#shout out to my cousin finding this movie

[birdy-bird27]

Everyone watch this movie NOW

[phaedraismyusername]

This year some of my favourite books I read were written by indigenous American authors and I just wanted to shout out a couple that I fell in love with

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones

Horror being my second most read genre, I did not think books could still get under my skin the way this one did lol. It follows four Blackfoot men who are seemingly being hunted by a vengeful... something... years after a fateful hunting trip that happened just before they went their separate ways. The horror, the dread, the something... pure nightmare fuel 10/10

Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice

An apocalyptic novel following an isolated Anishinaabe community in the far north who lose contact with the outside world. When two of their young men return from their college with dire news, they set about planning on how to survive the winter, but when outsiders follow, lines are drawn in the community that might doom them all. This book is all dread all the time, the use of dreams and the inevitability of conflict weighs heavy til the very end. An excellent apocalypse story if you're into that kind of thing.

My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones

This book follows Jade, a deeply troubled mixed race teenager with a shitty homelife who's *obsessed* with slasher movies. When she finds evidence that there's a killer running about her soon-to-be gentrified small town, she weaponises that knowledge to predict what's going to happen next. I don't think this book will work for most people, it's a little stream of consciousness, Jade's head is frequently a very difficult place to be in, but by the last page I had so much love for her as a character and the emotional rollercoaster she's on that I had to mention it here.

Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger

Taking a bit of a left turn but this charming YA murder mystery really stuck with me this year. Elatsoe is a teenage girl living in an America where myths, monsters, and magic are all real every day occurrences. When her cousin dies mysteriously with no witnesses, she decides to do whatever she can, including using her ability to raise the spirits of dead animals, to solve the case. The worldbuilding was just really fun in this one, but the Native American myths and influence were the shining star for me, and the asexual rep was refreshing to see in a YA book too tbh

Split Tooth by Tanya Tagaq

The audiobook, the audiobook, the audiobook!!!! Also the physical book because formatting and illustrations, but the audiobook!!! Tanya Tagaq is an Inuit throat singer, and this novel is a genre blending of 20 years worth of the authors journal entries, poetry, and short stories, that culminates in a truly unique story about a young girl surviving her teenage years in a small tundra town in the 70s. It is sad and beautiful and hard but an experience like nothing else I read this year.

[stevie-petey]

dibs

“Jinx!” Again, they say this at the same time. They both groan, and without any other words, they jump into an intense game of rock, paper, scissors.  “One, two, three!” Steve holds out a rock, Robin does as well, and the two teens almost strangle one another.  They try again, this time they both land on paper, and Robin throws her head back in frustration. “I’m not good at math, but this cannot be statistically possible.”

Summary: do the laws of dibs still apply if steve and robin see you at the same time ???

Rating: general, some swearing

Warnings: swearing, fem!reader, use of y/n

Words: 1.4k

Before you swing in: this is for my beloved val (@southelroy), and i was so excited to try my hand at writing robin and steve together <3 this is a very silly fic, not at all meant to be realistic or serious, and it isnt proofread so pls enjoy n beware !

-

According to the ancient rules of “dibs”, the first person who sees the desired one has the rightful claim of dibs. Anyone else present during this time must obey this sacred rule, respecting the fact that the other has laid claim first. It’s an old, ancient tradition, held up for centuries through faithful friendships. 

It’s a solid system, really.

Except Steve and Robin see you walk into Family Video on the same day, at the same time, together. 

You walk in, hair slightly wet from the rain and your eyes bright, and smile at the two of them shyly. Setting down your umbrella, you unbutton your raincoat and look around the store. “Sorry, is it okay if I hide out in here for a bit? My umbrella broke and I really don’t feel like catching a cold.”

Steve and Robin stare at you, wide eyed and in shock. They’ve never seen you before, they surely would’ve remembered your face if they had, and their brains short circuit simultaneously. 

When they don’t say anything, you cautiously walk up to the counter and laugh nervously. “Uh, hello? I can leave, if that’s what you’re trying to say.”

“No!” Steve shouts, panicked that the word “leave” has left your very pretty and pink mouth. When you flinch at his raised voice, he quickly clears his throat and lowers his voice. “I–uh, I mean… No, no. You can stay–please! I mean, if you don’t mind, ‘cause, ya know, it’s raining–”

“What my coworker here is trying to say is that you can definitely stay.” Robin interrupts, admiring the way the raindrops in your hair seem to form a halo. “In fact, why don’t you have a look around? We have plenty of movies.”

You smile at Robin, which she practically melts seeing. “Thanks, you guys are lifesavers. I’m here visiting my cousin, and he said I should stop by anyways.”

“What, do we know him?” Steve asks, finally finding his voice again. 

“His name is Dustin Henderson, if that helps. He’s a freshman at Hawkins, said he stops here sometimes–”

“Dustin Henderson is your cousin?” Steve and Robin say at the same time, completely taken aback. 

You laugh. “Ya know, I’ve gotten that a lot since being in Hawkins. I take it he’s well known?”

“Oh, he’s definitely well known.” Robin snorts, thinking about how many people would scream at the idea of more Hendersons running around the world. 

But if they’re anything like you, then Robin thinks she’d love to be invited to a Henderson family reunion. Immediately. 

“Well,” you smile again at the two teens, amused by their weird dynamic. You can see why Dustin likes them so much. “Since I’m stuck here for a while and I promised Dustin I’d get a movie, I’m gonna take a look around as suggested.”

You pause, now realizing you haven’t asked for their names, and you gasp. “I’m so sorry! What are your names? I feel horrible for not even asking.”

“You could never do any wrong,” Steve sighs dreamily, leaning against the counter in what he hopes is a cool looking pose. “I’m Steve, Steve Harrington.”

He sticks his hand out for you to shake, which you accept with a slight giggle. He’s odd, but incredibly endearing even if he’s currently standing against the counter like a middle-aged man. “I’m Y/N Henderson.” 

Robin, sensing what Steve is trying to do, hip checks the boy so that he falls onto the ground. “And I’m Robin Buckley, the better half of this duo.”

Like hell she’s going to allow him to flirt with you. 

Her declaration makes you laugh, even as poor Steve groans on the floor in pain. You wink at her, amused by her charm, and start to walk towards the movie aisles. “Oh, I believe that.”

Steve scrambles back up, and the second you’re out of earshot, he and Robin immediately shout at the same time, “Dibs!”

“Jinx!” Again, they say this at the same time. They both groan, and without any other words, they jump into an intense game of rock, paper, scissors. 

“One, two, three!” Steve holds out a rock, Robin does as well, and the two teens almost strangle one another. 

They try again, this time they both land on paper, and Robin throws her head back in frustration. “I’m not good at math, but this cannot be statistically possible.”

“Okay, let’s think about this.” Steve holds a finger up to indicate that he’s speaking, which Robin scoffs at. “I saw her first, so–”

“Uh, news flash, dingus: I saw her first.”

“Were you dropped as a child? I clearly saw her first–”

“Actually,” your voice causes both Robin and Steve to turn in horror, realizing too late that you’ve been standing behind them, listening in. “You both saw me at the same time, so I’m not sure how the rule of dibs applies here.”

“We…” Steve gapes at you, speechless. 

Robin is no better, her face burns horribly. “We think… You’re pretty?”

“Well, I gathered that much.” You laugh again, and the sound is enough for both Steve and Robin to forget all their worries and admire how delicate it is. Then, holding up two dvd’s, you place them on the counter. “I’ll take these, please.”

Robin looks down at your movie selection, seeing The Breakfast Club and The Outsiders, and her heart drops. “Just… Just these?”

“Mhm,” you nod, unsure why her demeanor has suddenly changed. “Is there something wrong with my movie selection?”

Steve looks at Robin and he knows immediately what’s wrong. She absolutely hates your taste in movies, which he’s ecstatic over. He lets out a whoop and first bumps the air. “Yes! She’s mine!”

“Shut up, you moron!” Robin screeches, embarrassed and infuriated. She cannot believe that this is happening to her right now, in front of a very pretty girl, no less. Closing her eyes, Robin takes a deep breath and turns to you. “Please excuse my friend, he’s allergic to pretty girls.”

“Hey, that’s not true–”

You cross your arms at Robin, an amused smile on your face. “What’s so wrong with my taste in movies?”

“Nothing!” When you raise your eyebrow at her, Robin accepts her fate and gives in. She knows she’s done for now. “It’s just… It’s incredibly bland.”

“I happen to think your taste is impeccable, Y/N.” Steve butts in, batting his eyelashes at you for added effect.

Robin watches, with pure disgust, as it works. Steve’s charm gets you to laugh once more, and you even lean closer to his side of the counter. You place a hand on his arm. “I’m honored to have you on my side, then.”

Stupid Harrington and his stupid male species. 

While you and Steve exchange gross lovey-dovey glances, Robin rings up your movie rentals with disdain. 

“That will be $5.25, please.” She mumbles, crestfallen. 

You tear your eyes away from Steve’s and notice the jealousy and hurt on Robin’s face. You frown, feeling bad for being the cause of this. She seems like a sweet girl, and Dustin spoke highly of her, so you know she’s someone special. Taking some cash out of your purse, you hand it to Robin and catch her eye. 

“Hey, listen to me real quick.” Robin looks up, despite not wanting to, but your eyes are too pretty not to look into. When you have her attention, you turn to Steve. “Can you give us a second?”

He looks bewildered. “What? Why?”

“If you leave now, I’ll give you my number.”

“Yes ma’am!” Steve hops over the counter and goes to sort some movies, leaving you alone with Robin. 

Once he’s gone, you lean in close to her. “I understand what you’re going through.”

Her eyes widen, terrified she’s been caught. “W–what? No, I think you’ve gotten this all wrong–”

“It’s okay,” you grab her hand, gently take it between yours. “We’re more alike than you may think, and while I’m flattered, you’re too young.”

Robin knows she should be devastated by this, but all she hears is, “So… Let’s say ten years from now, if you happen to visit Dustin again…”

You laugh, she’s got such a spark to her. “You’ll have to figure out the whole ‘dibs’ thing by then with Steve.”

“I saw you first!” Steve shouts from somewhere in the aisles, before a giant crash follows. A few seconds pass, and then, much quieter this time, he shouts, “I’m fine!”

-

⌑ writing masterlist

[scribes-of-valar]

unexpected loyalties

Bilbo Baggins x fem!dwarf!reader (no beard)

a/n: based off the movie, not the books, just to clear that up if there is any book inconsistencies. First time writing for this fandom, and posting on this blog, let me know if I got anything wildly incorrect

Summary: Neither of you ever expected to like each other, let alone anything more. But you find yourself drawn to one another, despite the boundaries between you.

Another knock, he wasn’t sure he could handle many more visitors. Four dwarves were enough for him to want to run out of his home screaming. He tightened the ties of his robe, took a deep breath, and quietly prepared himself to turn down whoever waited outside his door. 

Yet, when it swung open his chest deflated and he found himself completely underwhelmed. He should be thankful that his doorstep was empty and that there were no more unwelcome guests to turn away. But he found himself incredibly confused. “Hm,” he pokes his head out slightly, looking around for stragglers. “Hello?” He calls out hesitantly. 

He jumps back as a woman leaps out of his rose bushes. “Oh!” You smile widely at him, shoving your hand out for a strong handshake. “Sorry about that, I thought I had the wrong hobbit.”

He gives your hand a brief shake, never one to forgo his manners. “I believe you do. In fact, you all do.”

Your face screws up in distaste and you look so forlorn he almost feels bad. Almost. “You are Mr. Bobbins aren’t you?”

He shakes his head with a scoff, “I am most certainly not. My name is Bilbo Baggins-”

You interrupt him with a relieved laugh. “Oh, apologies, then you are the hobbit I’m looking for. I’m afraid my cousin’s handwriting is nearly impossible to read. So the meeting is here, then?” You look at him expectantly, eyes wide and eager. 

Bilbo has to suppress the urge to stomp his foot and slam the door. He’s too old to be behaving like a child, but bebother and confusticate these dwarves he can take no more visitors! “There is no meeting here!” He snaps, nearly shouting in your face. 

Your brows furrow and you shake your head stubbornly. “They cannot have canceled it.” You seemed nearly as stubborn as him. You plant your feet, crossing your arms and glaring at him. “I would have been informed.”

Bilbo opens his mouth to inform you that no, nothing has been canceled because nothing has been scheduled. At least nothing he has been informed of. He knows this is all that blasted wizard’s fault. If only he’d stuck to his fireworks and simply left Bilbo alone, he would be having the peaceful evening he’d wished for. 

You narrow your eyes suspiciously, peering over his shoulder as something that sounds very old and sentimental breaks behind him. “Sorry about that!” A voice calls from his kitchen. Bilbo clenches his eyes shut, sucking in a sharp breath, and leans so you can’t see further into his home. 

“I do believe that was Balin’s voice,” you tell him, your voice low with an unspoken threat. “Mr. Bobbins-”

“Baggins.”

“Mr. Baggins,” you correct, “are my kin in there?” 

He shrugs, playing dumb and giving you a confused look. “And who,” he draws slowly, “would your kin be?”

You let out a heavy sigh. He doesn’t have any time to stop you as you nudge him to the side and shove your way into his home. “Thank you for the hospitality,” you mutter sarcastically. Your face lights up as you catch sight of an unruly blonde head of hair. “Fili! Kili!”

They call your name in return, rushing over to greet you. “Any trouble on the journey?” Kili asks as he takes your sword from you. He absentmindedly tosses it towards Bilbo who has to rush to catch it before it breaks something. 

“None at all, you know I’m a lot better at subtlety than the two of you are,” you tease. 

Bilbo’s eyes narrow as he takes you and the other dwarves in. You said your cousin sent you a letter. There was no possible way you could be their cousin. You didn’t look like any dwarf he had ever seen. Not that he had seen many, of course. There wasn’t enough gold or adventure in Hobbiton to bring many through. 

But he had heard the stories of dwarven women. How they were a dying breed, far more men than there were women. He also knew that it was incredibly hard to tell a wife apart from her husband, mainly because of the great big beards. 

You were taller than the others, far less hair, and simply not what he thinks when he pictures a dwarvish woman. “I see you met our host,” Fili nods towards Bilbo whose arms are now absolutely overloaded with the ridiculous amount of weapons you carry. Fili is clearly suppressing a slight smirk as he looks upon Bilbo. It’s hard not to feel a little offended. 

You turn back to Bilbo and frown, “Not a very welcoming host, these hobbits, are they?” Kili shakes his head, wrapping an arm around your shoulder and dragging you back towards the kitchen. 

Bilbo huffs and tosses the weapons to the floor with a put-off look. There’s loud cheering coming from the kitchen as the others greet you. He takes in a deep breath and sets his shoulders. Enough is enough. Clearly, there has been some mix-up. Whatever bearded reunion is taking place in his dining room is not meant for him. He’s just going to walk over to you all and inform you to take your business elsewhere. 

Bilbo only manages one step forward before a knock echoes through the front hall. It seems deafening, an ominous warning. He knows that if he goes to answer the door there will be no going back. These dwarves will be here to stay. He’s tempted to just ignore it, to usher you all out and slam the fence closed behind you. 

But then there’s a second knock, a third. He cannot simply ignore it, it’s too rude. Despite knowing better, he goes and answers the door. He’s nearly knocked over by a pile of stacked dwarves. He jumps back in shock, glaring down at them all. 

“That would be the rest of them,” you muse, appearing out of nowhere behind him. You grin at his affronted face, “Got any extra chairs?”

The Hobbit is certainly interesting. You struggle to find a kind word for him. He’s not exactly happy to have you all in his home. And you can’t entirely blame him, you and your kin aren’t the best guests. But Gandalf had told you all he was perfectly fine hosting the company in his hobbit hole. 

Though, you have a growing suspicion he wasn’t telling the whole truth if the wicked looks Bilbo is shooting him is anything to go by.  “Need a hand?” You ask, hovering in the entry of his pantry. 

He lets out a low sigh, just barely glancing over his shoulder at you. He stands amidst the wreckage of his once-great food stores. The rest of it is being bickered over in his dining room. If what Gandalf has told you is true and he is going to be your thief, then it shouldn’t matter. 

You’ve done him a sort of favor, clearing out his stores before the journey. No one wants to come back home to rot and mold having crept over all their food. But again, you’re starting to doubt the wizard’s words. He’s known for his tricks, but you didn’t think he would do something as sly as this. 

“I’m perfectly fine, thank you.” His voice is snippy, but he’s trying his best to be polite. You barely hold back a laugh at how hard he’s keeping up the pretense of being gracious. 

“Don’t be stubborn,” you insist, moving past him and grabbing a broom. “I don’t mind. Durin knows we aren’t a clean people.” He gives you an odd look as you start to sweep the mess up. He stays firmly planted in his spot, gaze tracking you. You try not to grow uncomfortable at his intense stare but it is hard. 

“You are a dwarf, then?”

Your face screws up in irritation and you shoot him a severe look. He lets out a slight whimper, whirling around and pretending to be fascinated by his shelves. “Yes,” you grit out, “I am. Despite the oddities in my appearance, I am a dwarf.”

He whips back towards you, face drawn tight in confusion. “Oddities?” He demands.

“Look at me,” you gesture to yourself, feeling a tight ball wind itself up in your throat. “No beard, too tall, I might as well just be a short human. I’m practically repulsive.”

His jaw drops and he stares at you for a long while. You can feel the judgment, and can practically hear his thoughts as he wonders at how ugly you are. Bilbo’s mouth opens and shuts multiple times before he lands on a squeaky, “Repulsive. That’s ridi-”

“There you are!” Gandalf’s head dips into the pantry and he gives you both an impatient smile. “We are waiting for you, Master Baggins,” he says your name and you nod. You throw the broom back in place and shove past them both, swallowing down tears. 

They watch you go with varying degrees of shock. “My word, what did you say to her?”

Bilbo snaps his jaw shut and shakes his head, “I might have brought up how peculiar it is that she doesn’t have a beard.”

Gandalf nods sagely, as though this is something he has experience with. “Sensitive topic for young dwarvish women.”

“Shouldn’t we wait for him?” You hiss to Kili as you all leave the tavern. You’d written Master Baggins a note, promising to wait for him in the Green Dragon Inn. If he didn’t make it by 11 AM, you would all leave. But Thorin was demanding your leave early, it didn’t seem fair to not give Bilbo a chance. 

Fili glances towards Thorin, making sure he’s not listening to the three of you. “Best not to argue with him. He’s been upset since the meeting in the north.”

You sigh, mounting your horse and falling into line with them. “I don’t blame him. They claim to be brothers, yet won’t come to our aid.”

“Watch, once we reclaim our home, they’ll all be demanding payment from the stores of Erebor.” You cannot help but agree with Kili. You are a greedy people, there’s no denying it. The lust for gold, at times, can rival that of a dragon’s. But you were loyal, to a fault. How could they abandon you all so readily?

You look towards Thorin and feel yourself deflate. He has been different since the stirrings of the journey were brewing. More prone to anger, and quicker to draw his blade. Something dark awakes within him when he thinks of Erebor. Reclaiming your home will benefit you all, but you cannot help but fear the dragon that lurks beneath its bones. 

Not the actual dragon, yes that’s terrifying, but the curse that lays over that gold could spell all your doom. You’d watched as it happened to one king, you don’t want to see another fall to the sickness. 

You’re about to ride up to Thorin when you hear a voice shouting wildly behind you all. “Wait! Wait!” You glance over your shoulder, a grin slowly spreading across your lips. Bilbo chases after the company, waving his contract in the air. 

Thorin frowns, bringing you all to a halt. Bilbo slides to a stop beside Balin. “I signed it,” he pants out, holding the contract out. The older dwarf frowns suspiciously, taking it from him and examining it through his lens. 

After a moment he nods at Thorin, “He signed it,” he reaffirms. Thorin glances towards Bilbo and you can’t tell if he’s going to honor his word or not. 

After a tense pause, Thorin finally nods, “Give him a pony.” Bilbo shakes his head and waves him off. 

“No, that won’t be necessary,” he insists. “I’m perfectly fine walking. You know I almost made the trek to-” Kili and Fili lean down and grab him by the jacket, hoisting him atop a pony. 

They both sport sore frowns as you ride up beside them. “I do believe I’m owed something, gentlemen.” You hold your palms out expectantly, Bilbo gives you an odd look as they both slam their gold into your hands. 

“What’s that?” He wonders as they ride off. 

You smile down at him, “You’ve just made me a rich woman, Master Baggins. They had a bet, about whether or not you would show.”

His brows raise and he narrows his eyes at you. “You thought I would come?”

You laugh, “Obviously.” You chuckle a little and toss him one of the pouches, “Here. It’s only fitting you should have some.” You nudge the side of your mare, urging her forward. Bilbo watches as you ride off, face furrowed in confusion as he rolls the gold around in his palm. 

He doesn’t know why you believing in him means so much, but it does. 

“Something caught your eye?” Bilbo startles from his thoughts and turns towards Balin. The old dwarf smiles slightly, glancing over Bilbo’s shoulder towards you. Bilbo flusters, stuttering slightly on his words as he shakes his head. 

“No,” Balin raises a brow and Bilbo shakes his head harder, scoffing. “No, not at all. I was only lost in thought.” Unwittingly, Bilbo’s gaze drifts back towards you. You’ve stripped off the heavy leathers of the day and are leaning over the fire, stirring some stew. 

The light of the fire casts you in a sort of glow. You could be mistaken for an elf by someone passing by. You tuck a braid behind your ear, standing up and glancing around camp. When your gaze drifts past him, he’s quick to turn back around. 

Balin is staring expectantly at him, giving him a cheeky smile. Bilbo’s quick to change the subject, not wanting to fan the flames of Balin’s assumption. “Are there other dwarf women,” he points vaguely towards you, “like her, I mean?”

Balin shakes his head, puffing on his pipe. “No, no one quite like her. She’s a fierce fighter and an even fiercer friend. She’s been working hard to campaign for this journey.”

“No,” Bilbo glances back towards you, ensuring you’re not listening. You’ve walked off, looking towards the ponies with a confused expression. “I mean, physically,” he rubs over his chin, miming where a beard is meant to be.

Balin huffs out a laugh. “No, it’s quite rare for any of us to be without beards. I don’t recommend bringing it up to her, it’s quite a sore subject. We think there might be some human blood, maybe even an elf somewhere down her line. It’s the only explanation for it.” He shakes his head with a sad smile, “A shame, truly.”

Bilbo continues to find himself more and more confused by his company. The way they speak of you, you’d think you were a troll, not a woman. “A shame? She’s,” he hesitates on the word, worrying it might be inappropriate. “She’s quite pretty,” he lands on.

Balin shrugs like there’s nothing to be done about it. “By any standard other than a dwarf’s. You have to understand, laddie, she’s a dwarf, despite appearances. No beard, too tall, she’s not pretty, as you said, to her people.”

Bilbo thinks it’s a horrible shame that you’re going to go through your whole life believing yourself to be some hideous creature. In truth, you’re one of the most beautiful women he’s ever met. He finds himself distracted every time your eyes meet his. 

“Bilbo,” you pop up behind him, scaring him as you seem to be doing. You smile slightly and nod towards the edge of camp. “Come with me?” Bilbo’s eyes widen as he follows after you. For a horrible moment, he thinks you’ve heard his and Balin’s conversation. 

You lead Bilbo into an outcrop of trees, there’s a little bit of firelight shining through ahead. His suspicions shift and he wonders if something else hasn’t gone wrong. Kili and Fili both stand by an overturned tree, peering over it and staring at something. Bilbo can’t see what it is from where he stands. 

You stop beside them both, turning towards him and giving him an apologetic smile. “We need your help-”

“We were meant to be watching the ponies,” Kili interrupts. 

“We’ve encountered a slight problem,” Fili motions toward the tree and Bilbo comes up to join them. “We had sixteen,” Bilbo looks to the pen where the ponies were being held and frowns.

“Now there’s fourteen,” you sigh, rubbing a hand over your face and glaring at Kili and Fili. 

“Oh no,” Bilbo frets. He counts the ponies again, just to ensure that you all didn’t make a mistake. “Should we not tell Thorin?”

Your face blanches and you share a panicked look with the brothers. “No,” Fili quickly butts in. “No reason to worry him. You are, after all, our burglar. We thought you might be able to help us.”

“We think we know where they went,” you tell him. Bilbo glances between the three of you and not for the first time he wonders how he got himself mixed up with this adventure. 

Trolls, trolls you could handle. Being tied up and thrown in a sack, nearly roasted alive and eaten. All of that was palatable. However, being hosted by elves was not. You sit at Elrond’s table and glare down at the vegetables before you. 

Elves, you almost scoff as one of them dances by you with a flute. They think they’re so much better than dwarves, so much more sophisticated. You wouldn’t be surprised if they were born with that haughty look on their face. 

It’s difficult to have an appetite when you have a rabbit’s dinner in front of you. It’s even harder when you’ve got Elrond’s men glaring holes into the back of your head. None of them trust you. And not because they expect you’re going to rob them. They simply don’t trust your table manners. 

A bread roll thunks against your cheek and you grimace. You pick it up, tossing it back at Dwalin and laughing as it knocks his salad into his lap. Well, they might have good reason to doubt your table manners.

You sigh, bored of your meal and tired of all the noise. You stand from the table, slipping away from the others. Thorin catches your eye as you leave, giving you a brief nod farewell. You head down the stairs, toward the pond you saw earlier. Perhaps, while everyone else is eating and arguing with each other, you can cleanse yourself. 

It’s been a long while on the road. Scrubbing yourself with rainwater hasn’t exactly done a wonderful job of keeping you clean. You’re used to always being on the move, but you’ve been able to settle down nicely enough in the mountains. It feels a little odd to be adventuring once more. 

You can practically smell the elves' magic permeating the air around you. It’s light, it feels like a weight being removed from your shoulders. It tastes like something sweet dancing along your tongue.

As much as you despise Thranduil and his kingdom for abandoning your people, a part of you has to admit that Elrond held no part of that. They did not offer you aid or a place to rest, but he had no reason to. It’s wrong to hold your bitterness against him. 

And it does not make a good king to so stubbornly reject Elrond’s help. You worry for Thorin, worry for his sanity when it comes to returning to Erebor. He’s so like his grandfather, it wouldn’t be so difficult for him to succumb to the same sickness Thror had. 

You drag your fingers lightly over the marble of the elves' home. It’s impressive, the way the forest manages to grow through their walls. Their architecture is something to be admired, even if it is not as grand as Erebor once was. 

You stumble upon the pond and strip out of your clothes. You dive into the pristine waters and are surprised when you feel no chill on your skin. The water is warm and it eases your aching bones. The stress melts away from your tightened muscles. If you weren’t so skeptical, you’d think the water held a magic of its own. Then again, Elrond’s Last Homely House is renowned for the healing capabilities it provides, perhaps it does.

You swim for a while, stretching your limbs and floating along the surface of the water. The sky darkens above you and the stars appear.

The view on the road is always gorgeous and usually left unblanketed by clouds. But this is absolutely breathtaking. You feel as though you could reach up and steal a star for yourself. 

You pull yourself onto the shore of the pond and find that your clothes have been taken. A white, gossamer gown hangs on the branch of a tree, and your brows furrow. “Elves,” you hiss with disdain. You wonder which one of the flighty things had left this while you’d been swimming. You’re sure whoever it was got quite the show. You pull the gown on and ponder going back to the others. 

You can hear their laughter from here. You know they’ve probably found food that you can actually stomach but you can’t bring yourself to leave the peaceful serenity of the water just yet. 

Bilbo does not want to admit that he was looking for you. He simply dismisses the idea as wanting to explore more of Elrond’s home. After all, he’s never gone further than the shire. He’d had the desire to, once, when he was a child. He’d all but abandoned that for the comfort of home. 

He can see why he had once wanted to see the elves so badly. The entire place is filled to the brim with magic and people older than the oak trees surrounding the Shire. He seems to be the only one recognizing how truly wonderful this place is. He knows the others all want to leave. He can see how restless they are the longer they stay. 

He wonders if you feel the same way. He cannot tell, he finds it harder to read you than he does the others. He doesn’t know if it’s because he’s afraid of thinking of you for too long or if you are simply an enigma to him. 

He ascends the stairs, gazing out at the forest and smiling as the breeze brushes against him. Something catches his eye by the glittering waters of the pond and he frowns. He peers further over the railing and spots what must be another elf. They’re surrounded by starlight, basking in the glow of the night. Their beauty is nearly breathtaking. 

Imagine his surprise when they turn and it’s you. His eyes widen infinitesimally and he backs away from the rail before you can see him. Why does he keep mistaking you for an elf? 

Bilbo finds himself moving before he really thinks about what he’s doing. Your back is to him as you drape yourself along one of the rocks near the shore. Your toes dip slightly into the water and he can just barely hear you humming to yourself. 

He’s caught completely off guard by the sight of your hair. Damp and curling, it lay along your back without any braids. It’s the first time he’s seen any of the dwarves without a braid in their hair. He doesn’t have a vast amount of knowledge of your culture, but he feels as though it’s taboo to have your hair unbound like this. 

He clears his throat awkwardly and you shoot up in surprise. Your hand drifts to your hip where he’s sure there’s usually a dagger. Tonight, though, you are wholly unarmed. The thought doesn’t seem to bring you much comfort as you narrow your eyes at him. 

“Bilbo,” you call out, slightly breathless. “You scared me.”

He gives a strained smile and laughs, taking a hesitant step towards you. You sit up straighter and beckon him closer. He obliges embarrassingly fast, taking a seat beside you at the edge of the pond. He doesn’t even mind as moisture and mud stain his pants. 

“What are you doing?” You ask, voice light and tired. 

“I was going for a walk,” and wondering where you had gone, he thinks to himself. But that is not something he is ready to admit to you, yet. You’re still practically strangers. 

“It’s beautiful here, isn’t it?” 

He nods and the question that’s been lingering in his mind slips out. “How do you know Thorin?” You give him a confused look and he quickly adds, “You’re the only woman in the company, I’m only curious.”

“Oh,” you smile slightly and look towards the water. “I believe he’s my distant uncle, possibly a few times removed.” He frowns and you laugh, “The family tree grows a tad confusing. We’d gone through a long list of kings named Durin and the familial relations got hard to keep track of. It’s possible we might not share blood at all. But the dragon had left me orphaned and I was raised alongside Fili and Kili, blood or no, we’re family.”

There’s a faint smile on your face as you speak of the others and it makes a small one form for him. “I’m sorry,” he whispers, “losing your family, it must have been incredibly hard.”

You shake your head, shrugging his apology off. “No need, I was too young to truly remember them. Besides,” you gesture towards the balcony above and you both listen as the others laugh, “I’ve got more than enough now.”  

It’s admirable, how loyal you all are to each other. Bilbo’s almost envious of your bond with the others. It’s clear each of you would die for your king, for your home. It’s a dedication and purpose he has never had. 

“Do you miss the shire?” You ask, curious and not accusing as Thorin often is. “I imagine life on the road is nothing compared to the comforts of home.”

“Yes,” he answers so quickly it makes you both laugh. Your face lights up when you smile and you smile so little. But when you do, it makes his breath catch. He grows even happier when he’s the reason for it. 

“I do miss home. But,” he leans in and you follow, smirking like you’re sharing a secret. “I must admit, adventuring is not as bad as I once thought.”

“Ah,” you lean back, “we’re poisoning you Master Burglar. Soon you’re not going to want to go back.” Well, Bilbo would not go so far as to say that, but you do have a point. The recklessness of the dwarves has seemed to be influencing him, just a tad. 

“Well,” he hums and shakes his head slightly. He catches the teasing smile on your lips and doesn’t bother correcting you. “Maybe,” you look a little surprised that he played along and it only makes him more amused. 

His eyes drift towards your hair before looking back at you. You give him a self-conscious smile, idly running a hand over the strands. “I took them out to bathe, I didn’t have the energy to rebraid.”

He speaks before he can even think. Perhaps it is the joy of being alone with you that loosens his tongue so foolishly. “I could braid it for you.”

Your eyes widen with shock and you ever-so-slightly flinch back from him. “Do you,” you clear your throat, practically gaping at him. He doesn’t know what about what he just said is so appalling to you but he wishes he’d just never spoken at all. “Do you mean that?”

“Well,” he mutters lowly, “I suppose. Yes,” it sounds more like a question than anything. He can’t help but wonder what he just offered in your culture. 

You blink rapidly, pushing your shoulders back and straightening. “Alright,” you whisper and there’s a giddy grin on your lips that he can’t help but be suspicious of. “I’d love it if you would.”

He gets to his feet, moving to stand behind you and idly running his hand through the damp strands of your hair. He doesn’t do many, just enough to keep your hair out of your eyes as you’re on the road. But you seem to get more and more restless with each one he adds. 

Finally, when he’s done, he takes a step back and gives you a strained smile. “There you are.”

You get to your feet, running your hand over the braids. “Oh,” your eyes widen as you feel them. “You put quite a few.”

He glances away from you and looks to the tree beside him like might hold the answers to this bizarre encounter. “Was I not meant to?”

You shake your head rapidly and wave him off. “Oh, no, this is wonderful.” You wince and give him a strained smile, “I mean, it’s good. Thank you,” before he can question you on your odd behavior you run off. He watches with a furrowed brow as you rush up the stairs to the dwarves' quarters. 

He’s absolutely bewildered as he makes his way up a moment later. He can’t imagine what he could have done to offend you simply by offering to braid your hair. When he makes it to the quarters, he’s not greeted with the rowdy laughter and loud conversation he was expecting. 

Instead, the majority of the dwarves are huddled around the fire, whispering lowly amongst themselves. When he walks in each of them turns towards him so quickly he nearly runs back out of the room. He can’t imagine what he could have done to have warranted such odd reactions from both you and the company. 

“Er,” he skirts around them, or attempts to at least, “good night.”

“Bilbo,” he clenches his eyes shut, sighing as Thorin calls his name. Whatever he had done, any attempts at escaping the consequences are thrown out the window. He turns towards Thorin who's standing in the corner, away from the others. He waves him forward. 

Bilbo feels very much like a child about to be scolded as the others watch him move towards Thorin. Thorin glances towards the others and lets out a heavy sigh. He walks outside and Bilbo follows him down the stairs and back to the path he was on before. 

“I doubt you know what you’ve done,” Thorin grumbles bitterly. He looks to Bilbo who only shakes his head. “Braids mean a great deal to us, I don’t imagine they hold much meaning for hobbits.”

“No, they don’t.” Bilbo glances back towards the balcony, and he sees you standing there. The moonlight still shines down upon you and he still can’t fathom that you would ever believe yourself to be anything but beautiful. 

“She is young, but she’s not a fool. I’m sure she knows that you didn’t mean anything by giving her courting braids,” Thorin emphasizes the words with a severe look. Bilbo curses his foolishness under his breath. He can’t believe he’s done something so stupid. “Did you?” Thorin asks. 

Bilbo shakes his head quickly, “No, of course not. I didn’t-”

“Know,” Thorin finishes for him. “I know. Could you?”

Bilbo looks up at him with a confused scrunch to his face. “Could I… what?” he asks hesitantly. 

“Could you ever care for her like that?” Bilbo goes to answer but Thorin interrupts him before he can. “She’ll never have any luck with her own people, not with the way she looks. If anyone did marry her, it would only be so they could be closer to the king and I don’t want that for her. I’m not asking you to marry her Master burglar, I’m only asking if you’d ever consider it.”

Thorin leaves Bilbo standing right back at the pond. He goes back to join the others and when Bilbo turns to watch him go, you wave at him from the balcony. He considers what Thorin said, and considers how he feels every time you two get a chance to be alone. 

He entertains the idea for a moment, but it's foolish. Even if he was truly in love with you, you were two completely different people. You were used to the road, always looking for a new adventure. Bilbo knew he would only ever have one great adventure in his life. His heart would always call him back to the Shire, back to home. 

He smiles and waves back at you. He watches you go back inside and he stays by the pond, thinking of what it could be like. 

The last time you see Bilbo is at Thorin’s funeral. You’re consumed by your grief and can’t spare him any attention. Three men to be mourned. The last of your true family is dead while another sits the throne that Thorin had earned. 

You can’t help but weep over their bodies, can’t help but leave the room so you won’t have to look at them any longer. You run from the procession, and that’s when you see him. Slipping away from everything like a proper thief. 

“Bilbo?” You call out, your voice is watery and thick. He lingers by the entrance of the mountain. His shoulders jump to his ears as he tenses at the sound of your voice. He turns back to you, offering you a weak smile. “Leaving?” You question, a weak tease lying somewhere in your tone. 

He nods, “I thought it would be better like this.”

“You didn’t think we’d want to say goodbye?” Bofur’s voice echoes behind you. You turn to find the others all standing there, watching as Bilbo tries to leave. You must not have been the only one unable to stomach seeing another wearing the crown. 

Dain had fought for you all, he’d come to your aid when you needed him most. He’d earned the title of king. But that didn’t make it an easier pill to swallow. 

Bilbo laughs sadly when he sees the rest of the company. You’re sure he thought it would be less painful to simply leave you all. But you needed some sort of closure with him. Even though you’d always known that nothing could ever truly happen between the two of you, you still weren’t ready to let go. 

“If any of you are ever passing Bag End,” he pauses, swallowing thickly, “tea is at four. There’s plenty of it.” His gaze drifts towards you and you can’t bring yourself to meet his eye, “You are always welcome.”

You only know he’s gone when you hear his footsteps retreating. Pain and heartache make a coward out of you. You don’t chase him or call out to him as you should. You watch him leave and you let him go. 

One Year Later

The clock chimes just half past four and a knock rings out through Bag End. Bilbo frowns, head lifting from the map he’s working on. He pauses and his home remains silent. He shakes his head, dismissing it as a hopeful illusion. Just as he places the quill back on the parchment another rapid set of knocks ring out. 

This time it’s persistent. It grates on him as his door rattles from the force. Bilbo huffs, “A moment, please!” He snaps, glaring at whoever lurks behind his door. Another impatient knock and he wonders if it would be wrong to get Sting out of the chest by the door. 

He stomps towards the door, grabs the knob, and throws it open, “What-”

He cuts himself off, eyes widening and face going slack with shock as you smile at him. You’re here. You’re here and standing before him and he almost wonders if he’s dreaming of you again. 

“Master Bobbins?” You tease, a watery laugh leaving your parted lips. 

“What-” he stutters and stumbles over his words, not even sure what to say. He’s barely processed the fact that you’re even here. 

You shrug, “I’m sorry I’m so late. I was hoping to get here at four but Bofur had some problems on the road,” you cut yourself off and give him a breathless laugh. “I was hoping you wouldn’t mind if I stayed a while.”

Bilbo can only smile, something thick and choking hanging at the back of his throat. He feels his chest tighten and he shakes his head. “Please,” he breathes out, “stay.”

You grin at him, tears brimming at the corners of your eyes as you take a step inside. “You planted the tree,” you point out, looking toward the sapling growing by his home. 

“It reminds me of,” he trails off. It reminds him of everything. Thorin, the adventure, all the friends he’d left behind. You. You nod, not needing words to understand him. “What are you doing here?” He asks, not yet having processed what you’d said.

“I thought it was time for a different adventure,” you tell him, your hand grazing against his as you smile at him. You walk into his home and Bilbo closes the door behind you, already thinking of a million ways your adventure could begin. 

end. — I do not own the characters or the book/movie The Hobbit, but this writing is my own all rights reserved © scribes-of-valar 2024. do not copy, repost, translate & recommend elsewhere.

[iheartyouyou]

SWEETHEART | Jeremiah Fisher

Summary: After your parents file for a divorce, you’re forced to move in with your mom’s friend until the divorce is finalized. You wished you could stay with your dad and your friends, but when you meet Jeremiah Fisher, that changes. And now you’re wanting to stay in the Cousins. Too bad things don’t last forever.

Word Count: 2.0k

Part: 7

previous part series masterlist next part

Authors Note: Fun fact I made this part so long that I had to split it in half. Anyways, no spoilers but the finale of tsitp???? 😍 (Wouldn’t let me tag some people :( )

Why’d you have to be such a complete idiot?

Now everything was going to be awkward. Why didn’t you just kiss him? You barely knew the dude though, and didn’t he have a girlfriend.

You groan as another message from your friends’ group chat comes in, talking about plans for the yearly fair that happened every summer.

How do you tell them to stop talking about plans in the same group chat as you as it’s making you jealous and your life over here is going to shit.

Putting your phone on silent, you shove your phone somewhere underneath your pillows as you exit your room, walking to the bathroom.

“…to the dinner— Y/N!” Belly shouts, stopping you in your tracks as you peeked your head into her room.

She sends you a smile, mascara wand in hand. She motions to her flower crown “Susannah got us these, you don’t have to wear it but yours is on the nightstand.”

You don’t miss the way Taylor rolls her eyes, turning away so she can’t see you.

“Thanks.” You smile, grabbing the crown.

“You should get ready with us for dinner! You know who’s coming? Cam.” Belly says, turning back to the mirror so she can finish her mascara.

“Cam…?”

“Sextus.”

“Oh yeah, that guy. You guys are official?”

Belly shrugs, a blush forming on her cheeks. “We’re also going to a party later, it was Taylor’s idea. Maybe you can borrow some of her clothes so you can hookup with someone there.”

“My clothes probably wouldn’t fit her…” Taylor mumbles, putting on the flower crown as she stares at herself in the mirror.

“I have my own clothes anyway, plus I don’t really want to ‘hookup with someone’.”

Belly turns to face you, one of her eyebrows raising in confusion before it falls back down. “Oh right, you’re hooking up with Jere.”

“What?” You quickly ask, checking behind you to make sure Jeremiah (or anybody for that matter) didn’t hear that.

Belly rolls her eyes, “I totally walked in on some date thing last night.”

“We were watching movies because of a bet—“

“Yeah sure.” Belly sarcastically remarks.

The whole conversation seemed to take Taylor’s interest as she finally turned to face you. “We all know his rep, wouldn’t be surprised.” She said to Belly, even though she was staring at you.

You furrow your eyebrows, “What rep?”

“His “hooking up with everybody” rep. Don’t know a single person here he hasn’t hooked up with.” Belly jokes, finishing her mascara as she shoves it into her makeup bag.

Hooking up with everybody? So, what, you were just another name he was trying to check off the list? Is that why he tried to make a move after barely just knowing you?

“Surprised he hasn’t made a move on me.” Taylor says, putting her hands on her hips.

“Taylor.” Belly warns, rolling her eyes. “Look, Jere Bear hasn’t hooked up with anybody since you’ve got here… well I think, anyway you should be fine.”

“Oh…” You mumble, scratching your arm as your grip on the flower crown tightened.

Taylor whips out her phone, sitting on the edge of Belly’s bed as she scrolled through whatever.

“How do you like… I don’t know, know that he hasn’t hooked up with anyone.. since… y’know.” You find yourself hesitantly asking, shifting your weight onto your left foot.

Belly groans dramatically, “He always comes to me and talks about them, with WAY too many details, it’s so gross but he’s always like “what should I do? should I call them back?” She mimics him in the last part.

Jeremiah Fisher was attractive. Okay, well, he’s probably the hottest guy you’ve ever seen and probably the first and last hottie to ever show you attention. And you hated hearing about this newfound information Belly was giving you, and even if you did let Jeremiah Fisher kiss you in that pool, there will be someone better looking and you’ll just be another name crossed off the list.

Belly basically shrieks when her phone goes off, jumping up and down as she looks in between you and Taylor. “Cam’s here!”

-

Can someone please bury me six feet underground?

Dinner was so awkward.

Well, maybe just for you.

But you could feel the awkwardness between you and Jeremiah, he avoided looking and talking to you. It was like you weren’t even there.

And you tried to not look at him, but sometimes you kind of just had to. Like, your eyes drifted there and you wouldn’t even realize it until someone would smack the table from a joke or a loud laugh coming from somewhere around the table.

“So why don’t you eat meat, Cam?” Jeremiah asked, stuffing his food into his mouth.

“Uh, the meat industry is like the number one contribution to global warming.“ He shrugs before continuing, “And I just like animals.”

“Just don’t come for my leather jacket.” Taylor quips, a smile on her face.

So what? She was nice to everybody but you? What the hell did you do to her?

“Pretty sure you mean pleather” Steven jokes, acting offended when Taylor flips him off.

Your eyes feel heavy, you just want to eat, clean up, and go to sleep.

“Y’know, uh, Belly eats meat. So, you let her kiss you with those lips?” Jeremiah says, taking a sip of his water.

“Guys.” Belly starts, already annoyed as her face gets hotter and hotter by the second. “Stop”

Cam chuckles, “I don’t judge people for eating meat, it’s just a personal choice, I don’t care”

Jeremiah continued his questions, “So you don’t mind if her lips touch a dead animal and those dead animal lips touch your lips, right?”

Belly sends a hard kick to Jeremiah, earning a small “ow” as Belly looks over to you for help. You shrugged.

“Pretty sure that’s not how that works, Jeremiah.”

For the first time that night Jeremiah looked at you, eyes wide with amusement. “And how would you know? Have you ever kissed someone, Y/N?”

You feel your cheeks getting hot with embarrassment as you shake your head. “I have.”

He mocks a surprised face, “You just kiss certain people or…?”

“I don’t kiss wannabe playboys—“ You start, ready to get up and slap him across the face if you had to before Cam interjected.

“No, it’s fine. I don’t mind at all—in fact…” Cam turns, pressing his lips to Belly in a quick peck. Enough for you and Jeremiah to stop talking, as well as the rest of the table.

It was quiet for a few moments as you stared at Belly in shock before Jeremiah and Steven started making gagging noises.

“Alright, alright, Belly’s allowed to kiss.” Laurel defends her, before she points at fork at Cam. “But that’s it.” She then bursts out into laughter as if it was the funniest thing ever.

“Mom, please!” Belly groans, “You’re so not funny, no more wine for you okay?”

“I’m sorry but I just don’t understand why anybody would want to kiss somebody who once fully shat in the bathtub.” Steven grimaces, using his hands to emphasis the point.

“I was like two years old!”

“Two? You were like six!” Steven says, both him and Jeremiah laughing their asses off.

“Shut up, Steven!” Belly shouts.

And after a few more quips back and forth, you zoned out as you played with the remainder of your food. You could hear your moms laughter in the background, nice to know she’s all happy.

The last thing said was Belly announcing they were going to Nicoles party before everybody one by one left the table, cleaning up and putting their dishes away.

You were one of the first.

You managed to escape upstairs after you cleaned up, ready to take a hot shower and sleep until 1 pm before Belly the announcer, once again announced that Cam would be giving you guys a ride as Jeremiah already left.

-

“You mind taking a picture of us?” Taylor asks, already handing you her phone before you could respond. You clench your jaw before nodding, waiting for the two of them to pose before snapping a picture.

Tossing the phone back to Taylor, unbothered to see if she caught it or not your eyes scan the outside of the house. Cup pong was going on near the front door, music blaring from inside of the house and you could see multiple people in there from the windows.

You follow the two girls into the house, Cam following shortly behind you.

As soon as you walked in, someone was sliding down the rail of the stairs. Surprisingly no liquid falling out of the cup they were holding.

“Belly! You came!” You see Nicole come out, her arms held out wide as she engulfs Belly into a hug.

The two shared compliments before Nicole dragged Belly into another room to show everybody else her flower crown.

“I’m gonna go find a drink, what about you Y/N?” Taylor mumbles, already taking off to the living room.

Your eyebrows furrowed, following her nonetheless as a drink did sound good. Taylor was already pouring herself a drink, handing you a empty cup once you were next to her.

She lightly elbows you, motioning you to Jeremiah who was sitting close by. “There’s your boyfriend.”

You look over, seeing how close Jeremiah was to the guy across from him. He was already staring at you, making awkward eye contact before you broke it.

Grabbing the first bottle you saw, you poured it into your cup before taking a large sip of it. And damn was it strong.

By the time you looked back at Jeremiah, he was already making out with the guy.

Taylor scoffs, “Guess Belly was wrong, you could totally find a way hotter guy here. C’mon.” She takes you by the arm, dragging you into another room as she looked for a “hotter guy”

“What about that guy?” She asks, motioning to a guy who was chugging a drink.

“Uh.. no.” You shake your head, confused as to why all of the sudden Taylor was being nice to you. It was if the second Belly ditched her, you were the second best option.

“Yeah, probably not. But I mean any guy here is better than Jeremy—“ She starts, pulling your arm to pull you into another room before you stop her. “Why are you being so nice?”

“What?” She makes a sour face at you, letting you go.

“You were acting like a total bitch earlier and now you’re acting like we’re besties.” You say straight up.

She rolls her eyes, “Are you that sensitive? I’m just trying to help you find someone! Unless you wanna go hookup with Jeremiah over there.”

“Why is it always about Jeremiah?”

“Because he obviously has the hots for you, well had them because now he clearly wants nothing to do with you.” She hissed.

Oh how bad you wanted to smack this bitch so hard right across the face her flower crown would fly off.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Really? Because he wouldn’t stop mentioning you earlier, saying he would be the one to give you a ride here yet you third wheeled with me.”

You gritted your teeth, “Why do you even care? Why are you all up in my business? This has nothing to do with you.”

“Because Belly also talks about you ALL the time! Maybe if you didn’t do whatever you did and messed things up, you would be hanging out with Jeremy and leaving me and Belly alone. I’m her best friend, not you. You hardly know her, actually, you hardly know anybody in this goddamn place so why don’t you go back to wherever you came from and make everybody’s lives easier?” She stormed off before you could even answer, stomping upstairs and leaving you with your thoughts.

You looked around, seeing as a few people were staring your way. You moved around bodies as you made your way outside, itting on one of the chairs nearby.

You hate this place. Just a few more days, then you can tell Susannah you want to go home, she’ll fly you home, you can stay with your dad and never see any of these people ever again.

Taylor was just a bitch who was jealous that her friend had other friends who weren’t her.

Fuck your life.

Taglist: @mindflay3r @lexi-2004 @buckys2thicc @agoodmansaid @jeremiahfisherslover @yourfavoritefangirl @leslienjazzy @natsgaygf @justkayleighhere @puptails @simp4jackharlow @yobabygirlally @whenmypartysover @mariaelizabeth21-blog1 @medusaslilsister @maexxc @siriuslysmoking @nowimyurdaisy @totallynotkaibiased @eevee0722 @theyallhaveluv4lyricb @wh0reforstefansalvatore @pariahsparadise @alice3612 @pancakelover837373 @angelbabyyy99 @lillygwenstacy @khloe-193 @buckysh0e @nctma15 @lovelygloomm @ashlenxx @yeosxxx

[moonlight-prose]

FOR THE LOVE OF DANGER

╰┈➤ #01: ONE LAST TIME

a/n: so i finally FINALLY saw the movie and even though it's really late since it came out, i'm happy to write for him at last. this is partial brain rot and a partially thought out plot that has been in the works for months. i'd heard of spidey 2099 before, but never thought i'd fall in love with him to this extent. this fic was also supposed to come out last month, but i'm always behind on everything. so i hope y'all enjoy this wild ride.

note: a massive huge fucking THANK YOU to @soulores for being the best beta reader a girl could have. seriously i couldn't have finished this without you.

dedicated to: @sunflowersteves for listening to me rant about how pretty he is and for being the first person to ever hear about this plot. thank you for being one of the best person here babes.

summary: when things go awry in your life you find yourself back at el nido - a comfort spot in the darker parts of the city - in need of peace. only to run into him.

word count: 8.5k+ (somehow???)

pairing: miguel o'hara x f!reader

warnings: EXPLICIT SO MINORS DNI, cussing, angst, alcohol consumption, one night stands, p in v sex, rough sex, cumeating if you squint, cumplay if you really really squint, my awful attempts at dirty talk, soft miguel, the start of chaos.

NEXT CHAPTER | SERIES MASTERLIST

NUEVA YORK 2099; EARTH-298

Let’s do this one last time.

My name is Miguel O’Hara… and I’m scared.

You couldn’t breathe, the speed of your heart rate nearly caused you to believe you were going into cardiac arrest. Some small part of your brain wanted to actually check. It wasn’t hard to simply waltz right into the nearest hospital. Although dealing with the disbelief on doctors and nurses faces as you asked them to check if you were dying pushed you away from the idea altogether.

Another day at a job that didn’t allow you to have anything, left you seeking out the only thing you knew would help. An old dive bar still resided in the lower part of the city—The Nest, or as the owner called it El Nido—as local folk often referred to it. Although you were more than happy to call it a safe haven.

Everything was so pristine where you worked, so perfect. But The Nest was simply a small hole in the wall that helped people find a spot to feel safe for an hour or two. You tended to avoid going there on weekdays, but seeing as how you were about to be fired from your job…you felt it was necessary.

Sighing, you hitched your bag up higher on your shoulder, the weariness from the day finally settling its weight over you. What you wouldn’t give to be asleep right now, curled up in bed. Except you couldn’t go home. Not when all that remained was the dreaded time spent waiting for tomorrow. The day they would more than likely—officially—ask you to leave.

“Sorry,” you muttered, accidentally slamming into a woman walking hand in hand with her partner. The man glared at you, the gaze enough for you to quicken your step towards your destination.

The smell of the bar was exactly the same. Ricky always loved incense, and while you claimed it would drive customers away, he somehow made it work. Letting out a calming breath, you headed right towards your stool at the bar. The worn in leather a comfort after sitting in a stiff backed office chair all day. It was partially ripped and practically ruined, but you could already feel the stress melt off your body.

“Mi florita!” Ricky shouted, handing off a drink to an older man with white hair.

“Hey Ricky—oof—” He leaned across the bar, dragged you closer, and planted a sloppy kiss on your cheek. His breath was tinged with cinnamon and a hint of mint—letting you know he’d been drinking his favorite tea all day.

Nonetheless you smiled at his kind gesture. Ricky was like the cousin you had never had, but always wanted. Standing at around six feet with tattoos going up and down his tanned arms and his hair chopped into a mess of wild curls, he was your favorite person. The one you always sought out in times of trouble, if anything just to laugh. Unfortunately he couldn’t say the same for you. He loved his boyfriend too much to put you higher up on the scale—or so he claimed.

“How’s the job?” He poured you a martini, extra dry, extra dirty. “Are you playing nice with all the fancy folk?”

You chuckled, taking a sip and letting the alcohol burn its way down. “The fancy folk are slowly driving me insane.”

“Uh oh.”

Another sip caused yet another part of your stress to fade. “I don’t understand why it’s so hard for them to give me the same leniency they offer to other employees.” You sighed, dragging a hand down your face. “I mean it won’t matter anyways tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” Ricky slid a drink to the person sitting a stool away from you, taking the small amount of cash he offered.

“The day I’m probably gonna get fired.”

“What?” he exclaimed, nearly causing the glass of whiskey in front of him to spill over.

You shrugged. “It’s not a big deal. I can just…find a new place to work at. I mean there has to be other labs in need of a biochemist. Right?”

He hesitated, his eyes flickering to the bottle in his hands. “Florita…” Your stomach dropped, the severity of the situation finally dawning on you—turning your once rose hued glasses clear.

They were going to ask you to leave and because it was Alchemax, there was no other option but for you to beg for forgiveness. An act you had sworn to yourself that you’d never do. You were a good scientist. Hell you were the best in that fucking lab, yet they couldn’t see past the fact that you wanted to go your own way. To carve your own path in a company that was adamant on placing you in a box. Keeping you perfectly pristine for those on the outside—those that might wish to give you freedom.

Holding up your hand, you stopped him from saying anything else. If shit was meant to go sideways tomorrow, then so be it. You’d go out like a champion, worthy of whatever came next. Downing the remainder of your drink you slid the empty glass towards Ricky, nodding at him to fill it up. At least with that he didn’t hesitate, knowing you needed something to take the edge off—your night already taking a turn for the worst.

“Just gotta keep going,” you muttered, staring at the liquid in the hopes that it would magically fix everything.

“You got this chica.” Words that seemed empty at a time like this somehow brought a small smile to your lips.

Taking another sip you thanked him softly and watched him wander off to the other side of the bar, his eyes set on a group of men that were most likely there to buy out the bar. It happened every once in a while, but you couldn’t exactly fault them. They were here to have fun, to make an otherwise regular night memorable. They certainly weren’t here to wallow in their drinks, swallowing down their misery in the hopes of finding something good to take away.

“Shit,” you muttered when you came to the bottom of the glass again, your finger tracing the rim.

“Firing a biochemist is the stupidest thing a lab could do.”

You jumped when someone’s voice came from beside you—the man a stool away now focusing the entirety of his attention on you. Perhaps it was the vodka or the low neon lights of the bar, but you could have sworn his eyes were red. The color so striking it sent a chill down your spine—as if he was analyzing you with one simple glance. For a second you forgot he even said anything—too busy taking in his soft brown hair and strong jaw—until his lips quirked up into a grin.

One that made your heart flip in your chest, heat rising beneath your cheeks.

“Eavesdropping?” you inquired, gathering enough courage to confront him about his blatant behavior.

His lips pulled up on one side, something glimmering in his eyes that had you hooked the longer he looked at you. “Lo siento,” he said softly—his voice slightly mumbled. “Didn’t mean to. I just heard you talking about something that interests me.”

“Ah.” You glanced away to escape his penetrating stare, if for a chance to catch the breath in your lungs. “So you’re a scientist.”

Pride bloomed in your chest when he was caught off guard. His glass halfway to his mouth when the statement left your mouth. Once again that mysterious light flickered to life again, a soft chuckle leaving his lips and causing your heart to erratically beat in your chest. Taking a sip, he gently set the now empty glass back on the bar. The tension was so thick you swore you could slice it in half, heat spilling into your body.

“You’re observant.”

Shrugging, you took your own sip—the alcohol no longer burning your throat. “It wasn’t hard to figure out. What else from that conversation would interest you?”

“You.”

The words were out of his mouth before you could even finish the question, your breath catching at the sound of them. Your day had been shit. Enough to rival doomsday itself, but there you were sitting at a bar with him. A man who’s name you didn’t know. The smile spread across your lips before you could stop it, your eyes roving down his figure in an attempt to make him feel half of what he stirred in you.

“Let me buy you a drink?” you asked, pointing to his empty glass.

“I thought I was supposed to ask you that?”

Your smile widened. “Then ask me.”

For the second time that night he was caught off guard, his eyes widening slightly. The song behind you shifted, a low tune you could feel reverberating through you as he changed seats, taking the stool directly beside you. He moved silently, his thighs pressed tightly against yours as he got comfortable in the spot—his arm brushing yours.

The first thing you noticed was how warm he was—as if his body was a personal heater. But that was pushed out of your mind, replaced by the second thing. He looked at you clearly, hair falling onto his forehead slightly until you finally saw it. The actual color of his eyes. Crimson irises caught you in their hold, keeping you until he was satisfied—drinking you in, he trailed his gaze over the entirety of your body.

“Can I buy you a drink?” he murmured, his breath fanning across your face, body unconsciously leaning in.

You inhaled sharply, watching as his eyes lit up at your reaction to his proximity, his hand sliding closer until his fingers brushed against your wrist. Suddenly your shitty day was but a mere memory in the back of your mind. Entirely forgotten in favor of him. He was so large you swore he blocked everything else, filling your eyesight with nothing else but his frame. The breadth of his shoulders, the length of his torso and how he had to hunch over slightly to get close to you.

“What’s your name?” you inquired finally, your words breathy and dazed.

He grinned, hand curving around your wrist and pulling your hand towards him. “What’s yours?”

“I asked you first.”

Leaning in so close until you felt his chest brush your shoulder, his lips met your ear, sending chills down your spine. “Miguel,” he breathed, smiling at the way you practically melted into him.

For a brief moment you forgot you were sitting in the middle of a bar, people surrounding the two of you. When in fact it felt like nothing remained except you and him and the song playing behind you. Your exhale was shaky, representing the way you felt on the inside. As if he’d pulled you apart with a single word, his body heat affecting your brain—turning it to mush.

“Miguel…” Your hand curved around the front of his jacket, eyes meeting his as he moved, brushing his lips across your cheek.

“Hm?”

Something heady built in your chest, solidifying the truth you knew the second you started talking to him. You wouldn’t be leaving this bar alone. You simply hoped he was on the same page as you, but the way he hooked his arm around your waist, thighs bracketing your frame told you everything you needed to know. He was not only on the same page; he was flipping forward, reading a future that had yet to occur.

You almost wanted to ask him if he liked what he saw. If—by some odd chance—there was something more than this fiery electricity between the two of you.

“You still want that drink bebita?”

Words evaded you the longer he sat there, filling the space with nothing but him. How he smelled, how he sounded, fuck even the way his lips felt dragging against your skin as he spoke. You wanted to ask where he came from. How you’d never seen him in this bar before—your life now altered because of something so small. Simply a conversation. Yet now you couldn’t see yourself ending the night without him.

“No,” you sighed, shifting until your lips were a hairsbreadth from his. “You?”

He shook his head.

“I…” Your teeth dug into your bottom lip. “I don’t usually do this.”

Grinning, he raised your chin slightly with his knuckle, eyes catching you once more in their web, snaring you in a trap so saccharine you could taste it on your tongue. “Your pace.”

And with two simple words you were his. Captured happily in something you never wanted to be rid of. You smiled, your other hand sliding up into his hair, and finally the weight of your day lifted entirely off your shoulders. The question of whether or not he wanted to kiss you was on the tip of your tongue, but like before…he was miles ahead of you. With a small grin, he tipped your face towards his, catching your lips in a kiss you felt down to your fingertips.

He didn’t kiss you gently, languidly taking his time as if you were both here until the sun went up. No, that was nothing like what you expected. He devoured you. Stole every gasp, sound, and sigh you could have let out; his hand holding you exactly where he wanted you. Miguel kissed you like you were his only source of oxygen. And you let him. You bent to his will with ease, giving into every touch.

Whining softly, you tugged sharply on his hair when his tongue swept across your bottom lip. The taste of his drink now seeping into your mouth. You didn’t even question letting him in, desperate to know what he tasted like—what his tongue felt like licking deeply into you. Shivers ran down your spine when his hand gripped your hip tightly, pulling you closer until you sat on the very edge of the stool.

“Fuck,” he rumbled, pulling away and sliding his lips along your jaw.

“Oh…” Your breath was a sharp gasp when his fingers trailed down your throat, cupping it so quickly you could have sworn you imagined it. But the heat that spilled into your stomach told you otherwise.

His lips were heaven on your skin, nipping and licking until you were sure that certain spots would be tender tomorrow morning. You didn’t care. He could have sunk his teeth directly into your neck and you’d still ask for more. Somewhere in between talking and the tension, you lost any sense of worry. Those feelings went out the window the second he moved closer.

“I um—” Pushing at his chest, you reluctantly parted with the realization that you were still in public, and fucking against the bar would certainly make Ricky ban you for life. So he fell back, his lips swollen and spit slicked—pupils blown wide until the black began to bleed into the red. A swirl of brilliant color.

He smirked, taking in your disheveled appearance, all thanks to him. You had half a mind to drag him back to the bathroom, but the burning glare of Ricky was currently being seared into the side of your head. Without a doubt you knew it said: “You fuck in my bar you’re not coming back.” So you gathered whatever control you had over yourself and downed the remainder of your now tepid drink.

“My apartment is two blocks from here,” you began, exhaling a shaky breath as you finally took the leap for what you wanted. “We can be there in five minutes.”

Miguel nodded, yanking out his wallet and tossing down enough cash to cover not only his drinks, but yours as well. Which was your sign to grab your things. No words had to be said, because the intent was clear to the both of you. He was here to find the same relief you were—something to take his mind off of life for a little while.

Waving a quick goodbye towards Ricky, you followed Miguel out of the bar into the cool night air of the city. You were beneath the depths of the main part, where people didn’t necessarily travel to. But you’d grown up there. It remained a place where you still felt like you belonged. He didn’t say anything, he didn’t have to. Not when the intentions for the night were clear to both of you. But that didn’t stop him from reaching down and slipping your hand into his, clasping your fingers together as you walked down the street.

Such a small act of tenderness—barely noticeable to anyone walking past—but meant so much more.

“What brought you to El Nido?” you asked, leading him down the street where your apartment building resided. It wasn’t a drastic question, but you couldn’t help your curiosity.

You were a scientist after all.

He shrugged, thumb running along your knuckles. “Needed a night out.”

“Let me guess…” You turned—walking backwards the best you could—regarding him with a suspicious expression. The small smile on his lips caused your heart to thump a little faster. “You’re getting fired tomorrow too?”

For the first time that night you heard him laugh. The sound, soft and low and by all means something you wanted to hear over and over again.

“No.” He took in a breath, his crimson eyes searching the dark streets for nothing in particular—the hair on the back of his neck suddenly standing up. “I’m…trying to figure out something.”

“A problem?”

He sighed. “You could say that.”

“Well I think—”

You didn’t get to finish your sentence, his arm jerking you forward until you fell into his chest, wrapped tightly to him as a horn echoed loudly behind you. A car sped past, turning rapidly onto the street and disappearing around the corner—leaving the both of you in silence. Your breath came in quickly, eyes wide as fear ran streaked your body, turning you cold. And Miguel watched after the car, his eyes narrowed and body tensed—as if he was ready to take off after them.

That is until he felt your hands press against his chest softly, drawing his attention back to you.

“T-Thank you,” you gasped, trying to calm the adrenaline that rushed through you.

There was no mistaking what would have happened if he hadn’t pulled you close; if his reflexes hadn’t kicked in so quickly. You wanted to ask him how he did it. How he knew the car was coming, but the words were trapped in the back of your throat. The shock had started to flood your system. His hand cupped your cheek, thumb running along your jaw in a soothing motion that seemed to slow the panic filtering through your body. You wondered if he even knew he was doing it—the touch yet another reflex to slow the racing of your heart.

To bring you back down to Earth.

“Okay?” he murmured, his eyes tracing the curve of your face, watching your eyelids flutter for a moment as you met his gaze once more.

You nodded, lightly gripping his wrist simply for the sake of comfort. “I’m okay.”

The night was no doubt effectively altered. Not necessarily ruined, but you couldn’t go on the way you were before. No teasing words, no light conversation. Instead you walked in silence. His hand clasped in yours and guard up in case of something else happening until you reached your place.

You were surprised to find that you enjoyed the silence while you walked. As if Miguel offered you a sense of safety and comfort you never had before; your body responding differently than you expected. Sure, you were attracted to him, but you couldn’t deny the pull you felt towards him when it came to this. To needing safety in the midst of possible danger.

“This is me,” you said, pulling out your key from your pocket—the hallway light dim and nearly extinguished. You had to remember to speak to the building manager about it tomorrow.

He grinned slightly, waiting patiently for the door to swing open with a soft creak as you entered. While you wouldn't call your small and rather overpriced apartment perfect, it felt more like a home than even he expected it to be. A small kitchen gave way into a bigger living room. Your record player was placed on top of an aged wooden table—piles of books stacked haphazardly through the place.

Miguel eyed the various plants you’d managed to keep alive—each of them pointed towards the one large window on the opposite wall. A place where sunlight no doubt streamed in on early mornings.

He originally believed it would look modern; more like the outside city and world as a whole. Yet your home resembled something old. A place that stood still against the ravages of time—as if it were merely a museum and he was there to admire its antiques.

“I know it’s not much.” You shifted a small pile of clean clothes off the chair, moving it towards an empty laundry basket in the hallway.

“It’s nice,” he said, and he actually meant it. “Es acogedor.”

You could see the truth in his eyes, the flicker of something familiar coming through the crimson. As if he’d known a life like this once. You wanted to ask him. See if he’d tell you more than just his name—perhaps why his eyes were that color—but you knew tonight wasn’t about making this more than it was. In reality you both needed this. No strings, no commitment. Merely two people looking to release themselves from the heaviness of the day.

He turned, catching you staring blatantly at him. “You want me to make you a drink?”

The question threw you off and your expression must have given you away—his lips curling into a grin. “I thought I was supposed to ask you that?”

Heat curled low in your stomach, spreading with every step he took until the tips of his shoes met yours. He bent down, hand curling around the nape of your neck, fingers digging in slightly. Chills spread down your spine, goosebumps rising along your arms, and for a brief moment you wanted to live in this. To remain oblivious to everything happening around you.

Everything except him.

He brought his lips closer, his breath washing across your cheek. “So ask me,” he breathed.

“Do you want me to—”

Cutting you off he dragged you closer, practically hauling you up to his chest as his lips covered yours. It sent your mind reeling, your hands digging into his hair as if on instinct. As if you knew exactly what he wanted. As if…you’d done this before. Something intoxicating built up in your body, turning your brain foggy when his hands slid down, cupping your ass and dragging a moan from your throat.

He met your sound with one of his own—a ragged grunt that came from low in his chest. The echo of it reverberating through your body. You knew what this was. What it wouldn’t become. Yet you couldn’t stop the longing in your heart—the yearning that refused to be locked away in your mind. You wondered what it would be like if this was more. Would it always feel this…electric?

Something pulled you together and you couldn’t determine what it was. Except at that moment you couldn’t even determine your own name.

His tongue swept in your mouth, shoving all your thoughts aside and bringing forth something new. A feeling so strong you found yourself grasping for him tighter, pulling him closer as he licked deeply into you—tasting the alcohol on your tongue.

“Bedroom,” you gasped, yanking on the strands of his hair and earning another delicious grunt.

“Donde—”

“Down the hall.”

Stumbling back you felt his hand hitch your leg over his hip, nearly dragging you with him. Yet you could hardly complain. You were pretty sure that if he let you go you’d go falling to the ground from his touch alone. He moved your head where he wanted, lips slotting over yours and spit nearly trailing down your chin. A rush of slick poured into your panties, your nails scratching along his scalp as he nearly hit the wall, pressing you against it and hitching your other leg up.

“Fuck.”

You tried to tell him that you needed more, that you wanted him inside of you, but all that came out was a breathy moan. His hips grinded into yours, a soft moan being pressed to the shell of your ear, and that alone nudged you towards something earth-shattering.

His lips slid back along yours, hands grasping for any skin he could reach as you practically shoved your hips against his. The desperation practically seeped into the air—permeating your tongue with its cloying flavor. Words were exchanged for moans, tender moments now shifting into something quicker and faster. You wanted to feel him against you as fast as humanly possible, but Miguel was eager to remain here. Holding you up against the wall and kissing you until you ran out of oxygen.

“So I take it that’s a no on the drink?” you breathed, smiling at the small frustrated sound echoed in the back of his throat.

“Cállate,” he grunted, hiking you up and grinning at the yelp that was muffled into his mouth.

Wrapping your arms around his neck, you felt him begin to move—heading towards your bedroom. The door remained open from earlier and you thanked yourself for making sure to keep the place tidy before leaving for work today. Before you could detach yourself from him and lead him to your bed, he turned and sat down. Taking you with him until you were sprawled on his lap.

“Tú eres hermoso,” you mumbled against his lips, watching in delight as his expression shifted. Surprise spreading across his chiseled features.

“I’m supposed to say that to you,” he replied, a small grin playing on his lips.

You shrugged, pressing your lips to his jaw. “Guess we’re doing tonight backwards.”

He chuckled, sliding his hands beneath your shirt until it was clear that he wanted it off. You complied with ease. Allowing him to drop the fabric to the floor as his eyes fell to your chest, taking in the pretty lace of your bra. The crimson you’d come to admire darkened to something you’d call a burgundy—lust clouding his gaze. He wanted to take you apart. To see the inner workings of your body—your mind. Anything he could get his hands on. And you’d let him.

There was no doubt that Miguel had gotten beneath your skin in such a short amount of time. He filled your home with a feeling you hadn’t had before. Something tangible and real. Something you wanted to keep.

“Guapísima,” he murmured, hands cupping your breasts, thumbs brushing over the spot where your nipples poked through the fabric. A soft jolt rolled down your spine at the feeling.

Warmth clung to your chest, filling you to the brim with a sensation you’d only had once before in your life. Only this was different. This didn’t feel new or like you were just discovering it. No, this felt familiar. As if it had been hiding away in your heart, biding its time until you crossed his path—until you found one another. You wanted to wrap yourself in it, sink into its comfort, and you wondered if he felt it too.

The strange way all of this felt right.

Like coming home after being away for so long.

“Miguel,” you gasped when his mouth trailed down to your chest. The heat of his lips sticking to your already burning skin—his tongue trailing along the tops of your breasts.

He pulled down the fabric, taking your nipple into his mouth—practically lighting up on the inside when you cried out softly. Your hand dug into his hair, tugging on the strands as he scraped his teeth against you. Drawing out every sound he could find hidden in the depths of your chest. Your hips ground against him, clit pulsing with a need that would only be satiated by his touch.

For a moment you worried that he wouldn’t continue his path. That he’d ignore the way you were practically panting for him—the pleas falling from your lips with ease. But then his hand dipped beneath your waistband, fingers trailing along the edge of your panties. Your eyes nearly rolled back, hips canting up as you tried to get him to go further—to release you of this agony. But he held still. Entirely focused on driving you to the very brink of insanity; continuing the path with his teeth and tongue along your chest until the skin was tender.

“Impatient are we?” he mused, nose brushing against your jaw—the grin prominent in his voice.

You huffed, gripping tightly onto his hair and dragging his head up. “A tease are we?”

A moan ripped from his throat, his hips jolting up into yours at the slight sting of pain that bloomed in his head. His eyes were heavy, mouth parted as he took in a deep breath, and you could have sworn that you’d never see a prettier sight again. He looked at you as one would a statue in a museum. Tracing the curves and dips of your body with eyes that resembled the color of blood. Eyes that would never leave your mind again.

His tongue swept across his bottom lip, teeth protruding outwards slightly and you had half a mind to ask him about it. To question how exactly he had fangs, but your desire won out on the logical part of your mind. Leaning forward you licked your tongue along them, feeling how he shivered beneath your touch—how his body sang a tune you could match.

“Careful,” he rumbled, his hand pressing against your back and bringing you even closer. “I might bite.”

You smiled, sliding your palms beneath the collar of his shirt, the hot skin beneath warming your cold fingers instantly. “Sounds like a promise to me.”

“I’m not good with promises.” He let you pull his shirt up, raising his arms and helping where you couldn’t reach.

Even you couldn’t deny there was something so domestic about this. How he carefully shifted you so that you were now pressed into the mattress. His large frame looming over you—hair falling into his eyes as he looked down. It felt natural; the fluid movements were almost instinctive. Like your bodies knew what to do before you could even comprehend anything happening. You wanted to blame the alcohol—or hell perhaps it was the lust that was making you slightly lose it—but you saw it beneath the surface of his slightly guarded expression.

He felt it too.

Perhaps even more.

“Come here,” you breathed, cupping the back of his neck and bringing his lips back where they belonged—where they felt the most right.

You felt his hands fall to the waistband of your pants, popping open the button and you were quick to raise your hips, helping him push them down. There was a swiftness to his movements. Like he knew what you wanted before you did—something telling him that you were ready to keep going. But that would be scientifically impossible. No one could predict things that way. Yet you couldn’t help but go back to the color of his eyes—the fangs that now scraped along your throat and down your shoulder.

He seemed to be a scientific marvel. Something unknown.

“Your tur—oh—” Your head fell back, lips falling open when his hand dipped even lower, fingers sliding into your soaked panties.

A groan echoed in the room, his lips finding yours again as he gathered the slick that pooled at your entrance and dragged it back to your clit. Setting a slow and maddening pace that had you grasping for his shoulders. Your nails pricked the skin so hard you knew there would be marks later. He pressed down, sparks scorching your body, and grinned at your reaction. How your eyes squeezed shut, leg kicking out and hips pushing into his hand.

“So wet for me.” He sunk one finger into you, tearing a whine from your throat.

“Mig—” The breath caught in your lungs. “I want—fuck—please…”

He shushed you gently, lips sliding against yours messily as he worked you open, slipping another finger into you with ease. “I know amorcito. I’ve gotta open you up for me.”

Something pulled at your stomach, tightening slowly as he continued to pump his fingers into you—the wet squelch of your slick echoing in the room. You knew you were dripping down his hand, that he was able to slip in a third finger as he went. But that didn’t mean he would stop. No Miguel had become hooked on the sounds coming from your lips—the moans that you didn’t try to stifle. He curled his fingers and struck against the spongy part of your walls that made you practically curl up into him.

A surprised cry fell from your lips, eyes flying open to see his lips curl into a small grin, before he doubled down. Shifting the angle, he made sure to press the pads of his fingers in the same spot each time, his thumb swiping along your clit. And you felt that building pressure shift. It clawed its way up your throat, settling in your chest as he murmured soft words of praise.

“Dámelo,” he breathed against your lips. “Give it to me bebita.”

As if your body was following his request, you shattered. A choked cry of his name was swallowed by his kiss, his tongue licking deeply into your mouth—fingers rapidly moving to prolong your pleasure. It was too much, yet not enough. The hunger—the desire—screamed in your chest, begging for him to keep going, for this to be more than just one night. Yet you couldn’t speak.

You gulped in air, legs shaking when the pleasure slowly began to fade into a slight pain. But Miguel wasn’t done. He was far from it. Your heart pounded in your chest when he slipped his fingers into his mouth, moaning at the taste of your release—the shiny stickiness on his palm letting you know how wet you really were.

“Sabes deliciosa,” he murmured, pressing his tongue back into your mouth and sharing the taste of you.

Your hand fell to his pants, pulling at the buckle of his belt as he shifted—making room between your legs to lay over you. His hand pressing into the mattress above your head. The all encompassing feeling of him surrounded you; pressed you into the small haven he created with his body. Keeping you from the rest of the world as you lost yourselves in each other.

“Your belt is being difficult,” you huffed, head falling back against the pillow.

He laughed, opening it with ease and effectively earning a glare from you.

Miguel had to admit there was an ease to being around you. The weight he usually felt hanging atop his shoulders had been lifted—his mind suddenly clearer and mood better. He wanted to figure out why that was, but you were looking at him with a gaze that caused his heart to stutter. The urge to remain close to you seemed to overtake every other thought that ran through his mind. He rid himself of his pants, helping you pull down the lacy fabric—his lips sliding along your inner calf as he did so.

The light touch of your palm grasping on his hand brought his gaze back up—your small smirk rendering him speechless. Miguel had only been this way a few times in his life. All instances he could count on one hand, but this—you—were bringing out an emotion he would have rather kept locked away. Nervousness.

Leaning up on your elbows, you met him halfway, your arm going around his shoulders as he leaned down to kiss you. It was by all means…sweet. The passion remained, lingering beneath the surface and searing through your veins, but something else took over. A feeling he wanted to keep.

“Since we’re doing this backwards,” you whispered, brushing your lips against his and cupping his cheek.

Locking your leg around his hip, you used the leverage of his surprise to send him into the mattress, your hands falling to his chest as you perched yourself in his lap. Your lips formed around a smile when he grunted. The feeling of your bare pussy now spread along his cock—your slick dripping down and coating his length—was divine.

“Mierda.” His hands grasped your hips, grinding you forward a bit until the head of cock brushed your clit, ripping a gasp from your chest.

“F-fuck—” Your head fell forward, teeth digging into your lip.

“You’re gonna fuck me amorcito?” he asked, a flash of something dangerous echoing in his eyes. “Gonna ride me?”

You nodded, mouth falling open when he pressed against your entrance. Whatever comment you had died in the back of your throat when he began to sink into you—a slight sting of pain streaking up your spine as you took him slowly. He wasn’t kidding about needing to open you up, but still it was a stretch. A soft whisper of praise echoed in your ear, his thumb circling your clit to counteract the pain. Even still you dug your nails into his chest, no doubt leaving marks that would bruise later on.

“You can take it,” he murmured, thumb curling around your chin. “You can take it like a good girl.”

A whine caught in your throat, your hips canting down with each small thrust until you were seated in his lap again. His cock filling you completely—the stuffed sensation nearly too much for you. Miguel leaned up, catching your lips in a soft kiss; giving you time to adjust. Yet you felt the sharp need of desire work its way through your body, begging for you to keep going, to take everything he would give you.

“How do you feel?” He pulled at your bottom lip with his thumb, his other hand cupping your ass.

“F-Full,” you whimpered.

“Go ahead,” he said softly, allowing you to lift yourself off his cock slowly—slick coating him down to the coarse hair at his base.

The pace was lazy, barely even there, and he watched. His eyes tracked each movement you made, each time your hips shifted forward to change the angle. He burned the image of you fucking yourself on his cock into his brain—watching as you did exactly what you said you were going do. Ride him.

Scraping your nails down his stomach, you heard him groan, his hips thrusting up slightly and forcing a cry from your throat. You wanted more. Wanted to feel him fuck you into the mattress, but the familiar pressure was already forming again. Building in your stomach with each stunted thrust—the head of his cock brushing against the spot he’d found earlier.

“I’m—” Your head fell back, hips shifting forward to catch it perfectly—eyes squeezing shut. “‘M gonna—o-oh…”

“That’s it,” he rasped, guiding your hips and slamming you down onto him with a strength that made you sob, your hands grasping for any part of him you could reach. “Cum on my cock amorcito. Wanna see you—ah fuck—”

Your hips stuttered, eyes rolling back as the wave crashed over you, nearly pulling you under. A cry echoed in the room, your walls clamping down, and for a moment you felt nothing but bliss. You went blind with it, your body tipping forward into him as he continued to move you in short thrusts, dragging it on even more. Miguel grunted against your throat, sitting up fully and holding you close as you rode out your release, your body practically falling limp against him.

Eventually you felt yourself come back, your hands dragging through his hair as he placed kisses up and down your neck, arms tightening around you. Your legs barely worked, head still fuzzy with the intensity of your orgasm. But the desire still remained, stroking the fire slowly until it once again began to seep through your system. Warming your body.

He was still hard, throbbing against your fluttering walls. That alone caused you to moan softly, your hips shifting down and lips pressing against his jaw. 

“You didn’t finish,” you murmured, nails scraping against the back of his neck. The small goosebumps that appeared had a lazy smile curling on your lips.

He ached for that sweet release, wanted to flip you over and chase it, but he didn’t want to leave. At least not yet. There was something about taking his time with you that called to the part of him that had always wanted more. A part he’d crushed over and over again. Claiming it wasn’t necessary. There was no room in his life for that irritating emotion people referred to as love—no space in his heart.

Until a space began to slowly open up. He could barely find it, barely even see the small gash you’d made in the armor around his heart. But he’d discover it eventually.

“I want to see you cum,” you said softly, eyes glimmering with need.

“Bebita—”

Licking along his bottom lip you felt his cock twitch, his fingers digging into the flesh of your ass a little harder. “Want to feel it, Miguel. Need it.”

“Shit.” He felt the breath get punched from his lungs, your words sending a streak of heat down his spine. “Yeah? You want it that bad?”

You nodded, lifting yourself on shaky legs only to drop back down, impaling yourself on his cock. He spit out another broken curse, his head falling back briefly before you were tossed back—your body slamming against the mattress. You yelped, eyes going wide when he shifted over you, body covering yours in a way that had a haze settling in your mind. He grinned, fangs digging into his bottom lip as he spread your thighs—hooking them over his forearms and nearly bending you in half.

“All you had to do was ask,” he purred, guiding himself back into your dripping pussy and sinking in with ease.

Gasping, you clawed at his shoulders when he hit so much deeper, the angle changing everything. You wanted to shout his name, to tell him how good it felt, but he’d already started to pull back, shoving himself into you with a strength that sent you up the bed. A ragged sound was pulled from your chest, eyes rolling back when he brushed against that spot so much easier—grinding against it in a way that had your body going numb with pleasure.

“Look at you taking me so well,” he muttered, curling over your body and sending your knees up near your head.

“O-Oh…god!”

“Cosita linda.” His body was tense, teeth baring as he continued to pound into you at a pace that built your release so quick it burned through you. “Pretty fucking thing. Letting me fuck you like this. Perfecta—”

You cried out, nails breaking the skin of his back—leaving deep marks. Tears streamed down your temples, spit falling down your chin when he leaned in to kiss you. He was everywhere. His scent permeated your senses, taste now permanently etched on your tongue, and yet that still wasn’t enough. There was something about him that made you want to crack open your heart and give it to him. Offer yourself up entirely in the hopes he’d accept. He surrounded you, filled your entire being with nothing but him, and you loved it.

Your body went taut, eyes flying open to see him staring down where you were connected, how his cock disappeared into your leaking pussy.

He smiled, hands digging into your hips so tight it sparked a delicious pain when you sobbed incoherently. “I can feel you.” His breath stuttered when your walls clamped down—brows pulling tight and mouth falling open in a silent shout. “That’s it. C’mon—” He gasped, fingers falling to your aching clit and circling it quickly. “Cum on my fucking cock. Soak me.”

This time the release wasn’t built steadily to give you time to prepare. You could barely breathe, your lungs screaming for some small amount of air. Yet your body seemed to be solely focused on one thing. A broken shout of his name left your lips, echoing in the room, combining sinfully with the sound of skin against skin and your slick. His thumb found your clit, pinching it between his fingers and something in you broke.

It slammed into you unexpectedly, dragging out a loud keening wail—white flashing behind your tightly closed eyes as it rushed through you. Flooded every sense you had until all you could comprehend was him chasing his own release. He fucked into you with short stunted thrusts until he fell forward, his lips colliding with yours—a ragged cry being pressed into your mouth.

He spurted into your already dripping pussy, filling you deliciously and sending another flicker of warmth down to the tips of your fingers. His chest heaved, lips swollen and eyes dazed, and you wanted to solidify the sight in your mind. Except the reality of what this was would eventually come crashing back down. Reminding you that he was not yours to have. That you were simply two passing stars in a tangled web of this universe, meant to part ways.

He let your legs fall back to the bed, slipping out of you with a hiss before he flopped onto his back, dragging you with him. His cum dripped down your inner thigh, smearing against the skin. But for now you let it happen. Content to remain right there, feeling his chest rise and fall as he attempted to catch his breath. His fingers traced lightly along your spine, line after line until you realized what it was that he was drawing.

A web.

Or at least…that’s what it felt like.

“I don’t think I can move,” you mumbled, smiling into his skin when he laughed—the sound low and rough.

“That’s a good thing I hope,” he replied, glancing down at you—eyes tracing the curve of your hip and breast that pressed into his side.

You placed a kiss on his shoulder, hand splaying across his stomach. “Definitely.”

Silence enveloped the both of you like a comfortable blanket, filling the space with a soft feeling. It lulled you into a state of peace. Sleep nearly overtaking you. Yet you fought against it. Too busy taking in what he looked like—attempting to commit him to memory lest you never see him again. You wanted him burned into your brain, each memory tattooed into place permanently. But that’s not how life went.

This wasn’t a fairytale, and he wasn’t yours.

So you settled against his body, soaking in the warmth he emanated and allowed your eyes to flutter shut. His breath came in slower, arm curling around you as he fell asleep gradually—his heart a steady thrum in his chest. An echo that allowed sleep to drag you beneath the surface, giving way to something peaceful.

The loud angry beep of your alarm clock jolted you awake, your eyes flying open and body aching as you sat up quickly. There was a mess of blankets on your floor, obviously kicked off in the middle of the night. It seemed that with the heat of the outside world and his body, you were content to sleep with a thin sheet wrapped around you. Yet where you expected to find clothes left haphazardly around the room, you found nothing.

Your clothes that had been stripped off now lay in a pile on your chair, shoes placed by the end of your bed. Last night was clear to you now. The all consuming bliss, the way he had felt buried inside of you—how he had touched you. And while you understood it was merely a one night stand. You couldn’t stop the disappointment from seeping into your chest.

The sight of him completely erased from your apartment put a damper on an otherwise good morning.

Sighing, you swung yourself into a sitting position at the end of your bed. A throbbing headache began to spread along your skull. No doubt the cause of waking up too fast. Either that or the alcohol had actually decided to give you a bitch of a hangover. You’d have to figure that out later. The reminder of what the day held for you flickered bright and blaring in your mind—killing whatever joy you had left in your chest.

“Fuck,” you spit, dropping your head in your hands as you finally settled on one conclusion. You were about to be fired.

You had about an hour before you had to rush out the door. Giving you enough time to find out how to stop the delicious ache in between your thighs from going away. The echo of the outside world drifted up through your somehow open window and you raised your eyes, gazing at the spot where he had been only a few hours ago.

Only to catch sight of a glass of water placed on your nightstand—a ripped piece of paper beneath it. You practically lunged for it, hands carefully sliding the paper out and eyes tracing the messy scribble of what you assumed to be his writing. The message was short. Direct. It could barely even be considered sweet, but you saw the tenderness through the short sentence—the care in his action of leaving you with something to remember him by.

I had a lot of fun.

So we can do things the right way next time.

— Miguel

Beneath the message a phone number was scrawled, as if he’d been hesitant to even put it there in the first place. But it seemed that you weren’t the only one to feel that strange connection. That lingering sensation of familiarity whenever you thought about him. There was something to uncover between you. Perhaps the something more that you were aching for last night.

You had no clue.

Yet that didn’t stop you from grabbing your phone and inputting the numbers carefully. Glancing back at each one to make sure that the message wouldn’t disappear before your very eyes. You typed his name at the top, smiling at the contact before sticking a web right beside it. The memory of what he’d traced along your skin coming back to you.

A thrill of joy went through your body, lips pulling up into a wide smile as you pressed the button to send a text. While it may have been too soon—perhaps a bit fast if you were looking at it properly—the warmth in your chest won the battle in the end. 

How could something that felt this right be messed up with speed?

How could it go wrong?

[tumblydovereviews]

Primos Was Okay (And That's Okay!)

On Thursday, after over a year of controversy, delays, and pushback from the general public, Primos finally premiered on Disney Channel, to a surprisingly stable reception.

First of all, congratulations to the cast and crew for the premiere! For a show that was on such unstable waters just a year back, it's great to see that Primos has seen the light of day and not simply became a tax write-off.

As anyone involved in the animation community in June 2023 may recall, Primos' initial response was not great in the slightest, and for good reason. Based on solely the theme song alone, the show featured grammatical errors, unintentionally insensitive names, and was dismissed by others as Disney's cheap copy of The Casagrandes. Comments from cast members such as Tater's voice actor herself only added fuel to the fire. The show, initially set to drop in the fall of that same year, was delayed to January, then June as a precursor to the Big City Greens movie, and finally, July of 2024.

I personally didn't care for the Primos drama too much. Sure, I liked the theme song's beat and for a while it became an earworm, but I wasn't looking too closely at being a consistent viewer on the show. I was mixed on the artstyle, the characters, and the plot, which, while not awful by any means, weren't anything amazing as well.

But, with nothing else to do, I ultimately decided to view the first episode of Primos on YouTube the day after the big debut.

And, the show was serviceable.

The characters weren't annoying, and there were some moments that made me chuckle a bit. The songs were serviceable, and the themes on self-discovery are unique. But, ultimately, I don't see myself with any reason to really engage with this show outside of just watching a few episodes. The story of Primos is all there, but on its own, it's just there.

If there's any character I truly hated, it was Tater and Nellie's mother, Bibi. Knowing fully well she didn't have the time or effort to efficiently take care of twelve kids on top of her two daughters and baby son, yet inviting then over anyways for the sake of 'memories' instead of listening to her kids. No wonder they address her by her first name.

As for characters I liked, I honestly enjoyed the three most 'normal' Primos in my opinion: Lita, Scooter, and Lucita. They get along well and have acceptable personalities. I can especially relate to Scooter and his anxiety, as a person who gets quite nervous themselves sometimes. Also, shout-out to Lucita, who's deaf and actually communicates through ASL on the occasion. Deaf representation is lacking in media, and I love how this show is helping us move one step further in that regard.

I also enjoyed Nellie as a character as well; it is admittedly a but weird how she's an eight-year-old with a Luisa-deep voice but her chemistry with Tater is great.

As for Tater herself, she's okay. She server her purpose as the disgruntled almost ten-year-old trying to find herself. Nothing too much or too little. I can relate to her in the sense of needing peace and quiet away from cousins; my cousins actually moved into my own house temporarily last year for a few months,

i talk about characters a lot in this show, because I believe that it's Primos' best achievement. In a way, each of the characters work off of Tater in their own way, keeping the show fresh and upbeat, but not being afraid to scale things back when needed. I thought that the Primos would act as nothing but plot devices whose only merit is to ruin Tater's life, but, thankfully, that's not the case.

Now, what about this show being mediocre? It can't be all that good, right?

Well, like I said before, the animation and art designs are not my favorites. I can't push back too much since the rough, earthy tone translate into the series as a whole, but personal preference is also a factor. The music and songs, while good for what they are, don't add anything too much to the series and I personally would have preferred if this show wasn't a musical al all; Disney Channel admittedly has plenty of those nowadays.

And, that essentially encapsulates my feelings on Primos as a while. On its own, it works for what it has, but compared to shows with similar plots such as The Loud House, it only holds a candle compared to the latter's sun.

And, you know what? That's okay. If anything, it's a miracle that a show detested so much by the general public during its initial preview became nothing but a mediocre addon at worst.

Maybe I'll tune into a few more episodes to fully solidify my thoughts on this show. But, for now, I'll only be an occasional onlooker exploring the world of Tater Ramirez Humphrey and company. I'm okay with that, and I'm sure you'll be okay too.

[captainzigo]

since I have been making my little pony comics for the past few months, I have basically forgotten what every single one of my duckverse comic prompts means. I had a big list full of one sentence prompts for duckverse comics that I was going to make, and I was reading through it yesterday, because I thought about making one. I was surprised to find out that I have no idea what any of them mean. instead of just deleting the list, I have decided to share with you. For what good it will do you. Think of this as a little shout out to the people who followed me for duckverse content. i havent forgotten about you. it’s also a little peek in my twisted mind. my horrible creation process. a behind the scenes look from hell. the list of prompts is below the break

max college fund

launchpad rescue hero

costco 22¢ per bite

house of mouse

door to darkness

because i’m hispanic?

donald cousins catch and release

fish wife

the greatest skateboard trick in the seven seas

backyardagins movie

evil versions boy band

gladstone gay moms

the poor part of town

private army of freaks vs my boys

you own the town. you are politics - what do you think taxes are for - not gladstone bail - id be doing everyone a favor

kids table is great actually

donald cry gold swim

beautiful gold moon

villains table

these lovebirds

gladstone can’t read

gladstone hyper specific thrift store shirt

louie seeing anyone right now?

managed my uncle’s finances

june dolls episode

may louie webs spy episode

house of mouse christmas hdl want to come

propeller cap start to turn. big wind. its a helicopter landing. thanks babe

double gay batteries

daisy likes donald snoring

if you can understand anything he says then yeah!

sora. quack pack. bald monkey

i respect your pronouns. i dont not respect YOU scrooge

why are you friends with my rival’s girlfriend

we’re sisters now too???

The dancing hacker - do you know how hard it is to lucid dream

are you guys playing dancing hacker?

how did you do that? Those dice were rigged i mean.

you guys were supposed to prepare a musical number every session

Lady in pink but with a knife

girl boss? No girl lady. But not a girl.

sephirof at the door. never seen Donald that serious in my life.

I have a superhero alter ego - like super Grover?

louie x robin the frog

daffy: i’m getting you a job in Hollywood, kid! You gonna make big times. Why? uh… i’m friends with your mom.

Duckburg community college is the only community college that does dance scholarship

duckberg community ducks, and the Duckburg University geese

in helicopter: you ever going to get tired of having our dates like this? no never.

donald take responsibility for our son! panchito what

babe your costume is terrible. why are you still in a sailor hat

tasha austin gay lesbian solidarity

hey webby! *glittery hands*

webby diary

shake for trust? glitter on hand. body slam

why did t you tell me your girlfriend is a pilot? tasha said i shouldn’t tell you because of what happened to you pilot ex. he’s still alive!

pablo: sleeper agents be like time for my next mission

CHRISTMAS GIFTS

WHATS UP T-BOYS?

donald’s boyfriends what does gladstone have against gay people

donald you should wingman for me. i thought you were gay

dugan duck is your secret kid isn’t he

huey ponytail

donald has three boyfriends why can’t i have two

woops i mexed up their super powers - let’s go, t boys! i didn’t make them trans! they were like that before, right?

your brother donald has like five partners. yeah and i’m not my brother donald. you’re right. i should date your brother donald

dewey damn girl your ass phat what are your pronouns. katy nun/ya

tying normie trans girl to a chair turbo pablo

don’t worry. the promise ring is just a tracking device

punch buggy gets steadily more and more violent

dewey’s many licenses

duck twins cobwebs

beaks: help! #911

katy can not entertain in her tiny trailer

uno gaydar donald i finally give you a job and you’re being gay on the clock??

when mom comes in and you have to hide your DS under your pillow

HDL Tulin

HDL chart

[rimunagenius]

fic idea Hannah Stuelke gets a girlfriend

Flowers

ʚ pairing: Hannah Stuelke x reader

ʚ word count: 2.3k words

ʚ warnings: RPF!! , language, nothing else other than ‘y/n’ being used once.

ʚ rimunagenius speaks: thank you anon for requesting!! sorry it took so long to get this out, i started from the bottom of my inbox and i’m going to work my way up, and yours was my first one!! I hope you like this, enjoy!!

| Masterlist | Women’s Basketball Masterlist |

You had been sick the last couple of days, being waited on hand and foot by your best friend Hannah. When she wasn’t at basketball practice or playing games, she was at your apartment, helping you recover to get you right again for your track season.

You had missed the last two meets and several practices, feeling so drained and weak, you couldn’t even get out of bed to support from the sidelines. So, you layed in bed, rotting away and watching movies and shows with Hannah.

“Are you seriously going to stay here with me all night long?” You looked at your friend, scoffing at her while she took amusement in your nasally voice, and the tissue hanging out of your nose.

“Yes. You need to rest, so whatever you want, i’ll help.” You could literally kiss her. You’ve never had a friend who did stuff like this for you before. Who was willing to risk getting sick to help you and make sure you got better.

“Oh my god. Hannah Stuelke, I could marry you.”

“Oh, yeah? When’s the wedding?” She smiled, as she got up to get another bottle of water for the both of you.

“Right now. Come kiss your bride.” You thought she was the cutest little giant to ever grace this planet. It didn’t help that Kate accidentally outed Hannah’s secret crush to you a week ago while you guys had been at the baseball game for Iowa—when you had inherently taken being not sick, for granted—It slipped. She didn’t mean to. You had confided in her, her being your cousin and all, and you mentioned that you thought Hannah was cute but didn’t know if she liked girls.

You were overjoyed to find out that she indeed, did like girls. Ever since then, you have been more flirty and so has she.

“Alright, bet.” She pretended to turn heel and make her way back to you, but then turned around, cheeks red, and wandered into the kitchen. You could barely see her through the open bedroom door.

“Booo! Hannah!! I hope you miss your layups tomorrow, and I hope the other team wins!” they don’t. You shouted, hearing her chuckle at your exclamations.

“How about you shut up, and get some sleep, grinch!” She shouted back, you gasped dramatically.

“I told you that in confidence, asshole!” You laughed before turning off the bedside lamp next to you. You shut the tv off, your LED lights being the only way you could see the look on Hannah’s face.

“You’re right, I’m sorry. I won’t bring up the grinch thing again.” She handed you the bottle of water, before she grabbed her blanket and turned towards the door.

“You’re not staying?” You asked meekly. You both agreed to have a sleepover tonight. Even though you were sick, she couldn’t say no. This was the fourth one this week.

“I am. I just don’t want to lay next to you, you’re dying. I don’t choose death, I choose basketball.” She wrapped the blanket around her, the ac making your apartment feel like the midst of antarctica.

“Oh, so you love basketball more than me? Okay.” You plopped down, throwing the comforter over your head.

“Yes. I actually want to play in the Big 10 tournament, not be sick as a dog in bed. Sorry, babe.”

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Go sleep on the couch then. Goodnight, love you.” You said, already drowsy.

“Goodnight drama queen, love you.” She closed the door, laughing as she heard you gasp at the playful insult.

The next morning, you felt better. Great even. The last four days of lying in bed, consistently taking medicine, and letting your body recover from the sickness worked. Hannah worked.

You got up, walking into the bathroom, finding a small note taped to the mirror. ‘Hope you feel better! I’ll see you later tonight after the game. Love you!’. You truly didn’t deserve this girl.

You sent her a quick text, thanking her for the note, and hopped in the shower. You decided you were going to crash the track practice today. You still weren’t up for running the whole practice, but a light warmup and maybe some of the conditioning would be okay. Plus, you’d attend the game at Carver, but you didn’t buy tickets on time and now they were sold out.

Before leaving, you had about two hours, so you threw all your blankets and sheets into the washer and dryer, ridding your room of any sickness. You opened the blinds, letting light in, cracking the window even.

You made yourself breakfast, and started to get ready. You didn’t know if it was the four days that she spent at your house, or just the recent closeness between you and Hannah, lack of separation thereof, but you couldn’t stop thinking about her. You already missed her and she’s only been away for three hours.

You wanted to tell her that you loved having her over all the time, all the hugs she gives you, the comfort and security she provides by just being near you. You wanted to make flirty jokes without having to pretend your joking. You wished you could just tell her how you feel since you know she feels the same way. You just wanted her.

You even told your teammate about it. You figured you should definitely ask her about trying to make the first move on Hannah since she made the first move on her girlfriend, Maya. Plus, she was the only one on the team that new about your infatuation with the 6’2” forward.

As you and Camila walked to your designated stretching and conditioning spot, you told her your situation.

“I don’t know what to do. I like her so much, but I have no idea how to tell her or show her without totally freaking her the fuck out.”

Kate and Camila listened to you and Hannah express the confusion and frustration of not knowing how to make the first move.

Kate and Hannah had mentioned it briefly in the locker room. Hannah shutting it down when the other girls walked in.

During stretching and pregame, Hannah and Kate were secluded and that’s when she voiced her frustration. Kate knew what it was like. She went through the same thing with her ex girlfriend, Sydney.

“Just be cool, and calm. Give her flowers, and be straight. Trust me, I know my cousin and she loves flowers. She loves the small but thoughtful gesture. Then, just ask her to be your girlfriend, I guarantee you, she won’t say no.” Kate reassured Hannah. Kate knew you best, and she knew that you didn’t need a grand gesture to express the love you had to share. Hannah nodded, taking the idea and saving it for after practice.

“Go straight for it. Definitely be straight up. Be like ‘Hey, I like you. Then bam, kiss her.” Camila was way too enthusiastic and unserious. You gave her an incredulous look, as you both stretched, instantly regretting asking her.

“Uh…how about I don’t..do that.” You continued to stretch your legs, balancing trying to do the flamingo.

“It worked for me.” Camila shrugged her shoulders. “Assert your dominance, it’ll work.” She nodded her head, a big grin on her face. She totally wasn’t joking.

“I’m not a damn dog, Camila. I don’t need to assert anything. What about if I give her flowers and just ask her to be my girlfriend? That would work, right?” You scrunched your eyebrows, hoping to hear a yes so you didn’t actually have to go with Camila’s plan.

“Oh, yeah. That could work too. Didn’t think about that one.” Camila looked at the ground, before giggling to herself.

“Of course you didn’t.” You shook your head and continued on with your practice. You were going to stop at trader joe’s later, buy Hannah flowers, and make her your girlfriend.

You didn’t know if it was the nerves or just the total blindsidedness of watching Hannah’s car pull into the parking lot, but you suddenly started to panic. You had been sitting by the window, on the phone with Kate. You were showing her the arrangement of flowers you were putting together for Hannah. Red and Blue tulips, signifying love and her being one of a kind, with some baby’s breath accents, for happiness. Tulips were her favorite so it was a no brainer.

“Oh my god, Kate! She just pulled into the parking lot.” You gasped as you looked out the window, dropping the freshly put together bouquet on the small coffee table.

“Are you spying on her?” Kate asked, laughing at your nervousness.

“No! You idiot! I’m just sitting by the window and she just so happened to park in the spot right in my view! I’m not crazy.” You pulled the curtain back a little, watching the car still run.

“Are you sure? You look a little crazy.” Kate asked, laughing silently while taking a facetime photo, the flashing catching your attention.

“Kate, i’m serious! Why hasn’t she turned the car off?” You looked through one more time, catching her car lights shut off, and the drivers side door open. “Oh shit! She’s getting out.” You grabbed your phone, walking over to the mirror hanging above the couch.

“How do I look?” You asked your cousin, after adjusting the crop top and shorts you were wearing, along with your hair.

“Like your about to not be single.” Kate winked, telling you to grab the flowers and call her back when you two were official.

“Okay, I love you, bye!” You shouted before hanging up the phone just in time to hear the lock turning. Hannah had been given a key to your place when you moved in a couple months ago.

You set your phone down, running to your room, and sitting on the bed. You didn’t want her to see you with the flowers right when she walked in, not wanting to be forced to ambush her with the question right away.

“Hey? I’m here!” Hannah shouted, putting her keys on the counter and sliding her shoes off at the door.

“I’m in the room! How was the game? Sorry I didn’t make it, I didn’t buy the tickets on time.” You were anxiously staring at the doorway, seeing her shadow move about the living room.

“No it’s okay, I know you’ll be at the next one,” You could hear her setting down her bag, as she was staying over again. Then you hear paper crinkling and was suddenly confused. What did she have that was making all that noise? “I need to talk to you, are you decent?” She asked, her shadow getting closer.

“Yeah, come in!” That’s when you saw her Hawkeye team jacket fill the doorway, noticing brown paper in her hand. That’s when you saw a bouquet of flowers.

Your hands tightened on her flowers, the anxiousness rising in the both of you. She stopped in her tracks, the sight of you and the flowers you were holding taking her by surprise.

“What are those for?” You both asked, questioning looks being exchanged between the two of you. “You first.” You said in unison again.

“Hannah.” You motioned for her to go first. You noticed the blush rising in her cheeks. She moved from side to side, not being able to stand still now that she was on the spot.

“Uh, I got these for you, obviously. Your favorite.” Pink roses and baby’s breath. You loved pink roses, as they resembled gentleness and love. Two things you prided yourself on in your social and romantic life. Plus you just loved the romantic aspect of roses. She handed you the bouquet, her nerves relaxing when she saw the awestruck look on your face. The small smile she loved now taking home on your lips.

“What for Hannah? They’re beautiful, thank you.” You smiled at her widely, your admiration for her only growing by the second. Hoping that she’d ask you what you wanted her to.

“Because a pretty girl like you deserves pretty flowers and someone who will always buy them for her, no matter the reason. I wanted to know if you’d be my girlfriend, y/n.” Her voice steady, her stance stilling, and her sincerity concrete.

You looked at her in awe. You had no words for how she made you feel in this moment. You couldn’t believe that this was your life. “Are you serious?” Your face was hot, and you were for sure that your face was turning pink by the second.

“Yes. Will you be my girlfriend?” Hannah’s nerves now coming back as you took a while to answer her question while you held the flowers she bought you.

“That’s so not fair!” You said as you set your flowers on the bed, still holding Hannah’s. Her face dropped, suddenly worried that she misread this whole thing and you did infact not want to date her. “I wanted to ask you first, dammit.” You laughed softly, still smiling wideyed at the tall girl in front of you.

She visibly relaxed, before relieved chuckling. You handed her the flowers, making sure she took them before you grabbed her face gently, rose slowly on your tippy toes, amd kissed her softly. “Of course I’ll be your girlfriend, Hannah Stuelke. I was beginning to think you’d never ask.” You smiled before you picked your flowers back up, and led you both into your kitchen.

She followed behind you, not saying anything. Starstruck at how you said yes to her, kissed her, and walked away like it was so normal. “Wait, youre my girlfriend?” Hannah asked, disbelief written all over her face.

“Yes, Stuelke. I am indeed, your very happy girlfriend.” You walked over, putting your flowers down on the counter, grabbing hers from her hands and putting them down right next to yours, and you grabbed her face again.

You stood in between her legs while she was seated at the island barstool in your kitchen, smiling stupidly wide at you. “Kiss me.” You whispered, smiling softly when her hands grabbed your hips, pulling you closer towards her.

She kissed you gently, the kiss itself being foreign to the both of you, but feeling so natural like you’ve been doing it forever.

[grimweaver]

Good to be home! Actors talking about wanting to be with their family made me run back to mine! I missed them!

Had a blast at Twin Cities Con !! It felt like three days worth of Christmas morning, yet at the same time like boot camp because that's the only other time I have done so much "bumper-to-bumper" walking around, and hurrying up to stand while waiting an excruciatingly long time. Oh and there was a lot of shouting but it was staff scolding people blocking walkways.

I am extremely agoraphobic, I hate bright lights, I have foot problems, I have never driven myself to Minneapolis before and was nervous about it, and I was doing this kind of thing alone for the first time in over fifteen years. But

But I was determined to be there for these people....

Hayden Christensen and IanMcDiarmid

Yes! I was so sure that I would have to go to San Diego or New York for this privilege, and traveling to those places alone would have broken the bank. Thank you so much for coming out here! I've been a Star Wars fan since 1995, when I happened to catch a scene from "Return of the Jedi" at Roundtable Pizza and asked my mother about it. So I got the original trilogy that was rereleased the Christmas of that year and became an instant fan. (There is nothing wrong with a Herbert cousin being a Star Wars fan too. Dune and Star Wars are not rivals!) so it's great to meet someone that had been a part of the franchise from the very beginning, and played two of the greatest villains of all cinematic history!

I totally get how crowds can be overwhelming, but I hope you will always take away from these experiences the understanding that the love and appreciation that you have deserved from the very beginning of your career is out there and it is massive. There are always going to people that chose to thrive by spreading their misery instead of finding more positive ways to deal with their problems, but don't listen to them. You saw how many people piled in like cattle for hours for a little bit of time to tell you how much they love you. The autograph thing was only icing on the big cake- a souvenir for a moment that mattered most to them. They were there for you! I only regret that referred to one film when I talked to you, Hayden. You are great in ALL movies! I was trying to get out what I could in the very little time I had, so I referred to a film I didn't think was mentioned often, and made sure to express appreciation.

Wes Johnson

After 16 years of being an Elder Scrolls fan and Lucien nut it's a real treat to finally meet the the one who voiced him and other beloved characters of the franchise, especially when I was the one that got stopped while browsing Artists Alley. I'm just flattered beyond words that you would spare free time just to talk like we were friends bumping into each other in the grocery store lol. For the longest time I thought I would have to fly out to a DC con for this ! Thank you much for coming out here again! And Thank you for saying I'm a good mom-- I should say you are an awesome dad and I wish I could have been as lucky as your kids are!Hope to see you again soon!

Big thanks to everyone that made this experience possible!!!

[ilvvd0b]

old friends

(there will be a part 2)

summary:

y/n conklin and jeremiah have gotten extremely close over the past few summers, but when it's that time of year again, things get a little complicated for the two boys

warnings: just a brief mention of underage drinking

word count: 1511

the drive to cousins was pretty much the same every year, your mom drives, steven's in the front and you're in the back on your phone the whole way

but this year is different, steven's driving and you're in the front, humming along to the music on the radio and distantly listening to steven talk about god knows what, all you did was wonder what jeremiah looked like, did he look the same? did he get taller? did he cut his hair? did his eyes get impossibly more blue?

you were about to find out as steven pulled into the driveway to the cousins house

you let steven and your mom get out first, looking at your phone to avoid getting out of the car, you didn't know why you were so nervous this year and why you were stressing so much

"y/n! get out of the car please and come say hi!" your mom shouts

without a second thought you got up and out the car and chose to go for a casual stance, leaning against the hood of your moms car

this was casual right?

before you had time to overthink, you saw jeremiah making his way over to u and his mouth parted slightly as he looked at you

"is that you y/n?" he jokes and you smile chuckling softly

over the school year you decided to start hitting the gym more frequently, you began to fill into your body and even gained a decent amount of muscle, nothing too crazy for a 15 year old, but also nothing short of average, you also decided to cut your hair making it better frame your face

you all around did have a nice glow up and it showed

"of course its me jer" you say as he envelopes you into a hug

"its great to see you man" he puts a hand on my shoulder and we lock eyes

maybe his eyes did get bluer..

"oh. my. god." you hear from infont of you and jer. you both turn your heads to the person who spoke, susannah, "look at my handsome boy!" she says happily, "oh you got so big, you're like a foot taller" she laughs hugging me

"he ended up growing a ton over the school year" my mom says coming up next to susannah

"you're almost jeremiahs height" she says, hands claped together like shes reminiscing on an old memory

"conrad, what's up man!" you hear steven speak and i see conrad let out a small smile

"hey," conrad speaks lightly and you walk towards the two sharing a short hug and stuff your hands in your pockets

"hey con," you speak softly

"what's up y/n, looking good" she says looking at me and leans in for a side hug

jeremiah comes over and puts an elbow on both you and steven

"we on for bonfire tonight?" he asks

"hell yeah man," steven smiles

"i'm in" conrad replies

they all turn to me

"what about you y/n?" jeremiah asks

to be honest, you weren't really feeling a party tonight, maybe just stay home with the moms and watch old cheesy movies like you used to

"i dont..." you trail off as you look at jeremiah, his eyes piercing right through you

how could you say no to those eyes?

"i guess i could-"

"guys he's still 15, can't expose him to all that" steven cuts you off

''oh come on steven!" jeremiah whines

"maybe next year" steven says smirking, cleary trying to piss you off

jeremiah was about to protest until you speak up, "it's cool jer, i'm good staying home with the moms"

" i mean if you say so.." he says looking... disapointed?

"wait," he says looking concerned and checking his pockets for something

"what?" you ask confused

"steven, do you know what time it is?" he asked still acting concerned

"oh shit man," he say looking at a non-existant watch on his wrist

"oh no, not this year," you say backing up

"you know i think its time for a-"

"belly flop!" steven is cut off by the fishers as they scream and you try to run but they end up catching you as always

as you're being held up you take out your phone and throw it on the grass excepting your fate as they loudly count to 3 and you get thrown into the surprisingly warm water, as you resurfface, you pretend like you've hurt you ankle and reach your hand out to jeremiah

"i got you" he says right before you yank him in, conrad and steven laugh talking about 'how stupid he was for falling for that'

-

the boys already left for the bonfire and at this point you weren't up for a movie night so you face timed your best friend taylor

"hey y/n, what's up? how's the summer going so far?" she asks getting ready for something

"uh pretty good i guess" you scratch the back of your neck

"what's happening? you never call this early. things not going well with jeremiah" she laughs

"what?" you ask "why wouldn't things be going right with him?" you ask acting oblivious

"oh you just because of your massive crush on him" she jokes

"i don't know what our talking about" you look away from the screen

"mhm sure, where are the guys anyway?"

"out of some bonfire party thing"

"and why aren't you there?" she accuses

you honestly didn't know why you didn't fight steven on that, it would've been a great opportunity to talk with jeremiah more- you shook the thought out of your head

"just didn't feel like it" you decide on saying

"look, nothings gonna happen if your stuck up in your room crying waiting for the guys to get home" she was right

"but nothing would happen because there is nothing to happen"

"ok, whatever you say" she puts her hands up "but get dressed and walk down there, i gotta go but, have fun!" she hangs up and you get dressed and head out sneaking passed your mom and susannah

once you arrived you were standing alone, awkward and once again, hands in your pockets

"heyyy cutie" you turned ur head to see an obviously drunk girl walking up next to you

"hey" cringing at how awkward you sounded

"you just get here?" she asks puttin her hand on your exposed arm

"um-"

"y/n?" you look up to see your brother and some girl, he looked mad

"hey steven" you've never been happier to see him

"back off he's 15" he says to the girl and she backs away, hands up, "what're you doing here?"

"y/n!" jeremiah comes towards the both of you and puts an arm around your shoulder, "what's happening man, i thought you weren't coming, now we can all hangout!" he says with a big smile on his face

you just look at him, his face impossibly close to yours, and you swear you felt your heart skip a beat when his face turned to yours, you maintaned eye contact for a good 5 seconds before steven interupted, but to you it felt like an eternity

"i'm taking him home" he says annoyed

"no i'll have him hang with me" jeremiah says almost pleading

"yeah why don't you just go makeout some more" you say putting your hand on jeremiah's arm, no idea where that came from

"yeah steven come on, let's just go"

"fine" he walks away

"just me and you y/n/n" jeremiah smiles at you

"guess so"

you guys find a spot away from the noise and just sit and watch the water, talking about things you did over the school year and sipping beers

"i really missed you over the school year" he says putting his hand on your back

"you could've texted me, i missed you too" you say softly looking into his eyes

jeremiah always had a way to make you feel important. maybe it was the beer getting to your head or maybe taylor really was right, you want to be important to him in a different way, a new way

he scootches closer to you and maybe, just maybe something might happen until there's shouting in the distance and a crowd forming

you both stand up to go check it out

it was conrad and some dude from the gas station on the way up to the house

your too busy looking at flashing lights in the distance to listen to the arguement, "cops," you whisper finally seeing the car

"what?" jeremiah says trying to interfere with the fight

"cops!" you shout and everyone scatters and all of a sudden you're being pulled along with jeremiah to his car. you help him get a very drunk conrad in the car before yourself

"i'm gonnna go find steven" and only a minute after jeremiah left, cops are shinning flashlights into the car

your mom was not happy when you were escorted home by the police

[fangirlofallthefanthings]

Hello!

My name is Char. (any similar nickname is acceptable) I am an artist, writer, and, as the name implies, a fan of many things. I mostly reblog or shout rare, post-worthy thoughts into the ether. At the moment, my interests lie with:

The Trojan War and Greek Mythology in general

Ancient History

EPIC: The Musical

Crochet

However, if anything shiny catches my eye, I'll also reblog that.

If you choose to follow, great! But there are a few ground rules you need to be aware of:

This is a safe space. If you're going to be a bigot, terf, ableist, racist, any sort of phobic, or disrespectful in any way, shape, or form, get the fuck out.

With that out of the way I have posted a few things that might tickle your fancy on A03! I am the account "A_Humble_Fan17" over there. Here is the link

There is much more on the way, but in the meantime, feel free to check out the tags "fanfic" and "char writes" for any updates or snippets! Here are a few things I'm working on:

A series of four works that go through Odysseus's life (details below)

An AU where Paris of Troy mistakenly kidnaps Penelope instead of Helen titled Ithaca's Nine

A medieval AU with a twist involving characters from the Iliad and Odyssey titled Adventure Awaits! that I will be updating here on Tumblr (link to Pt.1)

A post-canon fic for the movie trilogy Night At The Museum titled When The World's (Treasures Are) At Stake (link to snippet)

THE BIG SERIES:

A Boy and A Goddess: Odysseus fights the giant boar as a boy and wins, gaining Athena's favor and a large scar on his leg. Tiny Bean(tm) hijinx continue through the years as he becomes a man. And maybe a little self-discovery?

A Change of Plans: Word travels to Ithaca that Helen of Sparta is up for marriage. Prince Odysseus decides to go, mainly to make allies for Ithaca but partly to watch the chaos unfold. But when he meets Helen's cousin, Penelope, plans change. This work involves the evolution of OdyPen's relationship, the oath of Tyndareus, Odysseus winning Penelope's hand, their marriage, and Odysseus becoming king. Also baby Telemachus! :D

Troy Story: War. Lots of angst. A lot of blaming himself. But he finds unlikely friends and allies through it all.

The King and The Infant: (explanation here)

I can't wait to share more with you all! More is on the way! I promise! <3

Asks: Open! :D

Worm by my lovely moot, @iroissleepdeprived

[seeminglyranch87]

Taylor & Travis Timeline

December 2023 - part 2

December 10 - Chiefs v Buffalo Bills, Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City.

Travis Kelce arriving ahead of game

Taylor flies into Kansas City to attend the Chiefs game with her cousins, Travis' cousins & friends at Arrowhead Stadium

Travis made a brilliant play contributing to a touch down but was denied due to a team mates penalty.

During the game, NFL announcer and former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo referred to her as "Travis' wife" while on the air with announcing partner Jim Nantz.

"As you see, Kelce's wife, Taylor Swift, in the audience," Romo pointed out, quickly correcting himself and saying, "I'm sorry -- girlfriend."

"Not yet," Nantz said in response.

Chiefs were defeated 17 - 20.

Taylor and Travis leave the stadium together

Taylor and Travis together with team mates, coaches friends and family gather at Miracle Pop Up Bar

Travis' barber shares a photo of Taylor and Travis (x)

Lots of photos emerge from the party with Taylor and travis taking photos with friends - these have been cropped...

December 11 - Taylor is nominated for a Golden Globe for The Eras tour movie.

USA Today reports that Taylor has donated $1 million to a Tennessee tornado relief Fund (x) after a Tornado ravaged the state on Saturday 9 Dec.

ET article (x)

According to Cheterah Jackson, a Columbus, Ohio-based real estate agent and friend of Travis', the couple rented a luxury bus to transport their group and reserved the Christmas bar in downtown Kansas City for friends and family. 

Jackson tells ET, "My boyfriend Calvin Locke... is Travis' friend and has known him since the 7th grade. We were in the suite at the game, which was filled with family and friends."

"Taylor is an absolute sweetheart. She is very down-to-earth and kind." 

"Taylor and Travis are so in love. It was so cute seeing them together and I can see them getting married"  

December 12 - Taylor returns to NYC. Pictured with Miles & Keleigh Teller

December 13 - New Heights Ep. 68 airs (x 5:05)

Jason and Travis limit talking about Taylor although when the brothers chat about the No.1 & No.2 sales of NFL jerseys in the UK, they give credit to Swifties for helping with the success of topping the sales and Travis gives a "shout out to Kylie and Taylor." Travis suggests that perhaps they could "find our way over there this off season and say hello to everyone in person" and record a live show in the UK. Jason replies "we also got an opportunity to do one in Australia - we could make it a world tour"

Any one know of an international pop star who may be touring in the UK and Australia in 2024 that coincides with the NFL off season? Are the Kelce brothers hinting that Travis and perhaps Jason will join Taylor on tour next year? It should be noted that Patrick Mahomes has also raised the idea of possibly catching the Era's Tour in Europe in the off season too...

The boys answer "No Dumb Questions" from handle "metal-as-hell", a reference to Taylor's TIME article calling Travis "metal as hell" when he publicly declared his interest in dating Taylor.

Taylor Swift's 34th Birthday - Taylor heads to Banzarbar, NYC with friends to celebrate her birthday into the early hours of the morning - Happy Birthday Taylor! The paps even broke out into song to sing Taylor "Happy Birthday". Note Travis remained in KC with commitments to the Chiefs. This was expected.

December 14 - Taylor and friends share photos from the birthday celebration the evening before (x)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift)

December 15 - Taylor is named Billboard's No.1 Greatest Pop Star (x)

It didn’t seem possible that anyone could have a year this dominant: not this deep into the streaming era, not this long after the oft-proclaimed death of the monoculture, not when the entire industry seems to be in crisis over how to capture and hold onto listener attention. It was a year not to be judged against Swift’s 2023 peers, but against the entirety of modern pop history. 

There is no wasted potential with Taylor Swift, no what ifs – the chance was there for her to have one of the greatest years any pop star has ever had, and you know that she grabbed it. Taylor was here. No one who was around for her 2023 will ever forget it.

With reference to Taylor's relationship with Travis, Billboard's Andrew Unterberger says:

... rumors were beginning to swirl about her and Kelce. The Chiefs star had become increasingly coy in his comments about the pop icon, saying he’d invited her to come see him play a home game (after he’d seen her Eras show in Kansas City that July). She did indeed do just that on the September 24th, with her presence at Arrowhead sending both the worlds of sports and pop culture into a frenzy, and leading to numerous posts and videos of non-football-conversant Swifties sharing the sport’s rules with one another, so they could better understand what was happening in between the shots of their hero in a private box with Kelce’s mom Donna.  From then on, every Sunday (and a couple Mondays and Thursdays) of 2023 was overtaken with Taylor talk: Would she be showing up at the Chiefs’ next game? What other celebrities would she be attending with? What kind of Kelce swag would she be wearing, and what would that mean about their relationship? What do you mean Kansas City is on a bye week?While Swift’s short relationship with Healy was extremely controversial to Swifties and her long relationship with Alwyn was largely uninteresting to everyone else, her love story with Kelce – a well-liked, unproblematic figure, a Super Bowl-winning superstar as an athlete with enough of a Q rating as a celebrity to host SNL – was universally accessible, and found near-100% public approval. You didn’t need deep grounding in Swift Lore to understand the relationship, because it just felt right: the All-American athlete dating the All-American pop star. 

Go to part 1 of December 2023

Go to part 3 of December 2023

Return to the timeline

[imlivinginyourtrashcan]

back at it again with the swap au

In this version, Giovanni is a mundie! Part of the crime family, The Potages! Only containing Gio, his two moms, and his very concerned Epithet having cousins, The Roughhouses

Now for what you've all been waiting for:

The mugger shrunk back. W-what the hell was she supposed to do in a situation like this?! Her eyes darted over towards the two teens cowering next to the backpack. Desperately, she grabbed the sea urchin looking one and held him at knifepoint, he pantomimed in mute protest.

"St-stop right there!" She shouted. "Don't you care what happens to these two?!"

Giovanni's grin did not falter for a second, in fact, it had gotten wider. More gremlin esc, you could say. He flicked his arms, hiding them inside his sleeves. "You think a hostage can save your ass? HAH!" He barked. "Go 'head, don't need 'em alive to sell their stuff, best thing they can do is postpone the inevitable by a few seconds, then I'll have three more body's under my belt." He flicked his sleeves, several switchblades coming out from inside, dragging them across the alley walls, his foot steps driving into the mugger's head like a mysterious ticking noise

Tik

Tik

Tik

"Is five thousand dollars worth their lives? Is it worth yours? You gonna wake up with five thousand in your pocket after you watch two teenagers die in front of ya? Or ya gonna let yourself die? These are aaaaalll hypothetical, it don't matter to me! It's your choice 'Sides," Giovanni stopped, eyes gazing the mugger with a serious, shaded away expression, like in an anime. "I've killed for less."

Suddenly, Giovanni charged the mugger head on until she ran out of the alleyway, screaming her head off like she had just saw five horror movies all at once.

Giovanni stopped, waiting until dead silence was all that remained.

Once there was reassurance that she was fully gone, the two ex-hostages looked at their saviour.

Giovanni Potage did not have an Epithet

Giovanni Potage had never been in a real fight in all seventeen years of his life.

Giovanni Potage started to laugh out of panic

"HOOOLY SMOKES!!! HAHAHAHA!!!" He spat quickly, hiding the knives in his sleeves while he gripped the wall. "That was SO SCARY! Hah! I may be laughing but on the inside I'm dying!"

Giovanni hadn't lied to the mugger fully about his background, his side of the family were a bunch of criminals, growing up learning how to scare, cheat, and lie his way through life. He tries his best to put all that behind him, though. If he had an Epithet, like his parents, he would use all these tricks all he wanted, but, he was a Mundie. So that means he has to lay low.

He desperately wheezed, hacking up whatever was in his throat. "Oh my god what a rush! I straight up thought we were all gonna croak! I know I kept my cool, but I swear If anyone touched me I would turn to dust."

Rick wrapped his arms around Giovanni, crying big stupid tears. "GIOVANNII!!!! MY SECOND BESTEST FRIEND!!! THANK YOU!!! YOU'VE SAVED US FROM THE MONEY HUNGRY WENCH!!!!!"

Giovanni awkwardly patted his back, then Lorelai was dragged into the hug, Rick nestling his head in the middle, tears falling onto the concreate.

"You too, Lorelai! I am so sorry the woman had drenched your work! But the best thing is that.... we are ALL HERE!!"

Ah, the beloved Neo Trio. Standing near each other, all three looked like Neapolitan ice cream, Lorelai and Rick's hair even made it so some of the ice-cream got into their section, authentic!

Giovanni Potage and Rick Shades, Lorelai's best friends, she cared about them more than anything else.

Now for RICK! Our beloved Rich little Sea Urchin! In the au, he's a Mundie, much like Giovanni. Being homeschooled most of his life, Rick never really got people, and people never really got him. He later finds two new BEST FRIENDS! Giovanni and Lorelai.

The good stuff:

"Hey.."

"Oh- eh- hello!" Rick waved awkwardly like a robot, as he started to sweat from the very thought of human interaction.

"Nice lookin' bag ya got there..."

The 'bag' she was referring to was Rick's murse, it was a cute little purple purse in the shape of a sea urchin. Rick had a... strange obsession with sea creatures, sea slugs, cephalopods, isopods, shrimps, crabs, you name it? He loved it. Sometimes he would tell random strangers facts only he thinks are cool.

"Thank you!" Rick held it up "It's a sea urchin! By the way, did you know that the sea urchin uses the hydraulic pressure of water moving in and out of their tube feet to move about slowly. They can also propel themselves along with their spines. That's pretty impressive, considering sea urchins don't actually have brains!" Rick info dumped, not picking up on the fact the woman clearly did not care.

"Look's expensive..."

"Oh indeed it was! I had to personally commission it!" Rick grinned, like a glitched character in a video game. The air got too thick with awkward silence to where he had to leave. "Well! Bye!" He quickly made a break for the exit, but the woman blocked her path.

"Who'd you get to commission it for ya? Might be lookin t'get one.."

"Oh! I paid that nice man at the Baxter's crafting store! No clue what his name was, but I'm sure he'd be happy to make it for you!" The bells in his head were not going off when they really should be

"Ooooooh Baxter's? Gee, I don't think I can afford it"

"Hm! Troubling!" Rick blinked, pulling out a book about Marine Biology from his murse. "Anyways, do you want to hear about 101 Ocean Wildlife Facts?"

Rick did not wait for an answer before flipping through it, clearing his throat, he read the first fact. "Number one! Many bony fish have more than just one set of nostrils. The nostrils of fish also do not open into the back of the mouth like those of mammals, and are not, therefore, for breathing. They lead into organs of smell, which are very sensitive in order for fish to detect the presence of food in the water at considerable distances. More nostrils = more smelling! Huh! Well isn't that neat?"

Rick, once again, did not wait for a reply from the woman. "Ahem, number two-"

The woman didn't think twice before trying to snatch the murse from Rick, making him grab for it with a whine. "Heyyy! That's mine!"

"Not for long!" The woman replied, tugging it. Rick shimmied his way out of her grasp, clutching the murse closely as he shoved the book back inside it.

"You bully! You could've broken it! I know just how to deal with you!" Rick declared, inching closer to the woman before embracing her. "You are only mean because of what society has done! I will be the first to break your mind away from these patterns of violence and thievery! I... forgive you!"

The woman swiftly snatched up the boy by his aquarium back pack, causing him to flail and wail.

"NOOOOOOOO!!! VHS TAPES!!!!! YOU LIEEEEEEEEE!!!!!"

[evita-shelby]

They didn't know we were seeds

Chapter 15

Cw: death, trauma, rage issues, mentions of cannibalism

Heaven Lavey belongs to @call-sign-shark ,Nina to @peakyswritings

@justrainandcoffee @emotionalcadaver

There were always rumors that the lands up north had people no longer subject to Panem, as there are rumors of South America existing beyond the ocean that covered Central America and what used to be southern Mexico.

Those who went looking never came back. The last she heard, Dalton, a man who used to work with Cousin Andres had left and so far, no body had been found.

“What do you mean?” Eva asked quietly fearing they’d still be overheard.

“13 and Panem made a treaty that 13 would fuck off and Panem would let them be as long as they never made contact. Our friends have been working with them to end all this.” He explained, just as quietly as she had spoken. “There’s a network that helps you evade peacekeepers and the like from 11 to 12 and then leading you to 13s first watchtowers.”

So, Lyme knew of it through Aveline, or Chaff and Seeder? Haymitch was somehow involved as the only victor of 12 by the looks of it too.

And now they did.

“We could leave, take Laurie and run.” He takes her face in his hands and begs her to run away with him.

“We’ll talk about this at home, I don’t trust this place.” Eva hides her no well enough for him to fool him. False hope was better than no hope at all.

Maybe they could run away if Heavensbee doesn’t find his symbol before Laurie’s 12th birthday, or if things become harsher for them, but right now isn’t the time.

Even when it will destroy Jack to lose his niece.

“For now, I need you to be strong for Gina’s sake. She’s terrified, Lyme told me about last night’s nightmare and how scared she is.” The woman pulled him closer until he was resting his sweaty head against her, and she could calm him down enough to pretend he’s not broken.

“I don’t know if I can, every time I see her, I know she’ll come back in a coffin. I killed her, if I hadn’t---” he’s too weighed down by the what ifs that Jack can’t even feign strength.

“Shh, I know, Jack, for Gina’s, for me and Laurie, don’t let them know they’ve won.” Eva soothed him as best as she could.

It was no wonder Abilene and the victor before her got so bad, how can you live past this? How can you live when your child is dead?

A freak summer storm stops them from having another pool party on the last day of training, but they have a party with foods and snacks teenagers like in the game room no one uses in this hotel instead. For a moment they are kids, tomorrow they’ll try and hope to charm the Capitol as to why they deserve to live and the day after these kids die at each other’s hands.

Eva shows up with Matty and their kids and try their best to ignore Gina’s death stares at her. She knows her as the woman who murdered her dad whom she had never truly met. She may die never knowing that Eva is her aunt, Jack has no idea how to even tell her.

Jack has done his best to be strong for her, to give her the false hope that she may actually survive this. The blonde tween had beamed at him when the trainers praised her for her agility and skill.

“I don’t know if I’m going to tell her; I can’t send her off like that.” He admits as they sit against the wall while the kids watch some funny movie that’s all the rage in the capitol right now.

“Then don’t, I won’t make you do it.” She whispers as she gave his hand a good squeeze.

“I love you.” He says, turning to look at her thinking no one can see or hear them and even worse kisses her sweetly as if he might never see her again.

“So, its true then? You’ve been fucking this bitch like she didn’t kill my dad!” Gina makes her presence known with a shout and begins throwing anything she can get her hands on at them, at him.

Gina’s shouting loud enough to startle the avox setting out her night clothes.

“They talked about it at school and I told them you would never do that, that you loved my dad too much to fuck her and have a baby with her!” the betrayal has his niece crying and screaming as her image of Jack is shattered by the truth.

“I planned on telling you, once it was safe to do so, Gee. Shit is more complicated than you think.” The mentor still barely knows how to explain it to a child.

As much as Gina thinks she is grown, she is still a fucking twelve-year-old girl.

“She killed your brother, my dad, and you decided to get together with her even if its fucking illegal!” she grows shrill and loud unaware every second of this is being recorded.

“Once you are inside that arena, you have no choice, kid. Even those of us who volunteer.” He would love to tell her everything and hope she could change her mind, but he cannot. “Every victor here has met the victor that took their loved one. I killed two kids she grew up with, Brutus and Wiress had killed her brothers.

Most of us learn to forgive them and even befriend them. If you survive your games, you’ll know what I mean.”

“Did you have to name him Laurie?” Gina asks, having heard some of what he said. She never would understand it entirely because she is going to die this weekend. Something that he hates himself for.

“No, but we wanted to. I’ll never see him beyond pictures, at least I know he is mine and that his name is what I wanted to name my son.” Jack lies through his teeth to a girl already dead.

There is an axe at the cornucopia.

It is a dense foggy forest at the foot of a snowcapped mountain and while everyone has a reason to fear for their tributes, no one has their own flesh and blood in there.

Jack is glued to the screen, digging his nails on the back of the chair he’s sitting backwards on as he mutters as if Gina could hear him. Gina had done exactly as he had trained her to do and with the career pack with her had survived the bloodbath.

Marius and the rest of the careers do their best to protect her, getting her safe and armed with the hunting knife meant to tempt Titus from 6. Titus was too fond of meat, always hungry and prone to biting other tributes and even trainers. Had trained with a hunting knife and had promised to carve out his enemies’ hearts and even Caeser in his urine-colored hair wasn’t sure how to spin that.

His mentor had whispered of a cannibalism charge that led to him being reaped. Said poverty was so bad in their district that it was not unheard of for someone to eat another human being.

The Gamemakers had given him a 10 in hopes of getting the careers to kill him faster.

Jack knows the game is over when Heaven Lavey comes away with the bloody axe and proceeds to hunt the weaker ones hiding about the woods that same night.

Marius had had the hots for her, like Laurie once had for Eva because Jack had made the mistake of saying the girl from 10 was 10 and asked if he agreed with Jack’s assertion. Jack had to warn the boy several times that the hot chick from 7 was there to kill him not take his virginity.

Eva’s kids had hidden well, worked together to get a handful of things and hid in a tree for the night. Chel was good at climbing, the cacao trees could be up to 40 feet tall or so she had said in her interview last night. Andy had a tree house high up a mesquite, and while not as adept didn’t fare too badly as Eva had feared.

Gina has yet to kill someone, the most she did was maim the girl from 6 that one of Cashmere’s kids finished off. But she was safe as long as the career pack didn’t break off. By herself she was as likely to survive as Alfie and Nina’s kids.

“I’ll stay with you until its over.” Eva moves a chair close to him after having reminded Nina from 9 to keep herself hydrated because she’s in the same shape as Jack.

Eva’s a healer, always taking care of everyone. It’s something he loves about her.

But Jack doesn’t know he’ll ever recover when Gina dies because he was too chickenshit to take them and run.

Gina is killed in the second day. She’d spotted a shock of white hair by the lake and tried to drown her thinking her easy prey.

It was morning when Jack is made to watch as Heaven Lavey buries her hatchet into his niece’s head.

Jack doesn’t come too until he is sitting in a room he destroyed with his bare hands. He is bleeding and hurt and crying like he’s never cried before sitting in the rubble of his room.

“I killed her. I killed her. I killed her!”

[liunnarieisfree]

◇Author × Ben Clark◇

Warning; Horror and creepy

Insanity is the only way out.

It's been months since the time that we went to Savannah where everything started. If only I knew that it would turn out this way, I would've chosen to sleep in my bed rather than go to Savannah. That place is curse.

"HEY!" I jolted from where I was standing when that voice came out of nowhere.

I heard Aiden laugh because of my reaction. Where did he get all that energy from? Is he not tired from dealing with those Phantoms? Because I am.

I sighed and rolled my eyes at him. I look around looking for that one person who's mostly sane in our group, unlike his cousin.

"Looking for Ben?" Aiden asked.

Obviously, yes. But instead of saying that, I just nodded my head in response.

"He's kind of sick because of those sleepless nights that we had." He said.

"He's having a fever?" I asked.

"Yup." He said with a nod.

Before I could even think properly, I immediately turned around and started walking myself out of the school.

"HEY! WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!" Aiden shouted and calling my name.

"To your house." I said, I'm not sure if he heard it, but I don't seem to care.

It took me half an hour to arrive at Aiden's house and I immediately knock at the door hoping that Ben would open it but a few minutes have passed and no one open the door so I decided to twist the door knob hoping that it's not lock. My prayer is answered because the door is not locked, and I walk myself freely inside.

I look around the house, hoping that I'll see Ben.

"Ben! Where are you?" I shouted his name, but when I didn't hear any answer from him, I decided to walk around the house and look for him.

I'm close to Aiden's family because Aiden's mother is my mom's best friend. So, Aiden and I grew up with each other, but I didn't know Ben until recently when he decided to live with Aiden's family. After years of being close with him and his family, there's only one thing that I'm sure at. Their family is no different from mine.

I kept on walking around, hoping that I'll see him, but there's still no sign of him being in here. I went upstairs to knock at Aiden's room, but still no response, same with Ben's room. I've been walking around the house looking for him for half an hour now and I still couldn't find him.

The more time that I spent looking for him, the more I felt fear. I've been feeling this lately to the point that it keeps bugging me, and I couldn't just ignore it.

There's still one room that I haven't gone into and I don't even know if it's safe to go in there because Aiden's family kept telling me that it's the only room I'm not allowed to enter.

I'm not sure if he's in there, but I'm hoping that I'll see him already. I heaved a sigh before walking my way downstairs, which led me towards the basement. The stairs kept on making a sound while I was walking, and that didn't help me at all because it just made me think of those horror movies. I swear if I died in here, I'd cry out of embarrassment because that's the most stupid way to go.

The stairs lead me to a dark wooden door that looks so much older than Aiden's house. I don't know if that's possible. I gather all the courage that I have within me to twist the rusty door knob.

Oh, please help me.

The room is dark because there's no sign of light in here, but my eyes immediately adjust on the dark. Perks of being in a phantom realm.

I look around, hoping that I'll see Ben, but I can't see anything except boxes and papers that are scattered on the floor. This room is filled with dust as if it's not clean for so many years.

I walk around the room looking for him, but there's something that caught my attention. There's an object that's covered with a white blanket, and so out of curiosity, I walk towards it and remove the blanket that is covering the object. As I removed the blanket, dust immediately flew in my direction, which made me cough.

And it shocked me to see a cylinder looking machine. I haven't seen any like this before, so I thought maybe it's just being invented.

While I was busy looking at the machine in front of me, I froze at my place when I heard a static sound like a TV being opened. I felt shivers run through my spine, and I couldn't move. I took a lot of my courage to turn around and look.

And that's the most dumbest thing that I've ever done for today.

The TV is on, and it shows a woman trapped inside of a cylinder machine that looks exactly the same with the machine that's beside me right now. The woman is shouting and laughing at the same time, like she's losing her mind, but she looks more like a phantom in a person's body. But what's at the TV is not something that I should be concerned about. It's the person that is standing beside it.

I saw Ben standing beside the TV with a wide smile on his face, showing his white teeth while his eyes were wide open, looking directly at me. He looks exactly like the woman on the TV. He looks like a phantom.

I was frozen at my spot, and I couldn't move nor utter a single word. My mind keeps telling me to run because the Ben that is in front of me now is not the Ben that I'm looking for.

"Liunnarie." That's the first time that I've heard him speak because he never does that. I never heard him talk. Not even once. Not until now. And the sound of his voice is scratching my brain because he doesn't sound like a person. This is far from what I expected his voice to be. He sounds like a phantom rather than a person.

And that's when I confirm it. It's a phantom that's standing in front of me and not Ben.