#of all my old bad fic. my treasured horrors.

[whoslaurapalmer]

gonna reread one of my old middle school fics, oh it's gonna be a time

[featherandferns]

pirates : where are they now?

jj maybank x bestfriend!fem!reader

word count: 1.5k.

read pirates | Thank you so so much for 1000 followers!!! Since starting this blog in May of 2023, I have written so many characters and storylines. I get so many lovely anon messages telling me about their favourite universes and wondering what happens next after my fics have ended. So, I thought to celebrate 1000 followers, I’d indulge. Here’s the (current) where are they now for all of my fics so far…

The route to Pirate’s Cove was as familiar to you as the smell of grass and the taste of orange juice. It was as familiar as the feel of JJ’s hand in yours, fingers intertwined just as your lives had been since you were children. In your spare hand you carry an old blanket and in his, he carries a cooler loaded with snacks and seltzers. The birds chirp from trees and there’s the distant rustling of bushes and shrubs hinting of critters lurking. It’s likely that gators bathe in the watery swamps that you pass by but you seem to have finally outgrown your fear. Maybe that’s just JJ’s effect on you, though. He always makes you feel safe. 

The transition from friends to lovers was only slightly rocky at first as the two of you found your footing. It felt different changing from referring to one another as ‘friend’ to ‘babe’. It felt almost too easy not to turn when the other was changing though. But none of it was weird or bad, just different. The Pogues had taken your relationship easily. You assumed that most saw it coming from a mile away. That’s what your parents said when you filled them in on yours and JJ’s situation. Of course, the conversation with your parents then nicely bled into the always painful ‘safe sex’ talk. 

Now, a year in, you could hardly remember a time when JJ wasn’t your entire world. Can hardly fathom not looking to him as your rock, your shelter and your light. Can hardly comprehend him being your dorky best friend instead of your dorky boyfriend. 

“Alright, I got one,” JJ says, “that time when you convinced John B that girls shed their balls at the age of five.”

You immediately crack up, the memory flashing back to you. As you laugh, you feel JJ squeeze your hand just that slightest bit tighter. Something about it makes your smile grow. 

“Oh my God, the look of pure horror on his face,” you giggle. 

“Swear to God, that’s the most shit-scared I ever seen him,” JJ chuckles, shaking his head at the memory. 

“Don’t know why he was acting like I was about to yank his nuts off him,” you snort. 

JJ groans at the visual. “Great. Now all I can think about is John B’s balls. Thanks.”

“My pleasure,” you tease, sticking your tongue out at him for good measure. 

As the journey of reminiscing comes to a close, the two of you approach Pirate’s Cove. The ivy had grown unruly over the years, creating a type of canopy that led into the opening of the cove. Moss covered rocks and water kissed stones; wildflowers and overgrown shrubs; logs for frogs and toads to bask and layers of leaves for critters to call home. The smell of damp soil and pollinated greenery submerges you in memories. As if sharing a thought, the two of you take a pause and look it all over. It felt like a lifetime since you’d returned to the cove. Things have become busy and, quite frankly, chaotic in life lately. The jovial search for treasure revealed some rather dark corners of John B’s life. Now you were lucky to spend your days not running from one square grouper or another. But here, in Pirate’s Cove, the two of you feel safe from the worries of the world. Safe from JJ’s ever angry father. Safe from the madness that came with searching for the Royal Merchant. 

This is where you beat JJ in countless imaginary sword fight. This is where you shared your first kiss, rosy cheeked and puppy-fat faced. This is where you first introduced John B to the sacred hideaway. This is where you realised that maybe you liked JJ a little more than just a friend. The years pass you by like scenes of a show, and each rerun fills you with a melancholic joy of times been and gone. 

“Rope swing’s still here,” JJ observes, bringing your attention to it. 

You smile. “Yep. Still here.”

He finds a comfortable spot near the water, still dry on land, and dumps the cooler. You follow his lead and lay out the blanket and the two of you settle side by side. It’s second nature to rest your head against his upper chest. It’s second nature for him to slip his fingers into yours atop of the blanket. With his free hand he retrieves two cans, cracks them open, and hands one to you. 

“Well,” he hums, sounding somewhat nervous, “happy anniversary.”

“One year down, smelly,” you muse.

You clink the lip of your can against his and the two of you sip the icy cool beverage, eyes fixated on the babbling creek. As your eyes slip shut, soaking in the moment, you decide this is happiness. This is bliss. This is your sanctuary and if heaven is real, this is where you hope you’ll find yourself. Sacred ground that only yourself, JJ and John B knew of. But even still, John B knew this was your place more than his. He never went alone - never without yourself and JJ. Kiara and Pope were oblivious to the cove. A crossed heart promise is paramount to keep. 

As the day ticks on, you remain resting with your head on JJ’s warm, muscle-tee clad chest, him on his back, both of you drifting between sleep and wake. From time to time, he threads his fingers in your hair and toys. When a thought passes through one of your heads, you share it, and the other usually hums in agreement or acknowledgement. It’s light and easy and comfortable. 

“I’m fucking hot,” JJ announces. 

“Wanna go for a swim?” you wonder, glancing to the water. 

“Fuck yeah,” he agrees, already shifting.

You remove your head from his stomach and the two of you get to your feet. He strips off his shirt and you do the same. Living in Kildare meant living in swimsuits rather than underwear most of the time; it saved the hassle of changing when you inevitably ended up in water. JJ lingers as he waits for you to step out your shorts and the moment you realise, is the moment your childish mind conjures the idea. 

Sighing, you place your hands on your waist and look to the water. You’re happily aware that his attention is on your body. One year into this thing and you don’t think you’ll ever get tired of having JJ look at you like that. 

“It’s probably gonna be cold,” you say. 

“Probably,” JJ agrees. 

“Mhm,” you hum, pretending to have second thoughts. You glance away from the water and check out the cove. “I’m just thinking–”

“Yeah?”

Your grin gives you away, moments before you blurt, “last one there has to clean the truck!”

You take off into a sprint towards the water, hearing JJ’s cussing behind you as he follows. His hands grab at your waist, pulling you back, fighting you away. Through your laughter, you try to squirm out of his hold. It’s no use though: he’s too strong. He picks you up as if you’re a bag of chips and tosses you over his shoulder. You screech and holler and giggle like crazy, gently slapping his back as he crashes into the water. Then you’re unwillingly dunked under the surface. 

You break back to air and shove your wet hair off your face. JJ is lounging in the water, laughing like crazy. You waste no time in lurching yourself at him, battling him down until he’s submerged. He gladly brings you along and under the water, and you feel as if you’re in another world. His hands trace up your arms, onto your shoulders, until one finds purchase on your jawline. You brave opening your eyes and can make out his face through blurry vision, a smile on his sunkissed features, blonde hair fanning out in the water. He guides your lips to his and kisses you until both of you have no choice but to return to the surface for a breath of air. When you do, JJ keeps his hands on your body, coaxing you near to him, not letting you drift apart. His forehead rests against your own. 

“I love you,” JJ quietly says. 

“I love you too,” you return. The words come as easy as air to the lungs. 

“Crossing this line was the best thing we ever did,” he tells you, pulling back far enough to meet your gaze. He tucks a strand of wet hair behind your ears. “Pretty risky move since we could’ve, you know, ruined like nine years of friendship.”

You bite back your laugh and squint jokingly. “Meh, we were never that close anyway.”

Rolling his eyes, JJ pecks your lips. Just as he pulls back, your fingers latch into the tethers of his hair at the back of his neck, keeping him near. 

“Nu-uh, smelly. Better kiss me like you mean it.”

He doesn’t need to be told twice. 

[linddzz]

Whooooo! I found ya! Down to business:

Are there any fic recommendations for baggin/shield or pitch/frost that you like(d)?

I am absolutely feral

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaand…..

What are 3 of your most favorite fics that you’ve ever read?

Ya found me! Let me say that the notifications of someone going through old fics and commenting are ambrosia. You are a treasure and a saint of a person!

And oh man I had to dive into my old bookmarks for these! I'm good at remembering snippets or vibes of fics but not the fics themselves. I will warn that a lot of my fave pitch/jack stuff tended to be pretty dark. It's not like, a thing I regret or say is wrong, and I still enjoy/love a lot of it! I was in a dark place mentally and that reflected in the stuff I was reading and creating. Who actually has a good time in their early to mid 20s?

Mostly warning because most of my stuff since then skirts the edges or flirts with the darkness but doesn't feel that need to go deep diving.

Second warning is there may be less here than you'd think! The more I write for a ship the less I read, because my brain gets very dumb and the self doubt gets Real Bad. This is all non-exhaustive of course! I wouldn't even say this is my Best of The Best it's just what's coming to mind at the moment. There's way more in the AO3 bookmarks

Pitch/Jack fics

In the Dark - series by @charmed7293 romancing the monster under the bed is maybe not always the best idea

The Syntax of Programming Languages, and, Why Some Code Talks in Accents - by Midievil. I'm biased here bc this was a gift fic inspired by my The Device Has Been Modified, but it done showed me up bc it was written by someone who knows more about actual coding than me

Shadows and Light - this series by @not-poignant is The Classic of the ship. Since you liked Things That Were you'd most definitely like this one. And unlike me, Pia actually finishes things!

I swear to God there were a lot of fics by @insufferablearchanist that I loved but they nuked their old AO3 and I can't ever remember shit.

Thorin/Bilbo fics

Prayers to Broken Stone - @avelera the beauty and the beast flavored au you didn't know you wanted

Comfort in the Sound - by northerntrash. Ok. Yes. It's Bilbo/Thorin/Bofur but like. Trust me on this. Road trip throuple shenanigans

Patchwork Robe - @hallsofstone2941 I am not immune to stupidly adorable modern college au one-shots

Possession - aljira. You liked Sanzigil, you'll like this :)

Marriage in the Manner of Dwarves - series by diemarysues

Other Fandom Faves (that come to mind. I've been reading fanfic since like 2002 ok there's a lot that has made impressions over the years that I just lost track of dkdjdk)

Taking Everyone For A Ride - by Nonymos. Venom/Eddy+Anne/Dan. typical Eldritch shenanigans plus polyamory. Unhinged and weird, just how I like em

The Only Way Out Is Down - @avelera Newt/Hermann. The second PR movie was so bad I wanna erase it from my memory but my god did it spawn some AMAZING fics, including this one that rewired my brain

After Zero - by what_alchemy Newt/Hermann. A bunch of delightful smut

The Wine Dark Sea - @moorishflower Dream/Hob. Siren! Dream au. Jesus Christ. Holy fuck. Goddamn. Gorgeous, monstrous, surreal, Unhinged4Unhinged behavior. Listen. I work with octopuses. I know what their arms feel like and that has ruined almost all tentacle shenanigans for me ok?? This fic got past that hangup.

If I Please You - @moorishflower Dream/Hob. It feels like a modern retelling of an old medieval fairy romance goddamn

And finally. This series. The series.

So. I very recently refound this series and I'm almost hesitant to post it. Because as I was reading it again I kept having to put it down and sit in horror at the realization that I read this fic when I was in college and it actually rewired my brain. I realized everything I have written was trying to recapture what this fic did to my synapses. I was chasing after vibes that I did not realize originated in this fic for me. Me sharing this risks everyone who reads it and has read my stuff also going "ooohhhh you're just doing this again huh?"

It is the very specific combination of "Character A: openly unhinged, obsessive, violently romantic and unnerving/Character B: seems so chill and just happily rolls with CharacterA being insane, because they are also secretly insane." It's the combo of a codependent bonkers relationship with humorous banality of their day-to-day.

It's also a Johnlock fic.

Anyway, The Paradox Series rewired my brain so deeply that I didn't even realize it rewired my brain until over a decade later. I swear I have been unaware of how much my writing has been leaning on what this did to my brain.

[mikadollie]

Good morning...!!! I thjnk thats the 2nd time ever Ive spoken about rinnai withsomeone so Im so glad you care about them. WAAAH AICHAN KISSING RINNE NUI. THEY ARE SO CUTR FROM BOTH SIDES I FEEL CRAZY I like to think of rinne likewaah what if they went to some sort of festival and there were all sorts of games to play to get prizes and rinne does them for him..... andgets him cute stuff... bahh... Since aira knew of rinne before crazyb I like to think about him like having watched old grainy iphone recordings of him doing performances back in 17-20 rinny era online.... (ノ_＜。) oooh (ノ_＜。) aahhh.... aichan kind of saaved his life in treasure and is also dooming him bad. When the relationship chart came out and rinnai was included in rinnes I felt ceazy. Im so glad you can understand and also that fic idea goes so crazy!?!?! I would have read it bookmarked it kudosed it 300 billion times. ETC. ..... aichan needs to be influenced into more horrors it cant be helped!!!!

Speaking of 17rinne hes way too cute i cant stop thinking about him. He got taken advantage ofa bunch pronably so its like hard for himNOT to want to take advantage of the cute boygirls around him sue him I guess and also theyre just so cute so who can blame him.... its not his fault all his Oomfs are Minors... (I want to put him in prison or a meat grinder of sorts)

Sorry. For rambling. I just appreciate your mind. Like you get it....

Anon i think are brains are likee.... merged together... yourthoughts are my thoughts...... Aira holding a big teddy bear plushie that rinne won for him oh i am so ill. Aichan having tjose super old videos of tiny rinne is so cute actually imgna scream and sit in a corner.

1...17rinne.... im soooo so normal abouthim.......... he was just so cute and taken advantage of a lot by soo many people maybe to get good contracts as an idol etc :3 so now he just has!!!! To take advantage of his cute juniors!!!!!!!! Aichan is just too cute what is he gonna do? Not touch him???!!

[wallwriterstuff]

Twilight Fics

                                               Headcanons:

A First Time For Everything (Alec Volturi x Hybrid Reader) NSFW 

Alec, Demetri and Felix With A Hybrid Mate 

Dating Alec Volturi Would Include 

Dating Demetri Volturi Would Include //// Dating Demetri Would Include Part 2 

Dating Felix Volturi Would Include

It’s A Chore (Whole Guard) TW for mild descriptions of death in Felix’s headcanon

My Evil Twin (Alec vs Jane) TW for mentions of abuse, trauma and torture 

Parent Trap - Fluff Edition - (Alec and Jane) 

The Ties That Bind (Headcanons for Venom Is Thicker Than Blood) TW for mentions of pregnancy, sexual abuse, bad language, descriptions of death and violence, and youth homelessness

Siblings (Demetri x Little Sister) 

Sleepy Guards (Whole Guard) 

                                                    The Cullens:

Dream A Little Dream (Emmett x Rosalie) 

Thunderstorms (Jasper x Reader) TW for implied PTSD 

                                                                                                   The Volturi:

                                             ~Alec Volturi~

A Little Trouble (Alec x Female reader) 

A Stitch In Time (Alec x Jane x Reader) Platonic! TW for death and mentions of poverty

All The Colours of The Rainbow (Alec x Reader) 

Chalk Lines (Alec x Reader) Platonic!Mates TW for implied homelessness

Dear Sister Part 1 //// Dear Sister Part 2 (Alec x Female Reader) TW for swearing, sexual references and general angst in both parts 

Forever Yours (Alec x Reader) TW for graphic descriptions of injury, fear and distress

Our Dearest Moments (Alec x Reader) 

S’Language Lessons (Alec x Reader) 

The Beauty of A Secret (Alec x SwanSister!Reader)

The Monster I am (Alec x Female Reader)

They Want Us To Burn (Alec’s POV) TW for graphic descriptions of violence, mild horror and mentions of blood and death 

                                                        ~Demetri Volturi~

A Good Heart ||Demetri x Female Reader||

Curiosity Killed The Cat ||Demetri x Female Reader||

Found Family //// Baby’s First Christmas (Demetri x Female Reader) TW for anxiety and mentions of child endangerment in part 1. Part 2 contains grieving 

From The Doorstep //// Anything You Can Do (Demetri x Child!Oc)

Guilty Souls (Demetri x Female Reader) 

It's Always Been You (Demetri x Jane) TW for graphic descriptions of injury and violence

Little Rabbit //// Still Learning (Demetri x Female Reader) TW for descriptions of violence and gore in Part 1, nothing but fluff for part 2  

Small Treasures (Demetri x Child!Reader)

The Hybrid ||Demetri x Female Hybrid!Reader|| TW for descriptions of violence, angst and blood drinking

The Little Ways You Say I Love You (Demetri x Reader) 

This Thing You Call Christmas (Demetri x Female Reader)

Unhinged ||Demetri x Female Reader|| TW for explicit content, NSFW

Venom Is Thicker Than Blood //// I Will Always Choose You //// Forever Stuck In Our Youth (Demetri x Child!Reader) TW for: bad language; descriptions of death, violence and sexual abuse; and youth homelessness 

What You Give Me Is What I Want (Demetri x Female Reader) TW for swearing, insecurity in a relationship and mentions of sex. 

                                                                 ~Felix Volturi~

Get It? ‘Cause You’re Old? (Felix x Reader)

Green-Eyed Monster (Felix x Reader)

What It Means To Be Human (Felix x Female!Reader)

                                          ~Miscellaneous~

Ignorance Without Bliss (Heidi Volturi x Female Reader) NSFW

Foundling (Caius Volturi x Daughter!Reader) TW for mentions of neglect and absent parents 

Her Reflection (Marcus Volturi x Reader) TW for lots of angst and descriptions of grief and depression

Till It Rains (Jane Volturi x Male!OC)

                           ~Series (Fics With 3 Parts or More)~

A Stimming Mate: (Demetri x Reader) 

TW for anxiety, sensory overload, panic attacks and biting.

Demetri Reacting To A Stimming Mate (Headcanons) //// Teeth //// Control 

Obsession: (Alec x Female Reader)

TW for Yandere!Alec, emotional abuse, possessive/obsessive behaviour, gaslighting and graphic descriptions of violence and injury throughout. Brief, implied non-con in part 3 only. 

Obsession  ////  When You’re Lost I’ll Leave My Gaslight On (PART 2)  ////  These Violent Delights (PART 3) 

Little Red Riding Hood: (Demetri Volturi x SwanSister!Reader)

TW for things getting a little bit heated in Part 3. Part 4 is NSFW, highly explicit and not for anyone under 18.

Little Red Riding Hood //// The Big Bad Wolf (PART 2)  //// What Soft Lips You Have (PART3) (Demetri x SwanSister!Reader) ////  And They Lived Happily Ever After (PART 4)

A Little Magic: (Demetri Volturi x Witch!Reader) 

TW for magical amensia drugs, angst, foul language and descriptions of violence.

Masterlist for A Little Magic - Every Part of The Spell 

Headcanons for Castor

On Gossamer Wings (Demetri Volturi x Fae!Reader)

On Gossamer Wings //// The Mortal Realm (Part 2) ////

[the0verboss]

Jeffrey Combs movies I’ve finished so far (updated 12/02/23)

Reanimator Trilogy (Solid Fucking Gold. Even Beyond which is bad is good. I will never grow weary of Herbert West)

Castle freak (I’m glad I got this one out of the way early it’s a hard watch)

From Beyond (Crawford Tillinghast deserves better)

Doctor Mordrid (<3 this is my go to Jeff movie when I need to put on something nice)

The Dunwhich Horror

Frightmare (he’s so gorgeous in this. And so young. And a good. The whole movie is goofy)

Frighteners (Milton steals the show, much like Combs usually does)

Cellar Dweller (this one barely counts, but I still love the movie. They kill the owner of Nickelodeon)

Cyclone (Rick Davenport is a bottom, The blonde is a bombshell)

Hammerhead- Shark Frenzy (I’m an authority on shark movies and the fact that Jeff has done one completes me)

Night of the Living Dead 3D: Re-Animation (a waste of two great Horror Actors, Andrew Divoff and Jeff Combs. It honestly just needed there to be more to the story that was worth engaging with. They’re both doing what they can with it)

The Evil Clergyman (beat my priest kink to death. Also Barbara’s impression of Jeff is sooooo gooood)

Attic Expeditions (weird movie, cute combs)

Suburban Gothic (cute cameo, but short)

The Phantom Empire (🤤)

Motivational Growth (which everyone should see it was great)

Parasomnia (I feel like I need to watch this one again)

Lurking fear (dr haggis deserved better)

Death falls (this is the ugliest he’s ever been and I’m including post pineal gland Crawford in this assessment)

American Bandits Frank and Jesse James (I would def take more combs westerns)

Dark House (an absolute joy. Ham it up)

Masters of Horror-The Black Cat (watch the commentary its worth it)

Deadman Walking (he’s the second most important character why can’t our boy get better billing)

Howard Lovecraft and the undersea kingdom( cute but dark)

Felony (how is this not farther up the list of Great Jeff Movies)

Feardotcom (a waste of a perfectly good Jeff. Could have had him as the leading man and the whole movie would have been better for it.)

Time Tracers (I collect shit shark movies. This is still the worst movie I have ever seen. But Jeff does what he can with it. Worth watching if just because it’s horrendous. If it had been directed by Fred Olen Ray it might have actually been fun)

Voodoo Moon (I can’t even begin to review this one- zombie Jeff with a gun- I really just need to finally watch Fortress)

Age of Stone and Sky: The Sorcerer Beast (he was an adorable old man. Would have liked to see more of him, the hippie look killed.)

FORTRESS (finally, I’m glad I saved it for a rainy D-Day, this is a pun. I will now wait forever for the “everyone lives fix it fic” where D-Day runs a Mexican coffee shop)

Trancers II (more Jeff than I expected. Liked the goatee.)

Holiday Hell (I sorta love Thaddeus Rosemont, expect some art)

Beethoven's Treasure Tail (an older Combs as an inept villain. cute. worth it.)

House on Haunted Hill (a masterpiece, enjoyable even with so little jeff)

Return to House on Haunted hill (more Jeff, the only thing that makes this worth it)

Faust : Love of the Damned (guys he’s supposed to look like Elvis. Wtf. Not enough combs to make up for how weird this movie is)

The Guyver (not a lot of combs but what is there is cute. Just over all a decent movie)

Urgency (Jeff does what he can with bad writing and likely substandard directing. Sumner is pitiable, and you sorta wanna hug him right up til the end. Then you want to punch him before you hug him)

All Souls Day : Dia de los muertos ( just a quick scene at the beginning, but not a terrible movie once he’s gone. I’m here for some zombies)

The Digital Prophet ( one of 4 in my top 5 worst combs movies. This one is worse than time tracers)

Satanic ( hes cute but barely in this despite top billing. Coulda replaced the doctor with him)

Elf Man (I love a goofy Combs and this one is goofy)

Pit and the Pendulum (finally another Stuart Gordon. I was concerned about this one but honestly I should have known not to be with who was making it. I’m still haunted by the tights, but it’s now a fav)

I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (omg the false teeth and the bad hair. He’s a minor character. Loved Brandy though.)

Dillinger and Capone (a surprising amount of Jeff and a different role than we usually see. It’s a good look)

Abdominable (only a bit of Jeff and he’s sorta goofy.)

Would You Rather (lots of Jeff, the kind of screen time I beg for, in a movie I could have done without. It’s a solid performance, even if I didn’t love the movie.)

Onyx Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls (hilarious. Fabulous effects. Jeff plays a fun credible villian. I actually want a sequel. Oh and Barbara Crampton is also here which is a plus.)

Jeffrey Combs Tv I’ve finished

All of Star Trek

Twilight Zone- Placebo effect

She Spies

Gotham (so much potential just stifled, he’d have been great in several of the parts in this series)

CSI- Jackpot (super cute combs here. 10/10 presh)

Criminal Minds- the Black Queen (needed more but the syringe shot was a little hilarious)

Creepshow- Bad Wolf Down

Freddys Nightmares- S2Ep7 Love Stinks (A+ campy Jeff)

Perversions of Science Ep. 4 the Exile (guys the pay off is huge, 26 min. well spent)

The 4400 (could have used more Jeff as he was the most likable character in the whole bunch. Kinda like Enterprise I anticipate a 5th season would have had a better quantity.)

Babylon 5 S1Ep16 Eyes (Mr. Grey is very pretty, and soft)

Star Trek: Lower Decks S2 EP 7 Where Pleasant Fountains Lie (ALL HAIL AGIMUS. welcome home Jeff)(as Agimus is now a repeating character just assume I'm seeing him every time. What an arc lol)

Stan against Evil S2 EP4 Girls Night (I love a silly jeff in a silly role. Let the man play folks!)

Extras (audiobooks/ documentaries/ etc)

Hp Lovecrafts Herbert West: Reanimator audiobook (available on YouTube)

Star Trek Rat Pack closing performance for STLV 2019 (also available on youtube)

Doug Bradley’s Spinechillers- Vol. 11

In Search of Darkness 1 and 2

Nevermore Audio Book

What we left behind (which I actually saw in theatres, so good)

The Skin of Our Teeth (it’s a filmed play, could probably go in the tv section, quite enjoyable. Would be interesting to see him play George Antrobus now that he’s older)

Reanimator Novel (Jeff’s on the cover so I’m counting it)

GALAXYCON 2 min MEET AND GREET! (i died during this)

The United Monster Talent Agency (blink and youll miss him in this short

Star Trek Online Campaign- Victory is Life

STAR TREK LAS VEGAS RAT PACK PHOTO OP (I could barely make eye contact, but guys he touched me >///<)

Re-Animator: Reunion Edition (Charles Band yur gross. Barb yur a queen. Jeff yur adored and yur impressions are goofy.)

I should get a degree at this point. If anyone can suggest where to go after this to continue my fix, that would be greeeeeeeat.

[clotpolesonly]

A Regular Troy Bolton

for @twistedamusement‘s request from the Stiles Shipping Center discord’s “spring cleaning” ficlet exchange!! my second Steter fic, very different from my first, lmao

| Steter | Gen | 500w | Established Relationship | Age Difference | Fluff | Teasing |

(also on AO3)

--

The Hale Vault was musty enough that even a day of vigorous “spring cleaning” wasn’t gonna make much difference, but Stiles let Peter drag him into it anyway. He was regretting it right up until he unearthed a box of old photos. The one on top was very clearly the cast photo from a musical—a high school production, judging by the BHHS logo in the corner—and right there, dead center in a spiffy suit, was Peter.

“Oh my god,” Stiles breathed.

Peter was leaning over his shoulder a second later. As soon as he recognized what Stiles had in his hands, he tried to snatch it away, but Stiles saw that move coming a mile away and he wasn’t giving up his treasure so easily. He danced out of Peter’s reach, laughing gleefully.

“Look at you!” he crowed. “You were a baby, oh, look at your ears! They’re so big!”

Peter huffed. “Give me that back.”

“And the curls,” Stiles said, ignoring him. “So fluffy. So cute. So embarrassing.”

“Stiles, I will murder you in your sleep. I know where you live.”

“What show was this anyway?” Stiles searched the picture until he found the musical’s name up in the corner. “The Music Man. Wait, isn’t that one about a con artist?”

Peter made another unsuccessful grab for the photo. “Harold Hill is a traveling salesman, thank you very much.”

“And a con artist.” Stiles tutted in faux disappointment. “Typecasting.”

Apparently giving up on retrieving the photo, Peter crossed his arms. “It was one show,” he said. “One semester of drama, to look well-rounded on college applications.”

Stiles risked getting within snatching range to kiss the pout off his lips. “Basketball captain leading the school musical,” he mused. “You were a regular Troy Bolton.”

Peter rolled his eyes, though his arms came up to encircle Stiles’ waist and pull him closer. “I don’t understand that reference.”

“You’re such an old man,” Stiles said fondly. “This picture’s from, like, the year before I was born.”

“When you’re my age, you’ll look back on pictures of you now and be just as embarrassed,” Peter promised.

Stiles snorted. “Okay, first of all,” he said. “I’m twenty-two, not sixteen. I’ve already grown into my huge ears.” He ignored Peter’s noise of protest. “And second of all, if I’m embarrassing-looking now, then joke’s on you, pal! ‘Cause you’re super attracted to me as I am now!”

“Maybe I just have bad taste,” Peter suggested primly. “Ever consider that?”

“Not for a second.”

To prevent any further griping, Stiles kissed him again. He could still feel the petulance practically radiating off of Peter, and the vault smelled terrible, and his feet ached from being on them too long, but Stiles decided that this was actually a pretty great day.

“Just so you know,” Stiles said when they broke for air. “I’m getting this picture framed.”

Peter’s eyes widened in horror. “No, you are not! Give me that!”

Stiles ran, laughing, and he gave chase.

[jerakeenc]

may recs (12: hobbit, x-men, mandalorian, good omens, mcu)

Don't mind me. I'm fandom hopping like crazy.

Ghivashel by mdseiran

Hobbit | Bilbo/Thorin | Mature | 44,240 words

The last thing Bilbo expects when he stays up late one night is company. The strange dwarf and his companion crash into his life and prove unexpected saviours. But the dwarf seems to think he will be joining them on their travels, and Bilbo has no such intentions.

Fascinating AU. Smaug claims young!Thorin as his treasure.

Previous Engagements by Lunarflare14

Hobbit | Bilbo/Thorin | Teen | 26,750 words

But as Spring approaches a caravan from the Blue mountains brings something everyone had nearly forgotten: the dwarf woman Thorin promised his hand to many years ago. 

Which is fine. It's all fine. It wasn't like Bilbo was falling in love with the king or anything. 

That would be tragic.

Super precious.

Impulse Decisions by listerinezero

X-Men | Erik/Charles | Explicit | 40,760 words

Erik wakes up in Las Vegas with a hell of a hangover, a telepath in his bed, and a ring on his finger. Now what?

This is a very nice rom-com.

Into the Fray by miss_aphelion

X-Men | Erik/Charles | Explicit | 31,770 words

Every year, two alphas are chosen from each district for a fight to death, and every year, a single omega is chosen to join them in the arena as the prize. 

Erik Lehnsherr's name has been drawn to compete as an alpha tribute and he is set solely on survival, but he hadn't exactly counted on Charles, the mysterious omega tribute that isn't playing by any of the rules. Hunger Games AU.

Very very nice. I didn't think i'd be interested in a Hunger Games fusion; this story proved me wrong.

No Longer in Silence by Black_Betty

X-Men | Erik/Charles | Explicit | 26,250 words

It has been eight years since Charles has seen Erik. Eight years since they parted under unkind circumstances and Erik went off to sea. The boy he once knew is Captain Lehnsherr now and they are as known to one another as strangers, and yet--Charles finds that eight years has done nothing to diminish the feelings he had when he was 16 and in love.

It's unfortunate then that Erik doesn't feel the same way.

Great Persuasion AU. No magical lack of homophobia in this AU which is a shame, but the ending is still satisfying.

Spectral Bodies in Orbit by Orockthro

Mandalorian | Din/Luke | Teen | 27,690 words

Luke wants the New Republic to back and fund his plans for the new Jedi Order, Bo-Katan wants Mandalore to rise to its previous glory, Leia wants a system of governance that is functional, and Din wants a nap.

Super charming!

Broken Threads by Sadie1902

Mandalorian | Din/Luke | Teen | 78,900 words

The battle is over, the rebels have won. But Luke Skywalker is still reeling from his ordeal in the Emperor's throne room, both physically and emotionally. Wracked with pain and fatigue, he tries to recuperate on Endor with a few days of much-needed rest. But before he even has a chance to relax, he's captured by an enterprising bounty hunter in Mandalorian armor. 

Din Djarin can't believe his luck. It's the score of his life, the bounty they all said was impossible. The payout will set his Tribe up well... so long as they don't know exactly who he made a deal with. But the job turns out to be more than Din bargained for when his bounty collapses from mysterious injuries, and he must face the truth of the horrors the Empire has wrought. 

Now, on the run from half the galaxy, it's a race against time as Din helps Luke find a cure for the disease that's slowly breaking the hero apart. There's only one problem... they need a Jedi. And Luke is the last of his kind. 

Or is he?

Really good! Nice adventure, an AU backstory with hurt!Luke and protective!Din and a very slow-moving well-earned romance.

dearly departed by attheborder

Good Omens | Aziraphale/Crowley | Teen | 29,770 words

Finally, Aziraphale spoke. “You mean to say— you got us married?”

“Just as a precaution, I never really thought I’d end up discorporated again, it’d been ages, you just don’t get stampedes or assassinations like you used to —”

“You got us married, and you didn’t tell me?”

Delightful writing! This is as cute as it gets between a demon and an angel.

What the Deep Heart Means by unpossible

MCU | Clint/Coulson | Explicit | 54,580 words

Clint doesn’t want to go out. Doesn’t want to make conversation, doesn’t even want to eat. But he can’t show any of that, not if he doesn’t want to be rendered inactive by the psychs. Being useful is all he has left.

What he does want, mostly, is to be taken out back like Old Yeller. But that isn’t an option. He doesn’t get the easy way out.

Absolutely delicious angst. Clint pretends to keep it together after Coulson's death. Then Coulson comes back and he kind of... shatters.

Wasn't Born A Beauty Queen (But I'm Okay With That) by thatdamneddame 

MCU | Clint/Coulson | Teen | 38,580 words

Philippa Coulson became Fury’s One Good Eye by being smart and relentlessly competent and notoriously difficult to faze.

This is a thing of beauty. Female Coulson. 38K words of mutual pining.

Words May Fail (The Body Remains) by ladyflowdi

MCU | Clint/Coulson | Explicit | 56,500 words

There's a beginning to every love story, Clint knows. Theirs just has more bullets and crazy people.

Great story of their whole relationship. Made me cry more than once. I wished more from the epilogue but not everyone has my love of 10K epilogues, so I'm used to not getting what I want in that respect.

Package Deal by Ralkana

MCU | Clint/Coulson | Teen | 12,300 words

Clint's new neighbor Phil is gorgeous, Phil's little girl Ella is adorable, and Clint finds himself completely drawn in by the combination.

I thought this was gonna be one of those fics in a bad way, but it turned out to be one of those fics in a cute way.

[dragonfiremage]

Destiny - Chapter One

Author’s Note: Wow, ok, so it’s been so long since I’ve written anything, let alone a fic about Avatar the Last Airbender. I used to watch this when I was little, and now that it’s back in Netflix, I couldn’t resist. Please tell me if you like it, what I can improve, etc. I would love to hear feedback!

Summary:  You are the daughter of the handmaid who served as Queen Ursa’s right hand servant. One night, the handmaid helps Ursa plot Azulon’s death and helps her escape. However, your mother is caught and is charged with conspiracy and accessory of the crime. That day, your family broke apart, torn away from your nation that you thought you loved, and away from your best friend, Zuko. Years pass, and after so many years apart, you finally face your old childhood friend again. However, things have changed. You are no longer that same servant girl in the Fire Nation Palace and Zuko is no longer that Prince you once knew. Funny, how Destiny could entangle your paths together. What will the future hold? (Zuko x Reader) [Next - Chapter Two] Chapter One

You stood behind your mother, clutching a basket of stale bread. Standing as still as possible, you held your breath in hopes to stay even stiller. But as 8 year old, your attention could only span only for so long and the strain for standing still for so long began to wear you down.

"Mother -" The sharp turn of your mother's skirts was enough to still you. "Hush child, we must stay polite and still." Your temper flared momentarily. Why did you have to stand so still while Zuko played with the turtle ducks as much as he can?! It wasn’t fair. Pouting, you crossed your arms in huff, only to be pinched by your mother shortly after. “You need to have decorum, child, if you are to be the head of the maid staff in the future like me. The palace requires us to behave and be seen a certain way. Do not think that just because you are friends with the Prince Ozai’s son that you can get away with anything. It is not proper for you to be friends with him, but since Lady Ursa has urged it so, I will honor it.” Even as a child, you could feel the tension radiating from her and it made you look up towards her. When she noticed your stare, she leaned down and whispered, “Please my child. Be diligent and show manners, if not we can in big trouble with the Prince Ozai who is not as kind as the Princess Ursa.” You nod and your eyes cast downward. When your mother initially explained what she did for the palace one night over dinner, you were elated. The palace was big and you imagined every room to be full of treasures and jewels. Your imagination ran rampant and when your mother invited you to join her one day to start your observation for servant training, you were more than excited. But nothing could have prepared you for the utter boredom it came with in following order after order, etiquette after etiquette. Luckily, you easily made friends with the Prince Ozai’s son, Zuko. It happened by chance one day. You were closely following your mother when the spell of fresh baked breakfast pastries wafted from the kitchen to the hallway. You stopped abruptly, your mother still walking down the hallway, oblivious that you were slowly tip toeing your way to the kitchens. As you got closer and closer to the kitchen door, you listened careful through it and opened the door just a bit to peek. When you saw nothing, you opened the kitchen door widely and found the pastries on a plate on top of kitchen counter. Your mouth watered as you stood right next to the counter and tried to grab one of the pastries, your short arms, however, were not long enough to reach the plate. You struggled, even going on your tip toes to see if you could reach further. As you were about to touch the plate, a gasp could be heard and it scared you, making you shriek in return and knocking over a bag of flour over and spilling all over you. the flour tasted bitter in your mouth as you cough, plumes of white powder puffed all over the air as you struggled to see through all the flour on your face. “You’re not supposed to be here! Mother!” Footsteps were heard and the next thing you knew, a fit of giggles could be heard. Finally, you wiped the last of the flour from your eyes and they widened.

Your mother was going to kick you to the spirit world.

“There you are! I’ve been looking all over - your majesty!” Your mother walked into the kitchens, her eyes full of horror at the sight of you covered head to toe in flour, caught by the Lady Ursa and her son.

“It’s ok, Alina. Looks like she just wandered off and was curious. Were you just trying to get a fruit pastry? What is your name sweet child?” Ursa kneeled to your level, her arm outreached towards you.

  You glanced at your mother who still had harsh look in her eye, but nodded reluctantly. Looking at the Ursa again, you were awestruck. She was very beautiful and looked very kind. Zuko who stood next to her, looked at you with curiosity and a timid smile. Reaching over, you slip your small hand onto the queens and she shook it gently. “I’m (YN). And yes I was trying to get the pastry. I stopped by and it smelled so good. I didn’t mean to knock the flour over.”

Ursa laughed, the sound melodic and soothing to your ears. Her presence was warm and inviting and you scooted closer to her. “Such a pretty name (YN). This is my son, Zuko.”

  Zuko looked over to her and smiled widely, “Wanna split a pastry?!”

Your eyes gleamed, “Yes! I would like to share it with you, Zuko!”

Ursa and your mother exchanged looks, before your mother cracked a smile. From that day on, you and Zuko because friends.

“Come on, duckling. We’re needed inside. Let’s go.” Your mother’s voice pulls you out of your day dreaming and she opened her palm for you to take before you slip your small hand onto hers, her palm rough, but still soft. You glanced over your shoulder, catching Zuko’s eyes who waved and turned back to his mother.

 A couple of days later, you hear of General Iroh’s son’s passing while in battle.

It was devastating news. You briefly met General Iroh right before he left for Ba Sing Se. He and Ursa had sat by the gardens drinking tea while you and Zuko fed some of the turtle ducks. He seemed such a warm and kind man, even showing you fire trick that made your eyes wide and gleam with wonder. That was your first real taste of fire-bending and a small flame ignited within as you hope that one day you could fire-bend like him. 

There was nothing but warmth when Ursa, Iroh and Zuko were together. Lady Ursa was so fond of General Iroh who would often treat her son like his own. Seeing all of them together made you so happy. You remembered inviting everyone for a tea party when Iroh returned from Ba Sing Se.

But General Iroh would never return to the fire nation - not until for while.

After Lu Ten’s death - everything changed.

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

You awoke to the sound of your door creaking open, a small sliver of light filtering through. Sitting up and rubbing your eyes from sleep, you mumbled, “Mother?”

“Hush, child. I have to be quick.”

Eyes scanning the dark, your eyes finally refocused on your mother’s face that was in front of you. Reaching up to cup her cheek, you noticed that it was wet - she had been crying. A chill went down your spine. Your mom rarely cried for anything - she was one the strongest people you know. For her to cry…something really bad must’ve happened. “Is everything ok?”

There was a beat of silence before she whispered quietly, “Y-yes, my love. Everything is ok. Know that I love you no matter what happens and that I will always be with you.”

You tilted your head in confused but shoved it to the back of your head when you felt your body call back for sleep. “I love you too mother. I’m tired now, can I go back to sleep?” You ask with a yawn.

She chuckled lowly, tucking a hair behind your ear. “Yes my love. I hope your dreams are filled with cake and sweetness.”

You giggle and nod tiredly, “And we’ll have a tea party with you, Lady Ursa, and Zuko.”

Your eyes flickered shut and your mother looked at you with sadness. “Yes, my love. We’ll have a lovely tea party with everyone.” She kisses your forehead, whispers a goodbye, and turns to leave the room. She glances one last time at your sleeping form before looking at the doorway where Ursa stood with tears in her eyes.

“I’m so sorry Alina...to pull you into this.”

Alina, with tears falling from her eyes, takes Ursa’s hands and kisses the knuckles, noting the trembling hands. “You do not deserve this brutality and this life, my queen. Anything for you.”

Ursa trembles, more tears spilling from her eyes. “I hope our children will be shielded from this brutality. They do not deserve it.”

They hold hands one last time and Alina whispers, “For them.”

Ursa nods, “For our children.”

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

A short while after, you awoke with the strangest dream. Your mother had come to your dream and something about tea parties. Yawning and stretching, you took note of your mother’s absence in the servant’s room. Your brows furrowed, your mother would have awaken you by now with a cup of hot tea and some gook she made for breakfast, but it was eerily quiet.

  “Mother?”

Silence.

A pang of fear washes over you. Something was wrong.

You got out of bed and rushed to put on your servant’s attire, which was just a simple red dress with the fire nation emblem on the chest. You ran through the halls looking for you mother, but the palace seems to be empty. Until you ran into Zuko and Azula. Azula scared you. She wasn’t kind or warm like Zuko, if anything she always seemed to be plotting and being mean, even though she was younger than you.

“Where’s Mom?” Zuko demands.

Azula shrugs nonchalantly. “No one knows. Oh, and last night, Grandpa pass away.”

You gasp quietly, hiding behind a pillar.

“Not funny Azula! And I want my knife back, now.” Zuko makes a grab for it, but misses when Azula steps away.

She waves the knife in front of him, and taunts, “Who’s going to make me? Mom?”

With hands fisted in anger, you move from your spot from behind the pillar and say. “You better stop that Azula, give the knife back to Zuko and tell us where Queen Ursa is!”

Zuko gasps and Azula sneers with a glare. “Go back to the kitchens, servant. You do not talk to me that way - wait. You’re Alina’s daughter right?”

You tremble, “Y-yes..why?!”

  She saunters over you, twirling the knife expertly as if she wasn’t an 8 year little girl. “Rumor has it that your mother murdered our Grandpa last night. Her trial should be over by now…”

You gasped. Your mother? Poisoned the Firelord? Eyes flashing, you snarl, "You're a liar!"

Azula glances at the clock and tuts with her tongue, smiling wickedly when the Firelor’s chamber’s doors opened with guards and fire mages walking out. Some had tears in their eyes, others looked angry. “Well good timing.”

The mages talked amongst themselves and as they walk passed you, but Azula was able to tug one of the mage’s sleeve and they stopped and bowed for her. “Oh dear fire mage, you must excuse me. Can you please tell me what happened in my father’s chambers?”

The mage shook with anger. “That lowly servant scum murdered our great leader. Oh Hail Firelord Azulon Her punishment is death.”

Coldness seeped through you as you saw Zuko’s eyes widen before turning his head to look at you. The mage quietly left, shaking his head while crying for the loss of their great leader.

“I wonder what they’re going to do with you - the traitor’s daughter.” Azula slowly and purposefully towards you, like a predator hunting their prey.

“We don’t want any traitors here.”

She continued to stalk towards you, your back meeting the pillar. Even though she was younger than you, she scared you. “You will get what you deserve, traitor.”

Azula sneered before spinning the knife in her hand and plunging the knife into your chest. ---------------

You gasped, springing out of bed while you clutched your chest.

  It was just a dream.

  Cold sweat had seeped through the bedsheets and you groan, shivering in your small apartment. You felt for your chest and, although the knife felt real, it was just a dream.

Pulling your knees to your chest, you silently wept.

  After hearing your mother’s crime and her punishment, you and the rest of your family - your father and younger brother - only saw her briefly one last time in her cell before she was whisked away. The punishment for traitors was death - and her death was a cruel one. You and your family, and the rest of the nation, were forced to watch her burn at the stake, her screams of agony and pain forever etched into your memory.

Soon after, the new Firelord ordered the banishment of your family. You didn’t even have time to say goodbye to your good friend Zuko. They had ripped you from him right before you left, screaming and crying for him while Zuko couldn’t do anything. 

Azulo told him that you were being taken to another palace to be a servant. It made him sad to see his friend go without even a goodbye. He locked himself in his room, crying gently as he wished for his mother’s warmth and your soft giggles as they played. 

It was the last time you would ever see each other.

You got out of bed, sighing when your feet met the cold tile floor, moving slowly to get started on boiling some water for tea and getting a pot of gook ready - just like what your mother had always made for you.

  Years passed and when you were 13, you learned of Zuko’s banishment - the reason unknown to you. There were rumors that the Firelord had branded his own son with a mark - a mark that you knew would come from an Agni Kai. 

This only solidified your opinion towards the Fire Nation at that age - the Fire Nation was hungry for greed and power and would use fire to threaten others into submission. When you were 13, you had nothing but hate towards the nation that burned your mother and destroyed your family. 

You remembered feeling sad for him, and thought about reaching out to him by sending a messenger hawk But would he even remember you? Zuko had never once tried to make contact with you so why would you reach out to him?

But was three years ago, and now, at 16, you could hardly remember your childhood friend’s face anymore.

  The past was a nightmare to you, one where you tried not to dwell for too long. You had made peace of what happened to you and your family a while ago, but certain things still haunted you. You were still angry, sure, but you had come to understand that there was nothing that you could have done.

  You thought that by forgetting your past, you could somehow make peace with it... ...but Destiny is a funny thing. And she had other plans for you.

[p-artsypants]

List of All My Fics!

Every once in a while, I’ll update this list and share it. It is always available on my blog! (I’m up to 54 fics for multiple fandoms! 😱)

Find most, if not more, of these fics on:

Fanfiction.net | Archive of Our Own | Wattpad

(~AU’s, *Finished, ❤️Author’s Favorites)

Kingdom Hearts

~❤️Rage Awakened AO3 | FF.net- Ten years ago, Terra, Aqua, and Ventus lost their fellow apprentice, Sora, in Deep Jungle. Now, they are to return with two new students, Riku and Kairi, to lock the heart of the world. All the while, something watches from the trees. Feral!Sora AU

My Kingdom for a Heart AO3 | FF.Net - The curse of being one of the Princesses of heart, is that there’s always someone out to get you. As Xemnas looked failure in the face, he reached out in a last ditch effort and destroyed Kairi’s heart. Now her friends must travel the worlds again. Sora, to find a way to recover Kairi’s heart, and Riku, to make amends to those he has wronged. All the while, the darkness grows.

Miraculous Ladybug

One Shots

*❤️Amalgam- When an young man is rejected for being ‘incompatible’ he turns into the akuma ‘Amalgam’ able to fuse two people together. And later Adrien and Marinette would debate if it was lucky or unlucky that they got hit. (Also Available in Russian)

*Sing We All Noel- After receiving the worst Christmas present ever from his father, Chat Noir finds himself out on the streets with nowhere to go on Christmas Eve. Thankfully, Ladybug finds him and brings him home.

*Speechless- In a world where everyone has a soulmark, the first words their soulmate will say to them, Marinette is born without one. But Adrien Agreste has two. Curious, considering he’s mute.

*❤️Tunnels of Love- The night started out with an accidental kiss from Adrien Agreste, and ended with her bleeding in the Catacombs of Paris. Ladybug, the wielder of the miraculous of good luck. Yeah right. (Some blood)

*The Reveal That Wasn’t- First Parts My ending to kittybug’s Tumblr Prompt

*What A Mess We’re In- Ladybug has a lot on her mind, and when Chat Noir bugs her enough, she tells him she’s going to confess to her Crush, Adrien Agreste. Chat’s reaction is not what she’s expecting.

*Oblivi-oh no! - A retelling of Oblivio, except Ladybug is the only one to lose her memory. How will Chat deal?

*Bad Day (3 chapters) - Marinette was Ladybug! This was Adrien’s luckiest day ever! Except it wasn’t, because all his good luck was used up in one go. Turns out this might be the worst day of his life.

*One Win, So Many Losses- Marinette was forced to break up with Adrien. It had been a low blow from Gabriel, to be sure. But she was Ladybug. She’d find a solution…right? An alternate ending to Chat Blanc, where Adrien doesn’t Cataclysm the akuma.

*Five Minutes- Gabriel has had enough of all these girls fighting over Adrien. He decides it’s high time Adrien picks one, and arranges the perfect opportunity for him to do so. Each candidate has five minutes to present why they’d be a good girlfriend. Marinette decides to take this opportunity to shoot her shot.

~*Panache- Every eligible maiden was invited to the Prince's ball. That included Marinette, scullery maid in her own household. But her stepsisters destroyed her dress, and she can't go to the ball in rags. Or can she? (Cinderella!AU)

*Perfect, No Matter What-In which Gabriel sets the bar even lower for himself, a reveal happens because of pain medication, and the new guardian actually goes to Chloé for advice.

Long Fics

*❤️Longest Night- (FF.net | Ao3) - The day started out sucky to begin with. Her crush ousted to the class and Adrien. Lila taking pride in exacting her revenge. But by the time patrol was over, a young man was dead, and Ladybug’s identity was at risk. Lila was the least of her concerns. Good thing Adrien was taking it all like a champ. (Rated M for scenes of torture)

*❤️Nine Lives- (FF.net) When Adrien Agreste is scheduled to go to a Military School in Germany, Chat Noir must make a critical decision. Does he give up his Miraculous? Or does he give up his life as Adrien? I’ll save you the trouble of guessing, he gives up being Adrien.

*Tender Words- When Marinette finally gets the guts to confess her feelings for Adrien, some things go so wrong, and other things go so right.

*Integrity- Overwhelmed with her responsibilities, guilt, and drama, Marinette has an emotional breakdown in front of everyone, and even hands over her earrings in a moment of weakness. Only for a few seconds, but the damage was done. Adrien’s pretty quick on the uptake like that.

~Much Obliged- Everyone deals with grief differently. Some take to drinking, others devote themselves to charity. Adrien Agreste? Well, he became a cowboy. Marinette Dupain-Cheng is a witch, one of very few in the world. She knows what it's like to be doubted, and assumed delusional. Maybe that's why they got along so well. Or maybe it's just because they both like big hats. AU where everything is the same, except instead of superheroes, Adrien is a Cowboy and Marinette is a witch. (Unfinished) (Based on a AU by @bugaboo-n-bananoir)

I'll Handle This- “I’ll solve all your problems,” Plagg had said. “You just have to agree to it.” A fixed relationship with his father, Lila to stop bothering him, and Ladybug to fall in love with him? Who wouldn’t agree to that? Except Plagg was the God of Destruction and Chaos and had a more…hands-on approach. Adrien just wants his body back. (Body swap fic)

How To Train Your Dragon

One Shots

The Vikings Have Their Tea (FF.Net | AO3)

Arranged Marriage- Takes place at the beginning of HTTYD

❤️Breathe- Survival of the fittest

~Childhood Friends- At the Sandbox

❤️Easy Fix- In which Hiccup has a bad day

~Fashion Designer- Astrid needs a fill in

❤️Frozen- In Which Astrid takes a Dip and things get frisky (Rated M)

❤️Headache- In Which Hiccup hits his head….really hard

❤️Heir- In Which Hiccup is Picked (Longer version by FateCharms)

Illness- In Which Stoick is a dad

~Illusionist- Trick gone wrong

~In the Walls- In which there’s a poop ghost

~Knocking On The Wrong Door (2) - A chance encounter

❤️Messages- Astrid is Frustrated with Hiccup’s obliviousness

~To Mirkwood- Hiccup is not a dwarf

~Monster Falls- Hiccup and Astrid take a dip

❤️Mute- In which there’s a quiet stranger

~Music Video (ImgHS)- He didn’t expect it

❤️Operation: Lovebirds- In Which the gang makes a plan, and Hiccup gets Drunk

~Over- Too many nightmares

~Partners in Crime- A normal day at work

~Pirate- Astrid is the greatest treasure

~Prince- He doesn’t want to be a broken King

❤️Sorting Things Out- In Which Astrid gets her ducks in a row

~The Dragon and The Dame- Beauty and the Beast Au

The Pit- In Which Hiccup is rescued

Hide and Seek- Part 1

Lost and Found- Part 2

Long fics:

*❤️Infernal Responsibility- Being the son of the chief takes brains, courage, and a lot of patience. But at his father’s the request for marriage, Hiccup decides he has had enough. When he seeks out a life of ease, he runs into more than what he bargained for.

*❤️Roses and Lilies- “Astrid, you and I both know you’re much tougher than I am. You’re more brave, and a better fighter…but just for a little while…could we pretend that I’m the one protecting you?” “Oh gods yes!” (Also Available in Spanish!)

*~What the Water Gave Me- The sea is a wild and dangerous thing, something that cannot be foretold or predicted. Hiccup discovered this many years ago, in human naiveté. Yet, what was meant as a sacrifice became a new life, one like no one could comprehend. He now finds himself once more in the unknowing hands of those that sentenced him to death. He only prays things will be different this time. Merman!AU

*Parasite- Soulsnatcher Dragons are rare but deadly. But, As Hiccup finds out, it’s the eggs you have to watch out for.

*~320 State Street- Gobber’s Goods. A Hardware Store that was rumored to have everything you needed. She thought she only needed a job. Turns out, she needed a lot more than that. (A Modern AU no one asked for)

*~❤️The North Tower- When Finn Hofferson died, Astrid inherited his castle in Wales…and a whole lot more. Something sinister lurks in the North Tower.

*~❤️Boy Toy- AO3 - At the age of 21, Princess Astrid lawfully has to pick a husband. But when the perfect groom is nowhere to be found, she requests the toymaker to create one for her. It’s safe to say that everyone in the kingdom is a little concerned. (Pinocchio!AU I guess?)

No, You Go First- AO3 - The Chief of Berk was a headstrong viking, stubborn and full of pride, and willing to do whatever it takes to keep his village safe. But for a moment, he puts that aside, and listens to his son. In which Hiccup convinces his dad not to make him go through Dragon Training, and the subsequent changes that follow.

*In Due Time- AO3 - As another illness sweeps through Berk, Gothi needs another ingredient for her medicine…one that doesn’t exist anymore. Fortunately, she kept that old spell book around for such an occasion. Big Hiccup is sent to five years into the past, and his younger self sent to take his place in the future. But it’s only a few days, what could go wrong?

Trollhunters: Tales from Arcadia

❤️Arcadia or Bust- In Which Arcadia welcomes back it’s underground citizens.

Teen Titans

Oneshots:

~Big Brother- Don’t turn out the light (Horror)

Dear Jason- Bruce Writes a letter

Just Drawing- Bruce thinks about Robin

The Prisoner- Starfire is Guilty

Of Mustard and Three Foot Purple Tongues- A collection of Oneshots and Drabbles

Long Fics (*Finished):

*~❤️Carol of the Bells- High in the dark Bell Tower of Notre Dame, there lives a mysterious bell ringer. Legend tells of the angel who fell from the sky, and the curse she bares. There are few who know her true identity though; her master, the priest, and the acrobat that performs on the streets below. Based loosely on ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ RobxStar and slight BBxRae

*No Escape- Three years ago, Starfire escaped an Alien race called the Gordanians, to arrive on Earth. They’re back, and ready to put Starfire back where she belongs, behind reinforced Titanium bars. Robin’s not about to let her go…if only he hadn’t got captured first. How does it feel to be the alien, Robin?

*Now you Know My Pain- When the new Villain, Gender Bender, comes to down, the Titans find themselves in an odd situation. They’ve been turned into the opposite gender against their will! Now in order to change back, they must learn to understand the gender they’ve turned into. Rated T for obvious reasons. A great read if you’ve ever wondered why girls or guys do [blank].

*Paint it Black- Robin disappeared three months ago. Now, Jump City’s crime rate is mysteriously being taken care of by a normal, albeit strange, teenage boy who goes by the name Black. As the Titans befriend this lunatic, they begin to see a relation between him and their missing leader. Will they be able to find Robin, or will Black turn them all insane as himself? Actually, contains NO OC.

*Saving Grace- “When I’m done with you, you won’t be able to walk upright or speak coherent sentences and all you’ll see is my mask and my voice repeating in your head…Weak. Richard Grayson, I am not tough, I am everything that you fear.” Happy Ending! Smudge of RobStar. NO Slash!

Other Fandoms

Final Fantasy XV

❤️Requiem for Pitioss-“O King. The god’s have heard your cries. Know that we weep with you. The Oracle’s calling has not yet been fulfilled. But…Lunafreya as you know her cannot return the way she was.” Noctis looked up, hopeful. “But she can return!” Canon divergence from Chapter 9. Happy ending. Some spoilers.

Beauty and the Beast

*❤️Behold the Beast- A Oneshot alternate ending to the Animated Film

Cinderella

*❤️Midnight- “When the clock strikes twelve, the spell will be broken,” the fairy godmother had warned. A retelling of the story, when Cinderella doesn’t escape the ball in time. Oneshot

*So This is Love- What if Jaq and Gus hadn’t made it in time to help Cinderella? A new twist on the ending of the classic Fairytale, and what lies beyond the story. She still gets her happy ending and her Prince, and her step family gets their just deserts.

Sleeping Beauty

*❤️A Love Song Back To Me- Maleficent saw the loophole that stared her in the face. Prince Phillip would break the curse in time, for sure. After all, he was betrothed to Aurora. So in an effort for her evil plan to stay in action, Maleficent takes care of the young prince herself. Phillip never imagined having to live off the land like the birds above. Alternate twist on the classic Disney tale.

Escaflowne

Down Feathers- Hitomi’s depressed. She’s been away from Van too long, he comes back to visit her…but what if something went wrong with the transfer? (Not finished. Never will be finished. Mwahaha) Circa 2012

*Angel’s Wounds- Fanelia’s been victorious in their most recent battle with Basrum. Unfortunately, someone is wounded and just seeks solace in his love that lives so far away. Post Anime.

Momma Look Sharp- With the war between Fanelia and Basrum finally coming to a close, the kingdom is celebrating. The young king, however, is suffering from an experience unlike any he had before. Van finally seeks solace in his wife.

[princessbatears]

Yellow Glow

#Pedros12DaysofChristmas Secret Santa fic exchange for @catfishingmorales​

Lex, my beautiful friend, you are such a treasure! I love seeing you on my dash every day and talking to you often. I hope you enjoy this story about you and werewolf Frankie! -Your secret Santa, Natalie 🥰🎅

Pairing: Werewolf Frankie Morales x Lex ( @catfishingmorales ) Summary: When Frankie comes over to help you put up your huge Christmas tree before the upcoming full moon, you’re not sure why his eyes keep changing color when they look at you Warnings: mild language Words: 1.3k Tags: Were!Frankie, personal werewolf lore, some pining, Lex’s amazing Christmas tree, pizza party A/N: This is a Lex AU of my were!Frankie series

So, so much thanks to my beta @hdlynn​ who helped me make sure this gift is the best it can be 😘

It’s dark when you get off work even though it’s only a little after 5:00. December makes the days feel almost unbearably short. It’s almost the winter solstice, though, and that means the daylight hours will begin to lengthen again.

When you reach your car, you pull out your phone. You’ve got a text from Frankie. Just seeing his name on your lock screen makes your heart quicken.

You open the text. It says: ‘Hey, I got time to help you put your fancy Christmas tree together tonight if you want’

Immediately, you type back, ‘Sure!’ But no, that sounds a little too eager, so you delete and try again, ‘That works for me. You sure you don’t mind?’

You watch the screen. There are the ellipsis of his response, then, ‘No problem. I won’t be able to come over this weekend and don’t want you to have to wait’

‘Pizza?’ you offer, knowing that food goes a long way with most people, but especially Frankie.

‘Always!’

Grinning, you start the drive back to your apartment. As soon as you arrive, you order an XL pizza and quickly give your appearance a quick refresh. You know you’re just friends, but you still want to look your best.

You fix your eyeshadow and eyeliner and add a bit more blush, bringing out the warmth to your brown skin. You also put on a soft blue sweater that hugs your curves in a way that makes you feel sexy and just a little more confident.

When there is a knock on your door, you grab your wallet and hurry to the door to give the driver a tip (you don’t trust corporations to actually give them when they’re paid online). To your surprise, it’s Frankie holding the pizza box with a big grin.

“The delivery gal got here just as I did,” he explains.

“I need to tip her, though!”

“Already taken care of,” he winks as he walks inside past you. You quickly close the door against the chilly air, the scent of pizza wafting through your place.

Frankie sets the box on the kitchen counter before turning to you. His eyes glow a soft yellow. You’ve only seen it a couple times before, but you know it’s because the full moon is coming this weekend. Which is probably why he couldn’t help you with the tree, come to think of it.

When he doesn’t stop staring at you with those eyes, you feel your face getting hot and quickly go to the fridge for drinks. “I got soda and wine,” you offer.

“Soda. My inhibitions aren’t at their strongest right now, don’t like to mix alcohol with that.”

How badly you want to tell him that your inhibitions are super close to going out the window, too. You really, really want to take off his ball cap so you can run your fingers through his fluffy hair. Then, remove his flannel shirt and touch his broad, bare chest.

“You okay, Lex?” he asks, cocking his head. His eyes have returned to their dark brown.

Face heating again, you grab a couple of sodas and offer him one. “Yeah, fine,” you mumble. “Spacing out.”

He chuckles sympathetically. “That’s a real struggle for me right now. I was at work today and got totally overwhelmed by the smell of everyone’s emotions.”

“I can only imagine.” You’re not quite sure what to say. Frankie’s been a werewolf for a couple of years, but you only found out three months ago when he finally trusted you with his secret.

Since then, he’s allowed you to be around him the week before the full moon, the week that his eyes shift to amber, the week he sometimes speaks or acts very strangely, the week he feels vulnerable as his soul prepares to merge with the Wolf’s for one night of every month.

He’s staring at you again with those yellow eyes. What’s he feeling? You want to ask, but don’t quite have the courage. What if it’s something bad?

“You look nice,” he says softly.

That was not what you expected. You spit out the first thing you think of, “The sweater… it’s old.” Smooth. Why couldn’t you just say ‘thanks’?

Frankie pulls the tab back on his can of soda and then grabs a slice of pizza. “My favorite!” he beams, like nothing had just happened.

You also grab a slice and watch happily as he inhales three pieces in minutes. It might be a little thing, but making sure he’s fed, knowing that he enjoys the food you provided, it makes you feel good.

He finishes eating before you, so he stands there, watching you. Nervously, you push your glasses farther up your nose. “I’ve got some cookies if you want.”

Frankie shrugs. “Maybe later.” He’s smiling, his eyes amber yet again.

Finally, you can’t take it. “Are you… is there…” No, no! You can’t ask why his eyes look like that, it’ll make him self-conscious.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“Come on, tell me,” he purrs, voice even deeper than usual.

Hoping you don’t sound like a total jerk, you say, “I’ve never seen your eyes turn yellow quite so much. Are you okay?”

Much to your horror, he blushes, looking at the floor. “I’m sorry, I don’t realize it’s happening. It’s why I tend to stay away from people when it’s almost the full moon.”

Dammit, you should have lied about what you were going to say!

“You’re not doing anything wrong,” you backtrack quickly, touching his arm. “But you said it happens when you’re feeling a lot of emotions and I was afraid something was wrong.”

Frankie shuffles his feet, finally looking back at you. His expression is shy. “I’ve been… for a long time…” He stops, fists clenched as he battles with himself.

Your hand squeezes him lightly, reassuringly. He’d already told you he was a werewolf. What could be harder than that? “You can tell me anything, you know that, Frankie.”

Taking a deep breath, he finally smiles. “You’re the funniest, kindest, prettiest, most amazing woman I know. I really, really like you. So much more than you can possibly know. The Wolf does, too.”

Your brain stalls as you realize he’s confessing to feeling the same thing you feel for him.

“That’s why I keep going yellow.” He points at his eyes. “The Wolf’s looking at you. Respectfully,” he adds quickly. “Very respectfully. But we both think you’re the absolute best. I really wanna kiss you right now, but I just ate pizza, so you might not like that.”

“I just had pizza, too,” you breathe before you can stop yourself.

His smile broadens as he steps closer. “You want me to kiss you?”

“I do.”

His solid arms wrap around you in a way that feels completely different from the usual hugs you share. His hands run over your back as he holds you close to him. There’s a pause just before his lips touch yours, giving you the chance to back out. That’s the last thing you want to do.

The ability to think has vanished and all you know are his warm, soft lips, the way he presses against you, how you’re pulling off his cap and actually running your fingers through his hair. It’s even better than you’d imagined.

It doesn’t last as long as you want, but Frankie’s a gentleman and is never going to push any boundaries. When he pulls back, he’s grinning. “I’ve wanted to do that for so long.”

“Me, too.” You’re breathless, smiling as widely as he is.

“Can I take you on a date next week, after I recover from the full moon?”

You nod excitedly. “Yeah.” A part of you is already panicking about what you’re going to wear, but you force that thought out of your head. Focus on here, on now.

“I can’t wait.” He gives you another little peck on the tip of your nose. “Now, I think I promised to help you set up some fancy huge-ass Christmas tree.”

You laugh, having completely forgotten that’s why he came in the first place. “The box is in my room.”

[rlmfanfic]

Sharing my Jay Knowledge 

As I prepare to retire, I’m clearing out all of my old manuscripts and research material. I wanted to share the treasure trove of Jay fun facts I gathered from listening to the commentaries, BotW episodes, Re:View, interviews, and sampling the Pre:Recs in case anyone would like to use the info to take up fic writing. 

Or in case you just want to know strange things, I suppose.

All of this is from RLM stuff, Twitter, and the old GMP/BSC sites. No reddit, no 4chan. 

FUN FACTS:

Born September 13th 1980

Height is 5’6, Eye color is green (according to the license shown in Where’s Deathlist)

Met Mike and Rich in person at Beef-a-Roo in Rockford, IL in May 2000. They filmed The Trouble with Her Uterus that weekend. Mike played a character named Big K and Rich played a baby named Little Joey.

Jay's first film-making group was called Blanc Screen Cinema. His first movies were such notable hits as The Sign, Clowns and Suicide, Disconnected, Chia II, Rice and Titties, Pervert Goes Home, and The Trouble with Her Uterus.

He sold VHS copies of his early films out of his apartment.

Owns a record player 

Has two cats including a black cat named Regan (after the little girl in The Exorcist) and Nico (named after the woman who sings 'These Days' featured on the The Royal Tenenbaums soundtrack and the Velvet Underground.)

In Jay’s Movie Pervert Goes Home, his character, Arlo Jenkins, cums in his own eye while masturbating. This is the first of TWO occurrences of Jay’s characters masturbating on camera in his films. (The other being in Feeding Frenzy.) 

Saw The Ring at the theater inside of the Mall of America.

Went to UW - Milwaukee for two years. Dropped out. 

Has a little brother and little sister

Went to highschool in Orfordville, WI

Has been to a strip club ‘a couple of times.’

Wants to make Weekend at Bernies 3, but really experimental. 

Wants to love Blade Runner, but doesn’t.

The neon-green button on his black jacket reads “Horror” It’s supposed to be a recreation of the stickers video stores used to put on movies in their horror section. 

Dated the second Honey from The Grabowskis - he met Jack through this ex-girlfriend.

Had a copy of The Pit in his glove compartment for months

Is a craftsman (building sets, etc.)

Can drive manual transmission car

Has a poster of Dawn of the Dead above his desk.

Has a tiny fake skeleton on a chair 

Has a John Carpenter’s They Live poster at his house.

Loves saying “There’s not many ways this can go right” - while filming any special effect shot. 

Had a Pink Flamingos poster in his apartment (Gorilla Interrupted shot here)

Listens to his own Talking Heads Pandora station. Loves This Must Be the Place

Loves Funions “But they just make you smell bad for the rest of the day”

Has owned Tom Savini’s book on special effects since he was a child (Grande Illusions)

Got his first video camera when he was 10. 

Loves Gene Wilder’s delivery of “You know, morons” from Blazing Saddles

Made a series of web shorts in 2003 called Monkey Make Movie. There are 9 episodes.

Favorite TV: Twin Peaks, Rick and Morty, Seinfeld, The Boys  

Favorite Films: Re-Animator/ From Beyond, Escape from New York, Robocop, PeeWee’s Big Adventure, The Gate, Gremlins, Ghostbusters, The VVitch, Day of the Dead, Under the Skin, Ed Wood, Pink Flamingos, Crank 2, Wet Hot American Summer, Big Trouble in Little China, Commando, Galaxy Invader (1985), Shaun of the Dead, Halloween (movie and holiday)       

Favorite Directors: Sam Raimi, James Gunn, George Romero, John Waters, Paul Veerhoven, David Lynch, (formerly Kevin Smith)

Favorite Music: 

“The Pink Room” from the Fire Walk with Me soundtrack. From RE:View “It's so wonderful. I wish that was the soundtrack to my life. I wish I just walked around and whatever I was doing, that music was playing.” 

Nico - These Days

Talking Heads - This Must Be The Place and Sugar on my Tongue  

Oingo Boingo

The Tron Soundtrack 

Songs used in his old films: 

Weird Al - Dare to be Stupid 

Superdrag - Sucked Out 

Donovan - Catch the Wind 

Sum 41 - In Too Deep 

Ass Ponys - Mr. Superlove 

Millencolin - Lozin’ Must 

The Vandals - An Idea For a Movie 

Parasites - Hang Up 

The KGB - Fortune and Fame 

The Ataris - Song for a Mix Tape

Moby - BodyRock

Summercamp - On Her Mind

Allister - Scratch

Ladytron - True Mathmatics

The White Stripes - We’re Going to be Friends

Leftfield - Phat Planet

Hope you enjoyed this bizarre information. I’m sure I’ll be getting a lot of fun messages about this. Yay!

[anogete]

In Between

Hi, folks.  I’m sorry I have nothing to offer as far as fic goes.  Things have been... ::sigh::  You know, I don’t know what things have been.  Not good, not bad.  Just... things.  I wanted to talk--get things out of my head--this morning, but I realized I don’t have a person/outlet who can accept these things right now.  So, I will put them here for anyone who cares to read them.

1) My car blew up.  Well, the engine did.  I was on my way back home with groceries last Saturday, and I lost all ability to accelerate and brake.  So, I puttered out on the side of the road and waited to be saved.  The issue may be covered under the warranty so I had it taken to the dealership.  They’ve had it for a week and still don’t have answers for me besides an offer to lend me a car for free until they can figure out what to do with my car.

2) This deserves it’s own point, though I almost included it on the first point.  I’ve never bought a car without my grandmother.  She was under five feet tall and had a tendency to wear sweat pants and Christmas sweaters year-round.  She smoked Winston Lights and carried a purse covered in rhinestones.  The car salesmen didn’t know what hit them because she wasn’t at all the sweet old lady who would roll over and accept their first offer.  She was hard to read and she wouldn’t give an inch.  She also wouldn’t tell them what she was willing to pay.  No counter offers from her; she’d just tell you to “do better.”  Anyway, she worked her magic when I bought all three of my cars.  When I realized the problem with the engine was serious and might require me getting a new car, I went into a mental tailspin.  Yeah, yeah, I was worried about fitting it into my budget and all that, but mostly I couldn’t seem to cope with buying a car on my own without my grandma there to hold my hand.  I’m almost 39 years old and the thought of doing this without her had me sobbing in the floor.  Except, I didn’t realize my tailspin was due to my grandmother at first.  At first, I just thought I was incapable of handling stress.  Maybe that’s still accurate.

3) While we’re talking about expensive-ass shit, I knew the air conditioner and furnace on this house needed to be replaced sooner rather than later when I bought it last February.  It looks like the time has come.  I managed to find a nice man with very odd hair (think a longer version of the Prince Valiant hair-do, but bright white) through my boyfriend’s dad.  He does this for a living and said he’d give me a discount and do for $5,000 what other places were telling me would cost $9,000.  So, that’s happening next week.  I have the money, but the idea of writing a $5,000 check makes me want to puke.  Ugh.

4) The days are running together.  I’m working from home.  I can’t complain, though.  I’ve got it better than most.  I’m alone all day.  I have a library with a desk.  I can go downstairs and make tea or lunch in my own kitchen.  I’m getting paid my full salary with bonuses.  I can pretty much make my own hours.  The company I work for is taking the pandemic seriously and has told us that we can all work from home until we feel comfortable returning to the office.  Their timeline for “normal” is months.  I don’t think I’ll be back in the office until late summer, if that.  Those who want to return are permitted to, but they can’t use the public areas (kitchen, conference rooms) and have to abide by some strict safety requirements.  And they can choose when and how often they go into the office, working the remainder of the time at home.  So, better than most.

5) I’ve been doing this social distancing thing since March 19th.  It’s not difficult for me.  On good days I’ll exercise (I have a Peloton) before logging into work around 9am.  On not-good days (which seem to be more often than not), I’ll skip the exercise and just log into work early.  Work keeps me busy and I spend a decent amount of my day on the phone with clients.  I go to the grocery store once a week, but I order for pickup.  Someone else does the shopping for me and loads it into my trunk.  This is nothing new.  I’ve been shopping that way for years.  Now it’s just harder to get my usual pickup slot because everyone else has joined the party.  I do miss taking a break from work and leaving my office to grab a coffee and sit outside on a bench downtown.  I guess I could do that outside my own house, but it just doesn’t feel the same.

6) A few months ago, a husband and wife who are clients came in to meet with me at my office.  They’re in their 80s and both were having trouble walking.  They parked in the garage next door and couldn’t find the elevator to exit.  I walked over and escorted them to our office building.  They were both struggling with walking and the wife (Rose) had been fighting lung cancer for a couple years, so I suggested they wait outside and I’d valet their car once we were done.  The thought of making the trek to their car alone was painful to me because it was a monumental struggle for them to walk down a hallway.  Their daughter-in-law called me two days ago.  Rose passed away two weeks ago.  The husband, a former literature professor for a university, was in the hospital with four broken ribs because he’d fallen shortly after Rose’s passing.  He was a Jewish child in Nazi Germany during the war.  He’d told me stories about hiding from the Nazis, surviving off of tree bark and whatever he could find in the forests.  He also jokingly told me that he’d live until he was 120.  Now, it looks like he won’t survive the year.  He and Rose would tease each other all the time, but you could see all that love between them. Whenever I’d call him, he’d ask me in that wonderful accent to wait while he got “the boss” on the phone as well.  Rose thought it was silly that she was “the boss,” but she humored him.  You know, they’re shorties, too.  Five foot, nothing.  Just like my grandma.  Hearing that Rose was gone and Dr. (he’s a PhD) was likely soon to follow just broke my already fragile heart.

7) Fragile heart, huh?  Yeah.  After the car situation and the realization that one day I’m going to have to do big life things without having my grandma to help me, I was feeling pretty raw.  But I’ve been trying to be responsible and do things I’ve been putting off lately.  So, I gathered up all those medical bills from Ferguson’s illness last September.  (Ferguson was my soulmate little chihuahua mix that I had for over 13 years.)  I had pet insurance on him and hadn’t bothered to make the claim because I couldn’t handle it.  But it’s been almost a year so I pulled out the invoices, which were over $2,000, and logged into the website and starting inputting the info to file the claims.  The little box asks for a description of why I took him to the vet.  And answering that question just brought back all that shit like a wave.  I remember reading this nice description of grief and how it is like waves.  At first they’re big and they knock you around and you can’t breathe.  But over time they get smaller and you learn how to navigate them.  Still there, but manageable.  Filling in that box resulted in a bit of a tidal wave that knocked me on my ass.  My boyfriend came home to find me sobbing at my desk like a lunatic..  He’s... not so good with emotional shit.  And I usually keep it bottled up so that no one knows what’s going on inside me.  But some days...  Some days it just overflows.  So, after confirming that nothing terrible had occurred and that I was reliving September 2019, he slowly backed out of the room to leave me with my grief-wave.

8) I want to be one of those succulent people.  You know, the ones who have succulents lining their windowsills.  The dining room and kitchen windows are full of this oddball little plants.  The boyfriend hates it, but I told him he’d have to deal.  I’ll die on this hill.  I’m a succulent lady.

9) I’ve been reading memoirs or, rather, memoirs through collections of essays.  I don’t know if it’s the mental state I’m in or if social distancing has got me subconsciously reaching out for life beyond my head, but I can’t seem to read much else.  I loved Liz Phair’s Horror Stories.  I’m reading The Book of Help by Megan Griswold right now.  I’m determined to procure a signed copy of What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Blacker by Damon Young.  He did a virtual event for a local bookseller recently and they have signed copies available for purchase.  I just need to muster up the will to call them and ask them to hold one for me.  The little snippets of their life and experiences via these memoirs through essays bring me some measure of comfort.

10) I tried to watch Euphoria on HBO.  I managed to make it through the first episode, but I don’t think I can watch more.  I can’t relate, but that normally isn’t a necessity for an enjoyable story.  Maybe it’s just too depressing for me right now.

11) I binged Dollface on Hulu and wish I had more to watch.  Parts of it hit me hard.  I’ve always had trouble maintaining friendships, period.  But maintaining friendships while in a relationship has been damn near impossible for me.  Just like Jules.  Except, I’m not nearly as cool or gorgeous as Kat Dennings.  And I have no friends in this city to go back to.  Just friends at work. 

12) I haven’t worn makeup for 2 solid months.  I’m starting to miss it.  I found old selfies I’d taken in which I don’t recognize myself.  Did I ever look like that?  I must have since here is photographic evidence.  I look like shit now.  I’m forever in yoga pants and a hoodie with half-wet hair from the shower.  Maybe putting on a pair of jeans and a cute shirt and some makeup will make me feel like a human being again.  Maybe I’m not doing as well as I thought in quarantine.  Huh.

13) I hope you all are well.  If you’ve sent me a message, I’m so sorry for not responding.  My mental state has been delicate lately and the silence from me has nothing to do with your kind words.  I promise I read and treasure and appreciate anything that is sent to me.  I’m also sorry for having no offering of fic or a promise of something to come.  I haven’t written since last summer.  It’s been almost a year.  I guess I’m in a dry spell.

14) Since I’ve been struggling with loss/grief lately, I’ll leave you with a quote from Philip Pullman, taken from his novel The Amber Spyglass.  It’s about death, I suppose.  Or maybe just a transition to something else entirely.  It’s nice to think of my grandma and Rose and my sweet, sweet love of a dog falling in the raindrops and riding on the wind through tall grass.  If it wasn’t raining, I’d take my computer outside right now.

“Even if it means oblivion, friends, I'll welcome it, because it won't be nothing. We'll be alive again in a thousand blades of grass, and a million leaves; we'll be falling in the raindrops and blowing in the fresh breeze; we'll be glittering in the dew under the stars and the moon out there in the physical world, which is our true home and always was.” 

[secondhand-trash]

The Many Times He Tried To Kiss You and the One Time You Kissed Him

Secret santa event (by @bnhaclaimedmysoul​) the gift for @energi-ball 

A/N: what’s Christmas without a fic about mistletoe and a title that is longer than my will to live?;) To the person who is getting this, I hope that you like this and I somewhat lived up to your expectations as your secret santa!

Description: Kirishima almost gave up on creating the perfect moment for your first kiss when the holiday cheer decided to give him a helping hand.

Pairing: Kirishima Eijirou x reader

Word count: 2017

-

You two had been dating for far too long for this to even be a proper concern but right now, Kirishima Eijirou was having the biggest inner conflict as to when was the perfect occasion to have your first kiss.

Now before you laugh, like literally everyone else when he did so little as brought up the fact that it had been months since you accepted his confession but you two had yet kissed, please consider how your boyfriend was literally one of the most precious human beings out there and for him to share that moment with you under a circumstance that was anything less than perfect would be a dishonor to him, to you, his family, his heroic moralities, and his utter most aspiration of the positive display of manliness.

Well, that was a bit extra, wasn’t it? But at least you get just why he was so torn now. The point was, he wanted it to be a moment you could look back on years later and thought of it with a smile. A sweet reminiscent of young love that blossomed into something more because although it was yet another thing that people teased him about, he had full intention to follow the manliest promise there could be, ‘hand in hand, till the day you grow old’.

Basically, if it does not look like a scene straight out of a rom-com, it was not good enough.

The first time he even had the urge to initiate anything was during one of the rare moments that you two had the classroom to yourselves. Classes had already ended and on this rare weekend where there were no training after school, everyone had eagerly ran out of the classroom as soon as the bell rang to latch onto the free time that they probably wouldn’t get in a very long time if the chance was missed.

You did not need to go out, the times when everyone else was gone and it was just the two of you was the time you treasured the most.

Sitting down at the desk in front of you, Kiri looked up at you whilst laying on your desk. The angle made him look like a little puppy and you were sure that you could not get anything done if he kept staring at you like that. 

“What are you doing?” He asked, leaning his head on his folded arms as he tilted it to the side, watching you with curiosity when you pulled out a few pens from your bag. 

There were a few things that could melt your heart. Seeing your boyfriend who was big and beefy and had every part of his appearance screaming pure display of masculinity being such a big contrast to the way he looked and acting like nothing less of a soft guard dog by your side took up most of them.

“Trying to write the cards that I have yet to finish.” You smiled and started scribbling on the few envelopes that you had prepared. School had been so hectic that you didn’t have the energy to sit down in front of a desk and use your hand to write after each long day. Your plan was to grasp at each spare minute you could get to see if you could actually get all of them done before break.

Letting out a soft hummed, Kiri gently grabbed the wrist of your writing hand and lifted it just a bit to see what you had written. There was a (badly) drawn doodle of All Might at the corner of the card and he chuckled, knowing immediately who the card would be going to.

“Is mine in there as well?” He asked, motioning to the many empty cards that were littering all across the wooden surface.

Would it be malicious if you tease him a little? “I’m not planning to write you one.”

“What?” He exclaimed and pouted, resembling the look of a child who was scolded, “Why?”

Your boyfriend was very easy to understand, no hidden agendas or honey coated words, only genuine feelings behind everything he does. Now that he had his head lowered and only his eyes peeking out from his arms, you were starting to feel bad. “What can I possibly write on yours when I already tell you everything I feel about you?” You said and tried to get him to look at you by poking the sharp edges at the top of his head.

“Yeah, but...”

“I’m just messing with you, yours was the first one I wrote.”

You grinned as he immediately sat his back straight, absolutely beaming at you. How adorable, you thought as you reached out to caress his cheek, feeling your own fluster even more as he leaned into your touch.

The sun was setting outside and the golden sun casted a warm glow to everything it could shine on. You looked gorgeous, your eyes sparkling with affection and the golden hour doing wonders to your skin. Not that you weren’t always gorgeous, Kirishima thought to himself and felt a slight warmth creeping up to his cheeks.

Kissing in an empty classroom with a sunset by the window was romantic, right?

When he slowly got up and leaned towards you, your breath hitched at the back of your throat. You shut your eyes tight in anticipation when his face was closing in on yours. You heart was pounding when you felt his hot breath on yours.

You screamed when the loud sound of the door sliding open startled you. You opened your eyes only to see that Kiri had fallen back onto the chair, looking equally startled as you were.

Stiffly turning your gaze to the door, you paled when you realised that the intruder of your moment was none other than your teacher who looked rather displeased and tired as usual.

“Can you two get this somewhere that no one would see?” Aizawa sighed, rubbing his temple as he speak, “Now leave, the campus will be closed in 5 minutes.”

Your face was nearly as red as your boyfriend’s hair when you hastily grabbed your stuff and walked pass your teacher as you two left the room.

You know what people say about bad things coming in threes? Only in this case, the powers from above decided that failing three times was not enough.

The second time he tried to kiss you, you were at an arcade. Kirishima simply could not help himself when you cheered as you hit the target, the excitement on your face and the way you were breathing heavily only added to how lovely you looked. When he wrapped one arm around your shoulder and pulled you closer, he was almost certain that this would be it. Until his hopes were rudely shattered when a small child pushed the two of your apart to reach his favourite game. Although he was smiling when the child’s mother apologized profusely, he was secretly screaming in frustration inside.

The third time it happened, it was right after training. Training to be a hero was rough, trying to be good at it was even rougher. As the alarm indicating that the time was up blasted through your ears, you could not control yourself but to lie on the cold hard floor and collect your breath. From the corner of your eye, you could see Kiri jogging his way to you with breathing just as irregular as yours. Sweat was dripping from his body and you had no shame in letting him know just how much you appreciated that sight. Nothing gets him going like knowing that you appreciated his form that he got from pure hard work. As he pulled you up from the ground, he helped you steady yourself onto the ground. You leaned on his shoulder, not caring about how he was covered in sweat and grim at all. When he leaned down, the both of you jumped in horror when the speaker suddenly started blasting from the top of your heads.

“CAN! YOU! TWO! BEHAVE! YOURSELVES! WE ARE STILL HERE????”

It was when the soul wrenching, ear piercing noise voice of Present Mic stabbed through your ear drums that you remembered that the training was watched by literally everyone in another room. They would never let you live it down.

By the fifth time, he had given up trying. Literally anything that could go wrong happened. Hell, he was sure that he slipped on a banana peel at one point and we all know that it was quite realistically impossible.

The odds were not on his side, and he had decided to just let it be.

Taking a sip of your drink, you laughed as you watch whatever shenanigans your classmates were up to.

When Mina suggested to hold a Christmas party at the dorm, no one expected it to turn out like this. Somehow, they had managed to completely revamp the yard in just hours time. You could barely recognize the space you live in when you walked in to see fairy lights hanging everywhere and a huge table set up in the middle with refreshments piled up on it. 

It seemed like the holiday spirit was not enough to stop your friends from being chaotic. Bakugou was yelling at Midoriya as usual, but he still shoved whatever the green-haired kid gave him into his pocket. Sero challenged Kaminari to pour the entire bag of doritos in his mouth and someone should probably stopped them before someone die choking. Todoroki was attempting to create snow with the analysis of Yaoyorozu and Iida while Tokoyami sat at the side, saying that someone of darkness like him was not one for the cheer but you could see him smiling at the mess as well. All in all, everyone was having a good time and for the first time in forever, you felt more like an average teenager than a hero-to-be that lives on the edge.

“Not gonna join?” You smiled as you felt the sudden warmth that radiated next to you and looked to your side to see Kiri with an amused grin.

You shook your head with a laugh. “No, I much prefer watching.”

Humming in response, he followed your gaze to the rest of the class. They sure were a fun bunch to be around, no doubt. 

His heart flustered when he felt a sudden weight on the side of his arm. Leaning onto him, you yawned as you smothered your face onto his arm. “I’m starting to get a bit tired.”

Gently tugging a piece of your hair behind your ear, he asked in no more but a whisper, “Want me to tug you in?”

“Please do.” You said and held onto his arm that was wrapped securely around your waist. As you reached the glass door to the indoors, there was a sudden shout from afar that made you snapped your head back in question.

“Oi, Kirishima!” Kaminari yelled with both hands around his mouth and gave his friend a big thumbs up, mouthing a good luck. 

The two of you looked at each other, completely puzzled as to what made them so excited all of a sudden. Sero laughed and pointed at the top of your head. Following his pointing fingers, your eyes widened when you saw the small plant hanging at the door frame.

With the roars and wolf whistles from your friends, Kirishima looked down at you but avoided your gaze. “We can just go if you don’t-”

He was cut of by the crisp sound of your laugh. You cupped his cheek and he froze at the contact. You looked stunning under the lights.

“Merry Christmas.” You whispered into his lips before sealing the distance between you and him. He smiled as his hand found its way to the back of your head, savouring the much waited kiss. Although the cheers of your friends filled the air, it felt like it was just the two of you.

It could not have gone any more perfectly.

[5-falsehoods-phonated]

Bit of a content update yay!

I’m actually a little ahead of schedule for things I want to work on and get done, so this is what’s going on:

I have one more sort of request to work on for Bad Things Happen Bingo and the rest I’m working on independently. Projected plan is to have the card done by May or June. 

Dee Little Snake is hopefully going to be updating twice to three times a month to make way for a couple new projects I want to start. Summary for it if you don’t know what I’m talking about:  Janus uses age regression as a way to destress but has little control over it whenever he grows upset. Trying to keep a secret like that can be hard when you’re only four years old, and thus family bonding ensues in a way nobody expected, least of all Deceit. projected completion month will either be in July or September.

Overgrown Metal will continue indefinitely as I don’t know exactly how many chapters of it there will be. Updates will continue to be once, maybe twice a month.

Random one shots will be honestly whenever I think of them and whenever I have time. If I ever post prompts for requests please feel free to request something! I have a much better schedule in place for writing now so until I start school or a job it isn’t going to take me months to write something-

I’m also participating in the TS Big Bang writer/artist challenge this year so that’s something that’ll be up sometime in August.

One more thing to say is I’m going to start making audiobooks of my fics bc I miss reading out loud and it’s nice voice exercise because I’m starting to lose it from not using it so this will help with that woops.

So that’s everything that’s already in the works but I also have two other projects I want to get started but with everything else- it won’t be happening for at least a couple months. That being said I’m in the process of outlining two new multichapter fics:

Untitled space pirates au. Think a cross between Treasure Planet and Little Nightmares without the horror elements of the latter. Qpr Intrulociet (Remus x Logan x Janus) with no real content warnings but will be put in if any apply later on. Fluffy, happy ending.

And Ghosting, a ghost au with romantic Intrulogical (Remus x Logan). Content warning include death, mild horror elements- though I may try to have someone beta read it to see if that would need to be changed- and emotional angst. Conclusive, semi-happy ending.

I’m undecided on which to start first so if anyone would like to vote on it that would be very helpful ^-^

[we-are-only-halfway-home93]

Wild Salt Air 1- Outer Banks Fic - [JJ x OC]

Summary: The ocean is dark and deep, hiding all her treasures. JJ catches the eye of one such hidden creature. 

Characters: JJ x OC, John B x Sarah Cameron, Kiara x Pope, Topper, Rafe

Warnings: Brief mentions of rape (not of a main character), suicide, near death experience 

Word Count: 3728

AN: So I watched Outer Banks, like, forever and a day ago and JJ is my favorite. I mean, when is JJ not the favorite. Anyway, I got this idea in my head that JJ gets saved by a mermaid and they fall in love. It’s not going to be very long. I was going to make it a one shot but the beginning is all background information so I decided that it was going to be maybe two or three chapters instead.

I based my mermaids on the story of the goddess Atargatis. Here’s a website that goes into more detail about her:

Atargatis the First Mermaid

I also based it on a story that I swear I heard somewhere about how the sirens based on Greek myth were created when women jumped overboard instead of being taken by pirates. I swear I heard that somewhere but I cannot find it anywhere. 

I also made this story non canon compliant. John B and Sarah are together and so are Pope and Kiara. They didn’t search for treasure and Ward Cameron didn’t kill John B’s dad. This is mostly going to be about JJ and his mermaid but I just wanted to make it clear that it’s not compliant with the tv show. 

Anyway, enjoy!

Wild Salt Air

Chapter 1

She was called many things.

Nereid

Mermaid

Nymph

Siren

She had but one name that she had been called as far back as she could remember. 

Dahlia

She didn’t remember much from before her life in the water. She remembered where she was born, she remembered her name and she remembered her death. 

She was born in Denmark to humble traders in 1770. She grew up on the coast learning to swim and to fish from her father. Her mother taught her how to bake and to sew, womanly endeavors. 

Her father traveled often, leaving for months at a time on trading vessels. She’d begged to go with him every season and every season he would say no, maybe next year. Her mother always said it was too dangerous. Terrible things happened to a woman at sea. 

Dahlia didn’t care. She possessed a love for the water she’d carry with her into death.  

The year she turned 16, her father finally let her accompany him on his voyage across the sea. He said it was a simple trade journey, delivering a cargo of beef, pork, sugar, butter and so on. It would be months and she would be one of the only females aboard. She didn’t mind, she remembered. Just the joy of being with her father was enough to make the journey worth while. 

They were sailing along near the coast of the colonies when they were attacked. 

They were set upon by pirates and most of the crew was killed near instantly. They were not equipped with more than a handful of fighting men. They were a trade ship after all and most of the crew were merchants and fishermen. Her father had been one of the first to die, huddled as he was in a corner. He’d been shielding her from the attack and his death had exposed her.

Dahlia was one of only three women on board. The captain’s wife and the first mate's mother made up the rest. The captain’s wife had been sequestered in the cabin early in the fight being subjected to unspeakable things. The first mate’s mother had died quickly, falling on the sword of a pirate as she ran. 

Dahlia was unlucky enough to survive the initial attack. The pirate captain was fascinated with her. He’d twisted her hair around his fingers, stroking the nearly white strands with dirty nails. He’d commented on her eyes more than once, astonished at their indigo color. He’d remarked several times on their shifting hue in the light. He’d said they’d reminded him of the ocean and its constant changing waves. 

When he began speaking of taking her with him aboard his own ship, she knew that her life was forfeit. She could not survive at the whims of another. She could only imagine the terrible things he’d planned to do to her and dread had speared her heart. 

His first mistake had been turning his back on her. She’d wanted to attack him but she knew she was no match. She was too small. She couldn’t take on any of his crew either. They had too much experience and she had no weapon. Her only choice, the only way she would be free of him, was death.

While his back was turned, she’d made her way to the side of the boat. The same side that the pirates had boarded. She’d stood on the edge, looking down at the sea. 

She would always remember how calm the water was. The waves lapped at the sides in the gentle breeze. There hadn’t been a cloud in the sky. The sun had been shining down on the deck, warming the wood and stinging the soles of her bare feet. 

A perfect summer's day.

She’d heard the captain call out to her so she’d turned. He had been standing a few feet in front of her, one hand outstretched. He didn’t try to move towards her.

He called to her again, flexing his fingers once towards him.

She’d met his eyes with her own and fell back, landing hard in the water.

She remembered closing her eyes, feeling the currents carrying her away. She remembered sinking lower and lower as her lungs began to burn. She had opened her eyes and watched as the sun grew further away as she sank. She remembered opening her mouth to take in a lungful of air when a dark shadow dove towards her. Then everything went black.

She doesn’t remember much after that.

It was as if she had woken from a dream and her life had always been as it was under the sea. 

Time moved differently beneath the water. 

Years felt like days and months felt like hours. Time went by and different ships sailed the seas. 

New ships, bigger ships, louder ships. 

Fewer men died at sea. Women even less so. 

Her sisters began to die off. One right after the other. 

As long as their lives were, they were not immortal. They lived for hundreds of years but they still grew old and gray. 

Their numbers dwindled until there were just a few hundred of them on that side of the coast. 

Dahlia lived a relatively solitary life. She had a tribe that she belonged to and others that would share with her but she liked being alone. 

She may have chosen to die at sea but she didn’t choose to become a predator. 

She loved her sisters and her life below the water but she never developed a taste for killing like they did. She didn’t relish in consuming the unsuspecting sailor who crossed their path. She didn’t enjoy hunting down men who sailed into their territory. Unlike her sisters, she still had some memories of her life before the sea. 

She knew that not all were evil. She remembered men like her father who lost his own life protecting hers. She didn’t think it was fair to kill all men because of a few bad ones. 

She remembered what it was like to walk above water and feel the sun on her face. 

The sun was warm and inviting. The water was cold and unforgiving. 

She had loved the sea in life but death reminded her of the warmth of the sun and all she had to offer.

She didn’t like it but she would do what she had to to survive. 

She often found herself watching the sun shimmer against the waves, her brilliant light blurred by the rolling sea. Sometimes, if she reached out, she could feel the warmth of her rays just barely brushing the skin of her palms. 

Oh, how she missed the sun.

The moon didn’t hold the same warmth as the sun. The moon was cold. The moon hid more than she revealed. 

Because of what she was, she was forced to lurk in the darkest depths of the water where humans couldn’t see. Horror stories travelled through their tribes faster than the changing tides. Stories about some of their kind being discovered and taken to the surface only to be tormented and butchered by humans. 

In her sisters’ eyes, humans were the enemy. Evil creatures put on the earth to destroy their kind. She didn’t remind them that they once used to be human. 

Because of the humans, her sisters felt that they couldn’t travel during the day. It was safer to move at night. Hunting at night offered easier pickings. The weaker males didn’t last as long in the night. It made it harder for them to be seen, too, so they were less likely to be caught. Dahlia didn’t agree but she held her tongue. She was the minority among her kind. 

She didn’t count how long she’d been what she was. She knew that it had to have been years since she passed from her earthly life into her sea life but she wasn’t sure exactly how many.

She used the ocean activity to gauge the passing of time and to distract her from her unhappiness. 

Boats traveled further. They didn’t have to use oars anymore. Boats got bigger as well. Faster. 

Women started to frolic in the sea the same as men. Their bathing costumes grew smaller and more revealing. They created games in the water. 

Small boats that they would sit on individually and glide across the surface of the water. They chased each other on these contraptions, sending spouts of water into the sea as they traveled.

Big, long, boards that men and women would stand on and ride the waves. Small boards that would do the same. Skinny sticks that people would strap to their feet and then be pulled along by the boats. 

So many amazing things that Dahlia only dreamt about enjoying. 

It was on one of those days when she saw him.

She’d been hovering contently above an outcropping of reef, clinging low to its base, her tailfin slowly flicking from side to side. Her eyes scanned the ocean above her, watching the people play. Men and women, boys and girls, all of them were enjoying the ocean that day. 

She caught him out of the corner of her eye.

He was riding the waves on his board, dissecting them as they cut into his path. He sent foaming spray up every time he twisted the back end of the board. 

It was the sun that made him stand out. It shined off his body like wheat on a summer's day. His hair glistened in the light, sparkling as he crested each new wave. His body was browned by the sun, a new trend that she thoroughly enjoyed. 

Men and women alike were tanned. When she was a human, it was frowned upon for anyone to allow their skin to darken in the sun. The only people who did it were the ones who worked in the fields all day. Farm hands and servants. Any proper lady or gentleman would never allow the sun to darken their skin beyond its natural creamy complexion.

She found that she liked the browned skin of these new people. The way the sun licked their flesh was utterly fascinating. 

His skin was dark and wet, shining in the sun. 

She could tell he was strong. The way he kept his balance on the board showcased his core muscle strength. His legs were solid pillars of power as he steered the board through the water. She caught a glimpse of his hands when he briefly touched the surface on one of his passes across the waves. They were big and long and cut through the water like a blade.

She didn’t realize she’d followed him down the coast until he began paddling into shore. She was no longer covered by the reef and had exposed herself to anyone who happened to be swimming by. 

She found a large rock close to the beach that afforded her some level of protection. She poked her head out above the water just enough to watch him run ashore. 

He met another man on the beach. This man was sitting with a pile of what she assumed were their possessions. He had long dark hair and some kind of dark shield covering his eyes. The golden man ran out of the water and up the beach, slapping hands with the man sitting. 

She watched as they gathered their things and left the beach, all the while the gold one shook water from his hair and glistened in the sun.

She found herself looking for him after that day.

At first it was just every once in a while when she found herself watching the water but eventually she would stop every day and watch the waves. She found that the more she stopped the more likely she was to see him. 

She learned new things about him when he was on the water. She learned that he was stubborn, falling off his board and getting back on every time, never letting the water defeat him. She learned that he was funny, making his companions laugh when they played together. 

Mostly it was his spirit that made her love him. He rode every wave like it was the most important thing he needed to accomplish. He sailed the ocean like it was what he was born to do. He looked ready to conquer the world some days. Others it looked like the world had conquered him but he always rode the waves with a determination her father would have been proud to see on any of her suitors. 

It was when that thought first crossed her mind that she realized she may be in love with him. 

Her kind didn’t fall in love. There were no males of their species. 

They were created when the goddess Atargatis jumped to her death after the death of her beloved. The water would not conceal her beauty so she was turned into a half-woman, half-fish, forever roaming the waters alone. 

This tragic love grew through the centuries into despair and death. Women who jumped to their untimely death from any vessel at sea would be given the kiss of Atargatis and turned into a half-woman, half-fish, forever roaming the sea, killing unsuspecting sailors and men when they crossed their paths.

She was given one such kiss and forever bound to the water. 

She could become human again, if she so desired. 

If the pull of her heart was ever strong enough, and she gave the kiss of Atargatis to a man, she would forfeit her extended life and transform back into her human self. She would save the life of her human man and, in turn, become human herself.

There were only whispers that this had happened before. Not one of her sisters to recall if one of their kind had ever actually bestowed the kiss of Atargatis onto a man. She didn’t even know if it could be done.

She would try though. 

It really was only instinct that drove her to do it. She didn’t intend to give him the kiss of Atargatis but it did happen. 

It had been a dreary day. A storm was coming. She could feel it in the water.

The waves had been angry all day, beating the coast without mercy, washing debris onto the shore and back out again as they retreated only to bombard the sand with more fury. 

It was on days like this that her sisters took shelter far beneath the surface of the ocean where the gods’ wrath couldn’t reach them. 

Dahlia liked days like this. 

These were days where she could swim freely near the surface without fear of being seen.

Humans were less likely to venture into the water when the waves were this angry. 

She was swimming along the drop off when she saw golden legs splash into the water. She jerked back and darted away, retreating far from human eyes. 

When her heart stopped racing, and she was well hidden behind an outcropping of rocks, she lifted her head out of the water and searched the coast. 

The air froze in her lungs when she saw her golden boy cutting through the waves on his board. 

The dark gray clouds moved menacingly towards him, his frame shrinking as the waves rose and crashing around him. 

She could just make out the lines of his from her distance. His brows were drawn together in a deep scowl and his frame was tense. His eyes were wet but not from the ocean and his lips were nearly bloodless, he pressed them together so hard.

He was angry. 

She didn’t know why but she didn’t care. 

Behind him, a towering wave rose up, dwarfing his body against its deep backdrop. She saw it happening just seconds before it really did. 

The wave crashed down on him, dragging him down into the depths of the ocean before he had time to blink. 

A cry escaped her lips and she dove down, frantically searching for him beneath the black waters. 

She swam across the ocean and down, diving further away from any light as she went. Her eyes adjusted easily but her golden boy still remained out of sight. 

Her eyes grew heavy and her chest tight as she searched the waters in a desperate bid to find him. Her hair swirled around her in frantic tendrils as she whipped her head around. 

Just as she felt that hope was lost and her golden boy was gone, lightning lit up the sky and she saw the outline of a body floating gently just a few feet from her.

Her heart leapt with joy and she darted towards him. She wrapped her arms around his chest and flung herself towards the surface as fast as her fin would carry her. 

She broke the surface and desperately searched the shoreline. Several feet to her right there was a stretch of beach with several small hills obscuring part of the short from view. She needed to be as hidden as possible.

It didn’t take her long to reach the shore even with his additional weight. She pushed him up as far as she could. She settled herself at his side and pressed a hand to his chest. He wasn’t moving. 

She laid her head where his heart was and heard no beating. She felt tears come to her eyes and rush down her cheeks before she had time to stop them. She closed her eyes and nuzzled against the side of his chest, begging Atargatis to save him.

A deep calm settled over her and she opened her eyes.

She sat up and gazed down at his face. He could’ve been sleeping. 

She stroked her fingers down the plains of his face, tracing the smooth slope of his nose and hard angle of his jaw. She ran her fingertips over his eyebrows, shaking off the dampness that lingered. She dragged her thumb over his full bottom lip, tugging it down and clicking her nail against his teeth. She smoothed her hand across his face, tracing the shell of his ear. 

She leaned down, bumping her nose against his. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. He smelled of salt and sand. The aroma lingered in his sinuses and she savored it. 

She pressed her forehead against his, bracing herself.

She touched her lips to his, the barest hint of skin against skin. 

He tasted like the salt of the sea and sunshine. 

She pressed harder, willing herself into him. 

After what felt like several minutes, she pulled away, stroking her thumb over his cheekbone. 

She didn’t even know if it would work. She’d only ever heard rumors. She hoped it worked. He was beautiful. He was the light of her sun. He shined bright upon her under the sea, allowing her to feel that much more warmth from the sun. He brought a newness to the ocean that she hadn’t seen in a long time. He made her feel alive again, so much more than the predator she’d been turned into. 

She felt a shift in her center of gravity, like a piece of her she didn’t know was missing finally locked into place. A cooling sensation followed. It started at the crown of her head and slowly worked its way down her spine, settling over her. It was then that she knew it had worked.  

She watched as the color returned to his cheeks. His eyes began to move beneath his lids. His fingers flexed against the sand but still his chest did not rise with breath. 

“JJ!” She looked up when a shout echoed through the tense air. 

Four people came down the beach, frantic. One she recognized as the long haired man who’d greeted her golden boy on the shores so many weeks ago. The others she’d never seen before. 

There was a dark skinned boy whose hands were clutching the back of his head in desperation. An olive skinned girl who cupped her hands over her mouth and shouted again, “JJ!” 

The final person on the beach was a tanned girl with golden brown hair flowing down to her waist. She clutched the hand of the long haired boy and frantically searched the beach. 

A strangled gasp resounded beneath her and she looked down. 

His eyes were unfocused as he gazed up at the sky. His chest heaved with each breath that he took. She stroked her hand down the side of his face and he jerked his head towards her. 

She hovered over him, really gazing down into his face for the first time. Until now, she’d only ever seen him from a distance. He was beautiful then. Now he was striking. 

His crystal eyes shifted in and out of focus, staring up at her. He brought a hand up to cradle hers against his face. 

“JJ!”

She looked over. He followed at a sluggish pace. They were getting closer. 

She looked down at him. His face was turned towards his friends. She glanced back over at them before she dropped her lips down to his, placing a tender kiss on the corner of his mouth. He tried to move, to react but she didn’t let him. 

She slithered down his frame, her hand trailing across his chest as she disappeared back into the water. 

She could feel the strength leaving her tail fin and knew it was only a matter of time before it was gone, replaced by human legs. She needed to find a place away from here where she could shift under the camouflage of the beach.

She sank below the surface and watched as his friends discovered him supine on the shore. She watched as they lifted and carried him away. 

A flame of hope sprang up in her chest when his head turned to look over his shoulder. She hoped he was looking for her. 

She felt her lungs tighten and release, a sure sign that she was rapidly losing her abilities. She ducked down under the water, swimming with minimal strength to the cover of a cave only a few yards from where she’d left her golden boy. JJ. 

With hope burning bright in her chest, she settled in her cave and let her transformation take hold.