#there are plenty of really horrible things that happened last year but this one at least had a happy ending

[meguhime]

A year has passed, can you believe it?

On June 4, 2023, my brother had a cardiac arrest and survived. The hospital was about an hour and a half drive away from where I live. So imagine, a year ago today, I was racing down the highway with Jon to get to my brother as quickly as possible, not knowing if he would ever wake up, when half way there we got a flat tire. We had to circle back and borrow my mom's truck and we raced back out again. My brother woke up a day later, and he was so precious, and funny, and most importantly, alive.

It's been a year now and I have learned to grow around the grief of almost losing him... but gosh, June was so hard. I dropped everything to stay with him for a month to be a full time caretaker (I had 400 hours of sick leave so if that says anything about me taking care of myself, well, you would be right.) And during that time, taking care of him, I started to realize how little I left for myself. He started to hold me accountable for that too. My favorite was always the middle of the night medication when I brought him some fruit, we'd eat it together, and then I would help him back into bed. Every night, he told me that he was already starting to feel better, and it really showed day by day. It felt really nice to be responsible and trusted.

A lot of things were hard last summer but there were also plenty of bright moments, like trying to be quiet when he was sleeping while playing games with the lovely people who checked up on us, or hugging him when he had nightmares (like he used to do for me when we were young). And when his fiance returned home, and it was time for me to go back home, across the bridge, past the place where we got the flat tire, and unfortunately get back to work, I knew he was doing well. Seeing someone heal right in front of your eyes is one of the most magical things you can ever behold, and even better if you get to be part of it.

A few months later there was some Family Drama TM, can you believe it? After all that, you'd think it wouldn't be that way. But that's the ebb and flow of things. There's a lot from last year that was the absolute worst ever, but it also opened my eyes about the way I was living. I'm grateful to have come out of that time a little stronger and surrounded by the most precious, funny, loving people.

[taeyongdoyoung]

lobos, we cannot stop hunting

summary: the full moon comes and you insist on staying with your best friend despite his valiant warnings to make you run away from him... pairing: werewolf!chan x reader genre: smut, fantasy, best friends to lovers warnings: *takes a deep breath* heat suppressants, hugging, werewolf transformation, kissing, making out, hair-pulling, eating out, begging, fingering, overstimulation, consent is established multiple times, slightly mean dom!chan but overall a sweetheart, praise+degradation, size kink (duh), unprotected sex on the floor, knotting, breeding kink, mating *exhales* author's note: happy halloween, baby stays!!! 🐺 make sure to get some yummy treats and always remember to say the magic words please and thank you 😈 but ESPECIALLY please as the king of the wolves taught us 😉🛐 word count: 1.8k

"It's a full moon tonight," your werewolf best friend Chan says.

"So?" you murmur, not even bothering to look up from your phone. Those F1 reels that keep popping up on your feed are so interesting! "You've got your pills and stuff? You'll be fine, same as always."

"I ran out, actually," Chan scratches the back of his head nervously.

You put down your phone. Sorry, sexy F1 guys, you can wait.

"Can't you get more?" you ask him.

"No, my doctor is out of town. It's his anniversary with his wife and his phone is turned off."

"Goddamnit, Chan, and you tell me that now?" you are immediately worried about your best friend.

Before he started these pills, Chan told you that the full moon was like really bad on him. As in, he was completely out of control and had these...urges that he had to take care of by himself. Basically, he was in a lot of pain. He's been using these pills for the last two years and they've been working miraculously. Chan was pretty much like a human during the usually dangerous for werewolves full moon. Thankfully, his doctor has been very helpful in giving him plenty of these amazing pills.

"I'm sorry...I thought I had one left but I must have miscalculated."

"Chan, I keep telling you to write these stuff down in advance," you shake your head. "What are you going to do tonight?"

"Suffer through it, I guess. I was just giving you a heads-up so you can get out of here...like right about now."

"What? No way I'm leaving you alone!" you argue passionately. "What if you die?"

"Uh, I'm pretty sure I won't. But you don't get it, without my pills, I could unwittingly put you in danger. My best chance to make sure I'm not a menace to civilized society is to lock the door and tie myself up or something."

"That sounds horrible!" you cry out, feeling intense sympathy for your best friend. "I don't want to leave you alone."

"You have to!" Chan insists. "I would hate myself if I hurt you."

"You won't!" you keep trying to persuade him. "I trust you more than anyone else in the universe."

Chan shakes his head, still hesitant.

"Please, you should leave before the moon comes up."

Little does he know it has already begun to rise...

"No, I'm not leaving you," you keep saying and wrap your arms around him.

Chan desperately tries to push you away. But it is too late.

As the moon's power grows, so does his. The only thing that prevents you from continuing to embrace him is his oncoming transformation. Your arms fall weakly to your side as you witness the impossible. His generally tender, adorable features quickly turn into sharp, wolflike and kind of intimidating ones, if you have to be honest. But this is your best friend, your Chan, you keep reminding yourself. And all the fear disappears from your body. As you kneel down next to him, you run your hand through his soft fur, trying to pet him.

He initially snarls and tries to scare you off but the more you insist, the more he relaxes under your gentle touch. God, you can't believe he was afraid he'd harm you. He's just...a big puppy.

You can't resist the temptation and you hug him again. He's so fluffy you're gonna die! And then, the unimaginable happens. He fucking purrs! Oh dear, if you had already been having a hard time trying to hide your feelings for your best friend, then seeing him like this would surely be your demise.

Then, unexpectedly, he shifts back to his human form, taking you by surprise. One, because that was faster than you'd expected. Two, because he's entirely naked, but doesn't seem perturbed by it. You try your best to look him in the eyes because uh...you're still not sure where this is going.

"Please, go, I don't think I can control myself any longer," Chan begs.

"Control what?" you're so confused. "I already witnessed you in your wolf form, you seem pretty chill."

"It's not my wolf form you should be scared of," Chan warns darkly.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, if you don't get out of my sight in the next ten seconds, I'll fuck you until you pass out. And maybe even after that."

Oh? Wait...OH!!!

"Was that supposed to be a threat or a promise?" you quirk your eyebrows at him.

"Hold on, don't tell me you're actually excited by the prospect?" Chan wants to make sure.

"I mean...don't threaten me with a good time," you shrug calmly.

Chan kneels next to you, grabbing your hands tightly.

"I'm serious right now, don't play with me."

"What makes you think I'm not serious? I trust you, I want you, I lo- Uh, I like you a lot, whatever you do, that won't change," you mentally curse yourself for almost saying the big L-word. You hope he didn't catch that.

Judging from Chan's expression, he seems pretty satisfied with your statement.

"Well, don't say I didn't warn you," he whispers and kisses you harshly, biting your lips and making a mess.

Your mouths are linked by an unending streak of saliva, but honestly you couldn't care less as he claims you, pushing his tongue deeper down your throat, gripping your hair with his fingers for better access. You are already melting. You spoke too soon. You are definitely not ready for this. But you wouldn't be able to make him stop, even if you wanted to.

"Last chance," Chan breaks the kiss to give you the opportunity to back out. To get out of here while you still can.

"Do your worst," you challenge him recklessly and he kisses you again, even harder than before if that is possible.

You know that your best friend, despite his shy and cute demeanour, is physically stronger and bigger than you, but seeing him like this, completely losing control is such a thrill you make sure to commit the picture to memory as vividly as you can.

Chan takes off your clothes in a hurry and just like a hungry wolf, attacks your pussy. And starts devouring it as if it's his last meal on Earth. He doesn't even make the effort to get to the couch, which is so close. He just takes you right there, on the floor. You shake uncontrollably, but he grips your thighs to stop you from moving.

"Please, please, please," you keep repeating even though you have no idea what you're asking for. For him to keep going? For him to stop? You don't know anymore.

"I like it when you beg," Chan smirks against your folds and dives back in, swimming in your water.

It doesn't take you long to burst, completely letting go for him.

"Fuck, you're so beautiful," he praises you, not giving you time to recover and tracing circles around your entrance with his big fingers.

"No, you," you whisper weakly, trying to make him slow down by pushing his hand away. Needless to say, your efforts are in vain. "I'm s-sensitive."

Chan laughs cruelly.

"You can take it," his words are meant to be reassuring but they're not, as he sticks his finger inside of you.

It's just one but it's already so thick you are beginning to lose your mind.

"C-chan, p-please," you cry for him.

"What is it, sweetheart? You want another?" he mocks your lack of coherence and adds a second finger without waiting for your approval.

"N-no, I c-can't," you shake your head desperately.

"Yes, you can," Chan seems fully convinced, adding a third finger. "You're so tiny, gotta stretch you up real good to be able to take my cock next. Don't you want that, babygirl?"

"Yes, I want it," you are quick to agree and do your best to relax for his big fingers.

"Gonna let me take this sweet pussy with my wolf cock? Claim you as mine? Give you my pups?" he asks gently, his unrestrained actions in complete contrast with his sweet words.

"Yes, yes! Gonna let you breed me like the stupid bitch I am," you answer, degrading yourself in the process.

"That's what I like to hear, darling," Chan praises you and makes you come again on his fingers.

You are almost about to pass out. But somehow you manage to hold on for the next part. You want to feel it. Every second of it.

"Are you sure?" he asks once again, melting your heart.

"I've never been more sure about anything in my life," you reaffirm your belief in him.

Chan doesn't wait for a second offer and slides his cock inside of you. Fucking hell, if you thought his fingers were pretty huge, his manhood is on a whole different level. You try to adjust to his monstrous size and focus on his beautiful eyes instead. He's still your Chan, your sweet-

"Fuck, your pussy's so small, gonna rip you in half," Chan grunts loudly.

Okay, not so sweet after all.

"Please, don't. Or do, it's fine by me," you attempt to make a joke.

He laughs and kisses you again, going in deeper. You wrap your hands around his neck in a tremendous effort to ground you, help you remain conscious through it all.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Chan keeps talking meanly. "Want me to ruin that tiny pussy of yours?"

"Yes, yes, I want it all," you repeat mindlessly, not caring about the consequences anymore.

Then, as if by some miracle, you feel his cock growing even more while inside of you. Is that even possible? You thought it was just a myth.

Luckily, you're wetter than ever and your pussy easily swallows his knot.

"Gonna fuck you full of my cum, make you my mate, is that okay?" Chan wants to be sure.

"It's okay, Chan, I'll be your mate," you promise, not even sure what that means. But whatever it is, you're fine with it, as long as it's with Chan...

Then, he releases his wolf seed inside of your pussy, making you feel so full, so warm, so complete.

"Take it, baby, I know you can," he reassures you and you do your best to accept his overflowing victory.

It is a total mystery how you still haven't passed out. But you're grateful for it. You'd like to treasure this moment forever.

"I don't think I'll be able to let go of you anytime soon," Chan chuckles softly, still inside of you.

"That's alright, I think I can get used to this," you respond happily, kissing him again.

"Great. 'Cause I don't plan to ever stop hunting you, my sweet little prey," Chan vows.

"I am but a willing victim to whatever it is the full moon did to you," you smile contentedly.

"And if it's not just the full moon?" Chan asks, biting your earlobe playfully with his sharp teeth. "What if I want to have my way with you every night?"

"Who needs sleep anyways?"

The End

[prying-pandora666]

I don’t know how to say this tactfully, but I’ll do my best.

If other fans online have convinced you to see the gentle, optimistic, empathetic, fun loving, whimsical, forgiving, wise beyond his years genocide survivor, as a sexist, racist, xenophobic, abusive, pro-colonization, sexual assault perpetrator who doesn’t care about anyone else and doesn’t understand trauma…

You have been LIED TO.

Please just think for a moment!

ATLA was banned in China from the beginning for a reason. Because they didn’t want anyone empathizing with a character based on Tibetan monks. Why? Because they are an actual oppressed and persecuted minority IRL. Their religious leader lives in exile. Their second most important spiritual figure is the youngest political prisoner ever taken (and to this day no one knows if he’s alive or dead!). China has actual prison and labor camps. Tibetan people get sent there for “re-education”.

Can you please think about what these “fans” are saying when they stomp all over this allegory in TLA and try to frame Aang as the oppressor?

Do you really think it’s appropriate or these people who call Aang all these horrible (and inaccurate) things are being in anyway fair when they call Aang “white coded”???

Even without the real world context, Aang is explicitly the only survivor of a genocide. The last of his people. He has lost more than anyone else in the entire franchise. There’s a reason he clings so hard to Appa.

Do you think it’s fair to compare a 12 year old misreading signals and trying to kiss a girl who already consensually kissed him before, and immediately backing off and giving her space when she says no, to rape?

Tweens and teens miscommunicating and trying to comfort each other with kisses, only to realize that’s not what their friend needed and immediately backing off is the same as having your body violently violated against your will? The same as having your “no” ignored?

How do you think this makes survivors feel? To see people use their experiences as a shield and cudgel for ship discourse? It certainly upsets me as someone who experienced intimate partner violence, let me tell you! And I know I’m not the only one.

And how is it in anyway feminist or pro-Katara to ignore her own agency and deep love she shows for Aang? Yes, that includes her own crush on him! It IS reciprocated!

Lastly, you don’t need to demonize Aang to ship whatever you want to ship. Please understand that the majority of these takes are bad faith and born out of bitterness and insecurity over a friggin FANON SHIP.

And none of it is necessary! You can ship whatever you want! You don’t need permission or excuses. You can just ship them! You can make your case for why you like another pairing better without misrepresenting what happened in the show and what these characters are like, let alone what they represent.

There’s already plenty to work with in the show as it is! Otherwise why bother?

I’m imploring fans taken in by persuasive and manipulative metas to please just think about it. Get off social media and rewatch the show for yourself thoughtfully.

It doesn’t need to be like this.

[greyskyflowers]

I like the idea that, I've seen mentioned a few times and love it, the boys turn into those little orb things when they're like completely, if they were human they would have passed out, exhausted.

I imagine a soft glow, warm to hold, about the size of an orange, a little weight to it and it doesn't float but drops to the floor and rolls like a ball ~

⚪️⚪️⚪️⚪️⚪️⚪️

It really isn't surprising after everything with hell, Esther, and Niko, that Edwin shifts.

He looks exhausted, and Charles still sees him terrifed and bloody in Hell when he closes his eyes, swaying a little bit where he stands listening to Crystal, and Charles knows what's going to happen before it happens.

The softly glowing orb doesn't even have a chance to drop before Charles snatches it, carefully tucking it away in his coat. It's a warm, little weight against his side.

He loves Crystal, Edwin does too even though he huffs about it, but she doesn't need to see Edwin like this. No one needs to see Edwin like this. The thought of it feels like calling attention to an open wound, advertising a vulnerable spot for someone to exploit or further hurt.

Thankfully, they're all finally free to go home. He doesn't like the idea of leaving Crystal but there's a growing itch to get back home and she shoves him towards the mirror and tells him she's meet up with them later.

Neither Charles or Edwin like being out when one of them is like this.

The first few time it happened, Charles hadn't really thought about it too much. And it happened a lot those first years after his death. He often overdid it, everything going fuzzy before going dark, and then he'd wake up, usually pressed against Edwin's side on the little couch. He always woke up on or next to Edwin and it'd been startling the first few times but he always wakes up comfortable now, no rush to get up.

The first time Edwin shifted in front of Charles, he panicked. Refused to let go of him until, after what seemed like days, Edwin shifted back. Still relaxed enough that he hadn't immediately shoved himself off Charle's lap and he hadn't fought the hug too hard either.

He's only see Edwin like that a few times but to be on the other side of it, he understands why Edwin always relaxes when Charles shifts back. It's a powerful and terrifying feeling, to hold something so small and vulnerable and know it's the most important person in the world to you.

As he got to know Edwin more, Charles had the horrible realization that Edwin had been in Hell for over 70 years and surely he must have been exhausted plenty of times when down there. What happened to him when he shifted?

Charles didn't know what Hell looked like or what really happened down there but he pictured the little orb rolling around on the floor, being kicked, or someone finding other ways to hurt it. He had finally asked, so worked up he hadn't even thought about if Edwin would want to talk about, because he needed to know.

He'd gotten a gentle look from Edwin and an answer.

While he was absolutely exhausted in hell, he never shifted. Hell takes a lot of things away and the relief of sleep or unconsciousness is one of them.

So, honestly, Edwin had lasted longer than Charles thought he would. He half expected that he'd have to lunge for the orb as soon as they fell back through the door from Hell.

Thinking too much about Hell and Esther makes him a nasty mix of furious and terrified, so he forces himself to focus on the present.

He holds Edwin closer his chest as he sinks onto the couch. He's emotionally exhausted and in the silence of everything, finally has a moment to think about the love confession on the stairs of hell.

He doesn't know what to do with that liar but he was right when he told Edwin they had forever to figure it out.

He lays out on the couch, feet hanging off the far end and his head on the armrest, the orb on his chest and his hands almost petting at it. Holding it like this means that when Edwin shifts back he'll be sprawled over Charles, something that will probably have him flustered and immediately trying to get up and off.

Charles hopes he's sleepy and comfortable when he changes back though, that he just settles there without over thinking it.

Just the two of them existing together in the same space.

[mixedupmojo]

Weird isekai idea that I had that I just wanted to realise into the wild.

Ok so you know how there are multiple stories out there about reader getting transported into the world of journey to the west and then ending up tagging along as the pilgrims make their way west. Here's the thing most of the time these story's take place once the group has already been assembled or the reader ends up meeting Tripitaka first.

So here's the thought what if reader meets Wukong before the group has a chance to get together. Let me explain.

So imagine reader has just arrived in a strange new world and they have absolutely no clue where they are or how they got there and are freaking out really badly. So they start calling out to see if there is anyone nearby that can help them and after a good few minutes of wandering around and shouting for help they suddenly get a reply. Relived they rush towards the voice, only to find that the person that was calling to them wasn't a person but a monkey that looks to be trapped within the rock of a mountain. And it only takes them a second to realise that this isn't just any monkey but thee monkey, the monkey king, Sun Wukong himself and somehow they've been transported into the story of journey to the west. Their internal crisis soon gets interrupted as Wukong starts asking if they wouldn't mind helping him out with his situation. Knowing the story not to mention what Wukong's capable of they immediately disagree much to Wukong's outrage. At Wukongs outburst they go to leave but that’s when they realise that they still have no clue where they are and what's worse no idea who could help them except for maybe Tripitaka so they resolve to wait for him much to Wukong confusion. Realising that it might not be a good idea to tell him that they are not exactly from this world they stick with the hopelessly lost excuse. which Wukong responds with that he would be happy to help them out if they let him out which is an obvious no so things quickly devolve into a stale mate.

Days go by and they end up talking a lot, with Wukong casually trying to convince them to take off the seal every now and then and them always refusing. But as the days go by the more anxious and worried reader gets after all they have no idea at what point in the story they are and it could very well be a hundred year before Tripitaka will eventually show up. Food and shelter are also a worry as they've managed to get by due to it being summer and there is plenty to forage and a small cave nearby that they've been using for shelter but they know it won't last forever. but most of all they really, really want to go home they miss their family their friends they miss their life. More time goes by and day by day reader and Wukong bond even more to the point where the monkey king has actually grow quite fond of them and cares quite a lot to the point that he starts helping them out in what little ways he can. He even stops constantly trying to get them to remove the seal on the mountain only occasionally asking every now and then and its usually only after he see them struggling, instead he's taking the time to ask them about themselves and find out more about them and in return he tell them about himself usually stories of his glory days. eventually they come clean about the fact that they are not from this world and how they have no idea how they got here or how to get home, breaking down a bit as Wukong resolves to help in any way he can. Then one day it happens completely unprompted reader suddenly get up and start walking away at first Wukong doesn't think anything of it as they often leave to look for food and other such things but as the hours go by and they've yet to come back Wukong starts to worry think that something bad might have happened to them before he gets the horrible thought that they might have just finally got sick of waiting and left him. Stewing in his thought the monkey king slowly growing more and more enrage and heartbroken at the potential betrayal. when suddenly he can feel it, he can feel the mountain shift and he realise what they have done. It's after another few hours pass that he hears them running down the mountain catching a quick sight of them as they run past him. it doesn't take him long to realise that they are getting a safe distance away and he waits a few more hours before he finally breaks free. Meanwhile your despriatly trying to catch your breath as you watch the entire mountain explode chunks of rock flying in all directions and your barely able to make out a reddish orange blur coming towards you before your enveloped in a bone crushing hug.

Thus beings their own journey to find a way to get reader home.

I dunno I just really like the idea of Guanyin or Tripitaka turning up and Wukong not being there and all of haven freaking out because the monkey king is on the loose and no one has any idea where he is.

[romanestuffsposts]

Oksy so it's a very random start rn but last week I was with a friend and she gave me a speacial cookie but didnt told me what in it was so i ate it and started to feel fuzzy and later I was vomiting and had a head ache and stuff and than she told me that it was a space cookie with weed in it. I was so scared when I start to notice that I dont feel good but she just made fun of me. Now i cut the contact and need comfort (when I noticed that I was not feeling good I was walking home and when I was home I was still so scared and crying that I cried in my dads arms crying myself to sleep)

Daddy stucky x little reader where she was in the same Situation and they found her crying, scared and throwing up with much comfort ❤️❤️

Hi there love! 💜

First of all I’m so so sorry that it happened to you. You are the only one who can make the decision for yourself, if you want to take a space cookie then it has to come from you and no one else ! It’s just respect. It made me so mad when I read what you send me, not mad at you but mad at your friend (who is really not a good friend btw). I can totally understand how you felt afterward and how betrayed you must have felt.

I once took a space cookie at a party at my cousin’s house and I saw everyone laughing and running everywhere while I was on my chair, completely lost. I moved my eyes from left to right and I had the feeling that the world was spinning. It wasn’t really fun because I didn’t enjoy my night because of that (two hours after I ate it I was in bed imao). But it was my choice, I was with people I trust and I wanted to take it. That’s the difference. I felt sick too (probably because it’s was the fist time I ate weed- I already smoke it but not eating it) but it was my decision.

Those kind of experience can’t come from anyone else but you. That’s just how it is and nothing else is acceptable.

I hope you recover from that horrible experience sweetie, you’re so strong and I’m so happy for you that you had your dad to comfort you. Be careful my love <3

I hope you like how I wrote this fic, lots of love babe ❤️

****

warnings : mention of drugs, taking drugs against your will, feeling dizzy and sick, comfort, reassurance, trust issues, pet names, paci

Pairings : Daddies!Stucky ; daddy!Bucky x Papa!Steve x Little!Reader

Summary : you didn’t chose your friends correctly

****

You always had a hard time making friends. Not because you’re a bad person or because you’re mean to everyone that look at you but because you’re discreet, you’re shy and you’re scared to go to people.

But once you make a friend, you’re ready to do everything for that person. You’re that kind of friend, the one who gave the half of your meal if your friend doesn’t have anything to eat. Your the kind of friend that will sleep on the floor so the other sleep in your bed. You’re the kind of friend that pardon everyone because for you, everyone can have a second chance. Mistakes happen

Mistakes..

You wouldn’t call it a mistake this time tho.

You were enjoying a sleepover at your friend’s house, everything went good, you were having fun and you even made new friends that were also invited. One of them came with a plate of cookies and you can’t lie and say you hadn’t thought of them all evening.

Apparently they knew each others for years and at first that scared you but once you met them your nerves actually relax a bit. They’re used to do things together and lived plenty life experience together while you did it alone but that’s fine, you’re here now, you’re with them so everything is good.

Around 11pm, the one that came with the cookies open the box and give one to everyone. Everyone seemed excited and you didn’t question it because you were too, not for the same reasons tho.

You ate that cookie so fast that your stomach isn’t really happen. You went to grab another one when your friend stop you ‘’wait just a few minutes before taking another, trust me’’ she winks

Trust me

You shrug it off and went back to playing, you were enjoying the night when all of a sudden, everyone start to be a little bit weird, too weird to your liking.

The more you try to understand why one of the guy is laughing hard just because he has a fly on his drink, or why your friend has a hard time opening her red eyes that you start to feel weird too.

You stand up thinking you needed water but soon realised that mistake. Once your butt leave the seat, it feels like the world start spinning around you. You look around you, scared and lost, everyone were enjoying their time while you just wanted to crawl in bed and recover.

You tried to go to your friend but when she wasn’t ghosting you she was just telling you that it was fine that you didn’t needed to worry about anything and just enjoying the feeling.

You didn’t felt listen or understood at all and that alone make you feel even more sick. With all the strength you can get, you pick up your bag and leave the house.

You live a few blocks away from your friend- ex friend, so you decide to walk home, not really knowing what to do else. You don’t know if your Daddies are home or if they took advantage of the fact that you were away to do something together.

While walking home you start crying, you felt betrayed, you may not be the most thoughtful girl but you’re definitely not stupid, you know there was something in the cookie, you just didn’t realised it on time.

You’re relieved to see your door’s house and has a warm feeling in your chest once you close it behind you. As the click of the door closing is heard, your back fall onto it and you slide down the door, until your touching the ground.

You soon hear footsteps coming toward where you are ‘’baby ?’’ Your Papa walk toward you and kneels down ‘’what are you doing here ?’’

‘’is everything okay, baby girl ?’’ Your Daddy asks as well. You shake your head, tears sliding down your face.

Your Papa rests his hand against your cheek ‘’take deep breath, love. You’re at home, with us, nothing can harm you here’’

You take shaky breathes and squeeze your hands ‘’baby tell us what’s wrong’’

‘’I- I didn wanted to. I just wanted cookie, I promise I didn k-know’’ you cry harder.

‘’Hey hey shhh, it’s okay little one, keep taking deep breathes we won’t get mad at you’’ your Daddy reassures you.

‘’I feel bad’’ you cry and wipe your eye with the back of your hand

‘’How do you feel bad ?’’ Your Papa asks, taking your hand away from your eye. He hates when you do that because you’re always too harsh with yourself and he doesn’t want you to get hurt ‘’explain to us’’

You sob ‘’I don know i-‘’ you breath out ‘’everything is spinning and- and i tired’’ you whine.

Your Daddies look at each other, it doesn’t take them a long time to connect about what had happened. You talked about cookies and then feeling bad and finally everything is spinning. They immediately understood.

Your Daddy stand up and lifts you up in his arms, you immediately roll yourself around him. He waits until your Papa finishes removing your shoes and sockets before going to the couch. He sits down and rests you on his laps ‘’it’s okay my love, you went through something you shouldn’t have to without your consent but you’ll be fine’’

‘’nothing will happen to you, you’ll feel bad for a few more hours but that’s all’’ he kisses your forehead ‘’papa will be back soon with a glass of water, it’ll make you feel better’’

‘’Close your eyes babydoll, the world will not spinning as much as it does when your eyes are open’’ he quietly says, his fingers sliding down your hair to calm you down

‘’Here princess’’ your Papa sits on the couch and help you drinking the water. The fresh liquid that slide down your throat help at making you feel more relax and calm, just like your Daddy said it would.

He takes your feet on his laps and gently rubs them while speaking softly to you. Your eyes are still close but your other senses are multiplying, the touches of your Daddies help at calming your nerve and the reassurance behind the truth your Daddy said earlier about you closing your eyes and the water thing is really good at relaxing you.

‘’How about you sleep with us tonight ?’’

They know you’re not in a big danger but it reassure them too if you were with them for the night.

You nod your head and before you can put your finger in your mouth, your Daddy slides your paci in it.

‘’We won’t let her hang out with these people, right ?’’ Your Daddy asks as his eyes wonder around your sleepy face.

‘’As if she would want to hang out with them again’’ your Papa scoffs as his hands still rubs your cold feet

[mychoombatheroomba]

Fade Out

Between the Bones (Leon x GN! Reader) - Chapter 53

You and Leon are questioned following the events on base.

(Cross-posted from Ao3)

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Chapter Index

TW for angst and government manipulation but what else is new?

You didn’t really know where you were, only that the room was familiar. A one-way mirror. A simple table. A recording device. An empty chair across from you. A little TV on the corner of the table.

You’d been in a room like it once before, when you gave your report on what happened in Finland over a year ago. 

Now, here you were, history repeating itself; returning to you in new clothes but with the same violent intentions. You’d thought you had been cresting a hill in feeling your pain ease. Now you knew that you’d just been the unknowing fool strapped to a wheel, turning up to see the sun only to get crushed against the ground once more. 

So you let yourself be pressed down by the weight, wishing you could well and truly sink into the earth. It was easy to fall into that mindset by yourself, you found. 

In the days following this newest nightmare, you and the others had been isolated. A safety precaution to prevent the spread of the virus, and to keep anyone from taking action. Now, though, you’d been escorted from your quarantine and taken to this room, where you knew questions would be waiting for you. You didn’t want to talk about what had happened now any more than you had after Finland. You didn’t want to speak into reality what was already building a cage around your mind. 

Not that you had a choice. 

The door opened without you being ready for it to. A man walked in, carrying a manila folder. Tall. Brown hair. Pale, gaunt cheeks. Another fine-pressed suit, complete with one of those stupid ties that only cowboys should wear, but assholes from old money always seemed to love. 

“Good morning, Sergeant,” he greeted, already sounding like he knew everything in the world. 

Then there’s no need to talk to me. 

You didn’t speak back as the man settled into the chair opposite you, clicked the record button on the machine in front of him, holding the folder in his lap. He spoke your rank and name into the air, alongside the word “debriefing” as if that’s what this was. “Presiding officer: Derek C. Simmons.” He fixed his gaze on you, then, and it began. 

⧫⧫⧫

Leon knew the man across from him. 

He knew that aged face, the hair that was already beginning to gray, the rectangular glasses. Hard to forget a person who forced you into military service. Who had weighed your life against information you possessed and deemed you the lesser of the two. 

He half expected Adam Benford to find some new, horrible way to threaten him. As the agent took a seat and started the recording, Leon kept waiting for him to bring up Sherry, or even you and the others. He waited for some terrible new hammer to fall, because that seemed to be the way of things. 

Instead, it was just questions.

Familiar questions, all revolving around one central theme: tell me what happened that night.  

So he did. He relived on tape every agonizing detail. Each moment. 

- a shriek and a cracking of bone as it connected - 

- the laces of his boot colliding with a skull -

- no time for surprise to even register on his face -

⧫⧫⧫

“All of that, and you weren’t infected,” Simmons mused, stroking the goatee on his chin. “Nearly everyone on base turned, and you-”

“I didn’t eat the same food as everyone else,” you said dryly, because you’d had plenty of time over the last few days to put together that much. “That’s what it was, wasn’t it?” 

The man gave you a look that might have been approval, even if it was still filtered through a discerning veneer. “It was. And how convenient that you happened to avoid it. Just as you managed to avoid being infected during the incident at Dorne Base.” 

Anger. It lanced through you as soon as Simmons spoke. “If you’re looking to make accusations, don’t waste your time. Did you find Reed’s body with the others?” You didn’t even need Simmons to confirm it, you were so dead set in your belief. You were certain beyond any shadow of a doubt. 

⧫⧫⧫

Benford shook his head, and Leon knew you’d been right. He could feel it, even if your explanation had been rushed and delivered in near mania back on the base. How could it not have been? You’d watched another home fall in the same brutal way. You’d endured your nightmare a second time. 

Another horror for you to relive.

Another horror for Leon, because every time he closed his eyes, all he could see was a smoking rifle barrel and that look of emptiness on your face-

“How did this happen?” Leon asked, because when he wasn’t thinking of the blood and fires, he was thinking of that one question. “How did you let this happen again?” 

The wrinkles already present on Benford’s face deepened as he frowned. There was more guilt there than Leon would have expected. “We put our trust in the wrong person,” he answered, and Leon couldn’t have scoffed more at the understatement. 

The wrong person. A man who’d had his run of the base. The authority to do as he pleased. 

“Reed was in charge of handling all incoming and outgoing mail. It’s fair to say that’s how he got the virus samples. It would have gone through him first,” Benford admitted, and again Leon was floored by how easy it had been, in hindsight. All Reed had to do was wait until Krauser and Hellman were away . . . “What we don’t know for certain,” the agent went on, “is whether Reed acted alone.” 

Leon had been exhausted for days. Sleep evaded him, no matter what he tried. His mind was addled with the fresh poison of memory and nightmare. Even so, even with the stupor he was in, he felt his hackles raise as soon as Benford spoke the words. 

“You think someone on base helped him?” 

“It’s not out of the realm of possibility.” Some terrible feeling in his gut told Leon who they suspected even before your name was spoken into the air. “You’re quite close with the Sergeant, aren’t you?”

“You can’t be serious.” What other response was he supposed to have? “Are you just throwing accusations around for the hell of it? Or have you found any evidence?” 

⧫⧫⧫

“No, we haven’t,” Simmons surprised you by answering honestly, but his intake of breath told you that he wasn’t done. That much was proven further when he lifted the folder he held, and a jolt of adrenaline shot through you. “We did find these, though, hidden under the mattress of your bunk.” 

Fuck . . .

He flipped the folder open, and you immediately recognized the printed words on the first page. 

𝚁𝙰𝙲𝙲𝙾𝙾𝙽 𝙲𝙸𝚃𝚈 𝚁𝙴𝙿𝙾𝚁𝚃 - 𝚂𝙴𝙿𝚃𝙴𝙼𝙱𝙴𝚁 𝟸𝟽𝚝𝚑, 𝟷𝟿𝟿𝟾

⧫⧫⧫

Leon looked down at the pictures of the reports and felt a new pit open in his stomach. He recognized them. He’d spent a fair amount of time reading through them, under your supervision, after all. 

“These same reports were missing from Major Krauser’s office,” Benford began, and Leon didn’t know what to do. 

What to say. Telling the truth would implicate not only you, but-

“The Major was adamant that he gave the reports to the Sergeant,” Benford explained, and Leon felt his heart sink. “He asked that punishment be his alone to bear. Claimed that he was the only one responsible for this breach of intelligence.”

⧫⧫⧫

“He lied.” It wasn’t your best performance, but you had to try. Had to do something, or Krauser would take the fall for your curiosity. Another casualty that you could have prevented if you’d been smarter. If you’d just put the fucking reports back when you were done reading through them in the first place. Now, all you could do was pray that your bluff would work. “I took them from his office the night before the attack. Check the camera footage, I was in the officer’s barracks. He’s just trying to cover for me.”

Simmons, for his part, just seemed intrigued by your words. “Really?” he said, raising a brow. “And what reason would he have to do that?” 

⧫⧫⧫

Leon knew the reason. He had been ignoring it for long enough, but he knew now. The Major’s service was everything to him, his life in the military all that he had. Still, he’d risked it for you. It all became unavoidable, then; why Krauser had been so harsh with Leon after Fort Benning. Why he’d been taking such an interest in your training. Why he’d given you classified information. Him keeping your secret, his late nights with you, all of it. 

Krauser cared for you. More than he should have.

And Leon knew. 

If he said as much, if he spoke that truth, Jack Krauser’s career would be over. 

Krauser’s feelings for you were a breach of the balance of power. Leon knew that. He would be justified in reporting it . . . but Krauser had never acted on those feelings. At least as far as Leon knew. He cared for you, that much was obvious, but he’d never acted on it. And Leon knew he wouldn’t. For all the harsh training, for every bruising lesson, Krauser was a good man.

A man that Leon, despite himself, cared for.

A man who just wanted the best for those under his command.

Still, a choice had to be made.

Leon wasn’t a liar. He had never been good at it. He’d always spoken the truth, when he could help it. 

But more than that, he’d always defended those he cared for. 

“He’s loyal to his men,” Leon answered, his voice smaller than he would like. It was true, he supposed. Even if loyalty may not have been all the Major felt towards you. “He would lie to keep them protected in a heartbeat.” 

⧫⧫⧫

“And you are loyal to him, it seems.” 

You knew where this was going, because Reed had made the exact same implication the other night. It made you want to scream. This whole ordeal did, because it was what little remained of your world being torn apart once more. The dogs and carrion birds had come to tear at the remains of you. It left you on your back heels, trying desperately to defend yourself and your Major both. “I’m loyal to everyone I serve with.” 

“Not to your country?” 

“To the government that signed off on a deal with Birkin?” you hissed, shaking your head. “That let an Umbrella agent slip under its nose? How can I trust that country when anyone could be working for the enemy? How the fuck can I even know that you’re not with Umbrella? Another asshole on its payroll?” You were seething, now. Swinging blindly at an enemy you couldn’t see, hoping to land any blow. 

Simmons regarded you, then, his eyes calculating. 

Up until now, everything felt scripted. Like he had been given a loose list of questions to ask you.

In that moment, you felt him break from it. 

⧫⧫⧫

“I understand what the Sergeant has gone through,” Benford said, his tone more sympathetic than Leon had ever heard it. “I know that what you both endured might have brought you . . . closer. I know that you likely trust the Sergeant. I’m trying to determine if we can.” 

Leon’s jaw clenched. “You’re crazy if you think that anyone who watched their entire base be destroyed, who lost the people most important in their life, who nearly died because of Umbrella, would ever work for those bastards.” Because you wouldn’t. You would never have done this. He didn’t understand why they would even think-

“You were close with Lieutenant Logan Alenko, were you not?” 

Benford’s question eviscerated Leon. Dug in before the younger man could even prepare himself. 

“Yes,” he answered, numb. “I was.” 

“And the Sergeant was too, am I correct?” 

Leon winced, the memory of your smiles and wry humor clashing brutally with that newest memory of you. The one that Leon could never and would never forget. 

“Yes.”

“But you reported that the Sergeant killed him anyway.”

“He . . . was infected.” 

“Infected but not turned, correct?” 

“. . . Yes.” 

Benford nodded, thinking for a moment. “You may speak freely, Leon,” he said, the eyes framed by glasses piercing but sincere. “Do you think you can trust an individual like that? One who is comfortable committing treason and executing allies?” 

Leon knew what answer was expected of him.

⧫⧫⧫

“I suppose you can’t,” Simmons admitted, seeming to mull something over. In the end, he looked towards the one-way glass, towards where other agents and officers were no doubt watching the debriefing, then back to you. “So allow me to be transparent with you.” He leaned forward, his hands clasping together and his elbows resting on the table. “Many of these reports that you’ve read crossed my desk. I was aware of the dealings being made with William Birkin. I was aware that Agent Reed was facilitating that communication.” You didn’t get any satisfaction from that confirmation. Not as Simmons continued. “I oversaw the operation to obtain virus samples when Birkin went silent, and when the situation in Raccoon City became uncontainable, I counseled its destruction.” 

You didn’t even have time to process the information. One hundred thousand deaths, deaths that bore down on Leon’s conscious, on your own, in a way . . . lives snuffed out in an instant, all because of this man. Some asshole in a suit. What truly made you feel empty, though, was what Simmons said next. 

“And I think you understand why I did it,” he said, and you wanted to look anywhere but his eyes. It felt impossible, though, as he peered at you from over his clasped hands. “You killed Lieutenant Alenko for the same reason.” 

You nearly flew across the table at him. Nearly tore his throat out. “It is not the same-”

⧫⧫⧫

You’d done it because you had to. Because Alenko would have turned if you hadn’t. You’d done it, Leon knew, to spare him. It wasn’t heartless of you . . .

⧫⧫⧫

“Oh, but it was,” Simmons shook his head. “It was ugly, but necessary. You kill a friend to keep him from turning into a monster. I destroy a city to keep a nation sleeping peacefully at night. I think you would have done the same thing, in my place. And I think you and I share a similar resentment for the organization that forced our hands.” 

The only thing that stayed your rage was hearing it mirrored in Simmons’ voice. 

⧫⧫⧫

You did what you had to do.

⧫⧫⧫

“Umbrella has upset the balance of our entire world. We did the same thing once before, developing the atomic bomb. We changed war forever. Now, it will be changed again. As much as we have tried - as I have tried - to keep the knowledge of what Umbrella has developed from the rest of the world, I know that news is already spreading. Our enemies are clamoring for their share of a weapon that can destroy a military base, a city. We will need individuals who can do what must be done,” he said, and you felt the chains clicking into place as he looked at you. “We need individuals like you.”

“I thought I might be responsible for all this?” Bitterness flavored your words because hadn’t he just suggested that you were the plant? That you were working for Umbrella?  

Simmons nodded, pensive as he lowered his hands. “I was asked to interrogate you on your potential involvement in this most recent attack, that is true. But you’re right. I think it’s a waste of time. You’re loyal to the men and women you serve with, I believe you when you say that. Unfortunately-” he drummed his fingers against the reports- “you have put me in a difficult situation.” 

Because even if you hadn’t been involved in the attack, you had absolutely done something wrong besides. You knew too much. Just as Leon knew too much, when he’d been tracked down after Raccoon City. 

They’d threatened a child to force his loyalty. Told him not so subtly that he and Sherry would die if he didn’t agree to give his life in service. 

What would they do to you?

“If you’re not with Umbrella,” you began, “then you don’t have anything to worry about from me.” 

⧫⧫⧫

You would never hurt anyone unless you had a good reason. Leon knew that truth in his heart. 

⧫⧫⧫

“I believe you,” Simmons said again, “but unfortunately, my superiors feel otherwise.”

“I’m offering you my cooperation-”

“And you’re being forgiven for committing treason,” Simmons pointed out. “You’ll forgive them for being cautious.” 

“Oh I will?” 

“You will,” Simmons nodded. “Because your Major admitted to committing that same treason on record. A record that I can strike or can act on. Just as I can ignore your fraternization, or act on it.” 

“I’m not fraternizing with the Major-”

“I wasn’t referring to him. Well, perhaps not only to him.”

You’d been through this enough times by now that it was no longer a shock; that realization that you hadn’t, in fact, been careful. That despite your best efforts, there were precious few ways to hide from eyes that were everywhere. 

So, as Simmons reached towards the little TV on the corner of the table and turned it on, it wasn’t shock that overtook you, this time. It was a dark acceptance. 

You looked at the screen, seeing the image come to life, low-quality, but unmistakable. Leon’s hair - that fucking ridiculous hair that he refused to cut - made it impossible to think it was anyone else. The shape of you was just as clear as you watched a familiar scene. You knew exactly what day it was. In your gut, you knew. The day you and Leon had faced Krauser together in sparring, right before the final test. The day you’d lamented that you wished to be going into service with Leon. You schooled your expression as best you could as you watched the recording, seeing you both walking back to the barracks, stopping, and then Leon folding his arms around you in a comforting embrace. 

⧫⧫⧫

He loved you. However much horror you’d endured, he loved you. 

⧫⧫⧫

You watched as, after a moment, your own arms came up to hold him in return. 

When you were with him like that, it was easy to forget the passage of time. Comfort had that effect, you supposed. Now, though, each second that embrace lasted on screen seemed to be a lifetime long. 

It was always going to turn out like this. You’d known that going in, hadn’t you? 

“Is this supposed to be a threat?” you asked, your voice becoming hollow once more. 

Simmons shook his head. “It’s an observation. You and Kennedy care for each other. The Major claimed to have no knowledge of anything between the two of you, but Hellman and Reed’s reports both surmise that you two are close.” He tilted his head, opening his hands in a questioning motion. “Just how close are you?”

“He asked me to teach him how to fight,” you said, holding Simmons’ gaze. “We’ve trained together. We’re friends. Nothing more.” 

“Really? No deeper feelings at all?”

⧫⧫⧫

He loved you.

⧫⧫⧫

“There’s nothing.” 

Simmons didn’t believe you. You could see that much written plainly across his face. Still, he nodded. “Good. I’m sure you’re aware of the importance of Leon’s continued service. I wouldn’t want anything to jeopardize that.” The threat was plain. Barely disguised. 

“Nothing will.” 

Because if Leon wasn’t in STRATCOM, if he wasn’t an agent for the government, he would be a liability. A man who knew too much.

That much was spelled out for you now, clear as day. If he was thrown from service, his life was forfeit. 

Krauser’s career, Leon’s life . . . all riding on you not misbehaving. 

The shackles were in place, your path forward clear. They were your weaknesses – the gaps in your armor. Simmons had found them without trouble. He would use them against you, if you gave him cause to.

So long as you were all entangled together, they would be in danger.

In the recording, you and Leon finally stepped away from each other. You watched out of the corner of your eye, numb. 

⧫⧫⧫

He hated what you’d done, but he loved you. 

⧫⧫⧫

“You want someone who will do whatever it takes? Who will bury Umbrella in the ground? You’ve got them.” If that was what you were put on this Earth to do, then so be it. 

You could be their weapon. That was what you’d been training for.

⧫⧫⧫

“Leon,” Benford spoke again, and Leon just wanted the nightmare to stop. He wanted it all to stop, even if just for a moment. “Do you honestly think we can trust a person like that?” 

The question wouldn’t have fazed him a week ago. It would have been ridiculous. Insane. 

Even now, it wasn’t that he didn’t trust you. He did. He always would. 

That didn’t change the fact that he had hesitated in his answer. Something had held his tongue, even if only for a moment. Something he never, ever wanted to associate with you, but he found it there all the same. He found it in the memory of your hollow expression, your blank stare as you lowered the rifle. 

Fear. 

He’d been afraid of you, in that moment. 

Or, perhaps, he’d been afraid for you. 

“It had to be done.” Leon was trying to convince the man across from him as much as himself. 

So yes. He trusted you. 

Even if he would never forget what you’d done.

⧫⧫⧫

Hearing those words, Simmons smiled. “I’m glad we understand each other.” With that, it was done. The agent stood and left, and a few seconds later, soldiers came in to lead you out of the room.

You passed him in the hallway as you were escorted back to your room. 

The universe loved its shitty timing, didn’t it? 

Leon’s eyes widened just a touch as he saw you. Blue framed in bruising. Still beautiful, just as he had been when you’d seen him across the mess hall. Just as when that bruising had been dealt by your hand and not just a lack of sleep. Maybe that lack of sleep was your fault, too. 

You hoped it was.

You hoped he hated you for what you’d done. You certainly did. 

It wasn’t hatred that you saw in that gaze, though. 

No. Instead, you glimpsed uncertainty. Concern. 

Fear. 

And what did you give back? What did you spare the man you loved? The man who had saved you the night of the attack and long before then? 

Absolutely nothing. 

You kept walking, your eyes focused forward as you passed him. 

You didn’t even blink. Not until you were back in your appointed cell, finding your belongings there. Fatigues, rucksack . . . and a radio that you shouldn’t have had. One stolen in an act of petty retribution. One that had been your companion as you watched others training for a war that was yours. 

Only yours. 

It should have only been yours. 

You took the radio in your hands. Flipped it on. 

A guitar. Drums. A voice that seemed to strain against the very words it sang. 

Cracked eggs, dead birds,

Scream as they fight for life

You’d known. You’d known from the start it couldn’t end any other way. 

I can feel death, can see its beady eyes

If things could be different . . . if you were anyone, anywhere else . . . but you weren’t. Wishing didn’t matter, not when you were faced with the reality before you. Leon could have your love, or he could have his life. You knew which one he would choose. So you wouldn’t give him the choice.

All these things into position,

All these things we’ll one day swallow whole

Your hands tightened around the radio, your eyes stinging.

And fade out again . . .

Your teeth clenched so hard you thought they might break, just as the plastic on the radio began to groan under your constricting fingers. 

And fade out-

Plastic and wiring splintered against the wall. The radio kept playing, even as you dashed it against the concrete. So, you brought your heel up. You knew how to silence something that wouldn’t die. You knew better than anyone. 

You brought your boot down and there was a crunch, a warping of voice.

Then, finally, silence. 

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[hawkeyetrained]

Step Away From Him, Now

Dean Winchester x Fem!reader established relationship (nothing too detailed)

Other Characters: Sam Winchester (barely there), John Winchester

Warnings: canon violence (kinda?), language, mention of wounds, blood, wendigo mention, arguing, that’s it I think?

Summary: She's finally had enough of John treating Dean so horribly

A/N: This is kinda my take on how Dean used to talk about his dad. Probably made John out to be a little worse than he really was, but I always saw him as someone who pushed Dean to his limits when they hunted together

Word Count: 2712

John Winchester. Everyone in the hunting world knew that name. Winchester. Now, his sons Sam and Dean held the legendary last name in all the stories that were passed around.

John had been married to Mary, an amazing woman with hunter parents, who had wanted nothing more than to get out of the life she knew. She wanted to run as far as she could from the world of monsters and have a normal life with a husband who loved her and maybe a few little babies along the way. She did eventually make her way out of the hunting world and build the life she wanted. John loved her so much, and she did end up having two little baby boys after a few years, but the world of monsters didn’t leave her alone for long. She had gotten up one night to check on her youngest baby, little Sam Winchester, only for her world to come crashing down.

The story was well known now amongst hunters across the country. Sam and Dean were then raised in the world of monsters by their father who wanted nothing but revenge against the thing that killed his wife and mother of his boys. Now, that doesn’t mean John was winning ‘Father of the Year’ awards, his boys learned the hard way how to survive in the world filled with evil. Dean was practically forced to become his fathers little soldier, always taking orders, and doing as he was told in order to protect his younger brother.

My own mother had been friends with Mary before she left hunting to build her family, so when John and his boys turned up on our doorstep years after she died, my family didn’t hesitate to bring them in.

Over the years the Winchester boys and I grew up to be incredibly close. We learned to rely on each other during hunts, and once Sam had taken off for college, Dean and I became an unstoppable duo on hunts John sent us out on. We worked seamlessly together, always covering the others back and making sure everything was handled before the local law enforcement could catch up to us.

That doesn’t mean I always followed John’s orders. Dean took orders without hesitation while I stopped to question John when I knew a plan wouldn’t work or seemed a little too good to be true. Dean and I had been placed in the field as bait far too many times for me to blindly allow John Winchester to order me around anymore. My mother taught me well while I was growing up. She told me to always double check things before committing, make sure me and my partner were safe, and always watch my back.

Sam coming back to help Dean and I track John down made hunting even easier. A third set of eyes and a fresh take on the cases helped in ways Sam couldn’t even understand. Once we found John and managed to work a few cases as a group of four, I started picking up on things I hadn’t noticed when Sam wasn’t with us.

John was now always double-checking leads, making sure Sam was sent with plenty of weaponry and back up, while Dean and I were nearly forced to figure out our half the plan on our own without the promise of proper gear or even the availability to call for backup if something were to happen.

I had finally had enough when we were sent on a wendigo case John deemed “simple enough for the two of us to handle” and ended up with Dean and I nearly killed.

“I can’t take this anymore.” I half growled as we pulled into the motel parking lot John and Sam were staying in. “We’re gonna get killed one of these days because your father doesn’t give a shit about us.”

“Stop.” Dean parked the car. “He didn’t know there were more than one in those caves.” Again, Dean had an excuse to not blame his father.

My eyes were wide and mouth hanging open at his words. “You’re kidding, right? We didn’t do any of the research because he ‘had it covered’.” I moved my fingers with the quote John had said an hour before Dean and I left for the hunt. “He’s the one that said it was one and would be a simple case.” Dean stepped out of the car, favoring his right side from being tossed into some stone. I followed, carefully getting out of the sleek black Impala, and grabbing my bag from the back seat.

Everything in my body screamed in pain. My arms were bruised from where the creature had grabbed me, digging its nails into my skin, and bruising my once clear skin. Scrapes and deeper scratches littered my legs and arms from falling in rocks and being dragged down one of the tunnels. “Just stop.” Dean groaned, joining me on my side of the car and resting a hand on my cheek. “The important part is that we’re alive.”

His broken down and tired voice reduced my anger as I took in just how exhausted he looked. He and I had grown close over the years of hunting together, and that closeness eventually turned into love, that’s why we made such a great pair. I sighed and nodded my head, leaning in closer to his hand. “Ok, I’ll drop it for now. Just wanna grab a shower and pass out for the night.”

A soft smirk covered Dean’s face. “You and me both baby.” His arm drifted across my shoulders and pulled me into his side as we headed into the motel room to meet up with his family.

The moment the door was opened, and our bags were tossed to the floor, John was already up from the table and handing us a folder. “Got another one for you. A couple hours west of here that needs taken care of now.”

My hands clenched into fists as Dean took the folder and drifted over to the bed he and I shared to take a look. Everything in my body ached and I knew Dean was in the same boat, plus, he could do with about three days of sleep to make up for lost sleep over the last week. He was barely running on black coffee and the little food he ate between fighting monsters and catching maybe an hour or two of sleep each night. At the first sight of his eyes slipping closed as he read through the folder, my anger got the better of me.

“No.” I snapped, grabbing my bag from the floor, and moving to my side of the bed opposite Dean. “We’re not taking a hunt hours away tomorrow.”

“Excuse me?” John turned from the table.

I crossed my arms defiantly. “I said no. Can’t you hear?” Sam glanced at Dean in a way to figure out where my anger was coming from. “Dean and I haven’t had a break in weeks, John. Weeks. We need sleep, and time to heal.”

“People are dying out there. Don’t you get that?” John snapped, slapping down another few folders and a notebook.

“I do, and that sucks, but seriously? People die every day, sometimes luck runs out, and yeah, it’s really shitty to die from a monster mommy and daddy tell you isn’t real, but that’s the world we live in. If you’re so concerned about these people, then you can go deal with it.”

John looked like I had just smacked him across the face. “You need to get control over her.” His eyes had slipped over to Dean’s. “You’ve both got three hours till your asses better be on the road for Colorado.”

My mouth had dropped open in shock from John thinking Dean could or would control anything I did like that. I was prepared to give him a real piece of my mind when Dean finally spoke up. “No.” he stood from his spot on the bed and joined my side. “You know, we were nearly killed today. The freak got the drop on us with one of its buddies and dragged her down a tunnel. All because your research was wrong.” His voice was slowly growing in volume, and I was beyond thankful the motel was practically empty tonight. “You haven’t even taken a moment to ask if we’re ok. But yeah, dad, were gonna be fine.”

John launched into a rant on how Dean and I have been messing up every hunt over the last few months, coming back with more and more wounds, more complaints, and requesting more time between hunts. He threw every little thing at Dean’s face like he wasn’t already in pain from the day. I watched as Dean’s face slowly fell from the confident and angry man trying to protect me, to the look of a kicked puppy as his dad belittled him with his younger brother watching on. I could tell Sam didn’t know how to step in and stick up for Dean, so it was up to me to protect the oldest Winchester when no one else would.

“Back up.” That same angry growl from the car scratched at my words as I stepped beside John who had cornered Dean into the wall of the motel. “Step away from him, now.” My hands balled into fists, tighter and tighter with the longer John was taking to back away from his son. “I said back the hell up, now.”

His dark eyes flashed to my face as he stepped back half a foot. “The hell you say to me?”

I pushed my way between John and Dean, making sure to keep eye contact with John Winchester while I did. “You do not get to talk to him like that. Dean isn’t some little soldier toy for you to throw at the problems you think he can fix. He isn’t indestructible like you think he is. He’s human and needs a god damned break every once in a while. How can you not see that he doesn’t want to let you down but that he’s struggling to keep up with your constant demands? He does everything you ask, “keep an eye on Sammy, don’t let anything happen to Sammy”.” I started quoting him from the past few years. “You have two sons, John. Don’t you remember that? Two! Dean deserves the protection you give to Sam as well. He’s your kid too!”

Silence filled the motel room after my little outbreak, but I couldn’t tell if John was going to let it go for the night or continue to fight. “Dean’s the oldest. He knows the responsibilities that come with that.”

It felt like my skin was on fire with the anger that radiated through my body. “I need you to shut the fuck up and listen for once in your life.” Sam was silent and still as a statue on the bed, papers still scattered around him. “I don’t give a shit about if he’s the oldest or whatever is stuck in your twisted head. I understand you lost your wife, and baby Sam never got a chance to know his mother, and that’s horrible. But Dean lost his mom too. He lost her just like you and Sam did, but because he was four and not a baby, that means to you that he now deserves to be your slave for the rest of his life. It means hunting what you deem necessary and when you say so? He isn’t someone you get to command around for eternity.”

“And who the hell do you think you are, telling me what to do with my family. Last I checked, you weren’t a part of this family.” John’s anger was boiling over at this point. His face was bright red, and I swore I could see a vein in his neck pulsing. “You’re just some tag-along who thinks she can stick around with Dean long enough to be more than a piece of ass to him.”

That caused a deafening silence to flood the room that even a gunshot couldn’t overpower. “Right.” I nodded, willing the sting in my eyes to go away so John wouldn’t have more ammunition to throw at me. “Right. I’m here simply because I wanna be a late-night booty call to him…it couldn’t possibly be because someone needs to be on his side for once. Couldn’t be that he needs someone to watch his back on hunts because his father doesn’t care enough. Or it couldn’t be that I simply love him and want to be here for him, right? No, it’s absolutely because I wanna be his hook-up on the few nights where he isn’t struggling to stay awake because he has to finish some research you and Sam couldn’t do, or the other nights where he’s too busy being beaten by monsters.” I took a deep breath and stepped back an inch, barely leaving enough space between John and I before I turned towards the bed to grab my purse and gear bag. “Go to hell, John.” My shoulder slammed into his as I walked past him and out of the motel room.

I didn’t make it very far down the row of rooms before a voice could call and stop me in my tracks. “Wait a minute!” Dean’s voice echoed over the nearly vacant parking lot.

“What?” I asked as he joined my side, his green bag hanging from his hand. “Wait, I…Dean. Did he…”

“No. He didn’t throw me out.” Dean’s free hand came to rest on my shoulder. “I just ditched. I couldn’t let you leave alone after that.” Guilt tugged at my chest as I thought of Dean walking away from the only family he had left.

“I shouldn’t have said anything. It wasn’t my place and…”

He cut me off again. “No one’s ever stood up for me like that.” Dean was quiet as his eyes met mine. “I’ve never had someone in my corner against my dad before.”

“You don’t deserve the way he treats you.”

“I know. It’s always been hard to tell him when I need time off, or even just a break. He’s so driven and focused all the time on getting the thing that killed mom that I don’t think he even notices how he acts sometimes.”

I dropped my bag. “God, Dean. There you go again. You make up these excuses for the way he acts like its ok to treat you like a damn dog. I don’t care that he wants to find the thing that killed her, you and Sam want that just as badly but you two don’t go out endangering each other at every little possible chance you get. I’m sorry you guys lost her, that sucks, and I can’t imagine the pain you all felt, but he needs to understand that you can’t keep risking your life like he expects you to.”

He nodded at my words. “I know.” It was barely a whisper coming from him now. “I just don’t know how to tell him. You’ve seen it, the way he gets when he sets his mind to something.”

“I know.” It was my turn to nod. “You get it from him. You’re so focused sometimes on the hunt or helping someone that everything else kinda blurs.” I gently cradled his face in my hands. “There is one huge difference though. When your partner is hurt, or even struggling, you drop everything as fast as you can to go help them. You’re there in time to save me, every time I need you.”

“And I always will be, you know that, right?” Dean’s hands rested softly on my hips, drawing me in closer to his chest.

“I do.” I smiled up at him. “Now, what do you say to a drink at the bar down the street and a night spent in the car in the middle of nowhere?”

“I’d say that sounds like a great plan to me.” He let me grab the bag I dropped, pressed a soft kiss to the side of my head, and led me towards the infamous black Impala.

@thetallassgirl @hallecarey1

[princess-leaorgana]

Please Come Back

Little Rolan x AFAB Tav based on this fanart made by la_bordeliere

BG3 END GAME SPOILERS

Never had Rolan moved so quickly in his life. He had been through a lot in the past few years, surely, but blind instinct had the tiefling running from the comforts and safety of his wizard’s tower to the docks of the Chianthor. The Netherbrain had fallen, the illithid monstrosity had fallen from its place above High Hall, crashed into the sea, and in a terrifying explosion, was lost. Gone in an instant. But what of those on top of that monstrosity? All of those people fighting for the safety of Faerun? Plenty of people had died in the streets, Rolan was sure some of his cannon fire had harmed innocents, that was the horrible price of war. So why did Rolan care so much about those on top of the aberration? He didn’t, not really. He only cared about one of them. The one who was responsible for his life, his fortune, his family’s safety, his new home. Surely. Surely she was not dead. A ranger, like his brother, a ranger who took charge, no matter how many times it had pissed him off. But Rolan had been stubborn, impatient, and most importantly, wrong. Allowing the ranger to push him time and time again, allowing his sturdy walls to be crushed, it led Rolan to one conclusion. He loved the ranger. The last time he saw her was just at the entrance of High Hall, and he replayed the moment in his head for the past hours since it happened, regretting he did not say more to her.

‘Well, make sure you hit the illithids, everyone else should be left unsigned, if possible,’ she said and Rolan grinned.

‘As if I need any instruction,’ Rolan responded playfully with a smile, adrenaline pumping through his veins. She was really going to climb up that damned thing. ‘You should take your own advice,’ he added and she laughed. She nodded and began to walk away, but Rolan caught her arm. She looked up at him, a little bewildered, but was always ready to hear him speak. ‘Come…please come back,’ he said softly and she stared into his golden eyes. ‘Please.’ He felt her take his hand and squeeze it.

‘I will,’ she said just as softly and Rolan felt his heart fall. She couldn’t promise that. He swallowed hard and nodded, letting her go. She walked away and without another word to anyone, Rolan fled back to his tower, awaiting her signal. 

The Chianthor was alive with debris from ships destroyed in the crash, people were swimming up to shore, though plenty of lives were lost. Rolan’s chest felt tight as his eyes searched the water for a sigh of her, of any of that group of misfits. The large tiefling, Karlach, surely would be visible, the woman was on fire. The githyanki? Maybe Gale cast a protection spell, making the weave visible along the water’s surface. He saw nothing, he was paralyzed. No, she couldn’t be gone, not now, not after everything they had survived thus far. Mindlfayers were dead in the streets, maybe that was her fate too, having that damned tadpole. His eyes searched the water and docks frantically for any sign of her. And then his heart stopped.

‘Rolan?!’

Her voice, he was hallucinating, surely. His tail whipped furiously behind him and he slowly turned to the sound of her voice. At the speed of light, she was running at him. She was alive. She was drenched and bloody and bruised but she was alive. She was moving so quickly, her boots pounding on the wood of the docks. Rolan barely had time to process his relief before she lunged at him. Hard. He had barely turned around fast enough to catch her, her lips crashing against his. The force of her running jump wasn’t too strong for him to catch her, he caught her. He held her tight, she was drenched. Now he was. He had longed to kiss her for months now, aching every single night he spent at the Last Light Inn. Practically falling over himself when she helped set him free from Lorroakan. And she just did it. How could she be so bold? He was grateful for it. Her arms wrapped around his neck, holding him tight and he was so glad. 

‘Are you alright?’ She asked and Rolan couldn’t remember how to breathe. He looked down at her and nodded.

‘I love you,’ he whispered and she laughed lightly.

‘I know, I love you too.’

[ladyinrainbowglasses]

could you not have thought of a single other movie?

This seems like a good place to explain my reasoning:

First off, I was raised in a Christian dominionist cult. I went to school in one and attended youth group in a different flavor of one.

The suggestions have been for things like die-ins, which is the absolute worst idea for impressing upon a literal death cult trying to engineer a mass human sacrifice to summon their god and end the world that things are bad. A bunch of queer people pretending to be dead in prominent places IS A VISION OF WHAT THEY WANT. Do YOU want a bunch of smug-ass pastors assuring their cultists that Glory Hallelujah, Satan just got them gross queers to act out exactly what will happen when God's Army finally murders every human being in Palestine?

It is, to put it mildly, a terrible idea.

Second, the left is currently labeled a bunch of hysterical killjoys who hate fun. The disgusting hatred Fueher Scheisshosen offers can be FUN. It is an unevolved lizard brain kind of fun, but we are a species just stumbling out of considering public executions, public torture, and public animal cruelty fun.

The majority of Americans sat this one out. The fear on our side is not working. They are not scared of what Trump might do, but they are scared of being told that they are horrible, awful people who are inherently bad because they do not actually know anything that isn't problematic.

The battle is for hearts and minds, like any good propaganda war. Constant fear and constant outrage do work. But so does instilling "Why are you persecuting these people who are giving me a good time?"

We need to be operating from the base assumption that those who are not foaming Nazis are actually scared and tired and battered from 9 years of constant fear porn on one side and constant scolding from the other. If the average American is roughly as smart as the average 12 year old in a system that actually nourishes human potential, everything becomes a lot clearer. The best way to engage a 12 year old-level intelligence is through showing them you are really enjoying yourself quite a lot.

Third, why I landed on "Rocky Horror" as a first choice.

Yes. The movie is 50 years old. It is outdated. It is offensive. It is also nostalgic in a war that is being fought on weaponized nostalgia. Shadowcasts and interactive participation were rights of passage for both Boomers and Gen X. It is a thing that people who did not bother showing up to vote are actually likely to show up for. It is a place where they come to have fun, but they are greeted with the fun of, "This is our last possible party - see, the government you just voted for or didn't bother to stop wants to ban you from being able to do this fun, silly thing that you remember doing as a 20-something. Sorry, this is our last chance to do this! Enjoy yourself!"

That gets THEM upset.

That makes THEM feel targeted.

That makes THEM feel like THEIR leisure choices are threatened.

And yes, I know that it is sickening that most people care more about THEIR leisure time than they care about OTHER PEOPLE'S HUMANITY, but it is the unfortunate reality we are living in.

The threat that all the queer people are going to be dragged off to camps is not a real, extant threat to them.

The threat that they won't be able to relive their 20's for two hours around Halloween every year is.

That said, the exact choice of film is less important than the idea that a lot of people enjoy said film, have fond memories of watching it, that it has some form of participation element, and that the people organizing are blatantly whistling past the graveyard.

Again, I was raised in a cult. The only openly queer film I had heard of was "Rocky Horror". None of the leaders went to see it, but plenty of people who were not locked in had seen it and found it fun. They knew "The Time Warp". I danced to "The Time Warp" at a youth group event, because it was the only taped song that explained how to do the dance that we had. Thank Dr. Demento for that.

If you have suggestions for any film that includes the three important elements of nostalgic fun, participation, and the threat of it being removed by Scheisshosen, I would love to hear them! Let's work together by pooling our knowledge, not eating each other alive because we are not all coming from the same starting point.

The TL;DR:

We are dealing with a death cult, mental children, and people who cannot be persuaded of the stakes with lecturing.

Every move we make as organized resistance needs to target the weak links.

After 9 years of being with an inescapable emotional batterer abusing the entire country, the Left has to stop offering snippy lectures and needs to start offering circuses that are more enjoyable than the circus the Right is offering.

IT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE ROCKY HORROR.

BUT IT DOES HAVE TO BE A THREE-RING CIRCUS.

[sitp-recs]

Do you know fics where Draco fights for Harry? Doesnt have to be entire fic I just notice usually around the climax of the fic its Harry that makes the grant gesture to get his man; i want Harry to be fought for 😭😭

Hi anon! I definitely have some recs for that one, hope you enjoy these 😊

Like Gold by @the-sinking-ship (E, 4k)

Draco runs away from home on the back of his boyfriend’s motorbike.

Be Still by @writcraft (E, 5k)

Harry’s back in England and Draco tries to fix things before he disappears again.

(The Piece) I was Missing All Along by lauren3210 (E, 30k)

Draco and Harry have been flatmates and best friends for years, and Draco thinks life is just perfect that way. But when something comes along and threatens to take all that away, Draco has to decide what it is he really wants, and just how hard he's going to work to get it.

Make Me a Headline (I Want to Be That Bold) by dicta_contrion (E, 31k)

Draco never expected to see Harry doing that again. Especially with someone else, in a grainy photograph that's landed on his desk one Monday morning.

All Roads by @korlaena (M, 36k)

Draco hates his job at the Prophet. He hates it even more when he’s assigned to write an article on Harry Potter, who left the country three years ago after their falling out. Draco doesn’t want to face the truth about himself, but he’s stuck between Harry and his duty, and he’s out of options.

In The Red by @bixgirl1 (E, 45k)

When Harry goes looking for a vampire at a Creature club, the second-to-last thing Harry expects is to find Malfoy working there. The last thing he expects is to fall in love with him.

Nights With You by @the-sinking-ship (E, 58k)

Draco is mortified when moments prior to departing for the most anticipated destination wedding of the year, he is cruelly dumped. But when he learns that Harry Potter has, at long last, split with his horrible boyfriend, Draco is certain his luck has changed. Never a man to squander an opportunity for revenge (and what would probably be a spectacular shag), Draco vows to make Potter his for the weekend.

Tea and No Sympathy by who_la_hoop (E, 70k)

It's Potter's fault, of course, that Draco finds himself trapped in the same twenty-four-hour period, repeating itself over and over again. It's been nearly a year since the unpleasant business at Hogwarts, and Draco's getting on with his life quite nicely, thank you, until Harry sodding Potter steps in and ruins it all, just like always.

Among Ancient Pines by @graymatters (M, 74k)

Every day, Draco Malfoy tries. With every fiber of his being he tries. But he doesn’t much think about what he’s trying for. In his final term of Healer training, Draco is unfortunate enough to find himself on a plane, the only means of traveling to a small, magical town in rural Alaska. Years of hard work have culminated in an opportunity to work with an experimental wandmaker to study the intersection of Healing and wand theory. When Draco arrives, he doesn't find the wandmaker, but does find his apprentice, who happens to have ridiculously messy hair, a lightning bolt scar, and a definitely-not-charming smile.

I Am Not Who I Became by mab_di (E, 93k)

Draco left England after the trials and has travelled the world meeting wizards and Muggles from different cultures and with vastly different relationships to magic, each other, and the natural world. Now he's a fisherman in Finland on commercial vessels. Harry has been struggling since the war and has become a recluse while trying to write his autobiography.

Dwelling on Dreams by @the-sinking-ship (E, 135k)

Draco thought he could avoid Potter for the duration of his brief return to England. He’d stick to his schedule and be back home in Paris, where he belonged, in a few short months. No trouble at all. He had plenty to occupy him, what with the opening of the London branch of his successful apothecary, his innovative research, drinks with Pansy, a backlog of unread potions periodicals.

[orionsangel86]

The Problem With Thessaly

I’m sure plenty of fans would agree with me that there are certain elements of the Sandman comics that are going to be very difficult to adapt for television. I don’t envy the mammoth task Neil and the creative team on the show have ahead of them. But one element in particular which has been on my mind frequently is how they are going to introduce Thessaly to our screens.

It’s not just that she’s a TERF. It’s that she’s a cold, cruel, selfish, and inconsiderate bitch who only ever thinks about herself. Oh yeah, and she’s a huge TERF. There isn’t a single likeable element to her.

And yet.

We are supposed to somehow believe that our main protagonist, idiotic as he may sometimes be, depressed and seriously down on his luck as he is, will fall head over heels in love with her.

Sorry. But it ain’t happening. Something has gotta change. So here are my thoughts on how they could fix the Thessaly Problem.

Under a cut for comic spoilers (and its a bit long)

I kinda get the reason it happens in the comics. Kinda. I can’t remember the exact quote, or where I read it, but Neil explained it as “two people who you know are absolutely not right for each other and no one who knows them can understand why they are together.” He purposely wrote it to be a really weird match that didn’t make sense.

From Dream’s perspective, at this point in the story he has just had some of his biggest romantic disasters slapped in his face (at one point literally) all within a very short space of time for an entity as long lived as him. First Calliope, then Nada, and then Alianora, and he is hurting from all of them. Having to face his romantic failures one after another within the space of a few years AFTER having to go through 70 odd years of relentless suffering trapped in a glass prison has GOT to mess with your head. So I think Thessaly is basically the worst rebound in history. They are only canonically together for a few weeks but he somehow falls head over heels for this plain, dull, horrible person. 100% this is a rebound. He’s messed up. So yeah, I kinda get it.

From Thessaly’s perspective it seems she just really liked the idea of being the object of someones attention and desire even though she never returned his feelings and left him the minute he stopped devoting all his attention to her (god she really is a bitch).

So why don’t I think this will work in the show?

Because the show is a kinder universe than the comic. Dream is different in the show. He is already more thoughtful, warm, compassionate, and has a better self awareness when it comes to his shortcomings. He’s also a far more romantic character in the show, which is probably thanks to Tom Sturridge’s excellent performance and likeability and absolutely maddening sexual chemistry with literally every character he interacts with (his pretty face doesn’t hurt either). You just have to look at his scenes with Calliope to know that they are playing up the romance and kindness there when in the comics Dream is extremely cold to Calliope throughout their very short interactions.

Given the news that the writing team on Game of You will include trans writers specifically to cover the sensitivities of honouring Wanda, I don’t know how they will adapt the transphobia she suffers at Thessaly’s hand, or whether they will include that at all - personally I think they should remove it. Not to make Thessaly more likeable, but because it reinforces a really wrong view of witchcraft and magick that modern witches and pagans are working extremely hard to reject. Not to get too deep into these topics, but transphobia is a fucking plague in those communities and the last thing we need is more people thinking everyone who practices witchcraft is a fucking TERF. The comic even goes so far as to imply the actual MOON is transphobic. Like WTF? The moon isn’t fucking transphobic and “womb magic” is stupid. If I ever have to read the words “divine feminine” in a witchcraft FB group again I’m gonna scream.

Anyway my point is that I don’t think those scenes in the comic are necessary and there are plenty of other ways to adapt that story without resorting to transphobia.

The other issue is that if they do keep it in, they somehow have to deal with the fact that their protagonist is seemingly totally cool with dating a transphobic murderous bitch. Um. Yeah, not cool Dream. I think the show is going to do everything it can to make Dream MORE likeable and based on what we have seen so far I definitely think that’s the route they are taking.

So yeah Dream won’t be falling in love with a TERF in the show, that I am sure of.

The thing is, the best way they can deal with the Thessaly problem is also the simplest - Don’t include her. Just don’t write her into the show. Simples.

Because we already have a character in the show universe who technically doesn’t exist in comic canon, who knows magic and the occult, and who is MUCH more likeable and kind whilst still being a bit messy and selfish and totally a terrible match for Dream... Oh, and who also happens to be played by possibly the most well known actor on the shows main cast list.

Johanna Constantine.

Jenna Coleman is a fairly big name and one of the primary stars for the show. At least Netflix seemed to think so since her face was all over the marketing and she was included in basically every cast interview, even though her character only turns up in 1 and a half episodes. She is also playing a new version of an already well known character in pop culture and I am convinced Netflix is already considering spin off options for her. So there is no way they aren’t going to include her in future episodes of the Sandman.

Except thats where Netflix has a problem if it wants to stick to comic canon. Lady Johanna Constantine only turns up in one more Sandman story, and John Constantine doesn’t show up again at all in the comics.

So my piece of speculation that I’m almost 90% certain will happen, is that they will bring back modern Johanna Constantine in an extended or adapted role based on another character.

My money is on Thessaly. Remove Thessaly, replace her with Johanna.

I’m not just saying this because I think Johanna and Morpheus hooking up will be hot (it will be, don’t deny it. My bisexual ass knows a hot couple when I see them). But because it makes sense.

Yeah okay we have that pesky little rule about the Endless not dating mortals - but that rule currently doesn’t exist in show canon either, so theres no reason why they can’t just also scrap that for the sake of some sexy, messy, and definitely disastrous bi4bi action.

All jokes aside, with only a few tweaks to the story in a Game of You, you could seemlessly fit Johanna into it. She can be in New York for a specific case, hell, maybe Barbie and the sudden appearance of Martin Tenbones on a busy New York street IS the case she’s investigating? She can still find a way to break Hazel and Foxglove into the Dreaming AND when Morpheus shows up they can have another tantalising showdown like they did in episode 3. It works better with Johanna tbh. She actually cares about people, the motivation is there for her to want to save Barbie and protect people from supernatural sources. We can just make the storm and the collapse of the apartment block be caused by George or the cuckoo or something (or not have it happen at all since I am also practically certain that Wanda is NOT going to die in the show).

This ALSO means that much later on, when Lyta is having her breakdown and destroying the Dreaming, having Johanna being the one to protect her from Morpheus rather than Thessaly also adds a more human element to it. Morpheus has never been a killer, but sometimes his duties demand it. He goes to kill Lyta to prevent the Kindly Ones destroying the Dreaming. If it is Johanna blocking him instead of Thessaly, their motives align. Johanna would protect Lyta for the simple fact that she won’t let a supernatural creature harm a human (as much as she can - sorry Kevin), and Morpheus, being hesitant about killing anyway, would be easily talked out of it by Johanna. “Find another way to save the Dreaming, I won’t let you harm her.”

It just adds an emotional weight that isn’t there with Thessaly, who only protects Lyta because she made a deal with the Kindly Ones in exchange for more centuries of life - an ironic request when Morpheus (and Death) are keeping Hob Gadling alive simply so he can be Dream’s BFF.

It just works for me. Scrap the “no mortals” rule and you can have them have the messy disastrous relationship that doesn’t work out. It is far more believable that Johanna Constantine could break Dream’s heart - she’s already a known heartbreaker in the show (sorry Rachel). It’s a doomed love story a modern audience can get behind, makes sense, the actors already have insane sexual chemistry, and it could definitely hit all those story beats needed to get the show to a version of the Kindly Ones whilst also actively improving it.

I may first and foremost be a Dreamling shipper, but talking in terms of canon I very much want Morpheus to have a passionate short-lived heart breaking affair with Johanna. Fuck Thessaly. Keep her relegated to comic canon. Morphanna all the way.

And THAT is how we fix the problem with Thessaly.

[yandere-collections]

Since the first post about it, I am now eternally rotating Yandere Town in my mind. Lately it’s imagining how the townspeople would react if the reader was a complete recluse. There’d be clandestine watchtowers in place with a view of the readers home, and any time they left people got some equivalent of an amber alert that their darling is out and about, so be on your best behavior! Everyone working double time to make every second count should they encounter the reader, tripping over themselves to try and make enough of an impression that they just might come out more often.

The more desperate folks get dressed in blue collar outfits and pass themselves off as inspectors who “just need to take a quick look around, make sure everything’s in order.” The reader is equal parts relieved that the town takes citizen safety so seriously and confused as to why five people have showed up in the last three days, not to mention that they seem more interested in chatting than doing any work. The local government cracks down on that pretty quickly, but a few people still slip through the cracks.

Once they all get some idea of what the reader enjoys, the events going on in town get weirdly specific. Checked out a lot of horror books at the library? Big horror movie night in the gym! Spotted shopping around the farmers market? Time for the local festival with plenty of fresh pies and homemade treats! Frequently stop by a certain restaurant? What do you know, they actually throw this big feast in town every year! Crazy how it just happens to fall on the readers birthday, huh? They wouldn’t want to miss it, would they?

And since I’m a big fan of darlings who can read between the lines, the reader catching on that people are acting weird and leaving the house even less than they did when they first arrived, and turning away any unexpected visitors, even if they really are there to check on the house. Unrest sweeping through the streets because nobody’s seen them for the past month, and the leaders have to resort to drastic measures to keep the peace. The fireman chalk up the destruction of the readers entire house to be a horrible case of flawed wiring, they really should’ve let someone check that out. Nowhere to stay? Don’t be silly! Anyone in town would be happy to take them in until they have somewhere new to stay. It’s a close knit town, so expect plenty of guests! Surely the reader won’t mind, they can’t dictate such things in someone else’s home, right? :)

(Apologies for the long-ish ask, it’s just been rotting my brain and I needed to get it all out of my system. Love the stories, love you, have a wonderful day.)

YES YES YES!!! You have reached into my mind and took my exact thoughts to the point where I don't actually have much to add to this.

I definitely think being a recluse would lead to more yanderes invading your privacy, ironically enough. If they can't come in for inspections, your "neighbors" offer to renovate and maintain your home. New paint, gardening, one of them even offered to start digging a hole in your backyard to put in a pool (no ulterior motives here! they totally aren't hoping to catch you in a bathing suit on the dozens of cameras surrounding your house). While you may be missing some things and you're pretty sure you have less locks on your windows now, you can't deny how much nicer the house looks. Hopefully you don't get too attached because, like you said, something bad may happen if you spend too much time inside. They won't resort to burning it down unless they're really desperate. Most of the time, a burst sewer line or power outage is enough. Maybe the utility company will shut off your water, forcing you to stay at a friend's for a while.

Never apologize for long asks! It's a genuine delight to see how excited people get about my writing <3

[cookiesupplier]

Every Rose Has It's Thorns - Part Six

pairing: Ricky Olson x ofc (Talia)

warnings/tropes: slow burn, soulmates, strangers to enemies to lovers, betrayal, angst, fluff, smut, language.

summary: In a world where soulmates inexplicably receive a tattoo that will match that of their soulmate the moment they turn eighteen years old, being famous and covered in very visible tattoos can make finding your true soulmate a questionable fate. Not that it is any easier for the soulmate in question. Thus is the fate for Ricky and Talia. Sooner or later, however, life is bound to collide, but what will happen when it does?

author’s note: Unbeta’d, so please readers beware. Sorry for the mis-post before!

tags: @tearfallpixie @cncohshit @jordynyingling0219 @faceless-mirror @nyxthedestroyerofworlds @wild-child-7747 @witchyweeb34

If you would like to be added feel free, please let me to know, whether to this list specifically or in general.

~~

So, there were two weeks left of the tour. Two weeks, and it was obvious that neither Vinny or Ava just wanted to walk away immediately now that they found each other. As awkward as meeting your soulmate could be, especially under trying circumstances, they obviously had a connection already and wanted to spend time together, and Talia envied them that. She however, didn’t want to think about the way Ricky looked at her, she’d obviously set this whole thing up just to spite him.

She couldn’t blame him though, in less than a day his whole life had turned upside down. One the other hand she’d had years to adjust to her predicament. Not even the fact that she’d lost him, but the whole issue of being his soulmate in the first place, and how people treated her for it. Really, being treated what felt like a little bit like a pariah sometimes in her own family, like she was mental for believing what she did, and unlike Rick she’d had plenty of time to adjust. He’d had the rug pulled from under his feet. Sure maybe it was new for him, maybe he’d dealt with soulmate issues before in the band in a way she hadn’t, but this had to be horrible, had to be worse. Or at least, new, fresh.

Maybe he could not blame her though?

Still, when Vinny suggested that maybe Ava could join them for the last couple weeks for the tour, Talia jumped at the chance to point out she’d make a fantastic PA, even if just helping out with general housekeeping on the bus and making sure they don’t go stir crazy for the last leg of shows. After all, helping her was pretty much what she did.

~~

“How will you ever cope without me?”

Talia laughed at her best friends dramatics as Ava went and pressed her hand to her chest with a gasp as she just shook her head,

“I think I’ll survive just fine.”

Oh, she knew she’d miss her best friend something awful, all three of them would, but there was no way that Ava wouldn’t keep them updated. Talia knew how Ava was, she’d keep them updated to how she was going on this every step of the way, she could only hope she wouldn’t drag her into it as well, there was only so much that she could deal with right now.

“You should come too, right, Vin?”

“No!”

Before she could even argue, the other person she knew would spoke first, she glanced across the once more empty table after the waitress had come and collected their plates after they’d finished eating their breakfast, Ricky looked livid, and she knew instantly she was going to have words with him about how he was going to be treating Ava.

“I can’t go, I have clients, set appointments, you know that. Either way, you don’t me dragging you down, use this time to get to know Vin, okay, you’ll get to spend so much time together, getting to know each other.” “Only getting to know each other. No sex on the bus.”

Ricky was quick to point that out kicking Vin under the table, smirking a little, only for Vin to snort in response as he grinned back,

“Yea like any of us keeps to that rule anyway.”

Of course, the moment the words slipped from the younger man, he seemed to remember the fact the issues at hand, which was stupid because they were here, and why they were talking and it had just come out, fuck, he back peddled,

“Whatever, Ava is probably going to want to kill me after me making her living in a bus full of dudes for two weeks anyway, Talia you’ll say something nice at my funeral right? I’m not sure I can trust Rick, he’d be snarky.”

“Oh Vin, I’ll always be on Ava’s side.”

“Dammit.”

Chuckling… his grin, she loved this, he would be great with Ava. She wondered if she’d ever be on Ricky’s side, like she was sure Vinny would be on Ava’s but she doubted he’d ever want her there.

At least they weren’t trying to convince her to come on tour anymore, she couldn’t keep saying no to Ava, and the thought of actually having to handle the painful glares from Richard Olson. She could work around her clients, take vacation time, she hadn’t had vacation time in so long, two weeks would be nothing, but the thought of being in a cramped bus, with those glares, bearing down on her. Stripping away at her soul, ripping her open and bleeding her heart dry? She couldn’t do it, she couldn’t put herself through that. While she could handle all of this, she needed to handle him and his, and she figured, justified anger, at what he was going through, from far away.

“Okay, so, we should get going,”

“But-”

“You have to pack, you’re going on tour for two weeks.. You have to go home, pack, and call Bee and let him know you’ll need vacation time for soulmate reasons.. and get back to the the bus all before they leave.. We should get going.”

Ava sighed, nodding quickly,

“Okay, okay.”

Getting up from the table, it was when Ava was hugging Vin tightly talking quickly, probably whispering some shit, who knows, that Talia didn’t want to think about that she grabbed the sleeve of Rick’s jacket and pulled him over to the side.

“Hey, lay off.”

Oh, he was in a real mood still, annoyed at the very least, didn’t want to calm down at all.

“Not going to check the attitude at all are you? Well you can with Ava. I don’t give a shit how you treat me, it’s obvious you hate me, I get it. I know why, I don’t blame you. I didn’t want to fuck up your relationship anymore than you wanted it to be, but now here we the fuck we are.”

Ricky just glared at her and she swallowed, even though he was short, he was taller than her, she’d always been tiny, and right now, she hated it. It was only a few inches, half a foot at best.

“But so help me, if you treat Ava like shit, I will stick my foot so far up your ass Richard Olson.”

Standing so close to him, her head tilted up, his eyes boring into hers, the fierce stare piercing, and the blue was like ice in her veins. This was why she couldn’t go on tour, and this was why she was worried about Ava. All she could hope, was that if he couldn’t play nice, was that Ava was far too wrapped up in her cocoon of Vinny to notice the hostility coming from Ricky in waves.

“Oh don’t worry, Talia, I’m sure I’ll get along with her famously. You are the only problem here, I’m not putting up with anymore of this soulmate shit.”

Talia sighed,

“That, right there. Don’t call it shit in front of Ava, she believes in this stuff, and loves it. She just found Vinny, her soulmate. Support them. I can’t be with them okay, I won’t inflict myself on you like that, and if you can’t support them, keep your mouth shut, got it?”

She just stared him down for a long moment, so much so she didn’t even notice the far that Ava and Vinny weren’t talking anymore between themselves and were just watching them, watching them standing very close, and bickering as they were. There was something dangerous in his eyes, and she didn’t want to think about how it felt to be this close to him. She didn’t want to think about the fact that despite the pain of how much he hated her right now, just being near him now, actually filled her with a sense of warmth that her breath caught slightly. Swallowing, she didn’t want to think about it, she didn’t, she couldn’t, not like this.

“You got it, Sweetie.”

With a parting glare, his shoulder shoved hers as he moved past her and walked out of the diner. She sighed and turned to see Ava and Vinny staring at her now, only her with Rick already gone.

“Don’t.”

~~

Most of the drive home was completely silent. Absolutely completely silent. Talia really didn’t want to talk about any of it anyway, but she was waiting. There was no way that Ava didn’t want to say something with the way that she’d been looking at her along with Vin before they’d left the diner, it had been on the tip of their tongues she could just bet it before she’d grabbed her best friend's arm and rushed her out. She had her bags to pack because he had a tour to finish.

“So, that was something.”

“Please, please don’t Ava.”

She didn’t want to talk about it, she really didn’t, she could feel herself cracking even as she said it.

“That was intense, I mean, if I didn’t know better, with how close he was standing to you, I’d think he wanted to..”

She giggled.

“Vinny hasn’t even gotten that close to me yet, and Ricky was right there babe… and Sweetie?”

Talia shuddered hearing it again,

“He wasn’t saying it as a compliment Ava, he was saying it to insult me, I heard that loud and clear.”

Even if Ava was right, even if what she was saying had crossed her mind as the silence of the drive back to their apartment went on. It was hate though, that was the intensity, so her giggle was misplaced and Talia couldn’t let herself think about it.

Talia had to remind Ava multiple times she was only going to be gone for two weeks, and staying one a tour bus with so many people that there wasn’t going to be room for a heap of luggage. Pack as if she was going to be living out of a carry on bag. She was no happy, but, for Vin, she did it. They called Bee, and the owner of the parlour was ecstatic for her, and Ava, without asking Talia, even flouted the idea of Talia taking some time off in two weeks, while they were on the phone. If she hadn’t been about to leave, she would have killed her for that. Fuck. But at the same time, it wasn’t in stone, all she said while they were talking to Bee was she’d think about it and that there was no appointments set on the books anyway.

~~

By the time Ava got back to the bus they had smoothed everything over, sorted the schedule so they were heading out to the next town as soon as she was settled.. And Rick was staring at the empty bunk she would be sleeping in when she got there.

Grace’s bunk.

He couldn’t, he didn’t even want to think about this, not about the fact that Ava was going to be taking up Grace’s space, that Grace wasn’t going to be here, that every time he even looked toward the bunk all he could think about was her lies. There were so many memories, moments, good moments, that were each turning sour and toxic one by one in his head with this poisonous little darkness in his head reminding him about how she lied. Reminding him about how it was all a trick and that she had been manipulating him from the very moment they met.

Distraction, he needed to think about something else. Update, a tour update, he could do a tour update before Ava got here, he’d already talked to Vin earlier about whether he wanted to let anyone know about her, and the consensus was that he wanted to talk to her first, so this update would be better to happen before she got here anyway. Rick also wasn’t sure how to update his socials about Grace after how open he’d been about his relationship, so here he went. Everything was going fine, until it wasn’t.

He ran into Justin.

It was nothing. He knew it was nothing, it was nothing. But it felt like everything. He just exploded and just started yelling at him to get the fuck out of his way and why the hell couldn’t he do anything right. Why the hell was he always in his fucking way. What was wrong with him?! Ricky Shoved the at the bassist and it took Chris coming to grab him, the singer literally grabbing him and heaving him up and carrying him, yelling out of the bus, before he started to calm down.

What the fuck, was he even doing.

That was exactly what Chris didn’t need to ask him because if anyone knew what he was going through it was Chris. The women that had tried to manipulate him into believing they were his soulmates, and ruined his real relationships in doing so. This time, this time, the fake soulmate exposed his real relationship as a fraud soulmate herself.

He left him outside to calm down while they had time, before he had to be closed up in the bus again for the night while they travelled to the next town. Standing there, Rick slipped something out of his pocket, and looked down to the box in his hand, he’d not known what he was going to do with it..

Taking in a breath, he reaching back, and threw the ring box holding the engagement ring he’d bought for Grace as far as he fucking could from the tour bus. Hopefully whoever found it got better use out of it. Sell it, use it, he didn’t give a shit, he just didn’t want to see it ever again.

~~

Talia dropped Ava off at the bus and watched it drive away before heading back to the apartment once more. Two weeks, the start of two weeks alone. Alone with nothing but time to think about Ricky and the way he’d stared at her with such hate… and the way it made her feel.

When his arm had been around her during the VIP, her tattoo had been warm, it had tingled. She wondered on some level if that had been her imagination, or something real. Just the way he has been looking at her made her feel something as well, even if he was looking at her with such hate, it was with such intensity that it warmed her. Like a spark had been ignited inside of her.

The kind of spark that she’d imagined she’d feel when her soulmate looked at her with a very different kind of intensity. Like he wanted her, instead, instead he hated.

Dropping her keys in the bowl by the door, Talia walked into the empty apartment, moving through the big, empty apartment with no one waiting for her, no one. Letting the crushing weight of the day, of how Ricky looked at her made her feel press down on her now, and she crumbled. Collapsing to her bed she cried until she could do nothing but fall asleep. 

[literary-illuminati]

Book Review 21 - A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

I honestly entirely forget who recommended this to me, but I owe them a thank you. Absolutely not something I would have ever picked up on my own, but a really enjoyable read. My exposure to Novik’s work is extremely limited, which is to say I’ve read Spinning Silver, but I’ve been vaguely meaning to give more of her stuff a try for a while. Didn’t enjoy this as much as that on a few levels, but that’s just the YA/adult genre jump as much as anything, probably.

It is very much a YA book, more than anything I’ve read this year (even more than Iron Widow, probably). From the entire plot being about making friends in high school being a literal life or death struggle to El “most powerful mage ever but only for evil things she tries to avoid so only a half dozen people ever realize how special she is’ Higgins to the booklength awkward teenage ‘literally unclear whether we are dating or not’ romance. So! Broadening my genre horizons some, I suppose.

El’s internal monologue was a bit of a trial for the first half of the book or so, I’ll admit. Not to say that it didn’t ring true to life, but she was just so incredibly fifteen, you know? Generally became significantly more tolerable once she started actually acting and coming out of her shell instead of devoting herself entirely to angsting about how much everyone hated her and trying to convince herself that she was a machievellian villain in waiting.

Though, to pick a nit that probably annoyed absolutely no one but me – I’m willing to accept El’s magical savant-ness as the price of admission, but the whole gradual reveal with her mom actually being world famous felt...odd? Cheap? Like in the beginning she’s very firmly characterized as this kind of head-in-the-clouds well meaning but not particularly perceptive or effectual hippie type, and then it’s gradually revealed that she’s actually the best healer in the UK and has set the global standard for a lot of spells and-. And it’s not like the reveal was actually doing anything dramatically, except making early book El’s isolation and lack of friends even more self-imposed, which was hardly necessary at that point. (Honestly ‘supporting cast go from being nobodies to retroactively being world-famous in their fields’ is the sort of decay I tend to associate with long running serial fiction. Weird to see it happen over the course of one book.) But that’s really just a minor pet peeve.

Orion was a great character, or at least a well-done example of an archetype I adore. ‘Selfless, heroic and dedicated to the point of it being kind of offputting/creepy Chosen One type who is (and I can’t emphasize this enough) not the protagonist. Partially because ‘there’s a much more conventionally heroic adventure story happening 5 degrees to the left’ just makes most stories a little bit more amusing, but also because someone really earnestly believing ‘my entire life is a means to a higher end, a fine tool set to a magnificent or at least a necessary purpose’ reliably drives me absolutely insane about them. That said the only reason I’m not absolutely certain he turns out to be either secretly evil or destined-to-be-the-antichrist is because the end of book cliffhanger makes that almost too obvious and on-the-nose.

Taking a bit of a step back, it’s interesting that the book didn’t really have any individual villain? Like, some other students are antagonists at times, sure, and there are plenty of horrible gribbly monsters (I adored basically all the horrible gribbly monsters), but none that really last as antagonists? Either defused or convinced to step aside/help or brutally murdered with magic. The entire finale was basically extreme high stakes facility maintenance. So yeah, interesting, not my usual expectation of YA.

I mean more broadly the actual villain is of course the entire fucked up system, both social and metaphysical, underlying the school. The role of a brutally competitive education system as recruitment method allowing particularly competent or promising immigrants and members of the lower classes to join a ‘meritocratic’ elite while also filtering out the most troublesome or incompetent children of that elite and using their failure to legitimize the easy inheritance of all the others is, perhaps, a slightly on the nose analogy. But, again, kind of the price of admission.

[lilpotatjj]

helloo so i have a request

could you write a bella ramsey x reader (romantic) where bella comes back to their shared flat late due to filming (could be for tlou or something else) and finds the reader crying because people on social media have been rude since they have a 5 year age gap between them (the relationship is legal)

maybe a wee bit of angst but nothing to bad, tyyyy!!

(make sure to get plenty of rest and stay hydrated!!)

A/N: Here u go Hope u like it and thanks for the great request. ppl can somtimes be really rude. no questions ask. don't let ur guard down my sweet Readers <3 you are precious the way u are!

Warning: rude comments and stupid acc names, fluff and sweet words for comforting reader

I don't care cause I love you always <3

Weirdo23: *Mom complex*

Duckface: *You don't deserve Bella, she's too young for you.*

JuStAtRoLl: *there's money that makes the music….don't love! you weirdo. As if she loves Bella*

Grudge666: *that will never last! Bella's too busy with everything and you're taking full advantage. shame on you!*

Bananaaaa: *wanting attention. the main thing is to be the centre of attention. How can Bella find anything to like about you? True love comes from both sides. Poor Bella, she really doesn't deserve this. I hate people like you!*

The horrible comments go on and on without really ending. Snuggled up with a blanket around you and tears in your eyes, you read through most of the disgusting comments. You shudder at the thought of stepping outside the door and feel that if Bella reads this, she won't love you anymore. People on the internet are too violent to write such nasty things…protected by anonymity.

One after the other, tears run down your face as you suddenly hear the crack of a key.

"I'm home babe!" You quickly try to wipe away the tears but the pain is too great and deep inside you, a sob slips out. "Y/N?" Bella asks while comming into the room you share together with them.

"Oh darling!? what happened? Are you okay?" Actually completely exhausted from filming the new season of the last of us, Bella comes straight to you and takes you in her arms.

You try to pull yourself together but when you feel her tender warmth you lose yourself completely in your grief.

"oh baby ssshhh…it's ok…….I'm here" Tight in her arms they lets you cry it out and just stands by you.

"I….I'm so s…sorry." You sob again and don't manage to look at her at all, so they hold your face in their hands.

I would really like to know what happened" Bella looks deep into your eyes. "What are you apologising for?" your Tears flow down their hands. You swallow hard and take her hands away from your face. Your phone is still vibrating, one nasty message after another in one of your collaborative posts with Bella, in which you give her a kiss on the cheek. They read some of the bad comments and look at your face wordlessly. "oh Dear….I'm so sorry! please don't let things like that get to your head!" she looks at you comfortingly.

"is that true? is there any truth about the comments? am i too old for you?" you look at her almost blankly.

"no, not at all. why? it's only 5 years, nothing big. besides, i'm almost 20! i think i'm mature enough to decide for myself who i love!" She looks at you with a serious look and means every single word.

Tears come to your eyes again at all her words. "I really don't want to lose you…..I love you too much. you are everything to me…"

"i love you too and i would never leave you because of such comments. let them talk! most of them are only unhappy with themselves!"

You just look at them silently and slowly come to your senses. "I'm so lucky to have you Isabella May Ramsey" You manage to smile a little, which makes her laugh too.

"That was sweet" she says and kisses you softly on the mouth.

"They'll just have to get used to me having you" she smiles proudly.

"cuddle?"

"yes"

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