#then once that goes up we will be in the sequel territory

[kwanisms]

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[nhl-stories]

I'm Back- Jack Hughes feat. Nico Hischier

Summary: Lux stays with Jack in New Jersey, things aren't going as she expected.

Author’s Note: This is sequel of sorts to this previous work you don't need to read it to get this, but it's a good read if I say so myself. This is a bit of a romance story, but mostly it's an ode to platonic soulmates.

Also fudging the timeline of medical school interviews because this is my world and I can do what I want to fit my needs

Word Count: 5.3k

“Hey loser!”

Lux looks up to see Jack sticking his head out of the passenger window like a dog.

“Hey moron,” she shoves his head back into the car and drags her suitcase to the trunk.

Jack is out of the car and lifting it into the trunk before she has a chance.

“What a gentleman.”

Jack’s bright smile never fails to make her grin back, but she isn’t expecting the almost-tender hug that follows.

“Hi Luxy,” he mumbles into her hair, he sounds so tired, she squeezes a little tighter.

A honk jolts them apart.

“Our driver is a little impatient.”

Lux climbs in the back and wraps her arms around the seat and Luke’s shoulders before kissing his cheek.

“Aww look at my little Lukey all grown up.”

He shoves her back towards her seat.

“I could drive before,” he says petulantly before pulling away from the curb.

“Yeah, but now it’s in a car you bought on your own, because you have a job. Let me be proud I don’t have a little brother of my own,” she giggles as she sees Luke turn pink.

She lets him off the hook, and turns her attention to Jack, “Am I going to meet this new girlfriend while I’m here?”

Lux lifts a leg to kick Jack in the arm, “I should still be mad at you, I can’t believe I had to find out you have a serious girlfriend with the rest of gen pop on a fucking TikTok.”

“Sorry, she’s out of town.”

“How convenient,” Lux rolls her eyes, “now I won’t be able to prove I’m not a threat.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’ve spent our whole friendship proving to girls that we are strictly platonic and there’s nothing to be jealous of.”

“What would they have to be jealous about?”

If it were anyone but Jack the comment might hurt.

“Lots of men actually find me desirable, so a lot of women don’t understand how you don’t see me like that at all. And women can be just as territorial as men.”

“Remember Sam thought you two were dating just because you don’t fucking shut up about Lux.”

“Thank you, Luke, excellent point. And then people see us together and realize that is not the kind of chemistry we share. But without the live experience it’s hard to prove.”

“She’s kind of in a different league than you, she’s definitely not gonna be jealous.”

Lux kicks him a little harder than before.

When they arrive at the apartment, Lux immediately drops her bags and flops on the couch, “This’ll do.”

“You don’t have to sleep on the couch.”

“What are we gonna share? First, we have never been two friends-one bed type of friends, second, we just had the jealous girlfriend talk.”

“Then take Luke’s room,” Jack shrugs.

“Hey!” Luke looks up from his phone to protest.

“I’m not gonna take your room. You’re saving me so much money on hotels, I’m more than okay with the couch.”

“Now that it’s settled, get up, we’re going to dinner.”

Jack grabs her hands and tries to pull her up, Lux goes full limp body.

“Do we have to leave?”

“We just planned to meet up with some guys for dinner, we don’t have any food here” Luke adds, already looking antsy to go, probably more than ready for his next meal.

“Fine, can’t let you waste away,” she dramatically gets off the couch.

“Is that what you’re going to wear?” Jack gives her a once over.

“Do your teammates have some kind of dress code?”

She eyes the boys and their casual outfits that wouldn’t be considered much nicer than her travel clothes.

“No, you just look a little… like you were on a plane,” Jack says like it’s diplomatic, not rude.

“Are you worried I’ll embarrass you in front of your teammates? Cause I can do that with or without changing.”

“Whatever, just– I don’t know fix your ponytail!”

Lux rolls her eyes but takes down her hair and shakes it out, before grabbing a change of clothes just to stop the whining.

“Oh my god guys, I was pretty the whole time! I might be too hot and irresistible for your teammates.” She comes back in tossing her fixed hair over her shoulder.

“And obviously you’d act on that,” Jack tosses her jacket at her.

“What makes you think I wouldn’t fuck one of your teammates? I used to fuck your brother!” Lux shoots Jack incredulous look.

“In fact, I could do both right now, what do you say Lukey?” She winks over at the younger brother.

“Please leave me out of this.”

“Okay, let’s not starve the baby any longer. But reminder, I’m a former WAG, it’s not like I couldn’t get an NHLer if I tried.”

“I’ll start matchmaking then,” Jack wraps an arm around her shoulder and leads her out of the apartment.

The restaurant is a lowkey sushi place. There are only about five Devil’s players, and Lux quickly realizes no other women are gonna be here. She has war flashbacks to the lake house in the summer. 

Lux squeezes herself between Jack and Luke at the table, she wants to have an easy conversation to fall back on.

“So, you’re the famous Lux,” a man with a toothless grin, who Lux learns is Dawson, says from across the table.

“Famous? What have you heard about me?” her stomach twists, probably good things, but Hughes brothers might not be the only ones talking about her.

“With the way he talks about you, I thought Jack was dating you for a while until I learned you were dating Quinn.”

There’s a scuffle under the table, “Oh right, sorry about the break up.”

Lux flushes, “Um- it’s been a while don’t worry about it, I’m not still heartbroken.”

“Well, the other two Hughes brothers love you a lot, always telling stories about you. And Nico said you were really nice.”

“Oh yeah, when you had to introduce your girl best friend to your new best friend,” she pinches Jack’s cheek.

“I took you guys to that place in Greektown,” she perks up a bit, “Is Nico coming tonight?”

Jack eyes her for a second before John Marino butts in, “he bailed, said he was feeling tired.”

The rest of dinner is good, but Lux can feel herself fading fast. And while she’s starting to lean heavily into Jack’s side, he doesn’t seem to get the message.

“You guys want to hear about the time Jack tried to ask out a girl in our chemistry class?”

“Right, you have to get up early, we should go,” Jack is quick to stand.

Luke snickers and doesn’t get to his feet, wants to see where this goes in front of their intrigued teammates.

“After I can talk about when Luke was like 14 or 15 and–“ Luke shoots up and drags Lux up with him.

“Nice to meet you guys, see you later,” Lux calls as they push her out of the restaurant.

:::

She’s hit with the scent of cooking as she comes in the apartment, and takes off her shoes.

“I can finally take this bra off, it’s so uncomfortable but it’s the only one that works with this­– oh. There’s company.”

Lux freezes, one cup of her bra sticking out of her sleeve. Jack is facing the stove, not paying attention.

“Nico’s staying for dinner.”

Nico gives an awkward wave from his spot at the kitchen island with a glass of wine.

“Hi Nico,” she pulls the bra out the rest of the way, “Would have loved a little warning about the company,” then she whips Jack with her bra on her way out, ignoring his protest as she leaves.

She comes back into the kitchen and suddenly feels very exposed in her baggy Lions shirt and old, worn-out short shorts. Her packing hadn’t included thoughts of what to wear in front of men who are basically strangers while hanging around the apartment.

She tries to ignore the heat in her face and confidently take the seat next to Nico, where a new glass of wine is waiting for her.

“Hi Lux, nice to see you again,” he swivels in the barstool, bumping her knee with his.

“You too, even if it didn’t seem like I was before,” she takes a nervous sip of wine.

“Just with the whole bra thing, I try to keep the number of NHLers who’ve seen my nipples to a minimum, it’s probably already too high.”

Nico let’s out a laugh so delightful Lux feels her heart flip. She always thought Nico was cute, but up close and laughing at her jokes, she thinks it’s a bona fide crush now.

Jack scoffs, “You were dared to flash me, so I don’t really count.”

“Okay, so minus Jack, the three is probably enough.”

“Wait, who else saw your nipples?” Jack is less interested in what’s cooking now.

“Quinn, obviously. And Cole at prom; remember the strap on my dress broke, he got and eyeful before he helped cover me up.”

She takes another sip, let Jack’s mind run a bit wild.

“And Lukey walked in on me changing into my swimsuit once.”

The knife Luke is using to chop vegetables clatters onto the cutting board, “You said you’d never tell anyone that!”

“No, I said I wouldn’t tell Quinn that,” and she pretends to look around the room, “and there’s Jack and Nico… no Quinn.”

Luke’s cheeks are burning red and Jack looks like he’s torn between laughing and fuming, which ultimately makes him look a bit constipated.

“You were like 15 and had access to the internet, I doubt my tits were that impactful.”

“Can I throw myself out of a window now?” He looks like he’d prefer to melt into the floor.

Lux stands up and hugs Luke, pinning his arms to his sides, “Don’t worry I won’t let your older brother beat you up over it, though I think you’ve literally grown out of that phase now that you’re taller than him.”

“Now that we know that everyone here but Nico has seen your boobs.”

“We could change that…” Lux chirps at Jack and gets a shove from Luke.

“How was your interview?”

Lux shrugs, “Good, I think… I could not read the interviewer at all.”

“I’m sure you crushed it,” Jack gives her a noogie.

“Thank you for the vote of confidence, but it’s one of the most competitive med schools in America, so I’m not keeping my hopes up too much.”

Before the pair can continue arguing about how smart or not smart Lux is, Nico butts in.

“You’re interviewing for medical schools, right? Where at?

“Today was Columbia, I have Cornell tomorrow, and NYU Friday.”

“All just a train ride away,” Jack says as he starts to move them towards the dining table.

“And I haven’t decided if that’s a pro or con yet,” Lux smirks, before taking a seat.

“So, are you coming to both games?” Nico starts, clearly a ploy to stop the bickering before it really starts, already reading the duo’s antics.

“Of course, she’s coming,” Jack jumps in continues to cut off any protest, “you’ve never seen me play a home game and you’ve never even seen Luke play in the big leagues live!”

“But we agreed one game, two in one week will ruin my whole yearly quota.”

“You’re not a hockey fan?”

“That’s an understatement,” Luke laughs.

“Years with the Hughes family, then becoming a WAG, and we still couldn’t convert her,” Jack says wistfully.

“Maybe The Rock will change your mind,” Nico says thoughtfully.

Lux shrugs, she doesn’t want to rain on his parade, “Who are you playing? Just so I can make sure I don’t get a Zegras jumpscare.”

“He has a girlfriend.”

“I don’t think his relationship status would change how much he enjoys annoying me.”

“We’re not playing the Ducks, plus he’s out with a broken ankle anyway, I don’t think he’s traveling,” Jack adds, his tone hinting that there’s more on that subject he wants to discuss.

“Okay I can tell you’re dying to talk shop, so go ahead,” she’s surprised they let it go on this long.

“We were actually going to talk about the Canucks right before you got here,” Luke say with a little apprehension, always thinking of Lux’s feelings.

“How is Captain Q doing? They’re playing shockingly well, right?”

“I thought you didn’t like hockey?” Jack mocks.

“Our moms talk, I follow hockey players on socials, information gets disseminated.”

Jack makes a face, clearly unsure if that last word means what he thinks it does.

“The Canucks pretty much guaranteed to make it to the playoffs,” Luke probably knows disseminated doesn’t have anything to do with semen.

“Damn, I missed my chance to get a WAG jacket.”

Then the boys are off on tangents about trades and special teams and injuries. Lux silently enjoys the familiar chatter, letting it wash over her like a warm hug. Though she isn’t absorbing any of the information.

 She barely notices when the conversation turns to her while they start to clear the table.

“If you don’t want to sleep on the couch again, Nico has a spare bedroom.” Jack says as if he’s had to repeat himself.

“Excuse me?”

“He lives just upstairs, and has a guest room.”

“I’m staying here to spend time with you, why would I want to stay at some strange guy’s apartment? No offense, Nico.”

“No pressure, if you change your mind the offer is open,” Nico has such a kind smile Lux almost ask if she can stay in his bed.

“Thank you, that’s very nice of you, but I think I’ll stay here.”

Nico nods and says good night before leaving. Lux counts to five after the door shuts behind him.

“What the fuck was that?” Lux glares at Jack.

Jack isn’t quite sure how to respond.

“Why are you trying to pawn me off?”

He shrugs, “I’m not, but he does have a spare room. And it’s nicer to sleep on a bed. And if you happen to hit it off, that’s cool you’ll have another friend when you move here.”

Luke scoffs and retreats to his room, not wanting to get implicated in any scheme.

“So, you have ulterior motives?”

“That makes it sound like my motives are bad, friends are a bad thing now?”

“Friendship isn’t bad, but this feels like you know something I don’t and that makes me very uneasy.”

“I’ve never known something you don’t,” he gives a cheeky smile and Lux rolls her eyes.

He puts the last of the plates in the dishwasher.

“I’m gonna take a shower and go to bed, night Luxxy,” he ruffles her hair as he walks by.

Then she’s alone.

At 9 PM.

Not shooting the shit with her bestie.

Maybe she should have stayed with Nico.

:::

The Cornell interview is a dream. Lux had gone to other interviews and liked a few, but this was different. She was vibing with the interviewer. Everything she learned about the school she loved.

Everything just felt right. 

She was floating on air as she walked the streets toward Central Park. The pizza she stopped for tasted better… although that might have been a New York thing and not a feeling good in the moment thing.

She texts Jack a good luck for the game but doesn’t get a response, she assumes he’s napping or in the zone or something. It’s not a part of their usual texting unless she somehow knows there’s a specifically important game; like when he plays Quinn or the stadium series a few weeks ago.

Lux meets up with a friend from college, who takes her out for drinks then dinner then more drinks. She’s a little tipsy when she gets on the train to Jack’s apartment, insisting to her friend that she doesn’t want to sleep on a futon in her studio apartment.

Halfway there she realizes she should check the score before she gets back. She may not care about hockey but she cares about her friend’s feelings and knowing what kind of mood he’ll be in can only help.

They lost.

Quinn would get quiet and introspective when he lost a game, so it was always easy for Lux. Not only were they not in the same city, but usually he didn’t want to talk. Jack usually got grumpy and wanted to complain. So not the exact environment she was used to or really wanted to be in.

She gets back before the boys somehow. She’s not exactly sure how.

So, she gets ready for bed and turns on the TV, of course it’s already on some channel playing sports highlights. Lux flips around to find something more mindless when they boys come home.

Luke plops down on the couch, suit jacket discarded immediately. Jack sort of awkwardly stands behind the couch, staring at the TV where Lux stopped on a game show.

When neither of them speaks up, Lux fills in the silence.

“Sorry about the loss, but a goal and an assist, that’s pretty cool,” she looks up to Jack with a sad smile, hoping she’s at least a little comforting.

“Mmmhmm,” Jack hums.

She tries a new tactic, “Cornell went well.”

“Cool.”

“I liked it, a lot.” She emphasizes.

“Cool.”

“How about we order pizza, watch bad TV, and not talk then?”

“I’ll pass,” Jack finally moves, heading to his room and shutting the door behind him.

She looks over to Luke, “He’s being weird with me, right?”

“Kind of,” Luke avoids eye contact, his tell when he’s trying protect his brothers in some way.

“We haven’t hung out, just the two of us since I got here. Hell, we haven’t even done a Lux and the Hughes bros night. I want to know if I did something wrong.”

“It’s not you, he was really excited you were coming. Wouldn’t shut up about everything he wanted to show so you’d fall in love with here like he has.”

Lux smirks at that.

“I think the season has been rough for him, he’s been taking it out on himself a little.”

She scoots down the couch and pulls Luke into her side with a hug.

“And how are you doing?” She gives him a squeeze, her instinct to big sister Luke coming out.

“It’s my first full season, I’m just happy to be playing. And Jack’s been taking good care of me.”

“What an insane sentence, but glad you have each other here.”

“And I heard talk of pizza,” he hugs Lux back.

“You’re the local, tell me where to order from,” she ruffles his hair.

:::

Lux wakes up early despite her late night of TV and pizza. She clears off the table before heading towards Jack’s room.

She knocks gently, before just walking in. Though she hovers near the entryway.

“What’s wrong with us?”

Jack’s lying in bed looking at his phone, double chin on full display. Lux would normally make fun of him, or take a picture for her own blackmailing purposes, but now’s not the time.

“What do you mean?” He doesn’t look away from his texting or whatever he’s doing.

Lux crawls into the bed and lays on her side facing him.

“I thought we weren’t ‘share a bed’ friends?”

She rolls her eyes, snatches his phone and throws it to the foot of the bed. It gets lost somewhere in the crumpled duvet.

“When you’ve been using your brother and teammates as a buffer to not be alone with me, I’ll bend our friendship rules.”

“Okay we’re alone, what’s wrong with me?”

“It’s not just a you thing… it’s an us thing.”

Jack finally turns his head to really look at Lux.

“We haven’t talked at all since Christmas, and even then, it was like for 15 minutes between family obligations. And we’re barely texting.”

Lux hates her body for betraying her, tears starting to well up even if she’s more frustrated than sad.

“It feels like right before Quinn broke up with me.”

That gets Jack to sit up, confused, a little angry.

“I’m not fucking breaking up with you.”

“Good, I don’t think I could survive a second Hughes break up.”

Jack sighs, “Just this year has fucking sucked for me, we’re not doing as well– I’m not doing as well as I thought. And you’re in your senior year and applying to med schools, I didn’t want to add my own stress to you.”

“Are you still hurt?”

“Kind of, but we’re like still sort of in the race for a playoff spot and if I can just get us in…”

Lux knows to bite her tongue when it comes to injury management. They’ll play through the pain even if it’s not necessarily the best for themselves, if there’s a chance it’s best for the team.

“And on top of that you get a girlfriend, a meet your parents kind of girlfriend.”

“I guess I’m not over you and Quinn breaking up!”

Lux swallows, tries to put together a coherent thought.

“I know you had a crush on Quinn forever, and I was happy for you guys, but you were my friend first and he kind of ruined that. And now I feel like I have to be careful when it comes to talking about him, or relationships, or even just making fun of you.”

He finally turns onto his side.

“And most importantly I want to talk to you about how Quinn’s girlfriend is so nice it’s kind of annoying.”

“Oh my god, she’s too nice! Do you know she follows me on Instagram? We met like that one time at the lake and she comments on all my pictures about how pretty I am. She knows I’m his ex, right?”

“Oh yeah, it was a whole weird thing when we all played each other the first time. Quinn apparently hadn’t told her explicitly and we made some joke or something and then she just was like ‘oh she’s so nice and pretty, no wonder you liked her.’”

Lux can’t help but laugh.

“I mean maybe I couldn’t handle that like right after the break up, but I was so lost after. I didn’t know how to be a college student without a long-distance boyfriend and still be a good student or friend and whatever, and I was such a bitch at the end of our relationship I thought you wouldn’t be on my side, which you shouldn’t”

“What?”

“We were already having problems, but I purposely made them worse. Like, while I was dodging all his calls, you came to play in Chicago and I made sure that we took a picture together because I knew you’d send it to the family group chat and he’d see I was just living my life.”

“That’s fucked up.”

“I know! I can’t believe he never told you that. He really is like the best brother.”

“Why did you do that?”

“I don’t know, I think I wanted a break but I didn’t know how to ask for one, so I ruined it. And sometimes I think if we took a break maybe we’d get back together again, but also, I just don’t think we were meant for long term.”

She reaches across to grab Jack’s hand, “But us… this shit is forever. We have almost nothing in common and you’re still the first person I want to call with big news or if I need advice, which is crazy cause you’re one of the dumbest people I know.”

Jack laughs, it’s a little wet. They have to ignore it because they love each other but it’s not emotional like this.

“Okay, so I’ll still be your future kids cool Uncle Jack? Even if we’re not blood related?”

“Of course.”

“Okay enough of this emotional stuff, it’s very gross.”

“But what if we kissed right now,” Lux wiggles her eyebrows while trying to keep a straight face.

Jack shoves her hard enough she teeters dangerously on the edge of the bed, as she howls with laughter.

“Oka, now tell me why you’re trying to set me up with Nico?”

“He’s brunette with a lot body hair but almost none on his chest, that’s your type.”

“Oh my god! Shut up, that is not my type,” Lux covers her face, masking her laughs and her embarrassment.

“Palmer from high school was a fucking wolf man.”

“Okay, well recent studies show that’s not my type.”

Jack gags.

“Nico may also sort of be seeing this woman who’s massive bitch to him. And I like him and I like you, so maybe if you hit it off… it would be good for everyone. And make you want to move here.”

“I’m not making life altering decisions based on boys… even for cute Swiss boys or platonic soulmates.”

The door opens suddenly, “We’re gonna be late for morning skate, dude.”

“What if we had been having sex, dude?” Lux says while stretching out on the bed.

“Then the world would be ending, so it wouldn’t really matter,” he rolls his eyes, “I’m pulling out of the garage in 10 minutes with or without you.

“Want to go shopping later?” Jack asks Lux as he gets out of bed

“Are you paying?”

He scoffs, “Sure.”

“Then I’m in. Have fun at morning skate, I’m gonna nap in your bed.”

:::

Things snap back into place almost immediately, like it was more effort pushing each other away than just letting themselves get pulled into each other’s orbit.

And all feels right in the world again.

Thursday is another game day; Lux is reading on the boys’ balcony while they nap. She jolts when the sliding door opens.

“Sorry to scare you,” Nico in a suit sits down across from her, “they still napping?”

“Yes? I don’t know their routines. Why are you here?”

“We’re carpooling.”

They sit quietly for a bit, before Lux finally puts her book down.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been to a game, is this appropriate attire?” She stands up and does a goofy little spin.

“What are you doing?” Jack asks from the doorway, a playful smirk on his face like he’s getting away with something.

“I’m asking if I’m dressed alright, since I’m sitting in your girlfriend’s spot with all the WAGs.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t force her to wear your jersey,” Nico laughs, “but you look nice, won’t even have to change when we go out after the win.”

“Oooh you’re ready to put on a show for me?”

“You could use some make up though,” Jack adds.

Lux just flips him off.

A sleepy looking Luke comes to the door, “Don’t let Lukey drive, he looks like an accident ready to happen.”

“Try to have fun tonight,” Jack hugs Lux.

Normally she’d say something snarky, like ‘try to win then.’ But after their heart to heart, that feels like a twist of the knife.

“I’ll try to be the best good luck charm.”

Lux gets to her seat five minutes into the first period in an attempt to avoid any awkward introductions. Not that she’s against meeting new people, but without social butterfly Jack by her side, she relapses into her shyer ways.

Still, the group tries to include her, shocked she hasn’t seen Jack play in Jersey and forcing her to take a picture where the mascot is holding her bridal style.

She has a couple drinks, cheers when Jack gets an assist, and pretends she doesn’t cheer louder when Nico gets an assist on the game winning goal.

She won’t admit it, but it’s the most fun she’s had at a hockey game, maybe ever.

The women lead her down to the family room while they discuss where they want to go out. Lux is buzzing with adrenaline she was not expecting, ready to follow everyone for a night out with no complaint.

Luke and Jack come out of the locker room simultaneously. Lux is about to jump on Jack when she remembers what he said about his shoulder, so she jumps on Luke’s back instead.

“Lukey, you were so good out there,” she squeezes him tight and ruffles Jack’s hair while she has the height advantage.

“I was -1,” he starts to let her go so she slides off his back.

“I don’t know what that means, so it can’t be that important.”

She gives Luke another hug then turns her attention to Jack, who wraps an arm around her shoulder.

“Guess you were a good luck charm.”

“And yet, you couldn’t score a goal for me.”

“Gotta keep you wanting more.”

She sticks her tongue out at him.

“I heard there were talks of going out? I have an interview tomorrow so the sooner that starts the better.”

They end up at a trendy bar on the other side of the river with about half the team and their significant others. She lets Jack talk her into taking a shot about two steps into the establishment.

She laughs, she dances, she drinks a bit too much. Her head starts to spin and she makes her way to the patio, the chilled air feels good and clears her vision.

A cold glass of water brushes against her arm.

“You probably should hydrate.”

“Thanks,” she smiles up at Nico.

“Did you have fun tonight? At the game?”

“Yeah, but don’t tell Jack it’ll go to his head.”

“Might be a con if you end up picking Cornell, he’ll make you come watch all the time.”

“I think med school is a good excuse to miss out.”

Nico shrugs, “I’d miss my good luck charm.”

The early spring air is chilly, but a gust of warm air comes over Lux. ‘This is flirting. Nico is flirting with me,’ rings in her head while she struggles to be charming, or smooth in response.

Of course, that’s when the clock strikes midnight and she turns back into a pumpkin, or really Jack interrupts the moment.

“Luxxy, time to leave! I won’t be the reason you’re late or hungover for your interview.” He yells from the doorway of the bar, for maximum embarrassment.

Lux close her eyes and lets out a sigh. Then lets a final burst of liquid confidence bubble up to the surface.

“I might not see you before I leave, so let me give you my phone number,” she holds out her hand for his phone, which he unlocks and hands over.

“Partially, because seeing this happen will make Jack lose his mind. And it would be nice to have another friend if I move out here.”

Nico is kind of dumbstruck as he nods along, “Friends are nice.”

“Especially cute friends,” she holds back a grin and gives him a kiss on the corner of his mouth.

He turns an adorable shade of pink.

“What was that?” Jack says as she walks by taking him in tow.

“What? Isn’t that what you wanted?”

:::

The last interview goes fine. Not great, but at least she isn’t hungover for it.

Her flight out is at an ungodly time the next morning, so she insists on an early bedtime from her chauffeurs.

Which is how she ends up sitting alongside the river, brown bagging beers with the Hughes brothers, watching the sun set.

“So, am I going to meet the new girlfriend at the lake this summer?”

“You’re actually coming to the lake house this summer?”

“If I can embarrass you in front of your new girlfriend? Absolutely.”

“I’m giving your room to Trevor,” beer sloshes out of his can when he elbows her.

“C’mon, this might actually be my last summer at the lake. I’m becoming a doctor; I think I’ll be busy. Or maybe I’ll meet someone.”

“Someone who will whisk you off to Switzerland?” Jack wiggles his eyebrows and Luke make smooching sounds.

“Anything is possible,” she raises her beer and drinks to that.

[ill-written-god]

T | 793 | m/m human/werewolf | sequel to 'shapeshifting' but this time I'm not pretending it's not Steddie | cw: a little drug related oopsie but everyone's safe | getting together

He wouldn’t call himself a recluse, but he certainly wasn’t a social flower. He’s only been to frat parties for mere minutes until he sold out of his stock. A mostly monster party? Where everyone was fully shifted and in the open? Never.

He watched them be themselves, no hiding from the conservative faculty or parents, or students, even. No pretending they were civilized humans. Here they were all uncivilized students, no matter their species.

Aside from the new features of his peers, he found a lot of food and drinks he hadn’t seen before. And drugs. He’s been eyeing a certain shroom that seemed to be popular with other party-goers. The girl handing it out catches his eye and offers him the baggy to pluck out from.

It’s blueish and doesn’t smell anything, but before he can take it in his mouth, there’s a growl in his ear, and the shroom gets slapped out of his hand.

“Wha-” 

The growl grows, making him flinch and back away, straight into a broad chest and a stronghold of hairy arms.

“The fuck are you guys doing?!”

Despite the music, the room goes quiet.

“Shit, Steve-” 

He growls back, teeth clasping in warning.

“Dude, it’s just some shrooms-” Eddie tries to dissolve the situation, but the hold only tightens to the point of pain. He gasps, but Steve doesn’t seem to notice.

“Just shrooms?! These are poisonous to humans!”

“Oh.”

He looks at the inconspicuous funghi, still held by the girl, now white as a sheet.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know he was human-”

“Well, maybe you should fucking ask!”

Realizing this isn’t going to get any better until they leave the situation completely, he pushes against the chest, backing away from the group. Steve doesn’t budge at first, so he turns around his tight embrace, trying to find his gaze. The grip tightens, ribs creaking against each other before the werewolf finally looks down.

“I need some fresh air, let's go,” he says, and Steve gives a tiny nod. He growls one last time to the group and finally lets himself be pushed towards the door.

"Thanks for saving me, man," Eddie says, once outside.

"What if I was too late? You can't just take any drug in your sight!"

His instinct was to argue, but he knew Steve was right. Besides, he was still shaken up.

"Okay, sorry, I promise I'll only take my own stuff. Or triple-check if what I'm taking is human-friendly at least."

Steve huffs and his hold only tightens, and it’s too much.

“Dude, you’re choking me.”

“Shit, sorry.” Despite his words, he’s reluctant to let him go. Eddie doesn’t like the loss either, but they sit close on the porch stairs instead. It’s quiet, weird.

“Couldn’t they sniff out I’m human?” he asks eventually, recalling the argument from earlier. Steve flinches against him.

“Too many monsters around, the smells are hard to discern. Besides…” he hesitates.

“What?” Eddie turns to him, curious. 

“We’ve been hanging out a lot. You smell wolf-ish.” He cringes and kinda collapses on himself.

“Okay…” he draws out, trying to decipher what that means. “Have you been rubbing off on me? On purpose?”

“No!” he immediately denies, offended. “Yes? Maybe?”

“Dude! What the fuck?” He asks, trying to hide that he’s mostly amused. Partially thrilled.

“Not on purpose! At first.” The werewolf rushes to explain, leaning away a bit to look at him properly and gesticulate with his hands. “It’s hard not to… scent someone… when you’re having sex, okay?” he hisses through his teeth. “But then we kept hanging out, and it just… happened?”

“You gave me your hoodie,” Eddie says with sudden realization. “Were you marking your territory?”

“What?! No!” Steve seems scandalized, but he goes red in the face, and shoves at Eddie half-heartedly. The man just laughs.

“Dude, that's so hot!”

“Right,” the wolf scoffs, expression going sour.

To placate him, Eddie places a hand on his knee and squeezes. Trails up higher. 

“I mean it,” he says. 

“Oh.” Steve looks at his hand, then up into his eyes. “Oh, okay.”

“Do you guys also pee on each other? It’s not my thing, but I’d consider it.”

The wolf’s face tells him everything he needs to know. His smile turns into a grin.

“It is?” he asks, incredulous. “Damn, now I’m really, really thinking about it.”

“Dude,” Steve whines, claws scratching at the porch wood. “You can’t just say shit like that. We’re not even…”

Eddie hums, thumb tracing the denim stretching over the wolf’s thigh.

“We could be. Would that be much different from what we’ve been doing?”

“Man, I hope so,” Steve chuckles. “More kissing and sex, for starters.”

“That definitely could be arranged.”

He leans with a smile. 

[laufire]

WE WILL DEVOUR THE NIGHT BY CAMILLA ANDREW – REVIEW

I had the honour to receive and ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This review might contain some vague spoilers of the novel, as well as reveal information pertaining to the first instalment of the series.

Camilla Andrew’s sequel matches, and then surpasses, the mastery of its predecessor. This second novel takes care to expand on the unique worldbuilding of the universe she created; it delights on taking the characters to their limits to show us new facets of them, always unafraid of showing either their ugliest sides, or their aspirational nature, as well as in including some additions to the familiar roaster that enrichen the story; and it ties it all together with a neat bow, using the lyrical prose the author has us accustomed to in order to elevate each already striking aspect of the tale.

The book starts thirty years after where “When the Stars Alight” left off, plunging us alongside Princess Laila, its lead, into the thorny political situation she’ll have to navigate. Andrew knows exactly how to showcase the interests of several characters and factions at once, portraying their clashes, their alliances, and everything in between and making us understand where they’re coming from, and how each small piece of the board might affect the outcome of the conflict between two opposing forces: the Solarites, maidens from the stars who rule Vysteria, and the Occassi in Mortos, a race with chaotic powers in a more hostile society.

This conflict is personified by the two central characters and their impossible romance: Laila and Darius, a bastard son now turned king. Their relationship is at the centre of the story, and the sequel more than did justice to their explosive beginnings and whirlwind courtship in WTSA. As someone who has always adored a good exes-to-lovers story, they kept me at the edge of my seat, getting me as worked up as they did with the rising tension, caused by their tumultuous history and the palpable dormant feelings still between them. The state of their dynamic at the end of the novel is one of the many things that builds the anticipation for the third and conclusive book.

Each of them has individual arcs that contribute to the darker bent the sequel takes. As someone who loves Laila, in particular, following her arc during these two books, seeing the changes she goes through, was immensely satisfying. After her actions in this book, she’ll be changed forever. And I love that the romance, far from detracting from her development, adds depth to it. Seeing her situation, knowing it in all its intimate details, I understand why she turns to Darius; why there is such an appeal to her on loving and being loved by the monstruous, and the strengths it gives her in other parts of her life. Not one single person in the entire book thinks the two of them together is a good idea, and that, to me, it’s part of the appeal: the absolute defiance of it, and the freedom it can represent for Laila… for now.

The other characters in the ensemble are not far behind on the development department, or any other. Characters already present in the first book, like Amira (Laila’s mother) and Lyra (her lionheart, her friend, her past lover) are pushed to the limit, as is their relationship with Laila, in complex ways I rarely get to enjoy among female characters. Let alone having so much care and attention destined to them, to the intricacies of their dynamics. There were other old favourites (and not so favourites!) that made their appearances to steer a lot of the exact kind of trouble (and fun) I want to see in my stories.

But the new additions are what has me most enamoured with this book. There’s Sabina, a young occasselle who doesn’t fit her society strict gender norms and struggles to navigate it; Elina, a medical practitioner in Soleterea that offers insight into that territory, and into the world of those human witches; or Sadik, the counterpoint to Elina and her tragic romance: a human man who, devoid of magic, has sook to obtain power in other ways.

Serafina, however, is the star among them. She’s Darius’s estranged mother, some whose presence still lingered despite her outward absence during the first book. She makes her first appearance in WWDTN, and she’s a hurricane that will leave nobody indifferent, inside or outside the story. Camilla Andrew dedicated a short novella to her origin story, “The Sanguine Sorceress”, which I heartly recommend to anyone who feels curious about her character. Or to those of us who appreciate morally ambiguous women and a good revenge tale.

And to conclude this review: I recommend “We Will Devour the Night” to those who enjoyed the first novel. For those who never read it, I’d recommend the whole series to anyone who gravitates towards luscious, descriptive prose; who appreciates a good doomed romance; and who craves more stories complex female characters and otherworldly, fantastical settings.

goodreads + storygraph

[waterfallofspace]

And Revenge Comes In More.

(Sequel to ‘Entertainment Comes In Many Forms’) 

The one in which G/ojo learns that N/anami is a lot more revenge driven then he had planned on. And enjoys every second of it~. Feat. Allergic/Induced G/ojo and snz!fucker slightly sadistic N/anami. Also known as: G/ojo tormented N/anami with his cold, so now N/anami is gonna torment him with some allergens. Technically this is a ‘sequel’ to my previous fic, but you don’t have to read that one to understand this! Mostly just context on why N/anami wants revenge. But the sneeze fun can be appreciated with or without reading it! (at least I hope haha~~) Also, I’m not the most comfortable (skill or knowledge wise) in writing deeply smutty things yet, so this miiiight be a bit of a tease as I didn’t write any actual full on stuff happening, so consider this a warning for that I guess!! I might do a third of this little series at some point where it goes all the way, but I have no plans just yet, still not sure of that kind of writing style for myself!  Aaaaaaand yes, this is another fic, I have a problem, but I guess worst case no one sees it and I got to have fun writing something I enjoy, so hey, hope y’all don’t mind!! J/JK brainrot is just real and I can’t… I can’t get this out of my head…. hahaha~~ To anyone who bothers to read this, thank you! And I hope you enjoy~~ ((References to swearing, and snz!fucker play (slightly-over-the-borderline smut), in case anyone doesn’t like those))  Characters: G/ojo, N/anami, and N/anami’s sadistic side mixing with a snz!kink.  Word count: 3.2k

~~~~~~~ Gojo knows from the second he walks into the apartment, he’s in deeper trouble than he’d thought. See, about two weeks ago he’d tormented teased his dear boyfriend Nanami with a cold he’d caught. Nanami had told him about a certain… interest… of his. Namely, sneezing. And see, Gojo had a cold… so how could he not use this to his advantage? However, this was…. during a meeting… and Nanami, ever the stickler for things like “privacy” and “decency” was not the biggest fan of this little encounter. ‘Much as he may have enjoyed himself once we were alone’. Because of this, a week ago (after recovering from his illness) Gojo had offered a bit of retribution. His deal was an inducing session. No holds barred, anything goes, Nanami gets to induce him in any way he desires for the whole night, and… whatever that may lead to… will come with the territory. Gojo had assumed that Nanami would get a bit of sneezy fun, and then they’d move on. What Gojo hadn’t planned on was Nanami asking for a week to ‘prepare’. Hence, when he walks into the apartment and sees the tray of items sitting on their coffee table, draped in a sheet, he starts to realize that maybe he’s signed up for more than he bargained for. But upon seeing the look in Nanami’s eyes as he gestures for Gojo to sit on the couch, Gojo decides that he’s completely down for whatever may follow.  “Blindfold off.” Gojo smirks, this was one part he did see coming, especially since the only light currently on in the apartment was in the hallway. Nanami is well aware of how photic Gojo is. ‘Wasn’t even aware that sneezing from bright lights was called photic until I met him.’ he muses to himself, delicately removing the blindfold, and placing it in Nanami’s outstretched hand. Sure enough, the hall light is nowhere near bright enough to invoke a reaction. “Whenever you’re ready, Nanami dear.” Smug grin on his face, Gojo leans back, one leg crosses over the other, the picture of relaxation. All of this changes the second a smirk forms on Nanami’s face. ‘Well that look is deeply unsettling’ Gojo thinks, allowing his confidence to slip just a little. Nanami reaches under the sheet, careful to keep the rest hidden, and pulls out his first object, taking a seat on a chair next to the couch. “A flashlight? Starting pretty basic, aren’t we Nanami? If I’m honest, I expected more from you. With a week to prepare, bright light is what you came up with?” It’s a bluff and they both know it, Gojo’s well aware that bright light is only what they’re starting with, and that Nanami must be saving the best for last. “Close your eyes. You open them when I tell you to.” “Oh~ Bossy, aren’t we~? Power gone to your head, Nanami?”  Despite this, Gojo does as he’s told. While obedience isn’t something he’s known for, he did offer compliance, ‘though I never specified it would come without teasing~’ he allows, making sure to paint another shit-eating grin on his face. Gojo doesn’t need to see Nanami to know his eyes are glued to him, he can feel the lustful gaze burning into his skin. “Open your eyes now.” Gojo complies once more, surprise flooding his face as he feels something soft brush the tip of his nose. He barely has time to get his wrist in front of his nose before the sneezes burst out. “hept’ISHH’shiew-! ihh’kTSH’ue-! hAH’ASHH’iew-! hh’KTishhh’yuu-!”  Sniffling pathetically against his wrist, Gojo manages to lock his eyes onto the feather Nanami is twirling in his fingers, the flashlight sitting on the tray once more. Nanami meets his eyes, a mischief evident in them, suggesting this was always his plan. “Well well well, bit of a trickster today, I see. Proud of ourselves, aren’t we?”  “Bless you.” “Why thank you. Still polite as ever. Some things never change. Shall I expect blessings all night, then?” “I guess you’ll have to wait and see.” Gojo lets the smirk work its way over his face once more, lowering his wrist with one last snfff- not quite wet yet, but if this first fit was anything to go by, they were certainly going to get there.  “Feathers. Not exactly groundbreaking stuff. I do have quite the sensitive nose, but I’m not allergic, they’ll tickle just as much as anything soft would.” Nanami grins, a hand brushing his hair back. A gesture that to most, would seem quite common. But Gojo is not most. He recognizes the action for what it is; an act of pride in himself and his methods. A hint of worry seeps back into Gojo’s mind, ‘Just a feather alone wouldn’t bring this kind of confidence. Not to someone like Nanami. He wouldn’t feel this satisfied with just a mild sensitivity reaction.’  Sniffling again, Gojo notices, quite suddenly, that the tickle is still there. A slight buzzing at the back of his nose. ‘No, this is more than just a sensitivity, otherwise it would have stopped once I finished sneezing.’ “hhAH! Ahhh… What diihhhd… you do to it?” “You see,” Nanami starts, letting himself slip off the chair, and slide onto the couch next to Gojo. “It’s not just a feather. It’s a feather from our feather duster. And, well, it just so happens I had a bit of cleaning to do earlier.” “Hehhh…. ehh! hIH’kTSH’oo-! KISHH-ishh’oo-! hahh’DTSH’yuu-!  I should have gueehhh… g- guessssed- hehh…. hEH’DT-! guhhh… lost it.”  “Bless you.” “I cahhhn’t… Nanami… I… hehh… hIH! gotta… g-hahh gotta sneeze…!”  Gojo’s eyes are fluttering shut, a single tear running down his cheek as he hitches wildly, head tilting back. Nanami smirks, letting Gojo’s hand grab his and pull the feather up to his face. They both pause as he leaves it just out of reach of his nose, well aware of the unstated rule. ‘This is your turn, so unless you allow me, I can’t do it myself.’  Thankfully for Gojo, this is only act one of the revenge, and the torture isn’t meant to start just yet. Nanami moves the feather back to Gojo’s nose, gently tracing around one nostril, then the other, the light touch more than enough to send him over the edge. “Th- thankyou- hEH! hH’ESHH’oo-! hept’kiSHH’ieww-! mMMpfsshh’oo-!”  “Bless you.”  Just as he goes to open his eyes, Gojo finds himself squinting in the light, ducking back into his hands with another fit, this time the softer, ticklish type that he gets from photic fits. “ishh-! tishh’oo-! hh’ishh’shiew-! pshh’oo-! kshhh’iew-! hept’ktshh’ooo-! hEP’shhh-! Nngt-! hh’dNGt-! Nxxgt-!”  Fingers lightly pinch his nose as Gojo stifles the last few, a hint of mischief in his voice as he manages to stop the onslaught. Nanami leans back from where he had hit the light switch, a smirk dancing on his face, mischief matching Gojo’s in his own eyes. ‘God, he looks good like this.’ “I’ll admit, you got me with that one. Wasn’t expecting it in the slightest.” “That was the idea, yes. Bless you again, but don’t think you won’t pay for those stifles.” “Oh~?”  There’s a light sing-song tone in Gojo’s voice as he lets his eyes trace down Nanami’s body. The tremble in his knees doesn’t go unnoticed, and neither does the hunger in his eyes when Gojo’s beautiful, albeit watery, blues meet them once more. Try as he might, Nanami was never able to hide his true intentions from Gojo. He’s always been able to read him like a book. ‘He’s holding out much better than I had thought, but there’s a slight shiver in his voice whenever he speaks. Guess even the most proper of us can’t hide every physical reaction.’  Nanami reaches over and wipes away a stray tear that had broken free from the ocean in Gojo’s eyes, ‘photic tickles do always come with watery eyes’ getting a warm smile in return. As much as he hates to admit it, Nanami was always captivated by the shimmering blue orbs, and the beauty that the glistening wetness brought to them was almost inhumane. Gojo uncrosses his legs, allowing them to slip further onto the couch as he lays back, giving Nanami the perfect position to slide in on top of him, hovering just above his hips, perched on his knees. Now angled over him, Nanami also has the perfect position to further torment Gojo’s nose. Reaching back under the sheet, Nanami pulls it off entirely, the smirk reforming once more as Gojo’s eyes go wide. A single flower of lavender sits on the tray, under a glass bowl. Gojo twitches even just looking at it, a knuckle raising to rub at his already itchy nose. As if just the sight of the blossom was enough to light the fire burning in his sinuses. “I know I said anything you want, but I wasn’t expecti-” “What, you thought I wasn’t going to use one of your most desperate allergens? I’m not a novice at this, Gojo.” “My sincerest apologies, Nanami. You’re qu- heH! quite right, I shouldn’t have underestimated you. Now are wehhehh… gonna get on with it?”  Simply lifting the bowl off it had spread the scent throughout the living room, Gojo’s nose responding in kind. A light snfff- escapes, a mistake, if the way his eyes flutter is any indication. Nanami lifts the blossom gently, Gojo leaning back until his head was on the pillow at the end of the couch, hands tucked at his sides, already bracing against the tickle he knew was coming. Kneeling over him, Nanami allows his hips to gently brush Gojo’s, not missing the gasp in his breath, or the lust filling his eyes. “hihh’KTSH’oo-! hePT’shiew-! nnGXt-!”  “Bless you. Stifling without your hands, impressive, but doesn’t earn you any points today.” “Worth a shot~. Are you plahhhhning to start the inducing any time s- hehhh! soon? My nose is alreahhhhhdy starting to ti… to tiihhhhckle! hEH’ISHH’yuu-! hH’MMFSH’oo-! dnXT’shoo-!”  There’s no response from Nanami, ‘Unless you count the way his whole body is practically trembling~. Or the chewing on his lip, ya know, I’m not even sure he realizes he’s doing that!’ but one isn’t needed. Instead, Nanami starts tracing the lavender around the base of Gojo’s chin, dragging it up his jawline, right up to the bridge of his nose. Gojo, for his part, starts hitching the second it touches his skin, as if the pollen is soaking through into his nose via osmosis. His eyes snap shut, the tickle swelling-  “Hehh… ahh! Ehhh… hihh-hEH! hEPT-” Just to have it crushed by Nanami’s firm grasp on his nose, pinching it shut. Gojo lets out a whine, nose practically trembling beneath the grasp. They pause like that for a second, Gojo managing to pry his eyes open long enough to see the desperate arousal painted clearly over Nanami’s face, before they crash shut again with another wave of hitching. Finally, the tickle dies down, and Gojo’s breathing evens out. “I thought the point was to make me sneeze, not stop me from sneezing?” “That is certainly a part of it, yes. But you were cruel, doing… that… in public, in a meeting no less, so this? This is going to be just as cruel.” “I never knew you had such a sadistic side, dear. I have to admit-” Gojo pauses, letting his eyes meet Nanami’s, lust burning through his own just as fierce as his boyfriends. “-It looks stunning on you.” Their mouths meet, Nanami gently biting Gojo’s lower lip, eliciting a moan in response, before it turns into a shaky inhale. Taking this cue, Nanami continues running the lavender down Gojo’s nose, right around the edge, tracing each pink and twitchy nostril. “hAHhh- I… I have…. I’mgonna… hehh!”  This time, instead of stopping the sneezes, Nanami lets the lavender rest just under Gojo’s nose, the blossoms gently touching the tip, before letting it slide all the way in. The reaction is instant, and he’s careful to keep the blossom in during the fit, prompting Gojo’s hands to grab Nanami’s hips to brace himself. “ISHH’oo-! hehh’TISHH’ooo-! hEPT’DTSHH’yuu-! eHKSHH’shiew-! nN’GSHH’uee-! hAHH… hehh! neH’KTSHU’yuu-! haAH’GNSHH’oo-!” Gojo manages to meet Nanami’s eyes through his watery gaze, noticing the way Nanami’s legs tremble, hips pressing against his, a moan forming in his own throat as one breaks free from the other man. Deciding to try to put on a bit of a show, Gojo attempts to speak through them, a slight flush filling Nanami’s face at the attempt. In response, Nanami’s hands twitch, moving the lavender still inside Gojo’s nose around, relighting the tickle with a passion. “Oh god Nanahhhmihhh- mM’PSHH’oo-! hEH’MFFSSHH’yuu-! It ti- ticklessobad… nnH’ZSHH’oo-! ZESHH’shiew-! I can’t stop… Ijustgotta- hePT’KESHH’yuu-!  hhAH’ASHH’ieww-!” Tears are fully running down his face by the end, his eyes watering so much he can barely see. Nanami gently places his lips on Gojo’s forehead, pulling the (now soaked) lavender out as the sneezing finally starts to taper off. He softly wipes the tears away, meeting Gojo’s bleary look with a deeply lustful one of his own. “Yo- heH’ISHH’shiew-! Ishh’oo-tishh’oo-! You see- hiHH! holdonnotdone…. hAH’ESHH’yuu-! ‘Scuse me! You seem to be enjoying the show.” There’s a teasing tone in his voice, but the soft blush settling over his cheeks has nothing to do with arousal. Instead, it blooms in response to the soft touch Nanami’s hands are giving him, brushing his hair out of his eyes, wiping the tears from his cheeks. A softness that Nanami is always capable of, but only Gojo ever truly gets to see. The blush spreading across Nanami, however, has everything to do with arousal. A feeling that it seems, he’s reached his limit on containing. Letting his hips fully rest against Gojo’s, he leans in, teeth meeting Gojo’s ear. Their breath catches at the same time, Nanami’s releasing in a moan against the flushed skin of Gojo’s neck, while Gojo releases his in the form of- “hH’hEPTShhh’ooo-! nGT-! hh’DTSH-! kNXT’shoo-! Ohgod- ashh’oo-! tishh’oo-ishh’iew-hAH’ZSHH’yuu-! Hehh…!” “B-bless you.” Nanami offers in the pause, he can only keep the whimper out of his voice for so long it seems. ‘It’s honestly impressive he held out this long’. In the pause, Nanami leans back up, mischief flooding his eyes as he waits for Gojo to start hitching in earnest, then pinches his nose shut right as the fit starts again. A desperate look is all Gojo can get in before the tickle takes over completely. “Nahhhnami whatareyou- nNGT-! DNNT-! GNXXT-! P- please I haahhhh-! hH’nGXT-! Knntt’shoo-! ehh’DXGT’shoo-! Nanami it- hAH’gehDNTT’shoo-! It’s just gonna- heH’XGT-! DTNNGT-! Nxxgt’shoo-! Gonna keep going if you don’t let me…. Letme…. Ihaveto… heH! hh’NXGT’shoo-!” Despite the pleading, and the desperately itchy look Gojo’s face has twisted itself into, they both know that if he actually wanted to, he could easily pry Nanami’s fingers off. However, Gojo keeps his hands pinned under his legs, not even attempting to raise them.  “Bless you. Use your words, Gojo. You’ve certainly never had a problem using them before.” “hEH! Nanami I have- ohgodnotagain hH’NXGT-! dgxnnt’shoo-! ktnXGT’shoo-! I have to sneeze-! nN’GTkk’shoo-!” “Bless you love. You seem to be doing just that. What is it exactly you’re asking for?” Gojo lets his mouth hang slightly open, though at this point, it’s not exactly a choice, he’s still human after all, he needs air. But the way he lets his tongue brush against his lips is entirely for the show. “Please let me release the sneehhh-! Sneezes.”  “Clear and concise. See, I knew you had it in you. You have permission.” With that, Nanami removes his fingers, and waits- And waits…?  “hEH-! Ahhh… hihhIH…. hEPT-!guhhhh…. Hehhh…”  Nanami feels his mouth run dry as Gojo’s breath catches, over and over, his pink nose twitching, not unlike a bunny. “nAhnami- god it… it tickles so… I can’t…. I just… hehh-! hAH! Guhhh… hehhh…huH-! HEPT-! Fucking hell… I just…”  Normally he’d receive a punishment for the swearing, but given the current situation, Nanami is feeling forgiving. Gojo’s entire body is starting to tremble with the desperation of his nose. Nanami bites his lip harder, body trembling for a whole different reason. Both of their eyes are glossed over, yet again, for different reasons. Running a hand through Gojo’s hair again, the moan coming from the blue-eyed-beauty only half from the tickle still tormenting him, Nanami leans forward once more, bringing his warm lips to Gojo’s flushed skin. His breath is hot on Gojo’s neck, his teeth sinking into the sensitive skin. A moan falls from Gojo’s mouth as Nanami lets his lips touch his ear. “Nahhnami… I… Ihaveto- hehh! to sneehhhh- sneeze-!” The response that creeps out from Nanami’s mouth is as much a moan as a command. “Beg me for it, Satoru.”  A playful smirk briefly flashes across Gojo’s face, before he lets his eyes flutter closed once more. He allows his breath to hitch for a minute, savouring the way Nanami’s hips grind against him, before forcing his voice back out, not even needing to exaggerate the whining tone. “P- pleaahhh… please… hehhh! hAHH!… please Kento, let me sneeze~! I… I need to so-heHH! so bad….” With that, Nanami leans in, letting their lips meet, hungry and trembling. Gojo gasps against the feeling, pulling back to suck in a deep breath, before pulling Nanami back into it with just as much hunger. They stay like that for a moment, caught in a battle of wills and tongues, before finally, Nanami lets his nose brush against Gojo’s. Shivers shoot down both of their spines, moans spilling out of them in harmony as Gojo rears his head back, having only enough time to duck his head into Nanami’s chest before the long-denied sneezes take their revenge. “Th-thankyou- hAH’heTscH’oo-! hH’ZSCHH’yuu-! Hehh… hah’ketCHH’ooo-! mMpSHH’oo-! nN’KTSHH’yuu-! hePT’ISHH’iew-! mMFFSHH’iew-! hAH’RASHH’uue-! Oh that one was looudd-heH’KSHH’ooo-!” With a brief break, Gojo gasps, letting some air fill his lungs again as the tickle fills his nose. Nanami reaches over to the table, grabbing a handful of tissues, and pressing them to Gojo’s nose as the next wave of sneezes overtakes him. “iSHh’oo-! heH’tiSH’oo-! ASHH’iew-! nN’hetCH’yuu-! mmSHH’oo-! MMPSHH’oo-! heH’mPFShh’iew-!”  “Bless you, Satoru. Blow, while you can.” Gojo does he’s told, letting a harsh blow out, pausing for a few sneezes to slip through- “hEH’ktSHH’oo-! ashh’ieww-! hH’ESHH’oo-!” “Bless you. Again.” He follows the command willingly yet again, knowing he couldn’t resist if he wanted to. After another blow, Nanami switches out the tissues for clean ones, gently cleaning up Gojo’s nose. The feather-light touch of his fingers through the tissues is enough to prompt another small fit from Gojo, which he catches, planting a light kiss on his forehead. “Ishh’oo-! Tishh’oo-! heH’ketshh’iew-! hAH’ashHH’iew-! ishh-tishh’oo-heH’ISHH’yuu-!” “Bless you, love.” “Thank you.” Nanami sits back, letting Gojo sit up fully. Both men are panting, a fierce hunger still burning in their eyes. Gojo lets his hand slide around Nanami’s hips, pulling him in for another deep kiss, this time he nibbles on Nanami’s lip, a light chuckle breaking the kiss at the way Nanami whimpers. “Shall we finish this in the bedroom, Nanami~?”  There’s no answer. There doesn’t need to be. The way he grips Gojo’s arm is answer enough, pulling him up off the couch. They both take a pause to breathe, before they start laughing like teenagers again, a contest to see who can get to the bedroom faster is initiated without words. They never did need words, they have something far deeper. Something that nothing on heaven or earth could ever take away from them. Something true to their very souls. 

[paimonial-rage]

follow the wind ii- kazuha

ship: kazuha x reader

synopsis: in which he finally relents

notes: sequel to follow the wind i; please read the prequel before this fic

Hey First!

It’s been a while! I’m not sure if you remember me, but I’m the one that visited with Kazu that one time, Tomo! I was the one that suggested to auntie that she start roasting her seaweed as a snack. Kazu told me you have a penchant for glaring, but man, I thought you were going to burn a hole through me when we first met! I was so sure you hated me that I really didn’t expect you to cry the day we left! Oh, I mean, that something would “fly into your eye” the exact moment we headed out.

Before you start worrying, Kazu is alright. While the Vision Hunt Decree caught us all by surprise, we both have found places to shelter us for the time being. Kazu has been worried about you two, though he’s trying his best not to show it. I kept telling him to visit, but he doesn’t want to put you both at risk.

Speaking of which, can I be honest with you a bit? Back on that trip I first met you on the night Kazu turned in early, you mentioned you didn’t think he cared much about you. That he still saw you as an annoying kid that attended his family’s dojo. I think deep down you know that isn’t true. Kazu may keep his distance (which I told him is stupid), but he cares about you more than you’ll ever know. Everyone in his life comes and goes, but he keeps returning to you. Just think a bit about what that means, okay?

Anyway, how has it been in the city? I’ve heard there’s been much unrest. A few people even lost their lives trying to protect their visions. Are you able to get food? The Tenryou Commission thugs aren’t making things difficult for you two, right? If things get too bad, visit the Yashiro Commission. Give them my name and they’ll take care of you both.

Now you must be wondering why I’ve written you. Well, I may have challenged someone to a foolish duel. If things go south, I will need you to do something for me. If I lose, Kazuha will be in danger. He will be deep within enemy territory. I need someone to lead him out. However, if you help me, you and your mother will be put in danger as well. If that’s too much of a risk, burn this letter now. If not, here’s what I need you to do…

—-

The severed blade clattered to the stone floor of Tenshukaku as the dimming vision of his dear friend rolled to a stop a few feet away. He was too late. The duel was over and the divine punishment was dutifully executed. He should feel fine with it. This is what Tomo wanted. One does not question where the wind leads, but accepts its will with grace. And yet… why did it feel so wrong?

His body reacted before his mind did, and before he knew it, he was fleeing with his friend’s dull vision in hand. Rain whipped through his hair as he raced down the hills surrounding Inazuma City. He had no clue what exactly he was doing or where he was going, though in the back of his mind, he was thankful for the archon’s blessing of an anemo vision. The Shogunate soldiers were at least twenty paces behind him, and if he kept it up, it wouldn’t be long until he was in the clear.

At least that’s what he thought until the thundering boom of the taiko drums reverberated from behind. Each strike was like a heartbeat counting down to his demise. And only to solidify that premonition was the sight of quickly gathering soldiers at the entrance of the city. But when he leapt over the water wheel in an attempt to change course, something rammed him and backwards he fell into the water.

Panic overtook him when arms pulled him under the walkway. His flailing and desperation to reach for his sword only made the culprit’s grip tighter. It was only when the soft shushing over the howling of the wind met his ears. Then came his name once, then twice. The familiarity within it willed his muscles to still before his mind could, and the grip holding him relaxed. But just as he began to calm, another emotion took its place.

He spun around in your grasp to clamp his hands around your shoulders. Your eyes widened in shock at the abruptness of his movements and you looked different than usual, but he couldn’t bring himself to care about those things.

“First, why– what in the world are you doing here!?” He hissed. “How did you even– do you realize how dangerous this is!?”

He couldn’t blame you for simply gaping at him for a few moments. Never before had he snapped at you like this, but it didn’t take you long to push him back, hands shaking in fury.

“Do you!?” You growled back, your hands gripping his collar tightly. “Why did you come back here? Who cares if your friend made some stupid duel before the Shogun, don’t you realize how dangerous Inazuma City is right now? Do you want to be killed too, Kazuha!?”

Your voice cracked as your last sentence left your lips. You turned away, gritting your teeth. So you knew. You knew what happened to Tomo.

“You’re so stupid, the both of you.”

He reached out to you before he could stop himself and drew you close. You were always such a crybaby. You were the only person that would shed tears over someone you only met once.

“I’m sorry,” he replied.

Though you stiffened at his admittance, you soon melted against him as a sob tore itself from your lips. How many times did he do this to you, he wondered. Made you cry? All you ever wanted was to keep the things and people you loved safe, but he couldn’t do that for you. How hard you tried chasing after him, but he refused to let you stay by his side. It was a wonder why you kept trying even after all of these years.

“Did you see where he went? Scope the area!”

You both froze at the sound of voices and footsteps overhead. Pressed against each other, you both didn’t even dare so as to breathe until they left.

You pulled back and clasped your hands over his shoulders.

“You must stay here, okay? Only leave when night falls. Head to the beach outside of Kondo Village. Someone will be waiting for you there.”

He frowned.

“What do you–”

Then he finally noticed it. It wasn’t the reflection of the water, your hair was dyed white. And your clothes. Were they the set of his your mother always kept on hand? But you pulled back before he could think anymore.

“Remember, Kondo Village tonight. They’ll keep you safe.”

With each word, you backed out a step into the opening. But his hand took yours.

“What are you talking about!? You can’t. It’s dangerous.”

But you smiled.

“It’ll be okay. Tomo planned this out. I’ll be fine.”

He shook his head.

“No, I can’t. I can’t let you–”

But you pulled your hand from his.

“No. I will do this for you. You can’t stop me.”

Your fiery eyes pierced through him, freezing him still. He hated them in that moment. You were right. Your heart was set. If he stopped you now, he would dishonor your resolve. He’d ruin any last shred of loyalty you had for him. But…

He looked away, gritting his teeth at the bitter distaste upon his tongue. How long had he tried stopping you from following in his footsteps? How long had he tried to keep you safe? You were the only thing in his life that stayed the same. You were the only thing he could come home to. But the control he had over you held no longer. You were to be risking your life for him whether he wanted you to or not.

Whether he may lose two friends within a single day or not.

He didn’t want to say it.

“Be safe.”

But he had to.

“Please.”

Guilt crawled in his chest at the way your eyes blown wide toward his willingness to relent. How many times did he say no to you that you had it set in your mind his answer would be the same? But the expression that took hold next wasn’t resentment, nor bitterness as he expected. No, for what seemed like the first time in his life, you were smiling.

He saw it in your eyes—the relief, the joy, the giddiness. For the first time in your life, he accepted you to stand at his side. For the first time in your life, he let you be his equal. He wasn’t rejecting you, but relying on you to keep him safe. And your heart couldn’t take it. He always knew it. You loved him so much.

So he couldn’t stop it, not when you stepped close, not when you wrapped your arms around his neck, not when you kissed him so sweetly. You couldn’t get enough, and neither could he. But you both knew you couldn’t delay any longer. So when you finally pulled back and rested your forehead against his, you hugged him close.

“Be safe, okay? I’ll see you again, I promise.”

And then you pulled away and ran off, for the first time, from him.

[agentnico]

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024) review

Apes without Caesar are not strong!

Plot: Many years after the reign of Caesar, a young ape goes on a journey that will lead him to question everything he's been taught about the past and make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike.

The Planet of the Apes reboot trilogy is genuinely a solid collection of well made films. Rise, Dawn and War of the Planet of the Apes are a perfect example of how tell an enticing science fiction story, with truly incredible life-like visuals and really thought provoking. And of course Andy Serkis’ lead mo-cap performance of the ape Caesar is truly phenomenal and his messiah-reflective character arc is really investing to behold. Mind you these films put Matt Reeves and Michael Giacchino on the map - one a successful director and another an accomplished film composer. That being said, War for the Planet of the Apes felt like a proper finale to the Caesar story, and though it did leave room for possible continuation, I felt satisfied with the way it ended. But naturally these films are money-makers so it was only a matter of time before the Hollywood sequel machine did its thing and another movie came to me. Enter Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

Brought to us by Wes Ball, who’s most known for directing those Maze Runner films, arguably the last of the 2010’s YA movie trend. And like the Maze Runner movies are fine. They were okay for what they were but nothing special, and nothing that gave indication that Wes Ball was gonna be the next big thing. And with Kingdom, though there are some wonderful shifts and the apes design by Weta once again is a stand-out, this movie’s look didn’t impress me as much as the previous films. Again, solid visuals, but not groundbreaking. With the Andy Serkis apes movies, every new entry of that trilogy felt like a step-up visually from the previous, with War honestly looking scarily realistic, making me wonder if Serkis simply underwent heavy surgery to make himself look like an ape. You know, similar to that young Frenchman on Instagram who went viral for undergoing extreme body modification procedures to make himself look like an alien. Honestly, I’m not even kidding, this guy exists - look it up! Regardless, in Kingdom we don’t see that visual progression. Again it looks good, but it didn’t flabbergast me in its realism.

Biggest issue though is the script. The first half of this movie truly was boring! The pacing was off, and aside from the main new hero ape all the characters weren’t at all that interesting and there’s no one I cared about. As for the story itself, it feels like a lesser retread of the same ideas and themes of the previous trilogy. There's nothing really new here. You've already seen a better version of this movie before. The second half does ramp it up a little and there’s a little more energy and a sense of direction, but again it feels like walking on familiar territory. The main antagonist could have been really cool, played by the way by that buff Elon Musk lookalike who was in Abigail earlier this year. The idea of a cult-like warlord obsessed with human history, there's so much they could have done with that idea. But he simply doesn't have enough scenes to really make him anything more than Koba Part II. And Koba had better motivations and more complexity.

Oh, and the music score is pretty generic and forgettable. Really disappointing, because I loved the music from the other movies. Caesar's theme is so good. Nothing here comes close. I’m not going to lie Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes does not inspire confidence in these movies continuing without Caesar’s presence. I mean his shadow is all over this movie, but it only makes you miss the times he was there. This isn’t necessarily a bad movie, it’s just a massive downgrade from what this franchise used to achieve. Oh, and by the way the deus ex machina eagles from Lord of the Rings have come over to the apes to save the day this time, and look I’m the last person to bash on Lord of the Rings, but those eagles just swooping in to save the characters whenever Tolkien got stuck out of ideas was the one ultimate convenient get-out-of-jail-free card and it’s not something I wished for other franchises to copy. So shame on you Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, shame on you!

Overall score: 4/10

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

The Weird History of Western Animated Movie Sequels

This is a rewrite of sorts of a history post I did on theatrical animated movie sequels in the West (largely the U.S.) a few years ago, and how weird it is... How we went from a handful of sequels over the course of three decades to an *explosion* in them... I'll collect all this fun stuff in a timeline of sorts.

(This list will mainly focus on traditional sequels, not so much films sharing similar themes and FANTASIA being planned as an ever-updating anthology w/ every re-release had it done well initially. And also, theatrical sequels. With the exception of movies re-routed to streaming because of COVID-19. That sorta thing, ya know?)

Late 1930s-Mid 1940s: Walt Disney and his studio entertain the idea of sequels to SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS and BAMBI, titled SNOW WHITE RETURNS and BAMBI'S CHILDREN. Nothing comes of them. If FANTASIA is to be successful, Walt's plan for the film is to update it every couple of years, taking some segments out and replacing them with new ones. And repeating that once more. FANTASIA bombs at the box office upon general wide release in early 1942, so the plans fall through. A feature film BONGO is developed at the beginning of the decade, and at one point it is suggested to be set in the same universe as DUMBO and would feature characters from that film. BONGO eventually became a much pared-down segment of the package film FUN & FANCY FREE in 1947.

1942-1944: Disney and their distributor RKO Radio Pictures release two anthology "package" features, SALUDOS AMIGOS and THE THREE CABALLEROS. During World War II, Nazi influence began to take shape in Central and South America. American filmmakers, including Walt Disney and a select team of his artists, traveled south in part of a larger government strategy to strengthen goodwill between the U.S. and Central/South America. SALUDOS and CABALLEROS are thus "goodwill" pictures, formed up of multiple segments themed around those territories. Both of them feature Donald Duck and Jose Carioca. Because of this, CABALLEROS could be viewed as a "sequel" of sorts to SALUDOS.

April 1946: Disney and their distributor RKO premiere MAKE MINE MUSIC, an anthology of musical segments not dissimilar to FANTASIA. The picture goes into general release in August.

May 1948: Disney and RKO release MELODY TIME, another musical anthology film. The film notably features both Donald Duck and Jose Carioca in a segment called 'Blame It On the Samba', reprising their roles from SALUDOS AMIGOS and THE THREE CABALLEROS. The Aracuan Bird from CABALLEROS also appears during this segment. Like MAKE MINE MUSIC, these two films can be seen as an extension of the FANTASIA concept, and MELODY TIME could be seen as a sequel of sorts of MAKE MINE MUSIC. The Disney company never considered any of these films to be "sequels", at least in a more traditional sense.

We have a long gap here because Walt Disney Productions was the only animation studio in America that was making feature films, and there were plenty of times where they could've ceased doing just that. Couple that with Walt's general hesitance to make sequels, and thus there weren't any animated feature sequels made from the 1950s to the end of the 1960s... Other animation studios in America had attempted to make features, but never got past a small number of them. The Fleischer studio made both GULLIVER'S TRAVELS and MR. BUG GOES TO TOWN in 1939 and 1941 respectively, and their studio was shuttered shortly after BUG's quiet and brief general release rollout in early 1942. The UPA tried their hand at animated features, but only got around to making two, 1001 ARABIAN NIGHTS and GAY PURR-EE.

By the 1960s, more animation studios were making feature-length productions, such as Hanna-Barbera and Rankin/Bass. By 1970, there was at least one new movie from an American house every two-or-so years. A good chunk of them were also based on hit TV shows or well-known properties. Hanna-Barbera did features based on THE YOGI BEAR SHOW and THE FLINTSTONES, there was also a PEANUTS-based movie called A BOY NAMED CHARLIE BROWN. Ralph Bakshi shook up the animation world with his adult independent feature FRITZ THE CAT in early 1972.

A BOY NAMED CHARLIE BROWN and FRITZ THE CAT would be the first American animated movie sequels to get theatrical sequels...

August 1972: PEANUTS movie SNOOPY COME HOME!, a follow-up to A BOY NAMED CHARLIE BROWN involving much of the same key crew (such as director Bill Melendez and producer Lee Mendelson), is released by National General Pictures to poor box office.

June 1974: THE NINE LIVES OF FRITZ THE CAT, a sequel to Ralph Bakshi's FRITZ THE CAT that didn't involve Bakshi, is released by American International Pictures and doesn't repeat the success of the first movie.

August 1977: RACE FOR YOUR LIFE, CHARLIE BROWN is released by Paramount, and doesn't make much of a mark at the box office.

Late 1970s: Despite the success of Ralph Bakshi's rotoscoped THE LORD OF THE RINGS in the fall of 1978, a follow-up is considered but does not materialize due to funding issues.

May 1980: BON VOYAGE, CHARLIE BROWN (AND DON'T COME BACK!!) is released by Paramount to weak box office.

1984-86: After much turmoil, the Disney enterprise sees a major corporate shakeup. Outsider executives Michael Eisner and Frank Wells become CEO and President of the newly-christened The Walt Disney Company, respectively. Upending the old tradition of not making feature sequels, Michael Eisner and the new executives ask the staff of the animation studio what their highest grossing feature was to date. When revealed that it was THE RESCUERS, a sequel to the film is greenlit.

March 1986: A fast-tracked sequel to 1985's THE CARE BEARS MOVIE is released, and only makes a fraction of what the first film - a minor hit in its own right - took in.

August 1987: A third Care Bears movie, THE CARE BEARS ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND, is released to equally unremarkable box office.

1988-89: Following the record-breaking, game-changing success of ex-Disney animator Don Bluth's Steven Spielberg-produced AN AMERICAN TAIL in 1986, a sequel is put in development, with Bluth initially tapped to helm. Bluth later broke ties with Spielberg over creative differences, and following the runaway success of WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT, Steven Spielberg would set up a new animation studio called Amblimation. They took over the film.

November 1990: THE RESCUERS DOWN UNDER is released to mixed critical reception and weak box office. Within weeks of release, Disney chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg has all the marketing for the film pulled.

May 1991: Computer animation studio Pixar enters a feature film deal with The Walt Disney Company. This three-picture deal, which would later be expanded, stipulates that NO sequels be pitched. Every film pitched by Pixar for this contract is to be an ORIGINAL film, for the sole purpose of introducing new worlds/characters for the company's theme parks and consumer products divisions.

November 1991: Universal releases AN AMERICAN TAIL: FIEVEL GOES WEST, the same weekend as Disney's BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. The film flops at the box office.

Mid 1991-Early 1992: Walt Disney Home Video initially refuses, at Roy E. Disney's behest, to release FANTASIA on video formats following its 1990 theatrical re-release. Michael Eisner makes a deal with Roy: Release FANTASIA on video, and a follow-up to FANTASIA will be greenlit. FANTASIA is released in November and pulled by January 1992, selling a record-breaking 14 million units. FANTASIA CONTINUED is greenlit.

Mid 1994: Following the success of THE RETURN OF JAFAR, which was essentially an hour-long direct-to-video pilot for the ALADDIN TV series, Disney Feature Animation does not pursue making theatrical sequels to their animated features. The only exception being FANTASIA CONTINUED, which is Roy E. Disney's pet project. All other sequels are to be outsourced productions, and are produced exclusively for the home video market.

March 1996: A sequel to Don Bluth's ALL DOGS GO TO HEAVEN, which didn't involve Bluth much like FIEVEL GOES WEST didn't, is released to poor box office.

Early-Mid 1996: Following the success of Pixar's debut feature, TOY STORY, Disney immediately commissions a direct-to-video sequel that is to be made by "B-team" of sorts at a satellite studio, while work on A BUG'S LIFE takes place at Pixar's main building in Point Richmond. (This was before they moved to Emeryville.)

July 1997: Legacy Releasing released a sequel to THE SWAN PRINCESS, titled THE SWAN PRINCESS: ESCAPE FROM CASTLE MOUNTAIN, to virtually nonexistent box office grosses.

February 1998: TOY STORY 2 is changed from direct-to-video project to theatrical feature film, though it will not count as part of Pixar's then extended film deal with The Walt Disney Company. That very contract mandated that all of Pixar's productions be original features, or else they wll NOT count as part of the deal. Pixar and the Disney company also enter a gentleman's agreement, in that Disney will not push sequels to Pixar films *without* Pixar's permission.

Early 1999: TOY STORY 2 is taken over by the staff at the main Pixar building due to concerns over the quality of the story. The film is significantly revised, with the release date mere months away.

November 1999: TOY STORY 2 is released, and becomes the first animated movie sequel to outgross its predecessor at the box office. Despite the film's success, and despite the considerable stress the production was, Michael Eisner refuses to count it as part of the deal. Pixar owner Steve Jobs strongly feels that TOY STORY 2 should count.

January 2000: On New Year's Day of the new millennium, Roy E. Disney's FANTASIA follow-up FANTASIA 2000 goes into IMAX-exclusive release after a world premiere the previous month.

February 2000: Disney makes the unorthodox decision to release THE TIGGER MOVIE in theaters, a production made by the satellite units that otherwise would've gone straight to video. The film is a financial success.

June 2000: FANTASIA 2000 goes into general release. The film does not recoup its costs at the box office, and is generally a dud with audiences.

Around Early-To-Mid 2000: Despite the contractual agita over TOY STORY 2, Pixar is keen to do a TOY STORY 3. However, it is not greenlit by Disney.

November 2000: Paramount releases a sequel to their Nickelodeon-based hit from 1998, THE RUGRATS MOVIE. While RUGRATS IN PARIS does not make as much money as the first movie, it is still a financial success.

Early-To-Mid 2001: DreamWorks, who are about to release SHREK, are already at work on a sequel. When SHREK defies its pre-release odds and becomes a box office smash upon its May release, the sequel goes full-steam ahead. Unlike Disney Animation, whose sequels are farmed-out straight-to-video endeavors, and unlike Pixar who can't make another sequel per their contract with Disney, DreamWorks has none of this baggage and goes right ahead with a SHREK sequel.

February 2002: Disney releases another satellite production, PETER PAN sequel RETURN TO NEVER LAND, theatrically. The film is a box office success.

June 2002: Following the success of the Blue Sky production ICE AGE, released by 20th Century Fox, work is already underway on a sequel. Much like DreamWorks, they too don't have the baggage Disney Animation and Pixar have concerning sequels.

February 2003: Disney releases satellite production THE JUNGLE BOOK 2 theatrically, another financial success.

March 2003: Disney releases satellite production PIGLET'S BIG MOVIE to theaters. Costing double that of RETURN TO NEVER LAND and JUNGLE BOOK 2, the film is a box office flop.

July 2003: RUGRATS GO WILD, the third RUGRATS movie and something of a sequel to THE WILD THORNBERRYS MOVIE, is released by Paramount to poor box office.

Early-To-Mid 2004: Friction develops between The Walt Disney Company and Pixar, making a split between the two seem likely. Per the contract, Disney has first rights to the studio's animated movies that made up the extended film deal. (Everything from TOY STORY to a then-forthcoming THE INCREDIBLES and CARS) If Pixar were to break off from the Disney company, Disney could feasibly make sequels to their films without them involved... And Michael Eisner took full advantage, going back on the gentleman's agreement between the two parties. Disney launches Circle 7 Animation, a CG studio meant to make these Pixar-less sequels. Work commences on TOY STORY 3, MONSTERS, INC. 2: LOST IN SCARADISE, and FINDING NEMO 2. It's largely a hardball tactic to get Pixar to renegotiate and extend their film deal.

May 2004: DreamWorks releases SHREK 2 to record-breaking box office... This is where the game is truly changed... DreamWorks has three more SHREK movies lined up (the first of which aiming for a summer 2006 release), in addition to a direct-to-video prequel about the film's breakout character Puss In Boots.

February 2005: Disney releases one last satellite production to theaters, POOH'S HEFFALUMP MOVIE. Costing half of what PIGLET'S BIG MOVIE cost, it does alright at the box office.

Mid-To-Late 2005: DreamWorks sees another box office success in MADAGASCAR, and greenlights a sequel. This makes it the second ever DreamWorks movie to get a theatrical sequel. (Oddly, SHARK TALE from the year before, despite being a box office success and Oscar nominee, doesn't get a sequel.)

September 2005: After a campaign ran from the outside by Roy E. Disney, Michael Eisner resigns as the CEO of The Walt Disney Company. His successor, Bob Iger, seeks to renegotiate fairly with Pixar. Pixar's final film for the original contract, CARS, is less than a year away from release.

January 2006: In a historic move, The Walt Disney Company announces a $7.4 billion acquisition of Pixar.

March 2006: 20th Century Fox releases ICE AGE: THE MELTDOWN to great box office. Another film is on the way.

Early-To-Mid 2006: Following the announcement of Disney's purchase of Pixar, Pixar regains control of sequel production. Circle 7 Animation is shut down, and Pixar immediately begins work on *their* TOY STORY 3 for a 2009 release. Since a MONSTERS, INC. sequel and a FINDING NEMO sequel got to the script stage, Pixar eventually has to make their sequels to override those. A MONSTERS, INC. follow-up quietly begins development around this time as well. In addition to all of this, Pixar head John Lasseter takes over Disneytoon Studios and shuts down all traditionally-animated direct-to-video Disney sequels. This indicates that a future Walt Disney Feature Animation production, now named Walt Disney Animation Studios, will get a theatrical sequel if it's a box office success.

November 2006: HAPPY FEET, released by Warner Bros., is the biggest of the non-Disney/Pixar/DreamWorks/Blue Sky movies of the year and up until that point. Makes a big splash. Sequel likely.

May 2007: SHREK THE THIRD opens and is another blockbuster for DreamWorks.

January 2008: A rather unorthodox development, Big Idea makes a theatrical sequel to JONAH: A VEGGIETALES MOVIE, with THE PIRATES WHO DON'T DO ANYTHING. Universal distributes. It flops upon release.

April 2008: Two years into The Walt Disney Company's ownership of Pixar, a massive movie slate with Disney Animation, Pixar, and Disneytoon productions is unveiled. The game plan is the first announcement of a CARS sequel. This makes CARS the second-ever Pixar film to get a sequel. At the time, this movie is penciled in for a summer 2012 debut. TOY STORY 3 has also moved back a year, to 2010.

Mid-To-Late 2008: DreamWorks sees a new breakout hit with KUNG FU PANDA in the summer, and a sequel success with MADAGASCAR: ESCAPE 2 AFRICA.

July 2009: ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS is released by 20th Century Fox, and scores excellently at the box office.

September 2009: Three features in, relative newcomer Sony Pictures Animation scores a good-sized hit with CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS. A sequel is planned thereafter...

So now... We see where it all waxes... With that, we'll just look at things year by year...

2010: TOY STORY 3 is released and becomes the highest grossing animated feature of all-time. Earlier in the year, Pixar confirms that they are in production of a MONSTERS, INC. follow-up. DreamWorks sees another breakout hit with HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON, a sequel is also imminent. Newcomer Illumination scores big with DESPICABLE ME, a sequel is also inevitable. DreamWorks scores another hit with SHREK FOREVER AFTER.

2011: It's a sequel/franchise film explosion, kinda unprecedented in feature animation up until this point... KUNG FU PANDA 2, CARS 2, and PUSS IN BOOTS all come out this year and make big money. Disney Animation makes a 2D animated WINNIE THE POOH, but it is sadly a box office bomb. HAPPY FEET TWO, from Warner Bros., also bombs. HOODWINKED TOO! HOOD VS. EVIL is belatedly released this year, it is also a money-loser. New films make a splash and are to get sequels.

2012: Two sequels this year, the highly successful MADAGASCAR 3: EUROPE'S MOST WANTED and ICE AGE: CONTINENTAL DRIFT. Disney Animation, after years of misses and mulligans (TANGLED didn't really make much of a profit theatrically, but was a very popular film), notably scores a profitable hit with WRECK-IT RALPH, a sequel slowly begins development.

2013: Plenty of follow-ups here, with MONSTERS UNIVERSITY, DESPICABLE ME 2, THE SMURFS 2, CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS 2, and CARS spin-off PLANES (produced at Disneytoon and not Pixar). The majority of them do pretty good at the box office, some of them *very* good. DESPICABLE ME 2 is named by Universal as their most profitable film ever released, to date.

2014: This year saw the releases of RIO 2, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON 2 and PLANES: FIRE & RESCUE. MADAGASCAR spin-off PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR is deemed a disappointment by DreamWorks, leading to company-wide ramifications.

2015: DESPICABLE ME spin-off MINIONS debuts and is a rare animated feature to cross a billion worldwide, with only TOY STORY 3 and FROZEN having previously done that. Elsewhere, HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 2 and THE SPONGEBOB MOVIE: SPONGE OUT OF WATER - a belated sequel to THE SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS MOVIE from 2004 - are released and also do well. Notably, Disney Animation announces FROZEN II this year. The first of the post-Eisner animated features to get a follow-up announced, though the WRECK-IT RALPH sequel - announced a year later - opened before it.

2016: KUNG FU PANDA 3, FINDING DORY, and ICE AGE: COLLISION COURSE are released this year. The fifth ICE AGE movie does fine, but not well enough to lead to a sixth film. A CG remake of Disney's 1967 THE JUNGLE BOOK - with a single real-life actor - is released this year to massive box office.

2017: THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE, spin-off of 2014's THE LEGO MOVIE, debuts this year and does well. The other LEGO spin-off, THE LEGO NINJAGO MOVIE, doesn't. Elsewhere, CARS 3 does okay at the box office, DESPICABLE ME 3 breaks the billion, and Sony reboots the Smurfs movies with an all-animated film SMURFS: THE LOST VILLAGE. They deem the film a box office disappointment. THE NUT JOB 2: NUTTY BY NATURE, a sequel to the 2014 ToonBox-produced movie, debuts to muted numbers.

2018: Big year for sequels: Billion-dollar smash INCREDIBLES 2, big hits HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 3 and RALPH BREAKS THE INTERNET, and... Belated flop sequel to 2011's GNOMEO & JULIET, SHERLOCK GNOMES.

2019: Two Disney smashes in TOY STORY 4, the 99.99% CGI LION KING remake, and FROZEN II, though Universal's THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS 2 doesn't make half of what the breakout 2016 original made. HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: THE HIDDEN WORLD does fine, while THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE 2 and THE LEGO MOVIE 2: THE SECOND PART underperform.

2020: COVID-19 impacts the theatrical market, re-routing many films to streaming. TROLLS WORLD TOUR and THE CROODS: A NEW AGE debut this year, ditto a U.S. release of Aardman's first-ever movie sequel, FARMAGEDDON: A SHAUN THE SHEEP MOVIE. A third SPONGEBOB movie, SPONGE ON THE RUN, rolls out internationally before a quiet U.S. debut in the next year.

2021: The theatrical market slowly crawls back upon the unrolling of COVID-19 vaccines. Sequels this year include SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY, THE BOSS BABY: FAMILY BUSINESS, THE ADDAMS FAMILY 2, SING 2, and the unusual SPIRIT: UNTAMED: A follow-up to a TV series that was a follow-up to a flop DreamWorks movie.

2022: HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA: TRANSFORMANIA, TOY STORY spin-off LIGHTYEAR, MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU, and PUSS IN BOOTS: THE LAST WISH make up this year, as we all know.

Last year: SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE, PAW PATROL: THE MIGHTY MOVIE, TROLLS BAND TOGETHER, and - notably - straight-to-streaming Aardman sequel CHICKEN RUN: DAWN OF THE NUGGET that still was theatrical-caliber.

This year: KUNG FU PANDA 4, INSIDE OUT 2, DESPICABLE ME 4, MOANA 2, MUFASA: THE LION KING, WALLACE & GROMIT: VENGEANCE MOST FOWL...

Next year: THE BAD GUYS 2, ZOOTOPIA 2, THE SPONGEBOB MOVIE: SEARCH FOR SQUAREPANTS, PLANKTON: THE MOVIE

2026: UNTITLED MARIO FILM, TOY STORY 5, SHREK 5, PAW PATROL 3, MUTANT MAYHEM 2

2027: MINIONS 3, FROZEN III

Also on the horizon: SPIDER-MAN: BEYOND THE SPIDER-VERSE, INCREDIBLES 3, THE BOSS BABY 3, a third LEGO MOVIE, THE SEA BEAST 2, SECRET LIFE OF PETS 3, SING 3, a PEANUTS MOVIE sequel, and probably many more I'm forgetting at the moment...

Basically, the major cracks in the dam were TOY STORY 2, SHREK 2, and ICE AGE 2... Making sequels to animated movies was for a long time not ideal, getting an animated feature out period was at one point a gamble. (Still is, but not like it was many decades ago.) But yeah, a lot was at play for a while and then after it all blew up... Yeah, that's why there are so many of them.

[deviantartdramahub]

It got so bad that he very much has said 'he is moving on from me' more than once only to talk about me, oh yeah I guess the 'Nathan Document' was a lie because he clearly did not mean it. Oh well, if he doesn't move on, at least we know we aren't likely to get a 'Nathan Document 2: The Sequel' 'Nathan Document 3: The Sequel That Isn't As Good As The First Two' 'Nathan Document 4: The Sequel That Goes into Comedic Territory' 'Nathan Document: In Spaaaaaaaaace' 'Nathan Document: In Da Hood' 'Nathan Document 5: The Sequel That Is A Total Departure From The Original Because It Is A Comedic/Goofy Movie and Not Like the Previous Movies' 'Nathan Document: Back To Da Hood' 'Nathan Document: The Final but not really Final chapter in the series because the final is there for advertising reasons' 'Nathan Document: The Meta Supposedly Last Movie In The Series' 'Nathan Document: The Made For TV Cheap/Straight to DVD Movie With None of The Original Cast Returing' 'Nathan Document Remake: The Remake Nobody Asked For' 'Nathan Document Remake 2: The Sequel To A Remake Nobody Asked For' 'Nathan Document Sy Fy Produced Non-Canon Re-Quel in Which Nathan Comes Back From The Dead AGAIN Even Though It is established in the actual canon movies that Nathan died after the events of the third movie' 'Nathan Document: Look, We're Desperately Trying to Reboot Horror Franchises That Weren't Even That Good To Begin With, So HERE's A Not-So-Blatant-Attempt-At-Making-A-Modernized-Re-Imaginging (in which the original actors either turned it down and did not want to be involved in it, or some of them died and so we have to replace them with new characters who are made to be similiar). It got so bad to the point I went on suicide help reddit despite the fact I actually am not suicidal.

Also I did go after these guys friends and tried to explain myself but like their friend, they all thought of me as a 'creep', it got so bad I had to go on Knowyourmeme of all things, yes...the lows I will stoop to just to make up for something even though I don't know if I should feel sorry for them given how they act like i'm lying when i'm trying to defend myself.

[twirlybumblevee]

I stole this from @bottleofchaos

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

71 right now! (man I've been here for a long time, haven't I...)

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

1,077,321

3. What fandoms do you write for?

currently it's Dteam (adjacent) and Tolkien's Silmarillion, in the past most notably Marvel (plus various others)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Oh boy. First, and by a mile, we have Sign Dirty to me and its sequel As loud as our hearts (MCU, Steve/Bucky modern AU where Steve is deaf and they meet under... embarrassing circumstances), then the next with not even half as many kudos is No other version of me I'd rather be tonight (Larry famous/non-famous AU), then a fic called First Sons and Superheros (Johnny Storm from the Fantastic Four meets troubled gay president's son TJ from Political Animals), and then Cross the Line which was just a silly little MCU RPF get together fic but yeah, everything MCU related went HARD back in the day.

Everything and many others found here.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Always!! It sometimes takes me a while but I never ever leave comments without a response over - if you see them, I just haven't gotten around to them yet. I think it's only fair - if people take their time to leave comments, I should show just as much appreciation back by responding. (That's why I don't comment on fics where I see lots of comments that have never been responded to because I just think it's rude.)

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Oh man that's got to be the Silmarillion stories. Nightfall ending with murder and the dying of the Light (of the Trees), Shards that goes to incredibly dark places (but all the stories in that series aren't happy).

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Probably Ever a surprise / Ever as before where DNF literally life in a fairytale and get a fairytale ending. :D (Taizi and I did our best. <3)

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Not really. I remember once in an MCU Steve/Bucky fic there was a big discussion going on in the comments about an aspect of therapy in the story, but that was the height of it. It never went into hate territory.

9. Do you write smut? If so what kind?

Oh absolutely. XD Not sure I understand the question though, what kind. The sexy kind? Wholesome, sweet, kinky, dark, I've written it all.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

I have! The crasiest was probably First Sons and Superheroes (mentioned above) that sort of founded a whole new branch of fandom at the time. The premise was good though.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

There have been several requests over the years, yes

13. Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

Constantly. XD I think 95% of fics on my account have been co-written. I don't know how to finish stuff by myself.

14. What's your all-time favourite ship

Mae/Fin and Tyelpe/Annatar (Silmarillion), but DNF is up there as well for sure :)

15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

The Holiday. It's a Remus/Sirius fic based on the movie and there's only ONE CHAPTER MISSING and I still get comments on it even years later and they're all so sweet and I always feel so bad about it and I wish I could finish it but I'm so out of the headspace. Maybe one day. Not giving up hope.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Worldbuilding. Picking things apart until everything makes sense. Believable character/relationship progression especially in adversary, I'd like to think.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Motivation and drive, for sure. I was never able to write big stories by myself, I always needed someone to do it with. I WISH I could, how cool would that be. But I just get too distracted too fast by other things.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I can only write in English. German, I guess, I am a native. XD But I haven't done that in forever and the thought of it just makes me cringe.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Lord of the Rings

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

That's the meanest question. I have so many favourites, DNF ones as well, so many amazing ones that have never even seen the light of day on AO3 for one reason or another. I think overall I am the most proud of all the Silmarillion stories because they all belong in the same universe and span thousands upon thousands of years and so much worldbuilding and progression.

If you want to do this yourself, please feel tagged!! This was loads of fun. :)

[dyed-red]

I know it's the brainworms talking but prev reblog made me want to write a fic about kisses Dean has stolen over the years.

(y'know that ao3 tag that goes something like "Dean Winchester is obsessed with Sam Winchester"? Yeah, like that)

It would start cute like the forehead kiss to baby Sammy in the opening scene of the pilot, a goodbye just for the night, a promise of protection (turned, we know, fast to ash).

Flash forward fast to disturbing territory of Sam blackout drunk as a teen and Dean dropping him in bed, dodging all Sam's octopus limbs trying to attach themselves to dean until he's just - out. And maybe Dean doesn't go for the kiss this time, or maybe he does, but either way he stares at Sam's lips an unsettling length of time, and the scene bleeds into Playthings and there is this distinct undercurrent of 'how often has this exact same thing played out this way over the years'.

We move from there to AHBL and Dean kissing Sam's corpse as if in goodbye, as if seeking atonement, as if that alone could revive it (sense memory still on his lips when he makes his demon deal).

After Sam's wall breaks, comatose, and Balthazar's joke to Dean about not stealing any kisses while he stands vigil over Sam's sleeping form uncomfortably apt, and Dean knows the angels know too much but could he at least keep his goddamn trap shut in front of Bobby, who's looking stiff and away and it figures. It figures he knows too. Figures the whole goddamn world does. (But not Sam, not Sam who is never conscious for these transgressions, these offerings.)

During the trials when Sam is fevered and ill and dips in and out of consciousness, and Dean feeds him and wraps him in blankets and while Sam shakes out the fever, Dean is wrapped around him, presses kisses to Sam's hairline, his forehead, his temples, chin (lips) catching on the grain of stubble dusting Sam's cheeks, thumb grazing his lips until Sam, unconscious and open, sucks it in like a pacifier, like an infant once again.

And maybe if we are going for a 5+1 format, 5 kisses Sam was unaware of and 1 he was let in on, we twist the knife in just a bit?

Possession, we know, involves an open mouth. And how Gadreel entered Sam with Dean's help is a little speculative. If Dean, holding hands with Gadreel, pressed his lips to Sam's mouth and pried it open, stayed there the duration of the trickery he pulled with Gadreel in Sam's brain, so that Gadreel could flow through Dean like a conduit into Sam's open mouth... One wonders if it would be Gadreel or Crowley who would rustle up the image in Sam's mind for him, the strangely familiar sensation of Dean's lips on his.

Of course we could also reject the 5+1 format or subvert it with a happier follow-up, as if two distinct +1s?

Or we could do short snippets of post!finding out Sam (make a whole different 5+1 sequel? 5 kisses Sam let Dean steal, and one that he stole himself?)

We could frame an awake, eyes wide open kiss with demon!Dean that's filthier than all the rest, tongue and suction and bodies pressed firm to each other, Sam's back to a wall, the perfect opportunity to jab Dean with a needle or to get the cuffs on him but only if he's adequately distracted.

After the bmol, after they save Sam, before he's washed, Dean following him to the showers, restless and desperate to touch, to confirm the solidness of Sam's skin away from their mother's prying eyes, but Sam's awake and Dean's never -- never had permission, never stolen one like this, not except as a demon, and between that and Gadreel... But Sam doesn't argue when Dean helps him to the showers, lets Dean help him pry his shirt off when he hisses at the movement and how it strain his limbs, his belt, his jeans, doesn't argue when Dean helps him into the shower itself while maintaining a quiet freeflow ramble about Sam's back needing someone to wash it and not falling over on his still-sore foot and giving himself a concussion. Devolves into Dean kissing Sam's shoulders and hugging him, Sam twisting eventually to look at him, quiet promise of "it's okay" and then Dean takes what he needs and sets his lips on Sam's.

From there, a quiet, not-quite-stolen one of comfort after Sam marches into camp in Apocalypse world with Lucifer behind him, away from the others and Sam melting into the now-familiar, now-comforting sensation.

Dean pulling Sam in after Michael's possession to ground himself, shirtless in his room, out of place in his own skin. His hands on Sam's jaw, his head, more demanding and less feather-light than most times before. Sam's fingers delicately finding a place along Dean's waist, the warm skin there, finding a sense of comfort in feeling how solid Dean is, a sense of fresh understanding as he slides his hands up Dean's back. Dean telling him the beard has to go after he pulls back.

Then after Nick brains Sam and he's dying or dead on the pavement for a moment before he's healed, who cares who sees, this is understood between them, this helps place their jagged pieces together in ways he's not apologizing for anymore - Sam waking up breathing in the air from Dean's lungs on a gasp, lips tingling, mouth opening under Dean to accept him before he even has oxygen in his blood.

The +1 here is either the barn scene (if we're masochistic) or more likely in heaven on the bridge, both of them seeking it together at the same moment, a kiss that means the same as all the last -- I'm here, I'm not letting you go -- but this time untinged by pain or separation, finally together forever, safe.

[mrsalwayswrite]

A Girl Has Needs (Ragnarssons x reader)

So I’ve been sick the past two weeks and when my muse decided to return, this is what she wanted me to write. Honestly, this is probably the silliest thing I’ve ever written, but it made me laugh, so....

This is kind of a sequel to Singing In The Shower but can also be read as a solo one-shot. 

Also, the Ragnarssons are just the sons of Aslaug. No Bjorn. 

Warnings: swearing, implied something at the end (i’ll let you decide), the brothers being ridiculous, Ivar and Sigurd constantly insulting one another, the brothers are flirts, reader is oblivious, a jerk somewhere in the middle

Words:4700

Tag List: @youbloodymadgenius​ @evelynshelby​ @pomegranates-and-blood​ @deans-ch-ch-cherrypie​ @geekandbooknerd​ @adrille88​ @quantumlocked310​ @breezykpop​ @ritual-unions-gotme​ @solinarimoon​

 "It's too hot out."

 Hvitserk ran a hand over his braids. "Ivar, I swear if you complain one more time about the heat or the sun, we're leaving your ass home next time we come out."

 "He could be a damn vampire for how often he never goes outside. Always playing video games or watching porn." Sigurd said, spinning the plastic spoon between his fingers like a drum stick.

 "That's a fucking lie, you half-brained fuckwad." Ivar glared across the wooden picnic table. 

 You speak up before the two youngest Lothbroks could start clawing at each other's throats. "Ivar and I play board games sometimes or read together or watch movies….so not just video games." You choose not to reference the other activity Sigurd mentioned. 

 "See! At least someone likes me." Ivar laid his head on your shoulder, the tops of his braids tickling your neck. 

 Sigurd snorted and looked further down the boardwalk, watching the many people out in the summer sun. 

 "Alright, enough you two. We're supposed to be out having fun and enjoying summer." Ubbe said, always the peace-maker. 

 You finished off the last from your ice cream cup, licking the spoon clean. By this point you were used to the dynamics of the Lothbrok brothers, even if sometimes it gave you whiplash. 

 You had been roommates with Ubbe and Hvitserk for almost a year and a half now, something you had initially been hesitant for but now could not imagine life without these boys. Ivar was over more often than not, either crashing on the couch or in one of the various bedrooms. More than once, you had come home from work to find Ivar sleeping in your bed, hoarding all your pillows like some kind of territorial cat. Sigurd lived with some friends but had recently begun to drop by more often than just the usual Sunday brother time. Which you definitely appreciated because he was the only one who did not make fun of you for your arachnophobia. So whenever he would come over and there was an issue you needed to be saved from, he would just smile and grab a paper towel, becoming your white knight. 

 Ubbe was your late-night talking buddy, both of you venting about your days or whatever drama your families were trying to drag you into. Somehow over time, you both had created a routine that on Saturday mornings you would get up early together and clean your apartment, listening to music and getting things set up for the rest of the weekend so you could both relax. Hvitserk loved dragging you around town to do various fun things or try new restaurants. If you both were exhausted, he was also your junk food connoisseur and Food Network binging-buddy. If you both liked to quote Gordon Ramsay in terrible British accents to one another, no one needed to know. Besides your neighbors who called the cops one night when they heard Hvitserk yell at you that your squid was so raw he could hear it telling SpongeBob to go fuck itself. But that is beside the point. 

 When you moved in, you had just hoped to get along with the brothers. Now, the four brothers had become your best friends and you loved them all. Each one of them seemed to fill up a space in your heart that you had not known was empty until they entered your life. Over time, you had to strongly execute any kind of crush you had for them. They were your roommates and friends, it could never be more than that. Even if they were all so handsome but….you did mentally question their sanity sometimes. 

 "Hey, two o'clock." Hvitserk whispered from his spot on your right. 

 The four guys looked in the direction, past the boardwalk and along the narrow strip of beach. You peeked through the people walking by, then rolled your eyes at the woman Hvitserk was most likely referring to. A hum of appreciation left Ubbe and Sigurd let out a low whistle. The five of you were supposed to be out getting ice cream from a local favorite shop as a special treat for surviving the Lothbrok summer party that the boys dragged you too. To say the least exciting thing to happen was a screaming match between Aslaug and Ragnar, meanwhile Floki "accidently" set a religious painting on fire that Athelstan had given Ragnar….so yeah, the five of you deserved ice cream and plenty of beer when you got back to the apartment. Of course, this did not stop the boys from ogling. 

 "Right? Look at those legs." Hvitserk murmured. 

 "Eh. Y/n here could pull that bathing suit off way better." Ubbe said, turning back around and giving you a wink. 

 You flushed under his praise, but still wrinkled your rose at him, hoping to hide your reaction. 

 Hvitserk smirked, those green eyes twinkling mischievously from his spot on your right. "Yeah. I still liked that bathing suit from last month. The white one. Damn, your ass looked great."

 "Oh my gods, stop." You shook your head at their teasing, your face heating up with embarrassment.

 Ivar looked around you to his brother on your other side, gaze narrowed and blue eyes hard. "The fuck you talking about? Did you see her in that silky black dress at mother's party? Holy fuck, I thought--"

 "And I'm out." You interrupted as you climbed out of your seat between Ivar and Hvitserk, gathering up their paper cups and spoons. "I'm going to throw away the trash."

 "Y/n….did we embarrass you?" Hvitserk chuckled, reaching out to grab your wrist and most likely pull you back onto the bench seat. 

 You smacked his grabby hands away. "Nope. Just want to clean up our area. Common courtesy and all because we know you heathens won't."

 Bless him, Ubbe was trying to hide his amusement by covering his mouth with his hand, but his grin was still evident and his blue eyes twinkled. "We'll stop….I promise, y/n."

 "I won't." Ivar stated with a casual shrug. "I can't decide if I liked that black dress more or less than that sexy Black Widow costume you wore for Halloween."

 "Oh damn, she did look sexy as hell in that costume! How did I forget that one?" Sigurd exclaimed. 

 "Okay, bye." You rushed away, feeling as if you were about to spontaneously combust into flames. From behind you came the sounds of the brothers' laughter and a few calls of your name but thankfully no one actually followed you. 

 At this point, you should be used to the brothers complimenting and teasing you. They had never felt the need to dilute their compliments before, a few times using far more candor than you ever wanted to know. It was sweet but at the same time made you feel self-conscious. All four of the brothers were gorgeous in their own ways and you had a front row seat to the many women that flocked around them, either due to their last name or their looks. Meanwhile you were just….you. Not ugly but not beautiful. Just you. 

 Over the past few months, you noticed how those compliments came your way more frequently- a quick comment on your hair or clothing, a dazzling statement about your smile or eyes. It was very sweet. You could not help but wonder if they made some kind of pact behind your back about boosting your self-esteem. Something that was not their job to do but gods, did you appreciate their efforts. 

 Something else you noticed over the past few months was how all the brothers had become more….tactile towards you. 

 Ever since the incident where you found them standing around the bathroom as you sang in the shower, and holy hell was that ever awkward and please don't ever let that happen again, and you confessed about how those in your life prior only tore you down. Something between the five of you had shifted. There was not a single moment you could look back on and point it out that it clicked but over time you just happened to notice. The brothers, especially Sigurd, made a point to turn up the music as often as possible and have you sing along. Sometimes on days you could tell Ivar's pain was bad, he would quietly ask you to play with his hair and sing to him. So, you would. 

 More than that, it was the more frequent and lingering hugs, the quick touches on your arms, hips or shoulders as they passed you, how one of them would drag you against them to cuddle whenever something was on the TV. None of it ever made you feel uncomfortable. On the contrary, you had to decapitate a few butterflies that dared to fly around in your belly. You just figured that you had reached a new level of friendship with the brothers, because honestly who else did they have to be as touchy-feely towards? None of them had girlfriends at the moment….or for the past couple of months....but that was none of your business. You were just happy to have them in your life. Even if they embarrassed you often. 

 Moving around a couple pushing an expensive-looking stroller, you tossed the trash away in the garbage bin. Absent-mindedly, you wiped your hands on your shorts, then stopped and glanced down to make sure you had not just stained them. Breathing out a sigh of relief, because chocolate stain crisis averted, you started back towards the table where the brothers seemed to be arguing over something already, when a voice from nearby stopped you. 

 "Hey, pretty lady."

 You stumble, barely catching yourself as you turn around. Surprise flooded you when you see the attractive, shirtless man actually staring at you with a smile on his face. Wow, someone spent way too long shaping that jawline when they were creating him. This seemed like something from a fantasy more than real life. You were almost tempted to pinch yourself to make sure you were awake. "Um, I'm sorry, were you talking to me?"

 "Yeah. You here alone?"

 "Um, no…." You gestured vaguely in the direction of the Lothbrok brothers, watching as his gaze shifted to the brothers and assessed them before returning back to you. 

 Crossing his arms over his chest and making his muscles bulge….which is only slightly distracting….he smirked. "I see. But you clearly ain't with any of them."

 "What's that mean?" You tilted your head to the side, confused. You arrived with them, did he not think you were friends with the guys? 

 "I've seen you sitting with them, but you don't act like any of them are your boyfriend. 'Sides, look at you." He eyed you up and down. "I mean you don't seem…."

 Huh?

 Ohhhhh….

 You straightened, placing your hands on your hips. "What are you trying to say?"

 "No offense but they seem outta your league, y'know?"

 And if that did not feel like a bucket of ice water thrown on you. Whatever prior thoughts you had about the still attractive guy flew out the window. "Oh, really?"

 "Yeah, girl. I mean, you're pretty but you don't seem their type. It looks like you're clearly friends though."

 Was the guy really this dumb? At first you thought he was hitting on you but it seemed to be coming out more as an insult....and he was just standing there smiling at you like you should be thanking him or something for his attention! 

 "Wow." You shook your head, done with this conversation and done with him but you wanted to wipe that smirk off his face before you left. Petty, maybe? 

 "Well, you are right in a sense. I don't act like boyfriend and girlfriend with any of them because technically they aren't."

 He grinned smugly like he was about to win some kind of prize. 

 "They are my harem." 

 His eyes widened to comical proportions and his mouth dropped open as he gaped at you unbelieving. 

 You wiped your hands off on your shorts again as you continued talking. "So yeah, it would be weird to act like only boyfriend and girlfriend with one of them when they are all my boyfriends. Would be really rude, don't you think?"

 "Ummm, well…." His gaze darted towards the brothers then back to you. 

 "Let me tell you, it's not always easy trying to juggle that many boyfriends. But this girl has needs and let me tell you, those men know how to keep this girl very satisfied. Uh huh. All. Night. Long. And then also in the morning if we're feeling like having some extra fun. I do feel bad when I wear them out though."

 Suddenly, you felt someone come up beside you. 

 "You alright, y/n?" Ubbe asked, wrapping an arm around your shoulders. 

 "Yeah, baby. Just having a little chat. Let's head back." You smiled up at Ubbe before looking back to the befuddled man in front of you. "And let me tell you one last thing….I might not be in their league like you said, but I know how to keep my men coming back for more." You slipped your arm around Ubbe's waist and started walking back to the picnic table. 

 The closer you got, the more your face felt like it was on fire. You could feel Ubbe stealing glances at you but you ignored it, too mortified by what had just come out of your mouth. How could you have said all of that? What had come over you? Yeah, that guy was a Class-A jerk but it did not warrant you claiming to have a freaking harem with your guy friends/roommates! Why had the universe not promptly shut you up? And to think Ubbe heard the end of your passionate monologue. Gods, you doubted you would be able to look him in the eye for at least a week! 

 You dropped onto your spot between Hvitserk and Ivar, covering your face with your hands. The weight of four pairs of eyes on you made you want to crawl under the table and hide from them. Not that it would work. One of them would just drag you out from underneath or Ivar would keep lovingly tapping you with his crutch until you appeared. 

 "She okay?" Sigurd asked, a hint of concern in his voice. 

 "Y/n?" Ubbe tried to encourage you. 

 You just shook your head, delayed mortification making you tongue-tied. How could you have called them your harem - YOUR HAREM - like you were some wealthy princess or something. Was that even a thing? Either way, you were ready for the universe to strike you with lighting now. Or swallow you whole. 

 "What the fuck happened?" Ivar snarled from your left, but you instinctively knew his anger was not directed at you. 

 Ubbe sighed, probably rubbing a hand down his face. "I don't know. I'm not sure if that guy was insulting her or hitting on her; but after I walked up, she said something about not being in their league but knowing how to keep her men coming back for more. Oh, and she also called me 'baby'."

 Yep. The ground could swallow you whole at any moment now. Any moment….just waiting...

 "Hold on." Hvitserk said, shifting to fully look at you, tugging gently on one of your hands covering your face. "Why do you get to call Ubbe 'baby'? If he gets a pet name, I want one too!"

 Sigurd helpfully pointed out. "She already calls you 'Serk'."

 "That's not a pet name." Hvitserk pouted, pressed his forehead to your shoulder like a toddler denied a candy.

 "Well if those idiots get a name, I'm definitely getting one." Ivar stated, laying a hand on your lower back, his thumb rubbing soothing circles. 

 "You have one. It's 'asshole'." Sigurd sneered. 

 You could feel Ivar shrug. "Yeah, but at least I'm an asshole with class. You're about as interesting as paint drying."

 "Hey! You god‐-" Sigurd started up. 

 Ubbe interrupted. "All of you, shut up." He sighed loudly, probably glaring at Sigurd and Ivar with one of his perfected I-don't-have-time-for-this-shit looks, before reaching across the table and tugging on one of your hands still covering your face. "Hey, wanna explain what was going on with that guy?"

 "Do we need to rough him up?" Hvitserk asked. 

 "Rough him up? What are we, twelve?" Ivar rolled his eyes, shifting his hand to lay on your thigh. "Let's just stab him."

 "Mom said no stabbings, asshat." Sigurd stated, blandly. 

 "She also said no playing music at 2am but we know how well you listened to that, dumb bitch." Ivar sneered back. 

 "Both of you! Shut. Up. Dammit." Ubbe squeezed your hand that he had managed to coax away from your face. "Y/n, please?"

 You slightly shook your head, a small smile on your lips from listening to the brothers bicker. Ubbe squeezed your hand again, almost in a silent pleading. Finally, you murmured, "It's not a big deal. It's really stupid." 

 "Doesn't matter, you're our girl." Ubbe said with a finality that reverberated in your bones. 

 You lowered your other hand, smiling at the four faces looking at you. They were truly your best friends, even if that line did seem to blur lately with how tactile they had become. Not that you truly minded but still. Even now, Ubbe was holding your hand from across the table, Ivar had his hand on your thigh and Hvitserk still had his head on your shoulder. Next to Ubbe, Sigurd was watching you with such fondness and concern it made your stomach clench. What made you so lucky for these sweet, handsome brothers to be concerned about your well-being?

 You squeezed Ubbe's hand back as you looked around the table at them. "You have to promise you won't get mad at me." You nudged Hvitserk off of you so you could look at his face too. 

 "Of course, sweet cheeks. Whatever you need." Sigurd smiled at you. 

 Once all the brothers gave their agreement, you hesitantly began speaking. "Okay, so I was heading back here when that guy stopped me. I think he was trying to hit on me."

 "Why do you think?" Hvitserk questioned. "It's usually pretty obvious when a guy is hitting on a girl."

 "No, that's just you." Ubbe teased. "You have no shame."

 "What? I see what I want and go after it."

 "Focus, idiots." Ivar flatly stated, this thumb rubbing a line on the outside of your thigh. 

 "Um," you tried to start up again but the butterflies in your stomach had turned into pterodactyls and you worried they would somehow escape and gods then you would be on some freaky TV show and no one would ever talk to you. "So….it….it's stupid and doesn't matter. I'm over it. Can we just forget it?"

 "Y/n, love, what happened?" Ubbe encouraged, his patient blue eyes like a warm balm to your frazzled nerves.

 You bit your lip, wondering if you could shove the topic away. Looking at the gazes of the brothers, you know they were not going to let this go, no matter how much you wanted them too. You took a deep breath then spilled out the story, your words almost stumbling into the next in your haste to hurry the hell up. "He said….he asked if I was here alone and I said I was with you guys. But then I think he was asking if I was single because he said clearly I wasn't with any of you guys because it was obvious you're all out of my league…."

 "He said that?" Ivar started to push himself up, grabbing his crutch that had been leaning against the table. "Where the fuck is he? I'm going to ram my fist so far down his throat he won't be able to…."

 You reached your other hand over and grabbed Ivar's hand, stilling his rage-fueled movements. "No, it's fine. Really. I sorta….um, got him back."

 "What did you say?" Ivar raised an eyebrow as he settled back next to you. 

 "Um….well…." Cue the delayed embarrassment and wishing this never happened.

 Hvitserk chuckled with a wicked smirk on his face. "Oh, this is going to be good if you are already stuttering and can't look us in the eye."

 "Shut up." You groaned, but unable to pull away, effectively trapped by the brothers. Ivar was holding your left hand between his; Ubbe held your right hand, your fingers intertwined now; Hvitserk leaned against the table to be able to see your face, with his hand loosely on your right hip; Sigurd's foot nudged yours encouragingly. You knew without them verbally saying so, that you had their full support, no matter what you said or ever needed, they had your back. "Ugh. Fine, okay. I, um, I told him that you guys were my harem and I was dating all of you." You rushed out, your gaze immediately dropping to the wood table, unable to convince yourself to see their expressions after. 

 For a second there was silence before the guys erupted in cheers and laughter. 

 "Hell yeah, that's our girl!"

 "Harem. Ha! You're more woman than that bastard could handle."

 Ubbe slyly looked at you, tugging on your hand until you met his gaze. "And you keep your men coming back for more?"

 "Um, right. I may have….mentioned….that I have needs and you guys, um, make sure I am very satisfied….and I know how to keep you guys coming back for more….yep. That's it. Oh gods, I'm going to go die now."

 Hvitserk's arm wrapped around your waist, keeping you pinned before you could even try and slip away like you wanted to, thank you very much. "Oh, I like this feisty side of you. Why haven't we seen her before?"

 "She gets me into trouble." You mumbled, as they laughed at your response. 

 "She sounds like fun. I'd date her in a heartbeat." Sigurd wiggled his eyebrows. 

 "What's wrong with you?" Ivar demanded. "I'd date y/n, feisty side or not. She's perfect." He loudly smacked a kiss to your temple. 

 "Guys…." You groaned, becoming slightly overwhelmed with the attention. The pterodactyls in your stomach were now dancing to a new tune and not just of embarrassment.  

 "I have to agree with my brothers, this is a new side of you but we like her." Ubbe winked at you, making your breath hitch for a moment. "Tell her she's allowed to visit whenever but we still like y/n either way."

 Hvitserk nuzzled your neck, making you squirm and your heart to race. "I bet that guy is jealous now."

 Throwing his head back, Ivar shouted. "Fuck him!"

 Sigurd took up the chant. "Yeah, fuck him! She's our woman!" 

 "WOULD YOU SHUT UP! THERE ARE CHILDREN AROUND FOR CHRIST'S SAKE!" An elderly man nearby yelled at your group. 

 It was only now that you noticed all the blatant stares the five of you were receiving from those sitting at tables nearby or walking past on the boardwalk. 

 "Oh, I am terribly sorry, sir. You are correct. We were just getting ready to leave." Ubbe placated, a grin still on his face. "Let's head back home."

 The five of you scrambled off the picnic table, laughter still surrounding you like a bubble of warmth that could rival the sun. Heading back to the shared apartment, you found yourself walking between Ubbe and Ivar. Sigurd and Hvitserk walked in front or turned around and walked backwards to make eye contact with you, a few winks thrown your way, making your face heat up again.  

 "You know," Ivar began, "as the youngest, I feel I should have special privileges. Like, I get to have her on the first day or I get to sleep in her bed whenever I want." 

 "No, that certainly sounds like privileges due to the eldest. Which would be me." Ubbe corrected, slipping his hand into yours. 

 You startled at the contact but did not pull away. When Ivar's hand snagged yours, you almost jumped. Your gaze darted from Ivar to Ubbe but both continued walking like nothing had occurred, forcing you to keep moving. It was just an inkling but you wondered if something had changed. Before you could ask, the brothers kept talking, continuing a conversation that left you baffled.

 Hvitserk turned around to walk backwards, giving you a flirty wink. "You two can share her bed but we all know she would want to sleep with me more since I'm the most handsome." 

 "I make her laugh more!" Sigurd argued, trying to punch Hvitserk in the shoulder but the other brother darted away laughing. 

 "A puppy makes her laugh more than you, dipshit." Ivar retorted, sticking his crutch out as Hvitserk moved, causing him to almost trip and fall on his face. 

 "What the hell?" Hvitserk demanded, a goofy grin still on his face. 

 Ivar rolled his eyes, giving your hand a squeeze. "Even sober, Hvitserk can't walk in a straight fucking line."

 You could not help but giggle at the affronted look on Hvitserk's face. 

 "Hmmm….we'll have to figure out some kind of rotating schedule so her time is spent equally with all of us." Ubbe said in all seriousness, continuing the conversation. 

 "Wait….what? WHAT?" You stopped in your tracks. Your mind whirled as you tried to make sense of what Ubbe was implying. The conversation you had been listening to but not understanding, the pieces seemed to suddenly click into place. Your gaze flittered like a hummingbird from one brother to another. "I thought….I mean, it was…."

 Hvitserk slipped between you and Ivar, snaking his arm through yours and guiding you to move again. "Nope, we're your harem now and you're our woman."

 "How about boss bitch? She's our boss bitch?" Ivar asked from just behind you. 

 Ubbe resumed his spot on your other side, shoving Sigurd away when he stopped in front of him. "That could be rude." 

 "How about our angel?" Sigurd offered.  

 "Why do you even keep fucking talking? All your ideas are shit." Ivar grumbled loudly. When a woman walking by gasped loudly, Ivar turned to glare at her. "Fucking what? I wasn't fucking talking to you!"

 "Oh no." You murmured, sharing an exasperated look with Ubbe. You peeked over your shoulder at Ivar. "Come on, honey. It's not worth it."

 He huffed but started walking again. "Fuck yeah, I got a pet name, bitches."

 "I still need one…" Hvitserk whined from beside you.

 Sigurd turned around. "Me too! It better not be 'sweetie' or something."

 You threw your hands up. "I'll think of something! Dammit! I wasn't prepared for this!"

 Sigurd nodded, still walking backwards. "We still need a name for y/n."

 "How about our darling? Y/n is our darling?" Ubbe shrugged. 

 "I still like boss bitch." Ivar grumbled. 

 "Oh my gods, what is my life right now?" You laughed, shaking your head. 

 "Just wait until we get home….I promise your life won't ever be the same." Hvitserk kissed your cheek, making your face heat up. 

 A smack on your ass had you whipping around to stare at Ivar in shock. 

 "Yeah, that's my ass right there. Can't wait to finally touch it." Ivar muttered. His roguish smile grew wider when he saw you gulp. 

 "Ah….what?" You turned to look up at Ubbe as he stole your hand once again, pressing a quick kiss to your knuckles before entwining your fingers. 

 "We have a promise to live up to and we have to make sure our girl is very satisfied." He purred out the last two words, sending a shiver down your spine.  

 "What's that mean?" You glanced around at the brothers but they just chuckled, dragging you in the direction of your shared apartment as quickly as they could without leaving Ivar behind. "Guys….guys?"

 "You're ours now." Hvitserk whispered into your ear. "And we're yours."

 Your stomach flipped at his sultry tone and his words. But it was the hungry looks from the brothers that made your womb clench and your hands tighten in Ubbe and Hvitserk's grasps. 

 There was one thing you were positive on….that after today, nothing would ever be the same. 

 And your heart raced in anticipation. 

[jennagrinsoverml]

Do you have any Adrien-centric angst fics? Like, fics that will completely gut you emotionally and you have to lay down for an hour after you read it just to decompress?something like that?

I've recced angst fics before, but let's have some SADRIEN hours around here, shall we?

a fight that you were born to lose by @captainkirkk

When the prosecution starts throwing around the word victim in reference to Adrien, he has to stuff his hands under his thighs to keep himself from bolting out of the courtroom.

Adrien had felt unsafe during those last few weeks, but, until he had woken up and seen Father silhouetted in his bedroom doorway, that had only been paranoia. Father was controlling and cold, but he wasn’t hateful. Adrien was isolated. He was often hungry. And some weeks ago, when he had snuck out to visit Nino, sitting thigh-to-thigh on his bed while Adrien cried in that silent, crumbling way of his, he hadn’t argued when Nino put a hand on his shoulder and said, tentatively, That’s abuse.

But Adrien remembers being small and Father touching his hair after he’d aced another test; Father holding his scribbled drawings like they were something precious, and framing them around his office; Father, dressed as Hawkmoth, his eyes wild behind the mask, lashing his sword against Adrien’s baton; Father, collapsed against Mum, crying into her ashy hair.

Adrien finds out Gabriel is Hawkmoth, and Gabriel gets to bring his long-waited plan into action.

One-shot. (But a LONG one-shot--it's 18k.) This one really digs deep into the abuse that Adrien suffers at Gabriel's hands and the emotional fallout from that. Gabriel is really, really, really terrible here. Worse, I don't think it's OOC at all. This fic is gorgeous, but it's a hard read and it goes to some dark places.

Anhedonia/When Adrien Met Marinette... by @mikauzoran

Chat Noir hadn’t been lying when he told Ladybug he’d moved on. It was only when he found out that Ladybug was Marinette that he realized he was wrong. Meanwhile, Marinette thinks that she’s missed her chance when Adrien insists that he’s gotten over his feelings. Now, they’re roommates and making themselves miserable as they pine for one another, thinking the situation’s hopeless. Things finally come to a head, and they’re forced to sit down and have an honest conversation about their feelings.

One-shot. Adrien's just so sad and lonely and pining here, and I'm here for it. I really found myself getting swept away in his feelings as I was reading. This isn't dark and doesn't get into any heavy issues like some of the other fics on this list, but I found that it was very relatable and evoked a lot of emotion.

Adrien and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by @vickyvicarious

Chat Noir's used to bad luck - it kind of comes with the territory. But detransforming in the middle of a crowd of reporters is a little worse luck than he’s used to having.

And he hasn’t heard a thing from Ladybug since.

(AKA the "everyone finds out all at once" angst fic no one asked for.)

One-shot. Oof, does this one ever hurt. Adrien's painfully in-character, and the way he's trying so very hard to stay positive even as his life is completely falling apart and everyone keeps hurting him...it's so him and it packs a punch.

The Importance of the Black Cat by @chatonne-rousse

Plagg gets down almost two full wedges of cheese before Adrien sits down on the edge of his bed with a heavy sigh.

“Hey, Plagg?” His voice is quiet but doesn’t betray any emotion yet. That’s actually more worrying.

Steeling himself, Plagg swallows the last big bite of cheese and zips from the desk to perch on top of the globe, facing his holder. “What’s up?”

He heaves another sigh before looking up into Plagg’s eyes, emotions still unreadable.

“How important is the black cat?”

*****

Adrien has a lot on his mind - concerns, questions, doubts. And right now, he has only one being to confide in. There is not enough cheese in the world to make Plagg want to handle this situation, but his holder needs him, and he knows two things with certainty: his very important place in the world, and that no one hurts his kitten. Not if he has anything to say about it.

One-shot. You want some season 4 flavour Adrien angst? How about some post-Optigami wallowing? I love the portrayal of Adrien and Plagg's relationship with the mix of light and heavy. Pretty sure I still owe Rosie a sequel to this one because I wanted to see more resolution afterwards and made the mistake of sharing my thoughts on that 🙈 It's just very thought-provoking!!

Working Past It by Taitai83

Chat is deeply hurt by Ladybug's actions, and he needs to process those feelings. He finds that confiding in a friend is helpful in finding clarity.

One-shot. Here, have some more season 4 angst! This one is shamefully overlooked. Go read it and help fix that!! Remember when Gang of Secrets came out and we all wondered how Chat would react when he found out Ladybug told someone her identity? This was an early stab at that, and I found the reactions and thought processes here to be so in character. Plus there's some nice marichat hurt/comfort, though purely platonic.

Timetagger 3 by rosebud1000

Years after Hawkmoth's defeat, Marinette and Adrien encounter Timetagger for the third time. And this battle hits closer to home than any other.

One-shot. Here we have some more of the fallout from Gabriel being a shitty parent, only we have an adult Adrien who is a father himself struggling to reconcile how his father acted with his own parental feelings. As a parent, I really felt this one.

Chat Noir's Family by fleurjaune

The thing is-

The thing is Adrien doesn’t actually mean to lie. Not at first anyway, but they have to keep their secret identities secret don’t they?

And his family, well, their tragedy is out there for the world to see and the world did see it.

One-shot. The more Chat lies about his life and his family, the more we learn about Adrien and see how he wishes his life was. And that chasm...really fucking hurts. I wish this sweet boy could have the kinds of relationships and family dynamics he lies about.

Partners by @karkalicious769

"Um." Alya fidgeted nervously as her earrings beeped their countdown. "Ask me a question that only Ladybug would know the answer to."

Chat Noir barred his teeth, and— Were they always that sharp? At least he wasn't growling again. "You are not Ladybug," he snapped.

"Just do it!"

It was all Alya had to go off of and she really needed to pull this partnership together before the akuma got any worse. She wasn't deluded enough to think that she could do this without Chat Noir.

One-shot. SPOILERS FOR HACK-SAN!!! And yet some more season 4 feels because let's be serious, this season is putting our kitty through the ringer. And this fic definitely does it, though by playing with the episode a little. Although we've got a tight Alya POV, Adrien's hurt and suffering is palpable, and made all the worse by how resigned he is. Read this and sufferrrrrr.

[jaskicr]

sequel to the clothes swap featuring buffskier i wrote for this ask:

for buffskier, for some reason jaskier has to wear geralt’s armour (this is like @spielzeugkaiser’s art) and geralt realises that his armour fits jaskier extremely well. and also jaskier can lift his (rather heavy) sword and can also fight with it

As Geralt follows Jaskier back to the village, he hangs back, and if he’s doing it for the glorious view in front of him, that’s no one’s business but his. 

Those tight leather trousers really bring out Jaskier’s considerable assets, hugging Jaskier’s thighs and ass and highlighting every flex of muscle as he walks. Clearly, walking beside Roach for hours every day has done wonders for Jaskier’s legs, and Geralt stares, unable to tear his eyes away, gulping as he takes in the strength of those thighs, wondering how hard they would be able to squeeze -

Suddenly, the thighs stop moving, and Jaskier’s amused voice reaches his ears. “Geralt, are you alright? You seem rather… preoccupied.”

Geralt jerks his gaze upwards to meet Jaskier’s twinkling blue eyes. “Uh?”

Then he realises that his mouth is hanging wide open, possibly about to drool, and he quickly snaps it shut, looking away. He really needs a dip into a river later. Preferably a very cold river. 

“You good?” Jaskier asks, turning around and stepping towards him, and for a moment, Geralt mourns the loss of that wonderful view of his behind, until he’s faced with Jaskier’s chest, made broader by the bulk of Geralt’s armour.

“Hm. Yes. Um.” Geralt struggles valiantly to keep his eyes on Jaskier’s face. “Let’s. Keep going?”

“If you’re sure.” Jaskier's lips are tilted in a smirk, unfairly red lips that Geralt wants to punch. With his mouth. Fuck, what is he thinking? “Do you want to walk next to me, or do you want to follow, ah, behind?”

Geralt grunts. Jaskier has totally picked up on his not-so-subtle staring, and Geralt speeds up to walk next to Jaskier, determined not to get caught out again, and Jaskier huffs a low laugh that sends pleasant shivers up Geralt’s spine. He resolutely ignores the warmth radiating from Jaskier’s bulk as they walk side by side, Jaskier silent for once as they trace their steps back to the village.

Without the distraction of Jaskier’s chatter, Geralt’s mind wanders once again. He recalls Jaskier cutting down the nekkers with expert ease, wielding Geralt’s sword like it’s an extension of himself, swinging the sword through the air with a savage grin on his face. Gods, Jaskier’s strength and unexpected skill with a sword - Geralt used to think that Jaskier was a bumbling bard who relied wholly on Geralt to protect him, who had little strength to speak of, but the past few hours had proved him so utterly wrong.

And he has never been more glad to be wrong. Jaskier’s strength and competence with a sword is an absolutely delightful revelation.

When they reach the village, Jaskier’s stance changes, his shoulders going back and his head tilting upwards, his face schooling into a stoic mask as he falls back into the part of a witcher, and it shouldn’t be as hot as Geralt finds it. Geralt follows him as he stalks into the tavern - no, he struts, hips swaying just so, bringing Geralt’s attention, once again, to his shapely ass. He struts like he wants to conquer the world, like he’s challenging anyone to stand up to him, projecting an aura of danger that Geralt is inexplicably attracted to.

He looks away, cheeks burning. Yes, he’s only just realised that Jaskier has a rather - fine physique, but that doesn’t give Geralt the right to - to ogle him. Jaskier has always been attractive, and Geralt has always admired him - objectively, of course - and there’s no reason that this new development should fluster Geralt as much as it does.

Not that he’s flustered. He has more composure than that. He’s simply shocked, that’s all. All these years of travelling with Jaskier and he hadn’t noticed - he’s simply ashamed of his own lack of observational skills, nothing more. 

His denial sounds flimsy even to himself.

Once Jaskier has collected the payment, they fetch Roach and head out of the village, a silent consensus between them to travel a good distance from it before they change back, during which Geralt tries to contain his thoughts and wrestle them back into appropriate best friend territory.

Because Jaskier is his best friend, and he definitely doesn’t look at Geralt like that, and Geralt shouldn’t be looking at Jaskier like that.

“We’re far enough,” Geralt grunts, pulling Roach to a halt. They’ve travelled a fair distance from the village, far enough that no one should be following them, and they’re obscured by the trees if anyone does pass by. “We should. Change.”

He dismounts Roach and finds himself face to face with Jaskier, who’s standing right in front of him, arms crossed, and Geralt may be a witcher, but even his immense self control can’t stop him from sneaking a glance at the way Jaskier’s crossed arms emphasise the thickness of his biceps, pushing his chest up. 

“You know, Geralt,” Jaskier begins, eyes trailing over Geralt’s face before dipping lower, and when he continues, his voice is raspy. “I couldn’t help but notice you looking at me… quite a lot today.”

Jaskier’s gaze burns through Geralt’s body, lighting him up, and he looks away. “Hm.”

“Oh, don’t hm me, my dear bard.” A gloved finger presses against Geralt’s cheek, forcing his face back to look straight at Jaskier. “Did you think I didn’t notice? You weren’t exactly subtle.” 

There’s laughter in his voice, and something else too, something that Geralt has heard Jaskier use before, but never directed at him. He swallows audibly, and Jaskier’s gaze drops to his throat for a second before flicking back up, blue eyes bright and piercing.

“I -” Geralt’s voice is hoarse, and he clears his throat. “I wasn’t.”

“Oh, you totally were,” Jaskier murmurs with a slow grin. He takes a step closer to Geralt, the movement slow and deliberate. “If I’d known wearing your armour would get you to look at me like this, I would’ve suggested swapping clothes long ago.”

“Like… like what?” Geralt’s heart pounds loudly in his ears, and Jaskier is too close and not close enough.

“Like you want to eat me alive,” Jaskier murmurs, his tongue darting out to wet his lips, and Geralt stares. “Like you want to take your armour off me, piece by piece.”

Geralt’s mouth opens and closes, but only a faint, strangled noise comes out, and Jaskier’s face breaks into a pleased grin.

“Oh, sweetheart,” he purrs, and then he’s pressed against Geralt, all that bulk and muscle fitted under Geralt’s black armour, all that warmth right there. “Do go ahead.”

Geralt is frozen, his mind barely processing Jaskier’s invitation, and when he doesn’t move, Jaskier sighs fondly and cups his cheek with a gloved hand.

“Tell me if I’m reading this wrong,” he murmurs, searching Geralt’s eyes. When Geralt lets out something akin to a strangled whine, Jaskier’s proximity turning his brain to mush and making his head spin, Jaskier chuckles and leans in.

The kiss starts slow and tender, Jaskier’s lips slightly chapped as he presses his mouth to Geralt’s. Then Geralt’s brain catches up to what’s happening, realising that Jaskier is kissing him, that Jaskier is pressed against him and cupping his face with gentle hands, and Geralt deepens the kiss, placing his hands on that broad chest.

When Jaskier pulls away, breathing quick and shallow, his eyes are dark, his lips swollen. “You like seeing me in your armour, huh?” 

Geralt more than likes it. Maybe he should just let Jaskier wear his clothes all the time, which would make their travels far more interesting, and far more torturous on Geralt’s end.

“I like you,” he blurts out, and flushes at the too-honest words.

Jaskier’s eyes widen, and Geralt is about to retract his statement when Jaskier beams, delight spreading across his face, and he leans in again, pressing a soft kiss to the edge of Geralt’s mouth. “I like you too, sweetheart,” he whispers, breath hot against Geralt’s skin, and Geralt shudders. “I like you a lot.”

“Mmf.” His face is burning. “You - uh. I. You look good.” Apparently, Geralt’s brain has lost its filter, but when Jaskier’s gaze turns smouldering, he can’t really complain.

“Good, huh? Care to tell me more?”

“You look good in my clothes.” Geralt’s mouth is running, his thoughts spilling from his lips in an uncontrollable flood, unable to hold back his words under Jaskier’s heated gaze. “I like how my clothes fit you, I like how you fight -”

Jaskier crowds him back until his back hits a tree, trapping him between the tree and the solid bulk of Jaskier’s body, and then Jaskier is pressing him against the tree trunk and Geralt is gasping into the fierce, passionate kiss.

He lets his hands roam around Jaskier’s body, mapping the breadth of his chest and shoulders, relishing in the feeling of leather under his fingertips, and Jaskier presses impossibly closer, one hand bracing himself against the tree and the other dropping to rest on Geralt’s waist, sending a brand of heat through his body.

But it’s not enough, and Geralt finds himself tugging at the straps of his armour, desperate to get it off Jaskier, desperate to see, and Jaskier breaks the kiss with a raspy laugh.

“Eager, aren’t we?”

Geralt only tugs more insistently, throwing a piece of the armour off to the side. There’s something enticing about taking his armour off piece by piece when it’s on Jaskier, and his hands shake slightly as he undoes the straps. Jaskier starts nosing at his neck, and he almost goes pliant, but his determination to see Jaskier bare in front of him keeps his hands from dropping, and finally, the last piece of armour falls away, and Geralt drinks in the magnificent sight.

Jaskier’s shoulders are wonderfully broad, and Geralt skates his hands over warm skin, marvelling at the strength in them. He slips his hands down, tangling his fingers in the dark hair that decorates Jaskier’s chest, hair that Geralt has only seen glimpses of through unbuttoned shirts, hair that Geralt now tugs at appreciatively. 

“Mm, like what you see?” Jaskier rumbles lowly, and Geralt doesn’t answer, showing his appreciation by pulling Jaskier into another kiss as he wraps his arms around Jaskier, hands roaming his large, muscled back.

Suddenly, Jaskier’s hands are underneath his thighs and Geralt is being lifted, his back still pressed against the tree, and he yelps, wrapping his legs instinctively around Jaskier’s waist, arms gripping tighter around Jaskier’s neck as his body lights up in arousal.

Holy fuck.

“What -”

Jaskier swallows his exclamation, and Geralt whimpers. He’s never been lifted before, certainly not with such ease, and there’s barely any strain in Jaskier’s breathing as he continues holding Geralt up, never breaking the kiss.

Gods, Jaskier is strong, and it’s utterly thrilling.

Geralt lets his gaze trail downwards, appreciating the way Jaskier’s thick biceps bulge and flex as he bears Geralt’s weight easily, and he gives in to the urge to palm at Jaskier’s arms, trusting Jaskier not to drop him as he lets one hand fall from its grip around Jaskier to squeeze one strong bicep, enjoying the feeling of the muscles underneath his palm.

“My darling witcher,” Jaskier murmurs against Geralt’s lips. “As much as I like where this is going, perhaps we should move somewhere more comfortable.”

A rush of heat floods Geralt’s body, and he meets Jaskier’s eyes, fixed on him with something like hunger, and Geralt inhales sharply. 

He can’t wait to be devoured.

[shenanigans-and-imagines]

📔

So I have exactly 3 different rewrites of the Sequel Trilogy buzzing around my head at any given time.

Version 1, we keep the same continuity of The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi (with the inclusion of my OC), AND keep the basic ideas of The Rise of Skywalker intact and try to make it work; Palpatine coming back, Kylo Ren's redemption, and all of that.

Version 2, we keep the same continuity of The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi (with the inclusion of my OC), but completely scrap The Rise of Skywalker and keep following the trajectory Rian Johnson laid out in The Last Jedi.

Version 3, is just a total rewrite. And I mean everything. The only thing we're keeping is the characters, and my OC. We're not even keeping The Force Awakens. This is from the ground up.

These are my very rough notes for version 3.

Twenty-five or so years after Return of the Jedi, the New Republic is finally starting to run like a proper government.  Everyone is united and there is peace in the Galaxy. Leia is Chancellor of the New Senate.  Han is still a General in the Republic Army.  And Luke has now trained a number of young Jedi, including his newly knighted niece and nephew, Ben and Lana Solo.

But, there is a darkness rising and a number of young students go missing.  Ben and Lana are sent to investigate following a pull into the Unknown Region, and the shadow beyond. They too disappear and Luke makes it his mission to find them.

We then cut to fives years later, and a new threat rises. Whispers along the outer rim of a Warlord calling himself Kylo Ren gaining more territory. General Solo, with the approval of the new Senate sends out one of their best pilots Poe Dameron to investigate these claims.

Rey is still a scavenger from no where with no family to speak of.

Finn is a solider in this new army, haven been taken as a child. The higher ranking officers are shown to be force sensitive, while the lower ranking ones either a) don't have force abilities or b) are so tied to the light that their never properly trained. (Guess which one Finn is)

Poe ends up getting captured when he's discovered spying. Finn breaks him out and they crash land on the planet Rey is on.

Poe sticks around in this version and it's off to the races for Poe to deliver the news to the senate of the scale of this new threat and their plans.

Here's where I keep switching things up; options one) Lana is on Jakku already, regularly making deals and actually knows Rey when these two idiots crash land with force sensitive troopers at their backs. Option two) Poe knows Lana as a contact on the outer rim who can help get them back to the Republic. Either way, they use Lana ship and get the hell out of dodge.

Eventually they get cornered, and who should come to the rescue but Luke Skywalker!

Luke reveals Lana's identity, backstory is dropped; Lana tells them a bit about what she and Ben found in the Unknown Region. She tells them Ben died, she lost her arm, and that she knows whatever is coming is too big for any of them to face.

More space battles. They make it back to the Senate and present their case.

After some deliberation, they agree to send forces to the Outer Rim.

Another major change: NO GIANT PLANET DESTROYER!

This is going to more resemble the ending to Heir to the Empire, where Kylo Ren and the rest are running the long game and stealing resources.

We're still in the restoration of the New Empire stage of the game for them, waiting to build enough power for a full assault.

While big battle is happening; Luke, Lana, Rey, and Finn sneak on board Kylo Ren's flag ship in order to capture him and stop the invasion before it even starts.

Once inside, we see how the force sensitive officers operating in almost a hive mind. Every single crew member works in sync to an unnatural degree.

Luke ends up confronting Kylo Ren, who is then revealed to be Ben Solo. Luke apologizes for having failed him as both his teacher and his uncle. He should have faced the threat himself rather than put their lives in danger.

Kylo Ren only laughs and Luke realizes, he cannot sense his nephew. Something else, much darker is inside of him now. It's as if the dark side itself lives in his body. Kylo Ren then reveals his true name: The Son of Mortis. The embodiment of the darkside.

They fight, and Kylo Ren kills Luke.

Lana goes to confront him and The Son recognizes him as his Sister, but as they fight it's clear the darkside is fueling her actions. The Son then questions if she is truly his reflection.

This is interupted as Rey and Finn come in on the scene. The Son knocks Lana away, but seeing her hurt gives him pause. He seems unable to move as something fights towards the surface.

Using this as a distraction Rey picks up Lana's lightsaber while Finn picks up Luke's and they both attack The Son.

The Son is able to hold them off, but it's clear something is no quite right. The ship takes one too many hits, and the order is given to retreat.

Finn and Rey get Lana out before the flag ship makes the jump to hyperspace. We end with Luke's funeral and the question of what comes next.

Hey, here’s a fun new game. Put “📓” or some other version of a book emoji into my inbox and I’ll explain the plot of a fanfiction that I haven’t written but daydream about.

[thewillowbends]

Logging in briefly to drop thoughts on Shadow & Bone:

1.) The word building is pretty good. The Fold is a nice, big, scary problem driving the main conflict.

2.) I can see why they combined the two series because, uh, Mal and Alina are pretty boring, aren’t they? Lol. The Darkling is definitely the stand out character from the trilogy, and if Kaz and crew weren’t there, you can see how boring it would be once he goes ~over the line.~

Which is like...why? Why not have the obvious — and actually meaningful for once — love triangle? Why not a redemption plot line, especially after showing us a fifteen minute backstory of how completely fucked up Aleksander’s backstory is? (Notice how he had to be flattened and dumbed down shortly after.) It would certainly have made Alina a far more interesting character. Completely unsurprising Darklina dominates the fanfiction. Kind of a shame Netflix wasn’t willing to diverge from the primary material a little more because it probably would have made the story stronger and more nuanced.

Literally guys, if you could just switch the villain/heroine storyline dynamic for S&B and the Star Wars sequels, it would vastly improve both stories, right?

3.) Goddamn Ben Barnes is so hot. The rest of the cast is more in the cute territory to me, but Inej’s actress is also bangin’.

4.) Mal and Alina are kind of terrible friends. I guess it’s supposed to be romantic that they’re each other’s “true north,” but they racked up quite a body count getting back to each other with their dumfuckery, didn’t they? Those poor cartographers.

5.) I find it bizarre how many writers want to write characters like Danaerys and the Darkling being driven to extremism or madness by the horror of their experiences but don’t want to explore the nuances of what it says about generational trauma or the world they inhabit. We can’t just keep writing villains and heroes who use violence to solve problems and only creating a nebulous moral reasoning as to why the latter is to be celebrated for it while the former is not.

Like...how do you watch that backstory in episode 7 and think it flattens Aleksander as a character? He represents a people who have been on the wrong side of genocide for literally centuries, both from internal and external enemies. He’s already tried serving the crown to get respite and lost everything for it. Their enemies to the north want to wipe them out, too. The only reason they have any protection now is because Aleksander carved out a space and weaponized them. He’s literally the only one doing anything! His own mother wanted him to leave the rest of the Grisha to die! He’s not wrong to think he and the rest of the Grisha are in danger if they aren’t in power.

It’s just...vaguely uncomfortable to continually see traumatized, nuanced characters turned into villains and then not letting any of the moral complexity that turned into extremists touch the heroes, too. The big obvious elephant in the room is that The Fold is being carted around as the way he could have brought the world to respect Grisha by using his power alongside Alina. Fine, but the story doesn’t examine two huge issues there: 1.) He had to create The Fold in the first place to make something big enough to make the statement of Grisha power, so essentially making the world embrace Grisha requires them to fear their power (“Make me your villain”) first before they can be amazed by it, 2.) you just showed us in ep. 7 that he had no reason to believe that destroying the Fold would ensure Grisha safety! The king’s already betrayed them once! (For that matter, character complaint here: why doesn’t he bring up Alina’s Shu heritage as an appeal to knowing being different makes you a target for danger?? Why doesn’t she make that connection??)

Just so bizarre to me how you can miss the real core of what’s interesting in the story.

6.) This is of course me telling you I’m total Darklina trash. Aesthetics, baby.