#there’s so much in there i haven’t posted it’s like a secret garden well anyways here’s one of those edits

[elderwisp]

[atlabeth]

Girl for one get that glass of water! andddd this is a loose request but I LOVE knight Luke and we just gotta see them have that cinderella live action ball scene like romantic dancing maybe the secret garden as well but either way we gotta see these gals at a ball! Have a great day you're an amazing writer!

under the moonlight

fic about the ball

pairing: knight!luke castellan x princess!reader

a/n: thank you so much for this request it is so fucking cute lmao. i changed it a bit to make it work with my vision (bc they wouldn’t really be able to dance at a ball) but the core is that they're dancing together!!! and it is much more intimate and personal lol. here is the cinderella scene that the ask mentioned (and that i took inspo from because it's a beautiful scene lol)

wc: 2.5k

warning(s): basically all fluff

as usual, a mix of hcs and traditional fic!

ALRIGHT LAST TIME WE LEFT OFF princess was dancing with princes during the ball and luke was sulking at his first ever ball accompanying you as a knight 

and thankfully, that all goes okay. 

You don’t get murdered, Luke only goes slightly insane, and you don’t fall head over heels for any royals. 

All in all, a pretty alright night in retrospect. 

But post-ball is rough on both of you. 

You complain about how much your feet hurt from your heels and how uncomfortable your dress is and how your cheeks ache from smiling so much. 

To your surprise, as Luke follows you down the halls, he laughs. 

You stop in your tracks as you whirl around. “And what do you find so funny?”

“Nothing,” he says with a slight smile, almost private. “Just… good to be back with you, princess.”

A small smile of your own starts to creep on your lips. “It was only half the night, Luke.”

“And you have no idea how much I missed you,” he muses. 

You just shake your head and continue walking. “You’re funny.”

(he’s not joking. he’s just going through it now that he’s not training 24/7 and actually has time to feel emotions again) 

You finally get back to your room—thankfully, you got out of any post-ball events with any princes by citing exhaustion, and it’s very rude to demand more of an exhausted lady—and Luke shuts the door behind you as you sink into the edge of your bed. 

“God,” you groan as you immediately peel your heels off, letting out a sigh of relief. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to those.”

“If it’s any help, you looked very regal out there,” Luke says.

“It is my duty,” you say as you smile inwardly. “You looked very knightly out there.”

“And that’s my duty,” he says in kind. He gets a chuckle out of you. 

You begin to take everything off—you undo your hair from whatever elaborate style it was in, you strip your wrists and fingers bare of bracelets, bangles, and rings (though you leave a certain necklace on), you undo parts of your dress. When you take your nightgown from your chest and go behind your folding screen, Luke clears his throat. 

“Princess,” Luke says, “do you want me to—?”

“You can stay,” you say. “I don’t mind.”

And Luke, idiot that he is, gets all in his head. 

(Does she not want me to leave because she doesn’t even see me as someone who could like her like that???) (We’ve been friends for so long, does she just see me as an older brother???) (Does this mean she trusts me or sees me as like. a painting on the wall.) (what the fuck) 

It’s not any of those, poor boy. it’s just that you feel more comfortable around him than anyone because you’ve been around each other for your entire life—he knows you better than anyone. What’s the harm in him being in the room when you’re separated by a folding screen anyway?

but Luke is dramatic and also so fucking insecure when it comes to your feelings for him lmao 

and he has a reason to be i guess?? because at this point while he knows that he has feelings for you (hasn’t fully realized he’s in love) you haven’t realized your own. you just think you have a lingering childhood crush on Luke and it’ll go away as you get older and start being courted 

(spoiler alert: it will not go away.) 

so he gets all weird and silent, giving one word responses as you talk with him, and when you come out in your nightgown you immediately stare him down. 

“Luke,” you said, “what’s wrong?” 

He blinked, as if he wasn’t expecting you to say anything. “Nothing.” 

“Luke,” you repeated. “Come on.” 

“Nothing’s wrong,” he repeated as well. 

You crossed your arms. “Don’t act like I don’t know every single thing about you.” 

“If you do, then you should know that nothing is wrong,” he countered. 

You stared at him for a moment more, then you held out your hand. “Dance with me, then.” 

That actually seemed to throw him off guard as he frowned. “What?” 

“Did you go deaf back there?” you joked. “I want you to dance with me.” 

He managed a smile, though it was slightly awkward. It only made your smile grow. “I don’t dance, princess.” 

“Which is why I’ll teach you,” you said with a nod. “I’ve had plenty of practice.” 

“And I have none.” Luke gestured at his armor. “I’m not exactly suited for it, either.” 

“You can take off your armor,” you said. “It’ll make it all much easier. And a lot quieter.” 

“My job is to protect you, princess.” Luke laid his hand on the hilt of his sword. “I can’t exactly defend you if all the armor’s gone.” 

You rolled your eyes good-naturedly. He really did worry too much. “Nothing’s going to happen here, Luke—not now. I’ll even let you keep your sword with you if it matters that much.” 

He still didn’t seem sure. You inclined your head and took another step forward, still holding out your hand. 

“I’ll count you through it all,” you promised. “And if you like, I can hum one of those orchestra tunes they played earlier tonight. And I promise it’ll make you feel better.”

“...Fine,” Luke relented, and he started undoing his armor. “But you don’t tell anyone about this.” 

“Your secret is safe with me,” you remarked. 

It took a fair amount of time for Luke to get his armor off, but it took just as long for you to get every layer of your ball gown off earlier—and besides, you had endless patience reserved especially for him. The toned forearms revealed as he rolled his sleeves up certainly helped. 

“Are you ready?” you asked as you held out your hand again. 

Luke took it uncertainly. “I feel as if I’m the one meant to be asking you that.” 

“You can lead next time we train together,” you said with a smile. “For now, you’re in my domain.” 

You put Luke’s hand on your waist and reached for his other one, adjusting until it was right, then you looked up at him. “Does that feel alright?” 

His eyes were startlingly dark this close, surprisingly intense. He nodded. 

“Good. I’m going to teach you a few basic steps so you can get used to it.” 

Luke nodded again. You wondered why words seemed behind his grasp. 

yeah girlie I wonder why 

Luke is. not a great dancer 

You’re not surprised, and you don’t say a single word about it as you teach him the basics. he spent his childhood swinging a sword around, and you spent yours learning etiquette and ballroom dances lol 

He steps on your foot about ten times and apologizes like a freak every time, you just laugh and smile and tell him you’re fine. Sure, your slippers don’t provide much protection and Luke’s boots aren’t great against them but you honestly don’t even feel it. you’re too busy getting lost in his eyes lol 

And for someone who spent two years training like an insane person, he gets frustrated very easily when things don’t go his way. 

“How do you do this? It’s impossible.” 

“I learned this dance when I was twelve, Luke.” 

as much as you jest while you’re teaching him the basics you’re encouraging him the entire time because he’s your best friend above all else!!! and you honestly believe he can do anything lmao 

And he’s a quick learner! He didn’t become the youngest kingsguard in history by learning slowly. So soon enough, you’re actually dancing together. 

Luke’s hand on your back feels like the most natural thing in the world, and you can tell he’s actually starting to get a little into it. 

You didn’t have to count your steps off anymore, so you’d switched to humming one of your favorite symphonies from the musicians back in Aurelda. 

Luke is still focused on landing every move, but your lead and the music gives him confidence in this that he didn’t really know he had. He spins you, and you get an idea as you twirl your way to the balcony door. You open it and look back at him. 

“Princess—” Luke starts as he takes a few steps towards you, but you just shake your head with a grin and hold out your hand. 

“Trust me.” 

And he does, somehow. 

You didn’t know what part of himself Luke had to get to in order to actually go along with this, but he allowed you to fully take the lead. His eyes never left yours as you guided him through one of your favorite dances—sometimes you called out whatever move that was coming next, and he would do it perfectly. His instincts and reaction time, sharply honed by his training, actually came in handy. 

“And lift!” 

Luke braced his hands on your waist as he raised you into the air without missing a beat, and you found yourself actually laughing with pure glee as you landed. You grinned at Luke who had a smile smaller than yours, but that you knew meant the same. He glowed with exertion and the light of the full moon shone down on him. 

Angelic was the only word you could think of to describe him. 

“Princess,” he said, bringing you back to the real world, “are we done?” 

“I see no reason not to end while we’re ahead,” you said, slightly out of breath from his lift. “You’re a natural. Are you sure you’re not a prince?” 

Luke’s smile didn’t fully reach his eyes for the slightest moment—he covered it up before you could fully analyze it. “Thankfully, I’m not. Otherwise I would have had to do that all my life like you.” 

“Oh, it’s not that bad,” you said offhandedly. “Especially when you’ve got such a great partner.” 

Luke suddenly lowered himself into a bow, his arm held in front of his chest as he bent over. You couldn’t stifle your laugh in time, but he was smiling when he rose. 

“The only proper way to truly end a dance, so I’ve seen,” he said. “I wouldn’t be such a great partner if I forgot that.” 

You grinned as you took the skirt of your nightgown in your hands and bobbed into a curtsy. “Thank you for the reminder, my lord.” 

A shiver ran through you and Luke’s eyebrows creased. “You should get back inside. You’re not dressed at all for this weather.” 

“It’s simply a night chill,” you said, and you walked over to the railing and rested your forearms on it. “And it’s too beautiful a night to ignore.” 

“It truly is.” 

You heard Luke walk up next to you, so you glanced over. His gaze was only set on you. 

You felt your cheeks flush and you bit back your smile as you stared back up at the stars. For a moment, you stood together in comfortable silence. 

“Thank you for tonight,” you finally said. 

You could hear his frown in his words. “What do you mean?” 

“Exactly what I said.” You leaned a bit closer to the railing, shifting your balance. “Your presence always… calms me. And I was a bit nervous for tonight.” 

When Luke finally responded, it was more restrained than usual. “Why?” 

“Well, I was nervous tonight because you put the idea in my head that I was going to get murdered,” you said wryly. “And your presence calms me because it always has.” 

“So… I made you nervous and calmed you down for what I made you nervous about?” Luke shook his head. “I’m sorry, princess.” 

“Why are you apologizing?” You finally turned to look at him, the smallest smile on your lips. “Anytime I got overwhelmed on the floor, or felt as if I was going to keel over from boredom, I just searched around until I found you.” You shrugged. “The sight of you alone was enough to get me through the rest of it.” 

“And of course,” you tipped a shoulder as your gaze drifted back to the stars, “you danced with me for no reason. That gives you all the good will you need from me.” 

“It wasn’t for no reason,” he said. “It made you happy. That’s reason enough for me.” 

The chill in the air was a blessing as you felt heat rise in your cheeks, and your smile grew just so. 

“Besides.” You could feel his eyes on you as he continued. “This was my first ball. Anytime I got overwhelmed, I would find you in the crowd, and your confidence got me through it.” 

You chuckled as your gaze fell to the marble railing. You didn’t know if you’ve ever felt less confident at a ball—but knowing that Luke was looking for you the same way you did him made butterflies arise in your stomach. 

Warmth spurned all through you, and the fingers on your forearms felt bumps rise on your skin. You didn’t exactly know what possessed you as you cleared your throat and started back towards your room. 

“It’s late,” you said, perhaps a bit too hasty. “We— we should turn in. It’s going to be a long ride back to Aurelda.” 

You paused at the door, waiting to hear Luke’s footsteps or his voice, and it took a few seconds for him to do anything. 

“...Yes,” he eventually said. “I apologize for keeping you so long.” 

You couldn’t help but laugh to yourself as you opened the door and walked back in. Always so noble—it was no question he had knight’s blood in his veins. 

“It’s not your fault, Luke,” you said. “You were just meant to drop me off—I got you to stay.” 

You sat on the side of your bed as Luke put his armor back on. There was no point in it, but he refused to let the implications of him leaving your room at this hour in his underclothes fester. 

“I chose to stay,” he said. “I know better.” 

“You can give it a rest for a night, Luke,” you said with a slight laugh. “I’m your princess, aren’t I?” 

“Certainly.” 

“And you are my knight.” 

“Yes.” 

“Then I don’t see how anyone could have a problem with my knight spending time with me.” You smiled as you leaned forward, meeting his eyes. A smile twitched on his lips for just a moment before he continued to get dressed. 

Soon enough, he was ready to go. Luke paused at the door, fingers on the handle, and met your eyes. 

“Thank you again for tonight, princess,” he said. “I…” 

His breath caught for a moment. His eyes flickered down to your neck. A millisecond later, they were back at eye level, and you allowed a knowing smile. 

“I enjoyed it,” he murmured. “Goodnight, princess.” 

“Goodnight, Luke,” you said softly. 

And you got one more smile out of him before he closed the door behind him. 

[becausegoodheroesdeservekidneys]

Doctor Who, but Chronologically 30

Okay OKAY so we have just watched the Christmas Armistice of 1914, but now we move on to one of my favourite episodes of ALL TIME. In fact, full disclosure, this is one of my favourite TV episodes of anything ever. This is one of my go-to options for comfort TV. If I’m ill and sad and cwtched up on the sofa, this is in the Emergency Elanor First Aid Kit. I love it. I love it so much that I will not be quoting any of it, because if I do, I will be posting the whole script. You cannot imagine the extent to which I had to sit on my hands so I wouldn’t do a full episode review accidentally.

It is 1926, my friends, and this is the Unicorn and the Wasp.

Tennant and Donna are back!!!! DREAM TEAM. We haven’t seen them since they were running around Pompei in episode one, my lord that was a while back now. And Jesus, what a return to quality. The companions have been failing the Sexy Lamp Test for so long. The only break was Martha in the Human Nature two-parter, and that was an emotional wringer. But here!!! Donna!!! You could NEVER replace her with a sexy lamp. She is 1000% the co-protagonist. She and Tennant are best friends and they love each other intensely and platonically and they travel through time and SOLVE CRIME while being, at all moments and seconds of every single scene, two halves of a whole idiot, and it is joyful and wonderful and amazing.

Okay okay so

They land in a country manor in England, a part expertly played by Llansannor Court in Wales if I’m not much mistaken, and the interiors are 1000% Tredegar House because I know my Welsh country manors. The Doctor and Donna get ludicrously excited about going to a garden party in 1926, all giggly. They even go and get dressed up, by which I mean Donna does – she exits the TARDIS and gives a twirl.

“What do you think?” she teases. “Flapper, or slapper?”

“Flapper, definitely,” the Doctor beams. “You look lovely.”

… I am having violent flashbacks to Capaldi calling Clara ugly.

Anyway they meet Agatha Christie in time for an honest-to-god murder mystery. It’s fucking phenomenal. It’s silly and camp and the murderer is a giant wasp, except in true Agatha Christie style, there’s a complicated twist involving a secret pregnancy, an expensive gem, the hot young woman (played by her from Rogue One) actually being an accomplished jewel thief impersonating a socialite, and a prodigal reverend. One of these people is the aforementioned giant wasp, except the joyful sci-fi plot is really running around a playground with a balloon and giggling, so it has been primed to kill people in libraries with lead piping like a Cluedo game.

I literally cannot list every moment I love. It’s just too many. So I shall try to name check some top moments:

“MAIDEN”

“It was a good once”

“I am Inspector Smith from Scotland Yard, and Miss Noble is the plucky young girl who helps me”

“Copyright Donna Noble”

“Major snap out of it. No, right out of it –“

“HOW IS HARVEY WALLBANGER ONE WORD”

The ENITRE reveal scene holy shit

“Ah, let’s see, it’s filed under C” *box contains a Cyberman part, a Carrionite egg, a bust of Caesar, and cables*

Fuck. I just. *clenches fist* I love this episode so damn much

Okay so plot threads. Well! No new info about Donna’s back, unfortunately, so nothing to tick off there. Only, as ever, things to add. There’s a scene where Donna is comforting Agatha (and finding vital clues), and she explains that her last partner ran off with a giant spider. That’s a hell of a thing. Oh, also Donna made her second reference to bees disappearing. But that’s it.

Fuck me but I would burn so much Capaldi for so much more Tennant/Donna.

Anyway the list of plot threads is now going under a read more, Christ on wheels

“She” (an unknown person) is returning (perhaps River returned as Missy. Maybe Me? Maybe Clara???!)

There is something on Donna’s back

An entire planet, Pyrovilia, just… disappeared, somehow. (Maybe because the TARDIS is exploding??? Saturnine was also lost, and that WAS because of the TARDIS exploding. The lion man’s planet was also lost but he was a bit of a knob about it if I’m honest.)

Amy is maybe dead (she’s not)

The Doctor has been cubed (he’s out, but how?)

River is possibly blown up  (unless she’s Missy)

The TARDIS has blown up  (It’s fine now. Except it’s sort of melting now because it’s corrupted, but it’s fine again)

The universe appears to have ended  (the universe is back again)

The Doctor has employed(?) Nardole

(And Nardole was “reassembled???” Nardole had glass nipples and invisible hair?? WHAT THE FUCK IS HE)

There’s a vault in the TARDIS and it contains Missy but we don’t know why (sometimes she knocks for the bants)

What has happened to all these companions and where are the new ones coming from?

There’s an immortal Viking girl now. Her name is Me and she’s now looking after the people the Doctor abandons

What’s With The Silence?

Why was Rory entirely unconcerned by the entire world suddenly going silent when that is Not Normal and should have been, at the very least, extremely disconcerting?

What did the Doctor do to Queen Lizzie One?

Who is Captain Jack Harkness? (Is he the one who gave the companions a warning about the lone cyberman?)

Why is Amy seeing a one-eyed woman in a vanishing window?

What’s with the Doctor’s future involving getting shot by an astronaut?

Is Amy pregnant and why is it inconclusive?

Who is Sarah-Jane Smith?

How is the Doctor Bill’s teacher and why/where does he have an office?

What is going on with the Cyber War and the Cyberium???

Who did the Doctor lose to Cyber Conversion?

What happened with the Other Cyber War?

What happened with the Third War that deleted the void?

Why does Rose seem particularly important?

What’s with the Weeping Angel statues, and why can’t you blink at them?

What order do these Doctors go in? (Eccleston, Tennant, uncertain, Smith, Capaldi, Whittaker)

Which companion just… forgot the Doctor, and how?

Yaz and Vinder are about to die as Mori/Mwri/Muuri

There is a Lupari shield around Earth.

What’s a Time War?

What’s the Rift?

What’s Bad Wolf?

What happened with Amy’s pregnancy?

In which war did the Doctor become a war criminal, and how?

Who is the Master?

Why has Amy forgotten Rory?

Is Rory plastic or not?

Why is the Doctor sulking on a cloud?

How exactly does the Doctor have a cloud?

What exactly happened with Strax to, uh, tame him?

Which friend killed Strax?

Which friend brought Strax back?

Where did this lesbian lizard and human couple come from?

What happened with Clara as Souffle Girl and the Daleks?

How does Clara actually join?

Why so many Claras?

Why is Missy apparently in robo-heaven?

Why is probably!Missy pushing Clara and the Doctor together?

What is Trensilor and what happened there?

Who is Handles?

The Doctor is about to be dissolved by a beautiful geode man

The universe is being crushed by the Flux

Will the Doctor open the fobwatch?

Sontarans are invading Earth again

Who is Kate?

Who is Osgood? Another name of Clara’s again?

The fuck is the deal with the Grand Serpent

Does Martha get to go to an ice cream planet with 12-fingered massage aliens?

How did the Doctor forget Clara?

Who is Bill’s puddle girlfriend Heather?

How did Nardole die?

When does Bill get Cyberman-ed and die?

When does the Doctor shrink and enter a Dalek called Rusty?

Whittaker is falling to her death rn

Was that ring relevant?

Does anyone know the Doctor’s name?

When did Yaz talk to Dan about fancying the Doctor?

When did Dan talk to the Doctor about fancying Yaz?

Who was the Doctor’s wife?

What's happening with the bees?

What happened with Donna's ex and a giant spider?

[etes-secrecy-post]

Hi, before I explain my post, I want to say something important.

• What you see my blog has become a major overhaul. And despite the changes, I decided that my 2nd account will be now my artwork blog with a secret twist.

⚠️NEW RULE! (W/ BIGGER TEXT!)⚠️

⚠️ SO PLEASE DO NOT SHARE MY 2nd ACCOUNT TO EVERYONE! THIS SECRECY BLOG OF MINE IS FOR CLOSES FRIENDS ONLY!⚠️

• AND FOR MY CLOSES FRIENDS, DON’T REBLOG IT. INSTEAD, JUST COPY MY LINK AND PASTE IT ON YOUR TUMBLR POST! JUST BE SURE THE IMAGE WILL BE REMOVED AND THE ONLY LEFT WAS THE TEXT.

⚠️ SHARING LINKS, LIKE POSTS, REBLOG POSTS, STEALING MY SNAPSHOT PHOTOS/RECORDED VIDEOS/ARTWORKS (a.k.a. ART THIEVES) OR PLAGIARIZING FROM UNKNOWN TUMBLR STRANGERS WILL IMMEDIATELY BE BLOCKED, RIGHT AWAY!⚠️

😡 WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT EVER LIKED & REBLOG MY SECRET POST! THIS IS FOR MY SECRET FRIENDS ONLY, NOT YOU! 😡

Okay? Capiche? Make sense? Good, now back to the post…

My GT Sport Gameplay - Part 15 [Jan 28, 2023]

Hello, hello! Here’s Part 15 of my “Gran Turismo Sport” experience playthrough!🎮🚗

If you haven’t seen my Part 14, as well as “my first ever owned PS4 game by using funds”, then I’ll provide some links down below. ↓

○ Part 14 [Jan 27, 2023]

○ My first ever owned PS4 game [Jan 10th, 2023]

So, without further ado, let’s get started:

1st to 4th screenshots: ↑

• Okay, back again for another round of "Circuit Experience". And as you can see, I choose picked another batch of eight tracks. So, here's my rate chart for Part 14:

Neutral: ○ Dragon Trail - Gardens 🇭🇷 ○ Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix 🇪🇸 ○ Autopolis International Racing Course 🇯🇵

Easy: ○ Tsukuba Circuit 🇯🇵 ○ Autodromo Nazionale Monza 🇮🇹 ○ Fuji Speedway 🇯🇵 ○ Red Bull Ring 🇦🇹 ○ Tokyo Expressway - South Inner Loop 🇯🇵

• So far, I don't have any hard rank tracks from my pick, and that's pretty good for me. 🙂👍 Although, I'm having a slight problem with "Dragon Trail - Gardens", but, thankfully, I managed to do 1 lap without a single retry. So, I gave it a Neutral rank. Also, the "Autopolis" track is new to me, which also I gave it the Neutral rank. And what's my favorite race track of the eight? Mmm... Tough choice, but I picked the "Red Bull Ring". Also, shout out to the "Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix" because I recognized this track from my old PS1 racing game; Formula 1'97. 🙂

5th & 6th Screenshots: ↑

BTW: I made some close calls of obtaining gold for the Dragon Trail - Gardens & the Autopolis track.

And that includes my today’s “Circuit Experience”! Let’s move on to my new car toys! ↓ 🚘😁

7th to 14th Screenshot(s): ↑

• Here are my new cars that I've obtained after finishing eight courses (in all dripped gold 🥇):

○ Ford Mustang Gr. B Rally Car 🇺🇸 (after completing all gold at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza 🇮🇹)

○ Dodge Viper GTS '13 🇺🇸 (after completing all gold at the Tsukuba Circuit 🇯🇵)

○ Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Gr. 4 🇩🇪 (after completing all gold at the Dragon Trail - Gardens 🇭🇷)

○ Lamborghini Huracán GT3 '15 🇮🇹 (after completing all gold at the Fuji Speedway 🇯🇵)

○ Audi TT Coupé 3.2 Quattro' 03 🇩🇪 (after completing all gold at the Red Bull Ring 🇦🇹)

○ Honda Civic Type R '15 (UK) 🇯🇵 (after completing all gold at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix 🇪🇸)

○ BMW M4 Coupe '14 🇩🇪 (after completing all gold at the Tokyo Expressway - South Inner Loop 🇯🇵)

○ Jaguar F-Type Gr. 3 🇬�� (after completing all gold at the Autopolis International Racing Course 🇯🇵)

15th Screenshot: ↑

• Finally, today's "daily workout completion" is the Ford Focus Gr. B Rally Car 🇺🇸. Mmmm... Can't wait to drive in dirt beside the Mustang Gr. B. 🙂

16th to 18th Screenshot(s): ↑

• Once again, much like my previous part, I have now double cars on my (digital) garage, including my starter car, the Honda Civic Type R (UK). I'm starting to get deja vu, here. 🤔 But, I digress...

Anyway, let's move on to the "GT League". 🙂🏁🏆

19th & 20th Screenshots: ↑

• My today’s GT League races are "The Passion of Dr. Wankel" (for Mazda rotary cars) & "Tourist Trophy" (for Audi TT cars). The 1st race I take on is like walking in the park (with Clean Race & Handicap Bonuses) 🚶‍♂️🌳, but the latter is when I switched to "serious" mode 🎮😠. On the 2nd race of "Tourist Trophy" (Dragon Trail - Seaside reversed), I was struggling to reach the leader pole, and my qualified car's horsepower didn't have the strength to chase. 🙁 So, I have to quit the race & tweak the HP settings just a little pinch before I go for another race. 🔧⚙️🚘 However, I ended up in 2nd place 🥈, so I have to tweak more & race again. So yeah, I finally beat the race by tuning my qualified car.

• However, for my 3rd race (Nürburgring Nordschleife) of the aforementioned "Tourist Trophy" I decided not to used this car, and this is the moment where I purchased my first car in GT Sport.

My first recorded video from PS4 Pro (with 21st to 23rd screenshots): ↑

• I went to the Audi dealership in the Europe section of "Brand Central" to buy the Audi TTS Coupe '14 as my achievement trophy for "My First Car". Pretty neat! 😊🏆After that, I'm ready to continue my Tourist Trophy race! Overall, I'm wiping 'em all with a "Clean Race Bonus" 🧹🏁🏎️, including one "Handicap Bonus" from using the other car before. ⬆️🏎️ Plus, I nailed the Nürburgring Nordschleife's (Race 3) "Green Hell" long course without bumps, bruises, or out the tight track! 😃

My GT Sport’s Scapes - 20th & 21st photos: ↑

• Here are the ff. cars I used (with selected locations):

For the "The Passion of Dr. Wankel" race: ○ Mazda RX500 '70 🇯🇵 (location: Underground Discharge Channel - Kasukabe, Saitama Prefecture, Japan 🇯🇵)

For the "Tourist Trophy" race: ○ Audi TTS Coupe '14 & Audi TT Coupé 3.2 Quattro '03 🇩🇪 (location: Konzerthaus Berlin, Berlin, Germany 🇩🇪)

• The so-called ✌️"other car"✌️ that I refer to was the Audi TT Coupé 3.2 Quattro '03. It put out of the fight at the Northern Isle Speedway (where I claimed the "Handicap Bonus") & the Dragon Trail - Seaside II (reversed), but sometimes, speed wasn't enough against the TTS Coupe. But hey, big props for the 1st gen TT coupe though! 😊👍

24th to 26th Screenshot(s) + Overall: ↑

• I made huge progress in GT Sport, with eight tracks covered in gold in the "Circuit Experience" 🛣️🥇, and an intense race 🚘🏁🚘 at the "Tourist Trophy" in the "GT League's" amateur league. More importantly, I got 91% of my campaign. As only (last) eight courses left in the "Circuit Experience", hoping I could take out these, in the coming weeks. And once I'm done, I'm onto the "Lewis Hamilton Time Trial Challenge" (after purchasing it using my PSN wallet).😁

Riya 🐰🏎️: Aww yeah! You did a great job tackling TT coupes (no innuendo relation) & earning golds! 😁👍

Spot 🐶🏎️: Heck yeah! And hey, we've got ourselves another clone cars! I'll have the cool Viper GTS 2013 car, pls?! Thanks so much! 😊🚘

Miya 🐰🐻🔋: Oooow, that Lambo Huracan looks sick to drive! And you know, I am HUGE fan of Italian supercars! 😁

Bonn 🐰🚹: Me too, Miya. We can't wait to see the Huracan GT3 in action! Now, how's your driving with the VW Vision GT car? 🙂

Miya 🐰🐻🔋: Gnarly! Now, I want test drive with the Huracan GT3 car! Ladies first! 😁🚘

Bonn 🐰🚹: Be careful, Miya! That Huracan GT3 is too fast the other car you've drove! 😧

Riya 🐰🏎️: Miya will be fine, paps. 🙂

Spot 🐶🏎️: Yeah, she can handle it, to the max! 😁

Bonn 🐰🚹: And, how do you know about that? 🤔

Spot 🐶🏎️ & Riya 🐰🏎️: Since 7 before we're depature to the U.S. 😃

Bonn 🐰🚹: Huh... Okay. 🤔 Anyways, we can't to see our creator's next GT Sport journey. In the meanwhile, I'll go drive with other cars that he claimed.🙂

Riya 🐰🏎️: Oooow, can we try the Jaguar F-Type GT3 car, paps? I'll go sit in the passenger. 😊🚘

Bonn 🐰🚹: Sure thing, sweetie. Hop on! 😊

Riya 🐰🏎️: Alright! Hey, Spot! Follow us! 😁

Spot 🐶🏎️: Yeah! yeah! 😄🚘

Well, that’s all for now. If you haven’t seen my previous GT Sport progress, then I’ll provide some links down below. ↓😉

My GT Sport Gameplay:

• Part 1 [June 5, 2021]

• Part 2 [June 5, 2021]

• Part 3 [June 5, 2021]

• Part 4 [June 17, 2021]

• Part 5 [June 17, 2021]

• Part 6 [October 21, 2021]

• Part 7 [December 25, 2021]

• Part 8 [January 22, 2022]

• Part 9 [January 22, 2022]

• Part 10 [January 23, 2022]

• Part 11 [February 19, 2022]

• Part 11.5 [February 19, 2022]

• Part 12 [Mar 26, 2022]

• Part 13 [Mar 26, 2022]

• Part 13.5 [Mar 26, 2022]

• Part 14 [Jan 27, 2023]

And also, this one → My PSN Wrap-Up 2022 stats [Dec 21st, 2022]

Tagged: @leapant, @bryan360

[boxbusiness]

Tagged to do this Obey Me OC Template (Link) by @razzledazzle17

Decided to just make a new post cuz it would be a hella long chain >>” I picked my lil’ ol’ DiaLuci love child~ *Edited some things out the template if I didn’t have an answer or didn’t quite apply

Obey Me OC

Personal - Basics

[Name] Adrammelech, Addy

[Race/Species]

Demon [x] Angel [] Human [] Other: []

[Age] Unknown

[Birthday] Unknown

[Height] 6ft 1in (I wanted Addy to be between the heights of Lucifer/Diavolo)

[Fingernail Polish Color(s)] Black polish, but their ring fingers have red polish

[Hair color/description] Short wavy black hair, the bangs in the front fade into a red

Personal - In-depth

[Gender or no | Pronoun(s)] Non-Binary, They/them

[Sexual/Romantic Orientation or lack thereof] Asexual/Panromantic

[Favorite Color(s)] Black, Red, Gold, Blue

[Personality] Generally friendly, and respectful, but can be a tease. Has moments of being childish and at the same time can be serious/mature. Potentially sadistic

Personal - Other

[Likes] Their parents/family, coffee/tea, formal attire, the beach, dahlias/gardening

[Dislikes] Disrespect towards their parents, untidiness, not getting enough sleep, dark wooded areas

[Positive Traits] Their politeness and well mannered behavior, willing to lend a hand to help out

[Negative Traits] Easily gets convinced into shenanigans, Can be obsessive, Not easy to calm down when aggressive

Relationships

*Now I’m not quite far in the Addy’s Origins comic to explain most of these relationships and the comic is supposed to short so Addy doesn’t meet everyone anyway but these are how the relationships would be if I had time to display them. Also slight spoilers here, but it gets decided later to keep Addy being a love child a secret from everyone. The only ones who know are Diavolo, Lucifer, Barbatos, Solomon and maaaaaaybe Simeon. I haven’t decided if I want him in the loop. So Addy thinks of Lucifer’s bros as uncles but they don’t know that they view them as such.

[With Demons]

Lucifer - As their dad, Addy loves and respects him very much, but is aware of Lucifer’s apprehension to except them as their child due to their mysterious appearance. That being said Addy is patient and willing to work hard to earn Lucifer’s approval.

Mammon - The cool uncle, though Addy understands a lot of Mammon’s actions cause his dad stress, they have a soft spot for him since Mammon actually cares and is nice. They do appreciate that Mammon is willing to include them in his schemes.

Leviathan - The quiet uncle, They don’t quite see eye to eye sometimes as Addy is a more active individual, but is very interested and happy when Levi shares his hobbies with them.

Satan - The brother uncle, technically speaking Satan is both their uncle and a brother of sorts, but disregarding the strange family tree situation Addy views him more of an older sibling. They respect him, but disapprove of his untidy room and rebel behavior towards Lucifer at times.

Asmodeus - The Alabama uncle, Asmo will always be an Asmo so he does flirt and get a little handsy with Addy, though they laugh it off as Asmo being affectionately quirky. They often will got to Asmo for outfit advice and accessories since he is the most fashionable of his uncles.

Beelzebub - The sporty uncle, Beel’s appetite does surprise and scare them at times, but Addy enjoys the times when Beel exercises and plays sports with them.

Belphegor - The complicated uncle, Addy is bothered by Belphie’s disrespect towards his dad and father in the past and finds it hard to talk to him for that reason. However, they are aware that Belphie deep down cares, so they make an effort to be cordial with him.

Diavolo - As his father, Addy also loves and respects him very much. They are aware of his position as future King, and much like Lucifer, is careful to not make him look bad. They have a closer bond with each other considering both share friendly/childish behavior.

Barbatos - The unofficial uncle, Addy is very curious about Barbatos’ history and is appreciative that he takes care of his father. They enjoy learning about things from Barbatos and often go to him for advice if he doesn’t seek it from their parents.

[With Angels]

Simeon - Addy can be slightly shy towards Simeon as they don’t particularly have a sense of what angels are really like. They can sense that their father has his issues with angels, but is also aware that their dad is close or at least once was so they remain friendly Simeon.

Luke - Being quite young in appearance, Addy doesn’t take as much caution around Luke as they do with Simeon. They would take part in the running chihuahua joke that their dad and uncles started.

Michael - They don’t have a lot of information about Michael so they only have a neutral opinion of him.

[With Humans]

Solomon - They view Solomon in a similar light to Barbatos. Curious about his past, but willing to trust him. Addy is also interested in learning magic from him considering he’s a powerful sorcerer.

Favorite Things About the Devildom

[Favorite Job(s)] The royal Library/The Mausoleum, They share a fondness for books (not quite on the level of their ‘brother’) and they wish to feel closer to their passed relatives

[Favorite Place(s) to Hang at] RAD, The House of Lamentation, Lord Diavolo’s Castle

[Favorite Food(s)] Behemoth Salisbury Steak

[Favorite Class Subject(s)] Cursed Music

Least Favorite Things About the Devildom

[Least Favorite Job(s)] The Fall, getting gawked at by multiple lewd demons can be overwhelming

[Least Favorite Places to Go] The forbidden woods (Idk the proper name of the area. I couldn’t find it on the wiki but ya know that forest area scene we sometimes see)

[Least Favorite Foods] Foods that should be warm/hot being served cold/room temp

[Disliked Class Subject(s)] Mathematics

[Stuff that Can be Considered a Negative About Devildom] They do wish there was some sort of sun like in the human world

Personality Chart

I don’t tag but hop in if you want~ 🍑🍑🍑

[ginnyw-potter-archive]

I just saw you updated your master post with a new fic, what blooms in the orchard, i haven’t seen anything about it, what can you tell us and can you give us a sneak peek? I’m very excited!!!

I was going to work on that first but the other one really slipped in there and demanded all my attention. I have like 2 chapters written and I'm estimating about 5 to 10 chapters. It's supposed to be a more light-hearted fic about Harry and Ginny dating in secret the year after the war , sneaking around Hogwarts etc.

I added it on the masterpost to hold myself accountable and work on it again soon. It's on the back-burner for now but I very much intend to work on it again.

Here's a snippet about right after they started dating again in secret!

__________

It didn’t take long for Ron and Hermione to catch on that something was up. 

“You seem happy, Harry, did something happen?” Hermione asked him as the four of them were chilling in the garden. It has only been a few days since they got back together. Ginny carefully looked up from her magazine to see his response, her expression giving nothing away. 

“Well, the weather’s nice out,” Harry lamely responded. He saw Ginny’s lips almost quirk into a smile as she looked back down. 

“Maybe Harry’s just happy he has finally been awarded Witch Weekly’s most charming smile,” Ginny joked, tossing the magazine at Harry.

He caught it and opened it back up. There it was, a picture of him smiling last week when he went to Diagon Alley. Ron came to look over his shoulder. 

“Very charming,” he teased Harry, who swatted the magazine at Ron in response. 

“Maybe you’re next,” Ginny said and the three of them laughed while Ron looked absolutely mortified at the idea. Harry opened the magazine and flipped to a random page. 

“No, here you are, Ron,” Harry said, leaning away so Ron couldn’t see. “Oh, that is most interesting indeed.” Harry had to try his hardest to keep the magazine out of Ron’s reach.

He was now hanging onto Harry in the hopes to get hold of it. Ron ended up wrestling Harry to the ground and at least one page got torn. 

Ron stood up triumphantly and looked at the page. He huffed. 

“You git,” he spoke and tossed the magazine back at Harry. There was no article about Ron, not this week anyway. Harry looked at Ginny. 

“Did you still want to read that?” he asked. She shook her head. 

“No, I think I will choose my own most charming smile,” she replied and Harry wondered if she was intentionally teasing him. He decided to take the bait. 

“Ah, who is in the running? Viktor Krum?” he said, both Ron and Hermione looked at him in surprise. 

Ginny stuck out her tongue. “Blegh, no, he really isn’t my type,” she let out and Harry had to work hard not to grin widely at this new piece of information. “No, but while we are on Quidditch players, that Chaser from Montrose Magpies, Alasdair?” 

“Maddock? Really?” Ron let out in disbelief, he turned to Hermione, “What do you think?” 

Hermione chuckled. 

“Oh no, I am not playing this game,” Hermione responded, she was smarter than that. 

[sunnyrosewritesstuff]

12. All About Bilbo from the POV of...Thorin

And FINALLY I’m done. Thank you guys so much for all the notes/comments/reblogs/etc. I appreciate each and every one of you. If you haven’t been keeping up and want to see all 12 POVs, you can click on the masterlist here or I may just go ahead and post them to AO3. Please enjoy the long awaited Bagginshield conclusion.  😉

***

Thorin knew after the battle, after laying in that healing camp, after finally being free to have thoughts not consumed by his treasury, there was only one edict he could make as his first one as king: the hobbit had to stay in Erebor. An advisor, a cook, a gardener, he did not care what occupation he took. He would invent a position if he needed to! He just needed Bilbo by his side if he were to be of any use to the mountain. Of course, convincing the hobbit of this was easier said than done.

 In all fairness, Thorin could have gone about it a lot better than all but demanding he stay. The hobbit ranted and raved, he seemed on the verge of lashing out physically (which Thorin would reluctantly admit he would have deserved), and he spent several long agonizing nights in Dale. Finally, Bilbo came back to inform Thorin that he would be returning to the Shire, he would be allowed six months to make his choice, and Thorin would respect it. Balin had to remind Thorin it would be within his best interest to accept. Thorin couldn’t argue with that. In fact, he needed Bilbo to know just how much he appreciated him before he left.

It was their first real conversation since the Battle. Thorin made his apologies and explained just how much the hobbit’s unconventional wisdom was needed both in his kingdom and to the king personally. In return, Bilbo expressed his fears during Thorin’s goldsickness and why exactly he turned over the Arkenstone. It was far from fixed, but it did go a long way towards regaining their former friendship. The hobbit would cite it as what finally convinced him to come back just under two years later. It should have been the happy ending Thorin had been waiting for. He never would have guessed just how wrong he was.

“I’m going to kill him.” Thorin growled.

“You’ve said that before.” Balin reminded patiently.

“This time, I’m really going to kill him. Whose idea was it to make him ambassador to the elves anyways?”

“I believe that would be...yours, Your Majesty.”

Thorin had no energy to deal with Balin’s misplaced amusement as he marched towards the hobbit’s room. He pounded on the door making sure this time that the sneaky burglar couldn’t claim not to hear him.

“I’m not answering if you’re going to be in a mood, Thorin Oakenshield.” Came the muffled response.

“You approved further negotiations after I told you I would not go to that despairing Mirkwood if my life depended on it!”

“Yes, I remember the conversation vividly.” Bilbo sighed.

“Then why…!”

“Your Majesty, if I may?” Balin interrupted. “Perhaps the hall is not the appropriate setting for this discussion.”

Thorin glared at his friend and advisor before turning that look onto the door before him.

“Let me in.” He ordered.

“Only on your word that you will quit raising your voice to me.” The hobbit conditioned.

“I will raise my voice if I please! I AM KING!”

“And with that winning attitude, who could forget?!”

“By Mahal.” Balin swore softly, closing his eyes and shaking his head.

Thorin silently fumed as he glared at the stone before him. Any that claimed dwarves were the most stubborn creatures on Arda clearly have not met Bilbo Baggins. Thorin took a deep breath to center himself before trying again.

“Master Baggins, will you please let me in so we can discuss this in private?” He all but hissed.

It was silent for a moment before the door swung open to reveal the curly haired hobbit who was currently sitting as the bane of Thorin’s very existence.

“There, was that so hard?” Bilbo answered snidely.

Thorin’s fists clenched at his side, and Balin rolled his eyes before turning to go the other way.

“I’m done with the two of you. Fetch me when you’ve figured it out or someone’s dead.”

Thorin gladly slammed the door on the traitor, leaving him and Bilbo alone. However, now that he had the hobbit before him, he found himself unfortunately speechless. He loathed that. As if his mere presence could steal all Thorin’s words away. His rather impromptu first words upon their meeting came to mind. Clearly, he was wrong about this burglar of senses.

“I’m not apologizing.” Bilbo began, crossing his arms. “They asked for a show of good faith from Erebor, and frankly I couldn’t see a reason to fault them.”

“You couldn’t?” Thorin raised a mocking eyebrow. “Clearly you remember our last stay in their wooded halls differently from me.”

Bilbo’s eyebrows furrowed with a scowl. “See! That’s exactly what I’m talking about. If you want this alliance to work, you’re going to have to bury past slights. Goodness, I couldn’t even imagine what the Shire would be if we held onto grudges the way dwarves do.”

“And I can’t imagine the state of my kingdom if I allow flippant hobbits to not hold people accountable for their actions!”

Bilbo pointed a finger at him. “You’re shouting.”

“A'lâju Mahal (Shame of Mahal)! You are...irritating!” Thorin bit back.

“So you’re saying people shouldn’t be forgiven?”

Just like that, the fire that had been steadily building in his breast was snuffed out. Still, Thorin Oakenshield did not bend completely.

“I believe there is a difference when that forgiveness is desired.”

“And I think Thranduil fits the bill...in his own way.” Bilbo shrugged under Thorin’s disbelieving look. “He’s let his son go, he’s lost Tauriel to Dale due to his actions, he’s gotten back the gems he’s been denied. I think he’s ready to make amends. I’m not saying we have to pretend he’s not hurt us. I’m just saying, it would be a good show of...neighborly airs to meet with him and see what he has to offer.”

There was logic in the hobbit’s words, even if Thorin did not want to hear them. And that simple thought probably was the single summary of all their hard feelings as of late. He turned to leave before he had to accept any more difficult truths.

“Fine. Have it your way.” He spat. 

The long disappointed sigh that followed him cut quicker than any blade.

***

The journey to Esgaroth where they would spend the night before continuing into the dreaded woods the next day was...tense to say the least. Even Dwalin was uncomfortable, and that was saying something. The inn was a welcome sight if only to get an ale and free Thorin of the abrasive atmosphere surrounding the hobbit. The man who owned the inn was tripping over himself to welcome the King of Erebor, and when Thorin was finally allowed peace in his own room, he was reluctant to leave. However, that ale was calling his name, and he waited long enough that surely the hobbit’s final meal was complete to avoid any awkwardness.

That was too little credit to the brilliant burglar. He waited until Thorin was sat down at the bar halfway through his ale before he appeared at Thorin’s elbow as if out of thin air.

“Why are you avoiding me?” Bilbo demanded. “In fact, what possible excuse could you have to be angry at me if you are in fact angry?”

Thorin was choking on the amber liquid that had rushed down the wrong pipe. 

“Well, you see…” He edged around his persistent cough.

“Need I remind you, I’m only doing the job you gave me. Going back further than that, I’m only here in Erebor because you insisted I be.”

“If you would just let me…” Thorin growled only to be interrupted again.

“Is this some sort of punishment for taking the Arkenstone? You lure me back with words of forgiveness and then argue with every single decision I make when I’m only trying to help…”

“IT’S BECAUSE I LOVE YOU! You confounded creature!”

Thorin nearly sighed in relief to finally see the hobbit’s mouth had stopped moving. It was as he took in the widened eyes and nervous stance that his words were able to catch up to him. His hands shook as his eyes darted around the significantly quieter room.

“You love me?” Bilbo whispered.

Thorin didn’t want to have to deal with this in front of all these men and dwarves, especially Dwalin’s irritating smirk. Grabbing the hobbit’s hand, he led him into the hallway where it was a little more private.

“You love me?” Bilbo repeated once they were alone.

Thorin sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. This was one secret he had hoped to hold onto for a little while longer. Not that he was never going to act on his feelings, just he was waiting for a little more time to pass. For the chasm between them to be bridged stably once more. But they hadn’t been able to stop arguing! He certainly didn’t expect Bilbo to accept him right now, but he also would not lie to him.

“Yes.” He answered, holding steady for the ire that was sure to erupt.

Instead, the hobbit all but flung himself at the dwarf king, his mouth immediately meeting Thorin’s. It was abrupt, it was warm, it was wet, and it was wonderful. When Bilbo pulled away it was to utter a phrase he never even allowed himself to hope to hear.

“Thorin, take me to bed. Now.”

The dwarf’s jaw dropped at the invitation and the open lust dilating the hobbit’s pupils.

“Wait. Now?” Thorin repeated, his mind whirling but not connecting.

“Now.” Bilbo asserted as he wrapped his arms around Thorin’s neck to kiss him again.

“Shouldn’t we...discuss...this?” Thorin persisted through their kissing, rather stupidly in his opinion.

One that seemed to be shared by the hobbit if his sigh and impatient glare were anything to go off.

“Discuss what?” Bilbo demanded. “I love you. You love me. I’ve bloody been waiting for you to do something about it for months. Now are we going upstairs...or would you rather we postpone until after our meeting with the elves?”

Thorin all but slung the hobbit in his arms making his way as quickly as he could to his bedroom. The sly, conniving, extremely frustrating hobbit. And finally, finally he would be his.

[gar-trek]

I review killing time (or whatever)

Okay, yes this review has taken me forever and that’s because there’s so much I want to say, and most of it has very little to do with the plot of the book. I cut down a lot of this so you guys could just get to the main point of what I’m trying to say, so I apologize if this is a little brief or incomprehensible to those who haven’t read the book. 

And also, before I get into it, I would like to say rest in peace to the author Della Van Hise, who passed away in march of this year. She contributed a lot to the fandom, especially in regards to K/S fiction, as well as publishing a lot of non-trek related work during her life. 

First of all, if you have heard of Killing Time, there is probably one specific reason for that. It’s the same reason I picked up the book in the first place and why it’s really even a topic of discussion on this site. To put the story quite briefly, Killing Time was recalled during its initial release on account of the book having too many slash elements (aka, the relationship between Kirk and Spock could be read as sexual/romantic). I first heard about the book here in this post where the history of it is worded to sound like one very dramatic mystery. One user (no shade intended here) even goes as far as to say the book was recalled by old Gene himself! Now I’m always one for drama and such, but after reading the book I looked into it a little more, and I don’t think that’s exactly how it went down. 

Here you can find multiple statements from the author herself, in which she tells the whole story. According to her, the book publisher accidentally released an unedited manuscript that was never supposed to make it to the public. So technically the publisher did not recall the book because it was “too gay”, they recalled it because they printed a version that was never meant for the public to see anyway. These were the edits that were specifically requested by Paramount, who the publishers were supposed to go through to get the final okay on all material. And like, yeah, all of Paramounts edits were pretty much to delete any sentence where Spock and Kirk are tender to each other, they were trying to make is less homoerotic, obviously. I understand why this slight distinction may not make much of a difference to you guys, but for me it’s important to note that the book wasn’t recalled because it was too gay, it was just never supposed to be gay in the first place. It doesn’t make that fact any better, but it does make it less dramatic, in my opinion. I encourage you to read the statements from the author on this topic though, because she gives the whole story a lot better then I just did. 

Now to address the main question at hand, does Killing Time depict a romantic relationship between Kirk and Spock, or is it all just hype? (in layman's terms, is the book gay or not?) and to answer quite plainly, yes it’s gay. of course it is. but then to answer less plainly, no. What the fuck do i mean by this? well let me try and explain. 

I read the second edition of the book, aka the censored version, but I also followed along with the first edition (using this great article). The changes made to the book did not effect the plot at all, and were really only minor things. Notably, in the second edition they just kind of left out any part where Spock and Kirk touch each other (and I don’t mean in a sexual way). For example, there is a scene where Spock and Kirk are having a serious conversation in the ships garden. In the first edition, at the end of the conversation Spock places a hand on Kirks shoulder, which Kirk covers with his own hand. In the second addition, all mentions of this simple contact are deleted. The differences between the two are mostly little things like this. There is no secret sex scene or love confession hidden in the first addition. You see, in my opinion, the changes made to the second edition of the book do very little to censor the romantic undertones between Kirk and Spock. That’s because they are ingrained in the plot line itself. 

One very important aspect to this book is that Kirk and Spock share a mental bond. This is something that can only happen between a Vulcan and another when they are extremely close. The mental bond that Kirk and Spock share is so strong in this book, it’s even present when they enter an alternate dimension where they are strangers to one another. There is a romance in this book between two original characters, and their relationship is constantly being paralleled by that of Kirk and Spock. And, maybe most telling, Spock refuses a female Romulan who is very interested in him over and over again simply because Kirk exists. And no, that’s not an exaggeration, here is a line from when the Romulan woman was begging Spock to be in a relationship with her: 

“I need you. The Empire needs you, what more can there be?”

“James Kirk” the Vulcan murmured without hesitation.

That line is in both versions of the book. What I’m trying to say is yes, there are K/S elements in Killing Time. There are many tender moments and lots of talk about Kirk and Spock’s devotion to each other. 

So now you’re asking yourself, Gar, why did you just say earlier that “no, the book is not gay”? Well, that’s because it’s not. This isn’t a K/S book. This isn’t a piece of Spirk fanfiction. Because for as much as this book is about Kirk and Spock’s relationship, it’s even more about Romulans (and more specifically, that one girlboss Romulan Commander from the Enterprise Incident.... bet ya didn't see that coming!) That’s right, the most controversial Star Trek book ever published is at it’s core quite plainly just a Star Trek book. There is weird alternate dimensions, time travel, espionage and lots and lots of Romulans! 

Alright, alright, what I’m really trying to get at here is that yes, if you read into Killing Time there is K/S elements. I mean for god sake the author was a known K/S fanfic writer, that wasn’t a secret by any means. If she wrote their relationship a little more tenderly than most authors would have, can we really be surprised? But writing a K/S story was not her intention here, and that’s not what this is. I think the author put it best herself, so I’m just going to put that here: 

“If people chose to see overtones of K/S in it, maybe it’s because there were overtones of K/S throughout Star Trek itself.”

People will hype up killing time as some secret confirmation that K/S is real and canon, and I really get that. Like, it would be really nice to have some canon acknowledgment of K/S, and I really don’t blame people for acting like that’s what this is. But that really isn’t what this is. And even if there was some kind of love confession, I really hate to break it to you, but the Star Trek novels are just fancy fanfiction and are not considered canon by any stretch (excluding the one Gene wrote himself, which let’s face it, perhaps has the most K/S elements of all). 

If you are looking for a nice story about Kirk and Spock being in love, then I very much urge you to look at Ao3 or similar sites. Skip this, if you want a K/S story, because that’s not what this is. Now, if you’re a huge fan of the Romulan commander from the Enterprise Incident, then my GOD you have to read this. I think this was a pretty solid Trek book. It was no piece of literary genius, but it got the job done. There was a lot of it that I think could have been left out, because it the later half it started to drag horribly, and we got a few plot threads that went absolutely nowhere. I’m not sure I’m much of a fan of alternate universes, as I really really enjoy the established dynamic of the characters, but it didn’t bother me too much. But I mean hey man, there was defiantly parts where I was so invested I couldn’t put the book down. Give this one a read if you’re looking for a pretty interesting Trek book with a little bit of cheeky K/S sprinkled here and there. 

If you have given the book a read, or just have thoughts in general, I’d love to hear them! 

[naturalbeautyhelp]

Acne Cures on a budget  (revamped)

Acne is a very tricky subject that millions of people struggle with- sometimes for their entire lives. If you have struggled yourself I’m sure you’re aware that there is no cure-all for acne, but there may be some methods for healing the skin that you haven’t heard yet so I’m going to share everything I know with you just in case.  First, the basics:

1. Drink plenty of water and eat healthy foods. This is just a given. If you want to feel comfortable in your skin you may have to make some lifestyle changes. that Includes getting regular exercise and sunlight. 2. Recognize the fact that your skin is an organ. Like any organ it has an ecosystem of healthy bacteria that ought to be treated with care- much like a garden. It will need different things on different days, and in order to reach it’s fullest potential, the gardener (that’s you) will need to pay close attention to it. 

3. Be aware that pimples are infected pores which are attempting to heal themselves. The puss inside of them is a soup of white blood cells which are trying to repair the skin for some reason. Finding the root cause of the infection before treatment is ideal. 

A few common acne culprits: Your acne could be hormonal, it could be caused by allergies (ex: food allergies, detergent allergies), or your skin may be getting bacterial infections from unsanitary surfaces or poor air quality. 

Now to get into the technical stuff: 

~If your skin is hurting, red, swollen, try putting down harsh chemicals like Niacinamide and Retinol, and try something calming like rosehip oil or aloe vera.

  Amaranthus oil, tea tree oil, rapeseed oil, rosewater, and witch hazel are all examples of gentle things that are amazing for the skin. I know natural skin healers can be very expensive, but if you can’t afford them don’t hesitate to steel them from your local, unethical corporate store. If you need tips on s***lifting,  try visiting this Reddit community at   https://www.reddit.com/r/IllegalLifeProTips/

~Rinse your face with cool or cold water every time you wash it. This seals up your pores and prevents dirt and bacteria from entering them.

~Make sure that the things that touch your face every day are clean. Make sure that the cloths and towels that you use on your face are clean. Disinfect face tools regularly and use hot water on wash cloths to kill bacteria between washes.  Clean your glasses. Change your sheets and pillow cases frequently. In addition, avoid touching your face constantly with your hands as well as your hair, and keep your hands and hair clean. 

~⚠️Don’t pick your face! Pimples are like Petri dishes full of puss and bacteria and when you pop them you are just spreading the ickiness around to the rest of your face. In addition to that, every time you pop a pimple you are damaging the barrier of your skin, which not only can cause scarring and dark spots, but it can leave your skin vulnerable to bad bacteria and cause further breakouts. For these reasons, you should only pop a zit as a last resort. 

~Popping: If you have very stubborn acne and insist on popping anyway, go to an aesthetician if you have the privilege to do so

If you can not see an aesthetician, try this method for safe pimple popping: 

Wash the affected area with hot water and a mild soap. Pop the pimple making sure you get EVERYTHING out of it, wash it again with extra hot water, dry it with something clean. Then, apply lots of pressure to the popped pimple so that it doesn't get the chance to “refill” itself (use a q-tip if you have one for at least 30 seconds to 5 minutes depending on how big the pimple is). Next, put some rubbing alcohol, and some diluted tea tree oil on the pimple and cover it with the sticky part of a band-aid. Leave the band-aid on until you are certain that it will not grow back.

~���� Stop using all of those skincare products. Obviously if they worked, you wouldn't even be reading this. Using certain products (especially the harsher ones) can cause allergic reactions and sometimes dry out your skin, which can trigger your skin to produce extra oil to overcompensate, which leads to acne. They also tend to eat away at you financially. Break the vicious cycle. Try tossing all of your products and use a mild soap and simple moisturizer for a few weeks before starting anything new again.

If you insist on using acne products then follow this important rule.                 🚨 🚨  Do not use multiple products within the same 3 weeks. Doing this makes it impossible to figure out which products could be helping or causing further damage to your skin.

~Know that many skin care products do have valuable substances, but they use fillers and fragrances that can ruin your skin. Try looking at the ingredients in your skin care products, researching the individual components, and purchasing said components individually. Ex: instead of buying an ‘aloe infused moisturizer’, try purchasing real aloe vera gel- or better yet buy an aloe vera plant- and use that ingredient as you see fit. It can be more cost effective, better for the environment, and a good learning experience. 

~Avoid wearing foundation and concealer. Of course it is tempting to cover acne with makeup, but your makeup can add fuel to the fire by clogging pores and spreading bad bacteria 

~If you are applying makeup to the face, make sure that you are regularly cleaning your brushes and disinfecting your pallets. Dirty makeup supplies don’t just contribute to acne, they can cause gnarly infections in sensitive areas (like the eyes) and send you to the hospital.

Now here are some advanced methods for healing the skin. Feel free to alter them so that they suit your specific needs:

🧖🏾‍♀️The Steam Method:

If you suspect that your soap is a culprit, or you just want to try something new, replace your morning cleansing routine with this (give skin 2 weeks time to purge before deciding whether or not this works for you). Get a light oil, preferably rosehip or coconut, and rub it on your face very well for at least 30 seconds. Then, take a clean washcloth and submerge it in the hottest water you can take. Take the washcloth and firmly press it against the entire surface of your face until it cools. Use the cloth to remove all the oil you can manage. 

🧖🏼‍♀️The other Steam Method:

Get a pot and boil water in it. Put your face over the boiling water (not too close lol) and let the steam open up your pores for 5-10 minutes. After you are done, use a clean, damp washcloth to wipe your face. Then get an ice cube or cold water and put it all over your face to seal your pores back up. Personally I like putting tea in the water sometimes. Peppermint tea and green tea are great. 

🩹 Bandaging:

Now this might sound ridiculous, but I have learned that putting bandages/band-aids onto your face at night can make a world of difference when it comes to acne and hyperpigmentation. My personal method is this: each night after I steam and wash my face, I put tiny bit of rubbing alcohol onto each pimple. I then wash and sanitize my hands with rubbing alcohol, apply diluted tea tree oil to each problem area on my face, and then take an ordinary cloth bandage and cover every zit that I can find. After each zit is covered, I apply moisturizer and serums to the rest of the face as I normally would. Change bandages frequently (1-3 times a day depending on how oily your skin is), and leave them on the affected area until swelling has gone down. Repeat the process as many times as you’d like. 

Usually normal bandaids are fine, but at times when my acne flares up badly I will go so far as to use gauze on large areas of my face. The cloth absorbs any oil that your skin secrets while protecting it from bacteria and sweat all night long, and the bandage seals in the tea tree oil so that it can penetrate your pores. I have noticed that the sticky part of a bandaid does the best job at diffusing large pimples as opposed to the white cloth part which is best for blackheads. 

~If all else fails and you have done your best to cure acne at home, consider talking to a doctor if you have that option. 🥼 They may try to prescribe an acne medication, but these options tend to be extremely expensive and hard on your organs. Ask them if you can try a prescribed antibiotic supplement first. 

Last but certainly not least: Sit with the fact that picture perfect skin is not healthy skin. As mentioned earlier, your skin is an organ. And it’s job is merely to protect your insides- not to get you onto the cover of a magazine. Your skin is not meant to look like the porcelain on a doll. 

💊💊💊💊💊And that is it! wow that was a long post. I hope this can help at least one person out there with their skin troubles because this took forever 

[kikyan]

Could I request some Tamaki and Overhaul head cannons with a reader who has a habit of constantly falling asleep, even in the worst places. Just like, them sneaking out into the garden only to fall asleep, how they got there? Idk, but they did and now they're asleep.

Yes of course! I’m trying a different format so I’ll be posting it here! Thanks for requesting and I hope you enjoy! Any issues, please let me know! Have a wonderful day! 

Tamaki Amajiki: 

• Tamaki, as opposed to Overhaul, would be a bit more anxious and worried. In my headcanons, I mentioned that he is a stalker so if he knew them prior to getting together it wouldn't be that much of a surprise. It would still baffle him though. 

• He's panicking. What if something happened to you? He would never forgive himself if something happened to you, so he'll keep watch. He'll spend his free days taking you out on dates or staying home where he can monitor you. Ditch any previous plans he's made to take care of you. Definitely will lock the doors and windows and I think another scary one is the bath. He'll close the bathroom that had a bath. Unless you don't have a smaller bathroom with just the toilet, sink, or maybe those walk-in showers, he'll keep them open. 

• Want to take a bath? Let him know so he can come and knock once in a while, he gets scared of what could happen if he doesn't watch over you. Again, everything is closed because what if you go out and pass out on the streets? What could happen to you then? He's an overthinker so you already know some kidnapped and sold for organs, slavery, etc is going on in his head. (Side note but this is hella scary to me because this happened a lot to my family and friends in Mexico. Shits scary)

• Again, everything is closed but should the situation ever arrive where he comes home to find the door open and his S/O isn't in the house? He'll panic and cry, scared of what has happened to them. When he walks out and sees them in the garden sleeping, it eases his stress but doesn't waver it completely. He'll lightly scold his S/O to be a bit more careful because he only wants them to be safe. 

• Would probably consider cameras or some security system if it happens often. 

Overhaul: 

• Man is SCARY. I really disliked him as a person but I will admit that he is a well-written character in the series with a goal that I thought was kinda cool so. Anyways, let's get into it. 

• Overhaul, I don't have much to base off of him because I haven't made any headcanons yet but I'll try my best. Overhaul would be a bit anxious, won't show it though. I think he'll see it more as a chore than anything. When it first happened he was confused, he probably thought something happened to them or they left. When he comes to find them awkwardly sleeping in some random ass place like the kitchen floor or something, he'll be confused. 

• He'll have some members keep an eye on you because while he doesn't doubt his S/O, he might think that this is a secret plan to leave him for whatever reason. (IDK if you meant that they kidnap their S/O or not so I'm just making that they didn't.) When he starts to see that it's just a pattern, he'll try to research what it is and what he can do to help. 

• Like Tamaki, restrict where they can and can't go. Have the members carefully monitor you so he can collect some data and from that, make a plan. In some extreme cases, he may even restrict his S/O. Placing them in cuffs or adding extra security to the doors. It's to protect you and it honestly makes him uneasy if something were to happen to you under his watch. 

• Security cameras as well, are a must. If by some chance you did make it outside, he'll panic a bit internally. You can see in the fight with Deku that while he tries to keep his composure, he gets desperate and angry. If he can't find his S/O soon he may become like this and rush it, walking outside to seeing their S/O out in the garden. He'll be a bit angry because he assumed he had this under control, but seeing his S/O face may calm him down. 

[not-a-coral-snake]

for the @lamenweek Day 6 prompt: Auguste Lives Au

inspired by this post by @skyline-sunset-in-my-veins and @phoenixtcm

“When I am in Arles this fall,” Damianos says, words soft in the summer sunset air around them, “I will kneel before your brother the king and ask his permission to court you.” He pauses, smile just the slightest bit cocky. Laurent is lounging, hair mussed and shirt trailing half-opened laces, in Damen’s arms. “Court you officially, I mean.” 

“You are going to Arles for the negotiations yourself this year?” Laurent says. Seated as they are, Damen cannot mistake the shudder of tension, quickly repressed, that runs through Laurent at Damen’s words.

“You haven’t told him yet,” he says. 

“It’s just I thought that the ambassador—”

“You haven’t told him yet,” Damen says again. “You said when I saw you last fall that you would tell him last winter for sure.” He tries not to sound accusatory, but well. It is not the first time they have had this conversation.

“I haven’t told him yet,” Laurent concedes. It should not be so hard. It’s been six years since Marlas. Vere and Akielos are at peace. Laurent is in the habit of sharing nearly everything with Auguste, and yet— 

“I’m waiting for the right moment,” he says, as he always does. “It’s a sensitive matter, I wish to catch him in the right mood, lest he make up his mind before hearing me out.” 

“And you’re afraid of hurting him,” Damen says, as he always does.

“And I want to ensure I don’t hurt him. So I have to find the right time—”

“It’s been years now,” Damen cuts in. “Should we believe that, somehow, the perfect moment will occur this summer, when it did not last winter, or last spring, or the summer before that?”

“Damen—”

“This can just be a fling, if you want,” Damen says, gently.

‘That’s not what I—no,” says Laurent. Damen’s never said that before. 

“We can just keep meeting a few times a year. It doesn’t need to be serious. It doesn’t need to be something we tell others about.”

“Damen, stop,” Laurent says. “No. I want to court you. I want it to be official. I want it to be serious.”

“Well, then let it become serious.”

“I’ll tell him this time,” Laurent says. He can do this. It’s been six years since Marlas. Auguste always speaks of Prince Damianos in respectful tones. Laurent picks up Damen’s hand, kisses his knuckles. “Promise.”

And Laurent means to tell Auguste that summer, he really does. He meant to upon his return last fall as well, and the time before that, and the time before that. It’s just that—well, it’s just that every time he returns from diplomatic visits to Delfeur or Ios, he’s struck again with the slow, deliberate way that Auguste moves now. Each year as late spring ripens into summer, he sees how it saddens Auguste that he still no longer has the vigor or endurance for hunts or long rides or anything more taxing than a slow turn around the gardens. Each year as fall deepens into winter, he sees how another year has gone by and the cold makes Auguste’s injuries ache just as much as they had the winter before. 

Auguste had nearly died on the battlefield at Marlas. But that wasn’t the whole of it. Even after he had survived the trip home to Arles, he almost died of fever, of wound rot, of the pneumonia his battle-damaged lungs nearly couldn’t shake. And he almost died of assassination, not one time but many. There were few ways to kill a king in the peak of youth and health without attracting undue suspicion, but endless subtle ways to hasten the death of a man in his sickbed. Their uncle, left to rule the court unchecked, had tried seemingly most of them, endless schemes which Laurent had only barely managed to avert and which left behind no conclusive evidence for Laurent to show the court. Even as Auguste had gained strength, the schemes had continued, until the day Laurent gave up trying to beat his uncle while playing by his uncle’s own rules and had simply arranged an accident of his own. 

After that, Auguste was safe, but the fallout from their uncle’s years ruling the court and admittedly-suspicious death left him with nearly as many enemies as allies. As prince, Auguste had been universally adored. As king, he faced a yearslong struggle to regain the allegiance of erstwhile allies. 

And all this was, at its root, because of Marlas. Because of Damianos. Auguste’s history with Damen wasn’t just the matter of an injury six years ago, not when that injury had colored every day of his life since. And Laurent can’t imagine a way of telling him that he loves Damen, wants a future with him, without it sounding like a betrayal. 

To make matters more awkward, Auguste has, for whatever reason, gotten it into his head to nag Laurent about romance. It’s uncomfortable enough to be keeping his relationship with Damen a secret from Auguste. It’s worse to lie, outright or by omission, every time Auguste asks him if there’s anyone Laurent is interested in pursuing. 

And then— “You know you can tell me anything, little brother,” Auguste says quietly, a few minutes after Laurent has let a conversation about an overly-flirtatious marquis from Lys lapse. 

Laurent swallows, mutely cataloging the darker corners of his past. He does not like to lie to Auguste. But he does.

And there are things he probably will never tell his brother about, things Auguste does not need to know, but also— “Actually, Auguste,” he makes himself say. “There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you.”

And then he pauses, because he still hasn’t figured out a semi-workable phrasing. I’m in love with Prince Damianos, but that doesn’t mean I’m not still upset about what he did to you. I’m fucking the man who almost killed you, and I’m sorry but also I won’t stop. I know seeing the prince of Akielos this fall will probably be terrible for you but also when he asks to court me please say yes.

It’s Auguste who rescues him, after a moment or two of expectant silence. “Is this going to be you finally telling me about your romantic entanglement with Prince Damianos?” he says. “Because honestly, I’m getting sick of seeing you walking around looking guilty and sad all the time.”

“You knew?” Laurent says.

“Of course I knew! You, dear baby brother, are not very subtle. And I’ve had to hear all your reports from the negotiations with Akielos twice a year. Was I somehow not supposed to notice how you gradually stopped insulting Damianos and started telling me about all his varied and impressive positive traits?”

“I said that he was straightforward and committed to the good of his people, and thus that the negotiations were likely to be a productive use of time!”

“And then the trip after that, you said that he was an innovative thinker, a natural leader, and you couldn’t help but admire his tenacity. You said you didn’t mind having to go on hunts with him, which anyone who knows you understands is a major compliment, and when you said he was patient, you smiled that quiet smile of yours that means you are remembering something that made you very happy.”

“Auguste—”

“And yet! Whenever anyone suggests you have developed any fondness for the man, you deny it. Why go to such lengths to conceal a friendly working relationship?”

“Auguste—”

“And honestly, brother, even back when you hated him, I couldn’t help but notice you mentioned his appearance rather a lot. You were always complaining that he was ridiculously tall, or offensively muscular, or something along those lines.”

“I said he was a brute!”

“You also said that his eyes were, and I quote, ‘disgustingly soulful.’ Oh, and the letters! Was I not supposed to notice that in the last year your correspondence with the prince of Akielos has roughly quadrupled in volume and frequency, even as the official negotiations are reaching a standstill? There isn’t enough policy discussion to account for a tenth of the letters you write. There isn’t enough policy discussion to justify you going to Delfeur in person twice a year, and yet you insist on overseeing things personally each time anyway.”

“Auguste, I’m sorry, all right? I know that this must have been painful for you to witness, and I don’t want you to think I don’t care about everything you’ve been through.” He swallows. “But I don’t want to stop seeing Damianos.”

“All right.”

“‘’All right?’ You’re okay with it? Just like that?”

“He makes you happy. If your judgement of him is to be believed, then he sounds like a worthy man. And I trust your judgement.”

“But he stabbed you. And now I’m sleeping with him.”

“Well, we were at war. And it was years ago. And I’m fine. We’re at peace, the nation’s moving on, you’ve moved on in your opinion of him, I can move on as well.”

“It’s not that simple!”

“Why can’t it be? I only met him for about ten minutes. I’m sure there’s more to him than he revealed in a single duel. You have my blessing, Laurent.”

“How can you just—”

“Remember when your pony threw you and you broke your collarbone?”

“This is not the same, this is not even close to the same—”

“You snuck out of the infirmary to go to the stables and tell Chuckles you weren’t mad at him.”

“I was seven, he meant me no ill will, and the bone healed in a month. Also he was a horse,” Laurent grits out. “Damianos was—is—a grown man, responsible for his choices, the injuries he inflicted did lasting damage, and he was trying to kill you.”

“Well, no one is asking you to sleep with him,” Auguste says, in his reasonable-big-brother voice. 

Laurent lets out a breath, sits back in his chair. “I started managing the negotiations with Akielos so that you wouldn’t have to speak with him,” he says. “We said that it was because I could travel more easily, that it was because you could not justify spending so much time away from court. But in truth, I did not want you to have to be in a room with him, to have to learn to make polite conversation with him and pretend that Marlas did not happen, that it didn’t matter. If I have come to know him as far more than just the soldier who attacked you, if I have put his past actions behind me, come to care for him in spite of them—that does not mean I expect you to do the same. Could ever ask you to do the same.” 

“You’ve always been protecting me, all these years,” Auguste says softly. “Don’t think I don’t know it, or appreciate it. But let me be the protective big brother again once in a while? You’ve learned to let the past go and let yourself have the present you want with Damianos, because you’re in love with him. Allow me to let the past go and have the future I want, where my little brother is happy.”

He’s looking Laurent in the eye, gaze steady, and slowly Laurent allows himself to believe that Auguste is serious, that in his heart of hearts, he does not mind. That he is happy for Laurent. 

“Thank you,” he says. “For your blessing.” 

“Of course,” Auguste says. And then, “Well, when I say you have my blessing, I mean informally, of course. Prince Damianos will have to ask me himself.”

“You just want the chance to make him squirm,” Laurent says. 

“I just want the chance to make him squirm,” Auguste concedes, and he and Laurent break into quiet laughter, imagining it.

[thedistantdusk]

Arcadia, Chapter 3

Thanks to everyone who followed along! Things are heating up with this chapter! Most of the referenced triggers from chapter 1 apply in this chapter specifically. Here's the link to chapter 2, if you're just seeing this now :)

Thanks again to @secretkeeper13, @accio-broom, @remedialpotions, @jamezbot, @jenoramaca, @not-steve42, @ginisbetterthanfirewhiskey... god, I'm forgetting people, and I'm sorry! But you're all amazing <3

___________________________

D A Y + T H R E E

As fate would have it, Ginny wakes before 0-700.

Not that she sleeps.

Nightmares, the likes of which she hasn’t experienced in years, torment her throughout the night. They leave her scared. Miserable. Guilty. Around 3 AM, she finally reaches for her Dreamless Sleep potion with shaking hands. For more reasons than one, she’s pleased that Harry’s slept on the couch.

She knows now just how stupid this entire mission truly was. The longer she analyzes it, the more she accepts that her bloody pride got her here in the first place. A chance for a promotion, however small, gave her false confidence in her ability to disregard a decade of sexual tension, all while trapped in close quarters with the person she wants the most.

She hopes Harry makes himself sparse today, though she knows that sounds cruel. But the longer they spend together, the clearer it becomes they’re on the cusp of something… and not something that would look good on a performance review. He’s been kind and understanding so far, even when she’s fucked things up. She just hopes she can ignore the most human parts of herself until they’ve dealt with this.

So at half-past 8, Ginny — Jenny — emerges from the house in a bright floral sundress and nude pumps. Were it not for the secret weapon clutched in her right fist, she might have fit in quite well... but Jenny has no intention of fitting in. Not anymore. In three confident strides, she marches across the front lawn, bends down, and spears the prongs of a lurid pink flamingo into the grass.

Yes.

She grins and takes in her work. How ghastly against the backdrop of earth tones! How repugnant!

Ginny steals quick glimpses over each shoulder, only to be met with the eerie, blanketed silence that’s defined Arcadia since their arrival. No activity at all. Which means she’ll have no issue with the next bit…

She strides to the mailbox at the end of their driveway and gives it a sharp kick. The post slides out of alignment, leaving it askew. Perfect. She returns to the house with a bounce in her step. Living with the twins taught her a thing or two about how to infuriate complete strangers.

She just hopes it’ll be enough.

___________________________

As luck would have it, it is enough. Her efforts receive reward more quickly than she thought— more quickly than she’s been conditioned to expect.

Scarcely an hour passes before she finds the warning she needs. And to be honest, it could’ve been there sooner; she just figured she’d give it that long before she checked.

Still, it’s not even 10 AM when she opens the door and sees it on their welcome mat: a folded paper with Pee-tri scrolled on the front. She can’t help but admire the sheer cheek as she unfolds it; this is the closest they’ll get to a public call-out for the way Harry insists on correcting everyone’s pronunciation. The message inside doesn’t surprise her, either.

Be like the others before dark. Or else.

Ginny glimpses out at the lawn, just to confirm— and yes. Sure enough. Just as she’d suspected, the flamingo's gone. The mailbox is straight. Everything’s back to normal.

She kicks the door closed with a smirk and wonders if they’re aware of how easily they’ve exposed themselves. How—

“What’ve you got there?” Harry calls from the sofa in the living room. He looks up from his laptop with bleary, dark-rimmed eyes. A wave of guilt washes through her; that sofa clearly didn’t get more comfortable overnight. Not that he would’ve accepted the alternative.

“Erm. A letter.” She waves in front of her and walks into the living room. “I’ve done a great job annoying them!”

He offers a gentle smile. “Any chance you’ll let me know who this ‘them’ is that you’re so worried about?”

Ginny rolls her eyes and settles on the other end of the couch. “You know I can’t—”

“Talk about your work,” Harry finishes, turning back to his computer. “Right.”

“Mm. Not exactly that I can’t… talk about my work,” she ventures, putting her feet up on the white ottoman. “More like I can’t give information until it’s essential knowledge for all parties involved. Based on criteria that I also can’t share.”

“Sounds like a fun job,” Harry deadpans, still looking at the computer. “But anyway, if I were to suggest something like… I don’t know…” He casually tilts the screen in her direction. “The fact that Oliver Skinner definitely has a criminal record, and maybe that’s worth looking into. You couldn’t confirm or deny that?”

Ginny just shrugs. “That’s correct. I can neither confirm nor deny.”

His theory is wrong, of course. Dead wrong.

They wouldn’t have sent an Unspeakable and an Auror into the country if this were a simple Muggle murderer. Harry would be able to suss this out, she reckons, if he had more sleep. Poor bloke.

He groans and cracks his back. “I’m starting to understand why King’s always so frustrated.”

“Probably because he has to deal with you all the time,” Ginny quips, reaching for a magazine on the floor. Ugh. Of course, it’s only the TV guide, Radio Times. They don’t even have a TV, but it came with the Daily Mail on Sunday.

Harry reaches for a glass of water on the coffee table. “Fine,” he relents, in between sips. “I’ll stay in my lane. But if I get bored, I’ll get tetchy.” He gestures to the computer. “And since they’ve given us this laptop, I’ve had time to do a bit of—”

“They’ve given me a laptop,” Ginny corrects, arching a brow. “As you’re well aware, Auror Potter, that is technically the property of the DoM.” She returns to the guide with a shrug. “I just don’t care if you use it, mostly because I don’t expect you’ll be looking up tits all day.”

He chokes on his water; Ginny just laughs and turns the page. Ooh, lovely! Eurovision looks particularly flamboyant this year…

“You’re absolutely right,” Harry says, once he recovers. “I’d never look up tits on government property!” He looks affronted as he hands over the laptop, but she knows he’s not done... not when he’s set that up so perfectly. Annnnd sure enough…

“You of all people should know I'm an arse-man, Ginny.”

Now it’s her turn for an unattractive snort as he winks over his shoulder and marches upstairs.

When he’s gone, Ginny rolls her eyes and opens her laptop. He’s an incredible liar on the arse-man front, but it was a good joke. A simple joke…. one that didn’t deserve looking into.

It’s just unfortunate that can’t stop these stupid fucking butterflies from erupting in her stomach like she’s ten years old again.

___________________________

He launches into the air again, the gardens of his neighbors spanning out in front of him. Each perfectly manicured. Each disturbing in its performative precision. None of this is real; none of this is life.

He pulled out the trampoline after dinner, when Ginny okayed it. He’s not used to that— checking before he does things. This whole exercise has been a great reminder that his teamwork skills are rusty, especially when he’s in a subordinate role. Ron left after their first year to work in the magic shop instead, which only made sense after… yeah. Harry draws a deep breath and jumps again. Ron and Hermione haven’t been problem-solving in his head for ages. There’s been no one to share the burden of choices or—

“OI!” Oliver’s voice thunders across the garden.

Harry smiles and takes another huge leap into the air. Just in time…

He rips open the fence door and stomps over, hands balled into fists. Harry’s never seen anyone look quite so furious while dressed in cashmere. And standing beside a trampoline.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Oliver hisses, eyes narrowed to slits. “Are you trying to make enemies, Henry? Is this entire estate a bloody joke to you?”

“Of course not!” Harry lands on his bum before he jumps up again. “This is very serious!”

“Oliver!” Sharon wails, hurrying over. “Oliver. Please! This really—”

“Keep your nose where it belongs, woman,” Oliver snarls, looking at her like she’s scum on his shoe. “No one wants your opinion!”

Sharon flinches… and this, more than anything else, gets Harry’s back up. “No need to take it out on her!” he snaps, climbing down from the trampoline. “Talk to me if you’ve got a problem, Ollie. Why not—”

But just as Harry’s feet touch the grass, something very weird happens: A dull buzzing fills his ears. Sharon and Oliver hear it too, but unlike Harry, they aren’t looking around in bewildered confusion. In a flash, the rage on Oliver’s face transforms into something much different: fear. And as the pressure grows, Harry can only watch as Oliver grabs Sharon’s hand, yanking her from the garden, when—

An unmistakable sound replaces the buzzing. A large piece of glass from somewhere in the front of the house shatters on the pavement. And with that, the buzzing stops.

Birds chirp again. Someone laughs in the distance. Harry jabs a finger in his ear, trying to clear it, but it seems Oliver’s returned to his furious state. He lunges towards Harry, a vein ticking in his neck, his hands outstretched as if to push him over— but Harry doesn’t have time for this. He’s already running around him, bolting towards the source of the sound, his hand inching for his pocket…

Because whatever they’ve got going on isn’t related to Oliver, is it? No… definitely not. That buzzing was too creepy to be muggle. Harry hadn’t really been convinced of the Oliver theory in the first place, even if the wanker has a criminal record for drunk driving. He mostly suggested it to Ginny to see if she’d give him any information.

Harry spots the broken glass the second he reaches the pavement. The lamppost right outside their house has shattered, light bulb and all. Bits of glass sparkle on the street, but the lamppost is at least 10 feet high. Harry scans around for signs of a ladder, or some form of a projectile… any method someone might’ve used to— oh! A baseball rolls around in one of the open garages across the street. He’s about to march over and collect it when his conscience stops him.

Because that’s the definition of circumstantial evidence, isn’t it? Harry sighs, rubbing his forehead. Snatching the baseball while working alone is one thing, but it’s not worth risking Ginny’s job. Especially because he reckons these thoroughly unmemorable homes are each equipped with monitoring systems. At absolute best, that would be… awkward to explain to the muggle police, especially without an obvious connection between the ball and the shattered lamppost...

Harry’s just about to turn back inside and write it off a freak occurrence when—

Shit.

His breath freezes in his throat.

What the...

He blinks a few times to make sure he’s not imagining it, but no...

There’s no weird buzzing this time… but something else is happening instead. The grass on the far side of their yard is bulging and curling, right in front of his eyes. The soil creaks as this… this mass — a huge sphere of some sort — passes through; bits of dirt fly into the air before settling back.

Harry’s veins turn to ice, his stomach churning. Work has introduced him to new, vile varieties of ghouls and nasties. He’s been bitten by a leprechaun. Stalked by a vampire. He’s encountered every disturbing otherworldly menace that one could imagine.

But he’s never seen anything like this.

His only solace is that it’s headed towards Mike’s empty house… this massive, rolling boulder that travels beneath the soil. ‘Boulder’ isn’t exactly the right term, though; he’s never seen a boulder move with a slinking, predatory grace. He’s never gotten gooseflesh from a rock, no matter how large.

And try as he might, he can only stand there, wide-eyed, his heart racing. Because now he knows for sure what Ginny only alluded to before: whatever they’re chasing isn’t human.

And it’s aware of them.

___________________________

The door creaks open less than five minutes after the glass shatters, but Ginny’s prepared.

She’s standing in the alcove just off the entryway, wand in one hand, fire poker in the other. It’s probably not the best strategy she’s ever had— but she reckons that if a Muggle were to catch sight of an altercation, it would be an easy memory supplantation. Wands and fire pokers don’t look that dissimilar, and—

“Ginny?” Harry calls. Directly into her ear.

Shit! She jumps into the air, the poker clattering to the ground.

“When did you learn to move like a cat?” she demands, turning to face him. “You nearly—”

“We need to talk,” he says brusquely. It’s only then that she takes in his wide, haunted eyes. His white pallor. The way he hasn’t even commented on the ridiculousness of her fire poker.

Oh.

He’s scared.

Scared in a way she hasn’t seen him in ages. Maybe ever. Which means he heard…? Shit. She’d might as well ask.

“What do you erm…” She toys with her wand handle. “Want to talk about?”

Harry heaves a tired sigh. “I’m only going to ask you this once,” he says flatly, rubbing his hand over his forehead. Then he blinks up at her, his eyes pulsing and stern. “What the fuck was that?”

“The… shattered lamppost?” she hedges. “I’ve no idea. I just—”

Apparently, that was the wrong response.

Harry groans. “You know damn well I don’t mean the bloody lamppost!” he snarls. “I mean that… that thing! First the weird buzzing, then whatever moved through the grass! It was like some creepy worm, or—”

“—not a worm,” she amends, staring at her cuticles.

This, too, was the wrong reply; she’s never seen him go from bewildered to enraged quite so fast.

Harry lets out a furious roar and kicks at an empty box. “This is why Unspeakables are so fucking annoying!” he shouts, tossing his hands in the air. “You never fucking say anything — even if it might help someone!”

Pfft! He can do better than that...

“Not sure what you expected,” she deadpans. “Would it help if I were a Speakable instead?”

Harry rolls his eyes and throws himself on the couch. Ginny just leans against the door… and waits. She can’t say she blames him for being angry. It’s probably made him feel vulnerable in ways he hasn’t in ages.

“The least you can bloody do,” Harry says, cutting into her thoughts, “is to let me know how to kill it.” He glimpses up at her, his chest still heaving. “Because if anything happened to you….” His hand curls around his wand, his voice dropping to a near-whisper. “We both know I’d never forgive myself.”

Fuck.

Her heart clenches; as embarrassing as it is, tears sting the backs of her eyes. She wasn’t expecting that… but it makes perfect sense. He’s not angry because he’s vulnerable; he’s angry because he doesn’t know how to protect her.

Because he’s Harry.

Her Harry.

And try as she might, she can’t deny that. He’s hers… even though now he’s broken and angry and scared and alone. Which is probably why she loves the fucking fuck out of him.

No.

She stops herself, squeezing her eyes shut. Mission. Mission. They’re on a mission.

Right. She clears her throat and steps forward, two papers clutched in her hand.

“What’s that?” Harry grumbles as she hands them over. He scans the pages, brow furrowing. “Sugar… engine oil. Red Dye 40. What am I supposed to do with—?”

Ginny smiles and tries to make this easy. “It’s the report from the necklace. The thing that was on Mike’s medallion… it’s rubbish. Not blood, not some ghost slime. It’s just a weird mixture of types of rubbish.”

She should’ve figured he wouldn’t find this significant.

“What a brilliant scientific discovery.” Harry tosses the paper to the side. “Hermione would be thrilled.”

Ginny gnaws at her cheek, choosing her words carefully… but if he’s already seen it, if he’s already heard it, surely there’s no harm...

Harry rises to his feet and takes a step closer until he’s towering over her, all warm and brooding. They aren’t touching… not exactly. He’s just hovering close enough to give her strength, whether he knows it or not. When she finally gets the nerve to look up at him, his green eyes are swirling with more pain than rage. Truth be told, she prefers the rage. “I deserve to know,” he says thickly, like he’s suppressing something in his throat, “what the fuck is going on.”

Ginny breaks their eye contact. Some of this she hasn’t even shared with Attica yet. She’s violating about a million protocols by telling Harry first, but if they’re together on a mission…

“It’s… not what we thought. Not what I thought,” she admits softly, after a moment. “We came out here under the assumption of chasing something from the Thought Chamber. Something that erm… may have escaped. During a routine experiment.”

He’s not impressed, though. “Yeah,” he says, arching a brow. “I gathered all of that from your intro with the camera, thanks. Do you ever plan on telling me anything new?” He jerks his chin towards the window. “Because you’ve sure as hell never mentioned Evil Grass Monster Experiment #6, and that may have been helpful to fucking know before I saw it.”

Oh, for fuck’s sake!

His attitude is more infuriating than his actual words, but she lacks the patience for dealing with either. The bloody nerve, to act all impatient with information that’s kept secret for a reason...

“I don’t have to tell you shit, actually,” she says, crossing her arms over her chest. “And in case you’re unaware, I can protect myself.”

Harry pulls back with a laugh, but this one is cruel. Dark. The sort she’s never heard from him before. “Makes sense,” he says with a fake grin. Then he taps her on the nose. “Because when that thing outside inevitably kills someone else, we all know how well you’ll manage the guilt.”

Ouch.

She reels back, stung. He’s got to know that’s a low blow. Younger Ginny would have Bat Bogeyed him into oblivion, but she’s better now. She’s changed.

At least that’s what she tells herself as she glares at him, her hands fisted so tightly they turn white. “Say what you mean,” she manages several moments later, when rage isn’t clawing at her chest. “If you’d like to rehash our breakup, Auror Potter, I’m all ears!” She gives her best impression of an icy smirk. “This isn’t exactly professional… but then again, when have you ever been?”

Harry looks like he’s going to respond, but a loud vibration starts in his back pocket. “Fuck!” Now it’s his turn to leap into the air before he realizes it’s just his wand. And really, she’s tempted to laugh— but the look on his face helps her put the pieces together.

Because if his wand’s vibrating, that means it’s an emergency; only department heads can summon their employees like that. They’re the only ones with access to that sort of technology, not that she’s really interested either way.

“It’s King,” he mutters. She’s about to get on him for stating the obvious, but when he peers at her again, his face is filled with such timid yearning that she can only see the 11-year-old boy on the train platform. “Can I…erm. Use your mobile?”

Fine. Ginny nods towards the bedroom, her head still spinning. She’s still a bit angry with him, but he’s so fucking broken. They both are. And besides, they’ve got bigger problems. What could possibly have King so worried that he’d call Harry from a mission? The man is unflappable.

Harry returns a minute later, his face stony, jaw set. In another life, she might’ve seen the bulge in his pocket and asked if that’s just her mobile, or if he’s happy to see her.

Instead, she tucks her hair behind her ears like the seasoned professional she is. “There’s no reception inside,” she points out. “I’ve had luck calling Attica from up the street, right at the corner. Just watch out for…”

Harry smirks. “Grass monsters?”

Ginny draws a breath to consider her options. She could keep him in the dark forever, but isn’t that the whole point of this assignment? To learn? It’s time for the truth, she reckons...

“It’s erm. It’s called a tulpa, actually.”

His eyes light up at this. “A tulpa?”

Ginny shifts her weight and searches for the right words. “It’s a… it’s sort of like an evil imaginary friend, created by a group of people to do their bidding,” she explains, reaching for the discarded papers. “They come from the material of whatever’s underground. I’ve only heard of creatures made from clay or water, but since this village was built on a rubbish tip”— she flicks the papers with her fingers— “that’s our guy!”

She can almost see the gears spinning in Harry’s head as he studies the far wall. “So…” he says slowly, still peering off, “it’s basically an evil dump monster, made of rubbish, that can murder people.”

A laugh slips past her lips. It sounds a bit dumb when he puts it that way. She clears her throat and continues. “I was wrong because it’s not something that’s escaped, more like something that’s—”

“Formed,” Harry finishes quickly. For the first time all week, he sounds intrigued. Like he’s happy to be here. “So… they’ve made it to keep order, then?”

“It would seem so.” She shrugs. “I… honestly don’t know. But between the weird buzzing and the rubbish, it’s the closest match we’ve got. According to the system database, anyway.”

There’s another pause as Harry mulls this over. “So, how do we get rid of it, then?”

How fucked up is it that her heart warms at the way he says ‘we’?

Ginny brushes that aside. “Considering the mask in Gogolak’s house and the way they’ve made a point to tell us he’s in charge, I’d say he’s the one we need to get rid of.”

Harry crosses his arms over his chest but doesn’t object.

“Or at least… knock him totally unconscious,” she adds, swallowing; Gogolak’s a wanker, but she’d rather not kill him, either. “Beyond just being asleep. Because he sleeps at night, but the tulpa’s still here, which means he needs to be down for the count. Comatose, even.”

Harry’s wand buzzes again. Ah, shit; in all the hubbub, she’d forgotten about that.

Concern floods Harry’s face. “Give me five minutes.” He blinks. “Ok?”

She waves towards the door. “Duty calls.”

He gives her a weak smile and turns away; she begins the trek upstairs to send Attica an email update.

“Ginny?”

She stops to look down at him. Harry’s paused, halfway out the door. “Thank you,” he says softly, meeting her eyes. “And… I’m sorry. For everything. Ok? I’ll always, erm…”

But she can’t right now. She actually fucking can’t.

“Later,” she whispers, nearly begging. “Please. Let’s do this later.”

Because of course she loves him.

She’s always fucking loved him, even though that’s changed forms. It’s shifted. It’s evolved. He feels the same way… she knows he’s bloody feels the same way. She just doesn’t have the resources to deal with whatever this fuck is reigniting, right in front of her eyes, as the tulpa dances in the back of her head.

Luckily, he understands. Harry just swallows again, nods at her, and heads out into the night.

___________________________

As it would turn out, he was wrong about the identity of the summoner.

“Great news!” Hermione announces on the other end of the mobile. “MLE found Yaxley. He was hiding in a cave in Romania, just like you said.”

Harry snorts; he wishes that gave him more pride. “Well, if you’d listened to me months ago, then—”

“The important part is that we have him,” Hermione says, cutting across. “We need you back ASAP to prep for witness questioning. You’ll take the stand, of course. The trial’s set to start next week!”

He can practically hear her bouncing with excitement. Very little brings her more joy than trials of former Death Eaters.

“Erm… about that.” Harry rubs the back of his neck. “We’re actually right on the cusp of something here. I’m gonna need a couple more days to wrap things up.”

“Really?” Hermione sounds surprised. “Kingsley and Robards said you’d be pleased. Said you found this mission as useless as they did.”

Fuck, he was such an arse.

“Well, things… changed,” he offers lamely. “It’s going really well. This mission is so important to her. I’d just hate to leave at the last minute.”

“Ohhh?” Hermione draws out the word in a way that suggests she finds herself quite clever. Even before she asks, he knows what she’s on about. “How’s it going with Ginny, then?”

Harry rolls his eyes. Her coy prodding is obvious, even over the phone.

“As I already said, it’s going well,” he replies flatly. “We’re a great team. Always have been.”

But she can’t let him have that one, can she?

“Well… not always,” Hermione allows. “After Percy—”

Harry groans. For fuck’s sake, what’s her obsession with stating the obvious? “Yeah, well,” he retorts, “I’d like to know who you think did well after that, especially since…”

He trails off with a sigh.

Especially since what, exactly?

He toys with the fraying ends of his hoodie string.

Especially since Ginny was the last to speak with Percy? That she still carries the weight of the guilt for what she said that night? That she’s never admitted it, but that he suspects her choice to become an Unspeakable was influenced by the things she wishes she could un-say?

Harry makes a face. That’s corny as fuck, isn’t it? What a thing to pull from his arse...

Hermione interrupts his thoughts for a bit of bragging. “Well, Ron and I have done just fine.”

He can almost imagine her staring at her engagement ring in dreamy affection. The mental image makes his reply sound more bitter than he intends.

“Well,” Harry snaps, “Ron wasn’t the last person to speak with Percy. So I’m not sure how you could compare the two, really.”

Shit.

The silence on the other end tells him he needs to apologize, even if it’s true. Fortunately, Hermione gives him an easy out. “Anyway.” She clears her throat. “I’ll give you until tomorrow night, but we really need you the following day. If you haven’t settled this, we’re swapping you out. Got it?”

Harry sighs. He’s exhausted, but this couldn’t possibly take much longer. Ginny’s more or less got the proof she needs now. They just need to confront Gogolak, knock him out, and—

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

Harry cranes his neck towards the source of the noise. Huh… weird. Far up the street, flashing lights tip him off. That’s definitely Oliver’s Audi, the one parked in the driveway directly beside theirs. It’s in utopia blue with a metallic finish, a detail Oliver probably mentioned at least fifty times the other night. Then, while Sharon and Ginny were out walking the dog, Oliver began a mind-numbing lecture on the car’s exact miles per liter. Harry was a bit drunk, which is probably why he interrupted to ask a much more important maths question: How many blow jobs per week is too many, exactly?

Even from a distance, Harry can tell that Oliver’s nearly the same shade of murderous red now; he storms from the house and turns off the alarm with his key fob. But then he pauses, glancing around like something’s spooked him. He must decide it’s not that significant, though, because he huffs back inside soon enough. Fucking wanker...

“....Harry?”

“Sorry!” Harry shakes his head. “Yeah, sorry, that works. See you then, Hermione.”

“Can’t wait!” she trills. He doesn’t need to see her face to know she’s smug and grinning.

___________________________

Two minutes after Harry leaves, Ginny feels it again: that same sensation she experienced while walking Captain Bone.

She’s sitting at her laptop when it starts… this deeply unsettling shift. It stands the hair up on the back of her neck. She rushes to the window on instinct, but just like before, everything outside looks the same. There’s no “moving grass monster,” as Harry called it. Not yet, at least.

Still, she can’t deny it’s growing louder. Getting stronger. And now that she’s felt it for a bit longer, she can put more words to it. It’s like she’s plummeting through the absence of sound; like all the wind’s been sucked from the air. It’s a building pressure, a mounting unease, and before she knows it, her whole body starts to shake.

Then two things happen in quick succession: that weird feeling stops, and a car alarm begins to blare in the distance.

Weird.

She shudders. This whole thing is so fucking weird. Weird is her job, and this place is still Very Fucking Weird. Seriously, who enjoys living here? She’s reaching for her wand, just in case, when the front door slams open.

In retrospect, it’s a blessing she knows Harry as well as she does… because she can tell that those heavy, clobbering footsteps don’t belong to him. She knows he’s not the one drawing deep, ragged breaths as he marches up the stairs.

She hides around the corner of the bedroom, her heart racing, and goes through a mental list of spells she might use. Shield charms. Enchantments. The buzzing’s stopped, so this probably isn’t the tulpa… but who else would be here? Gogolak? It sounds more human than—

“Jenny?” a deep, soothing voice asks. “Are you in here?”

Her breath freezes in her throat. She’s only heard that voice once before… but it’s so similar to her former life that she identifies it at once.

“Mike?” A wave of relief washes through her. She shoves her wand into her dress as she comes around the corner. Sure enough, there he is, in the flesh. Mike Snodgrass. A man she presumed dead days ago.

“Hi!” Mike pants. He cracks a smile. “I’d offer to shake your hand, but.” He winces, wiping a palm on his ripped khakis. “Been hiding!” Fuck. His whole outfit (yellow Polo, khakis) is the same he wore days ago to unload their boxes, except now it’s filthy. Stained. Like he’s been living beneath cars and inside drains. He’s just missing his Saint Julian medallion, which she’s sent to the Ministry.

Ginny feels sick. She wrote him off as dead so carelessly...

“I’ve been trying to take it down,” he adds earnestly, peering at her. His cheeks are caked in something red and grimy, the same stuff she stuffed into her bra. He’s been tailing the tulpa, she realizes, her stomach plummeting…

Except he’s got no clue what he’s doing.

“I was about to leave the development, to just run away, but that’s when I figured out it was coming for you two!” He shudders, closing his eyes. It feels like he’s been waiting a long, long time to say this. “And I’ve been aimless without Jess in the first place. So what was the point in leaving, really, if I could save…?”

He trails off, clearing his throat; when he looks up at her again, there’s a flash of annoyance in his eyes. “I’ve been leaving clues, though! Why didn’t you listen?”

“Clues?” Ginny sounds like she’s a million miles away.

Mike’s nearly pleading now. “You had to go and kick the mailbox and stick the flamingo in the grass, didn’t you?” He raises his pointer finger. “And even though I left you a note, you had to make it even worse! It only attacks when the sun goes down, see.”

“You… you left the note?” she whispers. She was so certain that it was from Gogolak...

But Mike proceeds in such a rush it’s clear he hasn’t heard her. “It was about to get Henry by the trampoline, so I threw the baseball as a diversion. I broke the lamppost, too— which worked. For a second,” he adds hastily, glancing over his shoulder.

“How did you also set off the car alarm— oh.” Her head’s still spinning. “Buddy system. Right.”

Mike dangles a keyfob. “Covenant rules. Stole the spare off Jane.” He glances into the hall again before whipping back to face her. “It’ll need a sacrifice tonight, though,” he adds grimly. “And every night, until you all have perfect behavior. It was coming for you earlier, see. We aren’t meant to be outdoors after dark without a permit for dog-walking, so.” He shrugs. “If there’s an unapproved disruption like a car alarm, it knows just where to hunt.”

It’s then that the final pieces of this dreadful puzzle slide together in her brain. “Captain Bone,” Ginny breathes; she swears a feather could knock her over. “He was the first since we arrived. Punishment for us sticking out.”

“I couldn’t save him,” Mike laments. “It came up and snatched him. So I threw in my medallion, right after his collar, just to make them think I was already gone.”

“That’s… that was brilliant,” she admits, biting her lip. “Thank you. You didn’t have—”

“Nah,” he says firmly. “I did. For starters, you remind me so much of…” He stops mid-sentence, an odd expression on his face.

For a second, she thinks he’s being sentimental, but then she feels it too.

Shit.

The hairs on her arm stand up. It’s back… that weird way she felt before. Like the air’s sucked from the room. That creeping, clawing silence. This time, though, it only gets louder, louder, louder, until she’s throwing her hands over her ears, all hope of self-defense forgotten.

But Mike knows what he’s doing. He knows exactly what he’s doing. She doesn’t have the chance to object or get her wand before he’s ripping open the closet door and throwing her inside. Ginny opens her mouth in a startled cry, but it’s like she’s screaming underwater, the sound distant and distorted. Mike slams the door closed with her inside and stomps to the center of the room— but now the thundering, roaring wind is causing her physical pain… it’s so loud now that it reverberates in her chest, so loud that her hands shake as she reaches for her wand at long last, but fuck fuck fuck, it’s too late…

It’s too fucking late.

Because Mike’s made a choice. One he can’t take back. He just stands in the middle of the room, puffing out his chest, offering himself as the proud sacrifice, even as the noise grows so loud that Ginny screams her throat raw.

She feels it enter the bedroom, this looming, shifting mass— but by then, she’s certain her ears are bleeding, her eardrums bursting. Her whole body rattles and shakes as she peers through the slats in the closet door, but she’s frozen. Stuck. Miserable. She couldn’t cast a spell if she tried… even as the tulpa oozes into the room, lunges itself back, and swallows Mike with a sickening squelch.

Even though the slats of the door, Ginny’s sprayed with blood. Covered. And she’s dizzy now… so dizzy. A drop of blood trickles into her eye; she reaches up to wipe it from her face, and it’s only then that she hears her own screams again. They reverberate through the small space, anguished and pleading, so loud that she’s certain someone up the street could hear, but she doesn’t care. She doesn’t fucking care. She just screams over and over and over, her nails clawing at the walls, until the world slips away into darkness.

___________________________

Blood.

It’s the first thing he smells as he charges up the steps. His chest squeezes, his eyes water, his head pounds over and over again with one word: No.

No. No. No.

Not Ginny. It can’t be.

But almost as soon as he smells the blood, he hears her screaming, and yes! His heart soars. Screaming is good; screaming means she’s alive and breathing and—

Fuck.

His dinner rises in his throat as he steps into the bedroom. He smelled the blood from the steps, he hadn’t expected… this much. It always takes him aback, exactly how much blood is in one human body, and he’s certainly never seen it sprayed, all over the floor… covering the walls. Covering the closet, even, where Ginny’s still screaming.

He flings open the door, thinking he’s prepared for what he might see. Somehow, though, none of that measures up. Because he’s dealt with tears in his line of work… but he’s never, ever seen her so broken. His chest clenches when he takes her in. Her perfect suburban dress — the yellow floral one, the one he liked so much— is now red and grimy, caked in blood, as Ginny rocks back and forth on the floor, sobs wracking her body.

Blood’s covering her face, too, and her arms. Dried trails of it have crusted around her eyes, like she’s fallen asleep wiping them away… or perhaps lost consciousness. The thought is too terrible to bear. He kicks the door open completely and brings her into his arms in one fell swoop.

She melts against him, her voice raw and broken. “H-Harry!” she manages. “P-please! I need-I need!” She begins to shake, pressing her face to his chest.

“A shower,” he says firmly, stepping into the en-suite. “You… you just need a shower. Ok? And maybe some calming draught, I’ve got some in my luggage, and—”

“No!” she cries, shaking her head. Her eyes are wide and filled with horror. “Don’t… don’t leave. Don’t leave me, Harry, please!”

“I… ok,” he allows, carrying her to his luggage to retrieve the bottle. She clings to his neck as he reaches for it, but she weighs next to nothing. Fuck, she’s so thin… he’d just been too busy eyeing her up to realize exactly how thin. What a complete wanker.

It’s not difficult to unzip the suitcase with one hand and pass her the bottle. “Take this,” he urges, thrusting it into her hands. “Please, Ginny. You’ll feel—”

She’s already downed it before he gets to the end of the sentence. She tips her head back, drawing air into her lungs. “Thanks.” Her voice is still hoarse. Ragged.

“Shower, then,” he murmurs, walking her into the bathroom. He feels her start to relax against him, her body growing looser, as he opens the curtain and turns on the tap.

“Thanks,” she whispers again, her head tucked beneath his chin. His fingers itch with restraint; he’d do anything, he thinks, to hold her against him. To press a kiss to her temple. To tell her he loves her and that she’s beautiful and perfect and he’s sorry, so sorry, that any of this happened and—

She peers up at him, her eyes more focused now, less wide-eyed and horror-struck. “Would you stay here?” she asks, biting her lip. “While I shower? Just so I’m not—”

“‘Course.” Harry swallows, putting her on her feet. She lands with unintentional grace, one foot after the next.

“And can you… erm.” She turns her back to him, lifting her hair above her zipper. His hands shake as he reaches for the clasp. He knows the exact shape of her back as he slides it down, over the middle bump of her white bra strap. He nearly unstraps that for her, too, before he catches himself. It reeks of intimacy, doesn’t it? All of this…

His eyes linger on the soft swell of her bum before he turns around, self-disgust hammering in his throat.

“I’m… I’m sorry,” he adds feebly. He balls his hands into fists as her dress hits the floor… followed by her bra. And her knickers.

“Not your fault,” she croaks, stepping into the shower. He smiles, his glasses fogging up as he moves to sit on the closed toilet seat. Even covered in blood and traumatized, she can't bring herself to blame him.

She finishes several minutes later.

“Erm… towel?” She shuts the water off. “Could you?”

“Sure,” he soothes, thrusting one through the curtain. “D’you want me to leave, or…?”

Ginny manages a weak snort. “Nah. Nothing you haven’t seen before.”

He chuckles at the door as he turns around again. She’s right, of course; he knows every bloody inch of her… but it’s not quite the same now.

There’s a tap on his shoulder. He whips around to face her. Admittedly, she looks… better. The blood’s gone. Her eyes are still red-rimmed from sobbing, but she’s looking a bit less like a woman who witnessed a death. Which reminds him…

“Erm. Give me a second to get it all cleaned up?”

Ginny shudders and settles on the toilet seat; he immediately kicks himself for asking. “Yeah,” she says a moment later. “Just… come get me, ok? When you’re done?”

He nods.

___________________________

It can’t be later than 10 PM when he finally carries her to the bed, still wrapped in a towel.

He’s exhausted from the nights on the sofa, but he knows she’s worse off. He’s cleaned the bedroom fairly well, he thinks, considering. There’s a rust-colored stain above the closet that he reckons won’t go anywhere anytime soon. He just hopes she doesn’t see it.

He rests her on the duvet surface, fully prepared to head downstairs for the night— but the pleading look on her face informs him he’s got other plans, instead. So without sharing a single word, he spreads his palms, lies beside her, and waits.

It comes eventually, as he knew it would. One person can’t deal with all that, see all that, without eventually cracking. And as a fellow fucked-up individual, he would know.

It starts as simple tears, ones that he wipes away. It progresses into sobs… full-body sobs. The sort he heard coming up the stairs. He’s surprised she’s got any left, but Ginny’s always been the sort to keep him on his toes. And just as her water-dark hair starts to dry and sprout red tendrils, he faces the thing he expected least of all: a kiss.

She starts softly. Slowly. Her lips so tender and soft that he forgets everything. She moans against his mouth, her whole body leaning into it; he’s instantly reminded of how much he’s fucking missed her. How lonely he’s been. How could he have forgotten the tiny mewl she makes in the back of her throat as her tongue parts his lips? He must’ve blocked it out, he realizes, as she begins to slide her body against him, panting, as she tips her head back. His lips trail down her neck, nibbling and biting, as she grips his arms and hair and bum. Because if he’d remembered all of these little details, he’d have gone mad long ago.

He’s throbbing hard by the time he gets to the tail end of her towel, which brushes the tip of her thighs. He tries to adjust himself, to—

“You can take it out, you know.”

Oh. He blinks up at her, his breath freezing in his throat. She’s peering down at him, her lips red and swollen.

“I know you’re hard,” she adds, her voice still raw. “So if it’s uncomfortable… take it out.”

He arches a brow from his position at her thigh. He’s about to retort with something snappy. Something that might keep them bantering for ages. But Ginny has no patience.

“Please.” It’s nearly a command. She blinks down with glassy eyes, her lips swollen. “I want you, Harry.”

Fuck. He groans, rubbing his cock against his palm to relieve some of the pressure. It doesn’t help for long, not that it matters; he’d rather focus on her, anyway. So with a slip of his fingers, the towel opens. She releases a breathy moan, tipping her head back.

Naked.

She’s finally naked. In front of him. His breathing grows ragged, his eyes scanning the territory somehow both totally familiar and completely new. She is thinner; he was right. Her hip bones jut out now, her stomach more sunken. But most of her is the same. The smattering of freckles on her chest. The way her breasts have puckered and darkened, the way her chest is rising and falling so fast. The thatch of dark red hair at the apex of her thighs.

“Well,” she quips. He blinks up at her as she reclines on her elbow. “Are you going to fuck me, Harry, or just stare all day?”

With that, he removes his glasses and gives her a smirk— her only real warning— before he kisses her one more time, just as his fingers spread her thighs.

She opens beneath him with a breathy sigh. Fuck, she’s so wet… he groans into her mouth as he dips his fingers further and further down. She’s dripping by the time he finds her clit… by the time he begins to swirl in tight circles. Clockwise. The pattern that screams of such intimate familiarity that it’s as if the years never passed.

He’s scarcely done anything, but she’s already writhing against his fingers, arching her back. “Please,” she slurs after a minute, “put them in.”

He’s never been one to deny her, has he?

It’s like muscle memory how quickly he finds his face between her thighs instead. He spares a moment of self-indulgence as he closes his eyes, breathing her in. She smells like home. She always has. It’s comfort… but more than that, it’s proof. Proof she wants him as much as he wants her. It’s why he stuffed his face in her knickers whenever he got a spare moment on the Horcrux hunt: one hand on that black lace, the other pulling at his cock. It’s bloody erotic, seeing proof of how much she wants him… but it’s more than that.

It’s love.

And despite all the things he’s forgotten tonight, he’d never forget this. He presses two fingers inside her, his hands shaking, and lets his body do the rest. Fuck, he’s missed this. She cries out above him, her hands grasping at his hair, tugging him closer. He’s never forgotten this… the way she tastes. The way she smells. The right way to run his tongue against her clit. Exactly how many fingers she needs, pressed against her just there… crooked in a certain position… just as she begins to thrust herself up and down on them, her cries growing louder, more insistent… and yesssss, there it is, she’s right there, right fucking there—

“Harry!” Her hair rubs against the pillow with abandon. “I’m… I’m so close,” she pants, her body starting to shake.

“Come for me,” he commands, his cock fit to burst, his face slippery. “Come for me, Ginny.”

He returns to her clit for a split-second before she says the words that change everything.

Her whole body tenses, a blush spreading up her chest. “I love you!” she cries, her voice strangled… and with that, she’s coming, clenching around him, her body shaking as he rides her through it.

What he doesn’t tell her is that he comes, too. The second those words wash over him. Those fucking words that prove he’s fucked up, fucked up, fucked up… but he can’t exactly help that, can he?

He just shoves his face into the duvet, thrusting his hips once, twice, and with a grunt, he’s off. His cock tightens and bursts, filling his boxers. Soaking through his jeans. He pulls back, dizzy, when the clenching finally stops.

Luckily, she seems too distracted to notice. Ginny’s half-asleep as he rises from between her thighs, pulling the blanket over her. He presses a kiss to her temple and makes quick work of removing his soggy clothes. Fairly embarrassing, this. Like he’s 16 again and rutting on the lawn.

He mutters a quick cleaning charm and changes into basketball shorts before settling down beside her in bed… making sure he’s on top of the duvet.

But as he drifts off, there’s something far less sentimental that hammers through his chest: They need to get their shit sorted.

Before he ever, ever lets that happen again.

[tenebrius-excellium]

Just wanna say that post-Wizards Jim actually feels a lot like Frodo. You know, I have a friend who keeps pointing out the excellent fact that after LotR, Frodo chose not to return home with Sam Gamgee, because he had been through too much. He had seen too much to just go home to gardening and chatty neighbors and resume his ordinary life. And I kind of saw Jim hit that point when he became monster!Jim. 

Up until then, he had been kind of like Arcadia’s secret friendly local Spiderman. Sure, he fought enemies the rest of the people didn’t even know of, and they were completely unaware of what he sacrificed for them, and sure, he struggled to balance more “after-school activities” and was way more challenged in his emotional health and his maturity than them. 

But his life was still grounded enough for him to worry about school grades, and have his harmless daily quarrel with Steve, and go on double dates, and attend concerts and the like. It remained local, and was therefore manageable. A big bonus was that his enemies had no interest in going public either.

It even remained manageable when he turned half-troll, because then all of Arcadia found out about the world below their feet anyway and they all participated in fighting off Morgana together. They successfully prevented the battle from becoming global, and therefore, the Arcadians were now all involved in this. The burden of Jim’s troll-ness was eased for him because he could have still gone to school despite it. It wasn’t an issue in that way because everyone knew now. Also, all his other relationships definitely offered their support.

But becoming mentally corrupted must have changed his character irreversibly in my opinion. Bearing that memory had to have had a lasting effect on him. Nobody else in his vicinity could relate to him getting this lost to themselves. Claire may have shared the general experience, but it was her first real fight that she had enough strength for to master it. Also, she spent most of her time actually innocent and oblivious to the corruption. Jim, on the other hand...Jim chose this for himself. He thought he was doing the right thing, the necessary thing, and he easily could have killed a lot of his friends in the process. His corruption was definitely harmful to his relationship with Claire. He could have hurt her. His corrupted self WANTED to hurt her. That must surely have put some strain on their relationship after he turned back human. 

It also sent a definitive sign to everyone else who followed Jim that their leader couldn’t be trusted with all of his decisions. I mean, he rejected the Darklands lesson of not doing things on his own again. Toby, Claire and Blinky must have been mad as heck at him for ignoring this rule another time. I mean, not only did it show that he still didn’t trust them to help him, it also literally endangered all their lives. So... Tobes and Blinky surely had to have had a serious chat with Jim after the end of his corruption as well.

Imagine the guilt Jim had to have felt about his mistake. He had to go home and tell his mother what he did to the sweet boy she raised. And she would hug him and cry happy tears because he was human again, but to him it would feel like she didn’t understand because she hadn’t seen him that way. And so he self-distanced from all his loved ones AGAIN, all because they couldn’t follow him to the place his mind had gone while he was a monster.

Maybe he was able to talk about it a little bit with Douxie. Because the 900yo surely had plenty of dark moments up his resumé as well. They would talk about managing the dark places, and it would make Jim feel a little better, but not in his day-to-day life. He’d entered into the superhero league now. Where real connections were only possible during the brief times where he was together with others like him, aka the Guardians of Arcadia. Talking to “normal” people was pointless from this moment on. 

At the beginning of ToA Rott, Jim is isolated in a way no one else around him is. They can still interact with normal people because they haven’t been through as much as him. But to him, they’re all he’s got now. 

It makes him fight harder for them. It makes him cry harder when one of them dies. Also, he’s tired. Tired at 18 years of age. So, so tired. It’s about the fate of the world now and he shares just about the full load of that only with Douxie.

That’s why I can’t really picture him living another life after Rott. It would need another near-death-scenario where the others do some serious convincing that his life is still worth living. To make him fight back for his life because they still love him. To convince him that the ordinary is still worth it, and worthy of him. 

So either he dies, or he almost dies and comes back from the dead, or he only regains the amulet after regaining himself. Not because “he’s the Trollhunter”, but exactly because he learns to be himself without it.

Either way, the boy needs to learn how to make better choices again. And learn how to trust himself again after being a monster.

And it becomes clear that there is no age of Trollhunters after him.

Now that would be an arc I could enjoy watching.

[sleepyowlwrites]

Sleepy’s Fic Masterlist (better late than never)

I realized I never made one of these and just sneakily wrote and published stuff on AO3 without announcing it, but having a masterlist is really useful even just for me, so I’m making one now. 

Not every fic I’ve ever written or published is included here, as a few are either quite short or are not currently available to read (or I don’t really like them). All links lead to AO3 unless otherwise stated. Everything is neatly sorted with word counts, characters, summaries, etc. as well as any triggers.

Note: when I say something is unedited, I mean a full pass edit with revisions, parts added or rearranged, resulting in a more complete fic. I do a quick edit before I post to check for spelling/grammar errors, but hold off on a solid edit until later. And sometimes, later never comes. But I never post anything that I haven’t done a quick edit for.

Also, besides a mild flirtation here or there, everything I write is platonic (with a single exception). 

Fandoms included in this list:

The Untamed

The Lost Tomb Franchise

The 100

Power Rangers

Chicago P.D.

K-Pop

The Untamed (Chinese historical drama, 50 episodes)

Blood Cultivation series (complete) - fantasy, angst, character study, OC, friendship, family, blood and action, happy ending Characters: Lan Sizhui, Jin Ling, Lan Jingyi, Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji, Jiang Cheng, Lin Meili (OC) Summary: Lin Meili is a traveling cultivator with unusual methods who meets some non-judgmental Lans and ends up confiding in them about yet another devious Jin cultivator who is trying to commit murder.  Triggers: mentions of child abuse/manipulation (vague and canon compliant-ish), blood, semi-necessary self-harm (triggering a curse) 

Blood Cultivation (WC: 5304) complete/edited

Blood Energy (WC: 3944) complete/edited

Blood Enemy (WC: 7311) complete/edited

Blood Ties (WC: 8307) complete/edited

Blood Curse (WC: 6968) complete/unedited

where we planted a garden, did we grow a family? (WC 8421) complete/edited

I’ll tell you again to make you believe - sickfic, friendship, important conversations, platonic cuddling (WC: 4346 ) complete/edited Characters: Lan Jingyi, Lan Sizhui Summary: two best boys reassure each other of their worth and are just really good friends.  Triggers: none

The Lost Tomb Franchise (Chinese adventure drama, multiple series)

The Sounds in Silence Series (incomplete) - friendship, hurt/comfort, enhanced/impaired senses, banter, introspection Series: The Lost Tomb Reboot Characters: Liu Sang, Zhang Qiling, Wu Xie, Wang Pangzi Summary: Liu Sang struggles to reconcile his own doubts with the offer of friendship given by his companions while having not the nicest time doing some tomb exploring. Triggers: anxiety, panic attacks, impaired hearing, fear/insecurity

Heartbeat (WC: 7924) complete/edited

Beating Hearts (WC: 10774) completed/being edited

Interlude (WC: 2220) incomplete/unedited

Power Rangers Franchise

Forest Secrets - character study, commentary, secrets, team dynamics, friendship, typical power rangers style battle (WC: 7107) complete/edited Series: Power Rangers Samurai Characters: Mike, Emily, Mia, Kevin, Jayden, Antonio, Thalia (OC) Summary: Mike stumble on yet another secret and the team’s habit of falling apart rather than growing together comes back. Triggers: none Note: this is a complete but unfinished story, as I wrote this much and never came back to it. 

Chicago P.D.

Shots series - character study, action, crime, blood, friendship/partnership, very inaccurate policework, banter, hospitals, is this poking fun at the show and its writing? surely not Characters: Lexi (OC), Jay Halstead, Antonio Dawson, Adam Ruzek, Hank Voight, brief mentions of Trudy Platt, Kim Burgess, Kevin Atwater Summary: Lexi likes to play by her own rules in the space afforded her by her unique position of not really being a cop, but ends up entangled in the cases of the 21st anyway.  Triggers: blood, guns, criminals, mentions of child assassin training, dumb/bad policework

Smoke and Sparks (WC: 3550) complete/unedited

Connections (WC: 2842) complete/unedited

Found Me Out (WC: 2482) complete/unedited

Calculated Risks (WC: 3739) complete/unedited

On My Terms (WC: 6733) complete/unedited

The 100

the name was: family - character study, introspection, AU, partnership, platonic friendship, found family, hurt/comfort (WC: 8892) complete/unedited Characters: Bellamy Blake, Sage (OC), Monty Green, Harper McIntyre Summary: Bellamy hadn’t meant to need anyone else, but here he was needing her all the same. Triggers: blood, animal attack, allusions to murder

BTS*

*NOTE: all of my real-person fics are about characters of my own creation, but then I borrow a couple of key traits from the real person they’re sharing the name of, so that I can write both in fandom and not really about real people, because writing my own characters is a lot more fun, but having a core to work off of is nice and easy. this has been a disclaimer? of a sort.

I have chosen to sort by date, latest to earliest, so from 11/2018 to 06/2016

Better Than Tears (sweeter than sleep) - slice of life, friendship, mental health issues, crying, deep conversations, emotional hurt/comfort, college AU (WC: 51,100) complete/edited (technically unfinished) Characters: Jungkook, Jimin, Taehyung, Yoongi, Hoseok Summary: Jungkook had always felt lost until Jimin came along to find him. Triggers: anxiety/panic attacks, mentions of blood, mentions of disordered eating, insomnia, loneliness, crying, depression

Bangtan Chats - chat fic, humor, crack, nonsense (all of these can still be found on my blog because I don’t feel like reposting all 270+ of them on a sideblog) (WC: 30,187) complete/edited Characters: all of BTS, guest starring Yuggyeom a couple times Summary: chats based off real events or entirely made up Triggers: none, I think

you talk too much (and say too little) - college AU, humor, friendship (WC: 2037) complete/edited Characters: Jimin, Jungkook, Taehyung, Yuggyeom Summary: Taehyung talks in his sleep. Triggers: none

it’s a big universe (but somehow I found my home with you) - space AU, friendship, surreal (WC: 13, 216) complete/unfinished/unedited Characters: Taehyung, Jungkook, Jimin, Yoongi. Summary: for as long as he can remember, Taehyung has been drifting around the universe, all alone. Triggers: existentialism?

please don’t laugh (but I know you will anyway) - friendship, humor (WC: 1190) complete/edited Characters: Jimin, Jungkook Summary: they are good friends. Triggers: none

closer than blood (stronger than time) - vague vampire AU, ward & guardian relationship (WC: 1497) (written for a prompt request) complete/edited Characters: Jungkook, Jimin Summary: Jimin is a Timeless and wants Jungkook to have friends. Triggers: none?

hold my hand (and I’ll keep you warm) - college AU, childhood friends, slice of life (WC: 2049) complete/edited Characters: Jimin, Taehyung, Jungkook Summary: Taehyung and Jimin have always held hands, until they didn’t. Triggers: none

Two Streets - modern AU, slice of life, opposite lives (WC: 5647) complete/edited Characters: Jungkook, Jimin, Namjoon Summary: Jungkook lives in the nice part of town. Jimin does not. Triggers: bullying/bruises, very not good or accurate anything

The Jimin Effect - dialogue fic, humor, group dynamics, crack (WC: 8993) complete/edited Characters: all of BTS Summary: everybody loves Jimin. that’s all. Triggers: none

you can have me (I’ll be your family) - college AU, broken family, new friends, gangs? (WC: 4784) complete/edited Characters: Jungkook, Taehyung, Seokjin (made-up Jungkook’s older brother) Summary: Jungkook’s brother is an ass and Taehyung is probably an angel. Triggers: fighting, blood, a stab wound, emotional manipulation, neglect

stars should always shine (so smile) - royalty AU, friendship (WC: 1350) complete/edited Characters: Yoongi, Taehyung, kid!Jungkook Summary: Yoongi just wants Taehyung to smile. Triggers: none?

just stay here (forever, if you want) - college AU, reluctant friendship, bullying (WC: 4872) complete/edited Characters: Yoongi, Taehyung, Seokjin (brief appearances of the others) Summary: Yoongi doesn’t let others sleep in his room but can’t turn Taehyung away. Triggers: mentions of bullying and bruises

teach me to talk (please don’t shup up) - college/coffee shop AU, reluctant friends, loner & chatty person (WC: 4397) complete/edited Characters: Yoongi, Jimin, Hoseok, Taehyung for a hot sec Summary: Yoongi likes being a loner but gets used to Hoseok talking. Triggers: none

I really mean it (that I don’t mean it) - college AU, dumb friends, the opposite game (WC: 1968) complete/edited Characters: Jungkook, Taehyung, Seokjin, Yoongi Summary: it’s opposite day and Jungkook struggles. Triggers: none

get me out (give me space) - high school AU, friendship (WC: 1557) complete/edited Characters: Taehyung, Jimin Summary: Jimin and Taehyung get locked in a closet. Triggers: claustrophobia though perhaps not super accurate, crying

I’ll take care of you (you don’t get a say) - college AU, strangers to friends (WC: 1800) complete/edited Characters: Seokjin, Yoongi, mentions of everyone else Summary: Seokjin is that guy who takes care of everybody. Triggers: none

the evolution of a friendship - canon compliant-ish, commentary, awkwards to friends, fluff, hurt/comfort, series (WC: 24, 499) complete/edited (I linked the series because this post is long) Characters: Jimin, Jungkook, Taehyung, everybody in smaller amounts Summary: Jungkook was awkward and then he grew up.  Triggers: bad dreams, mild panic, crying

I’ll stop running (if you’ll hug me anyway) - college AU, friendship, sports/sports injury (WC: 2482) complete/edited Characters: Taehyung, Jimin, Hoseok Summary: Taehyung doesn’t want to stop running. Triggers: vague knee injury, fainting

talking is hard (I’ll just lurk by the mailbox) - neighbors AU, fluff (WC: 1230) complete/edited Characters: Jungkook, Jimin, Seokjin Summary: Jungkook is shy.  Triggers: none

all the stars - modern AU, xReader, romance (WC: 1623) complete/edited Characters: Namjoon, You (the only time I’ve ever written xReader) Summary: you think Namjoon is in love. Triggers: none

Rain - career AU? sickfic, friendship, roommates (WC: 5525) complete/edited Characters: Yoongi, Jimin, mentions of Youngjae (from B.A.P) Summary: Jimin gets caught in the rain and Yoongi is a nice stranger in an elevator. Twice. Triggers: mention of vague anxiety about eating

You’re More Beautiful - photography AU, friendship, strangers to still strangers really, fluff (WC: 1898) complete/edited Characters: Jungkook, Jimin, Yoongi Summary: Jungkook came to photograph the scenery. Yoongi is nice scenery. Triggers: social anxiety

Marshmallow - high school AU, friendship, fluff (WC: 4991) complete/edited Characters: Jungkook, Jimin, Taehyung Summary: Jimin is as fluffy as a marshmallow and twice as sweet. Triggers: none

[rotationalsymmetry]

I’m just getting to the climax of Animorphs Book 1, so let me share some initial reactions I’ve had from the end of the construction site scene through now. I’ll post “some time to think” reactions when I’ve finished the book. Book 2 is already waiting for me at the library; the next may take longer because I’ll have to buy it.

Animorphs be like: today is a lovely day, and conservation of matter does not exist. We're just dropping the neutered thing like no big deal, all right then.

(I had a huge emotional reaction to Jake in dog morph, and it was an immediate reaction, but that’ll be in the delayed reactions post because figuring out how to explain my reaction is more complicated and I want to keep this post relatively light.)

Oh, thank goodness Marco picked up on Tom being a Controller. It’s I guess in character that Jake would be very reluctant to suspect his beloved big brother, but if I got smacked on the head with any more unmissable hints…

2-3 minutes is actually a really long amount of time to spend shifting shape. I thought there might have been an initial morph at the construction site, but if it takes multiple minutes for them to shift right now they would have gotten slaughtered. So good thing they didn’t.

“It’s terrible when birds have to be locked up in cages.”

I’m just… very into the whole “let’s explore the emotional experience of being different animals.” Love it.

…Tobias ends up getting stuck in hawk form, doesn’t he?

Cuuuuuuult.

Ok, seriously though. (The Sharing.) Tiered membership. A show of positive fun/friendly stuff for new people. Active recruitment. People losing their previous interests/having major personality changes. Talking about it in "life changing" terms. Cryptic statements that hint at some knowledge being held by the in group that isn’t shared to newcomers right away. Seeming normal and fine and wholesome on the surface. Actually, presenting itself as better than normal, actively positive. Getting invited by normal people that you know personally. I’m not sure Applegate is intentionally making a “here’s how actual cults work in the real world, just a heads up” thing but it sure functions that way.

Jake. Are you out of your mind. Do you not think your brother would recognize the family dog?

Well. I guess one of the fun things about having a group of kids save the world is you don’t need any justification for them making incredibly bad decisions, other than them being kids. And incredibly bad decisions do make for entertaining stories.

Ok, he does realize he has to keep out of Tom’s line of sight. Good, I guess? Yeerks do know about morphing technology after all; they don’t think any Andalites are alive on the planet, so they’re not suspecting it, but still.

Ah. So the cover morph is a lizard, not a snake. I wasn’t sure.

Having to set down the book while lizard!Jake was pinned down by his tail was excruciating. I mean, I know how he’s going to get out, but still.

The spider is still alive?????? I take it back, the cover illustration expresses perfectly how this story is going to be.

Yeurgh aaaaaa blech

Jake is having a horrible, no good, very bad day.

…is there any remotely plausible reason there would be a secret underground room hidden in the back of a broom closet in a school? Eh, I guess this is what “suspension of disbelief” is for.

Why don’t stories for adults ever involve turning into lizards and swallowing spiders whole?

(While they’re in The Gardens getting gorilla DNA for Marco and someone who actually works there comes up) how the heck do these kids survive dozens of books without getting caught?

So far there have been three falls and all of them have been Jake.

Omfg these idiot kids are just running into animals’ cages are they nuts?

Of course it’s a frikkin’ tiger.

Ahem. Please do not break into animal cages at a zoo or similar. I don’t care that much about protecting you from the consequences of your own bad decisions, you get to make your own risk assessment in regards to your own personal safety, but I do care about protecting the zoo and the big cats or what have you from the consequences of your bad decisions.

Anyways! It's a book! I'm reading it! So far I haven't had a single "yes I remember reading this before" but I honestly don't know if that's because I didn't read this book or just because it was sufficiently far in the past that I don't remember anything. More thoughts later!

[storymaker-14]

Our secret love

Word count: 907

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Pov: you

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Hey guys! This is part 4 of “Our secret love.” again this is a Bakugou x FEM! y/n. I already posted a bit about your quirk here. But back to the story!

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Part 1 is here.

Part 2&3 here.

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Into: You have no Idea why Bakugou is acting like this toads you. But it leaves you wondering. “Did I do something wrong?”

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Nic-names you call Bakugou: Katsu/Baku

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I was just standing there wondering what to do now. Is he mad at me for something? I didn’t have much time to think before Denki came up behind me. “Hey there y/n~, What are you doing just standing here?” I turned around to face him. “Oh, ya let's go I guess.” Denki then grabbed my hand and dragged me over to our lunch table, just like I would have done to Bakugou. “Hey, guys!” Bakugou, Kiri, and Mina were already there. “Took you long enough, now we're just waiting on soy sauce face(sero).” I saw Denki laugh as we both sat down. I looked over at Bakugou who was being taunted by Denki and Kiri. I guess Mina saw me staring cuz right after she leaned over to me “oh~ does y/n have a crush on someone here~?” my face went bright red. Did I like him? But the boys stopped taunting Bakugou and all three of them turned to me. Denki put on a smug smile “y/n I’m flattered but you should tell me on your own~” the thing is, Denki isn’t the one I like. Or the one I think I like. I try to tell them I don’t like Denki but they don’t believe me, I can tell that right at this moment Bakugou was looking at me but when I turned around to face him he just said “tch” and left the table. “You good Bakubro?” Kiri tried talking to him but just ended up following Bakugou instead, and I just sat there with Mina and Denki. I let out a small sigh and thought it would be best to go to my room. “Ay y/n you ok?” I turned to look at Mina and Denki who looked concerned. “I’m fine guys, just not really hungry anymore.” I tried smiling but I think they saw through me. Thankfully they didn’t say anything more, so I just walked away. I can’t go to my room because we have more to do after lunch before the day is over, so I went to the garden. No one is usually there so I thought it would be a nice place to sit and think. When I got there the smell of the flowers and plants flew over me. “Wow. . . I forgot how nice this place is. .” I attempted to release all my tension as I went to sit down. The guardian was in a big glass dome behind the dorms. I look up at the sun as it shines through the glass ceiling. My phone went off so I picked it up and answered. “Hello?” it was silent for a couple seconds then I heard a familiar voice “Hey y/n, sorry I haven't been able to talk to you. Work has been hard over here.” My sister is a well-known singer, not famous or not yet anyway. Since I moved to UA with My brother we haven’t talked much. “Hey Mika, is something wrong?” She would often text me before she calls me to make sure I was in a place ok to call, but when she just calls me out of nowhere that means something is wrong or what she has to tell me is important. “Oh right ya. So I tried getting to Loka but he didn’t answer his phone.” I was confused, What exactly was going on? “So What did you need to tell me? I look at my phone clock, I have about 5 more minutes till lunch is over. I have to go back to class soon.” It went silent for a while before she spoke again, “Oh sorry, I wanted to let you guys know that mom and dad are back from their trip. Well, that and mom says she has something she wants to give you.” I was shocked, what did mom want to give me? My family lived on a small island away from big cities but I and Loka moved in with my mom's best friend when I was halfway done with middle school. “Is she coming here to visit or do I have to go to her? Because if I have to go there it must be important enough for me to miss school for it.” I heard her sigh a bit. “She's going to you, she says she can visit her best friend and talk to you at the same time. Well that's about it I have to go but I’ll call you later.” she hung up on me before I could even when my mom was gonna be here. I sigh a bit before getting up, I have a lot to think about now. Is Bakugou still mad at me? Why is Bakugou mad at me? What does my mom have to come all the way to tell me? I tried to shake the thoughts out of my head before heading back to the main building.

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Hope you enjoyed sorry if it's short <3