#the muse has just been very focused on this one recently

[idkdudethisisntpermanent]

Elixir

wednesday addams x female reader

part i | part ii

summary: What happens when your best friend's roommate who you're always at odds with, suddenly becomes uncharacteristically affectionate towards you? Just what was in that mysterious bottle that set everything into motion?

word count: 1.9k

a/n: I've made a taglist! If you want to join, refer to this post

————

Friday nights at Nevermore Academy held different meanings for different students.  Some gathered for the Vampire Book Club, an all exclusive group that spent their evenings immersed in gothic horror novels.  Others were part of the secret society, kicking off the weekend by leaving cryptic messages and riddles around the school in search of their next recruit.  And then there were those fortunate enough to be welcomed home by their parents for the weekend.

But for you, Friday nights meant something different. You had no interest in secret clubs or cryptic hunts. Instead, you chose to spend the weekend cozied up with Enid for a movie marathon.

With a grin, the werewolf-in-training held up two DVDs, one in each hand. "Okay, we've got 10 Things I Hate About You and When Harry Met Sally."

You point to the hand holding the first film and Enid squeals excited to begin your long awaited movie night. It's been difficult finding a time where you both could commit to a long task like watching a movie without Wednesday getting in the way.

It wasn't that Wednesday particularly got in the way of these activities, but you both did. You two would inevitably clash when put in the same room together and be at each others throats until you were separated by some brave soul (most of the time Enid).

"Are you sure we won't be interrupted?" You ask as Enid climbed into the bed.  "I don't want to get my hopes up, and believe that I can actually have a moment of peace in your room," you added, recalling all the times you've stormed out of this very room due to Wednesday.

Enid bumps into her drawer as she climbs into bed and almost knocks off a glass bottle with a bulbous base, fortunately you were able to grab ahold of the dresser leg in time and stabilize the furniture before the glass bottle filled with liquid could fall.

"I should probably put this somewhere safer," Enid says grabbing the glass and walking it over to Wednesday's side of the room and placing it on her desk. "And yes Y/n, I've quadrupled checked.  She should be in the car by now, heading home.  Her mom was really insistent on her visiting this weekend, so she had no choice." Once Enid and you cozy up together in her bed and turn all the lights off, you hit play and the movie begins.

"Wednesday will literally deep cleanse this room if she found out we're watching rom coms in it," you laugh as Heath Ledger makes his appearance on screen.

Enid giggles, "Sometimes I think she's a secret romance lover, recently I found out she knew the plot to Clueless."

"No way!  I wonder what critiques she has about that film," you muse sarcastically. "She definitely had to feel some type of way about that yellow outfit."

Enid hums and you notice that she's now engrossed in the film.  Taking the cue, you focused on the screen as well, ready to enjoy your peaceful night together.

Only thing was, you couldn't.

As the film continues, all you can think about was how relieved you are that Wednesday isn't here.  How you don't have to listen to the incessant click-clack of her stupid type writer.  How you don't have to endure her cold, calculating gaze that always seems to dissect your every word and action, and especially how you don't have to listen to her sharp and cutting remarks that always seem to find their mark.

At some point during the movie Enid notices that you were not present and paused the film.  "Okay what's on your mind?"

Absentmindedly not registering her question, you respond, "Wednesday." Your eyes go wide, "Wait! I meant-"

She smirks, "You know Y/n/n, for someone who hates her, you bring her up an awful lot.

You scramble at Enid's statement. What was that supposed to mean? "She's just frustrating you know? Get's under my skin, obviously I'm gonna bring her up."

Wednesday suddenly enters the room following your explanation, and sits at her desk without a word. Then after a minute she speaks, "It's gratifying to know that my efforts have left the desired impact."

You didn't care that Wednesday walked in on you complaining about her however you did care that Wednesday walked in.

You give Enid a look, "I thought she wasn't supposed to be here."  The blue-eyed girl holds her hands up in defense, "She wasn't! I swear she was supposed to be back Monday morning."

She then turns to her roommate and asks, "Wens, what are you doing here? I thought your mom wanted to see you?"

"Something came up," the unconventional girl replies short, not explaining any further.

Enid knew that was the only explanation her roommate would give, and there was no point questioning any further. You however did not care, and narrowed your eyes at Wednesday. "Something came up?" That's all you're going to say? You're just going to crash our night with no explanation?"

Wednesday raises an eyebrow, her voice cool and detached. "I wasn't aware I needed your permission to be in my own room."

"You know that's not what I'm saying," you snap back, frustration bubbling up. "You always do this—just show up and take over, like no one else matters. We had plans, Wednesday."

"And now you have new plans," she replies evenly, not a trace of guilt or concern in her voice. "Plans that include me."

You let out a groan. "But that's your problem, you can't just conform to our plans. You always give Enid and I shit for the things we want to do and we always end up catering to your needs. This is exactly why we can't get along. You never consider anyone else's feelings. It's always about you, your needs, your twisted games."

Wednesday's gaze narrows, and her tone turns icier. "If you can't handle a simple change in plans, that's your weakness, not mine. My presence shouldn't be so disruptive unless you're letting it be."

Letting it be?! You couldn't just let this dark kooky girl think that she has some sort of effect on you.

"Oh, don't flatter yourself, Wednesday," you retort, standing your ground. "Your presence isn't 'disruptive' because I'm weak, it's disruptive because you deliberately make it that way. You thrive on pushing people's buttons, and I'm not about to give you the satisfaction."

Wednesday's expression remains unchanged, but there's a flicker of something in her eyes—amusement? "Is that so? Then why are you so bothered by it?  If I truly had no effect on you, you wouldn't even be arguing with me right now."

You clench your fists, struggling to maintain your composure. "Maybe I'm bothered because I care about Enid, and you're always in the way. Maybe I'm just sick of you making everything about yourself!"

Wednesday's eyes narrow further, and her voice drops to a whisper.  "You care about Enid, yet you argue with me, knowing it will disturb her. Perhaps you should examine your true motivations, because from where I stand, it seems you're more interested in clashing with me than in protecting her peace."

You scoff, "I don't know what you're implying." Behind your cool nonchalant front you were panicking, worried that Wednesday will say something that you did not want to hear.

You glance over at Enid who is picking at her nails, calculating the perfect time to break you and Wednesday up without getting hit in the crossfire.

"I'm sorry Enid," you say genuinely. As much as you hate to admit it, Wednesday was right, you're a hypocrite. You know how much it bothers Enid when you and Wednesday fought, yet you always find yourself caught up in these verbal battles with her.

Giving Wednesday one last glare, you storm out of the dorm room not knowing where exactly you're headed. All you know is that you're done with the movie night—and done with Wednesday.

As you march down the hallway, footsteps echoing behind you catch your attention. You don't slow down, but you know exactly who it is before she even calls out to you.

"Y/n, wait!" Enid's voice rings out, filled with concern. You sigh, your pace slowing down automatically.

Enid catches up to you, and grabs onto your arm incase you decide to storm off again. "Please talk to me, I know you're upset."

You find your frustration start to crumble as you sense the concern in your friend's eyes. "I don't know Enid," you begin, your voice quiet. "It's like every time I'm around her, I get so worked up. And tonight, I just couldn't take it anymore. I'm so tired of feeling like this, I'm just constantly on edge around her."

Enid carefully listens, her expressions softening with empathy as you speak. "I get it Y/n. But you don't always have to fight her. Sometimes walking away is the best thing you can do for yourself and for her."

You nod, understanding where Enid was coming from. "You're right, I guess it's just hard when she knows exactly how to get under my skin. And tonight when she accused me of arguing with her for some other reason, like it was something I wanted. It just got to me." You finish in a whisper.

"She has a way of getting to everyone, but that doesn't mean you have to let it affect you so much. You've got to take care of yourself too." She smiles gently.

"Yeah, you're right." As you look at Enid, you can see the worry in her eyes, not just for you, but for Wednesday too. You get it. Wednesday is her friend as well, and even though she came running after you, she's probably also concerned about how Wednesday's handling things. Not that anything in this world could really faze her, but still, Enid cares.

You sigh dreading your next words, "Go." Enid quirks her head to the right like a puppy. "Let's go back to your dorm, I have to grab my bag anyways, and... you should check on her."

Enid smiles in relief and gives you a quick hug before you stroll on back to the dorm room of the polar opposite girls.

As you approach the door a sense of unease starts to creep in, but you push it aside. You probably just didn't want to face Wednesday after your heated exchange.

When you open the door, the sight that greets you is... off. Wednesday is sitting at her desk, but something about her looks strange— her normally sharp posture seems a bit more relaxed, and her gaze, usually piercing, is unfocused, almost dreamy.

Before you can fully process this, you hear a soft rolling sound, and your eyes dart down to see Thing, casually pushing the glass bottle that Enid almost knocked over from earlier. It stops right at your feet. You pick it up, turning it in your hands. It's empty.

A chill runs down your spine as realization dawns on you. Wednesday drank whatever was in this bottle.

Enid steps closer, noticing your frozen expression and the empty bottle in your hand. Her eyes widen in alarm, quickly shifting to Wednesday, who now seems to be gazing at you with an intensity that's entirely different from her usual cold demeanor.

"Wednesday?" Enid's voice is hesitant, as if she's afraid of what the answer might be.

Wednesday stands up slowly, her movements uncharacteristically casual. She steps toward you, her eyes locking onto yours, and for a moment, it feels like the air in the room has shifted.

"I'm glad you're back," Wednesday says softly, her voice carrying a warmth that catches you completely off guard.  "I was just thinking... how much better this night would be if you stayed."

Your heart skips a beat for reasons you do not know the answer to yourself. You exchange a bewildered glance with Enid, something is definitely not right.

The room falls silent, the tension thick as you both realize that Friday night just took an unexpected turn. Looks like your movie marathon will have to wait.

next chapter

[ilikethisacompletelynormalamount]

Andrew Scott, Vogue: April 2024.

by Zing Tsjeng, Photos by Annie Leibovitz

Ripley, in other words, is the hero of the tale. “That’s why he fascinates so many,” says Scott. “There’s been so many iterations of him. I think it’s because people root for him.” Actors like Alain Delon and Dennis Hopper have tried the role; Matt Damon played him as an obsequious, lower-class naïf; John Malkovich, as a slimy, camp killer. Scott’s Ripley is different; a watchful loner escaping rodent-infested poverty, more at home among art than he is around people. Musician and actor Johnny Flynn plays his first victim—the monied Dickie Greenleaf—and Dakota Fanning is Dickie’s suspicious ex-girlfriend. “I find Tom quite vulnerable,” Scott tells me. “I don’t think he’s necessarily lonely, but I certainly think he’s solitary…. He seems to me by his nature that he just can’t fit in. He’s trying to survive.”

In Ripley, Zaillian extracts maximum Hitchcockian dread from every creaky footstep. But most sinister of all is Scott’s face, which exhibits a sharklike steeliness throughout. It’s a performance that exudes queasy force. Is Ripley a scammer, a psychopath, or both? “There’s so many things lurking beneath him that I’ve been very reluctant to diagnose him with anything. I never thought of him as a sociopath or murderous,” Scott declares. “It’s up to everybody else to characterize him or call him whatever they want.”

As we weave through tourists near the Tower of London, barely anybody notices Scott, save for a faint glimmer of recognition among mainly young women. He seems to draw reassurance from it. “I don’t like to think about it too much, if I’m honest,” he muses of fame. “I find it a little bit, er, frightening.” He is known but not blockbuster-recognizable, although he is in the upcoming Back in Action with Cameron Diaz and Jamie Foxx. What stunts did he do? “I can’t give that away, I’m afraid, or somebody from Netflix will come and shoot me in the head.”

What’s been on Scott’s mind the most hasn’t been acting at all, in fact, but art. As a 17-year-old, he was offered his first movie role on the same day he was given a scholarship to study painting. He chose acting, but has recently been thinking about Oliver Burkeman’s philosophical self-help tract from 2021, Four Thousand Weeks, which makes the case for focusing on the five things you truly want to accomplish. “For me at the moment, it’s like, What do you want to do? What do you want to say?”

He scrolls through his phone to show me his work. There’s a watercolor of a couple arguing in a restaurant in rich reds and greens, line drawings of friends and people on the beach, and two self-portraits. “It’s a bit weird,” he acknowledges of his depiction of himself, all bulbous forehead and Pan-like tufts of hair. His brisk, nervy lines are reminiscent of Egon Schiele or Francis Bacon, who turns out to be one of his favorite painters. “Well, God, I’ll take that,” he mutters at the comparison. He would like someday to go to art school. “I don’t ever regret it,” he says of acting. “But I suppose you just get to a stage where you think, What else? That’s one of the big painful things in life for me, where you can’t quite live all the lives.” As he gets older, he feels the tug toward revisiting old working relationships, including with Waller-Bridge: “We’ve definitely got things cooking,” he smiles. “I’d love to work with her again. She’s just a singular, wonderful person.” For her part, Waller-Bridge says: “I’d love to see him do a fully unhinged slapstick comedy character. Someone who is outraged at everything, all of the time.”

As we round the pavement and the Tate Modern looms back into sight, he recalls a poster he received in 2017—a monstrously large graphic that detailed every week in a human life span. “It’s your entire life if you live to 80—you have to fill in all the bits that you’ve already lived,” he remembers in awe, “a visually terrifying gift.” What did he do with it? “I didn’t hold on to it for too long.” Easy come, easy go: We finally finish our loop around the Thames and, as Scott disappears back into the throng, anonymous just the way he likes it, it occurs to me that the actor has many lives to live yet. ■

[florascent]

Human

Pairing: Keigo Takami x gn!reader

Word count: 1.8k

Genre(s): Slight smut, mainly hurt/comfort, ends in fluff

CWs: Dissociation, multiple pet names, mention of sex, reader has glasses

You lifted your gaze. His name jolted into your mind as you met golden honey, sweet and warm just for you. You wished you could bask in it, feel it deep in your bones, let it melt into and under your skin. How nice that would be. How pleasant. You would drown in it happily as you had done countless times before if you could.

Instead, you observed him in a detached manner, hyper-focused on his face as you rememorized everything you knew about him. Pieces of information came back to you, certain yet careful so you won't get overwhelmed. Unlike life, your mind and body knew to treat you gently.

Hawks. His name was- No. Not Hawks. That was his hero name. His persona. His name was Keigo. He was Keigo Takami. Your boyfriend. You recently moved in with him. He took care of you. He loved you. You loved him. You loved him. You loved him.

The feeling escaped you now. No matter how much you repeated the claim in your head. Frustratingly, tragically, far out of your reach. Regardless, the fact remained. Your current state didn't change anything. You took reassurance in that, at the very least.

Everything was so incredibly hazy yet perfectly clear at the same time.

You must've shut down and rebooted slowly to not short circuit again. It certainly felt like that was the case. One second, you were watching a movie with Keigo, comfortably snuggled close to him. The next, your vision went dark. With a blink, it came back and you looked to the man sitting beside you, not quite feeling like yourself anymore.

Maybe I'm not human, you mused emptily. Maybe I tricked myself and everyone around me into thinking I was.

He'd understand, won't he? Yes, rang in your head. He was always so understanding. Even when you didn't make sense. Even when your mind was a tangled mess of overwhelming emotions. Even when you acted crazy.

He was so good at deciphering you, so good at detangling your messy thoughts and feelings into neatness, so good at making you feel sane and normal or matching your crazy so you wouldn't feel as much of an awful person. You sometimes thought you didn't deserve him.

You stared at him. He stared back, his eyes soft and gentle and kind. Did you look as dull and empty to him as you suddenly felt? Probably. You didn't try hiding it. You didn't want to be a burden, but you also wanted to lay yourself bare to him. You knew he wanted that, too.

He had begged you to let yourself be vulnerable around him one day. You gave in, because how could you say no to him? But only on the condition he did the same for you. Your partnership with him was a two-way street and you wouldn't stand for anything less. You'd be personally offended if he wasn't vulnerable with you, if he purposely hid those parts for ‘your sake’, when you did your best to be good to him.

He didn't hide his worry. You saw it on his handsome features, sensed it in the slow, careful way he lifted his hand to your face. Like, you'd get easily spooked. But you weren't on edge. You didn't feel nervous or scared or anxious. You softly acknowledged that you were safe in your shared home, with him right beside you. So, why was he…?

Oh. That's right. You were his bunny. His cute, little, soft bunny. That's what he always told you when he was in a mean, teasing mood.

The more illicit aspects of the nickname came to mind as he caressed your cheek. Maybe he was trying to bring you back? You wanted that. You wanted to feel something. It wasn't just a lack of love. You were a blank slate trying to remember who you were. Emotions weren't part of that equation.

You half focused on his warm touch as you recalled the first time he called you 'Bunny'. It was during sex. His touch had been searingly hot while grabbing at your body as he pleased, his gaze predatory while he looked down on you, cocky smirk in place. He had murmured the name in your ear, breathless and teasing. Your guess was that he figured hawks enjoyed eating bunnies. You had definitely felt devoured by him in that moment.

“Everything okay, Dove?” Oh, yeah. He also called you Dove and Babybird and Birdie and- There were too many things he called you but his preference for giving you animal-like nicknames was not lost on you.

A slow, robotic blink.

Lips twitching into a concerned frown.

You contemplated on how to answer despite the question being an easy 'yes' or 'no'. It didn't feel easy in your head. Yes, I'm okay. I'm not overwhelmed. I'm not hurt. That probably won't fly with him.

“No.” You answered honestly, voice almost timid. Something was still clearly wrong. You were lost in a surreal daze, where you didn't quite feel like a person. Like, you had taken over someone else's body. Everything else felt… tangible. Real. You were the only thing out of place.

He removed his hand from your skin, hovering an inch away. “Touch?” He watched your expression carefully for any hint of you not wanting his hands on you.

You thought about it briefly. “Yes.” There were times when just the thought of being touched made you uncomfortable, but this was not one of them. You felt a certain indifference about receiving physical contact, but you thought that maybe his hands would help you feel more human. Although, you did wonder if a parasite deserved such a thing.

As soon as you gave verbal consent, he slid your glasses off and set them on the bedside drawer at his side of the bed. He cupped your cheeks with both hands immediately after, pressed a soft, lingering kiss to your forehead. You closed your eyes. Warm. He was warm.

You slowly moved onto his lap when he pulled his lips away, chasing after that warmth of his. He wrapped his arms around you as you rested your chin on his shoulder, his breaths lightly fanning into your hair. He rubbed your back with strong, soothing hands. You closed your eyes again, gradually melting into him.

“Tell me what's wrong.” He murmured in your ear, hands tentatively sliding under your shirt and up your back. It almost sounded like a question. You melted further at the skin contact. His touch became less hesitant.

“I feel… weird. Everything feels off.”

“C'mon, Angel.” His voice softly coaxed you to give him a better answer. He wanted to help you properly.

He leaned back against the headboard, gently forcing you to pull away. You sat upright, watching large crimson wings shift behind him. You presumed so he'd be more comfortable.

“I'm not real.” Your eyes shifted from bold red to that golden honey. His eyes looked back at you seriously.

“Babe-”

“You asked.” There was no bite to your tone. It was soft. Monotone. Factual.

He moved from his relaxed position and rested his forehead against yours. You both ignored the soft laughter coming from the TV. The movie still played. He cupped your face once more. “You're real.”

“No... I'm not- I'm not a real person.” Granted, the surreal factor to your perception was starting to fade. Maybe his hands really were the remedy. Or maybe it was him getting you to talk. Either way, as per usual, he was helping. He was so effortless. “This isn't my body. It's not mine. I'm not real. I just want to be real.”

“You are real, Dove.” He insisted softly, ever so patient with you. You felt his breath on your lips, warming your face with each calm exhale. You wanted to believe him. You were starting to. He would never lie to you so there was no reason you shouldn't.

“Baby, it's all in your head.” His voice was so gentle, so certain, soothing you back to a stable reality. All in my head… You hadn't considered that. Not in the way he meant it. Your brain still felt too hazed to think too deeply of anything.

“See these hands?” He took your hands in his, placing little kisses on the knuckles. “They're yours and they look pretty real to me.” He kissed your palms next, his lips soft and warm. “They feel real.” You felt him grin suddenly against your skin before his tongue made an appearance.

You snatched your hands back while he chuckled lightly. “They taste real.” He licked his upper lip. You wiped your hand down his bare chest in response. He had a habit of going to bed shirtless, something you didn't mind at all.

He rested his hand on top of yours, moving it over to his beating heart. It was steady, slow. The other reached for your face, thumbing at the skin under your eye. “Am I real?”

“Yes.”

He moved your hand to your own chest, palm pressed over cotton fabric where you could feel your heart. “Do you feel that?” You nodded silently. “That's your heart.” He pecked your cheek while hooking his finger to the neckline of your shirt and tugging it off your shoulder. He kissed the skin there next. “This is your body.” He murmured against you, hands returning to massaging your back.

He continued to press affirmations to your skin, focusing on your face, neck, and shoulders, until you fully believed him. He ended with a loving kiss to your lips. He lingered, enjoying the feel of your lips brushing together with his.

He pulled away, citrine eyes gazing at you with pure love and adoration. “Let's get some sleep, yeah?”

You nodded. It was late, past midnight. You hadn't felt tired enough to sleep earlier but now it crept up to you. You settled yourself on your side of the bed as he sent feathers to flick the TV and bedside lamps off.

Darkness instantly took over the room but it was comfortable. You listened to the nighttime city sounds drifting in through open windows. The song of crickets, the occasional car whizzing by, an aircraft whooshing through the sky. It became white noise, along with his quiet breathing.

“Keigo?” You reached out, hand searching for his own. You clasped on when you found it.

“Yeah, Dove?” He slid his palm against yours, interlocking your and his fingers between each other.

“I love you. Even when I'm not myself.” You meant to thank him but he’d probably brush it off and say it was what good boyfriends do.

He gently pulled you close, both an arm and a wing draping over you. You melted into his embrace. “I love you more.” You felt a soft pressure on the top of your head, his lips lingering. You didn't have it in you to scoff and argue that you loved him more. Not tonight. Tonight, you accepted his affections in silence before finally drifting off to sleep.

[vhoorlpool]

ughhh… Σ(￣。￣ﾉ)ﾉ sorry for being inactive. work has been kicking my ass as of late!!!! but I’ve been daydreaming about knights recently…. and undead ones at that!!

nsfw under the cut, as always!! reader is GN :] MDNI please!!

where there is complacence, lies ambition and longing under fifty-five pounds of old, rusted steel and smelted iron plates, forever stuck to his decaying body like heavy shackles on a prisoner of war.

your beloved knight is the fallen angel whose wings are forever tainted, molted and slough, scarred and reeking of battles past. the swiftly given silence of a valorously wielded blade across warm flesh of an enemy’s bared throat, as sharp and conniving as a thief’s tongue. the hands that cradled your face and tilted it up, up, up, plated thumb brushing oh so tenderly over your lips; daydreaming how it would feel to finally kiss them.

it’s a shame, truly, he thinks. under his helm lies a face full of rotting teeth and decaying flesh yearning for the warmth of your touch— the softness of your skin. would you be disgusted? cast him aside as if you had discarded a wilted flower? or would you admire him? quench his thirst for your affections like dry earth begging for the slightest drop of rain?

though… he suspects such frivolous thoughts don’t matter. he’d love you either way.

he is something incomprehensible. someone who should’ve died the moment his body hit the ground as the world was pulled out from under his very feet. and yet, you’re the guiding hand that kept him going. the breath of fresh air in his lungs, the voice in his head that tells him to get up. they’re waiting for you.

the will of that which makes him, nothing, become something. and oh, how lovely it is to be something that belongs to someone like you.

unearthly, his voice sounds coarse; low and thick like dead grass in a bog. sweetly spoken praises and the echo of heavy panting inside his helmet is just as noticeable as the seeping, warm slick that squelches each time he thrusts two plated fingers into your drippy hole. he’s drunk on you, really, and the way those crystalline tears seem to fall ever so elegantly from your glassy, beautiful eyes sparkling like a swan’s pond under the sun. the gods can berate him for his lovesickness, and yet the feeling of losing himself in your gaze rivals that of seeing the full moon on a warm night.

nothing will compare to you. not ever.

he gently rests his head against your chest as he focuses on your racing heartbeat and the way you moan so sweetly for him; fingers prodding at your spasming hole as he stretches you farther and farther; curling his long digits until he reaches that gummy spot inside that has you crying out so deliciously.

being this close allows him to admire the pudginess of your belly and the swell of your hip that curves gracefully into your thigh; melding so gorgeously into the supple flesh of those quivering, spread legs he’d beg to have wrapped around his head just once. to him, you’re like a deity. someone to be worshipped on bended knee until you know just how loved you are. he’s the pariah, the outcast, whose veneration knows no bounds. the offering? the very heart you saved, and seem to hold so tenderly in your palms. please take it. it’s yours— it always has been.

he gives a few final, gentle thrusts of his fingers before you come undone; armor glistening from your spend as he holds you close, whispering gravelly assertions and loving proclamations as you float back down from your high. you’re even more gorgeous like this, he muses— and if he had the coin of a wealthy governor, he’d have that same blissful expression painted on a canvas as large as it would be wide. (…oh, come now. don’t be so shy. he knows it’s lewd, but truly, he can’t help himself.)

he strokes the apples of your cheeks, wiping your tears as he helps you up and into his arms in a bridal carry; heading for the bath chambers. he’d rather die than leave his majesty in such a debauched state, and it’s about time he care for those tender, aching muscles with gentle soap and flowery oils to rub into your skin after. he may not be able to join you, gods forbid the soapy water irritate his decaying flesh, but he gets enough excitement simply being able to both pamper and spoil you rotten.

you deserve it. don’t forget that, your eminence.

[kit-williams]

Modern!Space Marine AU

Blame @pluvio-tea because I've been reading her interpretations of what Titus and the gang would be doing in the modern day and I got enough people encouraging me... so...

@bispecsual @egrets-not-regrets @moodymisty @bleedingichorhearts @liar-anubiass-blog

@thevoidscreams @barn-anon @gallifreyianrosearkytiorsusan @squishyowl @ms--lobotomy

@nekotaetae @sleepyfan-blog @remembrancer-of-heresy @felinisnoctis @solspina

@the-californicationist

lets begin

Note: a lot of them will be ex military though in honesty you could make them all ex military just if I mention they are ex military its more so they are a recent ex military

The Dark Angel; Azazel: In a modern setting I see him as still being active military but now behind a desk and more so working for the Intelligence community and interrogations but he tells people that he still does work as a military therapist which isn't exactly a lie. The excitable young woman that works with him is a nice distraction...

The Emperor's Children; Palion: Is a Tailor and a Costume Designer he loves to make fancy outfits that glitter in the light and is inspired by a tragic Muse...

The Iron Warrior; Harram: Military Contractor (still very much as a Dad bod in this universe) with a focus on construction so like infrastructure and building. He's recently moved and there is a nice widow right new door...

The White Scar; Nogai: Racing (he's a white scar) with a focus on motocross on both bikes and ATVs. However he also likes to do rally races with his navigator Honey... he may or might not enjoy the steadfast and commanding tone she takes when she’s in the co-driver seat and in the zone as they race a little too much...

The Space Wolf; Arkyn: Another Ex military (given that he was a captain) so at the moment he is learning how to transition back to being a civvie but he's recently learned he enjoys helping at the local wildlife rehabilitation center. The other retired military woman who works there helps sooth his wild soul...

The Imperial Fist; Astel: Black market Doctor and Chemist operating without a license. He makes house calls and is good for what he does but sometimes he likes to take on cases "out of the goodness of his heart" for way less money... such cute little mouse for him to work on...

The Night Lords; Ghosk: Actor but not just any actor he is a monster actor; aka the guy who is in full prosthetics moving like a cryptid even if he's under like 20 pounds of makeup and props and prosthetics. When he's not assigned to a movie role he likes to be a scare actor at one of those parks where he can touch the attendants... he likes watching the rabbits run...

Anrir: he is in the nitty gritty and dirty business of Organ Transplants like proper handling (just don't ask where he got those 30 kidneys)

The Blood Angel; Sirus: He is someone's Art muse. He get's so much money and time to make his pottery. He also is good at making memorial pieces like incorporating human ashes into a piece... that's because for his grand pieces he's already doing that. Sirus is also a Serial Killer with a pinch of cannibalism, he incorporates blood into the hues... human ash mixes nicely with his clay. He's hoping to ask his Moonlight muse for a photoshoot soon...

The Iron Hand; Marlos Vauth: Software Engineer. He focuses on programming for prosthetics but he's been moonlighting as a hacker as well and getting rather good at it. He's been bothering the IT girl recently...

The World Eater; Zul: Retired. He heavily insists that he is retired but he's still jacked and simply says he made smart investments so his money makes money. But how can he be retired he's young (40s) and scarred to hell and back. But he will get aggressive if you keep asking questions. He can often be found with a sickly young woman on his arm too...

The Ultramarine; Tulio: He is a high salaried investor who could retire if he wanted but he just hasn't done so yet... He has to make sure that the new girl is going to be fine...

The Death Guard; Solos: Unemployed. He is the guy in town who you never see at the same job twice and never for very long, yet he somehow has money all the time. His spats with his lady are legendary as they seem to break up and get back together all the time, even if she could do so much better than Solos, but people who intervene with his love life have a habit of going "missing" and Solos always has an alibi...

The Thousand Son; Nakht: He is a professor that deals with historical documentation as well as document repair. Though a few people have noticed that a lot of what he deals with is occult materials given how his main field of study has nothing to do at all with esoteric occultism...

The Black Legion; Zhur: Professional Dom... he's got his eyes on a particular client but he's got to pay the bills and his baritone voice can easily get anyone to obey him.

The Word Bearer; Jihias: Preacher (is anyone surprised?) well in fact the Preacher bit is a ruse as he is in fact a full blown cult leader. Such passion and fervor his preaching tend to be but if you think more and more of what he says... and by the time you realize the grotesque nature of his preaches get it's far too late... the shepherd loves you and wont ever abandon you...

The Salamander; Nubin: Master Blacksmith. Run's his own shop and also does free classes for the high school when they cut their shop classes so he just offered free courses and is trying to get some deal for the time spent in the shop to count towards credit hours.

The Raven Guards; Sor, Kazi, and Moremo: Private security guards though they have come under scrutiny for getting rather close to their latest client

The Alpha Legion; Omegon: Lawyer and a damn good one as some people say he hires professional investigators to look over a scene again he's never really lost a case.

The Black Templars; Roland: Retired Military and does stuff with guns either selling them, helping people train with them, also runs a Youtube Channel with Backerin called "Guns & Buns" which has their own niche because it will be Roland helping out with his wife's bakery/a slight vlog showing off his journey with retirement

Arnault: Retired Military turned erotica writer/author. Started writing when he was bored out of his mind during a recovery and found out he enjoys writing erotica.

The Carcharodon; Tyberos: Mafioso. (Rather he is either the head of the Carcharodons or an enforcer) but right now he's helping run a front which is a coffee shop but it's become a nice little community get together since it has decent food and good coffee and its great for people trying to sell stuff

[kieranxvalentine]

Her Muse {Miguel O'hara}

༻♡༺✎ After posting a picture, everyone starts to wonder who is the one who makes your heart beat. Not knowing he was closer than they thought ༻♡༺✎ Miguel O'hara x Reader, Miles Morales x Reader (Platonic), Gwen Stacy x Reader (Platonic), Pavitr Prabhakar x Reader (platonic) ༻♡༺✎ PG rating (one suggestive comment) ༻♡༺✎ 1.1k words ༻♡༺✎ Author's Note: Welcome to my first post in this little Mini Series with Miguel x Idol!Spiderwoman!Reader. I have plenty more for this series! Hope you enjoy! (This hasn't been proof read yet!)

“You’re dating someone?!”

You chuckle softly at the surprised sound of your friends, Miles, Gwen and Pavitr all looking at you in shock.

You were a fellow spider variant, but not only were you a superhero, you also were a popstar, entertaining and saving the masses one day at a time. You were basically an interdimensional superstar, going to universe's and hosting concerts. (only modern ones though.)

You were really secretive about your life besides what you revealed to your fans, but after a recent picture that appeared on your Instagram had your friends and fans in an uproar.

“I could’ve sworn you told us you were going to be focused on your career! But what is this!!”

Miles, who you considered a little brother shoved his phone in your face.

You did make a big speech to them roughly like 7 months ago about how you were going to focus on your career and that you didn't have time for a relationship...

Well..clearly that was a lie..

It was a picture on your profile, it was clearly your waist, in an outfit from your most recent pop up performance, with a mans hands wrapped around your waist.

It was clear that the picture was cropped to obscure whoever you were with. You could only let a giggle slip from your lips as you took a drink from your water.

“Is he from your universe?” Gwen asked and you shook your head. This pulled a gasp from your friends and Pavitr was the one to ask the next question.

“Soooo…Is he a spider person?”

You went silent and avert your gaze playfully. Gwen stood up with her arms crossed a playful grin on her face. “That means yea! You’re dating a spider variant!’

“Yea but who? You know how many of us it is!” “Well, it has to be one of the older spiders, look at the size of that dude!” “Hmmm…”

You laughed again as you looked at the three of them. “You three are really trying to figure this out aren’t you?” That earned you three rapid nods and you only playfully rolled your eyes.

You hopped off the table, checking your dimensional watch seeing you missed a ping from Miguel O'Hara, the leader and head of the Spider Society.

“Oh sorry guys, I gotta go. I missed a ping from Miguel.”

Gwen nodded in understanding. “Oh yea, You might wanna go before you get in trouble, You know how he hates when people are late.”

Miles pointed a finger at you, “Don’t think that this is over Y/n! We will find out!!”

You rolled your eyes and gave them a wave as you head off to Miguel’s office.

When you first joined the Spider Society nearly 3 years ago, you couldn’t help but be intimidated by him. The way he carried himself with such authority and power, you remember after walking out his office you thought you were going to melt. He was just so perfect to you. He was strong, he was caring (although he struggled with sharing it), he was very, very, very attractive.

You couldn't help but make him your muse. Every great artist had one, and yours just happened to be your boss.

Most of your songs were about Miguel, nothing too explicit. Just cute puppy love songs, you were crushing since day one.

It wasn't hard to either, you would come up with lyrics after seeing him whenever you had to report an anomaly, or you'd bring your lyric book to meetings and use some of his own words in your songs.

Your fans loved it, trying to figure out who the mystery man was in your songs, but of course you couldn’t let them find out. Especially when some of the spider variants listened to your music as well! And it certainly didn’t help-

“Took you long enough.”

You gave a sheepish smile as you entered his office, seeing him up on his platform, looking over the various neon orange and red screens in front of him. You swung up to his platform, waiting as he turned around to face you.

He looked down at you for a bit before reaching to wrap his hands around your waist and pull you towards him, he places his face in the crook of your neck.

“I should’ve known you were going to post that picture of us..” He mumbled against your neck and you giggled as he nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck.

“I’m sorry Miggy, You looked really cute..! Besides, I cropped our faces out, they only saw the lower half.” You responded as you moved his face to kiss his cheek.

He only shook his head before pulling back a bit. “Oh really?” He gives you a small smirk as one hand went to your lower back. “You should post the full thing.”

You raised an eyebrow. Miguel was a very private person, hell, only two people knew you were dating Jess and Peter, and that was because they walked in to give Miguel updates on an anomaly they were chasing, they got an eyeful of the two of you kissing.

He was embarrassed and demanded that they didn’t tell a soul that the big scary boss of the spiders was dating the bubbly popstar.

So it was surprising to hear him want you to post it...

“Why? If you don’t mind me asking?..” You ask as you lean against him. He placed a hand under your chin, tilting your head up so that you could be looking at him. You felt your heart nearly leap out of your chest.

Damn this man and his eye contact, he surely knew how to make you nearly melt right into a puddle in his arms.

“That way people already know you're spoken for. Can’t have others trying to steal my wife away from me...can I?” He flashed another smirk at you, showing his fangs and you felt a blush spread across your cheeks.

He chuckled at your reaction, paying no mind to you nearly short circuiting at such an action... “Mi preciosa, You’re acting shy as if we haven’t done anything else already.”

“THAT”S DIFFERENT MIGUEL!”

"Is it? I mean, unless you start using my-"

"SHUT UP!"

He ends up laughing at your embarrassed face and leans to kiss you on your forehead.

“Here, theres an anomaly that just popped up. I can intrust my little idol to it can i?” You nod as he puts the universe coordinates in your Dimensional watch.

He gives you a hug and another kiss on the cheek, whispering the words. “Be safe. I love you.” before letting you swing down from his office.

You exited his office and blushed deeply, pulling up your phone, scrolling through your phone until you reach the picture in your camera roll.

It was a mirror selfie, Miguel’s hand wrapped around you waist with his chin on your shoulder. This was taken at his home after you came to visit him after a performance, which explained the attire you were wearing.

You go to your Instagram and take down the original, before reposting the full picture with the caption:

My Muse and My SuperHero <3

After you returned from your mission, you were met with a Laughing Jessica and a confused Peter.

“Hey guys! What’s going on?..” You asked as you walked up to them.

Jess stifled another laugh as she pointed to Miles, Gwen and Pavitr. “Seems like they saw your post.”

You looked over and locked eyes with Miles and You gave him a sheepish grin before taking off running, the young spider man following behind you.

“YOU’RE DATING OUR BOSS!? NO WONDER YOU DON’T GET IN TROUBLE!!” “I-it’s not like that Miles!!” “OH YEAH!? THEN WHY ARE YOU RUNNING!? GET BACK HERE AND EXPLAIN YOURSELF MISSY!” "I was going to tell you guys soon!!" "LIAR!! GET BACK HERE!"

©kieranxvaletine 2023 <3 Hope you all enjoyed!

[deancasbigbang]

Title: Searching for a Rainbow

Author: thefastestqueeralive

Artist: morla

Rating: Mature

Pairings: Castiel/Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester/Eileen Leahy, Claire Novak/Kaia Niaves, Jody Mills/Donna Hanscum

Length: 20000

Warnings: No warnings applicable

Tags: Bar AU, Bartender Dean, Depressed Castiel, Dad Castiel, Hurt/comfort, Office sex

Posting Date: October 23, 2024

Summary: Dean Winchester runs a cosy pub in Lebanon, Kansas that welcomes any and every sort of patron. He’s good at his job, he knows he is, and Dean prides himself on how he’s built this bar from the ground up, turning it into the successful business it is. One that can support not only himself but enables him to send money back home to his father to aide in paying the bills. Castiel Novak, looking for a new place to drown his recent sorrows, stumbles in one night and catches the eye of the handsome and charming bartender. When the blonde barkeep won’t take no for an answer, Cass has no choice but to accept the offer of a shoulder to cry on, an audience of one to listen to his pity party. Dean discovers he never needed to fear how his family would react to news that could alter one’s perception of his character. He is presented with opportunities to grow and occasions to celebrate, but before he can fully enjoy himself, he has to accept his truth. He leans on friends before family while he struggles to come to terms with who he truly is, but after he succeeds, Dean is rewarded richly with happy days on the horizon. Castiel learns how to grieve, how to accept loss, how to open himself up to new possibilities and learn to share his life and his love. He is thrust into a life changing situation, one where he is suddenly a parental figure with no prior experience in the field, and worst of all he has to deal with teenage mood swings right off the bat—no cute gurgling and baby babble to soften the coming blows. Set in the perspective of the homely tavern, Rocky’s Bar, witness two grown men and their vast (and complicated) families support one another through good and bad, thick and thin.

Excerpt: “Got this great IPA from Austin—Cosmic Cowboy. You’re gonna love it.” Castiel hears the bartender say when he steps inside. The man listens to the conversation between barkeep and patron as he drips his way over to the bar, footsteps heavy. When he sits himself on the endmost red stained leather stool, the sodden length of his trench coat slaps wetly against the wooden legs of the seating. Castiel grimaces at the noise, heard only by himself beneath the hum of chatter in the public house. The bartender, who’d introduced himself as Dean a few nights back, focuses his attention on Castiel now. “Hey again! What can I getcha?” The man’s chirpy demeanour grates somewhat on Castiel, who silently nods toward the tap in front of him. He’s been coming to this same bar for the past week straight now, ordering the same on tap lager; coincidentally the very one Dean was just selling to his previous patron. Alcohol isn’t a healthy coping mechanism, Castiel knows. It’s just… He’s having a hard time as of late, and this seemed the least destructive way to deal with his problems—at least in the short run. It’s merely something he’s using to help him through some recent issues and then he’ll go back to being a very casual drinker. In his defence, it’s not like he’s getting completely and utterly shitfaced every night—just enough to feel lighter, to feel the weight leave his shoulders and allow him a deep enough sleep that he won’t have nightmares. Castiel doesn’t know how to deal with loss, how to cope with the newly gaping hole in his chest. A few beers a night seemed the easiest and cheapest solution to forgetting his sadness; he worries if Social Services found out he was attending therapy or counselling that they wouldn’t see him fit for the role of parental figure/guardian. A glass slides its way in front of the rain soaked man, snapping him from his musings. “Penny for your thoughts?” comes Dean’s perky voice once more.

DCBB 2024 Posting Schedule

[shiut]

How much did Yakou know?

Very long and detailed analysis of Yakou's involvement in the plot beneath the cut.

Yakou is an interesting character to me. He gets his own mildly insightful short story about his detective origins. However, I crave to think that there's gotta be more to him than just the kind of pathetic (affectionate) stressed out dad-like figure that mostly kind of nags and bosses Yuma around for the majority of the game.

Ok, it sounds like I'm ragging on him, but he does have an occasional side of him in dire situations where he shows a selfless loyalty and trust in his team that proves he takes his leadership position seriously, even if he does really rock the irresponsible mess look. And he gets to be cool in his own chapter for a minute.

But there is a moment that sticks out to me, especially in hindsight after finishing the game, and that's the prologue where you get your first and probably most substantial talk with him.

He says that he does not want Kanai Ward to change practically within the same breath where he explains how terribly he's treated as a detective in this horrendously corrupt murder infested police state.

Although he makes it clear that he has a deep personal affection and nostalgic attachment to this city that shows a bias for why he would say this, we hear from multiple people throughout the game that Kanai Ward has not been the same in recent years as it has been in the past that Yakou has rooted his love in.

So why does he feel as if any change to the current state of Kanai Ward would disrupt the "peace and quiet" it deserves?

Unless he knows something about the city that's just so fundamentally irreparable that this is the closest to peace and quiet that it'll ever get again, and trying to fix it would only somehow destroy it.

Everything about the rooftop scene, from talking about the city, to Shinigami commenting on how ominous he feels to her, to the fact that he's the person who explains the rumor that the rain affects peoples' bodies.

Highlighted text tends to be easy to overlook, but I can't help but feel like there's some significance to his usage of "illusion in the rain". It's like he knows something that nobody else can see (and an obvious foreshadowing of how the rain is one of the main means of covering up Kanai Ward's mystery).

But this segues into the themes of his later chapter which also focuses on Vivia, who mirrors Yakou in a lot of ways, beyond just being another guy who muses on about peace and quiet.

Speaking of, a mirror is what Vivia uses as a metaphor for the benefit of blissful ignorance and the potential catastrophic dangers of the painful truth.

For the purposes of this chapter, he is explaining the type of pain and the effect on Yuma's world view that uncovering Yakou's crime will incur. It also acts as a setup for the development of Yuma's conviction that he will later need to use in the final chapter of the game. But the distorted reality the Vivia explains in the mirror does call me back to Yakou's "illusion in the rain" comment.

Vivia also explains that the truth that Yuma uncovers for truth's sake will lead to the destruction of the world. While he could be referring to the world and humanity in general, in the context of this chapter, world can mean a lot of things though, such as Yuma's innocence in the way he views the world as he knows it.

Or namely, from Makoto's point of view, it could also mean the destruction of the homunculi and the only version of the world that Makoto believes they can exist in.

Did Yakou come to a similar conclusion as Makoto based on what he found out?

Like Vivia in chapter 4, who did not want the culprit to be revealed, it seemed like Yakou had the full intention of not cooperating with investigating the Kanai Ward mystery until he was forced to by a directive from Number One. Even so, he came off as if encouraging the detectives to drag their feet on it for the sake of staying out of trouble.

But we know that he is not lazy, unmotivated, or stupid. In a world where you're competing with people who are fast-tracked into the WDO if they have literal super powers, Yakou was inducted by pure detective skill. He had definitely been spending a lot of his time laying low and investigating Kanai Ward himself, because he didn't trust the UG or the WDO if they turned their attention to the city.

Yakou already knew about the homunculus research in some way.

Even if he didn't know about everyone being a homunculus, he at least knew enough that he believed that the city itself would be shattered by the involvement of the UG and WDO.

And then we get to chapter 5 with the mindless zombie homunculi.

Except, they're not all completely mindless. As a matter of fact, I had come to notice something about all the non-aggressive homunculi: they all seemed to have some degree of awareness about Amaterasu's research.

The fake Zilch, who was one of Yomi's closest advisors and knew about all of Dr Huesca's and Yomi's activity in the lab concerning homunculus research, and was implied to be the one who killed Yakou's wife for whistleblowing. Fink, who was propositioned by Makoto himself to infiltrate the lab, and who was then killed by Makoto for 'knowing too much'. Dr Huesca, who was the head researcher for the homunculi. And the former CEO, who was the prime overseer of the research.

And then there was Yakou, who gives Yuma the video evidence of Dr Huesca's death at the hands of the homunculi as he explained the results of the experiment. The easy explanation is that Makoto planted this video on the zombie Yakou to be given to Yuma in the restricted area.

However, another thing that the non-aggressive zombies had in common is that they seemed to be stuck thinking about what seems to be their final thoughts before their death, barring the former CEO who was unusually lucid compared to all of them.

Considering this, I feel like Yakou's final thoughts were for Yuma to expose the truth about the homunculi for him, and to give him the DVD as the key evidence he needed. Whether Makoto gave Yakou this video, or if Yakou already had this video himself, his final thought before dying was to make sure Yuma got it.

I always thought it was a bit strange for Yakou to go and decide to murder Dr Huesca at the slightest provocation by Yomi, and then had this whole complicated coverup plan. If Kurumi could look into Yakou's background for only a day and come to the conclusion that Amaterasu had killed his wife for whistleblowing, then Yakou himself would've definitely already known and could've tried to kill Dr Huesca a long time ago.

I don't think the provocation was by Yomi's letter. I believe at some point, he had found out that Huesca and Yomi could possibly leak information about the homunculus research. He decided to kill Huesca as a gambit reveal Yomi's involvement with leaking research before it could get out into the public and destroy Kanai Ward, and he entrusted this truth to Yuma and the rest of his detectives. Yakou knew that the lie that they were living, the one that was keeping Kanai Ward together, wasn't going to last much longer.

This conveniently aligned with Makoto's motives to oust Yomi. Makoto, the one who also knew that Yomi would cause the lie holding Kanai Ward together to unravel, and who happened to introduce Fink to Yakou. Fink thought that Yakou did not know about Makoto orchestrating their meeting, and perhaps he was right in that Yakou didn't know that it was Makoto specifically, but maybe Makoto was the one who tipped Yakou off to Amaterasu's homunculus research possibly being leaked and may have even given Yakou the DVD.

Makoto may not have exactly manipulated Yakou. It just simply that both Yakou and Makoto similarly knew that the UG sticking their nose into Kanai Ward about the homunculus research was incredibly dangerous. Makoto simply gave Yakou the ultimatum and means to stop Yomi. The difference is that Makoto's goal was to get rid of Yomi and assume full control of the city in order to further suppress its secret, but Yakou's goal was the provide the truth to his detectives in order to fix things.

And I wrote all this BEFORE the Yakou DLC came out.

Where we find out that Yakou has had the prototype cure for homunculi the whole time. And depending on whether or not his wife here is a ghost or a hallucination, it seems like she had always known that there would be a need to regenerate the zombified brain cells of homunculi. Yakou might've been biding time not only to try and figure out how to reconcile the whole homunculus research issue without the UG destroying Kanai Ward, but maybe also for someone to finish research on this medicine.

TLDR; Yakou had always known about the homunculus research and was hiding it because he believed that the info getting leaked would cause the destruction of Kanai Ward by the hands of the UG. In the end, he figured out that the secret would not keep up for much longer, and his plot in chapter 4 wasn't for revenge, but to entrust that Yuma and the rest of his detectives would be able to uncover the truth and work out a way to save Kanai Ward.

[goodqueenaly]

I looked at Fan Wiki for lists of Westerosi Houses with Valyrian steel swords and wasn't sure how exhaustive it was. Was wondering if House Webber or House Westering or whichever have Valyrian steel swords, would we know and therefore must not have one?

I just mentioned Houses Westerling and Webber because of an alliteration and also they were houses the narrative had spend a not insignificant time with.

Do I think that there are plenty of other Westerosi Houses, beyond those already noted, which currently posses Valyrian steel swords? Very much so. Yandel cites Archmaester Thurgood's Inventories to report that “in the Seven Kingdoms there are only 227 such weapons … some of which have since been lost or have disappeared from the annals of history”. GRRM has Tyrion confirm almost this exact number when he, Tyrion, muses that “thousands [of Valyrian steel blades] remained in the world, perhaps two hundred in the Seven Kingdoms alone” - and if the author’s closest in-universe mouthpiece and a pseudo-nonfiction book in universe agree, I don’t think the author is going to suddenly say “gotcha, actually there aren’t any other Valyrian steel swords besides those we know”.

Do I think either the Webbers and/or the Westerlings specifically have a Valyrian steel sword of their own? Maybe, but I wouldn’t necessarily bet on it for either of them. Certainly, the Westerlings seem like one of those old blue blooded Westerosi Houses who could very well have, in olden times, purchased or received from their royal Lannister lieges a Valyrian steel sword. If the Westerling fortunes are rather less than impressive by the time of the main novels, this may well not have been, and indeed likely was not, the case some four or five centuries ago; with those choice lands not yet sold off, those mines not yet exhausted, and those Westerling daughters perhaps more recently married into the Lannister royal dynasty, the Westerlings may have seemed the sort of rich and upstanding Westerlands lords who could use, or afford, one of the rare and costly blades trickling in from Valyria. However, obviously no mention is made of such a blade by any of the Westerling characters in the main novels, including when Robb is eager to justify his union with Jeyne to his mother - a far from definitive omission, but to be considered nevertheless.

Even less, I think, can be speculated about the potential for a Webber sword. We’ve only really met a member of the Webbers (the Windblown sellsword notwithstanding) in “The Sworn Sword”, a story which by its very nature may have been an improper vehicle for introducing an ancestral family blade. Indeed, so much of that story focused on Lady Rohanne’s dilemma of being a ruler in her own right in a misogynistic, patriarchal aristocratic world - a world in which women wielding swords is at best unusual, if not openly criticized. Rohanne, in turn, may have had little narrative opportunity or reason to bring out a Valyrian steel blade and say, essentially, “oh by the way look at this”, and still less to put such a blade in the hands of her champion and wass would-be fiancé, the grasping and thoroughly unlikeable Lucas Inchfield. Nor indeed do we get any sense of the more ancient history of House Webber (beyond the last generation, anyway), to have an understanding of whether the Webbers would have been sufficiently exalted and/or wealthy enough to have gotten or been given a Valyrian steel sword.

Do I think either House having a Valyrian steel sword will be revealed? Not particularly, or at least I have no strong feelings about this happening. While I definitely anticipate that, as the threat of the Others’ invasion becomes more widely accepted and the realm rallies to unify in order to face it (and any related magical threats, such as Euron), there will be various ceremonies and moments of Valyrian steel sword pledging and contribution, I don’t think the Webbers or Westerlings will necessarily be involved. I’m not even sure that the Westerlings will survive past the TWOW prologue, at least of the ones we know: I’m fully convinced that the attack on the Lannister train by Lady Stoneheart is going to result in the deaths of Sybell Spicer and her (surviving) children, and I wouldn’t exactly be hopeful for Lord Gawen in that context either. I have far more hope of seeing more of the Webbers, at least in the timeline of Dunk and Egg - I’m very much convinced that there were specific geopolitical dimensions to the Tion Lannister-Rowan daughter betrothal that GRRM could very much discuss, and there is certainly no way that GRRM doesn’t explore the mysterious disappearance of Lady Rohanne herself - and so slightly more belief that a Webber Valyrian sword, if it exists, could appear on page. Still, I’m not sure that we’ll see any Webbers in the main novels (again, that Webber sellsword notwithstanding), when their Valyrian steel sword might be most useful.

(But really, if the Westerlings do have a Valyrian steel sword and it’s not called “Honorbound” there is no justice in the universe.)

[xxwritemeastoryxx]

Phantom

Author: xxwritemeastoryxx

Pairings: Bucky Barnes x Fem!reader

Word Count: 4k

Warnings: Nothing that's not Canon. But just in case, mentions of torture

Author’s Note: Its a day early but I dont care. A little bit more of torture. But I keep writing and adding more. 😅 I promise action and more next chapter. Characters might be a little out of character (Tony mostly) because I was having issues writing. My muse has been a fickle bitch lately. As a reminder, please be sure to follow @xxwritemeastoryxxlibrary and turn on notifications so you never miss a fic!

I do not and will not ever give permission for my fics to be copied and posted on other sites. Don’t do it. Don’t be that person that ruins it for me and everyone else.

Feedback gives me life and motivation for future things. While likes are appreciated, reblogs are gold. Seriously, if you enjoyed this in the slightest, please reblog ♥

Phantom Masterlist || MCU Masterlist || Taglist

Every detail about her time as Phantom was sitting in his hand. Her trigger words, the torment and conditioning she had been subjected to, along with notes from her handlers about her missions would be within the pages of the journal. The one thing that kept her from ever falling into the wrong hands without a fight and he now had it. 

She trusted him with the very detailed past she tried so hard to keep hidden from him. Trusted him with the very thing that could be used against her time and time again if allowed. He had it in his hand and he wanted nothing more than to watch it burn. 

"FRIDAY, pull up any footage that may have caught a glimpse of Y/N." 

Tony’s voice had caused Bucky to put everything back into its place before almost slamming the top back onto the box earning looks from the others. He simply shrugged his shoulders before bringing the box to his side. The vibranium keeping the box in a tight hold. 

Unfortunately the only footage found was time stamped two days before her capture. A projected video came up from Tony’s watch. A tourist couple had been recording the vendors area. 

Bucky had moved closer to look at the video footage as it began to play. They could hear the loud environment as the video began to pan over the vendors. People were chatting away and you could hear some laughter in the background. 

Different vendors panned within seconds before a particular stand came into view. While the person behind the camera had been focused only on the goods each vendor had, they had unknowingly caught Y/N on camera. 

Bucky watched as she spoke with a vendor. Watched as she would occasionally take in her surroundings, keeping watch of what could be lurking. A moment later the vendor pointed to something up and off screen. Y/N nodded her head a moment later before handing over cash. It wasn't long after that the person filming had moved past that particular stand and filmed the next vendor. 

"This is how they found her. " Natasha noted. 

"Why didn't we get notified about this clip?" Bucky asked. 

With the recent missions, the data changed the sequence of importance in regards to Y/N.  FRIDAY began. It earned a glare from Bucky. The more the team has cleaned up Hydra, the less information there is on her. Facial recognition scans have not been successful until now. 

"Why don't we take this back to the quinjet?" Natasha offered. She could see the look of frustration and anger growing on Bucky. Her head nodded towards the shop owner who was leaning on the countertop listening with curiosity. 

Bucky shook his head slightly before he turned and walked out of the shop. The sound of the door swinging open and slamming shut had caused the bells to rattle loudly causing the shop owner to flinch as it did.  

"You know how this argument is going to happen, right?" Natasha asked as she watched Bucky through the window. 

A long sigh came from Tony. "Yeah. If she was anyone else, she shouldn't have dropped lower on the priority list. I dropped the ball."

Bucky’s pace back to the quinjet had been quick. Each step he had taken seemed to cause the people around him to open a path for him to pass. He was sure that his stance was probably intimidating but at the moment he was trying to calm the internal storm that was brewing. And endless cycle of questions playing through his head. 

How could she drop on the priority list? 

How could FRIDAY not alert there was a video of her? 

Would she be in Hydra’s hold now if I had known sooner? 

Would I have made it in time to prevent it? 

He didn't even notice the others coming towards him after looking through the apartments. He hadn't heard when Steve yelled out his name to get his attention several times.  Nor did he notice the medium size box that Wanda held in her arms. 

_____

The lies have finally caught up to me. I thought I burned and buried it deep enough. The hurt on Bucky’s face was proof that it hadn't been deep enough. I deserved every reaction he gave tonight before giving me the slightest moment of having a real birthday. I didn't deserve his kindness. If I'm being honest I should be locked away in a cell somewhere. Not currently sitting under an overpass for the night. 

I can't stop seeing the look on his face and it kills me. I hurt him and I betrayed him in a way that there's no going back from. 

Bucky knew he needed a moment to cool off. That up until recently everyone believed that Y/N was keeping to herself and doing a damn good job of it. He wanted to be angry. He wanted to argue with Stark about it all.  But in reality, the blame game wouldn't do any of them any good. 

Once he was on the quinjet alone, he found himself pulling out her journal and flipping through the pages. Part of him yelled that he shouldn't go through it. But the other part had wanted to believe there was something in there she'd leave for him to find. 

His attention caught her birthday entry. As much as he tried to forget how things happened that night, they've haunted him since. Reading that entry however, hadn't brought him any kind of comfort. 

I hope that one day he can forgive me. But I know there's a chance he never will. Life sure does have a way of coming back around and biting you in the ass. I should have done things differently. I should have… It's pointless to think about all the things I could have done. I've made my bed. The least I can do is lie uncomfortably in it. 

"Bucky?" Wanda's voice was soft, pulling his attention from the journal. When Bucky looked up, he found Wanda standing there with a box in her arms. She had a small sympathetic smile on her face. "We found the apartment she used." 

Quickly closing the journal, he set it on top of the box beside him before standing. "Anything?" 

"Nothing that would help us to figure out where they might have gone." She said with a slight tilt of her head. "But I've found things she left behind. I thought you would want to go through them instead of leaving them there." 

As she held the box out, Bucky gently took it from her. "Thank you for grabbing it." He turned and placed the box next to the other. 

Wanda watched as he had done so. "Can I tell you something?" She asked a moment later. 

Bucky’s eyebrow raised slightly as he turned to face her, but he nodded. "Sure." 

"It isn't my intention to make you feel guilt or fear in any way with what I'm about to say." She watched as Bucky almost steeled himself for the inevitable. "While I have never attempted to see into your mind for respect for your privacy, there was a time I saw into hers for a moment. She did not fear many things. Not with the history she had. But she feared for you." She watched as Bucky’s face fell. "I did not understand why until recently." She paused for a moment as she heard the others begin to board the quinjet. "Her greatest fear was losing you by her own doing. I do not know if that fear was centered around what has already happened or if it was rooted deeper than keeping her past from you." 

Bucky could only nod his head as he tried to process the information she had given him. He could now understand why that had been her fear. He understood the possibility of what she could possibly do in the process. Not only to him, but to others and the emotional torment that came with it. 

"Did you know?" He asked curiously. If Wanda had seen into her mind, she must have seen something that gave Y/N away. 

"Not until her party." Wanda responded. "Probably after you had learned the truth. Her mind had been completely open after you returned to the party." She sighed softly. "She was saying goodbye while we sang to her." 

Flashes of memories played through his mind at her words. The fake smile that was plastered on his face as anger and betrayal laid just beneath it. The way Y/N had a smile on her face as their friends had begun to sing to her. 

But he had missed the shift in her eyes that had been clear to Wanda. He had missed the moment Y/N had said her goodbyes through facial expressions. He had been too busy being angry with her. 

Tony cleared his throat getting their attention. The others had been standing off not too far. When Bucky looked towards him, Tony had been rubbing the back of his neck. 

"I adjusted protocols with FRIDAY. Y/N has been prioritized as unchanging number one." He began. "I've also adjusted it so that any and all new information comes directly to you to ensure nothing is missed. If I had known she had fallen on the priority list, I would have fixed it immediately. We all want her back and she would have been back sooner if-” 

Incoming call from Colonel Rhodes. High priority for the team. 

Tony shook his head and mumbled about interrupting him before instructing the AI to put him on speaker. “For someone who was such in rush to leave us earlier, this call sounds like you miss us.” He shrugged slightly. “Or checking in like some overprotective parent.” 

"Ha ha, very funny. If I hadn't left, we'd all be in the dark about this. I have some information that might be of interest for that trip you're on." His voice came over the speaker. 

"Spill." Tony said as he looked over at the others. 

"A convoy with heavy duty machinery was ambushed leaving Germany early this morning." 

"That doesn't sound like anything of use." Natasha noted. 

"It was an inside job." That caused Bucky’s eyebrow to raise as he listened to the call. "It was decided less than 12 hours ago to move the convoy. No one could plan this elaborate of an ambush given that time frame. The information they had, they knew more than they should have." 

"Anything on the team?" Steve asked. 

"That's the thing that's got a lot of people scratching their heads on all fronts." The group looked at each other as if hearing those words had sparked something within them. "Ten soldiers were assigned. When the files were pulled for investigation only nine were found. Both physical and digital copies disappeared. When asked about the tenth soldier, they could only say that she was hand selected for her skills. Any piece of footage they have has been scrubbed without so much as a glimpse of her. Whoever she is, she's pretty damn good at being invisible." 

"Any survivors?" Tony asked. 

"Two fatalities. The others are going to make it out alive. The other mystery is why those two and not the others." 

Bucky’s heart dropped as he processed the information. Three weeks had been too long for her. In that time they had manipulated her mind into being the asset she once was and tossed her back into the fire. 

"They saw her face." He said a moment later. It caused all eyes to turn towards him. He sighed as he looked back at them. "No loose ends. Everything else can't prove she was there. You leave someone alive that knows who you are and the game is over." 

"That makes sense." Natasha said with a shrug. "Can't describe someone you didn't see."

"If it was anyone else who said it, I'd be worried." Rhodes responded. "Now I hate to ask, but how sure are we that this wasn't done willingly?" 

"She fought her way out before being captured." Bucky added. "None of this was willing. Everything she's left for us shows she wouldn't go down without a fight."

“Did she happen to leave any idea where they'd be heading next?" Rhodes asked. 

"I doubt it." Bucky said with a sigh. "I haven't had a chance to go digging through what she left behind." 

"That's if she even had a chance to leave anything behind." Sam noted. "By the looks of things she barely had enough time to leave what she did." 

"If she did leave any indication, Hydra found it while searching her apartment." Steve added. It caused Bucky’s eyes to shoot over to Steve. "With the way the place was ransacked, they might have found what they were looking for. " 

Keep it safe. Keep it hidden.

Bucky had almost mentioned they hadn't found what they were looking for. He had the very thing they were wanting and they couldn't find it. He should have mentioned it. He should have told them about the journal, but he couldn't bring himself to. 

He trusted the people currently standing in the room with him and would gladly watch their backs at any given time. He would put his life on the line for a majority of them without a second thought. But the fear of having that journal fall into the wrong hands stopped him from saying anything about it. 

"Just means we're gonna have to do a wide search while digging deep." He said instead. "We know they're out there and they're using her. With the proper channels, we should be able to find something to get a lead before she's used for anything more drastic." 

"You mean more than killing people?" Rhodes' voice filled the air. 

"Given how Hydra used her in the past," Natasha began before Bucky could. "A few deaths are better than her being used to bring down governments in Hydra’s favor. So yeah, let's get her back before we find ourselves either preventing or fighting a war we couldn't prevent.” 

____ 

Six Months Later

The main conference room walls had been covered in papers taped to the walls. Each paper corresponds to a recent event that involved Hydra in some way. Each grouping of papers laid out the details of another ambush at Hydra’s hands. Each one taking either a piece of equipment or technology. 

Even with all the information displayed on the walls, the Avengers had no idea what Hydra was attempting to assemble. FRIDAY couldn't pinpoint any variations of possible weapons. Nor could the AI predict where they could possibly hit next. 

However, over the last several months they had been able to uncover several new hideaways that Hydra had been using. Each of them had helped to supply information towards the grand scheme of things. But with each thorough sweep, there were never any signs of Y/N. 

With every Hydra captive they interrogated, none of them had physically laid eyes on Phantom. They all gave the same answer in different words but none of them could give locations. Phantom was only accessible through her handler. 

Her handler that they all refused to give up any details about. The captives either went silent and refused to say anything else, or they purposely gave false information to throw off the Avengers. And when they came up empty handed from those false leads, it was Bucky that paid them a visit. 

Bucky practically moved into the conference room. A pillow and blankets found a new home on the couch by the back wall. Only leaving when the missions deemed it necessary. 

As he stood by the conference table going over the new files from their recent raid, Bucky’s mind occasionally went back to Y/N's journal. He had read it cover to cover several times and the small passages that surprisingly made him smile had played on a loop when he felt he needed it. 

This is a little slice of heaven. I found myself actually enjoying a beach day. Last week, I walked past an antique shop that had a globe sitting in view of the window. I couldn't resist and I found myself spinning it. I was reminded how much we talked about doing something like picking a place on a spinning globe and just going there. It's how I ended up in Italy. It's peace. A calm that I haven't felt in months.

He could easily picture her sitting with her toes in the sand as she watched the waves. How he wished he would have been able to see her that day. But then there were entries that stuck in his mind for other reasons.

Out of all the things I've seen and believed in, you'd think I wouldn't be skeptical about psychics. But here I am sitting in the corner booth of a sketchy bar and this woman said she needed to speak with me. That the thoughts troubling me wouldn't last forever. And then she asked for his name. A name that I haven't physically spoken in over a year. Before I could even muster up a fake name to give her, she knew his name. Knew without me even saying anything. She told me he'd come around. That one day he was going to find me and save me from the internal torment that I'm facing. For a brief moment there was hope that sparked within me that maybe one day it would happen. Maybe one day Bucky will let me apologize a million times over. I hope that he can forgive me. But the reality is, after almost a year later, I don't think he will. 

With each entry he read Bucky wondered what would have happened if he hadn't waited so long to go looking for her. Would they be put on a mission together like they used to by now? Or would they be on that vacation he talked about taking with her at one point. 

Each page of her writing gave him a reason to kick himself in the ass for waiting so long. But in truth, he hadn't been ready to forgive her. The day he realized how much he missed her, she hadn't been to a safe house for six months. The day he forgave her was the day he started looking in vacant apartments when they completed missions. 

And now as he stared at the papers in front of him, he knew that no matter how many what if situations he played in his mind, they wouldn't fix anything. The what ifs weren't going to get her back from Hydra. They weren't going to free her from the hold the black journal held over her. 

At first Bucky kept the journal hidden. He didn't dare to open it and read any of the contents the pages held. He hadn't even thought about it until one night his nightmare got the best of him. One where Y/N couldn't be stopped from almost killing her friends. 

Bucky searched through the pages for one command and one command only. While he hoped it would never come down to it, he felt a little better knowing he could stop her from doing something she’d never recover from. 

A sigh passed his lips at the same time Steve walked into the room. 

“That bad?” Steve asked with a chuckle. 

Bucky shook his head. “No. I just…” He stopped for a moment as he looked at the file before him. “I thought by now we would have found her.” 

“We're not going to stop until we do.” Steve noted as he looked at the current spread of papers on the table. “Anything from Mexico?” 

A recent mission to a Hydra base just north of Mexico City provided them with more information than they had gotten in months. Bucky was attempting to sift through it all to see if anything could point them in the next direction. 

“Same as the others so far.” Bucky shook his head. “Intel for everything else but for her.” 

“The guys below haven't given up her handler either.” Steve added. More captives from the base, none of which wanted to speak about the handler. "Nat is giving it a go."

“Whoever it is, they're staying in the dark. They know the blind spots and use it to their advantage.” It was frustrating to Bucky. Frustrating to the team that a good lead would leave them empty handed.

Bucky picked up a CCTV still from the file he had been going through. The stills were deemed priority by FRIDAY for one reason or another. And as Bucky scanned the image attempting to find the reason, his eye caught the top corner of it. 

“What is it?” Steve asked as he caught the way Bucky’s brows began to furrow as he looked at the image. 

“FRIDAY?” Bucky called out to the AI. “Do we have the full clip from camera 5 that was flagged?” A moment later a projected image appeared from the middle of the table. 

Playing now. 

Both Bucky and Steve watched the clip. The camera angle had captured a side room and a hallway. A hallway that Bucky had recognized as he walked through it during the mission. The room in view was empty when he walked into it. 

But as the camera panned the area, equipment could be seen in the room. The sight of it caused his heart to pick up in pace as flashes of memories played in front of him. His fist clenched around the photo in his hand as he tried to push the memories away. He shook his head slightly as he watched soldiers begin making their way down the hallway. 

Several of them were struggling as they walked. Some were knocked down before quickly getting back up. A moment later, Y/N came into view, attempting to fight her way out of their hold. In view of the camera they watched as she threw punches and kicks. At one point she got a few of them off of her before a soldier came and tased her, sending her to the ground. 

Steve's eyes shot to Bucky. He knew what was about to happen given what he was watching. Bucky’s eyes had been fixed on the projection. Steve could see the anger growing within his body language as well as tears well up in his eyes. 

“FRIDAY turn-” 

“No.” Bucky said never taking his eyes off the video. 

It made Steve glad there was no audio attached to this clip. That there was no way for Bucky to hear the torment he was watching on the screen. He wouldn't be able to hear the way she started screaming the moment she was strapped in. 

“Buck,” Steve said the moment he watched a tear fall on Bucky’s cheek. He tried to get his attention away from the screen. 

“If her handler is in this video, I have to-” 

“FRIDAY, run facial recognition through the whole clip and shut this off.” It was Tony's voice that filled the air. Bucky turned towards him the moment FRIDAY shut off the video, shaking his head and ready to protest. “Natasha can be quite persuasive in her interrogations." He walked further into the room. "We were able to piece together what they're trying to make. And in the process, we learned what two things they'll be going for next and where they'll more than likely be hit.” 

“Where?” Bucky asked. The anger he felt didn't evaporate entirely. If anything it was fueling the need to get things rolling. He knew she was going to be the main player and that was his chance to get her back. 

Tony sighed as he looked over at Steve for a moment before looking back at Bucky. “That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about. Y/N won't be at either of them.” 

“Why wouldn't she be?” Bucky asked with a raised brow. 

“Unless this is another false lead, which doesn't seem likely, given how Natasha obtained the information, but "Phantom" has a new mission she's been tasked with.” When Bucky crossed his arms over his chest, Tony continued. “It's us.” 

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[makeitmingi]

Cause Baby You're My Muse [Chapter 54]

Genre: Romance, Idol!AU, Music, Slight angst

Pairing: Mingi x Reader (y/n)

Characters: Producer!Reader, IdolLyricist!Mingi, IdolProducer!Hongjoong, Idol!Seonghwa, Idol!Yunho, Idol!Wooyoung, Idol!San, Idol!Yeosang, Idol!Jongho, cameo(s) by other celebrities

Summary: You always preferred producing underground, having an unknown face and governed by your own rules. But when you start freelancing for idol groups, you say goodbye to your lone wolf lifestyle as you learn to work with idol producers and lyricists.

Word count: 3.3K

The fans noticed. Of course they noticed, they were so observant and focused on their 8 idols that they would know when something was wrong in a heartbeat. The way their smiles didn't reach their eyes, the way they kept their playfulness to a minimum when on stage and the way they would go quiet for a few seconds.

The way Mingi would space out and need Yunho to bring him back down to earth. The managers tried to motivate them but it was useless. Even Hongjoong was different.

They hardly saw him around the dorm, except for when they had schedules together. He was cooped up in his studio outside of KQ.

He didn't even want to use the open room that used to be your studio. He'd much rather use the external one.

Sure, they weren't actually in a relationship with you like Mingi was. But they all felt the stab to their chest, the betrayal and hurt when Mingi told them what happened.

They had never seen Yunho that upset. But it was hard to watch when your best friend comes in, absolutely broken and unconsolable.

'What happened to Ateez? The recent change in demeanour has caused fans to worry and speculate!'

'Is KQ overworking their idols?'

'ATINYs are calling for change, give the idols a break!'

'Is this how your idols change after a few first place trophies? Some ATINYs are disappointed at the change in attitude from the boys. Some citing that they feel the boys are different after they had a very successful comeback season.'

Of course news outlets were having the time of their lives, jumping at every opportunity that they could. But Ateez didn't care, they've been mistreated before, this isn't new to them.

"Alright, everyone. We will be meeting CEO Kim today. So please, try to look alive." The managers begged.

"Yes, hyung." The boys said, breaking up to go get ready. Instead of going to get ready, Yunho entered his best friend's room.

"Mingi ah. We need to get ready. CEO Kim will be meeting us." Yunho shook his best friend.

Mingi... was broken. He tried to act tough, he tried to act like he didn't care, that he was better off without you. But that only last for a few days. Now, he's cooped up in his room, wallowing.

What makes thing worse is that his anxiety was back and the attacks manifested as nightmares now.

"Come on." Yunho was patient, helping Mingi out as much as he could. Mingi sat up, his eyes void of any emotions. Now, it was like he was a ghost, just moving through the motion. But in all honesty, he was just exhausted. Crying his heart out was one thing but every time he closed his eyes, he would see you.

It hurt.

"Yeah." Mingi waved his best friend off, standing up and shuffling out to the bathroom to get ready. He didn't bother looking at his reflection, knowing it would be horrendous.

"Mingi hyung." Jongho stopped the older when he emerged from the bathroom. Mingi lifted his head to look at the youngest.

"I... Nevermind... Here." Jongho handed the taller a mug of iced americano that he brewed.

"Thanks." Mingi didn't press Jongho to spit out whatever he had to say, which would be what he usually did. He took the mug of coffee and brought it to his room.

"Oh, hyung..." Jongho sighed, thinking back to what happened last night.

"So how has your new school been, little bear?" Jongho asked, looking at her through the screen. Wooyoung was at the dance studio having late practice while Yeosang was with San at the gym. That left Jongho to have his usual call with Haneul alone.

"It's okay! I'm having fun but I am still trying to make friends. Everyone else already has a best friend." She pouted. That made Jongho coo at her.

"Well, I am sure when the other kids know how amazing you are, they'll ALL want to be your best friend." He chuckled.

"Really?! You think so?!" She brightened up.

"I know so." He replied. He didn't know what about Haneul just made him melt into a puddle.

"I miss you, bear oppa. I miss the other oppas too..." She said sadly. Jongho didn't say anything, he wasn't really sure what to say. But he felt like there was something else she wanted to add.

"Go on, little bear. You can tell me." He encouraged.

"I can't say I miss you. When I talk about you or the other oppas, unnie gets... very sad. So I can't tell her I miss you. Because I think she misses the oppas too. Some times, I see unnie crying or looking at pictures." Haneul said sadly. Jongho sighed softly, Haneul was just that observant and smart for that age.

"That's nice of you, little bear. You know, thinking about how your unnie feels. But you can tell her you miss us. It's okay to share how you feel with her." Jongho told her.

"I don't want unnie to be sad. I don't want her to cry. When she sleeps next to me, she's always saying she's sorry." Haneul said.

"Oh, little bear, I'm sorry. It must hurt you."

"No... I just want to make unnie happy. I don't want her to be sad anymore." She said sadly.

Jongho was conflicted. He knew the only way to make you happy was to bring you back here, to be with Ateez and specifically Mingi. That was the only way for everyone to be happy again.

"I'll speak to you soon, little bear. Cheer up. Everything will be alright." Jongho assured with a small smile.

"Really?" She asked.

"I'm sure it will be." Jongho melted. With a small wave, Haneul hung up. Jongho sighed and removed the Airpods from his ears. He jumped when he saw someone standing at his doorway. He was so engrossed in his conversation that he didn't hear anyone come in.

"H-Hyung." Jongho stuttered.

"Was that Indigo?" Seonghwa asked softly, closing the door behind him. Saying your name was like the new taboo of the dorm.

"No. Haneul..." Jongho replied. He began to tell the oldest how you requested for him to maintain some sort of relationship with Haneul, which he was more than happy to oblige with.

"Did you have a chance to speak to her?" Seonghwa sat on the edge of the bed, not wanting others to overhear.

"No. She only says hi then passes the phone to Haneul." The youngest shook his head.

"Hyung, I think we should tell them. Make the CEO launch that investigation. Even if it doesn't bring Indigo back... I just hate that we're acting like it's her fault." Jongho said sadly.

"I understand. Indigo is the victim in all this, she's not at fault at all. It's because of us that she's being targeted in the first place, receiving all those death threats. And she didn't have to but she left and would rather take all the hate and blame from the others instead." Seonghwa sighed.

"But we told Indigo that we wouldn't tell them. At least, not yet. I'm worried Mingi might lose it and I don't know how much more he can take." He added.

"But this isn't right, hyung. I don't like that Indigo is being seen as the bad guy." Jongho frowned.

"It's really taking a toll on her as well. Haneul tells me she's not doing well over there and the little girl is worried." He shook his head.

Now Seonghwa knew why Jongho wanted to tell the others to truth. It wasn't a secret that Jongho cared for Haneul dearly, their relationship was like what you and Hongjoong had.

"Knowing the truth... might help Hongjoong hyung too..." Jongho spoke. Seonghwa nodded in agreement.

"No, no. We need to wait for a bit. Let's wait until we can contact Indigo. If we tell everyone, they may all just rush to contact her and that may overwhelm her. Or I'm worried Mingi or Wooyoung fly to where she is." Seonghwa reasoned.

"Oh, hyung. You're here." A tired Wooyoung trudged in, surprised to see the oldest there with the maknae. Seonghwa nodded and got up with a tight smile on his face.

"Good work, Wooyoungie." Seonghwa patted the male on the shoulder. Wooyoung gave a small smile.

'We'll talk about this again. - Seonghwa hyung'

Jongho looked at the text that came in from Seonghwa after he had left the room. He let out a huff of frustration, making Wooyoung give him an odd look.

"Yah, you're bending the spoon." San said, making Jongho snap out of his thoughts. He looked down to see the bent spoon in his hands.

"Oh, sorry." Jongho tried to bend the spoon back to straighten the handle. In the end, he tossed the spoon in the sink and went to the room to change into presentable clothes. This sudden meeting with the CEO was an unexpected spanner thrown in. As the boys gathered, Seonghwa cast Jongho a look.

"Hongjoong's already at the studio so he'll meet us there." The manager said as he ushered everyone downstairs and into their two respective vans.

The van ride was mostly silent, well, Seonghwa's van was. Mingi had his headphones on, looking out the window. Jongho was stewing and Yunho just kept giving Mingi worried glances.

"Let's go." The managers led all of them upstairs. They bumped into Hongjoong.

"I brought you fresh clothes to change." Yeosang handed Hongjoong the paper bag with clothes.

"Thanks." Hongjoong smiled tiredly and went to the bathroom to change. Hongjoong was... taking it a lot harder than Seonghwa expected. Maybe because Hongjoong found himself genuinely caring for you and he felt abandoned.

Only Hongjoong, himself, would know how he feels. But the way he was living now was definitely not healthy. Seonghwa needed to help him keep everyone together.

"Ah, boys. Come in." CEO Kim said, waving for everyone to come into the meeting room.

"Good afternoon, CEO." The 8 boys bowed.

"Sit, sit." The CEO let out a long exhale as he gestured for the 8 to take their seats. They moved to the opposite side of the table so they could sit across him.

"Now, I'm not sure if you have an idea as to why I called you all in. But it is regarding how Ateez has been since Producer Indigo's departure." The CEO leaned forward on his hands.

"We're very sorry, sir. I promise we are more professional than this. We should know better than to let our emotions affect our performance like this. We'll be better and I'll make sure that the boys are better, I promise you." Hongjoong stood up, bowing deeply to the CEO as he apologised.

"I've been talking to the teams. And with comeback season more or less over, we'll be putting you guys on vacation." The CEO said.

"What?" The boys were puzzled.

"You're bound to have a vacation anyway. We're just pushing it forward now. Fans are worried that we're overworking you and that's not a good look for the company." He frowned.

"We understand, sir. We apologise for that, it wasn't out intention to give off that sort of impression." Seonghwa said.

"Whether it was intentional or not, it's what the fans speculate. The fans are disappointed by your lack of commitment to this comeback, I am too." He sighed.

"Use the vacation to pick yourselves up. You're idols. Whatever is going on off stage, you do not let that affect your performance on stage. Especially in front of the fans. Everything you do is under public scrutiny. You should know that." CEO Kim chided.

"Yes, we know." The boys said.

"This was also the best decision because we cannot afford to put just Mingi on another break. It is not a good look for you as a group and for Mingi as an idol." CEO Kim turned to the rapper.

"I'm very sorry for causing all this trouble, CEO. I'll be better for the group and the fans." Mingi bowed.

"You better." CEO Kim said seriously and Mingi nodded his head.

"Look, boys. I know you were all very close and Indigo leaving was rather abrupt. Mingi, I know break ups are hard. But all this, they're part and parcel of life." He sighed.

"Sir, I-" Not only Mingi but the others were stunned by what their CEO just said.

"You didn't think I would know about your relationship? Indigo came to tell me herself. She offered to take all the blame and scolding for it if anything bad were to happen." He revealed.

"What do you mean, if anything bad were to happen?" Mingi frowned in confusion.

"That's all I have to say. You're welcomed to go home during your vacation or travel overseas, same protocol applies in terms of declaring your travels for safety reasons. I hope to see you all back to normal after the vacation." CEO Kim stood up from the table. The 8 followed suit and stood up to bow to him.

"Thank you, sir. We're sorry." They bowed.

"If only things were different, Indigo wouldn't have had to leave." Mingi's eyes widened at the last comment made by his CEO before he walked out of the room.

Yunho looked at his best friend that was frozen in his spot, knowing that his head was racing with thoughts at the CEO's words.

"Alright, let's all head back to the dorm. I think we need to talk." Hongjoong said.

"Yes, captain." All of them filed out of the meeting room. It seemed like the managers already knew what happened as they quietly ushered the boys back to the vans and drove them home.

"What do you think he meant, Yunho?" Mingi croaked out.

"I'm... not sure. But don't think too much about it, Mingi ah." Yunho squeezed his best friend on the shoulder. Mingi nodded glumly and climbed into the van with Yunho behind him. Jongho was chewing on his lip, casting Seonghwa an uneasy look.

'No'. Seonghwa mouthed and shook his head. Luckily Yunho and Mingi were having their own hushed conversation in the back to notice the oldest and youngest up front.

The guilt was settling in Mingi even more. He has let the group down once again, as well as ATINY and CEO Kim.

But he was still holding onto a thread of hope. That this was all a nightmare, that he didn't have to force himself to hate you for what you did.

"Ateez, sit down in the living room." Hongjoong said the moment all 8 of them were back in the dorm.

"Thanks hyungs, I'll take over from here." He turned to the managers, who nodded and patted the captain on the shoulder before leaving. Hongjoong let out a long sigh and went to the living room.

"I'm sorry I have been letting my emotions get the best of me. I didn't really expect her departure to make me shut myself down... to the point whereby I've been neglecting my duties as the captain to all of you and to the fans." Hongjoong started and bowed his head in apology to the 7.

"Hyung... There's nothing for you to apologise for." Wooyoung whispered softly, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Mr CEO was right. Let's use this vacation to rest and get back to where we were. We have to do it for ATINY." Yunho said. The others nodded in agreement.

"Indigo was someone we all treated as family, some more than others. But if she can move on, so can we." San said, looking at Mingi.

"Whatever happened between me and her, I shouldn't have let it affect the rest of you. You've all already dealt with a lot on my behalf." Mingi shook his head. Yunho rubbed his back as a form of comfort.

"People will come and go. But we'll be okay." Yeosang smiled softly and Hongjoong covered his eyes to weep.

"It's okay." Seonghwa comforted him as he cried.

"Even if we knew that there was no certainty that Indigo was going to stay, she shouldn't have done that to Mingi. It wasn't right, it was unfair and selfish. We were not there to know what really happened but look how torn up Mingi is." Wooyoung frowned.

"I agree. There was no need to be harsh about it." Yunho added, obviously siding with his best friend.

"I think that's what's hurting us the most. That we expected more or put more faith in our relationship with her. And that led us to the disappointment we felt." Hongjoong concluded.

There was a heaviness in Mingi's chest. He was grateful for his members being protective of him and siding with him. But hearing them speak negatively of you still made him uncomfortable and hurt.

"Damn it." Jongho cursed under his breath, looking away with a bitter look on his face.

"Jongho?" The 7 turned to the youngest of the group.

Even if Jongho wasn't the closest to you, you still supported him and he knew what you went through. You didn't deserve to be thought of as such.

"Sorry." He mumbled and stood up, walking to the bedroom and shutting the door. Seonghwa stood up and went after Jongho, entering the room and closing the door. The others just left them alone, let the oldest one speak to the youngest to offer him comfort. The other 6 just sat there.

"W-What do you think the CEO meant in his last statement?" Mingi suddenly brought up.

"What do you mean?" San asked.

"He said 'If only things were different, Indigo wouldn't have had to leave'. What did he mean by 'if only things were different'?" Mingi asked. The others looked at each other, shrugging.

"D-Do you think something happened?" This was Mingi leaning on his last thread of hope.

"I don't know what he meant by that. But don't harp on it too much, Mingi ah. It's easier to let go than to hold on to silver linings."

"Hongjoong hyung is right." Yunho said. Mingi nodded glumly, his head hanging low.

Unbeknownst to Seonghwa and Jongho, Wooyoung had been listening in to their conversation. He wondered why Jongho suddenly had that little outburst earlier, considering the youngest hasn't been showing much of a reaction to you leaving.

"We have to tell them the truth, hyung. This is wrong. Like Hongjoong hyung, you were her older brother. Would you not want to defend her?" Jongho asked in frustration.

"Of course I would. You think I want to sit there and listen to that? But we promised Indigo." Seonghwa replied.

"Sometimes, you need to break promises, hyung." Jongho said.

"We've already failed to protect her before, Jongho. The least we can do is to keep this promise. We tell them the truth then what? Can you stop Mingi from going after her?" Seonghwa asked.

"Will you be able to stop Mingi from blaming himself? Or the others like Hongjoong, Wooyoung?" He continued.

"Indigo isn't going to come back. Why do you think she made such as effort to make Mingi hate her?"

"But this is wrong, hyung. If the other hyungs know the truth, they wouldn't speak so ill of her, like she's the one that did all the wrong. When she's the victim in all this. If they knew, maybe they'll push the CEO to launch the internal investigation then Indigo can come back." Jongho reasoned.

"Whoever this person is, we can't let them get away with it. Indigo is gone but does that mean the investigation isn't to happen? We act like it didn't happen and carry on?"

"I... I don't know. But what I'm saying is, we think it over and don't act rashly." Seonghwa sighed.

"Tell us the truth about what?" Wooyoung opened the door, getting the attention of the 2 in the bedroom and the 5 in the living room.

~

Series Masterlist

[mayhemhq]

𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙨.

• we want to express our gratitude to all of you for making this past weekend’s event such a success. we work hard to create unique, out-of-the-box events that challenge us creatively. while some might find non-kayfabe boring over time, i believe that with such creative people around who are eager to explore new ideas, we can keep pushing the envelope and crafting experiences that inspire and engage everyone.

we’re proud to be a plot-driven, writing-focused group that values inclusion, creating a space where all writers can grow, explore, and connect. i’ve never encountered so many wrestling characters with such well-developed and authentic lore. it’s exciting to see that so many of you write for the same unique characters we might never think to combine, highlighting the diversity and creativity with our muns. we’re very lucky you all continue to call us home.

• as we saw last week, we were approached through gossip to stir up some drama and support a plot. we want to emphasize that we’d LOVE to keep doing that. it can be challenging to keep gossip engaging, especially when there’s not a lot happening. even then, it can feel repetitive and sometimes unfair to certain characters. with that in mind, we’d love to start a weekly or bi-weekly round-up of drama, like a write-up or newsletter, to keep things fresh and exciting! a lot more “overheard” drama, just simple stuff that can’t warrant a whole post, but can be interesting tidbits to keep plots going. watch out for @mayhemtea for sign up posts and whatnot for that.

• the next couple of months—november (which is less than two weeks away, what!) and december—are always busy for everyone. as a result, we won’t have as many events as usual. typically, we aim for two big events along with a few mini writing events, but going forward, we’ll focus more on round robin-style activities. these are easier to plan during the week, rather than setting aside weekends. we’ll also incorporate some team-building activities to match the holiday spirit. however, we will still host one monthly gathering!

december 21st is the first official day of winter and you know what that means: mayhem games... will be making its resurgence in january. a winner MUST be crowned! new team captains, but still the same rivalry.

• we want to assure you that, even with the busy season approaching, removals will continue as usual until closer to the holidays. while we’ve been more lenient recently, we’ll be putting more effort into addressing rolehogging. our goal is to create excitement about writing and being active in the group, rather than just focusing on individual ships. anyone who has connected with us knows we’re approachable and understanding, and we’re always here to help—as long as there’s open communication. if you need a hiatus or some time away, please don’t hesitate to reach out!

we believe our four-day limit is manageable, as interacting counts as activity, and we’re not requiring constant writing. just a reminder that musings and photo posts won’t count toward activity.

• october 31st isla dawn is hosting our first member lead event and she has posted the signup sheet HERE. we’re VERY excited and can’t wait to see how it turns out! that being said, we ask all of you to sign up by commenting on her post, reaching out to her or dming us and we will send all names over. we have gotten the few of you who have sent us already and we plan to send those over asap!

xo, @mayhemhq 🖤

[nightghoul381]

Finally had time to write!! Here is my first entry in @aquagirl1978 's A Series of Firsts event! Thank you @judejazza for the idea of writing Ranmaru and @candied-boys for helping come up with the story idea!

Coincidences

Ranmaru Mori x Reader Prompt: First Kiss Genre: Fluff WC: 1.1k CW: None

“Oh, hi Ranmaru! I didn’t realize you were going to be here too! We just keep running into each other lately,” You laugh, noticing the way he flips around in surprise.

“Aah! I’m so glad to see you! I think today is going to be the very best day ever now!” Ranmaru squealed, bounding over to you, and grabbing your hands, flashing his brilliant luminescent smile at you, and making your heart start to pound.

You tried to control your emotions, to control your thoughts, but the giddiness you feel when you’re around him, the nervous excitement, always seems to crash over you whenever he turns his soft gray eyes on you. It may just be wishful thinking, but there’s so much tenderness and affection in his gaze that you almost wonder, almost allow yourself to hope, that perhaps he may feel the same way about you.

Don’t be ridiculous! You tell yourself, squeezing your eyes shut and forcing a smile to your own face.

“Well, should we get started? Lord Nobunaga is expecting it to be finished today after all,” you say with a strained jovial tone. You slip your hands free of Ranmaru’s grasp and turn to start organizing the shelves packed full of parchment and ink.

You thought you heard a faint grumble, but tired to ignore it. It seems like more and more recently you’ve been assigned to tasks with Ranmaru. Last week Mitsunari had asked for you to run to a nearby café to assist with a delivery that needed to be sorted and Ranmaru had shown up mere moments after you stating that Hideyoshi had sent him to do the same task. And the same scenario repeated several more times. It seems as if some force in the universe was just begging for your heart to explode.

Each time you were together, you found it harder and harder to keep your feelings in check. Ranmaru was so sweet and excited and kind and he’s so eager to make you smile that you’ve found him showing up in your dreams, sweeping you off your feet and making you the happiest person on the planet.

“Oh no! Watch out!” Ranmaru yelled, snapping you out of your musing. You twist your shoulders toward the sound of his voice to see a large pot of ink tipping from the top of one of the shelves. In the moment it takes for you to register what is happening, the heavy container has started hurtling toward you and your eyes grow wide. Just as you brace for the inevitable impact, you feel your body pushed backward, followed by a thunk and a groan of pain.

Ranmaru lay splayed on the floor, his dusty pink hair and most of his outfit are now dripping with the deep charcoal color of the ink. Scrambling to your knees you crawl over to him.

“Oh jeez! Ranmaru are you okay?” You squeak, placing your hands on his cheeks and tilting his head.

“It really hurts,” he admits, lower lip protruding in a pout and his grey eyes glassy with unshed tears.

“Ah! I’m so sorry! This I all my fault, I should have been paying attention, not focusing on my thoughts,” You apologize, helping him to his feet, wincing at the amount of ink that still dripped down his back and at the way he held his shoulder tenderly. Ranmaru took a clean part of his sleeve and wiped the tears from his eyes and then murmured.

“What were you thinking about? It must have been something important for you to be so focused on it.”

You felt your face flush, cheeks tuning a bright red as you tried to think of something to tell him other than the truth. There’s no way you were telling him that he was the one holding your attention. Your eyes dart around the room as you stumble over your words.

“I...uh, it was… it was nothing really…just caught in my own head?” you mumble, trying to keep your attention anywhere but on the man before you. Unfortunately, your eyes fall on his beautiful face that’s scrunched in a surprisingly sultry, knowing grin.

“Were you thinking about how strange it’s been that we’ve been put on assignments together so much recently? Or were you maybe thinking about how you’ve almost started to look forward to our meetings as much as I have?”

Your breath catches in your throat as Ranmaru steps forward, his face pulling in so close you could swear you could smell the peach he’d likely enjoyed with his lunch.

“Can I tell you a biiig secret? Like the biggest secret I’ve ever had, ever?” he whispers, his words far more innocent than his intonation. You nod ever so slightly, your heart pounding out of your chest and your senses becoming overwhelmed with him. Your face feels so hot as you look into his beautiful eyes.

“I really, really like you.”

You inhale sharply, his face leaning in to press a kiss to your cheek. Your mind seems to throw rationality out the window, your arms flying around his neck as you pull him toward you again. His lips are soft, shockingly smooth and velvety as they meet yours. It’s like some barrier is shattered, your mouths working greedily against each other’s.

His tongue prodded at your mouth, slipping between your lips with seemingly practiced ease, filling your mouth with a burst of peach flavor. He twined his tongue around yours, exploring your mouth with such reckless excitement, you couldn’t help but moan into it.

His hands moved, one on your waist and one on the back of your head, deepening the kiss and you happily went along with his movements. Soon you were lost in each other’s taste, not noticing the eyes peering in at you from behind the door.

“I told you, simply put the two of them together enough times and one of them was sure to make a move,” Mitsuhide chuckled softly, sliding away from the door and turning to face the other warlords.

“I… I hate to admit, but you were right, Mitsuhide.” Hideyoshi’s resigned sigh moving to join his sly counterpart.

“I will admit, Mitsunari, placing the ink pot so close to the edge of the shelf was a very good move as well,” Masamune admitted, clapping the other man on the back before heading off down the hall and back toward the courtyard.

Mitsunari, rubbed his neck and followed behind, “Oh, right… I most certainly meant for that to happen…”

The warlords finally departed, satisfied that their scheme had worked out precisely as they had intended and pleased knowing that they would no longer have to deal with the two of them tiptoeing around each other while being blatantly obvious about how they felt about the other.

[teastainedprose]

Intro / Master List

I made a place to shake out all of the writing blurbs free instead of leaving them to rot in my e-mail drafts. Fics, drabbles, nonsense musings, headcanons and whatever else falls out will go here. Side blog to @tearueful

I am here to WRITE because creativity DEMANDS it, and this is low enough energy that chronic pain can't steal it from me. Unless it has an A03 mirror link, the writing is RAW and probably full of errors. Real fuck it, we'll do it live hours.

I loveloveLOVE interactions on my posts and in my ask box. PLEASE add replies, reblog with your comments and/or and go HOG WILD in the tags. IT FEEDS MEEEE and further fuels my inspiration.

🔞 18+ content. I say fuck. I will write smut. The situations will be adult in nature more often than not. There will be problematic content as my favs are problematic.

The ask box is open and I encourage sending requests, inspiration, or just chatter.

Feel free to send ask requests on or off anon.

Current brain worms are focused on Homelander of The Boys with a mild Fallout invasion.

Archive of Our Own Link

Prompt Requests / Fandoms / Tags / Master List of Writing

I have no issues with prompts that are open ended with what characters are involved or ones that specify. Within the fandoms that have captivated my brain, I'm up for writing any relationship romantic, sexual, or platonic and x reader writings are ones I'll happily engage in.

Sending something in is no guarantee I'll write for said prompt or when I'll get to it. My mind is fickle and sometimes a prompt grabs me by the throat, or I let it simmer for a hot minute. That or I'll simply delete it if it doesn't spark joy.

I've been writing and RPing for a very long time, but only recently delved into anything canon adjacent and then writing actual fanfics for it. Thus what fandoms I'll write for are currently limited to things I've been hype fixated on or am currently fixated on. Obviously, the main one right now is Homelander. He's my poor lil meow meow, but I will happily slip back into writing OCs from my years of RP or other characters in fandoms I adore.

Fandoms I'll write for:

The Boys

Fallout, TV series

Wildstar (OCs)

World of Warcraft (OCs)

Given how long I've been writing for and what sort of dark stories I've written with friends, there's not much that I won't explore if it has an interesting concept that I can get a good story out of. Dark themes, kinky fuckery, violence, and sexual situations are all well and good. That being said, there's plenty of things that squick me out that I rather not touch but as I'm an adult I'll either delete the prompt or explain my thoughts on the prompt related to whatever character it is.

i.e., Homelander sure as shit has a lactation kink but pregnancy stuff is body horror to me. Can I write it? Possibly, it wholly depends on the prompt.

Writing

WIP List (Yes please ask about any you're interested in to motivate me 😭)

Fallout:

🔞Explosion (Lucy x Maximus)

🔞Too Sweet ( Cooper x Reader, WIP) : Chapter [1], Tag

🔞 Gash (Cooper x Reader)

🔞Take It As It Comes ( Pre-War!Cooper x Reader, WIP)

The Boys:

Fanfics

Play with Fire (Homelander x f!reader, plus sized, WIP) : Chapter [1] [2], [3] Tag

One Up (Homelander x f!Reader) : Chapter [1] , Tag

No Bad Dogs (Homelander x Kimiko??? besties!???!?!) : Concept stage, Tag

General Drabbles:

🔞Two Player Game (Homelander x f!reader)

🔞Lonely Together (Queen Maeve x Homelander)

Pinky Promise (Ryan Butcher & Homelander🥺)

Mark You Pretty (Homelander x reader)

🔞THC Gummies (Homelander x f!reader)

Introducing the 'wife' (Homelander x Billy Butcher)

Girl Dad (Homelander & Zoe)

Rainy Day (Homelander x reader)

Mix Tape (Homelander x reader)

Plushie (Homelander x reader)

Sugar Daddy (Homelander x reader)

🔞Making a Mess (Homelander x f!reader)

🔞Blackmail, Play With Fire side fic (Homelander x f!reader, plus-sized)

🔞Crusty.. (Homelander x reader)

Driving Lesson (Homelander & Ashley Barett)

🔞Over Eager (Homelander x f!reader)

Tampons (Homelander x f!reader)

Emoticons (Ryan Butcher & Homelander)

Flower Picking ( Homelander x reader)

🔞Office Tryst (Homelander x f!reader)

Breaking Point (Homelander x reader)

🔞Pet Play (Homelander x OC, WIP)

🔞Choke (Homelander x Reader, WIP)

Tags

General Tags

Drabble / Ask / Anon Ask / Fanfic Planning / Fanfic Chapter / Worldbuilding / Canon x You / Plus-Sized Reader / Brainstorming

The Boys

The Boys FanFic / The Boys Smut Homelander / Homelander Headcanon / Homelander x Reader / Homelander Writing / Homelander Smut Queen Maeve / Maeve Writing / Maeve Smut / Maeve x Homelander Kimiko / Kimiko Writing Frenchie / Frenchie Writing Ryan Butcher / Ryan Writing

Fallout

Fallout Fanfic / Fallout Smut Maximus / Lucy MacLean / VaultKnight / Cooper Howard / The Ghoul / Cooper Howard x Reader / The Ghoul x Reader

18+ Banner Source

[hunter-arceneaux-blog]

Stop Waiting for Inspiration: Create Your Own Muse

Inspiration. It’s that spark that every writer, artist, and creator chases. We often imagine it as a sudden burst of clarity, a lightning bolt that strikes us out of nowhere, compelling us to create. But here’s the hard truth: if you wait for inspiration to come, you’ll likely be waiting for a very long time.

I used to be one of those who believed that the best work comes from a place of sudden inspiration or intense infatuation. I would sit on my sofa, staring at a blank computer screen, waiting for the perfect idea to arrive. Days, sometimes weeks, months, or even years would pass without a single word written. Even while wasting my time, I knew that waiting for inspiration was just an excuse for not doing the work.

Create Inspiration from Your Own Life

Sometimes, you must create inspiration yourself or carve it from your own life. The world around you is full of stories waiting to be told, lessons waiting to be shared, and emotions waiting to be expressed. Here are some ways to cultivate your own inspiration:

1. Draw from Personal Experiences

Your life is a rich with experiences that can serve as a wellspring of inspiration. Personally, I have drawn significant inspiration from being deaf and navigating recent physical disabilities, as well as having gone through fertility issues, miscarriages, and mental health challenges. These experiences, both the uplifting and the challenging, have provided me with a deep reservoir of emotions and narratives that I attempt to weave into my writing.

Think about the challenges you’ve faced, the victories you’ve celebrated, the love you’ve felt, and the losses you’ve endured. Write about these moments with honesty and vulnerability; don’t sugarcoat them. Authenticity is key to connecting with your readers. Not only will this practice help you find your voice, but it will also resonate with readers who have shared similar experiences.

2. Observe the World Around You

Inspiration can be found in the most mundane places. Take a walk around your neighborhood (or for those like me, a limp), sit in a park, visit a lake, lose yourself in nature or in another’s art. Try people-watch for a while, imagine conversations or dramas they’re facing, and try to notice the small details that often go unnoticed. The world is full of stories waiting to be told, and all you need to do is pay attention.

3. Set a Routine

Honestly, this has been one of the most challenging aspects for me. Managing unmedicated ADHD can be quite demanding. Creativity is rarely about waiting for inspiration but rather about cultivating it daily. The reality is, creativity thrives on routine. Set aside time each day to write, even if it’s just for a few minutes. The more you engage in writing regularly, the more you’ll notice inspiration flowing naturally. It’s about committing to the process consistently and putting in the effort, even on days when motivation and energy are lacking.

4. Engage with Other Creative Works

Read books, watch movies, listen to music, and visit art galleries. Engaging with other forms of creative expression can spark new ideas and provide fresh perspectives. Don’t be afraid to take inspiration from others and incorporate it into your own work. Creativity is often a collaborative process, even if you’re working alone. Just remember, there’s a huge difference between inspiration and plagiarism, so make sure you’re on the right side of the line.

5. Embrace the Process, Not Just the Outcome

Focusing solely on the outcome can stifle creativity. Instead, try to embrace the process of writing itself. Allow yourself to make mistakes, write poorly, and experiment with different styles and genres. The act of writing is a journey, and it’s through this journey that you often find the most profound inspiration.

Practical Tips to Keep Writing

Here are some additional practical tips to help you keep writing, even when inspiration seems elusive:

Set Specific Goals: Whether it’s writing a certain number of words each day or completing a chapter each week, having specific goals can help keep you on track.

Find a Writing Community: Surround yourself with other writers who can offer support, feedback, and encouragement. Join a writing group, participate in workshops, or connect with other writers online. I know this one’s not easy for a lot of creative types, myself included; being creative is often isolating, and it’s hard to break out of that.

Keep a Journal: Use a journal to jot down ideas, thoughts, and observations. It can be a valuable resource when you’re struggling to find inspiration.

Take Breaks: Sometimes, stepping away from your work can give you the clarity you need. Take breaks, go for a walk, play with your children or pets. Engage in a different activity for a bit to refresh your mind.

Be Kind to Yourself: Writing is hard work, and remembering to be kind to yourself is sometimes hard. As creatives, we are often our own worst critics. Celebrate your achievements, no matter how small, and don’t be too hard on yourself when things don’t go as planned.

Conclusion

Inspiration is not something you wait for; it’s something you create. By drawing from your own life, observing the world around you, setting a routine, engaging with other creative works, and embracing the process, you can cultivate your own inspiration and keep writing consistently.

So, stop waiting for the perfect moment or the perfect idea. Start writing now, and let the act of writing itself be your muse.

[7grandmel]

Rip of the week: 25/11/2024

Slope Dude

Season 4 Episode 2 Featured on: Summer-Colored Smiles ~ The SiIvaSummer All-Star Festival Collection

Ripped by eg_9371

You may notice it's been a while since the last post, as it was with the post before it, and so on. Truth be told, the switch to weekly posting came with its own set of issues for my flow of work; mainly, that I've gotten too damn ambitious in my writing for some of these posts. I'm incredibly happy with the end results of a lot of them and feel more confident in being able to wholeheartedly recommend reading any of my post-hiatus posts than I do a majority of my pre-hiatus posts...but it also means that I'm met with self-induced hurdles on how and what to write about. I can't just cover a rip that I just find funny and neat; It has to be historical, it has to be magnificent, it has to have immaculate pathos, has to tie into the SiIvaGunner spirit or whatever else I find myself waxing on about...

No, you know what? Screw it. I'm behind on my posts anyway. We're doing a simple goodie today. Writing the same day it's posted, of a rip I just keep returning to for a good laugh, with no strings attached. Old-school style. Slope Dude.

Back on Lagplane, I mused a bit about the novelty of memes that leave us almost as quickly as they arrive, the consequences of the intensely rapid meme economy born from modern social media. It was a lot of waffling to justify writing about a flamboyant Andrew Tate impersonator, but it's hardly as if these trend-based jokes are a new occurrence on SiIva. I'm reminded of how 2016 saw a handful of rips poking fun at then-notorious online figure Keemstar, for instance – but perhaps stranger than these, are when jokes on SiIva crop up without any recent relevancy, are incredibly prominent for the length of a season or so, and then fade away just as suddenly as they appeared. Unlike Stuck Inside of FEEL SO FINE STUCK INSIDE fame, unlike the Mad Mew Mew Becoming Uncanny rips, unlike so many other jokes on the channel...the appearance of Game Dude on SiIvaGunner throughout Season 4 felt as if it came out of nowhere, made even stranger by just how limited its presence felt. We got a handful of rips, a bunch of appearances in medley rips, a cameo in a lore video, and then the tune was out just as quickly as it had entered. No relevancy, no big explosive tie to the themes or intent of Season 4 Episodes 1 or 2 in particular; just a silly theme with a handful of rippers who decided to play around with it.

Part of me wonders, akin to rips like old town ribbon race, just how much of the appeal of the joke here becomes lost without whollistic knowledge of its lore. The tale of Game Dude is one of the internet's many bizarre sidequests, long overdue for a YouTube video essay a la HBomberGuy's body of work to truly bring it all to light, yet for now still remaining obscure enough to only be spread in whispers between those who know. It was the kind of thing I myself was given the "privilege" of uncovering on my own terms after first watching a Game Grumps episode built entirely on indirectly mocking him and growing all-too-curious about what he's up to; one of many Angry Video Nerd Clones trying and failing ever so badly at being funny playing bad video games, Game Dude's last legacy online would be to be known as the guy who fled his home state when called to court over stalking his ex-girlfriend. It gives the imagery of a bumbling, somewhat pathetic figure, someone who tried and failed to find online fame through poor mimicry and wound up unable to take proper responsibility for themselves. Like the aforementioned Lagplane, it adds just that extra aura to the theme song attached to the character, the original intro to his theme songs; once a song with the levity focused on the games and show now feels as if its mocking the very person making the videos themselves. Indeed, few things are as certain as life, death, and the Nostalgia Critic effect.

All that is to say, that I get a lot of amusement from the Game Dude theme, and of all its handful of rips focusing exclusively on it I think eg_9371 hit the nail right on the head with Slope Dude. There's no gimmicks, twists or turns; its as simple as a melodyswap/arrangement rip can be, an Outertale or Jesus of the Underground that trades in the pathos and nostalgia for a complete commitment to the silliness of the bit. Slope from Super Mario RPG, like much of the game's soundtrack, already has such a bombastically silly tone to it; the buildup to the main melody finally kicking in at 0:14 in particular sells the joke so much harder, a marching band drum roll all to introduce the fucking Game Dude theme. The instrumentation feels absolutely perfect for the tune and is matched equally as perfectly by the context said tune appears in in the game, running after Booster up a slope midway through the game. The hummability of the melody, the context of Game Dude's situation and the silliness of the sound means the jokes write themselves; as one commenter says, "He is the Game Dude // He is so rude // He flees the country // when his court date is due".

As per expected of eg_9371 and his ripping prowess, Slope Dude is about as pitch perfect as it could be, an idea pursued to its logical endpoint much like Forest of Tears or dong music. Regardless of scale or time invested, the rip ends up being enjoyable in such a simple way, applying the perfect amount of levity applicable to such an absurd figure of YouTube's past. It's likely a lot of SiIva viewers completely forgot that Game Dude was at one small point considered a reoccurring meme on the channel, and he never quite got anywhere past his introduction the same way something like the similar-in-spirit Minecraft With Gadget of Season 2 got with Become as Gadget. Yet the small handful of rips featuring him were still there, all condensed all into Season 4 Episode 2 in particular; and though he's likely to remain forgotten by most fans, I'll remain a loyal Game Dude – and Slope Dude – fan until nobody else remains.