#multi-chapter work: malcolm is

[marointhemoon]

Malcolm is...

Chapter 1 - Weird/Wanting

A series of vignettes that peek into the various friendships Malcolm's had throughout his life. Most of them had never lasted. Until Enterprise. Alternate title: "Eight descriptors for Malcolm Reed, and one that's actually true."

Beginning-of-chapter notes: 22.9.2119. 4.

A new student had joined Marie's preschool class last week, called Malcolm. He’d gotten anxious with everyone pelting him with questions that first day, so Marie had decided to wait for all the fuss to die down. That didn’t take very long, with most of the class noticing Malcolm’s shyness and writing him off as weird.

She chose to introduce herself during a recess period. She'd noticed that he tended to keep to himself during recess, just quietly sitting on the swings or playing in the sandbox while everyone else played some other game. It had been raining all that day, so the class was stuck inside. As usual, while the other children had occupied themselves with each other's company, Malcolm was alone. He sat on the rug in the middle of the room, building some sort of tower with the wood blocks. Marie walked over to him, sensing that he wasn’t in the mood to talk. Still, she thought, he’s got to make friends sometime.

“Hullo,” she said, putting on her best, friendliest smile. “What’s your name?”

He looked up from where he’d been sitting. Malcolm blinked a couple of times, not smiling back.

“Er … Malcolm,” he said, before going back to what he was doing. Marie’s brows furrowed, her smile dropping. He was weird.

“Aren’t you going to ask my name?”

Malcolm looked back up.

“Okay. What is your name?”

She smiled again. Maybe she was getting somewhere. “I’m Marie.”

Malcolm blinked again. “Okay.”

He went back to building. With a huff, Marie sat down near him. What could be so interesting?

“What are you building?” she ventured.

“Dunno.”

“May I build with you, Malcolm?”

Malcolm paused again, thinking for a moment. Then, he gathered a small group of blocks for himself, before pushing the rest to Marie.

“Here you are.”

He then looked down again, going back to whatever he was trying to build. Marie stared at her pile, not understanding what she’d done wrong. It wasn’t as though she’d crowded him that first day or gone out of her way to exclude him like some of her friends had. Shouldn't he want to be her friend?

She looked at Malcolm, playing with his group of blocks, aware that she existed but not seeming to care. Making her decision, she stood. Clearly, he was fine on his own. She walked away, joining her friends at one of the tables. They talked and laughed about nothing in particular, including him.

---

Malcolm looked up, frowning slightly, not understanding what he’d done wrong. He wasn’t sure how he felt, but it wasn’t good. When he heard his name and ‘weird’ in one of their sentences, he felt his eyes burning. He blinked, refusing to let himself cry. Reed men didn’t cry, four years old or not.

Still, it hurt. But he was alone now, and he couldn’t do anything about it. He went back to his blocks, ignoring the ache he felt in his chest, throat, and eyes. 

Chapters:

1 (you are here) | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |

[run-clever-boy]

I’m (kind of) new!

I'm a relatively new writer here! (I also repost absolute ramdom things *cough* peter capaldi *cough*, so my blog is a bit cluttered lol) I would love anyone to request fics or at least help me with the ropes! I have never published any writing before so comments are appreciated!

PLEASE READ: All fics that are requested i have recieved and I am working on them! I publish the fic directly with the ask so that way it is easy to find. I promise I recieved them. ALSO: IF YOU REQUESTED AN IAN MALCOLM ANGST/FLUFF FIC IM SO SO SORRY I ACCIDENTALLY DELETED THE ASK, MESSAGE ME PLS (Also I love all the requests <3)

I write for the following characters so far (character list below the cut), however I am not opposed to maybe adding a few more!

Masterlist here!

Doctor who:

9th doctor

10th doctor

11th doctor

12th doctor.

(No doctor who spoilers please, currently in beginning of 13’s run)

BBC Sherlock:

Sherlock

Not opposed to more just don’t really have any ideas

Harry Potter:

Sirius Black

Remus Lupin

Severus Snape

George Weasley

Fred Weasley

again open to more just no ideas

Marvel:

Loki

Stephen Strange

don’t know a lot about the mcu specifics but bear with me

Random:

Willy Wonka (2023 only! I can’t write about the others just because of personal icks)

John Wick

Theo Dimas (maybe theomabel pairing) - Only Murders in the Building

Ian Malcolm

TED LASSO.

OC's!!! (New!) - each name will have a link to their character description

Elise Shepard

Please Please Please help me out here! Can’t wait to see the amazing things created here. I will write 18+ content and many warnings will be provided. I mostly write one-shots, drabbles, quite a few reader inserts (Y/n). Not a fan of multi-chapter fics but may write if persuaded. Thank you!

[wingsoverlagos]

Lewisohn vs. Wenner Pt. 2 of 2

Part 1 // More Tune In analysis

You probably know the drill by now: I'm looking at the quotes from Tune In against the source Mark Lewisohn gives for them, and seeing if they're faithfully reproduced. This post deals with the multi-source Frankenquotes that are partly attributed to Jann Wenner's interviews. Five of the quotes here are from the infamous Lennon Remembers interview, with a sixth from a separate interview for Rolling Stone. Lewisohn combines John's words from these interviews with a myriad of other sources: a televised interview of John by Jean-François Vallée (1975), Hunter Davies’ The Beatles (1968), an interview/cohosting spot on The Mike Douglas Show (1972), and an interview with Lisa Robinson for Hit Parader (1975).

Before I get into it, I wanted to take a moment to discuss how I ‘grade’ Lewisohn’s quotes based on the type of source he cites. If Lewisohn is using a recorded interview, there’s some wiggle room in things like punctuation and word stress. When transcribing the same interview, two people might listen to the same phrase and come away with slightly different versions, e.g. “My favorite color was blue, but that changed after the accident in the paint factory,” vs. “My favorite color was blue. But that changed after the accident in the paint factory.” Both of those could be correct interpretations of the same recorded audio, so I can’t fault Lewisohn for changes along those lines when he’s working from an audio source.

There isn’t the same wiggle room when working from text. If I pull a quote from a book, and the book reads, “Now, I love green. It’s so lush,” I can’t change that to, “Now I love green; it’s so lush.” I’m not actually quoting the person who said those words originally—I’m quoting the transcribed and published version of what that person said.

I've taken this into account with these Frankenquotes. If there are punctuation differences between Tune In and the printed version of Lennon Remembers pictured here, I haven’t made note of them. Those same differences in a quote pulled from Davies’ The Beatles will be noted, since Lewisohn is quoting the printed source and not an original audio tape. This becomes a bit confusing when a single “quote” is compiled from different sources, and the bits from one source are graded on a different rubric than the other, but such is the thrill of fact-checking Mark Lewisohn!

Citations at the end. Time stamps refer to this upload of the Lennon Remembers interview.

Tune In 4-12 vs. Wenner p.76 (2:14:41), 18 (36:24)  + Vallée Interview

I haven't been able to track down the source for the middle section of this Frankenquote (it’s from an interview by Jean-François Vallée for the French TV Series Un jour futur, in the episode “Il était une fois: John Lennon.”), nor did I find the first sentence of the third part of the quote. It isn’t in the printed version of Lennon Remembers, and it doesn’t appear before the final sentence in the audio, though perhaps it’s elsewhere on the tape.

This has several classic Lewisohn offenses: stitching together multiple sources, combining distinct sections of a single source into one quote, and phrases omitted without ellipses. I've noted these on the images above.

What I'd like to bang on about is Lewisohn's choice not to clarify who John is referencing at the start of the quote--the "somebody" discussing black music and white bodies. In the original interview, John credits it to either "Michael X or Eldridge Cleaver" (Lennon Remembers gives this as Malcolm X, but it's clearly Michael X on the tape--see end of post for some background on Michael X and Lennon). It's common practice by many authors to clarify ambiguous references like this; Mark Lewisohn even does it in Tune In. He mostly does this in the endnotes (e.g. P-4, 2-22), but he uses a footnote to clarify a song lyric he himself uses in the prose of Chapter 4 (see footnote 4-c). Lewisohn not only fails to clarify who John is referencing here, he does not quote John's attempted attribution.

But maybe this falls under Lewisohn's inconsistent policy of not referencing the future. Still, even without naming the black activist who John references here, this quote is not a reflection of John's mindset in his adolescence: he wasn't sitting at a Quarry Bank chum's house in 1956, thinking "gee, thank goodness this black music has reconnected me with my middle-class white body!" The use of the above quote is foresight in and of itself, so why not credit the person who originated that line of thinking? Are Lewisohn's footnotes only for pronunciation guides and details of how demonstrably effeminate certain Beatles' relations were? For someone proclaiming their book a "social history", it's a bit of an oversight.

It's Eldridge Cleaver, by the way, in his prison memoir Soul on Ice (1968). It's in the chapter titled "Convalescence," in a discussion about the Beatles and white rock 'n' roll. Be forewarned if you seek it out, that section is also heavily homophobic.

Tune In 6-7 vs. Wenner p.133 (3:53:54) + Davies p.33

Hunter Davies did not record his interviews with the Beatles, as described in the introduction to the 2009 edition (p.lxiii): “I also wish now that I’d used a tape recorder. I never have done, which is silly.” Since we know Lewisohn was working with Davies’ written word, he was not at liberty to make changes like the one we see here: Davies starts a new sentence at the word “But”, which Lewisohn combines with the preceding sentence. There are changes like this throughout the quotes pulled from Davies’ work, but that’s a matter for a later post.

The other change Lewisohn makes here is more consequential. When discussing how Paul came to join the Quarrymen, John says, “That decision was to let Paul in.” Lewisohn gives the quote as “[my] decision was to let Paul in.”

Perhaps you’re thinking, “He’s used brackets! It’s fine!”, but I disagree. Brackets can be used when changing the tense of a quote, or when changing a word to clarify the meaning of a quote, so long as doing so doesn’t change the meaning. Clarification isn’t necessary here: the quote, as stated by Lennon, would make sense in the context Lewisohn provides. There’s no confusion about what decision John is discussing here.

But this change isn’t simply superfluous—it actually changes the meaning of the quote in a way that’s only clear if we look at the source. Here’s what immediately precedes the quote:

“I met Paul, and I made a decision whether to—and he made a decision too—whether to have him in the group or not.” Emphasis mine.

So John is not talking strictly about his decision, he’s talking about Paul and his mutual decision to work together. Without this context, even without the change from “that” to “my”, John seems to be discussing his own decision. Lewisohn’s change is completely unnecessary to get across his point. It’s as if he made this change specifically to push back against John Lennon’s assertion that a young Paul McCartney had autonomy and didn’t simply exist to satisfy John’s whims.

Tune In 8-4 vs. Wenner p.133-4 (3:54:42) + Davies p.44-5

Color-coded to show the absolute chopped salad Lewisohn made of these two sources.

Also of note is Lewisohn’s follow-up to this quote, “Despite this frank if uncharitable purge of his feelings….” Lewisohn does this elsewhere (notably with John’s quote about hitting women): he follows up a self-critical quote from John with an authorial “Aw, don’t be so hard on yourself, buddy!” It’s unnecessary.

Tune In 8-28 vs. Wenner p.140 + The Mike Douglas Show

Lennon: He’s the greatest rock ‘n’ roll poet, and I really admire him. Douglas: Do you feel the same today as you did years ago in Liverpool about rock? Lennon: When I hear rock, good rock, of the caliber of Chuck Berry, I just fall apart and I have no other interest in life. Y’know, the world could be ending if rock ‘n’ roll’s playing, y’know. It’s a disease of mine.

I wasn’t able to find this quote in the interview audio, but I’m sure its there somewhere. I used Lennon Remembers as a guide to find the correct location of a certain segment in the 4+ hour audio, and it is apparent that certain parts of Lennon Remembers have been reordered.

I transcribed this section of the Mike Douglas Show from a video posted on the Shanghai-based streaming app BiliBili - see link in my source list.

Lewisohn uses an ellipsis to indicate a transition between two totally different sources here but does not use an ellipsis to indicate the phrases he left out of the Wenner interview. There are several small changes to the quote from the Mike Douglas show as well, but the meaning is retained.

Tune In 22-78 vs. Robinson 1975 + Wenner p.122 (1:33:20)

The first source here is Lisa Robinson’s 1975 interview with John for Hit Parader. You can find a version of this interview here. Note the lack of ellipsis between the purple and pink sections, despite the lengthy omission between them.

Lewisohn does use an ellipsis in the Wenner-derived portion of this quote, but he doesn’t place it correctly. The omission occurs between “and” and “Brian”, not between the rest of the quote and “and Brian.”

It wouldn’t make sense to include Allen Klein and Yoko Ono in this quote as it appears in Tune In, since they won’t appear until much later in the series, but I do wonder if presenting the quote without their names truly preserves the quote’s meaning. However you feel about them personally, Allen Klein and Yoko Ono are two of the most controversial figures in Beatles’ history. Within a few years of this interview, John would be on the outs with Allen Klein. John describes himself as someone who “make[s] a lot of mistakes character-wise”, and goes on to list three examples of his good judgments. Two of those are Allen and Yoko. Is it intellectually honest to delete those two names from the list and present Brian as the one example of John’s character judgment?

And our final Wenner Frankenquote. This one isn’t from Lennon Remembers, but from a 1970 Rolling Stone article titled “The Beatles: One Guy Standing There, Shouting ‘I’m Leaving’.”

Tune In 22-72 vs. Wenner 1970 + Robinson 1975

This one is audacious enough to warrant its own post—and we’re in luck! I defer to @mythserene's post for proper analysis. You can also find this one discussed in @anotherkindofmindpod's "Fine Tuning: Ep 7 Spanner in the Works."

In brief, in the ‘quote’ lifted from Wenner’s interview, John is using “Epstein” as a stand-in for Klein. John’s not saying “Three of us chose Epstein”—he’s saying “Three of us chose Klein, throw aside your assumptions about him for a minute.” It’s not the sort of quote you can divorce from its context if you have any credibility.

Some Context on Michael X and John Lennon:

Michael X (a.k.a. Michael Abdul Malik, born Michael de Freitas) was born in Trinidad and became a prominent member of the black Power movement in 1960s London. Lennon met Michael X early in 1970 and became a devoted supporter and advocate until Malik’s death in 1975 (Wiener 1991, p.115-123). Here’s a brief rundown of their involvement:

Since you’re the sort of person who reads citation-by-citation analyses of Beatles books, you have probably seen pictures from early 1970 of John and Yoko sporting matching pixie cuts. In January 1970, John and Yoko shaved their heads (as a publicity stunt, I assume?), and kept their shorn hair in a bag. This bag of hair was the centerpiece for their first public interaction with Michael X: in February 1970, Lennon and Ono gave Malik their bag of hair, and he gave them a pair of Muhammad Ali’s shorts. The press was very much present, but they failed to make headlines (Doggett 118). The hair was supposed to be auctioned off at Sotheby’s to support Malik’s Black House, but this fell through (see Lennon on The Dick Cavett show here.) Pictures of the event can be seen at The Beatles Bible.

Malik fled London for his native Trinidad when legal issues loomed in 1971. He started a commune there, which John visited in April of the same year. In 1972, the bodies of Joseph Skerritt and Gale Benson were found on the commune (Weiner 1991, p.118). Malik was convicted of ordering the killing of Skerritt and would be hanged for that crime in 1975 (NYT 1975 May 17).

Malik may or may not have ordered Skerritt’s murder, but regardless, he did not have a fair trial. John and Yoko campaigned from the time of his conviction up until his death for clemency, without result (Weiner 1991, p.119-123).

Sources:

Cavett D [host]. 1971 Sept 11. Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono. The Dick Cavett Show. Accessed online on 2024 Feb 23. Available from: https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/7kXCnKfdGOY.

Cleaver E. 1968. Soul on Ice. New York (NY): Dell Publishing Co., Inc. 210p. Accessed online. Available from: https://archive.org/details/soul-on-ice-by-eldridge-cleaver/

Davies H. 1968. 2009 Edition. The Beatles. New York (NY): W.W. Norton & Company. 408p.

Doggett P. 2009. You Never Give Me Your Money: The Beatles After the Breakup. New York (NY): HarperCollins. 390p.

Douglas M [host]. 1972 Feb 16. Season 11 Episode 123. The Mike Douglas Show with John Lennon & Yoko Ono. Accessed online 2024 Feb 23. Available from: https://b23.tv/mQMUDg9

Militant Is Hanged by Trinidad After Long Fight for Clemency. 1975 May 17. New York Times.[Internet] [cited 2024 Feb 24]. Available from: https://www.nytimes.com/1975/05/17/archives/militant-is-hanged-by-trinidad-after-long-fight-for-clemency.html

Robinson L. 1975 Dec. Interview with John Lennon. Hit Parader. Accessed Online from www.beatlesinterviews.org. Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20230409044146/https://www.beatlesinterviews.org/db1975.1200.beatles.html

Wenner JS. 1970 May 14. The Beatles: One Guy Standing There, Shouting ‘I’m Leaving’. Rolling Stone. Accessed online. Available from: https://web.archive.org/web/20231017203039/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-beatles-one-guy-standing-there-shouting-im-leaving-43403/2/

Wenner JS. 1970. 1970 12 08 John Lennon Interview, Rolling STones Lennon Remembers, Complete Unedited [video]. Youtube. 2022 Apr 18, 4:26:50. Accessed 2024 Feb 18. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YelhzUbrCE

Wenner JS. 1971. 2000 ed. Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Lennon Remembers. London: Verso. 151p. Accessed online. Available from: https://archive.org/details/lennonremembers00lenn_0/

Wiener J. 1984. 1991 Illini Books ed. Come Together: John Lennon In His Time. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. 379 p. Accessed online. Available from: https://archive.org/details/cometogetherjohn00jonw/

[maedhrus]

*pesters you like a cat prodding at a glass of water bc i luv u* 2, 7, 15, 25 & 31 for the fic writer ask game 😘

similar to a cat i am batting at this ask with love and affection! 💕

2. do you plan each chapter ahead or write as you go?

in my early fic-writing days of 2017/2018 i had concepts which i felt were best suited to multi-chapter works but, once i got writing, i either lost momentum/enthusiasm/didn’t have a solid plan or structure, so i’ve kept to oneshots and, as part of this, i tend more to write as i go. however, sometimes for a particular concept i have a strong idea of a couple of key scenes so will write them out briefly first before i return and deal with them sequentially

7. how do you choose which pov to write from?

it’s usually sometimes i either feel a particular pov is the one best suited to a particular fic or the fic exists because i want to get in a particular character’s headspace. like, in maternal instincts, i wanted to look at a genderqueer thomas specifically so had to do it from his pov (which was fun!), then in he has stood the test, jirv’s dead when the fic starts, so it similarly had to be from malcolm’s pov. though, i have noticed that, despite my love for him, i haven’t published a fic that centres on ned’s pov so i’m making a direct effort to rectify that!

15. how do you write smut scenes? do you get visual or detailed? how important is it to be realistic?

for me it comes down to what i like reading in smut! i think it’s hot when specifics like body sweat/hair/muscle aches are described so i always try and include at least some of that. generally, i think as a writer i tend to prioritise dialogue so i always include some sort of dirty talk. in terms of realism, i think it can be hot to get into the specifics of stretches/aches, especially when writing about penetrative sex; i’m also a convert to the inherent sexiness of bad/mid sex so in terms of that (i.e. moments of discomfort, first times, being sore afterwards) i like writing in. but on the whole i don’t really get bogged down with realism in regard to, like, good bdsm practice or the use of condoms/other contraceptives. also i write a good bit of breeding kink so don’t usually highlight birth control there! also i don’t pay that much mind to types of lube in smut fic. is spit ideal? no. is it sexy? very!

25. what fic do you wish you got more of a response on?

all of them. i’m gagging for validation and praise. but seriously, probably scenes from a marriage i think? i put a lot of work into the whole maternal instincts series and sfam has the misfortunate of being written a good bit later on the other two, but it’s also Way more substantive, i think, than hunger pains which is more popular. i also have a couple of really new terror fics, shoulder to tender shoulder and he has stood the test, but they’re only a week old so it’s probably not fair to compare them with stuff i’ve had out for longer. there’s a couple of other fics i’ve written for the silmarillion fandom but i think my terror fics are better written? probably because they’re newer. oh! also borne through the clouds, for any hotd enjoyers. i wanted to do a bit of an introspective piece for helaena and her grief, focusing on her bond with dreamfyre but, especially considering my other two hotd works, the girlies did Not like it as much! possibly because it focused on helaena and not aemond but what can you do

31. do you start with the characters or the plot when writing

probably the characters i think? i usually have a scene or an exchange i see very vividly that i write down and go from there and, while it usually revolves around a particular au/plot/conflict, i think i tend to prioritise the characters in fic because i enjoy writing dialogue and examining dynamics/relationship

[technicallywrite]

20 Questions for Writers

Thanks for the tag @envexenveritas, you're enabling me to procrastinate on writing a rather tricky scene.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

Just two but one of them is sort of a song parody (about writing fanfiction, to the tune of Losing My Religion), not a fic. But the question says 'works' and... for better or worse, it's a work, I guess.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

393,520 across both works but the song is just 273 so, yeahhhh. That should tell you everything you need to know about my One Fic.

(42 chapters so far, in case you're wondering, including one that was a whopping 20k+ words)

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Doctor Who, specifically the new UNIT gang, with heavy emphasis on the Big Finish audios in terms of sourcing story material. I'm basically rewriting the new UNIT storyline, centered on the developing relationship between Osgood and Kate Stewart.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

I mean, if we're specifically talking fics, I have just the one. So it's my best fic and my worst fic at the same time, on any metric you choose to apply!

My Cosmos is Yours, aka Cosmos or sometimes Cosmosgate, has 297 kudos so far. Also, 30 bookmarks and 10,493 hits, in case that matters.

5. Do you respond to comments?

Do I reply to comments? Hah. Yes, yes I do. Religiously. Not always immediately, as sometimes I need a bit of time to digest them before replying; but I do read them all right away and I reply to everything eventually.

I welcome every kind of comment, from one-line "GAAHAHHHHHH" eructations to multi-paragraph analyses, rambles and vocal if not always coherent expressions of enthusiasm.

Funny thing, there's a bit of a culture of commenting that has grown around Cosmos. For reference, it has 1,194 comments (though half of that are replies from me).

Part of it, I suspect, is that word has got around that I'm pathetically needy for comments (I make no secret of it), so most of my regular readers have got into the habit of feeding me comments at every chapter, which is very lovely of them. And perhaps because there are so many comments on every chapter, some of the more occasional readers do also seem to find themselves motivated to leave comments, which is a wonderful effect, if true.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I haven't finished a fic yet so, no overall endings to speak of, but if I look across the 42 chapters I've written so far, Chapter 38: Endgame has got to be the most grim in terms of where it leaves Osgood and Kate.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Hah well if we apply the same principle of looking across Cosmos chapters, Chapter 42: Life, the Universe and Everything has got to be the winner, with no fewer than three happy endings (one of them a double), if you'll pardon the phrase.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Not so far, no. I occasionally get razzed by my British regulars for committing Americanisms (most famously, writing 'faucet' instead of 'tap') but it's all in good fun.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yep. Though I've been told it's not actually smut, it's erotica, which is the best compliment I can imagine. It's all character-driven, and it's very necessary to the story (I say to justify myself). I won't put any labels on it; I'll just say that by intent, it's loving, it's very mature, but it's never unnecessarily explicit. Though it does get people quite hot under the collar, reportedly, which is very gratifying!

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

Well, I did pull in Malcolm Tucker from "The Thick of It" for one chapter, and he'll be showing up again because he's so fun to write. But it's not a zany kind of crossover.

I don't think I have any crazy crossovers in me, at least not at this moment in time; when I'm in the mood for that sort of thing I go to Lambrookmist.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Nope.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No, I'd be terrible as a fic co-author. I've co-authored a technical book in my professional life and it went well enough (the book got published and we're proud of it) but I suspect it was a frustrating experience for my co-author. I'm very critical and I change my mind about important stuff all the time.

14. What’s your all time favourite ship?

Osgood/Kate Stewart obviously. With a side of Gabrielle/Xena and Janeway/Seven. There may be a pattern there.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I'm like a dog with a bone, I will finish everything, eventually. Although with Cosmos, I can't imagine running out of story to tell anytime soon. It could take years. Unless I find a good stopping point and just finish + start a sequel. That's an option.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Accurate characterization, I think? I'd like to think I do a pretty decent job with pacing and balancing action vs. talk. Also my real-life scientific/technical background helps me write credible plot details for our two favorite science geniuses.

From a stylistic standpoint, I've been told my writing has a cadence and musicality that's very enjoyable. That's something I care a lot about, so, yay.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

I'm painfully aware that I overuse certain phrases. And I overthink things a lot, so it takes me ages to ship out new chapters. Especially now that I have a full time day job again, which I didn't when I started writing Cosmos— long story for another time.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

A few lines here and there can be very helpful when the setting calls for it (the characters are abroad, or working with people from different cultural backgrounds) but you don't want to overdo it.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Well, I wrote a one-off Picard/Crusher ficlet in the late 90s, so I'm legally obligated to say Star Trek: TNG. But I never wrote anything else (fic-wise) until Cosmos.

20. Favourite fic you’ve written?

Surprise, it's Cosmos!

In case anyone is curious, I'm about 1/3 of the way through writing Ch. 43, so hopefully it won't be nearly as long til the next update. (For reference, it took me three months to get Ch. 42 out.)

I think I'm supposed to tag some other writers now? Let's say @starfleetwitch, @kowarth, and gosh I need to look up some usernames. Will add those later. Got to go feed my family now.

EDIT: adding @colourmestoked04 to the taggees

[the-casbah-way]

these are all things i'm working on already, i'm just trying to decide what to finish first :)

[deadheaddaisy]

14, 17, 30 for the fanfic ask please!

14 - where do you get your inspiration?

The short answer is, “anywhere”. It could be just something I had floating in my head that solidifies after the umpteenth time I’ve watched an episode.

Sometimes it’s an idea or scene I’ve seen elsewhere that I think might work for the characters with a bit of tweaking. Or, how they would behave in a given situation if the circumstances were just a little different, or if something happened to make *them* a little different. Sometimes it’s a prompt, or the desire for a slice of life, or someone will be talking about *their* characters and it’ll spark a thought of “but what if...” for *my* characters.

Also, how I’m feeling plays a role. Contented me tends to bring out the happy, silly, fluffy/crack ideas. Angry me brings angst and the desire to kick butt (generally Harris, if I’m completely honest). 

Anyway, TL;dr: I find my inspiration in daily life, throwaway lines, and other media I consume.

17 - talk about your writing and editing process

Oh lordie, I’m not sure there’s a process, as such.

Sometimes I am able to start a story right from the beginning and it just flows in a linear fashion - witness Nothing To Fear and Outrun; they hit the page running from the very first sentence and took on minds of their own. I barely had to make any changes bar a word or two to tighten the flow here and there or as suggested by my beta readers. 

Then I have scenes that hit the page but where it’s clear they’re a one-and-done; those tend to be slice-of-life fics instead of big ideas (such as On The Edge Of Dreaming). 

It’s the long, multi-chapter ones that are proving difficult. Better the Devil You Know started out as just a one-shot, i.e. the first chapter, and then a revenge chapter was needed, but I wanted something to make sense of it in between, and found a couple of other half-written scenes that I thought might fit, and now it’s taken on a life of its own, but it is certainly not linear like the others. 

In general I am able to write reams with the minimum of effort for editing; but when it comes to the editing, I can spend several weeks refining the text to get it just so before I publish. I tend to ask beta readers to check my ideas, but the editing I’ll run through probably 10 or so times before I’m satisfied (and yes, I will still tweak after I’ve posted).

30 - share a fic you’re especially proud of

Oh, that’s hard. I’m proud of all my fics! Tell you what, I’ll choose two of my favourites (not hard, since I’ve only published seven). 

Calling the Shots was my first smut, and I love it because it shows Malcolm and Hoshi’s somewhat naughtier personas but also - and this is important - how comfortable they are with each other. It’s about trusting each other, the give and take of control, and having fun in the process, while staying true to the way I see their characters. And, yes, they can get explicitly spicy and enjoy it without degenerating into crudeness. 

My other favourite is also smut. Outrun - Outtake comes at it from a different POV, it’s very much happy, fun and comforting smut, wanting to show you how easy they are with each other, move past the honeymoon phase and straight into “we just fit; we just are”. I like to think I captured that ease, that warmth, the way you are with Your Person when words don’t always have to be said. 

Thanks for the ask!

[ao3feed-peterstiles]

Karma's a Bitch (And so am I)

Read it on AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/56243803 by sifshadowheart Stiles Stilinski survived everything Beacon Hills ever threw at her. She survived, and then she got out. FBI Internship, college degree, becoming an agent in what amounted to the Freak Squad for the FBI? She did it all. Survived it all. Until a shooter with either horrible or impeccable aim managed what everything that had ever gone bump in the night had failed at accomplishing - but of course, because Stiles was the universe's favorite punching bag, it couldn't just end there. One moment all she could hear was the high-pitched wail of a heart monitor flat-lining. The next, she was hearing voice in her head, something was chowing down at her throat, and a bloody arm was being shoved in her mouth as she was forced to drink. Blink, she's FBI Special Agent Mieczysława "Stiles" Claudia Stilinski, magical human and nogitsune survivor; blink again she's Sookie Stackhouse, part-fae telepathic barmaid dying from a dual attack by drainers and a vampire who just couldn't help himself but bite. Stiles didn't know where the blame fell for the weirdest twist yet in her story laid, but she had a pretty good place to start: with one Bill Compton, her would-be Maker. After all: karma was a bitch, and so was she. Words: 4248, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English Series: Part 1 of What Goes Around Comes Around Fandoms: Teen Wolf (TV), True Blood (TV) Rating: Explicit Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death Categories: F/M, M/M, Multi Characters: Stiles Stilinski, Eric Northman, Godric (True Blood), Pam Swynford De Beaufort, Bill Compton, Adele Hale Stackhouse, Jason Stackhouse, James Kent (True Blood), Malcolm Beaumarchais, Diane Hardwicke, Liam McKnight, Lafayette Reynolds, Sam Merlotte, Tara Thornton Relationships: Stiles Stilinski/Eric Northman, Stiles Stilinski/Godric (True Blood), Stiles Stilinski/Eric Northman/Godric (True Blood), Godric/Eric Northman, Godric & Eric Northman, Eric Northman & Pam Swynford De Beaufort, Stiles Stilinski & Pam Swynford De Beaufort, past Stiles Stilinski/Peter Hale Additional Tags: Always Female Stiles Stilinski, Female Stiles Stilinski, Isekai and Transmigration, Transmigrator Stiles Stilinski, Stiles Stilinski Takes Over Sookie Stackhouse, Smart Stiles Stilinski, Ruthless Stiles Stilinski, Survivor Stiles Stilinski, Magical Stiles Stilinski, Post-Nogitsune Stiles Stilinski, Vampire-Faerie Hybrid, Vampire Stiles Stilinski, Manipulative Eric Northman, Ruthless Eric Northman, Maker Progeny Relationships, Threesome - F/M/M, Vampire Turning, Worldbuilding, Unreliable Narrator, Dead Sheriff Stilinski (Teen Wolf) Read it on AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/56243803

[the-flaming-nightmare]

WIP Wednesday

Tagged by the amazing @anewkindofme! 💖

Here's a snippet from the first chapter of a PSON Littles are Known AU multi-chapter fic I've had in the works for some time now. It's my alternate take on S1 ep 11 with a good ol' dash of agere! 🤌🏼✨🍼

"What happened, Gil? How... how did I end up here?"

"How much do you remember?"

"I... I know we were working a case. A really important one. But I can't remember what it was about, or how I ended up like this."

"Yeah, that's not surprising. The doc said you would more than likely have issues with your memory once you woke up." The older man exhaled another weighty sigh. "It was Paul Lazar. Or rather, John Watkins. You and Detective Shannon were the ones to discover his true identity."

That name... John Watkins...

He was Paul Lazar?

The Junkyard Killer?

But how did–

Malcolm felt his breath catch in his throat, as images of what he could only assume were his memories, began flooding back to him. He could vaguely hear Gil speaking to him beyond the sudden static that engulfed his hearing, but he was unable to focus on anything other than what his mind's eye was showing him.

He remembered finding out who John Watkins really was and leaving with Detective Shannon to Watkins' childhood home. He remembered discovering Shannon's dead body at Mrs. Watkins' dining table. He remembered... he remembered getting knocked down; the terrifying sight of Watkins standing above him before he blacked out.

He remembered it all now. Waking up in an unfamiliar room on a cold, hard concrete floor with his wrists shackled in chains. Watkins telling him that his father had planned on killing him that night at the cabin all those years ago. Watkins stabbing him in the side, before leaving with an axe in hand. Realizing the room he was in was underneath his family home. Finding a hammer and planning on breaking his thumb in order to escape the cuffs, so he could go after Watkins before he got to his mother and sister and–

"Kid, hey."

Malcolm snapped back to the present when he felt Gil's hand land on his shoulder, wide-eyed gaze meeting his surrogate father's worry filled eyes.

"Hey, you zoned out on me there. Are you alright?"

Malcolm swallowed, brows slightly furrowing as his mind worked to catch up with all of his memories. "I... I remember."

Watkins was going to kill his mother and sister.

His mother and sister... Watkins was going to...

Oh God.

Tagging (if you wanna): @angelique-of-the-volturi-guard, @snarkythewoecrow and anyone else who wants to join!

[fancy-a-dance-brigadier]

For the ask game: 3, 7, 15, 19, 26 (pick and choose if you don't wanna answer them all!)

Thank you for asking so many questions! I shall answer them all because I can't resist the opportunity to ramble lol.

3. What’s something you learned about yourself as a writer?

That I'm not very good at writing fics for the sake of it. I can think of about three different fic events/challenges that I tried to participate in this year that I didn't really go anywhere with, because I wasn't invested in the ideas I was coming up with for the various prompts. I'm the most enthused about writing when I'm working on something that came from my brain unprompted rather than trying to devise fics to specifically fit a set prompt list, if that makes sense. So from now on, I'm only going to participate in fic challenges if one of my own ideas just happens to fit a prompt (e.g. I'm thinking of doing Femslash February next year, but only to work on F/F fics I've already started, brainstormed, or really want to write!)

7. What character(s) captured your heart?

So I can definitely think of multiple characters for this answer! In the first half of the year, my foray into watching Star Trek: Enterprise definitely made me fall in love with T'Pol and Hoshi (and I really do need to write more for them, they hardly ever speak to each other in canon but the potential is THERE my god). And then in the second half of the year Padme Amidala set up shop in my brain and has yet to leave - I already loved her, but this year it's gone into overdrive!! Padme my beloved Padme etc. Honourable mentions to Shin Hati and Malcolm Reed because they are so feral and I love that for them. They deserve to bite things.

15. Rec a fic you wrote or posted in 2023

So I think my favourite fic that I wrote this year was Brave Little Fool, which is so far my only attempt at writing Julian/Martok. I was challenging myself to improve my characterisation of Julian (since I think I'd been losing sight of his canon personality in my work because of too much fandom brainrot lol), and I think it turned out pretty well! And I'd never written Martok before this, but I think I did a pretty good job with him too. I definitely want to write more for this pairing, but the only other idea I have for them is a multi-chapter and I definitely do not need to start writing another one of those right now!

19. Share your favorite opening line

Ok, after looking through all the fics I posted in 2023, I think my favourite opening line is from Resting Place:

"She would wade through the mires of thought and feeling for all her endless days, her mind an abyss into which others could fall into and ensure the comfort of a listening ear and a gentle heart."

26. If you had to choose one, what was THE most satisfying writing moment of your year?

Coming up with the Jedi Padme AU, for sure! It's been so much fun to have a fic that's really captured my imagination again, and not only that - but I'm actually writing this thing! I'm over halfway there with the first fic in the series! I'm just very excited about this story, and I can't wait to share it <3 (and of course brainstorming it with you has been an absolute highlight of my fandom life for real)

[solomontoaster]

Just Leave A Comment Fest

Right, so I thought it would be fun to make a rec list of all the great fics I commented on during @justleaveacommentfest . I didn't have a ton of time to read fic this week, not just because of Ao3 going down, but I did my best! For fics that were multi-chapter I commented on every chapter.

July 10, Old/New:

New (published 7/8/2023, updated 7/11/2023) — Near Misses, Wishes by Underthebluerain | T | The Witcher | Jaskier/Radovid

Even if they don't fully realize it, Jaskier and Radovid's story is one of near misses.

Old (published 2/15/2013) — In the Hay by Hammocker | T | The Witcher | Jasker & Geralt

The night is too cold for Dandelion, but traveling with your closest friend has its perks.

July 11, <2k words:

1,917 words — Equal to Law by cyparissuscried | T | The Terror | Sophia Cracroft/Thomas Hartnell

Tom, she thinks. She could write a whole play with his name alone. He would be embarrassed of it and hide his face in the front of her kirtle at its premiere and she would not make fun, because that is the very reason for writing a play of his name. Tom. Thomas. Tom. Thomas. Tom. Thomas. Tom.

918 words — untitled (ghosts) by grahamgore | T | The Terror | Francis Crozier/James Clark Ross

It's 1854. Francis finally visits the Abbey at Aston Abbots.

July 12, AUs:

Soulmate AU — a grove without a name by stiltonbasket | G | MDZS/The Untamed | Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian

Wei Wuxian was ten years old when he first began wearing mourning for his dead soulmate. Eight years later, he meets Lan Wangji. (Or, the one where a soulmate bond goes silent and shatters during the Sunshot Campaign, but Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji were always meant to be.)

Daemon AU — You're the Demon I Know by maely1234 | T | MDZS/The Untamed | Gen, Nie Huaisang

Nie Huaisang has spent nearly a decade working and planning and scheming, his daemon A-Zhi at his side. But while he may have survived Jin Guangyao's plans, dragging his hated enemy down in the process, he hadn't prepared for after. Left floundering without his quest for vengeance guiding him, Nie Huaisang navigates what it is he wants from life. Follows from the second siege of the burial mounds onwards.

July 13, Rarepair/Platonic:

Rarepair (12 fics) — all known effects of time and absence by robokittens | T | The Terror | John Irving/William Malcolm

My Dear Malcolm,— When next you receive post from me it will be in a batch, all post-marked from the Sandwich Islands and all beginning with a longing for your company.

Platonic — Lost Brothers by FormlessVoidbeast | M | Mad Max: Fury Road | Capable & Nux

Capable had brothers. She’d held them in her arms, and whispered their names in their ears over and over in hopes that they would remember who they were. (No War Pup ever remembered who they were by the time they were a War Boy)

July 14, Something New:

New Fandom — Frankenstein

we face the night by hilaryfaye | E | Creature/Elizabeth Lavenza

I no longer claim to know why Victor said that I died that night. I believed once that I knew him, likely better than anyone in the world, but after that night we became strangers to each other in a way that we could not repair. Did he believe he was shielding his father and brother from a greater horror? Was it truly easier to face the notion of me dead, than me lost to him? Better a martyr, perhaps, than a saint defiled.

let them come and tear us free (we are bound eternally) by hilaryfaye | E | Creature/Elizabeth Lavenza/Victor Frankenstein

Victor speaks of me too kindly. I know this. He paints me as a saint because it is easier for him, I think. He imagines that he can make for himself a childhood that was innocent and guiltless, myself an angel found in humility. It is not true, of course.

[marointhemoon]

Malcolm is...

Chapter 4 - A waste of time

A series of vignettes that peek into the various friendships Malcolm's had throughout his life. Most of them had never lasted. Until Enterprise. Alternate title: "Eight descriptors for Malcolm Reed, and one that's actually true."

Beginning-of-chapter notes: 17.2.2136-25.3.2136; 9.5.2137. 20; 21.

Reed hadn’t gone by Malcolm in a few years. After entering Starfleet and trying to become what they seemed to want, it almost felt easier to just think of himself as Reed. As it was, it felt strange to be a Tactics and Security concentration and pretend he thought he’d see his 30th birthday. Why bother with the pleasantry of a first name?

The rest of his cohort, even those who shared his concentration, didn’t seem to understand that logic. They were rowdy, touchy-feely, and plenty willing to see each other as friends and family. It seemed like every day that Reed heard people talking about how excited they were for movie night. How much fun they’d had with the role-playing game they’d played last week.

Reed didn’t look down on them, but that didn’t mean he had to see things their way. And he didn’t.

Reed was content to let them carry on, making friends, having fun, falling in love with each other, getting their hearts broken, and continuing to do it all again anyway. What a waste of time.

Naturally—and somewhat to Reed’s relief—his cohorts took his coldness as the “fuck off” signal that it was. Most of them, anyway. One person managed not to be frightened off, though, and in fact took frighteningly great interest in him. Reed learned ten things in the first five minutes of knowing him.

He was much taller than Reed—180-something (186?) cm to his 173.

He had very soft-looking black hair.

He had the prettiest dark brown eyes Reed had ever seen.

He smiled constantly.

His name was Anthony Todd.

Todd went by Tony.

Tony was from Alabama, with the drawl to match, which made Reed’s head spin every time he heard it.

He had a soft baritone voice that Reed could listen to forever (thankfully, he loved to talk).

He was an Engineering concentration.

Tony loved him.

That last one took a while for Reed to accept, but the alternatives had steadily stopped making sense. Tony wasn’t having a go at him—he wouldn’t have talked to Reed for months if he was. He wasn’t just looking for sex—despite somewhat of a flair for innuendo, he was almost swoon-inducingly polite and sweet. Tony also didn’t seem to be talking to him just to talk at someone. Why else would his eyes sparkle—sparkle??????—whenever he got so much as a chuckle or soft smile out of him? Why else would he grin the way he did—all crooked teeth and smile lines—when Malcolm—Reed—offered a story of his own?

Smile lines. It seemed like a daily occurrence that Reed caught sight of them. How could he not? The younger man—as he’d found out, he was the older of the two, if only by a month—always seemed to be smiling. Reed had thought—hoped, really—that he’d get used to it. But his eyes changed everything. The tiny hints of crows’ feet whenever he laughed. The way they seemed to soften when Malcolm—Reed—told him about Madeline or England. The fire in them whenever he stepped away from the firing range after hitting all of the targets.

Reed was a good tactician. Detached. Careful. Decisive. Attentive. And then Tony gave him one glance, one toothy grin, one honey-voiced compliment, and Malcolm was a blushing mess.

How humiliating.

Tony seemed to delight in it, too. And not even in a self-serving type of way. He just had a certain joy about him when Reed’s face turned red. A soft dusting of pink over his cheekbones. A flicker of mischief in his dark eyes. The way he’d sometimes look at him as if he wanted to kiss him. Reed couldn’t say he disagreed. He wasn’t stupid—he knew what Tony was doing. He couldn’t even say he disliked it, all things considered; if getting teased and looking ridiculous on occasion was what it took to make Tony love him, that was fine by him.

But Tony seemed to want something else. Something more. He wanted to know things. About him. It felt so ridiculous to think about, but Tony wanted to know him.

What was his family like? "Normal, I suppose." How else was he meant to answer that? What was his favorite food? "Eh, no real preference." He had a certain affection for pineapple—no matter how many allergic reactions he had when he ate it. What music did he like? "Hm, anything involving a piano and a cello." Though he’d never let Tony find out about it, he had a peculiar soft spot for ABBA and Black Sabbath—remnants from his days sneaking into clubs and hanging out with punk kids as a teenager. Some habits never die. How did he like his coffee? "More of a tea person, honestly. If there’s no tea available, black." That question was easy enough. What would it take to get him to relax? Reed wasn't sure whether Tony asked that question entirely seriously. He never could answer it, anyway. It always sent a shiver up his spine and made his mind go blank, no matter how many times he thought about it. He didn’t know if there was an answer.

Tony kept asking these soft, almost domestic little questions, trying—not terribly subtly, mind—to worm his way into his heart. Unfortunately for him, Malcolm—Reed, damn it!—could see what he was doing for what it was. Or, at least, he thought he could. Tony proved him wrong again—no matter how sharply Reed shot back the question, he answered as well as he'd asked.

What were his parents like? “Hell, sweetest people on the face of the earth,” he answered, his eyes going soft, his expression undeniably fond. That had been the first time Reed had wanted to kiss him. Those fond eyes, that sweet little ghost of a smile, had felt like gravity, pulling him towards the sun. What was his favorite food? “My aunt makes the best pecan pie. No joke—that alone makes me look forward the end of summer every year.” Reed had heard of it maybe once. When he told Tony that, he thought the younger man’s eyes would pop right out of their sockets. When he tried a bite of it a week later, he thought his teeth would rot out of his head right there and then. Never again. What music did he like? “You know, I’ve been into this old metal from the 1960s … you ever heard of Black Sabbath?” Are you fucking serious. It had taken everything Reed had had not to gape. He barely managed the choked off, “Er, no,” that made Tony smirk and raise an eyebrow. Why did he have to look at him like that? And why the bloody hell did he like it? How did he like his coffee? “Cream, two sugars.” Tony answered, a languid, teasing grin tugging at his lips. "You makin' coffee for me?" He cackled as Reed shoved him, the older man's face going red. Why did he have to make it sound like he'd be spending the night? And why did that sound so good??? What did he do to relax? “Call me weird, but any kinda deep pressure—hugs especially—it’s always been my thing. I love that shit.” Reed felt his skin crawl. He hadn’t been hugged in earnest since he was 11, and he was content to keep it that way. He definitely didn’t fantasize about Tony’s tan, thick arms wrapped around his shoulders, or—worse—snaking around his waist from behind. It definitely did not make him feel anything other than disgust.

Before he knew what had hit him, Reed was saddled with all of these odd little feelings that felt disturbingly familiar. A breathless tightness in his chest. A champagne-like fizz in his brain. A molten warmth in the pit of his stomach. He tried to wave the name Colin Thorn out of his head, but it was just as quickly replaced with Tony Todd.

What a nightmare.

He didn’t have to worry about it for long, all things considered. About a month in, Reed ruined it. Of course, he did.

One night, for reasons that would never make sense to him, Tony had tried to hold his hand during a movie he had dragged him to. He hadn’t even been ostentatious or pushy about it. Just a little slip of a hand onto his thigh, palm up—a silent suggestion of an offer—and Reed was up and out of the rec room before Tony could get a word in. The younger man had followed behind closely; as they reached Reed’s quarters, all hell broke loose.

“What’s your deal?”

Even Tony seemed startled at how coldly he’d asked it.

“What?”

“What. Is. Your. Deal?” Tony repeated, slightly gentler this time.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean this,” he said, reaching out for Reed’s hand. As before, he flinched away. “If you don’t wanna hold my hand, that’s fine, but Jesus, why do you keep flinching like that? You know I’m not gonna hurt ya.”

“It’s … it’s not about that, I just…”

“Just what? What is it about?”

“Tony.”

Tony stopped. Something changed in his gaze. “Malcolm?”

“Tony, I … I know you think you want me, but you don’t.”

He blinked. “Pardon?”

“You don’t want me,” Reed repeated, gritting his teeth.

Tony huffed out an incredulous little laugh. “I don’t want you,” he echoed. He paused a moment, before speaking again. “Malcolm—” Reed’s heart twinged. “—I’ve heard you say a lot of crazy things, but that’s the greatest crock of bullshit I’ve ever heard.”

“Tony, I mean it,” Reed urged. “You don’t want anything to do with this.”

“Malcolm—”

“I promise, you don’t. No one does.”

“Malcolm—”

“No one in their right mind could fucking love me—could love this—and—”

“Malcolm,” Tony interrupted, that low fucking drawl gripping his heart. “I love you.”

Reed felt like his heart was about to explode. Several different feelings stirred in him—he counted eight—the only one he could recognize at the moment was rage. He shook his head, his eyes starting to burn. “Don’t lie to me. Don’t fucking lie to me—”

“I’m not,” Tony interrupted again, desperation starting to creep into his gaze. “I’m not lying to you. I’ve never been lyin’ to you.” He let out a soft, exasperated chuckle, running a hand through his hair. “Hell, the most I’m doin’ is confrontin’ you with shit you know is true but that you don’t wanna accept. That’s all this is,” he finished, gesturing to … well, all of Reed.

“Fuck off,” Reed spat, his voice thick with emotion. “You don’t know a fucking thing about me.”

“You know what?” Tony replied, his voice losing its edge. “Maybe not. But I want to. Or at least, I’ve been wantin’ to. I do wanna open you up and getcha ta hang out with people. I do wanna getcha ta fully laugh every now and again. Hell, for that matter, I already love what I’ve seen and heard."

Reed could only take a shaky breath, not trusting himself to reply with a steady voice.

"Yeah, I do wanna love on ya, getcha used ta bein’ loved on," Tony continued. "And yeah, I do wanna get ta know ya … no matter how this goes.”

His voice was so soft now, Reed realized, his heart clenching. Why was his voice so soft?

“I know perfectly fuckin’ well that there’s a risk ta all this. And I’m willing to take it, because I fuckin’ love you, Malcolm.” Something changed in Tony’s expression—despite a lingering sort of sadness in his eyes that broke Reed’s heart, something seemed to freeze over. “Or at least, I have. But if you’re not gonna try, I’m not gonna waste any more time. Yours or mine.”

“Good,” Reed answered automatically, his voice breaking. He tried to ignore the way he couldn’t see anymore, and he faintly wondered why his cheek suddenly felt wet. “Leave. Waste your time elsewhere.”

From what little he could see, a painful bit of sympathy washed over Tony’s expression, before it went stony again. “Fine. I will. Just don’t come cryin’ to me when bein’ by your lonesome tears you apart,” he said finally, before he turned and left the room.

Reed ignored the tears that fell when the door slid shut. He ignored them, too, when they lulled him to sleep. This was the natural order when he was involved: no one stayed.

---

Reed entered the dining hall the next morning, and resolved to eat his breakfast quietly and as though nothing had happened. As he ate, his table slowly filled with people he barely knew, people whose names he’d scarcely bothered to learn. They paid him little mind, opting for each other’s company.

At some point, he overheard some girl at the next table over, ranting to her friend about how some guy had dumped her. With an odd pride that prickled at his chest, Reed found he’d cut out the middleman in that respect. Why have someone else break your heart when you can do it by yourself?

But it didn’t matter. Reed had a job to do, and Starfleet was the place for a cadet to learn how to do that, not for a lonely twenty-year-old to learn how to make friends.

---

By the time Reed had graduated Academy, he’d been assigned to a Commander Kaya Bond, working off some station in Alpha Centauri. About a week after the ceremony, he received a notification on his PADD. He tapped on it to see a message from Commodore Harris, of all people.

Ensign Reed, Congratulations on your graduation and new assignment. I have an additional opportunity for you, should you choose to take it. It will not interfere with your assignment, and it will allow you better insight into what it takes to be a tactical officer. If that interests you, reply to this message. I will call you at 2000 hours. Commodore Harris

An opportunity to become a better tactical officer, granted by one of the most decorated Starfleet Security operatives of all time?

Reed responded immediately. Of course, he did.

Chapters:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 (you are here) | 5 | 6 |

[sterek-ao3feed-archive]

Embers

https://archiveofourown.org/works/51405256 by BeaconHillsBound (Posted 1/26, the day only the Pilot Aired) New Summary Soon It started with a fire. Will it end with a Full Moon? Harlan and Luna have two Betas on their hands until they find their missing father. The four are a bit chaotic, but with a new Pack comes new responsibility. Will Everett and Blake be the pack they have always been searching for, or will they buckle under new pressures, emotions, abilities... and feelings. Words: 14201, Chapters: 11/?, Language: English Fandoms: Wolf Pack (US TV 2023), Wolf Pack Series - Edo Van Belkom, Teen Wolf (TV) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: M/M, Multi Characters: Stiles Stilinski, Derek Hale, Eli Hale (Teen Wolf), Everett Lang, Harlan Briggs, Argus Brock, Luna Briggs, Blake Navarro, Tora Brock, Noble Brock, Phyllis Brock, Cyrus Nix, Cody Malcolm, Garrett Briggs, Baron (Wolf Pack) Relationships: Harlan Briggs/Everett Lang, Luna Briggs/Blake Navarro, Garrett Briggs/Phyllis Brock, Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Harlan Briggs/Cody Malcolm, Baron/Everett Lang, Harlan Briggs/Cyrus Nix Additional Tags: Gay, Gay Sex, Anal Sex, Oral Sex, Rough Sex, Queer Themes, Supernatural Elements, Full Moon, Full Shift Werewolves, Pack Dynamics, Pack Feels, Pack Bonding, Wolf Pack, Pack Building, Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski are Eli Hale's Parents, Top Derek Hale/Bottom Stiles Stilinski, Derek Hale is Bad at Feelings, Hale Family Feels (Teen Wolf), Polyamory read it on AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/51405256

[glitter-and-metal]

Gueeeess who wrote a one-shot while working on a multi-chapter fic (that was originally supposed to be a one-shot as well)?

Summary: Trip visits Malcolm a few days after the Romulan minefield, because everyone needs a friend after they experience something difficult. And if they end up discussing more than just trauma, who can blame them?

[ao3feed-ineffablehusbandz]

Angels In New York

Angels In New York

by TheGoeticCleric

Malcolm Bright gets a guardian angel in the form of Aziraphale and Crowley's adopted daughter. Malcolm is also a disaster-seeking missile. There's so much fluff!

Words: 9777, Chapters: 3/3, Language: English

Fandoms: Prodigal Son (TV 2019), Good Omens (TV)

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/M, Gen, M/M, Multi, Other

Characters: Gil Arroyo, Jessica Whitly, Ainsley Whitly, JT Tarmel, Dani Powell, Edrisa Tanaka, Original Female Character(s), Anathema Device, Malcolm Bright, Simon Hoxley, Aziraphale (Good Omens), Crowley (Good Omens), Mr. David | Martin Whitly's Guard, Gabrielle Le Deux

Relationships: Gil Arroyo & Malcolm Bright & Dani Powell & JT Tarmel, Gil Arroyo/Jessica Whitly, Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), Malcolm Bright & Original Female Character(s)

Additional Tags: Age Regression/De-Aging, Diapers, Bed-Wetting, little!malcolm, Daddy!Gil, Mummy!Jessica, bad big sister Ainsley, Malcolm Bright Needs a Hug, Malcolm Bright Gets a Hug, Hurt Malcolm Bright, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Good uncles Aziraphale and Crowley, Malcolm is an adorable diapered git, Domestic Fluff

From https://ift.tt/wSqlivr https://archiveofourown.org/works/45765724

[ao3feed-westallen]

The Flash Final Reboot

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/XvnLfmU

by KivatheDCWizard

My new reboot format, this time applied to the Flash, the first DC property I'll tackle with this.

Mostly a focus on Flash characters in this series.

Words: 3869, Chapters: 1/2, Language: English

Fandoms: The Flash - All Media Types

Rating: Not Rated

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Multi, Other

Characters: Barry Allen, Iris West, Wally West II, Wally West, Harrison Wells, Henry Allen, Jay Garrick, Bart Allen, Dawn Allen, Jay West, Irey West, Malcolm Thawne

Relationships: Barry Allen/Iris West, Wally West II/Linda Park, Artemis Crock/Wally West

Additional Tags: Reboot, new format I am trying, Framed like an animated series or movies, MOstly focus on Flash only characters, If this works may try for other dc properties, Small mention of Artemis crock

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/XvnLfmU