#my fic: law of creation

[prodigal-san]

Poor Luci doesn’t have the patience for normal pregnancy 😂 poor Al wasn’t prepared for that at all—

Doodle featuring the fankids from my fic~~ 🧀👹✨

[gutsfics]

Evening Plans

Fandom: Laws of Attraction Characters: Reigan Lee (M!MC), Joaquin Morales Length: 1710 words Rating: General No warnings apply

Prompt: @choicespride aromantic celebration- a night in with just your pets. Summary: Joaquin tries to use some information related to the Colby case to get Reigan to join him for dinner-- but Reigan has other plans.

A/N: I'm really scraping by getting this out by the teeth of my skin whoops. Anyway like the first half of this is mostly from LOA bk2ch10, the part where Joaquin asks the MC out to dinner. Just so ya'll know.

Reigan narrows his eyes as he stepped into his office, unhappy and, frankly, annoyed to see Joaquin splayed in his chair like it was his own office. “Joaquin. If you keep showing up like this, I’ll have to increase security.”

Joaquin shifts in the chair, crossing his legs. “Probably not a bad idea. I have to admit I was surprised Lucy just let me walk in here.”

“We’ll be sure to enact a stricter policy from now on.”

“Good. I could have been a lunatic.”

Reigan sighs and rounds his desk, coming to a stop behind his chair, hands resting on the back.

He doesn’t miss the way Joaquin’s face lights up when he tips his head back to grin up at Reigan.

With a roll of his eyes, Reigan pushes the top of the chair forward, dumping Joaquin out.

He stumbles, but catches himself. “Now, what was that for?”

“Stay out from behind my desk.”

Joaquin puts his hands up and moves to sit in one of the chairs on the other side of the desk.

“Care to tell me the point of your visit?” Reigan asks, sitting down himself.

Joaquin grins again, that dazzling smile that could make anyone fall in love.

“But we’re having so much fun.”

Well. Almost anyone.

Reigan scrunches his nose, unaffected by his charm. “You and I seem to have different ideas of fun. This is a social call, then?”

“I’d certainly like Martin to think so. A little ruse that would gain more credibility if you let me take you out to dinner tonight.” Joaquin leans forward, almost hopeful. “I would make it worth your while.”

Shaking his head, Reigan decides to ignore the attempted flirting. He picks up a pen and rolls it between his fingers. “What makes you think that Martin’s going to be okay with that?”

“He holds the misguided belief that I prefer to keep business and pleasure separate. I’ve told him you fall into pleasure.”

The pen clatters to the desk. “Why on earth would you tell him that?”

Joaquin reaches across the desk, picking up the pen and rolling it in a way not dissimilar to how Reigan had been. “Call it wishful thinking.” His eyes meet Reigan’s, then drop down to Reigan’s lips. “Even Martin knows you’re a knockout.” He turns his head to physically drag his gaze away. “And before you ask, if you join me, I promise there will be a business benefit for you.”

Reigan snatches the pen back, tucking it away in the top drawer. “So, what, you’re bribing me to go out with you?”

Joaquin shrugs, smiling coyly. “I’d like the pleasure of your company enough to guarantee I’ll have it. So? Tonight?”

“Already got plans.”

“Can I crash them?”

“No. It’s a phone call with an out of state friend.”

“After, then?”

“It’s been a while since we last talked; we’ve got a lot to catch each other up on.”

“I’ll wait however long you need me to.”

Reigan lets out a huff. “How many times do I have to say no before you listen?”

“How about a raincheck, then?”

“If it’ll get you to leave my office faster, sure.”

“Alright then. But I will get that dinner.” Joaquin stands up. “No harm in telling you what I wanted to now though. Consider it part of my ongoing job application.”

“...Sure.”

Joaquin tells Reigan of how Calvin Colby referred Elias Ritter to Mcgraw Bryne, specifically with the promise that Martin could “protect” him from Ricci & Associates.

Reigan thanks him for the information and waves him out of his office.

Just before he opens the door to leave, Joaquin stops. “This friend of yours… is it that doctor? The one you quit working at Mcgraw Byrne for?”

“What��s it to you?”

“Last I heard, they had been caught in the middle of an assassination attempt. How’s their recovery?”

“It’s… fine. They were discharged about two months ago.” Reigan shakes his head. “You don’t even know them, and I’ve never told you about them. Why are you asking.”

“Just… curious. Glad to hear they’re all right.” Joaquin pats the doorframe. “Let’s get that dinner sometime soon.”

“Yeah, whatever.”

-

Reigan had lied.

Sort of.

He and Baxter had had a phone call planned for the evening, but just before Reigan had gotten into work that morning, Baxter called to let Reigan know that some work thing had come up- some team bonding exercise in the form of rubbing elbows with the new owner of Edenbrook’s peers and associates in the tech industry.

But Joaquin did not have to know that.

On his way home from work, Reigan stops by a deli for a sandwich and a bakery for a slice of chocolate hazelnut cake- his favorite.

Even before he makes it to his apartment door, fumbling with his keys, he can hear one of his cats on the other side meowing in increasing distress, the way she always did when he came home. The second he gets the door open, her crying immediately halts, replaced with a friendly “mew!”, her fluffy orange and white tail raised in greeting.

“Hello to you, too, Commander T’ana,” Reigan says, bending down to scoop her up before she dashes down the hallway. “You have got to stop crying like that when I get home, the neighbors might complain.”

T’ana purrs happily in response, batting at his chin with a paw, claws sheathed.

He laughs and kisses her right on her fuzzy little forehead, kicking the door shut behind him. With the door closed and locked, he places T’ana back on the floor and heads to the kitchen-- trying his best not to accidentally kick or step on T’ana as she tries to climb up his pant leg. He sets his own dinner on the counter before getting two cans of wet cat food out of the pantry.

The sound of the cans being opened beckons his other cat, Quark, out from where he had been hiding in a basket of blankets, and the process of getting dinner for both cats and himself becomes a bit of a struggle as Reigan tries to push both cats away from the dishes he was attempting to fill with food.

When he finally gets T’ana and Quark’s food on their little eating mats for them and sits down for his own dinner, all of that energy he had left from the day just drains out of him. For a moment he just sits with his forehead against the table and exists, trying his best not to think about the stressful world just outside his apartment, the one where his colleague’s grandmother’s rights have been stolen from her, the one that nearly killed his best friend- which he had been unable to do anything about because he was too busy suing a woman for birthing a baby that was “too ugly”.

Sometimes it was hard not to take the worst parts of work home.

Joaquin’s insistence on flirting with him every time they saw each other despite Reigan’s constant rejections did not help in the slightest.

He stays like that until he is no longer Reigan Lee, hotshot NYC lawyer who solved the murder of a beloved actress, and instead Lee Sungwon, Star Trek fan and cat parent.

A man who’s toasted sandwich is getting cold.

Oh, shit.

His sandwich.

Sungwon sits back up and shoos T’ana- done with her own food and now trying to steal his- off the table.

Even with the meal in his stomach, something about the day had left Sungwon with an off feeling, like he just needed to turn off his brain and veg out for a bit, so he flopped down on the couch and started scrolling mindlessly through his Netflix recommendations.

Nothing seemed to jump out at him, so he decides to turn to his failsafe for picking something to watch: having T’ana pick one at random.

He grabs a pen and some index card from his office and sits on the floor next to where T’ana was sprawled out. “Wanna help me pick something?”

She makes a little chirping sound.

“I’m thinking the options for tonight will be… Deep Space Nine-” he writes it down on one of the cards- “The Voyage Home-” the second card- “and…” he pauses, the pen hovering above the last card. “You know… Everyone is always saying I should branch out from Star Trek. I supposed it wouldn’t hurt to just try something else for once. What do you think?”

But T’ana doesn’t answer, too busy being a cat and trying to chew on the pen in Sungwon’s hand now that it had stopped moving.

“No, no, you’re right. Trust the system. If you pick the something else then we’ll watch the something else.”

On the last card he writes Breaking Bad, which he had been recommended several times by many different people but had never gotten around to watching.

He shuffles the cards around and places them, face down, on the floor in front of T’ana.

She looks at the cards as if she were genuinely trying to make a decision, then baps a paw down near the one on the left. Or perhaps she was just going for a small bug on the floor Sungwon hadn’t noticed.

He turns the card over.

The Voyage Home.

“Aw, yes, that’s what I wanted to watch!” He scratches T’ana under the chin and gets up to put the movie in the DVD player.

When he sits back down on the couch, Quark leaps up onto his lap and makes himself comfortable, purring happily as Sungwon pats him between the ears. T’ana climbs onto the couch as well, settling half on the back and half on Sungwon’s shoulder.

Sungwon relaxes, ready to just chill after a long day.

Snuggling with his cats and watching his favorite movie- there was nowhere else he’d rather be right now.

-

It isn’t until the credits are rolling and Sungwon is cleaning up from the earlier meal that he gets an urgent text from Aislinn telling him and Gabe to turn on the local news.

And just like that, the good vibes Sungwon had been trying to build up since coming home were gone.

[][][]

Tags

All fics - @peonyblossom

Fic of the week - @choicesficwriterscreations

[choicesficwriterscreations]

CFWC FotW - Apr 30 - May 6, 2023

18+ = Adult/Mature Content 🔥 = Explicit Material/NSFW 💜 = You Go Girls!

IMMORTAL DESIRES

New Girl in School | Cas Harlow x MC - @aesthetic-aag 💜

LAWS OF ATTRACTION

Evening Plans | Joaquin Morales, M!MC - @gutsfics

Sleeping Bag | Aislin Tanaka x M!MC - @alj4890 18+

OPEN HEART

RED CARPET DIARIES

The Bogart Diaries (Series) | Thomas Hunt x F!OC - @theartoflovingthomashunt A Special Day

Evidence | Thomas Hunt x F!OC - @alj4890

THE ROYAL ROMANCE

CROSSOVERS

Immortal Desires / My Two First Loves

Harris A New Life | Noah Harris (MTFL) x Gabriela Adalhard (ID) - @korgbelmont

The Royal Romance/ Open Heart

Serendipity | Drake Walker x MC, Bryce Lahela x MC - @deb-1106 and @walkerismychoice 18

[no-te-lo-voy-a-dar]

[The Boundless AU] Dream and Hope have a talk about Hob Gadling

okay so @4humankind came up with their own set of siblings, children of Day and Space, sort of the cousins of The Endless siblings, and called them The Boundless.

after losing my mind over the idea and concept with them for a while, i ended up coming up with this small writing about Dream talking with Hope after feeling a weird mix of emotions (jelaousy, fear, worry, protectiveness) over hearing his cousin Hope’s name being associated with the human so much (yes, we both know the most common idea of Hob being Hope/ascending into said position is the most common, but this au is also fun)

anyways. have this

Word count: 2,300 words

[...]

Dream was aware of Hope already strolling his realm, her current work being tending to a group of teenagers' strength by infusing their dreams with hopefulness. He wasn't going to stop that, after all, those teens were the ones keeping the dreams of the younger kids at the orphanage alive. And that particular set of kids was full of creativity in their city.

No. He would let her work in peace. After all, he already made the Dreaming let his cousin know he awaits her at the throne room when she's done; all there is for him to do is wait her arrival.

He couldn't, however, focus on his own work while the time arrived.

It's been a lustrum since he met Hob Gadling again at The New Inn after his imprisionment and recovery of tools of office, and since them they've been meeting more and more often, and in different places and times, not limiting themselves to dinners in a pub.

One of these places was the university campus where Hob's current job of being professor teaching literature took place ("The syllabus program is filled with inaccuracies Dream! I'll go mad if I try to teach that. Or get fired when I don't." is what the human's reply had been when questioned about his choice of class and not picking history, seeing as he had lived it) and Dream had tried to stick to wait for the human’s classes to be done or catch him on free periods, seeing as it avoided bigger groups of people, situation that always involved several daydreams being loud for him, and even when he has millennium of years of experience, merely 100 years of being completely cut off from his powers, as well as sound, touch and much more did its fair job on him.

But that particular week he had decided to stick his head during one of Hob's lectures, see how his friend was when in front of a public. He hoped the lecture meant the students’ minds wouldn’t be too loud for him.

He was delighted with what he witnessed.

The passion and energy his friend irradiated was so bright and endearing Dream found himself regretting their 1889 fight all over again, but being immensely grateful the human still waited for him, build them both a place to meet once again and accepted Dream's apologies.

However, the thing that tipped him off, the reason he was currently waiting for Hope to finish her job, was that most of Hob's students kept relating their professor with her. With hope.

'I truly hope Professor Gadling's energy is like that the entire semester.' one had been whispering to her friend.

'Man, I hope to be as cool as him one day. It's amazing.' another one had been (loudly) daydreaming, admiration adorning their thoughts. Dream couldn't help but agree with the sentiment.

'Hmm. Do you think me hoping he's into young men is too bold?' another had said to his friend, who promptly slapped his arm. Dream didn't particularly like that student now, and his friend earned his small thanks.

On and on, Dream dived into Hob's students minds, and listened to their whispers. Most of them where filled with hope and wonder, relief and happiness at landing a spot in Professor Gadling's class, of finding out the man truly was a grand teacher, that his energy was indeed contagious.

Hope. Hope. Hope.

What had his cousin done?

"Greetings, Dream. I am Here, as Requested. Is everything alright? I stayed away from the dreamers I Didn't consult with you beforehand, if that's what You want to check." his cousin’s smooth and naturally relaxing voice brought his full attention to the throne room.

"I greet you, my cousin, relieving you of your worries. You have not stepped over any boundaries. However, I need to check that you still know your place.” he started walking down the stairs that lead to his throne since Hope’s presence was registered, yet stopped a couple of steps before the end.

Dream let his words hang in the air, as a warning, he told himself. An opening for his next ones. However, he often forgot how active with energy Hope was, which resulted in her filling his carefully selected pauses.

"If this is about me not really requesting Your Permission to enter your realm While you were Imprisoned, I have Already apologized. Besides, you think I didn't Feel you using My name during your battle against Lucifer?" an arched eyebrow was present during the entire speech, and, were Dream physically capable of blushing in his own realm without himself consciously giving himself the ability to, he would have.

Out of all his siblings and cousins, he's always been aware how much hopes and dreams were hand in hand among living, conscious beings. And he liked Hope, as much as she was exasperating at times and the theatrics she set up to let everyone know she didn't want to be called Light anymore seemed a little too much to him.

Seriously, creating a whole religion as a side effect just to ask every higher being to address her as Hope now?

If he was bitter at the style because it reminded him too much of how his own son made sure everyone in the world knew of his mourning over his loved one, well, that was his own business.

Anyways. Dream huffed a little at the interruption.

"I've already told you, cousin of mine, that there's no resentment about that. If anything you are one of the few beings who did something in my absence, and for that, I'm grateful." Dream stepped down the last few steps between him and Hope. She deserved for them to be on even ground for this, even if Hope was slightly shorter than him.

"No. The thing I want to talk with you about is of your involvement with a particular human. Hob Gadling."

Dream saw how Hope's eyes opened in realization and recognition. Suddenly the magic always thrumming in her golden bracelet was louder and her eyes stopped having the human cover she used as to not spook the humans when interacting with them. Now they were covered and glowed, faintly, in gold.

Hope's golden eyes were different from Desire's. His sibling’s eyes were always human-ish, the iris being the unnatural gold. No, Hope's golden eyes were similar to Dreams, in the nature that the sclera and everything in it was being covered by it, but where Dream's eyes were void Hope's were so full. Where Dream's 'irises' were boundless stars, Hope's were an endless swirling void.

Because it's easy to lose yourself in false hopes, to fall into a fake perception of life and wander into his sister Despair's realm if you wander only with hopes and nothing else, as well as take a trip hand in hand with his sister Delirium if not careful.

"Oh yes! Hob Gadling is such a fantastic human, and I can't thank You and Death enough for picking him up." Hope sounded actually happy and excited over being given the go to talk about the immortal human. And why was she thanking them?

"He is not yours to have, Hope of the Boundless." Dream hoped the finality of his words were heard and felt, but Hope only blinked at him and then a smirk was on her face.

"Oh cousin of mine, you truly understand Nothing, do you? He is not mine to have, That's right. But you also have No Claim on him. And if we try to make a List of who Does and who Doesn't, you are Not going to like it." Hope’s eyes stopped faintly glowing, now being in their full brightness and the void in her eyes doing active loops.

Dream felt his hair started to stand up and a thunder sounded in the distance within the Dreaming.

"Your sister Death is the one who has, ironically enough, Some sort of claim on him, by, you know, Not giving him her Gift. Then is My turn, and then perhaps Life’s and Liberty’s and Love’s. Even your sibling Desire. You are, however, Way Down the list of who has claims over him." Hope gave him a smile that, while for someone who might not know her may feel like an attempt at showing she meant no insult, he knew, at least directed to him, meant ‘you are being an obtuse and stupid personification’.

Dream growled and allowed himself to shift into a taller, less human looking shape. Hope wouldn't shift, this was not her realm. But he was getting angry.

"You all can't brand him like live stock. He is human after all. We cannot interfere." He couldn’t pull the ‘mortals’ card because he was highly aware of how that would lead to a lost case.

Hope giggled at this, and let her own body shift into her more natural height, which changed depending on how much hope was near her. And in the Dreaming, there was plenty of it, which made Dream bristle up more.

"Oh, but how much have You done it Already, Dream. Interfere. All of my siblings and yours who find Hob Gadling among their realms often have You to thank For It, really."

This made Dream recoil back a little. Mentally. Physically he made himself less eldritch lingering. Hope took a step forwards, taking The Bracelet from her wrist and playing with it on her hands, the jewelry softly jiggling as windbells might, regardless of it being a single piece.

"Besides, you Must know he was Already a work in progress of Mine when you and Death found him. He had already lost So Much and yet he had So Much hope for living, to keep going. His wonderment and stubbornness had already caught my attention Back Then. You both just gave Me more time to work with him." Hope shrugged at this new addition, a still kind of awkward and just a little to the left of wrong, a result of her picking it up from humans themselves.

Dream's frown deepened, but Hope making her Bracelet transform into her characteristic halo behind her - always shifting, light emanating - meant some of the shadows composing his more threatening body retreated, leaving them both back to their normal heights, even if not their more human shapes.

"But worry do Not, cousin. Me and the others can Clearly see and feel where all of Hob Gadling's reasons to stroll our kingdoms come from. It's Very clear that while None of us has put a claim in him, not Even you, the human himself has kind of done so Already, on his Own volition." Hope’s voice was back to being soft, reassuring and less loud.

This information, actually confused Dream as much as it reassured him. Hob was free from attachments with any of his siblings or cousins, and yet his friend had already decided who he belonged to?

A strong and chaotic wind had been buffeting the castle windows up to that point, but it promptly stopped when Dream felt Hope grab his coat's sleeve. Like she did when they were younger, newer. When the Earth was still fresh and they had just come into existence, and Dream, having been for longer, was quick to try and guide Hope around like Death did with him. Like he and Desire did, once, very, very long ago.

"Stop fretting, Dream. Hob being such a strong human within my powers means I've Kept an eye on him, and that includes making sure your sibling doesn't play with him Too Much. Who do You think gave the Poor Man enough Strength to keep going after your 1889 fight? Or when you Didn't show up in 1989?"

Dream took hold of Hope's warm hand in his cold one. It was true. He knew that. Has always been aware of how strong the hope within Hob is, but also other elements that are so human is beautifully painful, sometimes.

He took a deep, unnecessary breath, and the weather in The Dreaming went back to normal, as did his own physical form. His void and starry eyes remained. Just like how Hope's halo was still behind her, if now less strong in its light, and her eyes were shining, but her less humanoid characteristic left too.

"I am. Sorry. Cousin. For lifting false accusations at you. You are correct, as most often you are."

"Of course I Am." Hope lightly, lowly interrupted him. Dream gave her a small, exasperated but fond smile.

"Is just, his students wouldn't stop mentioning your name, your realm and gift along my friend's name. It, worried me."

It was as much as Dream was willing to admit, to offer as an explanation, but Hope knew her cousin enough and nodded with a small smile of her own.

"All is well, Dream. Hob is just the kind of professor kids these days Desperately Need, and he Knows it, so he ends up drawing from my realm Quite a Lot at both the beginning and the end of the semesters. But it's All on His own human free will, I Assure you." Hope’s golden eyes held contact with Dream’s black one’s, and he could truly feel the true of that ‘all is well’ drawing on him like one of the soft robes Hope introduced him to millennials ago.

Dream nodded and let Hope's hand go. The Boundless nodded and started to walk out of his throne room, the castle. Out of The Dreaming.

"See you around, cousin. Take care."

"Fare well, cousin. You are always welcome."

Maybe, one day, Dream could introduce Hob and Hope. After he’s done so with Death. Otherwise his sister would never let him hear the end of it.

[virgobingo]

more insight on miles’ puerto rican heritage for your fics or fanart

- traditional quinceañeras (or as they are often called by puerto ricans quinceañeros) are really not that common anymore, most girls nowadays have pool parties or go on a cruise. if miles were to go to one of his cousins’ 15 birthday party, chances are it would be casual— no big poofy dress (his mom probably had one like that though)

edit: some people disagree on this. depends on how traditional your family and friend group is I guess, as well as which part of the island you’re from. on average, it seems to be a far bigger deal amongst some other latines. in my class in pr only 3 out of approx 30 girls had a big event like that. not a single one of my cousins had a traditional quince either so you could say I’m partly biased bc of my own experiences. i personally just had a big pool party

- plantains are a big part of our diet. also, pr being an island in the caribbean, coconut is in a lot of our desserts. if miles had to pick a favorite fruit I hc he’d pick either one of the two lol also please google our food, our food isn’t actually spicy so much as savory

- we “celebrate” thanksgiving like other americans. it’s about the only time we eat oven roasted turkey. for winter holidays (christmas eve/day, new years eve/day, three kings day/eve) oven roasted pork. chicken might be offered as a second option for people who don’t consume pork for whatever reason

- you’re pretty much taught how to dance as soon as you can walk. most of us have basic rhythms down. chances of miles dancing with his mom or friends at parties? astronomically high.

- the reason why our flag is everywhere, besides pride, is ‘cause it was illegal to own it. look up the gag law that prohibited us from even displaying it at our homes. so it’s actually an awesome detail in these movies

- this is my opinion/a fun fact but I feel like miles is basically an homage to black and puerto rican (specifically nuyorican) solidarity around the 70s-80s during the creation of hip-hop and rise of graffiti as a form of expression (you can easily read up on this or watch shows like the get down to learn more about this if you’re curious)

- whether you’re “nuyorican” or “from the island” spanglish is common so miles’ mixing english and spanish isn’t odd bc even rio does this as miles points out in the party scene. he isn’t a “no sabo” kid so much as someone with a strong accent. he understands his mom perfectly

- race ≠ ethnicity. there are plenty of black people in and from Puerto Rico, and miles’ pr family in the spiderverse films are designed to be for the most part afro-latine. so I wouldn’t really call him biracial

- the puerto rican day parade wouldn’t be a thing he skips, he’s gifted a special suit for it in a comic run. his puerto rican heritage is important to him!

[warabidakihime]

Rules and Roses Chapter 2

★ characters: kibutsuji muzan x reader x akaza

★ plot summary: Kibutsuji Muzan has finally decided to expand his empire, and the way he intends to do so is by running for the highest political position. With you, his darling wife, at his side, he believes he can achieve and have everything the world has to offer. He is, after all, the Phoenix of Phario.

★ fic playlist: sometimes, same day, as time stops, wolf’s song (this is also the vision board for the fic). 

★ content warnings : implied violence and abuse, profanities, toxic relationships, smut.

★ Previous Chapter

a/n:

hello!!!

first of all, i am so sorry for taking so long to update this story. ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و ♡

life happened and i got sooo busy. the time i uploaded this fic was when i just started at my new workplace and shortly after a few weeks, i was already preoccupied with work. at first, i was laser-focused on getting used to my new work and the culture. then later on, i found myself playing a more important role in the office that required my undivided attention lol. besides that, so many things happened in my personal life as well that i didn't have the time and energy to write.

btw i'm now a writer by profession as well so oftentimes i would feel drained af after writing corporate write-ups. tbh, i also got hit by writer's block, especially for this fic because the plot i have in mind for it is lowkey intricate, and for the most part, i haven't decided on what route i should take story-wise. so during those 2 years, i was constantly trying to reconstruct the story in my head, and here we are!

i'm back but i'm not so sure about updating regularly as i'm still incredibly busy, but i will do my best! the latest kny seasons inspired me to write again (aka my crush for muzan lol).

hopefully, everyone is still here to read this. ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و ♡

as always, comments and kudos are highly appreciated!

happy reading!

-

"Can you outline your key policy platforms should you be elected President of Phario? Given your extensive background in the human resource industry as well as your rich connections owing to your business ventures in Obelisk Kibutsuji, do you first plan to address the pressing issue of the national unemployment rate?"

"Indeed, that's correct. As President, one of my top priorities will be to strengthen our nation's workforce, which is crucial for advancing our economy. I have a comprehensive plan focused on job creation, vocational training, and support for small businesses. These initiatives will not only reduce unemployment but also stimulate innovation and competitiveness within our economy.

I also aim to implement policies that ensure equal access to education, equipping our citizens with the skills needed for the evolving job market. Healthcare reform is high on my agenda. I'll ensure healthcare assistance is accessible to everyone, public hospitals are well-maintained, and healthcare workers are fairly compensated and protected by the state in any dire situations. Additionally, I'll push for technological advancements and infrastructure development to attract both local and foreign investments.

Addressing social issues is equally important, and as a devoted ally of these communities, I'm committed to fighting all forms of discrimination, especially against women and the LGBTQ+ community. We must ensure everyone, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, or identity, has equal opportunities and protections under the law.

Moreover, I'll advocate for the rights and welfare of people with disabilities, ensuring they have access to the necessary resources and support to lead fulfilling lives. This includes improving accessibility in public spaces and promoting inclusive employment practices.

Animal welfare will also be a significant focus. We need to enact and enforce laws that protect animals from abuse and ensure humane treatment.

Lastly, I'll champion the rights of minorities and immigrants. Our nation is built on the strength of its diversity, and it's imperative we create an inclusive society where everyone feels valued and respected. This includes reforming immigration policies to be fair and humane and implementing programs that support the integration and empowerment of minority communities.

In essence, my administration will be dedicated to creating a sustainable and inclusive economic environment where every Pharian has the opportunity to thrive and contribute to our nation's progress."

Muzan stood confidently at the podium, a modest yet proud smile gracing his face after addressing a journalist's question amidst a room bustling with media personnel.

Today was the day where presidential candidates shared their platforms, which also served as an open forum for engaging with the press and fielding inquiries on a wide array of topics—from current events to personal matters.

With his seasoned composure before cameras and crowds, Muzan navigated the spotlight effortlessly. His articulate delivery drew admiration from all corners as he outlined his plans for the presidency, filling you with pride as you watched from the audience.

Among the attendees, your smile beamed with pride and unconditional support for him. Akaza, who is sitting right beside you, maintained a stoic demeanor outwardly, though inwardly, he couldn't deny a hint of impressed regard. Muzan's comprehensive platform and commanding presence left an undeniable impact on him.

Eloquence had always been Muzan's forte, a skill honed through years of being a businessman and somewhat of a public figure, as among his peers and in the business landscape in general, he is well-revered and widely celebrated.

Beyond his ability to articulate ideas, he possessed a magnetic charisma—an invaluable trait for navigating the intricate world of politics and public service.

Several hours later, the policy speech slash press conference finally ended, and now you were on your way to meet up with Muzan at the lobby of the hotel where the gathering was held when a few journalists spotted you among the sea of people who were also exiting the function room.

Akaza was right behind you and is also on full alert, an important instruction your husband told him when he appointed him as your personal bodyguard a few years back. Committed to his duty, he stood there in a stance where he is ready to take action should anything happen that is out of the ordinary.

Mics were stretched out and placed within just a few inches of your face, and one of them took the liberty to ask you a question: "What are your thoughts on Kibutsuji Muzan's campaign platforms?” 

Very much like your husband, you also wore a modest yet confident smile on your face as you held eye contact with the journalist who asked you that question before displaying your own version of eloquence as you answered,

"To say that I am proud while listening to him share and advocate for the causes he wholeheartedly believed in would be the biggest understatement of the decade," you said with a fond chuckle before continuing, "even before he filed for his candidacy and even way before he became the man we all know now, he has always been outspoken about these things. He would always share with me his desire of making significant changes in the world, hoping no more children would have to endure what he did. As many of you know, Muzan, my dear husband, came from very humble beginnings, and unlike me, he has faced challenges far beyond my own. His vision and intuition surpass that of most, and so, as cliché as it may sound, his words and strong convictions carry a weight and authenticity that are strong enough to enable him in doing the impossible and inspire others to believe that a better future is within our grasp."

Akaza listened intently to your answer, finding himself captivated by your words. The way you addressed the press made you sound like a candidate yourself who's also sharing her platform. In that moment, he couldn't help but feel an overwhelming surge of pride as he continued to absorb your statements.

The journalists surrounding you mirrored his sentiment, clearly impressed by your response—no surprise from the esteemed Ballerina Queen of Phario.

It had been quite some time since you last entertained interviews, having retired and chosen to stay away from public engagements.

"Among the plethora of initiatives he wishes to take action on once he's elected, what resonated with you the most?"

You paused, contemplating the list of campaigns your husband had presented earlier. Just as you were about to respond, an arm encircled your waist and gave it a tender squeeze.

It was Muzan.

"Knowing my wife's love for animals, I'm certain she's most excited about what I have planned for animal welfare," Muzan interjected warmly.

You playfully rolled your eyes, eliciting amusement from not only your husband and your respective bodyguards but also the press. "You say that as if it's a bad thing," you quipped.

Muzan chuckled fondly. "Not at all, my love. Your passion for animals is one of the many reasons I fell for you."

The same journalist who had asked you the second question now directed his attention to Muzan, eager for his response. "Based on the most recent public survey, you're likely the most favored candidate to win the elections. What can you say about that, Sir Kibutsuji?"

Muzan smiled bashfully at the reporter, his eyes reflecting a mix of humility and determination. "I'm incredibly honored and thankful that our fellow countrymen have placed such faith and confidence in me. It's a humbling reminder of the trust they have in our vision for a brighter future. This campaign has always been about bringing real change to Phario, addressing the pressing issues our nation faces with innovative solutions and inclusive policies. The support we're seeing reflects not just my efforts, but the collective desire of our people for progress and unity."

He paused briefly, his gaze sweeping across the room, before continuing with renewed conviction, "Though I would like to emphasize that I don't take this trust lightly, it actually fuels my commitment to serve with integrity and purpose, to listen to the voices of every Pharian, and to lead with compassion and foresight."

By now, the press was highly satisfied with the answers both of you had given, granting you the freedom to depart. Clearly spent after the eventful day, you exchanged farewells and well-wishes before going your separate ways.

With Muzan's arm still draped around your waist, he guided you towards the grand entrance of the hotel. Meanwhile, Akaza made his way to the basement parking lot to retrieve your car, preparing to drive you both home. Kokushibo remained close to Muzan, ensuring your security as you awaited the car's arrival.

Turning to Muzan, unfazed by the bustling activity around you, you placed a tender kiss on his lips, smiling warmly. "Great job out there, my love. You did so well today. I'm incredibly proud of you."

Clearly elated, Muzan mirrored your smile and returned your affection with a gentle kiss on your forehead. "Thank you, darling. Your support means everything to me."

"Truly, I was beaming throughout your speech. You were absolutely amazing. Phario is fortunate to have such an admirable leader like you," you praised sincerely.

Right there and then, Muzan couldn't help but raise his eyebrow and playfully smile at you, prompting a confused raise of your own eyebrow.

"What's that look for?" you asked.

Muzan shook his head with a playful smirk before replying, "You're not showing favoritism now, are you, my love? I know you adore me, but let's keep it fair, hmm?" he teased, his tone light-hearted and affectionate.

You rolled your eyes at his playful accusation. "Ha-ha. Very funny, Muzan. I'll take it back, then."

Muzan laughed wholeheartedly, drawing attention once again. "I was just joking!" He then smiled warmly at you, his eyes reflecting pride. "Thank you," he said sincerely. "Hearing that from you means more than any applause, you know?"

You reached out to pinch his cheeks. "You play too much sometimes, you know?" you said with a chuckle before continuing, "But like I said, hearing you speak today—and in all those times you shared your aspirations with me from when we were students up to now, as you finally have the opportunity to make all come true—it's evident how deeply committed you are. Beyond your skills and capabilities, your passion is what makes you so compelling, Muzan. It's what makes me believe in you, too."

Minutes later, while waiting by the entrance, Akaza finally pulled up with the car. You and Muzan bid farewell to those around you before stepping into the comfort of your vehicle.

As the city lights blurred past the windows, you reflected on the day's events.

"You know," you began, glancing at Muzan beside you, "I have a feeling your speech today touched more hearts than just mine."

Muzan smiled softly, intertwining his fingers with yours. 

"I hope so. Though the election is still months away, and who knows how things might shift, that's why I don't want to take any of this for granted. I'm in this for the long haul. You'll be there with me, won't you?"

He looked over to you, and in that moment, despite his big words, he looked absolutely adorable, with his ruby eyes shining at you and his lips slightly pouty as he waited for your response, which you gladly provided through the means of placing yet another sweet and passionate kiss on his lips and squeezing his hand reassuringly. 

"I'll always be here for you, Muzan, through every challenge and triumph."

"I love you," he whispered lovingly, his expression sincere and heartfelt.

"And I love you," you replied with equal affection.

With a comforting squeeze of your hand, you nestled against Muzan's shoulder, feeling a sense of contentment as the car navigated through familiar streets towards home.

Meanwhile, in the driver's seat, Akaza's face remained unreadable. He was outwardly indifferent to the tender exchange between you and Muzan, but inwardly, he was seething with rage.

You think you're so clever, spouting all those promises and pretty words, playing the saint for the public eye. But I see through you. You're nothing but a manipulative snake, a liar wrapped in a facade of righteousness.

His gaze hardened and his grip on the wheel tightened as he stared ahead, the streetlights casting shadows on his determined expression.

One day, your mask will slip. 

I will fucking rip it off your face, even if it's the last thing I do.

[fanaticsnail]

Got any OP xreader fic author recommendations? Here or on ao3! Friends, mutuals, people you just think are cool and want to give a s/out, etc :3

There are too many to shout out. So much talent, beauty and love for the One Piece universe. I have a list here of fics that I love, but a couple of the accounts have unfortunately deactivated.

I have a few accounts that I love revisiting for their content:

@sordidmusings for her Buggy & Beckman. Love this lady.

@a-killer-obsession for her Kid Pirates (Heat, my beloved). Also OC content 👌👌👌

@nina-ya for her Law and beautiful HCs.

@loganwritesprobably for his Beckman and his follower event.

@quinloki for an amazing 18+ time with all of his beautiful creations.

@gingernut1314 for my favourite Buggy series: "Songbird"

@thenotsofantasticlifestory for everything. 'ho-boy, this lass can write.

@writingmysanity for her upcoming works and her Sanji series.

@since-im-already-here for her Klahadore

@feral-artistry for her artistry (Corazon 🫠) and her Shachi fic that is just 🤌

@vespidphoenix for her Sanji x OC 😘👌

@skullfacedlady FOR HER DOFLAMINGO AND CORAZON AND OC ART AAAAAAAAA

@discordantwritings for their Crocodaddy

@indydonuts for her everything ever. Corazon NSFW alphabet is on my mind always.

@i-am-vita for her artistry and her Ghost Rose series.

@jintaka-hane who is sharing her love for the Kid Pirates like me lately. And Cabaji!

@swampstew gets a shoutout for the Kid content, my word.

@standfucker for "Rotation". Once a month. 18+ read

These are just a few from the top of my head. I know there's more, and I feel bad for posting before think of more. I hope you have a wonderful time reading and looking! 🖤🖤 These people are amazing.

[ardafanonarch]

Hello, in fic I've come across mentions of

- the elves stopping frequently on their journey to Aman to have sex (and Orome urging them forward by creating storms?)

- elf sex being too intense for most mortals to survive

I think these come from HoME or NoME (or similar sources), but I've never seen the actual quotes. There might be other things related to elf-sex in there as well.

So I guess my question is: What else did Tolkien mention about elf sex, apart from (the already relatively well-known) LaCE?

Elf Sex Lore

There comes a time in every Tolkien fan’s journey when they come upon the Professor’s writings on Elf sex — and, since 2021, there are even more! Elf Sex Lore remains a hot topic as the fandom continues to experience the aftershocks of the spurt of new lore that came with the publication of The Nature of Middle-earth (NoMe) in 2021.

As you say Anon, before NoMe was published, the fandom’s primary resource on Elf sex was the (in)famous essay Laws and Customs Among the Eldar (LaCE), published in 1993 in Morgoth’s Ring, the tenth volume of the History of Middle-earth series. LaCE is full of juicy (or not-so-juicy) lore about Elven aging, marriage, gender roles, naming, death, and rebirth.

It is in relation to the first two that we get some details on Elf sex, such as the knowledge that “it was the act of bodily union that achieved marriage, and after which the indissoluble bond was complete.” (Laws B). We also learn that:

“…the Eldar say* that in the begetting, and still more in the bearing of children, greater share and strength of their being, in mind and in body, goes forth than in the making of mortal children. For these reasons it came to pass that the Eldar brought forth few children; and also that their generation was in their youth or earlier life, unless strange and hard fates befell them. But at whatever age they married, their children were born within a short space of years after their wedding. For with regard to generation the power and the will are not among the Eldar distinguishable. Doubtless they would retain for many ages the power of generation, if the will and desire were not satisfied; but with the exercise of the power the desire soon ceases, and the mind turns to other things. The union of love is indeed to them great delight and joy, and the ‘days of children’, as they call them, remain in their memory as the most merry in life; but they have many other powers of body and of mind which their nature urges them to fulfil.” The History of Middle-earth Vol. 10: Morgoth’s Ring, ‘The Later Quenta Silmarillion (II)’, Laws B

*Note how this paragraph is introduced: “the Eldar say”. Phrases like this signal to us that LaCE is not written from a Elvish point of view. There are indications elsewhere clearly pointing to a human author with a human audience in mind.

Translation: Elves use up a lot of energy in baby-making, including in the sex part (“begetting”) but even more in the pregnancy and birthing part (“bearing”), so they don’t have a lot of children and they do so early in life, shortly after marriage. But even if they marry later in life, Elves are still able to have babies because being able to and wanting to reproduce are the same thing for Elves. But once they’ve fulfilled the desire to make babies they’re good and turn to other things. Still, they look back on the time of baby-making as “the most merry in life”.

In most (if not all) cases, when Tolkien writes about sex he is writing about reproduction. Did Elves have sex solely for pleasure? Maybe; I cannot find anything that says they didn’t. I also can find little conceptual separation of sex and reproduction in Tolkien’s writings. Make of that what you will.

(At this point I want to reiterate a principle central to this blog: it’s about presenting what canon says; it is not about casting judgement on creations that subvert, reinterpret, or ignore canon, none of which makes a work lesser than one which adheres strictly to canon.)

So what did NoMe add to our knowledge about Elf sex? First of all, let’s make sure we all know what NoMe is.

What is The Nature of Middle-earth?

NoMe is a volume of texts by J.R.R. Tolkien collected and edited by Carl Hostetter. It is basically a supplement to the last three volumes of The History of Middle-earth (Morgoth’s Ring, The War of the Jewels, and The Peoples of Middle-earth), which cover a period from the late 1950s to his death during which Tolkien was undertaking a rather massive project of worldbuilding, working out the structures underlying his Silmarillion mythology in preparation for revising and publishing what he had written of it before ‘a sequel to The Hobbit’ (LotR) took him away from it for the better part of two decades.

Christopher Tolkien in Morgoth’s Ring called this undertaking “analytic speculation concerning [the] underlying postulates” of his world (Foreword to Morgoth’s Ring). That’s how we end up with essays like LaCE and the philosophical debate about the fates of Men and Elves in Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth.

The texts in NoMe all date to around the same time and deal with the same sorts of questions about the physics and metaphysics of the world: it contains the essay on ósanwë, for example.

The Context of the NoMe Sex Lore

The first section of NoMe, ‘Time and Ageing’, is where we get the new lore on Elf sex. As it happens, the sex lore is rather incidental to extensive ruminations two core questions:

How did Elves experience the passage of time and how did they age?

How did the population of Elves go from 144 at Awaking to a sufficiently high number (around 30 000) when they reached the shores of Beleriand on the Great Journey?

(It is not relevant to get into why 144 and why 30 000 here; suffice to say those are the numbers Tolkien wanted and he expended great imaginative and mathematical energy trying to make them work.)

A note on the textual context: Anyone who has ever engaged in worldbuilding knows how it can go. You think (for example), “Okay, I need to develop a backstory for this character’s spouse,” and before you know it you are knee-deep in invented genealogies and geographies and Eru-knows-what-else.

It’s important to bear in mind that this is what Tolkien was doing. The quotes we are about to look at (yes, very soon!) are from a collection of evolving (and unresolved) notes in various states of refinement from barely legible scribbles to carefully penned essays. I will let you decide what that means to you based on your personal definition of canon, but I wanted the textual context to be clear.

Elf Sex Is Intense

In relation to Question 1, Tolkien considers the time-scales of Elven growth, including pregnancy. In the essay under discussion, Tolkien decides that Elven pregnancy should, like human pregnancy, take about 3/4 of a year. Oh no - not that kind of year. A yên, a ‘long year’, the unit used by the Elves and to which the matter of their bodies (their hröar) is bound. Elves gestate for 108 Sun years.

I know what you’re asking: If the pregnancy lasts 108 years, then how long does the sex last?

No? No! You’re probably asking yourself why Tolkien hated Elf-women so much (don’t worry, he says there’s no pain…)! But Tolkien was interested in the first question, which he answered thus:

“On the other hand the act of procreation, being of a will and desire shared and indeed controlled by the fëa, was achieved at the speed of other conscious and wilful acts of delight or of making. It was one of the acts of chief delight, in process and in memory, in an Elvish life, but its intensity alone provided its importance, not its time or length: it could not have been endured for a great length of time, without disastrous “expense.”” (NoMe, p. 24)

An earlier version of this passage, which you may also come across in fandom, comes to a similar conclusion:

“But the act of procreation not being one of growth until the union of the seed and being under full control of the will does not take long - though it is longer and of more intense delight in Elves than in Men: too intense to be long endured.” (NoMe, pg. 27)

Translation: Pregnancy, like other aspects of physical growth, is a process of the hröa over which the fëa has no control; thus it is bound to unfold on “Elvish time”, i.e. 1 year = 144 years. But the sex leading up to it is an act of the fëa and under its control and therefore occurs at a “normal” speed. The Elves love it, too! But not because of how long it lasts, which is a regular amount of time, but because of how intense it is. In fact, it is so intense that if it were any longer they would suffer “disastrous “expense”.”

What is this “expense”? Basically, it’s referring to the usage of an Elf’s natural “vitality” — far greater than that of Men but not infinite. As far as I can tell, this passage means that having intense Elf sex for too long would have spiritual results similar to Míriel’s bearing of Fëanor, or Fëanor’s creation of the Silmarils. Too much of their spirit would be expended (used up) in the act, with possibly disastrous consequences.

These are the quotes from which, I think, originate the rumour that Elf sex was too intense for mortals to survive. As you can see, the discussion is about Elf/Elf relations. Elf sex is too intense for Elves to endure for too long. Anything about what this means for Elf/Mortal sexual relations is fan conjecture.

That’s the Elf Sex nugget from Tolkien’s considerations of Elven growth rates: Elf sex (between Elves) is intense but of a normal duration.

Elven enthusiasm for baby-making delays March

As you can imagine, more nuggets are unearthed in relation to Question 2, which boils down to Tolkien crying: “I need the Cuiviénen Elves to breed a lot and quickly!”

Initially, Tolkien developed some Elven life cycle schemes that had them taking a leisurely approach to reproduction, with each generation taking many hundreds, even thousands, of Sun years to materialise.

This scheme did not work for getting him from 144 to ~30k in the timeframe he wanted. So, he made some adjustments to the scheme with respect to the timing of Elven maturity and consequent desire to begin reproducing — and then set about getting those Elves procreating!

One of the solutions he entertained was giving the Elves opportunities to reproduce on the Great Journey. He laid all of this out in a timeline (NoME, p. 49-53) detailing where and for how long the host of Elves would pause because of the “desire to beget children” (p. 49).

Reading this timeline, it can become increasingly comical each time this desire to reproduce (i.e., have sex) halts the host. It can start to read like, “The Elves took forever to cross Middle-earth because they couldn’t stop banging!” And, in a way, that is what happened. But bear in mind the context is an attempt at solving the problem of increasing the Elven population to a number Tolkien considered satisfactory for his worldbuilding endeavours. An Elven enthusiasm for sex is there, but it’s not the whole picture.

There are several points on the timeline when Oromë hangs out with the Elves or checks in on them, and he does become increasingly concerned with their begetting-related delays. For example:

“About 2000 pairs (of available Telerin 8th gen. of 4,950) beget children in the spring 1130/80. The Chiefs and Oromë are disturbed.” (NoMe, p. 51)

(“The Chiefs” are Ingwë, Finwë, and Elwë.)

And:

“Either by chance, machinations of Sauron, and/or because Oromë withdraws protection (hoping to make the Eldar less content with their new Home (Atyamar), winters are hard and the weather worsens.” (NoMe, p. 51)

The second quote is the origin of that rumour about Oromë creating storms to urge the Elves on because they were having too much sex. Is it canon? Not quite: Oromë didn’t create the storm, for one, and the emphasis is on sex for the pleasure of children more than the pleasure of sex on its own (though, as we know from the previous discussion, sexual pleasure was certainly had!). But the rumour you've heard is not without basis in Tolkien’s notes.

The First Elves Really Loved Sex

There’s one more Elf sex nugget in NoMe that I’d like to end with. While scrambling to get his Cuiviénen Elves reproducing at an adequate rate to reach his population-at-finding target, Tolkien came up with what he calls the “Quick prolific” scheme (p. 99).

“The Quendi in their first few generations before the March (or reaching Valinor) must — as is quite reasonable — be made far more eager for love and the begetting and bearing of children. *They must have larger families, at shorter intervals between births.” (p. 107)

To explain this attitude of reproductive eagerness in the first few generations of Elves, Tolkien coins the term “philoprogenitive” — they love to procreate! Procreating — not artistic and intellectual pursuits or exploration or leadership as with later generations — is their number one priority in life. So much so that “they mated almost at once with their predestined mates” (p. 54).

Not only that, but they have so many babies! In one version of the scheme, 12 children per couple in the first generation (p. 108). (This soon changes to 6 per couple. Philoprogenitive they may be, but no one gets to outdo Fëanor).

As with the highly intense Elf sex and the Great Journey delayed by procreating, this is another bit of NoMe lore with great imaginative potential. As we learn from LaCE, Elves enjoyed sex, quite a bit actually, but they enjoyed a lot of other things also, and after a period of baby-making they would usually move on from sex (though they would always remember it fondly). But the First Elves, those early generations by the shores of Cuiviénen? No such balance between sex and other pursuits. It was all about sex and procreation for them.

Of course, what we’ve been looking at are drafts and notes. While all written around the same time (late 1950s to early 1960s), none of the texts here examined were ever finalised and many of them don’t even agree with each other. Tolkien was experimenting; he was worldbuilding. And with the publication of these notes in NoMe, we in turn get some intriguing ingredients for worldbuilding of our own.

So, do as you like with the Elf sex lore. But if you’re looking for a great setting for some canon-compliant smut, may I suggest Cuiviénen?

Resources

PDF of LaCE

Mythgard Academy’s seminars on The Nature of Middle-earth. You don’t actually have to have read or own NoMe to follow these discussions. Great for getting a handle on the material, and ideal for listening as you work your way through reading.

[practically-an-x-man]

ok y'know what. I'm tired of all the same questions in ask games so I'm taking matters into my own hands

OC/Writing Art Asks

For the character:

Pencil: does this character have any "sketchy" habits? Have they ever broken the law? Do they regret it?

Pen: what's one minor moment your character regrets? A small mistake, but something they "can't erase"?

Paintbrush: How often does your character "brush over" conflict instead of facing it head on? Is there something specific they don't like to face, or do they avoid conflict as a whole?

Marker: what's one thing your character would never tattoo on their body, even if they were paid a million dollars for it?

Crayon: what was your OC like when they were four years old? Were they loud? Shy? Were they the resident "weird kid" or did they get along with others their age?

Colored Pencil: if given the choice, would this character splurge on an expensive (but potentially worthwhile) branded product, or buy a low-budget alternative even if the quality suffers?

Copics: what is this character's most expensive habit or hobby? Do they ever feel guilty about the money they spend on it?

Graphite: what's something decently common that your character does in a unique or different way? (like how graphite is present in all pencils, but not everyone uses pure graphite)

Charcoal: share any unique physical features about this character that are not scars or tattoos.

Tortillon: does your OC "blend in" with the people around them? Physically? Metaphorically?

Pastels: Give me three colors that best represent your OC. Now give me three colors that your OC likes best. Is there an overlap?

Chalk: what was one activity this character enjoyed with their sibling(s) as a kid? If they don't have siblings, what they did with their neighborhood friends

Eraser: what's one way this character has changed over time? Either over the course of their story, or over the course of designing them as an author.

Palette: list four of your character's primary skills, then share at least two ways these skills might blend or overlap

For the work:

Starry Night: are there any scenes in this work that take place at nighttime? Is this significant, or just the passing of time?

Mona Lisa: oh, it's the fanfic writer's favorite word. Do a find-and-replace on the word "smirk" and share any lines that pop up.

The Scream: are there any moments in this work that you think could scare a reader? Are there any moments where the characters themselves are profoundly scared?

Persistence of Memory: are there any moments in this work where a character's memory plays a strong role? Either an individual memory, or simply a character's ability to recall the past.

Girl With a Pearl Earring: are there any moments in this work where a character's clothing or accessories play a major role?

The Kiss: share your favorite kiss scene from this work. If there's no kiss scene, share your favorite moment of intimacy (romantic or platonic)

American Gothic: what's one relationship between characters in this work that you think people wouldn't expect? (i.e., how the people in American Gothic are not married, they're the painter's sister and dentist)

Guernica: look through a few of your imagery/descriptions in this work. Are they generally straightforward, or are they more "abstract"?

Wheatfield with Crows: are there any scenes in this work that involve birds? Do the birds play a definitive role, or are they simply part of the setting?

Woman with a Parasol: are there any moments in this fic that feel "blurry" to you? Is this a stylistic choice, or would you go back and clarify the descriptions if you were given the chance?

A Sunday Afternoon...: pick one "little moment" from this fic. How representative is it of the fic's tone and story as a whole?

Creation of Adam: choose one character that is not present at the beginning of this work. How did you introduce them into the story?

The Swing: are there any moments in this fic where the characters get to slow down and have fun? If not, why is that?

The Last Supper: does this fic incorporate any symbolism based on religion, theology, or mythology? If so, give an example.

For the author:

Paper: Who do you feel is your most two-dimensional or underdeveloped OC? Why is this? (including those that are still in development/haven't been written about yet)

Canvas: Do you ever "prep" your fics with outlines or warmups before you start writing, or do you just dive right in?

Graffiti: Have you ever had to research something that felt illicit or illegal for a fic? What was it?

Photography: What's one moment from any of your fics that you feel is preserved in your memory?

Clay: Do you usually take time to "sculpt" your OCs before you write them, or develop them as you write?

Film: Which one of your fics do you think would work best if turned into a movie? Who would direct it?

Adhesive: when you write, do you usually "stick" to one character or story for a while, or bounce around various characters and ideas?

Cricut: are there any characters you've had to "cut" from a story? Are there any moments/chapters/stories you've had to "cut" entirely?

Felting: how often do you include soft moments when you write? Do these moments play a role in the main plot, or do you include them as an escape from the rest of the story?

Weaving: are your works typically similar to one another? Pick two works, and share one similarity and one difference between them.

Finger Painting: share a small snippet from your earliest work (or the earliest that you can get back to). How would you rewrite it today? Either share the rewrite itself or just describe how you'd do it.

Creative!: free space! share something you've been dying to share about your writing! Could be an OC that never gets the limelight, a moment you were proud of, or anything else you'd like to share

[feelmyskinonyourskin]

Who We Are and Who We Want to Be [Enemies to Lovers Trope]

Pairing: Matt Murdock x Female Reader

Trope de Sept Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Enemies to Lovers dynamic 1. Two characters overcome their differences/misconceptions about each other, realising they are actually in love. Often with phrases like 'I didn't know where else to go.' and 'I don't hate you, I never hated you.' "After leaving your abusive boyfriend, you end up in the one place you never thought you would - the home of your arch nemesis in both law school and the courtroom, Matt Murdock."

Warnings: No use of Y/N. Female Reader. Mentions of physical abuse to reader (not by Matt. No details of the incident are described, just the aftermath is mentioned.)

WC: 4,350

*I never give permission for my fics, manips, or any other original creation I post on this site to be copied, posted elsewhere, translated, or fed into any AI program. The only platform I currently post anything on is Tumblr. Thanks!*

The rain was falling even harder than when you had left your apartment. Every hit of the heavy drops did nothing to help the pain swelling in your left cheek. 

You weren’t exactly sure where you were going, you just knew you needed to leave where you had been. 

Sure, he’d shown signs of some anger issues before, but tonight he crossed a line. You knew how the statistics ended and you didn’t want to be one of them.

You couldn’t see more than a foot in front of you. The chill in the air clung to your skin through your soaked clothing. With a shiver, you paused for a moment, seeking refuge under an awning to take a moment and finally assess your next move.

The gold letters of the sign in front of you jumped out at you like a beacon of light in the dark, rainy night.

Nelson, Murdock, and Page

Attorneys at Law

Goddamnit. 

Of course cruel fate would lead you here. Sure, let the universe make your boyfriend go full-abusive asshole and land you right in front of the office of the guy who had been your nemesis since law school, all in one night. What higher power did you piss off to deserve this?

There was no indication the rain would let up soon, so you made your decision with a shake of your head and turned the handle of the door in front of you.

ONE DAY EARLIER

Hate was a strong word to describe the relationship that you and Matt Murdock had with each other. Your time together at law school had always been tumultuous, to say the least. Each of you tried to outdo each other in both academic success and extra curriculars and were constantly at each other's throats both in and outside of class. Things had cooled off a bit in the years since, only interacting with each other when you’d occasionally face off in the courtroom, though he still found ways to drive you absolutely bonkers given the opportunity. Anyone who knew the two of you could feel the tension anytime you’d have to be in the same room together.

The tap tap tap of his cane against the marble floors alerted you he was walking towards you, giving you plenty of time to compose yourself and not make a dramatic scene in a public place where the kind of outburst you wanted to have towards him would get you either fired, disbarred, or arrested. 

Court had been dismissed for the weekend. The judge determined the trial needed to carry into next week for even more evidence presentation before the jury would be allowed to deliberate.

“You know, not presenting all evidence to the defense during the gathering phase is technically illegal. That little stunt you pulled while my client was on the stand was cute, but if I report it, it could get you a mistrial.” 

As Matt spoke to you in the hallway just outside the courtroom, you tried not to notice how his cologne was the perfect blend of spiciness and lumber. You also tried not to notice how his suits fit better and better every time you see him, unlike how gangly and awkward he looked in second-hand sports jackets in law school. Curse his suave attractiveness, always winning over juries and influencing judges.

“I did give you all the evidence we had at the time. It’s not my firm’s fault the DA’s office is slower than molasses and got us these files after the evidence gathering stage. We submitted it as additional evidence as soon as we got our hands on it. You also have the capability to pull public records, Matthew. So don’t pretend my firm has some sneaky, unfair advantage in this case.”

“I’m sorry that I use my Columbia education to actually help people. Nice to know not everyone from our graduating class was immune to the appeal of taking big law firm money to make sure corporations can take advantage of as many people as possible.”

A dry laugh escaped your lips. You tried not to raise your voice, as judges and reporters walked by, all rushing to leave work and begin their weekend plans.

“Is that really so bad, Matt? I’m just doing my job, trying to use the law to help my client. Same as you are.”

An exasperated sigh left his lips as he tilted his head skyward, also trying to put aside past tension between the two of you for the sake of professionalism. 

“Have a good weekend.” he said, before turning and walking away

“I… I didn’t know where else to go.” was the first thing you stuttered out as the low light cast him in a harsh glow in the dim office.

Head cocked, listening in to figure out exactly who was in his office at this late hour, Matt crossed the room in three steps to stand in front of you. The water dripping off of you hit the musty carpet with a splat. He continued to not speak, only listen, as you breathed heavily in front of him. Even though you knew he couldn’t see you, you’d still never felt so exposed in front of someone.

He ran a hand with feather-like softness over your face, ghosting his touch against the bruise forming there.

“You’re hurt.” he finally spoke

“I… how can you tell?”

“My dad was a boxer. I patched him up after matches a lot. I know what a bruise feels like, especially a fresh one. What happened?”

“My boyfriend… he um…” but the words died on your lips 

“I couldn’t stay. I just left and ran and the rain and…” you rambled “I ended up here.”

“Do you have somewhere you can stay tonight?” he asked

“No.”

“Then you’ll stay with me. For tonight at least, until we can figure something out for you.”

“Matt, I can’t ask that of you.”

“You're not asking, I’m offering. Besides, Foggy and I work on domestic violence cases all the time. We know a lot of people and can get you in touch with a lot of resources.”

You were warry. Matt and you hadn’t exactly gotten along in the past and now he was the opposing counsel in the biggest case of your career. Why was he suddenly so keen to be kind to you? But you truly had nowhere else to go tonight.

“But in the morning.” he continued “It’s late. There’s an Ethiopian place on my block. I could even order some sambusas for you. I know you like them with spiced chicken.”

“How do you know that?”

“Our second year of law school. Professor Hardwick made us pair up on the debate team together. When we’d all be in the library late, it was what you always ordered.”

“I can’t believe you remembered that. Matt, that was so long ago.”

2010

The floorboards of the old building creaked as you stepped, making your way down the hallway to your very first lecture of law school. You couldn’t contain your excitement. Finally done with undergrad, finally at your dream school, finally taking the first steps towards your dream career.

A few students had trickled in already and you took a seat next to a young man wearing sunglasses. He was chatting to his sandy-haired friend, both giving you a smile as you took your seat and removed a few essentials from your backpack.

“What did you think of the readings?” the dark-haired, blind student turned to you

“The readings? Shit! I didn’t know we had any!” you lamented

“It’s okay. I’m sure a lot of people forgot or didn’t know.”

“What were they on?” you asked

“First amendment. Mostly just covered a few cases relevant to section 9.2. I think the cases were Blair v. USA, USA v. Madden and Turner Broadcasting, and Zurcher v. Stanford Daily. We’ve got 15 minutes until class starts, I bet you could give them a quick read through.”

“Oh my gosh, you’re a life saver! Thank you!” you responded, flipping open your textbook and frantically searching for the case summaries.

“I’m Matt, by the way. Matt Murdock.”

You introduced yourself hurriedly just as you found the first reading and he returned to whatever he and his friend with the bad goatee were discussing.

Sure enough, the professor arrived 15 minutes later and began class. It was a rather standard first day - syllabus review, absentee policies, essay submission rules. 

Then he asked “Can anyone summarize one of the cases assigned in your readings?”

You raised your hand eagerly and were selected.

“USA v. Madden and Turner Broadcasting established clearer defined rules for who is considered a journalist and who is able to keep sources confidential in a court of law.”

The professor paused, staring you down.

“That’s true. But the assigned readings were on section 10.2 of the First Amendment. Doctrine on Freedoms of Assembly and Petition… You know close and thorough reading comprehension are essential skills for a lawyer.” 

You could feel the heat rising in your cheeks at the professor’s lambastation. Another student was called on, and the professor began the lecture, but it was all drowned out in a mental spiral of embarrassment and shame. 

“That was incredibly cruel Matt!” you whispered to your neighbor “Giving me the wrong readings just so I’d embarrass myself!”

“I didn’t! I did the wrong ones too!” he rasped back

“Uhuh, sure you did!”

“Is there a problem?” the professor spoke up, causing the whole lecture hall to turn and look at you and Matt, embarrassing you for the second time

You shook your head no, stared at your notebook, and tried to focus as the professor returned to his lecture once more.

All you knew after that day was Matt Murdock was not to be trusted if you wanted to find success for the next three years at Columbia.

Matt’s apartment was cozy. Full of textures, though you supposed if you couldn’t see the place you lived, that’d be the thing to do to make it feel like home. 

You weren’t surprised, then, to find that everything else there was too – the loofa in his shower, the plush towels you used to dry your now steam-warmed body, and the gray sweatpants and navy Columbia law shirt he handed you afterwards.

“Why is a brilliant lawyer like you putting up with a guy like that?” he asked over half-devoured takeout containers

“You think I’m a brilliant lawyer?”

“I always have. But that wasn’t the question.”

“Okay, counselor.” you jested back

You didn’t want to get into it tonight, to relive all the failings of your love life and how you ended up here. But you did; afterall what else did you have to exchange for his kindness except your vulnerability?

After you finished, the story concluding in the present moment, there was silence. It hung between the two of you as Matt chewed on your words.

“Do you remember our law dissertation class in our third year?” he finally spoke

“Yeah.”

“You gave a closing statement about the case we presented, 

‘Legislative judgements of the court serve as constant reminders that, in the view of all-male decision-making bodies, life should be arranged in a way only they see fit for the rest of us. We must constantly use the law to dismantle their notions, in order to create a society that is legally inclusive for all it applies to.’

“Yeah I remember that. What about it?

“I have it typed up in braille, on this little frame on my desk, back at the office. I read it over sometimes. Helps me remember just exactly who the law should be for. For everyone, not just the powerful. I would think the person who said that wouldn’t put up with a jerk of a boyfriend.”

Laughter erupted throughout your body and you felt yourself smile, a real genuine smile for the first time that evening.

“Matt. I didn’t say that. I mean I did but it was… I was quoting Ruth Bader Ginsburg. It seemed relevant to pull a statement on the matter from one of our supreme court justices at the time. It was like in a letter she wrote to Scalia about one of their favorite operas or something. Wait, you thought I thought of that?”

“I actually did, yeah. It was such a strong closing statement, I figured only someone as smart as you could have come up with it.”

“Smart? I’m sorry Matt, did you just compliment me?”

“I did.” he said with a chuckle “But don’t get used to it.”

“And for the past, what like, 12 years you've had that sitting on your desk, thinking of me every time you read it?”

“Yeah,” he sighed “Go ahead, make fun of me.”

“You know what, I will spare you just this one time from my mockery. Only because I think it’s sweet. I can't believe you remembered something I said in law school. You hated me then.”

“I never hated you. Admired you for sure. Jealous at times, absolutely. But I never hated you.”

“Huh, I always just thought you did.”

2013

“Matthew Michael Murdock! Open this door right now!” you screamed as you banged on the door of Matt and Foggy’s dorm

Matt opened it cautiously, already knowing the reason you were about to chew him out.

You stepped up, nearly nose to nose with him.

“How could you? This is low, even for you Murdock.”

“Please, just let me explain…”

“No. I don’t need your shitty explanation. I know we haven’t gotten along since day one, but even so – you know I’m an excellent student, you know I’m gonna be a good lawyer, and yet… Why did you tell Jeremy Landman I wouldn’t be a good fit for the internship?”

“Because you wouldn’t be.” Matt responded, coldly

“Are you fucking serious? I would be an amazing fit at that firm! I work twice as hard as you two chucklefucks in every single class,” you indicated to Foggy, who was sitting listening intently on the bed behind Matt. “You’ve been interns there the whole year, I just wanted a summer internship while I study for the bar! I got the rejection call this morning. And they said it was your fault. Because you told your boss I wasn’t a good fit.”

“Listen. I’m sorry. I know that internship was important to you, but I was being honest. You wouldn’t be the right fit there.”

The tears started flowing down your face as Matt remained emotionless before you.

“Don’t you dare ever speak to me again, Matthew. I want nothing to do with you!” you shouted, turning on your heel and rushing back down the hall, determined not to clue Matt into just how hard you were crying.

Matt closed the door with a sigh.

“Jesus Matt, she’s right. That was really shitty of you.” Foggy said

“Look… I had a good reason.”

“Was the reason because you hate her, because if that’s what it is, I’m gonna come over there and hit you, Murdock.”

“No. The reason I told them not to pick her for the internship, Jeremey Landman is… look, he’s been a great mentor this year but he doesn’t necessarily treat the female interns and employees with as much… respect.” Matt explained

“Okay, so why haven’t you said anything? To HR. To her?”

“I didn’t want to stir the pot, you know, mess things up for us. I was worried if I said anything, they’d just fire me and I worried you’d get thrown in the mix too.”

“Okay, but at least tell her…” Foggy indicated toward the door

“No. She’ll find something better. She’s right, she’s gonna be a good lawyer. She’ll find an even better internship at an even better firm.”

Matt’s sheets were luxurious to say the least. Cool and calming against your skin as you slumbered under the glow of the billboard and the sounds of the heavy rain still beating down hours later. 

You didn’t notice the shadow sneaking out of the apartment through the roof access door, nor did you notice when it returned a few hours later. You slept peacefully as the blood from his fists ran down the drain, as the rain-soaked crimson suit was tucked back into the worn trunk, and as the exhausted lawyer crept back through the living room and tucked himself into the worn leather sofa.

The ring of your phone happened far too early for your liking, an unfamiliar number popping up on your screen as you rubbed your bleary eyes.

Matt tried not to eavesdrop, a difficult task with his precise hearing and the echoing ceilings of his loft.

The words “Nearly comatose” and “Mysterious circumstances” shouldn’t have caused the grin that spread across his face, but they did.

“I’m sorry, but he and I actually broke up. I’ve been staying with a friend, so I have no idea what happened. Please remove me as his emergency contact and reach out to someone else.” 

And then you hung up the phone.

You clued Matt in over a cup of coffee as the sun rose in streaking beams across the brick walls of his home. He listened with concern, trying not to let on to the fact he knew why you’d received that phone call or that he had been the cause of it.

“Don’t act like he didn’t deserve it.”

“Wow, how very Catholic of you, Matthew.”

“So you’re staying with a friend huh?”

An arrogant smile spread across his annoyingly handsome face. How typical of him. He heard your phone conversation and still let you ramble on for at least ten minutes and had the nerve to throw your own phrasing back in your face.

Still, he had been nothing but kind and gentle to you the past 12 hours, so you owed it to him to at least try and not be annoyed with him. You took a deep breath.

“I mean, you let me stay with you last night. And you heavily implied you and Foggy are going to get me some resources to help me. That’s something a friend would do.

“It’s nice. Being your friend. It’s a good change.”

“Yeah I guess it is. Look, Matt… I know I’ve been kind of harsh on you. Sometimes.” you said, extending a metaphorical olive branch

Matt chuckled and shook his head, holding out an open palm to stop you.

“Water under the bridge.”

“But really. Thank you.” 

“Can I ask you something?” he inquired

“Yeah”

“When we were in law school… why did you never give me a chance?” 

“Matt, you had a new girlfriend like, every month. I don’t think there was ever an opportunity for me to even try!”

“I… that wasn’t at all what I was asking. I just meant why you seemed to hate me from the get go. Wait, did you want to… you know, give me a chance in that way?” he asked

“No. I mean, maybe at one time. Like when I first met you, I thought you were cute. But then I got to know what a jerk you were…”

“I was a jerk? What about you?! You literally rented the one braille book on Civil Procedure from the library a week before finals just so I wouldn’t be able to study!”

“That wasn’t why I rented it!” you argued back

“Why else would you?!”

“Because I was trying to learn braille!”

“With a law book?!”

“I was trying to help you! You’d missed so many classes that semester and then your girlfriend broke up with you and it just seemed like you were really struggling and I actually felt bad for you for a change and thought maybe I could help you study.” 

“By renting the one book I needed?”

“My thought process was that it might be easier to study if we could read from the same book but since you can’t see, I wanted to learn braille so I could help you better… then I caught that awful flu that was going around and I couldn’t get it back to the library before finals.”

His pink lips parted, tongue darting out as he rubbed his chin in contemplation. 

You thought about how he looked almost like the Matt you knew back then. So used to seeing him in sharp suits in court rooms these days, his morning ensemble of sweatpants and a simple black t-shirt reminded you more of the heartbroken Matt you knew from late nights in the library and off-campus parties. Even then, you rarely got to admire how the light reflected in his hazel eyes, usually covered by glasses. How unlike him, you thought, to not wear his glasses in front of you. It’s almost as if he was trying to match your current state of vulnerability.

“I had no clue you had a thing for me back then.” he said

You nearly spit your coffee across his countertop.

“I’m sorry, I did not say I had a thing for you. I said you were pitiful enough to make me want to do something nice. That is not a ‘thing’ Matthew.”

“But when I asked why you didn’t give me a chance, that’s where your brain went. You said I was cute.”

You rolled your eyes, knowing he couldn’t see the gesture of annoyance. 

“Then Matt. I said you were cute back then.”

Matt smirked, hearing the wavering of your heartbeat to know it was a lie. You thought he was cute now. Using that information to push his luck, he continued

“You know I sort of had a thing for you too.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I am! You were smart and so stubborn. You smelled nice. And your laugh… It’s always the one thing I can pick out of a crowded lecture hall or busy courthouse.”

“Wait, Matt are you saying you had a crush on me?”

“Yeah.” he confirmed

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because I thought you hated me.”

“I never hated you.”

“Oh come on, you absolutely did.” he argued

“No. I didn’t. You were just always so arrogant. You still are. In law school, you got any girl you wanted and you usually did. You charmed all the professors into liking you, meanwhile I worked my ass off and barely got noticed.”

You picked up your coffee cup and took a giant swig, black liquid fueling your rambling.

“And it’s the same these days with judges and juries. It’s not like you aren’t a good lawyer, I know you are. I just get so jealous sometimes that the blind thing seems to get you sympathy and special perks from the get go, plus all the suave personality that I don’t have usually gets people on your side even without all the solid evidence against my prosecution you usually gather.”

“So, you’re jealous?” 

“I guess. But Matt, I promise, I don’t hate you.”

“Well you might, for what I’m about to say.”

“Okay. What could you possibly say that could make me actually hate you?”

He rested his forearms on the kitchen counter, leaning in as if he was about to share a secret, even though it was just the two of you in his apartment.

“Give the case you’re working on to someone else.” he spoke, low voice rumbling in his chest as the seriousness of his request hung in the air.

“What?!”

“You’re in no state to show up in court tomorrow.”

You hadn’t yet dared to look in a mirror to see if there was physical evidence from what happened with your boyfriend last night. But you knew Matt wasn’t just talking about that, it was the emotional component too.

“Are you serious?! You’re telling me to drop the biggest case of my life because my boyfriend was an ass? All in some weird ploy so that you can win?”

“Really? You think I give a shit about beating you in court? This isn’t about that. It’s about making sure you’re okay!”

“You liar! You just want to win this case!” you shouted back

“Are you ever not the most stubborn person on this planet?”

“I am when I don’t have to deal with you.”

He rounded the kitchen counter to stand in front of you, all caution thrown to the wind as he cupped your jaw and pulled you close to him.

“Just shut up.” he murmured before his mouth was on yours, soft and tender and full of years of pent up desire.

You didn’t resist, leaning into his warm, plush lips as they opened up to you, deepening the kiss.

You weren’t sure who pulled apart first, but neither of you dared to separate much, staying close enough that you could feel his labored, warm breath on your face.

“If I promise to give the case to Foggy, will you promise to give your side to someone else at your firm? Then we can spend this week getting you a new place and a restraining order.”

You nodded, not sure what else to say. 

He kissed you once more, a seal on the agreement the two of you just made.

You just got out of possibly the worst relationship of your life and now the last man you thought you’d ever go out with was offering you a new beginning. What did you possibly have to lose by taking this leap?

“Maybe…” you finally spoke up “you can take me to dinner. To celebrate if we get all of that done.”

“Okay.” he agreed

Maybe one day, he’ll tell you what really happened that night after you fell asleep in his bed. Reveal to you what he does in the dark, why he started this double life, intent on protecting people just like you. But for now, he’s content to just share a warm cup of coffee and a kiss in the morning, and the promise of more mornings like this on the horizon.

[prodigal-san]

oh man this was supposed to be a quick doodle but it got away from me 😂 anyways! Here’s Alastor and his shadow doting on the twins from my radioapple fic, “Law of Creation.” 🦌♥️🐊&🍏

[thebadgerclan]

The Price

Pairing: Aleksander Morozova x reader

Summary: Merzost always demands a price...

And so the fix-it fics begin 😂

You knew merzost always had a price, your mother-in-law had told you as much, but you’d never expected this.  Handkerchiefs soaked with blood from Aleksander’s incessant coughing, his moans of agony from the pain that felt like it could split his head in two.  Yes, merzost had a price, and your husband was paying it.  He’d tried the usual remedies, the tried and true otkazat’sya methods that usually worked.  But these were no ordinary headaches, he knew that, and no ordinary remedies could fix them.

There was an Alkemi living at the sanctuary, Vladim, who Aleksander thought could help him.  You’d been at his side when he sought him out, confessing his plight.  “I have…pain,” he’d said.  “Pain that splits the head.”  Vladim had offered to concoct a serum for your husband, a temporary solution.  The fool had suggested reversing Aleksander’s creation of his nichevo’ya, though you knew that was all but impossible, which had sent your husband’s heart pounding with rage.

But Vladim had made the serum and given it to Aleksander, still warning that its effects would be temporary.  When you found him hunched over, a red-stained cloth pressed to his lips, you gently tipped the tonic down his throat, waiting for it to take effect.  It didn't work.  It might as well have been water Vladim had put in that vial, for Aleksander still coughed violently, blood still trickled from his mouth.  “Y/N,” he whimpered, looking at you with tears in his eyes.  “Y/N, it..it still hurts.”

“I know, darling,” you said, doing your best to soothe him.  “I’m sorry, I know it hurts.”  You felt the nichevo’ya writhing around you, invisible, but feeding off of Aleksander’s pain.  But they would never hurt you, they could never hurt you.  “They obey my will,” your husband had told you.  “And I would never will anything to harm you.”  When he coughed again, you gently wiped the blood from his lip, laying your palm on his cheek.

“I’m going to speak with Vladim,” you said, easing Aleksander from the chair before the fireplace and leading him to bed.  “Try to rest, my darling.  I’ll be back soon.”  Aleksander didn’t answer, but you felt his heart skip a beat when you kissed his forehead.  As soon as you were outside of the rooms you’d claimed, you let anger fill you, anger and fear.  Grisha hurried to get out of your way as you strode down the hallways, and when you arrived at the Alkemi’s workshop, you threw the door open.

Baghra looked at you through the bars of her cage.  “Well, if it isn’t my darling daughter-in-law.”  “Quiet, woman,” you snapped.  “Where’s Vladim?”  “H-here, moya soverennyi,” he replied, entering the room.  “What can I do for you?”  “It isn’t working,” you said, rounding the table to stand before him.  “The serum, it isn’t working.  The pain hasn’t decreased and he’s still coughing up blood.”  The Alkemi fidgeted with a loose thread on his cuff.  “I…I did inform the General that its effects would be temporary, but I-” “It hasn’t worked at all!” you shouted.  “My husband is in agony, and you have been of absolutely no help.”

“I’m sorry,” Vladim said.  “I’m working as hard as I can to improve the tonic, but without being able to study merzost, it is extremely difficult.”  You stepped closer, making the Alkemi cower before you.  “Work harder,” you said, voice low.  “If our General is not at his strongest, we will not win this war.”  “O-of course, moya soverennyi.  But…if I might suggest something?”  Your temper flared, and you willed it down, willed yourself to be calm.  “What?”

“The General used merzost to prolong your life, did he not?”  “How do you know that?” you asked, but a glance at the old woman in the corner answered your question.  “Yes, he did.  Why?”  “Well,” Vladim continued.  “I believe the only way to control merzost is with more merzost.  And you are already a very powerful Heartrender.  So if you were to attempt to alleviate his pain, perhaps that would work.”  You swore under your breath; why hadn’t you thought of that?  Genya had tried, and failed, to heal his scars, but she was nowhere near as powerful as you…

“Don’t think this means you can stop working on the serum,” you said as you turned and left his workshop, hurrying back to your husband.  When you entered your rooms, you found him curled in on himself, his breathing shallow, his heart racing.  “Aleksander, my love?” you said gently, perching on the edge of the bed.  “Y/N,” was all he managed to say, the pain was so great.  Hurriedly, you stripped off your kefta and slid beneath the covers, opening your arms.

Though it pained him greatly, Aleksander moved into your embrace, gritting his teeth so he wouldn’t cry out.  “Vladim told me that I might be able to ease your pain,” you whispered, and your husband nodded, willing to try anything to stop the ache in his skull.  Breathing deeply, you folded your hands, focusing on Aleksander’s heartbeat, the blood flowing through his veins, the neurons firing in his brain.  You crooked your fingers, seeking out the part of the brain responsible for feeling pain, and after a moment, you shut it down.

Aleksander gasped, lifting his face from where it was buried in your chest.  “Did you…?”  “Yes,” you responded, smiling softly.  “How do you feel?”  The pain was gone, not even dulled or numbed, but gone.  His lungs felt clear, his throat felt soothed.  “I feel perfect.  Thank you, my love.”  You gently pressed your lips to his, feeling his heart slow, his blood pressure drop, his muscles relax.  “You never have to thank me, Aleksander.  I would do anything for you.”

“And I for you,” he replied, bringing a hand to your face, gently stroking your cheek bone.  “I love you so much, moya malyshka,” he whispered, wrapping his other arm around your waist.  “I love you too, Sasha.  Vladim’s still working on the tonic, but for now, I should be able to help you get some rest.”  Aleksander nodded, already falling asleep now that he could properly rest.  You remained awake through the night, ensuring your husband felt no pain and that he was able to get the rest he desperately needed.

[thelov3lybookworm]

Request! A Eris x Archeron!yn fic. Imagine a prythian where the high lords are not good and friendly with each other and are now planning a war over one another to take down the court next to them and rule over. Now after a LOT of convincing Autum Court and Night court are forced in a alliance between each other because of yn. Now imagine if one of them sabotages the alliance! What will happen? Who will yn choose? Will she be able to choose between her sisters and mate?

(I don't know if you write for Eris or not. If you don't and you want to write this, you change it to yn being Eris's little sister and being Azriel's mate. Or if you don't want to write this at all that's totally fine too!)

Bloodshed.

Eris week day 2, High Lord

Eris x Archeron!reader

Summary: The world is in chaos, and its not the best time to find the other half of your soul when the people you live with would trade anything to kill your mate.

But that's exactly what has happened with Y/n, and she has no idea how to save him. But maybe she could negotiate?

•○●⛦●○•

A/n: hey anon! I love the idea, Eris is one of my most loved acotar males. Soo sorry for the delay in posting this! I didn't have time to write it, and when I did, @erisweek2023 was close, so I thought why not post it then. So, here it is. I hope you like it.

First time participating in a character week, soo excited! 😆

Also make sure to check out other Eris week creations too!❣️

•○🌑○•

Today they would be meeting up with the new High Lord of the Autumn Court. An important court related meeting, as Y/n's brother in law claimed. It wouldn't have been held if not for the new High Lord's ascension to Autumn's throne.

They said it was so that they could try and be allies, but Y/n was no kid. They just wanted to meet with him so that they could find any weaknesses to exploit and get Autumn under their domain.

Since the moment the war against Hybern had ended, the High Lords had been at each others throats. A smile on the face that equalled to a sneer in the privacy of their courts.

And Y/n was sick of their games.

The inner circle was kind enough to everyone in Night Court, but the rulers had slowly and steadily become more and more power hungry, turning on people who they would have once considered friends.

Eris had once been an ally, but he was only a friend for the reason that he fed the inner circle information regarding Beron and his schemes, so he could get some help getting rid of his father in return. It had barely been a week since he became High Lord, and the night court had already started scheming to get Eris off the throne.

She knew that Night Court wasn't the only one who was planning that.

And she hated them for it.

It wasn't that she was interested whether Eris ruled Autumn Court or not, she just wanted him to... not be sad for once.

She had only had a handful of conversations with him, but she knew that he wasn't the evil person he pretended to be. She could see it in his eyes, the bruised and sad look that he always had in those beautiful amber orbs. She didn't know how no one else noticed it.

But she did. She somehow had this irrational urge to soothe him. Soothe all of his worries and comfort him, let him tell her of all that he went through. She wanted to see the man beneath the cold mask of the Autumn Court heir, now High Lord.

It was stupid, she knew, especially because the people who she lived with would probably lock her away if she so much as showed interest in him. But she couldn't help it. It was like her instincts were screaming at her to go–

A knock on her bedroom doors drew her from her thoughts. She flinched from the sudden loud noise before going to open the door. It was her younger sister.

Feyre looked at her, surveying her from head to toe before nodding. "He's here. Come." Y/n followed her towards a meeting room in Moonstone Palace. "I still don't understand why you want to be present in the meeting. It's just going to be fake smiles and Eris's disgusting personality. It's a pain in the ass, if you ask me. He's a pain in the ass. The faster he gets removed from the throne and hopefully dies, the better."

Y/n said nothing.

Y/n and Elain were twins, but Elain was soft, kind and caring, while Y/n was anything but. That didn't deter everyone from assuming she was the same as Elain. That she was naive and wouldn't understand their despicable schemes.

As they entered the meeting room where Eris and most of the inner circle were in, Y/n's heart fluttered.

But then her eyes met with his, and her heart stopped as something started to glow inside of her. He stared back at her, his lips parting.

It was like her soul was freed from a cage as she felt all the love and happiness and confusion in the world surrounding her heart. She smiled slightly, looking at the dazed look on his face.

"Well well, look who's here. I don't know why she wanted to be here, but you can't help when someone doesn't want to understand and is childish–" Rhys said, straightening from the table and sliding his hands into his pockets.

"Y/n. How are you doing?" Eris asked, glaring at Rhys.

"I'm fine. How about yourself?" Her shoulders curved inwards as her brother in law's power whipped around the room.

"I'm good. Thank you for asking."

"Is that all you wanted to ask? If so, you can leave now."

Y/n swallowed. She didn't know why Rhysand had started acting like that around her, but it scared her. He had been like an older brother to her, just like Cassian and Azriel. But one day it was like she woke up in a new world, and she did not recognise anyone. "I– I would–"

"Come Y/n." Eris pulled out the chair next to him, motioning for her to sit in it. She smiled gratefully as she settled down, while Rhysand fumed.

"What were we talking about again before we were interrupted?" Azriel questioned.

"Yes, we were trying to negotiate an alliance." Eris said calmly. But amusement shone on everyones faces as Mor and Feyre snorted. Y/n looked around confused. What was happening?

"There is going to be no negotiation on any alliance. You were very useful in eliminating your father, Eris, but looks like we have no use of you now."

Y/n stiffened, realising that this was no normal meeting. This was an ambush. "Hey, hey. Let's not get hostile." She began when she spied the Illyrians reaching for their weapons. "Why can we not become allies? It would be better–"

"Shut up." Rhysand snapped, stunning Y/n for a moment. And in that moment, a ring of raging fire surrounded Rhysand. He paled as the fire continued spreading around the room, now making a cage like structure around all the members of the inner circle.

"Do not talk to her like that. Ever again." Deadly intention dripped from every word out of Eris's mouth as he stood. She stood along with him, panic clawing up her throat. "You'll be ash before you have time to apologise."

Rhysand snarled, just before a bubble of water surrounded him. Y/n looked around, realising Feyre was the one responsible for the water bubble.

Y/n tugged on Eris's sleeve, and he slowly turned his head to look at her. She shook her head at him, her eyes pleading. He stared at her for a moment before the fire vanished.

As soon as it did, the three illyrians advanced on them. Y/n threw herself in front of Eris, clutching his hands behind her back so he wouldn't do anything reckless again. Which was stupid, as he didn't need his hands to burn the place down.

"Get away from him Y/n." Rhysand said in a deadly voice, continuing to come towards them as Cassian and Azriel pulled out their swords and daggers.

She shook her head, glancing at Feyre helplessy. "Do something!"

"Why would I? Stop acting like that Y/n, he's not a nice person. He deserves to die."

Y/n looked around, hoping someone would help her. "Feyre, I have a question for you. When you first met Rhysand, was he a nice person?"

Feyre's brows furrowed, but she answered, speaking slowly and gently as if speaking to a small child. "No, he was not a nice person. But he's my mate, and when I got to know him more, I realised he was a nice person. But Y/n, is it necessary to ask these stupid questions at this moment?"

"Yes." She turned back to Rhysand. "Please, negotiate an alliance. He's my mate."

Everything was dead silent for a minute, and everyone stared at her. Eris had managed to free his hands from her clutches, and she felt his hands wrapping around her, tugging her back.

"You shouldn't have done that." He whispered in her ear frantically. And when she thought about it, she realised how stupid it was. These people were not ones she had once known. These were bloodthirsty and greedy, and they wouldn't care for their enemy's mate, even though the mate was their family. They could also use her to force Eris to do something. Maybe even leave the throne and go into hiding.

"What did you say?" Rhysand asked, his voice low.

"Please Rhys, you know what it feels like to have a mate. Please don't do this." She glanced at the other Illyrians, who had stopped just behind Rhys.

"You are going to go with him?"

"Yes. I–I want to."

"The bond is clouding your judgement."

"No it is not, I swear."

Rhys glanced at Feyre, conversing mind to mind before sighing. "You'll regret this Y/n, and when you realise it, you'll come back crying to us. Guess we won't have any fun today then."

"Really?"

"Hmm. Well, get back to the table. We'll have to negotiate a stupid alliance then."

•○🌑○•

That had been months ago, and now Autumn Court was safe. At least for the time being.

She continued staring out the window, drinking her monthly contraceptive tea. She and Eris had accepted the bond within one month of the alliance being made, and for the next month, it had been as if they had been wiped of the face of Prythian.

She blushed, thinking of that month. It wasn't as if it didn't still feel like they were in a mating frenzy though. No, Eris would grab her whenever he got one moment of peace. But back then? He had her for himself, uninterrupted most of the time. Any work he had, he would do when she rested. Writing letters to reading reports, keeping tabs on the training of soldiers to the current favourite food of his people, that male did everything, all the while making sure to give her time as well.

And if there was only one thing she knew, it was that she didnt regret her decision. She never would.

She sighed, moving to take a sip from her tea when two strong arms wrapped around her torso. Without a moments hesitation and without realising what she was doing, she relaxed back into the body of her mate.

Her amazing, perfect mate.

As soon as she relaxed, she felt warmth rushing through the bond, a tint of glee and surprise mixed with the love.

"Good morning love." Eris whispered–his voice raspy and clouded with sleep– againt her hair before burying his head in the crook of her neck. She tilted her head back and to the side to give him more space.

"Good morning handsome."

She felt him smile against her, nipping at her. He lifted his head a little so his cheek rested against her.

"What are you drinking?"

"My monthly contraceptive tea."

"That's great."

"I feel like there's more you want to say." She muttered, caressing his arm. She turned to him and he rested his forehead against her.

"Is the tea hot?"

Her brows furrowed. "No, not really. It was brought in quite some time ago. Why?"

"Then finish it up quickly darling."

"Why?" She smirked. She knew why, she just wanted to hear him say it.

"You know why."

"Do I though?" She sipped from the almost finished cup teasingly.

"Hmm. Guess I'll just show you why then."

His eyes twinkled, and she couldn't hold back anymore. So she gulped down the tea in one go before pouncing on him.

•○🌑○•

She stared at herself in the mirror, running her fingers over her deep red gown's neckline.

She and her mate, the High Lord and Lady of Autumn Court, had been invited to the Night Court. They hadn't been provided with a specific reason why the celebration was being held, they just were invited.

Whatever the reason, there was a pit of dread forming in her stomach.

The door creaked open to her chambers and her mate poked his head in. When she turned to look at him, she found his mouth slightly parted, as if he was about to say something.

But then he stepped in, closing the door behind him. He whistled lowly as he walked towards her. "Give me a twirl pretty girl."

She smiled and did exactly that. He whistled flirtatiously, eyeing her body before meeting her eyes. "Would you look at that. Perfect. Absolutely gorgeous."

She blushed like a schoolgirl at the praises spewed from her mate and husband's mouth. It didn't last long as she remembered why she had dressed up in the first place. She turned back to the mirror, a frown on her face.

Eris, of course, noticed it. Moving to stand behind her and meeting her eyes in the mirror, he hugged her from the back. "What happened darling? Is something the matter?"

She shook her head. "I'm just a little..."

"Nervous?"

"You could say that."

"We can stay here if you want. I will write to them–"

"No." She cut him off. "This would affect the alliance, especially since Rhysand and Feyre would be looking for any opportunity to launch a war."

"Then we can go to war, my heart. Your comfort comes before all else."

She smiled and turned to him. "I'm glad for that, my love. However, it is necessary that I prioritise the future of Autumn Court. What kind of High Lady would I be if I didn't care for my subjects' wellbeing?"

He smiled and kissed her cheeks. "My darling High Lady. So, are you ready?"

"Not really, but let's get this done with."

He extended his arm to her. As soon as she took it, they began to walk out the door.

But something caught her attention when she spied the guards who would accompany them today. They weren't Eris's personal guards, the ones he trusted. Y/n tugged on her mates sleeves, making him stop.

"Yes?"

She tilted her head towards the guards. "They are new. They are not your guards."

Eris nodded. "Apparently, my brothers seem to think that these guards are better suited to safeguarding us. They are old and trained, seasoned from centuries of working for my father."

As he said those words, Y/n had the feeling that he was also questioning the reason these males were coming with them.

He still didn't trust his brothers, and, despite his advisors telling him to get rid of them, he didn't. He wouldn't, not unless they gave him a reason to.

The pit of dread in her deepened.

She didn't have a good feeling about this.

•○🌑○•

Y/n smiled politely as she talked to her sister. Nesta. Feyre was sitting on her throne.

Her heart was hammering in her ear, and she had become more and more panicked than when she started the evening. The weird feeling that something really bad was about to happen lurked about her being, and she wondered where her mate was.

She tried to look around, her breathing becoming shorter when she didnt find him anywhere in the crowded hall.

Where the hell is he?

"Are you okay?" Nesta gave her an assessing look, her eyes all seeing.

Y/n nodded. "It's just, I've never been away from Eris for long periods of time since before we were mated. Especially in crowded areas. And you know how I hate crowds. And I have also been feeling nauseated since the evening. I'm sure it's nothing..."

She realised she was rambling and Nesta probably wasn't interested in Y/n's wellbeing. So she shut herself up and again looked around, tugging on the bond.

In an instant, Eris's arm was around her waist and he smiled down at her.

"My heart?"

Relief spread through her as she buried her face in the crook of his neck. "Eris."

"Are you alright?"

She shook her head against him. "Too crowded. Too many people. And you weren't near..." She mumbled.

"Oh my darling, I am so sorry I left you alone. But I am here now. You want to go somewhere less crowded?"

She hummed against his warm skin, already calming.

"Come." He said, pulling away from her and turning to the doors. That was when Y/n noticed Rhysand and Cassian standing next to Nesta, eyeing the couple. She swallowed when Rhysand met her eyes before looking away from her in disgust.

It was obvious he would be disgusted, after all she had chosen the enemy over her own family.

She bowed her head, her insecurities rising again after months, and followed Eris to a secluded alcove nearby.

She kept her head lowered, wondering if her family hated her, but then she felt Eris's hand on her chin, and all her worries started ebbing away.

"Hey." He whispered softly, giving her a small smile. "Are you alright?"

"I... don't know."

"It's okay. Talk to me."

"I–I don't know why but... I'm feeling... weird? Like, since the moment we left for here, I've had this feeling that something is about to go wrong and–" her chest heaved and she pressed herself against him, needing his warmth to keep her in the present.

"Hey, hey, nothing is going to go wrong. Don't worry my heart, everything will be fine."

He kissed her head, smoothing his hand down her hair as he murmured sweet nothings onto the top of her head.

A few moments later, she finally calmed. But the dread was still there, like an unwanted guest who refused to leave.

Y/n looked up at her mate, her beautiful, amazing mate. He smiled down at her.

"How are you feeling?"

"Better. But still Eris, what if something happens?"

He shook his head. "If something happens, I'll be there to handle it."

She sighed. "I know I sound stupid and stubborn–"

"No you don't. It's just your instincts, and there is nothing wrong with feeling that way. We'll be more careful of what is going on around us, and nothing will happen. I promise."

She smiled at him. This was why she loved him.

Before she had left with him, her family always found ways to make her doubt herself. If she suggested an idea, they would look down on it, saying she should stay quiet when she knew nothing about the matter. She had become extremely insecure about herself since then, and tried to stay quiet all the time.

Eris made her realise her worth and brought her back from the dark pit she had descended into.

"I love you." She whispered.

"I love you more, my heart."

As soon as they left the alcove, the were faced with the whole of inner circle staring them down, as if they had been waiting to pounce on her and her mate. Even Feyre and Mor were there.

Her grip tightened on Eris's hand, and he squeezed back.

"Feyre." She smiled tentatively, wondering if it was the right thing to do.

"Y/n." Feyre nodded stiffly. "Would you like to come with us? We wanted to talk to you, catch up on the events of the past months. See how things were going in the Autumn Court. Just us ladies." Y/n glanced at Eris. He eyed the females, namely Feyre, Nesta and Mor. "Don't worry about him. He'll be occupied with the males. Right Eris?"

She didn't want to go. The only place she wanted to go to was back home. "Um I..."

Everyone's eyes seemed to narrow on her mate, who said nothing.

"Is something the matter?"

She shook her head. "I just don't feel well. I... guess I'll come with you."

The females of the inner circle led her away, out the court room, up a staircase.

By the time they reached the landing of the fourth floor, Y/n's chest was heaving. "Where are we going?"

The three ladies looked at each other before Nesta sighed. "Look, we wanted to talk to you away from him. There isn't a particular place we had in mind."

Immediately, Y/n's blood chilled. She looked around. "What are you trying to say? What did you want to talk about?"

"Y/n... look, the bond seems to be clouding your judgement. He is not the male you think he is. He is manipulating–" Feyre started.

Y/n heaved a sigh. "He. Is. Not. Neither is the bond clouding my judgement."

"You wouldn't realise even if he was manipulating you. So, please let me in your mind. If the bond isn't clouding your mind and he isnt manipulating you, then we will satisfied."

" I married him of my own free will. How many times do I have to say that to get you to fucking understand?"

Silence descended. Unfortunately, it was only for a moment. "Did you– did you just curse?"

Y/n laughed, tired of their presumptions about her. "Why is that so shocking? Hmm? Is it because Elain never curses?" Mor opened her mouth, but Y/n didn't give anyone a chance to speak. "You don't even know what kind of a person I am. You just assumed that because I am Elain's twin, I'll have a similar personality as hers. You never bothered to ask me about my thoughts, always thinking that I was some naive little girl who knew nothing of what she was talking about."

"I– we never–"

"Yeah Feyre, you never."

Before she, or anyone, for that matter, could say or do anything, a scream sounded from below, followed by more.

Y/n turned to look down the stairs through the small opening over the railing. Her sisters and Mor did the same.

There was nothing noticeable accept the red glow on the walls on the bottom most floor.

Her heart picked up again, sweat coating her hands.

The screams got louder, and the glow became more evident as the moments passed.

When she felt a tug on the bond and a pulse of panic from Eris's side, it clicked.

Fire.

This place was on fire.

Shit.

The sound of clanking armor and the soldiers scrambling up the staircase made the the four females draw back from the railings edge. The soldiers made a ring formation around the three females of the inner circle, a few soldiers advancing on Y/n.

She looked at them confused.

It was Nesta who screeched when a soldier raised his sword. "What the hell do you think you are doing! She is our sister, stop advancing on her!"

"Ordered by the High Lord. Catch the enemy. The traitor and his wife."

"She is not the enemy! She is my sister!" Nesta cried out, trying to push her way through the protective circle while Y/n tried to find a way out. She was now pressed against the wall opposite the railing, and she ran her hands against the wall for something to protect herself with.

"That was why she was so nervous. And why she didnt want to come with us. She wanted to get away before the fire started." Feyre's eyes were wide and she pointed an accusing finger in Y/n's direction.

"Why– how can you even think that?! Eris would never do such a thing! I would never–"

"No one is ever going to trust you! Especially when you are a ruler of autumn Court. You married a manipulator, a monster. What are the odds that you haven't become the same in his company?"

"Feyre! Watch your tongue!" Nesta yelled, her eyes pleading. She turned to Y/n. "Tell her it's not true. Tell her you weren't the one who orchestrated this. Tell her!"

As soon as Y/n opened her mouth, her hand closed around something. A rod?

She didn't care, as long as she could use it to defend herself.

She pulled it in front of her, holding it like a sword. And then, just the way Eris had taught her, she leapt forwards, the black iron rod clutched tight in her hands.

The guards were not expecting it, and so the first one was disarmed quickly. She dropped her weapon in favour of picking the sword of the disarmed soldier, who then pulled out another sword hanging down his back and began charging at her.

She tried to hold him off while Nesta did her best to try and stop the males from cornering her.

But it wasn't enough. And there was only one way to stop them.

And she did what was needed.

She didn't care for her life as much as she did for Eris and the pain that he wpuld go through if he lost her. That, and the Autumn Court.

She raised the sword, and in one long, clean strike, severed the head of the closest guard. It stopped others from advancing, at least for a moment.

Y/n tugged on the bond once, but his side seemed to be closed off.

"The High Lord said she didn’t know how to fight." One of the guards said.

"She didn't. Unless, her bastard of a husband taught her." Mor stared at her in disdain.

"What are you waiting for?! Get her!" Feyre ordered, and at once the guards moved.

And so began the killing spree.

•○🌑○•

Eris's pov.

He cut through the men trying to ambush him as he tried to get to his mate. They had taken her somewhere away from him, the reason being unknown but he had an inkling.

So they could convince her to abandon him.

He had been panicked when he realised what was going on. The fire had been started by the men he had brought with him because of his brothers.

Those bastards. He was going to rip them apart when he found them. But that would happen if he was able to escape this hell hole. And for that, he needed to find his wife.

He had known that maybe her sisters were trying to persuade her into leaving him, and selfishly he had wished that she wouldn't leave him. But when the fire started, he realised that she probably would think that he was the one who orchestrated it.

So he had closed off the bond, giving her free will to leave him if she wanted without knowing what he felt. Because, knowing his wife, if she knew he was sad, she'd go to extreme lengths to make him happy. And that would mean staying with him even if she didn't want to.

And he knew he didn't deserve her anyway. She was too good for a bastard like him. It was only a matter of when, not if, she left him.

Just as he reached the staircase, his body locked up.

There she was, running down the stairs, holding her tattered gown in one hand and a bloody sword in another.

He didn't blink, couldn't, as he watched her cut down the men standing in her way.

He watched, fascinated, as she looked up from the male she was currently decapitating.

Her features relaxed, and she hurried down towards him.

The wall he had put up on his side of the bond wasn't strong enough to hold off the flood of relief from her side.

He almost went to his knees before his wife, his goddess. One he had done nothing to be blessed with.

When she was within arms length, she let go of her gown and threw herself at him. He stumbled back, but didn't let go of her.

"Oh mother! Are you okay?!" She questioned, pulling back and running her hands over his shoulder and torso, looking for injuries, all while he stood there staring at her like an idiot.

When he didn't reply, she looked up and snapped her fingers in his face.

That finally got him moving. "I'm fine. But I feel like I should be the one asking that. You look like you've just walked through a blood pond."

At that, she laughed. "We should leave before someone catches us. Come." She began tugging her away, but he held his ground.

"You– you still want to come with me?"

Her brows furrowed. "What do you mean? Why would I not want that?"

Eris didn't know how to respond. Thankfully, she knew him too well by now and knew what he was thinking.

She stepped closer, bringing a hand up to his jaw, searching his eyes. "Eris," she began softly. "I. Love. You. And I want to be with you. I'll never leave you, even if you beg me to. I'll forever haunt you."

He huffed out a laugh and she smiled.

"They were trying to persuade you to leave me, weren't they?"

Y/n nodded. "They can try."

"I could've been the one to start the fire." He pointed out, and the selfish part of him screamed in outrage.

"We're pretty sure it was him." Rhys spoke from behind Eris. He glanced back stiffly, finding the whole inner circle present.

But Y/n ignored him.

She only spoke to Eris.

"And? Your point being? I don't care if you were the one who started the fire. All I care for is you. Us. I wish you could get that through your thick skull."

She murmured before rising up on her toes and capturing his lips.

When she pulled away, Feyre spoke up. "Y/n, because you are family, we'll give you one chance. Come back to us, and you'll be safe. Go with him, and we'll destroy you along with Autumn Court."

"That's all you do, isn't it Feyre? Destroy courts for petty reasons. First Spring, and now Autumn. Do you ever stop?"

"Watch your tongue Y/n." Rhys snarled.

But it was all a ruse on Y/n's part, because suddenly, the wards were broken, and Eris felt his mate's hand in his, tugging urgently.

So he did as she wanted him to. Winnowed her away.

•○🌑○•

As soon as they appeared in a forest near Autumn Court's border, Y/n turned away and heaved the contents of her stomach on the grass. Eris held back her hair and rubbed her back before she collapsed on the grass.

After a few moments of silence, she started laughing. Eris looked at her incredulously, but her laughter was contagious, and so he followed her, lying next to her on the grass and laughing.

"Aren't you a clever little fox. That was amazing." He muttered when their laughter had fied down. He brushed his fingers against hers, feeling a smile lifting the corners of his lips.

"The bloodshed?"

"The breaking of wards. The bloodshed too."

She hummed happily. After a pause, she turned to Eris.

"I know it wasn't you Eris."

He didn't have to agrre to that, so he didn't. "There will be a war." He mumbled.

She nodded. "I know."

"You should have stayed back. With them."

"I would never do that."

"You could die here–"

"And I could also die there. At least if I die here, I'd have died for something good. And I dont care if I die."

His throat clogged. He just whispered one word.

"Why?"

She smiled, resting her head on his chest.

"Because I love you, you dumbass. We'll get through this together."

He nodded, even though she could not see.

"Together."

•○🌑○•

General taglist: @eos-princess @bubybubsters @nightless

[febuwhump]

leap year edition

Q: what is febuwhump?

A: febuwhump is a prompt challenge during february, in which creators try to fill one prompt a day, as guided by the official prompt list, in whatever creative way they wish

Q: what is whump?

A: it’s when you put a character in emotional or physical hurt. can be to any extent

Q: do i HAVE to create whump?

A: i’m not gonna come to your home and make you create whump, no. ‘whump’ is in the title of the event and it’s a whump-centric challenge but if that’s not inspiring to you or going to help you be creative then forget it and do what works best for you. challenge yourself how you want to and let febuwhump be the guide, not the law

Q: how do i win febuwhump?

A: officially, you can become a completionist by producing or posting 29 unique whump-themed works over the 29 days of february. you do not have to aim to win febuwhump if you don’t want to, and if you are not aiming to win, you do not have to follow all the rules, because at that point who cares

Q: can the 29 unique works be chapters to one fic?

A: yes

Q: can the 29 unique works be in any order?

A: no, please follow the day order as given to the best of your ability

Q: can the 29 unique works actually be less than 29 unique works because i blend a bunch of prompts together for one day or something else along these lines that directly contradicts the explained definition of febuwhump?

A: no

Q: can i complete febuwhump in tandem with other events?

A: yeah like what do i care, of course you can

Q: how do i inform you that i have won?

A: there will be a google forms link made available during the month of february. you have until march 3rd to fill it in

Q: how do i prove that i’ve won?

A: you don’t have to. this is an honour system and if you fill out the form, i will believe you. however, there will be a completionist badge you can use to post with your masterlist to show everyone else that you’ve won

Q: what are the exact requirements for the hall of fame?

A: the exact requirements are as follows:

you must have completed 29 sections/chapters/works/projects etc. inspired by 29 unique prompts and posted/produced them over the 29 days of february

you may combine prompts so long as there are still 29 unique prompts for 29 sections/works

this means that you can combine a core prompt and an alt prompt

or two core prompts, so long as an alt prompt replaces one of them

you must inform the blog by the 3rd of march that you completed febuwhump or your name will not feature in the hall of fame.

Q: am i allowed to–

A: you can do literally whatever you want, in any medium you want

Q: even–

A: yes even that

Q: what about–

A: that too

Q: really? anything at all?

A: if you want to win, follow the rules as explained. if you don’t actually care, do whatever you want. i will not stop you. i am not your mother

Q: can you give me extra ideas for prompts?

A: no! i’ve provided 39 prompts already, so i’m not really in the position to be creating extra lists for specific tropes right now. if you need help with specific prompts (such as not understanding what one means or could possibly involve/be in reference to) then i’ll do my best to help - but i’m only one person and i don’t really have the time or effort to be giving extra ideas right now

Q: how do i add my fics to the archiveofourown.org collection?

A: the ao3 collection will be open from february 1st to compile all ao3 works. you do not have to have completed all 29 days of febuwhump to submit - any and all febuwhump works are welcome there, but the cut off date is march 5th - the collection will be closed from then.

you can add fics as you’re posting or after they’ve been posted by using the ‘collection’ bar on the creation page. all you have to do is type in the name of the collection: febuwhump_2024. do not wait for the drop down menu, it will not show the name. press post and it will be included in the collection.

febuwhump 2021 collection can be accessed here

febuwhump 2022 collection can be accessed here

febuwhump 2023 collection can be accessed here

febuwhump 2024 collection can be accessed here

Q: i have literally any other question

A: check the rules and previous posts and asks and if your specific question isn’t answered, feel free to send an ask. if it has been answered before, and especially recently, i will not answer. please go looking, thanks

[girlfriendsofthegalaxy]

tuesday again 9/10/2024

someone adopt this little orange man from me in Houston TX! more details here!

listening

the 1991 Ella Mae Morse compilation Capitol Collectors Series is the official driving-cats-to-the-vet album bc it is so mellow but still fun. this album has previously been featured several times in tuesdayposts but i think you should all listen to it again.

seven thousand three hundred days IS a long long time to sleep ur so right ella

-

reading

two different works that annoyed me: Emily Hamilton's The Stars Too Fondly. my first clue should have been that this is my least favorite poem, bc ppl would quote it to me smugly after my mom died. im sure they thought they were being so super comforting to a budding astronomer, but, much like how i can no longer eat lasagna bc ppl gave us Twenty! Party! Size! Platters! Of! Lasagna! after my mom died (they would just Appear on our front porch, frozen), too much of this poem really soured me.

i had this book on hold Forever and then delayed delivery twice bc i have not felt like reading lately. here's the publisher's description:

In her breathtaking debut—part space odyssey, part sapphic rom-com—Emily Hamilton weaves a suspenseful, charming, and irresistibly joyous tale of fierce friendship, improbable love, and wonder as vast as the universe itself. So, here’s the thing: Cleo and her friends really, truly didn’t mean to steal this spaceship. They just wanted to know why, twenty years ago, the entire Providence crew vanished without a trace. But then the stupid dark matter engine started all on its own, and now these four twenty-somethings are en route to Proxima Centauri, unable to turn around, and being harangued by a snarky hologram that has the face and attitude of the ship’s missing captain, Billie. Cleo has dreamt of being an astronaut all her life, and Earth is kind of a lost cause at this point, so this should be one of those blessings in disguise that people talk about. But as the ship gets deeper into space, the laws of physics start twisting, old mysteries come crawling back to life, and Cleo’s initially combative relationship with Billie turns into something deeper and more desperate than either woman was prepared for. Lying somewhere in the subspace between science fantasy and sapphic rom-com, The Stars Too Fondly is a soaring near-future adventure about dark matter and alternate dimensions, leaving home and finding family, and the galaxy-saving power of letting yourself love and be loved.

should be catnip for me, right? wrong. starts out as a chat fic, which i hate.

i had a lot of trouble finishing the first chapter, which also has an extended third-person omniscient narrator flashback in italics, a thing i also hate. i KNOW you can figure out how to integrate this information into the book in a better way instead of dumping it in my lap.

i think part of why this is not hitting like i wanted is the tone, because i think this veers more new adult than i was really hoping for. i think introducing a big group all at once is very hard to do effectively. i do not like a series of character introductions that feel like they are trying to sell me action figures. or perhaps blind-bag figures. i do not like a six-deep list of cheesy puns about someone's name. i do not have the patience to see if this debut novel finds its footing a little later on, though i am glad a sapphic ghost in the machine romance exists in this world.

i also read dean motter's mister x (both the original late eighties through early nineties run and the 2008 follow-on).

let's yoink the description from wikipedia:

Set in Radiant City, a dystopian municipality influenced by Bauhaus and Fritz Lang's Metropolis, the series concerns a mysterious figure who purports to be its architect. His radical theories of "psychetecture" cause the citizenry to go mad, just as he did, and he takes on the mission to repair his creation. To accomplish this he remains awake twenty-four hours a day by means of the drug "insomnalin", all the while coping with a Dick Tracy–like rogues gallery and supporting cast including his long-suffering ex-girlfriend Mercedes. (ed note: the redhead in the santa beard below)

the art in this comic book is really and truly stunning. everyone was firing on all cylinders. beautiful retrofuturistic advertisement vibes, very fun play with panels and word balloons while still being readable, there are airships, you know how it is. looooooooove a hardboiled noir.

the Concept of mister x, this horrible awful futuristic city that grinds its citizenry up and spits them out? both figuratively and sometimes literally? love it!!! love a great wounded beast of a city as a character!!!

unforch the "who is mister x" subplot does not resolve in a satisfying way, imo. there's a lot of flip-flopping, there's a lot of options, he ends up being (maybe?) someone he was very definitively proven NOT to be in an earlier issue, and it really soured me on the whole experience. and also i don't believe it! that specific person makes no fucking sense! who mister x is, is by far the least interesting part of the series. tell me more about how he's fixing the city. show me more of the city. shut up and dance, robot artists

-

watching

X-Men: Apocalypse (2016, dir. Singer). this movie did not need to be two and a half hours long. appreciated the EXTREMELY divorced energy from charles & erik though, quicksilver rescuing the school scene was also very fun. my bestie's husband has informed me we are NOT watching Dark Phoenix, i'm not sure if we're going to loop back and watch the ??? number of wolverine films or if we're going to see how i feel about deadpool. bc i find this character insufferable through clips only.

-

playing

there is a feature in the video game genshin impact to turn your World Level (TM) down in order to make overworld enemies a little easier. i am at seven out of nine bc i genuinely can't finish the boss to unlock world level 9, and i am finding some of the overworld enemies too hard at 8 and want to finish the achievements in a more relaxed fashion.

-

making

this is going to be a lot of previously posted pics so bear with me.

saturday morning/saturday evening. plants? repotted. porch and stairs? swept. old wasp nests? knocked down. different mirror on the porch to go out to the curb when i have the energy? yes. also a giant slab of engineered stone from the top of a dresser but that's out of frame.

speaking of the giant broken dresser that was in my apartment when i moved in just over a year ago, i ripped it apart with a crowbar and threw it in the dumpster. put my pretty zebrawood desk in the empty space and started thinking about what to hang on that wall. the wall across from it is maps, bc i think a cozy office should have lots of maps and it makes a good video conference background. maybe this will be the dedicated cowboy nonsense wall. i did so much dusting and vacuuming and mopping and the girls can't even hang out in here bc the orange boy is in the office bathroom. big sigh.

also a lot of driving around and emailing and calling thirty shelters and rescues figuring out how to get this orange man a home. please take this orange man off my hands.

[snarky-wallflower]

Laws of Motion AU

I write as a way for my brain to break the Laws of Motion! And here we are...

Otherwise known as I had this AU idea nearly a month ago and it's been haunting me ever since.

So, Pulp Roleswap AU! It all started when I started actually thinking about the parallels between Samuel and Kal, how it can be argued that Kal knows where to hit Samuel hard because he's been there in the past - "still all talk", etc, etc...

And then I had thoughts of evil Samuel.

I promptly lost my mind.

(No one can say I'm not predictable.)

Now there's art, at least one published fic, songs, character arc ideas, and hopefully more to come! I have a lot of ideas for this AU. They come to me like visions from an angry god. ...I don't know how I got here either. But I am, and I've dragged a lot of friends along with me.

I hope if you read it, you enjoy it! I'll put most of it behind a read-more, because it got long. I doubt I'll even be able to sum it all up here.

All current art is done by the ever-talented @midnightnautilus!

Kallum and Alessia Peregrine

The Peregrines (last name courtesy of @starlightsparrowfox!) take the place of the Stratford twins in New York City!

Kal, a cunning chemist-turned-writer, fired from his last job pre-Sun for...reasons he would definitely prefer not to discuss. He's determined to get his name out there, feeling suffocated by what he describes as a fog that surrounds in this universe, blinding him with bitterness, willing to lash out if that's what it takes to make him be known. He feels unfulfilled, trapped in this fog. He's smug and can be callous, refusing to acknowledge those he's hurt in his determination to be known. He cares for his loved ones in this AU, but they are few and far between, with Sia being one of the only ones who has truly stuck by him.

(His solo song in this universe is called Kal and the Nebula - thank you, @tapestryoftrauma! Because there is beauty in those galactic clouds of smoke above, somehow grounding Kal. That unknowable, intangible beauty making him believe that there is more than this job, more than this lie, more than the anger burning inside his chest that won't stop.)

Sia, a woman who knows a lot of things, who has a plan for her life she’ll see through. A vision she's had since she was a child, something she feels she cannot achieve trapped at this paper stand. A former gifted child, one could say. She reads as much as she can, often mysterious about just where she's taken her information from. Clutching tight to this assumed future she planned, willing to make so many sacrifices, perhaps too many, to have it come true.

(Her solo song in this universe is called Sia and the Vision. She walks along the beach of Lincoln Island, the vastness of the universe surrounding her. She accepts that she will never be able to fully carry out her great vision, letting go of it. She cannot control the future, and it is futile to try. It isn't the be-all-end-all for her anymore, no longer constraining her--she's opening her mind and heart to new kinds of passion, joy, and love, to spontaneousness and freedom.)

Together, they've written the Hoax, though it's much more...nautical in this universe. The moon is covered by a vast, gorgeous ocean, expanding all across its surface. Sharks, squids, and whales swim through its glimmering depths, merfolk swimming through it, Atlantis-esque.

And this change is because of...

Dakkar Cavendish

Dakkar Cavendish, a brilliant inventor, feels drawn in by the words of the Peregrine twins, of the way they write both the moon and the ocean combined. He has never quite fit in with high New York City Society, finding it stifling and almost…familiar in the worst sort of ways. Being mocked, being seen as not-good-enough, valued only for what creations he can make…it stings at an old scar that he doesn’t know where it came from. Valued for his skills--but what else? He opens his home to the Peregrine twins, and clicks with Kal especially. Staring out the ocean, wondering why it calls to him so deeply.

(His solo song in this universe is called Dakkar and the Depths. The depths of the ocean hold mystery and silence, unable to be truly understood by any one person. The moon reflects off the waves, illuminating just how deep those depths run--they complete each other, make each other known. There is so much about himself that he does not know, awakening from dreams he cannot fully place. A sensation that he has made promises he cannot keep, because he doesn't know who he made them to. The ocean is constantly moving, constantly transforming, and he feels a kinship to that.)

Dame Anna Hanover

(Of course, I have to credit the amazing @faery-people-of-the-future-day when it comes to Anna in this AU! She's had so many wonderful ideas for her.)

Dame Anna Hanover, the first woman to ever be knighted by the Royal Astronomical Society, a brilliant and bright mind whose words are used to prop up the Hoax. She believes that nobody should ever lose their place in the world - that everyone has a specific role, a set of rules they must follow. And when you don't know where you are, you begin to give into the panic. She arrives at the Sun with a bright smile and strain barely hidden in her voice, while Sia is mysterious and trying to pick her words carefully. She can't help but be fascinated by this strange woman, her heart fluttering at the sight. But she has a legacy, her father's own legacy of being an immigrant and a proud man hovering over her, trying to make him see her as a scientist in her own right.

(Her solo song in this universe is Anna and the Satellite - her marvelling over her great project, her first great project away from her father, that will help guide the way. All her work, all her sacrifices, all the fear she would not be able to see this through--it vanishes. It's Anna and the stars, Anna and the sky, Anna and the Earth, all possible because of the Satellite. She has created her own place in the world, one where she will never be lost, both outside and in.)

Samuellux

Samuellux, a seemingly young man with a pencil grins far too brightly, as his pencil gleams with ink, ready to take down your words, your signature, in his journal. Only your words, of course.

In this world, Samuel is a famed propagandist for Itzal, having drawn in thousands upon thousands of people to Itzal's schemes...until it was too late, blinding them all with The Light. I'd say he has Radiance and Illusion--his skill with Illusion magic and with words is what made Itzal take notice of him, to me! He's a vessel for empty words--he filters Itzal's words, but when was the last time he truly said something of his own? He may seem nice, may seem kind at first glance--but the more you speak to him, you start to realise that you have no idea whether they’re being genuine or being sarcastic and it’s a Russian roulette of trying to understand this same-y, blasé cheeriness that seems to stare unblinkingly back at you.

His new name comes from both Pollux in Greek mythology, a twin who tried to offer immortality to his brother so that they could be together, and lux, which means light!

His pen sparks with promise, a device designed by one...brilliant inventor, long ago, boosting his Ways and transforming them into something terrible and radiant beyond compare.

(Because, after all, light doesn't equal good!)

Rostelle

In the distance, a Traveller, Rostelle, with far too much behind her keeps on moving. She won't fail anyone else. Rose refuses to look back to the past, always trying to keep on moving forward. She carries the weight of everything that's happened in the past with her, but no matter what, she won't stop.

In this AU, I would say she has Radiance, Movement, Transformation, Perception and Protection. Some are more honed than others, of course, but Rose has always dived deep into learning new skills. Her Vision was something she had long ago, and she will be as reckless and brave as she needs to be to see it through. She won't let it vanish into thin air, won't lose anyone else she cares about to delusion.

Her new name comes from Stelle meaning stars, those that she adores so dearly!

Margaret

In her library on Lincoln Island, Margaret waits, staring up at the Moon, loneliness abated but never quite gone. A view of both the moon and the ocean clear and apparent.

The legacy of all she did as the Great Enchantress looms over her, and so does the brother she had to send away to keep him safe. To keep him safe from Itzal's designs on more of his devices used for conquest and war. She will see her father's reign destroyed, that Light that blinds her people erased. There is something to believe in, and she will clutch it tight to her chest as she trains, reaching out to a brother who cannot respond back yet.

Samuel's memory haunts her, a love who refuses to admit their connection will never be what it used to be again. He may believe there is geniune care there, but Margaret won't be lied to any more. She won't hear him refuse to admit that he made the wrong choice, that he is continuing to lie and commit horrors.

Margaret believes in truth, always. She won't lie to herself about what her home became, about what she did in the past, and where she is now.

(Other swaps include Benjamin with Charles, and Taavi and Ahlaam with Addison. John is, of course, playing Anna's role in this universe as well. I do have notes on them, but they're slightly less important to the series as a whole as of now!)

You can find the current fic series posted on AO3 here (I currently have a fic of Samuel and Kal's swapped version of Gunpowder and Rum up!) and I'll be trying to use the tag #laws of motion AU to organize any other posted work!

And, my asks are open if anyone reading this wants to know more about this AU!

What are you waiting for? Don’t be scared of the dark. That’s where the dreaming starts.