high school I actually solicited concrit on my fics publicly, as was the custom back then, and received some critiques from some truly well-meaning friends, and the experience STILL rattled me so bad that it turned me off writing for awhile), or if the process of finding someone to beta read sounds overwhelming, I’d recommend that you instead just find a trusted friend who is willing to read over the completed draft, with the understanding that they must simply give you a sanity check and then tell you yep that’s good! Cannot stress enough the power of encouragement and support and having someone hype you up. ^_^

If you are too nervous to post it under your own name, you can post it to the Anonymous collection on ao3. This is a reversible process, so if you want to reattach your username to your fic later then you can!

Anyway, feel free to send follow up questions about any of this or let me know if there's an aspect of writing I didn't mention that is what you're actually stuck on. I hope this helps and good luck and HAVE FUN! Have fun is actually the most important writing advice haha.

(P.S., anon, if you want me to beta read a draft of a oneshot or at least look over a chapter or two if it's multichapter, I am down to do so, just DM me. If not that's fine too, I'm just so so flattered that you reached out to me and I want to encourage you in any way I can! <3)

[veryace-ficrecs]

Steve Harrington with Head Trauma Fic Recs

one of my favorite Stranger Things tropes, here is a list of Steve having head trauma and/or suffering from migraines.

as always this list will include all ratings and tags, so read at your own  discretion! :)

Misjudged Your Limits by kikisifi13 - Rated T

"According to Robin, the first signs that Steve was getting a migraine were the little things, things that would seem normal if they were coming from anyone else. Steve had walked into Family Video that morning fifteen minutes late, wearing sunglasses and clutching a thermos of coffee. And sure, it was summer. But the knowing glance that Robin shot Eddie told him this wasn’t that."

After being beaten up one too many times, Steve Harrington has some head trauma to show for it. This also means migraines, which he tries his best to avoid displaying. 3 months into dating Eddie Munson, that particular situation becomes unavoidable, and when Steve is forced to be vulnerable, Eddie doesn't know what the hell he's supposed to do. Cue Robin leading Eddie through Caring For Steve's Migraines: A Comprehensive Guide.

TW: headaches, nausea, vomiting

Odds and Ends by kikisifi13 - Rated T

The plan is this: Steve is supposed to take the kids to see the newest Star Trek movie this Friday. The problem is this: Steve is due for a migraine.

basically the kids thought his migraines weren't a big deal, and now they DEFINITELY do hehe well, with a little help from Eddie and Robin. and Max. she knows what's up.

So Let It Out And Let It In by fangirlandtheories - Rated T

"Steve and his Dad get into a fight so he instinctively seeks out Eddie, only realizing too late that he's in the middle of DnD night with the kids, forcing him to be vulnerable in front of them." Anon request from Tumblr. *** “Hey, Steve, you’re kinda freaking us out dude.” Mike was slowly rising from his seat as he watched Steve’s eyes start to flutter. “Why’s your voice sound like that?”

medicinal by peaktotheocean - Rated T

 “I’ve got a friend who is having a ton of migraine issues," Robin blurted out. Eddie's head rose to look at her. That was a new one. "We heard weed helps. Any truth to it?” She asked hopefully.

Uncle Wayne always used to joke that Eddie was too curious for his own good. Eddie just never thought he'd agree with the assessment while selling weed to Robin Buckley of all people.

Sticky Notes by voidpacifist - Rated M

"It's the only music I can hear," Steve answers honestly. Something soft passes over Eddie's face at the admission. It's not pity. Steve saw pity in the librarians eyes as he and Dustin and Robin checked out all those books on ASL. Steve knows what self righteous sympathy does to a person's face, and it isn't doing that to Eddie's. No, Eddie's expression is maybe closest to understanding.

-

Steve's hearing was already dwindling on the precipice of "not good" after his run-in with Billy Hargrove in 1984. Less than a year and one Russian interrogation later, he loses the totality of his hearing in his left ear, and most of it in his right. To help himself readjust to a world with minimal sound, he starts seeking noise in a way he never expected to — by attending Corroded Coffin's performances at the Hideout.

Eddie wants to know what the hell is up with "King Steve" suddenly showing up to his shows. His questioning doesn't go to plan, and instead he lands himself an unexpected new friend.

-

pre!S3 —> post!S4

 yesterdays shatter, tomorrows don't matter by yellowmarshmallow - Rated M

There were only so many times someone could hit you in the head before you got lasting problems. Steve found that the number was about three.

But now Robin and the kids insist he should look after himself, and with Eddie making it his mission to make sure he does, Steve isn't sure he's in a place to argue.

Maybe being loved isn't so bad.

Stuck in My Head by schrijverr - Rated T

Between Jonathan, Billy and the Russians, Steve’s brain has taken enough damage for it to be permanent. He tries to deal with it, but with the Upside Down coming back, he can’t keep doing it alone. So, he confides in Eddie, the most unlikely person, but the only one who doesn’t yet count on him to be strong. The secret gives them a bond that helps them grow closer together as Eddie has Steve’s back and shows him he’s worth something.

[anonymooseforever007]

Hi Y'all! I'm gonna try to get back on here! (Y'all can skip this if you want!)

Hi ❤️ ok so I hope y'all are all doing well! I know it's been I've a year since I've posted anything really or like done any interaction and stuff. But towards the end of the summer I got really busy getting ready to go back to school and then my anxiety about interacting with like anyone started acting up and like it kinda just stayed there for a while. And then I also kinda got distracted a little bit from Peaky Blinders and writing stuff, but I'm gonna try to get back on here now. I will admit I haven't been looking at to many things for Peaky Blinders recently as I've been a bit more into other shows and have been watching them more than reading lately (EX: X-Files (Fox Mulder), Star Trek SNW (Spock), Star Trek TOS (Kirk), Justified, All the CSI's, Criminal Minds, etc).

But yeah like that's been happening and I feel bad because I kept meaning to get back on and then I didn't. But I think it should be all good now. I just stared my senior year in college, and I've started anxiety meds which have helped a lot, and I've got a remote internship I'm still going to be doing for a bit so I still can't say how regularly I'll be posting or getting on here but I just wanted to start trying to do it again, without maybe going to fast and scaring myself off again😅 Also Tumblr seems to have glitches and deleted a few messages on my end that were sent to me but I don't get a chance to respond to to if y'all sent something and I did't see it I'm very sorry. I tumblr seems to be giving me issues about working it on my phone right now which is how I usually do it all. And I'm going to try and up date that.

In terms of works written works, the WIP list I made like a year ago is still the current list of what's finished along with a small number of incorrect quotes and random stuff I need to filter through. I do have one story I'm going to try and post right after this before I go to classes again and then I'll try checking in back after I finish work today. So that will be updated. And then I've been stuck writing lately so I'm going to slowly trying to start getting back into it!

But yeah... that's all I can think of for now. I'm not sure what else to say really but that I hope y'all are doing well and thank you to everyone who enjoyed my stories even when I was gone, I'm glad that I could hopefully brighten you day a bit:)

[thewomancallednova]

Some spoiler-y obervations on today's SNW episode, "Hegemony":

I'm really glad we got to see an adult Gorn that looks more humanoid. When Sam found those anomalous human readings I was really concerned they'd go with a "TOS Gorn a weird Human-Gorn hybrids" thing.

ERICA GOT TO SAY MULTIPLE SENTENCES IM SO HAPPY

I was 100% sure Batel was gonna die when she made a log entry at the start :D Pleasently surprised by how that went

I kinda wish the Gorn weren't such a drawn-out plot with SNW. The feeling I'm getting is that they're just doing "Arena" but with eight episodes scattered over three seasons and I don't really see how that's gonna be better than "Arena". For what it's worth I'd love to get a closer look at how Gorn society in SNW actually works, like how did y'all build those spaceships if you keep cannibalising everyone. And to this episode's credit they did tease in that direction.

Definitely more on board with Scotty by the end of the episode than at the start. I really hope we can keep Carol Kane next season and have her mentor Scotty. I like what SNW has done with Spock, Uhura, Chapel and M'Benga; so I'm optimistic about Scotty, but my first instinct whenever a new major TOS character appears is generally to groan.

How exactly does a demarcation line within a solar system? Like, I'm no physicist, but don't planets usually rotate around stars? Wouldn't that shift planets in and out of Gorn/Federation territory depending on the time of year? Incidentally, there's a Trek novel (by Peter David of course) that explores that exact situation, where a planet is in (IIRC) Tholian territory for two days every year.

Pike's voice when he says "Spock" after seeing the destroyed Caygua is just TT

Seeing Pike interrupt Battel's mission here with a subspace phone call, I wish we'd see that more often the other way around. "Sorry honey, can't talk right now I have to make the pirates revolt against their captain, I'll call you back later okay?"

Love the music cues reminiscent of TOS. And I'm glad in general that the post-Berman Trek shows got to recover from the "sonic wallpaper" directive.

The Starfleet delta pattern on the space suits is really distracting. Like, I know I'm supposed to look at how they're hand-holding but wow, that is a lot of deltas!

It kinda rubs me the wrong way that Spock and Chapel killed the Gorn on the Cuyaga, just when the planetside story gets all about how maybe we can talk with the Gorn. Probably doesn't help that the Gorn took like ten seconds to suffocate and seemed to be in excruciating pain throughout. Like, c'mon Chapel, shoot him already, it's be more merciful.

I think SNW is actually quite clever with connecting its Gorn continuity to that of TOS. The SNW Gorn ships like very different from the TOS ones, which is great because in "Arena" no one recognizes the new ship. The Gorn are only revealed as the perpetrators in conversation with the Metrons, so I think it's feasable that Kirk just doesn't know of them (as long as his relationship with La'an doesn't get any further) and the rest of the crew didn't want to interrupt during the conversation with the seemingly very powerful Metrons. After Kirk is teleported by the Metrons Uhura screams, because 60s show (she should be used to teleportation right, being in Starfleet), but the SNW retcon that she knows of the Gorn and their horrors really gives that moment new depth and makes it less silly.

[more-better-words]

Alright, one and all, strap in. It's time for M. B. Words to engage in self-congratulation (and self-promotion) of the most SHAMELESS variety.

The past few years hadn't been the greatest for me in terms of creative output - one series petered out, the inspiration fading, and another that I began started strong, but I soon found myself overwhelmed by the scale of the challenge I'd created for myself. Then came Enterprise, and (more specifically) Trip and T'Pol.

I've been a star Trek fan my entire life, but I'd never found myself compelled to write fic for it. And I've told this part of the story before - how the end of ENT and the utter hatchet job that was TATV made me want to give Trip and T'Pol something better than what the show had.

"I'll just write this little post-Terra Prime thing - few thousand words - and get it out of my system," I said.

Dear reader, this is not what occurred.

Part of it was the incredibly kind and supportive encouragement I received from the fandom, and more than that, for the first time in a while, I felt like I had a story to tell. A story that just kept growing.

So instead of a one-off, it turned into a series, and in the course of 2023, I've published work that I'm really proud of, and I'm not entirely sure what the alchemy is that's unlocked this for me, but it feels good to be creating and sharing, so I'm not going to question it.

That series, Built to Last, is comprised of the following:

From the Ground Up - 9.8k words, rated G. Post Terra Prime, Trip and T'Pol decide to give a relationship a shot. Surprise, surprise, it actually works.

What We Build Here - 22.7k words, rated G. The first six months of Trip and T'Pol's marriage, and their time on Earth, before the universe conspires against them.

For the Duration - 19.2k words, rated T. The Earth/Romulan War still happens in this timeline, sorry. (I may actually be proudest of this one, because I did some non-linear stuff that I think worked pretty well)

The Place We Call Home - ongoing, rated G. Babies and domestic bliss ahoy!

"But Words," you say, "Trip and T'Pol are super hot together. Have you written anything that caters to a...spicier palate?"

Funny you should ask! For most of my fic writing career, I’ve been a bit shy about writing sex scenes. But this autumn, driven by my ceaseless envy towards those who wrote them being oh-so-hot (you know who you are), I decided this was a challenge I needed to undertake for myself. I still haven’t written I’d rate E (maybe someday, I dunno), but I think I’m getting better at it!

Rounding the Bases

Mine

Intoxicants

I’ve also (ALSO!) posted some ficlets here on tumblr that I’ve collected over on AO3.

Scrapbook

Cinnamon Candy

tl;dr if you’ve stuck around this long - I’ve written a ton this year, and I’m happy about it, like really, genuinely pleased with it, and I hope you don’t mind me sharing it with all of you. Happy New Year.