#not a slow burn‚ folks

[cosmic-seer]

POV your trainer is getting flustered for the umpteenth time

(Instigated by this post.)

[ohdearlingwhathappened]

A Pair Made in the Pits

TFP Megatron x Reader

Summary: A soulmate au where near everyone has the first thing their soulmate says to them marked into their wrist. What a shame Y/n's is in some unknown language. Living with this for 7.5 years, she decides to settle down in Jasper, Nevada, not knowing that being the teacher in charge of the exchange student's overall academics and wellbeing in the school would lead her to being involved with giant robots and finding her soulmate in an unconventional method.

A/n: Sorry for the long summary! This is my first published transformers fic, so please be kind. If there are any inaccuracies, feel free to message me. I hope you enjoy my story!

WC: 2099

Chapter 1: Falling Behind Pt. 1

Chap 2, Chap 3

“Miko! Miko Nakadai!” The woman briskly walks down the hall, after the young exchange student who looked back and groaned in annoyance.

“I know. I know.” As the woman comes to a stop, Miko waves her off, “My grades need work. I need to pay attention in class. I can’t keep drawing on the desks. Can I go now?”

“Very funny, young lady-”

“You’re only ten years older than me- stop calling me that.” She crosses her arms and looks away.

“Miko, you know you were supposed to come by the office to pick up some papers for your host parents.” The woman places a hand on her hip, and raises a brow expectantly, “Any reason for you to skip out on me?”

“There’s a bike.”

“A… bike.”

“Outside!” She rolls her eyes again, throwing her arms up in exasperation. “I saw it from my last class, and I wanted to draw it. It’s gonna be gone if I go to the office and get the papers. You know the desk lady talks for, like, a million years.”

“Mrs. Albert does have a penchant for talking… tell you what- why don’t you go sit on the stairs of the school and draw that bike. I’ll grab the papers and bring them out to you. Just promise to stay on the entrance stairs. Ok?” 

The girl whoops and breaks out into a run, excited to be let off the hook of being subject to Mrs. Albert’s stories of her childhood. “Thank you, Y/n!!”

Y/n shakes her head, a soft smile on her lips as she watches after the Japanese girl then makes her way to the office, silently knowing she’ll now be listening to one of the aforementioned talks. The woman was sweet but goodness, she needs to join a bookclub, or something. 

“Ah. Y/n, dear! I thought Miko was supposed to be collecting these?” 

There, sitting behind the desk, is Mrs. Albert, smiling as brightly as the sun. Her curly gray hair frames her rounded, wrinkled face- giving her the vibe of a grandmother who is about to offer you either butterscotch or one of those little red candies wrapped in those strawberry wrappers. The older woman was just as sweet as she appeared, which made Y/n feel the slightest bit guilty when she would dread one of the long-winded stories, Mrs. Albert never fails to tell.

“Hello Mrs. Albert. I let Miko go off to draw something she saw outside. She was too excited to say no, I’m afraid.” Y/n gave an airy but clipped laugh. “I told her I would bring her the papers for her host parents.”

“You’re too easy on that girl.” Mrs. Albert teasingly chastises, “Though, I guess I can’t blame you. That girl is the first exchange student you’re in charge of, it’s no wonder you’re so lenient with her. It reminds me of how I treated my baby, Samuel. Did I ever tell you about Sammy? He was such a delightful boy. He was heartbroken when he never got his quote…” She teeters off, the solemn look now on her face doesn’t suit her. Y/n had heard this story before, but it isn’t often that it comes up, nor is it often for ‘Sammy’ to be brought up at all. Not that it isn’t understandable as to why.

Quotes- a subject Y/n always loathes hearing about. 

The thing about everyone’s quotes is that they link people to each other- your other half, according to many. Most people receive their quotes sometime at 18 years old, a few will get them younger, and even fewer never get them at all. Many times, if a person does not receive their quote, they don’t live for much longer- whether it be due to the societal pressures that they failed to meet, due to no fault of their own; or they have some kind of accident. Long story short, if you don’t get your mark by your 19th birthday, you spend the rest of that year mourning and wondering what will become of you. Not to say everyone without a quote dies, but they are a particularly rare find, that’s for sure.

On top of that source of dread, each quote comes in the native language of wherever your partner is from, so once people get their quote, they are either thrilled and/or they hit the books to understand their other half’s language. Meaning that with the gibberish printed on Y/n’s arm, she’s cursed with the unknown regarding some so-called soulmate. 

“I’m sorry, dear. I shouldn’t mention quotes. I know you don’t like talking about them.” Mrs. Albert looks at her, a level of pity swimming in those big, brown eyes behind those glasses she adorns. She pats Y/n’s hand comfortingly, looking at the long sleeves she wears, even in the midst of September in the middle of Jasper, Nevada.

“Don’t worry about it, Mrs. Albert. I’ve been living with my quote for about 7 and a half years now. I’m ok.” Y/n smiles, knowing she didn’t mean any harm. “...About those papers?”

“Oh! Oh, yes. Let me grab those for you, dear.” She jumps up and walks over to one of her filing cabinets and quickly snags one of the multiple files out and hands it over. How she keeps track of where all of those papers are is baffling, but Y/n supposes the years of practice have definitely helped. “Here you are.”

“Thank you.” Y/n keeps up her smile and nods at the older woman. “You have a great rest of your afternoon, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Have a good night, Y/n. And be careful- I’ve heard that those street racers have been causing more trouble recently.” She calls out as the young woman leaves the office.

“I will!”

As she closes the door to the office, the smile on Y/n’s face slowly fades and she takes a deep breath, trying to brush off the snaring emotions surrounding her quote. After another breath, the woman rights herself and begins making her way down the hall, Y/n sifting through the papers in the manila folder, ensuring all of the papers are there. Her progress report and reviews from her teachers didn’t spell out anything good even so early into the year. All subjects but art, music, and english were less than adequate.

I’m going to have to talk to her about her grades again. 

“Alright, Miko, I have your papers fo- Miko?” Exiting the front doors, Y/n looks around for her student, only to find her running off down the sidewalk. “Miko!” She takes off after her, cursing herself for not working out more. 

This girl is gonna kill me.

Miko finally stops to peek around a corner, and the woman slows to a stop and leans against her own knees, heavy breathing covering up any sounds around her. After a moment of steadying her breath, she looks to the girl on her left, irritated, “Miko, I told you to stay on-”

“Shhh!!”

“You did not just shush me, young lady.” Miko gestures to whatever is so important that she ran over for, revealing a giant robot and a boy. A very familiar boy. “Jack Darby! You get away from that thing this instant!” Y/n yells, making both the teen and robot jump and look to her and Miko’s direction. She runs up to the boy, looking him over for any possible injuries, and pulls him behind her next to Miko.

“What?! He should totally go with!” Miko looks at Y/n, who keeps her eyes on the visibly bothered robot, like she’s crazy, and argues that he should do the opposite.

“Absolutely not! We don’t know what that thing even is!”

“Scrap.” The blue robot looks to Jack and then to the other two, standing up from her previously kneeling position when she had been speaking with the teenage boy, her tone obviously exasperated, “I have to bring all of you with me.”

“Excuse me? I am not going anywhere, and neither are these children. You wanna abduct someone for whatever wacky robot thing you have going on? You leave these children out of it.” Y/n crosses her arms, looking up at the blue and pink being before her, not willing to step down- much to the distaste of said robot.

“I don’t have time for this-” The bot raised her hand to the side of her head with quite possibly one of the most bothered expressions Y/n had ever seen on a human or anything else. “Bee, you need to come back… the kid is fine, but we’ve run into a couple of issues.”

“Did you not hear me? You can’t just-”

“Oh, I heard you, but I can and I will.” Apparently done with what Y/n can only assume was some kind of phone call- that or this was not only a giant robot but a crazy one at that. “I have orders and you’re now part of those orders because you were nosy.”

“We’ll act like we never saw you, not that anyone in their right mind would believe any of us if we told them we saw a giant robot lady that wanted to- what? Take us to some government facility and lock us away because of seeing whatever kind of prototype you are?” Y/n argues back, left hand on her hip and her right pointing up at the mech accusingly, to which the mechanical woman’s jaw falls agape before screwing up, insulted.

“We weren’t made by humans, and you are wasting my time. I have better things to do rather than argue with some woman who’s putting a hitch in today’s plans.”

“Oh, well I’m so-”

A yellow Urbana 500 with black racing stripes drives up behind Miko and Y/n and revs the engine, making the woman jump and the teen whirl around, excited to see yet another possible robot. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Y/n weighs her options. If she tries to take the children with her, it is possible these robots, while they may not have shown any aggressive or violent responses, it couldn’t be confirmed that they wouldn’t, if there was any opposition. The safest option was, unfortunately, to go with the kids and keep them as safe as possible. No matter how much she didn’t like this. 

“Ok… alright.” Another deep breath in and out. The kids are what’s important right now. “We’ll come with you, but these kids stay as safe as possible.”

“That was the plan.” The dead tone rings through the alleyway, continuing to irk the only other adult present, but before Y/n could say anything, the metal woman transformed into a motorcycle, having Jack move around her, reluctantly getting on and Miko enthusiastically hops on with absolutely no hesitation. “Get in Bee, and we’ll meet you back at base.”

And then they were gone, leaving Y/n frustrated and clenching her fists with the other vehicle behind her, probably another transforming thing- hopefully with less attitude. Grumbling about the behavior of not only the bot, but the reckless behavior of the children as well, she turns around and awkwardly half-smiles at the yellow and black car- all of the frustration draining out of her.

“I don’t suppose there’s a person in there whose, like, codename is Bee, is there?” The bright lights of the car flick on and off a couple of times before the right side backdoor opens, confirming her fear. Letting out a quiet groan, Y/n walks to the awkward door, hoping there is a human ‘at base’ to help explain what the hell is going on. Getting in, she looks at the empty driver’s seat, then notices hair sticking ever so slightly above the passenger seat. “Oh, thank god. Another person. What is going- How many children exactly are you lot abducting?!”

A series of beeping, whirring, and whistling is the only response Y/n receives from the car’s radio as said child shyly smiles up at her. “Hello. Bee says we aren’t being taken, but someone named Optimus needs to see us after what happened yesterday.”

A moment’s pause settles over the car before Y/n leans back in her seat, rubbing her hands across her face, the car finally beginning to move and quickly pick up speed, “What exactly happened yesterday?”

“Um…”

I would much rather be listening to one of Mrs. Albert’s stories right now.

[destinywillowleaf]

one of a kind living in a world gone plastic

baby you're so classic

@most-tragic-character-tournament

(all my thoughts in the tags)

[tiya-minuscule]

Chapter 5 : Meeting some familiar and new faces ...

Chapter 4

Chapter 6

(Sorry for all my LayClaire shippers... It will be a SLOW burn)

I hope you still enjoy this comics, don't hesitate to share it and tell me what you think of it ;)

Thanks again @lutiaslayton for helping me with the thanslation !!

[breadsievecable]

Don't tell me it's "slow burn" if they are together by page 20

Don't tell me it's "enemies-to-lovers" if they are ready to kiss from chapter 1

My standards were set by #tfota

Book 1 - kissing. Book 2 - making out. Book 3 - sex.

All the while they think they hate each other (and for a good reason). Still they care about each other in subtle ways. But not before they threaten to kill each other.

[greatunironic]

thrilled to welcome into the world the first installment of lydia and my newest regency au!! the prologue and first chapter of peach, plum, pear is now available here!

[justalittleficsideblog]

s'ébahir

Gojo x reader Modern, College AU!

s'ébahir - (French; to be amazed, to be astounded, dumbstruck)

2k smth words

He always strolled into lab characteristically late. You envied his nonchalance, his stance of ease in which he would stroll into the lab and set his stuff down when the professor just began their lecture on the hazards you'd be dealing with today.

annoying

You were always early. Anxiously waiting for your seat so you could prep early and leave before the rest of your classmates.

The bastard was also, unfortunately, handsome. Devilishly tall with a lean build and white hair, he was a stark contrast against some of his fellow students.

"--it is IMPERTINENT that you wear your goggles the entire time during this lab. We will be dealing with concentrated hydrochloric acid--"

you droned out your teachers voice. Unlike some of the other students, you had read the lab manual the night before and watched a video on how to do everything correctly.

This wasn't your first rodeo.

Somewhat bored, your eyes drifted back to the male that was sitting across from you. The fume hood that was connected to your countertop obscured the view a bit, but you caught a glimpse of him leaning against it, head in his hand.

He seemed as bored as you were.

"Alright, lets begin!" An enthusiastic clap sounded.

You had noticed his hesitancy with the lab goggles each time. He chronically wore sunglasses indoors during class and around campus. But when it came to lab, your prof made no exceptions.

Tugging the too tight safety goggles over your eyes, you managed a glance to find startling azure ones starting back at you.

You smiled politely and turned to grab your equipment.

"Hey."

You glanced up at Gojo, who was leaning against your bench.

"What did you need this time?"

Gojo had a knack of stealing your shit since his tended to be always (coincidentally) misplaced or lost. He blamed Geto for it.

"Do you have an extra ring clamp? Geto took mine," he shrugged nonchalantly. You nodded and handed over the item, focusing back on your work.

"Do you know how much your putting in?" he leaned in closer, tapping your graduated cylinder with his hand.

"I can read fine enough Gojo."

"Are you sure? The lab manual said 12 mls...you wrote down 21"

Shit. He was right, you must've copied it down wrong last night.

It was slightly infuriating how sharp he actually was. He had such a lazy demeanor it was easy to forget he tended to be top of the class.

"Ugh, I don't remember how much I've put in it already." you ran your hand through your hair, frustrated as you eye the clock.

The liquid in the flask turned a murky brown, fizzing slightly.

Ok yeah.. that is definitely not what happened in the video.

Gojo leaned over and swirled the flask in his hands, the murky liquid turning darker.

"Yeah, you put way too much into that," he blew out a low whistle.

Fuck. You're going to have to redo the entire thing. Biting your lip, you glance at the clock again.

I'm not going to get a chance to study before my lecture exam...

"Oh come on, just partner up with me," he smirks, nodding towards his bench. "I'll even let you do all the work."

You scowled. You hated partnering up, you ended up doing everything anyway. But you were quick about it on your own.

Looking back towards your failure and the clock, you realize you don't have much of a choice.

"Fine," you nod and walk to his bench. "But lets be as quick as we can."

He grinned.

-

"Alright, now we just have wait."

The worst part about science, you argued, is the "waiting" portion of it.

Some experiments take time. This unfortunately, was one of them.

"We work together pretty well," he leaned forward. "One could almost say we have....chemistry."

You cringed as he laughed at your response. "Hilarious, Gojo."

A shadow loomed over you. "Did he get you with some of his science lines?"

You smiled. Contrary to Gojo, Geto was more composed and studious as you were. You both talked often, considering you had a lot of the same classes as him.

"It was too good not to!" Gojo replied, spinning around in his chair.

You rolled your eyes, glancing back towards your glassware. Geto was easy to be around, he was calm and didn't try to get a rise out of you like his white-haired friend did. He made you a little more nervous, he was kind of unpredictable. Not to mention pretty.

"I think its done," you pointed to the bubbling flask.

Geto nodded to you, "good luck then."

You smiled back at him, pretending not to feel your blue-eyed partner staring at you.

-

Gojo

He doesn't know why he wants to fluster you. Or why it grates on his nerves that you can so easily smile at Geto when you seemed to struggle around him.

Technically, your experiment earlier would have been salvageable. Yeah, your yield would've been low, but he jumped at the chance to work with you without thinking.

He meant what he said earlier, you both worked surprisingly well together.

Taking the flask from you, he began to dry as you washed everything up. He didn't quite want to be done just yet, labs weren't his favorite part but he found himself looking forward to this one.

Not that it had anything to do with you.

Geto always argued that he was "just into you" but he didn't agree. He just thought your intellect was interesting, that's all.

It had nothing to do with the way you always showed up with enthusiasm, drawing him in as he watched you be engaged with your work. He couldn't wonder why--

"Gojo?" Bright eyes looked up at him as you waved the last Erlenmeyer in front of his face. "Hey, we're done."

Startled, he nearly dropped the thing he was drying. "Right, yeah. See you around, then."

He cursed himself slightly for his cowardice.

"Well, actually, did you want to finish up the lab report quick ? We have plenty of time," you looked at your phone as you said it.

Realistically, he would say no. He doesn't finish his reports until the last minute anyway.

But to get the chance to fluster you more.

Ah, hell. Why not?

"yeah, we can do that." He shrugged nonchalantly. Geto met his gaze across the lab and quirked an eyebrow at him.

He bared his teeth in response.

"Should we go to the library then?" Your voice cut through his thoughts, catching him unawares as you shoved the paper into his hands.

He nodded quickly, fishing around in his backpack for his glasses as he ripped off the goggles still glued to his face.

He motioned for you to go first, following behind and out of the lab as he let you pick where to sit down.

You picked a spot across the campus cafe, he inwardly wondered if you came to study here frequently. Th atmosphere was quiet and there was a lot of natural light that made it easy to relax and focus.

Setting down his bookbag, he tuned into your ramblings about the lab.

"What do you think about the yield? I think we could base our conclusions around it. Maybe even mention the slight color difference when we added the--"

Your drive to finish this was commendable. He was put off a bit by how you didn't seem affected by him at all. Most people saw his sunglasses as odd, and honestly the general consensus was that he was constantly nursing a hangover.

There was a lapse of silence and you both typed away on your laptops, broken up by only you saying:

"Why do you wear those sunglasses all the time?"

Eyebrows raised, "Secret." The corner of his lip turned up.

"Is it because of your eyes?"

His smirk fell. It wasn't so much that he cared about how his eyes seemed to freak people out. It was more about how sensitive they were to light and packed spaces. He used to get frequent headaches because of it, but the glasses thwart off the edge enough now.

He merely shrugged in response to your question. "The light bugs my eyes sometimes."

You nodded back in understanding, "Ugh, tell me about it. I used to get migraines from the fluorescent lights when I was younger."

He stiffened. Such a minute detail, but he couldn't help but consider the gesture as an act of empathy. Seeing past his usual charm.

You both fell back into silence, quickly finishing your report and hoping off of the chair you inhabited just moments ago.

He felt his heart pound as you smiled up at him, watching your every movement as you threw your bag over your shoulder and made to leave.

"We finished that quick! Good luck on this exam later, not that you'll need it."

His arm burned from where you patted his shoulder as you strode out of the cafe lounge and towards some other study zone. Glancing down at it, he almost expected it to catch fire.

Eyes flicking up over his glasses, he looked down the hallway you had left.

Damn.

He might just have to make your lab fail next time.

[not-poignant]

96/135 - Underline the Black (omegaverse) - Efnisien/Gary

Title: Underline the Black Rating: Explicit Pairing: Efnisien ap Wledig/Dr Gary Konowalous Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Darkfic, Disturbing themes, Age Gap, Omegaverse, Alpha/Alpha, no Mpreg, Medical experimentation, Medical trauma, Dominance/Submission, Dystopian universe, Forced bonding, Forced relationship, Imprisonment, Nonconsensual medical procedures, PTSD, Flashbacks, Nightmares, Chronic illness, Mating cycles/Heats, Knotting, Miscommunication, Trauma recovery, Mind control, Child Abuse, Hope, Hopeful ending.

Summary: Efnisien ap Wledig is an omega born into an all-alpha family. Abandoned by his birth mother and raised by his aunt, he is subjected to a lifetime of medical experimentation and brainwashing and believes himself to be an alpha. But the experiments begin to fail, and he is abandoned yet again to an Omega Rehabilitation Facility, where the family expects he will be retrained into the ‘perfect omega’ and placed in an arranged marriage, or be eliminated if this is no longer possible.

The Facility don’t know about the experiments, and Efnisien doesn’t even know why he’s in there in the first place, since he’s an alpha…isn’t he? One thing’s for certain, he definitely doesn’t need an alpha companion, no matter what the staff at the facility seem to think.

Underline the Black - Chapter 96 - Size Training @ AO3

In which Gary methodically sets about to find out if Efnisien can handle having sex with him by training him.

– Thanks to all the Patreon and Ream supporters for making this story possible!

Those who join the community get access to early chapters, polls, chapter commentaries, a special Discord channel where more excerpts are posted, even merch and personal thanks in novels depending on what tier you sign up to!

There are currently 9 early access chapters and they include -

3 chapters of Underline the Red 1 chapter of Underline the Gold 3 chapters of Constellations (Gary+Efnisien tier or higher) 2 chapters of Underline the Blue (as well as 3 newly edited chapters of Game Theory, one with significant new content!)

So, want another way to support my writing so I can keep doing it? // I have a Patreon account! // Come check out REAM! (Patreon mirror) // Buy a Ko-Fi!

[nine-of-needles]

Of Ravens & Thrushes (WIP)

The first chapter of my new WIP is up on AO3! Wanted to try my hand at a The Hobbit fic and wanted it to feature everyone's favorite barely-mentioned character, Dís. This first chapter is more of a prologue but I hope to have the next chapter up very soon and will post updates here on my Tumblr.

Summary: Lady Dís arrives at the now reclaimed Erebor only to find that her brother is in extremely low spirits. The hobbit Thorin loves lies across Middle Earth in the Shire, leaving the great King feeling hollow under the mountain. In an attempt to restore their relationship, she decides to throw an extravagant Durin’s Day celebration and invite Bilbo to the great kingdom he helped restore. After years of rambling all around Middle Earth’s inns and taverns, the dwarven musician, Amâ, decides to settle in her old home of Erebor just in time for Durin’s Day. There she is met face to face with the dwarrowdam, the fair Lady Dís, who she believed to be her One so many years ago.

Warnings: None

Rating: Teen and Up

Pairing: Dís / Original Female Characters, Thorin Oakensheild / Bilbo Baggins

Tags: Everybody Lives AU, Romance, Slow Burn, Light Angst, Happy Ending, Matchmaking, Fade to Black, Not Actually Unrequited Love

[24-05txt]

The truth is I hate writing kissing scenes.

[dracolizardlars]

Bro I want a hysterectomy so bad (<- irrationally malding about being pregnancy tested by a doctor I was seeing for something irrelevant earlier)

[shadowphoenixrider]

Sins of the Present

(A visit from an old friend puts things into perspective for Gambit and his relationship with Shadow. But time might be running out... Brace yourselves, we will be entering angst country; this is but the short taster. And also an excuse for me to steal that scene in X-Men 97 near wholesale and paste it here. Enjoy!)

"An' what brings de Nightcrawler 'round to our next of de woods?" Gambit grinned, raising an eyebrow as he settled an arm over the short furry mutant's shoulders.

Said mutant offered the Cajun a toothy smile, a playful spark to his golden eyes. His arrow-headed tail slowly wagged back and forth like a lazy metronome.

"Can a person not drop in to see their friends when they're in the area, Gambit?" Nightcrawler asked, arching his own brow. "Especially to see the sister he didn't know he had."

"Sure," Rogue smiled, "but I think the question Remy's askin' is why ya happen to be 'round here. It's a long way from the Alps."

"Ah! Well, after the monastery was damaged, I have been taking the opportunity to explore new horizons, and use my gifts to help where I can." He explained. "It just so happens my travels brought me here."

"How's that been goin'?" Rogue asked, trepidation echoing through her words.

"It has been a...mixed experience." Nightcrawler admitted. "It can be difficult for others to see past my appearance. I have had to resort to helping many from the shadows."

Movement at the corner of Gambit's eye drew his attention up to the landing above, and to the young woman lingering at the top of the stairs, peering down at the activity below. Speaking of shadows... A grin stretched across his lips, and he took the opportunity to stride away from the conversation.

"Shadow, it's good to see ya!" He called up to her. "C'mon down, we got a friend visitin'."

She hesitated a moment, before venturing down the stairs to join them, smiling shyly.

"Hi..."

Nightcrawler's eyes brightened with curiosity.

"Ah, a new face! And who might you be, Fraulein?" he asked, holding his hand out to her.

"My name's Shadow." She replied, taking his hand easily to shake it. "I'm kinda the newest member here. Sort of."

"Picked her up afta a scuffle with the Friends of Humanity." Rogue added, smiling. "An' like stray cat afta a meal, she's stuck around."

"I'm kinda the resident healer." Shadow said. "I can talk to and control cells to help regenerate wounds and suchlike."

"A very noble and selfless use of your powers. My name is Kurt Wagner, although others know me as Nightcrawler," he said, his German accent soft around his words. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Shadow." He raised her hand to kiss it, Shadow flushing bright red.

White hot jealousy suddenly flashed through Gambit, startling him. Where had that come from? Why should he be jealous of Kurt; this was just his way with women, nothing meant about it. And Shadow was always shy whenever people were forward to her like that - it didn't mean anything.

Not that Shadow was even his. Not really. They were just friends. Friends who fooled around with each other. A friend he was in love with.

He cursed internally - this had happened with Rogue too. Not that her old boyfriend Cody's reappearance hadn't been suspicious on its own (and he'd been right to suspect him), but Gambit wasn't stupid - he'd felt the same jealous flames lick under his skin at that time. The very same for Archangel too.

The jealous streak he possessed wasn't a new phenomenon, and it was one he could keep under control most times. Indeed, he'd felt nothing but warm pride in how close Shadow was with her other friends (and perhaps a little yearning too). Her hugging Ebak, Ber, Myst and Lemming barely sparked anything in him.

Yet the memories of the club kept flickering back into his mind's eye. Of Tom, furious at him for just showing concern for Shadow. Getting so angry he tried to glass them. Shadow's tears against his back as he drove them home.

For all Rogue's words that he was nothing like Tom, he sure was following the same beats.

"Sugah?" Her voice broke him from his thoughts. She cocked her head, raising an eyebrow. "Ya alright? You look a thousand miles away."

Shadow was also watching him with concern, beautiful blue eyes wide and alert, ready to help as always.

I don't deserve her.

"I uh, Gambit jus' remembered he need to check somethin' in de kitchen," he said, taking a step back. "Might be a while. Don' wait up."

"Alright, mein freund." Kurt replied, smiling. "I hope I will see you shortly?"

"Sure will!" Gambit said, already taking his leave in quick strides. "See ya 'round!"

Merde.

---

Gambit didn't know what kind of climbing plant had been allowed to scale the south side of the X-Mansion in such thick abundance, but he thanked the fact it existed and kept its leaves during the autumn months. It made perfect cover for him to watch the comedy of errors unfolding down below.

For reasons only known to them, a family of ducks had decided to make the swimming pool their new home, which was less than ideal for all involved. So Shadow had taken it upon herself to herd the family out least away from the pool, and hopefully towards the lake, which would be a much better fit.

It turned out that in a contest between a five foot three mutant and collection of ducks, the ducks were winning. No matter how wide Shadow spread her arms, how much she tried to anticipate their dodges, the ducks refused to leave the water, often managing to just lead her in circles.

Yes, he really should have been a gentleman and helped her, but it was a lot more amusing to watch, and listen to Shadow try in vain to verbally convince them to follow her lead, as well as scold them when they avoided her.

It was a very charming trait of hers; she would talk to anything, including herself, and numerous times Gambit had walked in on Shadow scolding an appliance that wasn't working, or gently reassuring that one washer dryer that always violently shuddered to the point verging on death that it could do it, just keep going. She was like that with animals too, talking gently to the wasps she would shoo out the windows, the pigeons that bumbled near her feet; even the spiders she was frightened of would get her talking semi-kindly, warning them to stay away as she didn't want to hurt them in her terror.

That was who Shadow was, really. Kind. There was a softness to her that Gambit once believed could only exist in the naive, those who hadn't seen the ugly underbelly of people. Yet Shadow was no innocent; she might not have physical scars, but she carried mental, emotional ones - she knew the depths of cruelty. Instead of closing herself down and away from it, though, she had dared to stay open. Dared herself to keep caring.

She was a healer in power and soul.

Gambit sighed softly, the breath wisping out of his nose.

She was far too good and kind than he deserved. She deserved better.

A whiff of sulphur on the wind was the only warning Gambit got before a voice in his ear whispered:

"For a man named 'Gambit', your poker face is very poor."

"Merde!" He swore, only just managing to keep his purchase on the roof. He shot a murderous glare at the blue elf that had appeared over his shoulder, grinning unrepentantly. "How about ya mind ya beeswax, furball!" He turned his gaze back to Shadow below. It seemed like Rogue had taken pity on her, and had come to assist. "Didn't go ringin' for no priest."

"Perhaps not." Kurt replied softly. "But I have eyes, Gambit. I can see that Shadow means a lot to you." He tilted his head, tail waving back and forth. "Which begs the question: why are you up here, watching her from afar, rather than helping?"

"Looks like she and Rogue have it under control." He replied. Indeed, things were going much better with two instead of one, especially when that person could fly. "'Sides. Can appreciate de view from here."

Kurt said nothing for a moment, and Gambit hoped he'd dropped the subject. No such luck.

"She spoke highly of you, know."

Gambit's gaze immediately whipped back to him.

"She did?" He blinked, realizing his mistake when Kurt grinned. "I-I mean, of course she did. I did save her from that fils de puntain, after all."

"Ja, but it was more than that, Remy." Kurt said, moving closer. "She speaks of your prowess and your kindness in taking care of her as she got used to living here. But I can see and hear between the lines. Shadow lights up talking about you. Admiration paints her words. She blushes when you ask about you and her. She cares for you, mein freund."

His golden eyes bored into Gambit's black and red. "Indeed, it would not surprise me if she loves you."

Gambit's shoulders jerked as if he'd been shot, and he immediately crushed the emotion that threatened to leak out. He looked away, letting out a rueful laugh.

"Hah! I doubt dat." He puffed his chest out. "Scoundrels like me? We too busy for love. Too busy sinnin'." Even to his ears, his bravado couldn't hide the bitter taste on his tongue.

"There is no love without sin." Kurt spoke, calmly. "Love is best measured in what we forgive."

Gambit's gaze fell back down to pool below. The ducks had now been successfully herded away, Shadow thanking Rogue before giving her a careful hug, making sure their thick hair shielded their skin from touching.

Hope, small and feeble, bloomed in his heart.

"You really think she might love me?" He asked quietly.

"Only she could answer that." Kurt replied, equally quiet. "But, if it reassures you...Yes. I think she might."

Gambit swallowed hard, his heart starting to beat a fast tattoo under his breast. Could she, maybe...?

The two women parted from each other, saying something to one another, before Rogue began to walk away, back towards the mansion. Shadow lingered for a moment, her gaze out towards the grounds beyond.

"Go to her, Remy." Kurt urged. Gambit nodded, glancing back to his friend.

"Thank you," he said. The Nightcrawler gave him a smile, before 'bamf'ing away in a puff of dark purple smoke.

Gambit took a steeling breath, before he carefully scaled down the wall, jumping down as soon as he could. The sound of his landing drew Shadow's attention, and she turned towards him, eyes wide with surprise.

"Where did you come from?" She asked, a humourous lilt to her voice.

"Always from where ya least expect, mon amie." He replied, grinning. Nerves hummed through him like his powers, except they were also causing butterflies to swarm madly in his stomach. "Whatcha doin' out here?"

"Some ducks mistook the pool for the lake." Shadow explained. "I tried to get them to see reason, but apparently it was falling on deaf ears, least 'til Rogue arrived and helped me convince them otherwise."

"Good to hear." Gambit nodded, his heart pounding hard, only half-listening as he tried to piece his words together. He was going to say it this time, he really was. "Hey, Shadow, I been meaning to talk to ya 'bout somethin'. Somethin' important."

"Oh?" She blinked up at him, eyes wide with her full attention. "What about?"

Gambit took a breath, wetting his lips.

"Well, ya see, I-"

"Guys!" Scott's voice interrupted them, the urgency in his tone making them look towards where he was standing in the doorway. "I think you need to come and see this, ASAP."

Gambit almost wanted to scream bloody murder, but something about the look on Scott's face managed to contain his anger. He and Shadow glanced at each other, before following him into the main room, where the TV was on, centring on a news report from the government. All the other X-Men were there, including Professor Xavier, whose expression was grave.

"What's goin' on?" Gambit asked.

"Henry Gyrich is attempting to use his governmental contacts to push through anti-mutant legislation." Xavier explained, his eyes fixed on the screen. "It is known as the Mutant Containment Bill."

"Dat don't sound good." Gambit murmured.

"That's another word for internment camps, isn't it?" Shadow said quietly. "Like they did with Japanese citizens during the Second World War."

"The very same." Beast nodded. "I have noticed that the rhetoric used to justify those is similar if not exactly the same as what Gyrich is using now."

A chill crept over Gambit's skin, especially when he glanced to Shadow, who now hugging herself tightly. He'd had a taste of internment and the slavery linked to it, and didn't want to experience that again. And certainly not have any of his other friends experience it too - it had torn him up to see Jubilee, all but a child, in a suppression collar and forced to labour, and Storm to be imprisoned in her worst nightmare.

To watch it happen to Shadow?

Bile churned in his stomach.

"I will need to fight this legislation with everything I have." Xavier was saying. "I will require a team to go with me to these debates. They will be long and arduous, especially against an opponent as consumed by his hatred as Gyrich is." The Professor turned to the group. "But I must. The freedom of all mutants is resting on me. This bill must be defeated."

A chorus of nods from the assembled group. "Cyclops, I trust you can assemble a team?"

"Of course, Professor." He nodded. "I'll let you know shortly."

"Thank you. If you'll please excuse me, I need to prepare myself." And with that, Xavier left the room. The others split off as well, muttering anxiously among themselves.

"Shit." Shadow breathed, running a hand through her hair. "I...I think I need to call my parents. A-And my friends."

"Go do it, petite." Gambit rested a hand on her back. "Jus' in case this don't work out."

Shadow made to step away, before she hesitated.

"Wait. Wasn't there something you wanted to tell me, Remy?" She asked, looking up at him.

Gambit winced, smiling weakly. It not longer felt like the right time.

"No, chère," he said, gently pushing her back. "Go speak to ya folks. It nothing dat can't wait a little longer. 'Til all dis be over."

She looked up at him uncertainly, before nodding, walking off to find the mansion's phone.

Gambit would soon come to regret those words.

[raccoonfallsharder]

Window Across the Galaxy ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ*

masterlist

18+ only MDNI | rocket x f!oc | 27/27 chapters | COMPLETE | word count: 235,940.

girl falls first; raccoon falls harder.

Rocket is captured by a Ravager crew hoping to get rich off the excessively large bounty on his head. Throwing a wrench in everyone’s plans is the Terran girl they hired to do some freelance assessing on a recent haul of goods they’ve seized from a Xandaran luxury liner. Oops.

slight AU starting pre-GOTG volume 1 (but will hit most of the same major plot points). slow burn + eventual smut with a lot of pining in the middle. kinda enemies-to-lovers? (but only one of these idiots thinks they're enemies).

let me be real with you: this fic is really about wish-fulfillment. not just the eventual smut (but that too). mostly i just want someone to be nice to my best boy raccoon back to main masterlist.

so many amazing sweet wonderful readers have drawn fanart of this fic??? ♡♡♡♡♡ jolie is written without much physical description so you can imagine whatever you want but if you'd like to see how i and others imagine her, i've linked them below. thank you for being the absolute sweetest.

jolie's painting of rocket by @hibataao3 makes me cry every time i look at it

very first portrait of jolie by @raccoonmybeloved ~ so fucking cute i died

sims of jo by @evolvingchaoswitch ~ particularly love her paint-spattered outfit

an absolutely drool-worthy nsfw of rocket & jolie by @lazarel-3000 that permanently has altered my brain chemistry and lives in my mind forever ♡♡♡

adorable jolie sketches by @moonnpiie that truly capture what i mean when i describe jo as having “everywhere-hair.” plus her lil art-glove! (and a really cute rocket)

the cutest jo by @frostedwitch in her chapter xxvii sweatshirt. she is so cute with such shiny eyes and cute freckles and i love her so so so much! ♡♡♡

this shiny-haired jo by @miinsie! i love her hair so much in this one - it almost looks iridescent. i swoon. thank you for taking the time to read and to share this lovely interpretation of jolie with me!

and here are my jolie character concepts (complete full-color illo & rough doodles) and an illustration of one of my fave scenes from window ♡

✧･ﾟ:*collects Chapters I-XXVII (below the cut) & a holiday special && a silly epilogue

Chapter I. A Delicacy. in which our reluctant heroes meet atop a crate of Sovereign porn in the bowels of a Ravager ship.

Chapter II. Monster For A Pet. in which one hero wrestles with his inner Groot, and the other is quite possibly a moron.

Chapter III. A Kindness. in which Rocket gets in his own damn way: not for the first time, and certainly not for the last.

Chapter IV. Got There First. in which our heroes obtain an arsenal and street food.

Chapter V. Things No-One Has Said Before. in which one hero refuses to babysit and the other refuses to leave.

Chapter VI. Two and a Half Billion Units. in which we lean into the “they were roommates” trope. Jolie has misgivings, while Rocket has fantasies - about getting rich, of course.

Chapter VII. I'm Here. in which we visit Knowhere.

Chapter VIII. The Care & Feeding of Human Pets. in which our heroes practice breathing and we lean into a new trope: “there was (technically) one bed.”

Chapter IX. Scrapmetal and a Dream. in which we redefine homemaking.

Chapter X. Thin Fucking Ice. in which our heroes get fucked. Not in the good way.

Chapter XI. Let It Be .in which Xandar is saved and good lives are lost.

Chapter XII. So Much It Hurts. in which we try not to fuck up the vibes.

Chapter XIII. Don’t Wait. in which a lost sister is found and Drax grapples with the concept of sarcasm.

Chapter XIV. Exactly Like a Flower. in which comfort is shared.

Chapter XV: Galaxy-Breaking Shit. in which more comfort is shared, and life is good. Briefly.

Chapter XVI. Run. in which Rocket falls victim to his superstitions.

Chapter XVII. A Seedling. A Fox. A Little Girl. in which the party is divided.

Chapter XVIII. I Happen to Know a Guy. in which our heroes get fucked. Again. Still not in the good way.

Chapter XIX. He Was Loved. in which a planet is killed, a friend is made and lost, and nobody still has any frickin’ tape.

Chapter XX. Some Nerve. * in which an ultimatum is given.

Chapter XXI. I Very Still. ❤︎❤︎ in which our heroes get fucked. In the good way, this time. Finally.

Chapter XXII. Got There Worse. ❤︎❤︎ in which Rocket does not say "I love you."

Chapter XXIII. We're Gonna Need a Bigger Table. ❤︎ in which the galaxy just keeps spinning.

Chapter XXIV. Space Would Be Better. ❤︎❤︎ in which Rocket ~ discreetly ~ claims the title of boyfriend.

Chapter XXV. Little Love Stories. in which both of our heroes learn a little about themselves. ❤︎

Chapter XXVI. Other Side of the Window. in which old friends are reunited. ❤︎

Chapter XXV. The Most Beautiful Thing in My House. in which our heroes finally get what they deserve.❤︎

⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅*̩̩͙‧͙ Winter Across the Galaxy * ‧͙*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆ a holiday special *

Epilogue: Interviewing Rocket & Jo. ten years after Window ends. short, silly fluff.

explicit lines or references* abbreviated explicit sequences ❤︎ detailed/prolonged explicit sequences ❤︎❤︎

[dustydaddyyy]

Queen I’m am once again asking for a snippet of the next chapter of flashpoint

and never one to deny such a wonderfully honest request, here you go love <3 i'm hoping to finish up this chapter within the next week, so I think it'll be up by next week hehehe.

warnings! smoking, swearing, joel miller being grouchy (as per usual). reader is described to have hair long enough that it can be tied up.

When Joel steps into the apartment, he’s met with the blasting sound of the radio, and the distinctive smell of cigarettes, which can only mean one thing: you’re home.  

Sure enough, he sees you sitting by the open window in nothing but a tanktop and a tattered pair of shorts that had once been someone’s boxer briefs. You’re hunched over slightly as you lean against the knee you’ve propped up to reach your foot, and it takes Joel a second to realize you’re painting your toenails, head bopping along to the blasting guitar in the background. The length of your bare legs are on display as you sit propped against the open window frame, and Joel has to stop his eyes before they instinctively run over your form.

For a second the scene looks almost like art to Joel; the grey, misty sky through the open window despite the oppressive humidity and heat, the smell of an impending storm heavy in the air. Your hair is haphazardly tied up, which means some ends have come loose, some strands curling into corkscrews from the humidity, others stuck to the nape of your neck which has a slight sheen of sweat. Your face is a mask of focus as you paint a toenail, bottom lip pulled between your teeth as you concentrate. 

“She’s got it,” you hum along, cigarette hanging precariously loose on your lips, “Yeah baby, she’s got it,” 

The slam of the front door has you looking up at Joel, smoke curling around you as you take a drag. 

“Home already?”

“It stinks in here,” Joel says in an irritated sigh as he steps towards the kitchen, and you grimace slightly, turning your head to blow the smoke out of the window. 

“Sorry, I thought you’d be out longer,” 

You sound a little put out by his tone of voice, and for a small second Joel feels a wave of guilt at the thought that his first words to you after not having seen each other all week is a snide remark about the smell of your nail polish. 

“What are you doing that for?” Joel grumbles as he pours himself a glass of water in the sink, before reaching across the table and turning the radio down a little so that he can hear himself think again. 

“It’s for the new man I’m seeing,” you say, not trying very hard to conceal the joking undertone as you paint another toenail, “He offered me three ration cards to suck on my toes. . . figured they should at least look nice,”

You look up at Joel, and to your great satisfaction, he looks suitably horrified and disgusted, standing by the kitchen counter grasping his glass of water, which makes you smile cheekily. 

“Gotcha,” you tell him through a laugh, shaking your head as you blow out another plume of smoke, “Man, the look on your face alone would’ve been worth it,” 

“Very funny,” he says dryly as you chuckle, shaking your head. 

check out the rest of the story here if you liked this little snippet!

[cutemeat]

“Who’s left to bang? Just Dee?” MARY ELIZABETH 😭😭

[retroratrodeo]

I’m writing a Jurdan fic on AO3! It’s a mortal world AU where Cardan is Jude’s high school bully, but when then end up at the same college they’re forced to work on a group project together. It’s kind of slow burny with that angsty enemies to lovers vibe.

This scene is kinda far into the story, but I like the exchange and it doesn’t give much away:)