#out of respect for the original ideas that everyone submits

[softquietsteadylove]

Hiiii!!! Maybe it's not too late to add this idea of mine to the Amnesia trope, it has three parts.

I think it may connect to the last one you posted (when Gil went to her place and she had the time of the month), so Thena just suddenly felt comfortable and told him why she had the 'memory loss' but the only thing she remembers is that she was calling someone and then suddenly there was something collided through her car, she also remembered someone talking and carrying her before she completely passed out. Gil, felt guilty and he suddenly told Thena that he has some emergency to the shop.

"That was great," Gil comments lightly as they get into her place after dinner. It really was a nice dinner, and the restaurant was as pleasant as he's read about. He has been anxiously awaiting the opportunity to go, after all.

"It was," Thena smiles gently as she hangs up her coat and sets her purse on the counter. "Did you want some tea?--or coffee?"

Gil smiles. He should really go--especially if he's going to prepare the daily special for tomorrow morning. But he walks a little further into her apartment, hands in his trouser pockets, "I guess a cup of tea wouldn't hurt."

Thena offers another fleeting smile before disappearing into her kitchen.

Gil walks slowly from the front hall to the couch. It isn't far, but it's hard to notice that her walls are eerily barren. There are no photos, no little trinkets or home decor at all. There's a singular hook for her keys, a plate on the kitchen cutout ledge where he can see some junk mail and spare change.

Her living room is sparse as well. Plain white furniture--lovely but as blank as it can get. It's a little mysterious in aesthetic, like the woman making their tea.

Gil smiles as she comes in with two petite mugs for them. She sets them both on the coffee table and he takes a seat on the other end of her loveseat. "Nice place."

She looks around her living room as well, as if also needing to familiarise herself with it. "I didn't move in so long ago. I guess it doesn't quite feel like home yet."

Gil just nods. "It can take a while to settle in to a place enough for it to feel like that, I guess."

"I suppose so."

Gil takes a sip of his tea. Thena does the same. She isn't the chattiest person in the world, and the last thing he wants to do is push her about anything.

Over dinner, he asked if they did anything for her birthday at work. She told him that no one seemed to know. And it makes sense for her--she never really made any effort to tell people when it is. Apparently her friends Kingo and Sersi gave her their well wishes and promised that if she would like to do something, they will be all too willing.

They sound like nice people.

"I'm not sure where I lived before."

Gil attempts not to look startled by the statement, but clearly it didn't work all that well.

Thena nods, despite not having anything verbally to confirm. "I...I have this memory gap. True and genuine amnesia, my doctors told me."

"I, uh, didn't know that was a real thing," Gil says cautiously, at a loss to do anything else.

But Thena is understanding, maybe even expecting the bewildered response. "They didn't tell me much when I awoke in the hospital. Just that there had been an accident, and that by the time I was awake, I couldn't remember well into last year."

"I'm sorry."

Thena shakes her head. "I don't even know what happened or caused it. And they've told me not to rush things or go looking for answers that could only put stress on me. I suppose they told me to leave well enough alone and go on with my life."

"That," Gil gulps, setting his tea down, "doesn't sound easy."

"I'm sorry," she whispers, setting her mug down as well. "I'm afraid it's not very pleasant news, but it is something I thought you should...know about me."

Gil angles himself towards her, even scooching an inch closer on the couch. "What...do you remember anything from before?"

But Thena shrugs, looking down at her hands on her lap, over her soft white dress. "I just barely remember moving to the city, starting work at the museum, meeting Sersi and Kingo within my first week. Then...pieces."

"Pieces?"

Thena frowns, her hands tightening.

"I'm sorry," Gil rushes out, leaning over to place a hand over hers. He gives them just the smallest of squeezes, hoping to reassure her, "I didn't mean to bring up something upsetting."

Thena looks at him, though, smiling again. "I'm afraid I'm a bit too comfortable around you for my own good."

Gil blinks, looking like she shot him right through the heart.

"I remember driving somewhere," she murmurs, picking up her tea again for something to do with her hands. "Someone was in the car with me, I think. But I have no idea who it would be. Then--nothing. I suppose the next memory I have is being carried, but I assume that was by the first responders pulling me from my car."

"Must be."

"I'm sorry," Thena apologises again. "I...this isn't exactly first date talk, is it?"

"N-No! I mean," Gil fumbles, wanting nothing more than to get that frown off her face. "It's a big part of your life now, right? Whether you get your memories back or not...I'm glad you told me."

It's easy to see that she doesn't quite believe him about that, but she at least attempts to smile again. "You're sweet."

"Hey, uh," Gil takes her tea from her hands, setting it down for her and clasping his hands around hers again. "I have to get back to the bakery. Y'know, to prep the...breads."

She nods.

"But," he pauses, his heart in his throat. She waits patiently, but he lowers their hands down between them again, his thumb rubbing gently against her pale silken skin. "I'll see you tomorrow, right?--at the shop?"

"I," she pauses, her hands growing heavy in his. He doesn't let them slip away, though, just holding them tighter.

"I'll see you tomorrow." It appears he's decided. "I'll see you tomorrow, like always. And I'll have something special for you, like always. Deal?"

She sighs, feigning some exasperation it would seem. But she softens, her eyes going warm and letting her hands tighten around his as well, "deal."

[extremetimedchallengeexchange]

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[steddieas-shegoes]

Hi friend! 👋 I’d like to submit a request, if I may. It’s not an original prompt, I don’t know where I first saw it, but I haven’t seen an actual fic with this premise yet.

Will comes out to Nancy who goes “I know nothing about this BUT I know someone who does” and brings him to Eddie, who brings both of them (bc let’s be honest Nancy isn’t letting Will out of her sight alone with Eddie) to a gay bar in Indy. Lo and behold who do they see but Steve and Robin. And it’s obvious to those who know what to look for (Eddie) that they’re both looking to get lucky. Steddie endgame (obvs lol) but maybe some Byler as well if you want/can swing it..?

I love everything I’ve read from you so far and I’m sure I’ll love everything you come up with! ❤️ thank you!!!

My star ✨✨✨ This is a future fic, but not future enough for Will to be 21 (I'm gonna put him at 19, almost 20 here so still like a tiny baby but also an adult). The first part of this is definitely Will focused, but there is more focus on Steddie at the bar itself. - Mickala ❤️

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

“Nancy? Um, can I talk to you?”

Will had been working himself up to this for weeks, months really. He came out to Jonathan and his mom officially last weekend, though they both already knew.

He wasn’t exactly good at hiding it, and around them, he didn’t really try.

But Nancy Wheeler was smart, and she was quick to come to conclusions, and probably already had figured it out.

Plus, she was decent at giving advice, and could possibly give him some insight into how Mike felt if he felt anything at all.

That was why he was here, coming out to her, being brave.

“Of course,” Nancy replied, smiling comfortingly.

She knew. He knew she knew. But he had to say it out loud, he had to get it out there to other people.

“I just have to tell you something that’s like, a big deal, and hopefully it doesn’t bother you, but also I don’t want it to be a big deal. It doesn’t have to be, actually. I just-”

“Will,” Nancy placed her hand on his shoulder, looked up at him with a knowing smirk. “Just say it.”

“I’m gay.”

There. He said it. It’s done.

Nancy nodded once, like she was confirming that she heard him, but she already knew, which was what he expected.

“Anything else?”

“Um. I’m in love with Mike?”

“Yeah, that’s pretty obvious. Anything else?”

“What do you mean it’s pretty obvious? I thought I hid it okay!”

Nancy laughed. She actually laughed.

“The only person who doesn’t notice that you’re in love with Mike, is Mike, and that’s had a few close calls. And before you ask, I have no idea how he feels. I know he’s in denial about his sexuality, so once he clears that up, who knows. But for now, let’s focus on you. What do you need from me?”

Nancy had a “let’s get down to business” attitude that Will respected, that everyone respected, but she sometimes forgot that not everything was business.

“Well, I guess just…support?”

Nancy raised her brows.

“That’s it? You already had that.”

“I guess maybe…advice?”

“I mean, I really don’t have any for Mike. He’s an enigma even to me,” she started.

“No. I mean, it would be helpful to have it, yes, but just. In general?” Will interrupted, a blush covering his cheeks.

“Oh! About…” she trailed off as she realized what he was asking.

“Okay, well I don’t know anything about that or really anything, but I know who does!” Nancy clapped her hands together.

—-------------

“Eddie?” Will asked as they stood on his porch, waiting for him to answer the door.

“Uh-huh.”

“Eddie’s gay?”

“Well, he’s bisexual, but he would be the one who knows the most,” she answered.

“Prettier Wheeler! What a surprise!” Eddie exclaimed when he opened the door. “And my favorite Byers! Were we supposed to be doing something tonight? Fuck, did I forget something? Wayne is convinced the bats ate the part of my brain that holds memory, even though they didn’t even bite my head.”

Eddie was a rambler, sort of like Robin, but he usually at least made some sense.

“No, no you didn’t forget anything. Will just needs some guidance on something,” Nancy said as she pushed her way into the trailer. “Is Wayne home?”

“Uh. Nope. Come on in, I guess,” he said, nodding at Will.

Once they were all settled on the couch and chair, Nancy gestured for Will to tell Eddie.

Will wasn’t prepared for it, but he knew he could trust him, especially if what Nancy said was true.

“I’m gay.”

It was getting easier to say out loud, just like it had been easier to say to himself when he first realized it and started letting himself think it every day.

“Amazing! Was that a secret?” Eddie asked, somewhat confused.

“Apparently not as much of one as I thought. But yeah, just my mom, Jonathan, Nancy, and you know. Officially, anyway.”

“So you have a boyfriend? Is that why you’re coming out?”

“No. I haven’t-”

“Oh, so Mike hasn’t gotten it together yet?” Eddie asked, playing with his rings distractedly.

“Nope. But it’s gonna take a big moment for that to happen. Will just needs some guidance on other stuff,” Nancy said.

“Oh! Like sex?”

Will was as red as he could possibly be.

“No! Not sex. Just, like, being gay I guess.”

Eddie looked between Will and Nancy a few times.

“Right. So let’s go,” he said as he stood up, making his way to his bedroom at the end of the hall.

Will and Nancy looked at each other, then back to where Eddie disappeared.

Before they could say anything, Eddie was back in the room, his new denim battle vest pulled on, and his boots laced up.

“Let’s go. Got places to be, queers to see!” Eddie yelled as he started moving out the front door.

“What the hell,” Nancy shrugged, getting up and following him out the door.

“What is happening,” Will said to himself as he followed them both.

—--------------

What was happening was that Eddie was taking him to a queer bar on the outskirts of downtown Indianapolis.

He’d heard of the place during his very little research of the local scene. He’d heard it was shut down twice in the 70s because of police raids, but now it was mostly just a quiet, safe place for queer people to be themselves.

The bar was laid back, only two bartenders even on the busiest nights, usually just pouring draft beers and the occasional martini. A jukebox in the corner never stopped playing, even when they only had a handful of customers.

A sign at the door said “THIRSTY THURSDAY: QUENCH YOUR THIRST AT THE BAR AND ON THE DANCE FLOOR!”

Will felt a little out of his element as he took in the amount of people crowding the bar, the tables, the small dancing area that really couldn’t even be considered a dancefloor.

Eddie seemed right at home, and he explained it was because he came pretty regularly, usually just to try to convince the owner to let his band play sometime, but he’d managed a few bathroom hookups along the way.

Will couldn’t hide his blush at that thought, knowing that he was in a place where that would not only be possible, but that it would be encouraged, maybe even expected had his mind fantasizing.

He welcomed it; Anything to get rid of the thoughts of Mike, who would probably never get his head out of his ass even if Will came out to him.

“Alright, one drink rule for the kiddo!” Eddie said as he walked to the bar with a hop to his step.

He was always exuberant, but he just seemed light here.

Will kept looking around, taking it all in.

Nancy suddenly grabbed his arm, and when he looked over, her eyes were huge.

He followed her line of sight, only getting distracted for a moment by a very attractive man who looked to be about his age.

His eyes settled on Steve and Robin.

In a queer bar.

In Indy.

“Is that-”

“It is.”

“But-”

“Uh-huh.”

Eddie came up behind them, drinks in hand.

“Alright, drink up! Take the edge off and then you can have some wonderful experiences- what are you two looking at?” Eddie looked over and his eyes widened. “Not possible.”

“It’s them.”

“But, they aren’t. Are they?”

Eddie squinted, looking at the way they were standing, what they were wearing, the way Steve was open to the room, not turned towards Robin.

“Oh my God,” he said.

“What?” Nancy’s head whipped towards him.

“How did I miss it? I spend so much time- but, no. He- and she- no.”

“Eddie, you aren’t making any sense! What?” Nancy whisper-yelled, as if anyone could hear them over the sound of everyone else talking and the music playing.

“They’re both queer! They’re here lookin’ for someone!”

“That’s impossible. Steve is the straightest person I know. I think even Mike knows he’s more likely to-” Nancy was cut off by Will hitting her arm. “What?”

“Robin just looked over here.”

“Shit.”

“Shit.”

They all looked at each other, panic in their eyes, as they realized it was only a matter of moments before they were completely caught here.

But, really, what was there to worry about? They were here, without knowing anyone they knew would be here, clearly looking for someone.

Will turned back to them, watching as Steve and Robin both looked at them with wide eyes.

“Might as well go talk to them,” he said before walking towards them, not waiting for Nancy or Eddie to agree.

“O…kay,” Eddie sighed before following.

Nancy followed silently, and Eddie didn’t really have time to figure out what her face was doing because Steve and Robin ended up meeting them halfway.

“Hi guys!” Robin waved, awkward as always, maybe more so because of where they were. “Kinda weird seeing you here, right? Like in Indy? Or in a bar? Since Will is underage! And also this is a pretty specific establishment, so-”

“What Robin means is,” Steve starts, lines in his forehead making him look more serious than he needs to be. “Why are you in a queer bar in Indianapolis?”

Robin smacked Steve’s arm, but he didn’t even flinch, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

Like he was ready to protect Robin.

And himself.

“Well, this happens to be one of my favorite bars, and Will needed to be in this type of environment for the first time, ya know?” Eddie said in a way that would definitely give away more if Robin and Steve were actually here because they were queer.

“So you’re…” Steve relaxed slightly.

“I am. Are you?”

“Um. Yeah. Yep. I am.”

“Me too,” Robin added.

“Yeah, so am I,” Will said.

All of them looked to Nancy, who suddenly seemed to catch up to the conversation.

“Oh! Um, not me! I don’t think. I’m just here for support!” She had never looked or sounded as nervous as she was in this moment.

“So how’s the crowd today?” Eddie asked.

To be honest, Eddie hadn’t bothered trying to find a hookup here for months.

The reason?

The man standing in front of him: Steve Harrington.

He’d tried, really he had.

But every time he thought he would get beyond basic flirting with someone, he thought about the way Steve sometimes touched his arm or his shoulder for longer than he needed to when he passed by him, and the way Steve would rest his head on his shoulder during movie nights, or the way he sometimes looked at him like he wanted to devour him.

Like he was right now.

Eddie would be nervous about it, but he doesn’t think Steve actually means anything by it.

He just has a very intense stare sometimes.

“Eddie!”

“Sorry! What?” He turned to see Robin and Will giving him knowing looks. “What?”

“I’m gonna take Nancy and Will over to a table that just opened up. You coming?” Robin asked.

“Sure, in a minute. Gonna run to the bathroom first,” he said, ignoring the way Steve was still watching him.

He walked away before anyone else could say anything.

He just needed a minute or two to collect himself.

The realization that Robin and Steve were here for the same reasons he was was probably going to need more than a minute or two, but he could deal with it later.

The bathroom of this place wasn’t the best, probably hadn’t been properly cleaned since the place opened, but it also wasn’t the worst place to have a minor breakdown.

He didn’t cry, but it was damn close.

It was overwhelming to know that there were others in their little group like him, but it was also just a lot to take in that those other people included Steve.

He heard the bathroom door open behind him, but he didn’t look up, just assumed it was someone else from the bar.

He stood at the sink, looking down, gathering himself to go back out and pretend this was entirely normal when a hand gripped his waist.

His head shot up and he looked in the mirror to see Steve’s reflection looking back at him, a hesitant smile on his face.

“Hey.”

“Hi.”

They stared at each other in the mirror, silent except for their breathing and the muffled sound of the music from outside the bathroom.

“I didn’t know you were…”

“Me either,” Eddie said quickly.

“You didn’t know you were queer?”

“No! No. Wait. I did know that. I knew it a long time ago. I mean I didn’t know you were,” Eddie clarified, unable to properly focus on anything except the way Steve’s hand felt on his side.

His thumb was rubbing circles against his shirt, the fabric bunching up little by little.

“It’s a new-ish discovery.”

“How new?”

Steve looked down at where his hand was resting on Eddie, then back up, his face red.

“March.”

“Oh?”

Eddie caught up quickly, realized what was happening, and definitely didn’t want it to stop even though he wasn’t sure how far he wanted it to go in the bar bathroom.

“Yeah. This annoying guy who was trying to steal Dustin from me decided to get involved in all our fucked up shit and Robin informed me that the way I was acting and talking about him wasn’t very heterosexual. Her words, not mine.” Steve smirked. “So, I kinda just admitted to myself I was into him and now I’m here.”

“Oh. Is the guy at this bar right now?”

“Yeah. He is.”

Eddie turned around and pushed Steve against the bathroom door as gently as he could.

“You’ve been driving me mad for years, Stevie. You know that?”

“Years?” Steve gulped, but kept smiling.

“Years. And now you’ve given me all that I need to do something about it.”

“Have I?”

Eddie answered him with a kiss.

It wasn’t spectacular, wasn’t even that good as far as kisses go.

Steve seemed caught off guard, like he hadn’t actually expected Eddie to take what was right in front of him, take control.

But then he caught up.

His hands gripped Eddie’s hips tight, the rest of his body relaxing against the wall as Eddie crowded against him further, their fronts touching from head to feet.

Their second kiss came right after a pause for breath, and that one was spectacular.

It was longer, wetter, hotter.

Eddie didn’t want it to end.

But someone banged on the door and they couldn’t be those people.

As they moved away to let the person in, Steve leaned his head against Eddie’s shoulder, like he did on movie night.

“So you’re into me too?” He asked.

Eddie could hear the smirk in his tone, didn’t even need to look down or at their reflection in the mirror to know he was being a little shit.

“No, I just kiss all the boys who come up behind me in bathrooms.”

Steve leaned his head back and nipped at Eddie’s neck, sending a shiver down his spine.

“Behave, big boy. Gotta go pretend we weren’t five seconds from fucking around in a public bathroom,” Eddie said as he guided Steve out of the bathroom.

When they got back into the main room, Steve tensed, started to pull away.

Eddie let him, tried not to let it bother him.

But then he was back, head back on his shoulder, arm around his waist.

“Sorry. Just. Not used to this being something I can do,” he said so only Eddie could hear.

“‘S okay. We’re safe here, though.”

No one commented on it when they got back to the table, though they both could tell everyone wanted to.

Will seemed ready to explode with excitement when someone came and asked him to dance and everyone at the table encouraged him to go.

He wasn’t much of a dancer, but he’d learn.

Nancy and Robin eventually went back to the bar to grab more drinks, and Eddie couldn’t help but watch the way Nancy was looking at one of the women who was standing alone by the jukebox.

“Hey, is it possible that Nancy’s…”

“Oh, yeah. Robin and I have had at least four conversations about how much the Wheelers desperately need to admit to themselves that sexuality is fluid.”

Eddie pulled away to look down at Steve, baffled at how educated he was on everything and kind of hating himself for being surprised.

“You’re somethin’ else, sweetheart.”

Steve kissed his cheek in response.

—-------------------

Nancy came out to them a month later, at the same bar, while staring at the same woman who was standing by the jukebox the month before.

She didn’t really use a label, but didn’t feel like she had to.

Mike took a bit longer, but eventually, Will lost his patience and kissed him.

He came out about ten seconds later.

[tspud-whiteboard]

[The fullsize Final Files and Extras can be found on GoogleDrive!] Annnnd we're closed! Sorry guys, no more submissions. FOR NOW. Okay, to be perfectly honest, I'm still not 100% done with those final looks (there's still a few more tweaks and possibly puzzles to be added to some of the Whiteboards, for funsies). But I do figure that, above everything else, you guys want to see all the great artworks everyone submitted, in their fullsize glory! And now you can. It's all on [Google Drive]! You'll also find the plain Whiteboards with just the artworks there, and then some extra stuff like decorations I used (or didn't). Just browse the folders a bit! Once again, thank you so much - all of those different styles and variations are such a pleasure to scroll through, to spot familiar and new faces alike... ahhh, marvellous! Oh, yes! In case you're only finding this now and have no idea what you're looking at: This is a collaboration of many artists from the Stanley Parable fandom, each submitting their version of the characters to be put on their respective virtual Whiteboard! You can read more about it in the [Original Post], if you want. Sooooo... now what. What will the future hold. Other than those last few tweaks I mentioned above. Well, these here Whiteboards are definitely did-and-done, I can tell you that much. Season One, all finished up. Sorry if you missed it. But I can also tell you that this whole project went quite differently than originally planned: At first it was just "fill a Whiteboard with Stanleys!" Then the Narrator got added, and the Curator, and Settings. And then everyone else. As a result, we do have quite some white space left on some of those boards. Which is fine, I believe especially the Curator can appreciate some minimalism. It gave me an idea, though: If I reformatted this into a "Photo Album". Or Collector's Cards Album, if you will? I'd put 20 or so artworks onto one "page" and you can leaf through those pages.

Personally, I'd love it. Especially because, unlike the Whiteboards, an album format could easily be added to, indefinitely! YES! That means you'd have all the time in the world to submit your guys and I can stick them in with the others quite quickly, and the main focus can always be on the artworks instead of random amounts of white space. We will see, though, yes? For now I need to finish up everything else. Then build a little album mockup. If this idea is as lovely as I imagine it, and everyone's okay with it, maybe I can reopen submissions sooner than I thought.

Well then! Go and check out those Fullsize Files!

[nosecrinklewrites]

this is the thread the previous ask was about. i've always dreamt about turning my threads into proper fics. until then, i'm posting it here.

pairing: kylux

wordcount: 3473

cw: bad bdsm practices

link to original thread on twitter

---

hux owns a private bdsm club. he's older, doesn't take on subs anymore. enter kylo (new in town). he applies for a membership, gets in, wants a dom. there's a big selection, but of course it's the owner who catches his eye. hux is around most of the time, but rarely takes part in play. these days he spends his time making sure everyone is safe, that security and monitors are doing their job properly. hux runs a tight ship.

it doesn't stop kylo.

even though everyone tells him it's a fruitless endeavor, kylo tries anyway. he puts a lot of effort into his appearance, only takes part in play when he knows hux is nearby, makes it known that he's available and looking for a dom.

kylo's first victory comes when a guy tells him he got a new paddle he'd like to try out; would kylo like to help him out? kylo says yes before he's even checked if hux is around (he's always down for getting spanked). hux watches stoically from the sidelines. he catches kylo's eyes a couple of times. his face doesn't show anything, but kylo would like to think hux is impressed. kylo can take a beating and is proud of the fact; he hopes hux is too. even if hux isn't impressed, the guy with the paddle is. kylo is rewarded with grateful pets when they're done. praise doesn't do much for kylo when he doesn't know if it's genuine, but he appreciates it none the less.

hux is gone by the time paddle guy is done petting him.

his body looks fine the way it is, but kylo puts in some extra work outs. he's been told in the past that the bigger he is, the hotter it is that he submits so willingly. he doesn't know if hux feels the same, but it can't hurt to try.

patience isn't kylo's strong suit, so when nothing happens, he starts to consider other offers. just because hux doesn't pay attention to him, it doesn't mean other people don't.

his first partner is underwhelming, can't take him out of his head at all.

the second is better, but he's too timid for kylo's tastes. kylo needs someone who won't hold back. what's the point of safewords if you keep checking in anyway?

the third is ... the third one is a bad idea. kylo gets a bad vibe from the guy, but gives it a try anyway. he should have stuck with his gut. kylo safewords, but it takes a couple of times for the guy to react to it. his face is one of his hard limits. they talked about it beforehand, but the guy doesn't respect it.

going back to the club with bruises on his face isn't a great feeling; not when he has to face the people who warned him about the guy. kylo is visibly affected, but he decides to hang around anyway. if he'd quit the first time someone broke his trust, he wouldn't have lasted a week. it's not the first time and it won't be the last.

he hangs back and takes it easy for a while. kylo was sort of waiting for his bad luck to hit; it usually does. he figures the guy is it, but he should have known it would get much, much worse than that. hux decides now is the perfect time to introduce himself. or rather, that's what kylo thinks is about to happen. evidently word travels fast and hux pulls kylo aside, asks about the bruises. bruises aren't unusual, far from it, but hux's experience shows through. he can tell kylo isn't happy about them, asks how he got them, who did it. kylo doesn't like ratting people out and brushes it off, insists that these things happen.

hux disagrees.

kylo doesn't think hux is doing it on purpose, but he can't help but cower at hux's prodding. kylo blurts the name of the guy and hux catches himself at the outburst; steps back and apologises. he didn't mean to be forceful, but the club belongs to him and he's not going to sit by while members of his club assault each other. since they're alone, hux allows himself to show how rattled he is. he apologises again and explains that he's had his suspicions, but didn't want to throw the guy out without good reason. he also belatedly realises he never introduced himself and offers his hand to kylo. it's not the way kylo had hoped hux would touch him for the first time, but he's a little overwhelmed none the less; especially when hux tells him he wants to know if anything like it happens again.

kylo fights it, but he tears up a little bit, nods and promises to let hux know. kylo's luck continues to fucking suck. hux doesn't just walk away and ignore kylo being weepy. instead he asks if kylo is alright, if the encounter was worse than he lets on. teary eyed kylo has to admit it's not about the guy, but hux's attention and regard for his wellbeing. after a few moments of kylo sniffling, yet pretending he's not and generally being pretty fucking pathetic, hux says, "he didn't take proper care of you, did he?"

hux is blocking the only exit and kylo is about to have a full on meltdown. he blubbers something about being fine - he's perfectly fine! really! but hux isn't an idiot. he tells kylo he'd like to help, in any way that he can. how can kylo say no to that? so, he finds himself being led down a corridor and through a door with an "employees only" sign. hux takes him to his office. his own personal, private office. it has a sign on the door AND the desk, with his name on it. he offers kylo his desk chair, not the one in front of it. the leather squeaks as kylo sits down. hux hands him a tissue from one of the drawers and sits on the desk, waits patiently for kylo to clean up. kylo feels incredibly pathetic. he's a grown man, he's been punched in the face numerous times, this isn't any different.

"what can i do?" hux asks softly. kylo insists that this is fine, he doesn't need anything, but hux isn't so easily fooled. "what do you like to do to come down? what helps you?" kylo shrugs and is generally useless, so hux starts from the top; lists everything he can think of. when hux mentions kneeling, kylo makes an involuntary sound. hux smiles a little, says, "yeah? i'm afraid i'm a bit out of practice, but i'd be happy to have you kneel for me. if you want."

kylo is out of his seat and on his knees before hux is done talking. the desk is not ideal, hux is sitting much too high up. kylo rests his face against hux's knees, holds his calves in his hands. his posture is terrible, it can't be pleasing to look at, but kylo doesn't care. hux's slacks are silky soft in his hands and he can finally breathe.

"that bad, huh?" hux says and asks if he can touch him. kylo nods against his knees, and hux gently puts a hand on the crown of kylo's head. kylo is instantly reminded why the bad experiences are worth it. he'd happily be bruised for the rest of his days if it meant he got to have this. hux isn't doing much, just moving his fingers a bit, but kylo can feel him all around. hux's presence is tangible in the room, all around kylo's body. hux feels larger than life.

"i will never understand why people mistreat subs," hux says softly, mostly to himself. "even brats are sweet as can be when you know what makes them tick." kylo makes a low sound to convey that he's listening. hux runs his fingers through the front of kylo's hair. "are you a brat, kylo?" he hums.

kylo doesn't want to, but he raises his head, blinks up at hux. "no, sir," he mutters and hides his face again. hux laughs, but kylo can't tell which part he's laughing at. kylo isn't well behaved, but he doesn't consider himself a brat. hux lets him kneel in silence for a while.

"we can move, if you'd like? there's a sofa," he eventually says and gestures over his shoulder.

kylo thinks it over, asks, "what are we gonna do on the sofa?"

"what would you like to do?"

it feels like a trap. no dom has ever given kylo what he wanted just because he asked for it. "do i have to crawl there?"

once again, hux turns it around, "would you like to?"

kylo shakes his head. "the floor's too hard; my knees aren't that great."

"we'll walk, then," hux says easily and reaches down, hands moving to kylo's armpits. (for a wild second, kylo thinks hux will attempt to pick him up like a toddler.) hux makes kylo lean back, away from his legs, and makes him sit upright; offers his hands. kylo's brain doesn't quite compute, so they hold hands for a second, while kylo just blinks up at him.

at least hux finds it amusing rather than irritating. he smiles and says, "up you go, big boy, come on," and pulls gently. the sofa is both exciting and terrifying. kylo isn't quite sure he's clear headed enough to make decisions. he feels sluggish, both because of the crying and the unexpected proximity to hux.

at least hux seems to know what he's doing. kylo has a hard time keeping his head up, so hux cups his face, strokes his cheeks. "would you like to lie on my lap?" he asks.

kylo glances to the sofa and back. he hadn't planned on getting spanked today, but if that's what hux wants.

he nods and waits while hux sits down. hux pats his lap and kylo lies down. hux sits too close to the armrest for kylo to comfortably lie down, but he tries anyway. he's barely settled before hux exclaims, "oh, no, no, darling, no – i meant your head. i want your head on my lap."

kylo frowns over his shoulder, "what?"

hux tries to make kylo turn over, move down the sofa, but physically moving kylo isn't easily done. "lie down, please?"

kylo reluctantly moves, still not understanding what is happening. "do you want my mouth?" hux sighs and cups kylo's face again. "kylo, i'm not asking for sex. i would like for you to lie down, put your head on my thigh and let me pet you for a bit. would that be alright?"

it's a weird thing to ask for when they haven't fucked or anything, but kylo complies anyway. as he lies there and tries to get comfortable, it strikes him just how big the sofa is. hux must have bought it big enough for him to nap comfortably. he looks at the ceiling for half a second before he decides he hates it and rolls over, smushes his face into hux's belly instead.

hux waits until he's sure kylo has stopped moving. "are you done?" he asks, amusement clear in his voice.

"sorry," he muffles into hux's shirt.

"it's alright," hux replies. "you're just a bit big to be a lap dog, is all."

kylo can feel his stupid ears turn red. hux brushes his hair back behind his ear, runs the pad of his finger along the shell of it. it feels hot like burning when hux's chill fingers touch it. thankfully, he quickly moves on and pets kylo hair instead, like he said he would.

it takes kylo an embarrassing amount of time to relax properly. he can't help but be hyper aware of hux's dick being right under his head. it would be so easy for himself or hux to turn his head down.

the repetitive movement of hux stroking his hair is eventually enough for kylo to relax. hux's clothes smell really good, the room is quiet, hux isn't asking him to do anything – kylo almost dozes for a bit.

"god, i missed this," hux whispers. maybe he thinks kylo's asleep or maybe he doesn't care that he hears it. it makes kylo's chest hurt a little, he can hear how heartfelt it is. he didn't give much thought as to why hux doesn't have subs anymore; figured he just didn't want to.

"missed what?" kylo carefully whispers back.

hux's hand stops moving for a second, before going back to petting kylo. "taking care of someone," he says softly.

"you mean you've done this before? the--" kylo gestures to his hair and the desk.

"of course," hux smiles and strokes kylo's cheek with the back of his fingers. "i take care of what's mine."

"what about sex?"

"what about it?"

"do you do that before or after the ... the 'taking care of'?"

hux furrows his brows. "i always do it after sex, but i like to do it without sex being involved at all, too."

kylo doesn't understand, exactly, but he keeps his mouth shut. bdsm is a sex thing; it always comes back to sex.

hux runs his thumb along the bruise on kylo's cheekbone, applies pressure until it hurts and kylo flinches. kylo glances up at him. "who told you it has to hurt?"

"it's sort of implied, isn't it?"

hux puts his head in his hand, breathes slowly and deeply for a moment. "explain."

"i mean," kylo says, bites his lip, tries to get his words in order. "spanking always hurts. getting tied up pinches and hurts, too. i guess kneeling doesn't have to hurt, but i've got bad knees, so it does for me."

a vein starts to pulse in hux's temple and kylo stops talking. it's unnerving that hux isn't looking at him when he speaks.

"do you like when it hurts? does it bring you pleasure?"

kylo doesn't know how to answer that. it's not about the sub, is it? the doms do what they enjoy and the subs are just along for the ride, aren't they?

hux lowers his hand and looks at kylo. "i'll take your silence as a no."

"i like getting spanked?" kylo tries.

"we all do, sweetheart. doesn't mean you're a masochist."

kylo feels very stupid and very small and not very good at all. he tucks his face back into hux's belly. hux cups the back of his head and lets him stay there. kylo doesn't understand why hux is so patient. kylo loves these in between moments during play, when he gets to kneel or be petted or just lie on his dom for little bit, but no one has ever let him do it for this long before. and hux said he didn't want sex! the whole thing is very confusing. everyone he's talked to says that hux is an amazing dom and has so much experience with bdsm - but this isn't bdsm at all! he's just petting and holding kylo! maybe it's a weird kind of bdsm kylo doesn't know?

"kylo, i ... this is wildy inappropriate and i apologise, but i would like to ask you to cease looking for a dom," hux says. "i don't think it's safe."

startled, kylo peeks up at him, "why?"

"please don't take this the wrong way, but you don't know what you're doing. there's nothing wrong with that, we all have to start somewhere, but i can't vouch for every single dom in my club. you need someone experienced, someone to guide you," he says softly. "you being as submissive as you are, i don't want anyone to take advantage of that and hurt you," once again, he brushes the bruise on kylo's cheek, "not more than you already have been."

one of the buttons of hux's dress shirt is right at eye level and kylo pulls on it, pops it out of the button hole. "maybe you could do it," he says quietly. "be my dom."

hux's mouth turns down a little. "it's been a long time for me. i'm not sure i'm the right person anymore."

"what if i want you anyway?" kylo asks. he gets a couple of fingers inside hux's shirt, before hux stops him and pulls them back out.

"i'm a busy man, kylo."

kylo reaches for the next button on hux's shirt, pulls it open. "what if i'm really quiet?" he puts his nose through the opening in the shirt, nuzzles against the soft skin of hux's belly. "i'll just be in your office, waiting for you. you don't even have to pay attention to me."

hux threads his fingers through kylo's hair, tugs gently. "that's not even a little bit true," he laughs. "you need attention like breathing. don't think i haven't noticed you before, kylo. you're a loud and demanding little thing, aren't you? greedy." the tone of hux's voice; he says 'greedy' like other people say 'beautiful'.

kylo salivates. "please? i'll make it worth it," he begs, nips at hux's skin.

"you're making it really hard to say no, you know," hux groans, but doesn't do anything to stop what kylo is doing. hux sinks deeper into his seat, makes more room for kylo. he keeps petting his hair, but complains about kylo's manners. "you've had doms before, haven't you? why didn't any of them teach you how to behave?"

"many have tried," kylo says, embarrassed, "but i'm not good at following instructions."

"problems with authority?" hux guesses.

kylo sits up instead of replying, dislodges hux's hand. he opens more buttons and pulls the shirt tails out of hux's slacks. "being disciplined doesn't work very well with you, does it?"

hux is still wearing his jacket, so kylo can't do much. he pulls hux's shirt open and pauses.

"you're pierced."

"i am," hux says simply, eyes still on kylo's face. "no one's ever tried to understand you, have they?"

"what's there to understand?" kylo asks absently and touches one of the nipple piercings. "a sub's a sub."

"what? no! kylo, what the--" hux takes a deep breath, calms down before he goes on. "i thought archie might be an option for you, but holy-- this is way above his paygrade."

kylo pouts, "did i say something wrong?"

"no, honey, no, it's not your fault," hux assures him (and pulls kylo's fingers away from his nipples, puts them on kylo's lap).

"who's archie?"

"cardinal. he's been talking about you for months."

"good things?"

hux smooths the hair off of kylo's forehead. "very good," he smiles. "he asked me for advice. he's been subbing for a long time, but he's a switch and wanted to get back into being a dom. he asked about you, but i don't know you, so i recommended some i do know."

"i didn't know you did that kind of thing," kylo mutters.

hux nods, holds kylo's fidgeting hands. "i like being involved. i know almost everyone here. i approve all the memberships myself."

"is that why you don't want a sub?"

hux looks pinched for a moment. "it's not that i don't want one, but i don't think it's fair to them. i would feel awful taking on a sub, knowing i might neglect them because of my work."

kylo's pout deepens. he really wanted it to be hux. kylo thought hux was one of those cold, severe doms who knows what they want and won't settle for anything less than perfection. kylo is very much into that, but now that he has spoken to him, hux is not like that at all! he's everything kylo didn't know he wanted.

hux nudges his chin and kylo looks up. "you'll find someone. i promise. i'll keep my eye out, if you want? help you look."

"but i want you."

”kylo.”

"i know," kylo says hastily. "i know you're busy, but whatever time you have, i'll take it. please?"

hux sighs again, runs his fingers through his hair, makes an attempt to button his shirt. "it's really not a lot. i'm here late, almost every night."

kylo takes over, buttons the shirt for him. "i'll find a hobby, it's ok."

"alright," hux chuckles and sits up. "on one condition."

kylo perks up, but forces the hopeful feeling in his chest down. "anything."

"if you feel neglected, you tell me, and i'll do what i can to find someone else for you."

the moment stretches between them until kylo whispers, "what are you saying?"

hux takes kylo's hand where it rests on his thigh, brings it to his lips, and kisses kylo's knuckles. he smiles softly and winks, "you got yourself a dom, sweetheart."

[carryon-reverse-bang]

Carry On Reverse Bang 2024 Rules

Everyone:

First and foremost, this is a collaborative event, so once you get paired with your partner, make sure that you keep in contact and keep each other updated on your progress.

All work for this event should be your own work and should not have been shared anywhere else. It should be created for this event specifically.

Your work should be ready to post by your posting date. As a team, you will create a Tumblr masterpost that includes the finished art and a link to the fic. Work as a team to have things ready on time. The intent of the Reverse Bang is to showcase the finished version of the original art concept and the fic that was inspired by it. It’s okay if you end up working on a longer collab, but make sure your art and minimum word count are ready by posting.

You may share glimpses/excerpts of your work before posting, but you must wait until after the teams have been announced in order to keep the claiming process completely anonymous. We love to see what people are working on, but we want the reveals to be a surprise as well.

Be sure to reply to emails and fill out all forms that are sent to you. If you don’t, you will be considered dropped out of the event.

You may sign up as both an artist and writer, but you will not be allowed to claim your own art to write for. Just be sure that you only take on as much as you can handle.

Be kind and have fun! We want everyone to be able to enjoy this event, so be respectful and have fun creating your work(s).

Artists:

You will be creating an original piece of artwork that has never been shared before and has been created specifically for this event.

You may submit up to 3 pieces of art to be claimed, but please be sure that you do not take on more than you can handle.

The art submitted may be in any format (traditional, embroidery, collage, original song, playlist, whatever your heart desires) as long as it is your own original work. If you choose to create a playlist, it must have at least 10 songs.

After you sign up, you will receive an email with a link to a Google Form where you will be able to submit your art concept(s) at any time through August 21st. We ask for a sketch of your work (if you are doing traditional artwork) or something to show the writers what you are working on so that they can get an idea of what it is that you will be doing. We do not expect you to have your art completely finished by this point or for it to look anything like the finished project; we just want something for the artist to be able to view so that they can get an idea of what they will be writing about.

Writers:

Write a minimum of 3k words based on the art that you have claimed.

As long as it was inspired by the claimed artwork, what you write is ultimately up to you, so feel free to get as much of the artist’s input as you want.

If you are paired with a minor, you may not submit an M or E rated fic.

See Schedule and FAQ for more info

[moondirti]

Some of these anons really do be submitting the most demanding stuff

I’m not upset, as I think it’s a thing that’s typical to any new (and let’s face it, even some long-running) fandom. People have all these ideas and not all of them know how to approach it themselves. The excitement might cause them to lose sight of how to phrase things in people’s inboxes, lol.

That being said, I just want to remind everyone of some basic request/internet etiquette, from someone who doesn’t take requests:

Don’t send multiple blogs the same request!

This is something I’ve noticed after receiving a Miguel O’Hara one that I had just seen someone else write a response to, and I really hope I don’t have to convince you why this is not only super risky, but just blatantly disrespectful. Writers are not your personal content machines. Some of us take requests because we hope that our readers love our writing enough to want to see it in multiple scenarios. Approaching multiple individuals with the same idea just screams that you don’t give a fuck about the personality we can bring to it, that you just want your plot written for free. And I’m speaking for myself here, I definitely don’t expect anyone to agree, but I hope y’all understand that there should be decorum and respect within fandom because at the end of the day, it is a community propelled by sheer love alone.

There’s also the additional fact that, by sending your request to multiple writers, the potential for originality claims and allegations to be thrown around skyrockets, which would cause so much unnecessary drama within the community. If you want to keep seeing writers - and, on a whole, creatives - produce the work that you love, then don’t create any reason for them to quit/be attacked.

Remember your manners!

Please, thank you, or even a simple compliment letting us know that you actually appreciate request-taker’s efforts make all the difference in the world. Again, writers are not your personal content machines. We have lives and jobs and work separate from this, and we choose to create only because it brings us joy. By being demanding and rude, you suck that joy right out.

[fairytale-poll]

MOD'S CHOICE POLL

Mod's own propaganda under the cut:

Sasha as Red Riding Hood:

During submissions, I became so absolutely excited when I saw this pop up. I don't know who decided to submit it, but they unlocked some childhood memories for me. Back when I was a child, my family visited Pakistan (my parent's country of origin) for the entire summer. One day I, bored, asked for some movies to watched and my parents and uncle brought back some clearly bootlegged DVDs dubbed in Hindi/Urdu, and Bratz Kids Fairy Tales was one of them. I watched it so many times, you have no idea- I think that I might have wrecked the whole DVD with how much I watched it. (A similar thing happened later on when I obtained a clearly bootlegged copy of Bratz Fashion Pixie too but that's another, non-Red Riding Hood related story.) I wasn't surprised that it was eliminated right off the bat, but my childhood nostalgia dictated I put it here, or else I would be betraying the 7-year-old in me.

Shang, Tao, and Paotze:

Another childhood favorite of mine. This picture book has such beautiful art and I remember being very surprised by the story as a child. I found a PDF of it online to reread when the contest started and honestly it still holds up. The three sisters that are the Red Riding Hood in the story I feel are genuinely very clever. And for nothing else, look this one up solely for it's beautiful art which is just breath-taking whether you're a child or an adult!

Lamb:

Not going to lie I never played this game. My good friend who I adore submitted this to the poll and it immediately got eliminated and I just felt bad lol. But it does look cool & I trust their taste so I do think that this game is great. I want to play it but I am really bad at getting myself to play games.

Aku:

Samurai Jack is a CLASSIC and I dare you to not watch this clip and crack up. Mako was a gift of voice acting and I miss him so much. Also this episode is just pretty amusing.

Amy Lee:

My sister was actually the one to submit this and I will use her own propaganda here: "Evanescence was a voice of a generation." Honestly this song is kind of just okay, there are better Evanescence songs, but got to respect the effort they put into the music video. Who can resist to choose Amy Lee anyway?

The Path sisters:

Like many people who know this game, I know it through Izzzyzzz's two video essays on it. I didn't play the game afterwards, but I did watch some play-throughs since I don't play many games + it seemed mostly like a walking simulator anyway so I felt like I got the same effect. It is AMAZING and has so much story and analysis and I love shit like that... In particular, Scarlet, Ruby, and Rose are my favorites whose stories really resonated with me, even if I haven't exactly gone through their life experiences. Ginger too. And there's some really horrific imagery in Robin's...I would recommend everyone find a way to experience this game-- whether that's playing it, watching Izzzyzzz's videos, or finding a walk-through/analysis of it, it's worth it!

Lisette:

So this manga is sort of obscure but it is also sort of nostalgic to me. Well, nostalgic by proxy. My sister read it when I was younger and told me some details about it and for some reason it stuck with me. Like??? For no reason. It's not even that good lmao. The first chapter right off the bat is pretty edgy & handles sensitive topics very badly. But goddamn if I do not think about random elements of the story for no reason. I don't really remember shit about Lisette but hey this picture of her looks really cool.

Red:

If you notice a theme among these being "nostalgia" you would be right, as this was another nostalgic offering from my childhood that I would watch semi-annually. I was also fond of the sequel, though I thought it felt like a different series than the first one. (Which isn't unusual with animated sequels to popular movies, but the fact that the sequel was set-up by the ending of the first one implies it was planned? Weird). But anyway Red is iconic and funny and voiced by Anne Hathaway and also her sad emo song "Red is Blue" sometimes still gets stuck in my head, so take that as you will.

Chacha:

I know absolutely nothing about this series. But it looks very cute so I like it. I love cute magical girls they deserve the world. Also I looked it up and apparently the Studio who did the Akazukin Chacha anime would later do the Yu-Gi-Oh animes from the 2000s and 2010s, so there's the obligatory mention of nostalgia.

[mermaidsirennikita]

People are ridiculously entitled and it’s genuinely so disheartening. Books are someone’s ART. You don’t just get to alter a name in someone else’s creative work. (I’m appalled people out there think this is remotely acceptable - writers are not court jesters nor do they exist to please everyone - no human being nor their creative work does, in fact!) Thanks for putting your various responses out there! Here’s hoping people learn to respect and appreciate artists and creators once again

Quoth Nora Roberts:

I am not here to be a slave to certain reader’s wants, needs, whims. Again, I write what I write, and these are MY characters, in my books. Not yours. They are yours to enjoy or not, but they belong to me, they come from me...

You don’t have to agree, but I’m not writing for your particular point of view. Again, I’ve explained my reasons for this. I won’t do so again. My characters, my books, my decision. If you want something else, read something else.

And yes, I said that, too. Blast away, it changes nothing. I am not obliged to meet an individual’s demands.

So.

First off:

If you're really super chill about the idea of being able to change what writers write just because you didn't like a detail you think is small and irrelevant, I would sincerely encourage you to read La Nora's full thoughts on similar issues... and yeah, I'm gonna equate something as "small" as a name with what Nora's talking about here. Because it is ALL the author's domain. I've never personally subscribed to the idea that a work "isn't yours anymore" once it's out in the world. The way people interpret and interact with it isn't yours, sure. But it's still your creation, and you should be the only person with control over the content.

... and sometimes, I, as a reader, don't like what authors do with their content. I get it. I don't like that Lisa Kleypas edited her work years after publishing it, because I'm big on the "own what you wrote originally even if it's uncomfy" train... (for the most part--editing the fetishization of Cam and Kev would've made sense to me). And I don't think there's anything wrong with readers pointing out problematic shit in a writer's work, offering critique in an open forum, as Smart Bitches, Trashy books did when reading Hello, Stranger, which I speculate may have prompted some of Lisa's edits.

But! I can't say that it would ever be my right as a reader to, say, use future technology to tell my reading device "edit out the times Cam says shit that reads super fetishized". It's just kind of repellent to me to imagine rewriting someone's work in any way without their permission. Fuck, I don't even like the idea of estates releasing sequels or revised versions of books unless the author indicated that such was in their wishes in their will. (See: the TWO official Gone with the Wind sequels/prequels/whatever authorized by Margaret Mitchell's estate.)

We, as readers, have our lanes. The writers have theirs. And sometimes, as writers, they do tiny things or BIG things in their lanes that we dislike. (I love Tiffany Reisz's Original Sinners series, for the most part. I really, REALLY hate the most recent book in the series. HATE. IT. But the only thing I can do about that shit is just pretend that book never happened, which I actually can fairly efficiently because I do in fact control what my brain does. Or, seek out books that give me what that series didn't with that most recent book. Sierra Simone's do a bangin' job.) But you know... Not only do I not think it is safe for me to merge into their lane... I don't want writers to feel like they have to submit to demand and give away pieces of their work in order to keep selling.

(And honestly? For the vast majority, I don't think it would make enough of a difference anyway--writers are often sold bills of goods with new strategies or tech. "This will change the way you sell books". Most writers won't ever be able to write full time anyway, and I find the way that this fantasy that you'll be able to do otherwise with THIS TECH optimizing your writing time, or THIS SUBSCRIPTION increasing the eyeballs that will see your book... Scammy. Not all of it's bad! But the selling strategy that you'll make more money... If you're selling on KU, if five extra people buy your book you're still making pennies, so it's gotta be more than one thing that converges to create the sale, and a lot of that, I gotta say, is word of mouth and people just LIKING YOUR SHIT. And I'd argue that they're more likely to like your shit if you're invested as a writer.)

Second:

No need to thank me! I honestly think that the majority of readers do appreciate what writers do (or don't feel either way about it and just read like people have always read lol) but I don't know. I can't really tell what it is--the sort of "fandom" that's been created around books (and like, author fan clubs and such have always existed, but obviously the accessibility is so different), new tech developing very rapidly when for centuries books were relatively stagnant technologically speaking, the fanficification of EVERY type of media it feels like... But the sense of entitlement that certain readers feel does seem to have grown. Or maybe it's simply become more visible. I mean, Nora Roberts has from the dawn of her writing career taken off had fans that can communicate with her, and I'm sure many have written letters like "Go give these characters a baby :(".

My biggest thing is always going to be this: some books ain't gonna be for you. There are books that sound so Caroline. I read them, and for whatever reason--writing style, one character choice, something ephemeral I can't name--they aren't. Everyone else loves these books. I'd love to love these books. I'd love to discuss these books. I'm not in the party. And that's FINE. Not every party is going to be a party I'm down for! One of my best friends loooooves Tessa Bailey and Tessa-like contemporaries. Tessa, by and large, doesn't work for me. So my friend and I can't discuss a lot of books in depth. Do I wish historicals worked for her so that I could nerd out with her? Sure! But I can't make something that doesn't work for her work for her, and I can't make Tessa's books work for me.

And I know that people will be like "it's just a name bitch", but... it's a slippery slope to me, just like ALL of AI and AI-related tech has been a slippery slope. Like, y'all said AI wasn't gonna be a big deal and would just make things easier, and people are now selling AI-written books under their names. Everyone said that authors would have control over how AI interacted with their books, and books are being scraped for AI on the daily.

I do not want anyone to have final control over what is and isn't in a book but the person who wrote the book. I do not want writers to feel like they need to cede any amount of control over the copy in that book over to readers in order to succeed.

And I honestly think it would be a lot healthier for everyone involved if we as readers (viewers, general audiences) just accepted that we don't get everything we want, and creatives are not here to dance to our tune. They are people, and they want to tell the stories they want to tell. Your power? Is in your dollar. If you don't like that shit, don't buy it. If you don't want to support it... don't! Fuck, if you want to talk shit on the internet about how the most recent book in the series was absolutely not for you, that's your right, too.

I don't want you fucking with a single word on the page, though. Feel free to go write your own shit--prosper! But that part of what Nora said that rings true to me most is "they come from me". These books come from writers. You have them because of those writers. So, I don't know, dude. Just take what's there, and if you dislike it, spit it out and move on to the thing you will like. Authors aren't churn factories to produce what you want, and ROMANCE as a genre, however commercial it is and however much it does have that One Rule that defines it as a genre... Is still something that writers should be allowed to experiment with. That's the work writers put in. The work readers put in? Finding shit that works for us. And I'm telling you... With a little practice, it ain't hard. How do y'all think I have all these books to recommend? Lmao

[jrwi-best-villian]

Heyo everyone! Ive been loving the JRWI brackets and I look forward to them everyday (Its kinda sad) so I decided to make my own! So, welcome to the JRWI best villian bracket! This is a bracket to figure out who the best antagonist is throughout the JRWI campaigns!

[More info under the cut]

SUBBMISSIONS:

1. Be respectful, this mainly applies to cc and me. This includes not crossing any boundries of the JRWI crew. Also respect me in general!

2. You are able to submit multiple characters but do not submit a character twice (all of your characters will probably be picked)

3. Villian is a subjective term. Villian could be an actual villian from PD, or it could be a character from Riptide that has vilianous tendencies.

4. If you have propaganda that contains spoilers please use this format: Campaign spoilers, season episode (EX: PD spoilers S1E4)

5. Make sure info about your character is either accurate or is stated as a hc or something of the sort.

6. I do not know when the subbmissions will close but I will be keeping you posted!!

https://forms.gle/RceeEbtMQxuYk8Fx8

TAGGING SYSTEM:

#best villian vote -- polls for the best villian

#non vote -- anything that isnt a poll

#best villian bracket -- anything I post on this acc will have this tag

#best villian propaganda -- any post for propaganda will have this (also if you post propaganda, please use this tag)

CREDITS:

This is not my original idea, this acc is based off of similar brackets. Some of the main ones I like are @jrwi-transgender-swag @kisser-of-jrwi-characters @jrwis-most-pathetic

This acc is run by @gillion-tidestrider-fan (thats me!!) Please be paitent, I have school so post may take some time

[sotwk]

this is... such a random question, but i sent an ask awhile ago asking for ur headcanons or ideas on what the bathing habits of elves and dwarves are like. like, do they have bathhouses or private baths? if public, are they separated by sex? are they only accessed by the royalty? i guess im just wondering if you got it. if you didn't and are now just seeing this— id also love to hear if you think baby / youngster legolas liked bathing, or if he was one of those kids who would sooner track mud all over mirkwood than dip his toe in the water.

i also included my personal hc about the dwarves situation, but i don't remember it now

Hello Anon!

I'm sorry it has taken a while to get to this headcanon request, but I did get the original Ask you submitted further a while back:

Let me just go ahead and address your questions about bathing practices with a few simple answers. 😊

Did Legolas like baths when he was a child?

Legolas did not dislike baths per se; he was just the sort of child who was always too busy running around getting himself dirty, and having to take baths was kind of a nuisance that he felt was pointless. "I am just going to get dirty anyway!", as his logic goes.

Nonetheless, as a prince, good hygiene was required, so he did bathe regularly with the help of his nursemaid and occasionally the Queen herself.

His baths were done indoors, in a bathroom and tub of his own, where his nursemaid would spend a good amount of time scrubbing the dirt out of his hair and between his fingers and toes.

While Legolas had to be chased down to get into the tub, once he was actually in it, he enjoyed bathing. He liked to take toys and random objects into the bath to play with. Sometimes, he would sing silly songs! And he splashed water out of the tub. A lot.

SotWK-verse fun fact: Legolas's nursemaid was the mother of Haldir of Lothlorien! She raised not only her own 3 sons, but also helped raise all 5 of the Thranduilions, so she had patience in spades.

How did Elves bathe?

In most Elven communities, including Rivendell and Lothrlorien, I believe many elves have bathing spaces inside their own homes, so bathing is, for the most part, done privately. There are a few public bathhouses available, and these are indoor facilities. I don't believe genders are separated, BUT the spaces/tubs are arranged so each person could have their privacy. I think Elves see bathing almost as a ritual, a form of healing of mind and body that should be done with care, in a quiet and calm space.

In Silvan communities such as the Woodland Realm, where social norms are a bit more relaxed and "liberated", you might say, things are different. While the traditional private home baths (more common for lords/ladies) and public bathhouses are available, there are also public outdoor baths, aka communal bathing in rivers/streams/lakes. Most Silvan Elves who reside near bodies of water bathe this way, and there is no privacy or gender separation expected. Although bathing is done in public (and yes, fully unclothed), it is still a calm and relaxing practice. Personal spaces are respected, and everyone goes about their own business without making a fuss or bothering anyone else. Adult Elves don't play or get rowdy when taking baths; it's considered bad manners. Playful behavior is reserved for swimming, which is considered a different activity altogether.

How did Dwarves bathe?

I mean, that Extended Edition scene in Rivendell gave us a pretty clear idea of how these guys get clean, didn't it?

I fully agree with your HCs and the way you described how Dwarves use public bathhouses. I think private baths are less common for them than they are for Elves, because Dwarves are highly social within their own communities. Any activity they can do as a group, they will!

Dwarves seem to have no qualms about getting naked in front of each other, regardless of age or gender or familiarity. It could be a naturally respectful aspect in their culture, or perhaps the way they view their bodies is different from other races. (Could it be the amount of body hair covering them?)

Their bathhouses are massive and grand facilities, intended for long use. Dwarves might not bathe as frequently as Elves, but when they do, they can literally take hours, almost like having a spa day!

Rowdy playtime during baths clearly is acceptable at any age.

Thank you for reading!

For more Tolkien headcanons, please visit my Headcanon Masterlist

Tolkien Headcanon tag list:

@quickslvxr @laneynoir @auttumnsayshi @achromaticerebus @tamryniel @friendofthefellowshipsnerdblog @blueberryrock @aduialel @glassgulls @ladyweaslette @asianbutnotjapanese @conversacomsmaug @lemonivall @lathalea

[corazon-week]

Hi ♥ everyone! Corazon Week kicks off on Cora’s birthday! 💖

Hope you all is doing well, here we are another year commemorating our love for Cora-san, but this time is gonna be a little different! Unfortunately, our team has been a kinda busy :( and our dear member, @majoraop​ has to leave this project to work on her own goals and projects, we want to thank her for so much for all her value contribuition through this years, we will miss you and we send you our best wishes! 💕 So due to setbacks, we decided make this event so much simpler, this time there no prompts, so you can make aything you want for celebrate Cora-san and share it with all Corazon fandom! 🎉 If you want to use any prompt from past events, feel free to use it ;) This CorazonWeek2023 will start from July 15th until the last day of July.

Rules: - you can only submit your own original works; - you can include official OP material or edits of it in your contributions; - you can interpret the past prompts however you want, and use more than one prompt from any year at once; - we’ll only reblog mature content if it’s in an external link in your post and properly tagged; - you can create anything (art, stories, poetry, crafts, graphics, cosplay, AMVs, playlists, analysis, etc); - late entries are accepted and will be reblogged until the end of July; - no bashing—respect other people’s ideas and creations! Please @ this blog in the posts and include #corazonweek and/or  #corazonweek2023 in the tags so that we can find and reblog your contributions! You can read our full rules/info here and here, and check out the previous years’ prompts here. Our askbox is also open if you have any questions about the event—or anything else! If you can’t create something for the event you can still contribute to it by liking and reblogging other people’s contributions: celebrating Cora with fellow fans is the most important thing! 💖Be nice to each other and remember that Cora-san loves you! 💖

[fearingthefearsome]

𝕸𝖔𝖓𝖉𝖘𝖙𝖆𝖉𝖙 𝕾𝖈𝖊𝖓𝖆𝖗𝖎𝖔

─•~𝓜𝓪𝓼𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓵𝓲𝓼𝓽 ~•─  - The main masterlist with all my collections

𝒢𝑒𝓃𝓈𝒽𝒾𝓃'𝓈 𝒫𝓇𝒾𝓂𝑜𝑔𝑒𝓂𝓈 - Genshin Impact masterlist

Greetings 𝓭𝓻𝓲𝓯𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓼, I have come back to the land of the living. I'm currently testing out a few new styles to my writing and my tumblr posts. Apologies in advance for the constant editing to my blogs and thank you everyone for you patience! In this archive, we introduce our lovely Reader as a new addition to the gameplay as an interactable NPC. Each one will feature someone from each region to be their beloved spouse or lover or a dear friend of theirs. Other than that, I hope you all enjoy reading the archive's newest post.

P.S. If ever my dearest 𝓭𝓻𝓲𝓯𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓼 have any request they would love to be featured in the archives, I am open to receiving your ideas! Rules of these requests will be posted in the pinned post of my profile with that, I hope you all enjoy the the post.

Character Info

It was quite a shock when Genshin Impact introduces a new character. Especially someone whose origin is from Mondstadt. They introduce us to the new character, who is also part of the Knights of Favonious. They are the Second Chief Alchemist, known as Reader, and are usually the one who has to take care of the paperwork Albedo is not obligated to submit. Not that they can force him. They managed to get someone to take over the task their Chief Alchemist does not want to do. But our new alchemist is hiding more about herself than what the lore of Genshin perceives. 

However the most surprising fact that fans cannot believe is that our new character is the wife of Diluc Ragnvindr. The person who we meet during Diluc’s Second Character Story Quest that will be introduced alongside the current rerun banners. She is known to be quite blunt and cruel to the common folk. But the Knights of Favonious respect her position and the works she contributes to help the city. She often works in her office in the Headquarters and in some instances, she travels to Dragonspine to check on Albedo and to conduct her own dangerous experiments. Her story tells us more about the hidden mysteries of Teyvat, especially when you interact with her. 

More about Character: Conclusion

“I feel it again. The pain that Istaroth brought to me. It brings back the memories I once lost and the unwavering feeling of betrayal she sunk into my heart. I will never forget that day. The divinity she shared with me, it consumes my soul and it breaks my body. I don't think I can control myself one day. If ever I go too far, just know you may kill me. I will always come back to the mortal plane. Something I dream to escape from.” 

First Meeting

There are certain requirements to access Diluc’s Second Story Quest. One of which is Albedo’s story quest to unlock Dragonspine. It starts off with a commission request from the Acting Grand Master. 

Traveler gets to know you when they finish another daily commission. The quest is triggered once you receive the rewards from Katheryne. They trigger a conversation from Katheryne who informs them that Acting Grand Master Jean requests their assistance. As soon as you arrive at the Headquarters, you converse with Jean who requests your help to locate Master Diluc. Apparently there was a physical dispute that the Knights had to break regarding the Wine merchants from Fontaine. Lisa and Kaeya come in to inform Jean that the last sighting of Diluc was that he was on his way to Dragonspine. When Traveler accepts the commission, they are accompanied by the two, surprisingly, and is quite suspicious of the innocent smile Lisa sent their way.

As they travel up along Dragonspine, they go through multiple challenges on the way. That’s when they unexpectedly bump into Diluc who is also on his way up the mountain. 

“Master Diluc! Just the person we need.” Lisa purrs as she summons her book to flick a bolt of lightning to the cryo slimes surrounding the redhead. Diluc slashes the frosty monsters, trying to crowd them around. Traveler lends a hand by crowding them together with their anemo powers before Diluc deals a heavy blow of pyro in his claymore. Effectively killing all the cute slimes and stopping them from bothering them now.  

“We have been looking for you,Master Diluc.” Kaeya says, keeping his sword away since the fight is over. Diluc huffs at his comment but chooses to quickly spot a nearby campfire to light it. “You’re quite the wanted man.”

“I’m not sure what you mean by that, Captain Kaeya.” He rests his claymore on the ground as he gestures for the group to huddle around the newly-lit campfire. He blows a breath into his gloved palms as he lets the warmth sink into his skin. “I’m merely on my way to fetch my wife.”

Hold up- wait a minute.

“WIFE?!” Paimon screams in disbelief while Traveler blinks in surprise. “Master Diluc, you’re married?” The only answer Traveler gets is a small chuckle from Lisa who confirms it with a growing grin. Kaeya on the other hand is baffled beyond comparison. He splutters in confusion before settling on a very confused but devastating expression. “You’re married?” He whispers in utter disbelief and just a little, just a little bit of betrayal settles beneath his tone. 

Diluc sighs and looks away with an irritated face,  a faint hint of blush dusting his skin. “Yes.” He says admittedly with an exasperated but fond tone. Paimon stares at Diluc in disbelief before stuttering out questions regarding his relationship. They spend a few minutes by the campfire as they try to wait out the increasing wind currents of the snowy peaks. By the time they were moving, Paimon was still pestering Diluc about his marriage and Traveler couldn’t help but let it be. Even they were curious about their friend’s relationship that even no one else knew. 

“Wait… Your wife is in Dragonspine?” 

“That is the workplace of an Alchemist.”

“Alchemist?!”

It wasn’t until a literal earthquake shook the mountain core that they stopped their little interrogation. The group, alert and prepared for an attack, try to find the origin of the earthquake. That’s when a ruin guard lands before them with a heavy impact that sweeps them off their feet. Diluc quickly gets up on his feet and rushes towards the Ruin Guard preparing to shoot a few missiles their way.

But a bolt of lightning descends from above, followed by a figure that pierces through the Ruin Guard’s arm. Traveler uses that distraction to throw their sword at the Ruin Guard before it is knocked off with a high-pitched ring and lands on the snow.  A deep but authoritative tone screams through the blizzard winds that could have embedded fear in their hearts. “ Don’t touch my- EXPERIMENT!” The crackle of lightning had them stepping back as the immense power had the hairs on their arms standing in attention of the danger. A hiss of lightning bolted through the arms before a white spear drove itself through the Ruin Guard’s power core. 

“How annoying.” The figure was a woman. She was tall and proud in her stance. She took out her spear with wires that clung to the white metal of her weapon. With a twirl of her spear, she drives the blunt end of the weapon through the Ruin Guard for good measure. She whips her head to meet the group and she strides onwards towards them. Her tone was forced and furious beneath her tongue. Her jaw was grit tight and a small sneer made its way on her face. 

“What’s troubling you, dear.” Diluc puts away his claymore as his wife huffs away irritated. She also puts away her weapon and sighs exasperated. “The amount of paperwork that is.” She snarkily replies as she comes forward to the quartet still gaping at her in awe and disbelief. Adjusting her coat and her gloves, she reaches a hand out to the traveler. 

“Nice to meet you, Traveler. I suppose you’ve been dragged along to retrieve my husband, yes?"

Interactable on the Map

After finishing Diluc’s Second Story Quest, a hidden mechanic that people overlook is that you can talk to Reader. As mentioned before, you can catch a glimpse of her in the newly open second floor of the Headquarters inside her office or on her camping spot at the top of Dragonspine. Interacting with her the first time will give you 10 intertwined fates. 

“Thank you for helping my husband, Traveler. I know he gave you compensation for the trouble but I’m also giving you my part of the compensation. Think of it as a package deal from us.”

Afterwards, she gives you one extra commission every week worth 60 primogems. And when you visit her after completing that new commission, she sometimes may talk to you, other times she stays silent. 

“How do I know so much about the gods? Well… I’m a high priestess. I used to serve Istaroth, even long before Khanre’iah fell. I lived for so long, even longer than the Archons but even immortality has its downsides. Watching so many people perish before myself was harder than acknowledging the blood soaking my hands.” — Reader, Alchemy Office of the Knights of Favonius Headquarters 

“Your sister? Hm… I’m unsure. I’ve never met her nor have I heard of an, “Abyss Princess.” However I can give you words of advice, Traveler. Whatever you are seeking, it’s already garnered their attention. Be wary of the people, Traveler. They’re hiding, hoping to catch you off guard.” — Reader, Dragonspine

[knightyoomyoui]

KNIGHT'S COMMISSIONS ARE NOW OPEN!

Hey guys! Knight here. As all of you know, I’ve been teasing about my plans to do commissions before, and today it's time for me to finally announce that I am officially accepting Ko-Fi commissions for everyone who wants me to create a fic of their own idea, but this time it will be required with a payment. The reason I’ve been doing this is that I hit the point where I do indeed need to save up some income for my college life, and there's a bit of pressure that I’ve been getting from my parents, who want me to save up some money of my own. With that, I decided to use my hobby and interests as one of my sources of funds. I hope you guys understand my situation. My Ko-fi account: knightyoomyoui's Ko-fi Commissions - Ko-fi ❤️ Where creators get support from fans through donations, memberships, shop sales and more! The original 'Buy Me a Coffee' Page.

So, here’s what you’ll be expecting here in my commission:

WHAT I'M GOING TO WRITE: NOTE: 1.) I only accept pure one-shots, but I’ll consider inserting one smut part that won’t affect the entire plot. 2.) It could be Idol x M Reader, Idol x F Reader, Idol x Idol, or Member x Member. 3.) The plot could be fluff, angst, or both, and the concepts could be anything you want, such as fantasy, action, mystery, etc. SPEED FANFIC for ($15) = 2k–4k words (This should only have a light plot, with not too many situations going on—a quickie, to be exact.) NORMAL FANFIC for ($20) = 5k–7k words (The plot for this could be expanded, with more situations appearing in detail to either show the aftermath of what happened or a flashback to explain how the characters led themselves in that scenario.) HEAVY-DEPTH FANFIC ($30) = 8k–10k words (In this one, you can go all out. Bring every idea you have in that plot, and I’ll do my best to give it magic. Since this is long, you can freely give me a complete story to create, but make it as exact as you can.)

WHAT I WILL NOT WRITE:

For the smut, I don’t allow kinks that present body harm, watersport, foot-sucking, armpit licking, non-con, humiliation, other over the top kinks, or incest, especially for idols who are under 18.

No smut part for idols under 18.

HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR COMMISSION:

If you are interested, inform me first by contacting me through direct message in my account “knightyoomyoui” at Wattpad, Tumblr, and AO3. After I acknowledge your interest, you can submit to me the following: 1.) A picture of the idol(s) you want to feature 2.) Your username on Tumblr. Wattpad, and AO3. 3.) Tell the genre of your story (if smut, mention the kink you want specifically). 4.) the length  of your choice 5.) the plot of your story

OTHER THINGS TO REMEMBER:

I strictly DO NOT ALLOW REFUNDS

You can cancel only before I respond and bring ourselves to an agreement.

Expect that if you order SPEED, it will only take like less than a week to be finished, but for NORMAL and HEAVY DEPTH fanfics, it will take much longer, like more than a week but not exceeding up to a month. All of these will depend still in case I do find some struggle with my real-life stuff to prioritize first, so please understand and have some patience for me.

You should not be less than 18 years old to request your commission.

Everything that is going on with our transaction will remain between us. I respect privacy.

Please don’t submit another order when you still have a pending request for me to complete. I get it; it will provide me with more money, but I would appreciate it more if you could wait and be patient.

I want to express my gratitude to everyone who has been supporting me as an author. I may not be a great writer, but I can assure you that I’ve been doing everything I can to improve myself so that I can continue impressing and entertaining my readers and fellow K-Pop fans. I am actually overwhelmed that this hobby that I fell in love with has led me to gain the ability to use it as my strategy to earn income. I wish you all a wonderful day and thank you so much again for reading, especially for those who will have an interest in ordering!

[regallibellbright]

Honestly I think I'd hate Arthur Cantabella less if they'd simply removed the whole "Yeah no this is a government-condoned psychological experiment" aspect.

TESTING WHAT?! No, genuinely, what? Using the contaminated groundwater/weirdass Silver Fainting Allergy and/or the flower ink as a drug? Because uh, if that's the case, then I'm pretty sure using them both in conjunction contaminates your results.

Is it something about mob mentality? In-groups and out-groups with the elaborate tech crew made of convicted witches and victims maintaining the whole illusion? In that case, I think the fact that you're drugging and gaslighting the entire experiment group is also contaminating the results.

Also the whole fantasy setting is probably a confounding variable for Something.

Okay sure parents could consent to taking part in this experiment for their children, but uh, I'm pretty sure some of these kids were born AFTER the experiment began. Given the aforementioned Large Amounts of Drugging From Multiple Origins going on here, I have some concerns!

No seriously. Please. PL vs PW writers. Give me the grant proposal Arthur Cantabella submitted to get anyone to fund this project. I know it's Bill fucking Hawks, but even he's got limits! I don't see how he benefits from half this shit even if he wants to use the other half (I assume the drugs.) Why is he paying for the rest? There's a reason why Clive is established as being a lone schemer with obscene amounts of money who's keeping all his scientists in the dark and/or coerced to keep building, and it's so that we don't have anyone there questioning why he's building an elaborate fake town populated by actors in addition to his Underground Vengeance Mecha!

The fact that you somehow managed to get this cleared as a psychological experiment establishes that you know the field of psychology exists. Why in the name of all that is holy did you think building an elaborate fake fantasy town with an elaborate magic system which you make real through the power of drugging people, knocking the ENTIRE TOWN out every time a spell is used, changing things around them to simulate "magic" using the most ridiculous Renn Faire stage crew ever, and manipulating the clocks so no one's aware time is passing, with a system that prosecutes witches and burns them so that they can join the Renn Faire Stage Crew along with their victims, and positioning yourself as the all-powerful Storyteller who writes their reality into being would be a better solution than therapy?

Honestly I'd respect "I had a god complex, lol" more. Especially for that last one, but like. In general. Descole's out there living his worst life, he KNOWS he's an asshole supervillain agent of chaos, and I respect this because he has clearly CHOSEN to be Like This. You do you, man. Ditto for Don Paolo but like, less effectively.

This is not how any of this works.

Okay, setting... ALL OF THAT aside, you're doing this because your and your best friend's young daughters are understandably incredibly traumatized because they wanted to ring the bell early and the Weirdass Groundwater-Induced "Allergy" That Makes You Faint When You Hear Silver Ringing caused them and everyone else to pass out, and as everyone in the square below was having a fire festival, this caused a massive tragic conflagration. Okay. Yeah, this is bad. (I have. MANY questions about how this bell was made, excavated, and mounted in the square without anyone ever ringing it and realizing something had happened, but we're going to gloss over those for now, it's Professor Layton and I would otherwise be all over this incredible bullshit. It's great up until it asks us to think THIS was ever a remotely reasonable idea.) One of your daughters is all but catatonic because a story you told her earlier has convinced her she either is or will be taken by The Great Witch Bezella. Sure. (You suck.) Why the FUCK is your solution based on the other one unpersoning herself to her best friend and doing all the work to make the magic real? Yeah, sure, she agreed to it. SHE'S LIKE EIGHT TO TEN. HER BEST FRIEND THINKS SHE'S AN AWFUL MONSTER AND WON'T REACT OTHERWISE. OF COURSE Eve's gonna help, but that doesn't mean you should put the entire burden on her! She is ALSO horribly traumatized to the point of repressing what happened. Get her help too. The fact that the game seems to put their actions on remotely even footing when one of them has been treated like shit since she was TEN and one of them was an adult who PURPOSEFULLY AND INTENTIONALLY set up a system that would put her in this shitty situation means that yeah, no, they fundamentally are not. Of course her decisionmaking is misguided and terrible! She's a twenty-year-old who's been horribly mistreated for more than half her life! HER DAD JUST COMMITTED SUICIDE OUT OF GUILT FOR HIS ACTIONS IN SETTING UP THIS SYSTEM.

No one's going to hold them responsible for the deaths. This was a sequence of events so thoroughly unforeseeable that literally no one could have predicted it. It won't even reflect poorly on you and Belduke, because you two somehow managed to find the bell, excavate it, and mount it without ever ringing it and realizing it knocked you out and you all had an environmentally-induced silver "allergy" and at that point this goes into "acts of a cruel and malicious Writer-God" territory.

Also it was totally predictable that this elaborate system of misogyny would not actually help Espella in the long term as she instead repressed her memories and further internalized the whole witches = evil thing so that when those memories inevitably came back she would be in EVEN WORSE shape, this is why you should have gotten an actual psychologist who could have told you this whole thing was a terrible plan to write your grant.

No like does he drug all his requests to whoever he reports to (it has to be directly to the person signing checks) in the mind-control ink? This is my only explanation here.

Why. In God's name why. Did you not. Simply. DESTROY THE FUCKING BELL TOWER. You have a crane here! What possessed ANYONE to think just covering it up with Vantablack and gaslighting so people couldn't see it was a reasonable solution to the Trauma Tower? (There may be an explanation for this, it has been ten years, but this man's problem solving has been established to be so poor I award him no points.)

And if you were going to do this, why didn't you tell Newton? Or was it just that the lightning strike burning up the Vantablack was itself a reminder to him that you can't repress the past away and he was suddenly aware of how overwhelmingly POINTLESS all this suffering was? (Edit: I think it was this. No but seriously you could’ve just taken a fucking wrecking ball to that thing while you were rebuilding the town.)

Seriously why the fuck did Newton Belduke go along with letting you use his traumatized daughter like this? What the hell, man. What an asshole.

Also. Your problem was that you had two severely traumatized little girls (even if you only acknowledged one of them was traumatized.) Your solution was... to traumatize a shitload more young girls?

TO THE POINT WHERE AT LEAST ONE OF THEM ATTEMPTED SUICIDE?!

And then your best friend actually committed suicide?!

Like. Seriously. If these are the actions of a single, seriously traumatized person, the fact that you are making Literally The Worst And Most Inexplicable Decisions Ever Which Make The Problem Worse For Literally Everyone Involved is more... well, conceivable. I buy a traumatized eighteen-year-old with an obscene amount of money building an elaborate fake London that is allegedly London ten years in the future, hiring actors to populate it, kidnapping scientists, making them build an Underground Vengeance Mecha to destroy the city, and then kidnapping the Prime Minister who is the source of that trauma and hooking the engine of the mecha up to his heart. And then roping in the one guy who could conceivably solve the whole problem and stop him and Clive would let it. It's a bad idea on EVERY conceivable level, don't get me wrong, on an UNPRECEDENTEDLY terrible scale, but it's a bad idea in which it is very clear no one at any point has asked the person what the fuck they think they're doing here, what they are trying to accomplish, and why they are doing so with this objectively absurd method. Because they have not let anyone in close enough to key them to The Full Absurd Terribleness. It's either this or become Batman.

But Arthur? Apparently his decisions have been vetted by OTHER PEOPLE, and this just boggles my mind. I refuse to believe this. I refuse to believe NO ONE went "have we considered this is like eight hundred terrible ideas bundled up into The Worst Idea Ever?" And I refuse to believe he's anything but a massive asshole when his plan had so many awful consequences for literally everyone BUT himself!

Like, don't get me wrong. There are SO MANY examples of unethical experimentation on human subjects in the real world, psychological and otherwise. But most of them are not this incredibly convoluted, implicitly expensive, and we all generally recognize these days that they were bad.

Also, none of them were enacted as an elaborate setup to (incompetently) handle the trauma of the experimenter's daughter after he told her if she was bad a scary evil witch would possess her and then she and her friend accidentally enacted a tragedy whose scale and fundamental absurdity rival the Boston Molasses Flood, but without corporate greed. There were solutions to this that were so much easier, less convoluted, less EXPENSIVE, and less harmful to... well, everyone else involved, except Arthur Cantabella.

[carryon-reverse-bang]

Rules and FAQs

Rules

Everyone:

First and foremost, this is a collaborative event, so once you get paired with your partner, make sure that you keep in contact and keep each other updated on your progress.

All work for this event should be your own work and should not have been shared anywhere else. It should be created for this event specifically.

You may share glimpses/excerpts of your work before posting, but you must wait until after the teams have been announced in order to keep the claiming process completely anonymous. We love to see what people are working on, but we want the reveals to be a surprise as well.

Be sure to reply to emails and fill out all forms that are sent to you. If you don’t, you will be considered dropped out of the event.

You may sign up as both an artist and writer, but you will not be allowed to claim your own art to write for. Just be sure that you only take on as much as you can handle.

Be kind and have fun! We want everyone to be able to enjoy this event, so be respectful and have fun creating your work(s).

Artists:

You will be creating an original piece of artwork that has never been shared before and has been created specifically for this event.

You may submit up to 3 pieces of art to be claimed, but please be sure that you do not take on more than you can handle.

The art submitted may be in any format (traditional, embroidery, collage, original song, playlist, whatever your heart desires) as long as it is your own original work. If you choose to create a playlist, it must have at least 10 songs.

After you sign up, you will receive an email with a link to a Google Form where you will be able to submit your art concept(s) at any time through August 23rd. We ask for a sketch of your work (if you are doing traditional artwork) or something to show the writers what you are working on so that they can get an idea of what it is that you will be doing. We do not expect you to have your art completely finished by this point or for it to look anything like the finished project; we just want something for the artist to be able to view so that they can get an idea of what they will be writing about.

Writers:

Write a minimum of 3k words based on the art that you have claimed.

As long as it was inspired by the claimed artwork, what you write is ultimately up to you, so feel free to get as much of the artist’s input as you want.

If you are paired with a minor, you may not submit an M or E rated fic.

FAQs

What is a reverse bang?

It is a collaborative event where artists submit their work for writers to claim and write a fic for. It is collaborative in nature and is similar to a big bang but in reverse.

How do I sign up?

On August 1st, we will make a post with a link to the Google Form where you will be able to sign up!

What is the max rating for my work?

Any rating is acceptable, but minors will not be allowed to submit or write for m- or e-rated art.

What is needed for the Art Concepts?

Something that the writers can view (a sketch, a couple of songs that may be part of the playlist, some lyrics from the song you’re writing, etc.), a description of the art you will be creating, and the rating of your art.

How will Claiming work?

On August 24th, writers will receive a link where they will be able to view the art concepts, and on August 26th a link to a Google Form will be sent out where they can submit the top three pieces of art that they would like to write for. We will do our best to give everyone their top choice, but in the case of multiple people choosing the same one, we will go on a first come, first served basis.

When is posting?

Posting will take place between November 15th and 30th. We will send out a form for you to fill out before then where you will be able to choose which day you would like to post on.

Where can I post my work?

Anywhere. We would like for it to at least be linked on Tumblr with both the art and the fic on the same post, but other than that, post it wherever you would like. And be sure to tag us when you do, so that we can share your work!

Does my work have to be completely finished by the posting date?

We ask that all art pieces be complete and that at least 3k of the fics be ready to be posted on your chosen posting date. If you need an extension, let us know, and we will see what we can do.

What if I need to drop out?

We ask that you try to drop out before teams are announced so that no one is left without a partner, but we understand that things come up, so if you need to drop out at any time, please DM or email us ASAP to let us know.

Who are the mods of this event?

Autumn (@angelsfalling16 ) and Jess (@you-remind-me-of-the-babe )

As always, if you have any other questions, send us an ask or DM, and we will be happy to answer them for you!