#so experimental or not I'm actually so happy to get to write him again

[the-amber-raven]

Snippet Sunday

It's been a bit of a struggle to get into the writing mindset recently (might be because my wedding is somehow only two months away and there is still so much organising to do oh my god how did time go so quickly 😫)

But I am hoping to post at least another fic or two before the show comes back, so I've been plugging away at a couple WIPs. We're going a bit experimental with some supernatural ghostly vibes in this one.

--

Daniel nodded slowly. “I can’t leave them alone while they’re sad, though,” he confessed, staring down at his hands intently. 

He looked up before continuing, wiggling his pinky finger at Tommy in such a deliberate way that Tommy was sure it was supposed to signify something although he had no idea what. 

“We were meant to stick together – to help each other. And I can’t – I know I can’t do that properly anymore. But I can at least stay with them until they’re happier.” Daniel nodded at Tommy, looking far more resolute and serious than any little kid should. 

“Sounds like a plan,” Tommy agreed.

After all – he knew better than most about how life inevitably churned on despite death and loss. As much as he was sure Daniel’s brother and sister would miss him, it surely wouldn’t take that long for them to show enough happiness to alleviate Daniel’s guilt and allow him to move on. 

– 

Daniel popped up twice more over the next few months. 

Tommy was walking home from school the first time, so he couldn’t really interact with Daniel, but that didn’t stop the boy from enthusiastically regaling him about how his little brother had mastered the fine art of walking. 

“It took him longer than normal because of all the surgeries he had to do for me,” Daniel explained, bouncing along next to Tommy. “But he’s finally doing it! And I know he can’t see me, but I was on one side of the room and Maddie was on the other side and he walked straight towards me, like he knew I was there cheering him on as well.” 

[thee-great-enigma]

Price would only give you the slightest hint of what you really want to see in his nudes, or around the house.

M!reader

Oh you're rock hard and want to rub against his ass for some relief? He sits down on the couch for three hours, completely ignoring you.

Oh you wanna eat him out, feel the weight of his cock on your throat? He'll walk around in sweatpants that are hanging so low on his hips that you can see the salt and pepper fringe of his happy trail and the very base of his thick cock, not that the sweatpants are hiding the outline of the pretty thing. But he swats your hand away anytime you try to touch him, walls away anytime you sit on your knees and plead for him to let you touch him because you "Need to so bad, sir, please? What have I done wrong that you won't let me touch you? Just- please? I'll be good, just please- please I need it, need you so bad sir," you whine only to be shut down again and again.

You want to fiddle with his chest whether it be playing with the soft hair or lightly pinching or sucking his nipples? He'll swat your hand away, wear a thick coat, send you pictures of anything else, make sure you can't get what you want.

And of course it makes it all the sweeter when he does finally let you have your way. But he's also busy doing his own thing, watching TV or reading a book. Bonus points if he's wearing his little reading glasses on the lower bridge of his nose to see the pages of his book or even paperwork. Since you've begged so nicely, been so good for him all day, he might as well give you a little bit of relief. When he first told you to kneel in front of him, you grinned stupidly, thinking he'd finally let you use your mouth for something other than pleading for him all day.

But instead, he shoved his foot between your thighs, shin practically crushing your cock. You let out an embarrassingly high pitched noise as pleasure and a small bit of pain rushes up your spine, making you slightly dizzy for a second. Your jaw gapes as you try to register this, grappling at his thighs for purchase. He doesn't even pay you a glance, just hooked his leg under your crotch and made sure there was enough pressure to keep you short of breath.

You give an experimental buck of your hips and when he doesn't do anything about it, you keep going, keep snapping your hips forward. You find purchase in his thighs, blunt nails digging into the plush skin as shaky gasps and moans escapes your lips. You don't mind this so much, it feels good and at least he's giving you a bit of pleasure. You just wish he'd look at you.

You whine up at him, pursing your lips and tilting your eyebrows up, murmuring into the couch cushion, "Baby please– please look at me– I'm begging you lovie, just look at me. C'mon, that book/show can't be that important"

And yet the only sort of attention his gives you is a low grumbled. "Dirty horndogs like you don't need to be looked at. Go ahead and cum, I don't care, just don't make me watch you do it."

You groan as you rub your poor abandoned cock against his leg, complaining about him being "too mean". You reached up for either the remote or the book, but he swats your hand away, again no even giving you a small flicker of attention.

Woah Enigma knows how to write!!! Yeah sorry for not being active, life has been kicking my ass and motivation is a rare visitor that only likes to come when I'm busy but this time I actually finished something!

Honorable mention, @rodolfoparras a lil gift since I may or may not have participated in the train me gnome and a few others ran through your husband

[chiiroptereh]

[Please zoom in, there's a lot of detail! And a massive file size...ouch]

Hi guys, long time no post! Been working on Art Fight and life stuff, but I've got something kinda fun for you.

This is a compilation exploring how a mortal Bill may interact with our world if there were still some kinda Euclidean instincts buried in there. Y'know, before the Book of Bill ruins all my headcanons >:P (EDIT: IT HAS BEEN READ. YAHOOOOOO)

Also quite an experimental piece as you can probably tell. Lots of details on both said headcanons and the art stuff under the cut, but I invite you to study the colorful texture yourself beforehand and think about what it might be representative of, just for fun because I got some really cool answers from my friends when asked :]c

TL;DR: the headcanon is that Euclideans have exceptional eyes for geometry. They find things like symmetry, tessellating patterns, graphs and fractals very aesthetically pleasing. If pushed into our 3D world, they feel comforted by the familiarity flat objects/spaces bring, as well as high-contrast patterns. Shadows especially are a familiar dimensional reduction that may bring them much comfort.

Bill would surely not be happy about these inclinations, constant reminders of a past long gone, but I'm not sure he's even aware of them here :P I think his ego gets in the way to the point where he just views these interests as common sense, which, of course, us lame humans just don't understand because we aren't nearly as cool as him. Of course he likes perfectly symmetrical leaves and staring at the kitchen floor, it's called taste, look it up!

And yet, he can't seem to shake the strange sense of melancholy he gets from viewing his own shadow.

~ End of TL;DR, long version below! ~

🔺 Headcanon Development

So, the catalyst of this idea was in relation to my friend and I's AU ( @love-triangles-au ). TL;DR, Bill's brought back mortal, meets another triangle named Y.V. (it's his hand holding the paper in the piece, actually), at some point they fall in yaois together, you know how it is. And, in writing a pair of triangles (or, more broadly, writing from the perspective of a different species), something I've had to consider was that you really can't get much further removed from a human being than sentient geometry.

The anatomical aspect was mostly figured out (see my piece on Bill's eye-mouth), but I wanted to consider what psychological differences might be at play. I wanted them to be weirder, more alien, double-so for Bill. At first I explored these possibilities through the lens of Bill and Y.V.'s relationship, specifically the question "what might a triangle find appealing about another triangle?"

Well, really the only things that came to mind were straight lines and symmetry, anything related to the geometric form of such a creature. That's more-or-less where that ended until the thought struck me that there's no reason this aesthetic appreciation couldn't extend to the rest of the environment, and then further when I realized, "wait, this is a species that is designed to live in a 2D environment. Like, they should seriously be really weird. I need to push this like 200% more."

So...yeah! I did some thinking and brainstorming with others and came up with a pretty long list of things a Euclidean in our world may be inclined to enjoy or find some level of comfort in. It's worth noting again that in this piece specifically this is a mortal/powerless Bill, so he can't really escape this Earthly environment. IF he's aware of these instincts at all (and that's a big "if"; when have you last been cognizant of your own instincts let alone known where they were stemming from?) I think he'd have snuffed them out in immortality and/or purposefully gone against them; he doesn't take kindly to being told what to do.

In order from left-to-right, top-to-bottom, here's an explanation for each!:

Flat objects such as paper are something he may find particularly engaging. It's basically 2D!

Tessellations are especially fascinating, and our world has them everywhere in the form of tile floors. Symmetry and such a predictable pattern...as the infinity of the starry sky might for us, the infinite potential of tessellations might invoke a similar sense of awe in him. Add on the maximum contrast of black on white kitchen tiles and the forms are only even better defined! A sensitivity to contrast would be very helpful for a 2D being navigating their environment.

Fields are flat and open, much like Euclydia itself. Laying flat may make him feel a little more at home.

More tessellation in the honeycomb of hymenopterans (bees, wasps and friends)! It helps that pain is hilarious.

The city is an absolute treasure trove. Rectangular buildings, precise architecture, square sidewalks and straight lines abound...he may as well be looking at a rainbow or an art gallery! I think a Euclidean's brain is very fine-tuned to mathematics, especially in regards to trigonometry. What may appear to be a straight painting might appear obnoxiously crooked to him.

Zebras are high-contrast :]

Another flat surface, another relaxing space <3

I think graphs are about as high as high art gets to most Euclideans.

I've touched on shadows before, and for good reason; truly they must be something borderline magical to the Euclidean and perhaps bitterly nostalgic.

This one kinda speaks for itself. Dweeb.

🎨 The Artsy Stuff

Lately I've been trying to find ways to fit more color into my work, as color is perhaps one of my favorite things in the world. My wardrobe is rather garish; my dad jokes that you could see me from space. My fursona is obnoxiously bright for a reason -- I feel my soul is a very colorful one!

I also realized recently that I don't actually know the exact style that speaks to me. I could talk about the phenomenon of the "style crisis" that many artists have all day, but in my mind the best cure for this feeling is to go against it entirely and begin stealing as much as possible.

So, I've tried to keep an eye out for more sources of inspiration everywhere I go, physical and digital. I've tried to train my mind into making a habit of considering, "can I do anything with this?" everywhere I go, and it recently paid off!

The glittery rainbowy texture you see plastered all over Billiam is this one, a photo-manipulated set of fruit stickers. I must confess I've been obsessed with this image for the past 72 hours, and this seemed like a good excuse to try it out!

I worried throughout the process if it might be so abstract that it loops back around to being horribly deliberate, if that makes sense -- like each sparkle was not a piece of a whole but rather an object in itself -- but it seems like that hasn't been a problem, so I'm grateful for that :Dc

I hope it can dazzle and delight you as it does me, but as long as you find it fascinating at the very least then I consider it a success! I really enjoyed hearing my friends' interpretations while workshopping it, and got tons of amazing answers from opal to kaleidoscope to fossilized bone marrow! I truly believe that the best art has some room for interpretation and it really excites me to be surrounded by that kind of creative energy that follows said pieces. That definitely adds to my pride in this work. It's weird, it's colorful, it's detailed and yet ambiguous. I'm feeling pretty autistic about it

Alright, I think that's about it. Thanks for listening!

[adventuringblind]

(●’◡’●)ﾉ, I'm in loove with your Oscar Piastri x autistic!reader series, it gives really beautiful perspective on navigating relationships while being neurodivergent. I was wondering if you do a imagine/headcannon for Oscar and reader and how they navigate sexual intimacy in particular, like do's and donts, emotions during it stuff like that. If ur not comfortable writing that then it's ok, I just thought it would be interesting ♡

Bedroom Procedures

Oscar Jack Piastri x Reader

Genre: spicy things ahead but not smut

Request: the way I ran to write this... send me more ideas like this please they are my favorite to write!

Summary: Oscar and Reader navigate through intimacy

Warnings: again... spicy things. However there is no real depiction of anything happening!

Notes: aight, so this is again how I navigate because that's what I know. This is not a depiction of how every autistic person is when it comes to being intimate. Remember that autism is a spectrum and everyone is different.

Masterlist

Being intimate with each other actually took a long time

At least longer than what is probably average

And that's in opinion

She wants to have sex with Oscar

It's just that it's difficultt and there are so many different feelings that is gets overwhelming quickly

It doesn't help she's trying to dive straight in whenever they try it

Oscar pays attention however

Her body language is how he can understand her feelings

So he knows exactly what he's doing even if she doesn't get it yet

The next time things get a little heated, Oscar slows them both down

"Why are you stopping? Did I do something wrong?"

"Absolutely not, just thought we would try something different."

In her head, different is strange because there is usually an order to these things, and it should become routine eventually

Oscar has other plans

He starts taking their intimate moments incredibly slow

Introducing her to different sensations and letting her tell him what she likes and doesn't

Soon, he has a comprehensive list of dos and don'ts

Like how sometimes she prefers to keep on a loose shirt because otherwise the skin on skin is to much

Not all the time

He always asks before they do anything if she would like to wear one of his shirts

Or how her biting him is usually a good sign because it means she's happy

(Something she does even when they aren't having sex)

Oral is a grey area for her

Sometimes, she'll suck him off for hours, and others, she gets overwhelmed just thinking about it

Oscar doesn't care, though, because he loves her no matter what she's feeling up to

One thing he was not expecting was for her to be relatively kinky

Experimenting is everything

Hard yes and no things but down to try before deciding

Oscar got a bit experimental after he got a general idea and their bedroom communication was good

Again... communication is a key point

He's always asking questions and reading her body just as she is with him

The fact that it's a vulnerable state and both of them are connecting in a way with emotions that even sex itself can't give is incredibly intimate

They don't even make it there sometimes because the emotional ties are just so deep that they simply spend time memorizing each other

Another thing is vocals

Oscar is usually composed and level-headed

Sex however is completely different

It's where he is able to express himself in ways he couldn't before

Also, listening to his voice is something that helps her know if she's doing okay

She also experiments with her voice

Vocal stimming during sex happens often, and it happens when she is on the edge

Her parroting is endearing ad well

Sometimes Oscar will moan or hum in a way and she will copy

A non-verbal agreement to keep going

Can go for maybe two rounds maximum

Maybe three or four but that's on a good day

Follows a routine of how things go down and there is definitely communication beforehand

Even if both parties are in the heat of the moment, he will not start anything without giving an idea of what will happen

It's like an unwritten rule so that she isn't trying to read the situation and get frustrated with herself if she can't understand what's happening

Clear cut yes and no

There is no maybe

All communication is cut and dry, and there is no beating around the bush

Because of her willingness to touch, but only from those she's allowed, Oscar is a teeny tiny bit possessive

If anyone touches her who she's not comfortable with he won't hesitate to bite her in reciprocation

She bites him, he bites her, it's a pattern they keep going because he knows its her love language

Also, it creates some fun on other places

Really the two are very good at setting boundaries and communicating

It makes things fun for both of them and there is never any feelings hurt

[letmetellyouaboutmyfeels]

"if Buck or Eddie is going to be revealed as queer, it means Buddie will be happening." I actually completely agree with this but can I ask you why you think this? I also want to say that I don't think Eddie needs this kind of experiment arc or self discovery arc Buck is going to get. Eddie is just going to simply be in love with his best friend, and that will be it. Buck will be the experienced one.

I think that if they're giving Buck a self-discovery/experimentation arc they won't give one to Eddie because that would be redundant.

I wondered in season five if Eddie would come out - it was very heavily coded that way in my opinion - which would've meant that Buck then wouldn't get a self-discovery/experimentation arc. Again in my opinion. It would just be redundant to have both of them do that.

So yes, I agree with you, I think Eddie is just simply going to be in love with his best friend. Which I think suits him best. I personally don't think Eddie would bother to label himself or care about that kind of thing and would say "well I'm not straight" if asked and leave it at that.

The reason I think that if one or both of them is coming out as queer it means Buddie will be happening is that if the writers are cognizant enough to realize the audience sees queerness in one or both of them, they are also cognizant enough of the fact that making one or both of them queer and not getting them together is a) ridiculous and b) unkindly teasing the audience.

Looking at the situation as a writer, the simplest, easiest, obvious solution is to have Buck and Eddie date each other. If I'm going to make them queer, why would I reinvent the wheel by introducing a love interest the audience may not like, that I'll have to do extra work to get the audience to like, when I can just get them with each other?

Additionally, if I have noticed "hey we kinda made 'em queer and people have noticed," then I have also noticed the audience wants them together. To make Buck queer and give him a coming out episode/arc but then not get him with Eddie is rather like Lucy yanking the football away from Charlie Brown. While it's fun to bait and switch your audience in some ways (like who will have their life in danger in an episode, etc), you don't want to alienate your audience or make them feel played or cheated.

To make Buck queer and then not get him with Eddie would be like a middle-finger consolation prize. "Here FINE Buck's into men are you HAPPY?" And while there are definitely showrunners and writers out there who are that level of petty, most are not. Most care about their characters, story, and audience, and frankly most don't want to risk alienating their audience that much.

I think by now, showrunners and other head creatives are aware that "well we won't get the two together but we'll make one of them bi" isn't going to be treated as the well-intentioned consolation prize they think it is.

Additionally while I have a lot I'd like to yell at Tim about, he did say forever ago (back in season three I believe) that he never wants to make writing decisions based on pettiness or spite, and I choose to believe he stands by that.

Of course nothing is set in stone and if they do make Buck queer they might not make Buddie canon. But to me it simply makes the most sense. It's the easiest route and the most likely explanation for why Buck is coming out, and to not do it would be yanking the rug out from under your audience a bit, and I don't think any sensible writing team or showrunner would do that.

[cherikdogfood]

For the Cherik, thing, may I offer this prompt? 'The light at the end of the tunnel.'

@crystalshard First of all I am so, so sorry it took me this long to fill this ask! I loved this prompt so much that when I was writing it I just, spiraled out of control... This was supposed to be short, but I ended up writing a lot more than I thought I would and I think this could be a full-blown fic. I'm not sure yet.

I really, really hope I did your prompt justice and I hope you like it! It's pretty dark and angsty so I'm so sorry if that wasn't what you were looking for. Thank you for the prompt and enjoy reading!

(I'm planning to post this on ao3 and gift it to you, please tell me your ao3 username? only if you want to, of course. no pressure).

Trigger warnings: #experimentation #drug use #mentions of death and torture #sensory deprivation #abuse #dehumanization #dubcon/noncon (not explicit, barely mentioned) #shaw

***

Keep Running (You're Never Safe)

[It's the end of the world. The earth is a wasteland, ruined by nuclear wars, and humans struggle to survive the effects of radiation. Several mutants, on the other hand, are able to thrive and become leaders.

One such leader, Sebastian Shaw, has been the self-proclaimed king of Westchester for decades, and his settlement is supposedly the richest and most prosperous in the world. No one knows, however, that this prosperity has come at the price of mutants being enslaved and experimented on.

Charles Xavier -- no, Subject X, is Sebastian's favorite test subject. He manages to escape, bringing along his greatest secret, but Shaw's men are getting closer, and he is quickly losing hope...]

He's running.

He's been running for hours, and he's still running.

Yet he can feel them getting closer, they're never far away. He's never safe, so he has to keep running.

Even if the uneven ground makes him stumble, even if the pebbles and bits of glass on the ground make him wince, even if his bloodied feet leave a trail of bright red blood --

It doesn't matter.

He has to keep running.

He will either run until he's safe, or die before letting them get their hands on him again.

If he was all alone, he probably wouldn't worry too much. After all, his actions wouldn't harm anyone but himself.

But after the incident with Raven, he knows that his actions have consequences... Even if he is alone, his actions could bring harm to others too.

Charles tried not to think about it, but Shaw used to remind him every other day that what happened was his fault. If he hadn't told her to escape, if he hadn't frozen the guards to help Raven escape, if he had done anything differently, then she wouldn't have died.

Your sister died because of you, Shaw had said. Charles did not believe it at first, but the words had been repeated and drilled into his head countless times until he believed it.

Truthfully, he can't even remember what Raven looks like anymore. He remembers vague flashes: a hint of red hair, shining eyes, the scent of warmth and happiness, and her tinkling laughter.

Most of all, though, he remembers her disfigured corpse, the one that Shaw held in front of him, sneering and tutting when he cried out in anguish.

Before that incident, Charles hadn't known that emotional pain could manifest as physical pain, one that tore his heart into pieces and left him empty and broken.

He wasn't broken, then.

He is now.

***

Charles knew that his plan was terrible. Hell, he didn't actually have a plan. Breaking out of his cell, grabbing the treasure in his arms, and making a run for it had been completely impulsive.

He had been captive in Westchester since he was ten, and Shaw made sure that he never ventured out of the stone walls. Charles did not remember his age -- Shaw wouldn't allow that, of course, since test subjects weren't supposed to think -- but Charles guessed he had been here for about fifteen years, which made him in his twenties...

Charles had heard stories, of course, from the new mutants Shaw had captured from outside Westchester. He had even tried to read the minds of Shaw's warriors, hoping to glean valuable information from them, blackmail them, perhaps, or to get a glimpse of the world as it was now.

Of course, given the amount of drugs and experiments Shaw had put him through, Charles could never properly use his powers. He did catch small strands of thoughts, though, and over the last few years he had pieced together the bits of information that he had to make a mental picture of the outside world.

Westchester was ruled by Shaw. Somewhere in the north, there was a settlement run by a mutant, Shaw's ally and one of Charles' frequent tormentor, Nathaniel Essex. The east was unknown territory, and then somewhere (he could never quite catch the name of the place), there was, supposedly, a mutant community that directly opposed Shaw.

And this "community" was his goal.

Charles had no idea what that community was like. Perhaps it was just a group of nomads, mutants who traveled frequently to avoid getting caught by Shaw. Or perhaps this was a large-scale settlement of mutants, powerful and unwilling to bow to Shaw's rule.

Perhaps, a traitorous part of his mind suggested, this community doesn't even exist.

It was a terrible thought. What if, all this time he had been running towards a community that didn't even exist? Or perhaps it did exist, in the past, but Shaw had long since destroyed it, like he destroyed everything else that stood in his way...

Charles did not have a plan. He didn't know if he was running in the right direction. He didn't know if he would reach his "destination". He didn't even know if his so called destination still existed.

All he knew was that he had to keep running, because Shaw's men were still chasing him, and he would rather die than get dragged into the walls of Westchester again.

And if he could not run anymore, if his legs gave away and his body betrayed him, if his feet could only twitch uselessly and the blood on the soles of his feet flowed freely -- what then?

Then he would crawl. He would crawl forward and keep going.

Not just for him.

But also for the treasure in his arms.

His son.

His David.

***

Charles Xavier was no stranger to experiments.

At five years old, his powers manifested, and his father, a scientist, was enraptured. He would have Charles complete "tasks" in the lab ("Answer me in your mind, Charles" or "Tell me what I'm feeling, Charles" or "What number am I thinking, Charles?").

After completing the tasks, his father would be immensely pleased, and Charles reveled in the warmth of happiness that enveloped his father. He adored his father, and seeing that he could make his father happy, little Charles was, of course, ecstatic.

There were days when his father was happier than usual, after a set of "tasks" in the lab, and he would take Charles out for ice cream (it was the end of the world at this point and nuclear wars had destroyed the landscape -- simple ice cream was considered a treat). It was lovely.

Then his father died abruptly, killed in a fire, and his mother remarried Kurt Marko. Kurt was his father's friend, but his mind was sticky with greed and anger and so much hate. Charles did not like him.

It was around this time that Charles found a girl in his house. Raven. He was seven or eight at the time, and Raven was six. She was blue and oh so lovely, and Charles was glad there was finally someone else like him.

He wasn't alone.

He gave her food and told her to stay, and she did. The war had taken away her parents, and she had barely survived, hiding and running when people were scared of her.

Charles wasn't scared of her. And she wasn't scared of him either.

He convinced his mother that Raven was his sister (and this was really easy, considering she didn't care and was drowning in alcohol), and that was that.

Raven became part of the family; of course, he told her to turn into a blonde girl to "blend in" -- otherwise, he didn't know what would happen to her.

The problem here was Kurt. He could use his powers on Kurt, yes, but Kurt was familiar with Charles' father, Brian, and had read his files on Charles. Kurt knew that Charles was a telepath, and as strong as Charles was, he was young, and not cunning.

Kurt found out that Raven wasn't his biological sibling, that she was "just a stray he picked up", and threatened to throw her out. Charles was mortified. She was his sister, even if they weren't related by blood, he had already accepted her as such. He had to protect her.

So Kurt proposed a deal. He would keep quiet about Raven, pretending that she was, indeed, Charles' sister, and Charles would listen to him.

He wanted to continue Brian's experiments on him.

Charles was rather hesitant at first. But then Kurt reminded him that these "tasks" from his father were what made him happy, and Charles wanted to make his father happy, right? Besides, it was a fair deal for both of them.

Kurt would pretend Raven was part of the family, and Charles just had to do what he had been doing with his father.

"You can protect that girl and fulfill your father's wishes at the same time, isn't this hitting two birds with one stone?" Kurt had said.

So little Charles agreed to continue the experiments. It was, after all, a fair deal.

But with Kurt, the "tasks" became harder. Kurt would start slowly, blindfolding him and making him sense Kurt with his mind only. And then Kurt would use earplugs, so he couldn't hear anything. And then Kurt used both the blindfold and the earplugs, depriving him of his senses and making him rely solely on his telepathy.

Next came the needles. Kurt would repeatedly draw his blood, claiming he needed more samples for the labs. Scientists were using his blood to understand human genes, he said.

It kept going on and on and on, slowly turning from harmless tasks into full experiments where he was merely the subject of the experiment, not a willing volunteer. He had less and less say in how the experiments were conducted, until one day he realized it was no longer Kurt who was doing the experiments, it was a man named Sebastian Shaw.

It started as a slow process, really.

When Kurt was doing experiments with him, Sebastian Shaw would come and watch. Then, as weeks passed, Sebastian would start giving "suggestions" on how to conduct the experiments.

Soon, Charles spent less time with his tutors, less time playing with Raven, and more time in the labs.

Raven was indignant, of course. She was eight years old and he was almost ten; she wanted to run around and play with him whenever she got the chance, especially since she could only turn into her real form when she was with him.

At this point Charles disliked the experiments, it was nothing like the mini "tasks" he had done with his father, and Kurt kept pushing his limits, leaving him worn and tired.

So when Raven burst into his room one day, complaining about his lack of attention for her ("You spend so much time with your stepfather, what's so good about him, huh? Charles, I want to know what you guys are up to, bring me along with you the next time you go with him!"), he snapped at her.

Raven was upset and fled the room, crying. Charles was too tired and aching to chase after her.

...And that's when disaster struck.

Raven's disguise slipped up, and Sebastian Shaw and Kurt Marko saw her blue form.

They wanted her.

And Charles... he couldn't let them have her.

He didn't remember what exactly happened that day. He only remembered feeling the greed in Kurt's mind and the sick curiosity in Shaw's... He remembered Raven's surprise, Raven turning an even paler shade of blue when she realized she slipped up...

He remembered seeing in Kurt's mind the things he wanted to do to her: wanting to cut her open, watch her bleed (was her blood even blue? it would be fascinating if it was...), rip her scales off, gouge out her yellow eyes (how did the corneas work? would she see things in yellow, and what about the retina?) cut her hair for samples... all the things he could do to her...

And Charles screamed. Whatever they had done to him was fine, he often told himself. He was fine with their experiments on him, after all, wasn't this what his father wanted, too?

But doing all those things to Raven... no... no... no...NO!!!

Charles could feel his mind stretching out tendrils of psychic powers to seize Kurt and Shaw's mind, rip away the image of Raven in her blue form, erase the memories. It was easier with Kurt, but Shaw's mind was difficult, was resisting--

Make him forget, forget, forget--! There! He found a sliver of thought, a small seed that was growing rapidly, and he yanked on it.

Shaw wanted him. He was filled with morbid curiosity regarding Charles' powers, the things he could do with a telepath... Changing minds, manipulating minds... it would all be so easy if he had Charles...

He wanted Charles. That thought was embedded in Shaw's mind, and he would get Charles.

What I want, I will get.

Charles, inexperienced as he was, blew on those particular thoughts. Like a dandelion flying in the wind, spreading its seeds, Charles used those thoughts in Shaw's mind to make him forget about Raven. Use his pre-existing thoughts to cover up his discovery of Raven... Make him forget...

"Get out of here," he told Raven in her mind, and for once, she obeyed. He was glad that she did. The outburst of his powers had consumed too much energy, and he fell down, bleeding from his nose and ears.

When he came to, he was no longer in his house. Shaw had paid Kurt a substantial amount of money to buy him, and he had been moved into his new quarters.

Shaw's labs.

Kurt took great care of his appearance, wanting to act like a kind stepfather to the public, but Shaw had no such qualms.

To him, Charles was not Charles. He was Subject X.

Charles could only take comfort in the fact that Shaw and Kurt held no recollection of Raven's blue form.

She was safe.

If he was the one they experimented on, it was fine.

After all, Charles Xavier was no stranger to experiments.

***

Looking back on it now, he was very naive; a man like Sebastian Shaw... How could he be fooled that easily? Not to mention he himself was a mutant (of course, at the time Charles had no idea).

Raven was safe for only a year.

That moment when he ripped Shaw's memories away, he didn't do it gently, so there were traces of his meddling... As for Kurt, Charles' telepathy scarred him, making him get into frenzies several times a month.

Shaw was suspicious, guessing that Charles had done something, so he found himself another telepath, Emma Frost, who was weaker than him but had more experience, and she pulled the memory of Raven out of the haze, making Shaw remember.

Within a few months, Shaw had captured Raven, brought her to the labs, and smiled gently as Charles hugged Raven, sobbing.

"Tsk, what a sweet reunion between siblings..." He had said.

It was a reunion under the worst circumstances. Charles, who had never begged or pleaded even when Shaw cut open his head, found himself kneeling and begging the man to let his sister go.

Shaw just laughed.

Raven cried.

Charles' heart broke.

He and Raven were close, and his mind was more attuned to hers, so when they sliced her open, when they prodded her with needles, when they beat her, he could feel everything.

Her pain, her rage, her despair, her exhaustion, her numbness... Her screams were his screams, too.

It was worse than when the scientists cut him open.

After two years of torment, he finally found a loophole and managed to send Raven away... told her to run, escape...

Charles wanted to laugh at his foolishness. What was the result?

He had sent his own sister to her death.

He was useless.

***

Back in the present, Charles' feet were numb and his arms ached from holding his baby for too long. He could hear his rough pants and heavy breathing, as well as David's small breaths against his chest.

Behind him, he could feel the team led by Shaw's right hand man, Victor Creed, getting closer. He thought that running like this would save him, would save them, or maybe if he ran fast enough, he could shake off Shaw's men.

Of course, Charles wanted to laugh bitterly. Of course, that was wistful thinking.

He was carrying a baby, running on foot, malnourished and worn down with wounds, both physical and mental, and his brain had been repeatedly drugged.

Whereas Shaw's men were healthy, happy, probably enjoying the thrill of the chase, and, most importantly, riding their vehicles.

It was easy to think of who had the upper hand here.

God, what would Shaw do to him if he caught him? Charles swallowed hard, stumbling as he continued moving.

Beat him? No, Charles was numb to that already, and Shaw knew it. Sensory deprivation then, or depriving him of his telepathy.

Or worse (and at this point Charles wasn't sure which was worse, really), hooking him up to Cerebro for months on end, his mind addled with drugs, muddling through a haze of thoughts and feelings and connecting with so many beings until he forgot who he was.

Would he forget his own name? It had happened several times before, he got mixed up with other people's minds until he forgot who he himself was.

Oh god, if that happened, would he forget David?

Charles gulped again and held David tighter, still moving, always moving. After he gave birth to David (well, it was more of a C-section anyways), he had had a period of rest, Shaw reluctant to torture him or experiment on his weak body.

He was a useful asset, after all. Not only because of his telepathic abilities and extensive range, but also because of his lovely face that Shaw loved oh-so-much, his cerulean eyes that Shaw wanted to keep ("They're like sapphires, Charles, they make you look like an angel," Shaw had said), and his secondary mutation.

Thanks to that, the past few months had been a brief, but much needed reprieve for him, where he could hug his son and kiss him lovingly without worrying that his mind would be too frazzled to operate properly.

"I don't want to forget you," he manages to whisper, tenderly brushing his son's cheek.

He's not sure if he's running, walking, or floating at this point, but it doesn't matter. He sees David's eyes flutter open and senses a small presence in his mind, familiar and welcome.

It's David, of course, and he's proud to know that his son inherited his abilities instead of his father's.

David is hungry now, Charles knows, but he has nothing to give -- no milk (his body can't produce it, much to Shaw's annoyance) -- and no formula (he couldn't have stolen some without risking getting caught).

"M'sorry love," he whispers, "I'm afraid I've got nothing for you, so just, hang on for a while, yes? I promise I'll find something soon."

He knows it's an empty promise -- he likely won't even make it 'till the end of the day, but he has to pretend. He has to pretend it'll be alright.

"It's alright," Charles whispers, his throat is raw and dry and he can't talk anymore, the wind is scratching at his throat like blades cutting him open.

"It's alright," he says again, this time to David's mind.

David gurgles and beams at him, lips curled up gently. David sends love and trust his way, and Charles receives it, wanting to cry but knowing he can't.

He hears the roar of engines -- a familiar vehicle. It must be Victor and his men. They're getting closer.

Maybe he's going to die here.

He stops moving. Cradles David's head gently and plants a kiss on his head.

"I love you," he sends, knowing David will hear it but not understand it.

He closes his eyes and a stray tear falls unto David's cheek with a 'plop'.

David starts fussing, sensing his distress, and Charles soothes him.

If this is really the end...

Charles feels a lump in his throat and swallows hard. It doesn't go away.

He hugs his son against his chest, steel resolve burning in his eyes.

Even if this is the end... He will keep fighting.

Even if he's broken beyond repair... He has to keep going.

Not for himself.

For David.

Charles runs.

***

"There he is! I can see him!" He hears a voice behind him.

If he can hear the voice, not just sense it, then they must be very close.

"Keep running, Subject X," he hears the familiar sneer in Victor's voice and flinches.

The revving of engines behind him is making his heart pound, adrenaline coursing through his veins. He can't see properly, sweat and tears blurring his vision.

Keep going, keep going, keep going--!

His legs are burning, he pushes them and keeps running. Faster, faster, please please please--!

Bang!

The sound of a gunshot.

He can't dodge it. He can only keep going.

He's going to get shot. Victor Creed never misses.

His legs collapse underneath him (useless, his mind supplies). He turns around.

Right in front of him is a bullet, stopping inches before his face.

He hears a startled cry. He hears shouting. He hears the sound of metal groaning in anguish.

He watches, stupefied, as the bullet falls to the ground. Harmless.

He feels new minds pricking in his consciousness. He blinks slowly, trying to see properly...

Mutants, he realizes.

A red-skinned man puffs on top of the vehicle -- or what used to be the vehicle anyway, now it's just a mass of metal -- and starts stabbing people.

Victor kicks open a door and emerges, roaring in fury. Another man leaps at him, claws emerging from his hands, and the two growl at each other, engaged in a ruthless fight.

"Are you alright?" He hears a voice by his side and jerks.

It's a man, wearing a black turtleneck, grey-green eyes staring at him with worry.

"Don't worry, you're safe now," the man says, voice low and gentle.

Charles just stares at him and pulls David closer to his chest. This man's mind is powerful, beautiful, enigmatic.

He wants to delve deeper.

He knows he can't.

Just because this person speaks gently doesn't mean he won't stab him to death later.

"Please stop trembling," the man says, frowning a little.

Charles looks down at his hands and realizes, belatedly, that he is, indeed, trembling. His hands are shaking so much that he has trouble holding David steadily.

"Who are you?" He asks, unable to use his voice.

"My name is Erik," the man smiles, teeth gleaming in the sunlight.

"You're safe now," he adds.

Charles just stares at him before he collapses, falling limply to the ground and losing consciousness.

"You're safe," the man repeats telepathically, and Charles tries to believe him.

The last thing he remembers is to hug David tighter, because maybe, maybe the man wasn't lying.

Maybe they're safe now.

Maybe... he can finally stop running.

[made by cherikdogfood]

[gamerbearmira]

Hello resident Evil AU person here! First You don't have to apologize for the long response time I understand that life gets pretty busy and I'm just appreciative that we are able to have a back and forth to begin with! Though I will never say no to artwork or little snippets speaking of For your snippet I will tell you that Mirabel did a mass experimentation on her family so they all got experimented on on the same night just different times in the night. That way there was no prolonged period of anxiety/fear for her family and having them question which one of them is going to be next.

Miranda did kidnap a good portion of villagers from the encanto the same night that she kidnapped the rest of the Madrigal family. Some of them were for experimentation a lot of them were to bolster the numbers in the village and to get rid of the inbreeding problem that was starting to form in the village because of Miranda not allowing new blood to enter the village by experimenting on every new person that came to the village. There are a lot of people that Mirabel recognizes from her childhood. she tries her best to make them feel comfortable and welcome but that's really hard to do with the cult environment that is the village so a lot of the villagers from The encanto just spend most of their time near mirabel and her family.

And once again you are correct Miranda has been watching the encanto since the triplets were 10 years old and had been making plans for them since then. Originally she was just going to observe the community and family for a little while and then was going to steal the candle and experiment on it but she changed her mind and instead chose to observe them to see if she could find a vessel for Eva in their family. she would make frequent trips back to the encanto from the village and had her own persona in the Encanto she was there for every gift celebration and was there when Mirabel's door faded away in fact it was at mirabel's gift celebration where her obsession began with mirabel. Not just because her door faded away and she was the only one who had that happen to her but because before Mirabel even got to her door her and Miranda ran into each other and had a little conversation. just a small little back and forth of little Mirabel apologizing for running into Miranda, Miranda saying that it's okay and then telling her to run along and enjoy her party, That little back and forth combined with the fact that her door faded away almost immediately after convinced Miranda that Mirabel was the black mold chosen vessel (large leap in logic I know but it's Miranda that we're talking about that's all she seems to do).

Speaking of the black mold yes at one point when Mirabel first got to the village she did think about her abuelo Pedro and if it would be possible to communicate with him/bring him back using the black mold she obviously didn't try to do that but there were a couple moments before her family got there that she did consider trying to communicate with him through the black mold because she was hoping that he might have a connection between himself and the miracle and that he would be able to tell her if her family was okay and maybe even get a message to them.

As always any artwork is appreciated!

WOOP WOOPPPPP I’M SO GLAD <333 I know I’ve been mad slow, it’s finals week but. I will be free soon <\3333 very happy I love being able to talk about this au. ALSO NOTED FOR THE SNIPPET. Very helpful, I was actually unsure. It does help, trust <333 Will be writing it and doing art 👹👹

ANYWAYYYYY. I do remember you mentioning it, lmao 😭 we’re 5e Guzman brought or did they stay in the Encanto?? Honestly just wondering, I mean Miranda just taking villagers like nothing, like they’re puppets or filler characters is wild 💀 And the fact that she’s been watching the Madrigals for so long. And becoming hyper focused on Miranel after her ceremony is. So creepy 🌚 like does Miranda truly have nothing better to do with her time??? It genuinely is freaky asl. And honestly her leap in logic does not phase me, I mean it!s Miranda, do we really expect any less???

W Mirabel for thinking of Pedro but not spiraling like somebody

THESE GUYS 💪💪💪 honestly I was gonna do Dolores anyway, And I wanted to draw Julieta’s infection. And Félix just somehow ended up here 🦈 we love it tho

[sybaritick]

cal sybaritick's

bloodweave fic recs 🧙🏼🧛🏻

I'm pretty sure that over the past few weeks I've read nearly every single Astarion/Gale fanfic on Ao3, and I have great taste, so I am uniquely qualified to recommend them to you. Here is a non-exhaustive list of my favorites!

Overhear More in Changing by ZiGraves

E / 9.6k words / body swap, blood drinking, handjobs / complete

Astarion has the misfortune to wake up inhabiting a body not his own. It’s alive, breathing, warm. Hairy. Oh gods, no. It’s Gale’s.

not only is the power-issues-tinged porn here extremely hot to me, but this is also the best and most interesting depiction of body swapping that i have ever read, with so much great detail on how it would actually feel to experience

Left to your devices by Experimental

E / 4.2k words / teasing, dubious consent, developing relationship / complete

While camped at the Grymforge, Astarion does a murder, and thinks a gift will magically make it all better. Trouble is, he may be right.

a snapshot-style fic of a clever interaction between the two of them, and I enjoyed how it handles the comparison between Astarion's vampirism and Gale's condition that so many have noted

A Cave Edge, A Black Bowl by an orphaned account

E / 2.2k / extremely dubious consent, sensory deprivation, humiliation/degradation / complete

Gale has this bad habit of shutting himself off after a particularly long day and Astarion hates it. All high and mighty he will saunter off towards his tent and engulf it in Darkness, draping it in Zone of Silence. It infuriates Astarion to no end, and so he sets out to let the wizard reap his due reward. Getting into his tent would be effortless. (The first thing he hears are soft, almost whining pants, followed by a high pitched moan.)

this just pushes all of my buttons SO well. gale as a consummate submissive using magic to be his own dom, so to speak... and his insulting astarion for interrupting this little display, "you're wretched," hating it so and yet still clearly getting off to it... delicious!

That Wounded Animal by wxntr

M / 6.4k / character study, manipulation, angst with a happy ending / technically incomplete, but can easily be read as finished

His foolishness is what made him deserve it. That’s the reason Astarion latched onto when the familiar sickness rose in his throat as he spun his pretty web. When guilt or shame creeped in at Gale’s wide, adoring eyes and smile, Astarion reminded himself that if he wasn't the one to take advantage, someone worse would. He was doing Gale a favor, even. The weak would be taken advantage of, and Astarion refused to be the weak. A progression of scenes following Astarion's manipulation of Gale, and the complicated feelings that accompany it.

a rec like this means a lot coming from me because normally I struggle with sad and soft pieces in fics, but this is extremely well done. I'll just quote what I said in my comment on the fic: "the way you write this so that Gale's very weakness is what makes Astarion weak to him! the fact that Gale has the capacity to believe in Astarion's potential goodness despite everything, hell, to believe in anyone's potential goodness, that Gale continues with earnestness regardless-- that is what breaks Astarion's resolve. The fact that anyone can possibly live like that (like Gale does, wearing his heart on his sleeve)-- it's agonizing to someone like Astarion who has seen it proven time and time again that a relationship can only ever be transactional, that there must be the user and the used. That of course Astarion has seen sincerity and naivety before and has brushed it aside easily, but it's the time spent with Gale, the slowly getting to know him, so much longer than he would have for the victims he was forced to bring back to Cazador-- that's what gradually gets to him. And so gradual too, the way you write it."

Unraveling [series] by chogiwonderful_you

E / 17.3k words / undernegotiated kink, cnc, mental health issues & neurodivergence, discussions of past sexual assault, very unhealthy relationships / technically incomplete, but can easily be read as finished

The book reads you as much as you read it. Gale really should have remembered that.

this recommendation comes with the caveat that, as it was written during early access, the author's interpretations of the characters don't truly line up with how I see them now. However, there was no doubt in my mind I was still going to recommend it just for what it is-- the fandom aspect be damned. Everything, down to Gale's guilt about his behavior to him being like "in some sense the mental aspect of this is more erotic to me than the sex to the point where i almost feel separate from my physical body" is so Very Real in a way I feel fanfiction often isn't. Also, the depiction of what I would describe as Gale's hypomania, and later panic attack, is extremely well done.

En Prise by positivejam

E / 20.5k words / manipulation, D/s, petplay (vibes), humiliation/degradation / incomplete

It’s not often Astarion sees his own hunger reflected in another’s eyes. So yearning for a look in the mirror, he can't help but stare. Gale is downright ravenous. He can smell it on him: like some combination of lust, adrenaline, and desperation. Exactly for what, he isn’t sure. But desperate men make for good companions and better bedfellows, so he sinks down next to the wizard with a smile. “Like recognizes like, little mage. You are starving, and I am feeling uncharacteristically charitable. Perhaps we can help each other out.”

if you know this pairing, you know this fic, but I could not possibly leave it out. It is very well written! It is super hot! It's dripping with nasty D/s vibes! Read it!

first date by revoleotion

M / 1.7k words / sincerity, discussions of past sexual assault, angst with a happy ending / complete

It's not Gale's first time. Part of him wishes it were. It's not Astarion's first time. Perhaps that can be a good thing. Astarion and Gale share a drink together. A drink, and a little more.

like I mentioned above, I am usually not the audience for this genre/style of fic, but this author handles the way they discuss their trauma very well-- that they are still a little guarded and awkward, not perfect communicators, not perfect partners.

[goodluckclove]

Writer ask game, let's go. 10, 19, 38, and 39 please c:<

Shit. Oh shit, oh fuck.

Okay yeah let's do this, Mushy.

10. Do you set yourself deadlines?

I mean I definitely used to. I've said before that I got my start in National Novel Writing in a Month, or NaNoWriMo, where you write 50k words in 30 days. The org has since proven itself to be less than reputable with its recent scandal, but I still stand by the belief that endurance sprints like that are a great way to get the muscle formed to write long-form projects. And you can just do it too, you don't need the backing of a semi-scammy nonprofit.

But now? Not really. I kind of set goals to keep work moving. I'll be like hope I finish editing by the end of this week. But I very rarely make it a hard deadline with actual...I don't know. Stakes? My brain don't work like that.

19. How do you keep yourself motivated?

I stand by the methodology of giving yourself a little reward after writing sessions, although at this point I space mine out more than I would suggest newer writers to. For me this is usually a fun drink or nice little baked good - I'm especially fond of what I refer to as a medium-fancy cake. Something with mousse. But it can be anything really.

Small breaks also help, although I am less good at keeping up with that. I actually haven't taken a full day off in like three weeks but shh don't tell anyone. I'm also very fond of reading over what I've already written and just enjoying it. Or reading books that relate to my character's interests - I'm reading a very interesting book on bird lore that I know Edgar from Songbird Elegies would love.

38. Weirdest story idea you’ve ever had

My weirdest play is probably Naked Lunch: The Musical, which follows a happy-go-lucky, classic musical lover who gets roped into adapting the essentially grindhouse experimental William S. Burroughs novel into a musical and goes a little insane in the process. He imagines himself befriending the ghost of William S. Burroughs, and the ghosts convinces him that to adapt his work properly he needs to do a lot of drugs and have a lot of gay sex, both of which go very poorly. I think Lin Manuel Miranda is mentioned as an unseen side character that my protagonist sees in the audience and threatens to beat up?

And my weirdest novel turned play is Bloodletting, which is based from a dream I had when I was detoxing off of weed - I was like addicted, not a casual stoner. I essentially dreamt that someone made me drink their blood and the blood got me high again, and from that point I developed a sort of sci-fi world where street drugs are so potent that they turn the blood of addicts into a new intoxicant that they can then sell as its own drug. I think they can also sell their blood to major medical organizations and have it used in pharmaceuticals. I still like this concept and might reuse it since I can't find the finished play it turned into.

39. Weirdest character concept you’ve ever had

Bloodletting had a romantic couple made up of a drug dealer and the AI house he was squatting in. My second novel had a leitmotif of the characters experiencing a feeling of "static" in their heads that I later on made into a sentient side character. I think I wrote a short play with a cannibalistic Guy Fieri. I started writing another play based around Sonic the Hedgehog where it was planned for Shadow to non-ironically become a rabbi, but frankly if you consider his character I do not think that's too far from canon.

I'm still percolating a project to do either alongside or after Songbird that's like Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City but with an all-robot cast. And the main character eventually transitions from a human-passing robot to some form of non-human looking machine and is much happier for it. Which I'm excited to put to paper.

[dangerous-disposition]

i can't tell where you end and where i start [WIP WEDNESDAY]

THIS FIC IS COMPLETE AND POSTED!!

READ IT ON MY WRITING BLOG @gerrystamour OR AO3

Intended fic rating: Explicit | Pairing(s): Steve/OMC, eventual Steve/Eddie

So i was possessed to kinda dig into some of Steve's experimentation trips to Indy. This is a spin-off fic related to my fic i could be honest, i could be human and when I start posting, it will be on my writing blog, @gerrystamour and AO3 This fic WILL end with Steddie, obviously (if you've read icbh, you will know where I'm heading with this stuff. This is still very rough and barely edited. Anyway!!! I hope you enjoy!!!

August 1985

The music was loud, bodies pressed close as everyone danced and shoved. Steve had been overwhelmed, scared even, when he’d first arrived, but now he was grinning as he pressed through to the bar.

“What can I get for you, gorgeous?” the bartender asked as he eyed Steve up and down appreciatively. Steve was happy that he was already flushed from dancing so his blush at the compliment wasn’t so obvious.

“Just a Coke, please!” he hollered over the music. “I have to drive back home tonight.”

“You got it, sweetie,” the bartender replied and quickly fixed him a glass.

Sipping at his Coke, Steve turned to lean back on the bar with his elbows and watched the crowd of men and women dancing. It was liberating, seeing men hold each other close and women kissing, and for a second he felt guilty for not bringing Robin. It wasn’t the first time he felt guilty, but he told himself again that it was important he figure some of his shit out on his own.

Immediately upon arriving he had been coaxed out to the dance floor by a young man with strong arms and a broad chest. He was absolutely gorgeous, Steve could easily admit that, and they danced for several songs together. They were eventually separated by the crowd, but that was fine. This was just a bit of an information gathering trip, Steve told himself, he wasn’t actually trying to go home with anyone this time.

As he scanned the crowd, his eyes caught on someone standing a bit away from Steve at a high-top. Steve’s heart stuttered at the long hair, the denim vest over a leather jacket, the ripped pants. But the longer Steve looked, the more features he noticed and relaxed a bit; the man was too tall, too blond, his hair too straight.

That did not change the way Steve’s heart raced when the man waved at him almost coyly.

Steve smiled sheepishly as he sipped his Coke, ducking his head a bit to glance at the man through his lashes.

The grin that came to Steve’s lips when the man immediately crossed the space to the bar was huge, and his breath left him as the man crowded close.

“Hey, handsome,” Steve greeted, the man’s smirk causing a swarm of butterflies in Steve’s gut to take wing. “What can I do you for?”

“Haven’t seen you here before,” the man replied, leaning a hand on the bar and idly stroking Steve’s elbow with his thumb. “You new to town?”

“Just visiting,” Steve replied, shivering at the contact. “You?”

“Born and raised,” he answered, and Steve shivered as the man’s other hand settled on his waist. “I’m Tig.”

Steve smiled, wondering if that was the Tig’s actual name or not. “Steve,” he replied, and Tig’s grin broadened.

He didn’t have dimples, which Steve noted with disappointment that left him feeling a bit guilty.

“Wanna dance, Steve?” Tig asked, which pulled a bit of a shocked laugh from Steve.

“Doesn’t seem like your scene,” he replied as Madonna blared over the speakers.

Tig laughed, and it was soft, almost sweet. “Definitely not,” he agreed, reaching up to brush Steve’s sweaty hair off of his forehead. “Looks like yours, though. Could have a bit of fun here, and if you wanted, I could take you back to my place? Play something a bit more my speed?”

Steve reminded himself that he wasn’t intending to go home with anyone this time, that this was just for information gathering. But he was drawn to Tig. Steve wanted to dance with him, and he was probably going to go home with him.

They danced for what felt like hours, but was really just seven songs before Tig called for a smoke break. Steve happily followed him outside, accepting a cigarette as it was handed to him. Tig lit his own cigarette then Steve’s, holding the lighter between them. They made smalltalk, the conversation easy and fun while they smoked together.

“What do you say we go somewhere a bit quieter?” Tig asked, steel-blue eyes hooded as he gave Steve a once-over. “Unless you want to keep dancing?”

“I think you were going to show me music more your speed,” Steve reminded him, smirking a bit as he shrugged. “Could always keep dancing,” he added teasingly and Tig laughed.

“You’ve no idea what you’re asking for,” Tig said with a quiet chuckle, rolling his eyes.

Steve went back to Tig’s apartment, and it was a mess. On the coffee table, there was a truly impressive bong surrounded by several glasses with various levels of various beverages. There was clothing strewn about as well and a plate with a half-eaten sandwich on the table.

“Sorry, my roommates are animals,” Tig grumbled as he took Steve’s hand and pulled him through the mess and into a bedroom. It was much tidier than the main living area and Steve looked around in fascination.

There were several posters on the walls, some clearly from a live show and others likely bought at a record store, all of them of bands Steve had never heard of with strange and even scary imagery. One poster looked familiar, though, but Steve was struggling to place it right away. There were two guitars in one corner of the room, one electric and the other acoustic, and Steve went to look at them closer.

“You play?” Tig asked, and Steve chuckled and shook his head.

“No, not at all. I don’t even sing or anything like that,” Steve replied, glancing over his shoulder. “I’m more of a jock, you could say.”

“No way,” Tig drawled sarcastically, smirking teasingly.

Steve just laughed and kept looking around. He could hear Tig messing around with the stereo on the other side of the room, but he focused on looking at the shelf of different cassettes and records. Finally, he looked at the bed and he blushed, his heart racing as he seemed to realize where he was.

He was actually in a man’s room, standing next to his bed while the man decided what music to put on.

There was a moment where that feeling almost turned into panic, but then his eyes fell on an old, well-loved tiger stuffed animal. It wasn’t just any tiger either.

Smiling brightly, Steve held it up as he met Tig’s gaze, and there was a light blush dusting his cheeks. “Tigger?” he asked warmly, before gesturing at the man himself. “Tig?”

“You cracked the code, Steve,” Tig replied, giving Steve a one-shouldered shrug as he put a tape in and hitting play.

The soft sound of a guitar played from the speakers and Tig turned it up a touch. Then the man came around the bed to stand directly in front of Steve, smirking down at him. Gently, Tig took the stuffed animal out of Steve’s hands and put it on one of the shelves next to them.

“Not gonna ask for my real name?” Tig asked curiously, and Steve shrugged.

“Was Tig not a real name?” he asked, and Tig grinned at that, as if relieved or something.

“Tig is definitely a real name, or real enough,” Tig confirmed, lifting a hand to cup Steve’s jaw while the other slid around his waist.

There was a moment when Steve realized he was going to have his first kiss with a man, and it was going to be a guy he met only a couple hours ago, and he felt that almost-panicked feeling bubble up inside him again.

But then Tig was kissing him, and it was gentle and sweet, something Steve wouldn’t have expected looking at him. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Steve wondered if Eddie would kiss like this too.

Banishing that thought from his mind, Steve deepened the kiss and moaned when their tongues met. To his surprise, Steve discovered that Tig’s tongue was pierced, something he was very curious about. He didn’t realize he actually asked about it aloud until Tig laughed.

“How about I show you, sweetheart?”

TBC

Please consider reblogging if you liked this! Let me know if you want me to add you to the taglist for when it goes live!

Tagging a couple homies who said they wanna be tagged in stuff (let me know if you want to be added to this taglist too??)~*~

@patchworkgargoyle, @scarcrossdlvrs, @indigohightide, @steddieas-shegoes, @amerikanskaya-krassavitsa

[lilacpaperbird]

no one asked but here is a list of my favorite samdean fics, in no particular order:

streams and side alleys - thecapn

- Summary: AU. Dean grows up in the backseat of a 1967 Chevy Impala. Sam grows up in foster care.

- 55,205 words

- Okay I lied I said this list had no particular order but this is actually my favorite samdean fic. I can't even put into words why. Just thinking about it makes me emotional. Beautifully written.

- Link

Buy You a Mockingbird - candle_beck

- Summary: A genuine horror story.

- 10,272 words

- A four words long summary and no tags. I don't want to say much because going in blind is the best thing you can do. Outsider's point of view. Incredibly well written. One of those fics I'll never forget

- Link

Pine Sweat - applecrumbledore

- Summary: Sam watched Dean hack up firewood with his hatchet. The magically-induced heat wave had his shirt soaked with sweat.

“Did you ever have a, uh… experimental phase?” Sam smacked his lips, trying to think of a diplomatic way to phrase it. “That kid—by which I mean you—has been staring. At me. Kind of a lot.”

(Sam and Dean get sent back to 1996 and go on a hunt with their teenaged selves. The kids don't know who they are.)

- 105,325 words

- I mean if you haven't read anything by applecrumbledore yet what are you doing with your life ! This fic was so much fun to read, I was completely hooked from the very beginning. The angst, the smut, the characterizations... soo good. I'll re-read it soon

- Link

Series: Drywall Dust, Talk Aroud It, & Nothing Ruined - applecrumbledore

- Summaries:

1. Drywall Dust: "Did you fuck my math teacher?" Sam hissed. Dean raised his eyebrows. "I'm gonna need you to be more specific."

2. Talk Around it: “It’s just a truth spell,” Sam tried. “It could be worse.” Dean looked at him like he was stupid.

“Yeah, thank God we don’t have a giant, life-ruining secret that we really, really don’t want our dad knowing. Good thing he’s not on his way here right this second.” He scoffed. “Could be worse. Jesus. Good to know you can still lie.”

3. Nothing Ruined: Sam told Dean about Stanford on a freezing Saturday morning in February, curled together under the blankets on a pullout bed in a flea-bitten apartment in northern Montana, when John was three weeks and half a country away.

- 40.923 words in total

- I laughed I cried and I adored the smut what else could you ask for. Again, anything this author writes is soooo good! [*there's a fourth part in this series but I personally prefer to see it as a trilogy and the last part as a separate fic]

- Link

Brittle - thecapn

- Summary: Sam Winchester has an eating disorder.

- 30,027 words

- If you like to read about sam having an ed this is the fic for you. Ofc keep in mind the triggering potential of this topic as it is a central part of the story. Very sad but it has a happy hopeful ending. The story starts when they're younger, pre-series (pining!sam but no weecest) and then spans over several seasons. There's a really short second part that's so good too

- Link

The Last Outpost of All That Is - gekizetsu

- Summary: The world is over, and it’s a Winchester’s lot in life to cope with anything – no matter what.

- 59,037 words

- If you like stories about apocalyptic situations that focus on how the characters manage to survive and reconstruct their lives you'll love this. I was literally glued to this fic from beginning to end. So so so good

- Link

The Ballad of the Invisible Boy - dollylux

- Summary: This is a story of adolescence. This is a love letter for the slow burn, for Led Zeppelin, for the 90s. This is the first of two sets of stories about how Sam and Dean didn’t fall in love. They never had to. It was always there, this desperation between them, like a real, breathing thing. When they came together, it was inevitable. As sure as continents colliding, as the phases of the moon and the life and death of stars. This isn’t a love story, but it’s a story of love.

- 57,490 words

- I mean. What can I say about TBOTIB that hasn't been said already. A classic. Life-altering. [The second part (Two-Headed Boy – 205,783 words) is extremely good too]

- Link

[lost-technology]

Dear My Brain, I do NOT need to do another massive Trigun AU right now. However, just to make you happy, I'll toss out my ideas here for "maybe someday." Okay, I'm on a Fallout-kick lately. Good show for my games, yes? A rare pretty decent live action adaptation of a set of video games. Definitely nods to fans / players there. Also been doing a little playing of Fallout 4. (Fallout 3 is the only game of the series I've played all the way through main quest sadly (maybe I'll download the classics from Steam...) Anyway, I've played with this notion for Trigun before - but only in the "if they were players." I made perks / gameplay styles for the main characters. So, what are you doing, brain? Why are you starting to come up with ideas for an actual story for me to write as a crossover?!!! Especially when I do not know if there are enough people who like both properties AND read fanfiction to be interested in a crossover AU / fusion fic - then again, I tend to write things primarily for my own delight, anyway. I was telling myself "no, these two things are already too similar, there's really no need," but then came the idea that "no, there are some things unique enough to the Fallout setting that you could really have fun with the Trigun characters wandering a post nuclear North America rather than Planet Gunsmoke / No Man's Land." I could even interchangeably refer to the Wasteland as No Man's Land... Okay, Brain, so you're telling me that in this fusion universe, Vault-Tec had a subsidiary that worked closely with the budding U.S. space program, which if I am not mistaken, is canon (that satellite-dish quest in Fallout 3 and that experimental for space-colonisation front Vault concealing the real experiment in the Nuka-World expansion for 4). SEEDS was sort of its own separate thing, more benevolent than the Vaults and free from their wild secret experiments. Their mission was open: Developing a new, yet profitable, source of power for the cooperate overlords to profit from, being a failsafe for re-terraforming the Earth in the event of a nuclear war, and being a study for close-quarter scientist-living for potential space colonies. SEEDS Vault 05 (as distinct from Vault 5, SEEDS gets a different class) saw the successful bioengineering of life forms they called Plants. They were actually developed shortly before the war of 2077, but were not considered perfected. After the bombs dropped and the doors sealed, further study showed the Plants' potential as essentially living G.E.C.Ks (Garden of Eden Creation Kits). A living answer to the G.E.C.K, water-chips, cold-fusion... Even a potential way to divest from the atomic energy that America had been depending on since the end of WWII. (Fallout, for non-players, is an AU of reality diverging at WWII's end). And then Independents are born. Rem Saverem, a rogue scientist who rebels against Vault-Tec's lack of ethics managed to smuggle out the first Independent. Poor Tesla, being a little girl she had to send out, but the Hell of the Wastes were literally a better shot for her survival than for her to stay in the SEEDS-Vault. Sometime later, a pair of twin boys are born and Rem manages to convince the crew not to make them into test subjects. Until she can't. Cue big escape scene where she gets Vash and Nai out of the vault and dies in a hail of bullets right before them as guards cut her down and come after them... And so starts the journey of pair of living McGuffins who can either save the world or destroy it in search of their lost sister. Nai eventually becomes Millions Knives, a brutal Wasteland warlord bent on the destruction of humankind. Vash is on the run with bounties upon bounties upon him. He meets a ghoul named Wolfwood, dependant upon a certain kind of Chem to heal his wounds and to keep him from going feral and a couple of reporter-ladies from one of the larger settlement-cities intent upon uncovering Wasteland mysteries.

[yanderes-galore]

Yep I know 😊 I’d like to see how you’d write for Ultimis Edward Richtofen… he’s insane and I think as a yandere it’d be interesting to see, especially since he’s another crazed doctor who experimented on living beings

So Ultimis Edward Richtofen - concept, is my request ☺️ I’ll thank you in advance, even if it may be denied 😊 I’ll understand it

Ah yes, Ultimis Timeline Richtofen is absolutely insane. First COD request! Yay! I think I have enough info on him to make a concept without making it complicated. Totally want to write more for COD. Also, just in case, spoiler warning for COD Zombies.

Here's the video I'm using to understand the lore more, warning, it's long.

Yandere! Ultimis Edward Richtofen Concept

Pairing: Romantic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Manipulation, Delusional behavior, Sadism, Torture, Murder, Blood, Experimentation, Insanity, Twisted flirting, Forced relationship, Possessive behavior, Lewd implications, Masochisim mention.

- Ah, Ultimis Richtofen... a scientist turned sadist and deranged upon coming into contact with Element 115.

- He'd be hell to deal with.

- Richtofen in the Ultimis timeline would be Sadistic, Manipulative, Delusional, Possessive, and Ruthless

- He is a complete and utter menace.

- He laughs at murder, torture, violence.

- Imagine if he had feelings for you before the whole Element 115 thing, then you slowly see him delve into complete and utter madness.

- When he was still sane, he'd probably be so sweet towards you.

- Then when he comes in contact with the moon pyramid device upon figuring out teleportation, you can see how he twists.

- His loving and affectionate comments are... sadistic.

- Twisted and warped to the point it scares you.

- Once Richtofen loses his sanity he probably starts developing an obsessive attachment towards you.

- He has ocassional normal comments but most of them involve obsessive ramblings.

- He talks too much about your blood, your organs, how your body as a whole is attractive and useful.

- You guess he means it as flattering, but it just sounds like he'll actually steal your heart (or spleen-).

- Then again, what do you expect from a mad scientist?

- He'd be so manipulative because he still plays acts to seem sane.

- He fooled Maxis, did he not?

- He can fool you and the others around you with some simple facades.

- You won't have many to turn to.

- Richtofen always manages to turn you around, back into his arms...

- Sometimes, even onto his operating table.

- For one way or another....

- Richtofen has extreme delusions due to Element 115.

- Even if you were just an assistant, he thinks of you so much more.

- The voices want him to find Agartha, he thinks you'll prove useful in such a goal.

- He also thinks you're great companionship.

- You may not see the crazed scientist as anything close to a lover, but he sees you as such.

- A lover, a test subject, a gateway to something amazing....

- You may want nothing intimate, but his delusions say otherwise.

- Just a thought, imagine if he used part of your soul in the Elemental Shard?

- Then you'd be forever stuck with him, through universes.

- He is totally the person to experiment with/on his Darling, too.

- Would not be surprised if you were subject to Element 115 injections like he did with the others.

- He adores you, yes, but he also believes you have other uses for him.

- Richtofen is so sadistic when experimenting on you, too.

- It's like he gets off to it.

- He loves seeing your blood.

- He loves the cuts he makes on your skin.

- Do not worry, dear, he'll soothe you as he makes careful injections into you.

- Muttering praises and tracing his hand over your body, telling you how well you're doing.

- Everything he does with you feels wrong, like he gets sick pleasure from it.

- He isn't entirely like this with the other subjects, just you.

- You're helping him so much, aren't you happy?

- He loves you so much for "allowing" him to do this....

- Oh... he'd be possessive.

- What's worse than an insane mad scientist that obsesses over you?

- A jealous one who hates anyone around you.

- No one gets to talk to you.

- You can hear him ramble to himself, muttering about others touching you.

- He feels others will take you, steal you from him and ruin his relationship and research.

- He doesn't bat an eye when it comes to torture or murder.

- Anyone he hates around you is subject to his wrath.

- He laughs all the while when they suffer.

- Then he comes to you, cooing over you while they lay dead on the floor or on his table.

- By this point you should be used to his behavior....

- Richtofen is ruthless in the Ultimis timeline.

- He'd be willing to drag you with him through anything.

- You don't get much of a choice due to how insane and reckless he can get.

- In fact, the constant stream of zombies may just drive you closer.

- Albeit, reluctantly on your part.

- Dempsey, Nikolai, and Takeo probably comment on you at times, which can get on Richtofen's nerves.

- Although Dempsey pisses him off the most.

- Which then results in you hearing Richtofen rant nonsense for a long time.

- Can't forget his voicelines.

- Richtofen shows signs of masochism and... strange erotic desires-

- Which means, yes, you will be subject to that.

- The others may suggest you don't feed into it.

- It's hard to ignore him though as he keeps making the strangest comments.

- Overall, Richtofen is a sadistic and delusional Yandere that would subject you to hell before kissing and comforting you.

- You will not be living the best life with him, not like you have a choice with the undead charging at you, however.

[taanoir]

Nicole came out to see her dad, Ken had passed away suddenly from a heart attack several months ago. This had been her first trip since he passed.

She kept the conversation away from his health. Not that she didn't care, the thought of loosing her father again was terrifying. In the wake of burying her husband after a heart attack, it was too much. She knew Jen, Tiff and Grandpa Gene had those bases covered for her dad. It was more important to spend quality time while she could.

She made jokes and poked at him about the dust in his art studio.

He told her about Melody she had entered several writing competitions. "So far she's won two, the rest she hasn't placed but I just keep encouraging her to enter. She's had a few pieces published, which is great."

Nicole asked how River was doing with Computer Team? "He's doing great! His team is going to the state finals. He focuses more on robotics but he's also been helping Josh build that new rocket. After seeing your dad so focused on that old one, Gene and I weren't sure about them building a second one. It's been a very different project than with Jimmy. They work on it on the weekends. Sometimes Josh or River will tinker on components in the lab through the week but for the most part it's just weekends and they only work together. Honestly, I'm happy for it."

Nicole was glad the kids were doing well. Her three were getting big as well, her oldest, Pierre, was graduated and at Britechester on a soccer scholarship. Kole was on the High School debate team and still a social butterfly. "He reminds me of Tiff when she was in High School. He's never met a stranger and gets along with everyone but Pierre." she laughed.

Uncle Gene came and sat with them. "How's the littlest one?"

Nicole smiled "Kendrick is doing good, he's in 4th grade now. He's still figuring out his interests. His older brother's kind of had their interests figured out, Kenny bounces around. That one has a temper though, I'm not sure where it came from."

Gene chuckled, "that's a mystery wrapped in an enigma."

Nicole feigned offense, "surely, I don't know what you're talking about."

They had a good laugh.

Jen joined them as they were talking about the new series on LamaLama TV. Nicole had watched the first episode but wasn't really invested just yet. Gene assured her she should watch episode two, it would all make sense.

Jen poked at Nicole a bit to break the silence that had filled the room.

Jen smiled, awkwardly trying to reignite the conversation, "How are you? Are you still working in programing, you don't mention your career these days?"

Nicole could tell Jen was trying to keep things normal "Actually, I am. I took some time off when the boys were young but once they all started school I went back to work. I'm a lead programmer for Evergreen Tech, we are working on a desalination system for the harbor. How about you Jen? Still working with the bots?"

"I am, were doing more and more with them every day. I can talk a little about my project this time, it's private sector. I'm working on improving prosthetic joints to move more naturally with less impact or stress to the individual. We have a full leg prototype system that uses a combination or robotics, hydraulics and a new synthetic. So far we've proven it can walk, run and navigate stairs with natural movement. We'd like it to be able to get up and down on it's knees, dance, ice skate, it's still experimental but promising. The goal is to be able to mimic skeletal movement without creating additional issues. We're also working on ways to use the electrical signals and motion in the body as a power source. Some older models are able to accomplish natural motion for walking, running and stairs but require charging, we'd like to improve the tech for a better experience."

Nicole was impressed and a tiny bit jealous, Jen always worked on the coolest projects.

[shmowder]

I had my suspicions... the eyes emoji may have given it away 😁 I appreciate you writing out all those tips! They'll be super helpful, especially when I get confused and am like Why isn't this working like P2?? Which I have no doubt will happen often. And the maps, yay, I love maps and have printed out the one for P2 with all the cache locations and I'll probably print these too.

Save anywhere at any time? I definitely won't abuse that at all... but still I'm glad there's no penalty for dying in P1. Even on baby mode I was about to bleed out from being knifed by 1 guy in a burned district today. Glad to have the combat tips. I've actually never bought any kind of gun in any of my P2 playthroughs and have tried to engage in minimal combat and looting so I wonder how feasible that will be in P1. I guess not very, if I don't want to starve to death. That reminds me, I'm going to have to fight the worms in the Abattoir soon 💀

No worries on the dialogue front, I'm well versed in making sure everyone in my video game party likes me at the expense of having any kind of moral fiber 😇😅

Oh, Yulia ♡ We would be so bad for each other. Give it a month and that house would be unfit for human habitation. #girlrotting

I can't tell how it was intended, but Artemy having the option of saying "Do you know who I am?" to her in that screenshot... it reads as hilariously aggressive to me. Confrontational! The way you describe all the character interactions is so funny though. It made me smile.

I know you probably didn't need this kind of response to that post but I want to acknowledge the work you put into it :) It's pretty likely that I'll move on to P1 after finishing P2 + Marble Nest. Hope you have a good night, or morning, or whatever 🫶

🐿️ anon

I LOVE MAPS TOO. It's extra fun opening my phone to show the map while playing pathologic. Also, the mental image of Artemy who grew up in this town, unfurling a large paper and staring at the map for a solid 5 minutes like a lost tourist, is extremely silly.

girlrotting indeed. Not to mention how harder cleaning would be for her with her mobility issues and the limp in her leg. She mentions in her dialogue that she can't walk around much because of it. I'm taking liberaties and assuming the injury is located in her ankle joints because that's the body part she is symbolic of. No wonder she has a roommate in P2, she's probably a lot of help to her when moving is too difficult.

I did have an idea about a new pathologic healer (maybe reader insert?) who's a medical engineer and ends up convincing Yulia to amputate her leg in order to give her a prosthetic At that time period, this is considered experimental cutting-edge technology with a lot of risks. Even the prosthetic the healer offers is still a prototype and prone to failing but Yulia takes the risk.

The tricky thing was figuring out how to cut her leg since this healer isn't a menkhu and can't open bodies. Two options came to mind. One, Yulia herself has to cut her own leg after taking a shit ton of morphine. Two, the haruspex is called in for a favour to do it for them.

But watch out! Artemy would only help with the amputation, thinking Yulia just wants to get rid of it. If you blabber too much and tell him about the prosthetic, then he immediately refuses to do the surgery or help. The whole "flesh vs machine" thing and menkhu practices forbidding mixing the two.

Either way, the surgery ends up being a success! and Yulia can be seen in more places throughout the town during that playthrough. You find her walking to the cape and alongside the river, admiring the steppe and spending more time outside in general. Man, I just want her to be happy again :(

Also, the scene I pictured of how the reader convinces her to perform the surgery is very hilarious. You just waltz in while she is at the broken heart pub, yell from the top of the stairs. "Hey Yulia, are you free? Wanna come and saw off your leg? I'm very positive I can make you a better one!'

She just stares up at you from below with dull eyes, snuffing out her cigarette against the ashtray and getting up. "Why not. Do kindly lead the way."

There is a third option, but it's more of a ship of Theseus situations? How much can the reader be involved in the surgery before they cross the line of taboo? What if they just hold the equipment for Yulia? what if they only wipe the blood away? What if it's her hand holding the scalpel, but the reader's hand holds the top of Yulia's and carefully moves it, guiding her fingers slowly to separate the skin.

If the two of you held hand and moved as one through all of the surgery, then who really is the one responsible for it?

At the least, it will give the kin a moment of pause before coming after Reader with pitchforks.

And hey, I am thankful for this kind of response. I did need it, actually. I put in effort and time into my replies and seeinh them returned like this always makes me happy. It feels like someone is truly listening and replying back, that it isn't just my own voice echoing through the blog with the occasional. Thank you <3

[ix-astra]

some goldenpage hcs post bc i have No Art only hundreds of wips 🫶

goldenpage pairing name because its their last names together and i thought it was cute :] aslans last name is actually aureus but it means golden so ! close enough

CHILDHOOD FRIENDS !! we know this, childhood friends to lovers trope 🫶 since aslan isn't the mc in our silly hpma universe, they met when they were 5 during one of the aureus's vacation trips instead, after aslan's parents saw how enthusiastic and happy he is with his new friend they decided that there was no harm in frequently coming back there for their vacations

anyone with ears that come close to little aslan had definitely heard about this daniel at least thrice . boy would not stop talking about the adorable friend he made, cassandra suffered through it the most and when she first encountered daniel in hogwarts still not knowing its aslan's daniel she went "god, you share the name of the boy aslan wouldn't stop talking about. of course you do"

they used to play house when they were itty bitty, asked aslan's mom for one of her rings because she and her husband wore one and things clicked in her mind . got them their own custom pair that'll fit them when they're older and once they are they use it as their real marriage rings

charlotte and arthur, aslan's parents, actually had to halt all arranged marriage proposals to save themselves the trouble of having to cancel when the two did get together, they had an intuition (charlotte used to look at arthur the same way, still does ! they just Knew)

they had a shared frog named mrs. ribbit-ton, they had found her together and aslan decided he wanted to keep her (the start of his finding animals and deciding to keep them habit)

aslan truly really absolutely is capable of doing many-a-things himself but his parents had taught him that love can be conveyed beyond words and through actions and thoughts as well and thaaaaat lead to aslan happily asking daniel for help with the little things, poor boy has to straighten out aslan's tie and brush back his hair in the mornings, this doesnt go without unserious teasing over how aslan would be helpless without daniel of course

extension from that, goldenpage can absolutely understand each other without words, someone could be speaking and one would make the slightest expression change and the other would accidentally burst out laughing

they formed a habit of hand holding :] !! aslan would sometimes look at his hand and daniel would instinctively come to hold it, sometimes aslan would just be writing and looking at what he's jotted down when daniel comes to lace their fingers together

aslan often asks daniel for help with his potions because no matter how well he gets the rest of it he always puts in too much magic </3 spells genius Can Not Potions

aslan sleeps over daniel's dorm more often than his own ! the other ravenclaw's joke that they're stealing him away from slytherin, it doesn't help that he frequently forgets to bring a change of slytherin uniform and has to go through the day in ravenclaw ones.. !

daniel's why aslan decides he wants to be a healer ! take that as you will

the "would you still love me if i was a worm" question but . its asked every time they accidentally fuck up a spell or potion, daniel's "would you still love me if i accidentally spilled an experimental potion on myself and shrank 30 times smaller" and aslan's "would you still love me if a spell went awry and i'm half beast as a result"

aslan first drunkenly confesses to daniel after the yule ball during year 4 after octavian spiked their group's drinks but it wasn't taken seriously not because of some sad miscommunication but because it was drunkenly said, they both know this and all is well

he does confess again for reals late into the same year though ! but aslan did not want daniel to feel like he had to give back and reciprocate just because of their history and daniel figured it would indeed be better if he thought on it for a while too, things resume as usual for them both ! the usual friend things they do that can in no way be interpreted as couple things /sarc

daniel does reciprocate by early sixth year ! their friends telling them that they Do Know because it was the only time they tried to be sneaky with their hand holding when they had thoughtlessly done it before and to their credit, nothing really changed, they were just as affectionate years before the confession is all 🫶 some people were surprised that they weren't already dating beforehand actually

they took a blood pact after graduation and before the am war (a major event in our little hpma universe) started because they both knew it was coming and what roles they'll be playing, "a blood pact, for wherever our paths may take us it'll never lead us against each other" and aslan jokes it sounded like a proposal . it is and he realizes this when daniel gives him an exasperated yet amused look