#this became a ramble and i hope I kept to my points
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mephestopheles · 10 months ago
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Dear gods I love this season of d20. Junior year is just *chef's kiss* fantastic and full of so much anxiety. I keep thinking about Kristen and Cassandra and their relationship. Kristen from the first episode, or maybe the second after she met Helio has spent a lot of time with doubt as her constant companion. She didn't know if she was meant to be Helio's chosen, or that he was worthy of having a chosen. Her doubt led her to studying more, and opening up to philosophy and different points of view.
Creating Yes! was an attempt to find or create her own surety. How can she doubt a god that is just "yes!". But she still doubted, she still questioned everything.
This got long, the rest is under a cut!
And that makes sense, everything her family, her church told her was a lie. It was a perversion of truth to fit their ideals of who is Correct and therefore Good and Deserving, and those who are Wrong, and therefore Bad. And if the "bad kids" actually go out of their way to help people and don't judge anyone for their beliefs or punish others for their failings, then why are they considered "bad".
Of course finding a goddess of twilight and mystery and doubt, makes so much sense for Kristen. With the tools she learned from her friends, those "bad kids" to reach out and not judge, she saved Cassandra.
However, she hasn't saved herself. She's still lost in her own doubt. Tracker has left, amicably or not, that has hurt Kristen, and she's not innocent either. Kristen had a part to play in that relationship splitting, but she's definitely crumbling at this point.
What drew Kristen to Cassandra was her doubt, was her questioning. Her fear and her loss of all those connections that grounded her at the beginning of freshman year. And while Cassandra is correct, Kristen is not alone even in the dark, that Cassandra is there with her, holding her hand (which is such a good line, Brennan omg!) Kristen is having trouble believing in anything.
She believes in Cassandra. Full stop.
Kristen doesn't believe in herself. And she doesn't know why Cassandra believes in her.
It's that ADHD thing, where you feel like you're constantly fucking up in everyway and it's just a matter of time before you fuck up that this person is going to see how much you actually suck as a person. No matter how much you want to stop fucking up, subconsciously speed running it at least accomplishes two things. One) self sabotage gives you an outcome you already know the steps for and the sense of control (false or not) is at least enough to make it feel like a safer choice. Two) it's going to suck when the person you're trying to impress/has control over your grades/ is somehow in a position of authority that believes in you, finds out you are messy, and a failure, and are useless, but at least if they find out fast, you don't have to keep some ruse up.
Kristen isn't conscious of this decision making. Take it from someone who's done it enough to realise that this is what is happening in the background. It sucks so much, and when you don't know you have ADHD it's worse, because all of those are now personal failings.
So of course Kristen has no idea how to relate to Cassandra as anyone other than "the next person I'm going to fail". And she has no idea how to proselytize for any god outside of Helio, and that kind will not work to bring followers to Cassandra. Moreover, Kristen's entire relationship with Cassandra is based on doubt. So while Kalina is correct that promoting the powers found in twilight and mystery, that's not what Kristen sees.
She's still very much a prophet of Helio in Cassandra's robes. She's still using the same kind of spells, and she's so caught up with "how do you show others that doubt is a good thing" that she doesn't see the other options.
And unfortunately that means she's failing, and she feels it. And that doubles her terror. And that's not even including the whole "you're dangerously close to being expelled." Like this would be the instance to literally beseech your god and admit your fear and doubt and Cassandra would understand and would probably be empowered by that connection. It would have the reverse effect with Cassandra than other gods, she gains from doubt and mystery, and Kristen sharing her fears and not knowing how to share Cassandra could be such a good thing for both of them.
But Kristen was raised in an environment where doubt was punished. That was unfortunately reaffirmed by walking away from Yes! because in her mind her doubt of Yes! and that deity's death is her fault because she doubted.
But doubt isn't the reason Yes! died. Yes! died because it was the manifestation of belief in a liminal space by a questioning teen, and should not have had the ability to substantiate something, and wouldn't have been able to outside of the very specific circumstances of a Beardsley nat 20, and the power funnel of a self resurrection. Kristen didn't believe in Yes! Never did. She created it and in that instance stopped believing in it. Yes! Had a slow death of "this is not what I wanted but I don't know how to say that".
I don't know how this is going to turn out for either Kristen or Cassandra, and I'm hoping that there's going to be a reckoning for them, and maybe an understanding between them. Like both are so traumatized. Cassandra is traumatized for losing so many followers to Galicaea and other deities.
So of course she's going to be that much more fixated on getting more followers and making sure that Kristen hadn't left for her girlfriend's goddess. (Ex or otherwise).
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spencerswh0re · 1 year ago
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𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 - 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐝 𝐱 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫
A/N - HI!! i love love love spencer reid and i spend most of my time reading fanfics of him, so i thought i would give writing some of my own a shot! this is my first fic (recently, i used to write wattpad fics when i was like 12) so bear with me :))
word count - 1,482
𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲 - 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐦𝐚 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞, 𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬, 𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐣𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐀𝐔, 𝐚 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟.
spencers life had been hard. there was no point in sugar coating it, he’d been through a lot. being kidnapped, developing a drug addiction, his girlfriend being killed directly in front of him and being to prison were only a handful of the things that had gone wrong in his life. and even after all of this trauma, he still managed to stay the same person. or atleast, mostly the same person.
one big thing had changed after prison and his encounters with cat adams. spencer had always been a hopeless romantic, he dreamed of the day he would meet a nice woman, settle down with her, and live out the life he had always wanted. but after dealing with some confusing feelings for a hitman, he had started to lose hope in ever finding love.
spencer was a 39 year old man, and he had still not found his perfect woman, he was starting to think she didn’t exist.
this was why he gave up. he stopped dating, stopped blushing and stammering whenever he met an attractive woman, and instead, he became charming. it became a common occurrence for spencer reid to spend his evenings in the bar, wooing a woman back to bed with him. he would bid them farewell the next morning, and that would be that. and it worked, it kept him satisfied, for a while.
until it didn’t.
the day you walked into the bullpen of the BAU, things changed for spencer reid.
you were beautiful, easily the prettiest girl he had ever seen, you were young, and had this innocence about you, he knew, from the very beginning, that he wanted you.
it was barely a week after you started on the team when spencer realised why he was so attracted to you.
the team was on the jet home from your first case, it had been a relatively easy one, they had caught the unsub in 2 days, and saved his final victim.
“we shouldn’t even be flying in these conditions” rossi had complained, referring to the heavy rain and strong winds “what if we get struck by lightning?”
just as spencer was about to spit out a random fact about flying during lightning, you beat him to it.
“actually, aircraft’s are designed to deal with lightning strikes, modern planes are designed to spread electric currents through the fuselage and funnel them out through the tail, bypassing the plane interior entirely. the last major accident occurred in 1967, when a stray strike caused a poorly-designed plane’s fuel tank to explode, so even if we were to be struck, which is highly unlikely, we’d be perfectly fine” you had rushed it out quickly, and spencer could tell from your blushing cheeks and shy smile that you were embarrassed over your rambling.
“sorry” you said, quietly, looking down at your hands in your lap.
“hey, reid, it seems y/l/n is a mini version of you, maybe we’ll have to replace you” emily had said, laughing lightheartedly. spencer, however, was stuck in place, eyes locked on you. he couldn’t believe it, he had found out earlier in the week that you were 24, just out of the academy, but you had been put straight into a specialised unit based off of your impressive qualifications. he realised, in that moment, that he didn’t just want you in the way he wants other women, he wanted you for real, he was falling for you.
the plane ride went painfully slowly after that.
a few months later, nothing had changed, except for the fact you had made it more and more difficult for him to keep away from you. ever morning, you would walk straight over to his desk, wishing him a cheery "good morning!" before perching yourself down next to his files and asking him about his night.
he had never been one to talk to his co workers about his sex life, but sometimes he would make an exception, because at least he had stories to be telling, but recently, there hadn't been anything to tell.
the night that they got back from your very first case, the team had gone to the bar to celebrate, after everybody had left, he made his was to the bar for one final drink, and to choose his target for the night, however, his plans had been ruined, when he'd seen you, across the bar, talking to some guy. spencer held back a scoff, he was obviously an asshole, he was tall (yet, not quite as tall as him) and buff. you were clearly feeling uncomfortable, and he knew that you had had one too many, and you weren't in the right state of mind. he walked over, told you it was time to go home, and got you in his car.
you were asleep before he could ask for your address.
after fighting with himself a little, he eventually decided to take you back to his place, you took the bed, he took the couch.
after that night, he hadn't been able to be with anybody else, he hadn't wanted to be with anybody else.
"oh, you know, same old, what about you?" he responded.
"nothing much really, um.. I actually wanted to talk to you about something.." you told him
shit. now he was scared, had he done something to make you upset? had he made his feelings for you too clear and made you uncomfortable? had he-
"I uh- I noticed your spock pop figure on your desk, i've got the entire Star Trek box set at home... I was wondering if you might wanna come over? we can get something to eat, maybe get to know each other better?"
he didn't know what to say, this was y/n y/l/n, the girl he had been pining over for months, and she was asking him out? of course he wanted to say yes, that much was obvious, but he hadn't been in a real relationship since maeve, and even that didn't really count.
you were young, and so innocent, he was tainted, his hands were dirty, his mind haunted by the things he had done in prison, he didn't want to corrupt you.
you obviously took his silence as a no, and quickly jumped back in.
"if not that's totally fine too! I just thought it might be fun"
and just as he was about to politely reject you, he looked into your eyes.
innocent, yes. but there was something else, something that reminded him an awful lot of a feeling he had never truly felt. love. he knew then what he had to do.
"that sounds like fun, y/n, ill come over tonight at 6:00?" he responded with a smile.
"yes! yes! my address is 16 cornelia street, apartment 17."
"excellent, ill be there" he said
and he was.
at 5:57, he was waiting outside of your door, holding a bunch of flowers, and wearing an outfit he had spent far to long picking out. he knew it was a casual thing, and he knew you would just be staying home, so he decided to wear something he had never worn before. sweatpants. he had gone to the store to buy them immediately after work. along with a baggy Star Trek t shirt.
when he finally gathered up the courage to knock, you answered almost immediately, and he was speechless.
you looked beautiful, you were wearing a pair of white sweatpants along with a tight grey vest top, your hair was down, and you were wearing an adorable pair of bunny slippers.
when he finally snapped out of his trance, he stuck the flowers out in your direction with a quiet "these are for you"
your response came quickly, and with a smile "they're beautiful, spencer, thank you. I ordered chinese food, i hope that's alright" you said as you walked into the kitchen to find a vase.
not as beautiful as you. he wanted to say, but he settled for a shy nod and a smile instead.
after dinner, the two of you took a seat of your couch and began watching the first movie.
he wasn't satisfied.
he moved a little bit closer.
still wasnt enough.
he considered pulling out the cringey yawning trick, but decided against it, instead, deciding to touch your pinky with his own.
still, not quite enough.
towards the end of the first movie, you mored close enough so that you could put your had on his chest.
"is this okay?" you whispered, so quiet he could hardly hear you over the TV.
"more than okay" he whispered back, putting his arm around your shoulders to keep to close.
he realised, right there in that moment, that he was done with the girls, and the bars, this, right here, with you in his arms, was exactly where he was supposed to be.
A/N - OKAY!! the ending was slightly rushed, I'm sorry, but I'm very very tired and I have class tomorrow, but I wanted to get this done. if you liked it, let me know, send me requests if you want <3
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perdidosbucky-yyo · 3 months ago
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𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓪
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Part🥀
Main Masterlist
Pairing: Best Friend!Steve Rogers x Plus size! Fem!Reader (no mention of ethnicity)
Summary: Trapped in a prison of your husband and your mother’s expectations, haunted by the memory of your best friend, your only comfort is the ghost in your garden.
You thought you would never see him again but when he unexpectedly returns home from the war after 12 years, you’re not prepared for what’s to come.
wc: 6k
Warnings: Feminism doesn’t exist in this fic,  the story is set between 1950-1965, fertility issues, detailed mention of miscarriage, body shaming (not from Steve), implied boner and handjob, violence, terms of endearment (I got carried away jsjs), detailed sexual abuse attempt (not from Steve), domestic violence, flashbacks and small time jumps (I hope it’s not confusing lmao), changing POVs (again, I hope it’s not confusing lmao), please let me know if I missed anything! more warnings to be added in part II.
a/n: This is my entry to @witchywithwhiskey 's Slasher Summer writing challenge, with the prompts: small town and stalker. I've poured my heart and soul into this fic, I had so many ideas I had to cut the fic in half so part two will be posted soon I hope (but it won't be part of the wc given that it ends today hehe) I hope you like it 👉🏼👈🏼
This is not beta'd any and all mistakes are my own.
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“Move” your mother reprimanded.
You wanted to, you did, but your body wouldn’t listen, your chest was so heavy you felt trapped under the covers.
The sky was so blue, it reminded you of the blue puppies you once had in the garden. You cried all night when you came home from a trip to find them wilted and forgotten by your husband, they were the same shade as those eyes… every time you tended to them, it was like he was looking at you.
“Speak! Do something!” she hissed, the blue sundown behind her, tainted the room slate, and her black eyes became even darker. You noticed as she screamed in your face that her breath smelled of cigarettes, normally you’d be cowering in fear or trying to appease her but you remained frozen not even blinking.
Letting out a snort she wipes the sweat off your forehead with a cloth, “Look at yourself”, the woman grimaced, did you truly look so ghastly? 
You wished she would just leave you, your mother was a busy woman, she had other things to do than take care of you… you hate to bother her.
“if you get any bigger people will know”, you vaguely hear her words,  you tried to care but the sky was so beautiful, so peaceful, something you appreciated given your current state. Your whole body ached and nausea kept you awake every night, you were exhausted, and yet sleep never came.
“You reap what you sow darling, you must've done something to dese- You should be thanking God John hasn’t left you yet! he won’t put up with this for long, he wants a wife, not this” Her hand points to you in bed with a scowl on her lips.
Tears start streaming down your face, you wish the shadows in your room swallowed you. As saliva gathers in your tongue you feel like you’re about to throw up but your body still wouldn’t move. 
She’s still rambling on about your failures as a woman, pacing around the room, so you take a frame from under your pillow, it was a photo of him and you.
Sophomore year, both of you sat on a bench just outside of your high school, he looked so handsome, you remember it well. Right after fall break, he wore a wool waistcoat that was much bigger for his skinny figure, and his hair was perfectly combed.
Both of you smiled from ear to ear, he was hunched over while you sat up straight with your knees resting on his.
It felt like it was a lifetime ago, instead of 12 years, you didn’t particularly enjoy high school, but Steve Rogers made it memorable.
Once upon a time you lived in the same neighborhood since you were 8 years old, the first time you saw him he was having an asthma attack as he crashed his bike into some trash cans. You ran to his side and quickly introduced yourself, his scrawny hand shook yours back before you took the white ribbon from your dress and pressed it against his bleeding forehead.
He instinctively reached for his head and your fingers grazed him for just a second, eyes so focused on yours, you realized he was scared, so your other hand reached to comfort him… sometimes you think you’ve held hands ever since, and neither of you could let go.
You couldn’t be separated even if your parents threatened and bargained, inseparable would be an understatement. After the accident, Steve found a kindred spirit and comfort in your friendship, while you discovered fierce loyalty and kindness. 
It was strange that, at such a young age you felt drawn to Steve, and you knew he did too, as children it only made you want to spend every second of every day together.
You’d spend summers, riding your bikes all over town despite your mother’s scorn, listening to Billie Holiday records in Grandma Rogers’ dusty old house, reading in the library until it closed, playing tag in his living room while his mother baked in the kitchen, hiding in his basement every time your dad picked you up. 
When the days you spent together weren’t enough, you begged for sleepovers, your sister had them all the time after all, but your mother thought it improper for a boy to sleep over, so eventually, you fashioned a sheet rope for Steve to climb once everyone had gone to bed, and then he’d sleep by your side.
Some nights you’d whisper what you imagined the past was like, both of you were passionate about history, sometimes Steve would caress your hair while you sobbed into his shoulder, cursing to hell all belts, but most nights you would stay silent, holding hands until you fell asleep, once the sun was up, Steve’s side of the bed was always empty.
This went on for years, even in high school, your love for each other only grew, despite the silly arguments like you spending more time studying than with Steve, or him always getting a black eye never knowing when to stand down. 
The both of you knew this was forever, and there was nothing you could do or say that would make either of you leave.
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You tried getting out of his hold, squirming and pushing, if it were anyone else you’d be suffocated, “G-osh Stevie for someone so lean, you sure are strong” you huffed and puffed.
“If my mother finds us cuddling she’ll never let you see me again” You laughed, but you weren’t kidding, young ladies were never to engage in inappropriate behavior with boys your mother would always tell you.
“Yeah, I’d like to see her try” Steve grunted, almost possessively, his arms only squeezing you further into his chest, you couldn’t breathe but it wasn’t because of his bruising hold, chills went down your spine, and butterflies flew in your stomach.
You chose to ignore his comment and what it made you feel, “We have to go soon, Bucky won’t wait for us forever and he’s our ride”, finally you felt Steve’s arms relax but his hands remained on your back, rubbing it.
Catching him off guard, you free yourself and jump out of bed, quickly running to your mirror to check if your hair still looks good and to your relief it does. As you turn back you catch a glimpse of him adjusting his pants which makes your cheeks burn hot, you didn’t understand why that made you proud, and it isn’t the first time it’s happened, but Steve reassured you it was normal…
You weren’t brave enough to ask him if it was normal that you wanted to touch it.
As you walk out to your porch, Steve’s hand reaches for yours, “Promise you won’t stray too far from me, God knows what kind of people Tony invites to his parties”, his eyes search yours for something, you don’t know what, so you nod while your thumb caressed his knuckles, Bucky was already on your driveway honking the horn without any regard for your neighbors. 
“You’re lucky my parents are out of town Barnes!” you laugh as Steve opens the door for you, once everyone has their seat belts on, per your request, you head to Stark Manor.
After a short drive, you enter Tony Stark's ancestral home, it seems like the whole high school was invited. You never liked parties all that much, and neither did Steve but you thought socializing with other people besides each other would do you good, your mother insisted on it.
Swallowing a nervous gulp, you instinctively reached for Steve’s hand, just for a few seconds but then Peggy Carter jumped into his arms with a red smile and an even more gorgeous red dress that hugged her figure perfectly.
She was an exchange student, she was relatively new to the school but she quickly befriended your little group of friends, with her London charm and wit.
Your heart sank to your stomach and a knot formed in your throat when you saw his hands on her sides. Why were you jealous? he’s your friend you had to remind yourself, Steve couldn’t always be by your side, you knew this… and yet you couldn’t help the sickness brewing deep in your stomach when Peggy’s hands roamed all over Steve.
It was obvious Peggy liked him, but Steve’s reluctance to take her hand gave you a moment of relief, but then he was gone, lost in the sea of people. You hugged yourself as you considered asking Bucky to take you back home, but he already had his tongue down Dot’s throat.
Against your better judgment and Steve’s warnings, you found yourself in the bar, admiring all the bottles of liquor that came in different shapes and sizes, the one called Unicum caught your attention but as soon as you smelled it, you put it away.
“Not a fan I take it?” a voice comes from behind, following it, you find the host himself wearing a black turtle neck along with a blazer that hugs him just right, his brown eyes slowly studying you while he takes a sip of his drink.
Putting back the bottle, you chastised yourself for picking it up in the first place, “I’m sorry, this is expensive, I shouldn’t have touched it, I’m- I’m sorry” you sputtered.
You were nervous, but you realized you liked the attention, Tony was every girl’s dreamboat and the fact that his eyes were so focused on your body was thrilling.
With a sly smirk, he walks closer to you, “Don’t you worry Honeybun, that’s my father’s drink, break the damn thing if you want” he chuckled, “You’re Rogers’ little pet, aren’t you? he leave you all alone?”, he sounded a little drunk already.
Before you could get mad at his nickname, his arm wrapped itself around your waist “I think you’re a sweet-tooth Honeybun, you’re going to love Grasshoppers” he stated, without giving you a chance to refuse.
You were delighted to find out you did love the creamy drink, and after a few of them, Tony started to be less annoying to you, and if you squinted you could pretend he looked like Tony Curtis.
You missed Steve, where is he?
As Tony dragged you to the dance floor, squished between the crowd of drunk classmates, you started to feel suffocated and Tony’s grip on your wrist was starting to hurt, but your head was so fuzzy, and the room was so loud, he probably couldn’t even hear your protest.
Tony finally stops, his hands wander down your back until they’re on your waist, and his fingers dig into your dress, making your heart skip a beat, as he starts swaying you, Steve emerges from the sea of dancing silhouettes.
His smile of relief drops when he sees another man’s hands around your waist, you almost push Tony away in response, but you just put on your best smile.
 “H- Hey I’ve been looking all over for you”, Steve says, his tone is friendly but his eyes darken when Tony pulls you closer to him, making you trip a little, you didn’t have your wits about you, and Steve notices.
“Baby I need to get you home” he almost pleaded, you’re shocked he called you the nickname he only used when you’re alone, his perfect blue eyes had… longing in them? that couldn’t be right, especially when you discover the mark of red lips on his cheek, making your blood boil.
“I don’t want to leave Steve, I’m- I’m having fun with… T-Tony”, you tried to sound unyielding but you could feel the tension rise between the two men, you were never good with confrontation.
“You heard her little man, you shouldn’t have left her all alone if you didn’t want someone to steal her from you”, Tony says matter-of-factly.
Your best friend looks stoic, not moving a muscle, he looks intimidating despite Tony being much taller than him. He’s one step away from invading Tony’s space, but you’re quick to place your hand on his chest, and you immediately feel him relax, his eyes soften too when he turns to you.
“Go back to Peggy, I’m sure she’s waiting for you” is all you say with a wavering smile.
His hand wants to reach for you but all he does is nod before he disappears into the crowd, you’re a little disappointed. The rest of the night is eternal, your feet grow sore, and you had your 4th grasshopper a minute ago so your mind is comfortably numb, but every time Tony gropes your hips, or his fingers trace your cheeks, you feel guilt deep in your stomach, and to your dismay the party only seems to intensify.
As you slow danced you tried to ignore how dizzy you felt, but when the song ended you couldn’t help but let your weight fall into Tony’s arms, he just laughed and reaffirmed his hold on you “C’mon Honeybun don’t tell me you’re sleepy, night’s young! I want to show you something”.
You felt him move you before you could even respond, “Wh-where are we going Steve?” you slurred, not realizing you called him by another name, your question was met with silence, Tony just kept on pulling you across the grand hall.
“I want to show you the pretty flowers in the garden Honeybun, no one will bother us” his smile was wide but it did nothing to ease you, he shushed you while you tried to voice your thoughts.
You felt watched… the night breeze flew by your dress and your skin prickled, but it wasn’t because of the night chill. You were too busy admiring the pastoral landscape to worry, your eyes followed the tree-lined path up to a beautiful pond, with pink roses everywhere, but before you could take a step forward, you were being pushed up against a stone wall.
“Ow! Tony what-” His lips crushed yours before you could finish your sentence, he tasted bitter and unwanted, you tried pushing him away but you were weak, the alcohol in you like heavy chains around your arms and legs.
“Don’t you wanna make me feel good Honeybun?” he slurred in your ear, your stomach filled with dread, you almost gagged, “please stop” you begged, but his hand brutishly covered your mouth “Shut up” he spat while his assault continued down your neck, you could hear his belt coming off and alarms went off in your head, a scared whimper managed to escape his hand.
The party was roaring inside, and the music was muffled by the stone walls, you were sure no one would hear your screams, you sobbed at the realization. You were about to accept your fate but then Tony’s thrown back by the neck and into the dirt, it was Steve! 
Before you could react he was already on top of Tony pummeling him without compassion, animalistic grunts escaping his lips as his knuckles bloodied themselves.
“You don’t fucking touch her!” Steve growled, “You’re going to wish you were dead you piece of shit”, the hits kept coming, and you couldn’t stop watching, it was horrifying watching your best friend become this violent, controlled by his dark impulses, but a small part of you, a part of you that you wouldn’t acknowledge felt satisfaction, pride even…
Tony had been unconscious for a minute now and Steve wouldn’t stop, you were surprised he wasn’t having an asthma attack by now, the sickening sound of his fist meeting beaten flesh brought you out of your thoughts, you quickly ran to Steve to make him stop.
You grabbed his bloody fist in the air “Steve stop, you’re going to kill him” you cried, both of you heaving, you sensed Steve was making an effort to hold back, the blue in his eyes was almost gone, with only rage in them, “He should be six feet under just for putting his hands on you” he gruffed, you didn’t know how to respond so you only nodded, taking his hands in yours, and placing a gentle kiss on his knuckles.
Seeing your blood-stained lips made him feel unlike anything he’d ever felt before, a sense of ownership pleasantly lingered, but as he searched to see if you were harmed, your tear-streaked face made him move off Tony, and take you in his arms, the warmth radiating from him finally calmed you enough to let yourself feel the terror of what could’ve happened to you.
You let it all out onto Steve’s shoulder like you’ve done countless times before… except this was different, you’ve always felt safe with Steve, but after tonight, you also felt protected.
“I won’t let anybody touch you again baby” he lulls, your arms wrap around his neck and instinctively you rub off on his chest, needing to be as close to him as possible, his scent already soothing your soul.
“I promise”, he whispers in your ear and kisses your temple with such tenderness you barely feel his lips… everything is going to be ok.
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Kiss me once, then kiss me twice,
then kiss me once again 
It’s been a long, long time 
Haven’t felt like this, my dear since I
can’t remember when
It’s been a long, long time 
          ♫ ♪
“He’s back in town” Peggy repeats after you remained silent for an awkward amount of time, you just couldn’t stop replaying this one song in your head…
“Did you even hear what I said?” Peggy’s annoyance startles you, making you drop the cup of tea you were nursing.
She rolls her eyes at you, while she grabs a dishtowel to wipe the spilled liquid, “Steve Rogers is back” she deadpans, carefully observing your reaction.
“So sad Sarah isn’t here to welcome him back home” you whispered, tears threatening to spill at the memory of the woman who took care of you for so long, far more tender than your mother ever was to you.
“Honorably discharged” she continued, probably not even hearing your comment “They even made him a Captain, can you imagine? I-”.
She keeps on talking but it’s all muffled noise to your ears, your mind running a million miles per hour. 
Would you give him a call? 
how much can war change a man? 
would he call you? 
what would you say if you bumped into each other at the supermarket? God, John doesn’t even know about him.
Knowing Steve was home rekindled the heartache you managed to bury in the back of your mind every single day, it took everything in you not to start crying every time you remembered his broken promise, but you learned a long time ago that it was best to keep your emotions under lock and key.
The sound of running water finally distracted you from your consuming thoughts, “Hon are you sure you’re up for visitors?” Peggy sings with faux concern as she does the dishes, “I know you’re still not over the incident but I have to agree with your mother, you need to try harder, this is not normal, when I was preg-”
Willing yourself not to throw the porcelain cup at her head, you grinned, “Maybe we’ll see Steve at the reunion, I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to see you Peggy”, you sassed behind your stiff smile, but of course, she didn’t notice. Her reaction only confirmed what you suspected, like a little girl her ears perked up and her cheeks turned bright red “It’ll be so good to see everyone again” Peggy tried to conceal her excitement.
“I’m sure your husband will enjoy seeing everyone too” you reminded her, too tired to play nice with her.
Peggy��s eyes widen “You see, I don’t think Tony will be able to attend… you know how he is, always work work work” she laughs nervously.
You know better than that, Tony Stark was a sleazy drunk, you knew it since that night back in high school, but as the years passed, Tony’s attempts to hide his transgressions were feeble, by now the whole town knew every time he went away for business to New York City, he was on a bender gambling, drinking and sowing his wild oats, but Tony’s wealth and power always kept him out of trouble.
“Of course, I’m sure he’ll be back from his business trip just in time for the reunion” You pleasantly smiled before getting up and cutting up a piece of pink azalea cake for her to take back home, far, far away from you.
Once Peggy’s gone you start your chores, it was always the same, wash John’s clothes and press them, hang them by the door for the next day, then clean the windows, wash the curtains, scrub the floors until they’re shining, and never mop, last time you did your husband almost burned your books. Dust his trophy cabinet, sweep the garage, and finally make dinner and keep it in the oven so it’s warm when your husband comes home.
After finishing everything up to John’s liking, you always end up in your garden, the joy of your life besides a good book.
Your garden wasn’t grand or exotic like the other housewives’ gardens, Peggy would often say it was dull or pitiful or both, but in your eyes, it was precious and full of life. 
From hybrid phlox, peonies, and hydrangeas to blue holly bushes, you took care of them with love and tenderness, your garden was your comfort in your darkest days, sometimes the only thing you looked forward to in your day.
But your roses… they were your most prized possession, every day without fail you tended to them, making sure they were safe and felt cared for, sometimes you would even sing to them, your roses were your babies, you could never forsake them like he did you.
You cried as you fertilized the earth for your youngling, your tears fell on the little sprout right next to the other roses, now in full bloom. 
Your mind wandered 9 years back to when you first married John. You couldn’t fight your mother any longer, for years you rejected any suitor she brought, doctors, lawyers, professors, none of them compared to the one person you truly loved. Despite your mother’s constant denial, you hoped Steve would safely return and finally admit the feelings you knew he had for you, and take you far away… 
But it was a silly fantasy, he never wrote, not once since you said goodbye that September night, so long ago, you hated him for it, you never understood why he abandoned you like that, you only knew he was alive because of the letters he sent to his mother, but his beautiful eyes haunted you at night, and when you didn’t dream of him you resented him for it.
Then your mother arranged a date with John Walker, he was young, easy on the eyes, and set to inherit his grandfather’s sugar company which was said to be a very wealthy prospect. He wasn't particularly sweet or charming but his easy-going smile helped you ease your nerves.
The first thing he did when he saw you was take your hand and plant a kiss on your knuckles, he was sturdy and his posture was always rigid, but he had this suave confidence that made you think he owned the entire world.
He offered stability and comfort when you needed it the most, so you forced yourself to love him, you told yourself that he would be a good husband despite not knowing his faults or even his traits,... Steve wasn't coming back, so you decided to trust your mother's judgment.
The first year of your marriage you came to accept the fact that as hard as you tried, you would never feel the same way for your husband as you did for your best friend, but life with John had become comfortably dull. 
You never thought your life would turn like it did… 
As you adapted to married life, you found out John’s easy going smile was a facade, he was strict and expected certain things of you. To please him in every possible aspect, that was a wife's duty after all, he'd turn mean and a brute if you failed in your duties but if you followed the rules, he would leave you be to read your books and tend to the garden. You learned the hard way if he came home to find his clothes wrinkly or God forbid the floors mopped instead of scrubbed, you would suffer the consequences.. 
Eventually, you learned to appease his ego and keep your head down, your days went out painfully slow, and you would dread every time the hands of the clock slowly approached the time of his return, each day you wondered what new insult John had prepared to make you feel inadequate. 
Thinking his temper would placate once you carried his child was naive, you realize that now. The first time you got pregnant you were ecstatic to love someone with your whole heart and soul, and for your love to be returned, but soon there was nothing to tell.
It was difficult to keep it a secret from your husband, like your mother, he crushed you under his expectations, the weight of them almost unbearable, and both, always made sure you knew the disappointment that you were.
But missing his smell, the comfort he provided, missing Steve was the most painful.
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Tonight was your high school reunion and you couldn’t stop pacing around the living room, it was almost time to leave and you were still waiting for John to come home and change. Given that it was summer, the nights were hotter so you wore a sleeveless, wide-skirt baby-pink dress, adorned with white lace, pearl earrings, and white gloves as the finishing touch.
You were about to call his office when you heard the car park in the driveway. Too anxious to wait for him, you ran outside ready to greet him with a scotch, “Welcome home dear, please hurry, I left your clothes on the bed. If we leave in five minutes no one will noti-”
John slams the car door before you can finish your sentence, “We’re not going” is all he says without sparing you a look, taking the scotch from your hand and drinking it in one gulp.
“Please John, don’t be like this” you protested, “you said we could-”
“For fucks sake!” your husband snapped, his hand hit the hood of his black Chevrolet Impala, making you jump scared, he treated that car like his baby… the alarms in your head cautioned you to choose your words carefully.
“J-John please, be reasonable, let’s go inside I’ll make you another drink” you pleaded, afraid the neighbors would hear you arguing, the street was busy with kids riding their bikes and people coming in and out of their homes.
“You don’t tell me what to do!” he barked out your name like an insult, his body shaking with anger he had to clench his fists, he took a step forward and you recoiled, making him huff in offense.
He took your wrist with force and jerked you towards him, making you tumble on your heels, “Stop being so dramatic” he reprimanded. You didn’t mean to upset him but you didn’t want to go alone, you couldn’t! John had promised weeks ago he would go.
“I fired over 50 of my best workers because they thought they could do whatever they wanted, I will teach you a fucking lesson too if you keep pushing me” he threatened with malice, tears threatened to spill, you didn’t want to look at him but his hand forced your chin up.
You instinctively shook your head, too afraid to even speak, that only fed his ego and in a second he was dragging you through the pavement and into the house, a sick smile displayed on his face. 
“John you’re hurting me” you panicked, holding onto his arms for some support, as he kicked the door close, he dropped you on the carpet of the living room, you almost hit your head against the tube.
Your husband’s chest heaves above you and before he can touch you again you quickly get on your knees with your head looking up, trying your hardest to make eye contact with the man you feared “I’m sorry!” you repeated over and over, the knot in your throat making it painful to speak.
After a long silence, you see his features relax, you’re flabbergasted by his swift change of attitude, his smile slowly widens and you flinch when his fingers wipe a single tear “That’s what I like to hear Sugar”. 
“You know what I think?” he continued,  “You should be at home trying to get pregnant and start our family instead of running off to a party and see some moron you used to be friends with”.
Nausea overwhelmed you at his implication but your mind spun at the mention of Steve, how on earth did he know about him?! Maybe you weren’t as discreet as you thought.
A stabbing pain on your wrist interrupted your thoughts and you reached for it, John comically pouts “I’m so sorry Sugar, work was just so stressful” he sighed while helping you stand up, your scrapped knees shake as you find your balance. You couldn’t be in the same room as him anymore, but your body wouldn’t move, he didn’t like it when you refused to look at him, so he tilted your chin up.
“Tell you what, I’ll let you go to this thing… I know Tony and Peggy will keep an eye on you”, he grinned, pulled you close to him and kissed your forehead, making your body tense.
You desperately wanted to push him off of you, and you almost did, but it wasn’t a good idea to piss him off further, after tonight, you weren’t sure how far your husband’s cruelty could go. 
“I need to call Peggy” stated, your voice meek, too afraid he would change his mind, “so they can come to pick me up” you clarify, taking John’s silence as your cue, you took a hesitant step back, and briskly walked to the phone in the kitchen, thankful you had some space from him.
After the 5th ring, Peggy finally picked up and without getting into the details, you explained to her why you needed a ride to the reunion, to which she reluctantly agreed. As you waited, you cleaned the scrapes on your knees, if you put on stockings no one would notice, you quickly re-did your makeup and hair, and It wasn’t more than 15 minutes when you heard Peggy’s tootle.
You were almost out the door when John called your name, clearly asserting once more his power over you, letting out a shuddery breath, you turned to face him with your chin held high. 
“Get me a beer” he commanded, too entranced with the boob tube to even bother looking at you, the room went quiet and all you could hear was your heart beating in your ears, you knew what he wanted from you. You wondered if you would ever be free of his torment, but the weight of your wedding ring reminded you of your vows…
Till death do us part.
So you plastered on a graceful smile, walked to the kitchen and returned with an opened can to place in his hand, with a smug smirk, he pats your ass, “off you go” he dismissed, and you promptly did.
The ride to the school was silent, Peggy didn’t question your vacant stare or why you kept rubbing your wrist, her mood seemed sour and you had no intention of untwisting that ball of yarn she called a brain.
As you walked in, you barely recognized the halls you used to walk every day, you remember Steve struggling to open his locker, Bucky flirting with anyone who wore a skirt, skipping Gym class so Steve wouldn’t be all alone in detention.
As you walked into the gym, you admired the decorations, balloons scattered all over the floor, red and pink confetti cascading down on everyone, glimmering under the soft light. You recognized some people but there was so much people, you weren’t even sure you went to class with some of them, the party was in full swing, and people danced as the band played your favorite song.
Never thought that you would be 
Standing here so close to me 
There’s so much I feel that I should say
But words can wait until some other day.
                       ♫ ♪
You are as beautiful as the day he lost you, Steve thought, from all the way across the room, you still hadn’t seen him but he saw you the moment you walked into the room, stealing the air from his lungs.
His heart aches so painfully to be near you he swears it could be a heart attack, he was frozen in place afraid that if he moved you’d disappear, he wonders how long it would take for him to win you back…
Something in you compels you to turn around, and when you do, a gasp escapes you… You couldn’t believe your own eyes, for a moment you didn’t recognize him, he was taller and incredibly broad, nothing like the man you saw last a decade ago, his posture was intimidating, but then you met his eyes, and those were the same. He truly was back, and all those emotions you kept under lock broke free, making your legs move forward before you could think, he immediately did too, and suddenly the both of you were running through the crowd to get to each other.
Without hesitation, you crashed into his arms, and he crushed you to him, easily picking you up, he was definitely stronger. Breathing him in, a sob almost escaped your lips, it was still the same after 12 years, the noise around you drowns out and it’s as if the earth stops spinning altogether… “I’m so sorry you lost your mom”, you whimper, it was the first thing you needed to say.
His hold only tightens, making it harder to breathe, memories of his suffocating embrace making you feel warm inside, you grip the nape of his hair for comfort, “I didn’t get to say goodbye” Steve whispers into your neck. Since you can remember, you always hated when he was heartbroken, his pain was your own, you wished you could take it away. 
“I know”, you nod, before he slowly lets you down, making you realize just how much the height difference is, it made you nervous.
His hands settle on your lower back while yours rest on the sides of his shoulders, you’re so close, he’s hunched over and you’re on your tiptoes, just inches away from his lips,  his nose nudges your own for a moment, making the butterflies in your stomach wild, you feel drawn to each other like magnets. Steve’s leaning in, and like a bucket of cold water, you remember the last 12 years, you remembered how easily he abandoned you, breaking every promise he made to you.
You quickly turn your cheek and you can feel his disappointment boring into your head, taking a small step back, you hold his hand tightly, not redy to let him go yet, and you shake your head, silently telling him you couldn’t kiss him. 
The soldier had half a mind to grab and kiss you, remind you of what you meant to each other, after years and oceans apart he never stopped thinking about you. You both knew from the day  you met , you were his, and he wasn’t going to let anyone get in between the two of you ever again.
But before he could say anything, Peggy Carter approached them.
“Well well, look at you two chums getting reacquainted”, her smile was sickenly sweet, but her eyes told you, you were caught… How long had she been watching? you ask yourself as anxiety settles in your stomach, and then your husband’s words ring in your head.
“I know Tony and Peggy will keep an eye on you”.
Your heart beats incessantly against your chest, and your breathing becomes shallow, she was going to tell John, you realized… and you were terrified of what he would do.
To be continued… 
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Thank you for reading! Likes, comments and reblogs are deeply encouraged.
part 🥀🥀
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lostinforestbound · 9 months ago
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I kept thinking about this so I just had to write it out! I also made a little blurb under the cut with a gn!Tav. Let me know your thoughts and feel free to add on!
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Rolan with Early Greying Hair
When he discovers his first grey hair, he's almost devastated.
He's still young, he isn't supposed to greying yet, but it seems the stress of everything he's gone through is catching up.
At first, he started plucking them out when he spots them, willfully trying to ignore the fact he's greying at all. When plucking became a little painful, he tries a little bit of dye instead.
Unfortunately, the dye he used changed the texture of his hair to the point it was noticeable, so he ended up washing it out.
They're more visible on the sides of his temple, so he shifts his hair more loosely in hopes of hiding them.
Of course he's insecure about it! What in the hells will Tav think of it? No doubt they would find it unattractive!
One day, as he shares a bath with them, they finally notice them as they wash his hair.
He feels them gently pull his hair back to get a better look, and he immediately thinks of the worse case scenarios.
He'll speak up, going on a small ramble of how he's tried plucking them out but they keep coming back. He'll promise to find proper dye to hide it better.
He's shocked when he turns his head towards them and see a light blush on their face.
"I actually think it's attractive. Grey looks wonderful on you," They say. He would genuinely think they're joking, but they seem utterly sincere.
Bonus Points: Tav reveals their own gray strands from the stress of their adventure.
The sigh of relief that comes out of his mouth made him realize how tense he was about up until this moment. It embarrasses him how worked up he got over it.
He's still desirable to them; he's always been desirable. He just got too wrapped up in his own anxiety.
Maybe he should stop worrying about how he looks and realize Tav loves him, grey hairs or not. They seem to love the greys, and that's all he needs.
Writing Blurb
Even as Tav massages his shoulders, he can't make himself relax in the hot water he drew up for the both of them.
He's tried everything he could to mask what he identifies as his shame; plucking, dyeing, wearing his hair a different way, but nothing can ever hide the fact that he's greying already.
Gods damn it all, he's still young! At least young enough that greying at his age is strange. His life has been absolute hell, no pun intended, and now it's hitting him with another problem, and he can't catch a break. Of all the hurdles that could possibly be in his way after finally living comfortably, this is the one life decided to throw at him? Absurd! Horrendous!
Tav doesn't know about the greys, and he's worried about them finding out. What if they don't find him attractive because of those pesky hairs refusing to disappear?
He doesn't even notice Tav pausing as they pull his hair back. When he does, he sees them looking at the sides of his temple; his anxiety spikes in that moment. "I've tried plucking them, but they keep on returning," He rambles immediately, trying to salvage Tav's nonexistent disappointment. "The dye I tried almost ruined my hair. I'll look for a better quality one, and then they will-" "Rolan, I love them." Tav interrupts him with a smile, face flushed. The water splashes from how fast he shifts in the basin, staring at them in shock. They continue on, running his fingers through his hair to get a better look and using their other hand to cup his jaw. "Grey looks great on you."
He leans into their palm, sighing. "I thought you would be...I don't know," he says with a small huff, eyes fluttering close. "I find it hot." That makes him bark out a laugh. "Must you always be so vulgar?" "Calling something about you 'hot' is not vulgar! Prude." They tease, kissing his forehead and then his nose, finally landing on his lips afterwards. There will probably be a longer conversation about his previous insecurity when they get to bed, but for now, he knows just how loved he is, greys and all.
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emotsper · 3 months ago
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Hi!!!!!!!!
You’re like the szai person on tumblr, and even tho I’ve been playing proseka for like two years, I still don’t read a lot of the stories………
So as the certified szai tumblr person, since you kinda own the tag, would you like to explain to me why szai is such a popular ship? I really didn’t read much of anything…
Have fun!!
let me be brief (1/350) (no bc its actually gonna be a long ramble. apolocheese.) (also sorry if formatting is awful im a mobile user and I literally just type whatever)
FOR REAL THOUGH. PLEASE JUST DO ME A FAVOR AND READ MMJ MAINSTORY...... not only its a good source of szai cocaina you get to experience the entire mmj mainstory. i was normal before mmj mainstory and i was less normaler after mmj mainstory.
it simply went even more downhill when i read tenshi no clover. genuinely the one event story that first made me cry (second one was ice drop event but thats a bit biased)
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okay now lets get to the main meat of it. szai.
admittedly i was kind of normaler early on but one of my tipping point was Chasing the radiance event especially chapter 7. please read/watch it. please. this specific chapter sent me into my trip of insanity when it comes to szai. it also opened my eye to specific scenes in their side stories/mmj mainsto that i skimmed early on especially bc im a jp only player so fan tls may not be super accurate back then 💔
to start off, airi was a girl that was often made fun of for being tomboyish, and seeing idols for the first time made her feel a glimmer of hope that maybe she can also bring hope to other people. she finally manages to reach her goal and became an idol after several of failed auditions (very deserved especially after her hard work) while shizuku became an idol purely out of luck from the idol grand prix context her friends convinced her to join 😭😭 From the start their relationship feels a little bit doomed with how jealousy is kind of unavoidable from airis side. but against all odds, you get to see airi go to shizuku and cheering her up by giving shizuku her towel and telling her to wipe those tears especially with such a pretty face like hers (MACHINE CLANG CLANG RACK SFX) they are so crazy for this. especially when you realize that shizuku kept the towel until now. (the towel is her area upgrade item)
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from this point, airi thought nothing much of shizuku yet other than her being her new rival (and that shes rly pretty) but shizuku sees airi as her main reason to keep going in this idol stuff at that time, and that was enough.
(okay purely for this next part im forgetting a bit so do remember it may not be fully accurate 🙏)
after training minori for awhile, szai went thru a mini divorce arc where airi was telling minori that being an idol isnt all fun and games and that minori should consider quitting, continuing on with how she flopped in the industry bc she was more popular as a reality show figure. but shizuku disagreed and kept saying how airi was an idol through and through and that she shouldn't have quit, but that just tipped airi off and she shouted at shizuku, unloading all her pent up jealousy that she had for awhile now. iconic as hell scene in the most angsty way possible.
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u can easily tell this wasn't received well by shizuku. at all. airi you done fucked up. shizuku left her idol group the next day.
(addendum i forgot to add. shizuku truly believed that airi was the first and if not, the only person who sees shizuku as shizuku hinomori herself, without all the idol filter that people plastered on her. so when airi admitted that she was jealous w shizuku getting everything good in the industry, that basically broke shizuku. (color of myself is a nice one to read when it comes to this 🙏 also the i am we are event is a crazy good conclusion to shizukus current arc))
at this point airi realizes just how much shizuku was influenced by her past actions without her fully knowing about it. girl you done fucked up.
this scene is still one of the biggest and strongest kryptonite for szai fans. especially with what happens after.
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after confronting shizuku about her choice knowing full well its airis fault, airi, angry at herself, goes immediately to cheerful*days training place (she knows the place since theyve kinda shared the spot iirc) while the rest of mmj follows. she started threatening arisa and almost threw punches but she held back and told the rest of cheerful*days that shizuku is more of an idol than everyone in the room (i may be hallucinating this one. do lmk)
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they finally leave the place, and both apologies to each other. at the same time, they both admitted that they were each others idol
and then shizuku goes to tackle hug airi. what the queer
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that only concludes the mainstory section btw. upon realizing it may be too much of a recap instead of actual explanation ill be brief w the rest of it (keep in mind i dont read EVERY szai story, just ones i was made aware of bc im playing on jp and story content is a bit harder to see/consume)
Main szai crazies for szai fans
1. chasing the radiance ch7. airi yet talks again about how shizukus hands are slender and elegant while hers are short and chubby (she compared her hands to a manju) and shizuku was mad at her about this and went on a long tangent about how airis gentle hands were the ones who pushes minori and shizuku forward when they think they couldn't.
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this is probably the fifth time ive read this story and it still gets me. i hate these fruitsssss. please read the full chapter ive linked it near the start this chapter is so special to me.
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2. my ideal idol (airi 5, jp only event for now)
Bro i Dont Even Know What Else To Say. Just Look At This Card
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but if we're being serious . lets talk about this one specific card and the story shall we.
this card was a blast to the past; pre-mmj szai again.
we start off with present mmj getting ready for their turn in the joint performance with a new junior idol group that they were paired with. airi was a bit nervous and shizuku noticed it. so she offered to do something that would hopefully lessen the nervousness for both of them. shizuku softly puts her head on airis back and whispered several word of encouragements. shizuku reminisces to the past.
pre-mmj szai. shizuku was very nervous as she was waiting for her first performance ever as an idol. airi was also there, and it was going to be her first too. airi shows up to say hi to shizuku but she noticed that shizuku was really nervous and at the verge of crying. airi knew she had to do something and told shizuku to turn around, shizuku did. shizuku lets out a little surprised yelp as she feels airis hands and head pressing against her back. she could hear airi muttering some encouragement but we never get to hear what the words were, only that shizuku thought about how warm airis hands were. (i need to be euthanized)
back to the present, shizuku says that she hopes that this gesture can somehow "repay" for what airi did to her back then. i think im losing it. sorry
OKAY IM DONE IM DONE ITS ALMOST 1 AM MY BRAIN IS NOT GOING TO WORK ANYMORE IF I KEEP TYPING..... my brain can handle so little. anyways i hope this wall of text ramble can convince u to read mmj mainsto and consume more mmj stories........ i admit its not perfect or whatsoever bc i haven't read the mmj mainstory for awhile and i have a wee memory issue thats paired with my deafness so. yeah. enjoy. haha.
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lotusarchon · 1 month ago
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As I have the app around, I may as well just dive into this before disappearing again. To the people in my post a few days prior and in my dms, I promise I'm not ignoring any of you, but I genuinely can't muster the energy to speak to anyone else currently. I'm only here currently because someone found my unmentioned hetalia account, which I left unmentioned for a reason...you know who you are...you scared me...😭
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Ah, okay well. If you're not aware of who I am, hi. I'm a dude that wrote fanfiction for this fandom I got pulled into. A year ago I had a few different accounts but I had to delete every single one just because I kept getting harassed, from one thing to another. I'm hoping I don't have to do it again this time around.
I haven't gone offline as anyone thought. I did attempt to take my life (twice, 2024 is something else) but in the end it didn't work out, so I've been hiding in my secret account to relax in hetalia for a bit. In between that I've also been stalking the account myself since it showed up just to see what it was up to, and...oh wow that's a lot.
This specific account has been on my ass like a tick since..two days ago. Two days of my 'supposed' death.
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I've also recently found out that someone else who was pretending to be a friend of my friend's and a concerned citizen happened to be friends with them;
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And hence why I chose not to reemerge my head back then yet. It turns out there's a few people who may have been following me who are acquainted with these people and...yeah, I didn't want to take the risk. I'm hoping no one is going to inform them I'm not actually dead―I blocked both accounts to avoid being noticed.
There's a lot of yapping I'm gonna be doing so expect a lot of that, BUT piece of advice to anyone that actually cares: do not engage with either blog. Don't send them hate mail, don't go gloating that I'm not actually dead, and don't fucking yap about anything. These blogs went as far as to harass my friends who have no part in this, and they also wrote nsfw of my adult oc and my friend who is a fucking minor. Do. Not. Engage. With. Them. Please!! Block, block, block. Just block them! They're actively going out of their way to harass and stalk MINORS.
Under the cut, I am rambling more on personal feelings rather than doing this professionally. I'm still pretty moody actually and well yeah...
Trigger Warning for some topics below!
Okay uh. I've never done this before so excuse me while I put this in question format lmfao..
"Why aren't you dead!?"
Joke answer; god doesn't want me.
Long answer: I'm not the type of person who says something like that ...like that. I really was intending to go through with it, but evidently I was too tired from crying and fell asleep. I figured that I couldn't handle people fucking around with me and hid in my secret blog. Hetalia fandom is so nice for a fandom about countries. Point blank sorry to burst many of your bubbles, but I'm not dead yet. Put the birthday canon away, slut. I'll die next season.
"What the fuck did you even do?"
Exist.
No okay, realistically it's a lot. I'm not going to play the victim here's and I'm not going to lie to people and say "oh hey my mental illness/trauma made me do that" because that's bullshit. I'm also not diving too deep into any explanations just because my hands hurt..but also I don't want to remember anything less I have another panic attack.
A year ago I met this girl who became my friend over a fandom. We chatted, but I fucked our friendship up when I lashed out at her and another friend wrongfully because of my own stress. While I did beg one of them to stay, the chick that runs kokomichanstuff, Mariin, I ended the friendship with her just because I knew what I did was bad. There really aren't any excuses for that. I don't think anyone should have to deal with anyone else's bad attitude regardless of mental health or not. I didn't bother to keep Mariin around because I did bad, and no amount of apologies would fix it. She already said she wouldn't forgive me, so I knew it made no sense to keep up a facade. I genuinely had no idea she would've been mad that I begged one person to stay but not her, even though she expressed not wanting to be my friend. I also don't remember truly if what I did was enough to earn THIS type of harassement, but I'll take it as divine punishment. But basically, over and over again Mariin has stalked me and found a way to harass me. According to the posts she made, she's made a new friend I (sadly) hurt who wants..revenge. Hooray.
Mariin's already namedropped them so um, yeah, I hope it's okay to mention them?? . Neveah was someone I also hurt really badly by bullying and lashing out at her out of jealousy over something ridiculously dumb in my old server and account. I confronted her later on apologizing but specifically also adding that she didn't need to forgive me because I messed up. Long story short, she claimed she had forgiven me.... but then went to her friends (Mariin mentioned) Geno, Toga etc to badmouth me, including sharing sensitive information I sent to her. Neveah's friend Geno made a post mocking me which I found and responded poorly too, and then more drama escalated from there because literally every single one of Neveah and Geno's friends came to bombard me, sent me hate mail and surprise, Mariin took the chance to come back. I don't know how the fuck those two (Mariin and Neveah) managed to speak, but sometime later a few accounts appeared that went after people who were once associated with me or used to be associated with me. A few days ago the account made supposedly by Neveah made a post accusing me of being a r*pist, groomer and pedophile and yeah. That went badly.
Uh. Wow this is a mouthful. But. Yeah, I'm...not really a good person, and these things are just embarrassing and..ick. I hate myself for the shit I pull. But, I will say, while I can accept Mariin harassing me like this, the other parties just...genuinely could've handled this better than what they did to me. It really wouldn't have been so hard to ask me instead of listening to one side, but maybe that's me. Regardless, I admit I was wrong. I just..I'm not happy other people are getting involved.
"Why didn't you just say something sooner instead of all that nonsense? Wasn't that too dramatic?"
Sadly it was, but I don't think any of you understand when I say that I CAN'T. I can't say anything because it's just me, me, me. It's just me, and people aren't going to believe me. They never do. When that shitshow happened with Neveah, everyone was blaming me. Even up till recently, someone in my current server told me I was the one who overreacted over getting bullied and harassed. I'm not mentioning them here but holy fuck, that shit hurt. The anons coming in my inboxes telling me "people are offering you advice and you don't want it", it fucking hurts. It genuinely hurts because every single time I try to speak up against anything, or stand up for myself, I'm the one who's in the wrong.
Geno, Neveah, Mariin, fucking Toga and Deja and the entire fucking crew. They're never the ones who get wronged, and they haven't lost anything. Even when Mariin's account gets deleted, she's fine. She has people that actually fucking listens to her, all of them do.
I don't. There's no one aside from the few friends I have who would actually listen to me and not just immediately jump at me, and I'd rather just not have them involved in anymore drama that revolves around me.
Yeah, holy shit, maybe attempting to kill myself from the stress was overbearing but you guys have no fucking idea what it's like. Every time, every time I make a report or say something, I'm the one who's told I'm at fault. It's either, "You're don't look like a child, it's not their fault they want to touch you," or, "You overreacted," or, "Maybe you shouldn't have said anything," or even, "You're so ungrateful, I'm trying to help you."
It. fucking. Sucks. It. SUCKS. Its terrifying that regardless if it's my real life or on the internet, no one listens, no one cares and the one who's left hurting is Ali because who fucking cares. Who gives a shit right?
"....did you try to kill yourself over Nezha?"
Everything started with Nezha, and I'm not even fucking kidding. I don't remember how I met Mariin but I knew for a fact it was something about him. And when we broke our friendship off, I got attacked a LOT about his age. I want to pretend that maybe it was all Mariin, but with how things are, I don't doubt for a second this fucking fandom were jumping me for a character who already has a confirmed age.
I could tell you that I was just stressed about Mariin, but that'd be a lie. Everywhere I go with this fandom, I'm always getting hassled about Nezha's age. From the beginning I was already stressed, because I continuously kept getting anon after anon calling me names and accusations for a fictional fucking character.
I don't deny that Mariin didn't have a part to play. She most definitely made things worst for me with using Nezha to slander me further. It's just my luck that the people in this fandom are idiots that'll listen to anything anyone says.
Think of it this way; the pot was near burning on the stove, it just needed some more fuel.
"Why didn't you just listen to the anons?"
Sighs
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Mind you, this was supposedly when I was DEAD. Trust me, I've had far worst flooding my inboxes. Before it was about Nezha's age. Recently, it was to kill myself and the accusations.
I'm not saying the advice was ever bad. But the anons were strangers for all I care who had no idea what the fuck was happening. I've tried blocking anons before, I also went to far lengths to ignore them, but there's only so much I can take. Every day, day in day out on any blog I've made, ever since I started writing for Nezha, I've been receiving dozens and dozens of hate I've had to delete constantly. Not even counting the ones that just randomly told me to die!!
"just ignore them" I'm not a child. I. know. I know, I know, I've been trying, but when people don't respect my boundaries and don't even bother to listen when I say I've done it, how do you think I'm going to feel?
"oh but you should put that as your trigger then it's not their fault" oh yeah, "hey everyone 🥺 when people don't listen to me I cry". How do you think it'll sound? Plus, why should I need to add that when I wasn't expecting anyone to actually act like this on the internet to begin with?!
"Why don't you just move to a different platform then if the hate is that bad?"
Ignoring Mariin for a bit, even if I were to go into another platform to write fanfiction (and I highly doubt there's many I'll feel comfortable in), why should I, and what makes you think the hate will stop there?
AO3 is a place where THE worst people write porn. And you wouldn't believe that I've had to delete quite a number of assholes on there for Nezha's age. Don't mention Twitter where the nonsense started about his age, and don't bring in bluesky because there's a word limit and I'm not limiting myself to that. Even Wattpad has them yelling about Nezha's age. WATTPAD!! Genuinely what makes you think I'll be safe anywhere I go?
I hate Tumblr but this account is my safe space from reality at this point. It used to be the place that made me not want to die. Just because you guys are jerks, why should I need to go?
This also goes back to Mariin and the harassers. Even in my fake death I can't know peace. If I were to move out, wouldn't she get to live her life peacefully while I'm miserable trying to understand a place I don't want to be in?
"Then just leave the LMK fandom!"
Again, why should I? LMK is my comfort show. I genuinely enjoy writing for silly legos, and I also love learning about things I didn't know about before. Why should I have to leave just because the fandom is filled with jerks? Why don't you guys just leave instead if you're butthurt about anyone daring to speak an opinion?
"The accusations-!"
Are lies.
I was r*ped before. Why would I find any pleasure r*ping anyone else? How does one even do that through online?
I was groomed online and assaulted in real life. Why would I think of hurting another human being, most less a child, like that when I still can't even read anything that correlates to it? Why would I find any of those things pleasing?
I turned 18 in 2024. It's not an excuse and I've been doing my best to not interact with minors, or at the very least avoid speaking about topics that are inappropriate for them. Even though I still forget I'm an adult on occasion, I know better than to pull up on my younger friends and start talking about nsfw. I've only ever spoken weirdly to my adult friends.
I recently saw someone comment on the account that I'm Islamphobic/don't support Palestine, so that makes me problematic. I grew up in an Islamic family, I have trauma with that specific religion (inclu. Hinduism and Christianity, long story). I don't interact with anything regarding religion if I can and I also don't judge someone based on their religion. I judge you based on how you speak to me. If you have a weird icon, I don't like you, if you speak weirdly, I don't like you. Additionally, I'm the type of person who feels guilty for making someone upset. I can't support myself, most less for others. No, I don't agree with genocide but it's genuinely too much for me to keep up with.
And finally, how the fuck is liking a character who's an adult make me a proshipper? Jesus Christ again with Nezha. I hate this.
"You have no proof!"
Of course I don't. I don't keep bad memories around. I wouldn't have remembered my own childhood if I didn't get triggered about it. I block bad memories out. Many interactions I've had that are bad, I delete. I don't think about saving, I delete.
Even interactions with friends I usually delete because it's just weird not seeing a blank space. I don't hate them but leaving a spot full feels weird.
I don't have any proof I'm none of the accusations but neither does Mariin, to be frank. So if you chose to believe her because you just genuinely don't like me, good for you, but you look like sheep being led by a drunk shepherd. Either you'll end up in a slaughterhouse and starve, your pick.
I'm not going to say, "Oh ask my minor friends!" Because...they're kids. I feel horrible my friend got roped into this to begin with, the last thing I want is for anyone else be involved when they barely know shit.
Yeah, rambled a bit. I didn't want too but I got carried away, whoops.
This is the only post I want to make about this issue. Don't bring it up, don't uhh, don't mention me to the account, and please just allow me to rest in peace. I just want to write and feel free, not deal with this shit, okay?
Also. Please stop involving my friends into beef you have with me. It's really not their fault they have to deal with someone like me.
Goodbye. I'm deleting the app again until I return. Adios
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dollya-robinprotector · 1 year ago
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FINALLY! DOLLYA CONCEPT
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I'll have a little look back and remember how I came up with this current Sona design. The me of 2021 definitely would look at this and go "WTF???". When I search and place old drawings side by side for comparison, It's really been a process of changing my perspective on myself and constantly finding what I want.
It'll be very random and full of my old drawings, so if you don't mind a little rambling, welcome to go under the cut and go back in time with me!
Let's start with this design. As you can clearly see it was based on how I actually look irl, from the outfit, hairstyle to make-up.
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Tbf this was not my first attempt to create a Sona, but it was a huge milestone because it's 2018, the year I got into my dream Art university and left home. My style completely changed, and this Sona showed it perfectly.
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I drew this with my fingers, on my broken phone, to enter a Vietnamese clothes design competition, where we modernized some traditional clothes. What I did here is a modernized Nhật Bình. I won and got my design made into real clothes and sent to me. I'm still proud of it to this day XD
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It was fun! I draw her almost daily, like how I do with Lya and Lyah in this blog. I used her to make friends with other artists. I even created a gender-bent version for her : D
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But the uni life was stressful, especially when I entered my third year and tried to escape my parents' grasp. They were furious and threatened me, I started working extra and do commission to pay for my own living and rent, lessons were hard, and homework and projects were pilling,... As a result, I often use my sona to stress draw.
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It didn't help much, my anxieties and insecurities kept adding to the molten fire inside me, and my overthinking got worse day by day.
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But then at some point, I decided to separate myself from that sona. She turned into one of my many OCs, maybe more special but I no longer see my entire self in her anymore.
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I have to thank my two besties for that. They pulled me out of my darkest moments and stayed with me. They remain to be my only two most important people in this whole world.
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I started to "reuse" the sona appearance into creating many other OCs for many other fandoms I joined (Cookierun, HnK, FGO, KnY, Genshin,...). I had fun jumping between different styles lol.
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The idea for the current design started to take shape when one day I drew her wearing a white delicate dress (I usually just do red) and a see-through sleep dress I just bought.
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Something started clicking.
Then I became an assistant for an Ero Artist. Yup. I started to be exposed to more "sexy" character designs and tbh I just love those. I love drawing female characters already, but there's something something about cute and sexy girls in lingerie... If you know what I mean.
The design slowly became clearer. Cute and pristine-white, see-through lingerie, with little four petals flowers, and little bows, perfect.
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The details still varied. They depended on the style I was using or my mood, whether I wanted to go into details or not. That's the fun of drawing your own design, let's keep it.
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And here we are~ Maybe it's still not final, but I'm happy with it, and that's enough for me now!
If you've been reading this far, thank you and congratulations! I will send you a kiss and wish you a good day~~ Hope you're having fun scrolling on my blog~
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swearyshera · 1 year ago
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Thank you!
This may end up being a long, rambly post because I'm a little emotional. But bear with me.
I am so incredibly thankful for all the love you've sent this week, and it humbles me to realise how much this silly little parody blog meant to people. Thank you for reading, liking, reblogging, commenting, asking, going absolutely unhinged in the tags... I read them all, and they've spurred me to keep going through 32 months, over 5000 posts, 40GB of screenshots and the wildest, most brilliant time of my life.
I'd love to thank people individually, but there's so many of you that I would inevitably miss someone out and that seems unfair! But I will say a special thank you to the She-Ra Uncut team, who I'm proud to consider some of the greatest friends I've made through this fandom, and whether we make many wonderful things, or never make anything again, I hope we can consider each other friends for life.
(Sob story time, feel free to skip!) In 2015, I had a huge breakdown. I was off work for 8 months, in hospital for a week, had therapy twice a week for a year... It was fucking awful. And though I got better, I never really felt like I had a reason to, and that I was just treading water until the darkness came back with vengeance. Then, as She-Ra ended, I made some silly posts that ended up as Etheria Nine-Nine, which led me onto what would become Sweary She-Ra. I had no idea how much this would change my life.
The response to this blog led me to write a script for a She-Ra Uncut trailer, and I loved it. I wrote more and developed a love for the craft, that I wanted to continue. It became a joy, and gave me a dream for the first time I could remember. So I kept writing, I kept learning and improving. In September 2022, I was sat in the Lowry theatre in Salford surrounded by the laughter of an audience watching a play that I wrote. That was the most incredible feeling of my life.
And I wouldn't have had that without thinking "Catra should be allowed to say fuck".
So while, it may be over (and it was pointed out to me that Sweary She-Ra ran for longer than the actual show did!), it's hopefully not the end. I'm very keen to make an audio sequel if I can, maybe several, and I'm not going to disappear into the ether. And hey, I don't know what the future will bring.
But there is a future.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you, everyone.
Alice.
(PS - Hi Crew-Ra, if you're reading this as I maybe suspect one or two of you may be. I am sorry but also not sorry, but also hire me when the strikes are over 😁. Thank you for making She-Ra, I love you!)
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theamazingdigitalraceway · 2 months ago
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I have a fic request…a new racer enters (or an NPC gone rouge) and immediately starts taking a liking to Caine and giving him all the attention he ever wants…he doesn’t realize he’s neglecting Pomni and isn’t spending time with her anymore…When he finally does have time to spend with Pomni, she ignores him and runs off to her room sobbing…he then realizes how much he hurt her and how he needs to make things right, because he truly does love her
ATTENTION SPAN
A RACEWAY AU ONESHOT
WARNING: hurt/comfort, jealousy, angst
~~~
"Congratulations on becoming a racer, Loo!" Ragatha cheered.
Loo adjusted her hot pink gloves over the stark white tracksuit with pink stripes down the sides. She gave a twirl, feeling stylish and ready to race. "Thank you, darling! And thank YOU." She pointed to the floating Racemaster.
Caine looked behind him, realizing a second too late that she was talking to him. He pointed to himself. "Hm?"
Loo laughed. "Yes, you, silly. Thank you for letting me be part of the races! It's going to be so much fun! You did a wonderful job on this suit, by the way. Very-" She swings her long leg up into the air and braces it against the wall. "Flexible."
Ragatha just about fainted. Caine bashfully tugged his collar. "It wasn't anything, really. Tracksuits are pretty easy to make. I'm glad you like it, though. Welcome to the races!"
Pomni was a silent witness to all of this, and didn't think anything of the interaction. Loo was cool and more competition was always welcome.
~
It was after Loo's first race that Pomni thought things were starting to get weird. Loo came in fourth but celebrated like she had won gold. While there was nothing inherently wrong with that, Loo was a bit...heavy handed about her fun time on the track. She was practically gushing about every detail.
Caine had never been so proud of a track in his life. He almost couldn't believe the praise. "You're being too nice to me....but I won't stop you."
"Heehee! Well, the looping track that rotated into the ball pit? Inspired. That's probably been my favorite mechanic so far." Loo rambled on about each track piece, even if she didn't have much to say about it.
Pomni just rolled her eyes. "Okay, Caine was getting the praise hea always wanted. Good for him or whatever. It's not a big deal." She tried to talk away the burning jealousy that started to brew.
~
Loo talking Caine up after every race became a regular thing. Pomni could no longer deny the hurt when SHE would win a race, but Caine would only stick around long enough to give her the prize and leave. He had important project discussions with Loo to get to.
"Wait, I thought I was helping you with tracks?" Pomni asked, concerned.
"You have! But Loo has been giving me some really great feedback and I have a few adjustments to make. Shouldn't be long!" Caine vanished without giving Pomni a chance to respond.
No one's ever assisted Caine other than her. What he was happier with her..? Intrusive thoughts of heartbreak wormed their way into her mind.
~
The final straw was a missed date. Caine had promised to make up for missed time, but...he never showed up. Pomni knew where he was. His workshop. Likely getting lost in Loo's attention. She didn't care anymore. If Caine found someone better to be around, who was she to stand in his way. She retreated to her room, locking the door and refusing to answer to anyone.
That night, Caine returned Loo to the garage after a project ran late. "Sorry to get you back here so late. I didn't expect the booster generator to short out like that. I hope Ragatha isn't upset that I kept you busy."
"Don't worry about a thing, dear. Ragatha is very understanding. Besides, we're going to have a picnic date after tomorrow's race, so I can make it up to her then. Have a good night!" Loo left towards Ragatha's room.
"Goodnight! Have fun on your date!" He rested his hands on his hips. He was so happy to be in good graces with even more racers. Maybe things were getting better after all. His racers were such good spirits, they were finding romance like him and Pomni. "Wait... weren't we supposed to... OH SUGAR HONEY ICED TEA!!"
Caine flew up to Pomni's room and knocked repeatedly. "Pomni? Pomni?? You in there?? Po-"
Pomni threw open the door, her face contorted with anger and stained with tears. "What the [%$#!] do YOU want? Get bored of your new girlfriend already?"
"My new-?? No! Pomni, I'm so sorry I missed our date. It completely slipped my mind. Loo and I were-"
"Oh, I know exactly what you were doing. Spare me the [%#$!] details." Pomni hissed and tried to slam the door on Caine's face.
Caine held the door open. "Pomni, wait! She was just helping me design a new track feature! It really wasn't supposed to take that long! The glitches have gotten worse. Frustrating, at the very least."
"What a convenient excuse." Pomni said coldly.
Caine felt like she just stabbed him. "I really am sorry. Please, let me make it up to you. I beg of you."
"It's not just the date, Caine. You've been straight up ignoring me. Loo has you wrapped around her little finger because she strokes your ego. Did you design her to do that? Feed into your insecurities? Get out of my door, Caine. I don't want to see you right now."
Caine's eyes twitched subtly. "If that's what you want..." He backed off and let Pomni shut the door. He stared at her insignia for a long while. He didn't know what to do with himself. How has he let it go so far out of hand?
Pomni leaned against her door and sank to the floor, curling her knees to her chest. She didn't mean to tear into him so hard, anger and jealousy poisoned her words. She stayed there the whole night, unable to sleep.
~
Caine kept his distance from everyone. It was like the races were before Pomni showed up. He announced a race. A race was run. Humans to the garage. He has gotten too close and it hurt, but he was still determined to find a way to at least smooth things out with Pomni.
Caine brushed off compliments from Loo. She really was heavy handed with them...was Pomni right? HAD he made someone overly complimentitive? He didn't mean to.
He missed Pomni terribly. Not just her words; but her laugh, her banter, her cleverness. She wasn't just someone that told him things he wanted to hear. She was a person. She has her own fire that warmed his closed soul. Don't even get him started on her touch. Her kiss could send him spiralling into the void if he wasn't careful.
~
Caine hovered alongside Pomni as she walked away from the day's race. "Congratulations on second place, you REALLY gave Jax a run for his money."
Pomni ignored Caine. She still wasn't feeling particularly social.
Caine flipped over Pomni's head and flew backwards, upside down in front of her. "Come on, I'm trying here. I really want things to go back to the way they were between us. Loo is a friend. Those are good, right? She was never meant to replace you or anyone else."
Pomni stopped walking, glaring into Caine's pleading eyes. "You expect me to just let go of what you did?"
"Well-"
"Look, as much as I appreciate the effort here, I'm still mad at you."
"How can I make you un-mad at me?" He asked genuinely.
Pomni sighed. "Not letting your need for constant praise override our relationship, for one. I get that you work hard on these tracks, I really do, but understand that everyone here is...tired. Tired in ways you won't understand."
"...Are you tired of me?" Caine asked quietly.
Pomni's stubborn resolve broke. "No. I didn't even want to say those things to you...you just...what you did hurt me..."
Caine righted himself, taking Pomni's hand with both of his. "I never meant for that to happen. You mean more to me than anyone or anything else in this world. I'm in love with you Pomni. Empty words could never take me away from you. I'm sorry I got so distracted."
"It's okay for you to hang out with Loo, really. You two got along so well. Just, don't forget about me."
Caine cupped her cheek and leaned in, his voice a low whisper. "Never."
Pomni threw her arms over his shoulders and pressed a long kiss to his bottom teeth. Caine caught her in his arms and kissed her back.
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crowandthefics · 4 months ago
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Yet another Ethan/Drew siblings fic because it’s the only thing I can write apparently
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Ethan and drew walked behind the rest of the Hermes cabin, having still not been claimed. It was nearing the end of their first summer so they were babbling on and on about how they’re gonna wreck havoc for their father.
“Do you think there’ll be funfettie cake at dinner?” Ethan asked his sister.
“Mmm funfettie, I hope,” drew responded.
Cabin 11 took their spot in the dining pavilion. Drew and Ethan sat on the edge together. They were arguing about senseless things as siblings do.
That was until drew had gotten on a ramble about makeup. She didn’t even notice the glowing dove above her head or the change of clothes and makeup that had suddenly appeared until Ethan interrupted her.
“Uh, Drewdrop, I think you’re being claimed,” Ethan said.
Drew paused and looked up, then seemed to notice her clothes. “Oh my gods! Wait- why aren’t you..?” She trailed off but Ethan got the point. Everyone was looking in their direction.
Chiron stood up. “All hail Drew Tanaka, daughter of Aphrodite.” He gave his normal claiming line.
After dinner Silena helped Drew move her stuff to the Aphrodite cabin. Ethan stood on the porch of cabin 11 watching as his sister moved cabins. It felt wrong for people who barely knew Drew to call her their sister. Drew was Ethan’s sister?
People started to forget that Drew and Ethan were siblings because Ethan was clearly not a son of Aphrodite. Even separating the last name Tanaka-nakamura. Which annoyed the two to no end.
As time went on they became more and more annoyed at how the cabins were separated so much. They could hardly do anything together because of it.
Finally the end of summer came around, it went by a lot slower when they were separated.
Drew and Ethan sat together by the old farm road waiting for their father to get there.
“Well that last month sucked.” Drew sighed.
“You don’t say,” Ethan replied.
“They kept calling me their sister. I’m not their sister! I hardly know them!” Drew exclaimed.
“It’s so- weird! Why do they insist on separating the cabins so much?” Ethan asked.
“I don’t know but I don’t like it,” Drew sighed.
“Look! It’s dad!” Ethan pointed to a car coming up the road. He stood up and offered a hand to his sister to help her up.
Their father pulled up and stopped. Drew and Ethan put their stuff in the car and climbed in the car’s backseat. Excited to go home again.
They spent the car ride rambling and excitedly talking.
When they got home, there was a funfettie cake sitting in the kitchen. Dre didn’t notice because she was distracted by talking about clothes but Ethan did.
“Drew shut up there’s cake!” Ethan gasped.
Drew dropped her luggage on the floor and ran to kitchen. Their father laughed. “Yeah, I figured that would be how you children react. After you eat go put your stuff away.”
Etha nodded. “Ok!! Thank you dad!”
Drew nodded as while, though she was distracted by the cake in her mouth
Overall a pretty happy family. Such a rarity for half bloods.
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I think drewdrop is such a silly nickname I love it
Happy siblings:D
I actually wrote not angst!
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jewish-vents · 5 months ago
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Being ethnically Jewish, adopted by goyim, and only connecting to my heritage and my culture as an adult was hard enough considering I became an adult in 2016. Since then my dad has become a full-blown conspiracy theorist, Trump supporter, and rabid Islamophobe. He's gotten involved in this weird offshoot of Evangelicals who think nothing bad can happen to "the Jews" (he NEVER calls us Jewish people, or people at all) so according to him there is no rise in antisemitism. Things have been like this forever. There is no rise in hate crimes or hate speech. The CIA, FBI, NSA, NAACP, and Jews are all lying or mistaken because his conspiracy buddies say so.
I get called slurs and babykiller and pedophile every day when I go to work on campus. (Apparently goyim think we lick babies' private parts? Their kinks baffle me.) My coworkers make pointed remarks or talk about hoping Hamas wins and look at me just daring me to get offended or fight them or report them to the department head, who they and I both know would side with them. I am taking care of my disabled father and my newfound stray-who-chose-me dog, I have been repairing the attic and spare room because my sister and her daughter have to move in at the end of the month due to their rent being hiked up suddenly, and I am recovering from having a bleeding ulcer back in December, during which I lost over half the blood in my body.
And added onto all of this work, I can't even come home to peace and quiet. I come home to more and more conspiracy garbage. My adoptive dad was always emotionally abusive and has untreated Bipolar Disorder. He's never been kind to me. But now he's dehumanizing me, saying things like "the Jews and people" as if those are separate categories, rambling about "the mystery of the Jews" which appears to be how we survived if people actually hated us (which is apparently in question), and constantly, consistently, repeatedly talking about the Holocaust. I got up to get peanut butter for breakfast because I'm so busy that breakfast is two spoons of peanut butter and I couldn't even get that this morning without being told actually, it's Jewish people's fault for dying during the Holocaust because they knew it was coming and could've gotten out.
I'm a bad person.
I snapped. I just started screaming. Not words, not even syllables, just full-body, loud, long screams to drown out everything he said. I screamed until my voice gave out and then I clamped my hands over my ears, shut my eyes and waited until I had enough breath to bolt for my room, throw on non-pajama clothes, and went to work. I can't take it. I can't take this. I can't deal with this. I didn't apologize and I'm not going to because if I do I might have to hear more of it and it's too much. When I was a kid he used to get angry and refuse to talk to me for days, sometimes weeks. I am actively begging Hashem to let that happen because I just can't take this anymore.
I'm 24. I'm not even 30 yet and I feel ancient. Childhood feels like a half-remembered dream. I don't remember what it was like to feel safe anymore. I had a fine day at work because I've started... I don't think it's exactly dissociating? I imagine myself as a main character in a video game narrating the contents of a visual novel. 'Angry Coworker #2 is overly dramatic. You wonder how much of it is performance,' I narrate to myself in the second person, eating lunch, 'and how much, if any, of her emotion is genuine. She is giving a 2012 early YouTube caliber performance. Your smile should look appropriately strained so she thinks her attempt has succeeded, lest she escalate to full-on theatrics.'
This cannot be healthy. But the last therapist I had just taught me to feel guilty for thinking about the part or things I can't control because that means I have only myself to blame for feeling bad. The therapist before that I caught zoning out on me mid-session and totally not paying attention. The one before that kept telling me that the things that stress me out don't actually effect me and I was self-victimizing because the rest of the world doesn't "have" to effect me.
I am coming apart at the seams. I am consistently narrating my own life in the second person and not eating dinner because then I'd have to encounter my father and working on something because if I work I don't have to think. I don't know how long I can keep going like this. If I ever scream at work like I did at home, I'd be fired, and pretty rightfully so.
I'm so tired. I can't deal with everything. I can't kill myself because there's too much work to do, too many people depending on me. I can't keep patiently gritting my teeth and listening to another hot take on "the Jews" every morning. I just want to sleep. I just want to lay in bed and forget about everything. I can't do this anymore. I also have to.
.
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whipped-for-kpop-fics · 3 months ago
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hi hi i am here because i have not been able to get Dark out of my mind since reading it yesterday as it has ruined my life in the best way possible and i come bearing questions if you don’t mind lol
loved watching the gradual loss of humanity in reader but also, did you have a certain like, way of that happening or was it a bit more up to the readers interpretation? reading it i felt like that feeling you described everytime the reader walked by the woods may be it if not a part of that but just wanted to see what you originally had in mind whilst writing it
it was so interesting seeing all that unfold though, even in the beginning and how it’s already so, dark and then the gradually intensity of it occur. i loved reading it sm, the entire fic really.
also! seokmin! what happens to him now 😭 does hannie still have him under his control or is he just, gone. now that jeonghan has the reader and all
Me just giggling to myself reading the "ruined my life part" hehehe i love chaos and fucking with people
Okay so lemme try to explain this but please have patience because honestly I was just working with vibes and vague ideas throughout the whole writing process so I have not actually ever wrote this down or explained it, and I'm not even sure I really thought it all through properly ngl lol
Right so reader moved to the new place a few months back and it's close enough to the woods that Jeonghan spotted them and instantly decided he wanted to eat them, like literally entirely consume. But Jeonghan can't leave the woods so he had to try to use his monstery mind control type thing to lure reader into the woods. It didn't work.
At least, not at first. Jeonghan kept jumping into reader's mind at every chance he could to wear them down and it worked, though not when reader was awake. Jeonghan could only lure reader when it's the middle of the night (at it's darkest) and his powers are strongest because idk maybe reader was just mentally stronger with instincts that worked well enough to tell them to keep the fuck away from the woods and not even look in that direction. Which was good because the eyecontact makes Jeonghan's powers stronger and almost impossible to ignore his lure.
Anyway, basically(I say knowing I'm about to ramble even more) those scenes about reader being in the dark that seem like dreams, yeah, no, they had just fallen prey to Jeonghan's lure and had climbed out of their window every night which is why it was always open in the morning.
Jeonghan was so intruiged by their strong mind and at first, reader was a challenge he wanted to beat and was determined to lure them during the day when their will is strongest and his powers weakest. And then he just became enamoured and no longer wanted to eat reader but claim them as his own and his companion for all eternity.
Jeonghan had actually lured Seokmin before in order to spy on reader through Seokmin's mind but the poor dude didn't know and had entirely forgotten. Then the day came that Seokmin asked for reader's number and Jeonghan got posessive and so he stole Seokmin away and essentially tortured him for a while and fully took over his will. So now Seokmin is basically Jeonghan's slave and Jeonghan can use him to move in the day and away from the woods, which will help Jeonghan lure people in to eat much easier!
I hope that all made sense and answered your questions! I am very aware I cannot get to the point and just ramble a lot but that's just how my brain works so lol, sorry if it's all a bit of a mess to you
I'm really glad you liked the story so much, though! And to actually send an ask with your thoughts and questions, that really means a lot to me! I appreciate it 💗
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bluehoodiewoozi · 1 year ago
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DRABBLE MARATHON #4:
LEE JENO + autumn leaves
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1,4k words /// genre: fluff /// warnings: adult language.
In which he confesses as autumn leaves fly by.
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The swing set in the park became your spot somewhere in the middle of your 2nd year. It was on an old playground, barely lit by a single yellow lamp post. Most parts of the playground looked too rusted to be safe, but the swing set hadn’t broken even once in all your months of visiting it.
Jeno always met you there, his smile bright and adorable even on his bad days. 
He often stopped at the playground after his nightly bike rides. He thought meeting you there, on the tired swing set, had been the best stroke of luck of his entire life. 
Soon, it became a tradition to tell you ‘hi’ when he saw you sitting on the swing as he was passing by. Then he started taking breaks every time he got to the playground, hoping that you’d show up as well. And then, before long, the two of you met up there almost every night, talking about everything and nothing, eating convenience store snacks and trying to coax passing stray cats to be your friends (they never did agree though). 
On this night again, Jeno biked through the park, coming to a halt when he saw your familiar figure. 
“Hey,” he called out as he approached and you offered him a smile as you often did. “Isn’t it cold?”
“Just cold enough,” you replied and continued swinging. “How was your ride?”
“A little more slippery than usual,” he admitted and took his usual seat in the swing next to yours, kicking his tired feet a little for some momentum. “There are a lot of leaves and puddles around. I almost slipped twice” He sighed in defeat. “I don’t think they clean the streets a lot.”
You chuckled. “Might have to start carrying around a rake yourself.”
“Do not tempt me,” he joked. “How was your day?” He sat up straighter all of a sudden, eyes wide. “Oh! Didn’t you have that academic writing seminar today? How was it?”
You shrugged. “It was fine.”
He smiled at that. “Wasn’t as bad as you thought it would be, huh?” You nodded somewhat shamefully, well aware of the nonsensical panic you had rambled to him about just the night before. He clicked his tongue. “If only someone had told you so…”
“If only,” you played along and kicked your feet a little harder to swing higher than him. He gasped theatrically at that before following suit. Soon your laughter echoed between the trees, alerting passers-by of your joyful presence. 
As your feet grew tired, however, (much faster than Jeno’s, as much as it pained you to admit), you slowed down again. You watched him for a while as he kept swinging, the cold autumn breeze messing up his fluffy hair. 
“Hey, Jeno?” you found yourself asking. 
He hummed in response. 
“What’s your biggest fear?”
He answered without missing a beat, “Bears.”
You snorted. “What?”
“What?” he retorted, slowing down so he could calmly explain, “They’re freaking terrifying. Why are they so big? Why are they everywhere? Why do they eat everything? You can’t even run away from a bear because it out-runs, out-swims and out-climbs you. Absolutely fucking terrifying.”
“I–” You had to admit he had a point.”Okay, so, I meant from a more psychological, existential point of view. Like, is there some kind of a life event you’re afraid of?” Seeing his puzzled expression, you added, “I’m terrified of life after graduation, for example. The uncertainty of the future.”
“Oh.” He paused to think, staring up at the starry sky. He then nodded and looked at you again. “Bears.”
“Jeno,” you laughed, “I’m serious.”
“Okay, okay,” he chuckled and took a moment to really think about it. “I guess… Confessing my feelings?”
“To who?”
“There just is one person.” He smiled to himself and you felt a pang of jealousy as you realised how much he must’ve adored this person. But then his smile faded, becoming just a quirk of his lips but not quite reaching his eyes anymore. He sighed. “But I don’t think they like me back.”
“Why do you think that?” you wondered. “You’re a great guy.”
He shrugged solemnly. “Maybe. But am I a great guy for them? Am I what they look for in a guy? Or am I just a hopeless romantic who’s never meant to be more than a friend?”
“That’s a depressing thought,” you muttered out loud without really meaning to. “I mean, if you have those thoughts every time you have a crush, will you ever find the courage to actually find someone to spend your life with?”
He groaned at the thought, his head falling back as if it was getting heavier by the minute. “Don’t do this to me. It’s, like, 10 pm. I am not in the mood for a therapy session.”
“Sorry,” you whispered and reached over to pat his shoulder. He leaned his head forward again, resting his cheek against your hand. “If it counts for anything, I think you’re great. I’ll always be your friend, whether you find that someone or not.”
Jeno’s breath hitched at that. “You mean that?”
“Of course.” Even if it kills me inside to never be more than that to you. 
He bit his lip, nearly drawing blood, before sitting up properly and looking you in the eyes. “We can’t be friends anymore.”
Your life seemed to flash before your eyes. “What?”
“Wait,” Jeno lifted a hand, folding all fingers but his pointer, his eyes squeezing shut painfully, “that sounded really wrong. I’m– Uh… Let me try again.”
You weren’t sure you wanted him to try again.
“(Y/n),” he took a deep breath and forced his eyes open again, “I don’t want to be your friend.” 
He paused, trying to find the words to say before you lost all hope in him and walked away. To be fair, you were on the verge of doing just that. He grabbed your hand to prevent you from doing so. 
“I want to be more than that,” he breathed out, his hand shaking in around yours, “I want to be the person whose home you go to at the end of the day, whose bed you take your afternoon naps in, whose arms you run to when you celebrate something. I want to be the person who knows all your favourite songs, all your embarrassing childhood stories, all your favourite snacks. I want to be your person.”
Your brain worked double-time to process the information. With wide eyes, you pointed at yourself. “I’m the person you like?”
He nodded, a tight smile on his face. “I like you.”
“Why?” you couldn’t help but ask, unable to believe someone like him – a varsity athlete, a straight-A student, the face of the university’s soccer team, a man carved by the angels – could have feelings for you at all.
He chuckled. “How could I not? You’re amazing.”
“But… I’m just me and you’re–”
“Don’t pull the rom-com lines on me, please,” he whispered, squeezing his eyes shut. “Just rip the band-aid off and reject me.”
You frowned. “But I don’t want to reject me.”
His eyes opened, sparkling under the streetlight. “You don’t?”
You shook your head and smiled at him. “No.”
“Then…” He let out a noise of confusion as his face scrunched up in thought. “What? You really– You like me back?” 
You nodded and it made him spiral even more. “Are you sure? You don’t have to pity-confess. I’m fine. I’m a big boy. I can handle rejection. Don’t– Don’t play with my feelings like that… They’re–” His voice cracked. “They’re fragile. I’m… fragile.”
“I really like you too,” you confessed, squeezing his hand. “I think you’re amazing too.”
He blinked rapidly, unable to fight the smile appearing on his face. “You– Me– Like– Oh my god, I could cry.” He let out a giddy giggle – much resembling a little kid getting told he could have ice cream for breakfast – before reaching for your other hand as well. Once had both of your hands in his, he cleared his throat. “Then, and I can’t believe I get to ask this, but– uhm– Can I be your boyfriend?”
When you matched his giggle and nodded, he swore he would remember this exact moment for the rest of his life and cherish it as his most precious one: your bright smile and star-filled eyes, complete with the autumn leaves flying by in the background. 
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A/N: the fact that i've been an nctzen since 2019 and this is my second ever uploaded nct fic is a little concerning tbh
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sharkneto · 4 months ago
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hi!!!! I was rereading the shifting mirrors and holding it together since you finished joining together recently (it’s SO good, it’s so so SO good, your writing is always so well done and flows so well) and I had a couple questions. Sorry if this is weird - if you don’t want to answer them feel free to ignore this ask, I’m just curious!
1.) did you start writing joining together while you were still posting holding it together? a lot of the details I noticed in HIT were referenced in JT, and I was just kind of like ‘that’s a LOT of details to remember’ so I was wondering if you were working backwards !!
2.) have you ever thought about what happens at the end of HIT? do you think they would actually end up stopping the apocalypse, or would the commission try to come and correct them? I thought that was interesting - that the commission said they were done with five, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re done with the offshoot timeline ; if they hadn’t interfered prior, that would mean they were still on track for an apocalypse, right ? I like to speculate about this. with sheer strength of will I think that five would probably end up stopping it, mostly because he knows how to work through his rage rather than act on impulse again - and now he has the knowledge to try and connect the others so that viktor doesn’t feel so isolated.
3.) what was your favorite part of writing the story / what kept you motivated to keep it going ? I’ve started a couple chaptered fics, and then I get three or four chapters in and lose it completely.
I love, love, love the world youve created - I love the characters youve built and the personalities behind them. the dedication youve held on to to keep the series going is admirable; I can barely write 20k, much less hundreds of thousands of words. I was actually thinking of asking your permission to maybe write an offshoot of your offshoot (it might be the thing that gets me back into writing for tua) but idk if I’d have the imagination or creativity to make it nearly as compelling and fun as yours. Congratulations and great work on finishing it !! <333
this got long - feel free to ignore it if it’s overstepping or weird, lol !! I hope you’re doing well - have a great night, shark :)
Hey Toby! Glad you enjoyed it all so much and thanks for the kind words! It's a little surreal to have it done, JT has been a WIP almost as long as I've been into TUA.
I started writing JT before HIT. This whole series was supposed to be a Just For Me Fun Project while I rotted alone during the pandemic that I ended up sharing with permission from orsumfenix and encouragement from friends. I was a bit into JT, I think, when I started thinking about how fun it would be to get more siblings in here, and those musing became HIT. HIT got posted first because it had a lower barrier for entry, with more focus on the Hargreeves we know instead of OCs. So, because the stories were written more-or-less simultaneously, it was easy to reference one or set up something for the other. Working forwards and backwards, with the end of JT already written (in a rough draft) when I was writing HIT, so I knew where Rob, Sarah, and Number were coming off of at that point. (The tiny detail I'm most fond of is Allison in HIT noting that Number broke his nose at some point, and then in JT we get to see the stupid scenario in which he broke his nose.)
(rest under a readmore because I ramble)
I do have thoughts on what happens after HIT! More of a time jump, to Number's Apocalypse Week, and I've got words in a WIP started about that (and a few snips shared in my snip tag, although some I think I've changed some of the details, now). It goes... less smoothly than it should, for a guy who has (almost) all the details he needs. If motivation continues, I'll share that eventually. If it doesn't, I'll word-vomit an outline so at least people who are interested can know how it goes down. I don't see the Commission coming back - the people obsessed with Five are dead, and the organization is done with him. They don't have the resources to spare to keep going after him, so at least in Five and Number's timelines, they're out of the Commission's scope.
What kept me going was a combo of things. 2020-2022ish, I had a fuckton of time. I only worked three days a week because of covid protocols, I couldn't go anywhere because of covid, and I couldn't see anyone because of covid. I had four days a week to fill, and a lot of that time got filled with writing - all of HIT and the first draft of JT happened during this time, plus all the other fics I published throughout that time. What kept me going is that I was having a ton of fun writing and fun interacting with other people about my fics. Love, love, love talking about them (so never apologize for an ask like this, every fic writer is begging for an excuse to ramble like this). I liked thinking about the characters, thinking about Number doing mundane things I was doing made them more interesting, I liked thinking about Rob and Sarah's little romcom life, and I'm fascinated by Five's whole deal. My favorite part of writing these is Five (both versions of him) - thinking about him and how he'd react to x or y, how others react to him. I love that, at his core, he's kind of a loser. I love what an incredible vehicle for grief he is. He's a character of all time for me.
How to keep going, I don't have an easy answer for it. Some people outline, so they have the skeleton of what they're doing and where they're going. I'm not one of those people, I have an idea of the general shape and trajectory of the story and go from there, splitting up chapters as needed. I think it's important to not force it, or the writer's block gets worse and then you're stressed about writing instead of having fun with it, and that's no good - the point is to have fun. If you run out of steam, you run out of steam and you have to take a six-month hiatus until life calms down and you have words again (as a hypothetical example). Don't be afraid to poke at other ideas even if you have a giant fic unfinished. For having 25 fics on AO3, I have 35 other WIP files on my computer. Some of them have a couple hundred words, some have tens of thousands of words, some of them I'll come back to finish, some of them I won't. Such is life - some ideas have legs, others don't. I don't set out thinking "Oh this fic is going to be 50k words with 10 chapters". I just write until it feels done; sometimes that's 2k words, sometimes it's almost 200k words. The point I'm trying to make, here, is that we're all just fucking around having fun, and words flow easier when I'm remembering that and not stressing about being done or trying to finish for a self-imposed deadline. You've got it :)
Feel free to write in my little world! Would love to see what others are thinking about, what stuck with them. Just give me (and orsumfenix, if you use Number) a shoutout if you share it! And don't sell yourself short - I'm sure you've got great ideas and the chops to write them out. Don't compare yourself to me; you might write in a world I helped shape, but you've got your own voice and style to give it. I, for one (if you end up writing and sharing it), would love to hear your version of it all :)
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oolahx · 2 months ago
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I am very intrigued by your revert au, do you have any rambles about it you'd like to share?? Your designs are rly cool and I cannot wait to see how the story goes!
Oh my gods i've been *waiting* to ramble about my au, haven't had the opportunity yet!
So basically! The idea started on my first playthrough (like a month ago, maybe). When it was time to choose between sacrificing the Lamb or fighting Narinder I wondered what would happen if I just straight up sacrificed them. So I did. And then I loaded my file again and the Lamb just respawned.
That got me wondering a bit. Why would the Lamb resurrect when The One Who Waits already got what he wanted? The Lamb isn't a god yet at this point and Narinder wouldn't resurrect them without the Red Crown in his possession.
So the idea of the Au first started. It's entirely based on this concept.
Ngl the "revert" i got from google translate as a definition "to return, repeat" (and it sounded cool!)
As for the story of my AU (don't know how much I want to say now, if I want to reveal everything or keep some of the mystery lol)
I imagine my Lamb (named Ellis, btw) to be really devoted to TOWW. They have to be, to sacrifice themselves countless times. They always preached about him in their sermons and raised statues in his name, refusing their own idols raised by the followers. At first they treated their followers like their family, but as time passed and they kept dying off, they became detached, only showing their true self to their first follower, Meranno. (He is a follower which I have a planned comic for, lol, so I won't say too much about him yet)
As years went by, Ellis and Narinder grew closer, spending hours in death's domain to talk and just be in each other's presence. (Some feelings grew, wink wink)
After the first failed sacrifice, Lamb was confused. They tried again immediately. They failed. By talking with their flock they learned that no time has really passed. They took their time before trying again.
They failed.
The cycle repeated for some time, each more desperate than the last. It always failed. In the back of their mind, Ellis began to feel some creeping presence. *Eyes* watching them. Not Narinder's. Not the twins'. Not their flock. Something incomprehensible to them yet.
With each failure their body changed bit by bit. Red markings appearing on their face one by one. Their horns growing longer. Their hooves darkening.
The Lamb wanted to feel disturbed, wanted to feel afraid of the changes, yet they knew they couldn't really hate their God's powers. (But was it really his power?)
On their 56th try in the Death's domain they were desperate to stop the cycle. So for the first time... They refused. Their death was quick, not even being able to summon the weapon.
On the 83rd attempt they succeeded.
Hmmm what, else what else...
Aym and Baal definitely grew fond of the Lamb, just as they did of them!
I really don't want to spoil too much, but I hope I sated some of your curiosity!
The AU is very much work in progress, I'm mostly making lore up as I go, but I have a stet plan up to a certain point!
Can't promise I will be updating regularly, but I will certainly try.
Thank you for asking and for listening to my rambles~
Toodaloo
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faffreux · 1 year ago
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can you tell us about when you fell in love with fawful? :)
Yep. In fact, I'll write a whole mini essay for you so I can add it to the FAQ section of my website coming up shortly LMAO (SINCE I NEED TO FULLY ANSWER THIS QUESTION FOR THERE ANYWAY, RIGHT???) CLICK UNDER THE READ MORE TO SEE IT BECAUSE THIS IS GOING TO BE THE LONGEST THING I'VE EVER POSTED HERE, LMAO.
To preface, I have been a fan of the M&L games going back to the early-mid 2000s when I was a kid. I had no involvement with fandom or anything of the sort back then but I used to hop on my mom's bulky computer and look up fanart and other related content as early as 2004/5 and as a result, ended up captivated by the characters long before I knew who they actually were. (As a result of this, I have the names and art styles of various old M&L fandom creators permanently ingrained in my head and often wonder where they are today since a good deal of them vanished..!) It wasn't until 2006 that I got my first handheld console (DS Lite) and of course, what did I do? Immediately begged my mom to order me a used GBA copy of Superstar Saga. 
When I finally had the game in my hands it was like coming home to a colorful world that I'd been captivated by for so long but never gotten the chance to actually explore until now. The characters felt like old friends and the Beanbean Kingdom as a location felt familiar and comforting to me. (As a side note, Popple quickly became my favorite. Shocker, right?)
I used to sketch various beans in my notebooks as well as on printer paper we had lying around the house. Long story short, I finished Superstar Saga and then a few years later in 2010 I picked up Bowser’s Inside Story and THAT’S WHEN THINGS SHIFTED–
BIS brought Fawful and his personality to life in a way that captivated my imagination like nothing else had prior. He quickly overtook Popple as my favorite character from then on forward… and that’s where it ends! Or.. is it?
Nah, that’s where it gets funky. Life got a little chaotic after that and not only did I stop playing video games altogether for many years, but I also almost completely gave up on art - the one thing I was most passionate about above all and thought I would make a career out of someday. A series of depressing events caused me to lose all hope and motivation for anything I created and the spark I’d kept inside of me for so long all but died out as a result.
We’re going to timeskip again, this time to late 2019. I’d just moved away from home permanently for the first time and had been getting settled in and no matter what I did to make my new apartment a cozy place it always felt like something was missing. My mind would keep wandering to the fact that I never made art anymore despite it having been such a key part of my life when I was younger. I so desperately wanted to change this and over the next few months the frustration only kept growing until on January 1st, 2020, I sat down in the living room with a pencil and paper in my hand and shut my eyes tightly before saying under my breath:
“I do not care what it is, I don’t care how it comes. Just please… PLEASE send me something to bring my art back. Anything… anything at all. I don’t care what I draw, I just want to be drawing again.” And with that, I placed the lead onto the paper and began to sketch…
And from there… a familiar face appeared!
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(Now I could ramble to you about how much I do NOT like this drawing and how off model it is from how Fawful actually looks… but I’ll forgive myself since I hadn’t touched the M&L games in over a decade at this point and had forgotten most of Fawful’s character. And yet?? Here he was.)
How else can I explain it except that in that moment it felt like the pencil in my hand had suddenly become one of these:
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A joy that I hadn’t felt in SO long suddenly filled my entire being and without wasting another second, I immediately went online and ordered both Superstar Saga and Bowser’s Inside Story to replay again. In the time waiting for the games to arrive I had started drawing daily again - sketching out various old characters of mine with dozens of doodles of the bean man stacked in between them all.
There he was… always smiling, always happy to see me, and oftentimes with his arms outstretched as if to give an encouraging hug. When the games arrived I worked through them quicker than I ever had prior - finishing up Superstar Saga in less than a week and subsequently moving onto Bowser’s Inside Story with a LOT of excitement built up for it. 
It was my first day playing and I was having the time of my life! The way Fawful looked in his little grey cloak with that enormous, charming grin of his as he bamboozled Bowser into eating the Vaccuum Shroom had me giggling with joy while words repeated in my brain over and over of: “I need to draw this later, I NEED to draw this later!!!” I WAS EXCITED ABOUT ART AGAIN… AFTER ALL THESE YEARS. I was practically hopping in my seat from the happiness I felt in my heart and chest every time Fawful appeared at this point!
This was how it felt until the moment I arrived at the Fawful Theatre and watched as he began dancing on the stage floor. THIS time.. something different came over me. If you’ve felt it before, then you’ll know what I mean when I say that it was like my entire body turned warm all at once, like some sort of flame had been lit inside. I’d never felt it for anything or anyone prior to then, and that's partly why it hit me as hard as it did. I was practically sweating.
Heck, I was so absorbed in my feelings that I had forgotten there was anyone else in the room with me! That is.. Until my roommate at the time spoke up: 
Her: Are you alright? Me: Uhhh… yeah, why? Her: You’re red as a beet. Are you sure you’re okay?
By this time I had realized what was really going on so I reassured her I was fine, grabbed my 3DS, and ran to my room to finish the playthrough on my own so I wouldn’t embarrass myself any further, hahaha.
In the days, weeks, and months following that moment I became dedicated to drawing the best art of Fawful I could possibly create! What started as a challenge to myself to ‘give back’ to the person who’d given me back the ability to create again turned into someone I genuinely could not stop drawing for how much fun I was having doing it. The desire to make better and better art in order to honor him drove me to improve at a speed I never had prior, and soon thereafter I created Jolligig as a way for me to be in this colorful world with him and to express the deepening affection I was feeling for him with every day that passed by.
By some miracle, my prayer had been answered and here it was in the form of a grinning lima bean.
[End of Part 1. Interested in the rest? Yes… there’s more, I’m sorry. Please let me know in the comments. This took a while to write so I thought splitting it up would be best if folks are interested, LOL.]
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