#once i actually get it written down it tends to move on to something else

[of-nyon]

don't look now folks but I may have just gotten the bare bones of ~The Scene~ actually written down :o

[asimpwithfreetime]

!Spoilers for Avatar:The way of the water!

Could I get a story about yandare!Tsireya and yandare!Lo'ak being head-over-heels metkayina!reader who is completely oblivious to them? where they're going to confess but when they are done making her gifts and meat to give them, they're missing? Could they confess after she randomly goes missing for hours and the entire village is looking for them? Could she be found ranting to an akula(it's the animal that attacked lo'ak in the movie)? Pretty please🙏

Finally I can develop my yandere headcanons of Lo’ak and Tsireya 😈

-Is she mine or yours? -Ours (communism, ahem!, I mean, Yandere! Lo’ak x Metkayina! Reader x Yandere! Tsireya)

Content warning: English isn’t my first language and this hasn’t been proofread yet, I might be delusional at this point, sometimes the things I write make it seem like Lo’ak is horny for the reader, but my intention was to make him look obsessed, maybe I should practice my English more and actually learn more words.

General warnings: yandere behavior, oblivious reader, aged up! Lo’ak and aged up! Tsireya, polyamory, courting, double courting, cursing

Another day started for the Metkayina clan the Sullys had decided to stay with. War was over finally and everyone was happy and alive.

Neteyam ruffed Lo’ak’s hair. “So Tsireya and you are a thing now?” The eldest son smiled while laughing.

“Shut up!” Lo’ak shushed him while punching his arm. Neteyam laughed wholeheartedly, wincing when he felt the pain of his wounds still too fresh to move properly.

Lo’ak got up and went down to the beach where Tsireya awaited for him. “Lo’ak I must tell you something” she said hurriedly. “I do too”.

“I see you, Tsireya, but I also see someone else. I don’t know how to explain it is just-“ he was cut off “a connection, as if Eywa wanted us three together” Tsireya continued for him. Lo’ak was dumbfounded.

“So you also feel like this?” He asked. His eyes shone, he couldn’t hide his excitement. “Yes” she smiled, in response he kissed her forehead. “Is it Y/n?” Lo’ak asked.

Tsireya looked surprised, “Y-yes”. “We could court her together” he said.

“She could be ours” Tsireya said, the tone dropping. As they continued to talk their yandere side got wilder, but they both loved each other and had put their target on Y/n. Something else shone in their eyes every time they planned it.

Y/n was a normal Metkayina, with her duties and chores here and there. She had helped alongside the others in the war and she had tended Neteyam’s wounds. That way, Lo’ak got to know her. As he was often visited by Tsireya she also got to know the sweet Metkayina that stole their hearts.

But her sweet nature and her soft act made them both fall in love. And maybe even more than in love. She sparked a new sensation in them, making them obsess over her, they need to know where she is, who she is with and everything.

Speaking of which, when she saw Lo’ak and Tsireya on the beach she swam towards them. “Hey guys, how is it going?” She asked. “Is Neteyam doing better?” The way she worried, the cute concern written all over her face, she was perfect.

Even though, when they heard of Neteyam, the way his name rolled out of her tongue, they almost scoffed. “Oh, he is doing okay and we were going to look for cool shells, care to join us?” Tsireya said, smiling up to her. She nodded. “I have just finished my chores so, why not”.

Lo’ak helped her up to her ilu, even though she could have done it herself. He wanted to hold her. Just the short lived feeling of his hands in her waist was driving him crazy.

Once they were all riding their ilus, they took Y/n to a reef full of beautiful shells. And while Y/n was distracted looking at some fish, Lo’ak and Tsireya took it upon themselves to find gifts for her.

“Y/n! Look!” Lo’ak said, he gave her a (your favorite color) shell. It sparkled under the sunlight. “Oh, it is beautiful, Lo’ak” she responded. He saw the stars, he loved her voice and the way she said his name and the way her eyes looked at him. Her body, her frame, her personality, everything was a blessing from Eywa. He loved her and wanted her.

When she was about to give the shell back he said “you can keep it, it is a gif”. That was the beginning of the courting, even if Y/n didn’t have a clue.

From that they on, the would appear around her at random points of the day, asking to help her, gifting her stuff or showing off their skills. She thanked them with a smile, thinking it was just friends giving gifts to friends. She even returned the gesture with shells she had found and things like that.

“Bro” Neteyam called Lo’ak over in one of his and Tsireya’s courting sessions. “What?” The younger sibling huffed. “I think she isn’t noticing your advances, she is just being friendly” he deadpanned.

“No she is not! She is accepting our advances” Lo’ak responded angrily. “Look at her” Neteyam said. Lo’ak turned, it was true. You were playing with Tsireya on the water, splashing around.

Tsireya was blushing while Y/n played with a child-like nature. She was just having fun with a friend, while Tsireya didn’t notice.

After that, they planned the day that they would confess to her, no more playing.

The day came and as Lo’ak and Tsireya prepared everything, time passed. When it was time to search for Y/n they came with the surprise that she wasn’t there anymore.

“Where the fuck is Y/n?” Lo’ak grunted desperately. “I don’t know” Tsireya sighed. “We should look for her”.

Soon the whole village was searching for her, nobody could find her. Tsireya and Lo’ak went way over the reef to find her. Tsireya signed towards Lo’ak underwater “I see her, let’s be quiet”. Lo’ak nodded and followed her.

They hid behind some rocks and saw Y/n swimming supposedly alone. Until a huge Akula came over. Lo’ak started swimming towards her until he felt a tug on his tail. The Metkayina girl signed for him to stop and wait. He, pretty against his will, went back down.

“You wouldn’t believe it” Y/n signed to the akula. “There is an omatikaya boy and a Metkayina girl who are always with me” she told her friend happily. Lo’ak and Tsireya were dumbfounded.

“They are nice and always friendly, but I think I like them” she signed with fast movements. Tsireya and Lo’ak smiled at each other. The akula softly pushed against Y/n in a loving and caring movement. “You know how excited I can get” she laughed.

[eyesofshinigami]

Leave It All Behind

Rating: G

CW: None

Tags: Established relationship, fluff, new beginnings

Prompt: For @acasualcrossfade "Love is having hope for the future together"

WC: 1112

Written for @steddielovemonth Day 12

Steve stands in the middle of his empty bedroom, hands on his hips, trying to untangle the knot of emotions in the pit of his stomach. He’s not sure how to feel; as much as he hates this house and its shadows on the wall, it was still home for most of his life. They made some good memories here. Late night movies with Robin, hosting Hellfire for the club, and he and Eddie’s first time right there where the bed used to be. 

But, on the other hand, he can’t wait to get out of this place. Not just the house, but this town; he struggled with the idea for a long time, feeling like he was abandoning the kids, but they called him on that pretty early on. Now that the gates were closed and the Upside Down had collapsed in on itself, El promised that there was nothing else they had to worry about. No more fighting. No more saving the world.

They could just be people again. 

Steve’s not entirely sure he remembers how. When he thinks of his life over the last four years, it’s mostly a blur of blood and nightmares that have left him a little changed, a little broken. He knows things and sees things that he would never wish upon another human being, and most days it feels like he would never be free of the marks it has left on him.

But. But. 

The car is packed. Eddie’s van has been sold, since it would be too big to drive in the city. Their whole lives have been taped in boxes to bring with them to the apartment waiting for him and Eddie in Chicago, along with Eddie’s record store job and Steve’s waiting teaching program. 

Now he just has to say goodbye.

“You okay in here, Stevie?” Eddie calls from the doorway, his footsteps light across the beige carpeting. “What’s on your mind?”

Steve sighs. “Just not sure how to feel. I hated this place, but it also…” he trails off, not sure how to put it into words. It’s complicated.

“It kind of feels like letting go of something important?” Eddie finishes for him. Of course Eddie would be able to find what Steve was trying to say. Months of living out of each other’s pocket and loving each so thoroughly tends to do that to people. “I get it. As much as I would love to see Hawkins burn to the ground in a blaze of unholy glory… I think I would actually be sad about it.”

Steve can’t help his chuckle. “Yeah. I’ll just be glad to get gone, you know? Leave this place behind once and for all.”

Eddie wraps his arms around Steve from behind, pulling his body into a gentle sway. They’re about the same height, but feeling Eddie pressed against his back like that always makes Steve feel small and loved and cared for. “Going to be a whole new world, baby boy. Just you and me and the Big City! And, you know, maybe Robin and Nancy when they can make it down.”

That idea settles something inside Steve. Robin and Nancy are heading to Boston, three days after he and Eddie hit the road. The kids will only be a four hour drive away, practically nothing in the grand scheme of things. They’ll be fine without him, he knows, and he’s glad that thought doesn’t make him want to curl up and die anymore. 

“I can’t wait to do this with you,” Steve whispers into the empty room, turning around in Eddie’s arms so that he can rub their noses together. This wasn’t the life he had planned on having, but he’s so grateful that he gets to have it. He never thought he would find happiness and peace in someone like Eddie; frankly, he never thought he’d find it at all. He had spent so long convinced that he was going to be just like his dad, angry and bitter and mad at the world because he was trapped in a life he didn’t want but thought he had to live. 

Not Steve. He shed that shit the moment that demogorgon came after them in the Byers house, slowly shaping into the person he is now. A person moving to Chicago to start a life with the man he loves more than life itself, who is planning on being a teacher and starting a garden on their little rooftop. 

A person he can be proud of. A person he can learn to love like Eddie does.

“And I can’t wait to do this with you, baby. No one else I’d rather do this with. The words are whispered against Steve’s lips, like a secret just for the two of them, even if they both tend to wear their love on their sleeves. “Just think, in like… ten hours, we’ll be unpacked in our new place and we can break in our new bed tonight. Scare the neighbors, you know?” Eddie grins against his mouth.

Steve rolls his eyes and shoves him back, even if he loves the pleasant little shiver Eddie’s words produce. Their place. Their bed. Their life together. “Come on, you menace. Let’s go say our goodbyes and get this show on the road.” 

They walk down the stairs hand in hand, after Steve gives one last silent farewell to this room, this place. One day he’ll be able to put it away, fold the memory of this place up like a letter and hide it in the back of his drawer, never to think about it again. Today? Today he lets it hurt, just a little. 

They give hugs and kisses and noogies to the assembled crowd that’s here to see them off. Their going away party had been the night prior, a perfect send off that had Steve crying into Eddie’s shoulder when they went to bed in Eddie’s trailer for the last time. It was perfect, all that he could ask for. 

It’s not forever, but it’s definitely time. Steve’s ready. 

He climbs into the driver’s seat and gets settled in, giving a few more last minute waves as Eddie climbs in on the other side. He starts the car and pulls down the driveway, trying to swallow the lump growing in his throat. 

It hurts, but in a good way. Kind of like the way a healing bruise feels when you flex the skin. Painful, but bearable. Especially when Eddie takes his hand and holds it over the console, squeezing it tight as they make their way out of Hawkins and into their future.

Together.

[fun-k-board]

What type of Cards Against Humanity players would the Mortal Kombat X Kast be?

Note(s) : I have not played this game fully and I also haven't written for these characters before, this is almost definitely inaccurate and cringe, but I'm free.

Kung Jin -

Goes the dark humor route, but plays it with a complete straight face, he does laugh, but purposefully never at his own cards because he thinks it'll be 'suspicious'. It becomes a tell to see what his card is. He never picks what the person choosing would find funny, which means he usually never gets any black cards.

He will absolutely rage quit, or just try and get others to rage quit by being snarky and incredibly salty about his losing odds.

Takeda Takahashi -

He's not extremely dark humored (?) in his cards, but one of his cards made Liu Kang faint once. He typically goes to dad humor, the ones where you laugh at them but don't actually pick them.

He's never actually angry when he loses, sure, he's a bit salty especially if he finds his cards funny, but, at the end of the day, it's just a game.

Cassie Cage -

It depends on a, the black card, and b, the person choosing. She can win easily if it's her parents or Jacqui, she knows their humor, but if it's someone like Kitana she's screwed. Very 50/50 with her win chances.

She'll only get angry if Kung Jin wins, they're wlw and mlm hostility.

Jacqui Briggs -

Her cards are always hit or miss, she either puts her best card down on a prompt but someone else has a better card, or she saves her good cards until it's too late. She tends to get little to no black cards.

Never gets angry at a loss, she's pretty competitive during it, but afterwards even if she loses, she's just happy to spend time with everybody.

Kitana -

Gets confused on the point of the game, she's trying to keep her dignity and plays the less Inappropriate cards, whenever a particularly dark humor one comes along, she sneaks it back into the pile and picks a different card. She never gets black cards.

Doesn't get angry, she finds the game a bit pointless anyway.

Mileena -

The amount of horror this lady thinks of on the daily can't compare to any cards in any deck, she somehow always brings the worst one out, hardly ever wins because people are too horrified to pick her cards.

Will attempt murder if she doesn't win every round.

Johnny Cage -

Always goes the outwardly dad humor route, he rarely ever picks dark humor cards to put down unless that's all he has. Usually people can tell it's him, so he only wins if the person choosing likes him.

He says that he's only pretending to be salty as a joke, but in reality? It definitely makes him lose pride for at least one evening. Everyone can tell. And they all make fun of him.

Sonya Blade -

She plays with dry yet witty humor, ones you'd expect to see in a teen drama series or something, she's always relying on what she thinks her friends will find funny, and gets black cards regularly.

Will only rage if someone gets a black card and she finds the card genuinely unfunny, she can get over losing if she has a laugh over the card they chose, but if not, she's holding that over that person's head for years.

Kenshi Takahashi -

He's more of a judge, makes sure nobody commits murder, and makes sure nobody cheats. He can't play for obvious reasons, but he does secretly root for certain players, and may or may not excuse cheating if it means someone he doesn't like will lose.

Hanzo Hasashi -

He's silent the entire time, doesn't pick dark humor cards, and doesn't pick any funny ones, either, it's always a deadpan and scorchingly dry card, he's never won a single black card, everyone can tell it's his card, and nobody will pick his.

He's treating it more like a game of chess, and so when he loses he sort of just goes 'welp, could've been smarter.' And moves on.

Liu Kang -

He doesn't find any cards funny to be honest, and he mostly relies on how other people react to see what they find funny, as such, he has no black cards until the end, where he makes a comeback so insane everybody fully believes he cheats.

Won't rage if the comeback fails and he loses, however, he will get annoyed if Kung Jin wins. ( No but why was this man so outraged in every intro like calm tf down )

Kung Lao -

He won't be too sour if he loses, he's past the point of being insecure at every loss, but he definitely does try too hard to be funny. It makes everybody cringe. He gets at least one or two black cards on a bad day, but he plays too much into his humor rather than the person choosing.

Jackson Briggs -

Plays a lot of dry and witty type humor cards down, or ones where it's an actual answer to the card that would make sense, he's a sort of mix of Hanzo and Johnny, so he typically gets a few black cards, and wins maybe.

Doesn't get angry at all, he's just happy to be here.

[slowd1ving]

Hi! Swanon here 🦢

I loved reading your yapping to my question. I feel like i understand your Moze much better now ! I love that he feels so much yet doesn't know what or why. Im so excited to get him in 3 days.

I also casually think about your dan heng fic that was the prologue to the blade one. And i had another question ! Hopefully, you dont mind. I was wondering if things would have gone Dan Hengs way if only he had confessed in that closet. I remember the protag was like annoyed at the thought of Dan Heng asking someone else to teach him the game, but then was ok with the friends with benefits arrangement.

Like would the protag have accepted, or had to have some time to think about it. Would the protag be more or less willing to move in with him. Also, would the Astral express ever tell the protag about Dan Heng's feelings, or do they respect his privacy that much. Would Kafka get in the way, or would she let things happen, however that goes.

I dont know if it's noticeable, but i love thinking about all the possibilities and timelines. Im also sorry for yapping. Take your time. I 6 read Ratios' fic yet, but im sure it will be a great read again. I just need to get in a Ratio mood, haha.

SWANANON HIII

I'm glad I was somewhat coherent in that longass Moze analysis since I have so many damn thoughts about this man. (I caved and used my pity for feixiao and got both of them; her playstyle is genuinely so fun?? sorry ratio lmao)

Speaking of that Dan Heng fic I was actually reading it today to just deconstruct how I write... crazy.. Honestly it would've absolutely gone his way had he confessed; when I tend to write an MC I usually lean to a somewhat blunt personality (that occasionally comes of as quite crude), so MC is someone who values communication. Alas, Dan Heng is nothing of the sort... alas. Sorrows and prayers. You're right, I did try to hint at MC's jealousy when thinking of Dan Heng pulling someone else into that closet, because both of them were sort of tiptoeing into 'feelings' territory. Dan Heng knew but was in verbose denial; MC just felt irritated about it and likely just blamed it on the drinks lmao.

Anyways with both the Dan Heng and Blade series, their lack of voicing how they feel about something makes them both veryyy entertaining to write for. Like quiet, simmering jealousy? Elite. MC's also written to be quite an intense and adaptable character to complement theirs, which is also why he doesn't mind being fwbs with both. (WENCH!!! VILLAGE WENCH!)

But again, the MCs I write tend to value dialogue more, while also brushing off any advances of characters. Therefore any feelings he had for either would've been pushed down subconsciously since both Dan Heng and Blade are SHIT at having heart to hearts.

Genuinely, in terms of a relationship, whoever confessed first would've had a better chance. Like MC has chemistry with both of them so it would've been quite easy to form a relationship with either, or at least I hope it reads that way. Yes, MC would've moved in with Dan Heng 100% (even in that one blade one he was READY to jump ship lmao).

To answer the Astral Express part, I feel like they wouldn't outright tell reader. Like they'd absolutely make fun of Dan Heng for it (and for his lack of game tbh.. because how is shitcommunication #2 confessing first... bro... one job.. you've got a chest in your mouth instead of WORDS). And Kafka... she's just there for the entertainment tbh; that one section where I included her just terrorising Dan Heng by being all touchy with MC... lmao she's fully using the best friend privileges just to kick this emotionally constipated doofus into action

But honestly, she's rooting for Blade 100%. It's just a consequence of being closer with him naturally (she'll support MC either way tbh); like the poor guy's smiling for once he no longer looks like a wet cat... please date this man... he has not smiled once since starting his engineering degree (joke) (not really) (this will be me next year)

Which is why she's helping him more proactively by essentially dragging the two of you together; like she's still kicking Dan Heng into realising his feelings by dragging you away from him, but that's away from him, unlike with Blade.

speaking of both of them there's actually a little both of them fic idea festering in my mind.... gosh... anyways...

for the alternate timelines, same. Not just because there's a grillion different ways for a scene to play out, but it's so intriguing to think what MC might've done differently. Bro MC getting caught with Blade by Dan Heng would be MAD icel. (...anyways)

ratio mentioned ratio mentioned

For the fic you're referring to there will be some slight aventurine / reader so... but honestly it's more focused on worldbuilding initially rather than romance

anyways slowd1ving yap has concluded I'm currently working on an inbox request and on chapter 4 of lament of ouroboros hell yeah

[perpetualexistence]

Sea Monster AU: First Meetings

I'm still getting a heehoo giddy feeling with all the interest for this AU! I haven't even properly written things yet and you're all being very welcoming! I'm seeing likes from people I've been following in the TD fandom! I got my first reblog from someone else who understands the joys of big monsters and monster x human tropes! Aaa! It sparks joy in me.

I promise to use this joy exclusively to give Noah a Bad Time. He's one of my favorites, so he must suffer. That's the rules. (Don't worry, Alejandro will get to suffer too, we just haven't gotten that far yet.)

I'm going to start with how the two meet and their relationship up until Alejandro decides to reveal his true colors. So no real content warnings for this part except for manipulation and intimidation, especially regarding size. Given the premise, and the fact that Alejandro is Alejandro, this is going to be true of most of this AU.

Now let's see if I can properly use the Read More button to get into the juicy deets.

<- Start/Prev | Next ->

Noah lives in a small town on the coast of Lake Wawanawka. In days long past the town was a major shipping port. It was fighting with a rival city for dominance in the region. A massive storm set the town back, and now it only exists as a place to stay that's cheaper than the big city up the coast. The town government has been trying to revitalize the town by turning it into a tourist trap, but that's only resulted in tourists trashing the place at night while they spend most of their time and money in the big city. Still, money is money, so the townspeople have little choice but to put up with it.

Noah's recently been accepted to the one community college in town that's kind of helping to keep the town afloat. He plans to coast through an associate's degree with ridiculously easy classes. Then he's going to use his intelligence to get a scholarship to a private university and will never look back on this town. Only exception would be to come visit his family, though at this point only a few of his older sisters still live at home. Some have already left the nest just like he plans to.

Noah doesn't have many friends, so he tends to go off on his own. He's managed to find one spot on the beach that's inaccessible to most. It requires a tight squeeze through rocks. It's the one thing his wiry frame is good for. Tourists don't know about it so they can't ruin it. Townspeople who do know about it typically don't bother. He's taken measures to make it look as unappealing as possible. Can't have people taking away his best spot to get away from a rowdy house and read in peace.

That is, until a particularly bad storm hits. He returns to his reading cove, ready to complain as he has to either deal with or ignore the debris that's sure to be littering the place. It's while he's kicking away debris that his foot comes across something soft, small, and....tan? He moves the debris away to see something that would look like an eel if not for the top half being a human that looked around his age.

He reacts calmly when this thing groans and looks directly at him asking "¿Qué pasó?" He takes a second to breathe, and think rationally about what he's seeing in front of him.

He certainly doesn't scream like a bitch, fall on his ass, and attempt to crab walk away.

Once Noah actually calms down and accept the fact that this is not a psychotic break on his part, he and who he learns is Alejandro get to talking. Fortunately in English. Alejandro reveals that he swam too close to the surface and got swept in the storm. He doesn't know where he's ended up. He took a really nasty blow to the head too because he doesn't even quite remember where he came from. Alejandro would greatly appreciate if Noah could tell him where he is.

Noah's got some questions about all this. Ignoring the fact that merfolk apparently exist (a phrase he never thought he'd utter), Alejandro's an eel. Literally. Eels aren't native to Canada. So there's no possible way he could be from Lake Wawanakwa. Noah suspects he's an electric eel, which would place him somewhere in South America. When he points this out, he swears he sees a spark of electricity in Alejandro's tail. It confirms Noah's suspicions. It also confirms that Noah's not about to touch Alejandro with his bare hands. Alejandro commends him for being smart enough to help jog his memory. He remembers humans referring to the name 'Peru' in the waters he comes from.

He reveals that magic does exist in this world, as is evident by his very existence. There must have been magic in the storm that brought him here. Sadly, he doesn't know how he can use it to get himself back home. Not that it matters much, he can adapt to living here. Still, he begs for Noah not to tell anyone else that he's here. Noah has been so kind to him, but Alejandro isn't quite so sure how other humans will react to seeing him.

Noah's still quite suspicious about Alejandro. But the alternative is either A) a townsperson finds Alejandro, sees him as their ticket out of this town, and does who knows what to him for fame and money. Or B) a tourist finds Alejandro, and either does like the townsperson, or flips out and calls the cops, leading to who knows what kind of military experimentation assuming the cops don't just shoot him on sight.

So curse Noah's bleeding heart, he tells Alejandro that if he's going to stay in shallower waters, he'll be better off staying here. He warns him about the tourists and the townspeople. If he's going into deeper waters, then he's going to have to watch out for the fishermen, the cargo ships, and the ferries that go across the lake. Alejandro just grins and promises to repay Noah's hospitality in full one day.

And thus, Noah begins to meet Alejandro in secret. Mainly because he refuses to concede his favorite reading spot. Noah does some research on electric eels, and comes prepared with rubber gloves any time he wants to get close with Alejandro just in case. Alejandro isn't always there, but when he is he insists on interacting with Noah. He gets interested in the books he sees Noah reading and reveals that he doesn't know how to read. Noah can't just allow for that, so he teaches the Peruvian how to read English. He tries to teach him how to write too, but that's more difficult given the size difference and Alejandro constantly being wet. Noah will take to reading aloud to Alejandro, and when Alejandro learns how to read, he takes to slithering his way in between Noah and his book so he can read along, taking care not to touch Noah's skin.

Their relationship continues to grow as they talk about their respective lives. Noah tells him about humans, and Alejandro will tell him things about merfolk. When Alejandro goes to deeper waters, he comes back and describes the old shipwrecks he's found closer to the bottom of the lake with a certain wonder in his eyes. He'll even start to bring little treasures back from them, first for himself, but eventually for Noah as well. They get to make fun of tourists together and watch them from afar. Noah's dog Ark comes in at one point, and Ark loves Alejandro. Alejandro doesn't feel the same way about Ark and complains about the slobber. At a different point, a stray cat makes its way to the beach and Alejandro learns that he loves cats. And that cats don't feel the same way about him. To them he smells like a fish and looks like a snake, so they'll either try to claw at him or flee on sight. This saddens the Alejandro. He vows to one day successfully pet a cat.

Then, things take a turn seemingly out of the blue. Alejandro reveals that he has a surprise he wants to show Noah. It's a skill he'd lost for a while due to the nature of his arrival. He's been practicing it in private, but he thinks he's finally recovered it fully! He begs for Noah to indulge his theatrics by covering his eyes. It will be the last time he asks like this. He promises. Noah rolls his eyes, but begrudgingly agrees to do so.

Noah hears a lot of shifting. Of rocks. Of waves. He hears something scraping the ground around him. He feels the air around him grow charged. The hair all across his body is standing on its end. He can't help but remember those initial doubts he had about Alejandro.

"You may open them now." a familiar voice rumbles. The accent is as thick as ever. It's louder than a tiny body should be able to produce. It's coming from the wrong direction.

It had been so nice to be wrong. If he keeps his eyes closed, he can keep being wrong. Schrödinger's idyllic beach life. He's smart, and he has a friend with no strings attached. He's smart, and he knows patience is not one of Alejandro's virtues.

Noah opens his eyes to gaze at the massive beast staring down at him.

Were his teeth always so sharp? Alejandro spoke of hunting, which implied he needed teeth sharp enough to rip into flesh. Noah had never really paid attention until he was looking at a full set of teeth, each the size of his hand. They grinned in a facsimile of a warm and inviting smile he was accustomed to.

Noah forced his gaze further upward to check if Alejandro's smile met his eyes. He recognized those eyes. When Alejandro had first started bringing his treasures, he would talk about them nonstop. Noah had tried to grab one of them to get a closer look. Alejandro had immediately retreated to the water, holding onto his treasure as if his own life depended on it. He'd felt an odd sense of something he later recognized as jealousy. Which was strange because it was jealousy over an object. But it was an object that had commanded Alejandro's full attention, full protection, full possession.

What a fool he'd been to feel jealous of something he was now the target of.

"What do you think?" Alejandro asked like a dog that had just brought home a dead cat and was now begging for praise. He closed the distance between them by bending down and slithering back to meet closer to Noah's level.

Noah's throat closed. He felt his face betray him as his ears and cheeks began to flush red. This is fear and a confused and conflated mixture of adrenaline and oxytocin brought forward by an intense situation, nothing more.His feet remained loyal. He backpedaled, only to be stopped by a soft wall that hadn't been there a second ago. He pressed a hand against the wall while maintaining eye contact with Alejandro. That was what you did with wild animals wasn't it? Certain ones at least. He didn't if it would work with eels. An electric eel will wrap itself around its prey, ensuring that there are at least two points of contact for maximum effectiveness. Once established, it will send a shock to incapacitate its prey before consuming it. If he wheels through facts he picked up about eels to prepare himself for this situation, he doesn't have to acknowledge that the wall that dwarfed him from behind was a hand.

"Noah, por favor." Alejandro purred. "We're amigos. I haven't forgotten the times we've spent together. They've been delightful! And so very informative."

Noah had been too concerned about protecting Alejandro from humans. He taught him how to read. He warned him where the people frequented. He taught him how modern ships run on electricity. Alejandro shared that he wished he could have met the ships he'd visited before something else had sent them to the bottom of the lake. All of these red flags only served as the pins and needles holding Noah in place.

"And more importantly, I made a promise to you! A Burromuerto never breaks their promises. Not even to humans." Alejandro suddenly tilted his hand forward, forcing Noah to stumble backwards into a cupped palm. He pulled Noah closer until his face engulfed the entirety of Noah's vision. He let out a breathy sigh right onto Noah. "It truly is a shame that you're a human in my new hunting grounds. I could allow you to simply stay if you weren't. I have no doubt you would enjoy literally ripping apart los estúpidos turistos with me just as you enjoy verbally ripping them apart."

Noah felt an index finger ruffle the top of his hair. On instinct, he moved his hand up to smack it away. His eyes widened as he realized what he'd just done, but Alejandro only chuckled. "See what I mean?" he continued. "But, sadly for both of us, I can't let it be known that I let a human go without a fight. I have a reputation to uphold. However, I will reward your hospitality with something I will never offer to another human again. Porque eres tan precioso para mí."

Alejandro carefully placed a thumb under Noah's chin to keep his gaze focused on the former. His claw rested against Noah's right cheek. The sharp tip faced away from him, but that could change at a moment's notice. "You have the privilege of convincing me why you deserve to live."

And Noah knew he would have to choose his next words very carefully.

[beaker1636]

Let's Get Deep - Ryan ft. Justin

AN: Here is the requested Ryan threesome fic! I actually wrote one with Ricky first instead of Justin but something just didn't feel right at all so I changed it to Justin and I lowkey love this. The card game they are playing in the beginning is Let's Get Deep After Dark, which is a real game. My husband and I have actually played it ourselves. Anyway, enjoy the pure smut that is ahead.... over 4000 words of it, my longest fic I have written to date!

Thank you for the request, I absolutely loved writing this one!

“Why are we even playing this dumb card game again?” Ryan asks you, playfully teasing you as you sit next to him on the bed.  Both of you are getting tired of the dumb questions that this game has.

“I don’t know, to get to know each other more? Apparently we know each other too much or some shit.  Try one of the deepest cards, maybe it will be better,” you answer, playfully shoving his shoulder.

“Or we skip it and do something else.  I can think of other ways we could get deep with each other,” he looks over at you with a smirk.  

“We already did that today, humor me please,” you roll your eyes at him. “I spent 20$ on this stupid fucking game and would like to get some use out of it. I’ll even read the next question.  Have you ever been romantically involved with a friend's sibling?”

“No, but I was with one of my sister's friends if that counts. What about you?” he asks, curious.  He is going to assume no, because you have always been a bit shy since he has known you but you could prove him wrong.

“Yes actually, my first girlfriend was my friend's sister… anyway, ask yours I don’t want to go into details,” you answer, glancing away from him.

He reaches out to take a card, and by the grin growing on his face you are terrified of answering this one already and you don’t know what it is. “Okay, this one is definitely more interesting than what we were pulling earlier.  What is something in the bedroom you have always wanted to try but haven’t?”

You freeze, turning bright red on the spot as you glance away from him. “Nope, you were right, this game is stupid, let's do something else.”

“Oh no baby, you insisted we keep playing so play.  What is your answer?” He grabs your arm, trying to get you to turn back towards him. “I won’t judge, I’m open to pretty much anything, you know this by now.”

“Yeah but it's weird, and I’m happy with what we already do and-”

He cuts your words off with a soft kiss, stopping you from overthinking like you tend to do.  He pulls away only once he feels your body relax a little bit against him.

“Fine, I- I’ve always thought a threesome would be interesting, just once,” you admit softly, glancing away from him in fear of his reaction.

“That’s it? That is what you were scared to tell me? I expected it to be something really fucking strange with as nervous as you were,” he tries not to laugh at how flustered you got over a relatively minor thing. “So with another guy or a girl?”

“I mean when I have thought about it it has always been with another guy,” you say softly, moving the cards so that you can move closer to Ryan.  Your instinct like always when you are able to when embarrassed or upset being to hide your face in his neck.  His arms slip around you when you do, knowing that you are uncomfortable but also curious how much he can get out of you before you shut down.

“So you want to be trapped between me and another guy is what you are saying? Does this have to do with the being dominated thing that you like or?” he asks, lightly tickling your sides to try and get you to loosen up some.

“No, I am done answering your questions.  This game is done,” you groan, not giving in to him at this time.

“Okay, would it help if I told you one of mine?” he asks you softly, trying to get you to unwind a little bit, show you that you have nothing to be embarrassed over.

You nod your head from where you are at, still not moving much as you continue to take comfort from being close to him.

“I have always thought that having someone catching me doing stuff with a girl, and staying around to watch would be hot. Maybe I’ll just have to arrange for both of us to get a chance to try what we want sometime,” he says, hoping that him admitting this will open you back up to the conversation at hand.

“Nobody has ever caught you with a girl before? Not once in all your years of touring?” you ask him, now curious. You’d expect this to have happened at least once by now.  

“Oh I’ve been barged in on, but they have never stayed to watch the show… or have joined in with what was going on,” he says, rubbing circles on your back now.

“Oh, how would you even arrange it anyways, who would agree to this?” you ask him, curious if he had someone in mind.

“I know someone who is into you and has been for awhile, I could easily convince him to join us.  Don’t ask who though, I’ll tell you if or when this happens,” he says with a chuckle, moving to kiss your forehead.

“Now come on, one last round before bed please? I leave early in the morning and won’t see you for almost a month,” he said, moving to kiss you, but leaving a slight gap between the two of you.

You answer by closing the gap and moving to straddle his lap.  The conversation may have gotten you about as worked up as it did to him. 

Yeah, the way you are grinding on him already tells him the conversation definitely did get to you.  He’s going to have to have a chat with Justin when he sees him tomorrow.

A Month Later

Ryan stands behind you, wrapping his arms around you as you both stand in the greenroom, waiting for the bus to come around to give everyone a ride back to the hotel for the night.  He is really glad that you are joining them for a couple days, having missed you while you have been a part.

“I found someone who is willing to play along with what we talked about, if you are game of course,” Ryan whispers in your ear, quiet enough that nobody would hear him.

He chuckles when he feels your body tense slightly at his words, how you flushed slightly as well.  You hadn’t expected him to bring up what you confessed to him that night a while ago, he hasn’t mentioned it once since then.  

“Really? How is this all going to work?’ You say softly back, eyes scanning the room to make sure that nobody notices your conversation.

“Well after we all get back and shower he will join us in the room.  We will have a little wine to calm mostly your nerves and then we will start with him watching for a little bit before he joins in… assuming you are still okay with all of this.  And no, I am not telling you who is joining us yet, I want it to be a surprise for you” he says softly, lightly nipping at your ear lobe after speaking.  

“And if I decide after we start that I change my mind, that I don’t want this?” you ask, turning  yourself to face him with a shy look on your face.

“Any of us can stop what is happening at any point, no hard feelings,” he says, pulling you into a soft kiss.

“Okay,” you agree softly, jumping when you hear someone yell that it’s time to load the bus and head to the hotel.

Time skip to when shit is starting

You step out of the bathroom, having changed into a set of lingerie that you brought for Ryan, so that when they remove you from your leggings and shirt that you will look halfway decent.  You may not know who he added to the equation but you still don’t want to look like a slob.

It is then that you notice that Justin is sitting in a chair next to Ryan waiting for you, instantly you can feel your desire for what is to come building.  Truthfully you have always found Justin very attractive, and if you had to choose someone from the band to do this with you are glad that it would be with him.

“Why don’t you take a seat with us, have some wine to help relax a little bit before we start this,” Justin suggests, noticing that you seemed to stiffen when you found the two of them sitting there. 

You nod, sitting down and accepting the glass that Ryan had handed to you, taking a few sips as you sit on the bed.  Watching the two of them talk like what is about to happen isn’t happening, like nothing is any different than usual between them.  You are starting to get nervous, not really talking to them but rather observing, something that Ryan noticed.

“Baby, this isn’t going to work if you are trapped inside your own head, relax.  We aren’t going to start anything until we know that you are alright,” he says, turning towards you as he rests a hand on your thigh, lightly rubbing circles with his thumb trying to get you to relax.

“Okay, I’m sorry,” you say softly, feeling like you have ruined the mood by overthinking shit again.  You genuinely do want this, even more so now that you know that it is Justin who is joining the two of you.  

“Why don’t you start with her, she will relax more if you are starting things and you have already told me what the limits and rules are.  I’ll watch and jump in once she is more into it,” 

Justin suggests, glancing over at the two of you. “I think that’ll be the easiest way.”

Ryan looks at you, as if asking permission if he is allowed to start doing this.  When you give him a slight nod his lips are on yours.  Slowly at first, coaxing you into it as he pulls you onto his lap, straddling him.  His tongue soon meets yours when he feels you relax more, your hands now wandering down his chest.  You let him slip your shirt off before he removes his own, you hadn’t noticed that he was only in his boxers until your fingers meet the top of the material when they settle on his waist. 

Now that you seem relaxed and more into the mood Justin moves to stand behind you, one of his hands moving to toy with the thin strap of your bra.  Watching how you move yourself against Ryan the more and more needy you get. 

“Am I allowed to touch you y/n? I need to hear you tell me yes before I will,” Justin says softly in your ear.  Now pressed closely against your back, sandwiching you between Ryan and himself.

You pull your lips away from Ryan’s to gasp out a yes, suddenly aware of just how close you are to both of them.  A hand moves your hair to one side, you aren’t sure whose, before Ryan settles his lips against your neck, nipping and sucking at the spot that he knows you love.  

You don’t think about what is happening anymore, feeling Justin's hands move to cup both of your breasts, squeezing and caressing them through your bra before pulling the cup down under one of them.  His fingers move to tease your nipple, making it harden from his touch, pinching it between his thumb and forefinger. 

Ryan’s hands reach around your back, unhooking your bra to get it out of Justin’s way.  He thought that he would hate watching you enjoy his friend's touch but it is really turning him on, especially with it making you grind yourself harder against his growing length.  Your bra is flung somewhere, you aren’t sure where.

“You should stand up y/n, we can slip your leggings off.  Show Justin how good your ass looks when there is nothing in the way,” Ryan whispers, his hot breath hitting your neck right where there is now an angry mark forming.

You don’t answer, rather you stand up, letting the two men step on either side of you. Ryan is still in front of you while Justin stands behind you, Ryan now sliding your leggings down your hips, wanting you out of the material.  

When they’re off his lips find yours, kissing you again while Justin removes everything but his boxers and then steps up close behind you.  His chest pressing into your back while his hands slide along the curve of your ass.

“Shit, you were right.  Her ass does look really nice like this,” Justin says, moving his hand so that he can step closer to you, letting you feel the bulge that he is now sporting against your ass.

You shudder when you feel his fingers slip around to your front, sliding around between you and Ryan as he starts to circle your clit through your panties. You can’t help yourself when you start to squirm your hips a little bit at his touch, his lips now settling on your neck, opposite the side that Ryan already marked so that he can start to form his own.  Ryan already gave him the go ahead and you don’t seem to be saying no.

Ryan’s hands move to your chest, starting to toy with your nipples while Justin continues to tease your clit lightly, both of them turning you into a mess between the two of them.  Both of them more turned on than what they expected to be, both of them enjoying that they are making you enjoy yourself.

Justin's fingers trail a little lower, one of them now barely dipping into your entrance before pulling back. “Shit Ry, she’s already so fucking wet,” he groans against your neck.

“She definitely seems to be enjoying herself,” he breathes against your lips, pulling away hoping that you will say something.  You have been much too quiet tonight so far and both men are ready for that to change. 

“I-yeah, I am enjoying this,” you sigh out.  Justin slowly continues to play with you, now slipping your panties to the side so that he can directly rub your clit, teasing you more and more.  Knowing that you are growing wetter and wetter from his touch. 

“Why don’t you turn around and show Justin how much you appreciate what he is doing to you, you’re allowed to kiss him baby,” Ryan murmurs, moving slightly away from you so that you can turn around and give some attention to the taller man behind you.

You turn around, pulling on Justins hair slightly as you pull his lips to yours, pressing yourself against him, his hands moving to settle on your waist as his tongue finds yours.  Both of you moaning into the kiss. 

“Keep going baby, show him how good you are with your mouth hmm,” Ryan eggs you on, helping you settle on your knees in front of Justin.

He moves to sit on the edge of the bed after slipping his boxers off, watching you closely while you continue to kneel in front of him.  You feel pleased when you realize that his cock is already hard for you.

Your hand curls around his base as you take him slightly in your mouth, your tongue swirling around the head as you tease him.  Licking and sucking his head as you continue to tease him, wanting him to enjoy this as much as he has already made you enjoy the night.  You glance up at him, happy when you see the pleased look on his face as he watches you, his eyes half lidded.

“You can do better than that, come on, show him just how great you are at this,” Ryan says from behind you.  One of his hands settling on the back of your head as he pushes you down, making you take Justin completely.  

Justin letting out a groan and throwing his head back when he feels himself hit the back of your throat, Ryan holding you there while your eyes water before he finally lets you go.  You pull back for a second to catch your breath before you start working more on Justin, him starting to lose control slightly.  His hips jerking and thrusting into your mouth, something that you always love.

You notice out of the corner of your eye that Ryan is stroking himself while he watches Justin thrust into your mouth, seeking the release that is coming close.  After a few more thrusts he grabs your hair, pulling you off of him as he watches you wipe the little trail of saliva from the corner of your mouth as you watch, waiting to see what is next.

Ryan settles himself in place next to Justin and you take the hint, moving so that you can take Ryan into your mouth as well.  Your hand wrapping around Justin while you lower yourself against Ryan, wasting no time as you take him all the way to the hilt.  

Justin would be lying if he said that watching you right now wasn’t the best porn he has ever had the chance to see.  You taking Ryan so well as you deep throat him, letting him raise his hips to straight up fucking into your mouth and you taking it so well.  Shit, he could cum just from watching you like this.

He watches you closely as you work Ryan, getting him all wet for you as you go.  

Ryan sets a hand on your shoulder, slightly pushing you away from him so that you stop before glancing between you and Justin.  

“Why don’t you lay down on the bed baby, lean your head off the edge.  Think you can continue to blow Justin while I get you off?” he asks, knowing that you love having your throat fucked, even more so  when you are close.  Not that you two have ever done something like this before, you letting him fuck your mouth while he uses a dildo on you, not at all.

You just nod slightly, moving to get yourself into position while Ryan settles himself beside you, Justin standing by your head as you make yourself comfortable, your panties being lost somewhere in the process.

Ryan slides a finger inside of you, a second quickly joining you so wet that you can take him with no problem.  You clearly enjoy having both of them more than you have let on as they go. You lean back, grabbing Justin’s thigh to bring him closer to you.  

He takes the hint and positions himself so that you can take him before he slides himself into your mouth, slowly moving his hips as he begins.  Groaning when he feels you moan around him when Ryan brushes his thumb against your clit.  He continues slowly, letting you get warmed back up as Ryan continues to finger you, bringing you closer and closer to the edge.  Something about this feels so wrong, but so fucking good for you, you abruptly finishing around Ryan’s fingers.  Justin stilling for a moment to let you come back down from your high before continuing to thrust himself into your mouth.

“Think you can handle me fucking you while Justin continues to fuck your throat baby?” Ryan asks, not waiting for an answer because he knows that you are ready for him.

He doesn’t give you any warning before sliding himself deep inside of you, groaning as he feels your heat envelope him tightly.  You moan around Justin as Ryan begins to fuck you, his hips meeting yours harshly. 

“Fuck, you are so hot like this.  Watching you take Ryan so well.  Can I finish in your mouth?” Justin asks you, pulling out of your mouth long enough for you to answer a meek yes before he goes back to what he was doing.

Both him and Ryan thrusting into you harder, chasing their own high now, finding a rhythm so that they’re pounding into you at the same pace.  Justin’s leans down so that his fingers can find your clit, wanting to bring you over the edge one last time as they both fuck you, not seeming to care that he is doing so while his friends cock is pounding into your pussy at the same time.

You feel so good, so close as they continue their rough pace.  You bounce between the two of them, neither of them holding back anymore as they take what they need.

Justin is the first to finish, cumming in your mouth as his hips slowly still before he pulls out of your mouth.  The taste and feel of him against your tongue is what finally sends you over the edge as he continues to circle your clit while Ryan is still pounding away inside of you.  The strongest orgasm of your life, throwing your head back as you let out what can only be described as the most sinful sound that either man has heard in their life as it hits you.  

Your body clenches around Ryan, hugging him tightly as you milk his cock, finally sending him over the edge as he finishes inside of you with a groan.  

When you open your eyes both men move so they can help you sit up, your blood rushing to your head as you slowly adjust to sitting back up.  Ryan watches you closely to make sure that you are alright, while also feeling proud of just how much of a mess that he and Justin made you.  

“I’m going to go get something to clean you up,” Justin says softly before stepping away towards the bathroom of your hotel.

Ryan moves to sit next to you on the bed after slipping his boxers back on, letting you lay your head on his lap while Justin returns and helps clean up the mess that is between your thighs.

You smile at both of them, moving to sit up slightly to pull your hair back into the hair tie that was around your wrist before settling back in place.  

“I should probably go back to my room before Chris questions why I have been gone for so long… thank you for letting me join you guys,” Justin says with a smile.

“I think I should be thanking you Justin,” you say shyly, not sure what you should say as you watch him head towards the door.

“I enjoyed that a lot more than I thought I would, maybe we will have to do this again sometime man,” Ryan says with a smirk, glancing towards the taller man as he heads out the door before turning to look at you.

“Are you alright? Do you need anything or do you just want to turn the lights off and go to bed.  You look pretty fucked out right now,” Ryan says gently, playing with your hair as he looks down at you.

“Yeah, can we just go to bed Ry? I am worn out,” you ask softly, moving so that he can lay down in the bed with you. You curl up into his side, your head on his chest once he turns the lamp off for the night.

He glances down at you about 5 minutes later after scrolling on his phone for a moment, chuckling when he realizes that you have already fallen asleep before moving to take a quick picture, which he sends to Justin.  The caption reading: I think we may have broken my girlfriend tonight.

[jancy-central]

Welcome, everyone, to another Spotlight Saturday!

This week we are spotlighting writer @throttlegainwell so read their answers to our ‘Get To Know Your Fic Writer’ questions below the cut. And here is the ao3 link to check out all of their amazing fics:

Reminder: This month’s prompt is ‘soulmates’…

…so please see our pinned post for more info. We have posted a lot of soulmate prompts for those needing some inspiration so check those out as well.

And as always, feel free to message us with any questions, whether you are a fic reader or a fic writer. Both of us write fanfic so we are open to helping however we can. Need a beta? Message us and we’ll either help you or put out a call for beta help! Hit writer’s block? Maybe we can help? Or maybe you just want to recommend a fic? SEND US AN ASK OR A DM!

Happy Saturday! ✍🏼 📖

Spotlight Saturday Questions:

@throttlegainwell’s answers:

1. I guess I prefer one-shots generally, but it's much more satisfying to me to write (and finish!) multi-chaptered fics.

2. A mix of both? There's usually at least some degree of planning for each chapter, but sometimes I just see where it goes.

3. ... It depends on the story. Usually, I'm rushing to slap a bunch of ideas into a document as quickly as I can type (or writing notes on my phone). Lines of dialogue, character ideas, themes I want to address, bits of description or narrative or details to include, plot arcs, whole scenes sometimes... I get those into one doc (which I clean up as I go, if I'm copying them over from my phone), then I create a corresponding doc titled LINEAR that I typically view side-by-side with the fragments/notes doc. I move bits into the LINEAR doc as I work, once I know where they're going or have a place for them (like when I've built the connective tissue), until the first doc is empty; I finish writing in the LINEAR doc. There's usually a brief summary of the story, by that point, in the Synopsis window on the right (I work in Scrivener) so I don’t get too off-track, and I'll probably have some notes in the Notes window, as well as any warnings that will be necessary if I post it (so I don't forget later). But sometimes I just sit down and write, like, an entire story, without thinking about it, or I'll try something stream-of-consciousness or experimental. And sometimes I actually do outline (though sometimes that outline is just a bunch of things that I know need to happen, and I drag those around until the order of them feels like a satisfying arc--I wrote an entire 40k+ story that way).

4. Oh, everywhere, I guess. From the source material, definitely. From books I read, concepts I've studied, themes that just interest me so they tend to crop up in my work or maybe I want to try a different spin on them. Sometimes a story I've written/am writing sparks an idea, or I want to try a variation on it to see where it goes, so I branch off from that. Sometimes I just want something, out of the blue. Occasionally, I browse prompts.

5. Nah. I did the whole concrit thing back in my early fandom days. I'm here to have fun and I assume so is everyone else.

6. Nope! I used to do beta reading, a long time ago, and I've casually edited for fandom friends, but I've never used a beta reader. I don't really see myself starting now.

7. Whichever one is the most interesting for the story or whichever one best serves the story's goals, usually. Sometimes because I haven't tried a particular POV before and I just really want to give it a shot, or because I'm writing it with one voice and the voice of a different POV character just *feels* right or sounds really interesting. But I've been branching out a little! I'm usually very committed to 3rd person limited, but this past year, I've been trying switching POVs a bit, I'm writing one story simultaneously from two different POVs (beginning to end, for each) just because it's such a different story for each character, and I'm writing one from omniscient POV because it was really the only one that would do what I needed.

9. I usually try to! (Not always. But usually.) I don't read a lot of fanfic, due to what I imagine is the very common combination of lack of free time and quite severe concentration issues (though I've always been a big reader and I love it a lot, so this is, needless to say, a massive bummer). It's worse with fiction than non-fiction, so if I actually manage to read a fic, it's a safe bet that I probably took notes during and the author will hear *at length* about all the ways I enjoyed it and what I found really interesting or memorable.

10. I have many WIPs, but blinks only came up in a few. One is too explicit to share here, but here's one: He can’t tamp down a shiver at the thought; he blinks extra hard, resisting the urge to grasp the back of his neck protectively.

11. Ooh. Like I said, I don't read a lot of fic (and I haven't read that many for the ST fandom), but I very much love what maddie_grove is doing with Tonight, Tonight, The Highway's Bright. I wildly enjoyed where the hours bend, by fakelight. And this world is gonna pull through, by scoutshonour, hit just right.

12. I don't tend to expect much feedback. I post because otherwise I'll go back and tinker with fics, and I don't really have the time for that, plus at a certain point it's not fun anymore, but I'm still messing with it. So when it's done enough that I've accomplished what I set out to, I post to free up my brainpower to move on to other things. It doesn't necessarily discourage me to not receive it (usually), but it really does encourage and motivate me when I *do* receive it. If someone enjoys a story and wants to talk about it, I'm likely to write more works in that vein or explore those ideas/characters/fandom more. I’m more likely to go back to a WIP if people are excited about it with me. I've received some truly lovely, thoughtful, analytical, humbling, and memorable feedback, and I hugely appreciate and enjoy all of it.

13. Don’t delete/erase anything. Save it all.

14. I tend to get into a certain headspace to write, but I wouldn't say that I usually feel what the characters are feel. Sometimes, I probably do. (I'm one of those people who moves their lips when they read an emotional scene, so I guess I do get a bit into it while I'm writing! Embodied cognition, what a trip.) I do sometimes draw from personal experience, but typically only in very broad strokes.

15. Happily. :) I've written a LOT of sex scenes over the years, for a lot of different thematic, narrative, and character purposes (and sometimes just for rule of horny, rule of funny, or to explore a particular kink). I approach each one differently, based on the tone I'm trying to set, whether I want it to be particularly erotic or emotional or something else, the level of narrative distance I want the reader to feel, what the characters are like, what the overall genre is. Sometimes I get visual or detailed, depending on what I'm trying to do (and whether I feel those characters would do so or whether it would be a help or a distraction in that moment), but I tend to depict the internal processes more than the physical details. The sensory aspects. The observations, interpretations, and reactions. Connections between characters, if there's more than one. I personally tend toward realism in my sex scenes, but I'm not going to pretend that I don't skirt the edges sometimes or just say fuck it and throw realism out the window for a particular story. But I don't think realism is necessary in smut (or any fiction, when it comes down to it). It's a matter of preference.

16. Omg how many fic ideas am I NOT nurturing right now. Way, way too many. Here's a Jancy one that hasn't quite made it to the WIP stage (still in the synopsis-in-dedicated-doc stage): Jonathan and Nancy break up over the college thing. (It’s not really the college thing.) Years later, as they're both settled into their careers (Jonathan as a photographer, Nancy as a journalist, both constantly traveling for work and hard to reach), they end up sharing a room when they visit for Lucas and Max's wedding. Lots of angst, lots of pining, lots of denial, and ultimately an exes-getting-back together story. Sometimes you just want the cliche done your way.

17. I just don't write, tbh. I try to address whatever issue is preventing me from writing (if possible) or (if it's beyond my control) I just accept that it's not a writing period of my life. I'm happier when I'm writing regularly, and I do think it's good for me overall, but I'm not going to let hobby writing cause me genuine stress. (I've got non-hobby writing for that, ha.) I take it as a sign that something is wrong or that I'm just tired of writing and need to recharge (by engaging some other interest or hobby for a while).

18. Depends. Sometimes the title comes first, sometimes during, sometimes after. Sometimes I really do just fall in love with a title, though. I rarely struggle to title fics after the fact, but when I do, I'll just slap a quick and vague title on there and call it a day. Often it's a pun or something relevant, sometimes an important line from the story, sometimes lyrics. I have a series of art-related titles for some Will stories I want to do and some science ones I have saved for some Dustin stories. Some photography terms for Jonathan. Stuff like that.

19. Turns out it's hurt/comfort! This should surprise no one.

20. Oh, have I ever. Yeah, I've had people read enough of my work to point out themes that I tend to tackle a lot (I'm big on autonomy, resilience, and kindness--you'll see them repeated a LOT in my work, from different angles--and, yeah, I write about trauma a lot), and I definitely have some words/expressions that pop up a lot (and with each passing year, I try a little less to cull them). Also, you'd be hard-pressed to find a story of mine where someone isn't making, drinking, or talking/thinking about coffee. No reason. It just... seems to happen.

21. I had a shared 'verse with a friend, a long time ago. It was a huge amount of fun. We really gelled and produced just tons of material for it that had us in tears laughing and, you know, was also incredibly horny. That was a shared 'verse, rather than a collaboration for an entire story, but, yeah, I'd say that I'd be willing to collaborate. I don't consider myself terribly reliable or consistent, though, so I worry that a potential writing partner would find this frustrating.

22. I used to think so, but, honestly, I've been proved wrong many times, so I'd say no, not really. There's not a lot that I absolutely won't write. There are a few things that remain pretty serious squicks for me, but I'm sometimes able to write about things that I would find difficult to read. Some things also don't necessarily interest me or I would find it technically difficult to write them.

23. Don't worry about making it beautiful. Just get it all down. (You can’t sculpt what’s not there, you know?) And in that vein: write EVERYTHING down. Even if you’re not sure it works. Don’t assume you’ll remember or won’t need it. Just write everything.

24. Anything that's involved regimentation. That just doesn't work for me in every case. It's important to be flexible, both to discover what *does* work for you or to be able to move between different strategies for different stories or at different times in your life. Close second, though: that you should mine your pain to write because that's where true art comes from. That advice is shit. Sometimes art is aliens fucking in a time warp and also there's a ghost with daddy issues. Write whatever the hell you want. It does not have to be profound literature to be a good story.

25. For my ST fics? I think I've gotten a pretty decent response for most of what I've posted, considering it's all very niche and this is a massive fandom (and one to which I came extremely late and very recently). I guess a little more response for already wise, already worn might have been nice, just because it's a weird little experimental story that I think actually came out really neat, but it's *very* niche so I never expected much response. Or possibly Two Steps Forward, just because I think it's an interesting little ghost story that's different from everything else I have posted, and I really do have a soft spot for gen works.

26. For my ST fics, our future foe scenarios is a pretty odd one. We've got Nancy really feeling her big sister duties while also kind of worrying about Jonathan, making out with him, then convincing the Party to let her earnestly and VERY awkwardly talk to them about the importance of consent (and kind of roping Jonathan into helping her, which he's not happy about but dutifully does). It’s kind of clumsy, but she means well.

27. I love when the ideas slot into place, when I know where things are going, I see how it's moving, and I get all the pieces lined up so it's a straight shot to the end. Extremely satisfying. I dislike working out the kinds of technical details that I'd prefer to gloss over but that are sometimes story-significant, like ages and timelines. I'm increasingly just ignoring that shit.

28. Apparently I'm getting several thousand words done a day, on average, with as many as 6-7k some days. But I'm happy if I just do a couple hundred, or a line or two. This has just been an unusually productive year for me.

29. Ideally: I ignore it for a couple of weeks until I've forgotten the shape of it, then I read it over with fresh eyes. Increasingly: when it's written, I go over it for typos, overall continuity, basic coherence, and (if it covers sensitive themes) to make sure that I'm not inadvertently presenting something wildly hurtful or counter to my goals. And then I just call it done.

30. I'd say that I never really polish all that much to begin with, these days. I mostly post 1st drafts, even though there's typically stuff that I would pretty easily catch and adjust if I gave it a real once-over. I've just decided that I'm okay with not fussing with it very much. But I share WIPs these days, some of which are pretty rough. (I did not used to do this that much.)

[matchingbatbites]

22 and 43 for the ask game!

Of course!

22. describe your writing process from scratch to finish.

Oh boy.

Step One happens one of three ways: I'll either have an idea for a fic, or I'm inspired by something external (somehow we're here was inspired by a screenshot of a grindr message!) OR a scene pops into my head fully formed and I have to write it down and then just build everything else around that.

Step Two is literally just writing down whatever comes to mind. I don't worry about it being super refined or properly formatted or whatever, I just put my head down and write. Also, I don't write in a linear way, so I'll jump from scene to scene as I have ideas which leads to-

Step Three, fleshing it out. Sometimes I won't even be done with step two (like the fic will still have bits missing) but I'll go back and start filling in what I've written, taking it from a basic idea and making it more descriptive, adjusting flow etc.

I actually have an example of this I saved from an old WIP that I never finished, because that was the first time I noticed I was doing it, but it's become a regular part of my process. I'll throw it under a cut at the end because it's a lil spicy (and has daddy kink, just a warning.)

After this is Step Four: editing and tweaking. Moving stuff around if needed, checking for grammar, double checking for any continuity errors and such. Basically making sure it all makes sense one more time lol.

All that's left after that is posting! I don't feel super chaotic when I write, I mostly struggle with sticking to a single WIP, but It's always a joy getting to share once something is actually done <3

43. how did writing change you?

It surprisingly made me more social. I've written for other fandoms, but I tended to keep to myself - in my last fandom I was actually completely anonymous, because of drama that was going around.

With Steddie, I was so enamored with this ship that I made this sideblog, and when I started posting my fics, I was actually really surprised with the amount of engagement? And I actually ended up making friends that I talk to on a daily basis? And not to sound like a sad bitch but it was something I really needed, and It's been really really uplifting.

Ask me a question about writing

Writing comparison time! After Step Two: Bang It Out

It’s not until he’s standing under the water, feeling the heat cascading over his skin, that he lets himself think about it again, about Eddie’s voice cooing out a soft “Daddy’s good boy.” The memory makes Steve’s dick twitch between his legs and he gives into the urge he’s been fighting back for the last half hour. He slides his hands down his chest, pausing briefly to pinch and tug at his nipples, before moving farther down. Eddie’s voice drifts through his mind, and the imagined “Come on, baby, touch yourself for Daddy,”

And after Step Three: Flesh It Out

It’s not until he’s standing under the water, the liquid heat cascading over his skin, that he lets himself think about it again, about Eddie’s voice cooing out a soft “Daddy’s good boy.” The memory makes Steve’s dick twitch between his legs and he finally, finally gives into the urge he’s been fighting back for the last half hour. He slides his hands down his chest, fingers grazing over spots that he knows are sensitive before pushing and digging into them, loving the dull ache it creates. 

Steve pauses briefly in his wandering to pinch and tug at his nipples, enjoying the sharp nip of pain before he moves farther down, past the scars decorating his sides and to the vee of his hips, where he stops. Is he really about to do this? Really about to jack off to the thought of his friend, one of his best friends, while said boy sits downstairs completely unaware?

Eddie’s voice drifts through his mind, and the imagined “Come on, baby, touch yourself for Daddy,” is enough enticement for him to take his dick in one slick, guilty hand.

[silly-little-soul]

Hi! Hope you're having a good day/night! I'd like to ask for HCs (or whatever format you're cool with!) for Casimir, maybe something just like how he would spend the day with MC when they're not working on the House?

Romantic is fine! I hope that's not too vague of a request! Thanks! :)

A/N - Hey, I’m so sorry for the wait I finished this weeks ago but forgot about it I’m sorry ;-; hope you enjoy! (Also thank you really much for being my first Tumblr request)

(I’ll fix the format of this post when I have my laptop later today)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fandom: Fictif, Monster Manor

Format: headcanons

Type: Fluff, a bit comedy

Warnings: none I can think of

Summary: spending time with Casimir

Relationship: Casimir x Reader (Written as romantic but save for like one all work platonically)

Characters featured: Casimir, briefly Mimi and the house, Rainier mentioned

Note: maybe OOC, some of these are kind of far fetched (Also I didn't read any of the paid scenes so I’m sorry if I got something canon wrong)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Renovating is pretty exhausting so of course a lot of work means a lot of rest. There's many ways to do so such as sitting down with some tea and snacks, reading together or to each other, cuddling or watching movies; either way you spend this time together quite often 

speaking of movies, movie and show nights! At first at least there might be more of Casimir nerding over the technology than watching though /hj. Someone just please show this man the Beauty and the Beast. Or Transformers. First one is self explanatory, second one I just think would be funny. Also maybe Howls moving castle. That might be super far fetched but I think he'd like studio Ghibli. 

Bonding with Mimi! Casimir really wants to gain back her trust and having you be there calms him Mimi. Though it's better than it used to be already there's still some tension between them and you're definitely helping. You also get to spend time with both of them so that's definitely a win!

You cannot convince me this man doesn't go into hour long rants and rambles about his interests after you asked one simple question. He can get pretty lost in it once he started and tends to get a little embarrassed about it once he realises. Cmon, he was all by himself for multiple centuries, he's not used to people being around. You encouraging him to go on, asking questions or referencing things he told you later on means a lot to him. 

Of course it goes both ways, he absolutely loves listening to you talk, especially about things you're passionate about and will try to bring it up again later or engage in your hobbies with you together. He genuinely wants to know about you and your interests, for one he hasn't really heard from/about anyone else for a very long time (not counting cats and buildings) and also you're, of course he wants to hear everything you have to say

Okay okay okay this one's my personal favourite: hide and seek.​ I actually might write a whole own thing about that at some point soon because it'd just be so much fun!​ The house is quite big with super many hiding spaces. Now it's not something he'd suggest and yeah it might take some force persuasion to convince him but if you ask him really really nicely hell probably say yes, or just annoy him till he agrees (even more effective if Rainier joins). Alternatively just hide somewhere so he has no choice but to search (you definitely gave him a heart attack the first time you did that)

Casimir is old fashioned (I mean- how wouldn't he be) so your regular date nights are pretty classic. Usually it's a romantic dinner (brought to you by The House TM), sometimes it's dancing (like that one paid scene(? Is there one? Or am I mixing something up? Idk); he was taught to be a gentleman and he's gonna use that /hj

Bringing him modern things from shopping trips. It started off by you bringing him something he was curious about after you mentioned it and quickly developed into a habit of you bringing him trinkets whenever you're out. His curiosity makes you much more aware of how interesting even little thins can be and soon turned to you coming back from trips out the house with a bag of things like toys, gadgets and other fun things from the dollar store or similar. You then spend the day looking at what you brought, how it works and so on. Imagine spending the day with Casimir trying out a bunch of toys you bought or found with your old stuff (the type for children, don't think wrong here)

adding onto this because I love the idea of doing fun childish things with him (you'd have to be the one to initiate them though, potentially ‘force’ him, but he secretly enjoys it). Silly sleepovers with pillow forts, movies, teeny magazines (I want to just hand this guy a stack of these teen magazines and see what happens so bad), and snacks! 

related a bit to the one above but spa days! He definitely needs some more self care. I do kinda think he likes stuff as skincare and and used to have a routine (nobility and stuff) he likely had to cut short or even drop it completely with the house's hostility. But now you're there and not only are there so many products your world has for this, it's also much more fun together, leading to entire days planned only for spa and wellness activities (like doing each other's nails, I have a little theory connected to Casimir and acrylic nails but that's all I'm saying on that)

I feel like I have to say something to end this smoothly sooo Casimir supremacy!!

(Requests open)

[letthewhumpbegin]

In the Line of Fire - Shadow and Bone

Fandom: Shadow and Bone, Six of Crows Characters: Jesper Fahey, Kaz Brekker Prompt: this was written for day 14 of @juneofdoom. Prompt: "What were you thinking?" Word count: 2198 Warnings: contains descriptions of gunshot wound, self-sacrifice (no character death).

A/N: I know this is a day early, but since I am very short on time tomorrow, I've decided to post this already today. Story can also be found on my AO3 and FF.net (you can find me under Thiswouldbeakick on both sites 😉)

GIF by me

The decision was made in a split-second, and actually more instinctively rather than consciously. Everyone would agree it might not have been the smartest thing to do, but bang in the middle of a shootout, one tends not to make the most rational decisions.

That was why Jesper saw only one way to stop the bullet that was now hurtling towards Kaz: get him out of the way before the round could bury itself in the thief's flesh.

"Get down!" Jesper threw himself at Kaz, effectively tackling him to the ground. Kaz groaned audibly as the both of them landed on the ground and he caught Jesper's full weight on his chest. He needed a moment to get his breath back. This had been a very close call, Kaz knew that all too well. But what he heard next, made Kaz realize this situation had just gotten way worse.

"I-- I'm hit..."

Jesper made a feeble attempt to push himself off of Kaz's chest, but couldn't find the strength and slumped back down. Kaz tried to keep it together, despite his discomfort at large parts of his body being in contact with someone else. Something was clearly wrong with Jesper, and the gunslinger wouldn't be helped if Kaz lost it completely.

The way Jesper limply rolled onto the floor as Kaz gently pushed him off of his chest was all the more reason for concern. "Jesper?" Where Kaz's voice never faltered, it did now at the sight in front of him. Jesper lay on his side, whimpering in pain, and a look of indescribable fear on his face. Something Kaz had never seen in the gunslinger before.

"I'm hit..." Jesper repeated, stammering and gasping for breath. Kaz's eyes hastily roamed over his friend's body. He didn't need long to see the bloodstain on the back of Jesper's grey coat. The wound was halfway between Jesper's shoulder blades and oozing blood. Kaz had seen too many injuries in his life already to know Jesper wasn't walking this off. No, this could easily prove fatal.

"Help me." Jesper's voice cracked as he reached a trembling hand out to Kaz's arm, and for once Kaz let him. Kaz vigorously nodded his head. "Hold on, Jes, hold on."

An involuntary cough rocked Jesper's body, and Kaz startled to see Jesper cough up some blood. They needed to move quickly and get Jesper to a Healer as soon as possible. Jesper's gaze found Kaz's face for just a moment, before his eyes rolled back and he passed out.

Kaz scrambled to his feet. Jesper would pull through this, Kaz would do everything in his power to make sure of that. But he couldn't do that alone. No, he needed the help of the only other person in the world he trusted enough.

Kaz took a deep breath and yelled out as loud as he could. "Inej!"

---

The first time Jesper found a tiny bit of consciousness again, there was a flurry of things happening around him. He heard people moving, conversing in low, yet urgent tones, and he felt hands touching his apparently bare shoulders.

With his consciousness slowly returning to him, so did the pain. It was like his back was on fire, leaving him unable to breath in too deeply, and on the verge of screaming out if he moved even the tiniest muscle.

Jesper opened his eyes just enough to see blurrily through his eyelashes. The dimly lit room he found himself in wasn't familiar to him, and neither were the two middle-aged women hurrying around him. Healers, Jesper presumed. At least, he hoped so, because the pain to his back was excruciating and he had never felt so weak as right now.

Jesper whimpered, making a very feeble attempt to move. "Kaz?" His mind, still foggy with only half his consciousness returned to him, suddenly fed him the last images he remembered from before blacking out, and why he had taken a bullet in the first place. "Don't worry about him now." One of the Healers pressed a gentle hand onto Jesper's back, urging him to lie still. But instead of calming him, it only made Jesper more worried and panicked.

"Kaz." His friend's name rolled of Jesper's lips in another half-conscious, frightened whimper. Again those hands trying to be gentle as they held him down. "No..." Jesper moaned. Tears of pain and fear made their way into his eyes. "Kaz... I need to see him. Why won't you tell me if he's alright?"

Jesper was just about to completely lose himself in his fear, when he heard the sound that finally managed to calm him somewhat: the sound of a cane on the wooden floor.

"I'm fine, don't you worry about me." Kaz slowly limped into Jesper's line of sight. He didn't look as composed as usual, but at least he was up and walking. "Let the Healers help you, Jesper."

Jesper finally relaxed, and immediately found himself on the brink of passing out again. He had never before experienced pain like this, and his exertions of just now certainly hadn't made that better. With a last strand of consciousness, Jesper looked past the Healers at Kaz standing a few feet behind them. He stood with both gloved hands resting on his cane, an expression on his face one did not often find there: concern.

Kaz's eyes locked with Jesper's, and he minutely dipped his head once. It was a small movement, but Jesper caught it and knew what it meant. Kaz took care of business, Kaz would take care of him, and whenever he did you were in good hands.

Jesper's muscles lost all their strength as he gave in to the Healers and disappeared into unconsciousness once again.

---

When Jesper awoke again, he immediately knew where he was. Without even opening his eyes, he knew he was back in the Barrel. The sounds and smells were unmistakable and he recognized them out of thousands.

But what he couldn't quite place was the soft surface he lay upon and the warm blankets he felt all around him. One didn't easily find these things in the Barrel, and a twinge of fear settled back in Jesper's chest. Was he really safe right now?

Jesper very slowly opened his eyes. A frown creased his brow as he found himself almost face to face with a golden-colored crow's head. He was about to blame it on the fogginess of his mind, when he realized he was staring at the handle of Kaz's cane, which stood leaning to the side of the bed Jesper found himself in.

Jesper slightly lifted his head off the pillow to look past the crow's head. If his cane was here, Kaz must be, too.

And indeed. He found Kaz sitting, slightly slouched down, in a comfortable chair a few feet beside the bed, fast asleep. One elbow rested on the armrest of the chair, while his hand supported his head as he slept. His face peaceful for once, and his entire body relaxed.

Jesper blinked sluggishly a few times. He had never actually seen Kaz asleep before, and the sight was strangely off to him. There had been rumors going around the Barrel for years that Dirtyhands never slept. Jesper was never quite able to prove those rumors wrong, although he was rational enough to know they couldn't be true, but he now had to unequivocally conclude that Kaz slept just like anyone else.

But was Kaz alright? Jesper could see the slow rise and fall of his chest, so he didn't really look on the brink of death, but Jesper still worried. Kaz was a star at hiding the things that bothered him, especially when it came to injuries. Jesper only vaguely remembered Kaz ensuring him he was alright back at the Healer's, but he needed confirmation on that again.

"Kaz..." Jesper mumbled as loud as he could get his voice after it not being used in a while. Kaz didn't even stir. "K-Kaz." Jesper slightly moved and he instantly felt the searing pain between his shoulder blades from where he had been shot. He winced loudly, his hands tightly gripping the edge of the bed. In his somewhat uncontrolled movement, Jesper knocked over Kaz's cane, which fell to the floor with a loud clatter.

Kaz nearly jumped a foot into the air, waking abruptly with a gasp he did his best to suppress. He looked around in confusion for a moment, before he locked eyes with Jesper. They held each other's gaze, until Kaz bent down to pick up his cane off the floor. He set it in front of the chair he sat on, resting both hands on the handle.

"Welcome back," Kaz finally spoke. "Tell me you're alright." Jesper demanded before Kaz could say anything else. His voice was still croaky and hoarse, but Jesper couldn't care less about that now. All he wanted was real confirmation that Kaz had come out of the shootout unscathed.

"I already told you." Kaz's spoke flatly, brow creasing into a frown. "I know you, Kaz," Jesper mumbled weakly, "you hide any injuries you have when one of us is injured. You want us to be alright before you even begin to think about yourself." Kaz shifted uncomfortably in his chair, the wood creaking softly as his muscles tensed. "How do you know?" "You're not the only one making observations," Jesper answered, "so tell me, truthfully, are you alright?" Kaz nodded sincerely. "Yes." Jesper sighed in relief. Kaz wasn't hurt, so at least he hadn't taken a bullet for nothing.

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air for a short while. Even though he was only half awake, Jesper effortlessly sensed Kaz had something he wanted to speak about. The thief sat staring at his own hands resting on his cane in front of him. A hard, yet unreadable look on his face. Jesper knew that look. It meant Kaz's brain was working overtime, and Jesper could easily deduce that would have something to do with the events of the shootout.

Finally, Jesper had had enough. "Just speak whatever's on your mind," he sighed. Kaz's gaze flickered onto Jesper, but the expression on his face didn't change. "What were you thinking?" Kaz spoke softly, but his tone was unforgiving. "When?" Jesper answered sarcastically, "I have many thoughts." "Don't take me for a fool, Jes." For a heartbeat Dirtyhands surfaced, before Kaz's expression immediately softened a little again. "I know you threw yourself in front of that bullet. And I also know that, if you hadn't, it would have struck me." "It would have killed you," Jesper corrected. Kaz slightly cocked his head to one side, mulling those words over. "And instead it nearly killed you."

Jesper was caught off guard by that comeback and hesitated before he spoke again. "Well, maybe... I didn't entirely think it through." "Why do it at all?" Kaz shrugged non-understandingly. "Half of Ketterdam would be celebrating my death." Jesper chuckled softly, before his tone turned very serious. "Kaz, I... I know you don't give a kruge about yourself, and many people would indeed rather see you dead, but there's also still people out there that do care about you... I care about you."

The usual frown on Kaz's brow deepened even further. His lips parted slightly and he took a breath as if he meant to say something, but finally settled upon just a deep exhale. "Just-- don't ever do that again," Kaz eventually spoke. A small smile tugged at the corner of Jesper's mouth. "Sure, boss."

Jesper shifted minutely under his covers. His back ached uncomfortably. The Healers had healed the wound, but his body still had a lot of recovering to do. He felt fatigued, out of strength, and like he could sleep for days on end. Apparently, Kaz had seen it, too. "I'll leave you to get more rest," he said solemnly.

Jesper watched Kaz slowly get to his feet. He couldn't help but notice how Kaz winced at the seemingly extreme stiffness in his bad leg, and how he leaned on his cane even heavier than usual.

"Exactly how long have you been sitting at my bedside?" Jesper frowned suspiciously. "You've been out for over a day, so..." Kaz admitted reluctantly, "more than a day." Jesper blinked a few times in surprise. Not only for hearing he had apparently been unconscious for more than a day, but more so that Kaz had refused to leave his side all that time.

Kaz walked a few paces, before looking back over his shoulder, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes and a smirk playing on his lips. "You're not the only one who needs to make sure their friend is alright." Jesper chuckled. A pleasant warmth settled in his chest at seeing this side of Kaz. It was rarely glimpsed, but there definitively was a sensitive side to him after all.

"Thank you," Jesper said sincerely, "for helping me." "Don't get used to it," Kaz answered with a grin. And Jesper immediately knew: if it ever came to it again, Kaz would help him no matter what.

Useful Links Section | Writing Masterlist Make a request from my prompts list

[bafflement]

Deaged Oz AU - After The Meeting

Tip looked up as a knock sounded at the door to the set of rooms they all shared in Atlas. He wasn't expecting anyone, but everybody else was away at the moment. He shrugged, putting his book down and getting to his feet, maybe they were after Qrow?

Moving over to the door, though, it revealed a boy not much older than Tip was, who blinked down at him in surprise.

"Uh... Wintertip Pine?" The boy enquired, sounding rather doubtful.

Tip nodded. "Yes, that would be me. Why?" His hand crept towards the hilt of his rapier as he spoke, though, eyes busily scanning for anyone else that might have come with the boy. To catch him alone was rare enough that this just seemed to scream 'trap' to him.

"I have something I need to deliver to you. Your eyes only, though... I was expecting you to be rather older?" The boy shrugged and held out a bound scroll. Tip took it, one eyebrow raised in curiosity.

"Any idea what this is about?" He asked, hoping to at least get some context clues from the strange event. Though he doubted Salem would have provided any written evidence of her plans if it was actually her, that would be so far out of character that... well, never mind.

He slit the seal open and scanned the contents, stopping halfway through to adjust his glasses slightly. The paper was a strange shade of almost purple, though the ink seemed normal enough. Was it... scented? His eyebrow rose further upon the discovery that yes, yes it was... this was not exactly normal correspondance to send to an eleven year old.

He noted the name and almost smiled. Lady Greenbriar had been the older woman on Atlas Council, the one that had taken none of James' attitude and had seemed to recognise him. He had no real memory of her, but maybe this meeting could change that?

She wanted him to come alone, which was slightly problematic, but she had specified a time about an hour from now, the others wouldn't be back yet. If he was quick enough, maybe they'd never need to know? He was pretty sure she wouldn't harm him, at least.

He smiled at the boy who'd delivered it and nodded to him. "Please inform her that I'll be there and thank you." The boy looked weirdly more intimidated by Tip's calm acknowledgement of what was really a summons than he had to delivering the letter. Ah well, maybe this wasn't the normal reaction, but Tip was highly curious now...

Picking out clothing took less time than it might have, had the lady in question not probably once been a friend of his father's. Ah well, at least Winter might be happy that he'd chosen Schnee colors for this? It felt slightly manipulative, but it could give him an advantage if the talk went south... and if Winter found out where he was, he knew she tended to be more gentle when reminded forcefully that they were related.

Brothers, but he hated doing that... he wasn't a child, he wasn't helpless... he wasn't even really that sickly anymore with the help of his aura. They needed to stop treating him as though he would break, he was an accomplished Huntsman, after all...

He froze in the doorway to the room where he had been told to meet her. She wasn't alone, a man sat with her who was familiar. Why was Lark Winchester of all people here, though? He was aware that like the Ironwoods... and the Schnee's, the Winchesters had lost a child to that same kidnapping circle, but why would he be interested in Tip, of all people? He wasn't Wren Winchester, after all... he couldn't bring her back.

A flash, then, briefest memory hitting. Wren, her blonde hair and her... oh no... her bright green eyes. He shook himself out of it, though. He had to be imagining things.

"So, this is the child you wanted me to meet, my lady?" Lark's voice was light, but his eyes were hard as he stared at the tousle haired little boy.

"Does he really look that unfamiliar to you, Lark?" Lady Greenbriar's tone held laughter, her eyes soft as she, too, looked at Tip.

"I..." Lark broke off, sweeping a second, more assessing look over Tip. He shook his head slightly, looked again. Tip felt rather like an insect under the microscope at that point, but suppressed the feeling. His shoulders straightened as he met Lark's eyes.

Lark Winchester, pillar of the community in Atlas that he was, proud chairman of the Winchester Military Equipment Company, started to swear. Lady Greenbriar looked impressed. Tip just grinned at him, which seemed to set off a fresh round of profanity, slowly getting more impressive before Lark regained control of himself.

"... Winter?" It wasn't really a question, though. Tip nodded, grin more rueful now and Lark just closed his eyes briefly.

"What happened to you? How are you... why are you...? You know what? Never mind, that can wait. I'm just so damn glad you're alive!"

Tip blushed, even as Lady Greenbriar sighed. "Unfortunately there's more to it than that, Lark. It turns out that little Winter Schnee here is the wizard."

"Excuse me?" Lark stated it flatly, disbelief in every iota of his body language.

"Unfortunately, yes." Tip agreed, calmly. He adjusted his hold on The Long Memory pointedly and Lark's eyes flew to the cane.

He promply started swearing again.

[elliewiltarwyn]

for the meme!: Top 5 Jobs (ICly and/or what you prefer to play)

this was harder than I thought, considering that if I like a job I tend to bend my own personal canon to make it work in-character -- like Ellie picked up reaper because deep down she knew she wanted to go head-to-head with Zenos on his own terms. but that doesn't mean it's actually still what I prefer to play, either, so it got weird. I decided to make this about which job I like playing most in each role...though I am pretty bad at ranged and caster. and healer. I have a very obviously in-your-face playstyle, I'm pretty sure.

at any rate!

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Tank: Dark Knight

i have. exulted quite a bit about dark knight in these answers lmao. but part of the reason i love it so much is because I genuinely have a blast playing it. It feels big and powerful, it feels risky, it really nails the feel of making yourself bleed to protect your comrades. The burst phase when you just throw absolutely everything you have at the enemy is an incredibly satisfying, violent rampage. They made it an ability to call upon your dark twin to help you in combat, and I've mentioned how much of a sucker I am for dark twin shit. Blackest Night, imo, is the most rewarding "super shield" tank ability. And post-buff, I'd argue Living Dead is the best invuln.

plus you know, everything about the entire storyline and Esteem and the image of playing through Shadowbringers in this job. it's all just so good. Immensely satisfying to play and is probably the best at fulfilling its "job fantasy" for me.

2. Melee: Monk

I always like the hand-to-hand characters or movesets in fantasy settings; there's something very appealing to me about facing a bunch of fantastic supernatural beings and just punching them in the face. That said, I actually had several false starts with FFXIV before it finally hooked me about... four years ago. Every one of those times I picked pugilist as my starting class, got frustrated by never being able to hit positionals (it was because i was using lockon. why does the lockon in this game exist lmao.), and would give up. Once I was finally properly playing, I pushed through leveling pugilist into monk and thought it was... alright, but felt incredibly high-strung, like they were putting in more effort to do the same damage. Then Endwalker completely reworked the kit.

They lowered the level requirements for the chakra moves, making them actually fun and usable long before Stormblood. They made Greased Lightning a constant trait instead of having to struggle to keep it up so your GCD wasn't ass. They added the Masterful Blitz mechanic to dial in combos that end with kickass finishers. They... didn't give it any new buttons for the actual 80-90 level range that EW covered, but that was okay because I was suddenly having way more fun working this rotation than almost anything else in the whole game. It's either tied with or above DRK for my absolute favorite to play, because it's fun, rewards skilled play, and I get to do DBZ shit and zip all over to kick my enemies into oblivion. Plus, I'm doing almost as much damage as my co-melee in my static who uses the hanzo steel of a samurai, but I'm using my bare fists. It rules.

(not really a fan of the storyline, though. hence why canonically Ellie trains with Lyse instead of Erik and Widargelt. :V)

3. Healer: Sage

I kinda feel bad that I started as a conjurer, and yet I am by far worse at healing than any other role. At least with White Mage you can kinda get away with spamming Medica II through most of the MSQ, but y'know... that's pretty boring. Pretty effective, and I'd still probably prefer WHM if I ever attempted to heal high-end content, but I'd struggle.

Sage though, I have an absolute blast playing even if I'm not necessarily being a great healer. The aesthetic rules and can pretty easily be written as magitek-y: hence, Mia canonically can use Sage even though she's Garlean and can't usually do a caster job. I love flipping Eukrasia to activate powerful energy shields, even though it also means one more button press than all the other healers to apply the DoT. I love zapping dudes with Gundam-esque funnels and having that channel heals to whoever I want, I love throwing out Physis+Kerachole before a big raidwide, or Krasis+Haima onto the tank before a buster. I even kinda love that it really encourages you to be constantly using your Addersgall pips to help manage your MP. It makes high demands kinda like monk did pre-EW, but for some reason it's a lot more fun as sage. Maybe because of all the sick twists and dramatic pointing you do while firing lasers from Gundam funnels.

I always forget Holos exists though. I have no idea why.

4. Caster: Red Mage

look, the more red you wear, the more damage you do as red mage. it's scientific. Ellie's favorite color is red, idk how obvious it is. :V

Canonically, I don't think any of my WoLs actually use this. But of the three current casters, RDM strikes the best balance for me of a complex rotation with rewarding mechanics, balancing black and white levels and trying to keep them unsynced so you can keep properly proccing your real attacks, without being overly-demanding like Black Mage or sort of basic with not much room for variations like Summoner (I'm sorry SMN mains! I do like SMN! it's really good for me when I'm having a bad brain day, which is frequent. >.>). You also get to completely save disaster runs with instant-rezzes and double heals, and then never get any comms for it! /eyetwitch

And above all else, it's stylish as fuck to the extent that I kinda wish I had the physical ability to try fencing.

5. Ranged: Dancer

Funny, I actually thought I was going to choose MCH because gun, but then I thought about what actually satisfies me the most to play, and... it's massively buffing the whole party and then just whaling on every button on your hotbar that lights up, and suddenly I understand how people get addicted to like, pachinko and such games. But seriously, it's fun, it's stylish, the rotation's easy to pick up, you get to feel good about making a buddy do mega damage, and you get to make big damage numbers yourself (I mean obviously it's because of how long it takes to activate the dances but damn it's still satisfying to see that many numbers).

I haven't remotely figured out how, but I do want Lily to canonically pick up and use Dancer. You look like you're having fun when you dance on the battlefield, and Lily deserves good things like having fun in the middle of combat.

and now you're way too familiar with how I play this game. :3 thanks for the prompt, @viiioca!!

[rollercoasterwords]

Hiya! Was wondering if you could share a bit about your workflow for writing ? Whenever I get to the planning stages I never know where to go from there. Couldn't find if you've answered this already, sorry if you have !

sure, i can try to! i'm not necessarily the most organized writer in the world, it generally just goes something like this:

step 1: daydream

get an idea that won't leave me alone

come up with a rough outline in my head, usually centered around like. 2 or 3 specific plot points/scenes/details

start filling in that outline by essentially just...daydreaming lol. like i just play the story in my head like a little movie. go to my mind palace and play with paper dolls. u know how it is

once i've like. thought through a good bit of the story and it definitely won't leave me alone and i know i really wanna write it, that's when i move on to

step 2: rant + rave

i'll usually send voicenotes to my sister talking about the story i wanna write and brainstorming ideas--essentially just telling the story i've been daydreaming to someone else out loud

i'll also start to actually like. take some notes and try to create a rough outline on paper. this varies depending on the story i'm writing, but i usually try to divide the work into chunks somehow and then take it piece by piece.

step 3: write

with fanfic, since it's not about making something perfect and it's just about having fun, i often start writing without having the entire story completely planned out. i tend to go in with more of a bare-bones outline and take it piece by piece based on the chunks i divided it into in the last step. if i get stuck anywhere on how to get from point a to point b or what i wanna do with a certain character or something, i usually just...send my sister more voicenotes trying to talk through it lol

and that's...basically it! i'm a bit of a perfectionist while writing, which slows me down a bit, but then i usually don't spend much time editing beyond reading back over what i've written once or twice and fixing any little mistakes or tweaking phrasing. i think my workflow when it comes to writing is very much internal, in that the majority of it really is just me daydreaming/telling stories to myself in my head lol. i outline sometimes, but i don't always have much of a strategy beyond slapping down a few bullet points, so i don't really have any great outlining tips unfortunately. i feel like the most advice i can offer based on my own writing process is that i find talking to someone else really helpful--something about saying the story aloud to another person helps me figure out where it needs to go. and my sister also can sometimes point out when something doesn't make sense outside of my head lol

[negative-speedforce]

pencil, paintbrush, marker, crayon, pastels, and palette for Siv and Jay and anyone else :)

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

Jay? No. Siv? *laughs maniacally* hAS siV eVeR BrOKeN thE lAw? Dude that's literally all she does (other than plot revenge and be a useless lesbian, that is).

Ember has broken the law, mostly because he's trans, from a conservative state, and over the age of 30.

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

Jay tends to avoid conflict as much as possible, but the Lawful Good part of him isn't going to just sit down when there's actual injustice happening. Siv, however, has never once avoided conflict in her life. That's the thing about literally being part Negative Speed Force- the rage builds up pretty quickly.

Cassandra won't blow up in someone's face (unless they say something bigoted about her or her teammates) though she will pull them aside later and discuss why that wasn't right for them to do or say and explain consequences for their actions if it's someone she has authority over.

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

Jay would never tattoo a naked private region on himself. He respects both women and men too much for that. Plus, he thinks it's pretty crass. Siv would literally rather die than have any marking associated with their father on them, so there's that.

Esme would never tattoo one of her boyfriends' names on herself, considering that she is aware that she goes through men rather quickly. She wouldn't want an ex's name permanently written on her body.

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

Siv was literally just born when she was the equivalent of a four-year-old. She was very quiet, since while they were created with the equivalent knowledge of a four-year-old (how to speak, feed themselves, use the restroom, etc), they had no life experience to base it on. Jay was a very sad four-year-old because he didn't understand why everyone was constantly insisting that he was a girl, when he was very clearly a boy, though he became much more social when his parents let him cut his hair and wear boys' clothes.

Gina was a social butterfly at four, and she got along well with all the other children her age. However, after moving from Puerto Rico when she was 12, Gina struggled to make friends because she was not very fluent in English.

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

Jay: Pastels, like soft yellow, green and blue. Siv: Harsh shades of Red, Green, and Gold. Hailey: Silver, White, and Black

Colors they like:

Jay: Blue, green, and white Siv: Maroon, Black, and Gold Hailey: Blue, purple, and grey

Jay's color pallete overlaps a lot more, since while Siv chooses to dress in dark colors to better blend in and hide their identity, they're a raging hurricane of emotion on the inside. Hailey is the other way around, forcing a facade of emotion when she actually sees the world through her head rather than her heart.

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

Siv: Problem solving, manipulation, quick wit, observation

I feel like manipulation and observation have some overlap, since you have to really get a feel for someone in order to properly manipulate them. Problem solving also has an overlap with observation, since you have to understand how something works in order to fix it.

Jay: Emotional regulation, marksmanship, charisma, empathy

Empathy, emotional regulation, and charisma have a definite overlap, since a person is more likely to like you if you're coolheaded and understanding.

Cassandra: Leadership, adaptability, self-control, morality

All of these traits make a strong leader. that's it. That's the post.

[originalhomestuckscenarios]

Hello there!

Please use this only if no one else puts request for last unsent letter.

That being said. Could I ask for unsent letter from Tavros to reader? Platonic I think.

Basically Tavros wants to watch Pupa Pan with reader but remembers they don't really like it. So the letter slowely turns into rant about how Pupa Pan is amazing and so cool and why reader doesn't understand-!

Only to realise he may have gotten too far and after writing quick apology he just crumbles the letter.

Reader finds it somewhere in the corner only after being invited to his hive to hang out or something.

Now about reader:

They are pretty gloomy and rarely smile, but they love spending time with their friends and family. They also tend to stand up for people in need (maybe that's how they meet Tavros in the first place).

They are pretty great at any card games and adore learning new (like fiduspawn). They also like origami.

I honestly really like writing platonic relationships, but I sometimes have trouble with it considering how often I write romance...

~

He still remembers how in shock he was when you told him the truth- about how you weren't such a fan of pupa pan. Of course not being able to watch it with you wouldn't stop him from rewatching it himself... But he just couldn't believe it!

Still ranting to your face isn't something he thought was appropriate. So he thought you having a letter was a better idea to get his point across. Getting started on it was difficult but then his hand moved on its own.

As he was finished he took a glance at what he had written down, only then he realized that he might be overreacting a little...

He would throw it away later, after all you were gonna meet regardless so maybe he should just try to talk to you instead. In the end he kept the letter with him just so he can remember what NOT to say... Or just to use different words.

When you met up a lot started going through his head.

He had so much fun with you he actually forgot that he wanted to talk to you about your distaste for Pupa Pan. At first he thought too much about it but once you started playing fiduspawn it just escaped his mind.

He had to leave for a moment so you started looking around. That's when you saw the letter. It didn't look like it was tossed but more like dropped. Curious as to what it is you looked inside.

y/N

i KNOW THAT WE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT THIS BUT i DON'T THINK i GOT MY POINT ACROSS THEN, iT STILL KINDA BOTHERS ME SO THAT'S WHY I'M WRITING THIS LETTER, yOU PROBABLY CAN TELL BY NOW THAT IT'S ABOUT pUPA pAN, i JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY YOU DISLIKE IT, tHIS IS THE BEST THING EVER! yOU MIGHT JUST NOT UNDERSTAND IT SO MAYBE i CAN EXPLAIN IT TO YOU BETTER? i JUST DON'T WANT YOU MISSING OUT ON IT,

yOU DON'T SMILE OFTEN AND IT WORRIES ME, sO MAYBE A LITTLE BIT OF MAGIC CAN HELP? nO PRESSURE BUT i'D REALLY LIKE TO TRY AND SEE IF YOU CAN SEE IT IN A DIFFERENT LIGHT,

tAVROS

Once he was back he asked what you were reading and as he took another glance at it he recognized the paper without you having to explain. He was sort of speechless but managed to say "Sorry- I didn't know what to say and uhm... I tried writing it down but in the end I still couldn't think of a way to put it"

It was awkward but you didn't run from the topic. You had a small conversation where both of you could explain your points and understood each other better.