#so i guess if the arctic wants my life later on she can have it

[jaysarenice]

So I will DEFINITELY be doing the Smalletho superhero au fic (with my spin on it) so here’s some of the info that’s pretty relevant and some reasons for certain decisions! Enjoy!

- To start, I wanna mention that Grian, Jimmy, Joel, and Gem are family. Grian, Jimmy and Joel are biological brothers, and Gem is their adopted sister. Their last name is Solidarity, and their middle names are more related to the person. I just really like the family in Wild Life, and in the fics that I read recently, I interpreted their dynamic as one of siblings, and I am taking some decently big inspo from these fics. I imagine their family to be like the characters from The Outsiders. Idk why, just do. Also, I’m going to refer to these characters as the Gang, because they are their own little family villain gang, but also so I don’t have to type their names a ton lol

- As alluded to, the Gang are villains. Joel is the main leader, but the others are still pretty involved. Joel led them to being villains after Lizzie’s disappearance (will touch on later), blaming it on heroes.

- As you can maybe guess by that then, Etho is a hero. Other heroes include (at this point in my developing): Scott, Scar, BDubs, BigB

- Other villains are: Pearl, Ren, Martyn, Impulse dabbles in villainy sometimes

- Skizz, Tango, Cleo, Mumbo, and Lizzie are civilians

- Now to get to Lizzie. I wanted her to have the same “haunting the narrative” stuff she does in Hermitcraft s10, but I also wanted to play around with her Empires s1 lore a bit. So she’s an axolotl/fairy model that disappeared about 2 years ago (at the start of the story). She was Joel’s girlfriend, and dreamed of being a strong hero. However, she didn’t have much power on her own, especially out of water. So she immediately signed up when the S.P.I.P.A. (will talk about next) proposed giving civilians artificial superpowers. Lizzie was ecstatic; she would be able to hang out with all her friends and save people, like she had always dreamed. Things didn’t go the way anyone planned. She began losing her memories, and eventually she was just.. gone. Joel blamed her disappearance on the S.P.I.P.A., and chose to forever fight against them, starting the Gang and quickly becoming one of the top villains in the world. He really misses Lizzie.

- Now for the S.P.I.P.A.! The acronym means “Super Powered Individual Protection Association.” They’re basically the big organization most heroes in the city are under. Joel hates them with every fiber of his being. The whole Lizzie thing was actually an accident, but did anyone care to talk to the madman burning down their trucks and their outposts? Absolutely not. Mumbo works with them quite a bit, but he’s pretty unaware of their inner workings.

Now time for the even more fun stuff! The characters themselves!!

This section will include powers, species, and alter egos. At the end will also be some relationships pre-existing at the start of the story as well as some of the extra abilities of characters. Also please note, this is only characters I’ve developed! Please feel free to give suggestions for characters!

Joel - Phoenix/demon, fire powers but also faster healing and soft precognition, alter ego is Wildfire

Grian - Parrot/demon, star powers but also syncognition and soft mind control, alter ego is the Watcher

Jimmy - Canary/demon, water and electricity powers, alter ego is the Bandit (<- place holder name, need some more ideas!)

Gem - Jackalope centaur, sculk control, alter ego is the Wilt

Etho - Arctic fox, ice powers and soft metal control, alter ego is Hoarfrost

Scott - Unicorn, light flower power (like light magic and flower magic combined), alter ego name is still in progress

Martyn - Bat/small bit of demon, plant control and super hearing as well as artificial mind reading, alter ego is the Liege

Ren - Were-hound, soft shapeshifting and blood magic, alter ego is His Majesty

Scar - Cat, powers undecided, alter ego is Hawkeye/HotGuy

Pearl - Wolf/moth, necromancy and shadow/moon powers, alter ego is Actias Luna (<- placeholder for now, need something more moon or death related)

Now time for pre-existing relationships!! Hooray!

Scott + Jimmy - dated for a while but split after Scott joined S.P.I.P.A. Still sometimes hang out but it’s pretty awkward (also Joel wants him nowhere near Scott)

Grian + Scar - dating (who would have guessed). Grian does a little less villain work because he doesn’t want anyone to catch him with Scar because Scar is terrible at forgetting that they’re supposed to be enemies

Tango + Jimmy - Jimmy has a side job where he’s coworkers with Tango and he’s been trying to get closer with him. Aka Jimmy has a big fat crush on his coworker

Pearl + Gem - Gem and Jimmy are in similar situations with Pearl and Tango. Gem’s got a big fat crush on the most elusive villain (actually maybe person) in the city. Gem and Pearl collab on gadgets and gizmos often and also help each other with supplies

Martyn + Jimmy - Brotherly bond. Martyn helps Jimmy and Jimmy entertains Martyn. Martyn is disliked by the other Gang members, but Jimmy is sure he’s a great guy

Martyn + Ren - Married. For about 3 years. They met in high school theater and went to college together and ended up some pretty good villains. Probably the only villains in the city who are open about their relationship (they always show up together and have matching names). Outside of villainy the two are popular actors in dramas

Lizzie + Joel - Dating up until Lizzie’s disappearance. While Lizzie was doing the S.P.I.P.A. stuff, Joel was working hard to get her a ring. He keeps the ring he finally was able to get on the day of her disappearance in one of his vest pockets. He never goes anywhere without it.

Mumbo + Grian - Very close friends. Mumbo usually doesn’t question the villain stuff Grian keeps from him, so that’s why he’s allowed to stay around.

Character Extra Abilities:

Grouped by if they share some cus I’ve been writing this for a while and I’m lazy so

Jimmy, Scar: Understand animals

Joel: Walking heater, emotions affect intensity of wings and tail

Etho: Walking A/C, emotions affect body by turning some parts to ice (can be melted, it’s usually caused by high stress)

Jimmy: Emotions affect weather (inspired by @/insomnya777’s fic)

Grian: Emotions can turn parts of his body on fire (purple fire)

And that’s it! (For now….)

This is all the stuff I can remember thinking about so :3 hope you enjoyed will probably start writing the story after my therapy appointment today :D will update on that of course. Thank you for reading all this! I hope you enjoyed! <3

[luru-mlp]

Introducing Prince Silver Crystal and Princess Il Mio Blu Passionale!!~ (Aka Princess Blue Passion)

As you can probably guess, these two unicorns are the current rulers of the Crystal Empire. Well, Silver is. Blue Passion hosts the galas and parties that come along with being a princess and tends to the smaller affairs of the citizens. Prince Silver Crystal takes care of practically everything else. He appoints members of the court to handle specific tasks and duties, but overall, every law and choice for the kingdom is run by him before it becomes final.

Silver and Blue Passion are descendants of Flurry Heart. They are not alicorns, yet rule over the Crystal Empire due to a noticeable lack of them.

Cutie Mark Designs

So Silver’s cutie mark is a silver ring with the Crystal Heart as the gemstone upon a crystal crown. This is heavy symbolism of how Silver is married to his throne. He feels as though he has a commitment and duty to his people, as any great ruler should. However Silver often sacrifices his own wants and needs for this, which leads to him struggling to juggle his social life with his work life. But it also symbolizes Silver’s loyalty. Loyalty to his kingdom, loyalty to his family, and loyalty to his love. (Which I will show later :3(

Meanwhile Blue Passion’s cutie mark is a pink crystal heart with a tiny blue heart inside. This shows that Blue’s true passion is tucked away behind the mighty power of the Crystal Heart. Blue feels she must push away childish things, which often results in her acting more cold and rude than she truly is. However, she’s still very lighthearted, and struggles with acting in this manner. Deep inside, Blue holds a great amount of love and care for her brother and her people. She looks to them for comfort and for friendship. This can be a struggle for Blue, though, as she is a princess. Many feel uncomfortable around her or feel they have to put up a constant wall of professional respect.

Character

So the rings on each of their horns are symbolic and decorative. They show their ties to the kingdom and their responsibility to their people. It also just looks really cool. They both have the same gemstones on their ‘clothes’. The colors are reminiscent of the Northern Lights, since the Crystal Empire lives in the Arctic.

Story

The Mane Six would head towards the Crystal Empire after being invited by Spiderweb’s father, Astral Thunder. It would originally be to meet Spiderweb’s family before Spiderweb storms off and the group runs into Princess Blue Passion. She attempts to befriend the group, and is successful with Sweet Sorbet, Hazel Moonblossom, and Art. She then invites them to stay in the castle for the night since it’s too late for them to leave due to the risk of unreformed changelings.

The group mentions how they’ve encountered one before with Honeycomb Lace, and Blue gets excited. She believes that they could help with their unreformed changeling problem.

The issue is; magic that affects the unreformed changelings affects the reformed ones as well. This can cause discomfort amongst many changelings that Blue and Silver are in good standings with. And while the reformed ones understand the magical restrictions, there is still a great fear of them trying to attack the Crystal Empire and take over due to Chrysalis’ reputation. It is still unknown whether or not Chrysalis has been freed from stone alongside Cozy Glow and Tirek, but neither royals wish to take the risk.

That’s kind of it for now, but if you have any questions, my ask box is WIIIIDE open!!~

[carchaseonacarchase]

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚜𝚎 & 𝙲𝚊𝚛𝚖𝚎𝚗 𝙸𝚗𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚢𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚝 𝚗𝚘. 𝚝𝚠𝚘 🤍

╰┈➤ more songs for this ship, now more indie and contemporary genres, this playlist is full of alternative rock/indie songs (pretty personal selection because it's based on my own music tastes. i appreciate song suggestions. enjoy ;)

spotify playlist here :D

˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ��

⚘ softcore the neighbourhood ❛❛ you get me through every dark night, i'm always gone, out on the go. i don't want to play this part but i do, all for you ❞

⚘ siren kailee morgue ❛❛ love me while your wrists are bound, you’ve been seeing me in your dreams. darling, it’s your choice not to fall in, but it’s all an act, 'cause i know exactly what you wanting ❞

⚘ hysteria muse ❛❛ i'm breaking out, last chance to lose control, and i want you now ❞

⚘ harleys in hawaii katy perry ❛❛ i'll be your baby on a sunday, oh, why don't we get out of town? ❞

⚘ cold case love rihanna ❛❛ so wake me up when it's over, it don't make any difference, will it ever be solved? or am i taking the fall? ❞

⚘ irish goodbye k. flay ❛❛ power play subliminal, i'm feeling like a criminal for wanting better. so take one last look at me, before i go into the night ❞

⚘ tennis court lorde ❛❛ everything's cool when we're all in line for the throne, but i know it's not forever ❞

⚘ carmen sandiego grizfolk ❛❛ i'm out of my mind, she's just out of reach. tell them to tell you i'm done this time, oh, i'm done this time ❞

⚘ run joji ❛❛ i witnessed your madness, you shed light on my sins, and if we share in this sadness, then where have you been? guess I'm not the one, like you used to think, so you just run ❞

⚘ one for the road arctic monkeys ❛❛ there’s no need to show me round, baby, i feel like i’ve been here before, i’ve been wondering whether later... when you tell everybody to go, will you pour me one for the road? ❞

⚘ you first paramore ❛❛ never said i wasn't petty, you can bet I don't regret it for a second, it's a pleasure, it's a reckoning, i'll do better when you're better ❞

⚘ style taylor swift ❛❛ and i should just tell you to leave, 'cause i know exactly where it leads, but i watch us go 'round and 'round each time ❞

⚘ bad habits ed sheeran ❛❛ every time you come around, you know i can't say no. every time the sun goes down, i let you take control. we took the long way 'round and burned till the fun ran out ❞

⚘ lost on you lp ❛❛ hold me like you never lost your patience, tell me that you love me more than hate me all the time, and you're still mine ❞

⚘ because of you lana del rey ❛❛ we dance like nobody is watching us and we live like we want to, but it can all get a little crazy unless there's something to hold on. for me, that was true love ❞

⚘ desire meg myers ❛❛ how do you want me, how do you want me? ❞

⚘ contemptress motionless in white ❛❛ we've played this role a thousand times, the same old script, just different lies, you disappear without a trace, concealing the crimes on your face ❞

⚘ we belong together mariah carey ❛❛ the feeling that i'm feeling, now that i don't hear your voice, or have your touch and kiss your lips, 'cause I don't have a choice ❞

⚘ magnets disclosure & lorde ❛❛ never really thought we would make it, we be thinking about what could have been, but we've had a record summer, can't turn it down, oh, now i don't wanna see the end begin ❞

⚘ high enough k.flay ❛❛ used to like liquor to get me inspired, but you look so beautiful, my new supplier, i used to like smoking to stop all the thinking, do you see anyone other than me? ❞

⚘ disease lady gaga ❛❛ screamin' for me, baby, like you're gonna die, poison on the inside, i could be your antidote tonight ❞

⚘ power & control marina and the diamonds ❛❛ but love, will always be a game, we give and take a little more, eternal game of tug and war ❞

⚘ my kink is karma chappell roan ❛❛ people say i'm jealous, but my kink is watching you ruin your life, you losing your mind, you thinking i care ❞

⚘ cornerstone arctic monkeys ❛❛ she was nothing but a vision trick under the warning light. tell me where's your hiding place, because i'm worried i'll forget your face ❞

⚘ tourniquet marilyn manson ❛❛ take your hatred out on me, make your victim my head ❞

˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗

[christinescupofcoffee]

❤️ how tall are you? 5’7” (if I wear my boots, I’m closer to 5’8”)

🧡 what is your sexuality? I really don’t know, I might be bi, I might be pan? I have ruminated over this more than I ever would have liked.

💛 what is your favorite feature on yourself? Probably my belly. It used to be so fat and now it’s just a little bit round. I never want to lose it. It’s also where I feel the most wounded (that, and my hair).

💚 where are you from? I was born in the L.A. area, spent my childhood in Carson City, grew up in the California desert, lived in southern Oregon for four years, and now I live in the California mountains, so the west coast.

🩵 do you have any pets? All the dogs, all the cats. Both are the loves of my life 🐾🐾

💙 do you have any siblings? Just my older brother and we’re not close at all (especially not after this year). I’ve felt like an only child since I was about ten.

💜 describe yourself in five words or less! Tender. Sensual. Well-rounded. Misunderstood.

🩷 dream job? Either owning a bakery that’s also an art gallery or working at Schat’s bakery up in Bishop.

🖤 favorite hobbies outside of your blog. Baking, cooking, drawing, painting, ceramics, reading, gardening, hiking, boxing, yoga, rowing, baseball, bike-riding, collecting rocks seashells books Legos and Funko pops, road trips, and crocheting

🎂 when is your birthday? April 15

🌙 your zodiac (Sun, Moon, Rising) wet n’ wild Aries sun, mad scientist Aquarius moon, and chubby comfy Cancer rising

💉do you have tattoos and/or piercings? I used to have ears pierced, but they’ve long closed up. My dream tattoo is a cardinal with a sunflower in its beak.

🚗 can you drive? yes!

✈️ favorite place you’ve traveled? Either Seattle or Atlanta.

🎤 have you been to a concert? oh, yes.

🎵 favorite artists? Chris Cornell, The Beatles, Green Day, Nine Inch Nails, Alice In Chains, Hole, Nirvana, Mother Love Bone, Stone Temple Pilots, Queens of the Stone Age, Deftones, Type O Negative, The Tragically Hip, Anthrax, Testament, Alex Skolnick Trio, Death Angel, In This Moment, Crypta, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Van Halen, Oasis, Blur, The Arctic Monkeys, The Cure, Syd Barrett, Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Tom Waits, Lana Del Rey, Alanis Morissette, Mark Lanegan, Amy Winehouse, and PJ Harvey

🎧 last song you listened to? “I Don’t Know” by Paul McCartney

📺 last show you watched? Ink master

📝 last thing you wrote? New chapter of Quarter After Twelve.

🔐 something no one would guess about you? I helped build a formula car from the ground up. I’m half Belgian/French and I have roots in Portugal and the Baltics (I get mistaken for Hispanic and Native American all the time). I was almost homeless when I was 18.

🧟‍♀️ scariest thing that’s happened to you? I had a suicide attempt when I was 19. I was actually making the noose when I started thinking about my mom, how she would react if she found me.

🔥 craziest thing that’s ever happened to you? When Chris became my friend! 10 years later, it still feels surreal.

🍓 favorite food? A nice Reuben sandwich. I also love Mediterranean food (then again, I just love to eat).

🍅 least favorite food? Eggplant (the only time I actually like it is in ratatouille). I also never had good gumbo.

🍊 favorite season? Springtime

🍋 favorite genre to read / watch / write? To read: mysteries. To watch: cooking shows and British comedy. To write: science fiction and gothic literature.

🍐 if you could make one character real, who would it be? My boys Andy and Richie. Andy, because he’s sweet and vulnerable; Richie, because he’s sweet and in need of guidance.

🫐 some place you’d love to visit? Oh, so many. New York, New Orleans, New England, Chicago, Hershey (Pennsylvania), The Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, Glacier National Park, Canada, Hawaii, Costa Rica, Chile, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Israel (yes), Morocco, Cyprus, Greece, Slovenia, Hungary, Germany, Belgium, France, Portugal, The British Isles, The Baltic States, and Iceland.

🍇 a word your friends would use to describe you. Unpredictable?

🍒 what is your earliest memory? Watching Absolutely Fabulous with my mom, and also walking around the house with only my pants and boots on (just one of many scandalous things I did when I was little 😝)

🍌 what is one talent you wish you had. Sewing. My mom’s the seamstress of the family and I could just never do it.

💌 why did you start this blog? I need a place for *all* of my writing, fanfic and original works. I also need more excuses to stay away from the dashboard, which is nearly impossible to scroll down anymore.

✏️ when did you start writing fanfic? Believe it or not, when I was about 7 years old. I never wrote anything down (and if I did, I don’t remember it). I wouldn’t come back to it until I was about 14 with Formula 1 fanfic, and then again at 20 with grunge fanfic.

🖇️ what are your favorite asks to answer? All of them. I won’t always answer, but I do enjoy reading comments.

📚 how do you come up with the fics you write? I don’t really know, they sort of “come to me” as it were. If it’s an idea i’m really inflamed by, it hits like a lightning bolt, like i just have to write it.

📌 what is the fic you’re know for? I don’t really know? When I look at my ao3, I don’t really picture any of them being remembered. If anything, I’ll probably be remembered as that one writer who was “obsessive” and prolific.

🔍 what character do you enjoy writing for the most? Alex and Christine (seasons grey). Alex and Samantha, too (fever). Alex and Falk Maria, too (midnight oil). Richard and James. When I was little, I liked imagining the original Cartoon Cartoons as my imaginary friends. All my OCs, too, like it’s nice to make up my own rules again and not “abide by the fandom” (even though aside from Top Gear/Grand Tour and Metallica, I go more into smaller fandoms/fandoms that have long quieted down).

🖊️ what character do you not enjoy writing for? Probably James Hetfield, all because I just hate the fanon that surrounds him (just look at the sheer number of daddy kink/breeder kink fics with him involved and, I’m sorry, but I don’t find them arousing).

💔 is there a fic you wish you didn’t write? Black Diamonds, believe it or not. I actually got called disgusting for that (and from one of those people who goes on ad infinitum about “fandom etiquette” no less; ever since then, I find those posts extremely hypocritical, like they bring out the rule-breaker in me).

❤️‍🔥 what character do you simp for most often? Christine. “I am he, and he is me.”

🧚‍♀️ favorite characters of all time? Lisa Simpson, Tina Belcher, Chandler Bing (r.i.p. Matthew Perry 🕊️), Jennifer Check, Mia Wallace, Black Mamba (Kill Bill), Bilbo Baggins, Katniss Everdeen, Greg and Wirt, Sally Owens (Practical Magic), Doctor Who, Doctor Strange, Dwight Schrute, Oscar Martínez, Christine from Phantom of the Opera, and Elvira

🪐 favorite shows / series of all time? The Simpsons, Bob’s Burgers, the old Cartoon Cartoons, The Office, Parks and Rec, House, Doctor Who, Sherlock, Nip/Tuck, Sex and the City, Get Smart (we used to have TV Land and back in the 2000s, they showed things from the 60s all the time), Seinfeld, 3rd Rock from the Sun, 30 Rock, Top Gear/Grand Tour, Ab/Fab, Skins, Peep Show, Portlandia, Breaking Bad, Lost, Heroes, and Great British Baking Show

🌝 a show you would recommend to anyone? Peep Show. Funny as hell black comedy that actually does it right, like it’s not this painfully on-the-nose crap you see on the internet all the time.

🌚 a show you’d tell people to stay away from? Nothing I can think of. I say let people decide what they like and enjoy—I may not like it myself but that shouldn’t stop you.

🌹 favorite kinks to write for? belly kink, voice kink, lace leather and latex…. I have a huge laundry list of kinks behind me, and I mean huge and I know I’ll be here all night if I fire them off 😅

🥀 kinks you would never write for? cream pies, daddy kink, breeder kink. I’m not too keen about size kink, either.

🌊 a kink you would like to write but you think you’d be judged? I feel judged for all my kinks, tbh.

❄️ full fics, imagines or head canons? Full fics. I do like headcanons, though.

☂️ your favorite fanfic from another writer? Right now: “Dressed to Kill” from the Bob’s Burgers fandom. Can’t think of the author’s name at the moment but I reread it from my bookmarks yesterday and I forgot how much I loved it.

🍄 what is something that’s happened in your life that you wish you could go back and change? I wish I paid more attention to art when I was in high school because I kept being told that it’s not lucrative (and art classes back then were horribly underfunded, too, so I guess it’s good that I didn’t?).

⭐️ what is one of your biggest accomplishments? Why is it so important to you? When I won 1st place for my chocolate babka. I just kind of picked up baking last year, i wasn’t really expecting anything out of it!

🪻what is the toughest thing you had to go through, but can say you’ve successfully overcome? A lot of things. Systemic poverty. Sexism. Verbal and psychological abuse. Bullies. Sadist teachers. Near homelessness. Having my heart broken. Having friends die. Watching my stepdad drink himself to death. Realizing the love of my life lives thousands of miles away and he’s with someone who is slowly killing him. Eating disorders and mental illness. Being underweight. Being obese. Spending three days by myself after my mom was admitted to hospital. I’ve probably beaten some pretty scary inheritances as far as I know (breast cancer, diabetes, heart problems, colon problems…)

🌺 what is the best gift someone has ever given you and why is it so important? My best friend gave me this little figurine of Mickey Mouse with a clear rhinestone glued on his hand… when we were five years old. I still have it. I have it in my purse.

🍀 what is your comfort show/series and why is it your comfort show? How has it helped you? All the shows I mentioned above, but this year, the Top Gear/Grand Tour trio of Jeremy, James, and Richard have been my go-to. I pretty much grew up watching the three of them but they have given me the humor, the intellect, all of it, in a year that… I would much rather forget, if I’m honest.

Get to Know Me!

This is just a fun little thing I’ve been wanting to do since the dawn of time but could never find a post to reblog that satisfied what I wanted. So I made this, feel free to reblog and use it yourself!

❤️ how tall are you?

🧡 what is your sexuality?

💛 what is your favorite feature on yourself?

💚 where are you from?

🩵 do you have any pets?

💙 do you have any siblings?

💜 describe yourself in five words or less!

🩷 dream job?

🖤 favorite hobbies outside of your blog

🎂 when is your birthday?

🌙 your zodiac (Sun, Moon, Rising)

💉do you have tattoos and/or piercings

🚗 can you drive?

✈️ favorite place you’ve traveled

🎤 have you been to a concert

🎵 favorite artists

🎧 last song you listened too

📺 last show you watched

📝 last thing you wrote

🔐 something no one would guess about you

🧟‍♀️ scariest thing that’s happened to you

🔥 craziest thing that’s ever happened to you

🍓 favorite food

🍅 least favorite food

🍊 favorite season?

🍋 favorite genre to read / watch / write

🍐 if you could make one character real, who would it be

🫐 some place you’d love to visit

🍇 a word your friends would use to describe you

🍒 what is your earliest memory

🍌 what is one talent you wish you had

💌 why did you start this blog?

✏️ when did you start writing fanfic

🖇️ what are your favorite asks to answer

📚 how do you come up with the fics you write

📌 what is the fic you’re know for

🔍 what character do you enjoy writing for the most

🖊️ what character do you not enjoy writing for

💔 is there a fic you wish you didn’t write

❤️‍🔥 what character do you simp for most often

🧚‍♀️ favorite characters of all time

🪐 favorite shows / series of all time

🌝 a show you would recommend to anyone

🌚 a show you’d tell people to stay away from

🌹 favorite kinks to write for

🥀 kinks you would never write for

🌊 a kink you would like to write but you think you’d be judged

❄️ full fics, imagines or head canons

☂️ your favorite fanfic from another writer

A couple of in depth questions!

🍄 what is something that’s happened in your life that you wish you could go back and change?

⭐️ what is one of your biggest accomplishments? Why is it so important to you?

🪻what is the toughest thing you had to go through, but can say you’ve successfully overcome?

🌺 what is the best gift someone has ever given you and why is it so important

🍀 what is your comfort show/series and why is it your comfort show? How has it helped you?

[arcplaysgames]

Breakin' the hearts of middle-aged cruise-loving housewives, Sojiro? I'm willing to walk but I guess you wanna linger around and remind me what a bad dude I am.

Reverie, we might need to speedrun the transformation from Quiet, Chill Dude to Absolute Fucking Menace out of spite. Fuck being a law-abiding citizen, i want to get a can of gasoline and set this dude's desk on fire.

squints

That's my student ID and what. She seemed kind of verklempt about it so I assume something risque.

Man, that'd just be the way of it, right? Everyone here giving Reverie shit for his trumped up charges and my teacher is doing something illicit on the side.

Bruh, this is less cold shoulder and more shoving my head into the arctic ocean. In my last life, I met a girl and within three minutes she'd kicked one of my classmates in the balls, and I feel like that'd be a warmer welcome than y'all been givin'.

One: I like actually seeing a portrait of our guy, it actually helps me feel like I know this sad sack.

Two: Why does every single thing I hear about this feel like Reverie is being set up for even more fall-guy-ification? Who the fuck asked you, Sojiro, and who the fuck paid you, and was it a guy with an enormous nose and voice like thunder echoing in a canyon?

Plot shit is happening. There are a lot of weird accidents around the city. Violent ones. It feels like something goopy is comin' out of the victims. Is that shadow goop or other goop? Time will tell.

Hey its our Seeker of Andraste, Sae, watching the news of the derailment. Apparently she thinks the weird incidents are connected. Which already means she Knows To Much and I bet her superiors will try to betray her later.

Also, THAT'S Akechi right? He looks like a beige origami towel decided to go to school, but Sae talks to him like he's knowledgeable. Naoto 2.0, This Time Not Hot?

Sojiro calls up the cafe to tell Reverie to lock up and turn the sign, and has this gemstone.

Dojima, hey, I'm sorry for comparing you to this guy earlier. Yeah, sorry about that, you didn't deserve it.

It's like trying to uninstall bloatware and it getting re-added every time you do a fucking security update, Motorola.

Sojiro does make us curry for breakfast, which would be thoughtful if I wasn't convinced he'd put us out on the street for vaping.

Also I love curry but curry for breakfast? I'm good, thanks.

YOUR PAL ARCHIE IS OFF TO A GREAT START. god this game doesn't give me a fast travel menu, I am Fucked.

Out in the rain, we spot a future party member. Her hair is incredible, look at that volume. Reverie stares for a while and I think he's just Super Awkward. Like, I've glimpsed Reverie The Cool Thief Guy in the opening sequence. It's like there's a Clark Kent thing going on here, where normal Reverie is such a Awkward Turtle you cannot imagine him as Sly Cooper.

... wait is she Moot? hey, girl, are you Moot?

fucking Evil Patrick Warburton drives by and offers Moot a ride in the rain. He also offers Reverie, and Reverie gives

THE MOST AWKWARD LITTLE WAVE

like oh honey. I'm trying to nail down his personality and so far I think it's I Got Audio Processing Issues And Rather Than Asking Everyone To Repeat Themselves I Just Make Affirming Noises And Wave. Boy howdy.

Oh and Moot looks about as thrilled to be in that car as I would be thrilled to sit on a knife. So this Kamoshida guy is not a safe dude I presume. Sorry, Moot, next time I'll come up with an excuse to get you outta there.

Already met another party member! Also, WOW your bleach job is AMAZING? Look at that texture you have, look at the fullness of the color. What are you using, bro, is that Ion Sensitive Scalp, I find that one is great for aggressive lightening without making shit feel like straw. What's your conditioner?

Also, king of the castle, huh. Given what's about to happen, that's an interesting 'coincidence.'

Then the story jumps back to the Framing Device all of a sudden.

"Psychotic breakdown incidents" wow, could you guys not come up with something that rolls off the tongue, like Apathy Syndrome?

Was Reverie ordinary, idk man, what do you think happens when you hear "hey you fucking suck and will be homeless if you so much as smoke a single solitary weed" 7 times a day?

I bet Reverie could use a weed tbh.

[mentalpolaroids]

She Looks Like Fun (part II)

Drew Starkey x female!Reader

Warnings: mentions of drinking

Sightly inspired by She Looks Like Fun by Arctic Monkeys

Part 1 

(y/n) hooked her arm into Drew’s as they tried not to get separated in between the mass of partying people filling the streets. The first stop on the promised tour was a rooftop bar (y/n) usually frequented. Alone. 

The place was her own little secret. She wasn’t sure why she had the need to make it a secret, but she liked the idea of having a spot to resort to when she needed to spend some time with herself. Take herself on a date, as she called it. Despite having a view to the night life, where the messy and vivacious tourists and college students could be seen having the time of their lives, the fairy lit rooftop was cozy and chill. Opposite to other nights, she wanted company, and somehow, that not-from-around-here, genuine kind man she happened to meet at a bar was a great option. 

“Just so you know,” (y/n) started, as they finally got themselves free from the crowd and were peacefully making their way to the rooftop bar, “this place is kinda exclusive for me, so, don’t tell anyone you were here with me.” 

Drew chuckled.

“Why’s that?”

“I always come here alone. It’s my,” she hesitated, pondering for a few seconds if she was about to share too much, “safe spot. I guess you can say that.” 

Drew smiled at the description, a warm sensation taking over his chest at the trust she was putting into him. He could see in her eyes there was something more to it than she was probably willing to share, a special reason, but whatever it was, he liked the fact she was going to show him. She wasn’t just taking him to a place in a town he didn’t know, she was also taking him to get to know a piece of her. 

“Any reason you’re taking me there?

The girl shrugged her shoulders and stopped in her tracks when she noticed the entrance of the bar right beside them.

“It just feels right to take you here.” 

(y/n) didn’t look at Drew, afraid she would see a hint of hesitation or fear in his eyes by how honest she was speaking, she simply grazed his hand lightly with a hushed come on as she took the first steps to enter the building, leaving the man to wonder what the hell she was doing to his heart, that started to beat faster and spreaded that warmth through the rest of his body. 

They chose to sit on one of the improvised couches near the edge of the rooftop, having the perfect view of both the city and the barely full space. (y/n) went to get drinks, but in agreement with Drew she opted for non-alcoholic ones, stating it was for the better considering the plan she had for later. 

"Should I be scared about that plan of yours?" Drew asked when she came back and gave him his drink. 

"Of course not." she replied, hoping to assure him he had nothing to worry about. 

"So," Drew leaned back on the the "couch","can I know why this place is so special to you?" 

(y/n) took a sip of her mocktail as she stared at an airplane barely noticeable in the sky, and with a deep breath, she told the story she had never told anyone. 

"This is the bar where I had my first heartbreak." 

Drew looked at her, surprised. He wasn't sure what he was expecting but it surely wasn't something sad. (y/n) chuckles at his reaction and continued. 

"I was seeing this guy and I was ridiculously in love with him. One night he took me here, and I thought it was like a surprise date or something, but he broke up with me instead."

The expression on Drew's face went from surprised to confused. 

"He took you here just to break up with you?"

"Oh no, he had a date, just not with me." 

His eyebrows raised in shock and he opened and closed his mouth repetitively trying to find something to say. 

"What the f-."

"Yeah." 

"I don't think I understand why you like coming here yet." 

The girl laughed. 

"That shit took a tool on me, hard, until one night I got tired of crying, put on my big girl pants and came back here. You know, kinda like facing your fears and all that." he nodded in understanding, "And that night I, I don't know, I loved being by myself, you know, in my own company. It was the night I learned how to be ok on my own." she looked down at her drink, slightly embarrassed with her own words, "I know it's lame, you don't have to tell me." 

"It's not lame at all." he intervened, " I think it was very brave of you, facing your fear of… rejection I suppose." she nodded, "It's badass, actually, turning the bad memory of a place into a good one." 

(y/n) nodded in agreement, relieved he understood exactly what she meant, and they fell into a moment of silence between them, the only thing blessing their ears being the alternative rock music lowly playing through the speakers and the animated conversations in the distance. 

"So, what made you bring me here? If it's, like, the place you enjoy being on your own." 

"I don't know. I guess it's the universe telling me that I don't always need to be on my own, that it's ok to open myself up to someone once in a while." (y/n) looked at him, "And, you know, you're an actor, you could always pretend to care while I vent."

She was joking, but with the connection they quickly formed between them Drew didn't need to pretend to care. He didn't need to pretend anything. Everything with her felt natural, the conversations flowed easily, their understanding of each other's thoughts was effortless. With (y/n), everything was real. 

"I can promise you I'm not pretending." 

..

“Where to next?”

The two no longer strangers were heading to their next stop on (y/n)’s mini tour. (y/n) was making sure to keep her plans a secret for it to be more fun, as she had explained to Drew, who was, indeed, having more fun than he cared to admit. 

“You’ll see.” she smirked as she hooked her arm with his like she had done before and pulled him towards another inevitable crowd of people hanging in front of the various bars. 

It was the peek of night, meaning more and more people were gathering at the bars and even outside of it. It was chaos, and it was when (y/n) accidentally got pushed by some guy who clearly couldn’t keep his fun under control, that Drew decided to move her to stand behind him, making sure she was holding onto him while one of his hands stayed behind him holding the end of her jacket. (y/n) was holding the back of his, trying to remain calm and watching her steps carefully. 

“You good?” he asked, turning his head to take a glance at the girl.

“Yeah.”

They eventually made it out of the mass and (y/n) returned to her position beside him.

“And that’s happy hour in Nashville for you, or, how I call it, human traffic hour.”

Drew chuckled and, kind of in an involuntary move, he circles his arm around (y/n)’s shoulder, telling himself it was to keep her Nosafe in case they ran into another sudden crowd. She didn’t complain, nor questioned it, the cheeky butterfly in her stomach was enough to confirm it felt very right. 

After walking through an entire block, (y/n) finally stopped her pace to stand in front of another bar. Drew followed her eyes to the flashy sign above the entrance and then looked at her with his already famous tight lip smile.

“Karaoke?”

“Yeah, I don’t think I paid enough attention to your performance earlier, so now I get to see it up close.”

“Oh boy.”

“Come on, movie star, time to shine.”

They had to wait around thirty minutes for their time to sing, but no complaints were had, because that meant more time to spend together, something both were growing to love and want more and more. They had a few more drinks, non-alcoholic ones, and it eventually led (y/n) to a quick trip to the bathroom before they were finally called on stage. 

Drew insisted on choosing the song, arguing it was the least he deserved for having to sing for dozens of people twice in one night. (y/n) didn't fight back, especially when he chose one of her favorite songs, making his company even more special because there was no way he knew about it. Call it fate or whatever. 

Their singing eventually became slurred words as their smiles grew and their laughter became harder to contain, but the mess only contributed to the fun. The song ended and both subconsciously leaned into one another for a quick embrace, and it was only then that they realized how close they were standing during the performance. They stepped out of the small stage still with one arm each around the other. 

"I wanna go again." (y/n) commented as she pulled Drew to the bar "But I need my juice first." 

..

“Alright, next stop, my house.”

Drew looked at (y/n) with raised eyebrows, the revealed location taking him by surprise. And he obviously couldn’t avoid his mind from going somewhere specific. The girl looked at him after the lack of response, and it was only when she saw his expression that she realized the kind of idea she passed. It wasn’t that at all.

“No, wait, not for that!” she laughed nervously, “We’re just going to get my car!”

“You scared me for a minute there, woman.” Drew chuckled.

“What, you’re telling me you wouldn’t sleep with me?” she dug for the most confidence she could gather and playfully flirted, putting her hand over her chest to fake indignity. 

“I would.” he answered assertively, doing a good job in hiding his flustered posture, but he still flirted back, “But I’m having a different kind of fun right now, and I don’t want that to end just yet.”

She smiled, patting his shoulder. 

“It won’t, promise.”

The Uber arrived quickly and, on the way to (y/n)’s house, they shared a few more stories of past trips to other cities and laughed hard at the tales of their wildest moments there. There was no telling that those two had met only a few hours ago, and if anyone was to ask the driver, who would let out a chuckle once in a while at the stories being told in the backseat, he would say they appeared to have a tight, fun, and long-lasting friendship. 

The car stopped outside (y/n)’s apartment building and her and Drew said their goodbyes to the drivers before the girl dragged him to the garage. 

“You sure you’re ok to drive already?” he asked, watching her unlock the car. 

“Yeah, I feel fine. Those juices really helped.” she opened the door to take the driver’s seat, “Come on, you can play DJ!”

It was a good thing (y/n) was indeed sober, because the amount of singing and laughing while she was driving was more than advised, especially when Drew was no different, adding even more fuel to the chaos on wheels. The drive wasn’t long, and it felt even shorter with how lost both were in their own world. So lost (y/n) almost missed the turn to their destiny: the Love Circle. 

“Here we are.”

“Wow.”

“Yup. Pretty huh?”

Drew was admiring the shore of lights in the distance, the darkness of the night making it seem like millions of fairy lights floating under their feet. (y/n) got out of the car, but not before stealing a glance at the boy in the passenger seat, his beauty even more clear under the magical, low luminosity that made his features more contrastable. 

(y/n) walked towards the front of her car and leaned against it facing the view. She heard the passenger door close and soon Drew was beside her, also leaning against the car. 

They went a few minutes without saying a word, and no other sounds were heard, aside from the occasional ruffle of the trees when the breeze strengthened. 

“What’s this place called again?” Drew spoke.

“Love Circle.” he laughed, throwing his head back, “What?” 

“Nothing. It’s just… funny. That you took me here, I mean.”

“Oh don’t flatter yourself, movie star, it was because of the view, not the ridiculous name of it.”

“Hey, I was joking.” hs toned softened, “And I don’t mind.”

Once again, she felt his eyes on the side of her head and she swore she felt her insides melt at the way he was looking at her when she looked back. 

“It is a pretty romantic place, though.”

“How many dates did you have here?”

She smiled shyly, but refused to break eye contact.

“This is the first one.”

It was Drew’s turn to smile, almost as timid as her, if not more, but he couldn’t hold the eye contact and turned his gaze into the city in front of him, hearing a snort from her. 

“What you laughing at?” he asked, not looking at her.

“Did I make you blush?”

“No.”

“Yeah I did.”

The boy removed himself from leaning against the car and stood right in front of her, the height difference becoming more noticeable by how close he positioned himself to her. If it was anyone else, (y/n) would’ve probably felt intimidated, but Drew had such a softness to the way he carried himself that it felt the complete opposite. She felt safe, comfortable. 

Their eyes met again, more sincere than ever, and before (y/n) could accept another round of comfortable silence between them, Drew surprised her. 

“Can I kiss you?” 

He spoke so quietly that, if it wasn’t for the stillness of the place, she wouldn’t have heard him. She tried to hold back another smile, but with no success. She couldn’t count how many times she had smiled that night. 

“I don’t kiss on the first date.” it was Drew’s turn to snort, her humor amusing him, “But, since this night was full of firsts, I think I can make an exception for you.” 

It wasn’t that Drew felt like he wasted his time that night, he really didn’t, and even though he couldn’t exactly remember the moment he started to feel the urge to kiss her, he was in a hurry to do it. He couldn’t wait any longer to have her lips, so he took them and tried his best to take his time, prolong it and savor it. 

Their lips molded perfectly as they set a rhythmical pace. Slow, deep. Memorable. 

(y/n) had no idea how much in need of touch she had been until she had Drew. He was the reminder of how good it felt to be intimate with someone. Or maybe it was just because it was him. A simple look from him was enough to awaken something inside her, so it was safe to say she felt like she was reborning that night, and the way the boy was kissing her was lighting her up like the city lights up at dawn. 

When their hands started to get too desperate for more touch, for more of each other’s bodies, (y/n) broke the kiss, making sure to maintain the no-gap distance between them. 

“Can I take you to my house now?” she asked, remembering the joke from earlier. He pecked her lips, the gesture coming out clumsy from the way his lips turned into a humorous grin.

 “Yeah, I think I’m ready for the other kind of fun.” 

Part 3

............................................................................

taglist:  @marveloussensations @gryffindorpouge11 @tommymcartney @pankowfruitsnacks @rafeswh0ree​  @luversgirl @alanniys @absolute-fcking-chaos ​

[queerdraws]

Cleaning Out the Rooms - a Harry Du Bois playlist Alcoholism, getting better?, memory loss, being a superstar, The Final Dream, forming political opinions, bad breakups, past transgressions, being a strange and inconsistent being, and persisting despite it all 26 songs (r-slur warning for Turnin’ on the Screw - QotSA)

including: David Bazan, They Might be Giants, The Mountain Goats, British Sea Power (of course), Queens of the Stone Age, and more.  Full track listing and lyric excerpts under the cut

---- Turnin' on the Screw - Queens of the Stone Age (This is the opening track on Era Vulgaris, seemed like an appropriate opening song / introduction to Harry's general essence) ----

... They say those who can't just instruct others And act like victims or jilted lovers You can't lose it if you never had it Disappear, man, do some magic

Want a reason? How's about because You ain't a has been if you never was

I sound like this

Scared to say what is your passion So slag it all, bitter's in fashion Fear of failure's all you've started The jury is in, verdict: r******d

I'm so tired, and I'm wired too I'm a mess; I guess I'm turning on the screw

---- Bless this Mess - David Bazan (Harry being a drunk and a general mess, things going in cycles) ----

God bless the man who stumbles God bless the man who falls God bless the man who yields to temptation God bless the woman who suffers God bless the woman who weeps God bless the children trying her patience Trouble getting over it Is what you're in for So pour yourself another 'Cause it'll take a steady pair of hands Holy or unholy ghost Well now I can't tell, but either way you cut it You should get some distance if you plan to take a stand God bless the house divided God bless the weeds in the wheat God bless the lamp hid under a bushel I discovered hell to be the poison in the well So I tried to warn the others of the curse But then my body turned on me I dreamt that for eternity My family would burn Then I awoke with a wicked thirst

---- Don’t Sit Down Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair - Arctic Monkeys (general Harry vibe.  off-kilter) ----

Break a mirror, roll the dice

...

Find a well-known hard man and start a fight Wear your shell suit on bonfire night Fill in a circular hole with a peg that's square

But just don't sit down 'cause I've moved your chair

...

Bite the lightning and tell me how it tastes Kung fu fighting on your roller skates Do the Macarena in the devil's lair

But just don't sit down 'cause I've moved your chair

---- I've Been Seeing Things - They Might be Giants (feels very Harry's detecting style, surreal happenstance) ----

I've been seeing things I've been seeing things Don't have answers but I've got lots of questions

Carpool's up, someone gets out Hand someone else a violin case I'm trying not to let them see me looking at them But I'm pretty sure there was a dollar sign

Keep your eyes peeled and you'll see stuff Which at first seems like unimportant irrelevant things

Can't just ask some perfect stranger "What are you hiding in your violin case?" Shadow them at a distance instead Try to get inside their head

Where'd they go now (Where'd they go now) I got distracted (I got distracted) Begging me to stay (Begging me to stay) Wearing a disguise (Wearing a disguise) That lady (That lady) Must have ditched the kid (Must have ditched the kid) Hidge the down (Hidge the down) [???] What's she up to now? (What's she up to now?) Trembling cold by the airport road Watching them stack containers in rows Seagulls, helicopter, windblown trash Something doesn't add up

I've been seeing things I've been seeing things No one asks but I'm packing all kinds of attention

Later I'm watching a news report Camera pans across a crime scene Unremarked upon detail Empty violin case Okay maybe not the same case Different material, different color Still you have to wonder Am I the only one who knows

I've been seeing things

---- Music is the Victim - Scissor Sisters (breakup Harry.  drug-addled disco Harry) ----

I left my heart in San Fransisco It's at some motherfucking disco The people there where dancin' on it And that's including Ms. Matronic

Hell if music is the victim then so am I Of lovin' and a cheatin' the snake gon' bite I beg and I scream and I cuss and I cry If music is the victim then so am I

Of your bad fun Money's all gone but you need some Lover's on the phone but they got none Daddy ain't home from the dog run And you're riding through the city with a shotgun

I left my bag in Pasadena Where all them girls was doin' Tina Them bitches sure were crunked up on it I said I'd rather smoke some chronic

Hell if music is the victim then so am I Of lovin' and a cheatin' the snake gon' bite I beg and I scream and I cuss and I cry If music is the victim then so am I

---- Down to Your Soul - Right Away, Great Captain! (about the Final Dream and pre-game Harry) ----

And I see things I actually don't see. I knew it wasn't actually you a few feet from my reach. I looked into your eyes and I began to lose my teeth, And I felt you were dreaming the same thing.

And I know you don't know what I'm capable of But if you give me just one more minute I'm sure That you would be shaking right down to your soul And I'd hope that the fear of the lord brings me home. I'm a man in a body of water so tall Could swallow you whole and forget where he's going But I carved a map in the back of my arm Don't worry I'm coming home I said don't worry cause I'm coming home

---- No Surprises - Radiohead (suicidal harry, pre-game.  Maybe immediately before the game.  A little Big Communism Builder) ----

A heart that's full up like a landfill A job that slowly kills you Bruises that won't heal You look so tired, unhappy Bring down the government They don't, they don't speak for us I'll take a quiet life A handshake of carbon monoxide

And no alarms and no surprises

…

This is my final fit My final bellyache

…

No alarms and no surprises, please (get me out of here)

---- Cleaning Out the Rooms - British Sea Power (The instrumental part seems to have been used / referenced for a background music track.  And also the name of that one thought project. as expected, it fits beautifully.  Wake up in a new life, down by the seaside.  Cleaning out the rooms.  She’ll be coming soon.) ----

Where life is good in a way Swept away upon our hearts, in cold coal ceremonial On a rainy day, hang it up Get the vacuum and suck it in Cleaning out the rooms, I'll clean it up Dark cloud, drifting out of view I'll never know, she'll be coming soon, that is all I'll wake up in a new life, ship shape and shoe shine Cleaning out the rooms, I'll clean it up She'll be coming soon Drifting into view, way in the west, white cloud If everybody knew, I never knew, she'll be coming soon I'll wake up in a new life, down by the seaside In a new life, down by the seaside Cleaning out the room, I'll clean it up Dark clouds, she'll be coming soon Down the chimney, out the window, that is all

---- In the Morning of the Magicians - The Flaming Lips (waking up with no memory, but bad vibes) ----

In the morning I awake

And I couldn't remember What is love and what is hate

The calculations error

Oh, what is love and what is hate? And why does it matter? Is to love just a waste? And how can it matter?

Oh...

As the dawn began to break I had to surrender The universe will have its way Too powerful to master

---- Once in a Lifetime - Talking Heads (Huh??  What's happening??  same as it ever was, same as it ever was) ----

And you may ask yourself, "How do I work this?" And you may ask yourself, "Where is that large automobile?" And you may tell yourself, "This is not my beautiful house" And you may tell yourself, "This is not my beautiful wife"

...

Same as it ever was, same as it ever was Same as it ever was, same as it ever was

...

And you may ask yourself, "What is that beautiful house?" And you may ask yourself, "Where does that highway go to?" And you may ask yourself, "Am I right? Am I wrong?" And you may say to yourself, "My God! What have I done?"

---- Don't Change - David Bazan (alcoholism, cycles of wanting to get better, depression, slipping in to old coping mechanisms, plus a little bit in here about dreams.  This is a song for if Harry continues partying after the memory wipe, I suppose) ----

He seems nice You met him once or twice But you wonder what he's like When he's sober

Then again You hear he has no friends Just people that he spins To do him favors

When he wakes up in the morning he tells himself Today I'll make a change But falling into his bed at night he thinks Man it was a beautiful day to stay the same

I'm so deep That only in my sleep Do the secrets that I keep Float to the surface

So I hold them down Till they don't make a sound Like they accidentally drowned Except on purpose

And when I wake up in the morning I tell myself Today I'll make a change But falling into my bed at night I think Man it was a beautiful day to stay the same

---- Airbag - Radiohead (born again, back to save the universe) ----

In the next world war In a jackknifed juggernaut I am born again In the neon sign scrolling up and down I am born again

In an interstellar burst I am back to save the universe

In a deep, deep sleep of the innocent I am born again In a fast German car I'm amazed that I survived An airbag saved my life

In an interstellar burst I am back to save the universe

---- A Comet Appears - The Shins (puppeting a man-body around pretending to be a living thing. drinking, depression) ----

One hand on this wily comet Take a drink just to give me some weight Some uber-man I'd make I'm barely a vapor

They shone a chlorine light on A host of individual sins Let's carve my aging face off Fetch us a knife Start with my eyes Down so the lines Form a grimacing smile

Close your eyes to corral a virtue Is this fooling anyone else? Never worked so long and hard To cement a failure

---- The Communists Have the Music - They Might be Giants (Big Communism Builder, but especially Harry's shallow understanding of Communism.  Party-boy communist) ----

I got handed an Ayn Rand sandwich Straight from the can, it tasted so bland I asked a lass to pass me a glass Of Engels' Conditions of the Working Class

Right away they dragged me to the committee To explain my un-American activity They're gonna see they made a mistake If they'd only let me play my mixtape

I'm not partial to the martial Or the plutocrats, in their beaver hats And the fascists have the outfits But I don't care for the outfits What I care about is music And the communists have the music

---- Harlem Roulette - The Mountain Goats (Harry thinking about Guillame le Million?  Generally: that vibe of secret, maybe supranatural machinations happening just outside your field of view.  A kinda lonely, pensive vibe, sprinkled with past drug use, driving...memory) ----

Unknown engines underneath the city Steam pushing up in billows through the grates Frankie Lymon's tracking "Seabreeze" in a studio in Harlem Its 1968. Just a pair of tunes to hammer out. Everybody's off the clock by 10:00. The loneliest people in the whole wide world are the ones you're never going to see again. Feels so free when I hit the avenue. Nothing like a New York summer night. Every dream's a good dream, Even awful dreams are good dreams, If you're doing it right. Remember soaring higher than a cloud. Get pretty sentimental now and then. The loneliest people in the whole wide world are the ones you're never going to see again. And four hours north of Portland, a radio flips on. And some no one from the future remembers that you're gone. Armies massing in the dusky distance. Ghosted in the ribbon microphone. Leave a little mark on something, maybe, Take the secret circuit home. Nothing in the shadows but the shadow hands. Reaching out to sad, young, frightened men. The loneliest people in the whole wide world are the ones you're never going to see again.

---- Suture up Your Future - Queens of the Stone Age (Harry's gonna fix his mess) ----

I'm gon' suture up my future I ain't jaded, I just hate it See, I been down too long It's kinda hard to explain Burned and buried, all I carried

...

Tried explaining unexplained Got caught in the plan All this talking at once I've been giving my love away To the things that tear it apart I'm gonna suture up my future

---- Lampshades on Fire - Modest Mouse (Harry trashing his body / having already trashed his body, just kinda a Harry-vibe song) ----

...

Well, the lampshade's on fire when the lights go out This is what I really call a party now Well, fear makes us really, really run around A-this one's done so where to now? Our eyes light up, we have no shame at all Well, you all know what I'm talking about The room lights up, but we're still dancing around We're having fun, having some fun now

Pack up again, head to the next place Where we'll make the same mistakes Open one up and let it fall to the ground Pile out the door when it all runs out

...

As our feelings are getting hurt Oh, we want you to do the work Our ass looks great inside these jeans Well, we want just our water clean

Well, this is how it's always been And this is how it's going to be So you just move on

---- Seven Nation Army - The White Stripes (Harry "can-opener" du Bois.  Talking to the skills, solving things, detecting, generally being a terrifying force of nature / the pale) ----

I'm gonna fight 'em all A seven nation army couldn't hold me back They're gonna rip it off Taking their time right behind my back

And I'm talking to myself at night Because I can't forget Back and forth through my mind Behind a cigarette

And the message coming from my eyes Says, "Leave it alone"

Don't wanna hear about it Every single one's got a story to tell Everyone knows about it From the Queen of England to the Hounds of Hell

And if I catch it coming back my way I'm gonna serve it to you And that ain't what you want to hear But that's what I'll do

And the feeling coming from my bones Says, "Find a home"

---- Body of Years - Mother Mother (Harry's past that follows him, Harry's half-decomposed body that marks the years of abuse it's been through) ----

All the remains of a cadaver of days I keep hidden away, keep them there just in case I wanna visit that place Blow the dust from the bones Off a body of years that I leave all alone Just a body of years

See the skin disappears And the blood turns to stone In a body of years now a pile of bones Like a sheet of veneer Each a piece of my soul It's a body of years that I leave all alone

It's Just a body of years, now a pile of bones You know Old soul who falls down Can't stop trippin' on these Old roads I go down Get back up and get my foot in the door And my face on the page Make my mark in the world With a bat and a blade It's a body of work that you can't ever change Like a body of years that you take to your grave It's just a body of years that I leave all alone It's just a body of years, now a pile of bones Like a sheet of veneer Each a piece of my soul

---- The Cap-m - They Might be Giants (just a Harry vibe song) ----

When I talk you keep looking away from me 'Cause you probably think that I'm high on pot But I'm not, I'm not

Look me over, I'm the Cap'm You say it's such a joke But I don't see you laughing

People seem to think you can't be called the Cap'm Unless you drive a boat Well, I don't I don't

Look me over, I'm the Cap'm Go ahead and mess with me You'll find out what will happ'm

...

Did you say what I think you just said My hat looks good on me? I agree, I agree

Look me over, I'm the Cap'm You act like it's a joke But I don't see you laughing

---- Broke - Modest Mouse (oops!  all mistakes.  Broke it all.  Want to forget it but can't) ----

Broke account, so I broke a sweat I've bought some things that I sort of regret about now Broke my pace and ran out of time Sometimes I'm so full of shit that it should be a crime

Broke a promise 'cause my car broke down Such a classic excuse it should be bronze by now Broke your glasses, but it broke the ice You said that I was an asshole and I paid the price

Broken hearts want broken necks I've done some things that I'd love to forget, but I can't

Broke up, and I'm relieved somehow It's the end of the discussions that just go 'round and 'round And 'round, and 'round, and 'round ... It was like everything was evidence of broken time

You're living on fancy wine You'll drink that turpentine You're starting conversations You don't even know the topic

---- Spent Gladiator 2 - The Mountain Goats (Defiantly alive) ----

Like a spent gladiator, Crawling in the coliseum dust. Who can count on his remaining limbs, All the people he can trust. Like the one who stands behind him, Cheering him on. Ecstatic when he stands defiant, Wild with abandon when he's gone. Just stay alive. Keep your eyes on the pay line. Like a village on the step, About to get collectivized. When the men emerge with rifles from the haystack, Everybody looks surprised. Like the mice in the forgotten grain, Way up on the top shelf. Like someone who's found a small town to escape to, Keeps one eye on his abandoned, former self. Stay in the game. Just try to play through the pain. Like a fighter who's been told its finally time for him to quit. Show up in shining colors, And then stand there and get hit. Like the clock that ticks in Dresden, When the whole town's been destroyed. Like the nagging flash of insight, You're always desperate to avoid. Like the bloody-knuckled gunman, Still stationed at the breach. Like that board game with the sliders, And the children on the beach. Stay alive. Maybe spit some blood at the camera. Just stay alive. Stay forever alive.

---- You Only Live Once - The Strokes (just general Harry, talking about the skills, choices you can make, what kind of cop you can be) ----

Twenty-nine different attributes Only seven that you like, oh-oh Twenty ways to see the world, oh And twenty ways to start a fight, oh

...

And countless odd religions too It doesn't matter which you choose, oh, no One stubborn way to turn your back, oh This I've tried and now refuse, oh

Oh don't, don't, don't get up I can't see the sunshine Oh, I'll be waiting for you, baby 'Cause I'm through Sit me down Shut me up I'll calm down And I'll get along with you

---- Pork and Beans - Weezer (Superstar Cop) ----

They say I need some rogaine to put in my hair Work it out at the gym to fit my underwear Oakley makes the shades to transform a tool You'd hate for the kids to think that you've lost your cool

I'ma do the things that I wanna do I ain't got a thing to prove to you I'll eat my candy with the pork and beans Excuse my manners if I make a scene I ain't gonna wear the clothes that you like I'm fine and dandy with the me inside One look in the mirror and I'm tickled pink I don't give a hoot about what you think

Everyone likes to dance to a happy song With a catchy chorus and beat so they can sing along Timbaland knows the way to reach the top of the charts Maybe if I work with him I can perfect the art

I'ma do the things that I wanna do I ain't got a thing to prove to you I'll eat my candy with the pork and beans Excuse my manners if I make a scene I ain't gonna wear the clothes that you like I'm fine and dandy with the me inside One look in the mirror and I'm tickled pink I don't give a hoot about what you think

No, I don't care I don't care

---- Freaks - Surf Curse (head filled with skills, The Final Dream) ----

Don't kill me just help me run away From everyone I need a place to stay Where I can cover up my face Don't cry, I am just a freak

I am just a freak(x3)

My head is filled with parasites Black holes cover up my eyes I dream of you almost every night Hopefully I won't wake up this time

I won't wake up this time(x3)

---- The Smallest Church in Sussex - British Sea Power (oh yeah this is mandatory) ----

[f-e-r-n-i-t-o]

i feel the need to warn you guys 90 percent of these are just random thoughts and words i think of (also all references are said in the post): bug mothman the hat man fresco nightcrawlers excuse you sobbinf miku does not talk to british people beetles weevil papillion chanterelle lmanburg (DSMP) las nevadas (DSMP) HOTTOGO (Chappel Roan) why do you only call me when your high? (arctic monkeys) pesky bee (DHMIS) beans peachy wings blue do you like stars nightmare eyes (NITW) gregg rulz ok (NITW) far out loch nessie bigfoot doesnt believe in you the grays beam up joe dirt sand heroine antivillian swag greg grapes two trucks (Lemon Demon) the ultimate showdown of ultimate destiny (Lemon Demon) gaslight gatekeep girlboss theres still time (ISTTVG) isttvg bibble i’d do it for her (SU) my diamond (SU) cat steven (SU) pew pew nyoom bang crash probably over stimulated unusual ‘are you okay, i guess thats all i’d care to know’ & ’getting there’ the blade zephyus leto aeolus sisyphus zeus icarus theseus daedalus club penguin webkinz femininomenon (Chappel Roan) chromokopia (Tyler the creator) creeper aw man honk circus clown jester poet magician half alive dhmis big man (Splatoon) pearl (Splatoon) deep cut (Splatoon) marie (Splatoon) callie (Splatoon) frye (Splatoon) squid sisters (Splatoon) stay fresh (Splatoon) nuke warning hazard boom turn back time (Derivacat dsmp song) pretty odd i eat with my eyes (supposed to be a welcome home ref) jack stauber noises rat raccoon wuhluhwuh fruity shut up lasagna cavetown was that the bite of 87 (markiplier) whats your favorite idea (DHMIS) x3 xD amnesia was her name (Lemon Demon) crumb go feral orbs froggy chair wooper out of this world sorry apologies my condolences idc idk yippee square Circle Triangle Blows up Worms Life and death and love and birth (SU) Please I'm a star bread you clod (SU) i cant remember anymore freelancers deserve to die (DHMIS) get therapy blade axe the one ring to rule them all (LOTR) writing like im running out of time (hamilton) kekw pepegiggles lets go in the garden (SU) drift away (SU) kinoko kingdom (DSMP) The kingdom of fools (TRSMP) frogger pacman bleach bleach my eyes drink water eat food el diablo gato orange apple pear dragonfruit starfruit hug all your friends (Cavetown) burning pile (Mother Mother) ditto (Pokemon) just killed a woman, feeling good (Tommyinnit quote) 'who am i without you?' & 'yourself' (DSMP) Mellohi (Minecraft) Cat (Minecraft) Pigstep (Minecraft) Precipice (Minecraft) Creator (Minecraft) Mannequin My grandma got fleas and she died (Quackity quote) Road work ahead & i sure hope it does Locked in ill have what she's having These are not living conditions Oh brother, this guy stinks (Sponge Bob) Kinda spacy Will wood Tally hall Bill nye the science guy Screw MAGAs Whats happening? (Literally just your tumblr user so for me) Fernito Queer Rage Screw Trump Screw Elon (chat i cant say fuck on my bracelets :']) Nope not today Spooky Spook Spooky month Boo I like green (you can replace that with your fav color) Gnarpy (Regretevator) Spud (Regretevator) Bive (Regretevator) Oh my glob (Adventure time) Washing Machine Heart (Mitski) I yap about my OCs alot I heart my OCS {OCs name} Anxious af Uranium Volatile Inky Cap mushroom Minding my own Buisness I want to leaveeee I never left the (insert fandom) fandom IM BACK IN THE BUILDING Crimes dirty crime child Goblin Gremlin Spiderweb None of this will matter in a hour (sparkbird) Pipopi (hatsune miku) Thrive out of spite Your the most (welcome home) Take responsibility (Mouthwashing) Screw jimmy (Mouthwashing)

(note i will update this later probably with a bunch more and there'll be more references)

I should post my list of kandi ideas, for all my fellow enjoyers of smacking random words on a bracelet and calling it a day

most of it's references tho

[bethanysnow]

“I didn’t give it” (A fic for @maneskinbrainrot​ )

Måneskin was invited to perform for New York Fashion week with Gucci. Paraded around by the luxury brand was not a exactly- fun - thing for them to experience, but it paid the bills. Their manager knew this about them, so it wasn’t a big surprise for her to get a text message from Thomas saying they were ‘escaping’ and would be back by dinner. They were in New York City after all! Play tourist for a while in a country they felt a little more safe not to be spotted in. Especially on fashion week where all the art hoes came out of the woodwork. A couple Italians were nothin! With some rudimentary googling Vic found a cafe and a thrift store to barricade themselves in for the next hour or so. The streets of New York were messy and smelled funny, but were alive. The ground hadn’t been smoothed flat with a millennia of people. The brick buildings rose into the sky and the skyscrapers tore holes into heaven. 

People around them didn’t give them the time of day. No one was shouting their name. No one knew who they were, and if they did no one gave a flying fuck by the looks of it. It really was heaven. They loved their job of course, music was their life. But fame was bitter, grainy and left something stuck in their teeth. Here it was like they were nobodies. Not that they minded of course. Vic led the way to the thrift store she had found online, under a block of apartments was the glass window front. A green awning with golden letters of the store. The neon open sign was lit up so the band walked in. A brown countertop near the front of the store was personless. Racks on racks of clothes covered the floor. 50s-60s ball gowns hung from the ceiling beams. The air was musty just in the way vintage thrift stores tended to be. History on all sides by the articles people have worn. Rock music left the speakers pinned to the walls, playing Arctic Monkeys, Queen, and others. 

The band split up to look for a clerk of some kind. A store wouldn’t just be open by itself- right? 

Damiano went down a long aisle of what looked to be 70s memorabilia by the avocado green and bright yellow clothes. A neon red glow caught his attention. Making his way to the back of the store the glow came from a neon sign bent to look like a naked lady. Strategically placed ribbon over certain areas. A paper taped to a hanger with ‘XXX Lingerie section’ printed on it piqued his interest. Even more so when he looked in to find a beautiful woman laying on the red shag carpet cuddling up to a nighty asleep. 

“‘Scusa- Miss? Are you- do you work here?” Damiano asked quietly. Her eyes shot open and looked at where the voice came from. She held a hand to her heart, taking a breath.

    “Sorry! No uh, my best friend works here. I am just visiting, but I can help I guess. Whatsup?” She said getting up. Brushing off imaginary dirt from her hands as she reached her full height. She was shorter than him, her hair was slightly a mess from an interrupted nap. She’s cute. Damiano was lost in admiring her beauty until he blinked and she was waving her hand in front of his face, unaware that he was staring. 

    “Earth to dude, you ok?” She chuckled though still slightly concerned for his wellbeing. 

“Sorry- I'm Damiano, I’m here with friends of mine and we were checking things out. What was your name? I didn't catch it.” 

    “Cuz I didn’t give it.” She winked and Damiano’s blood pressure went higher. Attractive and a flirt too??? Fuck! 

He grinned at her as she was about to put the nighty she was using as a pillow up back on the rack. Damiano took his shot. 

“You know, it might look good on me. What do you think?” Holding it up against his body, the white silk ending just above the waistline of his pants. Leaning on the clothing rack he tilted his head to catch her eyes looking at the garment. “Look better on you though-” Whispering as her face froze and flushed a bright red. Quickly grabbing it and putting it back where it belonged she cleared her throat. 

    “No- uh I don’t wear that kinda stuff. But on you sure. You looking for anything specific?” 

“Besides your number? ...I was looking for some shirts honestly” She nodded and pointedly ignored his previous comment. 

The rest of the band were busy debating on a pair of corduroy pants Ethan was wearing as Damiano showed up with another person in tow. Introductions were made of who they all were and the woman offered some suggestions to the debate going on. But Damiano couldn’t help himself. 

“So Bellissima we have a gig going on later tomorrow if you want to join. Be our plus one as it were-” Vic raised a brow at that. Asking some random girl to go with them to something was one thing, but to ask a random girl to a gig at fashion week was another. And to top it off, a runway of one of the most well known luxury brands in the world. Her concerns were met with their singer giving her a look that meant he knew what he was doing. Or at least he thought he did. 

To Damiano's surprise the woman in front of him shrugged, looked at her phone checking something and said sure. SHE SAID SURE! That was enough for him. Soon the whirlwind of the band and their new found friend were busy trying on clothes and dancing through the store. Thomas' foot got stuck in a platform boot as another person walked into the enclave that they had made that afternoon. The woman that they had met earlier smiled and introduced them as her best friend- I.E the one who actually worked at the store. Explaining what had gone on and the fun chaos that had happened since. 

The day started to wind down and the band had all gotten texts from their manager telling them to come back to the hotel. Picking out their favorite pieces, it all was thrown onto the counter. The woman placed everything in bags, handing it to them once finished. 

As Damiano was to leave the woman he had met stopped him. 

    “You forgot something-” 

“I did?” Checking for his phone or wallet or whatever he could have misplaced. 

    “Yea here- hold on” She ripped out some paper from behind the counter and wrote on it slipping it into his front pocket. With a wink they left. Getting back to the hotel he pulled it out finally after it was burning a hole in his brain.

it read-

‘###-###-#### y/n <3 P.S. Nice music btw. L’altra dimensione slaps.’

[kaunis-sielu]

Schoolyard: 3

“Six months! Thor I can’t just uproot my life for six months! Do you know how long it took me to get to this position!” You’re starting to get light headed, “I need to sit down.” You mutter and Thor guides you gently to the couch.

“Can I get you anything? Water? Vodka?”

“Water.” Your mind is spinning, “with ice please.” How can he expect you to just pause your life for six months?

“Here,” he passes you the glass of water and you take a couple of sips before looking back over at him.

“Why six months?”

“Because I’m royalty.” He sits down next to you and you resist the urge to lean against him. “I am so sorry. Had I known that it would be considered legit because Loki memorized all the correct words and we did everything correctly I would’ve never fake married you.” It’s all so ridiculous that you you can’t help the laugh that bubbles out of you.

“Oh god Thor I’m being terrible. I’m sorry. I don’t blame you for this, we were both just kids now were you to know?” You sigh heavily, “I guess the biggest concerns I have right now are my job, my apartment, and my friends.”

“All things I can understand, but unless you want to stay married this is the only option.” He tells you and you lean against him. You’ve always wanted to travel back to Europe as an adult to go see the sights and actually appreciate them in a different way.

“Let me see what I can work out with the hospital, I’ve got work in the morning.”

“It might not be the best idea to tell anyone that we’re married.”

“I trust Hope. She doesn’t particularly like other people so I don’t think she’ll say anything.”

“You know the people in your life and I trust you.”

“Thank you.” You watch the news together in silence, you both show up toward the end just outside your apartment and you change the channel to some baking show or another. It’s too weird to see yourself on the news,

“I should go.” Thor says softly but neither of you move. He’s warm and you’re comfortable and you both end up drifting off.

Thor’s phone rings and it startles you both awake.

“Shit, ‘m sorry.” He says digging his phone from his pocket. “I need to take this. I’ll let you get some real sleep. Can I call you later?”

“Yea,” you mumble following him to your door, once he leaves you lock it then get ready for bed. Morning is going to come quickly.

Thor texts you again in the morning, telling you he needs to be back in Asgard in three days and that if it works out he’d like it if you’d come home with him. You send him a thumbs up emoji then head to Hope’s office.

“Hey Hope, do you have a minute?”

“Sure.” She says not looking away from her computer.

“So, I’ve got to leave the country for six months for, personal reasons.” This gets her attention.

“Is this because of that Crown Prince you were spotted with?”

“Sort of. It’s a long and complicated story but one I need to leave to get sorted.” Hope looks at you expectantly and you sigh before launching into the whole story.

“Damn.”

“Yea I know. So now to get an annulment I have to go all the way to Asgard and since he’s royalty it’s gotta be for six months. So I’d like to stay on as staff just like on leave or something. I love working here and I know it puts you in a bit of a bind but it’d be a huge relief to have a job to come back to.” Hope leans back in her chair and studies you.

“You won’t be back.”

“What do you mean? Of course I’ll be back.”

“You don’t see how he looks at you. This might have been a mistake and you might have lost touch but that man is smitten.”

“Yea okay.” You laugh and she rolls her eyes at you.

“If you can come work a weekend once every other month I think I can keep you on staff. Check with your prince and let me know.”

“He’s not my prince but okay. Thanks Hope. Oh, and Hope, can you keep this a secret? The whole marriage thing.” She nods so you leave her office and text Thor who assures you that should be totally fine. Something you confirm with Hope. Now you have to tell Jane.

You text her that you need to meet her and she agrees for the following night. Thor asks if you want to join him for dinner again but you decline. You just need some time alone, so much of your life is going to be changing in the next couple of days and you just want some peace and normalcy for a night.

When Jane shows up the next night you’ve got brownies coming out of the oven. You needed some chocolate and brownies sounded good.

“Are you okay? You sounded stressed on the phone.”

“Yea, I just have a lot to tell you.” So you do, you tell her every single detail just like she’d requested. Jane sits in shocked silence when you’re finished.

“You’re a fucking Princess.” She whispers, “oh my god my best friend is a fucking Princess!”

“Oh my god Jane shut up! I am not!”

“Bitch you are married to a Prince. Therefore you are a Princess.”

“Well, I hope you’re still willing to be friends with someone who isn’t a Princess because we’re getting an annulment.”

“What? No! You’re so cute together!”

“Yea, and I have to go to Asgard for six months so you wanna sublet my plane?”

“Wait seriously?”

“Yea, I’ll be back for a weekend every other month but Thor said that it would take six months since he’s royalty.”

“Actually that’s perfect my research assistant is looking for a new place, I’ll see if she wants to move into my place for the next six months and I can move in here.”

“That works for me. I just would like someone I know here so when I have to come work a couple of shifts.”

“What are you going to tell Peter?”

“Nothing? We went on two dates and he was awful for both.”

“Oh, well he’s been asking about you.”

“He hasn’t texted or called so keep letting him ask. I’m not interested in a man child who thinks he’s better than everyone because he’s a pilot.” You tell her rolling your eyes. Jane laughs softly and raises her brownie in a cheers motion.

“Do you want me to tell him you’re out of the country?”

“He’s a grown man; if he wants to ask me out again he can ask.”

“Preach sister.” You spend the rest of the night talking, eating brownies and laughing. It’s exactly what you needed before you have to pack up enough clothing to help you get through the next two months.

You end up borrowing one of Jane’s massive Arctic trip suitcases because your little carryon will not do the trick. But you get everything packed, including your passport, an hour before Thor said he’d be by to pick you up.

He’s exactly on time, you sigh softly closing and locking your door.

“I am sorry, Elskede.” He says, “I’m sorry you have to uproot your life but our friends are excited to see you again. Especially Sif.”

“I always thought you’d end up with Sif, she was always so beautiful and badass.”

“She’s dating a very successful business man. Nice guy, he meshes well with our little group of friends. You’ll like him.”

“Oh, it will be nice to visit again. If I can I might travel a little bit, I’ve never seen Europe as an adult and since I won’t be working I feel like this is a good time.”

“If you’ll allow, I’d like to come with.”

“Yea, that’d be nice.” You tell him as you take Thor’s arm at the doorway again. You let him lead you through the doorway and to the car. There are more press this time than last time, they’re still yelling for Thor to look and but thankfully it seems that they still don’t know your name yet. Thor ushers you into the car then he climbs in after you, Volstagg climbs in the front seat and you’re off.

You don’t go to the airport, at least not the one that you expect to go to. You pull up to a much smaller airport and after you go through a security gate you see that you’re at a private airstrip.

“Are we flying private?”

“Yes Elskede.”

“What does that mean? I don’t know that word.”

“It’s kind of like, honey or sweetheart.” He explains and you nod. “How is your Norwegian?”

“Probably rusty but I’ll catch back on quickly. I’ve always been pretty good with languages.” He nods as Volstagg opens the door then climbs out and again waits to help you out of the car. You follow Thor up the stairs of the private jet and over to a set of seats.

Tag list:

@abschaffer2 @dsakita @dramadreamer14 @thesassmisstress @eralen @andahugaroundtheneck @loving-life-my-way @thefridgeismybestie @killcomet @dumblani @im-just-another-monster @mywinterwolf @scuzmunkie @biskwitmamaw @geeksareunique @paintballkid711 @lumar014 @also-fangirlinsweden @connie326 @inkedaztec @valsworldofcreativity @silver-lupines

[bvccy]

Friend, if you are still open for request, can you please do Heliotrope with the Winter Soldier? 🥺 please thank you 💛💛💛

My dear 😭 I am so so sorry for how long this took! I just hope you can enjoy the fic. It’s a little bit spooky at the beginning, but WS is soft and so is our reader. And they get their happy-ever-after 💗

Thank you very much for this prompt also! 🌺🌺🌺

— PAIRING: soft!Winter Soldier x female!Reader — PROMPT: Heliotrope - walking in the sun, and losing each other — LINKS: Masterlist • love stones prompt list — WORDCOUNT: 2.1k

They had been living in darkness for months, and the oppressive cold that battered against the walls with fierce winds all day, and hungry howls at night — not that one could tell night from day in the sunless vastness, except by the ticking of the clock.

Hydra had installed that arctic facility at the mouth of a crater, covered by ice over the ages to conceal its dubious treasure. It was clear to the Soldier that the treasure was not made up of precious things, but it was only when the crew finished digging all the way down that he understood why all the scientists were there...

It was difficult for him to tell who the shuttle belonged to. It might have been some advanced technology from America, but then how did it get so deep down, so quickly? Maybe it was an old German prototype from the war, but it didn't look like any he'd seen before. Or maybe Hydra was just recovering their old property from past attempts... It didn't matter, he was just there to guard the scientists while they did the work.

The other soldiers stationed with him stopped taking the job seriously after the first three months, but he kept watch, and paid attention, and didn't miss the odd slimes that seeped across the floor out of those metal shells, nor the odd crunch as the scientists cut into something that looked soft and milky, but held like bone. And the smells, the cold metallic smells like iron dipped in silver... It sometimes felt like home, but he knew better than to let that grip him. And he kept watch.

The one chemist that doubled as the chef didn't make particularly good meals, but they were hearty, and if he was being honest, he was eating better at this isolated station than he did at the Base — felt freer too, almost in charge of his destiny, if one didn't count the frozen wastes he'd have to survive if he ever wanted to run. But the Soldier couldn't imagine why he'd ever wish to run.

Especially when she was here.

Studying the files of all the scientists on the mission, her portrait stood out as particularly sad, morose, with a bit of a death glare toward the cameraman. But when he actually saw her, she seemed sweet like a spring day and even happy to be there. She looked up into his eyes as she walked into the protected area to study their find, blinking up from beneath a mess of furs and protective equipment, but there was a smile crinkling around her gaze. As the months drew on and everyone got more bored with staying there, and loose with themselves, they'd sometimes play some music in the lab, and the Soldier didn't know why he liked it so much or felt the need to dance with someone.

The military staff initially had their own mess hall, a small room with a kitchenette where they could eat together, but then one of the doctors needed it to test the effects of temperature changes on some of the samples, and the place was... contaminated every since. Now, they all ate together. The girl who'd caught his eye tended to eat with her own team, the Geologists, but he could feel her looking at him sometimes, he noticed her lingering when he was around even if she was about to leave, and a few times she even dared approach him — under the excuse of getting the jar of sugar that was on his other side rather than reaching for the one next to her, or leaning down to get some plate she didn't need from right by his knees. It wasn't until she tried to reach a glass above his head, beyond her grasp, that he gave in and acknowledged her.

"Thank you," she said as he handed her the cup — the first time she'd ever said anything to him. Her voice suited her, but beyond its soft tones the Soldier was struck by being thanked at all. When was the last time that happened? What did one say in response?

"You're welcome?"

And he seemed so unsure saying it that he made her giggle.

She was inevitable after that, not because she was trying to be found but because he allowed himself to be around her, to guard her door while she chipped at stones and studied them, to sit near her during lunch — not right beside her, the Soldier still had a lingering shyness about that, but at least on the table opposite, from which they could look at each other if they wanted.

The long night was almost over, four months into their stay at this forsaken place, and the pair had taken to something really dangerous: in the small barn attached to the base, where some dry supplies were kept along with canisters of fuel, they escaped together while everyone else slept. He had led her there first, asking timidly whether she'd...

"Want to see something new?"

"Always," the girl grinned.

And so they found themselves piled on top of one another like firewood, almost not feeling each other beneath the layers of fur that kept them warm, but just being in each other's presence was... something. It was quiet without being quiet, with another real soul there, thinking its own thoughts in harmony with you.

The Asset wouldn't allow himself to fall asleep, though he did close his eyes sometimes and let the girl relax against him, and doze off, and during those times he allowed his arm to come down from where it propped his head up and wrap itself around her, holding her still — as if she were in danger of falling off some imaginary bed.

Nobody ever seemed to wonder where they both disappeared to, nobody noticed, which was why he was all the more surprised to hear shouting on that day. The Soldier didn't move, just tightened his arm around his little partner more. But when a bloodcurdling cry echoed through the vastness, he shook her awake.

"Wha—"

"Get up. The base is under attack," he muttered, reaching for the rifle laid beside him.

"That's crazy, who would attack us all the way out here?"

He didn't want to tell her what he thought, but only made her hide out in the shed while he went out to scout the area. Turning his radio on, nothing came through. There were no helicopters around, no trucks, no marks in the snow that anyone had attacked — at least, not from the outside. On the horizon, just the rays of a reluctant dawn were shining.

There was silence for a while, and then another symphony of screams rang out, muffled by the walls and the desperate shots of whoever was left inside, glass and metal knocked over, broken, and silence once again. Stepping away slowly, then more hurriedly, the Soldier returned to where he'd left the girl and picked her up by the elbow.

"Come on, we're leaving."

"Leaving where?" she cried out, confused and even slightly angry. "What's going on?"

"We're under attack."

"But our research..."

The Soldier dragged her to where the trucks were parked, and after the first flush of confusion she went along quietly. He gave her the rifle to hold while he looked in the back, making sure they had enough supplies for whatever drive awaited them — gas was there, some blankets too, and more ammunition. It would have to do. And without sparing another moment, he got in beside her and drove off. Against the rumbling of the engine as it drifted on the ice, a shrill scream cut through the frozen air and reached them, not sounding human nor animal nor like anything in the world, except perhaps a demon. The girl didn't look back, she wouldn't dare, she just looked quietly at the Soldier as she slowly understood. They drove into the sunrise as its rays burned away everything behind, and the snowdrifts buried it.

They didn't stop until the sky was bright as a midday, many hours later.

"Are we slowing down?" the girl mumbled sleepily.

"We're nearing a town," he said, eyes on the GPS. "Need to check that the road is clear. And that we are, too."

She stretched the shivers from her bones, but deep down she trusted the Soldier to keep them safe.

Getting out in what-felt-like days, frozen stiff, muscles aching from the shot of fear that penetrated down to her bones, the girl got out and reached for the sky with all she had. The air felt freer and fresher than ever before, even though it still hurt her lungs when it reached to their very bottom, but she loved such a pain — it felt like life.

The Asset walked slowly to her, just watching silently and smiling a half-smile at the sight of her all ruffled and soft, and safe.

"What do you think happened to the base?"

"Guess it's a mess by now," he hummed, bringing one gloved hand to feel around her head, her shoulders, down her arms, but always gently.

"We woke that thing up, didn't we?"

"You're the smart one, you tell me."

Her lips pursed — she never liked it when he teased her, but she tried never to reproach him for it, loving this sign of his personality shining through. "Are we far enough away now?"

"I don't know," he sighed, finally looking back into her eyes. "Are we?"

"The sun would kill it."

"How do you know that?"

She didn't answer but wouldn't look away either, and her determined gaze was enough for him. She did know more than he did, she'd spent months studying whatever that was, and that was fine by him. So long as none of it had managed to sneak on board.

"Stay close to me."

They walked around the car together and he checked the back, the wheels, then climbed on top and checked there too. Through the clearness of the day, he could even see the edges of a road that must've lead to that town. The car seemed clean, but they were close enough to a rescue that he'd rather not take any risks, and so picking up just a few useful things and one backpack, they started walking.

The snow got less deep and crunched beneath their boots, the wind was gentler downhill and even moved through the tendrils loosened from their hoods, shaking off the frost. In the distance, one tree stood tall, thin and dark and barren but alive, and over all of them the sun kept shining.

"We're almost at the road," said the Soldier, spotting a black snaking line a few meters ahead. He turned his head when he didn't hear anything back, but there was only the glint of sunlight on the snow.

Amorphous fog covered the horizons, and hills and dales of white, and suddenly the light felt very hot and burned his body as he turned frantically around and called for her. With mad fear, he traced back their steps up the snowy hill, nearly swimming through it as he called for her, terrified of the unthinkable.

Then, as if from the sea, a lone hand reached up and waved at him. Within one breath, he'd reached her, sitting in the snow just a few feet away.

"I'm so tired..." she huffed, burrowing like a rabbit. "Can't we rest a while?"

"You didn't rest enough in the car? Get up," he grumbled, pulling her up to her feet. He regretted snapping as soon as he saw her sad little face, and sighed. "I'm sorry. I was worried."

"I'm sorry too, for being so weak..."

Before thinking, he pulled her in and kissed the snow off her mouth. "None of that," he smiled as their lips parted. "Come on, we're so close. I'll carry you a bit if you want."

The girl shook her head mutely, face already flushed from frost but now truly heated. To be cared for, and worried about, and searched like that, and kissed... It put the life right back into her.

He kept his word and carried her in his arms at one point, but they both walked in the town together. Nobody knew who they were or where they came from and some had a few murmured questions, but by the time Hydra sent an extraction team for them, it didn't matter — they were gone, lost in the wind like two rays of sunshine.

[katbrando]

💪🏻🎶💭 and 📊 if that's what you're asking for *bloosh*

omg UMI BELOVED you didn't have to send anything in 🥺💜 i appreciate you and apologize beforehand bc i'm so wordy

💪 Describe a theme or other element of the original source material that you feel is strengthened or reinforced by the presence of your ship.

this is tough honestly but because it's about the source material i'll go off my s/i instead of modern au 🤔 i think introducing my s/i (and hp) to diego much earlier on in the race offers extra emphasis/insight into his distrust of people, like... there's so much angst and anger between the two of them. he's a prick who has no problem expressing his disgust with the lower class and people in general, meanwhile my s/i is like his total opposite - she's humble to a fault, distrusts the upper class, and could not care less about diego's prestige. the tension between the two is Interesting and they bring out the worst in each other for a good while before they get over themselves and fall in love much later on

🎶 Select a piece of music to relate to your ship. What themes or ideas about your ships does this piece of music share or highlight?

oh GOD... (looking at the entirety of arctic monkeys' discography) oh boy UHHH ACTUALLY i'll ignore that and throw a curve ball: i recently added 'stargazing' by the neighbourhood to my self-ship playlist 🥺 it contains very important elements of dinokat: - cars (pull it out of park, put it in drive / better keep the ac on for me / windows start to fog) our first kiss is in diego's car, we take a lot of road trips, in general a lot of Bonding and intimacy (both emotional and physical) takes place in his car - tension/mutual pining (it's a race against the clock, but we don't wanna watch / might've set the bar a little too high) we're so annoying bc we liked each other for a while and i was too afraid to admit it to both myself and him, he was too afraid to ruin the bond we have bc it's so rare for him to make close connections and he didn't want to lose that - and an eventual sort of.. Sudden admission of feelings (all the patience that i've got, it's not enough to save me / started with a spark, now we're on fire) again, both of us admitted our feelings in his car HFDKS, it happened fast (a little too fast for my liking) and it felt very like !!!!! help, i really like you !!!!! ??? idk if that makes sense, basically it was bubbling up for a while

💭 What arguments would you use to persuade someone to ship the ship you're discussing?

🥺 ummmmm pretty please ship dinokat bc we're cute 🥺 and i rlly like diego a lot 🥺 /hj .. UGH IDK i think we compliment each other, we're total opposites in terms of personality but i don't think that's a bad thing! we have nearly identical interests and a very similar outlook on life. we're silly and goofy and stupid and want to be better people, especially for each other 🥺

📊 Compare and contrast the personalities of the characters in your ship. Describe whether you feel it is their similarities or their differences that define the ship.

the obvious answer is that diego harbors general distaste for people and he's Very self-centered VS me, who's Very self-less and tends to see the good in people. he truly doesn't care about anyone outside of himself and his small circle, while i would drop everything including my own well-being just to help someone, even if i don't really know them. BUT because we're on two opposite ends of the spectrum i think we both view the other's outlook as sort of.. inspiring, i guess. maybe we wouldn't outwardly admit it (bc we're both STUBBORN LOL) but we can take aspects of each other's outlooks and apply it to ourselves. like obviously i don't want to be AS selfish as him but i can realistically see how taking a crumb of that and applying it to myself would greatly improve my life. putting my own well-being above others is something i can definitely use and would benefit from. and maybe diego can learn to be a little more compassionate by watching the way it makes me feel good to care for other people. but also i think our similarities are wonderful :'))) we can agree on aesthetics and music and humor and general opinions on things (outside of the things i mentioned above) and that really makes things so much more fun!!!!

[onewithnomightypowers]

clandestine (chapter 5)

PAIRING: Tom Holland x fem!Reader

SUMMARY: Y/N is an up and coming actress, married to a once hotshot actor, Harrison (Haz). What happens when her co-star, Tom, makes her realise that she is stuck in a loveless marriage. A marriage starts crumbling and a new romance stars brewing.

chapter 5: the rumour has it

A/N: i do not encourage cheating. i hope you guys like this chapter!! feedback is always appreciated. thanks for reading <3

warnings: drinking, cursing

word count: 1.6k

important: bold and italic are character thoughts

series masterlist   main masterlist   chapter 4   chapter 6

The video of Y/N and Tom singing ‘SOS’ broke the internet. It was trending for at least four days. The whole internet, already on the witch hunt to find evidence of a relationship, was being fed. The paparazzi were circling around like vultures. The threat of being outed made them hide in their caves.

Haz was coming to London in two days. Y/N was trying to rid the house of anything and everything that hinted that Tom had been staying with her. Between the paps, shooting, and Haz, she couldn’t find time to meet Tom and give him his things.

There were Polaroids scattered all over the house. While she was packing a box to parcel to Tom, she found a Polaroid on her glass coffee table next to her ‘vanilla sage’ candle from Bath and Body Works. In the photo, Y/N was lying on her stomach on the hardwood floor in her living room, a gin and tonic next to her. Tom was sitting on the floor with his right arm extended to take the photo. They were both smiling.

She remembered when he took that photo. It was the same day she found a vintage vinyl of Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong’s ‘on verve’, during her exploration of Camden market. They decided to have a listening party of that album on the floor. Tom found his new favourite song that day, ‘let’s call the whole thing off’. She smiled at the memory. Instead of putting it in the box, she went into her room to put it in her wallet where only she could find it.

Y/N noticed her phone vibrating next to her purse. It was Harrison.

“Bonjour mon amour”,

“Hi Haz, did you board the flight?”

“Just did; listen you don’t have to pick me up from the airport, I know you are busy at work”

“Fine. Text me when you land”

“Su-“, she hung up the phone.

I can’t believe I have to live with this man for a whole week.

Haz came in late at night, even though his flight was supposed to land at 5pm. Y/N was already sleeping. When she woke up around 8 next morning, she found, much to her surprise, Haz snoring next to her. Last night she made sure that there was a pillow and a blanket on the couch for him, a subtle way of saying ‘I don’t want you sleeping in the same bed with me’. Also because she thought he knew about the affair and wouldn’t want to sleep next to her.

God, I wish I had another bedroom

Y/N was sitting on the bar stool with her laptop on the kitchen island, going through her mail while drinking coffee. Haz had just woken up from his deep slumber, and found his way to the kitchen to fetch him some coffee.

“Good morning!” she said enthusiastically, without looking up from her laptop screen. She had thought it was a sleepy Tom, coming out of the bedroom to make himself tea.

“Morning”, Haz said as a reflex, rubbing his eyes. Y/N’s smile disappeared upon hearing the sound of his voice.

“Did you make breakfast?” Haz asked while pouring himself coffee into a mug Tom had gifted Y/N.

“I made myself breakfast when I woke up, three hours ago. Was I supposed to make breakfast for you too?” It was a rhetorical question. Y/N noticed the mug, it made her uneasy watching a man she doesn’t love drinking from a gift given by the man she did love.

“There’s eggs and bread in the fridge, help yourself”, she pointed at the refrigerator.

As Haz cracked open an egg on the pan, Y/N received an email from Greta.

“Good news, Netflix bought the distribution rights to Greta’s movie, she just sent me a mail”

“Oh”

Oh? Seriously, oh?

“They are planning the premier for this Friday, do you want to go with me?”

“I don’t think so, I don’t really like the people you work with” he was putting butter on cold bread.

There is nothing more tragic than love turning into hate. Tragedy had struck their marriage. The rest of the week, they only spoke when they absolutely had to. It was like living with a roommate, you share a bed with but cannot share your day with.

--

It was Friday, the day of the movie premiere. Y/N was excited to see Tom after a week without him, which felt like an eternity to her. She was wearing a silver colored floor length gown with heavily studded earrings. Her hair was up in a bun with two strands out, to shape her face.

Since it was Netflix, the event could afford to take place at the Royal Albert Hall. Y/N had only been there once, for an Arctic Monkeys concert. When she stepped out of the car, she was met by blinding lights of the cameras. She walked over to the whole cast on the red carpet. The only thing she could hear was the deafening noise of photographers screaming to look towards them and in between, tabloid journalists asking her questions about her life and rumours.

Y/N was still pretty new to walking red carpets because she had mostly worked on indie films that couldn’t afford a grand premiere as most of the money would go towards entering different festivals. Y/N was wearing a mask of pure joy on her face but Tom could see right through it. He could see how uncomfortable Y/N was feeling.

He walked towards her, “you look gorgeous darling” he whispered in her ears and for a second that mask she was wearing became real. They both posed together, but regretted it immediately. The whole media went on overdrive, seeing them together.

“Are you guys seeing each other?” a person from the left screamed.

“Y/N, did you leave Harrison?” someone from the right asked

The voices were coming from everywhere. All they could do now was walk off the carpet. Tom had arranged for Y/N to sit next to her during the screening. His hand was linked with Y/N’s the whole time. He could feel her shivering.

“Are you cold?” he asked her.

“Not really”, she took a long pause. “I am just nervous about my performance in the movie and I guess the questions really got to my head, it’s all making me very anxious”

“Don’t worry babe, everyone is going to love you in the movie, and those hunters out there are shell of a person, all they care about are these bullshit rumours. They don’t deserve a house in your thoughts”

“Shhhhhh” someone whispered from the row above theirs.

Y/N’s phone was vibrating, it was Harrison’s fourth call in fifteen minutes.

Why is he not getting the hint that I don’t want to talk to him

She ignored it.

A few minutes later, her phone rang again.

What if it’s serious?

She got up and went outside of the theatre to take the call.

“What is it, Haz? You know I’m busy right now”

“Umm, are you Y/N?” A man with a heavy, older voice said.

“Yes?” She was confused. “Who is this and how do you have my husband’s phone?”

“Your husband is trashed, ma’am. He passed out on my bar counter about half an hour ago. Your number was on his emergency contact list so I'm calling you to pick him up”

“I’ll be right there, can you tell me the address?”

“Yeah sure it’s 141 Albert Street, Spread Eagle”

Tom came out of the theatre.

“Is everything okay, Y/N?”

“I have to go pick up Haz, he’s splashed out on a bottle somewhere, bloody fool can’t even walk”, she said whilst texting her driver to pick her up.

“Do you want me to go with you?”

“No, I need to deal with this alone”

She walked out the back gate and got in a black Audi.

The paparazzi had noticed her early departure, so they started following her recklessly.

It was a corner pub, the bar was at full capacity. Y/N saw Haz with his head down on the counter, an almost empty tequila bottle next to him.

“Haz wake up, come on, we need to go, get up darling” Y/N was trying to shake him awake.

“O-oh Y/N, y-you’re he-ear”, he was slurring his words.

“Yeah now let’s go”

He started to get up, Y/N had her one hand on his back and the other on his forearm, to support him.

“Honey I th-think I’m going to puke”, he looked sick.

“Is there a restroom here?” She asked the bartender. He pointed towards the corner of the room, a dimly lit area.

“Thank you”. She helped Harrison to walk to the restroom.

The washroom felt like their marriage. They were cramped up in it. The whole room was pure white but also yellow, caused by the lack of cleaning. There were no windows and had only one white florescent light. It was suffocating. The room made her realise that she could not hide from the inevitable, anymore.

Has was on his knees, holding on to the toilet seat with his dear life, puking all the poison out. Y/N was standing near the sink, taking off her statement earrings. She could see a vulnerable Harrison in the reflection of the mirror.

“I want a divorce”, she whispered, loud enough to be heard in this stifle room.

@mysticapples17  @storybookholland

[aremiies]

DRUMMER BOY.

pairings: drummer!bakugou x gn!leadsinger!reader

warnings: swearing, fluff, incorrect!bakugou (i think), bad writing

other: band au. song prompt (i wanna be yours by arctic monkeys.)

notes: long over due part two, ik, ik. even though the first part of this was a fem!reader, i wanted to make this gn. ok thats it, enjoy <3

part one .

not my gif !

—

it’s been less than a month after the bands gig at rolling red, and they’d all begged you to stay. after the performance, an owner of another lounge had asked for you guys to play at his establishment. of course, you all said yes and now you had three weeks until you played there. all had been going pretty well. you, mina and jirou were working on a new song to sing since you thought repetitiveness with your performances may give you a bad rep. the three of you sat in the break room of the music store brainstorming. it was quiet; the only sound being the soft tapping of the mechanical pencil on the notepad in front of you.

mina broke the somewhat silences when she threw her arms up in frustration, “ugh! i cant think of anything else!”

“yeah,” you nodded in agreement “neither can i...”

“okay, we’ve been thinking about this for a while, i think we deserve a break. c’mon let’s go see what the guys are doing.” jirou suggested after a few more moments. you and mina agreed, you placed the pencil down and proceeded to the front of the store where you saw kaminari, bakugou and kiri beginning to close.

“yo, guys!” mina greeted the three, “need any help?”

over the last two or so weeks, you’d come to love the pink haired girl. her positive, bubbly attitude was exactly the thing you needed in your life sometimes. she was a breath of fresh air when you were stressed, and always knew exactly what to say when you were upset.

kaminari, who’d been sweeping the floor, turned his attention to the three of you,”oh hey guys! you were so quiet back there i forgot about you.” he chuckled.

“he’s right. i kind of forgot you three were here. did you get any good lyrics down?” kirishima added as he finished sanitizing the instruments that’d been used throughout the day.

you sighed, “we got a few lines down, but for some reason we literally can’t think of anything.” you could hear bakugou’s “tch.” from his place by the front door.

“you think you need help?” kiri asked putting down the disinfectant wipes he’d been using.

“yeah actually, do you think you guys may be able to?” jirou asked the trio, to which they obviously agreed.

the six of you then made your way to the back practice room and shut the door, this was about the time you guys had rehearsals anyway, so you were right on schedule more or less.

“okay, so this is what we have so far,” you began, sliding the notepad in the middle of the table for everyone to see.

as the boys quickly read over the lyrics, you watched bakugou’s eyebrows furrow and un-furrow. you watched as he took his bottom lip in between his teeth as if he was thinking; deciphering the lyrics, wondering what they meant.

“well first of all,” the blonde mumbled under his breath, “this is actually... okay progress. you guys have gotten pretty far with lyrics for this to be a new song.”

“thank you!” mina beamed while you just smiled at his attempt at a compliment.

“so, i’m guessing this is a love song?” kirishima spoke up.

you went stiff when you heard kiri’s question. you wouldn’t say love, no, that would be way too strong of a word for your liking. you thought of it more of having a somewhat pining for someone you found attractive; in both ways, not just one.

you felt mina and jirou look over to you, waiting on you to answer. 

you let a nervous chuckle escape your lips, “w-well... i don’t know, i wouldn’t call it a love song-”

“oh, come on. the phrase ‘i wanna be yours’ ? that tells me everything i need to know honestly.” kaminari teased.

“no, no, it’s just.. no. it’s just a song.” you tried to explain.

“the lyrics are nothing short of what someone would write when they’re in love.” kiri joined in on the teasing.

“and if it’s just a song, why are the lyrics so heartfelt? these seem like you’re speaking from experience. who is it?” bakugou chimed in.

mina and jirou kept quiet, though they did have an idea or two as to who it was about. 

“okay, okay, first of all, love is way too strong of a word.” you rolled your eyes.”i prefer a somewhat attraction to said person.”

you felt your face get hotter and hotter with each second the five teens spent looking at you. so what if it was a love song? was it really that big of a deal; not that it really mattered, but you swore that if you had to endure another second of what seemed like judgmental silence, you were gonna combust.

“guys, leave the poor thing alone,” jirou and shook her head and put a hand on your shoulder.

you somewhat smiled in relief.

“let them be in love in peace!” you heard the girl finish with a teasing tone laced in her voice.

you rolled your eyes once more, “okay, okay! let’s just figure out some more lyrics.” the rest of the team agreed, scooting their chairs closer to the table as you all began to brainstorm.

 after half an hour of brainstorming and making a little more progress, bakugou spoke up, “wait- y/n, do you guys even know what you want the instrumental to sound like? do you have chords written down?” he raised a brow, waiting for your answer, though he already knew what you were going to say.

“uh.. no, we don’t, but we’re working on it.” you assured.

he gave a soft “mhm” before he tilted his head back and to the side before running a hand through his striking blonde hair, sliding the hand down to his cheek where he then began to rest his head in it. 

you watched his movements intently with your mouth slightly agape, wondering just how the hell someone could be so pretty. how he could manage to look so good doing the most mundane of things. asking yourself how could he be so mesmerizing without even trying. 

you snapped your mouth shut the second you saw his crimson eyes meet your (eye color) ones. you felt your mouth get abnormally dry as you watched him look you up and down before meeting your eyes again. you felt as if your heart was about to drop into the pit of your stomach, you were sure the others could hear it beating. it felt as if this moment had been going on for hours when it’d really only been about 15 seconds. you felt tingles flow throughout your body as you watched an almost unnoticeable smirk make it’s way across his lips. a smirk nobody else could’ve possibly seen unless they were staring at him as hard as you were. and that’s when you looked away, finally taking the liberty to compose yourself.

‘since when did any guy have this affect on me?’ you asked yourself.

when you finally zoned back in, you noticed the room was unusually quiet, you turned to look at the rest of the teens who were either focused on you, or bakugou.

oh. they noticed.

“the hell was that-?” mina spoke up, turning her head from bakugou to look over at you.

“were you guys speaking telepathically or some shit?” kaminari chimed in which earned a stifled laugh from kiri and jirou.

“staring contest.” bakugou said with a small smile patent on his lips, his eyes still trained on you features. 

you looked towards the boy once more upon hearing his voice, “yeah. exactly.”

__

about an hour later everyone had decided that it was time for the six of you to go home and get some rest. you agreed, although you somewhat wanted to continue writing, considering you made little progress today. nonetheless, you grabbed your bag and made your way out the practice room. as you made your way to the front door, you noticed that among the rest of the teens, bakugou wasn’t there. 

you furrowed your brows and stopped before turning back around towards the practice room, “hold on guys, i think i’m gonna stay a bit longer.” you notified your friends. 

upon making it back to the practice rooms, you spotted bakugou sitting in the same spot, looking over the lyrics with a pencil in his hand. you watched as he would hum something before thinking it over and writing it down. it seemed that he already had an idea of what he wanted the song to sound like. he seemed content, and you found yourself sitting there for much longer than you had originally planned. 

“hey,” you piped up.

he looked towards the door to find you leaning against the frame, “what?”

“you okay? er... need any help?” you inquired, walking over to the table and taking a spot in the chair next to him.

“i mean, i guess... i kinda got a few more things down.” he shrugged as he slid the notepad over to you and let you read what he’d wrote down.

not to say that you’d underestimated the boy, but you didn’t think that he’d grasp the theme of the song this well; you just didn’t think that it was his type of song.

“you grasped this way better than i thought you would.” you said to him.

he raised a brow, “what’d you think? that i don’t understand feelings of infatuation? love?”

“oh... no, no, no that’s not what i was tying to say at all. i’m sorry if it came off that way.”

bakugou let out a small chuckle, “i’m joking, dumbass. i understand.”

it went silent for a second before you broke it, “so you understand what the song’s about?”

“of course i do, i’m not stupid. i just wanna know who it’s about.” he turned to look at you, “who’s it about?”

once again you felt your mouth get dry and your heard your heartbeat in your ears. you felt your hands get sweaty and-

“you don’t have to answer, y’know. i can see you getting nervous.”

you made a face that said “huh?” before you answered, “i’m not.” you lied. “besides, you keep asking me who it’s about, when i feel like you have a hunch...” 

he gave you a look before chuckling a bit and looking back to the notepad in front of you. though he looked confident, he was sweating bullets. every alarm in his head was going off saying that the song was about him, not that those alarms were wrong, but he kept on thinking ‘what if they are?’ 

like i said: they weren’t.

“and if i do?” he replied.

now it was your turn to seem confident, “i would tell you to tell me who you think it is.” you said as you rested your elbow on the table and gazed at him.

bakugou felt the tips of his ears turn the lightest shade of pink as his eyes set on you and your expression. did you have any idea what you did to this poor boy?

spoiler: you did.

the both of you stared at each other in silence, just as you’d did before. you waited for bakugou to answer you, while bakugou waited for the courage he needed to do so.

“y/n,” he began

“hm?”

“me?” 

you raised a brow, “what about you?” you asked, already knowing what he meant.

“ugh i- the song... is it about me?”

“let’s finish it and maybe you’ll find out.” you tilted your head and gave him a smile before grabbing the pencil from his hand.

__

two weeks later and two days away from the gig, you and bakugou once again found yourselves in the company of just each other as you finalized the lyrics and chords to the song. 

“i really do like working with you.” you broke the silence the two of you were currently in.

bakugou nearly dropped the guitar he was sturmming, “huh? you mean like... the band?”

you shrugged, “i mean, yeah, them too, but when we stay after together? i really enjoy it.”

bakugou swallowed thickly. what was he supposed to say back? it’s not like he didn’t enjoy working one on one, quite frankly it was one of the only things he looked forward to in the day besides going home. 

“i know it’s kind of weird for me to say that, sor-”

“no.” he interrupted.

“what?”

“i mean, don’t apologize. i really like it too...” he mumbled.

a smile involuntarily made it’s way onto your face.

“also,” he continued, “your progress has been... really good... you’re doing a really good job and i just thought you should know that.”

“well that’s only because i had a really blunt, but amazing teacher to help me.” you smiled at him.

bakugou looked at you and your smile, his face softening at the sight.

since when did you become so pretty?

he spared you a glance and shook his head softly, your smile was utterly contagious.

“yeah, yeah. let’s just run through this; make sure everything’s where it needs to be.” he instructed, to which you nodded, grabbed your bass and walked over to him.

you sat down on the floor next to him then looked at him once again, waiting for his cue. bakugou looked back, having to compose himself before he got lost in your gaze.

he then gave you said cue, and the two of you strummed the beginning chords together. nothing except the comforting sounds of the notes filling the atmosphere around you two. and as the two of you continued, bakugou found a smile beginning to grow on his sharp features. he didn’t bother to try and stop it, either.

 why would he? he’d never thought that he’d enjoy these moments with you as much as he did. whenever you two would have these one on one’s, he felt as if time was of no essence; as if nothing and nobody else mattered except the two of you. by the time the song ended, the boy was full on grinning. 

“that was good!” you beamed at him, “what did you think?”

bakugou nodded, “you did- i mean we did great. it sounded amazing.”

“ready to go?” you asked as you began to pack up.

he nodded silently as he did the same.

“you don’t have to talk me home this time, i can tell you’re tired.” you told him before you exited.

“you sure?” he questioned. he would feel somewhat guilty if you were to walk home alone in the dark, but you assured him that it was okay. then, you bid your goodbye’s and you gave him a short hug, eventually the two of you locked up the store and parted ways.

--

the night of the performance, you found yourself backstage with the rest of your friends and the people on stage wrapped up their set. 

“you guys nervous?” kaminari asked as he paced back and forth, he couldn’t seem to keep himself still.

“not gonna lie...” jirou began, “kinda... i mean, this place is much bigger than the last, and who knows who could be out there.”

mina perked up, “you’re right! that’s all the more reason to do our bests. we’ve all worked our asses off these past three weeks, and it shows. it doesn’t matter how good or bad someone else thinks we sound, because at the end of the day, nobody else’s opinion matters but ours. plus we sound fucking amazing, so fuck any and everybody who says we don’t.”

“mina is right. we’ve all made amazing progress, and we sound amazing,” bakugou spoke up, “there’s no reason to be nervous. so... just don’t fuck it up on the day it actually counts.”

a couple of laughs were shared at bakugou’s attempt at a pep talk, and then, as if on cue, your band name was announced onstage, signalling for you all to come on out. you looked over at bakugou, who for some reason was already looking at you, and smiled and encouraging smile. one to which his face couldn’t help but soften at.

when the six of you made it to the front stage, there was a welcoming applause. you all waved at the faces in the crowd before taking your places and getting everything set.

moments later, you were ready, and bakugou was giving his famous drummer count off.

the beat was slow and comforting. you could hear each note that everyone was playing perfectly. you swayed to the sound the instruments made while simultaneously trying to keep the note up on your own. then, you took a step toward the microphone and began to sing the first lyrics. 

your voice come out smooth, as if it was some type of silk. although you were nervous as shit, you made it seem effortless. with mina and jirou’s supporting vocals in the background, everything sounded heavenly; just as you knew it would.

bakugou however, could only focus on the sound of your voice. he couldn’t hear anything else but the sound of you singing. in his eyes, nobody else was in the room besides you and him, and he swore thinking about the current situation in that way made him less nervous. watching you sway left and right as the next lyrics rolled off your tongue readily with your eyes closed and the stage lights shining on you just right? you looked incredible.

“secrets i have held in my heart, are harder to hide than i thought. maybe, i just wanna be yours,”

the sirens in the blonde boys head were once again going crazy, and as he leaned up to his mic for leading vocals, he felt as if his heart was going to beat out of his chest. he was absolutely positive that everyone in the audience could see how hard he was staring at you.

the thoughts of your one on one’s, your smile and you in general swarmed his thoughts, and by this point, he wanted nothing more than to be yours and yours only.

“ i wanna be your setting lotion, hold your hair in deep devotion. at least as deep as the pacific ocean; i wanna be yours.”

the whole time you sang, you felt eyes boring into the back of your head, but you knew who it was. bakugou staring at you as if you might disappear if he looked away may or may not have put a tinge of confidence in your play style as well as the way you sang.

oh, and the crowd? they loved it.

the loved the song, they loved the way you all played. you all could tell they were really enjoying this.

soon the song ended and the audience gave you the applause you all deserved. you grinned as you all made your ways backstage where you all joined in a group hug. 

“oh, y/n you did great !” kirishima complimented you, putting a hand on your shoulder. 

“me?! you guys sounded amazing, don’t give me all the credit !” you gushed.

eventually, the group dispersed, and bakugou saw this as his chance to approach you. he was sweating, and he had no idea if it was because of the stuffiness of the air backstage or if he was genuinely nervous about what he was planning on doing. “y/n,” he started.

you looked up from your phone, eyes brightening as they made contact with bakugou’s own, “oh, bakugou, you did really good out there y’know? you were the main one i heard when you guys did the back-up vocals. you sounded amazing.” you praised.

“oh shut up, it was all you. your voice is gorgeous, y’know.” he stated. 

you felt your cheeks heat up at his words, something about bakugou complimenting you in such a way made you feel warm inside, “thank you. that means alot coming from you.”

“i- uh... i still have one question...” the boy quipped

“go on.”

“who? who was the song about... you never told me.”

you felt a small smirk find it’s way onto your lips, “and who did you say you thought the song was about?”

bakugou swallowed hardly, “m- me.” he said, clearing his throat mid-way through.

“and what if i told you it was?” you implied, inching your face closer to his.

you watched bakugou’s cheeks turn pink before he replied, “i’d say... i wanna be yours.”

you took that as your invite to connect your lips together. the moment bakugou felt your warm lips on his, he didn’t waste another second before he kissed you back. you ran a hand up the back of his head as the kiss continued, and bakugou swore he was in heaven.

once you broke away, you looked at him with a teasing smile, “you be mine, and i’ll be yours?”

“deal.”

--

i had absolutely no idea ho to end this, but i hope you enjoyed <3

[boognish-worshipper]

Midnight City AU

it took me forever to decide where to go with this chapter and i was literally getting fed up editing it 😭 i’ve been so busy with all the chaos goin on in my life rn too so yeah writing’s been feeling delayed over all but i decided to just finalize this one for rn and uhhh sorry if it seems funky or shortttt

//Chapter 3: Vanished

The next day, Trevor went back to Sterling Lake Park, after spending the night at Wade’s. He agreed to meet up with him there later, walking around the park with his earbuds in. As he threw himself down on his usual bench, he settled on listening to his usual playlist of his favorite songs. He scrolled through nosedivr once again, taking a photo of the lake. It was foggy, and the thick air sat atop the water. He liked when it was like that. A sturdy drumbeat thumped in his ears, making him feel whole. He paused it briefly, just to change it to a different song that was even louder, but with the lack of music he could now hear the crunch of gravel not too far away. He thought he told Wade to come later on? He looked up from his phone, pulling out an earbud. It was the guy from yesterday.

“Hey.”

“Hello.”

“Where’s Amanda?” He asked, glancing around.

“Uhh she’s.. not here today. I kinda came to see if you were here. I wanna get to know more people at this park if I’m gonna hang ‘round here more I guess.”

“But she doesn’t like me?”

“She don’t gotta know.”

“Well aren’t you Boyfriend of the Year.”

“Oh uh, we aren’t dating yet.”

“Thought she was your girl though.”

“She is, she is. But it’s nothing serious. Not yet. And I don’t know what happened between you guys but you don’t seem that bad, so if I wanna talk to you that’s more of a her problem than me.”

“Huh.”

Today Michael wore an eCola shirt, which was obviously made to resemble their old logo, with blue jeans. He had on a pair of red sneakers this time to match the color of the shirt. They looked slightly newer, compared to the pair he wore yesterday. He dressed nice for such a basic style. Trevor on the other hand, threw on an old, frayed Love Fist t-shirt, and messy jeans. He wore a different pair of boots, some kind of knockoff of a popular name brand. A pair of purple lensed circular glasses sat on his head, the nose pieces caught in his hair.

“So.. uh. Mind if I sit there?”

“Not like I own the bench or anything, go right ahead.”

He cautiously sat next to Trevor, hands in his lap. Trevor started one of his other playlists up again, settling on a mix of Paramore and Green Day. He left an earbud out, just so he wouldn’t be completely rude. He mindlessly scrolled, occasionally looking back at the lake or casting a sideways glance at Michael, who was looking at him funny. Sighing, he paused his music, putting his earbuds away.

“What.”

“I.. nothin’ man. I just, I dunno. What is the point of coming here?”

“It’s a public fuckin’ park man.”

“I know, but you said that you don’t even really like the people here, so what’s the point?”

“There is no ‘point’ to it. I just like time to myself is all. These guys don’t bother me, and I don’t bother them. They only start trouble when they see fit.”

“Ah… I see? What were you listening to by the way?”

Trevor stifled a groan, not really wanting to talk to the guy when he had time to freely plot his scheme.

“Pop punk shit. Ever heard of it?”

“Uh, no? I thought punk wasn’t supposed to be popular. Or fit in. Or whatever.”

“That’s merely the ideology, which I do follow, dear Michael. I just like the sound I guess. You know Paramore?”

“Not really. I don’t listen to that stuff much.”

“Then what the fuck do you listen to?”

“Not sure if it has a genre per say, but I like that song Radioactive goin’ around? Songs that sound like that I guess.”

“You like Imagine Dragons?”

“That’s what they’re called?”

Trevor could only stare at him. Was this guy living under a rock?

“Uh.. yeah. Y’know what- never mind, what else do you listen to?”

“80s music?”

No wonder this guy was unaware of who’s popular now.

“Amanda’s been trying to get me into groups like the 1975. I actually kinda like them.”

Trevor rolled his eyes.

“Of course she did.”

“They’re not that bad to be honest. She likes that weird alternative shit.”

“Yeah, I know. By the way, there is a name for that genre. Indie rock. Can’t stand the stuff.”

“How come?”

“You know, you ask a lotta fuckin’ questions.”

“I’m just tryna understand this shit here. I ain’t in the loop of all these trends.”

“Well, for your information I just find the style to be too slow and whiny for my taste. I like fast, upbeat, wild stuff.”

“Any recommendations then? I wanna impress Amanda by at least knowing one artist off that nosedivr thing she goes on.”

He raised a brow, not really wanting to share anything else knowing he would just repeat it back to her, but he shrugged and continued.

“Alright. Besides pop punk, I like experimental songs. Underground groups. Crystal Castles are my favorite.”

“Never heard of ‘em.”

“Wouldn’t expect you to.”

“Right.”

“If you want more indie rock shit though, I suggest listening to I don’t know, the Arctic Monkeys? That seems more like her taste.”

“These bands have such weird names.”

“I think bands have always been like that.”

“Hey wait a sec, I thought you didn’t like that stuff? How do you know the name of one of those groups?”

“Ugh… I guess I might as well say it if you’re gonna get with her, but we were friends at some point. She introduced me to those bands, but even then I didn’t really like it. We had a stupid falling out I’d rather not get into.”

“Oh.. sorry.”

“Eh, don’t be. Shit happens. You definitely seem like her type though, no wonder she got with you.”

“What’s her type?”

“Heh. As if I’d tell you.” He scoffed.

“C’mon man, please?”

“Nope.”

Michael frowned, slumping in his seat.

“Fine. Whatever. Not like I need to know.”

“You could at least pretend you don’t care.”

“I don’t.”

“You clearly do, bro.”

He sat arms crossed, turning a smidge away from Trevor. This was his opportunity to listen to his tunes again, but before he could Michael spoke up.

“Can I… can I listen to whatever you’re listening to?”

“Huh?”

“I wanna hear what you’re into.”

Trevor shot him a puzzled look.

“Uh.. okay.”

Wiping off an earbud, he handed one to Michael. He already had one in.

“Pick your poison cowboy.”

“Cowboy?”

“Just a nickname I give people.” He shrugged.

Michael settled on his experimental music, actually nodding along to the sound. They were closer than a minute ago, and it made Trevor uncomfortable for whatever reason. Maybe because he was never in such close proximity to strangers, but the other part of him didn’t care that much. Michael’s eyes were closed, smiling.

“You like it?”

“Yeah! Reminds me of synth stuff from the 80s, just more modern I guess.”

He smiled back at Michael, appreciating the fact there was someone else who liked the music he liked. The two listened to a couple different playlists he had, up until the moment Wade arrived at the park.

“Trevor! Hey!”

“Woah. Who’s your friend?”

“Hm?” He pulled out the single earbud, turning his head around. Wade had clown makeup on, making Trevor jump in his seat.

“Fucks sake. Hey Wade.”

“Ooh who’s this?”

He wasn’t sure if Wade freaked him out or not, seeing as the guy not only had matted locs, but many facial piercings as well. And the clown shit. He stood up to introduce them to one another.

“Wade, this is Michael. Michael, Wade.”

The way Michael looked at him was like a kid seeing a zoo animal for the first time. He looked bewildered, but not disgusted.

“Hi. What’s with the..?” He wavered a hand in Wade’s direction.

“Oh! It’s jus’ clown face. Not tryna scare ya or nothin’!”

“Uh huh… man. How have I never been around these parts? You guys are real different.”

“You got that right, Mike.”

“Seems like I’ve been missin’ out. I hangout with some dudes who would hate this place if I’m being honest.”

“I’ll have to meet ‘em sometime.” Trevor chuckled.

“They’re real cool guys. Didn’t expect our paths to cross, but anything’s possible in this fuckin’ city.”

“Oh yeah. Land of opportunities, for all types of wackjobs.”

“Ain’t that the truth.”

A hand tapped Trevor on the shoulder.

“Uh, excuse me, Trevor, but are we still gonna talk about the Merryweather thingy-”

“Wade! Shut it-”

“What Merryweather thing?”

“Nothing, nothing. Not important.” He said, gritting his teeth, glare strong on Wade.

“Okay..”

“But you said we’d talk about it over icecream!”

“Later, Wade. Not right now.”

“Fiiine. Can we still get icecream though?”

“Sure. Promise. I’ll let you know.”

“Okay! Bye Trevor, bye stranger!”

Michael lifted a hand to haphazardly to wave goodbye.

“What was that about?”

“I told ya man, nothin’. Just going over some plans we’re making.”

“Is it about that special event being held there?”

“How you know about that?”

“Mandy told me.”

“Mandy… yeah. Figures as much.”

“She got an invite, and wants me to go as her plus one. I don’t know if I really wanna go though, I’m still pretty unfamiliar with all this.”

“Trust me, you don’t.”

“Seriously, what is your beef with those guys?”

“I told you, they start shit when they want. Taught ‘em a lesson and that was it. Nearly got me banned from this place, but it was kinda worth the looks on their faces.”

“You are.. quite peculiar y’know. Anyway, you mind showing more of that music? I was honestly gettin’ a kick outta it.”

“Uh, yeah.”

He sat back down next to Michael, handing him the same earbud as before. He clicked on one of his favorite Crystal Castles songs, Vanished. As they were listening, Michael furrowed his eyebrows.

“Hey wait a minute.. I think I’ve heard this before.”

“You have? I thought you didn’t know them.”

“No, I mean yeah I haven’t, but that’s not it. The lyrics. Vocals. I’ve heard them in a different song.”

“Oh.”

“Lemme think, lemme think, ah… I got it! Pass me your phone real quick.”

His fingers typed in the song title fast, pressing play right away. It was an indie rock song, much to Trevor’s dismay. But something stopped him from complaining, seeing how Michael’s face lit up.

“Yeah! This is it, Sex City by Van She. Y’know, I honestly think that’s neat.”

“What is?”

“The fact that a song you like, samples a song I like! Who would’ve guessed?” He said, eyes sparkling. Trevor didn’t notice how bright they were until now. The eye contact, along with the lack of space between them, made him feel stuffy again. He averted his eyes back to his phone, trying to loosen up a bit. As the song played, he savored in the sound, shocking himself a bit. The rock sound was there, but had an 80s sort of feel to it. The song finished before he knew it.

“So.. What’d ya think?”

“You know my thoughts on indie shit. Wasn’t for me, sorry.”

“Oh c’mon, you know you liked it.”

“Nope. Prefer Vanished.”

“Yeah, okay. Keep telling yourself that, but I honestly think they’re both really good. You think that too, I can feel it.”

“Whatever you say bro.”

He switched the song over to that Grimes song he listened to yesterday, the two of them sitting silently. It was a pleasant afternoon they shared. Suddenly Michael’s phone went off, and he yanked the earbud out.

“Ah shit. I gotta take this. Mandy.”

“Gotcha.”

Trevor grabbed the other earbud, putting it back in. He saw Michael wave his free hand around, looking close to hurling his phone right into the lake. Trevor assumed he must’ve been shouting as well, from the way other people were looking at him. Hanging up not much later, he returned to the bench, as Trevor put his earbuds away.

“Fuckin’ Christ.”

“So.. how’d it go?”

“She’s finally not mad at me anymore, but demanded I go take her shopping now. I swear, she’s gonna clear out my bank account or something.”

“How? You guys aren’t even dating.”

“I know, but I just can’t say no to her.”

“Uh huh.”

“Look, I’m sorry to leave so suddenly, but I really gotta go before she goes back to being pissed at me. See ya around?”

“I’ll be here man.”

Michael stood up, storming away. Seemed like he had a short temper, huh? He wondered to himself how long he was gonna stick around, seeing how Amanda’s dating history was… an extensive list. He thought back to last night, when he had seen that post of them, remembering the fact that no guy stayed for longer than a week. It almost made him bummed, seeing as he only had Ron and Wade for friends. Lester too, but that was on rare occasion. Shit. The plans. What time was it?

“Ah, fuck me.” He muttered. How did he let the day go by so quick?

He shot a text to Wade, telling him to grab Ron and meet at some icecream place. He did promise Wade after all.

Ron ended up meeting them there a little bit later, apologizing profusely before Trevor told him to just sit down and shut up. He did just that, almost apologizing once more.

“Now, let’s get down to business. Who do we know that would help us sneak into that club to cause sheer utter mayhem?”

Ron raised his hand excitedly.

“I could get Floyd maybe-”

“Definite fuckin’ no. He would have a heart attack the minute he set foot in there.”

This was getting nowhere. He tossed his head back to look up at the sky. As he did, he saw a couple walking out of the icecream place.

“Oh fucking hell.”

Was this guy following him or something? He snapped his head forward, trying to be a little more hidden.

“What? Trevor what is it?”

“Shh! Keep your fucking voice down Ron!”

He made all three of them lower their heads as the couple walked away, peeking over his shoulder to make sure they were gone. As he did, he could’ve sworn he saw Michael looking back at him. The both of them turned away as quick as possible from the split second of eye contact.

“Trevor?” Ron repeated.

“It was nothing. Just thought I saw someone.”

“Ain’t that the Michael fella I met today?”

“Nope. Don’t think it is.”

“Are ya sure-”

“Pretty fucking positive. Now, back on topic.”

The next hour or so still went nowhere. Wade had gone through two servings of icecream, and Ron started to get restless. Trevor was just bored.

“Ughhh there has to be something we can do!”

“I don’t know what to tell you Trevor. We’ll find someone, soon. There’s enough time isn’t there?”

“Yeah, but I’m not waitin’ til the last possible fuckin’ second to get a guy to help us out here.”

“But we still have time.”

“If you fuckin’ say so Ron.”

The three of them called it a night, as Trevor tossed around the idea of possibly getting Michael involved in his head. On one hand he wanted to out of spite just to make Amanda and the other hipsters mad, and on the other he didn’t want to screw up whatever new friendship he had started with Michael. Ron did say they had time to find someone soon. They weren’t exactly in a rush, but he still wanted to make sure their plan was concrete. They all went back to Wade’s, Trevor deciding to take a walk along the beach. He threw on the same playlist from earlier, watching the sunset. As he walked, he didn’t pay much mind to where he was going, bumping into someone.

“Ah fuck, watch where you’re going-”

“Shit, sorry man-”

As they spun around from the collision, he realized exactly who he had run into.

“Trevor?”

What the fuck?

“What the fuck? Are you following me or something?”

“Huh?”

“This is the third time I’ve seen you today. What are you even doing here?”

“Uh, it’s a public fuckin’ beach man.” He said, mocking the comment Trevor had made earlier.

“Don’t get smart with me.”

“Hey, I’m just tellin’ you how it is. I didn’t purposely search for you, hell I didn’t even know you lived this way.”

“I do. So make like a tree and fuck off.” He said bitterly.

“Woah, chill the fuck out. What’s your deal? I thought we were cool man.”

“I don’t like being followed.”

“I just told you I wasn’t!”

“It doesn’t exactly seem like it. You just so happen to look for me this morning, and just happen to go to the same icecream place I went, and then I find you here? I mean Jesus-”

“I’m telling you, it’s all purely coincidence.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“Fuckin’ hell man..” He mumbled.

“Y’know, you’re as fuckin’ stubborn as Amanda is. I already told you-”

Trevor balled his fists, before jabbing a finger into Michael’s chest.

“Don’t fucking compare me to her.”

Michael threw his hands up defensively, not realizing he touched a nerve.

“Woah woah, easy dude. I didn’t think it was that bad between you guys.”

He exhaled loudly, unclenching his hands.

“It wasn’t. Isn’t. Just.. don’t compare me to her.”

Michael pinched the bridge of his nose, exhaling hard himself.

“Look, I think you’re cool and all but you can’t flip out on me like that. I mean we are just getting to know each other y’know. I can’t have you wanting to bite my head off like that if I just so happen to keep running into you. I really am just trying to navigate the area better, so forgive me if I came off as some sorta fuckin’ stalker. Amanda went home and I had nothing better to do so I chose to walk over this way.”

“Hmph. Fine. Whatever.”

“So we good?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. Now, since we’re already here why don’t we just hangout or something?”

Trevor folded his arms, trying to look like he didn’t want to spend another minute with him. It didn’t really work though, because he actually did want to talk to him more.

“If you insist.”

“Alrighty.”

The two of them started to head in the direction of the boardwalk, neither one speaking yet. After finding a bench to sit on as the sun sunk below the horizon, the silence was still there. This sort of thing was bizarre for both of them in different ways. Michael never really frequented these parts of LS, and Trevor never really hit it off with any kind of stranger. Ron and Wade were exceptions if anything, and he had known Lester for a while now. Yet there was something about this guy that didn’t make him feel like he was spending time with a stranger, even though he knew jack shit about him. He might as well try to make small talk.

“So I-”

“So uhh-”

They spoke over each other while trying to start up a conversation, making things feel a little more awkward.

“Shit sorry, you go first.”

“Nah nah you go.”

“Um. Okay. So.. tell me about yourself? We haven’t really talked about much besides music.”

“Yeah.. right. What do ya wanna know?”

“I just asked you to tell me about yourself, so it’s your job to decide what to say.”

Michael gave him a sardonic smile in response to that, partly because he wasn’t sure what to bring up about himself. It seemed like they were gonna be here a while if they wanted to say the most basic shit you say when getting to know someone.

“Well, I ain’t that interesting if you really need to know. I’m guessing you already know about my whole ‘affinity for the 80s’ thing, like the culture n shit that came from it. Real sick stuff.”

“If you say so.”

“Yeah. Anyway, if you really want to know plain shit about me though, I will tell ya that my favorite color’s blue.”

Trevor snickered at that.

“Pfft, seriously? We’re talking favorite colors now?”

“Hey man, you said you wanted to know more about me.”

“Uh yeah, but that’s so fuckin’ silly.”

“Maybe it is, but what about you? You got one?”

“Favorite color? You kiddin’?”

“I’m waiting..”

“Uh huh… I’ll give. Always liked the color red I guess. Like, in variety. Not picky about something as childish as that.”

“What’s childish about that?”

“Cuz only kids exchange that whole ‘oh what’s your favorite color?’ thing. It’s like if I were to ask you what your favorite dinosaur is.”

“Hmm.. I’d probably say a T-Rex.”

“Oh now you’re just pulling my dick. And no, I’m not telling you what mine is just because you did.”

“Hey, I didn’t ask you though. That was all you.”

“Mm… shut it.”

“You got one though?”

“I’m not telling you!”

“Ah ah, I didn’t ask which one, I asked if you had one.”

“Well I don’t, so knock it off.”

“That’s fair. I won’t push.”

They grew silent for the second time that night, before Trevor mumbled something under his breath.

“It’s a pterodactyl..”

“What was that?”

He forced a breath through his nose, acting annoyed.

“It’s a fuckin’ pterodactyl. That’s mine. Okay?”

“Hah, okay. Any reason why?”

“You’re so nosy.”

“You’re the one who started this conversation about getting to know each other man.”

“Ugh, I know that.” He said, lightly shoving his shoulder.

“I think it’s cool that they could fly and shit. I like flying.”

“You like flying?”

“Loved it.”

“Wait, you tellin’ me you fly? Like, planes and shit?”

Trevor winced at the words, regretting what he just said.

“I did.. at some point. Air Force shit. They said I was one of the best they’d seen in a while but I.. left. Sort of.”

“Then why’d you leave?”

“I didn’t exactly leave on my own accord. More or less got kicked out.”

“How come-”

“I don’t like talking about it. I know we’re opening up or whatever the fuck but that.. that’s still too soon for me to want to bring up. Especially to someone I barely know.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” He said, even though it really wasn’t. It’s not like Michael knew though, he really wasn’t trying to prod in a bad way.

It was almost pitch black by the time their conversation got to that point, only distant streetlight and the nearby pier lighting up their surroundings. The whole mood had shifted, and both of them decided to just break it off there.

“Hey uh, I’ll probably see you tomorrow man. If I’m with Amanda I think I’ll just send a wave or something your way.”

“Got it. See ya.”

“Bye.”

Trevor stayed put, watching Michael leave as he turned down a random one way street. This guy was tripping him out and he couldn’t pin point why. It was getting late though, and walked off himself back to Wade’s. He’ll save that vexed question for another night.

//ahhhhhh i rlly did not know what i wanted to do with this….,,., sorry if this wasn’t as good as the first two !! i alrdy know i repeated a bunch of stuff in there and i feel like it got kinda sloppy so again, soz (including typos or whtevr)

but uhhhh anyway yeah i cut it off here bc i wanted to continue some of this shit in the next chapter ig lol,, more stuff to come soon god willing

[whumpster-fire]

Extremely Hot His Dark Materials Take:

The conventional wisdom that daemons’ settled forms represent who you truly are as a person and are a unique, symbolic representation of it is what’s said in-universe but it isn’t true, or at the very least isn’t the whole truth. IDC what Philip Pullman’s said is actually canon, stuff like “Servants usually have dog demons because they have a submissive/servile nature” is really not plausible fite me.

Animal symbolism is a social construct and is not universal among cultures, and just like the alethiometer symbols, an animal species can have many meanings. As a result, for any one person there are usually many species which are a “valid” representation of their soul, and which one their daemon actually settles as is not set in stone from birth. Daemons don’t consciously choose their settled form - and humans certainly don’t - but it reflects a variety of influences, including symbolic “nature” but also cultural influences, social pressures, what animals the daemon actually knows about, the nature of the relationship between the human and daemon, and what forms are physically comfortable or practical. But the common uniting factor in all of those is that a daemon’s form reflects what you want and need as much as what you are. Not superficial wants, but deep deep psychological needs and what’s important to you. And sometimes fears as well.

Factor #1: Societal Bias

Strong cultural predispositions toward settled form, combined with form stereotyping. I think it was said in the books that “most servants had dog daemons because deep down they wanted to be told what to do.” Think about this: is this likely to be true? Given that people generally wind up in jobs by luck of the draw and by what’s available, and most people even in the most socially mobile modern societies usually don’t end up in their “true calling,” and in Lyra’s world your occupation seems to very often be determined by your birth. Do you really think all the kids like Roger Parslow, who’s working as a kitchen boy because his aunt who was a servant at Jordan College raised him, are naturally subservient? Well, is everyone who works in a service industry job IRL naturally subservient? Hell no! However, this is a very, very convenient lie for a classist society that teaches people that they were born into a “station” in society to tell. If your daemon settles as a dog, obviously you were meant to be a servant all along, and you and your daemon spending your entire childhood being told that because this is the station you’re being born and raised into your daemon should be a dog or some other “appropriate” form and couldn’t possibly cause them to be biased towards canine forms by this.

But if a daemon takes a form that���s obviously unfit for their station, clearly your true calling is elsewhere and it was never truly meant to be. It’s hard to falsify as long as most daemons are settling in “expected” forms. And most do, at least to an extent. A daemon’s form is influenced by drives and desires, and while most people don’t necessarily want to be bossed around and told what to do, most people do want to fit in.

And having fairly broad categories of “expected” can help that, because that gives room for daemons to find a form within that category that genuinely fits their nature. Someone extremely independent and strong-willed but growing up always expected to be a servant might end up with a husky daemon. Someone with a leading (or even controlling) personality might have a herding breed. The same goes for Gyptians and Witches being expected to usually have bird daemons.

On the other hand people with certain daemon forms might also be actively recruited for certain jobs, based on both symbolism and the physical abilities of that form - e.g. the Tartar mercenaries and other soldiers seem to almost all have wolf daemons. These may be very common in their culture to begin with, and then there’s further selection based on the symbolism of “You’re a wolf, you’re powerful, noble, and a natural killer but you’re a loyal pack animal, you’d make a great soldier.” But then in addition to that, because of the no touching rules, people in jobs where they fight other people are at an advantage if their daemon can fight other daemons.

Factor #2: Age

Settling age is... around early-to-mid puberty it seems like. I’ve seen speculation that it would be later in more modern societies as the age of maturity drifts over, but it seems like 12-14 is fairly common. But brain development continues until around 25. Like... seriously. Daemons are settling when their humans would be middle-schoolers in our world. People mature and change a huge amount in that decade of “settled but not fully mature.” Unless daemons can presciently predict how they’ll change over time - or if the soul’s nature is fixed and people tend to change in away that approaches that over time - your daemon’s form may be based on what you were like at settling age.

Factor #3: Knowledge and Familiarity

His Dark Materials is mostly based in Europe / Northern Eurasia, and the vast, vast majority of the settled daemon forms in the novels are native to that region. Off the top of my head the exceptions are Stelmaria (a snow leopard, native to the Himalayas but that’s still an animal she and Lord Asriel could have encountered / read about as a child), Mrs. Coulter’s daemon (a monkey, I don’t think we’re ever told what species. Not native to Europe but again Marisa had the resources to travel, read about exotic species, visit zoos, etc and everything about them is weird, IIRC the African soldiers in Amber Spyglass had various african daemon forms (so, where they’re actually from), and Hester. Hester’s the most important because while she took the form of an arctic hare, which is native to North America where Lee’s from, her form is native to a completely different part of North America, that she and Lee probably wouldn’t have been familiar with, and it took years for anyone including her to even notice.

This suggests daemons may be able to take forms that are unknown to them, but we never see a raccoon or an oppossum or a bobcat or some australian animal as a daemon as far as I know, so my best guess is that they had some secondhand knowledge of the arctic and had at least seen what an Arctic Hare looked like but forgot how to tell one apart from a jackrabbit, Hester had an unconscious longing for the North that neither of them were aware of, and she had a strong and possibly less-unconscious desire to get the hell out of Texas at sometime around settling age. And they assumed she was a jackrabbit because daemons usually don’t take forms they’re not familiar with.

Factor #4: Physical Preference

A daemon is not a shadow or a heraldic crest - they’re not just an insubstantial symbolic reflection. A daemon is an integral part of a person’s being, and they are one, but at the same time the daemon are a living, breathing creature even if their physical body is unstable. One soul, two bodies, two minds, two personalities. Their form subjects them to some - although not all - of the physical abilities and limitations that animal would have, and the same sensations.

Again, a daemon’s form is often influenced by what’s important to them, and to the pair. Most daemons take on a huge number of forms throughout childhood, and there are some things about those forms that are important to them. For some daemons the freedom of movement of flight is a fun, childish thing to play around with, and perhaps tactically useful, but it isn’t torture to give it up. For others, flight and the freedom it represents are their very heart and to be bound to a grounded form forever would be unbearable. Some can’t give up the ability to take small forms that can hide and go unnoticed, but some hate the vulnerability and helplessness of small size and could never be happy in a form that can’t walk alongside their human without fear of being kicked or stepped on. Some can’t give up the joy of swimming, or climbing, and for some their humans can’t. The daemon of someone who is a mountaineer and climber in their soul won’t be a snapping turtle. And... this is complicated, because part of it’s the human’s nature, but part of it is tied up in experiences which the human can feel too, and that are important to them, but they don’t experience in quite the same way.

Sometimes it’s just too convenient. Witches’ daemons are nearly always birds because witches spend much of their time in the air and can separate from their daemons, and only with flight of their own can a daemon take advantage of this power; in a flightless form they would take far longer to travel any distance, and their witches would have to land every time they separated or reunited. Another animal, like a fox or a mink or a rabbit, might fit with a witch’s nature too, but a witch’s daemon will become a hawk or a heron or a dove instead.

And sometimes a certain from is just comfortable and it just feels right even though the symbolism might not fit the stereotypes.

Factor #5: Human-Daemon Relationships

This is something I talked about a bit in my post about autism and daemons: the form a daemon settles as is often affected by the nature of their relationship with their human.

First of all: barring severe internal conflict or mental illness, while a daemon’s settled form is not chosen by the human and does not follow their whims, they don’t take a form that makes their shared life inconvenient and miserable. Out of how many sailors, John Faa and Farder Corram knew what, one guy with a dolphin daemon? Usually sailors’ daemons would be seabirds or otters, or animals like cats and rats that aren’t technically aquatic but are well-adapted to living on a boat. Does this mean that the sea isn’t their true love? No: it means no matter how much you love the sea being trapped on a ship for their entire life (and not even the entire ship: how high in the rigging can you climb without going too far from your daemon who can’t leave the water?) sucks and is actively dangerous. Imagine your ship is wrecked and your daemon carries you to shore through the storm (because humans die of hypothermia if left in the water too long in many parts of the oceans)... except you’re literally unable to get out of reach of the crashing waves that will drown you, sweep you away, or batter you to death, without dragging your daemon up the beach and then they’re stranding and dying, and you can’t go get fresh water which your body needs because your soul is an anchor binding you to the water. How many things that are a sailor’s job are you unable to do because you can’t go more than like ten yards from water deep enough to swim in?

Daemons do not consciously choose their forms, but their subconscious is not stupid. Taking a form like a dolphin doesn’t mean the daemon is symbolically expressing their nature, it means the human is denying it to the point where their own daemon is afraid of being torn away from it and cannot trust their human. But again, this event is happening at middle-school age, so what’s likely happening is something like a 14-year-old cabin boy falling in love with a girl in town and wanting to marry her and move inland and abandon the sea forever, and his daemon being horrified by the idea and wanting to make sure it can. not. happen. ever. And then both of their lives are ruined. Meanwhile the other cabin boy on the boat had a non-dysfunctional relationship with his daemon, who settled as a seagull and trusts that when he goes to visit family a little ways inland for a couple days it won’t be permanent.

Anyway: disregarding dysfunctional people like Mrs. Coulter, some humans and daemons are more physically affectionate with their counterparts than others, and in different ways.

Some pairs are happy spending most of their time at the edge of their not-painful range. Some pairs are perfectly comfortable with the daemon taking a tiny form and hiding in their human’s coat pocket most of the time and sneaking around the rest, and with the daemon hardly ever speaking to other humans, and that closeness and the moments of being held in the palm of their human’s hand and being stroked gently with one or two fingers is perfect for them. Some pairs are content with the distance a form like a bird of prey imposes, where the daemon must perch near their human because their claws would injure them if they landed on their shoulder or arm without protective clothing.

But many people and daemons are more “touchy” with each other, for whom the physical nature of the bond between human and daemon cannot possibly be given up. Some daemons settle in the forms they took to fly, or to hide, or spy, or fight, but many settle in the forms they took to rest, to soothe and comfort, to lick wounds and let their fur or feathers be stroked, to share body heat, and sometimes to help hold their humans upright or drag them to safety. Some pairs are content with the daemon sleeping on windowsills or perched on bedposts or on nightstands, or under beds or at the feet of them, but some curl up under the covers together whenever they can.

In less poetic terms, daemons settling in fluffy, huggable forms because they and their humans have a deep-seated need to cuddle with each other is just as valid as daemons settling as birds because they need the freedom of flight.

This is often the case for children whose need for touch is not met properly by others, or those for whom it is too much, or it cannot be trusted. Parents, friends, and lovers aren’t always there, but they are always there for each other. But there’s not always trauma or neglect involved, and it’s not always people who have few or no close and intimate bounds outside themselves. Plenty of content, well-adjusted people still have relationships like this with their daemons because we’re human beings and touch is important to us, and it doesn’t really matter if you share a soul.