#same with fics based on the two of us movie like i just see actual j&p

[gardenwalrus]

not that there’s anything wrong with it but it always throws me when i see nowhere boy (2009) fanfics on ao3. like you’re telling me you’re envisioning aaron taylor johnson and thomas brodie sangster as john and paul when ur reading this instead of just john and paul themselves

[gonzo-rella]

Headcanons: Being Married To Old Man Ray Stantz

MASTERLIST | AO3 | KO-FI

Relationship(s): old man!Ray Stantz x gn!also old!reader (romantic)

Warnings: Possibly inaccurate science words, because I'm a simpleton. (Let me know if I need to add any)

(A/N: Here's my first Ghostbusters thing! I've got a few other Ghostbusters fics in the works, mostly Ray-based reader-inserts because I'm in love with him, but I've also got a Phoebe-centric character study in the works that's based on part of her storyline in Frozen Empire. By the way, I loved Frozen Empire! I've already seen it three times, and it's such a joy. I'll try to catch it a couple more times at least before it leaves cinemas. Anyway, I haven't included any explicit spoilers for Frozen Empire in this, so you're safe to read this if you haven't seen it yet. I'd love to write more old man Ray Stantz fics, especially something involving Phoebe. I'm really excited to write for Ghostbusters, so feel free to send in requests! I've only seen the movies, but I plan on watching the Real Ghostbusters at some point soon. Also, even though I took my mum to see Frozen Empire the other day, I still don't have anyone to talk to about this movie, so please feel free to talk to me about it!)

It’s evident that, even after all of these years, Ray is still madly in love with you.

The adoration with which he looks at you is clear as day.

Venkman has always loved to tease you both about how sickly sweet your relationship is.

He will make fake gagging when either of you are affectionate to one another when he’s around.

(He won’t admit it, but he actually finds your relationship to be kind of cute)

It’s not like either of you are overly lovey-dovey, especially now.

Ray’s naturally a very passionate and expressive guy, but he’s rarely mushy.

Still, you show one another how much you care.

I have this idea that your silent way of saying ‘I love you’ to each other is holding the other’s hand, stroking their knuckles with your thumb and smiling at them.

It just seems so cute to have this thing that you’ve been doing for your whole relationship.

Ray knows you like the back of his hand, and you know him just the same.

It’s almost scary how well you know one another.

I can imagine that there’s been a time that someone’s asked one of you a question, and the other has been able to answer it with ease.

I love the idea of Ray being with someone who’s not a scientific mind like himself.

So, if you’re not as knowledgeable about the supernatural as Ray, you’ll still have picked up on plenty of information against your will, and Ray will always be impressed with and proud of you when you manage to regurgitate or understand his ‘science-y word salad’ (as you have referred to it).

He will also find it very attractive when you talk supernatural or science to him, but he tries not to make it obvious.

His eyes still light up like he’s a kid on Christmas when he explains supernatural stuff to you or tells you about a new psychically charged item he’s bought, and you find it so endearing.

Also, I can imagine him practically forcing you to listen to Podcast’s podcast when he discovers it, and you both end up getting really into it.

As devoted as he still is to his work and his supernatural endeavours, spending time with you is his greatest priority.

He might miss being an active Ghostbuster, but the silver lining of it is that he gets more time with you than he ever used to.

Even if you both used to be Ghostbusters, it’s nice to spend time together that doesn’t involve being covered in ghost slime and shouting over nuclear accelerators.

If you’ve not got anything else to do, I think it’d be sweet if you kept him company in his store.

Phoebe and Trevor are your honorary grandkids and you and Ray are beyond proud of them, especially Phoebe, who you’re closest to of the two of them.

Phoebe will always remind the both of you of Egon, so whenever she does something particularly Egon-like, you will exchange a knowing glance, and when she’s gone you’ll end up reminiscing about your old friend.

If Phoebe or the other Spenglers ever want to hear about Egon, you’re both more than happy to talk to them about him.

Even in his golden years, Ray is still the same sweet, passionate, excitable man you married all those years ago.

Sure, the regular excitement that came with Ghostbusting is long behind you both, but you both cherish this quieter time together just as much.

[mydarlingclaudia]

ENTER THE SURVIVAL HORROR…

OCTOBER FIC PLANS 𓉸

some fics I will be posting in October will contain dark content or will be dead dove (given I’ve never really written for either subject so this is new territory for me) but two of the fics I’m going to write are based on or inspired by horror movies and I’ll be writing both Chris and Leon!

also post dates and descriptions may change a tiny bit (though not likely!!) because I have actually only finished one of these fics, but if I do change anything I'll reblog this post!!

coming soon ⟢

taste no evil inspired by… THE VVITCH (10/30/24) -> Leon Kennedy x fem!reader

it's just you and your husband out in the woods. oh, and whatever is living among the trees. you think it's some beastly animal, Leon knows it's witches. but he can't tell you that, you'd freak out, insist on moving closer to town or even further away from where you already lived. Leon can keep you safe, he knows he can, why must you be so paranoid all the time? it doesn't help his case when your animals start being picked off and you start seeing things more clearly. it only ends badly for the both of you.

established relationship, tiny bit of fluff, gore, animal death, I make shit up about witches, cannibalism, major character death, au, fem!reader, re4r!Leon

how much blood would you shed to survive? based on… SAW (10/18/24) -> Chris Redfield x fem!reader

cheating doesn't make you a bad person, it's not like you were even married to the guy, Chris didn't even try to stop you from hitting on him, anyway. maybe getting romantically involved with your coworker wasn't the best decision you've made, but why should anyone else care? you don't let your relationship with him get in the way of your work, all you really do is help each other try to track down the murderer running through Raccoon City, how were you supposed to know said murderer would be your boss? and how were you supposed to know that you'd wake up in one of these traps one morning with Chris getting there surprisingly fast to help you escape?

established relationship, gore, mentions of infidelity, au, fem!reader, re5!Chris

she’s demonic and bloody, but she holds me tight inspired by… IN MY ROOM (10/10/24) -> Leon Kennedy x fem!reader

a college kid with a social life that's almost non-existent figures the dead girl that comes to his room every night is his girlfriend, some say that's a bad thing, he says it's everything he could wish for. who cares, anyway? it's not hurting anyone! well, not yet, at least. there's an endless list of things he'd do for you, you don't even have to ask. but why won't you come back after he takes care of a problem that would have torn you away from him? you love him, right?

not-really established relationship (idk how to explain it), a bit suggestive, Leon is kinda gross, necrophilia, gore, au, fem!reader, re2r!Leon

mouthful of love (10/2/24) -> Chris Redfield x fem!reader

mission gone wrong, the rest of your team had already been killed, so when you end up dying in that same mission it only makes things worse. but Chris can’t just leave you, right? no, that would be cruel, but he can’t really drag around a dead body with him either. who’s gonna know if he took a few bites out of you just to keep you with him? the place had already been crawling with monsters, it wouldn’t be a totally crazy thing to find on a corpse.

established relationship, major character death, gore, cannibalism, fem!reader, anywhere post re1 Chris

I will be using dark content and dead dove for tags so you’ll be able to filter out these fics. I don’t really expect anyone to give a shit about this but for those of you who do wanna read these thank you and happy halloween <3 I might also be posting extras if I find the time and feel like it, those are also probably going to be more cutesy fall fics sooooo

[myfandomrealitea]

I cannot stress this enough:

BUILDING COMMUNITY AND ENGAGEMENT ON TUMBLR IS A TWO-WAY STREET.

Stuck for ideas? Try:

Send asks. It could be anything, even something super basic. Tell someone you like their blog theme or ask them what they think a character's favorite color is. Ask them if they have a secret hobby. Tell them you had an absolute banger of a slice of toast for breakfast. Literally anything. Give them something to talk to you about. You might even make a friend!!

Draw silly little doodles for your favorite piece of fanfic. Literally cannot stress this enough; even stick men art can be adorable and/or hilarious. And I guarantee you it'll make the author's day. A two minute sketch on the notepad app of your phone could genuinely be the reason someone updates their fic, or writes another one.

Write silly little drabbles for your favorite fanart. I used to love this back when I made fanart on my old Tumblr blog. People would reblog it with a silly little 100 word drabble based on the art and I. Would. Swoon. My thing made someone else make a thing!! Amazing!!

Make rec lists. It could be for fanfiction, themed blogs to follow, recipes, movies, anything. Ask people to share theirs. Ask people to give their opinions if they try out something from your list. You wouldn't believe how many of my fanfic bookmarks have come from seeing the blogs I follow recommend something. Because we have the same interests!! Because its even quicker than me scouring hundreds of tags on AO3!!

If someone posts writing or art, ask them questions!! Humans love to be asked things. Especially about things we have made. Ask them what inspired them to make the thing. How long it took them. If they have a favorite thing about it.

Tumblr's engagement and activity levels are not dying because of the website. They're dying because of us. If we're just sat existing in a sad, isolated little bubble, of course we're going to move on to somewhere where we get actual engagement. Where there are other people in the bubble.

We've become so obsessed with an entitlement to receiving and consuming while never actually giving anything back, and that has to die.

"Oh but there's no community for what I like on here."

Make. One.

Tell people about the thing you like. Get them interested. Engage with them about it. Give them a sounding board to share their thoughts and ask questions and create content to enjoy and consume. Make it a discussion and give them something to get involved in.

Find that one other tiny blog screaming into the void about it and scream together!! That's how this website works!!

[kiragecko]

cherrystainedknuckles

I guess the only problem with being asked to take a “marie kondo approach” is that in order to find any fanfic that appears to be based in actual canon timeline and plot points and characterization (which does exist, and I’m not sure why fanon fans seem insistent that it doesn’t), I literally have to search for hours. I’m not joking, I consistently make fic rec lists, and I have to search for hours and hours for actual canonical basis. same thing with character tags on tumblr.

I’m not saying fanon fans have to stop enjoying fanon or making up their own content. I’m just saying that when the tags used for both fanon tim drake and canon tim drake are the same tag it just becomes incredibly annoying sometimes, and I understand why people who like to engage with canon (me, often) become frustrated

-

I have definitely had periods where I got incredibly frustrated with fanon! Around 2019, I was wondering if I needed to leave the Batfandom, because it had been so long since I read a new fic where the characters felt 'right'.

-

But, if you're willing to, I'd like you to consider what you mean when you divide 'fanon' from 'canon'. Because I struggle to find a hard line between the two, for several reasons:

1. Fandom is transformative. Every fanfic is going to have some interpretation of the source material. The line between what is too much interpretation and what is acceptable is different for every person. For me, I find it can even vary based on writing style or other odd things - lighthearted fic can have more noncanonical stuff in it than heavier fic, and still seem true to canon.

2. 'Canon' is subjective. I do not consider the movies or video games to be 'canon', and it annoys me when things from those creep into the fic I'm reading. (I'm okay with SOME Battinson.) Some aspects of the cartoons are okay. I consider precrisis Jason Todd to be an alternate reality version, but Donna's precrisis origins are more canonical than the dumb retcons. Wayne Family Adventures isn't my main version of the characters, but I'm not bothered if some elements show up in my stories. I'm ignoring most of the nu52, but I like Duke and I'm still watching this new Lian to see what happens. I doubt your divisions are identical to mine.

(Also, some things that I think of as 'fanon' have shown up in nu52 canon! I do not accept them as any more canon because of this.)

3. Most 'fanon' is based on canon. Canon Tim has weird sleep habits. 90s Dick is really lighthearted and joking around some characters in ways similar to fanon. Dick can canonically not be trusted to take care of himself if his mental health gets low enough. Jason likes classical literature. Etc.

These are exaggerated and/or twisted in a lot of fic, but where is the line where they stop being canon? I wouldn't bat an eye at a lot of this stuff, if it didn't show up SO OFTEN.

4. Most 'fanon fans' do know some canon. What line are you going to set where it will be 'enough'. And are they allowed to mention parts of the canon they haven't read yet? Is anyone allowed to talk about Dick's early Robin days, or only the tiny amount of people who have read the golden age stuff? A lot of the 'mistakes' I see are obviously made by people who have read ABOUT canon, but don't know quite how it fits together.

5. 'Canon' is FULL of contradictions. Yes, there are canon events. Yes, there is characterization that is consistent across 3/4s of comics. But. I'm still working on my sidekick timeline. I've devoted days to figuring out ages and passage of time. I've spent over a decade trying to figure out Jason Todd's motivations, and why Tim treats him the way he does. I've read all the 90s and early 2000s CANONICAL character assassination of Jason.

I spent years thinking that Donna's death was almost as foundational as Jason's, only to later discover that I had just happened to read the specific comics that focused on the fallout, and she only stayed dead for a short time. That happens to fans ALL THE TIME! We read a character summarizing an event we haven't directly read, and just accept it as what happened. But characters have biases, and not all writers care about accuracy.

-

I've read some Tim Drakes that I consider to be almost entirely 'fanon'. And quite a few that were so scarily 'canon' that I got chills. (Not all of which were similar to each other.) But the vast, vast majority have fallen somewhere in the middle.

I definitely do not want the responsibility of deciding which ones count as 'canon'! And I think I would strongly dislike anyone who tried to decide for me.

Being frustrated is logical, and I empathize. But the original post was about the impossible expectations some fans feel. The expectation to read thousands of comics, synthesize all the contradictions, and come to conclusions that match the 'true fans'. That's a perfectly reasonable thing to be complaining about.

If that's what some fans are experiencing, of course they're not going to want to engage with canon! There's no way for them to succeed, so why should they even try?

When you join THAT conversation to discuss your frustration about fanon, it strengthens that perception. When you call them 'fanon fans' it emphasizes their belief that you don't think they belong. And rather than trying to change, it's more likely that they'll double down. Canon is full of gatekeepers, so they'll avoid it.

[olderthannetfic]

https://www.tumblr.com/olderthannetfic/749218521745145857/while-i-love-some-queergay-whatever

“Kissing on the forehead isn’t necessarily romantic” makes sense if we are talking about a work of media that is made in a time/place where that was a common thing between same gender platonic friends.

But are you, anon? Or are you talking about like, a piece of Western mass media from the past 50 years? Or are you talking about anime — because if anything, kissing is even more loaded in Japan than it is in the West, especially if there are other people around. (Lots of people in anime fandom love to use “but Japanese culture” arguments to no homo, but are banking on no one reading them actually knowing jack shit about Japanese culture — because it’s almost never true or based on any real Japanese cultural difference, there’s just making shit up. It assumes people will take for granted anything that frames Japan as “foreign and inscrutable and impossible for Westerners to understand” which is just Orientalism tbqh)

Just saying, because I almost never see this shit said about like, a novel from 1820 or something from a culture like, say, some Middle Eastern countries where men kissing other men platonically is a thing…. and almost always see it said about current media from a culture where kissing on the forehead would be seen as something you’d likely not do to a platonic friend of the same gender.

You can’t “impose your cultural norms” on something from the same culture as you lol, or something from another culture that has the same norm! And an (for example) American assuming that modern American media plays by the rules of modern American culture and seeing it through that lens, doesn’t necessarily mean that American is unaware that different norms exist in different cultures. But like… it just makes sense to analyze a current American show for American audiences set in America in the modern day through the cultural standards of 2020s America and not, say, Bangladesh or Namibia or 1850s America.

And on another note, if you were as much of a fan of “queer readings” as you claim to be, you’d know that they often have little to do with authorial intent. In fact, it’s often specifically about reclaiming media that didn’t have you in mind as the audience.

(Seriously, I really doubt you have read many of those queer readings, bc if this bothers you so much, the stuff queer studies academics and cultural critics see as “gay subtext” in old Hollywood movies — hell, the stuff that gay, bi and sympathetic-straight directors and actors and writers often very much INTENDED as gay subtext in those movies — would make your brain explode.)

Anyway, we’ve all been in fandoms where there’s a ship some people insist has a ton of subtext but it’s just two guys sharing a scene occasionally and they just WANT to believe it’s there when it isn’t, and it can be annoying sure if there are so many people insisting this that it’s inescapable and becoming fanon that affects the fic about the ships you like, or if they’re pushy and sanctimonious about it. (My current fandom has a group of people who insist the only reason other people don’t see all the “subtext” for their random rarepair is racism or something, and then ignore how much textual stuff they have to deliberately leave out or misinterpret for their reading to “work” lol. Like scenes where their starry eyed expression is directed at a different character and that’s obvious in the actual episode but not in their selectively edited gif set or meta post.) But that is not the same as doing that with KISSING ON THE FOREHEAD ffs. And also, let’s not pretend that slash (or femslash) shippers are the worst offenders, like het shippers — and the broader culture — doesn’t constantly treat “a man and a woman interact” as meaning “they could/should be a couple,”

If you’re not bothered by that, but you’re bothered by when people do it with two men or two women… yeah you gotta ask yourself why that is. I have an idea why, and it’s not bc of your greater cultural open mindedness lol

--

[tibbythetiger]

Hello, hello!! I’m back! I went and finally got to see the film in theaters (the first two times I watched it on Peacock)! I’m going to have a  direct continuation of my previous post!!

I feel like Mike and Ness get really close after the events of the movie. Like many people already HC, I think Ness is really invested in the mystery of Freddy’s. So when Mike suddenly quits and is literally ripped to shreds with Vanessa fucked up in the hospital, his theory senses are tingling. He doesn’t try to push Mike or Abby, even though it’s killing him to not know what is going on. While Mike is desperate to find a new job, he’s pretty much out of babysitters for Abby at this point. With Max dead, his Aunt out of commission, and Vanessa in the hospital, Ness graciously stands in for the others and ends up keeping Abby with him at the diner while Mike is job-hopping. 

Also, given the attack on their Aunt, they can’t stay in their house for a few weeks. Ness offers his tiny apartment to share, which prompts Ness and Mike to share a room, and well, after one night Mike and Ness both insist on sleeping on the floor, a bed as well. It’s super cute and domestic and it makes Mike yearn for a life like this. But, he’s still not quite ready to make a move on Ness; mostly because he’s still a little freshly traumatized by the events that just happened, but also because homeboy’s self-esteem is non-existent. Ness is still head over heels for Mike, but is trying to tone it down for the time being so he doesn’t freak Mike out. However, after about two weeks, when Abby crawls into bed with them both after a nightmare, Mike finally breaks down and tells Ness about what happened at Freddy’s.  He’s surprised when Ness just believes him. 

Once the bunny (ha) is out of the hat, Mike’s walls crumble a little bit more. Ness decides that this is the best time, and decides to plan a really cute night for the three of them. He makes them dinner and makes sure he has Abby and Mike’s favorite movies. It all goes fairly smoothly, Abby does end up eating most of her dinner, but Mike falls asleep part way through the first movie, and Ness ends up putting Abby to bed. When he’s in the hallway on his way back to Mike, he finds Mike there looking at him with a soft smile and he just leans in and kisses him. 

After that, they don’t really talk about it, but they’re just together from there. They’re not super out when they’re in public (mostly because it’s 2000, and we’re assuming this takes place in a mid-western state), but Abby understands that they’re together now. Nothing huge really changes between Mike and Ness, for the most part things stay the same. Ness still helps with Abby, they still have their lil movie/TV-watching sessions after Abby goes to bed. Where they used to awkwardly stay on opposite ends of the couch, they are cuddling now. (I agree with whoever said Mike is the little spoon because YES) It’s little kisses in the morning, holding hands when they’re able to get Abby from school together in the afternoons. 

Eventually, though Abby and Mike do move back into their house, this is mostly because, with Mike’s custody and house checks, they need to have more space in order to not tip off CPS that they’re gay. (Again, just basing this off the time period and the area we’re presuming this in, I could see the state using that against Mike) Ness still spends most nights at the house, and he has a toothbrush and drawer in Mike’s room.  

This is all I have for now!! Also, I’m not sure if I want their Aunt to be dead or just, have been attacked by Golden Freddy. I feel like it could have gone either way in the movie, and I think that it would probably make more sense for her to just be dead. I’m going to try and write more general HCs for these two tomorrow! Again, if someone wants to write this out as an actual fic, please feel free to do so! Just be sure to tag me so I can make sure I can read your work!

[cybertroniannugget]

Pangea and mt Vesuvius

Not what I originally intended to post here, as I'm writing some spice at the moment but THIS is what my mind was occupied with all freaking day... The whole desaster takes place somewhere in the first movie or between 1 and two. Some details are changed up Which I did on purpose. I know all the movies from start to finish because the hyperfixations are hyperfixating real hard right now.

This is just a random story of how I get idk let's say teleported into the bayverse movies and how I'd probably handle that.

While I sprinkled in a bit more confidence than I actually got, I think it's an accurate representation of what kind of person I am: always cracking jokes, overthinking EVERYTHING, random useless knowledge that turns out to be somewhat useful.

About this fic: sfw, implied romance with OP, trans ftm character, no reader just Alex, confused Autobots they still need to learn so much about earth and everything, I also don't know okay?

This is just me struggling while simping hard for Optimus.

But we still ain't know what fucked up big M's navigation system when he crashed. Infact, why are all of our navigation systems useless here?! ", Jazz adressed, arms crossed over his chassis. "We all be getting lost all the time.

"I think I know why"

Oh please, why did I speak up just now...

All optics and eyes were fixed on me as I said that, making me immediately regret opening my mouth in the first place but here we are now.

"What? Maybe your systems think you're on Pangea.", I said, taking in the same position as Jazz by crossing my arms over my chest.

Optimus leaned closer, one servo on the railing, blue optics studying me thoroughly as to look for any signs of lie in my attitude.

"Pangea? May you elaborate?"

Hearing this deep voice so full of interest made me feel things honestly.

"The supercontinent. Wait, Imma show you."

I take out my phone, careful not to reveal the background, because I couldn't find the time to change it yet.

"Here, this is earth today. You see everything, Europe, Asia, South and North America, Autralia, Greenland and all the islands in the oceans."

"And this is Pangea, it broke apart into the continents as we know them today about 200 million years ago. This is probably what Megatron had in mind. See? When you look at a map of earth today you might think, if you turn south America around and snug it up to north America, they fit like a puzzle. It's because they were together as part of the supercontinent. Or push it up to Africa, same thing. Just squish it all together"

"That human is incredibly well educated.", Ratchet chimed in.

"That human has a name and thank you."

"But why did that happen? It makes no sense.", Ironhide complained, lifting one servo as to show his frustration in what I just said.

"If I may...", I look at Lennox, awaiting some kind of approval to continue. He nods and so I proceed with my explanation.

"Well, I don't know how to explain it scientifically, but I'll try to make it understandable."

Optimus nods, listening carefully. How do these highly educated space robots not know about that? But who am I to judge, they aren't from here so I can't expect them to know everything about earth.

"I think it probably started because of something called mantle convection. That means the heat from earth's interior rises up to the hardened crust. That caused it to break open, creating a volcanic rift zone. The cracks went further, the tectonic plates drifted apart. The rifts filled with water over time and while the plates drifted farther away, the oceans were formed. Or something like that I don't know but today we've got 6 continents."

Always undermining everything I say, great job on trying to act confident...

"And Greenland, I don't discriminate.", I added as some people eyed me.

"But I don't know if Pangea is what your systems used as the base to calculate. There were other tectonic combinations even before that, but it's a wild guess I'd say. I am certain it was one of them."

As I was explaining, Optimus' gaze changed to a warmer tone and I could feel my pulse rise to my ears. He was just so beautiful, and seeing him for the first time in person made my heart flutter uncontrollably. I wish I could tell him how I feel,

But this is real. No scenarios, no daydreaming or fanfiction. It was as real as it could get. Damn it, I wanted to shift here, not get teleported or whatever caused me to end up here with all of them. I hope we can atleast become friends. No need to get my hopes up though.

"Alexander?"

The baritone voice of the Prime pulled me out of my thoughts about him.

"Hm?"

"What kind of heat were you talking about?"

"Oh that. Well, starting at earth's core, it's liquid magma. It's really hot, like 5.200 Celsius hot. 9.000 something Fahrenheit for the Americans here..."

This was met with laughter and I continued with my lesson or whatever you might wanna call it I don't care, I'm struggling here okay?

"The further you go up, the 'cooler' it gets.", I say, underlining the word cooler with my hands in a joking matter.

"They probably got fancy scientific names but don't ask me which. Anyways shit's really hot. And it's what shoots up from volcanoes.", I finish as I look into a round of confused optics and a few tilted helms.

"Volcanoes? When tectonic plates crush against each other, or built up pressure is released, no?"

They all look at eachother, chuckling coming from my fellow humans around me.

"Okay here, that's mt vesuvius, big ass volcano."

"Sometimes these mfs shoot lava from this hole up there, pretty fascinating and scary at the same time.. It looks like this.", I add as they look at the pictures, not knowing whether to be amazed or afraid.

"The glowing stuff you see here is the lava. When it's still underneath the crust it's called magma."

"Are there many on earth?"

"Yup, don't get too close."

Optimus' optics widen at that statement of mine

"Don't worry bossbot, not on this island. The closest from here is next to Madagascar, Africa. Unless you decide to swim a few rounds up there there's no need to get worried."

The Prime relaxes, shoulders dropping while optics still focused on me.

Why is he looking at me like that? I mean I ain't complaining but if he continues like that Imma internally combust.

"You explain everything so well Alexander."

"Please, call me Alex. Alexander seems so long."

The Prime nods understandingly. "Very well then, Alex."

Oh god make it stop. I love you so much Optimus please...!

"His heart rate just shot up exponentially.", Ratchet mentioned and it was right then and there that I wanted to vanish, dissappear, sink into the ground, never to be seen again.

"Haha yeah, chronic Tachycardia, no need to worry."

That was a lie. Yes, my pulse is through the roof right now, but I've got no heart disease.

As I was met with confusion from every bot except Ratchet I explained before any questions could be asked.

"It's a general term to describe an elevated heartrate. You know, the thing in a human's chest that pumps blood through our body."

"Blood?"

"Oh come on. Okay, well then I can explain that to you guys later. And answer any questions you have as it seems no one else here cares about your education on earth and it's inhabitants.", I say grumpily, looking at Lennox, who raised his hands in defeat.

"I can see us becoming friends Alex.", Jazz laughed.

"Looking forward to it!", I said, pointing fingerguns at the silver bot, which is met with more laughter.

"Okay, class is over, what are we gonna do now?", Ironhide asks into the round of bots and humans.

I just shrug, looking at Optimus, who was still looking at me. But when I looked at him, he quickly looked away to Ironhide.

Cutie~

"Alex seems to know so much, why not ask her?."

That statement of a bystanding soldier was met with a glare from Optimus.

"Alex is a he, you better make sure to remember that!"

They went to protest, but Optimus wouldn't let them. "Unless you wish to get what humans call fired."

Oh shit he's really mad...

"I will make sure of that if you continue your unreasonable behavior."

As he said that I could swear I saw the soldier shrink right then and there infront of my own two eyes.

He looks at everyone. "This counts for everyone here. You will respect Alex."

Oh god, he's standing up for me I can't please marry me Optimus, like right now!

"Okay, lessons aside.", Epps put a hand on my shoulder, smiling. "You were great by the way. I think we can use that for good."

He looked between everyone, a stern expression replacing the warm smile, hand leaving my shoulder. "As much as of a crucial hint this is, we can't know for sure what's exactly causing the malfunction. Better dig people."

True honestly, but HOW is anyone supposed to figure it out without cutting someone open? Megs maybe...?!

"Something's on your mind again, I can see that.", Bumblebee said with snippets over the radio.

"What, me?! It's nothing."

"Nothing?!", Jazz protested. "You just gave us the best clue we could ask for. I'm no Optimus Prime but I can say that I wanna hear ya out my man."

He looks up at Optimus, who was looking at me again after listening to his lieutenant.

"I must say, that you have given us great insight on your mental capabilities Alex."

He leans closer and it took everything of the mental capabilities he just mentioned to not kiss him right here right now.

"Well uh, it's just some kind of impulsive thought. You know, the ones you can't really control...",I said nervously, one hand behind my neck, avoiding everyone's gaze.

But he didn't budge, only blinking once while awaiting an answer.

"Okay, you're not budging I see. Fine."

Taking a deep breath and regretting every life choice I had made up until that point, I went on. "Look, I don't know anything about Cybertronian culture and how things are handled. Especially this right here. Us humans, we always wanna know what exactly caused certain events. For example death here. So we came up with analyzing the body of the dead by cutting them open and stuff, it's called autopsy. Maybe, just maybe we could find something. I know Megatron ain't dead but he's in some sort of... Stasis? Someone could check his navigation system and maybe find the cause for the disruption."

I lower my shoulders, trying to be as small as I possibly could infront of Optimus, who's gaze I couldn't quite interpret.

"On Cybertron, there is quite a similar practise."

"So you're saying it's worth a shot, Prime?", Ironhide asks, unsure of what to think of the situation. "But he's not dead, as Alexander pointed out correctly.", Ratchet added.

Optimus turned around to face his Autobots.

"This may be our only chance. We must take it. For the sake of both worlds. This war has been going on for so long, we cannot let this hold us down. And now it seems there is a way to find out why this is happening. We will fix it, together."

Now it was on Lennox to speak up again.

"So we gon' dissect Megatron? I'm all in honestly. That fucker did enough damage."

My eyes widen at that. "They're not gonna kill him!" Unsure of the righteousness of what I just said I looked at Optimus, who nodded.

"See? They're just gonna take out the navigation system and leave."

"Ooh, big M is gonna be SO mad when he finds out."

"He won't.", Optimus retorted with an absolute certainty in his voice.

"Alright then, it's settled. Prepare people and gather as much information as possible for this mission and await any orders from Big O!"

And with that final order of Lennox the soldiers scattered around, leaving immediately.

Okay great, I'm gonna go be useless again wohoo.

"Alex?"

I look toward the sound of the voice I already grew to cherish. "I know, I know. I ain't accompanying you. I'd die if I did, already know that."

The Prime nods.

"I am glad you understand."

I love you so much I wish I could tell you...

As he remained standing there I grew nervous, fidgeting with the strings of my hoodie.

"Is there something you need?"

"Wha- me? No! Just... go be a hero.

You know you're good at it."

I clear my throat, pretty sure Optimus could hear my pulse. "But remember to take a break sometimes. I always see you up and about."

Did I overstep? I knew it. Chance blown. Goodbye earth. No romance.

"I highly appreciate your concern Alex."

He's always saying my name help. Is he just being polite or what does this mean?!

"There is this human saying. What was it again? I grab it with my heart...?"

Please he's so cute I can't~

"I'll take it to heart was it probably. It means to honor someone's wishes as you see them important."

He tilts his helm in question. "The person or the wish?"

That is when I think all the 5 liters of blood inside my body went up to my face.

Keep calm, stay cool Alex. Don't embarrass yourself.

"It's up to the person saying that."

Whatever higher power there is, please help me!

"You deem my wellbeing as important and so do I"

Phew, that was close...

"Can it be both?"

WHAT

"Eh, sure. There's always room for interpretation."

I guess...?

What has my life come to? They probably think I'm a know it all person. I gotta keep my damn mouth shut from now on.

"Very well then Alex, I look forward to working with you."

I only nod, trying not to get lost in those beautiful blue optics.

"I'm sure it's gonna be great Optimus!"

Unless I unsubscribe from life because a Deception squishes me...

[ur-dad-satan]

I'm almost certain that MC would introduce the brothers to human world holidays and they would try their best to emulate it with what they have. That being said, have a mini fic!!

!! Fluff, wholesome, thanksgiving themes, shit postish, gender neutral MC !!

Also, I'm basing the food and traditions off of my personal experience so sorry if you don't see your faves mentioned in the foods

MC had been hanging out with Asmodeus and Mammon in the common room gossiping about both human world and Devildom social media. The three were scrolling and laughing when a certain human world post caught MC's eye.

"Oh! I didn't realize today was Thanksgiving. Damn, it's really almost December." They sighed. Their tone was no longer as happy as it was before and their expression had switched to a slightly somber one.

"What's wrong, honey?" Asmo asked causing Mam to pay more attention too.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to kill the mood." MC smiled slightly only for Mammon to roll his eyes.

"No. Stop that. What's going on with ya? What happened, MC? Do I need to get Beel to fight someone?" Mammon asked getting closer to comfort them.

"I just realized that today is Thanksgiving. In the human world, it's a holiday where you're supposed to remember the native people killed by European settlers in order to take their land by having a huge feast and sharing what you're grateful for with your friends and family. My family would make a lot of different foods, desserts, drinks, and watch movies all afternoon until night and then we'd all go home and sleep of we were at someone else's house. We always made so much that we would be eating the same thing for at least a week!" MC smiled nostalgically. They sighed in contentment before shaking their head and looking back up at the two demons with them.

"Oh, honey that sounds like a... wonderful little tradition! I'm sorry we don't have anything like that here." Asmo said gently and placed a hand on MC's leg.

"Hey, how about I try to make ya feel better, huh?" Mammon asked excitedly.

"How?"

"We'll all go out! Even if we just walk around and window shop, all of us will go out on the town!" Mammon suggested. MC thought about it for a moment, then nodded their head and smiled gently.

"Alright. I'll ask the others if they want to go with us." MC said and stood up to go talk to the others.

"Don't worry about it, MC. Asmo and I will take care of that. I'll even let you wear my lucky ring today, okay?" Mammon said and helped MC up off of the couch. He kissed their forehead and shooed them off to get ready.

"Okay. Thanks Mam. Asmo, can I use your tub, please?"

"Help yourself to anything you need, gorgeous!" Asmo smiled and watched MC walk out of the room. "Mammon what are you planning?" He asked more seriously.

"We're gonna throw them a Devildom style thanksgiving! C'mon! They'll love it and it'll make em happy! It only makes sense, right?"

"Wow, Mammon, that was actually a good idea. You tell the twins and Satan and I'll tell Luci and Levi." Asmo smiled and pat his older brother on the shoulder as if to say, 'good job'.

A few hours later, all eight residents were out and about. They spent the whole day laughing and joking around with MC to make them feel better. By the early evening, Lucifer, Satan, Levi and Asmo went back to the house while Mam, Beel, Belphie, and MC stayed out a little longer. The four of them walked around a park for a while until Mammon looked down at his D.D.D and quickly spoke up.

"I'm pooped. Let's go back to the house." The white-haired demon suggested.

"Fine with me, I'm hungry and Belphie looks like he can barely hold his eyes open anymore." MC chuckled and peeked over at Belphie who was leaning on Beel and almost asleep.

"I think Lucifer's cooking tonight, so dinner should be ready by the time we get home." Beel said happily and the four of them made their way back to the House of Lamentation.

MC opened the front door and was immediately hit with a cacophony of familiar smells. They looked back toward the three brothers they were with who were smiling at them excitedly. MC immediately walked straight into the dining room and gasped in pure shock and awe.

"Happy thanksgiving, MC!" The crowd yelled in glee. The rest of the brothers, the angels, Solomon, Lord Diavolo, Barbatos, Mephieso, and Thirteen lined the sides of the room. In front of them was a giant spread laid out expertly across the huge dining table. There were dinner rolls, ham, macaroni and cheese, sweet potatoes, fresh collard greens, redxred apple pie, wicked cupcakes, demonus, and so much more across the table.

"You guys! You didn't have to do this for me! It's just one little human world holiday!" MC gushed holding back their tears.

"Well, we heard how sad you sounded, and we wanted to do something nice for you." Solomon said. Being human too, he understood missing little things like a holiday.

"Thank you all so much! I'm so glad that I came to the Devildom. My life has never been more exciting." MC said happily.

"It was Mammon's idea. You should thank him the most." Lucifer piped up. Mammon blushed as every eye in the room turned to him.

"Aww, Mammon! Thank you so much! I love you so much!" MC ran to Mammon and hugged him with everything they had in them. Mammon blushed even more and stuttered out an 'of course' in response.

The rest of the night was spent full of laughing, delicious food, jealous glared thrown and Mammon, and lots and lots of good memories. Solomon even pulled some strings and got MC's favorite alcohol so they could get a bit "silly" just like everyone else.

[gingerlegacy07]

Writer Interview Game

Thank you @morelikeravenbore for the tag! Everyone please check out her blog! She's a great writer with a beautiful MC!

When did you start writing? I was around 12/13 when I first wrote an actual little story. I loved doing it once for an assignment at school and from there on I kept writing. Mostly it was little love stories I made up, but when I was 15 I really got into Cinema Bizarre and wrote a (very bad, very cringey) chaptered story about them. I also wrote a pretty big Supernatural story in Dutch, but I never continued it after about 30 chapters. I stopped writing for a few years after that. I always loved reading fanfiction though and once I got into Kpop when I was 20, I started writing a little bit again. Mostly oneshots and all. After that I didn't write in over 8 years. Well, at one point I did try my hand on an orginal story, but I'm not even two chapters in so... Anyway, when HL came out I really got obsessed with it. And I started reading fanfiction about it. Before I knew it I was writing again and this time actually finished every story I started haha. Are there different themes or genres you enjoy reading than what you write? The only trope rather than genre that I enjoy reading, but haven't written (yet lol) is enemies-to-lovers. I absolutely love that trope, but only if it's done well. And I have not yet dared to try it because I feel like I wouldn't make it good. But one day I do really want to try writing it. Is there a writer you want to emulate or get compared to often? No. I'd rather have my own style and so far I haven't been compared to someone. Though I do admit that since I read most books in English, I've gotten some ideas of describing certain scenes or use certain wording in my writing. Can you tell me a bit about your writing space? Simple; on my bed, on my couch or sitting at my dinner table haha. I'll admit I've even wrote a bit at work lol. I don't really care for the space around me. All I need is my laptop and the inspiration/want to write and the words will come to me.

What's your most effective way to muster up a muse? Listening to music, reading or watching a movie. Basically seeing or hearing anything that tells a story. A lot of times it either brings me ideas on how to proceed or it creates a vague outline for me which I want to expand and write a oneshot. I have a few stories written that are heavily based on a song. But sometimes I want to progress my WIP and want something to happen, just that I don't know what. Music, video's or book can help with that. Are there any recurring themes in your writing? Do they surprise you? Absolutely. Heartbreak, fluffiness, happy family life. With nsfw fics it's the aftercare scene and there's almost always some form of trauma. It doesn't surprise me as those themes are the ones I love to write and feel comfortable writing. Happy family life and aftercare is something I enjoy writing a lot and fluff is something I write because I'm a huge empath and need some fluff (especially after writing a very angsty scene or oneshot) to heal me. Heartbreak can make for the most delicious and soulcrushing angst and trauma does that too. They also help with character development; your character goes through something terrible and you'll need to write them dealing with it and moving on (or not) from it in their own way. What is your reason for writing? Because I want to read something that I haven't seen before or is hard to find and then I decide, well I can just write it myself. For example: with HL, I stuck to reading fanfiction until I started shipping Ominis and Poppy together. There were hardly any fics out there and the very few that were, only had them as a minor side couple. So I decided I wanted to write something with them, where they develop a friendship that turns into a relationship overtime. Very slowburn. At the same time I wanted people to read it or at least get interested and since I was sure just writing them as a main couple might not work (and honestly, I do love me some good SebastianxMC), I decided to make the main characters SebastianxReader (so whoever read it could insert either themselves, their own MC or someone they made up on the spot) with Ominis and Poppy as a pretty big side couple. So yeah, my main reason for writing is because I always got ideas in my head that I would love to read, but is hard to find. Thus I try writing it myself. Is their any specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating? Honestly, any kind of positive comment is already motivating to me. But whenever someone takes their time to give a bit more details to their thoughts about my writing, it is extremely motivating for me to write more. It always helps to know someone likes it enough to leave a long comment and with giving their thoughts, I can get a bit of perspective on what my readers like/do not like. How do you want to be thought about by your readers? Good question. I don't necessarily want them to have a particular opinion about me, but I'd be flattered if, whenever they see my name besides a title, they think along the lines of: Oh I do like her stories. I dunno. It's always nice to know people enjoy your work, but as far as having an opinion about me, it doesn't matter really. What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer? I think understanding the characters I write and sticking to that while I develop their growth in my stories. How do you feel about your own writing? Not gonna lie, I always thought it was trash, but ever since I started writing for HL I actually like it now. Still, the first few chapters of my trilogy are a bit... icky to me, but overall I think I do a decent job at writing and it's pretty good. Most importantly; I love it!

That was fun! Thank you for whoever made this :D NP tags: @writingannyred @polarisgreenley @zetadraconis11 @sallowslove @mspegasus17

[softstanb]

kidnapping toxicity (star eyes)

[aka no time to bleed]

i won't lie to you, dearest reader - this fic started in a buckwild way.

it's the summer. i'm queer. chappell roan sings the songs of my people. yet somehow the music video of casual, the lyrics, the melody, it all ingrained itself into my brain in a funny way. see, i ended up with about three ideas based off the song, each looser than the previous.

though it may not seem to be true, this fic was inspired by casual. that and this lovely little tweet. it drove me insane. sorry if it does the same to you.

but there's something else i'm not telling you. have you seen the movie predator? classic 80s action/horror. lovely little flick, not at all scary if you're a weenie. feels like terminator with neon green blood and bad heat vision.

if you've seen predator then you know exactly what i'm talking about. the beginning of the movie, before you even meet the predator, they raid what seems to be a cartel compound. they take this woman as a hostage. the alien starts fucking things up, but even throughout this she doesn't let them know she speaks english until she's seen the predator murder a guy. our lovely lady is our seokmin inspiration.

and there was something in me that was just itching to write something toxic for once. look through my backlog and you'll find softness overwhelmed with even more softness, tenderness filling the cracks. i write things that are meant to be cherished, relationships that feel like warm blankets and mugs of hot chocolate, your favorite books when you were nine and it was raining and nothing hurt and everything was okay.

i was a little bored. a little weary. i craved a toxicity you never see from me. this is what comes from it.

what's funny is that this fic actually had me crying in dms that it wasn't toxic enough. here i am, sobbing in my babies' dms, that our boy mingyu has too fast of a turn around for someone who is supposed to be the leading mc of a doc called "kidnapping toxicity (star eyes)". and sure, he isn't actually toxic enough to hold down this role, but he's toxic enough for the start for it to matter, i guess. besides, when i write, these stories take on a life of their own. all i do is just put them in a silly little doc and then release them to you. i don’t outline, i just vibe. i’m sure you all can tell.

this fic also has a bit of a funny story. it’s the second fic i’ve posted in a row at a wedding. in a different time zone. my streak is beyond bizarre but i should break it soon. i don’t have any more weddings on my immediate horizon so to keep it going you wouldn’t hear from me for almost years.

i intended a little more with this one too, sure. same shit different smell. ran up against the deadline with the force of an angry bull. ran into it a few more times too. fest mods deserve the world, truly. i love them and they’re too good for the rest of us. sure, i had other shit going on, but i still was an added stress in their life. but they told me not to be sorry. (i still am.)

anyways, the intent was to have a movie night or two. or just them binging movies and eating junk and doing nothing more than rotting as their matching wounds became matching scars. y’know, cute shit. but then i wrote the ending and i looked at it and looked at it again and realized that’s it. there’s nothing more i need to say.

there was an epilogue too, one i’m not going to promise to write. i won’t even tease it. it goes like this:

they get seok out. they get him off base and move him into that city that he once called home. it’s not really home anymore, something eerily reminiscent but to the left. something hazy with memories but with harsh realities poking through the nostalgia like machetes through sheets. it’s unsettling and off putting and just plain wrong, but it’s the closest civilization to the base for miles. his sister lives there. his mother visits, too. and though they don’t seek each other out, still far too scared of seokmin’s original captors coming back for them, even if their corpses are charred husks abandoned in the middle of nowhere they were a part of a network dammit, they see each other. they’re neighborly when they run into each other. if they leave each interaction more teary-eyed than the last, no one mentions it. the town is too good to.

and maybe there’s mingyu. mingyu, now desperate for an out, who latches onto seokmin like a snapping turtle who’s just got its jaws around a delicious treat it can’t quite break. he gets wounded again. something super fucked - think a demolished knee, a fused major joint, blurry vision that can’t be fixed. he’s declared unfit for duty and they plan an extraction date. is it an execution date? no one is sure. no one finds out either. he disappears into the trees, never to be seen again.

no one talks about the new man in the city, with his clumsy language and mysterious background and lover who looks at him like he has hung the moon, who stares right back at him like he’d give him the stars if he’d only ask for them.

that city holds both boys close to their chests and shields them whenever trouble rolls through. the city laughs in the face of danger. try us, they say, they are ours and you cannot have them.

and maybe there’s a bit of a treehouse somewhere in those woods. high and hidden unless you know where to look, know where to find it. seokmin brings the home cooked meals he grew up on and mingyu brings base favorites, leftovers concealed and treated as a gold standard currency. they hug and chat and catchup, jihoon recounting the newest way he’s made the suits lives shit and seokmin talking about his new adventures, about dreams he never thought he’d be able to have. he’s so much more alive that it’s common for men to come back from their “surveillance missions” and “general recon missions” with red puffy eyes. no one asks about it, for seokmin’s sake. even if he’s not there they know he’d be upset to find out they were teasing each other over happy tears.

and maybe they find another kid stuffed away on a compound, scared outta his mind. jihoon takes him to seokmin and leaves him there, knowing there’s no better hands for him to be in. he grows up loved and understood, even if he is technically fully grown. he gets years back to act like a kid.

a happy ending. hope for the future.

it’s a tcg fic. yall know the drill.

p.s. if it helps, since this is a vague predator au and that takes place in guatemala, the way i thought of the languages is like this:

- the base/soldiers/vague govt agency = english

- the compound/vague cartel stand in = spanish

- seokmin/the natives= an unspecified indigenous language/mayan/garifuna/xinca

kidnapping toxicity (star eyes) aka no time to bleed

other notes on my fics aka the index

[acaciapines]

for the ask game, answer whichever of these speak to you the most: 4, 5, 11, 14 :D

HI ASH MY LOVE ASH.

oh they ALWAYS speak to me. i answer All. i will not be contained.

4. How many WIPs do you have right now?

actually shockingly few! ever since i finished my big owl house editing pass back in june i've not done a whole lot in terms of projects...and recently i've been playing rain world so instead of writing im playing rain world like 24/7. currently my only main project is the dess raises kris au, and in that 'verse the only thing i'm writing right now is a dess/chara relationship study. i WOULD finish it, but, uh. rain world. (<- guy who is trying so hard not to write rain world fic. i probably wont but also i am always tormented by ideas. but consider i have to tell the story of my slugpup scooter SCOOTER I WONT EVER FORGET YOU--)

5. What's a fic idea you've had that you will never write?

probably countless that i do not remember right now! but digging around through my drafts, i've got a few deltarune daemon aus that won't ever see the light of day...one of them was a fangame where the player played as one of kris's two daemons, and the other was a fic where ralsei was kris's daemon. the ideas from there have basically been repurposed elsewhere--a lot of my kris&ralsei stuff went into various works, and the fangame stuff is being reworked into the dess raises kris au.

beyond that, in terms of things that are actually abandoned and won't be used elsewhere, there are so many daemon aus that i've left behind for one reason or another, though the gravity falls transcendence au is the one that i think was the best...that one postcanon his dark materials fic i was gonna write where lyra and pan return to will's world and cause general shenanigans there with him and kirjava...a vera-centric son of sea foam wings of fire au because vera is the love of my life and i was rereading wings of fire bc i felt nostalgic....oh my god fantasy high SOPHOMORE YEAR FIC, which i tried to start TWICE, once from fig's pov and once from ayda's that was their road trip back home and i have some very funny snippets from...MY INFINITY TRAIN DAEMON AU WAIT THAT ONE STILL GOES SO HARD ACTUALLY. okay drop everything ive ever said the fact that i never wrote my infinity train book two daemon au is a travesty. i was cooking with that one.

11. Do you have specific playlists for writing fics?

sort of! i usually always have at least one or two songs i connect to any given fic, but in terms of what i listen to when actually WRITING, it's changed over the years. i used to put on compilations of video game music--usually utdr, pmd, and then just whatever got recommended to me lol--then i did like. those character playlists people make on youtube? mostly bc they tended to pull from the same pool of songs so it became good background noise lol. now i use the youtube mix or whatever its called for a similar reason--it tends to play the same handful of songs ive listened to a lot, so they dont distract me.

14. If you could see one of your fics adapted into a visual medium, such as comic or film, which fan fic would you pick?

oh i LOVE this question, and it would be without a doubt my nimona daemon au oh, are you at all like me. nimona itself is obviously both a comic and a movie, and i'd say animated film since the fic follows the movie plot more--i think there'd be a LOT of really cool scenes you could get with that fic. i also think i could make killer animatics based on my fics if i could draw good enough <3 and thats not a joke i have scripts and sketch storyboards and everything. maybe one day i'll finish one of those.

[evilpenguinrika]

How about 4 and 73?

Ask Game For Fanfic Writers

4. what is the plot bunny you’ve been carrying for the longest? optional bonus question: do you ever wonder why you haven’t written it yet and experience deep existential dread?

OHHHH BOYYYYYYYYYY. I actually have a few I believe. But I'll share a few since this would end up getting way too long lol (plus I would have to comb through my backlog to remember):

I have two plus one rewrite ideas for Ikarishipping. The rewrite is basically just a whole rewrite (for the second time in my life) of my biggest at-the-time on-going fic Bluebells and Lavenders/re: Bluebells and Lavenders that I posted way back on ffnet. The reason being that when I first wrote BbaL I was like, 13-15 and got a really nasty flame comment (I am showing my age with this lol) about my grammar and writing syntax, plot, etc and like, at the time despite English being my first language, I just could not understand grammar or the basics of the English language (look, words are hard okay 😥).

So I decided from that flame comment I was going to rewrite that fic and I did when I was 16-17. But since then my writing and style have changed and I would like to rewrite it and post it on ao3. I think I haven't gotten around to it is because it's just... A lot to do. And a lot to plan. When I rewrote BbaL and wrote re:BbaL I had meticulous notes that I have no idea where they are now.

The other two Ikari fics I want to write, one is insp by Marianas Trench song "Haven't Had Enough" which I also originally wanted to do a Cosplay Music Video back when I was 15-16 because why not lol. Plus CMVs were really popular back in my day (OH GOD I USED THAT PHRASE). I'm not sure if it's still popular now? It would be, also a Modern AU/College AU I think? I haven't really thought that ahead other than "slow burn rivals to friends to lovers" LOL

And the second idea is just inspired by the song "SUPERMODEL" by Maneskin. I'm not sure what the root idea would be other than maybe Paul and Dawn are both huge top models...? Yeah, I hadn't really gotten too far with this idea haha.

Another plot bunny I had on hold is a Hosie one actually! Actually I have a lot but I'll share two:

One is a Modern AU and it's actually inspired by my time working on student films. Except this idea is more Josie has a webseries and brought in friends from her film school days to help her out and Hope is the cinematographer. I started writing it actually, around the same time I was working on my own webseries. But since my webseries project went caput, I haven't found motivation to keep writing this fic.

The second is a Life is Strange 1 AU where Josie is Max Caulfield and Hope is Chloe Price. I wanted it to also be like a "choose your own adventure" type fic as well where at the end of certain chapters with BIG decisions, you would then pick your choice between 2 options and skip to whatever chapter your choice would be in. I think the reason I haven't done this is cuz it's also pretty hefty to write, and also doing a "choose your own adventure" is gonna require lots of meticulous planning that I don't have the spoons for.

73. how do you visualize scenes? do you see it like a movie in your head, or do the words just flow?

Definitely like a movie in my head!! It helps me more when I picture the scenes I want to write in my head and then I just figure out the words from there.

It's especially helpful when I write fight scenes! I watch a lot of anime and other action-based shows (recently binge watched Cobra Kai and watched some clips from The Magicians since I miss that show a lot), so when I write fight scenes in my stories (mainly You're The One Born To Save Hosie series), I just visualize the fights/actions like an anime. I mean, I already mucked up the magic lore in the TVDUniverse so I might as well keep going with the artistic liberties and flair with it haha. Plus, it's really fun writing these anime-esque action fight scenes :3

.

thanks for the ask!!

[cboffshore]

Situation: it is fall, which means it is almost December, which means it is time to begin my annual installment of my Nya Being A Gotdamb Menace To Nadakhan During Skybound series. (not the actual name, but that's the gist of it.) I am currently in the outline/sandbox writing phase.

Problem: based on the timeline I'm working with and some of the themes I want to mess with, 95% of this installment has to occur in that bridal suite Nya's stuck in during episode 63. based on key points in my outline, this means I need to nail down a solid floor plan, because unfortunately I write fic the same way I used to stage manage, so I must have tabs on all my actors or I literally cannot work.

Solution: rewatch episode 63, which has prolonged shots of the suite.

New problem: upon examining a bunch of screenshots, it appears that this suite is some kind of TARDIS or perhaps an Escher painting, because I can't wrap my head around the layout.

New solution: show you all example screenshots and notes to either get someone to help or just make sure all of us are mad together.

(I would tuck this under a cut to make this more convenient, but I had to try and parse this, and as my followers I insist you all join me, because maybe someone will help me get an answer.Apologies for the potato quality, by the way - I had to Discord myself my notated shots from my phone.)

The first thing hindering me is that Dogshank's big fuckin helmet blocks most of what would otherwise be decent shots of the room. This also includes all shots of the biggest mystery to me: whatever the fuck is happening with the pillars and canopy in the middle. I think there's a better shot of it in 64 that still doesn't clear up what this thing is, besides the fact that it's not a bed or anything actually useful.

Also, somehow, we never get a clear shot of the walls. Like, ever. But in the corners that aren't full of the 'shank, we do get some info about windows!

net info gained: we have two walls of windows and some kind of pointless canopy taking up fifty percent of the floor. also, lots of hexagons.

At the very least, I need info on the windows for Plot Reasons, and boy howdy do I get it! Except it sucks! Pay attention to the notes about the temple shape/weird duplication happening if you want to, but here's my biggest gripe (and I know this is probably because of them reusing the temple assets without thinking too hard about how they designed the interior, but if it's present I feel like I have to work around it): THOSE BARS DO NOT MATCH. That is a DIFFERENT window entirely.

Oh, and speaking of the bars: the only thing consistent between the two shots is perhaps the DUMBEST thing wrong with these windows. Can't see it? That's because it's not even there. Look:

You know that Bionicle movie where the one guy goes "haha makes glass?" That was NOT a sentiment the builders here took to heart. (One plus of this situation: I can make this a plot point. I think. I mean, clearly the Hagemans did it just fine. Tune in in December to find out!)

net info gained: it's probably freezing up there.

Anyway, onto the next issue: unless this conversation takes place at a third wall of windows that I somehow missed (not likely as they're VERY TALL AND OBVIOUS), then this door is either decorative, or it moved, and either way it should open onto dead air. I mean, it doesn't given that Nadakhan waltzes in and leaves with Nya with no incident, but based on the long-distance shot of the mismatched windows... I'm reading too much into this, huh?

Anyway, corporate needs you to find the difference between these two pictures:

net info gained: this is one of the following: some kind of suicide door that keeps moving around to keep Nya trapped inside, me being an idiot, or just really bad foresight on the animator's part.

Also, this isn't part of the suite, but I wanted to include it anyway because... well, why not?

net info gained: Nadakhan's got something against functional windows, I guess. Either this was boarded up to accommodate the giant ceremony space on the ground floor or he's got, like, a darkroom in there where he's got a bunch of cronies trying to replicate that antique photo of Delara, because once again: haha no glass!

JUST WALL.

Anyway: rant over. Send help. I'm giving up and DIYing a floor plan that has somewhere between 1 and 4 walls of windows and furniture that's not just potted plants and weird little side tables.

[bqstqnbruin]

They Shoot Websters, Don't They?

Hi! It's me with another fic to wreck you (but there's hope in this one I promise).

This is for @antoineroussel's winter fic exchange! I had the honor of writing for the lovely @laurenairay! Thanks to my girls @assmanselke @matthewtkachuk @kat-hearts, @raysofcrosby and Demi again for reading and editing this and threatening me to write a happy ending which I still didn't really listen to but here we are.

The title and the end of this are inspired by the Season 3 episode of Gilmore Girls titled "They Shoot Gilmores, Don't They," so iykyk

Warnings: Drinking, Swearing, Asshole boyfriend

WC: 5390

“It’s Christmas Eve, and you’re sitting by yourself on the couch, doing nothing but eating a bowl of chips like a pack mule,” Noel hears through her speakerphone and scoffs at the accusation. 

“That’s mean.”

“Am I wrong?”

Noel hesitates. “No,” she says, begrudgingly, putting the bowl of chips down in front of her as if Andre can see her. “What point are you trying to make?” 

“Let me pick you up. You can spend the day with me instead of on the couch by yourself.”

She hesitates again. There’s no reason why she should be disrupting her quiet day in the warmth of her apartment and the coziness of the blankets. Her favorite tea is sitting next to her in her favorite mug, she was getting ready to pull up her favorite movie to play in the background, and a stack of books on the side table calling her name as they had been since she got off work the night before. “I don’t want to get up.”

“I’m coming over anyway.” 

“Hey, no,” she protests.

“I’m turning on your street right now; I’ll see you in less than two minutes.” 

She tries to argue back before he inevitably hangs up without letting her get in another word and contemplates putting the chain on the door so that he can’t get in without her physically letting him in. But that means she will have to get up from the comforts of her blanket and the couch and actually put the chain on the door. Is stopping him from coming in really worth moving? 

What’s the harm in spending a day with her best friend? She can’t be with her family because they’re on the other side of the country, she isn’t extremely close with her work friends to have one of them invite her over, and Andre isn’t with his family either. He’s her best friend. That’s it. Any boyfriend she’s ever had never had as much stuff left behind in her place as Andre did. 

They know each other better than they know anyone else. Andre has multiple sets of clothing left behind in her apartment, and she has the same at his. He has overnight stuff stashed away for all the nights he spends with her after road trips or when he needs to get away from the guys, and she has stuff at his place for the same reason. He knows where everything is  in her kitchen to just start making food for them whenever he wants, and she does the same at his place. He has a copy of her favorite books and movies stashed away somewhere for her in his bedroom, and he has the same thing in her place. 

“Webster, you look pathetic,” Andre says, bursting through the door, Noel regretting giving him a spare key, breaking her out of her spiraling about their relationship.

“That key is supposed to be for emergencies, you know,” she fires back, making a face at the use of her last name. 

“Based on your current state, this is clearly an emergency,” Andre tells her, flopping down on the couch and attempting to unwrap her. “Hey, don’t hit!” 

Noel grumbles, doing her best to attempt to rip the blankets back from him. There’s no need for him to be doing this. She was perfectly fine sitting on her couch. “Stop it,” she tells him, trying her best to get away from him. “You’re being mean.” 

The two of them continue to fight with the blankets, Andre ending up with the entire thing behind him, Noel trying her best to reach for them. He puts them behind him, laying down so that they are under his back. Without thinking, Noel’s legs and one arm were on one side of his body, practically laying on top of him while she tries to get the blanket. She feels herself wobbling, Andre’s free hand shooting up to steady her, wrapping it around her and landing on the small of her back. The two of them stop for a minute, both of them breathing heavier than normal from their stupid struggle. Noel swears she sees Andre’s eyes flick between her own and her lips, their heads moving closer and closer ever so slightly. He wants to kiss her, more than she realizes. The moment ends when Noel launches herself back to her corner, clearing her throat and trying to act like nothing has happened. 

“So what does your Christmas Eve look like, then?” she asks him, breaking the silence. 

“Well, when I was younger, we would go sledding, but there’s no snow for that right now, so that’s out of the question. I would make cookies with my family, and eventually, we would bring them around to our friends.”

“That takes up a whole day?” 

“A couple of hours, yeah.”

“Andre,” Noel whines.

  “Come on, we can make cookies, watch your Christmas movies, drink the tea you love out of the mug you love, I will even read you the books you have right there while we’re baking if you want.” Andre turns to her, taking her hands in his. “Please, Noel?”

She rolls her eyes at the goofy grin covering his face, the puppy dog eyes that he flashes at her making her unable to say no to him. “Fine. What are we starting with?”

Andre jumps off the couch, his hand still in hers as he drags her to the kitchen. “We can make all the cookies I made with my grandmother growing up, and any you have that you want to make.” He starts to look through her cabinets, trying to find anything that would resemble the ingredients of a cookie and laying them out on the counter. “You only have flour and sugar. You don’t even have eggs. Or milk?”

Noel shrugs, knowing that she has nothing. “I was going to wait out the Christmas chaos and go shopping after the holiday. I have enough to survive, why get more?” 

“We’re going,” he tells her, pulling out his phone to see what is still open and for how long. “The market a block over is open until 5, so we have plenty of time to get everything we need.”

“That’s mean to go on Christmas Eve,” Noel tries to protest as Andre starts throwing her coat and hat at her. 

“Come on, Webster,” he pleads, calling her by her last name even though he knows she hates it, “We’re going to be in and out. We can even bring the store owner cookies as a thank you if they’re still open when we’re done.” She starts putting on her stuff, not wanting to go outside on the day she’s supposed to stay tucked in. He is just lucky that the stuff she wears around the apartment is something she would go out in on a normal day, too. “Don’t be a Grinch.” 

“I’m literally named after Christmas. I can’t be a Grinch by default.”

Andre grins at her, taking her hand in his and dragging her out of her apartment. “This’ll be fun, I promise.” 

Andre starts rattling off recipe after recipe, ingredient after ingredient for what is sounding like a plethora of cookies that Noel knows she doesn’t have enough utensils, bowls, and cookie sheets for.

“How many types of cookies do you normally make on Christmas Eve?” she asks, scared for the answer.

“Swedish tradition is seven.” 

“Seven?” Noel nearly screams. She can’t even think of seven cookie flavors she likes, let alone seven flavors she can make. “Why seven?”

Andre shrugs, opening the door to the market, suddenly overly conscious that he is still holding Noel’s hand. “Less made you look stingy, more made you look like a show off.” 

“I kind of like that.” Noel grabs a basket, trying to keep up with everything that Andre was absent-mindedly throwing at her. 

“What kind of cookies did you make when you were growing up?”

“Never had any. Christmas isn’t really a big thing for us. I didn’t really ever celebrate it until I moved out here and met…” Noel starts, trailing off as Andre puts more and more in the basket she’s holding. 

“Met Myles,” Andre finishes her sentence for her. He turns his back to her, pretending to look at the different raspberry jams in front of him, swallowing hard at the thought of Noel’s boyfriend. “What’s he doing tonight?”

“He’s been with his family at their ski house since Sunday. I told him not to wait for me since I had to work yesterday, and that I would see him for the New Year.” 

“Even more of a reason to be together tonight, then,” Andre chokes out. “We can’t be with our families, we might as well be with our friends instead.” 

They finish up at the store, Andre talking a mile a minute about the cookies he wants the two of them to make. They aren’t going to make seven, only the three that Andre knows how to make without looking up the recipes: hallongrottor, schackrutor, and nötkakor. Noel has no idea half of the things he is saying as they walk back, both of them with arms full of bags. She isn’t even sure what he’s talking about is even baking related by the time they get back to her apartment. 

“Oh, so you get started on the chess board cookie dough, I’ll do the thumbprints.”

Noel nods and measures and mixes as Andre tells her what to do. It’s soothing, making vanilla and chocolate dough. While she’s mixing, she looks over at Andre, who’s already shaping his cookies. She smiles while she watches him, the intensity that he has on his face as he focuses on making perfect circles, indenting the center just enough so they can hold the raspberry jam he picked out earlier without breaking from the weight of how much jam he plans on putting on the center. 

He has flour on his forehead, right above his eyebrow. Noel wants to go over to him and wipe it off. But that would be weird, wouldn’t it? There’s no reason to do that. She can just tell him that it’s there. Or just help him and get it off, because there’s nothing to make it weird. 

He can feel her staring at him, a smirk on his face forming when he tries to catch her eyes. Every time he looks at her, she looks away, Andre knowing that she felt heat rising to her cheeks as she pretended to focus on the dough in front of her. “Let me know when you need help rolling the dough out,” he tells her.

“Check what I have.” He walks over to her, the two balls of dough looking pretty good in front of her, ready to roll out. 

“You have to keep it so it’s about two centimeters thick,” he says, dusting the counter with flour, hearing her scoff. “What?”

“Centimeters,” she teases, knowing it will irritate him. 

“I get it, you’re American. You use inches. You want it a little less than an inch thick. Happy?” he asks her, throwing a little bit of the flour in her face.

“Oh, come on,” she replies, taking some of the flour and throwing it back at him.

The two of them start a small food fight, getting flour everywhere, covering every inch of themselves rather than the counter they are supposed to cover. The flour gets on the floor, Noel’s cabinets, all over their clothes and stuck in their hair. In her socks, Noel slips on the flour that has accumulated on the floor; Andre catches her just before she falls. 

His arms are wrapped around her as tight as he has allowed them to go, trying to process the feeling of her in his arms, finally holding her despite the fact that it isn’t something he’s able to do freely.

“Are you ok?” he whispers, his voice low. He can feel himself getting nervous, his heart racing, convincing himself that she can feel it beating against her. 

Noel nods before she can find the words. “Um, yeah,” she stammers, “Thanks.” 

Andre lets go of her before he does anything else, taking a moment to look around at the mess they made in that short amount of time. “Should we keep going with the cookies, or clean first?” 

“Cookies, then clean.” 

He nods, following her back to the counter to help her roll out the dough. “You don’t want to put too much pressure on the dough.”

Noel nods again, feeling Andre getting closer to her as she starts to follow his directions again. She grips the rolling pin so tight her knuckles start to turn white, subconsciously letting out her frustration over the two missed moments on the dough. 

“Not quite like that,” he says, coming up next to her. He rests his hands on hers, his one arm stretched across her chest as he tries to show her what he means. “Loosen up a little bit.” 

He holds her hands in his, guiding the rolling pin over the dough as gently as he can. “Like this,” he says, turning his head to face her. Noel stares at the dough, trying her best to not look at him. He studies her, the way the lock of hair tucked behind her ear curls at the ends, the way she’s clenched her jaw, the feeling of her hands relaxing with his around them.

Noel swallows hard, the feeling of his arm relaxing ever so slightly against her making her heart race. Myles. She needs to think of Myles. But she could just lean in. 

Noel’s phone buzzes, nearly vibrating itself off the counter. Both of them jump apart. “It’s Myles.” 

“Go on, I’ll finish these.” Noel leaves the room, her flirty ‘hello’ ringing in Andre’s ears as he tries to not listen to her talk to her boyfriend. He takes out his own phone, pulling up the group chat with some of his teammates.

Jesus Christ, he texts, starting to type another message immediately.

You rang? Phillip replies immediately. 

Stop that, he responds, rolling his eyes at his teammate. I’m with Noel.

And? Larsson asks. 

I swear we almost kissed three times already.

Here we go, Alexander says.

Not this again, comes from Larsson at the same time, Andre practically able to hear the groans from his friends. 

Anyway, Andre types again, Myles left her to go ski, she was all alone.

And you had to be the one to spend time with her? Phillip asks. 

He knows his teammates are over his pining over her, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to get their help in the slightest. She’s my best friend...

Before he can read their responses, Noel comes back into the kitchen. Andre’s unable to read her expression. “What’s up?”

Noel shrugs, not making eye contact with him. “He just wanted to call and say, ‘hi.’ I asked how the slopes were, he said they were fine. He asked what I was doing, I said I was with you,” she tells him, trailing off.

“And?” he asks, hoping she’s finished her sentence. He can already tell what she’s about to say. It’s the same thing that Myles says to her every time Andre’s name comes up in conversation. It’s the same thing that Noel has come to him for multiple times during her relationship with Myles.

Noel shakes her head, forcing out a short laugh. “Same shit, different day. He’s not happy that I’m spending time with you ‘unsupervised.’” 

Andre hates this conversation. “Jesus,” he breathes out. The two of them stand there in silence for a minute, both of them going back to their cookies and Noel not noticing the complete lack of progress Andre made in her absence. “Should I leave? Would that make things better?”

“What?” she shrieks, causing Andre to drop the cookie he was shaping back on the counter. “No. Do you want to?”

“I don’t want to. Do you want me to?”

“God, no,” she lets out, probably a little too fast. “No, Myles is just being annoying. He knows what our relationship is. He knows that we’re...”

“Friends,” Andre finishes for her.

“Best friends.” They fall back into silence, Andre getting the oven heated up so that they can start baking the plethora of cookies that they had made. Noel can remember the last time she saw this many cookies in front of her, let alone the last time she had helped make this many cookies. “We should take a picture of this.”

Andre looks up at her, “Of the cookies?”

“Yeah,” she starts, pulling out her phone and bringing up the camera. “Of us and the cookies.” 

She hands Andre her phone, standing closer to him as he positions the camera, her holding up one of the baking sheets. They can’t help but laugh, forgetting they were still covered in flour from earlier. Andre pulls her closer, wrapping his free arm around her as she tilts her head toward his chest. The two of them smile, unable to stop as they look at their current state. Noel doesn’t hesitate to post it, no caption, putting a heart and tagging Andre. It’ll make Myles furious to see that post. 

Good. 

“So,” Andre starts, looking at the notification from Noel and seeing the heart next to his name. It meant nothing. It’s a platonic heart, he tries to tell himself. “Some of the guys are getting together tonight.”

“Don’t you guys spend enough time together already?” Noel jokes, tossing him a towel to start washing off the flour. 

“Well, yeah, but not all of us have other family around to spend the holidays with. So, we’re spending it together.” 

“Whose house are you going to?”

“Eberle’s.” 

Noel laughs. “Lauren must love hosting that.” Her phone starts buzzing, texts and notifications from Myles flooding her phone. “So, what time do you have to be there tonight?”

“Ebs said we can head over whenever.’

Noel stops trying to get the flour out of her hair. “We?”

“Oh, come on, you thought I would leave you alone for the guys?” 

Noel can feel her heart racing at his words. Myles had no hesitation leaving her for the ski house, not even putting up a fight when she said that he should go without her. Is it unfair for her to expect that of him? No, she tells herself. Myles is her boyfriend. Shouldn’t he want to spend Christmas with her when he knows her family never had the means to get all together for the holiday and that she was yet again going to be alone? 

Andre’s acting the way that Myles should have been acting for her, or at least the way she’s always wanted Myles to act.

“What do we wear?”

“Something nicer than the flour-stained joggers you have right now. You go clean up, I can pick something out for you,” he tells her, shooing her out of the kitchen. He takes a tray of cookies out of the oven; they’re baked just like he always made them with his grandmother when he was younger. He grabs a few for Noel on one of her plates before heading into her room to find her something to wear. 

The cookies finish baking, Andre finally cleans himself up and changes into a set of clothes he had left behind after one of his games, Noel is nice enough to wash his stuff with hers. He plops himself on the couch, scrolling through the texts from his teammates asking where he was. 

Her story??? Comes from Alexander.

You too look like more than friends at least, is from Phillip.

So she’s coming tonight? From Adam. 

He keeps scrolling, seeing the teasing from the guys, rolling his eyes at every comment that asks why he is hanging out with a girl he likes when he knows she has a boyfriend. He can’t help it. Even if he likes her, has whatever feeling he does for her, she’s still his best friend. His wanting more than that doesn’t change that. He won’t let it change that. 

Andre starts to type out a reply to tell them that he’ll be on his way soon, that he’s just waiting for Noel when she appears in front of him. He takes in a sharp breath; he definitely picked the right outfit for her, the sweater and jeans so simple yet they look amazing on her. Everything she wore was amazing on her, though.

“You look–” he says, searching for the right word to say to her. “Wow.” 

“Wow, yourself. At least you clean up well,” she laughs, clearly mocking his inability to talk. “You ready?” 

Andre gets up from the couch, unable to take his eyes off Noel as she moves through her apartment. He barely registers her complaints about finishing the cookies so late, breaking his promise to her from earlier that they would drop some off at the market.

He wants to reach out and take her hand, walk her to the car. He wants to press her against the door as she reaches for the handle and kiss her right there. He wishes he could do that disgustingly cute thing while he’s driving where he rests his hand on her thigh, her hand resting on top while they drive to his teammate’s house. 

He wishes she wasn’t with Myles. 

The two ride without talking to each other, the only sound in the car coming from the Christmas music playing on the radio while they drive to the Eberle’s house. Noel’s phone keeps buzzing; Andre watches her type furiously out of the corner of his eye. It has to be Myles texting her. There’s no one else who would spend so much time texting her like this, causing the sour look on her face.

“Everything ok?” he asks her when they finally pull up near his teammate’s house.

“Myles is being a dick,” she mumbles, locking her phone and practically throwing it in her purse. She doesn’t wait for him to say anything else before starting on a rant. “He’s telling me that if I was planning on going out on Christmas Eve, then I should have met his family at their ski house. That by spending the day with you instead I’m being a bad girlfriend, when he didn’t even fucking invite me up to the house in the first place. The only reason he invited me is because I told him I was spending the day with you. That you came over because you were also alone, that we made cookies because it was something you did when you were younger, that we were going to your teammate’s house because it was something you were doing anyway and the guys invited me.” 

“You didn’t have to come out tonight,” he starts, feeling anger bubble up inside him.

“No, it’s not that,” Noel starts before he can say anything else. “It’s that he’s getting mad at me for being with you. He had no issue with me spending Christmas by myself. He was fine with me sitting on the couch the entire weekend. It wasn’t until I told him I was with you that he started to act like that. It’s always when I’m with you that he starts to act like this.” 

“Noel,” Andre whispers, trying to figure out what to say. “Why are you still with him?”

She looks down at her lap, fidgeting with the hem of her shirt. She shrugs, knowing that whatever she could tell him won’t be enough for him to believe her. She isn’t sure that anything she’s about to say is actually going to be true, anyway. “I love him. I loved him.”

They sit in silence for a moment, both of them trying to process what she just said. Andre wishes he could just reach over the center console and kiss her, hug her, do anything to stop the tears he was watching roll down her cheeks. Noel just wants to go inside and forget the entire conversation with her boyfriend happened, forget for a night that she has a boyfriend, and just spend it with her best friend instead. 

“Let’s go in, Webster. I’m sure there’s something in there that will be better than this.” Andre gets out of the car, rushing around to the passenger side to give Noel his arm and walk her in. “You’re going to be fine. Whatever happens is going to happen for a reason.”

“You sound like a bad fortune cookie, you know that?”

They let out a laugh, letting themselves into the house to be welcomed by the screams of Andre’s teammates and their families. Some of his teammates look way too drunk for their own good, Andre already getting excited at the prospect of the embarrassing stories to come out of tonight. Noel can feel her heart melting at the cuteness of the children running around and playing, some of them with mini hockey sticks while others had random toys.

Andre takes Noel’s hand and leads her through the house, looking for drinks. If there’s one thing Noel needs tonight, it’s alcohol. She wants to forget Myles’s anger from earlier for just a little while, pretend that the moments she had with Andre weren’t messing with her and making her want to break up with him more than normal. She was spending the day with her best friend.

The two of them wander around the party, Noel downing her first drink much faster than she should have. But that’s fine, she tells herself, because it’s already helping her take her mind off of Myles. He didn’t matter if he was going to tell her who she could hang out with. He had no care in the world about her being alone, so why is he all of a sudden mad that she was with Andre? 

She looks at Andre while he’s talking to Phillip and Alexander, his other teammates milling around them in their own worlds. There’s no denying that he’s attractive, that she’s attracted to him. How could she not be? He’s gentle and sweet to her, they know everything about each other, good, bad, and otherwise, and they still want to spend all of their free time with each other. She sees spending time with Myles as a chore, but spending time with Andre is something she wants to do all the time. She thinks about the last real date Myles took her on, how she kept checking her phone when he wasn’t looking to see what Andre had texted her, how his game was going, what the guys were doing. 

He’s just her best friend. Right?

The group of them start drifting through the house together, Andre’s teammates leading them in what seems like an odd path until they stop suddenly. The two of them exchange looks, Noel rolling her eyes at his teammates’ antics. They’re up to something, she just doesn’t know what. 

“Hey, you two,” Phillip says, finally pulling Noel into the conversation that had been happening in front of her the entire time. “Look up.” 

They do as they’re told, noticing that Andre’s teammates have led them to an entryway to the living room, where Jordan and Lauren have hung mistletoe. 

“Oh, come on,” Noel groans, a teasing smile on her face to hide the fact that her heart has started to race at the thought of finally being able to kiss Andre. If they do, it won’t mean anything. It’s just a stupid thing that people do when they’re caught under the mistletoe. 

“Guys, she has a boyfriend,” Andre starts to argue, his teammates not willing to listen.

“You’re both standing under it, you have to now,” Alexander says, an evil smirk on his face that makes Andre’s heart sink. He hates them at that moment. 

This isn’t how he wants to kiss Noel for the first time. It isn’t supposed to be in front of his teammates and their families. It isn’t supposed to be when she was dating Myles. He isn’t sure what it’s supposed to be, but at least he knows it shouldn’t be the situation at hand. 

Phillip and Alexander start chanting for the two of them to kiss, slowly bringing everyone else around them as well. He knows his face is bright red, feeling the heat in his ears as he looks at Noel with the most panicked expression he can give her. 

Noel lets out a laugh, hoping Andre isn’t able to pick up on her nerves. She leans towards him and whispers, “It’s no big deal. It’ll only last a second. It’s just a stupid tradition, right?”

“Right,” he says, not feeling any better. 

Andre bends down, Noel’s hand finding his shoulder. Andre ghosts her lips, trying to force himself to just kiss the girl he’s wanted more from since he met her.  

“Hey,” they hear, causing them to pull apart. Everyone around them falls silent, the chanting stopping, the kids not running around anymore. 

“Myles?” Noel asks the panic in her voice now clear. “What are you doing here?” 

“Looking for you,” Myles yells. In trying to forget everything about that day, Noel also forgot that she and Myles had shared their locations with each other when they first became official, meaning he could find her and she could find him whenever they needed.  “I came to get you, and I find him making a move on you.”

“It’s mistletoe, it doesn’t mean anything,” Andre says, moving in front of Noel. 

“It doesn’t mean anything?” Myles laughs. “You really think I don’t know what this is? You two are always together. Half the time I can’t even get a hold of Noel because she’s with you. Do you think I don’t see the way you talk to each other? I call you today and I find out that you’ve changed your entire day because you’re spending time with him?”

“We’re just friends,” Noel lets out, trying to process everything he was saying.

“I just pointed out that she has a boyfriend,” Andre tries, not knowing how that was going to help him in the slightest. “Not anymore, she doesn’t,” Myles says, storming off. Noel follows him, tears streaming down her face, trying to talk to him while he makes his way outside. “No, Noel. I’m sick of this. I don’t want to be with someone who doesn’t want to be with me. I don’t want to be with someone who hangs out with a person I hate. I don’t want to be with someone who is so obviously in love with someone else.” 

The two of them stand on the porch, having left the house before Myles continued to yell at her. She has no jacket on, the cold air adding to the numb feeling that is overtaking her. 

“I’m done, Noel.” 

He leaves without another word, Noel left to crumble on the porch step and watch him drive away. She can’t bring herself to cry, not feeling sad like she thought she would after a relationship ended in the way it just did. She wanted to break up with him, but she didn’t think it would be in front of a group of people, and she didn’t want it to be because of whatever feelings she has for Andre. 

“Hey,” she hears, Andre appearing beside her. “Are you ok?” She can’t bring herself to talk, just giving him a nod as he sits next to her. She can feel her heart racing as his thigh rests against hers. “He’s a jerk. Yelling at you like that in front of everyone?” 

“It’s not like he was wrong, though,” she sniffles. “Everything he said about you and me, about how we were in a relationship with someone we didn’t want to be with, about how we have feelings for each other. He was right. Wasn’t he?”

Andre opens his mouth, not wanting to outright admit it just yet. There has to be a better way to tell her. 

“Well, he was right about me, at least,” Noel tells him, feeling her heart break over his lack of answer. 

“No, he was right. About everything.” 

[antisociallilbrat]

i would like to hear about the history of stenbrough as a ship bc as someone who left the fandom after like two months in 2017 (<- book fan curse) i am INVESTED

Say no more *cracks knuckles*

Disclaimer: Please do not take everything I say as fact, this is just my interpretation of the ship's history through out this fandom from my perspective

Okay so let's start at the very release of the 2017 movie. There were four ships out the gate and they may surprise some people, but they were Reddie (which would quickly become the main ship runner), Bichie, and Stanlon. Billverly was a strong contender but it was quickly overshadowed by Benverly once Movie fans were made aware by Book fans that they were endgame in canon. Notice how I didn't mention Stenbrough?

I'm not saying people didn't ship it after the movie came out but it couldn't compete with Bichie or Stanlon in those first few crucial weeks. Stanlon eventually died down the level of popularity that Stenbrough was at during this time but Bichie still ran strong for a good while until eventually losing popularity the more popular Reddie got. Which brings us right into the the It fandom of early 2018.

So if Bichie was losing popularity, what do we do with Bill? Who does he smooch? Oh what about Stan? They had some romantic chemistry right? - A reddie fic writer (probably)

Stenbrough really got its popularity from being a background ship for reddie fics. I can't say why Reddie writers choose this ship more over Stanlon, maybe they actually just shipped them or maybe it had something to do with wanting to just write the core four? This is also around the time the *bad* trend came about of just disregarding Mike, Bev, and Ben, or giving them like two lines- or their tropes. Ya know, Mike the only single Loser, Ben just being Bev's Bf, and Bev being a fangirl for a core four pair.

Anyways- I need to mention this even though it makes me uncomfortable bc it was such a dark time in the It fandom that Ik we all try to forget but we can't deny it happened. Remember fack? Which did fuel the reddie ship for a couple of weirdos? Same was happening- on a smaller scale- with Jyatt. Plz someone I am literally grimacing I hate this so much. Some weirdos went "Jaeden and Wyatt are best friends in irl so now i'm going to ship them" which boiled over into Stenbrough.

OKAY MOVING ON into something so much nicer, the Stenbrough renaissance 🥰🥰

From like mid 2018 to 2019 there were so many good Stenbrough fics. Stenbrough had become popular enough to stand on its own as a ship. And I'm not saying that good fics that were solely stenbrough based weren't coming out before this, this was just when we saw a big boom of them. Also at this point in the fandom, especially late 2018 to early 2019, the fandom had died down a little. I actually took a bit of a break from the it fandom during this period. But bc the fandom had died down during those few months, other ships had some room to breathe besides Reddie, one's like Bichie and Steddie, Stanverly, Poly Losers, but mainly Stenbrough. I would dare say at this point some shippers were Reddied out (they didn't know what was coming with that 2019 movie, the resurgence) so Stenbrough was honestly, very popular.

Now let's get to the 2019 movie. Reddie once again, took its place right back on top, there was a resurgence in the It fandom. I- foolishly- went into the 2019 movie hoping to see more Bichie content that would fuel my headcannons bc I was not yet a stenbrough shipper. Still didn't change after the 2019 movie.

So the ships this time around concerning Bill and Stan were a lil different. Stanpat had more of a bearing- albeit usually always as a background ship- but Hanbrough became extremely popular. Kind of a switch from the 2017 movie with Stanlon. So honestly while Stenbrough did grow after this movie, I would argue that growth was kinda stunted by Hanbrough- which I can't say I'm mad about, that's an awesome ship as well.

And yeah Stenbrough ship held on for a while after the 2019 movie and we were still getting good fics and works for it, but I think the reason it held on for so long was because Idk- a major world event happened or something and people suddenly had more free time. Am I saying covid affect the It fandom? Abso-fucking-lutely. That's when i started writing fanfic for Stenbrough.

When did I start shipping Stenbrough? It was a mixture of being home during the pandemic and reading fics from the Stenbrough renaissance. Whoops.

Which just brings us to now bc from late 2020 to now in 2023 it's pretty much the same. Stenbrough is technically a dead ship. People still enjoy it and good fics still get written for it, but it doesn't even brush the height of it's once popularity and it never will again. Kinda depressing but I don't let it bother me too much. I'm still going to be the fool who pushes out content for it 🤷🏻