#samara appreciation time

[thelilylav]

Y'know what? Fuck it (gives u guys a list of poc artists to listen to cause the white ppl on the music side of tumblr have been embarassing me)

List is under the cut, and warning bc I made it very long

Rock:

Los Abuelos De La Nada

Gesu No Kiwami Otobe

Chuck Berry

Ben E. King

Los Prisoneros

Ahmed Fakroun (ok this one's french art rock but in my book it still counts)

Burnout Syndromes (been fucking w them since I got into Haikyuu lmao)

Infinity Song (their hater song genuinely gets me every time LMAO)

People in the Box

N.E.R.D (my god if u don't know them.. idk dude my brother has been obsessed w them for forever so i just was not getting away regardless lol)

Punk/Punk Rock (& other punk subgenres):

Nova Twins (u must listen to them it's just the way it's gotta be guys)

Rina Sawayama (her hatred of Matty Healy is so attractive. i cannot believe i found her two years ago cause i still remember i would not shut up when i first heard her music it was so good)

BABYMETAL (the way their band name just straight up screams at people gets me every time lmaooo)

Indie:

The Younger Lovers

Mashrou Leila

Stella Jang

Shak SYrn (Jenni is on repeat in my room at any given moment)

Steve Lacy (if u listen to more than just Bad Habit u will find an actuall amazing discography)

Jenny Nuo (i have been OBSESSED w her music since like 2021 ish and it is a crime she hasn't blown up more imo)

Nujabes

Hemlocke Springs (oooo i hate that she does not get more love!!! synth pop and alt indie is such a fun niche like!!!)

Lyn Lapid (in my head she's huge but i have recently learned that artists i think r super popular may be unknown to an entire genre of ppl soo)

Megagonefree (found them on ig and omg!! PLS go check them out genuinely)

boa (i am once again shaming u if u don't know them)

Wallice

JAZZ (in all caps bc I fucking LOVE jazz no it's not dead go listen to jazz rn motherfuckers):

Idris Muhammad

Esperanza Spalding

Joanna Wang (ok she does pop and folk music too but idk she felt most appropriate here)

SAMARA JOY (put. some. respect. on. her. name. i would actually go to war for her i am not kidding. also this is in all caps bc MY MOM GOT TO SEE HER LIVE??? AND SHE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHO SHE WAS PLS I WAS SO MAD OMGGG but i've been promised tickets next time so we're good)

Sade (my og one and only)

Funk:

Fadoul

George Clinton (i mean he's just a classic yknow)

Parliament (Give Up the Funk can make me dance like no other i swear)

Stevie Wonder (i mean.. like if we're on the topic of classics anyway then...)

Michael Jackson/The Jackson 5 (moreso his earlier stuff if my memory isn't lying to me.. look it's been a second since i listened to mj IM SORRY i am a busy person ok TT)

R&B:

Valerie June

Maxine Nightingale (if u don't listen to her... how do u have fun? actual question i put her on every time i need to feel happy atp)

Boney. M (technically they're reggae but they also count as R&B so idk.. i'm just putting them here if anyone wants me to move them later i will)

Amahla (Ca Suffit was so good and got me to check out the rest of her music, YOU SHOULD TOO!!)

Mary J Blige (not to judge but like... if u don't know THE queen then idk how to help you tbh)

SZA (wouldn't be a list without her in it tbh. i'm in love w her not even joking abt that)

Kali Uchis (to this day i cannot believe i saw her live i'm truly never getting a better moment than that omggg i have such a big crush on her anyway)

Aupinard (if ever u need to just vibe, this is the man u go to.)

Wejdene (TU PARLES AVEC UNE ANISSA MA MOI J'APPELLE WEJDENE- she's been my day 1 since i was like thirteen i can't even lie)

Annisse (just found out she only has like ~500 listeners on spotify??? apparently i'm one of them tho lmao so yeah go get that number up guys i love her too much for this disrespect)

Sister Sledge

Cheryl Lynn

Reggae:

Daddy Yankee (he's an honourable mention cause i couldn't not lmao)

Skindred (they're a reggae/metal fusion band and i will shut up abt them when i'm dead bc Nobody rewired my brain chemistry!!)

Manu Chao

Toquinho (i was so convinced this man was bossa nova but apparently he is reggae and i need to do some music theory review)

Folk:

Sushi Soucy (oh the things I Deserve to Bleed had me going thru in 2020/2021)

Miriam Makeba (Pata Pata should be enough to get anyone listening to her, just saying)

Lead Belly (do urself a favour and do some research on this man, i'm not kidding even if u don't like folk music u should know abt him- ESPECIALLY if u like Nirvana that'll make sense later trust)

Pop:

Corinne Bailey Rae (she has so much good music that gets ignored bc of Put Your Records On so.. yeah go listen to Black Rainbows she's only gotten better as time goes on lol)

Dru (he is for any person who likes ke$ha. i'm so serious he is early 2000s in a bottle and i love his music ur rlly missing out if u ignore him)

Monique Hasbun (found her recently! she's a Palestinian, Mexican and Salvadorian artist who plays around with Latin pop and does a lot of fusion music. she's dope go listen to her fr)

Mohammad Assaf (he made the Palestine song that's been going around ig a lot, but his other stuff is great as well. he's another Palestinian artist, so once again, go check him out!!)

Pinkpanthress (i LOVE her she's so much fun to just vibe to and idk how anyone couldn't have heard of her atp but then again this is the sight that didn't know who drake was so... sigh. go listen to her if u don't already!!)

Aliyah's Interlude (BROOO if u haven't heard of her actually go listen rn i'm so serious she is so good i can'ttttt ok bye)

Veondre (had a collab w Aliyah on It Girl and is gonna be releasing her own music very soon! she's trans too so go give her some love)

Shalco (wasn't sure whether to put him here or in hip hop, but his stuff is very very good either way)

Ado (she's j-pop but it's a form of pop so into the pop category she goes)

Moon (she's got two songs out rn, Moonlight and Seoul City Drift, and both r going on loop in my head at all times)

Jay Chou (call me a basic bitch idc he's good ok)

Atarashii Gakko! (i wouldn't say they're j-pop, but google did, so i'm just going w it lol)

flowerovlove (just trust me on this one)

El Tio Gamboin (Los Gatitos is such a cute song)

Grace Chang (see note for Jay Chou)

King Gnu (for all my j-pop lovers... come get ur man)

Salsa:

Lalo Rodriguez (included this genre specifically so i could mention him)

Adalberto Santiago

Roberto Roena (he's a classic i can't lie)

Hector Lavoe (i think he might be the most popular one in this genre lol)

City Pop (this is its own genre bc i literally did a presentation in high school abt it and i'll be damned if i don't flex my knowledge now):

Mariya Takeuchi

Miki Matsubara (my QUEEN my everything my-)

Anri

Taeko Onuki (one of my most listened to artists last yr for a Reason)

Kaoru Akimoto

Kingo Hamada

Jun Togawa

Bossa Nova:

Joao Gilberto (ooo he gets me every time i fucking love this man)

Elizeth Cardoso

Johnny Alf (forgot this man the first time around my bad BUT he's called the father of bossa nova for a reason so)

Hip Hop:

Flyana Boss (they're sooooo good i actually can't gush enough i have never felt so girlypop listening to music before go listen to them!! found the duo through ig so yeah if u want go follow them on there too to show support)

Lil Uzi Vert (for any emo lovers, go check out his song Werewolf with Bring Me the Horizon it is SO GOOD)

Samyra (she's slowly curing my body dysmorphia lol)

Yame (there's an accent on the e but idk how to do that on tumblr. anyway my ass loves french rap and before him i was stuck with klub des loosers so he saved my faith in the genre i can't even lie)

Lay Bankz (u cannot be chronically online and not have heard Ick yet, but i'm repping her regardless bc SHE'S SO GOOD)

A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie (HEAR ME OUT-)

Kaliii (Area Codes was one of my most listened to songs last year... as it should be tbh)

Miguel (he does R&B too i just first listened to him bc of his collab w J.Cole sooo)

Tyler the Creator (putting him on here just to brag abt getting to see him in concert lmao)

XXXTentacion (he has been mourned and talked abt an insane amount, but he deserves it i'm not even gonna joke on this one. his artistry is insane and he deserves some love if u haven't listened to him yet)

Kendrick Lamar (i mean i've been reblogging stuff abt him enough. Mr. Morale was actually the album that made me start Listening listening to him and i'm honestly glad it was bc that album is still my favourite to this day if i'm being totally honest)

Renaissauce (criminally and i do mean CRIMINALLY underrated)

[superfluouskeys]

this is a very normal song about mass effect

[sky-scribbles]

You know what I really appreciate about Kaidan's character arc? He gets a story about finding self-acceptance and letting himself let go and feel things - but at the same time, he still gets to be an introvert. He still gets to be, in his words, someone who isn't 'the life of the party, who has a lot of friends'.

I mean - in ME1, Kaidan fully admits to a romanced Shepard that he doesn't feel human. When he killed Vyrnnus, he became someone Rahna was afraid of, someone she saw as dangerous... so he holds himself to nigh-impossible standards. 'You never let yourself lose control,' Shepard tells him. He's very, very indirect in a lot of his conversations with Shep, because he's trying so hard not to be too direct, too forward; he's constantly polite and disciplined and professional because he can't be a problem. He can't let anyone see him as unpredictable or dangerous because that's when they start seeing you as terrifying. That's when people you love look at you like you're not human.

But Shepard can encourage him to let himself feel, and show it - 'I might need to loosen up. A little,' he admits, sheepishly - and when you see him again on Horizon, he lets his feelings be open and messy and a Problem. By ME3, he's completely embracing his nature as a biotic, gleefully letting everyone know at the Citadel party that he can Reave now, joining in with the other biotics roasting James in the 'biotics vs strength' argument. He's accepted himself, he knows his friends accept him, and he's letting himself laugh and drink and dance like a complete dork, and he's grown so much, and yet -

And yet, he's still a fundamentally quiet, self-contained person. Maybe I'm just jaded from all the media where introverted characters get told to loosen up, and then they suddenly realise that they do want to be the life of the party now actually. But Kaidan? Kaidan hangs out in the observation deck, perhaps the quietest part of the Normandy - the same place where Samara spent her time, a place where no other characters are present. (Ashley, in comparison, spends a lot of time hanging out in the bar, where there are constantly other characters around). Kaidan's Citadel hangout with Shepard? He doesn't head out onto the Silversun Strip with you like many of the other characters; his ideal evening is cooking a meal for his friend/partner and having a chill time with the two of you. A lot of the conversations you have with him on board ship are quiet, introspective. His hangout place on the Citadel is a quiet Presidium cafe.

It's just... comforting to me. He grows, but he doesn't have to change who he fundamentally is, y'know? ME3 Kaidan is more confident and sociable and (despite everything) happy than ME1 Kaidan, but he's still a guy who's not fond of too much lights or noise or crowds, who's soft-spoken and sensitive, who gets caught up in his own thoughts sometimes. I just really appreciate that.

[whatdoeseverybodywant]

Rebuild & Restore - Chapter 6

I do NOT give permission for my work to be translated or reposted on here or any other site, even if you give me credit. DO NOT REPOST MY FICS

Reblogs, comments, likes, and feedback ALWAYS appreciated ❤ 

All OC Characters belong to me

Series Masterlist

Saturday Afternoon..

“This is so fucking stupid.” Joe mumbled to himself  as he drove down I-95. After another one of his text messages sent to Kiyana went unanswered. He was down bad. He just didn’t understand. Kiyana and Josh were divorced now, so there was nothing standing in the way of him and Kiyana being together now. The stupid part wasn’t even that he was driving to Pensacola because he could just play it off as wanting to see his parents, it’s that fact that this impromptu trip only took place because Kiyana was active on social media but not responding to his text messages.

6 hours down, 3 hours and 30 minutes to go.. 

“How did Josh take the news?” Samara asked as she and Kiyana walked around the mall looking for stores to go in. Samara narrowed her eyes at Kiyana when she didn't respond back.  “Kiyana Marie…” 

“I didn’t tell him yet.” Kiyana muttered as they walked into a store. She could feel the heat of Samara’s stare as she picked up a dress from the rack and held it up to her body. 

“That’s ugly, put it down.” Kiyana rolled her eyes and put the dress back. “Why the hell not?” Kiyana huffed as she started looking through another rack of dresses.

 “I just don’t wanna spring it on him Sam,” Kiyana huffed out. “We’ve only been divorced for like what? 2 weeks is that not too soon?” It took everything in Samara to not knock her best friend upside her head. 

“Key, y’all were married and he was sleeping with that girl, it’s no such thing as too soon when it comes to y’all.  You don’t owe him anything..”  Kiyana sucked her teeth, but she knew Samara was right, she didn’t owe Josh anything. “Fuck Josh.” 

“You’re right,” Kiyana muttered as her heart started to ache in her chest. She knew she needed to move on.. She had to move on for her own sanity. Josh had proven to her that he wasn’t the man she thought he was, it was time for her to move on. 

“I wasn’t expecting you back for another hour or two.” Josh stated as Kiyana walked into her living room. She eyed him, frowning her face up as he looked a little too comfortable in her living room, sprawled out on her couch. The boys weren’t used to him not being in the house yet, so he had been spending his days off at the house instead of his apartment. 

“I just wanted to pick a couple of things up from the mall.” She said and Josh nodded, his eyes peeking over at her bags, eyes narrowing as one of the names stuck out to him. 

“Damn, you got a date or something?” He jokingly asked, trying to peek into the lingerie store bag.  Now or never 

“Yeah,” She said, “I actually wanted to talk to you about that. I need you to take the boys tonight.” 

“Wait.” Josh chuckled, sitting up and grabbing the remote, turning the t.v off. “What the fuck is you telling me right now?” He asked, feeling his stomach tighten and his heart start to pound faster. A date? Nah, he must’ve heard her wrong. 

“You’re not seriously mad right now are you?” She asked and he scoffed 

“What the fuck - of course i’m mad Kiyana. I’m your husband -” 

“Ex-husband!” She cut him off. “You’re my ex-husband who decided that he no longer wanted to be faithful. ” 

Suddenly, Josh couldn’t breathe. He drowned out whatever else Kiyana was saying and just stared at her pretty face. This can not be happening right now. The thought of Kiyana being with someone else made him sick to his stomach. “I’m gonna go.” He said, not looking at her as he put his shoes on and started walking towards the door. 

“What about the boys? Can you take them tonight?” Josh scoffed and shook his head. 

“Nah, not tonight.” 

“Josh!” She called out, leaping up from the couch and following him out of the house. “You being deadass?” 

“You think imma sit in the fucking house, filled with memories of us while you out on a date? You got me fucked up.” Kiyana threw her hands up and let out a long sigh. 

“So don’t stay here. Go to your place.”   Oh this bitch, Josh thought, knowing better than to call her that out loud. 

“Bye Kiyana.” Her jaw dropped open as she turned his back to her and stomped towards his car. 

“Fuck you Josh!” She yelled at him, not caring about the neighbors, flipping  him off as he got in his car and drove away. 

Joe let out a sigh as he pulled up to his destination. Making sure he had his phone and wallet he exited his car and walked up to the front door, knocking three times. 

“Oh shit, big Uce! Whatchu’ doing here?” Jon said as he dapped up his older cousin. 

Joe smiled. “Just decided to take a drive and clear my head.” Joe lied and Jon furrowed his eyebrows. 

“From Miami?” He asked, moving to the side and letting Joe into his home. 

“Nah, I've been in town for a couple days.” He lied again. “Wanted to see my folks.”  Joe stated as he sat on the couch with Jon. “Decided to come and see what my favorite cousin has been up to.” 

“Now I know ya’ ass is lying.” Jon laughed. “Whatchu’ really doing here Uce?"

“Alright, Alright.” Joe muttered, wiping his hands on his gray sweatpants. “I know Josh is your brother and all but fuck, i’m here to see Kiyana.” Trinity, who just entered the living room, shared a look with her husband. “No. Don’t look at eachother like that. I just want to make sure she’s good. She hasn’t been answering my text or phone calls.” 

“I mean, can you blame her?” Trinity spoke up. “I’m pretty sure she is only still in contact with Josh because of their kids. Look,” Trinity sighed, sitting down next to Joe. “Josh is already making it hard for her, she doesn’t need you popping up and making it worse.” 

“How can I make it worse by checking up on my friend Trinity?”

“Y’all are not friends anymore Joe. The second y’all had sex, y’all stopped being friends.”  Joe opened his mouth to argue, but the sound of the front door opening and slamming caught their attention. 

“A fuckin' date! Divorced for 2 weeks and she has a fucking date!” Josh ranted as he stomped into the living room, stopping short at the sight of Joe sitting on the couch. Josh immediately jumped to conclusions, Kiyana had a date and Joe just so happened to be in Pensacola. “Imma kill you.” Josh muttered before lunging towards Joe. 

Luckily, Jon was quick and grabbed Josh before he could land a punch.  “Of fuck off!” Joe snorted standing up. “It was six months ago and y’all are divorced now. Get over it.” 

“Get over it?! You’re going on a date with my wife and you’re telling me to get over it!”

Oh my god.” Trinity muttered, rolling her eyes. “She’s not going on a date with Joe dummy. And even if she was, she’s a single woman now. You want her to be single the rest of her life? It’s stupid as hell. She’s allowed to move on Josh.” Josh sucked his teeth and pushed Jon off of him. 

“Whatever.” He muttered, throwing a glare at Joe  before stomping his way back out of the house, slamming the door behind him. 

“STOP SLAMMING MY DAMN DOOR!” 

Kiyana stared at herself in her bedroom mirror. “You can do this.” She whispered as she took a deep breath, smoothing down her dress. She was beyond nervous for her date with Eli. This was her first date with another guy in twenty-three years. Her stomach was already in knots. 

 Walking into the living room, she rolled her eyes as Samara catcalled at her. After Josh’s little tantrum earlier, Kiyana called her best friend who was more than happy to spend the evening with her nephews. 

“Good, it looks easy to take off.” Kiyana rolled her eyes again with a chuckle. 

“I’m not having sex with him.” 

“Booo!” Samara threw a couch pillow at Kiyana. “Why the hell not? Just get it over with.” 

“Because it’s our first date Samara.” Kiyana laughed as she walked over to the bar cart to pour herself a shot of Hennessy. “I don’t want him to think I'm easy.” 

Before Samara could respond there was a knock on her front door, causing the both of them to look at each other in confusion. 

“I thought you said eight.” Samara said, looking at the clock on her phone. 

“He’s early,” Kiyana responded, before walking over to the font door and opening it, her heart rate picking up when she saw who was standing on the other side. 

“Joe?” Kiyana whispered, shocked that he was standing in front of her. 

“JOE?!” She heard Samara yell out. 

“What are you doing here?” 

Joe shrugged and placed his hands in the pockets of his gray sweats, “I came to see if you were alright. You haven’t been responding to my texts.” 

“I’ve been busy.” Was all Kiyana said and Joe narrowed his eyes at her. 

“Kiyana -”  He was cut off by the sound of someone’s car tires screeching to a stop in front of her house. 

“You can’t go on the date.” Joe called out as he exited his car and made his way up to the house, standing right next to Joe. Kiyana looked between the two men with wide eyes. 

“Excuse me?” She asked and by now Samara had made her way to the foyer and was watching the mess unfold. 

“Uh, Is everything okay Kiyana?”  Oh what the fuck Kiyana thought as Joe and Josh turned to look at Eli who was walking up to them holding a bouquet of red roses. 

“Who the fuck are you?” Joe and Josh asked at the same time. 

“Elijah, who the fuck are y’all?”  Kiyana turned to glare at Samara when she started laughing. 

“I can’t do this.” Kiyana muttered, as she started to rub her temples.  This could not be happening to her right now. What were the odds of all three of them showing up at the same time tonight?!

LMAO. I would probably just turn around and go back in the house if I was Kiyana 😭

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[ozzgin]

I also had a Yandere Eyeless Jack meets Y/N as an entity/spirit is very similar to Sadako the ring girl. However, more playful and dangerous. Y/N is different from Sadako or Samara. Y/N wants to play a dreadful games with EJ.

So I did start writing this with Sadako in mind, although I ended up with a more generic kind of reader whose background isn’t very clear. I found the lack of details to be more interesting, since it’s up to you to decide what kind of devilish entity this reader is. It’s also heavily focused on their encounter rather than overall headcanons.

Yandere! Eyeless Jack x Haunting! Reader

Featuring Eyeless Jack and a ghoulish reader that just found a new favorite target. Warning: mentions of violence and death

[Horror Masterlist]

Well, this is awkward. The hooded creature stands before the bed, scalpel in hand, unsure how to proceed. After a moment of consideration he nonchalantly stuffs the blade back into his pocket, clicking his tongue in annoyance. Judging by the stagnant blood that has pooled into the lower half of the body, he’d say the man has been dead for several days. A waste of his evening. Who could’ve gotten here before him? Burglars? He quickly scans the surroundings for clues, but nothing seems amiss.

Just as he ponders on the possible scenarios, a faint knock can be heard from the window. He crawls over and abruptly pulls the curtains, hoping to surprise whoever is on the other side. Pitch black. Now that he thinks about it, isn’t this an attic bedroom? Who could even casually jump over three floors? Besides him, obviously. Jack opens the window and peeks down, but no ladder can be discerned through the murk.

“Wrong guess.” He snaps back and hovers a hand over his pocket, ready to draw his weapon. He can’t quite place the whisper he just heard. A jagged, interrupted voice, like a broken record, echoing in the distance and yet as clear as if it blew right upon his ears. He stares into the darkness before sneaking out of the room. Detective work wasn’t on his list tonight, but alas, he might as well find his new source of fresh organs. Whoever is playing these games better enjoy it while it lasts.

You can sense his frustration and smile to yourself. The previous one was so quick to go. You hoped you could drag it on for longer, but humans have frail hearts. You glance at the decaying carcass and muse over the sunken face with its features distorted in terror. Was it too much? No matter, this one is different. He seems more of a creature than a mortal. Will it make a difference? Oh, you can’t wait to test it yourself. As you stalk his figure in the hallway, you stretch out your fingers and sink your claws into the wallpaper.

Without looking back, Jack plunges his scalpel in the same spot. Your hand remains in place, merely visible fog surrounding the shining piece of metal. For the first time, the creature can see you. You gaze into his endless, cloudy sockets and nod, attempting a greeting gesture. You then switch your focus to your hand and he follows. “That’s…not very useful, is it?” You state plainly. An invisible frown darkens his expression and he pulls out the blade. Statistically speaking, encountering a ghost was the least likely situation. His reaction was by all definitions rational and he does not appreciate your mockery.

Yet tangled up in his anger lies something else. Throbbing, twisting and turning, the vague beginnings of intrigue gnaw at his chest in anticipation. He’s found a rival, or maybe a playmate. Curiosity binds him in place. If it’s amusement you want, he might just provide you with it. Although he won’t make it easy for you. And if he wins, he expects a prize in return. You’ve caught his interest and he will not be leaving empty handed. Can you tell?

A shiver runs down your spine. The smile occupying your face has now widened into a full, harrowing grin. “It’s a deal”, you murmur. The hunter and the hunted. Except no one can tell who plays the roles.

[tearsaura]

Holding the enemy in my arms // Garrick Tavis x reader

A/N: Based on this request. I hope you like it. I didn't want to take to long on getting this out

Word count: 1.5k

Warnings: Iron Flame spoilers, angst, death

Picture is from pinterest: kateslibb

Garrick Tavis has cried twice in his life.

~Basgiath War College, 12 hours ago~

He quickly found her in an abandoned hall, grabbed her by the shoulder, his arm pressing her by the neck to the wall behind them and holding a dagger to her throat with the other.

‘How could you do this?’ Garrick had never shed a tear in front of anyone else before. He hadn't even cried at his parents’ execution, not wanting to give Generals the satisfaction. But right now? Pressing her to the wall, the women whom he loved so dearly, who he had pictured a life with? Getting married, having kids, and living at each other’s side? She looked so much like the y/n he knew, if it wasn't for the bloodshed eyes, she looked just like the girl he fell in love with.

‘You wouldn't understand.’ she gasped, her hands grabbing desperately at his arm. ‘Try me. You had me thinking you were dead. You had your Dragon thinking that you were dead, your friends! Was it worth betraying all of us? Ruining what we had? Answer!’ he shouted. The next moment, his back hit the opposite wall, knocking the air out of his lung and she had disappeared.

~Basgiath War Collage, 6 Months ago~

‘Gods your stance is terrible how did you survive your first year?’ Garrick laughed as he watched her take position. ‘I survived just fine.’ she grinned at him. ‘Well, this won’t last you for long let me show you How you're supposed to do it.’ he said, standing behind her and repositioning her arms. ‘Why Thank you, section leader. Or shall I start calling you Lieutenant?’ ‘Stop teasing, concentrate.’ He tsked, pressing a quick kiss on her temple. ‘Thank you for helping me.’ she whispered in that gentle tone of hers, making Garrick weak in the knees. ‘Of course, my love. You don't have to thank me I am doing this for selfish reasons: I need you to survive what's coming.’ he said, unaware that he was, in fact, holding the enemy in his arms.

‘Can't you be stationed here? I'll miss you.’ she complained. ‘I wish I could stay with you, my love. But you know I can't. I'll write to you all the time I promise. Maybe we'll be able to smuggle out occasionally when Xaden comes to visit.’ ‘Or we could get our dragons to fall for each other and become mates? Then we'd be able to visit each other to! We still have time-‘ ‘I appreciate your effort, but you know this doesn't work that way.’ he replied and Y/N turned around in his arms, putting hers around his neck. ‘Just promise me we'll figure this out.’ she whispered, looking at him through her lashes. ‘We will. I promise.’ he whispered back and interlocked his lips with hers.

~Riorson House, Aretia, four months ago~

Garrick ran through the corridors of the Riorson house, frantically searching for her y/h/c standing out in the massive groups of cadets that stood around all the place, with no success. His frantic search came to a halt when he spotted her friends. She'd have to be here. There was no way she wouldn't have come. Was she okay? Did she survive?

With big steps he approached them, his heart falling when he saw she wasn't among them. ‘Violet? Have you seen y/n?’ he asked the younger Girl, who just shook her head, the worry in her eyes matching Garrick’s. ‘No, I- I'm sorry we didn't see her. She was nowhere to be found.’ she replied. ‘We searched all over.’ If his heart hadn't given out before, it sure did when he heard those words.

Samara is here Chardh echoed in his head and Garrick made haste to get outside, up to where the Dragons stood. Chardh stood next to Samara, whom had her head low to the ground. She cannot get to her.

~Basgiath War Collage, 13 hours ago~

‘According to Barlowes Memories, he planted lures all over the college and up the path to the vale.’ Aetos started explaining. ‘How could he have done it by himself?’ Someone chimed in. ‘He didn't.’ Dain began, hesitating. ‘Which leads me to the next point: He- he had help from Y/L/N. I don't know for how long she has been turned into a venin or where she is right now. We presumed her for dead. I saw where Barlowe put most of the lure boxes but not all of them. And we can't figure out where Y/L/N has put them without finding her...’

Garrick blended the rest of it out. He suddenly felt dizzy, his vision turning black, and his hands started shaking. That couldn't be. She'd never do that. ‘Garrick?’ he turned to his best friend, who looked at him with his usual expressionless stare. Bodhi on the other hand had it written all over his face how sorry he felt.

He ignored their stares, tracking back all the times he shared with her. Was she a venin when he first told her that he loved her, when he helped her train, when they shared their first kiss together? Or was she turned when half of the college left for Aretia? Or was that the reason why she hadn't come at all? How come no one ever noticed her eyes where red? Once the briefing was over, he was the first who left the room, beginning his hunt.

~Basgiath War College, Present~

Garrick shook his head, focusing on the task at his hands, his mission clear: buy time, to get the wards back up. There were a dozen wyvern flying directly towards him and Chradh. There were no other Cadets or Riders near him: leaving him at a clear disadvantage. He threw a dagger towards the first venin, missing the target by mere inches, the metal falling.

‘You should forfeit Rider. Maybe then we will spare your life.’ they said, a disturbing grin spreading across their face. Chradh continued to breath fire, without no luck, and attacked the wyvern at its neck. Just as Garrick stood up on Cradh's back, ready to start another attack. Before he could do anything, a dagger came flying, piercing the Venins, falling off. In mere seconds, the other Venins followed. The Lieutenant turned his head to see the source of the flying dagger, his eyes widening. ‘Are you okay?’ y/n asked, flying closer to him. Chardh growled, ready to attack her but Garrick quickly interfered.

End her. She betrayed you. She betrayed Samara. She betrayed all of us. She will be our downfall.

‘How is it possible that Samara assumed you were dead?’ ‘You clearly don't know enough about Venins. My magic helped me build shields strong enough that she could've never find or get to me.’ ‘Why did you kill them?’ ‘Really? You want to discuss this now? I will explain to you everything once we're done.’ she stated to him and turned then to Chardh.  ‘The lure boxes I put out are very weak but all near the hall.’ And with that, she left them, closely missing the weapon one of the venin had throwed at her.

Garrick couldn't keep the grin off his face. She is helping them. She is fighting against her own to help them. He was overwhelmed with a new burst of energy and ready to take on the venin that came flying directly towards him. He didn't see the other one coming, one hand raised and pulling on of the daggers from Garrick towards him, then aiming it at Garrick. Before he could retrieve another dagger, a dark figure passed by him, taking the dagger at the chest, and plummeting to the ground. Garrick only saw the familiar y/h/c hair, and sped down after her, his heart falling even deeper.

Once Chardh caught up with her, he grabed her carefully by her body and lowered them to the ground, putting her down as gently as possible. Garrick quickly got off, sliding to the girl, grabbing her by the upper body, positioning her head on his lap. She was still breathing, and Garrick held his hand on her chest, desperately trying to put pressure on her wound, tears streaming down his face.

‘How could you do that? We could've gotten you back.’ ‘This is war. I had to do what had to be done. There's no cure.’ she replied. Her breath becoming shallower with every second. The other venins layed around, all dead. They must've raised the wards.

Call for Brennan! Call for Brennan!!

On it.

‘You'll get over me. I promise you. You'll meet someone that doesn't cause you the pain I caused. They're going to make you happy. I promise you'll be fine.’ y/n said, cradling his cheek with a shaking hand giving him a smile. Garrick shook his head violently. ‘You can't cry over me. I am not worth crying over.’ ‘Noone is going to make me happier than you did. I love you and I don't take anything you have done for granted. I could never. None of us do. You can't leave me now that I have you back, please I love you.’ ‘I will watch over you, I promise. I love you too.’ she said, her eyes going blank, as she took her final breath.

As the Cadets and Riders were celebrating inside, there was no sound to be heard outside, other than Garrick’s painful roar, triggering the same one from Chradh.

[callsign-rogueone]

letters from samara - g.t.

Garrick Tavis x reader (Angel!) part of my Valentine’s Day celly! 💕 words: 1.0k 🏷: FOURTH WING AND IRON FLAME SPOILERS, part of my Garrick and Angel series, so read that first for context! no other warnings, just kinda soft and sad.

Someone drops a thick envelope onto the table in front of you. “From Samara. They said it was important.”

Samara. Brennan had told you that’s where Garrick and Xaden are. Your hands shake as you open the seal, but you relax at the familiar slant of Garrick’s handwriting. 

My angel,

I will start with what I know you’re most worried about: I am alive, I am safe, and so is X. He’s brooding in the corner of the room right now -- he’s not taking it well being apart from Vi, but command has allowed them visits every two weeks for Tairn and Sgaeyl’s sakes. 

We both miss you more than words can describe. I wish I could have said goodbye before we left, or that we could have taken you with us, but X wouldn’t hear arguments from anyone. I have never seen him that serious about anything before. 

I’m so sorry, angel. For all of it, everything. You didn’t deserve to be put through any of that, and I know how deeply it hurt you. It was terrifying to see you that way, so drained and cold. I can’t imagine what it felt like. 

Promise me you’ll take care of yourself, my love. You are the most kindhearted person I’ve ever known, and I love that about you, but you have to think of your own needs as well. You deserve peace and rest, especially now. Sleep in as long as you want, make time for your meditation. I’m sure the gardens would appreciate your attention as well; I swear you could make roses grow in dry sand as long as you smiled at them every day. 

I couldn’t bear to burn anything of yours, knowing that your heart still beats. I kept the things I thought to be most important to you and took them here with me. I will return them to you as soon as I can, but they are a comfort to me now — my room here feels like it did at Basgiath, with little touches of you scattered around. I keep watching the door, thinking that any moment you’ll come knocking to walk to class with me, or if I reach across the bed in the morning, you’ll be beside me again. I don’t know when I’ll see you next, but I know in my heart that I will. There is nothing and no-one that could keep me from you. 

Yours always,

G

On the sheet below, another.

Until I can lay by your side and tell you about my days, I’ll keep writing to you about them instead.

Being here feels like being a fresh cadet all over again, but different -- bottom of the food chain, getting the shifts nobody wants, but at least we don’t have to constantly prove our strength like we did in our first year at Basgiath, and we already have our dragons. 

One of Chradh’s relatives is here, which is cool. I think they’re cousins? They look damn near identical. I walked up to the wrong one on the flight line the other day -- thankfully the guy has a better sense of humor than Chradh, but I’m never making that mistake again.

Every rider here seemed to know exactly who we were when we arrived. Some of them have been more subtle with their distaste for us than others, but nobody’s been dumb enough to try anything -- probably because we look like we can fight, and because Sgaeyl is fucking terrifying, even more so now that she’s separated from Tairn. 

I just got off a 12-hour patrol shift, and I’m exhausted, but it’s hard to sleep without you here. I don’t think we’ve ever been apart this long in our lives. Being without either of you has never even felt like a possibility before; it’s always been us three together through the good and the bad. Someday it’ll be like that again, I know it will.

Brennan is the best mender I have ever known. If you choose, he can help you strengthen your ability, but please don’t push yourself too far. I need you to be in one piece when I get back. 

There are three more sheets underneath, one in Xaden’s rough script and two more from Garrick, the last dated four days ago -- likely the day he’d sent it. 

You realize what an incredible risk it was to write to you at all. It wouldn’t take a genius to put together that X is Xaden, that you’re hiding in Aretia, that you’d faked your death, or rather that your friends had faked it for you. How many hands did these pages pass through to reach you? How many others out there are on your side? 

You bring a hand up to cover your yawn, realizing how tired you are. The sun has gone down, a small mage light the only thing illuminating the corner of the study that you occupy. It’s likely nearing midnight.

“The letters and the books will still be there in the morning,” Tab says gently. “Sleep. You’ve had a long day.”

You look down at the torn piece of fabric you’ve been staring at for the last four hours. It has not yet sewn itself back together, no matter how hard you concentrated or “cleared your mind”, how gently you touched it. You’d even asked it nicely, but it did not dignify you with a response.

You set the letters aside for a moment, stacking up the books that you’d found in the house’s library about mending and placing them in a neat pile in the corner of the table you’ve been sitting at every evening for the last week. You fold the black cotton into quarters, setting it atop the pile -- you’ll try again tomorrow.

You can’t help but smile as you tuck the letters back into the envelope, brushing your fingers over the wax seal.

Garrick is right, this is the longest you’ve ever been apart, but as you gaze out the window into the starry sky, holding the letters he’d written you, the distance between you doesn’t seem that far.

[hum-tittle]

So, Rocky Horror Picture Show is one of my favorite movies. And I am currently obsessed with Mass Effect. This is what I think the Squadmates' opinions would be if Shepard put it on for everyone to watch it (many it would be their first time seeing it).

Ashley- She would say she doesn’t like it but it gives her an ✨awakening✨

Cortez- He appreciates it and likes it but isn’t a super fan. He did go to midnight showing, when he was younger.

Edi- She loves it. I think EDI would be a musical girly in general.

Garrus- He’s just kind of confused by it. He supports Shepard liking it but Hot Pootie gets stuck in his head all the time.

Grunt- He doesn’t get it but likes the vibes and violence. He would do the timewarp at parties with Shepard

Jack- She’s already seen it, she even thought about getting the Boss tattoo.

Jacob- He doesn’t really like it and is mildly concern that Shepard likes it

James- He’s an ally himbo so he loves RHPS. He’s trying to convince everyone to do a group costume next halloween, mostly because he wants an excuse to wear his gold shorts (that he already owns).

Javik- He is surprised how much he actually likes it.

Joker-He enjoys it but his favorite thing now it to put on Hot Pootie in the bridge anytime Garrus comes in to get the song stuck in his head, again.

Kaiden- He's similar to Cortez, he appreciates how RHPS helped the queer community 200 years ago but he's not a fan. He did go to the midnight showing once, in costume and learned to never again.

Kasumi- She loves a good time, and that's what RHPS is.

Legion- Understands why humans and other organics enjoy it but movies aren't super appealing to Geth.

Liara- She doesn’t get it and doesn’t like that she doesn’t get it. She ends up doing the research into the nuances of RHPS and the references. She then watches it again with her new understanding and becomes slightly obsessed with it.

Miranda- She likes it until she starts comparing the fact that she built Shepard and she becomes a bit uncomfortable.She becomes extremely uncomfortable when the others points out the similarities.

Mordin- He’s contacting his old Theater group to see if they can do a production of it.

Samara- She understands why others may like it, but it is not her cup of tea

Tali- She thinks it is fantastic! Touch-A-Touch-A-Touch-A-Touch Me is her favorite song

Thane- He loves that Shepard loves it.

Traynor- Surprisingly she's never seen it before. She really likes it and is debating buying a corset.

Wrex- He thinks it's funny. His favorite part is when they eat ✨️dinner✨️

Zaeed- He played Rocky at midnight showing one summer. It holds a special place in his heart.

[toasterbunnicula]

Mass Effect Character Sexualities because I want to project

(Partly headcanon, bi-ased, personal opinion)

Ashley: straight, formerly homophobic until she realized that most of her Normandy crew mates were gay

Garrus: bi energy, its simply unfair to our gay guys for such an amazing and hot character to not go both ways. Ive also seen too much Garrus/Thane/Shepard fanart to see him any other way

Liara: obviously bi, I hc that she was confused when she first encountered homophobia because it simply doesn’t exist in asari culture (closest thing is the asarixasari stigma)

Wrex: for some reason I see him as bi? I have no idea where I got this but I want to see a tough, old warrior casually mentioning being into both men and women and not caring at all about it (even though I think krogan culture probably wouldn’t approve)

Tali: for my sake as a helpless bi simp, I see her as under the umbrella, but doesn’t realize it. Like me before I came out, Tali would say “yeah she’s really pretty and I want to hang out with her and hug her and stare at her but I’m not gay or anything.” You are. You are gay. I think it would be in character for her to completely miss the fact that she’s into girls as well as men

Joker: straight. The kind of straight to make jokes about his friends’ sexualities, but not mean anything by it. He goes to pride every June with his wife EDI (who I will get to)

Jacob: I honestly can’t believe that he was originally intended to be bi, I just can’t see him into men unless I squint. It’s hilarious that they tried to make his male romance more like Brokeback Mountain so it’d be accepted

Miranda: I’ve seen a headcanon on Pinterest about Miranda having internalized homophobia because it doesn’t line up with her view of genetic perfection, something she’s established to be insecure about. I think it would make perfect sense for her character. I think it’s easy to see her as a lesbian practicing het-comp, especially with how awkward her initial flirting with Shepard is, but there are more scenes in her romance that feel authentic than there are that feel performative, so I’m inclined to say she is bi/pan/omni/etc.

Mordin: I’m pretty sure his asexuality is canon. I also think that he’s aromantic as well, but can objectively assess beauty/attractiveness well. For example, his film noir short story in the Citadel DLC involves a hookup with Aria. I personally believe that is him saying “yeah, she’s attractive, and if I were into women, I’d smash”

Zaeed: he gives off straight uncle who would punch a homophobe for you but otherwise doesn’t know how to interact with you after you’ve come out and tries a little too hard to acknowledge your sexuality but it’s definitely well-meaning (think the “anyone could be they!” scene from Brooklyn Nine-Nine)

Grunt: straight and supports his bi parents (Shepard and Garrus/Thane/Tali/Liara), wears rainbows at Pride for them, and regularly headbutts homophobes

Jack: I’m forever salty about them erasing her pansexuality. Also she and Miranda should’ve kissed

Kasumi: also gives off pan energy. She definitely feels like the type to not care about gender at all- as long as they’ve got muscles, that’s all that matters to her

Thane: pan energy

Samara: as established, Samara is bisexual

Legion: ace, non-binary (goes with people using he/him based on its masculine voice, pronouns are they/it)

Kelly: she said so herself, she doesn’t care about race/species or gender, all that matters is the person 💖💛💙

EDI: something about Sentient AI Who People Initially Don’t Trust Until She Gets A Humanoid Body That People Can Better Associate With Her reads to me as a trans allegory. Obviously, she’s not trans, but the vibes are there. Many times, people are suspicious of trans women until they transition and pass more as cis, which is similar to EDI’s story. She learns more about herself after her body changes, and others start to appreciate her more and have an easier time referring to her with she/her pronouns. As for her sexuality, she doesn’t seem to lean any particular way to me. She doesn’t seem like the type who’d use labels, even though it would make sense for her to “categorize” herself. I’d say she’s unlabelled- definitely into men, with her relationship with Joker

James: as much as I wish we could get gay gym bro representation, James is great as he is, being a masculine straight guy who’s best friends are openly gay (Cortez) and bi (Shepard)

Traynor: lesbian (canon), definitely into women who can crush her head under their heel but also has a dominant side herself

Cortez: gay (canon)

Diana: that annoying and popular bi girl you secretly had a crush on but didn’t want to because she was intimidating and popular

[steampunkforever]

Ready Or Not is absolutely a tumblr film inasmuch as it's the Knives Out of contemporary horror films. Take from this what you will.

This fact is absolutely hammered home that the final girl is a thin blonde wearing a tattered, bloodied wedding dress, converse, and carrying a shotgun. The plot is a class commentary on rich people's unethical source of wealth. It's a black comedy with slick production and self-aware humor. It's 100% a Tumblr Film, but it's also a fantastic movie.

A couple years ago, when watching twitter activitstbrain vampire fanfiction trainwreck The Invitation, I was struck with the distinct feeling that it was riding the coattails of another, better movie. At the time I wrote it off as "attempting fanfic" but on watching Ready or Not I realize exactly which film about rich aristocratic in-laws trying to kill you on your wedding night in an ancient ceremony The Invitation was trying to ripoff. Thankfully, this one is good.

Something I appreciate about Ready or Not is the elegance of the script. As a final girl, Samara Weaving's character is foiled by things like OnStar and malfunctioning ammunition, not idiocy of her own doing. She experiences an incredible amount of bad luck, a thematic throughline in a movie about games of chance, yet it's all reasonable.

This isn't a deep film, but it doesn't need to be. The quirkiness of Knives Out with a significantly higher percentage of gore was all I needed, and the film delivers it in spades. It's a fun horror film with splatter and sharp writing. I definitely suggest it.

[stormikins]

Mass Effect Trilogy Tag

tagged by @nowandthane thank you!! Warning I ramble a bit in this lol

I am a fan since: 2017, I got it for Christmas in 2016 so I always just say '17

Favorite Game of the series: By virtue of simply replaying it the most, three. I really love the combat in it so I've played it near thirty times? But all time fave would have to 1 because of the aesthetic, tone, and story. There's something about first discovering a world which is what me1 is about.

MShep or Femshep? Gotta go with Femshep. I have played both, its just hard to capture the male shepard image I have in my head in the character creator so Femshep it is.

Earthborn, Colonist, or Spacer: earthborn! My main Shepard Jenn is earthborn so that's what I'm going with. Though, I have numerous Shepard's are various background combinations. I have feelings about each background trust me

Biotics or tech: Both! Though I really do love biotics, you can do some cool stuff with them, setting up and detonating both biotic and tech explosions.

Paragon or Renegade: I have to repeat what nowandthane said, paragon choices, renegade dialogue.

Favorite Class: Sentinel. I love the versatility of the class, but I do have an affection for Infiltrator because that's what got me through me2 on insanity.

Favorite Companion: Tali. By story value, Javik. He's like one of the most important characters

Least Favorite Companion: Javik, throw your attitude out the airlock. IM JOKING! (he has every reason to be like he is. I love him very much) Liara is my answer though only because I don't like some of the story choices the devs did with her. (ex: why does she have Shepard's armor in a display case when i didn't even romance her??? I can't mention this at all??)

My squad selection: For Jenn's playthrough: Wrex/Tali in me1. Garrus/Mordin/Miranda generally in me2. Thane and Miranda/Samara for the collector base. Kaidan/Javik/James in me3. Of course, I mix it up based on story aspects and the difficulty settings. But me3 is pretty fixed bc I always play on insanity.

Favorite in-game Romance: Tali and Garrus. I'm a sucker for awkward, wet cat of a man like Garrus is. But Tali's romance man.... her parting line to Shepard during the beam run "I have a home" makes me insane actually

Other pairings I like: Obligatory Nihlus/Shepard/Kal (and the duos within in this throuple) mention here. Other than that, Joker/Miranda and Joker/James, Ashley/Garrus, and Shepard/Wrex, I could list a whole lot so I'll keep it to those ships lol

Favorite NPC: Nihlus and Kal'Reegar for sure. Victus and of course Niftu Cal our favorite biotic god.

Favorite Antagonist: Saren. He's the best one that we get in all three games (Harby could have been number one if they did anything with him in three but that's a rant for another time lmao)

Favorite Mission: Haestrom/Tali's Loyalty mission because that's when I get to see Kal <3 and blow up a colossus with the Cain. Also, the Collector Ship mission I have to mention because it's frankly the only mission besides the two previously stated where I've loaded up the save to play it on insanity when I'm bored. It's fun. Of course, this is with the Infiltrator.

Favorite Loyalty Mission: Tali for numerous reasons. Kal mention here. But I love the insight into Quarian culture we get. Also we see that fire in her when she's talking to the Board which I always appreciate. Along with her dialogue at the end, "I got better, Shepard. I got you." and then on the ship afterwards, "I don't think life is about what we deserve." I love her so much.

Favorite DLC: Leviathan. Only because of the horror aspect.

Control, Sythesis, or Destroy? Destroy. I have so many issues with the ending and that's the least worst option in my opinion so. (I too ignore that it wipes out the Geth and Edi fuck that)

Favorite Weapon: The M-90 Cain or the M-99 Saber aka the "Big Iron". Lancer in three was my favorite weapon before I found the Saber. Special mention to my bud the Mattock, I have been convinced of its glory. I do not think the Harrier is better anymore lol which my brother would be happy to hear

Favorite Place: me1 Citadel my BELOVED.

A quote I like Quotes I Like: The ENTIRETY of Sovereign's dialogue on Virmire GOD ITS SO GOOD!!!! / "Stand in the ashes of a trillion dead souls and ask the ghosts if honor matters. The silence is your answer." / "Does this unit have a soul?" / "Just followed your example, Shepard. Yell loud enough and eventually someone will come over to see what all the fuss is about." / "I won't let fear compromise who I am." / "I MADE A MISTAKE!" / "Help me out here, Shepard. The line between friend and foe is getting a little blurry from where I stand." / There are so many great quotes in these games I could go on and on but I'll stop myself

No pressure tags: @spacebunshep @jtownnn

[luniellar]

Breathe Me (Garrick Tavis X OC/Reader) - Chapter 3 - The Empyrean Series Fanfiction

When Xaden Riorson and Garrick Tavis arrive at Samara, they are forced to prove themselves all over again. When Xaden heads off to see Violet at Basgiath since their dragons are mated, Garrick finds himself alone in this unfamiliar area trying to get his name established navigating fights and ambushes. He owed his life to the man.

One particular night when Xaden leaves for Basgiath, Garrick finds himself with a new company. One who starts turning his world upside down and giving him something, that isn't just the Xaden and rebellion, to fight for. ______________________________________

All rights to Rebecca Yarros for her original work and original characters. My scenes and characters are my own. ______________________________________

Contains: Fourth Wing/Iron Flame Spoilers Warnings: Language

Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3

Read on AO3 | Wattpad

Lei Aukai

“Wake, now.” 

When I opened my eyes my senses were clouded in anxiousness. I clutched my heart trying to dull the feeling. Cosheirm was seeing something. 

“What’s wrong?” 

I haven’t woke up with this kind of feeling since the last time when - 

Cosheirm cut in. She was always good about protecting me. She was stopping me before my thoughts could wander off to eternal sadness.

“I was flying by the south clearing of Samara when I noticed another brown. It looks like Chradh has been circling the area for a while.” 

I pulled up my hair in my high ponytail and dressed in my gear within seconds. “Do you see anyone else?”

“Yes, from the looks of it, Sgyael will be arriving.”

Garrick must have called Xaden as well. I sheath my blade behind me. “I’ll meet you outside, Coshe.”

✦ ✦ ✦

I ran outside, moving as fast as I could to get to the dragon rendezvous point. Only the dim moonlight lit up the area outside. The field around me blurred as I felt the electric blue energy course through my veins allowing me to jump from one area to the next. The cool air filled my lungs and when I reached the clearing, I saw a familiar figure. His massive height alone was all I needed to know who that was.

A gust of wind blew around us as Chradh landed near him. If looks could kill…Chradh was menacing. Deep gashes and scars from fallen dragons who dared to share Chradh’s presence in the sky were visible from this far distance. Steam blew out of its nostrils as it looked around the field before locking eyes with mine. The crimson-red eyes watched me curiously. 

Garrick turned and I politely waved over to him who looked just as surprised. Gods, did I just do that? He started to walk towards me and he paused for a second to look up at the sky. Another gust of wind blew behind me. 

“Coshe,” I mentally greeted. I watched as Garrick moved his way over to me. His posture was tall and strong as his long legs glided over the ground. The thick dark curls on his head bounced on his head with each step. 

“Lei? What are you doing here?” He asked once he knew I was within listening distance. 

“Uh,” I started not sure how to answer the question. “I, uh, had a hard time sleeping when I heard Coshe.” It was kind of true.

Coshe grunted behind me. It was her form of rolling her eyes at me. “Coshe saw Chradh circling a particular area and got curious. It could be dangerous. Let me fly with you.” 

A huge grin appeared on Garrick’s face revealing his perfect smile. Chradh stepped forward tilting its head at me. My heart skipped a beat. “I appreciate the concern, but Xaden is already on his way. I think we got it covered.”

“An extra pair of wings won’t hurt right?” I added. Garrick shook his head. Was I being too pushy? I think I remembered Iris saying something about how guys don’t like girls who are too pushy? 

“This could be dangerous, Lei.” My name sounded so special in his voice. He stepped closer to me and he was within arms reach. His gaze moved up to my head and moved across my face down to my… lips. My mouth parted. “I’ll find you in the morning.”

“I’m not five, Garrick,” I replied. “I’ve handled dangerous things before. I won’t get in your way.”

His eyebrows furrowed. “This is not the kind of danger you think. There are some secrets I’m not allowed to tell-” 

“About venins?” I cut him off and his mouth dropped open like I froze time. He blinked back at me with his eyes open. I trust my gut with this one because this sick feeling has been stirring in my gut since the moment I woke up. I was told that the majority of the people in the Continent didn’t know about venins, but it looks like I was wrong. 

“I tried to keep it away from you,” Coshe admitted. 

“You know I always appreciate you,” I replied. 

“Did you just say-” Garrick asked when he finally found his voice again. 

“Yes, I know about venins. So let me fly with you and Xaden.” 

“How did you-” Garrick started to say and frowned, glancing back at Chradh. “Chradh wants us in the air right now. Xaden is close. Are you sure you want to do this?”

I smiled and turned to Coshe. “Come on, the last one in the sky is a loser.” I heard thuds as Garrick’s footsteps hit the ground and he made his way to Chradh. 

Once I mount Coshe, she springs into the air, her wing pulling in strong gusts of wind. To my surprise, Chradh is right behind us as we stabilize in the sky. Half a second later, Garrick is flying beside me keeping up with Coshe’s pace. 

I raise my right hand, pointing my pointer and thumb toward him, making an uppercase L above my forehead. As Coshe thrusts her wings and propels us forward past Chradh, I swear I heard his deep laughter echo in the sky.

Garrick Tavis

After a short flight, I see Xaden and Sgaeyl in the air with us. When my flying speed slows down, Coshe and Sgaeyl follow, repositioning their location diagonally behind Chradh. I can sense that Chradh is trying to locate the runes again. 

“Anything?” I ask after a moment of circling. 

”Yes, the rune is weaker now, but it’s still there.” Chradh replies. “I don’t sense the venin.”

I look down and see a structure that looks like an old wooden abandoned building out on a small clearing from this distance. Although the clearing was small, it was enough for three dragons to land. I throw a hand gesture in the air to signal Xaden and Lei that we will be landing here. I hold on tight as Chradh dives down effortlessly and lands on the clearing field. A few seconds later I hear two other dragons land.

Across the clearing is a larger version of the same old wooden building. From a closer distance, I could see that the windows were boarded up with planks. There was a small entrance located on the side of the building. 

Xaden walked up from behind me inspecting the structure with narrowed eyes. I glanced behind to make sure Lei was okay. I didn’t know why I was so worried when it came to Lei. Maybe it was because I was always used to new riders at Basgiath either barfing or tripping after dragon flights. Lei stood up from where she was sitting on Coshe’s rough back. I watched as she crouched down, buckling her legs like springs. I took a step forward when I saw her jump off, but she landed so gracefully. 

“What’s her deal?” Xaden asked. 

“I don’t know,” I replied as I turned back to face the structure when I saw her walking towards us. “I met her on the flight field.”

“Do you trust her?” 

I was about to reply, but Lei walked up behind us. Of course, I trusted Xaden with everything, but I didn’t know if her knowledge about venin was my secret to tell. I cleared my throat as her sweet vanilla scent filled the space around us. I don’t think I could ever get used to that. 

“Alright, you guys can keep watch for me while I check inside,” Lei said as she stepped on the other empty side beside me. 

I looked over at her. “What? No, you stand watch with Xaden. I’m familiar with runes.”

She looked up at me, meeting my eyes. “You guys are new to the Samara outpost and by seniority alone, you both fall under my supervision right now.” Lei glanced over to Xaden. “I never had anyone fall under my supervision and I am not going to make today my first.” 

“Garrick and I will stand patrol,” Xaden said and walked over to the empty clearing behind the building. His shadows thrived in this environment and there was no way either of us was going to fall tonight. But, he didn’t argue back.

“But-” 

Lei reached her hand over her back and pulled out her sword from her back in one clean motion. “No buts. Help me by watching my back,” she smiled and started making her way over to the door. I knew she was skilled and more than capable. But, I wanted to hold her back. I didn’t like the thought of her going in there by herself.

I know Chradh said no venins, but we didn’t know what the runes were. I looked behind me and saw Lei wave her hands over the door followed by a soft thud as the door creaked open.

“Look forward,” Chradh reminded me from the sky. “You must focus on your duties so she can do hers.” All three dragons were circling the skies. 

I clenched my jaw and looked ahead. My eyes carefully examined every inch of the forested areas. I didn’t see any movement. Everything was still. As my eyes rescanned the fields, my mind couldn’t place why the rune's presence weakened by the time we arrived.

It wasn’t like the rune was moved to a different location or hidden underground. According to Chradh, the rune was always located in this abandoned building. Then, there was also the venin presence. Was the venin here to monitor the rune? But if the rune was important to be monitored, why would the venin not have a patrol set up? Nothing was adding up.

Unless the rune was worthless from the start. A meaningless rune designed to create a strong presence to attract whoever was nearby. It only needed to hold the presence until it attracted the prey. No . I turned around and started running. This was a trap.

A scream pierced my ears, the sound shattering the stillness. My heart raced as I ran as fast as I could to the wooden building. I felt the same uneasiness in my chest from earlier, stirring in my chest. That was the venin and I knew I was moving closer to it. 

When I got to the doorway, a cloaked figure was holding a body in the air by the throat. Lei’s hands were clenched around her neck, grabbing a hold of the cloaked figure’s wrists. Her feet kicked in the air desperately as the figure lifted her higher. 

“Lei!” I screamed as I reached for my iron dagger and ran at the cloaked figure at full speed. Winding up my arms, I was ready to drive the dagger when the figure turned to me, his brown eyes were rimmed with red with protruding veins glaring back at me. He smiled as he effortlessly moved Lei’s body where I was planning to drive the dagger.

No. 

I immediately dropped the dagger and my hand grazed off to the side. The cloaked venin grinned as he kicked my ribs, knocking me off to the side. The force was nothing like I felt before. My back hit the wall and I gasped for air. My vision blurred for a second as my eyes fixed on Lei's body hovering with her hands dangling. I blinked slowly trying to stay conscious. A loud thud rang in my ears. When I opened my eyes again, Lei’s body was now lying next to mine. 

“So pathetic,” the venin’s voice rang out. Something about the voice was familiar. “This is so fucking easy.” 

I looked up to see a glint of a blade in the venin’s hand. He pulled his arms for the final strike and I pushed off the floor reaching for a dagger strapped to my side. Everything was in slow motion as his blade came down. No, I was too slow. 

The darkness surrounded me. I couldn’t see anything. No Lei. No Venin. Did I die? I didn’t feel the blade and my ribs were still bruised. It would suck if this pain was going to be persistent on my way to see Malek.

“I didn’t expect you to be here, Riorson .” 

I blinked again and the familiar moonlit space came into my vision. I looked across from me as Lei was lying there with her eyes closed. Xaden had covered us with his shadows.

“You’re shadow-wielding skills are like what they say. It’s truly exceptional.” 

Why did this voice bother me so much? I looked up and I caught a glimpse of his blond hair with his hood down. What the fuck. 

“What the fuck do you want, Pratt?” Xaden replied. 

“I was just trying to teach Tavis here a lesson. I was hoping little Lei would join him. She was always so fucking predictable. But you… I didn’t expect you to be here.”

Silence filled the air again as I watched Pratt step over Lei’s body to Xaden. “We are waiting for you. If you give me a name drop when you decide to stop by, I won’t kill Tavis.”

What the fuck was going on between Xaden and Pratt? I pressed my palm against the floor and slowly propped myself up. I stared toward the doorway where Pratt’s cloak was covering Xaden’s body. The floor felt like it was shaking as I dragged myself over to Lei, taking her hand into mine. I wrapped my finger around her wrist and confirmed her pulse. 

Thank the gods.  

“I will never choose to join you,” Xaden replied. 

Pratt continued to walk forward, passing Xaden. “I have no interest in killing you, Riorson. You might want to get Lei to a healer soon though.” He turned around and his eyes shifted from Xaden to me. “I choked her pretty well.” 

My free hand clenched into a tight fist. “You fucking pussy,” I spat out. Fuck, I tasted iron in my mouth. 

“I will see you guys around,” Pratt chimed back cheerfully. “Next time, I will crush you with my hands Tavis. Oh and Riorson, think through my offer again. It still stands. Your best friend will get to keep his head.” 

Pratt turned around and walked off his black cloak dragging behind him. 

[yeyinde]

I just wanted to thank you for your most recent post about the MW3 campaign, and the way Samara’s death was handled. The most I knew about Call of Duty before finding your blog was the few times I had played with my little cousin.

I immediately took to the characters through your writing, and have been ever since! As of late I have felt myself growing distanced from these certain stories. While I’m sure some of it has to do with the natural progression of disinterest, a lot of my feelings are due to what is going on as of late.

I was never under the impression that Call of Duty wasn’t blatant military propaganda-you’d have to be completely oblivious to believe otherwise- but I guess it was easier to immerse myself in the story while ignoring any underlying reservations. Which is a privilege in and of itself.

All that unnecessarily being said, (apologies for the rambling) I just wanted to express my appreciation for your acknowledgement of the the current situation. It’s no exaggeration when I say you are one of the most talented writers I know, and more than likely my favorite! So as someone who is directly affected by everything going on, it means a lot to me that you are providing nuance in light of it all.

I do hope this isn’t taken as a call for the discontinuity of your writing for Call of Duty characters either, as it has brought me immense joy in the past year! I just wanted to share my own thoughts and feelings on the candid statement you posted.

You've given me a lot to think about, and none of what you said was unnecessary in any way—I think you touched on a lot of important aspects, particularly the privilege of “consumption without consequences."

It’s easy to get swept up into something when you have no tangible ties to the effects of what’s being portrayed, which can lead to making dismissive or hurtful statements out of pure ignorance. My biggest gripe was the excuses being laundered out and (either unintentionally or intentionally) giving the creators a pass for what they created and the harm they caused other people to experience. Just because they did not experience the same trauma, it does not diminish its impact on others. This is a very important distinction, which I think was being missed.

(I also think it's a bit of an attachment issue, and I could probably write an essay on why criticism of media you enjoy is not a lambasting of your personal character (and why you should be able to separate the two), but this was already getting quite lengthy so 😅)

Also, I don't think I added much to the discussion outside of airing out something that was annoying me, though. All the credit goes to @halfmoth-halfman for bringing attention to an important issue which was being glossed over. And for continuing to bring up these valid issues and criticisms when the norm seems to be "well, we'll just erase it from canon. No biggie."

But thank you for this! It really means a lot to me, and I'm so happy that the stories I wrote about brought some form of comfort. It's genuinely the biggest compliment ever.

[whatdoeseverybodywant]

Rebuild & Restore - Chapter 4

I do NOT give permission for my work to be translated or reposted on here or any other site, even if you give me credit. DO NOT REPOST MY FICS

Reblogs, comments, likes, and feedback ALWAYS appreciated ❤

All OC Characters belong to me

Joe grunted as his text message to Kiyana went unanswered for another day. “Gotta be Josh’s punk ass.” He muttered, throwing his phone onto the couch next to him. It’s been six months since he had Kiyana in his bed and he was feening for more. 

He closed his eyes and let his head fall back as he remembered how tight she felt wrapped around him. How intoxicating her moans sounded as she moaned in his ear . “Fuck” He whispered as he felt his pants grow tighter. He groaned and opened his eyes. “Fuck.” he muttered again, grabbing his phone and sending Kiyana another text message.

“Baby, when the last time you had some dick?” Kiyana choked on her lunch and glared at Samara as she reached for her cup of soda. 

“Girl what?” Kiyana asked. Samara shrugged. 

“You so wound up. That’s exactly what we’re doing this weekend. Getting you some dick.. Grade A dick.” 

“Can you stop saying dick?!” Kiyana hissed. “I do not need any of my coworkers over hearing this conversation.” Kiyana looked around, grateful that they were seated towards the back of the cafeteria and only one person was near them but he had on headphones. Samara had shown up to the hospital on Kiyana’s first day to have lunch with her and to hear about her day out with Josh and the boys. 

“I’m just saying.” Samara shrugged again with a smirk on her face. “Last person you had sex with was Joe, right?” Kiyana nodded. 

“Oh speaking of Joe. He texted me again.” 

“Did you respond?” Kiyana shook her head and Shrugged. 

“What was I supposed to say?” 

“Oh, big daddy Joe. I need you and that dick.” Samara said playfully, batting her eyelashes at Kiyana and laughed loudly, ducking the french fry that Kiyana threw her way. 

“Sorry to interrupt.” Kiyana and Samara looked towards the person and both of their jaws dropped open causing him to laugh a bit.  “I just wanted to introduce myself.” He said, his eyes never leaving Kiyana’s.  “I’m Elijah but everyone calls me Eli. You the new labor and delivery nurse right?”  Kiyana nodded, her mouth going dry when he flashed her a grin. “Nice to finally meet you. See you around.” He said, giving her a nice once over before biting his lip and walking away from them. 

“Fuck what I said about Joe.”  Samara said, eyes wide as she and Kiyana watched Elijah walk away from them. “If you don’t ride that man six ways to Sunday… I will.” 

Josh let out a growl when he saw Shanté waiting outside by his rental. He knew it was too good to be true. He could have swore her crazy ass had got sent back down to NXT but here she was, wearing a customized YEET shirt that had “MRS. USO” on the back. 

“Bruh, you trippin’” He muttered. Standing as far away from her as possible. “Whatchu want?” He looked around to see if there were any lingering fans around. He did not need any picture of him and Shanté hitting social media. 

“I miss you.” She pouted and Josh rolled his eyes. “C’mon Josh. Those four months meant something to you too.” 

“I didn't,” he said bluntly. “We had sex that’s it.” Shante rolled his eyes not believing what he was saying. 

“Josh, come on! You were so mad that I went out with Theory.” 

“Nah” He shook his head., “I was mad that Kiyana was being a bitch and refusing to bring the boys to see me because we were fighting and I took it out on you. I don’t give a damn about you and Austin.”  Shante furrowed her eyebrows. 

“What?”

Josh sighed. “It was nothing but sex Shanté. Yeah I said some shit that I shouldn’t of said. But I never wanted to be with you.” He shrugged, not caring if it came off mean. He was sick and tired of popping up everywhere. “It was just sex.” He repeated, and as expected Shanté marched up to him and smacked him in his face.

“I’m happy Kiyana divorced you, you piece of shit” She glared at him before ripping her shirt over her head and throwing it in a nearby trash can. Not caring that she was now walking around in her bra. 

“You and everyone else.” He muttered before climbing into his rental and driving towards the hotel. 

Kiyana fell backwards onto her bed. She was beyond exhausted. She closed her eyes and sighed. She would have to get used to this feeling, no longer a stay at home mom or a wife. She was almost asleep when he phone dinged with a notification, 

ElijahDaniels has requested to follow you. 

Kiyana bit her lip as she scrolled through his instagram account.

This man was too fine for his own good. She accepted his follow request and immediately received a DM from him. 

ElijahDaniels: those your kids? They look just like u.  KiyanaJackson_: yeah and thank you, lol. You’re the only person to ever say that.  ElijahDaniels: i aint know you was married tho. Tell you husband my bad lmao.  KiyanaJackson_: divorced actually.  ElijahDaniels: good KiyanaJackson_ good? Lol ElijahDaniels: yeah, now i can get to know u better.  ElijahDaniels: see u tomorrow ❤️

Mr Elijah Daniels MD 😉... our girl KiKi is back in the game!

(Joe is coming, i promise.)

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[websterss]

julie i was the one to ask about blurbs for dad!ethan world. IM SORRY I DIPPED I GOT SCARED!!! also i couldn’t think of anything and didn’t think you wanted blurbs right away.

but i have just a simple one that came to my mind at 5am (pst). just a simple day in their lives. like maybe ethan had been back for about six months and everyone is slowly opening up to him, but chad is still wary (fully understandable) and he’s like “there needs to be someone in the house when ethan’s here” or “make sure you stick to crowded and lighted areas, don’t let him take you to a second unknown location.” just chad being very protective and keeping watchful eyes and tabs on ethan.

you know? cause chad was so real for his reaction honestly. YOU ALMOST GOT KILLED!!!!

Erin that was you?!🤣💀lmfao honestly you were right tho. I wasn’t ready for them yet😄🤷🏻‍♀️ you know me so well.

Seol sent me a blurb about going on a first date again with Ethan, so the ending of this one will start the blurb she sent okay!

-

"Where are you going?"

"Chad, I already had a run down with Sam and Tara...and Mindy." You fix your black long-sleeve a couple times. Your jitters riling you up. You were nervous. You meet Chad's eyes in the mirror. Him leaning against the wall behind you, his arms crossed as his head tilts. "I'm going on a date with Ethan."

"Yeah, but where?" He asks.

"I don't know Chad. We're just going out. Maybe to catch a movie, or grab something to eat. We're just going out okay!" You sigh and let your shoulders fall.

"You can't just still be fine with all this. I mean you let him back into our-"

"It's been a year Chad! A year. You just...you need to get over it already." You look down at your bag, fiddling, and making sure that your stuff was all there.

"Getting stabbed 12 times isn't something I can just get over, Y/n." Chad straightens up. You look up, meeting his eyes again through the reflection. Guilt raids your eyes as you turn to slowly face him.

"I'm sorry-"

"No. I'm sorry. I still hover over you and Samara."

"We know you mean well..." You reach out to place a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"But..." He nodded waiting to hear your rebuttal.

"Ethan picked our side. That's got to count for something. Samara has her dad in her life. Most kids can't say they do. I just feel...I feel like I got lucky with him, coming back and all. This is my do-over Chad. His do-over. It's all I wanted and waited for during those nine months. Now a year has passed, and the world makes sense again." You beam, your waterline brimming with water. You reach forward and cup his face. "I love and appreciate how much you've taken care of us, all of us. But have you stopped to think that maybe we're okay now..." You tilt your head, tears brimming his waterline now.

"We don't know that-"

"I-I know we don't." You reassure him. "But he hasn't tried anything. I truly believe that he's changed for the good of it all. That he doesn't pose a threat to any of us. That somewhere deep down, you'll find your dorky roommate again." You nudge his shoulder playfully. "He's still that guy."

"Until he wasn't anymore..." Chad scoffs. You close your eyes, sighing in defeat. Chad would still hold a grudge over him, and you didn't blame him for it one bit. Silence fell over the two of you comfortably. He looked at you through his lashes, his cheeky smile plastering back onto his face. "You look beautiful. He's not gonna know what hit 'em." He took your hand and twirled you around. You slowly shimmy your shoulders playfully as you duck under his arm.

"Yeah?" You pose dramatically. "Not too much for a first date?" You look down at yourself.

"You look great, but if you wanna really knock his socks off-" He reaches forward, asking you silently with his eyes if he can adjust your outfit. He pulled at the collar of your shirt down past your shoulders so they rest on your upper arms. A Regina George flair before she got hit by the bus, if you will. He turns you towards the mirror. Your smiles replicating one another.

"Look at you. You're glowing momma!" He leans and pecks your cheek sweetly.

"Thanks..." You let out a faint laugh.

"Should I tell the girls to leave it unlocked tonight or are you-" He pauses when you give him a quirk of your brow. The indication and slight smirk let him know otherwise. "Oh. So you're not coming home." Chad's eyes widened. "Okay momma bear, just don't come back pregnant again. Samara doesn't need a brother or sister right now." He gestures to the hall where your daughter was currently sound asleep in your shared bedroom. "Wear a condom." Chad bluntly says.

"Oh my god, stop please!" You scoff out a laugh. "We did last time, look what happened!" You exclaim with a smile, gesturing to the child two rooms down.

"Then...tell him to pull-"

Luckily you were saved by the doorbell.

"Oh thank god!" You push past him and compose yourself before swinging it open. Ethan had been looking down before he trailed his eyes up and down your form. His socks were definitely rocked. It made you feel a little more confident seeing him so flustered.

"W-Wow...You look gorgeous." He breathes out.

"Not so bad yourself." You emit a nervous laugh. Who knew re-first dates were anxiety filled. You two stayed still at the door. Eyes unashamedly raking the other. It would have lasted longer had it not been for Chad, pushing the door open wider, revealing himself to Ethan, and leaning against it. Hand touching the top of it. Ethan fell back into a timid state as he greeted Chad with a nod of his chin. Though Chad didn't reciprocate the gesture, making the whole interaction awkward. You turn to look back at him with an annoyed expression. You could practically feel his ego radiate from his body. The smug smirk on his face was one you wanted to slap off him.

"Not a scratch...On her head of her hair." Chad smiled, tilting his head. His tone was falsely sweet. "Not one. Can I see your pockets?" Chad stood up and gestured to Ethan's tucked hands. What the fuck?

"Chad!" You exclaim.

"What?" He defends. "No seriously what's in 'em?" Chad motioned a gimme gesture.

"Just my phone, keys, and wallet...some change." You gape at Ethan who took out his stuff to show.

"Ethan you don't need to-" You begin.

"Okay, now the back." Chad motioned for him to turn around. "Actually, can I pat you down...for a precaution ya know?" Chad goes to move out of the apartment, but you push him back inside, and quickly grab your purse.

"You're insane. We're leaving. Take care of our daughter, please." You press a kiss to his cheek hastily and practically drag Ethan down the hall. "Kay, bye love you." You call over your shoulder.

"Make him order something where he doesn't have to use a knife...Y/n, make him order soup or something!" He steps out of the apartment, shouting after you. "Go somewhere crowded and public!"

"Bye!" You and Ethan laugh as you ran away.

[linovadraws]

Quick little drawing for A Long Time Dead by Samara Breger, a book which I just finished and adored beyond all reason. I want to do real art for it, but for now I can't get Poppy discovering blood champagne out of my brain. Poppy Cavendish appreciation life. Character of characters.